bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Genomic structure, polymorphism and expression of ACCN1 and ACCN3 genes in the horse
Authors: Mata X. , Ducasse A. , Vaiman A. , Diribarne M. , Fraud A.‐S. , Guérin G. 
Published: November 2010

SummaryA category of cation gate proteins was shown to be present in sensory neurons and act as receptors of protons present in tissues such as muscles. The Amiloride‐sensitive Cation Channel, Neuronal (ACCN) gene family is known to play a role in the transmission of pain through specialized pH sensitive neurons. Muscles from horses submitted to strenuous exercises produce lactic acid, which may induce variable pain through ACCN differential properties. The sequences of the equine cDNAs were determined to be 2.6 kb in length with an open reading frame of 1539 bp for ACCN1 and 2.1 kb in length with an open reading frame of 1602 bp for ACCN3. The ACCN1 gene is 990 kb long and contains 10 exons, and the ACCN3 gene is 4.2 kb long and contains 11 exons. The equine ACCN1 and ACCN3 genes have an ubiquitous expression but ACCN1 is more highly expressed in the spinal cord. We identified one alternative ACCN3 splicing variant present in various equine tissues. These mRNA variants may encode two different protein isoforms 533 and 509 amino acids long. Ten single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were detected for ACCN1; five in the coding and five in the non‐coding region, with no amino acid change, while the three SNPs identified in the coding region of the ACCN3 gene introduce amino acid changes. The equine in silico promoter sequence reveals a structure similar to those of other mammalian species, especially for the ACCN1 gene.
Characteristics of Staphylococcus aureus colonization in patients with atopic dermatitis in Sri Lanka
Authors: Gomes P. L. R. , Malavige G. N. , Fernando N. , Mahendra M. H. R. , Kamaladasa S. D. , Seneviratne J. K. K. , Karunatilaka D. H. , Ogg G. S. 
Published: November 2010

Summary
Background. Colonization of the skin of patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) by Staphylococcus aureus (SA) is associated with more severe disease.
Aim. To determine the association of SA colonization patterns and densities in lesional and nonlesional skin in patients with varying severities of AD, and to determine the antibiotic sensitivity patterns of SA isolates from Sri Lanka.
Methods. Skin and nasal swabs collected from 100 patients with AD and 120 controls were used to investigate the presence of SA. Severity of AD was graded using the Nottingham Eczema Severity Score. Colony counts were obtained for skin samples, and antibiotic sensitivity testing was performed in cases positive for SA.
Results. Skin colonization was seen in 57 patients (57%) but in only 10 controls (8%). Lesional skin of most patients (52/57; 91%) had SA densities of &gt; 300 colony-forming units/cm2. Colonization rates with SA significantly increased with increasing age (Spearman correlation coefficient R = 0.9, P &lt; 0.05) and increasing duration of lesions in patients with AD (Spearman R = 0.87, P &lt; 0.05). Isolates from eight patients (13.5%) were found to be methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA). Only 6 isolates (10%) were susceptible to penicillin and 22 (37%) to erythromycin, while 28 (47%) isolates had erythromycin-induced resistance to clindamycin.
Conclusions. SA colonization rates were significantly associated with increasing age and severity of AD, and particularly with duration of lesions. Patients with severe disease were also more likely to be colonized with SA strains resistant to conventional antibiotics.
Curcumin induces maturation-arrested dendritic cells that expand regulatory T cellsin vitroandin vivo
Authors: Rogers N M , Kireta S , Coates P T H 
Published: November 2010

SummaryDendritic cells (DC) and regulatory T cells (Tregs) are vital to the development of transplant tolerance. Curcumin is a novel biological agent extracted from Curcuma longa (turmeric), with anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant activity mediated via nuclear factor (NF)-κB inhibition. We investigated the immunomodulatory effects of curcumin on human monocyte-derived and murine DC. Human monocyte-derived DC (hu-Mo-DC) were generated in the presence (CurcDC) or absence (matDC) of 25 µM curcumin, and matured using lipopolysaccharide (1 µg/ml). DC phenotype and allostimulatory capacity was assessed. CD11c+ DC were isolated from C57BL/6 mice, pretreated with curcumin and injected into BALB/c mice, followed by evaluation of in vivo T cell populations and alloproliferative response. Curcumin induced DC differentiation towards maturation-arrest. CurcDC demonstrated minimal CD83 expression (&lt;2%), down-regulation of CD80 and CD86 (50% and 30%, respectively) and reduction (10%) in both major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II and CD40 expression compared to matDC. CurcDC also displayed decreased RelB and interleukin (IL)-12 mRNA and protein expression. Functionally, CurcDC allostimulatory capacity was decreased by up to 60% (P &lt; 0·001) and intracellular interferon (IFN-γ) expression in the responding T cell population were reduced by 50% (P &lt; 0·05). T cell hyporesponsiveness was due to generation of CD4+CD25hiCD127loforkhead box P3 (FoxP3)+ Tregs that exerted suppressive functions on naïve syngeneic T cells, although the effect was not antigen-specific. In mice, in vivo infusion of allogeneic CurcDC promoted development of FoxP3+ Tregs and reduced subsequent alloproliferative capacity. Curcumin arrests maturation of DC and induces a tolerogenic phenotype that subsequently promotes functional FoxP3+ Tregsin vitro and in vivo.
Sequence stratigraphic interpretation of a Pennsylvanian (Upper Carboniferous) coal from the central Appalachian Basin, USA
Authors: JERRETT RHODRI M. , FLINT STEPHEN S. , DAVIES ROY C. , HODGSON DAVID M. 
Published: November 2010

AbstractPeat mires retain a sensitive record of water‐table (base‐level) fluctuations throughout their accumulation. On this basis, coals provide one of the best opportunities to interpret high‐resolution base‐level change in ancient non‐marine deposits. The petrographic composition of 275 samples collected from 11 localities along a 100 km south‐west to north‐east transect across the regionally extensive (>37 000 km2) Pennsylvanian (Upper Carboniferous) Fire Clay coal of the Central Appalachian Basin, USA was analysed to determine its internal stratigraphy. The coal is positioned within the late lowstand/early transgressive systems tract of a fourth‐order depositional sequence. The results of the petrographic analyses reveal a cyclicity in the composition of the Fire Clay coal, which defines six units that are correlated over more than 100 km. Each coal cycle is characterized by a gradual upward transition from vitrinite‐dominated to inertinite‐dominated coal, which represents a ‘drying‐up’ succession. Increased concentrations of resistant peat components at the top of the drying‐up successions indicate reduced peat accumulation rates associated with slowing rate of water‐table rise, and may represent a residue of peat remaining from a phase of exposure and erosion resulting from a falling water table. These drying‐up successions are bound by surfaces that display an abrupt coal facies shift from inertinite‐rich to vitrinite‐rich coal, representing a rapid water‐table rise. Each cycle represents markedly different mire conditions with different aerial distributions, which supports the notion of temporal disconnection between each unit of coal, and suggests that considerable time may be ‘locked‐up’ in unit bounding exposure surfaces. Recognition that the rate of peat accumulation in a mire may vary considerably through time, has important implications for studies which assume that peat and coal successions provide continuous and time‐invariant records of base‐level fluctuations or palaeoecological change.
Build‐up and depositional dynamics of an arc front volcaniclastic complex: the Miocene Tepoztlán Formation (Transmexican Volcanic Belt, Central Mexico)
Authors: LENHARDT NILS , HORNUNG JENS , HINDERER MATTHIAS , BÖHNEL HARALD , TORRES‐ALVARADO IGNACIO S. , TRAUTH NICO 
Published: November 2010

AbstractVolcanic terrains such as magmatic arcs are thought to display the most complex surface environments on Earth. Ancient volcaniclastics are notoriously difficult to interpret as they describe the interplay between a single or several volcanoes and the environment. The Early Miocene Tepoztlán Formation at the southern edge of the Transmexican Volcanic Belt belongs to the few remnants of this ancestral magmatic arc, and therefore is thought to represent an example of the initial phase of evolution of the Transmexican Volcanic Belt. Based on geological mapping, detailed logging of lithostratigraphic sections, palaeocurrent data of sedimentary features and anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility, mapping of two‐dimensional panels from outcrop to field scale, and geochronological data in an area of ca 1000 km2, three periods in the evolution of the Tepoztlán Formation were distinguished, which lasted around 4 Myr and are representative of a volcanic cycle (edifice growth phases followed by collapse) in a magmatic arc setting. The volcaniclastic sediments accumulated in proximal to medial distances on partly coalescing aprons, similar to volcanic ring plains, around at least three different stratovolcanoes. These volcanoes resulted from various eruptions separated by repose periods. During the first phase of the evolution of the Tepoztlán Formation (22·8 to 22·2 Ma), deposition was dominated by fluvial sediments in a braided river setting. Pyroclastic material from small, andesitic–dacitic composite volcanoes in the near vicinity was mostly eroded and reworked by fluvial processes, resulting in sediments ranging from cross‐bedded sand to an aggradational series of river gravels. The second phase (22·2 to 21·3 Ma) was characterized by periods of strong volcanic activity, resulting in voluminous accumulations of lava and tuff, which temporarily overloaded and buried the original fluvial system with its detritus. Continuous build‐up of at least three major volcanic centres further accentuated the topography and, in the third phase (21·3 to 18·8 Ma), mass flow processes, represented by an increase of debris flow deposits, became dominant, marking a period of edifice destruction and flank failures.
A national clinical scenario‐based survey of clinicians' attitudes towards fresh frozen plasma transfusion for critically ill patients
Authors: Watson D. M. , Stanworth S. J. , Wyncoll D. , McAuley D. F. , Perkins G. D. , Young D. , Biggin K. J. , Walsh T. S. 
Published: November 2010

Background: It is known that 20–30% of fresh frozen plasma (FFP) is used in intensive care units (ICUs), but little is known about variations in decision making between clinicians in relation to coagulopathy management. Our aim was to describe ICU clinicians' beliefs and practice in relation to FFP treatment of non‐bleeding coagulopathic critically ill patients. Methods: Two patient‐based scenarios were developed and sent to 2700 members of two UK intensive care professional societies. Scenario 1 was a non‐bleeding septic patient with coagulopathy; scenario 2 was a non‐bleeding critically ill patient with hepatic cirrhosis and coagulopathy. Responses were sought in relation to FFP prophylaxis, and prior to central venous cannulation. A supplementary question asked clinicians' view of prophylaxis in relation to other ICU procedures. Results: Two‐thousand‐and‐seven‐hundred clinicians were surveyed from whom 601 responses were received (22·3% response rate). For scenario 1 52% of respondents stated that they would never routinely administer prophylactic FFP, but this decreased to 9% when central venous cannulation was planned (P < 0·01). There was wide variation in the ‘trigger’ INR (international normalised ratio) value used prior to central vein cannulation, the most common range being 2·0–2·4. For scenario 2, responses were very similar. More than 80% of clinicians stated that they would routinely treat coagulopathy prior to lumbar puncture, epidural catheterisation, intracranial pressure monitoring and tracheostomy; and 54% prior to chest drain insertion. Conclusion: Our survey demonstrated a wide range of responses consistent with important variations in clinical practice and substantial clinical uncertainty in relation to FFP treatment for non‐bleeding ICU patients.
Determination of burnout levels of nurses working in stem cell transplantation units in Turkey
Authors: Akkuş Yeliz , Karacan Yasemin , Göker Hakan , Aksu Salih 
Published: November 2010

AbstractAlthough burnout has been researched widely with regard to nurses working in different settings, until now it has not been investigated among stem cell transplantation unit nurses. This study's aim was to determine the burnout level of 57 nurses who were working in stem cell transplantation units in Turkey. The research instruments that were used included a form of demographic characteristics and the Maslach Burnout Inventory. For all the hematopoietic stem cell transplantation nurses, the mean subscale scores for emotional exhaustion were the highest, followed by personal accomplishment and then depersonalization. The burnout level rose with increasing age and duration on the job. Interventions to reduce burnout are needed at both the administrative and organizational levels. In addition, it is essential to address and prevent the problems that are related to burnout, especially among nurses who work in the same unit for a long time.
Penetrating thoraco‐abdominal injuries: the Auckland City Hospital experience
Authors: Bhagvan Savitha , Ng Alexander , Civil Ian 
Published: November 2010

AbstractBackground:  Penetrating injuries to the thoraco‐abdominal region are rare in New Zealand. Most are low velocity wounds and are managed by general surgeons. However, injuries to major vascular structures and the heart are best managed by a multidisciplinary approach.Methods:  In Auckland, the cardiothoracic service was located at a different site to Auckland City Hospital (ACH) prior to December 2003. In December 2003, the cardiothoracic unit relocated to ACH. To determine what changes in practice eventuated from having an on‐site cardiothoracic service, we reviewed all patients who had thoraco‐abdominal injuries between 1998 and 2003 and subsequently.Results:  There were 60 patients with thoraco‐abdominal penetrating injury between December 1998 and December 2003 (Group A), and 42 patients between December 2003 and September 2008 (Group B). Twelve patients in Group A and 13 patients in Group B underwent thoracotomy. Twenty‐two patients in Group A and 27 patients in Group B required operations other than thoracotomy for their injuries. There was a trend of increasing involvement of cardiothoracic surgeons post‐2003, in those patients undergoing thoracotomy, but not in the non‐thoracotomy patients. There were six re‐explorations in thoracotomy patients in the pre‐2003 era: done for bleeding (3), air leak following lung resection (1) and missed cardiac injuries (2), but none in post‐2003 period. There was one death in Group A but none in Group B.Conclusions:  Our study demonstrates that a properly trained general surgeon can make appropriate decisions and perform life‐saving surgery in thoraco‐abdominal stab wounds. However, the on‐site availability of cardiothoracic surgeons leads to surgery with fewer complications.
Clinicopathological analysis and prognostic significance of peritoneal cytology in Chinese patients with advanced gastric cancer
Authors: Jiang Cheng‐Gang , Xu Yan , Wang Zhen‐Ning , Sun Zhe , Liu Fu‐Nan , Yu Miao , Xu Hui‐Mian 
Published: November 2010

AbstractBackground:  The influence of peritoneal cytology on survival of patients with gastric cancer has not been consistent. This study was to identify risk factors for positive peritoneal cytology and to evaluate the predictive value of positive cytology among Chinese patients with advanced gastric cancer.Methods:  The study included 139 patients with gastric cancer macroscopically invading the serosa, who underwent gastrectomy and intra‐operative peritoneal cytological examination. In these patients, the relationship between cytological positivity and various clinicopathological features was analysed, and survival analysis was performed to identify independent prognostic factors of significance.Results:  Thirty‐eight (27.3%) of 139 patients had positive peritoneal cytology. Although tumour size, lymphovascular invasion, depth of tumour invasion, lymph node metastasis and peritoneal metastasis were correlated with positive cytology, multivariate analysis revealed the depth of tumour invasion and peritoneal metastasis as the independent features affecting the cytology. Patients with a positive cytology result were confirmed to have a greater risk for recurrence in the pattern of peritoneal carcinomatosis and a significant inferior prognosis. Multivariate analysis indicated that positive peritoneal cytology was an independent prognostic factor among the curatively resected patients with advanced gastric cancer and was the prognostic factor most predictive of death for these patients (risk ratio = 2.74).Conclusions:  Positive peritoneal cytology correlated with advanced features of gastric cancer. It is an independent poor prognostic factor, and it may serve as a guide for adjuvant therapeutic options to improve the survival of gastric cancer.
Modification and validation of the Revised Diabetes Knowledge Scale
Authors: Collins G. S. , Mughal S. , Barnett A. H. , Fitzgerald J. , Lloyd C. E. 
Published: November 2010

Diabet. Med. 28, 306–310 (2011)AbstractObjectives  To develop a simplified true/false response format of the Revised Diabetes Knowledge Scale and assess scaling assumptions, reliability and validity of the binary response format (the Simplified Diabetes Knowledge Scale) and compare with a multiple‐choice version.Methods  Ninety‐nine respondents attending an outpatient clinic completed the multiple‐choice version of the Revised Diabetes Knowledge Scale and the simplified version of the Revised Diabetes Knowledge Scale. The response patterns and psychometric properties of both questionnaires were assessed in order to test the construct validity of the simplified version.Results  The mean age of the respondents was 57 years (range 21–83 years) and 64% were men. Respondents attained an average score of 65% on the Simplified Diabetes Knowledge Scale, compared with 62% on the Revised Diabetes Knowledge Scale. Overall, the Simplified Diabetes Knowledge Scale appeared to be somewhat easier to complete compared with the Revised Diabetes Knowledge Scale, as indicated by the number of missing responses.Conclusions  The Simplified Diabetes Knowledge Scale provides researchers with a brief and simple diabetes knowledge questionnaire with favourable psychometric properties. The scale may require further updating to include other items relevant to diabetes education. This simplified version will now undergo translation and validation for use among minority ethnic groups resident in the UK.
An empirical examination of the editorial review processes of accounting journals
Authors: Adler Ralph , Liyanarachchi Gregory 
Published: November 2010

AbstractThis study examines the editorial review processes of a broad set of widely circulated and read English‐language academic accounting journals. It reports findings for individual journals, as well as clusters of journals that have been categorised by the geographical region of their editorial offices and functional specialty. A survey‐based study was used. Authors who had papers accepted at one of the 38 accounting journals during the period 2004–2005 were asked to comment on their experiences with the editorial review process. The authors were also separately asked to comment on the editorial review process of a journal in which they received their most recent manuscript rejection. While the average author experience with the editorial review process was perceived as slightly favourable, significant differences were observed between journals, journal specialty (e.g. accounting and finance, management accounting, etc.), location of editorial review offices and accepted versus rejected manuscript experiences. These more granular findings reveal that some journals, and clusters of journals, were perceived to stand out from the rest.
AN EMPIRICAL LIKELIHOOD APPROACH FOR NON‐GAUSSIAN VECTOR STATIONARY PROCESSES AND ITS APPLICATION TO MINIMUM CONTRAST ESTIMATION
Authors: Ogata Hiroaki , Taniguchi Masanobu 
Published: November 2010

SummaryWe develop the empirical likelihood approach for a class of vector‐valued, not necessarily Gaussian, stationary processes with unknown parameters. In time series analysis, it is known that the Whittle likelihood is one of the most fundamental tools with which to obtain a good estimator of unknown parameters, and that the score functions are asymptotically normal. Motivated by the Whittle likelihood, we apply the empirical likelihood approach to its derivative with respect to unknown parameters. We also consider the empirical likelihood approach to minimum contrast estimation based on a spectral disparity measure, and apply the approach to the derivative of the spectral disparity.This paper provides rigorous proofs on the convergence of our two empirical likelihood ratio statistics to sums of gamma distributions. Because the fitted spectral model may be different from the true spectral structure, the results enable us to construct confidence regions for various important time series parameters without assuming specified spectral structures and the Gaussianity of the process.
Partial ordering of information granulations: a further investigation
Authors: Qian Yuhua , Dang Chuangyin , Liang Jiye , Wu Weizhi 
Published: November 2010

AbstractThe notion of information systems provides a convenient tool for knowledge representation of objects in terms of their attribute values, while partial ordering is usually used to research the rough monotonicity of an uncertainty measure in information systems. In this paper, we first reveal the limitations of existing partial orderings to describe information granulations in information systems with several illustrative examples. Then, a generalized partial ordering with a set‐size nature is proposed to overcome their shortcoming and some of its important properties are derived. Finally, we prove that several existing information granulations all satisfy the granulation monotonicity induced by the proposed partial ordering. The presented partial ordering appears to be well suited to characterize the nature of information granulations in an information system. These results will be very helpful for studying granular computing and uncertainty in information systems.