bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Soil-transmitted helminth infections in Nigerian children aged 0–25 months
Authors: Kirwan P. , Asaolu S.O. , Abiona T.C. , Jackson A.L. , Smith H.V. , Holland C.V. 
Published: April 2009

AbstractThe objective of this cross-sectional study was to determine the prevalence and intensity of soil-transmitted helminths (STHs) in children aged 0–25 months and to identify the associated risk factors for Ascaris lumbricoides infections. The study was conducted in three villages outside Ile-Ife, Osun state, Nigeria in May/June 2005. Stool samples (369) were processed by formol-ether concentration. Ascaris lumbricoides (12.2%) was the dominant infection. Age, father's occupation and dog ownership were identified as the significant risk factors in the minimal adequate model for A. lumbricoides. The odds of being infected with A. lumbricoides increased as the children got older. Children aged 12–17 months and 18–25 months were 8.8 and 12.4 times, respectively, more likely to harbour Ascaris than those aged 7–11 months. The odds of harbouring Ascaris for children whose families owned a dog were 3.5 times that of children whose families did not own a dog. Children whose fathers were businessmen were 0.4 times less likely to be infected with Ascaris than those whose fathers were farmers. The findings from this study suggest that many of these young children, who are at a critical stage of development, are infected with Ascaris and that the prevalence of infection with this parasite increases with age. This study has highlighted the need to incorporate preschool children into deworming programmes in endemic regions and to investigate innovative ways of delivering cost-effective deworming treatment to this high-risk age group.
Avian schistosomes in French aquatic birds: a molecular approach
Authors: Jouet D. , Ferté H. , Hologne C. , Kaltenbach M.L. , Depaquit J. 
Published: April 2009

AbstractThe prevalence of human cercarial dermatitis (HCD) caused by bird schistosomes appears to be increasing in France, in light of the impact of tourism combined with high densities of wild aquatic hosts in freshwater areas. The present work expands our knowledge of schistosome systematics by including samples of bird schistosomes collected from their natural hosts in France. Heads (318) and viscera (81) of aquatic birds belonging to 16 species from five orders, collecting during the hunting seasons or found dead, were autopsied for nasal and visceral schistosomes. Eggs and/or adults were analysed by molecular methods using the D2 domain and the second internal transcribed spacer (ITS-2) region of rDNA to determine species. Even if nasal eggs were polymorphic according to the host, all haplotypes were similar to that ofTrichobilharzia regenti. Marked diversity of visceral species was observed. Final hosts under natural conditions were reported. For the first time,Trichobilharzia frankiis reported in its natural bird hosts,Anas platyrhynchos,Anas crecca,Aythya fuligulaandCygnus olor. We also identifiedT. szidatiinA. creccaandAnas clypeata.Bilharziella polonicawas found in six species of aquatic birds, includingGrus grus. This finding is the first record of bird schistosomes in this aquatic bird. Three new taxa of visceral schistosomes inAnser anserare strongly suspected according to their haplotypes. Futhermore, a new haplotype of visceral schistosomes isolated inCygnus olorand similar toAllobilharzia visceraliswas identified.
Differential effects on white-matter systems in high-functioning autism and Asperger's syndrome
Authors: McAlonan G. M. , Cheung C. , Cheung V. , Wong N. , Suckling J. , Chua S. E. 
Published: April 2009

BackgroundWhether autism spectrum maps onto a spectrum of brain abnormalities and whether Asperger's syndrome (ASP) is distinct from high-functioning autism (HFA) are debated. White-matter maldevelopment is associated with autism and disconnectivity theories of autism are compelling. However, it is unknown whether children with ASP and HFA have distinct white-matter abnormalities.MethodVoxel-based morphometry mapped white-matter volumes across the whole brain in 91 children. Thirty-six had autism spectrum disorder. A history of delay in phrase speech defined half with HFA; those without delay formed the ASP group. The rest were typically developing children, balanced for age, IQ, gender, maternal language and ethnicity. White-matter volumes in HFA and ASP were compared and each contrasted with controls.ResultsWhite-matter volumes around the basal ganglia were higher in the HFA group than ASP and higher in both autism groups than controls. Compared with controls, children with HFA had less frontal and corpus callosal white matter in the left hemisphere; those with ASP had less frontal and corpus callosal white matter in the right hemisphere with more white matter in the left parietal lobe.ConclusionsHFA involved mainly left hemisphere white-matter systems; ASP affected predominantly right hemisphere white-matter systems. The impact of HFA on basal ganglia white matter was greater than ASP. This implies that aetiological factors and management options for autism spectrum disorders may be distinct. History of language acquisition is a potentially valuable marker to refine our search for causes and treatments in autism spectrum.
Hospital admission for non-fatal poisoning with weak analgesics and risk for subsequent suicide: a population study
Authors: Qin P. , Jepsen P. , Nørgård B. , Agerbo E. , Mortensen P. B. , Vilstrup H. , Sørensen H. T. 
Published: April 2009

BackgroundPoisoning with weak analgesics is a major public health problem because of easy accessibility of the compounds; however, few studies have investigated their influence on subsequent suicide in the context of subjects' psychiatric status and other factors.MethodThis nested case-control study was based on the entire Danish population including all 21 169 suicide cases and 423 128 matched population controls. Data on hospital admissions for poisoning and confounding factors were retrieved from national medical and administrative registries. Conditional logistic regression was used to compute relative risk.ResultsA prior hospital admission for poisoning with weak non-opioid analgesics significantly increased the risk of subsequent suicide [crude incidence rate ratio (IRR) 24.7, 95% confidence interval (CI) 22.1–27.6], and the effect of paracetamol poisoning was substantially stronger than that of poisoning with salicylates or non-steriodal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). This association could not be explained by confounding from socio-economic or psychiatric factors. The elevated risk was extremely high during the first week following the overdose (adjusted IRR 738.9, 95% CI 173.9–3139.1), then declined over time but still remained significantly high 3 years later (adjusted IRR 4.2, 95% CI 3.5–5.0). Moreover, a history of weak analgesic poisoning significantly interacted with a person's psychiatric history, increasing the risk for subsequent suicide substantially more for persons with no history of psychiatric hospitalization than did it for those with such a history.ConclusionsA history of non-fatal poisoning with weak analgesics is a strong predictor for subsequent suicide. These results emphasize the importance of intensive psychiatric care of patients following overdose.
Design and control of a haptic interactive motion simulator for virtual entertainment systems
Authors: Karkoub M. , Her M.-G. , Chen J.-M. 
Published: April 2009

SUMMARYIn this paper, an interactive virtual reality motion simulator is designed and analyzed. The main components of the system include a bilateral control interface, networking, a virtual environment, and a motion simulator. The virtual reality entertainment system uses a virtual environment that enables the operator to feel the actual feedback through a haptic interface as well as the distorted motion from the virtual environment just as s/he would in the real environment. The control scheme for the simulator uses the change in velocity and acceleration that the operator imposes on the joystick, the environmental changes imposed on the motion simulator, and the haptic feedback to the operator to maneuver the simulator in the real environment. The stability of the closed-loop system is analyzed based on the Nyquist stability criteria. It is shown that the proposed design for the simulator system works well and the theoretical findings are validated experimentally.
Enhancement of histone acetylation by trichostatin A duringin vitrofertilization of bovine oocytes affects cell number of the inner cell mass of the resulting blastocysts
Authors: Ikeda Shuntaro , Tatemizo Atsuhiro , Iwamoto Daisaku , Taniguchi Shunji , Hoshino Yoichiro , Amano Tomoko , Matsumoto Kazuya , Hosoi Yoshihiko , Iritani Akira , Saeki Kazuhiro 
Published: April 2009

SummaryHistone acetylation is one of the major mechanisms of epigenetic reprogramming of gamete genomes after fertilization to establish a totipotent state for normal development. In the present study, the effects of trichostatin A (TSA), an inhibitor of histone deacetylase, duringin vitrofertilization (IVF) of bovine oocytes on subsequent embryonic development were investigated. Cumulus-enclosed oocytes obtained from slaughterhouse bovine ovaries were maturedin vitroand subjected to IVF in a defined medium supplemented with 0 (control), 5, 50, and 500 nM TSA for 18 h. After IVF, presumptive zygotes were cultured in modified synthetic oviductal fluid (mSOF) medium until 168 h postinsemination (hpi). Some oocytes were immunostained using antibody specific for histone H4-acetylated lysine 5 at 10 hpi. Cleavage, blastocyst development and cell number of inner cell mass (ICM) and trophectoderm (TE) of blastocysts were assessed. TSA treatment enhanced histone acetylation that was prominent in decondensed sperm nuclei. TSA did not affect the postfertilization cleavage, blastocyst rates, and TE cell number. However, it significantly enhanced ICM cell number (p< 0.05). These results indicate that TSA treatment during IVF of bovine oocytes does not affect blastocyst development but alters the cell number of ICM, suggesting that overriding epigenetic modification of the genome during fertilization has a carryover effect on cell proliferation and differentiation in preimplantation embryos. Thus, further environmental quality controls in assisted reproductive technologies are needed in terms of factors which affect chromatin remodelling.
Establishment of rat embryonic stem-like cells from the morula using a combination of feeder layers
Authors: Sano Chiaki , Matsumoto Asako , Sato Eimei , Fukui Emiko , Yoshizawa Midori , Matsumoto Hiromichi 
Published: April 2009

SummaryEmbryonic stem (ES) cells are characterized by pluripotency, in particular the ability to form a germline on injection into blastocysts. Despite numerous attempts, ES cell lines derived from rat embryos have not yet been established. The reason for this is unclear, although certain intrinsic biological differences among species and/or strains have been reported. Herein, using Wistar-Imamichi rats, specific characteristics of preimplantation embryos are described. At the blastocyst stage, Oct4 (also called Pou5f1) was expressed in both the inner cell mass (ICM) and the trophectoderm (TE), whereas expression of Cdx2 was localized to the TE. In contrast, at an earlier stage, expression of Oct4 was detected in all the nuclei in the morula. These stages were examined using a combination of feeder layers (rat embryonic fibroblast [REF] for primary outgrowth and SIM mouse embryo-derived thioguanine- and ouabain-resistant [STO] cells for passaging) to establish rat ES-like cell lines. The rat ES-like cell lines obtained from the morula maintained expression of Oct4 over long-term culture, whereas cell lines derived from blastocysts lost pluripotency during early passage. The morula-derived ES-like cell lines showed Oct4 expression in a long-term culture, even after cryogenic preservation, thawing and EGFP transfection. These results indicate that rat ES-like cell lines with long-term Oct4 expression can be established from the morula of Wistar-Imamichi rats using a combination of feeder layers.
A modified cryoloop vitrification protocol in the cryopreservation of mature mouse oocytes
Authors: Wang Zengyan , Sun Zhengyi , Chen Ying , He Fangfang 
Published: April 2009

SummaryIn this study, we examined a modified cryoloop vitrification protocol in the cryopreservation of mature mouse oocytes. The mature mouse oocytes were first vitrified and then warmed up in a modified cryoloop vitrification medium [15% ethylene glycol (EG) + 15% dimethyl sulphoxide (ME2SO) + 5.8 mg/ml Ficoll 400 (F) + 0.58 mol/l sucrose (S)]. These oocytes were later studied along with fresh oocytes, which served as the control group.Based on the post-warm-up incubation time, the oocytes in the study group were divided into three subgroups: 0 h, 1 h and 2 h. We then examined the configurations of spindles and chromosomes, the fragmentation of DNA, and the oocyte's ability to be fertilized and developed into blastocysts. By evaluating the vitrified oocytes' morphology, we confirmed that 601 out of 612 (98.2%) oocytes survived this protocol. The percentage of oocytes with normal spindle and chromosome configurations in the study groups 0 h, 1 h and 2 h were all quite similar to each other and not statistically different from that of the control group. Similar results were also observed in the percentage of oocytes containing fragmented DNA. The fertilization rate and blastocyst formation rate of the thawed oocytes were not statistically different from that of the control group either. However, if not handled properly (too much remnant medium on oocytes in the process of freezing or too long a time of oocytes in the vitrification medium before freezing), the cryopreserved oocytes could show dramatic difference from the control group in terms of the morphologically survival rate, the configuration of the spindles and chromosomes, and the DNA fragmentation. In conclusion, when followed correctly, this modified cryoloop vitrification protocol had little effect on the survival rate and development potential of mature mouse oocytes.
Called by God but Ordained by Men: The Work and Ministry of Reverend Florence Spetume Njangali in the Church of the Province of Uganda
Authors: Byaruhanga Christopher 
Published: April 2009

AbstractThe controversy over the ordination of women as priests in the Church of the Province of Uganda has been going on for a long time. Today, there are a few women priests in a good number of dioceses in the Church of the Province of Uganda. But this revolution against the conservative order of male domination has not come without a price. Women who feel called by God to the ministry in the Church of the Province of Uganda are usually discriminated against even when they eventually become ordained. One wonders whether women are called by God but ordained by men. This article looks at the work and ministry of one of those women who opened the door to the ordination of women in the Church of the Province of Uganda. In her response to the challenges of the time, Njangali not only refused the old definitions of women’s involvement in church ministry but also guided the whole church to rethink and renew its leadership policy.
A Walk on the Wild Side: Church and Identity beyond Humanism
Authors: Shakespeare Steven 
Published: April 2009

AbstractWestern culture romanticizes wildness even as it fears the destruction of our humanity by all that is bestial, savage and unconstrained. Identity is constructed as a supposedly pure, bounded and sovereign force, constantly fascinated and repelled by its animal others.The consequences of the church’s investment in this modern humanism are disparate, but united by a strange colonial logic, according to which the savage and the unnatural must be domesticated and incorporated into an empire of light. In the labelling of non-heterosexuals as ‘inhuman’ or ‘bestial’, complex links between the rhetoric of empire and resistance to that rhetoric are exposed. Appeals to African authenticity and liberal universalism are contextualized in postcolonial debates about securing human identity, debates in which the human/animal boundary becomes a key site of struggle.This paper asks what the church looks like if our obsession with a pure identity of the (Western or African) human is challenged in the context of debates about sexuality within the Anglican Communion. It is argued that the dynamic of Christian revelation works to throw such categories into confusion, to release liberating encounters with the ‘inhuman’ others within and beyond our invented boundaries. An inherently plural, multilingual and differentiated process of Christian community is proposed.
The Ugandan Diaspora in Britain and Their Quest for Cultural Expression within the Church of England
Authors: Kasibante Amos 
Published: April 2009

AbstractThe article examines the Anglican identity of two Ugandan immigrant communities in Britain and the congregations they have formed in order to foster their social, culture, and spiritual well-being. The two communities are the Acholi, who hail from the northern part of Uganda, and the Baganda from the central region. The former have formed the Acholi London Christian Fellowship while the latter have formed two distinct, yet similar, congregations in two separate London parishes. These are Okusinza mu Luganda (Worship in Luganda) and Ekkanisa y’Oluganda (the Luganda Church). The second is an offshoot of the first one. This article illustrates that religion and ethnicity are often inextricably intertwined, and that for the immigrants, Anglicanism does not merely displace or replace their native culture, but gives it a new sense of direction as they also shape it in the light of their aspirations. In this sense, we can speak of religious ethnicity, which refers to cases where an ethnic group is linked to a religious tradition shared by other ethnic groups.
Temporal variation of Synechococcus clades at a coastal Pacific Ocean monitoring site
Authors: Tai Vera , Palenik Brian 
Published: April 2009

Abstract
Marine cyanobacteria from the genus Synechococcus are found throughout the world's oceans and are important contributors to global primary productivity and carbon cycling. Cultured isolates and environmental DNA clone libraries of Synechococcus have demonstrated the diversity of these microbes. However, the natural distribution of this diversity through space and time and the ecological significance of their distribution are still poorly understood. To understand the seasonal dynamics of Synechococcus diversity, we have developed a quantitative PCR strategy using the gene encoding as a subunit of DNA-dependent RNA polymerase (rpoC1) and applied it to a 3-year time series of surface samples from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography pier (La Jolla, CA, USA), a coastal site in the northeastern Pacific Ocean. Synechococcus from clades I and IV were dominant throughout the time series and correlated with total Synechococcus abundance. The relative abundance of these two dominant clades showed evidence of a seasonal cycle. Synechococcus from clade IV were typically more abundant, but those from clade I dominated during periods just before the annual spring bloom of Synechococcus. Synechococcus from clades II and III were absent during spring and early summer, but appeared at low abundances in late summer and winter possibly due to changes in circulation in the Southern California Bight. As the first long-term time series describing Synechococcus population diversity, these temporal dynamics were used to interpret the genetic/genomic diversity observed in the environment and the potential factors regulating their distribution.
The extracellular domain of the TGFβ type II receptor regulates membrane raft partitioning
Authors: Luga Valbona , Mclean Sarah , Le Roy Christine , O'Connor-Mccourt Maureen , Wrana Jeffrey L. , Di Guglielmo Gianni M. 
Published: April 2009

Cell-surface TGFβ (transforming growth factor β) receptors partition into membrane rafts and the caveolin-positive endocytic compartment by an unknown mechanism. In the present study, we investigated the determinant in the TGFβ type II receptor (TβRII) that is necessary for membrane raft/caveolar targeting. Using subcellular fractionation and immunofluorescence microscopy techniques, we demonstrated that the extracellular domain of TβRII mediates receptor partitioning into raft and caveolin-positive membrane domains. Pharmacological perturbation of glycosylation using tunicamycin or the mutation of Mgat5 [mannosyl(α-1,6)-glycoprotein β-1,6-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase V] activity interfered with the raft partitioning of TβRII. However, this was not due to the glycosylation state of TβRII, as a non-glycosylated TβRII mutant remained enriched in membrane rafts. This suggested that other cell-surface glycoproteins associate with the extracellular domain of TβRII and direct their partitioning in membrane raft domains. To test this we analysed a GMCSF (granulocyte/macrophage colony-stimulating factor)–TβRII chimaeric receptor, which contains a glycosylated GMCSF extracellular domain fused to the transmembrane and intracellular domains of TβRII. This chimaeric receptor was found to be largely excluded from membrane rafts and caveolin-positive structures. Our results indicate that the extracellular domain of TβRII mediates receptor partitioning into membrane rafts and efficient entrance into caveolin-positive endosomes.
Mitochondrial peroxiredoxin 3 is more resilient to hyperoxidation than cytoplasmic peroxiredoxins
Authors: Cox Andrew G. , Pearson Andree G. , Pullar Juliet M. , Jönsson Thomas J. , Lowther W. Todd , Winterbourn Christine C. , Hampton Mark B. 
Published: April 2009

The Prxs (peroxiredoxins) are a family of cysteine-dependent peroxidases that decompose hydrogen peroxide. Prxs become hyperoxidized when a sulfenic acid formed during the catalytic cycle reacts with hydrogen peroxide. In the present study, Western blot methodology was developed to quantify hyperoxidation of individual 2-Cys Prxs in cells. It revealed that Prx 1 and 2 were hyperoxidized at lower doses of hydrogen peroxide than would be predicted from in vitro data, suggesting intracellular factors that promote hyperoxidation. In contrast, mitochondrial Prx 3 was considerably more resistant to hyperoxidation. The concentration of Prx 3 was estimated at 125 μM in the mitochondrial matrix of Jurkat T-lymphoma cells. Although the local cellular environment could influence susceptibility, purified Prx 3 was also more resistant to hyperoxidation, suggesting that despite having C-terminal motifs similar to sensitive eukaryote Prxs, other structural features must contribute to the innate resilience of Prx 3 to hyperoxidation.