bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Smoking‐based selection and influence in gender‐segregated friendship networks: a social network analysis of adolescent smoking
Authors: Mercken Liesbeth , Snijders Tom A.B. , Steglich Christian , Vertiainen Erkki , De Vries Hein 
Published: April 2010

ABSTRACTAims  The main goal of this study was to examine differences between adolescent male and female friendship networks regarding smoking‐based selection and influence processes using newly developed social network analysis methods that allow the current state of continuously changing friendship networks to act as a dynamic constraint for changes in smoking behaviour, while allowing current smoking behaviour to be simultaneously a dynamic constraint for changes in friendship networks.Design  Longitudinal design with four measurements.Setting  Nine junior high schools in Finland.Participants  A total of 1163 adolescents (mean age = 13.6 years) who participated in the control group of the ESFA (European Smoking prevention Framework Approach) study, including 605 males and 558 females.Measurements  Smoking behaviour of adolescents, parents, siblings and friendship ties.Findings  Smoking‐based selection of friends was found in male as well as female networks. However, support for influence among friends was found only in female networks. Furthermore, females and males were both influenced by parental smoking behaviour.Conclusions  In Finnish adolescents, both male and female smokers tend to select other smokers as friends but it appears that only females are influenced to smoke by their peer group. This suggests that prevention campaigns targeting resisting peer pressure may be more effective in adolescent girls than boys.
Socio‐economic status predicts drinking patterns but not alcohol‐related consequences independently
Authors: Huckle Taisia , You Ru Quan , Casswell Sally 
Published: April 2010

ABSTRACTAim To identify independent relationships between socio‐economic status and drinking patterns and related consequences and to identify socio‐economic groups at risk for heavier consumption.Design and setting Three comparable national telephone surveys were utilized: 1995, 2000 and 2004. The respondents were aged 18–65 years. Contextual information includes that a number of liberalized alcohol policy changes occurred over the time of the surveys.Results Educational qualification, income and occupation were associated independently with alcohol consumption. There were indications that the different dimensions of drinking (quantity and frequency) had different relationships with socio‐economic status (SES). For example, lower SES groups drank heavier quantities while higher SES groups drank more frequently. SES, however, did not play a major role predicting drinking consequences once drinking patterns were controlled for, although there were some exceptions. It was the lower‐to‐average SES groups that were at greater risk for drinking heavier quantities compared to other SES groups in the population (as they had sustained increases in the quantities they consumed over time where other SES groups did not).Conclusion Socio‐economic status was related independently to drinking patterns and there were indications that SES interacted differently with the different dimensions of drinking (quantity and frequency). For the most part, socio‐economic status was not related independently to the experience of alcohol‐related consequences once drinking patterns were accounted for. It was the lower‐to‐average SES groups that were at greater risk for drinking heavier quantities compared to other SES groups in the population.
Parents' decision following the Food and Drug Administration recommendation: the case of over‐the‐counter cough and cold medication
Authors: Hanoch Y. , Gummerum M. , Miron‐Shatz T. , Himmelstein M. 
Published: April 2010

AbstractBackground  In 2007, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommended against parents administering over‐the‐counter cough and cold medications (OTC‐CCM) to children under 2 years of age because serious and potentially life‐threatening side effects can occur. This study examined the impact of FDA's recommendations against giving children under 2 years old OTC‐CCM.Methods  We asked parents (n= 377) whether they knew of and trusted the FDA recommendations, as well as whether they intended to follow them. We also examined parents' knowledge, perceptions and behaviours with respect to OTC‐CCM.Results  About 33% of our sample had never heard of the FDA recommendations. Of those who were aware, 32.9% intended to continue administering OTC‐CCM, and another 36.7% were not sure what to do. Our results indicate that parents who trust the FDA recommendations are significantly more likely to stop giving OTC‐CCM to their children. However, almost half did not trust the FDA recommendations or were not sure whether to trust them. Our results indicate that parents who trust the FDA recommendation are significantly more likely to discontinue using OTC‐CCM. Our data also reveal that many parents give more than one drug simultaneously (32.9%), cannot identify the active ingredient(s) (28.9%) or fail to store the medications in a safe place (86.1%).Conclusion  Parents' confidence in the FDA recommendations predicted whether they would continue or stop administering OTC‐CCM to their children. Our findings illustrate the urgent need for widespread public education about OTC‐CCM products to ensure children's safety.
The effect of the extent of the study region on GIS models of species geographic distributions and estimates of niche evolution: preliminary tests with montane rodents (genus Nephelomys) in Venezuela
Authors: Anderson Robert P. , Raza Ali 
Published: April 2010

AbstractAim  Various techniques model a species’ niche and potential distribution by comparing the environmental conditions of occurrence localities with those of the overall study region (via a background or pseudoabsence sample). Here, we examine how changes in the extent of the study region (ignored or under‐appreciated in most studies) affect models of two rodents, Nephelomys caracolus and Nephelomys meridensis.Location  North‐central South America.Methods  We used Maxent to model the species' potential distributions via two methods of defining the study region. In Method 1 (typical of most studies to date), we calibrated the model in a large study region that included the ranges of both species. In Method 2, we calibrated the model using a smaller study region surrounding the localities of the focal species, and then applied it to the larger region. Because the study region of Method 1 is likely to include areas of suitable conditions that are unoccupied because of dispersal limitations and/or biotic interactions, this approach is prone to overfitting to conditions found near the occupied localities. In contrast, Method 2 should avoid such problems but may require further assumptions (‘clamping’ in Maxent) to make predictions for areas with environmental conditions beyond those found in the smaller study region. For each method, we calculated several measures of geographic interpredictivity between predictions for the species (cross‐species AUC, cross‐species omission rate, and proportional geographic overlap).Results  Compared with Method 1, Method 2 revealed a larger predicted area for each species, less concentrated around known localities (especially for N. caracolus). It also led to higher cross‐species AUC values, lower cross‐species omission rates and higher proportions of geographic overlap. Clamping was minimal and occurred primarily in regions unlikely to be suitable.Main conclusions  Method 2 led to more realistic predictions and higher estimates of niche conservatism. Conclusions reached by many studies depend on the selection of an appropriate study region. Although detailed information regarding dispersal limitations and/or biotic interactions will typically be difficult to obtain, consideration of coarse distributional patterns, topography and vegetational zones often should permit delimitation of a much more reasonable study region than the extremely large ones currently in common use.
Flower‐scent mimicry masks a deadly trap in the carnivorous plant Nepenthes rafflesiana
Authors: Di Giusto Bruno , Bessière Jean‐Marie , Guéroult Michaël , Lim Linda B. L. , Marshall David J. , Hossaert‐McKey Martine , Gaume Laurence 
Published: April 2010

Summary 1. Nepenthes rafflesiana is a carnivorous vine from Borneo characterized by an ontogenetic pitcher dimorphism with aerial (upper) and ground (lower) pitchers of different morphologies. Previous studies have shown that fragrant upper pitchers of climbing parts of the plant are more effective in trapping flying insects than non‐fragrant lower pitchers, which are essentially restricted to an ant diet. We tested the hypotheses that odours are effective cues for prey attraction in this carnivorous plant and that upper pitchers biochemically mimic flowers in their olfactory cues. 2. The visitor diversity and the scent composition of each pitcher type were determined for different sites and periods during field studies in Borneo. Olfactometer bioassays were conducted using fruit flies and ants as models for flying flower‐visitors and non‐flying visitors, respectively. 3. Fifty‐four volatile compounds were identified and the analysis of their relative quantities in the blends showed significant differences between pitcher types. The blends of lower pitchers contained some aliphatics and terpenoids but were poor in benzenoids. Upper pitchers differed from lower ones in that they attracted a greater quantity and diversity of insects, including a guild of flower‐visitors absent from the visitor spectrum of lower pitchers. Upper pitchers also emitted a greater quantity of odours and a larger spectrum of volatiles, including some terpenoids and benzenoids that often characterize the sweet scents classically found in flower blends. Choice bioassays showed that, in absence of any visual cue, the scents of the nectariferous pitcher rim (peristome) were particularly attractive to ants and flies, and those of upper pitchers were more attractive to flies than those of lower pitchers. 4. Synthesis. This study demonstrates the use of scent by Nepenthes carnivorous plants to mediate prey attraction. The climbing part of the plant produces pitcher‐modified leaves that mimic flower olfactory cues and suggest an evolutionary convergent strategy with that of generalist pollination systems.
Alpha‐tocopherol concentration in the colostrum of nursing women supplemented with retinyl palmitate and alpha‐tocopherol
Authors: Garcia L. , Ribeiro K. , Araújo K. , Pires J. , Azevedo G. , Dimenstein R. 
Published: April 2010

AbstractBackground: Vitamins A and E are recognisably important in the initial stages of life, and the newborn depends on nutritional adequacy of breast milk to meet their needs. These vitamins share routes of transport to the tissues and antagonistic effects have been observed in animals after supplementation with vitamin A. The present study aimed to determine the effect of maternal supplementation with a megadose of retinyl palmitate in the immediate post‐partum on α‐tocopherol concentration in the colostrum.Methods: Healthy parturient women at a Brazilian public maternity were recruited for the study and divided into two groups: control (n = 37) and supplemented (n = 36). Blood and colostrum samples were collected up to 16 h post‐partum. The supplemented group was administered with a retinyl palmitate capsule and, 24 h after the first collection, the second colostrum sample was obtained in the two groups for analysis of α‐tocopherol. The cut‐off points for deficiency are <1.05 μmol L−1for retinol and <11.6 μmol L−1for α‐tocopherol.Results: The mean (SD) serum concentration of 1.77 (0.50) μmol L−1for retinol and 30.81 (6.46) μmol L−1for α‐tocopherol indicates an adequate biochemical status. The supplemented group showed an increase of α‐tocopherol in the colostrum 24 h after supplementation (P = 0.04), and this finding was not observed in the control group.Conclusions: Supplementation with a 200 000 IU megadose of vitamin A did not negatively affect α‐tocopherol levels in colostrum.
Research charting a course for evidence‐based clinical dietetic practice in diabetes
Authors: Delahanty L. M. 
Published: April 2010

AbstractNutrition and lifestyle interventions have been a critical component in three of the four largest clinical trials that focused on diabetes in the past two decades. Evidence of the effectiveness of nutrition and lifestyle interventions with resepect to achieving diabetes‐related outcomes for diabetes prevention and a reduction in diabetes complications for people with diabetes is clearly mounting. The Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (1983–1993), the Diabetes Prevention Program (1996–2001) and the Look AHEAD (Action for Health in Diabetes) Trial (2001–2012) have been providing key evidence for the dietitian’s role in delivering effective nutrition and lifestyle interventions for people with prediabetes, type 1 and type 2 diabetes. The dietitians in these multicentre efficacy trials contributed to this evidence base by expanding their roles beyond implementing the protocol defined goal‐based nutrition and lifestyle interventions to conducting ancillary research and using problem‐solving strategies that tailor counselling approaches toward participants’ barriers to goal achievement. As lifestyle coaches and case managers, dietitians had the opportunity to work with the same group of study participants over extended periods of time and use their clinical and research expertise to uncover important insights and strategies that helped achieve clinical goals related to glycaemia control, weight loss and activity. The present review will ‘chart the course’ of how the evidence base for nutrition and lifestyle interventions emanated from these trials and discuss the implications for clinical dietetic practice. Dietitians can use insights gleaned from these experiences with the research process to expand their roles and guide cutting edge evidence‐based clinical dietetic practice in diabetes.
Genome‐wide analysis of the H‐NS and Sfh regulatory networks in Salmonella Typhimurium identifies a plasmid‐encoded transcription silencing mechanism
Authors: Dillon Shane C. , Cameron Andrew D. S. , Hokamp Karsten , Lucchini Sacha , Hinton Jay C. D. , Dorman Charles J. 
Published: April 2010

SummaryThe conjugative IncHI1 plasmid pSfR27 from Shigella flexneri 2a strain 2457T encodes the Sfh protein, a paralogue of the global transcriptional repressor H‐NS. Sfh allows pSfR27 to be transmitted to new bacterial hosts with minimal impact on host fitness, providing a ‘stealth’ function whose molecular mechanism has yet to be determined. The impact of the Sfh protein on the Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium transcriptome was assessed and binding sites for Sfh in the Salmonella Typhimurium genome were identified by chromatin immunoprecipitation. Sfh did not bind uniquely to any sites. Instead, it bound to a subset of the larger H‐NS regulatory network. Analysis of Sfh binding in the absence of H‐NS revealed a greatly expanded population of Sfh binding sites that included the majority of H‐NS target genes. Furthermore, the presence of plasmid pSfR27 caused a decrease in H‐NS interactions with the S. Typhimurium chromosome, suggesting that the A + T‐rich DNA of this large plasmid acts to titrate H‐NS, removing it from chromosomal locations. It is proposed that Sfh acts as a molecular backup for H‐NS and that it provides its ‘stealth’ function by replacing H‐NS on the chromosome, thus minimizing disturbances to the H‐NS‐DNA binding pattern in cells that acquire pSfR27.
Differences in Rubisco content and its synthesis in leaves at different positions in Eucalyptus globulus seedlings
Authors: SUZUKI YUJI , KIHARA‐DOI TOMONORI , KAWAZU TETSU , MIYAKE CHIKAHIRO , MAKINO AMANE 
Published: April 2010

ABSTRACTThe dynamics of ribulose 1·5‐bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) content and turnover during leaf development are not well understood in woody plants. Rubisco synthesis, N influx and the mRNA levels of Rubisco‐encoding genes were determined as a function of leaf position in 4.5‐month‐old Eucalyptus globulus seedlings. Rubisco concentration was slightly higher in the top leaves as leaf expansion progressed and was almost maximal in the uppermost fully expanded leaves. Rubisco concentration remained almost constant in the fully expanded leaves at the top and middle positions and then became slightly low at the lowest positions. Rubisco synthesis was active only in the top leaves. These results suggest that Rubisco turnover rate is low in the middle leaves, leading to the maintenance of Rubisco contents, and that Rubisco degradation primarily occurs in the lowest leaves. Changes in the RBCS and rbcL mRNA levels were roughly parallel with Rubisco synthesis, but N influx was more closely correlated with Rubisco synthesis. These results suggest that N influx rather than the transcript abundance of Rubisco‐encoding genes is of primary importance in regulating the rate of Rubisco synthesis. Additionally, expression of RBCS multigene family in E. globulus leaves was discussed.
Identification of a nitrate‐responsive cis‐element in the Arabidopsis NIR1 promoter defines the presence of multiple cis‐regulatory elements for nitrogen response
Authors: Konishi Mineko , Yanagisawa Shuichi 
Published: April 2010

SummaryNitrate is a major nitrogen source for land plants and also acts as a signaling molecule that induces changes in growth and gene expression. To identify the cis‐acting DNA element involved in nitrate‐responsive gene expression, we analyzed the promoter of the Arabidopsis gene encoding nitrite reductase (NIR1). A region from positions −188 to −1, relative to the translation start site, was found to contain at least one cis‐element necessary for the nitrate‐dependent activation of the promoter, in which the activity of nitrate transporter NRT2.1 and/or NRT2.2 plays a critical role. To define this nitrate‐responsive cis‐element (NRE), we compared the sequences of several nitrite reductase gene promoters from various higher plants and identified a conserved sequence motif as the putative NRE. A synthetic promoter in which the four copies of a 43‐bp sequence containing the motif were fused to the 35S minimal promoter was found to direct nitrate‐responsive transcription. Furthermore, mutations within this conserved motif in the native NIR1 promoter markedly reduced the nitrate‐responsive activity of the promoter, indicating that the 43‐bp sequence is an NRE that is both necessary and sufficient for nitrate‐responsive transcription. We also show that both the native NIR1 promoter and the synthetic promoter display a similar level of sensitivity to nitrate, but respond differentially to exogenously supplied glutamine, indicating independent modulation of NIR1 expression by NRE‐mediated nitrate induction and feedback repression mediated by other cis‐element(s). These findings thus define the presence of multiple cis‐elements involved in the nitrogen response in Arabidopsis.
Regulation of epithelial cell proliferation by bronchial fibroblasts obtained from mild asthmatic subjects
Authors: Semlali A. , Jacques E. , Rouabhia M. , Milot J. , Laviolette M. , Chakir J. 
Published: April 2010

To cite this article: Semlali A, Jacques E, Rouabhia M, Milot J, Laviolette M, Chakir J. Regulation of epithelial cell proliferation by bronchial fibroblasts obtained from mild asthmatic subjects. Allergy 2010; 65: 1438–1445.AbstractBackground:  Bronchial epithelium is considered a key player in coordinating airway wall remodelling. The function of epithelial cells can be modulated by the underlying fibroblasts through autocrine and paracrine mechanisms.Objective:  To investigate the effect of phenotypic changes in bronchial fibroblasts from asthmatic subjects on epithelial cell proliferation.Methods:  Epithelial cells and fibroblasts derived from bronchial biopsies of asthmatic and healthy controls were cultured in an engineered model. Proliferation was evaluated by 3‐(4,5‐dimethylthiazol‐2‐yl)‐2,5‐diphenyl‐tetrazolium‐bromid (MTT). Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), cyclin‐dependent kinase inhibitors p21 and p27 were measured by western blots. Total and active forms of transforming growth factor (TGF)‐β1 were measured using ELISA and bioassay. TGF‐β was inhibited using a recombinant TGF‐β soluble receptor II protein.Results:  Proliferation of epithelial cells from asthmatics (AE) is increased when cells were cultured with fibroblasts from normal controls (NF). Fibroblasts from asthmatics (AF) significantly decreased the proliferation of epithelial cells from healthy subjects (NE). Activation of p21, p27, EGFR and TGF‐β1 reflects the proliferation data by decreasing in AE cultured with NF and increasing in NE cultured with AF. Neutralization of TGF‐β increased proliferation of epithelial cells cultured in the asthmatic model.Conclusion:  Fibroblasts from asthmatic subjects regulate epithelial cell prolifearation, and TGF‐β signalling may represent one of the pathway involved in these interactions.
Predictive factors for the persistence of cow’s milk allergy
Authors: Santos Alexandra , Dias Andrea , Pinheiro José António 
Published: April 2010

Santos A, Dias A, Pinheiro JA. Predictive factors for the persistence of cow’s milk allergy. Pediatr Allergy Immunol 2010: 21: 1127–1134. © 2010 John Wiley & Sons A/SCow’s milk allergy (CMA) is usually transient, but recent studies have shown a later acquisition of tolerance to CM. Our aims were to characterize a population of Portuguese children with CMA and to identify predictive factors for the persistence of this food allergy. Children with CMA observed in our Paediatric Allergy Clinic between 1997 and 2006 were selected. Demographic and clinical data were collected from medical records. The group of children who tolerated CM before the age of 2 was compared with the group of children who tolerated CM beyond that age or persisted with CMA until the end of the study. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to investigate independent predictive factors for the persistence of CMA beyond the age of 2. In the subgroup of children with IgE‐mediated CMA, the acquisition of tolerance was analysed using Cox regression. In this population of 139 children, the majority presented more than one symptom (73%) affecting more than one organ (51%), with cutaneous (81%), gastrointestinal (55%), respiratory (16%) manifestations and/or anaphylaxis (3%). Thirty‐two per cent developed asthma, 20% atopic eczema, 20% rhinoconjunctivitis and 19% other food allergies over time. The acquisition of tolerance was different in the whole population versus the subgroup with IgE‐mediated CMA: 34%versus 0% at the age of 2, 55%versus 22% at the age of 5 and 68%versus 43% at the age of 10. Immediate allergic symptoms, asthma and other food allergies were independent factors for the persistence of CMA beyond the age of 2. Higher maximum weal diameter on skin prick test to CM and higher maximum level of specific IgE to CM were associated with reduced likelihood of acquiring tolerance in the subgroup of children with IgE‐mediated CMA. In conclusion, children with IgE‐mediated CMA acquire tolerance to CM at older age. Clinical parameters and allergy tests may be helpful in defining prognosis. CM‐allergic children tend to develop other atopic conditions and need specialized follow‐up in the long term.