bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Deletion of Pten in Pancreatic β-Cells Protects Against Deficient β-Cell Mass and Function in Mouse Models of Type 2 Diabetes
Authors: Wang Linyuan , Liu Yunfeng , Yan Lu Shun , Nguyen Kinh-Tung T. , Schroer Stephanie A. , Suzuki Akira , Mak Tak W. , Gaisano Herbert , Woo Minna 
Published: September 2010

OBJECTIVE
Type 2 diabetes is characterized by diminished pancreatic β-cell mass and function. Insulin signaling within the β-cells has been shown to play a critical role in maintaining the essential function of the β-cells. Under basal conditions, enhanced insulin-PI3K signaling via deletion of phosphatase with tensin homology (PTEN), a negative regulator of this pathway, leads to increased β-cell mass and function. In this study, we investigated the effects of prolonged β-cell–specific PTEN deletion in models of type 2 diabetes.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS
Two models of type 2 diabetes were employed: a high-fat diet (HFD) model and a db/db model that harbors a global leptin-signaling defect. A Cre-loxP system driven by the rat insulin promoter (RIP) was employed to obtain mice with β-cell–specific PTEN deletion (RIPcre+ Ptenfl/fl).

RESULTS
PTEN expression in islets was upregulated in both models of type 2 diabetes. RIPcre+ Ptenfl/fl mice were completely protected against diabetes in both models of type 2 diabetes. The islets of RIPcre+ Ptenfl/fl mice already exhibited increased β-cell mass under basal conditions, and there was no further increase under diabetic conditions. Their β-cell function and islet PI3K signaling remained intact, in contrast to HFD-fed wild-type and db/db islets that exhibited diminished β-cell function and attenuated PI3K signaling. These protective effects in β-cells occurred in the absence of compromised response to DNA-damaging stimuli.

CONCLUSIONS
PTEN exerts a critical negative effect on both β-cell mass and function. Thus PTEN inhibition in β-cells can be a novel therapeutic intervention to prevent the decline of β-cell mass and function in type 2 diabetes.
Candesartan Attenuates Diabetic Retinal Vascular Pathology by Restoring Glyoxalase-I Function
Authors: Miller Antonia G. , Tan Genevieve , Binger Katrina J. , Pickering Raelene J. , Thomas Merlin C. , Nagaraj Ram H. , Cooper Mark E. , Wilkinson-Berka Jennifer L. 
Published: September 2010

OBJECTIVE
Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) and the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) are both implicated in the development of diabetic retinopathy. How these pathways interact to promote retinal vasculopathy is not fully understood. Glyoxalase-I (GLO-I) is an enzyme critical for the detoxification of AGEs and retinal vascular cell survival. We hypothesized that, in retina, angiotensin II (Ang II) downregulates GLO-I, which leads to an increase in methylglyoxal-AGE formation. The angiotensin type 1 receptor blocker, candesartan, rectifies this imbalance and protects against retinal vasculopathy.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS
Cultured bovine retinal endothelial cells (BREC) and bovine retinal pericytes (BRP) were incubated with Ang II (100 nmol/l) or Ang II+candesartan (1 μmol/l). Transgenic Ren-2 rats that overexpress the RAS were randomized to be nondiabetic, diabetic, or diabetic+candesartan (5 mg/kg/day) and studied over 20 weeks. Comparisons were made with diabetic Sprague-Dawley rats.

RESULTS
In BREC and BRP, Ang II induced apoptosis and reduced GLO-I activity and mRNA, with a concomitant increase in nitric oxide (NO•), the latter being a known negative regulator of GLO-I in BRP. In BREC and BRP, candesartan restored GLO-I and reduced NO•. Similar events occurred in vivo, with the elevated RAS of the diabetic Ren-2 rat, but not the diabetic Sprague-Dawley rat, reducing retinal GLO-I. In diabetic Ren-2 rats, candesartan reduced retinal acellular capillaries, inflammation, and inducible nitric oxide synthase and NO•, and restored GLO-I.

CONCLUSIONS
We have identified a novel mechanism by which candesartan improves diabetic retinopathy through the restoration of GLO-I.
Effects of PNPLA3 on Liver Fat and Metabolic Profile in Hispanic Children and Adolescents
Authors: Goran Michael I. , Walker Ryan , Le Kim-Anne , Mahurkar Swapna , Vikman Susanna , Davis Jaimie N. , Spruijt-Metz Donna , Weigensberg Marc J. , Allayee Hooman 
Published: September 2010

OBJECTIVE
A genome-wide study of adults identified a variant of PNPLA3 (rs738409) associated with ∼twofold higher liver fat. The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of PNPLA3 genotype on liver fat and other related metabolic outcomes in obese Hispanic children and adolescents.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS
Three hundred and twenty-seven Hispanics aged 8–18 years were genotyped for rs738409. One hundred and eighty-eight subjects had measures of visceral (VAT) and subcutaneous (SAT) adipose tissue volume and hepatic (HFF) and pancreatic (PFF) fat fraction by magnetic resonance imaging. One hundred and thirty-nine subjects did not have HFF measures but had extensive measures of insulin sensitivity and fasting lipids.

RESULTS
Liver fat in GG subjects was 1.7 and 2.4 times higher than GC and CC (11.1 ± 0.8% in GG vs. 6.6 ± 0.7% in GC and 4.7 ± 0.9% in CC; P &lt; 0.0001), and this effect was observed even in the youngest children (8–10 years of age). The variant was not associated with VAT, SAT, PFF, or insulin sensitivity or other glucose/insulin indexes. However, Hispanic children carrying the GG genotype had significantly lower HDL cholesterol (40.9 ± 10.9 in CC vs. 37.0 ± 8.3 in CG vs. 35.7 ± 7.4 in GG; P = 0.03) and a tendency toward lower free fatty acid levels (P = 0.06).

CONCLUSIONS
These results provide new evidence that the effect of the PNPLA3 variant is apparent in Hispanic children and adolescents, is unique to fat deposition in liver as compared with other ectopic depots examined, and is associated with lower HDL cholesterol.
Practices of Reality: Demolition and Reconstruction of a Ghost-Village in Israel
Authors: Koensler Alexander 
Published: September 2010

If knowledge is considered as incorporated in activities and events, a monolithic reality is no longer waiting to be uncovered, but multiple realities are coming into being through different sets of practices. In the Israeli negev desert, home demolition of unauthorized Arab-bedouin villages is a contested issue, enacting multiple and contradictory realities. The tents and shacks of el-Shams, for instance, have been demolished nearly ten times in one year by the Israeli police, but each time they have been reconstructed with the help of human rights activists. Surprisingly, and in contrast to nearly all circulating discourses, nobody ever lived in the demolished buildings - what at one level becomes a humanitarian catastrophe, at another becomes a “ghost village.”
Drawing on recent reflections on global ethnography, this article seeks to follow “zones of friction” and connections among people, money, discourses, and emotions that developed around this specific case: relations that range from solidarity activities to the discursive practices of journalists and dislocated officials of international organizations. On a more abstract level, the emerging contradictions between these levels reveal the implications of an uncritically reproduced idea of “local community.” I claim that by following such connections, we gain important insights into how transnational power relations are shaping multiple realities around a political conflict.
Comparison of the Original and Reduced Versions of the Berg Balance Scale and the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index in Patients Following Hip or Knee Arthroplasty
Authors: Jogi Pankaj , Spaulding Sandi J. , Zecevic Aleksandra A. , Overend Tom J. , Kramer John F. 
Published: September 2010

Purpose: To compare the original and reduced versions of the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) and the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), as completed by patients following total hip arthroplasty (THA) or total knee arthroplasty (TKA), with respect to their potential utility in clinical and research settings. Method: Patients with THA (n=26) or TKA (n=28) were evaluated before and after 5 to 7 weeks' participation in a home-based exercise programme. They were assessed using the original versions of the BBS and the WOMAC; scores for the reduced versions of the BBS and the WOMAC were extracted from the original versions. Results: Good to excellent correlations (r≥0.80) were observed between the original and the reduced versions of the BBS and the WOMAC. The index of responsiveness, evaluated using standardized response means (SRM), was similar for the original and the reduced versions of the BBS and the WOMAC function sub-scale. Conclusions: The reduced versions of the BBS and the WOMAC provided similar information to the original versions and were equally responsive. These reduced versions comprise fewer questions and may be completed in considerably less time, which suggests that they may be advantageous for clinical and research use.
Preliminary Development and Validation of a Paediatric Cardiopulmonary Physiotherapy Discharge Tool
Authors: Ellerton Cindy , Davis Aileen , Brooks Dina 
Published: September 2010

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to develop a paediatric cardiopulmonary physiotherapy (CPT) discharge tool. We report on the initial stages of its development and the tool's sensibility (face/content validity, feasibility, and ease of usage).Methods: Using a modified Delphi technique, a panel of paediatric physiotherapy clinicians and academic leaders in the area of CPT (n=25) was recruited. Four rounds of discussion among the members of the Delphi panel focused on (1) generation of discharge items, (2) reduction of items, (3) discussion of contentious items and refinement of criterion definitions, and (4) determination of scoring options for the test instrument. The sensibility of a draft of the tool was assessed using a sample of convenience (n=15).Results: Six items (auscultation, discharge planning, mobility, oxygen saturation, secretion clearance, and signs of respiratory distress) were identified for inclusion in the tool. The global mean of all sensibility domains was 6.4 (median=6.6) of a possible 7.0.Conclusion: Using a modified Delphi process, we developed a six-item paediatric CPT discharge planning tool with good face and content validity. Future work will determine the scoring method for using this tool, interrater reliability, and predictive validity to facilitate optimal timing of hospital discharge for paediatric CPT patients.
Les nouvelles orientations de la politique d’intégration en France
Authors: Vilchien Danielle 
Published: September 2010

En fonction des spécificités des deux sociétés, québécoise et française, la notion d’intégration renvoie à des conceptions assez éloignées. Dans un cas, il y a fierté à l’égard de l’histoire migratoire, dans l’autre, une tendance à l’occulter. La plus grande part des migrants québécois arrive après évaluation de leurs capacités à s’intégrer. En France, ce processus sélectif n’existe pas et seule la minorité d’étrangers introduite dans le pays au titre du travail répond,
à priori au moins, au critère d’adaptation au marché du travail. Fidèle à son modèle d’intégration républicaine, la France a récemment relancé une politique d’intégration et de lutte contre les discriminations, largement inspirée de l’expérience québécoise. Dans ce cadre, une mesure phare a été testée puis généralisée: il s’agit du «contrat d’accueil et d’intégration» proposé à tout nouvel arrivant, lequel définit ses engagements et ceux de l’État à son égard. Le programme d’intégration met l’accent essentiellement sur l’accès aux formations linguistiques et sur l’accompagnement vers l’emploi.
Évaluation et compensation du handicap en France
Authors: Sanchez Jésus 
Published: September 2010

Disability assessment and compensation are examined within the framework of national solidarity and other compensation plans: the general law of compensation, the code of military disability pensions and victims of war, the social security code, and additional provision. Based on its history and specific philosophy, each plan defined its principles of assessment and compensation and developed the procedures and scales which apply to its beneficiaries. This complex social and legal construction is described and broadly analyzed by highlighting the particular characteristics of the various plans as well as their common points. The influence of the new approach to disability, as suggested in the new World Health Organization classification, is especially noticeable in France in the context of national solidarity. This is evident in the new law on equal rights and opportunities, participation and citizenship of disabled persons (Loi pour l’égalité des droits et des chances, la participation et la citoyenneté des personnes handicapées),
adopted in February 2005, which extends the rights of disabled persons to individualized compensation of disabilities while increasing accessibility to various social environments: cities and towns, schools, businesses and public transport.
Pervaporation of methanol/dimethyl carbonate using SiO2 membranes with nano‐tuned pore sizes and surface chemistry
Authors: Tsuru Toshinori , Sasaki Akifumi , Kanezashi Masakoto , Yoshioka Tomohisa 
Published: September 2010

AbstractPorous silica membranes with different pore sizes (average pore size: 0.3–1.2 nm) and surface chemistry were prepared from SiO2, steam‐treated SiO2, SiO2ZrO2, and SiO2TiO2 by sol‐gel processing, and were applied to the pervaporation (PV) separation of methanol (MeOH) /dimethyl carbonate (DMC) mixtures at 50°C. Although SiO2ZrO2 membranes demonstrated a separation factor of <10, the SiO2 porous membranes had an increased separation factor from 10–160. Silica membranes with an average pore size of 0.3 nm showed the highest permselectivity of methanol with a separation factor of 140 and a methanol flux of 180 mol/(m2h) for MeOH 50 mol% at 50°C. To characterize the surface property of SiO2 membranes, SiO2 powdered samples were used for an adsorption experiment of vapor (MeOH, DMC) in single and mixed systems, revealing increased MeOH selective adsorption for SiO2 powders with hydrophilic and small pores, which was consistent with PV performance. © 2010 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2011
Optimal process operation for the production of linear polyethylene resins with tailored molecular weight distribution
Authors: Pontes K. V. , Embiruçu M. , Maciel R. , Hartwich A. , Marquardt W. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractAn optimization model is presented to determine optimal operating policies for tailoring high density polyethylene in a continuous polymerization process. Shaping the whole molecular weight distribution (MWD) by adopting an appropriate choice of operating conditions is of great interest when designing new polymers or when improving quality. The continuous tubular and stirred tank reactors are modeled in steady state by a set of differential‐algebraic equations with the spatial coordinate as independent variable. A novel formulation of the optimization problem is introduced. It comprises a multi‐stage optimization model with differential‐algebraic equality constraints along the process path and inequality end‐point constraints on product quality. The resulting optimal control problem is solved at high computational efficiency by means of a shooting method. The results show the efficiency of the proposed approach and the benefit of predicting and controlling the complete MWD as well as the interplay between operating conditions and polymer properties. © 2010 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2011
Catalytic Organometallic Reactions of Ammonia
Authors: Klinkenberg Jessica L. , Hartwig John F. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractUntil recently, ammonia had rarely succumbed to catalytic transformations with homogeneous catalysts, and the development of such reactions that are selective for the formation of single products under mild conditions has encountered numerous challenges. However, recently developed catalysts have allowed several classes of reactions to create products with nitrogen‐containing functional groups from ammonia. These reactions include hydroaminomethylation, reductive amination, alkylation, allylic substitution, hydroamination, and cross‐coupling. This Minireview describes examples of these processes and the factors that control catalyst activity and selectivity.
Co‐culture of hematopoietic stem cells and mesenchymal stem cells derived from umbilical cord blood using human autoserum
Authors: Song Kedong , Yin Yiqun , Lv Chao , Liu Tianqing , Macedo Hugo M. , Fang Meiyun , Shi Fangxin , Ma Xuehu , Cui Zhanfeng 
Published: September 2010

ABSTRACTThe feasibility of co‐culturing hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells (HSPCs) and mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) derived from human umbilical cord blood (UCB) using cytodex‐3 microcarriers was investigated in this paper in order to assess this as a possibility for future clinical therapies. Considering the safety requirements of clinical applications, we have tried to use human autologous serum (HAS), collected from UCB, to replace the widely used fetal bovine serum (FBS). Moreover, both UCB‐hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) and UCB‐MSCs could be harvested simultaneously after their ex vivo culture. In addition, the two different types of stem cells could be easily separated by sedimentation after the co‐culture due to the distinct weight differences between cytodex‐3 microcarriers (containing adherent MSCs) and the suspended HSCs. To optimize the culture conditions, we have assessed the effect of the concentration of HAS (2.8, 5.6, 8.3 and 11.1%) on the expansion of UCB‐MSCs and UCB‐HSCs. The results have indicated that the expansion of UCB‐HSCs supplied with 5.6% autoserum was at least (1.88 ± 0.33)‐fold, better than in the other groups, while it had no to little effect on the expansion of UCB‐MSCs. We hence conclude that the optimal concentration of HAS for the co‐culture conditions herein reported is 5.6%. Finally, the co‐culture system we have developed and herein report is feasible to provide expanded UCB‐HSPCs and UCB‐MSCs for clinical applications, especially the former. © 2010 Curtin University of Technology and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Muslim selves and the American body politic: placing major Nidal Malik Hasan's case in a broader socio‐historical context
Authors: Ghaneabassiri Kambiz 
Published: September 2010

AbstractIn the past two decades, US wars in Muslim‐majority countries along with Muslim militants' attacks on the United States have raised questions about the place of Muslims in America's multicultural society. Attempts to configure the place of Muslim selves in American body politic have focused primarily on the nature of Islam and its relation to American interests rather than on an analysis of the political policies that have shaped our times. This privileging of religio‐cultural explanations of US relations with the Muslim world has engendered the presumption that all Muslims are suspect unless they prove themselves otherwise. Major Nidal Malik Hasan's case, whatever his personal psychological condition, is an example of the way in which attempts at providing a religio‐cultural solution to a political problem has placed the burden of bridging the gap between American multicultural ideals and American policies that view Muslims as suspect on the back of individual American Muslim selves. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Politics of exclusion and social marginalization of Muslims in India: case study of Gujarat
Authors: Kumar Manasi 
Published: September 2010

AbstractThe paper offers a socio‐psychological understanding of the phenomenon called ethnic riots and the various indigenous theories of violence discussed here suggest how complex and multidimensional human aggression and communal violence are. In light of this, the marginalized Muslim identity in Gujarat becomes the backdrop against which the problematic of Hindu‐Muslim violence is developed. Psychoanalytic ideas on group psychology, phallic aggression, rumors and religious rituals are discussed in this context. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The photodynamic effect: the comparison of chemiexcitation by luminol and phthalhydrazide
Authors: Bancirova Martina , Lasovský Jan 
Published: September 2010

ABSTRACTThe presence of light, oxygen and photosensitizer (organic dye) is required for the photodynamic effect. Light and photosensitizer are harmless by themselves, but when combined with oxygen, reactive oxygen species (ROS) can be produced. This photodynamic effect is used in photodynamic therapy (PDT); the production of ROS as lethal cytotoxic agents can inactivate tumor cells. However, during PDT, there are many difficulties, so it is not possible to excite the photosensitizer using a laser, a source of light at the wavelengths specific to the photosensitizer (in visible region of the spectrum). Chemiluminescence is the light emission as a result of a chemical reaction. It is possible to use a chemiluminescent mixture to excite the photosensitizer even if the light emission does not conform to the absorption maximum of the photosensitizer. Luciferin and luminol have been used as chemiluminescent compounds (energizers) for the excitation of the photosensitizers. The aim of this work was to compare the chemiexcitation of some selected photosensitizers (e.g. fluorescein, eosin, methylene blue, hypericin and phthalocyanines) by chemiluminescent mixtures containing luminol (high chemiluminescent quantum yield) or phthalhydrazide (low chemiluminescent quantum yield) on some Gram‐positive (Enterococcus faecalis, Staphylococcus aureus) and Gram‐negative (Pseudomonas aeruginosa, E. coli) bacteria and some cell lines (NIH3T3 and MCF7). The efficiency of the chemiexcitation was dependent on the kind of the photosensitizer and on the type of the bacterial strain or cell line and was independent of the energizers. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Diterpenoid biopolymers: New directions for renewable materials engineering
Authors: Hillwig Matthew L. , Mann Francis M. , Peters Reuben J. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractMost types of ambers are naturally occurring, relatively hard, durable resinite polymers derived from the exudates of trees. This resource has been coveted for thousands of years due to its numerous useful properties in industrial processes, beauty, and purported medicinal properties. Labdane diterpenoid‐based ambers represent the most abundant and important resinites on earth. These resinites are a dwindling nonrenewable natural resource, so a new source of such materials needs to be established. Recent advances in sequencing technologies and biochemical engineering are rapidly accelerating the rate of identifying and assigning function to genes involved in terpenoid biosynthesis, as well as producing industrial‐scale quantities of desired small‐molecules in bacteria and yeast. This has provided new tools for engineering metabolic pathways capable of producing diterpenoid monomers that will enable the production of custom‐tailored resinite‐like polymers. Furthermore, this biosynthetic toolbox is continuously expanding, providing new possibilities for renewing dwindling stocks of naturally occurring resinite materials and engineering new materials for future applications. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Biopolymers 95: 71–76, 2011.