bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Do Antifat Attitudes Predict Antifat Behaviors?
Authors: O'Brien Kerry S. , Latner Janet D. , Halberstadt Jamin , Hunter John A. , Anderson Jeremy , Caputi Peter 
Published: October 2008

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate discrimination against obese job candidates, and to examine whether widely used measures of implicit and explicit antifat attitudes are related to or predict antifat discrimination.Methods and Procedures: One hundred university students made job candidate suitability ratings of resumes submitted for a bogus managerial position. Photos attached to each resume portrayed the job candidate as either obese or normal weight, by using pre‐ and postprocedure photos of individuals who had undergone bariatric surgery. To assess discrimination, job candidates' ratings were compared between obese and normal‐weight targets. Implicit and explicit antifat attitudes were also assessed.Results: Participants rated obese job candidates as having less leadership potential, as less likely to succeed, and as less likely to be employed than normal‐weight candidates. Obese candidates were also given a lower starting salary and ranked as less qualified overall than candidates portrayed as normal weight. Neither implicit nor explicit antifat attitude measures were significantly related to antifat discrimination.Discussion: This study found strong evidence of employment‐related discrimination against obese individuals. Commonly used measures of antifat attitudes do not appear to be adequate predictors of antifat discrimination. Improved questionnaire measures may be needed to better predict actual prejudiced behavior.
Perceptions of Obesity Across the Lifespan
Authors: Hebl Michelle R. , Ruggs Enrica N. , Singletary Sarah L. , Beal Daniel J. 
Published: October 2008

Objective:Previous research on obesity stereotyping has almost extensively involved looking at the perceptions that 5–21‐year‐old individuals have toward members of their own age in‐group. Very little research has examined how people perceive obesity across the lifespan. The current research begins to address this gap by examining the extent to which individuals between 18 and 77 years of age stereotype obesity in 20, 40, and 60‐year‐old targets.Methods and Procedures:A total of 106 male and 102 female white participants viewed nine standardized Adobe‐ cropped photos that depicted 20, 40, and 60‐year‐old faces on slender, large, and very large‐sized bodies. After viewing each photo, participants evaluated the targets on six dimensions used in previous obesity stereotyping research.Results:As predicted, heavier women were rated more negatively than thinner women on every dimension we examined. In addition, older women were rated more negatively than younger women on attractiveness, but more positively on every other dimension. Other main effects revealed that female (relative to male) and older (relative to younger) participants were more lenient in their ratings. Several two‐way interactions revealed that the obesity stereotype for attractiveness is exaggerated when targets are younger, that males (compared to females) levy a greater penalty for increasing weight, and that this pattern is exaggerated more for younger men.Discussion:This research shows a consistency across the lifespan in the extent to which participants, varying in weight, age, and sex, stereotype obesity. It also appears that, at least with respect to attractiveness, younger obese individuals are denigrated to a larger degree than older. In sum, this research shows prevalent and consistent patterns of obesity stereotyping across the lifespan.
Molecular characterization of the TonB2 protein from the fish pathogenVibrio anguillarum
Authors: López Claudia S. , Peacock R. Sean , Crosa Jorge H. , Vogel Hans J. 
Published: October 2008

In the fish pathogen Vibrio anguillarum the TonB2 protein is essential for the uptake of the indigenous siderophore anguibactin. Here we describe deletion mutants and alanine replacements affecting the final six amino acids of TonB2. Deletions of more than two amino acids of the TonB2 C-terminus abolished ferric-anguibactin transport, whereas replacement of the last three residues resulted in a protein with wild-type transport properties. We have solved the high-resolution solution structure of the TonB2 C-terminal domain by NMR spectroscopy. The core of this domain (residues 121–206) has an αββαβ structure, whereas residues 76–120 are flexible and extended. This overall folding topology is similar to the Escherichia coli TonB C-terminal domain, albeit with two differences: the β4 strand found at the C-terminus of TonB is absent in TonB2, and loop 3 is extended by 9 Å (0.9 nm) in TonB2. By examining several mutants, we determined that a complete loop 3 is not essential for TonB2 activity. Our results indicate that the β4 strand of E. coli TonB is not required for activity of the TonB system across Gram-negative bacterial species. We have also determined, through NMR chemical-shift-perturbation experiments, that the E. coli TonB binds in vitro to the TonB box from the TonB2-dependent outer membrane transporter FatA; moreover, it can substitute in vivo for TonB2 during ferric-anguibactin transport in V. anguillarum. Unexpectedly, TonB2 did not bind in vitro to the FatA TonB-box region, suggesting that additional factors may be required to promote this interaction. Overall our results indicate that TonB2 is a representative of a different class of TonB proteins.
Role of α4β1 Integrins in Chemokine‐Induced Monocyte Arrest under Conditions of Shear Stress
Authors: HYDUK SHARON J. , CYBULSKY MYRON I. 
Published: October 2008

ABSTRACTMonocyte recruitment or emigration to tissues is an essential component of host defense in both acute and chronic inflammatory responses. Sequential molecular interactions mediate a cascade of tethering, rolling, arrest, stable adhesion, and intravascular crawling that culminates in monocyte diapedesis across the vascular endothelium and migration through the basement membrane of postcapillary venules. Integrins are complex adhesion and signaling molecules. Dynamic alterations in their conformation and distribution on the monocyte cell surface are required for many steps of monocyte emigration. Intracellular signaling initiated by chemokine receptors induces conformational changes in integrins that upregulate their affinity for ligands, and this is essential for monocyte arrest. This review focuses on the activation of monocyte α4β1 integrins by endothelial chemokines, which is required for the arrest of monocytes rolling on vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 under shear flow. Using soluble ligand‐binding assays and adhesion assays in parallel‐plate flow chambers, critical signaling mediators in chemokine‐induced α4β1 integrin affinity upregulation and monocyte arrest have been identified, including phospholipase C, calcium, and calmodulin.
iMapper: a web application for the automated analysis and mapping of insertional mutagenesis sequence data against Ensembl genomes
Authors: Kong Jun , Zhu Fei , Stalker Jim , Adams David J. 
Published: October 2008

Abstract
Summary: Insertional mutagenesis is a powerful method for gene discovery. To identify the location of insertion sites in the genome linker based polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methods (such as splinkerette-PCR) may be employed. We have developed a web application called iMapper (Insertional Mutagenesis Mapping and Analysis Tool) for the efficient analysis of insertion site sequence reads against vertebrate and invertebrate Ensembl genomes. Taking linker based sequences as input, iMapper scans and trims the sequence to remove the linker and sequences derived from the insertional mutagen. The software then identifies and removes contaminating sequences derived from chimeric genomic fragments, vector or the transposon concatamer and then presents the clipped sequence reads to a sequence mapping server which aligns them to an Ensembl genome. Insertion sites can then be navigated in Ensembl in the context of genomic features such as gene structures. iMapper also generates test-based format for nucleic acid or protein sequences (FASTA) and generic file format (GFF) files of the clipped sequence reads and provides a graphical overview of the mapped insertion sites against a karyotype. iMapper is designed for high-throughput applications and can efficiently process thousands of DNA sequence reads.
Availability: iMapper is web based and can be accessed at http://www.sanger.ac.uk/cgi-bin/teams/team113/imapper.cgi.
Contact: da1@sanger.ac.uk; iMapper@sanger.ac.uk
Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Bayesian robust analysis for genetic architecture of quantitative traits
Authors: Yang Runqing , Wang Xin , Li Jian , Deng Hongwen 
Published: October 2008

AbstractMotivation: In most quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping studies, phenotypes are assumed to follow normal distributions. Deviations from this assumption may affect the accuracy of QTL detection and lead to detection of spurious QTLs. To improve the robustness of QTL mapping methods, we replaced the normal distribution for residuals in multiple interacting QTL models with the normal/independent distributions that are a class of symmetric and long-tailed distributions and are able to accommodate residual outliers. Subsequently, we developed a Bayesian robust analysis strategy for dissecting genetic architecture of quantitative traits and for mapping genome-wide interacting QTLs in line crosses.Results: Through computer simulations, we showed that our strategy had a similar power for QTL detection compared with traditional methods assuming normal-distributed traits, but had a substantially increased power for non-normal phenotypes. When this strategy was applied to a group of traits associated with physical/chemical characteristics and quality in rice, more main and epistatic QTLs were detected than traditional Bayesian model analyses under the normal assumption.Contact: runqingyang@sjtu.edu.cn; dengh@umkc.eduSupplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
The Arabidopsis thaliana putative sialyltransferase resides in the Golgi apparatus but lacks the ability to transfer sialic acid
Authors: Daskalova S. M. , Pah A. R. , Baluch D. P. , Lopez L. C. 
Published: October 2008

AbstractA common feature of the animal sialyltransferases (STs) is the presence of four conserved motifs, namely large (L), small (S), very small (VS) and motif III. Although sialic acid (SA) has not been detected in plants, three orthologues containing sequences similar to the ST motifs have been identified in the Arabidopsis thaliana L. database. In this study, we report that the At3g48820 gene (Gene ID: 824043) codes for a Golgi resident protein lacking the ability to transfer SA to asialofetuin or Galβ1,3GalNAc and Galβ1,4GlcNAc oligosaccharide acceptors. Restoration of deteriorated motifs S, VS and motif III by constructing chimeric proteins consisting of the 28–308 amino acid region of the A. thalianaAt3g48820 ST‐like protein and the 264–393 amino acid region of the Oryza sativa L. AK107493 ST‐like protein, or of the 28–240 amino acid region of the At3g48820 protein and the 204–350 amino acid region of the Homo sapiens L. α2,3‐ST (NP_008858) was not able to recover sialyltransferase activity. Altering the appropriate amino acid regions of the A. thalianaAt3g48820 ST‐like protein to those typical for the mammalian motif III (HHYWE) and VS motif (HDADFE) also did not have any effect. Our data, together with previous results, indicate that A. thaliana in particular, and plants in general, do not have transferases for SA. Substrates for the plant ST‐like proteins might be compounds involved in secondary metabolism.
Adenylyl cyclase encoded by AC78C participates in sugar perception in Drosophila melanogaster
Authors: Ueno Kohei , Kidokoro Yoshiaki 
Published: October 2008

AbstractIn gustatory receptor neurons (GRNs) in Drosophila melanogaster, Gr5a and one of the Gr64s encode sugar receptors with seven transmembrane domains. Previously, we have shown that the responses to various sugars are depressed in DGsα mutant flies (Ueno et al., 2006). Because DGsα is a homolog of Gs, we hypothesized that the sugar receptors are coupled to adenylyl cyclase (AC) in Drosophila. The aim of this study was to identify the AC that participates in sugar perception. Here, we found that an AC inhibitor, MDL‐12330A, depressed the response in GRNs to trehalose as well as sucrose; that an AC gene, AC78C, was expressed in the sugar‐sensitive GRNs; that RNAi against AC78C depressed the electrical response in GRNs to sucrose; and that the sugar response in GRNs, as well as sugar intake in a behavioral assay in an AC78C mutant, was depressed at low sugar concentrations. We conclude that AC78C, via cAMP, participates in the sugar‐taste signaling pathway at the low concentration range.
Are increased costs worth paying to raise non‐monetary utility?: Analysis of intrinsic motivation and fringe benefits
Authors: Matsumura Ryohei , Kobayashi Norimasa 
Published: October 2008

AbstractIn standard agency models, only performance‐based wages (monetary incentives) motivate an agent to work more. The present paper proposes a new agency model in which the principal makes an investment, in addition to the standard wage incentive, to raise non‐monetary utility. We clarify two problems according to the type of non‐monetary utility: the intrinsic motivation (IM) problem and the fringe benefits (FB) problem. The results of our analysis of both problems are as follows: (1) The results of the IM model and the FB model are similar regarding monetary payment. (2) Although IM is dependent on the attributes of a job and the worker, such as productivity or cost sensitivity, FB is not dependent on such factors.
Dual Diagnosis: Prevalence, Risk Factors, and Relationship With Suicide Risk in a Nationwide Sample of French Prisoners
Authors: Lukasiewicz Michael , Blecha Lisa , Falissard Bruno , Neveu Xavier , Benyamina Amine , Reynaud Michel , Gasquet Isabelle 
Published: October 2008

Background:  Axis I psychiatric disorders (PD) and substance use disorders (SUD) are common in prison, but only few studies have focused on their association in this setting. Dual diagnosis (DD) (the co‐occurrence of a SUD and any axis I disorder) is known to have a poorer prognosis and to require more intense supportive care.Objectives:  The objectives of this study were (1) to describe prisoners with DD (prevalence and characteristics); (2) to compare DD prisoners with 3 other groups of prisoners: no diagnosis (ND), SUD alone, or other isolated PD; and (3) to evaluate the impact of DD on suicide risk in prison.Method:  A random stratified strategy was used to select 23 various types of prisons and 998 prisoners. Diagnoses were assessed using a unique procedure, each prisoner being evaluated by 2 psychiatrists, 1 junior, using a structured interview (MINI 5 plus), and 1 senior, using an open clinical interview. Following interviews, clinicians met to establish a list of diagnoses. Cloninger’s temperament and character inventory was also used.Results:  Of the prisoners, 26.3% had a DD. DD prevalence was almost 80% in prisoners with SUD, while only one‐third of the prisoners with an axis I PD had co‐morbid SUD. No significant differences were observed in drug use patterns between DD and SUD without co‐morbid PDs. DD showed the strongest association with suicide risk [OR = 5.7 (1.7–4.6)].Conclusion:  DD is very frequent in prison and is a major risk factor for suicide. Systematic psychiatric/SUD screening of prisoners with either a SUD or an axis I PD should be encouraged.
Alcohol and Self‐Rated Health in a Mediterranean Country: The Role of Average Volume, Drinking Pattern, and Alcohol Dependence
Authors: Valencia‐Martín José Lorenzo , Galán Iñaki , Rodríguez‐Artalejo Fernando 
Published: October 2008

Background:  The association between average alcohol consumption and self‐rated ill‐health is “J‐shaped” in Scandinavian and Anglo‐Saxon countries, but it has shown an inverse linear relationship in the few studies conducted in Mediterranean countries, based on average volume solely.Objective:  To examine the relationship between alcohol and self‐rated health in the general population of a Mediterranean country, by simultaneously taking into account average volume, drinking pattern, and alcohol abuse.Methods:  From 2000 to 2005, we conducted telephone interviews on 12,037 persons, representative of the population aged 18 to 64 years in Madrid, Spain. The drinking pattern encompassed binge drinking, beverage preference, and drinking at mealtimes. Alcohol abuse was estimated by the CAGE test. The association between each alcohol‐related variable and self‐rated suboptimal (fair, poor, or very poor) health was estimated from logistic regression, with adjustment for the remaining alcohol‐related variables and other potential confounders.Results:  In comparison with never‐drinkers, suboptimal health was less frequent among occasional drinkers [odds ratio (OR) 0.72; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.61 to 0.86], average moderate drinkers (OR 0.57; 95% CI: 0.48 to 0.69), and excessive drinkers (OR 0.51; 95% CI: 0.36 to 0.72), but more frequent among former drinkers with ≥1 year of abstinence (OR 1.30; 95% CI: 1.03 to 1.64). Frequency of suboptimal health was likewise higher in subjects with ≥3 episodes of binge drinking (OR 1.55; 95% CI: 1.12 to 2.14) or alcohol abuse (OR 1.47; 95% CI: 1.22 to 1.76). No differences were observed in suboptimal health according to beverage preference or drinking at mealtimes. Results in each gender were similar to those for total study participants.Conclusions:  Occasional, moderate, and excessive consumption of alcohol are associated with better self‐rated health, even after adjustment for drinking pattern and alcohol abuse. In contrast, former‐drinking, frequent binge drinking, and alcohol abuse are all associated with suboptimal self‐rated health.
Effective Exercise for the Prevention of Falls: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis
Authors: Sherrington Catherine , Whitney Julie C. , Lord Stephen R. , Herbert Robert D. , Cumming Robert G. , Close Jacqueline C. T. 
Published: October 2008

OBJECTIVES: To determine the effects of exercise on falls prevention in older people and establish whether particular trial characteristics or components of exercise programs are associated with larger reductions in falls.DESIGN: Systematic review with meta‐analysis. Randomized controlled trials that compared fall rates in older people who undertook exercise programs with fall rates in those who did not exercise were included.SETTING: Older people.PARTICIPANTS: General community and residential care.MEASUREMENTS: Fall rates.RESULTS: The pooled estimate of the effect of exercise was that it reduced the rate of falling by 17% (44 trials with 9,603 participants, rate ratio (RR)=0.83, 95% confidence interval (CI)=0.75–0.91, P<.001, I2=62%). The greatest relative effects of exercise on fall rates (RR=0.58, 95% CI=0.48–0.69, 68% of between‐study variability explained) were seen in programs that included a combination of a higher total dose of exercise (>50 hours over the trial period) and challenging balance exercises (exercises conducted while standing in which people aimed to stand with their feet closer together or on one leg, minimize use of their hands to assist, and practice controlled movements of the center of mass) and did not include a walking program.CONCLUSION: Exercise can prevent falls in older people. Greater relative effects are seen in programs that include exercises that challenge balance, use a higher dose of exercise, and do not include a walking program. Service providers can use these findings to design and implement exercise programs for falls prevention.
Relationship of Reverse Anatomical Remodeling and Ventricular Arrhythmias After Cardiac Resynchronization
Authors: MARKOWITZ STEVEN M. , LEWEN JASON M. , WIGGENHORN CHRISTOPHER J. , ABRAHAM WILLIAM T. , STEIN KENNETH M. , IWAI SEI , LERMAN BRUCE B. 
Published: October 2008

Ventricular Arrhythmias and Reverse Remodeling. Introduction: Cardiac resynchronization (CRT) affects reverse anatomical remodeling in patients with heart failure. CRT has also been associated with fewer ventricular arrhythmias and reduced sudden death in some clinical trials, but the predictors and mechanism of the antiarrhythmic actions of CRT have not been well defined. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship of reverse anatomical remodeling to ventricular arrhythmias in CRT patients.
Methods and Results:
A retrospective analysis was performed of the InSync III Marquis study, a prospective, randomized, multicenter CRT trial. Echocardiographic data from 198 patients were obtained at baseline and after 6 months of CRT, and anatomical responders were defined as a reduction in left ventricular end systolic volume (LVESV) of ≥15%. Anatomical responders (n = 71, 36%) demonstrated 29% fewer single premature ventricular contractions beats (PVCs) (P = 0.0001), 48% fewer PVC runs (p = 0.0096), and fewer treated episodes of ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation (VT/VF) (P = 0.050) than nonresponders. Multiple regression analysis demonstrated that responder status significantly predicted single PVCs and PVC runs. Gender was the most important predictor of treated VT/VF with females having no episodes over 6 months of follow‐up.
Conclusions:
Anatomic responders to CRT demonstrate significantly fewer single PVCs and runs of PVCs. The implication of these observations is that anatomic remodeling is linked to electrical remodeling. (J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol, Vol. 20, pp. 293‐298, March 2009)
Presence and Duration of Atrial Fibrillation Detected by Continuous Monitoring: Crucial Implications for the Risk of Thromboembolic Events
Authors: BOTTO GIOVANNI L. , PADELETTI LUIGI , SANTINI MASSIMO , CAPUCCI ALESSANDRO , GULIZIA MICHELE , ZOLEZZI FRANCESCO , FAVALE STEFANO , MOLON GIULIO , RICCI RENATO , BIFFI MAURO , RUSSO GIOVANNI , VIMERCATI MARCO , CORBUCCI GIORGIO , BORIANI GIUSEPPE 
Published: October 2008

AF and the Risk of Thromboembolic Events. Introduction: Asymptomatic atrial fibrillation (AF) can expose patients to the risk of stroke. The primary objective of this study was to assess the incidence of thromboembolic events in relationship with CHADS2 (congestive heart failure, hypertension, age ≥75 years, diabetes mellitus, and prior stroke, or transient ischemic attack) score and AF presence/duration. The secondary objective was to compare intermittent versus continuous monitoring strategies.
Methods and Results:
Data from patients with an implanted pacemaker and a history of AF were analyzed. Thromboembolic risk was quantified through CHADS2 score. Three AF groups were considered: patients with <5‐minutes AF on 1 day (AF‐free); patients with >5‐minutes AF on 1 day but <24 hours (AF‐5 minutes); patients with AF episodes >24 hours (AF‐24 hours). Monitoring strategies involving 24‐hour Holter, 1‐week Holter, and 30‐day Holter were simulated. Data from 568 patients continuously monitored for 1 year were analyzed: 171 (30%) had CHADS2 score = 0; 269 (47%) had CHADS2 score = 1; 111 (20%) had CHADS2 score = 2; and 17 (3%) had CHADS2 score ≥ 3. During follow‐up, 14 patients (2.5%) had an ischemic thromboembolic event. AF‐24 hours patients numbered 223 (39.2%); AF‐5 minutes, 179 (31.5%); and AF‐free, 29.2%. By combining AF presence/duration with CHADS2 score, two subpopulations with markedly different risks of events (0.8% vs 5%, P = 0.035) were identified, the former corresponding to AF‐free with CHADS2≤2, or AF‐5 minutes with CHADS2≤1, or AF‐24 hours with CHADS2= 0. The mean sensitivity in detecting an AF episode lasting >5 minutes was 44.4%, 50.4%, and 65.1% for 24‐hour Holter, 1‐week Holter, and 1‐month Holter monitoring, respectively.
Conclusion:
In patients with recurrent AF episodes, risk stratification for thromboembolic events can be improved by combining CHADS2 score with AF presence/duration. (J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol, Vol. 20, pp. 241‐248, March 2009)