bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Demographic and clinical predictors of spirituality in advanced cancer patients: a randomized control study
Authors: Mystakidou Kyriaki , Tsilika Eleni , Parpa Efi , Hatzipli Ioanna , Smyrnioti Marilena , Galanos Antonis , Vlahos Lambros 
Published: March 2008

Aim. To study the influence of cancer patients’ sociodemographic and clinical characteristics in their spiritual beliefs and attitudes.Background. Patients’ sociodemographic and clinical characteristics may have an important role in their spirituality. Failure to control these factors can lead to a false estimation on patients’ spiritual beliefs. Previous studies have found that age, gender and health status associate with spiritual attitudes and beliefs.Design. Survey.Methods. The Spiritual Involvement and Beliefs Scale was administered to 82 cancer patients. Demographic characteristics, disease status and treatment regimen were recorded.Results. Among the most significant correlations were those between gender and all the subscales, cancer diagnosis, existential/meditative subscale, radiotherapy treatment and external/ritual, internal/fluid and existential meditative. In the prediction of spirituality, the contribution of gender, age, years of education, performance status and radiotherapy is high.Conclusion. Acknowledging the specific patients’ demographic and medical characteristics, such as female gender, old age, years of education, performance status and radiotherapy treatment, contributes to the prediction of patients’ spiritual beliefs and attitudes.Relevance to clinical practice. Addressing spiritual needs in palliative care among the dying needs to be a priority and could be a crucial aspect of psychological functioning, especially when considering certain demographic and clinical characteristics.
Persistence of challenging behaviours in adults with intellectual disability over a period of 11 years
Authors: Totsika V. , Toogood S. , Hastings R. P. , Lewis S. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractBackground  Challenging behaviours in people with an intellectual disability (ID) often develop early and tend to persist throughout life. This study presents data on the chronicity of challenging behaviours in adults with ID over a period of 11 years, and explores the characteristics of people with persistent serious behaviour problems.Method  Support staff provided data on 58 adults living in a long‐term residential facility using an interview survey schedule assessing challenging behaviours in 1992 and 2003.Results  Participants presenting with serious physical attacks, self‐injury and frequent stereotypy were the most likely to persist in these behaviours over time. These behaviours were characterised by high persistence percentages and associations over time. However, the earlier presence of serious challenging behaviours did not significantly affect the likelihood of serious challenging behaviours in 2003. Individuals with persisting behaviour problems differed from those who did not present serious behaviour problems on the basis of their younger age, increased mobility, and decreased sociability and daily living skills in 1992.Conclusions  Estimates of persistence for challenging behaviours are affected by the statistics chosen to represent stability. The apparent persistence of serious challenging behaviours highlights the need to identify the factors related to maintenance of these behaviours over time. The participant characteristics and adaptive behaviours identified in the present study were not consistently related to the persistence of challenging behaviours. Therefore, other factors, including environmental characteristics, are likely to be related to challenging behaviour persistence.
Pinpointing a selective sweep to the chimpanzee MHC class I region by comparative genomics
Authors: DE GROOT NATASJA G. , HEIJMANS CORRINE M. C. , DE GROOT NANINE , OTTING NEL , DE VOS‐ROUWELER ANNEMIEK J. M. , REMARQUE EDMOND J. , BONHOMME MAXIME , DOXIADIS GABY G. M. , CROUAU‐ROY BRIGITTE , BONTROP RONALD E. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractChimpanzees experienced a reduction of the allelic repertoire at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I A and B loci, which may have been caused by a retrovirus belonging to the simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) family. Extended MHC haplotypes were defined in a pedigreed chimpanzee colony. Comparison of genetic variation at microsatellite markers mapping inside and outside the Mhc region was carried out in humans and chimpanzees to investigate the genomic extent of the repertoire reduction. Multilocus demographic analyses underscored that chimpanzees indeed experienced a selective sweep that mainly targeted the chromosomal segment carrying the Mhc class I region. Probably due to genetic linkage, the sweep also affected other polymorphic loci, mapping in the close vicinity of the Mhc class I region genes. Nevertheless, although the allelic repertoire at particular Mhc class I and II loci appears to be limited, naturally occurring recombination events allowed the establishment of haplotype diversity after the sweep. However, recombination did not have sufficient time to erase the signal of the selective sweep.
Good species despite massive hybridization: genetic research on the contact zone between the watersnakesNerodia sipedonandN. fasciatain the Carolinas, USA
Authors: MEBERT K. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractGenomic markers generated with the amplified fragment length polymorphism method revealed extensive, panmictic‐like hybridization along the narrow contact zone between the water snakesNerodia sipedonandNerodia fasciatain the Carolinas, USA. However, asymmetric distributions of diagnostic markers between both species and low frequencies of backcrossed hybrids with a high value of interspecific mixture infer selection against certain genotypes. This is consistent with a pronounced genetic and morphological preponderance ofN. fasciatacharacters in the hybrid zone. Despite massive hybridization within the contact zone, the existence of nearly fixed genetic markers and the potential inferiority of certain hybrid genotypes support the species status of the two taxa and corroborate known, but nondiagnostic differences in morphology and ecology. This study stretches the applicability of species concepts to cases, where the genetic compatibility between two closely related species is very high, yet, they still evolve and persist as independent entities.
Photorespiration in C4 grasses remains slow under drought conditions
Authors: CARMO‐SILVA ANA E. , POWERS STEPHEN J. , KEYS ALFRED J. , ARRABAÇA MARIA CELESTE , PARRY MARTIN A. J. 
Published: March 2008

ABSTRACTThe CO2‐concentrating mechanism present in C4 plants decreases the oxygenase activity of ribulose 1,5‐bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) and, consequently, photorespiratory rates in air. Under drought conditions, the intercellular CO2 concentration may decrease and cause photorespiration to increase. The C4 grasses Paspalum dilatatum Poiret, Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers. and Zoysia japonica Steudel were grown in soil and drought was imposed by ceasing to provide water. Net CO2 assimilation (A) and stomatal conductance to water vapour decreased with leaf dehydration. Decreased carbon and increased oxygen isotope composition were also observed under drought. The response of A to CO2 suggested that the compensation point was zero in all species irrespective of the extent of drought stress. A slight decrease of A as O2 concentration increased above 10% provided evidence for slow photorespiratory gas exchanges. Analysis of amino acids contained in the leaves, particularly the decrease of glycine after 30 s in darkness, supported the presence of slow photorespiration rates, but these were slightly faster in Cynodon dactylon than in Paspalum dilatatum and Zoysia japonica. Although the contents of glycine and serine increased with dehydration and mechanistic modelling of C4 photosynthesis suggested slightly increased photorespiration rates in proportion to photosynthesis, the results provide evidence that photorespiration remained slow under drought conditions.
Shallow‐burial dolomite cement: a major component of many ancient sucrosic dolomites
Authors: CHOQUETTE PHILIP W. , HIATT ERIC E. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractDolomite cement is a significant and widespread component of Phanerozoic sucrosic dolomites. Cements in dolomites that were never deeply buried are limpid, have planar faces (non‐saddle forms), often distinct zonation in cathodoluminescence and form syntaxial overgrowths on crystals facing pores. Five samples of sucrosic dolomites, interpreted as having had mostly lime‐mudstone or wackestone precursors in four carbonate aquifers, provide insights into the abundance of planar cements in sucrosic dolomites. Such cement comprises 11% to 45% (32% mean) of peritidal to sub‐tidal dolomites on an outcrop in the Edwards aquifer (Early Cretaceous) of central Texas; 19% to 33% (25% mean) of ramp dolomites in the Hawthorn Group (Oligo‐Miocene) and 50% to 70% in shelf dolomites of the Avon Park Formation (Eocene) in the Upper Floridan aquifer of sub‐surface peninsular Florida; 18% to 45% (32+% mean) of sub‐tidal shelf dolomites in quarry sections of the Burlington‐Keokuk Formation (Early Mississippian) in south‐eastern Iowa; and 18% to 76% (50% mean) in shallow cores and outcrops of outer‐shelf dolomites from the Gambier Limestone (Oligo‐Miocene) of South Australia. Backstripping the cement phases revealed by cathodoluminescence colour photomicrographs documents the effects of cements on textural coarsening, pore‐space reduction, induration and general ‘maturation’ of these dolomites. Most pre‐Holocene dolomites are multiphase crystalline rocks composed of: (i) seed crystals or ‘cores’; (ii) crystal cortices that concentrically enlarged the cores; and (iii) free‐space, syntaxial precipitates of limpid cement around the crystals. Remaining CaCO3 grains and micrite can be replaced by dolomite, but typically they are dissolved between stages (ii) and (iii), creating systems of intercrystal and mouldic pores typical of sucrosic dolomites. Networks of cement overgrowths, aided by water‐filled pore systems under hydrostatic to lithostatic pressure, are judged to slow or prevent compaction in sucrosic dolomites. It can be argued that cortex growth involves both replacement of CaCO3 particles and microcementation of their interparticle pores. This interpretation, and the abundance of cements in so many dolomites, would obviate the controversy over the volumetrics of ‘replacement dolomitization’. Limpid, planar and syntaxial dolomite cements of early diagenetic origin are interpreted to have precipitated from clear pore waters, at low temperatures (<30 to 35 °C) and shallow burial depths (<100 m), in water‐saturated networks of dolomite ‘silt’ and ‘sand’. Cements in many dolomites in island and continental–aquifer systems appear to result from event‐driven processes related to sea‐level highstands. Cementation events can follow ‘replacement dolomitization’ events by time intervals ranging from geologically ‘instantaneous’ to tens of million years.
Hypomethylation and hypermethylation of the tandem repetitive 5S rRNA genes in Arabidopsis
Authors: Vaillant Isabelle , Tutois Sylvie , Jasencakova Zuzana , Douet Julien , Schubert Ingo , Tourmente Sylvette 
Published: March 2008

Summary5S ribosomal DNA (5S rDNA) is organized in tandem repeats on chromosomes 3, 4 and 5 in Arabidopsis thaliana. One part of the 5S rDNA is located within the heterochromatic chromocenters, and the other fraction forms loops with euchromatic features that emanate from the chromocenters. We investigated whether the A. thaliana heterochromatin, and particularly the 5S rDNA, is modified when changing the culture conditions (cultivation in growth chamber versus greenhouse). Nuclei from challenged tissues displayed larger total, as well as 5S rDNA, heterochromatic fractions, and the DNA methyltransferase mutants met1 and cmt3 had different impacts in Arabidopsis. The enlarged fraction of heterochromatic 5S rDNA was observed, together with the reversal of the silencing of some 5S rRNA genes known as minor genes. We observed hypermethylation at CATG sites, and a concomitant DNA hypomethylation at CG/CXG sites in 5S rDNA. Our results show that the asymmetrical hypermethylation is correlated with the ageing of the plants, whereas hypomethylation results from the growth chamber/culture conditions. In spite of severely reduced DNA methylation, the met1 mutant revealed no increase in minor 5S rRNA transcripts in these conditions. The increasing proportion of cytosines in asymmetrical contexts during transition from the euchromatic to the heterochromatic state in the 5S rDNA array suggests that 5S rDNA units are differently affected by the (hypo and hyper)methylation patterns along the 5S rDNA locus. This might explain the different behaviour of 5S rDNA subpopulations inside a 5S array in terms of chromatin compaction and expression, i.e. some 5S rRNA genes would become derepressed, whereas others would join the heterochromatic fraction.
Overexpression of mutated forms of aspartate kinase and cystathionine γ‐synthase in tobacco leaves resulted in the high accumulation of methionine and threonine
Authors: Hacham Yael , Matityahu Ifat , Schuster Gadi , Amir Rachel 
Published: March 2008

SummaryMethionine and threonine are two essential amino acids, the levels of which limit the nutritional quality of plants. Both amino acids diverge from the same branch of the aspartate family biosynthesis pathway; therefore, their biosynthesis pathways compete for the same carbon/amino substrate. To further elucidate the regulation of methionine biosynthesis and seek ways of increasing the levels of these two amino acids, we crossed transgenic tobacco plants overexpressing the bacterial feedback‐insensitive aspartate kinase (bAK), containing a significantly higher threonine level, with plants overexpressing Arabidopsis cystathionine γ‐synthase (AtCGS), the first unique enzyme of methionine biosynthesis. Plants co‐expressing bAK and the full‐length AtCGS (F‐AtCGS) have significantly higher methionine and threonine levels compared with the levels found in wild‐type plants, but the methionine level does not increase beyond that found in plants expressing F‐AtCGS alone. This finding can be explained through the feedback inhibition regulation mediated by the methionine metabolite on the transcript level of AtCGS. To test this assumption, plants expressing bAK were crossed with plants expressing two mutated forms of AtCGS in which the domains responsible for the feedback regulation have been deleted. Indeed, significantly higher methionine contents and its metabolites levels accumulated in the newly produced plants, and the levels of threonine were also significantly higher than in the wild‐type plants. The transcript level of the two mutated forms of AtCGS significantly increased when there was a high content of threonine in the plants, suggesting that threonine modulates, probably indirectly, the transcript level of AtCGS.
Assessment of cross‐reactivity among five species of house dust and storage mites
Authors: Saridomichelakis Manolis N. , Marsella Rosanna , Lee Kenneth W. , Esch Robert E. , Farmaki Rania , Koutinas Alexander F. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractIn vitrocross‐reactivity among two house dust (Dermatophagoides farinae,D. pteronyssinus) and three storage (Acarus siro,Tyrophagus putrescentiae,Lepidoglyphus destructor) mites was examined in 20 mite‐sensitive dogs with natural occurring atopic dermatitis (group A), 13 high‐IgE beagles experimentally sensitized toD. farinae(group B), and five healthy beagles (group C). Intradermal testing (IDT) and serology for allergen‐specific IgE demonstrated that co‐sensitization for all possible pairs of the five mites was generally 45% or higher among group A dogs. In the same dogs, enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay cross‐inhibition results indicated that each one ofD. farinae,A. siroandT. putrescentiaewas a strong inhibitor of all the remaining mites, whereasD. pteronyssinuswas a strong inhibitor ofL. destructor. A high number of positive IDT and serology test results forD. pteronyssinus,A. siro,T. putrescentiaeandL. destructorwere recorded among group B dogs. No conclusive evidence of exposure to these mites was found upon analysis of dust samples from their environment and their food for the presence of mites and guanine. Also, the number of positive test results was generally higher among group B than among group C dogs. Enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay cross‐inhibition revealed thatD. farinaewas a strong inhibitor ofD. pteronyssinus,A. siroandT. putrescentiae. Collectively, these results demonstrated extensivein vitrocross‐reactivity among house dust and/or storage mites that can explain false‐positive results upon testing of dust mite‐sensitive dogs with atopic dermatitis.
Weeds that can do both tricks: vegetative versus generative regeneration of the short‐lived root‐sprouting herbs Rorippa palustris and Barbarea vulgaris
Authors: KLIMEŠOVÁ J , KOCIÁNOVÁ A , MARTÍNKOVÁ J 
Published: March 2008

SummaryWeeds of arable land have two strategies for coping with severe disturbance: they have either a very short life cycle and survive disturbance events (ploughing) as seeds or they rely on an underground bud bank and a large regeneration capacity from fragmented roots or stems. Representatives of the respective strategies differ in their investments: annual weeds invest in generative structures and production of easily dispersible or durable seeds, whereas perennial weeds invest preferentially to underground storage organs bearing buds which serve for vegetative propagation. Even when perennial weeds may also produce seeds under favourable conditions, these may serve for further field infestation and spreading. However, the ability of some short‐lived annual weeds to regenerate from roots is often overlooked in studies on mechanisms for disturbance survival. Here, we show that short‐lived weeds capable of adventitious sprouting from roots may be very successful in vegetative regeneration from root fragments. Using a pot experiment, short‐lived root sprouters were found to have higher (Rorippa palustris) or the same (Barbarea vulgaris) fitness when regenerating from root fragments as when regenerating from seed. Even though this finding needs to be tested on other species and in different experimental settings, the results indicate the potential importance of adventitious sprouting from roots in short‐lived plants. Better knowledge of this phenomenon is crucial for understanding both the population dynamics of short‐lived root‐sprouters in disturbed habitats and the ruderal strategy of plants generally.
Fenugreek root exudates show species‐specific stimulation of Orobanche seed germination
Authors: FERNÁNDEZ‐APARICIO M , ANDOLFI A , EVIDENTE A , PÉREZ‐DE‐LUQUE A , RUBIALES D 
Published: March 2008

SummaryVarious Orobanche species are weedy and cause severe reduction in the yields of many important crops. The seeds of these parasitic weeds may remain dormant in the soil for many years until germination is stimulated by the release of a chemical signal from a host plant. In order to determine the effects of fenugreek root exudate on the induction of Orobanche crenata, Orobanche ramosa and Orobanche foetida seed germination, root exudate was collected from hydroponically grown fenugreek seedlings. Fractionation patterns obtained from column and thin layer chromatography of the fenugreek root exudate showed a set of metabolites differing in their polarity with stimulatory activity on Orobanche seed germination. The crude root exudate stimulated both O. ramosa and O. crenata seed germination to the same level caused by the synthetic germination stimulant GR24 at 10 mg L−1. It also stimulated O. foetida seed germination which did not respond to GR24. Active fractions of root exudate stimulated the germination of Orobanche species differentially.
Intraspecific variation in Capsella bursa‐pastoris in plant quality traits for insect herbivores
Authors: KARLEY A J , HAWES C , IANNETTA P P M , SQUIRE G R 
Published: March 2008

SummaryThe arable plant Capsella bursa‐pastoris is phenotypically variable in many life history traits, particularly time from germination to flowering. The hypothesis was investigated that, associated with this variation, there are differences in traits that influence plant quality for insect herbivores. Significant within‐species variation was found in plant growth, leaf surface characteristics and tissue nutrient composition among 21 accessions of Capsella. Short flowering time plants exhibited slow vegetative growth, relatively large shoot nitrogen content, high leaf hair densities and differences in phloem composition, compared with long flowering time plants. Insect herbivore response to distinctive trait combinations was assessed on a subset of seven accessions using the phloem‐feeding aphids Aphis fabae and Myzus persicae. Variation in aphid performance was small but significant, with 15–25% fewer nymphs produced on plant variants that exhibited greater tissue water content and low tissue C:N ratio (A. fabae) or on variants with less phloem nitrogen (M. persicae). The differential responses exhibited by the two aphid species to the test accessions confirmed that quantifying intraspecific plant variation is a necessary first step in understanding plant functional diversity and its impact on consumers in arable systems.
Genetic diversity of sulfonylurea‐resistant and ‐susceptible Monochoria vaginalis populations in Japan
Authors: IMAIZUMI T , WANG G X , OHSAKO T , TOMINAGA T 
Published: March 2008

Summary Monochoria vaginalis is one of the most serious weeds of rice fields in Asia. The species is predominantly selfing. To reveal the potential for multiple mutational events, outcrossing and gene flow in the sulfonylurea‐resistant (SU‐R) M. vaginalis populations, we investigated (i) if each SU‐R population was a single SU‐R biotype or a mixture of several SU‐R biotypes using restriction analysis or direct sequencing of acetolacatate synthase (ALS) genes and (ii) genetic diversity of SU‐R and ‐susceptible (S) populations using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) analysis. Nineteen or 20 individuals were sampled from four SU‐R and five SU‐S populations respectively. Amino acid substitutions conferring resistance in the SU‐R populations were Pro197Ser in the ALS1 or ALS3, or Asp376Glu in the ALS1 and each SU‐R population was composed of a single SU‐R biotype. In cluster analysis each SU‐R individual formed a cluster, whereas the individuals from a SU‐S population belonged to different clusters. Some SU‐R populations showed polymorphic AFLP loci. The results indicated that these SU‐R biotypes emerged from a single mutational event and any gene flow of SU‐R genes from adjacent populations did not occur. A low level of outcrossing and recombinations of SU‐R genes occurred within some SU‐R populations of M. vaginalis.