bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Analysis of the Specificity of Panton-Valentine Leucocidin and Gamma-Hemolysin F Component Binding
Authors: Meyer Florent , Girardot Raymonde , Piémont Yves , Prévost Gilles , Colin Didier A. 
Published: October 2008

ABSTRACT

In this study, the binding of F components of the staphylococcal bicomponent leukotoxins Panton-Valentine leucocidin (LukF-PV) and gamma-hemolysin (HlgB) on polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs), monocytes, and lymphocytes was determined using labeled mutants and flow cytometry. Leukotoxin activity was evaluated by measuring Ca
2+
entry or pore formation using spectrofluorometry or flow cytometry. Although HlgB had no affinity for cells in the absence of an S component, LukF-PV had high affinity for PMNs (dissociation constant [
K

d

], 6.2 ± 1.9 nM;
n
= 8), monocytes (
K

d

, 2.8 ± 0.8 nM;
n
= 7), and lymphocytes (
K

d

, 1.2 ± 0.2 nM;
n
= 7). Specific binding of HlgB was observed only after addition of LukS-PV on PMNs (
K

d

, 1.1 ± 0.2 nM;
n
= 4) and monocytes (
K

d

, 0.84 ± 0.31 nM;
n
= 4) or after addition of HlgC on PMNs, monocytes, and lymphocytes. Addition of LukS-PV or HlgC induced a second specific binding of LukF-PV on PMNs. HlgB and LukD competed only with LukF-PV molecules bound after addition of LukS-PV. LukF-PV and LukD competed with HlgB in the presence of LukS-PV on PMNs and monocytes. Use of antibodies and comparisons between binding and activity time courses showed that the LukF-PV molecules that bound to target cells before addition of LukS-PV were the only LukF-PV molecules responsible for Ca
2+
entry and pore formation. In contrast, the active HlgB molecules were the HlgB molecules bound after addition of LukS-PV. In conclusion, LukF-PV must be linked to LukS-PV and to a binding site of the membrane to have toxin activity.
Rotator cuff tendinopathy/subacromial impingement syndrome: is it time for a new method of assessment?
Authors: Lewis J S 
Published: October 2008

Disorders of the shoulder are extremely common, with reports of prevalence ranging from 30% of people experiencing shoulder pain at some stage of their lives up to 50% of the population experiencing at least one episode of shoulder pain annually. In addition to the high incidence, shoulder dysfunction is often persistent and recurrent, with 54% of sufferers reporting ongoing symptoms after 3 years. To a large extent the substantial morbidity reflects (i) a current lack of understanding of the pathoaetiology, (ii) a lack of diagnostic accuracy in the assessment process, and (iii) inadequacies in current intervention techniques. Pathology of the rotator cuff and subacromial bursa is considered to be the principal cause of pain and symptoms arising from the shoulder. Generally these diagnostic labels relate more to a clinical hypothesis as to the underlying cause of the symptoms than to definitive evidence of the histological basis for the diagnosis or the correlation between structural failure and symptoms.Diagnosing rotator cuff tendinopathy or subacromial impingement syndrome currently involves performing a structured assessment that includes taking the patient’s history in conjunction with performing clinical assessment procedures that generally involve tests used to implicate an isolated structure. Based on the response to the clinical tests, a diagnosis of rotator cuff tendinopathy or subacromial impingement syndrome is achieved. The clinical diagnosis is strengthened with the findings from supporting investigations such as blood tests, radiographs, ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed axial tomography (CT), radionucleotide isotope scan, single photon emission computed tomography, electromyography, nerve conduction and diagnostic analgesic injection. This process eventually results in the formation of a clinical hypothesis, and then, in conjunction with the patient, a management plan is decided upon and implemented.This paper focuses on the dilemmas associated with the current process, and an alternative method for the clinical examination of the shoulder for this group of patients is proposed.
Spatial structure and inbreeding depression in slickspot peppergrass, Lepidium papilliferum (Brassicaceae)
Authors: Billinge Stephanie A. , Robertson Ian C. 
Published: October 2008

In plants with limited pollen and seed dispersal, populations are often spatially structured such that neighboring individuals are more closely related to one another than to distant individuals. Mating among close relatives, including selfing, may lead to a reduction in reproductive performance through the effects of prezygotic mating barriers and inbreeding depression. Studying 11 populations of slickspot peppergrass, Lepidium papilliferum (L.F. Hend.) A. Nels. and J.F. Macbr (Brassicaceae), a rare mustard endemic to southwestern Idaho, we investigated whether small populations (16–746 flowering individuals) exhibit spatial structure as previously reported for large populations (>3000 flowering individuals). Through hand-pollination experiments we found that percent fruit set increased with increasing distance between parents up to a distance of 3 m, and declined slightly but nonsignificantly at greater outcrossing distances. Self-pollinated plants produced little or no fruit. Germination of seeds from the hand-pollination experiment revealed signs of inbreeding depression in the offspring. Specifically, leaf length of developing seedlings increased significantly as a function of outcrossing distance. Total leaf number showed a similar, yet statistically nonsignificant, response to outcrossing distance. Overall, our experiments reveal spatial structuring and suggest the occurrence of inbreeding depression in small populations of L. papilliferum.
Mineralogy, geochemistry, and Sr–Nd isotopes of the Cretaceous leucogranite from Karamadazı (Kayseri), central Turkey: implications for their sources and geological setting
Authors: Kocak Kerim 
Published: October 2008

The leucogranite is the major constituent of the bimodal Late Cretaceous Karamadazı granitoid, developed in relation with evolution of the Inner Tauride Ocean along the northern margin of the Taurides in central Turkey. New analyses of minerals major and trace elements (including rare-earth elements (REE)), and of Sr and Nd isotopes are performed to determine the origin and geochemical characteristics of the leucogranites. Medium-coarse-grained leucogranite contains normally zoned plagioclase (An12–20), mildly alkaline biotite, and xenocrystic magneziohornblende, actinolite, and ferrohornblende. It is characterized by concave-up REE patterns with respect to middle–heavy REE. Field relations, mineral chemistry, geochemical data, and isotopic data suggest that the leucogranite could have originated from an amphibole-bearing igneous source in lower to middle crust by low-rate partial melting (<40%) under low pressure and low H2O activity conditions, possibly coupled by mixing–mingling with mafic magma and high-level feldspar and minor biotite fractionation. In contrast, the quartz diorite and mafic microgranular enclave (MME) are probably developed from an enriched mantle, with possible mingling–mixing. MME, quartz diorite, and leucogranite may represent a magmatic suite, which formed in an extensional tectonic regime by bimodal magmatic activity probably because of lithospheric delamination or slab break off or after the Alpine thicken within the Gondwanan Tauride–Anatolide platform. Initial Sr data exhibit an age of 65 ± 13 Ma for the leucogranite, but it does not indicate a true intrusion age of the magma due to isotopic modification of the magma.
Proterozoic anorthosite–granite Nain batholith: structure and intrusion processes in an active lithosphere-scale fault zone, northern Labrador
Authors: Myers John S. , Voordouw Ronald J. , Tettelaar Tanya A. 
Published: October 2008

We present field evidence of the structure and evolution of a typical Proterozoic massif-type anorthosite. The anorthosite forms a batholith composed of numerous plutons and ring complexes intruded episodically in two main sequences, each producing anorthositic rocks and monzonite–ferrodiorite followed by granite. The batholith is located where a lithosphere-scale fault zone, ∼50 km wide and extending over 1000 km from Greenland to Labrador, intersected an older continental suture. Intermittent episodes of mainly sinistral transtension along this Gardar – Voisey’s Bay fault zone were associated with the generation of a number of pulses of magmatism and controlled the rise of magmas to middle and upper crustal levels between ∼1363 and 1289 Ma. Both the large- and small-scale structures and magma intrusion processes are similar to those of many cordilleran batholiths, with tabular plutons associated with ring dykes emplaced by cauldron subsidence, and basin-shaped plutons associated with cone sheets. These structures are well known in subvolcanic situations but little known at the mid-crustal depth of the Nain batholith. The location of these structures within the batholith was controlled by intersecting, externally generated faults and shear zones. We conclude that this typical massif-type anorthosite is an intracratonic structural equivalent of cordilleran batholiths of continental margins.
Stimulatory effect of insecticides on partially purified P-glycoprotein ATPase from the resistant pestHelicoverpa armigeraThis paper is one of a selection of papers published in this Special Issue, entitled CSBMCB — Membrane Proteins in Health and Disease.
Authors: Aurade Ravindra , Jayalakshmi Senigala K. , Sreeramulu Kuruba 
Published: October 2008

A P-glycoprotein-like protein (Ha-Pgp) was detected in a membrane preparation from the insecticide-resistant pest Helicoverpa armigera (Lepidoptera: Noctüidae) using C219 antibodies that are directed towards an epitope in the nucleotide-binding domains. This protein was partially purified and found to be a glycoprotein displaying ATPase activity. SDS–PAGE confirmed that a high molecular mass glycoprotein (150 kDa) was overexpressed in resistant pests, but was not detected in susceptible pests. The partially purified Ha-Pgp ATPase was reconstituted into proteoliposomes and it was found that some insecticides, namely, monocrotophos, endosulfan, cypermethrin, fenvalerate, and methylparathion, stimulated the ATPase activity. The effect of various inhibitors on partially purified Ha-Pgp showed that orthovanadate is a potent inhibitor of its ATPase activity, inhibiting it by 90% at a concentration of 2 mmol/L. Other inhibitors, such as EDTA, sodium azide, and molybdate resulted in only a 20% decrease in activity. Details of the structure and function of Ha-Pgp will be important in the development of strategies to overcome insecticide resistance in this pest.
Fractality feature in incompressible three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic turbulence
Authors: Momeni M , Moslehi-Fard M 
Published: October 2008

High-resolution direct numerical simulation data for three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence based on the 10243-modes in a periodic box are used to study the statistical properties of turbulence. In this paper, the presence of intermittency in MHD turbulence is investigated through the analysis of the Probability Distribution Function (PDF) for Elsässer fields and total energy fluctuations. The energy PDFs exhibit similarity over all scales of the turbulent system since they show no substantial qualitative change in shape as the scale of the fluctuations varies. This is in sharp and surprising contrast to the well-known behavior of PDFs of turbulent field fluctuations of, for example, velocity, and magnetic and Elsässer fields. The PDFs have exponential tails and satisfy the function P(| δX |) ~ exp(–A | δX | μ). Numerically, we extract the exponent μ and find that it is constant for monofractal behavior as the scale of length varies. The compensated structure functions exhibit self-similarity for the respective fluctuations, and it is a reliable way in turbulence. PACS Nos.: 52.30.–q , 52.30.Cv , 52.35.Ra , 52.65.–y
Calibration concepts for load and resistance factor design (LRFD) of reinforced soil walls
Authors: Bathurst Richard J. , Allen Tony M. , Nowak Andrzej S. 
Published: October 2008

Reliability-based design concepts and their application to load and resistance factor design (LRFD or limit states design (LSD) in Canada) are well known, and their adoption in geotechnical engineering design is now recommended for many soil–structure interaction problems. Two important challenges for acceptance of LRFD for the design of reinforced soil walls are (i) a proper understanding of the calibration methods used to arrive at load and resistance factors, and (ii) the proper interpretation of the data required to carry out this process. This paper presents LRFD calibration principles and traces the steps required to arrive at load and resistance factors using closed-form solutions for one typical limit state, namely pullout of steel reinforcement elements in the anchorage zone of a reinforced soil wall. A unique feature of this paper is that measured load and resistance values from a database of case histories are used to develop the statistical parameters in the examples. The paper also addresses issues related to the influence of outliers in the datasets and possible dependencies between variables that can have an important influence on the results of calibration.
Three-dimensional numerical investigation of multifaced tunneling in water-bearing soft ground
Authors: Yoo Chungsik , Kim Sun-Bin 
Published: October 2008

This paper presents the results of a numerical investigation of the performance of multifaced tunneling under a pile-supported building in water-bearing soft ground. Special attention was paid to the effect of tunneling and groundwater interaction on the tunneling performance. A fully coupled three-dimensional (3D) stress – pore pressure finite element model was adopted to realistically capture the mechanical and hydrological interaction between the tunneling and groundwater. The results indicate that the groundwater drawdown during tunneling yields a considerably larger settlement-affected zone than for cases with no groundwater drawdown, with a tendency for large portions of ground settlement and groundwater drawdown to be completed before the tunnel passes a monitoring section. Also revealed is that the presence of a building tends to reduce the ground settlements and cause subsurface settlements more or less uniformly with depth. It is shown that the lining deformation, and thus its stresses are not significantly affected by the presence of the building for the multifaced tunneling considered in this study. Axial loads in the piles supporting the building tend to either increase or decrease depending on the pile location relative to the tunnel axis. The patterns of changes in pile axial loads are different from the results of previous studies concerning a single pile.
Antidepressant-like effect of 17β-estradiol: involvement of dopaminergic, serotonergic, and (or) sigma-1 receptor systems
Authors: Dhir Ashish , Kulkarni S.K. 
Published: October 2008

17β-estradiol has been reported to possess antidepressant-like activity in animal models of depression, although the mechanism for its effect is not well understood. The present study is an effort in this direction to explore the mechanism of the antidepressant-like effect of 17β-estradiol in a mouse model(s) of behavioral depression (despair behavior). Despair behavior, expressed as helplessness to escape from a situation (immobility period), as in a forced swim test in which the animals are forced to swim for a total of 6 min, was recorded. The antiimmobility effects (antidepressant-like) of 17β-estradiol were compared with those of standard drugs like venlafaxine (16 mg/kg, i.p.). 17β-estradiol produced a U-shaped effect in decreasing the immobility period. It had no effect on locomotor activity of the animal. The antidepressant-like effect was comparable to that of venlafaxine (16 mg/kg, i.p.). 17β-estradiol also exhibited a similar profile of antidepressant action in the tail suspension test. When coadministered with other antidepressant drugs, 17β-estradiol (5 μg/kg, i.p.) potentiated the antiimmobility effect of subeffective doses of fluoxetine (5 mg/kg, i.p.), venlafaxine (2 mg/kg, i.p.), or bupropion (10 mg/kg, i.p.), but not of desipramine (5 mg/kg, i.p.) or tranylcypromine (2 mg/kg, i.p.), in the forced swim test. The reduction in the immobility period elicited by 17β-estradiol (20 μg/kg, i.p.) was reversed by haloperidol (0.5 mg/kg, i.p.; a D2 dopamine receptor antagonist), SCH 23390 (0.5 mg/kg, i.p.; a D1 dopamine receptor antagonist), and sulpiride (5 mg/kg, i.p.; a specific dopamine D2 receptor antagonist). In mice pretreated with (+)-pentazocine (2.5 mg/kg, i.p.; a high-affinity sigma-1 receptor agonist), 17β-estradiol (5 μg/kg, i.p.) produced a synergistic effect. In contrast, pretreatment with progesterone (10 mg/kg, s.c.; a sigma-1 receptor antagonist neurosteroid), rimcazole (5 mg/kg, i.p.; another sigma-1 receptor antagonist), or BD 1047 (1 mg/kg, i.p.; a novel sigma-1 receptor antagonist) reversed the antiimmobility effects of 17β-estradiol (20 μg/kg, i.p.). Similarly, in mice pretreated with a subthreshold dose of 8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)tetralin (8-OH-DPAT, a 5-HT1A serotonin receptor agonist), 17β-estradiol (5 μg/kg, i.p.) produced an antidepressant-like effect. These findings demonstrate that 17β-estradiol exerted an antidepressant-like effect preferentially through the modulation of dopaminergic and serotonergic receptors. This action may also involve the participation of sigma-1 receptors.
Uplift, compression and the Cenozoic Faroe–Shetland sediment budget
Authors: Smallwood John R. 
Published: October 2008

Abstract
Throughout the Cenozoic, the dominant sediment supply to the Faroe–Shetland Basin has been from the SE. However, the volume of sediment in the basin is greater than that supplied from the British Isles' provenance area alone. The British Isles and Faroes Platform experienced both epeirogenic and local uplift, caused by igneous underplating, mantle thermal variations and compression. A Cenozoic topographic model is presented for the British Isles' and Faroe Islands' provenance areas, from which sediment supply rates are calculated. The model includes permanent uplift from igneous underplating, which is estimated from gravity anomaly data, transient regional uplift and a simple elevation-dependent erosion term, under isostatic balance. Even using upside estimates of the British Isles' Cenozoic denudation and the documented post-Eocene contribution from the Faroe Islands, there is an apparent undersupply of sediment to the basin. The sediment volume balance suggests that around 30% of the Paleocene sediments currently in the basin were sourced from a westerly provenance area, the pre-basalt Faroes Platform terrane or East Greenland.
Palaeogene evolution of the Ymir and Wyville Thomson ridges, European North Atlantic margin
Authors: Ziska H. , Varming T. 
Published: October 2008

Abstract
The region to the SW of the Faroe Islands is an enigmatic area where the structural trends of the Faroe–Shetland and North Rockall basins meet. The Munkagrunnur, Wyville Thomson and Ymir ridges are major tectonic features within the area and arc approximately perpendicular to the primary Caledonian structural trend. Previous studies have suggested that these ridges formed as a result of compressive forces during the Eocene, Oligocene and Miocene. However, this study suggests that these ridges were initiated by a transient rifting event in the early Paleocene. This rifting event was accompanied by an igneous phase which emplaced large volumes of intrusive and extrusive igneous rocks. The igneous centres within the study area are located on older structural features, indicating exploitation of pre-existing structural weaknesses. The same structural weaknesses were later exploited by compressive events, which resulted in the generation of Ymir Ridge South, and also influenced the orientation and shape of the other segments of Ymir Ridge and the Wyville Thomson Ridge.
Aging Studies of Voltammetrically Dealloyed Pt-Cu Nanoparticle ORR Electrocatalysts
Authors: Strasser Peter , Liu Zengcai , Koh Shirlaine 
Published: October 2008

Voltammetrically dealloyed Pt-Cu alloy nanoparticles show significantly improved Pt-mass and specific activities for the oxygen reduction reaction in acidic media in both RDE and MEA configurations. The active phase of the catalyst is prepared from very Cu-rich precursor materials which are formulated into catalyst inks and electrode layers. The high Cu content of the precursor materials raises fundamental and practical questions as to the molecular stability / oxidation state of the Cu rich catalyst surface and the shelf-life of precursor powders, inks and electrode layers.	Here we present aging studies of a carbon-supported Pt25Cu75 nanoparticle catalyst precursor. We monitored how the surface area (ECSA) and the oxygen electroreduction (ORR) reactivity of dealloyed precursors (active form of catalyst) change as a function of the exposure time to air of the Pt25Cu75 precursor at room temperature. Similarly, we aimed to investigate how ECSA and ORR of the active catalyst changed with the time the liquid catalyst ink was exposed to air. We find little detrimental effect of air aging of the precursor on ORR activity over the time scales investigated. The effect of air aging of the catalyst inks is more complex, however. Initially, aged inks show increased ORR reactivity, that is, aged inks result in more active catalyst layers. After about 4-5 days of aging of the inks in air, however, we observed a drop in ORR activity of the resulting catalyst layers. This complex aging behavior of the inks seems independent of prior air aging of the dry powder precursor.
Inhibition of Azoxymethane-Induced Colonic Aberrant Crypt Foci Formation by Silibinin in Male Fisher 344 Rats
Authors: Velmurugan Balaiya , Singh Rana P. , Tyagi Alpna , Agarwal Rajesh 
Published: October 2008

Abstract
Chemoprevention is a practical approach to control colorectal cancer, which is one of the major causes of cancer mortality in the United States. Based on our recent silibinin efficacy studies in human colorectal cancer cells, we investigated the effects of its dietary feeding on azoxymethane (AOM)-induced aberrant crypt foci (ACF) formation and associated biomarkers in male Fisher 344 rats. Five-week-old male Fisher 344 rats were fed control or silibinin-supplemented (0.033%, 0.1%, 0.33%, or 1%, w/w) diet. After 2 weeks, AOM was injected once a week for 2 weeks while silibinin treatments were continued. In another protocol, identical silibinin treatments were done but started 2 weeks post-AOM initiation. All rats were sacrificed at 16 weeks of age, and colon samples were evaluated for ACF, followed by proliferation, apoptosis, and inducible nitric oxide synthase and cyclooxygenase-2, by immunohistochemistry and/or immunoblotting. Silibinin significantly (P &lt; 0.001) reduced dose-dependently the number and multiplicity of AOM-induced ACF formation. Silibinin feeding in pre- and post-AOM initiation decreased mean number of ACF by 39% to 65% and in post-AOM initiation by 29% to 55%. Silibinin dose-dependently decreased AOM-induced colonic cell proliferation, evidenced by proliferative cell nuclear antigen and cyclin D1 immunohistochemical staining, and induced apoptosis in these colon tissues, evidenced by terminal deoxyribonucleotidyl transferase–mediated dUTP nick end labeling staining and cleaved poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase. Furthermore, silibinin significantly decreased AOM-induced inducible nitric oxide synthase– and cyclooxygenase-2–positive cells in colon tissues. The present findings show possible beneficial activity of silibinin at least in early stage of colon tumorigenesis, suggesting that silibinin might be an effective natural agent for colorectal cancer chemoprevention.