bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Role of TLR4 for paclitaxel chemotherapy in human epithelial ovarian cancer cells
Authors: Wang A. C. , Su Q. B. , Wu F. X. , Zhang X. L. , Liu P. S. 
Published: January 2009

AbstractBackground  Paclitaxel has been reported to be a ligand to Toll like receptor 4 (TLR4). Myeloid differentiation factor 88(MyD88) was described as a myeloid differentiation primary response gene. TLR4 signalling owns two pathways: MyD88‐dependent and MyD88‐independent pathways. XIAP is a key member of the inhibitor of apoptosis protein family. Akt is a major downstream target of growth factor receptor tyrosine kinases, which negatively regulates apoptotic pathways through phosphorylation (pAkt). The aim of the present study is to investigate the role of TLR4 in paclitaxel resistance of ovarian cancer cells.Materials and methods  We reconstructed the RNA interference expression vector, pGenesil‐1‐U6 specifically targeting TLR4 mRNA, which was stable transfected into the human ovarian cancer cell line SKOV3 (MyD88‐positive expression) and A2780 (MyD88‐negative expression). Cell proliferation, cell cycle distribution and cell apoptosis were assessed in the cells transfected with scramble control shRNA (SKOV3/shControl, A2780/shControl) and TLR4 shRNA (SKOV3/shTLR4, A2780/shTLR4) to explore the possible functions of TLR4 in ovarian cancer cells growth. The expression of TLR4, MyD88, XIAP, Akt and pAkt was analysed by Western blot analysis.Results  A knockdown of TLR4 levels down‐regulated the expression of XIAP and pAkt. And it restored the inhibitory effect of paclitaxel on cell proliferation and impeding cell cycle progression in SKOV3 cells.Conclusions  It suggests that TLR4 negatively regulates paclitaxel chemotherapy and MyD88 is an essential downstream factor to TLR4 signalling for this resistance. Knockdown of TLR4 induces paclitaxel chemosensitivity which might depress the Akt pathway. The TLR4‐MyD88 signalling represents an important source to promote tumour growth.
Clinical relevance of myocardial bridging severity: single center experience
Authors: Mookadam F. , Green J. , Holmes D. , Moustafa S. E. , Rihal C. 
Published: January 2009

AbstractBackground  Myocardial bridging refers to intramyocardial systolic compression of a segment of an epicardial coronary artery. We aimed to identify the clinical significance of myocardial bridging by assessing the clinical presentation in non‐obstructive coronary artery disease among a cohort of consecutive patients presenting for coronary angiography.Materials and methods  A retrospective review of our institution's database between September 2002 and March 2005 was conducted to review coronary angiography reports of 14 416 patients. The study group included 226 patients (prevalence = 1·57%) with isolated myocardial bridging and < 50% stenosis in the non‐bridged arteries. Cases with myocardial bridging were classified according to the percentage of systolic compression of the left anterior descending artery into group I (< 50% compression), group II (50–70% compression) and group III (compression ≥ 70%).Results  Mean age was 57·6 ± 15·5 years; 59% were men. The mean duration of follow‐up was 12 ± 2 months. The left anterior descending was the most common site of bridging (210, 93%). There was a significant difference between groups I and III with respect to the percentage of patients who presented with non‐fatal myocardial infarction (P = 0·02). Unstable angina had the highest association with myocardial bridging, but there was no significance among the level of myocardial bridging severity and the clinical presentation of angina.Conclusions  Myocardial bridging is not a benign variation of coronary anatomy. It is associated with angina and myocardial infarction in patients with ≥ 70% systolic compression. The bridged segment may be a cause of enhanced atherosclerotic plaque formation.
Clinical relevance of measuring colonic permeability
Authors: Haas V. , Büning C. , Buhner S. , Von Heymann C. , Valentini L. , Lochs H. 
Published: January 2009

SummaryBackground  Gastroduodenal and small intestinal permeability are increased in patients with Crohn's disease (CD) and intensive care patients. The relevance of colonic permeability has not yet been adequately investigated. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical value of sucralose excretion as indicator for colonic permeability in these patient groups.Design  After oral administration of four sugars and subsequent analysis of urinary excretion, gastroduodenal and intestinal permeability were calculated from saccharose excretion and lactulose/mannitol (L/M) ratio over 5 h, and sucralose excretion from 5 to 26 h in 100 healthy controls, 29 CD and 35 patients after coronary surgery (CABG).Results  In controls, sucralose excretion was highly variable (0·67 ± 0·92%) and not related to small intestinal permeability. In CD and CABG, L/M ratio was increased (0·054 ± 0·060; 0·323 ± 0·253 vs. 0·018 ± 0·001 in controls). Sucralose excretion was increased in 77% of CABG but only in 7% of CD. There was an association between gastroduodenal and intestinal permeability in CD and CABG (r = 0·72, and r = 0·51), but sucralose excretion was not related to either one of these two parameters. Other than a weak association between sucralose and length of stay in intensive care in CABG patients (P = 0·099), sucralose excretion was not related to clinical outcome.Conclusions  The proposed cut‐off for normal sucralose excretion is 2·11%, but its high variability and lack of association to gastrointestinal permeability or clinical outcome leave it open, if it can provide information beyond established permeability tests.
Effects of native vegetation on invasion success of Chinese tallow in a floating marsh ecosystem
Authors: Battaglia Loretta L. , Denslow Julie S. , Inczauskis Jason R. , Baer Sara G. 
Published: January 2009

Summary

Interactions between resident and exotic species have been shown to control the biotic resistance of communities to invasion. With different life stages of the exotic species, each sequential interaction may dampen or strengthen previous ones, thereby influencing invasion success.
We assessed the effects of resident vegetation type on the arrival and performance of Triadica sebifera (Chinese tallow), a widespread invader in freshwater floating marshes, using a combination of field studies and glasshouse experiments.
Our results indicated that Triadica abundance was positively associated with native woody species, particularly the native actinorhizal shrub Morella cerifera (wax myrtle). Seed dispersal and germination of Triadica were generally low but suggestive that Morella has weak, facilitative effects on the spread of Triadica by channelling its dispersal by birds into shrub thickets and promoting germination upon arrival. Triadica seedling growth was greatest where light and total inorganic N were higher. Growth of Triadica trees was greater in marsh sites without Morella and did not exhibit any detectable responses to elevated N levels in substrates from Morella thickets.
Morella may facilitate the spread of Triadica in floating shrub communities, yet inhibit its growth once established. The few individuals that establish in herbaceous marshes grow faster and may therefore reach maturity sooner than in Morella shrub thickets.
Synthesis. Our work suggests that the net effects of facilitation and inhibition by native, resident species on exotics can influence invasion success. In this case, weak, facilitative effects operating in the arrival and establishment phases of invasion are not completely negated by subsequent negative interactions between the same species, enabling the invader to persist. Models that quantify the relative strength and cumulative effects of these interactions are needed to improve predictions of community invasibility.
Natural disturbance in an old‐growth landscape of northern Maine, USA
Authors: Fraver Shawn , White Alan S. , Seymour Robert S. 
Published: January 2009

Summary

Disturbance histories derived from old‐growth forest remnants in Europe and eastern North America have shaped many of our current theories of forest dynamics and succession. Yet the small size typical of these remnants suggests they might not capture the full range of variability that may emerge at larger scales.
We investigated the frequency and severity of natural disturbance in a 2000‐ha old‐growth landscape (Big Reed Forest Reserve) in northern Maine, USA. Given its size, the Reserve provides an ideal opportunity to study, at multiple scales, natural forest processes in a region that has otherwise been dramatically altered by human activities. Using dendrochronological methods, we reconstructed disturbance histories for 37 randomly located plots stratified by five forest types (hardwood forests, mixed woods forests, red spruce forests, northern white‐cedar seepage forests and northern white‐cedar swamps).
We found no evidence of stand replacing disturbance on any plot during the last 120–280 years (depending on plot). The overall mean disturbance rate was 9.6% canopy loss per decade (median 6.5%, maximum 55%, plots pooled), yet the distribution was strongly skewed toward the lower rates.
We found little differences in disturbance rates between forest types, save a slightly lower rate in the northern white‐cedar swamps. However, if we ignore forest‐type classifications, we see that disturbance rates are clearly influenced by gradients in the relative abundance of component tree species, owing to species’ relative susceptibilities to particular disturbance agents.
Synthesis. Relatively low rates of canopy disturbance allow the accrual of shade‐tolerant saplings. The abundance of this advance regeneration, coupled with the absence of stand‐replacing disturbance, has maintained canopy dominance by shade‐tolerant species in all plots, all forest types and throughout the entire landscape. Disturbance histories from individual plots coalesce to form a picture of a landscape in which pulses of moderate‐severity disturbance are interposed upon a background of scattered small‐scale canopy gaps. The landscape‐level mosaic resulting from this disturbance regime consists of patches in various stages of structural development, not various stages of compositional succession.
Dose‐dependent effects of the 5‐HT1A receptor agonist 8‐OH‐DPAT on sleep and wakefulness in the rat
Authors: MONTI JAIME M. , JANTOS HÉCTOR 
Published: January 2009

SUMMARY  Sleep and wakefulness were studied in rats following administration of a selective 5‐HT1A agonist (8‐OH‐DPAT), a non‐selective 5‐HT1A antagonist [(‐) pindolol] and a combination of 8‐OH‐DPAT and (—) pindolol.8‐OH‐DPAT (1.0–4.0 μg) injected into the dorsal raphe nucleus increased slow‐wave sleep and decreased wakefulness. Administration of the 5‐HT1A agonist by subcutaneous route induced biphasic effects such that low doses (0.010 mg kg‐1) decreased wakefulness and increased slow‐wave sleep while higher doses (0.375 mg kg‐1) induced opposite effects. REM sleep was suppressed and REM latency was increased, what could be tentatively ascribed to a non‐specific effect (hypothermia). (‐) Pindolol (1.0–4.0 mg kg‐1) induced an initial increase of wakefulness and a decrease of NREM sleep and REM sleep. Thereafter, NREM sleep showed a marked increase while REM sleep remained depressed. Pretreat‐ment with (—) pindolol reversed the effects of both small and large doses of 8‐OH‐DPAT on slow‐wave sleep and wakefulness.The opposite effects, observed on the waking EEG after activation of either serotonin autoreceptors or postsynaptic 5‐HT1A receptors with adequate doses of 8‐OH‐DPAT, tend to indicate an active role for the 5‐HT1A receptor in the control of the waking state.
The quest for dream sources
Authors: CAVALLERO CORRADO 
Published: January 2009

SUMMARY  Within a Human Information Processing (HIP) framework, dreaming can be subdivided into three main components: Input, Processing and Output. Until recently, only the Output has been extensively studied due to its relatively easy accessibility in the form of dream reports. Much less is known about the other two components.A method is presented by which one can get information on the nature of the input component to dream processing. In this method the subjects are requested to identify the memory sources of their dreams, collected upon experimental awakenings. The materials thus obtained are then classified into categories derived from Tulving's distinction between Episodic and Semantic memory. Several aspects, including interviewing and scoring procedures, had to be specified in order to use the method, which was applied in a series of studies. The aim was to clarify the similarities as well as the differences between REM and NREM dreams. The main results give further support to the hypothesis of the existence of a unique dream production system that operates at different levels of engagement during the various sleep phases.
Actigraphically recorded motor activity and immobility across sleep cycles and stages in healthy male subjects
Authors: MIDDELKOOP HUUB A. M. , VAN HILTEN BOB J. , KRAMER COR G. S. , KAMPHUISEN HILBERT A. C. 
Published: January 2009

SUMMARY  The aim of this study was to compare the extent to which activity and immobility measures are related to sleep stages and sleep cycles in order to improve the informative value of actigraphic assessment of sleep. We therefore performed simultaneous ambulatory polysomnography and wrist‐activity monitoring (AM) in 14 healthy male subjects without sleep complaints. In this context, a simple method for transforming raw motor activity data into a time‐series reflecting onset and duration of activity and immobility clusters is introduced.Our results demonstrate that nocturnal AM measures were significantly affected by sleep stage. Low activity levels and particularly prolonged episodes of uninterrupted immobility were associated with increasing sleep depth. On the other hand, high activity levels and prolonged episodes of activity were related to intermittent wakefulness during sleep. Our results suggest that measures reflecting the occurrence and duration of activity and immobility clusters provide a better approach in studying the relationship between activity/immobility and sleep stages.Except for the duration of uninterrupted immobility episodes, which showed a significant decrease in the fourth cycle, none of the AM measures showed a significant cycle‐to‐cycle variation. Consequently, mean nocturnal motor activity measures provide an accurate reflection of the total sleep period. However, none of the AM‐derived measures seems useful in evaluating the cycle structure during sleep.
The prevalence of delayed and advanced sleep phase syndromes
Authors: SCHRADER HARALD , BOVIM GUNNAR , SAND TROND 
Published: January 2009

SUMMARY  To determine the prevalence of the delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS) and the contrasting advanced sleep phase syndrome (ASPS), a cross‐sectional nationwide epidemiological study was performed in Norway. Screening questionnaires were sent to a random sample of 10,000 adult individuals (18–67 y), of both sexes, taken from the National register of Norway. The response rate was 77%. Diagnoses of DSPS and ASPS were based on International Classification of Sleep Disorders (ICSD) criteria. All individuals suspected of having DSPS or ASPS were requested to fill out a second questionnaire, and a sleep log for four weeks. Subjects for whom the suspicion of DSPS or ASPS could be upheld were contacted by telephone for a final confirmation.Of the 129 possible DSPS cases identified from the screening questionnaires, 17 (9f; 8m) remained with the confirmed diagnosis of DSPS. The prevalence was calculated to be 0.17% (95% Confidence Intervals: 0.10–0.28). Thirteen individuals had a mild to moderate DSPS and four had a severe DSPS. The mean age of onset was 15.4 y, and mean duration was 19.2 y. There was no significant correlation between prevalence and age. A sleep phase delay (MSPD) induced by social/environmental or psychological factors was found in 55 subjects (prevalence = 0.72%).Using strict ICSD criteria, no case of ASPS was detected, confirming earlier assumptions of the extreme rarity of this condition.
Dreaming in agenesis of the corpus callosum: laboratory and home assessment of four cases
Authors: NIELSEN TORE , MONTPLAISIR JACQUES , LASSONDE MARYSE 
Published: January 2009

SUMMARY  Laboratory and home dream recall was studied in four subjects with agenesis of the corpus callosum and in four control subjects who were matched for age, gender, and handedness. In addition, the structural and emotional content of home dreams was compared for these two groups.Results indicate that acallosal subjects recalled fewer dreams in the laboratory than did control subjects, but recalled the same number of dreams at home. They also reported more contentless dreams in both situations. Furthermore, although acallosal subjects used fewer words to describe their dream content in both contexts, the number of content categories they reported differed little from the number reported by control subjects. However, some trends were found for acallosal's home dreams to differ from those of controls, i.e. more dreams with known characters and fewer dreams with unknown characters, animals, and colours. Differences in emotional contents were few; acallosals reported more distress than controls.The shorter length of acallosals' dreams might be explained, in part, by their lower verbal IQs. Other characteristics of dream content (e.g. more distress, fewer dreams with unknown and animal characters) may reflect limited social experiences in this group. However, the greater frequency of contentless dreams and the lower frequency of dreams with colour are trends consistent with the possibility that the corpus callosum may be implicated in processes of dream production and dream recall.
Motor dyscontrol in sleep of narcoleptic patients (a lifelong development?)
Authors: MAYER GEERT , MEIER‐EWERT KARLHEINZ 
Published: January 2009

SUMMARY  In our retrospective study 27 narcoleptic patients were divided into two groups: Group A comprised 14 patients (10 male, 4 female) with a history of REM behaviour disorder (RBD) and Group B comprised 13 age‐ and sex‐matched patients (10 male, 3 female) without a history of RBD. Polygraphic and videometry data, medical history, medication, blood chemistry, psychological and neuroradiological data of the two groups of patients were compared.The narcoleptic patients with a history of RBD differed from the narcoleptic control group without history of RBD in that they had: (a) a higher frequency of parasomnias in their history; (b) a higher percentage of stage 1 REM (P < 0.01); (c) a lower number of arousals during REM sleep; (d) fewer sleep stage changes. Compared to the heterogenous RBD patient group of Mahowald and Schenck, the REM behaviour of most of our narcoleptic patients was less violent.Thus it can be speculated that the motor disorder in REM sleep might still be in the process of developing towards a full‐blown REM sleep behaviour disorder. In a possible lifelong development of a motor disorder starting in NREM sleep, the onset of narcolepsy might represent the turning point for its intrusion into REM sleep.
Effects of pulsatile cortisol infusion on sleep‐EEG and nocturnal growth hormone release in healthy men
Authors: FRIESS E. , BARDELEBEN U. v. , WIEDEMANN K. , LAUER C. J. , HOLSBOER F. 
Published: January 2009

SUMMARY  This study investigates the short‐term effects of pulsatile cortisol administrations upon sleep electroencephalogram (EEG) and spontaneous release of growth hormone (GH) in humans. Ten young healthy male volunteers received intravenous injections of either placebo or cortisol every 60 min between 17.00 hours and 06.00 hours (1 mg kg‐1 BW with a loading dose of 20% starting at 17.00 hours, followed by a dose of 6% every hour until 06.00 hours). The amount of rapid eye‐movement (REM) sleep was significantly reduced (placebo: 19.9 ± 1.8; cortisol: 12.2 ± 1.5%; P < 0.05), whereas the time spent in slow‐wave sleep (SWS) was significantly increased (placebo: 9.4 ± 1.6; cortisol: 13.9 ± 1.9%; P < 0.05). The SWS‐promoting effect was most prominent during the first hours of sleep, but tended to persist also during the second half of the night. The pulsatile cortisol administration augmented the total amount of plasma GH concentrations (mean area under the time course curve, AUC, placebo: 3.2 ± 0.5; cortisol: 4.4 ± 0.6 [ng × 1000 × ml min‐1]; P < 0.05) due to an increase of GH release before sleep onset, and during the second half of the night, while the GH surge at sleep onset remained unchanged.Our data are in accordance with the hypotheses that cortisol‐induced changes of both sleep‐EEG and GH secretion involve a common mechanism that includes activation of the hypothalamic‐somatotrophic (growth hormone releasing hormone‐growth hormone) system.
Pattern of desynchronized sleep during deprivation and recovery induced in the rat by changes in ambient temperature*
Authors: AMICI ROBERTO , ZAMBONI GIOVANNI , PEREZ EMANUELE , JONES CHRISTINE A. , TONI IVAN , CULIN FABIO , PARMEGGIANI PIER LUIGI 
Published: January 2009

SUMMARY  The pattern of desynchronized sleep (DS) occurrence in the rat was studied during exposure to an ambient temperature (Ta) of 0°C for 48 h and during a 12 h recovery period at laboratory Ta (23°C) following the first and second 24 h of cold exposure. The exposure to low Ta induces a DS deprivation which is followed, during recovery, by a clear DS rebound. Both the decrease and the following increase in the amount of DS are due to changes in the frequency rather than in the duration of DS episodes.The frequency distribution of the intervals between the end of one DS episode and the beginning of the next (DS interval) has shown that two populations of DS intervals exist, i.e. short DS intervals (≤3 min) and long DS intervals (>3 min). On the basis of this, two types of DS episodes have been identified: the ‘single DS episode’, which is both preceded and followed by a long DS interval, and the ‘sequential DS episode’, which is a DS episode occurring within a cluster or a sequence of DS episodes and is characteristically separated by short DS intervals. The occurrence of such sequential DS episodes in a ‘DS cluster’, allows a high amount of DS to occur without increasing the duration of the DS episode. DS clusters are repressed during cold exposure, when the DS drive is counteracted by the need to thermoregulate, and enhanced during recovery, when the DS drive is unrestrained. In contrast, the occurrence of single DS episodes is much less affected by such different experimental conditions.