bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Effects of delayed excision of oviducts/ovaries on mouse oocytes and embryos
Authors: Miao De‐Qiang , Ma Suo‐Feng , Liu Xin‐Yong , Sui Hong‐Shu , Zhang Xia , Qiao Tian‐Wu , Tan Jing‐He 
Published: September 2006

AbstractTo achieve the best and reproducible results of experiments, effects of delayed excision of oviducts/ovaries on mouse ovarian/ovulated oocytes and embryos have been studied. Oviducts/ovaries were excised at different times after death of mice and effects of the postmortem interval on ovarian/ovulated oocytes and embryos were analyzed. When oviduct excision was delayed 10 min, many ovulated oocytes lysed or underwent in vitro spontaneous activation, and this postmortem effect aggravated with the extension of postmortem interval and oocyte aging. Oocytes from different mouse strains responded differently to delayed oviduct removal. Delayed oviduct excision did not cause lysis of zygotes or embryos but compromised their developmental potential. When ovaries were excised at 30 min after death, percentages of atretic follicles increased while blastocyst cell number declined significantly after oocyte maturation in vitro. Preservation of oviducts in vitro, in intact or opened abdomen at different temperatures and histological analysis of oviducts from different treatments suggested that toxic substance(s) were secreted from the dying oviducts which induced oocyte lysis and spontaneous activation and both this effect itself and the sensitivity of oocytes to this effect was temperature dependent. It is concluded that a short delay of oviduct/ovary removal had marked detrimental effects on oocytes and embryos. This must be taken into account in experiments using oocytes or embryos from slaughtered animals. The data may also be important for estimation of the time of death in forensic medicine and for rescue of oocytes from deceased valuable or endangered mammals. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 74: 468–477, 2007. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Amino acids in oviduct and uterine fluid and blood plasma during the estrous cycle in the bovine
Authors: Hugentobler Sasha A. , Diskin Michael G. , Leese Henry J. , Humpherson Peter G. , Watson Terry , Sreenan Joseph M. , Morris Dermot G. 
Published: September 2006

AbstractUp to 40% of cattle embryos die within 3 weeks of fertilization while they are nutritionally dependent on the maternal environment provided by the oviduct and uterine fluids for their development and survival. Despite this dependence there is limited information on the composition of these fluids in cattle. Amino acids are essential for the normal growth and development of the early embryo, acting as precursors of proteins and nucleic acids and as energy sources, osmolytes and signaling molecules. The objective of this study was to measure and compare the amino acid concentrations of oviduct and uterine fluid and blood plasma on different days of the estrous cycle. Oviduct fluid was collected in situ from anaesthetised heifers on Days 0, 2, 3, 4 and 6 and uterine fluid on Days 6, 8 and 14 of the estrous cycle and the concentrations of 19 amino acids determined. Glycine was the most abundant amino acid in both oviduct and uterine fluid. However, the concentrations of many amino acids differed between oviduct and uterus and many were present at higher concentrations in oviduct and uterine fluid than in blood plasma. Oviduct fluid concentrations of amino acids were not affected by day of cycle in contrast to uterine fluid for which there was a day of cycle effect on most of the amino acids. These results provide novel information on the amino acid concentrations in the maternal environment of the early cattle embryo and could form the basis for devising improved media for the production of embryos in vitro. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 74: 445–454, 2007. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Comparison of mice born after intracytoplasmic sperm injection with in vitro fertilization and natural mating
Authors: Wilson Trevor J. , Lacham‐Kaplan Orly , Gould Jodee , Holloway Andrew , Bertoncello Ivan , Hertzog Paul J. , Trounson Alan 
Published: September 2006

AbstractThe procedures of in vitro fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) are routinely used in modern medicine to overcome infertility and, in animal husbandry, to propagate lines with compromised fertility. However, there remains concern that manual selection and injection of whole sperm into oocytes could contribute to pre‐ and postnatal developmental defects. To address this, we have used gene expression profiling and immunophenotyping to characterize offspring generated by these procedures. We used gametes from glutathione peroxidase 1 knockout (Gpx1−/−) mice as a sensitized screen responsive to oxidative stress from artificial reproduction technologies (ART). There were no differences between IVF and ICSI derived offspring in gene expression patterns, and minor differences in hematopoietic parameters. Furthermore there were only minor differences between these IVF and ICSI pups and those derived from natural mating. These data demonstrate for the first time in that there is no significant phenotypic affects of ICSI when compared to IVF and we identified a relatively minor influence of the artificial fertilization methods on phenotype of offspring compared with natural mating. These observations would support the use of ICSI for derivation of mutant mouse lines and may be of some importance for the use of this technique in human ART. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 74: 512–519, 2007. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
New poly(amide‐imide)s containing cinnamoyl and azobenzene groups
Authors: Hamciuc E. , Sava I. , Bruma M. , Köpnick T. , Schulz B. , Sapich B. , Wagner J. , Stumpe J. 
Published: September 2006

AbstractTwo new poly(amide‐imide)s containing cinnamoyl and azobenzene units have been synthesized by direct polycondensation reaction of two diacids having cinnamoyl units and a diamine incorporating azobenzene group, using triphenyl phosphite and pyridine as condensing agents. The polymers were readily soluble in various organic solvents and gave thin films by casting from such solutions. They showed good thermal stability. A highly anisotropic optical film was fabricated by irradiation with linearly polarized light and its stability was studied. © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Bioactive polyurethanes in clinical applications
Authors: Ciardelli G. , Rechichi A. , Sartori S. , D'Acunto M. , Caporale A. , Peggion E. , Vozzi G. , Giusti P. 
Published: September 2006

AbstractBiomaterials play an important role in most tissue engineering strategies. They can serve as substrates on which cell populations can attach and migrate, can be used as cell delivery vehicles and as bioactive factor carriers to activate specific cellular functions. A series of biodegradable polyurethanes (PUs) with tunable chemical, physical and degradation properties, showing an adequate response to in vitro tests was proposed for applications in soft tissue engineering. Three‐dimensional scaffolds of superimposed square meshed grids were prepared by using a rapid prototyping technique (pressure activated microsyringe, PAM) and tested in vivo. Functionalization of PU systems was performed in order to control the chemistry of the materials for the promotion of highly specific binding interactions between materials and biological environments. Two different approaches were used for the coupling of bioactive molecules such as gelatin. The first involved the modification of the polymer chain through a novel monomer and the second one consisted in a surface modification by plasma‐induced graft copolymerization of acrylic acid. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Label‐free detection methods for protein microarrays
Authors: Yu Xiaobo , Xu Danke , Cheng Quan 
Published: September 2006

AbstractWith the growth of the “‐omics” such as functional genomics and proteomics, one of the foremost challenges in biotechnologies has become the development of novel methods to monitor biological process and acquire the information of biomolecular interactions in a systematic manner. To fully understand the roles of newly discovered genes or proteins, it is necessary to elucidate the functions of these molecules in their interaction network. Microarray technology is becoming the method of choice for such a task. Although protein microarray can provide a high throughput analytical platform for protein profiling and protein‐protein interaction, most of the current reports are limited to labeled detection using fluorescence or radioisotope techniques. These limitations deflate the potential of the method and prevent the technology from being adapted in a broader range of proteomics applications. In recent years, label‐free analytical approaches have gone through intensified development and have been coupled successfully with protein microarray. In many examples of label‐free study, the microarray has not only offered the high throughput detection in real time, but also provided kinetics information as well as in situ identification. This article reviews the most significant label‐free detection methods for microarray technology, including surface plasmon resonance imaging, atomic force microscope, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and MS and their applications in proteomics research.
Plant phosphoproteomics: A long road ahead
Authors: Kersten Birgit , Agrawal Ganesh Kumar , Iwahashi Hitoshi , Rakwal Randeep 
Published: September 2006

AbstractPhosphoproteomics can be defined as the comprehensive study of protein phosphorylation by identification of the phosphoproteins, exact mapping of the phosphorylation sites, quantification of phosphorylation, and eventually, revealing their biological function. Its place in today's research is vitally important to address the most fundamental question – how the phosphorylation events control most, if not all, of the cellular processes in a given organism? Despite the immense importance of phosphorylation, the analysis of phosphoproteins on a proteome‐wide scale remains a formidable challenge. Nevertheless, several technologies have been developed, mostly in yeast and mammals, to conduct a large‐scale phosphoproteomic study. Some of these technologies have been successfully applied to plants with a few modifications, resulting in documentation of phosphoproteins, phosphorylation site mapping, identification of protein kinase substrates, etc. at the global level. In this review, we summarize in vitro and in vivo approaches for detection and analysis of phosphoproteins including protein kinases and we discuss the importance of phosphoproteomics in understanding plant biology. These approaches along with bioinformatics will help plant researchers to design and apply suitable phosphoproteomic strategies in helping to find answers to their biological questions.
Viral proteomics: A promising approach for understanding JC virus tropism
Authors: Ravichandran Veerasamy , Major Eugene O. 
Published: September 2006

AbstractThe human polyomavirus JC virus (JCV) is responsible for the CNS demyelination observed in cases of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy. The JCV regulatory region (promoter) is a hypervariable, noncoding, nucleotide sequence positioned between the early and late protein‐coding regions in the viral genome. Selective binding of cellular transcription factors to this promoter region participates in the control of viral tropism. Hence, further study of these proteins might provide new insights into JCV tropism and associated pathogenesis. This review gives an overview of viral proteomics – the study of all proteins expressed from the viral gene transcripts, and all the cellular proteins that play a role in JCV tropism. It also describes a new biochemical approach for studying relevant JCV promoter‐binding proteins, which is an anchored‐JCV transcriptional promoter (ATP) assay. An ATP assay utilizes the product of PCR‐amplified JCV promoter sequences coupled with Sepharose beads in order to capture and isolate cellular nuclear proteins with specific promoter‐binding affinity for analysis. Proteins that bind to JCV‐ATPs can be eluted and subjected to proteomic analysis. Insights from this approach may improve the understanding of viral and cellular parameters that control JCV tropism.
Strategies for plasma proteomic profiling of cancers
Authors: Omenn Gilbert S. 
Published: September 2006

AbstractDespite a voluminous literature on potential protein biomarkers and a compelling need for diagnostic tests based on biomarkers to detect cancers at much earlier, more treatable stages, progress has been limited. New methods and new instruments for analysis of differences in gene expression, gene methylation, and proteomics are being employed to try to accelerate the discovery phase. Given the heterogeneity of tumor mechanisms and the limitations of analytical methods, it is likely that a variety of strategies will be needed and will be complementary. That is the basis of this review of proteomic approaches. This article adopts a systems biology view, starting with mRNA transcripts in tumors and cultured tumor cells to detect mRNA overexpression, some of which will be correlated with protein overexpression. Some of those proteins may be secreted or released into proximal biofluids and plasma. Detection of low‐abundance tumor proteins in the complex and dynamic mixture that is plasma requires combinations of increasingly powerful technologies. The biological amplification of protein signals through the immune system offers autoantibodies as potential biomarkers. Higher abundance proteins, including acute‐phase reactants, may have practical value, especially if the proteins are modified as part of the cancer processes. Low molecular weight proteins, fragments, and peptides may offer complementary biomarkers. Promising biomarker candidates must be confirmed in independent studies. Then they must be submitted to higher‐throughput methods practical for large‐scale validation studies and, hopefully, for clinical and epidemiological applications. Standardized operating procedures for specimen handling, design and use of various reference standards, care to avoid bias and confounding, and guidelines for reporting findings and contributing datasets should enhance the prospects for predictive proteomic profiling of people at risk for cancers.
Use of the laryngeal mask airway in patients with severe muscular dystrophy who require sedation or anesthesia
Authors: Birnkrant David J. , Petelenz Kasia M. , Ferguson Roy D. , Martin James E. , Gordon Gregory J. 
Published: September 2006

AbstractSevere muscular dystrophy (MD) has historically led to death in early adulthood, due to mainly cardiopulmonary complications. However, with newer methods of cardiac and respiratory management, survival has improved, and patients with MD are more frequently undergoing procedures requiring deep sedation or anesthesia. Respiratory management of these patients during procedures is challenging; safe and effective options for respiratory support are needed. In this report, we describe our experience using the laryngeal mask airway (LMA) to provide respiratory support during deep sedation or anesthesia for eight patients with severe MD during the following medical procedures: eight percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) placements, three lithotripsies, and placement of an implantable cardioverter‐defibrillator. We also review the benefits and risks of the LMA in the context of other respiratory support options for people with MD, and the integral role of non‐invasive positive pressure ventilation (NPPV) during induction of and recovery from deep sedation or general anesthesia. Pediatr Pulmonol. 2006, 41:1077–1081. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Surface treatments of indium‐tin oxide substrates for polymer electroluminescent devices
Authors: Zhong Z. Y. , Jiang Y. D. 
Published: September 2006

AbstractIn this work, three different sets of processing techniques (wet, dry, and combined treatments) were utilized to modify the surfaces of indium‐tin oxide (ITO) substrates for polymer electroluminescent devices (PELDs), and the influence of surface treatments on the surface properties of ITO substrates were investigated by X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), atomic force microscopy (AFM), contact angle, and four‐point probe. The surface energies of ITO substrates were also calculated from the measured contact angles. Experimental results show that the surface properties of the ITO substrates strongly depend on the surface treatments. Oxygen plasma treatment effectively improves the ITO surface properties since plasma decreases the surface roughness and sheet resistance, improves the surface stoichiometry and wetting. Furthermore, the PELDs with the differently treated ITO substrates as hole‐injecting electrodes were fabricated and characterized. We observe that the optical and electrical characteristics of devices are greatly influenced by the surface treatments on ITO substrates. Oxygen plasma treatment decreases turn‐on voltage, increases brightness and efficiency, and thereby improves the device performance of PELDs. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Site symmetries of vanadium ions in La3Ga5.5Ta0.5O14 single crystals
Authors: Fuks H. , Kaczmarek S. M. , Berkowski M. 
Published: September 2006

AbstractVanadium‐doped La3Ga5.5Ta0.5O14 single crystal (0.05 mol% in the melt with respect to Ga) grown by the Czochralski method has been investigated using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and optical absorption measurements. The optical energy gap of pure La3Ga5.5Ta0.5O14 single crystal is equal to 4.94 eV, while the value for vanadium‐doped La3Ga5.5Ta0.5O14 single crystal is 3.44 eV. Optical absorption measurements have revealed 444 nm, 700 nm and 1100 nm bands arising mainly from V3+ ions at octahedral sites. Moreover, V4+ ions were found at octahedral sites (525 nm band) for the “as‐grown” crystals and at tetrahedral positions (380 nm CT band and 600‐ and 800 nm dd transitions) for crystals irradiated with γ‐quanta with a dose of 1.2 × 105 Gy. The X‐band EPR measurements have been done at room temperature while rotating the single‐crystal sample around a, b * and c crystal axes. For each rotation direction the observed spectra consist of an intense multiline signal centred at ∼340 mT and a second, weak one at ∼150 mT. The dominant signal can be ascribed to the V4+ ions (S = 1/2, I = 7/2) occupying the Ga1, Ta octahedral positions, with an axial D 3 point symmetry. The principal tensor values are determined as g ∥ = 1.925(5), g ⊥ = 1.958(5), A ∥ = 17.0(5) mT and A ⊥ = 5.8(5) mT. Each principal axis of the vanadium paramagnetic centres indeed reveals three different orientations in La3Ga5.5Ta0.5O14 crystal with respect to the space orientation of the Ga3 tetrahedra connected with the Ga1 octahedron. The low‐field resonance signal could neither be ascribed to iron impurities nor to the V4+ ions (S = 1/2, I = 7/2) occupying other (tetrahedral) positions simultaneously creating the vacancy state. This signal was too weak to perform detailed analysis. There are also presented low‐temperature EPR spectra that did not reveal any new lines. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Effect of acceptor and donor dopants on ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties of lead zirconate titanate ceramics
Authors: Ramam Koduri , Lopez Marta 
Published: September 2006

AbstractDielectric, ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties of Pb1−x Lax (Zry Ti1−y )1−(x /4)−(3/4)z Fez O3 ceramics for z = 0 to 6 mol% prepared by a mixed oxide method were investigated. Fe substitution in lead lanthanum zirconate titanate (PLZT) compositions resulted in a phase transformation from coexisting phases (ferroelectric rhombohedral (FERH) and ferroelectric tetragonal (FETET)) to intensified tetragonal phase. Grain size and apparent density increased with increasing acceptor (Fe) content up to 3 mol% in the PLZT system. The optimum dielectric properties (ϵ RT, ϵ Tc and tan δ) were observed in 3 mol% Fe‐doped PLZT composition and then decreased thereafter. Acceptor (Fe) substitution in the PLZT system influenced the ferroelectric remanent polarization (P r) and spontaneous (P s) polarization, reaching saturation at 6 mol% Fe, while the coercive field (E c) increased up to 3 mol% Fe‐doped PLZT composition. The piezoelectric properties are sensitive to acceptor (Fe) modification in the PLZT system which was proved by the decreasing trend of piezoelectric charge coefficient (d 33) up to 3 mol% Fe and then increasing to 6 mol% Fe while the piezoelectric planar coupling coefficient (k p) showed a continuous decreasing trend throughout the series. Dielectric, ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties were characterized as a function of acceptor (Fe) concentration in the PLZT system for possible sensor and actuator applications. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Effect of exchange–correlation potential on the plasmon dispersions in a doped symmetrical double quantum well
Authors: Şenadım Tüzemen E. , Turkoglu A. , Ergun Y. , Sokmen I. , Tanatar B. 
Published: September 2006

AbstractWe have calculated the plasmon dispersion relations in a doped double quantum well with and without exchange–correlation potential added to the effective potential of the system. The calculations were done for high and low doping densities by solving the Schrödinger and Poisson equations self‐consistently. Our numerical results show that the exchange–correlation potential is quite important at high doping densities of donor impurities for plasmon dispersions at large wave vectors. On the other hand, the ratio of subband populations ni to donor density ND is more affected at low densities. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Electronic structure and physicochemical properties of selected penicillins
Authors: Soriano‐Correa Catalina , Sánchez Ruiz Juan F. , Raya A. , Esquivel Rodolfo O. 
Published: September 2006

AbstractTraditionally, penicillins have been used as antibacterial agents due to their characteristics and widespread applications with few collateral effects, which have motivated several theoretical and experimental studies. Despite the latter, their mechanism of biological action has not been completely elucidated. We present a theoretical study at the Hartree–Fock and density functional theory (DFT) levels of theory of a selected group of penicillins such as the penicillin‐G, amoxicillin, ampicillin, dicloxacillin, and carbenicillin molecules, to systematically determine the electron structure of full β‐lactam antibiotics. Our results allow us to analyze the electronic properties of the pharmacophore group, the aminoacyl side‐chain, and the influence of the substituents (R and X) attached to the aminoacyl side‐chain at 6′ (in contrast with previous studies focused at the 3′ substituents), and to corroborate the results of previous studies performed at the semiempirical level, solely on the β‐lactam ring of penicillins. Besides, several density descriptors are determined with the purpose of analyzing their link to the antibacterial activity of these penicillin compounds. Our results for the atomic charges (fitted to the electrostatic potential), the bond orders, and several global reactivity descriptors, such as the dipole moments, ionization potential, hardness, and the electrophilicity index, led us to characterize: the active sites, the effect of the electron‐attracting substituent properties and their physicochemical features, which altogether, might be important to understand the biological activity of these type of molecules. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2007