bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Geochemistry of Porosity Enhancement and Reduction in Clastic Sediments
Authors: Curtis C. D. 
Published: September 2007

Summary
The diagenetic history of many reservoir sandstones appears to be divisible into three stages. The first includes destruction of primary porosity, the second porosity enhancement by chemical leaching, and the third a return to loss by cementation and recrystallisation. In an attempt to account for the solution transport necessarily involved, the several types of water-rock interaction that take place during burial of clastic sediment sequences are reviewed. It is concluded that kinetic factors play an important role: some reactions are spontaneous and fast, others are dependent on ‘initiating’ reactions and are slower. ‘Initiating’ reactions modify pore water composition drastically and are thought to be mainly redox or acid-generating reactions. They take place mostly in mudrocks which contain much more unstable material than sandstones.
Comparisons between mudrock and sandstone diagenetic patterns lend support to previous suggestions that much diagenetic alteration in sandstones is affected by pore waters (and solutes) originating in mudrocks. Aluminium is thought to be mobile under these conditions. A brief consideration of mineral/water reactions in soils leads to the view that pore waters derived directly from meteoric water are unlikely to be effective agents for leaching at depth.
Organic Geochemistry and Basin Modelling — Important Tools in Petroleum Exploration
Authors: Welte D. H. , Yükler M. A. , Radke M. , Leythaeuser D. , Mann U. , Ritter U. 
Published: September 2007

Summary
Application of organic geochemistry in exploration has drastically changed from a ‘post-mortem science’ to a widely accepted tool. Due to progress in the development of new analytical techniques and interpretative concepts, application of organic geochemistry has become more rapid and also capable of solving more specific problems. Common applications include recognition of source rocks and of re-distribution of hydrocarbons, evaluation of maturity and of hydrocarbon potential and oil-oil and oil-source rock correlation.
At present it is possible to make quantitative predictions on the hydrocarbon potential of an area during the initial stages of exploration. The key for this approach is the combination of organic geochemistry and a predictive geological basin model. Organic geochemical well-profiles and three-dimensional plots are now often used as standard equipment for exploration planning and subsequent exploration activities. The purpose of this paper is to describe the concept of fast, geochemical screening techniques, followed by more-detailed, organic geochemical analyses. In addition, the principles of a predictive, geological basin analysis are given.
Identification of Amorphous Sedimentary Organic Matter by Transmitted Light Microscopy
Authors: Batten D. J. 
Published: September 2007

Summary
The petroleum source potential of sedimentary rocks often depends to a considerable degree on the quantity and composition of the amorphous organic matter they contain, but hitherto few microscopists have attempted to categorize it. Its origins may be determined from physical characters, although commonly indirect evidence provided by sedimentological and other palaeontological data also has to be taken into account. Thus, I prefer to use terms which do not imply affinities with either land or aquatic plants to describe it. Words such as fibrous, membraneous, pellicular, spongy, granular, flakey, aggregated, finely disseminated and sub-colloidal are applied herein to the variety of amorphous substances which are discussed and illustrated. My aim is at future improvement in correlation between palynofacies and hydrocarbon yield. Many of the samples on which the paper is based are from the northwest European area.
Geological Information from Hydrocarbon Exploration on the United Kingdom Continental Shelf
Authors: Brooks J. R. V. 
Published: September 2007

Summary
The purpose of this paper is to describe what geological and geophysical information is publicly available from the results of exploration for hydrocarbons on the United Kingdom Continental Shelf (UKCS), to note where it may be obtained, and how to obtain access to it. Both offshore and onshore data are released. A folder is available containing catalogues of all the hydrocarbon-related data and of all information published as a result of Department of Energy-funded work.
Exhumation of the Sanbagawa blueschist belt, SW Japan, by lateral flow and extrusion: evidence from structural kinematics and retrograde
P-T-t
paths
Authors: Wintsch R. P. , Byrne T. , Toriumi M. 
Published: September 2007

Abstract

The correlation in time of a pervasive, nearly strike-parallel, retrograde stretching lineation in the Sanbagawa blueschists with a nearly down-dip, prograde lineation in the structurally underlying Shimanto belt suggests that the oblique accretion and underplating of this belt was at least in part responsible for the longitudinal exhumation of the blueschists. A series of sub-horizontal collinear overgrowths of alkali amphiboles on cores of riebeckite in radiolarian cherts of the Sanbagawa belt, western Shikoku, Japan, indicate essentially continuous retrograde crystallization and extension during nearly strike-parallel exhumation. Needles of magnesio-riebeckite are progressively overgrown by beards or infillings of magnesio-riebeckite, winchite, actinolite, and finally quartz. The Na/(Na + Ca) compositions of overgrowths over many grains show a continuous range from >0.95 to <0.2. We interpret this to reflect continuously decreasing metamorphic conditions from an inferred
c.
10 to
c.
4 kbar (
c.
35-15 km), and from
c.
550°C to <300°C during continuous deformation of these metacherts. Published thermochronological data in related and correlative rocks show that this cooling occurred from mid-Cretaceous to Early Eocene time. Structural and geochronological studies of rocks of the northern Shimanto Belt show that they were accreted to southwest Japan by north-directed underthrusting contemporaneously with exhumation of the Sanbagawa belt. We propose that the retrograde metamorphic fabrics of the Sanbagawa belt developed as these initially high-pressure rocks were exhumed and laterally extruded to the east (present coordinates) during oblique, north-directed underthrusting of the Izanagi (or an equivalent) plate and its thick sedimentary cover (i.e. the Shimanto belt).
New insight into the dynamic development of the Southern Alps, New Zealand, from detailed thermochronological investigation of the Mataketake Range pegmatites
Authors: Batt Geoffrey E. , Kohn Barry P. , Braun Jean , McDougall Ian , Ireland Trevor R. 
Published: September 2007

Abstract

The Southern Alps are an actively developing mountain range resulting from continuing oblique continent-continent collision between the Australian and Pacific plates through the South Island of New Zealand. The thermal histories of five granite pegmatites from the Mataketake Range in the southwest of this orogen are revealed here by U-Pb dating of zircon, K-Ar,
40
Ar-
39
Ar and Rb-Sr dating of muscovite, biotite and alkali feldspar, and fission-track dating of apatite and zircon. The constraint of these thermal histories, and in particular the high thermal resolution gained from analysis of K-feldspar by the
40
Ar-
39
Ar dating method, offers a novel insight into the dynamic evolution of the Southern Alps. The pegmatites were probably formed by localized anatectic partial melting at temperatures of 620–680°C between 67 and 82 Ma. Other than initial cooling to the ambient temperature of the host schist following intrusion (estimated at
c.
500°C), these bodies share an apparently uniform thermochronological record, and this thermal history is thus largely indicative of cooling during local exhumation. Between 10 and 5 Ma, the Mataketake Range area cooled from
c.
350 to 260°C, at a rate of 18°C Ma
−1
. This corresponds to unroofing at between 0.8 and 1 km Ma
−1
during this interval, and is probably a reflection of the inferred early history of the Australian-Pacific plate boundary through the South Island of New Zealand as a dominantly strike-slip feature. A reduction in cooling rate at 5 Ma, immediately followed by an episode of extremely rapid cooling at
c.
350°C Ma
−1
marks the initiation of rapid exhumation and the development of the perturbed geothermal structure of the modern Southern Alps. This supports suggestions that the present tectonic regime of the orogen developed in a single episode of tectonic reorganization 5 Ma ago.
Human herpes virus 6 and multiple sclerosis: a Finnish twin study
Authors: Kuusisto H. , Hyöty H. , Kares S. , Kinnunen E. , Elovaara I. 
Published: September 2007

Objective To investigate the possible association of human herpes virus 6- (HHV6) infection and multiple sclerosis (MS). Background Despite intensive investigations of genetic and environmental factors, the etiopathogenesis of MS remains unknown. HHV6 is a possible candidate in that it is neurotropic, able to induce demyelination and become latent and be reactivated. We had access to The Finnish National Twin Cohort, which provided a unique opportunity to study the association between HHV6 and MS in genetically homogenous patients. Methods Thirty-four serum samples from 17 MS twin pairs and 12 cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples from six MS twin pairs were tested by PCR specific for HHV6. Immunogloubulin (Ig) G and M response against HHV6 in serum and CSF were analysed using ELISA method. The samples were collected during a remission of the disease. Results No HHV6 DNA was found in any serum ( n = 34) or CSF ( n = 12) samples. Eighty-eight percent of the twins with MS and 86% of the healthy twin siblings were positive for IgG in serum. One twin with MS was also postitive for IgM in serum, whereas none of the healthy twins was IgM positive. All CSF samples were negative for IgG and IgM in both groups. Conclusions During a clinical remission of MS the detection of antibodies against HHV6 in CSF and HHV6 DNA in serum, CSF supernatant or CSF leukocytes is unlikely. However, the results do not exclude a possibility of HHV6 reactivation during MS exacerbation or acute HHV6 infection being one of the triggering agents in development of MS long before its clinical manifestation. Multiple Sclerosis 2008; 14: 54—58. http://msj.sagepub.com
Inspiratory flow rates at different levels of resistance in elderly COPD patients
Authors: Janssens W. , VandenBrande P. , Hardeman E. , De Langhe E. , Philps T. , Troosters T. , Decramer M. 
Published: September 2007

Dry powder inhalers (DPIs) are increasingly replacing metered dose inhalers in elderly chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients. However, most DPIs are dependent on inspiratory flow, which is compromised by the ageing process itself.Using the in-check dial method, the present study compared peak inspiratory flow (PIF) rates in 26 elderly COPD patients and 14 matched control subjects, at a pre-set resistance level of the Aeroliser®, Diskus® and Turbuhaler® inhalers.It was found that the PIF measured by the in-check method positively correlated with the PIF derived from spirometry, forced vital capacity and maximal inspiratory pressure, while a negative, but significant, correlation was observed with age. PIF derived from spirometry and age were independent variables which determined PIF across the device, whereas the presence or absence of COPD was not related. When comparing elderly COPD patients with matched elderly controls no difference could be found in PIF at the different resistances. However, an important number of patients did not reach the recommended flow rate, especially when using the Turbuhaler® (30%).In conclusion, the present study demonstrates that, in elderly patients, the ability to generate sufficient inspiratory flow across a dry powder inhaler is compromised, irrespective of the presence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Comparison of serum markers for allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis in cystic fibrosis
Authors: Latzin P. , Hartl D. , Regamey N. , Frey U. , Schoeni M. H. , Casaulta C. 
Published: September 2007

The diagnosis of allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA) in cystic fibrosis (CF) is a challenge. Thymus- and activation-regulated chemokine (TARC) has recently been reported to play a role in ABPA. The aim of this study was to compare the diagnostic value of TARC with that of known serological markers for diagnosis of ABPA in CF patients.The present study longitudinally followed 48 CF patients, of whom 12 had a diagnosis of ABPA according to Nelson's criteria, for 1–8 yrs with repeated measurements of serum total immunoglobulin (Ig)E, specificAspergillus fumigatusIgE and IgG, specific IgE against recombinantA. fumigatusallergens (rAsp f) 1, 3, 4 and 6, and TARC.Median (interquartile range) TARC levels were 589 (465–673) pg·mL−1in ABPA patients and 232 (189–289) pg·mL−1in non-ABPA patients. Receiver operating characteristic curves revealed that TARC was superior to the other markers for diagnosis of ABPA. Diagnostic accuracy was greater for TARC (93%) than for total IgE (74%), or rAsp f 4 (75%) or f 6 (79%).The present study indicates that thymus- and activation-regulated chemokine may be useful in the diagnosis of allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis in cystic fibrosis patients. However, larger studies are needed before thymus- and activation-regulated chemokine can routinely be used in diagnostic algorithms.
Randomised trial of nasal surgery for fixed nasal obstruction in obstructive sleep apnoea
Authors: Koutsourelakis I. , Georgoulopoulos G. , Perraki E. , Vagiakis E. , Roussos C. , Zakynthinos S. G. 
Published: September 2007

Although nasal surgery has limited efficacy in obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) treatment, some patients experience improvement. The present study tested the hypothesis that post-surgery improvement is associated with increased nasal breathing epochs.A total of 49 OSA patients (mean apnoea/hypopnoea index (AHI) 30.1±16.3 events·h−1) with symptomatic fixed nasal obstruction due to deviated septum were randomly assigned to either septoplasty (surgery group; 27 patients) or sham surgery (placebo group; 22 patients). The breathing route was examined during overnight polysomnography.All patients in the placebo group were nonresponders, whereas in the surgery group four (14.8%) patients were responders and exhibited considerable increase in nasal breathing epochs (epochs containing more than three consecutive phasic nasal signals), and 23 patients were nonresponders, presenting a modest increase in nasal breathing epochs. The change in AHI was inversely related to the change in nasal breathing epochs, with responders exhibiting among the greatest increases in nasal breathing epochs. Baseline nasal breathing epochs were positively related to per cent change in AHI. Responders had among the lowest baseline nasal breathing epochs; a cut-off value of 62.4% of total sleep epochs best separated (100% sensitivity, 82.6% specificity) responders/nonresponders.In conclusion, nasal surgery rarely treats obstructive sleep apnoea effectively. Baseline nasal breathing epochs can predict the surgery outcome.
Measuring inspiratory muscle strength in neuromuscular disease: one test or two?
Authors: Terzi N. , Orlikowski D. , Fermanian C. , Lejaille M. , Falaize L. , Louis A. , Raphael J-C. , Fauroux B. , Lofaso F. 
Published: September 2007

Inspiratory muscle strength monitoring is crucial in patients with neuromuscular disorders. The sniff nasal inspiratory pressure (SNIP) and maximal inspiratory pressure (PI,max) are usually measured. The present study investigated whether the test yielding the best value at baseline continued to yield the best value during follow-up.The present study included 25 patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) and 61 with myotonic muscular dystrophy (MMD). SNIP andPI,maxwere measured at baseline and then annually.At baseline, SNIP was lower thanPI,maxin 20 (80%) DMD patients and 32 (52%) MMD patients. During follow-up in DMD patients, changes in the best method always occurred from SNIP toPI,max. In MMD patients, when SNIP was better thanPI,maxat baseline, SNIP was usually (88%) better during follow-up, whereas a betterPI,maxthan SNIP at baseline was frequently (50%) followed by a shift to SNIP.Maximal inspiratory pressure may be sufficient for monitoring inspiratory muscle function in Duchenne muscular dystrophy adults. In myotonic muscular dystrophy, the marked variability in the test yielding the best value at baseline indicates a need for performance of both tests at baseline. However, when sniff nasal inspiratory pressure measurement yields the best value at baseline, using sniff nasal inspiratory pressure alone during follow-up may be appropriate.
Environmental variability and modularity of bacterial metabolic networks
Authors: Parter Merav , Kashtan Nadav , Alon Uri 
Published: September 2007

Abstract

Background
Biological systems are often modular: they can be decomposed into nearly-independent structural units that perform specific functions. The evolutionary origin of modularity is a subject of much current interest. Recent theory suggests that modularity can be enhanced when the environment changes over time. However, this theory has not yet been tested using biological data.

Results
To address this, we studied the relation between environmental variability and modularity in a natural and well-studied system, the metabolic networks of bacteria. We classified 117 bacterial species according to the degree of variability in their natural habitat. We find that metabolic networks of organisms in variable environments are significantly more modular than networks of organisms that evolved under more constant conditions.

Conclusion
This study supports the view that variability in the natural habitat of an organism promotes modularity in its metabolic network and perhaps in other biological systems.
Gene discovery and transcript analyses in the corn smut pathogen Ustilago maydis: expressed sequence tag and genome sequence comparison
Authors: Ho Eric CH , Cahill Matt J , Saville Barry J 
Published: September 2007

Abstract

Background

Ustilago maydis is the basidiomycete fungus responsible for common smut of corn and is a model organism for the study of fungal phytopathogenesis. To aid in the annotation of the genome sequence of this organism, several expressed sequence tag (EST) libraries were generated from a variety of U. maydis cell types. In addition to utility in the context of gene identification and structure annotation, the ESTs were analyzed to identify differentially abundant transcripts and to detect evidence of alternative splicing and anti-sense transcription.

Results
Four cDNA libraries were constructed using RNA isolated from U. maydis diploid teliospores (U. maydis strains 518 × 521) and haploid cells of strain 521 grown under nutrient rich, carbon starved, and nitrogen starved conditions. Using the genome sequence as a scaffold, the 15,901 ESTs were assembled into 6,101 contiguous expressed sequences (contigs); among these, 5,482 corresponded to predicted genes in the MUMDB (MIPS Ustilago maydis database), while 619 aligned to regions of the genome not yet designated as genes in MUMDB. A comparison of EST abundance identified numerous genes that may be regulated in a cell type or starvation-specific manner. The transcriptional response to nitrogen starvation was assessed using RT-qPCR. The results of this suggest that there may be cross-talk between the nitrogen and carbon signalling pathways in U. maydis. Bioinformatic analysis identified numerous examples of alternative splicing and anti-sense transcription. While intron retention was the predominant form of alternative splicing in U. maydis, other varieties were also evident (e.g. exon skipping). Selected instances of both alternative splicing and anti-sense transcription were independently confirmed using RT-PCR.

Conclusion
Through this work: 1) substantial sequence information has been provided for U. maydis genome annotation; 2) new genes were identified through the discovery of 619 contigs that had previously escaped annotation; 3) evidence is provided that suggests the regulation of nitrogen metabolism in U. maydis differs from that of other model fungi, and 4) Alternative splicing and anti-sense transcription were identified in U. maydis and, amid similar observations in other basidiomycetes, this suggests these phenomena may be widespread in this group of fungi. These advances emphasize the importance of EST analysis in genome annotation.
Analysis of axonal regeneration in the central and peripheral nervous systems of the NG2-deficient mouse
Authors: Hossain-Ibrahim Mohammed K , Rezajooi Kia , Stallcup William B , Lieberman Alexander R , Anderson Patrick N 
Published: September 2007

Abstract

Background
The chondroitin sulphate proteoglycan NG2 blocks neurite outgrowth in vitro and has been proposed as a major inhibitor of axonal regeneration in the CNS. Although a substantial body of evidence underpins this hypothesis, it is challenged by recent findings including strong expression of NG2 in regenerating peripheral nerve.

Results
We studied axonal regeneration in the PNS and CNS of genetically engineered mice that do not express NG2, and in sex and age matched wild-type controls. In the CNS, we used anterograde tracing with BDA to study corticospinal tract (CST) axons after spinal cord injury and transganglionic labelling with CT-HRP to trace ascending sensory dorsal column (DC) axons after DC lesions and a conditioning lesion of the sciatic nerve. Injury to these fibre tracts resulted in no difference between knockout and wild-type mice in the ability of CST axons or DC axons to enter or cross the lesion site. Similarly, after dorsal root injury (with conditioning lesion), most regenerating dorsal root axons failed to grow across the dorsal root entry zone in both transgenic and wild-type mice.
Following sciatic nerve injuries, functional recovery was assessed by analysis of the toe-spreading reflex and cutaneous sensitivity to Von Frey hairs. Anatomical correlates of regeneration were assessed by: retrograde labelling of regenerating dorsal root ganglion (DRG) cells with DiAsp; immunostaining with PGP 9.5 to visualise sensory reinnervation of plantar hindpaws; electron microscopic analysis of regenerating axons in tibial and digital nerves; and by silver-cholinesterase histochemical study of motor end plate reinnervation. We also examined functional and anatomical correlates of regeneration after injury of the facial nerve by assessing the time taken for whisker movements and corneal reflexes to recover and by retrograde labelling of regenerated axons with Fluorogold and DiAsp. None of the anatomical or functional analyses revealed significant differences between wild-type and knockout mice.

Conclusion
These findings show that NG2 is unlikely to be a major inhibitor of axonal regeneration after injury to the CNS, and, further, that NG2 is unlikely to be necessary for regeneration or functional recovery following peripheral nerve injury.