bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Effects of 18 months of l‐T4 replacement in women with subclinical hypothyroidism
Authors: Adrees M. , Gibney J. , El‐Saeity N. , Boran G. 
Published: December 2008

SummaryContext  Some of the cardiovascular and renal abnormalities seen in overt hypothyroidism have also been reported in subclinical hypothyroidism (SCH). Short‐term l‐T4 replacement in SCH improves cardiovascular risk markers and reduces carotid intima‐media thickness (CIMT), a surrogate marker of atherosclerosis. The haemodynamic and renal effects of l‐T4 replacement in SCH are poorly understood.Objectives  To compare cardiovascular risk factors and renal variables in women with SCH and normal women. To study the effects of l‐T4 replacement in SCH subjects on these variables and on structural and functional changes in common carotid and brachial arteries.Design  Fifty‐six women with SCH before and after l‐T4 replacement for 18 months and 56 normal women of similar age distribution were studied. Blood Pressure (BP), plasma lipids and homocysteine were measured and renal function evaluated [estimation of glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) using standard equations and measurement of serum Cystatin‐C] in women with SCH before and after 18 months of l‐T4, and in healthy women. CIMT and endothelial function (using brachial artery ultrasound) were studied before and after l‐T4 in a subgroup of women with SCH.Results  Systolic and diastolic BP, total cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL‐cholesterol, lipoprotein(a) and homocysteine were greater in SCH (P < 0·05), and following l‐T4 replacement decreased (P < 0·05) to levels that no longer differed from normal subjects. Estimated GFR was reduced and serum Cystatin‐C increased (P < 0·05) in SCH. These variables also normalized following l‐T4. Following l‐T4 replacement the carotid artery baseline diameter increased by 7·1% and CIMT decreased by a mean value of 13%, while brachial artery diameter increased basally by 12·5% and following endothelium‐dependent vasodilatation by 17·5% (P < 0·05). However, the increment following reactive hyperaemia did not differ before or following l‐T4 replacement.Conclusion  Normalization of cardiovascular risk factors following l‐T4 replacement in SCH potentially explains reduced CIMT. Increased carotid and brachial artery diameters and normalized eGFR indicates a haemodynamic effect of l‐T4 replacement, the importance of which requires further investigation.
Elimination of the water‐layer response from multi‐component source and receiver marine electromagnetic data
Authors: Nordskag Janniche Iren , Amundsen Lasse , Løseth Lars , Holvik Egil 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACTThis paper presents the theory to eliminate from the recorded multi‐component source, multi‐component receiver marine electromagnetic measurements the effect of the physical source radiation pattern and the scattering response of the water‐layer. The multi‐component sources are assumed to be orthogonally aligned above the receivers at the seabottom. Other than the position of the sources, no source characteristics are required. The integral equation method, which for short is denoted by Lorentz water‐layer elimination, follows from Lorentz' reciprocity theorem. It requires information only of the electromagnetic parameters at the receiver level to decompose the electromagnetic measurements into upgoing and downgoing constituents. Lorentz water‐layer elimination replaces the water layer with a homogeneous half‐space with properties equal to those of the sea‐bed. The source is redatumed to the receiver depth.When the subsurface is arbitrary anisotropic but horizontally layered, the Lorentz water‐layer elimination scheme greatly simplifies and can be implemented as deterministic multi‐component source, multi‐component receiver multidimensional deconvolution of common source gathers. The Lorentz deconvolved data can be further decomposed into scattering responses that would be recorded from idealized transverse electric and transverse magnetic mode sources and receivers. This combined electromagnetic field decomposition on the source and receiver side gives data equivalent to data from a hypothetical survey with the water‐layer absent, with idealized single component transverse electric and transverse magnetic mode sources and idealized single component transverse electric and transverse magnetic mode receivers.When the subsurface is isotropic or transverse isotropic and horizontally layered, the Lorentz deconvolution decouples into pure transverse electric and transverse magnetic mode data processing problems, where a scalar field formulation of the multidimensional Lorentz deconvolution is sufficient. In this case single‐component source data are sufficient to eliminate the water‐layer effect.We demonstrate the Lorentz deconvolution by using numerically modeled data over a simple isotropic layered model illustrating controlled‐source electromagnetic hydrocarbon exploration. In shallow water there is a decrease in controlled‐source electromagnetic sensitivity to thin resistors at depth. The Lorentz deconvolution scheme is designed to overcome this effect by eliminating the water‐layer scattering, including the field's interaction with air.
Cowpea bruchid midgut transcriptome response to a soybean cystatin – costs and benefits of counter‐defence
Authors: Chi Y. H. , Salzman R. A. , Balfe S. , Ahn J.‐E. , Sun W. , Moon J. , Yun D.‐J. , Lee S. Y. , Higgins T. J. V. , Pittendrigh B. , Murdock L. L. , Zhu‐Salzman K. 
Published: December 2008

AbstractThe insect digestive system is the first line of defence protecting cells and tissues of the body from a broad spectrum of toxins and antinutritional factors in its food. To gain insight into the nature and breadth of genes involved in adaptation to dietary challenge, a collection of 20 352 cDNAs was prepared from the midgut tissue of cowpea bruchid larvae (Callosobruchus maculatus) fed on regular diet and diets containing antinutritional compounds. Transcript responses of the larvae to dietary soybean cystatin (scN) were analysed using cDNA microarrays, followed by quantitative real‐time PCR (RT‐PCR) confirmation with selected genes. The midgut transcript profile of insects fed a sustained sublethal scN dose over the larval life was compared with that of insects treated with an acute high dose of scN for 24 h. A total of 1756 scN‐responsive cDNAs was sequenced; these clustered into 967 contigs, of which 653 were singletons. Many contigs (451) did not show homology with known genes, or had homology only with genes of unknown function in a Blast search. The identified differentially regulated sequences encoded proteins presumptively involved in metabolism, structure, development, signalling, defence and stress response. Expression patterns of some scN‐responsive genes were consistent in each larval stage, whereas others exhibited developmental stage‐specificity. Acute (24 h), high level exposure to dietary scN caused altered expression of a set of genes partially overlapping with the transcript profile seen under chronic lower level exposure. Protein and carbohydrate hydrolases were generally up‐regulated by scN whereas structural, defence and stress‐related genes were largely down‐regulated. These results show that insects actively mobilize genomic resources in the alimentary tract to mitigate the impact of a digestive protease inhibitor. The enhanced or restored digestibility that may result is possibly crucial for insect survival, yet may be bought at the cost of weakened response to other stresses.
Agenesis of permanent teeth in 8138 Danish schoolchildren: prevalence and intra‐oral distribution according to gender
Authors: RØLLING STEEN , POULSEN SVEN 
Published: December 2008

Objective.  The purpose of this study was to describe agenesis of permanent teeth in children with respect to prevalence and intra‐oral distribution according to gender.Methods and subjects.  The study was population based and included all children in one district of the municipality of Aarhus, Denmark, in 1974–1979 (1657 girls and 1668 boys) and 1992–2002 (2409 girls and 2404 boys). The children underwent systematical clinical and radiographic examination.Results.  The period prevalence rates were almost identical for the two time periods (1972–1979: 7.8%; 1992–2002: 7.1%). Girls were affected more frequently than boys, and affected girls had more congenitally missing teeth than affected boys. Unilateral agenesis of the second premolars was more frequent than bilateral agenesis. In children with only one congenitally missing tooth, agenesis of the upper lateral incisors was asymmetrical in girls, but not in boys, whereas the opposite was true for the lower second premolars in boys.Conclusion.  The prevalence of agenesis of permanent teeth in Danish schoolchildren seems to be constant over time, and similar to that found in other large, population‐based studies. Intra‐oral distributions of congenitally missing teeth indicate gender‐specific patterns.
Nestling colouration is adjusted to parent visual performance in altricial birds
Authors: AVILÉS J. M. , SOLER J. J. 
Published: December 2008

AbstractHitherto, most of the investigation on the perceptual efficacy of begging signals has dwelled on how patterns of nestling colouration adjust to predominant nest luminosity. However, visual sensitivity of birds varies across species, which raises the question of whether colouration of traits involved in begging displays is adjusted to parent visual capacities. Here, by comparing nestling colouration and visual sensitivity across 22 altricial bird species, we provide a first test of this hypothesis. Firstly, we assessed differences in performance of typical UV‐tuned and violet‐tuned bird eyes when looking at the nestling traits under the light regimes prevailing at their nests. Secondly, while controlling for common ancestry in a comparative approach, we explored variation in colouration of nestlings in relation to parent visual system. The colour discrimination model indicated a general higher performance of the ultraviolet over the violet eye at detecting gape and body skin traits in either open‐ or hole‐nest light conditions. Gape colouration was associated with parental visual system as the nestlings of UVS species displayed more yellow and less pure ultraviolet mouths than the nestlings of VS species. Thus, our results agree with an adaptive parent–offspring communication scenario where the nestlings’ colours tuned the perception capacities of their parents.
Determinants of mating and sperm‐transfer success in a simultaneous hermaphrodite
Authors: JANICKE T. , SCHÄRER L. 
Published: December 2008

AbstractThe number of mating partners an individual has within a population is a crucial parameter in sex allocation theory for simultaneous hermaphrodites because it is predicted to be one of the main parameters influencing sex allocation. However, little is known about the factors that determine the number of mates in simultaneous hermaphrodites. Furthermore, in order to understand the benefits obtained by resource allocation into the male function it is important to identify the factors that predict sperm‐transfer success, i.e. the number of sperm a donor manages to store in a mate. In this study we experimentally tested how social group size (i.e. the number of all potential mates within a population) and density affect the number of mates and sperm‐transfer success in the outcrossing hermaphroditic flatworm Macrostomum lignano. In addition, we assessed whether these parameters covary with morphological traits, such as body size, testis size and genital morphology. For this we used a method, which allows tracking sperm of a labelled donor in an unlabelled mate. We found considerable variation in the number of mates and sperm‐transfer success between individuals. The number of mates increased with social group size, and was higher in worms with larger testes, but there was no effect of density. Similarly, sperm‐transfer success was affected by social group size and testis size, but in addition this parameter was influenced by genital morphology. Our study demonstrates for the first time that the social context and the morphology of sperm donors are important predictors of the number of mates and sperm‐transfer success in a simultaneous hermaphrodite. Based on these findings, we hypothesize that sex allocation influences the mating behaviour and outcome of sperm competition.
Characterization of Oestrous Induction Response, Oestrous Duration, Fecundity and Fertility in Awassi Ewes During the Non‐breeding Season Utilizing both CIDR and Intravaginal Sponge Treatments
Authors: Ozyurtlu N , Kucukaslan I , Cetin Y 
Published: December 2008

ContentsThe aim of this study was to investigate characterization of oestrous response, onset of induced oestrus, oestrous duration, fecundity and fertility in Awassi ewes treatment with intravaginal sponges and Controlled Intravaginal Drug Release (CIDR) devices in combination with pregnant mare serum gonadotropin (PMSG) under local environmental conditions during the non‐breeding season. A total of 62 ewes were divided into three groups. Group CIDR (n = 20) was treated with CIDR devices for 12 days and 400 IU PMSG was injected upon removal of the CIDR. For ewes in Group Sponge (SP) (n = 24), 30 mg fluorogestone acetate was administered to the sheep for 12 days and 400 IU PMSG was injected upon withdrawal of the sponge. Group Control (CON) (n = 18) served as a control group and received no treatment. Adult, intact and sexually experienced Awassi rams were introduced to all groups at the time when the intravaginal devices were removed. There were no significant differences in terms of oestrous response (CIDR: 90%, SP: 87.5%), time to onset of oestrus and duration of induced oestrus between the CIDR and SP groups. The oestrous response of treatment groups was significantly greater (p < 0.05) than in the control ewes. There were no significant differences in pregnancy (CIDR: 70%, SP: 70.8%), lambing (CIDR: 85%, SP: 79.2%) and fecundity rates between ewes treated with CIDR and those treated with sponges. However, pregnancy and lambing rates were significantly (p < 0.05) higher in ewes treated with CIDR or sponges when compared with those in the control group. It was concluded that it is possible to induce fertile oestrus, successful pregnancy and lambing with the treatment of either CIDR or intravaginal sponge in combination with PMSG in Awassi ewes during the non‐breeding season.
Fatigue thresholds of holed components under in‐phase and out‐of‐phase torsional and axial loadings
Authors: TANAKA K. , MORITA K. , AKINIWA Y. 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACTThe resistance‐curve (R‐curve) method was applied to the prediction of the fatigue thresholds of notched components under in‐phase and out‐of‐phase combinations of cyclic torsion and axial loadings. The prediction was compared with the experimental data obtained from thin‐walled tubular specimen of medium‐carbon steel with a hole. The stress was completely reversed and the mean stress was zero. The crack was nucleated at the position of the maximum range of the circumferential stress on the periphery of a hole, and propagated almost straight for all cases examined. The experimental data of the thresholds for crack initiation and fracture agreed well with the predictions for in‐phase and for out‐of‐phase loadings with 45° phase difference. For out‐of‐phase loading with 90°, the threshold for fracture was close to the crack initiation limit, because of the reduction of crack closure due to crack face rubbing by mode II shear cycling.
AMPA receptors in the medial amygdala are critical for establishing a neuroendocrine memory in the female rat
Authors: Oberlander Joseph G. , Lin Amy W. , Man Heng‐Ye , Erskine Mary S. 
Published: December 2008

AbstractWe sought to examine AMPA receptor (AMPAR) function in the medial posterodorsal amygdala (MePD), as glutamate neurotransmission is critical for the neural response to vaginal–cervical stimulation that initiates pregnancy or pseudopregnancy. Female rats were infused with the AMPAR antagonist CNQX or vehicle directly into the MePD via bilaterally implanted cannulae, then either returned to their homecage (HC), or received 15 mounts‐without‐intromissions (MO) or 15 intromissions (15I) from a male. Expression of the activity marker EGR‐1 was used to determine the CNQX concentration which would prevent mating‐induced activation of MePD neurons. Separate cannulated females received CNQX infusions into the MePD prior to receiving 15I, and the oestrous cycle length was monitored by daily vaginal lavages. Infusion of CNQX (500 nm) blocked mating‐induced neural activation and lengthened the oestrous cycle, demonstrating AMPAR involvement in the formation of pseudopregnancy. To further explore this involvement, separate groups of 15I, MO and HC females were killed 90 min or 3 h after testing treatment. Brain sections were immunolabeled for AMPAR‐subunit GluR1 phosphorylated at one of two sites (Serine‐831 or Serine‐845), or total GluR1 and GluR2, and immunofluorescence intensity was measured in the MePD, hippocampus and hypothalamus. A mating‐induced increase in Serine‐831 phosphorylation after 3 h was observed only in the MePD, whereas there was no effect on Serine‐845 phosphorylation. Additionally, we observed a time‐dependent increase in total GluR1 staining intensity. These results suggest an increased AMPAR function in the MePD after receipt of VCS, and a role for AMPAR in the neural response to VCS resulting in pseudopregnancy.
Demographic origins of skewed operational and adult sex ratios: perturbation analyses of two‐sex models
Authors: Veran Sophie , Beissinger Steven R. 
Published: December 2008

AbstractSkewed sex ratios – operational (OSR) and Adult (ASR) ‐ arise from sexual differences in reproductive behaviours and adult survival rates due to the cost of reproduction. However, skewed sex‐ratio at birth, sex‐biased dispersal and immigration, and sexual differences in juvenile mortality may also contribute. We present a framework to decompose the roles of demographic traits on sex ratios using perturbation analyses of two‐sex matrix population models. Metrics of sensitivity are derived from analyses of sensitivity, elasticity, life‐table response experiments and life stage simulation analyses, and applied to the stable stage distribution instead of lambda. We use these approaches to examine causes of male‐biased sex ratios in two populations of green‐rumped parrotlets (Forpus passerinus) in Venezuela. Female local juvenile survival contributed the most to the unbalanced OSR and ASR due to a female‐biased dispersal rate, suggesting sexual differences in philopatry can influence sex ratios more strongly than the cost of reproduction.
Insulin glargine provides greater improvements in glycaemic control vs. intensifying lifestyle management for people with type 2 diabetes treated with OADs and 7–8% A1c levels. The TULIP study
Authors: Blicklé J‐F. , Hancu N. , Piletic M. , Profozic V. , Shestakova M. , Dain M‐P. , Jacqueminet S. , Grimaldi A. 
Published: December 2008

Aim:  To determine whether earlier administration of insulin glargine (glargine) vs. the intensification of lifestyle management (LM) improves glycaemic control in type 2 diabetes patients with A1c 7–8% treated with oral therapy.Methods:  TULIP [Testing the Usefulness of gLargine when Initiated Promptly in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM)] was a 9‐month, 12‐visit, open‐label, multinational, multicentre, randomized study to evaluate starting glargine or intensifying LM in T2DM patients aged 40–75 years, body mass index (BMI) 24–35 kg/m2 and A1c 7–8%, treated with maximum doses of metformin and sulphonylurea for ≥ 2 years. Glargine was injected once daily (evening) and titrated to fasting blood glucose 0.7–1.0 g/l. In the LM arm, dietary and physical activity counselling recommended stable weight for people with BMI < 27 kg/m2 or weight loss of 3 kg for patients with BMI ≥ 27 kg/m2. A total of 215 patients were randomized to glargine (n = 106) or LM (n = 109). The primary objective was patients achieving A1c < 7% at endpoint. Secondary endpoints included changes in A1c, in fasting plasma glucose (FPG), body weight and hypoglycaemia incidence.Results:  Two hundred and eleven (52.6% male) patients were randomized and treated; mean (± s.d.) age 60.7 ± 7.9 years, weight 84.5 ± 13.1 kg, BMI 29.9 ± 3.5 kg/m2 and A1c 7.6 ± 0.4%. More patients reached A1c < 7% (66 vs. 38%; p < 0.0001) or < 6.5% (34 vs. 11%; p = 0.0001) with glargine vs. LM. The change in FPG from baseline to study endpoint was significantly greater in the glargine vs. the LM arm (−0.50 ± 0.47 vs. −0.05 ± 0.39 g/l respectively; p < 0.0001). Compared with the glargine group, the LM group showed a decrease in weight (+0.9 ± 2.9 vs. −2.5 ± 3.2 kg; p < 0.0001), as well as the expected lower symptomatic hypoglycaemia (55.3 vs. 25.0%; p < 0.0001) and nocturnal hypoglycaemia (20.4 vs. 5.6%; p = 0.0016). No significant changes were observed from baseline to study endpoint in any of the lipid parameters tested.Conclusions:  In patients with T2DM with A1c 7–8%, who were previously treated by conventional LM and OAD therapy, adding glargine resulted in greater improvements in glycaemic control vs. intensifying LM.
Structural Validity and Generalisability of a Referent Cognitions Model of Turnover Intentions
Authors: Allen David G. , Griffeth Rodger W. , Vardaman James M. , Aquino Karl , Gaertner Stefan , Lee Michael 
Published: December 2008

A model proposed and empirically tested by Aquino, Griffeth, Allen, and Hom (1997) using employees of a hospital in the northeastern United States was replicated in samples of Korean factory workers from two divisions of a large organisation. Results in both samples suggested that the relationships among model variables and relationships with withdrawal cognitions replicated quite closely. Results also suggested that the way people are treated in an organisation by their supervisors exerts a powerful effect on their turnover‐related responses. Most importantly, the results of this study in combination with the earlier results from Aquino et al. (1997) highlight the impact of employee expectations of future job advancement on turnover‐related responses. Employees who perceive that their present situation will improve are more satisfied with their present outcomes and their supervisors. They are also less likely to consider quitting even when being unsatisfied with their present situation.Un modèle proposé et testé empiriquement par Aquino, Griffeth, Allen, and Hom (1997) sur des employés d’un hôpital du nord des Etats‐Unis a été réutilisé auprès de plusieurs échantillons de travailleurs d’une usine coréenne appartenant à deux divisions d’une grande organisation. Les résultats sur les deux échantillons montrent que les relations entre les variables du modèle et les relations avec les cognitions défaillantes reproduisent de très près ceux du modèle original. Les résultats montrent aussi que la façon dont les salariés sont traités dans une organisation par leurs supérieurs a de fortes retombées sur leurs réponses concernant les démissions. Plus important encore, les résultats de cette étude en concordance avec ceux initiaux obtenus par Aquino et al. (1997), soulignent l’impact des attentes des employés à propos de leur avancement dans leur futur emploi sur leurs réponses concernant les démissions. Les employés qui perçoivent que leur situation présente va s’améliorer sont plus satisfaits de leur rémunération présente et de leurs supérieurs. Ils sont aussi moins enclins à envisager de démissionner même s’ils sont insatisfaits de leur situation présente.