bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The relationship between cortisol, muscle mass and muscle strength in older persons and the role of genetic variations in the glucocorticoid receptor
Authors: Peeters G. M. E. E. , Van Schoor N. M. , Van Rossum E. F. C. , Visser M. , Lips P. 
Published: February 2008

SummaryObjective  Cortisol levels increase with age and hypercortisolism is associated with muscle weakness. This study examines the relationship between cortisol, muscle mass and muscle strength in community‐dwelling older persons and the role of genetic variations in the glucocorticoid receptor (GR).Design/patients  The study was conducted within the Longitudinal Ageing Study Amsterdam (LASA, 1992‐ongoing), a cohort study in a population‐based sample of older persons in the Netherlands. Data were used from 1196 and 1046 participants in the second (1995–1996) and fourth (2001–2002) cycle, respectively.Measurements  Total serum cortisol and free cortisol were measured in the mornings of the second cycle while salivary cortisol sampled early in the morning and late at night were measured in the fourth cycle. The GR gene polymorphisms (ER22/23EK, N363SS, 9β and BclI) were genotyped by Taqman. Appendicular skeletal muscle mass (ASMM) was measured using DXA in the second cycle and 3 years later (third cycle). Grip strength was assessed using a handgrip dynamometer in the second, third, fourth and fifth cycle.Results  A relationship was found between both morning and evening salivary cortisol, and loss of grip strength: participants in the highest quartile of cortisol concentration had a twofold higher risk of loss of grip strength than participants in the lowest quartile (P < 0·05). No relationships were found between serum cortisol (loss of) ASMM, and (loss of) grip strength. The ER22/23EK and N363S‐polymorphisms modified the relationships between serum cortisol, ASMM and grip strength, respectively. Due to limited power, these relationships were not significant after stratification for the polymorphisms.Conclusion  High salivary cortisol is associated with a higher risk of loss of grip strength in older persons. GR genotypes modify the relationship between muscle mass and muscle strength.
A high‐throughput chemical screen for resistance to Pseudomonas syringae in Arabidopsis
Authors: Schreiber Karl , Ckurshumova Wenzislava , Peek James , Desveaux Darrell 
Published: February 2008

SummaryThe study of plant pathogenesis and the development of effective treatments to protect plants from diseases could be greatly facilitated by a high‐throughput pathosystem to evaluate small‐molecule libraries for inhibitors of pathogen virulence. The interaction between the Gram‐negative bacterium Pseudomonas syringae and Arabidopsis thaliana is a model for plant pathogenesis. However, a robust high‐throughput assay to score the outcome of this interaction is currently lacking. We demonstrate that Arabidopsis seedlings incubated with P. syringae in liquid culture display a macroscopically visible ‘bleaching’ symptom within 5 days of infection. Bleaching is associated with a loss of chlorophyll from cotyledonary tissues, and is correlated with bacterial virulence. Gene‐for‐gene resistance is absent in the liquid environment, possibly because of the suppression of the hypersensitive response under these conditions. Importantly, bleaching can be prevented by treating seedlings with known inducers of plant defence, such as salicylic acid (SA) or a basal defence‐inducing peptide of bacterial flagellin (flg22) prior to inoculation. Based on these observations, we have devised a high‐throughput liquid assay using standard 96‐well plates to investigate the P. syringae–Arabidopsis interaction. An initial screen of small molecules active on Arabidopsis revealed a family of sulfanilamide compounds that afford protection against the bleaching symptom. The most active compound, sulfamethoxazole, also reduced in planta bacterial growth when applied to mature soil‐grown plants. The whole‐organism liquid assay provides a novel approach to probe chemical libraries in a high‐throughput manner for compounds that reduce bacterial virulence in plants.
Arabidopsis DMR6 encodes a putative 2OG‐Fe(II) oxygenase that is defense‐associated but required for susceptibility to downy mildew
Authors: Van Damme Mireille , Huibers Robin P. , Elberse Joyce , Van den Ackerveken Guido 
Published: February 2008

SummaryThe Arabidopsis mutant downy mildew resistant 6 (dmr6) carries a recessive mutation that results in the loss of susceptibility to Hyaloperonospora parasitica. Here we describe the map‐based cloning of DMR6 (At5g24530), which was found to encode a 2‐oxoglutarate (2OG)‐Fe(II) oxygenase of unknown function. DMR6 transcription is locally induced during infections with both compatible and incompatible H. parasitica isolates. High DMR6 transcript levels were also observed in constitutive defense mutants and after treatment with salicylic acid analog BTH, suggesting that DMR6 has a role during plant defense. Expression analysis of dmr6 mutants, using DNA microarrays and quantitative PCR, showed the enhanced expression of a subset of defense‐associated genes, including DMR6 itself, suggesting dmr6‐mediated resistance results from the activation of plant defense responses. Alternatively, resistance could be caused by the accumulation of a toxic DMR6 substrate, or by the absence of a DMR6 metabolic product that is required for H. parasitica infection.
Post‐exercise heart rate recovery in HIV‐positive individuals on highly active antiretroviral therapy. Early indicator of cardiovascular disease?
Authors: Cade WT , Reeds DN , Lassa‐Claxton S , Davila‐Roman VG , Waggoner AD , Powderly WG , Yarasheski KE 
Published: February 2008

BackgroundHIV infection and its treatment, specifically protease inhibitor (PI) therapy, have been associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular disease. Heart rate recovery (HRR) following peak exercise is predictive of future cardiovascular events and mortality in the general population. Nothing is known regarding HRR in individuals infected with HIV on highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART).Subjects and methodsHIV‐positive subjects on HAART that included a PI (HIV+PI, n=19), HIV‐positive subjects on HAART that did not include a PI (HIV+noPI, n=19) and HIV‐seronegative age, gender and body mass index (BMI) matched controls (Cntl, n=15) underwent a graded maximal exercise test on a cycle ergometer to volitional exhaustion. A continuous electrocardiogram was recorded and HRR was monitored every 30 s for 2 min post exercise.ResultsHRR at 1.5 and 2 min was significantly delayed in HIV‐positive subjects both on and not on PI‐based HAART compared with controls (P<0.01).ConclusionHRR is impaired in HIV‐positive individuals on HAART, whether or not the HAART includes a PI, compared with age, gender, BMI, and activity level matched HIV‐seronegative controls. Abnormal HRR may reflect cardio‐autonomic dysfunction and may be an independent risk factor for future cardiac events in HIV‐positive individuals that receive HAART.
Isosporiasis in patients with HIV infection in the highly active antiretroviral therapy era in France
Authors: Lagrange‐Xélot M , Porcher R , Sarfati C , De Castro N , Carel O , Magnier J‐D , Delcey V , Molina J‐M 
Published: February 2008

BackgroundIsosporiasis, a rare cause of diarrhoea among HIV‐infected patients in the pre‐highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) era, seems to be re‐emerging.MethodsA retrospective study was carried out for the period 1995–2003 in two hospitals in Paris to describe the prevalence, clinical characteristics and therapeutic outcome of isosporiasis in HIV‐infected patients, and to compare the findings with those for cryptosporidiosis and microsporidiosis.ResultsThe prevalence of isosporiasis increased from 0.4 per 1000 patients in the pre‐HAART era (1995–1996) to 4.4 per 1000 patients in the HAART era (2001–2003), whereas the prevalence of cryptosporidiosis and microsporidiosis decreased. Compared with patients with either cryptosporidiosis (n=91) or microsporidiosis (n=58), patients with isosporiasis (n=28) more frequently originated from sub‐Saharan Africa (72%), were more frequently female and heterosexual, and had a higher median CD4 count at diagnosis (142 cells/μL). All patients with isosporiasis presented with diarrhoea, which was severe enough to lead to hospital admission for 60% of them. Fever was uncommon (7%). All patients were treated for isosporiasis, 27 of them with cotrimoxazole. Relapse of isosporiasis occurred in six of 16 patients (38%) despite maintenance cotrimoxazole therapy and HAART.ConclusionIsosporiasis in France occurs mostly in patients emigrating from sub‐Saharan Africa and can induce severe diarrhoea. Relapse is common despite cotrimoxazole maintenance therapy.
European AIDS Clinical Society (EACS) guidelines for the clinical management and treatment of HIV‐infected adults
Authors: Clumeck N , Pozniak A , Raffi F ,   the EACS Executive Committee
Published: February 2008

A working group of the European AIDS Clinical Society (EACS) have developed these guidelines for European clinicians to help them in the treatment of adults with HIV infection. This third version of the guidelines includes, as new topics, the assessment of patients at initial and subsequent clinic visits as well as post‐exposure prophylaxis. A revision of the 2005 guidelines based on current data includes changes in the sections on primary HIV infection, when to initiate therapy, which drug combinations are preferred as initial combination regimens for antiretroviral‐naïve patients, how to manage virological failure and the treatment of HIV during pregnancy.In Europe, there is a wide range of clinical practices in antiretroviral therapy depending on various factors such as drug registration, national policies, local availability, reimbursement and access to treatment. These can vary greatly from one country to another, especially in Central and Eastern parts of Europe.These guidelines are intended to help clinicians achieve the best care for their patients. In some countries, particularly where the quality of and access to care are not optimal, these guidelines should help AIDS societies and physicians or patient group organizations to negotiate with their national health authorities with a view to implementing what should be the standard of care for HIV‐infected patients all over Europe.
European AIDS Clinical Society (EACS) guidelines on the prevention and management of metabolic diseases in HIV*
Authors: Lundgren JD , Battegay M , Behrens G , De Wit S , Guaraldi G , Katlama C , Martinez E , Nair D , Powderly WG , Reiss P , Sutinen J , Vigano A ,   the EACS Executive Committee
Published: February 2008

BackgroundMetabolic diseases are frequently observed in HIV‐infected persons and, as the risk of contracting these diseases is age‐related, their prevalence will increase in the future as a consequence of the benefits of antiretroviral therapy (ART).Summary of guidelinesAll HIV‐infected persons should be screened at regular intervals for a history of metabolic disease, dyslipidaemia, diabetes mellitus, hypertension and alteration of body composition; cardiovascular risk and renal function should also be assessed. Efforts to prevent cardiovascular disease will vary in intensity depending on an individual's absolute risk of ischaemic heart disease and should be comprehensive in nature. Lifestyle interventions should focus on counselling to stop smoking, modify diet and take regular exercise. A healthy diet, exercise and maintaining normal body weight tend to reduce dyslipidaemia; if not effective, a change of ART should be considered, followed by use of lipid‐lowering medication in high‐risk patients. A pre‐emptive switch from thymidine analogues is recommended to reduce the risk of development or progression of lipoatrophy. Intra‐abdominal fat accumulation is best managed by exercise and diet. Prevention and management of type 2 diabetes mellitus and hypertension follow guidelines used in the general population. When using medical interventions to prevent and/or treat metabolic disease(s), impairment of the efficacy of ART should be avoided by considering the possibility of pharmacokinetic interactions and compromised adherence. Specialists in HIV and specialists in metabolic diseases should consult each other, in particular in difficult‐to‐treat cases.ConclusionMultiple and relatively simple approaches exist to prevent metabolic diseases in HIV‐infected persons; priority should be given to patients at high risk of contracting these diseases.
European AIDS Clinical Society (EACS) guidelines for the clinical management and treatment of chronic hepatitis B and C coinfection in HIV‐infected adults
Authors: Rockstroh JK , Bhagani S , Benhamou Y , Bruno R , Mauss S , Peters L , Puoti M , Soriano V , Tural C ,   the EACS Executive Committee
Published: February 2008

ObjectivesWith the decline in HIV‐associated morbidity and mortality following the introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), liver disease has emerged as a major cause of death in HIV/hepatitis B virus (HBV) and HIV/hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfected persons. Therefore, screening for underlying viral hepatitis coinfection and the provision of management and treatment recommendations for patients with chronic viral hepatitis are of great importance in preventing, as far as possible, the development of liver disease. With the introduction of new agents for the treatment of hepatitis B and increased knowledge of how best to manage hepatitis C, an update of current guidelines for management of HBV and HCV coinfection with HIV is warranted.SummaryClearly, all HIV‐infected patients should be screened for hepatitis A, B and C, taking into account shared pathways of transmission. Patients who are seronegative for hepatitis A and B should be considered for vaccination. In HIV‐infected patients with chronic hepatitis B, the first important differentiation is whether HAART is required or not. In the setting of stable HIV infection, with no need for HAART, several treatment options are available, namely treatment with interferon, early initiation of HAART, or selective non‐HIV active anti‐HBV nucleoside therapy, with the aim of achieving undetectable HBV DNA levels. In most cases, undetectable HBV DNA can only be achieved with combination therapy.With regard to hepatitis C, individualized tailoring of the duration of HCV therapy is advisable, taking into account rapid or delayed virological response. In patients who do not achieve at least a 2 log drop in HCV RNA at week 12, treatment can be terminated because of the low probability of achieving sustained virological response. Overall, with the currently available treatment algorithms, HCV can be eradicated in over 50% of patients. Therefore, HCV therapy should be considered and discussed with the patient if an indication for HCV therapy (elevated liver enzymes, positive HCV RNA and >F1 fibrosis) is present.ConclusionsManagement of underlying hepatitis B and/or C in patients with HIV infection is of great importance in preventing liver disease‐associated morbidity and mortality.
Heather Honour
Authors: Holman Andrew 
Published: February 2008

The Learning Disability Coalition was set up to fight the cuts being made to  services for people.
There are 10 organisations involved including People First and the National  Forum of people with learning difficulties.
I talked to the manager, Heather Honour, about the work of the organisation and  how they are asking for more money for services.
They are also finding out what it is like for people who have had their services cut.
Age‐related reduction in retinal deimination levels in the F344BN rat
Authors: Bhattacharya Sanjoy K. , Sinicrope Brent , Rayborn Mary E. , Hollyfield Joe G. , Bonilha Vera L. 
Published: February 2008

SummaryIncreased deimination and peptidyl arginine deiminase type 2 (PAD2) expression has been observed in age‐related neurodegenerative diseases without discrimination between their aging and disease component. Here, we describe reduced levels of deimination commensurate with reduced protein, mRNA and activity of peptidylarginine deiminase type 2 in the retina, optic nerve and plasma of aged rats when compared to young rats. The decrease was significant in the ganglion cell layer, inner plexiform layer and inner nuclear layer. Because our observations suggest reduced deimination is a consequence of aging, we conclude that increased deimination must be a consequence of disease. Our findings are important to understand late‐onset and progressive diseases such as glaucoma, pseudoexfoliation syndrome, age‐related macular degeneration and Oguchi's disease.
Factors Contributing to the Adaptive Increase in Ethanol Metabolism due to Chronic Consumption of Ethanol
Authors: Cederbaum Arthur I. , Dicker Elisa , Lieber Charles S. , Rubin Emanuel 
Published: February 2008

SUMMARYChronic ethanol consumption, in a diet which leads to a fatty liver, results in an increase in the rate of ethanol oxidation in isolated rat hepatocytes. The percent increase (30%‐40%) is similar to that previously found in vivo, in the same model system.1,11 This increase does not correlate with the activity of alcohol dehydrogenase, which was slightly decreased after chronic ethanol consumption.1,16 The increase in ethanol oxidation is not associated with a hypermetabolic state of the liver since oxygen consumption with a variety of substrates was not enhanced after chronic ethanol consumption. Approximately 40%‐50% of this increase persists in the presence of an inhibitor of alcohol dehydrogenase, inhibitors of mitochondrial oxygen consumption and inhibitors of the malate‐aspartate shuttle. The increase persists in the presence of ouabain, dinitrophenol and various shuttle metabolites (in the presence and absence of dinitrophenol). Chronic consumption of ethanol results in hypertrophy of the smooth endoplasmic reticulum and an adaptive increase in the ability of microsomal preparations to oxidize ethanol to acetaldehyde.1,11 The fact that part of the increase in ethanol oxidation which occurs after chronic ethanol administration persists in the presence of the various additives discussed above, indicates that pathways that are independent of alcohol dehydrogenase contribute to this metabolic adaptation. These data extend the observation that the metabolic adaptation found after chronic ethanol consumption was not abolished by 2mM pyrazole.1,26
Summary of the Discussion
Authors: Lieber C. S. 
Published: February 2008

SUMMARYThere was general agreement that catalase cannot account for the activity of MEOS and that chronic ethanol feeding results in increased rates of ethanol metabolism. There was disagreement however on the mechanism of the latter effect, with some invoking the ADH pathway exclusively in association with a hypermetabolic state, whereas according to others MEOS plays a significant role in the adaptive increase of ethanol metabolism.
Sterol Metabolism in the Rat: Effect of Alcohol on Sterol Metabolism in Two Strains of Rats
Authors: Cohen Bertram I. , Raicht Robert F. 
Published: February 2008

Sterol metabolism studies usinag a combination of iso‐topic and chromatographic procedures were carried out in two strains of rats fed 5% ethanol (36% of calories) in the diet.Feeding ethanol to the Fisher rat over 17 days produced no significant changes in body weight. Cholesterol levels in various tissues were elevated in the ethanol‐fed group: plasma cholesterol, +61%; liver cholesterol, +47%; and bile cholesterol, +57%. The alcohol‐fed Fisher rat showed several changes in sterol metabolism over controls: fecal acidic steroid output, + 13%; fecal neutral sterol output, +51%; endogenous neutral sterol output, +107%; cholesterol turnover, + 54%; and cholesterol balance, +18%.Ethanol feeding to the Spraque Dawley rat showed similar differences between ethanol‐fed vs. control rats. Cholesterol levels were significantly elevated in plasma (+35%) and in the liver (+81%). Sterol metabolism data showed the following differences (alcohol vs. control): fecal acidic steroid output, +9%; fecal neutral sterol output, +17%; endogenous neutral sterol output, +72%; cholesterol turnover, +33%; and cholesterol balance, +13%.The Fisher rat maintained almost constant weight throughout the experimental period and is a preferable strain for sterol balance studies using liquid diets. A major finding of these experiments was the increased concentration of cholesterol in liver, plasma, and bile in both strains of rats. The sterol balance measurements indicated that this tissue accumulation of cholesterol was due to enhanced cholesterol synthesis as well as inhibition of bile acid synthesis.
Behavioral Effects of Ethanol in Animals: Age Differences and Age Changes
Authors: Wood W. Gibson , Armbrecht H. James 
Published: February 2008

Ethanol‐induced behavior is related to the age of the organism. This relationship has been shown for several different kinds of measures, e.g., voluntary consumption of ethanol, effects of acute and chronic administration of ethanol. The usefulness of studies concerned with voluntary ethanol consumption and aging is questioned. Usually, causal mechanisms are not determined and blood ethanol levels are not measured in these animal studies.Both acute and chronic studies have shown that old animals are more sensitive to the effects of ethanol as compared to young animals. This effect has been reported in studies employing a number of different methods of administering ethanol, e.g., injection, inhalation, liquid diet. Age‐related effects in response to short‐term administration of ethanol have been observed for measures such as loss of the righting reflex, general motor activity, hypothermia, and withdrawal signs. Long‐term administration of ethanol has been found to affect brain chemistry, performance, and life span. Explanations for the effects of ethanol among different age groups include differences in the rate of metabolism of ethanol, the percentage of body water and lean body mass, and changes in central nervous system sensitivity.The study of the relationship between the effects of ethanol and aging is relatively new. The most obvious conclusion that can be made from a review of the literature is that much more work needs to be done. Greater attention needs to be given to the theoretical and methodological issues associated with aging research.