bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Rapid Microsphere Assay for Identification of
Cryptosporidium hominis
and
Cryptosporidium parvum
in Stool and Environmental Samples
Authors: Bandyopadhyay Kakali , Kellar Kathryn L. , Moura Iaci , Casaqui Carollo Maria Cristina , Graczyk Thaddeus K. , Slemenda Susan , Johnston Stephanie P. , da Silva Alexandre J. 
Published: July 2007

ABSTRACT

Cryptosporidium hominis
and
Cryptosporidium parvum
are associated with massive disease outbreaks worldwide. Because these two species have different transmission cycles, identification of these parasites to the species level in clinical samples may provide laboratory data of crucial importance in epidemiologic investigations. To date, the most reliable way to differentiate
C. hominis
and
C. parvum
is based on DNA sequencing analysis of PCR amplicons. Although this approach is very effective for differentiation of
Cryptosporidium
species, it is labor-intensive and time-consuming compared with methods that do not require DNA sequencing analysis as an additional step and that have been successfully used for specific identification of a number of pathogens. In this study, we describe a novel Luminex-based assay that can differentiate
C. hominis
from
C. parvum
in a rapid and cost-effective manner. The assay was validated by testing a total of 143 DNA samples extracted from clinical specimens, environmental samples, or samples artificially spiked with
Cryptosporidium
oocysts. As few as 10 oocysts per 300 μl of stools could be detected with this assay. The assay format includes species-specific probes linked to carboxylated Luminex microspheres that hybridize to a
Cryptosporidium
microsatellite-2 region (ML-2) where
C. hominis
and
C. parvum
differ by one nucleotide substitution. The assay proved to be 100% specific when samples that had been characterized by direct fluorescent antibody test (DFA) and DNA sequencing analysis were tested. In addition, the assay was more sensitive than DFA and provided species identification, which is an advantage for epidemiologic studies.
Comparison of Hand-Held Test Kits, Immunofluorescence Microscopy, Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay, and Flow Cytometric Analysis for Rapid Presumptive Identification of
Yersinia pestis
Authors: Tomaso H. , Thullier P. , Seibold E. , Guglielmo V. , Buckendahl A. , Rahalison L. , Neubauer H. , Scholz H. C. , Splettstoesser W. D. 
Published: July 2007

ABSTRACT

An in-house immunochromatographic test, Plague BioThreat Alert test strips, ABICAP columns, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, flow cytometry, and immunofluorescence microscopy were compared for the detection of the fraction 1 capsular antigen of
Yersinia pestis
, using spiked buffer and clinical specimens. Hand-held test kits proved to be excellent benchtop tools.
First Case of Bloodstream Infection Due to
Candida magnoliae
in a Chinese Oncological Patient
Authors: Cascio G. Lo , Dalle Carbonare L. , Maccacaro L. , Caliari F. , Ligozzi M. , Cascio V. Lo , Fontana R. 
Published: July 2007

ABSTRACT

We report a case of fungemia caused by
Candida magnoliae
, a yeast never associated with human disease. The infection occurred in a 42-year-old Chinese patient with gastric cancer complicated by peritoneal carcinosis. Multiple blood cultures were positive for yeast; the species was well identified with biochemical and molecular methods. The phylogenetic analysis showed a close relationship of
C. magnoliae
to
Candida krusei
.
Prosthetic Valve Endocarditis Caused by
Streptobacillus moniliformi
s: a Case of Rat Bite Fever
Authors: Chen Po-Lin , Lee Nan-Yao , Yan Jing-Jou , Yang Yu-jen , Chen Hung-Mo , Chang Chia-Ming , Lee Hsin-Chun , Ko Nai-Ying , Lai Chao-Han , Ko Wen-Chien 
Published: July 2007

ABSTRACT

We report a case of rat bite fever caused by
Streptobacillus moniliformis
in Taiwan. It manifested as prosthetic valve endocarditis, which was cured by cardiac valve replacement and antimicrobial therapy. The DNA sequence of the 16S rRNA gene of
S. moniliformis
was detected in valve specimens by PCR and nucleotide sequencing.
Murine Noroviruses Comprising a Single Genogroup Exhibit Biological Diversity despite Limited Sequence Divergence
Authors: Thackray Larissa B. , Wobus Christiane E. , Chachu Karen A. , Liu Bo , Alegre Eric R. , Henderson Kenneth S. , Kelley Scott T. , Virgin Herbert W. 
Published: July 2007

ABSTRACT

Viruses within the genus
Norovirus
of the family
Caliciviridae
are the major cause of acute, nonbacterial gastroenteritis worldwide. Human noroviruses are genetically diverse, with up to 57% divergence in capsid protein sequences, and comprise three genogroups. The significance of such genetic diversity is not yet understood. The discovery of murine norovirus (MNV) and its ability to productively infect cultured murine macrophages and dendritic cells has provided an opportunity to determine the functional consequences of norovirus diversity in vitro and in vivo. Therefore, we compared the full-length genomes of 21 new MNV isolates with five previously sequenced MNV genomes and demonstrated a conserved genomic organization consisting of four open reading frames (ORFs) and a previously unknown region of nucleotide conservation in ORF2. A phylogenetic analysis of all 26 MNV genomes revealed 15 distinct MNV strains, with up to 13% divergence at the nucleotide level, that comprise a single genotype and genogroup. Evidence for recombination within ORF2 in several MNV genomes was detected by multiple methods. Serological analyses comparing neutralizing antibody responses between highly divergent strains suggested that the MNV genogroup comprises a single serotype. Within this single genogroup, MNV strains exhibited considerable biological diversity in their ability to grow in culture and to infect and/or persist in wild-type mice. The isolation and characterization of multiple MNV strains illustrate how genetic analysis may underestimate the biological diversity of noroviruses and provide a molecular map for future studies of MNV biology.
The Genesis and Evolution of H9N2 Influenza Viruses in Poultry from Southern China, 2000 to 2005
Authors: Xu K. M. , Smith G. J. D. , Bahl J. , Duan L. , Tai H. , Vijaykrishna D. , Wang J. , Zhang J. X. , Li K. S. , Fan X. H. , Webster R. G. , Chen H. , Peiris J. S. M. , Guan Y. 
Published: July 2007

ABSTRACT
H9N2 influenza viruses have become established in terrestrial poultry in different Asian countries over the last 2 decades. Our previous study demonstrated that quail harbor increasingly diverse novel H9N2 reassortants, including both Chicken/Beijing/1/94 (Ck/Bei-like) and Quail/Hong Kong/G1/97 (G1-like) viruses. However, since 1999, the genesis and evolution of H9N2 viruses in different types of poultry have not been investigated systematically. In the present study, H9N2 viruses isolated from chickens, ducks, and other minor poultry species were characterized genetically and antigenically. Our findings demonstrate that Ck/Bei-like H9N2 viruses have been introduced into many different types of poultry in southern China, including quail, partridges, chukar, pheasant, guinea fowl, and domestic ducks, while G1-like viruses were commonly detected in quail, less frequently detected in other minor poultry species, and not detected in chickens and ducks. Genetic analysis revealed 35 genotypes of H9N2 viruses, including 14 novel genotypes that have not been recognized before. Our results also suggested that two-way interspecies transmission exists between different types of poultry. Our study demonstrates that the long-term cocirculation of multiple virus lineages (e.g., H5N1 and H9N2 viruses) in different types of poultry has facilitated the frequent reassortment events that are mostly responsible for the current great genetic diversity in H9N2 and H5N1 influenza viruses in this region. This situation favors the emergence of influenza viruses with pandemic potential.
Induction of Antiviral Cytidine Deaminases Does Not Explain the Inhibition of Hepatitis B Virus Replication by Interferons
Authors: Jost Stéphanie , Turelli Priscilla , Mangeat Bastien , Protzer Ulrike , Trono Didier 
Published: July 2007

ABSTRACT
Interferons (IFNs) play a major role in the control of hepatitis B virus (HBV), whether as endogenous cytokines limiting the spread of the virus during the acute phase of the infection or as drugs for the treatment of its chronic phase. However, the mechanism by which IFNs inhibit HBV replication has so far remained elusive. Here, we show that type I and II IFN treatment of human hepatocytes induces the production of APOBEC3G (A3G) and, to a lesser extent, that of APOBEC3F (A3F) and APOBEC3B (A3B) but not that of two other cytidine deaminases also endowed with anti-HBV activity, activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID), and APOBEC1. Most importantly, we reveal that blocking A3B, A3F, and A3G by combining RNA interference and the virion infectivity factor (Vif) protein of human immunodeficiency virus does not abrogate the inhibitory effect of IFNs on HBV. We conclude that these cytidine deaminases are not essential effectors of IFN in its action against this pathogen.
Geometry and evolution of the Mesoproterozoic Irumide Belt of Zambia
Authors: Daly Michael C. 
Published: July 2007

Abstract

The Irumide Belt of eastern Zambia is one of a number of complex Proterozoic orogenic belts found in the African continent. The belt lies along the southeastern flank of the Tanzania-Bangweulu Craton and to the NW of the Mozambique Belt of East Africa. The dominant tectonic features of the belt are ductile shear zones, thrusts and folds related to a Mesoproterozoic, NW-SE crustal shortening event, and late-tectonic granite emplacement. Later tightening of Irumide structures and localized deformation of granites is also widespread. The timing of post-Irumide deformation is poorly constrained but is believed to be a mix of Pan-African and Late Palaeozoic reactivation and thermal reworking. This complex history is recently overprinted by significant Tertiary rifting. The Irumide deformation is evident in three tectonic zones stretching from the NW foreland of Mporokoso to the SE hinterland of Lundazi: (1) the NW-facing basement shear zones and associated cover deformation of the Luongo Fold Belt; (2) the Foreland Fold Belt of large upright folds defined by the kilometre-thick quartzite ridges of the Irumi, Shiwa Ngandu and Isoka hills; (3) an intensely deformed Internal Zone of basement and granite gneisses folded into major domes and associated tight synclines. Post-tectonic granites intrude the last of these zones and define an end to the Irumide deformation. The linking of these three zones is based on geometric, kinematic and geochronological evidence. The main Irumide deformation and metamorphism is believed to have occurred between 1100-950 Ma with a metamorphic peak between 1050 and 1000 Ma. Termination of Irumide deformation is dated by the emplacement of the post-tectonic granite and K/Ar biotite and hornblende closure dates of
c.
950 Ma. Similar K/Ar dates from the Luongo shear zone indicate biotite closure and cooling during the period 1020-950 Ma. Together with parallel kinematic indicators, this supports a coeval development and tectonic link between the Irumide Belt and the Luongo Fold Belt. The intracontinental Irumide Belt deformation was driven by an accretionary collisional margin, to the SE of the present-day Irumide Belt, in southern Malawi and Mozambique. This accretionary margin is today represented by arc and island-arc magmatism and the complex terranes of the Mozambique Belt of East Central Africa.
Distribution, timing, and causes of Andean deformation across South America
Authors: Cobbold Peter R. , Rossello Eduardo A. , Roperch Pierrick , Arriagada César , Gómez Luis A. , Lima Claudio 
Published: July 2007

Abstract
The Andean Orogeny in South America has lasted over 100 Ma. It comprises the Peruvian, Incaic and Quechuan phases. The Nazca and South American plates have been converging at varying rates since the Palaeocene. The active tectonics of South America are relatively clear, from seismological and Global Positioning System (GPS) data. Horizontal shortening is responsible for a thick crust and high topography in the Andes, as well as in SE Brazil and Patagonia. We have integrated available data and have compiled four fault maps at the scale of South America, for the mid-Cretaceous, Late Cretaceous, Palaeogene and Neogene periods. Andean compression has been widespread since the Aptian. The continental margins have registered more deformation than the interior. For the Peruvian phase, not enough information is available to establish a tectonic context. During the Incaic phase, strike-slip faulting was common. During the Quechuan phase, crustal thickening has been the dominant mode of deformation. To investigate the mechanics of deformation, we have carried out 10 properly scaled experiments on physical models of the lithosphere, containing various plates. The dominant response to plate motion was subduction of oceanic lithosphere beneath continental South America. However, the model continent also deformed internally, especially at the margins and initial weaknesses.
Salt tectonics in the North Sea Basin: a structural style template for seismic interpreters
Authors: Stewart S. A. 
Published: July 2007

Abstract

The North Sea Basin contains a widespread Permian salt layer that reached a depositional thickness of
c.
1 km in the basin centre. This layer profoundly affected structural style of the post-salt succession and the basin can be divided into structural domains on this basis. In combination with regional 3D seismic data and several thousand wells this makes the North Sea a natural laboratory for salt tectonics. Four principal structural domains are illustrated here. (1) Minibasin subsidence and salt wall growth on the West Central Shelf in the Late Permian to Triassic. This area was exhumed and differentially eroded prior to Jurassic rifting, creating palaeogeomorphology analogous to the present-day Paradox Basin, Utah. (2) Regional tilt during the Mesozoic and Cenozoic led to basin-scale gravity sliding with updip detached extensional faults and downdip compressional structures, similar to gravity sliding in the circum-Atlantic salt basins. (3) Jurassic rifting propagated across the salt basin, displaying spatial variation in extensional fault style, partly as a function of salt layer thickness. (4) North Sea salt thickness was not sufficient for salt canopy development but there are two suites of minor intrusions: cylindrical, passive diapirs with associated fault and fracture patterns in the central North Sea, and sills where Permian salt from reactive diapirs intruded along thin Triassic salt layers in the southern North Sea. Cretaceous to Palaeogene regional shortening affected all these domains, resulting in a variety of reactivation styles that do not fit within commonly used definitions of inversion tectonics. The North Sea salt tectonic domains form the basis of a matrix approach to salt structure initiating and driving mechanisms, and a mechanostratigraphic scheme for tectonic structure classification.
Historicising Rationality: The Transmission of Rationality and Science to the Malay States under British Rule
Authors: Shah Mohd Hazim 
Published: July 2007

AbstractIn this article, I will attempt to look at the process of modernisation of Malay society under British rule, roughly from 1874 to 1957, from the perspective of Weber's theory of rationalisation. I will be looking at the process of rationalisation in the spheres of public administration, education, science and technology. Contrary to Weber's and Habermas' view of rationalisation as involving value and cultural change prior to social change, I argue that rationalisation as it occurred under conditions of colonisation in the Malay States in late 19th and early 20th centuries, require a different explanatory model in which the rationalisation that occurred was primarily instrumental and utilitarian in nature, not involving value-change, and where science was not institutionalised prior to its professionalisation. This reversal, in the sequential order, in comparison to that found in the European process of rationalisation, results in a different set of consequences and poses a problem for cultural stability and the indigenization of science and technology in Malaysia.
Alternative Discourses in Korean Sociology: The Limits of Indigenization
Authors: Kyong-Dong Kim 
Published: July 2007

AbstractIn this paper, I am presenting a view that there is inherently a certain limit to the attempt by the non-Western Third World social scientists to advance alternative discourses in their academic endeavour. This I shall demonstrate by way of a modified modernization theory which stresses the unilaterally 'tilted' process of international acculturation while duly taking into account the effort to indigenize modernization by each late-comer society exposed to the global modernization process. In a way, my version of the modernization theory, in itself is an example of indigenization of social theory; hence offering some alternative discourses to the existing field of development and modernization studies.
Morph-specific immunity in male Podarcis muralis
Authors: Sacchi Roberto , Rubolini Diego , Gentilli Augusto , Pupin Fabio , Razzetti Edoardo , Scali Stefano , Galeotti Paolo , Fasola Mauro 
Published: July 2007

Abstract
Permanent colour polymorphism in lizards is maintained by complex
interactions between environmental pressures and physiological traits (such
as immune responsiveness) that differ among morphs. In this study we
investigated whether T-cell mediated immune response vary among male colour
morphs in the trimorphic (white, yellow and red) common wall lizard,
Podarcis muralis. We found that yellow males showed a lower immune response
compared to both red and white males, whose responses were similar. Thus,
immune responsiveness is morph-specific in male common wall lizards,
suggesting that this physiological trait could play an important role in
maintaining colour polymorphism in this species. Moreover, immune
responsiveness significantly increased with increasing male size,
irrespective of colour morph, indicating that it could be regarded as a
condition-dependent trait.
An evaluation of the taxonomic validity of Testudo werneri
Authors: Attum Omar , El Din Sherif Baha , Carranza Salvador , Earley Ryan , Arnold E. Nicholas , Kingsbury Bruce 
Published: July 2007

Abstract
The Egyptian tortoise Testudo kleinmanni was recently split into two species
on the basis of apparent differences in shell morphology and markings.
Testudo kleinmanni was restricted to areas west of the Nile river and a new
form, T. werneri, was described which occurred east of the Nile river
(Perälä, 2001). However, when the morphometric analysis on which this
decision was based (Perälä, 2001) was adjusted to allow for experiment-wise
Type I error, by using P-value corrections, the proportion of the 46
characters that differed significantly between the two populations fell from
36.9% to only 13% in males and from 39.1% to just 8.7% in females. We then
conducted a new morphometric analysis using our own data set that showed
minor significant variation in morphometric and plastron markings between
populations. An analysis of mitochondrial DNA based on 393 base pairs of the
12S rRNA gene, also showed near uniformity of western and eastern
populations. Genetic divergence was only 0.2%, with the only consistent
difference being a single G – A substitution at position 205. Based on the
revised interpretation of Perälä (2001) results, our morphometric analysis
on our own data set, and the molecular evidence, the variation observed
between populations is normal within a species and therefore T. werneri is
not a distinct independent evolutionary lineage and should not be considered
a separate species from T. kleinmanni.
Mitochondrial phylogeography of European pond turtles (Emys orbicularis, Emys trinacris) – an update
Authors: Fritz Uwe , Guicking Daniela , Kami Hajigholi , Arakelyan Marine , Auer Markus , Ayaz Dinçer , Fernández César Ayres , Bakiev Andrey , Celani Antonia , Džukić Georg , Fahd Soumia , Havaš Peter , Joger Ulrich , Khabibullin Viner , Mazanaeva Lyudmila , Široký Pavel , Tripepi Sandro , Vélez Aitor Valdeón , Antón Guillermo Velo , Wink Michael 
Published: July 2007

Abstract
Based on more than 1100 samples of Emys orbicularis and E. trinacris, data on
mtDNA diversity and distribution of haplotypes are provided, including for
the first time data for Armenia, Georgia, Iran, and the Volga, Ural and
Turgay River Basins of Russia and Kazakhstan. Eight mitochondrial lineages
comprising 51 individual haplotypes occur in E. orbicularis, a ninth lineage
with five haplotypes corresponds to E. trinacris. A high diversity of
distinct mtDNA lineages and haplotypes occurs in the south, in the regions
where putative glacial refuges were located. More northerly parts of Europe
and adjacent Asia, which were recolonized by E. orbicularis in the Holocene,
display distinctly less variation; most refuges did not contribute to
northern recolonizations. Also in certain southern European lineages a
decrease of haplotype diversity is observed with increasing latitude,
suggestive of Holocene range expansions on a smaller scale.
Effect of cold temperature on the length of incubation of Chamaeleo chamaeleon
Authors: Díaz-Paniagua Carmen 
Published: July 2007

AbstractCommon chameleon eggs spend the first months of incubation at low temperatures. I incubated eggs of different clutches at 25°C in four treatments with respectively 0, 84, 119 and 149 days of initial cold period (at 14°C). Treatments with longer cold periods had longer total incubation but shorter periods of incubation at 25°C. Eggs which did not experience initial cold period showed low synchronization at hatching. Hatchling body mass and length were influenced by the length of the cold period. Hatchlings were largest and heaviest for cold periods of intermediate length which had similar duration than the cold period experienced by eggs in nature. These results suggest that the cold torpor period of Common chameleon embryos contributes to optimization of development and growth, and synchronizes hatching.
Effects of a paved road on mortality and mobility of red bellied toads (Melanophryniscus sp.) in Argentinean grasslands
Authors: Cairo Samanta Lis , Zalba Sergio Martín 
Published: July 2007

Abstract
Melanophryniscus sp. is an endemic toad restricted to Sierra de la Ventana,
in the Argentine Pampas. Part of its reproductive habitat is crossed by a
paved road. We studied the effects of the road on the mortality and mobility
of the toads. During the days following rain, we surveyed transects on both
sides of the road, capturing, photographing and immediately releasing each
toad. Population size in the area was estimated in 1074 individuals (871 to
1363, 95% CI) by means of mark-recapture analysis. We found fifteen
individuals killed by vehicles in the 2003-04 and ten in the 2004-05
reproductive seasons. This mortality represents from 2.5 to 5.9% of the
population annually, considering that 73% of the mortality period was
sampled and a detection rate of dead frogs of 40%. Other factors associated
to roadside habitat, such as rapid drying of roadside ditches, maintenance
work, increased frequency of fire, pollution by gas, oil and fuel emissions
and losses from vehicles, and poaching as pets by tourists, may also reduce
the survival of the toads. We recorded capture sites and calculated the
average distance between captures as 33.04 m for males and 22.50 m for
females. Only two of the 76 observations of recaptured toads were made on
the opposite side of the road. Roads can be considered as having a
significant impact on this species by augmenting mortality, hindering the
mobility of the species and increasing habitat isolation.