bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Fatty acids of the seeds from pine species of the Ponderosa‐Banksiana and Halepensis sections. The peculiar taxonomic position of Pinus pinaster
Authors: Wolff Robert L. , Comps Bernard , Deluc Laurent G. , Marpeau Anne M. 
Published: June 2007

AbstractThe fatty acid compositions of pine seed oils were determined from 11 species of the Banksiana subsection and three species of the Ponderosa subsection. All were collected in North America (United States, Mexico, and Cuba). These analyses also included the seed oils from the unique European species of the Ponderosa‐Banksiana section (Banksiana subsection), Pinus pinaster, and from three pine species of the Halepensis section, which are related to the Banksiana subsection. Emphasis was placed on their Δ5‐olefinic acid content and profile. Principal‐component analysis of fatty acid compositions showed that all North American species constituted a fairly homogeneous group. However, P. jeffreyi was slightly eccentric, and P. pinaster, a west‐Mediterranean species, was completely isolated from the North American group. Other species from the Banksiana and Ponderosa subsections could not be distinguished on the basis of their seed oil fatty acid compositions. With respect to Δ5‐olefinic acids, the North American species (except for P. jeffreyi) had 5,9‐18:2, 5,9,12‐18:3, 5,11‐20:2, and 5,11,14‐20:3 acid concentrations in the ranges 1.9 to 3.2, 17.7 to 22.9, 0.2 to 0.4, and 2.0 to 3.5%, respectively (sum, 22.7–28.5%). Levels of corresponding acids in P. pinaster were 0.9, 7.9, 0.9, and 7.0%, respectively (sum, 16.7%). Other differences were observed for linoleic acid (42.6 to 48.6% vs. 52.2%) and α‐linolenic acid (0.3 to 0.6% vs. 1.4%). Pinus pinaster was close to species of the Halepensis section (5,9‐18:2, 0.5 to 1.0%; 5,9,12‐18:3, 3.1 to 4.4%; 5,11‐20:2, 0.4 to 0.5%; 5,11,14‐20:3, 3.6 to 5.4%; sum, 8.6–11.1%), which were clearly separated from the Ponderosa‐Banksiana section. Among all pines analyzed, P. pinaster presented the highest level of sciadonic (5,11,14‐20:3) acid, a component that has three ethylenic bonds in common with arachidonic and eicosapentaenoic acids.
Physicochemical characteristics and thermal stability of Jordanian jojoba oil
Authors: Allawzi M. , Abu‐Arabi M. K. , Al‐zoubi H. S. , Tamimi A. 
Published: June 2007

AbstractViscosity, flash point, refractive index, viscosity index, specific gravity, aniline point, foam testing, color stability, ash content, water content, saponification value, iodine value, and other properties were investigated for Jordanian jojoba oil. Results showed that jojoba oil has low ash and water contents and high flash point and viscosity index. Viscosity and specific gravity changed only slightly with temperatures. As an additive, jojoba oil improved the viscosity index of lubricants from 100 to 130. When subjected to heating and cooling from 40 to 200°C, the chemical structure, kinematic viscosity, and refractive index remained almost constant. Thus, jojoba oil was highly stable in this temperature range.
Culture of osteogenic cells from human alveolar bone: A useful source of alkaline phosphatase
Authors: Simão Ana Maria S. , Beloti Marcio M. , Rosa Adalberto L. , De Oliveira Paulo T. , Granjeiro José Mauro , Pizauro João M. , Ciancaglini Pietro 
Published: June 2007

AbstractThe aim of this study was to obtain membrane‐bound alkaline phosphatase from osteoblastic‐like cells of human alveolar bone. Cells were obtained by enzymatic digestion and maintained in primary culture in osteogenic medium until subconfluence. First passage cells were cultured in the same medium and at 7, 14, and 21 days, total protein content, collagen content, and alkaline phosphatase activity were evaluated. Bone‐like nodule formation was evaluated at 21 days. Cells in primary culture at day 14 were washed with Tris—HCl buffer, and used to extract the membrane‐bound alkaline phosphatase. Cells expressed osteoblastic phenotype. The apparent optimum pH for PNPP hydrolysis by the enzyme was pH 10.0. This enzyme also hydrolyzes ATP, ADP, fructose‐1‐phosphate, fructose‐6‐phosphate, pyrophosphate and β‐glycerophosphate. PNPPase activity was reduced by typical inhibitors of alkaline phosphatase. SDS‐PAGE of membrane fraction showed a single band with activity of ∼120 kDa that could be solubilized by phospholipase C or Polidocanol.
Endoscopic endonasal laser versus endonasal surgical dacryocystorhinostomy for epiphora due to nasolacrimal duct obstruction: prospective, randomised, controlled trial
Authors: Maini S , Raghava N , Youngs R , Evans K , Trivedi S , Foy C , Mackintosh G 
Published: June 2007

AbstractBackground:Rhinostomy patency is a problem in all forms of dacryocystorhinostomy. Laser-assisted procedures are potentially fast and result in excellent haemostasis. However, they may induce more fibroblastic activity, resulting in excessive scarring and stenosis of the rhinostomy, compared with non-laser dissection.Objectives:The objective of this study was to compare subjective outcomes following dacryocystorhinostomy conducted with endoscopic endonasal laser and with endonasal surgical techniques.Study design:Prospective, randomised, controlled trial comparing potassium titanyl phosphate endonasal laser dissection with endonasal surgical techniques, for dacryocystorhinostomy to treat epiphora due to primary, acquired nasolacrimal duct obstruction.Participants:One hundred and twenty-six adult patients with chronic epiphora due to primary, acquired nasolacrimal sac or duct obstruction.Interventions:Interventions comprised endonasal dacryocystorhinostomy, performed using potassium titanyl phosphate laser or surgical dissection, in order to open the lacrimal sac into the nasal cavity.Outcome measures:These were: symptom score and symptom relief of epiphora (at three and 12 months post-procedure); duration and ease of procedure; and duration of hospital stay.Results:Sixty patients underwent endonasal laser dacryocystorhinostomy and 66 underwent endonasal surgical dacryocystorhinostomy. Symptomatic success was 82 per cent at three months and 68 per cent at 12 months in the laser group, and 76 per cent at three months and 74 per cent at 12 months in the surgical group. A two-point reduction in the symptom score was associated with symptomatic success at three and 12 months. Eight patients randomised to the laser group required additional instrumentation in order to remove thick bone over the lacrimal sac.Conclusions:At three months, endonasal laser dacryocystorhinostomy had better results than endonasal surgical dacryocystorhinostomy. However, at 12 months, the surgical procedure had better results than the laser procedure. There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups at three or 12 months with regard to symptomatic outcome. The ease of procedure (on a scale of zero to 10) was 4.5 for the laser procedure and 4.1 for the surgical procedure. The average times for the procedures were 25 minutes in the laser group and 20 minutes in the surgical group. No statistical difference was found when comparing: symptom score improvement for local anaestheticvsgeneral anaesthetic; ages over and under 70 years; laterality; or operating surgeon. Change in the symptom score was a useful indicator of symptomatic success.
Hrothgar's horses: feral or thoroughbred?
Authors: Neville Jennifer 
Published: June 2007

AbstractThis article sets forth the contrast between the image of the horses in Beowulf and the image of Anglo-Saxon horses that can be derived from archaeology, historical narratives, wills, law codes and glossaries. It focuses particularly on the issue of colour, represented in the poem by the difficult word fealu and its derivative, æppelfealu. It argues that the horses described in Beowulf do not match up closely with Anglo-Saxon horses recorded in any century and that they would have struck the poem's tenth-century audience as very strange. This strangeness has implications for our understanding of Anglo-Saxon reception of the poem.
High prevalence of HIV infection among rural tea plantation residents in Kericho, Kenya
Authors: FOGLIA G. , SATEREN W. B. , RENZULLO P. O. , BAUTISTA C. T. , LANGAT L. , WASUNNA M. K. , SINGER D. E. , SCOTT P. T. , ROBB M. L. , BIRX D. L. 
Published: June 2007

SUMMARYHuman immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) epidemiology among residents of a rural agricultural plantation in Kericho, Kenya was studied. HIV-1 prevalence was 14·3%, and was higher among women (19·1%) than men (11·3%). Risk factors associated with HIV-1 for men were age (⩾25 years), marital history (one or more marriages), age difference from current spouse (⩾5 years), Luo ethnicity, sexually transmitted infection (STI) symptoms in the past 6 months, circumcision (protective), and sexual activity (⩾7 years). Among women, risk factors associated with HIV-1 were age (25–29 years, ⩾35 years), marital history (one or more marriages), age difference from current spouse (⩾10 years), Luo ethnicity, STI symptoms in the past 6 months, and a STI history in the past 5 years. Most participants (96%) expressed a willingness to participate in a future HIV vaccine study. These findings will facilitate targeted intervention and prevention measures for HIV-1 infection in Kericho.
Arctic and Arctic-like rabies viruses: distribution, phylogeny and evolutionary history
Authors: KUZMIN I. V. , HUGHES G. J. , BOTVINKIN A. D. , GRIBENCHA S. G. , RUPPRECHT C. E. 
Published: June 2007

SUMMARYForty-one newly sequenced isolates of Arctic and Arctic-like rabies viruses, were genetically compared to each other and to those available from GenBank. Four phylogenetic lineages of Arctic viruses were identified. Arctic-1 viruses circulate in Ontario, Arctic-2 viruses circulate in Siberia and Alaska, Arctic-3 viruses circulate circumpolarly, and a newly described lineage Arctic-4 circulates locally in Alaska. The oldest available isolates from Siberia (between 1950 and 1960) belong to the Arctic-2 and Arctic-3 lineages and share 98·6–99·2% N gene identity with contemporary viruses. Two lineages of Arctic-like viruses were identified in southern Asia and the Middle East (Arctic-like-1) and eastern Asia (Arctic-like-2). A time-scaled tree demonstrates that the time of the most recent common ancestor (TMRCA) of Arctic and Arctic-like viruses is dated between 1255 and 1786. Evolution of the Arctic viruses has occurred through a northerly spread. The Arctic-like-2 lineage diverged first, whereas Arctic viruses share a TMRCA with Arctic-like-1 viruses.
Magnetic screening and heavy metal pollution studies in soils from Marambio Station, Antarctica
Authors: Chaparro Marcos A.E. , Nuñez Héctor , Lirio Juan M. , Gogorza Claudia S.G. , Sinito Ana M. 
Published: June 2007

AbstractMagnetic screening as a cost-effective and non-time-consuming approach has been successfully carried out in Marambio soils and seems to be a suitable method for contamination assessment in Antarctic areas. Ferromagnetic minerals are found in most samples, and magnetite-like carriers are especially dominant in samples collected near pollution sources. Lead and zinc are the main trace elements that have adversely impacted on some areas in this station, both are end products from different pollution sources derived from fuel combustion and residues, solid waste, paints, etc. The correlation results between magnetic and chemical variables show moderate relationships varying from 0.409 to 0.663; this fact supports the use of magnetic parameters, such as magnetic susceptibility and bivariate ratios, for pollution monitoring. The magnetic properties, heavy metal contents, and related maps of these soils can be considered as a reference in the area for future temporal and/or spatial work.
Zoogeography of the Antarctic ascidian fauna in relation to the sub-Antarctic and South America
Authors: Primo Carmen , Vázquez Elsa 
Published: June 2007

AbstractThis study of the relationships between the Antarctic, sub-Antarctic and South America biogeographical regions used both existing and new data. We constructed a presence/absence matrix of 237 species for 27 biogeographical divisions which included the Amsterdam-Saint Paul and Tristan da Cunha islands. Species and areas were classified using cluster analysis combined with MDS ordination. Six main groups were obtained from the species classification: 1) Amsterdam-Saint Paul, and 2) Tristan da Cunha species, 3) species from the Macquarie Province, 4) species from the sub-Antarctic Region, 5) Antarctic species and species distributed in the cold regions, 6) South American species. The biogeographical components were dominated by the endemic (although it is not as high as in other groups), Antarctic-South America and Southern Hemisphere elements. Except for Amsterdam-Saint Paul, Tristan da Cunha and Bouvet, the areas considered were grouped together with Macquarie being rather related to New Zealand regions. We speculate that the Antarctic Region may have acted as an “evolutionary incubator”, providing a centre of origin for sub-Antarctic and South American ascidians.
Borers and encrusters as indicators of the presence of hermit crabs in Antarctic Eocene gastropods shells
Authors: Casadio Silvio , Parras Ana , Griffin Miguel , Marenssi Sergio 
Published: June 2007

AbstractThe community of encrusting and boring organisms developed on shells of the gastropodAntarctodarwinella elliotifrom the lower section of the La Meseta Formation (Eocene) exposed on Seymour (Marambio) Island, Antarctic Peninsula, allows inference that the shells were inhabited by hermit crabs. A Chi-square Independence Test revealed that the community - dominated by polychaetes and bryozoans - shows preference for the aperture interior area of the shell. A subsequent Cochran Q Test indicated that the differences in frequency of encrusting and boring organisms as counted on the different interior sectors of the aperture were statistically significant. Thus, polychaetes, boring bryozoans, and encrusting bryozoans, do not show the same frequency in each interior sector of the aperture; they are more frequent on the columella (P< 0.0001,P< 0.01 andP< 0.001 respectively). Encrusting bryozoans also appear to show a preference - albeit not as high as on the columella - for the outer lip. This community of boring and encrusting organisms and their distribution on the shell confirms that the shells were inhabited by hermit crabs. The community is similar to that described in Recent hermitted shells from mid-latitude temperate water environments, suggesting that such communities were already established in the Eocene.
Open Reading Frame 8a of the Human Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Not Only Promotes Viral Replication but Also Induces Apoptosis
Authors: Chen Chia-Yen , Ping Yueh-Hsin , Lee Hsin-Chen , Chen Kuan-Hsuan , Lee Yuan-Ming , Chan Yu-Juin , Lien Te-Cheng , Jap Tjin-Shing , Lin Chi-Hung , Kao Lung-Sen , Chen Yi-Ming Arthur 
Published: June 2007

AbstractBackgroundA unique genomic difference between human and civet severe acute respiratory syndrome coronaviruses (SARS-CoVs) is that the former has a deletion of 29 nucleotides from open reading frame (orf) 8d that results in the generation of orf8a and orf8b. The objectives of the present study were to analyze antibody reactivity to ORF8a in patients with SARS and to elucidate the function of ORF8a.MethodsWestern-blot and immunofluorescent antibody assays were used to detect anti-ORF8a antibody. SARS-CoV HKU39849 was used to infect stable clones expressing ORF8a and cells transfected with small interfering RNA (siRNA). The virus loads (VLs) and cytopathic effects (CPEs) were recorded. Confocal microscopy and several mitochondria-related tests were used to study the function of ORF8a.ResultsTwo (5.4%) of 37 patients with SARS had anti-ORF8a antibodies. The VLs in the stable clones expressing ORF8a were significantly higher than those in control subjects 5 days after infection. siRNA against orf8a significantly reduced VLs and interrupted the CPE. ORF8a was found to be localized in mitochondria, and overexpression resulted in increases in mitochondrial transmembrane potential, reactive oxygen species production, caspase 3 activity, and cellular apoptosis.ConclusionsORF8a not only enhances viral replication but also induces apoptosis through a mitochondria-dependent pathway.
Analysis and identification of β-turn types using multinomial logistic regression and artificial neural network
Authors: Poursheikhali Asgary Mehdi , Jahandideh Samad , Abdolmaleki Parviz , Kazemnejad Anoshirvan 
Published: June 2007

AbstractMotivation: So far various statistical and machine learning techniques applied for prediction of β-turns. The majority of these techniques have been only focused on the prediction of β-turn location in proteins. We developed a hybrid approach for analysis and prediction of different types of β-turn.Results: A two-stage hybrid model developed to predict the β-turn Types I, II, IV and VIII. Multinomial logistic regression was initially used for the first time to select significant parameters in prediction of β-turn types using a self-consistency test procedure. The extracted parameters were consisted of 80 amino acid positional occurrences and 20 amino acid percentages in β-turn sequence. The most significant parameters were then selected using multinomial logistic regression model. Among these, the occurrences of glutamine, histidine, glutamic acid and arginine, respectively, in positions i, i + 1, i + 2 and i + 3 of β-turn sequence had an overall relationship with five β-turn types. A neural network model was then constructed and fed by the parameters selected by multinomial logistic regression to build a hybrid predictor. The networks have been trained and tested on a non-homologous dataset of 565 protein chains by 9-fold cross-validation. It has been observed that the hybrid model gives a Matthews correlation coefficient (MCC) of 0.235, 0.473, 0.103 and 0.124, respectively, for β-turn Types I, II, IV and VIII. Our model also distinguished the different types of β-turn in the embedded binary logit comparisons which have not carried out so far.Availability: Available on request from the authors.Contact: parviz@modares.ac.ir
Detection of eQTL modules mediated by activity levels of transcription factors
Authors: Sun Wei , Yu Tianwei , Li Ker-Chau 
Published: June 2007

AbstractMotivation: Studies of gene expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) in different organisms have shown the existence of eQTL hot spots: each being a small segment of DNA sequence that harbors the eQTL of a large number of genes. Two questions of great interest about eQTL hot spots arise: (1) which gene within the hot spot is responsible for the linkages, i.e. which gene is the quantitative trait gene (QTG)? (2) How does a QTG affect the expression levels of many genes linked to it? Answers to the first question can be offered by available biological evidence or by statistical methods. The second question is harder to address. One simple situation is that the QTG encodes a transcription factor (TF), which regulates the expression of genes linked to it. However, previous results have shown that TFs are not overrepresented in the eQTL hot spots. In this article, we consider the scenario that the propagation of genetic perturbation from a QTG to other linked genes is mediated by the TF activity. We develop a procedure to detect the eQTL modules (eQTL hot spots together with linked genes) that are compatible with this scenario.Results: We first detect 27 eQTL modules from a yeast eQTL data, and estimate TF activity profiles using the method of Yu and Li (2005). Then likelihood ratio tests (LRTs) are conducted to find 760 relationships supporting the scenario of TF activity mediation: (DNA polymorphism → cis-linked gene → TF activity → downstream linked gene). They are organized into 4 eQTL modules: an amino acid synthesis module featuring a cis-linked gene LEU2 and the mediating TF Leu3; a pheromone response module featuring a cis-linked gene GPA1 and the mediating TF Ste12; an energy-source control module featuring two cis-linked genes, GSY2 and HAP1, and the mediating TF Hap1; a mitotic exit module featuring four cis-linked genes, AMN1, CSH1, DEM1 and TOS1, and the mediating TF complex Ace2/Swi5. Gene Ontology is utilized to reveal interesting functional groups of the downstream genes in each module.Availability: Our methods are implemented in an R package: eqtl.TF, which includes source codes and relevant data. It can be freely downloaded at http://www.stat.ucla.edu/~sunwei/software.htmAbbreviations: eQTL (expression Quantitative Trait Loci); TF (Transcription Factor); QTG (Quantitative Trait Gene); SNP (Single Nucleotide Polymorphism); FDR (False Discovery Rate); SGD (Saccharomyces Genome Database); LRT (Likelihood Ratio Test).Contact: kcli@stat.ucla.eduSupplementary information: http://www.stat.ucla.edu/~sunwei/yeast_eQTL_TF/supplementary.pdf
POODLE-S: web application for predicting protein disorder by using physicochemical features and reduced amino acid set of a position-specific scoring matrix
Authors: Shimizu Kana , Hirose Shuichi , Noguchi Tamotsu 
Published: June 2007

AbstractSummary: Protein disorder is characterized by a lack of a stable 3D structure, and is considered to be involved in a number of important protein functions such as regulatory and signalling events. We developed a web application, the POODLE-S, which predicts the disordered region from amino acid sequences by using physicochemical features and reduced amino acid set of a position-specific scoring matrix.Availability: POODLE-S is available from http://mbs.cbrc.jp/poodle/poodle-s.html and can be used by both academic and commercial users.Contact: poodle@cbrc.jp
CASVM: web server for SVM-based prediction of caspase substrates cleavage sites
Authors: Wee Lawrence J.K. , Tan Tin Wee , Ranganathan Shoba 
Published: June 2007

AbstractSummary: Caspases belong to a unique class of cysteine proteases which function as critical effectors of apoptosis, inflammation and other important cellular processes. Caspases cleave substrates at specific tetrapeptide sites after a highly conserved aspartic acid residue. Prediction of such cleavage sites will complement structural and functional studies on substrates cleavage as well as discovery of new substrates. We have recently developed a support vector machines (SVM) method to address this issue. Our algorithm achieved an accuracy ranging from 81.25 to 97.92%, making it one of the best methods currently available. CASVM is the web server implementation of our SVM algorithms, written in Perl and hosted on a Linux platform. The server can be used for predicting non-canonical caspase substrate cleavage sites. We have also included a relational database containing experimentally verified caspase substrates retrievable using accession IDs, keywords or sequence similarity.Availability: http://www.casbase.org/casvm/index.htmlContact: shoba.ranganathan@mq.edu.auSupplementary information: http://www.casbase.org/casvm/help/index.html