bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Three‐year follow‐up of the use of a levonorgestrel‐releasing intrauterine system in hormone replacement therapy
Authors: Suhonen Satu , Holmström Teddy , Lähteenmäki Pekka 
Published: March 2008

Background. The efficacy of a levonorgestrel‐releasing intrauterine system in opposing endometrial proliferation and in preventing bleeding was studied in peri‐ and postmenopausal women receiving estrogen replacement therapy.Methods. This was an open, non‐controlled follow‐up study of the use of a levonorgestrel‐releasing intrauterine system during continuous estrogen replacement therapy carried out by using oral, transdermal or subdermal estradiol. The efficacy of the progestin therapy was evaluated by transvaginal ultrasonography and by examination of endometrial biopsy samples taken 20 months (mean, range 17–22; first evaluation) and 34 months (mean, range 31–38 months; second evaluation) after insertion of the levonorgestrel‐releasing intrauterine system, and by studying patterns of bleeding. Twenty‐five women participated in the first evaluation, and 29 in the second.Results. Seventy‐six percent of the women were amenorrheic at the first evaluation, and 79% at the second evaluation. Others had spotting for 1–2 days monthly or less often. The mean time until amenorrhea was reached was 6 months (range 2–13 months) after insertion of the levonorgestrel‐releasing intrauterine system. The median endometrial thickness assessed by ultrasound was 2 mm at both evaluations. No signs of proliferation were observed in any of the endometrial samples.Conclusions. Local progestin delivery via a levonorgestrel‐releasing intrauterine system was effective in suppressing the endometrium and in eliminating bleeding in women receiving estrogen replacement therapy, and the intrauterine progestin therapy was also well accepted.
Evaluation of induced abortion as a risk factor for ectopic pregnancy: A case‐control study
Authors: Skjeldestad Finn Egil , Atrash Hani K. 
Published: March 2008

Objective. To assess the risk of ectopic pregnancy after one or more induced abortions. Design. Population‐based case‐control study.Methods. We studied all women who had a histologically verified ectopic pregnancy in one Norwegian county between January 1, 1987, and December 31, 1990. We identified population‐based control sets of women among participants in the second Norwegian fertility study (1988–1989). Gravida women 20–39 years of age, who were not using contraceptives and had become spontaneously pregnant, were eligible for analysis. The final analyses included 174 women with ectopic pregnancy, 115 pregnant control women and 227 nonpregnant control women.Statistical methods. Chi‐square test and unconditional logistic regression. Results. Fifty‐three (30.5%) of women with ectopic pregnancy, 18 (15.7%) of pregnant control women and 51 (22.5%) of nonpregnant control women had had one or more previous induced abortions. The adjusted odds ratio of ectopic pregnancy among women with one previous induced abortion was 1.3 (95% confidence interval; 0.9 to 1.8) and 1.2 (95% CI; 0.8 to 1.7) compared with pregnant and nonpregnant control women, respectively. Among women who had two or more induced abortions, the adjusted odds ratio of ectopic pregnancy was 0.2 (95%< CI; 0.04 to 0.9) compared with pregnant control women and 1.8 (95% CI; 0.4 to 7.8) compared with nonpregnant control women. When we used the outcome of the most recent pregnancy, birth as reference, we found no association between an outcome of induced abortion and subsequent ectopic pregnancy regardless of whether the control women were pregnant.Conclusion. We found no association between induced abortion and subsequent ectopic pregnancy. Women who had induced abortions were characterized as having several other risk factors for ectopic pregnancy.
The problem of skipped generation and subclinical disease in familial breast‐ovarian cancer
Authors: Dørum Anne , Abeler Vera M. , Heimdal Ketil , Tropé Claes , Møller Pål 
Published: March 2008

Background. The major gene for inherited breast ovarian cancer families shows high penetrance in female carriers. Daughters of living unaffected women in these families are supposed to have a low risk of cancer. Linkage analyses may be used to determine the probability that such families are linked to BRCA1 and, subsequently, to identify mutation carriers in such families. Linkage analyses are dependent upon correct diagnoses of all family members. Methods. We report one breast‐ovarian cancer family, prospectively observed, in which a mother and her daughter contracted ovarian and breast cancer almost simultaneously. Linkage analyses indicated that they both had the same BRCA1 mutation. The mother's sister had a possible premalignant lesion at oophorectomy.Discussion. We discuss the problems raised by the pathological classification of possible premalignant lesions, that linkage analyses are sensitive to misclassification of diagnoses, and probability for skipped generation.
Laparoscopic management of adnexal mass during pregnancy
Authors: Yuen Pong Mo , Chang Allan M. Z. 
Published: March 2008

Background. To assess the use of laparoscopy in the management of persistent adnexal mass during the second trimester of pregnancy.Subjects. Six consecutive pregnant women undergoing laparoscopic surgery for persistent adnexal masses in the second trimester.Results. Laparoscopic removal of an adnexal mass was successfully performed in all patients. The median operating time was 37.5 minutes. There were no intra‐ and post‐operative complications. Tocolytic therapy was not required and no patients developed uterine contractions. All patients delivered normal infants vaginally at term without complications. Conclusion. With attention to the surgical technique, laparoscopic removal of persistent adnexal mass during the second trimester of pregnancy is safe and carries the same benefits over laparotomy as in non‐pregnant women.
Malignant tumors of the ovary or the breast in association with infertility: a report of thirteen cases
Authors: Unkila‐Kallio Leila , Leminen Arto , Tiitinen Aila , Lehtovirta Pentti , Wahlstrom Torsten , Ylikorkala Olavi 
Published: March 2008

Background. Many questions have been raised recently about the relationship between infertility, fertility drugs and cancer. This prompted us to evaluate our patients having ovarian or breast cancer with a known history of infertility.Methods. We report thirteen women who had been examined and/or treated for infertility before the occurrence of malignant tumors of the ovary or the breast at an age under 50 years in 1990–1995 in our unit.Results. Mean age of the patients was 35 years (s.d. 5.9 years, range 28–47 years). Of the 11 ovarian tumors, one was a malignant teratoma, two were granulosa cell tumors and eight epithelial ovarian cancers. Ten women had received either clomiphene citrate alone or together with gonadotrophins, one had used only gonadotrophins, and in two patients ovarian cancer was detected during an infertility work‐up but before any treatment. Four women had used clomiphene for more than twelve cycles. Two patients had ductal breast cancer. Conclusions. Our patients emphasize the need for follow‐up and long‐term prospective studies in infertile women who have been evaluated or treated for infertility.
Poly(3‐alkylthiophene)s as anticorrosive additive for paints: Influence of the main chain stereoregularity
Authors: Iribarren José I. , Ocampo Cintia , Armelin Elaine , Liesa Francisco , Alemán Carlos 
Published: March 2008

AbstractThe influence of the main chain stereoregularity on the properties of poly(3‐decylthiophene‐2,5‐diyl) as anticorrosive additive of conventional organic coatings have been examined. For this purpose a small concentration (0.3% w/w) of regiorandom and regioregular conducting polymers were added to alkyd, epoxy, and polyurethane paints typically used in marine environments. The Young's modulus and the elongation at break of the alkyd and epoxy coatings modified with the regiorandom conducting polymer were significantly better than those of the films generated with the original paints, evidencing a very favorable interaction between the additive and the resins. On the other hand, the anticorrosive properties imparted by the modified paints are better when the conducting polymer is regiorandom than when it is regioregular, although even the degree of protection provided by all the modified coatings was higher than that of the original ones. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008
Solid‐phase microextraction and ion chromatographic analysis of anions based on polypyrrole electrode
Authors: Şahin Yücel , Ercan Betül , Şahin Mutlu 
Published: March 2008

AbstractThe polypyrrole (PPy) film was used for the selective extraction of trace levels of chloride, nitrite, and nitrate ions by solid phase micro‐extraction (SPME). PPy film was electrochemically prepared from aqueous solutions of pyrrole and LiClO4 under N2 atmosphere at constant potential of +0.80 V (versus Ag/AgCl). The anion uptake and release properties of the PPy film electrodes were examined under both open circuit and controlled potential conditions for prospective applications in electrochemically controlled solid‐phase microextraction (EC‐SPME). Applied positive and negative potentials facilitated the extraction and desorption of anions, respectively. Ions were desorbed into sample aliquot and were determined by ion chromatography (IC). The effect of uptake/release parameters, potential, time, pH of the uptake solution, on EC‐SPME of anions was investigated. The method was validated using a standard reference material and tested for the determination of the ions in water samples. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008
Impact of impregnation chemical on surface glossiness of synthetic, acrylic, polyurethane, and water‐based varnishes
Authors: Keskin Hakan , Atar Musa 
Published: March 2008

AbstractThis study was performed to determine the effects of impregnation chemical on surface glossiness of some varnishes. For this purpose, the test samples prepared from Oriental beech, European oak, Scotch pine, Oriental spruce, and Uludag fir woods according to ASTM D 358 were impregnated with Imersol‐Aqua according to ASTM D 1413 and producer's definition by short‐term (S), medium‐term (M), and long‐term (L) of dipping methods and coated by synthetic (Sv), acrylic (Ac), water‐based (Wb), and polyurethane (Pu) varnishes according to ASTM D 3023. After the varnishing process, the surface glossiness parallel to fibers was determined according to TS 4318. Consequently, among the nonimpregnated wood samples, surface glossiness parallel to fibers was found to be the highest in Oriental spruce and the lowest in European oak. As for the period of dipping, the highest surface glossiness was obtained in medium‐term dipping and the lowest in long‐term dipping. As for the varnish types, the surface glossiness was found to be the highest in polyurathane varnish and the lowest in water‐based varnish. Considering the interaction of wood type, period of impregnation, and type of varnish, surface glossiness was the highest in Uludag fir, long‐term dipping, and polyurathane varnish (103.9 gloss) and the lowest in Oriental beech, long‐term dipping, and water‐based varnish (67.78 gloss). In consequence, in the massive constructions and furniture elements the surface glossiness parallel to fibers after the impregnation with Imersol‐Aqua is of great concern, long‐term impregnation of Uludag fir materials could be recommended. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008
Hydrophobic properties of new epoxy‐silica hybrids
Authors: Cardiano Paola 
Published: March 2008

AbstractNew products to be employed as coatings for construction materials have been synthesized. Room temperature blending of poly(bisphenolA‐co‐epichlorohydrin), glycidyl endcapped (DGEBA) and 3‐aminopropyl‐methyldiethoxysilane (AMTS), as well as of DGEBA, (3‐glycidyloxypropyl)trimethoxysilane (GLYTS) and AMTS, in CHCl3, employing different stoichiometric ratios, leads to transparent and crack free solids. The extent of epoxy cleavage during the hardening reaction and the hydrolysis of the Si(OR)x groups have been followed by 13C NMR spectroscopy in solution; the solids have been characterized by means of Raman, FTIR, and TG‐DTA studies. The hydrophobic properties of the resulting solids have been investigated by contact angle measurements on coated glass slides, and have been tailored by adding to the above mixtures two fluorine‐containing comonomers, namely glycidyl‐2,2,3,3,4,4,5,5,6,6,7,7,8,8,9,9‐hexadecafluorononyl ether (GLY16F) and 3,3,3‐trifluoropropyl‐trimethoxysilane (TFP‐TMS). Preliminary tests to evaluate the efficacy of the above products, as construction materials coatings, have been carried out by means of mercury intrusion porosimetry and water absorption by the wicking method. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008
Effect of β‐nucleating agents on crystallization and melting behavior of isotactic polypropylene
Authors: Xiao Wenchang , Wu Peiyi , Feng Jiachun 
Published: March 2008

AbstractTwo kinds of β‐nucleating agents, named a rare earth complex (WBG) and a N,N′‐dicyclohexylterephthalamide (TMB5), were introduced into isotactic polypropylene (iPP), and their effect on crystallization and melting behavior of iPP was comparatively investigated. Wide angle X‐ray diffraction measurements revealed that both the two additives were highly effective in inducing β modification. At their respective optimum concentrations of 0.08 wt % for WBG and 0.06 wt % for TMB5, the relative amount of β‐form calculated by Turner‐Jones equation both exceeds 92%. However, the isothermal crystallization kinetics investigated by differential scanning calorimetry demonstrated that WBG had more pronounced effect than TMB5 in accelerating the overall crystallization rate. The Lauritzen–Hoffman theory analysis also revealed that WBG was more effective not only in increasing the nucleus number but also in accelerating the growth rate of crystallization. After completing isothermal crystallization process, the subsequent melting behavior examination suggested that the addition of WBG expanded the upper limit temperature of forming β modification, and therefore was more effective in delaying the β‐α transformation than TMB5. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008
Tracking change in a human‐dominated landscape: developing conservation guidelines using freshwater fish
Authors: Carey Michael P. , Mather Martha E. 
Published: March 2008

Abstract
To conserve biodiversity in a human‐dominated landscape, a science‐based inventory and monitoring plan is needed that quantifies existing resources, isolates drivers that maintain natural communities, determines harmful stressors, and links ecological drivers and human stressors. A tactical approach is proposed for conservation planning using freshwater fish at the Cape Cod National Seashore.
Freshwater fish are well studied and occur across environmental gradients. The lentic systems at the national park are relatively pristine yet are enveloped by a region of high population density. Using fish community data, three steps were taken for tracking anthropogenic impacts in a human dominated landscape. First, fish and potential drivers were sampled intensively along a gradient to determine which fish metrics reflect natural communities and which abiotic and biotic factors structure them. Second, emerging and existing regional human threats were identified. Third, these human threats were linked to the potential drivers that maintain natural communities to identify the most informative metrics to monitor and track change.
Fish communities, water quality, habitat, and food resources were sampled concurrently in 18 ponds in 1999 and 2000. Three common fish species explained 98% of variation in numbers across systems. Based on ecological relationships, pH, depth, vegetation, prey, and community complexity were determined to maintain biodiversity of freshwater fish communities.
The primary human threats here included: development‐related, land‐use changes; non‐point source pollution; eutrophication from septic systems; and introduced species that are a byproduct of high human visitation. These are common threats in many rapidly urbanized areas and are likely to have relevance to many sites.
To track the impact of emerging threats to freshwater ponds related to increased human population, monitoring changes in water quality, vegetated habitat, fish diversity, and trophic interactions are recommended.
Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Hierarchical summarization of large documents
Authors: Yang Christopher C. , Wang Fu Lee 
Published: March 2008

AbstractMany automatic text summarization models have been developed in the last decades. Related research in information science has shown that human abstractors extract sentences for summaries based on the hierarchical structure of documents; however, the existing automatic summarization models do not take into account the human abstractor's behavior of sentence extraction and only consider the document as a sequence of sentences during the process of extraction of sentences as a summary. In general, a document exhibits a well‐defined hierarchical structure that can be described as fractals—mathematical objects with a high degree of redundancy. In this article, we introduce the fractal summarization model based on the fractal theory. The important information is captured from the source document by exploring the hierarchical structure and salient features of the document. A condensed version of the document that is informatively close to the source document is produced iteratively using the contractive transformation in the fractal theory. The fractal summarization model is the first attempt to apply fractal theory to document summarization. It significantly improves the divergence of information coverage of summary and the precision of summary. User evaluations have been conducted. Results have indicated that fractal summarization is promising and outperforms current summarization techniques that do not consider the hierarchical structure of documents.
Comparison of SHF and SSF processes from steam‐exploded wheat straw for ethanol production by xylose‐fermenting and robust glucose‐fermenting Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains
Authors: Tomás‐Pejó Elia , Oliva Jose M. , Ballesteros Mercedes , Olsson Lisbeth 
Published: March 2008

AbstractIn this study, bioethanol production from steam‐exploded wheat straw using different process configurations was evaluated using two Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains, F12 and Red Star. The strain F12 has been engineerically modified to allow xylose consumption as cereal straw contain considerable amounts of pentoses. Red Star is a robust hexose‐fermenting strain used for industrial fuel ethanol fermentations and it was used for comparative purposes. The highest ethanol concentration, 23.7 g/L, was reached using the whole slurry (10%, w/v) and the recombinant strain (F12) in an SSF process, it showed an ethanol yield on consumed sugars of 0.43 g/g and a volumetric ethanol productivity of 0.7 g/L h for the first 3 h. Ethanol concentrations obtained in SSF processes were in all cases higher than those from SHF at the same conditions. Furthermore, using the whole slurry, final ethanol concentration was improved in all tests due to the increase of potential fermentable sugars in the fermentation broth. Inhibitory compounds present in the pretreated wheat straw caused a significantly negative effect on the fermentation rate. However, it was found that the inhibitors furfural and HMF were completely metabolized by the yeast during SSF by metabolic redox reactions. An often encountered problem during xylose fermentation is considerable xylitol production that occurs due to metabolic redox imbalance. However, in our work this redox imbalance was counteracted by the detoxification reactions and no xylitol was produced. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2008;100: 1122–1131. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
C‐terminal lysine variants in fully human monoclonal antibodies: Investigation of test methods and possible causes
Authors: Dick Lawrence W. , Qiu Difei , Mahon David , Adamo Michael , Cheng Kuang‐Chuan 
Published: March 2008

AbstractThe C‐terminal lysine variation is commonly observed in biopharmaceutical monoclonal antibodies. This modification can be important since it is found to be sensitive to the production process. The methods commonly used to probe this charge variation, including IEF, cIEF, ion‐exchange chromatography, and LC‐MS, were evaluated for their ability to effectively approximate relative percentages of lysine variants. A monoclonal antibody produced in a B cell hybridoma versus a CHO cell transfectoma was examined and it was determined that the relative amount of incorporated C‐terminal lysine can vary greatly between these two production schemes. Another case study is shown whereby a different monoclonal antibody is subject to some minor process changes and the extent of lysine variation also exhibits a significant difference. During these studies the different methods for determining the extent of variation were evaluated and it was determined that LC‐MS after trypsin digestion provides reproducible relative percentage information and has significant advantages over other methods. The final section of this work investigates the possible origins of this modification and evidence is shown that carboxypeptidase B or another basic carboxypeptidase causes this variation. Biotechnol. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2008;100: 1132–1143. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Regulation and characterization of Thermobifida fusca carbohydrate‐binding module proteins E7 and E8
Authors: Moser Felix , Irwin Diana , Chen Shaolin , Wilson David. B. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractE7, a single domain Family 33 cellulose binding module (CBM) protein, and E8, a non‐catalytic, three‐domain protein consisting of a Family 33 CBM, a FNIII domain, followed by a Family 2 CBM, were cloned, expressed, purified, and characterized. Western blots showed that E7 and E8 were induced and secreted when Thermobifida fusca was grown on cellobiose, Solka floc, switchgrass, or alfalfa as well as on β‐1,3 linked glucose molecules such as laminaribiose or pachyman. E8 bound well to α‐ and β‐chitin and bacterial microcrystalline cellulose (BMCC) at all pHs tested. E7 bound strongly to β‐chitin, less well to α‐chitin and more weakly to BMCC than E8. Filter paper binding assays showed that E7 was 28% bound, E8 was 39% bound, a purified CBM2 binding domain from Cel6B was 88% bound, and only 5% of the Cel5A catalytic domain was bound. A C‐terminal 6×His tag influenced binding of both E7 and E8 to these substrates. Filter paper activity assays showed enhanced activity of T. fusca cellulases when E7 or E8 was present. This effect was observed at very low concentrations of cellulases or at very long times into the reaction and was mainly independent of the type of cellulase and the number of cellulases in the mixture. E8, and to a lesser extent E7, significantly enhanced the activity of Serratia marscescens Chitinase C on β‐chitin. Biotechnol. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2008;100: 1066–1077. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.