bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Cyanoethylation of Tamarind Kernel Powder
Authors: Goyal Puja , Kumar Vineet , Sharma Pradeep 
Published: January 2008

AbstractTamarind Kernel Powder (TKP) is derived from the seeds of Tamarindus indica Linn., a common tree of India and South East Asia with high economic importance. TKP is used in cotton sizing, as a wet‐end additive in the paper industry as well as a thickening, stabilizing and gelling agent in the food industry. Cyanoethylation of TKP was carried out with acrylonitrile (AN) in presence of sodium hydroxide under different reaction conditions. Variables studied were concentration of sodium hydroxide and AN, gum‐liquor ratio as well as reaction temperature and time. The degree of substitution (DS), reaction efficiency (RE) and total extent of etherification were determined. The optimum conditions for preparing cyanoethyl‐TKP (DS 0.49) comprised 0.088 mol (1.3 equiv./OH group) of sodium hydroxide, and 0.050 mol (0.7 equiv./OH group) of AN at 30°C for 45 min using 0.026 mol TKP (0.07 mol OH groups) in 100 mL water. Rheological studies of cyanoethyl‐TKP solution exhibited non‐Newtonian pseudoplastic behavior, relatively high viscosity, cold‐water solubility, solution stability and clarity as compared with unmodified TKP.
An SEC−MALLS Study of Molecular Features of Water‐soluble Amylopectin and Amylose of Tef [Eragrostis tef (Zucc.) Trotter] Starches
Authors: Bultosa Geremew , Hamaker Bruce R. , BeMiller James N. 
Published: January 2008

AbstractThe molecular features of five tef starches along with those of commercial normal maize starch were investigated by size‐exclusion chromatography with multi‐angle laser light scattering‐differential refractive index detection (SEC/MALLS‐DRI) after solubilization in water by cooking in a household pressure cooker. The weight‐average molar mass ($\displaystyle \bar M_w $) and weight‐average root‐mean square radius of gyration (<Rg>w) of the amylopectin (AP) of tef starches ranged from 10.1×107 g/mol (156 nm) to 16.5×107 g/mol (205 nm) with a mean of 13.9×107 g/mol (186 nm). The AP $\displaystyle \bar M_w $ of the tef starches was considerably smaller than that of maize starch ($\displaystyle \bar M_w $ = 19.6×107 g/mol, <Rg>w = 207 nm). These considerably smaller AP molecules in tef starches were most probably responsible for the low paste viscosity of tef starches as compared to maize starch. In most tef starches, the polydispersity index (PI) of the AP was broader than that of the AP of maize starch. The intermediate fraction (IN) $\displaystyle \bar M_w$ 1.0−1.6, mean = 1.1) of most tef starches were similar to those of the IN of maize starch. The amylose (AM) $\displaystyle \bar M_w $ (range 1.5×106−3.0×106 g/mol, mean = 2.2×106 g/mol) and size (range 176−214 nm, mean = 191 nm) of most tef starches was also apparently similar to that of the maize starch ($\displaystyle \bar M_w $ = 2.3×106 g/mol, <Rg>w = 193 nm), but the polymer distribution was narrower. The AM−iodine complex of the tef starches had a λmax range of 611−679 nm and the absorption shifted toward longer wavelengths by 8−14 nm as compared to the maize starch AM−iodine complex. The blue value (absorption at λmax) for 1 mg/mL of tef AM had a range of 2.3−2.8 (mean = 2.5), whereas for the maize starch, the mean was 2.2. The branched nature of tef starches was also investigated by debranching with isoamylase and determination of chain lengths (DPn) of the branches by size exclusion chromatography with refractive index detector (SEC‐RI). The AP in tef starches had a polymodal distribution with a periodicity similar to that of cereal starches. The branches had DPn values of A = 11, B1 = 16, B2 = 46 (range 46−47), B3 = 70 (range 69−72) and B4 = 118 (range 113−123). The outer (A + B1) chains were shorter than those of maize starch AP with abundance (74%, w/w) only slightly less than that of the maize starch (75%, w/w). The slow rate of retrogradation, the slightly lower percent crystallinity, the lower gelatinization temperatures and the lower gelatinization enthalpy observed for tef starches (as compared to maize starch) are probably related to the shorter outer (A + B1) chain lengths of their amylopectin molecules, and may be the foundation of the comparably good keeping quality of tef injera, the main staple in the Ethiopian diet.
Within‐season adjustment of sex expression in females and hermaphrodites of the clonal gynodioecious herb Glechoma longituba (Lamiaceae)
Authors: Zhang Yan‐Wen , Yang Chun‐Feng , Gituru Wahiti Robert , Guo You‐Hao 
Published: January 2008

AbstractThe within‐season modification or adjustment of sex expression was studied in the gynodioecious herb Glechoma longituba. The results from seven natural populations indicated that the seed sets of hermaphrodite ramets were relatively stable compared to those of female ramets. However, a negative correlation was detected between the seed set of female ramets and their frequency of occurrence in a population. Moreover, a negative correlation was also detected between the degree of gender modification in the late flowering period and the seed set in female ramets. Controlled experiments on both wild and cultivated plants indicated that the resource adjustment, presumably caused by flower removal or the hand pollination of flowers, in the early‐middle flowering season could induce a greater degree of gender modification in later flowers from female to hermaphrodite and vice versa. However, the ranges of degree of gender modification were different between the two sex morphs, and the variation in females was greater than in hermaphrodites. This phenomenon could not be adequately explained based on the sequential adjustment of investment hypothesis which has been invoked in previous studies. We propose that the results of this study may provide a variation to the model of sequential adjustment of investment in serial flowering annual gynodioecious plants, including Glechoma longituba. We postulate that the variation of sex expression might be beneficial for the female in order to avoid pollen limitation and, further, to obtain a selective advantage.
Proteomic Analysis of Two Non-Bronchoscopic Methods of Sampling the Lungs of Patients with the Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS)
Authors: Chang Dong W. , Colucci Giuseppe , Vaisar Tomas , King Trevor , Hayashi Shinichi , Matute-Bello Gustavo , Bumgarner Roger , Heinecke Jay , Martin Thomas R. , Domenighetti Guido M. 
Published: January 2008

Abstract

Objective
The collection of lung fluid using a suction catheter (s-Cath) and non-bronchoscopic bronchoalveolar lavage (mini-BAL) are two minimally invasive methods of sampling the distal airspaces in patients with the acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). The objective of this study was to determine the similarity of the lung fluid samples recovered by these methods using proteomic analysis.

Methods
Distal lung fluid samples were collected from seven mechanically ventilated patients with ARDS using both s-Cath and mini-BAL in each patient and compared using two-dimensional difference gel electrophoresis. Protein spots of interest were identified using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

Main Results
An average of 2,164 spots was detected in the s-Cath and mini-BAL samples. Of these, 68.4% of the protein spots were similar between the s-Cath and mini-BAL samples, 13.2% were increased in s-Cath compared to mini-BAL, and 18.4% were decreased in s-Cath compared to mini-BAL. For each of the seven subjects, overabundance analysis showed that the actual number of differentially expressed spots in the mini-BAL and s-Cath sample was more than the expected number if the samples were identical. There were nine proteins that were consistently differentially expressed between the mini-BAL and s-Cath samples. Of these nine proteins, five are abundantly found in neutrophils or airway epithelial cells, suggesting that the s-Cath may sample the bronchial airways to a greater extent than mini-BAL.

Conclusion
Proteomic analysis of mini-BAL and s-Cath samples shows for the first time that, although these two methods for sampling the lungs of critically ill patients are generally similar, the s-Cath method oversamples the distal airways compared to the mini-BAL method.
Examining the influences of gender, race, ethnicity, and social capital on the subjective health of adolescents
Authors: Almgren Gunnar , Magarati Maya , Mogford Liz 
Published: January 2008

AbstractWe investigate the factors that influence adolescent self‐assessed health, based upon surveys conducted between 2000 and 2004 of high‐school seniors in Washington State (N=6853). A large proportion of the sample (30%) was first and second generation immigrants from Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. Findings include a robust negative effect of female gender on self‐reported health that is largely unmodified by demographic, developmental, social capital, and parental support variables, gender differences in the covariates of self‐reported health, and the tendency of male adolescents of Cambodian and Vietnamese origin to report lower levels of self‐reported health despite controls for other health‐related individual characteristics. Social capital dimensions such as positive school affiliation, social network cohesion, and a safe learning environment were found to covary with the self‐reported health of adolescent females.
The PPARγ ligand rosiglitazone influences triacylglycerol metabolism in non-obese males, without increasing the transcriptional activity of PPARγ in the subcutaneous adipose tissue
Authors: Joosen Annemiek M. C. P. , Bakker Arjen H. F. , Kersten Sander , Westerterp Klaas R. 
Published: January 2008

PPARγ is obligatory for fat mass generation and is thought to determine the amount of TAG stored per fat cell. We investigated whether ligand availability for PPARγ is rate limiting in fat mass generation and substrate metabolism. Twenty healthy men (20–29 years) were randomly assigned to receive the PPARγ ligand rosiglitazone (RSG) (8 mg/d) (n 10) or a placebo (n 10) during a stay of 7 d in a respiration chamber. Food intake was ad libitum, resulting in positive energy balances of 32·2 MJ (placebo) and 44·7 MJ (RSG). Fat cell size and expression of PPARγ, adipocyte fatty acid-binding protein (aP2), adipsin, adiponectin and fasting-induced adipose factor (FIAF) were determined in subcutaneous abdominal fat biopsies. The total amount of fat stored and the amount of TAG per fat cell were not different between groups. For the entire group, fat cell size was decreased after overeating (P = 0·02). FIAF mRNA levels were decreased after overeating in the RSG group (P = 0·01), with a trend towards a decrease in the placebo group. Unexpectedly, RSG treatment did not influence the expression levels of PPARγ and of the PPARγ responsive genes aP2, adiponectin and adipsin. In addition, RSG resulted in a larger increase in plasma TAG during overeating than placebo treatment. These results suggest that in healthy, non-obese males the PPARγ ligand RSG influences TAG metabolism, independent of its PPARγ transcriptional activity in the subcutaneous adipose tissue.
Vagus nerve stimulation for depression: efficacy and safety in a European study
Authors: Schlaepfer T. E. , Frick C. , Zobel A. , Maier W. , Heuser I. , Bajbouj M. , O'Keane V. , Corcoran C. , Adolfsson R. , Trimble M. , Rau H. , Hoff H.-J. , Padberg F. , Müller-Siecheneder F. , Audenaert K. , Van den Abbeele D. , Matthews K. , Christmas D. , Stanga Z. , Hasdemir M. 
Published: January 2008

BackgroundVagus nerve stimulation (VNS) therapy is associated with a decrease in seizure frequency in partial-onset seizure patients. Initial trials suggest that it may be an effective treatment, with few side-effects, for intractable depression.MethodAn open, uncontrolled European multi-centre study (D03) of VNS therapy was conducted, in addition to stable pharmacotherapy, in 74 patients with treatment-resistant depression (TRD). Treatment remained unchanged for the first 3 months; in the subsequent 9 months, medications and VNS dosing parameters were altered as indicated clinically.ResultsThe baseline 28-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD-28) score averaged 34. After 3 months of VNS, response rates (⩾50% reduction in baseline scores) reached 37% and remission rates (HAMD-28 score <10) 17%. Response rates increased to 53% after 1 year of VNS, and remission rates reached 33%. Response was defined as sustained if no relapse occurred during the first year of VNS after response onset; 44% of patients met these criteria. Median time to response was 9 months. Most frequent side-effects were voice alteration (63% at 3 months of stimulation) and coughing (23%).ConclusionsVNS therapy was effective in reducing severity of depression; efficacy increased over time. Efficacy ratings were in the same range as those previously reported from a USA study using a similar protocol; at 12 months, reduction of symptom severity was significantly higher in the European sample. This might be explained by a small but significant difference in the baseline HAMD-28 score and the lower number of treatments in the current episode in the European study.
Attentional bias to incentive stimuli in frequent ketamine users
Authors: Morgan C. J. A. , Rees H. , Curran H. V. 
Published: January 2008

BackgroundThe attention-grabbing properties of drugs to drug-using individuals have been well documented and recent research has begun to suggest that such attentional bias may be related to the severity of drug dependency. Dependence on ketamine has been reported anecdotally but no systematic study has investigated this phenomenon. We aimed to explore attentional biases to incentive stimuli in different populations of ketamine users.MethodUsing a dot-probe paradigm, attentional bias to both drug-related and money-related stimuli was investigated in 150 participants: 30 frequent ketamine users, 30 infrequent ketamine users, 30 ex-ketamine users, 30 poly-drug users and 30 non-drug-using controls. Two stimulus presentation times were used (200 and 2000 ms) to investigate whether attentional bias was as a result of an automatic or a more conscious attentional shift. Participants also rated the degree to which stimuli used in the dot-probe paradigm were pleasurable.ResultsFrequent ketamine users demonstrated an attentional bias to both types of incentive stimuli only at the short stimulus presentation interval and this was significantly correlated with degree of ketamine use. No attentional biases were observed in any of the other groups. All groups rated money stimuli as more pleasurable than neutral stimuli.ConclusionsThese data support incentive models of drug use and demonstrate the ability of the attentional bias paradigm to discriminate recreational drug users from those with more dependent patterns of use. Ketamine is a potentially dependence-forming drug.
The phenomenology and diagnosis of psychiatric illness in people with Prader–Willi syndrome
Authors: Soni S. , Whittington J. , Holland A. J. , Webb T. , Maina E. N. , Boer H. , Clarke D. 
Published: January 2008

BackgroundPsychotic illness is strongly associated with the maternal uniparental disomy (mUPD) genetic subtype of Prader–Willi syndrome (PWS), but not the deletion subtype (delPWS). This study investigates the clinical features of psychiatric illness associated with PWS. We consider possible genetic and other mechanisms that may be responsible for the development of psychotic illness, predominantly in those with mUPD.MethodThe study sample comprised 119 individuals with genetically confirmed PWS, of whom 46 had a history of psychiatric illness. A detailed clinical and family psychiatric history was obtained from these 46 using the PAS-ADD, OPCRIT, Family History and Life Events Questionnaires.ResultsIndividuals with mUPD had a higher rate of psychiatric illness than those with delPWS (22/34 v. 24/85, p<0.001). The profile of psychiatric illness in both genetic subtypes resembled an atypical affective disorder with or without psychotic symptoms. Those with delPWS were more likely to have developed a non-psychotic depressive illness (p=0.005) and those with mUPD a bipolar disorder with psychotic symptoms (p=0.00005). Individuals with delPWS and psychotic illness had an increased family history of affective disorder. This was confined exclusively to their mothers.ConclusionsPsychiatric illness in PWS is predominately affective with atypical features. The prevalence and possibly the severity of illness are greater in those with mUPD. We present a ‘two-hit’ hypothesis, involving imprinted genes on chromosome 15, for the development of affective psychosis in people with PWS, regardless of genetic subtype.
Climatic, temporal, and geographic characteristics of respiratory syncytial virus disease in a tropical island population
Authors: OMER S. B. , SUTANTO A. , SARWO H. , LINEHAN M. , DJELANTIK I. G. G. , MERCER D. , MONIAGA V. , MOULTON L. H. , WIDJAYA A. , MULJATI P. , GESSNER B. D. , STEINHOFF M. C. 
Published: January 2008

SUMMARYRespiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is an important cause of morbidity in children worldwide, although data from equatorial regions are limited. We analysed climatic, spatial, and temporal data for children presenting to hospitals in Lombok island, Indonesia with clinical pneumonia. During the study period, 2878 children presented and 741 RSV cases were identified. In multivariate analysis with an 8-day lag, occurrence of rain was associated with 64% higher incidence of RSV disease [incidence rate ratio (IRR) 1·64, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1·13–2·38]. A 1% rise in mean relative humidity and 1°C increase in mean air temperature was associated with a 6% (IRR 1·06, 95% CI 1·03–1·10) and 44% (IRR 1·44, 95% CI 1·24–1·66) increase in RSV cases, respectively. Four statistically significant local clusters of RSV pneumonia were identified within the annual island-wide epidemics. This study demonstrates statistical association of monsoon-associated weather in equatorial Indonesia with RSV. Moreover, within the island-wide epidemics, localized RSV outbreaks suggest local factors influence RSV disease.
Effect of climatological factors on respiratory syncytial virus epidemics
Authors: NOYOLA D. E. , MANDEVILLE P. B. 
Published: January 2008

SUMMARYRespiratory syncytial virus (RSV) presents as yearly epidemics in temperate climates. We analysed the association of atmospheric conditions to RSV epidemics in San Luis Potosí, S.L.P., Mexico. The weekly number of RSV detections between October 2002 and May 2006 were correlated to ambient temperature, barometric pressure, relative humidity, vapour tension, dew point, precipitation, and hours of light using time-series and regression analyses. Of the variation in RSV cases, 49·8% was explained by the study variables. Of the explained variation in RSV cases, 32·5% was explained by the study week and 17·3% was explained by meteorological variables (average daily temperature, maximum daily temperature, temperature at 08:00 hours, and relative humidity at 08:00 hours). We concluded that atmospheric conditions, particularly temperature, partly explain the year to year variability in RSV activity. Identification of additional factors that affect RSV seasonality may help develop a model to predict the onset of RSV epidemics.
Yersinia pseudotuberculosiscausing a large outbreak associated with carrots in Finland, 2006
Authors: RIMHANEN-FINNE R. , NISKANEN T. , HALLANVUO S. , MAKARY P. , HAUKKA K. , PAJUNEN S. , SIITONEN A. , RISTOLAINEN R. , PÖYRY H. , OLLGREN J. , KUUSI M. 
Published: January 2008

SUMMARYA large outbreak ofYersinia pseudotuberculosisO:1 infection affected over 400 children from 23 schools and 5 day-care centres in two municipalities in southern Finland in August–September, 2006. A retrospective cohort study conducted in a large school centre showed that the outbreak was strongly associated with the consumption of grated carrots served at a school lunch. The risk of illness increased with the amount of carrots eaten. Poor quality carrots grown the previous year had been delivered to the school kitchens in the two municipalities affected. In the patients' samples and in the environmental samples collected from the carrot distributor's storage facility, identical serotypes and genotypes ofY. pseudotuberculosiswere found, but the original source and the mechanism of the contamination of the carrots remained unclear. Outbreaks ofY. pseudotuberculosislinked to fresh produce have been detected repeatedly in Finland. To prevent future outbreaks, instructions in improved hygiene practices on the handling of raw carrots have been issued to farmers, vegetable-processing plants and institutional kitchens.
Invertebrates from the Low Head Member (Polonez Cove Formation, Oligocene) at Vauréal Peak, King George Island, West Antarctica
Authors: Quaglio Fernanda , Anelli Luiz E. , dos Santos Paulo R. , Perinotto José A. de J. , Rocha-Campos Antonio C. 
Published: January 2008

AbstractEight taxa of marine invertebrates, including two new bivalve species, are described from the Low Head Member of the Polonez Cove Formation (latest early Oligocene) cropping out in the Vauréal Peak area, King George Island, West Antarctica. The fossil assemblage includes representatives of Brachiopoda (generaNeothyrissp. andLiothyrellasp.), Bivalvia (Adamussium auristriatumsp. nov., ?Adamussiumcf.A. alanbeuiJonkers, andLimatula(Antarctolima)ferrazianasp. nov.), Bryozoa, Polychaeta (serpulid tubes) and Echinodermata. Specimens occur in debris flows deposits of the Low Head Member, as part of a fan delta setting in a high energy, shallow marine environment.Liothyrellasp.,Adamussium auristriatumsp. nov. andLimatula ferrazianasp. nov. are among the oldest records for these genera in King George Island. In spite of their restrict number and diversification, bivalves and brachiopods from this study display an overall dispersal pattern that roughly fits in the clockwise circulation of marine currents around Antarctica accomplished in two steps. The first followed the opening of the Tasmanian Gateway at the Eocene/Oligocene boundary, along the eastern margin of Antarctica, and the second took place in post-Palaeogene time, following the Drake Passage opening between Antarctic Peninsula and South America, along the western margin of Antarctica.
Mineralogical implications for the Late Pleistocene glaciation in Amery Oasis, East Antarctica, from a lake sediment core
Authors: Hultzsch Nadja , Wagner Bernd , Diekmann Bernhard , White Duanne 
Published: January 2008

AbstractThe clay mineralogical composition of a 552 cm long sediment core from Lake Terrasovoje in Amery Oasis, East Antarctica, was analysed and compared with that in surface sediments from other locations in the vicinity. The lower part of the sediment core is formed by sub- and proglacial sediments with a dominance of smectite and illite, and lower amounts of kaolinite and chlorite. The upper part of the core is deposited after 12 500 cal yr bp and mainly composed of illite and kaolinite, with low amounts of smectite and chlorite, such as found in samples from rock outcrops and covering sediments throughout Amery Oasis. The clay composition in the lower section of core Lz1005 suggest that the basin of Lake Terrasovoje was filled by a 150–200 m thickened Nemesis Glacier prior to 12 500 cal yr bp rather than by local ice caps.