bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
HHV‐6‐related acute liver failure in two immunocompetent adults: favourable outcome after liver transplantation and/or ganciclovir therapy
Authors: CACHEUX W. , CARBONELL N. , ROSMORDUC O. , WENDUM D. , PAYE F. , POUPON R. , CHAZOUILLÈRES O. , GOZLAN J. 
Published: October 2005

Abstract.Fulminant hepatitis of unknown origin remain a significant cause of mortality, for which liver transplantation is often considered as the only therapeutic option. In retrospective studies, human herpesvirus 6 (HHV‐6) infections have been associated with such diseases, but the diagnosis of HHV‐6 infection of the liver is rarely established during the acute phase of liver failure. Using real‐time polymerase chain reaction (PCR), we diagnosed two cases of severe acute liver failure (ALF) related to HHV‐6 occurring in immunocompetent young adults. Both cases had a favourable outcome, one after valganciclovir therapy, one after liver transplantation associated with ganciclovir. Viral origin was evidenced in each case by the detection of high amounts of HHV‐6 DNA in liver tissue by the PCR assay. The decrease of intrahepatic viral load after therapeutic intervention was also monitored by quantitative PCR and paralleled in the two cases the clinical improvement. Diagnosis of HHV‐6 infection must be systematically evoked in case of unexplained ALF, since it might lead to specific therapeutic interventions, in addition of liver transplantation.
Bone mass in young adults: relationship with gender, weight and genetic factors
Authors: VALERO C. , ZARRABEITIA M. T. , HERNÁNDEZ J. L. , ZARRABEITIA A. , GONZÁLEZ‐MACÍAS J. , RIANCHO J. A. 
Published: October 2005

Abstract.Objectives.  To determine the relationship of the bone mass attained in young adults with anthropometric and genetic factors.Design.  Cross‐sectional study of normal individuals.Methods.  We studied 341 healthy subjects between 22 and 45 years of age. Bone mineral density (BMD) was measured by dual‐energy X‐ray absorptiometry (DXA) and correlated with body weight, height and nine polymorphisms in six genes involved in sex steroid metabolism (17‐hydroxylase, aromatase and 5‐reductase) and activity (oestrogen receptors (ER)‐α and ‐β, and androgen receptor).Results.  The BMD was higher in men than in women (spine: 1.048 ± 0.120 vs. 1.034 ± 0.112; hip: 0.907 ± 0.131 vs. 0.822 ± 0.104 g cm−2, P < 0.001). However, the difference was due, at least in part, to the larger body size in men and diminished markedly after height adjustment. There was a negative correlation between age and hip BMD. Body weight was the single most influential factor on spine and hip BMD in both sexes, explaining 8–9% of BMD variance. Amongst the genetic factors studied, a common CA repeat polymorphism in ER‐β showed a significant association with BMD in women (P = 0.03 at the spine, and 0.008 at the hip). The relationship between ER‐β genotype and BMD persisted after adjustment by body weight and age, explaining a further 2–3% of BMD variance. Allelic variants of other genes studied were not related with BMD.Conclusions.  Body weight and allelic variants of ER‐β are associated with BMD in young adults.
The biosynthesis and regulation of biosynthesis of Concord grape fruit esters, including ‘foxy’ methylanthranilate
Authors: Wang Jihong , Luca Vincenzo De 
Published: October 2005

SummaryThe biosynthesis of methyl anthranilate, the volatile compound responsible for the distinctive ‘foxy’ aroma and flavor of the Washington Concord grape (Vitis labrusca), involves an alcohol acyltransferase that catalyzes the formation of methyl anthranilate from anthraniloyl‐coenzyme A (CoA) and methanol. Although methanol is a poor substrate in comparison with the co‐substrate, high levels of this acyltransferase (0.5% of the total protein) combined with relatively high levels of this alcohol make this reaction possible in grapes. This 449 amino acid protein belongs to the BAHD family of acyltransferases, having 58% identity with the benzoyl CoA:benzyl alcohol benzoyl transferase from Clarkia. Both native and recombinant enzymes can use a broad range of acyl‐CoAs and alcohols as substrates. The ability of Concord grape alcohol acyltransferase to accept a range of different CoA esters and alcohols suggests this to be a versatile ester‐forming enzyme, similar to those of other fruits that than can produce a range of fruit esters based on the supply of appropriate substrates. Expression is coordinately regulated, with transcript, protein and enzyme activities coinciding with the accumulation of methyl anthranilate that occurs after the initiation of berry ripening. The majority of acyltransferase protein in grape tissues is localized to the outer fruit mesocarp, a result consistent with the fact that methyl anthranilate is released to the external environment throughout the ripening process. Wine grapes (Vitis vinifera) that accumulate neither anthranilate nor methyl anthranilate do not express this enzyme activity nor do they accumulate this protein.
Localization of tabersonine 16‐hydroxylase and 16‐OH tabersonine‐16‐O‐methyltransferase to leaf epidermal cells defines them as a major site of precursor biosynthesis in the vindoline pathway in Catharanthus roseus
Authors: Murata Jun , Luca Vincenzo De 
Published: October 2005

SummaryThe Madagascar periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus) produces the well known and remarkably complex anticancer dimeric alkaloids vinblastine and vincristine, which are derived by the coupling of vindoline and catharanthine monomers. Recent data from in situ RNA hybridization and immunolocalization suggest that combinatorial cell factories within the leaf are involved in vindoline biosynthesis. In this study, the cell types responsible for vindoline biosynthesis were identified by laser‐capture microdissection/RNA isolation/RT–PCR to show that geraniol hydroxylase, secologanin synthase, tryptophan decarboxylase, strictosidine synthase, strictosidine ß‐glucosidase and tabersonine 16‐hydroxylase can be detected preferentially in epidermal cells. A new and complementary application of the carborundum abrasion (CA) technique was developed to obtain epidermis‐enriched leaf extracts that can be used to measure alkaloid metabolite levels, enzyme activities and gene expression. The CA technique showed that tabersonine and 16‐methoxytabersonine, together with 16‐hydroxytabersonine‐16‐O‐methyltransferase, are found predominantly in Catharanthus leaf epidermis, in contrast to vindoline, catharanthine and later enzymatic steps in vindoline biosynthesis. The results show that leaf epidermal cells are biosynthetically competent to produce tryptamine and secologanin precursors that are converted via many enzymatic transformations to make 16‐methoxytabersonine. This alkaloid or its 2,3 dihydro‐derivative is then transported to cells (mesophyll/idioblast/laticifer) within Catharanthus leaves to complete the last three or four enzymatic transformations to make vindoline.
The immediate‐early ethylene response gene OsARD1 encodes an acireductone dioxygenase involved in recycling of the ethylene precursor S‐adenosylmethionine
Authors: Sauter Margret , Lorbiecke René , OuYang Bo , Pochapsky Thomas C. , Rzewuski Guillaume 
Published: October 2005

SummaryMethylthioadenosine (MTA) is formed as a by‐product of ethylene biosynthesis from S‐adenosyl‐l‐methionine (AdoMet). The methionine cycle regenerates AdoMet from MTA. In two independent differential screens for submergence‐induced genes and for 1‐aminocyclopropane‐1‐carboxylic acid (ACC)‐induced genes from deepwater rice (Oryza sativa L.) we identified an acireductone dioxygenase (ARD). OsARD1 is a metal‐binding protein that belongs to the cupin superfamily. Acireductone dioxygenases are unique proteins that can acquire two different activities depending on the metal ion bound. Ectopically expressed apo‐OsARD1 preferentially binds Fe2+ and reconstituted Fe‐OsARD1 catalyzed the formation of 2‐keto‐pentanoate and formate from the model substrate 1,2‐dihydroxy‐3‐ketopent‐1‐ene and dioxygen, indicating that OsARD1 is capable of catalyzing the penultimate step in the methionine cycle. Two highly homologous ARD genes were identified in rice. OsARD1 mRNA levels showed a rapid, early and transient increase upon submergence and after treatment with ethylene‐releasing compounds. The second gene from rice, OsARD2, is constitutively expressed. Accumulation of OsARD1 transcript was observed in the same internodal tissues, i.e. the meristem and elongation zone, which were previously shown to synthesize ethylene. OsARD1 transcripts accumulated in the presence of cycloheximide, an inhibitor of protein synthesis, indicating that OsARD1 is a primary ethylene response gene. Promoter analysis suggests that immediate‐early regulation of OsARD1 by ethylene may involve an EIN3‐like transcription factor. OsARD1 is induced by low levels of ethylene. We propose that early feedback activation of the methionine cycle by low levels of ethylene ensures the high and continuous rates of ethylene synthesis required for long‐term ethylene‐mediated submergence adaptation without depleting the tissue of AdoMet.
Efficient insertional mutagenesis in rice using the maize En/Spm elements
Authors: Kumar Chellian Santhosh , Wing Rod A. , Sundaresan Venkatesan 
Published: October 2005

SummaryWe have developed a novel system for insertional mutagenesis in rice (Oryza sativa) based on the maize (Zea mays) enhancer/suppressor mutator (En/Spm) element. In this system, a single T‐DNA construct with Spm‐transposase and the non‐autonomous defective suppressor mutator (dSpm) element is used in conjunction with green fluorescent protein (GFP) and Discosoma sp. Red Fluorescence Protein (DsRed) fluorescent markers to select unlinked stable transpositions of dSpm. Using this system, we could demonstrate high frequencies of unlinked germinal transposition of dSpm in rice. Analysis of dSpm flanking sequences from 353 stable insertion lines revealed that the dSpm insertions appear to be widely distributed on rice chromosomes with a preference for genic regions (70%). The dSpm insertions appear to differ from Activator‐Dissociation (Ac‐Ds) elements in genomic distribution and exhibit a greater fraction of unlinked transpositions when compared with Ds elements. The results obtained in this study demonstrate that the maize En/Spm element can be used as an effective tool for functional genomics in rice and can complement efforts using other insertional mutagens. Further, the efficacy of the non‐invasive fluorescence‐based selection system is promising for its application to other crops.
The effects of erythromycin on the viability and the secretion of TNF‐α and TGF‐β1 and expression of connexin43 by human pleural mesothelial cells
Authors: XIE Canmao , HUANG Jian Qiang , LIGHT Richard W. 
Published: October 2005

Objective:  The mechanism by which erythromycin produces pleurodesis remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of erythromycin on human pleural mesothelial cell (HPMC) viability, the secretion of tumour necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α) and transforming growth factor‐β1 (TGF‐β1) and the level of expression of connexin43.Methodology:  HPMC were incubated with different concentrations of erythromycin. The inhibitory effects of erythromycin on HPMC growth were measured using a tetrazolium‐based colorimetric assay. The levels of TNF‐α and TGF‐β1 in supernatants were measured by ELISA and levels of connexin43 were assessed by Western blot.Results:  Erythromycin injured HPMC in a dose and time‐dependent manner. The secretion of both TNF‐α and TGF‐β1 by HMPC increased significantly when they were incubated with 100 mg/L erythromycin for 3 or 5 days. The levels of connexin43 in HPMC decreased after incubation with 100 mg/L erythromycin and no relationship was observed between the levels and incubation time.Conclusions:  Erythromycin injures HPMC in a dose‐ and time‐dependent manner and results in the secretion of TNF‐α and TGF‐β1. This is one possible mechanism of pleurodesis with erythromycin. Furthermore, erythromycin decreased the levels of connexin43 in HPMC, which could possibly affect the response of HPMC to pleurodesis with erythromycin.
Asthma control in adults in Asia‐Pacific
Authors: ZAINUDIN Bin M. Zin , KAI WEI LAI Christopher , SORIANO Joan B. , JIA‐HORNG Wang , DE GUIA Teresita S ,   Asthma Insights and Reality in Asia‐Pacific (AIRIAP) Steering Committee
Published: October 2005

Objective  The Asthma Insights and Reality in Asia‐Pacific (AIRIAP) survey collected detailed information on asthma severity and management in the urban centres of eight areas of the Asia‐Pacific region. This study compared asthma morbidity and management practices in these areas.Methodology  Following recruitment, face‐to‐face interviews were completed with 2323 adults with diagnosed asthma, who had current symptoms or were using asthma medication. Comparisons between areas were made for asthma severity, asthma burden and management practices.Results  Asthma severity varied significantly between areas (P < 0.01), with Vietnam and mainland China reporting the most cases with severe, persistent symptoms. Severity of asthma was significantly associated with advancing age and a lower level of education in a multivariate analysis (P < 0.001). The total use of acute healthcare for asthma was significantly associated with increased asthma severity. Work absence due to asthma was highest in the Philippines (46.6%) and lowest in South Korea (7.5%). The use of inhaled corticosteroids was associated with age in a non‐linear manner. There was significant variation among countries in usage of inhaled corticosteroids, from 1.3% in South Korea to 29.0% in Taiwan (P < 0.00001). A peak flow meter was owned by a total of 7.7% of respondents, and overall, 17.9% of adults had a written action plan for asthma management.Conclusions  Within the Asia‐Pacific region, asthma in adults differs significantly in disease severity, management and treatment according to area of residence. International recommendations on the management of asthma are generally not being followed.
Assessment of an asthma quality of life scale using item‐response theory
Authors: ADAMS Robert , ROSIER Malcolm , CAMPBELL Donald , RUFFIN Richard 
Published: October 2005

Objective  Health‐related quality of life (HRQOL) scores produced by simply summing individual item values have been criticized for lacking linearity and for not being equally discriminating across the range of scores. Differences in summed scores may depend more on their starting point on the scale rather than actual differences in the underlying dimension of HRQOL, making it difficult to judge what a particular score means. We sought to examine the usefulness of an alternative method of scoring questionnaires, item–response theory (IRT), for the clinical interpretation of a modified version of the Marks Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (MAQLQ‐M).Methodology:  Using the MAQLQ‐M, we surveyed 293 adults with moderate to severe asthma, managed at two university teaching hospitals in Adelaide, South Australia. Scores obtained by usual summative Likert‐type scores were compared to estimates using the partial credit method of IRT.Results  We found a non‐linear relationship between raw, summative scores and the IRT estimates. The departure from linearity was marked for summative scores below 3.0 and above 5.0 (range 1.0–7.0), values that included half of the study patients. Summative scoring did not produce scores at the interval level of measurement.Conclusion  For an equivalent difference measured in the underlying dimension of actual HRQOL using IRT, traditional summated scores showed a much smaller difference in scores at both the lower and upper end of HRQOL, than at the mid‐range of HRQOL. Caution should be used when interpreting HRQOL surveys scored in the usual summative manner. Advantages may be gained by using IRT as an alternative method of scoring HRQOL questionnaires.
Pulmonary artery pressure and blood flow as predictors of outcome from lung cancer resection
Authors: PIERCE Robert J. , SHARPE Ken , JOHNS Jennifer , THOMPSON Bruce 
Published: October 2005

Objective:  Pulmonary hypertension is a putative risk factor for lung resection but catheter measurements are invasive. The aim of the present study was to assess prediction of mortality and complications from lung resection by Doppler echocardiographic estimates of pulmonary artery pressure (PAp) and soluble gas uptake estimates of effective pulmonary blood flow (Q̇RB).Methodology:  In 33 lung cancer patients, resting PAp (sys) and Q̇RB were measured preoperatively. In 13 patients, supine exercise estimates of PAp (sys) were also made and in five patients catheter PAp estimates were made.Results:  Baseline PAp (sys) was 35 ± 5 mmHg in four patients who died and 35 ± 5 mmHg in 27 survivors. Post‐exercise PAp (sys) was 58 ± 11 mmHg in non‐survivors and 60 ± 11 mmHg in survivors (both not significant). Resting Q̇RB was 3.9 ± 0.35 L/min in two non‐survivors compared with 4.7 ± 0.90 L/min in 22 survivors (P = 0.12) and was significantly lower in those experiencing complications. Regression analysis showed no significant relationship between resting or post‐exercise PAp and mortality, although low Q̇RB tended towards predicting mortality (P = 0.07). There were also trends for higher PAp (sys) to predict respiratory and cardiac complications (P = 0.08) and for lower Q̇RB to predict unspecified or surgical complications.Conclusion:  PAp and Q̇RB did not predict outcome from lung resection better than baseline respiratory function indices.
Gemcitabine and carboplatin in the treatment of locally advanced and metastatic non‐small cell lung cancer
Authors: LEOW Chai‐Hooi , LIAM Chong‐Kin 
Published: October 2005

Objective:  The aim of the study was to evaluate the response, survival advantage and toxicity profile of gemcitabine–carboplatin combination cytotoxic chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced and metastatic non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).Methodology:  Patients who received gemcitabine‐carboplatin combination chemotherapy over a 2.5‐years period were analyzed. Carboplatin at a dose of 5 mg/mL/min (area under the concentration‐time curve) was given on day 1 and gemcitabine (1000 mg/m2) on days 1 and 8, every 3 weeks.Results:  Of 49 chemotherapy‐naive patients (median age, 62 years) who received this treatment, 57% were males, 12% had stage IIIa, 39% stage IIIb and 49% metastatic disease. The Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 70% of the patients was 1 at the time of commencement of chemotherapy and 2 for the remaining 30% of patients. The overall response rate, based on 33 evaluable patients, was 27.3%. The response rate was not affected by age, stage of disease or performance status. The median survival was 9 months. Median survival among patients with an ECOG performance status of 1 was 11 months, as compared with 4 months for patients with an ECOG performance status of 2 (P < 0.001). Toxicity was generally well tolerated and there were no treatment‐related deaths.Conclusions:  Gemcitabine‐carboplatin combination chemotherapy is an effective and well‐tolerated cytotoxic regimen among Malaysian patients with advanced NSCLC. A performance status of 1 or less was associated with a better survival.
The prevalence of acute response to bronchodilator in pulmonary lymphangioleiomyomatosis
Authors: YEN Kenneth T. , PUTZKE John D. , STAATS Bruce A. , BURGER Charles D. 
Published: October 2005

Objective:  The objective of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of acute bronchodilator responses in patients who were evaluated for pulmonary lymphangioleiomyomatosis.Methodology:  This study was a retrospective review of the medical records of 50 patients, who were assessed for lymphangioleiomyomatosis from 1978 to 2002 at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and Jacksonville, Florida, USA. Each medical record was reviewed for pertinent clinical and pulmonary function test data, including results for lung volume and flow, diffusing capacity and response to bronchodilator.Results:  At initial testing, the mean FEV1/FVC ratio for the whole group was 60%; 35 patients (70%) had airflow obstruction; five patients (10%) had only restriction; and 10 (20%) had neither restriction nor obstruction. Three patients (6%) showed a positive response to bronchodilator at initial testing and only one patient showed a positive response at 1 year. Pulmonary function testing at 1‐year follow up was available in a subgroup of this cohort (23 patients; 46%), and only one patient (2%) had a positive response to bronchodilator. Although there was a statistically significant decrease in the FEV1/FVC ratio (from 64% to 62%; P = 0.02), no other differences were found at 1‐year follow up.Conclusions:  In its advanced state, lymphangioleiomyomatosis produces irreversible airflow obstruction. A positive response to bronchodilator was unusual. Other measures of pulmonary function showed little or no change over a 12‐month period.
Prolonged survival after talc poudrage for malignant pleural mesothelioma: Case series
Authors: AELONY Yossef , YAO Janis F. 
Published: October 2005

Objective:  Malignant pleural mesothelioma is a fatal disease with a mean life expectancy of 6–12 months. Since 1982, we have performed thoracoscopic talc poudrage (TTP) as a primary therapy in mesothelioma patients presenting with pleural effusion. As the survival data for our patients surpassed that of many published series, the patient data was analyzed to determine whether talc poudrage can be considered as a contemporary palliative option.Methodology:  We reviewed all 26 patients with a final diagnosis of malignant pleural mesothelioma from our prospective database of 228 consecutive patients who received thoracoscopy from the same physician for recurrent symptomatic pleural effusion. Patients were followed up until their death.Results:  Mean survival after TTP was 23.8 ± 16.3 months (median 19.4, range 2.9–68). Pleurodesis palliated dyspnoea in all patients. No perioperative deaths and one postoperative complication (pneumonia) occurred. Mean hospital stay was 3.9 ± 2.7 days.Conclusion:  TTP remains a safe, low‐morbidity, inexpensive primary palliative treatment option for malignant pleural mesothelioma and a valid control arm option for therapeutic trials. TTP is ideal for patients who wish to avoid thoracotomy, long hospital stays and morbidity from multimodality therapy. Prospective randomized studies are needed to compare quality of life and survival after talc poudrage and other therapies.
Clinicopathological analysis of lung cancer resembling malignant pleural mesothelioma
Authors: KOBASHI Yoshihiro , MATSUSHIMA Toshiharu , IREI Tsutomu 
Published: October 2005

Objective:  The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinicopathological features of lung cancer resembling malignant pleural mesothelioma.Methodology:  The seven patients studied had tumours showing an extensive pleural growth pattern, and were chosen from 1516 lung cancer patients diagnosed at two affiliated hospitals over a 17‐year period.Results:  Histologically, five of these lung cancers were adenocarcinomas, one was a small cell carcinoma, and one a large cell carcinoma. Tumour markers such as carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) were elevated in six patients at admission. However, a clinical diagnosis was difficult and these cancers could only be distinguished from malignant pleural mesothelioma by thoracentesis in two cases, pleural biopsy in two, thoracotomy in two, and in case 7 at autopsy. Treatment consisted of chemotherapy or radiation therapy in four patients, but with little clinical effect. The mean survival time was 6.7 months, which is much less than for true malignant pleural mesothelioma.Conclusions:  Lung cancer resembling malignant pleural mesothelioma is most frequently observed in patients with adenocarcinoma, which is suspected to occur peripherally. To distinguish pseudomesotheliomatous carcinoma from malignant pleural mesothelioma in patients with diffuse pleural thickening and effusion, requires adequate tissue sampling by thoracotomy or video‐assisted thoracoscopic surgery and a panel of immunohistochemical stains.