bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Cohort Study of Adherence to Correct Hand Antisepsis Before and After Performance of Clinical Procedures
Authors: Laustsen Sussie , Lund Elisabeth , Bibby Bo Martin , Kristensen Brian , Thulstrup Ane Marie , Møller Jens Kjølseth 
Published: January 2009

Objective.To investigate the rate of adherence by hospital staff members to the correct use of alcohol-based hand rub before and after performance of clinical procedures.Design.A cohort study conducted during the period from 2006 through 2007 and 2 cross-sectional studies conducted in 2006 and 2007.Setting.Århus University Hospital, Skejby, in Århus, Denmark.Participants.Various hospital staff members.Methods.Following an ongoing campaign promoting the correct use of alcohol-based hand rub, we observed rates of adherence by hospital staff to the correct use of alcohol-based hand rub. Observations were made before and after each contact with patients or patient surroundings during 5 weekdays during the period from 2006 through 2007 in 10 different hospital units. A logistic regression model was used to estimate the rate of adherence to the correct use of alcohol-based hand rub before and after performance of a clinical procedure.Results.A total of 496 participants were observed during 22,906 opportunities for hand hygiene (ie, 11,177 before and 11,729 after clinical procedures) that required the use of alcohol-based hand rub. The overall rates of adherence to the correct use of alcohol-based hand rub were 62.3% (6,968 ofthe 11,177 opportunities) before performance and 68.6% (8,041 ofthe 11,729 opportunities) after performance of clinical procedures. Compared with male participants, female participants were significantly better at adhering to the correct use of alcohol-based hand rub before performance (odds ratio [OR] 1.51 [95% confidence interval {CI}, 1.09–2.10]) and after performance (OR, 1.73 [95% CI, 1.27–2.36]) of clinical procedures. In general, the rate of adherence was significantly higher after the performance of clinical procedures, compared with before (OR, 1.43 [95% CI, 1.35–1.52]). For our cohort of 214 participants who were observed during 14,319 opportunities, the rates of adherence to the correct use of alcohol-based hand rub were 63.2% (4,469 of the 7,071 opportunities) before performance and 69.3% (5,021 of the 7,248 opportunities) after performance of clinical procedures, and these rates increased significantly from 2006 to 2007, except for physicians.Conclusion.We found a high and increasing rate of adherence to the correct use of alcohol-based hand rub before and after performance of clinical procedures following a campaign that promoted the correct use of alcohol-based hand rub. More hospital staff performed hand hygiene with alcohol-based hand rub after performance of clinical procedures, compared with before performance. Future campaigns to improve the rate of adherence to the correct use of alcohol-based hand rub ought be aware that certain groups of hospital staff (eg, male staff members) are known to exhibit a low level of adherence to the correct use of alcohol-based hand rub.
Using a simple morphometric marker to identify spatial units for abalone fishery management
Authors: Saunders T. , Mayfield S. , Hogg A. 
Published: January 2009

AbstractSaunders, T., Mayfield, S., and Hogg, A. 2009. Using a simple morphometric marker to identify spatial units for abalone fishery management. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 66: 305–314. Managing stocks of sedentary marine invertebrates is complicated by the highly structured populations they form. Blacklip abalone (Haliotis rubra) form isolated populations with variable life-history characteristics. Many of the populations are “stunted”, attaining a lower maximum size than those in adjacent areas. To reduce the risks of overfishing and localized depletion, management units (MUs) that encompass individual populations need to be determined, then managed according to their life-history characteristics. Here, potential MUs in a South Australian abalone fishery were identified from the broad-scale, spatial distribution of stunted and “non-stunted” populations of blacklip abalone, by applying a morphometric marker to commercial shell samples. Key life-history parameters of the populations within the potential MUs were estimated using relationships between the morphometric marker and blacklip abalone biology. Data from fine-scale systematic sampling by commercial fishers were used to validate spatial patterns observed from the more broadly distributed commercial catch samples. The location, distribution, and size of potential MUs were largely inconsistent with those of current management. The locations of two MUs (in Gerloffs Bay) were consistent across the broad- and fine-scale datasets, with the fine-scale samples more informative for identifying a potential boundary between them. The disparity between these data and current management arrangements are highlighted, and approaches for modifying them are discussed. This approach is among the first to provide a practical means of more closely aligning the scales of assessment and management with biological reality for sedentary marine invertebrates.
PVYNTN elicits a diverse gene expression response in different potato genotypes in the first 12 h after inoculation
Authors: BAEBLER ŠPELA , KREČIČ‐STRES HANA , ROTTER ANA , KOGOVŠEK POLONA , CANKAR KATARINA , KOK ESTHER J. , GRUDEN KRISTINA , KOVAČ MAJA , ŽEL JANA , POMPE‐NOVAK MARUŠA , RAVNIKAR MAJA 
Published: January 2009

SUMMARYHost gene expression changes in the early response to potato virus YNTN interaction were compared in two differently sensitive potato cultivars: the resistant cultivar Santé and the sensitive cultivar Igor. Hybridization of potato TIGR cDNA microarrays allowed us to monitor the expression of approximately 10 000 genes simultaneously at 0.5 and 12 h post‐inoculation (hpi). Microarray data, analysed by statistics and data mining, were complemented by subtraction library construction and sequence analysis to validate the findings. The expression profiles of the two cultivars were similar and faint at 0.5 hpi, but they differed substantially at 12 hpi. Although, at 0.5 hpi, cv. Santé responded by the differential expression of a greater number of genes, at 12 hpi the number was higher in cv. Igor. The majority of genes in this cultivar were down‐regulated at 12 hpi, indicating a host gene shut‐off. Suites of genes that exhibited altered transcript abundance in response to the virus were identified, and included genes involved in the processes of photosynthesis, perception, signalling and defence responses. The expression of the considerable number of genes associated with photosynthesis was surprisingly up‐regulated as early as 0.5 hpi and down‐regulated at 12 hpi in both cultivars. The expression of genes involved in perception and signalling was increased in the sensitive cultivar at 12 hpi. By contrast, a simultaneous strong defence response at the transcriptional level was evident in the resistant cultivar, as shown by the up‐regulation of genes involved in brassinosteroid, polyamine and secondary metabolite biosynthesis, and of genes coding for pathogenesis‐related proteins.
The Rcs phosphorelay system is essential for pathogenicity in Erwinia amylovora
Authors: WANG DONGPING , KORBAN SCHUYLER S. , ZHAO YOUFU 
Published: January 2009

SUMMARYThe Rcs phosphorelay system is a modified two‐component signal transduction system found exclusively in Enterobacteriaceae. In this study, we characterized the roles of the Rcs system in Erwinia amylovora, a highly virulent and necrogenic enterobacterium causing fire blight disease on rosaceous plants. Our results showed that rcsB, rcsC, rcsD and rcsBD mutants were non‐pathogenic on immature pear fruit. The bacterial growth of these mutants was also greatly reduced compared with that of the wild‐type strain in immature pear fruit. In an in vitro amylovoran assay, rcsB and rcsD mutants were deficient in amylovoran production, whereas the rcsC mutant exhibited higher amylovoran production than that of the wild‐type. Consistent with amylovoran production, expression of the amylovoran biosynthetic gene amsG, using green fluorescent protein as a reporter, was not detectable in rcsB, rcsD and rcsBD mutants both in vitro and in vivo. The expression of amsG in vitro was higher in the rcsC mutant than in the wild‐type, whereas its expression in vivo was higher in the wild‐type than in the rcsC mutant. In addition, rcs mutants were more susceptible to polymyxin B treatment than the wild‐type, suggesting that the Rcs system conferred some level of resistance to polymyxin B. Furthermore, rcs mutants showed irregular and slightly reduced motility on swarming plates. Together, these results indicate that the Rcs system plays a major role in virulence and survival of E. amylovora in immature pear fruit.
Infliximab dependency in children with Crohn’s disease
Authors: DURICOVA D. , PEDERSEN N. , LENICEK M. , HRADSKY O. , BRONSKY J. , ADAMCOVA M. , ELKJAER M. , ANDERSEN P. S. , VITEK L. , LARSEN K. , LUKAS M. , NEVORAL J. , WEWER V. , MUNKHOLM P. 
Published: January 2009

SummaryBackground  Recently, infliximab dependency has been described.Aim  To assess frequency of ID in 82 consecutive Crohn’s disease children treated with infliximab 2000–2006 and to describe clinical and genetic predictors of long‐term infliximab response.Methods  A phenotype model of infliximab dependency was used to assess treatment response: ‘immediate outcome’ (30 days after infliximab start) – complete/partial/no response. ‘Long‐term outcome’: (i) prolonged response: maintenance of complete/partial response; (ii) infliximab dependency: relapse ≤90 days after intended infliximab cessation requiring repeated infusions to regain complete/partial response or need of infliximab >12 months to sustain response. Polymorphisms TNF‐308 A>G, TNF‐857 C>T, Casp9 93 C>T, FasL‐844 C>T, LTA 252 C>T and CARD15 (R702W, G908R, 1007fs) were analysed.Results  Ninety‐four per cent of children obtained complete/partial response. In long‐term outcome, 22% maintained prolonged response, 12% had no response, while 66% became infliximab dependent. Perianal disease and no previous surgery were associated with infliximab dependency (OR 5.34, 95% CI: 1.24–22.55; OR 6.7, 95% CI: 1.67–26.61). No association was found with studied polymorphisms. The cumulative probability of surgery 50 months after starting infliximab was 10% in infliximab dependency, 30% in prolonged responders and 70% in nonresponders (P = 0.0002).Conclusions  Sixty‐six per cent of children became infliximab dependent. Perianal disease and no surgery prior to infliximab were associated with infliximab dependency phenotype.
Time trends in peptic ulcer, erosive reflux oesophagitis, gastric and oesophageal cancers in a multiracial Asian population
Authors: GOH K.‐L. , WONG H.‐ T. , LIM C.‐H. , ROSAIDA M. S. 
Published: January 2009

SummaryBackground  Dramatic changes in the prevalence and pattern of gastrointestinal disease has taken place in Asia in recent years.Aim  To compare the prevalence of duodenal (DU) and gastric ulcers (GU), erosive oesophagitis (EO), gastric cancer (GCA) and oesophageal cancer (OCA) and Helicobacter pylori infection over a 10‐year interval of time in a multiracial South‐East Asian population.Methods  Endoscopy records of first time gastroscopy in the University of Malaya Medical Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia were reviewed for 1989/1990 and 1999/2000.Results  In the period of 1989–1990, 3252 records and in 1999–2000, 4615 records were analysed. Both DU (21.1–9.5%) and GU (11.9–9.4%) had decreased significantly (P < 0.001). EO had increased significantly from 2.0% to 8.4% (P < 0.001). Both GCA and OCA had declined in the 10‐year interval. Helicobacter pylori prevalence had decreased from 51.7% to 30.3% (P < 0.001).The decrease in DU and GU was seen in all racial groups. The increase in EO was most marked in Indians and the decrease in GCA in Chinese. The proportion of H. pylori‐associated DU and GU had also decreased with time.Conclusions  Peptic ulcers and H. pylori infection had declined over a 10‐year period of time and showed an opposing time trend with EO, which had increased dramatically. Both GCA and OCA had declined in prevalence.
Clinical trials: healing of erosive oesophagitis with dexlansoprazole MR, a proton pump inhibitor with a novel dual delayed‐release formulation – results from two randomized controlled studies
Authors: SHARMA P. , SHAHEEN N. J. , PEREZ M. C. , PILMER B. L. , LEE M. , ATKINSON S. N. , PEURA D. 
Published: January 2009

SummaryBackground  Dexlansoprazole MR employs a dual delayed‐release delivery system that extends drug exposure and prolongs pH control compared with lansoprazole.Aim  To assess the efficacy and safety of dexlansoprazole MR in healing erosive oesophagitis (EO).Methods  Patients in two identical double‐blind, randomized controlled trials (n = 4092) received dexlansoprazole MR 60 or 90 mg or lansoprazole 30 mg once daily. Week 8 healing was assessed using a closed testing procedure – first for non‐inferiority, then superiority, vs. lansoprazole. Secondary endpoints included week 4 healing and week 8 healing in patients with moderate‐to‐severe disease (Los Angeles Classification grades C and D). Life‐table and crude rate analyses were performed. Symptoms and tolerability were assessed.Results  Dexlansoprazole MR achieved non‐inferiority to lansoprazole, allowing testing for superiority. Using life‐table analysis, dexlansoprazole MR healed 92–95% of patients in individual studies vs. 86–92% for lansoprazole; the differences were not statistically significant (P > 0.025). Using crude rate analysis, dexlansoprazole MR 90 mg was superior to lansoprazole in both studies and 60 mg was superior in one study. Week 4 healing was >64% with all treatments in both studies. In an integrated analysis of 8‐week healing in patients with moderate‐to‐severe EO, dexlansoprazole MR 90 mg was superior to lansoprazole. All treatments effectively relieved symptoms and were well tolerated.Conclusion  Dexlansoprazole MR is highly effective in healing EO and offers benefits over lansoprazole, particularly in moderate‐to‐severe disease.
Meta‐analysis: efficacy of bovine lactoferrin in Helicobacter pylori eradication
Authors: SACHDEVA A. , NAGPAL J. 
Published: January 2009

SummaryBackground  Several randomized‐controlled trials (RCTs) have sought to determine the efficacy of bovine lactoferrin in Helicobacter pylori eradication with equivocal results.Aim  To evaluate the effect of bovine lactoferrin supplementation in H. pylori eradication.Methods  Electronic databases, reviews, bibliographies, abstracts and conference proceedings were searched. Included trials had to be randomized or quasi‐randomized and controlled, using bovine lactoferrin in the intervention group, treating Helicobacter‐infected subjects and evaluating eradication of H. pylori as an outcome.Results  The search identified five eligible RCTs (of 169). Data were available for 682 subjects (bovine lactoferrin group‐n = 316; control group‐n = 366). The pooled odds ratio (five studies) for eradication by intention‐to‐treat analysis was 2.22 (95% CI 1.44–3.44; P = 0.0003) using the fixed effects model (FEM) and 2.24 (95% CI 1.15–4.35; P = 0.0003) using the random effects model (REM) (Cochran’s Q = 6.83; P = 0.145). The pooled risk difference was 0.11 (95% CI 0.05–0.16; P = 0.0001) by FEM (Cochran’s Q = 6.67; P = 0.154) and 0.10 (95% CI 0.04–0.17; P = 0.0023) by REM. There was no significant difference in incidence of adverse effects.Conclusion  Bovine lactoferrin potentially improves H. pylori eradication rates without any impact on adverse effects, but available evidence is limited and further research is necessary to confirm the findings.
Seismic analysis of clinoform depositional sequences and shelf‐margin trajectories in Lower Cretaceous (Albian) strata, Alaska North Slope
Authors: Houseknecht David W. , Bird Kenneth J. , Schenk Christopher J. 
Published: January 2009

ABSTRACTLower Cretaceous strata beneath the Alaska North Slope include clinoform depositional sequences that filled the western Colville foreland basin and overstepped the Beaufort rift shoulder. Analysis of Albian clinoform sequences with two‐dimensional (2D) seismic data resulted in the recognition of seismic facies inferred to represent lowstand, transgressive and highstand systems tracts. These are stacked to produce shelf‐margin trajectories that appear in low‐resolution seismic data to alternate between aggradational and progradational. Higher‐resolution seismic data reveal shelf‐margin trajectories that are more complex, particularly in net‐aggradational areas, where three patterns commonly are observed: (1) a negative (downward) step across the sequence boundary followed by mostly aggradation in the lowstand systems tract (LST), (2) a positive (upward) step across the sequence boundary followed by mostly progradation in the LST and (3) an upward backstep across a mass‐failure décollement. These different shelf‐margin trajectories are interpreted as (1) fall of relative sea level below the shelf edge, (2) fall of relative sea level to above the shelf edge and (3) mass‐failure removal of shelf‐margin sediment. Lowstand shelf margins mapped using these criteria are oriented north–south in the foreland basin, indicating longitudinal filling from west to east. The shelf margins turn westward in the north, where the clinoform depositional system overstepped the rift shoulder, and turn eastward in the south, suggesting progradation of depositional systems from the ancestral Brooks Range into the foredeep. Lowstand shelf‐margin orientations are consistently perpendicular to clinoform‐foreset‐dip directions. Although the Albian clinoform sequences of the Alaska North Slope are generally similar in stratal geometry to clinoform sequences elsewhere, they are significantly thicker. Clinoform‐sequence thickness ranges from 600–1000 m in the north to 1700–2000 m in the south, reflecting increased accommodation from the rift shoulder into the foredeep. The unusually thick clinoform sequences suggest significant subsidence followed by rapid sediment influx.
Interactions to the fifth trophic level: secondary and tertiary parasitoid wasps show extraordinary efficiency in utilizing host resources
Authors: Harvey Jeffrey A. , Wagenaar Roel , Bezemer T. Martijn 
Published: January 2009

Summary

Parasitoid wasps are highly efficient organisms at utilizing and assimilating limited resources from their hosts. This study explores interactions over three trophic levels, from the third (primary parasitoid) to the fourth (secondary parasitoid) and terminating in the fifth (tertiary parasitoid).
Host utilization and adult body mass of the secondary and tertiary parasitoid Gelis agilis was determined when developing on pre‐pupae of its primary parasitoid host, Cotesia glomerata, and from pre‐pupae of another secondary parasitoid, Lysibia nana that had developed initially on pre‐pupae of C. glomerata.
In both C. glomerata and G. agilis, the body mass of emerging adult parasitoids was strongly positively correlated with initial cocoon mass. For a given cocoon mass at parasitism, emerging adult G. agilis wasps were almost 90% as large as C. glomerata adults developing in healthy cocoons of comparable mass. Furthermore, G. agilis adults were still 75% as large as C. glomerata adults even when developing on L. nana that in turn had developed on C. glomerata. Otherwise, in terms of adult body mass per unit of host resources, there was no apparent difference in the quality of C. glomerata or L. nana hosts for the development of G. agilis.
Analyses of carbon and nitrogen in body tissues of the parasitoids over the third to the fifth trophic level revealed that percentage nitrogen was higher and carbon lower in G. agilis and L. nana than in C. glomerata. Furthermore, percentage carbon was lower in adult G. agilis wasps that had developed from L. nana than from C. glomerata.
We argue that the remarkable efficiency which characterizes the development of secondary and tertiary parasitoids is based on the very high nutritional quality of resources that increase in quality up the food chain and rigid selection optimizing allocation of limited host resources. Consequently, food webs involving secondary and tertiary parasitoids can go to levels hitherto unexplored thus far in empirical studies. The use of molecular markers in future studies may reveal just how long food chains involving these insects may extend.
Body size and predatory performance in wolves: is bigger better?
Authors: MacNulty Daniel R. , Smith Douglas W. , Mech L. David , Eberly Lynn E. 
Published: January 2009

Summary

Large body size hinders locomotor performance in ways that may lead to trade‐offs in predator foraging ability that limit the net predatory benefit of larger size. For example, size‐related improvements in handling prey may come at the expense of pursuing prey and thus negate any enhancement in overall predatory performance due to increasing size.
This hypothesis was tested with longitudinal data from repeated observations of 94 individually known wolves (Canis lupus) hunting elk (Cervus elaphus) in Yellowstone National Park, USA. Wolf size was estimated from an individually based sex‐specific growth model derived from body mass measurements of 304 wolves.
Larger size granted individual wolves a net predatory advantage despite substantial variation in its effect on the performance of different predatory tasks; larger size improved performance of a strength‐related task (grappling and subduing elk) but failed to improve performance of a locomotor‐related task (selecting an elk from a group) for wolves > 39 kg.
Sexual dimorphism in wolf size also explained why males outperformed females in each of the three tasks considered (attacking, selecting, and killing).
These findings support the generalization that bigger predators are overall better hunters, but they also indicate that increasing size ultimately limits elements of predatory behaviour that require superior locomotor performance. We argue that this could potentially narrow the dietary niche of larger carnivores as well as limit the evolution of larger size if prey are substantially more difficult to pursue than to handle.
Food web topology and parasites in the pelagic zone of a subarctic lake
Authors: Amundsen Per‐Arne , Lafferty Kevin D. , Knudsen Rune , Primicerio Raul , Klemetsen Anders , Kuris Armand M. 
Published: January 2009

Summary

Parasites permeate trophic webs with their often complex life cycles, but few studies have included parasitism in food web analyses. Here we provide a highly resolved food web from the pelagic zone of a subarctic lake and explore how the incorporation of parasites alters the topology of the web.
Parasites used hosts at all trophic levels and increased both food‐chain lengths and the total number of trophic levels. Their inclusion in the network analyses more than doubled the number of links and resulted in an increase in important food‐web characteristics such as linkage density and connectance.
More than half of the parasite taxa were trophically transmitted, exploiting hosts at multiple trophic levels and thus increasing the degree of omnivory in the trophic web.
For trophically transmitted parasites, the number of parasite–host links exhibited a positive correlation with the linkage density of the host species, whereas no such relationship was seen for nontrophically transmitted parasites. Our findings suggest that the linkage density of free‐living species affects their exposure to trophically transmitted parasites, which may be more likely to adopt highly connected species as hosts during the evolution of complex life cycles.
The study supports a prominent role for parasites in ecological networks and demonstrates that their incorporation may substantially alter considerations of food‐web structure and functioning.