bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Macrophage migration inhibitory factor stimulates interleukin‐17 expression and production in lymph node cells
Authors: Stojanović Ivana , Cvjetićanin Tamara , Lazaroski Sandra , Stošić‐Grujičić Stanislava , Miljković Djordje 
Published: July 2008

SummaryInterleukin (IL)‐17 is a pro‐inflammatory cytokine produced by recently described T helper type 17 (Th17) cells, which have critical role in immunity to extracellular bacteria and the pathogenesis of several autoimmune disorders. IL‐6 and transforming growth factor (TGF)‐β are crucial for the generation of Th17 cells in mice, while the production of IL‐17 is supported by various cytokines, including IL‐23, IL‐1β, IL‐21, IL‐15 and tumour necrosis factor (TNF)‐α. In this study, the influence of a multifunctional cytokine, macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF), on IL‐17 production in mice was investigated. Treatment of lymph node cells (LNCs) with recombinant MIF up‐regulated mitogen‐stimulated IL‐17 expression and secretion. Additionally, LNCs from MIF knockout mice (mif−/−) had severely impaired production of IL‐17, as well as of IL‐1β, IL‐6, IL‐23 and TGF‐β. When stimulated with recombinant IL‐1β, IL‐23 or TNF‐α, mitogen‐triggered mif−/−LNCs were fully able to achieve the IL‐17 production seen in wild‐type (WT) LNCs, while the addition of IL‐6 and TGF‐β had no effect. Finally, after injection of mice with complete Freund’s adjuvant, secretion of IL‐17 as well as the number of IL‐17‐positive cells was significantly lower in the draining lymph nodes of mif−/−mice in comparison with WT mice. The effect of MIF on IL‐17 production was dependent on p38, extracellular signal‐regulated kinase (ERK), Jun N‐terminal kinase (JNK) and Janus kinase 2/signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (Jak2/STAT3), and not on nuclear factor (NF)‐κB and nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) signalling. Bearing in mind the contribution of MIF and IL‐17 to the pathology of inflammatory and autoimmune disorders, from the results presented here it seems plausible that targeting MIF biological activity could be a valid therapeutic approach for the treatment of such diseases.
CD8+ regulatory T cells are responsible for GAD‐IgG gene‐transferred tolerance induction in NOD mice
Authors: Wang Renxi , Han Gencheng , Song Lun , Wang Jianan , Chen Guojiang , Xu Ruonan , Yu Ming , Qian Jiahua , Shen Beifen , Li Yan 
Published: July 2008

SummaryOur previous studies demonstrated that lipopolysaccharide (LPS)‐stimulated splenocytes, retrovirally transduced with a glutamate decarboxylate 65 (GAD) and immunoglobulin G (IgG) fusion construct, can protect non‐obese diabetic (NOD) mice from diabetes by inducing GAD‐specific tolerance, and also that there are increased numbers of CD4+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) in GAD‐IgG‐treated NOD mice. However, little is known about the role of CD8+ Tregs in GAD‐IgG gene‐transferred tolerance induction in NOD mice. Here, we found that GAD‐IgG‐transduced splenocytes induced an increase in the number of CD8+ Foxp3+ Tregs in vitro. Using a T‐cell depletion assay, we found that, compared with undepleted groups, NOD recipients transfused with CD8– or CD8– CD25– GAD‐IgG‐transduced splenocytes showed a decrease in the percentage of CD8+ Foxp3+ T cells, a high incidence of diabetes, serious insulitis, GAD‐specific hyperresponsiveness at both the cellular and humoral levels, and changes in cytokine expression. These results indicate that CD8+ Tregs, which were induced in vitro by GAD‐IgG‐transduced splenocytes, were also responsible for GAD‐IgG gene‐transferred tolerance induction in NOD mice.
Expressed sequence tags and proteomics of antennae from the tortricid moth, Epiphyas postvittana
Authors: Jordan M. D. , Stanley D. , Marshall S. D. G. , De Silva D. , Crowhurst R. N. , Gleave A. P. , Greenwood D. R. , Newcomb R. D. 
Published: July 2008

AbstractGenomic and proteomic analyses of the antennae of the light brown apple moth, Epiphyas postvittana (Walker) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) were undertaken to identify genes and proteins potentially involved in odorant and pheromone binding and turnover. An EST approach yielded 5739 sequences, comprising 808 contigs and 1545 singletons. InterPro and Blast analyses revealed members of families implicated in odorant and pheromone binding (PBPs, GOBPs, ABPXs and CSPs) and turnover (CXEs, GSTs, CYPs). Of the three pheromone binding proteins (PBPs) identified, two were more highly expressed at the RNA and protein levels in adult male antennae (EpPBP1, EpPBP3), while a third was more highly expressed in female antennae (EpPBP2). To identify proteins involved in the detection of sex‐specific signals, differential 2D gel electrophoresis (pH 5–8) followed by mass spectrometry was conducted on antennal proteins from males versus females. Identified male‐biased proteins included a pheromone binding protein, a porin, a short chain dehydrogenase/reductase, and a member of the takeout family.
Influences of climate on fire regimes in montane forests of north‐western Mexico
Authors: Skinner Carl N. , Burk Jack H. , Barbour Michael G. , Franco‐Vizcaíno Ernesto , Stephens Scott L. 
Published: July 2008

AbstractAim To identify the influence of interannual and interdecadal climate variation on the occurrence and extent of fires in montane conifer forests of north‐western Mexico.Location This study was conducted in Jeffrey pine (Pinus jeffreyiGrev. & Balf.)‐dominated mixed‐conifer forests in the central and northern plateau of the Sierra San Pedro Mártir, Baja California, Mexico.Methods Fire occurrence was reconstructed for 12 dispersed sites for a 290‐year period (1700–1990) from cross‐dated fire‐scarred samples extracted from live trees, snags and logs. Superposed epoch analysis was used to examine the relationships of tree‐ring reconstructions of drought, the El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) with fire occurrence and extent.Results Years with no recorded fire scars were wetter than average. In contrast, years of widespread fires were dry and associated with phase changes of the PDO, usually from positive (warm) to negative (cold). The influence of the PDO was most evident during the La Niña phase of the ENSO. Widespread fires were also associated with warm/wet conditions 5 years before the fire. We hypothesize that the 5‐year lag between warm/wet conditions and widespread fires may be associated with the time necessary to build up sufficient quantity and continuity of needle litter to support widespread fires. Two periods of unusually high fire activity (1770–1800 and 1920–1950) were each followed by several decades of unusually low fire activity. The switch in each case was associated with strong phase changes in both PDO and ENSO.Main conclusions Climate strongly influences fire regimes in the mountains of north‐western Mexico. Wet/warm years are associated with little fire activity. However, these years may contribute to subsequent fire years by encouraging the production of sufficient needle litter to support more widespread fires that occur in dry/cool years.
Water–energy, land‐cover and heterogeneity drivers of the distribution of plant species richness in a mountain region of the European Alps
Authors: Marini Lorenzo , Prosser Filippo , Klimek Sebastian , Marrs Robert H. 
Published: July 2008

AbstractAim  To evaluate the relative importance of water–energy, land‐cover, environmental heterogeneity and spatial variables on the regional distribution of Red‐Listed and common vascular plant species richness.Location  Trento Province (c. 6200 km2) on the southern border of the European Alps (Italy), subdivided regularly into 228 3′ × 5′ quadrants.Methods  Data from a floristic inventory were separated into two subsets, representing Red‐Listed and common (i.e. all except Red‐Listed) plant species richness. Both subsets were separately related to water–energy, land‐cover and environmental heterogeneity variables. We simultaneously applied ordinary least squares regression with variation partitioning and hierarchical partitioning, attempting to identify the most important factors controlling species richness. We combined the analysis of environmental variables with a trend surface analysis and a spatial autocorrelation analysis.Results  At the regional scale, plant species richness of both Red‐Listed and common species was primarily related to energy availability and land cover, whereas environmental heterogeneity had a lesser effect. The greatest number of species of both subsets was found in quadrants with the largest energy availability and the greatest degree of urbanization. These findings suggest that the elevation range within our study region imposes an energy‐driven control on the distribution of species richness, which resembles that of the broader latitude gradient. Overall, the two species subsets had similar trends concerning the relative importance of water–energy, land cover and environmental heterogeneity, showing a few differences regarding the selection of some predictors of secondary importance. The incorporation of spatial variables did not improve the explanatory power of the environmental models and the high original spatial autocorrelation in the response variables was reduced drastically by including the selected environmental variables.Main conclusions  Water–energy and land cover showed significant pure effects in explaining plant species richness, indicating that climate and land cover should both be included as explanatory variables in modelling species richness in human‐affected landscapes. However, the high degree of shared variation between the two groups made the relative effects difficult to separate. The relatively low range of variation in the environmental heterogeneity variables within our sampling domain might have caused the low importance of this complex factor.
The Late Holocene extinction of Pinus sylvestris in the western Cantabrian Range (Spain)
Authors: Rubiales Juan M. , García‐Amorena Ignacio , Álvarez Salvia García , Manzaneque Fernando Gómez 
Published: July 2008

AbstractAim  To reconstruct the historical biogeography of Pinus sylvestris in the Cantabrian Range (Iberian Peninsula) during the Holocene, and to consider the interactions between vegetation dynamics, climate change and the role of man in the present‐day distribution of the species.Location  The study site is a mire (1300 m a.s.l.) at Vega de Viejos, on a south‐facing slope of the western Cantabrian Range, Spain. The region’s present‐day landscape is almost treeless, with the exception of some patches of Quercus pyrenaica and a few copses of Salix and Betula along stream banks.Methods  Tree macrofossils from Vega de Viejos were studied by transmitted light and dark‐field reflection microscopy; strobili were subjected to comparative morphological analyses. Two Pinus macrofossils were dated by conventional 14C methods.Results  The taxonomic accuracy achieved in the identification of the macrofossils provided new information regarding the Holocene history of Pinus sylvestris in this territory. Ninety‐five cones of this species were identified; in fact, more than 80% of the 36 identified wood remains were of Pinus gr. sylvestris. Radiocarbon dating revealed that the forest to which the fossils belonged was present until at least 2170 ± 50 yr bp– its disappearance was therefore relatively recent.Main conclusions  Pinus sylvestris suffered long‐term isolation, and after the Würm glacial period tended to migrate towards the east. In western Iberia, a temperate climate and autogenic succession favoured broadleaved taxa at the expense of Pinus. Late Holocene human disturbances may have further accelerated the decline of P. sylvestris; in the Cantabrian Range, only a few stands on southern slopes have persisted until the present day. The history of the capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus), a bird characteristic of pure or mixed Palaeartic coniferous forests, was almost certainly affected by the demise of these forests in this area. Cantabrian capercaillies are the only members of this species that live in purely deciduous forests, perhaps a recent adaptation to the regional extinction of pines. Today’s P. sylvestris and capercaillie populations are now highly fragmented and their future, given the predictions of global climate change, is uncertain.
Taxonomic homogenization in ungulates: patterns and mechanisms at local and global scales
Authors: Spear Dian , Chown Steven L. 
Published: July 2008

AbstractAim The aim of this paper is to examine taxonomic homogenization in ungulates globally and at the local scale in South Africa. Specifically, we aim to examine the roles of distance, scale, time, extinctions vs. introductions, and extralimital vs. extraregional introductions in the homogenization of ungulate biotas, and to determine pathways of introduction of ungulate species globally and the proximate explanatory variables of ungulate introductions in South Africa.Location Forty‐one countries globally and three spatial resolutions in South Africa.Methods Indigenous, extirpated and established introduced ungulate species data were obtained for countries globally, and at a quarter‐degree grid‐cell resolution in South Africa. Homogenization was calculated using Jaccard’s index of similarity (JI) for countries globally and for three spatial resolutions in South Africa. Zoo holdings and transfer data from the International Species Information System database were used to investigate the relationship between non‐indigenous ungulate species introductions and the number of non‐indigenous ungulate species in zoos. Relationships between JI and species richness, and between numbers of introductions and several environmental and social factors were examined using generalized linear models.Results Homogenization in ungulates was 2% for countries globally and 8% at the coarsest resolution in South Africa. Homogenization increased with increasing resolution and with time, but it decreased with increasing percentage change in species richness. Globally, introductions contributed more to homogenization than did extinctions. Within South Africa, extralimital introductions contributed more to the homogenization of ungulate assemblages than did extraregional ones, and ungulates were typically introduced to high‐income areas with high human population and livestock densities. The same was not true in the past, when ungulates were introduced to ungulate species‐poor areas. The number of non‐indigenous ungulate species established in a country is significantly related to the number of non‐indigenous ungulate species in zoos in the country, possibly owing to sales of surplus animals from zoos.Main conclusions Ungulate faunas are homogenized at both the global scale and in South Africa, with extralimital introductions being of considerable significance regionally. In consequence, increasing attention will have to be given to the conservation consequences of ungulate translocations, both within particular geopolitical regions and across the globe.
The origin and evolution of Indomalesian, Australasian and Pacific island biotas: insights from Aglaieae (Meliaceae, Sapindales)
Authors: Muellner Alexandra N. , Pannell Caroline M. , Coleman Annette , Chase Mark W. 
Published: July 2008

AbstractAim  The role of long‐distance dispersal in the Indomalesian, Australasian and Pacific flora is currently hotly debated. The lack of well‐resolved phylogenetic trees for Pacific plants has been a major limitation for biogeographical analysis. Here, we present a well‐resolved phylogenetic tree for the tribe Aglaieae in the mahogany family, Meliaceae, and use it to investigate the origin, evolution and dispersal history of biotas in this area. The subfamily Melioideae, including the tribe Aglaieae (Meliaceae, Sapindales), is a plant group with good representation in the region in terms of biomass and species numbers, wide ecological attributes and known animal vectors. The family has a good fossil record (especially from North America and Europe). Genera and species in the tribe Aglaieae therefore provide an excellent model group for addressing this debate.Location  Indomalesia, Australasia, Pacific islands.Methods  Results from nuclear internal transcribed spacer ribosomal DNA analyses of 82 taxa, based on sequence alignment guided by secondary structure models, were combined with evidence from fossils and distribution data. We used strict and relaxed molecular clock approaches to estimate divergence times within Aglaieae. Putative ancestral areas were investigated through area‐based and event‐based biogeographical approaches. Information on dispersal routes and their direction was inferred from the investigation of dispersal asymmetries between areas.Results  Our study indicates that the crown group of Aglaieae dates back at least to the Late Eocene, with major divergence events occurring during the Oligocene and Miocene. It also suggests that dispersal routes existed during Miocene–Pliocene times from the area including Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo to Wallacea, India and Indochina, and from the area including New Guinea, New Ireland and New Britain further east to the Pacific islands at the peripheries of the distribution range. The origin of the Fijian species dates back to the Pliocene.Main conclusions  Dispersal over oceanic water barriers has occurred during geological time and seems to have been a major driving force for divergence events in Aglaieae, with some old Gondwanan land masses (e.g. Australia) colonized only during recent times. Movement from the ancestral area was predominantly towards the east. Extant Fijian species of Aglaia are monophyletic and share morphological features rarely found in species of other areas, suggesting speciation within an endemic clade. Divergence of living taxa from their closest living relatives took place during both the Miocene and the Pliocene, and peaked in the Pliocene. The present‐day distribution of many species in the tribe must therefore have arisen as a result of dispersal rather than vicariance events. Furthermore, colonization from Indomalesia to Australasia and the Pacific has frequently been followed by speciation.
What clinical characteristics of children with autism influence their inclusion in regular classrooms?
Authors: Yianni‐Coudurier C. , Darrou C. , Lenoir P. , Verrecchia B. , Assouline B. , Ledesert B. , Michelon C. , Pry R. , Aussilloux C. , Baghdadli A. 
Published: July 2008

AbstractBackground  This study took place in the context of recent legislation enacted in several countries – including France – and aimed at promoting inclusion of children with intellectual disabilities. It focuses on young children with autism and examines the links between the children's characteristics and their weekly hours of regular‐classroom inclusion and intervention in specialised setting.Method  Standardised clinical and sociodemographic data were collected for 77 children with autism, along with data about their interventional programmes.Results  The study showed that the number of hours of inclusion at school was influenced by the children's behavioural and adaptive characteristics, as well as by the socioprofessional category of their parents, although these factors did not affect the number of hours spent in specialised setting. Moreover, the total amount of time per week spent in interventional services of any kind was very small for some of the children.Conclusion  The time spent in special‐intervention services and regular classrooms combined did not add up to an adequate number of weekly hours for these children, particularly those exhibiting at least one of the following characteristics: low adaptation level, major behavioural problems or low socioprofessional category of parents.
The combined effect of albuminuria and inflammation on all‐cause and cardiovascular mortality in nondiabetic persons
Authors: Jørgensen L. , Jenssen T. , Heuch I. , Jacobsen B. K. 
Published: July 2008

Abstract.Objectives and design.  Recent studies have shown that albuminuria accompanied by evidence of subclinical inflammation is more strongly associated with metabolic abnormalities and the development of atherosclerosis than albuminuria alone. The aim of this population‐based prospective study was to examine the combined effect of albuminuria and inflammatory markers on all‐cause and cardiovascular‐mortality in nondiabetic individuals without macroalbuminuria.Subjects and methods.  Urinary albumin and creatinine, some inflammatory markers (fibrinogen, white blood cell and monocyte count) and cardiovascular risk factors were measured in 5702 persons in Tromsø, Norway. Baseline data were collected in 1994–1995 and follow‐up was through 2005.Results.  For a one standard deviation higher value of the log‐transformed ratio between albumin and creatinine (ACR), the mortality rate ratio for all‐cause mortality was 1.21 when adjusted for age, gender, established cardiovascular risk factors as well as fibrinogen and white blood cell count (P < 0.001). The corresponding mortality rate ratio for cardiovascular mortality was 1.24 (P < 0.001). Persons in the upper quartile of both ACR and either of the inflammatory markers had an age‐ and gender‐adjusted all‐cause and cardiovascular mortality rate that was four times that of subjects in the lowest quartiles (P < 0.001).Conclusion.  ACR predicts all‐cause and cardiovascular mortality in persons without known diabetes and macroalbuminuria. The mortality is especially high amongst individuals with elevated levels of both ACR and inflammatory markers.
Endocannabinoids and the Neurochemistry of Gluttony
Authors: Kirkham Tim 
Published: July 2008

SummaryCannabis exerts its actions by mimicking ‘endocannabinoid’ neuromodulators at CB1 receptors in brain and peripheral tissues. The endocannabinoids both stimulate appetite by increasing food craving and enjoyment and promote the deposition of energy as fat in adipose tissues. These findings have raised the possibility of CB1 antagonists as a novel class of anti‐obesity agents.
Dermatophagoides farinae‐specific IgG responses in atopic dogs undergoing allergen‐specific immunotherapy with aqueous vaccines
Authors: Hou Chia‐Chun , Griffin Craig E. , Hill Peter B. 
Published: July 2008

AbstractThe molecular and immunologic mechanisms associated with successful allergen‐specific immunotherapy (ASIT) have not been completely elucidated. The aim of this study was to characterize the changes in Dermatophagoides farinae‐specific IgG in atopic dogs undergoing ASIT using aqueous vaccines. Fifteen atopic dogs with a positive skin test reaction to D. farinae were treated with aqueous vaccines for a minimum of 2 months following a standard protocol. Serum samples were collected before and during therapy and used to probe Western blots containing separated proteins of D. farinae. IgG responses were detected using a polyclonal goat anticanine IgG antibody and a chromogenic substrate 3,3′‐diaminobenzidine. The blots were analysed using a semiquantitative digital image analysis system that evaluated the number and molecular weight of bands, as well as their intensity, which was related to IgG concentration. Prior to ASIT, all dogs showed allergen‐specific IgG responses to various antigens of D. farinae. During ASIT, there was a significant increase in the total quantity of D. farinae‐specific IgG antibodies to various antigens from the mite (P = 0.015). Significant increases were observed for a 98‐kDa band (P = 0.015), likely to be Der f 15; bands with molecular weights between 50 and 70 kDa (P = 0.012); and bands between 30 and 45 kDa (P = 0.035). These findings provide support for the hypothesis that ASIT induces IgG blocking antibodies to allergens known to be relevant in canine atopic dermatitis.