bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
PERM: a computer program to detect structuring factors in social units
Authors: DUCHESNE PIERRE , ÉTIENNE CÉDRIC , BERNATCHEZ LOUIS 
Published: May 2006

Abstract perm is a permutation program designed to detect statistical connections between grouping structures and grouping factors or correlates. Groups may be of various kinds such as herds, flocks, schools and mating couples provided they make up meaningful social units. Relatedness, population membership and genotypic contents are among several aggregating variables which may be processed. Typically, perm takes in a collection of grouped data and outputs a P value. The latter is computed on the basis of random membership among groups (HO). All files, including input, output and program, are of Excel type (.xls). perm can be downloaded free of charge at: http://www.bio.ulaval.ca/louisbernatchez/downloads.htm.
Isolation of highly polymorphic autosomal microsatellite loci and a sex‐linked locus from sugarbirds
Authors: FELDHEIM KEVIN A. , MCFARLANE MHAIRI L. , BOWIE RAURI C. K. 
Published: May 2006

AbstractWe describe the isolation of six tetranucleotide microsatellites from the Cape sugarbird (Promerops cafer) using an enrichment protocol. All loci were highly variable with number of alleles ranging from nine to 26 and values of observed heterozygosity ranging from 0.534 to 0.931. All loci were in Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium with the exception of Pro66 and Pro86. Further analysis of Pro86 indicated it was Z‐linked. All loci amplified and were variable in the congeneric Gurneys sugarbird (Promerops gurneyi). These loci will be used in mating system and phylogeographic studies of Cape sugarbirds in South Africa.
Ten polymorphic dinucleotide microsatellite markers of the noble scallop Chlamys nobilis
Authors: HUI MIN , BAO ZHENMIN , ZHAN AIBIN , HU XIAOLI , LU WEI , CHANG DAN , HU JINGJIE 
Published: May 2006

AbstractThe primers flanking 22 microsatellites isolated from a genomic library enriched for (CA)n and (GA)n were designed in the noble scallop Chlamys nobilis. Ten primer pairs provided clear and polymorphic amplification products. Based on characterization with 48 individuals, the number of alleles ranged from three to six. The values of observed heterozygosity and expected heterozygosity varied from 0 to 0.88 and from 0.29 to 0.76, respectively. No significant linkage disequilibrium between pairs of loci was found and six of 10 loci conformed to the Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium. These markers are therefore potentially useful for studies of the population structure of the species.
Refractive issues in pregnancy
Authors: SHARMA Sushma , REKHA Wuntakal , SHARMA Tarun , DOWNEY Gabrielle 
Published: May 2006

AbstractPregnancy is known to cause refractive changes as a result of various hormonal changes occurring during pregnancy. These changes may persist for a few weeks post‐partum and during lactation. In this article we discuss various refractive issues in pregnancy that have an effect on contact lens use, myopia and the outcome of refractive surgery.
Recent impact of anal sphincter injury on overall Caesarean section incidence
Authors: MAHONY Rhona , O’HERLIHY Colm 
Published: May 2006

AbstractIntroduction:  Because of increasing recognition of obstetric anal sphincter injury and faecal incontinence, we examined the recent impact of these indications on our institutional Caesarean section incidence.Methods:  Retrospective review of the indications for multiparous Caesarean section was performed at the National Maternity Hospital for the 4 years 2000–2003, inclusive, to identify women in whom previous anal sphincter injury was an indication. Individual charts were reviewed and data regarding the nature and extent of previous anal sphincter injury were obtained.Results:  Among 17 586 consecutive multiparous deliveries, previous anal sphincter trauma constituted the indication for Caesarean delivery in 67 women, representing 0.4% of all multiparae, 2.9% of multiparous Caesarean sections and 1.3% of all Caesarean sections performed. Fifty (85%) of the 67 women who opted for prelabour Caesarean delivery following previous obstetric anal sphincter injury had symptoms of faecal incontinence (mean continence score 5, range 1–17).Conclusion:  Notwithstanding recent increased awareness and documentation, anal sphincter problems represent a small influence on total Caesarean incidence.
Invasive Haemophilus parainfluenzae maternal–infant infections: An Australasian perspective and case report
Authors: RELE Mhisti , GILES Michelle , DALEY Andrew J. 
Published: May 2006

AbstractMaternal and neonatal infection with Haemophilus parainfluenzae is an unusual but potentially life‐threatening occurrence. We present a case of H. parainfluenzae complicating pregnancy in the second trimester. Predisposing factors for infection with Haemophilus species and Australasian data on invasive neonatal Haemophilus infections are presented.
The role of activins during decidualisation of human endometrium
Authors: JONES Rebecca L. , FINDLAY Jock K. , SALAMONSEN Lois A. 
Published: May 2006

AbstractDecidualisation of the endometrial stroma is critical to create a specialised environment for embryo implantation and trophoblast invasion; however, the mechanisms involved are poorly understood. We have established that activin A is an important regulator of decidualisation of endometrial stromal cells in vitro. Here we describe studies that verify the physiological significance of these findings. We demonstrate that high concentrations of activin A are produced by decidualising cells in excess of the antagonists, inhibin and follistatin, thus confirming its bioavailability within the decidual environment. Furthermore, we demonstrate that all components of the activin signalling pathway (activin receptors and Smads) are expressed in decidualised cells, and identify a downstream mechanism for activin in the endometrium, through the regulation of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). This new knowledge is important for understanding the roles for activins and inhibins in regulating fertility.
The genetic basis of premature ovarian failure
Authors: WOAD Kathryn J. , WATKINS Wendy J. , PRENDERGAST Deborah , SHELLING Andrew N. 
Published: May 2006

AbstractPremature ovarian failure (POF) is a common condition, affecting approximately 1:100 women. It is characterised by amenorrhea, hypoestrogenism, and elevated gonadotrophin levels in women under the age of 40. It is often an unexpected and distressing diagnosis, which coincides with infertility and menopausal symptoms. There is a well recognised genetic basis to the development of POF. Our laboratory has identified several candidate genes associated with POF.
Credit Ratings and Capital Structure
Authors: KISGEN DARREN J. 
Published: May 2006

ABSTRACTThis paper examines to what extent credit ratings directly affect capital structure decisions. The paper outlines discrete costs (benefits) associated with firm credit rating level differences and tests whether concerns for these costs (benefits) directly affect debt and equity financing decisions. Firms near a credit rating upgrade or downgrade issue less debt relative to equity than firms not near a change in rating. This behavior is consistent with discrete costs (benefits) of rating changes but is not explained by traditional capital structure theories. The results persist within previous empirical tests of the pecking order and tradeoff capital structure theories.
Investor Sentiment and Pre‐IPO Markets
Authors: CORNELLI FRANCESCA , GOLDREICH DAVID , LJUNGQVIST ALEXANDER 
Published: May 2006

ABSTRACTWe examine whether irrational behavior among small (retail) investors drives post‐IPO prices. We use prices from the grey market (the when‐issued market that precedes European IPOs) to proxy for small investors' valuations. High grey market prices (indicating overoptimism) are a very good predictor of first‐day aftermarket prices, while low grey market prices (indicating excessive pessimism) are not. Moreover, we find long‐run price reversal only following high grey market prices. This asymmetry occurs because larger (institutional) investors can choose between keeping the shares they are allocated in the IPO, and reselling them when small investors are overoptimistic.
Do Dividend Clienteles Exist? Evidence on Dividend Preferences of Retail Investors
Authors: GRAHAM JOHN R. , KUMAR ALOK 
Published: May 2006

ABSTRACTWe study stock holdings and trading behavior of more than 60,000 households and find evidence consistent with dividend clienteles. Retail investor stock holdings indicate a preference for dividend yield that increases with age and decreases with income, consistent with age and tax clienteles, respectively. Trading patterns reinforce this evidence: Older, low‐income investors disproportionally purchase stocks before the ex‐dividend day. Furthermore, among small stocks, the ex‐day price drop decreases with age and increases with income, consistent with clientele effects. Finally, consistent with the behavioral “attention” hypothesis, we document that older and low‐income investors purchase stocks following dividend announcements.
Secondary Trading Costs in the Municipal Bond Market
Authors: HARRIS LAWRENCE E. , PIWOWAR MICHAEL S. 
Published: May 2006

ABSTRACTUsing new econometric methods, we separately estimate average transaction costs for over 167,000 bonds from a 1‐year sample of all U.S. municipal bond trades. Municipal bond transaction costs decrease with trade size and do not depend significantly on trade frequency. Also, municipal bond trades are substantially more expensive than similar‐sized equity trades. We attribute these results to the lack of bond market price transparency. Additional cross‐sectional analyses show that bond trading costs increase with credit risk, instrument complexity, time to maturity, and time since issuance. Investors, and perhaps ultimately issuers, might benefit if issuers issued simpler bonds.
Uncovering the Risk–Return Relation in the Stock Market
Authors: GUO HUI , WHITELAW ROBERT F. 
Published: May 2006

ABSTRACTThere is ongoing debate about the apparent weak or negative relation between risk (conditional variance) and expected returns in the aggregate stock market. We develop and estimate an empirical model based on the intertemporal capital asset pricing model (ICAPM) that separately identifies the two components of expected returns, namely, the risk component and the component due to the desire to hedge changes in investment opportunities. The estimated coefficient of relative risk aversion is positive, statistically significant, and reasonable in magnitude. However, expected returns are driven primarily by the hedge component. The omission of this component is partly responsible for the existing contradictory results.
Which Investors Fear Expropriation? Evidence from Investors' Portfolio Choices
Authors: GIANNETTI MARIASSUNTA , SIMONOV ANDREI 
Published: May 2006

ABSTRACTUsing a data set that provides unprecedented detail on investors' stockholdings, we analyze whether investors take the quality of corporate governance into account when selecting stocks. We find that all categories of investors (domestic and foreign, institutional and small individual) who generally enjoy only security benefits are reluctant to invest in companies with weak corporate governance. In contrast, individuals connected with company insiders are more likely to invest in weak corporate governance companies. These findings suggest that it is important to distinguish between investors who enjoy private benefits or access private information, and investors who enjoy only security benefits.
State Poverty Rates: Do the New Welfare Policies Make a Difference?
Authors: Rodgers Harrell R. , Payne Lee , Chervachidze Serguei 
Published: May 2006

AbstractThis article uses four models to identify the best predictors of state poverty levels and changes in state poverty rates since the implementation of welfare reform. The policy decisions based on the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) by the states are tested along with more traditional variables identified in the literature. Using several measures of state poverty, the analysis finds that those states with the lowest poverty rates are those with the healthiest economies, and the most generous state spending on Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). States with the highest percentage of their TANF rolls made up of black citizens tend to have the highest rates of poverty. Initial poverty rates are found to be important in that states with higher initial poverty levels are capable of generating a larger reduction in poverty than states with lower initial rates. With the exception of limited evidence on sanctions, none of the PRWORA–based policies were found to have any effect on poverty rates.
Differential predation by the generalist predator Orius insidiosus on congeneric species of thrips that vary in size and behavior
Authors: Reitz Stuart R. , Funderburk Joe E. , Waring Scot M. 
Published: May 2006

AbstractWe investigated interactions between the generalist predator Orius insidiosus (Say) (Heteroptera: Anthocoridae) and two species of thrips prey, Frankliniella bispinosa (Morgan) and Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande) (Thysanoptera: Thripidae), and interspecific differences in morphology and behavior between these prey species that could contribute to differences in predation by O. insidiosus. Frankliniella occidentalis is significantly larger than F. bispinosa. Frankliniella bispinosa has greater mobility compared with F. occidentalis. When O. insidiosus was offered either F. bispinosa or F. occidentalis as prey in single species trials, there were no significant differences in the number of prey captured. However, O. insidiosus had significantly more encounters with F. bispinosa than with F. occidentalis. In arenas with equal numbers of both species, O. insidiosus encountered and captured F. occidentalis more than F. bispinosa. In large arenas with two pepper plants (Capsicum annuum L.), O. insidiosus preyed on more F. occidentalis than on F. bispinosa. These results indicate that O. insidiosus can prey on both thrips species, but that it preferentially captures F. occidentalis. The greater locomotion and movement of F. bispinosa, perhaps combined with its smaller size, allow it to evade predation by O. insidiosus better than F. occidentalis. Consequently, the observed preference of O. insidiosus for F. occidentalis is not exclusively a function of active selection by the predator but also could arise from inherent differences among prey. We propose this differential predation as a mechanism contributing to observed differences in the temporal dynamics of these species in pepper fields.
Leaf surface wax and plant morphology of peas influence insect density
Authors: Chang Gary C. , Neufeld Jeffrey , Eigenbrode Sanford D. 
Published: May 2006

AbstractInsect predators and parasitoids adhere better, forage more effectively, and take more aphid prey on pea plants (Pisum sativumL.) (Leguminosae) with mutations that reduce the crystalline wax bloom on the plant surface. To assess the agronomic potential of this trait for pest management, abundance of pea aphids (Acyrthosiphon pisumL.) (Homoptera: Aphididae) and coccinellid predators, and percent parasitism of the aphids were evaluated on pea lines differing in wax bloom and plant architecture over two field seasons. Three pairs of pea lines were evaluated, each pair with a different architecture and differing within the pair in the amount of surface wax bloom (reduced or normal). The trials included plots treated with a narrow spectrum insecticide (pymetrozine) to reduce aphid populations and untreated controls. Reduced wax peas had significantly fewer aphids per plant in 2002 but not in 2003. Total natural enemy abundance was greater on reduced wax than on normal wax pea lines in both years of the study. Pymetrozine reduced aphid densities significantly in both years. Among the four pea lines evaluated for yield, seed yield per plant was affected by plant morphology and insecticide treatment. Yield was greatest on semileafless plants and on pymetrozine sprayed plots in both years. Yield of the reduced wax line in the semileafless background was similar to or exceeded yield in its normal wax sister line, suggesting that this morphological type was best for an agronomically viable reduced wax phenotype. Pea weevil (Bruchus pisorumL.) (Coleoptera: Bruchidae) damage to seed was overall more frequent on seeds from reduced wax varieties than from normal wax varieties. The results illustrate the trade‐offs associated with a reduced wax trait in peas but also show that certain combinations of reduced wax and gross morphology lead to reduced pea aphid populations and yields similar to those of normal wax peas.
Temperature effects on egg development of the rosy apple aphid and forecasting of egg hatch
Authors: Graf B. , Höpli H.U. , Höhn H. , Samietz J. 
Published: May 2006

AbstractThe development of Dysaphis plantaginea (Pass.) (Homoptera: Aphididae) winter eggs was studied at six different constant temperatures ranging from 7.5 to 16.5 °C in order to improve the basis for phenological forecasts in early spring. The mortality was generally low at temperatures below 13.5 °C but increased considerably at 16.5 °C. The effect of temperature on development rates could be described with linear regression within the temperature range under study. The lower temperature threshold for development was estimated to be 4.0 °C and the thermal constant 140 day‐degrees. A time‐varying distributed delay approach was used to establish a temperature driven phenology model for winter egg hatch of D. plantaginea considering the intrinsic variability in development time. The model parameters such as temperature‐dependent development times and corresponding variances were quantified based on the experimental data. When compared with independent observations on egg hatch under semifield conditions, the model gave satisfactory validation results. It can be used as forecasting tool for the optimal timing of monitoring and control measures for D. plantaginea in early spring.
Potential host affinities for the lesser grain borer, Rhyzopertha dominica: behavioral responses to host odors and pheromones and reproductive ability on non‐grain hosts
Authors: Edde Peter A. , Phillips Thomas W. 
Published: May 2006

AbstractBehavioral responses of male and female Rhyzopertha dominica L. (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae) to odors from pulverized wheat seeds, peanuts, cowpeas, potato tubers, acorns, and twigs from cedar and pine were compared in dual‐choice, still‐air bioassays. We investigated the reproductive success of R. dominica on five of the seven plant tissues (wheat, peanuts, cowpeas, dried potato tubers, and acorns). A field experiment was also conducted to investigate responses of dispersing R. dominica to semiochemicals emitted by live males placed on different plant species. Results showed that both sexes of R. dominica responded to plant volatiles, but responses were strongest to seeds of wheat, a plant species judged to be most suitable for beetle development due to the number of progeny produced on the plant species. Similarly, insects reared on wheat were heavier than those reared on less suitable materials. In general, behavioral responses by males to plant volatiles were faster than responses by females. Responses of conspecifics to aggregation pheromones produced by males feeding on different host materials were skewed toward females although both sexes were attracted. Male R. dominica feeding on wheat recruited more conspecifics than beetles feeding on less suitable hosts (acorns, cowpeas, peanut, and potato tubers).
The use of peribulbar anaesthesia in paediatric cataract surgery (age 7–15 years) in a mobile eye camp in China
Authors: Fan Dorothy S. P. , Tang Emily W. H. , Rao Srinivas K. , Xiu‐Qin Zhao , Lam Dennis S. C. 
Published: May 2006

Abstract.Aim:  To evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of the use of peribulbar anaesthesia (PA) in paediatric cataract surgery in rural areas in China, where there are limitations in expertise and equipment for general anaesthesia (GA). Methods:  We prospectively evaluated the feasibility and acceptability of carrying out paediatric cataract surgery under PA in children aged 7−15 years. Informed consent was obtained from the subjects and their parents. Children were assessed for their suitability for PA. Peribulbar anaesthesia was given as a peribulbar block using a 2% lidocaine, 0.5% bupivacaine‐hyaluronidase mixture administered before lens aspiration with intraocular lens implantation. The acceptability of the PA was evaluated by questionnaire. Results:  A total of 19 patients were recruited. Their mean age was 12 ± 2 years (range 7–15 years). None required conversion to GA. All subjects regarded PA as either totally acceptable (63.2%) or acceptable (36.8%). The mean pain scores (from 0 to 100) during the injection and surgery were 28 ± 26 and 6 ± 8, respectively. Seventeen patients (89.5%) said they would prefer PA if choices in anaesthesia were offered again. Conclusions:  Peribulbar anaesthesia can be considered as a viable option in selected children undergoing cataract surgery when facilities for safe and optimal general anaesthesia are unavailable.
Angiotensin‐converting enzyme insertion/deletion polymorphism and retinal artery occlusion
Authors: Schäfer Elke , Weger Martin , Birgül Tolga , Renner Wilfried , Stanger Olaf , Steinbrugger Iris , Schmut Otto , Temmel Werner , Haas Anton 
Published: May 2006

Abstract.Purpose:  An insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism of the gene for angiotensin‐converting enzyme (ACE) is associated with higher ACE plasma levels and activity. This enzyme is known to play an important role in blood pressure regulation and the ACE I/D gene polymorphism has been suggested as a risk factor for atherosclerotic vascular diseases. The purpose of the present study was to investigate a hypothesized association between the ACE I/D polymorphism and retinal artery occlusion (RAO).Methods:  A total of 159 patients with RAO and 304 control subjects were enrolled in the present retrospective case‐control study. ACE I/D genotypes were determined by polymerase chain reaction.Results:  Allelic frequencies and genotype distribution of the ACE I/D polymorphism did not significantly differ between patients and control subjects (ACE DD 25.8% versus 28.0%; p = 0.36). A logistic regression analysis predicted the presence of RAO by arterial hypertension and current smoking status, but not by ACE I/D genotypes.Conclusion:  Our data suggest that the ACE I/D polymorphism is not a major risk factor for RAO.