bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A Rheological Approach to Viscoelastic Worm‐Like Micelles of Tunable Properties
Authors: Parathakkatt Sudheesh , George Jinu , Sajeev Moothandassery Sankarakutty , Sreejith Lisa 
Published: March 2009

AbstractThe rheological behavior of micellar solutions of cationic surfactant, cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide in the presence of a salt (KBr) and a co‐surfactant (n‐octanol) were analyzed. Shear viscosity and shear moduli were measured as a function of concentrations of the co‐surfactant and additive. When these concentrations attained a certain critical threshold value, the micellar solution was found to exhibit a nonlinear viscoelastic behavior. It is due to the formation of supramolecular structures, which has been described by the Maxwell model of a viscoelastic fluid typical of worm‐like micelles. The rheological behavior was also analyzed using Carreau and Carreau–Gahleitner models which were found to be in good agreement with the experimental results.
Relative expression of cell growth regulatory genes insulin‐like growth factors (IGF‐1 and IGF‐2) and their receptors (IGF‐1R and IGF‐2R) in somatic cell nuclear transferred (SCNT) and in vitro fertilized (IVF) pre‐implantation buffalo embryos
Authors: Pandey Alok , Singh Namita , Gupta S.C. , Rana J.S. , Gupta Neelam 
Published: March 2009

AbstractRelative mRNA transcript expression of insulin‐like growth factors,IGF‐1, IGF‐2and their receptors,IGF‐1RandIGF‐2R, was studied in SCNT and IVF buffalo embryos at different developmental stages using SYBR green with real‐time PCR. SCNT embryos were produced by enucleating IVM oocytes and transferring granulosa cells (passage 5) followed by the electrofusion and chemical activation method. IVF embryos were produced by culturing 15–20 COCs in BO capacitated sperms from frozen and thawed buffalo semen. SCNT embryo production rate was lower than IVF.IGF‐1mRNA expression was significantly upregulated at 2‐cell, 16‐cell, morula and blastocyst stages of SCNT embryos than in IVF embryos.IGF‐1Rexpression declined from the 2‐cell to the 16‐cell stage, which increased in later stages and was highest in IVF blastocysts. Similar regulation was observed at different stages in SCNT embryos, except at the 4‐cell stage where expression was higher.IGF‐2expression decreased up to the 8‐cell stage and increased until the blastocyst stage, being higher in SCNT than IVF embryos.IGF‐2RmRNA transcript expression was consistently lower in SCNT than in IVF embryos. Reprogramming ofIGF‐1, IGF‐1R, IGF‐2andIGF‐2Rexpression may have a significant role in cell proliferation in cloned embryos and is developmentally regulated.
Status of the ITER heating neutral beam system
Authors: Hemsworth R. , Decamps H. , Graceffa J. , Schunke B. , Tanaka M. , Dremel M. , Tanga A. , De Esch H.P.L. , Geli F. , Milnes J. , Inoue T. , Marcuzzi D. , Sonato P. , Zaccaria P. 
Published: March 2009

The ITER neutral beam (NB) injectors are the first injectors that will have to operate under conditions and constraints similar to those that will be encountered in a fusion reactor. These injectors will have to operate in a hostile radiation environment and they will become highly radioactive due to the neutron flux from ITER. The injectors will use a single large ion source and accelerator that will produce 40 A 1 MeV D−beams for pulse lengths of up to 3600 s.Significant design changes have been made to the ITER heating NB (HNB) injector over the past 4 years. The main changes are:Modifications to allow installation and maintenance of the beamline components with an overhead crane.The beam source vessel shape has been changed and the beam source moved to allow more space for the connections between the 1 MV bushing and the beam source.The RF driven negative ion source has replaced the filamented ion source as the reference design.The ion source and extractor power supplies will be located in an air insulated high voltage (−1 MV) deck located outside the tokamak building instead of inside an SF6insulated HV deck located above the injector.Introduction of an all metal absolute valve to prevent any tritium in the machine to escape into the NB cell during maintenance.This paper describes the status of the design as of December 2008 including the above mentioned changes.The very important power supply system of the neutral beam injectors is not described in any detail as that merits a paper beyond the competence of the present authors.The R&D required to realize the injectors described in this paper must be carried out on a dedicated neutral beam test facility, which is not described here.
Realistic nitrate concentration alters the expression of sexual traits and olfactory male attractiveness in newts
Authors: Secondi Jean , Hinot Emeric , Djalout Zohra , Sourice Stéphane , Jadas‐Hécart Alain 
Published: March 2009

Summary

The occurrence of endocrine disruption is increasing and may now affect most, if not all, ecosystems. Owing to its impact on survival and reproduction, it is increasingly important to consider this factor in ecological studies. The study of secondary sexual traits is of particular interest because they are under strong hormonal control and play a crucial role in mating. A neglected sub‐lethal effect of endocrine disruption is the reduction of male attractiveness, and the distortion of the sexual selection process.
Nitrate is one of the most widespread endocrine disruptors because of its extensive use in agriculture. Studies, especially in amphibians, have mostly focused on early developmental stages, probably because these were considered critical for population dynamics. However, negative effects on adult survival or reproductive success may also affect population demography.
We surveyed nitrate concentration in a large sample of ponds. We then exposed male palmate newts, Triturus helveticus, to high (75 mg L−1) but realistic concentration of sodium nitrate to investigate the effect of nitrate on the expression of secondary sexual traits and male attractiveness.
Exposure to nitrate for 3 weeks was found to limit the expression of sexual traits and to reduce body growth; exposure for 10 days reduced male attractiveness. Female preferred males unexposed to nitrate in olfactory tests but not in visual tests.
The expression of secondary sexual characteristics and body size is reduced in males exposed to realistic nitrate concentration. However, a drop in male attractiveness may first be caused by disruption of the production of olfactory cues. Depending on the frequency of contaminated breeding sites, the disruption of male ability to express sexual signals might affect the sexual selection process in palmate newts and eventually reduce population reproductive output. We discuss the ecological and evolutionary implications of this result.
Telenurses’ experiences of working with computerized decision support: supporting, inhibiting and quality improving
Authors: Ernesäter Annica , Holmström Inger , Engström Maria 
Published: March 2009

AbstractTitle.  Telenurses’ experiences of working with computerized decision support: supporting, inhibiting and quality improving. Aim.  This paper is a report of a study conducted to describe telenurses’ experiences of working with computerized decision support systems and how such systems could influence their work.Background.  Telenursing is an expanding service in many Western countries, and in recent years centralization of telenursing services has occurred in Sweden. In connection with this, the use of computerized decision support has increased.Method.  Eight Registered Nurses from three telephone advice call centres in Sweden who were using computerized decision support took part in semi‐structured interviews in 2006. The data were analysed using qualitative content analysis.Findings.  The findings are presented as one theme and three categories. Telenurses experienced their work with a decision support system as supporting, inhibiting and quality improving. Based on two of the categories –‘supporting’ and ‘inhibiting’– a theme was revealed: being strengthened, but simultaneously controlled and inhibited. This theme represents the individual level. The telenurses found that the decision support system simplified their work, complemented their knowledge, gave them security and enhanced their credibility. They also described experiencing the system as incomplete, sometimes in conflict with their own opinions and controlling. The third category referred to the organizational level: the decision support system ensured the quality of telenursing.Conclusions.  Although the telenurses experienced computerized decision support as both supporting and inhibiting, they preferred working with it. They also described how a computerized decision support system cannot replace telenurses’ knowledge and competence, and that it should be considered as complementary.
Index of sources of stress in nursing students: a confirmatory factor analysis
Authors: Gibbons Chris , Dempster Martin , Moutray Marianne 
Published: March 2009

AbstractTitle.  Index of sources of stress in nursing students: a confirmatory factor analysis. Aim.  This paper is a report of a study to test the proposed factor structure of the Index of Sources of Stress in Nursing Students.Background.  Research across many countries has identified a number of sources of distress in nursing students but little attempt has been made to understand and measure sources of eustress or those stressors likely to enhance performance and well‐being. The Index of Sources of Stress in Nursing Students was developed to do this. Exploratory factor analysis suggested a three‐factor structure, the factors being labelled: learning and teaching; placement‐related and course organization. It is important, however, to subject the instrument to confirmatory factor analysis as a further test of construct validity.Method.  A convenience sample of final year nursing students (n = 176) was surveyed in one university in Northern Ireland in 2007. The Index of Sources of Stress in Nursing Students, which measures sources of stress likely to contribute to distress and eustress, was completed electronically. The lisrel programme was used to carry out the confirmatory factor analysis and test the factor structure suggested in the exploratory analysis.Findings.  The proposed factor structure for the items measuring ‘Uplifts’ proved to be a good fit to the data and the proposed factor structure for the items measuring ‘Hassles’ showed adequate fit.Conclusion.  In nursing programmes adopting the academic model and combining university‐based learning with placement experience, this instrument can be used to help identify the sources of stress or course demands that students rate as distressing and those that help them to achieve. The validity of the ISSN could be further evaluated in other education settings.
A qualitative study of the food‐related experiences of rural village shop customers
Authors: Scarpello T. , Poland F. , Lambert N. , Wakeman T. 
Published: March 2009

AbstractBackground:  In the UK, although food choice in urban contexts has been widely studied, far less empirical information has been gathered from rural settings. With the closure of local services, some rural dwellers were believed to experience difficulties in meeting healthy eating recommendations. The present study aimed to explore perceptions of village store users.Methods:  Semi‐structured, in‐depth interviews were conducted individually with 40 adults who were frequent users of rural village shops in Norfolk, UK. Participants were purposively selected to ensure that a wide demographic cross‐section of customers was obtained. Interviews focused upon food choice strategies; attitudes towards rural food retail; and the provision of healthy foods. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed qualitatively, using an established interpretative phenomenological approach.Results:  Four main themes emerged as drivers of food choice in rural villages: (1) village store as icon, which described how the perceived centrality of village shops influenced food choices; (2) village store as a service provider, which described top‐up shopping behaviours; (3) alternative food sources, which described store users desires for local foods and their attitudinal conflicts towards supermarkets; and (4) lifestyle factors, which described the influence of factors such as time pressures, access to cars and family structures.Conclusions:  Food choices were strongly influenced by the distinctive characteristics of the rural environment. Village shops were seen as important for community identity (‘rural idyll’), as well as providing access to food and services. However, desires were made apparent for a greater range of healthy, fresh and locally‐sourced foods.
Rye introgression lines as source of alleles for pollen‐fertility restoration in Pampa CMS
Authors: Falke K. C. , Wilde P. , Miedaner T. 
Published: March 2009

AbstractRestoration of pollen‐fertility is required to guarantee successful seed production of hybrid varieties based on cytoplasmatic male‐sterility (CMS) induced by Pampa cytoplasm. As most European restorer lines have still numerous disadvantages, using genetic resources via introgression libraries might be promising to identify and localize new and more effective restorer genes. The objectives of this study were to (1) evaluate in field trials the performance of 39 candidate introgression lines (pre‐ILs) for pollen‐fertility restoration and (2) to identify donor chromosome segments (DCS) underlying pollen‐fertility restoration. Exotic alleles from the Iranian primitive rye accession Altevogt 14160 were introduced into the elite non‐restorer inbred line L2053‐N by marker‐assisted backcrossing. BC2S3 pre‐ILs were genotyped using amplified fragment length polymorphisms and simple sequence repeats. Pollen‐fertility restoration was evaluated in replicated field trials across two testers at two locations in 2006 for analysing the phenotypic effects of the exotic DCS. Out of 39 pre‐ILs, we determined three showing full pollen‐fertility across both testers and locations carrying a DCS on chromosome 4R. Moreover, one pre‐IL with partial pollen‐fertility was detected showing a DCS on chromosome 1R. We conclude that our introgression library can serve as a valuable resource for mining favourable genes from exotic primitive rye, which can greatly promote hybrid rye breeding.
Mapping quantitative trait loci influencing panicle‐related traits from Chinese common wild rice (Oryza rufipogon) using introgression lines
Authors: Luo X. , Tian F. , Fu Y. , Yang J. , Sun C. 
Published: March 2009

AbstractPanicle‐related traits are important agronomic traits which directly associated with grain yield. In this study, we investigated quantitative trait loci (QTLs) associated with panicle‐related traits using a set of 265 introgression lines (ILs) of common wild rice (Oryza rufipogon Griff.) in the background of Indica high‐yielding cultivar Guichao 2 (O. sativa L.). A total of 39 QTLs associated with panicle‐related traits including panicle length (PL), primary branch number (PBN), secondary branch number (SBN), spikelet number per panicle (SPP) and spikelet density (SD), were detected in the ILs with single‐point analysis. The alleles of 20 QTLs derived from wild rice showed positive effects, and some QTLs, such as, QPl1b for PL, QPbn8 for PBN, QSd4 and QSd11b for SD and QSpp4 for SPP showed larger positive effects, providing good candidates and useful information for marker‐aided improvement of yield potential of rice. Most of the QTLs controlling SPP, SBN and SD were located in cluster or closely linked on chromosomes, and the directions of their additive effects were consistent, which explained the genetic basis of significant correlations between their phenotypic characters.
Contrast independence of cardinal preference: stable oblique effect in orientation maps of ferret visual cortex
Authors: Grabska‐Barwińska Agnieszka , Distler Claudia , Hoffmann Klaus‐Peter , Jancke Dirk 
Published: March 2009

AbstractThe oblique effect was first described as enhanced detection and discrimination of cardinal orientations compared with oblique orientations. Such biases in visual processing are believed to originate from a functional adaptation to environmental statistics dominated by cardinal contours. At the neuronal level, the oblique orientation effect corresponds to the numerical overrepresentation and narrower tuning bandwidths of cortical neurons representing the cardinal axes. The anisotropic distribution of orientation preferences over large cortical regions was revealed with optical imaging, providing further evidence for the cortical oblique effect in several mammalian species. Our present study explores whether the dominant representation of cardinal contours persists at different stimulus contrasts. Performing intrinsic optical imaging in the ferret visual cortex and presenting drifting gratings at various orientations and contrasts (100%, 30% and 10%), we found that the overrepresentation of vertical and horizontal contours was invariant across stimulus contrasts. In addition, the responses to cardinal orientations were also more robust and evoked larger modulation depths than responses to oblique orientations. We conclude that orientation maps remain constant across the full range of contrast levels down to detection thresholds. Thus, a stable layout of the functional architecture dedicated to processing oriented edges seems to reflect a fundamental coding strategy of the early visual cortex.
Awareness of heredity in colorectal cancer patients is insufficient among clinicians: a Norwegian population‐based study
Authors: Tranø G. , Wasmuth H. H. , Sjursen W. , Hofsli E. , Vatten L. J. 
Published: March 2009

AbstractObjective  The assessment of family history and medical data is crucial in identifying families with Lynch syndrome (LS). Among consecutive colorectal cancer (CRC) patients, we aimed at identifying all patients with a hereditary predisposition, and to study a possible discrepancy with assessments made by the responsible clinicians.Method  All consecutively diagnosed patients with CRC from two Norwegian hospitals were included, and information on family history was collected in a detailed interview. We assessed information in medical records, and tumours were examined for LS‐associated histopathological features.Results  Among 562 patients, there was no documentation of family history in 388 (69.0%) medical records, and in 174 (31.0%) patients, there was no clinical assessment of the information that was collected on family history. Based on detailed interviews and extended pathological examination, we found that 137 (24.4%) of the 562 patients could be classified as possible LS according to the Revised Bethesda Guidelines (RBG); and that 46 (33.6%) of these patients could be identified by family history alone.Conclusion  Family history and relevant information in patient records can identify patients with possible LS. However, clinicians often fail to include information on hereditary factors and to assess relevant data in medical records. Familial CRC is therefore not acknowledged, and genetic counselling is not offered.
Should being aged over 70 years hinder penile prosthesis implantation?
Authors: Al‐Najar Amr , Naumann Carsten Maik , Kaufmann Sascha , Steinbach‐Jensch Andrea , Hamann Moritz Franz , Jünemann Klaus‐Peter , Van Der Horst Christof 
Published: March 2009

OBJECTIVETo assess the satisfaction profiles following penile prosthesis surgery in patients with erectile dysfunction (ED) in their seventh decade of life.PATIENTS AND METHODSIn all, 174 patients received, for the first time, a penile prosthesis between 1990 and 2007 in our department. Among these, 35 patients were aged ≥70 years at prosthesis implantation. Of these, 18 patients were still alive at the time of follow‐up. Using a telephone survey, patients were asked to answer the Erectile Dysfunction Inventory of Treatment Satisfaction (EDITS) as well as the International Index of Erectile Dysfunction (IIEF). Another question in the survey was developed by the authors based on a comprehensive review of the literature, which assessed the usefulness of the device for the patient and the degree of their usage. This was formulated as follows: How many times per 2 weeks do you have a sexual intercourse?RESULTSIn all, 15 of 18 patients were either very or somewhat satisfied (83%). At follow‐up 11 out of 15 (73%) patients were using their prosthesis regularly. The mean IIEF and EDITS scores were 21.80 and 75.20, respectively.CONCLUSIONA penile prosthesis remains a highly promising treatment in older patients with a similar satisfaction rate to those published for younger patients. Thus, the motivation of the patient and not the age of the patient should be the main determinant factor in this surgical procedure.
The influence of social interaction on meaning construction in a virtual community
Authors: Yang Yu‐Fen , Yeh Hui‐Chin , Wong Wing‐Kwong 
Published: March 2009

AbstractAs proposed by social constructive theorists, meaningful learning and individual development were achieved through social interaction. To foster social interaction among students, this study formed an online learning community in which they played multiple roles as writers, editors and commentators. In playing different roles, they read peers' texts, edited peers' errors, evaluated peer editors' corrections and finally reconstructed their own texts. Results of this study showed that the multiple roles they played allowed them to have opportunities to view their own texts from others' perspectives. Based on these perspectives, they were more willing to acquire information from and contribute information to peers. All of this extensive information acquisition and contribution resulted in meaning construction of texts as active students improved their final drafts in both local revision (grammatical correction) and global revision (the style, organisation and development of a text) after receiving and evaluating feedback from peer editors. Their final drafts were very different from those of passive students whose first and final drafts were almost the same despite some grammatical revisions. This study suggests that, rather than relying only on an examination of students' final drafts, there may be benefits in teachers encouraging students to actively participate in social interaction by reading peers' texts, editing peers' errors and evaluating peer editors' corrections during text revisions.