bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Agrarian diet and diseases of affluence – Do evolutionary novel dietary lectins cause leptin resistance?
Authors: Jönsson Tommy , Olsson Stefan , Ahrén Bo , Bøg-Hansen Thorkild C , Dole Anita , Lindeberg Staffan 
Published: December 2005

AbstractBackgroundThe global pattern of varying prevalence of diseases of affluence, such as obesity, cardiovascular disease and diabetes, suggests that some environmental factor specific to agrarian societies could initiate these diseases.Presentation of the hypothesisWe propose that a cereal-based diet could be such an environmental factor. Through previous studies in archaeology and molecular evolution we conclude that humans and the human leptin system are not specifically adapted to a cereal-based diet, and that leptin resistance associated with diseases of affluence could be a sign of insufficient adaptation to such a diet. We further propose lectins as a cereal constituent with sufficient properties to cause leptin resistance, either through effects on metabolism central to the proper functions of the leptin system, and/or directly through binding to human leptin or human leptin receptor, thereby affecting the function.Testing the hypothesisDietary interventions should compare effects of agrarian and non-agrarian diets on incidence of diseases of affluence, related risk factors and leptin resistance. A non-significant (p = 0.10) increase of cardiovascular mortality was noted in patients advised to eat more whole-grain cereals. Our lab conducted a study on 24 domestic pigs in which a cereal-free hunter-gatherer diet promoted significantly higher insulin sensitivity, lower diastolic blood pressure and lower C-reactive protein as compared to a cereal-based swine feed. Testing should also evaluate the effects of grass lectins on the leptin system in vivo by diet interventions, and in vitro in various leptin and leptin receptor models. Our group currently conducts such studies.Implications of the hypothesisIf an agrarian diet initiates diseases of affluence it should be possible to identify the responsible constituents and modify or remove them so as to make an agrarian diet healthier.
Systemic coagulation parameters in mice after treatment with vascular targeting agents
Authors: Unruh Maike , Grunow Andrea , Gottstein Claudia 
Published: December 2005

AbstractBackgroundVascular targeting of malignant tumors has become a clinically validated new treatment approach with clear patient benefit. However clinical studies have also revealed that some types of vascular targeting agents (VTAs) are prone to coagulation system side effects. It is therefore essential to predetermine coagulation parameters in preclinical studies. As of to date, this has rarely been done, predominantly due to technical issues.The goal of this study was to establish and apply a standardized process, whereby systemic coagulation activation can be routinely measured in mice.ResultsWe have evaluated a number of sampling techniques and coagulation tests regarding their suitability for this purpose. We were able to adapt two assays measuring soluble fibrin, a marker for a prethrombotic status. Thus, soluble fibrin could be measured for the first time in mice. All assays were validated in a positive control model for systemic coagulation activation, i.e. lipopolysaccharide-induced endotoxemia.Based on our results, we selected a panel of coagulation tests, which are both feasable and informative for preclinical testing of VTAs: soluble fibrin, thrombin-antithrombin complexes, free antithrombin III, white blood cell counts and platelet counts. The effect of tumor transplants on coagulation parameters was evaluated using this panel. We then applied this set of assays in treatment studies with a VTA developed in our laboratory to investigate a potential systemic coagulation activation.ConclusionWe have established a standardized panel of assays that can be used to test murine blood samples for coagulation activation in preclinical studies. All tests are feasible to perform in any research laboratory without specialized equipment. In addition, this is the first report to measure soluble fibrin, an early marker of systemic coagulation activation, in mice. The panel was applied on tumor bearing mice and mice treated with a VTA. We suggest its general application for coagulation activation analyses in mice.
Do the incentive payments in the new NHS contract for primary care reflect likely population health gains?
Authors: Fleetcroft Robert , Cookson Richard 
Published: December 2005

Objective: The new contract for primary care in the UK offers fee-for-service (FFS) payments for a wide range of activities in a quality outcomes framework (QOF), with payments designed to reflect likely workload. This study aims to explore the link between these financial incentives and the likely population health gains. Methods: The study examines a subset of eight preventive interventions covering 38 of the 81 clinical indicators in the quality framework. The maximum payment for each service was calculated and compared with the likely population health gain in terms of lives saved per 100,000 population based on evidence from McColl et al. (1998). Results: Maximum payments for the eight interventions examined make up 57% of the total maximum payment for all clinical interventions in the (QOF). There appears to be no relationship between pay and health gain across these eight interventions. Two of the eight interventions (warfarin in atrial fibrillation and statins in primary prevention) receive no incentive. Conclusions: Payments in the new contract do not reflect likely population health gain. There is a danger that clinical activity may be skewed towards high-workload activities that are only marginally effective, to the detriment of more cost-effective activities. If improving population health is the primary goal of the NHS, then FFS incentives should be designed to reflect likely health gain rather than likely workload.
Advances in the assessment of suicide risk
Authors: Bryan Craig J. , Rudd M. David 
Published: December 2005

AbstractThis article reviews and integrates empirically grounded advances in the assessment of suicidality. The practices discussed are consistent with existing standards of care, practice guidelines, and applicable research. The authors differentiate between risk assessment and prediction and then emphasize the important role of time in risk assessment. We present and illustrate a continuum of suicidality for risk assessment and offer practical recommendations for clinical decision making and treatment. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol: In Session 62: 185–200, 2006.
Mindfulness‐Based cognitive therapy for prevention of recurrence of suicidal behavior
Authors: Williams J. Mark G. , Duggan Danielle S. , Crane Catherine , Fennell Melanie J. V. 
Published: December 2005

AbstractOnce suicidal thoughts have emerged as a feature of depression they are likely to be reactivated as part of a suicidal mode of mind whenever sad mood reappears. This article reviews the methods and the usefulness of mindfulness‐based cognitive therapy (MBCT) as a treatment for the prevention of the reactivation of the suicidal mode. MBCT integrates mindfulness meditation practices and cognitive therapy techniques. It teaches participants to develop moment‐by‐moment awareness, approaching ongoing experience with an attitude of nonjudgment and acceptance. Participants are increasingly able to see their thoughts as mental events rather than facts (metacognitive awareness). A case example illustrates how mindfulness skills develop with MBCT and how they relate to the cognitive processes that fuel suicidal crises. An ongoing controlled trial will provide further evidence, but pilot work suggests that MBCT is a promising intervention for those who have experienced suicidal ideation in the past. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol: In Session 62: 201–210, 2006.
Note on an inequality
Authors: Xu Yongzhong 
Published: December 2005

We prove in this article the case of three masses, of an inequality of discrete type (which might have a continuous extension) which is still a conjecture for any

p

points in

\mathbb{R}^{3}

. The inequality appears naturally in the derivation of Morse Lemma at infinity for Yamabe problems with changing signs. We also explain why this inequality might hold in general.

Résumé

Nous prouvons dans cet article le cas

p = 3

, d'une inégalité discrète (qui s'étend peut-être au cas continu) qui est une conjecture pour

p

points quelconques de

\mathbb{R}^{3}

. Cette inégalité apparaît naturellement dans la démonstration du Lemme de Morse à l'infini [A. Bahri, Critical Points at Infinity in Some Variational Problems, Pitman Res. Notes Math. Ser., vol. 182, Longman Scientific & Technical, Harlow, 1989] pour les problèmes de Yamabe avec changement de signe. Nous montrons par la suite pourquoi l'inégalité devrait être vraie en général.
Use of Two-Color Fluorescence-Tagged Transgenes to Study Interphase Chromosomes in Living Plants
Authors: Matzke Antonius J.M. , Huettel Bruno , van der Winden Johannes , Matzke Marjori 
Published: December 2005

AbstractSixteen distinct sites distributed on all five Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) chromosomes have been tagged using different fluorescent proteins and one of two different bacterial operator-repressor systems: (1) a yellow fluorescent protein-Tet repressor fusion protein bound to tet operator sequences, or (2) a green or red fluorescent protein-Lac repressor fusion protein bound to lac operator sequences. Individual homozygous lines and progeny of intercrosses between lines have been used to study various aspects of interphase chromosome organization in root cells of living, untreated seedlings. Features reported here include distances between transgene alleles, distances between transgene inserts on different chromosomes, distances between transgene inserts on the same chromatin fiber, alignment of homologous chromosomes, and chromatin movement. The overall findings are consistent with a random and largely static arrangement of interphase chromosomes in nuclei of root cells. These transgenic lines provide tools for in-depth analyses of interphase chromosome organization, expression, and dynamics in living plants.
The Membrane-Anchored BOTRYTIS-INDUCED KINASE1 Plays Distinct Roles in Arabidopsis Resistance to Necrotrophic and Biotrophic Pathogens
Authors: Veronese Paola , Nakagami Hirofumi , Bluhm Burton , AbuQamar Synan , Chen Xi , Salmeron John , Dietrich Robert A. , Hirt Heribert , Mengiste Tesfaye 
Published: December 2005

Abstract
Plant resistance to disease is controlled by the combination of defense response pathways that are activated depending on the nature of the pathogen. We identified the Arabidopsis thaliana BOTRYTIS-INDUCED KINASE1 (BIK1) gene that is transcriptionally regulated by Botrytis cinerea infection. Inactivation of BIK1 causes severe susceptibility to necrotrophic fungal pathogens but enhances resistance to a virulent strain of the bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv tomato. The response to an avirulent bacterial strain is unchanged, limiting the role of BIK1 to basal defense rather than race-specific resistance. The jasmonate- and ethylene-regulated defense response, generally associated with resistance to necrotrophic fungi, is attenuated in the bik1 mutant based on the expression of the plant defensin PDF1.2 gene. bik1 mutants show altered root growth, producing more and longer root hairs, demonstrating that BIK1 is also required for normal plant growth and development. Whereas the pathogen responses of bik1 are mostly dependent on salicylic acid (SA) levels, the nondefense responses are independent of SA. BIK1 is membrane-localized, suggesting possible involvement in early stages of the recognition or transduction of pathogen response. Our data suggest that BIK1 modulates the signaling of cellular factors required for defense responses to pathogen infection and normal root hair growth, linking defense response regulation with that of growth and development.
A New Role for theArabidopsisAP2 Transcription Factor, LEAFY PETIOLE, in Gibberellin-Induced Germination Is Revealed by the Misexpression of a Homologous Gene,SOB2/DRN-LIKE
Authors: Ward Jason M. , Smith Alison M. , Shah Purvi K. , Galanti Sarah E. , Yi Hankuil , Demianski Agnes J. , van der Graaff Eric , Keller Beat , Neff Michael M. 
Published: December 2005

AbstractGibberellic acid (GA) promotes germination, stem/hypocotyl elongation, and leaf expansion during seedling development. Using activation-tagging mutagenesis, we identified a mutation, sob2-D (for suppressor of phytochromeB-4 [phyB-4]#2 dominant), which suppresses the long-hypocotyl phenotype of a phyB missense allele, phyB-4. This mutant phenotype is caused by the overexpression of an APETALA2 transcription factor, SOB2, also called DRN-like. SOB2/DRN-like transcript is not detectable in wild-type seedling or adult tissues via RT-PCR analysis, suggesting that SOB2/DRN-like may not be involved in seedling development under normal conditions. Adult sob2-D phyB-4 plants have curled leaves and club-like siliques, resembling plants that overexpress a closely related gene, LEAFY PETIOLE (LEP). Hypocotyls of a LEP-null allele, lep-1, are shorter in the light and dark, suggesting LEP involvement in seedling development. This aberrant hypocotyl phenotype is due at least in part to a delay in germination. In addition, lep-1 is less responsive to GA and more sensitive to the GA biosynthesis inhibitor paclobutrazol, indicating that LEP is a positive regulator of GA-induced germination. RT-PCR shows that LEP transcript accumulates in wild-type seeds during imbibition and germination, and the transcript levels of REPRESSOR OF ga1-3-LIKE2 (RGL2), a negative regulator of GA signaling during germination, is unaffected in lep-1. These results suggest LEP is a positive regulator of GA-induced germination acting independently of RGL2. An alternative model places LEP downstream of RGL2 in the GA-signaling cascade.
Governing a Global Community of Shared Risks
Authors: Masciulli Joseph , Day Richard 
Published: December 2005

AbstractThis chapter considers interpretations of the globalization process along a continuum ranging from "realist" emphasis upon sovereignty in the inter-state system to "idealist" projections of cosmopolitan citizenship and even global government. The work of Jürgen Habermas is taken to be the most comprehensive via media between the "extreme" positions. In The Postnational Constellation, Habermas relates morality to ethics in explaining the potential for, but also the current limitations upon, cosmopolitan projects. The example of the European Union demonstrates the possibility for politics to "catch up" with globalizing markets.
Russia and Globalization
Authors: Molchanov Mikhail 
Published: December 2005

AbstractGlobalization dramatically changed Russia and prompted its return to the global market economy on terms largely dictated by the West. The post-communist transition transformed not only the country's economic and political systems but also the state-society articulation at large. Russia's complete abandonment of socialist ethics cost the country and its people dearly. While neoliberal economists regard globalization as a worldwide advance in terms of economic efficiency and human enlightenment, the Russian example shows that the process can also be catastrophic and intrinsically unethical.
Conflicting Interests in the Turkish Straits: Is the Free Passage of Merchant Vessels still Applicable?
Authors: Fornari Matteo 
Published: December 2005

AbstractThe issue of the regulation of navigation through Turkish straits proved to be one of the most sensitive and thorny question of international law of the sea in the last years. Transit through theses waters is regulated by a 1936 Convention—"a long-standing" convention according to the article 35, lett. c, of UNCLOS—that is more concerned with the passage regime of warships rather than the transit of commercial vessels. In the last decades, the Montreux Convention has showed its inadequacy in regulating this latter kind navigation: the free-passage principle, by day and night without obstacles, could be considered well grounded time ago, when essentially vessels carrying cereal went through these waters. But nowadays it seems hazardous, for marine environment and security of populations, allowing free and unimpeded transit of fifteen tankers a day. It follows that the problem is how can Turkey, the only coastal State of the Straits (and international community) prevent in the future accidents or collisions between ships carrying oil, chemical or radioactive substances, endangering seriously the regional ecosystem?
The Data Protection (Amendment) Act, 2003: The Data Protection Directive and its Implications for Medical Research in Ireland
Authors: Sheikh Asim 
Published: December 2005

AbstractDirective 95/46/EC on the Protection of Individuals with regard to the Processing of Personal Data and on the Free Movement of Such Data has been transposed into national law and is now the Data Protection (Amendment) Act, 2003.The Directive and the transposing Act provide for new obligations to those processing data. The new obligation of primary concern is the necessity to obtain consent prior to the processing of data (Article 7, Directive 95/46/EC). This has caused much concern especially in relation to 'secondary data' or 'archived data'.There exist, what seem to be in the minds of the medical research community, two competing interests: (i) that of the need to obtain consent prior to processing data and (ii) the need to protect and foster medical research. At the same time as the introduction of the Act, other prior legislation, i.e. the Freedom of Information Act, 1997-2003, has encouraged candour within the doctor-patient relationship and the High Court in Ireland, in the case of Geoghegan v. Harris, has promulgated the 'reasonable-patient test' as being the correct law in relation to the disclosure of risks to patients. The court stated that doctors have a duty to disclose all material risks to patients. The case demonstrates an example of a move toward a more open medical relationship. An example of this rationale was also recently seen in the United Kingdom in the House of Lords decision in Chester v. Afshar. Within the medical research community in Ireland, the need to respect the autonomy of patients and research participants by providing information to such parties has also been observed (Sheikh A. A., 2000 and Irish Council for Bioethics, 2005).Disquiet has been expressed in Ireland and other jurisdictions by the medical research communities in relation to the exact working and meaning of the Directive and therefore the transposing Acts (Strobl et al). This may be due to the fact that, as observed by Beyleveld "The Directive makes no specific mention of medical research and, consequently, it contains no provisions for medical research as an explicitly delineated category." (Beyleveld D., 2004) This paper examines the Irish Act and discusses whether the concerns expressed are well-founded and if the Act is open to interpretation such that it would not hamper medical research and public health work.
Management Reform in the United Nations: Between Politics and Efficiency
Authors: Müller Joachim 
Published: December 2005

AbstractManagement reform in the United Nations has been a frequent concern in the public debate. Although a multitude of initiatives were launched, the result remains disappointing. A string of management reforms are described, emphasizing the most recent ones introduced under the Secretary-Generals Kofi Annan and Boutros Boutros Ghali. Particular attention is given to initiatives following the Volcker inquiry into the alleged mismanagement and corruption under the United Nations Oil-for-Food program. The review concludes with the management reforms approved during the recent World Summit in September 2005. Since the creation of the United Nations, management reforms have been driven from outside the Organization, by member countries and here in particular by the United States. Proposals to improve management are often closely linked to overriding political concerns. The negotiation process militates towards lowest common denominator; with the Secretary-General of the Organization taking a cautious approach and attempting to facilitate the reaching of consensus. While recognizing the challenge to reconcile the different priorities of 191 member countries, recommendations are put forward to facilitate a more proactive approach by the Secretariat. Management reform in the United Nations is seen, however, to remain a cumbersome and lengthy step-by-step process.
What Sets the Surface Eddy Mass Flux in the Southern Ocean?
Authors: Drijfhout S. S. 
Published: December 2005

Abstract
The Ocean Circulation and Climate Advanced Modelling (OCCAM) global, eddy-permitting ocean general circulation model has been used to investigate the surface eddy mass flux in the Southern Ocean. The isopycnal eddy mass flux in the surface layer is almost uniformly poleward and scales well with the local Ekman transport. This seems at odds with other models and observations suggesting topographic localization of the eddy fluxes with locally, large rotational components. Integrated over the thermocline depth the eddy fluxes do show such topographic localization. The surface eddy mass flux is mainly a consequence of the intermittent deepening of the mixed layer with the seasonal cycle, which redistributes the Ekman transport over the stack of layers that eventually become ventilated. Baroclinic instability gives rise to much smaller eddy-induced transports. Independent of the framework in which the residual mean flow is analyzed (isopycnal or geometric), the eddy-induced transport that opposes the wind-driven Ekman flow only partially compensates the Deacon cell. The associated overturning cell is about 5 Sv (where 1 Sv ≡ 106 m3 s−1), responsible for a cancellation of the Deacon cell of 30%. In geometric coordinates, a strong signature (14 Sv) of the Deacon cell remains for the residual mean flow. Only after transformation to density coordinates is a further reduction with 10 Sv obtained. Zonal tilting of isopycnals makes along-isopycnal recirculations appear as vertical overturning cells in geometric coordinates. These cells disappear in the isopycnal framework without any eddy-induced transport being involved.