bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Masowe Migration: A Quest for Liberation in the African Diaspora
Authors: Mukonyora Isabel 
Published: February 2008

AbstractThis article shows how the Shona‐speaking prophet Johane Masowe (1914–1973) adapted Christianity to the difficult human conditions that forced him and his followers to migrate from Zimbabwe during the economic depression of the 1930s. It suggests that the prophet Johane constructs a distinctly African theology of liberation by using the Exodus as symbolic language expressive of human suffering and hope for the redemption of African victims of oppression. The Exodus is used to legitimate Johane's migration from his rural home, Gandanzara, to Harare, Bulawayo and across the border to different cities in southern, central, and east Africa where Masowe Apostles are found today. This article goes beyond the analysis of texts that theologians traditionally use to explain Christianity, to the lived experiences of people addressing problems of displacement through migratory behavior.
The Social Ethic of Religiously Unaffiliated Spirituality
Authors: Chandler Siobhan 
Published: February 2008

AbstractToday a growing percentage of Westerners are engaged in highly subjective, non‐religiously affiliated forms of spiritual seeking. Since its early beginnings in the 1970s, New Age movement, non‐institutionally mediated forms of spirituality, moved well beyond a restricted esoteric framework into the cultural mainstream. Here, they are more broadly supported and intensified by a robust cultural ethic of individualism and religious antiauthoritarianism. Despite clear indications that this type of spirituality is a religious adaptation or innovation to the ineluctable force of late modernity, many scholars and cultural observers continue to represent it as a weak, socially insignificant form of religious expression that is contributing to a crisis of civic engagement and community mindedness through its over‐emphasis on the self and its experiences. Claims that non‐institutional, non‐dogmatic forms of religiosity promote narcissism and social alienation are scattered throughout the social scientific literature. Yet, little empirical data support these contentions. Building on studies that demonstrate a positive correlation between individualism and civic engagement, this article suggests that future research may well discover that religiously unaffiliated spirituality is in fact a socially engaged religious expression.
Protective Effects of Cyclooxygenase‐2 Inhibitors on Narrow‐band Ultraviolet B‐irradiated Epidermal Ia+ Langerhans Cells and Thy‐1+ Dendritic Epidermal T Cells in Mice†
Authors: Wu Yan , Tai Chang‐Long , Wei Huachen , He Fang , Wang Yakun , Zhao Yuming , Chen Hong‐Duo 
Published: February 2008

AbstractCyclooxygenase (COX)‐2 inhibitors are known to be used as chemopreventative agents against certain malignancies. Thus far, there has been very limited information on whether COX‐2 inhibitors protect against chronic narrow‐band UVB (NB‐UVB)‐induced immunosuppression. The present study investigated the effect of nonselective and specific COX‐2 inhibitors, indomethacin and celecoxib, on epidermal Ia+ Langerhans cells (LCs) and Thy‐1+ dendritic epidermal T cells (DETCs) in mice irradiated with NB‐UVB. Sixty female BALB/c mice were divided randomly into the control group (sham) and the experimental groups (irradiated with NB‐UVB for 17 weeks, further divided into five groups according to the diets containing different concentrations of either COX‐2 inhibitors). Alterations in the density and morphology of epidermal Ia+ LCs and Thy‐1+ DETCs in mice were documented using fluorescence microscopy. Chronic NB‐UVB irradiation substantially decreased the density and altered the morphology of the epidermal Ia+ LCs and Thy‐1+ DETCs in control mice. The dietary supplementation of both COX‐2 inhibitors displayed a dosage‐dependent protective effect on the murine dendritic cells irradiated by NB‐UVB. In conclusion, COX‐2 inhibitors protected against chronic NB–UVB‐induced density and morphologic changes in epidermal Ia+ LCs and Thy‐1+ DETCs in mice.
Amino Acid Residues in GRK1/GRK7 Responsible for Interaction with S‐Modulin/Recoverin†
Authors: Torisawa Aya , Arinobu Daisuke , Tachibanaki Shuji , Kawamura Satoru 
Published: February 2008

AbstractGRK1 is a visual pigment kinase in rods and is essential for inactivation of light‐activated rhodopsin. The GRK1 activity is inhibited by binding of the Ca2+‐bound form of S‐modulin/recoverin. We previously identified the S‐modulin/recoverin site to interact with GRK1. In the present study, we identified its counterpart in GRK1. We synthesized 29 of GRK1 or GRK7 partial peptides that cover the entire sequence of GRK1/GRK7, and examined whether these peptides inhibit S‐modulin/recoverin activity most probably by preoccupying the binding site for GRK1. The inhibition was the greatest with the N‐terminal peptide (p1, aa 3–23 in GRK7). On mutation of each of eight amino acid residues highly conserved in the p1 region of more than 10 orthologs, the inhibition was significantly reduced in the mutation of Leu6, Asn12 and Tyr15. We further examined the binding of the peptides, including mutated ones, to S‐modulin/recoverin with a resonance mirror biosensor. The binding correlated well with the degree of the inhibition by a peptide. The inhibition, therefore, seemed to be due to a direct binding of the kinase peptide to the binding site of active S‐modulin/recoverin. A GRK1 region close to its C‐terminus also seemed to be the binding site for S‐modulin/recoverin.
A prospective, quantitative study on the clinical outcome of inferior alveolar nerve decompression and neurolysis
Authors: Robinson P.P. , Yates J.M. , Smith K.G. 
Published: February 2008

AbstractAim:  The management of persistent anaesthesia or dysaesthesia following damage to the inferior alveolar nerve is difficult, and the benefit of interventions is often unclear. We have evaluated the outcome of inferior alveolar nerve decompression and neurolysis in a series of 25 patients, with injuries usually sustained during third molar removal, who had poor spontaneous recovery.Materials and methods:  The mean age at surgery was 45 years, and most patients were female (21 patients). The mean period between the initial injury and decompression was 28 months, and we assessed the final outcome at 1 year or more after decompression. Assessment included the responses to a series of standard questions, completion of visual analogue scales (VAS) and sensory tests.Results:  We found that after decompression fewer patients reported pain, and VAS scores were significantly reduced for the level of tingling. Patients also reported better subjective levels of sensation after decompression, and sensory tests confirmed small but significant improvements. The median subjective value of the operation was assessed by patients as 7 (range 0–10).Conclusions:  These data show that inferior alveolar nerve decompression results in significant reductions in the level of dysaesthesia and improvements in sensation. However, as the overall level of improvement is small, and some patients do not improve, the procedure should only be offered to patients who are significantly affected by their symptoms.
Development and Evaluation of Immunochromatographic Assay for Simple and Rapid Detection of
Campylobacter jejuni
and
Campylobacter coli
in Human Stool Specimens
Authors: Kawatsu Kentaro , Kumeda Yuko , Taguchi Masumi , Yamazaki-Matsune Wataru , Kanki Masashi , Inoue Kiyoshi 
Published: February 2008

ABSTRACT

An immunochromatographic assay (Campy-ICA) using a newly generated single monoclonal antibody against a 15-kDa cell surface protein of
Campylobacter jejuni
was developed. When cell suspensions of 86
C. jejuni
strains and 27
Campylobacter coli
strains were treated with a commercially available bacterial protein extraction reagent and the resulting extracts were tested with the Campy-ICA, they all yielded positive results. The minimum detectable limits for the
C. jejuni
strains ranged from 1.8 × 10
4
to 8.2 × 10
5
CFU/ml of cell suspension, and those for the
C. coli
strains ranged from 1.4 × 10
5
to 4.6 × 10
6
CFU/ml of cell suspension. All 26 non-
Campylobacter
species tested yielded negative results with the Campy-ICA. To evaluate the ability of the Campy-ICA to detect
C. jejuni
and
C. coli
in human stool specimens, suspensions of 222 stool specimens from patients with acute gastroenteritis were treated with the bacterial protein extraction reagent, and the resulting extracts were tested with the Campy-ICA. The Campy-ICA results showed a sensitivity of 84.8% (28 of 33 specimens) and a specificity of 100% (189 of 189 specimens) compared to the results of isolation of
C. jejuni
and
C. coli
from the stool specimens by a bacterial culture test. The Campy-ICA was simple to perform and was able to detect
Campylobacter
antigen in a fecal extract within 15 min. These results suggest that Campy-ICA testing of fecal extracts may be useful as a simple and rapid adjunct to stool culture for detecting
C. jejuni
and
C. coli
in human stool specimens.
RespiFinder: a New Multiparameter Test To Differentially Identify Fifteen Respiratory Viruses
Authors: Reijans Martin , Dingemans Gijs , Klaassen Corné H. , Meis Jacques F. , Keijdener Judith , Mulders Brit , Eadie Kimberly , van Leeuwen Willem , van Belkum Alex , Horrevorts Alphons M. , Simons Guus 
Published: February 2008

ABSTRACT
Broad-spectrum analysis for pathogens in patients with respiratory tract infections is becoming more relevant as the number of potential infectious agents is still increasing. Here we describe the new multiparameter RespiFinder assay, which is based on the multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) technology. This assay detects 15 respiratory viruses in one reaction. The MLPA reaction is preceded by a preamplification step which ensures the detection of both RNA and DNA viruses with the same specificity and sensitivity as individual monoplex real-time reverse transcription-PCRs. The RespiFinder assay was validated with 144 clinical samples, and the results of the assay were compared to those of cell culture and a respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)-specific immunochromatography assay (ICA). Compared to the cell culture results, the RespiFinder assay showed specificities and sensitivities of 98.2% and 100%, respectively, for adenovirus; 96.4% and 100%, respectively, for human metapneumovirus; 98.2% and 100%, respectively, for influenza A virus (InfA); 99.1% and 100%, respectively, for parainfluenza virus type 1 (PIV-1); 99.1% and 80%, respectively, for PIV-3; 90.1% and 100%, respectively, for rhinovirus; and 94.6% and 100%, respectively, for RSV. Compared to the results of the RSV-specific ICA, the RespiFinder assay gave a specificity and a sensitivity of 82.4% and 80%, respectively. PIV-2, PIV-4, influenza B virus, InfA H5N1, and coronavirus 229E were not detected in the clinical specimens tested. The use of the RespiFinder assay resulted in an increase in the diagnostic yield compared to that obtained by cell culture (diagnostic yields, 60% and 35.5%, respectively). In conclusion, the RespiFinder assay provides a user-friendly and high-throughput tool for the simultaneous detection of 15 respiratory viruses with excellent overall performance statistics.
Higher-Order RNA Structural Requirements and Small-Molecule Induction of Tombusvirus Subgenomic mRNA Transcription
Authors: Wang Sheng , Mortazavi Leyla , White K. Andrew 
Published: February 2008

ABSTRACT
Subgenomic (sg) mRNAs are small viral messages that are synthesized by polycistronic positive-strand RNA viruses to allow for the translation of certain viral proteins. Tombusviruses synthesize two such sg mRNAs via a premature termination mechanism. This transcriptional process involves the viral RNA-dependent RNA polymerase terminating minus-strand RNA synthesis prematurely at internal RNA signals during copying of the viral genome. The 3′-truncated minus-strand RNAs generated by the termination events then serve as templates for sg mRNA transcription. A higher-order RNA structure in the viral genome, located just upstream from the termination site, is a critical component of the RNA-based polymerase attenuation signal. Here, we have analyzed the role of this RNA structure in mediating efficient sg mRNA2 transcription. Our results include the following: (i) we define the minimum overall thermodynamic stability required for an operational higher-order RNA attenuation structure; (ii) we show that the distribution of stability within an attenuation structure affects its function; (iii) we establish that an RNA quadruplex structure can act as an effective attenuation structure; (iv) we prove that the higher-order RNA structure forms and functions in the plus strand; (v) we provide evidence that a specific attenuation structure-binding protein factor is not required for transcription; (vi) we demonstrate that sg mRNA transcription can be controlled artificially through small-molecule activation using RNA aptamer technology. These findings provide important new insights into the premature termination mechanism and present a novel approach to regulate the transcriptional process.
An analysis of the positional distribution of DNA motifs in promoter regions and its biological relevance
Authors: Casimiro Ana C , Vinga Susana , Freitas Ana T , Oliveira Arlindo L 
Published: February 2008

Abstract

Background
Motif finding algorithms have developed in their ability to use computationally efficient methods to detect patterns in biological sequences. However the posterior classification of the output still suffers from some limitations, which makes it difficult to assess the biological significance of the motifs found. Previous work has highlighted the existence of positional bias of motifs in the DNA sequences, which might indicate not only that the pattern is important, but also provide hints of the positions where these patterns occur preferentially.

Results
We propose to integrate position uniformity tests and over-representation tests to improve the accuracy of the classification of motifs. Using artificial data, we have compared three different statistical tests (Chi-Square, Kolmogorov-Smirnov and a Chi-Square bootstrap) to assess whether a given motif occurs uniformly in the promoter region of a gene. Using the test that performed better in this dataset, we proceeded to study the positional distribution of several well known cis-regulatory elements, in the promoter sequences of different organisms (S. cerevisiae, H. sapiens, D. melanogaster, E. coli and several Dicotyledons plants). The results show that position conservation is relevant for the transcriptional machinery.

Conclusion
We conclude that many biologically relevant motifs appear heterogeneously distributed in the promoter region of genes, and therefore, that non-uniformity is a good indicator of biological relevance and can be used to complement over-representation tests commonly used. In this article we present the results obtained for the S. cerevisiae data sets.
Comparative efficacies of different antibiotic treatments to eradicate nontypeable Haemophilus influenzaeinfection
Authors: Sekiya Yukie , Eguchi Masahiro , Nakamura Masahiko , Ubukata Kimiko , Omura Satoshi , Matsui Hidenori 
Published: February 2008

Abstract

Background
Nonencapsulated and nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi) is a major cause of human respiratory tract infections. Some strains of NTHi can cause invasive diseases such as septicemia and meningitis, even if H. influenzae is not generally considered to be an intracellular pathogen. There have been very few reports about the therapeutic efficacy of antibiotics against respiratory tract infection caused by NTHi in mice because it is difficult for H. influenzae to infect mice. Therefore, we evaluated the efficacy of antibiotics against NTHi in both a cell culture model and a mouse model of infection.

Methods
We used six strains of NTHi isolated from adult patients with chronic otitis media, namely three β-lactamase-negative ampicillin (AMP)-resistant (BLNAR) strains and three β-lactamase-negative AMP-susceptible (BLNAS) strains, to evaluate the efficacy of AMP, cefcapene (CFPN), levofloxacin (LVX), clarithromycin (CLR), and azithromycin (AZM) in both a cell culture infection model and a mouse infection model. In the cell culture infection model, strains that invade A549 human alveolar epithelial cells were treated with each antibiotic (1 μg/ml). In the mouse infection model, female C57BL/6 mice were intraperitoneally injected with cyclophosphamide (200 mg/kg) three days before intranasal infection with 1 × 109 colony-forming units (CFU) of NTHi and on the day of infection. After infection, the mice were orally administered each antibiotic three times daily for three days, except for AZM, which was administered once daily for three days, at a dose of 100 mg/kg/day.

Results
In the cell culture infection model, it was found that two BLNAR strains were able to enter the cell monolayers by the process of macropinocytosis, and treatment with LVX yielded good bactericidal activity against both strains inside the cells. In the mouse infection model, no bacteria were detected by means of plating the lung homogenates of LVX-treated mice at day 4 after infection, while more than 105 CFU of bacteria per tissue sample were detected in nontreated mice.

Conclusion
Our findings show the outcome and rich benefits of fluoroquinolone treatment of respiratory infections caused by either invasive or noninvasive BLNAR strains of NTHi.
Riccardo Maisano (ed.), Cantici di Romano il Melodo, vol. I-II
Authors: Conca Fabrizio 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
Nella relazione presentata al II Convegno dell'Associazione di Studi Tardoantichi, Riccardo Maisano osservava che solo con l'edizione di Grosdidier de Matons, apparsa tra il 1964 e il 1981, «ha inizio il vero e proprio dialogo fra l'opera di Romano e il pubblico occidentale. Per la prima volta gli inni sono sistematicamente tradotti, introdotti e annotati dallo stesso filologo curatore dell'edizione critica, e la medesima unità di intenti guida anche la compilazione dell'apparato delle varianti, rendendo al lettore un servigio inestimabile». Ma poiché la prematura scomparsa dello studioso, al quale Maisano riconosce «appassionata adesione alla materia» e «signorile onestà intellettuale» (I, p. 75), impedì che l'opera venisse portata a termine, la presente risulta essere la prima edizione criticamente rivista, tradotta e commentata in modo completo: oltre ai 59 contaci di sicura attribuzione, essa comprende in appendice anche alcuni carmina dubia (83, 84, 87 Maas-Trypanis), nonché l'Inno acatisto, che sicuramente non può essere assegnato al Melodo (II, p. 580), ma del quale è ristampata la traduzione di Carlo Del Grande (Firenze 1948), proprio per documentare «la differenza anche stilistica fra questo componimento e i cantici di Romano» (II, p. 581).
Eric McGeer/John Nesbitt/Nicolas Oikonomide, Catalogue of Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and in the Fogg Museum of Art, IV: The East
Authors: Seibt Werner 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
Die alphabetische Reihung der Autorennamen erweckt ein irreführendes Bild der einzelnen Kontributionen, zumal da ja auch kein Vorwort erscheint. Die wissenschaftliche Leitung und Letztverantwortung für den Band lag weiterhin bei N. Oikonomides, der nicht nur das Manuskript abschloss, sondern auch noch die Stellungnahmen der Begutachter auswerten konnte, Fahnen aber leider nicht mehr erleben durfte. Den größten Zeitaufwand investierte sicherlich J. Nesbitt, der ja für dieses Projekt in Dumbarton Oaks angestellt ist. E. McGeer dagegen ist zwar ein sigillographischer Hoffnungsträger in Amerika, sein Beitrag zu diesem Band war aber noch eher bescheiden.
Antigone Samellas, Death in the Eastern Mediterranean (50-600 A.D.). The Christianization of the East: an interpretation. [Studies and Texts in Antiquity and Christianity, 12.]
Authors: Ewald Christina Katsougiannopoulou 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
In the last decade we witnessed an impressive output of scholarly publications dealing either with issues of Christianization in various parts of the Roman Empire or exploring the interaction of Christianity with pagan religion and local cults. The book by Samellas with its promising title is a welcome addition to these series of works and will interest specialists in religious studies, historians of Late Antiquity and cultural anthropologists alike. The book derives from a dissertation submitted at Yale University in 1999. It is divided into seven chapters that are, in turn, divided into sections; the volume also comprises a short conclusive chapter as well as indices of ancient and modern authors.
Westerink Leendert G./Duffy John (eds.), Michael Psellus. Theologica. Vol. II. [Bibliotheca scriptorum Graecorum et Romanorum Teubneriana.]
Authors: Bevegni Claudio 
Published: February 2008

Abstract
A distanza di tredici anni dalla pubblicazione del primo, e più corposo, volume dei Theologica di Michele Psello, curato da Paul Gautier, vede ora la luce il secondo e ultimo volume degli opuscoli teologici del grande poligrafo bizantino, ad arricchire ulteriormente la ormai lunga serie delle edizioni pselliane comparse nella Bibliotheca Teubneriana. Il vol. si apre con una Praefatio essenziale (pp. VII–XVIII), incentrata sulla tradizione manoscritta dei singoli opuscoli, nella quale vengono rapidamente elencati tutti i codici dai quali ogni trattatello ci è stato trasmesso e le (eventuali) precedenti edizioni. Dopo il Conspectus editionum (limitato agli scritti pubblicati nel II vol.) e il consueto elenco dei Sigla (pp. XIX–XXI) segue il testo dei quarantacinque opuscoli (pp. 1–153), ventitré dei quali fino ad oggi inediti. Tali opuscoli risultano di dimensioni assai variabili: si va da veri e propri saggi lunghi fino a venticinque pagine a stampa (op. 3) a semplici schede di una manciata di righi (op. 22). In essi Psello prende prevalentemente in esame loci delle Sacre Scritture; talora discute invece passi problematici del prediletto Gregorio Nazianzeno, oppure affronta questioni puntuali, come l'eresia di Eunomio (op. 14) o l'aspetto degli angeli (op. 38). Come accade anche per scritti di Psello di altro genere (si pensi, ad es., agli opuscoli retorici e filosofici), anche questi trattatelli teologici si configurano non di rado come centoni di passi mutuati da opere altrui e sapientemente assemblati da Psello: si vedano, ad es., op. 14, nel quale vengono combinati loci tratti dall'Adversus Eunomium di Basilio di Cesarea e dall'omonima opera di Gregorio di Nissa, oppure op. 10, largamente debitore delle Quaestiones in Leviticum di Teodoreto di Cirro. Il vol. si chiude con l'elenco degli Initia (pp. 154–155) e tre indici (pp. 155–176): Index auctorum, Index nominum e Index verborum (propriamente, un delectus verborum).