bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Alkyl‐Capped Silicon Nanocrystals Lack Cytotoxicity and have Enhanced Intracellular Accumulation in Malignant Cells via Cholesterol‐Dependent Endocytosis
Authors: Alsharif Naif H. , Berger Christine E. M. , Varanasi Satya S. , Chao Yimin , Horrocks Benjamin R. , Datta Harish K. 
Published: December 2008

AbstractNanocrystals of various inorganic materials are being considered for application in the life sciences as fluorescent labels and for such therapeutic applications as drug delivery or targeted cell destruction. The potential applications of the nanoparticles are critically compromised due to the well‐documented toxicity and lack of understanding about the mechanisms involved in the intracellular internalization. Here intracellular internalization and toxicity of alkyl‐capped silicon nanocrystals in human neoplastic and normal primary cells is reported. The capped nanocrystals lack cytotoxicity, and there is a marked difference in the rate and extent of intracellular accumulation of the nanoparticles between human cancerous and non‐cancerous primary cells, the rate and extent being higher in the malignant cells compared to normal human primary cells. The exposure of the cells to the alkyl‐capped nanocrystals demonstrates no evidence of in vitro cytotoxicity when assessed by cell morphology, apoptosis, and cell viability assays. The internalization of the nanocrystals by Hela and SW1353 cells is almost completely blocked by the pinocytosis inhibitors filipin, cytochalasin B, and actinomycin D. The internalization process is not associated with any surface change in the nanoparticles, as their luminescence spectrum is unaltered upon transport into the cytosol. The observed dramatic difference in the rate and extent of internalization of the nanocrystals between malignant and non‐malignant cells therefore offers potential application in the management of human neoplastic conditions.
Altering Arabidopsis Oilseed Composition by a Combined Antisense‐Hairpin RNAi Gene Suppression Approach
Authors: Nguyen Tam , Shanklin John 
Published: December 2008

AbstractAntisense (AS) and hairpin (HP) RNA interference (RNAi) targeted gene suppression technologies have been used to modify seed oil composition. Larger numbers of AS transgenics have to be screened to achieve a targeted level of suppression compared to RNAi. We hypothesized combining AS with RNAi might result in enhanced gene suppression compared to either method individually. AS and HP‐RNAi were combined as hairpin antisense (HPAS) constructs containing ~125 bp sense and antisense portions of an untranslated region of the target gene separated by an intron containing an antisense copy of a portion of the target coding region. The Δ12‐desaturase FAD2, the ω3‐desaturase FAD3 and β‐ketoacyl‐ACP synthase (KAS) II were targeted in Arabidopsis to evaluate changes in oil composition with AS, HP and HPAS constructs driven by the phaseolin promoter. Modest but statistically significant enhancements in oilseed phenotypes were observed with HPAS relative to AS and HP‐RNAi. Phenotypes for HPAS suppression of FAD2 and FAD3 were indistinguishable from their strongest mutant alleles. Our data suggest that HPAS may be useful for: (1) achieving levels of suppression comparable to those of gene knockouts in a tissue specific manner. (2) Maximizing suppression of suboptimal RNAi constructs and (3) minimizing the screening of transgenics to achieve desired oilseed composition.
Preoperative Fasting Duration and Medication Instruction: Are We Improving?
Authors: Crenshaw Jeannette T. , Winslow Elizabeth H. 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACTRESEARCH HAS SHOWN that preoperative fasting practices commonly are much longer than national guidelines, and medication instructions are not always given to patients before surgery. After implementation of an evidence‐based preoperative fasting policy and educational efforts for health care providers at one facility, a follow up project was conducted to determine whether these efforts had improved fasting practices.THE PROJECT FINDINGS indicate that preoperative fasting in excess of safe minimum guidelines persists. Improvements were found in the percentage of patients receiving specific instructions about whether to take their routine medications on the morning of surgery. Continued efforts must be made to implement best practices for preoperative fasting. AORN J 88 (December 2008) 963–976. © AORN, Inc, 2008.
Why did life emerge?
Authors: Annila Arto , Annila Erkki 
Published: December 2008

AbstractMany mechanisms, functions and structures of life have been unraveled. However, the fundamental driving force that propelled chemical evolution and led to life has remained obscure. The second law of thermodynamics, written as an equation of motion, reveals that elemental abiotic matter evolves from the equilibrium via chemical reactions that couple to external energy towards complex biotic non-equilibrium systems. Each time a new mechanism of energy transduction emerges, e.g., by random variation in syntheses, evolution prompts by punctuation and settles to a stasis when the accessed free energy has been consumed. The evolutionary course towards an increasingly larger energy transduction system accumulates a diversity of energy transduction mechanisms, i.e. species. The rate of entropy increase is identified as the fitness criterion among the diverse mechanisms, which places the theory of evolution by natural selection on the fundamental thermodynamic principle with no demarcation line between inanimate and animate.
Pliocene Role in Assessing Future Climate Impacts
Authors: Robinson Marci M. , Dowsett Harry J. , Chandler Mark A. 
Published: December 2008

Future warming projected by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has the potential to affect every person on Earth. Extreme weather events, rising sea level, and migrating ecosystems and resources may result in socioeconomic stresses. Although we can plan and prepare for what is expected, the most dangerous aspect of our changing climate is the uncertainty in climate sensitivity.To reduce the uncertainties of climate change, paleoclimatologists are focusing on a possible yet imperfect analog to a future warmer climate.
RNA interference of metastasis‐associated gene 1 inhibits metastasis of B16F10 melanoma cells in a C57BL/6 mouse model
Authors: Qian Haili , Yu Jing , Li Yunfeng , Wang Haijuan , Song Chongwen , Zhang Xueyan , Liang Xiao , Fu Ming , Lin Chen 
Published: December 2008

Background information. MTA1 (metastasis‐associated gene 1) has been reported to be overexpressed in cancers with high potential to metastasize. Studies of the molecular mechanisms revealed that MTA1 plays an important role in the process of metastasis of many types of cancer. However, the role of MTA1 in melanoma development is unclear.Results. We have investigated the therapeutic value of MTA1 in the B16F10 melanoma cell line with the C57BL/6 mouse model. Studies in vitro showed that MTA1 promoted the metastatic ability of B16F10 cancer cells. MTA1 down‐regulation by RNA interference greatly reversed the malignant phenotypes of cancer cells. Immunohistochemical staining of MTA1 in human melanoma samples confirmed the up‐regulation of MTA1 in the process of carcinogenesis. Studies in vivo confirmed down‐regulation of MTA1 suppressed the growth and experimental metastasis of B16F10 melanoma cells.Conclusions. MTA1 plays an important role in melanoma development and metastasis. It has a promising potential as a target for in cancer gene therapy or chemotherapy.
Role of Auditory Cortex in Noise- and Drug-Induced Tinnitus
Authors: Eggermont Jos J. 
Published: December 2008

Purpose
To elucidate the role of auditory cortex in tinnitus.

Method
Neurophysiological findings in cat auditory cortex following noise trauma or the application of salicylate and quinine, all expected to induce tinnitus, were reviewed. Those findings were interpreted in the context of what is expected from studies in humans, specifically in the brains of people with tinnitus.

Results
Tinnitus is an auditory percept to which several central structures in the auditory system may contribute. Because the central auditory system has both feed-forward connections and feedback connections, it can be described as a set of nested loops. Once these loops become activated in a pathological fashion, as they may be in tinnitus, it becomes hard to assign importance to each contributing structure. Strongly interconnected networks, that is, neural assemblies, may be determining the quality of the tinnitus percept.

Conclusion
It is unlikely that tinnitus is the expression of a set of independently firing neurons, and more likely that it is the result of a pathologically increased synchrony between sets of neurons. There is clear evidence for this from both evoked potentials and from neuron-pair synchrony measures.
Exposure to Disability and Hearing Loss Narratives in Undergraduate Audiology Curriculum
Authors: Berg Abbey L. , Canellas Maryrose , Salbod Stephen , Velayo Richard 
Published: December 2008

PurposeTo determine whether exposure to disability and hearing loss narratives increased undergraduate communication sciences and disorders (CSD) students' affective responses to scenarios of individuals with hearing impairment.MethodThirty-five CSD undergraduates responded to 8 scenarios (K. English, L. L. Mendel, T. Rojeski, & J. Hornak, 1999). Sixteen students completed a course in audiologic rehabilitation with no exposure to disability and hearing loss narratives; 19 students completed the same course with exposure. Two audiologists, independent and blind to group status, rated the 35 student responses for affective and technical content.ResultsStudents exposed to the narratives incorporated more affective elements into their technical responses than students not exposed.ConclusionsNarratives appear to be effective in increasing affective elements in students' technical/informational responses and may have a place and be of value in undergraduate CSD curriculum.
Gap Detection Methods for Assessing Salicylate-Induced Tinnitus and Hyperacusis in Rats
Authors: Turner Jeremy G. , Parrish Jennifer 
Published: December 2008

Purpose
A variety of options for behavioral assessment of tinnitus in laboratory animals are available to researchers today. These options are briefly reviewed, followed by data suggesting that gap detection procedures might be used to efficiently measure acute, salicylate-induced tinnitus and possibly hyperacusis in rats.

Method

Fischer Brown Norway rats (
n
= 10) were given intraperitoneal injections of 350 mg/kg sodium salicylate on 2 consecutive days, and the effects on gap detection were observed across 9 different frequency bands. Pretest, posttest, and washout data were collected. An additional 4 rats were each given 4 different doses of sodium salicylate (0, 150, 250, and 300 mg/kg), and gap detection and prepulse inhibition were measured.

Results
Significant gap detection deficits were observed from pre- to posttest that were consistent with tinnitus. Consistent gap detection deficits were found using broadband noise backgrounds, while significant improvements in responding to frequency-specific test bands were found. Similar effects were repeated in the dose response portion of the study.

Conclusions
Gap detection procedures efficiently measured salicylate-induced changes in behavior that were consistent with the presence of tinnitus. In addition, the reliable, stronger responses at many frequencies after salicylate injections suggest the possibility of measuring a hyperacusis-like phenomenon using these methods.
First Report of Colletotrichum boninense Causing Anthracnose on Pepper in Brazil
Authors: Tozze H. J. , Massola N. M. , Câmara M. P. S. , Gioria R. , Suzuki O. , Brunelli K. R. , Braga R. S. , Kobori R. F. 
Published: December 2008

Colletotrichum boninense was isolated from pepper (Capsicum annuum) fruits (cv. Amanda) with preharvest anthracnose symptoms collected in the Brazilian states of Rio Grande do Sul and São Paulo in July of 2005. In the field, the disease affected mature fruits and leaves with an incidence near 25%. Typical symptoms in fruits were circular, sunken lesions with orange spore masses in a dark center. Three single conidia isolates were obtained from infected fruits. When grown on potato dextrose agar at 25°C with a 12-h photoperiod, these isolates produced white colonies with a cream-to-orange color in the opposite side, but no sclerotia. Conidia were cylindrical, had obtuse ends and a hilum-like low protuberance at the base, and measured 13.5 to 15.5 × 4.6 to 5.1 μm. Conidial length/width ratio was 2.8 to 3.0. These morphological characteristics are consistent with the description of C. boninense (1). To confirm pathogen identity, the internal transcribed spacer rRNA region was sequenced (GenBank Accession Nos. FJ010199, FJ010200, and FJ010201) and compared with the same region of C. boninense (GenBank Accession No. DQ286160.1). Similarity between these sequences was 98 to 99%. The pathogenicity of the three isolates was determined on pepper fruits cv. Amanda. Attached as well as detached fruits from potted plants were inoculated. Inoculation was performed by depositing 40-μl droplets of a suspension (105 conidia per ml) on the surfaces of nonwounded (detached n = 5; attached n = 5) and wounded (detached n = 5; attached n = 5) fruits with a sterilized hypodermic needle. Incubation took place in a moist chamber for 12 days at 25°C with a 12-h photoperiod. Inoculation of control fruits was similar in procedure and number to that of test fruits, except sterile distilled water was used instead of the conidial suspension. Symptoms, observed in wounded and nonwounded test fruits 3 to 5 days after inoculation, were characterized by necrotic, sunken zones containing acervuli, black setae, and orange spore masses. Control fruits presented no symptoms. Pathogens reisolated from infected fruits showed the same morphological and molecular characteristics of the isolates previously inoculated. To our knowledge, this is the first report of C. boninense infecting pepper in Brazil. Reference: (1) J. Moriwaki et al. Mycoscience 44:47, 2003.
Rice Aldehyde Dehydrogenase7 Is Needed for Seed Maturation and Viability
Authors: Shin Jun-Hye , Kim Sung-Ryul , An Gynheung 
Published: December 2008

AbstractAldehyde dehydrogenases (ALDHs) catalyze the irreversible oxidation of a wide range of reactive aldehydes to their corresponding carboxylic acids. Although the proteins have been studied from various organisms and at different growth stages, their roles in seed development have not been well elucidated. We obtained T-DNA insertional mutants in OsALDH7, which is remarkably inducible by oxidative and abiotic stresses. Interestingly, endosperms from the osaldh7 null mutants accumulated brown pigments during desiccation and storage. Extracts from the mutant seeds showed a maximum absorbance peak at 360 nm, the wavelength that melanoidin absorbs. Under UV light, those extracts also exhibited much stronger fluorescence than the wild type, suggesting that the pigments are melanoidin. These pigments started to accumulate in the late seed developmental stage, the time when OsALDH7 expression began to increase significantly. Purified OsALDH7 protein showed enzyme activities to malondialdehyde, acetaldehyde, and glyceraldehyde. These results suggest that OsALDH7 is involved in removing various aldehydes formed by oxidative stress during seed desiccation. The mutant seeds were more sensitive to our accelerated aging treatment and accumulated more malondialdehyde than the wild type. These data imply that OsALDH7 plays an important role in maintaining seed viability by detoxifying the aldehydes generated by lipid peroxidation.
GNOM-Mediated Vesicular Trafficking Plays an Essential Role in Hydrotropism of Arabidopsis Roots
Authors: Miyazawa Yutaka , Takahashi Akiko , Kobayashi Akie , Kaneyasu Tomoko , Fujii Nobuharu , Takahashi Hideyuki 
Published: December 2008

Abstract
Roots respond not only to gravity but also to moisture gradient by displaying gravitropism and hydrotropism, respectively, to control their growth orientation, which helps plants obtain water and become established in the terrestrial environment. As gravitropism often interferes with hydrotropism, however, the mechanisms of how roots display hydrotropism and differentiate it from gravitropism are not understood. We previously reported MIZU-KUSSEI1 (MIZ1) as a gene required for hydrotropism but not for gravitropism, although the function of its protein was not known. Here, we found that a mutation of GNOM encoding guanine-nucleotide exchange factor for ADP-ribosylation factor-type G proteins was responsible for the ahydrotropism of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), miz2. Unlike other gnom alleles, miz2 showed no apparent morphological defects or reduced gravitropism. Instead, brefeldin A (BFA) treatment inhibited both hydrotropism and gravitropism in Arabidopsis roots. In addition, a BFA-resistant GNOM variant, GNM696L, showed normal hydrotropic response in the presence of BFA. Furthermore, a weak gnom allele, gnomB/E, showed defect in hydrotropic response. These results indicate that GNOM-mediated vesicular trafficking plays an essential role in hydrotropism of seedling roots.
Identification of multiple sites suitable for insertion of foreign genes in herpes simplex virus genomes
Authors: Morimoto Tomomi , Arii Jun , Akashi Hiroomi , Kawaguchi Yasushi 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACTInformation on sites in HSV genomes at which foreign gene(s) can be inserted without disrupting viral genes or affecting properties of the parental virus are important for basic research on HSV and development of HSV‐based vectors for human therapy. The intergenic region between HSV‐1 UL3 and UL4 genes has been reported to satisfy the requirements for such an insertion site. The UL3 and UL4 genes are oriented toward the intergenic region and, therefore, insertion of a foreign gene(s) into the region between the UL3 and UL4 polyadenylation signals should not disrupt any viral genes or transcriptional units. HSV‐1 and HSV‐2 each have more than 10 additional regions structurally similar to the intergenic region between UL3 and UL4. In the studies reported here, it has been demonstrated that insertion of a reporter gene expression cassette into several of the HSV‐1 and HSV‐2 intergenic regions has no effect on viral growth in cell culture or virulence in mice, suggesting that these multiple intergenic regions may be suitable HSV sites for insertion of foreign genes.
Coffee, green tea, and caffeine consumption and subsequent risk of bladder cancer in relation to smoking status: a prospective study in Japan
Authors: Kurahashi Norie , Inoue Manami , Iwasaki Motoki , Sasazuki Shizuka , Tsugane Shoichiro ,   for the Japan Public Health Center (JPHC) Study Group
Published: December 2008

Coffee and caffeine consumption are thought to increase the risk of bladder cancer. However, few studies have stratified this risk by smoking status, which is a potential confounder. Here, we investigated the association between coffee, green tea (another major source of caffeine), and caffeine, and bladder cancer incidence in relation to smoking status. We conducted a population‐based prospective study in a cohort of Japanese, comprising a total of 49 566 men and 54 874 women aged 40–69 years who reported their coffee and green tea consumption at baseline. During follow‐up from 1990 through 2005, 164 men and 42 women were newly diagnosed with bladder cancer. Cigarette smoking was associated with an increased risk of bladder cancer, with a strong dose–response relationship. Coffee was positively associated with bladder cancer risk in men, without statistical significance. When stratified by smoking status, coffee and caffeine consumption were associated with an increased risk of bladder cancer in never‐ or former‐smoking men, with hazard ratios (95% confidence interval) in the highest categories of coffee (one or more cups per day) and caffeine consumption compared with the lowest of 2.24 (95% CI = 1.21–4.16) and 2.05 (95% CI = 1.15–3.66), respectively. In conclusion, cigarette smoking was confirmed as a risk factor for bladder cancer. Coffee and caffeine may be associated with an increased bladder cancer risk in never or former smokers among Japanese men. (Cancer Sci 2009; 100: 284–291)
Analysis of phosphorus in two humic acid fractions of intensively cropped lowland rice soils by31P‐NMR
Authors: Mahieu N. , Olk D. C. , Randall E. W. 
Published: December 2008

SummaryThe organic forms of phosphorus in the soil appear to be changing as rice growing intensifies and the soil is flooded for longer in tropical Asia. To examine these changes, we extracted the labile mobile humic acid (MHA) and more recalcitrant calcium humate (CaHA) fractions from soils supporting long‐term field trials in the Philippines and analysed them by solution31P‐nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Diester P and sugar‐diester P accumulated moderately with increasing intensity of irrigated rice cropping, reaching a combined 42% of all MHA‐P for a triple‐cropped irrigated field compared with 28% for fully aerated fields growing dryland crops. The mono‐ to diester P ratio decreased by 43% for the MHA and CaHA from the aerated fields to the triple‐cropped field. Smaller effects on forms of P were noted for the rates and type of N, P and K fertilizer and site effects. The effects of treatment and site were more noticeable in the MHA than in the CaHA. The proportions in the NMR spectra were tightly correlated with visible light absorption, concentrations of organic free radicals and H, and15N‐NMR spectral proportions, which indicate the degree of humification. The MHA and CaHA accounted for only 0.6–8.3% and 0.9–5.7%, respectively, of total P; most of the P is inorganic.
Identification of SFR6, a key component in cold acclimation acting post‐translationally on CBF function
Authors: Knight Heather , Mugford Sarah G. , Ülker Bekir , Gao Dahai , Thorlby Glenn , Knight Marc R. 
Published: December 2008

SummaryThesfr6‐1mutant ofArabidopsis thalianawas identified previously on the basis of its failure to undergo acclimation to freezing temperatures following exposure to low positive temperatures. This failure is attributed to a defect in the pathway leading to cold on‐regulated (COR) gene expression via CBF (C‐box binding factor) transcription factors. We identified a region of chromosome 4 containingSFR6by positional mapping. Fine mapping of thesfr6‐1mutation proved impossible as the locus resides very close to the centromere. Therefore, we screened 380 T‐DNA lines with insertions in genes within the large region to whichsfr6‐1mapped. This resulted in the identification of two further mutant alleles ofSFR6(sfr6‐2andsfr6‐3); like the originalsfr6‐1mutation, these disrupt freezing tolerance andCORgene expression. To determine the protein sequence, we cloned anSFR6cDNA based on the predicted coding sequence, but this offered no indication as to the mechanism by which SFR6 acts. TheSFR6gene itself is not strongly regulated by cold, thus discounting regulation of SFR6 activity at the transcriptional level. We show that over‐expression of CBF1 or CBF2 transcription factors, which constitutively activateCORgenes in the wild‐type, cannot do so insfr6‐1. We demonstrate that CBF protein accumulates to wild‐type levels in response to cold insfr6‐1. These results indicate a role for the SFR6 protein in the CBF pathway ‐downstream of CBF translation. The fact that the SFR6 protein is targeted to the nucleus may suggest a direct role in modulating gene expression.