bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Flow Patterns at the Ends of a Street Canyon: Measurements from the Joint Urban 2003 Field Experiment
Authors: Pol Suhas U. , Brown Michael J. 
Published: June 2008

Abstract
During the Joint Urban 2003 experiment held in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, an east–west-running street canyon was heavily instrumented with wind sensors. In this paper, the flow patterns at the street canyon ends are investigated by looking at sonic anemometers placed near ground level and tethersonde wind vane systems operated in “ladder” mode that were suspended over the sides of the buildings on each side of the street. For southerly flow conditions, the street-level wind sensors often showed what appeared to be a horizontally rotating “corner” or “end” vortex existing at each end of the street canyon near the intersections. It was found that this vortex flow pattern appeared for a wide range of upper-level wind directions but then changed to purely unidirectional flow for wind directions that were outside this range. The tethersonde wind vane measurements show that this vortexlike flow regime occasionally existed through the entire depth of the street canyon. The horizontal extent of the end vortex into the street canyon was found to be different at each end of the street. Under high-wind conditions, the mean wind patterns in the street did not vary appreciably during the day and night. The end vortex may be important in the dispersal of airborne contaminants, acting to enhance lateral and vertical mixing.
A Geographic Information Systems–Based Analysis of Supercells across Oklahoma from 1994 to 2003
Authors: Hocker James E. , Basara Jeffrey B. 
Published: June 2008

Abstract
Oklahoma is a region that is well known for its high frequency of severe thunderstorms, which vary in activity, mode, and coverage. In particular, this region experiences a significant number of highly organized supercell thunderstorms that pose hazards such as high winds, large hail, and tornadoes. This demonstration study focuses on the development and analysis of a 10-yr sample of supercell storms resulting from organized severe weather events in Oklahoma. Geographic information systems (GIS) were used as the primary tool to develop and analyze the 10-yr supercell dataset. The use of GIS technologies within the field of meteorology has increased dramatically in recent years and will likely continue as additional atmospheric science data formats become available in popular GIS software packages such as the Environmental Systems Research Institute’s ArcGIS series. For this specific study, GIS served as a critical component for developing individual georeferenced storm features and analyzing the life span and characteristics of 943 supercell thunderstorms. The results of a series of spatial storm frequency, initiation, termination, and direction analyses are presented. Results revealed that for the period spanning 1994–2003 supercell storms resulting from organized severe weather events were most frequent across several regions, including east-central Oklahoma, southwest Oklahoma, and west-central through northeast Oklahoma, with an overall mean track from the southwest to northeast. Supercell tracks were predominantly southwesterly during the first 5 months of the year, northwesterly from June through September, and once again southwesterly from October through the end of the year. A final set of analyses and examples illustrate the utility of storm feature–based climatologies.
Varus/Valgus and Internal/External Torsional Knee Joint Stiffness Differs between Sexes
Authors: Schmitz Randy J. , Ficklin Travis K. , Shimokochi Yohei , Nguyen Anh-Dung , Beynnon Bruce D. , Perrin David H. , Shultz Sandra J. 
Published: June 2008

Background Torsional joint stiffness is thought to play a role in the observed sex bias in noncontact anterior cruciate ligament injury rates. Hypothesis Women will exhibit lower torsional stiffness values of the knee in response to varus/valgus and internal/external rotations than will men. Study Design Controlled laboratory study. Methods Knee kinematics of 20 university students (10 men, 27.3 ± 3.4 years, 177.3 ± 6.8 cm, 81.1 ± 7.0 kg; 10 women, 22.9 ± 1.5 years, 169.0 ± 7.1 cm, 66.1 ±11.4 kg) were measured while 0 to 10 Nm of varus and valgus torques were applied with the subject nonweightbearing and while 0 to 5 N.m of internal and external torques were applied with the subject nonweightbearing and weightbearing with the use of a custom joint testing device. Joint stiffness values were calculated at 1-N.m increments. Results When low magnitudes of torque were applied to the knee, women had significantly lower stiffness values than did men-With the exception of applied external torque with the joint weightbearing and varus torque with the joint nonweightbearing, women demonstrated an increase in joint stiffness as the magnitude of torque increased from lower to higher magnitudes. In contrast, for the men, joint stiffness values remained unchanged as the magnitude of applied torque increased. Conclusion Women exhibited lower knee stiffness in response to low magnitudes of applied torque compared to men and demonstrated an increase of joint stiffness as the magnitude of applied torque increased. Clinical Relevance The decreased stiffness behavior of the knee in response to low torques that was observed for women may have a role in detrimentally affecting knee biomechanics and resulting neuromuscular function, particularly when an individual transitions from nonweightbearing to weightbearing.
Magnetic resonance imaging as a surrogate outcome for multiple sclerosis relapses
Authors: Petkau J , Reingold SC , Held U , Cutter GR , Fleming TR , Hughes MD , Miller DH , McFarland HF , Wolinsky JS 
Published: June 2008

Background Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of lesions in the brain may be the best current candidate for a surrogate biological marker of clinical outcomes in relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (MS), based on its role as an objective indicator of disease pathology. No biological surrogate marker has yet been validated for MS clinical outcomes. Objective The objective of this study was to use a multi-phased study to determine if a valid surrogate relationship could be demonstrated between counts of contrast enhancing lesions (CELs) and occurrence of relapses in MS. Methods We examined correlations for the concurrent and predictive relationship between CELs over 6 months and MS relapses over the same 6 months and an additional 6 months (total: 12 months), using available data on untreated patients from a large clinical trial and natural history database. Results Concurrent and predictive correlations were inadequate to justify continuation of this study to the planned additional phases required to demonstrate a surrogate relationship between CELs and MS relapses. Conclusions Confidence intervals for correlations between CELs and MS relapses exclude the possibility that CELs can be a good surrogate for relapses over the time scales we investigated. Further exploration of surrogacy between MRI measures and MS clinical outcomes may require improved datasets, the development of MRI techniques that couple better to clinical disease, and the ability to test a wide range of imaging- and clinically-based hypotheses for surrogacy.
Sepsis-induced inhibition of neutrophil chemotaxis is mediated by activation of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ
Authors: Reddy Raju C. , Narala Venkata R. , Keshamouni Venkateshwar G. , Milam Jami E. , Newstead Michael W. , Standiford Theodore J. 
Published: June 2008

AbstractNeutrophils (polymorphonuclear leukocytes [PMNs]) are critical to the immune response, including clearance of infectious pathogens. Sepsis is associated with impaired PMN function, including chemotaxis. PMNs express peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPAR-γ), a ligand-activated nuclear transcription factor involved in immune and inflammatory regulation. The role of PPAR-γ in PMN responses, however, is not well characterized. We report that freshly isolated human PMNs constitutively express PPAR-γ, which is up-regulated by the sepsis-induced cytokines TNF-α and IL-4. PMN chemotactic responses to formylmethionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine (fMLP) and IL-8 were dose-dependently inhibited by treatment with the PPAR-γ ligands troglitazone and 15-deoxy-Δ12,14-prostaglandin J2 (15d-PGJ2) and by transfection of PMN-like HL-60 cells with a constitutively active PPAR-γ construct. Inhibition of chemotaxis by PPAR-γ ligands correlated with decreases in extracellular signal-regulated kinase-1 and -2 activation, actin polymerization, and adherence to a fibrinogen substrate. Furthermore, PMN expression of PPAR-γ was increased in sepsis patients and mice with either of 2 models of sepsis. Finally, treatment with the PPAR-γ antagonist GW9662 significantly reversed the inhibition of PMN chemotaxis and increased peritoneal PMN recruitment in murine sepsis. This study indicates that PPAR-γ activation is involved in PMN chemotactic responses in vitro and may play a role in the migration of these cells in vivo.
A genome-wide scan for common genetic variants with a large influence on warfarin maintenance dose
Authors: Cooper Gregory M. , Johnson Julie A. , Langaee Taimour Y. , Feng Hua , Stanaway Ian B. , Schwarz Ute I. , Ritchie Marylyn D. , Stein C. Michael , Roden Dan M. , Smith Joshua D. , Veenstra David L. , Rettie Allan E. , Rieder Mark J. 
Published: June 2008

Abstract
Warfarin dosing is correlated with polymorphisms in vitamin K epoxide reductase complex 1 (VKORC1) and the cytochrome P450 2C9 (CYP2C9) genes. Recently, the FDA revised warfarin labeling to raise physician awareness about these genetic effects. Randomized clinical trials are underway to test genetically based dosing algorithms. It is thus important to determine whether common single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in other gene(s) have a large effect on warfarin dosing. A retrospective genome-wide association study was designed to identify polymorphisms that could explain a large fraction of the dose variance. White patients from an index warfarin population (n = 181) and 2 independent replication patient populations (n = 374) were studied. From the approximately 550 000 polymorphisms tested, the most significant independent effect was associated with VKORC1 polymorphisms (P = 6.2 × 10−13) in the index patients. CYP2C9 (rs1057910 CYP2C9*3) and rs4917639) was associated with dose at moderate significance levels (P ∼ 10−4). Replication polymorphisms (355 SNPs) from the index study did not show any significant effects in the replication patient sets. We conclude that common SNPs with large effects on warfarin dose are unlikely to be discovered outside of the CYP2C9 and VKORC1 genes. Randomized clinical trials that account for these 2 genes should therefore produce results that are definitive and broadly applicable.
Inflammation-associated lysophospholipids as ligands for CD1d-restricted T cells in human cancer
Authors: Chang David H. , Deng Haiteng , Matthews Phillip , Krasovsky Joseph , Ragupathi Govind , Spisek Radek , Mazumder Amitabha , Vesole David H. , Jagannath Sundar , Dhodapkar Madhav V. 
Published: June 2008

Abstract
CD1d-restricted T cells have been implicated in the pathogenesis of several chronic inflammatory states. However, the nature of the specific ligands recognized by these cells in vivo in patients with inflammatory or malignant diseases remains unknown. We took a biochemical approach to directly isolate and characterize the nature of CD1d-binding ligands from the plasma of myeloma patients. Characterization of these ligands revealed several lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) species. Human LPC-CD1d dimer binding cells are T-cell receptorαβ+ T cells but predominantly Vα24−Vβ11−. Cytokine secretion by LPC-specific T cells is skewed toward IL-13 secretion, and the frequencies of these cells are increased in myeloma patients relative to healthy donors. These data identify a distinct population of human CD1d-restricted T cells specific for inflammation-associated lysolipids and suggest a novel mechanism for inflammation mediated immune regulation in human cancer.
HIV-1 Tat protein alter the tight junction integrity and function of retinal pigment epithelium: an in vitro study
Authors: Bai Ling , Zhang Zhenping , Zhang Hui , Li Xiumei , Yu Qiurong , Lin Haotian , Yang Wenhui 
Published: June 2008

Abstract

Background
How HIV-1 enter into the eyes remains obscure. We postulated that HIV-1 Tat protein can alter the expression of specific tight-junction proteins and disturb the blood retinal barrier, and contributes to HIV trafficking into the eyes. This study is to determine the effects of HIV-1 Tat proteins on the barrier function and tight-junction protein expression of retinal pigment epithelial cell (RPE).

Methods
A human RPE cell line (D407) cultured on microporous filter-supports was used. After treating with HIV-1 Tat protein, transepithelial electrical resistance (TER) of confluent RPE cells was measured by epithelial voltmeter. The permeability of the RPE cells to sodium fluorescein was measured. The expressions of the occludin and claudins were determined by real-time polymerase chain reaction, immunofluorescence, and Western blot analysis. Activation of ERK1/2 was detected by Western blot analysis with specific antiphospho protein antibodies. NF-κB DNA binding activity was determined by transcription factor assay. Specific pharmacologic inhibitors directed against the MAPKs were used to analyze the signaling involved in barrier destruction of RPE cells exposed to HIV-1 Tat.

Results
Treating cultured human retinal pigment epithelial cells with 100 nM Tat for 24 hours increased the permeability and decreased the TER of the epithelial monolayer. HIV-1 Tat also disrupted and downregulated the tight-junction proteins claudin-1, claudin-3, and claudin-4 in these cells, whereas claudin-2 was upregulated, and the expression of occludin was unaffected. HIV-1 Tat protein also induced activation of ERK1/2 and NF-κB. HIV-1 Tat protein induced barrier destruction, changes in expression of TJs, and activation of ERK1/2 and NF-κB were abrogated by inhibitor of ERK1/2 and NF-κB.

Conclusion
HIV-1 Tat protein causes increases in the paracellular permeability of RPE cells in vitro concomitant with changes in expression of certain transmembrane proteins associated with the tight junction. The effects of HIV-1 Tat on barrier function of the RPE may be mediated by ERK MAPK and NF-κB activation, which may represent potential targets for novel therapeutic approaches for the retinopathy induced by HIV infection.
Involvement of TSC genes and differential expression of other members of the mTOR signaling pathway in oral squamous cell carcinoma
Authors: Chakraborty Sanjukta , Mohiyuddin SM Azeem , Gopinath KS , Kumar Arun 
Published: June 2008

Abstract

Background
Despite extensive research, the five-year survival rate of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) patients has not improved. Effective treatment of OSCC requires the identification of molecular targets and signaling pathways to design appropriate therapeutic strategies. Several genes from the mTOR signaling pathway are known to be dysregulated in a wide spectrum of cancers. However, not much is known about the involvement of this pathway in tumorigenesis of OSCC. We therefore investigated the role of the tumor suppressor genes, TSC1 and TSC2, and other members of this pathway in tumorigenesis of OSCC.

Methods
Expression of genes at the RNA and protein levels was examined by semi-quantitative RT-PCR and western blot analyses, respectively. Loss of heterozygosity was studied using matched blood and tumor DNA samples and microsatellite markers from the TSC1, TSC2 and PTEN candidate regions. The effect of promoter methylation on TSC gene expression was studied by treating cells with methyltransferase inhibitor 5-azacytidine. Methylation status of the TSC2 promoter in tissue samples was examined by combined bisulfite restriction analysis (COBRA).

Results
The semi-quantitative RT-PCR analysis showed downregulation of TSC1, TSC2, EIF4EBP1 and PTEN, and upregulation of PIK3C2A, AKT1, PDPK1, RHEB, FRAP1, RPS6KB1, EIF4E and RPS6 in tumors. A similar observation was made for AKT1 and RPS6KB1 expression in tumors at the protein level. Investigation of the mechanism of downregulation of TSC genes identified LOH in 36.96% and 39.13% of the tumors at the TSC1 and TSC2 loci, respectively. No mutation was found in TSC genes. A low LOH rate of 13% was observed at the PTEN locus. Treatment of an OSCC cell line with the methyltransferase inhibitor 5-azacytidine showed a significant increase in the expression of TSC genes, suggesting methylation of their promoters. However, the 5-azacytidine treatment of non-OSCC HeLa cells showed a significant increase in the expression of the TSC2 gene only. In order to confirm the results in patient tumor samples, the methylation status of the TSC2 gene promoter was examined by COBRA. The results suggested promoter hypermethylation as an important mechanism for its downregulation. No correlation was found between the presence or absence of LOH at the TSC1 and TSC2 loci in 50 primary tumors to their clinicopathological variables such as age, sex, T classification, stage, grade, histology, tobacco habits and lymph node metastasis.

Conclusion
Our study suggests the involvement of TSC genes and other members of the mTOR signaling pathway in the pathogenesis of OSCC. LOH and promoter methylation are two important mechanisms for downregulation of TSC genes. We suggest that known inhibitors of this pathway could be evaluated for the treatment of OSCC.
Resource use and outcome in critically ill patients with hematological malignancy: a retrospective cohort study
Authors: Merz Tobias M , Schär Pascale , Bühlmann Michael , Takala Jukka , Rothen Hans U 
Published: June 2008

Abstract
Introduction
The paucity of data on resource use in critically ill patients with hematological malignancy and on these patients' perceived poor outcome can lead to uncertainty over the extent to which intensive care treatment is appropriate. The aim of the present study was to assess the amount of intensive care resources needed for, and the effect of treatment of, hemato-oncological patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) in comparison with a nononcological patient population with a similar degree of organ dysfunction.

Methods
A retrospective cohort study of 101 ICU admissions of 84 consecutive hemato-oncological patients and 3,808 ICU admissions of 3,478 nononcological patients over a period of 4 years was performed.

Results
As assessed by Therapeutic Intervention Scoring System points, resource use was higher in hemato-oncological patients than in nononcological patients (median (interquartile range), 214 (102 to 642) versus 95 (54 to 224), P < 0.0001). Severity of disease at ICU admission was a less important predictor of ICU resource use than necessity for specific treatment modalities. Hemato-oncological patients and nononcological patients with similar admission Simplified Acute Physiology Score scores had the same ICU mortality. In hemato-oncological patients, improvement of organ function within the first 48 hours of the ICU stay was the best predictor of 28-day survival.

Conclusion
The presence of a hemato-oncological disease per se is associated with higher ICU resource use, but not with increased mortality. If withdrawal of treatment is considered, this decision should not be based on admission parameters but rather on the evolutional changes in organ dysfunctions.
Treatment of intra-articular fractures of the distal radius
Authors: Varitimidis S. E. , Basdekis G. K. , Dailiana Z. H. , Hantes M. E. , Bargiotas K. , Malizos K. 
Published: June 2008

In a randomised prospective study, 20 patients with intra-articular fractures of the distal radius underwent arthroscopically- and fluoroscopically-assisted reduction and external fixation plus percutaneous pinning. Another group of 20 patients with the same fracture characteristics underwent fluoroscopically-assisted reduction alone and external fixation plus percutaneous pinning. The patients were evaluated clinically and radiologically at follow-up of 24 months. The Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand (DASH) questionnaire and modified Mayo wrist score were used at 3, 9, 12 and 24 months postoperatively. In the arthroscopically- and fluoroscopically-assisted group, triangular fibrocartilage complex tears were found in 12 patients (60%), complete or incomplete scapholunate ligament tears in nine (45%), and lunotriquetral ligament tears in four (20%). They were treated either arthroscopically or by open operation. Patients who underwent arthroscopically- and fluoroscopically-assisted treatment had significantly better supination, extension and flexion at all time points than those who had fluoroscopically-assisted surgery. The mean DASH scores were similar for both groups at 24 months, whereas the difference in the mean modified Mayo wrist scores remained statistically significant. Although the groups are small, it is clear that the addition of arthroscopy to the fluoroscopically-assisted treatment of intra-articular distal radius fractures improves the outcome. Better treatment of associated intra-articular injuries might also have been a reason for the improved outcome.
Strain imparted during impaction grafting may contribute to bony incorporation
Authors: Board T. N. , Rooney P. , Kay P. R. 
Published: June 2008

In order to investigate the osteoinductive properties of allograft used in impaction grafting and the effect of strain during impaction on these properties, we designed an in vitro experiment to measure strain-related release of bone morphogenetic protein-7 (BMP-7) from fresh-frozen femoral head allograft. A total of 40 10 mm cubes of cancellous bone were cut from ten samples of fresh-frozen femoral head. The marrow was removed from the cubes and the baseline concentrations of BMP-7 were measured. Specimens from each femoral head were allocated to four groups and subjected to different compressive strains with a material testing machine, after which BMP-7 activity was reassessed. It was present in all groups. There was a linear increase of 102.1 pg/g (95% confidence interval 68.6 to 135.6) BMP-7 for each 10% increase in strain. At 80% strain the mean concentration of BMP-7 released (830.3 pg/g bone) was approximately four times that released at 20% strain. Activity of BMP-7 in fresh-frozen allograft has not previously been demonstrated. This study shows that the freezing and storage of femoral heads allows some maintenance of biological activity, and that impaction grafting provides a source of osteoinductive bone for remodelling. We have shown that BMP-7 is released from fresh-frozen femoral head cancellous bone in proportion to the strain applied to the bone. This suggests that the impaction process itself may contribute to the biological process of remodelling and bony incorporation.