bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Tackling pain in the Asia Pacific
Authors: Goh Cynthia R. 
Published: March 2008

Tackling the problem of pain in the Asia Pacific region requires many components and action on many fronts. Committed and competent people are essential to champion the field. Drugs are also needed for good pain management. Many laws, rules and regulations in the various countries make opioid analgesics difficult to obtain at the patient's bedside, particularly if the patient is at home. Affordability of opioid preparations and other drugs is also an issue, as many imported preparations are prohibitively expensive, and not all countries manufacture their own drugs. Education is needed at many levels, from the bulk of medical, nursing and other health personnel to the core interdisciplinary team in pain management.Myths and unjustified fears about morphine need to be tackled in the minds of doctors, nurses, other healthcare workers, patients, family members and the public at large. Public education must include awareness of chronic pain as a disease, which needs to be prevented and treated adequately.Infrastructure in the form of pain services and palliative care services, both in the hospitals, in clinics and in the community need to be built.The development of pain medicine and palliative medicine as medical specialties or subspecialties is important for the development of this area of work. Research also needs to be established.Partnerships across medical, nursing and allied health disciplines, government, insurance, charities, local companies, the pharmaceutical companies, the patient and the general public will be essential for success.
Migration behaviour and pathogenesis of five ascarid nematode species in the Mongolian gerbilMeriones unguiculatus
Authors: Cho S. , Egami M. , Ohnuki H. , Saito Y. , Chinone S. , Shichinohe K. , Suganuma M. , Akao N. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractTo understand the characteristic features of the Mongolian gerbil,Meriones unguiculatus,as an animal model of ascarid infections, the migration behaviour and pathogenesis of larvae were investigated in experimentally infected gerbils. Embryonated eggs from each ofToxocara canis,Baylisascaris procyonis, B. transfuga, Ascaris suum, andA. lumbricoideswere orally inoculated into gerbils and larvae were recovered from various organs at designated periods. InT. canis-infected gerbils, larvae were present in the liver 3 days after infection and in the skeletal muscle and brain via the heart and lungs at a similar rate. InB. procyonis- andB. transfuga-infected gerbils, larvae were present in the lungs within 24 h after infection, with some having reached the brain by that time. After 24 h, larvae ofB. procyonistended to accumulate in the brain, while those ofB. transfugaaccumulated in skeletal muscles. InA. suum- andA. lumbricoides-infected gerbils, larvae remained in the liver on day 5 post-infection and elicited pulmonary haemorrhagic lesions, which disappeared 7 days after initial infection. Thereafter, no larvae of any type were recovered. Ocular manifestations were frequently observed inT. canis- andB. procyonisinfected gerbils, but were rare inB. transfuga-infected gerbils. In the cases ofA. suumandA. lumbricoides, migration to the central nervous system and eyes was extremely rare, and larvae had disappeared by 2 weeks post-infection. Fatal neurological disturbances were observed inB. procyonis-infected gerbils, whereas irreversible non-fatal neurological symptoms were observed in the case ofB. transfuga.
How effective is pre-release nematode control in farm-reared red-legged partridges Alectoris rufa?
Authors: Villanúa D. , Pérez-Rodríguez L. , Rodríguez O. , Viñuela J. , Gortázar C. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractGame bird farming is associated with high parasite levels that reduce farm productivity, reduce survival after releasing, and may pose a health risk for natural populations. The efficacy of albendazole (orally, 20 mg kg− 1) was evaluated in farmed red-legged partridges naturally infected with the nematodes Aonchotheca caudinflata and Heterakis gallinarum. In treated birds body condition improved, nematode egg deposition was reduced and the proportion of gravid A. caudinflata females was reduced, but not the overall worm burdens. Albendazole was found to be 36.8% and 17.1% effective against A. caudinflata and H. gallinarum, respectively. These results indicate that the anthelmintic treatment used normally in Spanish partridge farms is not effective enough to avoid the introduction of parasites into the field after release.
Age differences in spirituality, mystical experiences and wisdom
Authors: LE THAO N. 
Published: March 2008

ABSTRACTAlthough philosophical and contemplative traditions suggest that religiousness and spirituality are associated with wisdom, few empirical studies have examined the relationship. This paper investigates the associations between spirituality and mystical experiences and two types of wisdom: practical wisdom, primarily the ability to understand and resolve difficult life dilemmas (or an ‘expert’ knowledge system and the highest level of synthesised mental functioning), and transcendent wisdom, which goes beyond personal self-interests, biases and perceptions, and involves the ability to see things or others as they are directly. Two studies are reported. The first is of mostly older European-American and Vietnamese-American adults. It was found that mystical experiences promoted transcendent wisdom, but that the effect was moderated by self-enhancement values of power, status and achievement. The Vietnamese-American adults who reported mystical experiences and endorsed high self-enhancement values scored the lowest on transcendent wisdom. Being part of a religious or spiritual community positively associated with transcendent wisdom. On the other hand, religiousness, spirituality and mystical experiences did not relate to practical wisdom. The second study was of European-American and Vietnamese-American young adult students. It found that institutional and personal religious/spiritual practice was associated with two self-report measures of wisdom. Regardless of the mechanisms and processes associated with spirituality and mystical experiences, its fruits appear to be associated with transcendent wisdom.
Class, gender and chance: the social division of welfare and occupational pensions in the United Kingdom
Authors: MEYER TRAUTE , BRIDGEN PAUL 
Published: March 2008

ABSTRACTThe social division of welfare literature emphasises the extent to which occupational-pension provision is distributed on the basis of class and gender. As most previous commentators have at least implicitly recognised, however, a significant proportion of less advantaged people are covered. This paper argues that the patterns of access and their distributional consequences must be considered more systematically, and that in this context, the diversity of employers' pension schemes are investigated. When this is done, it emerges that in the United Kingdom, the spread of occupational provision beyond the most privileged workers means that some vulnerable individuals avoid poverty in retirement. At the same time, however, the main determinant of which less advantaged people are covered and which not is chance. While class and gender are important predictors of who receives occupational pensions, access for the disadvantaged arises mainly as an accident of an employment decision made for reasons unrelated to savings or pensions criteria. This paper argues that the implication is that unsustainable justice-based arguments are currently used by policy makers to sanction the current distribution of UK pension incomes. The paper concludes by discussing the implications of the findings for the appropriateness of recent UK policy proposals and for international debates about pension reform.
Fibrillin–integrin interactions in health and disease
Authors: Jovanović Jelena , Iqbal Sarah , Jensen Sacha , Mardon Helen , Handford Penny 
Published: March 2008

Human fibrillin-1 is the major structural protein of extracellular matrix 10–12 nm microfibrils. It has a disulfide-rich modular organization which consists primarily of cbEGF (Ca2+-binding epidermal growth factor-like) domains and TB (transforming growth factor β-binding protein-like) domains. TB4 contains an RGD (Arg-Gly-Asp) integrin-binding motif. The atomic structure of this region has been solved by X-ray crystallography and shows the TB4 and flanking cbEGF domains to be arranged as a tetragonal pyramid with N- and C-termini exposed at opposite ends of the fragment. The RGD integrin-binding motif is located within a flexible loop. We have used a variety of biophysical, biochemical and cell biology methods to investigate the molecular properties of integrin–fibrillin-1 interactions and have demonstrated that recombinant fibrillin-1 domain fragments mediate binding to integrins αVβ3, α5β1 and αVβ6. Integrin αVβ3 is a high-affinity fibrillin-1 receptor (Kd ∼40 nM), whereas integrins αVβ6 and α5β1 show moderate-affinity (Kd ∼450 nM) and low-affinity (Kd &gt;1 μM) binding respectively. Different patterns of α5β1 distribution are seen when human keratinocytes and fibroblasts are plated on to fibrillin domain fragments compared with those seen for fibronectin, suggesting that fibrillin may cause a lesser degree or different type of intracellular signalling. A number of disease-causing mutations which affect the TB4 domain have been identified. These are being investigated for their effects on integrin binding and/or changes in intramolecular structure.
Infection Control Experience in a Cooperative Care Center for Transplant Patients
Authors: Nusair Ahmad , Jourdan Dawn , Medcalf Sharon , Marion Nedra , Iwen Peter C. , Fey Paul D. , Reed Elizabeth , Langnas Alan , Rupp Mark E. 
Published: March 2008

Objective.To characterize infection control experience during a 6.5-year period in a cooperative care center for transplant patients.Design.Descriptive analysis.Setting.A cooperative care center for transplanted patients, in which patients and care partners are housed in a homelike environment, and care partners assume responsibility for patient care duties.Patients.Nine hundred ninety one transplant patients.Methods.Infection control definitions from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were used to ascertain infection rates. Environmental cultures were used to detect methicillin-resistantStaphylococcus aureus(MRSA), vancomycin-resistantEnterococcus(VRE),Clostridium difficile,and fungi during the first 18 months. Surveillance cultures were performed for a subset of patients and care partners.Results.From June 1999 through December 2005, there were 19,365 patient-days observed. The most common healthcare-associated infection encountered was intravascular catheter-related bloodstream infection, with infection rates of 5.74 and 4.94 cases per 1,000 patient-days for hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) and solid organ transplant (SOT) patients, respectively. G difficile-associated diarrhea was observed more frequentiy in HSCT patients than in SOT patients (3.97 vs 0.57 cases per 1000 patient-days;P<.0001 ). There was no evidence of environmental contamination with MRSA, VRE, or C.difficile.Acquisition of MRSA was not observed. Acquisition of VRE was documented.Conclusion.This study documented that cooperative care was associated with some risk of healthcare-associated infection, most notably intravascular catheter-associated bloodstream infection and C. difficile-associated diarrhea, it appears the incidences of these infections were roughly commensurate with those in other care settings.
Outbreak of Multidrug-Resistant Serratia marcescens Infection in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Authors: Maragakis Lisa L. , Winkler Amy , Tucker Margaret G. , Cosgrove Sara E. , Ross Tracy , Lawson Edward , Carroll Karen C. , Perl Trish M. 
Published: March 2008

Background.Serratia marcescens causes healthcare-associated infections and significant morbidity and mortality in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). We report the investigation and control of an outbreak of multidrug-resistant (MDR) S. marcescens infection at an NICU.Methods.An outbreak investigation and a case-control study were undertaken at a 36-bed NICU in a tertiary care hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, for the period from October 2004 through February 2005. The outbreak investigation included case identification, review of medical records, environmental cultures, patient surveillance cultures, personnel hand cultures, and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). The case-control study included case identification and review of medical records. Infection control measures were implemented. Eighteen NICU neonates had cultures that grew MDR S. marcescens during the study period. The case-control study included 16 patients with the outbreak strain or an unidentified strain of MDR S. marcescens and 32 control patients not infected and/or colonized with MDR S. marcescens, treated in the NICU for at least 48 hours during the study period.Results.PFGE analysis identified a single strain of MDR S. marcescens that infected or colonized 15 patients. Two patients had unique strains, and 1 patient's isolate could not be subtyped. An unrelated MDR S. marcescens isolate was recovered from a sink drain. Exposure to inhalational therapy was an independent risk factor for MDR S. marcescens acquisition after adjusting for birth weight. Extensive investigation failed to reveal a point source for the outbreak.Conclusion.A single epidemic strain of MDR S. marcescens spread rapidly and threatened to become endemic in this NICU. Transient carriage on the hands of healthcare personnel or on respiratory care equipment was the likely mode of transmission. Cohorting patients and staff, at the cost of bed closures and additional personnel, interrupted transmission and halted the outbreak.
Determinants of species richness, endemism and turnover in European longhorn beetles
Authors: Baselga Andrés 
Published: March 2008

This study assessed the diversity patterns of a large family of beetles, Cerambycidae, in Europe and tested the following hypotheses: 1) richness gradients of this hyperdiverse taxon are driven by water and energy variables; 2) endemism is explained by the same factors, but variation between areas also reflects post‐glacial re‐colonization processes; and 3) faunal composition is determined by the same climatic variables and, therefore, beta diversity (species turnover) is related to richness gradients. Species richness, endemism and beta diversity were modelled using inventories of 37 European territories, built from a database containing the distributions of 609 species. Area, spatial position, and nine topographical and climatic variables were used as predictors in regression and constrained analysis of principal coordinates modelling.Species richness was mostly explained by a temperature gradient, which produced a south‐to‐north decreasing richness gradient. Endemism followed the same pattern, but was also determined by longitudinal variation, peaking in the southwestern and southeastern corners of the continent. Faunal turnover was explained by an important purely spatial pattern and a spatially structured environmental gradient. Thus, contrary to other groups, cerambycid richness was mostly explained by environmental energy, but not by water availability. Endemism was concentrated in the Iberian and Greek peninsulas, but not in Italy. Thus, the latter area may have been the major source of post‐glacial re‐colonization for European longhorn beetles or, otherwise, a poor refuge during glaciations. Turnover patterns were independent of the richness gradient, because northern faunas are nested in southern ones. Turnover, in contrast to richness, was driven by both the independent effects of climate and geographic constraints that might reflect dispersal limitation or stochastic colonization events, suggesting that richness gradients are more environmentally deterministic phenomena than turnover patterns.
Down regulation of BRCA2 causes radio‐sensitization of human tumor cells in vitro and in vivo
Authors: Yu Dong , Sekine Emiko , Fujimori Akira , Ochiya Takahiro , Okayasu Ryuichi 
Published: March 2008

In order to study the role of BRCA2 protein in homologous recombination repair and radio‐sensitization, we utilized RNA interference strategy in vitro and in vivo with human tumor cells. HeLa cells transfected with small‐interfering BRCA2 NA (BRCA2 siRNA) (Qiagen) as well as negative‐control siRNA for 48 h were irradiated, and several critical end points were examined. The radiation cell survival level was significantly reduced in HeLa cells with BRCA2 siRNA when compared with mock‐ or negative‐control siRNA transfected cells. DNA double strand break repair as measured by constant field gel‐electrophoresis showed a clear inhibition in cells with BRCA2 siRNA, while little inhibition was observed in cells with negative control siRNA. Our immuno‐staining experiments revealed a significant delay in Rad51 foci formation in cells with BRCA2 siRNA when compared with the control populations. However, none of the non‐homologous end joining proteins nor the phosphorylation of DNA‐dependent protein kinase catalytic subunit was affected in cells transfected with BRCA2 siRNA. In addition, the combined treatment with radiation and BRCA2 siRNA in xenograft model with HeLa cells showed an efficient inhibition of in vivo tumor growth. Our results demonstrate down‐regulation of BRCA2 leads to radio‐sensitization mainly through the inhibition of homologous recombination repair type double‐strand break repair; a possibility of using BRCA2 siRNA as an effective radiosensitizer in tumor radiotherapy may arise. (Cancer Sci 2008; 99: 810–815)
Tumor promoting properties of a cigarette smoke prevalent polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon as indicated by the inhibition of gap junctional intercellular communication via phosphatidylcholine‐specific phospholipase C
Authors: Upham Brad L. , Bláha Ludek , Babica Pavel , Park Joon‐Suk , Sovadinova Iva , Pudrith Charles , Rummel Alisa M. , Weis Liliane M. , Sai Kimie , Tithof Patti K. , Gužvić Miodrag , Vondráček Jan , Machala Miroslav , Trosko James E. 
Published: March 2008

Inhibition of gap junctional intercellular communication (GJIC) and the activation of intracellular mitogenic pathways are common hallmarks of epithelial derived cancer cells. We previously determined that the 1‐methyl and not the 2‐methyl isomer of anthracene, which are prominent cigarette smoke components, activated extracellular receptor kinase, and inhibited GJIC in WB‐F344 rat liver epithelial cells. Using these same cells, we show that an immediate upstream response to 1‐methylanthracene was a rapid (<1 min) release of arachidonic acid. Inhibition of phosphatidylcholine‐specific phospholipase C prevented the inhibition of GJIC by 1‐methylanthracene. In contrast, inhibition of phosphatidylinositol specific phospholipase C, phospholipase A2, diacylglycerol lipase, phospholipase D, protein kinase C, and tyrosine protein kinases had no effect on 1‐methylanthracene‐induced inhibition of GJIC. Inhibition of protein kinase A also prevented inhibition of GJIC by 1‐methylanthracene. Direct measurement of phosphatidylcholine‐specific phospholipase C and sphingomyelinase indicated that only phosphatidylcholine‐specific phospholipase C was activated in response to 1‐methylanthracene, while 2‐methylanthracene had no effect. 1‐methylanthracene also activated p38‐mitogen activated protein kinase; however, like extracellular kinase, its activation was not involved in 1‐methylanthracene‐induced regulation of GJIC, and this activation was independent of phosphatidylcholine‐specific phospholipase C. Although mitogen activated protein kinases were activated, Western blot analyzes indicated no change in connexin43 phosphorylation status. Our results indicate that phosphatidylcholine‐specific phospholipase C is an important enzyme in the induction of a tumorigenic phenotype, namely the inhibition of GJIC; whereas mitogen activated protein kinases triggered in response to 1‐methylanthracene, were not involved in the deregulation of GJIC. (Cancer Sci 2008; 99: 696–705)
Heat shock protein 90 inhibition is cytotoxic to primary AML cells expressing mutant FLT3 and results in altered downstream signalling
Authors: Al Shaer Laila , Walsby Elisabeth , Gilkes Amanda , Tonks Amanda , Walsh Valerie , Mills Ken , Burnett Alan , Rowntree Clare 
Published: March 2008

SummaryActivating mutations of the FMS‐like tyrosine kinase 3 gene (FLT3) occur in approximately one‐third of patients with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) and predict for a poor outcome. Heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) is a molecular chaperone that is frequently used by cancer cells to stabilise mutant oncoproteins. Mutant FLT3 is chaperoned by Hsp90 in primary AML blasts whereas unmutated FLT3 is not, making Hsp90 inhibitors potentially useful therapeutically. The present study showed that inhibition of Hsp90 by 17‐allylamino‐17‐demethoxygeldanamycin (17‐AAG) was cytotoxic to primary AML cells expressing mutant FLT3. Inhibition of Hsp90 results in altered downstream signalling effects in primary AML cells with disruption of Janus kinase–signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK‐STAT), mitogen‐activated protein kinase and phosphatidylinositol 3/AKT signalling pathways. Co‐treatment of blasts with 17‐AAG and cytarabine resulted in a synergistic or additive effect in approximately 50% of AML cases tested. Our results confirm that Hsp90 is a valid molecular target in the therapy of AML. Inhibition of Hsp90 in parallel with conventional AML therapies may have particular benefit in those patients with the poor prognostic FLT3 mutant disease.
The prognostic significance of cytopenia in chronic lymphocytic leukaemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma
Authors: Zent Clive S. , Ding Wei , Schwager Susan M. , Reinalda Megan S. , Hoyer James D. , Jelinek Diane F. , Tschumper Renee C. , Bowen Deborah A. , Call Timothy G. , Shanafelt Tait D. , Kay Neil E. , Slager Susan L. 
Published: March 2008

SummaryThe development of cytopenia in chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) patients can predict poor prognosis. All CLL patients seen in the Division of Hematology at Mayo Clinic Rochester from 1 January 1995 to 31 December 2004 (n = 1750) were evaluated for cytopenia, aetiology of cytopenia and clinical outcome. Cytopenia occurred in 423 (24·2%) patients and was attributable to CLL in 303 (17·3%) cases, with 228 (75%) of these having bone marrow (BM) failure and 75 (25%) having autoimmune disease (AID). Survival from onset of cytopenia was significantly better for patients with AID (median 9·1 years) compared to patients with BM failure (median 4·4 years, P < 0·001). Patients with AID diagnosed within 1 year of the diagnosis of CLL (n = 35) had similar survival from diagnosis compared to patients without CLL‐related cytopenia (median 9·3 vs. 9·7 years, P = 0·881). Although cytopenia caused by BM failure predicted a poorer prognosis in CLL, cytopenia caused by AID was not an adverse prognostic factor. These findings suggest that patients with cytopenia due to AID cannot be meaningfully classified by the current clinical staging systems. Revisions of the National Cancer Institute Working Group 96 criteria should consider the aetiology of cytopenia in staging CLL patients.