bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Rhombencephalosynapsis: prenatal imaging and autopsy findings
Authors: McAuliffe F. , Chitayat D. , Halliday W. , Keating S. , Shah V. , Fink M. , Nevo O. , Ryan G. , Shannon P. , Blaser S. 
Published: April 2008

AbstractObjectivesRhombencephalosynapsis is a rare, but increasingly recognized, brain malformation characterized by congenital fusion of the cerebellar hemispheres and absence of the vermis. Rhombencephalosynapsis is associated with significant developmental delay, seizures and involuntary head movements. We report four cases, with correlation of prenatal and postnatal imaging and autopsy findings.MethodsOver a 2‐year period, four cases of rhombencephalosynapsis were diagnosed in the perinatal period, three in one center and one in another center. The clinical cases were reviewed, and correlation was made between the prenatal and postnatal imaging and autopsy findings where available.ResultsAll cases presented initially with ventriculomegaly on prenatal ultrasound examination. Subsequent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) established the diagnosis in two cases and postnatal MRI established the diagnosis in a further two cases. Autopsy was available and confirmed the diagnosis in two cases. In one case the pregnancy was terminated, two infants died in the neonatal period and one died in infancy.ConclusionsThe cases in this perinatal series of rhombencephalosynapsis showed a very poor prognosis. The presence of ventriculomegaly on prenatal ultrasound imaging should alert the physician to consider rhombencephalosynapsis in the differential diagnosis. MRI appears to be the imaging modality of choice in establishing the diagnosis. Copyright © 2008 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Acute Care Surgery: A New Training and Practice Model in the United States
Authors: Hoyt David B. , Kim Hubert D. , Barrios Cristobal 
Published: April 2008

AbstractThe specialty of trauma is at a crossroads. Choosing a career in trauma is associated with concerns related to lifestyle issues and maintenance of adequate operative experience. Trauma and critical care surgeons in the U.S. have reexamined their role based on these concerns and the realization that surgeon resources for the injured patient are in jeopardy. After much work over the past five years, a model of “Acute Care Surgery” has emerged and a training curriculum has been proposed. This article reviews the evolution of a new specialty and identifies some of the challenges and opportunities associated with the implementation of this model.
Surgeons Underestimate Their Patients’ Desire for Preoperative Information
Authors: Keulers B. J. , Scheltinga M. R. M. , Houterman S. , Van Der Wilt G. J. , Spauwen P. H. M. 
Published: April 2008

AbstractBackgroundProvision of adequate patient information may contribute to a “satisfying” surgical treatment. The patient’s views on successful transfer of information concerning operative characteristics may not be in concert with the surgeon’s. The aim of the present study was to determine opinions of both surgeons and patients about issues of surgical information.MethodsA group of surgeons (n = 24) and surgical patients (n = 125) responded to a questionnaire that included 80 topics involving domains of information on disease, physical examination, preoperative period, anesthesia, operation, postoperative period, self care, and general hospital issues. Both groups were asked for their opinion on what they considered important and useful preoperative information for patients. Questions were scored with a visual analog scale. The reliability of the questionnaire was calculated with Cronbach’s alpha. Differences in opinions between surgeons and patients were analyzed with Student’s t‐test.ResultsThe Cronbach’s alpha of the questionnaire was high (0.91), indicating its high reliability. Patients scored significantly higher (p < 0.001) in most domains, including preoperative period, anaesthesia, operation, postoperative period, self care, and general hospital information. Women demonstrated a significantly higher need for information than men did. These findings were independent of patient age or complexity of operation. In contrast, surgeons thought that their patients desired more extensive information on cause, effect, and prognosis of the disease itself (p < 0.001).ConclusionSurgeons generally underestimate their patients’ desire for receiving extensive information prior to a surgical procedure of any complexity. Surgeons should develop strategies to bridge this informational mismatch.
Cytotoxicity of the isoflavone genistein in NIH 3T3 cells
Authors: Rucinska Agata , Roszczyk Magda , Gabryelak Teresa 
Published: April 2008

AbstractGenistein is one of the naturally occurring isoflavones present in plants such as soybeans and is commonly found in a variety of human foods. A number of studies indicated that this class of compounds exerts anticancerogenic and antimutagenic effects in various in vitro systems and in vivo animal models. We studied the effects of genistein on NIH 3T3 cells in in vitro models. The isoflavone genistein has been identified as having antiproliferative and apoptotic effects on various malignant cell types derived from solid tumors. Therefore, the cytotoxic and apoptotic properties of this compound were studied by MTT assay and Hoechst 33258/propidium iodide staining technique. The morphological changes of cells were examined in inverted fluorescent microscope. The oxidation of protein thiol groups and thiobarbituric‐acid‐reactive species (TBARS) was also determined. The cells were exposed to different concentrations of genistein (0–90 μM) after 24 h of incubation. The results revealed that genistein in concentrations higher than 20 μM significantly reduced cell viability, caused cell morphological changes and induced apoptotic and necrotic cell death. Oxidative modification of protein increased in the cells exposed to genistein in a dose‐ and time‐dependent manner. In conclusion, our preliminary in vitro studies demonstrate the damaging effects of genistein on the mouse embryonic fibroblast cell line.
Mitochondrial DNA from colorectal cancer cells promotes the malignant phenotype of NIH3T3 cells
Authors: Li Yan , Weibing Song , Liu Hong , Hongli Ji , Zhuosheng Lai , Yadong Wang , Bing Xiao , Daiming Fan 
Published: April 2008

AbstractWe investigated the potential role of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in colorectal carcinogenesis by constructing a eukaryotic expression vector of the mitochondrial D‐loop gene from colorectal cancer cell SW480 and transfected NIH3T3 cells. The NIH3T3/SW480 cells exhibited a significantly increased growth rate and colony formation rate, and also had a decreased apoptotic rate. Polyploidy and aberrant chromosomes were detected in the NIH3T3/SW480 cells by chromosome karyotype analysis. Our results suggested that mtDNA from colorectal cancer cells promotes the malignant phenotype of NIH3T3 cells. Further study of the biological functions of NIH3T3/SW480 cells might be helpful in understanding the role of mtDNA in colorectal carcinogenesis.
TEXTILES AND THE MAYA ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD
Authors: Chase Arlen F. , Chase Diane Z. , Zorn Elayne , Teeter Wendy 
Published: April 2008

AbstractTextiles formed a major part of any ancient Mesoamerican economy. Based on ethnohistory and iconography, the Maya were great producers of cloth for both internal and external use. However, the archaeological identification of textile production is difficult in any tropical area because of issues of preservation. This paper examines the evidence for the production and distribution of cloth that is found in the pre-Columbian Maya area and then focuses on archaeological data relative to textiles from the ancient Maya city of Caracol, Belize. Archaeology at Caracol has been carried out annually from 1985 to the present and has resulted in the collection of data that permits insight into the economic production and social distribution of cloth at the site. This is accomplished through examining the contexts and distributions of spindle whorls, bone needles, bone pins and hairpins, bone awls, and limestone bars. All of these artifacts can be related to weaving, netting, or cloth in some way. Importantly, perforated ceramic disks are not included in this grouping because of contextual information from the archaeological record that these artifacts likely functioned as backings for ear assemblages. Spindle whorls are the artifacts most clearly associated with textile production and 57 of these have been recovered at Caracol, 38 of them in 20 different burials. Several of these interments are of high-status women placed in the most important architectural constructions at the site. The contextual placement of these burials stresses not only the link between women and weaving, but also the high status associated with such an activity, thus signaling the importance of cloth and spinning in ancient Maya society. The prevalence of female interments in the major ritual buildings at Caracol also reflects the importance of women to Maya social structure during the Classic period (a.d.250–900), pointing to difficulties in hieroglyphically based interpretations of ancient Maya social organization and suggesting that the traditional focus on males in the sociopolitical organization of the Classic Maya is incorrect.
FIBER TECHNOLOGY AND WEAVING IN FORMATIVE-PERIOD GULF COAST CULTURES
Authors: Follensbee Billie J. A. 
Published: April 2008

AbstractWhile research has revealed the important role that textiles have played in Mesoamerica from the Classic period through contemporary cultures, few studies have explored the importance of textiles in earlier Mesoamerican cultures. Scant preservation thwarts research on Formative-period cultures such as the Gulf Coast Olmec, for which only a few fragments of cordage and woven mats have yet been recovered. However, considerable additional evidence of textiles is available through other material culture, such as the rich pictorial record of fibers and cloth shown in Olmec sculpture. Further evidence exists in textile-related ceramic artifacts recovered from Gulf Coast sites, and still more evidence can be found through the reevaluation of greenstone artifacts recovered from Gulf Coast sites and “heirloom caches” of Formative-period objects. Careful analysis of the form and iconography of certain types of provenienced greenstone artifacts reveals that these may have served as elite textile-making tools; replication studies confirms their functionality as implements for spinning, weaving, and making cordage. All together, this study suggests that the Gulf Coast Olmec already held not only textiles but textile making in high esteem during the Formative period, foreshadowing the great significance of textiles in later Mesoamerican cultures.
What determines supply and demand for occupational pensions in Germany?
Authors: DUMMANN KATHRIN 
Published: April 2008

AbstractDemographic change causes an undersupply of financial old age benefits within the statutory pay-as-you-go pension system in Germany. Therefore, the provision of occupational as well as private pensions has to be enhanced. However, there seems to be an undersupply of occupational pension provision particularly in small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Using survey data of the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP) and the German SAVE survey, the present paper studies econometrically the determinants of occupational pension provision in Germany. It shows that occupational pensions depend not only on supply-side factors such as firm size and industry, but also on demand-side factors such as individual sociodemo-graphic attributes and people's savings motives.
Simple is beautiful: a straightforward approach to improve the delineation of true and false positives in PSI-BLAST searches
Authors: Lee Marianne M. , Chan Michael K. , Bundschuh Ralf 
Published: April 2008

Abstract
Motivation: The deluge of biological information from different genomic initiatives and the rapid advancement in biotechnologies have made bioinformatics tools an integral part of modern biology. Among the widely used sequence alignment tools, BLAST and PSI-BLAST are arguably the most popular. PSI-BLAST, which uses an iterative profile position specific score matrix (PSSM)-based search strategy, is more sensitive than BLAST in detecting weak homologies, thus making it suitable for remote homolog detection. Many refinements have been made to improve PSI-BLAST, and its computational efficiency and high specificity have been much touted. Nevertheless, corruption of its profile via the incorporation of false positive sequences remains a major challenge.
Results: We have developed a simple and elegant approach to resolve the problem of model corruption in PSI-BLAST searches. We hypothesized that combining results from the first (least-corrupted) profile with results from later (most sensitive) iterations of PSI-BLAST provides a better discriminator for true and false hits. Accordingly, we have derived a formula that utilizes the E-values from these two PSI-BLAST iterations to obtain a figure of merit for rank-ordering the hits. Our verification results based on a ‘gold-standard’ test set indicate that this figure of merit does indeed delineate true positives from false positives better than PSI-BLAST E-values. Perhaps what is most notable about this strategy is that it is simple and straightforward to implement.
Contact: bundschuh@mps.ohio-state.edu
The effect of pre‐operative anxiety on induction of anaesthesia with propofol*
Authors: Morley A. P. , Papageorgiou C. H. , Marinaki A. M. , Cooper D. J. , Lewis C. M. 
Published: April 2008

SummaryIn this prospective study, we investigated the effects of anxiety on the induction dose of propofol and subsequent cardiovascular changes in 197 patients. Pre‐operative state and trait anxiety scores were measured using the State Trait Anxiety Inventory. Propofol was administered at 40 mg.kg−1.h−1. Propofol dose was recorded at loss of verbal response and when EEG Bispectral Index decreased to 50. Thereafter, propofol infusion rate was reduced to 8 mg.kg−1.h−1. Cardiovascular data were collected for 15 min after starting induction. Maximum percentage decreases in heart rate and mean arterial pressure, and the point at which the latter occurred, were recorded. On multivariate analysis, anxiety scores did not significantly affect propofol dose or cardiovascular end‐points, although Bispectral Index at loss of verbal response decreased with increasing trait anxiety (p = 0.02). Anxiety, measured using State Trait Anxiety Inventory, does not appear independently to affect the induction characteristics of propofol.
Malignant hyperthermia presenting during laparoscopic adrenalectomy
Authors: O'Neill S. S. , Smurthwaite G. J. 
Published: April 2008

SummaryA 44‐year‐old man presented for elective laparoscopic adrenalectomy. During the procedure his end‐tidal carbon dioxide readings rose steadily. We assumed that this was due to a prolonged carbon dioxide pneumoperitoneum until he developed ST segment depression on his electrocardiogram and a rapid rise in temperature. A diagnosis of malignant hyperthermia was made in view of the rising temperature and carbon dioxide. He responded to cooling and intravenous dantrolene. He was later confirmed to be malignant hyperthermia‐susceptible on in vitro contracture testing of a muscle biopsy. The diagnosis was delayed as the early signs of malignant hyperthermia are the same as the expected physiological changes in laparoscopic surgery. As laparoscopic surgery continues to expand we advocate vigilance to ensure early identification of this rare but potentially devastating condition.
The relationship between arterial Po2 and mixed venous Po2 in response to changes in positive end‐expiratory pressure in ventilated patients
Authors: Groeneveld A. B. J. , Schneider A. J. 
Published: April 2008

SummaryThe response of arterial Po2 (Pao2) to airway pressure has been used as a measure of recruitment in mechanically ventilated patients. We hypothesised that mixed venous Po2 (Pmvo2) directly affects Pao2. Sixteen patients with acute lung injury (ALI, lung injury score ≥ 1) on volume‐controlled mechanical ventilation (FIo2 0.40) were studied. Positive end‐expiratory pressure (PEEP) was increased and decreased. Incremental PEEP increased median values of Pao2, diminished venous admixture (Qva/Qt) and cardiac index, but maintained arterial Pco2 and tissue O2 uptake. These changes were reversed during decremental PEEP. However Pao2 did not increase in 37% of PEEP steps and changes in Pao2 correlated to those in Pmvo2 (rs = 0.45, p < 0.001). Changes in Pmvo2 contributed to changes in Qva/Qt in determining changes in Pao2 (p < 0.05). Pmvo2 may be an independent determinant of Pao2 during mechanical ventilation for ALI, so that dosing PEEP to recruit the lung should not be guided by arterial blood oxygenation alone. Arterial hypoxaemia with increasing PEEP may improve by reducing PEEP (or increasing tissue O2 delivery), when the fall in Pmvo2 is greater than about 0.133 kPa.
The use of N‐Terminal pro‐B Type Natriuretic Peptide in a pre‐operative setting to predict left ventricular systolic dysfunction on echocardiogram*
Authors: Messer P. B. , Singh R. , McAuley F. T. , Handley G. , Peaston B. , Snowden C. P. 
Published: April 2008

SummaryHeart failure is a major risk factor for adverse postoperative events following non‐cardiac surgery. The use of transthoracic echocardiogram as a pre‐operative investigation to assess cardiac dysfunction has limitations in this setting. The N‐Terminal fragment of B‐Type natriuretic peptide (NT proBNP) has been used in screening for heart failure. We have investigated the use of NT proBNP as a screening tool for left ventricular systolic dysfunction to reduce the requirement for pre‐operative echocardiograms. Ninety‐eight pre‐operative non‐cardiac surgical patients scheduled to undergo echocardiography were assessed clinically and with an NT proBNP measurement. Echocardiogram was used to define two groups of patients depending on the presence or absence of abnormal left ventricular function and the NT proBNP level was compared between the groups using non‐parametric and receiver‐operator‐characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. In terms of pre‐operative screening, a NT proBNP of <38.2 pmol.l−1 had a 100% negative predictive value in predicting patients with normal left ventricular systolic function and would have prevented the requirement for echocardiogram in 43% of pre‐operative patients. NT proBNP was superior to electrocardiological and clinical criteria for detection of a normal echocardiogram. This may have significant impact in the pre‐operative assessment of patients undergoing non‐cardiac surgery.
The effect of lidocaine on remifentanil‐induced cough
Authors: Kim J. Y. , Park K. S. , Kim J. S. , Park S. Y. , Kim J. W. 
Published: April 2008

SummaryThis study was performed to investigate the incidence of remifentanil‐induced cough and evaluate the efficacy of lidocaine on its prevention. Five‐hundred patients, aged 18–70 years, were randomly allocated into two groups to receive either lidocaine 0.5 mg.kg−1 or 0.9% normal saline intravenously 1 min before remifentanil administration at a target effect‐site concentration of 4 ng.ml−1. Any episode of cough was classified as coughing and graded as mild (1–2), moderate (3–4) or severe (5 or more). We found that the overall incidence of cough was significantly higher in the saline group (69 patients; 27.6%) than that in the lidocaine group (38 patients; 15.2%) (p < 0.001). The results of logistic regression indicated that age and smoking were associated with remifentanil‐induced cough. This study demonstrated that intravenously administered lidocaine 0.5 mg.kg−1 effectively suppresses remifentanil‐induced cough without possible systemic lidocaine toxicity.
The ability of atropine to prevent and reverse the negative chronotropic effect of fingolimod in healthy subjects
Authors: Kovarik John M. , Slade Alan , Riviere Gilles‐Jacques , Neddermann Daniel , Maton Steve , Hunt Thomas L. , Schmouder Robert L. 
Published: April 2008

WHAT IS KNOWN ABOUT THIS SUBJECT • Clinical pharmacology and clinical therapeutic studies of fingolimod demonstrate that heart rate after the initial dose decreases by about 10–20% while normal circadian rhythm is preserved. With continued daily dosing, heart rate returns to normal over the next 2 weeks.• This negative chronotropic effect is consistent with the binding of fingolimod‐phosphate to the sphingosine‐1‐phosphate receptor on atrial myocytes. WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS • The present clinical pharmacology study demonstrates that atropine administered at usual therapeutic doses can prevent the decrease in heart rate when given concomitantly with fingolimod and can counteract the decrease in heart rate when give at the time of the typical heart rate nadir, 4 h after the fingolimod dose.• Although therapeutic intervention is rarely needed for reduced heart rate in patients receiving fingolimod, atropine is an option, should this be desired.AIMSThe authors determined whether intravenous atropine can prevent or counteract the negative chronotropic effect of the immunomodulator fingolimod.METHODSIn this randomized, placebo‐controlled, two‐period, crossover study, 12 healthy subjects received 5 mg fingolimod orally concurrently with intravenous atropine (titrated to a heart rate of 110–120 beats min−1) or intravenous placebo. A second group of 12 subjects received atropine/placebo 4 h after the fingolimod dose. Continuous telemetry measurements were made for 24 h after each fingolimod dose.RESULTSFingolimod administration alone yielded a heart rate nadir of 51 ± 5 beats min−1 at a median 4 h postdose with heart rate remaining depressed at 51–64 beats min−1 over the rest of the day. Concurrent administration of fingolimod and atropine yielded a nadir of 66 ± 6 beats min−1 resulting in an atropine : placebo ratio (90% confidence interval) of 1.30 (1.22, 1.36). When atropine was administered at the time of the nadir, it was able to reverse the negative chronotropic effect of fingolimod from a heart rate of 56 ± 9 beats min−1 (placebo) to 64 ± 8 beats min−1 (atropine) resulting in an atropine : placebo ratio of 1.15 (1.04, 1.26). Atropine had no influence on the pharmacokinetics of fingolimod.CONCLUSIONSAtropine administered concurrently with fingolimod prevented the heart rate nadir that typically occurs 4 h postdose. Atropine administered at the time of the heart rate nadir was able to reverse the negative chronotropic effect of fingolimod.