bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Use frequency of traditional Chinese medicine in Taiwan
Authors: Chen Fang-Pey , Chen Tzeng-Ji , Kung Yen-Ying , Chen Yu-Chun , Chou Li-Fang , Chen Fan-Jou , Hwang Shinn-Jang 
Published: February 2007

Abstract

Background
Use of Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), an important category of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), has increased substantially in Western countries during the past decade. Use of TCM is also widespread in the Chinese population. However, few informative data have been obtained to date by large-scale investigations of TCM use in the Chinese population. This study was aimed at elucidating the demographics and patterns of TCM use in Taiwan.

Methods
We employed the complete datasets of TCM outpatient reimbursement claims from 1996 to 2001, including the use of Chinese herbal remedies, acupuncture and traumatology manipulative therapy, to analyse use frequencies, the characteristics of TCM users, and the disease categories that were treated by TCM in Taiwan.

Results
At the end of 2001, 6,142,829 (28.4%) among the 21,653,555 valid beneficiaries of the National Health Insurance in Taiwan had used TCM during the year. However, 13,536,266 subjects (62.5%) had used TCM at least once during the whole 6-year period from 1996 to 2001, with a total of 156,224,266 visits (mean 11.5 visits per user). The mean number of TCM users per annum was 5,733,602, with a mean increment of 1,671,476 (29.2%) of new users yearly. Among TCM users, female was higher than male (female:male = 1.13:1), and the age distribution displayed a peak at around the 30s, followed by the 20s and 40s. Chinese herbal remedies (85.9%) were the most common TCM modality used by this population, followed by acupuncture (11.0%) and traumatology manipulative therapies (3.1%). Private TCM clinics provided most of the TCM care (82.6%), followed by private TCM hospitals (12.0%). The top ten major disease categories for TCM visits were diseases of the respiratory system, musculoskeletal system and connective tissue; symptoms, signs and ill-defined conditions; injury and poisoning; diseases of the digestive system, genitourinary system, skin and subcutaneous tissue, nervous system and sense organs, circulatory and endocrine system; nutritional and metabolic diseases; and immunological disorders.

Conclusion
TCM was popular among the Chinese population in Taiwan during the period studied. More than 60% of all subjects had used TCM during the 6-year interval. TCM was widely used by the Chinese population to treat problems and diseases of major human organ systems recognised by western medicine. This study provides information about the use frequencies of TCM and the disease categories treated by TCM, which should be useful for health policy makers and for those considering the integration of TCM and Western medicine.
Clinical and morphological characteristics of head-facial haemangiomas
Authors: Iannetti Giorgio , Torroni Andrea , Chiummariello Stefano , Cavallotti Carlo 
Published: February 2007

AbstractBackgroundHaemangiomas of the head or face are a frequent vascular pathology, consisting in an embryonic dysplasia that involves the cranial-facial vascular network. Haemangiomas show clinical, morphological, developmental and structural changes during their course.MethodsThe clinical characteristics of head-facial haemagiomas were studied in 28 individuals (9 males and 19 females) admitted in our Hospital. Sixteen of these patients(n = 16) underwent surgery for the removal of the haemangiomas. All the removed tissues were transferred in experimental laboratories for the staining of microanatomical details, somatic and visceral nerve fibres, adrenergic and catecholaminergic nerve fibres. Beta-adrenergic receptors were died with a fluorescent method. All results were submitted to the quantitative analysis of images and statistical evaluation of the data.ResultsThe morphological results revealed numerous micro-anatomical characteristics of the haemangiomatous vessels. The somatic and visceral nerve fibres were poor and located exclusively in the adventitial layer. There was a marked decrease of adrenergic nerve fibres in the haemangiomatous vessels. The fluorescence of catecholaminergic nerve fibres and the overall area of fluorescent structures were also decreased in haemangiomatous vessels. Beta adrenergic receptors are strongly decreased in haemangiomatous vessels. The morphometrical analysis of images and statistical evaluation of the data confirmed all our experimental results.ConclusionThe catecholaminergic innervation of the human haemangiomatous vessels comprises nerve fibres containing the main catecholaminergic neurotransmitters that are sympathetic in nature. These neurotransmitters are closely related to beta-adrenergic receptors.The sympathetic nervous system plays a key role in the control of the vascular bed flow and vascular motility in both normal and haemangiomatous vessels.
Effects of overinflation on procollagen type III expression in experimental acute lung injury
Authors: de Carvalho Maria-Eudóxia Pilotto , Dolhnikoff Marisa , Meireles Sibele Inácio , Reis Luiz FernandoLima , Martins Milton Arruda , Deheinzelin Daniel 
Published: February 2007

Abstract
Introduction
In acute lung injury (ALI), elevation of procollagen type III (PC III) occurs early and has an adverse impact on outcome. We examined whether different high-inflation strategies of mechanical ventilation (MV) in oleic acid (OA) ALI alter regional expression of PC III.

Methods
We designed an experimental, randomized, and controlled protocol in which rats were allocated to two control groups (no injury, recruited [alveolar recruitment maneuver after tracheotomy without MV; n = 4 rats] and control [n = 5 rats]) or four injured groups (one exposed to OA only [n = 10 rats] and three OA-injured and ventilated). The three OA-injured groups were ventilated for 1 hour according to the following strategies: LVHP-S (low volume-high positive end-expiratory pressure [PEEP], supine; n = 10 rats, tidal volume [VT] = 8 ml/kg, PEEP = 12 cm H2O), HVLP-S (high volume-low PEEP, supine; n = 10 rats, VT = 20 ml/kg, PEEP = 5 cm H2O), and HVLP-P (high volume-low PEEP, prone; n = 10 rats). Northern blot analysis for PC III and interleukin-1-beta (IL-1β) and polymorphonuclear infiltration index (PMI) counting were performed in nondependent and dependent regions. Regional differences between groups were assessed by two-way analysis of variance after logarithmic transformation and post hoc tests.

Results
A significant interaction for group and region effects was observed for PC III (p = 0.012) with higher expression in the nondependent region for HVLP-S and LVHP-S, intermediate for OA and HVLP-P, and lower for control (group effect, p < 0.00001, partial η2 = 0.767; region effect, p = 0.0007, partial η2 = 0.091). We found high expression of IL-1β (group effect, p < 0.00001, partial η2 = 0.944) in the OA, HVLP-S, and HVLP-P groups without regional differences (p = 0.16). PMI behaved similarly (group effect, p < 0.00001, partial η2 = 0.832).

Conclusion
PC III expression is higher in nondependent regions and in ventilatory strategies that caused overdistension. This response was partially attenuated by prone positioning.
NKT cells direct monocytes into a DC differentiation pathway
Authors: Hegde Subramanya , Chen Xiuxu , Keaton Jason M , Reddington Faye , Besra Gurdyal S , Gumperz Jenny E 
Published: February 2007

AbstractMonocytes can differentiate into macrophags or dendritic cells (DCs). The processes that promote their differentiation along one pathway rather than the other remain unknown. NKT cells are regulatory T cells that respond functionally to self and foreign antigens presented by CD1d molecules. Hence, in addition to contributing to antimicrobial responses, they may carry out autoreactively activated functions when there is no infectious challenge. However, the immunological consequences of NKT cell autoreactivity remain poorly understood. We show here that human NKT cells direct monocytes to differentiate into immature DCs. The ability to induce monocyte differentiation was CD1d-dependent and appeared specific to NKT cells. Addition of exogenous antigens or costimulation from IL-2 was not required but could enhance the effect. DC differentiation was a result of NKT cell secretion of GM-CSF and IL-13, cytokines that were produced by the NKT cells upon autoreactive activation by monocytes. NKT cells within PBMC samples produced GM-CSF and IL-13 upon exposure to autologous monocytes directly ex vivo, providing evidence that such NKT cell-autoreactive responses can occur in vivo. These results show that when NKT cells are activated by autologous monocytes, they are capable of providing factors that specifically direct monocyte differentiation into immature DCs. Thus, autoreactively activated NKT cells may contribute to the maintenance of the immature DC population, and microbial infection or inflammatory conditions that activate NKT cells further could stimulate them to promote an increased rate of DC differentiation.
Call-Routing Schemes for Call-Center Outsourcing
Authors: Gans Noah , Zhou Yong-Pin 
Published: February 2007

Companies may choose to outsource parts, but not all, of their call-center operations. In some cases, they classify customers as high or low value, serving the former with their in-house operations and routing the latter to an outsourcer. Typically, they impose service-level constraints on the time each type of customer waits on hold. This paper considers four schemes for routing low-value calls between the client company and the outsourcer. These schemes vary in the complexity of their routing algorithms, as well as the sophistication of the telephone and information technology infrastructure they require of the two operations. For three of these schemes, this paper provides a direct characterization of system performance. For the fourth, most complex, scheme the paper provides performance bounds for the important special case in which the service requirements of high- and low-value callers are the same. These results allow the systematic comparison of the performance of the various routing schemes. The results suggest that, for clients with large outsourcing requirements, the simpler schemes that require little client-outsourcer coordination can perform very well.
Monoclonal Antibody-Based Time-Resolved Fluorescence Immunoassays for Daidzein, Genistein, and Equol in Blood and Urine: Application to the Isoheart Intervention Study
Authors: Talbot Duncan CS , Ogborne Richard M , Dadd Tony , Adlercreutz Herman , Barnard Geoff , Bugel Susanne , Kohen Fortune , Marlin Sandra , Piron Jerry , Cassidy Aedin , Powell Jonathan 
Published: February 2007

AbstractBackground: Time-resolved fluorescence immunoassays (TR-FIAs) for phytoestrogens in biological samples are an alternative to mass spectrometric methods. These immunoassays were used to test urine and plasma samples from individuals in a dietary intervention trial aimed at determining the efficacy of dietary isoflavones in reducing the risk of coronary heart disease in postmenopausal women.Methods: We established murine monoclonal TR-FIA methods for daidzein, genistein, and equol. These assays could be performed manually or adapted to an automated analyzer for high throughput and increased accuracy. Analysis of urine was conducted on nonextracted samples. Blood analysis was performed on nonextracted samples for daidzein, whereas genistein and equol required diethyl-ether extraction.Results: Comparison of monoclonal TR-FIA, commercial polyclonal antibody–based TR-FIA, and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry showed correlations (r, 0.911–0.994) across the concentration range observed in the Isoheart study (50 mg/day isoflavones). The concentrations of urinary daidzein and genistein observed during intervention demonstrated good compliance, and a corresponding increase in serum daidzein and genistein confirmed bioavailability of the isoflavone-rich foods; 33 of the 117 volunteers (28.2%) were classified as equol producers on the basis of their urinary equol concentration (&gt;936 nmol/L), and significant differences in the numbers of equol producers were observed between Berlin and the 3 other European cohorts studied.Conclusions: The validated monoclonal TR-FIA methods are applicable for use in large-scale human phytoestrogen intervention studies and can be used to monitor compliance, demonstrate bioavailability, and assess equol producer status.
Quantification of Human β-Defensin-2 and -3 in Body Fluids: Application for Studies of Innate Immunity
Authors: Ghosh Santosh K , Gerken Thomas A , Schneider Keith M , Feng Zhimin , McCormick Thomas S , Weinberg Aaron 
Published: February 2007

AbstractBackground: Human β-defensins (hBDs) are epithelial cell-derived antimicrobial and immunoregulatory cationic peptides. Our objective was to establish an analytical tool to quantify inducible hBD-2 and -3 in body fluids.Methods: We developed sandwich ELISAs using commercially available capture and detection antibodies and determined optimal assay conditions (with 250 mmol/L CaCl2) to overcome masking by endogenous components of body fluids. We used recombinant hBD as calibrators and for recovery testing.Results: hBD-2 and -3 detection limits were ∼75 ng/L and ∼3 μg/L, respectively. Mean (SD range) values in saliva samples from healthy donors (n = 60) were 9.5 (1.2–21) μg/L for hBD-2 and 326 (50–931) μg/L for hBD-3. We did not detect hBD-3 in suction blister fluid (BF; n = 10) or bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL; n = 5) from healthy participants. We detected low hBD-2 peptide concentrations in BF and BAL, 0.16 (0.03–0.32) and 0.04 (0–0.049) μg/g total protein, respectively. We observed no correlation of hBD-2 in BF and saliva or BAL and saliva from the same person. In vaginal swabs from healthy women (n = 2), mean hBD-2 and -3 concentrations were 3.42 and 103 μg/g total protein, respectively. Cervicovaginal lavage from the same women contained mean concentrations of 1.46 and 55.5 μg/g total protein.Conclusion: These ELISA assays can measure inducible hBD peptide concentrations in body fluids by overcoming masking effects of anionic molecules. This approach may therefore be applicable for quantifying these peptides in health and disease.
Estimating frequencies of emotions and actions: a web‐based diary study
Authors: Brown Norman R. , Williams Rebecca L. , Barker Erin T. , Galambos Nancy L. 
Published: February 2007

AbstractMental health questionnaires often ask respondents to report how frequently they experience different emotions. We report two experiments designed to assess the accuracy of these reports and the strategies used to generate them. Each day for 2 weeks, participants in Experiment 1 filled out a web‐based emotions‐and‐activities checklist. Then, they estimated the diary‐period frequency of these emotions and activities and indicated how they generated each estimate. In Experiment 2, participants provided frequency estimates and strategy reports, but did not fill out the checklist. We found that (a) the frequency estimates were quite accurate for emotions and activities, (b) participants relied on memory‐based strategies (enumeration and direct retrieval) when estimating activity frequencies, but (c) used self‐knowledge strategies (personality beliefs and schematic inferences) somewhat more than memory strategies for emotions and (d) the relationship between strategy use and question type was unaffected by diary keeping. We conclude by considering practical and theoretical implications. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Answering attitudinal questions: modelling the response process underlying contrastive questions
Authors: Chessa Antonio G. , Holleman Bregje C. 
Published: February 2007

AbstractWe analyse reaction time distributions and responses for attitudinal survey questions, which were part of a self‐administered questionnaire about medical and ethical issues. Two contrastive versions of each question were asked, whether an issue should be forbidden or whether the government should allow it. Logically, the answers to these contrastive questions should oppose, but numerous investigations have shown that they result in the so‐calledforbid/allow asymmetry: respondents tend to rather say ‘no’ to both questions. We present a mathematical model, based on point process theory, which formalises attitude representations in memory and different stages in the response process. The data of the allow questions are used for parameter estimation, while the forbid data are used to test the predictive power of different model versions. The result is a model that describes the cognitive processes underlying the asymmetry. It indicates that the forbid/allow asymmetry is caused by the use of an increased response threshold in forbid answers, and that the asymmetry size varies due to both respondent characteristics and the issue at hand. This model is capable of simultaneously predicting the asymmetry in the reaction time distributions and in the response scores for the answering categories. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Hemispherectomy for intractable epilepsy in adults: The first reported series
Authors: McClelland Shearwood , Maxwell Robert E. 
Published: February 2007

AbstractHemispherectomy for intractable unihemispheric epilepsy (IUE) has long been established in pediatric patients. This study reports the first series examining hemispherectomy exclusively in adult patients (>18 years old). Nine adults with IUE underwent hemispherectomy at the University of Minnesota. All patients had unilateral hemiplegia and visual field loss. Seven patients (77.8%) were Engel class I/II at last follow‐up. Five (83.3%) of the six patients with >30 years of follow‐up were seizure free. No surgery‐related mortality, hydrocephalus, or superficial cerebral hemosiderosis occurred. Hemispherectomy is an effective procedure in appropriately selected adult patients, resulting in excellent long‐term seizure control and no mortality. Ann Neurol 2007
Reconstitution of bluetongue virus polymerase activity from isolated domains based on a three‐dimensional structural model
Authors: Wehrfritz Josa‐marie , Boyce Mark , Mirza Sahdia , Roy Polly 
Published: February 2007

AbstractBluetongue virus (BTV) is a double‐stranded RNA virus of the Reoviridae family. The VP1 protein of BTV is the viral RNA‐dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp), which is responsible for the replication of the viral genome. Currently there is no structural information available for VP1. By manual alignment of BTV, Reovirus and other viral RdRps we have generated a model for the structure of VP1, the RdRp of BTV. The structure can be divided into three domains: an N‐terminal domain, a C‐terminal domain, and a central polymerase domain. Mutation of the putative catalytic site in the central polymerase domain by site‐directed mutagenesis abrogated in vitro replicase activity. Each of the domains was expressed individually and subsequently partially purified to obtain direct evidence for the location of polymerase activity and the nucleoside triphosphate binding site. The nucleoside triphosphate binding site was located by showing that CTP only bound to the full‐length protein or to the polymerase domain and not to either of the other two domains. None of the domains had catalytic activity when tested individually or in tandem but when all three domains were mixed together the RdRp activity was reconstituted. This is the first report of the reconstitution of a functional viral RdRp in vitro from individual domains. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Biopolymers 86: 83–94, 2007.This article was originally published online as an accepted preprint. The “Published Online” date corresponds to the preprint version. You can request a copy of the preprint by emailing the Biopolymers editorial office at biopolymers@wiley.com
Dependence on glucose limitation of the pCO2 influences on CHO cell growth, metabolism and IgG production
Authors: Takuma Shinya , Hirashima Chikashi , Piret James M. 
Published: February 2007

AbstractThe culture levels of glucose and CO2 have been reported to independently have important influences on mammalian cell processes. In this work the combined effects of glucose limitation and CO2 partial pressure (pCO2) on monoclonal antibody (IgG) producing Chinese Hamster Ovary cells were investigated in a perfusion reactor operated with controlled cell specific medium feed rate, pH and osmolality. Under high glucose conditions (14.3 ± 0.8 mM), the apparent growth rate decreased (from 0.021 to 0.009 h−1) as the pCO2 increased to ∼220 mmHg, while the cell specific IgG productivity was almost unchanged. The lactate yield from glucose was not affected by pCO2 up to ∼220 mmHg and glucose was mainly converted to lactate. A feed medium modification from high (33 mM) to low (6 mM) glucose resulted in <0.1 mM glucose in the culture. As a result of apparently shifting metabolism towards the conversion of pyruvate to CO2, both the ratio of lactate to glucose and the alanine production rate were lowered (1.51–1.14 and 17.7–0.56 nmol/106 cells h, respectively). Interestingly, when the pCO2 was increased to ∼140 mmHg, limiting glucose resulted in 1.7‐fold higher growth rates, compared to high glucose conditions. However, at ∼220 mmHg pCO2 this beneficial effect of glucose limitation on these CHO cells was lost as the growth rate dropped dramatically to 0.008 h−1 and the IgG productivity was lowered by 15% (P < 0.01) relative to the high glucose condition. The IgG galactosylation increased under glucose‐ limited compared to high‐glucose conditions Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2007;97:1479–1488. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Location of scaffolds in bioreactors modulates the hydrodynamic environment experienced by engineered tissues
Authors: Bilgen Bahar , Barabino Gilda A. 
Published: February 2007

AbstractPhysical forces experienced by engineered‐tissues during in vitro cultivation influence tissue growth and function. The hydrodynamic environment within bioreactors plays a decisive role in providing the necessary physical stimuli and nutrient transport to support tissue development. Our overall goal is to investigate interrelationships between the local hydrodynamic environment in the bioreactor and the structural and functional tissue properties in order to optimize the production of clinically relevant engineered‐tissues. To this end, we used computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling to characterize the complex hydrodynamic environment in a wavy‐walled bioreactor used for cultivation of tissue‐engineered cartilage constructs and examined the changes in the flow field due to the presence of constructs. The flow‐induced shear stress range experienced by engineered constructs cultivated in the wavy‐walled bioreactor (0–0.67 dyn/cm2) was found to be significantly lower than that in the spinner flask (0–1.2 dyn/cm2), and to be modulated by the radial or axial position of the constructs. These CFD results are validated by experimental particle‐image velocimetry (PIV) measurements previously reported by our group. Results from the present study indicate that the location of constructs in the bioreactor not only affected the magnitude and distribution of the shear stresses on the constructs, but also other hydrodynamic parameters, such as the directional distribution of the fluid velocity and the degree of fluid recirculation, all of which may differentially influence the development of tissue‐engineered constructs. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2007; 98: 282–294. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.