bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Increased Endothelial Apoptotic Cell Density in Human Diabetic Erectile Tissue—Comparison with Clinical Data
Authors: Costa Carla , Soares Raquel , Castela Ângela , Adães Sara , Hastert Véronique , Vendeira Pedro , Virag Ronald 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACT

Introduction
Erectile dysfunction (ED) is a common complication of diabetes. Endothelial cell (EC) dysfunction is one of the main mechanisms of diabetic ED. However, loss of EC integrity has never been assessed in human diabetic corpus cavernosum.

Aim
To identify and quantify apoptotic cells in human diabetic and normal erectile tissue and to compare these results with each patient’s clinical data and erection status.

Methods
Eighteen cavernosal samples were collected, 13 from diabetics with ED and 5 from nondiabetic individuals. Cavernosal structure and cell proliferation status were evaluated by immunohistochemistry. Tissue integrity was assessed by terminal transferase dUTP nick end labeling assay, an index of apoptotic cell density (ACD) established and compared with each patient age, type of diabetes, arterial risk factors number, arterial/veno-occlusive disease, response to intracavernous vasoactive injections (ICI), and penile nitric oxide release test (PNORT).

Main Outcome Measures
Establish an index of ACD and correlate those results with patient clinical data.

Results
Nondiabetic samples presented few scattered cells in apoptosis and an ACD of 7.15 ± 0.44 (mean apoptotic cells/tissue area mm2 ± standard error). The diabetic group showed an increased ACD of 23.82 ± 1.53, and apoptotic cells were located specifically at vascular sites. Rehabilitation of these endothelial lesions seemed impaired, as no evidence of EC proliferation was observed. Furthermore, higher ACD in diabetic individuals correlated to poor response to PNORT and to ICI.

Conclusions
We provided evidence for the first time that loss of cavernosal EC integrity is a crucial event involved in diabetic ED. Furthermore, we were able to establish a threshold between ACD values and cavernosal tissue functionality, as assessed by PNORT and vasoactive ICI.
Convivencia in Medieval Spain: A Brief History of an Idea
Authors: Wolf Kenneth Baxter 
Published: December 2008

Abstract Convivencia refers to the ‘coexistence’ of Christian, Muslim, and Jewish communities in medieval Spain and by extension the cultural interaction and exchange fostered by such proximity. The term first appeared as part of a controversial thesis about Spanish historical identity advanced by Américo Castro in 1948. Since then interest in the idea of convivencia has spread, fueled in part by increased attention to multi‐culturalism and rising concern about religiously framed acts of violence. The application of social scientific models has gone a long way toward clarifying the mechanisms of acculturation at work in medieval Spain and tempering the tendency to romanticize convivencia.
Oxidative stress may modify zinc protoporphyrin/heme ratio in hematofluorometry
Authors: JANOUSEK S. J. , ROSA L. , JANOUSEK S. , JIROVA D. , KEJLOVA K. 
Published: December 2008

SummaryWashed red blood cells (RBCs), supplemented or non‐supplemented with sodium azide (to inhibit catalase activity), were exposed to different concentrations of hydrogen peroxide as well as ascorbic acid. Strikingly, catalase within RBCs protected the cells against exogenic hydrogen peroxide even at millimolar concentrations. However, the activity of the erythrocytic catalase failed to protect the RBCs when they were exposed to an oxidative burst of stimulated polymorphonuclear cells (PMNCs) in the presence of several reactive species in addition to peroxide. Oxyhemoglobin, with an excess of hydrogen peroxide, formed oxidized hemoglobin species and caused protein denaturation as well as the rise of heme degradation products which was suspected to falsify zinc protoporphyrin/heme (ZPP/heme) ratio as assessed by hematofluorometry. Our experiments may thus imply that the non‐fluorescent hemoglobin background can be modified by reactive oxygen species (ROS) and this can lead to a spurious ZPP/heme ratio. We discuss this phenomenon with respect to ZPP quantification in clinical practice.
Why have economists done so well in the British civil service?
Authors: Allan Lewis 
Published: December 2008

Abstract:Economists are uniquely large in number and influence in the British civil service compared to other professionals. The significant number and influence of economists is a comparatively recent phenomenon, dating predominantly from the foundation of the Government Economic Service in 1964, with some roots in the Second World War. Reasons spanning from the role of economists as ‘arch‐rationalizers’ to the rise in influence of the Treasury are advanced to explain this development. It is noted that while economists have proliferated in Whitehall, they have yet to do so in Westminster.
Industrial Organization: The Oxford Influence (1952–1979)
Authors: Arena Lise 
Published: December 2008

Abstract:This article seeks to provide a better understanding of the history of Industrial Organization (IO). More precisely, it stresses the specific influence Oxford economists had between 1952 and 1979 on the developments of modern trends in the discipline. This work focuses on three main sub‐fields of IO, namely, the empirical approach to concrete forms of organization prevailing in the managerial world, the impact of information and knowledge on the discipline, and the use of game theory within IO.
Emodin reverses CCl4induced hepatic cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymatic and ultrastructural changes: Thein vivoevidence
Authors: Bhadauria Monika , Nirala Satendra Kumar , Shrivastava Sadhana , Sharma Abhilasha , Johri Sonia , Chandan Bal Krishan , Singh Bhupendar , Saxena Ajit Kumar , Shukla Sangeeta 
Published: December 2008

Aim: The curative effect of emodin (1,3,8‐trihydroxy‐6‐methyl anthraquinone), an active compound of the plant speciesVentilago maderaspatanaGaertn, was evaluated against carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) induced hepatic cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymatic and ultrastructural alterations in rats.Methods: Female rats were administered CCl4(1.5 mL/kg, ip) followed by varying doses of emodin (20, 30 and 40 mg/kg, oral po) after 24 h of CCl4administration. Animals were euthanized after 24 h of last administration to determine liver function tests in serum, hepatic light microscopic and ultrastructural changes, activity of CYP enzymes, microsomal lipid peroxidation and protein contents, hexobarbitone induced sleep time and bromosulphalein retention.Results: The CCl4induced‐toxic effects were observed with sharp elevation in the release of serum transaminases, alkaline phosphatase, lactate dehydrogenase and γ‐glutamyl transpeptidase. An initial study for an optimum dose of emodin among different dose levels revealed that a 30 mg/kg dose was effective in restoring all the enzymatic variables and liver histoarchitecture in a dose dependent manner. Exposure to CCl4diminished the activities of CYP enzymes (i.e. aniline hydroxylase and amidopyrine‐N‐demethylase and microsomal protein contents with concomitant increase in microsomal lipid peroxidation). Emodin at 30 mg/kg effectively reversed the CCl4induced hepatotoxic events, which was consistent with ultrastructural observations. Hexobarbitone‐induced sleep time and plasma bromosulphalein retention also improved liver functions after emodin therapy.Conclusion: By reversal CYP activity and ultrastructural changes, emodin shows a strong hepatoprotective abilities.
Elastic-Plastic Wheel-Rail Thermal Contact on Corrugated Rails During Wheel Braking
Authors: Chen Yung-Chuan , Lee Sing-You 
Published: December 2008

Abstract
This study uses an elastic-plastic, coupled temperature-displacement finite element model to investigate the effect of rail corrugations on the wheel-rail thermal contact stress and temperature distribution during wheel braking. The finite element model assumes that the material properties and the friction coefficient are temperature-dependent. The analysis considers various corrugation wavelengths and amplitudes and is performed over a range of braking speeds. The results indicate that the corrugated rail induces wavelike contact pressure and temperature distributions on the rail surface. The results also show that the variation in the peak contact pressure increases as the corrugation wavelength is reduced or as the corrugation amplitude is increased. Furthermore, it is found that the corrugated rail shifts the location of the peak value of the rail surface temperature toward the leading edge of the contact region. The amplitude of the temperature fluctuations reduces as the corrugation wavelength is increased or as the corrugation amplitude is reduced. Finally, a higher corrugation amplitude or a shorter corrugation wavelength causes the location of the peak maximum shear stress to shift toward the rail surface.
Development of an Immunoglobulin M Capture-Based Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay for Diagnosis of Acute Infections withBartonella henselae
Authors: Hoey John G. , Valois-Cruz Fernando , Goldenberg Hannah , Voskoboynik Yekaterina , Pfiffner Jenna , Tilton Richard C. , Mordechai Eli , Adelson Martin E. 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACTWe describe the development of an immunoglobulin M-specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for the detection of an early antibody response toBartonella henselae, the causative agent of cat scratch disease, bacillary angiomatosis, and endocarditis. This assay discriminates betweenB. henselae-positive and -negative patient samples with sensitivity and specificity values of 100% and 97.1%, respectively.
Severe Pneumonia withLeptotrichiasp. Detected Predominantly in Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid by Use of 16S rRNA Gene Sequencing Analysis
Authors: Kawanami Toshinori , Fukuda Kazumasa , Yatera Kazuhiro , Kido Takashi , Yoshii Chiharu , Taniguchi Hatsumi , Kido Masamitsu 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACTWe present the first case of severe pneumonia possibly caused byLeptotrichiaspecies with oral bacteria. This was found in a healthy but elderly subject whose bronchoalveolar lavage fluid was analyzed by 16S rRNA gene sequencing analysis. The combination of this method and microscopic observation provided useful information for diagnosis and treatment.
Correlation of Virus and Host Response Markers with Circulating Immune Complexes during Acute and Chronic Woodchuck Hepatitis Virus Infection
Authors: Glebe Dieter , Lorenz Heike , Gerlich Wolfram H. , Butler Scott D. , Tochkov Ilia A. , Tennant Bud C. , Cote Paul , Menne Stephan 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACTWoodchuck hepatitis virus (WHV) is an established model for human hepatitis B virus. The kinetics of virus and host responses in serum and liver during acute, self-limited WHV infection in adult woodchucks were studied. Serum WHV DNA and surface antigen (WHsAg) were detected as early as 1 to 3 weeks following experimental infection and peaked between 1 and 5 weeks postinfection. Thereafter, serum WHsAg levels declined rapidly and became undetectable, while WHV DNA levels became undetectable much later, between 4 and 20 weeks postinfection. Decreasing viremia correlated with transient liver injury marked by an increase in serum sorbitol dehydrogenase (SDH) levels. Clearance of WHV DNA from serum was associated with the normalization of serum SDH. Circulating immune complexes (CICs) of WHsAg and antibodies against WHsAg (anti-WHs) that correlated temporarily with the peaks in serum viremia and WHs antigenemia were detected. CICs were no longer detected in serum once free anti-WHs became detectable. The detection of CICs around the peak in serum viremia and WHs antigenemia in resolving woodchucks suggests a critical role for the humoral immune response against WHsAg in the early elimination of viral and subviral particles from the peripheral blood. Individual kinetic variation during WHV infections in resolving woodchucks infected with the same WHV inoculum and dose is likely due to the outbred nature of the animals, indicating that the onset and magnitude of the individual immune response determine the intensity of virus inhibition and the timing of virus elimination from serum.
Population Dynamics and Rates of Molecular Evolution of a Recently Emerged Paramyxovirus, Avian Metapneumovirus Subtype C
Authors: Padhi Abinash , Poss Mary 
Published: December 2008

ABSTRACT

We report the existence of two distinct sublineages of avian metapneumovirus (MPV) subtype C, a virus which has caused serious economic loss in commercial turkey farms in the United States. This subtype is closely related to human MPV, infects multiple avian species, and is globally distributed. The evolutionary rates of this virus are estimated to be 1.3 × 10
−3
to 7 × 10
−3
substitutions per site per year, and coalescent estimates place its emergence between 1991 and 1996. The four genes examined show a concordant demographic pattern which is characterized by a rapid increase in population size followed by stable population grown until the present.
Higher expression of deoxyuridine triphosphatase (dUTPase) may predict the metastasis potential of colorectal cancer
Authors: Kawahara A , Akagi Y , Hattori S , Mizobe T , Shirouzu K , Ono M , Yanagawa T , Kuwano M , Kage M 
Published: December 2008

Aims:5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) is one of the most widely used anticancer drugs; however, the activity of 5-FU is determined by the presence of several enzymes that limit its activation or degradation, and these include dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD), orotate phosphoribosyl transferase (OPRT), thymidylate synthase (TS), thymidine kinase (TK), thymidine phosphorylase (TP) and deoxyuridine triphosphatase (dUTPase). The aim of this study was to compare the expression levels of these enzymes between the primary colorectal cancer of patients with and without distant metastases. Furthermore, there was a comparison of these expression levels between the primary tumour and the corresponding metastasis.Methods:Of 55 patients with colorectal cancer, 20 had no metastasis and the other 35 had distant metastasis. A strong expression was classified as positive, while weak to moderate or no expression was negative by immunohistochemistry.Results:Of the six 5-FU-related enzymes, the numbers of patients with expression of dUTPase (54% versus 15%; p = 0.005), TK (26% versus 0%; p = 0.019) and DPD (17% versus 45%; p = 0.033) were significantly different in those with primary tumours with metastasis compared with those with non-metastasis, respectively. The altered expression of OPRT (34.3%), TS (40.0%) and dUTPase (42.9%) was significantly greater from primary to metastasis among the 35 patients with metastasis. By contrast, the expression of OPRT, TS and dUTPase was decreased in 6, 5 and 7 patients, respectively, in metastatic sites.Conclusions:From this comparative study of the six 5-FU-related enzymes in colorectal cancer, the expression of dUTPase was most significantly different between primary tumours and their corresponding metastatic tumour. It is suggested that dUTPase may be a predictive biomarker for the metastatic potential of colorectal cancer.
SIGNAL PROCESSING ALGORITHMS FOR STARING SINGLE PIXEL HYPERSPECTRAL SENSORS
Authors: MANOLAKIS DIMITRIS , ROSSACCI MICHAEL , O'DONNELL ERIN , D'AMICO FRANCIS M. 
Published: December 2008

Remote sensing of chemical warfare agents (CWA) with stand-off hyperspectral sensors has a wide range of civilian and military applications. These sensors exploit the spectral changes in the ambient photon flux produced thermal emission or absorption after passage through a region containing the CWA cloud. In this work we focus on (a) staring single-pixel sensors that sample their field of view at regular intervals of time to produce a time series of spectra and (b) scanning single or multiple pixel sensors that sample their FOV as they scan. The main objective of signal processing algorithms is to determine if and when a CWA enters the FOV of the sensor. We shall first develop and evaluate algorithms for staring sensors following two different approaches. First, we will assume that no threat information is available and we design an adaptive anomaly detection algorithm to detect a statistically-significant change in the observed spectrum. The algorithm processes the observed spectra sequentially-in-time, estimates adaptively the background, and checks whether the next spectrum differs significantly from the background based on the Mahalanobis distance or the distance from the background subspace. In the second approach, we will assume that we know the spectral signature of the CWA and develop sequential-in-time adaptive matched filter detectors. In both cases, we assume that the sensor starts its operation before the release of the CWA; otherwise, staring at a nearby CWA-free area is required for background estimation. Experimental evaluation and comparison of the proposed algorithms is accomplished using data from a long-wave infrared (LWIR) Fourier transform spectrometer.
An analysis of data corruption in the storage stack
Authors: Bairavasundaram Lakshmi N. , Arpaci-Dusseau Andrea C. , Arpaci-Dusseau Remzi H. , Goodson Garth R. , Schroeder Bianca 
Published: December 2008

An important threat to reliable storage of data is silent data corruption. In order to develop suitable protection mechanisms against data corruption, it is essential to understand its characteristics. In this article, we present the first large-scale study of data corruption. We analyze corruption instances recorded in production storage systems containing a total of 1.53 million disk drives, over a period of 41 months. We study three classes of corruption: checksum mismatches, identity discrepancies, and parity inconsistencies. We focus on checksum mismatches since they occur the most.
We find more than 400,000 instances of checksum mismatches over the 41-month period. We find many interesting trends among these instances, including: (i) nearline disks (and their adapters) develop checksum mismatches an order of magnitude more often than enterprise-class disk drives, (ii) checksum mismatches within the same disk are not independent events and they show high spatial and temporal locality, and (iii) checksum mismatches across different disks in the same storage system are not independent. We use our observations to derive lessons for corruption-proof system design.
Proteomic analysis of breast cancer molecular subtypes and biomarkers of response to targeted kinase inhibitors using reverse-phase protein microarrays
Authors: Boyd Zachary S. , Wu Qun Jenny , O'Brien Carol , Spoerke Jill , Savage Heidi , Fielder Paul J. , Amler Lukas , Yan Yibing , Lackner Mark R. 
Published: December 2008

Abstract
Although breast cancer molecular subtypes have been extensively defined by means of gene expression profiling over the past decade, little is known, at the proteomic level, as to how signaling pathways are differentially activated and serve to control proliferation in different breast cancer subtypes. We used reverse-phase protein arrays to examine phosphorylation status of 100 proteins in a panel of 30 breast cancer cell lines and showed distinct pathway activation differences between different subtypes that are not obvious from previous gene expression studies. We also show that basal levels of phosphorylation of key signaling nodes may have diagnostic utility in predicting response to selective inhibitors of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase and mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase kinase. Finally, we show that reverse-phase protein arrays allow the parallel analysis of multiple pharmacodynamic biomarkers of response to targeted kinase inhibitors and that inhibitors of epidermal growth factor receptor and mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase kinase result in compensatory up-regulation of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt signaling pathway. [Mol Cancer Ther 2008;7(12):3695–706]
Diagnostic Efficacy and Prognostic Value of Serum Procalcitonin Concentration in Patients With Suspected Sepsis
Authors: Ruiz-Alvarez M.J. , García-Valdecasas S. , De Pablo R. , Sanchez García M. , Coca C. , Groeneveld T.W. , Roos A. , Daha M.R. , Arribas I. 
Published: December 2008

Background: Procalcitonin is released in response to bacterial infection and it is not released in Inflammatory and viral diseases. Objective: To show the diagnostic efficacy and prognostic value of procalcitonin for sepsis. Methods: A consecutive series of 103 patients with suspected sepsis were admitted to the intensive care unit over a 2-year period. During the first 24 hours of the admission procalcitonin, C-reactive protein, and complement proteins were determined. The diagnostic efficacy was tested with predictive values, likelihood ratios, receiver operating characteristic curves, and multiple logistic regression. The association of procalcitonin with mortality was assessed by the Multivariate Cox proportional hazards model. Results: Procalcitonin had a better positive likelihood ratio than C-reactive protein —2.2 (95% confidence interval: 1.3-3.7) versus 1.1 (95% confidence interval: 0.9-1.2). Sequential Organ Failure Assessment yielded the highest discriminative value, with an area under the curve of 0.82 (95% confidence interval: 0.73-0.92), followed by procalcitonin (0.81; 95% confidence interval: 0.72-0.89). Multivariate regression analysis showed procalcitonin (adjusted odds ratio: 3.8; 95% confidence interval: 1.2-11.8) and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score (adjusted odds ratio: 5.3; 95% confidence interval: 1.4-19.9) as the only variables independently associated with infection. Multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed that procalcitonin was not independently associated with mortality. Conclusions: The diagnostic accuracy of procalcitonin was higher than C-reactive protein and complement proteins. Procalcitonin in combination with Sequential Organ Failure Assessment was useful to diagnose infection. C-reactive protein, Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score, age, and gender showed to be helpful to improve the prediction of mortality risk, but not procalcitonin.
Improved machine learning method for analysis of gas phase chemistry of peptides
Authors: Gehrke Allison , Sun Shaojun , Kurgan Lukasz , Ahn Natalie , Resing Katheryn , Kafadar Karen , Cios Krzysztof 
Published: December 2008

Abstract

Background
Accurate peptide identification is important to high-throughput proteomics analyses that use mass spectrometry. Search programs compare fragmentation spectra (MS/MS) of peptides from complex digests with theoretically derived spectra from a database of protein sequences. Improved discrimination is achieved with theoretical spectra that are based on simulating gas phase chemistry of the peptides, but the limited understanding of those processes affects the accuracy of predictions from theoretical spectra.

Results
We employed a robust data mining strategy using new feature annotation functions of MAE software, which revealed under-prediction of the frequency of occurrence in fragmentation of the second peptide bond. We applied methods of exploratory data analysis to pre-process the information in the MS/MS spectra, including data normalization and attribute selection, to reduce the attributes to a smaller, less correlated set for machine learning studies. We then compared our rule building machine learning program, DataSqueezer, with commonly used association rules and decision tree algorithms. All used machine learning algorithms produced similar results that were consistent with expected properties for a second gas phase mechanism at the second peptide bond.

Conclusion
The results provide compelling evidence that we have identified underlying chemical properties in the data that suggest the existence of an additional gas phase mechanism for the second peptide bond. Thus, the methods described in this study provide a valuable approach for analyses of this kind in the future.