bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Singlet excitation energies of thiophene derivatives of fluorene: TD‐DFT study
Authors: Gong Zhijun , Lagowski Jolanta B. 
Published: August 2006

AbstractFluorene‐thiophene (FT)‐based oligomers and polymers and their derivatives are good candidates for organic blue light‐emitting diodes. In this work, the intrinsic properties of the ground and excited states of FT monomer and its derivatives are studied. The ground‐state optimized structures and energies are obtained using molecular orbital theory and density functional theory (DFT). The ground‐state potential energy curves or surfaces of FT and its derivatives are also obtained. All derivatives are nonplanar in their electronic ground states. The character and energy of the first 20 singlet–singlet electronic transitions are investigated by applying the time‐dependent density functional theory (TD‐DFT) approximations to the correspondingly optimized ground‐state geometries. The lowest singlet state is studied with the configuration interaction (singles) approach (CIS). Excitation energies are red shifted when the FT unit or its derivatives are extended longitudinally. CIS results suggest geometry relaxation in the first singlet excited state. When available, a comparison is made with experimental results. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2007
Large wood addition for aquatic habitat rehabilitation in an incised, sand‐bed stream, Little Topashaw Creek, Mississippi
Authors: Shields F. Douglas , Knight Scott S. , Stofleth John M. 
Published: August 2006

AbstractLarge wood (LW) is a key component of stream habitats, and degraded streams often contain little wood relative to less‐impacted ones. Habitat rehabilitation and erosion control techniques that emphasize addition of natural wood in the form of individual elements or structures are increasingly popular. However, the efficacy of wood addition, especially in physically unstable, warmwater systems is not well established. The effects of habitat rehabilitation of Little Topashaw Creek, a sinuous, sand‐bed stream draining 37 km2 in northwest Mississippi are described herein. The rehabilitation project consisted of placing 72 LW structures along eroding concave banks of a 2‐km reach and planting 4000 willow cuttings in sandbars opposite or adjacent to the LW structures. Response was measured by monitoring flow, channel geometry, physical aquatic habitat and fish populations in treated and untreated reaches for 2 years before and 4 years after rehabilitation. Initially, LW structures reduced high flow velocities at concave bank toes. Progressive failure of the LW structures and renewed erosion began during the second year after rehabilitation, with only 64% of the structures and about 10% of the willow plantings surviving for 3 years. Accordingly, long‐term changes in physical habitat attributable to rehabilitation were limited to an increase in LW density. Fish biomass increased in the treated reach, and species richness approximately doubled in all reaches after rehabilitation, suggesting the occurrence of some sort of stressful event prior to our study. Fish community composition shifted toward one typical of a lightly degraded reference site, but similar shifts occurred in the untreated reaches downstream, which had relatively high levels of naturally occurring LW. Large wood is a key component of sand‐bed stream ecosystems, but LW addition for rehabilitation should be limited to sites with more stable beds and conditions that foster rapid woody plant colonization of sediment deposits. Published in 2006 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Response of the benthic macroinvertebrate community in a northern Michigan stream to reduced summer streamflows
Authors: Wills Todd C. , Baker Edward A. , Nuhfer Andrew J. , Zorn Troy G. 
Published: August 2006

AbstractWe evaluated the response of benthic macroinvertebrates in a Michigan trout stream to flow reduction by diverting water from a 602 m reach of Hunt Creek from June through August of 1994, 1997 and 1998. We also assessed the utility of the Physical Habitat Simulation system (PHABSIM) in predicting the response of benthic insects to water withdrawals by testing the assumption of a positive linear relationship between modelled habitat (weighted usable area, WUA) and the density of 13 benthic insect families. Our findings showed that the density of filter feeding and grazing insect taxa, as well as insects classified as obligate erosional zone taxa, declined significantly in the dewatered (treatment) zone (TZ) when 90% of flow was diverted. Density of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera (EPT) taxa in the TZ was significantly lower when 90% of water was diverted as compared to density at baseflow or when flow was reduced by 50%. The density of all insects in an upstream reference zone riffle (RZ), where flow was not altered, did not change among experimental periods. Although overall reductions in the density of benthic insects at 90% flow reduction coincided with lower PHABSIM predictions of WUA, we found poor linear correlation between WUA at different flows and the density of the 13 benthic insect families for which WUA was modelled. The low proportion of variation explained by WUA for all families modelled suggests that WUA alone is not an accurate predictor of benthic insect density. Resource managers should consider the potential consequences of water withdrawals to all components of stream communities, including benthic macroinvertebrates. However, caution should be applied when using the PHABSIM technique in groundwater‐fed streams such as Hunt Creek, because most relationships between WUA and benthic insect density were insignificant. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Changing times and strategies: Shell's contribution to sustainable community development in the Niger Delta, Nigeria
Authors: Ite Uwem E. 
Published: August 2006

AbstractSustainable development and poverty are pervasive problems in the Niger Delta, mainly due to lack of significant Nigerian government commitment to the development of the region. As a corporate citizen, Shell has contributed in various ways to local community development in the area. Based on a critical analysis of the changes in its strategies and policies, the paper contends that Shell's previous approaches to community development in the Niger Delta encouraged unsustainable development and a culture of dependency. It concludes that the recently launched sustainable community development strategy has the potential to succeed where others failed, if it is implemented within a tri‐sector partnership framework involving Shell, the Nigerian government and civil society. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.
Neonatal caffeine administration causes a permanent increase in the dendritic length of prefrontal cortical neurons of rats
Authors: Juárez‐méndez Sergio , Carretero Rosalba , Martínez‐Tellez Rubelia , Silva‐gómez Adriana B. , Flores Gonzalo 
Published: August 2006

AbstractWe studied the morphological changes of the dendritic length of the pyramidal neurons of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) induced by the effect of chronic administration of caffeine in the neonatal rat. The caffeine (50 mg/kg, s.c.) was injected from day 1 after birth (P1) to day 12 (P12). The morphology of the pyramidal neurons of layer 3 of the PFC was investigated in these animals at two different ages, before puberty (P35) and after puberty (P70). Before the animals were sacrificed by using overdoses of sodium pentobarbital and being perfused intracardially with 0.9% saline, the locomotor activity in a novel environment was measured. The brains were then removed, processed by the Golgi‐Cox stain, and analyzed by the Sholl method. The dendritic morphology clearly showed that the neonatal animals administered caffeine showed an increase in the dendritic length of the pyramidal neurons of the PFC when compared with the control animals at both ages. The present results suggest that neonatal administration of caffeine may in part affect the dendritic morphology of the pyramidal cells of this limbic structure and this effect persists after puberty and may be implicated in several brain processes. Synapse 60:450–455, 2006. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
LAT1 gene variants—potential factors influencing the clinical course of phenylketonuria
Authors: Bik‐Multanowski Miroslaw , Pietrzyk Jacek J. 
Published: August 2006

SummaryThe LAT1 amino acid exchanger is responsible for phenylalanine transport across the blood–brain barrier. As phenylalanine excess in the brain leads to mental retardation in untreated patients with phenylketonuria, mutations of the LAT1 gene can be responsible for milder clinical manifestations (lower brain toxicity of hyperphenylalaninaemia) observed in some patients. The aim of this study was to screen for LAT1 gene mutations in phenylketonuric patients. Within the coding sequence of the gene, three polymorphism and one new mutation (G41D) were detected. The protein sequence change due to the mutation described could influence the clinical course of phenylketonuria.
Archeological benchmarking: Fred Harvey and the service profit chain, Circa 1876
Authors: Brown Karen A. , Hyer Nancy Lea 
Published: August 2006

AbstractThis article illustrates the potential for studying best practices from the past, engaging in what we term archeological benchmarking. Our focus for this study was the Fred Harvey Company, which operated a highly successful string of restaurants and hotels along the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad line starting in 1876, reaching its peak around 1912, and continuing until the early 1950s. Fred Harvey was a visionary businessman who understood many of the key concepts guiding the most successful service operations today. This article describes the operating system Harvey used for delivering 15 million meals per year in 65 restaurants extending over a span reaching from Chicago to San Francisco. The underpinnings of Harvey's system foretold concepts considered new today, particularly the service profit chain [Heskett, J., Jones, T., Loveman, G., Sasser Jr., W.E., Schlesinger, L., 1994] and its reliance on a clear operations strategy supported by well‐trained, loyal employees and a congruent system of measurement. It is significant that Harvey achieved his success without the advantages of modern information systems by relying, instead, on his iconic leadership, dogged attention to mundane details, and the service culture he was able to embed throughout the far‐flung enterprise. The Harvey story is an example of ahead‐of‐its‐time operations thinking, but it also asks us to attend more broadly to the history of the field – as does this entire special issue – as a source of inspiration and grounding.
Galactoglucomannans Increase Cell Population Density and Alter the Protoxylem/Metaxylem Tracheary Element Ratio in Xylogenic Cultures of Zinnia
Authors: Beňová-Kákošová Anna , Digonnet Catherine , Goubet Florence , Ranocha Philippe , Jauneau Alain , Pesquet Edouard , Barbier Odile , Zhang Zhinong , Capek Peter , Dupree Paul , Lišková Desana , Goffner Deborah 
Published: August 2006

Abstract
Xylogenic cultures of zinnia (Zinnia elegans) provide a unique opportunity to study signaling pathways of tracheary element (TE) differentiation. In vitro TEs differentiate into either protoxylem (PX)-like TEs characterized by annular/helical secondary wall thickening or metaxylem (MX)-like TEs with reticulate/scalariform/pitted thickening. The factors that determine these different cell fates are largely unknown. We show here that supplementing zinnia cultures with exogenous galactoglucomannan oligosaccharides (GGMOs) derived from spruce (Picea abies) xylem had two major effects: an increase in cell population density and a decrease in the ratio of PX to MX TEs. In an attempt to link these two effects, the consequence of the plane of cell division on PX-MX differentiation was assessed. Although GGMOs did not affect the plane of cell division per se, they significantly increased the proportion of longitudinally divided cells differentiating into MX. To test the biological significance of these findings, we have determined the presence of mannan-containing oligosaccharides in zinnia cultures in vitro. Immunoblot assays indicated that β-1,4-mannosyl epitopes accumulate specifically in TE-inductive media. These epitopes were homogeneously distributed within the thickened secondary walls of TEs when the primary cell wall was weakly labeled. Using polysaccharide analysis carbohydrate gel electrophoresis, glucomannans were specifically detected in cell walls of differentiating zinnia cultures. Finally, zinnia macroarrays probed with cDNAs from cells cultured in the presence or absence of GGMOs indicated that significantly more genes were down-regulated rather than up-regulated by GGMOs. This study constitutes a major step in the elucidation of signaling mechanisms of PX- and MX-specific genetic programs in zinnia.
Transgenic Tobacco Plants Overexpressing Chitinases of Fungal Origin Show Enhanced Resistance to Biotic and Abiotic Stress Agents
Authors: Dana María de las Mercedes , Pintor-Toro José A. , Cubero Beatriz 
Published: August 2006

AbstractGenes encoding defense-related proteins have been used to alter the resistance of plants to pathogens and other environmental challenges, but no single fungal gene overexpression has produced broad-spectrum stress resistance in transgenic lines. We have generated transgenic tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) lines that overexpress the endochitinases CHIT33 and CHIT42 from the mycoparasitic fungus Trichoderma harzianum and have evaluated their tolerance to biotic and abiotic stress. Both CHIT33 and CHIT42, individually, conferred broad resistance to fungal and bacterial pathogens, salinity, and heavy metals. Such broad-range protective effects came off with no obvious detrimental effect on the growth of tobacco plants.
Whole-Genome Analysis of Oryza sativa Reveals Similar Architecture of Two-Component Signaling Machinery with Arabidopsis
Authors: Pareek Ashwani , Singh Anupama , Kumar Manoj , Kushwaha Hemant R. , Lynn Andrew M. , Singla-Pareek Sneh L. 
Published: August 2006

Abstract
The two-component system (TCS), which works on the principle of histidine-aspartate phosphorelay signaling, is known to play an important role in diverse physiological processes in lower organisms and has recently emerged as an important signaling system in plants. Employing the tools of bioinformatics, we have characterized TCS signaling candidate genes in the genome of Oryza sativa L. subsp. japonica. We present a complete overview of TCS gene families in O. sativa, including gene structures, conserved motifs, chromosome locations, and phylogeny. Our analysis indicates a total of 51 genes encoding 73 putative TCS proteins. Fourteen genes encode 22 putative histidine kinases with a conserved histidine and other typical histidine kinase signature sequences, five phosphotransfer genes encoding seven phosphotransfer proteins, and 32 response regulator genes encoding 44 proteins. The variations seen between gene and protein numbers are assumed to result from alternative splicing. These putative proteins have high homology with TCS members that have been shown experimentally to participate in several important physiological phenomena in plants, such as ethylene and cytokinin signaling and phytochrome-mediated responses to light. We conclude that the overall architecture of the TCS machinery in O. sativa and Arabidopsis thaliana is similar, and our analysis provides insights into the conservation and divergence of this important signaling machinery in higher plants.
Cigarettes and oral snuff use in Sweden: prevalence and transitions
Authors: Furberg Helena , Lichtenstein Paul , Pedersen Nancy L. , Bulik Cynthia , Sullivan Patrick F. 
Published: August 2006

ABSTRACTAims  To investigate the prevalence and patterns of transitions between cigarette and snus use.Design  Cross‐sectional study within the population‐based Swedish Twin Registry.Setting and participants  A total of 31 213 male and female twins 42–64 years old.Measurements  Age‐adjusted prevalence odds ratios (POR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) described the association between gender and tobacco use, while Kaplan–Meier survival methods produced cumulative incidence curves of age at onset of tobacco use. Life‐time tobacco use histories were constructed using ages at onset of tobacco use and current tobacco use status.Findings  Although more males reported ever smoking (64.4%) than females (61.7%), more males were former smokers (POR: 1.33, 95% CI: 1.27–1.39). Males were far more likely to use snus than females (POR: 18.0, 95% CI: 16.17–20.04). Age at onset of cigarette smoking occurred almost entirely before age 25, while the age at onset of snus use among males occurred over a longer time period. Most men began using cigarettes first, nearly one‐third of whom switched to using cigarettes and snus in combination. While 30.6% of these combined users quit tobacco completely, only 7.4% quit snus and currently use cigarettes, while 47.7% quit cigarettes and currently use snus.Conclusions  Current cigarette smoking is more prevalent among Swedish women than men, while snus use is more prevalent among men. Among men who reported using both cigarettes and snus during their life‐time, it was more common to quit cigarettes and currently use snus than to quit snus and currently use cigarettes. Once snus use was initiated, more men continued using snus rather than quit tobacco completely.
Becker’s rational addiction theory: an empirical test with price elasticities for distilled spirits in Denmark 1911–31
Authors: Skog Ole‐Jørgen , Melberg Hans Olav 
Published: August 2006

ABSTRACTAim  To test an implication of Becker’s rational addiction theory, namely that price changes will lead both to simultaneous consumption changes as well as lagged changes (and potentially also immediate changes if future changes in prices are anticipated).Design  Time‐series analysis, first of aggregate sales of distilled spirits and prices, controlled for gross national product (GNP), and secondly of deaths from delirium tremens.Setting  Denmark 1911–31. Price changes were very large in the period 1916–18 due to shortages during World War I, and the Danish case can be conceived as a natural experiment.Findings  No evidence for lagged price effects in the expected direction was found. On the contrary, the evidence pointed in the opposite direction. The immediate reduction in sales following rising prices are, to some degree, counteracted by an adjustment in the opposite direction the following year. The delirium tremens data confirm this pattern.Conclusion  Becker’s theory is not confirmed. Several possible explanations are discussed. If the pattern observed in these data is representative of a more general mechanism, current price elasticity estimates may be too high, by ignoring lagged compensatory effects.
Substance dependence and non‐dependence in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) and the International Classification of Diseases (ICD): can an identical conceptualization be achieved?
Authors: Saunders John B. 
Published: August 2006

ABSTRACTBackground  This review summarizes the history of the development of diagnostic constructs that apply to repetitive substance use, and compares and contrasts the nature, psychometric performance and utility of the major diagnoses in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) and International Classification of Diseases (ICD) diagnostic systems.Methods  The available literature was reviewed with a particular focus on diagnostic concepts that are relevant for clinical and epidemiological practice, and so that research questions could be generated that might inform the development of the next generation of DSM and ICD diagnoses.Results  The substance dependence syndrome is a psychometrically robust and clinically useful construct, which applies to a range of psychoactive substances. The differences between the DSM fourth edition (DSM‐IV) and the ICD tenth edition (ICD‐10) versions are minimal and could be resolved. DSM‐IV substance abuse performs moderately well but, being defined essentially by social criteria, may be culture‐dependent. ICD‐10 harmful substance use performs poorly as a diagnostic entity. Conclusions  There are good prospects for resolving many of the differences between the DSM and ICD systems. A new non‐dependence diagnosis is required. There would also be advantages in a subthreshold diagnosis of hazardous or risky substance use being incorporated into the two systems. Biomedical research can be drawn upon to define a psychophysiological ‘driving force’ which could underpin a broad spectrum of substance use disorders.
Inhibition of donor-derived T cells trafficking into target organs by FTY720 during acute graft-versus-host disease in small bowel transplantation
Authors: Song J , Ito T , Matsuda C , Miao G , Tanemura M , Nishida T , Nozawa M , Matsuda H , Sawa Y 
Published: August 2006

SummaryIn small bowel transplantation (SBTx), graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is mediated by donor-derived T cells recognizing host major histocompatibility complex (MHC) alloantigens, and represents an important immunological event influencing life in experimental and clinical situations. We evaluated the possibility that a new sphingosine 1-phosphate receptor agonist, FTY720, could diminish GVHD in a rat SBTx model through traffic alteration of donor-derived T cells in target organs. Heterotopic SBTx was performed using a parent (WF)-into-F1 (WF × ACI) rat combination. Recipient survival, body weight, histopathology, donor-derived T cell subpopulation and cytokine production were compared with untreated controls. FTY720 inhibited lethality and histopathological changes in target organs when administered at 0·5 mg/kg, possibly due to sequestration of donor-derived T cells in the intestinal graft. FTY720 caused a significant reduction in donor T cell numbers in target organs by promoting these cells to home into donor, but not recipient, secondary lymphoid tissues. FTY720 significantly decreased production of interferon (IFN)-γ in target organs. These findings indicate that FTY720 effectively reduced recirculation of activated donor-derived T cells and recruitment to target organs in GVHD, and was also associated with down-regulated IFN-γ production. These properties may offer the potential to treat ongoing GVHD in SBTx.