bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Socio-economic and psychological correlates of suicidality among Hong Kong working-age adults: results from a population-based survey
Authors: LIU KA Y. , CHEN ERIC Y. H. , CHAN CECILIA L. W. , LEE DOMINIC T. S. , LAW Y. W. , CONWELL YEATES , YIP PAUL S. F. 
Published: November 2006

Background. The global toll of suicide is estimated to be one million lives per year, which exceeded the number of deaths by homicide and war combined. A key step to suicide prevention is to prevent less serious suicidal behaviour to preclude more lethal outcomes. Although 61% of the world's suicides take place in Asia and the suicide rates among middle age groups have been increasing since the economic crisis in many Asian countries, population-based studies of suicidal behaviour among working-age adults in non-western communities are scarce.Method. Data from a population-based survey with 2015 participants were used to estimate the prevalence of suicidal ideation and behaviour among the working-age population in Hong Kong, and to study the associated socio-economic and psychological correlates. We focused particularly on potential modulating factors between life-event-related factors and suicidal ideation.Results. Six per cent of the Hong Kong population aged 20–59 years considered suicide in the past year, while 1·4% attempted suicide. Hopelessness, reasons for living, and reluctance to seek help from family and friends had direct association with past-year suicidal ideation. Reasons for living were found to moderate the effect of perceived stress on suicidal ideation.Conclusions. Suicidality is a multi-faceted problem that calls for a multi-sectored, multi-layered approach to prevention. Prevention programmes can work on modulating factors such as reasons for living to reduce suicidal risk in working-age adults.
Role of nucleotides and phosphoinositides in the stability of electron and proton currents associated with the phagocytic NADPH oxidase
Authors: Petheő Gábor L. , Girardin Nathalie C. , Goossens Nicolas , Molnár Gergely Z. , Demaurex Nicolas 
Published: November 2006

The phagocytic NADPH oxidase (phox) moves electrons across cell membranes to kill microbes. The activity of this lethal enzyme is tightly regulated, but the mechanisms that control phox inactivation are poorly understood for lack of appropriate assays. The phox generates measurable electron currents, Ie, that are associated with inward proton currents, IH. To study the inactivation of the phox and of its associated proton channel, we determined which soluble factors can stabilize Ie (induced by the addition of NADPH) and IH (initiated by small depolarizing voltage steps) in inside-out patches from PMA-activated human eosinophils. Ie decayed rapidly in the absence of nucleotides (τ≈6 min) and was maximally stabilized by the combined addition of 5 mM ATP and 50 μM of the non-hydrolysable GTP analogue GTP[S] (guanosine 5′-[γ-thio]triphosphate) (τ≈57 min), but not by either ATP or GTP[S] alone. IH also decayed rapidly and was stabilized by the ATP/GTP[S] mixture, but maximal stabilization of IH required further addition of 25 μM PI(3,4)P2 (phosphoinositide 3,4-bisphosphate) to the cytosolic side of the patch. PI(3,4)P2 had no effect on Ie and its stabilizing effect on IH could not be mimicked by other phosphoinositides. Reducing the ATP concentration below millimolar levels decreased IH stability, an effect that was not prevented by phosphatase inhibitors but by the non-hydrolysable ATP analogue ATP[S] (adenosine 5′-[γ-thio]triphosphate). Our data indicate that the assembled phox complex is very stable in eosinophil membranes if both ATP and GTP[S] are present, but inactivates within minutes if one of the nucleotides is removed. Stabilization of the phox-associated proton channel in a highly voltage-sensitive conformation does not appear to involve phosphorylation but ATP binding, and requires not only ATP and GTP[S] but also PI(3,4)P2, a protein known to anchor the cytosolic phox subunit p47phox to the plasma membrane.
Protein 4.1R self-association: identification of the binding domain
Authors: Pérez-Ferreiro Carmen M. , Lospitao Eva , Correas Isabel 
Published: November 2006

Erythroid protein 4.1 (4.1R) stabilizes the spectrin–actin network and anchors it to the plasma membrane. To contribute to the characterization of non-erythroid protein 4.1R, we used sedimentation, pull-down and co-immunoprecipitation assays to investigate the ability of protein 4.1R to establish inter-/intra-molecular associations. We demonstrated that the small 4.1R isoforms of 60 kDa (4.1R60), but not the larger isoforms of 80 and 135 kDa (4.1R80 and 4.1R135), were self-associated, and that a domain contained in all 4.1R isoforms, the core region, was responsible for 4.1R self-association. Results from denaturing–renaturing experiments, in which an initially non-self-associated 4.1R80 isoform became self-associated, suggested that an initially hidden core region was subsequently exposed. This hypothesis was supported by results from pull-down assays, which showed that the core region interacted with the N-terminal end of the FERM (4.1, ezrin, radixin, moesin) domain that is present in 4.1R80 and 4.1R135 isoforms but absent from 4.1R60 isoforms. Consistently, 4.1R80 isoforms bound neither to each other nor to 4.1R60 isoforms. We propose that 4.1R60 isoforms are constitutively self-associated, whereas 4.1R80 and 4.1R135 self-association is prevented by intramolecular interactions.
Multiple forms of copper (II) co-ordination occur throughout the disordered N-terminal region of the prion protein at pH 7.4
Authors: Wells Mark A. , Jelinska Clare , Hosszu Laszlo L. P. , Craven C. Jeremy , Clarke Anthony R. , Collinge John , Waltho Jonathan P. , Jackson Graham S. 
Published: November 2006

Although the physiological function of the prion protein remains unknown, in vitro experiments suggest that the protein may bind copper (II) ions and play a role in copper transport or homoeostasis in vivo. The unstructured N-terminal region of the prion protein has been shown to bind up to six copper (II) ions, with each of these ions co-ordinated by a single histidine imidazole and nearby backbone amide nitrogen atoms. Individually, these sites have micromolar affinities, which is weaker than would be expected of a true cuproprotein. In the present study, we show that with subsaturating levels of copper, different forms of co-ordination will occur, which have higher affinity. We have investigated the copper-binding properties of two peptides representing the known copper-binding regions of the prion protein: residues 57–91, which contains four tandem repeats of the octapeptide GGGWGQPH, and residues 91–115. Using equilibrium dialysis and spectroscopic methods, we unambiguously demonstrate that the mode of copper co-ordination in both of these peptides depends on the number of copper ions bound and that, at low copper occupancy, copper ions are co-ordinated with sub-micromolar affinity by multiple histidine imidazole groups. At pH 7.4, three different modes of copper co-ordination are accessible within the octapeptide repeats and two within the peptide comprising residues 91–115. The highest affinity copper (II)-binding modes cause self-association of both peptides, suggesting a role for copper (II) in controlling prion protein self-association in vivo.
Directed evolution of a monomeric, bright and photostable version of Clavularia cyan fluorescent protein: structural characterization and applications in fluorescence imaging
Authors: Ai Hui-wang , Henderson J. Nathan , Remington S. James , Campbell Robert E. 
Published: November 2006

The arsenal of engineered variants of the GFP [green FP (fluorescent protein)] from Aequorea jellyfish provides researchers with a powerful set of tools for use in biochemical and cell biology research. The recent discovery of diverse FPs in Anthozoa coral species has provided protein engineers with an abundance of alternative progenitor FPs from which improved variants that complement or supersede existing Aequorea GFP variants could be derived. Here, we report the engineering of the first monomeric version of the tetrameric CFP (cyan FP) cFP484 from Clavularia coral. Starting from a designed synthetic gene library with mammalian codon preferences, we identified dimeric cFP484 variants with fluorescent brightness significantly greater than the wild-type protein. Following incorporation of dimer-breaking mutations and extensive directed evolution with selection for blue-shifted emission, high fluorescent brightness and photostability, we arrived at an optimized variant that we have named mTFP1 [monomeric TFP1 (teal FP 1)]. The new mTFP1 is one of the brightest and most photostable FPs reported to date. In addition, the fluorescence is insensitive to physiologically relevant pH changes and the fluorescence lifetime decay is best fitted as a single exponential. The 1.19 Å crystal structure (1 Å=0.1 nm) of mTFP1 confirms the monomeric structure and reveals an unusually distorted chromophore conformation. As we experimentally demonstrate, the high quantum yield of mTFP1 (0.85) makes it particularly suitable as a replacement for ECFP (enhanced CFP) or Cerulean as a FRET (fluorescence resonance energy transfer) donor to either a yellow or orange FP acceptor.
Improved breast cancer prognosis through the combination of clinical and genetic markers
Authors: Sun Yijun , Goodison Steve , Li Jian , Liu Li , Farmerie William 
Published: November 2006

AbstractMotivation: Accurate prognosis of breast cancer can spare a significant number of breast cancer patients from receiving unnecessary adjuvant systemic treatment and its related expensive medical costs. Recent studies have demonstrated the potential value of gene expression signatures in assessing the risk of post-surgical disease recurrence. However, these studies all attempt to develop genetic marker-based prognostic systems to replace the existing clinical criteria, while ignoring the rich information contained in established clinical markers. Given the complexity of breast cancer prognosis, a more practical strategy would be to utilize both clinical and genetic marker information that may be complementary.Methods: A computational study is performed on publicly available microarray data, which has spawned a 70-gene prognostic signature. The recently proposed I-RELIEF algorithm is used to identify a hybrid signature through the combination of both genetic and clinical markers. A rigorous experimental protocol is used to estimate the prognostic performance of the hybrid signature and other prognostic approaches. Survival data analyses is performed to compare different prognostic approaches.Results: The hybrid signature performs significantly better than other methods, including the 70-gene signature, clinical makers alone and the St. Gallen consensus criterion. At the 90% sensitivity level, the hybrid signature achieves 67% specificity, as compared to 47% for the 70-gene signature and 48% for the clinical makers. The odds ratio of the hybrid signature for developing distant metastases within five years between the patients with a good prognosis signature and the patients with a bad prognosis is 21.0 (95% CI:6.5–68.3), far higher than either genetic or clinical markers alone.Availability: The breast cancer dataset is available at and Matlab codes are available upon request.Contact: sun@dsp.ufl.eduSupplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Bowen's disease with invasive adnexal carcinoma: The pluripotential nature of Bowen's disease cells
Authors: KAMIYA Hideki , KITAJIMA Yasuo , BAN Masanori 
Published: November 2006

ABSTRACTBowen's disease rarely exhibits multiple combinations of premalignant and/or malignant skin lesions. Bowen's disease with invasive adnexal carcinoma was originally described by Kao, but is not well recognized by clinicians due to its rarity and lack of specific clinical features of this condition. Herein, we describe three unusual cases of Bowen's disease with invasive adnexal carcinoma. The two distinct neoplastic areas exhibited continuity both clinically and histologically. The plaque lesions possessed clinical features typical of Bowen's disease. In cases 1 and 3, we confirmed the adnexal tumor within tumors of Bowen's disease, the diagnosis of which is eccrine porocarcinoma. The tumor in case 2 was characteristic to trichilemmal carcinoma. Immunohistochemically, the tumor cells of Bowen's disease and the adnexal carcinoma differed in antigenicities. The present cases support a notion that Bowen's disease maintains a pluripotential nature.
Eruptive pseudoangiomatosis
Authors: YANG Jeong Hoon , KIM Jee Woong , PARK Hyun Su , JANG Sang Jai , CHOI Jung Chul 
Published: November 2006

ABSTRACTEruptive pseudoangiomatosis (EPA) is a rare, self‐limiting exanthem, which is known to occur primarily in children. It is characterized by an eruption of distinctive erythematous angioma‐like papules often surrounded by a pale halo, with histological findings distinct from that of true angiomas. We describe three women with angioma‐like papules. The biopsy specimens from them showed a unique histological appearance consisting of dilated dermal blood vessels with plump endothelial cell and perivascular lymphocytes. On the basis of the clinical and histological findings, we present the adult cases of eruptive pseudoangiomatosis and their etiology.
Photosensitive psoriasis in a vitiligo patient
Authors: TORCHIA Daniele , TERRANOVA Margherita , FABBRI Paolo 
Published: November 2006

ABSTRACTWe report a case of a 15‐year‐old Caucasian female, previously affected by non‐segmental vitiligo and psoriasis vulgaris, who developed a psoriatic eruption on sun‐exposed skin during the summer. Oral therapy with cyclosporine A achieved a rapid improvement of the clinical picture. The main features of photosensitive psoriasis and the association between psoriasis and vitiligo are discussed herein.
Effects of varying the monetary value of voucher‐based incentives on abstinence achieved during and following treatment among cocaine‐dependent outpatients
Authors: Higgins Stephen T. , Heil Sarah H. , Dantona Robert , Donham Robert , Matthews Martha , Badger Gary J. 
Published: November 2006

ABSTRACTAims  This study examined whether increasing the amount of abstinence achieved during outpatient treatment for cocaine dependence is an effective method for increasing longer‐term cocaine abstinence.Design  A two‐condition, parallel groups, randomized controlled trial was conducted.Setting  The trial was conducted in a university‐based research clinic.Participants  A total of 100 cocaine‐dependent outpatients participated in the trial.Intervention  Participants were assigned randomly to receive treatment based on the community reinforcement approach (CRA) plus voucher‐based incentives set at a relatively high monetary value (maximal value = $1995/12 weeks) or CRA with vouchers set at a relatively low monetary value (maximal value = $499/12 weeks). Vouchers were earned contingent on cocaine‐negative urinalysis results during the initial 12 weeks of the 24‐week outpatient treatment.Measurements  Outcomes were evaluated using urine‐toxicology testing, questionnaires and other self‐report instruments.Findings  Increasing voucher value increased the duration of continuous cocaine abstinence achieved during the 24‐week treatment period. Point‐prevalence cocaine abstinence assessed every 3 months throughout an 18‐month follow‐up period was greater in the high‐ than low‐value voucher conditions. The duration of abstinence achieved during treatment predicted abstinence during follow‐up, although that relationship weakened over time.Conclusions  Increasing the value of abstinence‐contingent incentives during the initial weeks of treatment appears to represent an effective method for increasing during‐treatment and longer‐term cocaine abstinence, but the positive association of during‐treatment abstinence with longer‐term outcome dissipates with time.
Review article: tolevamer, a novel toxin‐binding polymer: overview of preclinical pharmacology and physicochemical properties
Authors: BARKER R. H. , DAGHER R. , DAVIDSON D. M. , MARQUIS J. K. 
Published: November 2006

SummaryBackground  Tolevamer is a novel toxin‐binding polymer that is currently being investigated in clinical trials for the treatment of patients who have Clostridium difficile‐associated diarrhoea.Aims  To summarize the results of in vitro and in vivo preclinical studies of tolevamer. In contrast to antibiotics, tolevamer binds C. difficile toxins to interrupt toxin‐mediated intestinal inflammation and tissue damage, and does not demonstrate direct antimicrobial activity.Methods  Pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics were studied in rats and dogs; efficacy was studied in a hamster model.Results  Studies in rats and dogs indicate that tolevamer is essentially non‐absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract and show that drug interactions with commonly used therapies are unlikely. Pharmacologic studies indicate that tolevamer reduces disease severity and recurrence rates in the hamster model of C. difficile‐associated diarrhoea and blocks the enterotoxic effects of toxin A in rat ileum. The binding parameters calculated for the interaction of tolevamer with toxins A and B provide a reasonable physicochemical model that supports the potential clinical utility of tolevamer.Conclusions  These preclinical results are consistent with the effectiveness and safety profile of tolevamer observed in clinical studies in patients with C. difficile‐associated diarrhoea.
Use of antisecretory drugs among consumers of non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs in the general population
Authors: REY E. , ELOLA‐OLASO C. MORENA , RODRÍGUEZ‐ARTALEJO F. , LOCKE G. R. , DIAZ‐RUBIO M. 
Published: November 2006

SummaryBackground  Overall success of prophylactic strategies against non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drug (NSAID) complications depends on the use of gastroprotective drugs.Aim  We examined the use of antisecretory drugs in NSAID users in the general population of Spain.Participants and Methods  In 2002, a phone interview was conducted with 2500 persons representative of the general population of Spain. Using a validated questionnaire, we asked about the use of NSAID, aspirin and antisecretory drugs, and history of digestive diseases. We estimated the use of antisecretory drugs in NSAID users, according to risk factors for gastrointestinal (GI) lesions associated with NSAID.Results  In total, 425 persons [17.0% (95% CI 15.5–18.5%)] were NSAID users. Of them, 69 persons (16.2%; 95% CI 12.7–19.7%) used antisecretory drugs [proton pump inhibitor (PPI) 11.8% and H2‐blocker 4.9%]. Forty‐four of the 224 NSAID users (19.6%) with one risk factor for GI lesions were antisecretory drug users (PPI 16%; H2‐blocker 4%), compared with 24 of the 197 NSAID users (12.7%) without risk factors (PPI 6.6%; H2‐blocker 6.1%). NSAID users with risk factors for GI lesions but without upper GI (UGI) symptoms did not consume more antisecretory drugs than equivalent non‐NSAID users (12.9% vs. 10.7%).Conclusion  Current strategies to prevent GI lesions in NSAID users are not effective from a population perspective, especially in subjects without UGI symptoms.
Oesophageal mucosal involvement in patients with systemic sclerosis receiving proton pump inhibitor therapy
Authors: MARIE I. , DUCROTTE P. , DENIS P. , HELLOT M. F. , LEVESQUE H. 
Published: November 2006

SummaryAim  To assess the prevalence of oesophagitis, Barrett's oesophagus (BE) and other oesophageal mucosal abnormalities in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) without prior selection on digestive clinical presentation. We also investigated the association between oesophageal endoscopic and manometric data with clinical manifestations of SSc.Methods  Oesophageal endoscopy and manometry were performed in 133 consecutive patients with SSc, receiving proton pump inhibitor (PPI) therapy since SSc diagnosis.Results  Endoscopy revealed oesophagitis in 43 patients (32.3%), BE in 9 patients (6.8%), candidiasis in 7 patients (5.3%) and hyperplastic polyp arising in ectopic gastric mucosa in 1 patient. Patients with severe oesophageal motor impairment further exhibited a higher prevalence of interstitial lung disease (ILD) when compared with those without.Conclusion  Our study underlines the high frequency of oesophageal mucosal abnormalities in unselected SSc patients receiving long‐term PPI therapy. A relationship between oesophagitis/BE and severe manometric motor disturbances was established; these patients may require a higher regimen of PPI. Finally, our series indicates a correlation between severe oesophageal motor disturbances and evidence for ILD in patients, suggesting that gastro‐oesophageal reflux may be one of the contributing factors of ILD in SSc; this subgroup of patients may require close monitoring of lung parameters.
Inhibitory effects of suplatast tosilate on the differentiation and function of monocyte‐derived dendritic cells from patients with asthma
Authors: Tanaka A. , Minoguchi K. , Samson K. T. R. , Oda N. , Yokoe T. , Tazaki T. , Yamamoto Y. , Yamamoto M. , Ohta S. , Adachi M. 
Published: November 2006

SummaryBackground
Dendritic cells (DCs) are antigen‐presenting cells that efficiently activate T cells.Objective
We examined the effects of suplatast tosilate, which prevents T‐helper type 2 responses, on the differentiation and function of monocyte‐derived DCs (moDCs).Methods
DCs were differentiated in vitro from peripheral monocytes from patients with asthma by the addition of granulocyte macrophage colony‐stimulating factor and IL‐4 in the presence or absence of suplatast tosilate. Cell surface molecules (CD1a, CD14, CD80, CD83, CD86, HLA‐DR) on immature and mature DCs were analysed with flow cytometry, and the secretion of CC chemokine ligand (CCL)17 (thymus and activation‐regulated chemokine), IL‐12p70, IL‐12p40, and IL‐10 was measured with an ELISA. We also studied the proliferative responses of allogeneic CD4+ T cells from healthy subjects to DCs differentiated in the presence of suplatast tosilate. In addition, the production of IFN‐γ and IL‐5 by CD4+ T cells after coculture with untreated DCs or suplatast tosilate‐treated DCs was measured with ELISA.Results
Suplatast tosilate significantly inhibited the expression of CD1a, CD80, and CD86 on immature DCs and of CD1a, CD80, CD83, and CD86 on mature DCs. Suplatast tosilate also significantly inhibited the secretion of CCL17, IL‐12p70, and IL‐12p40; however, the secretion of IL‐10 was not affected. The proliferative responses of allogeneic CD4+ T cells to suplatast tosilate‐treated DCs were suppressed. Moreover, suplatast tosilate‐treated DCs had an impaired capacity to stimulate CD4+ T cells to produce IFN‐γ and IL‐5.Conclusion
Suplatast tosilate inhibits the differentiation, maturation, and function of moDCs.