bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Atopic features of cough variant asthma and classic asthma with wheezing
Authors: Takemura M. , Niimi A. , Matsumoto H. , Ueda T. , Yamaguchi M. , Matsuoka H. , Jinnai M. , Chin K. , Mishima M. 
Published: October 2007

SummaryBackground
Cough variant asthma is a phenotype of asthma solely presenting with coughing. It involves airway inflammation and remodelling as does classic asthma with wheezing, and a subset of patients may progress to classic asthma. The atopic features of cough variant asthma remain unclear.Objective
To compare atopic features between patients with cough variant asthma and those with classic asthma, and to examine the possible correlation of these features with the future development of wheezing in the former group.Methods
Total and specific IgE levels of seven common aeroallergens [house dust mite (HDM), Gramineae/Japanese cedar/weed pollens, moulds, cat/dog dander] were examined in 74 cough variant asthma patients and in 115 classic asthma patients of varying severity. Forty of the former patients were prospectively observed for 2 years to determine whether cough variant asthma progressed to classic asthma despite inhaled corticosteroid treatment.Results
Patients with classic asthma had higher total IgE (P<0.0001), larger numbers of sensitized allergens (P=0.03), and higher rates of sensitization to dog dander (24% vs. 3%, P<0.0001), HDM (46% vs. 28%, P=0.02), and moulds (17% vs. 7%, P=0.047) than did patients with cough variant asthma. Wheezing developed in six (15%) patients with cough variant asthma, who were sensitized to larger numbers of allergens (P=0.02) and had higher rates of sensitization to HDM (P=0.01) and dog dander (P=0.02) than the 34 patients in whom wheezing did not develop. Among the patients with classic asthma, total and specific IgE variables were similar in the subgroup with mild disease (n=60) and the subgroup with moderate‐to‐severe disease (n=55), as reported previously.Conclusions
Atopy may be related to the development of wheezing in patients with cough variant asthma. To prevent the progression of cough variant asthma to classic asthma, avoidance of relevant allergens may be essential.
Maternal breast‐milk and intestinal bifidobacteria guide the compositional development of the Bifidobacterium microbiota in infants at risk of allergic disease
Authors: Grönlund M.‐M. , Gueimonde M. , Laitinen K. , Kociubinski G. , Grönroos T. , Salminen S. , Isolauri E. 
Published: October 2007

SummaryBackground
The sources and the impact of maternal bacteria on the initial inoculum of the intestinal microflora of newborn infants remain elusive.Objective
To assess the association between maternal breast‐milk and fecal bifidobacteria and infants' fecal bifidobacteria.Methods
Sixty‐one mother–infant pairs were included, special emphasis being placed on the maternal allergic status. Bifidobacteria were analysed by a direct PCR method in fecal samples from mothers at 30–35 weeks of gestation and from infants at 1 month of age and from breast‐milk samples 1 month post‐partum.Results
Fecal Bifidobacterium adolescentis and Bifidobacterium bifidum colonization frequencies and counts among mother–infant pairs correlated significantly (P=0.005 and 0.02 for frequencies, respectively, and P=0.002 and 0.01 for counts, respectively). Only infants of allergic, atopic mothers were colonized with B. adolescentis. Each of the breast‐milk samples contained bifidobacteria [median 1.4 × 103 bacterial cells/mL; interquartile range (IQR) 48.7–3.8 × 103]. Bifidobacterium longum was the most frequently detected species in breast‐milk. Allergic mothers had significantly lower amounts of bifidobacteria in breast‐milk compared with non‐allergic mothers [median 1.3 × 103 bacterial cells/mL (IQR 22.4–3.0 × 103) vs. 5.6 × 103 bacterial cells/mL (1.8 × 103–1.8 × 104), respectively, (P=0.004)], and their infants had concurrently lower counts of bifidobacteria in feces [3.9 × 108 bacterial cells/g (IQR 6.5 × 106–1.5 × 109) in infants of allergic mothers, vs. 2.5 × 109 bacterial cells/g (6.5 × 108–3.2 × 1010) in infants of non‐allergic mothers, P=0.013].Conclusions
Breast‐milk contains significant numbers of bifidobacteria and the maternal allergic status further deranges the counts of bifidobacteria in breast‐milk. Maternal fecal and breast‐milk bifidobacterial counts impacted on the infants' fecal Bifidobacterium levels. Breast‐milk bacteria should thus be considered an important source of bacteria in the establishment of infantile intestinal microbiota.
Can hypertonic saline inhalation influence preformed chemokine and mediator release in induced sputum of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients? Comparison with isotonic saline
Authors: Cianchetti S. , Bacci E. , Bartoli M. L. , Ruocco L. , Pavia T. , Dente F. L. , Di Franco A. , Vagaggini B. , Paggiaro P. 
Published: October 2007

SummaryBackground
Hypertonic saline (HS) has been shown to modulate in vitro cell functions according to the state of cell activation; however, few studies have evaluated the effect of HS in vivo. Chronic airway inflammation, a major feature of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), is associated with an activation of inflammatory and resident cells, which in turn makes them more prompt to respond to further stimuli.Objective
To evaluate whether HS might modulate, also in vivo, the release of preformed mediators and intracellular chemokines from airway cells of COPD patients.Methods
Sputum was induced by inhalation of either HS (4.5% w/v) or isotonic saline (IS 0.9% w/v) solution and processed by plug selection. We measured eosinophil cationic protein (ECP), neutrophil elastase (NE), IL‐8 and monocyte chemoattractant protein‐1 (MCP‐1) in sputum samples obtained by either HS or IS inhalation in 24 COPD patients.Results
No significant difference in mediators measured in sputum samples obtained by the two different inductions was observed; also, there was no significant difference in sputum sample volumes, cell viability, total and differential cell counts. Repeatability between the two tests was high for ECP, NE, macrophages, neutrophils and eosinophils, and satisfactory for IL‐8 and MCP‐1.Conclusions
Hyperosmolarity does not affect the levels of the inflammatory mediators and chemokines examined or the cell counts measured in induced sputum obtained from COPD patients. This study does not support the hypothesis that HS can stimulate chemokine and mediator release from airway cells of COPD patients. Therefore, HS and IS can be interchangeably used to measure inflammatory mediators in the sputum supernatant of COPD patients.
Serum retinol‐binding protein 4 levels are elevated in non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease
Authors: Seo J. A. , Kim N. H. , Park S. Y. , Kim H. Y. , Ryu O. H. , Lee K. W. , Lee J. , Kim D. L. , Choi K. M. , Baik S. H. , Choi D. S. , Kim S. G. 
Published: October 2007

SummaryObjective  Retinol‐binding protein 4 (RBP4) is a recently identified adipokine that is elevated in the serum in several insulin‐resistant states. We investigated the relationship between non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and serum RBP4 in nondiabetic adults.Methods  One hundred and fifty‐nine nondiabetic, non‐alcoholic subjects (95 males and 64 females) participated in this study. Division of subjects into a NAFLD group (n = 73; 45 males and 28 females) or a normal group (n = 86; 50 males and 36 females) was based on the presence of fatty liver disease determined by sonography.Results  Serum RBP4 levels in the NAFLD group were significantly higher than those in the normal group (62·8 ± 16·0 mg/l vs. 51·7 ± 14·6 mg/l, P < 0·0001). Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that the RBP4 level was an independent factor associated with NAFLD (P = 0·0042). In addition, serum RBP4 levels were positively correlated with serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and γ‐glutamyltranspeptidase (GGT) levels. The significant association between serum RBP4 and GGT levels remained even after adjusting for age, gender, body mass index, the homeostasis model of assessment (HOMA) value and the presence of NAFLD (r = 0·3097, P = 0·0002).Conclusion  Serum RBP4 levels are significantly associated with NAFLD and liver enzymes.
What is the best method of detecting endometrial cancer in outpatients?‐endometrial sampling, suction curettage, endometrial cytology
Authors: Kondo E. , Tabata T. , Koduka Y. , Nishiura K. , Tanida K. , Okugawa T. , Sagawa N. 
Published: October 2007

Objective:  Office methods of endometrial sampling for outpatients with abnormal uterine bleeding should be minimally invasive. The purpose of this study was to determine the best method for detecting endometrial cancer in an outpatients setting.Methods:  In all, 114 symptomatic women who were suspected of having endometrial disease by their local gynaecologist were enrolled in this study. After pelvic examination and transvaginal ultrasonography, endometrial cytology, suction endometrial curettage, and four‐site endometrial biopsy were performed, in this order without anaesthesia in each patient. After endometrial sampling, the patient was asked to comment on the intensity of any pain experienced during each procedure. Then the final histological diagnosis made from the surgical materials was compared with the results of the three pre‐operative methods.Results:  Among the 114 consecutive patients, 56 had endometrial carcinoma, three had carcinosarcoma, six had endometrial hyperplasia, and 49 had benign conditions. The sensitivity of detecting malignancy was 88% (52/59) with endometrial cytology, 92% (54/59) with suction curettage, and 88% (52/59) with four‐site biopsy. When endometrial cytology was combined with suction curettage, the sensitivity of detecting malignancy was increased from 92% to 98%, whereas the sensitivity was increased from 88% to 97%, when endometrial cytology was added to four‐site biopsy. Suction curettage was significantly less painful than four‐site biopsy.Conclusion:  Our data indicated that suction curettage plus endometrial cytology was the best combination for pathological examination of outpatients with abnormal uterine bleeding.
Characteristic cytological features of histological grade one (G1) breast carcinomas in fine needle aspirates
Authors: Sauer T. , Karimzadeh M. 
Published: October 2007

Objective:  To analyse the spectrum of nuclear features as well as dissociation pattern found in fine needle aspirates (FNAC) from histological grade 1 breast carcinomas and evaluate the critical cytological features of these lesions.Material and methods:  The material consisted of FNAC smears from 494 histologically confirmed grade 1 breast carcinomas. All smears were revaluated for cell dissociation pattern, nuclear size, cell uniformity, nucleoli, nuclear margin and chromatin pattern. All features were compared with the histological subtype and cytological grading.Results:  73.9% of the cases were cytological grade 1, 24.3% were grade 2 and 1.8% were grade 3. The majority of the cases had a cell dissociation pattern showing both a population of single carcinoma cells and cell clusters (65.9%). Practically all tumours had a granular chromatin pattern (94.7%) and a slightly irregular nuclear margin with folds and grooves (94%) irrespective of histological subtype and cytological grading. Nucleoli were mostly indistinct or small (74%), whereas 24.3% were noticeable and 1.7% abnormal. Practically all cases revealed some degree of pleomorphism with 74.3% showing mild and 22.4% a distinct pleomorphism. A small subgroup of IDC was classified as monomorphic (3.3%). Almost all tumours had nuclear sizes in the range of 2–4 × RBC (96.9%).Conclusion:  Not all histological grade 1 carcinomas are cytological grade 1. About 25% were grade 2, and a small subpopulation reached grade 3. The typical/average findings in FNAC from grade 1 breast carcinomas were a population of both groups and single cells showing mild pleomorphism, granular chromatin, slightly irregular nuclear margin, indistinct nucleolus and nuclear size 2–4 × RBC.
Did elevated atmospheric CO2alter soil mineral weathering?: an analysis of 5‐year soil water chemistry data at Duke FACE study
Authors: OH NEUNG‐HWAN , HOFMOCKEL MICHAEL , LAVINE MICHAEL L. , RICHTER DANIEL D. 
Published: October 2007

AbstractA principal driver of biogeochemical weathering of the Earth's crust is soil CO2, produced mainly by plant roots and soil heterotrophs, a water‐soluble gas that forms carbonic acid which reacts with soil minerals via cation exchange and mineral dissolution. We examined effects of elevated atmospheric CO2(ambient + 200 ppmv) in a young pine forest on belowground carbonic acid chemistry of soil water. Soil water was collected every 2–3 weeks over a 5‐year period from O horizons and at 15, 70, and 200 cm in mineral soils at the Duke free air CO2enrichment facility located in a warm temperate climate in North Carolina, USA. Concentrations of major ions were volume‐weighted and statistically analyzed using linear mixed‐effects models. Experimental interest was placed on interactive effects of CO2treatment and time: to test effects of gradually increasing CO2in deep soil horizons where CO2is highest in concentration, and to protect against inherent plot‐to‐plot differences in soil water chemistry being interpreted as responses to CO2treatments. Although significant time‐dependent interactive effects were reported for soil CO2, interactive effects were not significant for soil water constituents. These data, combined with limited pretreatment sampling of soil water chemistry and recently determined large heterogeneity in soil solid chemistry at this site, indicate that CO2‐weathering response is smaller than the more‐than‐doubling of weathering reported previously and that increases in weathering are masked byin situsoil heterogeneity. Although the hypothesis that elevated CO2increases cation leaching and weathering dissolution is supported in laboratory experiments and field studies, quantifying the stimulation of chemical weathering by elevated atmospheric CO2remains to be tested rigorously in the field.
Quantifying carbon sequestration as a result of soil erosion and deposition: retrospective assessment using caesium‐137 and carbon inventories
Authors: QUINE TIMOTHY ANDREW , Van OOST KRISTOF 
Published: October 2007

AbstractThe role of soil erosion in the global carbon cycle remains a contested subject. A new approach to the retrospective derivation of erosion‐induced quantitative fluxes of carbon between soil and atmosphere is presented and applied. The approach is based on the premise that soil redistribution perturbs the carbon cycle by driving disequilibrium between soil carbon content and input. This perturbation is examined by establishing the difference between measured carbon inventories and the inventories that would be found if input and content were in dynamic equilibrium. The carbon inventory of a profile in dynamic equilibrium is simulated by allowing lateral and vertical redistribution of carbon but treating all other profile inputs as equal to outputs. Caesium‐137 is used to derive rates of vertical and lateral soil redistribution. Both point and field‐scale estimates of carbon exchange with the atmosphere are derived using the approach for a field subject to mechanized agricultural in the United Kingdom. Sensitivity analysis is undertaken and demonstrates that the approach is robust. The results indicate that, despite a 15% decline in the carbon content of the cultivation layer of the eroded part of the field, this area has acted as a net sink of 11 ± 2 g C m−2 yr−1 over the last half century and that in the field as a whole, soil redistribution has driven a sink of 7 ± 2 g C m−2 yr−1 (6 ± 2 g C m−2 yr−1 if all eroded carbon transported beyond the field boundary is lost to the atmosphere) over the same period. This is the first empirical evidence for, and quantification of, dynamic replacement of eroded carbon. The relatively modest field‐scale net sink is more consistent with the identification of erosion and deposition as a carbon sink than a carbon source. There is a clear need to assemble larger databases with which to evaluate critically the carbon sequestration potential of erosion and deposition in a variety of conditions of agricultural management, climate, relief, and soil type. In any case, this study demonstrated that the operation of erosion and deposition processes within the boundaries of agricultural fields must be understood as a key driver of the net carbon cycle consequences of cultivating land.
Latitudinal differentiated water table control of carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide fluxes from hydromorphic soils: feedbacks to climate change
Authors: JUNGKUNST HERMANN F. , FIEDLER SABINE 
Published: October 2007

AbstractThe possibility of carbon (C) being locked away from the atmosphere for millennia is given in hydromorphic soils. However, the water‐table‐dependent feedback from soil organic matter (SOM) decomposition to the climate system is less clear. At least three greenhouse gases are produced: carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O). These gases show emission peaks at different water table positions and have different global warming potentials (GWP), for example a factor of 23 for CH4 and 296 for N2O as compared with the equivalent mass of CO2 on a 100‐year time horizon. This review of available annual data on all three gases revealed that the radiative forcing effect of SOM decomposition is principally dictated by CO2 despite its low GWP. Anaerobic SOM decomposition generally has a lower potential feedback to the climatic system than aerobic SOM decomposition. Concrete values are constrained by a lack of data from tropical and subarctic regions. Furthermore, data on N2O and on plant effects are generally rare. However, there is a clear latitudinal differentiation for the GWP of soils under anaerobic conditions compared with aerobic conditions when looking at CO2 and CH4: in the tropical and temperate regions, the anaerobic GWP showed a range of 25–60% of the aerobic value, but values varied between 80% and 110% in the boreal zone. Hence, particularly in the vulnerable boreal zone, the feedback from ecosystems to climate change will highly depend on plant responses to changing water tables at elevated temperatures.
Platelet‐derived growth factor receptors and ligands are up‐regulated in paediatric fibromatoses
Authors: Gibson S , Sebire N J , Anderson J 
Published: October 2007

Aims:  Platelet‐derived growth factors (PDGF) and their receptors (PDGFR) play an essential role in pathways involved in the regulation of cell proliferation, growth and function. Overexpression of PDGF/R is reported in a wide range of solid tumours. The aim was to determine levels of PDGF/R expression in paediatric fibromatoses and myofibromatosis.Methods and results:  Quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction was used to examine the expression level of α and β isoforms of PDGF/R in 17 fibromatoses, four myofibromatoses and three dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans (DFSP) in children. Fifteen of 17 (88%) fibromatoses and all myofibromatoses and DFSPs demonstrated increased expression of PDGFα and β compared with a panel of normal tissues. In terms of the cognate receptors, 13/17 (76%) fibromatoses demonstrated increased expression for PDGFRα and Rβ, whereas 3/4 myofibromatoses demonstrated increased expression of PDGFRα and all four had increased PDGFRβ expression. All DFSPs were associated with increased expression of both PDGFRα and PDGFRβ compared with normal control tissues.Conclusions:  Increased expression of PDGF/Rαβ may play an important role in the mechanism of growth of these paediatric fibromatous lesions and warrants further investigation, since novel therapeutic interventions could potentially be developed in the light of the expression patterns.
Angiogenesis and mast cells in human breast cancer sentinel lymph nodes with and without micrometastases
Authors: Ribatti D , Finato N , Crivellato E , Guidolin D , Longo V , Mangieri D , Nico B , Vacca A , Beltrami C A 
Published: October 2007

Aims:  An increasing number of mast cells have been reported in angiogenesis associated with solid and haematopoietic tumours. Data concerning the number of mast cells in neoplastic lymph nodes and their relationship with microvessel density are controversial. The aim was to correlate the extent of angiogenesis with the number of mast cells reactive with tryptase in biopsy specimens of sentinel lymph nodes with and without micrometastases obtained from patients with breast cancer.Methods and results:  Specimens from sentinel lymph nodes obtained from 80 patients (40 with and 40 without micrometastases) were investigated immunohistochemically by using anti‐CD31 and anti‐tryptase antibodies. Angiogenesis, measured as microvessel counts, increased in parallel with the number of tryptase‐positive mast cells and their values were significantly higher in lymph nodes with micrometastases compared with those without.Conclusions:  Tryptase‐positive mast cells may contribute, at least in part, to angiogenesis occurring in sentinel lymph nodes with micrometastases from patients with breast cancer.
CD4+ T‐cell‐dependent tumour rejection in an immune‐privileged environment requires macrophages
Authors: Dace Dru S. , Chen Peter W. , Niederkorn Jerry Y. 
Published: October 2007

SummaryAlthough intraocular tumours reside in an immune‐privileged site, they can circumvent immune privilege and undergo rejection. Ocular tumour rejection typically follows one of two pathways. One pathway involves CD4+ T cells, delayed‐type hypersensitivity (DTH), and culmination in ischemic necrosis of the tumour and phthisis (atrophy) of the eye. The second pathway is DTH‐independent and does not inflict collateral injury to ocular tissues, and the eye is preserved. In this study, we used a well‐characterized tumour, Ad5E1, to investigate the role of CD4+ T cells in the non‐phthisical form of intraocular tumour rejection. It has been previously documented that CD4+ T cells and interferon (IFN)‐γ are necessary for rejection of these tumours in the eye. In this study, we demonstrate that CD4+ T cells can circumvent immune privilege and infiltrate intraocular Ad5E1 tumours. Following tumour rejection, CD4+ T cells from tumour rejector mice could be adoptively transferred to severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) mice and protect them from intraocular Ad5E1 tumour growth. Tumour‐specific CD4+ T cells produced IFN‐γ in response to Ad5E1 tumour antigens. Macrophages also contributed to rejection, as they were present in intraocular Ad5E1 tumours, and local depletion of macrophages resulted in progressive tumour growth. Ocular macrophages contributed to Ad5E1 tumour rejection, as Ad5E1 tumour rejection did not occur in macrophage‐depleted SCID mice reconstituted with rejector CD4+ T cells. This demonstrates that macrophage and CD4+ T‐cell co‐operation is needed for non‐phthisical rejection of intraocular tumours.