bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Chronic diseases of Hahnemann in the light of microecology
Authors: Linder Reinhold 
Published: September 2006

AbstractThe management of Hahnemann's ‘chronic diseases’ presents certain difficulties. In particular the difficulty of finding a suitable homœopathic drug is noted.Bach's and Paterson's work on bowel nosodes opened a totally new way of looking at homœopathy and chronic disease (miasms). Since their time the homœopathic profession has done little to take their research further.Parallel to the work of Bach and Paterson continental bacteriologists and clinicians developed therapeutic concepts based on intestinal microbes. Their research has become internationally respected and is part of the new sciences of microecology (microbes vs. host association) and gnotobiology (germfree research on animals). Both these sciences allow for additional diagnostic and therapeutic insights that are relevant to homœopathy.Although the non-lactose fermenters, as defined by Bach and Paterson, are important in chronic disease, other bacteria have equal significance. The ecology of microbe and host, as expressed in their qualitative relatedness, needs to be better understood.The author's effort over many years has been to correlate and integrate these modern findings of bowel flora research and autogenous vaccines with his homœopathic practice. It is suggested that, apart from the therapeutic benefits to be gained by this approach, modern faecal bacteriology analysis could become a useful monitoring tool to evaluate the response to medicines prescribed on homœopathic principles.
Dust voids (holes) in a charge-varying complex plasma with non-isothermal trapped electrons
Authors: TRIBECHE MOULOUD , GOUGAM LEILA AIT , GRIBA SAFIA , ZERGUINI TAHA HOUSSINE 
Published: September 2006

AbstractThe recent analysis of dust voids (Mamun, A. A. and Shukla, P. K. 2005 J. Plasma Phys.71, 143) is extended to include self-consistent electron trapping and dust charge variation. It is found that under certain conditions the effect of dust charge variation can be quite important. In particular, it may be noted that the dust charge variation leads to an additional enlargement of the nonlinear dust voids. The effects of ion/electron temperature and trapping parameter on the properties of these nonlinear dust voids are briefly discussed. As the dust particle number density is increased, the depth, as well as the width, of the dust void decreases and the additional enlargement (due to dust charge perturbations) becomes less pronounced. Furthermore, these dust voids exhibit smaller widths than those involving isothermal electrons.
Antimicrobial susceptibility and genetic characteristics ofHaemophilus influenzaeisolated from patients with respiratory tract infections between 1987 and 2000, including β-lactamase-negative ampicillin-resistant strains
Authors: QIN L. , WATANABE H. , ASOH N. , WATANABE K. , OISHI K. , MIZOTA T. , NAGATAKE T. 
Published: September 2006

SUMMARYThe minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of five antibiotics and the presence of resistance genes was determined in 163Haemophilus influenzaeisolates collected over 13 years (1987–2000) in four two-yearly sampling periods from patients with respiratory tract infections. The prevalence of β-lactamase-negative ampicillin-susceptible strains was approximately 80% over the sampling period although fewer strains (65·9%) were recovered in the period 1995–1997. TEM-1 type β-lactamase-producing strains were less frequent starting at 15·6% and declining to 2·2% in the final sampling period. Low-β-lactamase-negative ampicillin-resistant (BLNAR) strains were uncommon in 1987–1989 (2·2%), peaked to 19·5% in 1995–1997, but fell back to 11·1% by 2000. Fully BLNAR strains were not detected until the last sampling period (6·7%). The MICs of ampicillin, levofloxacin, cefditoren and ceftriaxone remained stable but there was an eight-fold increase in the MIC of cefdinir over the sampling period. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis of DNA digests showed that three representative BLNAR strains were genetically distinct and 11 DNA profiles were identified among 17 low-BLNAR strains. These data suggest that the number of genetically altered BLNAR and low-BLNAR strains are increasing in Japan.
Hepatitis C virus: laboratory surveillance in England and Wales, 1992–2004
Authors: GUNGABISSOON U. , BALOGUN M. A. , RAMSAY M. E. 
Published: September 2006

SUMMARYBetween 1992 and 2004, a total of 49 819 confirmed hepatitis C infections have been reported to the Health Protection Agency (HPA) by laboratories in England and Wales; the annual number of reports increased from 241 in 1991 to 8149 in 2004. Most reports with a known risk factor were in injecting drug users (87%, 12 438/14 221), but 71% (35 598/49 819) of the total had no reported identified risk. The age-sex distribution of the latter cases was similar to that in injecting drug users. Using names to assign ethnicity, individuals with South Asian names had an older age distribution and a different risk factor profile from non-South Asians. Using published age-specific prevalence data from 1996, it was estimated that around 281 764 cases of hepatitis C infection exist in England and Wales, and that only 17% of these cases have been reported to the HPA. Surveillance reports continue to provide important information regarding trends in hepatitis C infection in specific risk groups.
Probalign: multiple sequence alignment using partition function posterior probabilities
Authors: Roshan Usman , Livesay Dennis R. 
Published: September 2006

Abstract
Motivation: The maximum expected accuracy optimization criterion for multiple sequence alignment uses pairwise posterior probabilities of residues to align sequences. The partition function methodology is one way of estimating these probabilities. Here, we combine these two ideas for the first time to construct maximal expected accuracy sequence alignments.
Results: We bridge the two techniques within the program Probalign. Our results indicate that Probalign alignments are generally more accurate than other leading multiple sequence alignment methods (i.e. Probcons, MAFFT and MUSCLE) on the BAliBASE 3.0 protein alignment benchmark. Similarly, Probalign also outperforms these methods on the HOMSTRAD and OXBENCH benchmarks. Probalign ranks statistically highest (P-value &lt; 0.005) on all three benchmarks. Deeper scrutiny of the technique indicates that the improvements are largest on datasets containing N/C-terminal extensions and on datasets containing long and heterogeneous length proteins. These points are demonstrated on both real and simulated data. Finally, our method also produces accurate alignments on long and heterogeneous length datasets containing protein repeats. Here, alignment accuracy scores are at least 10% and 15% higher than the other three methods when standard deviation of length is &gt;300 and 400, respectively.
Availability: Open source code implementing Probalign as well as for producing the simulated data, and all real and simulated data are freely available from
Contact: usman@cs.njit.edu
Health and quality of life of ventilator‐dependent children
Authors: Noyes Jane 
Published: September 2006

Aim.  This paper reports a qualitative study with ventilator‐dependent children and their parents, describing their experiences and meanings concerning the children's health and quality of life.Background.  Recent medical advances have enabled children to survive premature birth, congenital anomalies, critical illness and accidents with long‐term use of mechanical ventilation to support breathing. In economically developed countries, the number of ventilator‐dependent children is increasing and many require nurse‐led home healthcare services. Debate has been polarized as to whether life on a ventilator is in the best interests of all children. The perspectives of ventilator‐dependent children are largely absent in the literature.Methods.  Principles derived from Heideggerian phenomenology were used to describe how children and their parents interpreted and rationalized the quality of the child's ‘ventilator‐dependent’ life and their health. The study had two phases with data collection commencing in 1998 and completed in 2004.Results.  The participants were 35 ventilator‐dependent children, and 50 mothers and 17 fathers of 53 children. Emergent themes revealed some common features across this heterogeneous group. Ventilation made the children feel better and if they had sufficient breath, they experienced better quality of life. It was not possible to delineate the magnitude of health gain or benefit, especially amongst preverbal children and those with profound sensory impairments. Quality of life equated to quality of life experiences, but some children experienced negative social impacts and low self‐esteem. Home healthcare services were not designed to bring about the desired social outcomes that children identified. Parent's accounts showed subtle more negative differences.Conclusion.  The acceptance of children's dependence on machines to live has brought about the need for nursing, medical, social and biological boundaries to be redefined, especially around children's meanings of their health, what they understand to be good quality of life, and what they need to achieve it. Flexible, high quality child‐focused homecare is likely to improve children's outcomes.
Contrasting microsatellite variation between subalpine and western larch, two closely related species with different distribution patterns
Authors: KHASA DAMASE P. , JARAMILLO‐CORREA JUAN P. , JAQUISH BARRY , BOUSQUET JEAN 
Published: September 2006

AbstractSubalpine larch (Larix lyallii Parl.) and western larch (Larix occidentalis Nutt.) represent two closely related species with contrasting abundance and distribution patterns in Western North America. Genetic diversity at seven informative microsatellite loci was determined for 19 populations of subalpine larch and nine populations of western larch. Contrasting genetic diversity and patterns of population differentiation were observed between the two species. The overall within‐population genetic diversity parameters were lower in subalpine larch (A = 3.2; AP = 3.6; HE = 0.418) than in western larch (AP = 5.51; HE = 0.580), a pattern that is likely related to historical or demographic factors. No evidence of interspecific hybridization was observed. Significantly more population differentiation (θ = 0.15; RST = 0.07), consistent with more restricted gene flow, was observed for subalpine larch as compared to western larch (θ = 0.05; RST = 0.04). Under the assumption of an infinite allele mutation model, 12 of the 19 subalpine larch populations showed signs of deviation from the mutation–drift equilibrium, which suggests Holocene population bottlenecks and fluctuations in effective population size for this species. None of the western larch populations deviated significantly from the mutation–drift equilibrium. For both species, Mantel's test revealed a significant positive relationship between geographical and genetic distances indicative of isolation by distance. A similar geographical structure was detected in both species, suggesting at least two genetically distinct glacial populations in each species. The various implications for gene conservation are discussed.
Functional genomics of cactus host shifts in Drosophila mojavensis
Authors: MATZKIN LUCIANO M. , WATTS THOMAS D. , BITLER BENJAMIN G. , MACHADO CARLOS A. , MARKOW THERESE A. 
Published: September 2006

AbstractUnderstanding the genetic basis of adaptation to novel environments remains one of the major challenges confronting evolutionary biologists. While newly developed genomic approaches hold considerable promise for addressing this overall question, the relevant tools have not often been available in the most ecologically interesting organisms. Our study organism, Drosophila mojavensis, is a cactophilic Sonoran Desert endemic utilizing four different cactus hosts across its geographical range. Its well‐known ecology makes it an attractive system in which to study the evolution of gene expression during adaptation. As a cactophile, D. mojavensis oviposits in the necrotic tissues of cacti, therefore exposing larvae and even adults to the varied and toxic compounds of rotting cacti. We have developed a cDNA microarray of D. mojavensis to examine gene expression associated with cactus host use. Using a population from the Baja California population we examined gene expression differences of third instar larvae when reared in two chemically distinct cactus hosts, agria (Stenocereus gummosus, native host) vs. organpipe (Stenocereus thurberi, alternative host). We have observed differential gene expression associated with cactus host use in genes involved in metabolism and detoxification.
HPLC analysis of the antifungal agent posaconazole in patients with haematological diseases
Authors: Müller Carsten , Arndt Margit , Queckenberg Christian , Cornely Oliver A. , Theisohn Martin 
Published: September 2006

SummaryPosaconazole is a new antifungal drug used in prophylaxis and therapy of fungal infections in patients with immunodeficiency. In the clinical development, posaconazole exhibits variable oral bioavailability. Hence drug monitoring is recommended. For this purpose, a rapid and a convenient high‐performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method has been developed. To 200 μl serum, 50 μl internal standard (itraconazole) was added. After precipitation of the proteins with acetonitrile, the clear supernatant was evaporated in a centrifugal evaporator, and the residue was dissolved in the HPLC elution. Separation was done on a chromatography performed by injecting a 50 μl aliquot of the resuspended sample onto a Multohyp C18 BDS column (250 × 4 mm). Column temperature was maintained at 50 °C. The flow rate was 1 ml min−1. Retention time of posaconazole was about 9 min and those of itraconazole was 17 min. The limit of quantification was 50 μg l−1 and the limit of detection about 10 μg l−1. Until now the concentration of posaconazole was measured in 14 patients (64 samples). After a daily dosage of 600–800 mg posaconazole the serum concentrations varied between 100 and 3000 μg l−1 (582 ± 579 μg l−1). Oral bioavailability was especially low in patients with cytostatic therapy and/or bone marrow transplantation. Further studies are needed to establish the therapeutic range of the posaconazole concentrations.
Successful treatment of disseminated mucormycosis with a combination of liposomal amphotericin B and posaconazole in a patient with acute myeloid leukaemia
Authors: Rickerts V. , Atta J. , Herrmann S. , Jacobi V. , Lambrecht E. , Bialek R. , Just‐Nübling G. 
Published: September 2006

AbstractThe combination of resection of infected tissue and antifungal therapy is the treatment of choice in mucormycosis. In disseminated mucormycosis, where surgery is impossible, the mortality is almost 90%. We report the first case of disseminated mucormycosis that was cured with a combination therapy of liposomal amphotericin B and posaconazole without surgical intervention.
Posaconazole for treatment of refractory invasive fungal disease
Authors: Notheis G. , Tarani L. , Costantino F. , Jansson A. , Rosenecker J. , Friederici D. , Belohradsky B. H. , Reinhardt D. , Seger R. , Schweinitz D. V. , Wintergerst Uwe 
Published: September 2006

SummaryInvasive fungal infections are usually associated with immunocompromised states About 40–60% of these patients are refractory to standard antifungal therapy We describe the effect of posoconazole in the treatment of a 12 years‐old girl with uncontrolled diabetes mellitus with life‐threatening cerebral mucor mycosis and a 4 year old girl boy with chronic granulomatous disease presenting with invasive Aspergillus nidulans infection.
Relationship between depressive affect and malnutrition‐inflammation complex syndrome in haemodialysis patients
Authors: MICOZKADIOGLU HASAN , MICOZKADIOGLU IREM , ZUMRUTDAL AYSEGUL , ERDEM ABDULLAH , OZDEMIR FATMA NURHAN , SEZER SIREN , HABERAL MEHMET 
Published: September 2006

SUMMARY:Background:  Depression is associated with high mortality in haemodialysis (HD) patients, and can be associated with the poor oral intake that contributes to malnutrition. Malnutrition‐inflammation complex syndrome (MICS) causes increased morbidity and mortality in HD patients. We investigated relationships between depressive affect, social support and various components of MICS in HD patients.Methods:  The subjects were 110 patients (65 men and 45 women, mean age 45.39 ± 14.73 years) on maintenance HD. The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Cognitive Depression Index (CDI), and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) were used to assess aspects of depressive affect in each subject.Results:  The mean dialysis duration was 53.04 ± 38.15 months. The mean BDI and CDI scores were 12.10 ± 7.43 and 8.40 ± 5.72, respectively. Patients were divided into two subgroups according to CDI score (depressive affect >10 (n = 71) and non‐depressive affect ≤10 (n = 39)). CDI score was correlated with malnutrition‐inflammation score (MIS) (r = 0.24; P < 0.05), haemoglobin level (r = −0.23; P < 0.05) and MSPSS score (r = −0.28; P < 0.01). The subgroup with depressive affect had higher MIS (P < 0.01) and lower social support (P = 0.001) than the non‐depressive affect group. Logistic regression analysis identified high MIS and low MSPSS score as independent risk factor for depression.Conclusions:  The results suggest that MIS and MSPSS are the strongest predictors of depressive affect in HD patients. Further research is needed to understand the causal relationship between depressive affect and MICS in HD patients.
Angiotensin converting enzyme gene polymorphisms do not predict the course of idiopathic nephrotic syndrome in Swiss children
Authors: SASSE BERND , HAILEMARIAM SEIFE , WÜTHRICH RUDOLF P , KEMPER MARKUS J , NEUHAUS THOMAS J 
Published: September 2006

SUMMARY:Aim:  Contradictory reports exist about a correlation of angiotensin I converting enzyme (ACE) gene polymorphisms to the outcome of idiopathic nephrotic syndrome (INS) in children. We investigated the frequency of ACE polymorphisms and their impact on the clinical course of INS in children in a Swiss hospital.Methods:  The ACE gene polymorphism (I, insertion; D, deletion) was assessed in 32 children – 22 with steroid‐sensitive INS and 10 with steroid‐resistant INS – with a median age at onset of INS of 2.9 years (range 1.1–15.0). Polymerase chain reaction amplification was performed on genomic DNA isolated from blood leucocytes. Results were correlated to clinical course and renal morphology.Results:  The ACE genotype was I/I, I/D and D/D in two, 12 and eight patients, respectively, with steroid‐sensitive INS, and in one, eight and one patient, respectively, with steroid resistance. Renal morphology, available in 25 patients showed minimal change glomerulopathy in 17 patients (14 steroid‐sensitive; three steroid‐resistant) and focal segmental glomerulosclerosis in eight (one steroid‐sensitive; seven steroid‐resistant). There was no significant correlation between ACE genotype and steroid responsiveness, histology or outcome. ACE genotype was I/I, I/D and D/D in none, 12 and five patients, respectively, with minimal change glomerulopathy, and in one, five and two patients, respectively, with focal segmental glomerulosclerosis. Six patients with steroid‐resistant nephrotic syndrome went into end stage renal disease; ACE genotype was I/I in one and I/D in five, but none were D/D.Conclusion:  In contrast to previous reports, ACE gene polymorphism is irrelevant for clinical outcome, steroid responsiveness or morphology in Swiss children with INS.
Influence of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor treatment on cardiac autonomic modulation in patients receiving haemodialysis
Authors: ONDOCIN PHILIP T , NARSIPUR SRIRAM S 
Published: September 2006

SUMMARY:Background:  Cardiovascular disease mortality among patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD) exceeds that which is predicted by traditional risk factors. Sudden death accounts for up to 15–38% of patients with ESRD found dead at home. Heart rate variability (HRV) is a reliable measure of autonomic modulation and has a very strong predictive value for ventricular arrhythmias and sudden death. A lower HRV is associated with increased risk. Modifying autonomic tone pharmacologically reduces death from dysrhythmia in the general population but has not been studied in ESRD.Methods:  We examined the effect of ramipril, an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) known in the general population to increase HRV, on cardiac function and heart rate variability in patients with renal failure. Eligible subjects on haemodialysis underwent a 2‐week washout period free of ACEI or beta blockers, during which time hypertension was treated with amlodipine, which has been shown not to affect HRV. Haemodynamic and HRV measurements were obtained at baseline and after subjects were treated for 4 weeks with an ACEI.Results:  Haemodynamics did not differ at 0 and 4 weeks. Baseline HRV values were markedly below those found in the general population, indicating pronounced predominance of sympathetic tone over vagal tone. Actual worsening of HRV with ACEI treatment was evident in several major time domains. The time domain SDNN (the standard deviation of all normal RR intervals) fell from 42.0 ± 24.8 ms to 20.1 ± 16.1 ms (P = 0.004) and the triangulation index fell from 178.0 ± 94.0 to 115 ± 59.2 (P = 0.01). A trend toward reduced HRV was seen in several other time domains.Conclusion:  These findings suggest that, unlike the general population, treatment of ESRD patients with an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor may cause a deleterious shift toward increased cardiac sympathetic nervous system tone.
Sustained beneficial effects of intraprostatic botulinum toxin type A on lower urinary tract symptoms and quality of life in men with benign prostatic hyperplasia
Authors: Chuang Yao‐Chi , Chiang Po‐Hui , Yoshimura Naoki , De Miguel Fernando , Chancellor Michael B. 
Published: September 2006

OBJECTIVETo present a comprehensive experience with intraprostatic botulinum toxin‐type A (BoNT‐A) injection in men with symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and to assess the efficacy on lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) and quality of life (QoL).PATIENTS AND METHODSIn all, 41 men (mean age 69.1 years, sd 7.1 ) with an International Prostate Symptom Score of ≥ 8, peak flow rate of <12 mL/s, and who were refractory to medical treatment were injected with BoNT‐A (Botox®, Allergan, Inc., CA, USA) at 100 U (21 men, for prostate volume <30 mL) or 200 U (20, for prostate volume >30 mL) into the prostate transperineally under transrectal ultrasonography guidance. Study exclusion criteria were confirmed or suspected malignancy, previous pelvic surgery or trauma and previous invasive treatment for BPH. The clinical effects were evaluated at baseline and at 1, 3 and 6 months after treatment.RESULTSThere were no significant local or systemic side‐effects in any men. LUTS and QoL indices improved by >30% in 31 of the 41 men (76%), and four of five men with urinary retention for >1 month could void spontaneously at 1 week to 1 month after the BoNT‐A injection. In 12 of 41 men (29%) there was no change in prostate volume, yet seven of these men still had a >30% improvement in maximum flow rate, LUTS and QoL. The efficacy was sustained at 12 months.CONCLUSIONBoNT‐A injected into the prostate is safe and effective for men with symptomatic BPH. The mechanisms of relief of symptoms might not depend totally on the volume shrinkage; the inhibitory effect on the smooth muscle tone and aberrant sensory function might also be important.