bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A study of the association between children’s access to drinking water in primary schools and their fluid intake: can water be ‘cool’ in school?
Authors: Kaushik A. , Mullee M. A. , Bryant T. N. , Hill C. M. 
Published: January 2007

AbstractBackground  Water is essential for health. The ‘Water is Cool in School’ campaign promoted improved drinking water access in UK schools. Implementation has been patchy, and impact has not been studied. The aim of this study is to determine whether fluid intake and frequency of toilet visits are associated with children’s access to drinking water in the classroom.Methods  A total of 145 schoolchildren in Year 2 (aged 6–7 years) and 153 in Year 5 (aged 9–10 years) classes were studied in six Southampton schools. Total fluid intake and toilet visits were recorded during one school day. Schools were recruited according to drinking policy: ‘prohibited access’ = water prohibited in classroom; ‘limited access’ = water allowed in classroom but not on the desk; and ‘free access’ = water bottle encouraged on the desk. Data were analysed on an intention‐to‐treat basis.Results  In total, 120 children in prohibited access, 91 in limited access and 87 in free access settings were recruited. Total fluid intake was significantly higher in Year 2 free access schools (geometric mean 293, range 104–953 mL) compared with prohibited access schools (geometric mean 189, range 0–735 mL, P = 0.046), in Year 5 free access schools (geometric mean 489, range 88–1200 mL) compared with prohibited access schools (geometric mean 206, range 0–953 mL, P = 0.001), and in free access versus limited access schools (geometric mean 219, range 0–812 mL, P = 0.003). A total of 81% and 80% of children in prohibited and limited access schools, respectively, consumed below the minimum recommended amount of total fluid at school, compared with 46.5% in the free access schools. In total, 34.6% of children did not use the toilets at all during the school day. There was no trend observed between water access and frequency of toilet visits (median of 1 trip for each group, P = 0.605).Conclusion  Most children have an inadequate fluid intake in school. Free access to drinking water in class is associated with improved total fluid intake. Primary schools should promote water drinking in class.
Transfusion‐related inhibition of cytokines (TRICK). Experimental transfer of neutralizing autoantibodies to interleukin‐6 by plasma transfusions
Authors: Hansen M. B. , Galle P. , Salomo M. , Svenson M. , Dickmeiss E. , Gimsing P. 
Published: January 2007

Background  For some unknown reason humans may ‘spontaneously’ produce high amounts of neutralizing autoantibodies to a number of growth factors and cytokines. Reaching a certain high level the antibodies render the person cytokine deficient, mostly without overt clinical manifestations. The autoantibodies in question are detectable in normal immunoglobulin preparations and correspondingly in normal human plasma for transfusion. High affinity neutralizing autoantibodies to interleukin‐6 (aAb‐IL‐6) are present in high titres in 0.1% of plasma from blood donors. Using aAb‐IL‐6 as a model we here report the first study addressing transfer of cytokine autoantibodies with blood components.Materials and Methods  We transferred high amounts of aAb‐IL‐6 to two patients suffering from end‐stage disease of multiple myeloma. This was done by serial transfusions with normal human plasma highly positive for aAb‐IL‐6. We assessed recovery and kinetics of the transferred aAb‐IL‐6 and exposed how the recipients’ plasma IL‐6 bound to aAb‐IL‐6.Results  Free IL‐6 was detectable in plasma of the recipients before transfusion. After the first transfusion IL‐6 became immune complexed to aAb‐IL‐6 the molar plasma concentrations of which exceeded total IL‐6 at least 500 times.Conclusion  The observations signify that high amounts of neutralizing autoantibodies to cytokines (in this context aAb‐IL‐6) are occasionally transferred by transfusion. Although neither beneficial nor obvious detrimental effects of the plasmas were observed in this study our measurements evidently uncover a hitherto unknown form of transfusion‐related immune modulation: transfusion‐related inhibition of cytokines (TRICK). Depending on the cytokine autoantibody in question, the phenomenon might affect immune responses to infection and recovery after stem cell transplantation.
A probabilistic model for multiaxial high cycle fatigue
Authors: DOUDARD C. , HILD F. , CALLOCH S. 
Published: January 2007

ABSTRACTA probabilistic framework developed to model multiaxial high cycle fatigue tests is proposed. Up to now, with a probabilistic point of view (i.e., Weibull law), models account for the stress heterogeneity effect by introducing the concept of effective volume. It is proposed to extend this concept to multiaxial load histories. It consists in introducing a factor representing the distribution of activated slip directions. The non‐proportionality effect is taken into account with no additional parameter with respect to traditional (i.e., Weibull) probabilistic approaches. The proposed model is validated on a large experimental data base and compared with other models.
Laser peening and shot peening effects on fatigue life and surface roughness of friction stir welded 7075‐T7351 aluminum
Authors: HATAMLEH OMAR , LYONS JED , FORMAN ROYCE 
Published: January 2007

ABSTRACTThe effects of laser peening, shot peening, and a combination of both on the fatigue life of Friction Stir Welds (FSW) was investigated. The fatigue samples consisted of dog bone specimens and the loading was applied in a direction perpendicular to the weld direction. Several laser peening (LP) conditions with different intensities, durations, and peening orders were tested in order to obtain the optimum peening parameters. The surface roughness resulting from various peening techniques was assessed and characterized. The results indicate a significant increase in fatigue life using LP compared to shot peening when tested on their native welded specimens.
Insulin-like Growth Factor and Mammographic Density in Postmenopausal Norwegian Women
Authors: Bremnes Yngve , Ursin Giske , Bjurstam Nils , Rinaldi Sabina , Kaaks Rudolf , Gram Inger T. 
Published: January 2007

AbstractInsulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) is associated with breast cancer risk among premenopausal women but rarely among postmenopausal women. Recent data from two European studies suggested an increased risk of breast cancer with increasing levels of IGF-I among women &gt;50 years old or among postmenopausal hormone therapy users ≥55 years old. Mammographic density is one of the strongest risk factors, and possibly an intermediate marker, for breast cancer. We examined the relationship between IGF and mammographic density among postmenopausal women overall and according to hormone therapy use. Altogether, 977 postmenopausal participants in the Norwegian governmental mammographic screening program had IGF concentrations measured by ELISA. Mammograms were classified according to percent and absolute mammographic densities using a previously validated computer-assisted method. After adjustment for age, number of children, age at menopause, body mass index, and hormone therapy use, both plasma IGF-I concentration (Ptrend = 0.02) and IGF-I/IGF binding protein 3 ratio (Ptrend = 0.02) were positively associated with percent mammographic density. The magnitudes of differences in percent mammographic density between women in the lowest and highest quartiles of IGF-I concentrations were 1.5% absolute difference and 21% relative difference. These associations were similar with absolute mammographic density as the outcome variable. When the analyses were stratified according to hormone therapy use, the associations between IGF-I and mammographic density were significant among noncurrent users (Ptrend = 0.03). In conclusion, we found a positive but weak association between plasma IGF-I concentrations and both percent and absolute mammographic densities among postmenopausal women. These associations were found among noncurrent hormone therapy users but not among current users. (Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2007;16(1):57–62)
XR5944: A potent inhibitor of estrogen receptors
Authors: Punchihewa Chandanamali , De Alba Adrian , Sidell Neil , Yang Danzhou 
Published: January 2007

Abstract
The anticancer drug XR5944 was originally developed as a topoisomerase inhibitor and was subsequently shown to be a transcription inhibitor. It has shown exceptional anticancer activity both in vitro and in vivo and was significantly more potent than traditional topoisomerase inhibitors. The solution structure of the XR5944/DNA complex recently obtained in our laboratory indicates that XR5944 bis-intercalates at the 5′-(TpG):(CpA) site of duplex DNA, which is found in the consensus DNA-binding site of estrogen receptor (ER). Thus, we tested the ability of XR5944 to inhibit ER activity both in vitro and in cultured cells. In electrophoretic mobility shift assays, it is seen that the DNA binding of recombinant ERα protein, as well as ER from nuclear extracts, is inhibited by XR5944 in a dose-dependent manner. In luciferase reporter assays, XR5944 inhibited the reporter gene expression from an estrogen response element–containing promoter but not from a basal promoter sequence that lacks any cis-acting elements. In contrast, the RNA polymerase inhibitor actinomycin D inhibits the transcription from both the above-mentioned promoters. The specificity of XR5944 activity is displayed by a separate reporter assay in which the transactivation of reporter gene expression by Sp1 proteins was not inhibited by XR5944. Collectively, these data suggest that XR5944 is capable of specifically inhibiting the binding of ER to its consensus DNA sequence and its subsequent activity. This represents a novel mechanism of ER inhibition, which may allow the development of agents capable of overcoming resistance to current antiestrogens. [Mol Cancer Ther 2007;6(1):213–9]
PF-4/CXCL4 and CXCL4L1 exhibit distinct subcellular localization and a differentially regulated mechanism of secretion
Authors: Lasagni Laura , Grepin Renaud , Mazzinghi Benedetta , Lazzeri Elena , Meini Claudia , Sagrinati Costanza , Liotta Francesco , Frosali Francesca , Ronconi Elisa , Alain-Courtois Nathalie , Ballerini Lara , Netti Giuseppe Stefano , Maggi Enrico , Annunziato Francesco , Serio Mario , Romagnani Sergio , Bikfalvi Andreas , Romagnani Paola 
Published: January 2007

AbstractPF-4/CXCL4 is a member of the CXC chemokine family, which is mainly produced by platelets and known for its pleiotropic biological functions. Recently, the proteic product of a nonallelic variant gene of CXCL4 was isolated from human platelets and named as CXCL4L1. CXCL4L1 shows only 4.3% amino acid divergence in the mature protein, but exhibits a 38% amino acid divergence in the signal peptide region. We hypothesized that this may imply a difference in the cell type in which CXCL4L1 is expressed or a difference in its mode of secretion. In different types of transfected cells, CXCL4 and CXCL4L1 exhibited a distinct subcellular localization and a differential regulation of secretion, CXCL4 being stored in secretory granules and released in response to protein kinase C activation, whereas CXCL4L1 was continuously synthesized and secreted through a constitutive pathway. A protein kinase C-regulated CXCL4 secretion was observed also in lymphocytes, a cell type expressing mainly CXCL4 mRNA, whereas smooth muscle cells, which preferentially expressed CXCL4L1, exhibited a constitutive pathway of secretion. These results demonstrate that CXCL4 and CXCL4L1 exhibit a distinct subcellular localization and are secreted in a differentially regulated manner, suggesting distinct roles in inflammatory or homeostatic processes.
Use of tobacco and alcohol by Swiss primary care physicians: a cross-sectional survey
Authors: Sebo Paul , Bouvier Gallacchi Martine , Goehring Catherine , Künzi Beat , Bovier Patrick A 
Published: January 2007

Abstract

Background
Health behaviours among doctors has been suggested to be an important marker of how harmful lifestyle behaviours are perceived. In several countries, decrease in smoking among physicians was spectacular, indicating that the hazard was well known. Historical data have shown that because of their higher socio-economical status physicians take up smoking earlier. When the dangers of smoking become better known, physicians began to give up smoking at a higher rate than the general population. For alcohol consumption, the situation is quite different: prevalence is still very high among physicians and the dangers are not so well perceived. To study the situation in Switzerland, data of a national survey were analysed to determine the prevalence of smoking and alcohol drinking among primary care physicians.

Methods
2'756 randomly selected practitioners were surveyed to assess subjective mental and physical health and their determinants, including smoking and drinking behaviours. Physicians were categorised as never smokers, current smokers and former smokers, as well as non drinkers, drinkers (AUDIT-C < 4 for women and < 5 for men) and at risk drinkers (higher scores).

Results
1'784 physicians (65%) responded (men 84%, mean age 51 years). Twelve percent were current smokers and 22% former smokers. Sixty six percent were drinkers and 30% at risk drinkers. Only 4% were never smokers and non drinkers. Forty eight percent of current smokers were also at risk drinkers and 16% of at risk drinkers were also current smokers. Smoking and at risk drinking were more frequent among men, middle aged physicians and physicians living alone. When compared to a random sample of the Swiss population, primary care physicians were two to three times less likely to be active smokers (12% vs. 30%), but were more likely to be drinkers (96% vs. 78%), and twice more likely to be at risk drinkers (30% vs. 15%).

Conclusion
The prevalence of current smokers among Swiss primary care physicians was much lower than in the general population in Switzerland, reflecting that the hazards of smoking are well known to doctors. However, the opposite was found for alcohol use, underlining the importance of making efforts in this area to increase awareness among physicians of the dangers of alcohol consumption.
HEE-GER: a systematic review of German economic evaluations of health care published 1990–2004
Authors: Schwappach David LB , Boluarte Till A 
Published: January 2007

Abstract
Background
Studies published in non-English languages are systematically missing in systematic reviews of growth and quality of economic evaluations of health care. The aims of this study were: to characterize German evaluations, published in English or German-language, in terms of various key parameters; to investigate methods to derive quality-of-life weights in cost-utility studies; and to examine changes in study characteristics over the years.

Methods
We conducted a country-specific systematic review of the German and English-language literature of German economic evaluations (assessment of or application to the German health care system) published 1990–2004. Generic and specialized health economic databases were searched. Two independent reviewers verified fulfillment of inclusion criteria and extracted study characteristics.

Results
The fulltexts of 730 articles were reviewed of which 283 fulfilled all entry criteria. 32% of included studies were published in German-language. 51% of studies evaluated pharmaceuticals and 63% were cost-effectiveness analyses. Economic appraisals concentrate on few disease categories and important health areas are strongly underrepresented. Declaration of sponsorship was associated with article language (49% English articles vs. 29% German articles, p < 0.001). The methodology used to obtain quality-of-life weights in published cost-utility studies was very diverse, poorly reported and most studies did not use German patients' or community health state valuations.

Conclusion
Many of the German-language evaluations included in our study are likely to be missing in international reviews and may be systematically different from English-language reviews from Germany. Lack of transparency and adherence to recommended reporting practices constitute a serious problem in German economic evaluations.
Utilization of AC Impedance Measurements for Electrochemical Glucose Sensing Using Glucose Oxidase to Improve Detection Selectivity
Authors: Kohma Takuya , Hasegawa Hidefumi , Oyamatsu Daisuke , Kuwabata Susumu 
Published: January 2007

Abstract
The electrochemical detection of glucose using glucose oxidase (GOx) has been conducted by means of AC impedance measurements. In the absence of glucose, the Nyquist plots were straight line due to a reversible redox reaction involving the electron mediator. On the other hand, the Nyquist plots became a circular arc in the presence of glucose, and its radius decreased with an increase in the glucose concentration. The shape of the Nyquist plots were explained with assistance of numerical calculations. Since the reaction impedance due to direct oxidation of interfering species was significantly higher than that of glucose oxidation catalyzed by glucose oxidase, unfavorable influence from interfering species could be eliminated without needing a complicated sensor device. When ferrocenecarboxylic acid was used as an electron mediator, the calibration curve obtained from the Nyquist plots was not affected by the presence of ascorbic acid. Based on those findings, a sensing system, which has no interference from both ascorbic acid and uric acid, was fabricated by using [Os(bpy)3]Cl2, which has a highly positive redox potential (0.65 V), as an electron mediator. A method to prepare calibration curves from AC impedance measurements with a fixed frequency was established so that this technique can be put to practical use.
Gas-Phase Lithium Cation Basicities of Acetophenones: A Linear Relationship between Lithium Cation and Proton Basicities
Authors: Maeda Hideaki , Irie Maki , Than Soe , Kikukawa Kiyoshi , Mishima Masaaki 
Published: January 2007

Abstract
The free energy changes (ΔG) for the reaction B2Li+ = Li+ + 2B were obtained in the gas phase for m- and p-substituted acetophenones based on the measurement of ligand-exchange equilibria of the type LiA2+ + 2B = LiB2+ + 2A using a FT-ICR spectrometer. A plot of ΔG (relative lithium cation basicity, ΔLCB[B2Li+]) values against the ΔGB (proton basicity) showed a limited linear correlation for meta substituents and para electron-withdrawing groups with a slope of 1.06. Negative deviations observed for strong π-donor susbstituents suggested that the resonance effect of these substituents is reduced in the Li+ complex compared to that in the protonated ion. Based on the correlation analysis using the Yukawa–Tsuno equation, , the substituent effect on ΔLCB[B2Li+] of acetophenone was characterized by a ρ value of −12.5 and an r+ value of 0.49. A ρ value of −8.3 was determined for ΔLCB[BLi+] based on the reaction LiB+ = Li+ + B from a ρ value for ΔLCB[B2Li+] by using a factor of 1.5 that was obtained from a linear relationship between calculated ΔLCB[B2Li+] and ΔLCB[BLi+]. In comparison with the corresponding results for other Lewis cation basicities, it was shown that the ρ value decreases in the order of H+ (−11.6) &gt; Me3Si+ (−11.0) &gt; Me3Ge+ (−9.7) &gt; Li+ (−8.3). The decrease in the ρ value indicates that the positive charges at the Lewis cation moiety of the adduct ion increases in this order. The small ρ value for the Li+ basicity is consistent with largely ionic (ion–dipole interaction) nature of the bonding interaction between Li+ and the carbonyl oxygen atom. The r+ value that indicates the degree of charge-delocalization into the aromatic π-system also decreases in the same order. In spite of a small charge transfer from Li+ to acetophenone ligand, the moderate r+ value of 0.49 observed for the Li+ complex is interpreted to be due to the redistribution of the induced positive charge in the acetophenone moiety by binding with Li+.
Treatment of acromegaly with the GH receptor antagonist pegvisomant in clinical practice: Safety and efficacy evaluation from the German Pegvisomant Observational Study
Authors: Schreiber I , Buchfelder M , Droste M , Forssmann K , Mann K , Saller B , Strasburger C J 
Published: January 2007

Objective: The GH receptor antagonist pegvisomant is a highly effective new treatment option in acromegaly. The German Pegvisomant Observational Study (GPOS) was started to monitor long-term safety and efficacy of pegvisomant as prescribed in clinical practice.
Design: GPOS is an observational, multi-center, surveillance study, which comprises non-interventional data collection.
Methods: Of the 229 patients included in the study, 90.4% had previous pituitary surgery, 43.2% were treated by radiation therapy, and 94.3% had previous medical therapy for acromegaly that had been discontinued mainly due to persistent IGF-I elevation or side effects. The intention-to-treat population included 177 patients with at least one post-baseline efficacy measurement.
Results: IGF-I levels decreased from 1.75±0.91-fold the upper limit of normal at baseline to 1.05± 0.62 at the 6-month visit, 0.96±0.60 at the 12-month visit, and to 0.89±0.41-fold after 24 months (P<0.0001). Mean duration of pegvisomant therapy was 51.8±35.8 weeks (median=51.9 weeks). IGF-I was normalized in 64.4% at 6 months with a median dose of 15.0 mg/day, in 70.9% at 12 months, and in 76.3% at 24 months. Fasting glucose levels improved from 114.4±45.9 to 101.5± 42.8 mg/dl after 6 months (P<0.01) and to 100.6±33.2 mg/ml after 12 months (P<0.01). General physical condition measured by specific signs and symptoms score improved significantly. Adverse events occurring in >1% were injection site reactions in 7.4%, elevated liver enzymes (>3 times of normal) in 5.2% (3.1% spontaneously normalized during continued treatment), reported increase of pituitary tumor volume in 5.2% (which was verified in 3.1%), and headache in 1.7%.
Conclusions: Pegvisomant is generally well tolerated with a safety profile similar to that reported in clinical trials and can effectively reduce IGF-I in patients with acromegaly refractory to conventional therapy.
A new functional parameter measured at the time of ablation that can be used to predict differentiated thyroid cancer recurrence during follow-up
Authors: Verkooijen Robbert B T , Rietbergen Daphne , Smit Jan W , Romijn Johannes A , Stokkel Marcel P M 
Published: January 2007

Background: This study addresses the questions whether patients with a high risk for recurrent thyroid cancer can be identified at initial stage, i.e. at the time of ablation.
Methods: We evaluated tumor recurrence in consecutive patients treated for differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC). Prognostic factors were statistically analyzed. We defined prognostic parameters based on thyroglobulin (Tg) levels, 24-h I-131 uptake rates and TSH values: (a) Tg/TSH, (b) Tg/24-h I-131 uptake value, and (c) Tg/(TSH×24-h I-131 uptake).
Results: We included 190 patients (50 male, 140 female; mean age 47 years) with DTC for analysis, 146 without distant metastases and 44 with M1 tumor stage at initial presentation. The mean period of follow-up was 10.4 years (s.d. ± 3.7 years). In 18 out of the 146 DTC patients with M0 disease (12.4%), tumor recurrence was found during follow-up. Although tumor stage, age, and standard biochemical values significantly differ between patients with and without recurrent disease or between patients with M0 and M1 tumor stage, the newly defined parameter Tg/(TSH×24-h I-131 uptake) was the best independent significant prognostic parameter in the assessment whether patients will develop a tumor recurrence during follow-up or not.
Conclusion: High Tg/(TSH×24-h I-131 uptake) ratios justify an adjustment of the I-131 activity for ablation therapy. To assess the optimal cut-off value for a dose adjustment, however, further studies are required in more patients, but the initial results are encouraging with respect to improving outcome in DTC patients.