bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Quality–quantity trade‐off of human offspring under adverse environmental conditions
Authors: MEIJ J. J. , VAN BODEGOM D. , ZIEM J. B. , AMANKWA J. , POLDERMAN A. M. , KIRKWOOD T. B. L. , DE CRAEN A. J. M. , ZWAAN B. J. , WESTENDORP R. G. J. 
Published: February 2009

AbstractA central paradigm in life‐history theory is the trade‐off between offspring number and quality. Several studies have investigated this trade‐off in humans, but data are inconclusive, perhaps because prosperous socio‐cultural factors mask the trade‐off. Therefore, we studied 2461 offspring groups in an area under adverse conditions in northern Ghana with high fertility and mortality rates. In a linear mixed model controlling for differences in age and tribe of the mother and socioeconomic status, each additional child in the offspring group resulted in a 2.3% (95% CI 1.9–2.6%, P < 0.001) lower proportional survival of the offspring. Furthermore, we made use of the polygamous population structure and compared offspring of co‐wives in 388 households, thus controlling for variation in resources between compounds. Here, offspring survival decreased 2.8% (95% CI 2.3–4.0%, P < 0.001) for each increase in offspring number. We interpret these data as an apparent quality–quantity trade‐off in human offspring.
Limnological characteristics and trophic state of Paso de las Piedras Reservoir: An inland reservoir in Argentina
Authors: Fernández Carolina , Parodi Elisa R. , Cáceres Eduardo J. 
Published: February 2009

AbstractThe current trophic status of Paso de las Piedras Reservoir was evaluated by analysing different physicochemical, biological and environmental variables, in relation to its water quality, and application of two different classification criteria. Water quality sampling was conducted at four sampling sites from June 2004 to June 2005. During this study, 183 phytoplankton taxa were identified. The phytoplankton abundance exhibited a maximum of 368.037 × 103cells.mL−1in February 2005, and at least 1.133 × 103cells.mL−1in October 2004. An almost exclusive dominance of Cyanobacteria was observed between December 2004 and May 2005, the product of a large relative abundance ofAnabaena circinalisandMicrocystis natanswhich, together with other companions, were the reason for an algal bloom characterized by an average density of 133.05 × 103cells.mL−1, and an average chlorophyll concentration of 28.7 mg.m−3. These study results indicate that the seasonal variations of physical, chemical and biological parameters in the waters of this reservoir were essentially a consequence of environmental and hydrological conditions in the dam area. In contrast, the spatial variations inside the lake were the result of the characteristics of the water inflow provided by its two main tributaries. The N:P ratio suggests neither nutrient is a limiting factor for maximum algal biomass in the lake, indicating that variations in the phytoplankton community structure, and development of phytoplankton blooms, would be more constrained by environmental and hydrological conditions than nutrient competition. The high concentration of measured nutrients could be attributed to the concurrence of various non‐point sources. The phytoplankton species richness was high, exhibiting values even higher than those mentioned in previous studies. Considering the two trophic classification systems, and based on total phosphorus data, the reservoir is classified within the hypertrophic category. In contrast, considering only the chlorophyll and turbidity data, the lake would be classified within the eutrophic category.
B‐type natriuretic peptide is predictive of hospitalization in community‐dwelling elderly without heart diseases
Authors: Shimizu Yuji , Nishinaga Masanori , Takata Jun , Miyano Ichiro , Okumiya Kiyohito , Matsubayashi Kozo , Ozawa Toshio , Yasuda Nobufumi , Doi Yoshinori 
Published: February 2009

Aim:  To examine prospectively the relationship between plasma B‐type natriuretic peptide (BNP) levels in community‐dwelling elderly and their hospitalization.Methods:  A total number of 644 subjects aged 65 years or older were recruited from the annual community health examinations. Those with a history of stroke or neurological findings were not included. After excluding those with old myocardial infarction, left ventricular dysfunction, moderate or severe valvular disorders, atrial fibrillation, renal insufficiency, and history of hospitalization within 1 year, 602 participants (226 men, 376 women; mean age, 80.3 ± 6.2 years) remained eligible for this study. Antihypertensive medications, activities of daily living (ADL) score and history of hospitalization were assessed by annual interview. Measurement of casual blood pressure, Mini‐Mental State Examination, electrocardiography and echocardiography were performed. Plasma BNP, serum creatinine, total cholesterol, albumin and hemoglobin A1c levels were also examined. A follow‐up survey was performed for the occurrence and reasons for hospitalization.Results:  During a median follow up of 37 months, 112 subjects were hospitalized. After adjustment for conventional risk factors of hospitalization using the Cox proportional hazard model, each increment of 1 standard deviation in log BNP levels was associated with a 36% increase in the risk of hospitalization (P = 0.02). Plasma BNP levels were significantly higher in the hospitalized subjects due to stroke, heart diseases, dementia, pneumonia and also difficulty to live alone than those of the subjects without hospitalization.Conclusion:  Plasma BNP level is a very useful biochemical marker predictive of future hospitalization in community‐dwelling independent elderly people without apparent heart diseases.
Reduced microbial diversity and high numbers of one single Escherichia coli strain in the intestine of colitic mice
Authors: Wohlgemuth Steffen , Haller Dirk , Blaut Michael , Loh Gunnar 
Published: February 2009

SummaryCommensal bacteria play a role in the aetiology of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). High intestinal numbers of Escherichia coli in IBD patients suggest a role of this organism in the initiation or progression of chronic gut inflammation. In addition, some E. coli genotypes are more frequently detected in IBD patients than others. We aimed to find out whether gut inflammation in an IBD mouse model is associated with a particular E. coli strain. Intestinal contents and tissue material were taken from 1‐, 8‐, 16‐ and 24‐week‐old interleukin 10‐deficient (IL‐10–/–) mice and the respective wild‐type animals. Caecal and colonic inflammation was observed in IL‐10–/– animals from the 8 weeks of life on accompanied by a lower intestinal microbial diversity than in the respective wild‐type animals. Culture‐ based and molecular approaches revealed that animals with gut inflammation harboured significantly higher numbers of E. coli than healthy controls. Phylogenetic grouping according to the E. coli Reference Collection (ECOR) system and strain typing by random‐amplified polymorphic DNA and pulsed‐field gel electrophoresis revealed that all mice were colonized by one single E. coli strain. The strain was shown to have the O7:H7:K1 serotype and to belong to the virulence‐associated phylogenetic group B2. In a co‐association experiment with gnotobiotic mice, the strain outnumbered E. coli ECOR strains belonging to the phylogenetic group A and B2 respectively. A high number of virulence‐ and fitness‐associated genes were detected in the strain's genome possibly involved in the bacterial adaptation to the murine intestine.
Effect of hydrogen sulphide‐donating sildenafil (ACS6) on erectile function and oxidative stress in rabbit isolated corpus cavernosum and in hypertensive rats
Authors: Shukla Nilima , Rossoni Giuseppe , Hotston Matthew , Sparatore Anna , Del Soldato Piero , Tazzari Valerio , Persad Raj , Angelini Gianni D. , Jeremy Jamie Y. 
Published: February 2009

OBJECTIVETo study the effect of the H2S‐donating derivative of sildenafil (ACS6) compared to sildenafil citrate and sodium hydrosulphide (NaHS) on relaxation, superoxide formation and NADPH oxidase and type 5 phosphodiesterase (PDE5) expression in isolated rabbit cavernosal tissue and smooth muscle cells (CSMCs), and in vivo on indices of oxidative stress induced with buthionine sulphoximine (BSO).MATERIALS AND METHODSRelaxation was studied in an organ bath in response to carbachol and after incubation with interleukin‐1β for 12 h. CSMCs were incubated with tumour‐necrosis factor‐α or the thromboxane A2 (TXA2) analogue, U46619, with or with no sildenafil citrate, ACS6 or NaHS for 16 h. Superoxide formation and the expression of p47phox (an active subunit of the NADPH oxidase complex) and PDE5 protein was then assessed using Western blotting. Rats were also treated with BSO (with or with no sildenafil citrate or ACS6) for 7 days; cavernosal cGMP, cAMP, glutathionine and plasma TXA2 and 8‐isoprostane F2α was measured by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay.RESULTSACS6 and sildenafil citrate relaxed cavernosal smooth muscle equipotently; NaHS alone had little effect at up to 100 µm. The formation of superoxide and expression of p47phox and PDE5 was reduced by ACS6, sildenafil citrate and NaHS (order of potency: ACS6 > sildenafil citrate > NaHS). The effects of ACS6 were blocked by inhibitors of protein kinase A (PKA) and PKG. In rats treated with BSO, both ASC6 and sildenafil citrate reduced the increased plasma levels of TXA2 and 8‐isoprostane F2α but increased cGMP, cAMP and glutathionine levels in corpus cavernosum.CONCLUSIONSBy virtue of a dual action on PKA and PKG activation, ACS6 not only promotes erection, acutely, but might also have a long‐term beneficial effect through inhibition of oxidative stress and downregulation of PDE5.
A genetic diagnosis of HNF1A diabetes alters treatment and improves glycaemic control in the majority of insulin‐treated patients
Authors: Shepherd M. , Shields B. , Ellard S. , Rubio‐Cabezas O. , Hattersley A. T. 
Published: February 2009

AbstractBackground and aims  Hepatocyte nuclear factor‐1 alpha (HNF1A) gene mutations are the commonest cause of monogenic diabetes, but patients are often misdiagnosed as having Type 1 diabetes and started on insulin treatment. Patients with HNF1A diabetes are particularly sensitive to the glucose‐lowering effect of sulphonylureas, which are the pharmacological treatment of choice. We aimed to assess if patients do change from insulin to sulphonylurea treatment when HNF1A diabetes is confirmed and the impact of this treatment change on long‐term glycaemic control.Methods  We investigated the clinical course of 43 patients who were insulin treated from diagnosis for a median 4 years (range 1–14) before an HNF1A gene mutation was identified.Results  Thirty‐four patients (79%) stopped insulin following genetic testing and transferred to sulphonylureas. Twenty‐four of them (71%) remained off insulin at a median 39 months (range 17–90) post‐transfer. The 10 patients who recommenced insulin had a trend towards a longer duration of diabetes (18 vs. 7 years, P = 0.066) compared with those remaining on tablets. The median glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) was good (6.9%; interquartile range 6.3–8.0%) in the patients who remained off insulin and 19/24 patients (79%) achieved HbA1c < 7.5% or improved their pre‐genetic diagnosis HbA1c by > 1.0%. Transfer off insulin was not attempted in eight patients: one of these was planning pregnancy and two chose to remain on insulin.Conclusion  In this observational study we found that a molecular genetic diagnosis of HNF1A diabetes does alter treatment in clinical practice, with 79% attempting transfer to sulphonylureas. Transfer to sulphonylureas was successful in the majority of patients without deterioration in glycaemic control.
Pregravid body mass index as a predictor of gestational diabetes mellitus
Authors: Ogonowski J. , Miazgowski T. , Kuczyńska M. , Krzyżanowska‐Świniarska B. , Celewicz Z. 
Published: February 2009

AbstractAims  It has been well documented that overweight or obesity before pregnancy is a strong predictor of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). The aim of this study was to assess the risk of GDM in women who were classified on the basis of pregravid body mass index (BMI) as normal weight and underweight.Subjects and methods  We analysed medical records of 1121 women with GDM who were referred to the Outpatient Clinic for Diabetic Pregnant Women in Szczecin (north‐west part of Poland) between January 2001 and December 2005. The control group consisted of 1011 healthy pregnant women. All the women were Caucasian, were aged ≥ 18 years and had single pregnancies.Results  The cut point for BMI as a risk indicator for GDM was 22.85 kg/m2 (odds ratio = 1.91; 95% confidence interval 1.5–2.1; sensitivity 47.8%, specificity 65.9%). In all of the analysed BMI ranges, except for the underweight group, significant relationships between pregravid BMI and GDM were found and BMI was the strongest predictor for GDM treated with insulin. Of all women with GDM, 25.7% were treated with insulin. The percentage of women requiring insulin therapy significantly increased with an increase of BMI across all studied categories.Conclusions  Not only in overweight but also in normal‐weight women, the risk for GDM increases with increases in pregravid BMI and adjustment for confounding variables (age, prior GDM and parity) did not influence this relationship. Pregravid BMI is a strong predictor for GDM requiring insulin treatment.
Treatment preferences and medication adherence of people with Type 2 diabetes using oral glucose‐lowering agents
Authors: Hauber A. B. , Mohamed A. F. , Johnson F. R. , Falvey H. 
Published: February 2009

AbstractAims Medication non‐adherence is particularly common in patients with Type 2 diabetes. We constructed a discrete‐choice experiment to examine the relative importance of oral glucose‐lowering medication features and to estimate the likely effect of effectiveness and side effects on medication adherence in patients with Type 2 diabetes in the UK and the USA.Methods Preferences were elicited using a cross‐sectional, web‐enabled survey. Patients with a self‐reported physician‐made diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes, who were currently taking oral glucose‐lowering medications were recruited through an existing online chronic‐disease panel. In each discrete‐choice question, patients were asked to choose between two hypothetical medication alternatives, each defined by improvement in glycated haemoglobin, frequency of mild‐to‐moderate hypoglycaemia, water retention, weight gain, mild stomach upset and medication‐related cardiovascular risk. Patients were also asked to indicate how likely they would be to miss or skip doses of each hypothetical medication.Results Two hundred and four patients in the UK and 203 patients in the USA completed the survey. Preferences did not differ between the two countries. Overall, glucose control was the most important medication feature, followed by medication‐related cardiovascular risk and weight gain, respectively. Water retention was not important to patients. Weight gain and cardiovascular risk had significant negative effects on likely medication adherence.Conclusions While patients with Type 2 diabetes believe glucose control is important, medication side effects and risks influence patients’ treatment choices. Medication‐related weight gain and cardiovascular risk are significant predictors of likely medication non‐adherence.
Are current psychometric tools suitable for measuring outcomes of diabetes education?
Authors: Eigenmann C. A. , Colagiuri R. , Skinner T. C. , Trevena L. 
Published: February 2009

AbstractAims  To critically appraise the suitability, validity, reliability, feasibility and sensitivity to change of available psychometric tools for measuring the education outcomes identified in the (Australian) National Consensus on Outcomes and Indicators for Diabetes Patient Education.Methods  Potentially suitable psychometric measurement tools were identified through a two‐step process. Step 1: a structured semi‐systematic literature review and consultation with experts; step 2: development of inclusion criteria and a formal, purpose‐designed, systematically derived Appraisal Checklist—from the literature and with expert psychometric advice—to critically appraise the identified tools for relevance, validity, reliability, responsiveness to change, burden, feasibility and acceptability.Results  Searching medline, PubMed, PsycINFO and cinhal yielded 37 diabetes‐specific and generic measurement tools. Eleven of these did not address the research questions, leaving 26 tools. Of these, 11 assessed indicators of psychological adjustment; seven assessed various domains of self‐determination; five measured self‐management behaviours, for example, foot care, blood glucose testing and lifestyle domains; and three measured diabetes knowledge und understanding, respectively. When the Appraisal Checklist was applied, only three tools met all criteria, namely the Problem Areas in Diabetes (PAID) scale, the Summary of Diabetes Self‐Care Activities (SDSCA) scale and the Appraisal of Diabetes Scale (ADS). However, a number of other suitable tools [i.e. the Diabetes Integration Scale (ATT19), the Diabetes Health Profile (DHP‐1/18), the Self‐Care Inventory‐Revised (SCI‐R), the Diabetes Management Self Efficacy Scale Australian/English version (DMSES‐A/E), the Diabetes Empowerment Scale–Short Form (DES‐SF)] met all except one criteria, that is, either no formal test–retest or no responsiveness to change data.Conclusions  Although numerous tools were identified, few met rigorous psychometric appraisal criteria. Issues of suitability, adequate psychometric testing for the intended purpose, burden and feasibility need to be considered before adopting tools for measuring diabetes education outcomes.
Incidence and characteristics of lower limb amputations in people with diabetes
Authors: Fosse S. , Hartemann‐Heurtier A. , Jacqueminet S. , Ha Van G. , Grimaldi A. , Fagot‐Campagna A. 
Published: February 2009

AbstractAims  To estimate the incidence, characteristics and potential causes of lower limb amputations in France.Methods  Admissions with lower limb amputations were extracted from the 2003 French national hospital discharge database, which includes major diagnoses and procedures performed during hospital admissions. For each patient, diabetes was defined by its record in at least one admission with or without lower limb amputation in the 2002–2003 databases.Results  In 2003, 17 551 admissions with lower limb amputation were recorded, involving 15 353 persons, which included 7955 people with diabetes. The crude incidence of lower limb amputation in people with diabetes was 378/100 000 (349/100 000 when excluding traumatic lower limb amputation). The sex and age standardized incidence was 12 times higher in people with than without diabetes (158 vs. 13/100 000). Renal complications and peripheral arterial disease and/or neuropathy were reported in, respectively, 30% and 95% of people with diabetes with lower limb amputation. Traumatic causes (excluding foot contusion) and bone diseases (excluding foot osteomyelitis) were reported in, respectively, 3% and 6% of people with diabetes and lower limb amputation, and were 5 and 13 times more frequent than in people without diabetes.Conclusions  We provide a first national estimate of lower limb amputation in France. We highlight its major impact on people with diabetes and its close relationship with peripheral arterial disease/neuropathy and renal complications in the national hospital discharge database. We do not suggest the exclusion of traumatic causes when studying the epidemiology of lower limb amputation related to diabetes, as diabetes may contribute to amputation even when the first cause appears to be traumatic.
Do East Asians Respond More/Less Strongly to Organizational Justice Than North Americans? A Meta‐Analysis
Authors: Li Andrew , Cropanzano Russell 
Published: February 2009

abstractThe present study reported a meta‐analysis of the relationship between justice perceptions and affective organizational commitment, job satisfaction, turnover intentions, and trust in East Asia. Based on the tripartite model of self concept, we argued that the relationship between justice perceptions and outcome variables may be influenced by the salience of the personal versus relational/collective dimensions of self concept. Specifically, we argued that the salience of the personal self concept may lead to larger effect sizes in North America. While we also argued that the salience of the relational/collective self concept may increase the effect of justice perceptions in East Asia, these effects may be potentially eclipsed by the concerns for social harmony in this region. Results of our study suggest that in general, the effects of justice on outcome variables tend to be greater in North America than in East Asia.
Are We Our Brains?
Authors: Burwood Stephen 
Published: February 2009

AbstractMy aim in this paper is to destabilise the brain‐is‐self thesis, something that is now regarded in some quarters as philosophical commonsense. My contention is that it is the epithelial body that enters into the formation of our sense of self and that largely bears the burden of personal identity as well as playing the key role in grounding our psychological ascriptions. Lacking any sensorimotor or social presence of its own, the brain by itself cannot “underlie” selfhood, but only as part of the whole living human being. If the minded individual is embodied, this must mean more than being embrained.
Self and Self‐Consciousness: Aristotelian Ontology and Cartesian Duality
Authors: Christofidou Andrea 
Published: February 2009

AbstractThe relationship between self‐consciousness, Aristotelian ontology, and Cartesian duality is far closer than it has been thought to be. There is no valid inference either from considerations of Aristotle'shylomorphismor from the phenomenological distinction between body and living body, to the undermining of Cartesian dualism. Descartes' conception of the self asbotha reasoning and willing being informs his conception of personhood; a person for Descartes is an unanalysable, integrated, self‐conscious and autonomous human being. The claims that Descartes introspectively encounters the self and that the Cartesian extent of inner space is self‐contained are profound errors, distortions through the lenses of modern theories.
Disproving Causal Relationships Using Observational Data*
Authors: Bryant Henry L. , Bessler David A. , Haigh Michael S. 
Published: February 2009

AbstractEconomic theory is replete with causal hypotheses that are scarcely tested because economists are generally constrained to work with observational data. We describe a method for testing a hypothesis that one observed random variable causes another. Contingent on a sufficiently strong correspondence between the two variables, an appropriately related third variable can be employed for the test. The logic of the procedure naturally suggests strong and weak grounds for rejecting the causal hypothesis. Monte Carlo results suggest that weakly grounded rejections are unreliable for small samples, but reasonably reliable for large samples. Strongly grounded rejections are highly reliable, even for small samples.