bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Photocatalytic Degradation of Isopropanol Over PbSnO3Nanostructures Under Visible Light Irradiation
Authors: Chen Di , Ouyang Shuxin , Ye Jinhua 
Published: January 2009

Abstract
Nanostructured PbSnO3photocatalysts with particulate and tubular morphologies have been synthesized from a simple hydrothermal process. As-prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, Brunauer–Emmet–Teller surface area, transmission electron microscopy, and diffraction spectroscopy. The photoactivities of the PbSnO3nanostructures for isopropanol (IPA) degradation under visible light irradiation were investigated systematically, and the results revealed that these nanostructures show much higher photocatalytic properties than bulk PbSnO3material. The possible growth mechanism of tubular PbSnO3catalyst was also investigated briefly.
Dihydroxylated phenolic acids derived from microbial metabolism reduce lipopolysaccharide-stimulated cytokine secretion by human peripheral blood mononuclear cells
Authors: Monagas María , Khan Nasiruddin , Andrés-Lacueva Cristina , Urpí-Sardá Mireia , Vázquez-Agell Mónica , Lamuela-Raventós Rosa María , Estruch Ramón 
Published: January 2009

Oligomers and polymers of flavan-3-ols (proanthocyanidins) are very abundant in the Mediterranean diet, but are poorly absorbed. However, when these polyphenols reach the colon, they are metabolised by the intestinal microbiota into various phenolic acids, including phenylpropionic, phenylacetic and benzoic acid derivatives. Since the biological properties of these metabolites are not completely known, in the present study, we investigated the effect of the following microbial phenolic metabolites: 3,4-dihydroxyphenylpropionic acid (3,4-DHPPA), 3-hydroxyphenylpropionic acid, 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (3,4-DHPAA), 3-hydroxyphenylacetic acid, 4-hydroxybenzoic acid and 4-hydroxyhippuric acid (4-HHA), on modulation of the production of the main pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6). The production of these cytokines by lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) pre-treated with the phenolic metabolites was studied in six healthy volunteers. With the exception of 4-HHA for TNF-α secretion, only the dihydroxylated compounds, 3,4-DHPPA and 3,4-DHPAA, significantly inhibited the secretion of these pro-inflammatory cytokines in LPS-stimulated PBMC. Mean inhibition of the secretion of TNF-α by 3,4-DHPPA and 3,4-DHPAA was 84·9 and 86·4 %, respectively. The concentrations of IL-6 in the culture supernatant were reduced by 88·8 and 92·3 % with 3,4-DHPPA and 3,4-DHPAA pre-treatment, respectively. Finally, inhibition was slightly higher for IL-1β, 93·1 % by 3,4-DHPPA and 97·9 % by 3,4-DHPAA. These results indicate that dihydroxylated phenolic acids derived from microbial metabolism present marked anti-inflammatory properties, providing additional information about the health benefits of dietary polyphenols and their potential value as therapeutic agents.
The Informational Fabric of Eighteenth-Century India and the Middle East: Couriers, Intermediaries and Postal Communication
Authors: SOOD GAGAN D. S. 
Published: January 2009

AbstractMundane knowledge of how information flows is essential for a proper understanding of large organisations and complex activities. It gives us valuable insights into the prevailing constraints of the era and the creative responses that enabled the demands of its cosmopolitan residents to be met. Though the sinews of communication have been a major topic of historical inquiry in recent decades, the focus has been decidedly uneven; much of the attention has been directed towards modern times and, for earlier periods, has been confined almost entirely to Europe, the western European empires and those sectors of the world's political economy in which Europeans had a stake. The rest of the world, in comparison, has been neglected, which may be seen clearly in the case of early modern India and the Middle East. This paper seeks to rectify the imbalance by offering a typology for making sense of how packages of low weight and high value were collected, transported and delivered over long distances within the region in the eighteenth century. While drawing on a wide range of sources, at the core of this analysis lies the correspondence of the headmen of a group—the Aiyangar pattamars—who specialised as couriers in pre-colonial southern India. Among the principal claims set forth are that there existed in this period two basic modes of private communication: in one, personal trust was paramount, in the other, the mode was effectively monopolised by recognised communities providing the necessary informational services within their cultural domain. These claims, if sustained, have major implications for current views on early modern India and the Middle East.
Health-related quality of life measures in routine clinical care: Can FACT-Fatigue help to assess the management of fatigue in cancer patients?
Authors: Santana Maria-Jose , Au Heather-Jane , Dharma-Wardene Melina , Hewitt Joanne D. , Dupere David , Hanson John , Ghosh Sunita , Feeny David 
Published: January 2009

Objectives:Fatigue is the most common symptom reported by cancer patients. The inclusion of health-related quality of life (HRQL) measures in routine clinical care of cancer patients may improve the management of fatigue. The primary objective of this study is to provide evidence on the magnitude of change in fatigue subscale scores using the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Fatigue (FACT-F) that is clinically important.Methods:Consecutive patients with advanced primary lung cancer attending a Canadian tertiary care cancer and, prior to undergoing palliative chemotherapy, were enrolled in the study. Patients completed a battery of questionnaires [FACT-F, Qualitative Patients Self-report of Fatigue Level (QPSRF)] at baseline, follow-up and 2 weeks after their final cycle of chemotherapy. Clinicians assessed the patients using the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) Performance Status Scale at baseline and each follow-up visit. FACT-F change scores were computed as the mean change in score (end of study score minus baseline score).Results:A total of 43 patients with mean age of 59 years were enrolled in the study. Results revealed a mean change in FACT-F subscale score of 5.0 (SE 1.06) for those who rated themselves as more tired, 1.28 (SE 1.00) for those who rated themselves as the same (no change), and −1.52 (SE 0.84) for those patients who rated themselves as less tired.Conclusions:We provide evidence on the magnitude of change in FACT-F score that is associated with the perception by patients of improvement in fatigue and magnitude of change in score that is associated with worsening in fatigue.
Information technology capacities assessment tool in hospitals: Instrument development and validation
Authors: Jaana Mirou , Paré Guy , Sicotte Claude 
Published: January 2009

Objectives:This research integrates existing literature on information technology (IT) in hospitals, and proposes and validates a comprehensive IT capacities assessment tool in these settings.Methods:A comprehensive literature review was conducted on Medline until September 2006 to identify studies that used specific IT measures in hospitals. The results were mapped and used as a basis for the development of the proposed instrument, which was tested through a survey of Canadian healthcare organizations (N= 221).Results:A total of seventeen studies provided indicators of clinical and administrative IT capacities in hospitals. Based on the mapping of these indicators, a comprehensive IT capacities assessment instrument was developed including thirty-four items exploring computerized processes, thirteen items assessing contemporary technologies, and eleven items investigating internal and external information sharing. A time frame was inserted in the tool to reflect “plans for” versus “current” implementation of IT; in the latter, the extent of current use of computerized processes and technologies was measured on a (1–7) scale. Overall, the survey yielded a total of 106 responses (52.2 percent response rate), and the results demonstrated a good level of reliability and validity of the instrument.Conclusions:This study unifies existing work in this area, and presents the psychometric properties of an IT capacities assessment tool in hospitals. By developing scores for capturing IT capacities in hospitals, it is possible to further address important research questions related to the determinants and impacts of IT sophistication in these settings.
Sound recording and the end of the Italian Lohengrin
Authors: MEYER STEPHEN C. 
Published: January 2009

ABSTRACTThis article compares early and mid twentieth-century Italian-language recordings of Lohengrin excerpts with German-language recordings of the same period. The production and distribution of Italian-language recordings in the United States is an extension of nineteenth-century practices, in which ‘national styles’ of singing were detachable from specific repertoires. Preserving characteristic vocal inflections and distinctive interpretations, these recordings give insight into the intersections and conflicts between the various national performing traditions that were so important to nineteenth-century operatic life. The interpretative diversity of these recordings is an index of the extent to which performance traditions and individual character were markers of cultural (and economic) value in the first decades of the twentieth century. Focusing on Elsa’s Dream and the Grail Narration, I show how this interpretative diversity declined dramatically during the course of the twentieth century. This decline was precipitated by a number of factors, including the introduction of the LP disc in 1948. But the decline of the Italian Lohengrin also attests to a paradigm shift essential to the reception of classical music in the United States: from the idea that the recording is a reproduction of a voice to one in which it functions primarily as a realization of the composer’s score.
Minimalism and French /ʀ/: Phonological representations in phonetically based phonology
Authors: WEBB ERIC RUSSELL 
Published: January 2009

ABSTRACTThis paper examines the phonological structure of French rhotics and their treatment in a production grammar. Assuming emergent featural specification, it is argued that the underlying representation of /ʀ/ contains only values for sonorance, continuance and place of articulation. Grammatical analysis is undertaken in an Optimality Theoretic framework, where evaluation highlights the effect of effort reduction and perceptual augmentation on /ʀ/, also demonstrating that more richly specified segments are unaffected by these constraints. The proposal is shown to be compatible with antecedent analyses and data from regional forms and registers.
Randomized clinical trial of root‐end resection followed by root‐end filling with mineral trioxide aggregate or smoothing of the orthograde gutta‐percha root filling – 1‐year follow‐up
Authors: Christiansen R. , Kirkevang L.‐L. , Hørsted‐Bindslev P. , Wenzel A. 
Published: January 2009

AbstractAim  To compare healing after root‐end resection with a root‐end filling of mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) or smoothing of the orthograde gutta‐percha (GP) root filling.Methodology  Forty‐four patients (consisting of 52 teeth with periapical infection), average age of 54.6 years (range 30–77) participated in a randomized clinical trial (RCT) comparing the MTA and GP treatment methods. Radiographs produced 1‐week and 12 months post‐operatively were compared after blinding for treatment method, and healing was assessed as complete, incomplete, uncertain, or unsatisfactory.Results  Six teeth were not available for the 12‐month follow‐up: three teeth (GP) had been re‐operated because of pain and two teeth (one GP, one MTA) had been extracted because of root fracture (these five teeth were classified as failures). One patient (GP) was not available for recall. In the GP group, seven teeth (28%) showed complete healing, six teeth (24%) incomplete healing, six teeth (24%) uncertain healing and two teeth (8%) unsatisfactory healing after 1 year. In the MTA group, 22 teeth (85%) showed complete healing, three teeth (12%) incomplete healing, and none were scored as uncertain or unsatisfactory healing after 1 year. The difference in healing between the GP and the MTA groups was significant (P < 0.001).Conclusions  The results from this RCT emphasize the importance of placing a root‐end filling after root‐end resection. Teeth treated with MTA had significantly better healing (96%) than teeth treated by smoothing of the orthograde GP root filling only (52%).
AGENCY IN SOCIAL ACTIVITY INTERACTIONS: THE ROLE OF SOCIAL NETWORKS IN TIME AND SPACE
Authors: CARRASCO JUAN ANTONIO , HOGAN BERNIE , WELLMAN BARRY , MILLER ERIC J. 
Published: January 2009

ABSTRACTThis paper explores the relationship between travel behaviour, ICT use and social networks. Specifically, we outline a theory of social action that can inform how ICTs relates to social activity travel and explore the efficacy of this theory in an empirical setting. We begin by outlining two factors that influence the propensity to travel: an individual's will to initiate events with members of one's social network, referred to asagency, and thesocial accessibilityof network members themselves. Social accessibility defines a series of practical constraints for social‐activity travel and agency defines the extent to which an individual willactivelywork within these constraints to maintain their social network. The theoretical section first unpacks these concepts while embedding them in the research literature, finishing with an operationalisation of agency and social accessibility. Using this theory, the empirical section investigates the relationship between agency, social accessibility, and factors associated with both the respondents and their personal networks. More specifically, we examine how agency levels of interaction are related to differences in demographics, global measures of network structure and composition, and measures of media use, particularly of Internet and telephone. We conclude that individuals who are proximate or more active are more likely to maintain reciprocal relationships, and that more distant or infrequent ties require greater maintenance on the individual's part. We believe that studies of activity‐travel and ICTs will benefit from a theoretical lens that articulates some of the transformative effects of ICTs on travelvis‐à‐visits effects on social life. Social accessibility and agency can help focus that lens thereby enabling researchers to make potentially more elaborate and realistic models that move beyond the spatial and temporal dimensions into social dimensions.
Der Skeptizismus in der deutschen Aufklärung und die literarischen Folgen
Authors: Hilliard K. F. 
Published: January 2009

ABSTRACTDer Aufsatz befasst sich mit der kontroversen Einschätzung des philosophischen Skeptizismus in der deutschen Aufklärung und mit der Umsetzung skeptischer Fragestellungen in literarischen Werken von Klopstock, Wieland, Lessing und Goethe. Das Augenmerk gilt dabei besonders der Ausdifferenzierung des Skeptizismus in eine melancholische und eine sanguinische Variante. Die Entstehung dieser Varianten wird in den Zusammenhang polemischer und apologetischer Argumente gestellt. Die Frage wird untersucht, inwieweit skeptische Ansätze systemstabilisierende bzw. systemzersetzende Wirkung hatten. Es erweist sich, dass der Skeptizismus zwar die Dogmen erschütterte, jedoch in dem Maße, in dem er auf Indifferenz und Resignation hinauslief, eine eher affirmative und konservative Wirkung entfaltete.
Human synthetic sebum formulation and stability under conditions of use and storage
Authors: Wertz P. W. 
Published: January 2009

SynopsisThe human skin surface and hair are generally coated with a thin film of liquid phase sebaceous lipids. This surface lipid film contributes to the cosmetic properties of the skin. Synthetic sebum has been used for studies on properties of skin and hair. However, there has been no standardized formulation of synthetic sebum and many of the synthetic sebum formulations that have been used do not closely resemble actual sebum. In this study, a formulation for a standardized and inexpensive synthetic sebum is proposed, and the chemical stability of this lipid mixture is demonstrated under conditions of use and storage. The proposed synthetic sebum consists of 17% fatty acid, 44.7% triglyceride, 25% wax monoester (jojoba oil) and 12.4% squalene. This lipid mixture takes up approximately 6% of its weight in water when equilibrated in an atmosphere saturated with water vapour. It is stable on exposure to the atmosphere at 32°C for at least 48 h, and it is also stable on storage at 4 or −20°C, either dry or in chloroform : methanol solution for at least 6 months. This synthetic sebum could be useful in studies on cosmetic properties of the skin surface or hair, on penetration of chemicals into the skin or in development of standardized tests of laundry detergent performance.
Risk of Dementia in Older Breast Cancer Survivors: A Population‐Based Cohort Study of the Association with Adjuvant Chemotherapy
Authors: Baxter Nancy N. , Durham Sara B. , Phillips Kelly‐Anne , Habermann Elizabeth B. , Virning Beth A. 
Published: January 2009

OBJECTIVES: To assess whether there is an association between delivery of adjuvant chemotherapy to older women with breast cancer and development of dementia over time.DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study using Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) data linked to Medicare claims data.SETTING: Women residing in geographic areas included in the SEER registry.PARTICIPANTS: Women aged 66 to 80 diagnosed with non‐metastatic invasive breast cancer from 1992 to 1999 were included. It was determined whether patients had undergone chemotherapy within 6 months of diagnosis.MEASUREMENTS: Whether women developed dementia over time was determined using diagnostic codes. The effect of adjuvant chemotherapy on development of dementia was evaluated, adjusting for confounders using a proportional hazards model stratified for age.RESULTS: Twenty‐one thousand three hundred sixty‐two women met selection criteria; 2,913 received chemotherapy, and 18,449 did not. Women who received chemotherapy were younger than those who did not (median aged 70 vs 73; P<.001). Median follow‐up time was 59 months. After controlling for other factors, it was found that chemotherapy was not associated with a greater risk of development of dementia over time for any age group (hazard ratio for dementia in women receiving chemotherapy: aged 66–70=0.83, 95% confidence interval (CI)=0.48–1.45, P=.5; aged 71–75=0.74, 95% CI=0.46–1.18, P=.2; aged 76–80=0.49, 95% CI=0.28–0.88, P=.02).CONCLUSION: Receipt of chemotherapy in older women with breast cancer was not associated with a greater risk of dementia diagnosis over time; very elderly women who undergo chemotherapy may be at lower baseline risk. The use of a claims‐based definition of dementia limited the study.
Aberrant p53 protein expression and function in a panel of hematopoietic cell lines with different p53 mutations
Authors: Kamihira Shimeru , Terada Chiharu , Sasaki Daisuke , Yanagihara Katsunori , Tsukasaki Kunihiro , Hasegawa Hiroo , Yamada Yasuaki 
Published: January 2009

AbstractThep53gene is one of the most important genes involved in carcinogenesis and its role in part has been clarified by research using cell lines. To know the comprehensive characteristics of 22 hematopoietic cell lines (T, 13 and non‐T, nine lines), the relationship between p53 mutational status, its altered functioning, and its mRNA and protein levels were examined. p53 mutations were less frequent in T‐cell lines (38% vs. 78%) with mainly single nucleotide substitutions generating missense codons. Of 22 different p53 mutations, 12 (54.5%) resulted in mutated proteins, with the mutations clustering mainly in the sequence‐specific DNA‐binding site region located from amino acid residues 102 to 292.p53mRNA and protein assays determined that wild‐type cell lines expressed constant levels of both mRNA and protein, but mutated cell lines demonstrated two expression patterns: protein over‐expression with reduced mRNA levels, because of missense mutations; and protein under‐expression with little mRNA expression, because of other mutations. The resistance to Nutlin (MDM2 inhibitor)‐induced apoptosis was associated with p53 mutations independently of MDM2 expression levels. This clarification of the unique associations in cell lines useful for bio‐medical studies will contribute to a better understanding of p53‐associated carcinogenesis.
The Effects of a Novel Anti‐arrhythmic Drug, Acehytisine Hydrochloride, on the HumanEther‐a‐go‐go RelatedGene K+Channel and Its Trafficking
Authors: Huang Xingfu , Yang Yanmin , Zhu Jun , Dai Yan , Pu Jielin 
Published: January 2009

Abstract: Many drugs cause severe side‐effects such as long QT syndromes by blocking thehuman ether‐a‐go‐go related gene(HERG) K+channels and/or disrupting HERG protein trafficking. Acehytisine hydrochloride is an anti‐arrhythmic drug in phase IV clinical trial. To study whether acehytisine hydrochloride affects HERG channel activity and protein trafficking, we expressed HERG in human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK293) cells and recorded HERG channel currents with a whole‐cell patch clamp technique. We also measured the protein levels by Western blot analysis. We found that acehytisine hydrochloride inhibited HERG step current (IHERG) in a concentration‐dependent manner. However, it had little effect on the tail current (Itail). In addition, acehytisine hydrochloride accelerated channel inactivation and slowed recovery from inactivation. In contrast, it did not inhibit HERG protein (135 and 155 kD) trafficking, although it reduced the 155 kD band density at 2500 µM. Moreover, the F656C mutation in the S6 domain abolished acehytisine hydrochloride inhibition on theIHERGand enhanced the inhibitive effects on the trafficking of the 155 kD band. Acehytisine hydrochloride interrupted HERG protein trafficking at 1000 and 2500 µM. Our data showed that acehytisine hydrochloride could inhibitIHERG, but had no effects onItailuntil the concentration was above 1000 µM. Therefore, acehytisine hydrochloride may not induce QT interval prolongation and could be a promising anti‐arrhythmic drug without severe side‐effects.
Factors Affecting Late Twentieth Century Land Use Patterns in Kamakura City, Japan
Authors: IWATA OH , OGUCHI TAKASHI 
Published: January 2009

AbstractLand use patterns can be viewed as a reflection of various factors including zoning regulations and environmental and social influences. To understand the effects of these factors, late twentieth century land use data for Kamakura City, Japan were analysed in relation to zoning regulations and geomorphological influences using geographic information systems techniques. Kamakura is a typical example of an Asian historic city experiencing the pressures of recent urbanisation. Statistical analyses, including principal component analysis, were employed to identify factors affecting changes in major land use patterns over time and space. The rapid increase in population and government regulation in the 1970s led to the construction of low‐rise buildings in piedmont areas. However, topography and conservation activities limited construction to areas with slope angles below about 10°. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the area of vacant land on the urban lowlands increased due to the large increases in land value during the Japanese Bubble Economy phase. Land use intensified in most urban areas, although hilly areas were still characterised by low‐rise buildings. Although urban sprawl has occurred in many cities in Asia, this has been limited in Kamakura because of strong land use regulation and conservation activities. However, the city has experienced high‐rise development in its urban lowlands.