bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Relationship between testicular size by ultrasonography and testicular function: Measurement of testicular length, width, and depth in patients with infertility
Authors: Sakamoto Hideo , Yajima Takatoshi , Nagata Masakazu , Okumura Taisuke , Suzuki Kohta , Ogawa Yoshio 
Published: April 2008

Objectives:  The relationships between simple testicular sizes, including the testicular length, width, and depth and testicular function were evaluated to determine the usefulness of measuring these simple parameters.Methods:  The mean of right and left testicular length, width and depth were measured in 408 men with infertility (mean age, 35.9 ± 5.3 years) using ultrasonography. The ultrasonographic testicular volumes were calculated as the length x width x depth x 0.71. To evaluate the relationship between the testicular size and function, the patients were divided into seven to ten groups according to each testicular size parameter.Results:  The mean testicular volume, length, depth, and width were 13.4 ml, 3.86 cm, 1.80 cm, and 2.59 cm, respectively. These three testicular dimensions significantly correlated with sperm density, total sperm count, total motile sperm count, serum follicle‐stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone equal to ultrasonographic testicular volume. The mean sperm density was in the oligozoospermic range in patients with a mean testicular volume below 10 ml, a mean length below 3.5 cm, a mean depth below 1.75 cm, and a mean width below 2.5 cm. The mean total sperm count was subnormal in patients with a mean testicular volume below 10 ml, a mean length below 3.5 cm, a mean depth below 1.5 cm, and a mean width below 2.25 cm.Conclusions:  The testicular length, width, and depth measured by ultrasonography significantly correlated with the testicular function as well as the ultrasonographic testicular volume. A simple measurement of the testicular length, width, and depth is useful for evaluating the testicular function.
Role of GluR1 expression in nucleus accumbens neurons in cocaine sensitization and cocaine‐seeking behavior
Authors: Bachtell Ryan K. , Choi Kwang‐Ho , Simmons Diana L. , Falcon Edgardo , Monteggia Lisa M. , Neve Rachael L. , Self David W. 
Published: April 2008

AbstractChronic cocaine use reduces glutamate levels in the nucleus accumbens (NAc), and is associated with experience‐dependent changes in (±)‐α‐amino‐3‐hydroxy‐5‐methylisoxazole‐4‐propionic acid (AMPA) glutamate receptor membrane expression in NAc neurons. These changes accompany behavioral sensitization to cocaine and increased susceptibility to cocaine relapse. The functional relationship between neuroplasticity in AMPA receptors and the behavioral manifestation of cocaine addiction remains unclear. Thus, we examined the behavioral effects of up‐ and downregulating basal AMPA receptor function in the NAc core and shell using viral‐mediated gene transfer of wild‐type glutamate receptor 1 (wt‐GluR1) or a dominant‐negative pore‐dead GluR1 (pd‐GluR1), respectively. Transient increases in wt‐GluR1 during or after cocaine treatments diminished the development of cocaine sensitization, while pd‐GluR1 expression exacerbated cocaine sensitization. Parallel changes were found in D2, but not D1, receptor‐mediated behavioral responses. As a correlate of the sensitization experiments, we overexpressed wt‐ or pd‐GluR1 in the NAc core during cocaine self‐administration, and tested the effects on subsequent drug‐seeking behavior 3 weeks after overexpression declined. wt‐GluR1 overexpression during self‐administration had no effect on cocaine intake, but subsequently reduced cocaine seeking in extinction and cocaine‐induced reinstatement, whereas pd‐GluR1 facilitated cocaine‐induced reinstatement. When overexpressed during reinstatement tests, wt‐GluR1 directly attenuated cocaine‐ and D2 agonist‐induced reinstatement, while pd‐GluR1 enhanced reinstatement. In both experimental procedures, neither wt‐ nor pd‐GluR1 expression affected cue‐induced reinstatement. Together, these results suggest that degrading basal AMPA receptor function in NAc neurons is sufficient to facilitate relapse via sensitization in D2 receptor responses, whereas elevating basal AMPA receptor function attenuates these behaviors.
Movement‐related synchronization of gamma activity is lateralized in patients with dystonia
Authors: Brücke Christof , Kempf Florian , Kupsch A. , Schneider Gerd‐Helge , Krauss Joachim K. , Aziz Tipu , Yarrow Kielan , Pogosyan Alek , Brown Peter , Kühn Andrea A. 
Published: April 2008

AbstractThere is evidence for synchronization at frequencies both under 30 Hz and over 60–80 Hz in the so‐called gamma frequency band in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). Gamma activity increases after dopaminergic therapy and during voluntary movement, suggesting that it might be physiological and relate to motor processing in the basal ganglia (BG). We recorded local field potential (LFP) activity during a choice reaction time task in 11 patients with dystonia undergoing implantation of the internal globus pallidus for therapeutic stimulation. The spectral content of the LFP was averaged with respect to movement onset over 6–11 Hz, 18–25 Hz and 60–80 Hz, separately for responses ipsilateral and contralateral to movement. There was a perimovement increase in 60–80 Hz activity in the LFP, but only contralateral to movement. In contrast, low‐frequency LFP activity decreased symmetrically during movement. This occurred earlier in the 18–25 Hz band than in the 6–11 Hz band, and was followed by a postmovement increase in oscillatory activity in the 18–25 Hz band that was contralateral to movement. The presence of a lateralized movement‐related increase in gamma activity in the BG of patients with dystonia, similar to that recorded in patients with treated PD, suggests that this may be a residual feature of normal BG function. Moreover, the results provide further support for functional distinctions between BG oscillatory activities of different frequency.
Ant predation on red oak borer confirmed by field observation and molecular gut‐content analysis
Authors: Muilenburg Vanessa L. , Goggin Fiona L. , Hebert Stephanie L. , Jia Lingling , Stephen Fred M. 
Published: April 2008

Abstract1 Populations of an indigenous longhorn beetle, the red oak borer Enaphalodes rufulus (Haldeman) (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), recently reached epidemic levels in the Ozark National Forests of Arkansas and Missouri, resulting in extensive tree mortality.2 The factors regulating E. rufulus populations are largely unknown. Ants appear to be the most abundant potential predators in the Ozarks and have been shown to play a role in regulating populations of other forest insects.3 The main objective of the present study was to determine whether ants are predators of early E. rufulus life stages by direct observation of E. rufulus eggs artificially placed on tree trunks and by development of molecular tools to detect E. rufulus DNA within ant gut contents.4 Three hundred and eighty E. rufulus eggs were applied to ten northern red oaks. Ants ate or carried away 72% of the eggs within 1 h. Camponotus pennsylvanicus (De Geer) and Aphaenogaster tennesseensis (Mayr) were identified as the two primary ant species observed in the study.5 A portion of the mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene of E. rufulus was sequenced and polymerase chain reaction primers were developed to detect E. rufulus DNA in the guts of C. pennsylvanicus. Enaphalodes rufulus DNA persisted in ant gut contents for at least 24 h after ingestion under laboratory conditions, and E. rufulus DNA was detected in field‐collected ant populations, suggesting the natural occurrence of ant predation on this insect.
Field‐based and laboratory stable isotope probing surveys of the identities of both aerobic and anaerobic benzene‐metabolizing microorganisms in freshwater sediment
Authors: Liou J. S.‐C. , DeRito C. M. , Madsen E. L. 
Published: April 2008

SummaryLaboratory incubations of coal‐tar waste‐contaminated sediment microbial communities under relatively controlled physiological conditions were used to interpret results of a field‐based stable isotope probing (SIP) assay. Biodegradation activity of 13C‐benzene was examined by GC/MS determination of net 13CO2 production and by GC headspace analysis of benzene loss. Key experimental variables were: the site of the assays (laboratory serum‐bottle incubations and in situ field sediments), benzene concentration (10, 36 or 200 p.p.m. in laboratory assays), and physiological conditions (anaerobic with or without sulfate or nitrate additions versus aerobic headspace or the uncontrolled field). In anaerobic laboratory incubations of benzene at 10 p.p.m., greater than 60% of the substrate was eliminated within 15 days. During anaerobic incubations of 200 p.p.m. benzene (70 days), 0.9% benzene mineralization occurred. When benzene (36 p.p.m.) was added to sediment with air in the serum‐bottle headspace, 14% of the initial 13C was mineralized to 13CO2 in 2.5 days. In the field experiment (178 μg 13C‐benzene dosed to undisturbed sediments), net 13CO2 production reached 0.3% within 8.5 h. After isopycnic separation of 13C (heavy)‐labelled DNA from the above biodegradation assays, sequencing of 13C‐DNA clone libraries revealed a broad diversity of taxa involved in benzene metabolism and distinctive libraries for each biodegradation treatment. Perhaps most importantly, in the field SIP experiment the clone libraries produced were dominated by Pelomonas (betaproteobacteria) sequences similar to those found in the anaerobic 10 p.p.m. benzene laboratory experiment. These data indicate that the physiological conditions that prevail and govern in situ biodegradation of pollutants in the field may be interpreted by knowing the physiological preferences of potentially active populations.
Phytophthora parasitica biofilm formation: installation and organization of microcolonies on the surface of a host plant
Authors: Galiana Eric , Fourré Sandra , Engler Gilbert 
Published: April 2008

SummaryZoospores of the oomycete Phytophthora parasitica establish microbial spheroid microcolonies and biofilms on the surface of wounded leaves of their host, Nicotiana tabacum. The formation of microcolonies involves the movement of some zoospores towards attractants from wound sites, followed by their irreversible adsorption and the formation of a cluster of cells. These cells drive the migration of a second wave of zoospores (several hundreds cells) by setting up an external chemotactic gradient leading to massive zoospore encystment and cyst‐orientated germination. Zoospores that are still swimming at this stage circulate within the nascent biofilm by opening channels. Concomitantly, the cell population secretes various substances to elaborate an extracellular mucilage. Embedded within the extracellular matrix, biofilm cells are organized into a structured community as coacervates. The granular surface is composed of individual cysts, located on the outside of the microcolony. Hyphae from these cysts plunge downwards towards the dense core formed by the founder cells. This report is the first to show the installation and organization of a biofilm formed by eukaryotic cells on plant surfaces. The P. parasitica microcolonies constitute heterogeneous microenvironments for the embedded and circulating cells. They may affect plant–pathogen interactions by serving as reservoirs for pathogenic microorganisms, as protecting niche against host defences or as structures for infecting populations.
Feline early life ocular disease
Authors: Jacobi Susan , Dubielzig Richard R. 
Published: April 2008

AbstractObjectives   Histomorphologic changes in six globes from six cats, which experienced early life ocular disease of undetermined etiology, are described.Design   A retrospective morphologic study of six eyes from six cats with early life ocular surface disease of unknown etiology, from 2002 to 2006 extracted from a pathology collection, which includes 2200 feline submissions.Procedure   Sections of affected globes, stained with H&E were examined with a light microscope.Results   The mean age of the affected cats, at the time of enucleation, was 7.5 months ranging from 7 weeks to 2 years. The cats were one male, one female, one male neutered, and one female spayed cat. For the remaining two cats the sex was not known. All cats were DSH. Significant histomorphologic findings included collapse of the globe in all cases and a broad corneal perforation with protrusion of the anterior uvea, which was epithelialized in all cases. Three cases revealed uveal hematopoiesis in the anterior and posterior uvea. All cases had recognizable corneal tissue at the limbus on both sides. Inflammation in all cases consisted of variable but generally mild uveitis and no eyes had endophthalmitis. Four of the globes had no recognizable lens tissue. Three of the cats had symblepharon formation described as part of the clinical condition. The other three cases had no mention of symblepharon.Conclusions   These cases are considered to represent changes associated with early life corneal ablation of unknown etiology. Uveal prolapse, mild inflammation, and symblepharon are considered to be either secondary or caused by the same destructive primary event that affected the cornea. These cases are the first cases we are aware of with uveal extramedullary hematopoiesis in cats. Careful consideration of cell morphology is necessary to distinguish this condition from round cell neoplasms or inflammation.
Positive surgical margins during robotic radical prostatectomy: a contemporary analysis of risk factors
Authors: Liss Michael , Osann Kathryn , Ornstein David 
Published: April 2008

OBJECTIVETo determine the risk factors (clinical, pathological and technical) for positive surgical margins (PSMs) after robotically assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP), as a PSM is associated with an increased risk of biochemical recurrence and often responsible for significant patient anxiety.PATIENTS AND METHODSBetween November 2003 and March 2007, 216 consecutive patients had an RARP by one fellowship‐trained urological oncologist. The surgical pathological specimens were fixed and processed using standard techniques, and assessed by a pathologist at the same institution. A PSM was defined as the presence of cancer adjacent to the inked margin. The clinical charts were reviewed retrospectively under an approved institutional review board protocol. Univariable and multivariable methods, including logistic regression models, were used to analyse the clinical, pathological and technical risk factors for PSM.RESULTSThe overall prevalence of PSM was 14.8% (32/216), and 5.4% (8/149) for pT2 cancers. The only preoperative factor that was associated with a greater risk of a PSM was the serum prostate‐specific antigen (PSA) level (P = 0.012) and PSA density (P = 0.005). Age, clinical stage and clinical Gleason grade were not predictors of a PSM. The overall and pT2 PSM rate remained constant throughout the series of 216 patients (P = 0.371), indicating that the initial experience for RARP was not associated with a significantly greater risk of a PSM. However, there was a small independent ‘learning curve’ effect, with a lower rate of PSM associated with each increment of 25 patients (odds ratio 0.8, 95% confidence interval 0.6–1.0), supported by the significantly decreasing trend in PSM for pT3 cancers over time (P = 0.031) Although there was no significant increase over time in PSM with the use of an endostapler to control the dorsal venous complex (DVC), there was a significant learning effect, with a decrease in the PSM rate specifically in pT3 cancers using the suture technique (P = 0.005). A nerve‐sparing procedure increased the risk of PSM in multivariable analysis (P = 0.03). As expected, pathological stage and pathological Gleason grade were the strongest predictors of PSM (P < 0.001).CONCLUSIONThe most important risk factors for a PSM after RARP are the preoperative PSA level, PSA density, pathological stage and Gleason grade. PSM rates for a surgeon in their initial experience can be comparable to that of a surgeon experienced in RARP. Using a stapling device to control the DVC does not appear to increase the risk of a PSM, although nerve‐sparing increases the rates of PSM in extraprostatic prostate cancer.
The greening and browning of Alaska based on 1982–2003 satellite data
Authors: Verbyla David 
Published: April 2008

AbstractAim To examine the trends of 1982–2003 satellite‐derived normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) values at several spatial scales within tundra and boreal forest areas of Alaska.Location Arctic and subarctic Alaska.Methods Annual maximum NDVI data from the twice monthly Global Inventory Modelling and Mapping Studies (GIMMS) NDVI 1982–2003 data set with 64‐km2pixels were extracted from a spatial hierarchy including three large regions: ecoregion polygons within regions, ecozone polygons within boreal ecoregions and 100‐km climate station buffers. The 1982–2003 trends of mean annual maximum NDVI values within each area, and within individual pixels, were computed using simple linear regression. The relationship between NDVI and temperature and precipitation was investigated within climate station buffers.Results  At the largest spatial scale of polar, boreal and maritime regions, the strongest trend was a negative trend in NDVI within the boreal region. At a finer scale of ecoregion polygons, there was a strong positive NDVI trend in cold arctic tundra areas, and a strong negative trend in interior boreal forest areas. Within boreal ecozone polygons, the weakest negative trends were from areas with a maritime climate or colder mountainous ecozones, while the strongest negative trends were from warmer basin ecozones. The trends from climate station buffers were similar to ecoregion trends, with no significant trends from Bering tundra buffers, significant increasing trends among arctic tundra buffers and significant decreasing trends among interior boreal forest buffers. The interannual variability of NDVI among the arctic tundra buffers was related to the previous summer warmth index. The spatial pattern of increasing tundra NDVI at the pixel level was related to the west‐to‐east spatial pattern in changing climate across arctic Alaska. There was no significant relationship between interannual NDVI and precipitation or temperature among the boreal forest buffers. The decreasing NDVI trend in interior boreal forests may be due to several factors including increased insect/disease infestations, reduced photosynthesis and a change in root/leaf carbon allocation in response to warmer and drier growing season climate.Main conclusions There was a contrast in trends of 1982–2003 annual maximum NDVI, with cold arctic tundra significantly increasing in NDVI and relatively warm and dry interior boreal forest areas consistently decreasing in NDVI. The annual maximum NDVI from arctic tundra areas was strongly related to a summer warmth index, while there were no significant relationships in boreal areas between annual maximum NDVI and precipitation or temperature. Annual maximum NDVI was not related to spring NDVI in either arctic tundra or boreal buffers.
The lack of a systematic validation of reference genes: a serious pitfall undervalued in reverse transcription‐polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) analysis in plants
Authors: Gutierrez Laurent , Mauriat Mélanie , Guénin Stéphanie , Pelloux Jérôme , Lefebvre Jean‐François , Louvet Romain , Rusterucci Christine , Moritz Thomas , Guerineau François , Bellini Catherine , Van Wuytswinkel Olivier 
Published: April 2008

SummaryReverse transcription‐polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) approaches have been used in a large proportion of transcriptome analyses published to date. The accuracy of the results obtained by this method strongly depends on accurate transcript normalization using stably expressed genes, known as references. Statistical algorithms have been developed recently to help validate reference genes, and most studies of gene expression in mammals, yeast and bacteria now include such validation. Surprisingly, this important approach is under‐utilized in plant studies, where putative housekeeping genes tend to be used as references without any appropriate validation. Using quantitative RT‐PCR, the expression stability of several genes commonly used as references was tested in various tissues of Arabidopsis thaliana and hybrid aspen (Populus tremula × Populus tremuloides). It was found that the expression of most of these genes was unstable, indicating that their use as references is inappropriate. The major impact of the use of such inappropriate references on the results obtained by RT‐PCR is demonstrated in this study. Using aspen as a model, evidence is presented indicating that no gene can act as a universal reference, implying the need for a systematic validation of reference genes. For the first time, the extent to which the lack of a systematic validation of reference genes is a stumbling block to the reliability of results obtained by RT‐PCR in plants is clearly shown.
Conditional Belonging: Farm Workers and the Cultural Politics of Recognition in Zimbabwe
Authors: Rutherford Blair 
Published: April 2008

ABSTRACTThis article examines Zimbabwean land politics and the study of rural interventions, including agrarian reform, more broadly, using the analytical framework of territorialized ‘modes of belonging’ and their ‘cultural politics of recognition’. Modes of belonging are the routinized discourses, social practices and institutional arrangements through which people make claims for resources and rights, the ways through which they become ‘incorporated’ in particular places. In these spatialized forms of power and authority, particular cultural politics of recognition operate; these are the cultural styles of interaction that become privileged as proper forms of decorum and morality informing dependencies and interdependencies. The author traces a hegemonic mode of belonging identified as ‘domestic government’, put in place on European farms in Zimbabwe's colonial period, and shows how it was shaped by particular political and economic conjunctures in the first twenty years of Independence after 1980. Domestic government provided a conditional belonging for farm workers in terms of claims to limited resources on commercial farms while positioning them in a way that made them marginal citizens in the nation at large. This is the context for the behaviour of land‐giving authorities which have actively discriminated against farm workers during the politicized and violent land redistribution processes that began in 2000. Most former farm workers are now seeking other forms of dependencies, typically more precarious and generating fewer resources and services than they had accessed on commercial farms, with their own particular cultural politics of recognition, often tied to demonstrating support to the ruling political party.
Explaining the Failure of Thailand's Anti‐corruption Regime
Authors: Mutebi Alex M. 
Published: April 2008

ABSTRACTDespite the presence of strong anti‐corruption policies, state and regulatory capture may persist and thrive in the highest echelons of government. This article explores such a case, that of Thailand under former Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra. The author argues that the primary explanation for this contradiction lies in Thailand's post‐1997 anti‐corruption framework. Because of the ascendancy of a business–politics nexus more powerful in blocking reform than Thai constitutional drafters had anticipated, and because of the decline in political contestability as a result of Thaksin's control of both the legislature and the executive, the stage was set for a dramatic increase in the levels of state capture. The author suggests that effective control of such political corruption calls for a strategy which extends far beyond the technocratic approaches used by Thai reformers in the mid to late 1990s.