bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Etiology and outcome of acute liver failure: Retrospective analysis of 50 patients treated at a single center
Authors: Hiramatsu Akira , Takahashi Shoichi , Aikata Hiroshi , Azakami Takahiro , Katamura Yoshio , Kawaoka Tomokazu , Uka Kiminori , Yamashina Keitaro , Takaki Shintaro , Kodama Hideaki , Jeong Soo Cheol , Imamura Michio , Kawakami Yoshiiku , Chayama Kazuaki 
Published: July 2008

AbstractBackground and Aim:  Acute liver failure (ALF) remains a devastating disease carrying considerable mortality. Since deceased donor liver transplantation is rarely performed in Japan, the artificial liver support system (ALS) and living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) are the main modalities used for treatment of ALF. The aim of this study was to analyze the outcome of ALF patients and to evaluate therapies for ALF according to etiology.Methods:  Fifty consecutive patients with ALF were treated between January 1990 and December 2006. Prior to 1997, patients received ALS only. After 1997, ALS and/or LDLT were applied. LDLT was performed in 10 patients.Results:  Four of 15 (27%) pre‐1997 ALF patients survived, and 16 of 35 (46%) post‐1997 ALF patients survived, including eight who underwent LDLT. The causes of ALF were acute hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in 18%, severe acute exacerbation (SAE) of chronic HBV infection in 18%, autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) in 8%, and cryptogenic hepatitis in 44%. In total, 67% of the patients with ALF caused by acute HBV infection and AIH were cured without LDLT; only 11% of patients with ALF caused by SAE of HBV and 24% of cryptogenic hepatitis were successfully treated without LDLT. Notably, 80% of patients with cryptogenic hepatitis who underwent LDLT survived.Conclusion:  Since 1997, the survival rate of ALF patients has increased, mainly due to the introduction of LDLT. Liver transplantation should be performed especially in patients with ALF caused by SAE of HBV and cryptogenic hepatitis.
Model consisting of ultrasonographic and simple blood indexes accurately identify compensated hepatitis B cirrhosis
Authors: Chen Yong‐Peng , Dai Lin , Wang Jing‐Lin , Zhu You‐Fu , Feng Xiao‐Rong , Hou Jin‐Lin 
Published: July 2008

AbstractBackground and Aim:  Several models for significant fibrosis or cirrhosis have been introduced for hepatitis C, but are seldom for hepatitis B. The present study retrospectively evaluates the relationship between ultrasonography, blood tests, and fibrosis stage, and constructs a model for predicting compensated cirrhosis.Methods:  A total of 653 patients with chronic hepatitis B who underwent liver biopsies, ultrasonographic scanning, and routine blood tests were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into the model set and validation set. Blood tests and ultrasonographic indexes were analyzed statistically. An ultrasonographic scoring system consisting of liver parenchyma, gallbladder, hepatic vessel, and splenomegaly was introduced.Results:  There were significant differences between cirrhosis and other fibrosis stages in ultrasonographic indexes of liver parenchyma, gallbladder, hepatic vessel, and splenomegaly. Ultrasonographic scores were significantly different between F4 and other fibrosis, and significantly correlated with fibrosis stage. Apart from alanine aminotransferase and alkaline phosphatase, blood tests and patients' age were correlated with fibrosis, and were significantly different between patients with and without cirrhosis. The model for cirrhosis indexes consisting of ultrasonographic score, patient's age, and variables, including platelet, albumin, and bilirubin predicted cirrhosis with area under receiver–operator curve of 0.907 in the model set and 0.849 in the validation set. Using proper cut‐off values, nearly 81% patients could be accurately assessed for the absence or presence of cirrhosis.Conclusion:  The model consisting of ultrasonographic score, patients' age, blood variables of platelet, albumin, and bilirubin can identify hepatitis B cirrhosis with a high degree of accuracy. The application of this model would greatly reduce the number of biopsies.
Does hyaluronic acid stimulate tumor growth after endoscopic mucosal resection?
Authors: Sohn Dae Kyung , Chang Hee Jin , Choi Hyo Seong , Jeong Seung‐Yong , Kook Myeong‐Cherl , Kim Chan Gyoo , Choi Il Ju 
Published: July 2008

AbstractBackground and Aim:  A submucosal injection of sodium hyaluronate is widely used for mucosal elevation in endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) or endoscopic submucosal dissection procedures; however, the oncologic safety of sodium hyaluronate remains unknown. Hyaluronate is the main ligand for CD44 and this interaction was reported to promote tumor progression in in vitro or animal studies. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of sodium hyaluronate on tumor growth after EMR for gastrointestinal cancers.Methods:  The study included 18 consecutive patients who underwent surgery for locally‐recurrent or remnant gastrointestinal cancers after EMR from January 2001 to December 2006. The immunohistochemical expression levels of Ki‐67, CD44, ErbB2, and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) were evaluated in the primary tumor tissue and the recurrent tumor. The protein expression in recurrent or remnant lesions was also compared between the sodium hyaluronate group and non‐sodium hyaluronate group.Results:  Sodium hyaluronate was used in nine of 14 cases with EMR for gastric cancers and in one of four cases for colon cancers. The time to operation after EMR was 133 days (5–687 days). An analysis of the immunohistochemical expression levels between primary and recurrent or remnant tumors showed no significant differences in the expression levels of Ki‐67, CD44, ErbB2, and EGFR with or without sodium hyaluronate.Conclusions:  We found no evidence that sodium hyaluronate stimulates the growth of remnant tumors after EMR.
A competency‐based test of bronchoscopic knowledge using the Essential Bronchoscopist: An initial concept study
Authors: DAVOUDI Mohsen , QUADRELLI Silvia , OSANN Kathryn , COLT Henri G. 
Published: July 2008

Background and objective:  Competency‐based training and assessment are increasingly replacing the traditional structure‐ and process‐based model of medical education. The web‐based Essential Bronchoscopist (EB) is an open access, laddered, competency‐based curriculum of question‐answer sets pertaining to basic bronchoscopic knowledge, accessible in five languages. The purpose of this study was to use consensus to evaluate whether question‐answer sets (items) from the EB could provide material from which to devise competency‐based tests of bronchoscopic knowledge that could be used in countries with different health‐care environments.Methods:  Ten junior and five senior bronchoscopists in Argentina and the USA were asked to identify the material in each of the 186 items of the EB as either ‘not necessary’, ‘necessary’ or ‘absolutely necessary’ for inclusion in a competency‐based test of bronchoscopic knowledge. The kappa statistic was used to analyse inter‐rater agreement.Results:  More than 80% of the 30 participants rated 150 of 186 items as necessary or absolutely necessary. Seventy items were rated as absolutely necessary by more than 50% of participants and as necessary or absolutely necessary by more than 90%. There was no statistically significant difference between items selected, based on level of training or environment of practice.Conclusion:  Consensus among junior and senior bronchoscopists from two culturally different health‐care environments demonstrated that question‐answer sets from the EB can be used to provide material for competency‐based tests of bronchoscopic knowledge.
Association between angiotensin‐converting enzyme gene polymorphisms and exercise performance in patients with COPD
Authors: ZHANG Xiaolei , WANG Chen , DAI Huaping , LIN Yingxiang , ZHANG Jun 
Published: July 2008

Background and objective:  Recent studies have shown that polymorphisms of the angiotensin‐converting enzyme (ACE) gene are closely associated with pulmonary disorders. The ACE gene is involved in the regulation of inflammatory reactions to lung injury, respiratory drive, erythropoiesis and tissue oxygenation. The hypothesis for this study was that the ACE gene may be associated with the ventilatory response to exercise and the aerobic work efficiency of skeletal muscle in patients with COPD.Methods:  Sixty‐one Chinese Han COPD patients and 57 healthy control subjects performed incremental cardiopulmonary exercise testing on a cycle ergometer. ACE genotypes were determined using PCR amplification.Results:  Resting lung function and blood gas index were not significantly different among the three ACE genotype COPD groups. Similarly, there were no significant differences in AT, maximal O2 uptake, maximal O2 pulse, maximal dyspnoea index, ventilatory response (ΔVE/ΔVCO2), O2 cost of ventilation (VO2/W/VE), end‐tidal partial pressure of carbon dioxide at maximal exercise and maximal SaO2 among the three ACE genotype COPD patients. Maximal work load and aerobic work efficiency were higher in the COPD group with the II genotype than in those with the ID or DD genotype. There were no significant differences in resting lung function and cardiopulmonary exercise testing parameters among the three ACE genotype control groups.Conclusions:  The ACE gene may be involved in the regulation of skeletal muscle aerobic work efficiency, but is not associated with the ventilatory responses to exercise in COPD patients.
Use of sperm precedence to infer the overwintering cost of insecticide resistance in the Colorado potato beetle
Authors: Baker Mitchell B. , Porter Adam H. 
Published: July 2008

Abstract1 Resistance to insecticides is a model system for studying adaptation. Although selection for resistance is always strong in areas and seasons where populations are exposed to insecticides, costs of resistance, which may only be expressed in the absence of insecticide use, will shape how quickly resistance will evolve.2 We used sperm precedence to measure the shifts in resistance to imidacloprid in a natural population during winter diapause in the Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). Because adult beetles overwinter with viable autumn sperm, but sperm from spring matings take precedence over stored sperm, we used the difference in resistance of springmated and autumn‐mated overwintered females to estimate the shift in resistance during the winter. Offspring of autumn‐mated females were 2.7‐ or 2.5‐fold more resistant compared with offspring from spring‐mated females in two replicate trials.3 We also measured the resistance of late summer and spring emergent adults in fields treated and untreated with imidacloprid in the first year. Adults from the treated field were 13.7‐fold more resistant and adults from the untreated field were 2.6‐fold more resistant compared with the next spring’s emergers.4 These large costs of resistance observed in the field and inferred from resistance declines during diapause help to explain the observation that imidacloprid resistance has increased only slowly over the decade of widespread use against this species, and how insecticide resistance in general can cycle annually.
Growth and survival of larvae ofThaumetopoea pinivorainside and outside a local outbreak area
Authors: Aimi Andrea , Larsson Stig , Ronnås Cecilia , Frazão Joana , Battisti Andrea 
Published: July 2008

Abstract1 Outbreaks of herbivorous insects tend to be spatially restricted, possibly because of demographic differences between inside and outside the outbreak area. In some cases, the margin of the outbreak area is distinct, allowing comparisons of adjacent areas that may identify factors leading to such differences in abundance. The northern pine processionary mothThaumetopoea pinivorapresently occurs at outbreak densities within a well‐defined area of approximately 3000 ha on the island of Gotland, south Sweden. We investigated whether cohorts of young larvae (first and second instar) had higher growth rate and survival inside or outside the outbreak area.2 Group‐feeding appears to promote outbreaks in certain insect groups. BecauseT. pinivoralarvae are highly social, we also compared larval performance between groups of different sizes inside and outside of the outbreak area: ‘small’ (33 eggs/group) and ‘normal’ (100 eggs/group).3 Averaged over group size, whole colony mortality through the first two instars was two‐fold higher in the non‐outbreak area compared with the outbreak area. Mortality of individual larvae in the surviving colonies, however, did not differ between the two areas. There were only small differences in food quality (toughness, nitrogen content) between the areas, with no detectable effects on larval performance.4 Larval relative growth rate did not differ between reduced and normal‐sized groups, which is surprising given that growth rate is known to increase with group size in other group‐feeding lepidopterans.5 Reduced group size negatively affected larval survival, particularly in the outbreak area; by contrast, normal‐sized groups survived equally well in the two areas. Wood ants (Formicaspp.) were more common outside the outbreak area, and appeared to be the main cause of colony mortality at low larval density. A different result was observed with regard to per‐capita mortality, which was higher in the outbreak area. We speculate that this could have been due to solitary predators being locally specialized onT. pinivorain the high‐density area.
Changing dynamics of the pine beauty moth (Panolis flammea) in Britain: the loss of enemy free space?
Authors: Hicks Barry J. , Leather Simon R. , Watt Allan D. 
Published: July 2008

Abstract1 The pine beauty moth Panolis flammea has two main host plants in Britain: Pinus sylvestris (Scots pine), which is the ancestral food plant where the insect is never abundant enough to cause tree mortality, and Pinus contorta (lodgepole pine), an introduced host tree that has experienced periodic widespread tree mortality due to this pest.2 We review the recent literature, published mostly after the year 2000, regarding the impact of natural enemies on the population dynamics of P. flammea in Britain.3 The natural enemies of P. flammea are more diverse and abundant in Scots pine habitat than in lodgepole pine habitat and some of them show differential selection for P. flammea larvae in Scots pine habitat over those located in lodgepole pine habitat.4 It is concluded that the difference in the population dynamics of this insect in the two different habitats was probably the result of the P. flammea finding enemy‐free space in lodgepole pine habitat.5 Recent evidence on the diversity and impact of natural enemies on lodgepole pine has demonstrated that they currently have a much more significant impact on this pest than they did in the 1970s and 1980s, when outbreaks were frequent.
Potential for pre‐release diet supplements to increase the sexual performance and longevity of male Queensland fruit flies
Authors: Perez‐Staples Diana , Harmer Aaron M. T. , Collins Samuel R. , Taylor Phillip W. 
Published: July 2008

Abstract1 Recent studies have shown that continuous access to a protein source (yeast hydrolysate) can greatly enhance the sexual performance of male Queensland fruit flies (Bactrocera tryoni; ‘Q‐flies’). However, in Sterile Insect Technique programmes used to eradicate or suppress wild populations, mass‐reared Q‐flies are typically fed only sucrose and water for up to 2 days before release.2 We investigated whether adding a protein source to the diet of male Q‐flies for a 24‐ or 48‐h window after emergence and then removing it is sufficient to enhance mating probability, latency to mate, copula duration, probability of sperm storage, number of sperm stored, female remating tendency and longevity of male Q‐flies.3 Protein‐fed males were more likely to mate than males fed only sucrose, especially when young. Protein‐fed males also had shorter mating latencies and longer copulations than protein‐deprived males.4 Females mated by protein‐fed males were more likely to store sperm, stored more sperm and were less likely to remate than were females mated by protein‐deprived males. Females were also less likely to remate if their first mate had been large.5 Overall, providing male Q‐flies access to a protein source for a 24‐ or 48‐h window early on in their adult life was sufficient to greatly enhance all assessed measures of performance. Although 24‐h access was sufficient for a notable enhancement, further benefits were evident in males provided 48‐h access.6 The results are discussed in terms of the practical implications for Sterile Insect Technique programs used to eradicate or suppress wild Q‐fly populations.
Stability of insecticide resistance in Frankliniella occidentalis to acrinathrin, formetanate and methiocarb
Authors: Contreras J. , Espinosa P. J. , Quinto V. , Grávalos C. , Fernández E. , Bielza P. 
Published: July 2008

Abstract1 The stability of the resistance in the Western Flower Thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande) to selective insecticides (acrinathrin, formetanate and methiocarb) was studied in both laboratory and field conditions.2 In laboratory strains reared over a sufficient number of generations in insecticide free‐conditions, levels of resistance were stable.3 Laboratory strains selected for resistance showed moderate to very high levels of resistance. In the strain ACR9, very highly resistant to acrinathrin [resistance factor (RF) > 1000‐fold], resistance was maintained with little change after 5 and 8 months without acrinathrin exposure. In the MET9 strain, resistance to methiocarb (RF = 40) was maintained after 5 months without selection pressure (RF = 33). However, 3 months later, there was a significant increase in the susceptibility to this insecticide (RF = 10). The formetanate resistance in the FOR7 strain showed a no significant decline during the 8 months without selection (from RF = 31 to RF = 17).4 The field‐collected strains from sweet pepper greenhouses (PTF4, PP2 and PM5) showed a marked fall in the LC50 to acrinathrin and methiocarb, and a slight decrease to formetanate, after being reared in the laboratory in the absence of selection pressure for 8 months.5 In greenhouses, a significant fall in resistance to the selected insecticides was produced when insecticide pressure was withdrawn, at the end of the season, probably caused by the immigration of thrips from nearby crops or weeds, and the dilution of resistance through interbreeding with susceptible individuals.6 Factors influencing stability or reversion of insecticide resistance are discussed.
Does Animal Feeding Operation Pollution Hurt Public Health? A National Longitudinal Study of Health Externalities Identified by Geographic Shifts in Livestock Production
Authors: Sneeringer Stacy 
Published: July 2008

AbstractThe Environmental Protection Agency is currently gathering data to regulate livestock facilities under the Clean Air Act, legislation that purports to protect public health. To set rational policy, estimates of health externalities associated with livestock farming are necessary. This study uses geographic shifts in the industry to measure the impact of pollution on infant health. The article finds that a doubling of production leads to a 7.4% increase in infant mortality. This finding is robust with respect to the inclusion of multiple fixed and time‐varying controls. The mortality increases are driven by elevated levels of respiratory diseases, providing suggestive evidence of an air pollution mechanism.
Do Futures Benefit Farmers?
Authors: Lence Sergio H. 
Published: July 2008

AbstractSimulations are used to analyze welfare and market‐ and farm‐level effects of making futures available to producers of a storable commodity. Key features of the model are the explicit consideration of dynamic impacts due to inventories, and of aggregate market effects associated with futures adoption by some producers. Application to the natural rubber market shows that futures availability can lead to sizable market‐ and farm‐level effects. Futures availability enhances consumer welfare, reduces nonadopter welfare, and yields important welfare gains for adopters when their market share is small and welfare losses when they account for a sufficiently large market share.
The Role of Risk and Transaction Costs in Contract Design: Evidence from Farmland Lease Contracts in U.S. Agriculture
Authors: Fukunaga Keita , Huffman Wallace E. 
Published: July 2008

AbstractThe objective of this article is to provide new empirical evidence on landlord‐tenant choices of share versus cash‐rent contracts in U.S. agriculture. The focus is on the contribution of explanatory variables that represent transaction costs, risk‐sharing incentives, or both. An empirical model of contract choice is tested against the 1999 Agricultural Economics and Land Ownership Survey (AELOS) and finds mixed evidence for low transaction cost and risk‐sharing‐incentive motives for landlord‐tenant choices of a share versus cash‐rent contract. However, the behavior of landlords and tenants is consistent with them being risk averse. Although it is standard to control for the riskiness of the principal's task that is contracted, we find that other attributes of the landlord are an important part of a relatively complex story for U.S. land tenancy contacting. The latter results have generally been ignored in other published landlord‐tenant contracting studies.
The Effects of Exchange Rate Volatility on Agricultural Trade
Authors: Kandilov Ivan T. 
Published: July 2008

AbstractI extend Cho, Sheldon, and McCorriston's (2002) analysis of the effect of exchange rate volatility on agricultural trade among the G‐10 countries to a broad sample of developed and developing nations. I replicate their original finding that exchange rate volatility has a large negative impact on agricultural trade between G‐10 members. After controlling for agricultural export subsidies, which are correlated with exchange rate volatility, I show that the original impact declines by half. Using the extended sample, I find that the effect of exchange rate volatility is much larger for developing country exporters than for developed exporters.
The Gains from Differentiated Policies to Control Stock Pollution when Producers Are Heterogeneous
Authors: Xabadia Angels , Goetz Renan U. , Zilberman David 
Published: July 2008

AbstractWe derive optimal input taxes to control stock pollution problems generated by heterogeneous agents. The taxes vary over time and in response to differences of asset quality and technology choice. We also derive second‐best policies and compare them to the efficient policy and also among themselves. Different policies will affect the timing for when, and the extent to which, conservation technologies are adopted. A numerical example, based on the California drainage problem, shows significant efficiency gains from the optimal policy compared to no intervention, but much of the gains are lost with second‐best interventions. The gains from optimal policies do not always increase with the degree of heterogeneity.
The Choice of Regulatory Instrument When There Is Uncertainty About Compliance with Fisheries Regulations
Authors: Hansen Lars G. , Jensen Frank , Russell Clifford 
Published: July 2008

AbstractNoncompliance is an important problem for fisheries regulators, and a number of studies have considered optimal enforcement issues within fisheries regulation. Our article extends this literature by studying the implications of noncompliance for the choice between tax and quota regulation. We first develop a general stock‐recruitment model of a search fishery with illegal landings and show that compliance uncertainty (where the regulator is uncertain about the extent of noncompliance) generates an efficiency advantage for taxes over individual transferable quotas. We also provide evidence that uncertainty about compliance is an important source of uncertainty for regulators.