bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The Gynaecologic Leiden Questionnaire: psychometric properties of a self‐report questionnaire of sexual function and vaginal changes for gynaecological cancer patients
Authors: Pieterse Q. D. , Ter Kuile M. M. , Maas C. P. , Kenter G. G. 
Published: November 2007

AbstractBackground: The aim of this study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the items concerning sexual functioning of the Gynaecologic Leiden Questionnaire (LQ), which consists of items for post operative morbidity for women with cancer.Methods: The total study sample consisted of 198 subjects: 66 patients treated for cervical cancer, 66 patients with sexual complaints and 66 subjects from the general population.Results: By means of factor analysis three subscales were derived: Female Sexual Complaints, Female Sexual Function and Female Orgasm. The reliability of the subscales appeared to be satisfactory. The scores on the three subscales differentiated well between the patients treated for cervical cancer, patients with sexual complaints and the subjects from the general population. Furthermore, the subscales were sensitive to changes within the patients treated for cervical cancer. The convergent and divergent construct validities of the LQ were investigated using other instruments measuring sexual functioning, sexual dissatisfaction, marital distress, general life distress and psychological distress. The LQ subscales were found to represent relatively independent constructs.Conclusion: The results support the reliability and psychometric validity of the LQ in the assessment of sexual functioning and vaginal changes in gynaecological cancer patients. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Artificial Neural Networks in ADMET Modeling: Prediction of Blood–Brain Barrier Permeation
Authors: Guerra Angela , Páez Juan A. , Campillo Nuria E. 
Published: November 2007

AbstractA supervised artificial neural network (ANN) model has been developed for the accurate prediction of the Blood–Brain Barrier (BBB) partition (in Log BB scale) of chemical compounds. A structural diverse set of 108 compounds of known experimental Log BB value was chosen for this study. The molecules were defined by means of a non‐supervised neural network using our CODES program. This program codifies each molecule into a set of numerical parameters taking into account exclusively the information of its chemical structure from its Simplified Molecular Input Line System (SMILES) code. The model obtained averages 83% of accuracy in the training set and of 73% in the external prediction set. The model is able to predict correctly the behavior of a very heterogeneous series of compounds in terms of the BBB permeation. The results indicate that this approach may represent a useful tool for the prediction of Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, Excretion and Toxicity (ADMET) properties. CODES© is available free of charge for academic institutions.
The determination of melamine in muscle tissue by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry
Authors: Filigenzi Michael S. , Tor Elizabeth R. , Poppenga Robert H. , Aston Linda A. , Puschner Birgit 
Published: November 2007

AbstractIn early 2007 it was determined that the compound melamine, suspected of having been involved in the deaths of numerous pets, had been fed to hogs intended for human consumption. This report describes a method for the analysis of melamine in porcine muscle tissue using solid‐phase extraction (SPE) and high‐performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC/MS/MS). Melamine was extracted in 50% acetonitrile in water. Homogenates were centrifuged and supernatants were acidified and washed with methylene chloride. The aqueous extracts were cleaned up using mixed‐mode C8/strong cation exchange SPE and then concentrated, fortified with a stable isotope‐labeled analog of melamine, and analyzed by HPLC/MS/MS. Gradient HPLC separation was performed using an ether‐linked phenyl column with ammonium acetate/acetic acid and acetonitrile as the mobile phase. Multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode of two precursor‐product ion transitions for melamine and one for the internal standard was used. A five point calibration curve ranging from 50 to 2000 ng/mL of melamine in solvent was used to establish instrument response. The method was validated by analysis of seven replicate porcine muscle tissue samples fortified with 10 ng/g of melamine. The mean recovery for the seven replicates was 83% with 6.5% relative standard deviation and the calculated method detection limit was 1.7 ng/g. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Three‐dimensional growth of bovine hoof as recorded by carbon stable isotope ratios
Authors: Harrison Sabine M. , Monahan Frank J. , Zazzo Antoine , Bahar Bojlul , Moloney Aidan P. , Scrimgeour Charlie M. , Schmidt Olaf 
Published: November 2007

AbstractTo investigate the usefulness of bovine hooves as incremental tissues, the objective of this research was to gain a better understanding of hoof growth in three dimensions. In a controlled experiment, cattle were switched from a barley‐based diet to a maize‐based diet (C isotopic spacing between diets was 13.6‰) and maintained on this experimental diet for 168 days. To compare growth rates along the hoof wall, three slices were sampled post‐mortem from one bovine claw. In addition, one claw from each of three different animals was sampled at different depths from the surface to determine any possible time lag (‘offset’) in the laying down of keratin tissue layers. From each hoof as many as 41 superficial samples were taken over the first 60 mm, starting at the periople, and up to 12 samples were taken sequentially at increasing depths to a depth of 6 mm at five particular points on the surface. The growth rate of the abaxial wall of the bovine claw increased from the anterior to the posterior region of the bovine hoof. Analysis of the deep samples revealed that the deeper layers were younger than the surface layers. This offset was inversely related to the hoof growth rate, i.e. hooves with a high hoof growth rate showed a smaller offset. Observed offsets ranged between 9.2 ± 1.8 days per mm in depth for a high and 14.0 ± 2.8 days per mm in depth for a low hoof growth rate and were significantly different (t ≥ 3.92, p < 0.0005, n = 19 or 27). The results of this study demonstrate that when sampling hooves or hoof fragments for applications such as diet reconstruction, careful consideration needs to be given to sample location. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Effective asymmetric XML compression
Authors: Skibiński Przemysław , Grabowski Szymon , Swacha Jakub 
Published: November 2007

AbstractThe innate verbosity of the extensible markup language (XML) remains one of its main weaknesses, especially when large documents are concerned. This problem can be solved with the aid of dedicated XML compression algorithms.In this work, we describe XML word‐replacing transform (XML‐WRT), a fast and fully reversible XML transform, which, when combined with generally used LZ77‐style compression algorithms, allows to attain high compression ratios, comparable to those achieved by the current state‐of‐the‐art XML compressors. The resulting compression scheme is asymmetric in the sense that its decoder is much faster than the coder. This is a desirable practical property, as in many XML applications data are read much more often than written. The key features of the transform are dictionary‐based encoding of both document structure and content, separation of different content types into multiple streams, and dedicated encoding of specific patterns, including numbers and dates. The test results show that the proposed transform improves the XML compression efficiency of general‐purpose compressors on average by 35% in case of gzip, and 17% in case of LZMA. Compared with the current state‐of‐the‐art SCMPPM algorithm, XML‐WRT with LZMA attains over 2% better compression ratio, while being 55% faster. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The evaluation of sewage sludge and compost toxicity toHeterocypris incongruensin relation to inorganic and organic contaminants content
Authors: Oleszczuk Patryk 
Published: November 2007

AbstractSewage sludges and the composts were evaluated chemically and ecotoxicologically to determine their suitability as fertilizers for land application. Four municipal sewage sludges with various properties and pollutant contents were composted in aerobic conditions for 76 days. The content of heavy metals (Cd, Cu, Cr, Pb, Ni, Zn) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (14 from US EPA List) was analyzed in the sewage sludges and composts as well as together with their physico–chemical properties (total organic carbon, total nitrogen, pH, available forms of magnesium, phosphorus and potassium, cations content, cation exchange capacity, total of exchangeable bases). To evaluate the toxicity of the materials, bioassays with crustaceanHeterocypris incongruens(Ostracodtoxkit test) were performed. Neither physical–chemical properties nor heavy metal content underwent any significant changes during the composting process. However, composting significantly influenced the range of losses of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The magnitude and the ranges of changes in the toxicityH. incongruenswere found to be dependent on the tested parameter as well as on sewage sludge type and its dose. It was noted that composting could even increase the toxicity of sewage sludges. Sewage sludge toxicity was mainly determined by the presence of heavy metals, although for some sludges the contribution of organic pollutants as well as the synergistic activity of several factors could not be excluded. According to proposed classification (on the basis of Ostracodtoxkit test) only one sewage sludge/compost was suitable for land application. The studies conducted provide interesting information pointing to the necessity to supplement chemical studies with biological assays. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Environ Toxicol 22: 587–596, 2007.
Effects of amendments of N, P, Fe on phytoextraction of Cd, Pb, Cu, and Zn in soil of Zhangshi by mustard, cabbage, and sugar beet
Authors: Sun Lina , Niu Zhixin , Sun Tieheng 
Published: November 2007

AbstractSoil contaminated with Cd, Pb, Cu, and Zn in the Zhangshi irrigation area is very hard to be remediated. Phytoextraction is considered as an efficient method to remove these toxic metals from soil. In the present study, three vegetables including sugar beet (Beta vulgaris), mustard (Brassica juncea L.), and cabbage (Brassica oleracea L. var. capitata Linn.) were used to bioaccumulate heavy metals in soil through pots experiment for 90 days; and nutrient elements were applied to stimulate the phytoextraction of metals. Results of bioconcentration factors (BCF) and translocation factors (TF) from this study showed that these plants could phytoextract heavy metals, but the accumulation and translocation of metals differed with species of plants, categories of heavy metals, and some environmental conditions (e.g. nutrients). Meanwhile, the addition of nutrient elements, such as N, P, and Fe, could affect the phytoremediation of heavy metals via promoting the normal metabolism of vegetables or changing forms of metals. Results of this study could provide some available information for in‐site bioremediation of soil from Zhangshi irrigation area. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Environ Toxicol 22: 565–571, 2007.
Accuracy of transvaginal sonography and rectal endoscopic sonography in the diagnosis of deep infiltrating endometriosis
Authors: Bazot M. , Malzy P. , Cortez A. , Roseau G. , Amouyal P. , Daraï E. 
Published: November 2007

AbstractObjectivesTo compare the accuracy of transvaginal sonography (TVS) and rectal endoscopic sonography (RES) for the diagnosis of deep infiltrating endometriosis (DIE), with respect to surgical and histological findings.MethodsThis was a longitudinal study of 81 consecutive patients referred for surgical management of DIE, who underwent both TVS and RES preoperatively. The diagnostic criteria were identical for TVS and RES, and were based on visualization of hypoechoic areas in specific locations (uterosacral ligaments, vagina, rectovaginal septum and intestine). We calculated the sensitivity, specificity, predictive values and accuracy of TVS and RES for the diagnosis of DIE.ResultsEndometriosis was confirmed histologically in 80/81 (98.7%) patients. Endometriomas and DIE were present in 43.2% and 97.5% of the women, respectively. For the diagnosis of DIE overall, TVS and RES, respectively, had a sensitivity of 87.3% and 74.7%, a positive predictive value of 98.6% and 98.3%, and an accuracy of 86.4% and 74%. For the diagnosis of uterosacral endometriosis, they had a sensitivity of 80.8% and 46.6%, a specificity of 75% and 50.0%, a positive predictive value of 96.7% and 89.5% and a negative predictive value of 30% and 9.3%. For the diagnosis of intestinal endometriosis, they had a sensitivity of 92.6% and 88.9%, a specificity of 100% and 92.6%, a positive predictive value of 100% and 96% and a negative predictive value of 87% and 80.6%.ConclusionTVS is apparently more accurate than is RES for predicting DIE in specific locations, and should thus be the first‐line imaging technique in this setting. Copyright © 2007 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
First‐trimester ultrasound and biochemical markers of aneuploidy and the prediction of preterm or early preterm delivery
Authors: Spencer K. , Cowans N. J. , Molina F. , Kagan K. O. , Nicolaides K. H. 
Published: November 2007

AbstractObjectivesTo examine the clinical utility of the first‐trimester markers of aneuploidy in their ability to predict preterm delivery.MethodsWe examined 54 722 singleton pregnancies with no chromosomal abnormality and with complete outcome data that had undergone screening for trisomy 21 by a combination of fetal nuchal translucency (NT) thickness and maternal serum free β‐human chorionic gonadotropin (β‐hCG) and pregnancy‐associated plasma protein‐A (PAPP‐A) at 11 + 0 and 13 + 6 weeks' gestation. The biochemical markers were converted to multiples of the median (MoM) of the expected normal median for a pregnancy of the same gestation and the measurements of fetal NT were expressed as the difference (delta) from the normal median NT for crown–rump length. The association between free β‐hCG, PAPP‐A and delta NT and the incidence of preterm delivery before 37 weeks or early preterm delivery before 34 weeks was assessed by comparing the relative incidence at a number of MoM or delta NT cut‐offs and at various centile cut‐offs. At various marker levels the likelihood ratios (LR) for preterm delivery and early preterm delivery were also calculated after excluding other adverse pregnancy complications.ResultsThe risk of preterm delivery increased with decreasing maternal serum PAPP‐A. In the 3132 cases delivering before 37 weeks the PAPP‐A MoM was 0.91 and in the 1060 cases delivering before 34 weeks the PAPP‐A MoM was 0.90. At the 5th centile of the normal outcome group for PAPP‐A (0.415 MoM) the odds ratios for delivery before 37 weeks and before 34 weeks were 1.92 and 2.35, respectively. The respective values for the 5th centile of free β‐hCG (0.41 MoM) were 1.18 and 1.08 and for the 95th centile of delta NT they were 0.91 and 0.77, respectively.ConclusionsLow levels of maternal serum PAPP‐A are associated, in the absence of an abnormal karyotype, with an increased risk of preterm or early preterm delivery. The LR profiles provided at various levels of PAPP‐A may be of some help in counseling women with such results and may raise awareness among healthcare professionals for increased surveillance in such cases. Copyright © 2007 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Outcome of type III Gaucher disease on enzyme replacement therapy: Review of 55 cases
Authors: Davies E. H. , Erikson A. , Collin‐Histed T. , Mengel E. , Tylki‐Szymanska A. , Vellodi A. 
Published: November 2007

SummaryThe European Task Force for Neuronopathic Gaucher Disease (NGD) met in 2006 to review its 2001 guidelines. Fifty‐five patients from five European countries were reviewed; 29 were male and 26 female. The majority of the patients were homozygous for the L444P mutation. All had been on enzyme replacement therapy (ERT). However, there was considerable variation in the dose of ERT, as well as an uneven distribution of risk factors. Thus, the oldest patients were on the lowest doses, and several had had a total splenectomy, while the youngest patients had a high proportion of compound heterozygosity and were on the highest doses, and very few had had a splenectomy. This heterogeneity rendered analysis very difficult. However, some observations were possible. The older patients appeared to remain relatively stable despite a low dose of ERT. In the younger patients, there was no clear effect of high‐dose ERT. However, the period of follow‐up was too short in many patients to draw valid conclusions. These data will be used to draw up revised guidelines.
Increased lung surfactant phosphatidylcholine in patients affected by lysosomal storage diseases
Authors: Buccoliero R. , Palmeri S. , Ciarleglio G. , Collodoro A. , De Santi M. M. , Federico A. 
Published: November 2007

SummarySandhoff disease, Gaucher disease type I and sialidosis type I are lysosomal storage disorders caused, respectively, by deficiency of activity of β‐hexosaminidase (storage of GM2 and GA2 ganglioside), glucosylceramidase (storage of glucosylceramide) and α‐neuraminidase (storage of glucopeptides and/or oligosaccharides). Progressive clinical systemic and neurological dysfunctions are observed. In these pathologies, respiratory infections often lead to death. Elevation of the lung surfactant phosphatidylcholine (PC) has previously been reported in the Hexb mouse, a model of Sandhoff disease. We evaluated phospholipids in the lung surfactant of patients affected by the described lysosomal diseases, observing a statistically significant increase of total lipid phosphate in the patients as compared with controls. Moreover, higher levels of PC in patients affected by sialidosis (3.6‐fold) and Gaucher (4‐fold) disease, and of PC (4.15‐fold) and phosphatidylethanolamine (2.3‐fold) in a patient affected by Sandhoff disease were noted. The latter confirms the previous results in the Hexb mouse. We suggest that changes in phospholipid metabolism can be common in different lysosomal storage disorders and can increase the susceptibility to respiratory infections, usually present in these disorders.
Elevated serum biotinidase activity in hepatic glycogen storage disorders–A convenient biomarker
Authors: Paesold‐Burda P. , Baumgartner M. R. , Santer R. , Bosshard N. U. , Steinmann B. 
Published: November 2007

SummaryAn elevated serum biotinidase activity in patients with glycogen storage disease (GSD) type Ia has been reported previously. The aim of this work was to investigate the specificity of the phenomenon and thus we expanded the study to other types of hepatic GSDs. Serum biotinidase activity was measured in a total of 68 GSD patients and was compared with that of healthy controls (8.7 ±10; range 7.0–10.6 mU/ml; n=6). We found an increased biotinidase activity in patients with GSD Ia (17.7 ±3.9; range: 11.4–24.8; n=21), GSD I non‐a (20.9 ±5.6; range 14.6–26.0; n=4), GSD III (12.5 ±–3.6; range 7.8–19.1; n=3), GSD VI (15.4 ±–2.0; range 14.1–17.7; n=) and GSD IX (14.0 ±–3.8; range: 7.5–21.6; n=22). The sensitivity of this test was 100% for patients with GSD Ia, GSD I non‐a and GSD VI, 62% for GSD III, and 77% for GSD IX, indicating reduced sensitivity for GSD III and GSD IX, respectively. In addition, we found elevated biotinidase activity in all sera from 5 patients with Fanconi–Bickel Syndrome (15.3 ±–3.7; range 11.0–19.4). Taken together, we propose serum biotinidase as a diagnostic biomarker for hepatic glycogen storage disorders.
Okulodentodigitale Dysplasie
Authors: Wiest T. , Grond-Ginsbach C. , Koch M.J. 
Published: November 2007

Zusammenfassung
Die seltene Erkrankung okulodentodigitale Dysplasie (ODDD), die in der Regel autosomal-dominant vererbt wird, ist charakterisiert durch Veränderungen der Augen, Zähne und der Finger und geht auf eine Mutation des GJA1-Gens zurück. Im Hinblick auf die Zahnveränderungen ist ein früher Zeitpunkt für Beurteilung und Behandlung von entscheidender Bedeutung. Im vorliegenden Fallbericht wird dargestellt, dass an verschiedenen Zähnen unterschiedlich stark ausgeprägte Veränderungen erkennbar werden können. Dies könnte erklären, dass in der Literatur die Zahnveränderungen bei ODDD so unterschiedlich beschrieben werden.
Changes in the risk structure of stock returns: Consumer Confidence and the dotcom bubble
Authors: Leger Lawrence , Leone Vitor 
Published: November 2007

AbstractChanges in the risk structure of stock returns may sometimes be very revealing. We examine economic variables that help explain principal components in UK stock returns, 01/1985 to 12/2001. The loading pattern on explanatory variables for the first component in a ‘bubble’ period is distinctive and consistent with a bubble/crash market. The second component shows a loading pattern on a Consumer Confidence variable in a pre‐bubble period only. We observe apparently systematic changes in the structure of risk, and conjecture that Consumer Confidence captures a change in market sentiment that could be a signal for the evolution of stock prices.
NEXCEL, a deductive spreadsheet
Authors: CERVESATO ILIANO 
Published: November 2007

AbstractUsability and usefulness have made the spreadsheet one of the most successful computing applications of all times: millions rely on it every day for anything from typing grocery lists to developing multimillion-dollar budgets. One thing spreadsheets are not very good at is manipulating the symbolic data and helping users make decisions based on them. By tapping into recent research in Logic Programming, Databases and Cognitive Psychology, we propose a deductive extension to the spreadsheet paradigm that precisely addresses this issue. The accompanying tool, which we call NEXCEL, is intended as an automated assistant for the daily reasoning and decision-making needs of computer users, in the same way as a spreadsheet application such as Microsoft Excel assists them every day with simple and complex calculations. Users without formal training in Logic or even Computer Science can interactively define logical rules in the same simple way as they define formulas in Excel. NEXCEL immediately evaluates these rules, thereby returning lists of values that satisfy them, again just like with numerical formulas. The deductive component is seamlessly integrated into the traditional spreadsheet so that a user not only still has access to the usual functionalities but is also able to use them as part of the logical inference and, dually, to embed deductive steps in a numerical calculation.
PrediCalc: a logical spreadsheet management system
Authors: KASSOFF MICHAEL , GENESERETH MICHAEL R. 
Published: November 2007

AbstractIn this article, we describe PrediCalc, a logical spreadsheet that allows for many-to-many constraints and propagation in all directions. We explain PrediCalc’s update mechanism and PrediCalc’s unique approach to handling inconsistencies between the spreadsheet values and the spreadsheet formulas. We have developed a paraconsistent entailment relation for the purpose of computing the consequences of PrediCalc’s value assignments under inconsistency.We close with thoughts on the prospects of logical spreadsheets on the World Wide Web, and describe our initial Websheet prototypes.