bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A retrospective survey of outpatients with long‐term tracheostomy
Authors: Björling G. , Johansson U.‐B. , Andersson G. , Schedin U. , Markström A. , Frostell C. 
Published: February 2006

Background:  The Respiratory Unit (RU) at Danderyd University Hospital opened in 1982, with the expressed goal of supporting outpatients with long‐term tracheostomy. The primary aim of this retrospective study in tracheostomized patients was to compare the need for hospital care in the 2‐year period before and after the tracheostomy.Methods:  Data were collected from patient medical records at the RU, from the National Board of Health and Welfare, Sweden and from the Official Statistics of Sweden. The subjects were RU patients in 1982 (Group 1, n = 27) and in 1997 (Group 2, n = 106) with long‐term tracheostomy surviving at least 4 years after the tracheostomy.Results:  Both groups had few and unchanged needs for hospital care after tracheostomy. They spent ≥ 96% of their time out of hospital. In 1997, (group 2) the number of patients, diagnoses and need for home mechanical ventilation had increased. Life expectancy was assessed for patients in Group 1. Data showed that they lived as long as an age‐matched and gender‐adjusted control cohort.Conclusions:  Long‐term tracheostomy may not increase the need for hospital care and does not reduce life expectancy. These clinical observations were made in a setting where patients had regular access to a dedicated outpatient unit.
Post‐operative rounds by anaesthesiologists after hip fracture surgery: a pilot study
Authors: Foss N. B. , Christensen D. S. , Krasheninnikoff M. , Kristensen B. B. , Kehlet H. 
Published: February 2006

Background:  Efforts to optimize the peri‐operative care of hip fracture patients through multidisciplinary intervention have focused on orthopaedic–geriatric liaisons, which have not resulted in significant outcome changes. The early phase of rehabilitation could potentially be optimized through a multidisciplinary effort between anaesthesiologists and orthopaedic surgeons.Methods:  During the first 25 weeks of 2004, 98 consecutive community‐residing patients admitted to a hip fracture unit received daily rounds by anaesthesiologists during the first four post‐operative days, on weekdays only, focusing on all facets of peri‐operative care. Two hours were allotted to rounds in the 14‐bed unit. One hundred and twenty‐six consecutive patients admitted to the unit in 2003, receiving the same well‐defined care programme, were chosen as a control group. Outcome measures were morbidity and the need for visits by external specialists.Results:  The intervention group received 291 rounds by anaesthesiologists. Active therapeutic interventions were prescribed in 76% of all patient confrontations. The control group received 128 requested visits from internal medicine specialists, which was reduced to 50 in the intervention group (P = 0.02). There was no significant difference between post‐operative morbidity and hospital stay in the control and intervention groups; in‐hospital mortality was 12% in the control group and 7% in the intervention group (P = 0.24). The rounds by anaesthesiologists improved nursing care conditions.Conclusion:  This pilot study, with insufficient power to show significant differences in outcome, supports further evaluation of the concept of intensified orthopaedic‐anaesthesiological co‐operation after hip fracture surgery. Such a randomized trial should evaluate economic and clinical outcome aspects, providing anaesthesiological rounds 7 days per week.
Face and gaze processing in normally developing children: a magnetoencephalographic study
Authors: Kylliäinen Anneli , Braeutigam Sven , Hietanen Jari K. , Swithenby Stephen J. , Bailey Anthony J. 
Published: February 2006

AbstractMagnetoencephalography (MEG) was used to study the neural mechanisms underlying face and gaze processing in ten normally developing boys aged between 8 and 11 years and 12 adult males. The participants performed two tasks in which they had to decide whether images presented sequentially in pairs, depicted the same person or the same motorbike. In the first task, the participants saw pictures of faces in which the eyes were either open or shut and pictures of motorbikes. In the second task, participants saw pairs of faces with gaze averted to the left or right. In children there was no evidence of the face sensitive, low amplitude short latency (30–60 ms) activity seen previously in adults. A strong, midline posterior response at approximately 100 ms was observed in children, which was earlier and somewhat stronger to faces than to motorbikes; in adults the signal at this latency was weak. A clear face sensitive response was seen in adults at 135 ms, predominantly over the right inferior occipito‐temporal regions. Although activity was observed in the children at the same latency, it was less prominent, not lateralized and was evoked similarly by faces and motorbikes. Averted gaze conditions evoked strong right‐lateralized activity at approximately 245 ms in children only. These findings indicate that even in middle childhood the neural mechanisms underlying face processing are less specialized than in adults, with greater early activation of posterior occipital cortices and less specific activation of ventral occipito‐temporal cortex.
Reduced expression of the TrkB receptor in Huntington's disease mouse models and in human brain
Authors: Ginés Silvia , Bosch Miquel , Marco Sonia , Gavaldà Núria , Díaz‐Hernández Miguel , Lucas José J. , Canals Josep M. , Alberch Jordi 
Published: February 2006

AbstractDeficits of neurotrophic support caused by reduced levels of brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) have been implicated in the selective vulnerability of striatal neurones in Huntington's disease (HD). Therapeutic strategies based on BDNF administration have been proposed to slow or prevent the disease progression. However, the effectiveness of BDNF may depend on the proper expression of its receptor TrkB. In this study, we analysed the expression of TrkB in several HD models and in postmortem HD brains. We found a specific reduction of TrkB receptors in transgenic exon‐1 and full‐length knock‐in HD mouse models and also in the motor cortex and caudate nucleus of HD brains. Our findings also demonstrated that continuous expression of mutant huntingtin is required to down‐regulate TrkB levels. This was shown by findings in an inducible HD mouse model showing rescue of TrkB by turning off mutant huntingtin expression. Interestingly, the length of the polyglutamine tract in huntingtin appears to modulate the reduction of TrkB. Finally, to analyse the effect of BDNF in TrkB we compared TrkB expression in mutant huntingtin R6/1 and double mutant (R6/1 : BDNF+/–) mice. Similar TrkB expression was found in both transgenic mice suggesting that reduced TrkB is not a direct consequence of decreased BDNF. Therefore, taken together our findings identify TrkB as an additional component that potentially might contribute to the altered neurotrophic support in HD.
Alcohol increases efficacy of immature synapses in a neurosteroid‐dependent manner
Authors: Mameli Manuel , Valenzuela C. Fernando 
Published: February 2006

AbstractFetal ethanol exposure persistently affects hippocampal circuits leading to learning and memory disabilities. Although the mechanisms responsible for these effects are not fully understood, several studies implicate neurosteroids as mediators of the actions of ethanol. A neurosteroid that appears to be critical for the fetal actions of ethanol is pregnenolone sulfate (PREGS). We found that chronic prenatal ethanol exposure increases PREGS levels in the fetal brain and that an endogenous PREGS‐like neurosteroid strengthens excitatory transmission in the neonatal hippocampus. Therefore, we hypothesized that ethanol could affect synaptic transmission in the developing hippocampus in a PREGS‐dependent manner. We used patch‐clamp electrophysiological techniques and found that 50 mmethanol strengthens AMPA receptor‐mediated transmission in the CA1 region by reducing the failure rate of low‐efficacy synapses. This effect was age‐dependent and was occluded by application of exogenous PREGS. An anti‐PREGS antibody scavenger and blockade of PREGS synthesis prevented the effect of ethanol. These data indicate that the deleterious effects of ethanol on hippocampal development are mediated in part by alterations in neurosteroid production, which results in premature stabilization of excitatory synapses.
A local GABAergic system within rat trigeminal ganglion cells
Authors: Hayasaki H. , Sohma Y. , Kanbara K. , Maemura K. , Kubota T. , Watanabe M. 
Published: February 2006

AbstractWe investigated the GABAergic system within the Sprague–Dawley rat (2–3‐weeks old) trigeminal ganglion (TG). Reverse transcription‐polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) analysis revealed expression of glutamate decarboxylase (GAD) 65 and GAD67 mRNAs and mRNAs encoding GABAA receptor subunits α1–6, β1–3, γ1–3, and δ. In situ hybridization revealed that GAD65 and GAD67 mRNAs were expressed in neuronal cell bodies but not satellite cells. Immunohistochemical analysis showed that only GAD65 was expressed in all neuronal cell bodies, and approximately 70% of all neurons exhibited GABA immunoreactivity. Satellite cells were strongly immunopositive for GABA. GABAA receptor α1, α5, β2/3 and γ1/2/3 subunit immunoreactivities were observed in the majority of neurons, but no immunoreactivity for α2 was observed. Two types of cells were identified in TG based on cell size and morphology, type A and B. The percentage of cells expressing α3, α4, α6, and δ subunits appeared to be dependent on cell size, as δ and α6 expression were only observed in small (B‐type) neurons. In whole‐cell patch clamp experiments, GABA application induced inward Cl– currents in all neurons examined. The EC50 for GABA varied from 5.3 to 240 µm, and the Hill Coefficient (nH) varied between 0.98 and 2.6 at −60 mV. We found that GABA was released from TG cells by increasing extracellular K+ concentration to 100 mm. We speculate that GABA acts as a nonsynaptically released diffusible neurotransmitter, which may modulate somatic inhibition of neurons within the TG.
Insecticidal activity of garlic juice in two dipteran pests
Authors: Prowse Gareth M. , Galloway Tamara S. , Foggo Andrew 
Published: February 2006

Abstract

Botanical products excluding pyrethroids constitute a small, but growing portion of the U.K. pesticides market. With increasing legislative pressure upon chemical pesticides such as organophosphates, interest in this sector is increasing steadily.
Garlic Allium sativum L. juices and extracts form the basis of several commercially available pest control products, but the performance of these products is variable, possibly due to lack of quality control upon batches of materials in the manufacturing process.
Some garlic products designed for use in the food industry are subjected to rigorous batch‐control to ensure organoleptic consistency. We studied the insecticidal efficacy of a commercially produced food grade garlic juice using two target dipteran pests, Delia radicum (L.) and Musca domestica L.
Exposure of the two species to different concentrations of garlic juice revealed variability in insecticidal effect across life stages. LC50 values recorded for D. radicum were: eggs (7‐day exposure) 0.8%; larvae (24‐h exposure) 26.4%; larvae (48‐h exposure) 6.8%; and adults (24‐h exposure) 0.4%. LC50 values recorded for M. domestica were: eggs (7‐day exposure) 1.6%; larvae (24‐h exposure) 10.1%; larvae (24‐h exposure) 4.5%; and adults (24‐h exposure) 2.2%.
Mortality rates caused by the garlic juice were comparable with those obtained with the organophosphate pesticide Birlane®, indicating parity of effect at various concentrations depending on life stage.
We conclude that this product may provide an effective, naturally‐derived insecticide for use in agricultural systems against dipteran pests.
Effects of reduced pesticide dosages on carabids (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in winter wheat
Authors: Navntoft S. , Esbjerg P. , Riedel W. 
Published: February 2006

Abstract

The effects of reduced insecticide and herbicide dosages on total dry mass of carabids and their generic components were examined using fenced pitfall traps in winter wheat fields on three farms in Southern Zealand, Denmark.
The estimated total dry mass of carabids increased by 25% when the pesticides were reduced to one fourth of the normal application rates.
At reduced dosages, the activity of the genus Pterostichus was increased by 62%. The activities of Loricera and Demetrias were increased by 67% and 56%, respectively, although significant interaction terms indicated that the dosage effect was not uniform for these genera on all farms. Calathus tended to be more numerous with reduced pesticide applications. By contrast, catches of Bembidion, Synuchus and Trechus decreased by up to 45% at reduced dosages.
A higher weed cover due to reduced herbicide applications probably benefited most species, except those having habitat associations with sparse vegetation such as the field‐inhabiting Bembidion and Synuchus.
The higher activity of larger carabids may lead to enhanced predation on smaller carabids and hence different carabid assemblages.
A migration analysis of Sogatella furcifera (Horváth) (Homoptera: Delphacidae) using hourly catches and a three‐dimensional simulation model
Authors: Otuka Akira , Watanabe Tomonari , Suzuki Yoshito , Matsumura Masaya , Furuno Akiko , Chino Masamichi , Kondo Tomoya , Kamimuro Tsuyoshi 
Published: February 2006

Abstract

Migrations of Sogatella furcifera captured in Japan in the 2003 season were analysed using hourly catches and a simulation model.
The catch data showed several clear migration peaks, with average durations of 4 h. The peaks were separated from each other by approximately 12 h, corresponding to the observed fact that planthoppers take off at dusk or dawn.
The simulation model comprised two components: a numerical weather forecast submodel, MM5, and a particle dispersion submodel, GEARN. The simulation model used three‐dimensional meteorological data and calculated the relative aerial density of migrating planthoppers to allow analysis of the timing and area of migrations in Japan.
The simulation model, together with the hourly catches, enabled an estimation of migration source regions.
Possible migration sources during our hourly observation period were located in the coastal area of Fujian province in China, as well as Taiwan.
The effects of floral understoreys on parasitism of leafrollers (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) on apples in New Zealand
Authors: Irvin N. A. , Scarratt S. L. , Wratten S. D. , Frampton C. M. , Chapman R. B. , Tylianakis J. M. 
Published: February 2006

Abstract

Field and laboratory experiments on the conservation biocontrol of lepidopteran leafroller pests were carried out in apples at Lincoln, New Zealand.
Apple understoreys were planted with replicated treatments of alyssum (Lobularia maritima), phacelia (Phacelia tanacetifolia) and buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum).
Rates of parasitism of experimentally released larvae of the light‐brown apple moth, Epiphyas postvittana (Walker) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), by Dolichogenidea tasmanica (Cameron) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) were significantly lower in phacelia and control treatments, and leafroller pupae were significantly more abundant in controls than in buckwheat and alyssum treatments.
Naturally occurring leafroller damage was up to 29% lower above all the floral understorey treatments compared with controls and there were more than twice as many D. tasmanica cocoons in the alyssum and buckwheat treatments than in controls.
Suction sampling of the understoreys gave D. tasmanica adult densities that were significantly more abundant in alyssum compared with other treatments. Numbers of Anacharis zealandica (Hymenoptera: Figitidae) (a parasitoid of larvae of the predatory brown lacewing) did not differ between treatments.
In the laboratory, flowering buckwheat and alyssum enhanced D. tasmanica longevity by up to 78% compared with the control, and buckwheat also enhanced potential fecundity by 62%.
In choice experiments, leafroller larvae in the laboratory consumed more than three‐fold more apple leaf material than they did of the three understorey species, although alyssum increased leafroller fecundity and longevity.
The use of floral understoreys for conservation biocontrol of apple pests is discussed, along with the potential negative effects of some flowering species on pest populations and orchard agronomic practices.
Reducing sea turtle by‐catch in pelagic longline fisheries
Authors: Gilman Eric , Zollett Erika , Beverly Stephen , Nakano Hideki , Davis Kimberly , Shiode Daisuke , Dalzell Paul , Kinan Irene 
Published: February 2006

AbstractReducing by‐catch of sea turtles in pelagic longline fisheries, in concert with activities to reduce other anthropogenic sources of mortality, may contribute to the recovery of marine turtle populations. Here, we review research on strategies to reduce sea turtle by‐catch. Due to the state of management regimes in most longline fisheries, strategies to reduce turtle interactions must not only be effective but also must be commercially viable. Because most research has been initiated only recently, many results are not yet peer‐reviewed, published or readily accessible. Moreover, most experiments have small sample sizes and have been conducted over only a few seasons in a small number of fisheries; many study designs preclude drawing conclusions about the independent effect of single factors on turtle by‐catch and target catch rates; and few studies consider effects on other by‐catch species. In the US North Atlantic longline swordfish fishery, 4.9‐cm wide circle hooks with fish bait significantly reduced sea turtle by‐catch rates and the proportion of hard‐shell turtles that swallowed hooks vs. being hooked in the mouth compared to 4.0‐cm wide J hooks with squid bait without compromising commercial viability for some target species. But these large circle hooks might not be effective or economically viable in other longline fisheries. The effectiveness and commercial viability of a turtle avoidance strategy may be fishery‐specific, depending on the size and species of turtles and target fish and other differences between fleets. Testing of turtle avoidance methods in individual fleets may therefore be necessary. It is a priority to conduct trials in longline fleets that set gear shallow, those overlapping the most threatened turtle populations and fleets overlapping high densities of turtles such as those fishing near breeding colonies. In addition to trials using large 4.9‐cm wide circle hooks in place of smaller J and Japan tuna hooks, other fishing strategies are under assessment. These include: (i) using small circle hooks (≤ 4.6‐cm narrowest width) in place of smaller J and Japan tuna hooks; (ii) setting gear below turtle‐abundant depths; (iii) single hooking fish bait vs. multiple hook threading; (iv) reducing gear soak time and retrieval during daytime; and (v) avoiding by‐catch hotspots through fleet communication programmes and area and seasonal closures.
Capture for culture: artificial shelters for grouper collection in SE Asia
Authors: Mous Peter J , Sadovy Yvonne , Halim Abdul , Pet Jos S 
Published: February 2006

AbstractThis paper addresses a little‐discussed relationship between wild capture and mariculture, when the latter involves grow‐out of small wild‐caught fish or invertebrates in captivity. Seafood generated in this way is typically considered to be a form of aquaculture because it is assumed that, for animals removed from the wild when natural mortality is still very high, the protection conferred by culture operations will improve survivorship and enhance production. This assumption does not necessarily, however, apply when animals are removed well past the time of early high mortality. As one example of the implications of an early life‐history phase (ELP) fishery supplying culture operations, a preliminary study was conducted on an ELP fishery supplying live reef fish, especially groupers, in Southeast Asia. Grouper culture depends on both hatchery‐produced and wild‐caught fish which are then grown out to market size. Following interest to develop grow‐out operations in Indonesia, a pilot study was conducted to determine the sizes and capture rates of species of interest to the live fish trade, and to determine the likely environmental footprint of an artificial shelter (gango) type of capture method. From the results of the 15‐month study, we drew inferences regarding the sustainability of this fishing method and requirements of space, fish and materials for a viable grow‐out operation. The results showed that gangos were unselective for either species or size. Only 1.4% of the total fish catch (by number) were target species, mainly the grouper Epinephelus coioides, and most were large (mean total length was 13.6 cm) enough to have bypassed the early high mortality phase. Moreover, there were large non‐target catches that included many food fish species too small to be useful in catches. Given the large number and area of gangos needed for a viable operation, and that many groupers captured could probably have survived to reproduce, the ecological footprint of this approach could be substantial. These results, and literature on other ELP fisheries, suggest that these may often need management, have important links to other capture fishery sectors, and require careful evaluation of potential costs and benefits before introduction or development.
Optimisation of plumbosolvency control using a computational model
Authors: Hayes C. R. , Bates A. J. , Jones L. , Cuthill A. D. , Van der Leer D. , Weatherill N. P. 
Published: February 2006

AbstractComputational modelling has been used in plumbosolvency control optimisation studies involving three English water companies. A zonal model simulates lead emissions across an entire area of supply; it utilises a single pipe model that simulates the lead concentration in drinking water over a 24 h period. A sampling model then simulates the results of random daytime sampling and the results are compared with those obtained by the water company, as a means of validating the zonal model. The simulated zone is created by the random ascription of a range of variables (lead pipe length, pipe diameter, water use, pattern of flow events, etc.), based on the Monte Carlo method. The conditions of the zones that were investigated were wide ranging, and included both low and high alkalinity waters, before and after the dosing of ortho‐phosphate to reduce plumbosolvency. Excellent validation was achieved, which enabled the models to be used with confidence for predictive purposes. To achieve the optimisation criteria set by the Drinking Water Inspectorate in 2001, plumbosolvency reductions of between 65 and 91% were found to be required. The minimum length of the 12 mm internal diameter lead pipe that was predicted to continue to fail the 10 μg/L standard, once phosphate dosing had been optimised, ranged from 40 to 50 m, providing a possible basis for selective replacement. Cross‐referencing the zonal modelling results to laboratory treatment tests indicated that the optimum average ortho‐phosphate dose varied from 0.9 to 2.0 mg/L (P), dependent on water‐specific requirements.