bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Moraxella catarrhalisSynthesizes an Autotransporter That Is an Acid Phosphatase
Authors: Hoopman Todd C. , Wang Wei , Brautigam Chad A. , Sedillo Jennifer L. , Reilly Thomas J. , Hansen Eric J. 
Published: December 2007

ABSTRACTMoraxella catarrhalisO35E was shown to synthesize a 105-kDa protein that has similarity to both acid phosphatases and autotransporters. The N-terminal portion of theM. catarrhalis acidphosphataseA(MapA) was most similar (the BLAST probability score was 10−10) to bacterial class A nonspecific acid phosphatases. The central region of the MapA protein had similarity to passenger domains of other autotransporter proteins, whereas the C-terminal portion of MapA resembled the translocation domain of conventional autotransporters. Cloning and expression of theM. catarrhalis mapAgene inEscherichia coliconfirmed the presence of acid phosphatase activity in the MapA protein. The MapA protein was shown to be localized to the outer membrane ofM. catarrhalisand was not detected either in the soluble cytoplasmic fraction from disruptedM. catarrhaliscells or in the spent culture supernatant fluid fromM. catarrhalis. Use of the predicted MapA translocation domain in a fusion construct with the passenger domain from another predictedM. catarrhalisautotransporter confirmed the translocation ability of this MapA domain. Inactivation of themapAgene inM. catarrhalisstrain O35E reduced the acid phosphatase activity expressed by this organism, and this mutation could be complemented intranswith the wild-typemapAgene. Nucleotide sequence analysis of themapAgene from sixM. catarrhalisstrains showed that this protein was highly conserved among strains of this pathogen. Site-directed mutagenesis of a critical histidine residue (H233A) in the predicted active site of the acid phosphatase domain in MapA eliminated acid phosphatase activity in the recombinant MapA protein. This is the first description of an autotransporter protein that expresses acid phosphatase activity.
Secreted-Protein Response to σUActivity inStreptomyces coelicolor
Authors: Gordon Nadria D. , Ottaviano Geri L. , Connell Sarah E. , Tobkin Gregory V. , Son Crystal H. , Shterental Sebastian , Gehring Amy M. 
Published: December 2007

ABSTRACTThe filamentous bacteriumStreptomyces coelicolorforms an aerial mycelium as a prerequisite to sporulation, which occurs in the aerial hyphae. Uncontrolled activity of the extracytoplasmic function sigma factor σUblocks the process of aerial mycelium formation in this organism. Using a green fluorescent protein transcriptional reporter, we have demonstrated thatsigUtranscription is autoregulated. We have defined a σU-dependent promoter sequence and used this to identify 22 likely σUregulon members in theS. coelicolorgenome. Since many of these genes encode probable secreted proteins, we characterized the extracellular proteome of a mutant with high σUactivity caused by disruption ofrsuA, the presumed cognate anti-sigma factor of σU. This mutant secreted a much greater quantity and diversity of proteins than the wild-type strain. Peptide mass fingerprinting was used to identify 79 proteins from thersuAmutant culture supernatant. The most abundant species, SCO2217, SCO0930, and SCO2207, corresponded to secreted proteins or lipoproteins of unknown functions whose genes are in the proposed σUregulon. Several unique proteases were also detected in the extracellular proteome of the mutant, and the levels of the protease inhibitor SCO0762 were much reduced compared to those of the wild type. Consequently, extracellular protease activity was elevated about fourfold in thersuAmutant. The functions of the proteins secreted as a result of σUactivity may be important for combating cell envelope stress and modulating morphological differentiation inS. coelicolor.
Influence of repetitive open sea dives and physical exercises on right-to-left shunting in healthy divers: Table 1
Authors: Blatteau J-E , Pény C , Pontier J-M , Gempp E , Louge P 
Published: December 2007

Objective:Paradoxical gas embolism through right-to-left (R/L) shunts is considered as a potential cause of certain types of decompression sickness.Aim:To assess whether 4 months of repetitive diving and strenuous exercises would lead to an increased prevalence of R/L shunting in a group of military divers.Methods:Using a standardised contrast-enhanced transcranial Doppler technique, 17 divers were re-examined for the presence of a R/L shunt 4 months after their initial examinations. R/L shunts were classified as type I if observed only after a straining manoeuvre, and type II if present at rest.Results:Initial prevalence of R/L shunt was 41%: six type I shunts and one type II. At the second examination, prevalence was 47%, with the appearance of one type I shunt that was not previously present. We found no significant increase in the prevalence and size of R/L shunts.Conclusion:It is speculated that diving-related phenomena, such as variations in right atrial pressures during the end stages of or events immediately after a dive could generate an R/L shunt. However, extreme conditions of repetitive diving and strenuous exercises do not cause permanent modification in R/L permeability over a period of 4 months.
MRI study of the size, symmetry and function of the trunk muscles among elite cricketers with and without low back pain
Authors: Hides J , Stanton W , Freke M , Wilson S , McMahon S , Richardson C 
Published: December 2007

Objectives:To determine if asymmetry of trunk muscles and deficits of motor control exist among elite cricketers with and without low back pain (LBP).Design:Single-blinded observational quasi-experimental design studySetting:Assessments were conducted in a hospital setting.Participants:Among a total eligible sample of 26 male elite cricketers (mean age 21.2 (SD 2.0) years), selected to attend a national training camp, 21 participated in the study.Risk factors:The independent variables were ‘group’ (LBP or asymptomatic) and ‘cricket position’ (fast bowler versus the rest of the squad).Main outcome measurements:The dependent variables were the cross-sectional areas (CSA) of the quadratus lumborum (QL), lumbar erector spinae plus multifidus (LES + M) and psoas muscles, the thickness of the internal oblique (IO) and transversus abdominis (TrA) muscles, and the amount of lateral slide of the anterior abdominal fascia.Results:The QL and LES + M muscles were larger ipsilateral to the dominant arm. In the subgroup of fast bowlers with LBP, the asymmetry in the QL muscle was the greatest. The IO muscle was larger on the side contralateral to the dominant arm. No difference between sides was found for the psoas and TrA muscles. Cricketers with LBP showed a reduced ability to draw in the abdominal wall and contract the TrA muscle independently of the other abdominal muscles.Conclusions:This study provides new insights into trunk muscle size and function in elite cricketers, and evidence of impaired motor control in elite cricketers with LBP. Rehabilitation using a motor control approach has been shown to be effective for subjects with LBP, and this may also benefit elite cricketers.
From measures to models: an evaluation of air pollution exposure assessment for epidemiological studies of pregnant women
Authors: Nethery E , Leckie S E , Teschke K , Brauer M 
Published: December 2007

Objectives:To evaluate exposure estimation methods such as spatially resolved land-use regression models and ambient monitoring data in the context of epidemiological studies of the impact of air pollution on pregnancy outcomes.Methods:The study measured personal 48 h exposures (NO, NO2, PM2.5mass and absorbance) and mobility (time activity and GPS) for 62 pregnant women during 2005–2006 in Vancouver, Canada, one to three times during pregnancy. Measurements were compared to modelled (using land-use regression and interpolation of ambient monitors) outdoor concentrations at subjects’ home and work locations.Results:Personal NO and absorbance (ABS) measurements were moderately correlated (NO: r = 0.54, ABS: r = 0.29) with monitor interpolations and explained primarily within-subject (temporal) variability. Land-use regression estimates including work location improved correlations for NO over those based on home postal code (for NO: r = 0.49 changed to NO: r = 0.55) and explained more between-subject variance (4–20%); limiting to a subset of samples (n = 61) when subjects spent >65% time at home also improved correlations (NO: r = 0.72). Limitations of the GPS equipment precluded assessment of including complete GPS-based mobility information.Conclusions:The study found moderate agreement between short-term personal measurements and estimates of ambient air pollution at home based on interpolation of ambient monitors and land-use regression. These results support the use of land-use regression models in epidemiological studies, as the ability of such models to characterise high resolution spatial variability is “reflected” in personal exposure measurements, especially when mobility is characterised.
Morphological and anatomical development in the Vitaceae. IX. Comparative ontogeny and phylogenetic implications ofVitis rotundifoliaMichx.
Authors: Timmons Susan A. , Posluszny Usher , Gerrath Jean M. 
Published: December 2007

The grape family, Vitaceae, is an economically important fruit family. Although the Vitaceae have been used for conservation, viticulture, and horticulture, little is known about the phylogenetic relationships of this family. Recent phylogenetic reconstructions using DNA data have disagreed with traditional classifications and other DNA-based phylogenies by grouping Vitis and Cissus species within one clade and linking Vitis rotundifolia Michx. (muscadine grape) more closely with these Cissus species. This study uses comparative developmental morphology as an independent method to investigate whether V. rotundifolia is more similar to Cissus antarctica Vent. (kangaroo vine) than other Vitis species. Results obtained using epi-illumination light microscopy and histology were compared with those from similar studies of Vitis ‘Ventura’, Vitis riparia Michx., and C. antarctica. Twelve vegetative and floral characters including axillary bud dorsiventrality, uncommitted primordium shape, calyptra, and ring-shaped gynoecial disk placed V. rotundifolia in with other Vitis species. Only two characters, stipule timing and simple tendrils, were common to C. antarctica and V. rotundifolia, suggesting that V. rotundifolia is more similar to Vitis spp. than to C. antarctica, and supporting traditional classifications contrary to ITS1 and trnL DNA phylogenies.
Inhibition of Src family kinases enhances retinoic acid–induced gene expression and myeloid differentiation
Authors: Miranda Michelle B. , Redner Robert L. , Johnson Daniel E. 
Published: December 2007

Abstract
Treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia with retinoic acid (RA) results in differentiation of the leukemic cells and clinical remission. However, the cellular factors that regulate RA-induced myeloid differentiation are largely unknown, and other forms of acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) do not respond to this differentiation therapy. A greater understanding of the molecules that positively or negatively regulate RA-induced differentiation should facilitate the development of more effective differentiation therapies. In this study, we investigated the potential role of Src family kinases (SFK) in the regulation of RA-induced gene expression and myeloid differentiation. We report that inhibition of SFKs markedly enhanced RA-induced differentiation in myeloid cell lines and primary AML cells, as assessed by flow-cytometric analysis of cell surface markers, morphologic analysis, and nitroblue tetrazolium reduction. In addition, inhibition of SFKs enhanced expression from retinoic acid receptor (RAR) target genes encoding CCAAT/enhancer binding protein ε (C/EBPε), PU.1, intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), and cathepsin D. Moreover, a constitutively active Src inhibited RAR-dependent transcription, whereas a kinase-dead Src exerted little effect. These studies provide the first demonstration that SFKs act to negatively regulate RA-induced gene expression and myeloid differentiation and suggest that the combination of SFK inhibition and RA treatment may be therapeutically beneficial in AML. [Mol Cancer Ther 2007;6(12):3081–90]
Extrinsic pathway- and cathepsin-dependent induction of mitochondrial dysfunction are essential for synergistic flavopiridol and vorinostat lethality in breast cancer cells
Authors: Mitchell Clint , Park Maragret A. , Zhang Guo , Yacoub Adly , Curiel David T. , Fisher Paul B. , Roberts John D. , Grant Steven , Dent Paul 
Published: December 2007

AbstractThe present studies have determined whether interactions between the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor flavopiridol and the histone deacetylase inhibitor suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid (SAHA; vorinostat; Zolinza) occur in breast cancer cells. MDA-MB-231 and MCF7 cells were treated with flavopiridol (25–100 nmol/L) and vorinostat (125–500 nmol/L) in vitro, and mechanisms of cell killing were determined. Concurrent treatment of cells with flavopiridol and vorinostat or treatment of cells with flavopiridol followed by vorinostat promoted cell killing in a greater than additive fashion. Similar data were obtained with the CDK inhibitor roscovitine. Flavopiridol suppressed c-FLIP-l/s and BCL-xL expression, whereas vorinostat reduced expression of BCL-xL, and combined exposure to flavopiridol and vorinostat reduced MCL-1 and X-chromosome–linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein (XIAP) levels. Pharmacologic or genetic inhibition of caspase-8 reduced flavopiridol toxicity, but abolished killing by vorinostat and cell death caused by the vorinostat/flavopiridol regimen. Loss of BAX/BAK function or loss of BID function modestly reduced flavopiridol toxicity, but abolished vorinostat-mediated potentiation of flavopiridol toxicity, as did inhibition of caspase-9. Inhibition and/or deletion of cathepsin B function significantly attenuated vorinostat/flavopiridol lethality. Flavopiridol suppressed extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) and AKT activity and expression of activated forms of AKT and mitogen-activated protein/ERK kinase 1 maintained c-FLIP-l/s, BCL-xL, and XIAP expression and protected cells against flavopiridol/vorinostat lethality. Overexpression of c-FLIP-s and BCL-xL abolished the lethality of flavopiridol/vorinostat. Collectively, these data argue that flavopiridol enhances the lethality of vorinostat in breast cancer cells in part through the inhibition of AKT and ERK1/2 function, leading to reduced expression of multiple inhibitors of the extrinsic and intrinsic apoptosis pathways, as well as activation of cathepsin protease-dependent pathways. [Mol Cancer Ther 2007;6(12):3101–12]
Islamic Groups and their World-views and Identities: Neo-Traditional Salafis and Progressive Muslims
Authors: Duderija Adis 
Published: December 2007

AbstractThis paper presents a snap-shot discussion on the origins and the world-views behind two global contemporary movements among Muslims, namely Neo-Traditional Salafis and Progressive Muslims. It endeavours to historically situate and position them in relation to the cumulative Islamic historical harvest and delineate their approach to modernity. Additionally the paper briefly examines the concept of the role and the function of women within these respective world-views. Finally, it analyses the implications of the underlying ideology of these movements on the relationship between Muslims and non-Muslims in both Islamicate and non-Islamicate societies.
Stipulation of Excess in Understanding and Misunderstanding Riba: The Al-Jassas Link
Authors: Farooq Mohammad Omar 
Published: December 2007

AbstractAn essential condition in the orthodox definition of riba is stipulated excess in a loan or debt. This essential condition is traced to al-Jassas. Understanding this issue of stipulated excess is critical to understanding riba. In this paper the stipulated excess in connection with al-Jassas as well as its implication for defining riba and prohibition of interest is examined. A critical examination of the subject shows that pre-Jassas discourse about riba did not include stipulated excess as an essential condition and al-Jassas' changing of the conditions in defining riba is not corroborated by the textual evidences he used.
Law in Jordan Gets Wired: Developing and Teaching Law Courses Online
Authors: Malkawi Bashar 
Published: December 2007

AbstractThe landscape of education in Jordan is changing. Teaching began using chalkboards and soon graduated to transparencies and overhead projectors. Then PowerPoint took root in colleges with slides projected from a computer onto a classroom screen. For some in Jordan, imagining offering online law courses is difficult. But other Jordanian graduate and undergraduate institutions have been offering online education for several years. Those years of experience in online education in the non-law college context puts colleges of law at a significant disadvantage.The article addresses legal education in Jordan and the challenges colleges of law face by introducing online courses. I argue that Jordanian colleges of law must adopt an online model for some courses to meet the expectations of students. There is no 'if' about online law courses, only a 'when'. Colleges of law in Jordan should be re-tooling to be relevant in the Age of Information.
Islamic Contracts in a Secular Court Setting? Lessons From Malaysia
Authors: Buang Ahmad Hidayat 
Published: December 2007

AbstractThe judgement in the Kuala Lumpur High Court in the case of Affin Bank Berhad v. Zulkifli Abdullah ([2006] 1 CLJ 438) illustrates the difficulty in cases where Islamic principles such as Bay' Bithaman Ajil or BBA are litigated in a court of law where Islamic Shariah is little understood. From the traditional Islamic law perspective the legal basis arrived at in the judgement is questionable. In the light of this complexity, this article attempts to analyse the effect of the judgement to the principles of Islamic contracts used in banking products and services in Malaysia with reference to the sources used in the creation of the contracts and forum to settle disputes between Islamic Banks and their customers. In conclusion, this article would argue for the appropriate application of the Shariah in the above matters through the promulgation of a specific law in relation to Islamic contracts in banking and finance or alternatively a special procedure to be introduced enabling all matters relating to the question of Shariah be referred to the Shariah Courts for decision.
The "New Regionalism" and the Negotiation of a Free Trade Area of the Americas
Authors: Bouzas Roberto 
Published: December 2007

AbstractThis article examines the pros and cons of the "new regionalism," with the negotiations for a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) taken as a landmark. It summarizes the main features of the "new regionalism" and reviews some of the challenges and opportunities opened by North-South preferential trade agreements (a category that includes many of the new vintage of such agreements). The article also evaluates the record of the FTAA negotiations, emphasizing recent trends and prospects, especially the foundations of the current stalemate.
Law as an Implicit Third Party in International Negotiation
Authors: Beltramino Juan Carlos 
Published: December 2007

AbstractThis essay seeks to clarify the important role that law plays in all types of international negotiation. Law is examined as part of the legal referential frame within negotiation, when dealing with substantive matters and procedural questions, as a conditioner of negotiator behavior, in the implementation of the resulting agreement, in the obligations to negotiate by the parties, and as part of the embryonic element of a new autonomous branch of international negotiation law.
Gain Claiming and Inefficiency in WTO Negotiations
Authors: Zahrnt Valentin 
Published: December 2007

AbstractThe present article argues that bargaining over how the gains from cooperation in the WTO should be shared between governments constitutes a major obstacle to multilateral liberalization. Since each government is uncertain about how other governments evaluate possible WTO agreements and their best alternatives to a negotiated agreement, it has an incentive to engage in aggressive gain claiming, hoping to shape the resulting agreement in its own favor. However, aggressive gain claiming may result in delay and reduced ambition of an agreement, it may damage states' systemic interest in the effective and stable functioning of the WTO, and it may provoke peer pressure. How governments frame these benefits and costs and how they coordinate their negotiating positions in bargaining coalitions also shapes their gain claiming strategies. The hypotheses about the determinants of gain claiming submitted in this article are based on a series of interviews conducted with members of national delegations and WTO employees, as well as on a survey of national delegations.
Zimbabwe in Ruins: Mediation Prospects in a Conflict Not Yet Ripe for Resolution
Authors: Anstey Mark 
Published: December 2007

AbstractA confluence of conditions made the Rhodesian civil war ripe for resolution in 1979. However a 'despotic democracy' took early root in the new Zimbabwe, largely accepted by the international community in its first phase, but now condemned by many for its human rights abuses and political repression. Zimbabwe is a failed state with a massive humanitarian crisis. In the face of pressures to adopt a more robust approach, South Africa has stuck to an approach of 'quiet diplomacy' in relations with its neighbor. In March 2007, SADC states appointed South Africa's President Mbeki to mediate between parties to Zimbabwe's conflict. This article analyzes the prospects for this mediation in terms of 'ripeness' theory. It concludes that complex internal conditions and a divided international community do not yet make the crisis ripe for resolution. However, a shift from quiet diplomacy to an approach of principled mediation might assist in inducing the necessary conditions in a manner which limits continuation of the crisis.
'I sought him but I did not find him': The Elusive Lover in the Song of Songs
Authors: Harding Kathryn 
Published: December 2007

AbstractDespite the tendency in much Song of Songs scholarship to view the relationship of the lovers in the poem as harmonious, egalitarian and unproblematic, the repeated absence of the male protagonist in parts of the woman's speeches (most notably in chapters 3 and 5 of the Song) might be seen as a challenge to such interpretations. This article foregrounds the theme of absence in the woman's speeches in the Song of Songs, exploring the implications of this theme for the characterization of the female protagonist, and for the relationship of the lovers in the poem.