bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Rapid Androgen Cycling as Treatment for Patients with Prostate Cancer
Authors: Feltquate David , Nordquist Luke , Eicher Caitlin , Morris Michael , Smaletz Oren , Slovin Susan , Curley Tracy , Wilton Andrew , Fleisher Martin , Heller Glenn , Scher Howard I. 
Published: December 2006

Abstract
Purpose: To investigate the safety and feasibility of rapid androgen cycling for men with progressive prostate cancer.
Experimental Design: Schedule 1 included a 4-week induction of androgen depletion, followed by 4-week treatment cycles of a monthly gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist, testosterone on days 1 to 7, and an estrogen patch on days 8 to 21. Schedule 2 included a 12-week induction of androgen depletion followed by 4-week cycles of gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist and testosterone, but no estrogens for patients with a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) nadir &lt;1 ng/mL after induction. The primary end point was serially declining PSA trough values over six treatment cycles.
Results: Thirty-six patients were treated; 27 were evaluable after cycling, of whom 8 of 12 (67%) and 9 of 15 (60%) on schedules 1 and 2, respectively, reached the end point. Five patients with PSA &gt;1 ng/mL following induction did not cycle. No patient progressed radiographically or clinically during cycling. Three posttherapy PSA patterns were observed: a decline followed by a rapid increase in trough levels, a sustained decline with a plateau at a detectable nadir, and a decline to an undetectable nadir. Mean testosterone levels were castrate at the time of trough and in the normal physiologic range following androgen repletion. Major toxicities included grades 1 and 2 fatigue, hepatitis, gynecomastia, and hot flashes.
Conclusions: Rapid hormonal cycling is feasible and well tolerated, and successive declines in PSA troughs are achievable. Although the sample size was small, the proportion of patients achieving declining PSA at the end of six cycles was comparable with that reached with continuous androgen depletion therapy.
The Contribution of Prosody to the Perception of Foreign Accent
Authors: Mareüil Philippe Boula de , Vieru-Dimulescu Bianca 
Published: December 2006

AbstractThe general goal of this study was to expand our understanding of what ismeant by ‘foreign accent’. More specifically, it deals with the role of prosody (timingand melody), which has rarely been examined. New technologies, includingdiphone speech synthesis (experiment 1) and speech manipulation (experiment2), are used to study the relative importance of prosody in what is perceived as aforeign accent. The methodology we propose, based on the prosody transplantationparadigm, can be applied to different languages or language varieties. Here,it is applied to Spanish and Italian. We built up a dozen sentences which are spokenin almost the same way in both languages (e.g. ha visto la casa del presidenteamericano ‘you/(s)he saw the American president’s house’). Spanish/Italian monolingualsand bilinguals were recorded. We then studied what is perceived whenthe segmental specification of an utterance is combined with suprasegmental featuresbelonging to a different language. Under these conditions, results obtainedwith Spanish and Italian listeners suggest that prosody is important in identifyingSpanish-accented Italian and Italian-accented Spanish.
Gene expression profiling and correlation with outcome in clinical trials of the proteasome inhibitor bortezomib
Authors: Mulligan George , Mitsiades Constantine , Bryant Barb , Zhan Fenghuang , Chng Wee J. , Roels Steven , Koenig Erik , Fergus Andrew , Huang Yongsheng , Richardson Paul , Trepicchio William L. , Broyl Annemiek , Sonneveld Pieter , Shaughnessy John D. , Leif Bergsagel P. , Schenkein David , Esseltine Dixie-Lee , Boral Anthony , Anderson Kenneth C. 
Published: December 2006

AbstractThe aims of this study were to assess the feasibility of prospective pharmacogenomics research in multicenter international clinical trials of bortezomib in multiple myeloma and to develop predictive classifiers of response and survival with bortezomib. Patients with relapsed myeloma enrolled in phase 2 and phase 3 clinical trials of bortezomib and consented to genomic analyses of pretreatment tumor samples. Bone marrow aspirates were subject to a negative-selection procedure to enrich for tumor cells, and these samples were used for gene expression profiling using DNA microarrays. Data quality and correlations with trial outcomes were assessed by multiple groups. Gene expression in this dataset was consistent with data published from a single-center study of newly diagnosed multiple myeloma. Response and survival classifiers were developed and shown to be significantly associated with outcome via testing on independent data. The survival classifier improved on the risk stratification provided by the International Staging System. Predictive models and biologic correlates of response show some specificity for bortezomib rather than dexamethasone. Informative gene expression data and genomic classifiers that predict clinical outcome can be derived from prospective clinical trials of new anticancer agents.
Human Plasma ATP Concentration
Authors: Gorman Mark W , Feigl Eric O , Buffington Charles W 
Published: December 2006

AbstractBackground: Human plasma ATP concentration is reported in many studies as roughly 1000 nmol/L. The present study tested the hypothesis that the measured plasma ATP concentration is lower if ATP release from formed blood elements is inhibited during blood sample processing. A second hypothesis was that pretreatment with aspirin to inhibit platelets would reduce the measured plasma concentration of ATP.Methods: Blood was sampled from the antecubital vein in 20 healthy individuals 30 and 60 min after ingestion of aspirin (325 mg) or placebo. Aliquots of each blood sample were added to the usual EDTA/saline solution to inhibit ATP catabolism, or to a new stabilizing solution designed to both stop ATP catabolism and inhibit ATP release from blood elements. The stabilizing solution contained NaCl, EDTA, tricine buffer, KCl, nitrobenzylthioinosine, forskolin, and isobutylmethylxanthine. Plasma ATP was measured with the luciferin–luciferase assay with standard additions in each sample to determine ATP content. Hemoglobin concentration was used as an index of sample hemolysis, and the plasma ATP concentration was corrected for the hemolysis component.Results: Aspirin pretreatment had no effect on plasma ATP concentrations. However, use of the stabilizing solution resulted in mean (SD) ATP concentrations 8-fold lower than the use of EDTA alone [28 (16) vs 236 (201) nmol/L; P &lt;0.001].Conclusion: When precautions are taken to inhibit ATP release from blood elements during sample preparation, human venous plasma ATP concentration is much lower than previously reported.
Transcriptional Profiling of Human Cord Blood CD133+ and Cultured Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Response to Hypoxia
Authors: Martin-Rendon Enca , Hale Sarah J.M. , Ryan Dacey , Baban Dilair , Forde Sinead P. , Roubelakis Maria , Sweeney Dominic , Moukayed Meis , Harris Adrian L. , Davies Kay , Watt Suzanne M. 
Published: December 2006

AbstractUmbilical cord blood (UCB) and bone marrow (BM)-derived stem and progenitor cells possess two characteristics required for successful tissue regeneration: extensive proliferative capacity and the ability to differentiate into multiple cell lineages. Within the normal BM and in pathological conditions, areas of hypoxia may have a role in maintaining stem cell fate or determining the fine equilibrium between their proliferation and differentiation. In this study, the transcriptional profiles and proliferation and differentiation potential of UCB CD133+ cells and BM mesenchymal cells (BMMC) exposed to normoxia and hypoxia were analyzed and compared. Both progenitor cell populations responded to hypoxic stimuli by stabilizing the hypoxia inducible factor (HIF)-1α protein. Short exposures to hypoxia increased the clonogenic myeloid capacity of UCB CD133+ cells and promoted a significant increase in BMMC number. The differentiation potential of UCB CD133+ clonogenic myeloid cells was unaltered by short exposures to hypoxia. In contrast, the chondrogenic differentiation potential of BMMCs was enhanced by hypoxia, whereas adipogenesis and osteogenesis were unaltered. When their transcriptional profiles were compared, 183 genes in UCB CD133+ cells and 45 genes in BMMC were differentially regulated by hypoxia. These genes included known hypoxia-responsive targets such as BNIP3, PGK1, ENO2, and VEGFA, and other genes not previously described to be regulated by hypoxia. Several of these genes, namely CDTSPL, CCL20, LSP1, NEDD9, TMEM45A, EDG-1, and EPHA3 were confirmed to be regulated by hypoxia using quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. These results, therefore, provide a global view of the signaling and regulatory network that controls oxygen sensing in human adult stem/progenitor cells derived from hematopoietic tissues.Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest is found at the end of this article.
Spontaneous Fusion and Nonclonal Growth of Adult Neural Stem Cells
Authors: Jessberger Sebastian , Clemenson Gregory D. , Gage Fred H. 
Published: December 2006

Abstract
Multipotent neural stem cells (NSCs) can be isolated from various regions of the adult brain and propagated in vitro. Recent reports have suggested spontaneous fusion events among NSCs when grown as free-floating neurospheres that may affect the genetic composition of NSC cultures. We used adult NSCs expressing either red fluorescent protein (RFP) or green fluorescent protein (GFP) to analyze the fusion frequency of rat and mouse NSCs. Fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) revealed that, under proliferating conditions, approximately 0.2% of rat and mouse NSCs coexpressed RFP and GFP irrespective of whether the cells were grown as neurospheres (mouse NSCs) or as attached monolayers (rat and mouse NSCs). Fused cells did not proliferate and could not be propagated, suggesting that aberrantly fused cells are not viable. Furthermore, we found that neither neurospheres nor monolayers grew clonally, because even very low-density cultures had spheres containing both GFP- and RFP-expressing cells and monolayer patches with GFP- and RFP-expressing cells in close proximity. The nonclonal growth between distinct NSC populations strongly suggests the use of careful and precise culture conditions, such as single-cell assays, to characterize potency and growth of NSCs in vitro.
Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest is found at the end of this article.
Widespread Distribution and Muscle Differentiation of Human Fetal Mesenchymal Stem Cells After Intrauterine Transplantation in Dystrophic mdx Mouse
Authors: Chan Jerry , Waddington Simon N. , O'Donoghue Keelin , Kurata Hitoshi , Guillot Pascale V. , Gotherstrom Cecilia , Themis Michael , Morgan Jennifer E. , Fisk Nicholas M. 
Published: December 2006

Abstract
Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a common X-linked disease resulting from the absence of dystrophin in muscle. Affected boys suffer from incurable progressive muscle weakness, leading to premature death. Stem cell transplantation may be curative, but is hampered by the need for systemic delivery and immune rejection. To address these barriers to stem cell therapy in DMD, we investigated a fetal-to-fetal transplantation strategy. We investigated intramuscular, intravascular, and intraperitoneal delivery of human fetal mesenchymal stem cells (hfMSCs) into embryonic day (E) 14–16 MF1 mice to determine the most appropriate route for systemic delivery. Intramuscular injections resulted in local engraftment, whereas both intraperitoneal and intravascular delivery led to systemic spread. However, intravascular delivery led to unexpected demise of transplanted mice. Transplantation of hfMSCs into E14–16 mdx mice resulted in widespread long-term engraftment (19 weeks) in multiple organs, with a predilection for muscle compared with nonmuscle tissues (0.71% vs. 0.15%, p &lt; .01), and evidence of myogenic differentiation of hfMSCs in skeletal and myocardial muscle. This is the first report of intrauterine transplantation of ontologically relevant hfMSCs into fully immunocompetent dystrophic fetal mice, with systemic spread across endothelial barriers leading to widespread long-term engraftment in multiple organ compartments. Although the low-level of chimerism achieved is not curative for DMD, this approach may be useful in other severe mesenchymal or enzyme deficiency syndromes, where low-level protein expression may ameliorate disease pathology.
Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest is found at the end of this article.
Metagenomic studies reveal the critical and wide‐ranging ecological importance of uncultivated archaea: the role of ammonia oxidizers
Authors: Cavicchioli Ricardo , DeMaere Matthew Z. , Thomas Torsten 
Published: December 2006

AbstractMicrobial genome sequencing has entered a new phase, where DNA sequence information is gathered from entire microbial communities (metagenomics or environmental genomics) rather than from individual microorganisms. By providing access to the genetic material of vast numbers of organisms, most of which are organisms that have never been isolated or cultivated, a new level of insight is being gained into the diversity and extent of the microbial processes that are presently occuring in environmental communities. By extending metagenomic‐based approaches to the study of very complex and methodologically recalcitrant soil environments, a recent study has found that ammonia‐oxidizing archaea are more abundant in many soils than bacteria.1 These findings not only highlight the undoubtedly critical yet unknown roles that archaea play in global nutrient cycles but illustrate the importance of genomic studies for informing us about the functional capacity of life on Earth. BioEssays 29: 11–14, 2007. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Invasive assessment of mitral regurgitation: Comparison of hemodynamic parameters
Authors: Freihage Jeffrey H. , Joyal Dominique , Arab Dinesh , Dieter Robert S. , Loeb Henry S. , Steen Lowell , Lewis Bruce , Liu Jayson C. , Leya Ferdinand 
Published: December 2006

AbstractObjectives: We sought to analyze several new hemodynamic characteristics which address the interplay of left atrial (LA) and left ventricular (LV) pressures, as well as to re‐analyze several other V wave characteristics employed in the determination of mitral regurgitation (MR) severity in order to determine which, if any, had adequate correlation with grade of MR for clinical utility. Background: Invasive assessment of mitral regurgitation includes analysis of intracardiac pressures and LV angiography. The V wave, when obtained from the pulmonary capillary wedge position (PCWP), and its various characteristics are believed to be of limited value for prediction of MR severity. Method: We analyzed the transeptal pressure tracings of patients with various degrees of MR. Several relationships from the simuItaneous pressure‐time curves of the LA and LV were defined. Biplane left ventricular angiography was used to grade MR. Correlation between each parameter and MR grade was determined by calculating a Pearson correlation coefficient. Results: The ratio of the area under the V wave to the LV systolic area (Va/LVa) best correlates with the degree of MR with a Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.60. The Va/LVa was significantly lower in patients with 0−1+ MR compared to ≥2+ MR (0.14 vs. 0.23 p = 0.002). Conclusions: Invasive hemodynamic assessment of MR severity could be enhanced by calculating our new ratio, Va/LVa, due to its ability to account for LV work that is lost to the LA with a proportional decrease in forward or useful LV work with progressively increasing severity of MR. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Growth and optical damage properties of In:Zn:LiNbO3 waveguide substrate
Authors: Nie Yiran , Wang Rui , Wang Biao 
Published: December 2006

AbstractIn:Zn:LiNbO3 crystals doped with different indium concentrations were grown by Czochralski technique. The optical damage threshold value and ultraviolet‐visible absorption spectra of the In:Zn:LiNbO3 crystals were measured. The In:Zn:LiNbO3 crystals were made into optical waveguide substrates using hexanedioic acid as proton exchange agent. The optical damage resistant ability of those optical waveguide substrates was investigated by the m‐line method. The optical damage threshold values of In(2mol.%):Zn(3mol.%):LiNbO3 crystal and optical waveguide substrate are two orders of magnitude higher than those of pure LiNbO3. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
A novel metal‐organic coordination complex crystal: tris allylthiourea zinc bromide (ATZB) as a nonlinear optical material
Authors: Sun Haiqing , Yuan Duorong , Hou Xianqin , Wang Xinqiang , Liu Liqiang , Zhang Dajiang , Han Ye 
Published: December 2006

AbstractA new second order nonlinear optical coordination complex crystal tris allylthiourea zinc bromide was synthesized and grown from ethanol for the first time. Elemental analyses, X‐ray powder diffraction and infrared spectroscopy confirmed the formation of the new material. The thermal characterization was determined by the differential thermal analysis and thermogravimetric analysis. The transmission spectrum of the crystal shows a wide transparent UV‐Vis‐NIR band. The powder SHG efficiency is higher than that of urea crystal. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
XRD, thermal, FTIR and SEM studies on gel grown γ‐glycine crystals
Authors: Ramachandran E. , Baskaran K. , Natarajan S. 
Published: December 2006

AbstractGlycine is the smallest among amino acids. The polymorphs, α‐ and γ‐forms of glycine were crystallized in silica gel by reduction of solubility method. The grown crystals were characterized by single crystal X‐ray diffraction studies and density determination. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic studies and thermogravimetric analysis of γ‐glycine were also conducted. Morphological and scanning electron microscopic (SEM) studies were also made and compared with the crystal packing. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Developing an effective sell‐side strategy
Authors: Martin Dale R. , Wathen Michael M. , Smith Nigel W. H. 
Published: December 2006

AbstractThere's been a lot written about how to buy companies. But what about strategies to help the seller? Experts have paid very little attention to the best ways to sell a company. What can the seller do to get the most from the sale? © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Optimizing the quality control station configuration
Authors: Penn Michal , Raviv Tal 
Published: December 2006

AbstractWe study unreliable serial production lines with known failure probabilities for each operation. Such a production line consists of a series of stations, existing machines, and optional quality control stations (QCSs). Our aim is to decide on the allocation of the QCSs within the assembly line, so as to maximize the expected profit of the system. In such a problem, the designer has to determine the QCS configuration and the production rate simultaneously. The profit maximization problem is approximated assuming exponentially distributed processing times, Poisson arrival process of jobs into the system, and the existing of holding costs. The novel feature of our model is the incorporation of holding costs that significantly complicated the problem. Our approximation approach uses a branch and bound strategy that employs our fast dynamic programming algorithm for minimizing the expected operational costs for a given production rate as a subroutine. Extensive numerical experiments are conducted to demonstrate the efficiency of the branch and bound procedure for solving large scale instances of the problem and for obtaining some qualitative insights.
“Ever increasing quality is mandatory—not only for corporate profitability—but also for corporate survival” Inman, Blumenfeld, Huang, and Li (Int J Prod Res 38(9) (2000), 1953–1976)
© 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2007
Sonohysterography versus transvaginal sonography for screening of patients with abnormal uterine bleeding
Authors: Alborzi S. , Parsanezhad M.E. , Mahmoodian N. , Alborzi S. , Alborzi M. 
Published: December 2006

AbstractObjectives: To compare the accuracy of saline infusion sonohysterography (SIS) with transvaginal sonography (TVS) for the screening of causes of abnormal uterine bleeding (AUB) in out‐patients. Methods: 81 patients with AUB were studied. All cases who were examined with TVS, were further investigated with SIS using saline as contrast medium, finally hysteroscopy was used as the gold standard. Results: TVS had sensitivity of 72%, specificity of 92%, positive predictive value of 94% and negative predictive value of 65%, while SIS had sensitivity of 94.1%, specificity of 95%, positive predictive value of 96% and negative predictive value of 90%. TVS had kappa measure of agreement of 0.60 while 0.86 was reported for SIS. Conclusions: In this study SIS was more sensitive and specific in diagnosing polyp, myoma and adenomyosis with high positive and negative predictive value. Furthermore, results obtained by SIS demonstrate more agreement with that obtained by hysteroscopy than TVS.
Development of the undergraduate nursing course in the University of Manchester
Authors: Marsh Nora 
Published: December 2006

The diploma in community nursing was set up in the University of Manchester in 1959 and was unique in the United Kingdom (UK) as an experimental course in nurse education in which nursing was taught as a university subject. It sought to provide a university education in nursing, demonstrating also that integration of hospital and community nursing was possible in the basic course. It was thought that this might prove a better preparation for health visiting than the conventional method of following nurse training by a special course in public health nursing. In 1964, at the end of the experimental period, the course was revised and better integration of practical experience was achieved. The student also had greater opportunity to participate in university activities, an essential aspect of university education. Recruitment to the course increased considerably over the years and it was evident that there were sufficient entrants of high calibre whose work was of a quality comparable to that in degree courses. The revised course therefore became the prototype for a degree course and, in 1969, the first group of students graduated bachelor of nursing.Miss Jean K. McFarlane was appointed head of nursing studies in 1971, becoming the first professor of nursing in England and Wales in 1974. Since 1972, the annual intake of students has been increased from 12 to 25, though this number has been exceeded (153 students in the years 1972–1976). Courses have also been developed for qualified and experienced nurses–a diploma in advanced nursing studies and a master of science degree course (nursing option). Since 1970, research fellows have also been appointed, firstly in the department of social and preventive medicine and secondly, since its inception, in the department of nursing.