bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
TRAUMATIC ADRENAL HAEMORRHAGE IN CHILDREN
Authors: Soundappan S. V. S. , Lam Albert H. , Cass Daniel T. 
Published: August 2006

Background:  Adrenal injuries following blunt abdominal trauma is uncommon. Recent increased detection of traumatic adrenal haemorrhage (TAH) prompted this study.Methods:  Cases were identified from retrospective search of the trauma and medical imaging database for the period 1998–2004. Medical records were reviewed and data analysed to identify mechanism of injury, imaging findings, associated injuries, presence of hypotension, length of stay and follow up.Results:  Eleven children were identified with TAH. Right adrenal was commonly injured. Motor vehicle injury was the commonest mechanism. All injuries were identified on initial computed tomography, and all but one had associated abdominal injuries. There were no deaths. Ultrasound showed resolution within 3 months in six patients.Conclusion:  TAH is an uncommon injury that is rarely isolated. Although initial diagnosis is made on computed tomography, ultrasound appears adequate for follow up. TAH appears to be an incidental finding that resolves on follow‐up imaging.
Value of B‐type natriuretic peptide in diagnosing left ventricular dysfunction in dialysis‐dependent patients
Authors: Zeng C. , Wei T. , Jin L. , Wang L. 
Published: August 2006

AbstractBackground: B‐type natriuretic peptide (BNP) is elevated in patients with end‐stage renal failure. The reported accuracy of BNP in diagnosing left ventricular dysfunction in these patients has been inconsistent.Aim: To investigate the diagnostic values of BNP for left ventricular dysfunction in patients undergoing haemodialysis for chronic renal failure.Methods: We measured plasma BNP before and at 10 min and 3, 6 and 24 h after haemodialysis in 56 patients.Results: The average plasma BNP before haemodialysis was 284 ± 369 pg/mL, which was higher than that of healthy subjects (37 ± 37 pg/mL; n = 32, P < 0.01). The average plasma BNP in patients with left ventricular dysfunction (n = 21) was substantially higher than that in those with normal ventricular function before and at 10 min and 3, 6 and 24 h after haemodialysis (P < 0.001). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curves was greater than 0.895 before and at the four time points after haemodialysis (P < 0.01). Using 152 pg/mL as a cut‐off value, predialysis BNP has 81% sensitivity and 83% specificity in diagnosing left ventricular dysfunction in these patients.Conclusion: We concluded that plasma BNP offers a good sensitivity and specificity in diagnosing left ventricular dysfunction in patients with dialysis‐dependent renal failure.
Critical review of complementary therapies in haemato‐oncology
Authors: Joske D. J. L. , Rao A. , Kristjanson L. 
Published: August 2006

AbstractThere is evidence of the increasing use of complementary and alternative medicine by Australians diagnosed with cancer. Given the increasing desire of cancer patients to use complementary and alternative medicine, it is important that clinicians have a good understanding of the evidence available in this field. This critical review aims to provide an overview of the current evidence pertaining to a range of complementary therapies that are used in a supportive role in the treatment of cancer patients. Treatment methods considered are acupuncture, music therapy, massage and touch therapies and psychological interventions. The efficacy of these complementary therapies in terms of improvement in symptoms and quality of life is examined. Evidence that relates to an effect on immune function and survival is also investigated.
Diversity of phototrophic bacteria in microbial mats from Arctic hot springs (Greenland)
Authors: Roeselers Guus , Norris Tracy B. , Castenholz Richard W. , Rysgaard Søren , Glud Ronnie N. , Kühl Michael , Muyzer Gerard 
Published: August 2006

SummaryWe investigated the genotypic diversity of oxygenic and anoxygenic phototrophic microorganisms in microbial mat samples collected from three hot spring localities on the east coast of Greenland. These hot springs harbour unique Arctic microbial ecosystems that have never been studied in detail before. Specific oligonucleotide primers for cyanobacteria, purple sulfur bacteria, green sulfur bacteria and Choroflexus/Roseiflexus‐like green non‐sulfur bacteria were used for the selective amplification of 16S rRNA gene fragments. Amplification products were separated by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and sequenced. In addition, several cyanobacteria were isolated from the mat samples, and classified morphologically and by 16S rRNA‐based methods. The cyanobacterial 16S rRNA sequences obtained from DGGE represented a diverse, polyphyletic collection of cyanobacteria. The microbial mat communities were dominated by heterocystous and non‐heterocystous filamentous cyanobacteria. Our results indicate that the cyanobacterial community composition in the samples were different for each sampling site. Different layers of the same heterogeneous mat often contained distinct and different communities of cyanobacteria. We observed a relationship between the cyanobacterial community composition and the in situ temperatures of different mat parts. The Greenland mats exhibited a low diversity of anoxygenic phototrophs as compared with other hot spring mats which is possibly related to the photochemical conditions within the mats resulting from the Arctic light regime.
Diversity and expression of nitrogenase genes (nifH) from ectomycorrhizas of Corsican pine (Pinus nigra)
Authors: Izumi Hironari , Anderson Ian C. , Alexander Ian J. , Killham Ken , Moore Edward R. B. 
Published: August 2006

SummaryThe diversity of bacterial nitrogenase genes (nifH) and their mRNA transcription in ectomycorrhizas of Corsican pine (Pinus nigra) were examined. DNA and RNA were extracted from surface‐sterilized and non‐sterilized Corsican pine roots colonized by the ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungi, Suillus variegatus and Tomentellopsis submollis. DNA‐derived nifH polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products were obtained from all samples, but only a few reverse transcription PCRs for nifH mRNA were successful, suggesting that nitrogenase genes were not always transcribed. Several different nifH sequences were detected and the bacteria actively transcribing nifH were different from those whose genes were detected through DNA‐based PCR. Putative nitrogenase amino acid sequences revealed that more than half of the nifH products were derived from methylotrophic bacteria, such as Methylocella spp. The next most frequent sequence types were similar to those from Burkholderia.
‘Pressure of life’: ethnicity as a mediating factor in mid‐life and older peoples’ experience of high blood pressure
Authors: Higginbottom Gina Marie Awoko 
Published: August 2006

AbstractHypertension is a common condition which disproportionately affects African Caribbean people in England, yet this experience is rarely reported in the literature. Whilst a body of literature exists that explores chronic illness experience, little attention is paid to hypertension, nor to ethnicity as a mediating concept in chronic illness experience. This paper explores the meaning and consequences of hypertension for African Caribbean people residing in England. The study conducted was a qualitative study, informed by the ethnographic tradition. The study methods included the conduct of two focus group interviews (10 participants), 21 in‐depth interviews and five vignette interviews. Thirty‐six people in total participated in the study, both men and women, aged between 37 and 82 years (median age = 59.5 years) in two English cities. The sample was generated by contacting GP surgeries, community groups and associations and included economically active and retired people. The narrative accounts provided illuminate the personal biographies of the mid‐life and older participants in the study, providing evidence as to how issues such as ethnicity, migration, cultural adaptation, racism and discrimination may impact upon the chronic illness experience. Participants’ understandings of their self‐defined condition of high blood pressure differed greatly from medical conceptualisations of the condition of hypertension. The implications of the study are that in order to provide effective health and social care for individuals of African Caribbean origin with hypertension, care‐providers require insight into how migration and cultural adaptation may create major disruption to an individual's life trajectory, to which the subsequent diagnoses of chronic illness are relative in terms of the individual's response and adaptation.
Breaking the ceremonial order: patients’ and doctors’ accounts of removal from a general practitioner's list
Authors: Stokes Tim , Dixon‐Woods Mary , Williams Simon 
Published: August 2006

AbstractThe removal of patients from general practitioners’ (GPs) lists in the UK offers important sociological insights into what happens when the doctor‐patient relationship ‘goes wrong’. An interactionist analysis shows how removers (doctors) and removed (patients) strategically invoke ‘rules of conduct’ to account for difficulties in the doctor‐patient relationship and for GPs’ decisions to end their relationships with patients. In this paper we extend this analysis through recourse to Bourdieu's theory of practice, by juxtaposing ‘paired’ accounts of the same removal event by both remover and removed. Our analysis demonstrates the unthinking or non‐reflective nature of people's understanding of the rules governing social interactions, but also demonstrates how apparent rule violations make the rules explicit and expose patterns of power distribution. We argue that removal of patients amounts to a strategic exercise of symbolic power by GPs, and that this is experienced as an overtly violent symbolic act by patients. A theoretical reconciliation of interactionist theories of the doctor‐patient relationship with Bourdieu's theory of practice is both possible and profitable, providing a micro‐macro link in which issues of capital and power within the health (care) field are brought to the fore.
Matrix metalloproteinase gene expression in oral lichen planus: erosive vs. reticular forms
Authors: Mazzarella N , Femiano F , Gombos F , De Rosa A , Giuliano M 
Published: August 2006

AbstractBackground  Oral lichen planus (OLP) is an autoimmune disease of unknown aetiology. The pathogenesis is characterized by apoptosis of basal keratinocytes, triggered by contact between CD8+‐activated lymphocytes and an unknown antigen expressed on the surface of the basal cells. Basement membrane (BM) degradation, which allows lymphocytes to migrate, involves proteolytic enzymes known as matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs).Objectives  This study aimed to evaluate the expression of a series of MMPs in biopsies from OLP patients, to reveal correlations with different clinical forms of OLP.Methods  Twenty‐six patients diagnosed with OLP (14 reticular and 12 erosive) were studied, together with seven healthy patients as negative controls.Results  Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) showed that the overall levels of expression of MMP mRNAs were higher in erosive lichen planus (E‐OLP) than in the reticular forms (R‐OLP). Moreover, MMP‐1 and MMP‐3 may be principally associated with erosion development. The expression of specific tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMPs) was also evaluated.Conclusions  The different clinical appearances of OLP are associated with significant differences in MMP mRNA levels.
Effects of repetitive superficial chemical peels on facial sebum secretion in acne patients
Authors: Lee SH , Huh CH , Park KC , Youn SW 
Published: August 2006

AbstractBackground  Glycolic acid and Jessner's solution are popular superficial chemical peel agents for the treatment of facial acne, and increased sebum secretion is one of the major aetiological factors of acne.Objective  To compare the effects of 30% glycolic acid peels and Jessner's solution peels on sebum secretion in facial acne patients.Methods  Thirty‐eight patients with mild to moderate facial acne were included. Twenty‐seven patients were treated with 30% glycolic acid peels and 11 patients with Jessner's solution peels. Each peel was performed twice with an interval of 2 weeks. Before and 2 weeks after each peel, sebum levels of forehead, nose, chin and cheeks were measured by using a Sebumeter® (SM810 Courage & Khazaka, Cologne, Germany).Results  The sebum levels were not significantly changed by two peels treatments of 30% glycolic acid peels or Jessner's solution peels on the facial skins of patients with facial acne.Conclusions  The two types of peels, 30% glycolic acid peels and Jessner's solution peels, did not affect sebum secretion of the facial skins of patients with facial acne after the two peels treatments. The accumulative effects of more than two peels treatments using these modalities need further evaluation.
Anurans as prey: an exploratory analysis and size relationships between predators and their prey
Authors: Toledo L. F. , Ribeiro R. S. , Haddad C. F. B. 
Published: August 2006

AbstractThe vertebrate predators of post‐metamorphic anurans were quantified and the predator–prey relationship was investigated by analysing the relative size of invertebrate predators and anurans. More than 100 vertebrate predators were identified (in more than 200 reports) and classified as opportunistic, convenience, temporary specialized and specialized predators. Invertebrate predators were classified as solitary non‐venomous, venomous and social foragers according to 333 reviewed reports. Each of these categories of invertebrate predators was compared with the relative size of the anurans, showing an increase in the relative size of the prey when predators used special predatory tactics. The number of species and the number of families of anurans that were preyed upon did not vary with the size of the predator, suggesting that prey selection was not arbitrary and that energetic constraints must be involved in this choice. The relatively low predation pressure upon brachycephalids was related to the presence of some defensive strategies of its species. This compounding review can be used as the foundation for future advances in vertebrate predator–prey interactions.
Activity of a specialized insectivorous mammal (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) in the Pantanal of Brazil
Authors: Mourão G. , Medri Í. M. 
Published: August 2006

AbstractThe purpose of this study was to correlate the activity and habitat use of a large and ecologically specialized mammal (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) with the time of day and minimum daily temperature in Brazil's Pantanal wetland. Seven giant anteaters were fitted with very high frequency (VHF) radio transmitters and monitored from March to December 2001. The animal's state of activity or rest, time and ambient temperature were recorded in different patches of the study site, which were covered by a mosaic of vegetation types and several ponds. Whenever a giant anteater was inside a forest patch, the temperature inside and outside of the patch was also recorded. The temperatures throughout the day were recorded by the meteorological station at the study site. The period of greatest activity of giant anteaters started at 18:00 h on hot days, but whenever the daily minimum temperature declined, the species' activity began earlier. Giant anteaters use predominantly forest habitats for rest and open habitats for activity. The forest patches work as a temperature buffer, because they are cooler than the matrix of open habitats during the hot hours of the day and warmer than the matrix during the cold hours. Although the giant anteater is known to be associated with open habitats, this study indicates the need of preserving forest patches for the conservation of this species.
LH responses to single doses of exogenous GnRH in the Cape mole rat (Georychus capensis): the pituitary potential for opportunistic breeding
Authors: Oosthuizen M. K. , Bennett N. C. 
Published: August 2006

AbstractThe Cape mole rat Georychus capensis is a solitary mole rat that inhabits the winter rainfall region of the Western Cape Province of South Africa. Circulating basal concentrations of luteinizing hormone (LH) were found to be significantly higher in the breeding season in both sexes. During both the breeding and non‐breeding season, administration of exogenous gonadotropin‐releasing hormone (GnRH) increased circulatory LH levels. The magnitude of the LH response to an overdose of exogenous GnRH both in and out of the breeding season in males and females was not significantly different. Typically, seasonally breeding species exhibit a down‐regulation of the pituitary and reproductive functions out of the breeding season. It appears that there is no down‐regulation of GnRH receptors at the level of the pituitary out of the breeding season, because the pituitary responds to an exogenous GnRH challenge equally both in and out of the breeding period. The Cape mole rat exhibits the potential for opportunistic breeding out of the breeding period, provided that environmental factors are favourable. This finding questions whether this mole rat is actually a seasonal breeder or whether reproduction is hindered by the ecological constraint of the lack of opportunities to burrow and find mates at certain times of the year.
Quantifying the influence of topographic position on cougar (Puma concolor) movement in southern California, USA
Authors: Dickson B. G. , Beier P. 
Published: August 2006

AbstractLarge carnivores are frequently used as focal species for landscape‐level planning and conservation purposes. Information on cougars Puma concolor, for example, is being used to predict movement corridors and linkage areas in habitats influenced by rapid urbanization. However, animal movement through habitat terrain is a function of multiple factors, including complex topographic features. To assess the use of topographic position during movements by cougars in the Santa Ana Mountain Range of southern California, we analyzed the travel paths of 10–17 radio‐tagged individuals monitored during 44 overnight sessions. We examined selection for canyon bottom, gentle slope, steep slope and ridgeline topography at the scale of the movement session and at the scale of the home range. At both scales of selection, our results suggest that traveling or hunting cougars discriminated in their use of topographic position, that canyon bottoms and gentle slopes (<6°) ranked highest in compositional analyses of selection, and that these patterns were not highly confounded by the presence of preferred vegetation types. Ridgelines were used significantly less often than other positions. Our novel method of quantifying availability and use of topographic positions permits the assessment of terrain features, such as canyon bottoms, in facilitating cougar movements. For complex landscapes, models of animal movement should consider the topographic context that motivates patterns of habitat use, and should be developed using data obtained and analyzed at the appropriate spatial and temporal scales.
Decreased expressions of hepsin in human hepatocellular carcinomas
Authors: Chen Chien‐Hung , Su Kang‐Yi , Tao Mi‐Hua , Lin Shu‐Wha , Su Ying‐Hui , Tsai Yu‐Chiu , Cheng Kuang‐Chun , Jeng Yung‐Ming , Sheu Jin‐Chuan 
Published: August 2006

Abstract: Background/Aims: Hepsin is a type II transmembrane protein predominantly expressed in the liver and has been implicated in participation in blood coagulation pathway and epithelial carcinogenesis. The aim of this current study is to investigate the role of hepsin in hepatocarcinogenesis.Methods: Quantitative real‐time RT‐PCR was used to investigate the expression levels of hepsin in a total of 50 paired hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) and the corresponding non‐tumor liver tissues. Hepsin was transfected to the hepsin‐non‐expressing SK‐HEP‐1 cells to study the change of cell proliferation.Results: In 62% (31/50) patients, the expression levels of hepsin in non‐tumor liver tissues are at least twofold higher than those in the corresponding HCC tissues. Positive hepatitis B surface antigen was more often detected in patients with hepsin underexpressed in the HCC tissues (74.2% vs. 31.6%, P=0.007). Patients with hepsin underexpressed in the HCC tissues survived shorter time than those without hepsin underexpression in the HCC tissues. The cell proliferation and for a colony formation of SK‐HEP‐1 HCC cells were inhibited by hepsin.Conclusions: Most HCC patients had hepsin underexpressed in the HCC tissues. These patients survived for a shorter time compared with those without hepsin underexpression in the HCC tissues. Hepsin expression could inhibit cell proliferation and colony formation of HCC cells.
Increased angiogenesis and permeability in the mesenteric microvasculature of rats with cirrhosis and portal hypertension: an in vivo study
Authors: Geerts Anja M. , De Vriese An S. , Vanheule Eline , Van Vlierberghe Hans , Mortier Siska , Cheung Kin‐Jip , Demetter Pieter , Lameire Norbert , De Vos Martine , Colle Isabelle 
Published: August 2006

Abstract:
Background: In vivo evidence for angiogenesis in the splanchnic vasodilation in portal hypertension (PHT) and cirrhosis is lacking. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) are mediators of angiogenesis. The present study visualises in vivo structural changes (angiogenesis and vascular hyperpermeability) and examines the presence of VEGF and eNOS in the mesenteric microvasculature of animal models of PHT with and without cirrhosis.Methods: Portal hypertension was induced by partial portal vein ligation (PPVL) and cirrhosis was induced by common bile duct ligation (CBDL) in rats. The mesenteric microcirculation was examined by intravital microscopy. Expression of VEGF, eNOS and CD31 in mesenteric tissue were studied by immunohistochemistry.Results: An increased mesenteric angiogenesis was observed in PPVL and CBDL rats compared with Sham‐operated and control rats, as shown by intravital microscopy and CD 31 staining. VEGF and eNOS expression was higher in CBDL and PPVL rats compared with control groups and correlated positively with vascular density. Macromolecular leakage was increased in cirrhotic rats compared with control and PPVL rats.Conclusion: Our study provides in vivo evidence of an increased angiogenesis in the mesenteric microvasculature of animal models of PHT and cirrhosis. Increased VEGF and eNOS expression in the mesentery of PPVL and CBDL rats may suggest their contribution. Microvascular permeability in the mesenteric vessels was only increased in cirrhotic rats.