bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Surgical aspects of operation Bali assist: initial wound surgery on the tarmac and in flight
Authors: Read David , Ashford Bruce 
Published: November 2004

Background:  The explosion of three bombs on 12 October 2002 in Kuta, Bali resulted in mass casualties akin to those seen in war. The aim of the present report is to describe the sequence of events of Operation Bali Assist including triage, resuscitation and initial wound surgery in Bali at Sanglah Hospital in the aeromedical staging facility (ASF), Denpasar airport and the evacuation to Darwin.Methods:  A descriptive report is provided of the event and includes; resuscitation, anaesthesia, initial burns surgery management including escharotomy and fasciotomy, head injury management and importance of supplies and medical records with a description of the evacuation to Darwin.Results:  Operation Bali Assist involved five C130 Hercules aircraft and aeromedical evacuation medical and nursing teams managing 66 casualties in the Denpasar area and their evacuation to Royal Darwin Hospital with ketamine the most useful anaesthetic agent and cling film the most useful burns dressing. Twelve procedures were performed at the ASF including seven escharotomies, three fasciotomies and two closed reductions. One escharotomy was performed in flight.Discussion:  The important lessons learnt from the exercise is the inclusion of a surgeon in the aeromedical evacuation team, the importance of debridement and delayed primary closure, the usefulness of cling film as a burns dressing and the importance of continuous assessment. Future disaster planning exercises need to consider a patient age mix that might be expected in a shopping mall, rather than the young adult encountered in Bali, a more familiar age mix for Australian Defence Force medical staff.
Diagnostic performance of quantitative ultrasound calcaneus measurement in case finding for osteoporosis in Thai postmenopausal women
Authors: Panichkul Suthee , Sripramote Manit , Sriussawaamorn Narongchai 
Published: November 2004

AbstractAim:  Dual‐energy X‐ray absorptiometry (DXA) is currently considered the gold standard for the diagnosis of osteoporosis. Quantitative ultrasound (QUS) can be an alternative method that is less expensive, portable, and can be used at a primary care level to indicate osteoporosis in women. The present study aimed to assess the diagnostic performance of QUS calcaneus measurement in a case finding for osteoporosis in Thai postmenopausal women using DXA as a gold standard.Methods:  Three hundred postmenopausal women, who had not menstruated normally for at least 1 year, were included in the study. To determine the accuracy and reliability of QUS of the calcaneus, calcaneus bone density measurement was carried out using the QUS and left femoral neck bone density was measured using DXA. Bone mass density (BMD) was interpreted as osteoporotic or normal using WHO criteria for determining the performance of QUS. Optimal cut‐off values were determined using a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve for diagnosing the osteoporosis cases.Results:  The number of osteoporosis cases in this study was 107 (35.67%). The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values were 39.25%, 91.71%, 72.41%, 73.14%, respectively, when using the T‐score of the WHO criteria as a reference. The positive and negative likelihood ratios were 4.73 and 0.66. When using the ROC curve to determine the optimal cut‐off values, using the stiffness index of the QUS and categorizing age (<65 years and ≥65 years) before conducting the test, sensitivity and specificity were 77.6% and 59.6%, respectively.Conclusions:  Bone mass density measurement for predicting osteoporosis using QUS had a very low sensitivity and was not good enough to replace the standard tool (DXA).
Retroperitoneal schwannoma bearing at the right vaginal wall
Authors: Inoue Takafumi , Kato Hidenori , Yoshikawa Koji , Adachi Toshisada , Etoh Kohzo , Wake Norio 
Published: November 2004

AbstractBenign schwannoma commonly arises from schwann cells of the neural sheath. We report a rare case of retroperitoneal schwannoma bearing at the vaginal wall. The tumor was a 7 × 5 × 4‐cm solid mass revealed using several image techniques and diagnosed to be a retroperitoneal tumor preoperatively. The tumor was tightly attached to the vaginal submucosal tissue, so complete surgical resection was difficult. However, an almost complete resection was carried out macroscopically using laparotomy. Histologic and immunohistochemical studies confirmed the diagnosis. The patient has been followed for 18 months after the operation, but there is no evidence of recurrent tumor.
The Self and the Phenomenal
Authors: Dainton Barry 
Published: November 2004

AbstractAs is widely appreciated and easily demonstrated, the notion that we are essentially experiential (or conscious) beings has a good deal of appeal; what is less obvious, and more controversial, is whether it is possible to devise a viable account of the self along such lines within the confines of a broadly naturalistic metaphysical framework. There are many avenues to explore, but here I confine myself to outlining the case for one particular approach. I suggest that we should think of ourselves (or our essential cores) as being composed of experience‐producing systems, and that such systems belong to the same self when they have the capacity to contribute to unified streams of consciousness. The viability of this proposal rests in turn on a particular conception of the structure of consciousness, both at and over time; this conception is defended in the first part of the paper
Economic Diplomacy
Authors: Ponsatí Clara 
Published: November 2004

AbstractWe study bilateral conflicts that affect the welfare of third parties, the stakeholders. The conflict takes the form of a war of attrition and intervention is modeled as the possibility that the stakeholder “aids” the agreement with transfers to the contenders. We characterize the optimal policy when the stakeholder limits its intervention to a unilateral commitment to compensate the contenders if the conflict is resolved, and show that if contenders must be treated equally after agreement, then the optimal policy cannot eliminate the delay in resolving the conflict, and intervention is only advisable when the stakes are high enough. Economic diplomacy is modeled as a three‐player game where the stakeholder is actively involved in the negotiation where transfers are discussed simultaneously with a settlement for the conflict. We prove that, provided that none of the parties involved is too impatient, diplomacy benefits the third party in all conflicts.
Idazoxan effects upon contractile activity in the rat aorta are related to α1 adrenoceptors and L‐type channels
Authors: Serban Dragomir Nicolae , Serban Ionela Lacramioara , Nechifor Mihai 
Published: November 2004

AbstractIdazoxan is an α2 adrenoceptor antagonist and α1/α2 partial agonist which also blocks imidazoline receptors. Although idazoxan is widely used in pharmacological studies, its intrinsic vasoactive properties could bring about some limitations. Others have shown that in rat aorta contracted by phenylephrine idazoxan induces relaxation and that in rat small arteries it preferentially antagonizes the α1‐mediated response. We further investigated this matter, using the rat aorta and focusing on the endothelium‐independent effects and on L‐type channels. In our study, idazoxan inhibited the contraction induced by phenylephrine, an effect which was stronger in the presence of endothelium, but did not affect the contractions induced by various other agents (high potassium, angiotensin II, prostaglandin F2α). This preferential inhibition was attenuated by 10−4 m, but not by 10−5 m yohimbine, and also reduced by 10−2 m tetraethylammonium and blunted by 10−4 m methoxyverapamil. In concentrations above 10−5 m idazoxan induced weak contractions of the de‐endothelized rings, which were prazosin‐ and methoxyverapamil‐sensitive. Others have suggested that cyclic guanosine monophospate mediates the idazoxan‐induced endothelium‐dependent relaxation, but this is difficult to reconcile with our findings. Potassium efflux could play some role in the direct relaxing effect of idazoxan. The observed idazoxan effects appear as based on action upon α1 receptors, but a direct interaction with L‐type calcium channels could also be taken into consideration.
Effects of venlafaxine on ethanol withdrawal syndrome in rats
Authors: Sağlam Esra , Uzbay I. Tayfun , Kayir Hakan , Çelik Turgay , Beyazyürek Mansur 
Published: November 2004

AbstractThe present study was designed to investigate the effects of venlafaxine, a serotonin and noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor (SNRI), on ethanol withdrawal syndrome in rats. Adult male Wistar rats (187–319 g) were used for the study. Ethanol (7.2%, v/v) was given to rats by a liquid diet for 21 days. Control rats were pair‐fed an isocaloric liquid diet containing sucrose as a caloric substitute to ethanol. Venlafaxine (5, 10, 20 and 40 mg/kg) and saline were injected to rats intraperitoneally just before ethanol withdrawal. After the 2nd, 4th and 6th hour of ethanol withdrawal, rats were observed for 5 min, and withdrawal signs that included locomotor hyperactivity, agitation, stereotyped behaviour and wet dog shakes were recorded or rated. A second series of injections was given at the 6th hour after the first one, and rats were then tested for audiogenic seizures. Venlafaxine produced some inhibitory effects on locomotor hyperactivity, stereotypic behaviours and wet dog shakes. However, a two‐way anova of the data did not indicate any significant effect. It reduced the incidence of the audiogenic seizures at the 6th hour of ethanol withdrawal. Venlafaxine (20 mg/kg) also prolonged the latency of the seizures significantly. Our results suggest that acute venlafaxine treatment has limited beneficial effects on ethanol withdrawal syndrome in rats.
Impact of inter‐individual differences in drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics on safety evaluation
Authors: Dorne J.L.C.M. 
Published: November 2004

AbstractSafety evaluation aims to assess the dose–response relationship to determine a dose/level of exposure for food contaminants below which no deleterious effect is measurable that is ‘without appreciable health risk’ when consumed daily over a lifetime. These safe levels, such as the acceptable daily intake (ADI) have been derived from animal studies using surrogates for the threshold such as the no‐observed‐adverse‐effect‐level (NOAEL). The extrapolation from the NOAEL to the human safe intake uses a 100‐fold uncertainty factor, defined as the product of two 10‐fold factors allowing for human variability and interspecies differences. The 10‐fold factor for human variability has been further subdivided into two factors of 100.5 (3.16) to cover toxicokinetics and toxicodynamics and this subdivsion allows for the replacement of an uncertainty factor with a chemical‐specific adjustment factor (CSAF) when compound‐specific data are available. Recently, an analysis of human variability in pharmacokinetics for phase I metabolism (CYP1A2, CYP2A6, CYP2C9, CYP2C19, CYP2D6, CYP2E1, CYP3A4, hydrolysis, alcohol dehydrogenase), phase II metabolism (N‐acetyltransferase, glucuronidation, glycine conjugation, sulphation) and renal excretion was used to derive pathway‐related uncertainty factors in subgroups of the human population (healthy adults, effects of ethnicity and age). Overall, the pathway‐related uncertainty factors (99th centile) were above the toxicokinetic uncertainty factor for healthy adults exposed to xenobiotics handled by polymorphic metabolic pathways (and assuming the parent compound was the proximate toxicant) such as CYP2D6 poor metabolizers (26), CYP2C19 poor metabolizers (52) and NAT‐2 slow acetylators (5.2). Neonates were the most susceptible subgroup of the population for pathways with available data [CYP1A2 and glucuronidation (12), CYP3A4 (14), glycine conjugation (28)]. Data for polymorphic pathways were not available in neonates but uncertainty factors of up to 45 and 9 would allow for the variability observed in children for CYP2D6 and CYP2C19 metabolism, respectively. This review presents an overview on the history of uncertainty factors, the main conclusions drawn from the analysis of inter‐individual differences in metabolism and pharmacokinetics, the development of pathway‐related uncertainty factors and their use in chemical risk assessment.
Changes of vitamin E status of periparturient dairy cows and newborn calves
Authors: KUMAGAI Hajime , CHAIPAN Yot 
Published: November 2004

ABSTRACTEleven primiparous Holstein Friesian and their crossbred calves (F1, Japanese Black cattle × Holstein Friesian) and 10 multiparous Holstein Friesian and their Holstein Friesian calves were used to evaluate vitamin E status in periparturient period. Plasma α‐tocopherol (α‐toc) concentrations of the multiparous cows were significantly higher than those of the primiparous cows from 60 days before expected calving to 90 days of lactation (P < 0.05). The multiparous cows had a further decrease in the concentrations of α‐toc and total lipid in plasma to the calving than the primiparous cows. Colostrum α‐toc concentrations in multiparous cows were significantly higher than those of the primiparous cows (P < 0.05). Plasma α‐toc concentrations of calves borne by the multiparous cows were significantly higher than those of the primiparous cows at 5 days of age (P < 0.05). Plasma α‐toc concentrations of calves were highest at 5 and 15 days of age in the calves borne by the multiparous and primiparous cows, respectively, and decreased thereafter till 90 days of age. The higher vitamin E status of multiparous cows over primiparous cows might have reflected nutritional composition in the rations. Their calves afforded higher plasma α‐toc levels after birth because of more α‐toc transfer via placenta and more α‐toc secretion in the colostrums thereafter. Plasma α‐toc concentrations of the calves might have decreased as the calves became dependent upon the solid feed of low vitamin E content.
Only the CD62L+ subpopulation of CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells protects from lethal acute GVHD
Authors: Ermann Joerg , Hoffmann Petra , Edinger Matthias , Dutt Suparna , Blankenberg Francis G. , Higgins John P. , Negrin Robert S. , Fathman C. Garrison , Strober Samuel 
Published: November 2004

AbstractCD4+CD25+ regulatory T (Treg) cells are potent modulators of alloimmune responses. In murine models of allogeneic bone marrow transplantation, adoptive transfer of donor CD4+CD25+ Treg cells protects recipient mice from lethal acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) induced by donor CD4+CD25- T cells. Here we examined the differential effect of CD62L+ and CD62L- subsets of CD4+CD25+ Treg cells on aGVHD-related mortality. Both subpopulations showed the characteristic features of CD4+CD25+ Treg cells in vitro and did not induce aGVHD in vivo. However, in cotransfer with donor CD4+CD25- T cells, only the CD62L+ subset of CD4+CD25+ Treg cells prevented severe tissue damage to the colon and protected recipients from lethal aGVHD. Early after transplantation, a higher number of donor-type Treg cells accumulated in host mesenteric lymph node (LN) and spleen when CD4+CD25+CD62L+ Treg cells were transferred compared with the CD62L- subset. Subsequently, CD4+CD25+CD62L+ Treg cells showed a significantly higher capacity than their CD62L- counterpart to inhibit the expansion of donor CD4+CD25- T cells. The ability of Treg cells to efficiently enter the priming sites of pathogenic allo-reactive T cells appears to be a prerequisite for their protective function in aGVHD.
Tumor antigen processing and presentation depend critically on dendritic cell type and the mode of antigen delivery
Authors: Schnurr Max , Chen Qiyuan , Shin Amanda , Chen Weisan , Toy Tracey , Jenderek Corinna , Green Simon , Miloradovic Lena , Drane Debbie , Davis Ian D. , Villadangos Jose , Shortman Ken , Maraskovsky Eugene , Cebon Jonathan 
Published: November 2004

AbstractDendritic cells (DCs) are being evaluated for cancer immunotherapy due to their unique ability to induce tumor-directed T-cell responses. Here we report that the type of human DC, the mode of activation, and the strategy for delivery of antigen are 3 critical factors for efficient stimulation of tumor-specific CD8+ and CD4+ T cells. Only CD1c+ blood DCs and monocyte-derived DCs (MoDCs) were capable of presenting epitopes of the full-length tumor antigen NY-ESO-1 on both major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I (cross-presentation) and MHC II, whereas plasmacytoid DCs were limited to MHC II presentation. Cross-presentation was inefficient for soluble protein, but highly efficient for antigen-antibody immune complexes (NY-ESO-1/IC) and for protein formulated with ISCOMATRIX adjuvant (NY-ESO-1/IMX). DC activation with CD40L further enhanced cross-presentation efficiency. The mode of antigen delivery was found to be a determining factor for cytosolic proteolysis by DCs. Immune complexes (ICs) targeted a slow, proteasome-dependent cross-presentation pathway, whereas ISCOMATRIX (IMX) targeted a fast, proteasome-independent pathway. Both cross-presentation pathways resulted in a long-lived, T-cell stimulatory capacity, which was maintained for several days longer than for DCs pulsed with peptide. This may provide DCs with ample opportunities for sensitizing tumor-specific T cells against a broad array of tumor antigen epitopes in lymph nodes.
The nitric oxide pathway modulates hemangioblast activity of adult hematopoietic stem cells
Authors: Guthrie Steven M. , Curtis Lisa M. , Mames Robert N. , Simon Gregory G. , Grant Maria B. , Scott Edward W. 
Published: November 2004

AbstractWe have previously established a model inducing hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) production of circulating endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) to revascularize ischemic injury in adult mouse retina. The unique vascular environment of the retina results in new blood vessel formation primarily from HSC-derived EPCs. Using mice deficient (–/–) in inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), we show that vessel phenotype resulting from hemangioblast activity can be altered by modulation of the NO/NOS pathway. iNOS–/– or eNOS–/– animals were engrafted with wild-type (WT) HSCs expressing green fluorescence protein (gfp+) and subjected to our adult retinal ischemia model. WT hemangioblast activity in adult iNOS–/– recipients resulted in the formation of highly branched blood vessels of donor origin, which were readily perfused indicating functionality. In contrast, eNOS–/– recipients produced relatively unbranched blood vessels with significant donor contribution that were difficult to perfuse, indicating poor functionality. Furthermore, eNOS–/– chimeras had extensive gfp+ HSC contribution throughout their vasculature without additional injury. This neovascularization, via EPCs derived from the transplanted HSCs, reveals that the NO pathway can modulate EPC activity and plays a critical role in both blood vessel formation in response to injury and normal endothelial cell maintenance.
The single nucleotide polymorphism Ser128Arg in the E-selectin gene is associated with enhanced coagulation during human endotoxemia
Authors: Jilma Bernd , Marsik Claudia , Kovar Florian , Wagner Oswald F. , Jilma-Stohlawetz Petra , Endler Georg 
Published: November 2004

AbstractThe single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) Ser128Arg in the E-selectin gene is overrepresented in certain patient groups with atherosclerosis or restenosis. We hypothesized and tested whether it may affect cytokine-induced levels of soluble (s) E-selectin, or be associated with proinflammatory or procoagulant properties in a well-standardized inflammation model. Healthy male volunteers (n = 157) received a lipopolysaccharide (LPS) infusion and were genotyped for the S128R SNP, and outcome parameters were measured by enzyme immunoassays and real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR, Taqman). The S128R SNP had no pronounced effects on basal or inducible sE-selectin levels, or levels of tumor necrosis factor or interleukin-6. However, carriers of the S128R SNP had 20% higher monocyte counts at 24 hours after LPS infusion. Importantly, the S128R allele enhanced thrombin generation by 50% to 80%, as measured by prothrombin fragment F1+2 (P &lt; .01), and hence fibrin formation (D-dimer) 2-fold (P = .01 to P = .002). However, tissue factor (TF) mRNA levels were not affected. The S128R E-selectin genotype is associated with procoagulant effects in a human model of endotoxin-induced, TF-triggered coagulation. This could contribute to its linkage with various thrombotic cardiovascular disorders.
Nifedipine protects against overproduction of superoxide anion by monocytes from patients with systemic sclerosis
Authors: Allanore Yannick , Borderie Didier , Périanin Axel , Lemaréchal Hervé , Ekindjian Ohvanesse Garabed , Kahan André 
Published: November 2004

AbstractWe have reported previously that dihydropyridine-type calcium-channel antagonists (DTCCA) such as nifedipine decrease plasma markers of oxidative stress damage in systemic sclerosis (SSc). To clarify the cellular basis of these beneficial effects, we investigated the effects in vivo and in vitro of nifedipine on superoxide anion (O2•-) production by peripheral blood monocytes. We compared 10 healthy controls with 12 patients with SSc, first after interruption of treatment with DTCCA and second after 2 weeks of treatment with nifedipine (60 mg/day). O2•- production by monocytes stimulated with phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) was quantified by the cytochrome c reduction method. We also investigated the effects in vitro of DTCCA on O2•- production and protein phosphorylation in healthy monocytes and on protein kinase C (PKC) activity using recombinant PKC. After DTCCA had been washed out, monocytes from patients with SSc produced more O2•- than those from controls. Nifedipine treatment considerably decreased O2•- production by PMA-stimulated monocytes. Treatment of healthy monocytes with nifedipine in vitro inhibited PMA-induced O2•- production and protein phosphorylation in a dose-dependent manner. Finally, nifedipine strongly inhibited the activity of recombinant PKC in vitro. Thus, the oxidative stress damage observed in SSc is consistent with O2•- overproduction by primed monocytes. This was decreased by nifedipine treatment both in vivo and in vitro. This beneficial property of nifedipine seems to be mediated by its cellular action and by the inhibition of PKC activity. This supports the hypothesis that this drug could be useful for the treatment of diseases associated with oxidative stress.