bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Simultaneous determination of HIV antibodies, hepatitis C antibodies, and hepatitis B antigens in dried blood spots –a feasibility study using a multi-analyte immunoassay
Authors: Lukacs Zoltan , Dietrich Alexandra , Ganschow Rainer , Kohlschütter Alfried , Kruithof Rudolf 
Published: February 2005

AbstractHIV in particular, as well as hepatitis B and C, present a burden on healthcare systems worldwide. Early detection of these diseases may prevent further infections and improve the outcome for patients. In particular, transmission of HIV from mother to child can be significantly reduced when preventive measures are taken before birth. We have developed and optimized a method for the simultaneous detection of HIV 1 and hepatitis B and C from dried blood specimensusing the Luminex multi-analyte profiling technology (LabMap). Dried blood spots provide a convenient method for mailing, analysis and storage of samples. Specimens from known HIV-positive children (n=46) as well as hepatitis B- (n=8) and hepatitis C-positive patients (n=7) tested positive in our assay. Storage for up to 10years did not interfere with the test in the case of HIV-positive patients. Results for five different antibodies and one antigen were obtained in approximately 80seconds. Furthermore, antibody levels in infants of HIV-positive mothers were monitored over a period of 1year. Antibodies were no longer detectable after 260–360days, which compared well with results independently obtained by ELISA and Western blot analysis. We demonstrated the feasibility of the simultaneous detection of infectious diseases from dried blood. Our novel method also provides a convenient tool for monitoring children from HIV-positive mothers and for possible screening efforts.
Hematopoietic cytokines in the sera of patients with pancreatic cancer
Authors: Mroczko Barbara , Szmitkowski Maciej , Wereszczyńska-Siemiątkowska Urszula , Jurkowska Grażyna 
Published: February 2005

AbstractHematopoietic cytokines (HCs) can affect the growth and spread of cancer. Therefore, in the present study, we investigated in pancreatic cancer patients the serum levels of selected HCs, such as stem cell factor (SCF), interleukin 3 (IL-3), granulocyte-macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF), granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) and macrophage-colony stimulating factor (M-CSF) in relation to a control group and to a group of patients with chronic pancreatitis. Classical tumor markers such as carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA 19-9) were also tested. We compared the serum level of cytokines with the tumor stage. The diagnostic sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values and receiver-operating characteristics (ROC) curve for cytokines and classical tumor markers were defined. The cytokines were measured in 48 patients with pancreatic cancer, in 23 patients with chronic pancreatitis and in 40 healthy subjects. HCs were determined using ELISA. CEA and CA 19-9 were measured by microparticle enzyme immunoassay. There were significant differences in the levels of circulating SCF, IL-3, GM-CSF, M-CSF, CEA and CA 19-9 in the pancreatic cancer patients compared to the control group. The serum levels of M-CSF and tumor markers were significantly higher in pancreatic cancer patients compared to the pancreatitis group. The levels of SCF, M-CSF and tumor markers were higher in patients with a more advanced tumor stage. The M-CSF serum levels in the pancreatitis group correlated positively with the tumor markers tested – CEA and CA 19-9. The diagnostic sensitivity of SCF and specificity of M-CSF and tumor markers were the highest. The SCF and M-CSF areas under the ROC curve were greater than the areas for other cytokines. These results suggest the potential usefulness of HCs in pancreatic cancer detection; however, further investigations of early-stage pancreatic cancer patients and confirmation by a prospective study are necessary.
Integration between point-of-care cardiac markers in an emergency/cardiology department and the central laboratory: methodological and preliminary clinical evaluation
Authors: Di Serio Francesca , Amodio Gianfranco , Varraso Lucia , Campaniello Maurizio , Coluccia Paola , Trerotoli Paolo , Antonelli Gianfranco , Pansini Nicola 
Published: February 2005

AbstractTo achieve rapid assessment of chest pain in emergency/cardiology departments, a short turnaround time for cardiac marker testing is necessary. Nevertheless, Total Quality Management principles must be incorporated into the management of point-of-care testing (POCT); in this setting we implemented the Stratus CS
Permeability Tests in Rigid-Wall Permeameters: Determining the Degree of Saturation, its Evolution, and its Influence of Test Results
Authors: Chapuis RP 
Published: February 2005

Abstract
This paper documents a method to determine the degree of saturation, Sr, of a soil specimen at any time during a rigid-wall permeameter test. This method first indicates that the tested specimen usually is not fully saturated. Then it is used to prove that the usual test termination criterion based on equality of inflow and outflow volumes may be misleading. Examples are provided where the two volumes were equal within 1 %, whereas Sr increased from 80 to 100 % and k increased by a factor of 4. Without knowing the technique to determine the Sr value at any time, the test would have been stopped prematurely and would have given some k(Sr) value for an unknown Sr with the risk of misinterpreting this result as k(Sr = 100 %). New equations for gas transfer between water and gas bubbles are also established and experimentally verified for specimens permeated with either deaired water or water over-saturated with air.
A Modified Pressure Plate Apparatus
Authors: Leong EC , Tripathy S , Rahardjo H 
Published: February 2005

Abstract
Soil-water characteristic curves of soils can be measured in the laboratory using conventional testing apparatus such as the pressure plate. This paper describes a modified pressure plate apparatus using a commercially available high air entry ceramic plate. The modified pressure plate apparatus has several advantages over the conventional pressure plate apparatus: It can be used to determine both the drying and wetting soil-water characteristic curves, whereas the conventional pressure plate can usually determine only the drying soil-water characteristic curve; the water reservoir beneath the ceramic plate ensures that the ceramic plate is fully saturated at all times; air appearing in the water reservoir due to air diffusion through the ceramic disk can be flushed out by the cross-flow system during the test without stoppage of the test.
Evaluation Indicator of Asphalt Mixture Rutting Susceptibility
Authors: Hao P , Hachiya Y 
Published: February 2005

Abstract
Rutting is the major cause of failure of asphalt pavements. Excessive rutting often results in premature maintenance and rehabilitation activities, reducing the service life of the pavement. It is very important to evaluate the rutting susceptibility of asphalt mixtures in the laboratory at high temperatures. Wheel-tracking devices have gained a great deal of attention as candidates for proof-testing the ability of asphalt mixtures to resist rutting; currently, there are a number of different wheel-tracking devices and different evaluation indicators. The objective of this study is to evaluate indicators of asphalt mixture rutting susceptibility in the laboratory, using the wheel-tracking test and data for different asphalt mixtures and test conditions. It is found that the dynamic stability indicator in the Japanese standard is not suitable for evaluating the rutting susceptibility of asphalt mixtures, but that the relative deformation ratio is a suitable indicator.
Residual Stress Measurement and Modeling by the Initial Strain Distribution Method: Part I-Theory
Authors: Beghini M , Bertini L 
Published: February 2005

Abstract
The paper presents a method for measuring and modeling residual stress fields. The method is based on the evaluation of a hydrostatic initial strain distribution, which is assumed to be the cause of the residual stresses. The initial strain distribution can be used, within a numerical (e.g., finite element) model, to evaluate the complete residual stress distribution of the body. For estimating the initial strain distribution a hybrid (experimental plus numerical) technique is proposed, which is based on measuring the strain relaxed by cutting the body in incremental steps and on sensitivity coefficients obtained by properly elaborating numerical simulations.
The numerical and experimental methodologies are presented along with a general discussion of the rational way to be applied in practice.
Residual Stress Measurement and Modeling by the Initial Strain Distribution Method: Part II—Application to Cladded Plates with Different Heat Treatments
Authors: Beghini M , Bertini L , Valentini R 
Published: February 2005

Abstract
The initial strain distribution (ISD) method is applied to the evaluation of the residual stress in cladded plates with three different heat treatments. The experimental methods are explained and details for the application of the interpretation procedure developed in Part I are provided. The ISD allowed the complete residual stress field of the plates to be obtained and the effect of the heat treatments in the mitigation of the residual stress peaks to be verified. The obtained results make it possible to predict the residual stress field for any body that can be extracted from the plates by any procedure that does not introduce other sources of initial strain.
Application of Magnetoelastic Technology to the Measurement of Stresses in Rails for High-Speed Trains
Authors: Xin Q , Ling HZ , Long TJ 
Published: February 2005

Abstract
On high-speed railroad lines, several dozens of standard rails have to be welded together to make a very long seamless rail. When put into service, owing to the resistance effect of the fasteners and the crossties, such a seamless rail is allowed to expand with heat and contract with cold only within 100 m of its two ends. Thus, huge longitudinal stresses may accumulate inside the rails when the temperature of the rails changes. In a rail, the cross-sectional area of which is 77.45 cm2, and the weight of which is 60 kg per meter, 2.5 MPa of stress will be generated as the temperature of the rail changes 1°C. In a hot summer, if the daily change of the temperature of the rails is 50°C, the stress in the rails will change 75 MPa. Such a large stress in the rails can cause catastrophes. Thus, a technology for the measurement of the stresses inside such a rail in service is urgently needed.
The magnetoelastic wave is a physical effect caused by the sudden irreversible movement of the domain walls inside a ferromagnetic material when it is locally magnetized by an alternating magnetic field. This effect is strongly dependent upon many characteristics, such as mechanical, physical, and chemical, of the material. Based on this effect, an instrument for the measurement of the longitudinal stresses in seamless rails has been developed. Its principle and structure are introduced in this paper and a test is described.
Mechanism and Kinetics of Organostibine-Mediated Living Radical Polymerization of Styrene
Authors: Kwak Yungwan , Goto Atsushi , Fukuda Takeshi , Yamago Shigeru , Ray Biswajit 
Published: February 2005

Abstract
The polymerization of styrene with a polystyrene-dimethylstibanyl (PS-SbMe2) adduct as a mediator and azobis(isobutyronitrile) (AIBN) as a conventional radical initiator was kinetically studied. PS-SbMe2 had no detectable effect on the polymerization rate R
p, which was virtually the same as that of the conventional (stibanyl-free) system. The pseudo-first-order activation rate constant k
act was proportional to R
p, meaning that degenerative (exchange) chain transfer is the only important activation mechanism, in the examined range of temperature (40–100 °C). The exchange rate constant k
ex was sufficiently large at these temperatures, explaining why this polymerization can afford low-polydispersity polymers. The k
ex was about twice as large as that for polystyrene-methyltellanyl (PS-TeMe). This rationalizes the better polydispersity controllability in the PS-SbMe2 system than in the PS-TeMe system. The activation energy of k
ex was 22.6 kJ mol−1, which is smaller than that (27.8 kJ mol−1) for polystyrene-iodide (PS-I) and slightly larger than that (21.0 kJ mol−1) for polystyrene-dithioacetate (PS-SCSMe).
Theoretical Validation of Single-Pulse Pulsed-Laser Polymerization as a Method for Investigating Chain-Length-Dependent Termination
Authors: Smith Gregory B. , Russell Gregory T. 
Published: February 2005

Abstract
Ideally, single-pulse pulsed-laser polymerization (SP PLP) experiments are marked by a simple relation between time and radical chain length. Thus time-resolved data from such experiments have the potential to directly reflect the chain-length dependence of the termination reaction. However this capability is hostage to various assumptions. These are investigated by performing a series of theory vs. theory comparisons. On the one hand, assumption-free simulations of the kinetics of SP PLP experiments are carried out. The results thus generated are compared with the predictions of equations derived by making assumptions. In this way it is possible to gauge the rectitude of data-analysis methods based on the equations. In turn, the following assumptions are investigated: (1) That of radicals being of length 0 at time 0; (2) That of all radicals terminating at the same rate at any instant; (3) That of transfer being negligible; (4) That of termination being described by a simple power-law; and (5) That of propagation being chain-length independent in rate. All these assumptions are probed in relation to analysis of SP PLP kinetic data, while assumptions (1) and (4) are looked at in relation to the analysis of molecular weight distributions. While some surprising findings do emerge, for the most part it is found that data-analysis methods are reasonably robust, even if they will generally result in underestimation of the true strength of the chain-length dependence of termination. Further, it is possible to make these methods even more accurate by adopting some refinements that are recommended. In general the outstanding potential of SP PLP experiments for investigating the chain-length dependence of the termination reaction is validated.
A direct approach to the estimation of the origin of oestrogens and androgens in elderly men by comparison with hormone levels in postmenopausal women
Authors: de Ronde Willem , Hofman Albert , Pols Huibert A P , de Jong Frank H 
Published: February 2005

Objective: The origin of oestrogens in men is only partly understood. From infusion studies with radioactively labelled hormones, we know that oestradiol (E2) and oestrone (E1) are either directly secreted by the testes and adrenal glands or peripherally produced from testicular or adrenal androgens.
Design and methods: We determined E2, E1, androstenedione, testosterone and dehydroepiandroster-one sulphate (DHEAS) in 292 elderly men and 367 postmenopausal women. We considered post-menopausal women as men without testes, assuming that the postmenopausal ovary is not endocrinologically active and that the testes do not contribute to circulating levels of DHEAS. Subjects were stratified by DHEAS levels to adjust for differences in DHEAS levels between sexes. For men and women separately, mean levels of E2, E1, androstenedione and testosterone were calculated per DHEAS stratum. The relative direct and indirect contributions of the testes to steroid levels in men were calculated by the formula [(Cm −Cf)/Cm] × 100%, in fwhich Cm and Cf represent the mean concentrations of the steroid in men and women respectively.
Results: The relative contributions (%) of the testes to hormone levels per DHEAS stratum (<2, 2–4, 4–6 and >6 μmol/l) respectively were, for E2, 72%, 60%, 52% and 44%; for E1, 54%, 47%, 35% and 34%; for androstenedione, 14%, 4%, 12% and 0%; and, for testosterone, 88%, 88%, 87% and 83%.
Conclusions: We conclude that in elderly men dependent on DHEAS levels, 44–72% of E2 and 34–54% of E1 originate directly or indirectly from the testes.
Estrogen responsiveness of bone formation in vitro and altered bone phenotype in aged estrogen receptor-α-deficient male and female mice
Authors: Parikka Vilhelmiina , Peng ZhiQi , Hentunen Teuvo , Risteli Juha , Elo Teresa , Väänänen H Kalervo , Härkönen Pirkko 
Published: February 2005

Objective: Although the beneficial effects of estrogen on bone are well known, the roles of estrogen receptors (ERs) in mediating these effects are not fully understood.Methods: To study the effects of long-term ERα deficiency, bone phenotype was studied in aged ERα knockout (ERKO) mice. In addition, ERKO osteoclasts and osteoblasts were culturedin vitro.Design and results: Histomorphometric analysis showed that the trabecular bone volume and thickness were significantly increased and the rate of bone formation enhanced in both male and female ERKO mice in comparison to the wild-type animals. In ERKO males, however, the bones were thinner and their maximal bending strengths decreased. Consistent with previous reports, the bones of knockout mice, especially of female mice, were shorter than those of wild-type mice. In addition, the growth plates were totally absent in the tibiae of aged ERKO females, whereas the growth plate cartilages were detectable in wild-type females as well as in all the males. Analysis of cultured bone marrow cells from 10- to 12-week-old mice demonstrated that 17β-estradiol could stimulate osteoblastic differentiation of bone marrow cells derived from ERKO mice relatively to the same extent as those derived from wild-type mice. This was demonstrated by increases in synthesis of type I collagen, activity of alkaline phosphatase and accumulation of calcium in cultures. Total protein content was, however, reduced in ERKO osteoblast cultures.Conclusions: These results show altered bone phenotype in ERKO mice and demonstrate the stimulatory effect of estrogen on osteoblasts even in the absence of full-length ERα.
Insulin-secretion abnormalities and clinical deterioration related to impaired glucose tolerance in cystic fibrosis
Authors: Tofé Santiago , Moreno José C , Máiz Luis , Alonso Milagros , Escobar Héctor , Barrio Raquel 
Published: February 2005

Objective: To evaluate insulin-secretion kinetics and insulin sensitivity in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients with normal glucose tolerance (CF-NGT), impaired glucose tolerance (CF-IGT) or CF-related diabetes (CFRD), and the potential effects of moderate hyperglycemia on clinical and nutritional status.
Design and methods: Cross-sectional study including 50 outpatients with CF. Patients underwent both oral (OGGT) and intravenous (IVGTT) glucose tolerance tests in order to assess insulin secretion and peripheral insulin sensitivity. Homeostasis assessment model and OGGT were used to investigate insulin sensitivity. Forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV1) and forced vital capacity (FVC) were measured to evaluate pulmonary function. Body mass index (BMI) was determined to assess nutritional status.
Results: Insulin secretion was significantly decreased (and delayed at OGTT) in the CFRD group (n = 9) versus the CF-IGT group (n = 10) and the CF-IGT versus the CF-NGT group (n = 31). Insulin sensitivity was significantly different in the CF-IGT and CFRD groups versus the CF-NGT group. FEV1, FVC and BMI presented a significant linear correlation with plasma glucose value at 120 min at OGTT and were significantly lower in both CF-IGT and CFRD versus the CF-NGT group, whereas no differences were found between the CF-IGT and CFRD groups.
Conclusions: CF patients with IGT present diminished insulin secretion and increased peripheral insulin resistance, correlating with a worse clinical status, undernutrition and impaired pulmonary function. These findings open the question of whether early treatment of mild alterations of glucose metabolism with insulin secretagogues or short-action insulin may lead to improvement of clinical status in CF patients.
Correlation of VEGF production with IL1α and IL6 secretion by human pituitary adenoma cells
Authors: Borg S A , Kerry K E , Royds J A , Battersby R D , Jones T H 
Published: February 2005

Objectives: Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is considered to be the most important angiogenic factor involved in the neovascularisation of solid tumours. Regulatory molecules include cytokines and growth factors. Interleukin (IL)1 and IL6 have both been shown to regulate VEGF levels in a variety of tissues. The role of cytokines in the pathogenesis of pituitary tumours remains unclear. We have examined the expression of VEGF and its relationships with IL1 and IL6 in the human pituitary tumour cell line HP75 and a series of human pituitary tumours. We have also looked at the relationship of tumour volume and invasive status to VEGF secretion.Methods: Surgically resected tumours were routinely cultured in single-cell suspension at 200 K/well (standard unit for culture of dispersed primary pituitary adenoma cells). We measured VEGF, IL1α and IL6 levels by ELISA. Tumour volume and invasion grade were assessed by preoperative magnetic resonance imaging.Results: VEGF was detected in conditioned medium of HP75 cells (900±52 pg/ml) and in 82% of tumours tested (range 26–16 464 pg/ml). Tumour volume and secretion of VEGF were significantly associated with levels of IL6 (volume,P= 0.056; VEGF,P< 0.001 (Pvalues based on Spearman’s test)) and IL1α produced (volume,P< 0.005; VEGF,P< 0.001). Invasive tumours showed a higher basal secretion of VEGF that that of the non-invasive type; however, this difference was not significant. Addition of exogenous IL1α, but not IL6, significantly increased VEGF production.Conclusions: The significant associations between VEGF and the levels of IL6 and IL1α suggest an important role for these cytokines in the development of these tumours.