bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Food and feeding habits of smooth‐coated otters (Lutra perspicillata) and their significance to the fish population of Kerala, India
Authors: Anoop K. R. , Hussain S. A. 
Published: April 2005

AbstractFeeding habits of smooth‐coated otters Lutra perspicillata were studied by analysing spraints collected from around the Periyar Lake within the Periyar Tiger Reserve, Kerala, India. Remains were identified by the comparison of body parts with a reference collection of appropriate prey species. Two methods were used to estimate the proportions of different prey consumed: frequency of occurrence and score‐bulk estimate. The number of prey types in a spraint varied between one and seven. More prey species were found during low water levels (March–April). Fish was the major prey, followed by frogs, crabs, birds and insects. Throughout the study, the exotic tilapia and European carp constituted the major prey in the diet. The quantity of native Deccan mahsheer and endemic Periyar barb in the diet was insignificant. A higher intake of bottom‐dwelling catfish was observed during periods of low water, probably because of the increased efficiency of otters to forage at these levels. By consuming large amounts of exotic species, such as tilapia and European carp, otters might contribute to the control of the rapid expansion of these species in the Periyar Lake and adjacent water bodies in the reserve.
Survival and behaviour of captive‐born weasels (Mustela nivalis nivalis) released in nature
Authors: Hellstedt Paavo , Kallio Eva Riikka 
Published: April 2005

AbstractThe behaviour and survival of captive‐born least weasels Mustela nivalis nivalis released in nature were reported in this study. Altogether 27 captive‐born and six wild‐caught weasels were equipped with radio transmitters and their survival was studied as a function of age and season. The daily mortality rate was generally higher in captive‐born than in wild‐caught weasels. The survival of captive‐born weasels was highest if they were released during the summer and hence when they were young. Differences in the behavioural patterns of captive‐born and wild‐caught weasels were apparent. Captive‐born weasels were often more visible in the field and were less timid than wild‐caught weasels. Results suggest that to be successful, restocking of weasels should be done with young animals, which are preferably released during the season with abundant food resources.
Sleeping sites of common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) in defaunated urban forest fragments: a strategy to maximize food intake
Authors: Pontes Antonio Rossano Mendes , Soares Marina Lira 
Published: April 2005

AbstractThe purpose of this study was to investigate if there was any species‐specific type and structure of sleeping sites of common marmosetsCallithrix jacchusand their key determinant. The study was conducted in an urban fragment of the Atlantic forest of north‐eastern Brazil, where a group of common marmosets was followed for 488 h. For this purpose we usedad libobservations, performed twice a week, when the animals were entering and leaving the sleeping sites, identified potential predators of the common marmosets through interviews with local people, and identified the trees that provided them with fruit and/or exudate during the study. Five sleeping sites were identified, all invariably in the border of the native forest and the orchard. No predators of common marmosets were seen by local people or recorded during this study, and the sleeping trees were located invariably in the place where there was the highest concentration of feeding trees, regardless of its structure. There was no species‐specific type and structure of sleeping places of common marmosets. The key variable defining the choice of a sleeping place was the availability and location of immediate sources of food.
When Darwin Met Einstein: Gravitational Lens Inversion with Genetic Algorithms
Authors: Brewer Brendon J. , Lewis Geraint F. 
Published: April 2005

AbstractGravitational lensing can magnify a distant source, revealing structural detail which is normally unresolvable. Recovering this detail through an inversion of the influence of gravitational lensing, however, requires optimisation of not only lens parameters, but also of the surface brightness distribution of the source. This paper outlines a new approach to this inversion, utilising genetic algorithms to reconstruct the source profile. In this initial study, the effects of image degradation due to instrumental and atmospheric effects are neglected and it is assumed that the lens model is accurately known, but the genetic algorithm approach can be incorporated into more general optimisation techniques, allowing the optimisation of both the parameters for a lensing model and the surface brightness of the source.
Understanding Turing's Universal Machine — Personal Style in Program Description
Authors: Naur P. 
Published: April 2005

Abstract
The study presents the results of an experiment on programmers' descriptions and understanding. The 12 participants, students of computing, have produced notes on Turing's description of his universal machine and, in a second experiment phase, have made mutual evaluations of their notes. The analysis of the resulting notes shows large individual differences of styles and evaluations with respect to all significant issues of the descriptions and understanding, including the evaluations of program descriptions having particularly full formal characteristics. The consequences of the observations for the teaching of programming and for programming methodologies are discussed. The Appendix gives an annotated version of Turing's description of the universal machine.
Evaluation of Stool Antigen Test for Helicobacter pylori Infection in Asymptomatic Children from a Developing Country Using 13C‐urea Breath Test as a Standard
Authors: Shaikh Saijuddin , Khaled M A , Islam Aminul , Kurpad A V , Mahalanabis Dilip 
Published: April 2005

ABSTRACTObjective:Prevalence of asymptomatic Helicobacter pylori infection is very high in infants and children in developing countries. 13C urea breath test (UBT) is a reliable non‐invasive diagnostic test for H. pylori infection in children that avoids invasive endoscopy. We compared a newly introduced H. pylori stool antigen test (with a high sensitivity and specificity in symptomatic children) with UBT in asymptomatic children mostly 1‐5 years old, from a population with a high prevalence of infection.Method:Eighty six asymptomatic children (42 boys and 44 girls) were tested for H. pylori infection using the UBT and a stool antigen test (HpSA) based on a sandwich enzyme immunoassay for antigen detection.Results:Forty five of the eighty‐six (52.3%) children tested positive for H. pylori using the breath test. In 34 of these forty‐five children, H. pylori antigen was detected in stool (sensitivity = 75.6%, 95% CI = 63 to 88%). Of the 50 of 86 (58%) children positive by HpSA test, 34 were positive for breath test. Of the 41 children with negative UBT test 25 were negative for stool antigen test (specificity = 61%, 95% CI = 46 to 76%).Conclusion:The sensitivity and specificity of the new stool antigen test are lower in asymptomatic children with high H. pylori prevalence rate compared to those reported for children with gastrointestinal symptoms. Its usefulness is limited for diagnosis in an asymptomatic child with H. pylori infection.
Changes in Intestinal Morphology and Permeability in the BioBreeding Rat Before the Onset of Type 1 Diabetes
Authors: Neu Josef , Reverte Christopher M , Mackey Amy D , Liboni Kellym , Tuhacek‐Tenace Lauren M , Hatch Marguerite , Li Nan , Caicedo Ricardo A , Schatz Desmond A , Atkinson Mark 
Published: April 2005

ABSTRACTObjective:Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disorder that occurs in genetically susceptible individuals. It has been hypothesized that the disease could be triggered by environmental agents that gain entry into the body through small intestinal absorption. Increased intestinal permeability has been reported both in spontaneous animal models of type 1 diabetes and human type 1 diabetes. In these studies, we examined both the physical and functional permeability characteristics of the small intestine in diabetes‐prone and control rats.Methods:In a series of studies, BioBreeding diabetes‐prone(n = 31), BioBreeding diabetes‐resistant (n = 20) and control Wistar (n = 25) rats were examined at intervals from 21 to 125 days of age.Results:The percentage of goblet cells and the mucosal crypt depth were significantly greater in BioBreeding diabetes‐prone than BioBreeding diabetes‐resistant rats (P < 0.001 and P = 0.01, respectively). BioBreeding diabetes‐prone and BioBreeding diabetes‐resistant rats expressed less of the tight junction protein claudin (P < 0.05) and exhibited greater intestinal permeability (P < 0.001) than did Wistar rats. Intestinal permeability measured both in vivo and ex vivo decreased in all rat strains as age increased (P < 0.001).Conclusions:In a genetically susceptible rodent model of diabetes, early increased intestinal permeability might allow unregulated passage of environmental antigens that could potentially trigger the autoimmune response leading to type 1 diabetes.
Implication of the feeding limb morphology for herbivorous feeding in some freshwater cyclopoid copepods
Authors: HOPP ULRICH , MAIER GERHARD 
Published: April 2005

Summary1. The mouthparts of five species of adult planktonic cyclopoid copepods (Cyclops vicinus, C. abyssorum, Acanthocyclops robustus, Mesocyclops leuckarti and Thermocyclopscrassus), in particular the distance between setae and setules of the maxilliped (which can indicate the ability to retain small particles), were compared using electron and light microscopy.2. The mesh‐sizes of the food‐collection grid formed by these setae and setules ranged between 4.6 and 13.2 μm; the area covered by the grid ranged between 6000 and 32 000 μm2.3. Mesh‐size was not simply correlated with body size. Cyclops abyssorum and M. leuckarti have the coarsest meshes and T. crassus the finest, while C. vicinus and A. robustus were intermediate.4. The results suggest that cyclopoid copepods are able to retain particles in the size range of nanoplankton and that differences in mesh‐sizes between species may explain differences in the ability to subsist and reproduce on a diet of small algae.
Macroinvertebrate community response to natural and forest harvest gradients in western Oregon headwater streams
Authors: HERLIHY ALAN T. , GERTH WILLIAM J. , LI JUDITH , BANKS JANEL L. 
Published: April 2005

Summary1. To examine the effects of forest harvest practices on headwater stream macroinvertebrates, we compiled a 167 site database with macroinvertebrate, fish, physical habitat and catchment land cover data from the three forested ecoregions in western Oregon. For our analysis, headwater streams were defined by catchment areas <10 km2 and perennial water during summer low flows. Almost all sites in the database were selected using a randomised survey design, constituting a representative sample of headwater streams in these ecoregions.2. Macroinvertebrate taxonomic and functional feeding group composition were very similar among the three ecoregions in the study area (Coast Range, Cascades and Klamath Mountains). On average, 55% of the individuals at each site were in the orders Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera or Trichoptera. Dipteran taxa (mostly chironomids) accounted for another 34%. At almost all sites, non‐insects made up <10% of the macroinvertebrate assemblage. Almost half (49%) of the assemblages were collectors; remaining individuals were about evenly divided among scrapers, shredders and predators.3. There were 189 different macroinvertebrate taxa at the 167 sites with richness at individual sites ranging from 7 to 71 taxa. Ordination by non‐metric multidimensional scaling revealed a strong association between % Ephemeroptera, especially Baetis, and site scores along the first axis. This axis was also strongly related to % coarse substratum and fast water habitat. The second axis was strongly related to % intolerant individuals, site slope and altitude. No strong relationships were evident between any ordination axis and either logging activity, presence/absence of fish, catchment size or ecoregion.4. Based on macroinvertebrate index of biotic integrity (IBI) scores, 62% of the sites had no impairment, 31% of the sites had slight impairment and only 6% of the sites had moderate or severe impairment. IBI scores were not strongly related to forest harvest history. All four severely impaired sites and five of the seven sites with moderate impairment were lower altitude, shallower slope stream reaches located in the Coast Range with evidence of agricultural activity in their catchment or riparian zone. % sand + fine substratum was the environmental variable most strongly related to macroinvertebrate IBI.
Identification of a novel family of 70 kDa microtubule‐associated proteins in Arabidopsis cells
Authors: Korolev Andrey V. , Chan Jordi , Naldrett Mike J. , Doonan John H. , Lloyd Clive W. 
Published: April 2005

SummaryMost plant microtubule‐associated proteins (MAPs) have homologues across the phylogenetic spectrum. To find potential plant‐specific MAPs that will have evaded bioinformatic searches we devised a low stringency method for isolating proteins from an Arabidopsis cell suspension on endogenous taxol‐microtubules. By tryptic peptide mass fingerprinting we identified 55 proteins that were enriched on taxol‐microtubules. Amongst a range of known MAPs, such as kinesins, MAP65 isoforms and MOR1, we detected ‘unknown’ 70 kDa proteins that belong to a family of five closely related Arabidopsis proteins having no known homologues amongst non‐plant organisms. To verify that AtMAP70‐1 associates with microtubules in vivo, it was expressed as a GFP fusion. This confirmed that the protein decorates all four microtubule arrays in both transiently infected Arabidopsis and stably transformed tobacco BY‐2 suspension cells. Microtubule‐directed drugs perturbed the localization of AtMAP70‐1 but cytochalasin D did not. AtMAP70‐1 contains four predicted coiled‐coil domains and truncation studies identified a central domain that targets the fusion protein to microtubules in vivo. This study therefore introduces a novel family of plant‐specific proteins that interact with microtubules.
Comparative transcriptome analysis reveals significant differences in gene expression and signalling pathways between developmental and dark/starvation‐induced senescence in Arabidopsis
Authors: Buchanan‐Wollaston Vicky , Page Tania , Harrison Elizabeth , Breeze Emily , Lim Pyung Ok , Nam Hong Gil , Lin Ji‐Feng , Wu Shu‐Hsing , Swidzinski Jodi , Ishizaki Kimitsune , Leaver Christopher J. 
Published: April 2005

SummaryAn analysis of changes in global gene expression patterns during developmental leaf senescence in Arabidopsis has identified more than 800 genes that show a reproducible increase in transcript abundance. This extensive change illustrates the dramatic alterations in cell metabolism that underpin the developmental transition from a photosynthetically active leaf to a senescing organ which functions as a source of mobilizable nutrients. Comparison of changes in gene expression patterns during natural leaf senescence with those identified, when senescence is artificially induced in leaves induced to senesce by darkness or during sucrose starvation‐induced senescence in cell suspension cultures, has shown not only similarities but also considerable differences. The data suggest that alternative pathways for essential metabolic processes such as nitrogen mobilization are used in different senescent systems. Gene expression patterns in the senescent cell suspension cultures are more similar to those for dark‐induced senescence and this may be a consequence of sugar starvation in both tissues. Gene expression analysis in senescing leaves of plant lines defective in signalling pathways involving salicylic acid (SA), jasmonic acid (JA) and ethylene has shown that these three pathways are all required for expression of many genes during developmental senescence. The JA/ethylene pathways also appear to operate in regulating gene expression in dark‐induced and cell suspension senescence whereas the SA pathway is not involved. The importance of the SA pathway in the senescence process is illustrated by the discovery that developmental leaf senescence, but not dark‐induced senescence, is delayed in plants defective in the SA pathway.
The burden of the Leishmania chagasi/infantum infection in a closed rural focus of visceral leishmaniasis in Lara state, west‐central Venezuela
Authors: Dora Feliciangeli M. , Delgado Olinda , Suarez Benny , Chiurillo Miguel Angel 
Published: April 2005

SummaryA prospective study was conducted in El Brazilar, Curarigua, Lara State, Venezuela, a small rural focus of visceral leishmaniasis (VL) to investigate the burden and the evolution of Leishmania infection in the human and canine population. The incidence of the disease from February 1998 to February 2002 was recorded and two cross‐sectional surveys using the leishmanin skin test (LST) and immunofluorescent antibody test (IFAT) were carried out. The dipstick test with recombinant r‐K39 antigen was also applied in 2002. The incidence of the disease per year among the population (n = 118) during the period of study was 0.004. The rate of new infections per year was 0.07 [95% confidence interval (95% CI): 0.15–1.09]. The overall prevalence of infection measured by LST was not significantly higher in 2002 (43.2%) than in 1998 (28.3%), but it was with IFAT [16.3%vs. 4.6%; odds ratio (OR): 4.01; 95% CI: 1.03–22.78; P = 0.022] which would indicate an increasing transmission. The dipstick test only detected infection in children up to 10 years (19.4%). Prevalence in dogs was not significantly different in 2002 (57%) vs. 1998 (33%). The parasite was isolated from dogs and identified by a polymerase chain reaction based on telomeric sequences as Leishmania chagasi/infantum.
The role of sequential administration of sulphadoxine/pyrimethamine following quinine in the treatment of severe falciparum malaria in children
Authors: Ogutu B. R. , Nzila A. M. , Ochong E. , Mithwani S. , Wamola B. , Olola C. H. O. , Lowe B. , Kokwaro G. O. , Marsh K. , Newton C. R. J. C. 
Published: April 2005

SummarySulphadoxine/pyrimethamine (SP) is often administered with quinine in the treatment of severe falciparum malaria to shorten the course of quinine. The efficacy of SP alone in the treatment of non‐severe malaria has been declining rapidly in East Africa, raising concerns of the usefulness of a shortened course of quinine followed SP. We audited the efficacy of quinine/SP in the treatment of severe malaria in Kenyan children. Children with severe falciparum malaria were treated with parenteral quinine followed by a single oral dose of SP. A clinical evaluation was performed 3 weeks later in which a blood sample was obtained for full haemogram, blood slide and analysis of the parasite dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) and dihydropteroate synthase (DHPS) codons, mutations of which are associated with resistance to SP. A total of 452 children were enrolled, of whom 374 completed the study. Fifty‐two (13.9%) children were parasitaemic by 3 weeks of whom 17 (4.5%) had fever as well. The treatment failure group had a significantly higher parasitaemia (129 061 vs. 43 339; P < 0.001) and haemoglobin on admission, but only admission parasitaemia independently predicted treatment failure. Those with treatment failure had a significantly lower rise in haemoglobin at 3 weeks compared with treatment successes (9.0 vs. 10.0 g/dl). Of the 76 parasite isolates collected before treatment, 40 (53%) were triple mutant DHFR‐double DHPS (Tp–Db), the genotype most associated with SP resistance. Three weeks after SP treatment, the proportion of Tp–Db increased to 72% (31/43). The high treatment failure rate and proportion of parasites with Tp–Db negate the use of SP to shorten the course of quinine treatment in East Africa.
Short Communication: Colour vision and proficiency in diagnostic microscopy
Authors: Seki Naomi , Yassin Mohammed A. , Cuevas Luis E. , Wendy Bailey J. , Bertel Squire S. , Ramsay Andrew 
Published: April 2005

SummaryThe microscopical diagnosis of infectious diseases is an essential medical laboratory service in resource‐poor countries. We conducted an external quality assessment (EQA) of peripheral laboratories in southern Ethiopia using a panel of 20 ready‐prepared sputum and blood smears containing either no pathogens or locally common pathogens. Microscopists also undertook a colour discrimination test (Farnsworth–Munsell 100 hue test). Twenty microscopists from 10 health centres participated. Their microscopy results were compared with that of the EQA controllers. Their Kappa indices of agreement ranged from 0.1 to 0.89 (mean ± SD: 0.58 ± 0.21). Kappa values were analysed according to microscopists’ colour discrimination ability. The Kappa indices for the correct reading of diagnostic smears were associated with the colour vision ability of the technicians. Our results suggest that routine quality improvement activities may not achieve their desired effect if the colour discrimination abilities of technicians are not considered.
Uphill shifts in the distribution of the white stork Ciconia ciconia in southern Poland: the importance of nest quality
Authors: Tryjanowski Piotr , Sparks Tim H. , Profus Piotr 
Published: April 2005

ABSTRACTThe aim of this paper is to explain the altitudinal changes that have occurred during the 20th century to the white stork distribution in the Podhale region of the uplands of the Tatra mountains, southern Poland. We analysed both historical data from the white stork censuses and detailed yearly records from 1974 to 2003 on population size, distribution and breeding success. A white stork nest was first recorded at Podhale in 1931 and numbers increased to seven nests in 1933, all located below 650 m altitude. During the 30‐years, 1974–2003, both the maximum and upper‐quartile altitudes of nests increased significantly. In 1974 the highest nest was at an altitude of 770 m, and the maximum reached 890 m in 1999. In the same period, the breeding population increased significantly. The minimum and lower‐quartile altitudes of nests decreased significantly following initial occupation of suitable lower altitude sites before uphill expansion. We noted the positive association between nest occupancy over the study period and breeding performance. As a result, long‐occupied nests contributed most of the young produced in the population and chicks from these nests probably colonized new areas. We believe this is the first well‐documented evidence of, and mechanism for, a particular bird species to ascend to higher elevations and that the altitudinal shifts reported for butterflies, plants and whole biomes can be detected in birds as well.