bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Universal precautions: a survey of community nurses’ experience and practice
Authors: Bennett Glynis , Mansell Ian 
Published: December 2004

Background.  Universal precautions are a set of guidelines which aim to protect health care workers from blood‐borne infections. Community nurses often have to deliver care to people in less than ideal home conditions, their ability to comply with all universal precautions may therefore be compromised.Aims and objectives.  This paper presents the findings of a questionnaire survey which aimed to explore community nurses’ experience and practices of using universal precautions.Design and methods.  A questionnaire survey was used for this study. All community learning disability nurses, community mental health nurses and generic community nurses from one Welsh Health Authority were surveyed (n = 543) with a response rate of 70%.Results.  The majority of community nurses reported compliance with universal precautions, although a small number of nurses stated that they re‐sheathed needles, inappropriately stored sharps containers, inadequately wore gloves and experienced difficulties in handwashing.Conclusions and relevance to clinical practice.  Community nurses work in a unique and unpredictable environment, which may result in nurses being unable to comply with existing universal precautions guidelines. The production of new infection control guidelines for the community by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence in June 2003, has addressed some of the difficulties faced by community nurses.
Diseases of tunas,Thunnusspp.
Authors: Munday B L , Sawada Y , Cribb T , Hayward C J 
Published: December 2004

AbstractMuch is known about those aspects of tuna health which can be studied in wild populations, e.g. helminth parasites. However, because aquaculture of these species is in its infancy, knowledge of microbial, nutritional and environmental diseases is limited. This review is an attempt to bring together the available information on those diseases ofThunnusspp. which cause significant morbidity, mortality or economic loss. In doing so it has become clear that much more research needs to be undertaken on the physiology of the species (southern, northern and Pacific bluefin tuna) currently used in aquaculture in order for the pathogenesis of some conditions to be properly understood. Attempts at hatchery culture of Pacific bluefin tuna has indicated thatThunnusspp. will be problematic to hatch and propagate.
Islet antibodies and remaining β‐cell function 8 years after diagnosis of diabetes in young adults: a prospective follow‐up of the nationwide Diabetes Incidence Study in Sweden
Authors: Schölin A. , Björklund L. , Borg H. , Arnqvist H. , Björk E. , Blohmé G. , Bolinder J. , Eriksson J. W. , Gudbjörnsdottir S. , Nyström L. , Östman J. , Karlsson A. F. , Sundkvist G. 
Published: December 2004

Abstract.Objectives.  To establish the prevalence of remaining β‐cell function 8 years after diagnosis of diabetes in young adults and relate the findings to islet antibodies at diagnosis and 8 years later.Design.  Population‐based cohort study.Setting.  Nationwide from all Departments of Medicine and Endocrinology in Sweden.Subjects.  A total of 312 young (15–34 years old) adults diagnosed with diabetes during 1987–88.Main outcome measure.  Plasma connecting peptide (C‐peptide) 8 years after diagnosis. Preserved β‐cell function was defined as measurable C‐peptide levels. Three islet antibodies – cytoplasmic islet cell antibodies (ICA), glutamic acid decarboxylase antibodies and tyrosine phosphatase antibodies – were measured.Results.  Amongst 269 islet antibody positives (ab+) at diagnosis, preserved β‐cell function was found in 16% (42/269) 8 years later and these patients had a higher body mass index (median 22.7 and 20.5 kg m−2, respectively; P = 0.0003), an increased frequency of one islet antibody (50 and 24%, respectively; P = 0.001), and a lower prevalence of ICA (55 and 6%, respectively; P = 0.007) at diagnosis compared with ab+ without remaining β‐cell function. Amongst the 241 patients without detectable β‐cell function at follow‐up, 14 lacked islet antibodies, both at diagnosis and at follow‐up.Conclusions.  Sixteen per cent of patients with autoimmune type 1 diabetes had remaining β‐cell function 8 years after diagnosis whereas 5.8% with β‐cell failure lacked islet autoimmunity, both at diagnosis and at follow‐up.
Co‐occurrence in nature of different clones of the social amoeba,Dictyostelium discoideum
Authors: Fortunato A. , Strassmann J. E. , Santorelli L. , Queller D. C. 
Published: December 2004

AbstractThe social amoeba,Dictyostelium discoideum, produces a multicellular fruiting body and has become a model system for cell–cell interactions such as signalling, adhesion and development. However, unlike most multicellular organisms, it forms by aggregation of cells and, in the laboratory, forms genetic chimeras where there may be competition among clones. Here we show that chimera formation is also likely in nature, because different clones commonly co‐occur on a very small scale. This suggests thatD. discoideumwill likely have evolved strategies for competing in chimeras, and that the function of some developmental genes will be competitive. Natural chimerism also makesD. discoideuma good model organism for the investigation of issues relating to coexistence and conflict between cells.
New insights from fine‐scale spatial genetic structure analyses in plant populations
Authors: Vekemans X. , Hardy O. J. 
Published: December 2004

AbstractMany empirical studies have assessed fine‐scale spatial genetic structure (SGS), i.e. the nonrandom spatial distribution of genotypes, within plant populations using genetic markers and spatial autocorrelation techniques. These studies mostly provided qualitative descriptions of SGS, rendering quantitative comparisons among studies difficult. The theory of isolation by distance can predict the pattern of SGS under limited gene dispersal, suggesting new approaches, based on the relationship between pairwise relatedness coefficients and the spatial distance between individuals, to quantify SGS and infer gene dispersal parameters. Here we review the theory underlying such methods and discuss issues about their application to plant populations, such as the choice of the relatedness statistics, the sampling scheme to adopt, the procedure to test SGS, and the interpretation of spatial autocorrelograms. We propose to quantify SGS by an ‘Sp’ statistic primarily dependent upon the rate of decrease of pairwise kinship coefficients between individuals with the logarithm of the distance in two dimensions. Under certain conditions, this statistic estimates the reciprocal of the neighbourhood size. Reanalysing data from, mostly, published studies, the Sp statistic was assessed for 47 plant species. It was found to be significantly related to the mating system (higher in selfing species) and to the life form (higher in herbs than trees), as well as to the population density (higher under low density). We discuss the necessity for comparing SGS with direct estimates of gene dispersal distances, and show how the approach presented can be extended to assess (i) the level of biparental inbreeding, and (ii) the kurtosis of the gene dispersal distribution.
Peptidoglycan hydrolytic activities associated with bacteriophage virions
Authors: Moak Michael , Molineux Ian J. 
Published: December 2004

SummaryMurein hydrolases appear to be widespread in the virions of bacteriophages infecting Gram‐positive or Gram‐negative bacteria. Muralytic activity has been found in virions of the majority of a diverse collection of phages. Where known, the enzyme is either part of a large protein or found associated with other structural components of the virion that limit enzyme activity. In most cases, the lack of genetic and structural characterization of the phage precludes making a definitive identification of the enzymatic protein species. However, three proteins with muralytic activity have been unequivocally identified. T7gp16 is a 144 kDa internal head protein that is ejected into the cell at the initiation of infection; its enzyme activity is required only when the cell wall is more highly cross‐linked. P22gp4 is part of the neck of the particle and is essential for infectivity. The activity associated with virions of Bacillus subtilis phage ø29 and its relatives lies in the terminal protein gp3. These studies lead to a general mechanism describing how phage genomes are transported across the bacterial cell wall.
The galactokinase of Hypocrea jecorina is essential for cellulase induction by lactose but dispensable for growth on d‐galactose
Authors: Seiboth Bernhard , Hartl Lukas , Pail Manuela , Fekete Erzsébet , Karaffa Levente , Kubicek Christian P. 
Published: December 2004

SummaryLactose is the only soluble carbon source which can be used economically for the production of cellulases or heterologous proteins under cellulase expression signals by Hypocrea jecorina (=Trichoderma reesei). Towards an understanding of lactose metabolism and its role in cellulase formation, we have cloned and characterized the gal1 (galactokinase) gene of H. jecorina, which catalyses the first step in d‐galactose catabolism. It exhibits a calculated Mr of 57 kDa, and shows moderate identity (about 40%) to its putative homologues of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Kluyveromyces lactis. Gal1 is a member of the GHMP family, shows conservation of a Gly/Ser rich region involved in ATP binding and of amino acids (Arg 51, Glu 57, Asp 60, Asp 214, Tyr 270) responsible for galactose binding. A single transcript was formed constitutively during the rapid growth phase on all carbon sources investigated and accumulated to about twice this level during growth on d‐galactose, l‐arabinose and their corresponding polyols. Deletion of gal1 reduces growth on d‐galactose but does only slightly affect growth on lactose. This is the result of the operation of a second pathway for d‐galactose catabolism, which involves galactitol as an intermediate, and whose transient concentration is strongly enhanced in the delta‐gal1 strain. In this pathway, galactitol is catabolised by the lad1‐encoded l‐arabinitol‐4‐dehydrogenase, because a gal1/lad1 double delta‐mutant failed to grow on d‐galactose. In the delta‐gal1 strain, induction of the Leloir pathway gene gal7 (encoding galactose‐1‐phosphate uridylyltransferase) by d‐galactose, but not by l‐arabinose, is impaired. Induction of cellulase gene expression by lactose is also impaired in a gal1 deleted strain, whereas their induction by sophorose (the putative cellulose‐derived inducer) was shown to be normal, thus demonstrating that galactokinase is a key enzyme for cellulase induction during growth on lactose, and that induction by lactose and sophorose involves different mechanisms.
Proteolytic degradation of Escherichia coli transcription activators SoxS and MarA as the mechanism for reversing the induction of the superoxide (SoxRS) and multiple antibiotic resistance (Mar) regulons
Authors: Griffith Kevin L. , Shah Ishita M. , E. Wolf Richard 
Published: December 2004

SummaryIn Escherichia coli, the SoxRS regulon confers resistance to redox‐cycling compounds, and the Mar regulon provides a defence against multiple antibiotics. The response regulators, SoxS and MarA, are synthesized de novo in response to their inducing signals and directly activate transcription of a common set of target genes. Although the mechanisms of transcription activation by SoxS and MarA have been well studied, little is known about how the systems are shut‐off once the inducing stress has subsided, except that de novo synthesis of the regulators is known to cease almost immediately. Here, we induced the SoxRS regulon and determined that, upon removal of the inducer, expression of the regulon's genes quickly returns to the preinduced level. This rapid shut‐off indicates that the system is reset by an active process. We found that SoxS is unstable and infer that SoxS degradation is responsible for the rapid return of the system to the ground state upon removal of the inducing signal. We also found that MarA is unstable and that the instability of both proteins is intrinsic and unregulated. We used null mutations of protease genes to identify the proteases involved in the degradation of SoxS and MarA. Among single protease mutations, only lon mutations increased the half‐life of SoxS and MarA. In addition, SoxS appeared to be nearly completely stable in a lon ftsH double mutant. Using hexahistidine tags placed at the respective ends of the activators, we found that access to the amino‐terminus is essential for the proteolytic degradation.
Barraquer–Simons syndrome with benign infundibulocystic proliferation
Authors: Tüzün Binnur , Kirçuval Deniz , Demirkesen Cuyan , Göksügür Nadir , Ünal Gaye , Tüzün Yalçin 
Published: December 2004

A white man attended our outpatient clinic because of soft papules on the second finger of the left hand. They were livid red‐colored, warty surfaced cysts, 1–2 cm in diameter, arranged in an annular configuration (Fig. 1). The patient showed prominent zygomatic bones and symmetric loss of buccal fat pads (Bichat's fats), leading to sunken cheeks (Fig. 2). The history of the patient could not be taken because of his debility.Soft papules on the second finger of the left handimageSymmetric loss of Bichat's fatsimageLaboratory findings included: hemoglobin, 14.5 g/dL; Htc, 41.6%; red blood cells (RBC), 4.67/µL; white blood cells (WBC), 10.3 × 103/µL; Plt, 274 × 103/µL; mean corpuscular volume (MCV), 89.1 fL; mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), 31.0 pg; mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC), 34.8 g/dL; blood urea nitrogen, 33 mg/dL; creatinine, 0.7 mg/dL; cholesterol, 152 mg/dL; total protein, 8.1 g/dL; albumin, 4.6 g/dL; total bilirubin, 0.5 mg/dL; direct bilirubin, 0.1 mg/dL; calcium, 8.8 mg/dL; erythrocyte sedimentation rate, 6 mm/h; urinalysis, normal – there was no anomaly in the urine in 24 h. The patient was negative for antinuclear antibody (ANA), anti‐DNA, anticentromer antibody, Scl 70 antibody, hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).Chest X‐ray was normal. Hand X‐ray showed bone cysts on the distal phalanx of the second finger of the left hand.Histologic examination of the papules on the second finger of the left hand revealed multilobulated or, in other words, proliferating cystic structures lined by epithelium similar to the infundibular epithelium of the hair follicle. The cysts were connected with the surface of the skin and were filled with cornified cells in a basket‐weave array (Fig. 3).Nodules composed of benign infundibulocystic proliferation (hematoxylin and eosin, × 40)imageThe IQ was measured as 50 indicating mental retardation. Audiogram could not be performed, but sensory neural hearing loss was suspected. After 1.5 months of pimozide therapy (Nörofren, 2.5 mg/day), hearing loss was measured as 50% and a diagnosis of otosclerosis was made. The cystic lesions resolved completely and Bichat's fats regenerated partially.
Acral lentiginous melanoma: an immunohistochemical study of 20 cases
Authors: Kim You Chan , Lee Min Geol , Choe Sung Whan , Lee Mn Cheol , Chung Han Gil , Cho Sang‐Ho 
Published: December 2004

AbstractBackground Though acral lentiginous melanoma (ALM) is a major type of malignant melanoma, no immunohistochemical study on this type of melanoma has been reported.Objective The purpose of this study is to analysis the immunohistochemical findings of ALM using routinely used immune markers.Methods An immunohistochemical study was performed on paraffin sections of 20 ALMs using S‐100 protein, HMB‐45, MART‐1, vimentin, epithelial membrane antigen (EMA) and CAM 5.2.Results S‐100 protein (95%) was found to be a more sensitive marker than either HMB‐45 (80%) or MART‐1 (70%) for recognizing ALM. Melanin bleaching was useful for recognizing heavily pigmented ALM using both S‐100 protein and HMB‐45. The intensity of HMB‐45 correlated well with the melanin content. However, there was no significant correlation between the intensity of S‐100 protein and the melanin content. One and two out of 20 cases stained focally with EMA and CAM5.2, respectively, but these cases stained also with HMB‐45 and/or S‐100 protein.Conclusions S‐100 protein and HMB‐45 were relatively sensitive markers for recognizing ALM. Despite the occasional positivity for the epithelial markers in ALM, all epithelial marker‐positive cases stained also with HMB‐45 and/or S‐100 protein. Therefore, we recommend that the panel of antibodies used for recognizing ALM should contain at least S‐100 protein and HMB‐45.
Factors related to patient compliance in the treatment of acne vulgaris
Authors: McEvoy Bernard , Nydegger Rudy , Williams George 
Published: December 2004

AbstractBackground Missed appointments are a major problem in healthcare delivery, and are one element of patient compliance with treatment.Aim To determine whether there was a relationship between the beliefs, attitudes, expectations of treatment, and previous treatment experiences of acne patients and the keeping of follow‐up appointments for treatment.Methods One hundred and forty‐four consecutive patients presenting to a private dermatologist's office for the treatment of acne completed questionnaires concerning their beliefs and previous treatment, and a record was maintained of missed appointments over a series of five scheduled appointments. A control group of middle and high school students completed the same pretreatment questionnaire. Six months after starting treatment, a second questionnaire was completed regarding compliance with treatment, problems with medication, and frequency of appointments and appointment keeping.Results There were very few differences between patients and controls in beliefs about the cause and treatment of acne. Patient appointment keeping was as follows: 28% of acne patients attended all four follow‐up appointments, 10% three follow‐up appointments, 15% two follow‐up appointments, 13% one follow‐up appointment, and 19% no follow‐up appointments. Fifteen per cent of patients dropped out of treatment for one or two appointments and then returned.Conclusions Demographic factors, such as gender, race, method of payment for medical services, and type of therapy prescribed, were more important in determining appointment keeping behavior than were patient attitudes and beliefs, previous therapy, or severity of acne. Although there was no correlation between appointment keeping and knowledge of the condition, knowledge of the medication, severity of acne, age, or previous medical treatment, relationships were observed between demographic factors and appointment keeping.
Oral erosive/ulcerative lichen planus: preliminary findings in an open trial of sulodexide compared with cyclosporine (ciclosporin) therapy
Authors: Femiano Felice , Gombos Fernando , Scully Crispian 
Published: December 2004

AbstractObjective To study the effect of the heparinoid sulodexide systemically, compared with topical cyclosporine (ciclosporin), on chronic oral erosive/ulcerative lichen planus.Study design An open nonrandomized trial was conducted in two groups of 10 Italian patients with lichen planus, with subjective assessment of pain and assessment of ulceration amelioration by nonblinded clinicians.Results Comparable pain relief and amelioration of erosions/ulcers were seen in patients on sulodexide and in those on ciclosporin, but with faster healing in those on sulodexide.Conclusions Sulodexide appears to be as effective, and perhaps more effective, than topical ciclosporin in the therapy of oral lichen planus, and is less expensive, but full double‐blind placebo‐controlled studies are required.
Cosmetic dermatitis – current perspectives
Authors: Mehta Surjit Singh , Reddy Belum Siva Nagi 
Published: December 2004

AbstractBackground Increasing use of cosmetics by modern society has contributed alarming to an rise in the incidence of cosmetic dermatitis (CD). The causative agents are skin, hair, nail and eye cosmetics. Reported cases of cosmetic dermatitis represent only the tip of the iceberg, as most patients who experience an adverse reaction to cosmetics do not consult a physician but discontinue using the suspected items.Methods A comprehensive history followed by adequate clinical examination and patch test is important to diagnose reaction to cosmetics. In addition other tests like Repeated Open Application Test (ROAT), usage test, elimination test and safety test are important, as many cosmetics and their ingredients are either weak allergens or irritants.Results A wide variety of adverse reactions to cosmetics are seen which are of both irritant and allergic type. Pattern of CD varies in different parts of the world depending upon the type and frequency of different cosmetics used. Reactions are more commonly seen in females of younger age and the face is the most common site.Conclusions Though prevention is better than cure, but cosmetics have definitely infiltrated into our life style. We cannot prevent use of cosmetics but can only limit their use by educating their users and helping them in judicious selection of the required cosmetics.
Gene flow and immigration rate in an island population of great tits
Authors: Verhulst S. , Van Eck H. M. 
Published: December 2004

AbstractIt is generally recognized that immigration and gene flow cannot be equated, but few detailed quantitative comparisons of these processes have been made over the entire lifetime of individual animals. We analyzed data collected in a longterm study of an island population of great tits Parus major, and tested two assumptions frequently made in population genetic studies. (1) The assumption that there is no difference in reproductive output between immigrant and resident breeding birds was refuted for females but not for males. Lifetime production of local recruits (LRS) was reduced by 37% in immigrant females, because female immigrants tended to leave the island after breeding, and thus reproduced for fewer years. Female LRS was density dependent, but the effect of density was independent of status (resident/immigrant). (2) The assumption that mating was random with respect to status was also refuted: assortative mating was found, even when temporal and spatial aggregation of immigrants was controlled for. Thus both assumptions were refuted, and gene flow was lower than immigration rate.
Socio‐economics of brood destruction during supersedure in the carpenter bee Xylocopa pubescens
Authors: Hogendoorn K. 
Published: December 2004

AbstractIn nests of the facultatively social carpenter bee Xylocopa pubescens, both intruders and nestmates destroyed brood during supersedure. However, nestmates and intruders differed with respect to the frequency and the pattern of brood destruction. Intruders destroyed more brood than did nestmates. In addition, intruders appeared to destroy all stages of brood at equal frequencies, whereas nestmates had a preference for opening and thereby destroying newly made cells. Several hypotheses concerning the ultimate reasons for these differences were tested. These differences are not due to either a lack of breeding space, or to an attempt to prevent an imminent loss of dominance. The number of brood cells destroyed by nestmates was not influenced by the degree of relatedness. This indicates that the difference between nestmates and intruders was not based on active kin recognition. The most likely reason why nestmates prefer to open young brood cells is that they can then reallocate the pollen contents of these cells to their own brood. A difference in knowledge about the location of newly made cells may explain the differences in the pattern and the frequency of brood destruction by nestmates and intruders. Furthermore, a superseding nestmate may slightly enhance her average indirect fitness by destroying the brood contents of newly made cells while leaving older brood cells intact.