bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Poly(lactic‐co‐glycolic acid) enhances maturation of human monocyte‐derived dendritic cells
Authors: Yoshida Mutsumi , Babensee Julia E. 
Published: August 2004

AbstractImmature dendritic cells (iDCs) were derived from human peripheral blood monocytes, and treated with 75:25 poly(lactic‐co‐glycolic acid) (PLGA) microparticles (MPs) or film to assess the resultant dendritic cell (DC) maturation as compared to positive control of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) treatment for DC maturation or negative control of untreated iDCs. The effect of PLGA contact on DC maturation was examined as one possible explanation for the PLGA adjuvant effect we have observed in the enhancement of an immune response to codelivered model antigen, as adjuvants act through the maturation of DCs. Culturing iDCs with PLGA MPs or PLGA film resulted in morphology similar to that of LPS‐matured DCs and the association, or possible internalization, of PLGA MPs. Furthermore, biomaterial‐treated iDCs demonstrated an increase in MHC class II and costimulatory molecule expression compared to iDCs but to a lower level than that of LPS‐matured DCs. Direct iDC contact with PLGA MPs was necessary for maturation. Immature DCs exposed to PLGA MPs were stimulatory of allogeneic T‐cell proliferation, whereas cells exposed to PLGA film were not. Further, PLGA MPs supported a moderate delayed type hypersensitivity reaction in mice indicative of in vivo DC maturation. Taken together, these results suggest that PLGA is a DC maturation stimulus and that the form of the biomaterial may influence the extent of DC maturation. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res 71A: 45–54, 2004
Osteoblasts respond to hydroxyapatite surfaces with immediate changes in gene expression
Authors: Xie Jianwei , Baumann Melissa J. , McCabe Laura R. 
Published: August 2004

AbstractBone mineral contains hydroxyapatite (HA). This is the surface that mature osteoblasts and osteocytes interact with. Synthetic HA is widely used in orthopedic surgeries as an implant or implant coating. The bone‐like HA surfaces increase implant union and bone formation; however, the mechanisms accounting for this effect on osteoblasts are not known. In this study, we compared gene expression profiles of osteoblasts responding to HA or plastic surfaces for 24 h. Expression profiles were also compared between HA discs processed with gravity‐sieved compared with combined gravity and air‐jet‐sieved HA powders. The latter, composed of smaller HA particles, exhibits an increase in grain boundary surface area. Discs made with either HA powder similarly up‐regulated osteoblast expression of 10 genes (including proliferin 3, Glvr‐1, DMP‐1, and tenascin C) and down‐regulated 15 genes (such as osteoglycin) by more than 2‐fold compared with plastic surfaces. The overall changes are indicative of an immediate (24‐h) response to the HA surface and a trend toward osteoblast differentiation. In addition, subsets of modulated genes exist that are unique to each HA subtype. Taken together, we identified HA responsive genes evident within 24 h of surface contact, indicating a critical role for extracellular mineral surfaces in the regulation of osteoblast gene expression and phenotype. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res 71A: 108–117, 2004
Topiramate therapy for paroxysmal kinesigenic choreoathetosis
Authors: Huang Yuan‐Gui , Chen Yun‐Chun , Du Fang , Li Rui , Xu Ge‐Lin , Jiang Wen , Huang Jing 
Published: August 2004

AbstractWe observed the clinical efficacy of topiramate for paroxysmal kinesigenic choreoathetosis (PKC). Topiramate was administered as a monotherapy with titrated dosages to 8 patients with PKC. Target daily dose of topiramate was 100 to 200 mg; the follow‐up period ranged from 8 months to 2 years. All of the patients became attack‐free, and side effects were mild. The results show that topiramate is effective as a monotherapy for treating patients with PKC. The response to topiramate indicates that the disease may be caused by an ion channel defect. © 2004 Movement Disorder Society
Staging disease severity in movement disorder tauopathies: Brain atrophy separates progressive supranuclear palsy from corticobasal degeneration
Authors: Schofield Emma C. , Caine Diana , Kril Jillian J. , Cordato Nicholas J. , Halliday Glenda M. 
Published: August 2004

AbstractThe movement disorders progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) and corticobasal degeneration (CBD) both deposit tau in degenerating neurons and are considered to be tauopathies. The recently developed scheme for staging tissue degeneration in another tauopathy, frontotemporal dementia [Broe et al., Neurology 2003;60:1005–1011] was applied to pathologically confirmed PSP (n = 24) and CBD (n = 9) cases and correlated with clinical indices. In contrast to frontotemporal dementia, the majority of PSP cases had limited or no visible atrophy, while the pattern of atrophy in CBD cases conformed to the existing staging scheme (all but one case exhibiting substantial visible tissue atrophy). Despite similar clinical severity and disease duration between groups, there was a marked difference between the PSP and CBD cases in pathological disease stage (χ2 = 8.86; P = 0.03). The degree of global atrophy in PSP appears to be distinct from other tauopathies, while CBD fits the same pattern as other pathological forms of frontotemporal dementia. © 2004 Movement Disorder Society
Approximation algorithms for finding low‐degree subgraphs
Authors: Klein Philip N. , Krishnan Radha , Raghavachari Balaji , Ravi R. 
Published: August 2004

AbstractWe give quasipolynomial‐time approximation algorithms for designing networks with a minimum degree. Using our methods, one can design networks whose connectivity is specified by “proper” functions, a class of 0–1 functions indicating the number of edges crossing each cut. We also provide quasipolynomial‐time approximation algorithms for finding two‐edge‐connected spanning subgraphs of approximately minimum degree of a given two‐edge‐connected graph, and a spanning tree (branching) of approximately minimum degree of a directed graph. The degree of the output network in all cases is guaranteed to be at most (1 + ϵ) times the optimal degree, plus an additive O(log1+ϵn) for any ϵ > 0. Our analysis indicates that the degree of an optimal subgraph for each of the problems above is well estimated by certain polynomially solvable linear programs. This suggests that the linear programs we describe could be useful in obtaining optimal solutions via branch and bound. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. NETWORKS, Vol. 44(3), 203–215 2004
An exact algorithm for the elementary shortest path problem with resource constraints: Application to some vehicle routing problems
Authors: Feillet Dominique , Dejax Pierre , Gendreau Michel , Gueguen Cyrille 
Published: August 2004

AbstractIn this article, we propose a solution procedure for the Elementary Shortest Path Problem with Resource Constraints (ESPPRC). A relaxed version of this problem in which the path does not have to be elementary has been the backbone of a number of solution procedures based on column generation for several important problems, such as vehicle routing and crew pairing. In many cases relaxing the restriction of an elementary path resulted in optimal solutions in a reasonable computation time. However, for a number of other problems, the elementary path restriction has too much impact on the solution to be relaxed or might even be necessary. We propose an exact solution procedure for the ESPPRC, which extends the classical label correcting algorithm originally developed for the relaxed (nonelementary) path version of this problem. We present computational experiments of this algorithm for our specific problem and embedded in a column generation scheme for the classical Vehicle Routing Problem with Time Windows. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. NETWORKS, Vol. 44(3), 216–229 2004
Viscosity, particle size distribution, and structural investigation of tetramethyloxysilane/2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate sols during the sol–gel process with acid and base catalysts
Authors: Huang Shu‐Ling , Chin Wei‐Kuo , Yang W. P. 
Published: August 2004

AbstractThe tetramethoxysilane (TMOS)/2‐hydroxylethyl methacrylate (HEMA) hybrid gels were synthesized with acid and base catalysts, via the in situ polymerization of HEMA, with and without the cosolvent methanol. With methanol in the TMOS/HEMA sol, the enhanced esterification and depolymerization reactions of the silanols resulted in a slower growth of silica particles. The silica particles that were synthesized with an acid catalyst were less than 40 nm. The thermal resistance of the poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) chains was enhanced by the addition of colloidal silica. The Fourier transform infrared characterizations and the exothermal peaks on the differential scanning calorimetry traces of these hybrid gels indicated chemical hybridization occurring as a result of condensation of the colloid silica and PHEMA at higher temperatures. Hence, the residual weight content of the hybrid gel after its synthesis with the base catalyst was even higher than the content of TMOS in the hybrid sol. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 3476–3486, 2004
Structure and properties of the mesophase of syndiotactic polystyrene. VIII. Solvent sorption behavior of syndiotactic polystyrene/p‐chlorotoluene mesophase membranes
Authors: Mahesh K. P. O. , Sivakumar M. , Yamamoto Y. , Tsujita Y. , Yoshimizu H. , Okamoto S. 
Published: August 2004

AbstractA crystalline δ form of a syndiotactic polystyrene (sPS) membrane was prepared from a solution of sPS (1 wt %) and p‐chlorotoluene (p‐CT) by a solution‐casting method. The mesophase (δ empty form) of sPS was obtained by the extraction of the guest solvent from the δ form of sPS by a stepwise solvent‐extraction method. The sPS/p‐CT mesophase membrane [p‐CT (A‐M)] was used for the sorption of 1 mol % p‐CT for different times and for the sorption of different concentrations of p‐CT, chlorobenzene (CB), p‐xylene (p‐X), toluene, and chloroform for 48 h. The presence of solvents in the sPS membrane was confirmed by IR analysis. A thermal study revealed that the sorption amount of 1 mol % p‐CT increased with increasing immersion time, and the sorption amounts of different solvents increased with increasing solvent concentration. Differential scanning calorimetry results showed that the desorption peak temperature increased as the amount of the solvent increased in the clathrated sPS membrane. Wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction results showed that 2θ at 8.25° was slightly shifted toward 8°, and there was no change in the peak position at 10° for p‐CT (A‐M), which was immersed in different solvents (1 mol %); however, the intensity of 2θ at 10° was not similar for all the samples. Among the solvents used for the sorption studies at 1 mol %, p‐CT (A‐M) could sorb more p‐CT and CB than p‐X, toluene, and chloroform. The solvent sorption isotherm was the Langmuir sorption mechanism. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 3439–3446, 2004
Randomized controlled trial of a teacher‐led asthma education program
Authors: Henry Richard L. , Gibson Peter G. , Vimpani Graham V. , Francis J. Lynn , Hazell Juliana 
Published: August 2004

AbstractOur objective was to determine whether an asthma education program in schools would have 1) a direct impact on student knowledge and attitudes to asthma and quality of life of the students with asthma, 2) an indirect impact on teacher knowledge and attitudes to asthma and on school policies about asthma, and 3) a sustainable program after the resources to implement the research were withdrawn. Seventeen intervention and 15 control schools participated in a controlled trial. Baseline knowledge and attitudes were measured in year 8 students (ages 13–14 years) and their teachers together with quality of life in the students with asthma. A three‐lesson package about asthma was delivered by teachers as part of the Personal Development/Health/Physical Education (PD/H/PE) curriculum. Follow‐up questionnaires were administered to students and staff. Efforts to change school policies were documented. Five years after the intervention, PD/H/PE teachers were contacted to determine whether the program was still operating. Main outcome measures included asthma knowledge, attitudes, and quality of life. Questionnaires were returned by 4,161/4,475 of the year 8 students at baseline and by 3,443 at follow‐up. In intervention schools, compared with control schools, students showed improved asthma knowledge (P < 0.0001), improvement in tolerance to asthma (P = 0.02), internal control (P = 0.03), and less tendency to believe in the role of chance in asthma control (P = 0.04). Students from intervention but not control schools showed significant improvements in overall quality of life (P = 0.003 vs.P = 0.82, respectively). Teachers from intervention schools showed significant increases in knowledge compared to control schools (P < 0.0001). Intervention schools were more likely to seek further health education about asthma (P < 0.01). Five years after the 35 schools involved in the development of the materials or the trial had been offered the Living With Asthma package, 25 (71%) were still teaching the program to most or all of their students. Fifty‐nine of the 61 (97%) high schools in the Hunter Region now have the program. Management and distribution of the Living With Asthma program have been taken over by the Asthma Foundation of New South Wales. The package has been updated and is being offered to all high schools throughout New South Wales as part of the National Asthma‐Friendly Schools Project. In conclusion, a teacher‐led asthma education program in secondary school had direct and indirect beneficial outcomes and was sustained at a high level for 5 years in most schools in the Hunter Region, despite minimal ongoing maintenance and support from health workers. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Acute hypoxic respiratory failure as the first manifestation of systemic‐onset juvenile rheumatoid arthritis in a child
Authors: Rochat Isabelle , Sayegh Yasmine , Gervaix Alain , Rimensberger Peter C. , Argiroffo Constance Barazzone 
Published: August 2004

AbstractSystemic onset juvenile rheumatoid arthritis is the most common rheumatologic disorder of childhood. Pleuropulmonary manifestations are rare in children in this multiorgan disease, and are usually not severe. The diagnosis of systemic onset juvenile rheumatoid arthritis is made by exclusion, in the presence of clinical findings constellation. We present the case of an 8‐year‐old girl who developed acute hypoxic respiratory failure as the first manifestation of systemic onset juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, then severe respiratory relapse 16 months later. Clinical and radiological improvement were achieved at both times after high dose pulse methylprednisolone therapy. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Impact of adolescence and gender on asthma hospitalization: A population‐based birth cohort study
Authors: Debley Jason S. , Redding Gregory J. , Critchlow Cathy W. 
Published: August 2004

AbstractOur objective was to determine the impact of gender and age on asthma hospitalization rates among children. We used a population‐based retrospective birth cohort study to determine yearly age‐ and gender‐specific asthma hospitalization rates between ages 2–18 years in a cohort of all children born in Washington State between 1980–1985. In addition, we assessed factors associated with the hospitalization of a given child for asthma both before and during adolescence, and factors associated with an initial asthma hospitalization during adolescence. Outcome measures included age‐ and gender‐specific rates of hospitalization for asthma, diabetes, seizures/epilepsy, and nonasthma respiratory diagnoses. Asthma hospitalization rates for boys were significantly higher than for girls between ages 2–12 years, the gender gap in asthma hospitalizations reversed between ages 13–14 years, and rates for girls were significantly higher than boys between 16–18 years of age. The male peak asthma hospitalization rate per 100,000 cohort members occurred at age 4 years (12.7; 95% confidence interval (CI), 11.1–14.3), and the male trough rate occurred at age 18 years (4.1; 95% CI, 2.8–5.4), whereas the female peak asthma hospitalization rate occurred at age 17 years (9.4; 95% CI, 7.8–11) and the female trough rate at age 2 years (5.2; 95% CI, 4.2–6.2). Age‐specific hospitalization rates for diabetes mellitus and epilepsy were similar for boys and girls throughout childhood. Female gender was strongly associated with asthma hospitalization occurring in an individual child both prior to and during adolescence (rate ratio (RR), 2.0; 95% CI, 1.4–2.9), and was modestly associated with initial hospitalization in adolescence (RR, 1.15; 95% CI, 1.0–1.3). In conclusion, asthma hospitalization rates for boys and girls exhibit strikingly different patterns during adolescence. Potential explanations for these gender differences include hormonal changes during puberty, or gender‐specific differences in environmental exposures such as diet, obesity, allergen exposure, or cigarette smoking. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Separable pseudopotentials: Effective core potential and the embedding potential
Authors: Abarenkov I. V. , Antonova I. M. 
Published: August 2004

AbstractIn the present paper the separable potentials are considered. The main attention is paid to the embedding separable potential. The method of generating the exact (in the Hartree–Fock approximation) embedding potential is proposed for covalently bonded systems, the most difficult case for embedding. Approximations to the exact embedding potential are introduced that enable one to incorporate the obtained embedding potential into existing molecule calculations packets. The test calculations on (CH3)2O molecule are performed and discussed. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2004
Foundation of quantum similarity measures and their relationship to QSPR: Density function structure, approximations, and application examples
Authors: Carbó‐Dorca Ramon , Gironés Xavier 
Published: August 2004

AbstractThis work presents a schematic description of the theoretical foundations of quantum similarity measures and the varied usefulness of the enveloping mathematical structure. The study starts with the definition of tagged sets, continuing with inward matrix products, matrix signatures, and vector semispaces. From there, the construction and structure of quantum density functions become clear and facilitate entry into the description of quantum object sets, as well as into the construction of atomic shell approximations (ASA). An application of the ASA is presented, consisting of the density surfaces of a protein structure. Based on this previous background, quantum similarity measures are naturally constructed, and similarity matrices, composed of all the quantum similarity measures on a quantum object set, along with the quantum mechanical concept of expectation value of an operator, allow the setup of a fundamental quantitative structure–activity relationship (QSPR) equation based on quantum descriptors. An application example is presented based on the inhibition of photosynthesis produced by some naphthyridinone derivatives, which makes them good herbicide candidates. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2005
Effect of matrix and solvent on the analysis of novel poly(phenylenevinylene) derivatives by matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry
Authors: Zhang Zhenying , Deng Huimin , Deng Qinying , Zhao Shankai 
Published: August 2004

AbstractSix novel poly(phenylenevinylene) (PPV) derivatives carrying butoxy or myrtanyl groups, including poly(2‐butoxy‐m‐phenylenevinylene) (Bu‐MPV), poly(2,5‐dibutoxy‐p‐phenylenevinylene‐alter‐p‐phenylenevinylene) (Bu‐PPPV), poly(2,5‐dibutoxy‐p‐phenylenevinylene‐alter‐m‐phenylenevinylene) (Bu‐PMPV), poly(2‐myrtanyl‐m‐phenylenevinylene) (Myr‐MPV), poly(2,5‐dimyrtanyl‐p‐phenylenevinylene‐alter‐p‐phenylenevinylene) (Myr‐PPPV), and poly(2,5‐dimyrtanyl‐p‐phenylenevinylene‐alter‐m‐phenylenevinylene) (Myr‐PMPV), were characterized by matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry (MALDI‐TOFMS). The repeat unit mass and the end‐group structures of each sample were obtained. Distinctly different spectra with different ion series and/or different ion signal intensities were observed for the analytes Bu‐MPV, Myr‐MPV, Bu‐PPPV, Myr‐PPPV and Myr‐PMPV when different matrices were used, and different ion series were acquired when different solvents were used for Myr‐PPPV and Myr‐PMPV. The results show that the PPV oligomers with different shapes and/or with different end groups can be selectively desorbed and ionized in MALDI by using different matrices. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Improving opioid effectiveness: from ideas to evidence
Authors: Kalso Eija 
Published: August 2004

AbstractOpioid effectiveness can be improved by individualizing dosing, route of administration and the drug. Particularly in the treatment of chronic non‐cancer pain, careful patient selection is essential. The current review concentrates on new ideas about improving opioid effectiveness by increasing efficacy or reducing adverse effects by combining other drugs that modulate opioid receptor mediated effects. These pharmacological “oipoid adjuvants” include e.g. α2‐adrenergic agonists, non‐steroidal anti‐flammatory analgesics, NMDA‐receptor antagonists, CCK‐antagonists, gabapentinoids and NK‐1 receptor antagonists. The theoritical background and the clinical evidence of these combinations will be discussed.
Imaging of acute versus pathological pain in humans
Authors: Lorenz J. , Casey K.L. 
Published: August 2004

AbstractPain subserves different functions. Acute pain from the intact body alerts the victim to immediately react and withdraw from the bodily threat, ideally before an injury happens. However, during manifest injury and tissue inflammation, withdrawal and flight are no longer adaptive. Instead, sparing the affected body part to promote healing requires heightened awareness and avoidance behaviour over longer periods of time. Quality and time scales of behavioural adaptations are therefore substantially different between pain during normal compared to abnormal tissue states. Given these functional differences we postulated that the two phenomena also recruit different forebrain systems. We used positron emission tomography (PET) and subtracted scans obtained during painful heating of normal skin from scans during equally intense but normally non‐painful heating of capsaicin‐treated skin. This comparison reveals the specific activation of a medial thalamic pathway to limbic forebrain structures such as anterior insula, perigenual anterior cingulate, ventral striatum, and prefrontal cortex during pain originating in the chemically sensitised skin. It is possible that the unique forebrain recruitment by pain under a patho‐physiological tissue status is caused by a significantly greater facilitation of the multi‐synaptic projections from the spino‐parabrachial tract of the superficial dorsal horn to the medial thalamus compared to deeper and direct lateral thalamic projections from the spino‐thalamic tract.