bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
On Markov error‐correction models, with an application to stock prices and dividends
Authors: Psaradakis Zacharias , Sola Martin , Spagnolo Fabio 
Published: February 2004

AbstractThis paper considers Markov error‐correction (MEC) models in which deviations from the long‐run equilibrium are characterized by different rates of adjustment. To motivate our analysis and illustrate the various issues involved, our discussion is structured around the analysis of the long‐run properties of US stock prices and dividends. It is shown that the MEC model is flexible enough to account for situations where deviations from the long‐run equilibrium are nonstationary in one of the states of nature and allows us to test for such a possibility. An empirical specification procedure to establish the existence of MEC adjustment in practice is also presented. This is based on a multi‐step test procedure that exploits the differences between the global and local characteristics of systems with MEC adjustment. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Synthesis and Dispersion Characteristics of Multi‐Walled Carbon Nanotube Composites with Poly(methyl methacrylate) Prepared by In‐Situ Bulk Polymerization
Authors: Park Seung June , Cho Min Seong , Lim Sung Taek , Choi Hyoung Jin , Jhon Myung S. 
Published: February 2004

AbstractMulti‐walled carbon nanotubes (MWNT) purified by acidic solution were processed with PMMA via an in‐situ polymerization. Experimental evidences indicate the role of radical initiator (AIBN) and MWNT, showing increases of polymerization rate and MWNT diameter. Induced radicals on the MWNT by AIBN were found to trigger the grafting of PMMA. Moreover, the solvent cast film showed a better nanoscopic dispersion of MWNT and possibilities of CNT composites in engineering applications.Fractured surface of multi‐walled carbon nanotube composite with PMMA prepared by in‐situ bulk polymerization.magnified imageFractured surface of multi‐walled carbon nanotube composite with PMMA prepared by in‐situ bulk polymerization.
Focal dystonia as a presenting sign of spinocerebellar ataxia 17
Authors: Hagenah Johann M. , Zühlke Christine , Hellenbroich Yorck , Heide Wolfgang , Klein Christine 
Published: February 2004

AbstractWe report on the clinical manifestation of spinocerebellar ataxia 17 (SCA17) in 3 members of a German family, in whom the pathological repeat expansion in the TATA‐binding protein gene ranged from 53 to 55 repeats (normal: 29–42). The main clinical features were focal dystonia as presenting sign, followed by cerebellar ataxia, and, in the later course of one case, dementia and marked spasticity with signs of cerebellar and cerebral atrophy on brain computed tomography (CT) scan. In conclusion, SCA17 mutations should be considered in the differential diagnosis of focal dystonia. © 2003 Movement Disorder Society
Hyperhomocysteinaemia in treated patients with Huntington's disease homocysteine in HD
Authors: Andrich Jürgen , Saft Carsten , Arz Anneliese , Schneider Birgit , Agelink Markus W. , Kraus Peter H. , Kuhn Wilfried , Müller Thomas 
Published: February 2004

AbstractSignificantly increased plasma total homocysteine levels (t‐Hcys) appeared in treated Huntington disease (HD) patients compared to controls and untreated HD subjects. Because the protein Huntingtin interacts with the homocysteine metabolism modulating enzyme cystathionine β‐synthase, we hypothesize that homocysteine promotes neurodegeneration in HD. © 2003 Movement Disorder Society
Differential expression of cell cycle regulatory molecules and evidence for a “cyclin switch” during progression of prostate cancer
Authors: Maddison Lisette A. , Huss Wendy J. , Barrios Roberto M. , Greenberg Norman M. 
Published: February 2004

AbstractBACKGROUNDDeregulation of the cell cycle can be viewed as both cause and consequence of cancer. Cyclin expression regulates progression through the cell cycle and although some cyclins have been examined in prostate cancer, the spatial and temporal changes in expression of these molecules during progression of autochthonous disease has not been fully explored.METHODSExpression patterns of cyclins and cyclin dependent kinases during the different stages of progression in the spontaneous autochthonous TRAMP model were examined by RNAse protection assay, Western blot analysis, and immunohistochemistry.RESULTSDifferential expression of cell cycle regulatory molecules was observed during prostate cancer progression. Levels of the D‐type cyclins decreased during progression while expression of cyclin E increased both at the mRNA and protein levels. The level of cyclin A and cyclin B expression increased beginning in early stage tumors and continued to increase throughout progression. The levels of cyclin dependent kinases did not change substantially during progression of the TRAMP model.CONCLUSIONSThe spatial and temporal pattern of mitotic cyclin expression during prostate cancer progression suggests that these molecules represent potential therapeutic targets. The differential expression of D‐type cyclins may have implications with respect to androgen receptor mediated gene expression. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A Prospective longitudinal study comparing the impact of external radiation therapy with radical prostatectomy on health related quality of life (HRQOL) in prostate cancer patients
Authors: van Andel G. , Visser A.P. , Zwinderman A.H. , Hulshof M.C.C.M. , Horenblas S. , Kurth K.H. 
Published: February 2004

AbstractBACKGROUNDThe objective of the present study is to compare the impact on the general and disease‐specific health related quality of life (HRQOL) of external radiation therapy (ERT) with radical prostatectomy (RP) in patients with localized prostate cancer, and to explore which factors, and to what extent, contribute to the assessed changes in HRQOL.METHODSOne hundred and thirty eight patients participated in this prospective longitudinal study. They completed before treatment (T0) and after 12 months (T1) a questionnaire constructed of validated instruments, measuring HRQOL and several psychosocial factors (PF). Among other things, multiple regression analyses including all baseline characteristics, HRQOL and PF were executed in order to meet the objectives.RESULTSRP patients showed significantly more improvement in their emotional function, while they reported more incontinence and a worse sexual function. There was significantly more improvement in the overall HRQOL of ERT patients, while the changes in the gastrointestinal function of these patients were significantly worse. Only the differences with respect to incontinence can be attributed to the treatment itself. Almost all HRQOL change scores are primarily influenced by their own baseline score. The influence of other factors, like age, socioeconomic status, and several PF, is limited.CONCLUSIONSThe impact on HRQOL of ERT is similar to that of RP, except for incontinence. RP patients suffer more from incontinence than ERT patients. Changes in the assessed HRQOL are mainly influenced by the pre‐treatment HRQOL scores. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Differential expression of hZnT‐4 in Human prostate tissues
Authors: Beck Frances W.J. , Prasad Ananda S. , Butler Charles E. , Sakr Wael A. , Kucuk Omer , Sarkar Fazlul H. 
Published: February 2004

AbstractBACKGROUNDAltered zinc levels in prostate benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and carcinoma is well documented. It is not known whether loss of zinc, necessary to restrain aggressive growth, results from loss of a single specific or multiple zinc transporters.METHODSHuman prostate tissues from patients who underwent radical prostatectomy were screened by RT‐PCR analysis for five zinc transporters. Relative cDNA expression was determined in normal, BPH, and tumor specimens and four prostate epithelial cell lines.RESULTSSurgical specimens were obtained from patients with assigned Gleason scores ranging from 5 to 9. Relative expression of hZIP‐1 and hZnT‐1 were prominent in most samples with relatively lesser degree of expression of hZIP‐2 and no detectable expression of hZnT‐3. Expression of hZnT‐4 was decreased in BPH and tumor samples compared to normal tissue.CONCLUSIONSThese data suggest that zinc homeostasis in normal prostate tissues results from an interplay of multiple transporters and decreased hZnT‐4 expression is associated with prostate tissue abnormalities independent of total cellular zinc content. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Metabolic susceptibility genes and prostate cancer risk in a southern European population: The role of glutathione S‐transferases GSTM1, GSTM3, and GSTT1 genetic polymorphisms
Authors: Medeiros Rui , Vasconcelos André , Costa Sandra , Pinto Daniela , Ferreira Paula , Lobo Francisco , Morais António , Oliveira Jorge , Lopes Carlos 
Published: February 2004

AbstractBACKGROUNDGlutathione S‐transferase (GST) metabolic enzymes may be involved in the development of human cancer. Genetic polymorphisms have been reported in GSTM1, GSTM3, and GSTT1 with functional alterations and influencing cancer risk.METHODSWe analyzed DNA samples from 335 (670 alleles) unrelated individuals, 185 community control subjects, and 150 prostate cancer (PC) patients, for GSTM1, GSTM3, and GSTT1 genotypes using polymerase chain reaction (PCR).RESULTSThe analysis of the frequencies from the 670 alleles indicates that men carrying two B‐alleles (GSTM3) have increased risk for PC (OR = 5.50, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.2–25.8; P = 0.016). Multivariate logistic regression analysis confirmed this association (OR = 5.2, 95% CI 1.1–25.0; P = 0.036). No increased PC risk was observed for men carrying any of the GSTM1 or GSTT1 genotypes (OR = 1.20, 95% CI 0.75–1.90; P = 0.420 for GSTM1 null and OR = 0.87, 95% CI 0.50–1.51; P = 0.550 for GSTM1 null). However, GSTT1 null was overrepresented in men with advanced PC disease (P = 0.038).CONCLUSIONSOur results indicate that polymorphism in the GSTM3 may be an important biomarker for PC risk, especially in the definition of the genetic risk profile of populations of southern Europe. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Intraosseous growth of human prostate cancer in implanted adult human bone: Relationship of prostate cancer cells to osteoclasts in osteoblastic metastatic lesions
Authors: Yonou Hiroyuki , Ochiai Atsushi , Goya Masato , Kanomata Naoki , Hokama Sanehiro , Morozumi Makoto , Sugaya Kimio , Hatano Tadashi , Ogawa Yoshihide 
Published: February 2004

AbstractBACKGROUNDMore than 80% of patients with advanced prostate cancer have skeletal involvement, but the biology of bone metastasis is poorly understood. This study investigated the in vivo formation and progression of bone metastases under conditions that resembled the human bone environment as closely as possible.METHODSAdult human bone fragments were implanted subcutaneously into 120 male NOD/SCID mice. Four weeks later, 1 × 107 LNCaP prostate cancer cells or phosphate‐buffered saline were injected intravenously into 80 or 40 mice, respectively. The implanted bone fragments were removed from 20 to 10 mice in each group at 2, 4, 6, and 8 weeks after injection.RESULTSLNCaP colonized the bone marrow blood vessels within 2 weeks, and then gradually expanded into the entire medullary cavity. An osteoblastic response often occurred at the edges of metastatic foci (intertrabecular bone metaplasia). In addition, new bone formation was observed adjacent to mature lamellar bone (appositional bone formation). These two processes appeared to occur through different mechanisms, but might similarly cause osteosclerosis. Osteoclasts showed a marked increase in numbers at sites of early tumor invasion, whereas few osteoclasts were observed at sites where tumor invasion was complete.CONCLUSIONSThe predominance of osteoblastic change with resorption may lead to bone remodeling in metastatic lesions, and osteoclasts may play an important role in bone metastasis from prostate cancer. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The ceramide analog, B13, induces apoptosis in prostate cancer cell lines and inhibits tumor growth in prostate cancer xenografts
Authors: Samsel Leigh , Zaidel Grazyna , Drumgoole Honesty M. , Jelovac Danijela , Drachenberg Cinthia , Rhee Juong G. , Brodie Angela M.H. , Bielawska Alicja , Smyth Miriam J. 
Published: February 2004

AbstractBACKGROUNDApoptosis is a therapeutic target for the elimination of cancer cells. As elevations in ceramide levels induce apoptosis, there is much excitement about the use of agents that elevate ceramide levels as novel chemotherapeutic agents. Ceramidases are enzymes involved in degradation of ceramide and inhibition of ceramidase has been proposed as a mechanism to increase ceramide levels. This study provides the first insight into the effect of B13, an inhibitor of acid ceramidase, on human prostate cancer cell lines and xenografts.METHODSCell death was evaluated by the trypan blue assay; apoptosis by the Apo2.7 apoptosis assay; and glutathione levels by HPLC. Tumors were irradiated with a dose of 5 Gy of X‐rays (250 kVp, 15 mA, 2 Gy/min) and tumor volume was measured during the course of the experiment. At the conclusion of the experiment, tumor weight was determined and the tumors were evaluated histologically.RESULTSB13 is an inducer of cell death, by apoptosis, in cultured prostate cancer cells. LNCaP and PC3 cells have different responsiveness to the enantiomers of B13. In LNCaP cells, the R enantiomer of B13 (10 μM) was significantly more effective than the S enantiomer at inducing cell death as determined by the trypan blue assay, culminating in approximately 90% cell death at 48 hr. In contrast, the same concentration of B13S induced <20% cell death at 48 hr. In PC3 cells, the S enantiomer was a more effective inducer of cell death, culminating in ∼30% cell death, relative to 14% for B13R in this model. Evaluation of induction of apoptosis by the Apo2.7 mitochondrial assay confirmed that this induction of cell death was by apoptosis. Concurrent with induction of apoptosis, glutathione levels drop in response to B13. Specifically, B13R caused a significant drop in glutathione levels in LNCaP cells, culminating in a reduction to 40% control values at 48 hr. In PC3 cells, in contrast, the drop in glutathione levels was more dramatic, culminating in a drop to 12% control values in response to B13S at 48 hr. The effects of B13R, however, were not significantly different from control values. In in vivo studies using a model of xenografted androgen‐insensitive prostate cancer, B13 sensitized the tumors to the effects of radiation, resulting in a significant reduction in tumor volume and weight after treatment with the combination of B13 and radiation. Microscopic evaluation of the tumors indicated that apoptosis was the primary mechanism of this effect.CONCLUSIONSTargeting ceramide pathways may be a novel treatment strategy for hormone refractory prostate cancer. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Standard operating procedures for clinical research personnel – Part 19
Authors: Bohaychuk Wendy , C.D. Graham Ball 
Published: February 2004

AbstractThis is the nineteenth in a series of articles containing proposals for wording and content of standard operating procedures (SOPs) for clinical research activities conducted by sponsors and Contract Research Organisations (CROs). The procedures include those required by the International Conference on Harmonisation (ICH), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), many other guidelines and regulations, and ‘best practice’ observed by the authors. The model forms require modification for actual use. In this article, SOPs are presented for management of study medications/devices and randomisation procedures: final disposition of study medications/devices (SOP 508); recall of investigational products (SOP 509); reallocation of investigational products between study sites (SOP 510); requesting and preparing randomisation schedules (SOP 511); revealing randomisation code assignments during studies (SOP 512) and revealing randomisation code assignments after study completion (SOP 513). (The full text of all 101 SOPs is available from the authors.) Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Start up: CQA
Authors: Winchell Terry 
Published: February 2004

AbstractThe current article is focused on the start up, design, and operation of a new clinical quality assurance unit or the restructuring of an existing one, and is intended to provide a management overview. General information is provided on appropriate company structure, leadership, staffing & evaluations, operations, standard operating procedures, useful information technology tools, as well as a general approach to compliance. References serve to provide additional details on many of these topics. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Why clinical trials fail before they get even started: the ‘frontloading’ process
Authors: Beck Jürgen , Esser Peter J. , Herschel Michael B. 
Published: February 2004

AbstractWhether a clinical trial will meet its timelines is often determined during its recruitment phase. How clinical trials should be run only becomes an issue once they are initiated. But it is during the preparatory phase, between the point when a Go‐decision is made to when the first site is initiated, when it is often decided whether a trial will meet the timelines required. Failure can be expected if ‘frontloading’, the process required to meet the objective, is not carried out properly.Successful frontloading depends on a detailed communication plan with appropriate team‐building, training, standardized communication and behaviour concepts; an action plan with precise details of what needs to be done during specific scenarios; and electronic trial‐specific action and communication tools that ensure swift action when needed. Team building and training on standardized communication procedures are especially important. Detailed reporting (beyond the purely technical pre‐study visit reports); efficient use of early alert tools that identify risks; and prevention tools that avoid deviations from the plan before they actually occur, all play an important role as well. The components of the preparatory phase as well as its most common shortcomings as experienced from trouble‐shooting actions taken to save endangered clinical trails will be outlined. The frontloading process will be reviewed both from the perspectives of the industry and the trouble‐shooting crisis manager. Special emphasis will be put on legal aspects. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
What's new?
Authors: Hattemer‐Apostel Rita , Broughton Steve 
Published: February 2004

AbstractThe What's New? section in the Quality Assurance Journal aims to draw attention to items of importance to QA professionals. There is usually a three‐month interval between final submission of manuscripts and distribution of the journal. For this issue, the entries in the What's New? section arise from the period of 01 September 2003 to 30 November 2003. If you feel that there is any other new information that should be brought to the attention of readers, please let us know by e‐mailing: rha@verdandi.ch. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Reverse engineering Web applications: the WARE approach
Authors: Di Lucca Giuseppe Antonio , Fasolino Anna Rita , Tramontana Porfirio 
Published: February 2004

AbstractThe rapid, progressive diffusion of Web applications in several productive contexts of our modern society is laying the foundations of a renewed scenario of software development, where one of the emerging problems is that of defining and validating cost‐effective approaches for maintaining and evolving these software systems.Due to several factors, the solution to this problem is not straightforward. The heterogeneous and dynamic nature of components making up a Web application, the lack of effective programming mechanisms for implementing basic software engineering principles in it, and undisciplined development processes induced by the high pressure of a very short time‐to‐market, make Web application maintenance a challenging problem. A relevant issue consists of reusing the methodological and technological experience in the sector of traditional software maintenance, and exploring the opportunity of using reverse engineering to support effective Web application maintenance.This paper presents an approach for defining reverse engineering processes involving Web applications. The approach has been used to implement a process, including reverse engineering methods and a supporting software tool, that helps to understand existing undocumented Web applications to be maintained or evolved, through the reconstruction of UML diagrams. The proposed reverse engineering process has been submitted to a validation experiment, the results of which showed the usability of the process for reverse engineering Web applications with different characteristics, and highlighted possible areas for improvement of its effectiveness. The experiment and the lessons learned from it are presented in the paper. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Modelling the evolution of legacy systems to Web‐based systems
Authors: Lavery Janet , Boldyreff Cornelia , Ling Bin , Allison Colin 
Published: February 2004

AbstractTo advance operational legacy systems, with their out‐of‐date software, distributed data and entrenched business processes, to systems that can take advantage of current Web technologies to give consistent, customized and secure access to existing information bases and legacy systems is a complex and daunting task. The Institutionally Secure Integrated Data Environment (INSIDE) is a collaborative project between the Universities of St Andrews and Durham that is addressing the issues surrounding the development and delivery of integrated systems for large institutions, constrained by the requirement of working with the existing information bases and legacy systems. The work has included an exploration of the incremental evolution of existing systems by building Web‐based value‐added services upon foundations derived from analysing and modelling the existing legacy systems. Progressing from initial informal models to more formal domain and requirements models in a systematic way, following a meta‐process incorporating good practice from domain analysis and requirements engineering has allowed the project to lay the foundation for its development of Web‐based services. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Statistical testing of Web applications
Authors: Tonella Paolo , Ricca Filippo 
Published: February 2004

AbstractThe World Wide Web, initially intended as a way to publish static hypertexts on the Internet, is moving toward complex applications. Static Web sites are being gradually replaced by dynamic sites, where information is stored in databases and non‐trivial computation is performed.In such a scenario, ensuring the quality of a Web application from the user's perspective is crucial. Techniques are being investigated for the analysis and testing of Web applications for such a purpose. However, a static analysis of the source code may be extremely difficult (and, in general, infeasible) because of the presence of dynamic generation of the HTML code that is part of the application under analysis.In this paper, a dynamic analysis technique is proposed for the extraction of a Web application model through its execution. Availability of statistical data about the accesses to the pages generated by the Web application is exploited for statistical testing, based on the recovered model. Test cases can be prioritized, so as to exercise the most frequently followed paths first. Moreover, statistical reproduction of the user's navigation paths allows for an estimation of the reliability of the application. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.