bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Skin topography measurement by interference fringe projection: a technical validation
Authors: Lagarde J. M. , Rouvrais C. , Black D. , Diridollou S. , Gall Y. 
Published: March 2003

Background/aims: The quantitative analysis of skin topography is frequently used in cosmetology to evaluate the efficacy of hydrating or anti‐wrinkle creams (micro‐topography studies) or creams for slimming or to alleviate stretch marks (macro‐topography studies). Numerous methods involving the three‐dimensional (3‐D) reconstruction of the topography from silicone replicas have been developed. Some of the main techniques applied include optical profilometry based on the reflection of oblique lighting or on transparency, and profilometry by laser focusing or triangulation.Methods: We chose to test the Dermatop system developed by Eotech Co., which is based on interference fringe projection profilometry associated with the Toposurf surface processing software. Owing to the system’s principle of operation, we first ran three experiments to evaluate the influence of ambient lighting on the 3‐D reconstruction and the surface roughness parameters, the influence of the calibration device built into the acquisition system and the influence of calibration in terms of ambient lighting correction. We then evaluated the accuracy, the repeatability and the reproducibility of the measurements provided by the system from known metal topographic standards and skin replicas.Results: It was seen that external lighting can cause variations in the calculation of parameters SPa, SPt and SPtm which can reach error levels of about 5% if the operator does not almost systematically calibrate the apparatus between each measurement. These three experiments enabled us to standardise the protocol for the acquisition of 3‐D information, in order to minimise the lighting problems and yet respect the requirements for routine studies. The correlation coefficient between the theoretical values and the mean of experimental values was 0.9955 for parameter SPa and 0.9983 for parameter SPtm. Repeatability presented variations of under 4%, irrespective of the parameters, and reproducibility of under 6%.Conclusions: The technique provides very satisfactory results from the point of view of accuracy, repeatability and reproducibility. It is an excellent compromise between cost, accuracy and the time required.
Split face study on the cutaneous tensile effect of 2‐dimethylaminoethanol (deanol) gel
Authors: Uhoda Isabelle , Faska Najat , Robert Caroline , Cauwenbergh Geert , Piérard Gérald. E. 
Published: March 2003

Background/aims: Beyond subjective assessments, the effect of skin tensors is difficult to assess. The present 2‐phase randomized double‐blind split face study was designed to compare the effect of a gel containing 3% 2‐dimethylaminoethanol (deanol, DMAE) with the same formulation without DMAE.Methods: In a first pilot study, sensorial assessments and measures of the skin distension under suction were performed in eight volunteers. In a second study conducted in 30 volunteers, shear wave propagation was measured.Results: Large interindividual variations precluded any significant finding in the first study. The DMAE formulation showed, however, a significant effect characterized by increased shear wave velocity in the direction where the mechanical anisotropy of skin showed looseness.Conclusion: The DMAE formulation under investigation increased skin firmness.
The ability of betaine to reduce the irritating effects of detergents assessed visually, histologically and by bioengineering methods
Authors: Nicander Ingrid , Rantanen Irma , Rozell Barbro Lundh , Söderling Eva , Ollmar Stig 
Published: March 2003

Background/aims: A novel approach for reducing the undesired irritating properties of detergents on skin might be offered by betaine, which is a natural product derived from the sugar beet. The aim of the study was to explore the ability of betaine to reduce the irritating effects of two surfactants, sodium lauryl sulphate (SLS) and cocoamidopropylbetaine (CAPB). For evaluation of changes in skin reactions visual scoring, electrical impedance, transepidermal water loss and histology were used.Methods: Twenty‐one healthy subjects were patch tested for 24 h with SLS and CAPB alone and together with betaine, betaine alone, and the two controls distilled water and an unoccluded test site on both volar forearms. Responses were evaluated by measuring electrical impedance and transepidermal water loss before exposure and 24 h after the removal of the test substances, and also by visual inspection and histology. The electrical impedance device enables measurements at 31 frequencies and relevant information was extracted from the spectra using four indices.Results: CAPB was found to be less irritating than SLS. The used detergents gave rise to distinctive impedance patterns also reflected by different types of histopathological skin responses. After the adding of betaine, the irritant reaction decreased for both detergents.Conclusions: Betaine is a promising ingredient to reduce the side effects of detergents and electrical impedance is a suitable tool both to quantify the degree of irritation as well as to differentiate between various types of reactions.
Angina bullosa haemorrhagica: presentation of eight new cases and a review of the literature
Authors: Giuliani M , Favia GF , Lajolo C , Miani CM 
Published: March 2003

Angina bullosa haemorrhagica (ABH) describes the acute and sometimes painful onset of oral blood‐filled vesicles and bullae not attributable to blood dyscrasia, vesiculo‐bullous disorders, systemic diseases or other known causes. The haemorrhagic bullae spontaneously burst after a short time resulting in ragged, often painless, superficial erosions that heal spontaneously within 1 week without scarring. Although the pathogenesis is still unclear, ABH seems to be a multifactorial phenomenon: dental or functional trauma seems to be the major provoking factor.The lesions of ABH can be easily confused with other mucosal diseases. It is important that the presentation of this benign disorder is distinguished from other more serious disorders with similar presenting features. The aim of this paper is to report the clinical features of eight cases of ABH, in an attempt to distinguish ABH from other blistering diseases of oral mucosa and to describe their management.
Prevalence of hepatitis virus infection in association with oral diseases requiring surgery
Authors: Takata Yutaka , Takahashi Tetsu , Fukuda Jinichi 
Published: March 2003

OBJECTIVE: We evaluated the prevalence of hepatitis virus infection in a large population of patients in terms of diseases requiring oral surgery.DESIGN: Retrospective case survey.SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Prevalence of hepatitis B and C virus (HBV, HCV) infection were compared between oral diseases such as inflammation, cysts, cancer, trauma, benign tumors, impacted teeth, or jaw deformity in dental inpatients (n=5830) with adjustment for age, gender, and history of surgery.RESULTS: Of 4402 inpatients, 94 had HB surface(s) antigen (2.1%), while 151 of 2613 were seropositive for HCV (5.8%). Prevalences of HBs antigen and HCV antibody exceeded those in the general population. HBs antigen was more prevalent in patients with benign oral tumors than in patients with impacted teeth, whether or not adjustment was made for age (odds ratios, 4.246 and 5.055 with and without age adjustment, respectively; P < 0.05). On the other hand, HCV antibody was more prevalent in patients with oral cancer than in those with impacted teeth before adjustment for age (odds ratios, 2.433; P < 0.05), but this difference was reversed with age adjustment (odds ratios, 0.443; P < 0.05).CONCLUSION: HBs antigen was more prevalent in patients with benign oral tumors, while HCV antibody was higher in patients with oral cancer. However, this increased incidence of HCV antibody apparently was a reflection of age. HCV infection may not have an etiologically important association with oral cancer.
Is There a Relationship Between Excessive Drinking and Functional Impairment in Older Persons?
Authors: Moore Alison A. , Endo Justin O. , Carter M. Kallin 
Published: March 2003

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the relationship between (1) two thresholds of excessive alcohol drinking, (2) binge drinking, and (3) impairments in functional status in older drinkers.DESIGN: Cross‐sectional study.SETTING: Ten internal medicine practices affiliated with an academic medical center.PARTICIPANTS: One hundred sixty‐one persons aged 60 and older who reported drinking one or more drinks in the previous 3 months.MEASUREMENTS: Two commonly used thresholds of excessive drinking: (1) eight to 14 drinks per week for women and men (lower threshold) and (2) more than 14 drinks per week for women and men (higher threshold); a measure of binge drinking (≥3 drinks per occasion for women or ≥4 drinks per occasion for men); and self‐reported instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) and advanced activities of daily living (AADLs).RESULTS: Compared with older persons consuming seven or fewer drinks per week, those exceeding the higher threshold of excessive drinking were more likely to have impairments in IADLs (adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 8.4) and, to a lesser extent, AADLs (AOR = 3.7); those exceeding the lower threshold were more likely to have impairments in IADLs (AOR 5 6.0) but not in AADLs (AOR = 1.7). Binge drinkers were also more likely to have impairments in IADLs (AOR = 3.0) but not in AADLs (AOR = 1.5).CONCLUSIONS: In this group of older men and women, drinking more than seven drinks per week was associated with impairments in IADLs and, to a lesser extent, AADLs. Drinking more than three drinks per occasion was associated with impairments in IADLs.
Nocturnal Accumulation of Cyclic 3′,5′‐guanosine Monophosphate (cGMP) in the Chick Pineal Organ is Dependent on Activation of Guanylyl Cyclase‐B
Authors: Olcese J. , Majora C. , Stephan A. , Müller D. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractThe role of cGMP in the avian pineal is not well understood. Although the light‐sensitive secretion of melatonin is a well‐known output of the circadian oscillator, pharmacologically elevated cGMP levels do not result in altered melatonin secretory amplitude or phase. This suggests that pineal cGMP signalling does not couple the endogenous circadian oscillator to the expression of melatonin rhythms. Nonetheless, the free‐running rhythm of cGMP signalling implies a link to the circadian oscillator in chick pinealocytes. As the circadian rhythm of cGMP levels in vitro is not altered by pharmacological inhibition of phosphodiesterase activity, we infer that the synthesis, rather than the degradation of cGMP, is under circadian control. In vitro experiments with the nitric oxide synthase (NOS) inhibitor NG‐nitro‐L‐arginine as well as with an inhibitor of the NO‐sensitive soluble guanylyl cyclase (sGC), showed that the NOS‐sGC pathway does not play a major role in the circadian control of cGMP generation. In organ culture experiments, we demonstrated that C‐type natriuretic peptide (CNP), but not atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP), elevated daytime levels of cGMP. As CNP acts on the membrane guanylyl cyclase isoform B (GC‐B), which is expressed at very high levels in mammalian pineals, we investigated the effect of the membrane GC‐specific inhibitor HS‐142 on chick pineal cGMP levels. CNP‐induced daytime cGMP levels were reduced by HS‐142. More importantly, ‘spontaneously’ high nocturnal levels of cGMP in vitro were reduced to daytime levels by acute addition of HS‐142. These data implicate endogenous nocturnal CNP release and subsequent activation of GC‐B as the major input driving cGMP synthesis in the chick pineal organ.
Effect of Adrenergic Blockade on the Pheromonal Restoration of Cyclic Activity in Young Oestrogen‐Primed Persistent Oestrous Female Rats
Authors: Mora O. A. , Sánchez‐Criado J. E. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractThe effects of adrenergic blockade on pheromonal restoration of cyclic activity were studied in acute oestrogenized persistent oestrous young female rats. Hypothalamic luteinizing hormone‐releasing hormone (LHRH) and plasma LH, follicle‐stimulating hormone (FSH), oestradiol and progesterone were measured by specific radio‐immunoassays, and prolactin by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay in: (i) young cycling rats; (ii) young persistent oestrous female rats; (iii) young persistent oestrous females treated with nasal sprays of male urine; and (iv) young persistent oestrous females treated with nasal sprays of male urine and injected with saline, propranolol, prazosin or yohimbine. LHRH was low 24 h after oestradiol benzoate injection, increasing up to 15 days later; LH, FSH, oestradiol and progesterone ranged from high values 24 h after oestradiol benzoate injection to low 15 days later; prolactin ranged from low concentration 24 h after oestradiol benzoate injection to high 15 days later. Male urine treatment induced a depletion of LHRH, a rise of LH, FSH and progesterone, pheromonal restoration of cyclic activity and a normal hormonal cyclic pattern. Treatment with prazosin and yohimbine prevented the pheromonal restoration of cyclic activity, the drop of LHRH and the rise of plasma concentration of the studied hormones induced by male urine, while saline or propranolol did not. These results show the hormonal pattern of the pheromonal restoration of cyclic activity in persistent oestrous rats and strongly suggest that α‐adrenergic inputs to the hypothalamus may be involved in this pheromonal effect.
Testicular and Somatic Growth in Siberian Hamsters Depend on the Melatonin‐Free Interval Between Twice Daily Melatonin Signals
Authors: Freeman D. A. , Larkin J. E. , Seliby L. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractIn Siberian hamsters, day length is encoded by the duration of the nocturnal melatonin signal; short and long melatonin signals over the course of several weeks stimulate and inhibit somatic and gonadal development, respectively, in prepubertal males. We sought to determine whether juvenile male Siberian hamsters respond to multiple melatonin signals each day and the manner in which the sequence of melatonin signals and the duration of the melatonin‐free interval between signals affects development. Twenty‐one day old male Siberian hamsters, gestated and maintained in a short‐day photoperiod of 10 h light/day (10 L), were transferred to constant light to suppress endogenous melatonin secretion and received s.c. infusions of melatonin or saline for 12 days. Hamsters infused with saline retained small testes, whereas one short melatonin infusion each day resulted in significant testicular growth. Other hamsters were provided with two melatonin signals each day, one long (9 h) and one short (4 or 5 h); the order in which these signals was administered and the duration of the melatonin‐free interval after each signal varied between groups. In asymmetrical melatonin infusions, the first and second daily infusions were followed by 3‐h and 7‐h melatonin‐free intervals, respectively, whereas in symmetrical infusions, each melatonin signal was followed by a 5‐h melatonin‐free interval. In the asymmetrical sequence, the melatonin signal that immediately preceded the longer melatonin‐free interval determined the rate gonadal growth. Equal melatonin‐free intervals after each of the long and short daily melatonin infusions produced intermediate increases in gonadal and somatic development. The hypothalamic‐pituitary‐gonadal axis of Siberian hamsters can respond to multiple melatonin signals each day, with the rate of testicular growth determined primarily by the duration of the melatonin‐free interval following each infusion.
Water deficits and hydraulic limits to leaf water supply
Authors: Sperry J. S. , Hacke U. G. , Oren R. , Comstock J. P. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractMany aspects of plant water use – particularly in response to soil drought – may have as their basis the alteration of hydraulic conductance from soil to canopy. The regulation of plant water potential (Ψ) by stomatal control and leaf area adjustment may be necessary to maximize water uptake on the one hand, while avoiding loss of hydraulic contact with the soil water on the other. Modelling the changes in hydraulic conductance with pressure gradients in the continuum allows the prediction of water use as a function of soil environment and plant architectural and xylem traits. Large differences in water use between species can be attributed in part to differences in their ‘hydraulic equipment’ that is presumably optimized for drawing water from a particular temporal and spatial niche in the soil environment. A number of studies have identified hydraulic limits as the cause of partial or complete foliar dieback in response to drought. The interactions between root:shoot ratio, rooting depth, xylem properties, and soil properties in influencing the limits to canopy water supply can be used to predict which combinations should optimize water use in a given circumstance. The hydraulic approach can improve our understanding of the coupling of canopy processes to soil environment, and the adaptive significance of stomatal behaviour.
Arabidopsis thaliana contains two phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase kinase genes with different expression patterns
Authors: Fontaine V. , Hartwell J. , Jenkins G. I. , Nimmo H. G. 
Published: March 2003

AbstractWe have already reported the cloning of one phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase kinase gene from Arabidopsis thaliana (Hartwell et al. 1999, Plant Journal 20, 333–342), hereafter termed PPCK1. A second putative phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase kinase gene (PPCK2) was identified in the Arabidopsis genome. The corresponding cDNA was amplified from flower tissue by reverse transcriptase (RT)‐polymerase chain reaction (PCR). This cDNA was transcribed and translated in vitro. The translation products possessed high phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase kinase activity, confirming the identity of the PPCK2 gene. The expression of both phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase kinase genes was examined by RT‐PCR. PPCK1 is mainly expressed in rosette leaves whereas PPCK2 is expressed in flowers and, at a lower level, in roots and cauline leaves. Light increased the expression of PPCK1 in rosette leaves and that of PPCK2 in flowers. The expression of both genes in an Arabidopsis cell culture was increased by treatment with cycloheximide. The data suggest that the two genes may have different roles in tissue‐specific regulation of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase.
Differential post‐fledging survival of great and coal tits in relation to their condition and fledging date
Authors: Naef‐Daenzer Beat , Widmer Fritz , Nuber Maria 
Published: March 2003

Summary

We present a multivariate model of the post‐fledging survival of juvenile great and coal tits (Parus major L., P. ater L.) in relation to chick body condition and timing of breeding. Radio‐telemetry and colour marks were used to track tit families during 20 days from fledging, that is, the period of post‐fledging dependence. Data on 342 chicks of 68 broods were obtained.
Forty‐seven per cent of juveniles died during the observation period, predation being the main cause of mortality. In the first 4 days after fledging the mortality rate was 5–10% per day.
Survival of juveniles was positively correlated with fledging mass. Furthermore, survival strongly decreased during the season. In the second half of June, mortality was five times the rate of mid‐May. The differential survival resulted in selection for both early fledging and high fledging mass. Juvenile condition was less important for survival in birds that had fledged early in the season. Their survival rates exceeded 70% in all weight classes, whereas in late broods only the heaviest individuals survived equally well. The survival of birds fledging both late and in poor condition was below 20%. Thus, selection for high fledging mass was much stronger in the late season than in early broods.
We conclude that the impact of predation after leaving the nest results in selection for early breeding and, particularly in the late season, for high fledging mass. This may explain why the earliest broods have been found to produce most recruits into the breeding population even if they did not profit from maximum food availability during the nestling period. On the other hand, energetic limitations may constrain the begin of egg laying in adult birds. Thus, counteracting evolutionary responses to the seasonal development of food availability (the caterpillar peak) and to the risk of post‐fledging mortality (the peak in post‐fledging mortality) may have focused the period of optimal reproduction to a narrow time‐window.
Monitoring a marine ecosystem using responses of upper trophic level predators
Authors: Boyd I. L. , Murray A. W. A. 
Published: March 2003

SummaryThis study examined the changing status of the marine ecosystem at the island of South Georgia (Southern Ocean) using up to 27 variables measured over 22 years from three upper trophic level predators that specialize in foraging upon krill (Eupuasia superbaDana). These variables included population size, breeding performance, offspring growth rate, foraging behaviour and diet. A method was developed for reducing these multivariate time‐series to a single vector, called a combined standardized index (CSI).Sensitivity analyses showed that missing values had a large effect upon the accuracy of the CSI but this effect was reduced if the individual variables were highly correlated. The level of correlation and proportion of missing values within the empirical data set were within the acceptable range. Individual variables had widely varying influence upon the CSI but, in general, those with longer time‐series had the greatest influence.Principal components analysis showed that variables representing offspring growth tended to explain the greatest proportion of the variability in the CSI and this was followed by variables representing diet.There were 3 years in which the CSI showed extreme and significantly low values. There was a significant non‐linear functional response (similar to the Holling Type II functional response) between the overall CSI and krill biomass and a similar relationship existed when the CSI was calculated for each species individually.Separate analysis of variables that were likely to be representative of changing population size showed the presence of a significant decline between 1977 and 1998. There was no trend in the CSI from variables representative of foraging conditions during the summer breeding season. The study has shown that the marine ecosystem at South Georgia shows acute but transient variability that is amplified in the response of upper trophic‐level predators. There is less certainty that trends in populations are a consequence of shifts in the degree to which the ecosystem can support krill‐feeding seals and penguins.