bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Permeability characteristics of human endothelial monolayers seeded on different extracellular matrix proteins
Authors: Nooteboom Arjan , Hendriks Thijs , Ottehöller Irene , Van Der Linden Cees. J. 
Published: July 2002

Objective: To investigate whether endothelial monolayer permeability changes induced by inflammatory mediators are affected by the extracellular matrix protein used for cell seeding.Methods: Human umbilical venular endothelial cells (HUVEC) were grown to confluent monolayers on membranes coated with either collagen, fibronectin or gelatin. The permeability to albumin and dextran was then assessed, both under normal conditions and after treatment with tumor necrosis factor‐alpha (TNF‐α) and bacterial
lipopolysaccharide (LPS).Results: With any of the three protein coatings, tight junctions were formed all over the monolayers. The permeability of the coated membranes to albumin and dextran was reduced strongly by confluent monolayers; the relative reduction was similar for the three matrix proteins used. Pre‐incubation of the monolayers with either TNF‐α or LPS increased permeability dose dependently. However, the relative increase due to either treatment was independent of the protein used for membrane coating.Conclusion: The extracellular matrix protein used for initial seeding of endothelial cultures plays a minor role in determining the permeability changes induced in HUVEC monolayers by inflammatory mediators.
Analysis of local and systemic inflammatory responses induced by polymicrobial peritonitis in mice
Authors: Fröde Tânia Silvia , Ferreira Silvia Ines Alejandra Cordoba Pires , Medeiros Yara Santos 
Published: July 2002

Background: Abdominal sepsis induces a local production of proinflammatory mediators that may trigger both septic shock and organ‐system dysfunction.Aims: The present study analyzed exudation, cell migration, and CD11a and CD18 subset cells of both local and systemic responses induced by fecal peritonitis in mice.Methods: Animals were anesthetized and, after performing a midline incision in the abdomen, the cecum was ligated and punctured twice with a needle. Sham‐operated animals were included. Some groups were previously treated with Evans blue dye (intravenously) to further evaluate the amount of tissue and abdominal cavity leakages.Results: Fecal peritonitis triggered a local inflammatory reaction with an increased number of leukocytes and exudation between 6 and 48 h (p < 0.01). Although CD11a/CD18‐positive cells in the abdomen peaked after 24 h, a significant decrease of them was detected after 48 h (p < 0.05). At the studied period of time (6‐48 h), different degrees of exudation in several organs occurred, whereas a significant late recruitment (24 h) of CD11a/CD18 cells into the lungs was observed.Conclusions: In this model, cell migration and exudation at the site of injury occurred in parallel. However, in the lungs, the recruitment of leukocytes that express CD11a/CD18 adhesion molecules constitutes a non‐dependent event in relation to fluid leakage accumulation at this site.
T cells expressing the γδ receptor are essential for Th2‐mediated inflammation in patients with acute exacerbation of asthma
Authors: Hamzaoui Agnès , Kahan Alice , Ayed Khaled , Hamzaoui Kamel 
Published: July 2002

Objective: T lymphocytes have a central regulatory role in the pathogenesis of asthma. The objective of this study was to characterize immunologically the activation stage of asthma and the functional profile of lymphocytes from induced sputum, with particular emphasis on γδ T cells.Methods: Induced sputum was collected from 10 patients with acute exacerbation of asthma, and from healthy controls. The expression of activation markers on freshly isolated induced sputum lymphocytes and T‐cell subsets was analyzed by double immunofluorescent staining and flow cytometry. Fas ligand (FasL) was determined by reverse transcriptase‐polymerase chain reaction analysis. The phenotype of γδ T‐cell subpopulations was tested by A13 and BB3 monoclonal antibodies. In this context, the functional profile of γδ T cells was tested in a chromium releasing test.Results: A significantly decreased proportion of αβ T cells and an increased proportion of γδ T cells,
CD56+ cells and CD8+ γδ T cells were found in asthma patients compared with healthy controls. In asthmatic patients, there is a significantly increased proportion of T cells expressing CD69 and CD25 antigen. After stimulation of γδ T cells, an increased expression of intracellular tumour necrosis factor‐α, interleukin (IL)‐4 and IL10 cytokines were found at higher levels than controls. Interferon‐γ was observed at similar levels in asthma patients and healthy controls. Freshly isolated T‐cell receptor
(TCR) γδ+ cells exhibited an increased percentage of FasL in our patient group. FasL mRNA was detected in (TCR) γδ+ cells before and after IL2 stimulation. (TCR) γδ+ cells were cytotoxic against the K562 cell line. This natural killer activity was mediated by the A13‐positive subpopulation.Conclusion: The presence of cytokines producing γδ cells in induced sputum of asthmatic patients is consistent with regulatory activities. These cells display also cytotoxic function.
Drug therapy: dose‐response relationship of oral mesalazine in inflammatory bowel disease
Authors: Mulder C. J. J. , Van Den Hazel S. J. 
Published: July 2002

Mesalazine is widely used in the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease. Little is known about the doseresponse relationship and about possible dose related side effects. In ulcerative colitis higher dosages of mesalazine (3 g) are more effective in maintaining a remission than lower dosages (1.5 g). In mild to moderately active ulcerative colitis, studies also indicate that higher dosages might be more effective in inducing remission. Dose‐comparing studies in Crohn′s disease are even more sparse, but the available results indicate higher efficacy at higher dose levels.None of the known side effects of mesalazine are clearly dose‐related. A pH‐dependent release system, however, can cause a sudden release of high doses of mesalazine. Consequent peak levels in serum have been implicated in mesalazine induced nephrotoxicity. In conclusion, despite the current practice of using increasing dosages of mesalazine in inflammatory bowel disease, both efficacy and safety have been established tentatively.
The ‘Anglo-American’ model, privatization and the transformation of private capitalism in Italy
Authors: McCann Dermot 
Published: July 2002

SummaryItalian capitalism has long been distinguished by the large size of the public enterprise sector and the power of large family firms, underpinned by powerful networks of inter-firm alliance orchestrated by the merchant bank, Mediobanca. This article seeks to analyse the extent to which the current programme of privatization is serving not only to shrink the size of, but to transform the structure of, power in the private sector. While some reformers have seen in privatization an instrument to encourage the adoption of Anglo-Saxon forms of corporate governance in Italy, it is argued here that the evidence of recent changes indicates the emergence of a more differentiated pattern of corporate governance rather than the triumph of any single model.
A Phase I/II Study of a 72‐h Continuous Infusion of Etoposide in Advanced Soft Tissue Sarcoma
Authors: Crawley Charles R. , Judson Ian R. , Verrill Mark , Hill Catherine , Raynaud Florence I. 
Published: July 2002

Purpose. The study was performed to assess the antitumour activity and toxicity of a 72‐h continuous infusion of
single‐agent etoposide as second‐line treatment for patients with locally advanced or metastatic soft tissue sarcoma (STS),
following reports of substantial activity using this schedule of etoposide administration as first‐line treatment in
combination with ifosfamide.Patients/method. This was an open phase I/II trial performed at a single institution in patients with metastatic or locally
advanced STS who had failed first‐line treatment with doxorubicin + ifosfamide combination chemotherapy or, less
commonly, single‐agent treatment with doxorubicin or ifosfamide. Etoposide was given as a continuous intravenous
infusion over 72 h. The starting dose level was
200 mgm−2
day−1 × 3 escalating in 10% steps in cohorts of three patients
until dose‐limiting toxicity was encountered.Results. Seventeen patients were treated, median age 47 years (range 26–71 years). No responses were seen in 16
assessable patients despite etoposide levels in the cotoxic range. The steady‐state plasma concentration exceeded
8 μg ml−1 in all patients and in patients treated at ≥ 600 mg m−2 the mean steady‐state level was 14.4 μg ml−1. The
median event‐free survival was 6 weeks (95% confidence interval (CI) 3.31–8.69) and the overall survival 16 weeks (95%
CI 9.28–22.72). The maximum tolerated dose in this pretreated patient group was 200 mg m−2
day−1 × 3. The dose‐limiting toxicity was myelosuppression.Discussion. Etoposide given by 72‐h infusion is inactive as second‐line chemotherapy in STS.
It is associated with significant toxicity when given in these doses, in this patient group.
Accumulation of Muscle Ankyrin Repeat Protein Transcript Reveals Local Activation of Primary Myotube Endcompartments during Muscle Morphogenesis
Authors: Baumeister Anja , Arber Silvia , Caroni Pico 
Published: July 2002

The characteristic shapes and positions of each individual body muscle are established during the process of muscle morphogenesis in response to patterning information from the surrounding mesenchyme. Throughout muscle morphogenesis, primary myotubes are arranged in small parallel bundles, each myotube spanning the forming muscles from end to end. This unique arrangement potentially assigns a crucial role to primary myotube end regions for muscle morphogenesis.
We have cloned muscle ankyrin repeat protein (MARP) as a gene induced in adult rat skeletal muscle by denervation. MARP is the rodent homologue of human C-193 (Chu, W., D.K. Burns, R.A. Swerick, and D.H. Presky. 1995. J. Biol. Chem. 270:10236–10245) and is identical to rat cardiac ankyrin repeat protein. (Zou, Y., S. Evans, J. Chen, H.-C. Kuo, R.P. Harvey, and K.R. Chien. 1997. Development. 124:793–804). In denervated muscle fibers, MARP transcript accumulated in a unique perisynaptic pattern. MARP was also expressed in large blood vessels and in cardiac muscle, where it was further induced by cardiac hypertrophy. During embryonic development, MARP was expressed in forming skeletal muscle. In situ hybridization analysis in mouse embryos revealed that MARP transcript exclusively accumulates at the end regions of primary myotubes during muscle morphogenesis. This closely coincided with the expression of thrombospondin-4 in adjacent prospective tendon mesenchyme, suggesting that these two compartments may constitute a functional unit involved in muscle morphogenesis. Transfection experiments established that MARP protein accumulates in the nucleus and that the levels of both MARP mRNA and protein are controlled by rapid degradation mechanisms characteristic of regulatory early response genes. The results establish the existence of novel regulatory muscle fiber subcompartments associated with muscle morphogenesis and denervation and suggest that MARP may be a crucial nuclear cofactor in local signaling pathways from prospective tendon mesenchyme to forming muscle and from activated muscle interstitial cells to denervated muscle fibers.
Functional Characteristics of ES Cell–derived Cardiac Precursor Cells Identified by Tissue-specific Expression of the Green Fluorescent Protein
Authors: Kolossov E. , Fleischmann B.K. , Liu Q. , Bloch W. , Viatchenko-Karpinski S. , Manzke O. , Ji G.J. , Bohlen H. , Addicks K. , Hescheler J. 
Published: July 2002

In contrast to terminally differentiated cardiomyocytes, relatively little is known about the characteristics of mammalian cardiac cells before the initiation of spontaneous contractions (precursor cells). Functional studies on these cells have so far been impossible because murine embryos of the corresponding stage are very small, and cardiac precursor cells cannot be identified because of the lack of cross striation and spontaneous contractions.
In the present study, we have used the murine embryonic stem (ES, D3 cell line) cell system for the in vitro differentiation of cardiomyocytes. To identify the cardiac precursor cells, we have generated stably transfected ES cells with a vector containing the gene of the green fluorescent protein (GFP) under control of the cardiac α-actin promoter. First, fluorescent areas in ES cell–derived cell aggregates (embryoid bodies [EBs]) were detected 2 d before the initiation of contractions. Since Ca2+ homeostasis plays a key role in cardiac function, we investigated how Ca2+ channels and Ca2+ release sites were built up in these GFP-labeled cardiac precursor cells and early stage cardiomyocytes. Patch clamp and Ca2+ imaging experiments proved the functional expression of the L-type Ca2+ current (ICa) starting from day 7 of EB development. On day 7, using 10 mM Ca2+ as charge carrier, ICa was expressed at very low densities 4 pA/pF. The biophysical and pharmacological properties of ICa proved similar to terminally differentiated cardiomyocytes. In cardiac precursor cells, ICa was found to be already under control of cAMP-dependent phosphorylation since intracellular infusion of the catalytic subunit of protein kinase A resulted in a 1.7-fold stimulation. The adenylyl cyclase activator forskolin was without effect. IP3-sensitive intracellular Ca2+ stores and Ca2+-ATPases are present during all stages of differentiation in both GFP-positive and GFP-negative cells. Functional ryanodine-sensitive Ca2+ stores, detected by caffeine-induced Ca2+ release, appeared in most GFP-positive cells 1–2 d after ICa. Coexpression of both ICa and ryanodine-sensitive Ca2+ stores at day 10 of development coincided with the beginning of spontaneous contractions in most EBs.
Thus, the functional expression of voltage-dependent L-type Ca2+ channel (VDCC) is a hallmark of early cardiomyogenesis, whereas IP3 receptors and sarcoplasmic Ca2+-ATPases are expressed before the initiation of cardiomyogenesis. Interestingly, the functional expression of ryanodine receptors/sensitive stores is delayed as compared with VDCC.
Nonlinear Cauchy-Riemann operators in ℝⁿ
Authors: Iwaniec Tadeusz 
Published: July 2002

This paper has arisen from an effort to provide a comprehensive and unifying development of theLpL^{p}-theory of quasiconformal mappings inRn\mathbb {R}^{n}. The governing equations for these mappings form nonlinear differential systems of the first order, analogous in many respects to the Cauchy-Riemann equations in the complex plane. This approach demands that one must work out certain variational integrals involving the Jacobian determinant. Guided by such integrals, we introduce two nonlinear differential operators, denoted byD−\mathcal {D}^{-}andD+\mathcal {D}^{+}, which act on weakly differentiable deformationsf:Ω→Rnf:\Omega \to \mathbb {R}^{n}of a domainΩ⊂Rn\Omega \subset \mathbb {R}^{n}.

Solutions to the so-called Cauchy-Riemann equationsD−f=0\mathcal {D}^{-}f=0andD+f=0\mathcal {D}^{+}f=0are simply conformal deformations preserving and reversing orientation, respectively. These operators, though genuinely nonlinear, possess the important feature of being rank-one convex. Among the many desirable properties, we give the fundamentalLpL^{p}-estimate‖D+f‖p≤Ap(n)‖D−f‖p.\begin{equation*}\|\mathcal {D}^{+}f\|_{p} \le A_{p}(n)\|\mathcal {D}^{-}f\|_{p}. \end{equation*}

In quest of the best constantAp(n)A_{p}(n), we are faced with fascinating problems regarding quasiconvexity of some related variational functionals. Applications to quasiconformal mappings are indicated.
Isoperimetric Estimates on Sierpinski Gasket Type Fractals
Authors: Strichartz Robert 
Published: July 2002

For a compact Hausdorff space

F
F

that is pathwise connected, we can define the connectivity dimension

β
\beta

to be the infimum of all

b
b

such that all points in

F
F

can be connected by a path of Hausdorff dimension at most

b
b

. We show how to compute the connectivity dimension for a class of self–similar sets in

R

n

\mathbb {R}^{n}

that we call point connected , meaning roughly that

F
F

is generated by an iterated function system acting on a polytope

P
P

such that the images of

P
P

intersect at single vertices. This class includes the polygaskets, which are obtained from a regular

n
n

–gon in the plane by contracting equally to all

n
n

vertices, provided

n
n

is not divisible by 4. (The Sierpinski gasket corresponds to

n
=
3

n = 3

.) We also provide a separate computation for the octogasket (

n
=
8

n = 8

), which is not point connected. We also show, in these examples, that

inf

H

β

(

γ

x
,
y

)

1

/

β

\inf \mathcal {H}_{\beta }(\gamma _{x,y})^{1/\beta }

, where the infimum is taken over all paths

γ

x
,
y

\gamma _{x,y}

connecting

x
x

and

y
y

, and

H

β

\mathcal {H}_{\beta }

denotes Hausdorff measure, is equivalent to the original metric on

F
F

. Given a compact subset

F
F

of the plane of Hausdorff dimension

α
\alpha

and connectivity dimension

β
\beta

, we can define the isoperimetric profile function

h
(
L
)

h(L)

to be the supremum of

H

α

(
F
∩
D
)

\mathcal {H}_{\alpha }(F \cap D)

, where

D
D

is a region in the plane bounded by a Jordan curve (or union of Jordan curves)

γ
\gamma

entirely contained in

F
F

, with

H

β

(
γ
)
≤
L

\mathcal {H}_{\beta }(\gamma ) \le L

. The analog of the standard isperimetric estimate is

h
(
L
)
≤
c

L

α

/

β

h(L) \le cL^{\alpha /\beta }

. We are particularly interested in finding the best constant

c
c

and identifying the extremal domains where we have equality. We solve this problem for polygaskets with

n
=
3
,
5
,
6
,
8

n = 3,5,6,8

. In addition, for

n
=
5
,
6
,
8

n = 5,6,8

we find an entirely different estimate for

h
(
L
)

h(L)

as

L
→
∞

L \rightarrow \infty

, since the boundary of

F
F

has infinite

H

β

\mathcal {H}_{\beta }

measure. We find that the isoperimetric profile function is discontinuous, and that the extremal domains have relatively simple polygonal boundaries. We discuss briefly the properties of minimal paths for the Sierpinski gasket, and the isodiametric problem in the intrinsic metric.
Assessing protein coding region integrity in cDNA sequencing projects.
Authors: Salamov A A , Nishikawa T , Swindells M B 
Published: July 2002

Abstract
MOTIVATION: In cDNA sequencing projects, it is vital to know whether the protein coding region of a sequence is complete, or whether errors have occurred during library construction. Here we present a linear discriminant approach that predicts this completeness by estimating the probability of each ATG being the initiation codon. RESULTS: Because of the current shortage of full-length cDNA data on which to base this work, tests were performed on a non-redundant set of 660 initiation codon-containing DNA sequences that had been conceptually spliced into mRNA/cDNA. We also used an edited set of the same sequences that only contained the region following the initiation codon as a negative control. Using the criterion that only a single prediction is allowed for each sequence, a cut-off was selected at which discrimination of both positive and negative sets was equal. At this cut-off, 67% of each set could be correctly distinguished, with the correct ATG codon also being identified in the positive set. Reliability could be increased further by raising the cut-off or including homologues, the relative merits of which are discussed. AVAILABILITY: The prediction program, called ATGpr, and other data are available at http://www.hri.co.jp/atgpr CONTACT: swintech@hri.co.jp
A bioinformatics tool to select sequences for microarray
studies of mouse models of oncogenesis
Authors: Edgerton Mary E. , Taylor Ronald , Powell John I. , Hunter Lawrence , Simon Richard , Liu Edison T. 
Published: July 2002

Abstract
One of the challenges to the effective utilization of cDNA microarray analysis in mouse models of oncogenesis is the choice of a critical set of probes that are informative for human disease. Given the thousands of genes with a potential role in human oncogenesis and the hundreds of thousands of mouse sequences available for use as probes, selection of an informative set of mouse probes can be an overwhelming task. We have developed a web based sequence mining tool using DataBase Independent (DBI) Perl to annotate publicly available sequences. The Mouse Oncochip Design Tool uses the Mouse Genome Database (MGD) developed and maintained by the Jackson Laboratories for mouse DNA sequences. There are over 380 000 sequences in their database. The output list has been ordered to present the genes more likely to be informative in a mouse model of human cancer using a candidate set of oncogenes to order the list. Mouse sequences that represent genes that are homologous with a member of a human oncogene set are listed first. In addition it provides a set of links for information on clone source gene function.
Contact: http://nciarray.nci.nih.gov/cgi-bin/me/mouse_design.cgi
* To whom correspondence should be addressed.
5 Current address: Department of Pathology and Biomedical Informatics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, MCN C-3321, Nashville TN 37232, USA.
6 Current address: Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, 4200 E Ninth Avenue, Denver CO 80262, USA.
7 Current address: Genome Institute of Singapore, 1 Research Link, IMA Building #04-01, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117604.