LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Effect of gender on lipid-induced insulin resistance in obese subjects.

OBJECTIVE
In obese subjects, chronically elevated plasma concentrations of non-esterified fatty acids (NEFAs) exert a marked risk to contract insulin resistance and subsequently type 2 diabetes. When NEFA is acutely increased due to i.v. infusion of lipid, glucose disposal during a hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp is reduced. This effect has been explained by a NEFA-induced decrease in skeletal muscle insulin sensitivity caused by accumulation of the lipid intermediates such as ceramide and diacylglycerol in the myocytes. However, neither the lipid-induced reduction of glucose disposal nor the intramyocellular lipid deposition has been compared directly in obese females and males.


DESIGN
We studied eight obese females and eight obese males (body mass index (BMI): 32.6+/-1.4 and 32.8+/-0.8 respectively, non significant (NS)) matched for cardiorespiratory fitness relative to lean body mass (43.7+/-1.6 and 47.6+/-1.3 ml/kg min respectively, NS).


METHODS
Each subject underwent two hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamps with infusion of lipid or saline respectively. Furthermore, the subjects exercised during the last half an hour of each clamp.


RESULTS
The lipid-induced reduction in glucose disposal during the clamp was similar in females and males (46+/-10 and 60+/-4% respectively, NS). However, whole-body insulin sensitivity as well as non-oxidative glucose disposal was higher in obese females compared with obese males both during lipid and saline infusion (P<0.001 and P=0.01 respectively). Muscle ceramide, triacylglycerol (TAG), diacylglycerol (DAG), and glycogen content were similar between sexes and remained unchanged during the clamp and when exercise was superimposed.


CONCLUSIONS
The lipid-induced inhibition of glucose disposal is similar in obese females and males. However, obese females are more insulin sensitive compared with obese males (both during saline and lipid infusion), which is not due to differences in the concentration of the muscle lipid intermediates such as ceramide and DAG.
Clinical Performance of a New Biomimetic Double Network Material

BACKGROUND
The development of ceramics during the last years was overwhelming. However, the focus was laid on the hardness and the strength of the restorative materials, resulting in high antagonistic tooth wear. This is critical for patients with bruxism.


OBJECTIVES
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical performance of the new double hybrid material for non-invasive treatment approaches.


MATERIAL AND METHODS
The new approach of the material tested, was to modify ceramics to create a biomimetic material that has similar physical properties like dentin and enamel and is still as strong as conventional ceramics.


RESULTS
The produced crowns had a thickness ranging from 0.5 to 1.5 mm. To evaluate the clinical performance and durability of the crowns, the patient was examined half a year later. The crowns were still intact and soft tissues appeared healthy and this was achieved without any loss of tooth structure.


CONCLUSIONS
The material can be milled to thin layers, but is still strong enough to prevent cracks which are stopped by the interpenetrating polymer within the network. Depending on the clinical situation, minimally- up to non-invasive restorations can be milled.


CLINICAL RELEVANCE
Dentistry aims in preservation of tooth structure. Patients suffering from loss of tooth structure (dental erosion, Amelogenesis imperfecta) or even young patients could benefit from minimally-invasive crowns. Due to a Vickers hardness between dentin and enamel, antagonistic tooth wear is very low. This might be interesting for treating patients with bruxism.
Tetanus toxoid and CCL3 improve dendritic cell vaccines in mice and glioblastoma patients

After stimulation, dendritic cells (DCs) mature and migrate to draining lymph nodes to induce immune responses. As such, autologous DCs generated ex vivo have been pulsed with tumour antigens and injected back into patients as immunotherapy. While DC vaccines have shown limited promise in the treatment of patients with advanced cancers including glioblastoma, the factors dictating DC vaccine efficacy remain poorly understood. Here we show that pre-conditioning the vaccine site with a potent recall antigen such as tetanus/diphtheria (Td) toxoid can significantly improve the lymph node homing and efficacy of tumour-antigen-specific DCs. To assess the effect of vaccine site pre-conditioning in humans, we randomized patients with glioblastoma to pre-conditioning with either mature DCs or Td unilaterally before bilateral vaccination with DCs pulsed with Cytomegalovirus phosphoprotein 65 (pp65) RNA. We and other laboratories have shown that pp65 is expressed in more than 90% of glioblastoma specimens but not in surrounding normal brain, providing an unparalleled opportunity to subvert this viral protein as a tumour-specific target. Patients given Td had enhanced DC migration bilaterally and significantly improved survival. In mice, Td pre-conditioning also enhanced bilateral DC migration and suppressed tumour growth in a manner dependent on the chemokine CCL3. Our clinical studies and corroborating investigations in mice suggest that pre-conditioning with a potent recall antigen may represent a viable strategy to improve anti-tumour immunotherapy.
Neuromythologies in education

Background: Many popular educational programmes claim to be ‘brain-based’, despite pleas from the neuroscience community that these neuromyths do not have a basis in scientific evidence about the brain. Purpose: The main aim of this paper is to examine several of the most popular neuromyths in the light of the relevant neuroscientific and educational evidence. Examples of neuromyths include: 10% brain usage, leftand right-brained thinking, VAK learning styles and multiple intelligences Sources of evidence: The basis for the argument put forward includes a literature review of relevant cognitive neuroscientific studies, often involving neuroimaging, together with several comprehensive education reviews of the brain-based approaches under scrutiny. Main argument: The main elements of the argument are as follows. We use most of our brains most of the time, not some restricted 10% brain usage. This is because our brains are densely interconnected, and we exploit this interconnectivity to enable our primitively evolved primate brains to live in our complex modern human world. Although brain imaging delineates areas of higher (and lower) activation in response to particular tasks, thinking involves coordinated interconnectivity from both sides of the brain, not separate leftand right-brained thinking. High intelligence requires higher levels of inter-hemispheric and other connected activity. The brain’s interconnectivity includes the senses, especially vision and hearing. We do not learn by one sense alone, hence VAK learning styles do not reflect how our brains actually learn, nor the individual differences we observe in classrooms. Neuroimaging studies do not support multiple intelligences; in fact, the opposite is true. Through the activity of its frontal cortices, among other areas, the human brain seems to operate with general intelligence, applied to multiple areas of endeavour. Studies of educational effectiveness of applying any of these ideas in the classroom have failed to find any educational benefits. Conclusions: The main conclusions arising from the argument are that teachers should seek independent scientific validation before adopting brain-based products in their classrooms. A more sceptical approach to educational panaceas could contribute to an enhanced professionalism of the field.
Effect of Acetazolamide on Obesity-Induced Glomerular Hyperfiltration: A Randomized Controlled Trial

AIMS
Obesity is an important risk factor for the development of chronic kidney disease. One of the major factors involved in the pathogenesis of obesity-associated kidney disease is glomerular hyperfiltration. Increasing salt-delivery to the macula densa is expected to decrease glomerular filtration rate (GFR) by activating tubuloglomerular feedback. Acetazolamide, a carbonic anhydrase inhibitor which inhibits salt reabsorption in the proximal tubule, increases distal salt delivery. Its effects on obesity-related glomerular hyperfiltration have not previously been studied. The aim of this investigation was to evaluate whether administration of acetazolamide to obese non diabetic subjects reduces glomerular hyperfiltration.


MATERIALS AND METHODS
The study was performed using a randomized double-blind crossover design. Obese non-diabetic men with glomerular hyperfiltration were randomized to receive intravenously either acetazolamide or furosemide at equipotent doses. Twelve subjects received the allocated medications. Two weeks later, the same subjects received the drug which they had not received during the first study. Inulin clearance, p-aminohippuric acid clearance and fractional lithium excretion were measured before and after medications administration. The primary end point was a decrease in GFR, measured as inulin clearance.


RESULTS
GFR decreased by 21% following acetazolamide and did not decrease following furosemide. Renal vascular resistance increased by 12% following acetazolamide, while it remained unchanged following furosemide administration. Natriuresis increased similarly following acetazolamide and furosemide administration. Sodium balance was similar in both groups.


CONCLUSIONS
Intravenous acetazolamide decreased GFR in obese non-diabetic men with glomerular hyperfiltration. Furosemide, administered at equipotent dose, did not affect GFR, suggesting that acetazolamide reduced glomerular hyperfiltration by activating tubuloglomerular feedback.


TRIAL REGISTRATION
ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01146288.
Sunscreens - which and what for?

It is well established that sun exposure is the main cause for the development of skin cancer. Chronic continuous UV radiation is believed to induce malignant melanoma, whereas intermittent high-dose UV exposure contributes to the occurrence of actinic keratosis as precursor lesions of squamous cell carcinoma as well as basal cell carcinoma. Not only photocarcinogenesis but also the mechanisms of photoaging have recently become apparent. In this respect the use of sunscreens seemed to prove to be more and more important and popular within the last decades. However, there is still inconsistency about the usefulness of sunscreens. Several studies show that inadequate use and incomplete UV spectrum efficacy may compromise protection more than previously expected. The sunscreen market is crowded by numerous products. Inorganic sunscreens such as zinc oxide and titanium oxide have a wide spectral range of activity compared to most of the organic sunscreen products. It is not uncommon for organic sunscreens to cause photocontact allergy, but their cosmetic acceptability is still superior to the one given by inorganic sunscreens. Recently, modern galenic approaches such as micronization and encapsulation allow the development of high-quality inorganic sunscreens. The potential systemic toxicity of organic sunscreens has lately primarily been discussed controversially in public, and several studies show contradictory results. Although a matter of debate, at present the sun protection factor (SPF) is the most reliable information for the consumer as a measure of sunscreen filter efficacy. In this context additional tests have been introduced for the evaluation of not only the protective effect against erythema but also protection against UV-induced immunological and mutational effects. Recently, combinations of UV filters with agents active in DNA repair have been introduced in order to improve photoprotection. This article reviews the efficacy of sunscreens in the prevention of epithelial and nonepithelial skin cancer, the effect on immunosuppression and the value of the SPF as well as new developments on the sunscreen market.
Effects of a probiotic intervention in acute canine gastroenteritis--a controlled clinical trial.

OBJECTIVES
To evaluate the effect of a probiotic product in acute self-limiting gastroenteritis in dogs.


METHODS
Thirty-six dogs suffering from acute diarrhoea or acute diarrhoea and vomiting were included in the study. The trial was performed as a randomised, double blind and single centre study with stratified parallel group design. The animals were allocated to equal looking probiotic or placebo treatment by block randomisation with a fixed block size of six. The probiotic cocktail consisted of thermo-stabilised Lactobacillus acidophilus and live strains of Pediococcus acidilactici, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus licheniformis and Lactobacillus farciminis.


RESULTS
The time from initiation of treatment to the last abnormal stools was found to be significantly shorter (P = 0.04) in the probiotic group compared to placebo group, the mean time was 1.3 days and 2.2 days, respectively. The two groups were found nearly equal with regard to time from start of treatment to the last vomiting episode.


CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE
The probiotic tested may reduce the convalescence time in acute self-limiting diarrhoea in dogs.
Towards automated performance diagnosis in a large IPTV network

IPTV is increasingly being deployed and offered as a commercial service to residential broadband customers. Compared with traditional ISP networks, an IPTV distribution network (i) typically adopts a hierarchical instead of mesh-like structure, (ii) imposes more stringent requirements on both reliability and performance, (iii) has different distribution protocols (which make heavy use of IP multicast) and traffic patterns, and (iv) faces more serious scalability challenges in managing millions of network elements. These unique characteristics impose tremendous challenges in the effective management of IPTV network and service.
 In this paper, we focus on characterizing and troubleshooting performance issues in one of the largest IPTV networks in North America. We collect a large amount of measurement data from a wide range of sources, including device usage and error logs, user activity logs, video quality alarms, and customer trouble tickets. We develop a novel diagnosis tool called Giza that is specifically tailored to the enormous scale and hierarchical structure of the IPTV network. Giza applies multi-resolution data analysis to quickly detect and localize regions in the IPTV distribution hierarchy that are experiencing serious performance problems. Giza then uses several statistical data mining techniques to troubleshoot the identified problems and diagnose their root causes. Validation against operational experiences demonstrates the effectiveness of Giza in detecting important performance issues and identifying interesting dependencies. The methodology and algorithms in Giza promise to be of great use in IPTV network operations.
Artefacts induced by coiled intracranial aneurysms on 3.0-Tesla versus 1.5-Tesla MR angiography--An in vivo and in vitro study.

OBJECTIVE
To compare metal-induced artefacts from coiled intracranial aneurysms on 3.0-Tesla and 1.5-Tesla magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), since concerns persist on artefact enlargement at 3.0Tesla.


MATERIALS AND METHODS
We scanned 19 patients (mean age 53; 16 women) with 20 saccular aneurysms treated with coils only, at 1.5 and 3.0Tesla according to standard clinical 3D TOF-MRA protocols containing a shorter echo-time but weaker read-out gradient at 3.0Tesla in addition to intra-arterial digital subtraction angiography (IA-DSA). Per modality two neuro-radiologists assessed the occlusion status, measured residual flow, and indicated whether coil artefacts disturbed this assessment on MRA. We assessed relative risks for disturbance by coil artefacts, weighted kappa's for agreement on occlusion levels, and we compared remnant sizes. For artefact measurements, a coil model was created and scanned with the same protocols followed by 2D MR scans with variation of echo-time and read-out gradient strength.


RESULTS
Coil artefacts disturbed assessments less frequently at 3.0Tesla than at 1.5Tesla (RR: 0.3; 95%CI: 0.1-0.8). On 3.0-Tesla MRA, remnants were larger than on 1.5-Tesla MRA (difference: 0.7mm; 95%CI: 0.3-1.1) and larger than on IA-DSA (difference: 1.0mm; 95%CI: 0.6-1.5) with similar agreement on occlusion levels with IA-DSA for both field strengths (κ 0.53; 95%CI: 0.23-0.84 for 1.5-Tesla MRA and IA-DSA; κ 0.47; 95%CI: 0.19-0.76 for 3.0-Tesla MRA and IA-DSA). Coil model artefacts were smaller at 3.0Tesla than at 1.5Tesla. The echo-time influenced artefact size more than the read-out gradient.


CONCLUSIONS
Artefacts were not larger, but smaller at 3.0Tesla because a shorter echo-time at 3.0Tesla negated artefact enlargement. Despite smaller artefacts and larger remnants at 3.0Tesla, occlusion levels were similar for both field strengths.
Blockchain contract: A complete consensus using blockchain

A proposal is made to use blockchain technology for recording contracts. A new protocol using the technology is described that makes it possible to confirm that contractor consent has been obtained and to archive the contractual document in the blockchain.
Rationale and Design for the LUME-Colon 1 Study: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Phase III Trial of Nintedanib Plus Best Supportive Care Versus Placebo Plus Best Supportive Care in Patients With Advanced Colorectal Cancer Refractory to Standard Treatment.

BACKGROUND
Clinical studies of antivascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) agents have demonstrated that angiogenesis is critical to colorectal cancer (CRC) tumor growth and metastasis. Nintedanib is a triple angiokinase inhibitor of VEGF, platelet-derived growth factor, and fibroblast growth factor signaling. Nintedanib, combined with docetaxel, has been approved in the European Union for the treatment of patients with non-small-cell lung cancer with adenocarcinoma tumor histologic type after first-line chemotherapy. The objective of the present study (1199.52; clinicaltrials.gov identifier NCT02149108; LUME-Colon 1) is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of nintedanib plus best supportive care (BSC) in patients with advanced colorectal cancer refractory to standard chemotherapy regimens and biologic agents.


PATIENTS AND METHODS
A total of 764 patients worldwide will be randomized 1:1 to receive either nintedanib 200 mg twice daily plus BSC or placebo plus BSC in 21-day courses until disease progression, undue toxicity, or withdrawal of informed consent. The primary endpoints are progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). The secondary endpoints are the objective tumor response and disease control. PFS and OS will be evaluated using a log-rank test to determine the effect of nintedanib independently at the 2-sided α-level of 0.05. Other assessments will include the frequency and severity of adverse events and changes in laboratory parameters to measure the safety, health-related quality of life, and pharmacogenomic analyses, focusing on exploring the predictive biomarkers and drug-resistance mechanisms. The results are expected in 2016.
Marketing segmentation using support vector clustering

Marketing segmentation is widely used for targeting a smaller market and is useful for decision makers to reach all customers effectively with one basic marketing mix. Although several clustering algorithms have been proposed to deal with marketing segmentation problems, a soundly method seems to be limited. In this paper, support vector clustering (SVC) is used for marketing segmentation. A case study of a drink company is used to demonstrate the proposed method and compared with the k-means and the self-organizing feature map (SOFM) methods. On the basis of the numerical results, we can conclude that SVC outperforms the other methods in marketing segmentation. 2005 Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Conhecimento sobre desenvolvimento infantil em mães primíparas de diferentes centros urbanos do Brasil

Primiparous mothers’ knowledge about child development of different Brazilian urban centers. Parental cognitions are important components of the sociocultural context of child development. The Brazilian literature regarding this subject is still scarce. The purpose of this research is to analyze the relationship between knowledge of infant development and different variables concerning the mother and the infant. Four hundred and five primiparous mothers with their children less than 1 year old, in six cities of different regions of Brazil, took part in the study. The Knowledge of Infant Development Inventory (KIDI) was used. Mothers’ educational level and urban center where they lived showed significant effects. This result was found for groups of all urban centers studied, with the exception of Porto Alegre. This result may reflect the different public policies concerning child and maternal care in that city. These findings contribute towards understanding important aspects of the developmental context of Brazilian children. They have implications for planning health promotion intervention programs.
Effects on Parental Mental Health of an Education and Skills Training Program for Parents of Young Children With Autism : A Randomized Controlled Trial

Objective: To determine the impact of a parent educ ation and behavior management intervention (PEBM) on the mental health and adjust ment of parents with preschool children with autism. Method: A randomized, group-c omparison design involving a parent education and counseling intervention to con trol for nonspecific therapist effects and a control sample was used. Two metropol itan and two rural regions were randomly allocated to intervention groups ( n = 70) or control ( n = 35). The parents of consecutive children with autism (21⁄2–5 years old) f rom the autism assessment services for the intervention regions were then ran domly allocated to either a 20week manual-based parent education and behavior man agement intervention ( n = 35) or a manual-based parent education and counseling i ntervention ( n = 35). The main outcome measure of parental mental health was the G eneral Health Questionnaire used preand postintervention and at 6-month follo w-up. Results: Both treatments resulted in significant and progressive improvement in overall mental health at follow-up ( F = 2, 97, p = .007) and mental health significantly improved o ver time in the 54% of principal caregivers who had the highest levels of mental health problems. The parent education and behavior management interv ention was effective in alleviating a greater percentage of anxiety, insomn ia, and somatic symptoms and family dysfunction than parent education and counse ling at 6-month follow-up. Conclusions: A 20-week parent education and skills training program for parents of young children newly diagnosed with autism provides significant improvements in parental mental health and adjustment, justifying i ts addition to early intervention programs at least for parents with mental health pr oblems. J. Am. Acad. Child Adolesc. Psychiatry, 2006;45(5):561–569.