Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Sarcoidosis Induced by Interferon-α in Melanoma Patients: Incidence, Clinical Manifestations, and Management Strategies

Treatment with interferon-α has been recommended for patients with melanoma in case of micrometastases, or high risk melanoma, for example, ulcerated melanoma. Furthermore, regular dermatologic examination and regular imaging to detect recurrence or progression of disease is part of the management of melanoma patients. Sarcoidosis has been described as an adverse effect of treatment with interferon-α. Especially in hepatitis C patients, there is a series of case reports on sarcoidosis induced by interferon treatment whereas in melanoma this has rarely been reported. In a retrospective study, all melanoma patients treated with interferon-α at our hospital between 2007 and 2009 were screened for occurrence of sarcoidosis. Three of 16 melanoma patients treated with interferon-α (19%) presented with sarcoidosis. All 3 patients showed lesions with higher uptake in the positron emission tomography-computed tomography scan leading to the differential diagnosis of melanoma metastases or inflammation. Skin lesions were present in 1 patient. Diagnosis was confirmed by histologic assessment of lesions showing epithelioid granuloma-negative on Ziehl Neelson. Additional work-up included blood and urinalysis, electrocardiography, and ophthalmologic examination. Cessation of interferon-α led to regression of granulomas. Sarcoidosis induced by interferon-α in melanoma patients could be more common than previously thought. This is an important complication to be aware of as it can be mistaken for metastatic spread of melanoma and thus lead to incorrect therapy.
Nominal rigidities in wage setting by rational trade-unions

Many rational wage setting schemes, such as the trade unions paradigm, are usually thought to lead to pure real rigidities. In this article, the author constructs a model where a rational trade union without any kind of money illusion sets wage schedules in an economy subject to real and monetary shocks. He makes the realistic assumption that wages can be conditioned on prices. It is found that, although the trade union has the option of fully insulating workers from nominal disturbances, it will rationally choose not to do so and, therefore, nominal rigidities will be present in the economy. Copyright 1995 by Royal Economic Society.
In vivo and in vitro induction of the apoptotic effects of oxysophoridine on colorectal cancer cells via the Bcl-2/Bax/caspase-3 signaling pathway

Oxysophoridine (OSR) is a major active alkaloid extracted from Sophoraalopecuroides L. The aim of the present study was to investigate the induction of the apoptotic effects of OSR on colorectal cancer cells in vivo and in vitro. The results of the MTT and colony formation assays demonstrated that the proliferation of HCT116 cells was inhibited by OSR in vitro. The characteristics of cellular apoptosis in OSR-treated HCT116 cells were analyzed by Hoechst 33258 staining. It was also observed that the expression of caspase-3, B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) associated X protein (Bax) and cytochrome c increased significantly upon OSR treatment. However, the expression of Bcl-2 and poly ADP-ribose polymerase-1 (PARP-1) was downregulated in OSR-treated cells compared with untreated cells. The in vivo experiments identified that OSR significantly inhibited the growth of the transplanted mouse CT26 tumor tissue, upregulated the expression of caspase-3, Bax and cytochrome c and downregulated the expression of Bcl-2 and PARP-1, as detected by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction and western blotting. It may be concluded that OSR significantly induced apoptotic effects on colorectal cancer cells in vivo and in vitro, and that its mechanism may be associated with the Bcl-2/Bax/caspase-3 signaling pathway.
Calderón Multiplicative Preconditioned EFIE With Perturbation Method

In this paper, we address the low-frequency breakdown and inaccuracy problems in the Calderón multiplicative preconditioned electric field integral equation (CMP-EFIE) operator, and propose the perturbation method as a remedy for three-dimensional perfect electric conductor (PEC) scatterers. The electric currents at different frequency orders as a power series can be obtained accurately in a recursive manner by solving the same matrix system with updated right hand side vectors. This method does not either require a search for the loops in the loop-tree/-star based method or include charge as additional unknown in the augmented EFIE method. Numerical examples show the far-field pattern can be accurately computed at extremely low frequencies by the proposed perturbation method.
Exposure to Violence and Neighborhood Affiliation Among Inner-City Youth

Examined the prediction of exposure to violence by neighborhood affiliation in a sample of 167 inner-city adolescents (107 girls, 60 boys) age 14 to 19 years. Measures of exposure to violence, emotional and behavioral problems, and demographic information as well as a new neighborhood affiliation measure developed specifically for adolescents were administered. Adolescents reported fairly high rates of exposure to violence, supporting other recent research. Boys reported experiencing and witnessing significantly more violence than girls. In multiple regression analyses, higher neighborhood affiliation predicted greater exposure to violence at a trend level (p = .06), even when age, sex, length of residence in one's neighborhood, and concurrent emotional and behavioral problems were controlled. These findings suggest that greater affiliation or attachment to one's neighborhood may be an important risk factor for inner-city youth that should be investigated in larger samples.
Wide-field cone bipolar cells and the blue-ON pathway to color-coded ganglion cells in rabbit retina

Wide-field cone bipolar cells with sparse dendritic branching and proposed connectivity to blue cones were first identified in rabbit and cat. In rabbit, these were subdivided into type a (wa) and type b (wb), with axonal branching in sublamina a, and sublamina b, respectively, of the inner plexiform layer (IPL). Recent studies in rabbit support the earlier hypothesis of exclusive blue/short wavelength cone connectivity for both types. The homologues of wb cells (but not wa cells) have been identified in other mammals. The axonal branching of wa cone bipolar cells is shown to co-stratify with the dendrites of the “fiducial,” type a starburst amacrine cell, although a few branches extend into sublamina b. The axon terminal of wb cone bipolar cells is shown to be narrowly stratified in stratum 5α, deep to the dendrites of the type b starburst amacrine cell. Rabbit ganglion cells postsynaptic to wa cells are unknown, but may include class III.2a cells, similarly stratified in the IPL. The wb axon terminal is shown here to co-stratify with and to make close, likely synaptic, contacts with the dendrites of a recently described morphological subtype of class II ganglion cell in rabbit retina, IIb2. Recent morpho-physiological correlation indicates that class IIb2 cells correspond to the blue-ON-center-X or ON-brisk-sustained ganglion cells, defined physiologically in rabbit. In contrast, the wb cell in cat retina must innervate the physiologically identified blue-ON-center-sluggish-sustained ganglion cell. In monkey retina, the wb-like bipolar cells apparently innervate a small, partly bi-stratified ganglion cell. Mammals share a common pathway from short-wavelength-sensitive (S/blue) cone photoreceptors to ON-center ganglion cells in sublamina b of the IPL, in the form of wb or wb-like cone bipolar cells, but the type of ganglion cell innervated appears to be particular, and may serve different functional roles in different mammalian orders.
Effect of a protease inhibitor on in vitro stability of intact parathyroid hormone

Background: We investigated whether increased protease activity explains the increased in vitro degradation of intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH) observed in serum when compared to EDTA plasma. Methods: Pre-dialysis blood samples for iPTH were taken from 11 patients with chronic renal failure and collected into plain glass tubes, tubes containing 200 KIU/mL aprotinin (a protease inhibitor) and EDTA tubes. All sample aliquots were separated at 20 min, 1 h, 2 h, 4 h, 8 h and 24 h post collection. Results: Over 24 h, iPTH concentrations remained unchanged in EDTA tubes. iPTH concentrations were significantly lower in both plain tubes (P < 0·01) and aprotinin tubes (P < 0·001) at 24 h when compared to the baseline sample (20 min). At 24 h, iPTH concentrations in EDTA tubes were higher than in plain tubes (P < 0·001) and aprotinin tubes (P < 0·01). The addition of aprotinin to plain tubes significantly reduced the degradation of iPTH (P < 0·05) at 24 h. Conclusion: Aprotinin significantly reduces the in vitro degradation of iPTH in plain tubes at 24 h from 24·7% to 9·6%. We suggest that increased protease activity contributes to the decline in serum iPTH over time. As this is observed in serum and not plasma it suggests that the increased protease activity may be due to the clotting process.
Parallel branch and bound for global optimization with combination of Lipschitz bounds

The solution of multidimensional Lipschitz optimization problem requires a lot of computing time and memory resources. Parallel OpenMP and MPI versions of branch and bound algorithm with simplicial partitions and Lipschitz bounds were created, investigated and compared in this paper. The efficiency of the developed parallel algorithms is investigated by solving multidimensional test problems for global optimization.
Hydrostatic Comparison of Nonpenetrating Titanium Clips Versus Conventional Suture for Repair of Spinal Durotomies

Study Design. Biomechanics. Objective. To compare the hydrostatic strength of suture and nonpenetrating titanium clip repairs of standard spinal durotomies. Summary of Background Data. Dural tears are a frequent complication of spine surgery and can be associated with significant morbidity. Primary repair of durotomies with suture typically is attempted, but a true watertight closure can be difficult to obtain because of leakage through suture tracts. Nonpenetrating titanium clips have been developed for vascular anastomoses and provide a close apposition of the tissues without the creation of a suture tract. Methods. Twenty-four calf spines were prepared with laminectomies and the spinal cord was evacuated leaving an intact dura. After Foley catheters were inserted from each end and inflated adjacent to a planned dural defect, the basal flow rate was measured and a 1-cm longitudinal durotomy was made with a scalpel. Eight repairs were performed for each material, which included monofilament suture, braided suture, and nonpenetrating titanium clips. The flow rate at 30, 60, and 90 cm of water and the time needed for each closure were measured. Results. There was no statistically significant difference in the baseline leak rate for all 3 groups. There was no difference in the leakage rate of durotomies repaired with clips and intact specimens at any pressure. Monofilament and braided suture repairs allowed significantly more leakage than both intact and clip-repaired specimens at all pressures. The difference in leak rate increased as the pressure increased. Closing the durotomy with clips took less than half the time of closure with suture. Conclusion. Nonpenetrating titanium clips provide a durotomy closure with immediate hydrostatic strength similar to intact dura whereas suture repair with either suture was significantly less robust. The use of titanium clips was more rapid than that of suture repair.
Assessment of rain flag for the seawinds wind data product using AMSR precipitation data

The ADvanced Earth Observing Satellite-II (ADEOSII) carried two microwave sensors, AMSR (Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer) and SeaWinds. SeaWinds is a microwave scatterometer, which can measure near-surface wind vectors over the global oceans. In order to indicate data contaminated by rain, the standard SeaWinds wind data products contain a rain flag, which is derived using the Multidimensional Histogram (MUDH) Rain-Flagging Technique. In the present study, performance of the MUDH technique is assessed using precipitation data observed by AMSR. Collocated data set was produced by using global wind measurements by SeaWinds and precipitation measurements by AMSR on the same orbit for a period of 6 months from April to October 2003. Over 26 million collocated data points were obtained. Rate of flagged data was examined as a function of the rain rate, crosstrack cell location, and wind speed. Correction for atmospheric attenuation for the SeaWinds wind observations is also assessed using SeaWinds-AMSR-buoy collocated data.
Predictors of Adherence to Antiretroviral Medications in Children and Adolescents With HIV Infection

BACKGROUND. Most evaluations of adherence to antiretroviral therapy in children with HIV infection have focused on validation of adherence measures via their association with virological outcomes. However, few studies have fully explored associations with other factors to guide development of adherence interventions. METHODS. In this study, we examined the relationship of self-reported medication adherence to health, demographic, and psychosocial characteristics of children and their caregivers, using data from an ongoing multicenter prospective observational study of long-term outcomes of HIV infection conducted by the Pediatric AIDS Clinical Trials Group. Child and caregiver characteristics were evaluated for association with adherence via univariate and multiple logistic regression models. RESULTS. Of the 2088 children and adolescents, 84% reported complete adherence to antiretroviral therapy medications over the past 3 days. The median viral load was ∼10 times higher among nonadherent than adherent children, and the strength of this association increased with age. Factors associated with at least marginally significant increases in nonadherence in a multiple logistic regression model included increasing age in years, female gender, detectable HIV viral load, occurrence of recent stressful life events, repeating a grade in school, self-assessment of adherence by the subject, and diagnosis of depression or anxiety. Having an adult other than the biological parent as the primary caregiver, using a buddy system to remember to take antiretroviral therapy medications, higher caregiver education level, previous adherence assessments, and taking antipsychotic medications were each associated with improved adherence. After controlling for these characteristics, there was no significant association of adherence with race, knowledge of HIV status, medication burden, CD4 percentage, or current antiretroviral therapy. CONCLUSIONS. Rates of self-reported adherence were relatively high and were influenced by multiple child and family characteristics. These findings identify targets for adherence interventions and highlight the importance of evaluating and supporting the family environment to optimize adherence.
Comparative analysis of informative support in lactation in lying-in women hospitalized in rooming-in system.

PURPOSE The aim of the study was to assess the expected and received informative support in lactation in hospitalized lying-in women. Such variables as the number of deliveries and participation in antenatal classes were taken into consideration. MATERIAL AND METHODS The research was conducted from May to September 2005, and involved 202 lying-in women staying in maternity wards in Chair and Clinic of Obstetrics and Perinatology, Pomeranian Medical University (PAM) in Szczecin, and Obstetrics and Gyneacology Unit in Independent Public Specialistic Health Care Centre Zdroje Szczecin. The diagnostic survey was carried out; it was based on the questionnaire of author's design. RESULTS The obtained results suggest that primiparas significantly more frequently than multiparas show demand for all elements of informative support in lactation (p < 0.001), while women who did not attend antenatal classes considerably more often need information on the half of elements of informative support connected with lactation. Informative support that lying-in women receive does not satisfy the demand for it. CONCLUSIONS 1. Professional support provided by midwives/nurses should be particularly directed on primiparas and women who did not attend antenatal classes. 2. Participation of future parents in antenatal classes causes them to be better prepared to breastfeeding, and be less needing the mentioned information while their stay in a mother-baby ward. 3. It is necessary that midwives/nurses constantly perfect their professional skills in order to improve the quality of obstetrical care.
Coexpression of Angiogenic Factors in Brain Arteriovenous Malformations

OBJECTIVE:Brain arteriovenous malformations (BAVMs) are structurally unstable blood vessels that display an angiogenic phenotype, possibly maintained by concerted effects of key angiogenic factors. Therefore, we hypothesized that there are close correlations among key angiogenic factors in BAVMs and that levels of key angiogenic factors are associated with BAVM clinical characteristics that are linked with vascular instability. METHODS:We measured the expression of angiopoietin-2 (Ang-2), matrix metalloproteinase-9, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and platelet-derived growth factor-AA and -BB by use of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in 27 BAVM surgical specimens. Tissues were also collected from 14 structurally normal brain specimens obtained during epilepsy surgery. RESULTS:Ang-2, VEGF, and matrix metalloproteinase-9 were highly expressed in BAVM samples (11.9 ± 15.5 ng/mg protein, 137 ± 102 pg/mg protein, and 379 ± 455 pg/mg protein, respectively). Platelet-derived growth factor-BB was detectable in 7 of 21 BAVM samples. There were close correlations between Ang-2 and VEGF (R2 = 0.79). Higher Ang-2 and VEGF levels seemed to be associated with draining vein characteristics linked with BAVM hemorrhage but not with feeding artery pressure or BAVM size. In the structurally normal brain specimens, levels of Ang-2, VEGF, and matrix metalloproteinase-9 were low (0.8 ± 2.3 ng/mg protein, 38 ± 25 pg/mg protein, and 52 ± 43 pg/mg protein, respectively). CONCLUSION:There were close correlations among angiogenic factors in BAVMs. Concerted effects of angiogenic factors may maintain the angiogenic phenotype in BAVMs and thereby determine the clinical course of BAVMs.
Acquisition of cytogenetic abnormalities in patients with IPSS defined lower‐risk myelodysplastic syndrome is associated with poor prognosis and transformation to acute myelogenous leukemia

We hypothesized that the dynamic acquisition of cytogenetic abnormalities (ACA) during the follow up of myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) could be associated with poor prognosis. We conducted a retrospective analysis of 365 patients with IPSS low or intermediate‐1 risk MDS who had at least two consecutive cytogenetic analyses during the follow up. Acquisition of cytogenetic abnormalities was detected in 107 patients (29%). The most frequent alteration involved chromosome 7 in 21% of ACA cases. Median transformation‐free and overall survival for patients with and without ACA were 13 vs. 52 months (P = 0.01) and 17 vs. 62 months (P = 0.01), respectively. By fitting ACA as a time‐dependent covariate, multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that patients with ACA had increased risk of transformation (HR = 1.40; P = 0.03) or death (HR = 1.45; P = 0.02). Notably, female patients with therapy‐related MDS (t‐MDS) had an increased risk of developing ACA (OR = 5.26; P < 0.0001), although subgroup analysis showed that prognostic impact of ACA was not evident in t‐MDS. In conclusion, ACA occurs in close to one third of patients with IPSS defined lower risk MDS, more common among patients with t‐MDS, but has a significant prognostic impact on de novo MDS. Am. J. Hematol. 88:831–837, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Control group selection in critical care randomized controlled trials evaluating interventional strategies: An ethical assessment*

BackgroundEthical concern has been raised with critical care randomized controlled trials in which the standard of care reflects a broad range of clinical practices. Commentators have argued that trials without an unrestricted control group, in which standard practices are implemented at the discretion of the attending physician, lack the ability to redefine the standard of care and might expose subjects to excessive harms due to an inability to stop early. ObjectiveTo develop a framework for analyzing control group selection for critical care trials. MethodEthical analysis. ResultsA key ethical variable in trial design is the extent with which the control group adequately reflects standard care practices. Such a control group might incorporate either the “unrestricted” practices of physicians or a protocol that specifies and restricts the parameters of standard practices. Control group selection should be determined with respect to the following ethical objectives of trial design: 1) clinical value, 2) scientific validity, 3) efficiency and feasibility, and 4) protection of human subjects. Because these objectives may conflict, control group selection will involve trade-offs and compromises. Trials using a protocolized rather than an unrestricted standard care control group will likely have enhanced validity. However, if the protocolized control group lacks representativeness to standard care practices, then trials that use such groups will offer less clinical value and could provide less assurance of protecting subjects compared with trials that use unrestricted control groups. For trials evaluating contrasting strategies that do not adequately represent standard practices, use of a third group that is more representative of standard practices will enhance clinical value and increase the ability to stop early if needed to protect subjects. These advantages might come at the expense of efficiency and feasibility. ConclusionWeighing and balancing the competing ethical objectives of trial design should be done for each trial.
Neurons in the Human Left Amygdala Automatically Encode Subjective Value Irrespective of Task

The amygdala plays an important role in the computation of internal reward signals. In animals it has been shown to enable a stimulus to indicate the current value of a reinforcer. However, the exact nature of the current value representations in humans remains unknown. Specifically, do neurons of the human amygdala represent current value signals only in tasks requiring valuation? We recorded from 406 neurons in the amygdala, orbitofrontal cortex, parahippocampal cortex, entorhinal cortex, and hippocampus of 6 neurosurgical patients while subjects repeatedly viewed 40 different pictures of sweet or salty "junk food" items in 2 different tasks. Neural activity during stimulus inspection in a valuation task reflected food preferences in the amygdala, orbitofrontal cortex, hippocampus, and entorhinal cortex. Notably, only left amygdala activity represented these food preferences even in a sweet-salty classification task. Valuation signals of the left amygdala thus appear to be stimulus-, not-task driven.