Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Tuberculosis cases in Wisconsin: documentation of treatment improvement and completion of treatment, 2000-2002.

OBJECTIVE In 2000, the Wisconsin Strategic Plan for the Elimination of Tuberculosis (TB) sets goals of 90 percent treatment completion and 95 percent documentation of treatment improvement for all reported cases of TB. This study measures the success in achieving these goals. METHODS Data were abstracted from charts of all 249 reported TB cases during 2000-2002. Treatment completion was considered for patients indicated for completion in 12 months or less. Documentation of treatment improvement included therapy adherence, sputum culture conversion, and chest radiograph improvement for pulmonary cases, and therapy adherence and clinical improvement for extrapulmonary cases. RESULTS Treatment completion was measured in 204 of 249 TB cases; 87.1 percent completed treatment in 12 months or less. There was a significant difference in completion by site of disease, 89.9 percent for pulmonary cases and 66.1 percent for extrapulmonary cases (P < .01). Documentation of treatment improvement was 61.2 percent among pulmonary cases and 83.6 percent among extrapulmonary cases (P < .01). During the study period, there was a significant decrease in documentation rates for patients with pulmonary TB (P < .01). CONCLUSIONS The goal of 90 percent treatment completion was nearly accomplished but the goal of 95 percent documentation of treatment improvement was not achieved. Barriers to TB treatment in Wisconsin need to be identified. Case management of TB is necessary for control and prevention of TB.
Response assessment of aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma by integrated International Workshop Criteria and fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography.

PURPOSE To determine whether a response classification based on integration of fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) into the International Workshop Criteria (IWC) provides a more accurate response assessment than IWC alone in patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). PATIENTS AND METHODS Fifty-four patients with aggressive NHL who underwent FDG-PET and computed tomography 1 to 16 weeks after four to eight cycles of chemotherapy with cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone were assessed for complete response (CR), unconfirmed CR (CRu), partial response (PR), stable disease (SD), and progressive disease (PD) by the IWC and by integrated IWC and FDG-PET (IWC+PET). Progression-free survival (PFS) was also compared between IWC- and IWC+PET-assigned response designations. RESULTS By IWC, 17 patients had a CR, seven had a CRu, 19 had a PR, nine had SD, and two had PD. In comparison, by IWC+PET, 35 patients had a CR, 12 had a PR, six had SD, one had PD, and zero had a CRu. In separate multivariate models, PFS was significantly shorter in patients with PR than in those with a CR using IWC (hazard ratio [HR], 8.9; P = .021) or IWC+PET (HR, 29.7; P = .0003). However, when the two classifications were included in the same multivariate model, only IWC+PET was a statistically significant independent predictor for PFS (P = .008 v P = .72 for IWC). In addition, when patients with a PR by IWC and a CR by IWC+PET were compared with those with a CR by IWC and a CR by IWC+PET, there was no significant difference in PFS (HR, 1.6; P = .72), indicating that IWC+PET identified a subset of IWC-PR patients with a more favorable prognosis. CONCLUSION Compared with IWC, the IWC+PET-based assessment provides a more accurate response classification in patients with aggressive NHL.
Fair-Value Pension Accounting

We compare the value and credit relevance of financial statements under fair-value and smoothing (SFAS-87) models of pension accounting. The fair-value model does not improve the value relevance of the balance sheet and may impair that of income and the combined financial statements, unless transitory unrealized gains and losses (G&L) are disaggregated from more persistent income components. Further, the fair-value model improves the credit relevance of the balance sheet but impairs that of income and the combined financial statements, unless G&L is separated from other income components. Overall, our results suggest there are no informational benefits to adopting a fair-value pension accounting model.
What Research Says: The Effects of Teaming and other Collaborative Arrangements

For a long time, middle level teachers have not been perceived as a distinct professional group by the institutions that prepare them, the states that certify them or the researchers that study them. As a result, the effect of any school practice, organizational or otherwise, on the teachers in the middle level institution has not been adequately studied. Therefore, middle school research linked to teacher outcomes is very limited. Middle school research on the teacher
Dofequidar fumarate (MS-209) in combination with cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, and fluorouracil for patients with advanced or recurrent breast cancer.

PURPOSE To evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of dofequidar plus cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, and fluorouracil (CAF) therapy in comparison with CAF alone, in patients with advanced or recurrent breast cancer. Dofequidar is a novel, orally active quinoline derivative that reverses multidrug resistance. PATIENTS AND METHODS In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, patients were treated with six cycles of CAF therapy: 28 days/cycle, with doxorubicin (25 mg/m2) and fluorouracil (500 mg/m2) administered on days 1 and 8 and cyclophosphamide (100 mg orally [PO]) administered on day 1 through 14. Patients received dofequidar (900 mg PO) 30 minutes before each dose of doxorubicin. Primary end point was overall response rate (ORR; partial or complete response). In total, 221 patients were assessable. RESULTS ORR was 42.6% for CAF compared with 53.1% for dofequidar + CAF, a 24.6% relative improvement and 10.5% absolute increase (P = .077). There was a trend for prolonged progression-free survival (PFS; median 241 days for CAF v 366 days for dofequidar + CAF; P = .145). In retrospectively defined subgroups, significant improvement in PFS in favor of dofequidar was observed in patients who were premenopausal, had no prior therapy, and were stage IV at diagnosis with an intact primary tumor. Except for neutropenia and leukopenia, there was no statistically significant excess of grade 3/4 adverse events compared with CAF. Treatment with dofequidar did not affect the plasma concentration of doxorubicin. CONCLUSION Dofequidar + CAF was well tolerated and is suggested to have efficacy in patients who had not received prior therapy.
Purification and characterization of human brain prolyl endopeptidase.

Prolyl endopeptidase (EC 3.4.21.26) was purified from human brain by a series of column-chromatographic steps using DEAE-cellulose DE-52, hydroxyapatite, phenyl-Sepharose, Sephacryl S-200 and f.p.l.c. (Mono Q). The enzyme was purified by a factor of 943 and was homogeneous in a SDS/polyacrylamide gel as judged by Coomassie Blue staining. The Mr estimated by SDS/PAGE is 79,600, and under native conditions on Sephacryl S-200 it is 85,600. Therefore the enzyme exists as a monomer. With benzyloxycarbonylglycylproline p-nitroanilide as substrate, the optimum pH of the enzyme is 6.8, and with the substrate concentration between 0.059 mM and 0.37 mM the Km is 9.0 x 10(-4) M. The pI of the enzyme is 4.75. The enzyme is classified as a serine proteinase, as it is strongly inhibited by di-isopropyl fluorophosphate. However, other serine proteinase inhibitors do not inhibit the enzyme significantly, suggesting that the active site of prolyl endopeptidase differs from that of classical serine proteinases such as trypsin. Polyclonal antibodies were raised against purified human brain prolyl endopeptidase in rabbits. Western-blot analysis, enzyme-inhibition assays, antibody binding and immunoprecipitation experiments indicated that the polyclonal antibodies are both specific and inhibitory to the enzyme activity.
Impact of preleukapheresis cell counts on collection results and correlation of progenitor-cell dose with engraftment after high-dose chemotherapy in patients with germ cell cancer.

PURPOSE To identify predictive factors for a good leukapheresis yield and to determine peripheral-blood progenitor cell (PBPC) dose requirements for rapid hematopoietic engraftment. PATIENTS AND METHODS Seventy-one patients with germ cell cancer (GCC) underwent PBPC harvest for autologous transplantation following high-dose therapy. Aphereses were performed after chemotherapy during granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) administration. RESULTS A median of two aphereses (range, two to five) resulted in 4.6 x 10(8) mononuclear cells (MNC)/kg, 15.7 x 10(4) colony-stimulating units granulocyte-macrophage (CFU-GM)/kg, and 6.0 x 10(6) CD34+ cells/kg. Peripheral blood MNC count correlated significantly with number of harvested CD34+ cells per kilogram (r = .49; P < .0001) and with CFU-GM count per kilogram (r = .35; P < .002). Circulating CD34+ cells from peripheral blood gave the best correlations to collected CD34+ cells per kilogram (r = .92; P < .0001), as well as to harvested CFU-GM per kilogram (r = .48; P < .0001). A preleukapheresis number of CD34+ cells greater than 4 x 10(4)/mL was highly predictive for a PBPC collection yield that contained more than 2.5 x 10(6) CD34+ cells/kg harvested by a single leukapheresis. After autologous transplantation, 41 patients were assessable for hematopoietic engraftment. They engrafted in a median time of 9 days (range, 7 to 18) to a WBC count greater than 1.0 x 10(9)/L, 10 days (range, 7 to 18) to an absolute neutrophil count (ANC) greater than 0.5 x 10(9)/L, and 11 days (range, 7 to 62) to a platelet (PLT) count greater than 20 x 10(9)/L. Good correlations were seen between reinfused CD34+ cell count and recovery of WBC count, ANC, and PLT count, with r values of . 65 (P < .001), . 65 (P < .001), and . 45 (P < .03), respectively. Patients reinfused with a PBPC dose greater than 2.5 x 10(6) CD34+ cells/kg recovered hematopoiesis in a significantly shorter time than patients who received less than 2.5 x 10(6) CD34+ cells/kg. CONCLUSION Rapid hematopoietic engraftment can be achieved by a PBPC dose of greater than 2.5 x 10(6) CD34+ cells/kg. When circulating preleukapheresis CD34+ cell counts are greater than 4 x 10(4)/mL, a PBPC autograft that contains more than 2.5 x 10(6) CD34+ cells/kg can be collected by a single leukapheresis.
Pressurized Intraperitoneal Aerosol Chemotherapy with Cisplatin and Doxorubicin in Women with Peritoneal Carcinomatosis: A Cohort Study.

AIM We aimed to assess the objective tumor response (OTR) to laparoscopic pressurized intraperitoneal aerosol chemotherapy (PIPAC) in women with peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC). PATIENTS AND METHODS We carried-out a retrospective cohort study of women with PC undergoing repeated courses of PIPAC with 7.5 mg/m(2) of cisplatin and 1.5 mg/m(2) of doxorubicin. OTR was defined as histological regression. Peritoneal carcinomatosis index (PCI) improvement on video-laparoscopy and ascites volume reduction were secondary outcomes. Quality of life was assessed by the European Organization for Research & Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ)-30+3. RESULTS A total of 252 PIPACs were performed in 99 women with PC and ovarian (n=84), primary peritoneal (n=6), cervical (n=3), endometrial (n=3), fallopian tube (n=1), and breast (n=1) cancer and pseudomyxoma peritonei (n=1). Laparoscopic non-access rate was 17% (17/99). Fifty women had more than one PIPAC procedures, with an OTR of 76% (38/50) and PCI improvement in 64% (32/50). Ascites volume significantly decreased from 762±1170 ml to 167±456 ml (p=0.02). A high initial Karnofsky Index was correlated with receiving more than one PIPAC (p<0.0001) and a high number of previous surgeries with laparoscopic non-access (p=0.01). Twenty adverse events of Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events grade 3 or more were noted. Absence of ascites (odds ratio=8.45, 95% confidence interval=1.9-3.6; p<0.0001), but not patient age, serum cancer antigen-125, and Karnofsky Index independently predicted OTR. EORTC QLQ-30+3 scores for global physical health, nausea/vomiting, appetite loss, and constipation improved during therapy. CONCLUSION PIPAC with cisplatin and doxorubicin is an active treatment in women with PC and preserves quality of life. Appropriate patient selection regarding performance status and the number of prior surgeries is important.
Comparison of the WOMAC (Western Ontario and McMaster Universities) osteoarthritis index and a self-report format of the self-administered Lequesne-Algofunctional index in patients with knee and hip osteoarthritis.

OBJECTIVE To compare the metric properties and validity of German versions of the WOMAC (Western Ontario and McMaster Universities) and a self-administered questionnaire-format of the Lequesne-Algofunctional-Index in patients with osteoarthritis (OA) of the lower extremities. DESIGN Cross-sectional analysis of the instruments' internal consistency (Cronbach's coefficient alpha) and construct validity (correlation with radiological OA-severity and limitation in range-of-motion) in ambulatory patients and patients before hip arthroplasty. Test-retest reliability was assessed on a subsample after 10 days. RESULTS Data from 51 patients out of 91 contacted could be analyzed. Twenty-nine patients had knee and 22 patients had hip OA. Both the WOMAC and Lequesne OA-indices and their scales or sections had a satisfactory test-retest reliability (Intraclass correlation coefficient 0.43-0.96). All scales of the WOMAC were internally consistent (Cronbach's coefficient alpha 0.81-0.96) and associated with radiological OA-severity and joint range of motion. However, only the function but not the symptom sections (Cronbach's coefficient alpha knee: 0.55; hip: 0.63) of the self-administered Lequesne OA index were internally consistent for both, patients with knee and hip OA. Also, the symptom components were not or only weakly associated with radiological OA-severity and joint range of motion. CONCLUSIONS Although our results are based on a German version using a self-report format we may caution using the self-administered Lequesne OA index without prior testing of its metric properties and validity.
Chemotherapy Drugs Form Ion Pores in Membranes Due to Physical Interactions with Lipids

We demonstrate the effects on membrane of the tubulin‐binding chemotherapy drugs: thiocolchicoside and taxol. Electrophysiology recordings across lipid membranes in aqueous phases containing drugs were used to investigate the drug effects on membrane conductance. Molecular dynamics simulation of the chemotherapy drug–lipid complexes was used to elucidate the mechanism at an atomistic level. Both drugs are observed to induce stable ion‐flowing pores across membranes. Discrete pore current–time plots exhibit triangular conductance events in contrast to rectangular ones found for ion channels. Molecular dynamics simulations indicate that drugs and lipids experience electrostatic and van der Waals interactions for short periods of time when found within each other’s proximity. The energies from these two interactions are found to be similar to the energies derived theoretically using the screened Coulomb and the van der Waals interactions between peptides and lipids due to mainly their charge properties while forming peptide‐induced ion channels in lipid bilayers. Experimental and in silico studies together suggest that the chemotherapy drugs induce ion pores inside lipid membranes due to drug–lipid physical interactions. The findings reveal cytotoxic effects of drugs on the cell membrane, which may aid in novel drug development for treatment of cancer and other diseases.
Why Bother with What Others Tell You? An Experimental Data-Driven Agent-Based Model

This paper investigates the relevance of reputation to improve the explorative capabilities of agents in uncertain environments. We have presented a laboratory experiment where sixty-four subjects were asked to take iterated economic investment decisions. An agent-based model based on their behavioural patterns replicated the experiment exactly. Exploring this experimentally grounded model, we studied the effects of various reputational mechanisms on explorative capabilities at a systemic level. The results showed that reputation mechanisms increase the agents' capability for coping with uncertain environments more than individualistic atomistic exploration strategies, although the former does entail a certain amount of false information inside the system.
Mature proteins derived from Epstein–Barr virus fail to feed into the MHC class I antigenic pool

The immediate presentation of peptide epitopes on MHC class I (MHC I) after antigen expression has led to the concept that MHC I ligands are mostly derived from defective ribosomal products (DRiPs), a subset of newly synthesized proteins that are rapidly degraded by the proteasome. Whether and to what extent mature proteins contribute to the antigenic pool, however, has remained elusive. Here, we developed a conditional antigen expression system that allows studying antigen presentation from mature proteins by inducing their rapid proteasomal degradation in the absence of further antigen synthesis. Target cells in which expression of two Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) antigens was induced were rapidly recognized by antigen‐specific CD8+ T cells in a time‐ and dosage‐dependent manner, demonstrating that antigen presentation was linked to antigen synthesis. By contrast, T cells failed to recognize target cells containing large amounts of mature protein even after induction of their rapid proteasomal degradation. Thus, the presentation of these antigens proved to be strictly dependent on protein synthesis whereas mature proteins failed to furnish the antigenic pool. These results have implications for the design of immunotherapeutic strategies that aim at targeting proteins with increased half‐lives and are hence overexpressed in tumors.
Cancer Incidence in Saudi Arabia: 2012 Data from the Saudi Cancer Registry

Background: In order to most appropriately allocate healthcare and research funding for cancer, it is important to have accurate population-based incidence data. The Saudi Cancer Registry (SCR) provides such information, covering the time period from 1994 to the present day. The current report concerns an overview of cancer incidence statistics for Saudi Arabia in 2012. Methods: The SCR collects data from healthcare facilities throughout the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. All newly diagnosed cases of cancer are recorded, with information on site and histology. For the present report, age-standardised and age-specific incidence rates (ASR, AIR, respectively) were calculated, with attention to gender-specific and regional differences. Results: The total number of incident cases of cancer identified by the SCR in 2012 was 14,336, with 6,791 (47.5%) among males and 7,545 (52.6%) among females. Of this total, 11,034 cases (76.9%) occurred in patients of Saudi origin. For Saudi males, the overall ASR (inc. all cancer sites) was 78.1 per 100,000 people, while that for females was 86.7. Incidence varied by region, with the Eastern region and Riyadh displaying the highest ASRs for both males and females, and Hail and Jazan displaying the lowest. Incidence varied by gender, with colorectal cancer (13.3%), non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL; 8.4%), and leukaemia (8.2%) being the most common types in males, and breast (25.8%), thyroid (11.7%), and colorectal cancers (9.3%) being the most common in females. Conclusions: This analysis of cancer incidence in Saudi Arabia demonstrated significant differences according to gender, age, and region of the Kingdom. The data should help ensure the most appropriate allocation of resources, with the aim of minimising the healthcare burden associated with cancer.
Delayed (>3 weeks) postnatal corticosteroids for chronic lung disease in preterm infants.

BACKGROUND Many preterm babies who survive, having had respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) or not, go on to develop chronic lung disease (CLD). This is probably due to persistence of inflammation in the lung. Corticosteroids have powerful anti-inflammatory effects and have been used to treat established CLD. However it is unclear whether any beneficial effects outweigh the adverse effects of these drugs. OBJECTIVES To determine if late (> 3 weeks) postnatal corticosteroid treatment vs control (placebo or nothing) is of benefit in the treatment of chronic lung disease (CLD) in the preterm infant. SEARCH STRATEGY Randomised controlled trials of postnatal corticosteroid therapy were sought from the Oxford Database of Perinatal Trials, the Cochrane Database of Controlled Trials, Medline, hand searching paediatric and perinatal journals, examining previous review articles and information received from practising neonatologists. SELECTION CRITERIA Randomised controlled trials of postnatal corticosteroid treatment initiated at > 3 weeks of age in preterm infants with CLD were selected for this review. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS Data regarding clinical outcomes including mortality before discharge, failure to extubate, infection, hyperglycaemia, hypertension, severe retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), gastrointestinal bleeding, bowel perforation, echodensities on ultrasound scan of brain, need for home oxygen, glycosuria, need for late rescue with dexamethasone, cerebral palsy in survivors and blindness in survivors were abstracted and analysed using Revman 4.0. 4. MAIN RESULTS Delayed steroid treatment had no effect on mortality. The only beneficial effects were reductions in failure to extubate by 7 or 28 days, need for late rescue treatment with dexamethasone, chronic lung disease at 36 weeks, and discharge to home on oxygen therapy. There was no increase in risk of infection, necrotising enterocolitis, or gastrointestinal bleeding. Short-term adverse affects included hyperglycaemia, glycosuria and hypertension. There was an increase in severe retinopathy of prematurity, but no effect on blindness. There were increases in long-term neurologic sequelae including abnormal neurologic examination and cerebral palsy, the latter of borderline statistical significance. REVIEWER'S CONCLUSIONS The benefits of late corticosteroid therapy may not outweigh actual or potential adverse effects. There is a worrying increase in adverse neurological outcomes in infants treated with postnatal steroids (see also Review of Early Postnatal corticosteroids). Corticosteroids should be reserved for infants who cannot be weaned from mechanical ventilation. The dose of dexamethasone and the duration of any course of treatment should be minimised.