Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Quality-of-life benefit in chemotherapy patients treated with epoetin alfa is independent of disease response or tumor type: results from a prospective community oncology study. Procrit Study Group.

PURPOSE To evaluate prospectively the effectiveness of epoetin alfa as an adjunct to chemotherapy in patients with cancer based on changes in quality-of-life parameters and hemoglobin levels, and to correlate these changes with antitumor response. PATIENTS AND METHODS Two thousand three hundred seventy patients with nonmyeloid malignancies who received chemotherapy were enrolled onto this study from 621 US community-based practices. Patients received epoetin alfa 10,000 U three times weekly, which could be increased to 20,000 U three times weekly depending on the hemoglobin response at 4 weeks. Treatment continued for a maximum of 16 weeks in patients who showed evidence of hematologic response. RESULTS Two thousand two hundred eighty-nine patients (97%) were eligible for efficacy analyses. Epoetin alfa therapy was associated with improved quality-of-life parameters; these improvements correlated significantly with hemoglobin levels and were independent of tumor response. Provider-reported Karnofsky performance scores did not correlate with the improved quality-of-life changes. Epoetin alfa therapy was also associated with a significant increase in hemoglobin levels and decrease in transfusion use. Tumor type, chemotherapy agent/regimen, prior chemotherapy, baseline hemoglobin level, and baseline erythropoietin level were not predictive of a positive response to treatment. Epoetin alfa was well tolerated. CONCLUSION Epoetin alfa appears to have a beneficial impact on patient-reported functional capacity and quality of life in patients with cancer who received chemotherapy independent of tumor response. Concordantly, epoetin alfa appeared to increase hemoglobin levels and decrease transfusion use. Patients responded across all tumor types. The results suggest that epoetin alfa effectively improves functional outcomes in patients with cancer who receive chemotherapy.
Lack of association of CYP11B2-344C/T polymorphism with essential hypertension: a meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE A meta-analysis was carried out to evaluate the correlation between CYP11B2-344C/T polymorphism and essential hypertension susceptibility. METHODS By retrieving relevant databases and collecting domestic and international literatures about the correlation between CYP11B2-344C/T polymorphism and essential hypertension, the quality of literature were evaluated according to NEWCASTLE-OTTAWA case-control study quality rating scale (NOS). RevMan 5.0 was used to select the best genetic model, analysis the heterogeneity, calculate combined OR and the 95% CI. RESULTS 8532 subjects were included in this study. Compared with the control group, the OR (95% CI) values of dominant model, recessive model, and additive model were 1.01 (95% CI: 0.81~1.25), 1.03 (95% CI: 0.83~1.19) and 1.10 (95% CI: 0.93-1.29). CONCLUSION There is no evidence to confirm that CYP11B2 (-344C/T) polymorphism is associated with susceptibility of essential hypertension.
The Umeå University Database of Facial Expressions: A Validation Study

Background A set of face stimuli, called the Umeå University Database of Facial Expressions, is described. The set consists of 30 female and 30 male models aged 17–67 years (M = 30.19, SD = 10.66). Each model shows seven different facial expressions (angry, surprised, happy, sad, neutral, afraid, and disgusted). Most models are ethnic Swedes but models of Central European, Arabic, and Asian origin are also included. Objective Creating and validating a new database of facial expressions that can be used for scientific experiments. Methods The images, presented in random order one at a time, were validated by 526 volunteers rating on average 125 images on seven 10-point Likert-type scales ranging from “completely disagree” to “completely agree” for each emotion. Results The proportion of the aggregated results that were correctly classified was considered to be high (M = 88%). Conclusions The results lend empirical support for the validity of this set of facial expressions. The set can be used freely by the scientific community.
Asymptotic Analysis of Stock Price Densities and Implied Volatilities in Mixed Stochastic Models

In this paper, we obtain sharp asymptotic formulas with error estimates for the Mellin convolution of functions, and use these formulas to characterize the asymptotic behavior of marginal distribution densities of stock price processes in mixed stochastic models. Special examples of mixed models are jump-diffusion models and stochastic volatility models with jumps. We apply our general results to the Heston model with double exponential jumps, and make a detailed analysis of the asymptotic behavior of the stock price density, the call option pricing function, and the implied volatility in this model. We also obtain similar results for the Heston model with jumps distributed according to the NIG law.
Utilização de habitats reprodutivos e micro-habitats de vocalização em uma taxocenose de anuros (Amphibia) da Mata Atlântica do sudeste do Brasil

Foi estudada a utilizacao de sitios reprodutivos e de vocalizacao em uma taxocenose de anuros do Parque Estadual Intervales, uma reserva de Mata Atlântica localizada no sudeste do Brasil (24°12' - 24°25' S, 48°03' - 48°30' W). Os trabalhos de campo foram desenvolvidos entre abril de 1990 e marco de 1991. Na area de estudo, foram registradas 47 especies pertencentes a quatro familias: Bufonidae (4), Hylidae (24), Leptodactylidae (18) e Microhylidae (1). Foram obtidos dados sobre a distribuicao dos habitats reprodutivos e dos micro-habitats de vocalizacao para 26 especies por meio do monitoramento mensal de seis corpos d'agua ao longo de um ciclo anual. O numero de especies que utilizaram um determinado habitat variou de 7 a 22. As especies foram classificadas como generalistas ou especialistas. A maioria das especies mostrou preferencia por determinados sitios de vocalizacao. Para algumas especies, a especificidade por sitios de vocalizacao pareceu depender da densidade de machos emitindo canto nupcial e nao da composicao de especies das agregacoes reprodutivas.
Club cells inhibit alveolar epithelial wound repair via TRAIL-dependent apoptosis

Club cells (Clara cells) participate in bronchiolar wound repair and regeneration. Located in the bronchioles, they become activated during alveolar injury in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and migrate into the affected alveoli, a process called alveolar bronchiolisation. The purpose of this migration and the role of club cells in alveolar wound repair is controversial. This study was undertaken to investigate the role of club cells in alveolar epithelial wound repair and pulmonary fibrosis. A direct-contact co-culture in vitro model was used to evaluate the role of club cells (H441 cell line) on alveolar epithelial cell (A549 cell line) and small airway epithelial cell (SAEC) wound repair. Immunohistochemistry was conducted on lung tissue samples from patients with IPF to replicate the in vitro findings ex vivo. Our study demonstrated that club cells induce apoptosis in alveolar epithelial cells and SAECs through a tumour necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL)-dependent mechanism resulting in significant inhibition of wound repair. Furthermore, in IPF lungs, TRAIL-expressing club cells were detected within the affected alveolar epithelia in areas of established fibrosis, together with widespread alveolar epithelial cell apoptosis. From these findings, we hypothesise that the extensive pro-fibrotic remodelling associated with IPF could be driven by TRAIL-expressing club cells inducing apoptosis in alveolar epithelial cells through a TRAIL-dependent mechanism.
Production and partial characterization of monoclonal antibodies to Mycobacterium leprae

Monoclonal antibodies to Mycobacterium leprae were produced by the fusion of BALB/c splenocytes and lymph node cells to BALB/c myeloma (NSI/1) cells. Eleven monoclonal antibodies were characterized as to their reactivity with M. leprae and 18 other mycobacterial species by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and immunofluorescence. Two monoclonal antibodies reacted only with M. leprae, and the other nine showed unique patterns of reactivity by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. One monoclonal antibody (IIH9) reacted with a 68,000-dalton protein present in extracts from M. leprae, M. tuberculosis H37Rv, M. gastri, and M. smegmatis. Potential uses for these antibodies in serological tests and immunochemical analyses are discussed.
Redefining the Role of the Endogenous XAP2 and C-terminal hsp70-interacting Protein on the Endogenous Ah Receptors Expressed in Mouse and Rat Cell Lines*

Studies using transient expression systems have implicated the XAP2 protein in the control of aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) stability and subcellular location. Thus, studies were performed in cell lines that expressed endogenous rat or mouse Ahb-1 (C57BL/6) or Ahb-2 (C3H) AHRs with similar levels of endogenous XAP2. Unliganded rat and mouse Ahb-2 receptor complexes associated with reduced levels of XAP2 and exhibited dynamic nucleocytoplasmic shuttling in comparison with Ahb-1 receptors. Rat and mouse Ahb-2 receptors also exhibited a greater magnitude of ligand-induced degradation than Ahb-1 receptors. Small interfering RNA reduction of endogenous XAP2 by >80% had minimal impact on the level of Ahb-2 receptors but resulted in a 25–30% reduction of Ahb-1 receptors. XAP2 reduction resulted in increased susceptibility of the Ahb-1 receptor to ligand-induced degradation yet produced higher levels of endogenous CYP1A1 induction. Stable expression of the Ahb-2 receptor in the C57BL/6 background resulted in a protein with reduced association with XAP2, dynamic nucleocytoplasmic shuttling, and increased levels of ligand-induced degradation. Small interfering RNA reduction of endogenous XAP2 in a C-terminal hsp70-interacting protein knockout mouse cell line, exhibited a 25–30% reduction in the level of endogenous Ahb-1 AHR and showed high levels of ligand-induced degradation. Thus, endogenous XAP2 exerts a negative function on a small fraction of the endogenous Ahb-1 receptor complex but appears to have a minimal impact on endogenous rat or Ahb-2 receptors. This implies that the analysis of the AHR-mediated signaling via rat and mouse Ahb-2 receptors may better represent the physiology of this signal transduction pathway.
Nickel concentration of blood, urine and sweat after oral administration

Healthy volunteers without nickel hypersensitivity were given 5.6 mg nickel orally. The nickel concentration was assayed in urine, serum and saune‐provocated sweat from hands and trunk before and after nickel ingestion. The nickel concentration in serum increased in all subjects, and in most cases in urine, but not decisively in sweat.
Antihypertensive Efficacy of the Direct Renin Inhibitor Aliskiren as Add-on Therapy in Patients with Poorly Controlled Hypertension.

OBJECTIVE A direct renin inhibitor, aliskiren, has a longer stable antihypertensive effect compared with other renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) inhibitors. METHODS This study was a 6-month, single-center, open trial conducted between December 2010 and November 2011 to assess the antihypertensive effect of adding aliskiren (300 mg) to the treatment of essential hypertension patients whose target blood pressure (BP) had not been achieved and to assess whether it was possible to reduce the amount of antihypertensive drugs used. RESULTS The results showed an overall improvement in the target BP achievement rate of 60% for clinic BP and 52% for home BP measurements (75 cases total). The mean number of drugs before treatment with aliskiren was 3.28±1.52, whereas at the end of the six months the mean number of drugs prescribed other than aliskiren was 2.85±1.72 (p<0.0001). Moreover, no worsening of the renal function was observed in patients with diabetes or chronic kidney disease (CKD) who were being treated with other RAAS inhibitors in combination to aliskiren. CONCLUSION These results showed that when aliskiren was added to the treatment of poorly controlled hypertension, the BP achievement rate increased, and it was possible to reduce the amount of antihypertensive drugs used in combination with aliskiren. Moreover, as a result of careful monitoring of the renal function or decreasing the amounts of drugs used in combination, no worsening of the renal function was observed even in the cases complicated by diabetes or CKD being treated with other RAAS inhibitors.
Pax5 – a Critical Inhibitor of Plasma Cell Fate

Paired box protein 5 (Pax5) is essential for early B cell commitment as well as for B cell development, and continuous expression of Pax5 is required throughout the B cell lineage to maintain the functional identity of B cells. During B cell activation, Pax5 is downregulated before terminal differentiation into antibody‐secreting plasma cells, and enforced expression of Pax5 prevents plasmacytic development. Recently, loss of Pax5 was shown to result in the substantial transition to a plasma cell state, demonstrating a functionally significant role for Pax5 in the regulation of terminal B cell differentiation. Here we elucidate the current understanding about the function of Pax5 as a key inhibitor of plasma cell differentiation.
Heterozygous Mutation in the SAM Domain of p63 Underlies Rapp-Hodgkin Ectodermal Dysplasia

Several ectodermal dysplasia syndromes, including Ectrodactyly-Ectodermal dysplasia-Clefting (EEC) and Ankyloblepharon-Ectodermal Dysplasia-Clefting (AEC) syndromes, are known to result from mutations in the p63 gene. We investigated whether Rapp-Hodgkin syndrome (RHS) is also caused by mutations in the p63 gene. We identified a heterozygous de novo germline missense mutation, S545P, in the sterile-alpha-motif (SAM) domain of p63, in a Thai patient affected with RHS. This is the first genetic abnormality to be described in RHS. The amino acid substitution is the most downstream missense mutation in p63 reported thus far. Histological assessment of a skin biopsy from the patient’s palm showed hyperkeratosis and keratinocyte cell-cell detachment in the upper layers of the epidermis, along with numerous apoptotic keratinocytes. Collectively, these investigations demonstrate that RHS is also caused by mutations in p63 and that the clinical similarities to AEC syndrome are paralleled by the nature of the inherent mutation.
Removal of motion uncertainty and quantization noise in motion compensation

In a standard hybrid video coder, there are two important factors affecting motion-compensated prediction: motion uncertainty and quantization noise, motion uncertainty results from the use of block-decimated motion compensation, which cannot specify the motion for each pixel. The propagation of quantization noise results from interframe prediction. We analyze both these effects, and their block-structured nonstationary properties. We propose a block-adaptive linear filtering framework to reduce motion uncertainty and quantization noise propagation simultaneously. This new motion-compensated predictor can be viewed as joint application of overlapped block motion compensation and loop filtering (LF). Several system configurations are evaluated. We show that this linear filtering framework achieves better rate-distortion performance than the single use of either overlapped block motion compensation or LF.
The T-helper 1/T-helper 2 balance in peripheral blood of women with hyperemesis gravidarum.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to evaluate the T-helper 1/T-helper 2 balance and its relation with pregnancy-related hormones in hyperemesis gravidarum. STUDY DESIGN The T-helper 1/T-helper 2 ratio and plasma progesterone and estrogen levels were examined in the peripheral blood of 22 women with hyperemesis gravidarum and normal pregnancies. The proportion of CD4-positive cells that expressed intracellular cytokines (interferon gamma and interleukin-4) were analyzed by blood flow cytometry. The ratio of interferon gamma-secreting cells to interleukin-4-secreting cells was taken as the T-helper 1/T-helper 2 ratio. RESULTS In hyperemesis gravidarum, the proportions of interleukin-4-secreting cells increased, and the T-helper 1/T-helper 2 ratio averaged 8.4 +/- 0.9, which was significantly lower than in normal pregnancy (11.6 +/- 1.1, P <.05). The changes in the T-helper 1/T-helper 2 ratio in hyperemesis gravidarum were accompanied by the elevation of progesterone and estrogen levels. CONCLUSION A further shift of the T-helper 1/T-helper 2 balance to the T-helper 2 dominance in hyperemesis gravidarum may be related to the increase of progesterone and estrogen levels.
Índice de qualidade da água de nascentes no assentamento Paraíso, Alegre, ES

Este trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar a qualidade da agua de nascentes no assentamento Paraiso, localizado no municipio de Alegre, ES. A pecuaria leiteira e a principal atividade economica desenvolvida na regiao e, em 2006, o INCRA, junto aos assentados, iniciou um trabalho de recomposicao das APP s das nascentes que resultou atualmente em diferentes tratamentos ao redor dos olhos d agua, de acordo com os cuidados e expectativas de cada produtor. Das 25 nascentes existentes, oito foram selecionadas: N1, em meio a floresta remanescente de Mata Atlântica; N2, N3, N4, N5, N6 e N7 estao em recuperacao, sendo que as nascentes estao cercadas, porem, variando no tamanho da area cercada, na topografia, no estagio de recuperacao alcancado e no tipo de vegetacao existente; e a N8, sem cerca e com acesso livre dos animais de criacao. Tres amostras de agua foram coletadas em cada nascente entre novembro/2011 e marco/2012 e analisados 17 parâmetros: coliformes totais e termotolerantes, pH, alcalinidade, oxigenio dissolvido (OD), demanda bioquimica de oxigenio (DBO), nitrogenio total, fosforo total, ferro, calcio, magnesio, temperatura, turbidez, condutividade eletrica (CE) e solidos suspensos, dissolvidos e totais. Os resultados foram comparados com os padroes normativos da legislacao para potabilidade e para qualidade ambiental da agua, tendo-se calculado o Indice de Qualidade de Agua seguindo metodologia adaptada da Companhia Ambiental do Estado de Sao Paulo (CETESB), na qual foram retirados os parâmetros pH e OD, por terem sidos considerados nao importantes para o calculo de qualidade para essas nascentes. Tecnicas de analise estatistica multivariada foram utilizadas para facilitar a interpretacao do grande numero de parâmetros, por meio da analise de componentes principais (ACP) e analise de agrupamento (AA). A partir da ACP, selecionaram-se dois componentes que explicaram 67,60% da variância total dos dados, e os parâmetros que mais explicam as variacoes entre as nascentes sao: coliformes termotolerantes e totais, DBO, CE, alcalinidade, turbidez, solidos suspensos totais e temperatura. Na AA tres grupos foram formados, distinguindo-se o grupo I, formado pelas nascentes cercadas, o grupo II, composto pela N1, e o grupo III, composto pela N8. O grupo I apresentou a melhor qualidade de agua e o grupo III a pior, revelando a importância da protecao de nascentes. A qualidade da agua em meio a floresta foi pouco inferior as do grupo I por ter tido mais contato com contaminantes microbiologicos (excrementos de animais silvestres) e por ter recebido maior aporte de materia orgânica e sedimentos que aquelas protegidas pelo adensamento de gramineas forrageiras
Barrett esophagus: epidemiology, pathogenesis, diagnosis, and management.

Barrett esophagus is a change in the normal squamous epithelium of the esophagus to specialized columnar-lined epithelium. Barrett esophagus is of interest to surgeons in that it is associated with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and is a risk factor for esophageal adenocarcinoma. Beyond that, nearly every other aspect of Barrett esophagus has been an area of controversy among surgeons, gastroenterologists, pathologists, and epidemiologists. The purpose of this monograph is to review the information available on the epidemiology, pathogenesis, diagnosis, and management of Barrett esophagus.
SLEPR: A Sample-Level Enrichment-Based Pathway Ranking Method — Seeking Biological Themes through Pathway-Level Consistency

Analysis of microarray and other high throughput data often involves identification of genes consistently up or down-regulated across samples as the first step in extraction of biological meaning. This gene-level paradigm can be limited as a result of valid sample fluctuations and biological complexities. In this report, we describe a novel method, SLEPR, which eliminates this limitation by relying on pathway-level consistencies. Our method first selects the sample-level differentiated genes from each individual sample, capturing genes missed by other analysis methods, ascertains the enrichment levels of associated pathways from each of those lists, and then ranks annotated pathways based on the consistency of enrichment levels of individual samples from both sample classes. As a proof of concept, we have used this method to analyze three public microarray datasets with a direct comparison with the GSEA method, one of the most popular pathway-level analysis methods in the field. We found that our method was able to reproduce the earlier observations with significant improvements in depth of coverage for validated or expected biological themes, but also produced additional insights that make biological sense. This new method extends existing analyses approaches and facilitates integration of different types of HTP data.
An audit of perioperative aspiration pneumonitis in gynaecological and obstetric patients

Obstetric patients are considered to be at increased risk of anaesthesia‐related Aspiration Pneumonitis. Less is known about the incidence and morbidity of this complication in younger women undergoing gynaecological surgery. We performed a 4‐year audit of perioperative Aspiration Pneumonitis, defined as bronchospasm, hypoxia, cough and dyspnea, together with radiographic or auscultatory abnormalities, following a witnessed episode of gastric content entering the trachea or an intraoperative episode making pulmonary aspiration likely, in two larger Norwegian hospitals. Eleven cases were identified; 4 in Caesarean Section (C‐section) patients, 5 in gynaecological (GYN) outpatients and 2 in GYN inpatients, with incidences of 0.11%, 0.04% and 0.01% respectively (P=0.03). Risk factors were present in all patients. No patient died, but the short‐time morbidity in the form of prolonged ICU stay and hospitalisation was significant. At discharge all patients noted symptoms of dyspnea, cough, and tightness of the chest; symptoms explainable by bronchial hyperreactivity. Five patients felt these symptoms did not disappear within 3 months and were followed up for a median of 2 years (range 4 months to 4 years). All were smokers and had multiple confounding causes, which made it hard to link their prolonged complaints directly to the pulmonary aspiration incident. All experienced improvement of symptoms during the follow‐up period. Compared to gynaecological patients of similar age, C‐section patients still have an increased risk of suffering Aspiration Pneumonitis. Prevention can be further improved in both groups. A cause‐relationship between the incidence and respiratory complaints lasting longer than 3 months could not be established, and a structured follow‐up may be helpful to avoid later medicolegal claims.