Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Reactivation of Mutant p53 through Interaction of a C-Terminal Peptide with the Core Domain

ABSTRACT A synthetic 22-mer peptide (peptide 46) derived from the p53 C-terminal domain can restore the growth suppressor function of mutant p53 proteins in human tumor cells (G. Selivanova et al., Nat. Med. 3:632–638, 1997). Here we demonstrate that peptide 46 binds mutant p53. Peptide 46 binding sites were found within both the core and C-terminal domains of p53. Lys residues within the peptide were critical for both p53 activation and core domain binding. The sequence-specific DNA binding of isolated tumor-derived mutant p53 core domains was restored by a C-terminal polypeptide. Our results indicate that C-terminal peptide binding to the core domain activates p53 through displacement of the negative regulatory C-terminal domain. Furthermore, stabilization of the core domain structure and/or establishment of novel DNA contacts may contribute to the reactivation of mutant p53. These findings should facilitate the design of p53-reactivating drugs for cancer therapy.
Multi-Generational Perspectives: How They Interact and Impact Service to Students and Their Families in an Age of Highly-Involved Parents.

Although there have always been differences in how generations navigate decision-making in higher education, highly involved parents have led to conflicting inter-generational educational expectations. This research study investigated the phenomenon of parental involvement and how meanings on educational expectations vary depending on generation. The researcher used generational theory as the theoretical framework and employed Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis. Two faculty, two staff, two students and two sets of parents from Appalachian State University participated in this study. An increased level and depth of parent involvement as compared to in the past emerged as a primary theme. Differing expectations of customer service and the purpose of higher education also emerged as themes. Throughout this study, there is a disconnect between the views of faculty, staff, parents, and students of different generations about what is in the best interest of the student. Understanding these differences and their impact on the perceptions of customer service may be useful for administrators as they provide services to students and their families in higher education.
Trends in post–liver transplant survival in patients with hepatitis C between 1991 and 2001 in the united states

It has been suggested that the post–liver transplantation (LT) survival rate of patients with hepatitis C virus infection (HCV) has declined in recent years. To compare the outcome of LT in patients with HCV at various time intervals between 1991 and 2001, we used United Network for Organ Sharing data to compare the post‐LT survival of adult patients (age >18 years) with HCV with those without HCV. Of the 37,101 patients who underwent LT during the study period, 28,193 patients (HCV 7,459 and 20,734 non‐HCV) were eligible for the study. On the basis of the time of transplantation, patients were divided into 3 groups: 1991‐1993 (period 1), 1994‐1997 (period 2), and 1998‐2001 (period 3). The patient and graft survival rates were adjusted for other known confounding variables that influenced outcomes. The 3‐year patient survival rate was lower in HCV patients compared with non‐HCV recipients (78.5% vs. 81.4%, hazard ratio 1.14, 95% confidence interval 1.05‐1.23, P = 0.001). The graft (72.8%, 71.0%, and 69.8%) and patient (77.4%, 79.6%, and 78.5%) survival of HCV patients remained unchanged during study periods 1‐3, respectively. However, the graft and patient survival rates of non‐HCV recipients improved markedly during study periods 2 and 3 compared with period 1. The graft and patient survival has remained unchanged between 1991 and 2001 in HCV recipients, but during the same period, there was a great improvement in survival among non‐HCV recipients. Liver Transpl 13:719–724, 2007. © 2007 AASLD.
Does Parole Work?: Analyzing the Impact of Postprison Supervision on Rearrest Outcomes

Most prisoners released in the United States are subject to community supervision, often called parole. But little is known about whether parole increases public safety outcomes or improves reentry transitions. This study compares prisoners released to supervisionvia mandatory and discretionary releasewith prisoners released unconditionally. Bureau of Justice Statistics data on 38,624 state prisoners released in 1994 from 15 states are analyzed, along with the differences between these groups and their rearrest rates. [View the corresponding press release ]
Understanding competing motivations for urban agriculture: An analysis of U.S. municipal ordinance adoption

Municipalities are increasingly responding to zoning regulations that act as a barrier to the practice of urban agriculture activities. While there has been some case-study research on municipalities engaging in large urban agriculture policy efforts, a framework for analyzing urban agriculture ordinances on a national scale has not yet been established. This research is an exploratory analysis of the motivations for urban agriculture ordinance adoption utilizing a theoretical framework of neoliberalism to understand the potential for urban agriculture to be used either as a tool to reinforce or alter neoliberal structures. Responses from 34 municipalities throughout the United States that participated in a survey on urban agriculture ordinance adoption were utilized to construct a cluster analysis of cities based on levels of ordinance adoption and motivations for adoption. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) analysis was used to determine differences between clusters on selected socioeconomic variables. The cluster analysis resulted in four clusters. Two clusters were low or average on both motivation and adoption variables. Two clusters had higher scores on either motivation or adoption variables, but differed in types of ordinances adopted and major motivations for adoption. Economic motivations were linked with adoption of commercial urban agriculture ordinances. Cultural and health motivations were linked with noncommercial, retail, and animal urban agriculture ordinances. Clusters with low engagement involved mostly government agencies in drafting ordinances, whereas more engaged clusters relied on government agencies and a variety of community groups in initial stages of ordinance adoption. The clusters that were least engaged in urban agriculture primarily had a Council-
Back pain among echocardiographers

Objective—By having to adopt unnatural postures, echocardiographers place themselves at risk of back injury. The present study sought to document the incidence and severity of back pain among echocardiographers, and to identify personal, lifestyle, and occupational characteristics that may predict risk of back pain. Design—A questionnaire concerning occupational, personal, and lifestyle characteristics, as well as the extent and severity of back pain was completed and returned by 183 echocardiographers. Results—The standard echocardiography examination position of “machine on the left, patient on the right, and transducer held in the right hand” (used by 66% of respondents) greatly increased the risk of back pain (odds ratio (OR) = 4·9; 95% confidence interval (95%CI) = 1·49−16·4). Echocardiographers with more than 11 years experience in the field were also at risk of back pain (OR = 3·4; 95%CI = 0·97−11·6). The intensity of back pain was strongly associated with the amount of time spent on echocardiography examinations (P = 0·035), limitation of lifestyle (P ≤ 0·001), and interference with work (P ≤ 0·001). There was a significantly higher relative risk of back pain for the respondents whose job involved frequent or occasional lifting compared with nonlifters (P = 0·01; OR = 4·8, 95%CI = 1·25−18·7). At least some limitation of lifestyle from back pain was reported by 56% of the respondents. Conclusions—There is a high incidence of back pain among echocardiographers, and specific tasks and activities increase the risk of back pain. Further research should focus on preventative measures and optimum work station designs that may serve as a guide to echocardiography departments.
Comparison of the Serological Responses to Moraxella catarrhalis Immunoglobulin D-Binding Outer Membrane Protein and the Ubiquitous Surface Proteins A1 and A2

ABSTRACT Moraxella catarrhalis immunoglobulin D-binding protein (MID) is a complex antigen with unique immunoglobulin D (IgD)-binding, adhesion, and hemagglutination properties. Previous studies have shown that antibodies raised against MID764-913 in rabbits inhibited M. catarrhalis adhesion to human alveolar epithelial cells, and immunization with MID764-913 resulted in an increased pulmonary clearance in a murine model. Strong immune responses against MID have also consistently been shown in humans. Here, the MID-specified IgG responses were compared to those of ubiquitous surface proteins A1 and A2 (UspA1/A2) using a series of recombinant fragments that spanned all three proteins. Sera were obtained from young children, aged 6 months to 1 year (n = 8) and 2 to 3 years (n = 15), and healthy adults (n = 16). Acute- and convalescent-phase sera from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients with M. catarrhalis infective exacerbations (n = 23) were also analyzed. Young children, who are at risk of M. catarrhalis infection, had low levels of anti-MID and anti-UspA1/A2 antibodies. Healthy adults and the majority of COPD patients (16/23) had high levels of antibodies directed against, among others, the adhesive domain of MID and the fibronectin- and C3-binding domains of UspA1/A2. Among eight COPD patients in whom a rise in antibody levels could be detected, these functional domains were also the main regions targeted by the antibodies. In addition, human IgG directed against MID was bactericidal and anti-MID antibodies were additive to antibodies targeting UspA1/A2. Hence, the functional domains in these three antigens may have significant potential in a future vaccine against M. catarrhalis.
Comparison of conventional and PureWave Crystal transducer in obstetric sonography

Objective. To compare the quality of ultrasound images acquired by the new PureWave Crystal transducer with those acquired by a conventional transducer in ‘difficult’ obstetric subjects. Methods. A predefined list of ultrasound images were obtained from 35 ‘difficult’ obstetric patients using both conventional and new PureWave Crystal transducers by a sonographer. All images were rated using a three-point scale by an independent assessor. Both the sonographer and assessor were experienced in obstetric ultrasound and blinded to the type of transducers being used. A higher score represented better image quality. The scores of each pair of images obtained by the two different ultrasound transducers were compared. Results. The scores for images obtained by the PureWave Crystal transducer were significant higher than those by a conventional transducer, among all 10 structures examined. The new transducer was rated to enable higher diagnostic confidence (82.9%), and produced better image quality for the near field image (94.3%), the far field image (88.6%) and overall (94.3%). Conclusions. Ultrasound transducer incorporating the PureWave Crystal technology produces significantly better image quality for diagnostic purpose in difficult obstetric patients.
Effect of physician-specific pay-for-performance incentives in a large group practice.

OBJECTIVE To assess the effect of a physician-specific pay-for-performance program on quality-of-care measures in a large group practice. STUDY DESIGN In 2007, Palo Alto Medical Clinic, a multispecialty physician group practice, changed from group-focused to physician-specific pay-for-performance incentives. Primary care physicians received incentive payments based on their quarterly assessed performance. METHODS We examined 9 reported and incentivized clinical outcome and process measures. Five reported and nonincentivized measures were used for comparison purposes. The quality score of each physician for each measure was the main dependent variable and was calculated as follows: Quality Score = (Patients Meeting Target / Eligible Patients) x 100. Differences in scores between 2006 and 2007 were compared with differences in scores between 2005 and 2006. We also compared the performance of Palo Alto Medical Clinic with that of 2 other affiliated physician groups implementing group-level incentives. RESULTS Eight of 9 reported and incentivized measures showed significant improvement in 2007 compared with 2006. Three measures showed an improvement trend significantly better than the previous year's trend. A similar improvement trend was observed in 1 related measure that was reported but was nonincentivized. However, the improvement trend of Palo Alto Medical Clinic was not consistently different from that of the other 2 physician groups. CONCLUSIONS Small financial incentives (maximum, $5000/year) based on individual physicians' performance may have led to continued or enhanced improvement in well-established ambulatory care measures. Compared with other quality improvement programs having alternative foci for incentives (eg, increasing support for staff hours), the effect of physician-specific incentives was not evident.
Molecular staging for survival prediction of colorectal cancer patients.

PURPOSE The Dukes' staging system is the gold standard for predicting colorectal cancer prognosis; however, accurate classification of intermediate-stage cases is problematic. We hypothesized that molecular fingerprints could provide more accurate staging and potentially assist in directing adjuvant therapy. METHODS A 32,000 cDNA microarray was used to evaluate 78 human colon cancer specimens, and these results were correlated with survival. Molecular classifiers were produced to predict outcome. RESULTS Molecular staging, based on 43 core genes, was 90% accurate (93% sensitivity, 84% specificity) in predicting 36-month overall survival in 78 patients. This result was significantly better than Dukes' staging (P = .03878), discriminated patients into significantly different groups by survival time (P < .001, log-rank test), and was significantly different from chance (P < .001, 1,000 permutations). Furthermore, the classifier was able to discriminate a survival difference in an independent test set from Denmark. Molecular staging identifies patient prognosis (as represented by 36-month survival) more accurately than the traditional clinical staging, particularly for intermediate Dukes' stage B and C patients. The classifier was based on a core set of 43 genes, including osteopontin and neuregulin, which have biologic significance for this disease. CONCLUSION These data support further evaluation of molecular staging to discriminate good from poor prognosis patients, with the potential to direct adjuvant therapy.
Enhanced Phagocytic Activity of HIV-Specific Antibodies Correlates with Natural Production of Immunoglobulins with Skewed Affinity for FcγR2a and FcγR2b

ABSTRACT While development of an HIV vaccine that can induce neutralizing antibodies remains a priority, decades of research have proven that this is a daunting task. However, accumulating evidence suggests that antibodies with the capacity to harness innate immunity may provide some protection. While significant research has focused on the cytolytic properties of antibodies in acquisition and control, less is known about the role of additional effector functions. In this study, we investigated antibody-dependent phagocytosis of HIV immune complexes, and we observed significant differences in the ability of antibodies from infected subjects to mediate this critical effector function. We observed both quantitative differences in the capacity of antibodies to drive phagocytosis and qualitative differences in their FcγR usage profile. We demonstrate that antibodies from controllers and untreated progressors exhibit increased phagocytic activity, altered Fc domain glycosylation, and skewed interactions with FcγR2a and FcγR2b in both bulk plasma and HIV-specific IgG. While increased phagocytic activity may directly influence immune activation via clearance of inflammatory immune complexes, it is also plausible that Fc receptor usage patterns may regulate the immune response by modulating downstream signals following phagocytosis—driving passive degradation of internalized virus, release of immune modulating cytokines and chemokines, or priming of a more effective adaptive immune response.
The Effects of a Multimodal Intervention Trial to Promote Lifestyle Factors Associated With the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease in Menopausal and Postmenopausal Australian Women

The purpose of this study was to test the efficacy of a multimodal intervention (Women's Wellness Program) to improve women's cardiovascular risk factors. This 12-week randomized experiment with a control group targeted women 50–65 years living in the general population. Women in the intervention group were provided with a consultation with a registered nurse at which time biophysical cardiovascular risk measures were taken and health education was provided in both verbal and written form. Women were encouraged to review their smoking, nutrition, and water intakes and to commence an exercise program that included aerobic fitness exercises. Women in the control group continued their normal activities. The sample consisted of 90 women aged 50–65 years. Pre- and postintervention assessment utilized seven measures of cardiovascular risk factors: waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), body mass index (BMI), blood pressure, heart rate, weight, exercise levels, and smoking. Analysis of covariance indicated that the intervention was effective in improving women's aerobic exercise activity and decreasing smoking. The data from all five biophysical outcome measures supported the efficacy of the intervention, with significant decreases seen in the women's WHR, BMI, blood pressure, and measured weight. Study implications suggest that this type of intervention may provide an effective, clinically manageable therapy for women who prefer a self-directed approach to preventing and decreasing cardiovascular risk factors.
Knowledge and prevalence of risk factors for arterial hypertension and blood pressure pattern among bankers and traffic wardens in Ilorin, Nigeria.

BACKGROUND High job strain, mental stress, sedentary lifestyle, increase in BMI are among the factors associated with significantly higher incidence of hypertension. The job of bank employees is both sedentary in nature and accompanies high mental stress. The aim of this study is to assess the level of knowledge of risk factors among respondents and to compare the blood pressure pattern of bankers and traffic wardens. METHODOLOGY The study design is a descriptive cross-sectional conducted among bankers and traffic wardens in Ilorin to determine the pattern and knowledge of blood pressure. Self-administered questionnaires, weighing scale (Omron Digital scale), stadiometer and sphygmomanometer were used as the research instruments. Simple random sampling was used to select respondents involved in the study. RESULTS The prevalence of hypertension in this study was 34.4% in bankers and 22.2% in traffic wardens. The risk factors the bankers commonly had knowledge of are alcohol, obesity, high salt intake, certain drugs, stress, emotional problems and family history while the traffic wardens commonly had knowledge of all these in addition to cigarette smoking. Also, more bankers (32.2%) than traffic wardens (13.3%) were smoking cigarette and more of these cigarette smokers that are bankers (17.8%) had elevated blood pressure compared to the traffic wardens (3.3%). CONCLUSION Workers in the banking industry as well as traffic wardens should be better educated about the risk factors of hypertension and bankers should be encouraged to create time for exercise.
A Study of the Clinical and Biochemical Profile of Peritoneal Dialysis Fluid Low in Glucose Degradation Products

♦ Objective: Although peritoneal dialysis (PD) is a widely accepted form of renal replacement therapy, concerns remain regarding the bioincompatible nature of standard PD fluid (PDF). Short-term studies of new biocompatible PDFs low in glucose degradation products (GDPs) reveal divergent results with respect to peritoneal integrity. ♦ Methods: We studied 125 patients on maintenance PD who were assigned, by simple randomization, to receive either conventional or low-GDP PDF at PD initiation. Parameters of dialysis adequacy and peritoneal transport of small solutes were determined at initiation and after a period of maintenance PD at the time when serum and overnight effluent dialysate were simultaneously collected and assayed for various cytokines, chemokines, adipokines, and cardiac biomarkers. All patients were further followed prospectively for an average of 15 months from the day of serum and effluent collection to determine patient survival and cardiovascular events. ♦ Results: Patients treated with conventional or low-GDP PDF were matched for sex, age, duration of dialysis, dialysis adequacy, and incidence of cardiovascular disease or diabetes. After an average of 2.3 years of PD treatment, the weekly total and peritoneal creatinine clearance, and the total and peritoneal Kt/V were comparable in the groups. However, urine output was higher in patients using low-GDP PDF despite there having been no difference between the groups at PD initiation. Patients using low-GDP PDF also experienced a slower rate of decline of residual glomerular filtration and urine output than did patients on conventional PDF. Compared with serum concentrations, effluent concentrations of tumor necrosis factor α, hepatocyte growth factor, macrophage migration inhibitory factor, interleukins 8 and 6, C-reactive protein, and leptin were found to be higher in both groups of patients after long-term PD, suggesting that the peritoneal cavity was the major source of those mediators. Compared with patients on low-GDP PDF, patients on conventional fluid showed elevated leptin and reduced adiponectin levels in serum and effluent. The effluent concentration of interleukin 8 was significantly lower in patients using low-GDP PDF. The survival rate and incidence of cardiovascular complications did not differ between these groups after maintenance PD for an average of 3.6 years. ♦ Conclusions: It appears that low-GDP PDF results in an improvement of local peritoneal homeostasis through a reduction of chronic inflammatory status in the peritoneum.
Effectiveness of a Head Injury Program for Children: A Preliminary Investigation

ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to investigate whether a more coordinated, comprehensive head injury rehabilitation program provided at a children’s trauma center yielded better outcomes than a less coordinated, less comprehensive program. DesignUsing a quasi-experimental design, 64 children with head injury admitted to the center and who received rehabilitation services in either 1995 or 1993 were evaluated by using the Functional Independence Measure for children (WeeFIM™)/The Functional Independence Measure (FIM™) (e.g., primary outcome measure). Secondary outcomes included “psychosocial adjustment,” “return to regular school,” and “current problems related to the head injury. ” ResultsNo statistically significant differences were found between the groups with respect to mean WeeFIM/FIM scores after controlling for age and injury severity. The 1993 group had poorer scores on the withdrawal subscale of the psychosocial measure (P = 0.02), yet a smaller proportion of these children were enrolled in a special education class (P = 0.02). ConclusionsThis study serves as a model for a larger, definitive study of the effectiveness of rehabilitation for children with head injury. The trends suggest that more comprehensive care may lead to better outcomes.