Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Chemotherapy regimens and treatment protocols for laryngeal cancer

Importance of the field: Laryngeal cancer has been the model of curative-intent organ-preserving therapies in clinical oncology. Although the optimal care of patients with laryngeal cancer is truly multidisciplinary, with progressive advances in surgical, radiation, and medical oncology, the development of effective systemic therapies has been a major component of the therapeutic arsenal against laryngeal cancer. Areas covered in this review: This review will discuss the rapidly evolving roles of chemotherapy in the management of locally advanced and metastatic laryngeal cancer. What the reader will gain: The reader will gain a historical perspective on this evolution in treatment and will appreciate current treatment challenges and promising future directions in optimizing therapeutic efficacy in functional larynx preservation and in patient survival. Take home message: The treatment of most patients with laryngeal cancer with systemic therapy represents an opportunity to positively impact functional outcomes with an anatomically and functionally preserved larynx. Future challenges include identification of novel therapies and optimizing therapy protocols for individualized patient care.
Plasma progesterone and LH concentrations in ewes after injection of an analogue of prostaglandin F-2alpha.

Plasma progesterone and LH concentrations were monitored throughout a natural oestrous cycle in 12 Clun Forest ewes and compared to those following treatment with a single i.m. injection of 100 microng ICI 80,996, an analogoue of prostaglandin F-2alpha, given during the luteal phase of the cycle. After injection of the analogue there was a high degree of synchrony in the return of oestrus (440 +/- 1-9 h; mean +/- S.E.M.) and the timing of the LH peak (48-5 +/- 2-0 h) from injection. There were no significant differences in the plasma progesterone concentrations or in the height and duration of the preovulatory LH peak between control and treatment cycles. The technique offers the possibility of controlled ovulation in the ewe.
Medicine self‐poisoning and the sources of the drugs in Lund, Sweden

The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of toxic agents in attempted and completed suicides. The purpose was also to explore the sources of the drugs taken by suicide attempters. Verbal information on drug intake was collected from 280 suicide attempters during 1987–1990 in the Lund‐Orup catchment area. Information on the sources of the drugs was collected from 143 of these attempters. The study also includes toxicological screening from 73 fatal poisonings in southern Sweden during 1989. According to verbal information, the most common drugs used by suicide attempters were benzodiazepines (51%), analgesics (29%) and antidepressants (20%). In suicide attempters, diazepam and levomepromazine were reported more than expected from prescription data. Toxicological screenings of fatal poisonings showed that benzodiazepines were most common (55%), followed by analgesics (38%), mainly propoxyphene (29%) and antidepressants (30%), mainly amitriptyline (22%). Amitriptyline and diazepam were more commonly detected in completed suicides than expected from prescription data. The most common sources of drugs to attempted suicides were physicians, and especially psychiatrists. We therefore conclude that continuous information to physicians on drug overdose is important, and it is also important to introduce alternative strategies to prevent suicidal behaviour.
Acute and chronic psychological stress in coronary disease

Purpose of review Coronary artery disease (CAD) is the leading cause of death in the United States and other developed countries. Along with a number of other factors thought to contribute to the high prevalence of CAD in developed societies (longer life expectancy, obesity, sedentary lifestyles), various psychological and social factors appear to promote the development or worsening of heart disease. It is well recognized that stress can be harmful to the cardiovascular system. The combination of the preexisting vulnerability and the major stressor are believed to result in cardiac arrhythmias and/or plaque rupture leading to death. Recent findings Recently, the epidemiologic evidence of a link between stress and CAD is very convincing, yet the biopsychosocial pathway that would explain how stress can lead to disease is less clear. Different types of psychological stress have been found to be associated with increased cardiovascular events. Evidence regarding the efficacy of psychosocial interventions is also presented. Summary It is suggested that, taken as a whole, evidence for a psychological and social impact on CAD morbidity and mortality is convincing.
Modifying disease in rheumatoid arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis affects about 1-2% of adults in the UK. Although the disease is sometimes mild, chronic synovitis, progressive destruction of articular cartilage and bone, and systemic manifestations commonly lead to marked disability and premature death.1,2 Disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) are given to try to arrest or slow this deterioration. Until quite recently, DMARDs were started only when simpler measures (analgesics, physical treatments and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) had failed. Used in this way, DMARDs can suppress markers of disease activity and improve function and some have been shown to slow the progress of joint erosions.3 However, their impact on long-term disability has been disappointing. We discuss how these observations, and a fuller understanding of the pathogenesis and natural history of rheumatoid arthritis, have led to changes in the way DMARDs are used.
Parents’ attitudes when purchasing products for children with nut allergy: A UK perspective

Food avoidance remains the main strategy in prevention of anaphylaxis in children with acute food allergies. To achieve this aim, product labelling needs to be clear and accurate and parents educated on optimal avoidance measures. Food product labelling although improved often still remains ambiguous. The aim of this study was to understand and quantify the attitudes of parents of children with nut allergy towards labels informing that the product could contain nuts. An anonymous questionnaire was filled out by parents of children with nut allergy attending a tertiary paediatric allergy clinic to assess response to differing descriptive labelling of foods containing nuts. In 184 questionnaire responses, 80% of parents would not purchase a product labelled ‘not suitable for nut allergy sufferers’ or ‘may contain nuts’. However, other labels including ‘this product does not contain any nuts but is made in a factory that uses nuts’, ‘cannot guarantee is nut free’ and ‘may contain traces of nuts’ were avoided by only around 50% of parents. Previous allergic reaction to nut products had no bearing on outcome. Additionally, large numbers of parents did not read labels for the presence of nuts in non‐food products. A large number of patients with nut allergy continue risk‐taking by either ignoring warning labels on foods or assuming that there is a gradation of risk depending on the wording of label warnings. Further tightening of labelling legislation and improved education would help to decrease the risk of anaphylaxis.
Prevalence of Anal Human Papillomavirus Infection Among HIV-Infected Women From India

acute lymphoblastic leukemia), incurable (eg, metastatic melanoma), or unknown (eg, carcinoma of unknown primary). Although widely used in cancer clinical discussions, clinical remission is also used to describe a wide range of other noncancer chronic diseases. The remission concept clearly denotes improvement but also underscores vigilance and uncertainty that require the need for careful follow-up. In addition, the remission concept can be further subdivided into partial and complete remissions, a helpful designation given the likely stepwise progression towards an HIV cure. Although the remission concept may be less familiar in lowincome country settings, it would be largely recognizable to HIV-infected individuals in a wide range of other settings. The remission concept has been used by leadership at the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the IAS. The concept of “HIV remission” may be particularly useful as more HIV-infected individuals enter clinical trials and physicians are discussing this concept outside the research settings. Embracing the concept of clinical remission does not mean that we have abandoned hope of finding therapies that could create a sterilizing cure nor are we advocating for scientific research and advocacy to halt the aspirational (towards an HIV cure) language that has ignited a new subfield of HIV research. Clinical discussions between physicians and patients require honesty about the uncertainty in this undertaking. Such careful communication may present waves of hope, misperception, and disappointment among HIVinfected individuals and the health professionals who serve them. Should effective HIV cures be developed, the downstream effects on health and well-being, risk of onward transmission, risk of reacquisition, and social stigma are unclear. Furthermore, these larger biological and social questions will not be addressed by nomenclature. But, nomenclature critically sets the bar for expectations as research advances and clinicians increasingly discuss cure research with their patients with HIV. Although only one individual in all of history seems to be cured of HIV infection, the concept of remission is both easier to explain and more consistent with the state of the science. We owe it to our patients with HIV to use caution and consider the conceptual framework of HIV remission.
Multisided Fairness for Recommendation

Recent work on machine learning has begun to consider issues of fairness. In this paper, we extend the concept of fairness to recommendation. In particular, we show that in some recommendation contexts, fairness may be a multisided concept, in which fair outcomes for multiple individuals need to be considered. Based on these considerations, we present a taxonomy of classes of fairness-aware recommender systems and suggest possible fairness-aware recommendation architectures.
Using numerical magnetohydrodynamic simulations , we examine the dipole tilt effects on the magnetosphere ‐ ionosphere convection system when the interplanetary magnetic field is oblique northward

[1] Using numerical magnetohydrodynamic simulations, we examine the dipole tilt effects on the magnetosphere‐ionosphere convection system when the interplanetary magnetic field is oblique northward (BY = 4 nT and BZ = 2 nT). In particular, we clarify the relationship between viscous‐driven convection and reconnection‐driven convection. The azimuthal locations of the two viscous cell centers in the equatorial plane rotate eastward (westward) when the dipole tilt increases as the Northern Hemisphere turns toward (away from) the Sun. This rotation is associated with nearly the same amount of eastward (westward) rotation of the equatorial crossing point of the dayside separator. The reason for this association is that the viscous cell is spatially confined within the Dungey‐type merging cell whose position is controlled by the separator location. The ionospheric convection is basically a round/crescent cell pattern, but the round cell in the winter hemisphere is significantly deformed. Between its central lobe cell portion and its outer Dungey‐type merging cell portion, the round cell streamlines are deformed owing to the combined effects of the viscous cell and the hybrid merging cell, the latter of which is driven by both Dungey‐type reconnection and lobe‐closed reconnection.
Comparative Enzymatic Analysis of Azoreductases from Bacillus sp. B29

We cloned and expressed two genes encoding azoreductase homologes, AzrB and AzrC, from Bacillus sp. B29. Purified recombinant AzrB and AzrC were homodimers with 23 kDa identical subunits, and were flavoproteins. NADH was preferred as electron donors for both azoreductases. The azoreductases showed optimal activities at 70 °C (AzrB) and 55 °C (AzrC), and retained activities up to 55 °C (AzrB) and 50 °C (AzrC) after incubation for 1 h. Other enzymatic properties, including the substrate specificities of both azoreductases, were also investigated.
Collection of peripheral blood progenitor cells after the administration of cyclophosphamide, etoposide, and granulocyte‐colony‐ stimulating factor: an analysis of 497 patients

BACKGROUND: There is great interpatient variability in the number of peripheral blood stem cells collected, as measured by CD34+ cell content, after the administration of chemotherapy and a growth factor. The ability to predict patients who fail to yield adequate quantities of CD34+ cells would be of value. However, very few reports include large numbers of patients treated in an identical fashion. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Between 1991 and 1995, 497 consecutive patients with a variety of malignant diseases received cyclophosphamide (4 g/m2), etoposide (600 mg/m2), and granulocyte‐colony‐stimulating factor (6 micrograms/kg/day) for mobilization and collection of a target dose > or = 2.5 × 10(8) CD34+ cells per kg. Multivariate analyses were performed to determine the factors associated with failure to achieve this target harvest. RESULTS: A median of 14.71 × 10(6) CD34+ cells per kg (range, 0.08‐137.55) was harvested with a median of 2 (range, 1–11) apheresis procedures. Ninety‐one percent of patients yielded > or = 2.5 × 10(5) CD34+ cells per kg. Patients with Stage II‐III breast cancer, who had pretreatment platelet counts > or = 150 × 10(9) per L and patients who underwent < or = 1 prior chemotherapy regimen had improved CD34+ cell yields. However, most patients with adverse risk factors yielded > or = 2.5 × 10(6) CD34+ cells per kg. CONCLUSION: A regimen of cyclophosphamide, etoposide, and granulocyte‐colony‐stimulating factor led to the successful collection of adequate numbers of CD34+ cells in most patients without excessive toxicity. These observations confirm previous reports that intense prior therapy adversely affects the quantity of CD34+ cells harvested. Pretreatment and posttreatment variables did not predict with any certainty the small fraction of patients who fail to yield > or = 2.5 × 10(6) CD34+ cells per kg via multiple apheresis procedures.
Magnitude of the Standard, Numerical Value of the Standard, and Stimulus Spacing in the Estimation of Loudness

Experiments studied magnitude estimations of loudness as a function of the magnitude of the standard, the numerical value of the standard and the stimulus spacing. The results indicate that (a) the magnitude and numerical value of the standard may have marked effects on the judgment of loudnesses and (b) the distribution of the stimuli does not produce notable effects in the over-all form of the loudness function. Several possible sources of bias were investigated.
Improved Neuronal Adhesion to the Surface of Electronic Device by Engulfment of Protruding Micro-Nails Fabricated on the Chip Surface

One of the major problems in assembling efficient neuro-electronic hybrids systems is the low electrical coupling between the components. This is mainly due to the low resistance, extracellular cleft formed between the cell's plasma membrane and the substrate to which it adhere. This cleft shunts the current generated by the neuron, or the device and thus reduces the signal to noise ratio. To increase the clefts electrical resistance we fabricated gold micronails that protrude from the transistor gate surface. The micronails were functionalized by phagocytosis facilitating peptides. Cultured neurons readily engulf the functionalized micronails forming tight physical contact between the cells and the surface of the device.
Excitation-power-density-dependent micro-photoluminescence from selective-area-grown hexagonal nanopillars with single InGaAs/GaAs quantum well on the GaAs (111)B substrate

We report on the fabrication of the highly uniform hexagonal nanopillars with single InGaAs/GaAs quantum well (QW) on the GaAs (111)B substrate by selective-area metal organic vapor phase epitaxy. The standard size deviation of the fabricated nanopillars with single InGaAs/GaAs QW is about 2% and the standard deviation in their height about 5%. The excitation-power-density-dependent micro-photoluminescence (mu-PL) from the selective-area-grown hexagonal nanopillars with single InGaAs/GaAs QW on the GaAs (111)B substrate was measured at 4.2 k, 50 k, 100 k and 150 k. With an increase in the excitation power density, the PL peak position shifts to the higher energy. A model considering the piezoelectric effect, the photon-screening effect and the band-filling effect was used to calculate the PL peak positions. The agreement between the experimental results and the calculation results is good. We also find that the diffusion length of the carriers in the nanopillars with single InGaAs/GaAs QW reduces greatly compared to the general value in semiconductors, which is mainly due to the existence of rotation twins. With an increase in the excitation power density, the PL intensity increases and the PL peak width increases, which also can be explained qualitatively with the above model.
Structures of the superoxide reductase from Pyrococcus furiosus in the oxidized and reduced states.

Superoxide reductase (SOR) is a blue non-heme iron protein that functions in anaerobic microbes as a defense mechanism against reactive oxygen species by catalyzing the reduction of superoxide to hydrogen peroxide [Jenney, F. E. , Jr., Verhagen, M. F. J. M. , Cui, X. , and Adams, M. W. W. (1999) Science 286, 306-309]. Crystal structures of SOR from the hyperthermophilic archaeon Pyrococcus furiosus have been determined in the oxidized and reduced forms to resolutions of 1.7 and 2.0 A, respectively. SOR forms a homotetramer, with each subunit adopting an immunoglobulin-like beta-barrel fold that coordinates a mononuclear, non-heme iron center. The protein fold and metal center are similar to those observed previously for the homologous protein desulfoferrodoxin from Desulfovibrio desulfuricans [Coelho, A. V. , Matias, P., Fülöp, V. , Thompson, A. , Gonzalez, A. , and Carrondo, M. A. (1997) J. Bioinorg. Chem. 2, 680-689]. Each iron is coordinated to imidazole nitrogens of four histidines in a planar arrangement, with a cysteine ligand occupying an axial position normal to this plane. In two of the subunits of the oxidized structure, a glutamate carboxylate serves as the sixth ligand to form an overall six-coordinate, octahedral coordinate environment. In the remaining two subunits, the sixth coordination site is either vacant or occupied by solvent molecules. The iron centers in all four subunits of the reduced structure exhibit pentacoordination. The structures of the oxidized and reduced forms of SOR suggest a mechanism by which superoxide accessibility may be controlled and define a possible binding site for rubredoxin, the likely physiological electron donor to SOR.
Adequacy of antimicrobial treatment and outcome of Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia in 9 Western European countries.

BACKGROUND Little is known about the incidence of inadequate treatment of severe Staphylococcus aureus infection in Europe. We aimed to evaluate the adequacy of antibiotic therapy for S. aureus bacteremia (SAB), to identify determinants of inadequate treatment, and to determine the effect of inadequate treatment on patient outcome in a representative selection of hospitals in 9 Western European countries. METHODS In this retrospective cohort study, all adult patients with SAB (due to methicillin-susceptible S. aureus [MSSA] or methicillin-resistant S. aureus [MRSA]) who were admitted to 60 randomly selected hospitals from 1 November 2007 through 31 December 2007 were included. Adequate antimicrobial therapy was defined as intravenous administration of at least 1 antibiotic to which the isolate showed in vitro susceptibility that was initiated within 2 days after onset of SAB. RESULTS A total of 334 SAB episodes (257 due to MSSA and 77 due to MRSA) were included. Ninety-four patients (28%) received inadequate empirical therapy (21% in the MSSA group and 52% in the MRSA group). Both length of stay before SAB onset and methicillin-resistant infection were associated with inadequate therapy, with adjusted odds ratios (ORs) of 1.01 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.00-1.03) and 3.7 (95% CI, 2.2-6.4), respectively. Age (OR, 1.06; 95% CI, 1.03-1.10), Charlson comorbidity score (OR, 2.1; 95% CI, 1.2-3.6), severe sepsis or septic shock (OR, 2.7; 95% CI, 1.5-4.8), and intensive care unit stay at onset of SAB (OR, 2.9; 95% CI, 1.5-5.6) but not inadequate treatment (OR, 0.7; 95% CI, 0.4-1.3) were associated with increased 30-day mortality. CONCLUSION Inadequate empirical antimicrobial therapy for SAB is common in Western Europe and is strongly associated with infection caused by MRSA. In this study, inadequate treatment was not associated with increased 30-day mortality rates.
Poverty Alleviation: Corporate Social Responsibility Approaches by Multinational Corporations in Lao PDR and Thailand

Poverty has long been an endemic problem in developing countries. The role of multinational corporations (MNCs) in fostering or undermining development within poor local communities in developing countries has been a subject of intensive debate within academic and practitioner circles. This paper explores the contribution to poverty alleviation from MNCs in two South East Asian countries, Lao PDR and Thailand, in the form of corporate social responsibility (CSR). The focus of this research is on the nature and types of CSR activitiesin through which MNCs attempt to (1) create social engagement among local actors and, (2) fight poverty and improve living conditions in both locations. The results identify three key themes: (1) economic contribution and poverty alleviation, (2) social development and poverty alleviation, and (3) human rights and poverty alleviation. Data also elucidate both similarities and differences in approaches by MNCs, roles they play in developing countries, patterns of CSR strategies and challenges from the host countries in conducting poverty alleviation activities.
Demonstration of the recurrence of Marfan-like skeletal and cardiovascular manifestations due to germline mosaicism for an FBN1 mutation.

Accession numbers and URLs for data in this article are as follows:Marfan Database, http://www.umd. necker.fr/ (for FBN1 mutations)Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM), http://www.ncbi. nlm.nih. gov/Omim (for MFS [MIM 154700)
Adapting a cognitive behavioral program in treating alcohol dependence in South Korea.

PURPOSE This paper aims to evaluate the effects of the traditional Korean moral behavioral-cognitive approach treatment for promoting insight in patients with alcohol dependence. METHOD Data were collected from 22 participants and 22 nonparticipants. The program consisted of daily practices of self-control and reflection, and weekly feedback sessions. The data were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney and Wilcoxon tests, among others. RESULT There was statistically significant promotion of insight, especially in control/dependence insight, after treatment. CONCLUSION The therapeutic intervention, considering the sociocultural factors, could be more effective in promoting insight in clients with alcohol dependence.
Has the Euro Increased Trade?

A major economic reason for the introduction of the euro was its supposedly positive effect on intra-EMU trade. Existing studies examine this suspicion indirectly using non-EMU data and report ambiguous results. We estimate the euro-effect directly from data that include EMU observations. Using a dynamic panel model for annual bilateral exports, we find that the euro has significantly increased trade, with an effect of 4% in the first year and cumulating to around 40% in the long-run. These estimates can be useful in the debates on whether to join the euro in countries such as the U.K.