Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Reaching Isolated New Mothers: Insights from a Home Visiting Program Using Paraprofessionals

The Visiting Moms Program delivers a relationship-based home visiting intervention in which volunteers address challenges faced by at-risk new mothers and families. For new mothers experiencing isolation, anxiety about parenting, lack of support, or limited resources, this program offers a volunteer, who is a mother herself, in the role of a mentor mother to connect the new mother to resources, listen without judgment, and strengthen parenting abilities. Less stress for the mother and improved care for the infant are major program goals. Relational theories and studies on home visiting interventions are used as lenses for viewing this type of intervention. Vignettes are included to deepen our understanding of the mechanisms through which the new mothers change. Clinicians, program planners, and administrators are likely to find this article helpful in its coverage of the literature on volunteers and home-based services, its description of the relational intervention provided by one home visiting program using volunteers, and its recommendations for ways in which others can design such programs.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Ischemic Stroke and Cerebral Venous Thrombosis

Abstract Imaging is indispensable in the evaluation of patients presenting with central nervous system emergencies. Although computed tomography (CT) is the mainstay of initial assessment and triage, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has become vital in expanding diagnostic capabilities, refining management strategies, and developing our understanding of disease processes. Ischemic stroke and cerebral venous thrombosis are 2 areas wherein MRI is actively revolutionizing patient care. Familiarity with the imaging manifestations of these 2 disease processes is crucial for any radiologist reading brain MR studies. In this review, the fundamentals of image interpretation will be addressed in-depth. Furthermore, advanced imaging techniques which are redefining the role of emergency MRI will be outlined, with a focus on the pathophysiological mechanisms that underlie image interpretation. In particular, emerging data surrounding the use of MR perfusion imaging in acute stroke management portend dramatic shifts in neurointerventional management. To this end, a review of the recent stroke literature will hopefully enhance the radiologist's role in both meaningful reporting and multidisciplinary teamwork.
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease per se is not associated with carotid atherosclerosis

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease associated with increased risk of cardiovascular mortality. Carotid artery intima media thickness is a reliable index of subclinical atherosclerosis. There are contradictory reports about relationship between nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and carotid atherosclerosis. In this study, we aimed to investigate carotid artery intima media thickness levels and its association with histological findings in biopsy proven nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. 113 male patients and 57 healthy male controls were enrolled. Patients and control groups mean ages were 31.7± 5.7 and 30.1± 5.5 respectively. Body mass index, Waist circumference, glucose, lipids and insulin levels, and HOMA-IR were determined. Carotid atherosclerosis evaluated by carotid artery intima media thickness using high resolution carotid ultrasonography. Carotid artery intima media thickness levels were higher in patient group than the control group. This difference was disappeared when the findings were adjusted according to the body mass index, waist circumference, glucose and lipid levels, and HOMA-IR indexes. In addition, no significant association was observed between carotid artery intima media thickness and liver histology. However, there was a significant association between age and carotid artery intima media thickness in patients and controls. Our study does not support an association between carotid atherosclerosis and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Otherwise, it can be speculated that a longer exposure to the disease is required to determine significant differences in carotid atherosclerosis.
UXT Is a LOX‐PP Interacting Protein That Modulates Estrogen Receptor Alpha Activity in Breast Cancer Cells

The lysyl oxidase proenzyme propeptide region (LOX‐PP) is a tumor suppressor protein whose mechanism of action is not completely understood. Here, the Ubiquitously expressed Transcript (UXT) was identified in a yeast two‐hybrid assay with LOX‐PP as bait and confirmed as a novel LOX‐PP associating protein. UXT, a prefoldin‐like protein, is ubiquitous in human and mouse. Since UXT modulates androgen receptor transcriptional activity in prostate cancer, we studied its role in breast cancer. Breast tumors and derived cell lines overexpressed UXT. UXT was able to associate with the estrogen receptor alpha (ER) and decrease its transcriptional activity and target gene expression. Conversely, UXT knockdown increased ER element‐dependent transcriptional activity. Ectopic LOX‐PP relocalized UXT to the cytoplasm and decreased its stability. UXT ubiquitination and depletion in the presence of LOX‐PP was rescued by a proteasomal inhibitor. In summary, proteasome‐mediated turnover of UXT upon interaction with LOX‐PP releases repression of ER transcriptional activity. J. Cell. Biochem. 118: 2347–2356, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Low-field susceptibility of classical Heisenberg chains with arbitrary and different nearest-neighbour exchange

Interest in molecular magnets continues to grow, offering a link between the atomic and nanoscale properties. The classical Heisenberg model has been effective in modelling exchange interactions in such systems. In this, the magnetization and susceptibility are calculated through the partition function, where the Hamiltonian contains both Zeeman and exchange energy. For an ensemble of N spins, this requires integrals in 2N dimensions. For two, three and four spin nearest-neighbour chains these integrals reduce to sums of known functions. For the case of the three and four spin chains, the sums are equivalent to results of Joyce. Expanding these sums, the effect of the exchange on the linear susceptibility appears as Langevin functions with exchange term arguments. These expressions are generalized here to describe an N spin nearest-neighbour chain, where the exchange between each pair of nearest neighbours is different and arbitrary. For a common exchange constant, this reduces to the result of Fisher. The high-temperature expansion of the Langevin functions for the different exchange constants leads to agreement with the appropriate high-temperature quantum formula of Schmidt et al, when the spin number is large. Simulations are presented for open linear chains of three, four and five spins with up to four different exchange constants, illustrating how the exchange constants can be retrieved successfully.
Tumor Suppressor PTPRJ Is a Target of miR‐155 in Colorectal Cancer

PTPRJ is known for its antiproliferative role. Loss of heterozygosity (LOH) of PTPRJ has frequently been observed in various human cancers including colorectal cancer (CRC), lung cancer, and breast cancer. However, the function and mechanism of PTPRJ in CRC are not well understood. At the present study, we show that ectopic expression of PTPRJ inhibits cell growth, migration, and invasiveness in CRC cell line HCT116. Moreover, PTPRJ inhibits the tumorigenecity of HCT116 in a xenograft tumor model. MiR‐155, the well‐known oncomiR in CRC, is identified as an upstream factor of PTPRJ. MiR‐155 directly binds to the 3′ untranslated region of PTPRJ mRNA and suppresses the mRNA and protein levels of PTPRJ. Furthermore, the growth‐promoting and AKT signaling activation effect of miR‐155 was abrogated by PTPRJ overexpression, and vice versa. Our study reveals the crucial role of miR‐155/PTPRJ/AKT axis in proliferation and migration of CRC cells and suggests a therapeutic potential of PTPRJ. J. Cell. Biochem. 118: 3391–3400, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Resource Disparities in Treating Persons With Disabilities for Four Common Cancers

This study explored whether cumulative Medicare outlays on breast, colorectal, lung, and prostate cancer treatment differ between persons with versus without disabilities. The authors used linked Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results—Medicare data to compute reimbursements between cancer cases originally entitled to Medicare because of Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and those receiving Old Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) benefits. They examined differential outlays between these two subgroups by Medicare Part A and Part B services and by treatment phase to gauge whether disability-related resource disparities occur. The findings are mixed, with persons with disabilities treated for lung cancer most likely to experience such disparities. The SSDI subgroup had lower Part B outlays in all four cancers, but some of these were canceled out by higher Part A reimbursements.
NIHSeniorHealth Classes for Senior Citizens at a Public Library in Louisiana

The purpose of this service was to teach senior citizens in the New Orleans area how to look for quality health information on the Internet. The classes were conducted in the computer lab at the East Bank Regional Library (Jefferson Parish Library), Metairie, Louisiana. They were open to the public, but previous registration was required. The lesson plan was adopted from the Training Tools kit provided on the NIHSeniorHealth Web site . The classes were well attended. All attendees had basic computer skills and were generally able to use the Internet but were not able to search for relevant health information effectively. Evaluation sheets were collected at the end of each class. They showed a high level of satisfaction with the training received. Ultimately, this training is expected to increase the level of participants' health literacy.
Density functional theory and beyond—opportunities for quantum methods in materials modeling semiconductor technology

In the semiconductor industry, the use of new materials has been increasing with the advent of nanotechnology. As critical dimensions decrease, and the number of materials increases, the interactions between heterogeneous materials themselves and processing increase in complexity. Traditionally, applications of ab initio techniques are confined to electronic structure and band gap calculations of bulk materials, which are then used in coarse-grained models such as mesoscopic and continuum models. Density functional theory is the most widely used ab initio technique that was successfully extended to several applications. This paper illustrates applications of density functional theory to semiconductor processes and proposes further opportunities for use of such techniques in process development.
Medication Class Effects on Visit‐to‐Visit Variability of Blood Pressure Measurements: Analysis of Electronic Health Record Data in the “Real World”

Blood pressure (BP) visit‐to‐visit variability (VVV) influences the risk of vascular events and mortality. Research has suggested that antihypertensive medication classes may differentially impact VVV. This study evaluated whether antihypertensive medication class differentially impacted BP VVV among hypertensive individuals in a clinical, “real‐world” setting as well as the association between VVV and patient characteristics. Clinical observational data were extracted for adults (mean age, 63; 56% female, 86% Caucasian) with hypertension from the Mercy EpicCare EHR‐Derived Database (MEDD) (n=183,374) who had at least 4 outpatient visits with BP readings. A multilevel mixed model for change over time estimated between‐ and within‐subject effects on the absolute real VVV of systolic BP. Diuretics significantly lowered VVV (β=−0.32[−0.39 to−0.25]) and α‐/β‐blockers resulted in the highest VVV (β=0.89 [0.77–1.00]). Being older, female, and having a higher systolic BP and certain comorbid conditions significantly raised VVV (P<.001). The findings from the MEDD were consistent in general with other research on BP VVV. However, the magnitude of effect of antihypertensive medication class and patient characteristics was relatively low (<10% of the BP VVV variance for any one variable). More research is needed to evaluate the extent to which the class of antihypertensive medication class impacts BP VVV in the outpatient setting.
Trichostatin A alters cytoskeleton and energy metabolism of pancreatic adenocarcinoma cells: An in depth proteomic study

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is one of the most lethal of all human cancers with a high mortality rate. Resistance to conventional treatments and chemotherapeutics is a typical feature of PDAC. To investigate the causes of drug resistance it is essential to deeply investigate the mechanism of action of chemotherapeutics. In this study, we performed an in depth shotgun proteomic approach using the label‐free proteomic SWATH‐MS analysis to investigate novel insights of the mechanism of action of the histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor trichostatin A (TSA) in PDAC cells. This proteomic analysis in PaCa44 cells and data elaboration of TSA‐regulated proteins by bioinformatics showed an overall up‐regulation of cytokeratins and other proteins related to the cytoskeleton organization, keratinization, and apoptotic cell death. On the contrary, a large amount of the down‐regulated proteins by TSA treatment belongs to the cellular energetic metabolism and to the machinery of protein synthesis, such as ribosomal proteins, determining synergistic cell growth inhibition by the combined treatment of TSA and the glycolytic inhibitor 2‐deoxy‐d‐glucose in a panel of PDAC cell lines. Data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD007801.
Design, expression and evaluation of novel chimeric protein constructed from colorectal tumor‐associated antigen

There were 134,000 new diagnosis and 49,000 deaths in 2016 due to colorectal cancer. Similar to most cancers, early diagnosis increases the chance of successful treatment. Detection of tumor‐associated antigens or the immune response against such markers is one of the most common methods of diagnosis. In that regard, we aimed to design and express a chimeric protein from the most common tumor‐associated antigens in colorectal cancer and assess its ability to detect the immune response in comparison with the parental tumor‐associated antigens in patient's sera. Through bioinformatics approaches a chimeric protein from carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and carbohydrate antigen 19.9 (CA19‐9) was designed and expressed in E. coli (BL21DE3). Proper folding, expression levels and immune reactivity were assessed by western blot, ELISA and immunohistochemistry. Recombinant proteins functionality and immune reactivity were confirmed by ELISA and Western blot. Results showed that recombinant CEA, recombinant CA19.9 and chimeric protein of CEA‐ CA19.9 have strong reactivity with antibodies in the sera of colorectal cancer patients, whereas no reactivity was seen with the sera of healthy volunteers. Significantly stronger immune reactivity was seen with the chimeric protein than each of the CEA or CA19.9 alone. Overall, it was concluded that the designed recombinant proteins in this study could be used to detect autoantibodies produced against the colorectal tumor‐associated antigens. The chimeric CEA‐CA19.9 protein shows a stronger reactivity with the sera antibodies of colorectal cancer patients that CEA or CA19.9 alone.
P071 Guidelines For Guideline Developers: A Systematic Review Of Grading Systems For Medical Tests

Background Development of guidelines for medical tests are challenging given the indirectness of evidence on patient outcomes. We compared grading systems for medical tests in terms of basic guideline quality requirements and on how they use indirect evidence. Methods We used a systematic search to identify grading systems specific to medical tests in PubMed, professional guideline websites and handsearching back references of key articles. Using the AGREE instrument as a starting point, we defined two sets of characteristics to describe these systems: process and methodological ones. Process characteristics were features related to the guideline development process. Methodological characteristics were defined as features relating to how evidence is gathered, appraised and recommendations development. Data was extracted in duplicate and differences resolved through discussion. Results Twelve grading systems were included. Process characteristics least often addressed were whether the system was piloted (3/12) and funder information (3/12). Methodologically, developing a clinical scenario, care pathway and/or analytical framework, having explicit criteria for appraising and linking indirect evidence, and having explicit methodologies for translating evidence into recommendations were least frequently addressed. Five systems at most addressed these to varying degrees of completeness. Implications for Guideline Developers There is a need for standardisation of basic guideline features a grading system should address. No one system adequately addressed the complexity of gathering, assessing and linking different bodies of evidence. There is a need for critical appraisal of these features in each system and for targeted user testing among guideline developers.
Evaluation of treatment response for breast cancer: are we entering the era of “biological complete remission”?

Breast cancer is one of the most common malignancies in women. The post-operative recurrence and metastasis are the leading causes of breast cancer-related mortality. In this study, we tried to explore the role of circulating tumor cell (CTC) detection combination PET/CT technology evaluating the prognosis and treatment response of patients with breast cancer; meanwhile, we attempted to assess the concept of “biological complete remission” (bCR) in this regard. A 56-year-old patient with breast cancer (T2N1M1, stage IV left breast cancer, with metastasis to axillary lymph nodes and lungs) received 6 cycles of salvage treatment with albumin-bound paclitaxel plus capecitabine and trastuzumab. Then, she underwent CTC detection and PET/CT for efficacy evaluation. CTC detection combination PET/CT is useful for the evaluation of the biological efficacy of therapies for breast cancer. The bCR of the patient appeared earlier than the conventional clinical imaging complete remission and promised the histological (pathological) complete remission. The integrated application of the concepts including bCR, imageological CR, and histological CR can achieve the early and accurate assessment of biological therapeutic reponse and prognosis of breast cancer.
Berberine demonstrates anti‐inflammatory properties in Helicobacter pylori‐infected mice with chronic gastritis by attenuating the Th17 response triggered by the B cell‐activating factor

Berberine (BBR) is an isoquinoline alkaloid derived from various medicinal herbs. Previous studies have suggested that BBR exerts antimicrobial, antitumor, and antidiabetic effects and can be used to treat Helicobacter pylori‐induced chronic gastritis. However, the exact mechanism by which BBR inhibits H. pylori infection is not fully understood. We investigated the anti‐inflammatory properties and potential mechanism of BBR in H. pylori‐infected mice with chronic gastritis. We found that BBR can suppress the expression of pro‐inflammatory genes IL‐6, TGF‐β, and IL‐1β and upregulate anti‐inflammatory gene IL‐10 expression in the mucosa and RAW 264.7 macrophages. Exposure to BBR also reduced the expression and accumulation of IL‐17 in the mucosa and CD4+ T cells activated by anti‐CD3 and anti‐CD28, and it decreased the frequency of IL‐17‐producing CD4+ T cells. B cell‐activating factor (BAFF) production was inhibited by BBR and by cultured dendritic and CD4+ T cells. Furthermore, we demonstrated that BAFF can trigger the Th17 response by promoting the production of pro‐Th17 cytokines IL‐6, TGF‐β, and IL‐1β, which are strongly associated with the anti‐inflammatory role of BBR in chronic gastritis caused by H. pylori. In conclusion, we determined that BBR has anti‐inflammatory effects on H. pylori‐induced chronic gastritis by attenuating the BAFF‐triggered Th17 response.
Additive and synergistic inhibition of mantle cell lymphoma cell growth by combining olaparib with ibrutinib

Mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) presents a therapeutic challenge. The B cell targeting agent, ibrutinib, is currently one of the most effective second‐line therapies for MCL, but frequently leads to development of drug resistance, and short overall survival time upon relapse. Olaparib targets tumor cells with deficiencies in single‐strand DNA break repair and thus may slow the development of genetic drug resistance. We found that the olaparib‐ibrutinib combination significantly inhibits cell culture growth compared to either drug alone in two genetically distinct MCL cell lines. Moreover, these inhibitory effects are either additive or synergistic, depending on genetic background. Culture growth is inhibited due to increases in apoptosis, cell death, and cell cycle arrest, and the magnitude of each is cell line dependent. The additive and synergistic inhibition of this combination additionally supports a therapeutic strategy involving lower dosing of each drug to reduce potential side effects.
Radiofrequency Thermo-Ablation of Morton's Neuroma: A Valid Minimally Invasive Treatment Procedure in Patients Resistant to Conservative Treatment

Background: The authors present the personal results of the review of a group of cases treated for Morton’s neuroma with continuous radiofrequency (CRF) thermo-ablation of the plantar intermetatarsal nerve. Methods: This retrospective review consisted of 29 patients treated between January 2008 and December 2011, with a minimum 1 year follow-up. Three patients underwent bilateral treatment and 10 patients underwent concomitant treatment procedures for associated foot disorders: hallux valgus (7), tailor’s bunion (2) and hammertoe (5). The procedure was performed in a day hospital setting under direct fluoroscopic control. Results: The follow-up protocol used a visual analog scale (VAS) for pain (0 = no pain, 10 = worst pain) and a visual analog scale (VAS) for patient satisfaction (0 = no satisfaction, 10 = complete satisfaction). Success was defined by a decrease of 5 points in pain at 1 year after the treatment procedure. From these 29 cases, with a VAS pain score between severe and worst pain ever, treatment with CRF thermo-ablation at one year follow-up yielded these results: 14 cases with no pain (48%), 7 cases with mild pain (24%), 5 cases with moderate pain (17%), 3 cases still with severe pain (10%). The overall benefit was that 88% of the patients had significant pain improvements. From another point of view, 26 cases (89.6%) had a decrease of the VAS score between 5 and 10 points and in only 3 cases (10.3%) severe pain was reported, even though it was slightly diminished after the procedure. Conclusion: Continuous radiofrequency (CRF) thermo-ablation of Morton’s neuroma (Entrapment) was a safe and minimally invasive surgical procedure which gave these patients great satisfactions and a rapid return to normal activity.