bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effects of combined progesterone and 17β-estradiol treatment on the transcriptome of cultured human myometrial smooth muscle cells
Authors: Chandran Sreenath , Cairns Michael T. , O'Brien Margaret , O'Connell Enda , Mashayekhi Kaveh , Smith Terry J.
Published: November 2015

A transcriptomic analysis of cultured human uterine smooth muscle cells (hUtSMCs) was performed to examine gene expression profiles in smooth muscle in an environment containing the two major steroid hormones that regulate the human myometrium in physiological states associated with estrous, pregnancy, labor, and pathophysiological states such as leiomyoma and endometrial cancer. hUtSMCs were treated with progesterone (P4) and 17β-estradiol (E2) individually and in combination, in the presence and absence of RU486 (mifepristone). Transcription of many genes was modulated in the presence of P4 or E2 alone, but almost six times more genes were transcriptionally modulated in the presence of the P4/E2 hormone combination. In total 796 annotated genes were significantly differentially expressed in the presence of both P4 and E2 relative to their expression in untreated cells. Functional withdrawal of P4 by addition of RU486 effectively reversed almost all transcriptional changes caused by P4/E2 treatment. Gene ontology analysis of differentially expressed genes revealed a strong association between P4/E2 treatment and downregulated expression of genes involved in cell communication, signal transduction, channel activity, inflammatory response, and differentiation. Upregulated processes included cell survival, gene transcription, steroid hormone biosynthesis, muscle development, insulin receptor signaling, and cell growth.
Inhibitory Effects of Antimicrobial Peptides on Lipopolysaccharide‐Induced Inflammation
Authors: Sun Yue , Shang Dejing
Published: November 2015

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are usually small molecule peptides, which display broad‐spectrum antimicrobial activity, high efficiency, and stability. For the multiple‐antibiotic‐resistant strains, AMPs play a significant role in the development of novel antibiotics because of their broad‐spectrum antimicrobial activities and specific antimicrobial mechanism. Besides broad‐spectrum antibacterial activity, AMPs also have anti‐inflammatory activity. The neutralization of lipopolysaccharides (LPS) plays a key role in anti‐inflammatory action of AMPs. On the one hand, AMPs can readily penetrate the cell wall barrier by neutralizing LPS to remove Gram‐negative bacteria that can lead to infection. On the contrary, AMPs can also inhibit the production of biological inflammatory cytokines to reduce the inflammatory response through neutralizing circulating LPS. In addition, AMPs also modulate the host immune system by chemotaxis of leukocytes, to promote immune cell proliferation, epithelialization, and angiogenesis and thus play a protective role. This review summarizes some recent researches about anti‐inflammatory AMPs, with a focus on the interaction of AMPs and LPS on the past decade.
Eigennoise Speech Recovery in Adverse Environments with Joint Compensation of Additive and Convolutive Noise
Authors: Phung Trung-Nghia , Do Huy-Khoi , Nguyen Van-Tao , Thai Quang-Vinh
Published: November 2015

The learning-based speech recovery approach using statistical spectral conversion has been used for some kind of distorted speech as alaryngeal speech and body-conducted speech (or bone-conducted speech). This approach attempts to recover clean speech (undistorted speech) from noisy speech (distorted speech) by converting the statistical models of noisy speech into that of clean speech without the prior knowledge on characteristics and distributions of noise source. Presently, this approach has still not attracted many researchers to apply in general noisy speech enhancement because of some major problems: those are the difficulties of noise adaptation and the lack of noise robust synthesizable features in different noisy environments. In this paper, we adopted the methods of state-of-the-art voice conversions and speaker adaptation in speech recognition to the proposed speech recovery approach applied in different kinds of noisy environment, especially in adverse environments with joint compensation of additive and convolutive noises. We proposed to use the decorrelated wavelet packet coefficients as a low-dimensional robust synthesizable feature under noisy environments. We also proposed a noise adaptation for speech recovery with the eigennoise similar to the eigenvoice in voice conversion. The experimental results showed that the proposed approach highly outperformed traditional nonlearning-based approaches.
Estimation of Population Mean in Chain Ratio-Type Estimator under Systematic Sampling
Authors: Khan Mursala , Singh Rajesh
Published: November 2015

A chain ratio-type estimator is proposed for the estimation of finite population mean under systematic sampling scheme using two auxiliary variables. The mean square error of the proposed estimator is derived up to the first order of approximation and is compared with other relevant existing estimators. To illustrate the performances of the different estimators in comparison with the usual simple estimator, we have taken a real data set from the literature of survey sampling.
The Reporting Quality of Acupuncture-Related Infections in Korean Literature: A Systematic Review of Case Studies
Authors: Kim Tae-Hun , Kang Jung Won , Park Wan-Soo
Published: November 2015

Objective. Acupuncture is generally accepted as a safe intervention when it is administered in appropriate clinical setting by well-educated and experienced practitioners. In this study, we reviewed observational studies on adverse events (AEs) or complications relevant to acupuncture practice in Korean literature for assessing their reporting quality and suggested recommendations for future ones on acupuncture-related infections.Method. Electronic databases including Medline, Embase, Cochrane library, Korean studies Information Service System, DBpia, National Digital Science Library, and Korean National Assembly Library were searched until May 2015. Combination of keywords including “acupuncture” and “infection” were used for searching databases.Result. A total of 23 studies from 2,739 literature articles were identified from electronic database searching until May 2015. From this review, we found that most case studies did not report enough information for judging causality between acupuncture and the AEs (or complications) as well as appropriateness of the acupuncture practice. In addition, acupuncture experts rarely participated in the reporting of these AEs (or complications).Conclusion. Based on these limitations, we suggest a tentative recommendation for future case studies on acupuncture-related infection. We hope that this recommendation would contribute to the improvement of the reporting quality of acupuncture-related AEs (or complications) in the future.
Prevalence of Plasmid-Mediated Quinolone Resistance Genes among Extended-Spectrumβ-Lactamase-ProducingKlebsiella pneumoniaeHuman Isolates in Iran
Authors: Shams Ehsaneh , Firoozeh Farzaneh , Moniri Rezvan , Zibaei Mohammad
Published: November 2015

The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence and molecular characterization of plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance (PMQR) genes (qnrA, qnrB, qnrS, aac(6′)-Ib-cr, andqepA) among ESBL-producingKlebsiella pneumoniaeisolates in Kashan, Iran. A total of 185K. pneumoniaeisolates were tested for quinolone resistance and ESBL-producing using the disk diffusion method and double disk synergy (DDST) confirmatory test. ESBL-producing strains were further evaluated for theblaCTX-Mgenes. The PCR method was used to show presence of plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance genes and the purified PCR products were sequenced. Eighty-seven ESBL-producing strains were identified by DDST confirmatory test and majority (70, 80.5%) of which carriedblaCTX-Mgenes including CTX-M-1 (60%), CTX-M-2 (42.9%), and CTX-M-9 (34.3%). Seventy-seven ESBL-producingK. pneumoniaeisolates harbored PMQR genes, which mostly consisted ofaac(6′)-Ib-cr(70.1%) andqnrB(46.0%), followed byqnrS(5.7%). Among the 77 PMQR-positive isolates, 27 (35.1%) and 1 (1.3%) carried 2 and 3 different PMQR genes, respectively. However,qnrAandqepAwere not found in any isolate. Our results highlight high ESBL occurrence with CTX-M type and high frequency of plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance genes among ESBL-producingK. pneumoniaeisolates in Kashan.
Attribute Synthetic Evaluation Model for the CBM Recoverability and Its Application
Authors: Xia Xiao-gang , Yang Yun-feng
Published: November 2015

The coal-bed methane (CBM) recoverability is the basic premise of CBM development practice; in order to effectively evaluate the CBM recoverability, the attribute synthetic evaluation model is established based on the theory and method of attribute mathematics. Firstly, five indexes are chosen to evaluate the recoverability through analyzing the influence factors of CBM, including seam thickness, gas saturation, permeability, reservoir pressure gradient, and hydrogeological conditions. Secondly, the attribute measurement functions of each index are constructed based on the attribute mathematics theory, and the calculation methods of the single index attribute measurement and the synthetic attribute measurement also are provided. Meanwhile, the weight of each index is given with the method of similar number and similar weight; the evaluation results also are determined by the confidence criterion reliability code. At last, according to the application results of the model in some coal target area of Fuxin and Hancheng mine, the evaluation results are basically consistent with the actual situation, which proves that the evaluation model can be used in the CBM recoverability prediction, and an effective method of the CBM recoverability evaluation is also provided.
Source Contributions of PM2.5 in the Severe Haze Episode in Hebei Cities
Authors: Wei Zhe , Wang Litao , Ma Simeng , Zhang Fenfen , Yang Jing
Published: November 2015

Beijing‐Tianjin‐Hebei area is one of the most polluted areas in China. This paper used the Fifth‐Generation Penn State/NCAR Mesoscale Model (MM5) and Model‐3/Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling system to quantify the source contribution to PM2.5 in Hebei cities in order to obtain an in‐depth understanding haze process in January and February 2013, using the Multiresolution Emission Inventory for China (MEIC). The result showed that PM2.5 were mainly originated from the southern Hebei (SHB) with the fractions of 70.8% and 66.4% to Shijiazhuang, 70.6% and 63.9% to Xingtai, and 68.5% and 63.0% to Handan in January and February 2013, respectively. The northern Hebei (NHB) contributed 69.8% and 70.7% to Zhangjiakou, 68.7% and 66.2% to Chengde, and 57.7% and 59.6% to Qinhuangdao in January and February. In Cangzhou, Hengshui, and Langfang, regional joint policy making should be implemented due to the pollution of multiple sources. In Baoding and Tangshan, industrial emissions contributed 38.1% and 41.9% of PM2.5 to Baoding and 39.8% and 45.8% to Tangshan in January and February, respectively. Industrial and domestic emissions should be controlled in Tangshan and Baoding, especially for industrial emissions of NHB.
Novel Roles for Chloride Channels, Exchangers, and Regulators in Chronic Inflammatory Airway Diseases
Authors: Sala-Rabanal Monica , Yurtsever Zeynep , Berry Kayla N. , Brett Tom J.
Published: November 2015

Chloride transport proteins play critical roles in inflammatory airway diseases, contributing to the detrimental aspects of mucus overproduction, mucus secretion, and airway constriction. However, they also play crucial roles in contributing to the innate immune properties of mucus and mucociliary clearance. In this review, we focus on the emerging novel roles for a chloride channel regulator (CLCA1), a calcium‐activated chloride channel (TMEM16A), and two chloride exchangers (SLC26A4/pendrin and SLC26A9) in chronic inflammatory airway diseases.
Patient Data Prioritization in the Cross-Layer Designs of Wireless Body Area Network
Authors: Ullah Fasee , Abdullah Abdul Hanan , Jan Muhammad Qasim , Qureshi Kashif Naseer
Published: November 2015

In Wireless Body Area Network (WBAN), various biomedical sensors (BMSs) are deployed to monitor various vital signs of a patient for detecting the abnormality of the vital signs. These BMSs inform the medical staff in advance before the patient’s life goes into a threatening situation. In WBAN, routing layer has the same challenges as generally seen in WSN, but the unique requirements of WBANs need to be addressed by the novel routing mechanisms quite differently from the routing mechanism in Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs). The slots allocation to emergency and nonemergency patient’s data is one of the challenging issues in IEEE 802.15.4 and IEEE 802.15.6 MAC Superframe structures. In the similar way, IEEE 802.15.4 and IEEE 802.15.6 PHY layers have also unique constraints to modulate the various vital signs of patient data into continuous and discrete forms. Numerous research contributions have been made for addressing these issues of the aforementioned three layers in WBAN. Therefore, this paper presents a cross-layer design structure of WBAN with various issues and challenges. Moreover, it also presents a detail review of the existing cross-layer protocols in the WBAN domain by discussing their strengths and weaknesses.
Evaluation of Biosourced Alkyd Nanoemulsions as Drug Carriers
Authors: Teo Siew Yong , Lee Siang Yin , Ong Huey Lin , Ong Ching Lin , Gan Seng Neon , Rathbone Michael J. , Coombes Allan G. A.
Published: November 2015

Novel oil‐in‐water (O/W) nanoemulsions were formulated using short, medium, and long oil length alkyds synthesized from palm kernel oil by a two‐stage alcoholysis‐polyesterification reaction. Alkyd/surfactant/water ternary phase diagrams identified a composition of 1% alkyd, 9% Tween 80, and 90% water where spontaneous production of nanoemulsions occurred. The pH, droplet size, and zeta potential of all formulations were in the range of 6.4–6.6, 11–14 nm, and −6 mV to −8 mV, respectively. Rheological studies showed that the nanoemulsions displayed non‐Newtonian shear thinning behavior at low shear rates up to 20 s−1 with conversion to Newtonian behavior above this shear rate. All nanoemulsions were found to be stable against phase separation on storage at 4°C and 25°C for three months. Short oil length alkyd nanoemulsions exhibited significantly higher stability compared with medium and long oil length alkyd nanoemulsions, as demonstrated by an absence of phase separation and only minor changes of droplet size on storage at an elevated temperature of 45°C for 3 months. The drug carrying capacity and storage stability of the nanoemulsions were assessed using phenytoin. The entrapment efficiency of alkyd nanoemulsions was in excess of 90% and loss of phenytoin content was restricted to less than 4% during storage of the nanoemulsions for three months at 4°C, 25°C, and 45°C. Taken together, these findings indicate that nanoemulsions prepared from palm kernel oil‐based alkyds offer potential as nanocarriers for drug delivery applications.
A Useful Strategy to Evaluate the Quality Consistency of Traditional Chinese Medicines Based on Liquid Chromatography and Chemometrics
Authors: Wang Pei , Nie Lei , Zang Hengchang
Published: November 2015

Evaluation of the batch consistency of traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) is essential for the promotion of the development and quality control of TCMs. The aim of the present work was to develop a useful strategy via liquid chromatography and chemometrics to evaluate the batch consistency of TCM preparations. Xin-Ke-Shu (XKS) tablet was chosen as a model for this method development. Four types of chromatographic fingerprint approaches were compared by using similarity analysis based on cosine of angel or correlation coefficient. Differences in the fingerprints of 71 batches of XKS tablet were illustrated by hierarchical cluster analysis. Then, Mahalanobis distance was employed for estimating the probability level (P<0.05) of the differences mentioned above. Additionally,t-test was applied to find out the chromatographic peaks which had significant differences. For XKS tablet, the maximum wavelength fingerprint had the largest range and dispersion degree of similarity as compared with the other three ones. There were two clear clusters in all the batches of samples. And we clearly arrived at the conclusion that higher similarity does not exactly indicate small Mahalanobis distance, while lower similarity indicated larger Mahalanobis distance. Finally, a useful strategy was proposed for evaluation of the batch consistency of XKS tablet.
Preparation and Characterization of Nickel Ferrite-SiO2/Ag Core/Shell Nanocomposites
Authors: Blanco-Esqueda I. G. , Ortega-Zarzosa G. , Martínez J. R. , Guerrero A. L.
Published: November 2015

Magnetic composites with silver nanoparticles bonded to their surface were successfully prepared using a simple chemical method. By means of a sol-gel technique, nickel ferrite nanoparticles have been prepared and coated with silica to control and avoid their magnetic agglomeration. The structural and magnetic properties of the nanoparticles were studied in function of the annealing temperature. Then, silver nanoparticles were incorporated by hydrolysis-condensation of tetraethyl orthosilicate, which contains silver nitrate on the surface of the nickel ferrite-SiO2core/shell. Samples were characterized using X-ray diffraction, IR spectroscopy, SEM, and magnetometry. Results show that the silica covered the nickel ferrite nanoparticles and the silver nanoparticles remain stable in the surface of the composite.
Primary Desmoplastic Melanoma of the Penis
Authors: Chu Julia T. , Liss Michael A. , Wu William W. , Dash Atreya , Lu Di
Published: November 2015

Desmoplastic melanomas are rare amelanotic melanomas that usually occur on skin with sun exposure. In this report, we present a 72-year-old man who presented with a desmoplastic melanoma of the penis. To our knowledge this represents the first reported case of primary desmoplastic melanoma of the penis. We discuss the pathologic differential and histologic evaluation.
Urea Unfolding Study ofE. coliAlanyl-tRNA Synthetase and Its Monomeric Variants Proves the Role of C-Terminal Domain in Stability
Authors: Banerjee Baisakhi , Banerjee Rajat
Published: November 2015

E. colialanyl-tRNA exists as a dimer in its native form and the C-terminal coiled-coil part plays an important role in the dimerization process. The truncated N-terminal containing the first 700 amino acids (1–700) forms a monomeric variant possessing similar aminoacylation activity like wild type. A point mutation in the C-terminal domain (G674D) also produces a monomeric variant with a fivefold reduced aminoacylation activity compared to the wild type enzyme. Urea induced denaturation of these monomeric mutants along with another alaRS variant (N461 alaRS) was studied together with the full-length enzyme using various spectroscopic techniques such as intrinsic tryptophan fluorescence, 1-anilino-8-naphthalene-sulfonic acid binding, near- and far-UV circular dichroism, and analytical ultracentrifugation. Aminoacylation activity assay after refolding from denatured state revealed that the monomeric mutants studied here were unable to regain their activity, whereas the dimeric full-length alaRS gets back similar activity as the native enzyme. This study indicates that dimerization is one of the key regulatory factors that is important in the proper folding and stability ofE. colialaRS.
Urokinase Receptor Promotes Skin Tumor Formation by Preventing Epithelial Cell Activation of Notch1
Authors: Mazzieri Roberta , Pietrogrande Giovanni , Gerasi Laura , Gandelli Alessandro , Colombo Piergiuseppe , Moi Davide , Brombin Chiara , Ambrosi Alessandro , Danese Silvio , Mignatti Paolo , Blasi Francesco , D'Alessio Silvia
Published: November 2015

The urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) has a well-established role in cancer progression, but it has been little studied at earlier stages of cancer initiation. Here, we show that uPAR deficiency in the mouse dramatically reduces susceptibility to the classical two-stage protocol of inflammatory skin carcinogenesis. uPAR genetic deficiency decreased papilloma formation and accelerated keratinocyte differentiation, effects mediated by Notch1 hyperactivation. Notably, Notch1 inhibition in uPAR-deficient mice rescued their susceptibility to skin carcinogenesis. Clinically, we found that human differentiated keratoacanthomas expressed low levels of uPAR and high levels of activated Notch1, with opposite effects in proliferating tumors, confirming the relevance of the observations in mice. Furthermore, we found that TACE-dependent activation of Notch1 in basal kerantinocytes was modulated by uPAR. Mechanistically, uPAR sequestered TACE within lipid rafts to prevent Notch1 activation, thereby promoting cell proliferation and tumor formation. Given that uPAR signaling is nonessential for normal epidermal homeostasis, our results argue that uPAR may present a promising disease-specific target for preventing skin cancer development. Cancer Res; 75(22); 4895–909. ©2015 AACR.
Amphiregulin Is a Critical Downstream Effector of Estrogen Signaling in ERα-Positive Breast Cancer
Authors: Peterson Esther A. , Jenkins Edmund C. , Lofgren Kristopher A. , Chandiramani Natasha , Liu Hui , Aranda Evelyn , Barnett Maryia , Kenny Paraic A.
Published: November 2015

Estrogen stimulation promotes epithelial cell proliferation in estrogen receptor (ERα)-positive breast cancer. Many ERα target genes have been enumerated, but the identities of the key effectors mediating the estrogen signal remain obscure. During mouse mammary gland development, the estrogen growth factor receptor (EGFR) ligand amphiregulin acts as an important stage-specific effector of estrogen signaling. In this study, we investigated the role of amphiregulin in breast cancer cell proliferation using human tissue samples and tumor xenografts in mice. Amphiregulin was enriched in ERα-positive human breast tumor cells and required for estrogen-dependent growth of MCF7 tumor xenografts. Furthermore, amphiregulin levels were suppressed in patients treated with endocrine therapy. Suppression of EGF receptor signaling appeared necessary for the therapeutic response in this setting. Our findings implicate amphiregulin as a critical mediator of the estrogen response in ERα-positive breast cancer, emphasizing the importance of EGF receptor signaling in breast tumor pathogenesis and therapeutic response. Cancer Res; 75(22); 4830–8. ©2015 AACR.
Androgen Receptor Modulation Optimized for Response (ARMOR) Phase I and II Studies: Galeterone for the Treatment of Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer
Authors: Montgomery Bruce , Eisenberger Mario A. , Rettig Matthew B. , Chu Franklin , Pili Roberto , Stephenson Joseph J. , Vogelzang Nicholas J. , Koletsky Alan J. , Nordquist Luke T. , Edenfield William J. , Mamlouk Khalid , Ferrante Karen J. , Taplin Mary-Ellen
Published: November 2015

Purpose: Galeterone is a selective, multitargeted agent that inhibits CYP17, antagonizes the androgen receptor (AR), and reduces AR expression in prostate cancer cells by causing an increase in AR protein degradation. These open-label phase I and II studies [Androgen Receptor Modulation Optimized for Response-1 (ARMOR1) and ARMOR2 part 1] evaluated the efficacy and safety of galeterone in patients with treatment-naive nonmetastatic or metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) and established a dose for further study.

Experimental Design: In ARMOR1, 49 patients received increasing doses (650–2,600 mg) of galeterone in capsule formulation; 28 patients in ARMOR2 part 1 received increasing doses (1,700–3,400 mg) of galeterone in tablet formulation for 12 weeks. Patients were evaluated biweekly for safety and efficacy, and pharmacokinetic parameters were assessed.

Results: In ARMOR1, across all doses, 49.0% (24/49) achieved a ≥30% decline in prostate-specific antigen (PSA; PSA30) and 22.4% (11/49) demonstrated a ≥50% PSA decline (PSA50). In ARMOR2 part 1, across all doses, PSA30 was 64.0% (16/25) and PSA50 was 48.0% (12/25). In the 2,550-mg dose cohort, PSA30 was 72.7% (8/11) and PSA50 was 54.5% (6/11). Galeterone was well tolerated; the most common adverse events were fatigue, increased liver enzymes, gastrointestinal events, and pruritus. Most were mild or moderate in severity and required no action and there were no apparent mineralocorticoid excess (AME) events.

Conclusions: The efficacy and safety from ARMOR1 and ARMOR2 part 1 and the pharmacokinetic results support the galeterone tablet dose of 2,550 mg/d for further study. Galeterone was well tolerated and demonstrated pharmacodynamic changes consistent with its selective, multifunctional AR signaling inhibition. Clin Cancer Res; 22(6); 1356–63. ©2015 AACR.
A Breast Tissue Protein Expression Profile Contributing to Early Parity-Induced Protection Against Breast Cancer
Authors: Gutierrez Christina Marie , Lopez-Valdez Rebecca , Subramani Ramadevi , Arumugam Arunkumar , Nandy Sushmita , Rajamanickam Venkatesh , Ravichandran Vignesh , Lakshmanaswamy Rajkumar
Published: November 2015

Background/Aims: Early parity reduces breast cancer risk, whereas, late parity and nulliparity increase breast cancer risk. Despite substantial efforts to understand the protective effects of early parity, the precise molecular circuitry responsible for these changes is not yet fully defined. Methods: Here, we have conducted the first study assessing protein expression profiles in normal breast tissue of healthy early parous, late parous, and nulliparous women. Breast tissue biopsies were obtained from 132 healthy parous and nulliparous volunteers. These samples were subjected to global protein expression profiling and immunohistochemistry. GeneSpring and MetaCore bioinformatics analysis software were used to identify protein expression profiles associated with early parity (low risk) versus late/nulliparity (high risk). Results: Early parity reduces expression of key proteins involved in mitogenic signaling pathways in breast tissue through down regulation of EGFR1/3, ESR1, AKT1, ATF, Fos, and SRC. Early parity is also characterized by greater genomic stability and reduced tissue inflammation based on differential expression of aurora kinases, p53, RAD52, BRCA1, MAPKAPK-2, ATF-1, ICAM1, and NF-kappaB compared to late and nulli parity. Conclusions: Early parity reduces basal cell proliferation in breast tissue, which translates to enhanced genomic stability, reduced cellular stress/inflammation, and thus reduced breast cancer risk.
Implications of BMI for the Prognosis of Gastric Cancer among the Japanese Population
Authors: Wada Tomoko , Kunisaki Chikara , Ono Hidetaka Andrew , Makino Hirochika , Akiyama Hirotoshi , Endo Itaru
Published: November 2015

Background: The clinical significance of body mass index (BMI) on the surgical outcomes in gastric cancer patients still remains controversial. Methods: The subjects included 427 patients who underwent gastrectomy between January 2001 and December 2005. The patients were principally divided into 3 groups on the basis of BMI: low (<18.5 kg/m2), normal (≥18.5-<25.0 kg/m2) and high (≥25.0 kg/m2). Results: The low-BMI patients had more advanced disease than the other patients. There were no statistically significant differences in the characteristics of the normal- and high-BMI patients. The operation time was longer in the high-BMI group, but there were no differences in terms of lymph node dissection and postoperative complications among these 3 groups. The overall survival and disease-specific survival of the low-BMI group were worse than the other 2 groups. These survival rates of high-BMI group tended to be better than those of the normal BMI group; however, it was not statistically different. A multivariate analysis of these survival rate showed that a low BMI was an independent predictor of a poor prognosis. Conclusions: A low-BMI was an independent factor of poor prognosis for overall and disease-specific survivals after surgery in Japanese patients with gastric cancer. A high-BMI was not a risk factor.
Significance of Subcategory Atypia of Undetermined Significance/Follicular Lesion of Undetermined Significance Showing Both Cytologic and Architectural Atypia in Thyroid Aspiration Cytology
Authors: Jung Yoon Yang , Jung Sejin , Lee Hyun-Woo , Oh Young Lyun
Published: November 2015

Objective: The Bethesda System for Reporting Thyroid Cytopathology is now widely used as the standard reporting system for fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC). Recently, several studies have attempted to subcategorize the atypia of undetermined significance (AUS)/follicular lesion of undetermined significance (FLUS) category. We aimed to analyze the significance of a subcategory of AUS/FLUS showing both cytologic and architectural atypia (AUS/FLUS-C&A). Study Design: From April 2011 to May 2014, 18,091 patients underwent FNAC at Samsung Medical Center. For those patients we analyzed the clinical significance of the subcategory AUS/FLUS-C&A. Results: One hundred and sixty-three patients were diagnosed as AUS/FLUS-C&A. Of 71 cases with subsequent histologic confirmation, 47 (66.2%) were diagnosed with papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). Of the 47 PTC cases, 32 (68.1%) were follicular variant-PTC. A significant difference in the PTC rate (58.3 vs. 82.6%) and PTC size (average: 1.8 and 0.9 cm) was noted between circumscribed lesions and infiltrative lesions on ultrasonography. Conclusion: We demonstrated that the subcategory of AUS/FLUS-C&A has considerable clinical implications and one should be aware of the cytological and ultrasonographic features.
Growth in Boys with 45,X/46,XY Mosaicism: Effect of Growth Hormone Treatment on Statural Growth
Authors: Bertelloni Silvano , Baroncelli Giampiero I. , Massart Francesco , Toschi Benedetta
Published: November 2015

45,X/46,XY mosaicism is a rare sex chromosome disorder of sex development. Short stature is a main feature of boys with this condition. Different causes likely contribute to growth impairment. Growth hormone (GH) has been administered to treat short stature in boys with 45,X/46,XY mosaicism, but conflicting data are available. Here, spontaneous growth patterns as well as short- and long-term follow-up studies during GH therapy in these patients are reviewed. Short- and mid-term data showed an improvement of the growth pattern in GH-treated boys, mainly when hormonal therapy was started early, while long-term follow-up demonstrated similar adult heights in GH-treated and untreated patients. Individual biological factors (e.g. different chromosome constitution, different mosaicism among various tissues, impaired pubertal growth spurt), non-homogeneous GH doses and different ages at start of therapy may contribute to the variable results. Thus, early GH therapy at pharmacological doses may improve the growth pattern of short boys with 45,X/46,XY mosaicism, but data on adult height are disappointing. Evaluation of larger patient samples treated by homogeneous doses and long-term follow-up studies assessing adult height and safety are needed to reach definitive conclusions on GH therapy in boys with 45,X/46,XY mosaicism.
pCO2 Reveals Arteriovenous Fistula Recirculation in Bicarbonate Hemodialysis (RecirCO2lation Test)
Authors: Marano Marco , Borrelli Silvio , Zamboli Pasquale
Published: November 2015

We propose arterial pCO2 as test to discover vascular access recirculation (VAR) in bicarbonate hemodialysis (HD). We selected 30 HD patients with a ascertained well-functioning arteriovenous fistula (Control). In these patients, we artificially created VAR through the reversion of HD lines (Reversed). Results of the arterial gas analysis were collected at the start of HD (baseline) and after 5 min. At baseline, no differences of pH, pCO2 and HCO3 were found between the 2 groups. At 5 min, pCO2 increased from 38.1 ± 3.3 to 47.2 ± 6.3 mm Hg (p < 0.0001) in Reversed, whereas no increase was found in Control (p = 0.052). Areas under curve of pCO2-increase was 0.96 (0.91-1.00) and pCO2 at 5 min 0.92 (0.85-0.98). pCO2-increase >4.5 mm Hg showed sensitivity 86.7% and specificity 100% with positive predictive value (PPV) 100% and negative predictive value (NPV) 89%. A pCO2 value above 43 mm Hg at 5 min showed sensitivity 80%, specificity 90%, PPV 89%, NPV 82%. pCO2 increase >4.5 mm Hg and/or pCO2 at 5 min >43 mm Hg may accurately detect VAR.
Central Precocious Puberty: Adult Height in Girls Treated with Quarterly or Monthly Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone Analog Triptorelin
Authors: Bertelloni Silvano , Massart Francesco , Einaudi Silvia , Wasniewska Malgorzata , Miccoli Mario , Baroncelli Giampiero I.
Published: November 2015

Background/Aims: Treatment with quarterly gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) analogs may improve compliance and optimize outcome in girls with central precocious puberty (CPP), but long-term comparative data between the new and the monthly formulations are very scarce. Methods: A group of girls with idiopathic CPP (n = 13; age 7.9 ± 0.6 years) were treated from the beginning with quarterly triptorelin (11.25 mg/90 days) and followed up to the achievement of adult height (AH). A group of girls with idiopathic CPP (n = 12; age 8.0 ± 0.6 years) treated with monthly triptorelin (3.75 mg/28 days) served as controls. Results: The AH (157.1 ± 4.9 cm) of girls treated with quarterly triptorelin was not significantly different from their mid-parental height (159.7 ± 3.8 cm) and significantly increased in comparison with predicted AH (average tables) at the beginning of GnRH analog therapy. The AH of girls treated with quarterly triptorelin was not significantly different in comparison with that of girls treated with the monthly formulation (158.1 ± 6.6 cm; mid-parental height 158.4 ± 5.0 cm). Conclusion: Treatment with quarterly triptorelin formulation permitted to achieve an AH adequate for mid-parental height in girls with CPP. Significant differences of AH between girls with CPP treated with quarterly or monthly formulations were not found.
Virtual Clinical Trials, an Essential Step in Increasing the Effectiveness of the Drug Development Process
Authors: Lehrach Hans
Published: November 2015

Every patient is different - his/her genomes, environment, disease history and exposure to drugs. Tumours, in particular, are often heterogeneous in their genetic make-up and their response to drugs, both within and between samples. Classic clinical trials basically ignore this complexity or, as in stratified medicine, attempt to reduce it to an analysis of a small number of still enormously heterogeneous patient groups. Medicine, however, is not the only area in which we are faced with such complex ‘n = 1' (every individual case is different) situations. The weather we experience today, characterised by tens of terabytes of measurement data, has never occurred before and will never occur again. Similar to the situation in medicine, we cannot predict the development of today's weather by looking for identical weather conditions in the past, and we cannot, in real life, test drugs for every individual patient in clinical trials with large numbers of biologically identical patient replicas. We can, however, do it with the help of models duplicating the ‘n = 1' situation on the computer, an approach which will also have to be used in both patient treatment and prevention as well as drug development in the future if we do not want to continue to make dangerous and expensive mistakes in real life.
O Código Civil brasileiro na disciplina da pesquisa com seres humanos
Authors: Tomasevicius Filho Eduardo
Published: November 2015

Este artigo tem por objetivo relacionar as normas éticas sobre pesquisas com seres humanos com o Código Civil brasileiro, lei que trata de diversos aspectos relacionados à proteção da pessoa humana. Em geral, os pesquisadores da área médica desconhecem a legislação civil, não se dando conta das consequências jurídicas dos erros causados pelas pesquisas realizadas. Apresenta-se, no início, um resumo da disciplina ética sobre pesquisas com seres humanos, com o Código de Nuremberg e a Declaração de Helsinque, além da disciplina infralegal no Brasil, realizada pelo Conselho Nacional de Saúde. Em seguida, com o intuito de demonstrar a inexistência de um vazio legislativo nessa matéria, analisaram-se os aspectos do Código Civil relativos às pesquisas com seres humanos, como a personalidade jurídica, a capacidade de agir, os direitos da personalidade e a responsabilidade civil.
Judicialização da saúde e contribuições da Teoria de Justiça de Norman Daniels
Authors: Machado Teresa Robichez
Published: November 2015

A temática da judicialização da saúde gera discussão em várias áreas de conhecimento, com contribuições, em especial, de juristas, médicos e gestores públicos. Pela diversidade dos atores envolvidos, a gama de temas tratados é farta. Algumas teses destacam os argumentos positivos da judicialização da saúde, outras defendem a necessidade de se estabelecerem critérios ou limitações à atuação judicial. Outros estudos, ainda, ressaltam preocupações com as possíveis consequências negativas desse processo. No intuito de fundamentar uma análise sobre o tema, este artigo pretende realizar uma revisão bibliográfica e adota o instrumental teórico de Norman Daniels, que propõe uma reflexão sobre as necessidades de saúde e o modo como podemos atendê-las, a importância moral da saúde e a desigualdade de saúde considerada como injusta. Conclusivamente, verifica-se que algumas das teses defendidas no debate nacional não se sustentam perante os dados apresentados. A partir do pensamento de Daniels sobre a Teoria de Justiça voltada às questões de saúde, extrai-se do debate brasileiro que não há muitos conflitos quanto à importância moral especial do tema; além disso, há um silêncio quanto ao segundo aspecto da teoria, que se refere à reflexão sobre quando uma desigualdade de saúde pode ser considerada injusta. Propõe-se conclusivamente que a teoria de Daniels acrescente dois importantes pontos ao debate nacional. O primeiro relaciona-se à necessidade de situar os problemas de saúde dentro de uma reflexão maior sobre políticas públicas. E o segundo, quanto à necessidade de que a fixação de limites para o atendimento de demandas de saúde, encaixa-se em uma política pública que vise a melhor atender às necessidades da população, não sendo uma simples avaliação de custo-benefício.
Pediatric Pulmonary Hypertension
Authors: Abman Steven H. , Hansmann Georg , Archer Stephen L. , Ivy D. Dunbar , Adatia Ian , Chung Wendy K. , Hanna Brian D. , Rosenzweig Erika B. , Raj J. Usha , Cornfield David , Stenmark Kurt R. , Steinhorn Robin , Thébaud Bernard , Fineman Jeffrey R. , Kuehne Titus , Feinstein Jeffrey A. , Friedberg Mark K. , Earing Michael , Barst Robyn J. , Keller Roberta L. , Kinsella John P. , Mullen Mary , Deterding Robin , Kulik Thomas , Mallory George , Humpl Tilman , Wessel David L.
Published: November 2015

Pulmonary hypertension is associated with diverse cardiac, pulmonary, and systemic diseases in neonates, infants, and older children and contributes to significant morbidity and mortality. However, current approaches to caring for pediatric patients with pulmonary hypertension have been limited by the lack of consensus guidelines from experts in the field. In a joint effort from the American Heart Association and American Thoracic Society, a panel of experienced clinicians and clinician-scientists was assembled to review the current literature and to make recommendations on the diagnosis, evaluation, and treatment of pediatric pulmonary hypertension. This publication presents the results of extensive literature reviews, discussions, and formal scoring of recommendations for the care of children with pulmonary hypertension.
Adaptation on an Agricultural Frontier: Socio-Ecological Profiles of Great Plains Settlement, 1870–1940
Authors: Cunfer Geoff , Krausmann Fridolin
Published: November 2015

Systematic evaluation of agricultural settlements on the Great Plains, employing census data and socio-ecological metabolism methods drawn from sustainability science and agro-ecology, reveals that farmers, driven by personal ambition and national incentives, not only changed their environment; they also adjusted to it in more ways than previously supposed. The “socio-ecological profiles” used in this analysis of the Great Plains are applicable to any agricultural region where governments collected the requisite census data.
The Birth of Free-Market Environmentalism
Authors: Nicholson Simon
Published: November 2015

Around the world, particularly in the United States, debates about environmental protection have become ever-more fractious and polarized, following a radical shift in the collective understanding of environmental challenges and the appropriate responses to them. Whereas in the 1970s and the 1980s, environmental protection took the form of government-led action and intergovernmental treaty making, today it comes primarily under the heading of market capitalism and technological optimism. Sabin’s The Bet traces the growing politicization of, and free-market triumphalism around, environmental matters since the late 1960s in the context of the highly public wager between Paul Ehrlich and Julian Simon that has become the stuff of legend in environmental circles.
The Story of the Zeal of Phinehas and Congregational Weeping at Bethel
Authors: Baruchi-Unna Amitai
Published: November 2015

This article suggests taking the story of Phinehas’s zeal (Num 25:6-13) as having originated at the sanctuary of Bethel where its setting was to explain the appointment of the local priesthood. It is further suggested adding this story, that depicts the Israelite congregation as weeping, to the group of traditions that relate weeping to the city of Bethel (Gen 36:8; Judg 20:23, 26; 21:2; Hos 12:5; Judg 2:4 [lxx]; Mi 1:10). Added to this group, and read in its context, the Phinehas story strengthens the impression that weeping at Bethel was congregational and practiced as a salient part of the local congregational custom.
Synura korshikovii sp. nov. (Chrysophyceae, Synurales), a new species from Ukraine
Authors: Kapustin Dmitry , Gusev Evgeniy
Published: November 2015

A new species, Synura korshikovii sp. nov., is described from water reservoirs in the vicinities of Polisky Nature Reserve, Northern Ukraine, based on scale morphology studied by means of transmission and scanning electron microscopy. This species has three types of scales: spine-bearing oval body scales, spine-bearing prolonged transition scales and spineless ovate or circular caudal scales. All scale types are covered with hexagonal reticulum. The spine is clavate or cylindrical with flat apex terminating in a few rows of papillae-like teeth.
Dianthus burdurensis (Caryophyllaceae), a new species from South-western Turkey
Authors: Hamzaoğlu Ergin , Koç Murat
Published: November 2015

Dianthus burdurensis is here described as a new species from Burdur province (Turkey). Its distribution, habitat, and IUCN category are also given, as well as a macro- and micromorphological comparison with the related species D. masmenaeus Boiss.
Diversity of Hemerodromia Meigen, 1822 (Diptera: Empididae) in Thailand,
the tip of a tropical iceberg?
Authors: PLANT ADRIAN R.
Published: November 2015

The genus Hemerodromia in Thailand is revised and full descriptions and keys are provided for all 25 species. Twenty new species are recognised: H. alphalutea sp. nov., H. anisoserrata sp. nov., H. anomala sp. nov., H. attenuata sp. nov., H betalutea sp. nov., H. conspecta sp. nov., H. deltalutea sp. nov., H. deminuta sp. nov., H. demissa sp. nov., H. epsilutea sp. nov., H. etalutea sp. nov., H. gammalutea sp. nov., H. isochita sp. nov., H. namtokhinpoon sp. nov., H. ocellata sp. nov., H. oriens sp. nov., H. phahompokensis sp. nov., H. songsee sp. nov., H. systoechon sp. nov. and H. zetalutea sp. nov. Five species known previously from China are recognised: H. acutata Grootaert, Yang & Saigusa, H. flaviventris Yang & Yang, H. furcata Grootaert, Yang & Saigusa, H. fusca Yang & Yang and H. yunnanensis Yang & Yang. Hemerodromia songsee sp. nov. and H. fusca Yang & Yang are also recorded from Vietnam. Distribution maps of all species are presented. Four categories of distribution patterns of apparently endemic species were identified in (1) the northern mountains (2) the northern lowlands (3) the south, and (4) east of Thailand. Some lowland species with wide distributions in eastern Asia were interpreted as ‘old Oriental elements’. Other montane species have wide distributions extending between the Himalayas and southeast China. Three lowland species have an apparently obligate association with alkaline, mineralised water courses where tufa deposition was evident. Tufa-linked assemblages of Hemerodromia may indicate a previously unrecognised and potentially diverse habitat for aquatic Empididae in Southeast Asia. Major historical factors determining contemporary distribution patterns were analysed in reference to a Climate History Model (Plant et al. 2012) and included (i) latitudinal migrations in response to climatically induced changes in the distribution of habitat (ii) radiation of high-elevation endemics from more widespread lowland forms (iii) historical connectivity and fragmentation of hydrological networks with possible marooning of taxa in stable tufa spring systems (iv) persistence of lowland forms in climatically ‘buffered’ stream environments during progressive aridification. Analysis of sampling methodology concluded that hand collecting was 2,000X more efficient at collecting numbers of Hemerodromia with a species discovery rate 775X greater than that with passive trapping methods (Malaise, flight interception and pan traps etc.) although both approaches are needed for full assessment of species richness. Consideration of the climatic, ecological and biogeographic complexity of tropical Southeast Asia suggests that an extremely rich Hemerodromia fauna awaits discovery in the region.
Description of two ubiquitous species of Desmosomatidae (Isopoda: Asellota) from the Northwest Pacific Basin east of the Kuril-Kamchatka Trench
Authors: GOLOVAN OLGA A.
Published: November 2015

Two new species of Desmosomatidae, Eugerdella kurabyssalis sp. nov. and Parvochelus serricaudis sp. nov., are described from the Northwest Pacific open abyssal plain to the east of the Kuril-Kamchatka Trench. These species constituted about one fourth of all collected desmosomatid specimens of the KuramBio expedition (2012), indicating it may be the most abundant species of the family in this area. E. kurabyssalis sp. nov. is rather similar to E. minutula Mezhov, 1986 and E. theodori Brix, 2007, resembling them in the shape of its body segments and appendages, including the absence of the mandibular palp and morphology of the pereopod I. The new species can be distinguished from the mentioned species by the number of cusps of the mandibular incisor process and lacinia mobilis, the relatively stouter pereopods and different setation of the pereopod I ischium. P. serricaudis sp. nov. is the second species of the genus Parvochelus Brix & Kihara, 2015 (see Brix et al. 2015) and the first record of the genus from the Pacific Ocean and from the Northern Hemisphere. P. serricaudis sp. nov. can be distinguished from P. russus Brix & Kihara, 2015 by its relatively stouter pereopod I, presence of the mandibular palp and the shape of the maxilliped palp articles and female operculum. A discussion of the taxonomic characters and the modified diagnosis of the genus Parvochelus are presented.