bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Functionalized Silver‐Ion‐Mediated α‐dC/β‐dC Hybrid Base Pairs with Exceptional Stability: α‐d‐5‐Iodo‐2′‐Deoxycytidine and Its Octadiynyl Derivative in Metal DNA
Authors: Müller Sebastian Lars , Zhou Xinglong , Leonard Peter , Korzhenko Oxana , Daniliuc Constantin , Seela Frank 
Published: December 2018

AbstractSilver‐mediated α‐dC–Ag+–β‐dC hybrid base pairs decorated with 5‐iodo‐ or 5‐octadiynyl residues are well accommodated in duplex DNA. A strong Tm increase and favorable thermodynamic data for duplex DNA were observed after addition of silver ions. The phenomenon is particularly obvious when both nucleobases of the base pairs are functionalized. Neither the position of the base pair, nor the type of 5‐substituent had a negative influence. On the contrary, functionalization of conventional silver‐mediated β‐dC–Ag+–β‐dC homo base pairs showed a negative impact induced by the bulky substituents. To this end, cytosine modified 12‐mer oligodeoxynucleotides were prepared by solid‐phase synthesis employing new α‐anomeric 2′‐deoxycytidine phosphoramidites. A multigram scale synthesis was developed for 5‐iodo‐α‐d‐2′‐deoxycytidine (1) employing the direct glycosylation of cytosine with Hoffer's α‐d‐halogenose followed by separation of anomeric DMT nucleosides. Regarding base‐pair stability and functionalization silver‐mediated α/β‐dC hybrid base pairs were found to be superior to β/β‐dC homo pairs. According to their extraordinary properties, they might find applications in DNA diagnostics, material science, or nanotechnology.
Metal‐Organic Framework Derived Hierarchical Co/C@V2O3 Hollow Spheres as a Thin, Lightweight, and High‐Efficiency Electromagnetic Wave Absorber
Authors: Zhou Chenhui , Wu Chen , Liu Dong , Yan Mi 
Published: December 2018

AbstractDeveloping high‐efficiency electromagnetic (EM) wave absorbing materials with light weight, thin thickness, and wide absorption bandwidth is highly desirable for ever‐developing electronic and telecommunication devices. Herein, hierarchical metal–organic framework (MOF)‐derived Co/C@V2O3 hollow spheres were designed and synthesized through a facile hydrothermal, precipitation, and pyrolysis method. The composite exhibits both excellent impedance matching and light weight due to the rational combination of hollow V2O3 spheres and porous Co/C. Additionally, multiple components enable a large dielectric and magnetic loss of the composite, giving rise to enhanced EM wave absorption performance with a maximum reflection loss (RL) of −40.1 dB and a broad effective absorption bandwidth (RL < −10 dB) of 4.64 GHz at a small thickness of 1.5 mm. This work provides insights into the design of hierarchical hollow and porous composites as thin and lightweight EM wave absorbers with efficient absorption, which can also be extended to energy storage, catalysis, and sensing.
The prevalence of human papillomavirus in oropharyngeal cancer is increasing regardless of sex or race, and the influence of sex and race on survival is modified by human papillomavirus tumor status
Authors: Faraji Farhoud , Rettig Eleni M. , Tsai Hua‐Ling , El Asmar Margueritta , Fung Nicholas , Eisele David W. , Fakhry Carole 
Published: December 2018

BackgroundThe purpose of this study was to evaluate the influence of sex and race/ethnicity upon prevalence trends of human papillomavirus (HPV) in oropharyngeal cancer (OPC) and survival after OPC.MethodThis was a cohort study of patients included in the United States National Cancer Database who had been diagnosed with OPC between 2010 and 2015. Outcomes were HPV status of tumor specimens and overall survival. Sex‐ and race‐stratified trends in HPV prevalence were estimated using generalized linear modeling. The influence of sex, race, and HPV tumor status on overall survival was compared by Kaplan‐Meier method and Cox Proportional Hazards models.ResultsThis analysis included 20,886 HPV‐positive and 10,364 HPV‐negative OPC patients. The prevalence of HPV‐positive tumors was higher among men (70.6%) than women (56.3%) and increased significantly over time at a rate of 3.5% and 3.2% per year among men and women, respectively. The prevalence of HPV‐positive tumors was highest among whites (70.2%), followed by Hispanics (61.3%), Asians (55.8%), and blacks (46.3%). Blacks and Hispanics experienced significantly more rapid increases in prevalence of HPV‐positive tumors over time compared with whites (6.5% vs 5.6% vs 3.2% per year, respectively). In HPV‐positive OPC, neither sex nor race/ethnicity was associated with survival among patients with HPV‐positive OPC. In contrast, for HPV‐negative OPC, risk of death was significantly higher for women versus men (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR], 1.17; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.08‐1.26) and blacks versus whites (aHR, 1.21; 95% CI, 1.10‐1.33).ConclusionThe prevalence of HPV‐positive tumors is increasing for all sex and race/ethnicity groups in the United States. Sex and race are independently associated with survival for HPV‐negative but not HPV‐positive OPC.
C‐reactive protein and its association with depression in patients receiving treatment for metastatic lung cancer
Authors: McFarland Daniel C. , Shaffer Kelly , Breitbart William , Rosenfeld Barry , Miller Andrew H. 
Published: December 2018

BackgroundDepression is highly prevalent in lung cancer. Although there is a known association between inflammation and depression, this relationship has not been examined in patients with lung cancer who undergo treatment with immune and other targeted drug therapies. Peripheral blood C‐reactive protein (CRP), a marker of systemic inflammation, may help identify metastatic lung cancer patients with inflammation‐associated depression.MethodPatients with metastatic lung cancer undergoing treatment were evaluated for depression using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Inflammation (CRP and CRP cutoffs ≥1 and ≥3 mg/mL) and demographic and treatment variables were analyzed for association with depression.ResultsOne hundred nine consecutive participants exhibited an average plasma CRP concentration of 1.79 mg/mL (median, 0.75 mg/mL [standard deviation, 2.5 mg/mL), and 20.7% had a CRP concentration of ≥3.0 mg/mL; 23.9% met depression screening criteria (HADS ≥8). A log transformation of CRP was significantly correlated with depression severity (r = 0.47, P < .001). CRP was the only covariate to predict depression severity (P = .008) in a multivariate model including lung cancer disease subtype and type of systemic treatment. Receiver operating characteristic analysis indicated that CRP had moderate predictive accuracy in identifying elevated depression (area under the curve = 0.74). A cutoff of CRP ≥3.0 generated high specificity (88%) but identified only 50% of those with elevated depression.ConclusionElevated CRP is associated with depression in patients with metastatic lung cancer. Thus, CRP may identify a subset of lung cancer patients with inflammation‐induced depression and may be useful in predicting response to treatments that target inflammation or its downstream mediators on the brain.
Validation of the 2017 European LeukemiaNet classification for acute myeloid leukemia with NPM1 and FLT3‐internal tandem duplication genotypes
Authors: Boddu Prajwal C. , Kadia Tapan M. , Garcia‐Manero Guillermo , Cortes Jorge , Alfayez Mansour , Borthakur Gautam , Konopleva Marina , Jabbour Elias J. , Daver Naval G. , DiNardo Courtney D. , Naqvi Kiran , Yilmaz Musa , Short Nicholas J. , Pierce Sherry , Kantarjian Hagop M. , Ravandi Farhad 
Published: December 2018

AbstractBackgroundThe revised 2017 European LeukemiaNet (ELN) classification (ELN‐2017) of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) divides patients into 3 prognostic risk categories, with additional factors such as the fms‐like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3)–internal tandem duplication (ITD) allele ratio (AR) considered for risk stratification. To the best of the authors' knowledge, the prognostic usefulness of ELN‐2017 in comparison with ELN‐2010 in younger patients with AML has not been validated to date.MethodsThe authors performed a retrospective study on patients aged <60 years who received idarubicin plus cytarabine (IA)–based induction chemotherapy for newly diagnosed AML.ResultsAccording to ELN‐2017 criteria, the number of patients in the favorable (Fav), intermediate (Int), and adverse (Adv) risk categories was 192 patients (27%), 331 patients (46%), and 192 patients (27%), respectively. Overall survival probabilities at 5 years in the Fav, Int, and Adv groups were 57%, 37%, and 18%, respectively. In comparison, the 5‐year overall survival probabilities in the Fav (169 patients), intermediate (IR)‐1 (80 patients), IR‐2 (306 patients), and Adv (160 patients) ELN‐2010 categories were 59%, 32%, 40%, and 14%, respectively. Although ELN‐2010 historically distinguishes prognosis into IR‐1 and IR‐2 categories in younger patients, this difference was nullified in the current study cohort. When comparing patients with a low FLT3‐ITD AR with those with a high FLT3‐ITD AR, no significant differences in survival were noted among patients with nucleophosmin 1 (NPM1)‐mutated AML (P = .28) or wild‐type NPM1 (P = .35), and in those treated with IA alone (P = .79) or those treated with IA and a FLT3 inhibitor (P = .10).ConclusionsThe ELN‐2017 more accurately distinguishes prognosis in patients with newly diagnosed AML. The lack of prognostic significance for the FLT3‐ITD AR needs further evaluation in different treatment settings.
Tolerance and efficacy of BRAF plus MEK inhibition in patients with melanoma who previously have received programmed cell death protein 1‐based therapy
Authors: Saab Karim R. , Mooradian Meghan J. , Wang Daniel Y. , Chon Jeewon , Xia Cathy Y. , Bialczak Angelica , Abbate Kelly T. , Menzies Alexander M. , Johnson Douglas B. , Sullivan Ryan J. , Shoushtari Alexander N. 
Published: December 2018

AbstractBackgroundCombined BRAF and MEK inhibition (BRAF‐MEK) is a standard therapy for patients with BRAF V600–mutant melanoma, but to the authors’ knowledge, the tolerance, adverse event (AE) profile, and efficacy have not been well defined in the post–programmed cell death protein 1 (PD‐1) setting.MethodsPatients with BRAF V600–mutant melanoma who received combined BRAF‐MEK after prior PD‐1–based therapy were assembled from 4 tertiary care centers in the United States and Australia. Dose modification was defined as a treatment break, dose reduction, or intermittent dosing. Rates of hospitalization and discontinuation due to AEs were collected, and overall survival (OS) was calculated using Kaplan‐Meier methods from the time of the initiation of BRAF‐MEK therapy.ResultsA total of 78 patients were identified as having received a BRAF‐MEK regimen at a median of 34 days after the last dose of PD‐1–based therapy. The majority of patients (86%) received the combination of dabrafenib and trametinib. Approximately 80% of patients had American Joint Committee on Cancer M1c or M1d disease. Sixty‐five regimens (83%) had ≥1 dose modification. The median time to the first dose modification was 14 days; 86% occurred within 90 days and 71% involved pyrexia. Dose modifications were more common in patients receiving BRAF‐MEK <90 days after the last dose of PD‐1 and who were not receiving steroids. Of the dose modifications, 25 (31%) led to an AE‐related hospitalization. Among 55 BRAF‐naive patients, the median time receiving BRAF‐MEK therapy was 5.8 months and the median OS was 15.6 months.ConclusionsThe majority of patients receiving BRAF‐MEK inhibition after PD‐1 therapy require dose interruptions, and a significant minority require hospitalization for AEs. In this higher risk population, the median time receiving therapy and OS may be inferior to those presented in published phase 3 trials.
A randomized, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled trial of probiotics to reduce the severity of oral mucositis induced by chemoradiotherapy for patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma
Authors: Jiang Chunling , Wang Huan , Xia Chaofei , Dong Qing , Chen En , Qiu Yang , Su Yong , Xie Honghui , Zeng Lei , Kuang Jie , Ao Fan , Gong Xiaochang , Li Jingao , Chen Tingtao 
Published: December 2018

BackgroundThe objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of a probiotic combination on the severity of oral mucositis (OM), which is a common, unpreventable complication induced by radiochemotherapy in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma who undergo concurrent radiochemotherapy (CCRT).MethodsEligible patients (n = 99) with locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma who were undergoing CCRT were randomly assigned (2:1) to receive a probiotic combination or placebo during radiochemotherapy, and the incidence of severe OM (grade 3 or higher) was the primary endpoint.ResultsPatients taking the probiotic combination showed a significant reduction in the severity of OM. The incidences of grade 0, 1, 2, and 3 OM in the placebo group and the probiotic combination group were 0% and 12.07%, 0% and 55.17%, 54.29% and 17.24%, and 45.71% and 15.52%, respectively. Furthermore, CCRT greatly lowered the number of immune cells, whereas the probiotic combination markedly lowered the reduction rates of CD4+ T cells (76.59% vs 52.85%; P < .05), CD8+ T cells (62.94% vs 29.76%; P < .05), and CD3+ T cells (69.72% vs 45.49%; P < .05) in an A‐CCRT‐P (after treatment with radiotherapy plus chemotherapy plus the probiotic combination) group. High‐throughput sequencing results indicated that CCRT had obviously disturbed the intestinal diversity of patients in an A‐CCRT (after treatment with radiotherapy plus chemotherapy plus a placebo) group, whereas the probiotic combination distinctly restored the microbial diversity in the A‐CCRT‐P group toward that of healthy people and a B‐CCRT‐P (before the treatment of radiotherapy plus chemotherapy plus the probiotic combination) group.ConclusionsA probiotic combination significantly enhances the immune response of patients and reduces the severity of OM through modification of gut microbiota.
Mediolateral and dorsoventral projection patterns of cutaneous afferents within transverse planes of the mouse spinal dorsal horn
Authors: Odagaki Kaoru , Kameda Hiroshi , Hayashi Toshihiro , Sakurai Masaki 
Published: December 2018

AbstractThe central projection patterns of cutaneous afferents from the forelimb and shoulder of mice were studied in the spinal dorsal horn after intracutaneous injection of AlexaFluor 488‐conjugated and/or 594‐conjugated cholera toxin subunit B (CTB). Based on their dermatomes, the following eight skin regions are thought to be innervated by spinal nerves from the sixth to eighth cervical spinal nerve roots: the dorsal surface of the shoulder, brachium, proximal forearm, distal forearm, hand, palmar surface of the second and third digits, and palm. The termination areas of afferents from the dorsal surface of the shoulder and forearm were narrow, distributed in a dorsoventral direction, and aligned in order from lateral to medial within the sixth to eighth cervical dorsal horns. By contrast, the termination areas of the palmar surface of the second and third digits largely overlapped. We also injected CTB into the dorsal surface of the hindlimb and pelvic regions. Skin regions there are thought to be innervated by nerves from the third to fifth lumbar spinal nerve roots. The observed projection patterns in the lumbar dorsal horn were similar to the cervical patterns. Injection of a mixture of CTB and wheat‐germ agglutinin‐conjugated horseradish peroxidase (WGA‐HRP), which are thought to label Aβ and Aδ/C fibers, respectively, showed segregated termination areas of CTB‐ and WGA‐HRP‐labeled afferents. Moreover, alignment of the termination areas was in the dorsoventral direction. These results suggest there is fine somatotopic (mediolateral axis) and modality‐specific (dorsoventral axis) organization within the spinal dorsal horn.
Ultrahigh field imaging of myelin disease models: Toward specific markers of myelin integrity?
Authors: Petiet Alexandra , Adanyeguh Isaac , Aigrot Marie‐Stéphane , Poirion Emilie , Nait‐Oumesmar Brahim , Santin Mathieu , Stankoff Bruno 
Published: December 2018

AbstractSpecific magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) markers of myelin are critical for the evaluation and development of regenerative therapies for demyelinating diseases. Several MRI methods have been developed for myelin imaging, based either on acquisition schemes or on mathematical modeling of the signal. They generally showed good sensitivity but validation for specificity toward myelin is still warranted to allow a reliable interpretation in an in vivo complex pathological environment. Experimental models of dys−/demyelination are characterized by various levels of myelin disorders, axonal damage, gliosis and inflammation, and offer the opportunity for powerful correlative studies between imaging metrics and histology. Here, we review how ultrahigh field MRI markers have been correlated with histology in these models and provide insights into the trends for future developments of MRI tools in human myelin diseases. To this end, we present the biophysical basis of the main MRI methods for myelin imaging based on T1, T2, water diffusion, and magnetization transfer signal, the characteristics of animal models used and the outcomes of histological validations. To date such studies are limited, and demonstrate partial correlations with immunohistochemical and electron microscopy measures of myelin. These MRI metrics also often correlate with axons, glial, or inflammatory cells in models where axonal degeneration or inflammation occur as potential confounding factors. Therefore, the MRI markers' specificity for myelin is still perfectible and future developments should improve mathematical modeling of the MR signal based on more complex systems or provide multimodal approaches to better disentangle the biological processes underlying the MRI metrics.
Analysis of serum macrophage migration inhibitory factor and D‐dopachrome tautomerase in systemic sclerosis
Authors: Vincent Fabien B , Lin Emily , Sahhar Joanne , Ngian Gene‐Siew , Kandane‐Rathnayake Rangi , Mende Rachel , Hoi Alberta Y , Morand Eric F , Lang Tali , Harris James 
Published: December 2018

AbstractObjectivesMacrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) and D‐dopachrome tautomerase (DDT), members of the same cytokine superfamily, are linked to the pathogenesis of a number of inflammatory diseases. The aim of this study was to investigate their clinical relevance in systemic sclerosis (SSc).MethodsSerum MIF and DDT were quantified in 105 SSc patients by ELISA and levels compared to healthy controls (HC) (47) and patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) (184). Clinical parameters included organ involvement, serum laboratory markers and results of pulmonary function tests, and overall disease activity assessed using the European Scleroderma Trials and Research group (EUSTAR) activity index.ResultsThere was no significant difference in serum DDT concentrations between patients with SSc and HC. However, serum MIF was significantly increased in SSc compared to both HC and SLE cohorts. Serum MIF was increased in SSc patients with low forced vital capacity (FVC) and was also associated with the use of angiotensin II receptor blockers and beta blockers in SSc, confirmed after adjusting for the presence of systemic hypertension and low FVC. Serum DDT was significantly higher in SSc patients with low FEV1 and negatively correlated with EUSTAR score, particularly in patients with limited disease.ConclusionAlthough not significantly linked to specific clinical parameters, serum MIF was significantly higher in SSc patients than in HC and SLE patients, suggesting a fundamental role for MIF in SSc. DDT, while closely related to MIF, did not show a similar expression profile, suggesting functional differences between these molecules.
A stable and reliable data dissemination scheme based on intelligent forwarding in VANETs
Authors: Chahal Manisha , Harit Sandeep 
Published: December 2018

SummaryVehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) have gained incredible attention because of their applications in safety, commercial uses, and traffic management. However, the dynamic topology changes caused by the high speed of vehicles raise many challenges for the effective data dissemination in vehicular applications. In this paper, with the objective to solve the problem of frequent disconnection during data delivery, we propose a novel, intelligent forwarding–based stable and reliable data dissemination scheme. First, link stability is described mathematically, by which vehicle chooses the next forwarding node. Then, a greedy algorithm is presented to transmit the data from source to destination. A separate recovery algorithm is also designed to resolve the intermediate link breakage problem. The performance of the proposed method is analyzed by performing extensive network and traffic simulations with respect to various indexes such as latency, packet delivery ratio (PDR), and throughput. Compared with the state‐of‐the‐art protocols, the proposed method under varying density improves the average PDR and throughput by 31.55% and 25.30%, respectively.
Investigation of properties influencing the impact resistance of calcium silicate masonry units
Authors: Rumplmayr Simon , Eden Wolfgang , Burtscher Wolfgang , Thienel Karl‐Christian 
Published: December 2018

AbstractCalcium silicate masonry is characterized by a high loadbearing capacity. Despite the widespread use of calcium silicate masonry units as a building material in Germany, there have been no studies to specifically improve its resistance to bullet impact, which would result in a new, very specialized market segment for threatened infrastructure. Within the scope of a research project, fundamental knowledge was gained about the influence of manufacturing parameters on the impact resistance of calcium silicate masonry units. The investigations showed that both the type and proportion of coarse aggregate and the forming pressure play a decisive role. Based on these findings, calcium silicate masonry units can now be specifically optimized with regard to high impact resistance.
A design procedure for buildings equipped with energy dissipation devices using nonclassical damping and iso‐performance curves
Authors: de la Llera Juan C. , Muñoz Juan P. , Besa Juan J. 
Published: December 2018

SummaryThis article describes a design procedure for elastic buildings equipped with linear and nonlinear energy dissipating devices. The objective is to achieve a design that responds to a target building performance following a simple and robust step‐by‐step algorithm. The proposed procedure identifies first the modal significance of key design performance indicators and controls the modal properties by solving a singular two‐parameter eigenvalue problem. For that purpose, a new modal significance metric is proposed, and a target frequency shift and damping ratio for the complete structure are obtained from the so‐called iso‐performance design curves. The design algorithm employs linear‐equivalent stiffness and damping properties, which are then transformed into parameters characterizing inelastic force‐deformation constitutive models corresponding to physical devices. The design algorithm leads to an optimal damper distribution corresponding to the minimum global amount of supplemental equivalent damping needed to achieve a maximum modal perturbation. The design procedure is first demonstrated using a five‐story building example and then a real and complex 22‐story free‐plan building with two towers of rhomboid‐shape plan with a very singular dynamic behavior.