bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Complete withdrawal is the most feasible treatment for medication‐overuse headache: A randomized controlled open‐label trial
Authors: Engelstoft Ida Maria Storm , Carlsen Louise Ninett , Munksgaard Signe Bruun , Nielsen Mia , Jensen Rigmor Højland , Bendtsen Lars 
Published: February 2019

AbstractBackgroundComplete stop of acute medication and/or migraine medication for treatment of medication‐overuse headache (MOH) has previously been reported more effective in reducing headache days and migraine days per month compared with restricted intake of acute medication. However, it is unknown whether complete stop or restricted intake is the most feasible treatment for patients.ObjectivesTo investigate whether feasibility of withdrawal in MOH is different between complete stop of acute medication and restricted intake, and whether reductions in headache‐related medication dependence, anxiety and depression differ between the treatments.MethodsMedication‐overuse headache patients were included in a prospective, open‐label, outpatient study and randomized to two months of withdrawal with either no analgesics or acute migraine medication (programme A) or acute medication restricted to 2 days/week (programme B). After 6 and 12 months, patients graded feasibility of withdrawal. Dependence was measured by Severity of Dependence Scale (SDS), while anxiety and depression were measured by Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS).ResultsWe included 72 MOH patients with primary migraine and/or tension‐type headache. Forty‐nine completed withdrawal and the SDS questionnaire at 12‐month follow‐up, and the feasibility of withdrawal was significantly higher in programme A compared to programme B (p < 0.001). At 12 months, the dependence was reduced by 44% in programme A compared to 26% in programme B (p = 0.053), while the anxiety score was reduced by 32% and 11%, respectively (p = 0.048).ConclusionsWithdrawal with complete stop of acute medication was more feasible and most effective in reducing headache‐related anxiety compared with restricted intake.SignificanceA complete stop of all analgesics is the most effective treatment for MOH regarding reduction in headache days but has often been regarded as too challenging for patients. However, in this study, complete stop appears to be more feasible compared with restricted intake of analgesics seen from the patients’ perspective.
Photochemical and photocatalytic degradation of 1‐propanol using UV/H2O2: Identification of malonate as byproduct
Authors: Ferreira Santos Mauro Sergio , Gomes Cordeiro Thiago , Cieslarova Zuzana , Gutz Ivano Gebhardt Rolf , Garcia Carlos D. 
Published: February 2019

Abstract1‐propanol is a primary alcohol extensively used in the pharmaceutical, chemical, and food industries. It has been also found as a contaminant in the atmosphere and is considered a model compound to mimic the behavior and fate of aliphatic alcohols exposed to environmental conditions. In order to understand that role of relevant variables, this paper presents results obtained with a simple experimental set‐up to investigate the reactivity of 1‐propanol under mild oxidizing conditions. Coupling this system with CE‐C4D allowed the quantification of the carboxylic acids formed. For the described experiments, aqueous solutions of 1‐propanol were placed inside a photoreactor and oxidized upon the addition of TiO2 and/or H2O2. According to the described results, the addition of H2O2 (0.1% w/w) was the most significant variable, roughly tripled the amount of carboxylic acids generated and led to the conversion of up to 70% of the initially available 1‐propanol (1 mmol/L). More importantly, the reaction yielded the formation (within 10 min) of propionate (50 µmol/L), acetate (400 µmol/L), formate (50 µmol/L), and malonate (200 µmol/L). The latter is critically important because it represents the first example of the photochemical oxidation of both terminal carbons of the C3‐chain of 1‐propanol under mild conditions, and opens new avenues for the production of this important chemical building block.
A novel bidirectional pendulum tuned mass damper using variable homogeneous friction to achieve amplitude‐independent control
Authors: Matta Emiliano 
Published: February 2019

SummaryPassive tuned mass dampers (TMDs) are widely used in controlling structural vibrations. Although their principle is well established, the search for improved arrangements is still under way. This effort has recently produced an innovative paradigm of bidirectional pendulum TMD (BTMD) that, moving along a specially designed three‐dimensional (3D) surface, can simultaneously control two in‐plane orthogonal structural modes. In existing versions of BTMDs, energy dissipation is provided either by ordinary horizontal viscous dampers or by an original arrangement of vertical friction dampers. In this paper, a new paradigm is proposed, in which energy dissipation comes from the tangential friction arising along the pendulum surface out of an optimal spatially variable friction coefficient pattern. Within this paradigm, if the friction coefficient is taken proportional to the modulus of the pendulum surface gradient, the dissipation model results nonlinear homogeneous in the small‐displacement domain, and the performance of the absorber, herein called the homogeneous tangential friction BTMD (HT‐BTMD), results independent from the excitation level. The present work introduces this concept, derives the analytical model of the HT‐BTMD, establishes a method for its optimal design, and numerically verifies its seismic effectiveness in comparison with viscously damped devices. The validity and feasibility of the concept are demonstrated through experimental tests on a small‐scale lab prototype, which also show the efficacy of a stepwise approximation of the homogeneous friction pattern. The new device proves a competing alternative to existing BTMDs, and homogeneous tangential friction proves a promising new paradigm to provide pendular systems with amplitude‐independent structural damping.
Extended methods for gene–environment‐wide interaction scans in studies of admixed individuals with varying degrees of relationships
Authors: Chen Yalei , Adrianto Indra , Iannuzzi Michael C. , Garman Lori , Montgomery Courtney G. , Rybicki Benjamin A. , Levin Albert M. , Li Jia 
Published: February 2019

AbstractThe etiology of many complex diseases involves both environmental exposures and inherited genetic predisposition as well as interactions between them. Gene–environment‐wide interaction studies (GEWIS) provide a means to identify the interactions between genetic variation and environmental exposures that underlie disease risk. However, current GEWIS methods lack the capability to adjust for the potentially complex correlations in studies with varying degrees of relationships (both known and unknown) among individuals in admixed populations. We developed novel generalized estimating equation (GEE) based methods—GEE‐adaptive and GEE‐joint—to account for phenotypic correlations due to kinship while accounting for covariates, including, measures of genome‐wide ancestry. In simulation studies of admixed individuals, both methods controlled family‐wise error rates, an advantage over the case‐only approach. They demonstrated higher power than traditional case–control methods across a wide range of underlying alternative hypotheses, especially where both marginal and interaction effects were present. We applied the proposed method to conduct a GEWIS of a known sarcoidosis risk factor (insecticide exposure) and risk of sarcoidosis in African Americans and identified two novel loci with suggestive evidence of G × E interaction.
Magnetic nanoFe2O3 – incorporated PEBA membranes for CO2/CH4 and CO2/N2 separation: experimental study and grand canonical Monte Carlo and molecular dynamics simulations
Authors: Riasat Harami Hossein , Asghari Morteza , Mohammadi Amir H. 
Published: February 2019

AbstractMixed matrix membranes (MMMs) comprised of organic selective polymers and inorganic nano‐particles under the name of fillers have attracted much attention in the field of gas separation. In this study, poly (amide‐6‐b‐ethylene oxide) [PEBA]/Fe2O3 mixed matrix membranes were prepared using the dry phase separation technique with ethanol / water (70/30 wt%) as solvent. Various amount of Fe2O3 nanoparticles were chosen to disperse within the polymer matrix (0, 0.5, 1, 1.5 and 2 wt% of polymer). To prepare this type of novel membrane, a magnetic field of 0.3 T was used to align the position of NPs. The structural properties and surface morphology of prepared membranes were characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Field emission scanning electron microscopy analysis was also used to study the physical bonding. Phase identification and crystallinity, effective area, and distribution of pore size were investigated by X‐ray diffraction (XRD) and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) analysis. Carbon dioxide permeability through these membranes increased with pressure in the range of 2 to 14 bar. Magnetic membrane loaded with 1.5 wt% of Fe2O3 gave the best performance: CO2 permeability, CO2/CH4, and CO2/N2 selectivity were enhanced by 30, 42 and 81%, compared to a pure membrane, respectively. The results indicated that the magnetic MMMs gave better separation performance than pure membranes. Molecular simulation has also been used to investigate the structural and transport properties of fabricated membranes. Structural characterizations like radial distribution function (RDF), fractional free volume (FFV), and X‐ray diffraction were applied to the simulated membrane cells. Grand canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC) and molecular dynamic (MD) simulations, were used to calculate the selectivity and diffusivity of membranes. Results from experimental tests and simulation runs revealed that the selectivity and permeability of fabricated and simulated membranes are consistent. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Preventative care utilization and associated health‐related measurements among older adults following the 2009 health reform in China
Authors: Lee Yen‐Han , Chang Yen‐Chang , Liu Ching‐Ti 
Published: February 2019

SummaryPurposeIt is unclear if older adults' preventive health care utilization is associated with better health in China, as the elderly population and prevalence of chronic disease have escalated.MethodsApplying the Donabedian's model for evaluating quality of health care, we analyzed data from the 2012 and 2014 waves of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey with 5304 older adults 65 years old and above. The study used propensity score matching to decrease selection bias on preventive care utilization. Preventive care utilization was defined as the use of annual physical examination at least once a year among older adults. Three ordered logistic regression models were performed to evaluate preventive care utilization and three health‐related measurements of current health status, overall health status improvement in the past 12 months, and life satisfaction, controlling for socioeconomic, demographic, and biological factors.ResultsOlder adults who used preventive care reported better health status, overall health status improvement in the past 12 months, and life satisfaction (adjusted odds ratios [AORs] = 1.24, 1.20, 1.30, respectively; allPs < 0.01), compared with participants who did not use preventive care.ConclusionThe research findings suggest that the Chinese central government should continue to enhance the role of preventive care services with further reforms in order to improve older adults' health and life conditions.
Computer aided diagnosis of brain abnormalities using texture analysis of MRI images
Authors: Gilanie Ghulam , Bajwa Usama Ijaz , Waraich Mustansar Mahmood , Habib Zulfiqar 
Published: February 2019

AbstractThe drive of this study is to develop a robust system. A method to classify brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) image into brain‐related disease groups and tumor types has been proposed. The proposed method employed Gabor texture, statistical features, and support vector machine. Brain MRI images have been classified into normal, cerebrovascular, degenerative, inflammatory, and neoplastic. The proposed system has been trained on a complete dataset of Brain Atlas‐Harvard Medical School. Further, to achieve robustness, a dataset developed locally has been used. Extraordinary results on different orientations, sequences of both of these datasets as per accuracy (up to 99.6%), sensitivity (up to 100%), specificity (up to 100%), precision (up to 100%), and AUC value (up to 1.0) have been achieved. The tumorous slices are further classified into primary or secondary tumor as well as their further types as glioma, sarcoma, meningioma, bronchogenic carcinoma, and adenocarcinoma, which could not be possible to determine without biopsy, otherwise.
Nucleolar spindle‐associated protein 1 promotes tumorigenesis and predicts poor prognosis in human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma
Authors: Guan Chengqi , Liu Zhaoxiu , Lu Cuihua , Xiao Mingbing , Shi Hui , Ni Runzhou , Bian Zhaolian 
Published: February 2019

AbstractThe microtubule binding protein, nucleolar spindle‐associated protein 1 (NUSAP1), has a crucial function in mitosis and its expression is closely associated with carcinogenesis. Herein, we aimed to determine the function of NUSAP1 in the development of human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), and the association of NUSAP1 expression with ESCC. Immunohistochemical staining of ESCC tissue sections indicated that NUSAP1 was expressed to a higher degree in tumor tissues than in adjacent nontumor tissues. NUSAP1 levels were relevant closely to histological differentiation (P = 0.049). Overall survival was longer in patients with lower NUSAP1 levels (
P < 0.001). NUSAP1 expression (
P = 0.002), histological differentiation (
P < 0.001), tumor depth (
P = 0.045), lymph node metastases (
P < 0.001), and tumor‐node‐metastasis staging (
P = 0.008) were greatly associated with overall survival using univariate analysis. Multivariate analysis suggested that histological differentiation (
P = 0.014) and NUSAP1 expression (
P = 0.026) could be independent prognostic markers for ESCC. Additionally, the biological behavior of ESCC cells was investigated in vitro and in vivo. Suppression of NUSAP1 inhibited cellular proliferation and invasion, and induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in vitro. More importantly, knockdown of
NUSAP1 led to inhibition of tumor formation in nude mice. These findings indicated that NUSAP1 is a potential prognostic biomarker in ESCC, and is an ESCC oncogene. Thus, NUSAP1 could represent a therapeutic target for ESCC.
Protein kinase B/AKT mediates insulin‐like growth factor 1‐induced phosphorylation and nuclear export of histone deacetylase 5 via NADPH oxidase 4 activation in vascular smooth muscle cells
Authors: Pietruczuk Paulina , Jain Ashish , Simo‐Cheyou Estelle R. , Anand‐Srivastava Madhu B. , Srivastava Ashok K. 
Published: February 2019

AbstractInsulin‐like growth factor 1 (IGF‐1) mediates the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the activation of growth promoting signaling pathways. Histone deacetylases (HDACs) regulate gene transcription by deacetylating lysine residues in histone and nonhistone proteins and a heightened HDAC activation, notably of HDAC5, is associated with vascular disorders, such as atherosclerosis. Although the contribution of IGF‐1 in these pathologies is well documented, its role in HDAC phosphorylation and activation remains unexplored. Here, we examined the effect of IGF‐1 on HDAC5 phosphorylation in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and identified the signaling pathways involved in controlling HDAC5 phosphorylation and nuclear export. Treatment of A10 VSMCs with IGF‐1 enhanced HDAC5 phosphorylation. Blockade of the IGF‐1 receptor tyrosine kinase (TK) activity with the specific pharmacological inhibitor, AG1024, significantly inhibited IGF‐1‐induced HDAC5 phosphorylation, whereas the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) TK antagonist, AG1478, had no effect. Inhibition of the mitogen‐activated protein kinase pathway with U0126, SP600125, or SB203580, did not affect HDAC5 phosphorylation, whereas two inhibitors of the phosphoinositide 3‐kinase (PI3K)/AKT pathways, wortmannin and SC66, almost completely attenuated IGF‐1‐induced responses as confirmed by immunoblotting of phospho‐HDAC5 and by small interfering RNA (siRNA)‐induced AKT silencing. Moreover, the NAD(P)H oxidase (Nox) inhibitor, diphenyleneiodonium (DPI), and Nox4 siRNA, attenuated IGF‐1‐induced phosphorylation of HDAC5 and AKT. The HDAC5 phosphorylation resulted in its nuclear export, which was reversed by SC66 and DPI. Our results indicate that IGF‐1‐induced phosphorylation and nuclear export of HDAC5 involve Nox4‐dependent ROS generation and PI3K/AKT signaling pathways.
VEGF‐A promotes angiogenesis after acute myocardial infarction through increasing ROS production and enhancing ER stress‐mediated autophagy
Authors: Zou Jiang , Fei Qin , Xiao Hui , Wang Hao , Liu Ke , Liu Meidong , Zhang Huali , Xiao Xianzhong , Wang Kangkai , Wang Nian 
Published: February 2019

AbstractProangiogenesis is generally regarded as an effective approach for treating ischemic heart disease. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)‐A is a strong and essential proangiogenic factor. Reactive oxygen species (ROS), endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, and autophagy are implicated in the process of angiogenesis. This study is designed to clarify the regulatory mechanisms underlying VEGF‐A, ROS, ER stress, autophagy, and angiogenesis in acute myocardial infarction (AMI). A mouse model of AMI was successfully established by occluding the left anterior descending coronary artery. Compared with the sham‐operated mice, the microvessel density, VEGF‐A content, ROS production, expression of vascular endothelial cadherin, positive expression of 78 kDa glucose‐regulated protein/binding immunoglobulin protein (GRP78/Bip), and LC3 puncta in CD31‐positive endothelial cells of the ischemic myocardium were overtly elevated. Moreover, VEGF‐A exposure predominantly increased the expression of beclin‐1, autophagy‐related gene (ATG) 4, ATG5, inositol‐requiring enzyme‐1 (IRE‐1), GRP78/Bip, and LC3‐II/LC3‐I as well as ROS production in the human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) in a dose and time‐dependent manner. Both beclin‐1 small interfering RNA and 3‐methyladenine treatment predominantly mitigated VEGF‐A‐induced tube formation and migration of HUVECs, but they failed to elicit any notable effect on VEGF‐A‐increased expression of GRP78/Bip. Tauroursodeoxycholic acid not only obviously abolished VEGF‐A‐induced increase of IRE‐1, GRP78/Bip, beclin‐1 expression, and LC3‐II/LC3‐I, but also negated VEGF‐A‐induced tube formation and migration of HUVECs. Furthermore,
N‐acetyl‐
l‐cysteine markedly abrogated VEGF‐A‐increased ROS production, IRE‐1, GRP78/Bip, beclin‐1 expression, and LC3‐II/LC3‐I in the HUVECs. Taken together, our data demonstrated that increased spontaneous production of VEGF‐A may induce angiogenesis after AMI through initiating ROS–ER stress‐autophagy axis in the vascular endothelial cells.
Pharmacogenetic Profile and the Occurrence of Visual Hallucinations in Patients With Sporadic Parkinson's Disease
Authors: Damasceno dos Santos Erinaldo Ubirajara , Duarte Elaine Bandeira Cavalcanti , Miranda Laura Maria Ramos , Asano Amdore Guescel C. , Asano Nadja Maria Jorge , Maia Maria De Mascena Diniz , de Souza Paulo Roberto Eleutério 
Published: February 2019

AbstractVisual hallucinations are significant nonmotor symptoms in the course of treatment of Parkinson's disease. Previous studies have shown that the interindividual variability and pharmacogenetic profile of Parkinson's disease patients seem to influence the occurrence of visual hallucinations. In our study, we investigated a possible relationship of sequence variants in DRD1, DRD2, DRD3, DAT1, and COMT genes with the presence of visual hallucinations in Parkinson's disease patients. A total of 224 Brazilian patients from the Pro‐Parkinson service at the Clinical Hospital of the University of Pernambuco, diagnosed with sporadic Parkinson's disease, were enrolled. Parkinson's disease patients were divided into 2 groups based on the presence or absence of visual hallucinations. The sequence variants for DRD1, DRD2, DRD3, DAT1, and COMT were determined through the polymerase chain reaction‐restriction fragment length polymorphism technique. Multiple Poisson regression analyses showed that individuals carrying the DRD3 Ser/Ser and Ser/Gly genotypes presented increased prevalence ratios of visual hallucinations (9.7‐fold and 4.4‐fold, respectively; P < .001). Regarding DAT1 rs28363170, there was a 9.82‐fold increase in the prevalence ratio in patients with the 10/11 genotype, 8.78‐fold for the 10/8 genotype, and 2.44‐fold for the 9/8 genotypes (P < .001, for all). In addition, visual hallucinations were also associated with use of transdermal patches with rotigotine (PR, 3.7; 95%CI, 1.2‐10.9; P = .017) and rasagiline (PR, 2.8; 95%CI, 1.3‐6.0; P = .006). Our results suggest that the genetic variants DRD3 and DAT1, along with other therapeutic confounders, may influence the prevalence ratio of visual hallucinations.
The efficacy of maintenance therapy after remission induction with tacrolimus in ulcerative colitis with and without previous tumor necrosis factor‐α inhibitor
Authors: Suzuki Taketo , Mizoshita Tsutomu , Tanida Satoshi , Sugimura Naomi , Katano Takahito , Nishie Hirotada , Kataoka Hiromi 
Published: February 2019

Background and AimTacrolimus (TAC) is an important therapeutic option for remission induction in patients with refractory ulcerative colitis (UC). However, there is little evidence available on long‐term outcomes and maintenance treatments after TAC therapy, especially in cases with previous tumor necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α) inhibitor therapy.MethodsLong‐term outcomes and remission induction after TAC treatment were retrospectively examined in refractory UC patients with and without previous TNF‐α inhibitor therapy.ResultsThe mean disease activity index and the endoscopic activity index scores decreased significantly during the 12‐week treatment after TAC therapy in both groups, showing a significantly greater decrease in the group without TNF‐α inhibitor therapy than in the group with previous TNF‐α inhibitor therapy. One year or more after TAC therapy, TNF‐α inhibitor and/or azathioprine was used as maintenance therapy in most cases in the group without previous TNF‐α inhibitor treatment, while azathioprine was primarily used in the group with previous TNF‐α inhibitor treatment. Colectomy was performed in 45.5% (5/11) and 15.6% (7/45) of the groups with and without previous TNF‐α inhibitor therapy, respectively, and the group without previous TNF‐α inhibitor treatment had a better colectomy‐free rate than the group with previous TNF‐α inhibitor treatment after TAC therapy on Kaplan–Meier analysis.ConclusionsTAC is effective for remission induction in refractory UC patients with and without previous TNF‐α inhibitor treatment. Maintenance medication after TAC therapy is an issue for the future, especially in UC cases with previous TNF‐α inhibitor treatment failure.