bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Outcomes After Spine Surgery Among Patients Who Have Had Prior Bariatric Surgery
Authors: Jensen Brooke A. , Garvey Grace A. , Dawson John M. , Garvey Timothy A. 
Published: March 2018

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study. Objectives: We hypothesized that spine surgery patients with a history of bariatric surgery do not differ in expectations of surgery, perceived benefit of surgical intervention, or physician determined outcome of surgery from patients with no history of bariatric surgery. Methods: Patients seen in our spine clinic between January 1, 2 009 and December 30, 2 010 were reviewed. Included patients had a history of bariatric surgery and were 18 to 89 years old. We compared their expectations for recovery, self-perceived clinical outcome (Oswestry Disability Index [ODI] or Neck Disability Index [NDI] and visual analog scale [VAS]), satisfaction with surgery, and physician-perceived clinical outcome (Odom’s criteria) to a matched cohort with no such history. Patients were matched by type of surgery (approach, levels, and procedure), diagnosis, sex, body mass index (BMI), weight category, age, and smoking status. Results: Of 210 included patients, 89 underwent spine surgery. One bariatric patient could not be matched. Seventeen received cervical spine surgery; 71 received lumbar spine surgery. The 2 cohorts had similar expectations and satisfaction. Patients with no history of bariatric surgery tended to be more satisfied than the bariatric surgery patients, but not significantly so. ODI/NDI and VAS scores were statistically worse for the bariatric cohort. Differences were attributed to differences among lumbar spine surgery patients; neck surgery patients were not different. Odom’s scores were not different between the two. Conclusions: Postoperative expectations and satisfaction of bariatric patients are similar to those of nonbariatric patients. Bariatric patients receiving lumbar spine surgery experienced inferior clinical outcomes compared with nonbariatric patients. Cervical spine surgery bariatric patients have similar clinical outcomes as nonbariatric patients.
Etiology unknown: Qualitative analysis of patient attributions of causality in scleroderma
Authors: Gholizadeh Shadi , Drizin Julia H , Hansdottir Ingunn , Weisman Michael H , Clements Philip J , Furst Daniel E , Malcarne Vanessa L 
Published: March 2018

Background Questions about the etiology of disease can concern patients living with any chronic disease and may impact disease-related adjustment. These causal attributions may be of particular interest when individuals are living with diseases for which etiologies have not been definitively identified, such as scleroderma. This study qualitatively explored patient attributions of causality for scleroderma. Methods: Patients with confirmed diagnoses of scleroderma responded to an open-ended prompt. The cross-sectional sample of scleroderma patients ( N = 114) was recruited through registries maintained at the University of California, Los Angeles and University of California, San Diego Schools of Medicine and the Virginia Mason Medical Center. Content analysis was used to analyze the qualitative data and group the responses via an inductively derived codebook using the text analysis tool Dedoose Version 4.5. Results: Patients provided a variety of possible causes for scleroderma, which grouped into seven themes: (1) stress, (2) environment, (3) genetics, (4) medical conditions or surgeries, (5) diet, (6) medications or substance use, and (7) spirituality. Conclusion: Patients’ causal attributions for scleroderma were varied, but many patients identified stress as a cause of scleroderma, often focusing on acute or chronic stressors that were present before disease onset. Identifying patient theories of causality for scleroderma can contribute to an increased understanding of disease-related behaviors and adjustment.
Epigenetic silencing of miR-125b is required for normal B-cell development
Authors: Li Guideng , So Alex Yick-Lun , Sookram Reeshelle , Wong Stephanie , Wang Jessica K. , Ouyang Yong , He Peng , Su Yapeng , Casellas Rafael , Baltimore David 
Published: March 2018

Key Points
miR-125b is epigenetically silenced in B cells. Physiological silencing of miR-125b is required for normal B-cell development.
Upper airway involvement in bronchiectasis is marked by early onset and allergic features
Authors: Shteinberg Michal , Nassrallah Najwan , Jrbashyan Jenny , Uri Nechama , Stein Nili , Adir Yochai 
Published: March 2018

The association of bronchiectasis with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) has been reported. However, apart from primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) and cystic fibrosis (CF), predisposing conditions have not been established. We aimed to define clinical and laboratory features that differentiate patients with bronchiectasis with upper airway symptoms (UASs) and without PCD from patients without UASs.We reviewed charts of adults with bronchiectasis, excluding CF and PCD. UASs were defined as nasal discharge most days of the year, sinusitis or nasal polyps. Laboratory data included IgG, total IgE, blood eosinophils, sputum bacteriology and lung function. A radiologist blinded to UAS presence scored bronchiectasis (Reiff score) and sino-nasal pathology (Lund–Mackay score).Of 197 patients, for the 70 (35%) with UASs, symptoms started earlier (34±25versus46±24 years; p=0.001), disease duration was longer (median 24versus12 years; p=0.027), exacerbations were more frequent (median 3versus2 per year; p=0.14), and peripheral blood eosinophil (median 230versus200 μL−1; p=0.015) and total IgE (median 100versus42 IU·mL−1; p=0.085) levels were higher. The sinus computed tomography score was independently associated with exacerbations, with 1 point on the Lund–Mackay score associated with a 1.03-fold increase in the number of exacerbations per year (95% CI 1.0–1.05; p=0.004).These findings may implicate a higher disease burden in patients with UASs. We hypothesise that UASs precede and may in some cases lead to the development of bronchiectasis.
Aurora A kinase activity is required to maintain an active spindle assembly checkpoint during prometaphase
Authors: Courtheoux Thibault , Diallo Alghassimou , Damodaran Arun Prasath , Reboutier David , Watrin Erwan , Prigent Claude 
Published: March 2018

ABSTRACT
During the prometaphase stage of mitosis, the cell builds a bipolar spindle of microtubules that mechanically segregates sister chromatids between two daughter cells in anaphase. The spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC) is a quality control mechanism that monitors proper attachment of microtubules to chromosome kinetochores during prometaphase. Segregation occurs only when each chromosome is bi-oriented with each kinetochore pair attached to microtubules emanating from opposite spindle poles. Overexpression of the protein kinase Aurora A is a feature of various cancers and is thought to enable tumour cells to bypass the SAC, leading to aneuploidy. Here, we took advantage of a chemical and chemical-genetic approach to specifically inhibit Aurora A kinase activity in late prometaphase. We observed that a loss of Aurora A activity directly affects SAC function, that Aurora A is essential for maintaining the checkpoint protein Mad2 on unattached kinetochores and that inhibition of Aurora A leads to loss of the SAC, even in the presence of nocodazole or Taxol. This is a new finding that should affect the way Aurora A inhibitors are used in cancer treatments.
This article has an associated First Person interview with the first authors of the paper.
Structure Studies of BaO-TiO2-SiO2 Glass-Ceramics Using 29Si MAS NMR and Raman Spectroscopy
Authors: Masai Hirokazu 
Published: March 2018

Abstract
The structural correlation between the BaO-TiO2-SiO2 (BTS) glass and the corresponding (BTS) glass-ceramic is examined by 29Si magic-angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance (MAS NMR) analysis along with Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements. From the deconvoluted spectrum of each Si unit, denoted by Qn, in both the BTS glasses and the BTS glass-ceramics, it is found that structural rearrangement of Si occurs from the Q2 and Q3 units to Ba2TiSi2O8 and the residual amorphous region, respectively. These results of 29Si MAS NMR analysis and Raman spectroscopy, together with XRD measurements, show that the local structure of the BTS mother glass reflects that of the corresponding crystals. This finding is expected to be valuable for tailoring the structure of functional glass-ceramics.
Needle lost in the haystack: multiple reaction monitoring fails to detect Treponema pallidum candidate protein biomarkers in plasma and urine samples from individuals with syphilis
Authors: Van Raemdonck Geert A. , Osbak Kara K. , Van Ostade Xaveer , Kenyon Chris R. 
Published: March 2018

Background:Current syphilis diagnostic strategies are lacking a sensitive manner of directly detectingTreponema pallidumantigens. A diagnostic test that could directly detectT. pallidumantigens in individuals with syphilis would be of considerable clinical utility, especially for the diagnosis of reinfections and for post-treatment serological follow-up.Methods:In this study, 11 candidateT. pallidumbiomarker proteins were chosen according to their physiochemical characteristics,T. pallidumspecificity and predicted abundance. Thirty isotopically labelled proteotypic surrogate peptides (hPTPs) were synthesized and incorporated into a scheduled multiple reaction monitoring assay. Protein extracts from undepleted/unenriched plasma (N = 18) and urine (N = 4) samples from 18 individuals with syphilis in various clinical stages were tryptically digested, spiked with the hPTP mixture and analysed with a triple quadruple mass spectrometer.Results:No endogenous PTPs corresponding to the eleven candidate biomarkers were detected in any samples analysed. To estimate the Limit of Detection (LOD) of a comparably sensitive mass spectrometer (LTQ-Orbitrap), two dilution series of rabbit cultured purifiedT. pallidumwere prepared in PBS. Polyclonal anti-T. pallidumantibodies coupled to magnetic Dynabeads were used to enrich one sample series; no LOD improvement was found compared to the unenriched series. The estimated LOD of MS instruments is 300T. pallidum/ml in PBS.Conclusions:Biomarker protein detection likely failed due to the low (femtomoles/liter) predicted concentration ofT. pallidumproteins. Alternative sample preparation strategies may improve the detectability ofT. pallidumproteins in biofluids.
Vieillissement de la population et politiques publiques réunionnaises à l’échelle infra-territoriale
Authors: Klein Armelle , Sandron Frédéric 
Published: March 2018

Résumé
L’île de La Réunion est un département français d’outre-mer situé dans le Sud-Ouest de l’océan Indien, peuplé d’environ 850 000 personnes. La forte diminution de la fécondité entre les années 1960 et 1980 entraîne un vieillissement de la population réunionnaise extrêmement rapide, puisque la proportion de personnes âgées devrait doubler entre 2010 et 2030. Ce constat général masque cependant des différences infra-territoriales importantes, que ce soit en termes de proportion de personnes âgées par commune ou de la proportion des personnes âgées qui perçoivent une aide sociale liée à la perte d’autonomie. Si l’on ajoute à ces facteurs la géographie très accidentée de ce territoire montagneux et les inégalités d’accès aux services de santé, on perçoit mieux la nécessité de décliner à un échelon infra-territorial la problématique de l’aménagement du territoire face au vieillissement de la population.
Abstract
Reunion Island is a French overseas department in the Southwest Indian Ocean, populated by about 850’000 people. The sharp decline in fertility between the 1960s and the 1980s led to an extremely rapid aging of the population of Reunion Island. The share of people over the age of 60 is expected to double between 2010 and 2030. However, at a smaller scale, this general observation masks territorial differences like the share of old people in the population per commune or the share of old people receiving social assistance related to the loss of autonomy. In addition to these factors, the very harsh landscape of this mountainous territory and inequalities of access to health services, encourage us to deal with the problem of spatial planning and aging of the population at a sub-territorial level.
Common Sense in Choice: The Effect of Sensory Modality on Neural Value Representations
Authors: Shuster Anastasia , Levy Dino J. 
Published: March 2018

AbstractAlthough it is well established that the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) represents value using a common currency across categories of rewards, it is unknown whether the vmPFC represents value irrespective of the sensory modality in which alternatives are presented. In the current study, male and female human subjects completed a decision-making task while their neural activity was recorded using functional magnetic resonance imaging. On each trial, subjects chose between a safe alternative and a lottery, which was presented visually or aurally. A univariate conjunction analysis revealed that the anterior portion of the vmPFC tracks subjective value (SV) irrespective of the sensory modality. Using a novel cross-modality multivariate classifier, we were able to decode auditory value based on visual trials and vice versa. In addition, we found that the visual and auditory sensory cortices, which were identified using functional localizers, are also sensitive to the value of stimuli, albeit in a modality-specific manner. Whereas both primary and higher-order auditory cortices represented auditory SV (aSV), only a higher-order visual area represented visual SV (vSV). These findings expand our understanding of the common currency network of the brain and shed a new light on the interplay between sensory and value information processing.
Robust Visual Responses and Normal Retinotopy in Primate Lateral Geniculate Nucleus following Long-term Lesions of Striate Cortex
Authors: Yu Hsin-Hao , Atapour Nafiseh , Chaplin Tristan A. , Worthy Katrina H. , Rosa Marcello G.P. 
Published: March 2018

Lesions of striate cortex (V1) trigger massive retrograde degeneration of neurons in the LGN. In primates, these lesions also lead to scotomas, within which conscious vision is abolished. Mediation of residual visual capacity within these regions (blindsight) has been traditionally attributed to an indirect visual pathway to the extrastriate cortex, which involves the superior colliculus and pulvinar complex. However, recent studies have suggested that preservation of the LGN is critical for behavioral evidence of blindsight, raising the question of what type of visual information is channeled by remaining neurons in this structure. A possible contribution of LGN neurons to blindsight is predicated on two conditions: that the neurons that survive degeneration remain visually responsive, and that their receptive fields continue to represent the region of the visual field inside the scotoma. We tested these conditions in male and female marmoset monkeys (Callithrix jacchus) with partial V1 lesions at three developmental stages (early postnatal life, young adulthood, old age), followed by long recovery periods. In all cases, recordings from the degenerated LGN revealed neurons with well-formed receptive fields throughout the scotoma. The responses were consistent and robust, and followed the expected eye dominance and retinotopy observed in the normal LGN. The responses had short latencies and preceded those of neurons recorded in the extrastriate middle temporal area. These findings suggest that the pathway that links LGN neurons to the extrastriate cortex is physiologically viable and can support residual vision in animals with V1 lesions incurred at various ages.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENTPatients with a lesion of the primary visual cortex (V1) can retain certain visually mediated behaviors, particularly if the lesion occurs early in life. This phenomenon (“blindsight”) not only sheds light on the nature of consciousness, but also has implications for studies of brain circuitry, development, and plasticity. However, the pathways that mediate blindsight have been the subject of debate. Recent studies suggest that projections from the LGN might be critical, but this finding is puzzling given that the lesions causes severe cell death in the LGN. Here we demonstrate in monkeys that the surviving LGN neurons retain a remarkable level of visual function and could therefore be the source of the visual information that supports blindsight.
EEG Correlates of Preparatory Orienting, Contextual Updating, and Inhibition of Sensory Processing in Left Spatial Neglect
Authors: Lasaponara Stefano , D'Onofrio Marianna , Pinto Mario , Dragone Alessio , Menicagli Dario , Bueti Domenica , De Lucia Marzia , Tomaiuolo Francesco , Doricchi Fabrizio 
Published: March 2018

Studies with event-related potentials have highlighted deficits in the early phases of orienting to left visual targets in right-brain-damaged patients with left spatial neglect (N+). However, brain responses associated with preparatory orienting of attention, with target novelty and with the detection of a match/mismatch between expected and actual targets (contextual updating), have not been explored in N+. Here in a study in healthy humans and brain-damaged patients of both sexes we demonstrate that frontal activity that reflects supramodal mechanisms of attentional orienting (Anterior Directing Attention Negativity, ADAN) is entirely spared in N+. In contrast, posterior responses that mark the early phases of cued orienting (Early Directing Attention Negativity, EDAN) and the setting up of sensory facilitation over the visual cortex (Late Directing Attention Positivity, LDAP) are suppressed in N+. This uncoupling is associated with damage of parietal-frontal white matter. N+ also exhibit exaggerated novelty reaction to targets in the right side of space and reduced novelty reaction for those in the left side (P3a) together with impaired contextual updating (P3b) in the left space. Finally, we highlight a drop in the amplitude and latency of the P1 that over the left hemisphere signals the early blocking of sensory processing in the right space when targets occur in the left one: this identifies a new electrophysiological marker of the rightward attentional bias in N+. The heterogeneous effects and spatial biases produced by localized brain damage on the different phases of attentional processing indicate relevant functional independence among their underlying neural mechanisms and improve the understanding of the spatial neglect syndrome.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENTOur investigation answers important questions: are the different components of preparatory orienting (EDAN, ADAN, LDAP) functionally independent in the healthy brain? Is preparatory orienting of attention spared in left spatial neglect? Does the sparing of preparatory orienting have an impact on deficits in reflexive orienting and in the assignment of behavioral relevance to the left space? We show that supramodal preparatory orienting in frontal areas is entirely spared in neglect patients though this does not counterbalance deficits in preparatory parietal-occipital activity, reflexive orienting, and contextual updating. This points at relevant functional dissociations among different components of attention and suggests that improving voluntary attention in N+ might be behaviorally ineffective unless associated with stimulations boosting the response of posterior parietal-occipital areas.
Treadmill exercise alleviates diabetic cardiomyopathy by suppressing plasminogen activator inhibitor expression and enhancing eNOS in streptozotocin-induced male diabetic rats
Authors: Chengji Wang , Xianjin Fan 
Published: March 2018

Objective
To investigate the biological mechanism of the effect of different intensity exercises on diabetic cardiomyopathy.

Methods
87 raise specific pathogen SPF healthy 6-week-old male Sprague–Dawley rats, fed 6 weeks with high-fat diet for rats were used, and a diabetic model was established by intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin – randomly selected 43 rats were divided into Diabetic control group (DCG, n = 10), Diabetic exercise group 1 (DEG1, n = 11), Diabetic exercise group 2 (DEG2, n = 11) and Diabetic exercise group 3 (DEG3, n = 11). The rats in DEG1 were forced to run on a motorized treadmill, the exercise load consisted of running at a speed of 10 m/min, the exercise load of the rats in DEG2 were running at a speed of 15 m/min, the exercise load of the rats in DEG3 were running at a speed of 20 m/min, for one hour once a day for 6 weeks. After 6 weeks of exercise intervention, glucose metabolism-related indexes in rats such as blood glucose (FBG), glycosylated serum protein (GSP) and insulin (FINS); cardiac fibrinolytic system parameters such as PAI-1 (plasminogen activator inhibitor 1), Von Willebrand factor (vWF), protein kinase C (PKC) and diacylglycerol (DAG); and serum level of NO, eNOS and T-NOS were measured.

Result
Compared with DCG, fasting blood glucose and GSP were decreased, while insulin sensitivity index and insulin level were increased in all rats of the three exercise groups. FBG decrease was statistically significant (P < 0.01), only GSP decrease was statistically significant (P < 0.05) in DEG1 and DEG2, PAI-1 in three exercise groups were significantly reduced (P < 0.05), plasma vWF levels in the three exercise groups were significantly lower than those in the DCG group (P < 0.01); PKC levels decreased dramatically in the three exercise groups and DAG levels decrease slightly (P < 0.05), but with no significant difference. Compared with DCG, the serum level of NO was significantly higher (P < 0.05), and eNOS level was significantly elevated (P < 0.05). T-NOS elevation was statistically significant in DEG1 (P < 0.05).

Conclusions
Low- and moderate-intensity exercise can better control blood glucose level in diabetic rats; myocardial PAI-1 in DEG1, DEG2 and DEG3 rats decreased significantly (P < 0.05), serum NO increased (P < 0.05) and eNOS increased (P < 0.05) significantly. Therefore, it is inferred that exercise improves the biological mechanism of diabetic cardiomyopathy by affecting the levels of PAI-1 and eNOS, and there is a dependence on intensity.