bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Alteration in gene expression profiles of thymoma: Genetic differences and potential novel targets
Authors: Meng Fan‐Jie , Wang Shuo , Zhang Jun , Yan Yi‐Jie , Wang Chun‐Yang , Yang Chun‐Rui , Guan Zhi‐Yu , Wang Chang‐Li 
Published: April 2019

BackgroundThis study was conducted to investigate the gene expression profiles associated with thymoma to better understand the molecular mechanism underlying the pathogenesis of thymoma.MethodsEight patients with thymomas (type A, AB, B1, and B2) and four controls with thymic cysts were analyzed using microarray profiling to identify changes in gene expression.ResultsAcross all of our samples, 2319 messenger RNAs were upregulated and 2776 were downregulated in thymomas relative to thymic cysts. Gene ontology and pathway analyses revealed that a large number of genes participate in cellular functions, among which MHC class II protein complex assembly, assembly with peptide antigen, calcium activated phosphatidylcholine scrambling, and release of cytoplasmic sequestered NF‐κB were dysregulated, whereas intestinal immune network for immunoglobulin A production, cytokine–cytokine receptor interaction, the calcium signaling pathway, and pathways related to autoimmune diseases were downregulated.ConclusionsOur results revealed gene expression differences between thymomas and thymic cysts, and identified key candidate genes/pathways that might be used as diagnostic markers and potential therapeutic targets to treat cancer metastasis.
Accelerated aging and motor control deficits are related to regional deformation of central cerebellar white matter in alcohol use disorder
Authors: Zhao Qingyu , Pfefferbaum Adolf , Podhajsky Simon , Pohl Kilian M. , Sullivan Edith V. 
Published: April 2019

AbstractThe World Health Organization estimates a 12‐month prevalence rate of 8+% for an alcohol use disorder (AUD) diagnosis in people age 15 years and older in the United States and Europe, presenting significant health risks that have the potential of accelerating age‐related functional decline. According to neuropathological studies, white matter systems of the cerebellum are vulnerable to chronic alcohol dependence. To pursue the effect of AUD on white matter structure and functions in vivo, this study used T1‐weighted, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to quantify the total corpus medullare of the cerebellum and a finely grained analysis of its surface in 135 men and women with AUD (mean duration of abstinence, 248 d) and 128 age‐ and sex‐matched control participants; subsets of these participants completed motor testing. We identified an AUD‐related volume deficit and accelerated aging in the total corpus medullare. Novel deformation‐based surface morphometry revealed regional shrinkage of surfaces adjacent to lobules I‐V, lobule IX, and vermian lobule X. In addition, accelerated aging was detected in the regional surface areas adjacent to lobules I‐V, lobule VI, lobule VIIB, and lobules VIII, IX, and X. Sex differences were not identified for any measure. For both volume‐based and surface‐based analyses, poorer performance in gait and balance, manual dexterity, and grip strength were linked to greater regional white matter structural deficits. Our results suggest that local deformation of the corpus medullare has the potential of identifying structurally and functionally segregated networks affected in AUD.
The role of radiotherapy in the management of non‐melanoma skin cancer
Authors: Garbutcheon‐Singh Kieran B , Veness Michael J 
Published: April 2019

AbstractThe global incidence of non‐melanoma skin cancer continues to increase as the global population ages with the highest incidence in the world occurring in Australian and New Zealand patients. There are numerous treatment options available for non‐melanoma skin cancer patients of which radiotherapy is an efficacious and versatile tissue preserving non‐surgical (or medical) option. In patients where excision may not be an option (medically/technically inoperable) or considered less ideal (e.g. cosmetic outcome), radiotherapy offers an excellent option. Following surgery, adjuvant radiotherapy in patients with unfavourable pathology can decrease the risk of recurrence and associated morbidity. Elderly and co‐morbid patients with poor performance status can benefit from short‐course hypofractionated radiotherapy in the setting where surgery is not an option. As with any modality, radiotherapy has advantages and disadvantages and it is therefore important for clinicians to appreciate these. We aim to present an update for clinicians that manage patients with non‐melanoma skin cancer on the role of radiotherapy.
Association of mineral content outside of bone with coronary artery calcium and 1‐year cardiovascular prognosis in maintenance hemodialysis patients
Authors: Xiong Yuqin , Li Jiameng , Sun Si , Han Mei , Liao Ruoxi , Li Yupei , Wang Liya , Lin Liping , Liu Qiang , Su Baihai 
Published: April 2019

AbstractCoronary artery calcifications (CACs) are common among maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) patients and associated with increased morbidity and mortality due to cardiovascular events. The insight into chronic kidney disease‐mineral and bone disorder (CKD‐MBD) established a correlation between dysregulated mineral metabolism and CACs. This study aimed to identify the association of mineral content outside of bone (MCOB) with CACs and cardiovascular events in MHD patients. In the pilot prospective study with no intervention, patients underwent body composition assessment by body composition monitor after hemodialysis and computed tomography examination using the Agatston scoring method simultaneously within a week. The primary end point included cardiovascular events and cardiovascular death. Correlations and receiver operating characteristic analysis elucidated the associations of MCOB with CACs; multivariate analysis assessed the cardiovascular risk for groups with different MCOB. One hundred three eligible patients with an average age of 48 (35‐63) years old were enrolled and followed up to 12 (11‐12.5) months, among which 52.4% had detectable CACs at baseline. MCOB showed an inverse correlation with Agatston score and significantly discriminated the patients with Agatston score > 0 (AUC = 0.737; P < 0.001) and 400 (AUC = 0.733; P < 0.001). MCOB ≤ 9.2657 mg/kg was an independent risk factor for CACs (OR = 4.853; P = 0.044) and strong predictor for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality (HR = 10.108; P = 0.042), as well as rehospitalization (HR = 2.689; P = 0.004). MCOB inversely correlated with the presence and extent of CACs, and could discriminate Agatston score > 0 and 400, which also presented as an independent indicator for CKD‐MBD and 1‐year cardiovascular prognosis in adult MHD patients. Additional studies are required for identifying this issue.
Urinary PGE2 metabolite levels in hospitalised infants with infections compared to age‐matched controls
Authors: Hamrin Johan , Perez‐Manzo Monica , Idborg Helena , Jakobsson Per‐Johan , Björk Lars , Eriksson Margareta , Nilsson Anna , Herlenius Eric 
Published: April 2019

AbstractAimTo determine the urinary tetranor‐prostaglandin E2 metabolite in healthy infants and in hospitalised infants with upper and lower respiratory tract as well as gastrointestinal infections.MethodsA prospective cross‐sectional study to determine baseline concentrations of urinary tetranor‐prostaglandin E2 metabolite was conducted in 81 healthy infants aged one week to one year and in 142 hospitalised infants with infections. Prostaglandin metabolite levels were measured by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry.ResultsIn healthy infants, urinary prostaglandin E2 metabolite levels decreased with age and did not differ between girls and boys. Infections of the lower respiratory (n = 78) and gastrointestinal tract (n = 12) correlated with increased levels of the prostaglandin E2 metabolite. In contrast, infants hospitalised with upper respiratory tract infections (n = 23) exhibited similar levels as healthy, age‐matched controls. Lower prostaglandin E2 levels were found after treatment with acetaminophen in hospitalised children. Prostaglandin E2 metabolite levels did not correlate with length of hospitalisation or need for respiratory support.ConclusionThis study first provides normal levels of urinary prostaglandin E2 metabolite in infants and secondly demonstrates elevated levels in hospitalised children with lower respiratory tract and gastrointestinal infections.
Severe and protracted cholestasis in 44 young men taking bodybuilding supplements: assessment of genetic, clinical and chemical risk factors
Authors: Stolz Andrew , Navarro Victor , Hayashi Paul H. , Fontana Robert J. , Barnhart Huiman X. , Gu Jiezhun , Chalasani Naga P. , Vega Maricruz M. , Bonkovsky Herbert L. , Seeff Leonard B. , Serrano Jose , Avula Bharathi , Khan Ikhlas A. , Cirulli Elizabeth T. , Kleiner David E. , Hoofnagle Jay H. ,   the DILIN Investigators
Published: April 2019

SummaryBackgroundBodybuilding supplements can cause a profound cholestatic syndrome.AimTo describe the drug‐Induced liver injury network's experience with liver injury due to bodybuilding supplements.MethodsLiver injury pattern, severity and outcomes, potential genetic associations, and exposure to anabolic steroids by product analysis were analysed in prospectively enrolled subjects with bodybuilding supplement‐induced liver injury with causality scores of probable or higher.ResultsForty‐four males (mean age 33 years) developed liver injury with a median latency of 73 days. Forty‐one per cent presented with hepatocellular pattern of liver injury as defined by the R > 5 ([Fold elevation of ALT] ÷ [Fold elevation of Alk Phos] (mean, range = 6.4, 0.5‐31.4, n = 42) despite all presenting with clinical features of cholestatic liver injury (100% with jaundice and 84% with pruritus). Liver biopsy (59% of subjects) demonstrated a mild hepatitis and profound cholestasis in most without bile duct injury, loss or fibrosis. Seventy‐one per cent were hospitalised, and none died or required liver transplantation. In some, chemical analysis revealed anabolic steroid controlled substances not listed on the label. No enrichment of genetic variants associated with cholestatic syndromes was found, although mutations in ABCB11 (present in up to 20%) were significantly different than in ethnically matched controls.ConclusionsPatients with bodybuilding supplements liver injury uniformly presented with cholestatic injury, which slowly resolved. The ingested products often contained anabolic steroids not identified on the label, and no enrichment in genetic variants was found, indicating a need for additional studies.
Lessons learned from a single‐surgeon series of paediatric robot‐assisted laparoscopic urological procedures: predictors of high‐grade postoperative complications
Authors: Barashi Nimrod S. , Andolfi Ciro , Wallace Aaron , Rodriguez Maria V. , Schadler Eric , Gundeti Mohan S. 
Published: April 2019

ObjectivesTo describe postoperative complications after robot‐assisted laparoscopic urological surgery in children, and identify potential predictors of these complications by analysing the outcomes of a large‐volume single‐surgeon experience.Patients and MethodsWe reviewed our institutional database to identify all robot‐assisted laparoscopy (RAL) cases performed between December 2007 and December 2017. Patients were grouped into three cohorts based on the anatomical location of the procedure: upper urinary tract (kidney and renal pelvis); lower urinary tract (ureter); and lower urinary tract reconstruction with bowel (bladder reconstruction). A descriptive analysis of baseline characteristics, intra‐operative variables and postoperative outcomes was carried out. All complications were graded using the Clavien–Dindo scale, and grouped based on type and time of occurrence (<30, 30–90, >90 days). Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to identify predictors of high‐grade complications (Clavien–Dindo grade ≥ III). We also measured complication rates based on year of surgery and surgical caseload.ResultsOur database included a total of 326 patients, of whom 57% (n = 186) underwent upper urinary tract procedures, 30% (n = 97) ureteric procedures, and 13% bladder reconstruction. The median follow‐up for each procedure was 13, 11 and 57 months, respectively. Of the total, 10 cases were converted to an open approach and excluded from further analysis. The most common types of complication in all groups were infections (urinary tract infections) and urinary complications (urine leaks and urolithiasis). Bladder reconstructive procedures, which require the use of bowel, presented the highest rate of high‐grade complications (32%). Length of hospital stay (LOS; odds ratio [OR] 1.33, confidence interval [CI] 1.16–1.53), estimated blood loss (EBL) in surgery (OR 1.01, CI 1.002–1.019) and operating time (OR 1.004, CI 1.002–1.006) were all associated with increased odds of high‐grade complications on multivariate analysis (P < 0.05).ConclusionsIn this single‐surgeon series, we have described the most commonly encountered complications after RAL in paediatric urology, finding rates similar to the complication rates reported in the current literature on other surgical approaches. In addition, LOS, operating time and EBL, which are probable surrogates of case complexity, were associated with increased odds of high‐grade complications.
Determinants of fractional exhaled nitric oxide in healthy men and women from the European Community Respiratory Health Survey III
Authors: Nerpin Elisabet , Olivieri Mario , Gislason Thorainn , Olin Anna C. , Nielsen Rune , Johannessen Ane , Ferreira Diogenes S. , Marcon Alessandro , Cazzoletti Lucia , Accordini Simone , Pin Isabelle , Corsico Angelo , Demoly Pascal , Weyler Joost , Nowak Dennis , Jõgi Rain , Forsberg Bertil , Zock Jan P. , Sigsgaard Torben , Heinric Joachim , Bono Roberto , Leynaert Bénédicte , Jarvis Deborah , Janson Christer , Malinovschi Anderi ,   on behalf of the European Community Respiratory Health Survey (ECRHS) study group
Published: April 2019

AbstractIntroductionThe fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FENO) is a marker for type 2 inflammation used in diagnostics and management of asthma. In order to use FENO as a reliable biomarker, it is important to investigate factors that influence FENO in healthy individuals. Men have higher levels of FENO than women, but it is unclear whether determinants of FENO differ by sex.ObjectiveTo identify determinants of FENO in men and women without lung diseases.MethodFractional exhaled nitric oxide was validly measured in 3881 healthy subjects that had answered the main questionnaire of the European Community Respiratory Health Survey III without airways or lung disease.ResultsExhaled NO levels were 21.3% higher in men compared with women P < 0.001. Being in the upper age quartile (60.3‐67.6 years), men had 19.2 ppb (95% CI: 18.3, 20.2) higher FENO than subjects in the lowest age quartile (39.7‐48.3 years) P = 0.02. Women in the two highest age quartiles (54.6‐60.2 and 60.3‐67.6 years) had 15.4 ppb (14.7, 16.2), P = 0.03 and 16.4 ppb (15.6, 17.1), P = <0.001 higher FENO, compared with the lowest age quartile.Height was related to 8% higher FENO level in men (P < 0.001) and 5% higher FENO levels in women (P = 0.008). Men who smoked had 37% lower FENO levels and women had 30% lower levels compared with never‐smokers (P < 0.001 for both). Men and women sensitized to both grass and perennial allergens had higher FENO levels compared with non‐sensitized subjects 26% and 29%, P < 0.001 for both.Conclusion and Clinical RelevanceFractional exhaled nitric oxide levels were higher in men than women. Similar effects of current smoking, height, and IgE sensitization were found in both sexes. FENO started increasing at lower age in women than in men, suggesting that interpretation of FENO levels in adults aged over 50 years should take into account age and sex.
The price of sanctions: An empirical analysis of German export losses due to the Russian agricultural ban
Authors: Fedoseeva Svetlana , Herrmann Roland 
Published: April 2019

AbstractThe aim of this paper is to contribute to the vivid political discussion on the consequences of the Russian agricultural import ban on the German export market by quantifying export losses that German agri‐food exporters encountered on the Russian market due to the agricultural import ban of 2014. A gravity‐type approach is used to measure the sanction effect in a panel of German agri‐food exports covering the period from January 1999 to June 2018. The ban effect is disentangled from a sequence of different geopolitically‐ and economically driven episodes. Once macroeconomic developments of the Russian economy as well as individual stages of decreasing trade cooperation in the preban period are accounted for, the import ban reduced German agri‐food exports significantly but was not the major cause. Therefore, a simple elimination of the ban will not be enough to restore trade to the presanctions level.
Homeodomain‐interacting protein kinase 2 suppresses proliferation and aerobic glycolysis via ERK/cMyc axis in pancreatic cancer
Authors: Qin Yi , Hu Qiangsheng , Ji Shunrong , Xu Jin , Dai Weixing , Liu Wensheng , Xu Wenyan , Sun Qiqing , Zhang Zheng , Ni Quanxing , Yu Xianjun , Zhang Bo , Xu Xiaowu 
Published: April 2019

AbstractObjectivesTo investigate the roles of the homeodomain‐interacting protein kinase (HIPK) family of proteins in pancreatic cancer prognosis and the possible molecular mechanism.Materials and MethodsThe expression of HIPK family genes and their roles in pancreatic cancer prognosis were analysed by using The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). The roles of HIPK2 in pancreatic cancer proliferation and glycolysis were tested by overexpression of HIPK2 in pancreatic cancer cells, followed by cell proliferation assay, glucose uptake analysis and Seahorse extracellular flux analysis. The mechanism of action of HIPK2 in pancreatic cancer proliferation and glycolysis was explored by examining its effect on the ERK/cMyc axis.ResultsDecreased HIPK2 expression indicated worse prognosis of pancreatic cancer. Overexpression of HIPK2 in pancreatic cancer cells decreased cell proliferation and attenuated aerobic glycolysis, which sustained proliferation of cancer cells. HIPK2 decreased cMyc protein levels and expression of cMyc‐targeted glycolytic genes. cMyc was a mediator that regulated HIPK2‐induced decrease in aerobic glycolysis. HIPK2 regulated cMyc protein stability via ERK activation, which phosphorylated and controlled cMyc protein stability.ConclusionsHIPK2 suppressed proliferation of pancreatic cancer in part through inhibiting the ERK/cMyc axis and related aerobic glycolysis.
Seeing is (Dis)Believing: A Reading of Thomas Demand's “Modell/Model” (2000)
Authors: Macarthur David 
Published: April 2019

AbstractIn this commentary I interpret Thomas Demand's photographic work “Modell/Model” (2000) as undermining the strong temptation to think that when we view a photograph – a light‐capturing mechanism – seeing is believing. Demand provides a regress of models of models (recalling Plato's skeptical view of art as unknowing copies of copies) that ultimately proves unfathomable, hence, uncanny. Demand is the Socrates of contemporary art photography: here seeing is not‐knowing. What we do not know is that Demand's photograph is based on a partially erased paper and cardboard model of the scene depicted in a Nazi era photograph of a model of the German Pavilion (Hoffman, 1937) – which recalls the global ambitions of Nazism and the aesthetic connection Hitler wanted to make between neo‐classical fascist architecture and the “new man” of the Third Reich.
Assembly and Care of Memory: Placing Objects and Hybrid Media to Revisit International Expositions
Authors: Minner Jennifer 
Published: April 2019

AbstractThe bowerbird assembles and fastidiously cares for displays of found objects. The bowerbird actions are a metaphor that illustrate the deep connections between humans and objects in communicating about places and the past. This article presents three vignettes of artists and history advocates interpreting former international expo, or world's fair, sites. The first vignette discusses Jonathan Jones’barrangal dyara (skin and bones)a large‐scale public art installation in Sydney, Australia. A second focuses on narrations in the landscape and on a YouTube channel of objects and sites associated with memories and remnants of Expo ‘88, in Brisbane, Australia. A third example is Lost Utopias, by Jade Doskow, a series of large‐format photographs of 19th and 20th century expo sites. Each reveals human connections to objects and to landscapes, the power of reinterpretations generated out of assemblies of objects, and the hybrid places constructed out of multiple media.
Paediatric multiple sclerosis: a new era in diagnosis and treatment
Authors: Duignan Sophie , Brownlee Wallace , Wassmer Evangeline , Hemingway Cheryl , Lim Ming , Ciccarelli Olga , Hacohen Yael 
Published: April 2019

Multiple sclerosis is a chronic immune‐mediated demyelinating disease of the central nervous system. The diagnosis of multiple sclerosis in children, as in adults, requires evidence of dissemination of inflammatory activity in more than one location in the central nervous system (dissemination in space) and recurrent disease over time (dissemination in time). The identification of myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibodies (MOG‐Ab) and aquaporin‐A antibodies (AQP4‐Ab), and the subsequent discovery of their pathogenic mechanisms, have led to a shift in the classification of relapsing demyelinating syndromes. This is reflected in the 2017 revised criteria for the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis, which emphasizes the exclusion of multiple sclerosis mimics and aims to enable earlier diagnosis and thus treatment initiation. The long‐term efficacy of individual therapies initiated in children with multiple sclerosis is hard to evaluate, owing to the small numbers of patients who have the disease, the relatively high number of patients who switch therapy, and the need for long follow‐up studies. Nevertheless, an improvement in prognosis with a globally reduced annual relapse rate in children with multiple sclerosis is now observed compared with the pretreatment era, indicating a possible long‐term effect of therapies. Given the higher relapse rate in children compared with adults, and the impact multiple sclerosis has on cognition in the developing brain, there is a question whether rapid escalation or potent agents should be used in children, while the short‐ and long‐term safety profiles of these drugs are being established. With the results of the first randomized controlled trial of fingolimod versus interferon‐β1a in paediatric multiple sclerosis published in 2018 and several clinical trials underway, there is hope for further progress in the field of paediatric multiple sclerosis.What this paper adds

Early and accurate diagnosis of multiple sclerosis is crucial.

The discovery of antibody‐mediated demyelination has changed the diagnosis and management of relapsing demyelination syndromes.

Traditional escalation therapy is being challenged by induction therapy.