bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Randomized clinical trial of hepatic resection versus radiofrequency ablation for early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma
Authors: Ng K K C , Chok K S H , Chan A C Y , Cheung T T , Wong T C L , Fung J Y Y , Yuen J , Poon R T P , Fan S T , Lo C M 
Published: November 2017

Abstract

Background
Hepatic resection and radiofrequency ablation (RFA) are treatment options for early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Whether tumour recurrence and long-term survival favour either treatment has not been established. This randomized trial aimed to test the hypothesis that RFA is superior to hepatic resection in terms of lower tumour recurrence rate and better long-term survival.

Methods
Patients with early-stage HCC (solitary tumour no larger than 5 cm; or no more than 3 tumours, each 3 cm or smaller) were randomized into hepatic resection and RFA groups. Demographic and clinical characteristics, and short- and long-term outcome measures were compared between groups. Primary and secondary outcome measures were overall tumour recurrence and survival respectively.

Results
Clinicopathological data were similar in the two groups, which each contained 109 patients. The RFA group had a shorter treatment duration, less blood loss and shorter hospital stay than the resection group. Mortality and morbidity rates were similar in the two groups. The overall tumour recurrence rate was similar in the resection and RFA groups (71·3 versus 81·7 per cent respectively). The 1-, 3-, 5- and 10-year overall survival rates were 94·5, 80·6, 66·5 and 47·6 per cent respectively in the resection group, compared with 95·4, 82·3, 66·4 and 41·8 per cent in the RFA group (P = 0·531). Corresponding disease-free survival rates were 74·1, 50·9, 41·5 and 31·9 per cent in the resection group, and 70·6, 46·6, 33·6 and 18·6 per cent in the RFA group (P = 0·072).

Conclusion
RFA for early-stage HCC is not superior to hepatic resection, in terms of tumour recurrence, overall survival and disease-free survival. Registration number: HKUCTR-10 (http://www.hkuctr.com).
Simple and Efficient Purification of Recombinant Proteins Using the Heparin‐Binding Affinity Tag
Authors: Jayanthi Srinivas , Gundampati Ravi Kumar , Kumar Thallapuranam Krishnaswamy Suresh 
Published: November 2017

AbstractHeparin, a member of the glycosaminoglycan family, is known to interact with more than 400 different types of proteins. For the past few decades, significant progress has been made to understand the molecular details involved in heparin‐protein interactions. Based on the structural knowledge available from the FGF1‐heparin interaction studies, we have designed a novel heparin‐binding peptide (HBP) affinity tag that can be used for the simple, efficient, and cost‐effective purification of recombinant proteins of interest. HBP‐tagged fusion proteins can be purified by heparin Sepharose affinity chromatography using a simple sodium chloride gradient to elute the bound fusion protein. In addition, owing to the high density of positive charges on the HBP tag, recombinant target proteins are preferably expressed in their soluble forms. The purification of HBP‐fusion proteins can also be achieved in the presence of chemical denaturants, including urea. Additionally, polyclonal antibodies raised against the affinity tag can be used to detect HBP‐fused target proteins with high sensitivity. © 2017 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Visualization of Protein Interactions in Living Cells Using Bimolecular Luminescence Complementation (BiLC)
Authors: Verhoef Lisette G.G.C. , Wade Mark 
Published: November 2017

AbstractThe number of intracellular protein‐protein interactions (PPIs) far exceeds the total number of proteins encoded by the genome. Dynamic cellular PPI networks respond to external stimuli and endogenous metabolism in order to maintain homeostasis. Many PPIs are directly involved in disease pathogenesis and/or resistance to therapeutics; they therefore represent potential drug targets. A technology generally termed ‘bimolecular complementation’ relies on the physical splitting of a molecular reporter (such as a fluorescent or luminescent protein) and fusion of the resulting two fragments to a pair of interacting proteins. When these proteins interact, they effectively reconstitute the activity of the molecular reporter (typically leading to increased fluorescence or luminescence). This unit describes the selection and development of bimolecular luminescence complementation (BiLC) assays for reporting intracellular PPIs, and provides examples in which BiLC was used to identify small molecules that can modulate PPIs. © 2017 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Analysis of Disulfide Bond Formation
Authors: Braakman Ineke , Lamriben Lydia , van Zadelhoff Guus , Hebert Daniel N. 
Published: November 2017

AbstractIn this unit, protocols are provided for detection of disulfide bond formation in cultures of intact cells and in an in vitro translation system containing isolated microsomes or semi‐permeabilized cells. First, the newly synthesized protein of interest is biosynthetically labeled with radioactive amino acids in a short pulse. The labeled protein then is chased with unlabeled amino acids. At different times during the chase, a sample is collected, membranes are lysed with detergent, and the protein is isolated by immunoprecipitation, as described. A support protocol is provided for analysis of disulfide bonds in the immunoprecipitates by SDS‐PAGE with and without prior reduction. The difference in mobility observed between the gels with nonreduced and reduced samples is due to disulfide bonds in the nonreduced protein. An additional support protocol is included that uses PEG‐maleimide to modify free thiols and follow disulfide‐bond formation by SDS‐PAGE. © 2017 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Expression and Purification of Protein Complexes Suitable for Structural Studies Using Mammalian HEK 293F Cells
Authors: Nigi Irene , Fairall Louise , Schwabe John W.R. 
Published: November 2017

AbstractProkaryotic expression systems have been widely used to express proteins for structural studies. Such expression systems have the advantage of being economical, straightforward and fast. However, for many eukaryotic proteins and particularly protein complexes, bacterial expression systems do not produce significant yields of soluble protein. This may result from failure to efficiently transcribe/translate the required protein or may result from the formation of insoluble aggregates known as inclusion bodies. Mammalian expression systems can often produce natively folded proteins, sometimes with native post‐translational modifications. However, such expression systems are underutilized due to the perception that they are costly, technically challenging and result in limited protein yields. In fact, HEK 293F cells are straightforward to grow, transfect with high efficiency and often produce significant yields of recombinant proteins. In this unit, we describe a method to express and purify milligram quantities of a human protein complex from HEK 293F cells grown in suspension transiently transfected with the appropriate plasmids. © 2017 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Computer simulation and enantioselective capillary electrophoresis to characterize isomer mixtures of sulfated β‐cyclodextrins
Authors: Mikkonen Saara , Caslavska Jitka , Hruška Vlastimil , Thormann Wolfgang 
Published: November 2017

AbstractThe enantiomeric separation of methadone in the presence of multiple isomer mixtures of sulfated β‐cyclodextrin (S‐β‐CD) was studied experimentally with CZE and theoretically using computer simulation. Experiments were performed over many years with several lots of S‐β‐CD from the same manufacturer with a specified degree of substitution of 7–11. Large differences in the migration patterns were observed between certain lots and it was concluded that the extent of labelling in lots released after a transition time was higher than originally specified. The migration pattern was observed to be associated with (i) the ionic strength increase resulting from using S‐β‐CDs with a higher charge state and (ii) differences in buffer composition. Apparent binding constants between methadone and the S‐β‐CD and complex mobilities were determined for different lots of S‐β‐CD at varying ionic strength using phosphate and 3‐morpholino‐2‐hydroxypropanesulfonic acid buffers. The obtained values were used as input for simulations. For a given ionic strength, agreement between predicted and experimentally observed behavior was obtained for different buffers. R‐methadone has a stronger interaction with S‐β‐CD than S‐methadone. For any given configuration there is a distinct S‐β‐CD concentration range which results in the cationic migration of S‐methadone while the migration direction of R‐methadone is reversed. This configuration was demonstrated to be applicable for micropreparative CZE separations.
Using extirpation to evaluate ionic tolerance of freshwater fish
Authors: Griffith Michael B. , Zheng Lei , Cormier Susan M. 
Published: November 2017

Abstract

Field data of fish occurrences and specific conductivity were used to estimate the tolerance of freshwater fish to elevated ion concentrations and to compare the differences between species- and genus-level analyses for individual effects. We derived extirpation concentrations at the 95th percentile (XC95) of a weighted cumulative frequency distribution for fish species inhabiting streams of the central and southern Appalachians by customizing methods used previously with macroinvertebrate genera. Weighting factors were calculated based on the number of sites in basins where each species occurred, reducing overweighting observations of species restricted to fewer basins. Comparing the species- and genus-level fish XC95 values, XC95s for fish genera were near the XC95s for the most salt-tolerant species in the genus. Therefore, a genus-level effect threshold is not reliably predictive of species-level extirpation, unless the genus is monospecific in the assessed assemblage. Of the 101 fish species XC95 values, 5% were &lt;509 and 10% were &lt;565 µS/cm. The lowest XC95 for a species was 322 µS/cm, which is &gt;300 µS/cm, the exposure estimated to extirpate 5% of macroinvertebrate genera in the central Appalachians. Above 509 µS/cm, 41 of the 101 species are expected to decline in occurrence. Environ Toxicol Chem 2018;37:871–883. Published 2017 Wiley Periodicals Inc. on behalf of SETAC. This article is a US government work and, as such, is in the public domain in the United States of America.
IL‐6 promoter polymorphism increased risks of recurrent stroke in the young patients with moderate internal carotid artery stenosis
Authors: Ou Minghui , Liu Shunda , Ma Xiaoping , Xing Xiangluan , He Wenting , Gao Huanmin 
Published: November 2017

AbstractInterleukin‐6 (IL‐6) is a pleiotropic cytokine with both pro‐inflammatory and anti‐inflammatory properties. Increased serum IL‐6 is associated with higher risk of cerebral vascular diseases, however, the circulating levels of IL‐6 vary greatly between individuals for bioenvironmental or genetic interferes by IL‐6 transcription, therefore, this study was to investigate if IL‐6 promoter polymorphisms predict the recurrence of young stroke. A total of 94 patients with moderate internal carotid artery stenosis and 94 healthy subjects were selected. Color Doppler was used to screen internal carotid artery stenosis, PCR restriction enzyme fragment length polymorphism for genotypes. Stroke recurrence rates in patients with different genotypes of IL‐6 promoter were evaluated by 1‐year follow‐up. The frequencies of 634C/G genotype of IL‐6 promoter were CC 38.29%, CG 46.81%, and GG 14.90%, while CC 59.51%, CG 35.11%, GG 6.38% in the control group (P < 0.01). The frequency of G allele was significantly higher than that in the control group (38.30% vs 21.28%, P < 0.01). The relative risk was 2.2838, and 95% confidence interval was 1.0026 to 5.2026, adjusted age, sex, blood pressure, BMI, blood lipid levels and IL‐6 (P < 0.05). The recurrent rate was 25.53% at 1‐year follow‐up; the recurrent rate among carriers with wild‐type G allele (CG + GG genotype) was 32.76%, but CC 13.89% (P < 0.01). IL‐6 G allele promoter increased stroke recurrent risk, therefore, it would be a predictor for recurrence of stroke in the young with moderate internal carotid artery stenosis.
MiR‐613 suppressed the laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma progression through regulating PDK1
Authors: Wang Jing , Yang Shujuan , Ge Wensheng , Wang Ying , Han Chaodong , Li Maocai 
Published: November 2017

AbstractMicroRNAs (miRNAs) are aberrantly expressed in several tumors and play important role in tumorigenesis. However, little is known about the role of miR‐613 in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC). We determined the expression of miR‐613 in a panel of 30 LSCC specimens. Compared with the adjacent normal samples, 20 cases of LSCC tissues exhibited decreased expression of miR‐613. The average expression of miR‐613 in LSCC tissues was lower than in normal samples. Moreover, we demonstrated that exogenous expression of miR‐613 suppressed LSCC cell proliferation, invasion, and blocked G1/S phase transition. We identified that 3‐phosphoinositide‐dependent protein kinase‐1 (PDK1) was a direct target gene of miR‐613 in LSCC cell. Overexpression of miR‐613 suppressed PDK1 expression in LSCC cell. Furthermore, we demonstrated that PDK1 was upregulated in LSCC tissues. MiR‐613 expression was inversely correlated with the expression of PDK1 in LSCC tissues. Moreover, we showed that PDK1 was involved in the miR‐613‐mediated cancer suppression of LSCC cell. These results suggested that miR‐613 played as a tumor suppressor gene in LSCC partly by inhibiting PDK1 expression.
Retracted: Effects of apelin on retinal microglial cells in a rat model of oxygen‐induced retinopathy of prematurity
Authors: Zhang Wei , Zhang Ding‐Guo , Liang Xing , Zhang Wei‐Liang , Ma Jing‐Xue 
Published: November 2017

AbstractThis study explores the effects of apelin on retinal microglial cells in rat models of oxygen‐induced retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). Totally, 274 rats were selected for establishing oxygen‐induced retinopathy (OIR) models, and 92 healthy rats for control group. OIR rats were assigned into OIR, 10−5 g/L apelin, 10−4 g/L apelin, and 10−3 g/L apelin groups. Immunohistochemistry was employed to determine morphology of microglial cells and cell number. CDllb, ionized calcium‐binding adapter molecule 1 (IBA‐1), TNF‐α, and iNOS mRNA and protein expressions were identified using RT‐qPCR and Western blotting, respectively. ELISA was employed to determine the levels of VEGF and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP). The amoeboid microglial cells were found in the OIR and 10−3 g/L apelin groups, while bipolar microglial cells were found in the normal control, 10−5 g/L apelin and 10−4 g/L apelin groups. In the 1, 2, 3, and 4th week after apelin treatment, there were significantly decreased bipolar microglial cells, lower mRNA and protein expressions of CDllb, IBA‐1, TNF‐α and iNOS, and the levels of VEGF and GFAP in the 10−4 g/L apelin group than in the OIR, 10−3 g/L apelin and 10−5 g/L apelin groups. The differences between the normal control and 10−4 g/L apelin groups are not significant. Compared with the OIR group, the 10−5 g/L apelin and 10−3 g/L apelin groups presented decreased microglial cells and mRNA and protein expressions of CDllb, IBA‐1, TNF‐α, and iNOS. Appropriate concentration of apelin may reduce retinal microglial cells in a rat model of oxygen‐induced ROP.
On the gaps of the spectrum of volumes of trades
Authors: Krotov Denis S. 
Published: November 2017

AbstractA pair of disjoint collections of k‐subsets (blocks) of a set V of cardinality v is called a t‐ trade or simply a t‐trade if every t‐subset of V is included in the same number of blocks of T0 and T1. The cardinality of T0 is called the volume of the trade. Using the weight distribution of the Reed–Muller code, we prove the conjecture that for every i from 2 to t, there are no t‐trades of volume greater than and less than and derive restrictions on the t‐trade volumes that are less than .
Variable angle gray level co‐occurrence matrix analysis of T2 relaxation time maps reveals degenerative changes of cartilage in knee osteoarthritis: Oulu knee osteoarthritis study
Authors: Peuna Arttu , Hekkala Joonas , Haapea Marianne , Podlipská Jana , Guermazi Ali , Saarakkala Simo , Nieminen Miika T. , Lammentausta Eveliina 
Published: November 2017

BackgroundTexture analysis methods based on gray level co‐occurrence matrices (GLCM) can be optimized to probe the spatial correspondence information from knee MRI T2 maps and the changes caused by osteoarthritis, and thus possibly leading to a more sensitive characterization of osteoarthritic cartilage. Curvature of the cartilage surfaces combined with the low image resolution in relation to cartilage thickness set special requirements for an effective texture analysis tool.Purpose/HypothesisTo introduce a novel implementation of GLCM algorithm optimized for cartilage texture analysis; to evaluate the performance of the designed algorithm against mean T2 relaxation time analysis; and to identify the most suitable texture features for discerning osteoarthritic subjects and asymptomatic controls.Study TypeCase control.Population/Subjects/Phantom/Specimen/animal ModelEighty symptomatic osteoarthritis patients and 64 asymptomatic controls.Field Strength/SequenceMultislice multiecho spin echo sequence on a 3T MRI system.AssessmentThe T2 relaxation time maps were manually segmented by an operator trained for the task. Texture analysis was performed using an in‐house algorithm developed in MATLAB.Statistical TestsSymptomatic and asymptomatic subjects were compared using Mann–Whitney U‐test. Repeatability of different features was addressed using the concordance correlation coefficient (CCC). Spearman's correlations between the features were determined.ResultsThe algorithm displayed excellent performance in discerning symptomatic and asymptomatic subjects. Fifteen features provided a significant difference between the groups (P ≤ 0.05) and 12 of those had P values smaller than the mean T2 differences. Most of the studied texture features were highly repeatable with CCC over 90%. For the features with significant differences, correlation with mean T2 was low or moderate (|r| ≤ 0.5).Data ConclusionWith careful parameter and feature selection and algorithm optimization, texture analysis provides a powerful tool for assessing knee osteoarthritis with more sensitive detection of cartilage degeneration compared to the mean value of the T2 relaxation times in an identical region of interest.Level of Evidence: 2Technical Efficacy Stage 2J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2018;47:1316–1327.
Ultrasonographic Criteria for Diagnosing Unilateral and Bilateral Retronychia
Authors: Fernández Javier , Reyes‐Baraona Francisco , Wortsman Ximena 
Published: November 2017

ObjectivesTo assess the main characteristics of retronychia on ultrasonography (US) and to propose US criteria for diagnosing unilateral and bilateral cases according to the digit.MethodsWe conducted a case‐control study with retrospective, descriptive, and statistical analyses of the US images of 210 nails: 43 with retronychia and 167 normal nails. The Student t test, Fisher exact test, and Kruskal‐Wallis test, among other tests, were performed. P < .05 was considered significant.ResultsSeventy percent of the patients were females, and the most affected digit was the big toe. Significant US diagnostic criteria were as follows: criterion 1, hypoechoic halo surrounding the origin of the nail plate; criterion 2, distance between the origin of the nail plate and the base of the distal phalanx of 5.1 mm or less in big toes and thumbs and/or a difference of 0.5 mm of this distance or greater between the affected nail and the contralateral healthy nail; and criterion 3, proximal nail fold thickness of 2.2 mm or greater for male patients or 1.9 mm or greater for female patients and/or a proximal nail fold 0.3 mm thicker or greater in comparison with the contralateral healthy nail. Cutoff points, sensitivity, and specificity with a 95% confidence interval were defined for each criterion according to the digit in cases with unilateral and bilateral involvement.ConclusionsUltrasonography can support the diagnosis of retronychia in unilateral and bilateral cases.
Utility of Lung Ultrasonography for Detection of Pleural Adhesions in Dogs
Authors: Uemura Akiko , Fukayama Toshiharu , Tanaka Takashi , Tanaka Ryou 
Published: November 2017

ObjectivesTo assess lung respiratory movement (“lung sliding”) in dogs using B‐mode ultrasonography (US) and to develop a method that assesses adhesions between the parietal pleura and the lung.MethodsSeventeen male beagles were anesthetized, and respiratory management was performed with intermittent positive pressure ventilation. Lung‐sliding assessments and adhesion examinations were performed with lung US under general anesthesia before and 2 weeks after thoracotomy. Lung sliding was scored on a 4‐level scale based on the percentage of the area that showed lung sliding (3, an area of roughly ≥80% of the intercostal space; 2, about 50% of the area of the intercostal space; 1, a small area of the intercostal space; or 0, movement absent); scores of 0, 1, and 2 indicated adhesions, whereas a score of 3 indicated no adhesions. The animals were then euthanized, and necropsy was performed to examine pleural adhesions.ResultsLung US and necropsy findings were compared. The median lung‐sliding score for the 12 sites with pleural adhesions on necropsy was 1.5, whereas it was 3.0 for the 532 sites without pleural adhesions. The lung‐sliding score was significantly lower in the group with adhesions (P < .0001). Adhesion sites detected on necropsy were in accordance with the sites that had decreased lung‐sliding scores. Lung US could detect pleural adhesions with sensitivity of 100.0% and specificity of 87.8%.ConclusionsExamination of lung sliding by thoracic US has high diagnostic value for detecting canine pleural adhesions and is useful in predicting adhesion sites before thoracic surgery in healthy dogs.
The effects of warming and ocean acidification on growth, photosynthesis, and bacterial communities for the marine invasive macroalga Caulerpa taxifolia
Authors: Roth‐Schulze Alexandra J. , Thomas Torsten , Steinberg Peter , Deveney Marty R. , Tanner Jason E. , Wiltshire Kathryn H. , Papantoniou Stephanie , Runcie John W. , Gurgel C. Frederico D. 
Published: November 2017

AbstractCaulerpa taxifolia is a pantropical green benthic marine macroalga, and one of the best known marine invasive species in temperate coastal habitats. In Australia, this species has been introduced to seven estuaries along New South Wales and one in South Australia. How this alga will perform under future climate change scenarios is however not well defined. This study experimentally assessed the effects of ocean acidification and global warming on the growth, photosynthetic performance and the bacterial community on two populations of C. taxifolia, one native and one invasive. A range of complex significant interactive effects between pH, temperature, and initial plant size on the growth of C. taxifolia were observed, but no effect of population origin and photosystem II (PSII) fluorescence quantum yield parameters were detected. No significant effects of the treatment combinations were observed on bacterial community richness or diversity. Only one bacterial species out of 1087 present on the algae showed significant changes between pH treatments at high temperature (24°C). This bacterium belonged to the genus Planctomyces and its relative abundance was more than 10 times higher in samples with low pH compared to the control. Higher plant growth was observed under all higher pCO2 and lower pH conditions suggesting that C. taxifolia will benefit from climate change, posing a potential higher risk in invaded locations.