bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Associations between interarm differences in blood pressure and cardiovascular disease outcomes: protocol for an individual patient data meta-analysis and development of a prognostic algorithm
Authors: Clark Christopher E , Boddy Kate , Warren Fiona C , Taylor Rod S , Aboyans Victor , Cloutier Lyne , McManus Richard J , Shore Angela C , Campbell John L 
Published: July 2017

IntroductionIndividual cohort studies in various populations and study-level meta-analyses have shown interarm differences (IAD) in blood pressure to be associated with increased cardiovascular and all-cause mortality. However, key questions remain, such as follows: (1) What is the additional contribution of IAD to prognostic risk estimation for cardiovascular and all-cause mortality? (2) What is the minimum cut-off value for IAD that defines elevated risk? (3) Is there a prognostic value of IAD and do different methods of IAD measurement impact on the prognostic value of IAD? We aim to address these questions by conducting an individual patient data (IPD) meta-analysis.Methods and analysisThis study will identify prospective cohort studies that measured blood pressure in both arms during recruitment, and invite authors to contribute IPD datasets to this collaboration. All patient data received will be combined into a single dataset. Using one-stage meta-analysis, we will undertake multivariable time-to-event regression modelling, with the aim of developing a new prognostic model for cardiovascular risk estimation that includes IAD. We will explore variations in risk contribution of IAD across predefined population subgroups (eg, hypertensives, diabetics), establish the lower limit of IAD that is associated with additional cardiovascular risk and assess the impact of different methods of IAD measurement on risk prediction.Ethics and disseminationThis study will not include any patient identifiable data. Included datasets will already have ethical approval and consent from their sponsors. Findings will be presented to international conferences and published in peer reviewed journals, and we have a comprehensive dissemination strategy in place with integrated patient and public involvement.PROSPERO registration numberCRD42015031227.
Physicians are more likely than non-physicians to use brand-name drugs to treat their chronic conditions
Authors: Carrera Mariana , Skipper Niels 
Published: July 2017

BackgroundLittle is known about the treatments physicians choose for themselves compared with how they treat their patients. We determine if physicians prescribe different treatments to patients than to themselves.MethodsPopulation-based cohort study from 2004 to 2012 examining prescription claims of all Danish primary care physicians (PCP; n=3088) and all other Danish adults (n=2 334 590) who received a first-time prescription from a PCP for a statin (n=455 586), calcium channel blocker (CCB, n=330 369), serotonin-norepinephrine/selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SN/SSRIs, n=423 740), proton pump inhibitor (PPI, n=671 965) or antihistamine (n=456 018). The main outcome is the brand-name or generic status of the first prescribed drug. A logistic regression model compared outcomes, unadjusted and adjusted for sociodemographic characteristics and coverage information.ResultsFor drugs that require chronic treatment (statins, CCBs, SN/SSRIs), the relative risk (RR) for PCPs (PCP patients) being treated with a brand drug was 3.86 (95% CI 3.33 to 4.47; p<0.001). This difference remained significant when adjusting for covariates (adjusted RR=2.51 (95% CI 2.16 to 2.92; p<0.001)). For non-chronic drugs (PPIs, antihistamines), the RR for PCP patients was (RR=1.13 (95% CI 1.08 to 1.20; p<0.001)), and this difference was explained by higher income. Physicians are not more likely than non-physicians, however, to be treated with brand-name versions of drugs that are available as generics.ConclusionPhysicians are more likely than non-physicians to be treated with brand-name drugs without generic equivalents in three chronic treatment drug classes but not in two acute treatment drug classes. Guidelines can lead to lower brand-name drug use than physicians prefer for themselves.
Piperlongumine Induces Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS)-Dependent Downregulation of Specificity Protein Transcription Factors
Authors: Karki Keshav , Hedrick Erik , Kasiappan Ravi , Jin Un-Ho , Safe Stephen 
Published: July 2017

Abstract
Piperlongumine is a natural product found in the plant species Piper longum, and this compound exhibits potent anticancer activity in multiple tumor types and has been characterized as an inducer of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Treatment of Panc1 and L3.6pL pancreatic, A549 lung, 786-O kidney, and SKBR3 breast cancer cell lines with 5 to 15 μmol/L piperlongumine inhibited cell proliferation and induced apoptosis and ROS, and these responses were attenuated after cotreatment with the antioxidant glutathione. Piperlongumine also downregulated expression of Sp1, Sp3, Sp4, and several pro-oncogenic Sp-regulated genes, including cyclin D1, survivin, cMyc, EGFR and hepatocyte growth factor receptor (cMet), and these responses were also attenuated after cotreatment with glutathione. Mechanistic studies in Panc1 cells showed that piperlongumine-induced ROS decreased expression of cMyc via an epigenetic pathway, and this resulted in downregulation of cMyc-regulated miRNAs miR-27a, miR-20a, and miR-17 and induction of the transcriptional repressors ZBTB10 and ZBTB4. These repressors target GC-rich Sp-binding sites to decrease transactivation. This pathway observed for piperlongumine in Panc1 cells has previously been reported for other ROS-inducing anticancer agents and shows that an important underlying mechanism of action of piperlongumine is due to downregulation of Sp1, Sp3, Sp4, and pro-oncogenic Sp-regulated genes. Cancer Prev Res; 10(8); 467–77. ©2017 AACR.
РОЗРОБКА ТА ВАЛІДАЦІЯ СПЕКТРОФОТОМЕТРИЧНОЇ МЕТОДИКИ КІЛЬКІСНОГО ВИЗНАЧЕННЯ ЕНІСАМІУМУ ЙОДИДУ В КАПСУЛАХ
Authors: Burmaka О. V. , Gureyeva S. M. , Margitich V. M. 
Published: July 2017

Мета роботи. Розробити методику кількісного визначення енісаміуму йодиду в капсулах із застосуванням методу абсорбційної спектрофотометрії в ультрафіолетовій області.Матеріали і методи. Використано стандартний зразок енісаміум йодиду та зразок готової лікарської форми виробництва ПАТ «Фармак». У ході роботи було встановлено оптимальну робочу концентрацію енісаміуму йодиду 0,02 мг/мл. Дослідження проводили із застосуванням спектрофотометра «Specord 250 Plus».Результати й обговорення. Продемонстровано, що оптимальна довжина хвилі при визначенні становить 267 нм. Вивчено валідаційні характеристики методики в діапазоні 0,016-0,024 мг/мл (80-120%): специфічність, правильність, прецизійність, лінійність, діапазон застосування, робасність, внутрішньолабораторна прецизійність відповідно до рекомендацій Міжнародної конференції з гармонізації. Коефіцієнт кореляції (r) між введеним та знайденим значенням для енісаміуму йодиду становить 0,99996, а відносний довірчий інтервал (Dz) 0,23 %. Підтверджено стабільність розчинів при їх зберіганні при кімнатній температурі протягом 48 годин.Висновки. Розроблено спектрофотометричну методику кількісного визначення енісаміуму йодиду в капсулах, експериментально доведено, що вона придатна для контролю якості капсул енісаміуму йодиду.
A Cytokine-Like Protein Dickkopf-Related Protein 3 Is Atheroprotective
Authors: Yu Baoqi , Kiechl Stefan , Qi Dan , Wang Xiaocong , Song Yanting , Weger Siegfried , Mayr Agnes , Le Bras Alexandra , Karamariti Eirini , Zhang Zhongyi , Barco Barrantes Ivan del , Niehrs Christof , Schett Georg , Hu Yanhua , Wang Wen , Willeit Johann , Qu Aijuan , Xu Qingbo 
Published: July 2017

Background:
Dickkopf-related protein 3 (DKK3) is a secreted protein that is involved in the regulation of cardiac remodeling and vascular smooth muscle cell differentiation, but little is known about its role in atherosclerosis.

Methods:

We tested the hypothesis that DKK3 is atheroprotective using both epidemiological and experimental approaches. Blood DKK3 levels were measured in the Bruneck Study in 2000 (n=684) and then in 2005 (n=574).
DKK3
-deficient mice were crossed with
apolipoprotein E
-/-
mice to evaluate atherosclerosis development and vessel injury-induced neointimal formation. Endothelial cell migration and the underlying mechanisms were studied using in vitro cell culture models.

Results:

In the prospective population-based Bruneck Study, the level of plasma DKK3 was inversely related to carotid artery intima-media thickness and 5-year progression of carotid atherosclerosis independently from standard risk factors for atherosclerosis. Experimentally, we analyzed the area of atherosclerotic lesions, femoral artery injury-induced reendothelialization, and neointima formation in both
DKK3

-/-

/apolipoprotein E

-/-

and
DKK3

+/+

/apolipoprotein E

-/-

mice. It was demonstrated that DKK3 deficiency accelerated atherosclerosis and delayed reendothelialization with consequently exacerbated neointima formation. To explore the underlying mechanisms, we performed transwell and scratch migration assays using cultured human endothelial cells, which exhibited a significant induction in cell migration in response to DKK3 stimulation. This DKK3-induced migration activated ROR2 and DVL1, activated Rac1 GTPases, and upregulated JNK and c-jun phosphorylation in endothelial cells. Knockdown of the ROR2 receptor using specific siRNA or transfection of a dominant-negative form of Rac1 in endothelial cells markedly inhibited cell migration and downstream JNK and c-jun phosphorylation.

Conclusions:
This study provides the evidence for a role of DKK3 in the protection against atherosclerosis involving endothelial migration and repair, with great therapeutic potential implications against atherosclerosis.
The Effect of Listeners' Anticipations on the Intelligibility of Heard Speech
Authors: Bruce D. J. 
Published: July 2017

The experiment described demonstrates the effect of prior set on the intelligibility of heard speech. Twenty subjects hear the same twelve word sentences in the presence of noise on five occasions. The sentences fall into two groups — one unprefaced by any indication of topic, the other prefaced on each occasion by a different word, which subjects are told is the topic to which the group refers. Only one of the sentences in the latter group is fully appropriate to each word given. Wherever this conjunction occurs in the order of testing, the sentence involved reaches its highest level of intelligibility. When inappropriately prefaced, sentences are misinterpreted to a considerable extent or resist interpretation. “Speech is no more than a series of rough hints which the hearer must interpret…” —L. R. Palmer.
Variations in Normal Speech Disfluencies
Authors: Broen Patricia A. , Siegel Gerald M. 
Published: July 2017

College adults were asked to speak in each of three situations. All 40 subjects started in an Alone situation in which they simply talked spontaneously about any topic while sitting alone in a room. They then participated in a situation in which they were asked to speak alone in front of a TV camera and lights, or as if to an audience (Audience-TV situation). Finally, the experimenter entered the room and engaged the subject in casual Conversation for the final situation. Each situation was 12 minutes and was tape recorded. After the last session, the subjects filled out a brief questionnaire in which they rated each situation according to their judgment of the need to speak carefully and of their estimated disfluency in the situation. The most significant finding is that subjects were most disfluent in those situations they rated as least important. Contrary to usual observations, the greatest frequency of disfluencies occurred in the Conversation rather than the Audience-TV situation. It appeared that as subjects became more concerned about their speech, they monitored it more carefully and thus became more fluent.
The Duration of Intervocalic Stops in Ceylon Tamil
Authors: Thananjayarajasingham S. 
Published: July 2017

In this paper, the results of an experimental study of the duration of intervocalic voiceless double stops that occur in the colloquial Tamil speech of the writer are presented. Kymography and spectrography are the two experimental devices used for measuring the duration of the intervocalic double stops. From the kymographic and spectrographic evidence it was found that the duration of the closure was very long if the stop was preceded by a short vowel and considerably less if the stop was preceded by a long vowel.
Elicited Imitation and Assessment of Abilities
Authors: Berry P.B. 
Published: July 2017

It is possible to regard imitation within at least three theoretical frameworks. First, imitation may be regarded as a special case of another more general form of learning (Miller and Dollard, 1941; Gewirtz, 1971). Secondly, it is possible to consider imitation as a unique process which may be accounted for in its own right (Bandura, 1969). A third theory of imitation has its origin in the work of Piaget (1951) and suggests that imitation is only one aspect of the total functioning of an individual and lies between accommodation and assimilation. The Piagetian account of imitation implies that as an individual develops, his imitations undergo a series of transformations, so that the level of organization of the individual directly influences his imitations. There is some evidence that, in the case of the severely subnormal child, the Piagetian theory has implications for both the development of learning and the assessment of abilities. In a series of experiments requiring the ESNS children to imitate sounds in words, whole words, strings of words (structured and semi-structured) and sentences of varying complexity (Berry, 1971; 1973), an analysis of errors indicated differential levels and strategies of processing the linguistic input. In addition, the level of performance on imitation tasks correlated significantly with abilities on other tasks of linguistic ability such as receptive vocabulary, the comprehension of sentences of varying syntactic complexity and the ability to vary syntactic complexity and the ability to produce language related to picture stimuli. Evidence from other researchers using the technique for the assessment of language (e.g. Slobin, 1968; Osser, Wang and Zaid, 1970) as well as studies in motor imitation (e.g. Wapner and Cirillo, 1968) suggests that elicited imitation of a model might be a useful technique for the psychological assessment of skills, since errors in imitation tasks seem to be directly related to the individual's competence.
Can Prosody Aid the Automatic Classification of Dialog Acts in Conversational Speech?
Authors: Shriberg Elizabeth , Stolcke Andreas , Jurafsky Daniel , Coccaro Noah , Meteer Marie , Bates Rebecca , Taylor Paul , Ries Klaus , Martin Rachel , van Ess-Dykema Carol 
Published: July 2017

Identifying whether an utterance is a statement, question, greeting, and so forth is integral to effective automatic understanding of natural dialog. Little is known, however, about how such dialog acts (DAs) can be automatically classified in truly natural conversation. This study asks whether current approaches, which use mainly word information, could be improved by adding prosodic information. The study is based on more than 1000 conversations from the Switchboard corpus. DAs were hand-annotated, and prosodic features (duration, pause, F0, energy, and speaking rate) were automatically extracted for each DA. In training, decision trees based on these features were inferred; trees were then applied to unseen test data to evaluate performance. Performance was evaluated for prosody models alone, and after combining the prosody models with word information—either from true words or from the output of an automatic speech recognizer. For an overall classification task, as well as three subtasks, prosody made significant contributions to classification. Feature-specific analyses further revealed that although canonical features (such as F0 for questions) were important, less obvious features could compensate if canonical features were removed. Finally, in each task, integrating the prosodic model with a DA-specific statistical language model improved performance over that of the language model alone, especially for the case of recognized words. Results suggest that DAs are redundantly marked in natural conversation, and that a variety of automatically extractable prosodic features could aid dialog processing in speech applications.
Self-Assessment in the Measurement of Public Health Workforce Preparedness for Bioterrorism or other Public Health Disasters
Authors: Kerby Dave S. , Brand Michael W. , Johnson David L. , Ghouri Farooq S. 
Published: July 2017

Objective. The purpose of this study was to examine effective ways to evaluate public health workers' competence for preparedness. Methods. The Public Health Ready project, developed by the National Association of County and City Public Health Officials and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is a pilot program designed to prepare local public health agencies to respond to emergency events. Workers at a Public Health Ready site ( N=265) rated their need for training and their competence in meeting generic emergency response goals. Cluster analysis of cases was conducted on the self-assessed need for training. Results. Three groups of workers emerged, differing in their overall ratings of need for training. A given worker tended to report similar needs for training across all training goals. Conclusions. In this study, workers' ratings of need for training may reflect an overall interest in training rather than need for training in a particular area. Caution should be exercised in interpretation when generic goals and self-assessment are used to measure need for training. Future assessments of training needs may be more effective if they use objective measures of specific local plans.
Tobacco Use among American Indians in Oklahoma: An Epidemiologic View
Authors: Eichner June E. , Cravatt Kymberly , Beebe Laura A. , Blevins Kathleen S. , Stoddart Martha L. , Bursac Zoran , Yeh Fawn , Lee Elisa T. , Moore William E. 
Published: July 2017

Objectives. With the exception of national surveys that sample the entire U.S. population, little information exists on tobacco habits among American Indians. This study is a comparison of tobacco use findings in the 1990s among American Indians in Oklahoma, a state with a large and diverse American Indian population (39 tribes). Methods. Data on current tobacco use are presented from two statewide surveys, the Oklahoma Youth Tobacco Survey and the Native American Behavioral Risk Factor Survey, as well as two large epidemiologic studies of chronic disease among American Indians—the Cherokee Diabetes Study and the Strong Heart Study. Three of these four sources of data involve research/surveys exclusively about American Indians. Results. Nontraditional use of tobacco by American Indians occurs frequently, according to each instrument. Initiation to this habit begins in middle school and increases dramatically during high school. After age 50, reporting by individuals that they currently smoke declines steadily. Conclusions. Despite sampling different individuals for the surveys and different tribes for the epidemiologic research, results were comparable in age groups that overlapped. These findings support national data indicating that American Indians have higher prevalence rates of smoking than other racial/ethnic groups. American Indians report smoking on average about a half a pack of cigarettes per day. Individuals reporting using tobacco solely for ceremonial purposes were far fewer than habitual users. Buying tobacco products in American Indian smoke shops helps tribal economies; this fact needs to be considered for prevention programs to succeed.
Health Department Collaboration with Emergency Departments as a Model for Public Health Programs among at-Risk Populations
Authors: Lyons Michael S. , Lindsell Christopher J. , Ledyard Holly K. , Frame Peter T. , Trott Alexander T. 
Published: July 2017

Objectives. Accessing at-risk and underserved populations for intervention remains a major obstacle for public health programs. Emergency departments (EDs) care for patients not otherwise interacting with the health care system, and represent a venue for such programs. A variety of perceived and actual barriers inhibit widespread implementation of ED-based public health programs. Collaboration between local health departments and EDs may overcome such barriers. The goal of this study was to assess the effectiveness of a health department-funded, ED-based public health program in comparison with other similar community-based programs through analysis of data reported by health department-funded HIV counseling and testing centers in one Ohio county. Method. Data for HIV counseling and testing at publicly funded sites in southwestern Ohio from January 1999 through December 2002 were obtained from the Ohio Department of Health. Demographic and risk-factor profiles were compared between the counseling and testing program located in the ED of a large, urban teaching hospital and the other publicly funded centers in the same county. Results. A total of 26,382 patients were counseled and tested; 5,232 were ED patients, and 21,150 were from community sites. HIV positivity was 0.86% (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.64%, 1.15%) in the ED and 0.65% (95% CI 0.55%, 0.77%) elsewhere. The ED program accounted for 19.8% of all tests and 24.7% of all positive results. The ED notified 77.3% of individuals testing positive and 84.4% of individuals testing negative. At community program centers, 88.3% of patients testing positive and 63.8% of patients testing negative were notified of results. All ED patients notified of positive status were successfully referred to infectious disease specialists. Conclusions. Public health programs can operate effectively in the ED. EDs should have a rapidly expanding role in the national public health system.
Querying of Death Certificates in the United States
Authors: Hoyert Donna L. , Lima Ann R. 
Published: July 2017

Objective. Data from death certificates are often used in research; however, little has been published on the processing of vague or incomplete information reported on certificates. The goal of this study was to examine the querying efforts in the United States used to clarify such records. Methods. The authors obtained data on the querying efforts of the 50 states, New York City, and the District of Columbia. Descriptive statistics are presented for two units of analysis: registration area and death record. Using data from a single registration area, Washington State, the authors compared the percent change in age-adjusted death rates for data from before and after querying to analyze the effect of querying on selected causes of death. Results. Fifty-one of the 52 registration areas queried either demographic or cause-of-death information. Almost 90% of queries were returned; the underlying cause of death changed in approximately 68% of these records. This data translates into about 3% of total U.S. death records, given that 4% of total U.S. death records were queried about cause of death. The impact of queries on age-adjusted death rates varied by cause of death. Generally, the effect is most obvious for cause-of-death categories that are specific and relatively homogenous. Conclusion. Querying continues to be widely practiced. In the case of cause-of-death queries, this method refines the assigned underlying cause of death for records reported with vague or incomplete information.