bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Important considerations for microRNA extraction methods from whole blood and peripheral blood mononuclear cells
Authors: Atarod Sadaf , Smith Hannah , Dickinson Anne , Wang Xiao-Nong 
Published: August 2014

MicroRNAs are non-coding RNAs that negatively regulate mRNA expression and play significant roles in both health and disease. Differential microRNA expression has been used to aid diagnosis and discriminate disease stages. The accuracy and reliability of microRNA expression measurement is of utmost importance. For diagnostic investigations, microRNA expression in human peripheral blood is commonly detected using total RNA extracted using different methods. To date, no convincing data have been available showing whether microRNA expression levels are comparable when total RNA has been extracted from whole blood or peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). The present study examined miR-146a-5p and miR-155-5p expression using total RNA extracted in parallel from whole blood and PBMCs of 14 healthy volunteers. MicroRNA expression levels were significantly different between whole blood and PBMCs. No significant difference was observed in microRNA expression between fresh and cryopreserved PBMCs (p=0.125 for both). Further observations revealed that gender differences did not influence miR-146a-5p or miR-155-5p expression regardless of using whole blood(p = 0.797 and 1.00 respectively) or PBMC (p = 0.190 and 0.898 respectively). Our results demonstrate that microRNA expression could be subjective to the methods used for total RNA extraction which highlights the importance of using uniform extraction methods.
Making practice education visible: Challenging assumptions about the patient's place in placement environments
Authors: Kell Clare 
Published: August 2014

Background/aims Reviews of high-profile scandals in healthcare challenge health professionals to put the patient first in everything they do, including in the education of students. This paper focusses on learning in placement settings and, adopting a social perspective of learning, questions whether the rhetoric of patient-centred professional education is visible in the learning activities that students enact. Methods Informed by interaction and workplace studies, this study comprised an ethnomethodologically-informed ethnographic observation of physiotherapy student placement education in two hospital-based settings. The study followed six final-year students for two full days each as they undertook their everyday placement activities with their 28 educators and their patient workload. Using a novel notation system combining field notes and proxemics sketches, this study makes the minutiae of naturally-occurring, student-present interactions visible. Findings The results suggest that physiotherapy placement education interactions, which the educator, the student and the patient coproduce unquestioningly, frame patients as person-absent audiovisual aids to learning. Conclusions This paper illustrates the use of a new method to develop evidence-informed discussions about the rhetoric vs. the reality of patient-centred care in health-care education interactions. Studying interaction practices throws light onto previously unnoticed and unquestioned habits and norms in professional practice.
Developing the Bridges self-management programme for New Zealand stroke survivors: A case study
Authors: Hale Leigh , Jones Fiona , Mulligan Hilda , Levack William , Smith Cath , Claydon Leica , Milosavljevic Stephan , Taylor Denise , Allan Joanna , MacKenzie Nina , Flannery James , Edwards Sara , Rabone Trudy , Alcock Mark 
Published: August 2014

Background/aim This case study describes the adaptation of the UK-developed Bridges stroke self-management programme (Bridges SMP) into a version relevant and acceptable to the New Zealand (NZ) context. Methods Stakeholder consultation and qualitative methodology explored the acceptability and relevance of the Bridges SMP in NZ. Focus group discussions were held with stroke survivors (n=60) and neurorehabilitation therapists (n= 17). Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 22 stroke survivors. Based on data gathered the authors culturally and contextually adapted the accompanying Bridges SMP workbook. This study piloted the adapted programme with six stroke survivors and used semi-structured interviews to explore their perceptions of it. Findings The Bridges SMP was considered acceptable and beneficial for developing skills to self-manage recovery following stroke. The main recommended adaptation was the inclusion of NZ stories into the accompanying workbook. Four themes reflected the six pilot study participants' perceptions of the programme: you are not alone, reflection and taking action, life continues after stroke, and taking responsibility. Conclusions The Bridges SMP was considered relevant and only required moderate adaptation for use in NZ. The process the authors undertook to contextualise Bridges SMP for NZ will provide guidance to the programme's introduction into other international regions.
Biomechanical investigations of the secondary stability of commercial short dental implants in porcine ribs
Authors: Wilhelm Rebecca , Hasan Istabrak , Keilig Ludger , Heinemann Friedhelm , Stark Helmut , Bourauel Christoph 
Published: August 2014

AbstractThe use of short implants has increased widely within the last years. However, the stability of these implants has not yet been comprehensively investigated, in particular the difference in geometry and dimension of short implants. The aim of the present study was to investigate experimentally the difference of the secondary stability of different commercial short implants by measuring their displacements. Eleven implant geometries were investigated in this study. A total of 22 implants were inserted in porcine rib segments, two implants for each system. Implant displacements were measured using a self-developed biomechanical hexapod measurement system (HexMeS). The highest displacement was observed with Straumann BL NC 3.3×8.0 mm (266 μm), followed by Straumann Standard 4.1×6.0 mm (156 μm), while the lowest displacement of 61 μm was shown by Dentaurum type 1 implant (4.2×5.0 mm). No obvious difference of displacements was observed between hammered and screw-shaped implants with relevant dimensions. The experimental results were in good agreement with the numerical ones (19–42%) for Dentaurum implants. However, a difference of 70–80% was obtained for the Astra implant (4.0×6.0 mm) and Bicon implant (6.0×5.7 mm). The geometry of short implants directly affects their stability within the bone.
In vitro inhibitory effects of herbal supplements on tamoxifen and irinotecan metabolism
Authors: Grappe Fran , Nance Gwen , Coward Lori , Gorman Greg 
Published: August 2014

Abstract

Background: As the use of herbal supplements continues to rise throughout the world, the potential for drug-herbal interactions also increases. For chemotherapeutic prodrugs, this interaction could prevent the metabolic conversion of the prodrug to its active metabolite(s), thereby potentially resulting in subtherapeutic systemic exposure of the drug and reduced efficacy of the therapy.

Methods: In this study, in vitro metabolism with human liver microsomes is used to measure the impact of ten commonly used herbal supplements on the biotransformation of the chemotherapeutic prodrugs tamoxifen (TAM) and irinotecan (IR).

Results: Four of the herbals tested, echinacea, ginseng, lemon balm, and skullcap, were found to be strong inhibitors of the CYP450 enzymatic bioactivation pathways of TAM with IC50 values as percent of a single dose ranging from 0.019% to 0.34%. Two of the herbals, skullcap and lemon balm, were found to inhibit the carboxyesterase pathway of IR with values of 0.21 and 0.25, respectively.

Conclusions: Our data suggests that based on the measured IC50 values that skullcap and lemon balm could have potential negative clinical impact on the bioactivation of TAM but not likely with IR.
Synthesis and antimicrobial evaluation of purine substituted N-acyl-α-carboxamides via the Ugi four-component reaction
Authors: Kaur Gurpreet , Gupta Parul , Harjai Kusum , Singh Vasundhara 
Published: August 2014

Abstract
A series of novel purine based N-acyl-α-carboxamides were prepared via the Ugi four-component reaction approach using the pharmacophoric 2-amino-6-chloropurine moiety as the amine component coupled with various aldehydes, carboxylic acids and isocyanides affording a library of multisubstituted compounds 2a–x. These compounds were screened for their antimicrobial activity against Gram negative strains Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Gram positive strains Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis demonstrating significant biological potency. The best potency for all the strains was found for compound 2x, which is comparable with ampicillin trihydrate as the standard drug.
Optimal Design Strategies for Sibling Studies with Binary Exposures
Authors: Li Zhigang , McKeague Ian W. , Lumey Lambert H. 
Published: August 2014

AbstractSibling studies have become increasingly popular because they provide better control over confounding by unmeasured family-level risk factors than can be obtained in standard cohort studies. However, little attention has been devoted to the development of efficient design strategies for sibling studies in terms of optimizing power. We here address this issue in commonly encountered types of sibling studies, allowing for continuous and binary outcomes and varying numbers of exposed and unexposed siblings. For continuous outcomes, we show that in families with sibling pairs, optimal study power is obtained by recruiting discordant (exposed–control) pairs of siblings. More generally, balancing the exposure status within each family as evenly as possible is shown to be optimal. For binary outcomes, we elucidate how the optimal strategy depends on the variation of the binary response; as the within-family correlation increases, the optimal strategy tends toward only recruiting discordant sibling pairs (as in the case of continuous outcomes). R code for obtaining the optimal strategies is included.
Influence of extracellular media’s ionic strength on the osmotic stability of Sahel goat erythrocytes
Authors: Igbokwe Nanacha Afifi , Igbokwe Ikechukwu Onyebuchi 
Published: August 2014

Abstract

Background: Heparinised blood was exposed to osmotic lysis in hypotonic buffered saline to evaluate erythrocyte membrane stability. When K3 EDTA blood was used, it added more to the ionic content of blood than heparin. The influence of suspending media’s ionic strength on the osmotic stability of Sahel goat erythrocytes was investigated by replacing the ionic saline with non-ionic saccharide (sucrose or glucose) and assessing the effect of using EDTA blood instead of heparinised blood.

Results: The erythrocyte osmotic fragility curve in saline was hyperbolic even when the ionic concentration was reduced by 50% with saccharides. Haemolysis was higher with EDTA than heparinised blood at saline concentrations of 90 and 150–180 mosmol/L. The fragility curve was sigmoidal and shifted to the left when saline was completely substituted with a saccharide. The non-ionic saccharides increased erythrocyte osmotic resistance linearly (r=0.88; p<0.02) from median to minimal hyposmolarities (150–300 mosmol/L) and reduced the osmolyte concentration at median fragility by 36%. No effect occurred at <30–120 mosmol/L and >90% fragility; and saccharide concentrations were almost non-lytic at comparable saline concentrations evoking <10% haemolysis. Fragilities were neither affected by period (30–60 min) of incubation nor the type of saccharide used.

Conclusions: In this study, the variation in osmotic stability of caprine erythrocytes was linked to ionic strength of the suspending extracellular media which seemed to exert an influence through transmembrane ion fluxes and regulatory volume changes in erythrocytes.
Inadvertent use of bevacizumab in pregnant women with diabetes mellitus type 1
Authors: Polizzi Silvio , Ferrara Giovanna , Restaino Stefano , Rinaldi Silvia , Tognetto Daniele 
Published: August 2014

Abstract

Background: The use of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitors may cause fetal harm and systemic side effects in the mother, so these drugs are contraindicated in pregnancy. We report a case of inadvertent administration of two intravitreal bevacizumab injections in a woman with diabetes mellitus type 1, 5 days before ovulation (±3 days) and during the 5th gestational week, respectively. The patient had a past history of both miscarriage and requirement for cesarean section for preeclampsia.

Methods: Observational case report.

Results: The patient did not have any drug-related adverse event and delivered a healthy full-term infant, reaching all developmental milestones appropriately during infancy.

Conclusions: Intravitreal drug injections did not result in any detectable adverse event in the mother and infant although she had a significant past obstetric history. However, there have been no studies evaluating the effects of bevacizumab in pregnant women and suggesting that intravitreal drug injection in this patient is safe. Until more is known about this, it seems reasonable to avoid treatment with this drug a few weeks before and during pregnancy.
The influence of puberty on vitamin D status in obese children and the possible relation between vitamin D deficiency and insulin resistance
Authors: Gutiérrez Medina Sonsoles , Gavela-Pérez Teresa , Domínguez-Garrido María Nieves , Gutiérrez-Moreno Elisa , Rovira Adela , Garcés Carmen , Soriano-Guillén Leandro 
Published: August 2014

Abstract: Puberty can affect vitamin D levels.The goal of this study was to analyze the relation between vitamin D deficiency and puberty in obese Spanish children, along with the possible interrelation between vitamin D status and degree of insulin resistance.A cross-sectional study was carried out, in which clinical and biochemical data were gathered from 120 obese and 50 normal weight children between January 2011 and January 2013.: Mean vitamin D levels were 19.5 and 31.6 ng/mL in obese pubertal and obese prepubertal children, respectively. About 75% of the obese pubertal subjects and 46% of the obese prepubertal subjects had vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D levels were significantly lower in pubescent subjects compared with pre-pubescent subjects in summer, fall, and winter. There was no apparent relation between vitamin D levels and homeostasis model assessment index for insulin resistence (expressed in standard deviation score for sex and Tanner stage) in either puberty or pre-puberty.: Puberty may be a risk factor for the vitamin D deficiency commonly found in the obese child population. This deficiency is not associated with higher insulin resistance in obese pubertal children compared with obese prepubertal children.
Pure gonadal dysgenesis (Swyer syndrome) due to microdeletion in the SRY gene: a case report
Authors: Mutlu Gül Yesiltepe , Kırmızıbekmez Heves , Aydın Hatip , Çetiner Handan , Moralıoğlu Serdar , Celayir Ayşenur Cerrah 
Published: August 2014

Abstract46,XY complete gonadal dysgenesis (Swyer syndrome) is a rare cause of disorder of sexual development. This syndrome is caused by a defect in the determination of sex during embryogenesis and is characterised with female external genitalia, normal or rudimentary uterus, and streak gonads, despite the presence of the 46,XY karyotype. Most of the studied cases presented with leak of secondary sex characteristics and primary amenorrhea during adolescence. Laboratory findings reveal hypergonadotropic hypogonadism. Herein we present the case of a female with a 46,XY karyotype who was admitted with delayed puberty and detected to have a microdeletion in the
Hyperostosis-hyperphosphatemia syndrome (HHS): report of two cases with a recurrent mutation and review of the literature
Authors: Ghafouri-Fard Soudeh , Abbasi Farzaneh , Azizi Faezeh , Javaheri Mona , Mehdizadeh Mehrzad , Setoodeh Arya 
Published: August 2014

AbstractHyperostosis-hyperphosphatemia syndrome (HHS) is a rare autosomal recessive metabolic disorder caused by mutations in the
Fluorescent labeling of materials using silica nanoparticles
Authors: Rashwan Khaled , Brakke Erik , Sereda Grigoriy 
Published: August 2014

AbstractThe article is focused on the implementation of fluorescent silica nanoparticles in the laboratory curriculum. Along with a brief overview of experimental procedures appropriate for teaching in the laboratory and scarce examples of utilization of silica nanoparticles in the laboratory instruction, a new mini-laboratory course is described in detail. The series of the developed experiments allow the students to synthesize silica nanoparticles, place organic functionalities on their surface, and explore nanoparticles as labels and building blocks for nanoassemblies. Introduction of students to the art of using the most popular specific interaction in nanomedicine (avidin-biotin), along with synthesis and manipulation of nanoparticles, will help them bridge their existing or future knowledge of organic chemistry, materials science, and nanomedicine. The experiment is beneficial for students’ understanding of the relationship between organic chemistry, materials science, and nanomedicine, regardless of their level of expertise in those fields.
Quantifying the multi-scale performance of network inference algorithms
Authors: Oates Chris J. , Amos Richard , Spencer Simon E.F. 
Published: August 2014

AbstractGraphical models are widely used to study complex multivariate biological systems. Network inference algorithms aim to reverse-engineer such models from noisy experimental data. It is common to assess such algorithms using techniques from classifier analysis. These metrics, based on ability to correctly infer individual edges, possess a number of appealing features including invariance to rank-preserving transformation. However, regulation in biological systems occurs on multiple scales and existing metrics do not take into account the correctness of higher-order network structure. In this paper novel performance scores are presented that share the appealing properties of existing scores, whilst capturing ability to uncover regulation on multiple scales. Theoretical results confirm that performance of a network inference algorithm depends crucially on the scale at which inferences are to be made; in particular strong local performance does not guarantee accurate reconstruction of higher-order topology. Applying these scores to a large corpus of data from the DREAM5 challenge, we undertake a data-driven assessment of estimator performance. We find that the “wisdom of crowds” network, that demonstrated superior local performance in the DREAM5 challenge, is also among the best performing methodologies for inference of regulation on multiple length scales.
Comparison of intermolecular interactions in two phases of MeNSOF2
Authors: Mews Rüdiger , Parsons Simon 
Published: August 2014

Abstract
MeNSOF2 was crystallised by laser-assisted zone refinement at 150 K. The structure obtained by X-ray diffraction initially on cooling to 140 K was triclinic, P-̄, but this transformed slowly to a second phase, which was monoclinic C2/c. Bond distances and angles are similar to equivalent interactions in (MeN)2 SF2 and SO2 F2. Intermolecular interactions in both phases are dominated by dispersion, though electrostatics are also important in all the most energetic contacts. Though no interatomic contacts fall within the sums of van der Waals radii of the contacting atoms, PIXEL calculations indicate that some intermolecular energies are similar to medium-strength hydrogen bonds. The monoclinic phase is denser than the triclinic phase, having stronger dispersion interactions. PIXEL and DFT calculations indicate that the two phases are energetically very finely balanced, but phase I becomes competitive at higher temperature on account of the entropy advantage of its ‘looser’ structure. DFT phonon energy calculations suggest that the mechanism of the transition may involve coupling between acoustic and low energy optical phonons.
Extreme Neonatal Hyperbilirubinemia and a Specific Genotype: A Population-Based Case-Control Study
Authors: Petersen Jesper Padkær , Henriksen Tine Brink , Hollegaard Mads Vilhelm , Vandborg Pernille Kure , Hougaard David Michael , Thorlacius-Ussing Ole , Ebbesen Finn 
Published: August 2014

OBJECTIVES:
Extreme hyperbilirubinemia (plasma bilirubin ≥24.5 mg/dL) is an important risk factor for severe bilirubin encephalopathy. Several risk factors for hyperbilirubinemia are known, but in a large number of patients, a causal factor is never established. UGT1A1 is the rate-limiting enzyme in bilirubin’s metabolism. The genotype of Gilbert syndrome, the UGT1A1*28 allele, causes markedly reduced activity of this enzyme, but its association with neonatal hyperbilirubinemia is uncertain and its relationship with extreme hyperbilirubinemia has not been studied. We examined whether the UGT1A1*28 allele is associated with extreme hyperbilirubinemia.

METHODS:
The UGT1A1*28 allele was assessed in a case-control study of 231 white infants who had extreme hyperbilirubinemia in Denmark from 2000 to 2007 and 432 white controls. Cases were identified in the Danish Extreme Hyperbilirubinemia Database that covers the entire population. Genotypes were obtained through the Danish Neonatal Screening Biobank. Subgroup analysis was done for AB0 incompatible cases.

RESULTS:
No association was found between the UGT1A1*28 allele and extreme hyperbilirubinemia. With the common genotype as reference, the odds ratio of extreme hyperbilirubinemia was 0.87 (range, 0.68–1.13) for UGT1A1*28 heterozygotes and 0.77 (range, 0.46–1.27) for homozygotes. Also, no association was found for AB0 incompatible cases.

CONCLUSIONS:
The UGT1A1*28 allele was not associated with risk for extreme hyperbilirubinemia in this study.
Severe Hypoglycemia and Mortality After Cardiovascular Events for Type 1 Diabetic Patients in Sweden
Authors: Lung Tom W.C. , Petrie Dennis , Herman William H. , Palmer Andrew J. , Svensson Ann-Marie , Eliasson Bjorn , Clarke Philip M. 
Published: August 2014

OBJECTIVE
To examine whether previous severe hypoglycemic events were associated with the risk of all-cause mortality after major cardiovascular events (myocardial infarction [MI] or stroke) in patients with type 1 diabetes.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS
This study is based on data from the Swedish National Diabetes Register linked to patient-level hospital records, prescription data, and death records. We selected patients with type 1 diabetes who visited a clinic during 2002–2010 and experienced a major cardiovascular complication after their clinic visit. We estimated a two-part model for all-cause mortality after a major cardiovascular event: logistic regression for death within the first month and a Cox proportional hazards model conditional on 1-month survival. At age 60 years, 5-year cumulative mortality risk was estimated from the models for patients with and without prior diabetes complications.

RESULTS
A total of 1,839 patients experienced major cardiovascular events, of whom 403 had previously experienced severe hypoglycemic events and 703 died within our study period. A prior hypoglycemic event was associated with a significant increase in mortality after a cardiovascular event, with hazard ratios estimated at 1.79 (95% CI 1.37–2.35) within the first month and 1.25 (95% CI 1.02–1.53) after 1 month. Patients with prior hypoglycemia had an estimated 5-year cumulative mortality risk of 52.4% (95% CI 45.3–59.5) and 39.8% (95% CI 33.4–46.3) for MI and stroke, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS
We have found evidence that patients with type 1 diabetes in Sweden with prior severe hypoglycemic events have increased risk of mortality after a cardiovascular event.