bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Epidemiology of extrapulmonary tuberculosis in Brazil: a hierarchical model
Authors: Gomes Teresa , Reis-Santos Bárbara , Bertolde Adelmo , Johnson John L , Riley Lee W , Maciel Ethel Leonor 
Published: January 2014

AbstractBackgroundAlthough extrapulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB) is less frequent than Pulmonary Tuberculosis (PTB) and is a secondary target for national TB control programs, its significance has increased worldwide during the HIV epidemic. The objective of this study was to examine the epidemiology of EPTB in Brazil between 2007 and 2011.MethodsCross-sectional study involving all cases of TB reported to the Brazilian Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System (Sistema de Informações de Agravo de Notificação - SINAN) in Brazil between 2007 and 2011. Sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of patients with exclusively PTB and exclusively EPTB were compared. Following analysis with Pearson’s chi-square test, variables with p < 0.05 were included in a hierarchical regression model. Variables with p < 0.05 in the corresponding level were kept in the model.ResultsA total of 427,548 cases of TB were included. Of these, 356,342 cases (83.35%; 95% confidence interval (CI) 83.23% - 83.45%) were PTB, 57,217 (13.37%; 95% CI 13.28% - 13.48%) were EPTB, 13,989 (3.27%; 95% CI 3.21% - 3.32%) were concurrent pulmonary and extrapulmonary TB. Patients with EPTB were mainly white (16.7%), and most (29.1%) patients had five to eight years of education. Among comorbidities, HIV infection was prominent (OR 2.15; 95% CI 2.09 – 2.21), although the proportion of cases awaiting test results or untested was high (39%). Ethanol use (OR 0.45; 95% CI 0.43 – 0.46), diabetes mellitus (OR 0.54; 95% CI 0.51 – 0.57) and mental illness (OR 0.88; 95% CI 0.82 – 0.95) were associated with PTB.ConclusionsThirteen percent of patients diagnosed with TB in Brazil have only EPTB. More effective diagnostic strategies and control measures are needed to reduce the number of cases of extrapulmonary TB in Brazil.
Differences in serum SP-D levels between German and Japanese subjects are associated with SFTPDgene polymorphisms
Authors: Horimasu Yasushi , Hattori Noboru , Ishikawa Nobuhisa , Tanaka Sonosuke , Bonella Francesco , Ohshimo Shinichiro , Guzman Josune , Costabel Ulrich , Kohno Nobuoki 
Published: January 2014

Abstract

Background
Surfactant protein A (SP-A) and SP-D are clinically established in Japan as serum biomarkers for diagnosing interstitial lung diseases (ILDs). Serum SP-D levels are affected by genetic variants. We conducted the present study to examine whether serum SP-A and/or SP-D levels in healthy subjects (HS) and patients with ILDs differ between populations with different genetic backgrounds.

Methods
German subjects (n = 303; 138 patients with idiopathic interstitial pneumonias [IIPs] and 165 HS) and Japanese subjects (n = 369; 94 patients with IIPs and 275 HS) were enrolled. Serum SP-A and SP-D levels were measured using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and four single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the SFTPD gene were genotyped using genomic DNA extracted from blood samples.

Results
In both the German and Japanese cohorts, serum SP-A and SP-D levels were significantly higher in patients with IIPs than in HS. There were no significant differences in SP-A levels between the German and Japanese cohorts; however, we found that serum SP-D levels were significantly higher in the German cohort, both in patients with IIPs and in HS (p < 0.001 and p = 0.005, respectively). Furthermore, the genotype distributions of the four SNPs in the SFTPD gene (rs721917, rs1998374, rs2243639, and rs3088308) were significantly different between German and Japanese cohorts (p < 0.001, p < 0.001, p = 0.022, and p < 0.001, respectively), and univariate linear regression analyses revealed that the genotypes of rs721917, rs1998374, and rs2243639 significantly correlated with serum SP-D levels (p < 0.001, p < 0.001, and p = 0.011, respectively). Furthermore, multivariate analyses revealed that the genotypes of these three SNPs correlated independently with serum SP-D levels (p < 0.001, p = 0.001, and p = 0.038, respectively), whereas ethnicity did not significantly correlate with serum SP-D levels.

Conclusions
In patients with IIPs and HS, serum SP-D, but not SP-A, levels were significantly higher in the German than in the Japanese cohort, in part, because of the different frequencies of SFTPD gene polymorphisms.
Utility of self-reported mental health measures for preventing unintentional injury: results from a cross-sectional study among French schoolchildren
Authors: Constant Aymery , Dulioust Judith , Wazana Ashley , Shojaei Taraneh , Pitrou Isabelle , Kovess-Masfety Viviane 
Published: January 2014

AbstractBackgroundIdentify children at-risk of having mental health problems is of value to prevent injury. But the limited agreement between informants might jeopardize prevention initiatives. The aims of the present study were 1) to test the concordance between parents and children reports, and 2) to investigate their relationships with parental reports of children’ unintentional injuries.MethodsIn a population-based sample of 1258 children aged 6 to 11, the associations between child psychopathology (using the Dominic Interactive and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire) and unintentional injuries in the past 12 months were examined in univariate and multivariate models.ResultsAs compared to children, parents tended to overestimate behavior problems and hyperactivity/inattention, and underestimate emotional symptoms. Unintentional injury in the last 12-month period was reported in 184 out of 1258 children (14.6%) and multivariate analyses showed that the risk of injury was twice as high in children self-reporting hyperactivity/inattention as compared to others. However this association was not retrieved with the parent-reported instrument.ConclusionOur findings support evidence that child-reported measures of psychopathology might provide relevant information for screening and injury prevention purposes, even at a young age. It could be used routinely in combination with others validated tools.
Collision tumor with inflammatory breast carcinoma and malignant phyllodes tumor: a case report and literature review
Authors: Shin Young Duck , Lee Seul Kee , Kim Kyu Sun , Park Mi Ja , Kim Joo Heon , Yim Hyun Sun , Choi Young Jin 
Published: January 2014

Abstract
There have been some reports of coincidental presentation of breast carcinoma and phyllodes tumor in the same breast. Most of the cases were carcinoma that arose from a phyllodes tumor with a histologically identified transitional area, and they behaved less aggressively than the usually encountered carcinoma. Collision tumors are rare clinical entities in which two histologically distinct tumor types show involvement at the same site. The occurrence of these tumors in the breast is extremely rare. Here, we report a case of 45-year-old woman who had both invasive ductal carcinoma as the finding of inflammatory carcinoma and a malignant phyllodes tumor in the same breast. There was no evidence of a transitional area between the phyllodes tumor and the invasive ductal carcinoma. To our knowledge, this is the first report of a collision tumor of inflammatory breast carcinoma coincident with a malignant phyllodes tumor in same breast.
Inference of the Xenopus tropicalis embryonic regulatory network and spatial gene expression patterns
Authors: Zheng Zhenzhen , Christley Scott , Chiu William T , Blitz Ira L , Xie Xiaohui , Cho Ken WY , Nie Qing 
Published: January 2014

AbstractBackgroundDuring embryogenesis, signaling molecules produced by one cell population direct gene regulatory changes in neighboring cells and influence their developmental fates and spatial organization. One of the earliest events in the development of the vertebrate embryo is the establishment of three germ layers, consisting of the ectoderm, mesoderm and endoderm. Attempts to measure gene expressionin vivoin different germ layers and cell types are typically complicated by the heterogeneity of cell types within biological samples (i.e., embryos), as the responses of individual cell types are intermingled into an aggregate observation of heterogeneous cell types. Here, we propose a novel method to elucidate gene regulatory circuits from these aggregate measurements in embryos of the frogXenopus tropicalisusing gene network inference algorithms and then test the ability of the inferred networks to predict spatial gene expression patterns.ResultsWe use two inference models with different underlying assumptions that incorporate existing network information, an ODE model for steady-state data and a Markov model for time series data, and contrast the performance of the two models. We apply our method to both control and knockdown embryos at multiple time points to reconstruct the core mesoderm and endoderm regulatory circuits. Those inferred networks are then used in combination with known dorsal-ventral spatial expression patterns of a subset of genes to predict spatial expression patterns for other genes. Both models are able to predict spatial expression patterns for some of the core mesoderm and endoderm genes, but interestingly of different gene subsets, suggesting that neither model is sufficient to recapitulate all of the spatial patterns, yet they are complementary for the patterns that they do capture.ConclusionThe presented methodology of gene network inference combined with spatial pattern prediction provides an additional layer of validation to elucidate the regulatory circuits controlling the spatial-temporal dynamics in embryonic development.
Genome expression analysis by suppression subtractive hybridization identified overexpression of Humanin, a target gene in gastric cancer chemoresistance
Authors: Mottaghi-Dastjerdi Negar , Soltany-Rezaee-Rad Mohammad , Sepehrizadeh Zargham , Roshandel Gholamreza , Ebrahimifard Farzaneh , Setayesh Neda 
Published: January 2014

Abstract

Background
In cancer cells, apoptosis is an important mechanism that influences the outcome of chemotherapy and the development of chemoresistance. To find the genes involved in chemoresistance and the development of gastric cancer, we used the suppression subtractive hybridization method to identify the genes that are overexpressed in gastric cancer tissues compared to normal gastric tissues.

Results
In the suppression subtractive hybridization library we constructed, the most highly overexpressed genes were humanin isoforms. Humanin is a recently identified endogenous peptide that has anti-apoptotic activity and has been selected for further study due to its potential role in the chemoresistance of gastric cancer. Upregulation of humanin isoforms was also observed in clinical samples by using quantitative real-time PCR. Among the studied isoforms, humanin isoform 3, with an expression level of 4.166 ± 1.44 fold, was the most overexpressed isoform in GC.

Conclusions
The overexpression of humanin in gastric cancer suggests a role for chemoresistance and provides new insight into the biology of gastric cancer. We propose that humanin isoforms are novel targets for combating chemoresistance in gastric cancer.
Sudden hearing loss subsequent to diarrhea: what is the missing link?
Authors: Jafari Gholamali , Hosseini Seyed Mohammadreza , Akhondzadeh Shahin 
Published: January 2014

Abstract
Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) is a debilitating condition with an incidence of nearly 20 per 100,000 in populations. Metronidazole-induced ototoxicity is an extremely rare etiology of SSNHL. In this report, we describe a young female with bilateral SSNHL due to oral use of metronidazole. A 23 years old female presented to the emergency department with acute bilateral hearing loss. We found out that her hearing loss had started 4 days after initiation of metronidazole which was administered for treatment of diarrhea. This case report shows that physicians should be aware of the uncommon side effects while prescribing metronidazole to patients in order to manage the possible adverse events on time.
Transformation efficiency and formation of transformation products during photochemical degradation of TCE and PCE at micromolar concentrations
Authors: Dobaradaran Sina , Lutze Holger , Mahvi Amir Hossein , Schmidt Torsten C 
Published: January 2014

Abstract

Background
Trichloroethene and tetrachloroethene are the most common pollutants in groundwater and two of the priority pollutants listed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In previous studies on TCE and PCE photolysis and photochemical degradation, concentration ranges exceeding environmental levels by far with millimolar concentrations of TCE and PCE have been used, and it is not clear if the obtained results can be used to explain the degradation of these contaminants at more realistic environmental concentration levels.

Methods
Experiments with micromolar concentrations of TCE and PCE in aqueous solution using direct photolysis and UV/H2O2 have been conducted and product formation as well as transformation efficiency have been investigated. SPME/GC/MS, HPLC/UV and ion chromatography with conductivity detection have been used to determine intermediates of degradation.

Results
The results showed that chloride was a major end product in both TCE and PCE photodegradation. Several intermediates such as formic acid, dichloroacetic acid, dichloroacetaldehyede, chloroform, formaldehyde and glyoxylic acid were formed during both, UV and UV/H2O2 treatment of TCE. However chloroacetaldehyde and chloroacetic acid were only detected during direct UV photolysis of TCE and oxalic acid was only formed during the UV/H2O2 process. For PCE photodegradation, formic acid, di- and trichloroacetic acids were detected in both UV and UV/H2O2 systems, but formaldehyde and glyoxylic acid were only detected during direct UV photolysis.

Conclusions
For water treatment UV/H2O2 seems to be favorable over direct UV photolysis because of its higher degradation efficiency and lower risk for the formation of harmful intermediates.
Effect of fibrate treatment on liver function tests in patients with the metabolic syndrome
Authors: Gandhi Nirav , Lenton Richard , Bhartia Mithun , Abbas Ahmed , Raju Jessie , Ramachandran Sudarshan 
Published: January 2014

Abstract

Background
Fibrates are used especially in patients with hypertriglyceridaemia, a feature of the metabolic syndrome. Elevated LFTs are often observed in these patients perhaps related to fatty infiltration.

Aim
We wished to study changes seen in LFTs (GGT, ALT and ALP) following fibrate therapy and then determine associated factors.

Methods
This was a retrospective observational study in which data was collected from case notes of patients started on fibrates (n = 118, 2002–2008) in the lipid clinic at Good Hope Hospital and pre/post-fibrate lipid and LFT values were obtained. All biochemistry was performed on the Roche P-Unit using supplied reagents. Statistical analyses included t tests and regression analyses (factorised when quartiles were compared).

Results
Of the study population 106 patients were on fenofibrate; the remaining on bezafibrate. Significant lowering of GGT (p < 0.0001), ALT (p = 0.0014) and ALP (p < 0.0001) levels were observed following fibrate treatment. Baseline lipid (cholesterol, triglycerides and HDL) concentrations, alcohol intake, length of treatment, gender, concurrent statin treatment and diabetes did not correlate with these changes in LFT in a multiple regression analysis. Higher pre-fibrate GGT (p < 0.0001), ALT (p < 0.0001) and ALP (p < 0.0001) concentrations were associated with larger decreases in each of these tests respectively with the highest 2 quartiles (GGT > 57 IU/l, ALT > 34 IU/l and ALP > 94 IU/l) significantly different to the lowest quartile. The above associations remained significant even when the regression analyses were corrected for changes in lipid values (which did not show an association).

Conclusions
Fibrate treatment led to improvements in LFT, the greatest benefit seen in patients with higher baseline LFT values. It appears that baseline and changes in lipid values post fibrate treatment were not associated with change in LFT.
Estrogen treatment predisposes to severe and persistent vaginal candidiasis in diabetic mice
Authors: Hamad Mawieh 
Published: January 2014

Abstract
Background
Increased levels of estrogen and diabetes mellitus separately predispose to vaginal candidiasis (VC). However, the compounding effect of estrogen on the severity and persistence of VC in diabetic females is not clear.

Methods
To address this issue, a diabetic mouse model with estrogen-maintained VC was developed and evaluated for vaginal fungal burden (VFB) and immune competence at different time points throughout the study period.

Results
Blood glucose levels in estrogen-treated diabetic mice were consistently lower than that in untreated counterparts. Estrogen-treated C. albicans-infected non-diabetic mice experienced persistent episodes of VC as compared with naïve controls (P < 0.01). However, severity and persistence of VC in estrogen-treated C. albicans-infected diabetic mice was significantly greater than that in non-diabetic counterparts (P < 0.05). Mortality rates among estrogen-treated C. albicans-infected diabetic mice were significantly higher (P < 0.05) than that in non-diabetic counterparts. Statistically significant (P < 0.05) and persistent suppression of the delayed hypersensitivity response (DTH) was evident in estrogen-treated C. albicans-infected diabetic and non-diabetic mice as compared with controls. Levels of expression of the inhibitory molecule CD152 on vaginal and splenic T cells isolated from estrogen-treated C. albicans infected mice was significantly higher than that in naive untreated controls (P < 0.01).

Conclusions
These findings suggest that estrogen treatment in diabetic females may protect against the progression of DM on the one hand and predispose to severe and persistent VC on the other. The later outcome could be related to the immunosuppressed status of the host.
Metals in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes
Authors: Khan Abdul Rehman , Awan Fazli Rabbi 
Published: January 2014

AbstractMinerals are one of the components of food, though they are not synthesized in the body but they are essential for optimal health. Several essential metals are required for the proper functioning of many enzymes, transcriptional factors and proteins important in various biochemical pathways. For example Zn, Mg and Mn are cofactors of hundreds of enzymes, and Zn is involved in the synthesis and secretion of insulin from the pancreatic beta-cells. Similarly, Cr enhances the insulin receptor activity on target tissues, especially in muscle cells. Insulin is the key hormone required to maintain the blood glucose level in normal range. In case of insulin deficiency or resistance, blood glucose concentration exceeds the upper limit of the normal range of 126 mg/dl. Persistent increase of blood serum glucose level leads to overt chronic hyperglycemia, which is a major clinical symptom of diabetes mellitus. Poor glycemic control and diabetes alters the levels of essential trace elements such as Zn, Mg, Mn, Cr, Fe etc. by increasing urinary excretion and their concomitant decrease in the blood. Hence, the main purpose of this review is to discuss the important roles of essential trace elements in normal homeostasis and physiological functioning. Moreover, perturbation of essential trace elements is also discussed in perspective of type 2 diabetes pathobiology.
The Molecular and Genetic Basis of Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptor 3 Disorders: The Achondroplasia Family of Skeletal Dysplasias, Muenke Craniosynostosis, and Crouzon Syndrome with Acanthosis Nigricans*
Authors: Vajo Zoltan , Francomano Clair A. , Wilkin Douglas J. 
Published: January 2014

AbstractAchondroplasia, the most common form of short-limbed dwarfism in humans, occurs between 1 in 15,000 and 40,000 live births. More than 90% of cases are sporadic and there is, on average, an increased paternal age at the time of conception of affected individuals. More then 97% of persons with achondroplasia have a Gly380Arg mutation in the transmembrane domain of the fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR) 3 gene. Mutations in the FGFR3 gene also result in hypochondroplasia, the lethal thanatophoric dysplasias, the recently described SADDAN (severe achondroplasia with developmental delay and acanthosis nigricans) dysplasia, and two craniosynostosis disorders: Muenke coronal craniosynostosis and Crouzon syndrome with acanthosis nigricans. Recent evidence suggests that the phenotypic differences may be due to specific alleles with varying degrees of ligand-independent activation, allowing the receptor to be constitutively active.Since the Gly380Arg achondroplasia mutation was recognized, similar observations regarding the conserved nature of FGFR mutations and resulting phenotype have been made regarding other skeletal phenotypes, including hypochondroplasia, thanatophoric dysplasia, and Muenke coronal craniosynostosis. These specific genotype-phenotype correlations in the FGFR disorders seem to be unprecedented in the study of human disease. The explanation for this high degree of mutability at specific bases remains an intriguing question.
Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia due to 21-Hydroxylase Deficiency*
Authors: White Perrin C. , Speiser Phyllis W. 
Published: January 2014

AbstractMore than 90% of cases of congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH, the inherited inability to synthesize cortisol) are caused by 21-hydroxylase deficiency. Females with severe, classic 21-hydroxylase deficiency are exposed to excess androgens prenatally and are born with virilized external genitalia. Most patients cannot synthesize sufficient aldosterone to maintain sodium balance and may develop potentially fatal “salt wasting” crises if not treated. The disease is caused by mutations in the CYP21 gene encoding the steroid 21-hydroxylase enzyme. More than 90% of these mutations result from intergenic recombinations between CYP21 and the closely linked CYP21P pseudogene. Approximately 20% are gene deletions due to unequal crossing over during meiosis, whereas the remainder are gene conversions—transfers to CYP21 of deleterious mutations normally present in CYP21P. The degree to which each mutation compromises enzymatic activity is strongly correlated with the clinical severity of the disease in patients carrying it. Prenatal diagnosis by direct mutation detection permits prenatal treatment of affected females to minimize genital virilization. Neonatal screening by hormonal methods identifies affected children before salt wasting crises develop, reducing mortality from this condition. Glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid replacement are the mainstays of treatment, but more rational dosing and additional therapies are being developed.