bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Multiple induced abortions as risk factor for ectopic pregnancy
Authors: Skjeldestad Finn Egil , Gargiullo Paul M. , Kendrick Juliette S. 
Published: March 2008

Objective. To assess the risk of ectopic pregnancy by the number of previous induced abortions.Design. Prospective cohort study.Methods. Three thousand seven hundred and fifty‐four women, 39 years old or younger, living permanently in one Norwegian county, who had had at least one induced abortion between January 1, 1987 and December 31, 1992, at the University Hospital of Trondheim, Norway were followed prospectively for histologically verified ectopic pregnancies until December 31, 1993. Exposure time was measured from the most recent induced abortion (index abortion) until the ectopic pregnancy, closure date, or the subject's 40th birthday. Statistical analyses were done in SAS applying survival analyses and poisson regression.Results. During the follow‐up period of 164,167 women‐months, we observed 24 ectopic pregnancies in 3,754 women. The adjusted incidence density ratio (alDR) for women who had had two or more induced abortions was 1.2 (95% CI: 0.5‐3.1) in comparison with the reference group of women who had had one induced abortion. Measuring exposure as increasing number of consecutive induced abortions, no dose‐response to ectopic pregnancy was found between two consecutive (alDR 0.9) and three or more consecutive abortions (alDR 1.1) in comparison with the reference group.Conclusion. In our setting, no excess risk of ectopic pregnancy was associated with multiple previous induced abortions compared with one previous induced abortion.
L2 Learner Production and Processing of Collocation: A Multi-study Perspective
Authors: Siyanova Anna , Schmitt Norbert 
Published: March 2008

Abstract:This article presents a series of studies focusing on L2 production and processing of adjective–noun collocations (e.g., social services). In Study 1, 810 adjective–noun collocations were extracted from 31 essays written by Russian learners of English. About half of these collocations appeared frequently in the British National Corpus (BNC); one-quarter failed to appear in the BNC at all, while another quarter had a very low BNC frequency. Based on frequency data and mutual information (MI) scores, it was discovered that around 45% of all learner collocations were, in fact, appropriate collocations, that is, frequent and strongly associated English word combinations. When the study data were compared to data from native speakers, very little difference was found between native speakers (NS) and non-native speakers (NNS) in the use of appropriate collocations. Unfortunately, the high percentage of appropriate collocations does not mean that NNSs necessarily develop fully native-like knowledge of collocation. In Study 2, NNSs demonstrated poorer intuition than NS respondents regarding the frequency of collocations. Likewise, Study 3 showed that NNSs were slower than NSs in processing collocations. Overall, the studies reported here suggest that L2 learners are capable of producing a large number of appropriate collocations but that the underlying intuitions and the fluency with collocations of even advanced learners do not seem to match those of native speakers.
New strategy for the analysis of phenotypic marker antigens in brain tumor–derived neurospheres in mice and humans
Authors: Bleau Anne-Marie , Howard Brian M. , Taylor Lauren A. , Gursel Demirkan , Greenfield Jeffrey P. , Lim Tung H. Y. , Holland Eric C. , Boockvar John A. 
Published: March 2008

Object
Brain tumor stem cells (TSCs) hypothetically drive the malignant phenotype of glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), and evidence suggests that a better understanding of these TSCs will have profound implications for treating gliomas. When grown in vitro, putative TSCs grow as a solid sphere, making their subsequent characterization, particularly the cells within the center of the sphere, difficult. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to develop a new method to better understand the proteomic profile of the entire population of cells within a sphere.

Methods
Tumor specimens from patients with confirmed GBM and glioma models in mice were mechanically and enzymatically dissociated and grown in traditional stem cell medium to generate neurospheres. The neurospheres were then embedded in freezing medium, cryosectioned, and analyzed with immunofluorescence.

Results
By sectioning neurospheres as thinly as 5 μm, the authors overcame many of the problems associated with immunolabeling whole neurospheres, such as antibody penetration into the core of the sphere and intense background fluorescence that obscures the specificity of immunoreactivity. Moreover, the small quantity of material required and the speed with which this cryosectioning and immunolabeling technique can be performed make it an attractive tool for the rapid assessment of TSC character.

Conclusions
This study is the first to show that cryosectioning of neurospheres derived from glioma models in mice and GBM in humans is a feasible method of better defining the stem cell profile of a glioma.
The use of LabVIEW and data acquisition unit to monitor and control a bench‐top air‐to‐water heat pump
Authors: Abu‐Mulaweh H. I. , Mueller D. W. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractA bench‐top air‐to‐water heat pump was designed, developed, and constructed by a multidisciplinary capstone senior design team. This experimental apparatus is currently being used to demonstrate to undergraduate students some thermodynamics and heat transfer concepts and principles. A PC‐based control system which consists of LabVIEW and data acquisition (DAQ) unit is employed to monitor and control this experimental laboratory apparatus. This paper provides details about the integration of the electrical/electronic component and the control system. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Comput Appl Eng Educ 16: 83–91, 2008; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com); DOI 10.1002/cae.20122
A real‐time computer‐controlled simulator: For control systems
Authors: Altas I. H. , Aydar H. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractA real‐time simulator to accompany automatic control system courses is introduced. The design and realization methods and processes are discussed. The simulator is basically a computer‐controlled system that implements the developed user friendly virtual interface software to control the speed of a small size DC motor. The virtual interface includes digital implementation models of classical proportional, integral, derivative, and all combinations of them as well as a fuzzy logic controller. The user is able to select and adjust the parameters of any desired controller that is defined and represented virtually. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Comput Appl Eng Educ 16: 115–126, 2008; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com); DOI 10.1002/cae.20130
Substituted Pyrazolo[3,4‐b]pyridines as Potent A1 Adenosine Antagonists: Synthesis, Biological Evaluation, and Development of an A1 Bovine Receptor Model
Authors: Tuccinardi Tiziano , Schenone Silvia , Bondavalli Francesco , Brullo Chiara , Bruno Olga , Mosti Luisa , Zizzari Alessandra Tania , Tintori Cristina , Manetti Fabrizio , Ciampi Osele , Trincavelli Maria Letizia , Martini Claudia , Martinelli Adriano , Botta Maurizio 
Published: March 2008

AbstractSixty‐eight new substituted pyrazolo[3,4‐b]pyridine derivatives were synthesized and tested for enriching a library of active A1 adenosine receptor (AR) antagonists belonging to the same class. These compounds were also used as an external test set to check the reliability of a 3D QSAR model recently reported by us. To investigate the binding mode of pyrazolopyridine derivatives, a model of the bovine A1AR (bA1AR) was developed by a novel homology modeling approach and used to evaluate the main interactions of the ligands with the receptor through docking studies. Results suggest important interactions of the ligands mainly with L3.33(88), T3.36(91), Q3.37(92) and H6.52(251), in agreement with mutagenesis data. The racemic mixture of the most active compound was separated into the corresponding enantiomers which showed a bA1AR affinity in the nanomolar range, with the R enantiomer sevenfold more active than the S enantiomer, according to results derived from calculations on the receptor model. Analysis of the bovine/human A1AR affinity profile of ligands supported the hypothesis that such receptors should be characterized by a different size of their binding site, responsible for the different affinity of the antagonists.
Molecular basis explanation for imatinib resistance of BCR‐ABL due to T315I and P‐loop mutations from molecular dynamics simulations
Authors: Lee Tai‐Sung , Potts Steven J. , Kantarjian Hagop , Cortes Jorge , Giles Francis , Albitar Maher 
Published: March 2008

AbstractBACKGROUNDComputational simulations have become powerful tools for understanding detailed interactions in biologic systems. To the authors' knowledge to date, the mechanism of imatinib resistance in BCR‐ABL has not been clarified at the atomic level, and computational studies are required.METHODSMolecular dynamics (MD) simulations on the complex of imatinib with the wild‐type, T315I mutant, and 10 other P‐loop mutants of the tyrosine kinase BCR‐ABL were performed to study the mechanism of imatinib resistance.RESULTSSimulations suggested that imatinib resistance of T315I results mainly comes from the breakdown of interactions between imatinib and both E286 and M290, contradictory to what was believed previously, in that the missing hydrogen bonding is the main contribution. The current results also demonstrated that the unfavorable electrostatic interaction between P‐loop and imatinib is the main reason for resistance for the P‐loop mutations. Furthermore, in Y253H, protonation of the histidine at the ε position is essential for rendering this mutation resistant to imatinib.CONCLUSIONSThe current results indicated that large‐scale simulations may offer insight and information that other simple modeling methods cannot provide regarding the problem of BCR‐ABL imatinib resistance, especially in the case of conformational changes because of remote mutations. Imatinib resistance mechanisms that were not anticipated previously were revealed by analyzing the interactions between imatinib and individual residues based on simulation results. This results demonstrated that MD is a powerful way to verify and predict the clinical response or resistance to imatinib and to other potential drugs. Cancer 2008. © 2008 American Cancer Society.
Pretreatment prostate‐specific antigen velocity is associated with development of distant metastases and prostate cancer mortality in men treated with radiotherapy and androgen‐deprivation therapy
Authors: Palma David , Tyldesley Scott , Pickles Tom ,   for the Prostate Cohort Outcomes Initiative
Published: March 2008

AbstractBACKGROUNDIn men with prostate cancer, pretreatment prostate‐specific antigen (PSA) velocity (PSAV) has been demonstrated as a predictor of biochemical and survival outcomes in patients undergoing radical prostatectomy (RP). The utility of pretreatment PSAV in predicting outcomes after radiotherapy (RT), with or without androgen‐deprivation therapy (ADT), is less certain. This study was undertaken to determine whether pretreatment PSAV is associated with biochemical disease‐free survival, patterns of recurrence, and survival outcomes in men treated with radiation therapy and ADT.METHODSTwo hundred seventy‐seven patients with intermediate‐ and high‐risk prostate cancer treated with RT and ADT formed the study cohort. Kaplan‐Meier survival estimates and Cox regression analyses were used to evaluate whether PSAV was associated with disease outcomes.RESULTSThe median age of diagnosis was 70 years, and the median follow‐up was 6.8 years. Men with a PSAV in the highest quartile tended to have higher risk disease at presentation (P = .028). After adjustment for known prognostic factors and duration of ADT, men who had a PSAV in the highest quartile had an increased risk of distant metastasis (hazard ratio [HR], 4.0; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 1.61–9.9 [P = .003]) and prostate cancer‐specific mortality (HR, 2.75; 95% CI, 1.27–5.95 [P = .01]) compared with men who had a lower PSAV, but had no increase in the risk of local recurrence (P = .76).CONCLUSIONSA high pretreatment PSAV was associated with distant metastasis and prostate cancer‐specific mortality but not with local recurrence. A high pretreatment PSAV may signify the presence of occult metastatic disease. Randomized trials are needed to determine whether more aggressive intervention is required in men who present with high pretreatment PSAV. Cancer 2008. © 2008 American Cancer Society.
Cardiovascular risk in long‐term survivors of testicular cancer
Authors: Vaughn David J. , Palmer Steven C. , Carver Joseph R. , Jacobs Linda A. , Mohler Emile R. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractBACKGROUNDLong‐term survivors of testicular cancer (TC) who received cisplatin‐based chemotherapy have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. A cross‐sectional study was performed to objectively assess cardiovascular risk, subclinical atherosclerosis, and endothelial function in long‐term survivors of TC.METHODSLong‐term survivors of TC underwent evaluation including determination of body mass index (BMI), Framingham relative risk (RR), brachial artery flow‐mediated dilatation (FMD), carotid artery intima‐media thickness (IMT), soluble intercellular adhesion molecule‐1 (sICAM‐1), high sensitivity C‐reactive protein (hs‐CRP), and flow cytometric analysis of peripheral blood for levels of endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) and circulating endothelial cells (CECs). TC survivors who received chemotherapy were compared with a chemotherapy naive cohort.RESULTSTwenty‐four patients received cisplatin‐based chemotherapy (CBCT) and 15 were chemotherapy‐naive (CN). The CBCT cohort demonstrated more impairment of brachial artery FMD than the CN group (5.6% vs 8.8%; P = .05). The mean sICAM was also found to be higher in the CBCT cohort compared with the CN group (P = .04). No significant differences between the groups were noted with regard to BMI, Framingham RR, carotid IMT, or hs‐CRP. In a subset of patients, TC survivors who received chemotherapy had a significantly increased level of CECs compared with CN patients (P = .04). No significant difference in EPC levels was detected.CONCLUSIONSLong‐term survivors of TC who received chemotherapy demonstrate objective evidence of endothelial injury and dysfunction, a potential mechanism for increased cardiovascular risk. Cancer 2008. © 2008 American Cancer Society.
Breast cancer adjuvant chemotherapy dosing in obese patients
Authors: Greenman Christopher G. , Jagielski Christina H. , Griggs Jennifer J. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractBACKGROUNDSubstantial variation in adjuvant breast cancer chemotherapy dosing in obese women suggests that there is uncertainty about optimal practices. The purpose of this study was to investigate variations in dose determinations in clinical trial protocols and publications over the last 3 decades as potential sources of this uncertainty.METHODSThe National Cancer Institute database was used to identify protocols of breast cancer adjuvant chemotherapy conducted by cooperative groups between 1970–2000, and these protocols were then obtained directly from the cooperative groups. Dose determinations were categorized in each protocol and in published reports from each clinical trial. Fisher exact tests were used to compare the proportions of protocols that used full weight‐based doses over time.RESULTSProtocol‐specified chemotherapy dosing was obtained for all of 44 eligible trials. A significant increase was identified in the use of full weight‐based doses in the later time period compared with the earlier (P = .004; 2‐sided Fisher exact test). A notable exception was 1 cooperative group that continues to require dose limitations for doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide in patients with a body surface area of more than 2.0 m2. Regardless of publication date, published reports of clinical trials rarely provide information on use of full or limited weight‐based doses.CONCLUSIONSVariations in dose determinations among clinical trial protocols and lack of information on use of full weight‐based doses in most publications are 2 likely sources of variation in chemotherapy dosing in obese women. Developing consensus and disseminating information on optimal chemotherapy dosing will likely reduce such variation and may improve survival among obese patients with breast cancer. Cancer 2008. © 2008 American Cancer Society.
Prednisone, etoposide, procarbazine, and cyclophosphamide (PEP‐C) oral combination chemotherapy regimen for recurring/refractory lymphoma: Low‐dose metronomic, multidrug therapy
Authors: Coleman Morton , Martin Peter , Ruan Jia , Furman Richard , Niesvizky Ruben , Elstrom Rebecca , George Patricia , Kaufman Thomas P. , Leonard John P. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractBACKGROUNDMany patients with recurrent lymphoma are unable to tolerate intensive therapies, or have disease that is refractory. Metronomic chemotherapy offers a novel, potentially less toxic yet effective treatment strategy.METHODSAn analysis was performed on 75 lymphoma patients who were treated with the PEP‐C regimen at a single institution. The program consisted of oral prednisone 20 mg after breakfast, cyclophosphamide 50 mg after lunch, etoposide 50 mg after dinner, and procarbazine 50 mg at bedtime with an oral antiemetic. All medications were administered daily until the white blood cell count fell to less than 3.0 × 109/L, whereupon treatment was withheld until recovery from the nadir. Therapy was then reinstituted on a daily, alternate day, or fractionated weekly basis (eg, 5 of 7 days), depending on patient tolerance. Doses given per day were held constant.RESULTSEighty percent of patients had previously received 2 or more treatments. Overall, 69% achieved an objective response after PEP‐C treatment, with 36% complete responses and 33% partial responses. Subjects with indolent histologies had superior overall responses, complete responses, and time on therapy relative to those with aggressive histologies. The regimen was generally well tolerated.CONCLUSIONSMetronomic therapy with low‐dose oral agents administered in combination for continuous, prolonged periods with minimal drug‐free intervals represents a novel, active, easily tolerated approach to management of patients with recurrent lymphoma, particularly those with indolent histologies. Cancer 2008. © 2008 American Cancer Society.
Platelet‐derived growth factor receptor as a prognostic marker and a therapeutic target for imatinib mesylate therapy in osteosarcoma
Authors: Kubo Tadahiko , Piperdi Sajida , Rosenblum Jeremy , Antonescu Cristina R. , Chen Wen , Kim Han‐Soo , Huvos Andrew G. , Sowers Rebecca , Meyers Paul A. , Healey John H. , Gorlick Richard 
Published: March 2008

AbstractThe purpose of this review was to determine whether imatinib mesylate (STI571, Gleevec) has a role in the treatment of osteosarcoma. The expression of platelet‐derived growth factor (PDGF) receptor and its ligand was examined in a panel of surgical specimens obtained from 54 osteosarcoma patients, and then the expression was compared with prognosis. The effects of imatinib mesylate on growth and molecular events in 10 patient‐derived osteosarcoma cell cultures were investigated. Immunohistochemical studies demonstrated frequent expression of PDGF‐AA (80.4%) and PDGF‐α receptor (79.6%) and their correlation with inferior event‐free survival (P < .05). PDGF‐B–B and PDGF‐β–receptor expressions were also frequent (75.4% and 86%, respectively); however, statistically significant inferior event‐free survival was not demonstrated (P = .15). In vitro studies demonstrated that imatinib mesylate had a variable cytotoxic effect on various osteosarcoma primary cultures, with an IC50 of 5.6 μM to 9.5 μM, and blocked the PDGF‐induced intracellular signal transduction as well as inhibition of downstream Akt phosphorylation. Mitogen‐activated protein kinase (MAPK) was constitutively activated despite PDGF stimulation and imatinib mesylate treatment in 7 of 10 osteosarcoma cultures, perhaps explaining uncontrolled proliferation and relative unresponsiveness to imatinib. Imatinib mesylate could not be viewed as having a role as a single agent at current conventional doses for the treatment of osteosarcoma. These findings predicted activity in osteosarcoma clinical trials and suggested that in vitro model systems predict clinical behavior and that PDGF and its receptor expression could potentially be used for determining prognosis of osteosarcoma. Cancer 2008. ©2008 American Cancer Society.
Changes in causes of death over time after treatment for invasive aspergillosis
Authors: Wingard John R. , Ribaud Patricia , Schlamm Haran T. , Herbrecht Raoul 
Published: March 2008

AbstractBACKGROUNDAssessment of response to invasive aspergillosis (IA) therapy has been challenging in treatment trials.METHODSThe causes of death over 12 weeks were categorized prospectively by a blinded data review committee using a priori defined criteria in participants in a randomized comparative trial of voriconazole versus amphotericin B as first‐line therapy of proven or probable IA.RESULTSDeath occurred in 98 of 277 patients during the 12‐week course of study. Seventy‐three of the 98 deaths (74%) occurred in the first 6 weeks; 25 deaths occurred during the second 6 weeks. Of the 73 deaths during the first 6 weeks, 50 (68%) were judged to be attributable to IA. Of the 25 deaths during the second 6 weeks, only 6 (24%) were judged to be attributable to IA. Fifty of the 56 deaths (89%) attributable to IA occurred during the first 6 weeks.CONCLUSIONSThese data suggest that most deaths due to IA occur during the first 6 weeks after the start of therapy and 6 weeks may be a better interval to judge the effectiveness of antifungal therapy because most deaths after 6 weeks are due to causes related to the underlying disease and its treatment rather than due to IA. Attributable mortality when assessed using a priori definitions and conducted in a blinded manner by a central data review committee can be useful in the assessment of IA therapy. Cancer 2008. © 2008 American Cancer Society.
Molecular Diffusion Measurement in Lipid Bilayers over Wide Concentration Ranges: A Comparative Study
Authors: Guo Lin , Har Jia Yi , Sankaran Jagadish , Hong Yimian , Kannan Balakrishnan , Wohland Thorsten 
Published: March 2008

AbstractMolecular diffusion in biological membranes is a determining factor in cell signaling and cell function. In the past few decades, three main fluorescence spectroscopy techniques have emerged that are capable of measuring molecular diffusion in artificial and biological membranes at very different concentration ranges and spatial resolutions. The widely used methods of fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) and single‐particle tracking (SPT) can determine absolute diffusion coefficients at high (>100 μm−2) and very low surface concentrations (single‐molecule level), respectively. Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS), on the other hand, is well‐suited for the intermediate concentration range of about 0.1–100 μm−2. However, FCS in general requires calibration with a standard dye of known diffusion coefficient, and yields only relative measurements with respect to the calibration. A variant of FCS, z‐scan FCS, is calibration‐free for membrane measurements, but requires several experiments at different well‐controlled focusing positions. A recently established FCS method, electron‐multiplying charge‐coupled‐device‐based total internal reflection FCS (TIR‐FCS), referred to here as imaging TIR‐FCS (ITIR–FCS), is also independent of calibration standards, but to our knowledge no direct comparison between these different methods has been made. Herein, we seek to establish a comparison between FRAP, SPT, FCS, and ITIR–FCS by measuring the lateral diffusion coefficients in two model systems, namely, supported lipid bilayers and giant unilamellar vesicles.