bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A phase 2 study of cetuximab in combination with docetaxel in chemotherapy‐refractory/resistant patients with advanced nonsmall cell lung cancer
Authors: Kim Edward S. , Mauer Ann M. , William William N. , Tran Hai T. , Liu Diane , Lee Jack J. , Windt Paul , Hong Waun K. , Vokes Everett E. , Herbst Roy S. 
Published: February 2009

AbstractBACKGROUND:Cetuximab in combination with docetaxel was examined in chemotherapy‐refractory/resistant patients with advanced nonsmall‐cell lung cancer (NSCLC) to determine response rate, survival, safety, and pharmacokinetics (PK).METHODS:Patients had evidence of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) expression (≥1 +) and tumor progression during or disease recurrence within 3 months after chemotherapy. Cetuximab was administered weekly (400 mg/m2 initial; 250 mg/m2 thereafter). Docetaxel was administered every 3 weeks (75 mg/m2). A response in 3 of the first 21 patients was required to continue accrual to the target sample size of 50 patients.RESULTS:Confirmed responses included 1 complete response (1.8%), 10 partial responses (18.2%), and 20 with stable disease (36.4%). The response rate was 20% (95% confidence interval [CI], 10.4% to 33.0%) and median time to disease progression was 104 days. There were no differences in PK parameters of docetaxel alone or with cetuximab. The most common grade 3 of 4 adverse events were leukopenia (27.3%) and acne (21.8%). Four patients (7.3%) discontinued due to allergic reaction. The median overall survival (OS) was 7.5 months with a 1‐year survival of 35%.CONCLUSIONS:Cetuximab in combination with docetaxel was well tolerated. The response rate supports more definitive evaluation of this combination in the second‐line setting. Cancer 2009. © 2009 American Cancer Society.
Carbonic anhydrase IX in bladder cancer
Authors: Klatte Tobias , Seligson David B. , Rao Jian Yu , Yu Hong , de Martino Michela , Kawaoka Kelly , Wong Steven G. , Belldegrun Arie S. , Pantuck Allan J. 
Published: February 2009

AbstractBACKGROUND:The objective of this study was to evaluate the role of carbonic anhydrase IX (CAIX) in urothelial carcinoma of the bladder.METHODS:A tissue microarray was constructed that contained 724 tissue samples from 340 patients. Immunohistochemical staining was performed using the antibody MN‐75, the percentage of positive cells was evaluated, and their association with tumor (T) classification, grade, and survival was assessed.RESULTS:All normal urothelial tissue samples were negative for CAIX expression, whereas 71% of bladder cancers expressed CAIX. CAIX expression was higher in noninvasive (Ta) versus invasive (T1‐T4) tumors (P < .001), in low‐grade versus high‐grade bladder cancer (P < .001), and in metastases versus the corresponding primary tumor (P = .032). For patients with nonmuscle invasive carcinoma who underwent transurethral resection (TUR), higher CAIX expression was associated with poorer recurrence‐free survival (P = .001). In addition, for patients with T1 tumors who underwent TUR, higher CAIX expression conveyed a 6.5‐fold higher risk of progression into muscle‐invasive disease (P = .006). In patients who underwent cystectomy, higher CAIX expression was associated with worse overall survival (P = .003). Multivariate Cox models revealed that CAIX expression was the strongest, independent prognostic factor of recurrence‐free survival (hazard ratio, 2.29; P = .001) and overall survival (hazard ratio, 1.9; P < .001).CONCLUSIONS:CAIX was expressed differentially in noninvasive versus invasive tumors, in low‐grade versus high‐grade bladder cancer, and in primary tumors versus metastases. The current results indicated that CAIX is a strong predictor of recurrence, progression, and overall survival of patients with bladder cancer; and the integration of CAIX expression into conventional prognostic models significantly improved their predictive accuracy. The data suggest a tripartite role of CAIX as a diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic molecular marker in bladder cancer. Cancer 2009. © 2009 American Cancer Society.
Race impacts outcome in stage III/IV squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck after concurrent chemoradiation therapy
Authors: Settle Kathleen , Taylor Rodney , Wolf Jeffery , Kwok Young , Cullen Kevin , Carter Kevin , Ord Robert , Zimrin Ann , Strome Scott , Suntharalingam Mohan 
Published: February 2009

AbstractBACKGROUND:The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of race on outcome in patients with stage III/IV squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN) who have completed concurrent chemoradiotherapy.METHODS:The authors performed a retrospective analysis of 202 patients with stage III/IV SCCHN who were treated at the University of Maryland. Patients received daily radiation to a total dose of 70.2 Gray (Gy) (1.8 Gy/day), concurrently with weekly carboplatin (area under the curve [AUC] = 2) and paclitaxel (45 mg/m2) chemotherapy.RESULTS:There were 108 Caucasian (CA) and 94 African American (AA) patients. The median age was 56 years, and 81% were stage IV. The median follow‐up was 33 months. The median overall survival (OS) and disease‐free survival (DFS) were 33 months and 19 months, respectively. When analyzed by race, the median DFS was 33 months (CA) versus 12 months (AA) (P = .028). The median OS was 44 months (CA) versus 24 months (AA) (P = .071). The 3‐year DFS for stage IV AA versus stage IV CA was 29% versus 50% (P = .031). The 3‐year DFS for N2 disease in AA versus CA was 32% versus 51% (P = .046). The 3‐year DFS for AA versus CA with oropharyngeal tumors was 30% versus 60% (P = .006).CONCLUSIONS:This analysis documents the inferior outcome for AA patients. They had inferior DFS and a trend toward worse OS. When stratified by several prognostic variables, the mediocre DFS in the AA patients remains. These data suggest that further investigation into the genetic characteristics of SCCHN in AA patients is warranted. Cancer 2009. © 2009 American Cancer Society.
Grid performance prediction using state‐space model
Authors: Kalantari Mohammad , Akbari Mohammad Kazem 
Published: February 2009

AbstractOne of the main challenges of scheduling algorithms in Grid environment is the autonomy of sites, which makes it difficult for the grid scheduler to estimate the exact cost of a task execution on different sites. In this paper, we present a solution for this problem based on data history (workload traces) and time series techniques. The main focus of this work is devoted to forecasting the task waiting time in a resource queue, which is under the control of a local scheduler with distinctive scheduling policy. The main contribution of this work is the consideration of a special property of the grid resources, the dynamic membership, i.e. a resource may exit and then come back to the grid environment repeatedly. When the resource belongs to the grid environment, its workload trace (log file) is considered as a correct log. On the other hand, when the resource leaves the grid, the log file during this period is considered as a defective part of the trace. As the defective parts contain some useful information, after repairing these defective parts, they can be used for forecasting purposes. Of this, we employ state‐space model along with the associated Kalman recursions in conjunction with the Expectation‐Maximization algorithm to repair the defective waiting time series such as a correct log file by which the resource seems never to have left the grid. The experimental results on a number of workload logs demonstrated that this approach can achieve an average prediction error, between 22 and 64% less than those incurred by other rival methods. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
WSPE: a peer‐to‐peer grid programming environment
Authors: Rosinha Romulo B. , Geyer Cláudio F. R. , Vargas Patrícia Kayser 
Published: February 2009

AbstractGrid programming environments are tools designed to isolate users from issues such as heterogeneity, scalability and adaptability, thus simplifying the use of a Grid infrastructure. This paper presents work stealing programming environment (WSPE), a Grid programming environment for Grid‐unaware applications. WSPE can be defined as a programming environment, since it is a software tool that presents both a programming model and an execution system. The WSPE consists of a simple programming interface and a fully decentralized runtime system following a peer‐to‐peer organization, both presented in this paper. It's runtime system employs a new scheduling mechanism, known as round stealing, inspired by the idea of work stealing. The main focus of our work is to research on methods to achieve efficient execution of parallel applications in a Grid computing infrastructure. By simulation, we show that our scheduling mechanism outperforms a more traditional mechanism in a Grid environment. We also demonstrate how an appropriate choice for a network overlay mechanism can further improve the execution efficiency. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Highly Emissive Nanostructured Thin Films of Organic Host–Guests for Energy Conversion
Authors: Moreau Juliette , Giovanella Umberto , Bombenger Jean‐Philippe , Porzio William , Vohra Varun , Spadacini Laura , Di Silvestro Giuseppe , Barba Luisa , Arrighetti Gianmichele , Destri Silvia , Pasini Mariacecilia , Saba Michele , Quochi Fancesco , Mura Andrea , Bongiovanni Giovanni , Fiorini Mauro , Uslenghi Michela , Botta Chiara 
Published: February 2009

AbstractAll‐organic nanostructured host–guest materials (see picture) show enhanced, tunable fluorescence due to a high concentration of dyes with controlled spatial and geometrical organization that allows controlled resonant energy transfer. Homogeneous films of deoxycholic acid host–guests, provide coatings that convert near‐UV light into blue light with an efficiency higher than that of the standard polymeric blends.magnified imageAll‐organic nanostructured host–guest systems, based on dyes inserted in the nanochannels of perhydrotriphenylene (PHTP) and deoxycholic acid (DCA), show enhanced fluorescence properties with quantum yields even higher than those of the dyes in solution, thanks to the high concentration of emissive molecules with controlled spatial and geometrical organization that prevents aggregation quenching. Both host molecules crystallize, growing with the long axis oriented along the direction of the nanochannels where the linear‐chain dyes are inserted, to yield crystals emitting well‐polarized light. For the DCA‐based host–guests, homogeneous thin films suitable for several applications are obtained. Colour emission in such films can be tuned by co‐inclusion of two or three dyes due to resonant energy‐transfer processes. We show that films obtained by low‐cost techniques, such as solution casting and spin‐coating, convert UV light into visible light with an efficiency much higher than that of the standard polymeric blends.
Targeted gene modification in mouse ES cells using integrase‐defective lentiviral vectors
Authors: Okada Yuka , Ueshin Yuko , Hasuwa Hidetoshi , Takumi Kazuhiro , Okabe Masaru , Ikawa Masahito 
Published: February 2009

AbstractLentiviral vectors efficiently integrate into the host genome of both dividing and nondividing cells, and so they have been used for stable transgene expression in biological and biomedical studies. However, recent studies have highlighted the risk of insertional mutagenesis and subsequent oncogenesis. Here, we used an integrase‐defective lentiviral (IDLV) vector to decrease the chance of random integration and examined the feasibility of lentiviral vector‐mediated gene targeting into murine embryonic stem (ES) cells. After transduction with wild‐type lentiviral vectors, none of the 512 G418 resistant clones were found to be homologous recombinant clones. Although the transduction efficiency was lower with the IDLV vectors (5.9% of wild‐type), successful homologous recombination was observed in nine out of the 941 G418 resistant clones (0.83 ± 1.32%). Pluripotency of the homologous recombinant ES cells was confirmed by the production of chimeric mice and subsequent germ line transmission. Because lentiviral vectors can efficiently transduce a variety of stem cell types, our strategy has potential relevance for secure gene‐manipulation in therapeutic applications. genesis 47:217–223, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Formation of Homoleptic Tetracarbene versus cis‐Chelating Dicarbene Complexes of Nickel(II) and Applications in Kumada–Corriu Couplings
Authors: Vinh Huynh Han , Jothibasu Ramasamy 
Published: February 2009

AbstractThe formation of mono‐ versus bis(chelate) NiII complexes bearing N‐heterocyclic dicarbene ligands can be controlled by the flexibility of the ligand bridge. A short methylene spacer exclusively gives rise to a dicationic bis(chelate) complex [Ni(MeCCmeth)2]Br2 (1), whereas a more flexible propylene spacer affords a neutral monochelate complex [NiBr2(MeCCprop)] (2). Complex 2 was found to autoionize very slowly to the corresponding dicationic bis(chelate) over ca. 45 d in [D6]dmso. The formation of the bis‐ versus monochelate complex can be attributed to the different stabilities of the resulting metallacycles. The catalytic activity of monochelate 2 was tested in the Kumada–Corriu coupling of aryl halides with arylmagnesium reagents at ambient temperature. (© Wiley‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2009)
NMR Quantification of Tautomeric Populations in Biogenic Purine Bases
Authors: Bartl Tomáš , Zacharová Zuzana , Sečkářová Pavlína , Kolehmainen Erkki , Marek Radek 
Published: February 2009

AbstractPurine bases such as purine, adenine, hypoxanthine, and mercaptopurine are known to exist in several tautomeric forms. Characterization of their tautomeric equilibria is important not only for predicting the regioselectivity of their N‐alkylation reactions, but also for gaining knowledge of the patterns with which these compounds of significant biological activity form hydrogen bonds with their biological targets. The tautomeric equilibria of purine and some purine derivatives in methanol and N,N‐dimethylformamide solutions were investigated by low‐temperature 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy. The N(7)H and N(9)H tautomeric forms were quantified by integrating the individual 1H NMR signals at low temperatures. The Gibbs free energy differences were calculated and the effects of substitution on the N(7)H/N(9)H ratio discussed. A previously published theoretically predicted mechanism of the tautomeric exchange is compared with our measurements in deuteriated solvents. The influence of concentration on the temperature of coalescence indicates that supramolecular clusters play a significant role in this proton transfer process. (© Wiley‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2009)
Phase uncertainty in case‐control association studies
Authors: Won Sungho , Kim Sulgi , Elston Robert C. 
Published: February 2009

AbstractThe possible evidence for association comprises three types of information: differences between cases and controls in allele frequencies, in parameters for Hardy‐Weinberg disequilibrium (HWD), and in parameters for linkage disequilibrium (LD). LD between marker and disease alleles results in a difference in at least one of the three types of parameters [Won and Elston, 2008]. However, the parameters for LD require knowledge about phase, which is usually unknown, making the LD contrast test without modification infeasible in practice. Methods for handling phase uncertainty are: (1) the most probable haplotype pair for each individual can be considered as the true phase; (2) a weighted average of haplotypes can be used; (3) we can consider the composite LD, which does not require any information about phase. We compare these methods to handle phase uncertainty in terms of validity and efficiency, and the effect on them of HWD in the population, at the same time confirming results for the three types of information. When the LD between markers is high, the LD contrast test that uses a weighted average of haplotypes or the most probable haplotypes to calculate the LD is recommended, but otherwise the LD contrast test that uses the composite LD is recommended. We conclude that, even though the difference in allele frequencies is usually the most informative test except in the case of a recessive disease, the LD contrast test can be more powerful if the markers are dense enough. Genet. Epidemiol. 33:463–478, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Testing Hardy‐Weinberg equilibrium using mother‐child case‐control samples
Authors: Chen Jinbo , Zheng Haitao , Wilson Melissa L. , Kraft Peter 
Published: February 2009

AbstractGenetic association studies of obstetric complications may genotype case and control mothers, or their respective newborns, or both case‐control mothers and their children. The relatively high prevalence of many obstetric complications and the availability of both maternal and offspring's genotype data have provided motivation to study new methods for testing for deviations from Hardy‐Weinberg equilibrium (HWE). We propose four novel test statistics, each of which uses a different type of data as follows: (1) a test using maternal case‐control genotype data, (2) a test using offspring genotype data, (3) a combination of the first and second tests, and (4) a test based on the joint classification of case‐control maternal‐child genotype data. The selection of case and control mothers (and thus their children) is accounted for by weighting both maternal and child contributions to the test statistics with sampling probabilities. Our tests thus do not require that the phenotype be rare as is the case for HWE tests using only controls, and are particularly suitable for genetic association studies of relatively common complications such as premature birth. The third and fourth tests described above utilize both maternal and child genotype data and appropriately account for the correlation between maternal and child genotypes. On the basis of extensive simulation studies to compare the type‐I error and power for proposed tests, we recommend the third combined test statistic for routine use in the analysis of case‐control studies of mother‐child pairs. Genet. Epidemiol. 33:539–548, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Cholesterol 24‐hydroxylase (CYP46A1) polymorphisms are associated with faster cognitive deterioration in Chinese older persons: a two‐year follow up study
Authors: Fu Brenda Yan , Ma Suk Ling , Tang Nelson Leung Sang , Tam Cindy Woon Chi , Lui Victor Wing Cheong , Chiu Helen Fung Kum , Lam Linda Chiu Wa 
Published: February 2009

AbstractObjectivesWe previously found that the polymorphisms of cholesterol 24‐hydroxylase (CYP46A1) gene were associated with the risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD) in Chinese. However, its effect in predicting progression of cognitive decline remains unknown.MethodsTwo hundred and eighty‐one Chinese subjects (121 cognitively intact, 101 with mild cognitive impairment and 59 with mildly dementia) were followed‐up with a mean (SD) duration of 25.22(5.74) months. Association between the CYP46A1 gene polymorphisms and 2‐year cognitive deterioration were evaluated.ResultsAt follow‐up, 225(80.0%) subjects were reassessed. Sixty‐three subjects were diagnosed as AD, 68 were MCI and 94 were cognitively intact. Among them, 158 had improved or remained stable while 67 deteriorated. The ‘deteriorated’ group was older than ‘improved or stable’ group (t‐test, t = −2.87, p < 0.001). IVS2‐150 polymorphism was associated with a higher risk of cognitive deterioration. Subjects with T allele were more likely to deteriorate compared with those without T allele (Pearson χ2 = 8.98, df 2, p = 0.011). IVS3‐128 CC genotype was higher in ‘improved or stable’ group (Likelihood Ratio = 6.55, df 2, p = 0.038), suggesting a protective role for this allele. The two other polymorphisms, IVS1‐192 and IVS4‐122, did not show any significant association with cognitive function.ConclusionCYP46A1 gene may act to modulate the course of cognitive deterioration in late life. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Physical exercise leads to rapid adaptations in hippocampal vasculature: Temporal dynamics and relationship to cell proliferation and neurogenesis
Authors: Van der Borght Karin , Kóbor‐Nyakas Dóra É. , Klauke Karin , Eggen Bart J.L. , Nyakas Csaba , Van der Zee Eddy A. , Meerlo Peter 
Published: February 2009

AbstractIncreased levels of angiogenesis and neurogenesis possibly mediate the beneficial effects of physical activity on hippocampal plasticity. This study was designed to investigate the temporal dynamics of exercise‐induced changes in hippocampal angiogenesis and cell proliferation. Mice were housed with a running wheel for 1, 3, or 10 days. Analysis of glucose transporter Glut1‐positive vessel density showed a significant increase after 3 days of wheel running. Cell proliferation in the dentate gyrus showed a trend towards an increase after 3 days of running and was significantly elevated after 10 days of physical exercise. Ten days of wheel running resulted in a near‐significant increase in the number of immature neurons, as determined by a doublecortin (DCX) staining. In the second part of the study, the persistence of the exercise‐induced changes in angiogenesis and cell proliferation was determined. The running wheel was removed from the cage after 10 days of physical activity. Glut‐1 positive vessel density and hippocampal cell proliferation were determined 1 and 6 days after removal of the wheel. Both parameters had returned to baseline 24 h after cessation of physical activity. The near‐significant increase in the number of DCX‐positive immature neurons persisted for at least 6 days, indicating that new neurons formed during the period of increased physical activity had survived. Together these experiments show that the hippocampus displays a remarkable angiogenic and neurogenic plasticity and rapidly responds to changes in physical activity. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Performance measurement in mental health care: present situation and future possibilities
Authors: Baars Irma J. , Evers Silvia M. A. A. , Arntz Arnoud , van Merode Godefridus G. 
Published: February 2009

AbstractThis paper describes performance measurement and its indicators for mental health care services. Performance measurement can serve several goals such as accountability, quality improvement and performance management. For all three purposes structure, process and outcome indicators should be measured. Literature was retrieved from Medline and PsychInfo in order to see which performance indicators were used for the three purposes of performance measurement in mental health care. The indicators were classified in structure, process and outcome indicators. The results show no big differences in the indicators used among studies. Performance management is the performance measurement purpose most referred to, followed by accountability, and quality improvement. Outcome and process indicators are used most, structure indicators are in the minority. Several levels of measurement, that is national or service level, came forward in the literature review. To overcome misinterpretation of data and to be able to improve quality and manage performances, performance indicator sets should refer to structure, process and outcome. Indicators should be chosen carefully with the aim of the measurement taken into mind. Based on this review, a conceptual framework is presented to support managers in their decisions about which indictors can best be used for performance measurement. Additionally, a model that provides an understanding of the use of information gained by performance measurement is given. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.