gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
Neuropsychological Testing Profiles of Patients with Alzheimer's Disease and Mild Cognitive Impairment: a Case-Control Study (2002)

Objective: To identify markers of early cognitive changes in Alzheimer’s disease using a battery of neuropsychological tests. Methods: The study was cross-sectional with a case-control design, and evaluated 3 groups of subjects: patients with mild and moderate Alzheimer’s disease, those with mild cognitive impairment, and normal controls. The World Health Organization Battery of Cognitive Assessment Instruments for elderly people was used to assess the cognitive function of the study patients. Results: Twenty six individuals with Alzheimer’s disease, 27 with mild cognitive impairment and 83 controls were recruited. Mean total scores of the Mini-Mental Status Examination were 17.6 (SD, 2.0), 24.2 (SD, 2.1), and 28.7 (SD, 1.1), respectively. The results of the World Health Organization Battery of Cognitive Assessment Instruments tests demonstrated significant differences among the 3 groups for all subtests. Similarly, there were significant differences between the Alzheimer’s disease group and either the control group or the mild cognitive impairment group for nearly all subtests. However, significant differences between those with mild cognitive impairment and control subjects were found only for some subtests of the battery; these included auditory verbal learning, delayed recall, sorting, verbal fluency, mini-token, trail making, visual reasoning, and spatial construction. The group with mild cognitive impairment performed significantly worse than controls for these tests. Conclusion: The findings of this study suggest that auditory verbal learning, delayed recall, sorting, verbal fluency, mini-token, trail making, visual reasoning and spatial construction tests are the more sensitive subtests for early detection of Alzheimer’s disease.
The Extragenic Spacer Length Between the 5′ and 3′ Ends of the Transgene Expression Cassette Affects Transgene Silencing From Plasmid-based Vectors (2012)

In quiescent tissues, minicircle DNA vectors provide at least 10 times higher sustained levels of transgene expression compared to that achieved with a canonical plasmid containing the same expression cassette. It is not known if there is a specific DNA sequence or structure that is needed for DNA silencing. To directly address this question, we substituted the bacterial plasmid DNA with various lengths of extragenic spacer DNAs between the 5' and 3' ends of the transgene expression cassette and determined the expression profiles using two different reporter expression cassettes. Both the human alphoid repeat (AR) and randomly generated DNA sequences of ≥1 kb in length resulted in transgene silencing while shorter spacers, ≤500 bp exhibited similar transgene expression patterns to conventional minicircle DNA vectors. In contrast, when the ≥1 kb random DNA (RD) sequences were expressed as part of the 3'-untranslated region (UTR) transgene silencing was not observed. These data suggest that the length and not the sequence or origin of the extragenic DNA flanking the expression cassette is responsible for plasmid-mediated transgene silencing. This has implications for the design of nonviral vectors for gene transfer applications as well as providing insights into how genes are regulated.
Inhibition of the Rho/ROCK pathway reduces apoptosis during transplantation of embryonic stem cell‐derived neural precursors (2007)

Rho-GTPase has been implicated in the apoptosis of many cell types, including neurons, but the mechanism by which it acts is not fully understood. Here, we investigate the roles of Rho and ROCK in apoptosis during transplantation of embryonic stem cell-derived neural precursor cells. We find that dissociation of neural precursors activates Rho and induces apoptosis. Treatment with the Rho inhibitor C3 exoenzyme and/or the ROCK inhibitor Y-27632 decreases the amount of dissociation-induced apoptosis (anoikis) by 20-30%. Membrane blebbing, which is an early morphological sign of apoptosis; cleavage of caspase-3; and release of cytochrome c from the mitochondria are also reduced by ROCK inhibition. These results suggest that dissociation of neural precursor cells elicits an intrinsic pathway of cell death that is at least partially mediated through the Rho/ROCK pathway. Moreover, in an animal transplantation model, inhibition of Rho and/or ROCK suppresses acute apoptosis of grafted cells. After transplantation, tumor necrosis factor-alpha and pro-nerve growth factor are strongly expressed around the graft. ROCK inhibition also suppresses apoptosis enhanced by these inflammatory cytokines. Taken together, these results indicate that inhibition of Rho/ROCK signaling may improve survival of grafted cells in cell replacement therapy.
Pulsed Field Ablation in Patients With Persistent Atrial Fibrillation (2020)

The unique safety profile of PFA potentiated efficient, safe, and durable PVI and LAPW ablation. This extends the potential role of PFA beyond paroxysmal to persistent forms of AF. (Pulsed Fields for Persistent Atrial Fibrillation [PersAFOne]; NCT04170621).
Epidemiology of Herpes Zoster in Children and Adolescents: A Population-Based Study (1985)

Medical records were reviewed for all 173 cases of herpes zoster diagnosed among residents of Rochester, Minnesota, less than 20 years of age during the period 1960 through 1981. The incidence of zoster increased with age from 20 cases per 100,000 person-years in those residents less than five years of age to 63 cases per 100,000 person-years in those aged 15 to 19. Morbidity was less than has been described in adults, as only two patients required hospitalization and no postherpetic neuralgia or other late complications were diagnosed. The single case of subsequent cancer found in 1,288 person-years of follow-up was not significantly different from the number expected based on cancer incidence in the general Rochester population. The incidence of childhood zoster in patients with acute lymphocytic leukemia was 122 times higher than in children without an underlying malignancy. Chickenpox in the first year of life was found to be a risk factor for childhood zoster, with a relative risk between 2.8 and 20.9. Neither chickenpox in the second year of life nor recent vaccinations were found to be risk factors for childhood zoster.
Combined autophagy and HDAC inhibition (2014)

We previously reported that inhibition of autophagy significantly augmented the anticancer activity of the histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor vorinostat (VOR) through a cathepsin D-mediated mechanism. We thus conducted a first-in-human study to investigate the safety, preliminary efficacy, pharmacokinetics (PK), and pharmacodynamics (PD) of the combination of the autophagy inhibitor hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) and VOR in patients with advanced solid tumors. Of 27 patients treated in the study, 24 were considered fully evaluable for study assessments and toxicity. Patients were treated orally with escalating doses of HCQ daily (QD) (d 2 to 21 of a 21-d cycle) in combination with 400 mg VOR QD (d one to 21). Treatment-related adverse events (AE) included grade 1 to 2 nausea, diarrhea, fatigue, weight loss, anemia, and elevated creatinine. Grade 3 fatigue and/or myelosuppression were observed in a minority of patients. Fatigue and gastrointestinal AE were dose-limiting toxicities. Six-hundred milligrams HCQ and 400 mg VOR was established as the maximum tolerated dose and recommended phase II regimen. One patient with renal cell carcinoma had a confirmed durable partial response and 2 patients with colorectal cancer had prolonged stable disease. The addition of HCQ did not significantly impact the PK profile of VOR. Treatment-related increases in the expression of CDKN1A and CTSD were more pronounced in tumor biopsies than peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Based on the safety and preliminary efficacy of this combination, additional clinical studies are currently being planned to further investigate autophagy inhibition as a new approach to increase the efficacy of HDAC inhibitors.
Spatial and temporal expression of angiogenic molecules during tumor growth and progression. (1998)

The growth and metastasis of cancer directly correlates with tumor angiogenesis. A better understanding of the expression of regulatory factors controlling angiogenesis is important in exploiting this process therapeutically. Our present study demonstrates that small tumors (3-4 mm in diameter) express more basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and interleukin 8 (IL-8) than large tumors (> 10 mm in diameter), whereas more vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is expressed in large tumors. Immunostaining showed a heterogeneous distribution of angiogenic factors within the tumor; expression of bFGF and IL-8 was highest on the periphery of a large tumor, where cell division is maximum. VEGF expression was higher in the center of the tumor. In vitro studies demonstrated that sparse cultures of tumor cells expressed higher levels of bFGF and IL-8 than confluent cultures. In contrast, the expression of bFGF and IL-8 was not diminished in tumor cells growing on confluent monolayers of normal cells. VEGF expression was upregulated by cell density irrespective of contact with tumor cells or normal cells. These results demonstrate that the expression of different angiogenic factors in tumor cells can be regulated by their proximity to other tumor cells or host cells.
Identification of immunodominant epitopes in the filamentous hemagglutinin ofBordetella pertussis (1999)

The filamentous hemagglutinin (FHA) of Bordetella pertussis is a principal adhesin, which plays a key role in the colonization of the upper respiratory tract. FHA is also a protective antigen, which has been incorporated in the new generation of acellular vaccines against whooping cough. The protein is synthesized as a large 367-kDa precursor, which is then processed into a 220-kDa secreted polypeptide. To optimize the use of this protein for vaccine purposes it would be helpful to define the regions encompassing immunodominant epitopes. Twelve recombinant plasmids have been generated encoding fusion proteins between fragments of the matured-secreted 220-kDa form of FHA and the vector-encoded phage MS2 polymerase. Protein extracts of the resulting recombinant clones have been tested for reactivity with sera from 20 patients convalescent from whooping cough, and two human standard sera. The results indicate the presence of an immunodominant B cell epitope in the polypeptide coded by a 1-kb DNA fragment encompassing positions 5781-6800 of the published sequence. These results suggest that the identified fragment should be conserved in the formulation of vaccines against pertussis.
In Vivo Half-Life of a Protein Is a Function of Its Amino-Terminal Residue (1986)

When a chimeric gene encoding a ubiquitin-beta-galactosidase fusion protein is expressed in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, ubiquitin is cleaved off the nascent fusion protein, yielding a deubiquitinated beta-galactosidase (beta gal). With one exception, this cleavage takes place regardless of the nature of the amino acid residue of beta gal at the ubiquitin-beta gal junction, thereby making it possible to expose different residues at the amino-termini of the otherwise identical beta gal proteins. The beta gal proteins thus designed have strikingly different half-lives in vivo, from more than 20 hours to less than 3 minutes, depending on the nature of the amino acid at the amino-terminus of beta gal. The set of individual amino acids can thus be ordered with respect to the half-lives that they confer on beta gal when present at its amino-terminus (the "N-end rule"). The currently known amino-terminal residues in long-lived, noncompartmentalized intracellular proteins from both prokaryotes and eukaryotes belong exclusively to the stabilizing class as predicted by the N-end rule. The function of the previously described posttranslational addition of single amino acids to protein amino-termini may also be accounted for by the N-end rule. Thus the recognition of an amino-terminal residue in a protein may mediate both the metabolic stability of the protein and the potential for regulation of its stability.
Transthoracic resistance in human defibrillation. Influence of body weight, chest size, serial shocks, paddle size and paddle contact pressure. (1981)

Successful defibrillation depends on delivery of adequate electrical current to the heart; one of the major determinants of current flow is transthoracic resistance (TTR). To study the factors influencing TTR, we prospectively collected data from 44 patients undergoing emergency defibrillation. Shocks of 94-450 J delivered energy were administered from specially calibrated Datascope defibrillators that displayed peak current flow, thereby permitting determination of TTR. Shocks were applied from standard (8.5-cm diameter) or large (13 cm) paddles placed anteriorly and laterally. First-shock TTR ranged from 15-143 omega. There was a weak correlation between TTR and body weight (r = 0.45, p less than 0.05) and a stronger correlation between TTR and chest width (r = 0.80, p less than 0.01). Twenty-three patients who were defibrillated using standard 8.5-cm paddles had a mean TTR of 67 +/- 36 omega (+/- SD), whereas 21 patients who received shocks using paddle pairs with at least one large (13 cm) paddle had a 21% lower TTR of 53 +/- 24 omega (p = 0.05, unpaired t test). Ten patients received first and second shocks at the same energy level; TTR declined only 8%, from 52 +/- 19 to 48 +/- 16 omega (p less than 0.01, paired t test). In closed chest dogs, shocks were administered using a spring apparatus that regulated paddle contact pressure against the thorax. Firmer contact pressure caused TTR to decrease 25%, from 48 +/- 22 to 36 +/- 17 omega (p less than 0.01, paired t test). Thus, human TTR varies widely and is related most closely to chest size. TTR declines only slightly with a second shock at the same energy level. More substantial reductions in TTR and declines only slightly with a second shock at the same energy level. More substantial reductions in TTR and increases in current flow can be achieved by using large paddles and applying firm paddle contact pressure.
Both the SH2 and SH3 domains of human CRK protein are required for neuronal differentiation of PC12 cells. (1993)

Human CRK protein is a homolog of the chicken v-crk oncogene product and consists mostly of src homology region 2 (SH2) and SH3, which are shared by many proteins, in particular those involved in signal transduction. SH2 has been shown to bind specifically to phosphotyrosine-containing peptides. We report here that both SH2 and SH3 are required for signaling from CRK protein. Microinjection of the CRK protein induced neurite formation of rat pheochromocytoma cell line PC12. This activity was abolished by mutation of the CRK protein in either SH2 or SH3. The neuronal differentiation induced by the CRK protein was blocked by an excess amount of peptides containing CRK SH3. Moreover, we identified three proteins, of 118, 125, and 136 kDa, which bound specifically to CRK SH3. The CRK-induced neuronal differentiation was also suppressed by monoclonal antibodies against either CRK SH2 or p21ras. These results suggest that both SH2 and SH3 of the CRK protein mediate specific protein-protein binding and that the resulting multimolecular complex generates a signal for neurite differentiation through activation of p21ras.
Single-Tube, Highly Parallel Mutation Enrichment in Cancer Gene Panels by Use of Temperature-Tolerant COLD-PCR (2014)

Fast-TT-COLD-PCR improves the limit of detection of cancer gene panels by enabling mutation enrichment in multiplex, single-tube reactions. This novel adaptation of COLD-PCR converts subclonal mutations to clonal, thereby facilitating detection and subsequent mutation sequencing.
ANTIATHEROMATOUS PROPERTIES OF ELASTASE IN CHOLESTEROL‐FED RABBITS and EX VIVO SUPPRESSIVE EFFECT OF ELASTASE ON SMOOTH MUSCLE CELL PROLIFERATION IN THE PRESENCE OF HYPERCHOLESTEROLEMIA (1987)

The effects of a clinical oral dose of elastase on aortic atheroma development were studied in 0.2% cholesterol-fed rabbits, with or without endothelial denudation, using a balloon catheter. Elastase slightly decreased the serum lipids, but there was no significant difference from the serum lipids in the control groups. However, elastase significantly reduced the surface involvement of Sudan IV-positive staining areas of the aortas in rabbits with and without endothelial injury. The effect of elastase on SMC proliferation stimulated by hypercholesterolemia (C-serum or C-plasma) was also investigated in ex vivo experiments. The cholesterol levels in the serum and plasma of the elastase group were not significantly different from those of the 0.5% cholesterol-fed control rabbits. Proliferation of aortic smooth muscle cells was stimulated in the control group, while such stimulation in the elastase group was significantly lower. Therefore, elastase may suppress the stimulation through plasma factors, hence a reduction in atheroma development would ensue.
Anatomy of pharynx in patients with obstructive sleep apnea and in normal subjects (1997)

Anatomic abnormalities of the pharynx are thought to play a role in the pathogenesis of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), but their contribution has never been conclusively proven. The present study tested this anatomic hypothesis by comparing the mechanics of the paralyzed pharynx in OSA patients and in normal subjects. According to evaluation of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) by nocturnal oximetry, subjects were divided into three groups: normal group (n = 17), SDB-1 (n = 18), and SDB-2 (n = 22). The static pressure-area relationship of the passive pharynx was quantified under general anesthesia with complete paralysis. Age and body mass index were matched among the three groups. The site of the primary closure was the velopharynx in 49 subjects and the oropharynx in only 8 subjects. Distribution of the location of the primary closure did not differ among the groups. Closing pressure (PC) of the velopharynx for SDB-1 and SDB-2 groups (0.90 +/- 1.34 and 2.78 +/- 2.78 cmH2O, respectively) was significantly higher than that for the normal group (-3.77 +/- 3.44 cmH2O; P < 0.01). Maximal velopharyngeal area for the normal group (2.10 +/- 0.85 cm2) was significantly greater than for SDB-1 and SDB-2 groups (1.15 +/- 0.46 and 1.06 +/- 0.75 cm2, respectively). The shape of the pressure-area curve for the velopharynx differed between normal subjects and patients with SDB, being steeper in slope near Pc in patients with SDB. Multivariate analysis of mechanical parameters and oxygen desaturation index (ODI) revealed that velopharyngeal Pc was the only variable highly correlated with ODI. Velopharyngeal Pc was associated with oropharyngeal Pc, suggesting mechanical interdependence of these segments. We conclude that the passive pharynx is more narrow and collapsible in sleep-apneic patients than in matched controls and that velopharyngeal Pc is the principal correlate of the frequency of nocturnal desaturations.
Structure from motion without correspondence (2002)

A method is presented to recover 3D scene structure and camera motion from multiple images without the need for correspondence information. The problem is framed as finding the maximum likelihood structure and motion given only the 2D measurements, integrating over all possible assignments of 3D features to 2D measurements. This goal is achieved by means of an algorithm which iteratively refines a probability distribution over the set of all correspondence assignments. At each iteration a new structure from motion problem is solved, using as input a set of 'virtual measurements' derived from this probability distribution. The distribution needed can be efficiently obtained by Markov Chain Monte Carlo sampling. The approach is cast within the framework of Expectation-Maximization, which guarantees convergence to a local maximizer of the likelihood. The algorithm works well in practice, as will be demonstrated using results on several real image sequences.
Massively Parallel Dip–Pen Nanolithography with 55 000‐Pen Two‐Dimensional Arrays (2006)

Lots of writing on the wall: A simple and flexible approach for performing high-throughput, large-area, direct-write molecular patterning, without tip feedback, is demonstrated by using a 55 000-pen two-dimensional array of atomic force microscope (AFM) cantilevers. The use of low-aspect-ratio pyramidal tips, curved cantilevers, and a novel gravity-driven alignment method allows parallel patterning of molecules across 1-cm2 substrate areas at sub-100-nm resolution. Supporting information for this article is available on the WWW under http://www.wiley-vch.de/contents/jc_2002/2006/z603142_s.pdf or from the author. Please note: The publisher is not responsible for the content or functionality of any supporting information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing content) should be directed to the corresponding author for the article.
A Study of Terminology and Issues in Qualitative Simulation (1989)

Much of the recent AI research related conceptually to simula tion may be found under the heading "qualitative simulation and reasoning." This paper will present terminology used within AI and critically analyze the terminology with respect to current simulation literature. By discussing terminology, we will help to bridge the gaps between work in qualitative simulation and traditional simulation and provide the foundation for future discussions on the relationships between these two areas.
Dynamics of microring resonator modulators (2008)

A dynamic model for the transmission of a microring modulator based on changes in the refractive index, loss, or waveguide-ring coupling strength is derived to investigate the limitations to the intensity modulation bandwidth. Modulation bandwidths approaching the free spectral range frequency are possible if the waveguide-ring coupling strength is varied, rather than the refractive index or loss of the ring. The results illustrate that via controlled coupling, resonant modulators with high quality factors can be designed to operate at frequencies much larger than the resonator linewidth.
Controlling Phase Composition in Selective Laser Melted Stainless Steels (2012)

Commercially important stainless steels can be austenitic or martensitic and this phase composition fundamentally controls the mechanical properties of the material. With selective laser melting (SLM), 17-4 stainless steel can be produced in either phase depending on powder composition, SLM conditions and post-build heat treatment. This behavior is examined using optical and electron microscopy and high temperature x-ray diffraction in order to better understand the formation of metastable austenite and its transformation to martensite. Control of phase composition can produce a material with either extremely large strain-to-failure or high yield strength and can provide a method for completely eliminating residual stress.
A phase change memory cell with metallic surfactant layer as a resistance drift stabilizer (2013)

We demonstrate a novel confined PCM cell structure which utilizes a metallic surfactant layer to stabilize the high (and intermediate) resistance state drift in MLC phase change memory technology. The metallic surfactant layer provides an alternative conductive path to the amorphous region during read operation, which makes the cell characteristics immune to amorphous region instabilities such as time- and temperature-dependent resistance drift and noise. The data here focuses on time-dependent drift mitigation. Analytical modeling and numerical simulations show that this cell design can achieve as much as 4× larger resistance ratio between adjacent levels in a 4-level cell. Experimental results confirm its effectiveness as a resistance drift stabilizer, showing ~6× smaller drift coefficient, resulting in a substantially reduced bit error rate.