julilili42/papers huggingface dataset:
Tumor-Size Dependent Circadian Endocrine Disturbances in Untreated Patients With Primary Prostate Cancer
2013-11-07

The aim of this study was to analyse the circadian profiles of central and peripheral circulating hormones in patients with unoperated primary localized prostate cancer (PC) as well as in age-matched controls with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) in order see whether tumor-specific endocrine disturbances may occur. The hormones analysed in serum included melatonin, prolactin (PRL), growth hormone (GH), thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), total thyroxine (T4), luteinizing hormone (LH), testosterone (T), and cortisol (Cor). Blood was collected at four-hourly intervals over one complete 24-h cycle from 19 patients with PC (68 ± 3 years; T1N0M0-T4NxM0) and 20 patients with BPH (69 ± 3 years; BPH+-BPH+++). The most prominent result was that the circadian amplitude of melatonin was drastically depleted in PC (-71%) compared to BPH, and patients with T2 as well as T3/4 showed extremely low melatonin leading to a loss of circadian rhythmicity. A similar trend existed for PRL where no circadian rhythms were detectable in PC with larger tumors. Loss of circadian rhythmicity was also observed for GH in PC, and TSH-concentrations were clearly depleted by 43 – 53% in patients with T2-and T3/4-tumors compared to patients with medium- and large-sized BPH although T4 was within normal limits. LH as well as T and Cor did not show any changes in PC compared to BPH. This indicates that the growth of PC leads to specific endocrine changes affecting melatonin, PRL, GH and TSH without influencing peripheral hormones (T4, T, Cor) as well as LH. The possible significance of these findings for the prognosis of patients with PC is discussed, as well as the potential underlying mechanisms focussing on the question why circulating melatonin may be diminished in PC and whether this could be functionally involved in the observed endocrine disturbances.
How self-perceived disease burden and psychosocial impairment is influenced by coping styles in patients with Cushing's disease
2013-11-07

Introduction: Cushing's disease is known to disturb psychosocial well-being and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) for years after treatment and normalization of cortisol levels. As the reasons for long-lasting impairments are yet unclear, we conducted a postal survey on postsurgical after-care, psychosocial impairment and coping strategies in patients after surgical treatment of CD. Methods: A set of self-assessment inventories including questionnaires on depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, HADS), HRQoL (Short Form SF-36, Tuebingen Cushing's Disease CD-25) and coping style (Freiburg Questionnaire on Coping with Illness, FKV-LIS) was sent to all patients with CD who had been operated upon ACTH-producing pituitary adenomas at the neurosurgical departments of Erlangen, Tuebingen and Essen during the last years. They also received a self-developed questionnaire on disease duration, treatment, self-perceived disease burden and after-care. For the present analysis the complete Erlangen sample of 101 patients (21 male, 80 female) has been regarded. Results: Patients were questioned on average 6.2 years after diagnosis of CD and were of a mean age of 45.3 years. 5 patients reported elevated cortisol serum levels, 44 normal and 21 too low levels, while 31 patients did not know their current cortisol levels. Psychological HRQol was severely impaired (mental sum score SF-36 > 2 SD below mean) in 28.7% of the patients, while manifest depression (HADS) was present in 11.9% and anxiety (HADS) even in 22.8% of the investigated patients. Interestingly, maladaptive coping (FKV-LIS subscales „depressive coping“ and „minimizing importance“) correlated significantly with more self-assessed present disease burden, severity of depression and anxiety and impaired psychological HRQoL. Conclusion: Even 6 years after diagnosis patients with CD suffer from considerable impairment of psychosocial well-being. Its severity is, however, clearly influenced by the patient's way of dealing with the illness. These results are in line with studies with other patient cohorts with diseases ranging from multiple sclerosis to low back pain. Therefore, it should be considered to add psychological trainings of positive coping styles to the treatment strategy of CD.
The inside-out view on neutron-star magnetospheres
2013-11-08

We construct hydromagnetic neutron star equilibria which allow for a non-zero electric current distribution in the exterior. The novelty of our models is that the neutron star's interior field is in equilibrium with its magnetosphere, thus bridging the gap between previous work in this area, which either solves for the interior assuming a vacuum exterior or solves for the magnetosphere without modelling the star itself. We consider only non-rotating stars in this work, so our solutions are most immediately applicable to slowly rotating systems such as magnetars. Nonetheless, we demonstrate that magnetospheres qualitatively resembling those expected for both magnetars and pulsars are possible within our framework. The ‘inside-out’ approach taken in this paper should be more generally applicable to rotating neutron stars, where the interior and exterior regions are again not independent but evolve together.
Adiponectin and Risk of Stroke
2013-11-08

Background and Purpose— The favorable cardiovascular effects attributed to adiponectin may lower risk of stroke. We investigated this in a prospective study and meta-analysis. Methods— A case–cohort study nested within the Potsdam cohort of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer was performed, with 170 incident cases of ischemic stroke and a randomly selected subcohort of 2155 participants without major cardiovascular disease at baseline. A random-effects dose–response meta-analysis was performed on prospective studies reporting on adiponectin and incident stroke in healthy populations up to April 2013, identified through MEDLINE and EMBASE. Results— In European Prospective Investigation into Cancer-Potsdam, after adjustment for cardiovascular risk factors, the hazard ratio of ischemic stroke per 5-μg/mL higher total-adiponectin was 1.10 (95% confidence interval, 0.89–1.37). Participants with higher total-adiponectin had higher high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol and lower high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and triglyceride levels, and had less often diabetes mellitus. Additional adjustment for these putative mediators yielded a hazard ratio of 1.31 (95% confidence interval, 1.04–1.64). Nine studies (19 259 participants, 2960 cases), including European Prospective Investigation into Cancer-Potsdam, were meta-analyzed. Pooling relative risks adjusted for cardiovascular risk factors not including putative mediators indicated moderate between-study heterogeneity ( I 2 =52.2%). This was explained by the smallest study, and the pooled relative risk (95% confidence interval) before and after its exclusion was 1.03 (0.98–1.08) and 0.99 (0.96–1.01) per 5 μg/mL, respectively. The pooled relative risk (95% confidence interval) additionally adjusted for potential mediators was 1.08 (1.01–1.15) and 1.05 (1.00–1.11) before and after excluding the same study, respectively. Conclusions— Adiponectin is not associated with risk of stroke. If anything, adiponectin relates directly to stroke risk after controlling for risk factors that favorably correlate with adiponectin.
Measurement of apparent diffusion coefficient with simultaneous MR/positron emission tomography in patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis: Comparison with 18F‐FDG‐PET
2013-11-08

Purpose To characterize peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) of different histologically proven primary tumors based on diffusion‐weighted imaging (DWI) and 18 F‐FDG positron emission tomography (PET). Materials and Methods Forty‐one patients underwent simultaneous MR/PET after clinically indicated 18 F‐FDG‐PET/CT. For all patients, histology of the primary tumor was obtained. MR protocol comprised anatomical imaging and axial DWI. Apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) maps and FDG‐PET were co‐registered for evaluation of ADC and standard uptake value (SUV) of peritoneal lesions. Both lesion‐ and patient‐based analysis was performed. Up to four peritoneal lesions were evaluated per patient. Mean and maximum standard uptake value (SUV mean , SUV max ), mean and minimum ADC (ADC mean , ADC min ) of each lesion were assessed. Spearman rank correlation (r s ) of ADC and SUV were calculated. SUV and ADC of ovarian and colorectal cancer lesions were compared using Wilcoxon test. Results Measurable lesions (n = 52) were found in 20 of 41 PC patients. Moderate, but significant correlation existed between ADC and SUV in the lesion‐based as well as the patient‐based analysis (lesion‐based: SUV mean versus ADC mean r s = −0.58; SUV max versus ADC min r s = −0.56, all P &lt; 0.0001; patient‐based: SUV mean versus ADC mean r s = −0.64, P = 0.002; SUV max versus ADC min r s = −0.60, P = 0.005). ADC and SUV differed significantly between ovarian and colorectal cancer lesions (ADC min : P &lt; 0.0001; ADC mean : P &lt; 0.0001; SUV max : P = 0.002; SUV mean : P = 0.005). Overall, mucinous tumor entities showed a tendency to higher ADC and lower SUV. Conclusion PC lesions showed significant differences in glucose uptake and diffusion characteristics depending on primary tumor histology. These differences should be considered when interpreting FDG‐PET and DWI in PC patients. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2014;40:1054–1055 . © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc .
Short‐term exercise‐induced changes in hydration state of healthy achilles tendons can be visualized by effects of off‐resonant radiofrequency saturation in a three‐dimensional ultrashort echo time MRI sequence applied at 3 tesla
2013-11-08

Purpose Off‐resonant RF saturation influences signal intensity dependent on free and bound water fractions as well as the macromolecular content. The extent of interaction between these compartments can be evaluated by using the off‐resonance saturation ratio (OSR). Combined with UTE sequences quantification of OSR even in tendinous tissues with extremely fast signal decay is possible. The aim of this prospective study was to investigate short‐term exercise‐induced effects of hydration state of the Achilles tendon by means of OSR and tendon volume. Materials and Methods Measurements of OSR and tendon volume before and after ankle‐straining activity were performed in seven healthy male volunteers (median age 29 years) using a 3D UTE sequence with implemented off‐resonance saturation pulse at 3T (off‐resonance frequency 2/3 kHz) and by an automated contour detection in isotropic T2‐weighted MR images with sub‐millimeter resolution, respectively. Different tendon regions were evaluated. Reproducibility of OSR was measured in subsequent imaging sets. Root‐mean‐square‐deviation (RMSD) and coefficient of variations (CV) were determined. Results RMSD of OSR in resting position were between 0.006 and 0.01 for different tendon regions and off‐resonance frequencies (CV 2 to 3%). A significant increase ( P &lt; 0.05) of OSR after exercise was seen in all tendon regions except at the insertion (off‐resonance frequency 3 kHz). Tendon volume was decreased significantly after ankle‐straining activity ( P = 0.003). Conclusion The observed decreased tendon volume and increased OSR directly after exercise indicates a short‐term change in tendinous proton compartments, most likely a loss of free water molecules within the tendon. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2014;40:1400–1407 . © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc .
Electrophysiological toxicity testing of VEGF Trap‐Eye in an isolated perfused vertebrate retina organ culture model
2013-11-08

Abstract Purpose Age‐related macular degeneration ( AMD ) is the leading cause of visual impairment in Western nations. Since the discovery of the importance of vascular endothelial growth factor ( VEGF ) in the pathogenesis of neovascular AMD , anti‐ VEGF agents including pegaptanib, ranibizumab and bevacizumab provide a treatment option to improve vision in affected persons. VEGF Trap‐Eye (Aflibercept) is a new agent available for the treatment of exudative AMD . The molecule is a receptor decoy with a longer half‐life and a higher affinity to VEGF compared with ranibizumab or bevacizumab. The presented study has been designed to evaluate the short‐term toxic effects of VEGF Trap‐Eye on retinal function during and after direct exposure to the drug. Methods Isolated bovine retinas were perfused with an oxygen‐saturated nutrient solution, and the electroretinogram ( ERG ) was recorded using silver/silver chloride electrodes. A total of 0.5 mg or 2 mg VEGF Trap‐Eye was added to the nutrient solution and retinas were exposed for 45 min, followed by a washout period of 100 min. The percentage of a‐ and b‐wave reduction at the end of the washout was compared with the baseline values. Additionally, retinal whole mount cultures were exposed for 24 hr to VEGF Trap‐Eye, and the amount of apoptotic cells were determined using the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase‐mediated uridine 5'‐triphosphate‐biotin nick end labelling ( TUNEL ) assay. Results During simulation of intraocular application, no significant reduction in the a‐wave amplitude for 0.5 mg (2.70%, p = 0.37) and 2 mg (3.84%, p = 0.37) VEGF Trap‐Eye and b‐wave amplitude for 0.5 mg (19.68%, p = 0.17) and 2 mg (24.1%, p = 0.06) VEGF Trap‐Eye was observed at the end of the washout. However, there were significant changes in a‐wave and b‐wave amplitudes directly after exposure to 0.5 mg VEGF Trap‐Eye (18.4%, p = 0.004 and 43.1%, p = 0.006, respectively). Conclusions The presented data suggest that intraocular application of up to 2 mg VEGF Trap‐Eye does not induce irreversible toxic retinal damage. However, short‐term results showed a negative effect directly after the application for 0.5 mg and 2 mg VEGF Trap‐Eye.
ChemInform Abstract: A Luminescent Material: La3Cl(CN2)O3 Doped with Eu3+ or Tb3+ Ions.
2013-11-08

Abstract The new title compound is synthesized by solid state reaction of LaOCl and Li 2 (CN 2 ) (750 °C, 2 d) and characterized by single crystal XRD, FTIR spectroscopy, and luminescence measurements.
Climate Change and Political Philosophy: Who Owes What to Whom?
2013-11-09

Climate change poses a serious problem for established ethical theories. There is no dearth of literature on the subject of climate ethics that break down the complexity of the issue, thereby enabling one to arrive at partial conclusions such as: ‘historical justice demands us to do this...’ or ‘intergenerational justice demands us to do that...’. In contrast, this article attempts to face up to this complexity, that is: to end with a synthesis of the arguments into what can be considered to be the most reasonable and fairest approach to the politics of climate change on a global scale. A significant part of the paper is devoted to the questions whether or not a) historical emissions and b) population changes are relevant to how emissions rights should be distributed. I discuss the merits and drawbacks of each perspective and briefly outline the normative justifications.
The Psychophysical Assessment of Odor Valence: Does an Anchor Stimulus Influence the Hedonic Evaluation of Odors?
2013-11-09

Olfactory stimuli are experienced primarily in terms of their hedonic tone and the assessment of olfactory hedonic estimates is a prevalent task in scientific and industrial contexts. However, measuring conditions are poorly standardized. Our study aims to fill this gap, focusing on the influence of anchor stimuli on olfactory hedonic evaluations, frequency of anchor presentation, and temporal stability of results. In n = 31 subjects, hedonic estimates for the 16 odors of the Sniffin' Sticks identification task were assessed on a visual analog rating scale under 4 measuring conditions (nonanchor, pleasant anchor, neutral anchor, unpleasant anchor). To test for stability over time, n = 10 subjects were reassessed 2, 4, and 6 months after original testing. To analyze for possible effects of single versus repeated anchor presentation, n = 15 subjects were retested 2 months after the original session in a multiple anchor presentation format. Statistical analysis revealed significant differences between the 4 anchor conditions, thus highlighting the necessity of specifying assessment methods in scientific research. No significant differences between timepoints were observed, indicating a high temporal stability of olfactory hedonic evaluations, especially from timepoint T2 onward. No overall significant effects of single versus multiple anchor presentation were detected. Findings might help to further standardize testing procedures.
Effect of Nitazoxanide on Erythrocytes
2013-11-11

Abstract Nitazoxanide, a drug effective against a variety of pathogens, triggers apoptosis and is thus considered to be employed against malignancy. Similar to nucleated cells, erythrocytes may undergo an apoptosis‐like suicidal cell death or eryptosis. Hallmarks of eryptosis include cell shrinkage and phospholipid scrambling of the cell membrane with translocation of phosphatidylserine to the erythrocyte surface. Stimulators of eryptosis include increase in cytosolic Ca 2+ ‐activity ([Ca 2+ ] i ). The Ca 2+ ‐sensitivity of eryptosis is increased by ceramide. This study explored whether nitazoxanide triggers eryptosis. [Ca 2+ ] i was estimated from F luo3‐fluorescence, cell volume from forward scatter, phosphatidylserine exposure from annexin‐ V ‐binding, ceramide abundance utilizing fluorescent antibodies and haemolysis from haemoglobin release. A 48‐hr exposure to nitazoxanide (1–50 μg/ml) did not significantly modify [Ca 2+ ] i but significantly increased ceramide formation, decreased forward scatter (≥10 μg/ml), increased the percentage of annexin‐ V ‐binding erythrocytes (≥10 μg/ml) and, at higher concentrations (≥20 μg/ml), stimulated haemolysis. The stimulation of annexin‐V‐binding was significantly blunted in the absence of calcium. Nitazoxanide thus stimulates eryptosis, an effect in part due to ceramide formation.
Treatment Outcomes of Myopic Anisometropia with 1% Atropine
2013-11-11

The results from this pilot study indicate that monocular usage of a solution of 1% atropine sulfate is an effective treatment to reduce anisometropia, although with some tolerable side effects. Nevertheless, an attenuated benefit was observed after cessation of atropine treatment. Thus, participants should be informed of a possible rebound effect before the administration of atropine for myopic anisometropia.
Immunotherapeutic strategies for the treatment of renal cell carcinoma: where are we now?
2013-11-11

Immunotherapy with cytokines was the first effective treatment in metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC). Long-term responders and complete remissions were observed, but efficacy in the overall population was limited with the consequence that targeted agents replaced cytokines. The discovery of tumor associated antigens as direct targets paved the way from theses rather unspecific to specific immunotherapeutic strategies, which are discussed in this review. Autologous or dendritic cell (DC) based tumor vaccination with vitespen or AGS-003, adoptive T-cell transfer and synthetic peptide vaccination with IMA901 are new and promising approaches. Besides that the more passive strategies of antibody dependent cytotoxicity with the VEGF antibody bevacizumab or the carbonic anhydrase IX antibody girentuximab are discussed. Immunomodulation by cyclophosphamide, tyrosine kinase inhibitors or nivolumab, which targets the PD-1 axis, further promote T-cell activation and combinatory strategies with these agents are outlined.
Cholestatic Liver Disease after Rituximab and Adalimumab and the Possible Role of Cross-Reacting Antibodies to Fab 2 Fragments
2013-11-11

This is the first study demonstrating cholestatic liver disease induced by two different Tmabs. Cross - reacting antibodies to Fab2 fragments in general are probably involved. Further studies must show if these Fab2 antibodies in general are related with drug-induced side effects and accelerated drug clearance in patients on Tmab therapy.
Medical Augmented Reality based on Commercial Image Guided Surgery
2013-11-11

Utilizing augmented reality for applications in medicine has been a topic of intense research for several years. A number of challenging tasks need to be addressed when designing a medical AR system. These include the import and management of medical datasets and preoperatively created planning data, the registration of the patient with respect to a global coordinate system, and accurate tracking of the camera used in the AR setup as well as the respective surgical instruments. Most research systems rely on specialized hardware or algorithms for realizing augmented reality in medicine. Such base technologies can be expensive or very time-consuming to implement. In this paper, we propose an alternative approach of building a surgical AR system by harnessing existing, commercially available equipment for image guided surgery (IGS). We describe the prototype of an augmented reality application, which receives all necessary information from a device for intraoperative navigation.
Dissimilatory Reduction and Transformation of Ferrihydrite-Humic Acid Coprecipitates
2013-11-12

Organic matter (OM) is present in most terrestrial environments and is often found coprecipitated with ferrihydrite (Fh). Sorption or coprecipitation of OM with Fe oxides has been proposed to be an important mechanism for long-term C preservation. However, little is known about the impact of coprecipitated OM on reductive dissolution and transformation of Fe(III) (oxyhydr)oxides. Thus, we study the effect of humic acid (HA) coprecipitation on Fh reduction and secondary mineral formation by the dissimilatory Fe(III)-reducing bacterium Shewanella putrefaciens strain CN32. Despite similar crystal structure for all coprecipitates investigated, resembling 2-line Fh, the presence of coprecipitated HA resulted in lower specific surface areas. In terms of reactivity, coprecipitated HA resulted in slower Fh bioreduction rates at low C/Fe ratios (i.e., C/Fe ≤ 0.8), while high C/Fe ratios (i.e., C/Fe ≥ 1.8) enhanced the extent of bioreduction compared to pure Fh. The coprecipitated HA also altered the secondary Fe mineralization pathway by inhibiting goethite formation, reducing the amount of magnetite formation, and increasing the formation of a green rust-like phase. This study indicates that coprecipitated OM may influence the rates, pathway, and mineralogy of biogeochemical Fe cycling and anaerobic Fe respiration within soils.