julilili42/papers huggingface dataset:
Electrodes in the brain: Some anthropological and ethical aspects of deep brain stimulation
2006-09-01

In the following text, medical, anthropological and ethical issues of deep brain stimulation, a medical technology in which electrodes implanted in the human brain electrically influence specified brain regions, will be discussed. After a brief account of the deep brain stimulation procedure and its chances and risks, anthropological and ethical aspects of the approach will be discussed. These relate to the reversibility of the procedure and to the patient?s capacity to control the effects it exerts in the brain, to modifications and fluctuations in a person?s character traits and individuality brought about by neurostim ulation, an d to the range of legitim ate, adequate uses of the deep brain stimulation approach. The paper concludes that deep brain stimulation should be confined to therapeutic contexts and to severe, otherwise treatment-refractory disorders in which the aim is to norm alize brain fun ctioning. A part from this, it sh ould not be used to m odify a person?s individ ual character traits and behaviour or to enhance human traits.
Increase in annexin V-positive B cells expressing LILRB1/ILT2/CD85j in malaria.
2006-09-01

The outcome of a Plasmodium falciparum infection differs greatly between patients, ranging from an asymptomatic carrier status to the most severe characteristics influenced by activating and inhibiting immune factors. The inhibitory leukocyte immunoglobulin-like receptor (LILRB1/CD85j) plays an important role in the immune response as regulator of cytotoxic T cells and of premature activation and clonal expansion of B cells. To investigate its role in malaria, we analyzed blood samples from malaria patients by cytometric analysis. We found a similar expression pattern of CD85j on PBMC in both patients and healthy children. However, malaria patients presented significantly more CD85j+ CD19+ B cells, which also bound annexin V an indicator of early cell death. We compared the plasma levels of several cytokines, since it was speculated that CD85j expression influences cytokine release. Production of inflammatory cytokines was significantly increased in severe malaria cases. We suggest that in malaria, dying B cells contribute to the overwhelming cytokine release and the impairment of the immune memory.
Massive cavernous lymphangioma of the breast and thoracic wall: case report and literature review.
2006-09-01

Lymphangiomas are benign lesions but are associated with high morbidity when they become very large, occur in critical locations, or when surgically removed, develop secondary wound infections. Almost all lesions require surgical treatment. Complete excision is curative; however, relapses must be anticipated with incomplete excision. We report the case of a patient with a long history of massive cavernous lymphangioma of the breast and thoracic wall extending into the axilla in whom complete excision was not possible.
Anamorphs of the Bolbitiaceae (Basidiomycota, Agaricales)
2006-09-01

We describe and illustrate thallic conidiogenesis in 14 species of the Bolbitiaceae sensu Singer studied in culture. Conidiogenesis of 12 species is shown for the first time. Bolbitius vitellinus and the investigated species of Conocybe (C. albipes, C. appendiculata, C. magnicapitata, C. semiglobata, C. subovalis, C. subpubescens, C. sulcatipes and C. teneroides) possessed a similar mode of conidiogenesis. Species of both genera formed mostly coiled conidiogenous hyphae arising sympodially from differentiated conidiophores. The anamorphs of the Agrocybe species were not uniform and predominantly differed from those of Conocybe and Bolbitius. The conidia of Agrocybe dura, A. firma and A. praecox developed by the simple fragmentation of normally branched hyphae. Sympodially proliferating conidiophores occurred in Agrocybe arvalis and A. aegerita. Secretory cells of different size and shape were found in Agrocybe and in Conocybe. Our results corroborate a close phylogenetic relationship between Bolbitius and Conocybe as well as the polyphyly of the Bolbitiaceae as currently treated, which is consistent with recent molecular phylogenetic studies. Consequently we emend the family concept based on anamorphic characters.
SIMPLIFIED MULTI-ORGAN DYSFUNCTION SCORE PREDICTS DISABILITY IN AFRICAN CHILDREN WITH PLASMODIUM FALCIPARUM MALARIA
2006-09-01

In this prospective study, we assessed the simplified multi-organ dysfunction score (sMODS) in 485 consecutive African children, hospitalized with Plasmodium falciparum malaria. Children were grouped according to their ability to walk unaided (Group 1, N = 414), sit unaided (Group 2, N = 63), or inability of both (Group 3, N = 8) before contracting malaria. The sMODS on admission to hospital was highly correlated with prolonged disease duration in Groups 1 and 2 (Spearman r = 0.79 and r = 0.78, respectively). A sMODS of ≥ 16 was indicative for prolonged disease duration in Group 1 (&gt; 48 hours of inability to walk, sensitivity of 87%, specificity of 82%) and Group 2 (&gt; 24 hours of inability to sit, sensitivity of 100%, and specificity of 78%.). The simplified MODS is a simple and sensitive measure merit of severity of illness in children with P. falciparum malaria and allows early prognostic evaluation.
The expression of the carboxyl ester lipase gene in pancreas and pancreatic adenocarcinomas
2006-09-01

Since pancreatic cancer is an aggressive and often incurable malignancy, we investigated if the carboxyl ester lipase gene (CEL) is specifically expressed in pancreatic tissues and its promoter can be used for a specific suicide gene approach. Twenty-five tumor samples, 24 samples of normal pancreatic tissue and control tissues from other organs were examined by radioactive in situ hybridization (ISH) to localize CEL mRNA. Two carcinoma samples and 6 permanent cell lines were examined by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). By ISH, we verified a strong CEL gene expression in acinar cells of the normal pancreas. A minor expression was noted in a single sample of acinar cell carcinoma and adenocarcinomas did not show any expression. By RT-PCR, no specific expression in both tested adenocarcinomas was observed. In summary, these results show that, contrary to notable expression of carboxyl ester lipase in acinar cells of normal pancreatic tissue, this lipase is not significantly active in pancreatic adenocarcinomas and thus not an apt genetic marker for diagnostic or therapeutic approaches.
Genetic signatures of occasional sex in parthenogenetic subpopulations of the freshwater planarian Schmidtea polychroa
2006-09-01

Summary 1. Occasional sex in organisms that otherwise propagate clonally combines the advantages of both reproductive modes. Although theory predicts that this is a winning combination, evidence for its long‐term importance in natural populations is scarce. 2. We studied the sperm‐dependent parthenogenetic form of the freshwater planarian Schmidtea (formerly Dugesia ) polychroa in which occasional sex is known to occur. By comparing subpopulations within the same lake, we showed that occasional sex does indeed leave telltale signatures in the population genetic structure of this species. 3. Using microsatellites, we found differences in genotypic diversity and evenness between six local subpopulations. Moreover, some locations showed temporal fluctuations in genotype and/or allele frequencies, while stability was observed in others. The results indicate that although some subpopulations show all the traits of clonal reproduction, others clearly have characteristics typical of sexual recombination, including the particular subpopulation for which we previously demonstrated the occurrence of occasional sex. 4. We show that within the same metapopulation, neighbouring localities can differ in the degree of occasional sex, as demonstrated by genetic signatures of clonality versus (occasional) genetic recombination. This makes S. polychroa particularly suitable to test the role of occasional sex to explain the persistence of parthenogenesis.
Introduction: Ethics of Information Technology in Health Care
2006-09-01

Computer-based information and communication technologies continue to transform the delivery of health care and the conception and scientific understanding of the human body and the diseases that afflict it. While information technology has the potential to improve the quality and efficiency of patient care, it also raises important ethical and social issues. This IRIE theme issue seeks to provide a forum to identify, analyse and discuss the ethical and social issues raised by various applications of information and communication technology in medicine and health care. The contributions give a flavour of the extraordinarily broad landscape shaped by the intersection of medicine, computing and ethics. In fact, their diversity suggests that much more work is needed to clarify issues and approaches, and to provide practical tools for clinicians.
From Micro to Meso: an exercise in determining hydraulic conductivity of fractured sandstone cores from detailed characterization of the fractures
2006-09-01

SUMMARY Hydraulic conductivities of fractured sandstone bore cores of 0.1 m in diameter are calculated using detailed characterization of the fracture geometry parameters determined using a resin casting technique. The accuracy of the measurements was about 0.25‐1.25 μm with the image size used. The values of the effective fracture apertures vary between 10 μm and 50 μm. For modelling purposes the samples are sectioned serially, perpendicular to the flow direction along the cylinder axis. The hydraulic conductivity of individual slices is estimated by summing the contribution of the matrix (assumed uniform) and each fracture (depending on its length and aperture). Finally, the hydraulic conductivity of the bulk sample is estimated by a harmonic average in series along the flow path. Results of this geometrical upscaling compare favourably with actual conductivity measured in hydraulic and pneumatic experiments carried out prior to sectioning. This study shows that the determination of larger-scale conductivity can be achieved, based on the evaluation of fracture geometry parameters (e.g. fracture aperture, fracture width and fracture length), measured using an optical method, at least at the laboratory scale.
On the number of segregating sites for populations with large family sizes
2006-09-01

We present recursions for the total number, S n , of mutations in a sample of n individuals, when the underlying genealogical tree of the sample is modelled by a coalescent process with mutation rate r &amp;gt;0. The coalescent is allowed to have simultaneous multiple collisions of ancestral lineages, which corresponds to the existence of large families in the underlying population model. For the subclass of Λ-coalescent processes allowing for multiple collisions, such that the measure Λ(d x )/ x is finite, we prove that S n /( nr ) converges in distribution to a limiting variable, S , characterized via an exponential integral of a certain subordinator. When the measure Λ(d x )/ x 2 is finite, the distribution of S coincides with the stationary distribution of an autoregressive process of order 1 and is uniquely determined via a stochastic fixed-point equation of the form with specific independent random coefficients A and B . Examples are presented in which explicit representations for (the density of) S are available. We conjecture that S n /E( S n )→1 in probability if the measure Λ(d x )/ x is infinite.
Development and Optimization of a Non-Radioactive JNK3 Assay
2006-09-01

In light of emerging interest in the relevance of c-Jun NH2-terminal protein kinase 3 (JNK3) as a promising drug target, we describe here an advanced non-radioactive immunosorbent JNK3 activity assay that is applicable for routine screening of small molecule ATP-competitive enzyme inhibitors. We modified and established a JNK3/ATF-2 protocol based on our previously described p38 MAPK method [1] for a substrate-bound non-radioactive procedure that represents a convenient alternative to conventional radioactive protein kinase assays. The objective of the present study was to validate these conditions by using the reference compounds SP600125 and SB203580 to achieve comparable IC(50) results to published data. Furthermore, an IC(50) for staurosporine was determined. The protocol we describe here represents an accessible and robust screening assay for JNK3 inhibitors.
Change of Electroweak Nuclear Reaction Rates by CP- and Isospin Symmetry Breaking – A Model Calculation
2006-09-01

Based on the assumption that electroweak bosons, leptons and quarks possess a substructure of elementary fermionic constituents, in previous papers the effect of CP-symmetry breaking on the effective dynamics of these particles was calculated. Motivated by the phenomenological procedure in this paper, isospin symmetry breaking will be added and the physical consequences of these calculations will be discussed. The dynamical law of the fermionic constituents is given by a relativistically invariant nonlinear spinor field equation with local interaction, canonical quantization, selfregularization and probability interpretation. The corresponding effective dynamics is derived by algebraic weak mapping theorems. In contrast to the commonly applied modifications of the quark mass matrices, CP-symmetry breaking is introduced into this algebraic formalism by an inequivalent vacuum with respect to the CP-invariant case, represented by a modified spinor field propagator. This leads to an extension of the standard model as effective theory which contains besides the “electric” electroweak bosons additional “magnetic” electroweak bosons and corresponding interactions. If furthermore the isospin invariance of the propagator is broken too, it will be demonstrated in detail that in combination with CP-symmetry breaking this induces a considerable modification of electroweak nuclear reaction rates.
Tuning Coarse-Grained Reconfigurable Architectures towards an Application Domain
2006-09-01

Design decisions, such as type and ratio of functional units, strongly determine the later flexibility of domain-specific FPGAs and coarse-grained dynamically reconfigurable arrays. For that reason the design of such reconfigurable architectures is done considering a set of target applications. However, it is not yet clear how to simultaneously consider all applications to determine an appropriate distribution of resources. In this paper, we deal with this problem through a design exploration methodology that exposes how each application contends in the use of coarse-grained resources. Our method is used to assess the adequacy of one given resource distribution answering two intermediary questions: 1) how evenly does it addresses all applications in the domain, and 2) how flexible remains the architecture on achieving diverse optimization goals
Upregulated expression of the Y-box binding protein 1 (YB-1) in melanoma cells enforces melanoma cell proliferation, survival and invasion and increases chemoresistance
2006-09-01

1Department of Dermatology, Division of Dermatologic Oncology 2Institute for Medical Virology, Division of Experimental Virology, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany Abstracts of the Perspectives in Melanoma X and The Third Annual International Melanoma Research Congress, 14–16 September 2006, Noordwijk, The Netherlands
Crystal structure of trans-dichloro-1,3-propanediamine-bis[(2-methoxyethyl) diphenylphosphine]ruthenium(II), RuCl2(C3H10N2)(C15H17OP)2
2006-09-01

Abstract C 33 H 44 Cl 2 N 2 O 2 P 2 Ru, monoclinic, P 12 1 / c 1 (no. 14), a = 13.278(1) Å, b = 10.315(1) Å, c = 24.825(3) Å, β = 90.340(8)°, V = 3400.1 Å 3 , Z = 4, R gt (F) = 0.023, wR ref (F 2 ) = 0.059, T = 173 K.
Casein kinase 1 alpha expression determines beta-catenin protein level and survival of melanoma cells
2006-09-01

Department of Dermatology, Division Dermatologic Oncology, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany Abstracts of the Perspectives in Melanoma X and The Third Annual International Melanoma Research Congress, 14–16 September 2006, Noordwijk, The Netherlands
A consistent bending model for cloth simulation with corotational subdivision finite elements
2006-09-02

Wrinkles and folds play an important role in the appearance of real textiles. The way in which they form depends mainly on the bending properties of the specific material type. Existing approaches fail to reliably reproduce characteristic behaviour like folding and buckling for different material types or resolutions. It is therefore crucial for the realistic simulation of cloth to model bending energy in a physically accurate and consistent way. In this paper we present a new method based on a corotational formulation of subdivision finite elements. Due to the non-local nature of the employed subdivision basis functions a C1-continuous displacement field can be defined. In this way, it is possible to use the governing equations of thin shell analysis leading to physically accurate bending behaviour. Using a corotated strain tensor allows the large displacement analysis of cloth while retaining a linear system of equations. Hence, known convergence properties and computational efficiency are preserved while convincing and detailed folding behaviour is obtained in the simualtion.
Low response to clopidogrel is associated with cardiovascular outcome after coronary stent implantation
2006-09-04

Low response to clopidogrel in patients with symptomatic CAD treated by stenting significantly enhances the occurrence of cardiovascular events and death. The evaluation of low response to clopidogrel may help to identify patients at increased risk who may benefit from intensified antiplatelet strategy.
Geometry and extension of signal voids in MR images induced by aggregations of magnetically labelled cells
2006-09-04

The ability of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to visualize magnetically labelled cells has attracted much attention for revealing cellular events. The present study addressed the geometry and the extension of signal voids in static signal dephasing MRI induced by aggregations of magnetically labelled cells by means of a three-dimensional numerical model. The magnetic field distortions around spherical cell aggregations were treated as equivalent to those of a magnetic dipole. Intravoxel signal dephasing and respective signal voids attributed to these field inhomogeneities were computed. Effects of cell concentration on the signal void in the plane of view were evaluated in terms of dipole magnetization. Signal void characteristics were scrutinized systematically for fundamental sequence parameters including echo time, voxel size and plane-of-view orientation. For all variables examined, significant changes in geometry as well as extension of signal voids were demonstrated. The results are of crucial importance to optimize and interpret MR images with regard to spatial accuracy as well as sensitivity to detect aggregations of labelled cells in vitro or even in vivo. It is anticipated that the dependence of the extension of signal voids on the local magnetization may be valuable for quantifying labelled cells.
TOWARDS RESOLVING THE CHALLENGE OF SEPSIS DIAGNOSTIC
2006-09-04

Biomarkers have proven to be very useful in clinical conditions such as heart attack, stroke and cancer. There are characteristics linked to sepsis like in blood pressure, body temperature and heart rate. Efforts over the last decade to improve diagnosis for infectious inflammation have been unsuccessful in identifying a single and universal biomarker that provides sufficiently high sensitivity and specificity. In gram-negative septicemia and following major abdominal trauma, the determination of endotoxin continues to be a leading candidate which could become adopted into clinical practice. The importance of endotoxin measurement continues to grow as more clinicians recognize the added value of measuring endotoxin in critically ill patients and with the emergence of major pharmaceutical trials directly targeting endotoxin in the bloodstream. However, hundreds of other candidates potentially serving as biomarker for sepsis have been recently described, e.g. cysteinyl-leukotriene (LTC4) generation, procalcitonin (PCT) and C-reactive protein (CRP). However, none of them fulfils the criteria requested by clinicians, namely being specific and sensitive. The presentation will discuss criteria for a sepsis biomarker, will give an overview of obtaining samples from appropriate cell systems and from patients. Furthermore, tools will be described to identify marker candidates on genetic-, protein- and metabolite level. The integration of these data sets covering e.g. signal transduction, protein: protein interaction, gene expression with the help of bioinformatics and systems biology will help to validate such candidates. The final goal is manufacturing a robust diagnostic device for clinical routine work. A solid sepsis diagnostics method will be beneficial for patients, but also for the healthcare systems and will open challenges for the pharmaceutical industry.
Irradiation-Induced Pneumonitis Mediated by the CD95/CD95-Ligand System
2006-09-05

Pneumonitis is a dose-limiting side effect of radiotherapy. However, the underlying mechanisms of irradiation-induced pneumonitis are unclear. Several observations suggest that the CD95/CD95-ligand (CD95L) system is involved in this process. Therefore, we examined the development of pneumonitis in CD95- and CD95L-deficient and wild-type mice after single irradiation with 0 or 12.5 Gy by measuring breathing frequency, pulmonary resistance, and histopathologic changes. Although wild-type mice developed pathognomonic alterations characteristic of pneumonitis (judged by alveolar wall thickness, interstitial edema, and interstitial and peribronchial inflammation) that paralleled increased breathing frequency ratio on days 5-70 (P < .03) with a maximum at day 37 (12.5 Gy, mean ratio = 1.05, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.01 to 1.08; P = .004 versus 0 Gy, mean ratio = 0.997, 95% CI = 0.976 to 1.02; P = .05) and pulmonary resistance (day 42, 12.5 Gy, mean = 0.51, 95% CI = 0.44 to 0.58 versus 0 Gy, mean = 0.40, 95% CI = 0.32 to 0.47; P = .03) after irradiation, no such changes were detected in CD95- or CD95L-deficient mice. This report demonstrates for the first time, to our knowledge, that the CD95/CD95L system is important for the development of irradiation-induced pneumonitis.
Rab14 is part of the early endosomal clathrin‐coated TGN microdomain
2006-09-05

Rab14 localizes to the Golgi/TGN and to early endosomes, but its biological function remains unclear. By structural modeling, we identified Rab14‐specific residues and established a close relationship between the Rab2/Rab4/Rab14, Rab11/25 and Rab39 sub‐groups within the Rab protein family. By quantitative confocal microscopy and by density centrifugation we show that Rab14 is part of the early endosomal AP‐1 microdomain. Overexpression of a dominant‐negative Rab14 GTP‐binding mutant that solely localizes to the Golgi donor compartment accelerated EGF degradation. We suggest that the AP‐1 microdomain represents the interconnecting compartment in which Rab14 vesicles cycle between early endosomes and the Golgi cisternae.