julilili42/papers huggingface dataset:
Liver Enzymes and Incident Diabetes
2008-05-28

OBJECTIVE—We sought to examine the association between plasma concentrations of liver enzymes γ-glutamyltransferase (GGT) and alanine transaminase (ALT) and incident diabetes, prospectively. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS—We conducted a case-cohort analysis of data from participants mainly aged 35–65 years in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition–Potsdam Study. The analytic sample included 787 participants with incident diabetes and 2,224 participants without diabetes. RESULTS—Concentrations of GGT and ALT were significantly associated with incident diabetes after extensive adjustment. Compared with participants in the lowest quintile of GGT, the adjusted hazard ratios for increasing quintiles were 1.13 (95% CI 0.66–1.93), 1.67 (1.01–2.77), 2.77 (1.71–4.49), and 2.67 (1.63–4.37), respectively (P for linear trend &amp;lt;0.001). Compared with participants in the lowest quintile of ALT, the adjusted hazard ratios for incident diabetes were 0.93 (0.56–1.53) for quintile 2, 1.28 (0.83–1.96) for quintile 3, 1.35 (0.88–2.07) for quintile 4, and 1.93 (1.27–2.92) for quintile 5 (P for linear trend = 0.002). The magnitude of the associations were higher among men than women for GGT (P = 0.004) but did not differ significantly between men and women for ALT (P = 0.307). CONCLUSIONS—Concentrations of GGT and ALT were significant predictors of incident diabetes in this study, even at concentrations still considered to be within the normal range.
Extracorporeal shock‐wave therapy for treating chronic pelvic pain syndrome: a feasibility study and the first clinical results
2008-05-28

OBJECTIVE To investigate the feasibility and clinical outcome of extracorporeal shock‐wave therapy (ESWT) for patients suffering from chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS). PATIENTS AND METHODS The study included 34 patients who had had CPPS for ≥3 months, who were investigated in two subsequent studies. ESWT was administered using a perineal approach with two different standard ESWT devices with and without an ultrasonographic positioning system. The follow‐up was at 1, 4 and 12 weeks after ESWT, to evaluate the effects on pain, quality of life and voiding. Imaging studies and changes in prostate‐specific antigen (PSA) were used to investigate the safety and side‐effects of ESWT. RESULTS All patients completed the treatments and follow‐up; there were statistically significant improvements in pain and quality of life after ESWT. Voiding conditions were temporarily improved but with no statistical significance. Perineal ESWT was easy and safe to administer with no anaesthesia on an outpatient basis. Side‐effects could be excluded clinically, by imaging studies and by changes in PSA level. CONCLUSION Perineal ESWT must be considered as a promising new therapy for CPPS, in particular as it is easy to apply and causes no side‐effects.
Foundation of a component-based flexible registry for language resources and technology
2008-05-28

Within the CLARIN e-science infrastructure project it is foreseen to develop a component-based registry for metadata for Language Resources and Language Technology. With this registry it is hoped to overcome the problems of the current available systems with respect to inflexible fixed schema, unsuitable terminology and interoperability problems. The registry will address interoperability needs by refering to a shared vocabulary registered in data category registries as they are suggested by ISO.
Improving Melanoma Classification by Integrating Genetic and Morphologic Features
2008-05-29

Refined morphological classification of primary melanomas can be used to improve existing melanoma classifications by forming subgroups that are genetically more homogeneous and likely to differ in important clinical variables such as outcome and pattern of metastasis. We expect this information to improve classification and facilitate stratification for therapy as well as retrospective analysis of existing trial data.
Systematic reviews of empirical bioethics
2008-05-29

Background: Publications and discussions of survey research in empirical bioethics have steadily increased over the past two decades. However, findings often differ among studies with similar research questions. As a consequence, ethical reasoning that considers only parts of the existing literature and does not apply systematic reviews tends to be biased. To date, we lack a systematic review (SR) methodology that takes into account the specific conceptual and practical challenges of empirical bioethics. Methods: The steps of systematically reviewing empirical findings in bioethics are presented and critically discussed. In particular, (a) the limitations of traditional SR methodologies in the field of empirical bioethics are critically discussed, and (b) conceptual and practical recommendations for SRs in empirical bioethics that are (c) based on the authors’ review experiences in healthcare ethics are presented. Results: A 7-step approach for SRs of empirical bioethics is proposed: (1) careful definition of review question; (2) selection of relevant databases; (3) application of ancillary search strategies; (4) development of search algorithms; (5) relevance assessment of the retrieved references; (6) quality assessment of included studies; and (7) data analysis and presentation. Conceptual and practical challenges arise because of various peculiarities in reviewing empirical bioethics literature and can lead to biased results if they are not taken into account. Conclusions: If suitably adapted to the peculiarities of the field, SRs of empirical bioethics provide transparent information for ethical reasoning and decision-making that is less biased than single studies.
Observation of Negative Absolute Resistance in a Josephson Junction
2008-05-29

We experimentally demonstrate the occurrence of negative absolute resistance (NAR) up to about -1 Omega in response to an externally applied dc current for a shunted Nb-Al/AlO_{x}-Nb Josephson junction, exposed to a microwave current at frequencies in the GHz range. The realization (or not) of NAR depends crucially on the amplitude of the applied microwave current. Theoretically, the system is described by means of the resistively and capacitively shunted junction model in terms of a moderately damped, classical Brownian particle dynamics in a one-dimensional potential. We find excellent agreement of the experimental results with numerical simulations of the model.
Compressed Scaling of Abstract Numerosity Representations in Adult Humans and Monkeys
2008-05-29

Abstract There is general agreement that nonverbal animals and humans endowed with language possess an evolutionary precursor system for representing and comparing numerical values. However, whether nonverbal numerical representations in human and nonhuman primates are quantitatively similar and whether linear or logarithmic coding underlies such magnitude judgments in both species remain elusive. To resolve these issues, we tested the numerical discrimination performance of human subjects and two rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) in an identical delayed match-to-numerosity task for a broad range of numerosities from 1 to 30. The results demonstrate a noisy nonverbal estimation system obeying Weber's Law in both species. With average Weber fractions in the range of 0.51 and 0.60, nonverbal numerosity discriminations in humans and monkeys showed similar precision. Moreover, the detailed analysis of the performance distributions exhibited nonlinearly compressed numerosity representations in both primate species. However, the difference between linear and logarithmic scaling was less pronounced in humans. This may indicate a gradual transformation of a logarithmic to linear magnitude scale in human adults as the result of a cultural transformation process during the course of mathematical education.
Dual use and the ethical responsibility of scientists
2008-05-29

The main normative problem in the context of dual use is to determine the ethical responsibility of scientists especially in the case of unintended, harmful, and criminal dual use of new technological applications of scientific results. This article starts from an analysis of the concepts of responsibility and complicity, examining alternative options regarding the responsibility of scientists. Within the context of the basic conflict between the freedom of science and the duty to avoid causing harm, two positions are discussed: moral skepticism and the ethics of responsibility by Hans Jonas. According to these reflections, four duties are suggested and evaluated: stopping research, systematically carrying out research for dual-use applications, informing public authorities, and not publishing results. In the conclusion it is argued that these duties should be considered as imperfect duties in a Kantian sense and that the individual scientist should be discharged as much as possible from obligations which follow from them by the scientific community and institutions created for this purpose.
Time Course of Early Audiovisual Interactions during Speech and Nonspeech Central Auditory Processing: A Magnetoencephalography Study
2008-05-29

Abstract Cross-modal fusion phenomena suggest specific interactions of auditory and visual sensory information both within the speech and nonspeech domains. Using whole-head magnetoencephalography, this study recorded M50 and M100 fields evoked by ambiguous acoustic stimuli that were visually disambiguated to perceived /ta/ or /pa/ syllables. As in natural speech, visual motion onset preceded the acoustic signal by 150 msec. Control conditions included visual and acoustic nonspeech signals as well as visual-only and acoustic-only stimuli. (a) Both speech and nonspeech motion yielded a consistent attenuation of the auditory M50 field, suggesting a visually induced “preparatory baseline shift” at the level of the auditory cortex. (b) Within the temporal domain of the auditory M100 field, visual speech and nonspeech motion gave rise to different response patterns (nonspeech: M100 attenuation; visual /pa/: left-hemisphere M100 enhancement; /ta/: no effect). (c) These interactions could be further decomposed using a six-dipole model. One of these three pairs of dipoles (V270) was fitted to motion-induced activity at a latency of 270 msec after motion onset, that is, the time domain of the auditory M100 field, and could be attributed to the posterior insula. This dipole source responded to nonspeech motion and visual /pa/, but was found suppressed in the case of visual /ta/. Such a nonlinear interaction might reflect the operation of a binary distinction between the marked phonological feature “labial” versus its underspecified competitor “coronal.” Thus, visual processing seems to be shaped by linguistic data structures even prior to its fusion with auditory information channel.
Field-Theoretic Weyl Deformation Quantization of Enlarged Poisson Algebras
2008-05-29

-algebraic Weyl quantization is extended by allowing also degenerate pre-symplectic forms for the Weyl relations with infinitely many degrees of freedom, and by starting out from enlarged classical Poisson algebras. A powerful tool is found in the construction of Poisson algebras and non-commutative twisted Banach- -algebras on the stage of measures on the not locally compact test function space. Already within this frame strict deformation quantization is obtained, but in terms of Banach- -algebras instead of -algebras. Fourier transformation and representation theory of the measure Banach- -algebras are combined with the theory of continuous projective group representations to arrive at the genuine -algebraic strict deformation quantization in the sense of Rieffel and Landsman. Weyl quantization is recognized to depend in the first step functorially on the (in general) infinite dimensional, pre-symplectic test function space; but in the second step one has to select a family of representations, indexed by the deformation parameter . The latter ambiguity is in the present investigation connected with the choice of a folium of states, a structure, which does not necessarily require a Hilbert space representation.
Faculty Opinions recommendation of Hypersensitivity of the anesthesia-induced comatose brain.
2008-05-29

Increasing levels of anesthesia are thought to produce a progressive loss of brain responsiveness to external stimuli. Here, we present the first report of a state window within anesthesia-induced coma, usually associated with an EEG pattern of burst suppression, during which brain excitability is dramatically increased so that even subliminal stimuli elicit bursts of whole-brain activity. We investigated this phenomenon in vivo using intracellular recordings of both neurons and glia, as well as extracellular calcium and EEG recordings. The results indicate that the bursting activity elicited with mechanical microstimulations, but also with auditory and visual stimuli, is dependent on complex mechanisms, including modulation of excitatory (NMDA) components, gap junction transmission, as well as the extracellular calcium concentration. The occurrence of bursting events is associated with a postburst refractory period that underlies the genesis of the alternating burst-suppression pattern. These findings raise the issue of what burst spontaneity during anesthesia-induced coma means and opens new venues for the handling of comatose patients. PMID: 17898231
Direct Treatment of Mouse or Human Blood With Soluble 5′-Nucleotidase Inhibits Platelet Aggregation
2008-05-30

Objective— Adenosine signaling is known to inhibit platelet aggregation. Extracellular adenosine mainly stems from enzymatic phosphohydrolysis of precursor nucleotides via ecto-5′-nucleotidase. Previous studies suggest that soluble 5′-nucleotidase (5′-NT) derived from Crotalus atrox venom may be clinically beneficial in vascular leakage, myocardial, renal, and intestinal ischemia, or acute lung injury. However, the effects of 5′-NT treatment on platelet aggregation remain unknown. We examined the direct effects of 5′-NT treatment on platelet aggregation in vivo and ex vivo using a whole blood aggregation method. Methods and Results— Platelet aggregation in whole human blood was completely inhibited by 5′-NT. When 5′-[αβ-methylene] diphosphate (APCP), a specific 5′-ecto-nucleotidase inhibitor, was added together with 5′-NT, APCP fully restored collagen- or ADP-induced aggregation. Adenosine levels in whole blood were significantly increased after 5′-NT treatment compared to controls and inhibition of platelet aggregation by 5′-NT was completely reversed by pretreatment with the nonspecific adenosine receptor antagonist 8-(p-sulfophenyl)theophylline hydrate (8-SPT), suggesting that 5′-NT inhibits aggregation via increased adenosine signaling. Administration of 5′-NT to mice in vivo abolished ADP- and collagen-induced platelet aggregation and increased adenosine concentrations and tail bleeding time. Conclusions— 5′-NT treatment inhibits platelet aggregation via generation of increased levels of extracellular adenosine and subsequent adenosine receptor signaling.
Lumbar disk prolapse: Response to mechanical physiotherapy in the absence of changes in magnetic resonance imaging. Report of 11 cases
2008-05-30

Background: Lumbar disk prolapses are among the most common neurological conditions. In this open study, we asked whether repeated end-range spinal movements (McKenzie method) as physiotherapy in patients with lumbar disk prolapse induce early changes in location, size and signal intensity of lumbar disc material detectable by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We compared clinical with radiographic changes. The clinical efficacy of mechanical physiotherapy according to the McKenzie method within 5 days was documented. Methods: Eleven consecutive patients with lumbar disk prolapse were included. Patients were treated with repeated end-range spinal movements and MRI was performed before and after 2–5 treatments. Results: All patients achieved a reduction in symptoms and signs of disk prolapse during and after these procedures but none showed any change in the MRI features of the prolapses. Conclusions: Beneficial effects of specific mechanical physiotherapy in patients with radicular syndromes from lumbar disk prolapse are not paralleled by changes in the MRI appearance of the prolapses. Alternative explanations for the early clinical responses in some patients with lumbar disc prolapse treated according to the McKenzie method must be sought.
Saccade generation and suppression in schizophrenia: Effects of response switching and perseveration
2008-05-30

Abstract Poor antisaccade performance is a reliable index of action control deficits in schizophrenia. To further elucidate the underlying cognitive impairments, the current study aimed to confirm effects of switching the response direction on saccadic performance and to investigate whether response switch effects relate to perseveration. Fourteen schizophrenia patients and 14 healthy controls performed sequences of 1 to 3 simple volitional saccades to one direction and a subsequent volitional saccade with distractor to the same or the opposite direction. Response switches increased error rates in schizophrenia if they followed 3 saccades to the opposite side, suggesting that response switching affects performance on conditions of strong persisting response programs. The increase of response switch error rates with multiple repetitions of the prior response points to a relationship between perseveration and response selection.
Effects of Rizatriptan on the Contingent Negative Variation in Healthy Women
2008-05-30

The effect of the antimigraine drug rizatriptan on the amplitude and habituation of the contingent negative variation (CNV) in healthy women was examined in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. The test persons were assigned either to a drug ( n = 20) or a placebo group ( n = 20). The CNV was recorded three times: before, directly after, and 24 h after drug or placebo intake. The CNV paradigm was presented in a standard, a cued and a choice version. Rizatriptan led to an increase of CNV amplitude that depended on the level of difficulty of the task. Whereas there was no drug effect in the standard version, an amplitude increase was obtained mainly in the choice task. The results are in line with the ceiling theory of migraine, which assumes a rise of CNV amplitude if the serotonin level is lowered.
Genomic investigation of α‐synuclein multiplication and parkinsonism
2008-06-01

Abstract Objective Copy number variation is a common polymorphic phenomenon within the human genome. Although the majority of these events are non‐deleterious they can also be highly pathogenic. Herein we characterize five families with parkinsonism that have been identified to harbor multiplication of the chromosomal 4q21 locus containing the α‐ synuclein gene ( SNCA ). Methods A methodological approach using fluorescent in situ hybridization and Affymetrix (Santa Clara, CA) 250K SNP microarrays was used to characterize the multiplication in each family and to identify the genes encoded within the region. The telomeric and centromeric breakpoints of each family were further narrowed using semiquantitative polymerase chain reaction with microsatellite markers and then screened for transposable repeat elements. Results The severity of clinical presentation is correlated with SNCA dosage and does not appear to be overtly affected by the presence of other genes in the multiplicated region. With the exception of the Lister kindred, in each family the multiplication event appears de novo. The type and position of Alu/LINE repeats are also different at each breakpoint. Microsatellite analysis demonstrates two genomic mechanisms are responsible for chromosome 4q21 multiplications, including both SNCA duplication and recombination. Interpretation SNCA dosage is responsible for parkinsonism, autonomic dysfunction, and dementia observed within each family. We hypothesize dysregulated expression of wild‐type α‐synuclein results in parkinsonism and may explain the recent association of common SNCA variants in sporadic Parkinson's disease. SNCA genomic duplication results from intraallelic (segmental duplication) or interallelic recombination with unequal crossing over, whereas both mechanisms appear to be required for genomic SNCA triplication. Ann Neurol 2008
Latest Advances in Molecular Imaging Instrumentation
2008-06-01

This review concentrates on the latest advances in molecular imaging technology, including PET, MRI, and optical imaging. In PET, significant improvements in tumor detection and image resolution have been achieved by introducing new scintillation materials, iterative image reconstruction, and correction methods. These advances enabled the first clinical scanners capable of time-of-flight detection and incorporating point-spread-function reconstruction to compensate for depth-of-interaction effects. In the field of MRI, the most important developments in recent years have mainly been MRI systems with higher field strengths and improved radiofrequency coil technology. Hyperpolarized imaging, functional MRI, and MR spectroscopy provide molecular information in vivo. A special focus of this review article is multimodality imaging and, in particular, the emerging field of combined PET/MRI.
Macrophage Migration Inhibitory Factor Contributes to the Immune Escape of Ovarian Cancer by Down-Regulating NKG2D
2008-06-01

Abstract The proinflammatory cytokine macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) stimulates tumor cell proliferation, migration, and metastasis; promotes tumor angiogenesis; suppresses p53-mediated apoptosis; and inhibits antitumor immunity by largely unknown mechanisms. We here describe an overexpression of MIF in ovarian cancer that correlates with malignancy and the presence of ascites. Functionally, we find that MIF may contribute to the immune escape of ovarian carcinoma by transcriptionally down-regulating NKG2D in vitro and in vivo which impairs NK cell cytotoxicity toward tumor cells. Together with the additional tumorigenic properties of MIF, this finding provides a rationale for novel small-molecule inhibitors of MIF to be used for the treatment of MIF-secreting cancers.
The contribution of different facial regions to the recognition of conversational expressions
2008-06-01

The human face is an important and complex communication channel. Humans can, however, easily read in a face not only identity information but also facial expressions with high accuracy. Here, we present the results of four psychophysical experiments in which we systematically manipulated certain facial areas in video sequences of nine conversational expressions to investigate recognition performance and its dependency on the motions of different facial parts. The results help to demonstrate what information is perceptually necessary and sufficient to recognize the different facial expressions. Subsequent analyses of the facial movements and correlation with recognition performance show that, for some expressions, one individual facial region can represent the whole expression. In other cases, the interaction of more than one facial area is needed to clarify the expression. The full set of results is used to develop a systematic description of the roles of different facial parts in the visual perception of conversational facial expressions.