TASK DEFINITION: In this task, you are given a passage which has a question and the context. You have to generate an answer to the question based on the information present in the context.
PROBLEM: Context: Our previous work demonstrated altered messenger RNA expression of integrin -5 and -8, using an in silico analysis of publically available data from patients with biliary atresia (BA); however, we were unable to demonstrate statistically significant differences in protein expression because of sample size. In the present study, we repeated the analysis of liver fibrosis and protein expression of the integrins in a larger cohort of patients with BA and compared them with patients undergoing liver biopsy for other diagnoses, with the hypothesis that 1 of the integrins would be differentially expressed.', 'Liver specimens were obtained at 2 collaborating institutions. Samples from infants with BA (n = 23) were compared with samples from those who underwent liver biopsy for neonatal hepatitis (n = 9). All of the specimens were analyzed by 2 pathologists (C.R. and R.A.), who were blinded to the diagnoses. Standard Ishak scoring was performed to evaluate fibrosis and inflammation, and immunohistochemical (IHC) positivity was graded from 0 to 4. Comparisons between the IHC positivity and Ishak scoring for the BA and control groups were performed using the Student t test with P < 0.01 considered significant because of the multiple comparisons. Interobserver variability was assessed by intraclass correlation (ICC).', 'Pooled analysis from specimens from patients with BA showed significantly more fibrosis than controls based on Ishak scores (3.21 1.82 vs 1.17 1.00, P < 0.005). IHC evaluation showed increased integrin 8 protein expression when compared with controls (2.67 0.81 vs 1.72 0.62, P < 0.005); however, there were no significant differences in integrin 5 (1.93 0.84 vs 1.50 0.90, P = 0.23) or integrin 6 (0.85 1.20 vs 0.94 0.85, P = 0.82) expression. These data were confirmed on individual analysis. Interobserver agreement was fair for integrin 5 (ICC 0.52), good for integrin 6 (ICC 0.72), and excellent for integrin 8 (ICC 0.79) and fibrosis (ICC 0.89).\Question: Is integrin -8 , but not -5 or -6 , protein expression increased in livers of children with biliary atresia?

SOLUTION: Our data show that integrin 8, but not integrin 5 or integrin 6, protein expression is increased in liver specimens of patients with BA. These data support the mounting evidence that transforming growth factor- (TGF-) activation is responsible for the fibrosis found in BA. Anti-integrin 8 or more global integrin blocking strategies may be therapeutic options in BA, but further work is clearly needed.

PROBLEM: Context: Serum ferritin concentration >100ng/mL was associated with a higher risk of death in hemodialysis patients in Japan, whereas such an association was less clear in hemodialysis patients in Western countries. Since Japanese dialysis patients are generally less inflamed than those in Western countries, inflammation may modify the association between serum ferritin and the adverse outcomes.', 'We performed an observational cohort study using data from 2606 Japanese hemodialysis patients who participated in the Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study (DOPPS) III (2005-2008) or DOPPS IV (2009-2012). The predictor was serum ferritin category (<50, 50-99.9, 100-199.9, and 200ng/mL), and the primary and secondary outcomes were all-cause mortality and cardiovascular hospitalization, respectively. C-reactive protein (CRP, cut-off by 0.3mg/dL) and serum albumin (cut-off by 3.8g/dL) were stratification factors related to systemic inflammation.', 'After adjustment for relevant confounding factors, a U-shaped association was observed between serum ferritin and all-cause mortality in the group with low CRP levels, whereas such relationship was not significant in the high CRP counterparts. In contrast, we found a linear association between serum ferritin and cardiovascular hospitalization in the low CRP and high CRP groups commonly. Similar results were obtained when the total cohort was stratified by serum albumin.\Question: Do both low and high serum ferritin levels predict mortality risk in hemodialysis patients without inflammation?

SOLUTION: Serum ferritin showed different patterns of association with all-cause mortality in hemodialysis patients with versus without inflammation, whereas its association with cardiovascular hospitalization was similar regardless of inflammatory conditions.

PROBLEM: Context: To verify an impact of a lymph node revealing solution (LRS) on the number of lymph nodes (LN) revealed in colorectal resection specimens.', "Fifty-nine cases of rectosigmoid carcinomas divided into two subgroups-stage pT2&3 (20 cases) and ypT2&3 (with pre-operative radiotherapy-39 cases)-were formalin fixed for 42-72 h, serially sectioned and re-fixed in LRS containing ethanol, diethyl ether, glacial acetic acid, and formalin for 24 h. The number of LNs was matched to a control group consisting of 34 cases of colorectal carcinoma, 14 pT2&3 and 20 ypT2&3 rectosigmoid carcinomas examined routinely. Results were statistically tested by Student's t-test.", 'In the study group the total number of revealed LNs was 869, range 1-48, average 14.7 per specimen, median 15. In the control group the number of LNs was 200, range 0-13, average 5.9 per specimen, median 6. The difference between the study and the control group was statistically significant (P = 0.05).\Question: Is re-fixation in a lymph node revealing solution a powerful method for identifying lymph nodes in colorectal resection specimens?

SOLUTION:
Using LRS leads to a significant increase in the number of revealed LNs in colorectal resection specimens and makes it possible to find more than 12 LNs in a majority of stage pT2 and pT3 adenocarcinomas.