tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
High altitude stay reduces eosinophil load in airways in children with asthma
Authors: Neeta Kulkarni, Vincenzo Ragazzo, Silvia Costella, Chistopher O'Callaghan, Ahmad Kantar
Journal: European Respiratory Journal (2012)

A normal sputum eosinophil count in children with asthma could result from corticosteroid treatment or reduction in eosinophil recruitment. In order to differentiate this we have described a new marker of eosinophilic inflammation (eosinophil protein content in airway macrophages)  1 . At high altitude children with asthma show significant reduction in eosinophil count due to reduced exposure to allergens.  The aim was to determine the macrophage eosinophil protein content at baseline (T0) and after stay at high altitude (T1).  Sputum induction was performed at T0 (n=54) and T1 in children attending High Altitude Children9s Asthma Center in Misurina. Differential count was obtained by counting 400 non-squamous cells (eosinophilic asthma defined as ≥ 3%). One hundred macrophages were imaged at high-resolution using digital camera. The percentage of macrophage cytoplasm with red hue was determined by image analysis. The groups were compared using Mann-Whitney and Wilcoxon t tests.  There was no significant difference (p=0.39) between median airway macrophages (AM) red hue percentage in eosinophilic (n=30) [median (range)] [5.9(0.6-57.6)] and non-eosinophilic asthma (n=24) [8.7(0.34-71.2)]. Children at T1 had significantly lower i) eosinophil count Median (range) [p = 0.001, 1(0-30) vs 3(0-52)] ii) AM red hue percentage [p = 0.005, 3.82(0.41-59.82) vs 7.04(0.72-71.23)] than at T0.  The high AM red hue in non-eosinophilic asthma on arrival suggests ongoing eosinophilia in the absence of sputum eosinophilia. The reduction in eosinophil count after stay at high altitude is due to reduction in eosinophil recruitment in airways.   1  Kulkarni NS et al. JACI 2010; 126(1):61-9.
Abstract 1931: Tumor spheres growing from circulating tumor cells exhibit stem cell features
Authors: Katharina Pachmann, Monica Pizon, Dorothea Zimon
Journal: Cancer Research (2014)

Abstract Background: Among the cells that are disseminated from a malignant tumor some are capable of resettling in distant organs and growing into life-threatening metastases. Therefore, the question arises how and whether such cells which have the potential to grow into metastases can be detected. Materials and Methods: Using a nondissipative approach with only one enrichment step of red blood cell lysis, cells were cultured under conditions favoring the growth of epithelial cells. At 7, 14 and 21days the cell cultures were inspected for the appearance of spheroids staining with anti-EpCAM, anti-CD24 and anti-CD44 antibody and.expressing ALDH1. Results: Tumorspheres from peripherally circulating cells from patients with malignant tumors in different stages of disease could so far be grown from 79% of 100 patients in whom more than 1000 epithelial tumor suspect cells per ml were detected. Numbers of tumorspheres correlated with the aggressiveness of the tumor and were highest in patients after surgery who had not yet received any systemic therapy. The size of the spheres increased from day 7 to day 21. They were negative for CD24 and positive for CD44. They highly express ALDH1 and thus exhibite typical features of stem cells. Conclusion: Here, we demonstrate that the circulating tumor cells, detected in our approach contain a subpopulation with stem cell-like properties capable of growing into tumorspheres. The frequency in peripheral blood of cells capable of forming tumor spheres seems to be dependent on the aggressiveness of the primary tumor. Citation Format: Katharina Pachmann, Monica Pizon, Dorothea Zimon. Tumor spheres growing from circulating tumor cells exhibit stem cell features. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 1931. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-1931
Abstract 1121: It’s All in the Family: A Treatable Cause of Late-Onset Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy
Authors: Ryan P Daly, E. Rene Rodriguez, Allan L Klein
Journal: Circulation (2008)

A 73-year-old woman with a history of hypertension (HTN) and mild aortic insufficiency (AI) presented to clinic with progressive dyspnea, fatigue and decreased functional capacity. Her family history was remarkable for a 45-year-old son with a “weak heart” and kidney dysfunction that was being evaluated. Her physical exam was unremarkable with the exception of bradycardia. ECG revealed sinus bradycardia of 46-bpm and a complete RBBB. Transthoracic echo revealed a small cavity with severely increased wall thickness, with obliteration in systole, with no obstruction and mild AI; notably without a history of poorly controlled HTN or significant valvular disease. A right heart catheterization revealed low output failure with a FICK cardiac index of 1.9 L/min-m2. Of note, her son’s work-up revealed Fabry’s disease, with cardiac and renal involvement. Her alpha-galactosidase enzyme levels were low-normal. A cardiac MRI with late gadolinium enhancement revealed a pattern of fibrosis suggestive infiltrative disease, and atypical for HOCM. Endocardial biopsy demonstrated myelin figures with curvilinear bodies in multiple myocytes on ultrastructural examination, diagnostic for cardiac Fabry’s disease. Enzymatic replacement therapy was initiated and a DDD pacemaker was placed with improvement of her NYHA class and BNP level. A treatable disease, representing up to 4% of late-onset hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), Fabry’s disease should be considered when evaluating patients with non-obstructive HCM. Keys to establishing this diagnosis lay in integrating clinical, genetic, and imaging data and recognizing Fabry’s disease as an X-linked dominant (not recessive) disease that may have isolated cardiac involvement, in heterozygous females, despite low-normal alpha-galactosidase activity.
Systemic antipsoriatic therapy may reverse endothelial dysfunction: reply from authors
Authors: C.L. Martyn-Simmons, C.H. Smith, J.N.W.N. Barker
Journal: British Journal of Dermatology (2011)

Journal Article Systemic antipsoriatic therapy may reverse endothelial dysfunction: reply from authors Get access C.L. Martyn‐Simmons, C.L. Martyn‐Simmons St John’s Institute of Dermatology, Division of Genetics and Molecular Medicine, King’s College London & Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, London, U.K. E‐mail: jonathan.barker@kcl.ac.uk Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar C.H. Smith, C.H. Smith St John’s Institute of Dermatology, Division of Genetics and Molecular Medicine, King’s College London & Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, London, U.K. E‐mail: jonathan.barker@kcl.ac.uk Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar J.N.W.N. Barker J.N.W.N. Barker St John’s Institute of Dermatology, Division of Genetics and Molecular Medicine, King’s College London & Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, London, U.K. E‐mail: jonathan.barker@kcl.ac.uk Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar British Journal of Dermatology, Volume 164, Issue 6, 1 June 2011, Page 1398, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2133.2011.10251.x Published: 01 June 2011
Chronic Asthma and Improvement with Relaxation Induced by Hypnotherapy
Authors: J B Morrison
Journal: Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine (1988)

Sixteen chronic asthmatic patients inadequately controlled by drugs had, after one year of hypnotherapy, a fall in admissions from 44 in the year before starting therapy to 13 in the year after. Duration of stay was reduced for 13 patients by 249 days; prednisolone was withdrawn in 6, reduced in 8 and increased in none. Side effects of drugs were reduced. Although 62% reported improvement on a visual analogue scale, observations of air flow gave variable results.
Maximal expiratory flow (MEP) and maximal inspiratory flow (MIP) in children with asthma and/or obese children
Authors: Martina Tubaro, Ilenia Benfatto, Mario Canciani, Francesca Valent
Journal: European Respiratory Journal (2012)

Asthma and obesity cause alterations in the respiratory system because both diseases involve changes in the mechanics of airways and a systemic inflammation.  The aim of this study was to compare the functionality of the respiratory musculature in a group of obese, asthmatic, obese-asthmatic children and controls, in order to determine if obesity cause a weakness in the respiratory muscles themselves.  We tested 152 children, from 8 to 16 years of age, divided as follows: 31 asthmatics, 42 controls, 56 obese and 23 obese-asthmatic children. Every child performed a respiratory muscles function evaluation (MIP and MEP).  MIP and MEP values were comparable between obese (58.3 cmH2O and 49.6 cmH2O, respectively), obese-asthmatics (52.4 cmH2O and 50.6 cmH2O) and asthmatic children (64.4 cmH2O and 51.7 cmH2O) whereas controls parameters had lower values (45.0 cmH2O and 38.5 cmH2O, respectively; p  In conclusion obese children have normal MIP and MEP values, higher then the values of the controls. We suppose that this difference can be explained by a habit in the respiratory effort of the asthmatic children, with a greater force on the respiratory musculature of the obese children and by a poor compliance of the control group.
Accessory Cell Activity of Murine Tumor-Associated Macro phages&lt;xref ref-type="fn" rid="FN2"&gt;2&lt;/xref&gt;
Authors: G J Dougherty, W H McBride
Journal: JNCI Journal of the National Cancer Institute (1986)

The accessory cell activity of macrophages associated with the murine 3-methylcholanthrene-induced fibrosarcoma FSa was investigated. On the basis of Fc receptor expression and phagocytic activity, 20-25% of cells present within enzymatically disaggregated tumor cell suspensions could be classified as macrophages. These cells were approximately 50% I-Ak positive but did not express the Mac-1 antigen. T-cells played an important role in regulating I-Ak expression, and macrophages obtained from tumors grown in nu/nu mice were I-Ak negative. Tumor-associated macrophages were shown to possess potent accessory cell activity and were fully capable of reconstituting the primary anti-calf red blood cell plaque-forming cell (PFC) response of Sephadex G-10-passed spleen cells. This function required the presence of the I-Ak-positive subpopulation, and macrophages treated with anti-Ia serum and complement or obtained from tumors grown in nu/nu hosts lacked accessory cell activity. Tumor-associated macrophages were also able to provide the essential accessory cell function required for cooperation between tumor-specific TH cells and normal B-cells in the generation of an anti-trinitrophenyl (TNP) PFC response in the presence of TNP-coupled FSa antigen. These results suggest that progressive growth of the FSa tumor in vivo cannot be readily attributed to a defect in the accessory cell function of tumor-associated macrophages.
European-Canadian randomized trial of paclitaxel in relapsed ovarian cancer: high-dose versus low-dose and long versus short infusion.
Authors: E A Eisenhauer, W W ten Bokkel Huinink, K D Swenerton, L Gianni, J Myles, M E van der Burg, I Kerr, J B Vermorken, K Buser, N Colombo
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (1994)

PURPOSE Taxol (paclitaxel; Bristol-Myers Squibb, Wallingford, CT) is a new anticancer agent with activity in a number of human tumors, including epithelial ovarian cancer. In nonrandomized trials, doses studied have ranged from 135 mg/m2 to 250 mg/m2 administered over 24 hours with premedication to avoid hypersensitivity reactions (HSRs). This study addressed two questions: the dose-response relationship of Taxol in relapsed ovarian cancer and the safety of a short infusion given with premedication. METHODS Women with platinum-pretreated epithelial ovarian cancer and measurable recurrent disease were randomized in a bifactorial design to receive either 175 or 135 mg/m2 of Taxol over either 24 or 3 hours. Major end points were the frequency of significant HSRs and objective response rate. Secondary end points were progression-free and overall survival. RESULTS Of 407 patients randomized, 391 were eligible and 382 assessable for response. Analysis was performed according to the bifactorial design. Severe HSRs were rare (1.5% patients) and were not affected by either dose or schedule. Response was slightly higher at the 175-mg/m2 dose (20%) than at 135 mg/m2 (15%), but this was not statistically significant (P = .2). However, progression-free survival was significantly longer in the high-dose group (19 v 14 weeks; P = .02). Significantly more neutropenia was seen when Taxol was administered as a 24-hour infusion. Response rates were similar in the 24- and 3-hour groups (19% and 16%, respectively; P = .6). No survival differences were noted. CONCLUSION The 3-hour infusion of Taxol is safe when given with premedication and is associated with less neutropenia. There is a modest dose effect with longer time to progression at 175 mg/m2. The observation that longer infusion produces more myelosuppression but does not yield higher response rates should lead to further studies to determine the optimal dose and schedule of this interesting new agent.
Impact of health education on the knowledge and awareness of tuberculosis among high school students
Authors: Roland Panaligan, Jude Guiang
Journal: European Respiratory Journal (2012)

Background.  Various misconceptions coupled with the lack of knowledge on tuberculosis are still on alarming levels. It9s stigma and misinformation indeed contribute as a major barrier to TB diagnosis and treatment. Intervention through health education together with successful control programs will help improve both the public9s awareness and recognition of the disease.  Objective.  To determine the effect of proper health education on the knowledge and awareness of pulmonary tuberculosis among high school students.  Materials and Methods.  A cross sectional study was conducted at a Philippine high school with a total population of 1906 students. A twenty minute lecture about TB epidemiology, signs and symptoms, cause, risk factors, transmission, diagnosis, prevention and treatment was given. Data were collected using a questionnaire consisting of demographic characteristics followed by a pre and post test questionnaires divided into 5 TB knowledge domains.  Results.  Students placed physicians as the third most trusted source of TB information. The baseline TB knowledge of high school students was 65.22% and was increased to 86.83% after a health education intervention (p  Conclusion. High school students9 knowledge and awareness regarding cause, symptoms, transmission, and treatment of TB was significantly higher after a simple, 20-minute, educational intervention in the form of a lecture.
Generation of interleukin 4 (IL-4)-producing cells in vivo and in vitro: IL-2 and IL-4 are required for in vitro generation of IL-4-producing cells.
Authors: G Le Gros, S Z Ben-Sasson, R Seder, F D Finkelman, W E Paul
Journal: The Journal of Experimental Medicine (1990)

T cell populations derived from naive mice produce very small amounts of interleukin 4 (IL-4) in response to stimulation on anti-CD3-coated dishes. IL-4 production by such cells is mainly found among large- and intermediate-sized T cells and is dependent upon IL-2. Injection of anti-IgD into mice, a stimulus that leads to striking increases in serum levels of IgG1 and IgE, causes a striking increase in the IL-4-producing capacity of T cells. This increase is first observed 4 d after injection of anti-IgD. IL-4 production by T cells from anti-IgD-injected donors is mainly found among large- and intermediate-sized T cells. Small, dense T cells are poor producers of IL-4. The capacity of T cells from anti-IgD-injected donors to produce IL-4 is enhanced by addition of IL-2 and is largely, but not completely, inhibited by neutralization of in situ produced IL-2. These results indicate that the control of IL-4 production in T cells from naive and anti-IgD-injected donors is similar. However, it is possible that a portion of the IL-4-producing activity of T cells from activated donors is IL-2 independent. Although small T cells from naive donors have a very limited capacity to produce IL-4 in response to stimulation with anti-CD3, even in the presence of added IL-2, they can give rise to IL-4-producing cells upon in vitro culture on plates coated with anti-CD3 if both IL-2 and IL-4 are added. This leads to the appearance of IL-4-producing cells within 2 d. When analyzed after 5 d of culture by harvesting and re-exposure to anti-CD3-coated culture wells and IL-2, these cells have increased their IL-4-producing capacity by approximately 100-fold. The development of IL-4-producing cells in response to anti-CD3, IL-2, and IL-4 is not inhibited by interferon gamma (IFN-gamma), nor does IFN-gamma diminish IL-4 production by these cells upon challenge with anti-CD3 plus IL-2.
Clinical Trial Design Principles and Endpoint Definitions for Transcatheter Mitral Valve Repair and Replacement: Part 2: Endpoint Definitions
Authors: Gregg W. Stone, David H. Adams, William T. Abraham, Arie Pieter Kappetein, Philippe Généreux, Pascal Vranckx, Roxana Mehran, Karl-Heinz Kuck, Martin B. Leon, Nicolo Piazza, Stuart J. Head, Gerasimos Filippatos, Alec S. Vahanian
Journal: Journal of the American College of Cardiology (2015)
Safety and Efficacy of Drug-Eluting Stents in Older Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease
Authors: Thomas T. Tsai, John C. Messenger, J. Matthew Brennan, Uptal D. Patel, David Dai, Robert N. Piana, Kevin J. Anstrom, Eric L. Eisenstein, Rachel S. Dokholyan, Eric D. Peterson, Pamela S. Douglas
Journal: Journal of the American College of Cardiology (2011)

The purpose of this study was to determine the safety and efficacy of drug-eluting stents (DES) compared with bare-metal stents (BMS) in older patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). DES may be associated with late death and myocardial infarction (MI) secondary to stent thrombosis. However, data on outcomes in older patients with CKD are limited. We estimated the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) of 283,593 patients 65 years of age and older who underwent stent implantation between 2004 and 2007. In propensity-matched cohorts grouped by GFR, the association between DES and BMS and the risk of death, MI, revascularization, and major bleeding was examined. A total of 121,446 patients (42.8%) had CKD (GFR <60 ml/min/1.73 m 2 ). The 30-month mortality rate for patients on long-term dialysis was 52.0%. In propensity-matched pairs, placement of a DES compared with a BMS in patients with normal renal function was associated with significant reductions in 30-month revascularization (hazard ratio [HR]: 0.91; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.86 to 0.95), MI (HR: 0.77; 95% CI: 0.71 to 0.83), and death (HR: 0.73; 95% CI: 0.69 to 0.77), but no difference in bleeding (HR: 0.89; 95% CI: 0.79 to 1.00). Lower MI and mortality rates were also observed after DES compared with BMS implantation in all CKD subgroups with the exception of MI in the long-term dialysis group. Decreased rates of revascularization did not extend to any subgroup of patients with CKD. The safety of DES compared with BMS is observed in all patients regardless of renal function and is associated with reduced rates of MI and death in some subsets of patients with CKD.
Peritoneal Dialysis in Acute and Chronic Renal Failure
Authors: R A Palmer, T K Maybee, E W Henry, J Eden
Journal: JAMA (1963)

Clinical experience with peritoneal dialysis in eight cases of acute and four cases of chronic renal failure is presented. Seven of the acute cases survived but in some of these hemodialysis was also employed. The relatively simple technique of peritoneal dialysis was found to be effective, although slower than hemodialysis. In three of the cases it was selected in preference to hemodialysis. Its main advantages are that it does not require elaborate arrangements, or the use of blood or anticoagulants. The authors conclude that when the peritoneum is intact the method can be employed whenever the use of a temporary kidney substitute is indicated.
Abstract 9504: The Role of Highly Sensitive Cardiac Troponin T in the Diagnosis of Isolated Diastolic Dysfunction: Comparison with Natriuretic Peptides
Authors: Atsushi Kusumoto, Masaaki Miyata, Takuro Kubozono, Yoshiyuki Ikeda, Takuro Shinsato, Shoji Fujita, Kunitsugu Takasaki, Toshinori Yuasa, Shuichi Hamasaki, Chuwa Tei
Journal: Circulation (2011)

Introduction: Isolated diastolic dysfunction is a frequent entity but difficult to diagnose. Natriuretic peptides are used as a possible non-invasive parameter to diagnose isolated diastolic dysfunction. Recently, the highly sensitive cardiac troponin T (hs-TnT) has been developed. However, the significance of hs-TnT measurement in isolated diastolic dysfunction remains uncertain. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the correlation between echoardiographic diastolic function and hs-TnT or natriuretic peptides in patients with heart failure and preserved ejection fraction. Methods: Consecutive 196 patients with heart failure, who had a left ventricular ejection fraction ≥50%, were enrolled. Hs-TnT, B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP), and N-terminal pro-BNP (NT-proBNP) levels were measured simultaneously. Diastolic function was evaluated by echocardiography using mean E', which is the average of lateral and septal E'. Results: The linear regression analysis demonstrated that mean E' correlated with log hs-TnT (R=-0.423, p&lt;0.0001), log BNP (R=-0.321, p&lt;0.0001), and log NT-proBNP (R=-0.367, p&lt;0.0001). We performed the receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analysis to predict the diastolic dysfunction, mean E' &lt;10 cm/sec, by biomarkers (Figure). The area under the ROC curve (AUC) for hs-TnT was 0.80, with the highest discriminating sensitivity and specificity being 0.93 and 0.52, respectively at hs-TnT=0.004 ng/mL. The AUC for BNP was 0.63, with the highest discriminating sensitivity and specificity being 0.58 and 0.68, respectively at BNP=59.4 pg/mL. The AUC for NT-proBNP was 0.69, with the highest discriminating sensitivity and specificity being 0.70 and 0.64, respectively at NT-proBNP=125.4 pg/mL. Conclusions: The hs-TnT is better than BNP or NT-proBNP in the diagnosis of isolated diastolic dysfunction. The hs-TnT is suggested to represent minor and ongoing myocardial injury in patients with isolated diastolic dysfunction.
Dermatological manifestations of inherited cancer syndromes in children
Authors: A. Karalis, M. Tischkowitz, G.W.M. Millington
Journal: British Journal of Dermatology (2010)

Various cutaneous signs presenting in childhood, for example café‐au‐lait macules, may have systemic cancer associations. Indeed, this may be the first manifestation of the underlying cancer predisposition. The syndromes covered in this review fall into four main categories: (i) DNA damage processing defects including Fanconi anaemia, ataxia telangiectasia, Bloom syndrome, Rothmund–Thomson syndrome, constitutional mismatch repair defects and xeroderma pigmentosum; (ii) signalling pathway defects, including naevoid basal cell carcinoma and Costello syndromes; (iii) primary immunodeficiency syndromes; and (iv) syndromes that do not fit this molecular classification, such as X‐linked dyskeratosis congenita. This review focuses on the dermatological findings of these conditions. Some of these conditions exhibit a milder heterozygous phenotype and this should be elicited in the family history. Where the dermatological findings are subtle, a targeted family history can provide clues towards making a diagnosis. Nondermatological features of each condition are summarized too, together with molecular testing strategies, which will direct genetic counselling and screening. This review will enable the dermatologist and other clinicians in the early recognition and molecular confirmation of underlying cancer‐predisposing syndromes. This allows the possibility of surveillance and prevention strategies to be initiated in a timely manner, in affected children and other at‐risk family members.