tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
Control of nosocomial transmission of multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis among healthcare workers and HIV-infected patients
Authors: P.N. Wenger, C.M. Beck-Sague, W.R. Jarvis, J. Otten, A. Breeden, D. Orfas
Journal: The Lancet (1995)

From 1988 to 1990, an outbreak of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) among patients, and an increased number of tuberculin-skin-test conversions among healthcare workers, occurred on the HIV ward of Jackson Memorial Hospital, Miami, Florida, USA. Measures similar to those subsequently recommended in the 1990 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines were implemented on the HIV ward by June, 1990, and in September, 1992, we evaluated the efficacy of these control measures. Among MDR-TB patients and healthcare workers with tuberculin-skin-test conversions on the HIV ward, we looked for evidence of exposure to HIV ward MDR-TB patients positive for acid-fast bacilli in sputum during initial (January-May, 1990) and follow-up (June, 1990-June, 1992) periods. Exposure before implementation of control measures to an infectious MDR-TB patient on the HIV ward was recorded in 12 of 15 (80%) MDR-TB patients during the initial period and 5 of 11 (45%) MDR-TB patients during follow-up. After implementation of control measures, no episodes of MDR-TB could be traced to contact with infectious MDR-TB patients on the HIV ward. Skin-test conversions among workers on the HIV ward declined from 7 of 25 (28%) during the initial period to 3 of 17 (18%) in the early (June, 1990-February, 1991) and 0 of 23 in the late (March, 1991-June, 1992) follow-up periods (p < 0.01). Skin-test conversions among healthcare workers were not associated with increased exposure to MDR-TB patients, and were not significantly higher among workers on the HIV ward than on a control ward without tuberculosis patients (3/27 vs 0/16). These data demonstrate that implementation of measures similar to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 1990 tuberculosis-control guidelines were effective in halting transmission of MDR-TB to healthcare workers and HIV-infected patients.
Central Neuroplasticity and Decreased Heart Rate Variability after Particulate Matter Exposure in Mice
Authors: Hai Pham, Ann C. Bonham, Kent E. Pinkerton, Chao-Yin Chen
Journal: Environmental Health Perspectives (2009)

BackgroundEpidemiologic studies show that exposure to fine particulate matter [aerodynamic diameter ≤ 2.5 μm (PM2.5)] increases the total daily cardiovascular mortality. Impaired cardiac autonomic function, which manifests as reduced heart rate variability (HRV), may be one of the underlying causes. However, the cellular mechanism(s) by which PM2.5 exposure induces decreased HRV is not known.ObjectivesWe tested the hypothesis that exposure to PM2.5 impairs HRV by decreasing the excitability of the cardiac vagal neurons in the nucleus ambiguus. We also detemined the effect of iron on PM-exposure–induced decrease in HRV.MethodsWe measured 24-hr HRV in time domains from electrocardiogram telemetry recordings obtained in conscious, freely moving mice after 3 days of exposure to PM2.5 in the form of soot only or iron-soot. In parallel studies, we determined the intrinsic properties of identified cardiac vagal neurons, retrogradely labeled with a fluorescent dye applied to the sinoatrial node.ResultsSoot-only exposure decreased short-term HRV (root mean square of successive difference). With the addition of iron, all HRV parameters were significantly reduced. In nonexposed mice, vagal blockade significantly reduced all HRV parameters, suggesting that HRV is, in part, under vagal regulation in mice. Iron-soot exposure had no significant effect on resting membrane potential but decreased spiking responses of the identified cardiac vagal neurons to depolarizations (p < 0.05). The decreased spiking response was accompanied with a higher minimal depolarizing current required to evoke spikes and a lower peak discharge frequency.ConclusionsThe data suggest that PM-induced neuroplasticity of cardiac vagal neurons may be one mechanism contributing to the cardiovascular consequences associated with PM2.5 exposure seen in humans.
Follicular mycosis fungoides
Authors: None Klemke, None Dippel, None Assaf, None Hummel, None Stein, None Goerdt, None Orfanos
Journal: British Journal of Dermatology (1999)

We describe a patient with follicular mycosis fungoides (MF), a rare folliculotropic variant of cutaneous T‐cell lymphoma (CTCL). Follicular involvement in CTCL usually presents clinically as alopecia mucinosa associated histologically with follicular mucinosis. Follicular MF differs from alopecia mucinosa/follicular mucinosis associated with MF with regard to its clinical presentation, histology and, presumably, prognosis. Our patient presented with the characteristic findings of follicular MF, i.e. infiltrated plaques showing numerous enlarged, comedo‐like follicular infundibula; histology was dominated by exclusive folliculotropism of atypical lymphocytes sometimes forming follicular Pautrier's microabscesses, and by lack of epidermotropism and follicular mucinosis. Despite photochemotherapy and treatment with oral retinoids and interferon alpha, the patient's follicular MF rapidly developed into a progressive CTCL with large tumorous lesions, but responded to electron beam therapy. The course of our patient's disease confirms the notion that follicular MF may be associated with a worse prognosis than classical MF. However, electron beam irradiation induced remission of follicular MF that was maintained by a combination therapy consisting of extracorporeal photopheresis and interferon alfa.
POSTNATAL MATERNAL CARE
Authors: MAUD PARKER
Journal: JAMA (1927)

Prenatal maternal care has long since reached a stage of standardization which has not been even approached in the postnatal care of the mother. Many physicians, accepting the responsibility of accoucheur, give elaborate care for the full period of gestation, only to discharge the patient with perhaps a single examination after her lying-in period. While the puerperium may be said to be completed at the end of from eight to twelve weeks after delivery, at which time the uterus should be wholly involuted, in essence the obligation of the physician is to reestablish his patient in the best possible mental and bodily function, though this may be a condition not attained until the second six months after labor.  The puerperium may then be divided into three periods: The first period is that which is strictly the lying-in period. While this time varies with different obstetricians from a few days to
Atypical fibroxanthoma of the skin and the lower lip in xeroderma pigmentosum
Authors: F.H. Dilek, N. Akpolat, A. Metin, S. Ugras
Journal: British Journal of Dermatology (2000)

Xeroderma pigmentosum (XP) is a rare, usually autosomal recessive disorder related to DNA repair defects. Atypical fibroxanthoma (AFX) is a pleomorphic tumour that occurs infrequently on the limbs and trunk in children. We report a child with XP who presented with AFX of the facial skin and the lower lip. The diagnosis of AFX was confirmed using histological and immunohistochemical techniques. We discuss the possibility that ultraviolet‐induced damage might be implicated in the pathogenesis of AFX.
Injuries of the heart and great vessels due to pins and needles
Authors: D. C. Schechter, L. Gilbert
Journal: Thorax (1969)

Three instances of cardiac injury from needles in two adults are described. Trauma was accidental in one and due to suicidal attempts in the other two. The objects were removed. There are 157 published accounts of wounding of the heart and/or great vessels by pins and needles. The victims have ranged from infants to the elderly. Causative agencies were accidents, suicide, and homicide. A few were discovered at necropsy in presumably asymptomatic persons. Six of the accidental injuries were iatrogenic. The objects reached the heart or great vessels from transthoracic insertion, ingestion, embolization, aspiration, or transabdominal penetration. The overall mortality incidence was about 50%. Acute cardiac tamponade was the dominant cause of death. Almost all individuals survived who were operated upon and from whom the object was removed. The right ventricle was hurt most often, but no region of the heart or of the great vessels was spared. Occasionally multiple parts were affected. The primary damage occurred principally while the foreign body was extracardiac and relatively immobilized, from repetitive scratching or puncturing of the beating heart. Chest pain and unfolding patterns of tamponade were inconsistent in onset, severity, and duration. Death ensuing days or weeks after the initial injury was frequent. Progressive haemopericardium in some cases was due to or aggravated by laceration of a structure from within outward. Late complications—several fatal—were consequent upon inflammation, sepsis or thromboembolism. It is urged that all foreign bodies in the heart or great vessels be retrieved, even if seemingly innocuous clinically.
Effects of scaffold composition and architecture on human nasal chondrocyte redifferentiation and cartilaginous matrix deposition
Authors: Sylvie Miot, Tim Woodfield, Alma U. Daniels, Rosemarie Suetterlin, Iman Peterschmitt, Michael Heberer, Clemens A. van Blitterswijk, Jens Riesle, Ivan Martin
Journal: Biomaterials (2004)
Consumer organisations criticise influence of drug companies
Authors: Zosia Kmietowicz
Journal: BMJ (2004)

The pharmaceutical industry operates in a way that puts profits before public health, members of parliament (MPs) heard last week. And the regulatory authorities, which are meant to ensure the safety of drugs and protect the public, collude with the industry, they were told.

Testimonies from five doctors and two consumer champions, who were being questioned by the health select committee for its inquiry into the influence of the pharmaceutical industry, built a picture of an industry that creates health anxieties among the public to boost its profits.

At the same time, withholding unfavourable trial results and controlling what research gets published ensures that doctors get the messages that companies want to promote, the committee heard at the second public sitting of its inquiry.

Public awareness campaigns are part of a “multipronged marketing approach” that are commonly employed by drug companies to “gain further control over what medicines are being prescribed and to whom,” said Graham Vidler, head of policy at the consumer organisation Which?, formerly known as the Consumers' Association.

“These can often be for quite trivial conditions, such as toenail infections, and they encourage patients to go and see their general practitioner, often in quite strong terms,” said Mr Vidler. “At the same time the industry will be advertising drugs to …
Erythema gyratum repens. A case studied with immunofluorescence, immunoelectron microscopy and immunohistochemistry
Authors: F. CAUX, C. LEBBE, E. THOMINE, B. BENYAHIA, B. FLAGEUL, P. JOLY, M. RYBOJAD, P. MOREL
Journal: British Journal of Dermatology (1994)

Summary We report a patient with erythema gyratum repens (EGR), in whom a bronchial carcinoma was found. Direct immunofluorescence revealed granular deposits of immunoglobulins at the basement membrane zone (BMZ) in the skin, and in the lung tumour. Direct immunoelectron microscopy showed that the immune deposits were localized just beneath the lamina densa. Indirect immuno- fluorescence revealed circulating anti-BMZ antibodies. Immunohistochemical staining, using anti- transforming growth factor-β, anti-epidermal growth factor receptor, antivimentin and anti-α-actin, was found to be more intense in the lesional skin and the lung tumour than in normal tissues. Possible mechanisms in the pathogenesis of EGR are discussed.
Abstract 5335: Identification and molecular characterization of pancreatic tumor-initiating cells
Authors: Christina Vorvis, George A. Poultsides, Jeffrey A. Norton, Dimitrios Iliopoulos
Journal: Cancer Research (2012)

Abstract Pancreatic cancer has the worst prognosis of any major malignancy with complex etiology involving both environmental and genetic factors. Despite increasing knowledge in tumor biology, the treatment efficacy in pancreatic cancers has not improved significantly over the past decade. Thus, the identification of novel molecular pathways involved in pancreatic oncogenesis and the development of new and potent therapeutic options are highly desirable. The realization that tumors themselves function as complex organs birthed the concept that cancer cells with tumor-initiating properties of stem cells may be the key drivers of the complex machinery behind oncogenesis. Tumor-initiating cells (TICs) have been studied extensively in the hematopoietic system, however it is not known which subpopulation has the highest tumor-initiating potential in pancreatic cancer. We have identified that the CD133+/CD44+/ALDH1+ cell population derived from 31 pancreatic adenocarcinomas and 6 pancreatic cancer cell lines, has the highest tumorigenic potential, assessed by in vivo dilution tumor propagation assays in highly immunodeficient (NOD-SCID IL2Rγ-/-) mice. In addition, this population has the highest sphere-forming capacity and is highly resistant to gemcitabine treatment in comparison to the other subpopulations. RNA-sequencing analysis in CD133−/CD44−/ALDH1− and CD133+/CD44+/ALDH1+ subpopulations derived from BxPC3 pancreatic cells revealed the transcriptomic alterations between these cell types. Furthermore, gene network analysis revealed enrichment of inflammatory and lipid metabolism networks in pancreatic TICs, suggesting the potential role of inflammation and lipid metabolism in pancreatic TIC function. In addition, a gene network-based FDA-approved chemical library screen revealed that metformin perturbs the activated networks in pancreatic TICs leading to the suppression of their growth. Metformin suppressed pancreatic cancer growth, through suppression of pancreatic TICs, in different pancreatic cancer mouse models. Overall, we propose the identification of a novel pancreatic cancer subpopulation which harbors tumor-initiating properties and is regulated by inflammatory signals, contributing to our understanding of how inflammation is linked to pancreatic oncogenesis in the molecular level. Furthermore, by following a novel strategy, we have identified that metformin suppresses pancreatic tumor growth and relapse through inhibition of pancreatic TIC growth. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 5335. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-5335
Interface Between Basic Medical Sciences and Their Clinical Branches
Authors: DeWitt Stetten
Journal: JAMA (1964)

BY A singularly happy circumstance our program committee has chosen the term "interface" to describe the barrier which exists between the two traditional portions of the medical school represented by the basic sciences and the clinical sciences. The metaphor implied seems to me to be fairly profound and to merit brief consideration. An interface, you will recall, is a surface which separates two immiscible phases such as oil and water. Acting along the interface is a force which is always striving to minimize the area of this surface; this force is called surface tension. Surface tension results directly from the attractive forces between the molecules of a homogeneous population and the absence of comparable attractions between heterogeneous molecules. If this tension falls, as it approaches zero, the interface will disappear and the phases are now said to be miscible. Decline in surface tension may be produced by additives called "detergents."
Leukaemia in Childhood after Antenatal Exposure to X Rays
Authors: T. L. T. Lewis
Journal: BMJ (1960)

Although the figures obtained so far are not large enough to show a tendency for irradiation of the fetus to cause one case of leukemia in 40,000 births they do show that the tendency is not very much greater. The incidence of 8 leukemic deaths per 16,948 live births, 1 in 2,118, is slightly higher for Queen Charlotte's Hospital than for the country as a whole but this is due to the much higher incidence of leukemic deaths in the nonirradiated (control) group, 1 in 1,808, compared with the irradiated group, 1 in 4,291, and cannot therefore have been caused by irradiation. (auth)
Interleukin-17-producing CD4+ T cells increase with severity of liver damage in patients with chronic hepatitis B
Authors: Ji-Yuan Zhang, Zheng Zhang, Fang Lin, Zheng-Sheng Zou, Ruo-Nan Xu, Lei Jin, Jun-Liang Fu, Feng Shi, Ming Shi, Hui-Fen Wang, Fu-Sheng Wang
Journal: Hepatology (2009)

Interleukin-17 (IL-17)-producing CD4(+) T cells (Th17)-mediated immune response has been demonstrated to play a critical role in inflammation-associated disease; however, its role in chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection remains unknown. Here we characterized peripheral and intrahepatic Th17 cells and analyzed their association with liver injury in a cohort of HBV-infected patients including 66 with chronic hepatitis B (CHB), 23 with HBV-associated acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF), and 30 healthy subjects as controls. The frequency of circulating Th17 cells increased with disease progression from CHB (mean, 4.34%) to ACLF (mean, 5.62%) patients versus healthy controls (mean, 2.42%). Th17 cells were also found to be largely accumulated in the livers of CHB patients. The increases in circulating and intrahepatic Th17 cells positively correlated with plasma viral load, serum alanine aminotransferase levels, and histological activity index. In vitro, IL-17 can promote the activation of myeloid dendritic cells and monocytes and enhance the capacity to produce proinflammatory cytokines IL-1beta, IL-6, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha, and IL-23 in both CHB patients and healthy subjects. In addition, the concentration of serum Th17-associated cytokines was also increased in CHB and ACLF patients.Th17 cells are highly enriched in both peripheral blood and liver of CHB patients, and exhibit a potential to exacerbate liver damage during chronic HBV infection.
The Role of Endothelin-Converting Enzyme-1 in the Development of α <sub>1</sub> -Adrenergic-Stimulated Hypertrophy in Cultured Neonatal Rat Cardiac Myocytes
Authors: Satoshi Kaburagi, Koji Hasegawa, Tatsuya Morimoto, Makoto Araki, Tatsuya Sawamura, Tomoh Masaki, Shigetake Sasayama
Journal: Circulation (1999)

Background —Accumulating evidence suggests that the local synthesis of endothelin-1 (ET-1) plays a role in the development of heart failure in vivo. We investigated the role of endothelin-converting enzyme-1 (ECE-1), which mediates the conversion of big ET-1 to mature ET-1, in the development of α 1 -adrenergic–stimulated hypertrophy in cultured neonatal rat cardiac myocytes. Methods and Results —Phenylephrine (PE) induced the expression of ET-1 in rat cardiac myocytes and accelerated the conversion of big ET-1 to ET-1. The ECE-1 mRNA levels were markedly increased 3 hours after PE stimulation (3.6-fold compared with saline stimulation, P &lt;0.005). A specific ECE-1 antagonist, FR901533, inhibited the PE-stimulated increase in protein synthesis rate by 45% ( P &lt;0.05). As genetic markers for the hypertrophic response, FR901533 inhibited the PE-stimulated transcriptional activities of the 3.5-kb β-myosin heavy chain promoter by 79% ( P &lt;0.01) but did not affect that of the 3.4-kb atrial natriuretic factor ( ANF ) promoter. In Bio14.6 Syrian cardiomyopathic hamsters, ventricular ET-1 and ANF mRNA levels did not correlate at 2 different stages. Conclusions —ET-1-independent pathways may mediate activation of the ANF gene program in ventricular myocytes both in vitro and in vivo. These results also indicate that the conversion of big ET-1 to ET-1 in rat cardiac myocytes is required for the development of α 1 -adrenergic-stimulated hypertrophy and β-myosin heavy chain gene transcription.
771-6 Heterogenous Repolarization Parameters in Human Endo- and Epicardial Tissue After Application of Class-III Agent d-Sotalol in Ischemic and Dilated Cardiomypathy
Authors: Harald Marschang, Thorsten Beyer, Maria Montero, Wolfgang Kübler, Johannes Brachmann
Journal: Journal of the American College of Cardiology (1995)
Effect of Various Hormones, Isotopes, and Isotope-Tagged Hormones on Breast Cancer in Rats
Authors: William S. Fletcher
Journal: JAMA (1965)

Since the discovery that iodine 131 would concentrate selectively in the thyroid, scientists have searched for other radioisotopes which have a predilection for a particular tissue or organ. Unfortunately no other isotopes have been found that have the capacity to localize as dramatically as iodine does in the thyroid, and it is only recently that we have recognized the concept of attaching an isotope to a particular compound or substance which will be concentrated selectively at a specific site in a biological system. It is the purpose of these studies to explore the possibility of utilizing these concepts in the diagnosis and treatment of hormone sensitive neoplasms.  At the present time the diagnosis of hormone sensitivity of a given tumor can be established only by trial. At best, this results in a loss of time for the patient who might better be treated by some alternative method. At worst, the
Near-infrared fluorescent probes for imaging of amyloid plaques in Alzheimer׳s disease
Authors: Hongjuan Tong, Kaiyan Lou, Wei Wang
Journal: Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B (2015)

One of the early pathological hallmarks of Alzheimer׳s disease (AD) is the deposition of amyloid-β (Aβ) plaques in the brain. There has been a tremendous interest in the development of Aβ plaques imaging probes for early diagnosis of AD in the past decades. Optical imaging, particularly near-infrared fluorescence (NIRF) imaging, has emerged as a safe, low cost, real-time, and widely available technique, providing an attractive approach for in vivo detection of Aβ plaques among many different imaging techniques. In this review, we provide a brief overview of the state-of-the-art development of NIRF Aβ probes and their in vitro and in vivo applications with special focus on design strategies and optical, binding, and brain-kinetic properties.