tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
Propionibacterium acnes in a spondylitis with palmoplantar pustulosis.
Authors: J.C Gerster, R Lagier, J.J Livio
Journal: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases (1990)

Amyloidosis in rheumatic diseasesSir: I read with interest the excellent review on amyloidosis in rheumatic diseases by Dhillon et al.'In Israel we have had an opportunity to witness the outstanding results obtained with colchicine in preventing amyloidosis in familial Mediterranean fever2 and the relative safety of this drug.Furthermore, there are some reports on the beneficial effect of colchicine in primary amyloidosis3 and secondary amyloidosis of ulcerative colitis.4There is also experimental evidence that colchicine inhibits amyloid syn- thesis.5As stated by Dhillon, children with systemic onset, juvenile chronic arthritis and persistent disease activity are at high risk for developing amyloidosis.I feel, therefore, that, at least in this high risk group, treatment with colchicine should be added in an attempt to prevent this life threatening complication.
An autoimmune biliary disease mouse model for primary biliary cirrhosis: Something for everyone
Authors: Andrew L. Mason, Hartmut Jaeschke, Kevin Mullen, Darius Moradpour
Journal: Hepatology (2006)

Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is an autoimmune disease with a strong genetic component characterized by biliary ductular inflammation with eventual liver cirrhosis. The serologic hallmark of PBC is antimitochondrial antibodies that react with the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex, targeting the inner lipoyl domain of the E2 subunit (anti-PDC-E2). Herein we demonstrate that NOD.c3c4 mice congenically derived from the non-obese diabetic strain develop an autoimmune biliary disease (ABD) that models human PBC. NOD.c3c4 (at 9-10 wk, before significant biliary pathology) develop antibodies to PDC-E2 that are specific for the inner lipoyl domain. Affected areas of biliary epithelium are infiltrated with CD3+, CD4+, and CD8+ T cells, and treatment of NOD.c3c4 mice with monoclonal antibody to CD3 protects from ABD. Furthermore, NOD.c3c4-scid mice develop disease after adoptive transfer of splenocytes or CD4+ T cells, demonstrating a central role for T cells in pathogenesis. Histological analysis reveals destructive cholangitis, granuloma formation, and eosinophilic infiltration as seen in PBC, although, unlike PBC, the extrahepatic biliary ducts are also affected. Using a congenic mapping approach, we define the first ABD (Abd) locus, Abd1. These results identify the NOD.c3c4 mouse as the first spontaneous mouse model of PBC.
Physician Participation in Assisted Suicide
Authors: Kenneth Kipnis
Journal: JAMA (1990)

<h3>To the Editor.—</h3> The appearance of the article entitled "Physician Participation in Assisted Suicide" in<i>JAMA</i>is an encouraging sign that this issue is receiving attention at the highest levels of the medical profession. Dr Orentlicher,<sup>1</sup>Ethics and Health Policy Counsel, has provided a fair-minded review of the trend toward permissibility and has marshalled arguments against assisting suicide. Unfortunately, these arguments are wanting. Dr Orentlicher begins by reminding us that the American Medical Association's Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs, following the Hippocratic Oath, has held that, although physicians may intend to save life and relieve suffering, they may not intend as a "primary purpose" the deaths of their patients. Since we are not told how to derive these truths, we have either unsupported assertions (not an argument at all) or, in the alternative, an appeal to traditional authority. Because the Hippocratic Oath also prohibits abortion and "cutting for
Knowledge of HIV Antibody Status and Decisions to Continue or Terminate Pregnancy Among Intravenous Drug Users
Authors: Peter A. Selwyn
Journal: JAMA (1989)

We studied decisions to continue or terminate pregnancy among human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-seropositive (+) and -seronegative (-) intravenous drug users informed of HIV antibody status before 24 weeks' gestation. Fourteen (50%) of 28 HIV+ vs 16 (44%) of 36 HIV- women chose to terminate their pregnancies. In retrospective interviews, HIV+ women were more likely to have perceived their risk of perinatal HIV transmission to be greater than or equal to 50% and, among those who terminated pregnancy, to cite this concern as an important factor in their decision. However, decisions to terminate pregnancy were predicted more readily by pregnancy-related variables such as prior elective abortion, a negative emotional reaction to pregnancy, and whether the pregnancy had been unplanned. Women who were HIV+ and chose to continue their pregnancies cited the desire for a child, religious beliefs, and family pressure as the most important factors in their decisions. Results indicate that while concerns about perinatal transmission of HIV may lead to decisions to terminate pregnancy in certain cases, there may be other determinants of pregnancy decisions in this population. Counseling of HIV-infected women must address not only perinatal transmission but also the sociocultural and behavioral context in which pregnancy decision making takes place.Decisions to terminate or continue pregnancy among human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) seropositive (+) and seronegative (-) intravenous drug users in a New York City methadone maintenance treatment program were examined to determine the effect of knowledge of HIV status on decisions about pregnancy in HIV infected and at-risk women. All women were informed of their HIV antibody status prior to 24 weeks gestation. In retrospective interviews, seropositive women who terminated pregnancy cited fear of AIDS for themselves or their infants as an important factor in their decision. However, pregnancy termination for both HIV+ and HIV- women was best predicted by a prior history of elective abortion, whether the pregnancy was unplanned, and whether the woman reported feeling sad or scared upon learning she was pregnant. Desire for a child and religious beliefs were reported as the main reasons to continue pregnancy by both groups.
Bacterial Meningitis: Recent Advances in Pathophysiology and Treatment
Authors: Allan R. Tunkel
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (1990)

To review recent advances in the understanding of pathogenic and pathophysiologic mechanisms underlying bacterial meningitis that may lead to the development of adjunctive strategies for treating this disorder.Studies published from 1975 to 1989 were identified using Index Medicus and by reviewing the bibliographies of identified articles.We reviewed the experimental and human studies evaluating pathogenesis, pathophysiology, and antimicrobial treatment of bacterial meningitis, as well as those reviews that have contributed to our understanding of meningitis.We evaluated the data on the pathogenesis, pathophysiology, and treatment of bacterial meningitis and considered in depth the information from animal models that may have potentially important applications in the treatment of human disease.Penicillin and ampicillin remain the drugs of choice for meningitis caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae and Neisseria meningitidis. The third-generation cephalosporins have revolutionized the treatment of gram-negative bacillary meningitis; one such agent, ceftazidime, is also useful for treating Pseudomonas aeruginosa meningitis. Modification of subarachnoid space inflammation by anti-inflammatory agents may lessen many of the pathophysiologic consequences of bacterial meningitis. A recent study of adjunctive dexamethasone therapy in infants and children with bacterial meningitis showed that the incidence of long-term neurologic sequelae was lower in the corticosteroid group.Future therapy for bacterial meningitis will use recent developments in the understanding of pathogenic and pathophysiologic mechanisms underlying this disease. Additional studies using monoclonal antibodies against specific virulence factors and investigations into the production of inflammatory cytokines in response to bacterial cell products may lead to additional treatments that decrease the high morbidity and mortality in patients with bacterial meningitis.
Dual innervation of white adipose tissue: some evidence for parasympathetic nervous system involvement
Authors: Timothy J. Bartness
Journal: Journal of Clinical Investigation (2002)

The regulation of total body fat was first formally suggested in the lipostatic theory of Kennedy (1), and since that time, the mechanisms underlying the control of lipid energy stores have been sought. The waxing and waning of circulating factors that promote lipid storage or mobilization (e.g., insulin and adrenal medullary catecholamines, respectively) may be the method by which the brain adjusts metabolism as part of a feedback system regulating body fat levels. In other systems, fine and rapid control of biological responses requires direct neural involvement. For example, cardiac function is regulated in this manner through the opposing effects of its innervation by the two arms of the autonomic nervous system: the sympathetic (SNS) and parasympathetic (PSNS) nervous systems. Dual autonomic nervous system innervation of peripheral tissues is the rule, except for sweat glands, which are thought only to have SNS innervation, but until now, such dual innervation has not been shown for either brown adipose tissue or white adipose tissue (WAT). In this issue of the JCI, Kreier et al. (2) present neuroanatomical and functional evidence for the PSNS innervation of WAT, which complements the recent substantiation of the SNS innervation of this tissue (3, 4). Given the general lack of appreciation of the innervation of WAT until recently, despite many years of supportive functional and neuroanatomical evidence (for review see ref. 5), some discussion of WAT innervation seems warranted.
Cardiac abnormalities on nuclear magnetic resonance imaging in apparently young healthy subjects with frequent ventricular arrhythmias
Authors: Angelica Deloqu, Alfonso Sestito, Luigi Natale, Emanuela Pardeo, Gabriella De Rosa, Filippo Crea, Fulvio Bellocci, Gaetano A. Lanza
Journal: Journal of the American College of Cardiology (2003)
Animals in Research: The American Medical Association's Position
Authors: Ron Allison
Journal: JAMA (1990)

To the Editor.—  Rather than adopting a rigorous scientific approach, the American Medical Association continues its often hysterical  for every medical breakthrough defense of animal research. To deny that the results of animal research are all too often detrimental to humans, to deny as well that there is any abuse of laboratory animals, is both unscientific and unethical.  Even more worrisome is your apparent glossing over of medications developed and tested in animals that have proved toxic and fatal to humans. A recent example would be flecainide. Despite 10 years of the most sophisticated animal research, which showed both safety and efficacy, the drug may have caused as many as 3000 fatalities.1  Moreover, animal research is often responsible for the loss or unacceptable delay of worthy therapies. Based on the published results of 5 years of animal research, the immunomodulator FK506 was thought to be too toxic
GPx2 Suppression of H2O2 Stress Links the Formation of Differentiated Tumor Mass to Metastatic Capacity in Colorectal Cancer
Authors: Benjamin L. Emmink, Jamila Laoukili, Anna P. Kipp, Jan Koster, Klaas M. Govaert, Szabolcs Fatrai, Andre Verheem, Ernst J.A. Steller, Regina Brigelius-Flohé, Connie R. Jimenez, Inne H.M. Borel Rinkes, Onno Kranenburg
Journal: Cancer Research (2014)

Abstract Colorectal tumorigenesis is accompanied by the generation of oxidative stress, but how this controls tumor development is poorly understood. Here, we studied how the H2O2-reducing enzyme glutathione peroxidase 2 (GPx2) regulates H2O2 stress and differentiation in patient-derived “colonosphere” cultures. GPx2 silencing caused accumulation of radical oxygen species, sensitization to H2O2-induced apoptosis, and strongly reduced clone- and metastasis-forming capacity. Neutralization of radical oxygen species restored clonogenic capacity. Surprisingly, GPx2-suppressed cells also lacked differentiation potential and formed slow-growing undifferentiated tumors. GPx2 overexpression stimulated multilineage differentiation, proliferation, and tumor growth without reducing the tumor-initiating capacity. Finally, GPx2 expression was inversely correlated with H2O2-stress signatures in human colon tumor cohorts, but positively correlated with differentiation and proliferation. Moreover, high GPx2 expression was associated with early tumor recurrence, particularly in the recently identified aggressive subtype of human colon cancer. We conclude that H2O2 neutralization by GPx2 is essential for maintaining clonogenic and metastatic capacity, but also for the generation of differentiated proliferating tumor mass. The results reveal an unexpected redox-controlled link between tumor mass formation and metastatic capacity. Cancer Res; 74(22); 6717–30. ©2014 AACR.
293 PREDICTORS OF RELAPSE AMONG PATIENTS TREATED WITH STANDARD OR INDUCTION DOSE PEGINTERFERON ALFA-2A (40KD) COMBINED WITH STANDARD OR HIGHER DOSE RIBAVIRIN IN DIFFICULT-TO-CURE PATIENTS
Authors: K.R. Reddy, M.L. Shiffman, M. Rodriguez-Torres, I. Bakulin, H. Cheinquer, A. Horban, M. El-Kashab, L. Gheohge, P. Buggisch, M. Rabbia, M. McKenna, S.A. Harrison
Journal: Journal of Hepatology (2010)
FLUORESCENCE ARTIFICIALLY PRODUCED IN THE HUMAN ORGANISMBY THE X-RAY, BY RADIUM AND BY ELECTRIC DISCHARGES, AS A THERAPEUTIC METHOD.
Authors: WILLIAM JAMES MORTON
Journal: JAMA (1905)

The therapeutic method outlined in this paper and in previous publications consists in the saturation of the human organism in whole or in part with a medicine endowed with the property of fluorescence (or phosphorescence), and in then submitting this patient to the action of<i>x</i>-rays or of the radium radiation or of highfrequency currents. It is, therefore, a combined treatment. I have termed it artificial fluorescence. The sum total of my object was to develop light within tissue in the confidence that the well-known external effects of this agency might now be duplicated internally and especially in the expectation that certain wave lengths of the visible spectrum, like the blue-violet and the yellow-green, might exert specialized effects. But it is also obvious that the wave lengths of the visible spectrum can not be reasonably supposed to be the sole output and resultant of the absorbed energy of the
Hepatosplenomegaly, Abdominal Pain, Anemia, and Bone Lesions
Authors: E. Beutler, M. T. Southgate
Journal: JAMA (1973)

[Protocol]  A 23-year-old white woman was admitted to City of Hope Medical Center four years ago for abdominal pain of three days' duration. The pain was severe and generalized and was aggravated by pressure and by deep breathing. She had vomited once.  The patient's medical history began at the age of 3 years with an episode of pain in her left leg. A definitive diagnosis was not made, but a bruise and poliomyelitis were considered; treatment consisted of hot packs. Episodes of leg pain recurred, and when she was 5 years old her parents noted that she bruised very easily. She also developed pain in her right upper arm together with slight fever. A mass in the left upper quadrant (spleen) was first noted at this time. Hemoglobin value was 68% with a red blood cell (RBC) count of 3,800,000/cu mm; the platelet count was normal and the white blood
Contribution of the Adrenal Cortex to Renal and Renoprival Hypertension
Authors: HARRIET P. DUSTAN, GEORGES M. C. MASSON
Journal: Circulation (1958)

Association of the adrenal cortex with renal hypertension lead to the conclusion that several mechanisms are operating. First, hypertension is not, or is poorly sustained in true adrenal failure, and mild failure seems to impair vascular responsiveness. This indicates a permissive function of the adrenal in renal hypertension. Furthermore, degrees of renal injury or of hypercorticoidism which are not of themselves very pressor may cause severe hypertension when they are added together. This additive aspect is probably closely related to the sensitizing effect of adrenal steroids on renal pressor activity and underlies the so-called renin-DCA syndrome. It may involve not only an enhanced pressor responsiveness but also a weakening of vessel walls. Lastly, the effects of renin and renal hypertension on the zona glomerulosa suggest that the renal pressor system has a direct effect on the adrenal cortex which would tend to add cortical pressor to existing renal pressor activity and thus sustain renal hypertension.
Acidic particles and lung function in children. A summer camp study in the Austrian Alps.
Authors: M J Studnicka, T Frischer, R Meinert, A Studnicka-Benke, K Hajek, J D Spengler, M G Neumann
Journal: American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine (1995)

Epidemiological studies have repeatedly demonstrated the effects of acidic particles on lung function. Three consecutive panels of children participating in a summer camp in the Austrian Alps were investigated. On-site pollution assessment consisted of 24-h measurements of particulate matter < 10 microns and the hydrogen, sulfate, and ammonium ion components. The 24-h maximums of ozone and daily pollen counts were also established. For 47, 45, and 41 subjects, daily FEV1, FVC, and peak expiratory flow were recorded. Fifteen percent, 11%, and 5% of participants, respectively, reported current asthma medication, indicating a markedly increased prevalence of respiratory disease. Mean levels of ambient pollutants were approximately 15% higher for the first panel than for the other two panels, but the hydrogen ion (H+) component was twice as high for Panel 1. The maximum H+ exposure during Panel 1 was 84 nmol/m3 (4 micrograms/m3 H2SO4 equivalent). For FEV1 in Panel 1, a significant decrease of -0.99 ml per nmol/m3 H+ (p = 0.01) was observed. For Panel 2, the FEV1/H+ coefficient was found to be similar (-0.74 ml per nmol/m3 H+; p = 0.28), while for Panel 3 it was in the opposite direction (0.10 ml per nmol/m3 H+; p = 0.83). The decrease in FEV1 observed in Panel 1 was more pronounced when the mean exposure during the previous 4 d was considered (-2.99 ml FEV1 per nmol/m3 H+; p = 0.004). We conclude that summer haze acidic particles may be associated with transient decreases in lung function in children.
Hepatitis outbreak is traced to contaminated needles and barber shop razors, study shows
Authors: M. Kay
Journal: BMJ (2012)

A village in the Ernakulam district in Kerala, India, has experienced a serious outbreak of hepatitis B virus, which has been traced to injections with contaminated needles and transmission in barber shops.

The origins of the outbreak were discovered after the local government commissioned a private firm, the Manipal Centre for Virus Research (MCVR), to carry out a disease mapping and risk factor study.

The centre’s head, G Arunkumar, said that the hepatitis B virus infection was possibly introduced into the population before 2011, …
Clinical effectiveness of a staff training intervention in mental health inpatient rehabilitation units designed to increase patients' engagement in activities (the Rehabilitation Effectiveness for Activities for Life [REAL] study): single-blind, cluster-randomised controlled trial
Authors: Helen Killaspy, Louise Marston, Nicholas Green, Isobel Harrison, Melanie Lean, Sarah Cook, Tim Mundy, Thomas Craig, Frank Holloway, Gerard Leavey, Leonardo Koeser, Paul McCrone, Maurice Arbuthnott, Rumana Z Omar, Michael King
Journal: The Lancet Psychiatry (2015)

BackgroundMental health inpatient rehabilitation services focus on people with complex psychosis who have, for example, treatment-refractory symptoms, cognitive impairment, and severe negative symptoms, which impair functioning and require lengthy admission. Engagement in activities could lead to improvement in negative symptoms and function, but few trials have been done. We aimed to investigate the effectiveness of a staff training intervention to increase patients' engagement in activities.MethodsWe did a single-blind, two-arm, cluster-randomised controlled trial in 40 mental health inpatient rehabilitation units across England. Units were randomly allocated to either a manual-based staff training programme delivered by a small intervention team (intervention group, n=20) or standard care (control group, n=20). The primary outcome was patients' engagement in activities 12 months after randomisation, measured with the time use diary. With this measure, both the degree of engagement in an activity and its complexity are recorded four times a day for a week, rated on a scale of 0–4 for every period (maximum score of 112). Analysis was by intention-to-treat. Random-effects models were used to compare outcomes between study groups. Cost-effectiveness was assessed by combining service costs with the primary outcome. This study is registered with Current Controlled Trials (ISRCTN25898179).FindingsPatients' engagement in activities did not differ between study groups (coefficient 1·44, 95% CI −1·35 to 4·24). An extra £101 was needed to achieve a 1% increase in patients' engagement in activities with the study intervention.InterpretationOur training intervention did not increase patients' engagement in activities after 12 months of follow-up. This failure could be attributable to inadequate implementation of the intervention, a high turnover of patients in the intervention units, competing priorities on staff time, high levels of patients' morbidity, and ceiling effects because of the high quality of standard care delivered. Further studies are needed to identify interventions that can improve outcomes for people with severe and complex psychosis.FundingNational Institute for Health Research.
Association of alkaline-phosphatase-positive reticulum cells in bone marrow with granulocytic precursors.
Authors: H Westen, D F Bainton
Journal: The Journal of Experimental Medicine (1979)

In the bone marrow, an elaborate stroma forms the structural basis of the hemopoietic microenvironment. In this study, two different types of stromal cells were identified with certainty on tissue sections of intact bone marrow of rats and mice using light and electron microscopic histochemistry: (a) a fibroblast-type of reticulum cell which is characterized by having alkaline phosphatase associated with its plasma membrane. We refer to this cell as the alkaline-phosphatase-positive reticulum cell (Al-RC). It is closely associated with granulocytic precursors, particularly myeloblasts and neutrophilic promyelocytes. These reticulum cells may be found throughout the marrow but are concentrated near the endosteum. (b) a macrophage-type of reticulum cell which is characterized by its abundance of lysosomal acid phosphatase and is mainly associated with erythroid precursors (as observed by others). In contrast to the above-mentioned cell type, this latter cell was found to be distributed uniformly throughout the marrow. We speculate that the Al-RC are mesenchymal stromal cells necessary for granulocytic differentiation in bone marrow.
A Novel Prion Disease Associated with Diarrhea and Autonomic Neuropathy
Authors: Simon Mead, Sonia Gandhi, Jon Beck, Diana Caine, Dilip Gajulapalli, Christopher Carswell, Harpreet Hyare, Susan Joiner, Hilary Ayling, Tammaryn Lashley, Jacqueline M. Linehan, Huda Al-Doujaily, Bernadette Sharps, Tamas Revesz, Malin K. Sandberg, Mary M. Reilly, Martin Koltzenburg, Alastair Forbes, Peter Rudge, Sebastian Brandner, Jason D. Warren, Jonathan D.F. Wadsworth, Nicholas W. Wood, Janice L. Holton, John Collinge
Journal: New England Journal of Medicine (2013)

Human prion diseases, although variable in clinicopathological phenotype, generally present as neurologic or neuropsychiatric conditions associated with rapid multifocal central nervous system degeneration that is usually dominated by dementia and cerebellar ataxia. Approximately 15% of cases of recognized prion disease are inherited and associated with coding mutations in the gene encoding prion protein (PRNP). The availability of genetic diagnosis has led to a progressive broadening of the recognized spectrum of disease.