tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
Collagen-mimetic peptide-modifiable hydrogels for articular cartilage regeneration
Authors: Paresh A. Parmar, Lesley W. Chow, Jean-Philippe St-Pierre, Christine-Maria Horejs, Yong Y. Peng, Jerome A. Werkmeister, John A.M. Ramshaw, Molly M. Stevens
Journal: Biomaterials (2015)

Regenerative medicine strategies for restoring articular cartilage face significant challenges to recreate the complex and dynamic biochemical and biomechanical functions of native tissues. As an approach to recapitulate the complexity of the extracellular matrix, collagen-mimetic proteins offer a modular template to incorporate bioactive and biodegradable moieties into a single construct. We modified a Streptococcal collagen-like 2 protein with hyaluronic acid (HA) or chondroitin sulfate (CS)-binding peptides and then cross-linked with a matrix metalloproteinase 7 (MMP7)-sensitive peptide to form biodegradable hydrogels. Human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) encapsulated in these hydrogels exhibited improved viability and significantly enhanced chondrogenic differentiation compared to controls that were not functionalized with glycosaminoglycan-binding peptides. Hydrogels functionalized with CS-binding peptides also led to significantly higher MMP7 gene expression and activity while the HA-binding peptides significantly increased chondrogenic differentiation of the hMSCs. Our results highlight the potential of this novel biomaterial to modulate cell-mediated processes and create functional tissue engineered constructs for regenerative medicine applications.
The processing and utilization of hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor following partial hepatectomy in the rat
Authors: Peter Pediaditakis, Juan Carlos Lopez-Talavera, Bryon Petersen, Satdarshan P. S. Monga, George K. Michalopoulos
Journal: Hepatology (2001)

Hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor (HGF/SF) is a pluripotent growth factor capable of acting as a motogen, a morphogen, and a mitogen. Originally, HGF/SF was found as a blood-borne mitogen for hepatocytes and has since been determined to be very important in liver repair. Previous studies have established that HGF/SF must be proteolytically cleaved to elicit its effects. After liver injury by toxins such as carbon tetrachloride or after surgical resection, partial hepatectomy (PHX), HGF/SF concentrations increase in the blood. The aims of this study were to examine (1) which form of HGF/SF is present in the normal liver, (2) which form is present in the regenerating liver after PHX, and (3) if the HGF/SF used after PHX is derived from existing liver reservoirs. Both single-chain HGF/SF and active two-chain HGF/SF are present in normal liver, with the former being the dominant form. After PHX, the liver can be described as having two phases with regard to the use of endogenous HGF/SF. The first phase from 0 to 3 hours is the consumptive phase and is characterized by a decrease in both single-chain HGF/SF and active two-chain HGF/SF. The second phase is the productive phase. It is characterized by a pronounced reappearance of both single-chain HGF/SF as well as two-chain HGF/SF. The activation index shows a 5-fold increase over sham operations during the productive phase. The use of radiolabeled HGF/SF showed that during the first 3 hours, HGF/SF is used in part from hepatic stores. Furthermore, during the first 3 hours after PHX, only active two-chain HGF/SF is seen in the plasma.
Platelet Monoamine Oxidase Values and Genetic Heterogeneity in Schizophrenia Research
Authors: Miron Baron
Journal: JAMA (1981)

Platelet monoamine oxidase (MAO) activity is significantly reduced in chronic schizophrenics with family history of schizophrenia. The degree of reduction is related to the extent of genetic load. Schizophrenics with no affected relatives do not differ from control subjects. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis of genetic heterogeneity in schizophrenia. Discrepancies among previously reported data sets can thus be explained by overrepresentation of nongenetic phenocopies with normal MAO levels. The implications for biologic and genetic research in schizophrenia are discussed.
Trouble from a Literary Reference
Authors: Howard Fischer
Journal: New England Journal of Medicine (1999)

To the Editor: A 51-year-old high-school teacher had a myocardial infarction and was taken to a community hospital in cardiogenic shock. His condition was stabilized, and he was transferred to a university hospital, where he spent seven days in the coronary care unit. While in this unit, he reported that the restrictions on his movement due to the numerous intravenous lines, the infusion pumps, and the nasal cannula made him feel as if he were “in Peter Coffin's inn.” Peter Coffin owns the Spouter-Inn, a lodging house, in Herman Melville's 1851 novel Moby-Dick. There, Ishmael, the narrator, must share a . . .
Metal stents in the oesophagus.
Authors: R P Sturgess, A I Morris
Journal: Gut (1995)

The majority of drugs have at least two names (the proprietary or brand name, and the non-proprietary or generic name) but some have many more when different brand names are adopted by different manufacturers. Often the names do not indicate the nature of the drug or drug mixture, and, by looking or sounding similar or by incorporating numbers or letters, may lead to confusion.<sup>1</sup> Errors in prescribing, dispensing and administration inevitably follow.
DOUBLE-BLIND TRIAL OF ZINC SULPHATE IN THE TREATMENT OF CHRONIC VENOUS LEG ULCERATION
Authors: M. W. GREAVES, F. A. IVE
Journal: British Journal of Dermatology (1972)

Summary.— The results of a double-blind trial of zinc sulphate in patients with chronic venous leg ulceration are reported. No significantly increased rate of healing was observed in the zinc-treated group.
Accessory Splenic Tissue Detection With Tc-99m Labeled WBC in a Post-Splenectomy Patient
Authors: MARK GLAZER, VIDYA V. SAGAR
Journal: Clinical Nuclear Medicine (1995)

A 42-year-old man had back pain and fever. He had a history of splenectomy after a motor vehicle accident 2 years previously. Initial plain film examination was unremarkable. Radionuclide imaging of the chest and abdomen was performed to evaluate for possible infection or abscess formation. After the intravenous injection of 8.4 mCi of Tc-99m labeled white blood cells, imaging of the abdomen was performed and demonstrated four localized areas of increased uptake in the area of the splenic bed. Because of the patient's known history of a motor vehicle accident 2 years earlier with rupture of the spleen, stomach, and diaphragm, the findings on the scan are most likely remnants of splenic tissue.
Treatment of Gout
Authors: Harry F. Klinefelter
Journal: JAMA (1977)

<h3>To the Editor. —</h3> In a recent issue in QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS, there is a question concerning the treatment of recurrent gout in hypertensive patients. The physician who asks the question states that he has bowel irritability with diarrhea from colchicine, but he implies that this occurs only when he takes colchicine to treat an acute attack of gout. All patients with gout should take a maintenance or prophylactic dose of colchicine, 0.6 mg once or twice a day, to prevent attacks. If they are unable to tolerate larger doses of colchicine to treat an attack, they should take phenylbutazone or indomethacin. If his uric acid level is above 10 mg/dl, he should take with colchicine either allopurinol or a uricosuric agent. When one takes allopurinol or a uricosuric agent without colchicine, one is apt to precipitate an attack of gout.
Tear tryptase levels and allergic conjunctivitis
Authors: L. Magrini, S. Bonini, M. Centofanti, M. Schiavone, S. Bonini
Journal: Allergy (1996)

We measured tryptase, a neutral prolease stored in the secretory granules of mast cells, by solid‐phase radioimmunoassay in tears of 12 subjects with vernal keratoconjunctivitis (VKC) during remission phases, nine subjects with seasonal or perennial allergic conjunctivitis, and eight healthy controls. Mean values of tear tryptase levels were significantly ( P&lt;0.02 ) increased in VKC patients (14.5 ± 13 pg/l) when compared to those measured in patients with seasonal or perennial allergic con, junctivitis (0.6 ± 0.1 pgA) and in controls (3.3 ± 3.2 μg/l). In subjects with allergic conjunctivitis, the levels of tryptase, almost undetectable before allergen conjunctival challenge, showed a significant increase in the challenged eye 20 min ‐ but not 6 h ‐ after provocation in 5/9 cases. Our results indicate that VKC, a severe ocular disease characterized by an increased number and abnormal distribution of mast cells in the conjunctiva, also shows elevated levels of tryptase in tears even during remission phases. Evidence of mast‐cell activation, as revealed by a significant increase of tryptase levels in tears, is documented during the early‐phase reaction, but not during the late‐phase reaction, of allergic conjunctivitis patients challenged topically by specific allergen.
"THE BASAL METABOLISM OF MAN IN THE TROPICS"
Authors: H. N. Mukherjee
Journal: JAMA (1926)

<h3>To the Editor:</h3> —My attention has been drawn to Dr. E. F. Du Bois' comments on "Basal Metabolism in Health and Disease." I have also read with interest Dr. S. S. Cohen's letter (The Journal, Jan. 28, 1922, p. 297) and your editorial comment (Dec. 31, 1921). I have been determining the basal metabolic rate in young Bengalese students (aged 22 to 27 years) for some time. Using the Douglas bag and Haldane gas analysis apparatus, I have so far studied fifteen medical students of our college. They show an average basal metabolic rate 9 per cent lower than the generally accepted standards at an average room temperature of 27 C. It would thus appear that metabolism is somewhat decreased in tropical or semitropical countries, though my findings are not so striking as those of de Almeida. It may be mentioned that the urea nitrogen, nonprotein nitrogen, creatinine and cholesterol
Reducing Cholesterol Levels in Elderly Persons
Authors: Mark R. Goldstein
Journal: JAMA (1990)

<h3>To the Editor.—</h3> Drs Benfante and Reed<sup>1</sup>reported that the serum cholesterol level was an independent predictor of coronary heart disease in men older than 65 years in the Honolulu Heart Program. They concluded that an elevated serum cholesterol level in elderly men necessitates further evaluation of lipoprotein levels and possible intervention. Although the relationship between serum cholesterol and coronary heart disease in elderly men in the Honolulu Heart Program is convincing, the authors' suggestion of intervening in elderly men with high cholesterol levels is debatable. Despite the firm relationship between increasing cholesterol levels and increasing coronary heart disease, the relationship between cholesterol levels and overall mortality is less clear. Data from the Framingham Heart Study indicate that after the age of 50 years there is no association between cholesterol levels and overall mortality.<sup>2</sup>Likewise, overall mortality was not related to the cholesterol level of middle-aged men
Laubry-Soulle Syndrome
Authors: Robert L. Slaughter
Journal: JAMA (1975)

To the Editor.—  The Laubry-Soulle syndrome, a syndrome of abnormal collections of gas in the colon and stomach following acute myocardial infarction, was discussed by Palmer (230:1575, 1974). He pointed out that an explanation of this phenomenon had not been offered.  Abnormal collections of gas within the gastrointestinal tract are well recognized to be associated with abnormalities of gastrointestinal motility. Stasis of gas and other intraluminal contents is generally considered to occur more commonly in gastrointestinal hypomotility rather than in hypermotility, disorders with generalized or localized ileus being the classic example. Recent investigations have shown that many of the gastrointestinal-released hormones affect gastrointestinal motility and may play a physiologic role in the regulation of gastrointestinal motility. 1,2 The question then arises as to the possible role of these hormones in the pathogenesis of this syndrome.  With this in mind, it is of interest to note the recent report of Willerson
An Enemy of the People
Authors: Anna Shore
Journal: BMJ (2008)

An Enemy of the People could have been subtitled A medic against the majority. A damning indictment of bourgeois complacency, it was partly a response to criticism of Ibsen’s 1881 play Ghosts, which had scandalised contemporaries with its portrayal of a case of congenital syphilis in a well to do family. The furious reaction of both the conservative and liberal press to Ghosts was to Ibsen evidence of moral hypocrisy latent in late 19th century society. It provoked him into writing An Enemy of the People, which dramatises the unthinking reaction of the masses when confronted with uncomfortable medical truths.

Set in a town on the southern coast of Norway, the play opposes the courage of a local doctor with the spinelessness of those who surround him. Dr Tomas Stockmann is medical officer of the town’s recently opened baths and a prominent figure in the community. The baths were something of a family project, devised and overseen by Stockmann and his brother Peter, the town mayor and chief of police. As summer approaches, many visitors are expected, drawn to the town by the healing properties of the baths. But the prosperity this is set to bring is imperilled when Stockmann reveals to his brother and a local newspaper editor that he has carried out research showing the baths to be “a sink of disease . . . a tremendous health risk.” He explains how he has made “the most conscientious investigation possible,” fuelled by concerns over the high number of water borne conditions found in visitors to the baths, and has found the water to be contaminated by decomposing organic matter and vast quantities of bacteria.

Stockmann is initially encouraged to make this information public and prepares a report for the local press, confident that his conclusions will be accepted by the local townspeople. When, however, it becomes clear that the problem cannot be easily overcome without large public expenditure, Stockmann’s findings meet with widespread opposition. Increasingly disaffected, Stockmann launches a fierce attack on the systems and authorities that control decision making in the town: “the swamp where the whole of our public life lies rotting.” Shunned by the local newspaper and unwilling to change his stance in return for a peaceful outcome, he attempts to deliver his findings at a public meeting, which turns into a riot as the townspeople group together and refuse to hear him, denouncing him as “an enemy of the people.”

Ibsen’s antipathy to contemporary morality speaks through almost all of his plays. It found a particular target in the hypocrisy of the time towards uncomfortable medical truths. Ibsen himself seems to have felt something of Stockmann’s isolation, as is articulated at the end of play: “The strongest man in the world is the man who stands most alone.”
Incidence and Clinical Consequences of Atrial Fibrillation Within 1 Year of First-Time Isolated Coronary Bypass Surgery
Authors: Maqsood Elahi, Leonidas Hadjinikolaou, Manuel Galiñanes
Journal: Circulation (2003)

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the commonest complication during cardiac surgery, however, the long-term prevalence of AF following surgery and its clinical consequences remain unclear.To investigate this, 877 consecutive patients undergoing first time CABG were followed for 1 year. Rhythm disturbances were diagnosed from serial ECGs and documented notes. The arrhythmia was treated medically and/or by cardioversion.Out of 877, 17 patients (1.9%) died in the hospital and out of the remaining 860 patients 844 (98.1%) had a complete 1-year follow-up. Patients were divided according to their age: Group I (50 to 59 years), Group II (60 to 69 years) and Group III (70 to 79 years). The prevalence of AF in the general population was taken from the Framingham Heart Study. Patients in groups I and II had a higher incidence of AF before the operation than the general population (1.5% versus 0.4% and 3.1% versus 1.6%, respectively, P<0.05) and also higher incidence of AF at the 1-year follow-up (2% versus 0.4% and 4.6% versus 1.6% respectively, P<0.05). The incidence of AF in group III did not differ from the general population before operation, at the 6-week and 1-year follow-ups. As expected most of the patients with preoperative AF remained in AF after 1-year of CABG surgery. Importantly, the incidence of newly developed AF was higher in patients that developed infection and renal dysfunction in the postoperative period. AF did not predict embolic events at any stage of the study.In conclusion, the incidence of AF for the first year following CABG is higher in patients <70 years but not in those >70 years when compared with the general population. AF was also associated to the occurrence of postoperative infection and renal dysfunction. Patients in this study were closely monitored and received timely appropriate treatment, and this may account for the absence of a relationship between AF and embolic events.
Abstract 4955: Advances in gene expression microarray profiling from small amounts of adenocarcinoma and normal total RNA samples
Authors: Anne Bergstrom Lucas, Gary Lin, Becky Mullinax, Sharoni Jacobs, Stephanie Fulmer-Smentek
Journal: Cancer Research (2010)

Abstract Gene expression profiling by microarray analysis provides an important avenue for understanding biological mechanisms, classifying tissue and tumor types, and identifying signs for diagnosis and prognosis. To address the need for high sensitivity gene expression profiling of low quantities of total RNA, we have developed a modified linear amplification procedure that generates quantities of Cy-labeled cRNA suitable for oligonucleotide microarray experiments from total RNA input amounts as low as 10 nanograms. This new procedure, available in the new Low Input Quick Amp Labeling Kit, employs the AffinityScript Reverse Transcriptase, a mutant MMLV-RT that binds primer-template complexes with 10-fold higher efficiency than wild type MMLV-RT, resulting in increased cDNA yields and improved sensitivity from smaller sample inputs. The protocol uses a single round of IVT amplification without purification of the cDNA product resulting in labeled cRNA in less than one day, enabling gene expression profile comparisons in less than two days. Comparisons of probe signals from technical replicate samples demonstrate high reproducibility with wide dynamic ranges, and generally comparable signals across a broad range of input amounts. This new labeling approach was used to detect differences in gene expression between cancerous and normal cells using new gene expression arrays with updated content resulting in gene expression profiling results consistent with the current literature. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 4955.
Koloskopie — ein Verfahren zur intraoperativen endoskopischen Tumordiagnostik des Dickdarms
Authors: H. Becker, K. Schülke
Journal: Endoscopy (1970)

In the author's opinion coloscopy is indicated for multiple occurring polyps and suspicion of secondary carcinomas (for their exact localization), for colitis ulcerosa, colitis Crohn, polyposis coli and intestinal tuberculosis, in order to survey the spread of the lesion. A tissue sample from the focus for a histological immediate-section examination and to eliminate or demonstrate the malignancy of the process is always recommended. The methodology of coloscopy is described.
Surrogate Biomarkers Of Eosinophilic Airway Inflammation In Asthma: Quantitation Of Major Basic Protein-1 and Charcot-Leyden Crystal Protein/Galectin-10 In Induced Sputum
Authors: Sharmilee M. Nyenhuis, Preeth Alumkal, Jian Du, Brian Maybruck, Mark Vinicky, Melissa Morales-Perez, Jerry A. Krishnan, Steven J. Ackerman
Journal: Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (2014)
Cigarette Smoke Exposure and Hypercholesterolemia Increase Mitochondrial Damage in Cardiovascular Tissues
Authors: Cynthia A. Knight-Lozano, Christal G. Young, David L. Burow, Zhao Yong Hu, Dale Uyeminami, Kent E. Pinkerton, Harry Ischiropoulos, Scott W. Ballinger
Journal: Circulation (2002)

Background — A shared feature among cardiovascular disease risk factors is increased oxidative stress. Because mitochondria are susceptible to damage mediated by oxidative stress, we hypothesized that risk factors (secondhand smoke and hypercholesterolemia) are associated with increased mitochondrial damage in cardiovascular tissues. Methods and Results — Atherosclerotic lesion formation, mitochondrial DNA damage, protein nitration, and specific activities of mitochondrial proteins in cardiovascular tissues from age-matched C57 and apoE −/− mice exposed to filtered air or secondhand smoke were quantified. Both secondhand smoke and hypercholesterolemia were associated with significantly increased mitochondrial DNA damage and protein nitration. Tobacco smoke exposure also resulted in significantly decreased specific activities of mitochondrial enzymes. The combination of secondhand smoke and hypercholesterolemia resulted in increased atherosclerotic lesion formation and even greater levels of mitochondrial damage. Conclusions — These data are consistent with the hypothesis that cardiovascular disease risk factors cause mitochondrial damage and dysfunction.
Exhaled carbon monoxide in lung disease
Authors: P. Paredi, S.A. Kharitonov, P.J. Barnes
Journal: European Respiratory Journal (2002)

To the Editor: 

We read with interest the paper by Zetterquist et al. 1 in which the levels of exhaled nitric oxide (NO) and carbon monoxide (CO) were measured in a group of asthmatic and cystic fibrosis (CF) patients using two different methods. A new fast-response nondisperse infrared (NDIR) CO analyser was used alongside the old electrochemical method and the results obtained with the two methods were compared.

Surprisingly, contrary to what has previously been shown by our own and other groups 2–6, as shown by both methods, the levels of exhaled CO were found to be similar in a group of asthmatic patients and patients with CF compared with normal subjects. The authors conclude that exhaled CO …
Role of the Metabolic Syndrome in Risk Assessment for Coronary Heart Disease
Authors: Priya Kohli
Journal: JAMA (2006)

S. Goya Wannamethee, PhD; A. Gerald Shaper, FRCP; Lucy Lennon, MSc; Richard W. Morris, PhDBackground: We sought to compare metabolic syndrome (MetS) with the Framingham Risk Score (FRS) as predictors of coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke, and type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2) in middle-aged men.Methods: A prospective study of 5128 men aged 40 to 59 years with no history of cardiovascular disease (CVD) (CHD or stroke) or DM2 drawn from general practices in 24 British towns and observed for 20 years. Metabolic syndrome was defined as the presence of 3 or more metabolic abnormalities based on modified National Cholesterol Education Program criteria.Results: Men with MetS at baseline (26%) showed significantly higher relative risk (RR) than men without MetS of developing CHD (RR, 1.64; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.41-1.90), stroke (RR, 1.61; 95% CI, 1.26-2.06), and DM2 (RR, 3.57; 95% CI, 2.83-4.50). The probability of developing CVD or DM2 over 20 years increased from 11.9% in those with no abnormalities to 31.2% in those with 3 abnormalities to 40.8% in those with 4 or 5 abnormalities. The FRS was a better predictor of CHD and stroke than MetS but was less predictive of DM2. Areas under the receiver-operating characteristic curves for FRS vs the number of metabolic abnormalities were 0.68 vs 0.59 for CHD, 0.60 vs 0.70 for DM2, and 0.66 vs 0.55 for stroke (P<.001 for all).Conclusions: Presence of MetS is a significant predictor of CVD and DM2 but is a stronger predictor of DM2 than of CHD. Although MetS does not predict CHD as well as the FRS, it serves well as a simple clinical tool for identifying high-risk subjects predisposed to CVD or DM2.