tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
Detection of hepatitis C viral RNA by the polymerase chain reaction
Authors: Michael Lucey, Peter G. Traber
Journal: Hepatology (1991)

These studies used the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to identify hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA in clinical samples collected from patients with chronic liver disease or from blood donors. The relative role of this assay compared with detection of HCV antibodies in serum was evaluated. Weiner and colleagues found that 9 of 15 patients with non-A, non-B (NANB) chronic hepatitis and the only patient with cryptogenic cirrhosis had persistent antibodies to a nonstructural protein of HCV (C100-3). Seven of the 10 antibody-positive patients had HCV RNA detected by a highly sensitive PCR assay; two of the antibody-negative patients also had HCV RNA. The pattern of viral RNA and antibody was evaluated in one patient with acute posttransfusion NANB hepatitis (PTNANB) and in three chimpanzees with acute infection. Viral RNA was detected early after infection and, in each case, before the appearance of antibody. In one chimpanzee, viral RNA disappeared when antibody became detectable. The authors conclude that most patients with chronic NANB liver disease have HCV infection. Garson and colleagues found that 6 of 1,100 donor blood units were repeatedly positive for antibodies to the C100-3 antigen (anti-C100-3). Only one of these six donor units was found to contain HCV RNA by a “nested PCR” assay. Nested PCR refers to the use of two successive rounds of amplification, with the second round using primers internal to, or nested within, the original two primers. The positive donor unit was the only one of the six antibody-positive units to cause posttransfusion hepatitis in a recipient. Sera from three other confirmed cases of posttransfusion hepatitis were evaluated and in each case one donor unit of blood was found to contain HCV RNA and anti-C100-3. The authors concluded that anti-C100-3 may not be a good predictor of infectivity in blood donors and that direct identification of viral RNA may be required.
"SYMPTOMATIC TREATMENT FOR NARCOLEPSY"
Authors: LaSalle Archambault
Journal: JAMA (1931)

To the Editor:  —Knowing that it has been the policy ofThe Journalto prevent misconceptions and referring to the recent article by Doyle and Daniels (Symptomatic Treatment for Narcolepsy,The Journal, April 25, p. 1370), in which the value of ephedrine for the relief of this syndrome is established on the basis of six observations, it is only fair to point out that a previous communication on this subject has been overlooked. In discussing a presentation by Professor Pelnar, Narcolepsie avec cataplexie at the Societe de neurologie of Prague, June 18, 1930 ( Rev. neurol . 37 :427 [Oct.] 1930), Janota and Skala reported three cases of narcolepsy most favorably influenced by ephedrine and stressed the fact that the drug did not seem to possess the same inhibitory effect on the cataplexic component of the syndrome. It was their belief that ephedrine had not been employed, prior to that time, in
Controlled expression of cardiac-directed adenylylcyclase type VI provides increased contractile function
Authors: M GAO, H BAYAT, D ROTH, J YAOZHOU, J DRUMM, J BURHAN, H KIRKHAMMOND
Journal: Cardiovascular Research (2002)

We have previously shown that cardiac-directed expression of adenylycyclase type VI (AC(VI)) increases heart function in transgenic mice, and improves heart function and survival in murine cardiomyopathy. However, a potential problem of crossbreeding paradigms that use lines with two constitutively active transgenes is that results can be obfuscated by interactions between transgenes during growth and development.To develop a model that could be used subsequently to address this generic problem, transgenic mice with tetracycline (tet)-regulated cardiac-specific expression of AC(VI) were generated. In this transgenic strain, the expression of a tet-controlled transactivator (tTA) was under control of the rat alpha-myosin heavy chain promoter. Expression of the AC(VI) gene was driven by a tet-response element (TRE) and a minimal CMV promoter.Homogenates of hearts showed no change in AC(VI) protein content during tet suppression (doxycycline), confirming successful suppression of transgene expression. Removal of tet suppression for 10 days was associated with a 10-fold increase in cardiac AC(VI) protein content. A similar increase in mRNA was observed (Northern blot analysis). The estimated half-life of newly synthesized cardiac AC(VI) protein was 2-3 days. Isolated cardiac myocytes from animals that had tet-suppression removed for 10 days showed increased cAMP production in response to forskolin stimulation (Transgene Off: 15+/-6 fmol/microg; Transgene On: 39+/-14 fmol/microg; n=5 each group; P=0.004) and also to isoproterenol stimulation (Transgene Off: 20+/-5 fmol/microg; Transgene On: 31+/-12 fmol/microg; n=5 each group; P=0.035) and hearts isolated from these animals showed marked increased left ventricular peak dP/dt in response to dobutamine stimulation (P=0.009) indicating that inducible cardiac AC(VI) is functionally coupled and recruitable.We have generated transgenic mice with controlled cardiac-specific expression of AC(VI), provided detailed information regarding the kinetics of transgene expression and suppression and estimated the half-life of cardiac AC(VI) protein to be 2-3 days. Finally, we have shown, for the first time, that controlled cardiac-directed expression of a transgene can increase cardiac myocyte cAMP generation and left ventricular contractile function.
Glasgow Small-pox Outbreak
Authors: A. Macgregor, R. J. Peters
Journal: BMJ (1942)

The following is an account of the main features of the outbreak of small-pox which occurred in Glasgow during June and July.The total number of cases diagnosed as small-pox was 36, of which 8 were fatal.The outbreak consisted of two groups of cases.The first, or "ship" group, numbered 11 cases among the passengers and crew of a ship which arrived from the East at the Port of Glasgow on May 29.The second, or "city" group, con- sisted of 25 cases among the general population.Direct connexion between these two groups was never demonstrated.Tables I andII give details. of the cases as to onset and vaccination state.The " Ship " Cases Of the 11 cases 8 were members of the crew, 2 were passengers, and 1 was a boarding medical officer.The ship took passengers on board at Bombay, and when it reached TABLE I.-Small-pox
Insulin: An overall cardiovascular protector?
Authors: Y ABDALLAH, C SCHAFER
Journal: Cardiovascular Research (2005)

See article by Ma et al.  [4]  (pages 57–65) in this issue. 

Protection of myocardium against lethal reperfusion injury is one of the major challenges of clinical cardiology today. Many interventions during reperfusion that may influence infarct size or improve cardiac function have been studied experimentally, but none of these has yet found its way into clinical practice. One of the oldest and most discussed interventions to modify reperfusion conditions is the use of glucose–insulin–potassium (GIK) [1], which was reported to reduce the relative in-hospital mortality risk in patients with acute myocardial infarction [2]. Administration of insulin in vivo was shown to reduce reperfusion-induced cell death through a signalling pathway comprising PI 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt and nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) [3]. The experimental study by Ma et al. [4] in this issue of Cardiovascular Research provides an interesting contribution, focusing for the first time on the role of GIK and particularly its leading actor, insulin, for prevention of reperfusion-induced vascular injury in the heart.

Various mechanisms contributing to cardiac reperfusion injury have been described, but protective strategies share ultimately the same goal, i.e., prevention of cell death and improvement … 

*Corresponding author. Tel.: +49 641 99 47 221; fax: +49 641 99 47 219. Email address: yaser.abdallah{at}physiologie.med.uni-giessen.de
Representing development: models, meaning, and the challenge of complexity
Authors: Robert Lickliter
Journal: Behavioral and Brain Sciences (2008)

Abstract Neuroconstructivism (Mareschal et al. 2007a) provides a useful framework for how to integrate research from different levels of analysis to model the multidimensional dynamics of development. However, the authors overlook the topic of meaning , a fundamental feature of cognition and subjective experience and also downplay the nonlinear nature of developmental causality. Neuroconstructivism is overly optimistic on the point of how well current computational models can address the challenge of complexity in developmental science.
"RADIATION THERAPY OF PROSTATIC CARCINOMA"
Authors: Benjamin S. Barringer
Journal: JAMA (1942)

To the Editor:—  In the able survey of the present day therapy in cancer of the prostate there appears to have crept into the Query and Minor Note of March 7 at least one inaccuracy. The author of the answer says once the clinical diagnosis of carcinoma of the prostate has been made it is technically impossible to do any sort of surgical procedure that would effect a cure. As far as the surgical cure of this highly malignant disease is concerned, that has been answered by Drs. Hinman, Lowsley and Young in their communications of June 20. As far as irradiation goes I have reported two authenticated five year cures proved by pathologic specimen before treatment (by radon needles) and proved carcinoma free at autopsy five years later ( J. Urol. , March 1942).  In the same article I reported that of 352 patients 21 (6 per cent) lived more than
Patients who are given self help books are no less likely to see their doctor
Authors: Roger Dobson
Journal: BMJ (2005)

Giving patients self care health books does not reduce the number or length of consultations with their GP, a new report says ( Scandinavian Journal of Primary Health Care 2005:23;142-8).

Research that was based on nearly 2000 patients in a large general practice in the south east of England shows that although many of the patients who were given such books said they would be less likely to consult a doctor, the actual likelihood that they saw their doctor was the same as for patients who were not allocated books.

“Handing out of self-care health books may provide qualitative benefits for patients but is unlikely to reduce attendance at the GP practice,” …
225. A Novel Mechanism between Diabetes Mellitus Complications and Procalcitonin Gene Expression
Authors: Mehmet A. Soylemez, Ceyhan Sayar, Bilge Turkover, Guven Toksoy, Tulay Yardimci
Journal: Molecular Therapy (2006)

Introduction: Procalcitonin (PCT) was originally described in 1984 as a 116 aminoacid protein with a molecular weight of 14.5 kDa. The PCT gene, referred to as Calc-1, is located on chromosome 11p15.4 and was sequenced in 1989. The promoter has sites for basal transcription factors but more interestingly, also has sites for Nuclear factor |[kappa]||[beta]| (NF|[kappa]||[beta]|) and activator protein -1 (AP-1), factors induced under inflammatory conditions. Diabetes Mellitus is associated with oxidative stress and elevation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs). AGEs are produced by a non-enzymatic, maillard reaction between reducing sugars and either proteins or lipids. AGEs interacts the receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) and RAGE activation is caused by elevation of transcriptional factors NF|[kappa]||[beta]| and AP-1. These factors induce procalcitonin gene expression. The aim of this study was to determine whether or not procalcitonin is a specific marker in patients with diabetic complications.
Long Range Chemotherapy for Heart Attacks
Authors: Calvin W. Tribiano
Journal: JAMA (1966)

<h3>To the Editor:—</h3> One cannot deny the proper intentions of the longrange study<sup>1</sup>under the sponsorship of the government's National Institutes of Health to determine the effectiveness of various drugs in reducing subsequent coronary heart attacks in subjects with histories of one or more. The program has been labeled ambitious, which it is indeed. Though costly and time consuming, the need for a form of therapy to prevent or even reduce cardiovascular catastrophies is recognized by the world medical community. However, serious consideration must be given to the preparation of the protocol for this vast undertaking. After five or seven years, the validity of the results may be applied only to the hypothesis, "Chemotherapy does or does not reduce the number of coronary heart attacks or deaths in a selected group of patients who have had one or more previous coronary catastrophies."<sup>1</sup>Morphological vascular regression, arrest, or progression
ACUTE ASCENDING INFECTIOUS MYELITIS FOLLOWING CHICKENPOX
Authors: DAVID P. WALDMAN
Journal: JAMA (1925)

Chickenpox is usually considered a mild disease not subject to serious complications or sequelae, apart from possible secondary infections of the skin lesions. The occurrence of a fatal complication is so unusual that it deserves full report in the literature. The fatality was due to acute ascending infectious myelitis. <h3>REPORT OF CASE</h3><h3>History.</h3> —S. B., a woman, aged 32, treated for a mild attack of chickenpox with but slight fever, on the tenth day during convalescence, could not void urine. She was catheterized once and enjoyed the following four days out in the air, even driving her automobile. On the evening of March 15, 1925, she suddenly fell to the floor in her home, her feet giving way under her, and she could not get up. The occurrence struck her humorously, as she had no pain at all. She was carried to bed, where she remained during all the following
Grants, Politics, and the NIH
Authors: Jeffrey M. Drazen, Julie R. Ingelfinger
Journal: New England Journal of Medicine (2003)

Investigator-initiated grants are the engine driving our biomedical research machine. This process is exemplified by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and its grant-review system for extramural research — arguably the most productive and widely emulated of its type in the world. The selection of research for funding is based solely on merit; politics has no place in this system. Thus, it is of immense concern that over the past year the NIH has had to deal with about one request per week from members of Congress concerning the details of specific grants. Some of these requests, such as one . . .
LACTOSE INTOLERANCE IN GREEKS
Authors: N. Zografos, T. Kanaghinis, I. Hatzioannou, C. Gardikas, Christos Kattamis, Kaliopi Anastassea-Vlachou, Nicolas Logothetis, Vasiliki Siriopoulou, Nicolas Matsaniotis
Journal: The Lancet (1973)
THE PRECIPITATION OF CRISIS IN THE TREATMENT OF PNEUMONIA
Authors: F. M. Gardner-Medwin
Journal: BMJ (1924)

r TDI,BwOvNA 49In the faeces of only one case a bacteriophage of slight v-irulence for B. typhosns was isolated previous to the administration of bacteriophage.Within twenty-four hours of administration, however, an extremely virulent bacterio- phage was obtained from all patients.Coincident with the presence of an active bacteriolytic agent in the faeces there occurred a rapid disappearance of B. typhosus from the faeces of six out of the seven patients.The course of one case (Case vii) was complicated by an infection. of the ulrinary tract due to B. typhosus, and on several occasions when the faeces were obviously contamninated with urine B. typhosus was found.A sample of the uiine obtained from this case within the first twenty-four hours after the administration of bacteriophage was examined for the presence of bacteriophage, but no active bacteriolytic agent could be demonstrated.The case had repeated sub- cutaneouis injections of bacteriophage, but this did not apparently influence the typhoid bacilli present in the urinary tract.The disappearance of the bacteriophage from the faeces coincides very closely with defervescence except in Case viI, v ho had repeated doses of the lvtic agent.The administration of bacteriophage subcutaneously and by mouth has so far proved to be a perfectly harmless procedure.
Reply to A. Aouba et al
Authors: Hans Balink, Marc H. Hemmelder
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2011)

The main issue of our case report is that Erdheim-Chester disease (ECD) clinically presents most commonly with bone and joint pain. We would again like to stress that technetium-99 bone scintigraphy has an important role to identify ECD in an early phase of the disease. Most diagnoses of ECD are made serendipitously. In their reply, Aouba et al compare stand-alone [F] fluorodeoxyglucose ([F]FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) results with computed tomography (CT) scan results. This may be a somewhat obsolete discussion; a hybrid PET/CT delivers the advantage of the synergy of the anatomic and metabolic information. As in any disease, in ECD metabolic changes precede the anatomic changes, creating a higher sensitivity in early stages of the disease. The PET component of a hybrid PET/CT camera is very useful in identifying subtle lesions on CT images that would otherwise be missed. In the wide clinical range that a patient with ECD may present, our patient has the indolent and isolated bone involvement, and not a more systemic and potentially life-threatening form. The irregular mildly increased uptake in the basal field of the right lung and in the lingual of the left lung was, together with the CT findings, indicative of transient infiltrative changes caused by a banal lung infection (Fig 1A). A control CT of the thorax 1 month later showed normalized images. A repeated [F]FDG PET/CT 1 year after diagnosis revealed no lung abnormalities or any other pathology suggestive of extraskeletal involvement of ECD (Fig 1B). The characteristic symmetric pathologic uptake in both distal femurs and both proximal tibiae did not show progression. We would like to thank Aouba et al for their suggestion to use anakinra for the treatment of extra-skeletal involvement of ECD. Because our patient has no extraskeletal involvement, neither anakinra, imatinib mesylate, nor any other systemic therapy is indicated.
Abstract 2898: Prognostic value of postoperative alpha-fetoprotein level on recurrence after curative resection for hepatocellular carcinoma
Authors: Daisuke Nobuoka, Yuichiro Kato, Naoto Gotohda, Shinichiro Takahashi, Masaru Konishi, Taira Kinoshita, Tetsuya Nakatsura
Journal: Cancer Research (2010)

Abstract Background: The high incidence of recurrence after curative resection is a major challenge in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treatment. Although serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) and des-gamma-carboxy prothrombin (DCP) are well known as tumor markers of HCC, the clinical usefulness for early detection of HCC recurrence remains controversial. In this retrospective study, we evaluated the clinical value of AFP and DCP levels in predicting HCC recurrence after curative resection, with a focus on the time course as surveillance tools. Methods: A total of 165 consecutive HCC patients who had undergone curative hepatectomy at the National Cancer Center Hospital East from 2005 to 2007 and whose serum AFP and DCP had been measured before and after hepatectomy were included in this study. The minimum postoperative levels within a 4-month period were used for analysis. In this study, the cut-off levels for AFP and DCP were set to 10 ng/ml and 40 mAU/ml, respectively. Results: Until the end of follow-up, tumor recurrence was identified in 114 patients (69.1%). Among the patients with a positive level of AFP before operation, the number of patients whose AFP level did not change from positive to negative after operation in the group with recurrence exceeded that in the group without recurrence (48/60, 80.0% vs. 4/23, 17.4%), and the difference was significant (P &amp;lt; 0.001). In contrast, there was no significant difference between two groups in DCP (14/72, 19.4% vs. 2/29, 6.9%; P=0.118). Minimum postoperative AFP level was found to be a significant independent risk factor for recurrence by univariate and multivariate analysis (P &amp;lt; 0.001). There was no statistically significant correlation between AFP level and grade of hepatitis activity (P = 0.599). Conclusions: Postoperative AFP level is a useful predictor of recurrence after curative hepatectomy. A positive level of AFP after operation might suggest a site of residual viable cancer. The need for effective adjuvant therapy and close follow-up is suggested in patients with a positive postoperative AFP level. 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 2898.
Extracellular Matrix–Mediated Membrane-Type 1 Matrix Metalloproteinase Expression in Pancreatic Ductal Cells Is Regulated by Transforming Growth Factor-β1
Authors: Adam J. Ottaviano, Limin Sun, Vijayalakshmi Ananthanarayanan, Hidayatullah G. Munshi
Journal: Cancer Research (2006)

Abstract Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is associated with an intense fibrotic reaction around the tumor known as desmoplastic reaction. This tissue is composed of interstitial matrix, predominantly type I collagen, together with proliferating fibroblastic cells. Despite the recognized importance of tumor-stromal interactions, very little is known about the interactions among pancreatic cells, myofibroblasts, and the interstitial matrix. The current study was undertaken to test the hypothesis that the desmoplastic reaction alters PDAC gene expression and cellular behavior. Evaluation of human pancreatic specimens showed increased fibrosis and enhanced membrane type 1-matrix metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP) expression in tumor specimens compared with normal pancreas. Using an in vitro model of tumor cell-stromal interactions, type I collagen and the extracellular matrix deposited by pancreatic fibroblasts and PDAC cells regulated motility of human papillomavirus–immortalized human pancreatic ductal epithelial (HPDE) cells. These “stromal” matrices also regulated MT1-MMP expression by HPDE cells, without affecting the expression of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase 2. Treatment with transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) type I receptor kinase inhibitors and function-blocking anti-TGF-β1 antibody abrogated matrix-mediated MT1-MMP induction. TGF-β1 also promoted MT1-MMP–dependent migration by HPDE cells. Moreover, compared with normal tissue, there was increased TGF-β1 signaling in grade 3 tumor specimens as shown by increased phospho-Smad2 staining. These data show that the crosstalk between cancer cells and stromal elements mediated by TGF-β1 influences cell surface– and pericellular matrix–degrading potential in vitro and may contribute to pancreatic cancer progression in vivo. (Cancer Res 2006; 66(14): 7032-40)