tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
Effects of Dietary Supplementation of α-Lipoic Acid on Early Glomerular Injury in Diabetes Mellitus
Authors: MONA F. MELHEM, PATRICIA A. CRAVEN, FREDERICK R. DERUBERTIS
Journal: Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (2001)

Abstract. Antioxidants, in particular vitamin E (VE), have been reported to protect against diabetic renal injury. α-Lipoic acid (LA) has been found to attenuate diabetic peripheral neuropathy, but its effects on nephropathy have not been examined. In the present study, parameters of glomerular injury were examined in streptozotocin diabetic rats after 2 mo on unsupplemented diets and in diabetic rats that received the lowest daily dose of dietary LA (30 mg/kg body wt), VE (100 IU/kg body wt), or vitamin C (VC; 1 g/kg body wt), which detectably increased the renal cortical content of each antioxidant. Blood glucose values did not differ among the diabetic groups. At 2 mo, inulin clearance, urinary albumin excretion, fractional albumin clearance, glomerular volume, and glomerular content of immunoreactive transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) and collagen α1 (IV) all were significantly increased in unsupplemented D compared with age-matched nondiabetic controls. With the exception of inulin clearance, LA prevented or significantly attenuated the increase in all of these glomerular parameters in D, as well as the increases in renal tubular cell TGF-β seen in D. At the dose used, VE reduced inulin clearance in D to control levels but failed to alter any of the other indices of glomerular injury or to suppress renal tubular cell TGF-β in D. VC suppressed urinary albumin excretion, fractional albumin clearance, and glomerular volume but not glomerular or tubular TGF-β or glomerular collagen α1 (IV) content. LA but not VE or VC significantly increased renal cortical glutathione content in D. These data indicate that LA is effective in the prevention of early diabetic glomerular injury and suggest that this agent may have advantages over high doses of either VE or VC.
Organ Preservation for Advanced Resectable Cancer of the Base of Tongue and Hypopharynx: A Southwest Oncology Group Trial
Authors: Susan G. Urba, James Moon, P.G. Shankar Giri, David J. Adelstein, Ehab Hanna, George H. Yoo, Michael LeBlanc, John F. Ensley, David E. Schuller
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2004)

The Southwest Oncology Group designed a phase II trial for patients with base of tongue or hypopharyngeal cancer to evaluate the complete histologic response rate at the primary site after induction chemotherapy followed by chemoradiotherapy for responders. Secondary end points were the rate of organ preservation and the need for salvage surgery.Fifty-nine eligible patients were enrolled; 37 had base of tongue cancer, and 22 had hypopharynx cancer. Forty-two percent had stage III disease, and 58% had stage IV disease. Induction chemotherapy was two cycles of cisplatin 100 mg/m(2) and fluorouracil 1,000 mg/m(2)/d for 5 days. Patients who had a greater than 50% response at the primary site were treated with radiation 72Gy and concurrent cisplatin 100 mg/m(2) for three cycles. Patients with less than partial response at the primary had immediate salvage surgery.Forty-five patients (76%) had a greater than 50% response at the primary after induction chemotherapy; 43 went on to receive definitive chemoradiotherapy. Thirty-two patients (54%) achieved a histologic complete response at the primary site, and an additional nine patients had a complete clinical response, but biopsy was not done. Seventy-five percent of patients did not require surgery at the primary tumor site. The 3-year overall survival was 64%. The 3-year progression-free survival with organ preservation was 52%.Patients with base of tongue or hypopharyngeal cancer treated with this regimen of induction chemotherapy followed by definitive chemoradiotherapy have a good rate of organ preservation without compromise of survival.
Analysis of ciliary beating in reconstituted bronchial epithelium from chronic airway diseases
Authors: Mustapha-Kamel Khelloufi, Delphine Gras, Céline Garulli, Annie Viallat, Pascal Chanez
Journal: European Respiratory Journal (2013)

Background . Hypersecretion of mucus is frequent in chronic airway diseases and a burden for patients but mechanisms are largely unknown.  Aims . We used an original model of  in vitro   bronchial epithelium reconstruction in air/liquid interface to explore mucociliary component. A multidisciplinary approach was developed to measure cilia beat patterns, viscoelasticity and movement of mucus.  Methods : Human bronchial epithelial cells (HBEC) were obtained from endobronchial biopsies from patients with chronic respiratory diseases (asthma and COPD). HBEC were cultured in air/liquid interface for 28 days to obtain epithelium with a mucociliary phenotype. We measured epithelium thickness and cilia beat frequency (CBF) using fast videomicroscopy. Implication of mucus on CBF was assessed by measuring CBF before and after apical washes. We estimated the fraction of beating cilia and characterized mucus transport.  Results . Thickness, CBF, cilia proportion and mucus transport coordination were obtained in control (n=4), mild asthma (n=3), severe asthma (n=10) and COPD (n=2) epithelia and showed that each group presented the same median CBF (f = 19 Hz). We emphasized a significantly stronger dispersion in CBF distribution in severe asthma group (Δf = 4.5 Hz) than in control group (Δf = 2.9 Hz).  Conclusion . We showed that, on average, a smaller fraction of beating cilia was found in reconstituted epithelia of the severe asthma group in comparison with the control group. Moreover, a large dispersion is observed in the severe asthma group, with zones with no beating cilia and zones with a large number of beating cilia in a same reconstituted epithelium. Mucus involvement should be better investigated.
Comparison of Dilution Technics Using Aortic Injection with Upstream Sampling for Assessment of Aortic Regurgitation
Authors: EGAS ARMELIN, DAVID E. DONALD, EARL H. WOOD
Journal: Circulation Research (1964)

The distances between the aortic valve and sites in the aorta from which no retrograde flow of injected indicator could be detected in the left ventricle were determined, without thoracotomy, in two normal dogs and in ten dogs with chronic experimental aortic regurgitation. It was found that these distances attained maximal values when the aortic injections were timed to occur just at the end of systole or onset of diastole. Distances downstream from the origin of the left subclavian artery from which no retrograde flow occurred to this vessel were determined similarly in these same animals and, in confirmation of Warner and Toronto, similar relationships to the timing of the injections were obtained. These distances down the aorta, designated as "disappearance distances", were converted to "disappearance volumes" by measuring the diameters of the silhouette of successive aortic segments from aortograms made after contrast medium was injected into the left ventricle of these animals. The regurgitant flow through the aortic valve per heartbeat was estimated on the basis of the amount of immediately appearing indicator detected in the left ventricle following injection of indicator approximately 1 cm downstream from the aortic valve. Correlation coefficients of 0.88 and 0.77 were obtained between these stroke-regurgitation values and the disappearance volumes from the aortic valve and subclavian artery, respectively. The standard errors of the estimate of the regurgitant flow per beat from these regression equations were ± 2.7 and ± 2.9 ml/beat, respectively. The correlation coefficients between stroke-regurgitation values and the disappearance distances from the valve and subclavian artery were 0.83 and 0.81, respectively, and the respective standard errors of the estimate of stroke regurgitation from these regression equations were ± 3.2 and ± 3.3 ml/beat. It is concluded that determination of the maximal distances downstream in the aorta of sites from which retrograde flow of injected indicator can be detected in the left ventricle or subclavian artery is a valid method for estimating the severity of experimental aortic regurgitation in dogs. Since determinations of the disappearance distance from the aortic valve can be carried out readily in conjunction with measurement of the left ventricular regurgitation fraction, it is suggested that advantage be taken of the increase in reliability which accrues from the combined use of these two independent methods for the estimation of the degree of aortic regurgitation.
The controversy over emergency research. A review of the issues and suggestions for a resolution.
Authors: J H Karlawish, J B Hall
Journal: American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine (1996)

Emergency research that occurs upon critically ill subjects in circumstances that do not allow the subjects or their legally authorized representatives to grant an informed consent is currently the subject of great controversy. This Clinical Commentary reviews three issues that dominate the debate: research risk assessment, the concept of a particular kind of risk called minimal risk, and the regulations governing research on human subjects. The theses of this article are that Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) are not violating Office of Protection from Research Risks (OPRR) regulations, that Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations do not adequately address research design, and that emergency research fits within the ethical standards of justice, respect for autonomy, and beneficence. To defend these claims, the following points are argued: risk assessment is a moral or transscientific exercise, minimal risk refers to the increment of risk that the subject of the research faces, and that when equipoise exists between experimental and standard therapies, this state of uncertainty contributes to a study's justifications. In order to resolve the emergency research controversy, certain regulations will need to be rewritten and others reinterpreted, and a national board created to review a proposed study's clinical relevance and whether the current state of knowledge justifies a trial.
Concordant morphologic and gene expression data show that a vaccine halts HER-2/neu preneoplastic lesions
Authors: Elena Quaglino, Simona Rolla, Manuela Iezzi, Michela Spadaro, Piero Musiani, Carla De Giovanni, Pier Luigi Lollini, Stefania Lanzardo, Guido Forni, Remo Sanges, Stefania Crispi, Pasquale De Luca, Raffaele Calogero, Federica Cavallo
Journal: Journal of Clinical Investigation (2004)

While much experimental data shows that vaccination efficiently inhibits a subsequent challenge by a transplantable tumor, its ability to inhibit the progress of autochthonous preneoplastic lesions is virtually unknown. In this article, we show that a combined DNA and cell vaccine persistently inhibits such lesions in a murine HER-2/neu mammary carcinogenesis model. At 10 weeks of age, all of the ten mammary gland samples from HER-2/neu–transgenic mice displayed foci of hyperplasia that progressed to invasive tumors. Vaccination with plasmids coding for the transmembrane and extracellular domain of rat p185neu followed by a boost with rp185neu+ allogeneic cells secreting IFN-γ kept 48% of mice tumor free. At 22 weeks, their mammary glands were indistinguishable from those of 10-week-old untreated mice. Furthermore, the transcription patterns of the two sets of glands coincided. Of the 12,000 genes analyzed, 17 were differentially expressed and related to the antibody response. The use of B cell knockout mice as well as the concordance of morphologic and gene expression data demonstrated that the Ab response is the main mechanism facilitating tumor growth arrest. This finding suggests that a new way can be found to secure the immunologic control of the progression of HER-2/neu preneoplastic lesions.
The Evolutionary Dynamics of Autonomous Non-LTR Retrotransposons in the Lizard Anolis Carolinensis Shows More Similarity to Fish Than Mammals
Authors: P. A. Novick, H. Basta, M. Floumanhaft, M. A. McClure, S. Boissinot
Journal: Molecular Biology and Evolution (2009)

The genome of the lizard Anolis carolinensis (the green anole) is the first nonavian reptilian genome sequenced. It offers a unique opportunity to comparatively examine the evolution of amniote genomes. We analyzed the abundance and diversity of non-LTR (long terminal repeat) retrotransposons in the anole using the Genome Parsing Suite. We found that the anole genome contains an extraordinary diversity of elements. We identified 46 families of elements representing five clades (L1, L2, CR1, RTE, and R4). Within most families, elements are very similar to each other suggesting that they have been inserted recently. The rarity of old elements suggests a high rate of turnover, the insertion of new elements being offset by the loss of element-containing loci. Consequently, non-LTR retrotransposons accumulate in the anole at a low rate and are found in low copy number. This pattern of diversity shows some striking similarity with the genome of teleostean fish but contrasts greatly with the low diversity and high copy number of mammalian L1 elements, suggesting a fundamental difference in the way mammals and nonmammalian vertebrates interact with their genomic parasites. The scarcity of divergent elements in anoles suggests that insertions have a deleterious effect and are eliminated by natural selection. We propose that the low abundance of non-LTR retrotransposons in the anole is related directly or indirectly to a higher rate of ectopic recombination in the anole relative to mammals.
Choledocholithiasis--in vivo stone dissolution using methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE).
Authors: W R Murray, G LaFerla, G M Fullarton
Journal: Gut (1988)

We report a series of 10 elderly patients with large bile duct calculi refractory to standard endoscopic extraction techniques who were treated by gall stone dissolution using methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) instilled through a nasobiliary catheter. In eight patients complete bile duct clearance was achieved after an average of eight hours MTBE instillation. In two patients gall stone size did not change. Both underwent operative gall stone removal and subsequent stone analysis showed low cholesterol content, which is unlikely to respond to MTBE. Apart from occasional transient nausea and drowsiness, no adverse reactions were noted. Methyl tertiary butyl ether appears to be a powerful in vivo gall stone dissolution agent which, from preliminary studies, is not associated with serious toxicity.
Testosterone and the concept of dominance
Authors: James M. Dabbs
Journal: Behavioral and Brain Sciences (1998)

Testosterone is related to dominance, but in a broader sense than Mazur &amp; Booth suggest. Dominance need not be competitive. It can arise from strong personal characteristics that produce admiration and deference in others. To understand the testosterone–dominance relationship fully, we must examine behaviors that affect ordinary social encounters. Baseline testosterone levels may be more important than testosterone changes in predicting everyday dominance.
Combined histomorphometric and gene-expression profiling applied to toxicology
Authors: Andres Kriete, Mary K Anderson, Brad Love, John Freund, James J Caffrey, M Brook Young, Timothy J Sendera, Scott R Magnuson, J Mark Braughler
Journal: Genome biology (2003)

We have developed a unique methodology for the combined analysis of histomorphometric and gene-expression profiles amenable to intensive data mining and multisample comparison for a comprehensive approach to toxicology. This hybrid technology, termed extensible morphometric relational gene-expression analysis (EMeRGE), is applied in a toxicological study of time-varied vehicle- and carbon-tetrachloride (CCl4)-treated rats, and demonstrates correlations between specific genes and tissue structures that can augment interpretation of biological observations and diagnosis.
PPAR agonists as direct modulators of the vessel wall in cardiovascular disease
Authors: Kevin W. Buchan, David G. Hassall
Journal: Medicinal Research Reviews (2000)

Successful management of cardiovascular (CV) disease and associated metabolic syndromes, such as diabetes, is a major challenge to the clinician. Reducing CV risk factors, such as abnormal lipid profiles, insulin resistance or hypertension is the foundation of such therapy. A relatively new class of therapeutic agent, activators of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR), is poised to make a major impact with regard to several areas of risk factor management. However, there is growing evidence that PPAR agonists may also influence the CV system directly by modulating vessel wall function. These observations suggest that additional benefit, in the treatment of CV disease, may derive not only from the ability of agents to modify risk factors but also to influence directly the cellular mechanisms of disease within the vessel wall. A precedent for this dual action comes from examination of the effects of inhibitors of HMG CoA reductase (statins), where risk factor modulation is accompanied by direct actions on the vessel wall. In this review, we summarize the evidence suggesting that PPAR agonists may directly modulate vessel wall function, and that these may parallel those effects reported recently for the statins. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Med Res Rev, 20, No. 5, 350–366, 2000
The Godfather of soul
Authors: Jesse Preston, Kurt Gray, Daniel M. Wegner
Journal: Behavioral and Brain Sciences (2006)

An important component of souls is the capacity for free will, as the origin of agency within an individual. Belief in souls arises in part from the experience of conscious will, a compelling feeling of personal causation that accompanies almost every action we take, and suggests that an immaterial self is in charge of the physical body.
Prophylaxis with carbon-adsorbed mitomycin against peritoneal recurrence of gastric cancer
Authors: A. Hagiwara, T. Takahashi, O. Kojima, K. Sawai, T. Yamaguchi, T. Yamane, H. Taniguchi, K. Kitamura, A. Noguchi, K. Seiki, C. Sakakura
Journal: The Lancet (1992)
Magnetic Resonance–Guided Coronary Artery Stent Placement in a Swine Model
Authors: Elmar Spuentrup, Alexander Ruebben, Tobias Schaeffter, Warren J. Manning, Rolf W. Günther, Arno Buecker
Journal: Circulation (2002)

Magnetic resonance (MR)--guided coronary artery stent placement is a challenging vascular intervention because of the small size of the coronary arteries combined with incessant motion during the respiratory and cardiac cycles. These obstacles necessitate higher temporal and higher spatial resolution real-time MR imaging techniques when compared with interventional peripheral MR angiography.A new, ultrafast, real-time MR imaging technique that combines steady-state free precession (SSFP) for high signal-to-noise ratio and radial k-space sampling (rSSFP) for motion artifact suppression was implemented on a 1.5-T clinical whole-body interventional MR scanner. The sliding window reconstruction technique yielded a frame rate of 15/s allowing for data acquisition during free breathing and without cardiac triggering. Eleven balloon-expandable stainless steel coronary stents were placed in both coronary arteries of 7 pigs (40 to 70 kg body weight) using a nitinol guidewire and passive device visualization. Position of the coronary stents was controlled by a navigator-gated free-breathing ECG-triggered three-dimensional SSFP coronary MRA sequence and confirmed visually on the ex vivo heart. The presented real-time MR imaging sequence reliably allowed for high-quality coronary MR fluoroscopy without motion artifacts in all pigs. Ten of 11 coronary stents were correctly placed under MR guidance. One stent dislodged proximally from the left main coronary artery because of too-small balloon size. Stent dislocation was correctly predicted during real-time MR imaging.The presented approach allows for real-time MR-guided coronary artery stent placement in a swine model.
Pulmonary function in childhood connective tissue diseases
Authors: I Cerveri, C Bruschi, A Ravelli, MC Zoia, F Fanfulla, L Zonta, G Pellegrini, A Martini
Journal: European Respiratory Journal (1992)

The term connective tissue diseases (CTD) defines a group of illnesses characterized by the presence of immune abnormalities and by widespread inflammation involving various organs and tissues including the lung. These diseases are not frequent in the paediatric age group. Very few data on pulmonary function are available in paediatric CTD. We investigated possible early lung function abnormalities and any likely relationship with clinical activity of the disease in a group of 81 paediatric CTD patients, without clinical or radiological evidence of pulmonary involvement. Measurement of lung volumes and diffusion lung capacity were performed. A sample of 65 subjects, defined as normal on the basis of history and clinical examination, and matched by age and height with the group of patients, was chosen as control group. CTD patients did not show significant deviations from the control distribution with respect to functional residual capacity (FRC) and maximal expiratory flow at 75% of the forced vital capacity (MEF75) values. On the contrary, both vital capacity (VC) and diffusing capacity of the lungs for carbon monoxide (DLCO) were quite impaired in most CTD during the active phase of the disease. Our results show a functional lung impairment in most children with clinically active CTD, even in absence of abnormalities on chest X-ray pictures.
Clear cell sarcoma: an extremely rare cause of pleural disease
Authors: T Bury, G Hermans, R Alexis-Agnant, P Chevalier, R Limet, P Bartsch
Journal: European Respiratory Journal (1997)

We present the case of a 36 yr old woman with a persisting complaints of left chest pain. A chest radiograph revealed multiple left pleural thickenings. Classical exploration was negative. Thoracic surgery allowed the subtotal removal of a huge pleural tumour. The histological examination revealed a clear cell sarcoma. The literature on this extremely rare tumour is reviewed.
Assessment and management of asthma in an accident and emergency department.
Authors: S Reed, S Diggle, M J Cushley, R A Sleet, A E Tattersfield
Journal: Thorax (1985)

Patients with asthma presenting to the accident and emergency department at Southampton General Hospital during 12 months were reviewed retrospectively to determine how many patients attended, when and how patients were assessed and treated, and what factors appeared to influence whether a patient was admitted to a medical ward or not. Thirty five visits were made by patients requesting a repeat prescription for a metered dose inhaler. A further 193 visits were made by 152 patients (93 male, 59 female); only data on the first visit of any individual were analysed in this study. Patients were more likely to visit in the autumn, at the weekend, and in the evenings. Observations and measurements used to assess the severity of asthma were recorded with variable frequency--heart rate in 84% of examinations, pulsus paradoxus in 13%, and peak flow rate in 11%. Blood pressure was five times more likely to be recorded than peak flow rate. The drugs used to treat asthma were, in order of frequency, a beta agonist (120 patients), intravenous aminophylline (39), and intravenous corticosteroids (30). Sixty (39%) of the patients were admitted to a medical ward. Admission was more likely to occur when patients arrived during the week than at the weekend, when they had cyanosis or pulsus paradoxus, and after receiving parenteral treatment. There was no difference in mean heart rate between patients admitted to the ward and those discharged home. Although there was no specific evidence of inappropriate admission to or discharge from hospital in this retrospective study, the failure to record more objective measurements of the severity of asthma and, in particular, the extent of the airflow obstruction, is cause for concern.