tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
Does Short-Term Exposure to Mobile Phone Base Station Signals Increase Symptoms in Individuals Who Report Sensitivity to Electromagnetic Fields? A Double-Blind Randomized Provocation Study
Authors: Stacy Eltiti, Denise Wallace, Anna Ridgewell, Konstantina Zougkou, Riccardo Russo, Francisco Sepulveda, Dariush Mirshekar-Syahkal, Paul Rasor, Roger Deeble, Elaine Fox
Journal: Environmental Health Perspectives (2007)

Individuals with idiopathic environmental illness with attribution to electromagnetic fields (IEI-EMF) believe they suffer negative health effects when exposed to electromagnetic fields from everyday objects such as mobile phone base stations.This study used both open provocation and double-blind tests to determine if sensitive and control individuals experience more negative health effects when exposed to base station-like signals compared with sham.Fifty-six self-reported sensitive and 120 control participants were tested in an open provocation test. Of these, 12 sensitive and 6 controls withdrew after the first session. The remainder completed a series of double-blind tests. Subjective measures of well-being and symptoms as well as physiological measures of blood volume pulse, heart rate, and skin conductance were obtained.During the open provocation, sensitive individuals reported lower levels of well-being in both the global system for mobile communication (GSM) and universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS) compared with sham exposure, whereas controls reported more symptoms during the UMTS exposure. During double-blind tests the GSM signal did not have any effect on either group. Sensitive participants did report elevated levels of arousal during the UMTS condition, whereas the number or severity of symptoms experienced did not increase. Physiological measures did not differ across the three exposure conditions for either group.Short-term exposure to a typical GSM base station-like signal did not affect well-being or physiological functions in sensitive or control individuals. Sensitive individuals reported elevated levels of arousal when exposed to a UMTS signal. Further analysis, however, indicated that this difference was likely to be due to the effect of order of exposure rather than the exposure itself.
The use of two substrates for indirect immunofluorescence in the diagnosis of pemphigus: reply from authors.
Authors: K.E. Harman, M.J. Gratian, B.S. Bhogal, S.J. Challacombe, M.M. Black
Journal: British Journal of Dermatology (2001)

Sir, We thank Jarząbek‐Chorzelska et al. for the interest shown in our paper.1 They concur that two substrates should be used for indirect immunofluorescence (IIF) in order to detect antibodies to both desmoglein (Dsg) 1 and Dsg3 in pemphigus sera. We read with interest that the use of human oesophagus (HO) and guinea‐pig oesophagus (GPO) has proved to be the most sensitive combination of substrates in their experience over many years. In our study, we used a combination of monkey oesophagus (MO) and human skin (HS). The aim of our study was to compare IIF titres on these two substrates in the knowledge not only of the pemphigus subtype, i.e. pemphigus vulgaris (PV) or pemphigus foliaceus (PF), but more specifically the serum content of Dsg1 and Dsg3 antibodies, which were quantitatively measured by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). We established that variation in relative titres on these two substrates could be explained by the content of Dsg1 and/or Dsg3 antibodies in sera. HS proved to be more sensitive for detection of Dsg1 antibodies, which are found in all PF sera and approximately 60% of PV sera.2 MO was better for the detection of Dsg3 antibodies which are characteristic of PV. Combining data from both substrates enhanced the overall sensitivity of IIF for PV and PF sera. In addition, the relative titres on each substrate helped differentiate PV and PF.
Developmental Endothelial Locus-1 (Del-1) Mediates Clearance of Platelet Microparticles by the Endothelium
Authors: Swapan Kumar Dasgupta, Anhquyen Le, Triantafyllos Chavakis, Rolando E. Rumbaut, Perumal Thiagarajan
Journal: Circulation (2012)

Phosphatidylserine-expressing microparticles circulate in blood with a short half-life of <10 minutes. We tested the role of an endothelium-derived phosphatidylserine-binding opsonin, developmental endothelial locus-1 (Del-1), in the uptake of platelet microparticles.Cultured human umbilical vein and microvascular endothelial cells avidly engulf BODIPY (4,4-difluoro-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene)-maleimide-labeled platelet microparticles. Microparticle uptake was inhibited by a monoclonal antibody to Del-1 (P=0.027) and by annexin A5 (P=0.027), abciximab (P=0.027), a monoclonal antibody to integrin αVβ3 (P=0.027), and chlorpromazine (P=0.027). These results suggest that Del-1 mediates phosphatidylserine- and integrin-dependent endothelial uptake of microparticles by endocytosis. To assess the in vivo significance, we infused fluorescent platelet microparticles into the inferior vena cava of mice and harvested endothelial cells from the pulmonary and systemic circulation. Compared with their wild-type littermates, Del-1-deficient mice had decreased uptake in endothelial cells in lung (3.07±1.9 versus 1.09±1.3, P=0.02) and liver (2.85±1.1 versus 1.35±0.92, P=0.01). Furthermore, after endotoxin administration, Del-1-deficient mice displayed an increase in the level of microparticles compared with wild-type mice (P=0.02).These studies show a physiological role for Del-1 in the clearance of phosphatidylserine-expressing microparticles by endothelium.
Drug industry's new code criticised for lacking teeth
Authors: Rebecca Coombes
Journal: BMJ (2005)

The pharmaceutical industry published a tougher code of conduct this week after criticism that self regulation was failing to stop the circulation of misleading claims about products. The revised code from the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry follows a critical health select committee report in April ( BMJ 2005;330: 805).

As evidence that self regulation wasn't working well, the report cited examples of breaches of advertising regulations; cover-ups of negative medical information; and giving misleading information to prescribers. MPs also criticised the long delays taken by the industry to investigate complaints.

As with previous codes, the new code of conduct, to be launched in January, is a voluntary code, without the backing of the law. It covers communication with the public and the promotion of …
Increased Plasma C-Reactive Protein in Familial Hypoalphalipoproteinemia
Authors: Tiziana Sampietro, Federico Bigazzi, Beatrice Dal Pino, Simone Fusaro, Francesco Greco, Mario Tuoni, Alberto Bionda
Journal: Circulation (2002)

Background — HDL molecules have an established role in the regression processes of atherosclerosis as well as a putative role as antiinflammatory agents. Our study investigated whether familial hypoalphalipoproteinemia, a genetic form of dyslipidemia characterized by very low HDL levels, might be associated with increased inflammation markers such as C-reactive protein. Methods and Results — A total of 50 subjects with hypoalphalipoproteinemia (age, 53.1±16.7 years) were compared with 64 healthy controls (age, 51.9±12.4 years). Apart from significantly lower values of HDL cholesterol (30.2±4.0 versus 52.5±12.7 mg/dL, P &lt;0.0001) and apolipoprotein AI (113.3±20.0 versus 155.4±24.9 mg/dL, P &lt;0.0001) and higher levels of triglycerides (141.3±62.9 versus 73.5±39.9 mg/dL, P &lt;0.0001), patients did not show different plasma values of total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol when compared with healthy controls (181.5±36.6 versus 186.3±32.6 mg/dL; 123.0±31.5 versus 119.1±30.3 mg/dL). CRP plasma values were significantly higher in patients than in controls (median 0.34 [range 0.02 to 4.66] versus 0.07 [0.02 to 0.85] mg/dL, P &lt;0.0001). In the patient group, CRP values were significantly higher in subjects with angiographically documented coronary atherosclerotic disease than in those without. Moreover, CRP concentrations were inversely correlated with both HDL cholesterol ( r = −0.44, P =0.0006) and apolipoprotein AI ( r = −0.45, P =0.0006) values. Conclusions — Elevation of C-reactive protein values in familial hypoalphalipoproteinemia, in the absence of signs and symptoms of local or systemic inflammation or systemic or recurrent disease, may suggest an upregulation of proinflammatory mechanisms, which is further exacerbated by the presence of coronary atherosclerotic disease.
Consciousness without a cerebral cortex: A challenge for neuroscience and medicine
Authors: Bjorn Merker
Journal: Behavioral and Brain Sciences (2007)

A broad range of evidence regarding the functional organization of the vertebrate brain – spanning from comparative neurology to experimental psychology and neurophysiology to clinical data – is reviewed for its bearing on conceptions of the neural organization of consciousness. A novel principle relating target selection, action selection, and motivation to one another, as a means to optimize integration for action in real time, is introduced. With its help, the principal macrosystems of the vertebrate brain can be seen to form a centralized functional design in which an upper brain stem system organized for conscious function performs a penultimate step in action control. This upper brain stem system retained a key role throughout the evolutionary process by which an expanding forebrain – culminating in the cerebral cortex of mammals – came to serve as a medium for the elaboration of conscious contents. This highly conserved upper brainstem system, which extends from the roof of the midbrain to the basal diencephalon, integrates the massively parallel and distributed information capacity of the cerebral hemispheres into the limited-capacity, sequential mode of operation required for coherent behavior. It maintains special connective relations with cortical territories implicated in attentional and conscious functions, but is not rendered nonfunctional in the absence of cortical input. This helps explain the purposive, goal-directed behavior exhibited by mammals after experimental decortication, as well as the evidence that children born without a cortex are conscious. Taken together these circumstances suggest that brainstem mechanisms are integral to the constitution of the conscious state, and that an adequate account of neural mechanisms of conscious function cannot be confined to the thalamocortical complex alone.
Effect of Smoking on Breast Cancer in Carriers of Mutant BRCA1 or BRCA2 Genes
Authors: Jean-Sébastien Brunet, Parviz Ghadirian, Timothy R. Rebbeck, Caryn Lerman, Judy E. Garber, Patricia N. Tonin, John Abrahamson, William D. Foulkes, Mary Daly, Josephine Wagner-Costalas, Andrew Godwin, Olufunmilayo I. Olopade, Roxana Moslehi, Alexander Liede, P. Andrew Futreal, Barbara L. Weber, Gilbert M. Lenoir, Henry T. Lynch, Steven A. Narod
Journal: JNCI Journal of the National Cancer Institute (1998)

Smoking has carcinogenic effects, and possibly antiestrogenic effects as well, but it has not been found to be a risk factor for breast cancer in women in the general population. However, hereditary breast cancer is primarily a disease of premenopausal women, and interactions between genes and hormonal and environmental risk factors may be particularly important in this subgroup.We conducted a matched case-control study of breast cancer among women who have been identified to be carriers of a deleterious mutation in either the BRCA1 or the BRCA2 gene. These women were assessed for genetic risk at one of several genetic counseling programs for cancer in North America. Information about lifetime smoking history was derived from a questionnaire routinely administered to women who were found to carry a mutation in either gene. Smoking histories of case subjects with breast cancer and age-matched healthy control subjects were compared. Odds ratios for developing breast cancer were determined for smokers versus nonsmokers by use of conditional logistic regression for matched sets after adjustment for other known risk factors.Subjects with BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutations and breast cancer were significantly more likely to have been nonsmokers than were subjects with mutations and without breast cancer (two-sided P = .007). In a multivariate analysis, subjects with BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations who had smoked cigarettes for more than 4 pack-years (i.e., number of packs per day multiplied by the number of years of smoking) were found to have a lower breast cancer risk (odds ratio = 0.46, 95% confidence interval = 0.27-0.80; two-sided P = .006) than subjects with mutations who never smoked.This study raises the possibility that smoking reduces the risk of breast cancer in carriers of BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutations.
Peripheral nerve blockade for biopsy of plantar skin
Authors: M. Zamiri, D. Wylie, C.S. Munro
Journal: British Journal of Dermatology (2010)

Journal Article Peripheral nerve blockade for biopsy of plantar skin Get access M. Zamiri, M. Zamiri Alan Lyell Centre for Dermatology, Glasgow, U.K.Section of Dermatology, Division of Cancer Sciences and Molecular Pathology, Robertson Building, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8QQ, U.K. Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar D. Wylie, D. Wylie Department of Podiatry, Southern General Hospital, Glasgow, U.K. E‐mail: m.zamiri@clinmed.gla.ac.uk Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar C.S. Munro C.S. Munro Alan Lyell Centre for Dermatology, Glasgow, U.K. Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar British Journal of Dermatology, Volume 163, Issue 1, 1 July 2010, Pages 219–221, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2133.2010.09780.x Published: 01 July 2010
Estimated Global Transmural Distribution of Activation Rate and Conduction Block During Porcine and Canine Ventricular Fibrillation
Authors: Jonathan C. Newton, William M. Smith, Raymond E. Ideker
Journal: Circulation Research (2004)

We quantified ventricular fibrillation (VF) activation rate, conduction block, and organization transmurally in pigs and dogs, whose transmural Purkinje distribution differ. In six pigs and five dogs, 75 to 100 plunge needles, containing four electrodes for the right ventricle (RV) and six electrodes for the left ventricle (LV) and septum, were inserted in vivo. Six VF episodes were electrically initiated and allowed to last for 47 to 180 seconds. From the FFT power spectra, dominant frequency (DF), an estimate of activation rate, and incidence of double peaks (DPI), an estimate of conduction block, were calculated every 8 ms at each electrode. DF was highest at the epicardium and lowest at the endocardium, whereas DPI was highest at the endocardium and lowest at the epicardium for the entire LV and the RV base in both pigs and dogs for the first 70 seconds of VF. This distribution changed little throughout the first 3 minutes of VF in pigs but reversed in dogs by 2 minutes of VF. In conclusion, estimated activation rates and conduction block incidence during VF are not uniformly distributed transmurally. During the first minute of VF, the faster activating LV base epicardium exhibits less estimated block than the slower endocardium, raising the possibility that faster activating epicardium generates wavefronts that drive the endocardium early during VF. Constancy of this pattern in pigs but its reversal by 2 minutes in dogs is consistent with the hypothesis that activation during later VF is driven by Purkinje fibers.
Effect of the plane of surgery achieved on local recurrence in patients with operable rectal cancer: a prospective study using data from the MRC CR07 and NCIC-CTG CO16 randomised clinical trial
Authors: Phil Quirke, Robert Steele, John Monson, Robert Grieve, Subhash Khanna, Jean Couture, Chris O'Callaghan, Arthur Sun Myint, Eric Bessell, Lindsay C Thompson, Mahesh Parmar, Richard J Stephens, David Sebag-Montefiore
Journal: The Lancet (2009)
Methods to Improve Diagnostic Accuracy in a Community Mental Health Setting
Authors: Monica Ramirez Basco, Jeff Q. Bostic, Dona Davies, A. John Rush, Brad Witte, William Hendrickse, Vicki Barnett
Journal: American Journal of Psychiatry (2000)

This study determined the extent to which adding structured procedures improved diagnostic accuracy for outpatients with severe mental illness in a community mental health setting.The Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R (SCID) was used to interview 200 psychiatric outpatients. A research nurse reviewed medical records and amended the SCID diagnoses accordingly. A research psychiatrist or psychologist reviewed the diagnostic data and interviewed each patient to verify or further modify the previous findings. Diagnostic outcomes at each step of the procedure were compared to determine whether adding additional data improved diagnostic accuracy. The additional time required for each element of the diagnostic procedure was also assessed.Kappa comparisons of the different diagnostic levels showed that adding additional data significantly improved accuracy. Diagnoses rendered by combining the SCID and review of the medical record were the most accurate, followed by the SCID alone, and then diagnoses made by psychiatrists during routine care. In addition, the SCID alone identified five times as many current and past secondary diagnoses as were documented routinely in patients' charts.Combining structured interviewing with a review of the medical record appears to produce more accurate primary diagnoses and to identify more secondary diagnoses than routine clinical methods. The patients' knowledge of their diagnoses was limited, suggesting a need for patient education in this setting. Whether use of structured interviewing in routine practice improves patient outcomes deserves further study.
Methotrexate, Doxorubicin, and Cisplatin (MAP) Plus Maintenance Pegylated Interferon Alfa-2b Versus MAP Alone in Patients With Resectable High-Grade Osteosarcoma and Good Histologic Response to Preoperative MAP: First Results of the EURAMOS-1 Good Response Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Stefan S. Bielack, Sigbjørn Smeland, Jeremy S. Whelan, Neyssa Marina, Gordana Jovic, Jane M. Hook, Mark D. Krailo, Mark Gebhardt, Zsuzsanna Pápai, James Meyer, Helen Nadel, R. Lor Randall, Claudia Deffenbaugh, Rajaram Nagarajan, Bernadette Brennan, G. Douglas Letson, Lisa A. Teot, Allen Goorin, Daniel Baumhoer, Leo Kager, Mathias Werner, Ching C. Lau, Kirsten Sundby Hall, Hans Gelderblom, Paul Meyers, Richard Gorlick, Reinhard Windhager, Knut Helmke, Mikael Eriksson, Peter M. Hoogerbrugge, Paula Schomberg, Per-Ulf Tunn, Thomas Kühne, Heribert Jürgens, Henk van den Berg, Tom Böhling, Susan Picton, Marleen Renard, Peter Reichardt, Joachim Gerss, Trude Butterfass-Bahloul, Carol Morris, Pancras C.W. Hogendoorn, Beatrice Seddon, Gabriele Calaminus, Maria Michelagnoli, Catharina Dhooge, Matthew R. Sydes, Mark Bernstein
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2015)

EURAMOS-1, an international randomized controlled trial, investigated maintenance therapy with pegylated interferon alfa-2b (IFN-α-2b) in patients whose osteosarcoma showed good histologic response (good response) to induction chemotherapy.
Effects of the Renin-Angiotensin System on the Current <i>I</i> <sub>to</sub> in Epicardial and Endocardial Ventricular Myocytes From the Canine Heart
Authors: Hangang Yu, Junyuan Gao, Hongsheng Wang, Randy Wymore, Susan Steinberg, David McKinnon, Michael R. Rosen, Ira S. Cohen
Journal: Circulation Research (2000)

Abstract —The Ca 2+ -independent portion of transient outward K + current ( I to ) exhibits a transmural gradient in ventricle. To investigate control mechanisms for this gradient, we studied canine epicardial and endocardial ventricular myocytes with use of the whole-cell patch-clamp technique. I to was larger in amplitude, had a more negative voltage threshold for activation, and had a more negative midpoint of inactivation in epicardium. Recovery from inactivation was &gt;10-fold slower in endocardium. Incubation of epicardial myocytes with angiotensin II for 2 to 52 hours altered I to to resemble unincubated endocardium and reduced the amplitude of the phase 1 notch of the action potential. In contrast, incubation of endocardial myocytes with losartan for 2 to 52 hours altered I to to resemble unincubated epicardium and induced a phase 1 notch in the action potential. With RNase protection assays, we determined that incubations with angiotensin II or losartan did not alter mRNA levels for either Kv4.3 or Kv1.4; thus, a change in the α subunit for I to is unlikely to be responsible. To test whether posttranslational modification produced the effects of angiotensin II, we coexpressed Kv4.3 and the angiotensin II type 1a receptor in Xenopus oocytes. Incubation with angiotensin II increased the time constant for recovery from inactivation of the expressed current by 2-fold with an incubation time constant of 3.7 hours. No effect on activation or inactivation voltage dependence was observed. These results demonstrate that the properties of I to in endocardium and epicardium are plastic and likely under the tonic-differing influence of the renin-angiotensin system.
The Effects of Race and Region on Cardiovascular Morbidity Among Elderly Americans With Diabetes
Authors: Alain G. Bertoni, Julienne K. Kirk, L. Douglas Case, Christine Kay, David C. Goff, K.M. Venkat Narayan, Ronny A. Bell
Journal: Diabetes Care (2005)

There is conflicting evidence about whether nonwhite Americans with diabetes have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Because geographic region is known to influence the risk of CVD in the U.S., we sought to determine the effects of race and region on cardiovascular morbidity among elderly Americans with diabetes.We performed a national, retrospective, cohort study using the Medicare claims of 126,153 white and 17,962 black patients with diabetes, aged > or =65 years in 1994, who were followed through 1999 for incident acute myocardial infarction, ischemic heart disease, stroke, and heart failure. The effect of race, sex, and region on the incidence of these diseases was assessed using Cox proportional hazards regression, adjusting for baseline demographics and comorbidities.The incidence of any CVD ranged from 23.9/100 person-years among southern black men to 29.2/100 person-years among non-southern black women. The risk of CVD was lower among southern black men (hazard ratio 0.87 [95% CI 0.82-0.92]) and women (0.95 [0.91-0.99]) than their southern white counterparts. In the three other U.S. regions combined (northeast, midwest, and west), black men had a similar risk for CVD (1.01 [0.95-1.07]), and black women had a greater risk (1.10 [1.05-1.16]) than non-southern white men and women, respectively.Among elderly Americans with diabetes, the incidence of CVD is unlikely to differ a great deal between whites and blacks. Residence in the South seems to confer a modest benefit for elderly black people with diabetes.