tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
Effects of acupuncture on rates of pregnancy and live birth among women undergoing in vitro fertilisation: systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Eric Manheimer, Grant Zhang, Laurence Udoff, Aviad Haramati, Patricia Langenberg, Brian M Berman, Lex M Bouter
Journal: BMJ (2008)

<b>Objective</b> To evaluate whether acupuncture improves rates of pregnancy and live birth when used as an adjuvant treatment to embryo transfer in women undergoing in vitro fertilisation. <b>Design</b> Systematic review and meta-analysis. <b>Data sources</b> Medline, Cochrane Central, Embase, Chinese Biomedical Database, hand searched abstracts, and reference lists. <b>Review methods</b> Eligible studies were randomised controlled trials that compared needle acupuncture administered within one day of embryo transfer with sham acupuncture or no adjuvant treatment, with reported outcomes of at least one of clinical pregnancy, ongoing pregnancy, or live birth. Two reviewers independently agreed on eligibility; assessed methodological quality; and extracted outcome data. For all trials, investigators contributed additional data not included in the original publication (such as live births). Meta-analyses included all randomised patients. <b>Data synthesis</b> Seven trials with 1366 women undergoing in vitro fertilisation were included in the meta-analyses. There was little clinical heterogeneity. Trials with sham acupuncture and no adjuvant treatment as controls were pooled for the primary analysis. Complementing the embryo transfer process with acupuncture was associated with significant and clinically relevant improvements in clinical pregnancy (odds ratio 1.65, 95% confidence interval 1.27 to 2.14; number needed to treat (NNT) 10 (7 to 17); seven trials), ongoing pregnancy (1.87, 1.40 to 2.49; NNT 9 (6 to 15); five trials), and live birth (1.91, 1.39 to 2.64; NNT 9 (6 to 17); four trials). Because we were unable to obtain outcome data on live births for three of the included trials, the pooled odds ratio for clinical pregnancy more accurately represents the true combined effect from these trials rather than the odds ratio for live birth. The results were robust to sensitivity analyses on study validity variables. A prespecified subgroup analysis restricted to the three trials with the higher rates of clinical pregnancy in the control group, however, suggested a smaller non-significant benefit of acupuncture (odds ratio 1.24, 0.86 to 1.77). <b>Conclusions</b> Current preliminary evidence suggests that acupuncture given with embryo transfer improves rates of pregnancy and live birth among women undergoing in vitro fertilisation.
Hepatitis B virus infection in lymphatic tissues in inactive hepatitis B carriers
Authors: Makoto Umeda, Hiroyuki Marusawa, Hiroshi Seno, Akira Katsurada, Motoshige Nabeshima, Hiroto Egawa, Shinji Uemoto, Yukihiro Inomata, Koichi Tanaka, Tsutomu Chiba
Journal: Journal of Hepatology (2005)
S7 Annual trends in asthma emergency attendance, hospital admission and readmission
Authors: V. Kuan, S. J. Quantrill
Journal: Thorax (2010)

<h3>Introduction and Objectives</h3> Recent government initiatives rooting care of chronic conditions in primary care settings with particular emphasis on reducing hospital use require on-going collection of high-quality data. However, in most Trusts this data are not systematically reported. Data around readmissions have recently become a priority issue with proposals to penalise secondary care Trusts with high readmission rates. <h3>Methods</h3> Asthma emergency attendances and reattendances to our Trust from 2003/4 to 2009/10 and hospital admissions and readmissions from 2001/2 to 2009/10 were obtained from Symphony and Patient Administration System (PAS). For hospital admissions discharge coding was used to identify cases. <h3>Results</h3> 8155 emergency attendances were recorded over the 7 year period between 2003/4 and 2009/10, of which 4691 were adult (≥18 years) and 3464 children (&lt;18 years). During this time, 2927 patients out of 4479 (65%) attended just once. Emergency attendances were stable for children ranging from 442 in 2003/4 to 455 in 2008/9, but rose sharply to 652 in 2009/10. Adult emergency attendances decreased from 666 in 2003/4 to 512 in 2008/9, but also rose sharply in 2009/10 to 790. Emergency adult reattendances for 0–28 days, 0–90 days and 0–365 days fell from 85, 128 and 227, respectively in 2003/4 to 38, 64 and 142 in 2008/9. From 2001/2 to 2009/10, there were 3707(2341 adult, 1366 children) hospital asthma admissions. Out of 1599 adult patients over this period, 1225 had just one admission. Admissions rose from 98 to 191 for children and 153 to 322 for adults from 2001/2 to 2009/10. Hospital adult readmissions have varied, ranging from 5(2001/2) to 16(2008/9) for 0–28 days, 14 (2003/4) to 35 (2005/6) for 0–90 days and 35 (2002/3) to 68 (2005/6) for 0–365 days. Mean length of stay fell from 5.80 days in 2001/2 to 3.88 days in 2009/10. <h3>Conclusions</h3> Large numbers of patients attend our emergency department for acute asthma. Admissions for acute asthma have risen markedly, more than doubling over 9 years. Numbers of readmissions within 28 days are relatively small, but the readmission rate within one year is relatively high at 22.70% (2008/9). These figures have important implications for resource allocation and training across the primary/secondary care divide.
Immunogenicity of supplemental doses of poliovirus vaccine for children aged 6–9 months in Moradabad, India: a community-based, randomised controlled trial
Authors: Concepción F Estívariz, Hamid Jafari, Roland W Sutter, T Jacob John, Vibhor Jain, Ashutosh Agarwal, Harish Verma, Mark A Pallansch, Ajit P Singh, Sherine Guirguis, Jitendra Awale, Anthony Burton, Sunil Bahl, Arani Chatterjee, R Bruce Aylward
Journal: The Lancet Infectious Diseases (2011)
Immunoglobulin heavy chain gene expression in peripheral blood B lymphocytes.
Authors: C Huang, A K Stewart, R S Schwartz, B D Stollar
Journal: Journal of Clinical Investigation (1992)

cDNA libraries for IgM heavy chain variable regions were prepared from unmanipulated peripheral blood lymphocytes of two healthy people. Partial sequencing of 103 clones revealed VH gene family use and complete CDR3 and JH sequences. The libraries differed in the two subjects. In one person's cDNA the VH5 family was overexpressed and the VH3 family underexpressed relative to genomic complexity. In the second person's cDNA, VH3 was most frequently expressed. In both libraries, JH4 was most frequent. VH segments of several clones were closely related to those in fetal repertoires. However, there was also evidence of mutation in many cDNAs. Three clones differed from the single nonpolymorphic VH6 germline gene by 7-13 bases. Clones with several differences from VH5 germline gene VH251 were identified. CDR3 segments were highly diverse. JH portions of several CDR3's differed from germline JH sequences. 44% of the clones had DH genes related to the DLR and DXP families, most with differences from germline sequences. In 11 DLR2-related sequences, several base substitutions could not be accounted for by polymorphism. Thus, circulating IgM-producing B cell populations include selected clones, some of which are encoded by variable region gene segments that have mutated from the germline form.
Persistence of Betapapillomavirus Infections as a Risk Factor for Actinic Keratoses, Precursor to Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Authors: Elsemieke I. Plasmeijer, Rachel E. Neale, Maurits N.C. de Koning, Wim G.V. Quint, Penelope McBride, Mariet C.W. Feltkamp, Adele C. Green
Journal: Cancer Research (2009)

Human papillomaviruses from the beta genus (betaPV) are a possible cause of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). We assessed the extent to which betaPV infections persisted long-term in a subtropical Australian community and whether betaPV persistence is positively associated with actinic keratoses, precursor for SCC. Eyebrow hairs were collected from 171 participants of the community-based Nambour Skin Cancer Study in 1996 and 2003. Hair samples were tested for the presence of DNA from 25 different betaPV types and assessed in relation to actinic keratosis presence in 2007. In 1996, a total of 413 betaPV infections were found in 73% of participants, increasing to 490 infections among 85% in 2003. Of the total betaPV infections detected, 211 (30%) were found to persist. Age was significantly associated with betaPV persistence: those ages >60 years had 1.5-fold (95% confidence interval, 1.1-1.9) increased risk of type-specific viral persistence than those ages <40 years. After accounting for actinic keratoses at baseline, persistence of betaPV DNA resulted in a 1.4-fold (95% confidence interval, 1.0-1.9) increase in risk of having actinic keratoses on the face in 2007. In conclusion, persistent betaPV infections in this population were associated with an increased occurrence of actinic keratosis. Additional studies are needed to determine the possible association of betaPV persistence with SCC.
Treatment-Related Myelodysplasia and Acute Leukemia in Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma Patients
Authors: James O. Armitage, Paul P. Carbone, Joseph M. Connors, Alexandra Levine, John M. Bennett, Stewart Kroll
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2003)

Standard therapies for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) are associated with an increased risk of developing treatment-related myelodysplastic syndrome or acute myelogenous leukemia (tMDS/AML). However, there is considerable debate over the incidence or risk of tMDS/AML in NHL patients treated with any particular modality and the factors that contribute to malignant transformation.Conclusions were based on thorough analysis of data reported in the peer-reviewed literature and careful examination of the statistical methodology and methods for identifying cases of tMDS/AML. Unless noted, data are reported only for NHL patients, excluding Hodgkin's disease patients.Despite differences in methods used to identify cases and to estimate the cumulative incidence over time (actuarial v cumulative calculations), up to 10% of NHL patients treated with either conventional-dose chemotherapy or high-dose therapy and autologous stem-cell transplantation may develop tMDS/AML within 10 years of primary therapy. Kaplan-Meier estimates of the actuarial incidence, which are based on censoring of patients who died without developing tMDS/AML, can lead to artificially high estimates with large confidence intervals at later time points. Although there is much debate about the cause(s) of tMDS/AML, there is compelling evidence that alkylating agents, certain other leukemogenic agents, and total-body irradiation (TBI) cause chromosomal damage that can lead to tMDS/AML.Limiting exposure to alkylating agents and eliminating TBI from transplantation conditioning regimens may reduce the relative risk of tMDS/AML.
The dating of linguistic beginnings
Authors: Phillip V. Tobias
Journal: Behavioral and Brain Sciences (1996)

Abstract The problem of how certain structure–function composites of high complexity could have evolved gradually and by natural selection has been with us at least since Charles Darwin admitted how difficult it was to explain, “his” theory, the origins of “organs of extreme perfection and complication” – such as the eyes of higher animals. Human language capacity is another evolutionary achievement of extraordinary perfection and complexity. Like other skilled human activities, it involves both central (neural) and peripheral (vocal and respiratory) complexes. The reduction of these to simpler building stones to which evolutionary principles may be applied is staggeringly difficult.
Use of drains versus no drains after burr-hole evacuation of chronic subdural haematoma: a randomised controlled trial
Authors: Thomas Santarius, Peter J Kirkpatrick, Dharmendra Ganesan, Hui Ling Chia, Ibrahim Jalloh, Peter Smielewski, Hugh K Richards, Hani Marcus, Richard A Parker, Stephen J Price, Ramez W Kirollos, John D Pickard, Peter J Hutchinson
Journal: The Lancet (2009)
Olanzapine Effects on Auditory Sensory Gating in Schizophrenia
Authors: Celso Arango, Ann Summerfelt, Robert W. Buchanan
Journal: American Journal of Psychiatry (2003)

New-generation antipsychotics have been proposed to normalize the P50 sensory gating index in patients with schizophrenia. In the context of a double-blind comparison of olanzapine and haloperidol, the authors examined the effect of olanzapine on P50 suppression.P50 measurements were obtained at baseline while patients were being treated with fluphenazine and after 12 weeks of double-blind treatment with either olanzapine (N=12) or haloperidol (N=12).There were no treatment group differences in P50 amplitude, latency, or sensory gating ratio.These results suggest that there is not a significant differential effect of olanzapine and haloperidol on the P50 sensory gating index in schizophrenia.
Evidence that cytokines play a role in rheumatoid arthritis
Authors: Fionula M. Brennan, Iain B. McInnes
Journal: Journal of Clinical Investigation (2008)

A large number of cytokines are active in the joints of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). It is now clear that these cytokines play a fundamental role in the processes that cause inflammation, articular destruction, and the comorbidities associated with RA. Following the success of TNF-α blockade as a treatment for RA, other cytokines now offer alternative targets for therapeutic intervention or might be useful as predictive biomarkers of disease. In this Review, we discuss the biologic contribution and therapeutic potential of the major cytokine families to RA pathology, focusing on molecules contained within the TNF-α, IL-1, IL-6, IL-23, and IL-2 families.
Protein Sulfenic Acids in Redox Signaling
Authors: Leslie B. Poole, P. Andrew Karplus, Al Claiborne
Journal: The Annual Review of Pharmacology and Toxicology (2004)

Reactive (low pKa) cysteine residues in proteins are critical components in redox signaling. A particularly reactive and versatile reversibly oxidized form of cysteine, the sulfenic acid (Cys-SOH), has important roles as a catalytic center in enzymes and as a sensor of oxidative and nitrosative stress in enzymes and transcriptional regulators. Depending on environment, sometimes the sulfenic acid provides a metastable oxidized form, and other times it is a fleeting intermediate giving rise to more stable disulfide, sulfinic acid, or sulfenyl-amide forms.
Ergogenic aids: nutrition
Authors: Bairagoni Prabhakar
Journal: British Journal of Sports Medicine (2010)

It has been an endless pursuit of sportspersons and coaches to adopt various means to boost performance. Anything perceived to have a potential benefit is readily tried with a hope to gain a margin of victory. Such practices can be traced back to 450 BC, when muscle meat was consumed to improve muscle strength and hearts of brave animals were eaten to gain bravery. With passage of time, however, these items and various other substances and devices have been put to scientific analysis and the effective aids have been segregated from those with mythical value alone. Collectively these ‘substance or devices used to improve sports performance’ have been termed as ‘ergogenic aids’. The science of nutrition has brought forth many dietary substances, micro and macro nutrients which when added or manipulated in the diet, bring about the desirable effect of boosting performance. These ‘nutritional ergogenic aids’ fall into three categories – macronutrient manipulation, micronutrient supplementation and addition of other dietary substances. In conclusion, the age old practices of using dietary sources for that extra sport in the performance are not all in vain. Many nutrients have emerged as holding some sort of promise and yet others require to be tested adequately. Research on nutritional ergogenic aids is going on the world over, to add to this list of nutrients for the sportspersons to get the maximum advantage for a margin of victory.
WIP Deficiency Reveals a Differential Role for WIP and the Actin Cytoskeleton in T and B Cell Activation
Authors: Inés M Antón, Miguel A de la Fuente, Tasha N Sims, Sheryl Freeman, Narayanaswamy Ramesh, John H Hartwig, Michael L Dustin, Raif S Geha
Journal: Immunity (2002)
Molecular cloning of human angiotensinogen cDNA and evidence for the presence of its mRNA in rat heart.
Authors: S P Kunapuli, A Kumar
Journal: Circulation Research (1987)

Human angiotensinogen cDNA clone was isolated from a liver cDNA library using a 32-nucleotide-long, synthetic oligonucleotide. The cDNA insert was 1,030 bp long and coded for the secretory and biologically active angiotensin II regions of the angiotensinogen molecule. The RNA from rat liver, brain, and heart was analyzed by the Northern hybridization procedure using nick translated angiotensinogen cDNA as a probe. In addition to liver, the angiotensinogen mRNA is present in the brain and the heart. The angiotensinogen mRNA in the heart is at least fourfold to fivefold more abundant as compared with the liver. We also provide evidence that angiotensinogen mRNA is present in the rat atria and right ventricle but not detectable in the left ventricle. The size of the angiotensinogen mRNA is the same from all three of the tissues, as judged by their electrophoretic mobilities.
The Insulin Receptor: Molecular Biology and Transmembrane Signaling*
Authors: IRA D. GOLDFINE
Journal: Endocrine Reviews (1987)

INSULIN is a major regulatory hormone for most, if not all, cells. It is important to understand the molecular mechanisms of insulin action not only because it is a major anabolic hormone, but also because insulin action is impaired in the vast majority of patients with noninsulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) (1). How insulin carried out its various cellular actions remains a mystery. While the secrets of other hormones such as steroid hormones, hormones that use cAMP, and hormones that use calcium have fallen to the onslaught of persistent investigators, insulin has not yielded. Over the past several years, however, progress has been made that has enhanced our knowledge of how insulin regulates target cells. This review will attempt to highlight some of these recent advances. In most tissues, insulin is involved in the metabolism of sugars, lipids, amino acids, and ions. In target cells insulin has three major sites of metabolic regulation (2–4) (Fig. 1).
P22 Yield of Microbiology Samples Taken During Bronchoscopy Performed For the Diagnosis of Lung Cancer
Authors: SA Rolin, DJ Waine
Journal: Thorax (2012)

<h3>Introduction and Objectives</h3> Previous studies have suggested that bronchial lavage does not improve the yield of bronchoscopy if tumour is visible and biopsies and brushings are taken (1). However, no assessment was made of the microbiological yield from lavage samples. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and nature of positive bronchial culture in patients presenting with lung cancer. <h3>Methods</h3> A retrospective review was conducted of the case notes of all patients between November 2009 and May 2012 who underwent a flexible bronchoscopy for the diagnosis of lung cancer, and were determined by the operator to have either a definite or probable visible malignancy. In all patients BAL had been performed and sent for microbiological investigation in addition to cytology. Type and frequency of culture were analysed, along with the relationship between culture and lung cancer histology, stage, and the performance status of the patient. <h3>Results</h3> 95 patients underwent a flexible bronchoscopy at the time of diagnosis within the time period. The majority were male (62%) with an average age of 70 years (range 31–91). Culture was positive in 37.7% of samples. 32.5% of these organisms were gramme negative (mostly <i>Pseudomonas spp.</i> and coliform bacilli), 20.9% gramme positive (<i>S. pneumoniae</i>, <i>S. aureus</i>, MRSA), 41.9% <i>Candida spp.</i>, and 4.7% <i>Aspergillus spp</i>. The predominant form of lung cancer was non-small cell (56%, of which 58.4% were squamous), the majority of patients having advanced disease (92% stage IIIA-IV) with a good performance status (55.8% PS 0–1). Patient characteristics, tumour histology, or stage were not significantly different in patients with, or without, positive culture. <h3>Conclusions</h3> This study has shown that more than a third of patients investigated for lung cancer had evidence of bronchial colonisation with potentially pathogenic bacteria at the time of diagnosis. This suggests that lavage ought to remain a routine aspect of bronchoscopy for cancer, as identification of bacteria at this early stage might be used to guide the choice of effective antibiotics for the treatment of subsequent pulmonary infections. Waine DJ <i>et al.</i><i>Am J Resp Crit Care Med 2004; 169(7):A332.</i>
Resistance analysis of hepatitis C virus genotype 1 prior treatment null responders receiving daclatasvir and asunaprevir
Authors: Fiona McPhee, Dennis Hernandez, Fei Yu, Joseph Ueland, Aaron Monikowski, Arlene Carifa, Paul Falk, Chunfu Wang, Robert Fridell, Timothy Eley, Nannan Zhou, David Gardiner
Journal: Hepatology (2013)

In a sentinel cohort, hepatitis C virus (HCV) patients (primarily genotype [GT] 1a) were treated with daclatasvir (NS5A inhibitor) and asunaprevir (NS3 protease inhibitor). Preexistence, emergence, and persistence of resistance variants in patients who failed this treatment are described. HCV-infected null responders received daclatasvir (60 mg once daily) and asunaprevir (600 mg twice daily) alone (Group A, 11 patients) or with peginterferon alfa-2a and ribavirin (Group B, 10 patients) for 24 weeks. Resistance testing was performed on baseline samples and samples with HCV RNA ≥1,000 IU/mL at Week 1 through posttreatment Week 48. Resistance substitution susceptibility to inhibition by asunaprevir and daclatasvir was assessed using HCV replicon assays. In Group A, six GT1a patients experiencing viral breakthrough and one GT1a patient who relapsed had detectable NS5A (Q30E/R, L31V/M, Y93C/N) and NS3 (R155K, D168A/E/V/Y) resistance-associated variants at failure. Two of six viral breakthrough patients achieved SVR48 after treatment intensification with peginterferon alfa-2a and ribavirin. For 2/4 viral breakthrough patients not responding to treatment intensification, NS3 resistance variants changed (D168Y to D168T; R155K to V36M-R155K). At posttreatment Week 48, daclatasvir-resistant variants persisted while asunaprevir-resistant variants were generally replaced by wild-type sequences. The NS3 sequence remained unchanged in the one patient with NS3-R155K at baseline, relapse, and posttreatment Week 48. In Group B, no viral breakthrough was observed.The treatment failure of daclatasvir and asunaprevir in HCV GT1a patients was associated with both NS5A and NS3 resistance variants in prior null responders. NS5A resistance variants persisted while NS3 resistance variants generally decayed, suggesting a higher relative fitness of NS5A variants.