tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
The endometrium versus embryonic quality in endometriosis-related infertility
Authors: N Garrido, J Navarro, J García-Velasco, J Remoh, A Pellice, C Simón
Journal: Human Reproduction Update (2002)

In spite of a great deal of effort over many decades, the mechanisms that lead to infertility in women with endometriosis remain unknown. Moreover, controversial results in the literature add even more difficulties in the understanding of this issue. Since the introduction of IVF, we have had the opportunity to study the effects of endometriosis at specific stages of the reproductive process including folliculogenesis, fertilization, embryo development and implantation. Depending on the research group, there are conflicting data on the results of IVF in patients with endometriosis. Some researchers found impaired implantation in patients with endometriosis, but such a defect in implantation may be caused by either defective embryos or altered endometrium. The observation of a higher rate of arrested embryos in patients with endometriosis compared with disease-free women, and that women with this pathological situation undergoing ovum donation had the same chance of implantation as patients without endometriosis, initially suggested that impaired oocyte/embryo quality may be responsible for reduced implantation. Further investigations on follicular components have also found differences between women with endometriosis and those without the disease. In addition, recent advances on implantation research, mainly on markers of endometrial receptivity, also show features in the eutopic endometrium of women with endometriosis that are not found in endometrium of women without the disease, although there is no agreement on this point. In this review, we will focus on infertility-related endometriosis based on our own research and the available literature.
Inhibitory Effect of Natriuretic Peptides on Aldosterone Synthase Gene Expression in Cultured Neonatal Rat Cardiocytes
Authors: Teruhiko Ito, Michihiro Yoshimura, Shota Nakamura, Masafumi Nakayama, Yukio Shimasaki, Eisaku Harada, Yuji Mizuno, Megumi Yamamuro, Masaki Harada, Yoshihiko Saito, Kazuwa Nakao, Hiroki Kurihara, Hirofumi Yasue, Hisao Ogawa
Journal: Circulation (2003)

Although previously thought to be synthesized solely in adrenal cortex, we have recently showed that aldosterone is also produced in and the expression of CYP11B2 mRNA was induced in the failing or hypertensive human ventricle. Atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) and brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) are cardiac hormones with wide biological effects, including inhibition of renin and aldosterone production. We hypothesized that natriuretic peptides reduce the expression of CYP11B2 mRNA in the heart.To test this hypothesis, we examined whether endogenous or exogenous natriuretic peptides reduce the expression of CYP11B2 mRNA using real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. By using HS 142-1, a functional guanylyl cyclase-A type receptor antagonist, we showed that angiotensin II (AngII) pretreated with HS 142-1 increased CYP11B2 mRNA expression (1.62+/-0.12-fold, HS 142-1+AngII 10(-7) mol/L versus AngII 10(-7) mol/L alone, P<0.0001). The treatment with exogenous (10(-6) mol/L) ANP and BNP reduced CYP11B2 mRNA expression (ANP, P=0.0042; BNP, P=0.0012).We showed that endogenous and exogenous natriuretic peptides reduced CYP11B2 mRNA expression in cultured neonatal rat cardiocytes. This may inhibit the cardiac renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system by suppressing the gene expression of CYP11B2 and restraining cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis.
Detection of circulating tumor cells for prediction of recurrence after adjuvant chemoradiation in locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck
Authors: I. Tinhofer, R. Konschak, C. Stromberger, J.-D. Raguse, J.H. Dreyer, K. Jöhrens, U. Keilholz, V. Budach
Journal: Annals of Oncology (2014)
Desbaric air embolism during diving: an unusual complication of Osler-Weber-Rendu disease
Authors: Y-L Hsu, H-C Wang, P-C Yang
Journal: British Journal of Sports Medicine (2004)

Cerebral manifestations of Osler-Weber-Rendu disease (OWRD, hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia) including telangiectases, venous malformations, and arteriovenous malformations, are usually under-recognised. The highest complication rate is observed in high flow cerebral arteriovenous malformations, which may present with headache, epilepsy, ischaemia, or haemorrhage. Cerebral air embolism during self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (scuba) diving as the first manifestation of pulmonary arteriovenous malformation (PAVM) in OWRD patients has never been reported before. Here we report a 31 year old male who presented desbaric air embolism as the first manifestation of PAVM. As far as we know, this is the first such case published in English medical literature.
ANCA as a Predictor of Relapse
Authors: Michael J. Kemna, Jan Damoiseaux, Jos Austen, Bjorn Winkens, Jim Peters, Pieter van Paassen, Jan Willem Cohen Tervaert
Journal: Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (2014)

The value of measuring ANCA during follow-up to predict a relapse is controversial. On the basis of recently obtained pathophysiologic insights, we postulated that measuring ANCA is useful in patients with renal involvement but is less valuable in patients with nonrenal disease. One hundred sixty-six consecutive patients with ANCA-associated vasculitis, positive for either proteinase 3 (PR3)-ANCA or myeloperoxidase (MPO)-ANCA, were included in our study, followed at regular intervals, and tested for PR3-ANCA and MPO-ANCA. In this cohort, 104 patients had renal involvement (72 with PR3-ANCA, 32 with MPO-ANCA) and 62 patients had nonrenal disease (36 with PR3-ANCA, 26 with MPO-ANCA). During an average (±SD) follow-up of 49±33 months and 18±14 ANCA measurements, 89 ANCA rises and 74 relapses were recorded. ANCA rises correlated with relapses in patients who presented with renal involvement (hazard ratio [HR], 11.09; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 5.01 to 24.55), but in comparison, associated only weakly with relapses in patients who presented with nonrenal disease (HR, 2.79; 95% CI, 1.30 to 5.98). In conclusion, longitudinal ANCA measurements may be useful in patients with renal involvement but is less valuable in patients with nonrenal disease.
Rural Interhospital Transfer of ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction Patients for Percutaneous Coronary Revascularization
Authors: Frank V. Aguirre, Joji J. Varghese, Michael P. Kelley, Wilfred Lam, Charles L. Lucore, John B. Gill, Lisa Page, Leah Turner, Conrad Davis, Frank L. Mikell
Journal: Circulation (2008)

Background— In Europe, interhospital transfer of ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients for primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) from non–PCI-capable (STEMI-referral) to PCI-capable (STEMI-accepting) facilities has been shown to be a superior reperfusion strategy compared with on-site fibrinolysis. The feasibility of such programs in the United States remains poorly defined. Methods and Results— We describe an observational cohort of 230 consecutive presumed STEMI patients who underwent interhospital transfer between January 2005 and March 2007 among 6 STEMI-referral and 2 STEMI-accepting hospitals in rural central Illinois. A standard treatment protocol using rapid interhospital transfer for primary PCI or rescue PCI after full-dose intravenous fibrinolysis (in event of unanticipated transfer delays) was initiated by the STEMI-referral emergency department physician. Three time intervals were evaluated: STEMI-referral care (door 1 to departure), transport time (door 1 departure to STEMI-accepting hospital arrival [door 2]), and STEMI-accepting hospital care (door 2 to balloon). Primary PCI was performed in 165 STEMI-confirmed patients (87.7%), whereas fibrinolysis was required in 16 patients (8.5%), with 56% undergoing rescue PCI. The median door 1–to-departure time was 46 minutes (25th and 75th percentiles, 32 and 62 minutes); approximately two thirds of this delay was attributable to the wait for transport arrival and departure. The transport and door 2–to-balloon times were 29 minutes (25th and 75th percentiles, 25 and 35 minutes) and 35 minutes (25th and 75th percentiles, 32 and 46 minutes), respectively. The door 1–to-balloon time was 117 minutes (25th and 75th percentiles, 98 and 137 minutes), with 12.2% and 58% of patients achieving a time of ≤90 and ≤120 minutes, respectively. No adverse clinical events occurred during interhospital transport. Conclusion— In rural US communities, emergency department physician–initiated interhospital transfer of STEMI patients for primary or rescue PCI is feasible and was safely executed with achievement of timely reperfusion when performed within coordinated healthcare networks.
Anti-dsDNA, anti-Sm antibodies, and the lupus anticoagulant: significant factors associated with lupus nephritis
Authors: P Alba
Journal: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases (2003)

<b>Background:</b> Lupus nephritis (LN) is a common manifestation in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Autoantibodies and ethnicity have been associated with LN, but the results are controversial. <b>Objective:</b> To study the immunological and demographic factors associated with the development of LN. <b>Patients and methods:</b> A retrospective case-control study of 127 patients with biopsy-proven LN, and 206 randomly selected patients with SLE without nephritis as controls was designed. All patients had attended our lupus unit during the past 12 years. Standard methods were used for laboratory testing. <b>Results:</b> Patients with LN were significantly younger than the controls at the time of SLE diagnosis (mean (SD) 25.6 (8.8) years <i>v</i> 33.7 (12.5) years; p&lt;0.0001). The proportion of patients of black ethnic origin was significantly higher in the group with nephritis (p=0.02). There were no differences in sex distribution or duration of follow up. A higher proportion of anti-dsDNA, anti-RNP, anti-Sm, and lupus anticoagulant (LA) was seen in the group with nephritis (p=0.002; p=0.005; p=0.0001; p=0.01, respectively). In univariate, but not in multivariate, analysis male sex and absence of anti-dsDNA were associated with earlier onset of renal disease (p=0.03; p=0.008). In multivariate analysis the only factors associated with nephritis were younger age at diagnosis of SLE, black race, presence of anti-dsDNA, anti-Sm, and LA. No demographic or immunological associations were seen with WHO histological classes. <b>Conclusions:</b> Young, black patients with anti-dsDNA, anti-Sm antibodies, and positive LA, appear to have a higher risk of renal involvement. These patients should be carefully monitored for the development of LN.
Abatacept in relapsing polychondritis
Authors: Guillaume Moulis, Grégory Pugnet, Laurent Sailler, Leonardo Astudillo, Philippe Arlet
Journal: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases (2013)

Previous analyses suggested that potent aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) antagonists were planar, with a lateral electron-rich center. To further define structural requirements and mechanism for antagonism, ten additional flavone derivatives were synthesized. Based on their ability to 1) compete with 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-<i>p</i>-dioxin (TCDD) for binding to the AhR; 2) inhibit TCDD-elicited binding of AhR to dioxin-responsive elements (DRE) in vitro; and 3) inhibit TCDD-induced transcription of DRE-dependent luciferase in stably transfected hepatoma cells, the most potent flavones contained a 3′-methoxy group and a 4′-substituent having one or more terminal atoms of high electron density (−N<sub>3</sub>, −NO<sub>2</sub>, or −NCS). Furthermore, these had low agonist activity as assessed by their inability to elicit AhR · DRE binding or to induce luciferase. Compounds containing bulkier 3′ or 4′-substituents, or a 3′-OH group were less potent antagonists, and some were partial agonists. In rat liver cytosol, 3′-methoxy-4′-azido- and 3′-methoxy-4′-nitroflavones bound competitively (with TCDD) to the AhR, indicating that they bind to the TCDD-binding site. When hepatoma cells were exposed to these flavones, AhR complexes were primarily immunoprecipitable from the cytosol and contained 90 kDa heat shock protein. In contrast, AhR in TCDD-treated cells was primarily immunoprecipitated from nuclear extracts and was associated with Arnt but not 90 kDa heat shock protein. Immunocytofluorescence analysis in intact cells further indicated that the potent antagonist inhibited nuclear uptake of AhR and blocked TCDD-dependent down-regulation of AhR. Together, these data indicate that the most potent antagonists bind the AhR with high affinity but cannot initiate receptor transformation and nuclear localization.
Oral Temperature Recording in Coronary Care Units: A Risk Factor?
Authors: J. Olivero
Journal: JAMA (1976)

To the Editor.—  A 65-year-old man was admitted to a coronary care unit with a diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction. Approximately 20 hours after his admission, ventricular fibrillation developed while he had a glass thermometer under his tongue. The complication was promptly and successfully treated by dc countershock and lidocaine hydrochloride therapy. Subsequently, the patient had a persistent cough, and a chest x-ray film (Figure) showed a fragment of the thermometer in the right main stem bronchus. A few minutes later, the patient coughed up the foreign body spontaneously.  Absorption of mercury from the bronchial tree has been reported.1,2Aspiration of as much as 5 ml mercury into the lungs as a complication of a ruptured Miller-Abbott tube in the nasopharynx has occurred without toxicity.1Although the absorption of mercury aspirated from a thermometer most likely would not be of clinical importance, the bronchial irritation of this element
Humoral and cellular immunity in atopic eczema
Authors: D.I. GROVE, J.G. REID, I.J. FORBES
Journal: British Journal of Dermatology (1975)

Parameters of humoral and cellular immunity were measured in thirty‐five patients with atopic eczema. The mean serum IgE level was raised but levels of the other major immunoglobulin classes were normal. Ten per cent of patients failed to respond to tetanus immunization. All patients responded to S. typhi H antigen. Fourteen per cent of patients failed to mount delayed hypersensitivity reactions to a battery of three intradermal antigens. The phytohaemagglutinin‐stimulated uptake of 3H thymidine by lymphocytes was normal in the presence of autologous or of fetal calf serum, as was the spontaneous lymphocyte uptake. T and B lymphocyte numbers in the peripheral blood were normal. These results are similar to those found in asthmatic patients and support the hypothesis that, in some patients, atopic eczema is associated with an immunodeficiency state.
Identification of the <i>NKG2D</i> Haplotypes Associated with Natural Cytotoxic Activity of Peripheral Blood Lymphocytes and Cancer Immunosurveillance
Authors: Tomonori Hayashi, Kazue Imai, Yukari Morishita, Ikue Hayashi, Yoichiro Kusunoki, Kei Nakachi
Journal: Cancer Research (2006)

Abstract We have previously shown that natural cytotoxic activity of peripheral blood lymphocytes was inversely related to cancer development based on a prospective cohort study. The genetic fraction of cytotoxic activity needs to be clarified, identifying individuals immunogenetically susceptible to cancer. A case-control study within the cohort members was designed: 102 cancer cases with peripheral lymphocyte DNA available and three control groups, each of which consisted of 204 subjects with each tertile level of cytotoxic activity. We first compared two control groups with high and low cytotoxic activity in terms of the single nucleotide polymorphisms in the natural killer complex gene region on chromosome 12p, identifying the haplotype alleles that were associated with the activity. Next, cancer risks were assessed for these haplotypes. We found two haplotype blocks, each of which generated two major haplotype alleles: low-activity-related LNK1 (frequency 0.478 and 0.615 in groups with high and low activity, respectively; P &amp;lt; 0.00008) and high-activity-related HNK1 (0.480 and 0.348; P &amp;lt; 0.0001), LNK2 (0.711 and 0.821; P &amp;lt; 0.0002), and HNK2 (0.272 and 0.174; P &amp;lt; 0.0008). These NKG2D haplotype alleles showed a significant difference between cases (0.632 for LNK1 and 0.333 for HNK1) and controls (0.554 for LNK1 and 0.406 for HNK1). The haplotype HNK1/HNK1 revealed a decreased risk of cancer (odds ratio, 0.471; 95% confidence interval, 0.233-0.952) compared with LNK1/LNK1. Individuals who are genetically predisposed to have low or high natural cytotoxic activity can in part be determined by NKG2D haplotyping, which in turn reveals an increased or decreased risk of cancer development. (Cancer Res 2006; 66(1): 563-70)
Readers' choice: Hot papers downloaded in 2006
Authors: Betsy Martinson, Michael Piper Hans, Garcia-Dorado David, A. Martinson Elizabeth
Journal: Cardiovascular Research (2007)

The Editorial Team at Cardiovascular Research is always interested in exploring trends in the literature and finding out what topics are of current interest in cardiology and vascular biology.One way we do this is to occasionally monitor which articles published in CVR are most often downloaded as full-text papers.With an average of 50,000 requests for CVR titles per month in 2006, a figure that has increased almost threefold over the past 4 years, we are in a good position to analyze the data.The most-downloaded review articles published in Cardiovascular Research in 2006 are shown inTable 1.The articles generating the greatest interest were those
Sequential class switching is required for the generation of high affinity IgE antibodies
Authors: Huizhong Xiong, Jayashree Dolpady, Matthias Wabl, Maria A. Curotto de Lafaille, Juan J. Lafaille
Journal: The Journal of Experimental Medicine (2012)

IgE antibodies with high affinity for their antigens can be stably cross-linked at low concentrations by trace amounts of antigen, whereas IgE antibodies with low affinity bind their antigens weakly. In this study, we find that there are two distinct pathways to generate high and low affinity IgE. High affinity IgE is generated through sequential class switching (μ→γ→ε) in which an intermediary IgG phase is necessary for the affinity maturation of the IgE response, where the IgE inherits somatic hypermutations and high affinity from the IgG1 phase. In contrast, low affinity IgE is generated through direct class switching (μ→ε) and is much less mutated. Mice deficient in IgG1 production cannot produce high affinity IgE, even after repeated immunizations. We demonstrate that a small amount of high affinity IgE can cause anaphylaxis and is pathogenic. Low affinity IgE competes with high affinity IgE for binding to Fcε receptors and prevents anaphylaxis and is thus beneficial.
Cystine-Glutamate Transporter <i>SLC7A11</i> in Cancer Chemosensitivity and Chemoresistance
Authors: Ying Huang, Zunyan Dai, Catalin Barbacioru, Wolfgang Sadée
Journal: Cancer Research (2005)

Abstract SLC7A11 (xCT), together with SLC3A2 (4F2hc), encodes the heterodimeric amino acid transport system xc−, which mediates cystine-glutamate exchange and thereby regulates intracellular glutathione levels. We used microarrays to analyze gene expression of transporters in 60 human cancer cell lines used by the National Cancer Institute for drug screening (NCI-60). The expression of SLC7A11 showed significant correlation with that of SLC3A2 (r = 0.66), which in turn correlated with SLC7A5 (r = 0.68), another known partner for SLC3A2, and with T1A-2 (r = 0.60; all P &amp;lt; 0.0001). Linking expression of SLC7A11 with potency of 1,400 candidate anticancer drugs identified 39 showing positive correlations, e.g., amino acid analogue, l-alanosine, and 296 with negative correlations, e.g., geldanamycin. However, no significant correlation was observed with the geldanamycin analogue 17-allylamino, 17-demethoxygeldanamycin (17-AAG). Inhibition of transport system xc− with glutamate or (S)-4-carboxyphenylglycine in lung A549 and HOP-62, and ovarian SK-OV-3 cells, reduced the potency of l-alanosine and lowered intracellular glutathione levels. This further resulted in increased potency of geldanamycin, with no effect on 17-AAG. Down-regulation of SLC7A11 by small interfering RNA affected drug potencies similarly to transport inhibitors. The inhibitor of γ-glutamylcysteine synthetase, buthionine sulfoximine, also decreased intracellular glutathione levels and enhanced potency of geldanamycin, but did not affect l-alanosine. These results indicate that SLC7A11 mediates cellular uptake of l-alanosine but confers resistance to geldanamycin by supplying cystine for glutathione maintenance. SLC7A11 expression could serve as a predictor of cellular response to l-alanosine and glutathione-mediated resistance to geldanamycin, yielding a potential target for increasing chemosensitivity to multiple drugs.
Bayes or Bootstrap? A Simulation Study Comparing the Performance of Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo Sampling and Bootstrapping in Assessing Phylogenetic Confidence
Authors: M. E. Alfaro
Journal: Molecular Biology and Evolution (2003)

Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo sampling has become increasingly popular in phylogenetics as a method for both estimating the maximum likelihood topology and for assessing nodal confidence. Despite the growing use of posterior probabilities, the relationship between the Bayesian measure of confidence and the most commonly used confidence measure in phylogenetics, the nonparametric bootstrap proportion, is poorly understood. We used computer simulation to investigate the behavior of three phylogenetic confidence methods: Bayesian posterior probabilities calculated via Markov chain Monte Carlo sampling (BMCMC-PP), maximum likelihood bootstrap proportion (ML-BP), and maximum parsimony bootstrap proportion (MP-BP). We simulated the evolution of DNA sequence on 17-taxon topologies under 18 evolutionary scenarios and examined the performance of these methods in assigning confidence to correct monophyletic and incorrect monophyletic groups, and we examined the effects of increasing character number on support value. BMCMC-PP and ML-BP were often strongly correlated with one another but could provide substantially different estimates of support on short internodes. In contrast, BMCMC-PP correlated poorly with MP-BP across most of the simulation conditions that we examined. For a given threshold value, more correct monophyletic groups were supported by BMCMC-PP than by either ML-BP or MP-BP. When threshold values were chosen that fixed the rate of accepting incorrect monophyletic relationship as true at 5%, all three methods recovered most of the correct relationships on the simulated topologies, although BMCMC-PP and ML-BP performed better than MP-BP. BMCMC-PP was usually a less biased predictor of phylogenetic accuracy than either bootstrapping method. BMCMC-PP provided high support values for correct topological bipartitions with fewer characters than was needed for nonparametric bootstrap.