tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
Control of Reproductive Capacity
Authors: J MacLeod, C Tietze
Journal: Annual Review of Medicine (1964)

A review of contraceptive methods is presented.  In early 1963 trad itional contraceptive methods still accounted for an estimated 90% of contraceptive practice in the United States.  In a study of use-effectiveness of traditional methods in United States Metropolitan a reas the failure rate for the condom was 13.8 it was 14.4 for the diaphragm 16.8 for withdrawal 38.5 for rhythm and 40.8 for the douche method.  The theoretical effectiveness would be much higher for these methods than the use-effectiveness but for the IUD the distinction between theoretical and use-effectiveness is much reduced.  The failure rate of the IUD in the U.S. is about 1 per 100 couple-years of use.  The use of either 1 of the 2 progestins (norethindrone or norethynodrel) in adequate dosage (5 to 10 mg daily from Day 5 to Day 25 of the cycle) supplemented with a sufficient (.06 to .1 mg) component of ethinyl estradiol-3-methyl ether  (Mestranol) is 100% effective if instructions are followed implicitly.  The inhibition of secretion of gonadotropins by the pituitary in males has not been satisfactory becasue of the side effects.  The ideal contraceptive for the male should be in single-inje ction form to be repeated at widely spaced intervals.
Distinct Activities of Interferon-γ, Lymphokine and Cytokine Differentiation-inducing Factors Acting on the Human Monoblastic Leukemia Cell Line U937
Authors: Paul E. Harris, Peter Ralph, Patricia Litcofsky, Malcolm A. S. Moore
Journal: Cancer Research (1985)

The human monoblast leukemia line U937 is growth inhibited and induced to express various characteristics of mature monocytes by lymphokines (LK) and other cytokines. Previous experiments have shown that interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) is responsible for some but not all of the differentiation-inducing effects on U937. To determine the variety and specificity of activity, the following factors were studied: phytohemagglutinin-induced LK that contained IFN-gamma (100 units/ml); purified IFN-gamma; human colony-stimulating factor 1 (CSF-1); and conditioned medium(a) (CM) from the human bladder carcinoma cell line 5637 and the hepatoma cell line SK-HEP. LK preparations contained no colony-stimulating activity, whereas CM from 5637 and SK-HEP both contained granulocyte-macrophage CSF (3000 to 4000 units/ml) but no IFN activity. IFN-gamma is the major immunoglobulin G Fc receptor-inducing species within lymphokine, since anti-interferon-gamma antibody inhibited most of this activity. Other sources of Fc receptor-inducing activity were CM from SK-HEP and 5637 cell lines. Human CSF-1 when tested up to 800 units/ml was inactive for Fc receptor induction. LK induced the chemotactic peptide receptor, but this induction was due to factors other than IFN-gamma as anti-IFN-gamma antibody did not inhibit the induction, and purified IFN-gamma at a dose equivalent to that found in LK (100 units/ml) had no activity in the assay. SK-HEP and 5637 CM had strong chemotactic peptide receptor-inducing activity, but human CSF-1 was inactive up to 800 units/ml. Peroxide production after stimulation with phorbol myristic acid could be induced by LK, LK with anti-IFN-gamma antibody, 5637, and SK-HEP treatment. IFN-gamma (100 units/ml) and CSF-1 (800 units/ml) were ineffective. Peroxide production was induced by IFN-gamma at concentrations above 1000 units/ml. The inducibility of several enzymatic activities was determined as additional measures of maturation. N-Acetylglucuronidase was induced, for example, by LK, IFN-gamma, 5637 CM, and phorbol myristic acid. Alkaline phosphatase was induced by LK, IFN-gamma, dexamethasone, and phorbol myristic acid. 1,25-Dihydroxycholecalciferol was also examined and could induce most of the maturational markers examined. The results demonstrate that non-IFN cytokines from several sources have profound differentiation-inducing effects on monoblast leukemia cells in a pattern different from that of IFN-gamma.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Cardiovascular autonomic dysfunction in Africans infected with human immunodeficiency virus
Authors: D. Nzuobontane, B. K. Ngu, K. Christopher
Journal: Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine (2002)

The effects of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) on cardiovascular autonomic function have been little investigated in African patients. We performed standard heart-rate and blood pressure tests on 75 consecutive consenting patients referred for an HIV test in Yaounde, Cameroon. 54 patients proved to be HIV-infected (30 having progressed to AIDS). Cardiovascular autonomic dysfunction was present in 8 (28%) patients with AIDS and in 1 (4%) HIV-positive patient without AIDS; no HIV-negative individuals had abnormal results. If borderline results are included, over 80% of HIV-positive patients had cardiovascular autonomic dysfunction. In HIV-infected patients, simple tests such as blood pressure responses to standing or handgrip can warn of cardiovascular autonomic dysfunction, thus signalling the need for added precautions when invasive procedures are proposed.
Rate and Polarity of Gene Fusion and Fission in Oryza sativa and Arabidopsis thaliana
Authors: Yoji Nakamura, Takeshi Itoh, William Martin
Journal: Molecular Biology and Evolution (2006)

Eukaryotic gene fusion and fission events are mechanistically more complicated than in prokaryotes, and their quantitative contributions to genome evolution are still poorly understood. We have identified all differentially composite or split genes in 2 fully sequenced plant genomes, Oryza sativa and Arabidopsis thaliana. Out of 10,172 orthologous gene pairs, 60 (0.6% of the total) revealed a verified fusion or fission event in either lineage after the divergence of O. sativa and A. thaliana. Polarizing these events by outgroup comparison revealed differences in the rate of gene fission but not of gene fusion in the rice and Arabidopsis lineages. Gene fission occurred at a higher rate than gene fusion in the O. sativa lineage and was furthermore more common in rice than in Arabidopsis. Nucleotide insertion bias has promoted gene fission in the O. sativa lineage, consistent with its generally longer nucleotide sequences than A. thaliana in selectively neutral regions, and with the abundance of transposable elements in rice. The divergence time of monocots and dicots (140–200 Myr) indicates that gene fusion/fission events occur at an average rate of 1 × 10−11 to 2 × 10−11 events per gene per year, ∼100-fold slower than the average per site nuclear nucleotide substitution rate in these lineages. Gene fusion and fission are thus rare and slow processes in higher plant genomes; they should be of utility to address deeper evolutionary relationships among plants—and the relationship of plants to other eukaryotic lineages—where sequence-based phylogenies provide equivocal or conflicting results.
Colorectal Cancer Screening for Average-Risk North Americans: An Economic Evaluation
Authors: Steven J. Heitman, Robert J. Hilsden, Flora Au, Scot Dowden, Braden J. Manns
Journal: PLoS Medicine (2010)

An economic analysis of different screening methods for detection of colorectal cancers suggests that in US or Canadian settings, screening with fecal immunochemical testing results in lower health-care costs as compared with other screening approaches.
Fatal Hepatitis Mediated by Tumor Necrosis Factor TNFα Requires Caspase-8 and Involves the BH3-Only Proteins Bid and Bim
Authors: Thomas Kaufmann, Philipp J. Jost, Marc Pellegrini, Hamsa Puthalakath, Raffi Gugasyan, Steve Gerondakis, Erika Cretney, Mark J. Smyth, John Silke, Razq Hakem, Philippe Bouillet, Tak W. Mak, Vishva M. Dixit, Andreas Strasser
Journal: Immunity (2009)
Glycemic Control From 1988 to 2000 Among U.S. Adults Diagnosed With Type 2 Diabetes
Authors: Carol E. Koro, Steven J. Bowlin, Nancy Bourgeois, Donald O. Fedder
Journal: Diabetes Care (2004)

To describe the changes in demographics, antidiabetic treatment, and glycemic control among the prevalent U.S. adult diagnosed type 2 diabetes population between the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) III (1988-1994) and the initial release of NHANES 1999-2000.The study population was derived from NHANES III (n = 1,215) and NHANES 1999-2000 (n = 372) subjects who reported a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes with available data on diabetes medication and HbA(1c). Four therapeutic regimens were defined: diet only, insulin only, oral antidiabetic drugs (OADs) only, or OADs plus insulin. Multiple logistic regression was used to examine changes in antidiabetic regimens and glycemic control rates over time, adjusted for demographic and clinical risk factors. The outcome measure for glycemic control was HbA(1c). Glycemic control rates were defined as the proportion of type 2 diabetic patients with HbA(1c) level <7%.Dietary treatment in individuals with diabetes decreased as the sole therapy from 27.4 to 20.2% between the surveys. Insulin use also decreased from 24.2 to 16.4%, while those on OADs only increased from 45.4 to 52.5%. Combination of OADs and insulin increased from 3.1 to 11.0%. Glycemic control rates declined from 44.5% in NHANES III (1988-1994) to 35.8% in NHANES 1999-2000.Treatment regimens among U.S. adults diagnosed with type 2 diabetes have changed substantially over the past 10 years. However, a decrease in glycemic control rates was also observed during this time period. This trend may contribute to increased rates of macrovascular and microvascular diabetic complications, which may impact health care costs. Our data support the public health message of implementation of early, aggressive management of diabetes.
My year without drug reps
Authors: S. O'Hanlon
Journal: BMJ (2010)

It was switching to decaffeinated coffee that started it all. In a flash of lucidity I realised the dubious ethical basis for drug company representatives’ courtship of doctors. I noticed that my pattern of prescribing was mostly learnt from observing colleagues, many of whom sourced drug information primarily from drug representatives. I decided to take a drug rep holiday to see if I could emancipate myself from this moral quandary. My aim was to avoid contact with reps, promotional material, and sponsored sessions. I wondered how I might unsubscribe from their lists—and how they knew so much about each doctor?

Their calls generally went: “Hi, my name is Alison/Jane from Something-pharma, and I’m just getting to know the new docs. Would you have a few minutes to chat about my product?” The friendly and inviting tone of the first rep during my “holiday” meant I found it difficult to resist at first. But I had scripted my reply: “Sorry, I don’t meet reps.” The brevity of my put-down seemed to stun her. …
Individualizing Therapy for the Hematologic Malignancies: The Stuff of Genes and Dreams
Authors: Bruce D. Cheson
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2005)

When I first entered this field more than 30 years ago, a hematology text (oncology was not yet a discipline) would include a lone chapter on malignant disorders, with sections on leukemia, lymphoma, and myeloma. It featured morphology and clinical descriptions of the various subtypes, which often had names that, in many cases, bore no relationship to their cell of origin (eg, reticulum cell sarcoma, which is neither derived from a reticulum cell nor is it a sarcoma, but is non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma). There were no effective therapies and, as a consequence, similar outcomes were reported among patients with each disease entity, masking any important biologic differences. Several editions later, the single chapter became three. Next, one leukemia chapter became one each for the acute and chronic, then a lymphoid and a myeloid, and the lymphomas into Hodgkin’s and non-Hodgkin’s. Improvements in therapies led to the pivotal observation that, despite morphologic similarities, there was marked clinical heterogeneity: a uniform treatment regimen induced responses in some patients who would do extremely well, whereas others progressed rapidly and died from their disease, with no clear explanation for the discrepancy. The identification of the first clonal karyotypic abnormalities in a malignant disorder, the Philadelphia chromosome in chronic myelogeneous leukemia, led to a search for other genetic lesions with clinical relevance. 1
Nutritional Factors and Susceptibility to Arsenic-Caused Skin Lesions in West Bengal, India
Authors: Soma R. Mitra, D.N. Guha Mazumder, Arindam Basu, Gladys Block, Reina Haque, Sambit Samanta, Nilima Ghosh, Meera M. Hira Smith, Ondine S. von Ehrenstein, Allan H. Smith
Journal: Environmental Health Perspectives (2004)

There has been widespread speculation about whether nutritional deficiencies increase the susceptibility to arsenic health effects. This is the first study to investigate whether dietary micronutrient and macronutrient intake modulates the well-established human risk of arsenic-induced skin lesions, including alterations in skin pigmentation and keratoses. The study was conducted in West Bengal, India, which along with Bangladesh constitutes the largest population in the world exposed to arsenic from drinking water. In this case-control study design, cases were patients with arsenic-induced skin lesions and had < 500 microg/L arsenic in their drinking water. For each case, an age- and sex-matched control was selected from participants of a 1995-1996 cross-sectional survey, whose drinking water at that time also contained < 500 microg/L arsenic. Nutritional assessment was based on a 24-hr recall for major dietary constituents and a 1-week recall for less common constituents. Modest increases in risk were related to being in the lowest quintiles of intake of animal protein [odds ratio (OR) = 1.94; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.05-3.59], calcium (OR = 1.89; 95% CI, 1.04-3.43), fiber (OR = 2.20; 95% CI, 1.15-4.21), and folate (OR = 1.67; 95% CI, 0.87-3.2). Conditional logistic regression suggested that the strongest associations were with low calcium, low animal protein, low folate, and low fiber intake. Nutrient intake was not related to arsenic exposure. We conclude that low intake of calcium, animal protein, folate, and fiber may increase susceptibility to arsenic-caused skin lesions. However, in light of the small magnitude of increased risks related to these dietary deficiencies, prevention should focus on reducing exposure to arsenic.
Burden of adhesions in abdominal and pelvic surgery: systematic review and met-analysis
Authors: R. P. G. ten Broek, Y. Issa, E. J. P. van Santbrink, N. D. Bouvy, R. F. P. M. Kruitwagen, J. Jeekel, E. A. Bakkum, M. M. Rovers, H. van Goor
Journal: BMJ (2013)

<b>Objective</b> To estimate the disease burden of the most important complications of postoperative abdominal adhesions: small bowel obstruction, difficulties at reoperation, infertility, and chronic pain. <b>Design</b> Systematic review and meta-analyses. <b>Data sources</b> Searches of PubMed, Embase, and Central, from January 1990 to December 2012, without restrictions to publication status or language. <b>Study selection</b> All types of studies reporting on the incidence of adhesion related complications were considered. <b>Data extraction and analysis</b> The primary outcome was the incidence of adhesive small bowel obstruction in patients with a history of abdominal surgery. Secondary outcomes were the incidence of small bowel obstruction by any cause, difference in operative time, enterotomy during adhesiolysis, and pregnancy rate after abdominal surgery. Subgroup and sensitivity analyses were done to study the robustness of the results. A random effects model was used to account for heterogeneity between studies. <b>Results</b> We identified 196 eligible papers. Heterogeneity was considerable for almost all meta-analyses. The origin of heterogeneity could not be explained by study design, study quality, publication date, anatomical site of operation, or operative technique. The incidence of small bowel obstruction by any cause after abdominal surgery was 9% (95% confidence interval 7% to 10%; I<sup>2</sup>=99%). the incidence of adhesive small bowel obstruction was 2% (2% to 3%; I<sup>2</sup>=93%); presence of adhesions was generally confirmed by emergent reoperation. In patients with a known cause of small bowel obstruction, adhesions were the single most common cause (56%, 49% to 64%; I<sup>2</sup>=96%). Operative time was prolonged by 15 minutes (95% confidence interval 9.3 to 21.1 minutes; I<sup>2</sup>=85%) in patients with previous surgery. Use of adhesiolysis resulted in a 6% (4% to 8%; I<sup>2</sup>=89%) incidence of iatrogenic bowel injury. The pregnancy rate after colorectal surgery in patients with inflammatory bowel disease was 50% (37% to 63%; I<sup>2</sup>=94%), which was significantly lower than the pregnancy rate in medically treated patients (82%, 70% to 94%; I<sup>2</sup>=97%). <b>Conclusions</b> This review provides detailed and systematically analysed knowledge of the disease burden of adhesions. Complications of postoperative adhesion formation are frequent, have a large negative effect on patients’ health, and increase workload in clinical practice. The quantitative effects should be interpreted with caution owing to large heterogeneity. <b>Registration</b> The review protocol was registered through PROSPERO (CRD42012003180).
Lymphatic vasculature mediates macrophage reverse cholesterol transport in mice
Authors: Catherine Martel, Wenjun Li, Brian Fulp, Andrew M. Platt, Emmanuel L. Gautier, Marit Westerterp, Robert Bittman, Alan R. Tall, Shu-Hsia Chen, Michael J. Thomas, Daniel Kreisel, Melody A. Swartz, Mary G. Sorci-Thomas, Gwendalyn J. Randolph
Journal: Journal of Clinical Investigation (2013)

Reverse cholesterol transport (RCT) refers to the mobilization of cholesterol on HDL particles (HDL-C) from extravascular tissues to plasma, ultimately for fecal excretion. Little is known about how HDL-C leaves peripheral tissues to reach plasma. We first used 2 models of disrupted lymphatic drainage from skin--1 surgical and the other genetic--to quantitatively track RCT following injection of [3H]-cholesterol-loaded macrophages upstream of blocked or absent lymphatic vessels. Macrophage RCT was markedly impaired in both models, even at sites with a leaky vasculature. Inhibited RCT was downstream of cholesterol efflux from macrophages, since macrophage efflux of a fluorescent cholesterol analog (BODIPY-cholesterol) was not altered by impaired lymphatic drainage. We next addressed whether RCT was mediated by lymphatic vessels from the aortic wall by loading the aortae of donor atherosclerotic Apoe-deficient mice with [2H]6-labeled cholesterol and surgically transplanting these aortae into recipient Apoe-deficient mice that were treated with anti-VEGFR3 antibody to block lymphatic regrowth or with control antibody to allow such regrowth. [2H]-Cholesterol was retained in aortae of anti-VEGFR3-treated mice. Thus, the lymphatic vessel route is critical for RCT from multiple tissues, including the aortic wall. These results suggest that supporting lymphatic transport function may facilitate cholesterol clearance in therapies aimed at reversing atherosclerosis.
Clinical Evaluation of a Personalized Artificial Pancreas
Authors: Eyal Dassau, Howard Zisser, Rebecca A. Harvey, Matthew W. Percival, Benyamin Grosman, Wendy Bevier, Eran Atlas, Shahar Miller, Revital Nimri, Lois Jovanovič, Francis J. Doyle
Journal: Diabetes Care (2012)

An artificial pancreas (AP) that automatically regulates blood glucose would greatly improve the lives of individuals with diabetes. Such a device would prevent hypo- and hyperglycemia along with associated long- and short-term complications as well as ease some of the day-to-day burden of frequent blood glucose measurements and insulin administration.We conducted a pilot clinical trial evaluating an individualized, fully automated AP using commercial devices. Two trials (n = 22, n(subjects) = 17) were conducted using a multiparametric formulation of model predictive control and an insulin-on-board algorithm such that the control algorithm, or "brain," can be embedded on a chip as part of a future mobile device. The protocol evaluated the control algorithm for three main challenges: 1) normalizing glycemia from various initial glucose levels, 2) maintaining euglycemia, and 3) overcoming an unannounced meal of 30 ± 5 g carbohydrates.Initial glucose values ranged from 84-251 mg/dL. Blood glucose was kept in the near-normal range (80-180 mg/dL) for an average of 70% of the trial time. The low and high blood glucose indices were 0.34 and 5.1, respectively.These encouraging short-term results reveal the ability of a control algorithm tailored to an individual's glucose characteristics to successfully regulate glycemia, even when faced with unannounced meals or initial hyperglycemia. To our knowledge, this represents the first truly fully automated multiparametric model predictive control algorithm with insulin-on-board that does not rely on user intervention to regulate blood glucose in individuals with type 1 diabetes.
Intensive Chemotherapy for Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: Results of the Randomized Intercontinental Trial ALL IC-BFM 2002
Authors: Jan Stary, Martin Zimmermann, Myriam Campbell, Luis Castillo, Eduardo Dibar, Svetlana Donska, Alejandro Gonzalez, Shai Izraeli, Dragana Janic, Janez Jazbec, Josip Konja, Emilia Kaiserova, Jerzy Kowalczyk, Gabor Kovacs, Chi-Kong Li, Edina Magyarosy, Alexander Popa, Batia Stark, Yahia Jabali, Jan Trka, Ondrej Hrusak, Hansjörg Riehm, Giuseppe Masera, Martin Schrappe
Journal: Journal of Clinical Oncology (2013)

From 2002 to 2007, the International Berlin-Frankfurt-Münster Study Group conducted a prospective randomized clinical trial (ALL IC-BFM 2002) for the management of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in 15 countries on three continents. The aim of this trial was to explore the impact of differential delayed intensification (DI) on outcome in all risk groups.For this trial, 5,060 eligible patients were divided into three risk groups according to age, WBC, early treatment response, and unfavorable genetic aberrations. DI was randomized as follows: standard risk (SR), two 4-week intensive elements (protocol III) versus one 7-week protocol II; intermediate risk (IR), protocol III × 3 versus protocol II × 1; high risk (HR), protocol III × 3 versus either protocol II × 2 (Associazione Italiana Ematologia Oncologia Pediatrica [AIEOP] option), or 3 HR blocks plus single protocol II (Berlin-Frankfurt-Münster [BFM] option).At 5 years, the probabilities of event-free survival and survival were 74% (± 1%) and 82% (± 1%) for all 5,060 eligible patients, 81% and 90% for the SR (n = 1,564), 75% and 83% for the IR (n = 2,650), and 55% and 62% for the HR (n = 846) groups, respectively. No improvement was accomplished by more intense and/or prolonged DI.The ALL IC-BFM 2002 trial is a good example of international collaboration in pediatric oncology. A wide platform of countries able to run randomized studies in ALL has been established. Although the alternative DI did not improve outcome compared with standard treatment and the overall results are worse than those achieved by longer established leukemia groups, the national results have generally improved.
Inhibition of hepatitis C virus gene expression by adenoviral vectors encoding antisense RNA in vitro and in vivo
Authors: Maria A. González-Carmona, Annabelle Vogt, Thomas Heinicke, Maria Quasdorff, Per Hoffmann, Yildiz Yildiz, Carlo Schneider, Matthias Serwe, Ralf Bartenschlager, Tilman Sauerbruch, Wolfgang H. Caselmann
Journal: Journal of Hepatology (2010)
Amoxicillin plus clavulanic acid versus appendicectomy for treatment of acute uncomplicated appendicitis: an open-label, non-inferiority, randomised controlled trial
Authors: Corinne Vons, Caroline Barry, Sophie Maitre, Karine Pautrat, Mahaut Leconte, Bruno Costaglioli, Mehdi Karoui, Arnaud Alves, Bertrand Dousset, Patrice Valleur, Bruno Falissard, Dominique Franco
Journal: The Lancet (2011)