Digital Commons Network^™

Accuracy Of Automated Attenuation-Based 3-Dimensional Segmentation: In The Analysis Of Left Ventricular Function Compared With Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Harald Brodoefel, Ilias Tsiflikas, Ulrich Kramer, Nina Lang, Anja Reimann, Christoph Burgstahler, Claus D Claussen, Martin Heuschmid

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

We evaluated attenuation-based 3-dimensional segmentation for the analysis of left ventricular function, using as our standard of reference magnetic resonance imaging and dual-source computed tomography with traditional short-axis planimetry.

Twenty patients with known or suspected coronary artery disease were examined prospectively. In all magnetic resonance and computed tomographic datasets, global functional values were determined by 2-dimensional planimetry. Computed tomographic scans were further evaluated by automated 3-dimensional segmentation, and the results were compared by Pearson correlation and Bland-Altman analysis.

Agreement between magnetic resonance imaging and dual-source computed tomographic 2-dimensional planimetry was good for all values (end-diastolic volume, bias= −4.2, r=0.99; end-systolic …

Extreme Thrombocytosis And Cardiovascular Surgery: Risks And Management, Ethan A Natelson

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

Extreme thrombocytosis is a major risk factor for excessive bleeding and for thrombosis, either of which can complicate cardiovascular surgical and interventional procedures. Extreme thrombocytosis can also cause an unusual syndrome, erythromelalgia, that results in a type of chronic microvascular occlusive arterial disease. We present the differential diagnosis of conditions that may lead to extreme thrombocytosis, 3 cases (each of which illustrates a different potential complication), and a review of the pertinent medical literature. Correcting excessive thrombocytosis is typically not difficult, whether electively or acutely, and effective therapy usually controls thrombosis and excessive hemorrhage post-procedurally.

Analysis And Validation Of A Parkinson's Disease Register As A Recruitment Tool For Clinical Studies., Camille Carroll, Amy Palmer, Christine Cosby, John Zajicek

Peninsula Medical School

Promotion of research is a key strategy of the National Health Service (NHS). Currently, many patients are not afforded the opportunity to participate in clinical studies. A register of research-interested patients has the potential to maximise inclusivity. We have established a register of research-interested patients with Parkinson's disease within the South West of England, with pragmatic inclusion criteria and multiple recruitment routes. We undertook an analysis of the register, investigation of its utility as a recruitment tool and a survey of recruiters. There were 529 active participants; 30% were self-referred and 70% were recruited by a healthcare practitioner. Response rate …

Long-Term Results Of Aortic Banding For Complex Infrarenal Neck Anatomy And Type I Endoleak After Endovascular Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Repair, Zvonimir Krajcer, Kathryn G Dougherty, Igor D Gregoric

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

For many patients with abdominal aortic aneurysm, unsuitable anatomy of the infrarenal aortic neck precludes endovascular aortic aneurysm repair or causes type I endoleak after the procedure. In an attempt to overcome these challenges, we retrospectively examined the usefulness of aortic banding as an adjunctive procedure to endovascular repair in 8 patients who had an abdominal aortic aneurysm with a complex infrarenal aortic neck. The procedures were performed with the patients under general anesthesia and involved making an 8-cm upper-midline laparotomy incision to expose the aneurysmal aorta. Three patients underwent aortic banding before endovascular repair; the other 5 underwent banding …

Use Of A Clay Modeling Task To Reduce Chocolate Craving., Jackie Andrade, Sally Pears, Jon May, David J. Kavanagh

School of Psychology

Elaborated Intrusion theory (EI theory; Kavanagh, Andrade, & May, 2005) posits two main cognitive components in craving: associative processes that lead to intrusive thoughts about the craved substance or activity, and elaborative processes supporting mental imagery of the substance or activity. We used a novel visuospatial task to test the hypothesis that visual imagery plays a key role in craving. Experiment 1 showed that spending 10 min constructing shapes from modeling clay (plasticine) reduced participants' craving for chocolate compared with spending 10 min 'letting your mind wander'. Increasing the load on verbal working memory using a mental arithmetic task (counting …

Triterpenoid Modulation Of Il-17 And Nrf-2 Expression Ameliorates Neuroinflammation And Promotes Remyelination In Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis, Tej K. Pareek, Abdelmadjid Belkadi, Sashi Kesavapany, Anita Zaremba, Sook L. Loh, Lianhua Bai, Mark L. Cohen, Colin Meyer, Karen T. Liby, Robert H. Miller, Michael B. Sporn, John J. Letterio

Dartmouth Scholarship

Inflammatory cytokines and endogenous anti-oxidants are variables affecting disease progression in multiple sclerosis (MS). Here we demonstrate the dual capacity of triterpenoids to simultaneously repress production of IL-17 and other pro-inflammatory mediators while exerting neuroprotective effects directly through Nrf2-dependent induction of anti-oxidant genes. Derivatives of the natural triterpene oleanolic acid, namely CDDO-trifluoroethyl-amide (CDDO-TFEA), completely suppressed disease in a murine model of MS, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), by inhibiting Th1 and Th17 mRNA and cytokine production. Encephalitogenic T cells recovered from treated mice were hypo-responsive to myelin antigen and failed to adoptively transfer the disease. Microarray analyses showed significant suppression of …

Effects Of Prenatal Food And Micronutrient Supplementation On Child Growth From Birth To 54 Months Of Age: A Randomized Trial In Bangladesh, Ashraful Islam Khan, Iqbal Kabir, Eva-Charlotte Ekström, Kajsa Åsling-Monemi, Dewan Shamsul Alam, Edward A. Frongillo Jr., Md Yunus, Shams Arifeen, Lars-Åke Persson

Faculty Publications

Background: There is a lack of information on the optimal timing of food supplementation to malnourished pregnant women and possible combined effects of food and multiple micronutrient supplementations (MMS) on their offspring's growth. We evaluated the effects of prenatal food and micronutrient interventions on postnatal child growth. The hypothesis was that prenatal MMS and early invitation to food supplementation would increase physical growth in the offspring during 0-54 months and a combination of these interventions would further improve these outcomes.

Methods: In the large, randomized MINIMat trial (Maternal and Infant Nutrition Interventions in Matlab), Bangladesh, 4436 pregnant women were enrolled …

Histone Deacetylase Inhibitor Valproic Acid Suppresses The Growth And Increases The Androgen Responsiveness Of Prostate Cancer Cells., Yu-Wei Chou, Nagendra K. Chaturvedi, Shougiang Ouyang, Fen-Fen Lin, Dharam Kaushik, Jue Wang, Isaac Kim, Ming-Fong Lin

Journal Articles: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

We identified the molecular target by histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors for exploring their potential prostate cancer (PCa) therapy. Upon HDAC inhibitors-treatment, LNCaP cell growth was suppressed, correlating with increased cellular prostatic acid phosphatase (cPAcP) expression, an authentic protein tyrosine phosphatase. In those cells, ErbB-2 was dephosphorylated, histone H3/H4 acetylation and methylation increased and cyclin proteins decreased. In PAcP shRNA-transfected C-81 cells, valproic acid (VPA) efficacy of growth suppression was diminished. Further, VPA pre-treatment enhanced androgen responsiveness of C-81, C4-2 and MDA PCa2b-AI cells. Thus, cPAcP expression is involved in growth suppression by HDAC inhibitors in PCa cells, and VPA pre-treatments …

The Raf/Mek/Extracellular Signal-Regulated Kinase 1/2 Pathway Can Mediate Growth Inhibitory And Differentiation Signaling Via Androgen Receptor Downregulation In Prostate Cancer Cells., Seung-Keun Hong, Jin-Hwan Kim, Ming-Fong Lin, Jong-In Park

Journal Articles: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Upregulated ERK1/2 activity is correlated with androgen receptor (AR) downregulation in certain prostate cancer (PCa) that exhibits androgen deprivation-induced neuroendocrine differentiation, but its functional relevance requires elucidation. We found that sustained ERK1/2 activation using active Raf or MEK1/2 mutants is sufficient to induce AR downregulation at mRNA and protein levels in LNCaP. Downregulation of AR protein, but not mRNA, was blocked by proteasome inhibitors, MG132 and bortezomib, indicating that the pathway regulation is mediated at multiple points. Ectopic expression of a constitutively active AR inhibited Raf/MEK/ERK-mediated regulation of the differentiation markers, neuron-specific enolase and neutral endopeptidase, and the cyclin-dependent kinase …

Saddle Pulmonary Embolism: Is It As Bad As It Looks? A Community Hospital Experience., Alejandro Sardi, Jill Gluskin, Adam Guttentag, Morris N Kotler, Leonard E Braitman, Michael Lippmann

Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: Saddle pulmonary embolism represents a large clot and a risk for sudden hemodynamic collapse. However, the clinical presentation and outcomes vary widely. On the basis of the findings of right heart dysfunction on echocardiograms, computed tomography angiography, or cardiac enzyme elevation, some argue for the use of thrombolytics or catheter thrombectomy even for hemodynamically stable patients.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the outcomes and management of patients with saddle pulmonary embolism, including radiographic appearance (estimate of clot burden) and echocardiographic features.

INTERVENTIONS: None.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: This study is a retrospective evaluation of all patients with computed tomography angiography positive …

Non-Geometric Echocardiographic Indices Of Ventricular Function In Patients With A Fontan Circulation., Jonathan Rhodes, Renee Margossian, Lynn A. Sleeper, Piers Barker, Timothy J. Bradley, Minmin Lu, Mark Fogel, Matthew A. Harris, Wyman W. Lai, Andrew J. Powell, Michael D. Puchalski, Girish S. Shirali, Steven D. Colan, Pediatric Heart Network Investigators

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

BACKGROUND: Complex anatomy and limited windows complicate echocardiographic assessments of ventricular function in Fontan patients. For the Pediatric Heart Network Fontan Cross-Sectional Study, data were acquired from which mean ventricular pressure change during isovolumetric contraction (dP/dt(ic)), Tei index, and maximal systolic annular velocity (S') could be measured. The purpose of this study was to compare these nongeometric indices of ventricular function to cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) measurements of ventricular ejection fraction (EF).

METHODS: Echocardiographic and CMR studies were performed prospectively using standardized protocols; measurements were completed by core laboratories. Data from both modalities were available from 137 patients.

RESULTS: A …

A 2-Step Approach To Myeloablative Haploidentical Stem Cell Transplantation: A Phase 1/2 Trial Performed With Optimized T-Cell Dosing., Dolores Gross, Matthew Carabasi, Joanne Filicko-O'Hara, Margaret Kasner, John L Wagner, Beth Colombe, Patricia Cornett Farley, William O'Hara, Phyllis Flomenberg, Maria Werner-Wasik, Janet Brunner, Bijoyesh Mookerjee, Terry Hyslop, Mark Weiss, Neal Flomenberg

Department of Medical Oncology Faculty Papers

Studies of haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) have identified threshold doses of T cells below which severe GVHD is usually absent. However, little is known regarding optimal T-cell dosing as it relates to engraftment, immune reconstitution, and relapse. To begin to address this question, we developed a 2-step myeloablative approach to haploidentical HSCT in which 27 patients conditioned with total body irradiation (TBI) were given a fixed dose of donor T cells (HSCT step 1), followed by cyclophosphamide (CY) for T-cell tolerization. A CD34-selected HSC product (HSCT step 2) was infused after CY. A dose of 2 × 10(8)/kg …

Duration Of Symptoms Resulting From Lumbar Disc Herniation: Effect On Treatment Outcomes: Analysis Of The Spine Patient Outcomes Research Trial (Sport)., Jeffrey A Rihn, Alan Hilibrand, Kristen Radcliff, Mark Kurd, Jon Lurie, Emily Blood, Todd J Albert, James N Weinstein

Rothman Institute Papers

BACKGROUND: The purpose of the present study was to determine if the duration of symptoms affects outcomes following the treatment of intervertebral lumbar disc herniation.

METHODS: An as-treated analysis was performed on patients enrolled in the Spine Patient Outcomes Research Trial (SPORT) for the treatment of intervertebral lumbar disc herniation. Randomized and observational cohorts were combined. A comparison was made between patients who had had symptoms for six months or less (n = 927) and those who had had symptoms for more than six months (n = 265). Primary and secondary outcomes were measured at baseline and at regular follow-up …

Duration Of Symptoms Resulting From Lumbar Disc Herniation: Effect On Treatment Outcomes: Analysis Of The Spine Patient Outcomes Research Trial (Sport)., Jeffrey A Rihn, Alan S Hilibrand, Kristen Radcliff, Mark Kurd, Jon Lurie, Emily Blood, Todd J Albert, James N Weinstein

Department of Orthopaedic Surgery Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: The purpose of the present study was to determine if the duration of symptoms affects outcomes following the treatment of intervertebral lumbar disc herniation.

METHODS: An as-treated analysis was performed on patients enrolled in the Spine Patient Outcomes Research Trial (SPORT) for the treatment of intervertebral lumbar disc herniation. Randomized and observational cohorts were combined. A comparison was made between patients who had had symptoms for six months or less (n = 927) and those who had had symptoms for more than six months (n = 265). Primary and secondary outcomes were measured at baseline and at regular follow-up …

Pre- And Post-Bronchodilator Lung Function As Predictors Of Mortality In The Lung Health Study, David M. Mannino, Enrique Diaz-Guzman, Sonia Buist

Preventive Medicine and Environmental Health Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is supposed to be classified on the basis of post-bronchodilator lung function. Most longitudinal studies of COPD, though, do not have post-bronchodilator lung function available. We used pre-and post bronchodilator lung function data from the Lung Health Study to determine whether these measures differ in their ability to predict mortality.

METHODS: We limited our analysis to subjects who were of black or white race, on whom we had complete data, and who participated at either the 1 year or the 5 year follow-up visit. We classified subjects based on their baseline lung function, according …

Regional Gray Matter Correlates Of Perceived Emotional Intelligence, Nancy S. Koven, Robert M. Roth, Matthew A. Garlinghouse, Laura A. Flashman, Andrew J. Saykin

Dartmouth Scholarship

Coping with stressful life events requires a degree of skill in the ability to attend to, comprehend, label, communicate and regulate emotions. Individuals vary in the extent to which these skills are developed, with the term ‘alexithymia’ often applied in the clinical and personality literature to those individuals most compromised in these skills. Although a frontal lobe model of alexithymia is emerging, it is unclear whether such a model satisfactorily reflects brain-related patterns associated with perceived emotional intelligence at the facet level. To determine whether these trait meta-mood facets (ability to attend to, have clarity of and repair emotions) have …

Advanced Glycation End Products Accelerate Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury Through Receptor Of Advanced End Product/Nitrative Thioredoxin Inactivation In Cardiac Microvascular Endothelial Cells., Yi Liu, Yanzhuo Ma, Rutao Wang, Chenhai Xia, Rongqing Zhang, Kun Lian, Ronghua Luan, Lu Sun, Lu Yang, Wayne B Lau, Haichang Wang, Ling Tao

Department of Emergency Medicine Faculty Papers

The advanced glycation end products (AGEs) are associated with increased cardiac endothelial injury. However, no causative link has been established between increased AGEs and enhanced endothelial injury after ischemia/reperfusion. More importantly, the molecular mechanisms by which AGEs may increase endothelial injury remain unknown. Adult rat cardiac microvascular endothelial cells (CMECs) were isolated and incubated with AGE-modified bovine serum albumin (BSA) or BSA. After AGE-BSA or BSA preculture, CMECs were subjected to simulated ischemia (SI)/reperfusion (R). AGE-BSA increased SI/R injury as evidenced by enhanced lactate dehydrogenase release and caspase-3 activity. Moreover, AGE-BSA significantly increased SI/R-induced oxidative/nitrative stress in CMECs (as measured …

Reduced Cardioprotective Action Of Adiponectin In High-Fat Diet-Induced Type Ii Diabetic Mice And Its Underlying Mechanisms., Wei Yi, Yang Sun, Erhe Gao, Xufeng Wei, Wayne Bond Lau, Qijun Zheng, Yajing Wang, Yuexing Yuan, Xiaoliang Wang, Ling Tao, Rong Li, Walter Koch, Xin-Liang Ma

Department of Emergency Medicine Faculty Papers

Diabetes exacerbates ischemic heart disease morbidity and mortality via incompletely understood mechanisms. Although adiponectin (APN) reduces myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (MI/R) injury in nondiabetic animals, whether APN's cardioprotective actions are altered in diabetes, a pathologic condition with endogenously reduced APN, has never been investigated. High-fat diet (HD)-induced diabetic mice and normal diet (ND) controls were subjected to MI via coronary artery ligation, and given vehicle or APN globular domain (gAPN, 2 μg/g) 10 min before reperfusion. Compared to ND mice (where gAPN exerted pronounced cardioprotection), HD mice manifested greater MI/R injury, and a tripled gAPN dose was requisite to achieve cardioprotective extent …

Rna Oxidation Adducts 8-Ohg And 8-Oha Change With Aβ42 Levels In Late-Stage Alzheimer's Disease, Adam M. Weidner, Melissa A. Bradley, Tina L. Beckett, Dana M. Niedowicz, Amy L.S. Dowling, Sergey V. Matveev, Harry Levine, Mark A. Lovell, M. Paul Murphy

Sanders-Brown Center on Aging Faculty Publications

While research supports amyloid-β (Aβ) as the etiologic agent of Alzheimer's disease (AD), the mechanism of action remains unclear. Evidence indicates that adducts of RNA caused by oxidation also represent an early phenomenon in AD. It is currently unknown what type of influence these two observations have on each other, if any. We quantified five RNA adducts by gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy across five brain regions from AD cases and age-matched controls. We then used a reductive directed analysis to compare the RNA adducts to common indices of AD neuropathology and various pools of Aβ. Using data from four disease-affected brain …

Relationship Of Adipokines With Insulin Sensitivity In African Americans., Maria P Martinez Cantarin, Scott W Keith, Stephanie Deloach, Yonghong Huan, Bonita Falkner

Department of Medicine Faculty Papers

INTRODUCTION: Cytokines produced by adipose tissue, including adiponectin, have been associated with metabolic abnormalities. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of insulin sensitivity measured by euglycemic hyperinsulinemic insulin clamp with plasma adiponectin and other adipokines in young adult African Americans.

METHODS: Participants were healthy African Americans. Anthropometric measures, blood pressure, an oral glucose tolerance test and an euglycemic hyperinsulinemic insulin clamp were performed. Insulin sensitivity measurements were adjusted for percentage of fat mass. Plasma concentrations of adiponectin, plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) were assayed on plasma from fasting blood samples. Pearson correlation coefficients and …

Srt1720 Improves Survival And Healthspan Of Obese Mice, Robin K. Minor, Joseph A. Baur, Ana P. Gomes, Theresa M. Ward, Anna Csiszar, Evi M. Mercken, Kotb Abdelmohsen, Yu-Kyong Shin, Carles Canto, Morten Scheibye-Knudsen, Melissa Krawczyk, Pablo M. Irusta, Alejandro Martín-Montalvo, Basil P. Hubbard, Yongqing Zhang, Elin Lehrmann, Alexa A. White, Nathan L. Price, William R. Swindell, Kevin J. Pearson, Kevin G. Becker, Vilhelm A. Bohr, Myriam Gorospe, Josephine M. Egan, Mark I. Talan, Johan Auwerx, Christoph H. Westphal, James L. Ellis, Zoltan Ungvari, George P. Vlasuk, Peter J. Elliott, David A. Sinclair, Rafael De Cabo

Graduate Center for Nutritional Sciences Faculty Publications

Sirt1 is an NAD(+)-dependent deacetylase that extends lifespan in lower organisms and improves metabolism and delays the onset of age-related diseases in mammals. Here we show that SRT1720, a synthetic compound that was identified for its ability to activate Sirt1 in vitro, extends both mean and maximum lifespan of adult mice fed a high-fat diet. This lifespan extension is accompanied by health benefits including reduced liver steatosis, increased insulin sensitivity, enhanced locomotor activity and normalization of gene expression profiles and markers of inflammation and apoptosis, all in the absence of any observable toxicity. Using a conditional SIRT1 knockout mouse and …

Effect Of Variable Transmission Rate On The Dynamics Of Hiv In Sub-Saharan Africa, Diego F. Cuadros, Phillip H. Crowley, Ben Augustine, Sarah L. Stewart, Gisela García-Ramos

Biology Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: The cause of the high HIV prevalence in sub-Saharan Africa is incompletely understood, with heterosexual penile-vaginal transmission proposed as the main mechanism. Heterosexual HIV transmission has been estimated to have a very low probability; but effects of cofactors that vary in space and time may substantially alter this pattern.

METHODS: To test the effect of individual variation in the HIV infectiousness generated by co-infection, we developed and analyzed a mathematical sexual network model that simulates the behavioral components of a population from Malawi, as well as the dynamics of HIV and the co-infection effect caused by other infectious diseases, …

Male Mating Competitiveness Of A Wolbachia-Introgressed Aedes Polynesiensis Strain Under Semi-Field Conditions, Eric W. Chambers, Limb Hapairai, Bethany A. Peel, Hervé Bossin, Stephen L. Dobson

Entomology Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Lymphatic filariasis (LF), a global public health problem affecting approximately 120 million people worldwide, is a leading cause of disability in the developing world including the South Pacific. Despite decades of ongoing mass drug administration (MDA) in the region, some island nations have not yet achieved the threshold levels of microfilaremia established by the World Health Organization for eliminating transmission. Previously, the generation of a novel Aedes polynesiensis strain (CP) infected with an exogenous type of Wolbachia has been described. The CP mosquito is cytoplasmically incompatible (i.e., effectively sterile) when mated with wildtype mosquitoes, and a strategy was proposed …

The Incidence Of Deep Vein Thrombosis Detected By Routine Surveillance Ultrasound In Neurosurgery Patients Receiving Dual Modality Prophylaxis., Patricia C Henwood, Thomas M Kennedy, Lynda Thomson, Taki Galanis, George L Tzanis, Geno J Merli, Walter K. Kraft

Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics Faculty Papers

The optimal method of thromboprophylaxis and the value of screening ultrasonography for detection of deep venous thrombosis (DVT) in neurosurgery patients remains unclear. The goal of this study was to determine the incidence of DVT in neurosurgical patients who, by hospital protocol, receive surveillance ultrasonography of the lower extremities twice weekly, in addition to prophylaxis with unfractionated heparin and external pneumatic compression sleeves. A retrospective review of 7,298 ultrasound studies carried out on 2,593 patients over 4 years at a university neurosurgical hospital was conducted. There was a 7.4% incidence of proximal lower extremity DVT and a 9.7% total incidence …

Breeding Fidelity And Landscape Effects On Distribution Of Mallards And Duck Broods In The Nebraska Sandhills, Zachary J. Cunningham

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

I investigated aspects of mallard (Anas platyrhnchos) breeding ecology in the Nebraska Sandhills during 2007-2008. Previous work in this region suggests that nest success is low for a large area of intact grassland such as the Sandhills. My goal was to conduct a local-scale examination of age distribution and return rates of mallards, and a large-scale examination of brood distribution in the Sandhills region as a whole. This information will help explain factors contributing to the low nest success previously observed, determine relationships between landscape composition and spatial distribution of waterfowl in the Sandhills, and predict productivity and …

Appropriate Medication Prescribing In Elderly Patients: How Knowledgeable Are Primary Care Physicians? A Survey Study In Parma, Italy., Vittorio Maio, Pharmd, Ms, Mph, Eric Jutkowitz, Ba, Karina Herrera Ba, Ms, Safiya Abouzaid Pharmd, Giavanna Negri, Pharmd, Stefano Del Canale, Md, Phd

College of Population Health Faculty Papers

What is known and Objective:  Increasing attention is being paid to inappropriate medication prescribing for the elderly. A growing body of studies have detected a prevalence of inappropriate prescribing ranging from 12% to 40% worldwide, including Regione Emilia-Romagna, Italy. To improve quality of prescribing, a multi-phase pilot project in the Local Health Unit (LHU) of Parma, Regione Emilia-Romagna, was established. This phase aimed to assess primary care physicians' knowledge of appropriate prescribing in elderly patients. Methods:  In total, 155 primary care physicians (51% of the total), convened by the LHU of Parma for an educational session, were asked to complete …

Genetic Determinants Of Uv-Susceptibility In Non-Melanoma Skin Cancer, Marleen M. Welsh, Margaret R. Karagas, Jacquelyn K. Kuriger, Andres Houseman, Steven K. Spencer, Ann E. Perry, Heather H. Nelson

Dartmouth Scholarship

A milieu of cytokines and signaling molecules are involved in the induction of UV-induced immune suppression and thus the etiology of non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC). Targeting the UV-induced immunosuppression pathway, and using a large population based study of NMSC, we have investigated the risk associated with functional variants in 10 genes (IL10, IL4, IL4R, TNF, TNFR2, HTR2A, HRH2, IL12B, PTGS2, and HAL). The most prominent single genetic effect was observed for IL10. There was increasing risk for both basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) with …

Decision Quality Instrument For Treatment Of Hip And Knee Osteoarthritis: A Psychometric Evaluation, Karen R. Sepucha, Dawn Stacey, Catharine F. Clay, Yuchiao Chang

Dartmouth Scholarship

A high quality decision requires that patients who meet clinical criteria for surgery are informed about the options (including non-surgical alternatives) and receive treatments that match their goals. The aim of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties and clinical sensibility of a patient self report instrument, to measure the quality of decisions about total joint replacement for knee or hip osteoarthritis.

Marital Status And Survival In Pancreatic Cancer Patients: A Seer Based Analysis., Michael J. Baine, Freshta Sahak, Chi Lin, Subhankar Chakraborty, Surinder K. Batra, Elizabeth R. Lyden

Journal Articles: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

BACKGROUND: Recent findings suggest that marital status affects survival in patients with different types of cancer. However, its role in the survival of patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma is unknown. In this study, we investigated whether there was an association between marital status and overall survival (OS) in patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC).

METHODS: Adult patients diagnosed with PDAC between 1998 and 2003 with known marital statuses were identified from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results registry of the National Cancer Institute. OS for these patients was plotted using the Kaplan-Meier method. Comparative risks of mortality were evaluated by …

Tnfα Enhances The Motility And Invasiveness Of Prostatic Cancer Cells By Stimulating The Expression Of Selective Glycosyl- And Sulfotransferase Genes Involved In The Synthesis Of Selectin Ligands., Prakash Radhakrishnan, Vishwanath Chachadi, Ming-Fong Lin, Rakesh Singh, Reiji Kannagi, Pi-Wan Cheng

Journal Articles: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Sialyl Lewis x (sLe(x)) plays an important role in cancer metastasis. But, the mechanism for its production in metastatic cancers remains unclear. The objective of current study was to examine the effects of a proinflammatory cytokine on the expression of glycosyltransferase and sulfotransferase genes involved in the synthesis of selectin ligands in a prostate cancer cell line. Androgen-independent human lymph node-derived metastatic prostate cancer cells (C-81 LNCaP), which express functional androgen receptor and mimic the castration-resistant advanced prostate cancer, were used. TNFα treatment of these cells increased their binding to P-, E- and L-selectins, anti-sLe(x) antibody, and anti-6-sulfo-sialyl Lewis x …