Emory University

About: Emory University is a education organization based out in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Poison control. The organization has 51959 authors who have published 122469 publications receiving 6010698 citations.

Selective expression of the interleukin 7 receptor identifies effector CD8 T cells that give rise to long-lived memory cells

Abstract: A major unanswered question is what distinguishes the majority of activated CD8 T cells that die after an acute viral infection from the small fraction (5-10%) that survive to become long-lived memory cells. In this study we show that increased expression of the interleukin 7 receptor alpha-chain (IL-7Ralpha) identifies the effector CD8 T cells that will differentiate into memory cells. IL-7R(hi) effector cells contained increased amounts of antiapoptotic molecules, and adoptive transfer of IL-7R(hi) and IL-7R(lo) effector cells showed that IL-7R(hi) cells preferentially gave rise to memory cells that could persist and confer protective immunity. Thus, selective expression of IL-7R identifies memory cell precursors, and this marker may be useful in predicting the number of memory T cells generated after infection or immunization.

The long-term effect of doxazosin, finasteride, and combination therapy on the clinical progression of benign prostatic hyperplasia.

Abstract: background Benign prostatic hyperplasia is commonly treated with alpha-adrenergic–receptor antagonists (alpha-blockers) or 5 a -reductase inhibitors. The long-term effect of these drugs, singly or combined, on the risk of clinical progression is unknown. methods We conducted a long-term, double-blind trial (mean follow-up, 4.5 years) involving 3047 men to compare the effects of placebo, doxazosin, finasteride, and combination therapy on measures of the clinical progression of benign prostatic hyperplasia. results The risk of overall clinical progression — defined as an increase above base line of at least 4 points in the American Urological Association symptom score, acute urinary retention, urinary incontinence, renal insufficiency, or recurrent urinary tract infection — was significantly reduced by doxazosin (39 percent risk reduction, P<0.001) and finasteride (34 percent risk reduction, P=0.002), as compared with placebo. The reduction in risk associated with combination therapy (66 percent for the comparison with placebo, P<0.001) was significantly greater than that associated with doxazosin (P<0.001) or finasteride (P<0.001) alone. The risks of acute urinary retention and the need for invasive therapy were significantly reduced by combination therapy (P<0.001) and finasteride (P<0.001) but not by doxazosin. Doxazosin (P<0.001), finasteride (P =0.001), and combination therapy (P<0.001) each resulted in significant improvement in symptom scores, with combination therapy being superior to both doxazosin (P=0.006) and finasteride (P<0.001) alone. conclusions Long-term combination therapy with doxazosin and finasteride was safe and reduced the risk of overall clinical progression of benign prostatic hyperplasia significantly more than did treatment with either drug alone. Combination therapy and finasteride alone reduced the long-term risk of acute urinary retention and the need for invasive therapy.

Unified huntington’s disease rating scale: Reliability and consistency

Abstract: The Unified Huntington's disease Rating Scale (UHDRS) was developed as a clinical rating scale to assess four domains of clinical performance and capacity in HD: motor function, cognitive function, behavioral abnormalities, and functional capacity. We assessed the internal consistency and the intercorrelations for the four domains and examined changes in ratings over time. We also performed an interrater reliability study of the motor assessment. We found there was a high degree of internal consistency within each of the domains of the UHDRS and that there were significant intercorrelations between the domains of the UHDRS, with the exception of the total behavioral score. There was an excellent degree of interrater reliability for the motor scores. Our limited longitudinal database indicates that the UHDRS may be useful for tracking changes in the clinical features of HD over time. The UHDRS assesses relevant clinical features of HD and appears to be appropriate for repeated administration during clinical studies.

Automated Image Registration: I. General Methods and Intrasubject, Intramodality Validation

Abstract: Purpose: We sought to describe and validate an automated image registration method(AIR 3.0) based on matching of voxel intensities. Method: Different cost functions, different minimization methods, and various sampling, smoothing, and editing strategies were compared. Internal consistency measures were used to place limits on registration accuracy for MRI data, and absolute accuracy was measured using a brain phantom for PET data. Results: All strategies were consistent with subvoxel accuracy for intrasubject, intramodality registration. Estimated accuracy of registration of structural MRI images was in the 75 to 150 µm range. Sparse data sampling strategies reduced registration times to minutes with only modest loss of accuracy. Conclusion: The registration algorithm described is a robust and flexible tool that can be used to address a variety of image registration problems. Registration strategies can be tailored to meet different needs by optimizing tradeoffs between speed and accuracy.