Showing papers by "Temple University published in 2014"
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Cleveland Clinic1, MedStar Washington Hospital Center2, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston3, University of Pennsylvania4, Harvard University5, McMaster University6, McGill University7, University of Padua8, European Institute of Oncology9, University of Chicago10, Oslo University Hospital11, Temple University12, University of Liège13, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center14, Menzies Research Institute15, Mayo Clinic16
TL;DR: The noninvasive evaluation of LVEF has gained importance, and notwithstanding the limitations of the techniques used for its calculation, has emerged as the most widely used strategy for monitoring the changes in cardiac function, both during and after the administration of potentially car- diotoxic cancer treatment.
Abstract: Cardiac dysfunction resulting from exposure to cancer therapeutics
was first recognized in the 1960s, with the widespread introduction
of anthracyclines into the oncologic therapeutic armamentarium.
Heart failure (HF) associated with anthracyclines was then recognized
as an important side effect. As a result, physicians learned to limit their
doses to avoid cardiac dysfunction. Several strategies have been used
over the past decades to detect it. Two of them evolved over time
to be very useful: endomyocardial biopsies and monitoring of left ven-
tricular (LV) ejection fraction (LVEF) by cardiac imaging. Examination
of endomyocardial biopsies proved to be the most sensitive and spe-
cific parameter for the identification of anthracycline-induced LV
dysfunction and became the gold standard in the 1970s. However,
the interest in endomyocardial biopsy has diminished over time
because of the reduction in the cumulative dosages used to treat ma-
lignancies, the invasive nature of the procedure, and the remarkable
progress made in noninvasive cardiac imaging. The noninvasive
evaluation of LVEF has gained importance, and notwithstanding the
limitations of the techniques used for its calculation, has emerged as
the most widely used strategy for monitoring the changes in cardiac
function, both during and after the administration of potentially car-
diotoxic cancer treatment.
1,316 citations
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28 Feb 20141,161 citations
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Wrocław Medical University1, Charité2, King Saud University3, National Institutes of Health4, Temple University5, Peking Union Medical College6, Linköping University7, Monash University8, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul9, Tohoku University10, University of Indonesia11, University of the Witwatersrand12, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens13
TL;DR: It is time to ease the strain on healthcare systems through clear policy initiatives that prioritize heart failure prevention and champion equity of care for all.
Abstract: Heart failure is a life-threatening disease and addressing it should be considered a global health priority. At present, approximately 26 million people worldwide are living with heart failure. The outlook for such patients is poor, with survival rates worse than those for bowel, breast or prostate cancer. Furthermore, heart failure places great stresses on patients, caregivers and healthcare systems. Demands on healthcare services, in particular, are predicted to increase dramatically over the next decade as patient numbers rise owing to ageing populations, detrimental lifestyle changes and improved survival of those who go on to develop heart failure as the final stage of another disease. It is time to ease the strain on healthcare systems through clear policy initiatives that prioritize heart failure prevention and champion equity of care for all.
Despite the burdens that heart failure imposes on society, awareness of the disease is poor. As a result, many premature deaths occur. This is in spite of the fact that most types of heart failure are preventable and that a healthy lifestyle can reduce risk. Even after heart failure has developed, premature deaths could be prevented if people were taught to recognize the symptoms and seek immediate medical attention. Public awareness campaigns focusing on these messages have great potential to improve outcomes for patients with heart failure and ultimately to save lives.
Compliance with clinical practice guidelines is also associated with improved outcomes for patients with heart failure. However, in many countries, there is considerable variation in how closely physicians follow guideline recommendations. To promote equity of care, improvements should be encouraged through the use of hospital performance measures and incentives appropriate to the locality. To this end, policies should promote the research required to establish an evidence base for performance measures that reflect improved outcomes for patients.
Continuing research is essential if we are to address unmet needs in caring for patients with heart failure. New therapies are required for patients with types of heart failure for which current treatments relieve symptoms but do not address the disease. More affordable therapies are desperately needed in the economically developing world. International collaborative research focusing on the causes and treatment of heart failure worldwide has the potential to benefit tens of millions of people.
Change at the policy level has the power to drive improvements in prevention and care that will save lives. It is time to make a difference across the globe by confronting the problem of heart failure.
A call to action: policy recommendations
We urge policymakers at local, national and international levels to collaborate and act on the following recommendations.
Promote heart failure prevention
Support the development and implementation of public awareness programmes about heart failure. These should define heart failure in simple and accessible language, explain how to recognize the symptoms and emphasize that most types of heart failure are preventable.
Highlight the need for healthcare professionals across all clinical disciplines to identify patients with illnesses that increase the risk of heart failure and to prescribe preventive medications.
Prioritize the elimination of infectious diseases in parts of the world where they still cause heart failure.
Improve heart failure awareness amongst healthcare professionals
Encourage the development and use of heart failure education programmes for all appropriate healthcare professionals. These should aim to improve the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and long-term management of heart failure and raise awareness of clinical practice guidelines.
Ensure equity of care for all patients with heart failure
Provide a healthcare system that delivers timely access to diagnostic services and treatment of heart failure, as well as a seamless transition to long-term management.
Ensure that the best available and most appropriate care is consistently provided to all patients with heart failure through efficient use of resources.
Support and empower patients and their caregivers
Provide resources for the education and practical support of patients with heart failure and their families or other caregivers, empowering them to engage proactively in long-term care.
Promote heart failure research
Fund and encourage international collaborative research to improve understanding of the patterns, causes and effects of modern day heart failure and how the disease can be prevented across the globe.
Fund and encourage research into new and more affordable therapies and medical devices for all types of heart failure.
Fund and encourage research into evidence-based healthcare performance measures that reflect improved clinical outcomes for patients with heart failure.
944 citations
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Cleveland Clinic1, MedStar Washington Hospital Center2, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston3, University of Pennsylvania4, Harvard University5, McMaster University6, McGill University7, University of Padua8, European Institute of Oncology9, University of Chicago10, Oslo University Hospital11, Temple University12, University of Liège13, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center14, Menzies Research Institute15, Mayo Clinic16
TL;DR: The non-invasive evaluation of LVEF has gained importance, and notwithstanding the limitations of the techniques used for its calculation, has emerged as the most widely used strategy for monitoring the changes in cardiac function, both during and after the administration of potentially cardiotoxic cancer treatment.
Abstract: ### A. Definition, classification, and mechanisms of toxicity
Cardiac dysfunction resulting from exposure to cancer therapeutics was first recognized in the 1960s, with the widespread introduction of anthracyclines into the oncological therapeutic armamentarium.1 Heart failure (HF) associated with anthracyclines was then recognized as an important side effect. As a result, physicians learned to limit their doses to avoid cardiac dysfunction.2 Several strategies have been used over the past decades to detect it. Two of them evolved over time to be very useful: endomyocardial biopsies and monitoring of left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction (LVEF) by cardiac imaging. Examination of endomyocardial biopsies proved to be the most sensitive and specific parameter for the identification of anthracycline-induced LV dysfunction and became the gold standard in the 1970s. However, the interest in endomyocardial biopsy has diminished over time because of the reduction in the cumulative dosages used to treat malignancies, the invasive nature of the procedure, and the remarkable progress made in non-invasive cardiac imaging. The non-invasive evaluation of LVEF has gained importance, and notwithstanding the limitations of the techniques used for its calculation, has emerged as the most widely used strategy for monitoring the changes in cardiac function, both during and after the administration of potentially cardiotoxic cancer treatment.3–5
The timing of LV dysfunction can vary among agents. In the case of anthracyclines, the damage occurs immediately after the exposure;6 for others, the time frame between drug administration and detectable cardiac dysfunction appears to be more variable. Nevertheless, the heart has significant cardiac reserve, and the expression of damage in the form of alterations in systolic or diastolic parameters may not be overt until a substantial amount of cardiac reserve has been exhausted. Thus, cardiac damage may not become apparent until years or even decades after receiving the cardiotoxic treatment. This is particularly applicable to …
920 citations
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Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai1, Pierre-and-Marie-Curie University2, French Institute of Health and Medical Research3, Centre national de la recherche scientifique4, University of Toronto5, Trinity College, Dublin6, University of Pittsburgh7, Utrecht University8, McMaster University9, Our Lady's Children's Hospital10, University College Dublin11, University of Oxford12, University of Lisbon13, Instituto Nacional de Saúde Dr. Ricardo Jorge14, University of California, Los Angeles15, University of Miami16, Goethe University Frankfurt17, University of Pennsylvania18, Vanderbilt University19, Temple University20, University of Bologna21, Cancer Care Ontario22, University of Southern California23, University of Alberta24, University of Birmingham25, Université de Montréal26, Rush University Medical Center27, University of Coimbra28, Kaiser Permanente29, Cornell University30, Newcastle University31, University of Minnesota32, University of Illinois at Chicago33, University of Gothenburg34, Memorial University of Newfoundland35, Duke University36, University of Paris37, King's College London38, Centre for Mental Health39, University of Washington40, Nationwide Children's Hospital41, Indiana University42, Tufts University43, German Cancer Research Center44, University of Utah45, Stanford University46
TL;DR: For example, the authors analyzed 2,446 ASD-affected families and confirmed an excess of genic deletions and duplications in affected versus control groups (1.41-fold, p = 1.0 × 10(-5)) and an increase in affected subjects carrying exonic pathogenic CNVs overlapping known loci associated with dominant or X-linked ASD and intellectual disability.
Abstract: Rare copy-number variation (CNV) is an important source of risk for autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). We analyzed 2,446 ASD-affected families and confirmed an excess of genic deletions and duplications in affected versus control groups (1.41-fold, p = 1.0 × 10(-5)) and an increase in affected subjects carrying exonic pathogenic CNVs overlapping known loci associated with dominant or X-linked ASD and intellectual disability (odds ratio = 12.62, p = 2.7 × 10(-15), ∼3% of ASD subjects). Pathogenic CNVs, often showing variable expressivity, included rare de novo and inherited events at 36 loci, implicating ASD-associated genes (CHD2, HDAC4, and GDI1) previously linked to other neurodevelopmental disorders, as well as other genes such as SETD5, MIR137, and HDAC9. Consistent with hypothesized gender-specific modulators, females with ASD were more likely to have highly penetrant CNVs (p = 0.017) and were also overrepresented among subjects with fragile X syndrome protein targets (p = 0.02). Genes affected by de novo CNVs and/or loss-of-function single-nucleotide variants converged on networks related to neuronal signaling and development, synapse function, and chromatin regulation.
833 citations
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TL;DR: It is emphasized that inflammatory monocyte subsets are valuable biomarkers for inflammatory diseases, including cardiovascular diseases, as well as a potential mechanism for monocyte differentiation.
Abstract: Monocytes express various receptors, which monitor and sense environmental changes. Monocytes are highly plastic and heterogeneous, and change their functional phenotype in response to environmental stimulation. Evidence from murine and human studies has suggested that monocytosis can be an indicator of various inflammatory diseases. Monocytes can differentiate into inflammatory or anti-inflammatory subsets. Upon tissue damage or infection, monocytes are rapidly recruited to the tissue, where they can differentiate into tissue macrophages or dendritic cells. Given the rapid progress in monocyte research from broad spectrum of inflammatory diseases, there is a need to summarize our knowledge in monocyte heterogeneity and its impact in human disease. In this review, we describe the current understanding of heterogeneity of human and murine monocytes, the function of distinct subsets of monocytes, and a potential mechanism for monocyte differentiation. We emphasize that inflammatory monocyte subsets are valuable biomarkers for inflammatory diseases, including cardiovascular diseases.
816 citations
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TL;DR: Formalisms describing absorption and photoluminescence lineshapes are reviewed, based on intra- and intermolecular excitonic coupling, electron-vibrational coupling, and correlated energetic disorder.
Abstract: Aggregates of conjugated polymers exhibit two classes of fundamental electronic interactions: those occurring within a given chain and those occurring between chains. The impact of such excitonic interactions on the photophysics of polymer films can be understood using concepts of J- and H-aggregation originally developed by Kasha and coworkers to treat aggregates of small molecules. In polymer assemblies, intrachain through-bond interactions lead to J-aggregate behavior, whereas interchain Coulombic interactions lead to H-aggregate behavior. The photophysics of common emissive conjugated polymer films are determined by a competition between intrachain, J-favoring interactions and interchain, H-favoring interactions. We review formalisms describing absorption and photoluminescence lineshapes, based on intra- and intermolecular excitonic coupling, electron-vibrational coupling, and correlated energetic disorder. Examples include regioregular polythiophenes, pheneylene-vinylenes, and polydiacetylene.
801 citations
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TL;DR: This paper synthesized a global timetree of life from 2,274 studies representing 50,632 species and examined the pattern and rate of diversification as well as the timing of speciation.
Abstract: Genomic data are rapidly resolving the tree of living species calibrated to time, the timetree of life, which will provide a framework for research in diverse fields of science. Previous analyses of taxonomically restricted timetrees have found a decline in the rate of diversification in many groups of organisms, often attributed to ecological interactions among species. Here we have synthesized a global timetree of life from 2,274 studies representing 50,632 species and examined the pattern and rate of diversification as well as the timing of speciation. We found that species diversity has been mostly expanding overall and in many smaller groups of species, and that the rate of diversification in eukaryotes has been mostly constant. We also identified, and avoided, potential biases that may have influenced previous analyses of diversification including low levels of taxon sampling, small clade size, and the inclusion of stem branches in clade analyses. We found consistency in time-to-speciation among plants and animals, approximately two million years, as measured by intervals of crown and stem species times. Together, this clock-like change at different levels suggests that speciation and diversification are processes dominated by random events and that adaptive change is largely a separate process.
643 citations
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TL;DR: A multiple pathways model to anxiety-depression comorbidity is proposed and addressed, addressing descriptive and developmental factors, gender differences, suicidality, assessments, and treatment-outcome research as they relate toComorbid anxiety and depression and to the proposed pathways.
Abstract: Brady and Kendall (1992) concluded that although anxiety and depression in youths are meaningfully linked, there are important distinctions, and additional research is needed. Since then, studies of anxiety-depression comorbidity in youths have increased exponentially. Following a discussion of comorbidity, we review existing conceptual models and propose a multiple pathways model to anxiety-depression comorbidity. Pathway 1 describes youths with a diathesis for anxiety, with subsequent comorbid depression resulting from anxiety-related impairment. Pathway 2 refers to youths with a shared diathesis for anxiety and depression, who may experience both disorders simultaneously. Pathway 3 describes youths with a diathesis for depression, with subsequent comorbid anxiety resulting from depression-related impairment. Additionally, shared and stratified risk factors contribute to the development of the comorbid disorder, either by interacting with disorder-related impairment or by predicting the simultaneous development of the disorders. Our review addresses descriptive and developmental factors, gender differences, suicidality, assessments, and treatment-outcome research as they relate to comorbid anxiety and depression and to our proposed pathways. Research since 1992 indicates that comorbidity varies depending on the specific anxiety disorder, with Pathway 1 describing youths with either social phobia or separation anxiety disorder and subsequent depression, Pathway 2 applying to youths with coprimary generalized anxiety disorder and depression, and Pathway 3 including depressed youths with subsequent social phobia. The need to test the proposed multiple pathways model and to examine (a) developmental change and (b) specific anxiety disorders is highlighted.
640 citations
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors survey 365 analysts and conduct 18 follow-up interviews covering a wide range of topics, including the inputs to analysts' earnings forecasts and stock recommendations, the value of their industry knowledge, the determinants of their compensation, the career benefits of Institutional Investor All-Star status, and the factors they consider indicative of high-quality earnings.
Abstract: Our objective is to penetrate the “black box” of sell-side financial analysts by providing new insights into the inputs analysts use and the incentives they face. We survey 365 analysts and conduct 18 follow-up interviews covering a wide range of topics, including the inputs to analysts’ earnings forecasts and stock recommendations, the value of their industry knowledge, the determinants of their compensation, the career benefits of Institutional Investor All-Star status, and the factors they consider indicative of high-quality earnings. One important finding is that private communication with management is a more useful input to analysts’ earnings forecasts and stock recommendations than their own primary research, recent earnings performance, and recent 10-K and 10-Q reports. Another notable finding is that issuing earnings forecasts and stock recommendations that are well below the consensus often leads to an increase in analysts’ credibility with their investing clients. We conduct cross-sectional analyses that highlight the impact of analyst and brokerage characteristics on analysts’ inputs and incentives. Our findings are relevant to investors, managers, analysts, and academic researchers.
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TL;DR: The Hallmarks of Cancer framework of Hanahan and Weinberg (2000 and 2011) is used to dissect the viral, host, and environmental cofactors that contribute to the biology of multistep oncogenesis mediated by established human oncoviruses.
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TL;DR: The results suggest that Cas9/gRNA can be engineered to provide a specific, efficacious prophylactic and therapeutic approach against AIDS.
Abstract: AIDS remains incurable due to the permanent integration of HIV-1 into the host genome, imparting risk of viral reactivation even after antiretroviral therapy. New strategies are needed to ablate the viral genome from latently infected cells, because current methods are too inefficient and prone to adverse off-target effects. To eliminate the integrated HIV-1 genome, we used the Cas9/guide RNA (gRNA) system, in single and multiplex configurations. We identified highly specific targets within the HIV-1 LTR U3 region that were efficiently edited by Cas9/gRNA, inactivating viral gene expression and replication in latently infected microglial, promonocytic, and T cells. Cas9/gRNAs caused neither genotoxicity nor off-target editing to the host cells, and completely excised a 9,709-bp fragment of integrated proviral DNA that spanned from its 5′ to 3′ LTRs. Furthermore, the presence of multiplex gRNAs within Cas9-expressing cells prevented HIV-1 infection. Our results suggest that Cas9/gRNA can be engineered to provide a specific, efficacious prophylactic and therapeutic approach against AIDS.
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06 Sep 2014TL;DR: This paper directly analyze this probability of target appearance as exponentially related to the confidence of a classifier output using Gaussian Processes Regression (GPR), and introduces a latent variable to assist the tracking decision.
Abstract: Modeling the target appearance is critical in many modern visual tracking algorithms. Many tracking-by-detection algorithms formulate the probability of target appearance as exponentially related to the confidence of a classifier output. By contrast, in this paper we directly analyze this probability using Gaussian Processes Regression (GPR), and introduce a latent variable to assist the tracking decision. Our observation model for regression is learnt in a semi-supervised fashion by using both labeled samples from previous frames and the unlabeled samples that are tracking candidates extracted from the current frame. We further divide the labeled samples into two categories: auxiliary samples collected from the very early frames and target samples from most recent frames. The auxiliary samples are dynamically re-weighted by the regression, and the final tracking result is determined by fusing decisions from two individual trackers, one derived from the auxiliary samples and the other from the target samples. All these ingredients together enable our tracker, denoted as TGPR, to alleviate the drifting issue from various aspects. The effectiveness of TGPR is clearly demonstrated by its excellent performances on three recently proposed public benchmarks, involving 161 sequences in total, in comparison with state-of-the-arts.
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors developed two measures of board composition to investigate whether directors appointed by the CEO have allegiance to the CEO and decrease their monitoring, i.e., turnover-performance sensitivity diminishes, pay increases (without commensurate increase in payperformance sensitivity), and investment increases.
Abstract: We develop two measures of board composition to investigate whether directors appointed by the CEO have allegiance to the CEO and decrease their monitoring. Co-option is the fraction of the board comprised of directors appointed after the CEO assumed office. As Co-option increases, board monitoring decreases: turnover-performance sensitivity diminishes, pay increases (without commensurate increase in pay-performance sensitivity), and investment increases. Non-Co-opted Independence�the fraction of directors who are independent and were appointed before the CEO�has more explanatory power for monitoring effectiveness than the conventional measure of board independence. Our results suggest that not all independent directors are effective monitors.
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TL;DR: Clinical studies that identify sex differences within the activity of these circuits, as well as preclinical studies that demonstrate cellular and molecular sex differences in stress responses systems, reveal sex differences from the molecular to the systems level that increase endocrine, emotional, and arousal responses to stress in females.
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TL;DR: It is found that Gαq stimulates YAP through a Trio-Rho/Rac signaling circuitry promoting actin polymerization, independently of phospholipase Cβ and the canonical Hippo pathway, thereby identifying YAP as a suitable therapeutic target in uveal melanoma, a GNAQ/GNA11-initiated human malignancy.
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TL;DR: The existence of efficient exciton-exciton annihilation, a four-body interaction, in Monolayer MoS2 is reported, a direct-gap two-dimensional semiconductor that exhibits strong electron-hole interactions, leading to the formation of stable excitons and trions.
Abstract: Monolayer MoS2 is a direct-gap two-dimensional semiconductor that exhibits strong electron–hole interactions, leading to the formation of stable excitons and trions. Here we report the existence of efficient exciton–exciton annihilation, a four-body interaction, in this material. Exciton–exciton annihilation was identified experimentally in ultrafast transient absorption measurements through the emergence of a decay channel varying quadratically with exciton density. The rate of exciton–exciton annihilation was determined to be (4.3 ± 1.1) × 10–2 cm2/s at room temperature.
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TL;DR: This review focuses on phagocytic phenotype of microglia in neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, traumatic brain injury, ischemic and other brain diseases.
Abstract: Microglia, the resident macrophages of the central nervous system, rapidly activate in nearly all kinds of neurological diseases. These activated microglia become highly motile, secreting inflammatory cytokines, migrating to the lesion area, and phagocytosing cell debris or damaged neurons. During the past decades, the secretory property and chemotaxis of microglia have been well-studied, while relatively less attention has been paid to microglial phagocytosis. So far there is no obvious concordance with whether it is beneficial or detrimental in tissue repair. This review focuses on phagocytic phenotype of microglia in neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, traumatic brain injury, ischemic and other brain diseases. Microglial morphological characteristics, involved receptors and signaling pathways, distribution variation along with time and space changes, and environmental factors that affecting phagocytic function in each disease are reviewed. Moreover, a comparison of contributions between macrophages from peripheral circulation and the resident microglia to these pathogenic processes will also be discussed.
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TL;DR: Early increases in TnI and MPO levels offer additive information about the risk of cardiotoxicity in patients undergoing doxorubicin and trastuzumab therapy, and independent validation is necessary before application to clinical practice.
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TL;DR: Given the broad anti-oncogenic activity of miR-34a, the replacement of oncosuppressor miRNAs provides an effective strategy against tumor heterogeneity and the selective RNA-based delivery systems seems to be an excellent platform for a safe and effective targeting of the tumor.
Abstract: The microRNA(miRNA)-34a is a key regulator of tumor suppression. It controls the expression of a plethora of target proteins involved in cell cycle, differentiation and apoptosis, and antagonizes processes that are necessary for basic cancer cell viability as well as cancer stemness, metastasis, and chemoresistance. In this review, we focus on the molecular mechanisms of miR-34a-mediated tumor suppression, giving emphasis on the main miR-34a targets, as well as on the principal regulators involved in the modulation of this miRNA. Moreover, we shed light on the miR-34a role in modulating responsiveness to chemotherapy and on the phytonutrients-mediated regulation of miR-34a expression and activity in cancer cells. Given the broad anti-oncogenic activity of miR-34a, we also discuss the substantial benefits of a new therapeutic concept based on nanotechnology delivery of miRNA mimics. In fact, the replacement of oncosuppressor miRNAs provides an effective strategy against tumor heterogeneity and the selective RNA-based delivery systems seems to be an excellent platform for a safe and effective targeting of the tumor.
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23 Jan 2014
TL;DR: The beam energy and collision centrality dependence of the mean, standard deviation, skewness, and kurtosis of the net-proton multiplicity distributions in Au+Au collisions and the products of moments are found to be significantly below the Skellam expectation and close to expectations based on independent proton and antiproton production.
Abstract: We report the beam energy (root S-NN = 7.7-200 GeV) and collision centrality dependence of the mean (M), standard deviation (sigma), skewness (S), and kurtosis (kappa) of the net-proton multiplicity distributions in Au + Au collisions. The measurements are carried out by the STAR experiment at midrapidity (vertical bar y vertical bar < 0.5) and within the transverse momentum range 0.4 < p(T) < 0.8 GeV/c in the first phase of the Beam Energy Scan program at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider. These measurements are important for understanding the quantum chromodynamic phase diagram. The products of the moments, S sigma and K sigma(2), are sensitive to the correlation length of the hot and dense medium created in the collisions and are related to the ratios of baryon number susceptibilities of corresponding orders. The products of moments are found to have values significantly below the Skellam expectation and close to expectations based on independent proton and antiproton production. The measurements are compared to a transport model calculation to understand the effect of acceptance and baryon number conservation and also to a hadron resonance gas model.
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors developed and validated a 25-item customer engagement scale that comprises five factors: identification, enthusiasm, attention, absorption, and interaction, developed from a survey of hotel and airline customers.
Abstract: Although customer engagement (CE) has emerged as a widely used term in many industries, including tourism and hospitality, academic research lacks a clear conceptualization and rigorous measurement of the construct. This study develops and validates a 25-item CE scale that comprises five factors: identification, enthusiasm, attention, absorption, and interaction. The scale, developed from a survey of hotel and airline customers, demonstrated strong psychometric properties across multiple samples and showed CE to exert a positive significant influence on behavioral intention of loyalty for both hotel and airline customers. The scale offers a framework for future empirical research in this increasingly important area, and it provides a useful tool for tourism practitioners to collect insights into customer psychological and behavioral connections with their brands beyond the service consumption experience.
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TL;DR: The authors argue that the basic social capital thesis has now been widely accepted across a range of disciplines and fields, and that research is therefore naturally shifting toward more specific aspects and mechanisms and identify some of the main theoretical developments over this period and point to some areas where further work appears warranted.
Abstract: Over the past decade social capital has matured from a concept into a field of research. We identify some of the main theoretical developments over this period and point to some areas where further work appears warranted. We argue that the basic social capital thesis has now been widely accepted across a range of disciplines and fields, and that research is therefore naturally shifting toward more specific aspects and mechanisms.
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TL;DR: A new monogenic cause of autoimmunity resulting from de novo germline activating STAT3 mutations in five individuals with a spectrum of early-onset autoimmune disease, including type 1 diabetes is reported.
Abstract: Monogenic causes of autoimmunity provide key insights into the complex regulation of the immune system. We report a new monogenic cause of autoimmunity resulting from de novo germline activating STAT3 mutations in five individuals with a spectrum of early-onset autoimmune disease, including type 1 diabetes. These findings emphasize the critical role of STAT3 in autoimmune disease and contrast with the germline inactivating STAT3 mutations that result in hyper IgE syndrome.
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TL;DR: This paper investigated the role of college students' identity development and motivational beliefs in predicting chemistry achievement and intentions to leave science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) majors and found that identity development that involved exploration was positively related to students' beliefs about their competence and value for the STEM major and negatively related to perceptions of effort cost (drawbacks associated with time and effort) for the major.
Abstract: The current short-term longitudinal study investigated the role of college students’ identity development and motivational beliefs in predicting their chemistry achievement and intentions to leave science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) majors. We collected 4 waves of data over 1 semester from 363 diverse undergraduate STEM students enrolled in a chemistry lab course. The results of analyses that examined the reciprocal relations among the variables over time (i.e., cross-lagged path analysis) suggested that identity development that involved exploration (e.g., information-seeking, reflection) was positively related to students’ beliefs about their competence and value for the STEM major and negatively related to perceptions of effort cost (drawbacks associated with time and effort) for the major. Identity development that did not involve exploration was related to low competence beliefs and high perceptions of costs for the STEM major. Competence beliefs, values, and perceptions of cost for the major were dynamically related to chemistry achievement and to students’ intentions to leave the STEM major over the semester, with different kinds of cost perceptions (drawbacks associated with effort, lost opportunities, and stress and anxiety) relating differentially to students’ intentions. The results support the role of identity development in students’ motivation for a STEM major and address a gap in the literature regarding the role of perceived cost in students’ academic choices.
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TL;DR: In this paper, the role of regional cluster composition in the economic performance of industries, clusters and regions is evaluated. And the authors find that the presence of strong clusters in a region enhances growth opportunities in other industries and clusters.
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08 Jul 2014TL;DR: FCC, a device-Free Crowd Counting approach based on Channel State Information (CSI), is presented and a metric, the Percentage of nonzero Elements (PEM) in the dilated CSI Matrix is proposed, which can be explicitly formulated by the Grey Verhulst Model.
Abstract: Crowd counting, which count or accurately estimate the number of human beings within a region, is critical in many applications, such as guided tour and crowd control. A crowd counting solution should be scalable and be minimally intrusive (i.e., device-free) to users. Image-based solutions are device-free, but cannot work well in a dim or dark environment. Non-image based solutions usually require every human being carrying device, and are inaccurate and unreliable in practice. In this paper, we present FCC, a device-Free Crowd Counting approach based on Channel State Information (CSI). Our design is motivated by our observation that CSI is highly sensitive to environment variation, like a frog eye. We theoretically discuss the relationship between the number of moving people and the variation of wireless channel state. A major challenge in our design of FCC is to find a stable monotonic function to characterize the relationship between the crowd number and various features of CSI. To this end, we propose a metric, the Percentage of nonzero Elements (PEM), in the dilated CSI Matrix. The monotonic relationship can be explicitly formulated by the Grey Verhulst Model, which is used for crowd counting without a labor-intensive site survey. We implement FCC using off-theshelf IEEE 802.11n devices and evaluate its performance via extensive experiments in typical real-world scenarios. Our results demonstrate that FCC outperforms the state-of-art approaches with much better accuracy, scalability and reliability.
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TL;DR: In this article, a comprehensive review is undertaken to assess the increasing prevalence of low back pain and the influence of comorbid factors, along with the increasing health-care costs.
Abstract: Objective
Low back pain affects many individuals. It has profound effects on well-being and is often the cause of significant physical and psychological health impairments. Low back pain also affects work performance and social responsibilities, such as family life, and is increasingly a major factor in escalating health-care costs. A global review of the prevalence of low back pain in the adult general population has shown its point prevalence to be approximately 12%, with a one-month prevalence of 23%, a one-year prevalence of 38%, and a lifetime prevalence of approximately 40%. Furthermore, as the population ages over the coming decades, the number of individuals with low back pain is likely to increase substantially. This comprehensive review is undertaken to assess the increasing prevalence of low back pain and the influence of comorbid factors, along with escalating costs.
Materials and Methods
A narrative review with literature assessment.
Results
In the USA, low back pain and related costs are escalating. Based on the available literature, it appears that the prevalence of low back pain continues to increase, along with numerous modalities and their application in managing low back pain. Comorbid factors with psychological disorders and multiple medical problems, including obesity, smoking, lack of exercise, increasing age, and lifestyle factors, are considered as risk factors for low back pain.
Conclusion
Although it has been alleged that low back pain resolves in approximately 80% to 90% of patients in about six weeks, irrespective of the administration or type of treatment, with only 5% to 10% of patients developing persistent back pain, this concept has been frequently questioned as the condition tends to relapse and most patients experience multiple episodes years after the initial attack.
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Cardiff Metropolitan University1, The College of New Jersey2, East Tennessee State University3, University of New South Wales4, Louisiana State University in Shreveport5, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center6, Temple University7, University of Salford8, Philippines National Collegiate Athletic Association9, Harvard University10, University of Connecticut11, University of Pennsylvania12, Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions13, Ohio State University14
TL;DR: The current manuscript has been adapted from the official position statement of the UK Strength and Conditioning Association on youth resistance training and has been reviewed and endorsed by leading professional organisations within the fields of sports medicine, exercise science and paediatrics.
Abstract: The current manuscript has been adapted from the official position statement of the UK Strength and Conditioning Association on youth resistance training. It has subsequently been reviewed and endorsed by leading professional organisations within the fields of sports medicine, exercise science and paediatrics. The authorship team for this article was selected from the fields of paediatric exercise science, paediatric medicine, physical education, strength and conditioning and sports medicine.