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### Instruction:
Is anemia a predictor of outcome in heart transplant recipients?
### Response:
| The prevalence of anemia is relatively high in heart allograft recipients and is not adequately treated. In patients with cardiovascular disease, GFR should be estimated because renal dysfunction and subsequent anemia are important risk factors for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Chronic heart failure is also more common in patients with anemia. |
### Instruction:
Does cytomegalovirus infection accelerate microvasculopathy development in heart transplant recipients?
### Response:
| Our data do not support the thesis that CMV infection promotes microvasculopathy development among heart transplant recipients. |
### Instruction:
Is microvasculopathy observed in early or late endomyocardial biopsies related to angiographically confirmed transplanted heart coronary vasculopathy?
### Response:
| Microvasculopathy observed early or late after OHT was not related to angiographically confirmed CAV. |
### Instruction:
Are episodes of acute heart failure syndrome associated with increased levels of troponin and extracellular matrix markers?
### Response:
| Episodes of AHFS are associated with transient increases in markers of myocyte injury and ECM turnover that may reflect an acceleration of pathological myocardial remodeling during AHFS. |
### Instruction:
Do innate but not adaptive immune responses contribute to behavioral seizures following viral infection?
### Response:
| We have implicated the innate immune response to viral infection, specifically TNF-alpha and IL-6, and concomitant inflammatory changes in the brain as contributing to the development of acute seizures. This model is a potential infection-driven model of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy with hippocampal sclerosis. |
### Instruction:
Is the classification and identification of human somatic and parasympathetic nerve fibres including urinary bladder afferents and efferents preserved following spinal cord injury?
### Response:
| 1. Single nerve fibre action potentials (APs) of lower sacral nerve roots were recorded extracellularly with 2 pairs of wire electrodes during an operation for implanting an anterior root stimulator for bladder control in 9 humans with a spinal cord injury and a dyssynergia of the urinary bladder. Roots that were not saved and that were used to record from were later used for morphometry. 2. Nerve fibre groups were identified by conduction velocity distribution histograms of single afferent and efferent fibres and partly by nerve fibre diameter distribution histograms, and correlation analysis was performed. Group conduction velocity values were obtained additionally from compound action potentials (CAPs) evoked by electrical stimulation of nerve roots and the urinary bladder. 3. The group conduction velocities and group nerve fibre diameters had the following pair-values at 35.5 degrees C: Spindle afferents: SP1 (65 m/s / 13.1 microm), SP2 (51/12.1); touch afferents: T1 (47/11.1), T2 (39/10.1), T3 (27/9.1), T4 (19/8.1); urinary bladder afferents: S1 (41 m/s / -), ST (35/-); alpha-motoneurons: alpha 13 (-/14.4), alpha 12 (65 m/s /13.1 microm), alpha 11 (60?/12.1)[FF], alpha 2 (51/10.3)[FR], alpha 3 (41/8.2)[S]; gamma-motoneurons: gamma(beta) (27/7.1), gamma 1 (21/6.6), gamma 21 (16/5.8), gamma 22 (14/5.1); preganglionic parasympathetic motoneurons: (10 m/s / 3.7 microm). 4. The values of group conduction velocity and group nerve fibre diameter measured in the paraplegics were very similar to those obtained earlier from brain-dead humans and patients with no spinal cord injury. Also, the axon number and the axon density of myelinated fibres of lower sacral nerve roots remain unchanged following spinal cord injury. Thus the classification and identification of nerve fibre groups remained preservedfollowing spinal cord injury. A direct comparison can thus be made of natural impulse patterns of afferent and efferent nerve fibres between paraplegics (pathologic) and brain-dead humans (supraspinal destroyed CNS, in many respects physiologic). 5. When changing the root temperature from 32 degrees C to 35.5 degrees C, the group conduction velocities changed in the following way in one case: SP2: 40 m/s (32 degrees C) to 50 m/s (35.5%), S1: 31.3 to 40, ST: 25 to 33.8, M: 12.5 to 13.8; alpha 2: 40 to 50, alpha 3: 33 to 40. The group conduction velocities showed different temperature dependence apart from SP2 fibres and alpha 2-motoneurons. 6. Upon retrograde bladder filling the urinary bladder stretch (S1) and tension receptor afferent (ST) activity levels were undulating and increased. As compared to activity levels detected in a brain-dead human, S1 (designates afferents, not cord segment) and ST afferents fired even when the bladder was empty, with an activity level similar to those observed in a brain-dead human with the bladder half filled. Two reasons are brought forward for an too small storage volume of the urinary bladder in paraplegics: too high afferent activity of the bladder due to changed receptor field signal transduction mechanisms and too low compliance. 7. With the newly developed 'coordination dynamics therapy', applied early after spinal cord injury, such complications of bladder functioning can be avoided; the bladder can causally be cured in severe spinal cord injury. |
### Instruction:
Does alternative processing of primary microRNA transcripts by Drosha generate 5 ' end variation of mature microRNA?
### Response:
| Thus, alternative Drosha processing might be a novel mechanism for diversification of the miRNA target gene pool. |
### Instruction:
Do dopamine D2 receptor knockout mice develop features of Parkinson disease?
### Response:
| Increased sprouting and DA turnover, as observed in PD and D(2)R(-/-) mice, augments LB-like inclusions and axonal degeneration of dopaminergic neurons. These changes are associated with ER stress and autophagy. |
### Instruction:
Does perinatal exposure of rats to Bisphenol A affect the fertility of male offspring?
### Response:
| Perinatal exposure to environmentally relevant doses of BPA affects the male germ line, leading to impairments in the fertility of F(1) male offspring and their subsequent F(2) and F(3) generations. |
### Instruction:
Does cD44 expression positively correlate with Foxp3 expression and suppressive function of CD4+ Treg cells?
### Response:
| This study indicates the presence of two novel phenotypes of T(reg) cells in the thymus, the functional relevance of CD44 in defining T(reg) cell subsets, and the role of both IL-10 and Foxp3 in modulating the function of T(reg) cells. |
### Instruction:
Does nasal high-flow therapy deliver low level positive airway pressure?
### Response:
| This study demonstrated that a low level of positive pressure was generated with NHF at 35 litre min(-1) of gas flow. This is consistent with results obtained in healthy volunteers. Australian Clinical Trials Registry www.actr.org.au ACTRN012606000139572. |
### Instruction:
Does gene expression analysis during dengue virus infection in HepG2 cells reveal virus control of innate immune response?
### Response:
| Our results suggest that innate immune pathways are involved in the recognition of Dengue Virus by HepG2 cells. These observations may contribute to the understanding of the inflammatory responses induced by Dengue Virus-hepatocytes interaction during dengue diseases. |
### Instruction:
Does propofol with N-acetylcysteine reduce global myocardial ischemic reperfusion injury more than ketamine in a rat model?
### Response:
| In this rat model of global cardiac ischemia, propofol with NAC attenuates myocardial injury more than ketamine (with or without NAC). |
### Instruction:
Is diabetes distress but not clinical depression or depressive symptoms associated with glycemic control in both cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses?
### Response:
| We found no concurrent or longitudinal association between MDD or depressive symptoms with A1C, whereas both concurrent and time-concordant relationships were found between diabetes distress and A1C. What has been called "depression" among type 2 diabetic patients may really be two conditions, MDD and diabetes distress, with only the latter displaying significant associations with A1C. Ongoing evaluation of both diabetes distress and MDD may be helpful in clinical settings. |
### Instruction:
Does inhibition of IkappaB kinase beta restrain oncogenic proliferation of pancreatic cancer cells?
### Response:
| These results identify IKKbeta as an attractive molecular target for pancreatic cancer therapy. |
### Instruction:
Does rab11 help maintain apical crumbs and adherens junctions in the Drosophila embryonic ectoderm?
### Response:
| We contrast our results with what others saw when disrupting other trafficking regulators, and when disrupting Rab function in other tissues; together these data suggest distinct mechanisms regulate junctional stability and plasticity in different tissues. |
### Instruction:
Are pPARG , KCNJ11 , CDKAL1 , CDKN2A-CDKN2B , IDE-KIF11-HHEX , IGF2BP2 and SLC30A8 associated with type 2 diabetes in a Chinese population?
### Response:
| The current study confirmed the association between PPARG, KCNJ11, CDKAL1, CDKN2A-CDKN2B, IDE-KIF11-HHEX, IGF2BP2 and SLC30A8 and type 2 diabetes. These type 2 diabetes risk loci contributed to the disease additively. |
### Instruction:
Does eEG spike activity precede epilepsy after kainate-induced status epilepticus?
### Response:
| The temporal features of EEG spikes (i.e., their presence, frequency, and pattern [clusters]) when analyzed over prolonged periods, may be a predictive biomarker for the development of chronic epilepsy after brain injury. Future clinical trials using prolonged EEG recordings may reveal the diagnostic utility of EEG spikes as predictors of subsequent epilepsy in brain-injured humans. |
### Instruction:
Does impact of antithrombin III concentrate on portal vein thrombosis after splenectomy in patients with liver cirrhosis and hypersplenism?
### Response:
| These results demonstrate that low AT-III activity and further decreases in this activity are associated with PVT after splenectomy in cirrhotic patients, and that treatment with AT-III concentrates is likely to prevent the development of PVT in these patients. |
### Instruction:
Does delivery site of perivascular endothelial cell matrices determine control of stenosis in a porcine femoral stent model?
### Response:
| Perivascular endothelial cell matrices reduced stenosis after stent-induced injury. The effects were not dependent on the formulation but appeared to be dependent on delivery site. Minimally invasive injections of endothelial cell matrices to the adventitia of arteries following peripheral interventions may decrease restenosis rates. |
### Instruction:
Is drosophila KDM2 a H3K4me3 demethylase regulating nucleolar organization?
### Response:
| Our findings indicate that dKDM2 is a histone lysine demethylase with specificity for H3K4me3 and regulates nucleolar organization. |
### Instruction:
Does 17beta-Estradiol inhibit matrix metalloproteinase-2 transcription via MAP kinase in fibroblasts?
### Response:
| E2 inhibits MMP-2 expression via the ER and the MAPK pathway in rat cardiac fibroblasts and in a human fibroblast cell line. These mechanisms may contribute to sex-specific differences in fibrotic processes that are observed in human heart and other diseases. |
### Instruction:
Does analysis of knockout mice suggest a role for VGF in the control of fat storage and energy expenditure?
### Response:
| We propose that VGF and/or VGF-derived peptides modulate sympathetic outflow pathways to regulate fat storage and energy expenditure. |
### Instruction:
Is unifocalization of major aortopulmonary collateral arteries in pulmonary atresia with ventricular septal defect essential to achieve excellent outcomes irrespective of native pulmonary artery morphology?
### Response:
| By using a strategy of unifocalization, intrapericardial pulmonary artery reconstruction, and right ventricle-pulmonary artery conduit, excellent long-term survival can be achieved in this group of patients even in the absence of native intrapericardial pulmonary arteries. |
### Instruction:
Is `` My story like a goat tied to a hook . '' Views from a marginalized tribal group in Kerala ( India ) on the consequences of falling ill : a participatory poverty and health assessment?
### Response:
| Improving the capacity of tribal populations to present their own perspectives is likely to lead to more effective tribal development policies and consequently better health. |
### Instruction:
Do selenoproteins regulate macrophage invasiveness and extracellular matrix-related gene expression?
### Response:
| Selenium status may affect immune defense and tissue homeostasis through its effect on selenoprotein expression and the trafficking of tissue macrophages. |
### Instruction:
Does honey potentiate the gastric protection effects of sucralfate against ammonia-induced gastric lesions in rats?
### Response:
| The present results suggest potentiation of gastric protection effect of sucralfate by honey and this may have a clinical value in the treatment of peptic ulcer diseases in Helicobacter pylori positive patients. |
### Instruction:
Does chronic bacterial inflammation induce prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia in mouse prostate?
### Response:
| These data demonstrate that chronic inflammation induces focal prostatic glandular atypia and suggest a potential linkage between inflammation and prostatic neoplasia. |
### Instruction:
Does nicotine promote tumor growth and metastasis in mouse models of lung cancer?
### Response:
| Our earlier results indicated that nicotine could induce invasion and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in cultured lung, breast and pancreatic cancer cells. This study demonstrates for the first time that administration of nicotine either by i.p. injection or through over-the-counter dermal patches can promote tumor growth and metastasis in immunocompetent mice. These results suggest that while nicotine has only limited capacity to initiate tumor formation, it can facilitate the progression and metastasis of tumors pre-initiated by tobacco carcinogens. |
### Instruction:
Does corticospinal activation confound cerebellar effects of posterior fossa stimuli?
### Response:
| CST collaterals are known to contact cortical inhibitory interneurones; antidromic CST activation could therefore contribute to the observed suppression of cortical MEPs. |
### Instruction:
Is peginterferon alfa-2a plus ribavirin more effective than peginterferon alfa-2b plus ribavirin for treating chronic hepatitis C virus infection?
### Response:
| In patients with chronic HCV infection, peginterferon alfa-2a plus ribavirin produced a significantly higher SVR rate than peginterferon alfa-2b plus ribavirin. |
### Instruction:
Does rituximab adversely affect the stem cell mobilization and engraftment after high-dose therapy and autologous transplantation in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma in first complete or partial remission?
### Response:
| Hematopoietic engraftment was rapid for both groups and no different between them. The 3-year event-free survival was 90.4 % in the R group and 67.2 % in the non-R group (p = 0.04), but there was no significant difference in the 3-year overall survival (94,7 % vs 83,5 %; p = 0.179). |
### Instruction:
Is ropivacaine spinal anesthesia antagonized by ondansetron pretreatment?
### Response:
| Ondansetron had no effect on the subarachnoid sensory or motor block produced by ropivacaine. |
### Instruction:
Does mild hypothermia have no long-term impact on postischemic neurogenesis in rats?
### Response:
| Neither intraischemic nor postischemic hypothermia affected the ischemia-induced increase in endogenous neurogenesis. Intraischemic hypothermia reduced hippocampal damage, whereas postischemic hypothermia as applied here did not prevent formation of histopathological injury. This indicates that, 28 days after cerebral ischemia, postischemic neurogenesis is not significantly increased by mild peri-ischemic hypothermia and not affected by the severity of histopathological damage. |
### Instruction:
Does cyclin-mediated G1 arrest by celecoxib differ in low-versus high-grade bladder cancer?
### Response:
| Celecoxib induces G(1) cell cycle arrest in low- and high-grade bladder cancer by different pathways. This heterogeneous molecular response supports combination approaches to prevention and treatment. |
### Instruction:
Is loss of prostasin ( PRSS8 ) in human bladder transitional cell carcinoma cell lines associated with epithelial-mesenchymal transition ( EMT )?
### Response:
| Loss of prostasin expression in bladder transitional cell carcinomas is associated with epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), and may have functional implications in tumor invasion and resistance to chemotherapy. |
### Instruction:
Does meCP2 control an epigenetic pathway that promotes myofibroblast transdifferentiation and fibrosis?
### Response:
| Liver fibrosis is regulated by an epigenetic relay pathway that includes MeCP2, EZH2, and miR132. Reagents that interfere with this pathway might be developed to reduce fibrogenesis in chronic liver disease. |
### Instruction:
Does diffusion tensor imaging support the cytotoxic origin of brain edema in a rat model of acute liver failure?
### Response:
| The pathogenesis of brain edema in an experimental model of ALF involves a cytotoxic mechanism: the metabolism of ammonia in astrocytes induces an increase of glutamine and lactate that appears to mediate cellular swelling. Therapeutic measures should focus on removing ammonia and improving brain energy metabolism. |
### Instruction:
Does emotion suppression affect cardiovascular responses to initial and subsequent laboratory stressors?
### Response:
| Effortful suppression of negative emotion has immediate and delayed consequences for stress-induced cardiovascular reactivity. Theoretical and clinical significance of these findings are discussed. |
### Instruction:
Does persistent treatment with cholinesterase inhibitors and/or memantine slow clinical progression of Alzheimer disease?
### Response:
| Persistent drug treatment had a positive impact on AD progression assessed by multiple cognitive, functional, and global outcome measures. The magnitude of the treatment effect was clinically significant. Positive treatment effects were even found in those with advanced disease. |
### Instruction:
Is low body mass index an independent risk factor of locoregional recurrence in women with breast cancer undergoing breast conserving therapy?
### Response:
| BCT in a young population can result in good locoregional control after careful preoperative evaluation. Women with a low BMI are at high risk of LRR. |
### Instruction:
Does gamma-Irradiation induce P2X ( 7 ) receptor-dependent ATP release from B16 melanoma cells?
### Response:
| We suggest that extracellular ATP could be a novel intercellular signaling molecule released from cancer cells when cells are exposed to ionizing radiation. |
### Instruction:
Does empirical evaluation suggest Copas selection model preferable to trim-and-fill method for selection bias in meta-analysis?
### Response:
| The assumption that the most extreme studies are missing leads to excessively conservative inference in practice for the trim-and-fill method. The Copas selection model appears to be the preferable approach. |
### Instruction:
Is higher serum testosterone concentration in older women associated with insulin resistance , metabolic syndrome , and cardiovascular disease?
### Response:
| Higher levels of T are associated with IR, MetSyn, and CHD in elderly women. Whether T is a marker or mediator of cardiovascular disease in this population merits further investigation. |
### Instruction:
Does carbon dioxide laser cordectomy for verrucous carcinoma of vocal fold?
### Response:
| Type I or II laser cordectomy is a safe, feasible, secure method of treating verrucous carcinoma of the vocal folds. There were no major complications in our patient series. Most recurrent disease was manageable locally with repeated surgery. |
### Instruction:
Does combination of alpha-1 antitrypsin and doxycycline suppress collagen-induced arthritis?
### Response:
| The results obtained in the present study indicate that a combination therapy using AAT and doxycycline holds promising potential as a new therapy for RA. |
### Instruction:
Does insulin cause hyperthermia by direct inhibition of warm-sensitive neurons?
### Response:
| Our findings demonstrate that insulin can directly modulate hypothalamic neurons that regulate thermogenesis and CBT and indicate that insulin plays an important role in coupling metabolism and thermoregulation at the level of anterior hypothalamus. |
### Instruction:
Does allergen provocation increase TH2-cytokines and FOXP3 expression in the asthmatic lung?
### Response:
| Despite an increase in CD4(+)CD25(bright) cells expressing high levels of FOXP3 in response to bronchial allergen provocation, asthmatic patients exhibit enhanced levels of Th2 cytokines in the lung, which may indicate an inability among infiltrating cells to suppress Th2 responses. |
### Instruction:
Is adequacy of vitamin D replacement in severe deficiency dependent on body mass index?
### Response:
| Efficacy of vitamin D supplementation is dependent on BMI. Overweight and obese patients with hypovitaminosis D might require higher doses of vitamin D to achieve vitamin D repletion compared with individuals with normal body weight. |
### Instruction:
Is remifentanil bolus dose a safe procedure to control intense noxious stimuli in hypertensive neurosurgical patients?
### Response:
| In a clinical situation in which high remifentanil doses may be required, hypertensive patients are expected to have hemodynamic and bispectral index responses similar to those observed in healthy patients. |
### Instruction:
Does a statistical model of protein sequence similarity and function similarity reveal overly-specific function predictions?
### Response:
| Our model shows nearly exact function similarity for proteins with high sequence similarity (bit score >244.7, e-value >1e(-62), non-redundant NCBI protein database (NRDB)) and only small likelihood of specific function match for proteins with low sequence similarity (bit score <54.6, e-value <1e(-05), NRDB). For sequence similarity ranges in between our annotation model shows an increasing relationship between function similarity and sequence similarity, but with considerable variability. We applied the model to a large set of proteins of unknown function, and predicted functions for thousands of these proteins ranging from general to very specific. We also applied the model to a data set of proteins with previously assigned, specific functions that were electronically based. We show that, on average, these prior function predictions are more specific (quite possibly overly-specific) compared to predictions from our model that is based on proteins with experimentally determined function. |
### Instruction:
Does proteome analysis reveal candidate markers of disease progression in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis ( ALS )?
### Response:
| Fetuin-A and TTR are promising candidate markers for disease progression in ALS that warrant further evaluation on a larger cohort of patients. |
### Instruction:
Do digit ratios serve as anatomical evidence of prenatal androgen exposure in clinical phenotypes of polycystic ovary syndrome?
### Response:
| Women with PCOS do not demonstrate finger length patterns that are consistent with increased prenatal androgen exposure. These findings do not preclude a role for prenatal androgens in the development of PCOS; however, low 2D:4D are not a characteristic of PCOS. |
### Instruction:
Does dexamethasone inhibit tumor necrosis factor-alpha-stimulated gastric epithelial cell migration?
### Response:
| TNF-alpha plays a regulatory role in rat gastric epithelial cell migration and dexamethasone inhibited TNF-alpha-stimulated cell migration, which was associated with a decrease in COX-2 expression and PGE2 formation. |
### Instruction:
Is dickkopf-1 autoantibody a novel serological biomarker for non-small cell lung cancer?
### Response:
| Our results suggest that the detection of circulating DKK1 autoantibody could potentially serve as a useful non-invasive marker for determining lung cancer status. |
### Instruction:
Are the pentameric vertex proteins necessary for the icosahedral carboxysome shell to function as a CO2 leakage barrier?
### Response:
| In the absence of the CsoS4 proteins the carboxysome shell loses its limited permeability to CO(2) and is no longer able to provide the catalytic advantage RubisCO derives from microcompartmentalization. This study presents direct evidence that the diffusion barrier property of the carboxysome shell contributes significantly to the biological function of the carboxysome. |
### Instruction:
Does a previous cholecystectomy increase the risk of developing advanced adenomas of the colon?
### Response:
| A prior cholecystectomy was independently associated with an increased risk of developing advanced AP. Also, there appeared to be a trend toward a greater prevalence of advanced lesions as postcholecystectomy time increased. |
### Instruction:
Is viral interleukin-6 encoded by rhesus macaque rhadinovirus associated with lymphoproliferative disorder ( LPD )?
### Response:
| Our data support the idea that vIL-6 may be critical to the development and progression of lymphoproliferative disorder in RRV/SIV-infected RM. |
### Instruction:
Does vaccination with SIVmac239Deltanef activate CD4+ T cells in the absence of CD4 T-cell loss?
### Response:
| We demonstrated in this study that SIVmac239Deltanef vaccination did not deplete CD4(+) T cells but transiently activated and expanded the memory cell population. However, increases in numbers and activation of memory CD4(+) T cells did not appear to influence protective immunity. |
### Instruction:
Are macaca fascicularis highly susceptible to an RT-SHIV following intravaginal inoculation : a new model for microbicide evaluation?
### Response:
| Results serve to validate the infectivity and pathogenicity of RT-SHIVtc following vaginal exposure in M. fascicularis. This RT-SHIVtc/macaque model could be suitable for the pre-clinical evaluation of non-nucleoside RT inhibitor-based anti-HIV microbicides. |
### Instruction:
Do thrombocytopenia and thrombocytosis at time of hospitalization predict mortality in patients with community-acquired pneumonia?
### Response:
| Thrombocytopenia and thrombocytosis are associated with mortality in patients hospitalized with CAP. When evaluating an initial CBC test in patients with CAP, an abnormal platelet count is a better predictor of outcome than an abnormal leukocyte count. |
### Instruction:
Does n-methyl-D-aspartate glutamate receptor blockade attenuate lung injury associated with experimental sepsis?
### Response:
| These findings indicate that NMDAR blockade might represent a promising novel therapeutic strategy for the treatment of sepsis and inflammatory disorders. |
### Instruction:
Does sleep loss aggravate the deteriorating effect of hypoglycemia on neurocognitive function in healthy men?
### Response:
| One night of total SD deteriorates neurocognitive function as reflected by indicators of attentive stimulus processing, but does not synergistically aggravate the impairing influence of acute hypoglycemia. The findings are not consistent with the view that neurocognitive deteriorations after SD result from challenged cerebral glucose metabolism. |
### Instruction:
Does corticotropin-releasing hormone attenuate vascular endothelial growth factor release from human HaCaT keratinocytes?
### Response:
| CRH might downregulate the expression of VEGF through the CRH-R1 and MAPK (p38 MAPK and JNK1/2) signaling pathways in human HaCaT cells. |
### Instruction:
Is informatics training for clinicians more important than hardware and software?
### Response:
| The health challenges of the 21 century require that we rapidly train the clinical workforce in clinical informatics. In addition to buying hardware and software, our health systems need to sponsor this training. Two percent of every Health IT budget should be targeted for clinician education. |
### Instruction:
Do gene-gene interactions in folate and adenosine biosynthesis pathways affect methotrexate efficacy and tolerability in rheumatoid arthritis?
### Response:
| These data indicate that gene-gene interactions impact MTX efficacy and tolerability in rheumatoid arthritis. |
### Instruction:
Does mitomycin C induce bystander killing in homogeneous and heterogeneous hepatoma cellular models?
### Response:
| Our results highlight the therapeutic importance of MMC in the treatment of HCC and implicate role of membrane bound and secreted forms of FasL and TRAIL in MMC induced bystander killing. |
### Instruction:
Does tGF-beta-induced interleukin-6 participate in transdifferentiation of human Tenon 's fibroblasts to myofibroblasts?
### Response:
| Our data show that autocrine IL-6 may participate in the TGF-beta1-induced transdifferentiation of human Tenon's fibroblasts to myofibroblasts, which is known to be an essential step for subconjunctival fibrosis. |
### Instruction:
Is retinal ischemia-induced apoptosis associated with alteration in Bax and Bcl-x ( L ) expression rather than modifications in Bak and Bcl-2?
### Response:
| This study revealed that Bcl-2-related family members were differently regulated in the early and late phases after an ischemic insult. We showed that the Bax:Bcl-2 and Bax:Bcl-x(L) balances were not affected in the initial phases, but the Bax:Bcl-x(L) ratio shifted toward apoptosis during the late phase of recovery. This shift was reinforced by caspase-3 upregulation. |
### Instruction:
Is eTX1 over-expressed in the glaucomatous trabecular meshwork?
### Response:
| This is the first report demonstrating overexpression of ETX1 in glaucomatous TM. ETX1 expression may regulate TM protein interactions involved in cell adhesion, and its aberrant overexpression may be part of the pathophysiological pathway in the development of glaucoma. |
### Instruction:
Does pressure recovery explain doppler overestimation of invasive pressure gradient across segmental vascular stenosis?
### Response:
| Caution should be used in applying the SBE to the noninvasive assessment of AC severity. Significant segmental stenosis is associated with significant underestimation of the actual pressure gradient because of viscous losses. A substantial overestimation of the actual pressure drop due to a pressure recovery effect may occur in mild AC, especially when the distal aorta is not dilated. |
### Instruction:
Do rAD51 paralogs promote homology-directed repair at diversifying immunoglobulin V regions?
### Response:
| These results demonstrate direct functions of RAD51D and XRCC2 in immunoglobulin gene conversion, and also suggest that modulation of levels of repair factors may be a useful strategy to promote gene correction in other cell types. |
### Instruction:
Is laparoscopic cholecystectomy feasible and safe in acute cholecystitis?
### Response:
| Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is feasible and safe in patients with acute cholecystitis, provided it is performed by experienced surgeons. Although the procedure is somewhat lengthy, it is associated with low conversion rate, no serious morbidity and zero mortality. |
### Instruction:
Does dominant frequency of atrial fibrillation correlate poorly with atrial fibrillation cycle length?
### Response:
| DFs from unipolar and bipolar electrograms recorded during AF correlated poorly with mean, median, and mode AFCL. If a frequency gradient >25% existed, the site with highest DF corresponded to the site of shortest median AFCL in only 25% of patients. Because spectral analysis is being used to identify ablation sites, these data may have important clinical implications. |
### Instruction:
Does decrease in nerve fibre density in human sigmoid colon circular muscle occur with growth but not aging?
### Response:
| In human sigmoid colon circular muscle, there are reductions in nNOS-, VIP- and SP-IR nerve fibre density with growth from newborn to late adolescence but little further change with aging. The reduction in nerve density is due to an increase in circular muscle thickness rather than a loss of nerve fibres. |
### Instruction:
Are coagulation/fibrinolysis and inflammation markers associated with disease activity in patients with chronic urticaria?
### Response:
| The measurement of plasma FDP, d-dimer and serum CRP may be useful for the assessment of disease activity of CU. |
### Instruction:
Does extracellular ATP activate MAP kinase cascades through a P2Y purinergic receptor in the human intestinal Caco-2 cell line?
### Response:
| These findings provide new molecular basis for further understanding the mechanisms involved in ATP functions, as a signal transducer and activator of MAP kinase cascades, in colon adenocarcinoma Caco-2 cells. |
### Instruction:
Do semantic event-related potential components reflect severity of comprehension deficits in aphasia?
### Response:
| Semantic access and integration are performed differently in aphasic subjects with severe comprehension deficits. These differences in lexical-semantic processing must be taken into account in rehabilitation approaches that aim to improve comprehension deficits. Moreover, the findings may contribute to the design of therapy studies by employing a physiological measure that can discriminate among patients at baseline and at the end of an intervention. |
### Instruction:
Is repeated low-dose skin exposure an effective sensitizing stimulus , a factor to be taken into account in predicting sensitization risk?
### Response:
| The same degree of sensitization was induced by three exposures to DNCB 10 microg cm(-2) as by one exposure to 60 microg cm(-2) of DNCB. Thus repeated exposure to low doses of contact sensitizers may increase the sensitizing potency. This must be taken into account in future risk assessments. |
### Instruction:
Does artemisinin-transferrin conjugate retard growth of breast tumors in the rat?
### Response:
| Artemisinin-transferrin conjugate could be developed into a potent therapeutic agent for cancer in humans. |
### Instruction:
Does exogenous expression of caspase-14 induce tumor suppression in human salivary cancer cells by inhibiting tumor vascularization?
### Response:
| Salivary gland cancer cells underwent growth inhibition, cell death, and reduced tumorigenicity in vivo when exogenous caspase-14 was expressed, which could be due, in part, to an inhibitory effect of caspase-14 on tumor vascularization. |
### Instruction:
Does xanthohumol activate the proapoptotic arm of the unfolded protein response in chronic lymphocytic leukemia?
### Response:
| X stimulates the proapoptotic arm of the UPR in ex vivo CLL cells, suggesting that ER stress may play an important role during X-induced apoptosis. |
### Instruction:
Does down-regulation of 20-HETE synthesis and signaling inhibit renal adenocarcinoma cell proliferation and tumor growth?
### Response:
| 20-HETE is required for proliferation of human renal epithelial cancer. |
### Instruction:
Does diabetes regulate mitochondrial biogenesis and fission in mouse neurons?
### Response:
| We propose that: (1) mitochondria undergo biogenesis in response to hyperglycaemia, but the increased biogenesis is insufficient to accommodate the metabolic load; (2) hyperglycaemia causes an excess of mitochondrial fission, creating small, damaged mitochondria; and (3) reduction of aberrant mitochondrial fission increases neuronal survival and indicates an important role for the fission-fusion equilibrium in the pathogenesis of diabetic neuropathy. |
### Instruction:
Are the bispectral index and suppression ratio very early predictors of neurological outcome during therapeutic hypothermia after cardiac arrest?
### Response:
| In our single-center cohort utilizing moderate sedation, the bispectral index and suppression ratio recorded after the first dose of intermittent neuromuscular blockade were accurate and very early predictors of neurological outcome during therapeutic hypothermia after cardiac arrest. |
### Instruction:
Does the addition of mechanical insufflation/exsufflation shorten airway-clearance sessions in neuromuscular patients with chest infection?
### Response:
| This is a short-term study of the use of in-exsufflation as a supplement to standard NIV plus physiotherapy in a small group of patients with neuromuscular disease. The addition of mechanical in-exsufflation shortened airway-clearance sessions. The device appeared to be safe and well tolerated, and may provide additional benefit to patients with neuromuscular disease and upper-respiratory-tract infection; further studies are indicated. |
### Instruction:
Does preliminary proficiency testing result for succinylacetone in dried blood spots for newborn screening for tyrosinemia type I?
### Response:
| The wide ranges of SUAC concentrations reported for pilot and proficiency testing specimens demonstrate a need to harmonize quantitative results among laboratories. Although DBS matrix calibrators are important for optimizing SUAC recoveries, the preparation of these calibrators is not standardized among laboratories. Certified DBS-based SUAC calibrators are needed for accuracy and harmonization. |
### Instruction:
Does metabolic risk vary according to waist circumference measurement site in overweight boys and girls?
### Response:
| In our sample, we observed differences in 4 commonly recommended WC measurement sites and found that all sites were not equivalently associated with metabolic risk. Our findings provide preliminary support suggesting that WC measured at the narrowest waist and midpoint between the floating rib and iliac crest may represent the measurement sites most closely associated with metabolic risk in overweight boys and girls. |
### Instruction:
Does pre-implantation basiliximab reduce incidence of early acute rejection in pediatric heart transplantation?
### Response:
| The results of this study confirm that basiliximab is effective at suppressing CD25 count whether given pre- or post-CPB. Basiliximab before transplantation appeared to reduce acute rejection, whereas post-CPB administration did not suggest similar effects. These findings require independent validation in randomized trials and further studies should seek to mechanistically delineate these observations. |
### Instruction:
Is short-term celecoxib intervention a safe and effective chemopreventive for gastric carcinogenesis based on a Mongolian gerbil model?
### Response:
| Short-term treatment with celecoxib has an anti-carcinogenic effect, and resulted in less severe inflammation and inhibited the invasive degree of gastric cancer. |
### Instruction:
Does increased cardiac index due to terbutaline treatment aggravate capillary-alveolar macromolecular leakage in oleic acid lung injury in dogs?
### Response:
| As cardiac index increased with terbutaline infusion, we speculate that terbutaline recruits leaky capillaries and increases FITC-D70 leakage after OA injury. These findings suggest that therapies inducing an increase in cardiac output and a decrease in pulmonary vascular resistances have the potential to heighten the early increase in protein transport from plasma to alveoli within the acutely injured lung. |
### Instruction:
Is a new polymorphism in the GRP78 associated with HBV invasion?
### Response:
| -86 bp T > A polymorphism in GRP78 gene is not related to the clinical risk and acute exacerbation of HBV invasion. |
### Instruction:
Does systemic administration of arecoline reduce ethanol-induced sleeping through activation of central muscarinic receptor in mice?
### Response:
| These results suggest that central muscarinic receptor is a pharmacological target for the action of arecoline to modulate ethanol-induced hypnosis. |
### Instruction:
Does tumor irrigation fluid enhance diagnostic efficacy in endoscopic biopsies of intracranial space-occupying lesions?
### Response:
| Additional tissue from TIF preserves the original biopsy, provides more material for diagnosis and gives a better morphological picture in smears. Hence diagnosis of endoscopic CNS biopsies can be rendered in more cases and with greater degree of confidence. |
### Instruction:
Is cigarette smoking associated with suicidality in bipolar disorder?
### Response:
| In this study, current cigarette smoking was a predictor of current and nine-month suicidal ideation and behavior in bipolar disorder, and it is likely that impulsivity accounts for some of this relationship. |
### Instruction:
Does expression profiling identify genes involved in neoplastic transformation of serous ovarian cancer?
### Response:
| These results highlight several genes that may play an important role across the spectrum of serous ovarian tumorigenesis. |
### Instruction:
Does increased vascular permeability precede cellular inflammation as asthma control deteriorates?
### Response:
| Our results suggest that airway vascular leakage is a major pathophysiologic feature of early asthma deterioration, occurring before recrudescence of cellular inflammation. |
### Instruction:
Does midostaurin ( PKC412 ) inhibit immunoglobulin E-dependent activation and mediator release in human blood basophils and mast cells?
### Response:
| Midostaurin may be a beneficial drug in aggressive systemic mastocytosis not only because of its growth-inhibitory effects but also because of its additional effects on activation and mediator release in MC and basophils. |
### Instruction:
Do single pancreatic beta cells co-express multiple islet hormone genes in mice?
### Response:
| This study shows co-expression of multiple hormone genes in beta cells of adult mice as well as in embryos and neonates. This finding could: (1) represent residual expression from beta cell precursors; (2) result from alternative developmental pathways for beta cells; or (3) denote the differentiation potential of these cells. It may be linked to functional heterogeneity. This heterogeneity in gene expression may provide a means to characterise the functional, cellular and developmental heterogeneity seen in beta cells. |
### Instruction:
Does bH3-only protein bid participate in the Bcl-2 network in healthy liver cells?
### Response:
| Bid, originally considered to be a sensor for apoptotic stimuli, is constitutively active in healthy liver cells and is involved in the Bak/Bax-dependent mitochondrial cell death pathway. Healthy liver cells are addicted to a single Bcl-2-like molecule because of BH3 stresses, and therefore special caution may be required for the use of the Bcl-2 inhibitor for cancer therapy. |
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