Application of a semiclassical model for the second-quantized many-electron Hamiltonian to nonequilibrium quantum transport: the resonant level model.

A semiclassical approach is developed for nonequilibrium quantum transport in molecular junctions. Following the early work of Miller and White [J. Chem.

[Protracted rheumatologic manifestations in travelers].

Protracted rheumatological manifestations especially arthralgia and or polyarthritis may occur as a consequence of a wide range of pathogens including viral, bacterial and parasites. Few pathogenetic mechanisms leading to these clinical presentations have been suggested including a direct invasion of the synovial cells by the pathogens, immune complex formation, and others. The natural history of infectious arthritis/arthralgia is altogether benign, with full recovery and without sequelae, albeit sometimes very long.

Targeting diphtheria toxin and TNF alpha expression in ovarian tumors using the H19 regulatory sequences.

Background: There are currently no effective therapies for the treatment of ovarian cancer ascites fluid (OCAF). H19 is an RNA oncofetal gene that is present at high levels in human cancer tissues (ovarian cancer and OCAF among them), while existing at a nearly undetectable level in the surrounding normal tissue. There is evidence for a synergistic effect in cell cytotoxicity mediated by TNFα and diphtheria toxin in sensitive and resistant human ovarian tumor cell line.

Simulating Lattice Spin Models on Graphics Processing Units.

Lattice spin models are useful for studying critical phenomena and allow the extraction of equilibrium and dynamical properties. Simulations of such systems are usually based on Monte Carlo (MC) techniques, and the main difficulty is often the large computational effort needed when approaching critical points. In this work, it is shown how such simulations can be accelerated with the use of NVIDIA graphics processing units (GPUs) using the CUDA programming architecture.

Treatment of ovarian cancer ascites by intra-peritoneal injection of diphtheria toxin A chain-H19 vector: a case report.

Introduction: Ovarian cancer ascitic fluid, which contains malignant cells, is usually present in women with an advanced stage disease. There are currently no effective therapies for the treatment of ovarian cancer ascitic fluid. We developed a new therapeutic strategy to target expression of the diphtheria toxin fragment A gene in ovarian tumor cells under the control of H19 regulatory sequences.

Real-time decision fusion for multimodal neural prosthetic devices.

Background: The field of neural prosthetics aims to develop prosthetic limbs with a brain-computer interface (BCI) through which neural activity is decoded into movements. A natural extension of current research is the incorporation of neural activity from multiple modalities to more accurately estimate the user's intent. The challenge remains how to appropriately combine this information in real-time for a neural prosthetic device.

Dorsal stream modulation of visual word recognition in skilled readers.

We examined the hypothesis of a visual magnocellular involvement in intact reading, by testing a group of skilled readers in lateralized versions of coherent motion detection and lexical decision tasks. Motion detection thresholds were used to divide subjects into groups of poor and good motion detectors, their performance in lexical judgment of four letter string types was then compared. Although all subjects were skilled readers, good motion detectors were significantly faster than poor motion detectors when responding to words presented to the right visual field.

Multi-scale recordings for neuroprosthetic control of finger movements.

We trained a rhesus monkey to perform individuated and combined finger flexions and extensions of the thumb, index, and middle finger. A Utah Electrode Array (UEA) was implanted into the hand region of the motor cortex contralateral to the monkey's trained hand. We also implanted a microwire electrocorticography grid (microECoG) epidurally so that it covered the UEA.

COX-2 expression in uterine carcinosarcoma.

Objective: To assess cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression in the carcinomatous and sarcomatous elements of uterine carcinosarcoma.

Design: Retrospective study.

Setting: Medical center.

Cox-2 immunohistochemical expression in epithelial ovarian carcinoma and platin sensitivity.

Purpose: The aim of the study was to assess whether COX-2 expression in epithelial ovarian carcinoma (EOC) tissue can distinguish between platin-sensitive and platin-resistant tumors.

Methods: Clinical and histological data were obtained from medical records of EOC patients diagnosed between the years 1995 and 2005. Patients in complete clinical remission for > 6 months after discontinuation of first-line chemotherapy were considered to be platin-sensitive.

A novel strategy for managing clopidogrel-induced adverse skin reactions.

Aims: We conducted a prospective observational study using a course of steroids and antihistamines to treat a cohort of patients who developed skin reactions to clopidogrel, to assess whether dual antiplatelet therapy could be continued in an outpatient setting.

Methods And Results: This study included 2,701 patients who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) at our centre over a 23 month period. Patients with skin reactions to clopidogrel were identified and then commenced on five days oral prednisolone (30 mg/od) and chlorpheniramine (4 mg/tds) for seven days.

Development of targeted therapy for ovarian cancer mediated by a plasmid expressing diphtheria toxin under the control of H19 regulatory sequences.

Background: Ovarian cancer ascites fluid (OCAF), contains malignant cells, is usually present in women with an advanced stage disease and currently has no effective therapy. Hence, we developed a new therapy strategy to target the expression of diphtheria toxin gene under the control of H19 regulatory sequences in ovarian tumor cells. H19 RNA is present at high levels in human cancer tissues (including ovarian cancer), while existing at a nearly undetectable level in the surrounding normal tissue.

A feasibility study of weekly docetaxel with capecitabine in ovarian cancer: a promising combination of two active drugs with a potential for synergism.

Objectives: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of weekly docetaxel with capecitabine in patients with recurrent/persistent epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC).

Patients And Methods: Women treated for recurrent/persistent EOC in our department (January 2004 through December 2005) were recruited into this feasibility study. They received 35 mg/m(2) docetaxel on days 1 and 8 and 1,000 mg/m(2) capecitabine twice daily on days 1-14 in a 21-day cycle.

Combined weekly carboplatin and paclitaxel as primary treatment of advanced epithelial ovarian carcinoma.

Objective: To evaluate safety and outcome of weekly carboplatin and paclitaxel as the initial postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy for epithelial ovarian carcinoma (EOC) patients.

Methods: Patients with stage IC-IV epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) primary peritoneal or tubal carcinoma were enrolled in this phase II study. Intravenous carboplatin (area under the curve 2) and paclitaxel (80 mg/m(2)) were administered on days 1, 8, and 15 of a 28-day cycle for 6-8 cycles.

Increased LIS1 expression affects human and mouse brain development.

Deletions of the PAFAH1B1 gene (encoding LIS1) in 17p13.3 result in isolated lissencephaly sequence, and extended deletions including the YWHAE gene (encoding 14-3-3epsilon) cause Miller-Dieker syndrome. We identified seven unrelated individuals with submicroscopic duplication in 17p13.

Platin sensitivity and long-term survival in Stage III epithelial ovarian cancer patients.

Purpose: The aim of the present study was to assess the effect of platin sensitivity on long-term survival of Stage III epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) patients.

Methods: The records of all histologically confirmed Stage III EOC and PPC patients diagnosed during 1995-2006 were reviewed. A comparison of selected characteristics was made between long-term (> 5 years) and short-term (< 3 years) survivors.

Antagonistic effects of doublecortin and MARK2/Par-1 in the developing cerebral cortex.

Abnormal neuronal migration is manifested in brain malformations such as lissencephaly. The impairment in coordinated cell motility likely reflects a faulty mechanism of cell polarization or coupling between polarization and movement. Here we report on the relationship between the polarity kinase MARK2/Par-1 and its substrate, the well-known lissencephaly-associated gene doublecortin (DCX), during cortical radial migration.

Lower uterine segment involvement is associated with adverse outcome in patients with stage I endometroid endometrial cancer: results of a multicenter study.

Objective: To quantify the relative risk associated with lower uterine segment involvement (LUSI) on outcome measures in patients with apparent stage I endometroid endometrial cancer.

Methods: A cohort of 769 consecutive patients with endometroid endometrial carcinoma apparent stage I, who underwent surgery in five gynecological oncology centers in Israel; 138 patients with and 631 without LUSI were followed for a median time of 51 months. Local recurrence, recurrence-free and overall survival were compared between the two groups.

High-precision radiocarbon dating and historical biblical archaeology in southern Jordan.

Recent excavations and high-precision radiocarbon dating from the largest Iron Age (IA, ca. 1200-500 BCE) copper production center in the southern Levant demonstrate major smelting activities in the region of biblical Edom (southern Jordan) during the 10th and 9th centuries BCE. Stratified radiocarbon samples and artifacts were recorded with precise digital surveying tools linked to a geographic information system developed to control on-site spatial analyses of archaeological finds and model data with innovative visualization tools.

Group A Streptococcus causing a life-threatening postpartum necrotizing myometritis: a case report.

During childbirth, group A Streptococcus (GAS) can cause a diverse spectrum of disorders ranging from asymptomatic infection to puerperal sepsis and toxic shock syndrome. We report on a healthy parturient who survived a life-threatening necrotizing myometritis due to GAS following an unremarkable spontaneous delivery. Approximately 29 h after an unremarkable spontaneous vaginal delivery, a generally healthy 28-year-old multiparous woman developed a life-threatening necrotizing myometritis due to GAS.

Earliest date for milk use in the Near East and southeastern Europe linked to cattle herding.

The domestication of cattle, sheep and goats had already taken place in the Near East by the eighth millennium bc. Although there would have been considerable economic and nutritional gains from using these animals for their milk and other products from living animals-that is, traction and wool-the first clear evidence for these appears much later, from the late fifth and fourth millennia bc. Hence, the timing and region in which milking was first practised remain unknown.

Risk factor proportions in Israeli patients with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia 3 and invasive squamous cell carcinoma.

Objective: To assess whether there is a difference in the proportion of known risk factors in Israeli women with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) 3 compared with those with cervical squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) to explain the incidence discrepancy between the 2 entities.

Materials And Methods: At admission, patients with histologically confirmed CIN 3 and SCC diagnosed between 1996 and 2006 filled out a prestructured questionnaire containing queries regarding the following variables: age, place of birth, origin (place of birth of parents), level of education, age at coitarche, number of partners, marital status, age at first pregnancy, number of pregnancies, number of children, type of contraception used, and smoking. A comparison of the proportion of these risk factors in patients with CIN 3 and SCC was performed.

Accurate balance of the polarity kinase MARK2/Par-1 is required for proper cortical neuronal migration.

Radial neuronal migration is key in structuring the layered cortex. Here we studied the role of MARK2/Par-1 in this process. The dual name stands for the MAP/microtubule affinity-regulating kinase 2 (MARK2) and the known polarity kinase 1 (Par-1).

Breast cancer in women suffering from serious mental illness.

Background: Breast cancer is a major public health concern and the most common cause of cancer-related mortality among women. Compared with the general population, schizophrenia patients have been reported to have lower or similar rates of breast cancer despite several risk factors such as excess smoking, obesity and hyperprolactinemia. However, it has been argued that psychiatric morbidity itself may be the confounding factor that affects cancer incidence and not particularly schizophrenia.