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At least 775 records · Page 43Linked to original sources
PubMed2006

Delayed gadolinium-enhanced MR to determine glycosaminoglycan concentration in reparative cartilage after autologous chondrocyte implantation: preliminary results.

PURPOSE: To prospectively evaluate delayed gadolinium-enhanced magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of cartilage for assessment of glycosaminoglycan (GAG) concentration in reparative cartilage after autologous chondrocyte implantation (ACI). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study was approved by the ethics review committee of the National Institute of Radiological Sciences, and informed consent was obtained from all patients. The study group comprised nine knees of nine patients (six male, three female; mean age at ACI, 21.2 years +/- 7.5 [standard deviation]; age range, 13-35 years) who had undergone ACI and second-look arthroscopy with biopsy. MR imaging was performed at 1.5 T before and after intravenous injection of anionic gadopentetate dimeglumine. The precontrast R1 (R1(pre)), postcontrast R1 (R1(post)), and difference between R1(pre) and R1(post) (DeltaR1) were measured in reparative cartilage and normal cartilage. GAG concentrations in cartilage biopsy specimens were measured by using high-performance liquid chromatography. To evaluate delayed gadolinium-enhanced MR imaging of cartilage for assessment of GAG concentration, the authors defined the relative R1(pre), relative R1(post), and relative DeltaR1 (ie, R1(pre), R1(post), or DeltaR1, respectively, in reparative cartilage divided by that in normal cartilage) and the relative GAG concentration (ie, GAG concentration in reparative cartilage divided by that in normal cartilage). They then examined the relationships between relative R1(pre), relative R1(post), relative DeltaR1, and relative GAG by using correlation analysis. RESULTS: A significant correlation between relative DeltaR1 and relative GAG concentration (r = 0.818, P < .05) was observed. However, no significant correlation between relative R1(pre) and relative GAG concentration (r = 0.010, P = .983) or between relative R1(post) and relative GAG concentration (r = 0.660, P = .106) was observed. CONCLUSION: Study results indicate that pre- and postcontrast imaging is necessary for delayed gadolinium-enhanced MR imaging evaluation of reparative cartilage after ACI.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Information characteristics and the structure of landscapes.

Various techniques for statistical analysis of the structure of fitness landscapes have been proposed. An important feature of these techniques is that they study the ruggedness of landscapes by measuring their correlation characteristics. This paper proposes a new information analysis of fitness landscapes. The underlying idea is to consider a fitness landscape as an ensemble of objects that are related to the fitness of neighboring points. Three information characteristics of the ensemble are defined and studied. They are termed: information content, partial information content, and information stability. The information characteristics of a range of landscapes with known correlation features are analyzed in an attempt to reveal the advantages of the information analysis. We show that the proposed analysis is an appropriate tool for investigating the structure of fitness landscapes.

Biological Evolution↗
PubMed2005

Raising consciousness.

The national debate over Terri Schiavo exposed a critical gap between emotional fervor about brain-injured patients and the medical science that informs standards of care for them. Some of the questions raised in the public and legal forums point to a need for research and enhanced understanding of the mechanisms of recovery from disorders of consciousness.

Female↗
PubMed2004

Estimating mutual information using B-spline functions--an improved similarity measure for analysing gene expression data.

BACKGROUND: The information theoretic concept of mutual information provides a general framework to evaluate dependencies between variables. In the context of the clustering of genes with similar patterns of expression it has been suggested as a general quantity of similarity to extend commonly used linear measures. Since mutual information is defined in terms of discrete variables, its application to continuous data requires the use of binning procedures, which can lead to significant numerical errors for datasets of small or moderate size. RESULTS: In this work, we propose a method for the numerical estimation of mutual information from continuous data. We investigate the characteristic properties arising from the application of our algorithm and show that our approach outperforms commonly used algorithms: The significance, as a measure of the power of distinction from random correlation, is significantly increased. This concept is subsequently illustrated on two large-scale gene expression datasets and the results are compared to those obtained using other similarity measures.A C++ source code of our algorithm is available for non-commercial use from kloska@scienion.de upon request. CONCLUSION: The utilisation of mutual information as similarity measure enables the detection of non-linear correlations in gene expression datasets. Frequently applied linear correlation measures, which are often used on an ad-hoc basis without further justification, are thereby extended.

Algorithms↗
PubMed2005

A framework to evaluate research capacity building in health care.

BACKGROUND: Building research capacity in health services has been recognised internationally as important in order to produce a sound evidence base for decision-making in policy and practice. Activities to increase research capacity for, within, and by practice include initiatives to support individuals and teams, organisations and networks. Little has been discussed or concluded about how to measure the effectiveness of research capacity building (RCB) DISCUSSION: This article attempts to develop the debate on measuring RCB. It highlights that traditional outcomes of publications in peer reviewed journals and successful grant applications may be important outcomes to measure, but they may not address all the relevant issues to highlight progress, especially amongst novice researchers. They do not capture factors that contribute to developing an environment to support capacity development, or on measuring the usefulness or the 'social impact' of research, or on professional outcomes. The paper suggests a framework for planning change and measuring progress, based on six principles of RCB, which have been generated through the analysis of the literature, policy documents, empirical studies, and the experience of one Research and Development Support Unit in the UK. These principles are that RCB should: develop skills and confidence, support linkages and partnerships, ensure the research is 'close to practice', develop appropriate dissemination, invest in infrastructure, and build elements of sustainability and continuity. It is suggested that each principle operates at individual, team, organisation and supra-organisational levels. Some criteria for measuring progress are also given. SUMMARY: This paper highlights the need to identify ways of measuring RCB. It points out the limitations of current measurements that exist in the literature, and proposes a framework for measuring progress, which may form the basis of comparison of RCB activities. In this way it could contribute to establishing the effectiveness of these interventions, and establishing a knowledge base to inform the science of RCB.

England↗
PubMed2005

Lessons learned in developing family medicine residency training programs in Japan.

BACKGROUND: While family medicine is not well established as a discipline in Japan, a growing number of Japanese medical schools and training hospitals have recently started sougoushinryoubu (general medicine departments). Some of these departments are incorporating a family medicine approach to residency training. We sought to learn from family medicine pioneers of these programs lessons for developing residency training. METHODS: This qualitative project utilized a long interview research design. Questions focused on four topics: 1) circumstances when becoming chair/faculty member; 2) approach to starting the program; 3) how Western ideas of family medicine were incorporated; and 4) future directions. We analyzed the data using immersion/crystallization to identify recurring themes. From the transcribed data, we selected representative quotations to illustrate them. We verified the findings by emailing the participants and obtaining feedback. RESULTS: Participants included: five chairpersons, two program directors, and three faculty members. We identified five lessons: 1) few people understand the basic concepts of family medicine; 2) developing a core curriculum is difficult; 3) start with undergraduates; 4) emphasize clinical skills; and 5) train in the community. CONCLUSION: While organizational change is difficult, the identified lessons suggest issues that merit consideration when developing a family medicine training program. Lessons from complexity science could inform application of these insights in other countries and settings newly developing residency training.

Academic Medical Centers↗
PubMed2002

Mining microarray expression data by literature profiling.

BACKGROUND: The rapidly expanding fields of genomics and proteomics have prompted the development of computational methods for managing, analyzing and visualizing expression data derived from microarray screening. Nevertheless, the lack of efficient techniques for assessing the biological implications of gene-expression data remains an important obstacle in exploiting this information. RESULTS: To address this need, we have developed a mining technique based on the analysis of literature profiles generated by extracting the frequencies of certain terms from thousands of abstracts stored in the Medline literature database. Terms are then filtered on the basis of both repetitive occurrence and co-occurrence among multiple gene entries. Finally, clustering analysis is performed on the retained frequency values, shaping a coherent picture of the functional relationship among large and heterogeneous lists of genes. Such data treatment also provides information on the nature and pertinence of the associations that were formed. CONCLUSIONS: The analysis of patterns of term occurrence in abstracts constitutes a means of exploring the biological significance of large and heterogeneous lists of genes. This approach should contribute to optimizing the exploitation of microarray technologies by providing investigators with an interface between complex expression data and large literature resources.

Cluster Analysis↗
PubMed2004

Teaching evidence-based medicine to medical students.

Evidence-based medicine (EBM) is the rubric for an approach to learning and practicing medicine that applies skills from clinical epidemiology, library science, and information management to clinical practice. Teaching EBM effectively requires a longitudinal approach throughout medical education. This presents many opportunities for academic emergency physicians, especially in the setting of an emergency medicine clerkship. EBM is best taught at the bedside, although this depends on a skilled and interested faculty. Bedside teaching of EBM also requires ready access to modern information resources. Other venues for teaching EBM include morning report, teaching conferences, and journal clubs. Many tools can be used to aid the process, including Web-based sources such as UpToDate, textbooks, and Web-based tutorials, educational prescriptions, and critically appraised topics.

Clinical Clerkship↗
PubMed2004

An interview with the Chief Dental Officer. Interview by Kenneth A. Eaton.

Some months ago, I mentioned to Professor Raman Bedi, the Chief Dental Officer (CDO) for England, that Primary DENTAL CARE would be celebrating its tenth anniversary in October 2004. He kindly agreed to a special interview during which he would outline his vision for education, research and opportunities for career development in primary dental care in the future. The timing proved to be perfect as earlier on the day of the interview (16th July 2004), the Secretary of State for Health, John Reid, announced the Government's plans for NHS dentistry and NHS Dentistry: Delivering Change. Report from the Chief Dental Officer (England) 2004 was published.

Administrative Personnel↗
PubMed2025

Breaking the reproducibility barrier with standardized protocols for plant-microbiome research.

Inter-laboratory replicability is crucial yet challenging in microbiome research. Leveraging microbiomes to promote soil health and plant growth requires understanding underlying molecular mechanisms using reproducible experimental systems. In a global collaborative effort involving five laboratories, we aimed to help advance reproducibility in microbiome studies by testing our ability to replicate synthetic community assembly experiments. Our study compared fabricated ecosystems constructed using two different synthetic bacterial communities, the model grass Brachypodium distachyon, and sterile EcoFAB 2.0 devices. All participating laboratories observed consistent inoculum-dependent changes in plant phenotype, root exudate composition, and final bacterial community structure, where Paraburkholderia sp. OAS925 could dramatically shift microbiome composition. Comparative genomics and exudate utilization linked the pH-dependent colonization ability of Paraburkholderia, which was further confirmed with motility assays. The study provides detailed protocols, benchmarking datasets, and best practices to help advance replicable science and inform future multi-laboratory reproducibility studies.

Plants↗
PubMed2004

Engaging in activities involving information technology: dimensions, modes, and flow.

An engagement mode involves a subject (e.g., a user of information technology, or IT) who is engaged in an activity with an object in a certain manner (the mode). The purpose of this study is to develop a general model of engagement modes that may be used for understanding how IT-related activities are shaped by properties of the user and the IT object. A questionnaire involving items on IT engagement and the experience of flow was administered to 300 participants. The results supported an engagement mode (EM) model involving 5 different engagement modes (enjoying/acceptance, ambition/curiosity, avoidance/hesitation, frustration/ anxiety, and efficiency/productivity) characterized on 3 dimensions (evaluation of object, locus of control between subject and object, and intrinsic or extrinsic focus of motivation). The flow experience follows from a balance between enjoying/ acceptance and efficiency/productivity propelled by ambition/curiosity. The EM model could provide a platform for considering how IT users, IT applications, and IT environments should work together to yield both enjoyment and efficiency. Actual or potential applications of this research include designing IT training programs on different levels of specificity.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Organization and quality of health care for Kaingáng Indians in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil].

This study assesses the health care provided to Kaingáng Indians in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Deaths preventable by primary health care among the Indians and occurring from 1985 to 1995 were compared to the same rates for the State of Rio Grande do Sul as a whole. Secondary data on health care services were supplemented by field interviews with indigenous leaders and with employees from participating institutions. A Geographic Information System (GIS) was used to correlate distribution of deaths and access to health services. The Kaingáng settlements are connected by paved roads to counties with at least a public health clinic or even a small hospital in some cases. Secondary referrals are treated in Palmeiras das Missões and Frederico Westphallen and tertiary care is provided in Passo Fundo. What distinguishes the Indian settlements from the rest of the State are the high rates of deaths preventable by primary health care and those related to ill-defined conditions, malnutrition, tuberculosis, and cancer of the uterine cervix.

Brazil↗
PubMed2004

Strategic challenges in neurotherapeutic pharmaceutical development.

Developing new therapeutics presents formidable economic, scientific, and medical challenges that are exacerbated by special factors in neurotherapeutics development, e.g., the complexity of the CNS with its attendant need to sometimes affect multiple pathways, the lack of clarity of disease etiology, inadequacy of available animal models, and difficulties in defining disease populations and quantifying treatment response. This paper reviews the economic challenges faced by therapeutics developers in general and neurotherapeutics developers in particular. It discusses key scientific challenges, particularly those pertinent to neurotherapeutics development, as a background to proposing a different industrial strategy to drive future therapeutics development. This Biodesign strategy potentially surpasses previous paradigms by incorporating elements such as the use of disease modeling to select better targets and potential therapies, information science-based approaches to enhance small molecule chemistry, exploitation of the potential for biological technologies to rapidly generate mechanistic probes, and development of improved approaches for using animal models and studying human molecules mechanistically and biologically. Synergistic use of these elements can change the overall business model of companies engaged in neurotherapeutics development. The Biodesign paradigm has the potential to both markedly enhance the development of new therapies and to address some of the economic challenges facing healthcare systems and therapeutics developers alike.

Animals↗