Combining Taxonomies using Word2vec

Taxonomies have gained a broad usage in a variety of fields due to their extensibility, as well as their use for classification and knowledge organization. Of particular interest is the digital document management domain in which their hierarchical structure can be effectively employed in order to organize documents into content-specific categories. Common or standard taxonomies (e.g., the ACM Computing Classification System) contain concepts that are too general for conceptualizing specific knowledge domains. In this paper we introduce a novel automated approach that combines sub-trees from general taxonomies with specialized seed taxonomies by using specific Natural Language Processing techniques. We provide an extensible and generalizable model for combining taxonomies in the practical context of two very large European research projects. Because the manual combination of taxonomies by domain experts is a highly time consuming task, our model measures the semantic relatedness between concept labels in CBOW or skip-gram Word2vec vector spaces. A preliminary quantitative evaluation of the resulting taxonomies is performed after applying a greedy algorithm with incremental thresholds used for matching and combining topic labels.

A randomised controlled trial of calcium channel blockade (CCB) with Amlodipine For the treatment oF subcortical ischaEmic vasCular demenTia (AFFECT): study protocol

BACKGROUND: Vascular dementia is the second most common cause of dementia affecting over seven million people worldwide, yet there are no licensed treatments. There is an urgent need for a clinical trial in this patient group. Subcortical ischaemic vascular dementia is the most common variant of vascular dementia. This randomised trial will investigate whether use of calcium channel blockade with amlodipine, a commonly used agent, can provide the first evidence-based pharmacological treatment for subcortical ischaemic vascular dementia.

METHODS/DESIGN: This is a randomised controlled trial of calcium channel blockade with Amlodipine For the treatment oF subcortical ischaEmic vasCular demenTia (AFFECT) to test the hypothesis that treatment with amlodipine can improve outcomes for these patients in a phase IIb, multi-centre, double-blind, placebo-controlled randomised trial. The primary outcome is the change from baseline to 12 months in the Vascular Dementia Assessment Scale cognitive subscale (VADAS-cog). Secondary outcomes include cognitive function, executive function, clinical global impression of change, change in blood pressure, quantitative evaluation of lesion accrual based on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), health-related quality of life, activities of daily living, non-cognitive dementia symptoms, care-giver burden and care-giver health-related quality of life, cost-effectiveness and institutionalisation. A total of 588 patients will be randomised in a 1:1 ratio to either amlodipine or placebo, recruited from sites across the UK and enrolled in the trial for 104 weeks.

DISCUSSION: There are no treatments licensed for vascular dementia. The most common subtype is subcortical ischaemic vascular dementia (SIVD). This study is designed to investigate whether amlodipine can produce benefits compared to placebo in established SIVD. It is estimated that the numbers of people with VaD and SIVD will increase globally in the future and the results of this study should inform important treatment decisions.

Competency Based Assessment Using Virtual Reality (VERT): Is It a Realistic Possibility ?

The education of the radiography profession is based within higher education establishments, yet a critical part of all radiography programmes is the clinical component where students learn the practical skills of the profession. Assessments therefore not only have to assess a student’s knowledge, but also their clinical competence and core skills in line with both Health and Care Professions Council and the Society and College of Radiographers requirements. This timely thesis examines the possibility of using the Virtual Environment for RadioTherapy (VERT) as an assessment tool to evaluate a student’s competence so giving the advantage of a standard assessment and relieving time pressures in the clinical department. A mixed methods approach was taken which can be described as a Quantitative Qualitative design with the emphasis being on the Quantitative element; a so called QUAN  qual design. The quantitative evaluation compared two simulations, one in the virtual reality environment and another in the department using a real treatment machine. Students were asked to perform two electron setups in each simulation; the order being randomly decided and so the study would be described as a randomised cross-over design. Following this, qualitative data was collected in student focus groups to explore student perspectives in more depth. Findings indicated that the performance between the two simulators was significantly different, p < 0∙001; the virtual simulation scoring significantly lower than the hospital based simulation overall and in virtually all parameters being assessed. Thematic analysis of the qualitative data supported this finding and identified 4 main themes; equipment use, a lack of reality, learning opportunities and assessment of competence. One other sub-theme identified for reality was that of the environment and senses.

Conflict and Stability in the Neoliberal Era: Explaining Urban Unrest in Latin America

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2016-08

The Role of PME-1 in Cancer: Therapeutic Implication

Protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) plays a major role in maintaining cellular signaling homeostasis in human cells by reversibly affecting the phosphorylation of a variety of proteins. Protein phosphatase methylesterase-1 (PME-1) negatively regulates PP2A activity by reversible demethylation and active site binding. Thus far, it is known that overexpression of PME-1 in human gliomas contributes to ERK pathway signaling, cell proliferation, and malignant progression. Whether PME-1-mediated PP2A inhibition promotes therapy resistance in gliomas is unknown. Specific PP2A targets regulated by PME-1 in cancers also remain elusive. Additionally, whether oncogenic function of PME-1 can be generalized to various human cancers needs to be investigated. This study demonstrated that PME-1 expression promotes kinase inhibitor resistance in glioblastoma (GBM). PME-1 silencing sensitized GBM cells to a group of clinically used indolocarbazole multikinase inhibitors (MKIs). To facilitate the quantitative evaluation of MKIs by cancer-cell specific colony formation assay, Image-J software-plugin ‘ColonyArea’ was developed. PME-1-silencing was found to reactivate specific PP2A complexes and affect PP2A-target histone deacetylase HDAC4 activity. The HDAC4 inhibition induced synthetic lethality with MKIs similar to PME-1 depletion. However, synthetic lethality by both approaches required co-expression of a pro-apoptotic protein BAD. In gliomas, PME-1 and HDAC4 expression was associated with malignant progression. Using tumor PME-1, HDAC4 and BAD expression based stratification signatures this study defined patient subgroups that are likely to respond to MKI alone or in combination with HDAC4 inhibitor therapies. In contrast to the oncogenic role of PME-1 in certain cancer types, this study established that colorectal cancer (CRC) patients with high tumor PME-1 expression display favorable prognosis. Interestingly, PME-1 regulated survival signaling did not operate in CRC cells. Summarily, this study potentiates the candidacy of PME-1 as a therapy target in gliomas, but argues against generalization of these findings to other cancers, especially CRC.

THE ROLE OF THE MECHANICAL ENVIRONMENT ON CANCER CELL TRANSMIGRATION AND MRNA LOCALIZATION

Most cancer-related deaths are due to metastasis formation, the ability of cancer cells to break away from the primary tumor site, transmigrate through the endothelium, and form secondary tumors in distant areas. Many studies have identified links between the mechanical properties of the cellular microenvironment and the behavior of cancer cells. Cells may experience heterogeneous microenvironments of varying stiffness during tumor progression, transmigration, and invasion into the basement membrane. In addition to mechanical factors, the localization of RNAs to lamellipodial regions has been proposed to play an important part in metastasis. This dissertation provides a quantitative evaluation of the biophysical effects on cancer cell transmigration and RNA localization. In the first part of this dissertation, we sought to compare cancer cell and leukocyte transmigration and investigate the impact of matrix stiffness on transmigration process. We found that cancer cell transmigration includes an additional step, ‘incorporation’, into the endothelial cell (EC) monolayer. During this phase, cancer cells physically displace ECs and spread into the monolayer. Furthermore, the effects of subendothelial matrix stiffness and endothelial activation on cancer cell incorporation are cell-specific, a notable difference from the process by which leukocytes transmigrate. Collectively, our results provide mechanistic insights into tumor cell extravasation and demonstrate that incorporation into the endothelium is one of the earliest steps. In the next part of this work, we investigated how matrix stiffness impacts RNA localization and its relevance to cancer metastasis. In migrating cells, the tumor suppressor protein, adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) targets RNAs to cellular protrusions. We observed that increasing stiffness promotes the peripheral localization of these APC-dependent RNAs and that cellular contractility plays a role in regulating this pathway. We next investigated the mechanism underlying the effect of substrate stiffness and cellular contractility. We found that contractility drives localization of RNAs to protrusions through modulation of detyrosinated microtubules, a network of modified microtubules that associate with, and are required for localization of APC-dependent RNAs. These results raise the possibility that as the matrix environment becomes stiffer during tumor progression, it promotes the localization of RNAs and ultimately induces a metastatic phenotype.

Estudo comparativo de carragenanas comerciais Kappa, Iota e Lambda no processo inflamatório em ratos :edema intraplantar e pleurisia

The Iota, Kappa and Lambda commercial carrageenans are rarely pure and normally contain varying amounts of the other types of carrageenans. The exact amount of impurity depends on the seaweed source and extraction procedure. Then, different analysis methods have been applied for determination of the main constituents of carrageenans because these three carrageenans are extensively used in food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industry. The electrophoresis of these compounds proved that the carrageenans are constituted by sulfated polysaccharides. These compounds were characterized by colorimetric methods and was observed that the Lambda carrageenan shown the greater value (33.38%) of sulfate. These polymers were examined by means of 13C NMR spectroscopy and infrared spectra. The polysaccharides consisted mainly of units alternating of sulfated galactoses and anhydrogalactoses. The aim of the study was also to test the inflammatory action of these different polysaccharides. A suitable model of inflammation is acute sterile inflammation of the rat hind limb induced by carrageenan. Paw edema was induced by injecting carrageenans (κ, ι and λ) in saline into the hind paw of a male Wistar rats (175–200 g). The pathway to acute inflammation by carrageenan (kappa, iota and lambda) were expressed as time-edema dependence and measured by paw edema volume. For this purpose, was used an apparatus (pakymeter), which makes it possible to measure the inflammation (swelling of the rat foot) with sufficient accuracy. The results showed that κ-carrageenan (1%) have an edema of 3.7 mm and the paw edema increase was time and dose dependent; the ι-carrageenan (0.2%) caused an edema of 4 mm and the λ-carrageenan (1%) caused an edema of 3.6 mm. Other model was used in this study based in the inflammation of pleura for comparatives studies. Injection of carrageenans into the pleural cavity of rat induced an acute inflammatory response characterized by fluid accumulation in the pleural cavity, a large number of neutrophils and raised NO production. The levels of NO were measured by Griess reactive. The ι-carrageenan caused the greater inflammation, because it has high concentration of nitrite/nitrate (63.478 nmoles/rat), exudato volume (1.52 ml) and PMNs (4902 x 103 cells). Quantitative evaluation of inflammations of rats is a useful and important parameter for the evaluation of the efficacy of anti-inflammatory drugs

Geotechnical Data and Numerical Analysis of Edifice Collapse and Related Hazards at Pacaya Volcano, Guatemala

The continual eruptive activity, occurrence of an ancestral catastrophic collapse, and inherent geologic features of Pacaya volcano (Guatemala) demands an evaluation of potential collapse hazards. This thesis merges techniques in the field and laboratory for a better rock mass characterization of volcanic slopes and slope stability evaluation. New field geological, structural, rock mechanical and geotechnical data on Pacaya is reported and is integrated with laboratory tests to better define the physical-mechanical rock mass properties. Additionally, this data is used in numerical models for the quantitative evaluation of lateral instability of large sector collapses and shallow landslides. Regional tectonics and local structures indicate that the local stress regime is transtensional, with an ENE-WSW sigma 3 stress component. Aligned features trending NNW-SSE can be considered as an expression of this weakness zone that favors magma upwelling to the surface. Numerical modeling suggests that a large-scale collapse could be triggered by reasonable ranges of magma pressure (greater than or equal to 7.7 MPa if constant along a central dyke) and seismic acceleration (greater than or equal to 460 cm/s2), and that a layer of pyroclastic deposits beneath the edifice could have been a factor which controlled the ancestral collapse. Finally, the formation of shear cracks within zones of maximum shear strain could provide conduits for lateral flow, which would account for long lava flows erupted at lower elevations.

Validation and reliability of the Japanese version of the Food Allergy Quality of Life Questionnaire - Parent Form

Background: Food allergy (FA) is a heavy burden for patients and their families and can significantly reduce the quality of life (QoL) of both. To provide adequate support, qualitative and quantitative evaluation of the parents' QoL may be helpful. The objective of this study is to develop and validate a Japanese version of the Food Allergy QoL QuestionnaireeParent Form (FAQLQ-PF-J), an internationally validated disease-specific QoL measurement of the parental burden of having a child with FA. Methods: The FAQLQ-PF and the Food Allergy Independent Measure (FAIM), an instrument to test the construct validity of the FAQLQ-PF-J, were translated into Japanese. After language validation, the questionnaires were administered to parents of FA children aged 0e12 years and those of age-matched healthy (without FA) children. Internal consistency (by Cronbach's a) and test-retest reliability were evaluated. Construct validity and discriminant validity were also examined. Results: One hundred twenty-seven parents of children with FA and 48 parents of healthy children filled out the questionnaire. The FAQLQ-PF-J showed excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's a > 0.77) and test-retest reliability. Good construct validity was demonstrated by significant correlations between the FAQLQ-PF-J and FAIM-J scores. It discriminated parents of children with FA from those without. The scores were significantly higher (lower QoL) for parents of FA children with a history of anaphylaxis than those without, for those with >6 FA-related symptoms experienced than those with less FA-related symptoms. Conclusions: The FAQLQ-PF-J is a reliable and valid measure of the parental burden of FA in children.

INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION & RESEARCH FOR OH. Experiences of international networks for collaborative education and research using the One Health approach.

The Authors describe first-hand experiences carried out within the framework of selected International projects aimed at developing collaborative research and education using the One Health (OH) approach. Special emphasis is given to SAPUVETNET, a series of projects co-financed under the EU-ALFA program, and aimed to support an International network on Veterinary Public Health (VPH) formed by Veterinary Faculties from Latin-America (LA) and Europe (EU). SAPUVETNET has envisaged a series of objectives/activities aimed at promoting and enhancing VPH research/training and intersectoral collaboration across LA and EU using the OH approach, as well as participating in research and/or education projects/networks under the OH umbrella, namely EURNEGVEC-European Network for Neglected Vectors & Vector-Borne Infections, CYSTINET-European Network on Taeniosis/Cysticercosis, and NEOH-Network for Evaluation of One Health; the latter includes expertise in multiple disciplines (e.g. ecology, economics, human and animal health, epidemiology, social and environmental sciences, etc.) and has the primary purpose of enabling quantitative evaluation of OH initiatives by developing a standardized evaluation protocol. The Authors give also an account of the ongoing creation of OHIN-OH International Network, founded as a spin-off result of SAPUVETNET. Finally, some examples of cooperation development projects characterised by an OH approach are also briefly mentioned.

Quantitative radiographic evaluation of periapical bone resorption in dog's teeth contaminated with bacterial endotoxin (LPS) associated or not with calcium hydroxide

The aim of this study was to quantify radiographically the periapical bone resorption in dogs' teeth contaminated with bacterial endotoxin (LPS), associated or not with calcium hydroxide. After pulp tissue removal, 60 premolars were randomly assigned to 4 groups and were either filled with LPS (group 1), filled with LPS plus calcium hydroxide (group 2) or filled with saline (group 3) for a period of 30 days. In group 4, periapical lesion formation was induced with no canal treatment. Standardized radiographs were taken at the beginning of the treatment and after 30 days and the Image J Program was used for measurement of periapical lesion size. Periapical lesions were observed in groups 1 (average of 8.44 mm2) and 4 (average of 3.02 mm2). The lamina dura was intact and there were no areas of periapical bone resorption in groups 2 and 3. It may be concluded that calcium hydroxide was effective in inactivating LPS, as demonstrated by the absence of apical periodontitis in the roots that were filled with bacterial endotoxin plus calcium hydroxide.

A quantitative and qualitative evaluation of reports of clinical trials published in six Brazilian dental journals indexed in the Scientific Electronic Library Online (SciELO)

INTRODUCTION: Open access publishing is becoming increasingly popular within the biomedical sciences. SciELO, the Scientific Electronic Library Online, is a digital library covering a selected collection of Brazilian scientific journals many of which provide open access to full-text articles.This library includes a number of dental journals some of which may include reports of clinical trials in English, Portuguese and/or Spanish. Thus, SciELO could play an important role as a source of evidence for dental healthcare interventions especially if it yields a sizeable number of high quality reports. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to identify reports of clinical trials by handsearching of dental journals that are accessible through SciELO, and to assess the overall quality of these reports. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Electronic versions of six Brazilian dental Journals indexed in SciELO were handsearched at www.scielo.br in September 2008. Reports of clinical trials were identified and classified as controlled clinical trials (CCTs - prospective, experimental studies comparing 2 or more healthcare interventions in human beings) or randomized controlled trials (RCTs - a random allocation method is clearly reported), according to Cochrane eligibility criteria. CRITERIA TO ASSESS METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY INCLUDED: method of randomization, concealment of treatment allocation, blinded outcome assessment, handling of withdrawals and losses and whether an intention-to-treat analysis had been carried out. RESULTS: The search retrieved 33 CCTs and 43 RCTs. A majority of the reports provided no description of either the method of randomization (75.3%) or concealment of the allocation sequence (84.2%). Participants and outcome assessors were reported as blinded in only 31.2% of the reports. Withdrawals and losses were only clearly described in 6.5% of the reports and none mentioned an intention-to-treat analysis or any similar procedure. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study indicate that a substantial number of reports of trials and systematic reviews are available in the dental journals listed in SciELO, and that these could provide valuable evidence for clinical decision making. However, it is clear that the quality of a number of these reports is of some concern and that improvement in the conduct and reporting of these trials could be achieved if authors adhered to internationally accepted guidelines, e.g. the CONSORT statement.

A quantitative coronary angiography-matched comparison between a prospective randomised multicentre cutting balloon angioplasty and bare metal stent trial (REDUCE III) and the Rapamycin-Eluting Stent Evaluation At Rotterdam Cardiology Hospital (RESEARCH) study

Aims: There remains significant concern about the long-term safety of drug-eluting stents (DES). However, bare metal stents (BMS) have been used safely for over two decades. There is therefore a pressing need to explore alternative strategies for reducing restenosis with BMS. This study was designed to examine whether IVUS-guided cutting balloon angioplasty (CBA) with BMS could convey similar restenosis rates to DES. Methods and results: In the randomised REstenosis reDUction by Cutting balloon angioplasty Evaluation (REDUCE III) study, 521 patients were divided into four groups based on device and IVUS use before BMS (IVUS-CBA-BMS: 137 patients; Angio-CBA-BMS: 123; IVUS-BA-BMS: 142; and Angio-BA-BMS: 119). At follow-up, the IVUS-CBA-BMS group had a significantly lower restenosis rate (6.6%) than the other groups (p=0.016). We performed a quantitative coronary angiography (QCA) based matched comparison between an IVUS-guided CBA-BMS strategy (REDUCE III) and a DES strategy (Rapamycin-Eluting-Stent Evaluation At Rotterdam Cardiology. Hospital, the RESEARCH study). We matched the presence of diabetes, vessel size, and lesion severity by QCA. Restenosis (>50% diameter stenosis at follow-up) and target vessel revascularisation (TVR) were examined. QCA-matched comparison resulted in 120-paired lesions. While acute gain was significantly greater in IVUS-CBA-BMS than DES (1.65 +/- 0.41 mm vs. 1.28 +/- 0.57 mm, p=0.001), late loss was significantly less with DES than with IVUS-CBA-BMS (0.03 +/- 0.42 mm vs. 0.80 +/- 0.47 mm, p=0.001). However, no difference was found in restenosis rates (IVUS-CBA-BMS: 6.6% vs. DES: 5.0%, p=0.582) and TVR (6.6% and 6.6%, respectively). Conclusions: An IVUS-guided CBA-BMS strategy yielded restenosis rates similar to those achieved by DES and provided an effective alternative to the use of DES.

The use of quantitative performance information by local elected politicians in top managers’ performance evaluation: case studies

This paper studies the use of results oriented performance information (outputs and outcomes) by local elected politicians (aldermen) in top managers’ performance evaluation. The main goal is to understand the top managers’ performance evaluation process conducted by Portuguese aldermen and to identify the dominant evaluation style. In line with Bogt (2001), an exploratory field research was developed in three large municipalities: Porto, Braga and Matosinhos. We intend to answer the following research questions: to what extent are local politicians (aldermen) 1 using results information (about outputs and outcomes) to evaluate top managers’ performance? Do aldermen give any importance to quantitative output information and report them on current planning and control documents? Will the output performance information be used on performance evaluation in a different way concerning policy field (task orientation)? Based on the Hopwood evaluation styles (adapted from the private to the public sector by Bogt, 2001), we have found that the performance evaluation process of top managers is more featured by the ‘operations-conscious styles’ (or ‘implicit style’). Portuguese aldermen recognize the importance to quantify outputs and outcomes, but these days they focus on the information about activities and the realized operations when they evaluate performance. We haven´t found significant differences between different tasks (some exceptions for culture and environment areas). However, the municipality of Matosinhos paid more attention on quantitative performance information. This finding is reinforced by the quality of quantitative data on outputs reported on its management report. Generally speaking, aldermen are aware that more attention should be paid to quantitative information about results and performance, taking into account recent reforms introduced in Portuguese municipalities (PLG) on this field, but the ‘implicit’ style is dominant.

Therapeutical evaluation of different dose regimens of praziquantel in schistosomiasis mansoni, based on the quantitative oogram technique

A clinical trial involving 80 patients of both sexes, from ages 15 to 55, with chronic intestinal or hepatointestinal schistosomiasis mansoni, was carried out to evaluate the therapeutical efficacy of different dose regimens of praziquantel. The patients were randomly allocated into four groups with an equal number of cases and were then treated with one of the following dosages: 60 mg/kg for 1 day; 60 mg/kg daily for 2 days; 60 mg/kg daily for 3 days; and 30 mg/kg daily for 6 days. The assessment of parasitological cure was based on the quantitative oogram technique through rectal mucosa biopsies which were undertaken prior to, as well as, 1,2,4 and 6 months post-treatment. Concurrently, stool examinations according to the qualitative Hoffman, Pons & Janer (HPJ) and the quantitative Kato-Katz (K-K) methods were also performed. The best tolerability was observed with 30 mg/kg daily for 6 days whereas the highest incidence of side-effects (mainly dizziness and nausea) was found with 60 mg/kg daily for 3 days. No serious adverse drug reaction has occurred. The achieved cure rates were: 25% with 60 mg/kg for 1 day; 60% with 60 mg/kg daily for 2 days; 89.5% with 60 mg/kg daily for 3 days; and 90% with 30 mg/kg daily for 6 days. At the same time there has been a downfall of 64%, 73%, 87% and 84% respectively, in the median number of viable S. mansoni ova per gram of tissue. Thus, a very clear direct correlation between dose and effect could be seen. The corresponding cure rates according to stool examinations by HPJ were 39%, 80%, 100% and 95%; by K-K 89%, 100%, 100% and 100%. This discrepancy in results amongst the three parasitological methods is certainly due to their unequal accuracy. In fact, when the number of viable eggs per gram of tissue fell below 5,000 the difference in the percentage of false negative findings between HPJ (28%) and K-K (80%) became significative. When this number dropped to less than 2,000 the percentage of false negative results obtained with HPJ (49%) turned significant in relation to the oogram as well. In conclusion, it has been proven that praziquantel is a highly efficacious agent against S. mansoni infections. If administered at a total dose of 180 mg/kg divided into either 3 or 6 days, it yields a 90% cure rate. Possibly, one could reach 100% by increasing the total dose to 240 mg/kg. Furthermore, it was confirmed that the quantitative oogram technique is the most reliable parasitological method when evaluating the efficacy of new drugs in schistosomiasis mansoni.