Journal of investigative medicine : the official publication of the American Federation for Clinical Research
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It is reported that lncRNA KCNQ1 opposite strand/antisense transcript 1 (KCNQ1OT1) is oncogenic in many cancers. This work aimed at probing into its expression and biological functions in retinoblastoma (RB) as well as its regulatory effects on miR-153-3p and hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α). In our study, RB samples in pair were collected, and quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) was employed for examining the expression levels of KCNQ1OT1, miR-153-3p and HIF-1α. ⋯ There were two validated binding sties between KCNQ1OT1 and miR-153-3p, and KCNQ1OT1 negatively regulated the expression of miR-153-3p in RB cells. HIF-1α was a target gene of miR-153-3p, and could be positively regulated by KCNQ1OT1. In conclusion, our study indicates that KCNQ1OT1 can increase the malignancy of RB cells via regulating miR-153-3p/HIF-1α axis.
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Academic centers and industry partners have had love-hate relationships for more than a century. Despite many examples of socially beneficial collaborations between academia and industry, it has become increasingly difficult to find an arrangement where neither clinicians/researchers working with industry nor industry itself is demonized. Regardless, we must incentivize innovation. ⋯ Despite scrutiny of clinical faculty members' interactions with industry, corporate philanthropy is much sought after by academic institutions. Developing new therapeutics requires both academia and industry to transparently and ethically partner with creation of innovative start-ups, sharing of non-proprietary clinical trial data, and in postmarketing surveillance. The search continues for truly symbiotic relationships between academia and industry.
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The prevalence of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) performed without fully informed prospective consent from subjects is unknown. We performed this study to estimate the prevalence of high-impact RCTs performed without informed consent from all subjects and examine whether such trials are becoming more prevalent. We performed a systematic review of English-language RCTs published from 2014 through 2018 identified in Scopus and sorted to identify the top 100 most highly cited RCTs each year. ⋯ The prevalence of such trials did not change over the 5 years (OR=1.09, z=0.78, p=0.44). A majority (66%) of the trials involved emergency situations, and 40 of 44 (90.9%) of the trials involved emergency interventions, pragmatic designs, were cluster randomized, or a combination of these factors. A qualitative analysis explores the methods of and justifications for waiving informed consent in our sample of RCTs.
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Atrial fibrillation (AFIB) is the most common heart rhythm abnormality and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. While the treatment of AFIB involves strategies of rate with or without rhythm control, it is also essential to strategize appropriate therapies to prevent thromboembolic complications arising from AFIB. ⋯ However, with the advent of new technology, novel therapeutic options aimed at surgical or percutaneous exclusion or occlusion of the left atrial appendage in preventing thromboembolic complications from AFIB have evolved. This review evaluates recent advances and therapeutic options in treating AFIB with a special focus on both surgical and percutaneous interventions which can reduce and/or eliminate thromboembolic complications of AFIB.
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Glial fibrillar acidic protein (GFAP) in serum has been evaluated as a promising biomarker to differentiate between intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) and acute ischemic stroke (AIS). We assessed its value as diagnostic and prognostic tool for ICH through a literature systematic review and individual patient data (IPD) meta-analysis. We performed a systematic search in PubMed database until November 2018 for publications that evaluated GFAP to differentiate AIS and ICH within 4.5 hours after symptoms onset. ⋯ Limited data precluded the evaluation of GFAP levels and functional outcome. These findings demonstrate substantially different levels of GFAP in the blood of patients with ICH compared with patients with AIS soon after the event, while no association was found with outcome. In summary, GFAP could be a valuable diagnostic tool to assist in medical decision-making and to optimize management of stroke in the acute setting.