| 11. |
- Friman, S., et al.
(author)
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Sotrastaurin, a Novel Small Molecule Inhibiting Protein-Kinase C : Randomized Phase II Study in Renal Transplant Recipients
- 2011
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In: American Journal of Transplantation. - : Elsevier BV. - 1600-6135 .- 1600-6143. ; 11:7, s. 1444-1455
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Sotrastaurin, a selective protein-kinase-C inhibitor, blocks early T-cell activation through a calcineurin-independent mechanism. In this study, de novo renal transplant recipients with immediate graft function were randomized 1: 2 to tacrolimus (control, n = 44) or sotrastaurin (300 mg b.i.d.; n = 81). All patients received basiliximab, mycophenolic acid (MPA) and steroids. The primary endpoint was the composite of treated biopsy-proven acute rejection (BPAR), graft loss, death or lost to follow-up at month 3. The main safety assessment was estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR); modification of diet in renal disease (MDRD) at month 3. Composite efficacy failure at month 3 was higher for the sotrastaurin versus control regimen (25.7% vs. 4.5%, p = 0.001), driven by higher BPAR rates (23.6% vs. 4.5%, p = 0.003), which led to early study termination. Median (+/- standard deviation [SD]) eGFR was higher for sotrastaurin versus control at all timepoints from day 7 (month 3: 59.0 +/- 22.3 vs. 49.5 +/- 17.7 mL/min/1.73 m(2), p = 0.006). The most common adverse events were gastrointestinal disorders (control: 63.6%; sotrastaurin: 88.9%) which led to study-medication discontinuation in two sotrastaurin patients. This study demonstrated a lower degree of efficacy but better renal function with the calcineurin-inhibitor-free regimen of sotrastaurin+MPA versus the tacrolimus-based control. Ongoing studies are evaluating alternative sotrastaurin regimens.
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| 15. |
- Abrams, M. B., et al.
(author)
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A Standards Organization for Open and FAIR Neuroscience : the International Neuroinformatics Coordinating Facility
- 2021
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In: Neuroinformatics. - : Springer Nature. - 1539-2791 .- 1559-0089.
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- There is great need for coordination around standards and best practices in neuroscience to support efforts to make neuroscience a data-centric discipline. Major brain initiatives launched around the world are poised to generate huge stores of neuroscience data. At the same time, neuroscience, like many domains in biomedicine, is confronting the issues of transparency, rigor, and reproducibility. Widely used, validated standards and best practices are key to addressing the challenges in both big and small data science, as they are essential for integrating diverse data and for developing a robust, effective, and sustainable infrastructure to support open and reproducible neuroscience. However, developing community standards and gaining their adoption is difficult. The current landscape is characterized both by a lack of robust, validated standards and a plethora of overlapping, underdeveloped, untested and underutilized standards and best practices. The International Neuroinformatics Coordinating Facility (INCF), an independent organization dedicated to promoting data sharing through the coordination of infrastructure and standards, has recently implemented a formal procedure for evaluating and endorsing community standards and best practices in support of the FAIR principles. By formally serving as a standards organization dedicated to open and FAIR neuroscience, INCF helps evaluate, promulgate, and coordinate standards and best practices across neuroscience. Here, we provide an overview of the process and discuss how neuroscience can benefit from having a dedicated standards body.
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| 19. |
- Hemingway, H, et al.
(author)
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The effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of biomarkers for the prioritisation of patients awaiting coronary revascularisation: a systematic review and decision model.
- 2010
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In: Health Technology Assessment. - : National Coordinating Centre for Health Technology Assessment. - 1366-5278 .- 2046-4924. ; 14:9, s. 1-178
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- OBJECTIVE: To determine the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a range of strategies based on conventional clinical information and novel circulating biomarkers for prioritising patients with stable angina awaiting coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG).DATA SOURCES: MEDLINE and EMBASE were searched from 1966 until 30 November 2008.REVIEW METHODS: We carried out systematic reviews and meta-analyses of literature-based estimates of the prognostic effects of circulating biomarkers in stable coronary disease. We assessed five routinely measured biomarkers and the eight emerging (i.e. not currently routinely measured) biomarkers recommended by the European Society of Cardiology Angina guidelines. The cost-effectiveness of prioritising patients on the waiting list for CABG using circulating biomarkers was compared against a range of alternative formal approaches to prioritisation as well as no formal prioritisation. A decision-analytic model was developed to synthesise data on a range of effectiveness, resource use and value parameters necessary to determine cost-effectiveness. A total of seven strategies was evaluated in the final model.RESULTS: We included 390 reports of biomarker effects in our review. The quality of individual study reports was variable, with evidence of small study (publication) bias and incomplete adjustment for simple clinical information such as age, sex, smoking, diabetes and obesity. The risk of cardiovascular events while on the waiting list for CABG was 3 per 10,000 patients per day within the first 90 days (184 events in 9935 patients with a mean of 59 days at risk). Risk factors associated with an increased risk, and included in the basic risk equation, were age, diabetes, heart failure, previous myocardial infarction and involvement of the left main coronary artery or three-vessel disease. The optimal strategy in terms of cost-effectiveness considerations was a prioritisation strategy employing biomarker information. Evaluating shorter maximum waiting times did not alter the conclusion that a prioritisation strategy with a risk score using estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was cost-effective. These results were robust to most alternative scenarios investigating other sources of uncertainty. However, the cost-effectiveness of the strategy using a risk score with both eGFR and C-reactive protein (CRP) was potentially sensitive to the cost of the CRP test itself (assumed to be 6 pounds in the base-case scenario).CONCLUSIONS: Formally employing more information in the prioritisation of patients awaiting CABG appears to be a cost-effective approach and may result in improved health outcomes. The most robust results relate to a strategy employing a risk score using conventional clinical information together with a single biomarker (eGFR). The additional prognostic information conferred by collecting the more costly novel circulating biomarker CRP, singly or in combination with other biomarkers, in terms of waiting list prioritisation is unlikely to be cost-effective.
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| 20. |
- Irwin, D. E., et al.
(author)
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Overactive bladder is associated with erectile dysfunction and reduced sexual quality of life in men
- 2008
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In: Journal of Sexual Medicine. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 1743-6109 .- 1743-6095. ; 5:12, s. 2904-10
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Introduction. The prevalence of sexual dysfunction, including erectile dysfunction (ED), is greater in men with lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS), including overactive bladder (OAB), than in men without LUTS. Aim. To evaluate the prevalence of ED, the impact of urinary symptoms on sexual activity and sexual enjoyment, and sexual satisfaction in men with OAB. Methods. A nested case-control analysis was performed on data from a subset of men with (cases) and without (controls) OAB frequency-matched for age (5-year age strata) and country from the EPIC study. Respondents were asked about OAB symptoms (using the 2002 International Continence Society [ICS] definitions) and sexual activity. Sexually active respondents were asked about ED, sexual enjoyment, and overall satisfaction with their sex lives. Conditional logistic regression was used to assess factors associated with ED. Main Outcome Measures. The percentage of cases and controls reporting ED, a reduction in the frequency of sexual activity or enjoyment of sexual activity because of urinary symptoms, and overall satisfaction with their sex lives was determined for cases and controls. Results. A total of 502 cases and 502 controls were matched for age strata and country. Significantly more cases (14%) reported reduced sexual activity because of urinary symptoms compared with controls (4%; P
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