How citation boosts promote scientific paradigm shifts and Nobel Prizes

Nobel Prizes are commonly seen to be among the most prestigious achievements of our times. Based on mining several million citations, we quantitatively analyze the processes driving paradigm shifts in science. We find that groundbreaking discoveries of Nobel Prize Laureates and other famous scientists are not only acknowledged by many citations of their landmark papers. Surprisingly, they also boost the citation rates of their previous publications. Given that innovations must outcompete the rich-gets-richer effect for scientific citations, it turns out that they can make their way only through citation cascades. A quantitative analysis reveals how and why they happen. Science appears to behave like a self-organized critical system, in which citation cascades of all sizes occur, from continuous scientific progress all the way up to scientific revolutions, which change the way we see our world. Measuring the "boosting effect" of landmark papers, our analysis reveals how new ideas and new players can make their way and finally triumph in a world dominated by established paradigms. The underlying "boost factor" is also useful to discover scientific breakthroughs and talents much earlier than through classical citation analysis, which by now has become a widespread method to measure scientific excellence, influencing scientific careers and the distribution of research funds. Our findings reveal patterns of collective social behavior, which are also interesting from an attention economics perspective. Understanding the origin of scientific authority may therefore ultimately help to explain, how social influence comes about and why the value of goods depends so strongly on the attention they attract.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figure

Psychometric Properties of the German Version of the Child Post-Traumatic Cognitions Inventory (CPTCI-GER)

Dysfunctional trauma-related cognitions are associated with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The psychometric properties of the German version of the Child Post-Traumatic Cognitions Inventory (CPTCI-GER) were assessed in a sample of 223 children and adolescents (7–16 years) with a history of different traumatic events. Confirmatory factor analyses supported the original two-factor structure—permanent and disturbing change (CPTCI-PC) and fragile person in a scary world (CPTCI-SW). The total scale and both subscales showed good internal consistency. Participants with PTSD had significantly more dysfunctional trauma-related cognitions than those without PTSD. Dysfunctional posttraumatic cognitions correlated significantly with posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS; r = .62), depression (r = .71), and anxiety (r = .67). The CPTCI-GER has good psychometric properties and may facilitate evaluation of treatments and further research on the function of trauma-related cognitions in children and adolescents. (Partial) correlations provide empirical support for the combined DSM-5 symptom cluster negative alterations in cognitions and mood

Predictors of patients’ choices for breast-conserving therapy or mastectomy: a prospective study

A study was undertaken to describe the treatment preferences and choices of patients with breast cancer, and to identify predictors of undergoing breast-conserving therapy (BCT) or mastectomy (MT). Consecutive patients with stage I/II breast cancer were eligible. Information about predictor variables, including socio-demographics, quality of life, patients' concerns, decision style, decisional conflict and perceived preference of the surgeon was collected at baseline, before decision making and surgery. Patients received standard information (n = 88) or a decision aid (n = 92) as a supplement to support decision making. A total of 180 patients participated in the study. In all, 72% decided to have BCT (n = 123); 28% chose MT (n = 49). Multivariate analysis showed that what patients perceived to be their surgeons' preference and the patients' concerns regarding breast loss and local tumour recurrence were the strongest predictors of treatment preference. Treatment preferences in itself were highly predictive of the treatment decision. The decision aid did riot influence treatment choice. The results of this study demonstrate that patients' concerns and their perceptions of the treatment preferences of the physicians are important factors in patients' decision making. Adequate information and communication are essential to base treatment decisions on realistic concerns, and the treatment preferences of patients, (C) 2004 Cancer Research U

Protein Phosphatase-1 Activates CDK9 by Dephosphorylating Ser175

The cyclin-dependent kinase CDK9/cyclin T1 induces HIV-1 transcription by phosphorylating the carboxyterminal domain (CTD) of RNA polymerase II (RNAPII). CDK9 activity is regulated by protein phosphatase-1 (PP1) which was previously shown to dephosphorylate CDK9 Thr186. Here, we analyzed the effect of PP1 on RNAPII phosphorylation and CDK9 activity. The selective inhibition of PP1 by okadaic acid and by NIPP1 inhibited phosphorylation of RNAPII CTD in vitro and in vivo. Expression of the central domain of NIPP1 in cultured cells inhibited the enzymatic activity of CDK9 suggesting its activation by PP1. Comparison of dephosphorylation of CDK9 phosphorylated by (32P) in vivo and dephosphorylation of CDK9's Thr186 analyzed by Thr186 phospho-specific antibodies, indicated that a residue other than Thr186 might be dephosphorylated by PP1. Analysis of dephosphorylation of phosphorylated peptides derived from CDK9's T-loop suggested that PP1 dephosphorylates CDK9 Ser175. In cultured cells, CDK9 was found to be phosphorylated on Ser175 as determined by combination of Hunter 2D peptide mapping and LC-MS analysis. CDK9 S175A mutant was active and S175D – inactive, and dephosphorylation of CDK9's Ser175 upregulated HIV-1 transcription in PP1-dependent manner. Collectively, our results point to CDK9 Ser175 as novel PP1-regulatory site which dephosphorylation upregulates CDK9 activity and contribute to the activation of HIV-1 transcription

Dramatic pain relief and resolution of bone inflammation following pamidronate in 9 pediatric patients with persistent chronic recurrent multifocal osteomyelitis (CRMO)

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Chronic recurrent multifocal osteomyelitis (CRMO) is an inflammatory, non-infectious osteopathy that affects predominantly patients ≤ 18 years of age. There is no uniformly effective treatment. Our objective is to describe clinical, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and bone resorption response to intravenous pamidronate in pediatric CRMO.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We report our prospectively documented experience with all CRMO patients treated with pamidronate between 2003 and 2008 at a tertiary pediatric centre. Pamidronate was administered as intravenous cycles. The dose of pamidronate varied among subjects but was given as monthly to every 3 monthly cycles depending on the distance the patient lived from the infusion center. Maximum cumulative dose was ≤ 11.5 mg/kg/year. Pamidronate treatment was continued until resolution of MRI documented bone inflammation. Visual analog scale for pain (VAS) and bone resorption marker urine N-telopeptide/urine creatinine (uNTX/uCr) were measured at baseline, preceding each subsequent pamidronate treatment, at final follow-up, and/or at time of MRI confirmed CRMO flare. MRI of the affected site(s) was obtained at baseline, preceding every 2^ndtreatment, and with suspected CRMO recurrence.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Nine patients (5 F: 4 M) were treated, with a median (range) age at treatment of 12.9 (4.5–16.3) years, and median (range) duration of symptoms of 18 (6–36) months. VAS decreased from 10/10 to 0–3/10 by the end of first 3–day treatment for all patients. The mean (range) time to complete MRI resolution of bone inflammation was 6.0 (2–12) months. The mean (confidence interval (CI)) baseline uNTX/uCr was 738.83 (CI 464.25, 1013.42)nmol/mmol/creatinine and the mean (CI) decrease from baseline to pamidronate discontinuation was 522.17 (CI 299.77, 744.56)nmol/mmol/creatinine. Median (range) of follow-up was 31.4 (24–54) months. Four patients had MRI confirmed CRMO recurrence, which responded to one pamidronate re-treatment. The mean (range) uNTX/uCr change as a monthly rate from the time of pamidronate discontinuation to flare was 9.41 (1.38–19.85)nmol/mmol/creatinine compared to -29.88 (-96.83–2.01)nmol/mmol/creatinine for patients who did not flare by the time of final follow-up.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Pamidronate resulted in resolution of pain and MRI documented inflammation in all patients. No patient flared while his/her uNTX/uCr remained suppressed. We propose that pamidronate is an effective second-line therapy in persistent CRMO.</p

Health differentials in the older population of England: An empirical comparison of the materialist, lifestyle and psychosocial hypotheses

BACKGROUND: In developed countries with old age structures most deaths occur at older ages and older people account for the majority of those in poor health, which suggests a particular need to investigate health inequalities in the older population. METHODS: We empirically compared the materialist, psychosocial and lifestyle/behavioural theoretical mechanisms of explanation for socio-economic variation in health using data from two waves of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA), a nationally representative multi-purpose sample of the population aged 50 and over living in England. Three dimensions of health were examined: somatic health, depression and well-being. RESULTS: The materialist and lifestyle/behavioural paths had the most prominent mediating role in the association between socio-economic position and health in the older population, whereas the psychosocial pathway was less influential and exerted most of its influence on depression and well-being, with part of its effect being due to the availability of material resources. CONCLUSIONS: From a policy perspective there is therefore an indication that population interventions to reduce health differentials and thus improve the overall health of the older population should focus on material circumstances and population based interventions to promote healthy lifestyles

Assessing the impact of a health intervention via user-generated Internet content

Assessing the effect of a health-oriented intervention by traditional epidemiological methods is commonly based only on population segments that use healthcare services. Here we introduce a complementary framework for evaluating the impact of a targeted intervention, such as a vaccination campaign against an infectious disease, through a statistical analysis of user-generated content submitted on web platforms. Using supervised learning, we derive a nonlinear regression model for estimating the prevalence of a health event in a population from Internet data. This model is applied to identify control location groups that correlate historically with the areas, where a specific intervention campaign has taken place. We then determine the impact of the intervention by inferring a projection of the disease rates that could have emerged in the absence of a campaign. Our case study focuses on the influenza vaccination program that was launched in England during the 2013/14 season, and our observations consist of millions of geo-located search queries to the Bing search engine and posts on Twitter. The impact estimates derived from the application of the proposed statistical framework support conventional assessments of the campaign

The clinical relevance of PCL index on the reconstruction of anterior cruciate ligament with hamstring tendon autograft

The posterior cruciate ligament index (PCL index) has been reported as a diagnostic and prognostic marker for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. The clinical relevance of PCL index on the reconstruction of ACL with hamstring tendon autograft has not been described in the literature. The objective of this study is to evaluate the importance of the PCL index as a marker of anatomic reconstruction and of functional improvement of patients undergoing ACL reconstruction with HT autograft. Twenty-four patients were submitted to ACL reconstruction with HT autograft. The PCL index was assessed by magnetic resonance imaging before and after surgery. The functional evaluation was performed through the International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) Subjective Knee Evaluation Form© and Knee Society Knee Scoring System© (IKS). Patients presented a significant positive variation of the PCL index, IKDC and IKS scores. There is no significant correlation between PCL index variation and IKDC and IKS scores (p > 0.05). Unlike other studies reporting a relationship between the PCL index, control of rotational kinematics, and functional improvement in patients undergoing ACL reconstruction with bone-patellar tendon-bone autograft, this study does not demonstrate this association. There is evidence in this study to show that the PCL index may be used as an anatomic reconstructive marker of ACL but not to predict the clinical outcome in this type of reconstruction.(undefined