Evaluation of survey effects in pre-election polls

Pre-election polls can suffer from survey effects. For instance, individuals taking part in the poll may become more aware of the upcoming election so that they become more inclined to vote. Such effects cause biases in forecasted outcomes of elections. We propose a simple methodology that takes such survey effects explicitly into account when translating poll results into election outcomes. By collecting data both before and after the election, the survey effects can be estimated and used as correction factors in later polls. We illustrate our method by means of a field study with data collected before and after the2007 regional elections (for `Provincial States') in the Netherlands. Our study provides empirical evidence of significant positive survey effects with respect to voter participation, and this effect is the largest for left-wing voters. That is, surveys seem to motivate left-wing people who otherwise would not have participated in the elections. This means that both the voter turnout and the number of seats going to left-wing parties may be overestimated by pre-election polls that do not correct for survey effects.data collection;bias correction;survey effects;intention modification;pre-election polls;turnout forecast

A neonatal pustule:Langerhans cell histiocytosis

Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) is a rare, clinically heterogeneous disease that most commonly occurs in pediatric populations. Congenital self-limited LCH is a benign variant of LCH. It most commonly presents as a diffuse eruption and reports of single lesion cases are infrequent in the literature. Even in the case of congenital self-limited LCH, there is potential for future multisystem relapse, making long-term follow-up important. We present a case of single lesion self-limited LCH in a full-term male infant with interesting morphology. Physical examination revealed a painless, 6 millimeter, well-demarcated, papule encircled by erythema with central hemorrhage. An infectious workup was negative and a punch biopsy was obtained, which showed a dermal infiltrate of histiocytes consistent with a diagnosis of LCH. The lesion healed without intervention within three weeks. Our case highlights the need for dermatologists to consider LCH in the differential diagnosis for lesions of varying morphology in children, as proper identification is necessary to monitor for multisystem recurrence

Evaluation of survey effects in pre-election polls

Pre-election polls can suffer from survey effects. For instance, individuals taking part in the poll may become more aware of the upcoming election so that they become more inclined to vote. Such effects cause biases in forecasted outcomes of elections. We propose a simple methodology that takes such survey effects explicitly into account when translating poll results into election outcomes. By collecting data both before and after the election, the survey effects can be estimated and used as correction factors in later polls. We illustrate our method by means of a field study with data collected before and after the 2007 regional elections (for `Provincial States') in the Netherlands. Our study provides empirical evidence of significant positive survey effects with respect to voter participation, and this effect is the largest for left-wing voters. That is, surveys seem to motivate left-wing people who otherwise would not have participated in the elections. This means that both the voter turnout and the number of seats going to left-wing parties may be overestimated by pre-election polls that do not correct for survey effects

CombiFlow:Flow cytometry-based identification and characterization of genetically and functionally distinct AML subclones

Summary: Many cancers, including leukemias, are dynamic oligoclonal diseases. Tools to identify and prospectively isolate genetically distinct clones for functional studies are needed. We describe our CombiFlow protocol, which is a combinatorial flow cytometry-based approach to identify and isolate such distinct clones. CombiFlow enables the visualization of clonal evolution during disease progression and the identification of potential relapse-inducing cells at minimal residual disease (MRD) time points. The protocol can be adapted to various research questions and allows functional studies on live sorted cell populations.For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to de Boer et al. (2018)

Quantification of proteins in whole blood, plasma and DBS, with element-labelled antibody detection by ICP-MS

Over recent years, quantification of multiple proteins in body fluids has become increasingly prominent, which is beneficial to a number of scientific fields, not least biomedical. Several techniques have been developed based on conventional ELISA; one of these techniques is analysis of proteins labelled with element-tagged antibodies by ICP-MS in serum, allowing quantification of multiple targets within a single sample. This research aimed to quantify albumin and immunoglobulin G (IgG) levels in plasma, whole blood and dried blood spots using NANOGOLD and Europium labelled antibodies analysed by ICP-MS. Before the proteins were quantified simultaneously, albumin and IgG concentrations were measured separately and compared to protein levels obtained by ELISA. It was found that protein concentrations for both albumin and IgG obtained with element-labelled antibody detection correspond to those determined by ELISA. Furthermore, albumin and IgG levels measured simultaneously by ICP-MS correspond to concentrations found when the proteins were analysed separately by ICP-MS. Finally, development of this method has provided a positive indication that it can be extended to quantification of additional proteins, which could be related to a disease or as a minimum provide additional information for a protein profile of an individual. [Abstract copyright: Copyright © 2019. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Ustekinumab in Hidradenitis Suppurativa: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

IntroductionHidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a frequently debilitating, inflammatory skin condition. Patients may have a limited response to adalimumab, currently the only Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved biologic treatment for HS. Ustekinumab is an interleukin-12/23 inhibitor that has been utilized in HS, but there is a lack of an updated systematic review on its efficacy and safety. The aim of this study is to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of the literature on the efficacy and safety of ustekinumab for HS.MethodsIn October 2022, MEDLINE and Embase databases were searched for articles on ustekinumab in HS. Data extraction was performed on relevant articles by two reviewers. The primary study outcome was the pooled response rate of HS to ustekinumab. A fixed-effects meta-analysis was performed, and Cochran's Q statistic and I squared index were used to assess heterogeneity. Statistical significance was determined at p < 0.05. This article is based on previously conducted studies and does not contain any new studies with human participants or animals performed by any of the authors.ResultsFrom 2012 to 2022, ten articles (nine case series and one prospective trial) with 88 patients met the inclusion criteria. Patients with reported disease severity had Hurley stage II (17.6%, 12/68) or III (82.4%, 56/68) disease. The majority (80.7%, 71/88) had previously failed at least one biologic treatment. A meta-analysis of all ten studies showed a pooled response rate of 67% (95% CI 0.57-0.76). Study limitations include a small number of patients and randomized controlled trials (RCTs).ConclusionsUstekinumab may be a helpful treatment option to consider for HS that is recalcitrant to first-line biologic therapies, but RCTs are needed to determine optimal dosing regimens and the specific patient populations that would benefit the most from this agent