Non-AIDS defining cancers in the D:A:D Study-time trends and predictors of survival : a cohort study

BACKGROUND:Non-AIDS defining cancers (NADC) are an important cause of morbidity and mortality in HIV-positive individuals. Using data from a large international cohort of HIV-positive individuals, we described the incidence of NADC from 2004-2010, and described subsequent mortality and predictors of these.METHODS:Individuals were followed from 1st January 2004/enrolment in study, until the earliest of a new NADC, 1st February 2010, death or six months after the patient's last visit. Incidence rates were estimated for each year of follow-up, overall and stratified by gender, age and mode of HIV acquisition. Cumulative risk of mortality following NADC diagnosis was summarised using Kaplan-Meier methods, with follow-up for these analyses from the date of NADC diagnosis until the patient's death, 1st February 2010 or 6 months after the patient's last visit. Factors associated with mortality following NADC diagnosis were identified using multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression.RESULTS:Over 176,775 person-years (PY), 880 (2.1%) patients developed a new NADC (incidence: 4.98/1000PY [95% confidence interval 4.65, 5.31]). Over a third of these patients (327, 37.2%) had died by 1st February 2010. Time trends for lung cancer, anal cancer and Hodgkin's lymphoma were broadly consistent. Kaplan-Meier cumulative mortality estimates at 1, 3 and 5 years after NADC diagnosis were 28.2% [95% CI 25.1-31.2], 42.0% [38.2-45.8] and 47.3% [42.4-52.2], respectively. Significant predictors of poorer survival after diagnosis of NADC were lung cancer (compared to other cancer types), male gender, non-white ethnicity, and smoking status. Later year of diagnosis and higher CD4 count at NADC diagnosis were associated with improved survival. The incidence of NADC remained stable over the period 2004-2010 in this large observational cohort.CONCLUSIONS:The prognosis after diagnosis of NADC, in particular lung cancer and disseminated cancer, is poor but has improved somewhat over time. Modifiable risk factors, such as smoking and low CD4 counts, were associated with mortality following a diagnosis of NADC

Polar Bears Exhibit Genome-Wide Signatures of Bioenergetic Adaptation to Life in the Arctic Environment

Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) face extremely cold temperatures and periods of fasting, which might result in more severe energetic challenges than those experienced by their sister species, the brown bear (U. arctos). We have examined the mitochondrial and nuclear genomes of polar and brown bears to investigate whether polar bears demonstrate lineage-specific signals of molecular adaptation in genes associated with cellular respiration/energy production. We observed increased evolutionary rates in the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase I gene in polar but not brown bears. An amino acid substitution occurred near the interaction site with a nuclear-encoded subunit of the cytochrome c oxidase complex and was predicted to lead to a functional change, although the significance of this remains unclear. The nuclear genomes of brown and polar bears demonstrate different adaptations related to cellular respiration. Analyses of the genomes of brown bears exhibited substitutions that may alter the function of proteins that regulate glucose uptake, which could be beneficial when feeding on carbohydrate-dominated diets during hyperphagia, followed by fasting during hibernation. In polar bears, genes demonstrating signatures of functional divergence and those potentially under positive selection were enriched in functions related to production of nitric oxide (NO), which can regulate energy production in several different ways. This suggests that polar bears may be able to fine-tune intracellular levels of NO as an adaptive response to control trade-offs between energy production in the form of adenosine triphosphate versus generation of heat (thermogenesis)

Recommendations For Gesture-based Residential Interactive Systems Inspired By Diversity

Gestural interaction is becoming an important mode of interaction with residential systems, be it with or without using physical artifacts such as remote controls or cell phones. When constructing respective gestural vocabularies social implications need to be considered. The importance of the residential environment to users and the heterogeneity of user profiles make the theme diversity an important concern in the development of these applications. Therefore, the main goal of this paper is to describe the recommendations for diversity that support the inclusive design of residential interactive systems based on gestures. © 2014 Springer International Publishing.8513 LNCSPART 1337345Bardzell, S., Churchill, E., Bardzell, J., Forlizzi, J., Grinter, R., Tatar, D., Feminism and Interaction Design (2011) CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 1-4. , ACMChi, E.H., The False Dichotomy Between Accessibility and Usability (2013) 10th International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility, pp. 1-2. , ACMDe Carvalho Correia, A.C., De Miranda, L.C., Hornung, H., Gesture-Based Interaction in Domotic Environments: State of the Art and HCI Framework Inspired by the Diversity (2013) LNCS, 8118, pp. 300-317. , Kotzé, P., Marsden, G., Lindgaard, G., Wesson, J., Winckler, M. (eds.) INTERACT 2013, Part II. Springer, HeidelbergDovey, K., Home and Homeless (1985) Home Environments, pp. 36-61. , Plenum PressEason, K.D., Towards the Experimental Study of Usability (1984) Behaviour and Information Technology, 3, pp. 133-143Gabbard, J.L., (1997) A Taxonomy of Usability Characteristics for Virtual Environments, , Masters Thesis, Virginia TechGandy, M., Starner, T., Auxier, J., Ashbrook, D., The Gesture Pendant: A Self-Illuminating, Wearable, Infrared Computer Vision System for Home Automation Control and Medical Monitoring (2000) 4th IEEE International Symposium on Wearable Computers, pp. 1-8. , IEEEGuidelines for Design of Smart Homes, , http://www.johngilltech.com/guidelines/guidelines_list.htmErgonomics Requirements for Office Work with Visual Display Terminals (VDTs) (1998) Part 11: Guidance on Usability, , ISO 9241(2006) Ergonomics of Human-System Interaction - Part 110: Dialogue Principles, , ISO/IEC 9241Karam, M., Schraefel, M.C., (2005) A Taxonomy of Gestures in Human Computer Interactions, , Technical Report ECSTR-IAM05-009, University of SouthamptonKita, S., Cross-Cultural Variation of Speech-Accompanying Gesture: A Review (2009) Language and Cognitive Processes, 24, pp. 145-167Kleindienst, J., Macek, T., Serédi, L., Šedivý, J., Vision-Enhanced Multi-Modal Interactions in Domotic Environments (2004) 8th ERCIM Workshop "User Interfaces for All", pp. 1-8Madan, A., Dubey, S.K., Usability Evaluation Methods: A Literature Review (2012) International Journal of Engineering Science and Technology, 4, pp. 590-599Mosqueira-Rey, E., Alonso-Ríos, D., Moret-Bonillo, V., Usability Taxonomy and Context-of-Use Taxonomy for Usability Analysis (2009) IEEE International Conference on Systems, Man and Cybernetics, pp. 812-817. , IEEENielsen, J., Loranger, H., (2006) Prioritizing Web Usability, , New Riders PressNielsen, J., (1993) Usability Engineering, , Academic PressNielsen, M., Storring, M., Moeslund, T.B., Granum, E., A Procedure for Developing Intuitive and Ergonomic Gesture Interfaces for HCI (2004) LECTURE NOTES IN COMPUTER SCIENCE, (2915), pp. 409-420. , Gesture-Based Communication in Human-Computer InteractionNorman, D.A., Nielsen, J., Gestural Interfaces: A Step Backward in Usability (2010) Interactions, 17, pp. 46-49Rahman, A.S.M.M., Saboune, J., Saddik, A.E., Motion-Path based in Car Gesture Control of the Multimedia Devices (2011) 1st ACM International Symposium on Design and Analysis of Intelligent Vehicular Networks and Applications, pp. 69-76. , ACMRode, J.A., A Theoretical Agenda for Feminist HCI (2011) Interacting with Computer, 23, pp. 393-400Saizmaa, T., Kim, H.C.C., A Holistic Understanding of HCI Perspectives on Smart Home (2008) 4th International Conference on Networked Computing and Advanced Information Management, pp. 59-65. , IEEEShackel, B., Usability-Context, Framework, Definition, Design and Evaluation (2011) Human Factors for Informatics Usability, pp. 21-38. , Shackel, B., Richardson, S. (eds.) Cambridge University PressSmart Home Guidelines, , http://www.tiresias.org/research/guidelines/smart_home.htmWahlster, W., Reithinger, N., Blocher, A., SmartKom: Multimodal Communication with a Life-Like Character (2001) 7th European Conference on Speech Communication and Technology, pp. 1547-1550Web Content Acessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, , http://www.w3c.org/TR/WCAG20Wilson, A., Shafer, S., XWand: UI for Intelligent Spaces (2003) SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 545-552. , AC

Body mass index is negatively associated with telomere length: A collaborative cross-sectional meta-analysis of 87 observational studies

Stress-related psychiatric disorders across the life spa