Medical data breaches: Notification delayed is notification denied

The EU and the United States have implemented data breach notification rules that cover the health sectors. Nevertheless, data breach incidents involving medical data continue to rise, especially in the US and the UK. The HITECH Act, Pub. L. 111-5 Title XIII is the first federal health breach notification law in the US to be characterized by less government intrusions, while the revised EU Privacy Directive, 2009/136/EC calls for tougher privacy protection for data held by electronic communication providers. While the EU law sets a global de facto standard, the law remains toothless without strong enforcement mechanisms.     

Comparison of two methods for isolating DNA from human skeletal remains for STR analysis

Abstract: The quality and efficiency of a standard organic DNA isolation method and a silica‐based method using the QIAGEN Blood Maxi Kit were compared to obtain human DNA and short tandem repeats (STRs) profiles from 39 exhumed bone samples for paternity testing. DNA samples were quantified by real‐time PCR, and STR profiles were obtained using the AmpFlSTR^® Identifiler^® PCR amplification kit. Overall, the silica‐based method recovered less DNA ranging from 0 to 147.7 ng/g (average 7.57 ng/g, median = 1.3 ng/g) than did the organic method ranging from 0 to 605 ng/g (average 44.27 ng/g, median = 5.8 ng/g). Complete profiles (16/16 loci tested) were obtained from 37/39 samples (95%) using the organic method and from 9/39 samples (23%) with the silica‐based method. Compared with a standard organic DNA isolation method, our results indicate that the published silica‐based method does not improve neither the quality nor the quantity of DNA for STR profiling.     

Sudden death in an adolescent due to undiagnosed classic Hodgkin lymphoma

Few cases of natural sudden death presenting as an undiagnosed lymphoma have been reported in the literature, especially in adolescents. Herein we provide a report of sudden death caused by undiagnosed classic Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL). We describe an 18-year-old female who collapsed after several weeks of weight loss, decreased appetite, and dyspnea. At autopsy, a bulky mass arising in the mediastinum and neck compressed the esophagus and trachea, surrounded the great vessels, obliterated the pericardial sac, and infiltrated the myocardium. The lungs were collapsed and large pleural effusions were present. The tumor burden, which weighed at least 2710 g in aggregate, was entirely above the diaphragm. Microscopic examination of the masses showed features typical for nodular sclerosis cHL including large bands of sclerosis, numerous Hodgkin/Reed-Sternberg (HRS) cells, and an eosinophil-rich mixed inflammatory cell infiltrate. Immunohistochemical stains showed the HRS cells to be uniformly positive for CD30 and CD15 and negative for CD3, CD20, CD45, and PAX5. This case exemplifies a rare sudden natural death due to previously undiagnosed cHL in a young patient.     

Determinants of Firm‐Level Lobbying and Government Responsiveness in Agricultural Biotechnology in China

Understanding what stimulates agribusiness firms to lobby the government and what makes the government responsive to lobbying are the two issues that have been discussed extensively in the debates concerning determinants of biotechnology policy. This paper examines the factors influencing agribusiness firms' lobbying and government response using econometric modeling on a new data set of 160 leading agribusiness firms in the food, feed, chemical, and seed industries in China. The results show that approximately 10% of agribusiness firms lobbied the government about biotechnology policy and regulations and over half of those that lobbied received a verbal or written acknowledgment from government agencies. Seed and feed companies are more likely to engage in lobbying than chemical companies. Owning GM patents not only has a positive impact on firms' lobbying activities, but firms with these patents are more likely to receive a government response to their lobbying efforts. The experience of selling GM products does not significantly influence lobbying activities or response from the government.     

Political Candidates and the Energy Issue: Nuclear Power Position and Electoral Success

Members of parliament are key actors for the implementation of energy transitions, such as phasing out nuclear power. Before legislators can cast their maybe decisive vote in parliament, they need to run for office and actively strive for election. This paper assesses what political candidates oppose renewable energy transitions and questions whether the energy issue matters in national elections, and thus has consequences for the implementation of new sustainable energy sources. We analyze these questions by first describing the specific characteristics of political candidates. The paper then evaluates the relevance of the energy issue for electoral success in three national elections in Switzerland (2007, 2012, and 2015). Based on candidate data from the voting advice application smartvote.ch, we find that female candidates support ETs more than men do; that especially the French‐speaking part of the country is more in favor of a nuclear phase‐out, and that younger candidates are also more open toward restructuring the energy system than older candidates are. Our models further show that the energy issue does not matter in elections, independently from its salience in the respective election campaigns. Candidates are thus relatively free to choose their position on the issue and do not have to fear consequences at the ballot. However, candidates of center parties, in contrast to the pole parties, are sensitive to the energy issue and reflect public mood in their positions.     

血管软化丸调控miR-17-5p与PCSK9/VLDLR信号通路抗动脉粥样硬化研究

目的 观察血管软化丸对miR-17-5p及其下游前蛋白转化酶枯草溶菌素（proprotein convertase subtillisin/kexin type 9,PCSK9）/极低密度脂蛋白受体（very low density lipoprotein receptor,VLDLR）信号通路的调控作用,揭示血管软化丸抗动脉粥样硬化（atherosclerosis,AS）的作用机制。方法 细胞实验：通过加入氧化型低密度脂蛋白构建血管平滑肌细胞损伤模型。根据不同干预方法将细胞分为4组：模型组、miR-17-5p抑制剂组、血管软化丸高剂量含药血清组和低剂量含药血清组;干预后检测各组细胞活性以及细胞miR-17-5p、VLDLR和PCSK9 mRNA和蛋白表达水平。动物实验：根据不同干预方法将小鼠分为模型组、miR-17-5p抑制剂组、血管软化丸高剂量组和低剂量组;干预8周后检测小鼠外周血清中白细胞介素-6 （interleukin-6,IL-6）、白细胞介素-10（interleukin-10,IL-10）、肿瘤坏死因子-α（tumor necrosis factor-α,TNF-α）水平和小鼠主动脉miR-17-5p、VLDLR和PCSK9表达水平,并观察各组小鼠病理学改变情况。结果 细胞实验：与模型组比较,miR-17-5p抑制剂组,血管软化丸高、低剂量含药血清组血管平滑肌细胞活性均明显升高（P<0.05）,血管平滑肌细胞的miR-17-5p和VLDLR mRNA和蛋白表达水平均明显升高（P<0.05）,血管平滑肌细胞的PCSK9 mRNA和蛋白表达水平均明显降低（P<0.05）。动物实验：与模型组比较,miR-17-5p抑制剂组和血管软化丸高、低剂量组外周血清中IL-6、TNF-α水平均明显降低（P<0.05）,血清中IL-10水平均明显升高（P<0.05）,主动脉miR-17-5p和VLDLR mRNA水平均明显降低（P<0.05）,PCSK9 mRNA表达水平均明显升高（P<0.05）;病理学观察发现模型组小鼠主动脉管径厚薄不均匀,内膜不光滑,管腔内可见明显AS斑块形成,斑块内可见浅染无定形物和钙化颗粒物,部分AS斑块截面积大于主动脉截面积。miR-17-5p抑制剂组和血管软化丸高、低剂量组AS病变程度明显较模型组减轻。     

基于钟基因Clock和Bmal1调控探究辰时针刺自发性高血压大鼠的降压机制

目的 以自发性高血压大鼠（spontaneous hypertensive rat，SHR）为观察对象，探究针刺降压的钟基因调控作用。方法 将24只SHR随机分为针刺组和模型组，12只Wistar-Kyoto（WKY）大鼠作为正常组。针刺组选择辰时针刺SHR双侧曲池、足三里穴，模型组和正常组仅接受与针刺组同等强度的捆绑操作。4周后，各组分别在辰、酉时随机抽取6只大鼠，测量鼠尾收缩压（systolic blood pressure, SBP）和舒张压（diastolic blood pressure, DBP），然后检测血清5-羟色胺（5-hydroxytryptamine，5-HT）、褪黑素（melatonin, MT）的含量以及心脏生物钟基因Clock和Bmal1的表达水平。结果 分组因素对SBP、DBP、血清MT含量、Clock表达结果的RQ值、Bmal1表达结果的RQ值的主效应均有统计学意义（P＜0.05），时辰因素对各指标的主效应和两者的交互作用均无统计学意义（P＞0.05）。模型组辰、酉两个时辰的SBP和DBP均高于正常组（P<0.05），针刺组辰时的SBP和DBP及酉时的SBP均低于模型组（P<0.05）。模型组辰时MT含量较正常组降低，5-HT含量较正常组升高（P<0.05），针刺组辰时MT含量较模型组升高，5-HT含量较模型组降低（P<0.05）；针刺组酉时的MT含量较模型组升高（P<0.05）。针刺组辰时心脏Clock基因表达水平和酉时心脏Bmal1基因表达水平较模型组升高（P＜0．05）。结论 辰时针刺可以降低SHR的“双峰”血压，其作用机制可能与提高血清MT含量，减少5-HT含量以及提高心脏Clock和Bmal1基因的表达水平有关。