Combination of clinical factors predicts successful glucocorticoid withdrawal in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE): results from a multicentre, retrospective cohort study.

Objective: Glucocorticoid (GC) tapering and withdrawal to reduce damage represents a key aspect of the European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR) SLE recommendations. However, optimal strategies for relapse-free GC cessation remain ill-defined. We characterised clinical predictors and their combined effect on flares in patients with SLE who discontinued GC.

Psychological features of systemic sclerosis: results from an observational study.

Objectives: (a) Assessing mental disorders, psychological distress, psychological wellbeing in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc); (b) identifying psychological features independently contributing to the status of having the diagnosis of SSc.

Methods: Two hundred SSc outpatients were compared with 100 healthy subjects. Mental disorders were assessed via the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI).

Neuronal Progenitors Suffer Genotoxic Stress in the Clock Mutant .

The physiological role and the molecular architecture of the circadian clock in fully developed organisms are well established. Yet, we have a limited understanding of the function of the clock during ontogenesis. We have used a null mutant () of the clock gene () in to ask whether PER may play a role during normal brain development.

Spontaneous nanosized liposome formation from crude dried lecithin upon addition of glycerol.

Nanosized liposomal vesicles (NLV) were successfully prepared using natural sunflower lecithin without the use of high-pressure homogenization or filtration. Upon glycerol addition to dispersions of lecithin multilamellar vesicles (MLVs), these broke down spontaneously to liposomes with diameters in the range of 100-200 nm. Static light scattering demonstrated that glycerol addition above 30% (w/w) induced the complete transformation of MLVs into NLVs.

Critical insights into the ocular surface microbiome: the need to standardize.

Data from the literature indicates that the human ocular surface is inhabited by diverse commensal microbial communities, crucial for maintaining the homeostasis of healthy eyes. The ocular surface microbiome (OSM) plays a protective immunoregulatory role against pathogenic species, and any dysbiosis may contribute to disease onset. Traditional culture methods, employed in both clinical and research settings, have limitations.