Machine learning derived retinal pigment score from ophthalmic imaging shows ethnicity is not biology.

Few metrics exist to describe phenotypic diversity within ophthalmic imaging datasets, with researchers often using ethnicity as a surrogate marker for biological variability. We derived a continuous, measured metric, the retinal pigment score (RPS), that quantifies the degree of pigmentation from a colour fundus photograph of the eye. RPS was validated using two large epidemiological studies with demographic and genetic data (UK Biobank and EPIC-Norfolk Study) and reproduced in a Tanzanian, an Australian, and a Chinese dataset.

International Expert Consensus on Relevant Health and Functioning Concepts to Assess in Users of Tobacco and Nicotine Products: Delphi Study.

Background: A Delphi study was conducted to reach a consensus among international clinical and health care experts on the most important health and functioning self-reported concepts when evaluating a switch from smoking cigarettes to using smoke-free tobacco and/or nicotine products (sf-TNPs).

Objective: The aim of this research was to identify concepts considered important to measure when assessing the health and functioning status of users of tobacco and/or nicotine products.

Methods: Experts (n=105), including health care professionals, researchers, and policy makers, from 26 countries with professional experience and knowledge of sf-TNPs completed a 3-round, adapted Delphi panel.

Detection of the Cyclic Imines Pinnatoxin G, 13-Desmethyl Spirolide C and 20-Methyl Spirolide G in Bivalve Molluscs from Great Britain.

Harmful algal biotoxins in the marine environment are a threat to human food safety due to their bioaccumulation in bivalve shellfish. Whilst official control monitoring provides ongoing risk management for regulated toxins in live bivalve molluscs, no routine monitoring system is currently in operation in the UK for other non-regulated toxins. To assess the potential presence of such compounds, a systematic screen of bivalve shellfish was conducted throughout Great Britain.

What Motivates Older Sedentary People Living With HIV in the United States to Participate in an Exercise Trial? A Qualitative Study.

Although exercise supports the physical function and health of older people living with HIV (PLWH), less than half of PLWH globally achieve recommended levels of activity. A qualitative descriptive design was used to determine what motivates sedentary PLWH, 50 years and older, to participate in an exercise trial. Interviews were conducted with PLWH who participated in an exercise trial (n = 30) and PLWH who declined enrollment in the same exercise trial (n = 4).

SGLT2-Inhibition in Patients With Alport Syndrome.

Introduction: Large-scale trials showed positive outcomes of sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) in adults with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Whether the use of SGLT2i is safe and effective in patients with the common hereditary CKD Alport syndrome (AS) has not yet been investigated specifically in larger cohorts.

Methods: This observational, multicenter, international study (NCT02378805) assessed 112 patients with AS after start of SGLT2i.