Proposing Zebrafish as a Model for Stargardt Disease.

Stargardt disease (STGD1) is an inherited juvenile macular degeneration caused by mutations in the ATP-binding cassette subfamily A member 4 gene (ABCA4), a flippase located in the photoreceptor outer segment. ABCA4 mutations cause the buildup of a toxic byproduct in the retina called lipofuscin resulting in the death of photoreceptors by ferroptosis. Mammalian disease models (e.

Privilege in the room: Training future psychologists to work with power, privilege, and intersectionality within the therapeutic relationship.

Between the racial reckoning of 2020 and wider spread policy development that is explicitly homophobic and transphobic, there have been consistent and resurgent calls for clinicians to address aspects of power and privilege in psychotherapy. This is especially important in a field that continues to be largely White, cisgender, and heterosexual (not to mention abled, socioeconomically privileged, and privileged in many other aspects of human diversity). However, too few models for how to accomplish this in actual practice are offered in the literature.

Disrupting the status quo in psychology training: Centering structural competence in accreditation.

To be responsive to the growing mental health inequities in our communities, we must move beyond incremental changes to our graduate training to bolder, more transformative changes. Such efforts must move beyond targeting our academic, internship, and postdoctoral programs and instead focus on critiquing our accreditation process. Without transformation of accreditation and other macrostructural dynamics in psychology, our training programs will continue to perpetuate the status quo and limit the ability of graduate trainees to adequately address mental health disparities.

Emc1 is essential for vision and zebrafish photoreceptor outer segment morphogenesis.

Inherited retinal diseases (IRDs) are a rare group of eye disorders characterized by progressive dysfunction and degeneration of retinal cells. In this study, we characterized the raifteirí (raf) zebrafish, a novel model of inherited blindness, identified through an unbiased ENU mutagenesis screen. A mutation in the largest subunit of the endoplasmic reticulum membrane protein complex, emc1 was subsequently identified as the causative raf mutation.

The effect of teprotumumab infusion on ocular alignment in patients with symptomatic thyroid eye disease.

Background: Thyroid eye disease (TED) can result in proptosis and ocular misalignment, leading to eye pain, diplopia, and vision loss. Teprotumumab, a humanized antibody against insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor, was approved in 2020 for the treatment of TED. The purpose of this study was to describe the effect of a full course of teprotumumab on ocular misalignment.

Clinical Outcomes in Scleral Fixation Secondary Intraocular Lens with Yamane versus Suture Techniques: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

The purpose of the study is to compare the visual outcomes and complications of sutured scleral fixation (SSF), a traditional and conservative surgical approach, and the newer and faster Yamane technique for secondary intraocular lens placement. A literature search was performed on PubMed, Embase, and Scopus on studies published between 1 July 2017 to 29 September 2023. Outcomes analyzed included the final best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) between 3 and 12 months to assess the effectiveness of the procedure, post-operative month (POM) 1 BCVA to assess the speed of visual recovery, endothelial cell count (ECC), absolute refractive error, surgical duration, and complication rates.

Heritable Risk and Protective Genetic Components of Glaucoma Medication Non-Adherence.

Glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness, affecting 76 million globally. It is characterized by irreversible damage to the optic nerve. Pharmacotherapy manages intraocular pressure (IOP) and slows disease progression.

Young Adult Pain Rehabilitation: Interdisciplinary Development and Preliminary Outcomes of a Novel Treatment Program.

Background: Young adults with chronic pain and symptoms experience disruptions to their social, emotional, physical, and vocational functioning. Interdisciplinary pain rehabilitation programs for pediatric and adult populations are not designed specifically to address the developmental needs of young adults.

Methods: This article describes the development of a novel intensive interdisciplinary outpatient rehabilitation program tailored to the unique needs of young adults with chronic pain and symptoms.

The Role of Mitochondria in Optic Atrophy With Autosomal Inheritance.

Optic atrophy (OA) with autosomal inheritance is a form of optic neuropathy characterized by the progressive and irreversible loss of vision. In some cases, this is accompanied by additional, typically neurological, extra-ocular symptoms. Underlying the loss of vision is the specific degeneration of the retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) which form the optic nerve.

Protocol for a preclinical systematic review and meta-analysis of pharmacological targeting of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors in experimental renal injury.

Introduction: Impaired lipid metabolism in the renal tubule plays a prominent role in the progression of renal fibrosis following acute kidney injury (AKI) and in chronic kidney disease (CKD). Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) are promising druggable targets to mitigate renal fibrosis by redirecting metabolism, including restoration of fatty acid oxidation (FAO) capacity. We aim to synthesise evidence from preclinical studies of pharmacological PPAR targeting in experimental renal injury, and inform the design of future studies evaluating PPAR-mediated restoration of FAO in AKI and CKD.

On the importance of integrating comparative anatomy and One Health perspectives in anatomy education.

As a result of many factors, including climate change, unrestricted population growth, widespread deforestation and intensive agriculture, a new pattern of diseases in humans is emerging. With increasing encroachment by human societies into wild domains, the interfaces between human and animal ecosystems are gradually eroding. Such changes have led to zoonoses, vector-borne diseases, infectious diseases and, most importantly, the emergence of antimicrobial-resistant microbial strains as challenges for human health.

Pain Catastrophizing and Pain Self-Efficacy Mediate Interdisciplinary Pain Rehabilitation Program Outcomes at Posttreatment and Follow-Up.

Background: Decreasing pain catastrophizing and improving self-efficacy to self-manage chronic pain symptoms are important treatment targets in the context of interdisciplinary pain rehabilitation. Greater pain catastrophizing has been shown to be associated with greater impact of pain symptoms on functioning; conversely, greater pain self-efficacy has been associated with lower pain intensity and lower levels of disability.

Objective: To prospectively evaluate interdisciplinary pain rehabilitation outcomes, as well as to evaluate the mediating effects of both pain catastrophizing and pain self-efficacy on outcome.

Pseudoexfoliation and Cataract Syndrome Associated with Genetic and Epidemiological Factors in a Mayan Cohort of Guatemala.

The Mayan population of Guatemala is understudied within eye and vision research. Studying an observational homogenous, geographically isolated population of individuals seeking eye care may identify unique clinical, demographic, environmental and genetic risk factors for blinding eye disease that can inform targeted and effective screening strategies to achieve better and improved health care distribution. This study served to: (a) identify the ocular health needs within this population; and (b) identify any possible modifiable risk factors contributing to disease pathophysiology within this population.

Corneal collagen cross-linking in pediatric keratoconus with three protocols: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Keratoconus is a bilateral progressive noninflammatory degenerative disease of the cornea characterized by corneal thinning, irregular astigmatism, and subsequent visual impairment. It has an aggressive course in children. This systematic review evaluates the efficacy of available corneal collagen cross-linking (CXL) protocols for stabilizing the cornea in pediatric patients with keratoconus.

Effect of EnChroma glasses on color vision screening using Ishihara and Farnsworth D-15 color vision tests.

Background: The prevalence of color vision deficiency (CVD) is about 0.5% in females and 8% in males. Although there is no cure for CVD, specially filtered glasses are purported to improve color contrast.

Curcumin Sensitizes Kidney Cancer Cells to TRAIL-Induced Apoptosis via ROS Mediated Activation of JNK-CHOP Pathway and Upregulation of DR4.

Tumour necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL), is a selective anticancer cytokine capable of exerting a targeted therapy approach. Disappointingly, recent research has highlighted the development of TRAIL resistance in cancer cells, thus minimising its usefulness in clinical settings. However, several recent studies have demonstrated that cancer cells can be sensitised to TRAIL through the employment of a combinatorial approach, utilizing TRAIL in conjunction with other natural or synthetic anticancer agents.

Gender Differences in Case Volume Among Ophthalmology Residents.

Importance: Although almost equal numbers of male and female medical students enter into ophthalmology residency programs, whether they have similar surgical experiences during training is unclear.

Objective: To determine differences for cataract surgery and total procedural volume between male and female residents during ophthalmology residency.

Design, Setting, Participants: This retrospective, longitudinal analysis of resident case logs from 24 US ophthalmology residency programs spanned July 2005 to June 2017.

The UCD nanosafety workshop (03 December 2018): towards developing a consensus on safe handling of nanomaterials within the Irish university labs and beyond - a report.

Careful handling of the nanomaterials (NMs) in research labs is crucial to ensure a safe working environment. As the largest university in Ireland, University College Dublin (UCD) has invested significant resources to update researchers working with NMs. Due to sizes often <100 nm, the NMs including nanoparticles, harbor unprecedented materialistic properties, for example, enhanced reactivity, conductivity, fluorescence, etc.

Pharmacological restoration of visual function in a zebrafish model of von-Hippel Lindau disease.

Von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) syndrome is a rare, autosomal dominant disorder, characterised by hypervascularised tumour formation in multiple organ systems. Vision loss associated with retinal capillary hemangioblastomas remains one of the earliest complications of VHL disease. The mortality of Vhl mice in utero restricted modelling of VHL disease in this mammalian model.

Pyrazinib (P3), [(E)-2-(2-Pyrazin-2-yl-vinyl)-phenol], a small molecule pyrazine compound enhances radiosensitivity in oesophageal adenocarcinoma.

Oesophageal adenocarcinoma (OAC) is an aggressive disease with 5-year survival rates of <20%. Only 20-30% OAC patients show a beneficial response to neoadjuvant therapy. Altered mitochondrial function is linked with radioresistance in OAC.

The effect of oral statin therapy on strabismus in patients with thyroid eye disease.

Background: Statins, known to possess anti-inflammatory characteristics, have recently been identified as potentially reducing the risk of developing thyroid eye disease (TED) in Graves disease patients. The current study investigates the effect of oral statin therapy on strabismus related to TED.

Methods: This is a retrospective review of patients with a diagnosis of both TED and restrictive strabismus.