Association between genetically predicted leisure and social activities and cardiovascular disease and other health outcomes.

Participation in leisure and social activities (LSA) is associated with better health outcomes and lower mortality. Previous observational studies demonstrated a relationship between engagement in LSA and both mental and physical health. Although several studies examined the association between LSA and health outcomes, including cardiovascular disease, their possible causal relationship has not been studied.

Long-Chain Polysaturated Fatty Acid in Atrial Fibrillation-Associated Stroke: Lipidomic-GWAS Study.

Background and Purpose This study aimed to explore the relationship between lipidomic domains, particularly free fatty acids (FFAs), and the presence of AF in patients with acute stroke, and to identify mechanisms of AF-associated stroke through genetic studies. Methods A total of 483 patients of stroke in patients without AF (n = 391) and with AF (n = 92) were selected from a prospectively collected stroke registry. Lipidomic profiling was conducted and the lipid components associated with AF were explored using fold-change analyses and clustering.

Large-scale cross-ancestry genome-wide meta-analysis of serum urate.

Hyperuricemia is an essential causal risk factor for gout and is associated with cardiometabolic diseases. Given the limited contribution of East Asian ancestry to genome-wide association studies of serum urate, the genetic architecture of serum urate requires exploration. A large-scale cross-ancestry genome-wide association meta-analysis of 1,029,323 individuals and ancestry-specific meta-analysis identifies a total of 351 loci, including 17 previously unreported loci.

CD133-containing microvesicles promote colorectal cancer progression by inducing tumor angiogenesis.

Angiogenesis is an indispensable mechanism in cancer progression, as cancer cells need to establish blood vessels to supply oxygen and nutrients. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) derived from cancer cells act as messengers in the tumor microenvironment and induce resistance to anti-angiogenic cancer treatment. EVs can be classified into two categories: exosomes and microvesicles (MVs).

Genome-wide association analyses using machine learning-based phenotyping reveal genetic architecture of occupational creativity and overlap with psychiatric disorders.

Creativity is known to be heritable and exhibits familial aggregation with psychiatric disorders; however, the complex nature of their relationship has not been well-established. In the present study, we demonstrate that using an expanded and validated machine learning (ML)-based phenotyping of occupational creativity (OC) can allow us to further understand the trait of creativity, which was previously difficult to define and study. We conducted the largest genome-wide association study (GWAS) on OC with 241,736 participants from the UK Biobank and identified 25 lead variants that have not yet been reported and three candidate causal genes that were previously associated with educational attainment and psychiatric disorders.

Shared genetic architectures of educational attainment in East Asian and European populations.

Educational attainment (EduYears), a heritable trait often used as a proxy for cognitive ability, is associated with various health and social outcomes. Previous genome-wide association studies (GWASs) on EduYears have been focused on samples of European (EUR) genetic ancestries. Here we present the first large-scale GWAS of EduYears in people of East Asian (EAS) ancestry (n = 176,400) and conduct a cross-ancestry meta-analysis with EduYears GWAS in people of EUR ancestry (n = 766,345).

Prioritization of therapeutic targets for dyslipidemia using integrative multi-omics and multi-trait analysis.

Drug targets with genetic support are several-fold more likely to succeed in clinical trials. We introduce a genetic-driven approach based on causal inferences that can inform drug target prioritization, repurposing, and adverse effects of using lipid-lowering agents. Given that a multi-trait approach increases the power to detect meaningful variants/genes, we conduct multi-omics and multi-trait analyses, followed by network connectivity investigations, and prioritize 30 potential therapeutic targets for dyslipidemia, including SORT1, PSRC1, CELSR2, PCSK9, HMGCR, APOB, GRN, HFE2, FJX1, C1QTNF1, and SLC5A8.

Leveraging genetic overlap between irritability and psychiatric disorders to identify genetic variants of major psychiatric disorders.

Irritability is a heritable core mental trait associated with several psychiatric illnesses. However, the genomic basis of irritability is unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to 1) identify the genetic variants associated with irritability and investigate the associated biological pathways, genes, and tissues as well as single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)-based heritability; 2) explore the relationships between irritability and various traits, including psychiatric disorders; and 3) identify additional and shared genetic variants for irritability and psychiatric disorders.

Identifying genetic variants for amyloid β in subcortical vascular cognitive impairment.

Background: The genetic basis of amyloid β (Aβ) deposition in subcortical vascular cognitive impairment (SVCI) is still unknown. Here, we investigated genetic variants involved in Aβ deposition in patients with SVCI.

Methods: We recruited a total of 110 patients with SVCI and 424 patients with Alzheimer's disease-related cognitive impairment (ADCI), who underwent Aβ positron emission tomography and genetic testing.

Stereospecific Acylative Suzuki-Miyaura Cross-Coupling: General Access to Optically Active α-Aryl Carbonyl Compounds.

A novel strategy for the stereospecific Pd-catalyzed acylative cross-coupling of enantiomerically enriched alkylboron compounds has been developed. The protocol features an extremely high level of enantiospecificity to allow facile access to synthetically challenging and valuable chiral ketones and carboxylic acid derivatives. The use of a sterically encumbered and electron-rich phosphine ligand proved to be crucial for the success of the reaction.

Causal effect of adiposity on the risk of 19 gastrointestinal diseases: a Mendelian randomization study.

Objective: Although the association between adiposity and gastrointestinal (GI) diseases has been explored, the causal effects of adiposity on GI diseases are largely unknown.

Methods: Mendelian randomization was conducted using single-nucleotide polymorphisms associated with BMI and waist circumference (WC) as instrumental variables, and the causal associations of BMI or WC with GI conditions were estimated among >400,000 UK Biobank participants, >170,000 Finnish-descent participants, and numerous consortia participants of predominantly European ancestry.

Results: Genetically predicted BMI was robustly associated with increased risk of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), cholecystitis, cholelithiasis, and primary biliary cholangitis.

C.A. meyer alleviates benign prostatic hyperplasia while preventing finasteride-induced side effects.

C.A. Meyer, a widely used traditional medicine in East Asia, shows many beneficial effects on immune function, male erectile dysfunction, cancer, excessive oxidants, and aging issues.

Anmyungambi Decoction Ameliorates Obesity through Activation of Non-Shivering Thermogenesis in Brown and White Adipose Tissues.

Obesity is a burden to global health. Non-shivering thermogenesis of brown adipose tissue (BAT) and white adipose tissue (WAT) is a novel strategy for obesity treatment. Anmyungambi (AMGB) decoction is a multi-herb decoction with clinical anti-obesity effects.

An Enhanced Tree Routing Based on Reinforcement Learning in Wireless Sensor Networks.

In wireless sensor networks, tree-based routing can achieve a low control overhead and high responsiveness by eliminating the path search and avoiding the use of extensive broadcast messages. However, existing approaches face difficulty in finding an optimal parent node, owing to conflicting performance metrics such as reliability, latency, and energy efficiency. To strike a balance between these multiple objectives, in this paper, we revisit a classic problem of finding an optimal parent node in a tree topology.

Gastric Neuroendocrine Tumors According to the 2019 World Health Organization Grading System: A Single-Center, Retrospective Study.

Background/aims: Although gastric neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) are uncommon neoplasms, their prevalence is increasing. The clinical importance of the World Health Organization (WHO) classification of gastric NETs, compared with NETs in other organs, has been underestimated. This study aimed to systematically evaluate the clinical and pathologic characteristics of gastric NETs based on the 2019 WHO classification and to assess the survival outcomes of patients from a single-center with a long-term follow-up.

Observation of a new type of self-generated current in magnetized plasmas.

A tokamak, a torus-shaped nuclear fusion device, needs an electric current in the plasma to produce magnetic field in the poloidal direction for confining fusion plasmas. Plasma current is conventionally generated by electromagnetic induction. However, for a steady-state fusion reactor, minimizing the inductive current is essential to extend the tokamak operating duration.

Marine plankton exoskeletone-derived hydroxyapatite/polycaprolactone composite 3D scaffold for bone tissue engineering.

3D porous scaffolds based on biodegradable polymers are one of the materials for bone tissue regeneration. In this study, a porous scaffold was prepared using a solvent casting/particulate leaching method that used polycaprolactone (PCL) and hydroxyapatite (OceanBone-HAp) extracted from a marine plankton exoskeleton to achieve excellent bone regeneration. In this study, the morphology and physicochemical properties of the PCL/OceanBone-HAp scaffolds were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and porosity analysis.

Enhanced Biocompatibility and Osteogenic Activity of Marine-Plankton-Derived Whitlockite Bone Granules through Bone Morphogenetic Protein 2 Incorporation.

Whitlockite (WH) is a calcium-phosphate-based Mg-containing ceramic with good mechanical properties, rapid resorption, and good osteogenicity. Recently, we successfully synthesized highly porous WH granules using a marine plankton exoskeleton (MP-WH). In the present study, we improved the osteoinductive activity of MP-WH granules by bone morphogenetic protein2 (BMP2) (MP-WH/BMP2).

Genetic Variants Associated with Supernormal Coronary Arteries.

Aims: Genetic and medical insights from studies on cardioprotective phenotypes aid the development of novel therapeutics. This study identified genetic variants associated with supernormal coronary arteries using genome-wide association study data and the corresponding genes based on expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL).

Methods: Study participants were selected from two Korean cohorts according to inclusion criteria that included males with high cardiovascular risk (Framingham risk score ≥ 14, 10-year risk ≥ 16%) but with normal coronary arteries (supernormal group) or coronary artery disease (control group).

Comparing surgical and oncologic outcomes between laparoscopic gastrectomy and open gastrectomy in advanced gastric cancer with serosal invasion: A retrospective study with propensity score matching.

Purpose: Laparoscopic gastrectomy (LG) has gradually increased for treating advanced gastric cancer (AGC). However, there is a lack of evidence on oncologic safety for AGC, especially with serosal invasion. This study evaluates the surgical and oncologic outcomes between laparoscopic and open gastrectomy (OG) for gastric cancer with serosal invasion.