Publications by authors named "Bernstein B"

Isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) mutants define a class of gliomas that are initially slow-growing but inevitably progress to fatal disease. To characterize their malignant cell hierarchy, we profiled chromatin accessibility and gene expression across single cells from low-grade and high-grade IDH-mutant gliomas and ascertained their developmental states through a comparison to normal brain cells. We provide evidence that these tumors are initially fueled by slow-cycling oligodendrocyte progenitor cell-like cells.

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  • The study addresses the difficulty of understanding how specific sequences in the genome relate to their functions, especially with limited tools for hypermutation.
  • A new platform called helicase-assisted continuous editing (HACE) is introduced, which uses CRISPR-Cas9 to induce mutations over large sections of the genome effectively.
  • HACE has been applied to study mutations related to drug resistance and missplicing, and it offers a robust way to explore both coding and noncoding genetic variants to better understand their roles in biological functions.
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  • Exposure to common anti-seizure medications (ASMs) during early brain development can lead to neurodevelopmental issues, including cell death and behavioral changes, as shown in both animal studies and clinical research.
  • In a study involving postnatal rats, standard ASMs like valproate were found to significantly increase cell death in various brain regions, while the newer drugs brivaracetam (BRV) and perampanel (PER) showed no such effect.
  • The findings indicate that BRV and PER might have a better safety profile concerning acute neurotoxicity, suggesting they could be safer alternatives for treating seizures in young patients.
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Autoimmune diseases, among the most common disorders of young adults, are mediated by genetic and environmental factors. Although CD4FOXP3 regulatory T cells (T) play a central role in preventing autoimmunity, the molecular mechanism underlying their dysfunction is unknown. Here, we performed comprehensive transcriptomic and epigenomic profiling of T in the autoimmune disease multiple sclerosis (MS) to identify critical transcriptional programs regulating human autoimmunity.

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Rehabilitation for patients sustaining isolated and multiple musculoskeletal injuries due to trauma remains a mainstay of recovery. There are a wide variety of systems in place to manage the rehabilitation process. This article describes the post-traumatic rehabilitation procedures from 2 member countries of the International Orthopaedic Trauma Association, Israel and South Africa.

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Meeting best-practice guidelines can significantly enhance quality of life and longevity for those with sickle cell disease (SCD). However, many clinical settings lack the necessary resources for optimal care. We present an integrated suite of tools and collaborative actions designed to enhance SCD care.

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Background: Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is the predominant form of HF in older adults. It represents a heterogenous clinical syndrome that is less well understood across different ethnicities.

Objectives: This study aimed to compare the clinical presentation and assess the diagnostic performance of existing HFpEF diagnostic tools between ethnic groups.

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Exercise limitation and physical inactivity are known treatable traits for people with COPD. Maximising exercise capacity and keeping people physically active improves health status and survival rates among people with COPD. However, managing these two treatable traits can be extremely challenging for clinicians due to the complex intersectionality of factors influencing an individual's capacity, opportunity and motivation to engage in physical activity.

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  • Researchers studied how cis-regulatory elements (CREs) work with trans regulators to control the expression of T cell genes CD28, CTLA4, and ICOS, which are important for immune responses.
  • Using CRISPR interference (CRISPRi) screens, they identified specific CREs that vary depending on the type of T cell and stimulation, revealing the complexity of gene regulation.
  • They found that the CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF) plays a key role in enhancing the interaction between CREs and CTLA4 while also preventing unintended activation of CD28, helping to clarify the regulatory landscape of these immune genes.
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Isolation of sex differences as a key characteristic underlying neurobehavioral differentiation is an essential component of studies in neuroscience. The current study sought to address this concern by observing behavioral differences using an automated home cage system for neurobehavioral assessment, a method rapidly increasing in use due to advances in technology and advantages such as reduced handling stress and cross-lab variability. Sex differences in C57BL/6 mice arose for motor activity and circadian-linked behavior, with females being more active compared to males, and males having a stronger anticipatory increase in activity leading up to the onset of the light phase compared to females.

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In all terrestrial vertebrates, the parathyroid glands are critical regulators of calcium homeostasis and the sole source of parathyroid hormone (PTH). Hyperparathyroidism and hypoparathyroidism are clinically important disorders affecting multiple organs. However, our knowledge regarding regulatory mechanisms governing the parathyroids has remained limited.

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Enhancer-gene communication is dependent on topologically associating domains (TADs) and boundaries enforced by the CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF) insulator, but the underlying structures and mechanisms remain controversial. Here, we investigate a boundary that typically insulates fibroblast growth factor (FGF) oncogenes but is disrupted by DNA hypermethylation in gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs). The boundary contains an array of CTCF sites that enforce adjacent TADs, one containing FGF genes and the other containing ANO1 and its putative enhancers, which are specifically active in GIST and its likely cell of origin.

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Aim: Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) remains under-diagnosed in clinical practice despite accounting for nearly half of all heart failure (HF) cases. Accurate and timely diagnosis of HFpEF is crucial for proper patient management and treatment. In this study, we explored the potential of natural language processing (NLP) to improve the detection and diagnosis of HFpEF according to the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) diagnostic criteria.

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Gliomas are incurable malignancies notable for an immunosuppressive microenvironment with abundant myeloid cells whose immunomodulatory properties remain poorly defined. Here, utilizing scRNA-seq data for 183,062 myeloid cells from 85 human tumors, we discover that nearly all glioma-associated myeloid cells express at least one of four immunomodulatory activity programs: Scavenger Immunosuppressive, C1Q Immunosuppressive, CXCR4 Inflammatory, and IL1B Inflammatory. All four programs are present in IDH1 mutant and wild-type gliomas and are expressed in macrophages, monocytes, and microglia whether of blood or resident myeloid cell origins.

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Long-term memories are formed by creating stable memory representations via memory consolidation, which mainly occurs during sleep following the encoding of labile memories in the hippocampus during waking. The entorhinal cortex (EC) has intricate connections with the hippocampus, but its role in memory consolidation is largely unknown. Using cell-type- and input-specific in vivo neural activity recordings, here we show that the temporoammonic pathway neurons in the EC, which directly innervate the output area of the hippocampus, exhibit potent oscillatory activities during anesthesia and sleep.

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Background: Despite evidence that formalized trauma systems enhance patient functional outcomes and decrease mortality rates, there remains a lack of such systems globally. Critical to trauma systems are the equipment, materials, and supplies needed to support care, which vary in availability regionally. The purpose of the present study was to identify essential resources for musculoskeletal trauma care across diverse resource settings worldwide.

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Microglia, the macrophages of the brain parenchyma, are key players in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease. These cells adopt distinct transcriptional subtypes known as states. Understanding state function, especially in human microglia, has been elusive owing to a lack of tools to model and manipulate these cells.

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Epigenetic lesions that disrupt regulatory elements represent potential cancer drivers. However, we lack experimental models for validating their tumorigenic impact. Here, we model aberrations arising in isocitrate dehydrogenase-mutant gliomas, which exhibit DNA hypermethylation.

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Article Synopsis
  • Amplification of MDM2 on extra chromosomes is a frequent way tumors inactivate the P53 protein, which is crucial for controlling cell growth and preventing cancer.
  • In dedifferentiated liposarcoma, MDM2 overexpression affects gene regulation and cell characteristics through three main regulatory circuits and interacts with other transcription factors.
  • There is significant variability in MDM2 levels within tumor cells, and while most liposarcoma cells respond to MDM2 inhibitors combined with pro-apoptotic drugs, those with high MDM2 levels tend to resist these treatments, leading to poor clinical outcomes.
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Intimate partner violence (IPV) is prevalent, costly, and detrimental to children's health and development. It often co-occurs with child abuse and neglect. Most children referred to child protective services (CPS) have witnessed IPV and are at increased risk for subsequent exposure, as well as repeat maltreatment.

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Although vast numbers of putative gene regulatory elements have been cataloged, the sequence motifs and individual bases that underlie their functions remain largely unknown. Here, we combine epigenetic perturbations, base editing, and deep learning to dissect regulatory sequences within the exemplar immune locus encoding CD69. We converge on a ∼170 base interval within a differentially accessible and acetylated enhancer critical for CD69 induction in stimulated Jurkat T cells.

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  • Tumours typically develop from harmful changes in specific cell groups within the same area of the body, with this study focusing on a rare type of acute leukaemia called blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm (BPDCN) that often begins in the skin.
  • Researchers utilized advanced techniques to show that BPDCN originates from mutated blood cell precursors in the bone marrow, which have been affected by UV radiation exposure in sunlit areas of the skin.
  • The study highlights that UV damage can precede further mutations that lead to cancer, pointing to a role for the TET2 gene in resisting UV-induced cell death, thus highlighting how environmental factors influence the progression of cancer.
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Youth with emotional dysregulation (ED) and irritability/aggression, common in disruptive disorders (frequently comorbid with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder), are underserved by conventional treatments. Anger dysregulation is usually the core feature of ED. Complementary and integrative Medicine (CIM) treatments for youth with disruptive disorders and ED are reviewed.

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The rationale for CIM treatments in youth psychoses is to optimize treatment by targeting symptoms not resolved by antipsychotics, such as negative symptoms (major drivers of disability). Adjunctive omega-3 fatty acids (ω-3 FA) or N-acetyl cystine (NAC usage for > 24-week) can potentially reduce negative symptoms and improve function. ω-3 FA or exercise may prevent progression to psychosis in youth (in prodromal stage).

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