Longitudinal assessment of health-related quality of life after SARS-CoV-2 infection and the associations with clinical and social characteristics in a general practice population.

Background: We aimed to investigate the longitudinal impact of COVID-19 and the effects of clinical and psychosocial factors, accounting for post-COVID conditions (PCC), on the mental and physical aspect of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of patients diagnosed with COVID-19.

Methods: Data from the Nivel Corona Cohort were used, which includes individuals with an established SARS-CoV-2 infection that received four questionnaires over a year's time with questions regarding HRQoL (SF-12), symptoms and social characteristics. PCC was determined based on questionnaire data.

Care needs of patients with the post-COVID syndrome in Dutch general practice: an interview study among patients and general practitioners.

Background: The post-COVID syndrome (PCS) has a large impact on an individual's daily life. The wide variety of symptoms in PCS patients and the fact that it is still relatively new makes it difficult for general practitioners (GPs) to recognize, diagnose and treat patients with PCS, leading to difficulties in assessing and fulfilling healthcare needs. It is largely unknown what the experiences of Dutch patients and GPs are with PCS and, therefore, we gained insight into the different aspects of living with PCS and the associated healthcare needs.

Modelling drift of cold-stunned Kemp's ridley turtles stranding on the Dutch coast.

Background: Every few years, juvenile Kemp's ridley turtles ( ) are stranded on the Dutch coasts. The main population distribution of this critically endangered species primarily inhabits the Gulf of Mexico and the east coast of the United States. This study focuses on five reports from the Netherlands between 2007 and 2022, where juvenile turtles were reported to strand alive during the winter, albeit in a hypothermic state.

Synaptic protein CSF levels relate to memory scores in individuals without dementia.

Introduction: We investigated how cerebrospinal fluid levels of synaptic proteins associate with memory function in normal cognition (CN) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and investigated the effect of amyloid positivity on these associations.

Methods: We included 242 CN (105(43%) abnormal amyloid), and 278 MCI individuals (183(66%) abnormal amyloid) from EMIF-AD MBD and ADNI. For 181 (EMIF-AD MBD) and 36 (ADNI) proteins with a synaptic annotation in SynGO, associations with word learning recall were analysed with linear models.

The prediagnostic general practitioner care of sarcoma patients: A real-world data study.

Background: Limited understanding exists regarding early sarcoma symptoms presented during general practitioner (GP) consultations. The study explores GP visit patterns and recorded diagnoses in the 12 months preceding sarcoma diagnosis.

Methods: Sarcoma cases diagnosed from 2010 to 2020 were identified through the Netherlands Cancer Registry alongside general practice data.

Healthcare utilization patterns of individuals with depression after national policy to increase the mental health workforce in primary care: a data linkage study.

Background: The deployment of the mental health nurse, an additional healthcare provider for individuals in need of mental healthcare in Dutch general practices, was expected to substitute treatments from general practitioners and providers in basic and specialized mental healthcare (psychologists, psychotherapists, psychiatrists, etc.). The goal of this study was to investigate the extent to which the degree of mental health nurse deployment in general practices is associated with healthcare utilization patterns of individuals with depression.

Multivariate GWAS of Alzheimer's disease CSF biomarker profiles implies GRIN2D in synaptic functioning.

Background: Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of Alzheimer's disease (AD) have identified several risk loci, but many remain unknown. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers may aid in gene discovery and we previously demonstrated that six CSF biomarkers (β-amyloid, total/phosphorylated tau, NfL, YKL-40, and neurogranin) cluster into five principal components (PC), each representing statistically independent biological processes. Here, we aimed to (1) identify common genetic variants associated with these CSF profiles, (2) assess the role of associated variants in AD pathophysiology, and (3) explore potential sex differences.

Healthcare utilization patterns for knee and hip osteoarthritis before and after changes in national health insurance coverage: a data linkage study from the Netherlands.

Introduction: Medical guidelines aim to stimulate stepped care for knee and hip osteoarthritis, redirecting treatments from hospitals to primary care. In the Netherlands, this development was supported by changing health insurance coverage for physio/exercise therapy. The aim of this study was to evaluate healthcare utilization patterns before and after health changes in health insurance coverage.

Differentiation and on axon-guidance chip culture of human pluripotent stem cell-derived peripheral cholinergic neurons for airway neurobiology studies.

Airway cholinergic nerves play a key role in airway physiology and disease. In asthma and other diseases of the respiratory tract, airway cholinergic neurons undergo plasticity and contribute to airway hyperresponsiveness and mucus secretion. We currently lack human models for airway cholinergic neurons.

Comparison of reconstruction methods used during liver transplantation in case of a graft with replaced or accessory right hepatic artery: A retrospective study.

Variations in graft arterial anatomy can increase the risk of postoperative hepatic arterial thrombosis (HAT), especially in presence of a replaced or accessory right hepatic artery (RHA). We retrospectively analyzed 223 cases of liver transplantations with the presence of an RHA on the graft. Patient outcomes were compared according to the four different reconstruction methods used: (i) the re-implantation of the RHA into the splenic or gastroduodenal artery (n = 106); (ii) the interposition of the superior mesenteric artery (SMA) (n = 83); (iii) dual anastomosis (n = 24); (iv) use of an aortic patch including the origins of both the SMA and the coeliac trunk (n = 10).

Detection of primary Sjögren's syndrome in primary care: developing a classification model with the use of routine healthcare data and machine learning.

Background: Primary Sjögren's Syndrome (pSS) is a rare autoimmune disease that is difficult to diagnose due to a variety of clinical presentations, resulting in misdiagnosis and late referral to specialists. To improve early-stage disease recognition, this study aimed to develop an algorithm to identify possible pSS patients in primary care. We built a machine learning algorithm which was based on combined healthcare data as a first step towards a clinical decision support system.

Function-specific IL-17A and dexamethasone interactions in primary human airway epithelial cells.

Asthmatics have elevated levels of IL-17A compared to healthy controls. IL-17A is likely to contribute to reduced corticosteroid sensitivity of human airway epithelium. Here, we aimed to investigate the mechanistic underpinnings of this reduced sensitivity in more detail.

Cerebrospinal fluid proteomic profiling of individuals with mild cognitive impairment and suspected non-Alzheimer's disease pathophysiology.

Background: Suspected non-Alzheimer's disease pathophysiology (SNAP) is a biomarker concept that encompasses individuals with neuronal injury but without amyloidosis. We aim to investigate the pathophysiology of SNAP, defined as abnormal tau without amyloidosis, in individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) by cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) proteomics.

Methods: Individuals were classified based on CSF amyloid beta (Aβ)1-42 (A) and phosphorylated tau (T), as cognitively normal A-T- (CN), MCI A-T+ (MCI-SNAP), and MCI A+T+ (MCI-AD).

Effects of age, amyloid, sex, and ε4 on the CSF proteome in normal cognition.

Introduction: It is important to understand which biological processes change with aging, and how such changes are associated with increased Alzheimer's disease (AD) risk. We studied how cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) proteomics changed with age and tested if associations depended on amyloid status, sex, and apolipoprotein E Ɛ4 genotype.

Methods: We included 277 cognitively intact individuals aged 46 to 89 years from Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, European Medical Information Framework for Alzheimer's Disease Multimodal Biomarker Discovery, and Metabolic Syndrome in Men.

Diesel exhaust particles distort lung epithelial progenitors and their fibroblast niche.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a progressive lung disease characterized by inflammation and impaired tissue regeneration, and is reported as the fourth leading cause of death worldwide by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Environmental pollution and specifically motor vehicle emissions are known to play a role in the pathogenesis of COPD, but little is still known about the molecular mechanisms that are altered following diesel exhaust particles (DEP) exposure. Here we used lung organoids derived from co-culture of alveolar epithelial progenitors and fibroblasts to investigate the effect of DEP on the epithelial-mesenchymal signaling niche in the distal lung, which is essential for tissue repair.

Cerebrospinal fluid tau levels are associated with abnormal neuronal plasticity markers in Alzheimer's disease.

Background: Increased total tau (t-tau) in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is a key characteristic of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and is considered to result from neurodegeneration. T-tau levels, however, can be increased in very early disease stages, when neurodegeneration is limited, and can be normal in advanced disease stages. This suggests that t-tau levels may be driven by other mechanisms as well.

A transcriptomics-guided drug target discovery strategy identifies receptor ligands for lung regeneration.

Currently, there is no pharmacological treatment targeting defective tissue repair in chronic disease. Here, we used a transcriptomics-guided drug target discovery strategy using gene signatures of smoking-associated chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and from mice chronically exposed to cigarette smoke, identifying druggable targets expressed in alveolar epithelial progenitors, of which we screened the function in lung organoids. We found several drug targets with regenerative potential, of which EP and IP prostanoid receptor ligands had the most profound therapeutic potential in restoring cigarette smoke-induced defects in alveolar epithelial progenitors in vitro and in vivo.

DNA dynamics in complex coacervate droplets and micelles.

Single stranded DNA (ssDNA), or another polyanion, can be mixed with polycations to form liquid-like complex coacervates. When the polycations are replaced by cationic-neutral diblock copolymers, complex coacervate core micelles (C3Ms) can be formed instead. In both complex coacervates and C3Ms, dynamics plays an important role.

Rare variants in IFFO1, DTNB, NLRC3 and SLC22A10 associate with Alzheimer's disease CSF profile of neuronal injury and inflammation.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) biomarkers represent several neurodegenerative processes, such as synaptic dysfunction, neuronal inflammation and injury, as well as amyloid pathology. We performed an exome-wide rare variant analysis of six AD biomarkers (β-amyloid, total/phosphorylated tau, NfL, YKL-40, and Neurogranin) to discover genes associated with these markers. Genetic and biomarker information was available for 480 participants from two studies: EMIF-AD and ADNI.