Characterizing Patient Perceptions of Living with Geographic Atrophy: The Global Geographic Atrophy Insights Survey.

Background: Geographic atrophy (GA) is an advanced form of age-related macular degeneration leading to irreversible vision loss and negative impacts on quality of life.

Methods: To assess the experiences of living with GA, the Geographic Atrophy Insights Survey (GAINS) was conducted between October 12, 2021, and December 10, 2021, captured the responses of individuals ≥60 years with a self-reported GA diagnosis residing in the United States, Canada, Australia, and six European countries. Survey questions focused on the perceptions of individuals living with GA and covered six themes: speed of disease progression, effect on independence, impact on quality of life, emotional toll of GA, misconceptions and need for further education about GA, and clinician interactions.

XopM, An FFAT Motif-Containing Type III Effector Protein From Xanthomonas, Suppresses MTI Responses at the Plant Plasma Membrane.

Many gram-negative pathogenic bacteria use type III effector proteins (T3Es) as essential virulence factors to suppress host immunity and to cause disease. However, in many cases the molecular function of T3Es remains unknown. The plant pathogen Xanthomonas campestris pv.

Optimizing the lifestyle of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus - Systematic review on the effects of combined diet-and-exercise interventions.

Aim: To investigate the effects of combined diet-and-exercise interventions in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Data Synthesis: A systematic literature search was conducted on PubMed, Web of Science, SPORTDiscus and BISp Surf databases (latest update in June 2024). A total of 14706 records was identified.

Validation of Golden Gate Assemblies Using Highly Multiplexed Nanopore Amplicon Sequencing.

Golden Gate cloning has revolutionized synthetic biology. Its concept of modular, highly characterized libraries of parts that can be combined into higher order assemblies allows engineering principles to be applied to biological systems. The basic parts, typically stored in Level 0 plasmids, are sequence validated by the method of choice and can be combined into higher order assemblies on demand.

[Aflibercept in the clinical routine: the AURIGA study : The 24-month results of the German cohort of treatment-naïve patients with diabetic macular edema receiving intravitreal aflibercept].

Background: AURIGA is the largest prospective real-world study to evaluate intravitreal aflibercept (IVT-AFL) treatment of diabetic macular edema (DME) and macular edema secondary to retinal vein occlusion. This article presents 24-month data from the German cohort of treatment-naïve patients with DME.

Methods: Treatment-naïve patients (≥ 18 years) with DME were treated with IVT-AFL at the discretion of the physician in clinical practice.

Effects of exercise, metformin and their combination on glucose metabolism in individuals with abnormal glycaemic control: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.

Objective: To compare the efficacy of exercise, metformin and their combination on glucose metabolism in individuals with abnormal glycaemic control.

Design: Systematic review and network meta-analysis.

Data Sources: Embase, Web of Science, PubMed/MEDLINE and SPORTDiscus.

Chloroplast Cell-Free Systems from Different Plant Species as a Rapid Prototyping Platform.

Climate change poses a significant threat to global agriculture, necessitating innovative solutions. Plant synthetic biology, particularly chloroplast engineering, holds promise as a viable approach to this challenge. Chloroplasts present a variety of advantageous traits for genetic engineering, but the development of genetic tools and genetic part characterization in these organelles is hindered by the lengthy time scales required to generate transplastomic organisms.

Performance of Purpose-Built vs Off-Label Transcatheter Devices for Aortic Regurgitation: The PURPOSE Study.

Background: Severe pure aortic regurgitation (AR) carries a high mortality and morbidity risk, and it is often undertreated because of the inherent surgical risk. Transcatheter heart valves (THVs) have been used off-label in this setting with overall suboptimal results. The dedicated "purpose-built" Jena Valve Trilogy (JVT, JenaValve Technology) showed an encouraging performance, although it has never been compared to other THVs.

The Influence of Acute and Chronic Exercise on Appetite and Appetite Regulation in Patients with Prediabetes or Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus-A Systematic Review.

This systematic review aims to analyze the effects of acute and chronic exercise on appetite and appetite regulation in patients with abnormal glycemic control. PubMed, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched for eligible studies. The included studies had to report assessments of appetite (primary outcome).

An Optimized Genotyping Workflow for Identifying Highly SCRaMbLEd Synthetic Yeasts.

Synthetic Sc2.0 yeast strains contain hundreds to thousands of recombination sites that allow restructuring of the genome by SCRaMbLE. Thus, a highly diverse yeast population can arise from a single genotype.

From Health to Well-Being: Toward a Monetary Valuation of a Well-Being-Adjusted Life-Year.

Objectives: Economic evaluations using broader measures to capture benefits beyond improved health can inform policy making, but only if the monetary value of gains measured using these instruments is understood. This study explored contingent valuation as a method to estimate the monetary value of a well-being-adjusted life-year (WALY) as measured by ICEpop Capability Measure for Adults (ICECAP-A).

Methods: In a large online survey of representative samples from 7 European countries, participants valued a change in the ICECAP-A from their current health state to a randomly assigned hypothetical state.

DuBA.flow─A Low-Cost, Long-Read Amplicon Sequencing Workflow for the Validation of Synthetic DNA Constructs.

Modern biological science, especially synthetic biology, relies heavily on the construction of DNA elements, often in the form of plasmids. Plasmids are used for a variety of applications, including the expression of proteins for subsequent purification, the expression of heterologous pathways for the production of valuable compounds, and the study of biological functions and mechanisms. For all applications, a critical step after the construction of a plasmid is its sequence validation.

Is there a different rating of perceived exertion in men with type 2 diabetes mellitus?

Objective: Studies show that patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) do not engage in regular exercise as often as individuals without T2DM. In addition to numerous barriers to engaging in regular exercise, a different rating of perceived exertion (RPE) during physical activity has been hypothesized to play a role. Therefore, this study investigates whether T2DM affects RPE.

Road map for personalized exercise medicine in T2DM.

The number of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is rising at an alarming rate. Regular physical activity and exercise are cornerstones in the therapy of T2DM. While a one-size-fits-all approach fails to account for many between-subject differences, the use of personalized exercise medicine has the potential of optimizing health outcomes.

Incidence, Predictors, and Prognostic Impact of New Permanent Pacemaker Implantation After TAVR With Self-Expanding Valves.

Objectives: The authors sought to evaluate the incidence, predictors, and outcomes of new permanent pacemaker implantation (PPI) after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) with contemporary self-expanding valves (SEV).

Background: Need for PPI is frequent post-TAVR, but conflicting data exist on new-generation SEV and on the prognostic impact of PPI.

Methods: This study included 3,211 patients enrolled in the multicenter NEOPRO (A Multicenter Comparison of Acurate NEO Versus Evolut PRO Transcatheter Heart Valves) and NEOPRO-2 (A Multicenter Comparison of ACURATE NEO2 Versus Evolut PRO/PRO+ Transcatheter Heart Valves 2) registries (January 2012 to December 2021) who underwent transfemoral TAVR with SEV.

Jumping the Queue:Willingness to Pay for Faster Access to COVID-19 Vaccines in Seven European Countries.

Introduction: Given the initial shortage of vaccines to protect against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), many countries set up priority lists, implying that large parts of the population had to wait. We therefore elicited the willingness to pay (WTP) for access to two hypothetical COVID-19 vaccines.

Methods: Respondents were asked how much they would be willing to pay to get an immediate COVID-19 vaccination rather than waiting for one through the public system.

ELSAH (electronic smart patch system for wireless monitoring of molecular biomarkers for healthcare and wellbeing): definition of possible use cases.

The ELSAH (electronic smart patch system for wireless monitoring of molecular biomarkers for healthcare and wellbeing) project has received funding from EU's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program (grant agreement no. 825549). Its aim is to develop a wearable smart patch-based microneedle sensor system that can simultaneously measure several biomarkers in users' dermal interstitial fluid.

DIGGER-Bac: prediction of seed regions for high-fidelity construction of synthetic small RNAs in bacteria.

Synthetic small RNAs (sRNAs) are gaining increasing attention in the field of synthetic biology and bioengineering for efficient post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression. However, the optimal design of synthetic sRNAs is challenging because alterations may impair functions or off-target effects can arise. Here, we introduce DIGGER-Bac, a toolbox for Design and Identification of seed regions for Golden Gate assembly and Expression of synthetic sRNAs in Bacteria.

Five-Year Clinical Outcomes of Inferior Quadrant Trabectome Surgery for Open Angle Glaucoma.

Prcis: This retrospective study of 264 eyes having inferior quadrant trabectome surgery confirms its safety and relative effectiveness. Most patients however still require IOP-lowering agents, and a considerable proportion may need additional glaucoma surgery.

Purpose: To report outcomes from a large single-center cohort of inferiorly-applied trabectome surgery.

Lifestyle intervention reduces risk score for cardiovascular mortality in company employees with pre-diabetes or diabetes mellitus - A secondary analysis of the PreFord randomized controlled trial with 3 years of follow-up.

Aim: To evaluate the effects of a multimodal intervention (including exercise training, psychosocial interventions, nutrition coaching, smoking cessation program, medical care) on the health and long-term cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality risk of company employees with pre-diabetes or diabetes mellitus (DM) at high CVD risk.

Methods: In the PreFord study, German company employees (n=4196) participated in a free-of-charge CVD mortality risk screening at their workplace. Based on their European Society of Cardiology - Systematic Coronary Risk Evaluation score (ESC-SCORE), they were subdivided into three risk groups.

Clinical Outcomes of XEN45-Stent Implantation after Failed Trabeculectomy: A Retrospective Single-Center Study.

Background: The implantation of a collagen gel micro-stent (XEN45) as a minimally invasive form of glaucoma surgery (MIGS) after a failed trabeculectomy (TE) may be an effective option with few risks. This study investigated the clinical outcome of XEN45 implantation after a failed TE, with follow-up data of up to 30 months.

Materials And Methods: In this paper, we present a retrospective review of patients undergoing XEN45 implantation after a failed TE at the University Eye Hospital Bonn, Germany, from 2012 to 2020.

Cell-free fetal DNA for genetic evaluation in Copenhagen Pregnancy Loss Study (COPL): a prospective cohort study.

Background: One in four pregnancies end in a pregnancy loss. Although the effect on couples is well documented, evidence-based treatments and prediction models are absent. Fetal aneuploidy is associated with a higher chance of a next successful pregnancy compared with euploid pregnancy loss in which underlying maternal conditions might be causal.

From Zero to Hero: Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients Hike on the Way of St. James-A Feasibility Study with Analyses of Patients' Quality of Life, Diabetes Distress and Glucose Profile.

This study investigates the feasibility of an accompanied 5-day hiking tour (Way of St. James) for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients and its impact on their quality of life/well-being, diabetes distress and glucose profile. Twenty-three T2DM patients (with and without insulin therapy) participated in the study.