Publications by authors named "C-K Liang"

Genome-sequence-based newborn screening (gNBS) has substantial potential to improve outcomes in hundreds of severe childhood genetic disorders (SCGDs). However, a major impediment to gNBS is imprecision due to variants classified as pathogenic (P) or likely pathogenic (LP) that are not SCGD causal. gNBS with 53,855 P/LP variants, 342 genes, 412 SCGDs, and 1,603 therapies was positive in 74% of UK Biobank (UKB470K) adults, suggesting 97% false positives.

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  • - This study aimed to explore the link between mean ocular perfusion pressure (MOPP), cerebrospinal fluid pressure (CSFP), and the occurrence of diabetic retinopathy (DR) in Southern Chinese individuals with type 2 diabetes (T2DM).
  • - Conducted with 1,224 participants, the research involved measuring blood pressures and calculating MOPP and CSFP; results showed that higher MOPP is associated with an increased risk of DR incidence but not with its progression or regression.
  • - The findings suggest that monitoring MOPP and blood pressure may help prevent or delay the onset of DR in T2DM patients, indicating MOPP could serve as a useful marker for detecting DR incidence.
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  • Bacterial gastrointestinal diseases, particularly those caused by various Shigella species, lead to significant health issues globally, causing approximately 125 million cases of shigellosis and 14,000 deaths each year, mostly in young children in developing nations.
  • A Phase 1 clinical trial evaluated the safety and tolerability of a new treatment called ShigActive™, a lytic bacteriophage aimed at Shigella, comparing its effects with a placebo over 29 days.
  • Results showed that ShigActive™ was generally safe and well tolerated, with mild side effects reported by some participants and no serious adverse events, indicating it could be a potential option for treating shigellosis
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Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the choroidal characteristics of vortex vein (VV) drainage systems in healthy individuals using ultra-widefield optical coherence tomography angiography.

Methods: The mean choroidal thickness (ChT) and choroidal vascularity index (CVI) of each VV quadrant (24 × 20 mm2 scan mode; superotemporal [ST], superonasal [SN], inferonasal [IN], and inferotemporal [IT] quadrants) were calculated. Furthermore, intervortex venous anastomosis (IVA) was classified into temporal, superior, inferior, and nasal types.

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Peripheral nerve injury often leads to symptoms of motor and sensory impairment, and slow recovery of nerves after injury and limited treatment methods will aggravate symptoms or even lead to lifelong disability. Curcumin can promote peripheral nerve regeneration, but how to accurately deliver the appropriate concentration of curcumin in the local peripheral nerve remains to be solved. In this study, we designed a human hair keratin/chitosan (C/K) hydrogel with sodium tripolyphosphate ions crosslinked to deliver curcumin topically.

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Several interleukin-1 (IL-1) family members, including IL-1β and IL-18, require processing by inflammasome-associated caspases to unleash their activities. Here, we unveil, by cryoelectron microscopy (cryo-EM), two major conformations of the complex between caspase-1 and pro-IL-18. One conformation is similar to the complex of caspase-4 and pro-IL-18, with interactions at both the active site and an exosite (closed conformation), and the other only contains interactions at the active site (open conformation).

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  • The Fracture Risk Assessment Tool (FRAX®) is used globally to calculate fracture risk but its methodology is not publicly available.
  • A study using data from a Taiwan community survey identified key clinical risk factors and simplified the FRAX® tool, enabling easier assessment of fracture risk.
  • The new model, which focuses on three primary risk factors, aims to help community screenings and provides a user-friendly way to estimate 10-year fracture risk without requiring specialized measurements like bone mineral density.
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Background: Meningioma is the most common primary intracranial tumor with a high frequency of postoperative recurrence, yet the biology of the meningioma malignancy process is still obscure.

Methods: To identify potential therapeutic targets and tumor suppressors, we performed single-cell transcriptome analysis through meningioma malignancy, which included 18 samples spanning normal meninges, benign and high-grade in situ tumors, and lung metastases, for extensive transcriptome characterization. Tumor suppressor candidate gene and molecular mechanism were functionally validated at the animal model and cellular levels.

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Gasdermin D (GSDMD)-activated inflammatory cell death (pyroptosis) causes mitochondrial damage, but its underlying mechanism and functional consequences are largely unknown. Here, we show that the N-terminal pore-forming GSDMD fragment (GSDMD-NT) rapidly damaged both inner and outer mitochondrial membranes (OMMs) leading to reduced mitochondrial numbers, mitophagy, ROS, loss of transmembrane potential, attenuated oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS), and release of mitochondrial proteins and DNA from the matrix and intermembrane space. Mitochondrial damage occurred as soon as GSDMD was cleaved prior to plasma membrane damage.

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Two new excited states, Ω_{c}(3185)^{0} and Ω_{c}(3327)^{0}, are observed in the Ξ_{c}^{+}K^{-} invariant-mass spectrum using proton-proton collision data collected by the LHCb experiment, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 9  fb^{-1}. Five previously observed excited Ω_{c}^{0} states are confirmed, namely Ω_{c}(3000)^{0}, Ω_{c}(3050)^{0}, Ω_{c}(3065)^{0}, Ω_{c}(3090)^{0}, and Ω_{c}(3119)^{0}. The masses and widths of these seven states are measured with the highest precision to date.

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Background: Pancreatic adenocarcinoma is an aggressive disease and the delivery of comprehensive care to individuals with this cancer is critical to achieve appropriate outcomes. The identification of gaps in care delivery facilitates the design of interventions to optimize care delivery and improve outcomes in this population.

Methods: AccessHope™ is a growing organization that connects oncology subspecialists with treating providers through contracts with self-insured employers.

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Purpose: To evaluate differences in the choroidal vortex vein drainage system (VV) in eyes between patients with central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC) and unaffected individuals using ultra-widefield optical coherence tomography angiography (UWF-OCTA).

Methods: In this cross-sectional observational study, 40 eyes of patients with CSC and 28 eyes of healthy volunteers were included. The analysis involved the use of UWF-OCTA to analyze the proportion of the choroidal vortex vein drainage system (VV%), choroidal thickness, choroidal vascular volume (CVV), and choroidal vascularity index (CVI) of the VV in each drainage quadrant.

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To explore the effects of long-term balanced fertilization and straw mulching on soil nutrients and stoichiometric ratios in purple soil sloping cropland, nine plots (length 7 m×width 3 m) were established in Dianjiang County as the research sample area of long-term farmland nitrogen and phosphorus loss monitoring. The following three treatments were set up:conventional mode (CK), balanced fertilization mode (M1), and balanced fertilization+straw mulching mode (M2), with three replications for each treatment to compare the contents of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) and their stoichiometric changes under different treatments from 2018 to 2020. The results showed:K contents showed significant differences among the three treatments in 2018, in the order of CK>M2>M1.

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For exploring the difference of root stoichiometric characteristics among diameter classes and provenances, we examined the contents and stoichiometric ratios of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) in three diameter classes of roots (0-1, 1-2 and 2-5 mm, respectively) of 39-year-old grown in a common garden. The results showed that root element contents and their stoichiometric ratios had significant difference among three diameter classes of roots. C content, C:N, C:P, C:K were the lowest, and N, P, K contents, N:P, and N:K were the highest in 0-1 mm diameter class roots.

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  • A study analyzed early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients in Taiwan, comparing the effects of adjuvant oral uracil-tegafur (UFT) with intravenous chemotherapy following surgery between January 2011 and December 2017.* -
  • Results showed that before adjusting for confounding factors, patients using UFT had better overall and relapse-free survival rates than those receiving intravenous chemotherapy, but after matching the groups, their survival rates were similar.* -
  • The findings suggest that both UFT and intravenous chemotherapy are similarly effective in treating early-stage NSCLC post-surgery, while UFT showed some benefits in specific subgroups like non-drinkers and stage IB patients.*
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Neuroblastoma RAS (NRAS) is an oncogene that is deregulated and highly mutated in cancers including melanomas and acute myeloid leukemias. The 5' untranslated region (UTR) (5' UTR) of the NRAS mRNA contains a G-quadruplex (G4) that regulates translation. Here we report a novel class of small molecule that binds to the G4 structure located in the 5' UTR of the NRAS mRNA.

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  • Researchers found that mSWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complexes, especially cBAF, help SARS-CoV-2 infect host cells and could be targeted for new therapies.
  • The protein SMARCA4 is crucial for making the ACE2 gene accessible, which is important for the virus to enter cells, with certain transcription factors assisting in this process.
  • Using small molecules to inhibit mSWI/SNF activity can prevent ACE2 expression, offering protection against SARS-CoV-2 and its variants across various cell types, which suggests a promising approach for developing antivirals.
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  • The study investigates how diet and obesity influence hyperuricemia, a condition characterized by high serum urate levels, by analyzing data from over 20,000 US adults.
  • It identifies three nutrient patterns, with a specific focus on one related to Vitamin B that shows a potential effect on hyperuricemia, while highlighting a dominant pattern of high fat and low vitamin intake linked to obesity.
  • The results indicate that obesity significantly mediates the impact of dietary patterns on hyperuricemia, suggesting that a weight-loss diet may be an effective strategy for prevention.
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Human activities and environment changes have changed river estuary ecosystems, which impacts element changes in coastal sediments and mangroves. Mangrove propagule chemical traits showed a systematic shift along environmental gradients. But knowledge about how the pattern of multi-element variability is coordinated in propagule remains limited, and the conservation of macro and trace elements in propagules is also unknown.

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Asthma and inflammatory airway diseases restrict airflow in the lung, compromising gas exchange and lung function. Inhaled corticosteroids (ICSs) can reduce inflammation, control symptoms, and improve lung function; however, a growing number of patients with severe asthma do not benefit from ICS. Using bronchial airway epithelial brushings from patients with severe asthma or primary human cells, we delineated a corticosteroid-driven fibroblast growth factor (FGF)-dependent inflammatory axis, with FGF-responsive fibroblasts promoting downstream granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) production, hyaluronan secretion, and neutrophilic inflammation.

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  • Coronary artery disease (CAD) is now recognized not just as a lipid disorder but also as a condition marked by chronic inflammation, particularly involving immune cell activity in atherosclerotic plaques.
  • Researchers employed single-cell technology to explore the immune microenvironment of coronary plaques at various maturity stages, revealing a significant presence of activated αβ T cells alongside macrophages.
  • Findings indicated these T cells, which show clonal expansion and specificity to several viral epitopes, are likely involved in autoimmune responses contributing to the disease, with some exhibiting pro-inflammatory properties that may further encourage plaque progression.
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Mammalian SWI/SNF (mSWI/SNF or BAF) ATP-dependent chromatin remodeling complexes play critical roles in governing genomic architecture and gene expression and are frequently perturbed in human cancers. Transcription factors (TFs), including fusion oncoproteins, can bind to BAF complex surfaces to direct chromatin targeting and accessibility, often activating oncogenic gene loci. Here, we demonstrate that the FUS::DDIT3 fusion oncoprotein hallmark to myxoid liposarcoma (MLPS) inhibits BAF complex-mediated remodeling of adipogenic enhancer sites via sequestration of the adipogenic TF, CEBPB, from the genome.

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