Consensus Recommendations for Studies of Outflow Facility and Intraocular Pressure Regulation Using Ex Vivo Perfusion Approaches.

Intraocular pressure (IOP) elevation is the primary risk factor and currently the main treatable factor for progression of glaucomatous optic neuropathy. In addition to direct clinical and living animal in vivo studies, ex vivo perfusion of anterior segments and whole eyes is a key technique for studying conventional outflow function as it is responsible for IOP regulation. We present well-tested experimental details, protocols, considerations, advantages, and limitations of several ex vivo model systems for studying IOP regulation.

Zangsiwei prevents particulate matter-induced lung inflammation and fibrosis by inhibiting the TGF-β/SMAD pathway.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Zangsiwei(ZSW) is a traditional Tibetan medicine from China consisting of extracts of Rhododendron anthopogonoides Maxim, Gentiana Tourn, Corydalis hendersonii Hemsl and Berberis kansuensis C.K.Schneid.

Health economic analysis of polygenic risk score use in primary prevention of coronary artery disease - A system dynamics model.

Background: Primary prevention programs utilising traditional risk scores fail to identify all individuals who suffer acute cardiovascular events. We aimed to model the impact and cost effectiveness of incorporating a Polygenic risk scores (PRS) into the cardiovascular disease CVD primary prevention program in Australia, using a whole-of-system model.

Methods: System dynamics models, encompassing acute and chronic CVD care in the Australian healthcare setting, assessing the cost-effectiveness of incorporating a CAD-PRS in the primary prevention setting.

Phellodendron chinense C.K.Schneid: An in vitro study on its anti-Helicobacter pylori effect.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Phellodendron chinense C.K.Schneid(P.

Critical assessment of variant prioritization methods for rare disease diagnosis within the rare genomes project.

Background: A major obstacle faced by families with rare diseases is obtaining a genetic diagnosis. The average "diagnostic odyssey" lasts over five years and causal variants are identified in under 50%, even when capturing variants genome-wide. To aid in the interpretation and prioritization of the vast number of variants detected, computational methods are proliferating.

Risk of carditis among adolescents after extending the interdose intervals of BNT162b2.

Previous studies indicate an increased carditis risk among adolescents following the two-dose messenger RNA COVID-19 vaccine. Several jurisdictions have extended the interdose interval between the first and second doses to reduce the risk. However, the effectiveness of such an extension policy remains inconclusive.

Multivariate and multi-interface insights into carbon and energy recovery and conversion characteristics of hydrothermal carbonization of biomass waste from duck farm.

High lipid, high nitrogen duck manure (DM) with high lipid, high lignocellulosic litter materials (LM) are the main wet biomass wastes from duck farms and both are naturally abundant carbon resources. The synthesis of duck farming biomass waste into carbon-rich materials for high value utilization by hydrothermal carbonization (HTC), which can directly treat wet biomass, has not been investigated. In this study, the physicochemical properties of hydrochar derived from co-HTC of DM and LM and its carbon and energy recovery patterns were systematically investigated under multivariate conditions of raw materials ratios, solids contents, temperatures and residence times.

Critical assessment of variant prioritization methods for rare disease diagnosis within the Rare Genomes Project.

Background: A major obstacle faced by rare disease families is obtaining a genetic diagnosis. The average "diagnostic odyssey" lasts over five years, and causal variants are identified in under 50%. The Rare Genomes Project (RGP) is a direct-to-participant research study on the utility of genome sequencing (GS) for diagnosis and gene discovery.

Cerebral Oximetry Monitoring in Extremely Preterm Infants.

Background: The use of cerebral oximetry monitoring in the care of extremely preterm infants is increasing. However, evidence that its use improves clinical outcomes is lacking.

Methods: In this randomized, phase 3 trial conducted at 70 sites in 17 countries, we assigned extremely preterm infants (gestational age, <28 weeks), within 6 hours after birth, to receive treatment guided by cerebral oximetry monitoring for the first 72 hours after birth or to receive usual care.

Fragmentation landscape of cell-free DNA revealed by deconvolutional analysis of end motifs.

Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) fragmentation is nonrandom, at least partially mediated by various DNA nucleases, forming characteristic cfDNA end motifs. However, there is a paucity of tools for deciphering the relative contributions of cfDNA cleavage patterns related to underlying fragmentation factors. In this study, through non-negative matrix factorization algorithm, we used 256 5' 4-mer end motifs to identify distinct types of cfDNA cleavage patterns, referred to as "founder" end-motif profiles (F-profiles).

Reduced Community-acquired Respiratory Virus Infection, but Not Non-virus Infection, in Lung Transplant Recipients During Government-mandated Public Health Measures to Reduce COVID-19 Transmission.

Unlabelled: Community-acquired respiratory viruses (CARVs) are an important cause of morbidity and mortality in lung transplant (LTx) recipients. Despite routine mask-wearing, LTx patients remain at a higher risk of CARV infection than the general population. In 2019, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of COVID-19 and a novel CARV, emerged leading federal and state officials to implement public health nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) to curb its spread.

Clinical comparison of three-dimensional exoscope vs. operative microscope in transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion: A retrospective case-control study.

Purpose: Here, we sought to determine the safety and feasibility of three-dimensional exoscope (3D EX). We compared data on surgery, complications, postoperative drainage, hematology, and clinical outcomes in the group that underwent transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) using an operative microscope (OM) relative to those treated using 3D EX.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed records on 74 patients who underwent one- or two-level TLIF from August 2019 to October 2020.

Epigenetic analysis of cell-free DNA by fragmentomic profiling.

Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) fragmentation patterns contain important molecular information linked to tissues of origin. We explored the possibility of using fragmentation patterns to predict cytosine-phosphate-guanine (CpG) methylation of cfDNA, obviating the use of bisulfite treatment and associated risks of DNA degradation. This study investigated the cfDNA cleavage profile surrounding a CpG (i.

Deep learning models for histologic grading of breast cancer and association with disease prognosis.

Histologic grading of breast cancer involves review and scoring of three well-established morphologic features: mitotic count, nuclear pleomorphism, and tubule formation. Taken together, these features form the basis of the Nottingham Grading System which is used to inform breast cancer characterization and prognosis. In this study, we develop deep learning models to perform histologic scoring of all three components using digitized hematoxylin and eosin-stained slides containing invasive breast carcinoma.

Rational Generation of Monoclonal Antibodies Selective for Pathogenic Forms of Alpha-Synuclein.

Misfolded toxic forms of alpha-synuclein (α-Syn) have been implicated in the pathogenesis of synucleinopathies, including Parkinson's disease (PD), dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), and multiple system atrophy (MSA). The α-Syn oligomers and soluble fibrils have been shown to mediate neurotoxicity and cell-to-cell propagation of pathology. To generate antibodies capable of selectively targeting pathogenic forms of α-Syn, computational modeling was used to predict conformational epitopes likely to become exposed on oligomers and small soluble fibrils, but not on monomers or fully formed insoluble fibrils.

Carditis After COVID-19 Vaccination With a Messenger RNA Vaccine and an Inactivated Virus Vaccine : A Case-Control Study.

Background: Case reports of carditis after BNT162b2 vaccination are accruing worldwide.

Objective: To examine the association of BNT162b2 and CoronaVac (Sinovac) vaccination with carditis.

Design: Case-control study with hospital control participants.

Post-Covid-19-vaccination adverse events and healthcare utilization among individuals with or without previous SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Background: Post-marketing pharmacovigilance data are scant on the safety of Covid-19 vaccines among people with previous SARS-CoV-2 infection compared with ordinary vaccine recipients. We compared the post-vaccination adverse events of special interests (AESI), accident and emergency room (A&E) visit, and hospitalization between these two groups.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study using a territory-wide public healthcare database with population-based vaccination records in Hong Kong.

Artificial intelligence for diagnosis and Gleason grading of prostate cancer: the PANDA challenge.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has shown promise for diagnosing prostate cancer in biopsies. However, results have been limited to individual studies, lacking validation in multinational settings. Competitions have been shown to be accelerators for medical imaging innovations, but their impact is hindered by lack of reproducibility and independent validation.

Single-molecule sequencing reveals a large population of long cell-free DNA molecules in maternal plasma.

In the field of circulating cell-free DNA, most of the studies have focused on short DNA molecules (e.g., <500 bp).

Using CRISPR Interference as a Therapeutic Approach to Treat TGFβ2-Induced Ocular Hypertension and Glaucoma.

Purpose: Primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) is a leading cause of blindness worldwide with elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) as the most important risk factor. POAG IOP elevation is due to pathological changes in the trabecular meshwork (TM). Elevated TGFβ2 contributes to these changes and increases IOP.

Hybrid external-cavity lasers (ECL) using photonic wire bonds as coupling elements.

Combining semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOA) on direct-bandgap III-V substrates with low-loss silicon or silicon-nitride photonic integrated circuits (PIC) has been key to chip-scale external-cavity lasers (ECL) that offer wideband tunability along with small optical linewidths. However, fabrication of such devices still relies on technologically demanding monolithic integration of heterogeneous material systems or requires costly high-precision package-level assembly, often based on active alignment, to achieve low-loss coupling between the SOA and the external feedback circuits. In this paper, we demonstrate a novel class of hybrid ECL that overcome these limitations by exploiting 3D-printed photonic wire bonds as intra-cavity coupling elements.

Presence of Subclinical Hypercortisolism in Clinical Aldosterone-Producing Adenomas Predicts Lower Clinical Success.

The clinical characteristics and outcomes in patients with clinical aldosterone-producing adenomas harboring mutations with or without subclinical hypercortisolism remain unclear. This prospective study is aimed at determining factors associated with subclinical hypercortisolism in patients with clinical aldosterone-producing adenomas. Totally, 82 patients were recruited from November 2016 to March 2018 and underwent unilateral laparoscopic adrenalectomy with at least a 12-month follow-up postoperatively.

Release risk assessment of trace metals in urban soils using in-situ DGT and DIFS model.

Urbanization and urban construction lead to entensive environmental deterioration. Trace metals in urban soils pose a threat to urban water bodies and local populations. However, the release ability of labile metals and their release risk in urban soils remains unclear.

Methylation analysis of plasma DNA informs etiologies of Epstein-Barr virus-associated diseases.

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is associated with a number of diseases, including malignancies. Currently, it is not known whether patients with different EBV-associated diseases have different methylation profiles of circulating EBV DNA. Through whole-genome methylation analysis of plasma samples from patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), EBV-associated lymphoma and infectious mononucleosis, we demonstrate that EBV DNA methylation profiles exhibit a disease-associated pattern.