Resolution of acute inflammation induced by monosodium urate crystals (MSU) through neutrophil extracellular trap-MSU aggregate-mediated negative signaling.

Background: Polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) activation by monosodium urate crystals (MSU) is crucial to acute gouty arthritis and subsequent spontaneous remission within 7-10 days. Activated PMNs release neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) that entrap MSU crystals, forming NET-MSU aggregates. Whether NET-MSU aggregates contribute to the resolution of acute inflammation remains to be elucidated.

Pre-treatment pan-immune-inflammation value as a prognostic marker of pazopanib in soft tissue sarcoma.

Background: Increasingly, more evidence has shown that inflammation stress and the tumor microenvironment pose a negative effect on targeted therapy. The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio is considered to be a surrogate biomarker of inflammation and can predict pazopanib treatment effect in non-adipocytic soft-tissue sarcoma (STS). The role of the pan-immune-inflammation value (PIV) in STS is still yet to be determined.

Advanced Glycation End-Products Acting as Immunomodulators for Chronic Inflammation, Inflammaging and Carcinogenesis in Patients with Diabetes and Immune-Related Diseases.

Increased production of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) among reducing sugars (glucose, fructose, galactose, or ribose) and amino acids/proteins via non-enzymatic Maillard reaction can be found in lifestyle-related disease (LSRD), metabolic syndrome (MetS), and obesity and immune-related diseases. Increased serum levels of AGEs may induce aging, diabetic complications, cardiovascular diseases (CVD), neurodegenerative diseases (NDD), cancer, and inflamm-aging (inflammation with immunosenescence). The Maillard reaction can also occur among reducing sugars and lipoproteins or DNAs to alter their structure and induce immunogenicity/genotoxicity for carcinogenesis.

Temporal lobe malacia as a rare cause of gelastic seizure: A case report.

Background: Gelastic seizure (GS) is a rare type of epilepsy that most commonly appears in patients with hypothalamic hamartoma. It is rarely associated with other types of brain damage. This particular type of epilepsy is relatively rare and has few links to other brain lesions.

Iterative Reconstruction of Micro Computed Tomography Scans Using Multiple Heterogeneous GPUs.

Graphics processing units (GPUs) facilitate massive parallelism and high-capacity storage, and thus are suitable for the iterative reconstruction of ultrahigh-resolution micro computed tomography (CT) scans by on-the-fly system matrix (OTFSM) calculation using ordered subsets expectation maximization (OSEM). We propose a finite state automaton (FSA) method that facilitates iterative reconstruction using a heterogeneous multi-GPU platform through parallelizing the matrix calculations derived from a ray tracing system of ordered subsets. The FSAs perform flow control for parallel threading of the heterogeneous GPUs, which minimizes the latency of launching ordered-subsets tasks, reduces the data transfer between the main system memory and local GPU memory, and solves the memory-bound of a single GPU.

A micro-architectured material as a pressure vessel for green mobility.

A shellular is a micro-architectured material, composed of a continuous smooth-curved thin shell in the form of a triply periodic minimal surface. Thanks to the unique geometry, a shellular can support external load by co-planar stresses, unlike microlattice, nanolattice, and mechanical metamaterial. That is, the shellular is the only stretching-dominated material with the highest strength at a density of less than 10g/cc.

Feasibility evaluation of middle-phase F-florbetaben positron emission tomography imaging using centiloid quantification and visual assessment.

Background: F-florbetaben (FBB) positron emission tomography (PET) scan has been widely used in research and routine clinical practice. Most studies used late-phase (scanning from 90 to 110 min after injection) FBB scans to generate beta-amyloid accumulation data. The feasibility of middle-phase scan is seldom discussed.

Reduced slow-wave activity and autonomic dysfunction during sleep precede cognitive deficits in Alzheimer's disease transgenic mice.

Occurrence of amyloid-β (Aβ) aggregation in brain begins before the clinical onset of Alzheimer's disease (AD), as preclinical AD. Studies have reported that sleep problems and autonomic dysfunction associate closely with AD. However, whether they, especially the interaction between sleep and autonomic function, play critical roles in preclinical AD are unclear.

Unveiling the molecular basis of inflamm-aging induced by advanced glycation end products (AGEs)-modified human serum albumin (AGE-HSA) in patients with different immune-mediated diseases.

Increased serum advanced glycation end products (AGEs) are commonly found in the patients with Diabetes mellitus (DM), aging-related diseases, and immune-mediated diseases. These diseases are notorious for vasculopathy, immune dysfunctions, and low-grade inflammation mimicking inflamm-aging. However, the molecular basis of inflamm-aging related to AGEs remains elucidation.

40.1-GHz sub-freezing 850-nm VCSEL: microwave extraction of cavity lifetimes and small-signal equivalent circuit modeling.

We present an 850-nm vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) constructed for a wide operating temperature range from 25°C to -50°C sub-freezing temperature, demonstrating 40.1-GHz at -50°C. The optical spectra, junction temperature, and microwave equivalent circuit modeling of a sub-freezing 850-nm VCSEL between -50°C and 25°C are also discussed.

Immunoprofile of adenosquamous carcinoma in gastric cancer.

Background: Gastric adenosquamous carcinoma (GASC) is a rare subtype of gastric cancer. Research on GASC treatment is limited, and its outcome is usually poor. We investigated the clinical features, immunoprofile of GASC, and determined the optimal treatment modality for these patients.

A modified method of augmented distal clavicle fracture osteosynthesis with a Fibertape coracoclavicular cerclage.

Background: Unstable distal clavicles experience high non-union rates, prompting surgeons to recommend surgery for more predictable outcomes. There is a lack of consensus on the optimal method of surgical fixation, with an array of techniques described in the literature. We describe an alternative method of fixation involving the use of a distal clavicular anatomical locking plate with Fibertape cerclage augmentation in our series of patients.

Does minimally invasive spine surgery reduce surgical site infection rates in the trauma patient? A Southeast Asian experience.

Introduction: The trauma patient has an increased susceptibility to postoperative surgical site infection (SSI). There is a lack of studies in the literature investigating the rates of SSI in minimally invasive spine (MIS) surgery for trauma patients with associated injuries, who also require surgical intervention for thoracolumbar fractures. We aim to investigate if MIS surgery for trauma patients reduces the incidence of SSI through a less invasive approach and smaller surgical incision.

Clinical Features and Immunophenotypes of Double-Hit Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma.

Double-hit (DH) genetics induces a reduction in the complete remission (CR) and, consequently, in poor overall survival (OS) in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) patients. Unfortunately, DH identification is time-consuming. Here, we retrospectively reviewed 92 newly diagnosed DLBCL patients, stratified them into the DH ( = 14) and non-DH groups ( = 78), and compared their clinical features and outcomes.

Molecular Basis for Paradoxical Activities of Polymorphonuclear Neutrophils in Inflammation/Anti-Inflammation, Bactericide/Autoimmunity, Pro-Cancer/Anticancer, and Antiviral Infection/SARS-CoV-II-Induced Immunothrombotic Dysregulation.

Polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs) are the most abundant white blood cells in the circulation. These cells act as the fast and powerful defenders against environmental pathogenic microbes to protect the body. In addition, these innate inflammatory cells can produce a number of cytokines/chemokines/growth factors for actively participating in the immune network and immune homeostasis.

Predictors of Response to Oral Medications and Low-Histamine Diet in Patients with Chronic Urticaria.

Background: Chronic urticaria (CU) is comprised of diverse phenotypes, and thus, a shift towards a precision medical approach is warranted in its management.

Methods: This study enrolled 78 patients with CU. Serum erythrocyte sedimentation rate, hemoglobin, hematocrit, eosinophil count, IgE, antinuclear antibody (ANA), and serum diamine oxidase (DAO) levels of the patients were measured and were compared according to the patient's response to second-generation antihistamines (sgAH), corticosteroids, leukotriene receptor antagonist (LTRA), H blockers, and low-histamine diet.

Contralateral recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy in revision anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF): A cautionary tale.

Revision anterior cervical spine surgery has a higher risk of recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy (RLNP). We describe a unique case of an isolated RLNP contralateral to the side of the surgical approach in a patient who underwent revision anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) for cervical myelopathy, and in whom pre-operative laryngoscopic evaluation had excluded a pre-existing occult RLNP. Scarring around the recurrent laryngeal nerve at the previous surgical site may have rendered it less mobile, resulting in it being more susceptible to compression from an inflated endotracheal tube (ETT) cuff or traction from surgical retractors.

The Potential Role of Genetics, Environmental Factors, and Gut Dysbiosis in the Aberrant Non-Coding RNA Expression to Mediate Inflammation and Osteoclastogenic/Osteogenic Differentiation in Ankylosing Spondylitis.

Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) or radiographic axial spondyloarthritis is a chronic immune-mediated rheumatic disorder characterized by the inflammation in the axial skeleton, peripheral joints, and soft tissues (enthesis, fascia, and ligament). In addition, the extra-skeletal complications including anterior uveitis, interstitial lung diseases and aortitis are found. The pathogenesis of AS implicates an intricate interaction among HLA (HLA-B27) and non-HLA loci [endoplasmic reticulum aminopeptidase 1 (), and interleukin-23 receptor (), gut dysbiosis, immune plasticity, and numerous environmental factors (infections, heavy metals, stress, cigarette smoking, etc.

Multistability of a Two-Dimensional Map Arising in an Influenza Model.

In this paper, we propose and analyze a nonsmoothly two-dimensional map arising in a seasonal influenza model. Such map consists of both linear and nonlinear dynamics depending on where the map acts on its domain. The map exhibits a complicated and unpredictable dynamics such as fixed points, period points, chaotic attractors, or multistability depending on the ranges of a certain parameters.

Molecular Basis of Accelerated Aging with Immune Dysfunction-Mediated Inflammation (Inflamm-Aging) in Patients with Systemic Sclerosis.

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a chronic connective tissue disorder characterized by immune dysregulation, chronic inflammation, vascular endothelial cell dysfunction, and progressive tissue fibrosis of the skin and internal organs. Moreover, increased cancer incidence and accelerated aging are also found. The increased cancer incidence is believed to be a result of chromosome instability.

Biomaterial-induced conversion of quiescent cardiomyocytes into pacemaker cells in rats.

Pacemaker cells can be differentiated from stem cells or transdifferentiated from quiescent mature cardiac cells via genetic manipulation. Here we show that the exposure of rat quiescent ventricular cardiomyocytes to a silk-fibroin hydrogel activates the direct conversion of the quiescent cardiomyocytes to pacemaker cardiomyocytes by inducing the ectopic expression of the vascular endothelial cell-adhesion glycoprotein cadherin. The silk-fibroin-induced pacemaker cells exhibited functional and morphological features of genuine sinoatrial-node cardiomyocytes in vitro, and pacemaker cells generated via the injection of silk fibroin in the left ventricles of rats functioned as a surrogate in situ sinoatrial node.

Transient ventricular arrhythmia as a rare cause of dizziness during exercise: A case report.

Background: Dizziness is a common symptom in adults and usually due to peripheral causes affecting semicircular canal function or central causes affecting the pons, medulla, or cerebellum. Arrhythmia is a recognized cause of dizziness in people with structural or ischemic heart disease. We report a case of exercise-induced transient ventricular tachycardia and dizziness in a man with no evidence of organic heart disease.