Overall survival of patients with cHL who progress after autologous stem cell transplant: results in the novel agent era.

In the pre-novel agent era, the median postprogression overall survival (PPS) of patients with classic Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) who progress after autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT) was 2 to 3 years. Recently, checkpoint inhibitors (CPI) and brentuximab vedotin (BV) have improved the depth and durability of response in this population. Here, we report the estimate of PPS in patients with relapsed cHL after ASCT in the era of CPI and BV.

Case report: Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease presenting with anxiety symptoms in a COVID-19 post-infection patient.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD) is a rare, rapidly progressive, and fatal neurodegenerative disorder. We describe a man whose initial manifestations of CJD occurred shortly after contracting Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). He first developed anxiety and short-term memory loss a few weeks after a mild COVID-19 infection.

Money can't buy happiness: A randomized controlled trial of a digital mental health app with versus without financial incentives.

Mental health disorders are prevalent among college students and increasing in frequency and severity. However, there is a significant gap between those who need treatment and those who engage in treatment. Given the documented efficacy of financial incentives for promoting health behavior change and engagement in treatment, financial incentives may help, along with nonfinancial behavioral incentives such as motivational messaging, gamification, and loss aversion techniques.

Engineering a natural ligand-based CAR: directed evolution of the stress-receptor NKp30.

B7H6, a stress-induced ligand which binds to the NK cell receptor NKp30, has recently emerged as a promising candidate for immunotherapy due to its tumor-specific expression on a broad array of human tumors. NKp30 can function as a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) extracellular domain but exhibits weak binding with a fast on and off rate to B7H6 compared to the TZ47 anti-B7H6 single-chain variable fragment (scFv). Here, directed evolution using yeast display was employed to isolate novel NKp30 variants that bind to B7H6 with higher affinity compared to the native receptor but retain its fast association and dissociation profile.

Validating a functional near-infrared spectroscopy diagnostic paradigm for Major Depressive Disorder.

Reduced haemodynamic response in the frontotemporal cortices of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) has been demonstrated using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Most notably, changes in cortical oxy-haemoglobin during a Japanese phonetic fluency task can differentiate psychiatric patients from healthy controls (HC). However, this paradigm has not been validated in the English language.

Lithium Use in a Patient With Bipolar Disorder and End-Stage Kidney Disease on Hemodialysis: A Case Report.

Lithium has been implicated in causing chronic tubulointerstitial nephritis and decline in renal function. However, lithium still plays a role in stabilizing patients with bipolar disorder. We illustrated a case of a bipolar I disorder patient approaching end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) with other medical comorbidities.

Hinge length contributes to the phagocytic activity of HIV-specific IgG1 and IgG3 antibodies.

Antibody functions such as neutralization require recognition of antigen by the Fab region, while effector functions are additionally mediated by interactions of the Fc region with soluble factors and cellular receptors. The efficacy of individual antibodies varies based on Fab domain characteristics, such as affinity for antigen and epitope-specificity, and on Fc domain characteristics that include isotype, subclass, and glycosylation profile. Here, a series of HIV-specific antibody subclass and hinge variants were constructed and tested to define those properties associated with differential effector function.

Cortical haemodynamic response measured by functional near infrared spectroscopy during a verbal fluency task in patients with major depression and borderline personality disorder.

Background: Functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) provides a direct and quantitative assessment of cortical haemodynamic function during a cognitive task. This functional neuroimaging modality may be used to elucidate the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders, and identify neurophysiological differences between co-occurring psychiatric disorders. However, fNIRS research on borderline personality disorder (BPD) has been limited.

Engineering a potent inhibitor of matriptase from the natural hepatocyte growth factor activator inhibitor type-1 (HAI-1) protein.

Dysregulated matriptase activity has been established as a key contributor to cancer progression through its activation of growth factors, including the hepatocyte growth factor (HGF). Despite its critical role and prevalence in many human cancers, limitations to developing an effective matriptase inhibitor include weak binding affinity, poor selectivity, and short circulating half-life. We applied rational and combinatorial approaches to engineer a potent inhibitor based on the hepatocyte growth factor activator inhibitor type-1 (HAI-1), a natural matriptase inhibitor.

Development of a Protease Biosensor Based on a Dimerization-Dependent Red Fluorescent Protein.

Dysregulated activity of the protease matriptase is a key contributor to aggressive tumor growth, cancer metastasis, and osteoarthritis. Methods for the detection and quantification of matriptase activity and inhibition would be useful tools. To address this need, we developed a matriptase-sensitive protein biosensor based on a dimerization-dependent red fluorescent protein (ddRFP) reporter system.

A critical role for the mTORC2 pathway in lung fibrosis.

A characteristic of dysregulated wound healing in IPF is fibroblastic-mediated damage to lung epithelial cells within fibroblastic foci. In these foci, TGF-β and other growth factors activate fibroblasts that secrete growth factors and matrix regulatory proteins, which activate a fibrotic cascade. Our studies and those of others have revealed that Akt is activated in IPF fibroblasts and it mediates the activation by TGF-β of pro-fibrotic pathways.

Indicators as a tool for the evaluation of effective national implementation of the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS).

This paper briefly outlines the United Nations Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS) and what is meant by GHS implementation in terms of policy-related information for decision-makers plus a framework of actions to enable such policies to be effectively undertaken. The paper discusses the need for simple indicators to measure progress with GHS implementation. Two groups of indicators have been described that comprehensively reflect basic components of GHS implementation.