Publications by authors named "Chu E"

Limited evidence suggests that autoimmune diseases are associated with an increased risk of cervical artery dissection (CeAD). We hypothesized individuals with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) would have an increased risk of CeAD following SLE diagnosis compared to matched non-lupus controls. We queried a de-identified United States electronic medical records network (TriNetX, Inc.

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Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is accompanied by an altered gut microbiota but whether the latter contributes to carcinogenesis is unclear. Here we show that faecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) using stool samples from patients with HCC spontaneously initiate liver inflammation, fibrosis and dysplasia in wild-type mice, and accelerate disease progression in a mouse model of HCC. We find that HCC-FMT results in gut barrier injury and translocation of live bacteria to the liver.

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Bone sialoprotein (Ibsp/BSP) is a bone-associated extracellular matrix protein. Ibsp knockout (Ibsp) mice exhibit defective alveolar bone formation, mineralization, and healing. We hypothesized BSP would rescue defective alveolar bone healing in a molar extraction model in Ibsp mice.

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Norepinephrine (NE) modulates cognitive function, arousal, attention, and responses to novelty and stress, and it also regulates neuroinflammation. We previously demonstrated behavioral and immunomodulatory effects of beta-adrenergic pharmacology in mouse models of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The current studies were designed to block noradrenergic signaling in 5XFAD mice through (1) chemogenetic inhibition of the locus coeruleus (LC), (2) pharmacologic blocking of β-adrenergic receptors, and (3) conditional deletion of β1- or β2-adrenergic receptors (adrb1 or adrb2) in microglia.

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Background: To help inform COVID-19 vaccination recommendations, we evaluated the impact of age and dosing interval on clinical benefit of a third dose of mRNA-1273.

Methods: Approximately 17 000 participants from the phase 3 Coronavirus Efficacy trial who previously received 2 doses of 100 µg mRNA-1273 were evaluated for COVID-19 between September 2021 and April 2022 during uptake of a third booster dose of 50 µg of mRNA-1273. Cox models assessed booster relative efficacy of a third dose.

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Background: The addition of IV triapine to chemoradiation appeared active in phase I and II studies but drug delivery is cumbersome. We examined PO triapine with cisplatin chemoradiation.

Methods: We implemented a 3 + 3 design for PO triapine dose escalation with expansion, starting at 100 mg, five days a week for five weeks while receiving radiation with weekly IV cisplatin for locally advanced cervical or vaginal cancer.

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Introduction: As perinatal drug overdoses continue to rise, reliable approaches are needed to monitor overdose trends during pregnancy and postpartum. This analysis aimed to determine the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of ICD-9/10-CM codes for drug overdose events among people in the MATernaL and Infant clinical NetworK (MAT-LINK) with medication for opioid use disorder during pregnancy.

Methods: People included in this analysis had electronic health record documentation of medication for opioid use disorder and a known pregnancy outcome from January 1, 2014, through August 31, 2021.

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Norepinephrine (NE) modulates cognitive function, arousal, attention, and responses to novelty and stress, and also regulates neuroinflammation. We previously demonstrated behavioral and immunomodulatory effects of beta-adrenergic pharmacology in mouse models of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The current studies were designed to block noradrenergic signaling in 5XFAD mice through chemogenetic inhibition of the locus coeruleus (LC), pharmacologic blocking of β-adrenergic receptors, and conditional deletion of β1- or β2-adrenergic receptors (adrb1 or adrb2) in microglia.

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Psychedelics are a group of psychoactive substances that alter consciousness and produce marked shifts in sensory perception, cognition, and mood. Although psychedelics have been used by indigenous communities for centuries, they have only recently been investigated as an adjunctive therapeutic tool in psychotherapy. Since the early twentieth century, psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy has been explored for the treatment of several neuropsychiatric conditions characterized by rigid thought patterns and treatment resistance.

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In this study, we explored the size-dependent optoelectronic characteristics of InGaN/GaN red micro-LEDs grown on Si substrates. We successfully demonstrated the fabrication of 4-inch wafer-scale InGaN/GaN micro-LEDs, showcasing the feasibility of large-scale production. Additionally, we presented the binary pixel display with 6 µm pitch, achieving a resolution of 4232 PPI.

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Article Synopsis
  • Spondylodiscitis is a rare, serious condition causing spinal deformities and poor functional outcomes, often resulting in persistent low-back pain despite treatment.
  • A 70-year-old woman with a 4-month history of low-back pain and spondylodiscitis sought conservative chiropractic management after initial diagnoses of gastritis and urinary tract infection.
  • Her low-back pain was effectively treated using systemic antibiotics, scraping therapy, and spinal manipulation, highlighting a successful case of multimodal therapy for managing symptoms of spondylodiscitis.
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The current diagnosis of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) and its severe form, metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), is suboptimal. Here, we recruited 700 individuals, including 184 from Hong Kong as a discovery cohort and 516 from San Diego, Wenzhou, and Hong Kong as three validation cohorts. A panel of 3 parameters (C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 10 [CXCL10], cytokeratin 18 fragments M30 [CK-18], and adjusted body mass index [BMI]) was formulated (termed N3-MASH), which discriminated patients with MASLD from healthy controls with an area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC) of 0.

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Objective This study aimed to explore registered chiropractors' perceptions of the use of spinal manipulative therapy (SMT) by non-registered practitioners in Hong Kong, assessing the associated risks, adverse events, and patient management approaches. Method A cross-sectional survey was conducted among registered chiropractors in Hong Kong using an online questionnaire. The survey, distributed via chiropractic associations from January 26 to March 20, 2024, gathered data on the practitioners' experiences with patients previously treated by non-registered practitioners, including the types of adverse events observed and subsequent interventions required.

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Efforts to develop disease-modifying treatments for Parkinson's disease (PD) have been hindered by the lack of animal models replicating all hallmarks of PD and the insufficient attention to extra-nigrostriatal regions pathologically critical for the prodromal appearance of non-motor symptoms. Among PD models, 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) infusion in mice has gained prominence since 2012, primarily focusing on the nigrostriatal region. This study characterized widespread tyrosine hydroxylase-positive neuron and fiber loss across the brain following a unilateral 6-OHDA (20 μg) infusion into the dorsal striatum.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Sjögren's disease (SD) is an autoimmune condition linked to specific autoantibodies, and a case study showed that a previously healthy individual developed SD after primary Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection, resulting in multiple autoantibody productions.
  • - Researchers examined immune responses to various autoantigens and found that anti-Ro52 and anti-Ro60 autoantibodies started to appear shortly after EBV infection, with levels continuing to rise alongside other antibodies long after the initial infection.
  • - The study concludes that EBV infection can trigger specific autoantibody responses through different mechanisms, and it notes that some healthy individuals can produce certain autoantibodies independently of the EBV response.
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The present study introduces new regression formulae that address several challenges of current subadult stature estimation methods by 1) using a large, contemporary, cross-sectional sample of subadult skeletal remains; 2) generating regression models using both lengths and breadths; 3) utilizing both linear and nonlinear regression models to accommodate the nonlinear shape of long bone growth; and 4) providing usable prediction intervals for estimating stature. Eighteen long bone measurements, stature, and age were collected from computed tomography images for a sample of individuals (n = 990) between birth and 20 years from the United States. The bivariate relationship between long bone measurements and stature was modeled using linear and nonlinear methods on an 80% training sample and evaluated on a 20% testing sample.

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  • This study is about helping doctors and surgeons find the best ways to diagnose and treat skin cancers in kids and teenagers, especially types like cutaneous melanoma and atypical Spitz tumors.
  • A group of 33 skin cancer specialists from different fields worked together and used research to come up with their recommendations.
  • They suggested specific ways to perform surgeries, the importance of classifying tumors correctly, and rules about how much tissue to remove around suspicious areas.
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Providing a safe and secure living environment for residents that is supported by a dedicated healthcare team is one of the core values of nursing homes. Nursing homes must protect residents from the risk of going missing, track quarantined residents and visitors to control the spread of infection, and maintain proactive nursing rounds. However, recruiting and retaining qualified caregivers and medical staff has long been a challenge.

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  • Grover disease is a skin condition characterized by blistering caused by the breakdown of connections between skin cells, with its causes still unknown and no FDA-approved treatment available.
  • Research has shown that B-RAF inhibitors used in cancer treatment can paradoxically lead to Grover disease by causing hyperactivation of ERK, which disrupts skin cell cohesion.
  • The study suggests that inhibiting MEK can prevent the onset of Grover disease by controlling ERK activation, indicating a potential therapeutic approach that could benefit both Grover disease and similar genetic conditions like Darier disease.
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  • - Mavacamten is a groundbreaking drug approved for treating obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (oHCM), showing notable improvements in heart function and symptoms in 50 real-world patients.
  • - Patients experienced significant reductions in heart wall thickness and related complications, with only a small number needing to temporarily stop treatment due to minor decreases in heart function.
  • - The approach taken at the care center allowed for the rapid introduction and monitoring of this new therapy, reinforcing mavacamten's safety and effectiveness outside of traditional clinical trial settings.
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  • This study investigates the range of skin conditions in patients with germline SUFU pathogenic variants (PVs), focusing on their clinical and histopathologic features.* -
  • Conducted across U.S. dermatology and genetics clinics over eight years, the study analyzed skin biopsy samples from five female patients aged 31-68, identifying several types of skin tumors.* -
  • Findings reveal that alongside typical basal cell carcinomas, these patients exhibit various indolent skin lesions, indicating a broader range of cutaneous manifestations associated with SUFU PVs.*
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  • Sebaceous carcinoma is a type of skin cancer that's not very common, but it still has about 1,000 cases a year in the U.S., and scientists are trying to find better ways to tell it apart from non-cancerous skin growths.* -
  • Researchers studied the DNA and RNA of skin tumors from different hospitals to understand what makes these tumors different and how they develop.* -
  • They found specific changes in the tumors that could help doctors diagnose sebaceous carcinoma better, and they believe that new treatments, like using immunotherapy and targeting cholesterol production, might work well.*
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In the phase 3 Coronavirus Efficacy (COVE) trial (NCT04470427), post-dose two Ancestral Spike-specific binding (bAb) and neutralizing (nAb) antibodies were shown to be correlates of risk (CoR) and of protection against Ancestral-lineage COVID-19 in SARS-CoV-2 naive participants. In the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron era, Omicron subvariants with varying degrees of immune escape now dominate, seropositivity rates are high, and booster doses are administered, raising questions on whether and how these developments affect the bAb and nAb correlates. To address these questions, we assess post-boost BA.

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A localized Zeeman field, intensified at heterostructure interfaces, could play a crucial role in a broad area including spintronics and unconventional superconductors. Conventionally, the generation of a local Zeeman field is achieved through magnetic exchange coupling with a magnetic material. However, magnetic elements often introduce defects, which could weaken or destroy superconductivity.

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