Publications by authors named "Chuang T"

We performed next-generation sequencing (NGS) on RNA from 19 paired leiomyoma (Lyo) and myometrium (Myo) specimens, stratified by race/ethnicity (White: n = 7; Black: n = 12) and mediator complex subunit 12 (MED12) mutation status (mutated: n = 10; non-mutated: n = 9). Analysis identified 2,189 small non-coding RNAs (sncRNAs) with altered expression in Lyo compared to paired Myo (≥1.5-fold change), including small nuclear RNAs (snRNAs), small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs), microRNAs (miRNAs), and PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME) shaped by tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) is essential for lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) immune tolerance and tumor progression. Here, we first reported that proteinase 3 (PRTN3) promoted the alternative activation (M2) of TAMs and enhanced IL33/regulatory T cells (Tregs)-mediated tumor immunosuppression in LUAD. Firstly, clinical analysis revealed PRTN3 was highly expressed in TAMs and correlated with the tumor progression and poor prognosis in LUAD patients.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Limited research has explored the immunological effects of a second COVID-19 vaccine booster in older adults within Western Pacific countries.

Methods: This study involved healthcare workers aged ≥65 years who received two doses of ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 (A), mRNA-1273 (M), or MVC-COV1901 (Mc), followed by a booster dose of mRNA-1273. Younger adults served as controls.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: The leading causes of death among the older adults have shifted from cancer to non-cancer conditions such as ischemia heart diseases, stroke, and dementia, affecting end-of-life care needs. This study examined the difference in the proportion of palliative care utilization in relation to specific causes of death and compared the trends in palliative care utilization between older adult decedents with and without cancer in Taiwan from 2010 to 2020.

Methods: The study utilized data from the Health and Welfare Data Science Center in Taiwan, covering demographic and healthcare variables for 588,010 decedents aged 65+ years who died between 2010 and 2020.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background And Objectives: Epidemiological data shows that the prevalence of multiple sclerosis (MS) and the female-to-male sex ratio among MS patients are increasing over time. Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are ubiquitous and increasingly recognized for effects on estrogen signaling. This study aimed to determine whether there was an association between EDC levels and disease severity in newly diagnosed, female MS patients.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Clinical monitoring of cytokines, such as interleukin-6 (IL-6), enables a timely diagnosis and can significantly improve patient prognosis. In this study, we developed a rapid, label-free, ultrasensitive, and low matrix-effect method called chromatic digital nanoplasmon-metry (cDiNM) to detect IL-6 in human blood plasma. Utilizing a multiple filter configuration, two nonadjacent specific transmission wavelength bands are extracted.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Most prior studies found that job well-being and job performance are in a linear relationship. Audit firms are a type of highly professional organization. Based on the affective events theory, this study argues that job well-being can accelerate the improvement of audit performance thus forming a curvilinear relationship.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Kochiae Fructus, the ripe fruit of Kochia scoparia, is a traditional Chinese medicine commonly used to treat eye discomforts and vision problems. Although Kochiae Fructus is mentioned in many classical Chinese medical texts, its protective effects and the roles of its active phytochemicals in eye treatment still lack scientific exploration.

Aim Of The Study: This study aimed to clarify the protective effects and identify the active fractions and compounds of Kochiae Fructus against oxidative stress-induced retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cell death.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: Osteoporosis significantly affects older adults by reducing bone mass and increasing fracture risk, thereby impacting morbidity and mortality. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between bone mineral density (BMD), body mass index (BMI), and trabecular bone score (TBS) among middle-aged and older men with or without benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).

Methods: A retrospective study was conducted using health examination data from male participants aged 50-98 years collected at a regional hospital in southern Taiwan.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

: The incidence of hip fractures is increasing, and there have been reports linking cold weather to a higher risk of fractures. This study aimed to evaluate clinical variables in hip fracture patients who may predispose them to such fractures under different temperatures. : This is a cross-sectional study conducted at a single medical center, enrolling older adults (≥60 years) who had experienced a hip fracture.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Pain-related decision-making can be influenced by the caregiver and sufferer's demographic factors, such as race and gender, which are commonly considered individually. However, such factors may influence pain assessment interdependently based on caregivers' stereotypical beliefs.

Objectives: This study investigated how sufferers' race and gender affect Chinese observers' evaluations of pain intensity and medication needs and the associations with the observers' race and gender-related stereotypical beliefs.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: This study analyzed the association between anti-Ro/SSA and anti-La/SSB antibody levels with quantitative and visual sialoscintigraphy patterns in patients suspected of having Sjögren or sicca syndrome.

Patients And Methods: Medical records of patients who underwent sialoscintigraphy between April 2020 and May 2022 were reviewed. Associations between antibody levels and sialoscintigraphy parameters were evaluated using linear regression.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Head and neck cancer ranks as the sixth most common cancer worldwide, highlighting the critical need for the development of new therapies to enhance treatment efficacy. The activation of innate immune receptors given their potent immune stimulatory properties aid in the eradication of cancer cells. In this study, we investigated the immune mechanism and anti-tumor function of a Toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9) agonist, CpG-oligodeoxynucleotide-2722 (CpG-2722), in combination with cyclic dinucleotides, which are agonists of stimulator of interferon genes (STING).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • * A 16-year-old girl with Hodgkin's lymphoma developed a vesicular rash after completing chemotherapy, which was identified as a disseminated rash caused by the Oka vaccine-strain varicella-zoster virus, 11 years after her last vaccination.
  • * This case emphasizes the importance of understanding potential complications of immunizations, particularly in patients who become immunocompromised later in life, and highlights the necessity of viral genotyping to differentiate vaccine strains from wild-type infections.*
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: The main objective of this study is to explore the relationships among job stress, job satisfaction, and turnover intentions among bank employees during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a focus on variations across different demographic characteristics.

Methods: A cross-sectional design was employed, and data were collected from 501 bank employees using the Job Stress Questionnaire (JSQ), the Simplified Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ), and the Intention to Leave Scale (ILS). Descriptive statistics, t-tests, ANOVA, Pearson correlation, and multiple regression analyses were used to test the research hypotheses.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The water oxidation reaction (WOR), which is pivotal to storing energy in chemical bonds, requires a catalyst to overcome its inherent kinetic barrier. In bulk solutions, sacrificial oxidants (SOs) can regenerate the catalysts to ensure that the homogeneous WOR can be operated with long-term consistent performance. To implement this strategy for organic WOR systems, we modified four common SOs with tetra--butylammonium ([NBu])─[NBu][Ce(NO)], [NBu][IO], [NBu][HSO], and [NBu][SO]─and examined their chemical stability and electrochemical behaviors in various organic solvents.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • LINCMD1 has previously been linked to muscle differentiation by acting as a sponge for miRNAs, but its role in the development of leiomyoma (a type of tumor) was not clear.
  • This study analyzed tissue samples from patients and found that LINCMD1 levels were lower in leiomyoma tissues compared to surrounding myometrium, while miR-135b levels were higher in leiomyoma.
  • The findings suggest that LINCMD1 could be a potential target for therapies aimed at correcting abnormal signaling pathways involved in leiomyoma development.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The role of long non-coding RNAs in fibroid pathogenesis remains largely unexplored. In a previous study, we found elevated XIST (X-inactive specific transcript) levels in fibroids, which sponged miR-29c and miR-200c, leading to the overexpression of their target genes. This study aimed to assess the therapeutic potential of XIST downregulation in fibroid treatment.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

An 83-year-old woman with a history of endometrial carcinoma (EMC), treated with surgery and chemotherapy in August 2020, presented with a 1-year history of left foot swelling, tenderness, and heat. Despite multiple consultations, no diagnosis was made, and she developed painful swelling with a limping gait. A biopsy was done on July 14, 2023, confirmed metastatic EMC.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Activation of microglia and inflammation in the olfactory bulb can cause olfactory dysfunction after an ischemic stroke, a condition not fully understood.
  • In a study involving Wistar Kyoto rats, a compound called AUDA (a soluble epoxide hydrolase inhibitor) was tested to see if it could improve olfactory function post-stroke.
  • AUDA treatment resulted in reduced brain damage, enhanced olfactory performance, and a shift in microglia towards a protective state, indicating its potential for clinical use in addressing olfactory issues following ischemic strokes.*
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Unlabelled: Patients with anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-driven neuroblastoma may respond to tyrosine kinase inhibitors, but resistance to treatment occurs and methods currently used for detection of residual disease have limited sensitivity. Here, we present a national unselected cohort of five patients with relapsed or refractory ALK-driven neuroblastoma treated with lorlatinib as monotherapy and test the potential of targeted circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) analysis as a guide for treatment decisions in these patients. We developed a sequencing panel for ultrasensitive detection of ALK mutations associated with neuroblastoma or resistance to tyrosine kinase inhibitors and used it for ctDNA analysis in 83 plasma samples collected longitudinally from the four patients who harbored somatic ALK mutations.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • This study outlines an efficient method to synthesize etrasimod, starting from a specific cyclopentenol compound, achieving a 5.6% yield with 98% enantiomeric excess.
  • A key intermediate was created through a unique rearrangement process that inverted the configuration of the starting compound.
  • The process included several stages to form a tetracyclic fused lactam and eventually produced cyclopenta[]indol-3-ylacetic acid by removing an oxo group and performing a series of reactions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) is vital for B cell development, acting as a key negative regulator in the PI3K signaling pathway. We used CD23-cre to generate PTEN-conditional knockout mice (CD23-cKO) to examine the impact of PTEN mutation on peripheral B cells. Unlike mb1-cre-mediated PTEN deletion in early B cells, CD23-cKO mutants exhibited systemic inflammation with increased IL-6 production in mature B cells upon CpG stimulation.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

A PHP Error was encountered

Severity: Warning

Message: A non-numeric value encountered

Filename: controllers/Author.php

Line Number: 219

Backtrace:

File: /var/www/html/application/controllers/Author.php
Line: 219
Function: _error_handler

File: /var/www/html/index.php
Line: 316
Function: require_once

A PHP Error was encountered

Severity: Warning

Message: A non-numeric value encountered

Filename: libraries/Pagination.php

Line Number: 413

Backtrace:

File: /var/www/html/application/controllers/Author.php
Line: 274
Function: create_links

File: /var/www/html/index.php
Line: 316
Function: require_once