Humanized monoacylglycerol acyltransferase 2 mice develop metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis.

Mice lacking monoacylglycerol acyltransferase 2 (mMGAT2) are resistant to diet-induced fatty liver, suggesting hMOGAT2 inhibition is a viable option for treating metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD)/metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH). We generated humanized hMOGAT2 mice (HuMgat2) for use in pre-clinical studies testing the efficacy of hMOGAT2 inhibitors for treating MASLD/MASH. HuMgat2 mice developed MASH when fed a steatotic diet.

Topical corticosteroids for treating phimosis in boys.

Background: This is an updated version of a Cochrane Review first published in 2014. Phimosis is a condition in which the prepuce (foreskin) cannot be fully retracted past the head of the penis (glans). Phimosis is often treated surgically by circumcision or prepuce plasty; however, reports of non-invasive treatment using topical corticosteroids applied for four to eight weeks have suggested favorable outcomes.

A Quick and Practical Approach to Secure a Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Diagnosis: The Novel Functional Limitation Index.

Unlabelled: Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) is a serious, clinical, long-term condition with an unclear etiology and a difficult diagnosis. Our aim is to propose an objective physiological parameter (Functional Limitation Index, FLI) that describes the degree of functional impairment to support clinical suspicion.

Materials And Methods: We consecutively included all CFS patients who consulted in the Exercise Physiology Department at our hospital, a dedicated referral unit for CFS, from 2009 to 2022.

Cell-based therapies for COVID-19: A living, systematic review.

Objective: This living, systematic review aims to provide a timely, rigorous, and continuously updated summary of the available evidence on the role of cell-based therapies in the treatment of patients with COVID-19.

Data Sources: We conducted searches in PubMed/Medline, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), grey literature, and in a centralized repository in L·OVE (Living OVerview of Evidence). L·OVE is a platform that maps PICO questions to evidence from the Epistemonikos database.

Emotion Network Analysis During COVID-19 Quarantine - A Longitudinal Study.

: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) emergency has imposed important challenges in the lives of individuals, particularly since the restriction of free movement. In Spain, this mandatory home confinement started on March 14, 2020. In this scenario, some calls have been made to better understand the exact impact of the quarantine on the emotional status of individuals across time.

A small-molecule allosteric inhibitor of BAX protects against doxorubicin-induced cardiomyopathy.

Doxorubicin remains an essential component of many cancer regimens, but its use is limited by lethal cardiomyopathy, which has been difficult to target, owing to pleiotropic mechanisms leading to apoptotic and necrotic cardiac cell death. Here we show that BAX is rate-limiting in doxorubicin-induced cardiomyopathy and identify a small-molecule BAX inhibitor that blocks both apoptosis and necrosis to prevent this syndrome. By allosterically inhibiting BAX conformational activation, this compound blocks BAX translocation to mitochondria, thereby abrogating both forms of cell death.

Psoriasis lesions are associated with specific types of emotions. Emotional profile in psoriasis.

Background: At present there is still controversy about the relationship between emotional stress and psoriasis lesions. Most of the published literature does not include the broad spectrum of emotional response.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between skin lesions and emotional state in a large sample of patients with psoriasis.

Atorvastatin enhanced nitric oxide release and reduced blood pressure, nitroxidative stress and rantes levels in hypertensive rats with diabetes.

Clinical trials have shown that atorvastatin benefits patients with diabetes even with normal baseline LDL levels. We hypothesized that atorvastatin improves endothelial cell (EC) function and reduces inflammation in hypertensive rats with diabetes. Non-diabetic and streptozotocin-induced type 2 diabetic male spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) were treated with atorvastatin at 20 mg/kg/day.

Topical corticosteroids for treating phimosis in boys.

Background: Until recently, phimosis has been treated surgically by circumcision or prepuceplasty; however, recent reports of non-invasive treatment using topical corticosteroids applied for four to eight weeks have been favourable. The efficacy and safety of topical corticosteroids for treating phimosis in boys has not been previously systematically reviewed.

Objectives: We aimed to 1) compare the effectiveness of the use of topical corticosteroid ointment applied to the distal stenotic portion of the prepuce in the resolution of phimosis in boys compared with the use of placebo or no treatment, and 2) determine the rate of partial resolution (improvement) of phimosis, rate of re-stenosis after initial resolution or improvement of phimosis, and the rate of adverse events of topical corticosteroid treatment in boys with phimosis.

Pegylation increases platelet biocompatibility of gold nanoparticles.

The increasing use of gold nanoparticles in medical diagnosis and treatment has raised the concern over their blood compatibility. The interactions of nanoparticles with blood components may lead to platelet aggregation and endothelial dysfunction. Therefore, medical applications of gold nanoparticles call for increased nanoparticle stability and biocompatibility.

Amlodipine increased endothelial nitric oxide and decreased nitroxidative stress disproportionately to blood pressure changes.

Background: Clinical trials have shown that amlodipine reduces cardiovascular events at a rate that is not predicted by changes in brachial arterial pressure alone. These findings may be explained, in part, by the pleiotropic effects of amlodipine on endothelial cell (EC) function. In this study, we elucidated the effect of amlodipine on nitric oxide (NO) bioavailability and cytotoxic peroxynitrite (ONOO(-)) and blood pressure (BP).

Mechanisms of platelet-stimulated colon cancer invasion: role of clusterin and thrombospondin 1 in regulation of the P38MAPK-MMP-9 pathway.

Platelets have been implicated in colon cancer metastasis and prognosis but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain unclear. We evaluated the role of the different mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways in platelet-stimulated matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) generation and colon cancer invasion. In addition, proteins released during platelet-tumour cell interactions were studied.

The favorable kinetics and balance of nebivolol-stimulated nitric oxide and peroxynitrite release in human endothelial cells.

Background: Nebivolol is a third-generation beta-blocker used to treat hypertension. The vasodilation properties of nebivolol have been attributed to nitric oxide (NO) release. However, the kinetics and mechanism of nebivolol-stimulated bioavailable NO are not fully understood.

Thinking styles and creativity preferences in nursing.

This article describes a study using a descriptive approach of cross-sectional correlation to explore the association between thinking styles and creativity in a group of nursing professionals and students. A thinking style is a characteristic way of thinking. The hypothesis was that the most creative subjects would present thinking styles that enhance and express their creativity.

Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibition with saxagliptin enhanced nitric oxide release and reduced blood pressure and sICAM-1 levels in hypertensive rats.

Most patients with diabetes also have hypertension, a risk factor associated with atherothrombotic disease and characterized by endothelial cell (EC) dysfunction and loss of nitric oxide (NO) bioavailability. Recent studies suggest a possible antihypertensive effect with dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP4) inhibition; however, the underlying mechanism is not understood. In this study, we tested the effects of the DPP4 inhibitor, saxagliptin, on EC function, blood pressure, and soluble intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (sICAM-1) levels in hypertensive rats.

Mechanisms of toxicity of amorphous silica nanoparticles on human lung submucosal cells in vitro: protective effects of fisetin.

There is growing evidence that amorphous silica nanoparticles (SiO₂-NP) can cause an inflammatory response in the lung. We studied in vitro the effects of exposing human lung submucosal cells to SiO₂-NP of various sizes (10, 150, and 500 nm) for 2-24 h. Cell survival, reactive oxygen species (ROS), malondialdehyde (MDA) levels, cytokine production, inflammatory gene expression, and genotoxicity were measured after exposure of Calu-3 cells to 10SiO₂-NP in the presence or absence of the flavanoid fisetin and an antioxidant enzyme catalase.

Amorphous silica nanoparticles aggregate human platelets: potential implications for vascular homeostasis.

Background: Amorphous silica nanoparticles (SiNP) can be used in medical technologies and other industries leading to human exposure. However, an increased number of studies indicate that this exposure may result in cardiovascular inflammation and damage. A high ratio of nitric oxide to peroxynitrite concentrations ([NO]/[ONOO(-)]) is crucial for cardiovascular homeostasis and platelet hemostasis.

Effects of angiotensin receptor blockers on endothelial nitric oxide release: the role of eNOS variants.

What Is Already Known About This Subject: • Angiotensin II receptor blockers improve endothelial cell-dependent vasodilation in patients with hypertension through suppression of angiotensin II type 1 receptors but may have additional and differential effects on endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) function.

What This Study Adds: • The key finding from this study is that angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) differentially enhanced nitric oxide (NO) release in a manner influenced by certain genetic variants of eNOS. This finding provides new insights into the effects of ARBs on endothelial cell-dependent vasodilation and eNOS function that are of high importance in vascular medicine and clinical pharmacology.

Amorphous silica nanoparticles trigger nitric oxide/peroxynitrite imbalance in human endothelial cells: inflammatory and cytotoxic effects.

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate the mechanism of noxious effects of amorphous silica nanoparticles on human endothelial cells.

Methods: Nanoparticle uptake was examined by transmission electron microscopy. Electrochemical nanosensors were used to measure the nitric oxide (NO) and peroxynitrite (ONOO(-)) released by a single cell upon nanoparticle stimulation.

Non-hormonal interventions for hot flushes in women with a history of breast cancer.

Background: Hot flushes are common in women with a history of breast cancer. Hormonal therapies are known to reduce these symptoms but are not recommended in women with a history of breast cancer due to their potential adverse effects. The efficacy of non-hormonal therapies is still uncertain.

Sociodemographic, psychological and health-related factors associated with poor mental health in Spanish women and men in midlife.

Background: The purpose of this work was to examine the sociodemographic, psychological, and health-related factors (considered jointly) associated with poor mental health in midlife and to analyze whether risk and protective factors differed in men and women.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with a middle-class sample of 252 women and 189 men between 45 and 65 years of age from Spanish rural areas. Mental health status was measured with the 12-Item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12; Goldberg & Williams, 1988).

Attenuation of learned helplessness in rats after transplant of adrenal medulla into the spinal cord.

The influence of an adrenal medullary transplant into the lumbar subarachnoid space on learned helplessness, an animal model of depression, was examined. The transplanted rats were found to be less susceptible than sham-operated animals to become helpless after administration of inescapable shocks. The effect was attributed to release of opioid peptides by chromaffin cells as it was reversed by naloxone.