A short review of application of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) for the assessment of microvascular post-occlusive reactive hyperaemia (PORH) in skeletal muscle.

Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is an optical technique that can be used to non-invasively interrogate haemodynamic changes within skeletal muscle. It can be combined with a short (3-5 min) arterial cuff-occlusion to quantify post-occlusive reactive hyperaemia (PORH). This technique has utility in tracking changes in vascular health in relation to exercise, disease progression or treatment efficacy.

Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) assessment of skeletal muscle oxidative capacity: a comparison of results from short long exercise protocols and reproducibility in non-athletic adults.

Background: Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) provides a non-invasive, cost-effective method for assessing skeletal muscle oxidative capacity when combined with a short exercise protocol and arterial occlusions. However, the impact of different exercise protocols and reproducibility of the method in non-athletic adults have not previously been assessed.

Methods: Young, non-athletic adults (YA) were invited to perform a short duration, fast frequency contraction (SF) exercise protocol and a long duration slow frequency (LS) contraction protocol, combined with NIRS measurements and arterial occlusions to assess skeletal muscle oxidative capacity.

Human papillomavirus E6/E7 oncoproteins promote radiotherapy-mediated tumor suppression by globally hijacking host DNA damage repair.

Whatever the mucosa primary infected, HPV-positive cancers are traditionally associated with a favorable outcome, attributable to a high sensitivity to radiation therapy. However, the direct impact of viral E6/E7 oncoproteins on the intrinsic cellular radiosensitivity (and, globally, on host DNA repair) remains mostly speculative. Using several isogenic cell models expressing HPV16 E6 and/or E7, the effect of viral oncoproteins on global DNA damage response was first investigated by approaches.

Temperature-controlled high-power short-duration ablation with 90 W for 4 s: outcome, safety, biophysical characteristics and cranial MRI findings in patients undergoing pulmonary vein isolation.

Background: High-power short-duration (HPSD) radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is highly efficient and safe while reducing procedure and RF time in pulmonary vein isolation (PVI). The QDot™ catheter is a novel contact force ablation catheter that allows automated flow and power adjustments depending on the local tissue temperature to maintain a target temperature during 90 W/4 s lesions. We analysed intraprocedural data and periprocedural safety using the QDot-catheter in patients undergoing PVI for paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF).

HPV infection alters vaginal microbiome through down-regulating host mucosal innate peptides used by Lactobacilli as amino acid sources.

Despite the high prevalence of both cervico-vaginal human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and bacterial vaginosis (BV) worldwide, their causal relationship remains unclear. While BV has been presumed to be a risk factor for HPV acquisition and related carcinogenesis for a long time, here, supported by both a large retrospective follow-up study (n = 6,085) and extensive in vivo data using the K14-HPV16 transgenic mouse model, we report a novel blueprint in which the opposite association also exists. Mechanistically, by interacting with several core members (NEMO, CK1 and β-TrCP) of both NF-κB and Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathways, we show that HPV E7 oncoprotein greatly inhibits host defense peptide expression.