Double major curvature treated with vertebral body tethering of both curves: how do outcomes compare to posterior spinal fusion?

Purpose: Vertebral body tethering (VBT) is a non-fusion alternative to posterior spinal fusion (PSF). There have been few reports on VBT of two curvatures. We aim to compare the radiographic outcomes between VBT and PSF in patients with double curvatures in which both curves were instrumented.

A stronger acceptor decreases the rates of charge transfer: ultrafast dynamics and on/off switching of charge separation in organometallic donor-bridge-acceptor systems.

To unravel the role of driving force and structural changes in directing the photoinduced pathways in donor-bridge-acceptor (DBA) systems, we compared the ultrafast dynamics in novel DBAs which share a phenothiazine (PTZ) electron donor and a Pt(ii) -acetylide bridge (-C[triple bond, length as m-dash]C-Pt-C[triple bond, length as m-dash]C-), but bear different acceptors conjugated into the bridge (naphthalene-diimide, NDI; or naphthalene-monoimide, NAP). The excited state dynamics were elucidated by transient absorption, time-resolved infrared (TRIR, directly following electron density changes on the bridge/acceptor), and broadband fluorescence-upconversion (FLUP, directly following sub-picosecond intersystem crossing) spectroscopies, supported by TDDFT calculations. Direct conjugation of a strong acceptor into the bridge leads to switching of the lowest excited state from the intraligand IL state to the desired charge-separated CSS state.

Scurvy: Rare Orthopaedic Complications Associated with Multinutritional Deficiencies.

Unlabelled: Suboptimal nutrition can lead to deficiencies in micronutrients such as ascorbic acid (vitamin C), which can present with catastrophic neurological sequelae. Deficiencies of vitamin C, vitamin B3 (niacin) and zinc levels contribute to reduced bone density. Vitamin C associated vertebral fractures, although rare in adults, are still treatable if diagnosed early with a thorough clinical and nutritional history, and early supplementation.

Assessing infant sleep practices and other risk factors of SIDS in Zambia: a cross-sectional survey of mothers in Lusaka, Zambia.

Background: Having infants sleep with their parents and sleeping face down or on their sides are the two most proximate and modifiable risk factors for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Little is known about the burden of SIDS or the prevalence of these risk factors in Africa. Our primary objective was to determine the prevalence of modifiable risk factors of SIDS in Lusaka, Zambia.

Natural History of MYH7-Related Dilated Cardiomyopathy.

Background: Variants in myosin heavy chain 7 (MYH7) are responsible for disease in 1% to 5% of patients with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM); however, the clinical characteristics and natural history of MYH7-related DCM are poorly described.

Objectives: We sought to determine the phenotype and prognosis of MYH7-related DCM. We also evaluated the influence of variant location on phenotypic expression.

Evaluation of the impact of pre-analytical conditions on sample stability for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA.

Demand for accurate SARS-CoV-2 diagnostics is high. Most samples in the UK are collected in the community and rely on the postal service for delivery to the laboratories. The current recommendation remains that swabs should be collected in Viral Transport Media (VTM) and transported with a cold chain to the laboratory for RNA extraction and RT-qPCR.

Participatory Action Research-Dadirri-Ganma, using Yarning: methodology co-design with Aboriginal community members.

Background: Appropriate choice of research design is essential to rightly understand the research problem and derive optimal solutions. The Comorbidity Action in the North project sought to better meet the needs of local people affected by drug, alcohol and mental health comorbidity. The aim of the study focused on the needs of Aboriginal peoples and on developing a truly representative research process.

Clinical and laboratory evaluation of SARS-CoV-2 lateral flow assays for use in a national COVID-19 seroprevalence survey.

Background: Accurate antibody tests are essential to monitor the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Lateral flow immunoassays (LFIAs) can deliver testing at scale. However, reported performance varies, and sensitivity analyses have generally been conducted on serum from hospitalised patients.

Socioeconomic position, lifestyle habits and biomarkers of epigenetic aging: a multi-cohort analysis.

Differences in health status by socioeconomic position (SEP) tend to be more evident at older ages, suggesting the involvement of a biological mechanism responsive to the accumulation of deleterious exposures across the lifespan. DNA methylation (DNAm) has been proposed as a biomarker of biological aging that conserves memory of endogenous and exogenous stress during life.We examined the association of education level, as an indicator of SEP, and lifestyle-related variables with four biomarkers of age-dependent DNAm dysregulation: the total number of stochastic epigenetic mutations (SEMs) and three epigenetic clocks (Horvath, Hannum and Levine), in 18 cohorts spanning 12 countries.

Quality assurance guidance for scoring and reporting for pathologists and laboratories undertaking clinical trial work.

While pathologists have always played a pivotal role in clinical trials ensuring accurate diagnosis and staging, pathology data from prognostic and predictive tests are increasingly being used to enrol, stratify and randomise patients to experimental treatments. The use of pathological parameters as primary and secondary outcome measures, either as standalone classifiers or in combination with clinical data, is also becoming more common. Moreover, reporting of estimates of residual disease, termed 'pathological complete response', have been incorporated into neoadjuvant clinical trials.

Platelet-Related Variants Identified by Exomechip Meta-analysis in 157,293 Individuals.

Platelet production, maintenance, and clearance are tightly controlled processes indicative of platelets' important roles in hemostasis and thrombosis. Platelets are common targets for primary and secondary prevention of several conditions. They are monitored clinically by complete blood counts, specifically with measurements of platelet count (PLT) and mean platelet volume (MPV).

Genome metabolome integrated network analysis to uncover connections between genetic variants and complex traits: an application to obesity.

Current studies of phenotype diversity by genome-wide association studies (GWAS) are mainly focused on identifying genetic variants that influence level changes of individual traits without considering additional alterations at the system-level. However, in addition to level alterations of single phenotypes, differences in association between phenotype levels are observed across different physiological states. Such differences in molecular correlations between states can potentially reveal information about the system state beyond that reported by changes in mean levels alone.

Meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies identifies ten loci influencing allergic sensitization.

Allergen-specific immunoglobulin E (present in allergic sensitization) has a central role in the pathogenesis of allergic disease. We performed the first large-scale genome-wide association study (GWAS) of allergic sensitization in 5,789 affected individuals and 10,056 controls and followed up the top SNP at each of 26 loci in 6,114 affected individuals and 9,920 controls. We increased the number of susceptibility loci with genome-wide significant association with allergic sensitization from three to ten, including SNPs in or near TLR6, C11orf30, STAT6, SLC25A46, HLA-DQB1, IL1RL1, LPP, MYC, IL2 and HLA-B.

A pilot randomized, placebo controlled, double blind phase I trial of the novel SIRT1 activator SRT2104 in elderly volunteers.

Background: SRT2104 has been developed as a selective small molecule activator of SIRT1, a NAD(+)-dependent deacetylase involved in the regulation of energy homeostasis and the modulation of various metabolic pathways, including glucose metabolism, oxidative stress and lipid metabolism. SIRT1 has been suggested as putative therapeutic target in multiple age-related diseases including type 2 diabetes and dyslipidemias. We report the first clinical trial of SRT2104 in elderly volunteers.

Stepped early psychological intervention for posttraumatic stress disorder, other anxiety disorders, and depression following serious injury.

The best approach for implementing early psychological intervention for anxiety and depressive disorders after a traumatic event has not been established. This study aimed to test the effectiveness of a stepped model of early psychological intervention following traumatic injury. A sample of 683 consecutively admitted injury patients were screened during hospitalization.

Lack of association of CD36 SNPs with early onset obesity: a meta-analysis in 9,973 European subjects.

A recent study suggested that four CD36 polymorphisms (namely rs3211867, rs3211883, rs3211908, and rs1527483) were associated with an increased risk of obesity, an increased BMI and percentage of body fat in European adolescents. We first attempted to confirm these results in three independent case-control genome-wide association studies (GWAS) data totaling 3,509 subjects of French and German origin, but we were unable to find any association of these variants with early onset obesity risk. We then genotyped the four CD36 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in a large population-based study of 4,667 Finnish subjects and we did not replicate any of the recently reported associations with BMI.

Adolescent manifestations of metabolic syndrome among children born to women with gestational diabetes in a general-population birth cohort.

The association between maternal gestational diabetes (GDM) and manifestations of metabolic syndrome among Caucasian adolescents was studied with data from the population-based Northern Finland 1986 Birth Cohort. This is a longitudinal cohort study from early pregnancy until offspring age 16 years and includes data from a risk group-based GDM screen of pregnant mothers by an oral glucose tolerance test. Metabolic outcomes were compared between the offspring of women with GDM (OGDM; n = 95) and reference group offspring (n = 3,909).

Genome-wide association analysis of metabolic traits in a birth cohort from a founder population.

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of longitudinal birth cohorts enable joint investigation of environmental and genetic influences on complex traits. We report GWAS results for nine quantitative metabolic traits (triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, glucose, insulin, C-reactive protein, body mass index, and systolic and diastolic blood pressure) in the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 (NFBC1966), drawn from the most genetically isolated Finnish regions. We replicate most previously reported associations for these traits and identify nine new associations, several of which highlight genes with metabolic functions: high-density lipoprotein with NR1H3 (LXRA), low-density lipoprotein with AR and FADS1-FADS2, glucose with MTNR1B, and insulin with PANK1.

Delayed treatment of ischemia/reperfusion brain injury: extended therapeutic window with the proteosome inhibitor MLN519.

Background And Purpose: Clinical development of novel neuroprotection therapies for the treatment of brain injury has been unsuccessful. One critical limitation is the lack of a viable therapeutic treatment window (TW). In this study, we evaluated the neuroprotection TW for the proteosome inhibitor MLN519 after ischemia/reperfusion brain injury in rats as related to its antiinflammatory mechanism.

Description of trihalomethane levels in three UK water suppliers.

Samples of drinking water are routinely analysed for four trihalomethanes (THMs), which are indicators of by-products of disinfection with chlorine, by UK water suppliers to demonstrate compliance with regulations. The THM data for 1992-1993 to 1997-1998 for three water suppliers in the north and midlands of England were made available for a UK epidemiological study of the association between disinfection by-products and adverse birth outcomes. This paper describes the THM levels in these three supply regions and discusses possible sources of variation.

Recent advances in understanding proteasome function.

The proteasome is present in all cells, from yeast to man, where it is central to the proteolytic degradation of the vast majority of intracellular proteins. As such, many groups have examined the role of the proteasome with respect to their own specific protein(s) of interest. Consequently, literally hundreds of papers have flooded the literature.