Nephronectin Is Required for Vascularization in Zebrafish and Sufficient to Promote Mammalian Vessel-Like Structures in Hydrogels for Tissue Engineering.

Background: Organs and tissues need to be vascularized during development. Similarly, vascularization is required to engineer thick tissues. How vessels are formed during organogenesis is not fully understood, and vascularization of engineered tissues remains a significant challenge.

Protease-activated receptor 2 deficient mice develop less angiotensin II induced left ventricular hypertrophy but more cardiac fibrosis.

Aims: Activation of Protease Activated Receptor 2 (PAR2) has been shown to be involved in regulation of injury-related processes including inflammation, fibrosis and hypertrophy. In this study we will investigate the role of PAR2 in cardiac injury in a mouse model of hypertension using continuous infusion with angiotensin II.

Methods: Hypertension was induced in 12 weeks old wildtype (wt, n = 8) and PAR2 deficient mice (n = 9) by continuous infusion with angiotensin II for 4 weeks using osmotic minipumps.

DataDesc: A framework for creating and sharing technical metadata for research software interfaces.

The reuse of research software is central to research efficiency and academic exchange. The application of software enables researchers to reproduce, validate, and expand upon study findings. The analysis of open-source code aids in the comprehension, comparison, and integration of approaches.

Barriers to Discharge of Hip Fracture Patients From An Academic Hospital: A Retrospective Data Analysis.

Introduction: Adherence to best practices for care of hip fracture patients is fundamental to decreasing morbidity and mortality in older adults. This includes timely transfer from the hospital to rehabilitation soon after their surgical care. Hospitals experience challenges in implementing several best practices.

Trajectories of mindfulness, flow experience, and stress during an online-based MBSR program: the moderating role of emotional exhaustion.

Introduction: Despite numerous papers focusing on mindfulness at work, our knowledge about how flow experience and stress as indicators of optimal functioning and wellbeing at work evolve over time during the common mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program remains limited. Drawing from the transactional model of flow and stress, we argue that a build-up of mindfulness over the training duration not only leads to a decrease in stress but also an increase in flow experience. Thereby, we examine the moderating role of emotional exhaustion amplifying the beneficial effects of mindfulness.

Incorporation of montmorillonite into microfluidics-generated chitosan microfibers enhances neuron-like PC12 cells for application in neural tissue engineering.

The complexity in structure and function of the nervous system, as well as its slow rate of regeneration, makes it more difficult to treat it compared to other tissues. Neural tissue engineering aims to create an appropriate environment for nerve cell proliferation and differentiation. Fibrous scaffolds with suitable morphology and topography and better mimicry of the extracellular matrix have been promising for the alignment and migration of neural cells.

Zeb1 mediates EMT/plasticity-associated ferroptosis sensitivity in cancer cells by regulating lipogenic enzyme expression and phospholipid composition.

Therapy resistance and metastasis, the most fatal steps in cancer, are often triggered by a (partial) activation of the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) programme. A mesenchymal phenotype predisposes to ferroptosis, a cell death pathway exerted by an iron and oxygen-radical-mediated peroxidation of phospholipids containing polyunsaturated fatty acids. We here show that various forms of EMT activation, including TGFβ stimulation and acquired therapy resistance, increase ferroptosis susceptibility in cancer cells, which depends on the EMT transcription factor Zeb1.

Adhesion G Protein-Coupled Receptor () Expression Profiling in Diseased Mouse, Rat, and Human Kidneys.

Uncovering the function of understudied G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) provides a wealth of untapped therapeutic potential. The poorly understood adhesion GPCR () is widely expressed in developing kidneys. In adulthood, expression is enriched in parietal epithelial cells (PECs) and epithelial cells of the collecting duct and urothelium.

Electrically Conductive Collagen-PEDOT:PSS Hydrogel Prevents Post-Infarct Cardiac Arrhythmia and Supports hiPSC-Cardiomyocyte Function.

Myocardial infarction (MI) causes cell death, disrupts electrical activity, triggers arrhythmia, and results in heart failure, whereby 50-60% of MI-associated deaths manifest as sudden cardiac deaths (SCD). The most effective therapy for SCD prevention is implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs). However, ICDs contribute to adverse remodeling and disease progression and do not prevent arrhythmia.

Acute physiological, biomechanical, and perceptual responses of runners wearing downward-curved carbon fiber insoles.

In a randomized controlled cross-over study ten male runners (26.7 ± 4.9 years; recent 5-km time: 18:37 ± 1:07 min:s) performed an incremental treadmill test (ITT) and a 3-km time trial (3-km TT) on a treadmill while wearing either carbon fiber insoles with downwards curvature or insoles made of butyl rubber (control condition) in light road racing shoes (Saucony Fastwitch 9).

Group eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) in chronic pain patients.

The prevalence of chronic pain is increasing, and conventional pain therapies often have limited efficacy in individuals with high levels of psychological distress and a history of trauma. In this context, the use of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), an evidence-based psychotherapy approach for the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder, is becoming increasingly important. EMDR shows promising results, particularly for patients with pain and high levels of emotional distress.

Direct 3D-Bioprinting of hiPSC-Derived Cardiomyocytes to Generate Functional Cardiac Tissues.

3D-bioprinting is a promising technology to produce human tissues as drug screening tool or for organ repair. However, direct printing of living cells has proven difficult. Here, a method is presented to directly 3D-bioprint human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived cardiomyocytes embedded in a collagen-hyaluronic acid ink, generating centimeter-sized functional ring- and ventricle-shaped cardiac tissues in an accurate and reproducible manner.

Adhesion GPCR Gpr126 (Adgrg6) Expression Profiling in Zebrafish, Mouse, and Human Kidney.

Adhesion G protein-coupled receptors (aGPCRs) comprise the second-largest class of GPCRs, the most common target for approved pharmacological therapies. aGPCRs play an important role in development and disease and have recently been associated with the kidney. Several aGPCRs are expressed in the kidney and some aGPCRs are either required for kidney development or their expression level is altered in diseased kidneys.

Structure-based Design of Novel Hepatitis B Virus Capsid Assembly Modulators.

Small-molecule capsid assembly modulators (CAMs) have been recently recognized as promising antiviral agents for curing chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. A target-based in silico screening study is described, aimed towards the discovery of novel HBV CAMs. Initial optimization of four weakly active screening hits was performed via focused library synthesis.

Patient-derived zebrafish xenografts of uveal melanoma reveal ferroptosis as a drug target.

Uveal melanoma (UM) has a high risk to progress to metastatic disease with a median survival of 3.9 months after metastases detection, as metastatic UM responds poorly to conventional and targeted chemotherapy and is largely refractory to immunotherapy. Here, we present a patient-derived zebrafish UM xenograft model mimicking metastatic UM.

Large-scale microRNA functional high-throughput screening identifies miR-515-3p and miR-519e-3p as inducers of human cardiomyocyte proliferation.

Ischemic cardiomyopathy, driven by loss of cardiomyocytes and inadequate proliferative response, persists to be a major global health problem. Using a functional high-throughput screening, we assessed differential proliferative potential of 2019 miRNAs after transient hypoxia by transfecting both miR-inhibitor and miR-mimic libraries in human iPSC-CM. Whereas miR-inhibitors failed to enhance EdU uptake, overexpression of 28 miRNAs substantially induced proliferative activity in hiPSC-CM, with an overrepresentation of miRNAs belonging to the primate-specific C19MC-cluster.

How symptoms of simple acute infections affect the SSS-8 and SSD-12 as screening instruments for somatic symptom disorder in the primary care setting.

Objective: Somatic symptom disorder (SSD) is one of the most common reasons for consultations in primary care, in addition to simple acute infections. Questionnaire-based screening instruments to identify patients at high risk of SSD are thus of great clinical relevance. Although screening instruments are frequently used, it is currently unclear to what extent they are influenced by the concurrent presence of simple acute infections.

Collagen Hydrogel Containing Polyethylenimine-Gold Nanoparticles for Drug Release and Enhanced Beating Properties of Engineered Cardiac Tissues.

Cardiac tissue engineering is a promising strategy to prevent heart failure. However, several issues remain unsolved, including efficient electrical coupling and incorporating factors to enhance tissue maturation and vascularization. Herein, a biohybrid hydrogel that enhances beating properties of engineered cardiac tissues and allows drug release concurrently is developed.

Oral hygiene prior to cardiac surgery to prevent infections: Randomized clinical trial.

Context: It is not clear if an oral hygiene protocol to control biofilm applied before cardiac surgery can reduce infection rates.

Objective: We aim to verify the effectiveness of an oral hygiene protocol in reducing postoperative infections when compared to usual practices, in patients admitted to a cardiology unit, prior to cardiac surgery.

Design, Setting And Participants: Randomized, blind, controlled clinical trial, with 107 participants who expected to undergo cardiac surgery, randomized into two groups: Experimental Group (EG) standardized oral hygiene protocol (54) and Control Group (CG), usual practices performed in patients admitted (53).

The EMT transcription factor ZEB1 governs a fitness-promoting but vulnerable DNA replication stress response.

The DNA damage response (DDR) and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) are two crucial cellular programs in cancer biology. While the DDR orchestrates cell-cycle progression, DNA repair, and cell death, EMT promotes invasiveness, cellular plasticity, and intratumor heterogeneity. Therapeutic targeting of EMT transcription factors, such as ZEB1, remains challenging, but tumor-promoting DDR alterations elicit specific vulnerabilities.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Experiences of Hospitalized Patients: A Scoping Review.

Objective: This study aimed to identify the factors that exerted an impact on the experiences of hospitalized patients during the COVID-19 pandemic from the quality and safety perspectives.

Method: A scoping review that followed the 5 stages described by Arksey and O'Malley was used. A systematized search of original studies was conducted in 9 databases: PubMed/MEDLINE, BDENF, CINAHL, LILACS, SciELO, Embase, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar.