Parenting and Childbearing in Neurosurgical Residency: Perspectives from the United States and Canada.

Background: Despite growing interest in family planning alongside surgical training, significant barriers exist including time constraints, stigma, and lack of paid leave and formal policies. We currently lack a deep understanding of the challenges residents face and how practice cultures may prohibit successful policy enactment.

Objective: To investigate residents' perspectives surrounding parenting and childbearing during neurosurgical residency in the United States and Canada.

The Brain Protein Atlas: A conglomerate of proteomics datasets of human neural tissue.

The human brain represents one of the most complex biological structures with significant spatiotemporal molecular plasticity occurring through early development, learning, aging, and disease. While much progress has been made in mapping its transcriptional architecture, more downstream phenotypic readouts are relatively scarce due to limitations with tissue heterogeneity and accessibility, as well as an inability to amplify protein species prior to global -OMICS analysis. To address some of these barriers, our group has recently focused on using mass-spectrometry workflows compatible with small amounts of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue samples.

Transforming growth factor-β signaling governs the differentiation program of extravillous trophoblasts in the developing human placenta.

Abnormal placentation has been noticed in a variety of pregnancy complications such as miscarriage, early-onset preeclampsia, and fetal growth restriction. Defects in the developmental program of extravillous trophoblasts (EVTs), migrating from placental anchoring villi into the maternal decidua and its vessels, is thought to be an underlying cause. Yet, key regulatory mechanisms controlling commitment and differentiation of the invasive trophoblast lineage remain largely elusive.

Abortion: legislation and statistics in Europe.

The Parliamentary Assembly invited the member states of the Council of Europe to 'guarantee women's effective exercise of their right of access to a safe and legal abortion'. While abortion legislation and statistics give an impression of the legislative, cultural, and religious views of the societies and the socio-economic health of the female population, only one study conducted in 2011 looked into the current legislation and trends in terminations of pregnancy in the European Union. From January 2017 to December 2018, a group of experts, the authors of the present article, liaised with colleagues practising in 32 European countries to collect data on abortion legislation and statistics using three different questionnaires.

Integrating morphologic and molecular histopathological features through whole slide image registration and deep learning.

Background: Modern molecular pathology workflows in neuro-oncology heavily rely on the integration of morphologic and immunohistochemical patterns for analysis, classification, and prognostication. However, despite the recent emergence of digital pathology platforms and artificial intelligence-driven computational image analysis tools, automating the integration of histomorphologic information found across these multiple studies is challenged by large files sizes of whole slide images (WSIs) and shifts/rotations in tissue sections introduced during slide preparation.

Methods: To address this, we develop a workflow that couples different computer vision tools including scale-invariant feature transform (SIFT) and deep learning to efficiently align and integrate histopathological information found across multiple independent studies.

Detection of ectopic pregnancy and serum beta hCG levels in women undergoing very early medical abortion: a retrospective cohort study.

Objective: To evaluate the outcome of the very early medical abortion (VEMA) protocol and whether it could increase early diagnosis and treatment of an asymptomatic ectopic pregnancy (EP). To investigate serum β-hCG levels correlated to ultrasound findings, and decline in β-hCG after successful VEMA.

Study Design: A retrospective case-note review.

Pathobiology, Diagnosis, and Current Biomarkers in Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorders.

Background: Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) is characterized by chronic inflammation of the central nervous system (CNS), particularly the optic nerves and spinal cord. Although it displays some clinical features similar to multiple sclerosis (MS), the etiology and treatment are distinct, and therefore accurate diagnosis is essential. Autoantibodies targeting the water channel protein aquaporin-4 (AQP4) and the myelin sheath protein myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein are the major antigen-specific serological biomarkers known to date, with destruction of astrocytes as the primary mode of CNS damage in AQP4-positive disease.

The molecular and phenotypic makeup of fetal human skin T lymphocytes.

The adult human skin contains a vast number of T cells that are essential for skin homeostasis and pathogen defense. T cells are first observed in the skin at the early stages of gestation; however, our understanding of their contribution to early immunity has been limited by their low abundance and lack of comprehensive methodologies for their assessment. Here, we describe a new workflow for isolating and expanding significant amounts of T cells from fetal human skin.

Introducing Simulation-Based Learning for Trainees in Chronic Pain Medicine: Needs Assessment and Suggestions for Training Scenarios.

Introduction: Managing patients with chronic pain can be complex and requires specialized clinical knowledge and advanced communication skills. Simulation-based learning has been shown to improve learning outcomes for complex competencies and could be a valuable resource for trainees in chronic pain medicine.

Methods: We assessed the need for a simulation-based course for trainees in chronic pain medicine at McMaster University in Canada.

αβγδ T cells play a vital role in fetal human skin development and immunity.

T cells in human skin play an important role in the immune defense against pathogens and tumors. T cells are present already in fetal skin, where little is known about their cellular phenotype and biological function. Using single-cell analyses, we identified a naive T cell population expressing αβ and γδ T cell receptors (TCRs) that was enriched in fetal skin and intestine but not detected in other fetal organs and peripheral blood.

Mutations in normal tissues-some diagnostic and clinical implications.

Background: It has long been known that mutations are at the core of many diseases, most notably cancer. Mutational analysis of tissues and fluids is useful for cancer and other disease diagnosis and management.

Main Body: The prevailing cancer development hypothesis posits that cancer originates from mutations in cancer-driving genes that accumulate in tissues over time.

Can a Broad Molecular Screen Based on Circulating Tumor DNA Aid in Early Cancer Detection?

Early detection of cancer has been a major research focus for almost a century. Current methods for early cancer detection suffer from suboptimal sensitivity and specificity, especially when used for population screening. For most major cancers, including breast, prostate, lung, ovarian, and pancreatic cancer, population screening is still controversial or is not recommended by expert bodies.

Densities of decidual high endothelial venules correlate with T-cell influx in healthy pregnancies and idiopathic recurrent pregnancy losses.

Study Question: Do high endothelial venules (HEVs) appear in the uterus of healthy and pathological pregnancies?

Summary Answer: Our study reveals that HEVs are present in the non-pregnant endometrium and decidua parietalis (decP) but decline upon placentation in decidua basalis (decB) and are less abundant in decidual tissues from idiopathic, recurrent pregnancy losses (RPLs).

What Is Known Already: RPL is associated with a compromised decidual vascular phenotype.

Study Design, Size, Duration: Endometrial (n = 29) and first trimester decidual (n = 86, 6-12th week of gestation) tissue samples obtained from endometrial biopsies or elective pregnancy terminations were used to determine the number of HEVs and T cells.

The Outcomes of Scientific Debates Should Be Published: The Arivale Story.

There is an ongoing scientific debate regarding the merits and shortcomings of P4 Medicine (predictive, preventive, personalized, and participatory) and O4 Medicine (overtesting, overdiagnosis, overtreatment, and overcharging). P4 Medicine promises to revolutionize scientific wellness through longitudinal big data collection, denoted as "dense phenotyping," which could uncover early, actionable signs of disease, thus allowing earlier interventions and possible disease reversal. On the other hand, O4 Medicine draws attention to the potential side effects of P4 Medicine: overtesting, overdiagnosis, overtreatment, and overcharging fees.

Aspirin: Bitter pill or miracle drug?

Acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) or brand name Aspirin is a widely available medication used to relieve inflammation, fever and pain. It has also been frequently prescribed as prevention for cardiovascular disease due to its anti-thrombotic qualities. However, ASA is also connected to increased internal bleeding, leading to concerns that this harmful side effect may outweigh its cardioprotective properties in some populations.

Pivotal role of the transcriptional co-activator YAP in trophoblast stemness of the developing human placenta.

Various pregnancy complications, such as severe forms of preeclampsia or intrauterine growth restriction, are thought to arise from failures in the differentiation of human placental trophoblasts. Progenitors of the latter either develop into invasive extravillous trophoblasts, remodeling the uterine vasculature, or fuse into multinuclear syncytiotrophoblasts transporting oxygen and nutrients to the growing fetus. However, key regulatory factors controlling trophoblast self-renewal and differentiation have been poorly elucidated.

The challenges and mental health issues of academic trainees.

In the last decade, mental health issues have come to the foreground in academia. Literature surrounding student mental health continues to grow as universities try to implement wellness services and study the mental health of their students. Studies vary greatly in terms of measurement tools, timeframe, sample demographics, as well as the chosen threshold of symptom severity for diagnosis.

Mass Spectrometry-Based Assay for Targeting Fifty-Two Proteins of Brain Origin in Cerebrospinal Fluid.

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is a circulatory fluid of the central nervous system and it can reflect the biochemical changes occurring in the brain. Although CSF retrieval through lumbar puncture is invasive, it remains the most commonly used fluid in exploring brain pathology as it is less complex and contains a higher concentration of brain-derived proteins than plasma (Reiber, H. 2001, 310, 173-186; Macron et al.

Experiences of women accessing an abortion clinic confronted by religiously motivated demonstrators: a pilot study.

Although abortion is legal in Austria, women are frequently confronted by religiously motivated demonstrators when accessing an abortion. The current study assessed women's experiences in this situation. Between 2006 and 2010, data were collected from women seeking an abortion who had been approached by demonstrators in front of an abortion clinic.