Publications by authors named "Forrest J"

Gammaherpesviruses are DNA tumor viruses that establish lifelong latent infections in lymphocytes. For viruses such as Epstein-Barr virus and murine gammaherpesvirus 68, this is accomplished through a viral gene-expression program that promotes cellular proliferation and differentiation, especially of germinal center B cells. Intrinsic host mechanisms that control virus-driven cellular expansion are incompletely defined.

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Gammaherpesviruses are oncogenic pathogens that establish lifelong infections. There are no FDA-approved vaccines against Epstein-Barr virus or Kaposi sarcoma herpesvirus. Murine gammaherpesvirus-68 (MHV68) infection of mice provides a system for investigating of gammaherpesvirus pathogenesis and testing vaccine strategies.

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Gammaherpesviruses are oncogenic pathogens that establish lifelong infections. There are no FDA-approved vaccines against Epstein-Barr virus or Kaposi sarcoma herpesvirus. Murine gammaherpesvirus-68 (MHV68) infection of mice provides a system for investigating gammaherpesvirus pathogenesis and testing vaccine strategies.

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Land use change threatens global biodiversity and compromises ecosystem functions, including pollination and food production. Reduced taxonomic α-diversity is often reported under land use change, yet the impacts could be different at larger spatial scales (i.e.

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Background: The work and life of a resident (or "junior") doctor has changed dramatically over the past 50 years. Descriptions of historic working conditions are usually anecdotal and tinted with nostalgia, but do today's burns and plastic surgery doctors feel working conditions have improved or declined over the last 50 years, and does this have an impact on recruitment and retention?

Methods: An interview was conducted with a retired surgeon who, in 1970, worked as a house surgeon (Year 2 doctor equivalent) in a burns unit for the pioneering burn surgeon Mr. Douglas MacGregor Jackson.

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Background: Liver cirrhosis is not included in surgical risk prediction models despite being a significant risk factor associated with high periprocedural morbidity and mortality in patients undergoing cardiac surgery. Limited contemporary data exists assessing the outcomes of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) and surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) in patients with cirrhosis.

Methods: Patients with cirrhosis who underwent TAVR or SAVR were identified from the Nationwide Readmissions Database.

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Background: The cost-effectiveness of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) vs. surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) has previously been reported across the spectrum of surgical mortality risk. We present an updated analysis specific to the UK based on 4-year data from the Evolut Low Risk Trial, which showed a maintained numerical survival benefit with TAVI.

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Background: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned in 2012 that azithromycin (AZM) can cause potentially fatal irregular heart rhythm, particularly in patients with known cardiac risk factors.

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Article Synopsis
  • A study compared transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) with traditional surgery in low-risk patients under 75 years old with severe aortic stenosis to evaluate safety and effectiveness over three years.* -
  • Results showed that TAVR patients had similar overall mortality rates but significantly fewer disabling strokes (0.6%) compared to surgery patients (2.9%), while TAVR also resulted in better valve performance.* -
  • Both treatment options had comparable low rates of valve reinterventions, but TAVR patients experienced higher rates of pacemaker implantation (21.0% vs. 7.1%).*
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Background: Locally advanced cervical cancer is treated with chemoradiotherapy (standard of care), but many patients still relapse and die from metastatic disease. We investigated chemoradiotherapy with or without induction chemotherapy to determine whether induction chemotherapy improves both progression-free survival and overall survival.

Methods: The INTERLACE trial was a multicentre, randomised phase 3 trial done at 32 medical centres in Brazil, India, Italy, Mexico, and the UK.

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The aging population presents pressing societal challenges, emphasizing the importance of aging in the right place to support older individuals' quality of life. Technology can play a crucial role in facilitating aging in place by enabling multiple factors such as remote healthcare monitoring, social connectivity and access to essential services. However, several challenges must be addressed to ensure widespread adoption and effective usage of technology among older adults.

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Background: Algae-derived nutraceuticals, such as spirulina, have been reported to have biological activities that may minimize clinical consequences to COVID-19 infections.

Objectives: This study aimed to determine whether spirulina is an effective treatment for high-risk patients with early COVID-19 in an outpatient setting.

Methods: The TOGETHER trial is a placebo-controlled, randomized, platform trial conducted in Brazil.

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Bumblebees are key pollinators with gut microbiotas that support host health. After bumblebee queens undergo winter diapause, which occurs before spring colony establishment, their gut microbiotas are disturbed, but little is known about community dynamics during diapause itself. Queen gut microbiotas also help seed worker microbiotas, so it is important that they recover post-diapause to a typical community structure, a process that may be impeded by pesticide exposure.

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Background: Outcomes from transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) in low-surgical risk patients with bicuspid aortic stenosis beyond 2 years are limited.

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate 3-year clinical and echocardiographic outcomes from the Evolut Low Risk Bicuspid Study.

Methods: The Evolut Low Risk Bicuspid Study is a prospective, multicenter, single-arm study conducted in 25 U.

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Gammaherpesviruses are oncogenic viruses that establish lifelong infections and are significant causes of morbidity and mortality. Vaccine strategies to limit gammaherpesvirus infection and disease are in development, but there are no FDA-approved vaccines for Epstein-Barr or Kaposi sarcoma herpesvirus. As a new approach to gammaherpesvirus vaccination, we developed and tested a replication-deficient virus (RDV) platform, using murine gammaherpesvirus 68 (MHV68), a well-established mouse model for gammaherpesvirus pathogenesis studies and preclinical therapeutic evaluations.

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Pollinators are thought to be the main drivers of floral evolution. Flowers are also colonized by abundant communities of microbes that can affect the interaction between plants and their pollinators. Very little is known, however, about how flower-colonizing microbes influence floral evolution.

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Importance: Matched placebo interventions are complex and resource intensive. Recent evidence suggests matched placebos may not always be necessary. Previous studies have predominantly evaluated potential bias of nonmatched placebos (ie, differing on dose, frequency of administration, or formulation) in pain and mental health, but to date no systematic examination has been conducted in infectious disease.

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Aims: This audit examined UK vulvar cancer practice from March 2018 to January 2019 and compared it to standards from national and international recommendations. Follow-up data collection in 2020 examined patient outcomes and toxicity.

Materials And Methods: Audit standards were based on Royal College of Radiologists (RCR) guidance and published literature.

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There are limited data from randomized controlled trials assessing the impact of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) or surgery in women with aortic stenosis and small aortic annuli. We evaluated 2-year clinical and hemodynamic outcomes after aortic valve replacement to understand acute valve performance and early and midterm clinical outcomes. This post hoc analysis pooled women enrolled in the randomized, prospective, multicenter Evolut Low Risk and Surgical Replacement and Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation (SURTAVI) intermediate risk trials.

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Plants produce an array of defensive compounds with toxic or deterrent effects on insect herbivores. Pollen can contain relatively high concentrations of such defense compounds, but the causes and consequences of this enigmatic phenomenon remain mostly unknown. These compounds could potentially protect pollen against antagonists but could also reduce flower attractiveness to pollinators.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study compares the 5-year rates of valve reintervention after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) using CoreValve/Evolut versus surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR).
  • It found that TAVR had a higher overall reintervention rate (2.2%) compared to SAVR (1.5%), particularly within the first year.
  • Evolut TAVR showed significantly fewer reinterventions than CoreValve TAVR, but its rates were comparable to SAVR, indicating varying risks associated with different valve types.
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Plants produce an array of chemical and mechanical defences that provide protection against many herbivores and pathogens. Putatively defensive compounds and structures can even occur in floral rewards: for example, the pollen of some plant taxa contains toxic compounds or possesses conspicuous spines. Yet little is known about whether pollen defences restrict host-plant use by bees.

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