Iron nanoparticle-labeled murine mesenchymal stromal cells in an osteoarthritic model persists and suggests anti-inflammatory mechanism of action.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is characterized by cartilage degradation and chronic joint inflammation. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have shown promising results in OA, but their mechanism of action is not fully understood. We hypothesize that MSCs polarize macrophages, which are strongly associated with joint inflammation to more homeostatic sub-types.

The Relationship Between Ambient Atmospheric Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) and Glaucoma in a Large Community Cohort.

Purpose: Glaucoma is more common in urban populations than in others. Ninety percent of the world's population are exposed to air pollution above World Health Organization (WHO) recommended limits. Few studies have examined the association between air pollution and glaucoma.

Heavy metal toxicity and the aetiology of glaucoma.

Despite recent advances, our understanding of the aetiological mechanisms underlying glaucoma remains incomplete. Heavy metals toxicity has been linked to the development of neurodegenerative diseases and various ocular pathologies. Given the similarities in pathophysiology between glaucoma and some neurodegenerative disorders, it is plausible that heavy metal toxicity may play a role in the development of glaucoma.

Racial Anxiety among Medical Residents: Institutional Implications of Social Accountability.

As the U.S. population becomes more racially diverse, physicians need to have cultural skills for optimal health outcomes; however, the literature is sparse for cultural skill application of medical trainees.

Quality of life and post-traumatic stress symptoms in paediatric patients with tibial fractures during treatment with cast or Ilizarov frame.

Purpose: To compare quality of life in children and adolescents with tibial fracture during treatment with either a definitive long-leg cast or Ilizarov frame.

Methods: A prospective, longitudinal cohort study was undertaken. Patients aged between 5 and 17 years with tibial fractures treated definitively using a long-leg cast or Ilizarov frame were recruited at first follow-up.

Associations of Retinal Microvascular Diameters and Tortuosity With Blood Pressure and Arterial Stiffness: United Kingdom Biobank.

To examine the baseline associations of retinal vessel morphometry with blood pressure (BP) and arterial stiffness in United Kingdom Biobank. The United Kingdom Biobank included 68 550 participants aged 40 to 69 years who underwent nonmydriatic retinal imaging, BP, and arterial stiffness index assessment. A fully automated image analysis program (QUARTZ [Quantitative Analysis of Retinal Vessel Topology and Size]) provided measures of retinal vessel diameter and tortuosity.

Has the EAGLE landed for the use of clear lens extraction in angle-closure glaucoma? And how should primary angle-closure suspects be treated?

Angle-closure glaucoma is an aggressive condition that causes millions to become blind worldwide. This review explores the use of prophylactic laser peripheral iridotomy (PI) in patients classified as primary angle-closure suspects (PACS), and additionally, the use of clear lens exchange as a primary treatment option in established angle-closure disease with or without glaucoma. As PI has a strong prophylactic effect in fellow eyes of patients who have had an acute attack, its use has been widely adopted in those patients classified as PACS, but with limited evidence to support this.

Comparison of Associations with Different Macular Inner Retinal Thickness Parameters in a Large Cohort: The UK Biobank.

Purpose: To describe and compare associations with macular retinal nerve fiber layer (mRNFL), ganglion cell complex (GCC), and ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer (GCIPL) thicknesses in a large cohort.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Participants: We included 42 044 participants in the UK Biobank.

Lipopolysaccharide induces steroid-resistant exacerbations in a mouse model of allergic airway disease collectively through IL-13 and pulmonary macrophage activation.

Background: Acute exacerbations of asthma represent a major burden of disease and are often caused by respiratory infections. Viral infections are recognized as significant triggers of exacerbations; however, less is understood about the how microbial bioproducts such as the endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide (LPS)) trigger episodes. Indeed, increased levels of LPS have been linked to asthma onset, severity and steroid resistance.

First record of translocation in Culicidae (Diptera) mitogenomes: evidence from the tribe Sabethini.

Background: The tribe Sabethini (Diptera: Culicidae) contains important vectors of the yellow fever virus and presents remarkable morphological and ecological diversity unequalled in other mosquito groups. However, there is limited information about mitochondrial genomes (mitogenomes) from these species. As mitochondrial genetics has been fundamental for posing evolutionary hypotheses and identifying taxonomical markers, in this study we sequenced the first sabethine mitogenomes: Sabethes undosus, Trichoprosopon pallidiventer, Runchomyia reversa, Limatus flavisetosus, and Wyeomyia confusa.

Frequency and distribution of corneal astigmatism and keratometry features in adult life: Methodology and findings of the UK Biobank study.

Purpose: To describe corneal astigmatism in the UK Biobank population and to look for associations with other biometric variables and socio-demographic factors.

Methods: This analysis included a subsample of 107,452 participants of the UK Biobank study who underwent an enhanced ophthalmic examination including autorefractor keratometry (Tomey RC 5000, Tomey Corp., Nagoya, Japan).

Associations with Corneal Hysteresis in a Population Cohort: Results from 96 010 UK Biobank Participants.

Purpose: To describe the distribution of corneal hysteresis (CH) in a large cohort and explore its associated factors and possible clinical applications.

Design: Cross-sectional study within the UK Biobank, a large cohort study in the United Kingdom.

Participants: We analyzed CH data from 93 345 eligible participants in the UK Biobank cohort, aged 40 to 69 years.

A new paradigm for delivering personalised care: integrating genetics with surgical interventions in BEST1 mutations.

Background: The availability and reduced cost of genotyping has improved gene susceptibility testing and our scientific understanding of disease pathophysiology. Whilst several personalised translational models exist within medical frameworks, genetic-based surgical therapy is a translational application not widely used in surgical specialties.

Method: We present a clinical series of five patients with genetically confirmed bestrophinopathy and malignant glaucoma (MG).

Reducing the African American HIV Disease Burden in the Deep South: Addressing the Role of Faith and Spirituality.

Nearly half of HIV infections in the United States are concentrated among African Americans, and over half of new HIV infections occur in the South. African Americans have poorer outcomes in the entire continua of HIV and PrEP care. Complex social, structural, and behavioral factors contribute to our nation's alarming racial disparities in HIV infection, particularly in the Deep South.

Synthesis and in vitro evaluation of piperazinyl-ureido sulfamates as steroid sulfatase inhibitors.

Two new piperazinyl-ureido single ring aryl sulfamate-based inhibitor series were designed against the emerging oncology drug target steroid sulfatase (STS), for which there are existing potent steroidal and non-steroidal agents in clinical trials. 4-(Piperazinocarbonyl)aminosulfamates (5-31) were obtained by reacting 4-hydroxyarylamines with phenylchloroformate, subsequent sulfamoylation of the resulting hydroxyarylcarbamates and coupling of the product with 1-substituted piperazines. Pyrimidinyl-piperazinourea sulfamates (35-42) were synthesized by pyrimidine ring closure of 4-Boc-piperazine-1-carboxamidine with 3-(dimethylamino)propenones, deprotection and coupling with the sulfamoylated building block.

Come from away: Best practices in mini-sabbaticals for the development of young investigators: a White Paper by the SEQUIN (mini-Sabbatical Evaluation and QUality ImprovemeNt) Group.

Mini-sabbaticals are formal short-term training and educational experiences away from an investigator's home research unit. These may include rotations with other research units and externships at government research or regulatory agencies, industry and non-profit programs, and training and/or intensive educational programs. The National Institutes of Health have been encouraging training institutions to consider offering mini-sabbaticals, but given the newness of the concept, limited data are available to guide the implementation of mini-sabbatical programs.

H NMR-MS-based heterocovariance as a drug discovery tool for fishing bioactive compounds out of a complex mixture of structural analogues.

Chemometric methods and correlation of spectroscopic or spectrometric data with bioactivity results are known to improve dereplication in classical bio-guided isolation approaches. However, in drug discovery from natural sources the isolation of bioactive constituents from a crude extract containing close structural analogues remains a significant challenge. This study is a H NMR-MS workflow named ELINA (Eliciting Nature's Activities) which is based on statistical heterocovariance analysis (HetCA) of H NMR spectra detecting chemical features that are positively ("hot") or negatively ("cold") correlated with bioactivity prior to any isolation.

Fluorine-19 Cellular MRI Detection of In Vivo Dendritic Cell Migration and Subsequent Induction of Tumor Antigen-Specific Immunotherapeutic Response.

Purpose: A major hurdle in the advancement of cell-based cancer immunotherapies is the inability to track in vivo therapeutic cell migration. With respect to dendritic cell (DC)-based cancer immunotherapies, this lack of knowledge represents an even greater hurdle as the quantity of tumor-antigen specific DC reaching a secondary lymphoid organ post injection is predictive of the magnitude of the ensuing tumor-specific immune response. We propose fluorine-19 (F-19) cellular magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as a suitable and non-invasive imaging modality capable of detecting and quantifying DC migration in vivo and thus, serving as a surrogate marker of DC-based immunotherapeutic effectiveness.

The Symmetrical Wave Pattern of Base-Pair Substitution Rates across the Escherichia coli Chromosome Has Multiple Causes.

Mutation accumulation experiments followed by whole-genome sequencing have revealed that, for several bacterial species, the rate of base-pair substitutions (BPSs) is not constant across the chromosome but varies in a wave-like pattern that is symmetrical about the origin of replication. The experiments reported here demonstrated that, in , several interacting factors determine the wave. The origin is a major driver of BPS rates.

MicroRNAs in Lung Diseases.

Chronic inflammatory diseases of the lung are often life-threatening and are a leading cause of morbidity in our communities. MicroRNAs (miRs) are now recognized to play critical roles in a wide range of cellular functions, including the regulation of immunologic processes, which are often dysregulated in chronic respiratory diseases. These small noncoding RNA molecules regulate networks of genes by inhibiting translation through the targeting of one or multiple messenger RNA transcripts.