Prenatal Diagnosis of Nonsyndromic Craniosynostosis: A Scoping Review.

Craniosynostosis is rarely diagnosed in utero. Prenatal diagnosis has the potential to improve patient outcomes and streamline care, however, and is becoming more feasible as technology improves. The objective of this study is to examine existing literature on prenatal diagnosis of nonsyndromic craniosynostosis.

Attainment of remission and low disease activity after treatment with belimumab in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus: a post-hoc analysis of pooled data from five randomised clinical trials.

Background: Disease remission or low disease activity are key treatment targets for patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Pivotal trials of belimumab were conducted before the introduction of these targets. In this study, we aimed to pool data across trials to assess attainment of remission and low disease activity in a large, racially and culturally diverse patient population with SLE.

Population-level coding of avoidance learning in medial prefrontal cortex.

The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) has been proposed to link sensory inputs and behavioral outputs to mediate the execution of learned behaviors. However, how such a link is implemented has remained unclear. To measure prefrontal neural correlates of sensory stimuli and learned behaviors, we performed population calcium imaging during a new tone-signaled active avoidance paradigm in mice.

SF-36v2 and FACIT-Fatigue quality of life improvements with organ-specific SELENA-SLEDAI response and belimumab treatment in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.

Objective: Explore organ-specific SLE burden by assessing health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and fatigue changes associated with Safety of Estrogens in Lupus Erythematosus National Assessment-Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (SELENA-SLEDAI) organ system response (score improvement) and belimumab treatment.

Methods: Data from four phase III belimumab trials were pooled for post hoc analysis (GSK Study 217382): BLISS-52 (NCT00424476), BLISS-76 (NCT00410384), BLISS-SC (NCT01484496) and EMBRACE (NCT01632241). Patients with baseline organ system involvement were classed as organ system responders if SELENA-SLEDAI scores for that organ system decreased at any post-baseline visit.

Eliminate all risks: A call to reexamine the link between canine scabies and rheumatic heart disease.

Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) and acute rheumatic fever (ARF) disproportionately affect individuals in low-resource settings. ARF is attributed to an immune response to Group A Streptococcus (GAS) following GAS pharyngitis and potentially GAS impetigo in which infection can be initiated by scabies infestation. The burden of ARF and RHD in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia is among the highest globally.

Longitudinal Associations Between Symptoms of ADHD and Life Success: From Emerging Adulthood to Early Middle Adulthood.

Objective: To expand on current adult ADHD literature by investigating the stability of ADHD symptomatology (i.e., inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity) across a 15-year period (from emerging adulthood to early middle adulthood) and the relative contributions of ADHD symptomatology to life success.

I-PREGNO - prevention of unhealthy weight gain and psychosocial stress in families during pregnancy and postpartum using an mHealth enhanced intervention: a study protocol of two cluster randomized controlled trials.

Background: The transition to parenthood represents a critical life period with psychosocial, and behavioral changes and challenges for parents. This often increases stress and leads to unhealthy weight gain in families, especially in psychosocially burdened families. Although universal and selective prevention programs are offered to families, specific support often fails to reach psychosocially burdened families.

Tuning Human Serum Albumin (HSA) Hydrogels through Albumin Glycation.

The changes of technological properties of albumin-based hydrogels induced by increasing degrees of post-translational modification of the protein are reported. Maillard-type modification of amino acids arginine and lysine of albumin is achieved through glyoxal as an α-dicarbonyl compound. The degrees of modification are fine-tuned using different molar ratios of glyoxal.

Exposure Prioritization (): A Screening-Level High-Throughput Chemical Prioritization Tool.

To estimate potential chemical risk, tools are needed to prioritize potential exposures for chemicals with minimal data. Consumer product exposures are a key pathway, and variability in consumer use patterns is an important factor. We designed , a flexible dashboard-type screening-level exposure model, to rapidly visualize exposure rankings from consumer product use.

Cohort profile: the Food Chain Plus (FoCus) cohort.

The Food Chain Plus (FoCus) cohort was launched in 2011 for population-based research related to metabolic inflammation. To characterize this novel pathology in a comprehensive manner, data collection included multiple omics layers such as phenomics, microbiomics, metabolomics, genomics, and metagenomics as well as nutrition profiling, taste perception phenotyping and social network analysis. The cohort was set-up to represent a Northern German population of the Kiel region.

An In Vivo Inflammatory Loop Potentiates KRAS Blockade.

KRAS (KRAS proto-oncogene, GTPase) inhibitors perform less well than other targeted drugs in vitro and fail clinical trials. To investigate a possible reason for this, we treated human and murine tumor cells with KRAS inhibitors deltarasin (targeting phosphodiesterase-δ), cysmethynil (targeting isoprenylcysteine carboxylmethyltransferase), and AA12 (targeting KRAS), and silenced/overexpressed mutant KRAS using custom-designed vectors. We showed that -mutant tumor cells exclusively respond to KRAS blockade in vivo, because the oncogene co-opts host myeloid cells via a C-C-motif chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2)/interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β)-mediated signaling loop for sustained tumorigenicity.

Gender and Emotional Representation Matter: Own Illness Beliefs and Their Relationship to Obesity.

Background: Current treatments of obesity often fail to consider gender and psychological aspects, which are essential for weight loss and weight maintenance. The aim of our study was to analyze subjective illness representations (SIRs) of adults with obesity according to the Common-Sense Self-Regulation Model (CSM) by assessing their associations with weight-related variables and gender.

Methods: Data was collected via online self-assessment between April 2017 and March 2018.

Glycation Alters the Fatty Acid Binding Capacity of Human Serum Albumin.

Glycation significantly alters the physicochemical and biofunctional properties of proteins in foods and in vivo. In the present study, human serum albumin (HSA) as the major transporter of fatty acids was modified with glyoxal under physiological conditions. Reversibly albumin-bound glyoxal was removed, and advanced glycation end products were quantitated by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS).

Acute Heart Failure After Reperfused Ischemic Stroke: Association With Systemic and Cardiac Inflammatory Responses.

Patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) present an increased incidence of systemic inflammatory response syndrome and release of Troponin T coinciding with cardiac dysfunction. The nature of the cardiocirculatory alterations remains obscure as models to investigate systemic interferences of the brain-heart-axis following AIS are sparse. Thus, this study aims to investigate acute cardiocirculatory dysfunction and myocardial injury in mice after reperfused AIS.

Mapping protein carboxymethylation sites provides insights into their role in proteostasis and cell proliferation.

Posttranslational mechanisms play a key role in modifying the abundance and function of cellular proteins. Among these, modification by advanced glycation end products has been shown to accumulate during aging and age-associated diseases but specific protein targets and functional consequences remain largely unexplored. Here, we devise a proteomic strategy to identify sites of carboxymethyllysine modification, one of the most abundant advanced glycation end products.

Does Weight-Cycling Influence Illness Beliefs in Obesity? A Gender-Sensitive Approach.

Obesity is classified as a chronic disease. Women and men seem to face different obstacles in their attempts to overcome one of the most challenging tasks in the treatment of this disease, namely, weight reduction maintenance. The Common-Sense-Model (CSM) is mainly used to improve the understanding of self-regulation and health behaviour in chronic diseases but has yet to be explored for obesity.

ADHD and Academic Success in University Students: The Important Role of Impaired Attention.

Objective: To improve on several methodological issues regarding current literature investigating the relationship between ADHD symptomatology and academic success in adults and examine the relative contributions of specific dimensions of ADHD symptomatology (i.e., inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity) to post-secondary academic success.

Advanced glycation end products in human diabetic lens capsules.

Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) accumulate with age in human lens capsules. AGEs in lens capsules potentiate the transforming growth factor beta-2-mediated mesenchymal transition of lens epithelial cells, which suggests that they play a role in posterior capsule opacification after cataract surgery. We measured AGEs by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry in capsulorhexis specimens obtained during cataract surgery from nondiabetic and diabetic patients with and without established retinopathy.

Comprehensive Analyses of Carbohydrates, 1,2-Dicarbonyl Compounds, and Advanced Glycation End Products in Industrial Bread Making.

The technology of bread making is characterized by three major steps: dough mixing, proofing, and baking. To follow the course of Maillard processes in an authentic food matrix, the complete manufacturing process of wheat bread rolls was assessed along all production steps with the quantitation of sugars, furfurals, 1,2-dicarbonyl compounds, and advanced glycation end products (AGEs). As a result, the AGE profile was significantly enlarged to more than 12 structures, and comprehensive mechanistic insights were provided.

March Mammal Madness and the power of narrative in science outreach.

March Mammal Madness is a science outreach project that, over the course of several weeks in March, reaches hundreds of thousands of people in the United States every year. We combine four approaches to science outreach - gamification, social media platforms, community event(s), and creative products - to run a simulated tournament in which 64 animals compete to become the tournament champion. While the encounters between the animals are hypothetical, the outcomes rely on empirical evidence from the scientific literature.

Endothelial β1 Integrin-Mediated Adaptation to Myocardial Ischemia.

Background:  Short episodes of myocardial ischemia can protect from myocardial infarction. However, the role of endothelial β1 integrin in these cardioprotective ischemic events is largely unknown.

Objective:  In this study we investigated whether endothelial β1 integrin is required for cardiac adaptation to ischemia and protection from myocardial infarction.

Removal of a Silicone Gel Breast Implant in a Multiple Myeloma Patient Improved Disease Status: A Case Report.

A 52-year-old African-American woman with a prior history of monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) developed infiltrating ductal carcinoma of the left breast. Following a mastectomy, she underwent reconstruction with a silicone gel breast implant. Three years later, her MGUS had progressed to active multiple myeloma (MM).

Use of study-specific MOE-like estimates to prioritize health effects from chemical exposure for analysis in human health assessments.

There are unique challenges in estimating dose-response with chemicals that are associated with multiple health outcomes and numerous studies. Some studies are more suitable than others for quantitative dose-response analyses. For such chemicals, an efficient method of screening studies and endpoints to identify suitable studies and potentially important health effects for dose-response modeling is valuable.

Synchronised infection identifies early rate-limiting steps in the hepatitis B virus life cycle.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is an enveloped DNA virus that contains a partially double-stranded relaxed circular (rc) DNA. Upon infection, rcDNA is delivered to the nucleus where it is repaired to covalently closed circular (ccc) DNA that serves as the transcription template for all viral RNAs. Our understanding of HBV particle entry dynamics and host pathways regulating intracellular virus trafficking and cccDNA formation is limited.