Salinomycin attenuates kidney fibrosis and inflammation in mice with unilateral ureteral obstruction.

Renal fibrosis is a crucial pathological feature in chronic kidney disease (CKD), resulting in the gradual decline of renal function. Salinomycin is an antibiotic discovered from Streptomyces albus that also regulates the fates of cells. However, its potential in kidney fibrosis remains elusive.

A Quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) Score Greater than 1 and Shortened Ampicillin Use Predict Death and One-Year Mortality in Hospitalized Patients with Non-Perinatal Invasive Listeriosis: A Retrospective Analysis of 118 Consecutive Cases.

causes listeriosis, a serious foodborne illness with a high mortality rate, especially in vulnerable populations. It accounts for 19% of foodborne deaths, with invasive cases having a mortality rate of up to 44%, leading to conditions like meningitis, bacteremia, and meningoencephalitis. However, the prognostic factors remain unclear.

Invasive Listeriosis in End-Stage Kidney Disease (ESKD) Patients Receiving Long-Term Dialysis: A 21-Year Case Series.

Background: Listeriosis is caused by the facultative anaerobic bacterium . Infection from -contaminated food or water is the main etiology. If travels outside the intestines, it can cause invasive listeriosis, such as sepsis, meningitis, and meningoencephalitis.

Noscapine alleviates unilateral ureteral obstruction-induced inflammation and fibrosis by regulating the TGFβ1/Smads signaling pathways.

Renal fibrosis is a common pathway leading to progressive renal function loss in various forms of chronic kidney disease. Many fibrogenic factors regulate renal fibrosis; two key players are post-injury inflammation and transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1)-induced myofibroblast differentiation. Myofibroblast differentiation is tightly regulated by the microtubule polymerization.

The essential role of the ERK activation in large T antigen of BK polyomavirus regulated cell migration.

Recent studies have suggested that BK polyomavirus (BKPyV) may be associated with the development of urothelial carcinoma. In Merkel cell carcinoma, TAg and tAg are the major viral proteins of Merkel cell polyomavirus with oncogenic potential. In this study, we aimed to distinguish the role of TAg and tAg in cell migration.

Experiences of oncology healthcare personnel in international medical service quality: a phenomenological study.

Background: With the globalization of medical services on the rise, Asia has ascended to a destination of choice for its high-quality medical services at very reasonable rates. Monitoring the quality of the international medical industry is vital to maintain service demand. The experiences of healthcare personnel (HCP) involved in international medical services (IMS) regarding the provision of services to international cancer patients have not yet been discussed.

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha blockade suppresses BK polyomavirus replication.

Purpose: BK Polyomavirus (BKPyV) infection manifests as renal inflammation and can cause kidney damage. Tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) is increased in renal inflammation and injury. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of TNF-α blockade on BKPyV infection.

Use of fibrates is not associated with reduced risks of mortality or cardiovascular events among ESRD patients: A national cohort study.

Background: Although a recent study reported that fibrates are associated with a low risk of cardiovascular (CV) death and can postpone the need for long-term hemodialysis in patients with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD), little is known regarding whether the CV protective effects of fibrates extend to patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). The present study compared CV outcomes and mortality among patients with ESRD treated with fibrates, statins, neither, or their combination.

Methods: This cohort study extracted data from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD).

Strategies for post-cardiac surgery acute kidney injury prevention: A network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Objects: Cardiac surgery is associated with acute kidney injury (AKI). However, the effects of various pharmacological and non-pharmacological strategies for AKI prevention have not been thoroughly investigated, and their effectiveness in preventing AKI-related adverse outcomes has not been systematically evaluated.

Methods: Studies from PubMed, Embase, and Medline and registered trials from published through December 2021 that evaluated strategies for preventing post-cardiac surgery AKI were identified.

Ketoanalogues Supplemental Low Protein Diet Safely Decreases Short-Term Risk of Dialysis among CKD Stage 4 Patients.

Background: Rigid dietary controls and pill burden make a very-low protein (0.3−0.4 g/kg body weight per day), vegetarian diet supplemented with ketoanalogues of amino acids (sVLPD) hard to follow in the long-term.

Association of Low-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol Levels During Statin Treatment With Cardiovascular and Renal Outcomes in Patients With Moderate Chronic Kidney Disease.

Background The benefit of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels in chronic kidney disease populations remains unclear. This study evaluated the cardiovascular and renal outcomes in patients with stage 3 chronic kidney disease with different LDL-C levels during statin treatment. Methods and Results There were 8500 patients newly diagnosed as having stage 3 chronic kidney disease under statin treatment who were identified from the Chang Gung Research Database and divided into 3 groups according to their first LDL-C level after the index date: <70 mg/dL, 70 to 100 mg/dL, and >100 mg/dL.

Identifying survival protective factors for chronic dialysis patients with surgically confirmed acute mesenteric ischemia.

Background: Mesenteric ischemia is significantly more common in end-stage kidney disease patients undergoing chronic dialysis than in the general population and is associated with high morbidity and mortality. However, reports on prognostic factors in this population are limited.

Aim: To elucidate the in-hospital outcomes of acute mesenteric ischemia in chronic dialysis patients and to analyze protective factors for survival.

Integrated Metabolomic and Transcriptomic Analysis of Acute Kidney Injury Caused by Infection.

Renal leptospirosis caused by leptospiral infection is characterised by tubulointerstitial nephritis and tubular dysfunction, resulting in acute and chronic kidney injury. Metabolomic and transcriptomic data from a murine model of infection were analysed to determine whether metabolomic data from urine were associated with transcriptome changes relevant to kidney injury caused by infection. Our findings revealed that 37 metabolites from the urine of -infected mice had significantly different concentrations than -infected and non-infected control mice.

Therapeutic Potential of Exosomes Derived from Diabetic Adipose Stem Cells in Cutaneous Wound Healing of Mice.

(1) Background: Diabetes impairs angiogenesis and wound healing. Paracrine secretion from adipose stem cells (ASCs) contains membrane-bound nano-vesicles called exosomes (ASC-Exo) but the functional role and therapeutic potential of diabetic ASC-Exo in wound healing are unknown. This study aims to investigate the in vivo mechanistic basis by which diabetic ASC-Exo enhance cutaneous wound healing in a diabetic mouse model.

In-Hospital Outcomes and Recurrence of Infectious Spondylitis in Patients with and without Chronic Hemodialysis: A Nationwide Cohort Study.

Purpose: The incidence of bloodstream infection among end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) patients on chronic hemodialysis (HD) was 26-fold higher than population controls, causing higher morbidity and costs. The aim of this investigation was to clarify the prognostic factors, in-hospital outcomes and recurrence of infectious spondylitis of patients with and without chronic HD.

Patients And Methods: This nationwide study analyzed 2592 patients who admitted for first-time infectious spondylitis between January 1, 2003, and December 31, 2015.

Rapamycin attenuates PLA2R activation-mediated podocyte apoptosis via the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway.

Membranous nephropathy (MN) is the most common cause of nephrotic syndrome in adults without diabetes. Primary MN has been associated with circulating antibodies against native podocyte antigens, including phospholipase A2 receptor (PLA2R); however, precision therapy targeting the signaling cascade of PLA2R activation is lacking. Both PLA2R and the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) exist in podocytes, but the interplay between these two proteins and their roles in MN warrants further exploration.

Prognostic Performance of Existing Scoring Systems among Critically Ill Patients Requiring Continuous Renal Replacement Therapy: An Observational Study.

Background: Among critical patients, few studies have evaluated the discrimination of current illness scoring systems in predicting outcomes after continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) initiation.

Methods: Patients receiving CRRT in the ICU between 2005 and 2018 from the Chang Gung Research Database were extracted. All the components of the Acute Physiology Assessment and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) III, Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA), qSOFA, and MOSAIC scoring systems on days 1, 3, and 7 of CRRT were recorded.

Supplemented Low-Protein Diet May Delay the Need for Preemptive Kidney Transplantation: A Nationwide Population-Based Cohort Study.

Background: Although several studies suggest the benefit of a low-protein diet supplemented with amino acids and keto acids (sLPD) in delaying the initiation of hemodialysis, evidence on whether these nutritional approaches could delay the timing of preemptive transplantation is lacking.

Methods: Retrospective nationwide cohort study, from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database. Patients having undergone a first preemptive kidney transplantation between 2001 and 2017 were identified and divided into two groups according to the presence of sLPD treatment or not.

Does Statin Therapy Reduce the Risks of Mortality and Major Adverse Cardiac and Cerebrovascular Events in Young Adults with End-Stage Renal Disease? Population-Based Cohort Study.

Among hemodialysis patients aged more than 40 years old, previous large-scale studies showed statin treatment had no effect on reducing cardiovascular adverse events. However, young-adult-onset end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients have different physicosocial factors compared to older ESRD patients. The benefit of statins in such a specific group has not been well evaluated.

A validation study comparing existing prediction models of acute kidney injury in patients with acute heart failure.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common complication in acute heart failure (AHF) and is associated with prolonged hospitalization and increased mortality. The aim of this study was to externally validate existing prediction models of AKI in patients with AHF. Data for 10,364 patients hospitalized for acute heart failure between 2008 and 2018 were extracted from the Chang Gung Research Database and analysed.

Injection of hybrid 3D spheroids composed of podocytes, mesenchymal stem cells, and vascular endothelial cells into the renal cortex improves kidney function and replenishes glomerular podocytes.

Podocytes are highly differentiated epithelial cells that are crucial for maintaining the glomerular filtration barrier in the kidney. Podocyte injury followed by depletion is the major cause of pathological progression of kidney diseases. Although cell therapy has been considered a promising alternative approach to kidney transplantation for the treatment of kidney injury, the resultant therapeutic efficacy in terms of improved renal function is limited, possibly owing to significant loss of engrafted cells.

Fenofibrate Delays the Need for Dialysis and Reduces Cardiovascular Risk Among Patients With Advanced CKD.

Context: Fenofibrate provides limited cardiovascular (CV) benefits in the general population; however, little is known about its benefit among advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients.

Objective: This study compared outcomes among advanced CKD patients treated with fenofibrate, statins, a combination of both, and none of these.

Methods: This national cohort study was based on Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database.

Clinical and visual outcomes following endogenous endophthalmitis: 175 consecutive cases from a tertiary referral center in Taiwan.

Background: To elucidate the linkage between organisms and visual outcome in cases of endogenous endophthalmitis.

Methods: Patients who presented with signs of endogenous endophthalmitis between January 2008 and December 2015 and underwent a vitreous tapping were enrolled. The patients' demographics and clinical findings were recorded.