Adeno-associated virus-based approach for genetic modification of cardiac fibroblasts in adult rat hearts.

Cardiac fibroblasts (CFs) are an attractive target for reducing pathological cardiac remodeling, and understanding the underlying mechanisms of these processes is the key to develop successful therapies for treating the pressure-overloaded heart. CF-specific knockout (KO) mouse lines with a Cre recombinase under the control of human TCF21 (hTCF21) promoter and/or an adeno-associated virus serotype 9 (AAV9)-hTCF21 system provide a powerful tool for understanding CF biology in vivo. Although a variety of rat disease models are vital for the research of cardiac fibrosis similar to mouse models, there are few rat models that employ cardiac cell-specific conditional gene modification, which has hindered the development and translational relevance of cardiac disease models.

Mitochondrial Ca uniporter (MCU) variants form plasma-membrane channels.

MCU is widely recognized as a responsible gene for encoding a pore-forming subunit of highly mitochondrial-specific and Ca -selective channel, mitochondrial Ca uniporter complex (mtCUC). Here, we report a novel short variant derived from the MCU gene (termed MCU-S) which lacks mitochondria-targeted sequence and forms a Ca - permeable channel outside of mitochondria. MCU-S was ubiquitously expressed in all cell-types/tissues, with particularly high expression in human platelets.

Intermittent Fasting Activates AMP-Kinase to Restructure Right Ventricular Lipid Metabolism and Microtubules.

Intermittent fasting (IF) extends life span via pleotropic mechanisms, but one important molecular mediator is adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK). AMPK enhances lipid metabolism and modulates microtubule dynamics. Dysregulation of these molecular pathways causes right ventricular (RV) failure in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension.

Topical Intervention of Natural Products Applied in Patients with Pressure Injuries: A Scoping Review.

Objective: Pressure injuries (PIs) represent a major medical and nursing problem in individuals with decreased or limited mobility. This scoping review aimed to map the controlled clinical trials with topical interventions of natural products applied to patients with PIs and to verify the existence of phytochemical similarities among these products.

Data Sources: This scoping review was developed according to the JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis.

Deep Learning-Based Noise Reduction Improves Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography Imaging of Radial Peripapillary Capillaries in Advanced Glaucoma.

Purpose: We applied deep learning-based noise reduction (NR) to optical coherence tomography-angiography (OCTA) images of the radial peripapillary capillaries (RPCs) in eyes with glaucoma and investigated the usefulness of this method as an objective analysis of glaucoma.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included 118 eyes of 94 open-angle glaucoma patients (male/female = 38/56, age: 56.1 ± 10.