Cardiovascular-Liver-Metabolic Health: Recommendations in Screening, Diagnosis, and Management of Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease in Cardiovascular Disease via Modified Delphi Approach.

There is a new awareness of the widespread nature of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) and its connection to cardiovascular disease (CVD). This has catalyzed collaboration between cardiologists, hepatologists, endocrinologists, and the wider multidisciplinary team to address the need for earlier identification of those with MASLD who are at increased risk for CVD. The overlap in the pathophysiologic processes and parallel prevalence of CVD, metabolic syndrome, and MASLD highlight the multisystem consequences of poor cardiovascular-liver-metabolic health.

Impact of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors on the Course of Multiple Sclerosis.

Objectives: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are increasingly used in cancer treatment. Their mechanism of action raises the question of possible exacerbation of preexisting multiple sclerosis (MS). The aim of our study was to assess the risk of increased MS activity, defined by the occurrence of a relapse and/or a new MRI lesion, after ICI initiation.

Multicenter, Phase 2, Randomized Controlled Study of the Efficacy and Safety of Etripamil Nasal Spray for the Acute Reduction of Rapid Ventricular Rate in Patients With Symptomatic Atrial Fibrillation (ReVeRA-201).

Background: Despite chronic therapies, atrial fibrillation (AF) leads to rapid ventricular rates (RVR) often requiring intravenous treatments. Etripamil is a fast-acting, calcium-channel blocker administered intranasally affecting the atrioventricular node within minutes.

Methods: Reduction of Ventricular Rate in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation evaluated the efficacy and safety of etripamil for the reduction of ventricular rate (VR) in patients presenting urgently with AF-RVR (VR ≥110 beats per minute [bpm]), was randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, and conducted in Canada and the Netherlands.

Inhaled Amikacin to Prevent Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia.

Background: Whether preventive inhaled antibiotics may reduce the incidence of ventilator-associated pneumonia is unclear.

Methods: In this investigator-initiated, multicenter, double-blind, randomized, controlled, superiority trial, we assigned critically ill adults who had been undergoing invasive mechanical ventilation for at least 72 hours to receive inhaled amikacin at a dose of 20 mg per kilogram of ideal body weight once daily or to receive placebo for 3 days. The primary outcome was a first episode of ventilator-associated pneumonia during 28 days of follow-up.

Perioperative Safety and Early Patient and Device Outcomes Among Subcutaneous Versus Transvenous Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator Implantations : A Randomized, Multicenter Trial.

Background: Implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) improve survival in patients at risk for cardiac arrest, but are associated with intravascular lead-related complications. The subcutaneous ICD (S-ICD), with no intravascular components, was developed to minimize lead-related complications.

Objective: To assess key ICD performance measures related to delivery of ICD therapy, including inappropriate ICD shocks (delivered in absence of life-threatening arrhythmia) and failed ICD shocks (which did not terminate ventricular arrhythmia).

Progression of Atrial Fibrillation after Cryoablation or Drug Therapy.

Background: Atrial fibrillation is a chronic, progressive disorder, and persistent forms of atrial fibrillation are associated with increased risks of thromboembolism and heart failure. Catheter ablation as initial therapy may modify the pathogenic mechanism of atrial fibrillation and alter progression to persistent atrial fibrillation.

Methods: We report the 3-year follow-up of patients with paroxysmal, untreated atrial fibrillation who were enrolled in a trial in which they had been randomly assigned to undergo initial rhythm-control therapy with cryoballoon ablation or to receive antiarrhythmic drug therapy.

Diverse partial reprogramming strategies restore youthful gene expression and transiently suppress cell identity.

Partial pluripotent reprogramming can reverse features of aging in mammalian cells, but the impact on somatic identity and the necessity of individual reprogramming factors remain unknown. Here, we used single-cell genomics to map the identity trajectory induced by partial reprogramming in multiple murine cell types and dissected the influence of each factor by screening all Yamanaka Factor subsets with pooled single-cell screens. We found that partial reprogramming restored youthful expression in adipogenic and mesenchymal stem cells but also temporarily suppressed somatic identity programs.

Association of Baseline Cardiovascular Diseases with 5-Year Knee and Hip Osteoarthritis Progression in Non-Obese Patients: Data from the KHOALA Cohort.

We aimed to explore the relationship between comorbidities and the structural progression in symptomatic knee and/or hip osteoarthritis (OA) patients. We analyzed the 5-year outcome of non-obese participants (body mass index (BMI) < 30 kg/m) from the KHOALA cohort having symptomatic hip and/or knee OA (Kellgren and Lawrence (KL) ≥ 2). The primary endpoint was radiological progression, defined as ΔKL ≥ 1 of the target joint at 5 years.

Prophylactic Percutaneous Consolidation of Large Osteolytic Tumors of the Pelvic Ring Using Fixation by Internal Cemented Screws.

Purpose To evaluate the efficacy, durability, and safety of percutaneous fixation by internal cemented screw (FICS) for prophylactic consolidation of impending pathologic fractures of the pelvic ring. Materials and Methods In this single-institute retrospective study, patients with large, minimally symptomatic to asymptomatic osteolytic tumors of the pelvic ring that were treated with percutaneous cone-beam CT-guided FICS procedures were included (January 2014 to May 2019). Follow-up cross-section imaging and clinical reports were reviewed for procedural complications and assessment of the long-term consolidation efficacy on the basis of the development of pathologic fracture or need for additional surgical intervention.

Evaluation of Drug Abuse by Hair Analysis and Self-Reported Use Among MSM Under PrEP: Results From a French Substudy of the ANRS-IPERGAY Trial.

Background: We used the Agence nationale de Recherches sur le sida et les hépatites virales (ANRS)-IPERGAY trial to qualitatively and quantitatively measure drug use among men who have sex with men under preexposure prophylaxis using 2 different methods, to better understand and collectively respond to risky practices.

Method: We included 69 volunteers of the ANRS-IPERGAY trial. We measured drug use by 2 methods: (1) drug detection by hair analysis and (2) reported drug use by self-reported drug consumption.

Plasma Acute Phase Proteins as Predictors of Chronic Lung Allograft Dysfunction in Lung Transplant Recipients.

Cumulating reports suggest that acute phase proteins (APPs) have diagnostic and prognostic value in different clinical conditions. Among others, APPs are proposed to serve as markers that help to control the outcome of transplant recipients. Here, we questioned whether plasma concentrations of APPs mirror the development of chronic lung allograft dysfunction (CLAD).

Cryoablation or Drug Therapy for Initial Treatment of Atrial Fibrillation.

Background: Guidelines recommend a trial of one or more antiarrhythmic drugs before catheter ablation is considered in patients with atrial fibrillation. However, first-line ablation may be more effective in maintaining sinus rhythm.

Methods: We randomly assigned 303 patients with symptomatic, paroxysmal, untreated atrial fibrillation to undergo catheter ablation with a cryothermy balloon or to receive antiarrhythmic drug therapy for initial rhythm control.

Germplasm Acquisition and Distribution by CGIAR Genebanks.

The international collections of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture (PGRFA) hosted by 11 CGIAR Centers are important components of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization's global system of conservation and use of PGRFA. They also play an important supportive role in realizing Target 2.5 of the Sustainable Development Goals.

An ErbB2 splice variant lacking exon 16 drives lung carcinoma.

Lung cancer causes more deaths annually than any other malignancy. A subset of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is driven by amplification and overexpression or activating mutation of the receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) In some contexts, notably breast cancer, alternative splicing of causes skipping of exon 16, leading to the expression of an oncogenic ERBB2 isoform (ERBB2ΔEx16) that forms constitutively active homodimers. However, the broader implications of alternative splicing in human cancers have not been explored.

Relationship of Trochlear Morphology and Patellofemoral Joint Alignment to Superolateral Hoffa Fat Pad Edema on MR Images in Individuals with or at Risk for Osteoarthritis of the Knee: The MOST Study.

Purpose To determine the relationship of patellofemoral joint alignment and trochlear morphology to superolateral Hoffa fat pad (SHFP) edema on magnetic resonance (MR) images in older adults with or at risk for osteoarthritis of the knee. Materials and Methods Institutional review board approval and written informed consent were obtained from all subjects. The Multicenter Osteoarthritis Study is a prospective cohort study of older adults with or at risk for osteoarthritis of the knee.

Effect of Aggressive Blood Pressure Control on the Recurrence of Atrial Fibrillation After Catheter Ablation: A Randomized, Open-Label Clinical Trial (SMAC-AF [Substrate Modification With Aggressive Blood Pressure Control]).

Background: Radiofrequency catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation has become an important therapy for AF; however, recurrence rates remain high. We proposed to determine whether aggressive blood pressure (BP) lowering prevents recurrent atrial fibrillation (AF) after catheter ablation in patients with AF and a high symptom burden.

Methods: We randomly assigned 184 patients with AF and a BP >130/80 mm Hg to aggressive BP (target <120/80 mm Hg) or standard BP (target <140/90 mm Hg) treatment before their scheduled AF catheter ablation.

A Simplified Model for Intravoxel Incoherent Motion Perfusion Imaging of the Brain.

Background And Purpose: Despite a recent resurgence, intravoxel incoherent motion MRI faces practical challenges, including limited SNR and demanding acquisition and postprocessing requirements. A simplified approach using linear fitting of a subset of higher b-values has seen success in other organ systems. We sought to validate this method for evaluation of brain pathology by comparing perfusion measurements using simplified linear fitting to conventional biexponential fitting.

Multi-ion free energy landscapes underscore the microscopic mechanism of ion selectivity in the KcsA channel.

Potassium (K(+)) channels are transmembrane proteins that passively and selectively allow K(+) ions to flow through them, after opening in response to an external stimulus. One of the most critical functional aspects of their function is their ability to remain very selective for K(+) over Na(+) while allowing high-throughput ion conduction at a rate close to the diffusion limit. Classically, it is assumed that the free energy difference between K(+) and Na(+) in the pore relative to the bulk solution is the critical quantity at the origin of selectivity.

Circulating pancreatic polypeptide concentrations predict visceral and liver fat content.

Context And Objective: No current biomarker can reliably predict visceral and liver fat content, both of which are risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Vagal tone has been suggested to influence regional fat deposition. Pancreatic polypeptide (PP) is secreted from the endocrine pancreas under vagal control.

Empirically based composite fracture prediction model from the Global Longitudinal Study of Osteoporosis in Postmenopausal Women (GLOW).

Context: Several fracture prediction models that combine fractures at different sites into a composite outcome are in current use. However, to the extent individual fracture sites have differing risk factor profiles, model discrimination is impaired.

Objective: The objective of the study was to improve model discrimination by developing a 5-year composite fracture prediction model for fracture sites that display similar risk profiles.

Computational study of 1,3-dithiane 1,1-dioxide (1,3-dithiane sulfone). Description of the inversion process and manifestation of stereoelectronic effects on 1JC-H coupling constants.

A theoretical study on the conformational interconversions in 1,3-dithiane 1,1-dioxide (1,3-dithiane sulfone) has been carried out. Nineteen conformations have been considered. Four minima and five transition states have been identified.