Tumor necrosis factor-inducible gene 6 protein and its derived peptide ameliorate liver fibrosis by repressing CD44 activation in mice with alcohol-related liver disease.

Background: Alcohol-related liver disease (ALD) is a major health concern worldwide, but effective therapeutics for ALD are still lacking. Tumor necrosis factor-inducible gene 6 protein (TSG-6), a cytokine released from mesenchymal stem cells, was shown to reduce liver fibrosis and promote successful liver repair in mice with chronically damaged livers. However, the effect of TSG-6 and the mechanism underlying its activity in ALD remain poorly understood.

Association between intra-individual variability and prefrontal cortex activity measured by functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) in children with ADHD.

This study uses fNIRS to determine whether there is a difference in the relationship between intra-individual variability and frontal lobe activity between ADHD patients and typically developing children. A total of 28 subjects (14 in ADHD patient group and 14 in control group) participated in this study. The subjects were tested for K-SADS and intelligence, and then the frontal lobe activity of the subjects was measured by continuous performance test, using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRSIT).

Moderating effect of shift work on sleep and depression in individuals at high risk of bipolar disorder.

Background: Social Zeitgeber Theory posits that disruptions in social rhythms can increase susceptibility to bipolar disorder (BD). Shift work (SW) is one of the external factors that cause instability in social rhythms and the sleep-wake cycle. This study evaluated the moderating influences of SW on the risks of BD and sleep-related parameters and depressive symptoms.

Measuring intersectional HIV, sexual diversity, and gender non-conformity stigma among healthcare workers in Ghana: scale validation and correlates of stigma.

Background: Men who have sex with men (MSM) are at heightened risk for HIV acquisition, yet they may delay or avoid HIV testing due to intersectional stigma experienced at the healthcare facility (HCF). Few validated scales exist to measure intersectional stigma, particularly amongst HCF staff. We developed the Healthcare Facility Staff Intersectional Stigma Scale (HCF-ISS) and assessed factors associated with stigma in Ghana.

Prediction of TKI response in EGFR-mutant lung cancer patients-derived organoids using malignant pleural effusion.

Patient-derived organoids (PDOs) are valuable in predicting response to cancer therapy. PDOs are ideal models for precision oncologists. However, their practical application in guiding timely clinical decisions remains challenging.

Photothermally carbonized natural kelp for hydrovoltaic power generation.

We have developed an eco-friendly and efficient method for hydrovoltaic power generation through carbonizing natural kelp, a hydrogel with abundant cations. Under ambient conditions, a CO laser beam was focused on the top surface of dried kelp, photothermally converting it into porous graphitic carbon (PGC) and reducing dissociable cations by thermal evaporation. Owing to the preservation of the bottom surface, this photothermal process yielded a PGC-hydrogel membrane (PHM) featuring a cation concentration gradient.

A wirelessly programmable, skin-integrated thermo-haptic stimulator system for virtual reality.

Sensations of heat and touch produced by receptors in the skin are of essential importance for perceptions of the physical environment, with a particularly powerful role in interpersonal interactions. Advances in technologies for replicating these sensations in a programmable manner have the potential not only to enhance virtual/augmented reality environments but they also hold promise in medical applications for individuals with amputations or impaired sensory function. Engineering challenges are in achieving interfaces with precise spatial resolution, power-efficient operation, wide dynamic range, and fast temporal responses in both thermal and in physical modulation, with forms that can extend over large regions of the body.

Utilizing Immunoglobulin G4 Immunohistochemistry for Risk Stratification in Patients with Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma Associated with Hashimoto Thyroiditis.

Backgruound: Hashimoto thyroiditis (HT) is suspected to correlate with papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) development. While some HT cases exhibit histologic features of immunoglobulin G4 (IgG4)-related disease, the relationship of HT with PTC progression remains unestablished.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included 426 adult patients with PTC (≥1 cm) undergoing thyroidectomy at an academic thyroid center.

hsa-miR-CHA2, a novel microRNA, exhibits anticancer effects by suppressing cyclin E1 in human non-small cell lung cancer cells.

Despite considerable therapeutic advancements, the global survival rate for lung cancer patients remains poor, posing challenges in developing an effective treatment strategy. In many cases, microRNAs (miRNAs) exhibit abnormal expression levels in cancers, including lung cancer. Dysregulated miRNAs often play a crucial role in the development and progression of cancer.

Search for exotic decays of the Higgs boson to a pair of pseudoscalars in the and final states.

A search for exotic decays of the Higgs boson () with a mass of 125 to a pair of light pseudoscalars is performed in final states where one pseudoscalar decays to two quarks and the other to a pair of muons or leptons. A data sample of proton-proton collisions at corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138 recorded with the CMS detector is analyzed. No statistically significant excess is observed over the standard model backgrounds.

Optimization and mechanism analysis of photosynthetic EPA production in Nannochloropsis salina: Evaluating the effect of temperature and nitrogen concentrations.

Microalgae, recognized as sustainable and eco-friendly photosynthetic microorganisms, play a pivotal role in converting CO into value-added products. Among these, Nannochloropsis salina (Microchloropsis salina) stands out, particularly for its ability to produce eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), a crucial omega-3 fatty acid with significant health benefits such as anti-inflammatory properties and cardiovascular health promotion. This study focused on optimizing the cultivation conditions of Nannochloropsis salina to maximize EPA production.

Choroidal arterial abnormality in central serous chorioretinopathy.

Purpose: To evaluate the choroidal arterial abnormality in central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC).

Methods: Fifty-two eyes from 52 patients with CSC were retrospectively evaluated. Arterial and venous ultrawide-field indocyanine green angiography were merged after color and transparency adjustments to compare the choroidal arterial and venous vasculature.

Anti-chitinase-3-like 1 antibody attenuated atopic dermatitis-like skin inflammation through inhibition of STAT3-dependent CXCL8 expression.

Background And Purpose: Chitinase-3-like 1 (CHI3L1) causes skin inflammation in the progression of atopic dermatitis. We investigated if anti-CHI3L1 antibody could prevent the development of atopic dermatitis and its mechanisms of action.

Experimental Approach: The effect of CHI3L1 antibody on phthalic anhydride-induced atopic dermatitis animal model and in vitro reconstructed human skin (RHS) model were investigated.

Anti-4-1BB×PDL1 Bispecific Antibody Reinvigorates Tumor-Specific Exhausted CD8+ T Cells and Enhances the Efficacy of Anti-PD1 Blockade.

Purpose: To overcome the limited efficacy of immune checkpoint blockade, there is a need to find novel cancer immunotherapeutic strategies for the optimal treatment of cancer. The novel anti-4-1BB×PDL1 bispecific antibody-ABL503 (also known as TJ-L14B)-was designed to simultaneously target PDL1 and 4-1BB and demonstrated strong antitumor T-cell responses without considerable toxicity. In this study, we investigated the mechanisms by which the combination of ABL503 and anti-PD1 blockade affected the reinvigoration of exhausted tumor-infiltrating CD8+ T cells (CD8+ TIL) and antitumor efficacy.

Shift schedules and circadian preferences: the association with sleep and mood.

Object: We explored the circadian preferences of non-shift workers (non-SWs) and various types of shift workers (SWs), and the associations of these preferences with sleep and mood.

Methods: In total, 4,561 SWs (2,419 women and 2,142 men aged 37.00 ± 9.

Moisture-induced power generator fabricated on a lateral field-excited quartz resonator.

We fabricated a moisture-induced power generator on a lateral field-excited quartz resonator to simultaneously measure changes in mass and voltage generation during water vapor adsorption. Circularly interdigitated gold electrodes were vacuum deposited on the top surface and used to measure changes in mass, and two symmetric semicircular gold electrodes were vacuum deposited on the bottom surface and used to measure changes in voltage generation. After coating a thin film of a mixture comprising sodium alginate, carbon black, and polyvinyl alcohol (SCP) on the top surface, an electric field was applied to create a concentration gradient of sodium ions between the interdigitated electrodes.

Dynamic Occupancy Grid Map with Semantic Information Using Deep Learning-Based BEVFusion Method with Camera and LiDAR Fusion.

In the field of robotics and autonomous driving, dynamic occupancy grid maps (DOGMs) are typically used to represent the position and velocity information of objects. Although three-dimensional light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensor-based DOGMs have been actively researched, they have limitations, as they cannot classify types of objects. Therefore, in this study, a deep learning-based camera-LiDAR sensor fusion technique is employed as input to DOGMs.

Virtual Photons Shed Light on the Early Temperature of Dense QCD Matter.

Dileptons produced during heavy-ion collisions represent a unique probe of the QCD phase diagram, and convey information about the state of the strongly interacting system at the moment their preceding off-shell photon is created. In this study, we compute thermal dilepton yields from Au+Au collisions performed at different beam energies, employing a (3+1)-dimensional dynamic framework combined with emission rates accurate at next-to-leading order in perturbation theory and which include baryon chemical potential dependencies. By comparing the effective temperature extracted from the thermal dilepton invariant mass spectrum with the average temperature of the fluid, we offer a robust quantitative validation of dileptons as an effective probe of the early quark-gluon plasma stage.

Discordance Rate and Risk Factor of Other Diagnostic Modalities for Small Bowel Tumors Detected by Device-Assisted Enteroscopy: A Korean Association for the Study of Intestinal Disease (KASID) Multicenter Study.

Background/aims: Despite advances in imaging and endoscopic technology, diagnostic modalities for small bowel tumors are simultaneously performed. We investigated the discrepancy rate between each modality and predictive factors of discrepancy in patients with definite small bowel tumors.

Methods: Data of patients with definite small bowel tumors who underwent both device-assisted enteroscopy (DAE) and computed tomography (CT) were retrieved from web-based enteroscopy registry database in Korea.

Swin Transformer and the Unet Architecture to Correct Motion Artifacts in Magnetic Resonance Image Reconstruction.

We present a deep learning-based method that corrects motion artifacts and thus accelerates data acquisition and reconstruction of magnetic resonance images. The novel model, the Motion Artifact Correction by Swin Network (MACS-Net), uses a Swin transformer layer as the fundamental block and the Unet architecture as the neural network backbone. We employ a hierarchical transformer with shifted windows to extract multiscale contextual features during encoding.

Preoperative echocardiography as a predictor of spinal anesthesia-induced hypotension in older patients with mild left ventricular diastolic dysfunction: a retrospective observational study.

Background: Spinal anesthesia-induced hypotension (SAH) frequently occurs in older patients, many of whom have mild left ventricular (LV) diastolic dysfunction, often asymptomatic at rest. This study investigated the association between preoperative echocardiographic measurements and SAH in older patients with mild LV diastolic dysfunction.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective observational study using data from electronic medical records.

Dysfunctional Beliefs and Attitudes about Sleep-6 (DBAS-6): Data-driven shortened version from a machine learning approach.

Background: The Dysfunctional Beliefs and Attitudes about Sleep Scale (DBAS-16) is a widely used self-report instrument for identifying sleep-related cognition. However, its length can be cumbersome in clinical practice. This study aims to develop a data-driven shortened version of the DBAS-16 that efficiently predicts the DBAS-16 total score among the general population.