Is perioperative use of a combination of pregabalin and naproxen superior to naproxen only in reducing pain in ankle fractures? A prospective, randomized, multicenter study.

Purpose: To compare the analgesic efficacy, adverse effects, and long-term functional outcomes of perioperative naproxen alone versus naproxen with pregabalin for treating pain in ankle fractures.

Methods: This study included 70 patients who underwent operative fixation of rotatory ankle fractures. Group A received naproxen 500 mg only, and Group B received naproxen 500 mg with pregabalin 75 mg 2-hour before surgery and 12 hourly for 14 days thereafter.

Development of Advanced Oral-on-a-Chip: Replicating the Intricate Human Oral Microenvironment.

The interactions between various cellular populations in the oral cavity, including gingival keratinocytes, tonsil-resident stem cells, periodontal ligament fibroblasts, and vascular endothelial cells, are crucial for maintaining oral health. These interactions regulate essential functions like tooth support and pathogen defense. However, conventional 2D and 3D models often fail to capture the complexity of these interactions and the multicellular architecture of the oral environment.

Spherical Shell Bioprinting to Produce Uniform Spheroids with Controlled Sizes.

Conventional cell spheroid production methods are largely manual, leading to variations in size and shape that compromise consistency and reliability for use in cell-based therapeutic applications. To enhance spheroid production, a spherical shell bioprinting system was implemented, enabling the high-throughput generation of uniform cell spheroids with precisely controlled sizes. The system encapsulates cells within thin alginate hydrogel shells formed through bioprinting and ion crosslinking reactions.

Spheroid-Exosome-Based Bioprinting Technology in Regenerative Medicine.

Since the discovery that exosomes can exchange genes, their potential use as tools for tissue regeneration, disease diagnosis, and therapeutic applications has drawn significant attention. Emerging three-dimensional (3D) printing technologies, such as bioprinting, which allows the printing of cells, proteins, DNA, and other biological materials, have demonstrated the potential to create complex body tissues or personalized 3D models. The use of 3D spheroids in bioprinting facilitates volumetric tissue reconstruction and accelerates tissue regeneration via exosome secretion.

Factors affecting external apical root resorption of maxillary incisors associated with microimplant-assisted rapid palatal expansion.

Objective: To measure and compare the extent of root resorption in the maxillary incisors following microimplant-assisted rapid palatal expansion (MARPE) and to identify risk factors of root resorption after expansion.

Methods: Cone-beam computed tomography images were obtained from a total of 60 patients both before expansion (T1) and 3 to 6 months after expansion (T2). Measurements taken included tooth length, root length, crown length and center of resistance.

Regiospecific Incorporation of Fluorine Atoms in Polythiophene Derivatives for Efficient Organic Solar Cells.

Derivatives of polythiophene (PT) have garnered considerable attention in organic solar cells (OSCs) because of their relatively uncomplicated molecular structures and cost-effective synthesis. Herein, we have developed two regioisomeric fluorinated PT donors, PEI3T-FITVT and PEI3T-FOTVT, to realize efficient OSCs. PEI3T-FITVT and PEI3T-FOTVT are strategically designed with different fluorine atom arrangements on thiophene-vinyl-thiophene (TVT) units.

Healthcare Experts' Advisory Unit and Support (HAUS) Program for Medical Device Development in Korea: Introduction of Clinical Unmet Needs-Based Intended Use Establishment (CLUE) Templates.

Background: A clear and precise definition of the "intended use" in developing new medical devices can determine the success of entering the healthcare market. For this, practical collaboration between the clinical and engineering experts is necessary, and an appropriate tool is required for effective information collection and decision-making in the process.

Methods: The Korean Academy of Medical Sciences, in cooperation with the Korean Medical Device Development Fund, implemented the Healthcare Experts' Advisory Unit and Support (HAUS) program to match advisory clinical experts in medical device development projects.

Jolkinolide B Ameliorates Liver Inflammation and Lipogenesis by Regulating JAK/STAT3 Pathway.

Hepatic dysregulation of lipid metabolism exacerbates inflammation and enhances the progression of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). STAT3 has been linked to lipid metabolism and inflammation. Jolkinolide B (JB), derived from , is known for its pharmacological anti-inflammatory and anti-tumor properties.

Three-dimensional computed tomography evaluation of the ulnocarpal joint under stress loading.

IV.

The fungal natural product fusidic acid demonstrates potent activity against .

Antimicrobial resistance is extremely common in , a frequent cause of urethritis in men and cervicitis, vaginitis, and pelvic inflammatory disease in women. Treatment of infections is difficult due to intrinsic and acquired resistance to many antibiotic classes. We undertook a program to identify novel antimicrobials with activity against from fungal natural products.

Cytotoxic Peptaibols from , a Fungus Isolated from an Urban Soil Sample.

Soil sustains human life by nourishing crops, storing food sources, and housing microbes, which may affect the nutrition and biosynthesis of secondary metabolites, some of which are used as drugs. To identify lead compounds for a new class of drugs, we collected soil-derived fungal strains from various environments, including urban areas. As various human pathogens are assumed to influence the biosynthetic pathways of metabolites in soil fungi, leading to the production of novel scaffolds, we focused our work on densely populated urban areas and tourist attractions.

A Novel Approach to Total Ankle Arthroplasty with Simultaneous Structural Tibial Cut Autograft for Anterior Tibial Bone Defects.

Severe bone defects pose a clinical challenge in total ankle arthroplasty (TAA) and are frequently considered contraindicated. We introduce an innovative approach that utilizes a structural tibial cut autograft to address anterior distal tibia bone defects during TAA. This technique is a viable alternative to employing revision TAA systems or resorting to excessively high tibial cuts.

Cytotoxic Peptaibols from .

Five new lipopeptaibols (-) and eight new 19-residue peptaibols (-) along with two known lipopeptaibols, lipovelutibols C () and D () were isolated from . The planar structures of the newly discovered peptaibols (-, -) were elucidated using 1D and 2D NMR, and UPLC-MS/MS data. The absolute configurations for new peptaibols (-, -) were elucidated using the advanced Marfey's method and GITC (2,3,4,6-tetra--acetyl-β-d-glucopyranosyl isothiocyanate) derivatization.

Correction: Biosynthesis, biological activities, and structure-activity relationships of decalin-containing tetramic acid derivatives isolated from fungi.

Correction for 'Biosynthesis, biological activities, and structure-activity relationships of decalin-containing tetramic acid derivatives isolated from fungi' by Hyun Woo Kim , , 2024, https://doi.org/10.1039/d4np00013g.

Development of a novel testis-on-a-chip that demonstrates reciprocal crosstalk between Sertoli and Leydig cells in testicular tissue.

The reciprocal crosstalk between testicular Sertoli and Leydig cells plays a vital role in supporting germ cell development and maintaining testicular characteristics and spermatogenesis. Conventional 2D and the recent 3D assay systems fail to accurately replicate the dynamic interactions between these essential endocrine cells. Furthermore, most in vitro testicular tissue models lack the ability to capture the complex multicellular nature of the testis.

The Modulation of Respiratory Epithelial Cell Differentiation by the Thickness of an Electrospun Poly-ε-Carprolactone Mesh Mimicking the Basement Membrane.

The topology of the basement membrane (BM) affects cell physiology and pathology, and BM thickening is associated with various chronic lung diseases. In addition, the topology of commercially available poly (ethylene terephthalate) (PET) membranes, which are used in preclinical in vitro models, differs from that of the human BM, which has a fibrous and elastic structure. In this study, we verified the effect of BM thickness on the differentiation of normal human bronchial epithelial (NHBE) cells.

Biosynthesis, biological activities, and structure-activity relationships of decalin-containing tetramic acid derivatives isolated from fungi.

Covering: up to December 2023Decalin-containing tetramic acid derivatives, especially 3-decalinoyltetramic acids (3-DTAs), are commonly found as fungal secondary metabolites. Numerous biological activities of this class of compounds, such as antibiotic, antiviral, antifungal, antiplasmodial, and antiprotozoal properties, have been the subject of ongoing research. For this reason, these molecules have attracted a lot of interest from the scientific community and various efforts including semi-synthesis, co-culturing with bacteria and biosynthetic gene sequencing have been made to obtain more derivatives.

Effect of direct-acting antivirals on disease burden of hepatitis C virus infection in South Korea in 2007-2021: a nationwide, multicentre, retrospective cohort study.

Background: It is unclear whether direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) treatment improves the disease burden in hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. This study aimed to investigate the effect of DAA treatment on the reduction of disease burden in patients with HCV infection using individual participant data.

Methods: This nationwide multicentre retrospective cohort study recruited patients with HCV infection from 29 tertiary institutions in South Korea.

Nanostructured Molecular Packing of Polymer Films Formed on Water Surfaces.

In this study, we examined the nanostructured molecular packing and orientations of poly[[,'-bis(2-octyldodecyl)-naphthalene-1,4,5,8-bis(dicarboximide)-2,6-diyl]--5,5'-(2,2'-bithiophene)] (P(NDI2OD-T2)) films formed on water for the application of nanotechnology-based organic electronic devices. First, the nanoscale molecule-substrate interaction between the polymer and water was modulated by controlling the alkyl side chain length in NDI-based copolymers. Increasing alkyl side chain lengths induced a nanomorphological transition from face-on to edge-on orientation, confirmed by molecular dynamics simulations revealing nanostructural behavior.

Understanding the Antiplasmodial Action of Resistance-Refractory Xanthoquinodin A1.

Our previous work identified a series of 12 xanthoquinodin analogues and 2 emodin-dianthrones with broad-spectrum activities against , , , and . Analyses conducted in this study revealed that the most active analogue, xanthoquinodin A1, also inhibits tachyzoites and the liver stage of , with no cross-resistance to the known antimalarial targets PfACS, PfCARL, PfPI4K, or DHODH. In , inhibition occurs prior to multinucleation and induces parasite death following 12 h of compound exposure.

Circulating miRNA-4701-3p as a predictive biomarker of cardiovascular disease which induces angiogenesis by inhibition of TOB2.

Angiogenesis is mainly regulated by the delivery of VEGF-dependent signaling to cells. However, the angiogenesis mechanism regulated by VEGF-induced miRNA is still not understood. After VEGF treatment in HUVECs, we screened the changed miRNAs through small-RNA sequencing and found VEGF-induced miR-4701-3p.

Age-Related Decrease in Pellino-1 Expression Contributes to Osteoclast-Mediated Bone Loss.

Aging-related bone loss is driven by various biological factors, such as imbalanced bone metabolism from decreased osteoblast and increased osteoclast activities. Various transcriptional and post-transcriptional factors increase osteoclast activity with aging; however, studies regarding the post-translational regulators of osteoclast activity are still limited. The ubiquitin E3 ligase Pellino-1 is a well-known post-translational regulator of inflammation.

Clinical outcomes of transarterial chemoembolization in Child-Turcotte Pugh class A patients with a single small (≤3 cm) hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background And Aim: Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) is one of the standard modalities used to treat unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but the effectiveness of TACE for treating patients with a solitary small (≤3 cm) HCC and well-preserved liver function has not been definitively established. This study aimed to determine the therapeutic impact of TACE in patients with these characteristics.

Methods: This multicenter (four university hospitals) retrospective cohort study analyzed the medical records of 250 patients with a solitary small (≤3 cm) HCC and Child-Turcotte-Pugh (CTP) class A liver function diagnosed over 10 years.