Clinical usability and efficacy of a robotic bone fracture reduction system: A pilot animal study.

Challenges in minimally invasive surgeries, such as intramedullary nailing for long bone fractures, include radiation overexposure for patients and surgeons, potential malreduction, and physical burden on surgeons in maintaining the reduction status. A robotic bone fracture reduction system was developed in this study to address these problems. The system consists of a hexapod with six degrees of freedom, with a fracture reduction device and a master device.

A Proteomics Pipeline for Generating Clinical Grade Biomarker Candidates from Data-Independent Acquisition Mass Spectrometry (DIA-MS) Discovery.

Clinical biomarker development has been stymied by inaccurate protein quantification from mass spectrometry (MS) discovery data and a prolonged validation process. To mitigate these issues, we created the Targeted Extraction Assessment of Quantification (TEAQ) software package that uses data-independent acquisition analysis from a discovery cohort to select precursors, peptides, and proteins that adhere to analytical criteria required for established targeted assays. TEAQ was applied to DIA-MS data from plasma samples acquired on a new high resolution accurate mass (HRAM) mass spectrometry platform where precursors were evaluated for linearity, specificity, repeatability, reproducibility, and intra-protein correlation based on 8- or 11-point loading curves at three throughputs.

Clinical efficacy and performance evaluation of a bendable remote robot system for a bone tumour surgery: A pilot animal study.

Background: Traditional open surgery for bone tumours sometimes has as a consequence an excessive removal of healthy bone tissue because of the limitations of rigid surgical instruments, increasing infection risk and recovery time.

Methods: We propose a remote robot with a 4.5-mm diameter bendable end-effector, offering four degrees of freedom for accessing the inside of the bone and performing tumour debridement.

Synthesis and utility of -boryl and -silyl enamines derived from the hydroboration and hydrosilylation of -heteroarenes and -conjugated compounds.

Catalytic hydroboration and hydrosilylation have emerged as promising strategies for the reduction of unsaturated hydrocarbons and carbonyl compounds, as well as for the dearomatization of -heteroarenes. Various catalysts have been employed in these processes to achieve the formation of reduced products via distinct reaction pathways and intermediates. Among these intermediates, -silyl enamines and -boryl enamines, which are derived from hydrosilylation and hydroboration, are commonly underestimated in this reduction process.

Risk of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Infection Following Prior Infection or Vaccination.

Background: The extent to which infection versus vaccination has conferred similarly durable severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) immunity during the Omicron era remains unclear.

Methods: In a cohort of 4496 adults under continued serological surveillance throughout the first year of Omicron-predominant SARS-CoV-2 transmission, we examined incidence of new infection among individuals whose last known antigenic exposure was either recent (<90 days) or remote (≥90 days) infection or vaccination.

Results: We adjudicated 2053 new-onset infections occurring between 15 December 2021 through 22 December 2022.

Paradigm shift in biomarker translation: a pipeline to generate clinical grade biomarker candidates from DIA-MS discovery.

Clinical biomarker development has been stymied by inaccurate protein quantification from mass spectrometry (MS) discovery data and a prolonged validation process. To mitigate these issues, we created the Targeted Extraction Assessment of Quantification (TEAQ) software package. This innovative tool uses the discovery cohort analysis to select precursors, peptides, and proteins that adhere to established targeted assay criteria.

Malakichthys formosus, a new species of small seabass (Acropomatiformes: Malakichthyidae) from southwestern Taiwan.

A new species of Malakichthys is described based on six specimens collected from deepwaters off southwestern Taiwan, northwestern Pacific Ocean. The new species, M. formosus sp.

Clinical Utility of SARS-CoV-2 Serological Testing and Defining a Correlate of Protection.

Herein, we review established clinical use cases for SARS-CoV-2 antibody measures, which include diagnosis of recent prior infection, isolating high titer convalescent plasma, diagnosing multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), and booster dosing in the immunosuppressed and other populations. We then address whether an antibody correlate of protection (CoP) for SARS-CoV-2 has been successfully defined with the following considerations: Antibody responses in the immunocompetent, vaccine type, variants, use of binding antibody tests vs. neutralization tests, and endpoint measures.

Assessing the post hoc effectiveness of tixagevimab-cilgavimab for prevention of SARS-CoV-2 infections in solid organ transplant recipients.

Background: Tixagevimab-cilgavimab (Tix-Cil) was authorized for prophylaxis against COVID-19 in immunocompromised patients from December 2021 through January 2023. Real-world effectiveness for solid organ transplant (SOT) recipients has been unclear.

Methods: We enrolled 911 SOT recipients into a longitudinal COVID-19 serology study, of whom 381 (42%) received ≥1 dose of Tix-Cil.

Clinical evaluation of a fluoroscopic image-based laser guidance system in bone tumor surgery: A technical note.

This study presents a laser guidance system developed to enhance surgical accuracy and reduce radiation exposure in orthopedic surgeries. The system can project the actual position corresponding to the appointed position selected by the surgeon on a fluoroscopic image using a line laser and has laser projection ability to mark the corresponding point using a line laser. The surgeon does not have to perform anatomical marker placement for calibration.

GS-DeepNet: mastering tokamak plasma equilibria with deep neural networks and the Grad-Shafranov equation.

The force-balanced state of magnetically confined plasmas heated up to 100 million degrees Celsius must be sustained long enough to achieve a burning-plasma state, such as in the case of ITER, a fusion reactor that promises a net energy gain. This force balance between the Lorentz force and the pressure gradient force, known as a plasma equilibrium, can be theoretically portrayed together with Maxwell's equations as plasmas are collections of charged particles. Nevertheless, identifying the plasma equilibrium in real time is challenging owing to its free-boundary and ill-posed conditions, which conventionally involves iterative numerical approach with a certain degree of subjective human decisions such as including or excluding certain magnetic measurements to achieve numerical convergence on the solution as well as to avoid unphysical solutions.

Mercury Concentrations in Whale Shark (Rhincodon typus) Embryo Muscle Tissue.

Mercury (Hg) is known to be maternally transferred during embryonic development in sharks; however, Hg concentrations in embryos of filter feeding shark species have not previously been reported. This study measured the total Hg (THg) concentration in muscle tissue of 27 embryos taken from a pregnant whale shark (Rhincodon typus) landed in Taiwan in 1995 and the mean THg concentration compared to the mean muscle THg concentration in embryos from other shark species. The mean (± standard deviation) THg concentration in whale shark embryos was 0.

Okamejei picta sp. nov., a new rajid skate from the South China Sea (Rajiformes: Rajidae).

A new species of Okamejei is described based on two adult males collected from deep waters in the South China Sea. The new species, Okamejei picta sp. nov.

Case report: Repeat coronary function testing in women with ischemia and no obstructive coronary artery disease.

Women with signs and symptoms of ischemia and no obstructive coronary artery disease (INOCA) often have coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD). It can be diagnosed by coronary function testing (CFT), which is an invasive coronary angiogram procedure. Frequently, these women have persistent angina despite medical therapy, but it is not clear whether it is due to worsening or persistent CMD or inadequate therapy.

Enhanced Oral Bioavailability of Rivaroxaban-Loaded Microspheres by Optimizing the Polymer and Surfactant Based on Molecular Interaction Mechanisms.

This study aimed to develop microspheres using water-soluble carriers and surfactants to improve the solubility, dissolution, and oral bioavailability of rivaroxaban (RXB). RXB-loaded microspheres with optimal carrier (poly(vinylpyrrolidone) K30, PVP) and surfactant (sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS)) ratios were prepared. H NMR and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analyses showed that drug-excipient and excipient-excipient interactions affected RXB solubility, dissolution, and oral absorption.

Occurrence of the milk-eye catshark Apristurus nakayai (Carcharhiniformes: Pentanchidae) from the South China Sea.

The milk-eye catshark Apristurus nakayai Iglésias, 2012 was known from three specimens in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. Six specimens were recently collected from the South China Sea. It belongs to the brunneus group, and superficially resembles A.

Behavioural Economics to Improve Antihypertensive Therapy Adherence (BETA): protocol for a pilot randomised controlled trial in Los Angeles.

Introduction: Non-adherence to antihypertensive therapy is one of the major barriers to reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease. Several interventions have targeted higher medication adherence, yet most do not result in sustained adherence. Routinisation has emerged as a potential method for mitigating this problem, but requires high motivation during the relatively long habit formation phase.

BIRCH: An Automated Workflow for Evaluation, Correction, and Visualization of Batch Effect in Bottom-Up Mass Spectrometry-Based Proteomics Data.

Recent surges in large-scale mass spectrometry (MS)-based proteomics studies demand a concurrent rise in methods to facilitate reliable and reproducible data analysis. Quantification of proteins in MS analysis can be affected by variations in technical factors such as sample preparation and data acquisition conditions leading to batch effects, which adds to noise in the data set. This may in turn affect the effectiveness of any biological conclusions derived from the data.

Robot-patient registration for optical tracker-free robotic fracture reduction surgery.

Background And Objective: Image-guided robotic surgery for fracture reduction is a medical procedure in which surgeons control a surgical robot to align the fractured bones by using a navigation system that shows the rotation and distance of bone movement. In such robotic surgeries, it is necessary to estimate the relationship between the robot and patient (bone), a task known as robot-patient registration, to realize the navigation. Through the registration, a fracture state in real-world can be simulated in virtual space of the navigation system.