Background: Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) is crucial for the secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease, primarily by promoting lifestyle modifications. However, its impact on lifestyle changes in the Korean population has not been well studied. This study analyzed data from the National Health Insurance Database to evaluate the effect of CR on lifestyle improvement in patients with cardiovascular disease.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Although bariatric surgery is the most effective obesity treatment, few nationwide cohort studies have evaluated its safety. This study aimed to evaluate surgical trends after insurance coverage implementation and analyze the surgical outcomes of bariatric surgery.
Methods: A retrospective analysis of bariatric surgery in patients with obesity was conducted using data from Korean National Health Insurance System (NHIS) claims.
DOCK5 (dedicator of cytokinesis 5), a guanine nucleotide exchange factor for Rac1, has been implicated in BMP2-mediated osteoblast differentiation, but its specific role in osteogenesis and bone regeneration remained unclear. This study investigated the effect of DOCK5 on bone regeneration using C21, a DOCK5 chemical inhibitor, and Dock5-deficient mice. Osteoblast differentiation and bone regeneration were analyzed using bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) and various animal models.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are effective in a subset of patients with metastatic solid tumors. However, the patients who would benefit most from ICIs in biliary tract cancer (BTC) are still controversial.
Materials And Methods: We molecularly characterized tissues and blood from 32 patients with metastatic BTC treated with the ICI pembrolizumab as second-line therapy.
Planck's law ignores but does not prohibit black-body radiation (BBR) from being circularly polarized. BBR from nanostructured filaments with twisted geometry from nanocarbon or metal has strong ellipticity from 500 to 3000 nanometers. The submicrometer-scale chirality of these filaments satisfies the dimensionality requirements imposed by fluctuation-dissipation theorem and requires symmetry breaking in absorptivity and emissivity according to Kirchhoff's law.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEctopic pregnancy (EP) is diagnosed based on laboratory values and ultrasonography (US) findings. Evaluation for suspected EP should begin with a quantitative measurement of the serum β-human chorionic gonadotropin levels and transvaginal US. MR imaging is not preferentially performed in the evaluation of EP; however, if the findings of transvaginal US are uncertain, MR imaging can be used, as it has the advantages of superior soft-tissue contrast resolution and a wide scanning range.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Alveolar macrophages (AMs) are the first line of defence against pathogens that initiate an inflammatory response in the lungs and exhibit a strong affinity for surfactant protein A (SP-A). Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have emerged as a promising drug delivery platform due to their minimal cytotoxicity. However, precise targeting of specific cell types and the rapid lysosomal degradation of EVs within recipient cells remain persistent challenges.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) and probiotics therapies represent key clinical options, yet their complex effects on the host are not fully understood. We evaluated the comprehensive effects of FMT using diarrheal or normal feces, as well as probiotic therapies, on multiple anatomical sites in healthy cynomolgus macaques through colonoscopy and surgery. Our research revealed that FMT led to a partial microbiome transplantation without exhibiting the donor's fecal clinical characteristics.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNon-invasive imaging techniques employing biomarkers with high selectivity for inflammation are essential not only for the early diagnosis and prevention of chronic inflammatory diseases but also for guiding appropriate drug therapy and enabling real-time evaluation of anti-inflammatory drug efficacy. In this study, we conjugated radioactive zirconium to sorbitol, a compound that can selectively target inflammation, and evaluated its inflammation-specific uptake and potential for assessing anti-inflammatory treatment efficacy in a mouse inflammation model. Pharmacokinetic analysis demonstrated that radiolabeled sorbitol achieved maximal uptake in inflamed tissues within 1 h.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Patients with borderline resectable (BR) or locally advanced pancreatic cancer (LAPC) require complex management strategies. This study evaluated the prognostic significance of the perichemotherapy skeletal muscle index (SMI) and carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA 19-9) in patients with BRPC or LAPC treated with FOLFIRINOX.
Methods: We retrospectively evaluated 227 patients with BR or LAPC who received at least four cycles of chemotherapy between 2015 and 2020.
Although lymph node structures may be compromised in severe SARS-CoV-2 infection, the extent and parameters of recovery in convalescing patients remain unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to elucidate the nuances of lymphoid structural recovery and their implications for immunologic memory in nonhuman primates infected with SARS-CoV-2. To do so, we utilized imaging-based spatial transcriptomics to delineate immune cell composition and tissue architecture formation in the lung-draining lymph nodes during primary infection, convalescence, and reinfection from COVID-19.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study investigated the impact of annealing treatment and lipids (vegetable oils, such as palm, olive, and grapeseed oils) on the physicochemical and rheological properties of wheat starch. Annealing of wheat starch (WS, WS) under different temperatures (45 °C and 55 °C) and with added vegetable oil (WS-Oil, WS-Oil) were compared with untreated wheat starch (WS). Annealing at 45 °C resulted in slight changes in the physicochemical properties of starch.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground & Aims: Hyperglycemia is associated with an increased risk of gallbladder cancer (GBC), potentially by inhibiting gallbladder motility and inducing prolonged cholestasis. Although intermediate hyperglycemia (or prediabetes) is highly reversible, evidence is lacking about whether prediabetes persistence or remission is associated with an altered GBC risk.
Methods: This nationwide cohort study included 6058,662 adults without diabetes or cancer who underwent national health examinations twice in 2-year intervals between 2009 (S1) and 2011 (S2) and were followed-up until 2018.
Background: In this single-arm, multicenter, phase 2 trial, the authors evaluated the efficacy and safety of avelumab plus gemcitabine in patients with leiomyosarcoma (LMS) who failed on first-line chemotherapy.
Methods: Patients with advanced LMS received avelumab 10 mg/kg on days 1 and 15 (for up to 24 months) plus gemcitabine 1000 mg/m on days 1, 8, and 15 of a 28-day cycle until they developed disease progression or intolerable toxicity. The primary end point was the objective response rate (ORR).
Background: Gut microbiota dysbiosis is closely associated with psychiatric disorders such as depression and anxiety (DA). In our preliminary study, fecal microbiota transplantation from volunteers with psychological stress and subclinical symptoms of depression (Vsd) induced DA-like behaviors in mice. Escherichia fergusonii (Esf) was found to be more abundant in the feces of Vsd compared to healthy volunteers.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIbrutinib, a Bruton Tyrosine Kinase (BTK) inhibitor, has shown effectiveness against various B-cell lymphoid malignancies. However, prolonged usage can induce resistance, affecting treatment outcomes. The oncogenic microRNA, miR-155-5p, is associated with poor prognosis in B-cell lymphomas, prompting our investigation into the mechanism of acquired ibrutinib resistance in these cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study investigated the relationship between rapid eye movement sleep without atonia and cognitive profiles in individuals diagnosed with isolated rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder, assesssing both cross-sectional associations and their link to phenoconversion in a longitudinal follow-up. Participants underwent video-polysomnography, neurological examination, neuropsychological tests and structured interviews to confirm isolated rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder. Rapid eye movement sleep without atonia was manually scored using the Montreal method, and participants were categorized into either high or low electromyography activity groups, based on their tonic and phasic electromyography activities.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMost coronavirus vaccines focus on the spike (S) antigen, but the frequent mutations in S raise concerns about the vaccine efficacy against new variants. Although additional antigens with conserved sequences are have been tested, the extent to which these vaccines can provide immunity against different coronavirus species remains unclear. In this study, we assessed the potential of nucleocapsid (N) as a coronavirus vaccine antigen.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNADPH oxidase 2 (NOX2) is an enzyme responsible for generating reactive oxygen species, primarily found in phagocytes. Chronic Granulomatous Disease (CGD), along with bacterial infections such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), is a representative NOX2-deficient X-linked disease characterized by uncontrolled inflammation. However, the precise roles of host-derived factors that induce infection-mediated hyperinflammation in NOX2-deficient condition remain incompletely understood.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFElectrospraying is a method of atomizing fluids using a high voltage potential difference. Since the atomization of electrostatic atomization does not directly charge the nozzle but only uses the potential difference, various equipment structures are possible. In the case of this study, 12 different equipment structures of nozzle, ring electrode, and substrate were configured, and data on atomization characteristics of electrospray, such as spray modes applied voltage, coating area, coating current, spray velocity, and factors used in industrial processes, were verified.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: In v-raf murine sarcoma viral oncogene homolog B1 (BRAF)-mutant colorectal cancer (CRC), encorafenib-cetuximab has been established as standard second-line therapy, but not all patients respond and the duration of response is relatively short. Overcoming intrinsic or acquired resistance to BRAF/EGFR inhibitors is crucial for enhancing treatment outcomes in metastatic BRAF-mutated CRC. The aim of the study is to investigate the resistance mechanisms in BRAF-mutant CRC patient refractory to BRAF/EGFR targeted therapy.
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