Cross-Protection between West Nile Virus and Emerging Flaviviruses in Wild Birds.

West Nile virus (WNV), St. Louis encephalitis virus (SLEV), and Usutu virus (USUV) are zoonotic flaviviruses that cause neuroinvasive disease in humans and are maintained in overlapping avian-mosquito transmission cycles. West Nile virus and SLEV cocirculate in the United States, and WNV and USUV cocirculate in Europe.

A Morphologic Analysis of Thumb Ulnar Collateral Ligament Avulsion Fracture Fragments and Risk Factors for Surgical Treatment.

Background: There is debate regarding nonoperative versus surgical treatment of thumb ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) tears with avulsion fractures. The aim of this study was to evaluate the fragment size in relation to the UCL footprint size in patients with an avulsion fracture injury and to find risk factors associated with surgical treatment.

Methods: In a cohort of avulsion fracture injury patients, the largest side of the fragment was divided by the average reported UCL footprint size (ff-ratio), and a logistic regression was performed to find variables associated with surgery.

Anatomy of the Lumbrical Muscles: Implications for Mechanical Advantage.

Background: The lumbrical muscles comprise 4 intrinsic muscles of the hand and are involved in flexion of the metacarpophalangeal joint (MCPJ) and extension of the proximal interphalangeal and distal interphalangeal joints. The purpose of this study was to investigate the anatomical mechanics of the lumbrical muscles of the index, middle, ring, and small fingers.

Methods: We evaluated 25 cadaver arms and measured the distance between the MCPJ and fingertip, the distance between the MCPJ and lumbrical muscle insertion, and the distance between the MCPJ and the most proximal lumbrical muscle origin.

Evolution of genome diagnostics in epidermolysis bullosa: Unveiling the power of next-generation sequencing.

Background: Genome diagnostics is considered gold standard diagnostics for epidermolysis bullosa (EB), a phenotypically and genetically heterogeneous group of rare disorders characterized by blistering and wounding of mucocutaneous tissues. EB is caused by pathogenic variants in genes encoding proteins of the dermo-epidermal junction. Accurate genetic diagnosis of EB is crucial for prognostication, counselling and precision-medicine.

Predicting Contralateral Surgery for Trapeziometacarpal Arthrosis Within 5 Years.

Purpose: Symptomatic trapeziometacarpal (TMC) joint arthritis is a common cause of hand pain. It is unknown how many patients ultimately elect to have bilateral surgery for TMC arthritis. In this study, we assessed the frequency and predictive factors for contralateral TMC surgery in patients who underwent prior TMC surgery.

From Data to Decisions: How Artificial Intelligence Is Revolutionizing Clinical Prediction Models in Plastic Surgery.

The impact of clinical prediction models within artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning is significant. With its ability to analyze vast amounts of data and identify complex patterns, machine learning has the potential to improve and implement evidence-based plastic, reconstructive, and hand surgery. In addition, it is capable of predicting the diagnosis, prognosis, and outcomes of individual patients.

Complications and Unplanned Reoperation After Thumb Metacarpophalangeal Arthrodesis.

Purpose: Arthrodesis of the metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joint of the thumb is a common procedure to treat arthritis or instability. Studies reporting hardware complications and nonunion rates after thumb MCP joint arthrodesis report on small sample sizes. We aimed to describe the hardware complication rate, the nonunion rate, and the number of thumbs that achieve union among patients undergoing thumb MCP joint arthrodesis.

DRUJ Capsular Release for Forearm Rotational Limitation: Surgical Technique and Case Series.

Background: Forearm stiffness can be caused by distal radioulnar joint (DRUJ) capsular contractures, which can occur after trauma such as a distal radius fracture. In this setting, a DRUJ capsular release may help improve forearm rotation, but the long-term functional outcomes remain unknown. The purpose of this case series is to investigate the short-term improvement in total pronosupination arc range of motion and long-term patient-reported outcomes (PROs) after DRUJ capsular release.

Primary cutaneous apocrine carcinoma arising within a nevus sebaceus.

Nevus sebaceus (NS)(organoid nevus) is a benign follicular neoplasm that commonly occurs on the scalp, face, or neck. With time, it may give rise to benign or malignant tumors such as trichoblastoma, syringocystadenoma papilliferum, and basal cell carcinoma (BCC). Rarely, other types of neoplasms may develop.

Impact of implant composition of twin-screw extruded lipid implants on the release behavior.

The development of vaccine delivery systems that will remove or reduce the need for repeated dosing has led to the investigation of sustained release systems. In this context, the duration of antigen release is of great importance as is the requirement for concomitant adjuvant release. In this work, lipid implants consisting of cholesterol (CHOL), soybean lecithin, Dynasan 114 (D114), the model antigen ovalbumin (OVA) and the adjuvant Quil-A (QA) were produced by twin-screw extrusion.

Role of histological findings and pathologic diagnosis for detection of human papillomavirus infection in men.

Early HPV infection in males is difficult to detect clinically and pathologically. This study assessed histopathology in diagnosing male genital HPV. External genital lesions (n = 352) were biopsied, diagnosed by a dermatopathologist, and HPV genotyped.

New target genes in endometrial tumors show a role for the estrogen-receptor pathway in microsatellite-unstable cancers.

Microsatellite instability (MSI) in tumors results in an accumulation of mutations in (target) genes. Previous studies suggest that the profile of target genes differs according to tumor type. This paper describes the first genome-wide search for target genes for mismatch repair-deficient endometrial cancers.

Comparison of brain and blood gene expression in an animal model of negative symptoms in schizophrenia.

Objectives: To investigate the potential of white blood cells as probes for central processes we have measured gene expression in both the anterior cingulate cortex and white blood cells using a putative animal model of negative symptoms in schizophrenia.

Methods: The model is based on the capability of ketamine to induce psychotic symptoms in healthy volunteers and to worsen such symptoms in schizophrenic patients. Classical fear conditioning is used to assess emotional processing and cognitive function in animals exposed to sub-chronic ketamine vs.

Measurement of constitutive MAPK and PI3K/AKT signaling activity in human cancer cell lines.

The growth and survival of cancer cells are often driven by constitutive activity in the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and phospho-inositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT signaling pathways. Activity in these signal transduction cascades is known to contribute to the uncontrolled growth and resistance to apoptosis that characterizes tumor progression. There is now a great deal of interest in therapeutically targeting these pathways in cancer using small molecule inhibitors.

Gene expression profile in flow-associated pulmonary arterial hypertension with neointimal lesions.

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a pulmonary angioproliferative disease with high morbidity and mortality, characterized by a typical pattern of pulmonary vascular remodeling including neointimal lesions. In congenital heart disease, increased pulmonary blood flow has appeared to be a key mediator in the development of these characteristic lesions, but the molecular mechanisms underlying the pulmonary vascular lesions are largely unknown. We employed a rat model of flow-associated PAH, which induced specific pulmonary neointimal lesions.

A new pathogenic keratin 5 mutation in a Hindoestan family with localized epidermolysis bullosa simplex.

Epidermolysis bullosa simplex is an autosomal dominant inherited skin blistering disorder caused by mutations in the genes KRT5 or KRT14 coding for the basal epidermal keratins 5 and 14, respectively. We describe a novel heterozygous pathogenic missense mutation (KRT5:c.596A>T, p.

Germline hypermethylation of MLH1 and EPCAM deletions are a frequent cause of Lynch syndrome.

It was shown that Lynch syndrome can be caused by germline hypermethylation of the MLH1 and MSH2 promoters. Furthermore, it has been demonstrated very recently that germline deletions of the 3' region of EPCAM cause transcriptional read-through which results in silencing of MSH2 by hypermethylation. We wanted to determine the prevalence of germline MLH1 promoter hypermethylation and of germline and somatic MSH2 promoter hypermethylation in a large group of Lynch syndrome-suspected patients.

Biochemical characterization of MLH3 missense mutations does not reveal an apparent role of MLH3 in Lynch syndrome.

So far 18 MLH3 germline mutations/variants have been identified in familial colorectal cancer cases. Sixteen of these variants are amino acid substitutions of which the pathogenic nature is still unclear. These substitutions are known as unclassified variants or UVs.

Effect of Foliar Trimming and Fungicides on Apothecial Number of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, Leaf Blight Severity, Yield, and Canopy Microclimate in Carrot.

Foliar trimming of the carrot canopy has potential for reducing the severity of Sclerotinia (Sclerotinia sclerotiorum) rot of carrot (Daucus carota subsp. sativus). The effect of trimming the carrot foliage once or twice, with and without fungicide application, was examined on carrot plants grown on organic soil for 3 years at the University of Guelph-Muck Crops Research Station in Ontario, Canada.

Gene expression profiling in livers of mice after acute inhibition of beta-oxidation.

Inborn errors of mitochondrial beta-oxidation cause ectopic fat accumulation, particularly in the liver. Fatty liver is associated with insulin resistance and predisposes to hepatic fibrosis. The factors underlying the pathophysiological consequences of hepatic fat accumulation have remained poorly defined.

Nuclear localization of human DNA mismatch repair protein exonuclease 1 (hEXO1).

Human exonuclease 1 (hEXO1) is implicated in DNA mismatch repair (MMR) and mutations in hEXO1 may be associated with hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC). Since the subcellular localization of MMR proteins is essential for proper MMR function, we characterized possible nuclear localization signals (NLSs) in hEXO1. Using fluorescent fusion proteins, we show that the sequence 418KRPR421, which exhibit strong homology to other monopartite NLS sequences, is responsible for correct nuclear localization of hEXO1.

Chronic edema of the lips--a rare but real problem: a report of 3 cases and their response to therapy.

Chronic edema of the lips is rare but disabling. We present 3 illustrative cases of chronic edema involving the lips. The causes were (1) idiopathic, (2) lymphedema occurring after radiation therapy, and (3) cheilitis granulomatosa.

Distinct transcriptional changes in donor kidneys upon brain death induction in rats: insights in the processes of brain death.

Brain death affects hormone regulation, inflammatory reactivity and hemodynamic stability. In transplant models, donor organs retrieved from brain dead (BD) rats suffer from increased rates of primary non-function and lower graft survival. To unravel the mechanisms behind brain death we have performed DNA microarray studies with kidney-derived RNA from normo- and hypotensive BD rats, corresponding with optimal and marginal BD donors, respectively.