Brain and Lung Biomarker Responses to Hyperoxic Hypobaric Decompression.

Biomarker responses to intensive decompression indicate systemic proinflammatory responses and possible neurological stress. To further investigate responses, 12 additional brain and lung biomarkers were assayed. A total of 15 healthy men (20 to 50 yr) undertook consecutive same-day ascents to 25,000 ft (7620 m), following denitrogenation, breathing 100% oxygen.

Effects of resistance training on quality of life, fatigue, physical function, and muscular strength during chemotherapy treatment: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Purpose: To systematically review and meta-analyse the efficacy of resistance training on quality of life (QOL), fatigue, physical function, and muscular strength in people diagnosed with cancer undergoing chemotherapy.

Methods: Electronic databases PubMed, Cochrane Central, CINAHL, SCOPUS and Web of Science were systematically searched for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) that compared the effects of resistance training to control on QOL, fatigue, physical function, and lower-body and upper-body muscular strength in adults undergoing chemotherapy. Standardised mean differences (SMDs) were pooled using a random effects model.

Enhanced anticancer effect of lysozyme-functionalized metformin-loaded shellac nanoparticles on a 3D cell model: role of the nanoparticle and payload concentrations.

Here we used a 3D human hepatic tumour cell culture model to assess the efficacy of "active" metformin-loaded nanoparticles (NPs) as anticancer therapeutics. The metformin nanocarrier design was repurposed from previous studies targeting bacterial and fungal biofilms with antimicrobials loaded in protease-coated nanoparticles. These active nanocarriers were constructed with shellac cores loaded with metformin as the anticancer agent and featured a surface coating of the cationic protease lysozyme.

Immobilised-enzyme microreactors for the identification and synthesis of conjugated drug metabolites.

The study of naturally circulating drug metabolites has been a focus of interest, since these metabolites may have different therapeutic and toxicological effects compared to the parent drug. The synthesis of metabolites outside of the human body is vital in order to conduct studies into the pharmacological activities of drugs and bioactive compounds. Current synthesis methods require significant purification and separation efforts or do not provide sufficient quantities for use in pharmacology experiments.

Early Human Pathophysiological Responses to Exertional Hypobaric Decompression Stress.

Consistent blood biomarkers of hypobaric (altitude) decompression stress remain elusive. Recent laboratory investigation of decompression sickness risk at 25,000 ft (7620 m) enabled evaluation of early pathophysiological responses to exertional decompression stress. In this study, 15 healthy men, aged 20-50 yr, undertook 2 consecutive (same-day) ascents to 25,000 ft (7620 m) for 60 and 90 min, breathing 100% oxygen, each following 1 h of prior denitrogenation.

Digital Health Solutions for Weight Loss and Obesity: A Narrative Review.

Personal exercise programmes have long been used and prescribed for weight loss and the improvement of quality of life in obese patients. While individualised programmes are usually the preferred option, they can be more costly and challenging to deliver in person. A move to digital programmes with a wider reach has commenced, and demand has increased due to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.

Vascularized Co-Culture Clusteroids of Primary Endothelial and Hep-G2 Cells Based on Aqueous Two-Phase Pickering Emulsions.

Three-dimensional cell culture has been extensively involved in biomedical applications due to its high availability and relatively mature biochemical properties. However, single 3D cell culture models based on hydrogel or various scaffolds do not meet the more in-depth requirements of in vitro models. The necrotic core formation inhibits the utilization of the 3D cell culture ex vivo as oxygen permeation is impaired in the absence of blood vessels.

Fabrication of Angiogenic Sprouting Coculture of Cell Clusteroids Using an Aqueous Two-Phase Pickering Emulsion System.

Tumor cell spheroids and 3D cell culture have generated a lot of interest in the past decade due to their relative ease of production and biomedical research applications. To date, the frontier in tumor 3D models has been pushed to the level of personalized cancer treatment and customized tissue engineering applications. However, without vascularization, the central parts of these artificial constructs cannot survive without an adequate oxygen and nutrient supply.

Enhanced clearing of biofilms on a 3D urothelial cell model using lysozyme-functionalized fluconazole-loaded shellac nanoparticles.

urinary tract biofilms are increasingly witnessed in nosocomial infections due to reduced immunity of patients and the hospital ecosystem. The indwelling devices utilized to support patients with urethral diseases that connect the unsterilized external environment with the internal environment of the patient are another significant source of urinary tract biofilm infections. Recently, nanoparticle (NP)-associated therapeutics have gained traction in a number of areas, including fighting antibiotic-resistant bacterial biofilm infection.

Biofilm-Infected Human Clusteroid Three-Dimensional Coculture Platform to Replace Animal Models in Testing Antimicrobial Nanotechnologies.

Microbial biofilms are a major concern in wound care, implant devices, and organ infections. Biofilms allow higher tolerance to antimicrobial drugs, can impair wound healing, and potentially lead to sepsis. There has been a recent focus on developing novel nanocarrier-based delivery vehicles to enhance the biofilm penetration of traditional antibacterial drugs.

Advanced biomedical applications based on emerging 3D cell culturing platforms.

It is of great value to develop reliable in vitro models for cell biology and toxicology. However, ethical issues and the decreasing number of donors restrict the further use of traditional animal models in various fields, including the emerging fields of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. The huge gap created by the restrictions in animal models has pushed the development of the increasingly recognized three-dimensional (3D) cell culture, which enables cells to closely simulate authentic cellular behaviour such as close cell-to-cell interactions and can achieve higher functionality.

Resistance training leads to large improvements in strength and moderate improvements in physical function in adults who are overweight or obese: a systematic review.

Questions: What are the effects of resistance training on muscle strength, physical function and muscle power in adults who are overweight or obese? Which factors moderate the effects?

Design: Systematic review of randomised controlled trials, with random effects meta-analyses and meta-regressions.

Participants: Adults who are overweight or obese.

Intervention: Resistance training lasting ≥ 4 weeks.

Bioimprint Mediated Label-Free Isolation of Pancreatic Tumor Cells from a Healthy Peripheral Blood Cell Population.

New techniques are required for earlier diagnosis and response to treatment of pancreatic cancer. Here, a label-free approach is reported in which circulating pancreatic tumor cells are isolated from healthy peripheral blood cells via cell bioimprinting technology. The method involves pre-fabrication of pancreatic cell layers and sequential casting of cell surfaces with a series of custom-made resins to produce negative cell imprints.

The effects of empagliflozin vs metformin on endothelial microparticles in overweight/obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome.

Context: Endothelial microparticles (EMPs) are novel, surrogate biomarkers of endothelial function and have been shown to be elevated in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). It remains poorly understood how pharmacological options for managing PCOS affect EMP levels.

Objective: To characterise and compare the effects of empagliflozin vs metformin on the circulating levels of EMPs in overweight/obese women with PCOS.

Removal of Human Leukemic Cells from Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cells by Cell Recognition Chromatography with Size Matched Particle Imprints.

We report a cell recognition chromatography approach for blood cancer cell separation from healthy peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) based on size-matched functionalized particle imprints. Negative imprints were prepared from layers of 15 μm polymeric microbeads closely matching the size of cultured human leukemic cells (HL60). We replicated these imprints on a large scale with UV curable polyurethane resin using nanoimprinting lithography.

Procoagulant tumor microvesicles attach to endothelial cells on biochips under microfluidic flow.

Tumor patients are at a high risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE), and the mechanism by which this occurs may involve tumor-derived microvesicles (MVs). Previously, it has been shown that tumor MVs become attached to endothelial cells in static conditions. To investigate whether this process occurs under physiologically relevant flow rates, tumor MVs were perfused across a microfluidic device coated with growing human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs).

Isolated tumour microparticles induce endothelial microparticle release in vitro.

: Cancer induces a hypercoagulable state, resulting in an increased risk of venous thromboembolism. One of the mechanisms driving this is tissue factor (TF) production by the tumour, released in small lipid bound microparticles. We have previously demonstrated that tumour cell line media-induced procoagulant changes in HUVEC.

Impaired heat shock protein 72 expression in women with polycystic ovary syndrome following a supervised exercise programme.

Induction of heat shock protein expression and the heat shock (stress) response are seen in exercise. This exercise-induced response is thought protective against cellular stress through the expression of heat shock proteins. The highly inducible heat shock protein 72 (HSP72) has been shown to be expressed in a number of stress-related conditions, but not investigated in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

Feasibility of a novel exercise prehabilitation programme in patients scheduled for elective colorectal surgery: a feasibility randomised controlled trial.

Background And Objectives: To investigate the feasibility of delivering a functional exercise-based prehabilitation intervention and its effects on postoperative length of hospital stay, preoperative physical functioning and health-related quality of life in elective colorectal surgery.

Materials And Methods: In this randomised controlled feasibility trial, 22 elective colorectal surgery patients were randomly assigned to exercise prehabilitation (n = 11) or standard care (n = 11). Feasibility of delivering the intervention was assessed based on recruitment and compliance to the intervention.

The CD105:CD106 microparticle ratio is CD106 dominant in polycystic ovary syndrome compared to type 2 diabetes and healthy subjects.

Background: A retrospective analysis was carried out from patients and controls during the past 5 years from a series of studies investigating endothelial microparticles (MP).

Methods: In total, 319 samples from 207 individuals were included in this analysis, from patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D, n = 105), women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS, n = 145) and healthy volunteers (n = 69). All data were generated via the same flow cytometry protocol with the same antibody clones.

Fabrication of Human Keratinocyte Cell Clusters for Skin Graft Applications by Templating Water-in-Water Pickering Emulsions.

Most current methods for the preparation of tissue spheroids require complex materials, involve tedious physical steps and are generally not scalable. We report a novel alternative, which is both inexpensive and up-scalable, to produce large quantities of viable human keratinocyte cell clusters (clusteroids). The method is based on a two-phase aqueous system of incompatible polymers forming a stable water-in-water (w/w) emulsion, which enabled us to rapidly fabricate cell clusteroids from HaCaT cells.

Circulating Endothelial Microparticles Reduce in Concentration Following an Exercise Programme in Women With Polycystic Ovary Syndrome.

Endothelial dysfunction is a known comorbidity in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). The aim was to assess if supervised, moderate intensity exercise could potentially impact markers of endothelial disruption; endothelial cell derived microparticles (EMP). The current study investigated the effects of a supervised 8-week moderate intensity exercise programme on EMP in women with PCOS ( = 11) and control women free from any known disease ( = 10).

Can sit-to-stand muscle power explain the ability to perform functional tasks in adults with severe obesity?

This study examined the relationship between sit-to-stand (STS) power and physical function in adults with severe obesity. Thirty-eight adults (age: 44 ± 12 years; body mass index [BMI]: 45.2 ± 7.

Effects of acute insulin-induced hypoglycaemia on endothelial microparticles in adults with and without type 2 diabetes.

Aims: To assess whether endothelial microparticles (EMPs), novel surrogate markers of endothelial injury and dysfunction, are differentially produced in response to acute insulin-induced hypoglycaemia in adults with and without type 2 diabetes.

Materials And Methods: A prospective, parallel study was conducted in individuals with type 2 diabetes (n = 23) and controls (n = 22). Hypoglycaemia (<2.