Oral antibiotics perturbation on gut microbiota after prostate biopsy.

Introduction: The use of antibiotics may induce the changes in gut microbiota. Previous studies have shown conflicting results on whether the changed gut microbiota by antibiotics can be recovered. Our study aims to investigate whether the gut microbiota could be recovered after a single dose of oral co-amoxiclav before transrectal ultrasound-guided transperineal prostate biopsy (TPPBx) in 5 weeks' time.

The proteome of clear cell ovarian carcinoma.

Clear cell ovarian carcinoma (CCOC) is the second most common subtype of epithelial ovarian carcinoma. Late-stage CCOC is not responsive to gold-standard chemotherapy and results in suboptimal outcomes for patients. In-depth molecular insight is urgently needed to stratify the disease and drive therapeutic development.

Single-cell analysis of hepatoblastoma identifies tumor signatures that predict chemotherapy susceptibility using patient-specific tumor spheroids.

Pediatric hepatoblastoma is the most common primary liver cancer in infants and children. Studies of hepatoblastoma that focus exclusively on tumor cells demonstrate sparse somatic mutations and a common cell of origin, the hepatoblast, across patients. In contrast to the homogeneity these studies would suggest, hepatoblastoma tumors have a high degree of heterogeneity that can portend poor prognosis.

Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Education and Knowledge Among Medical and Dental Trainees.

Persistent human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is responsible for the majority of oropharyngeal and cervical cancers in the USA. Currently, HPV curricula within medical and dental schools are not standardized. As such, we implemented a brief online educational intervention to increase medical and dental trainees' knowledge of the HPV vaccine and the association between HPV and cancer.

Perspectives of Nursing Students towards Schizophrenia Stigma: A Qualitative Study Protocol.

Aim: This study aims to explore fourth-year nursing students' knowledge of schizophrenia and their attitudes, empathy, and intentional behaviours towards people with schizophrenia.

Design: This will be a descriptive qualitative study using focus-group interviews.

Methods: Fourth-year nursing students on clinical placement in a hospital in Hunan province will be invited for focus-group interviews.

Neither Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes nor Cytotoxic T Cells Predict Enhanced Benefit from Chemotherapy in the DBCG77B Phase III Clinical Trial.

Recent studies have shown that immune infiltrates in the tumor microenvironment play a role in response to therapy, with some suggesting that patients with immunogenic tumors may receive increased benefit from chemotherapies. We evaluated this hypothesis in early breast cancer by testing the interaction between immune biomarkers and chemotherapy using materials from DBCG77B, a phase III clinical trial where high-risk premenopausal women were randomized to receive chemotherapy or no chemotherapy. Tissue microarrays were evaluated for tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) assessed morphologically on hematoxylin and eosin-stained slides, and by immunohistochemistry for CD8, FOXP3, LAG-3, PD-1 and PD-L1.

Comparison between MR and CT imaging used to correct for skull-induced phase aberrations during transcranial focused ultrasound.

Transcranial focused ultrasound with the InSightec Exablate system uses thermal ablation for the treatment of movement and mood disorders and blood brain barrier disruption for tumor therapy. The system uses computed tomography (CT) images to calculate phase corrections that account for aberrations caused by the human skull. This work investigates whether magnetic resonance (MR) images can be used as an alternative to CT images to calculate phase corrections.

Detection of a GLIS3 fusion in an infant with AML refractory to chemotherapy.

Infants diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) frequently harbor cytogenetically cryptic fusions involving KMT2A, NUP98 or GLIS2. Those with AML driven specifically by CBFA2T3::GLIS2 fusions have a dismal prognosis and are currently risk-stratified to receive hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) in first remission. Here we report an infant with AML who was refractory to multiple lines of chemotherapy but lacked an identifiable fusion despite cytogenetic, fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and targeted next generation sequencing (NGS) testing.

The association of glycemic control and fall risk in diabetic elderly: a cross-sectional study in Hong Kong.

Background: Many foreign studies investigated glycemic control and fall risk. However, there was insufficient study on this topic in Hong Kong. This study aims to find out the association of glycemic control and fall risk in the diabetic elderly in a general outpatient clinic in the North District of Hong Kong.

Interleukins 4 and 21 Protect Anti-IgM Induced Cell Death in Ramos B Cells: Implication for Autoimmune Diseases.

Interleukins 4 (IL-4) and 21 (IL-21) belong to the common gamma chain cytokine family which are highly involved in the progression of autoimmune diseases. While IL-4 is well known to be involved in the suppression of apoptosis of autoreactive B cells, the role played by IL-21 remains unclear. In the current study, we activated the human Burkitt's lymphoma Ramos B cells with anti-IgM to mimic B cell hyperactivation observed in patients of autoimmune diseases.

Targeting the Ubiquinol-Reduction (Q) Site of the Mitochondrial Cytochrome Complex for the Development of Next Generation Quinolone Antimalarials.

Antimalarials targeting the ubiquinol-oxidation (Q) site of the bc complex, such as atovaquone, have become less effective due to the rapid emergence of resistance linked to point mutations in the Q site. Recent findings showed a series of 2-aryl quinolones mediate inhibitions of this complex by binding to the ubiquinone-reduction (Qi) site, which offers a potential advantage in circumventing drug resistance. Since it is essential to understand how 2-aryl quinolone lead compounds bind within the Qi site, here we describe the co-crystallization and structure elucidation of the bovine cytochrome complex with three different antimalarial 4(1H)-quinolone sub-types, including two 2-aryl quinolone derivatives and a 3-aryl quinolone analogue for comparison.

Population replacement gene drive characteristics for malaria elimination in a range of seasonal transmission settings: a modelling study.

Background: Gene drives are a genetic engineering method where a suite of genes is inherited at higher than Mendelian rates and has been proposed as a promising new vector control strategy to reinvigorate the fight against malaria in sub-Saharan Africa.

Methods: Using an agent-based model of malaria transmission with vector genetics, the impacts of releasing population-replacement gene drive mosquitoes on malaria transmission are examined and the population replacement gene drive system parameters required to achieve local elimination within a spatially-resolved, seasonal Sahelian setting are quantified. The performance of two different gene drive systems-"classic" and "integral"-are evaluated.

Spray-Dried and Spray-Freeze-Dried Powder Formulations of an Anti-Interleukin-4Rα Antibody for Pulmonary Delivery.

Objective: The therapeutic options for severe asthma are limited, and the biological therapies are all parenterally administered. The purpose of this study was to formulate a monoclonal antibody that targets the receptor for IL-4, an interleukin implicated in the pathogenesis of severe asthma, into a dry powder intended for delivery via inhalation.

Methods: Dehydration was achieved using either spray drying or spray freeze drying, which exposes the thermolabile biomacromolecules to stresses such as shear and adverse temperatures.

Spatial expression of the FGFR2b splice isoform and its prognostic significance in endometrioid endometrial carcinoma.

Endometrial carcinoma (EC) is the most common gynecological malignancy and fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) is a frequently dysregulated receptor tyrosine kinase. FGFR2b and FGFR2c are the two main splice isoforms of FGFR2 and are normally localized in epithelial and mesenchymal cells, respectively. Previously, we demonstrated that FGFR2c mRNA expression was associated with aggressive tumor characteristics, shorter progression-free survival (PFS), and disease-specific survival (DSS) in endometrioid ECs (EECs).

Clinical and molecular change induced by repeated low-dose visible light exposure in both light-skinned and dark-skinned individuals.

Background: Visible light (VL) is known to induce pigmentation in dark-skinned individuals and immediate erythema in light-skinned individuals. However, the effects of accumulated low-dose VL exposure across skin types are not well established.

Methods: Thirty-one healthy subjects with light (Fitzpatrick skin types [FST] I-II, n = 13) and dark (FST V-VI, n = 18) skin types were enrolled.

Improving Transcranial Acoustic Targeting: The Limits of CT-Based Velocity Estimates and the Role of MR.

Transcranial magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound (tcMRgFUS) enables the noninvasive treatment of the deep brain. This capacity relies on the ability to focus acoustic energy through the in-tact skull, a feat that requires accurate estimates of the acoustic velocity in individual patient skulls. In current practice, these estimates are generated using a pretreatment computed tomography (CT) scan and then registered to a magnetic resonance (MR) dataset on the day of the treatment.

Exploration of natural flavones' bioactivity and bioavailability in chronic inflammation induced-type-2 diabetes mellitus.

Diabetes, being the most widespread illness, poses a serious threat to global public health. It seems that inflammation plays a critical role in the pathophysiology of diabetes. This review aims to demonstrate a probable link between type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and chronic inflammation during its development.

Regional analgesia and surgical site infections after colorectal surgery: a retrospective cohort analysis.

Background: The effect of regional analgesia on perioperative infectious complications remains unknown. We therefore tested the hypothesis that a composite of serious infections after colorectal surgery is less common in patients with regional analgesia than in those given Intravenous Patient-Controlled Analgesia (IV-PCA) with opiates.

Methods: Patients undergoing elective colorectal surgery lasting one hour or more under general anesthesia at the Cleveland Clinic Main Campus between 2009 and 2015 were included in this retrospective analysis.

Real world outcomes of biopsy-proven oncocytic neoplasm of the kidney managed by surveillance.

Objectives: To evaluate outcomes of patients diagnosed with oncocytic renal neoplasms on routine renal mass biopsy and to describe the natural history of these tumours when managed with surveillance as opposed to immediate intervention. To report disease-specific survival.

Patients And Methods: Patients were identified from a retrospective review of pathology databases from three tertiary referral centres that utilise renal mass biopsy in routine clinical practice.

Multimodal data integration using machine learning improves risk stratification of high-grade serous ovarian cancer.

Patients with high-grade serous ovarian cancer suffer poor prognosis and variable response to treatment. Known prognostic factors for this disease include homologous recombination deficiency status, age, pathological stage and residual disease status after debulking surgery. Recent work has highlighted important prognostic information captured in computed tomography and histopathological specimens, which can be exploited through machine learning.

Preparation of Drug-Loaded Liposomes with Multi-Inlet Vortex Mixers.

The multi-inlet vortex mixer (MIVM) has emerged as a novel bottom-up technology for solid nanoparticle preparation. However, its performance in liposome preparation remains unknown. Here, two key process parameters (aqueous/organic flow rate ratio (FRR) and total flow rate (TFR)) of MIVM were investigated for liposome preparation.