Heterologous Expression of Secreted Proteins from Phytophthora in Pichia pastoris Followed by Protein Purification by Immobilized Metal Ion Affinity (IMAC).

This chapter describes the protocol for heterologous expression of Phytophthora proteins in the yeast Pichia pastoris. Two methods to prepare the constructs for expression are described, using two different strains of P. pastoris, as well as methods for protein expression and purification by immobilized metal ion affinity (IMAC).

Telebehavioral Health for Caregivers of Children With Behavioral Health Needs to Address Caregiver Strain: Cohort Study.

Background: Behavioral health conditions among children have worsened over the past decade. Caregivers for children with behavioral health conditions are at risk for two types of caregiver strain: (1) an objective strain, that results directly from the child's condition and (2) subjective strain, that arises from the caregiver's feelings regarding these events.

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the impact of a technology-enabled pediatric and family behavioral health service on caregivers' strain among a commercially insured population.

To reject, or to accept? A study on radiographers' perspectives on diagnostic radiographs.

Introduction: The overall reject rate (RR) of our newly set up Radiology department was an average of 14%, higher than the recommended 8% target and 10% threshold set by the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM). An analysis done to identify potential causes of a high RR suggested that radiographers might have been rejecting images of diagnostic value. A lack of consistency in the definition of a diagnostic value image amongst radiographers may be a possible cause in the higher overall RR.

Dipeptidylpeptidase-4-targeted activatable fluorescent probes visualize senescent cells.

Senescent cells promote cancer development and progression through chronic inflammation caused by a senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP). Although various senotherapeutic strategies targeting senescent cells have been developed for the prevention and treatment of cancers, technology for the in vivo detection and evaluation of senescent cell accumulation has not yet been established. Here, we identified activatable fluorescent probes targeting dipeptidylpeptidase-4 (DPP4) as an effective probe for detecting senescent cells through an enzymatic activity-based screening of fluorescent probes.

Ransomware Cyberattack Associated With Cardiac Arrest Incidence and Outcomes at Untargeted, Adjacent Hospitals.

Objectives: Healthcare ransomware cyberattacks have been associated with major regional hospital disruptions, but data reporting patient-oriented outcomes in critical conditions such as cardiac arrest (CA) are limited. This study examined the CA incidence and outcomes of untargeted hospitals adjacent to a ransomware-infected healthcare delivery organization (HDO).

Design Setting And Patients: This cohort study compared the CA incidence and outcomes of two untargeted academic hospitals adjacent to an HDO under a ransomware cyberattack during the pre-attack (April 3-30, 2021), attack (May 1-28, 2021), and post-attack (May 29, 2021-June 25, 2021) phases.

Self-assembly and hydrogelation of a potential bioactive peptide derived from quinoa proteins.

In this work the identification of peptides derived from quinoa proteins which could potentially self-assemble, and form hydrogels was carried out with TANGO, a statistical mechanical based algorithm that predicts β-aggregate propensity of peptides. Peptides with the highest aggregate propensity were subjected to gelling screening experiments from which the most promising bioactive peptide with sequence KIVLDSDDPLFGGF was selected. The self-assembling and hydrogelation properties of the C-terminal amidated peptide (KIVLDSDDPLFGGF-NH) were studied.

A 6-Month Open-Label Study of Vortioxetine among Cancer Patients with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD).

Objective: Vortioxetine is a monoaminergic drug with a novel multimodal mechanism of action. We investigated its efficacy on depressive symptoms, cognitive function, and quality of life among cancer patients.

Methods: In this multicenter, open-label, single-arm, observational study, patients received flexible doses of Vortioxetine for a period of six months.

Morphologic perfusion patterns and PI-RADSv2.1 in transition zone prostate cancer.

Purpose: To evaluate morphologic perfusion patterns in transition zone prostate cancer in multiparametric MRI controlled by in-bore MRI-guided prostate biopsy.

Methods: Two experienced radiologists evaluated MRI perfusion patterns in consensus from 321 biopsy cores from the transition zone in 141 patients. Transition zone cancer was present in 77 cores in 36 patients.

The impact of heating and drying on protease activities of ruminant milk before and after in vitro infant digestion.

This study investigated the effect of heating (63°C/30 min or 75°C/15 s) and drying (spray-drying or freeze-drying) on plasmin, cathepsin D, and elastase activities in bovine, ovine, and caprine milk, compared to non-dried raw milk counterparts. Protease activities and protein hydrolysis were assessed before and after in vitro infant digestion with or without gastric and pancreatic enzymes. At 75°C/15 s, plasmin activity in caprine and ovine milk decreased (69-75%, p<0.

Epidemiology, risk factors and outcomes associated with in-hospital reflex-mediated cardiac arrest.

Aim Of The Study: Overactivation of the parasympathetic nervous system can lead to reflex syncope (RS) and, in extreme cases, trigger an unusual and underrecognized form of cardiac arrest. We characterized the epidemiology and prognosis of reflex-mediated cardiac arrest (RMCA) and hypothesized it is associated with intervenable patient factors.

Methods: This retrospective case-control study examined RMCAs at two academic hospitals from 1/2016 to 6/2022 using a resuscitation quality improvement database.

Surveillance of pesticide poisoning in an East and a West Malaysian hospital: characteristics of pesticide poisoning and the early impact of a national Paraquat ban.

Background: Previous studies have shown that pesticide bans were associated with reduced fatal pesticide self-poisoning cases in high, and low-and-middle-income countries. We aimed to investigate the characteristics of pesticide poisoning patients admitted to two Malaysian hospitals and the early impact of the national paraquat ban implemented on 1st January 2020 in a culturally heterogenous South-East-Asian upper-middle-income setting.

Methods: Data were collected from an East (Bintulu) and a West (Ipoh) Malaysian hospital medical records in 2015-2021 and 2018-2021, respectively.

Clinical and Psychosocial Outcomes Associated With a Tele-behavioral Health Platform for Families: Retrospective Study.

Background: The burden of pediatric mental illness in the United States has steadily worsened over the past decade. A recent increase in employer-sponsored behavioral health programs has focused on the needs of the general population. However, these programs do not provide the specialty mental health care required for children, adolescents, and their families.

Identification of Novel Senescent Markers in Small Extracellular Vesicles.

Senescent cells exhibit several typical features, including the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP), promoting the secretion of various inflammatory proteins and small extracellular vesicles (EVs). SASP factors cause chronic inflammation, leading to age-related diseases. Recently, therapeutic strategies targeting senescent cells, known as senolytics, have gained attention; however, noninvasive methods to detect senescent cells in living organisms have not been established.

Potential implications of the glycosylation patterns in collagen α1(I) and α2(I) chains for fibril assembly and growth.

O-Glycosylation of hydroxylysine (Hyl) in collagen occurs at an early stage of biosynthesis before the triple-helix has formed. This simple post-translational modification (PTM) of lysine by either a galactosyl or glucosylgalactosyl moiety is highly conserved in collagens and depends on the species, type of tissue and the collagen amino acid sequence. The structural/functional reason why only specific lysines are modified is poorly understood, and has led to increased efforts to map the sites of PTMs on collagen sequences from different species and to ascertain their potential role in vivo.

RNaseH2A downregulation drives inflammatory gene expression via genomic DNA fragmentation in senescent and cancer cells.

Cellular senescence caused by oncogenic stimuli is associated with the development of various age-related pathologies through the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP). SASP is mediated by the activation of cytoplasmic nucleic acid sensors. However, the molecular mechanism underlying the accumulation of nucleotide ligands in senescent cells is unclear.

Psychological impact amongst patients with COVID-19 in Perak state.

Introduction: Psychological distress had been documented since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak in 2019. The aim of the study is to describe the psychological impact among those who were hospitalized for COVID-19 infection within 6 months after being discharged from the hospital. The psychological impact in this study is defined as depression, anxiety, and stress.

Novel Assessment of Collagen and Its Crosslink Content in the Humerus from Primiparous Dairy Cows with Spontaneous Humeral Fractures Due to Osteoporosis from New Zealand.

Numerous cases of spontaneous humeral fracture in primiparous dairy cows from New Zealand have prompted the study of the condition to establish probable causes or risk factors associated with the condition. Previous studies identified inadequate protein-calorie malnutrition as an important contributory factor. Earlier case studies also reported that ~50% of cows have low liver and/or serum copper concentration at the time of humeral fracture.

Actinidin reduces gluten-derived immunogenic peptides reaching the small intestine in an in vitro semi-dynamic gastrointestinal tract digestion model.

Actinidin, a cysteine protease in green kiwifruit (Actinidia deliciosa), has been identified as a potential enzyme to hydrolyse gluten within the lumen of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT). The present study aimed to further evaluate the effect of purified actinidin sourced from green kiwifruit on the digestion of gluten and the release of immunogenic peptides during GIT digestion using an in vitro semi-dynamic GIT digestion model. Purified gluten was digested for 180 min with or without actinidin and subsequently analysed for free amino groups (o-phthaldialdehyde) to determine the degree of hydrolysis (DH), gluten R5 epitopes (ELISA), and peptide profiles (mass spectrometry).

Hepatocyte growth factor derived from senescent cells attenuates cell competition-induced apical elimination of oncogenic cells.

Cellular senescence and cell competition are important tumor suppression mechanisms that restrain cells with oncogenic mutations at the initial stage of cancer development. However, the link between cellular senescence and cell competition remains unclear. Senescent cells accumulated during the in vivo aging process contribute toward age-related cancers via the development of senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP).

Gasdermin D-mediated release of IL-33 from senescent hepatic stellate cells promotes obesity-associated hepatocellular carcinoma.

Long-term senescent cells exhibit a secretome termed the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP). Although the mechanisms of SASP factor induction have been intensively studied, the release mechanism and how SASP factors influence tumorigenesis in the biological context remain unclear. In this study, using a mouse model of obesity-induced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), we identified the release mechanism of SASP factors, which include interleukin-1β (IL-1β)- and IL-1β-dependent IL-33, from senescent hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) via gasdermin D (GSDMD) amino-terminal-mediated pore.

Telomere Maintenance and the cGAS-STING Pathway in Cancer.

Cancer cells exhibit the unique characteristics of high proliferation and aberrant DNA damage response, which prevents cancer therapy from effectively eliminating them. The machinery required for telomere maintenance, such as telomerase and the alternative lengthening of telomeres (ALT), enables cancer cells to proliferate indefinitely. In addition, the molecules in this system are involved in noncanonical pro-tumorigenic functions.