Publications by authors named "Luk L"

The American College of Radiology Vesical Imaging-Reporting and Data System (VI-RADS) Steering Committee will strive to ensure high-quality imaging practices for bladder cancer (BC) and improve outcomes for BC patients. Work will involve evaluation of the current status of magnetic resonance imaging for BC and identify actionable areas to improve its utility in clinical practice. Current VI-RADS gaps related to unmet clinical needs, research areas to address, and future steps and timelines will be identified.

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  • This study aimed to see if a web-based application could help non-chest radiologists better diagnose pulmonary fibrosis by reviewing various chest CT scans.
  • Three radiologists examined multiple rounds of CT scans, initially diagnosing independently and later using suggested features from the application over time.
  • Results showed an increase in diagnostic accuracy from 63% to 74% over the rounds, with specific improvements when refining definitions of features used for diagnosis, particularly enhancing accuracy for a type of fibrosis called NSIP.
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Objectives: Adult-onset Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs) are associated with cancer. Guideline on cancer risk stratifications and screening in IIM patients was recently published, but their external validity remains verified. We evaluated its applicability and reliability among a Hong Kong IIM cohort.

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This study examined the strength and durability of antibody responses in 277 adults who received a heterologous third dose of the BNT162b2 vaccine, following two doses of an inactivated vaccine. Neutralizing antibody levels against both the ancestral virus and Omicron BA.2 subvariant decreased from one month to 6 months after the third dose, and were then maintained at 12 months.

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  • Fibrosis is the abnormal buildup of connective tissue due to improper healing from injuries like lack of oxygen, infections, or trauma, affecting any organ and leading to dysfunction and failure.
  • It also plays a significant role in cancer development, making early diagnosis and monitoring vital for improving patient outcomes.
  • This paper specifically examines fibrosis in the genito-urinary system, highlighting current imaging technologies for detection and suggesting possible future research directions.
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  • Fibrosis is an abnormal buildup of connective tissue due to prolonged injuries like low oxygen, infections, or physical damage, which can lead to organ dysfunction and failure.
  • It is also linked to cancer development and progression, making early diagnosis and monitoring crucial for treatment and improving patient outcomes.
  • The text highlights the need for better understanding and application of advanced imaging techniques to detect fibrosis in abdominal organs, discussing both current technologies and future developments for early diagnosis.
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  • - Injury from factors like low oxygen, infections, or physical damage can disrupt normal tissue repair, leading to fibrosis, which affects organ function and can cause organ failure.
  • - Fibrosis plays a significant role in cancer development and progression, making early diagnosis and ongoing monitoring crucial for managing diseases and improving patients' quality of life.
  • - This work aims to review current imaging technologies used to detect fibrosis in thoracic organs and discuss future advancements in these imaging methods.
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  • Gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETs) are rare but increasingly common cancers that may require systemic therapy due to their metastatic nature or recurrence after surgery, with somatostatin analogs being typical first-line treatments.
  • This study assessed the effectiveness and safety of a histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor called entinostat in patients with relapsed or refractory abdominal NETs, primarily measuring the objective response rate and tumor growth rates before and after treatment.
  • Out of 5 enrolled patients, only 4 were evaluable; they all experienced stable disease for extended periods, and patients showed significantly reduced tumor growth while on entinostat.
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Peptide asparaginyl ligases (PALs) hold significant potential in protein bioconjugation due to their excellent kinetic properties and broad substrate compatibility. However, realizing their full potential in biocatalytic applications requires precise control of their activity. Inspired by nature, we aimed to compartmentalize a representative PAL, OaAEP1-C247A, within protein containers to create artificial organelles with substrate sorting capability.

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  • The study aimed to investigate hamate fractures at a hand surgery unit in Western Australia, comparing outcomes between surgical and nonsurgical treatments.
  • Data were collected from 48 patients with hamate injuries, who underwent treatment between 2019 and 2022, and their recovery was assessed using the Quick Disability of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) score.
  • Results showed that patients with Milch type 2 fractures had significantly better outcomes after surgical intervention compared to nonsurgical treatment, as indicated by their DASH scores.
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Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) is one of the most aggressive cancers. It has a poor 5-year survival rate of 12%, partly because most cases are diagnosed at advanced stages, precluding curative surgical resection. Early-stage PDA has significantly better prognoses due to increased potential for curative interventions, making early detection of PDA critically important to improved patient outcomes.

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Secondary amines, due to their reactivity, can transform protein templates into catalytically active entities, accelerating the development of artificial enzymes. However, existing methods, predominantly reliant on modified ligands or N-terminal prolines, impose significant limitations on template selection. In this study, genetic code expansion was used to break this boundary, enabling secondary amines to be incorporated into alternative proteins and positions of choice.

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Since the emergence of SARS-CoV-2, different variants and subvariants successively emerged to dominate global virus circulation as a result of immune evasion, replication fitness or both. COVID-19 vaccines continue to be updated in response to the emergence of antigenically divergent viruses, the first being the bivalent RNA vaccines that encodes for both the Wuhan-like and Omicron BA.5 subvariant spike proteins.

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Many cell-surface receptors are promising targets for chemical synthesis because of their critical roles in disease development. This synthetic approach enables investigations by racemic protein crystallography and ligand discovery by mirror-image methodologies. However, due to their complex nature, the chemical synthesis of a receptor can be a significant challenge.

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Homologous recombination repair (HRR) pathway deficiency opens multiple therapeutic avenues within pancreatic cancer. Patients with HRR deficiency-associated gene mutations such as BRCA1, BRCA2, and PALB2 are more susceptible to platinum-based chemotherapies and in those with somatic BRCA mutations, PARP inhibitor therapy prolongs progression-free survival. The case discussed herein illustrates the therapeutic opportunities offered through the identification of HRR deficiency in pancreatic cancer, as well as the challenges associated with treatment and prevention of central nervous system metastases in long-term survivors of pancreatic cancer.

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We detected high titers of cross-reactive neuraminidase inhibition antibodies to influenza A(H5N1) virus clade 2.3.4.

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  • Accurate diagnosis of pulmonary fibrosis patterns is critical but complicated due to similar radiographic features.
  • A study analyzed 400 patients using machine learning techniques to identify key radiographic characteristics and developed a diagnostic app.
  • The Bayesian additive regression tree outperformed other methods by accurately predicting diagnoses and providing uncertainty intervals, making it a valuable tool for radiologists.
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Background: Optimising the immunogenicity of COVID-19 vaccines to improve their protection against disease is necessary. Fractional dosing by intradermal (ID) administration has been shown to be equally immunogenic as intramuscular (IM) administration for several vaccines, but the immunogenicity of ID inactivated whole severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) at the full dose is unknown. This study (NCT04800133) investigated the superiority of antibody and T-cell responses of full-dose CoronaVac by ID over IM administration in adolescents.

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Background: Pancreatic cystic lesions (PCLs) are frequent on MRI and are thought to be associated with pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PDAC) necessitating long-term surveillance based on older studies suffering from selection bias.

Purpose: To establish the percentage of patients with PCLs on MRI with a present or future PDAC.

Study Type: Systematic review, meta-analysis.

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A variant originated from Oldenlandia affinis asparaginyl ligase, OaAEP1-C247A, has emerged as an ideal tool for protein labeling. However, its preparation was laborious and time-consuming. It is recombinantly produced as a zymogen, requiring acid activation and four chromatographic steps; despite these extensive steps, the catalytically active enzyme exhibited only moderate purity.

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Background: Few trials have compared homologous and heterologous third doses of COVID-19 vaccination with inactivated vaccines and mRNA vaccines. The aim of this study was to assess immune responses, safety, and efficacy against SARS-CoV-2 infection following homologous or heterologous third-dose COVID-19 vaccination with either one dose of CoronaVac (Sinovac Biotech; inactivated vaccine) or BNT162b2 (Fosun Pharma-BioNTech; mRNA vaccine).

Methods: This is an ongoing, randomised, allocation-concealed, open-label, comparator-controlled trial in adults aged 18 years or older enrolled from the community in Hong Kong, who had received two doses of CoronaVac or BNT162b2 at least 6 months earlier.

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