The effects of plasma exchange and glucocorticoids on early kidney function among patients with ANCA-associated vasculitis in the PEXIVAS trial.

Therapeutic plasma exchange (PLEX) is an adjunctive treatment for patients with anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis and kidney involvement. Little is known about the effect of PLEX on early changes in kidney function. This post-hoc analysis of the PEXIVAS trial investigated the effects of PLEX on changes in kidney function within 12 months.

Clinical Profile and Treatment Adherence in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes and Chronic Kidney Disease Who Initiate an SGLT2 Inhibitor: A Multi-cohort Study.

Introduction: The clinical landscape for the treatment of patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and type 2 diabetes (T2D) is rapidly evolving. As part of the FOUNTAIN platform (NCT05526157; EUPAS48148), we described and compared cohorts of adult patients with CKD and T2D initiating a sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitor (SGLT2i) before the launch of finerenone in Europe, Japan, and the United States (US).

Methods: This was a multinational, multi-cohort study of patients with T2D in five data sources: the Danish National Health Registers (DNHR) (Denmark), PHARMO Data Network (The Netherlands), Valencia Health System Integrated Database (VID) (Spain), Japan Chronic Kidney Disease Database Extension (J-CKD-DB-Ex) (Japan), and Optum's de-identified Clinformatics Data Mart Database (CDM) (US).

Potent antitumor activity of a designed interleukin-21 mimic.

Long-standing goals of cancer immunotherapy are to activate cytotoxic antitumor T cells across a broad range of affinities while dampening suppressive regulatory T (Treg) cell responses, but current approaches achieve these goals with limited success. Here, we report a IL-21 mimic, 21h10, designed to have augmented stability and high signaling potency in both humans and mice. In multiple animal models and in human melanoma patient derived organotypic tumor spheroids (PDOTS), 21h10 showed robust antitumor activity.

Comparison of the mechanical properties of porcine buccal mucosa and ureter and the clinical implications.

Purpose: Buccal mucosal grafts have a well-established role in urology regarding the management of ureteric stricture disease. Despite its established use as a graft material there is a lack of data on the mechanical properties of buccal mucosa. We aim to compare the passive mechanical properties of porcine buccal mucosa with the ureter.

Mode-resolved optical frequency comb fixed point localization via dual-comb interferometry.

We describe improved methods for locating the fixed point of an optical frequency comb. Two continuous-wave lasers are locked to a reference frequency comb and track the optical phase of a second comb-under-test (CUT) at two points separated by approximately 1.6 THz.