Publications by authors named "M-R Wu"

Amylin analogs, including potential anti-obesity therapies like cagrilintide, act on neurons in the brainstem dorsal vagal complex (DVC) that express calcitonin receptors (CALCR). These receptors, often combined with receptor activity-modifying proteins (RAMPs), mediate the suppression of food intake and body weight. To understand the molecular and neural mechanisms of cagrilintide action, we used single-nucleus RNA sequencing to define 89 cell populations across the rat, mouse, and non-human primate caudal brainstem.

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This study explores the effects of plant compounds on human papillomavirus (HPV)-induced W12 cervical precancer cells and bioelectric signaling. The aim is to identify effective phytochemicals, both individually and in combination, that can prevent and treat HPV infection and HPV associated cervical cancer. Phytochemicals were tested using growth inhibition, combination, gene expression, RT PCR, and molecular docking assays.

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Aims: To assess the robustness of 4D-optimised IMPT and PAT plans against interplay effects in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients with respiratory motion over 10 mm, and to provide insights into the use of proton-based stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) for lung cancer with significant tumour movement.

Materials And Methods: Fourteen patients with early-stage NSCLC and tumour motion >10 mm were selected. Three hypofraction regimens were generated using 4D robust optimisation with the IMPT and PAT techniques.

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Introduction: Age-associated depletion in nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) concentrations has been implicated in metabolic, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative disorders. Supplementation with NAD+ precursors, such as nicotinamide riboside (NR), offers a potential therapeutic avenue against neurodegenerative pathologies in aging, Alzheimer's disease, and related dementias. A crossover, double-blind, randomized placebo (PBO) controlled trial was conducted to test the safety and efficacy of 8 weeks' active treatment with NR (1 g/day) on cognition and plasma AD biomarkers in older adults with subjective cognitive decline and mild cognitive impairment.

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Multicomponent quantitative analysis (MCQA) is necessary for comprehensively characterizing the quality of complex samples, including medicines, foods. However, the limited supply of reference substances and the high costs associated with testing hinder the application of the MCQA using the external standard (ES) method. Here we propose a Molar Mass Coefficient (MMC) method for the quantification of multiple compounds with identical chromophore utilizing a single reference compound (SRC) by a UV detector.

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Nanoscale aggregates play a key role in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. However, quantifying these aggregates in complex biological samples, such as biofluids and postmortem brain tissue, has been challenging due to their low concentration and small size, necessitating the development of methods with high sensitivity and specificity. Here, we have developed ultrasensitive assays utilizing the Quanterix Simoa platform to detect α-synuclein, β-amyloid and tau aggregates, including those with common posttranslational modifications such as truncation of α-synuclein and AT8 phosphorylation of tau aggregates.

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Background: Safety in cardiac surgical procedures is predicated on effective team dynamics. This study associated operative team familiarity (ie, the extent of clinical collaboration among surgical team members) with procedural efficiency and Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) adjudicated patient outcomes.

Methods: Institutional STS adult cardiac surgery registry and electronic health record data from 2014 to 2021 were evaluated across 3 quaternary hospitals.

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A hydrogenotrophic methanoarchaeon, designated strain FWC-SCC4, was isolated from cold seep sediment of Four-Way Closure Ridge, offshore southwestern Taiwan. Strain FWC-SCC4utilizes H/CO or formate, but not acetate, secondary alcohols, methylamines, methanol or ethanol for growth and methane production. Yeast extract is required for growth.

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Purpose To combine deep learning and biology-based modeling to predict the response of locally advanced, triple-negative breast cancer before initiating neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC). Materials and Methods In this retrospective study, a biology-based mathematical model of tumor response to NAC was constructed and calibrated on a patient-specific basis using imaging data from patients enrolled in the MD Anderson A Robust TNBC Evaluation FraMework to Improve Survival trial (ARTEMIS; ClinicalTrials.gov registration no.

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Background The clinicopathologic-radiologic and prognostic characteristics of intratumoral fat in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are critical for personalized treatment but remain understudied. Purpose To investigate the clinicopathologic-radiologic associations and prognostic implications of MRI-assessed intratumoral fat in HCCs. Materials and Methods This retrospective cohort study included consecutive adult patients who underwent resection for solitary HCCs and preoperative contrast-enhanced MRI from two tertiary-care hospitals in East Asia (March 2011 to December 2021) and Western Europe (September 2012 to December 2019).

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Article Synopsis
  • - This clinical trial compared the safety and effectiveness of an inhaled COVID-19 vaccine (Ad5-nCoV-IH) against an intramuscular vaccine (BNT-IM) in 540 vaccinated adults in Malaysia from September 2022 to May 2023.
  • - While Ad5-nCoV-IH exhibited lower immunogenicity (with a GMC ratio of 0.22) compared to BNT-IM, it resulted in fewer adverse drug reactions (39.26% vs. 64.68%) and no serious side effects were documented.
  • - Both vaccines demonstrated similar efficacy against COVID-19 variants, but the study concluded that Ad5-nCoV-IH did not meet the non
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  • In medication-resistant epilepsy, surgery aims to achieve seizure freedom while minimizing harm through careful planning based on electroclinical data and neuroimaging techniques.
  • A support vector machine (SVM) was utilized to analyze fast ripple (FR) metrics from patients, achieving a prediction accuracy of 78% for effective surgical resections.
  • Simulations indicated that larger virtual resections often led to improved seizure freedom outcomes, suggesting that targeting high-frequency oscillations may enhance surgical success rates.
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  • An error grid is a tool that helps compare glucose levels measured by devices to see if they are correct and to identify any risks.
  • Experts created a new error grid called the DTS Error Grid that works for both blood glucose monitors (BGMs) and continuous glucose monitors (CGMs), organizing accuracy into five risk zones.
  • The results showed that the DTS Error Grid provides a clearer picture of how accurate these devices are and includes a separate matrix to evaluate how well CGMs track glucose trends over time.
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The peptide hormone glucagon is a fundamental metabolic regulator that is also being considered as a pharmacotherapeutic option for obesity and type 2 diabetes. Despite this, we know very little regarding how glucagon exerts its pleiotropic metabolic actions. Given that the liver is a chief site of action, we performed in situ time-resolved liver phosphoproteomics to reveal glucagon signaling nodes.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Long-term use of fertilizers and intensive farming harms soil health and boosts greenhouse gas emissions, challenging sustainable agriculture; this paper explores organic amendments for winter wheat in China's North Plain to enhance productivity while reducing carbon output.
  • - The study compares two nitrogen levels (N0 and N240) and four organic amendments (straw, manure, mushroom residue, biochar), finding that while N240 significantly boosts wheat yield and soil organic carbon, it also raises carbon emissions; biochar proves most effective at increasing carbon storage.
  • - Overall, N240 with mushroom residue is highlighted as an optimal choice for maximizing wheat yield and soil carbon in the region, and low-cost amendments like mushroom residue can encourage farmers and enhance soil health.
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Background: The primary purpose was to compare ketorolac to oxycodone-acetaminophen with respect to pain and opioid consumption after arthroscopic meniscus surgery. The secondary purpose was to compare short-term functional outcomes between the 2 protocols.

Methods: A power analysis demonstrated that 43 patients were required.

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A long-wavelength triggered cationic iridium(III) complex, Ir5, and its corresponding nanoparticles with the ability to generate type I and type II reactive oxygen species have been synthesised. The complex targets mitochondria and achieves an excellent photodynamic therapy effect in hypoxic cancer cells.

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Background Intravenous prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-targeted radioligand therapy improves survival in men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. Yet, the impact of selective prostatic arterial administration on primary tumor uptake is unclear. Purpose To compare gallium 68 (Ga)-PSMA-11 uptake using dynamic PET/CT in prostatic tumoral volumes of interest (VOIs) during intravenous and selective prostatic arterial infusions for individuals with untreated, high-risk prostate cancer.

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Deep soil drying is a physical soil phenomenon that has become increasingly characteristic to artificial afforestation on China's Loess Plateau. Current research is largely short of conclusive reports on soil moisture recovery following deep soil drying in afforested lands. In this study, a 10-m deep underground column was constructed at Pengyang Experimental Station in Ningxia.

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Yolk sac macrophages are the first to seed the developing heart, however we have no understanding of their roles in human heart development and function due to a lack of accessible tissue. Here, we bridge this gap by differentiating human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) into primitive LYVE1 macrophages (hESC-macrophages) that stably engraft within contractile cardiac microtissues composed of hESC-cardiomyocytes and fibroblasts. Engraftment induces a human fetal cardiac macrophage gene program enriched in efferocytic pathways.

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This research introduces a novel approach using silver (Ag) nanostructures generated through electrochemical deposition and photo-reduction of Ag on fluorine-doped tin oxide glass substrates (denoted as X-Ag-AgFTO, where 'X' and 'y' represent the type of light source and number of deposited cycles, respectively) for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). This study used malachite green (MG) as a Raman probe to evaluate the enhancement factors (EFs) in SERS-active substrates under varied fabrication conditions. For the substrates produced via electrochemical deposition, we determined a Raman EF of 6.

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Background: Many older adults with B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (BCP-ALL) have a relapse despite having a measurable residual disease (MRD)-negative complete remission with combination chemotherapy. The addition of blinatumomab, a bispecific T-cell engager molecule that is approved for the treatment of relapsed, refractory, and MRD-positive BCP-ALL, may have efficacy in patients with MRD-negative remission.

Methods: In a phase 3 trial, we randomly assigned patients 30 to 70 years of age with -negative BCP-ALL (with :: indicating fusion) who had MRD-negative remission (defined as <0.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates how imbalances in left and right ventricular stroke volumes, measured through cardiac MRI, affect clinical outcomes in asymptomatic individuals without cardiovascular disease.
  • It analyzed data from over 4,000 participants, finding that those with a greater difference in stroke volumes had a significantly higher risk of mortality, heart failure, and atrial fibrillation compared to those with balanced volumes.
  • Interestingly, while a decreased differential stroke volume initially seemed to increase heart failure risk, this association disappeared when factoring in baseline left ventricular function, indicating its significance in the findings.
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The POU2F3-POU2AF2/3 transcription factor complex is the master regulator of the tuft cell lineage and tuft cell-like small cell lung cancer (SCLC). Here, we identify a specific dependence of the POU2F3 molecular subtype of SCLC (SCLC-P) on the activity of the mammalian switch/sucrose non-fermentable (mSWI/SNF) chromatin remodeling complex. Treatment of SCLC-P cells with a proteolysis targeting chimera (PROTAC) degrader of mSWI/SNF ATPases evicts POU2F3 and its coactivators from chromatin and attenuates downstream signaling.

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