Directional deep brain stimulation electrodes in Parkinson's disease: meta-analysis and systematic review of the literature.

Background: Since their introduction in 2015, directional leads have practically replaced conventional leads for deep brain stimulation (DBS) in Parkinson's disease (PD). Yet, the benefits of directional DBS (dDBS) over omnidirectional DBS (oDBS) remain unclear. This meta-analysis and systematic review compares the literature on dDBS and oDBS for PD.

Sendaway capillary NT-proBNP in pulmonary hypertension.

Background: N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) is a biomarker of cardiac ventricular wall stress that is incorporated into pulmonary hypertension (PH) risk stratification models. Sendaway sampling may enable patients to perform NT-proBNP tests remotely. This UK-wide study aimed to assess the agreement of sendaway NT-proBNP with standard venous NT-proBNP and to assess the effect of delayed processing.

Directional electrodes in deep brain stimulation: Results of a survey by the European Association of Neurosurgical Societies (EANS).

Introduction: Directional Leads (dLeads) represent a new technical tool in Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS), and a rapidly growing population of patients receive dLeads.

Research Question: The European Association of Neurosurgical Societies(EANS) functional neurosurgery Task Force on dLeads conducted a survey of DBS specialists in Europe to evaluate their use, applications, advantages, and disadvantages.

Material And Methods: EANS functional neurosurgery and European Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery (ESSFN) members were asked to complete an online survey with 50 multiple-choice and open questions on their use of dLeads in clinical practice.

Dandy-Walker Phenotype with Brainstem Involvement: 2 Distinct Subgroups with Different Prognosis.

Background And Purpose: Although cardinal imaging features for the diagnostic criteria of the Dandy-Walker phenotype have been recently defined, there is a large range of unreported malformations among these patients. The brainstem, in particular, deserves careful attention because malformations in this region have potentially important implications for clinical outcomes. In this article, we offer detailed information on the association of brainstem dysgenesis in a large, multicentric cohort of patients with the Dandy-Walker phenotype, defining different subtypes of involvement and their potential clinical impact.

Concurrent Inhibition of ERK and Farnesyltransferase Suppresses the Growth of HRAS Mutant Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

Human papilloma virus (HPV)-negative head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is a common cancer worldwide with an unmet need for more effective, less toxic treatments. Currently, both the disease and the treatment of HNSCC cause significant mortality and morbidity. Targeted therapies hold new promise for patients with HPV-negative status whose tumors harbor oncogenic HRAS mutations.

Discordance to ASHP Therapeutic Guidelines Increases the Risk of Surgical Site Infection.

Clean surgery without contamination does not require prophylactic antibiotics, but there are high-risk surgical procedures that may cause infection and/or involve vital organs such as the heart, brain, and lungs, and these indeed require the use of antibiotics. This study aimed to determine the quantity of antibiotic use based on the defined daily dose (DDD) per 100 bed days and the quality of antibiotic use based on the percentage of concordance with The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) therapeutic guidelines (i.e.

Emerging potential mechanisms and predispositions to the neurological manifestations of COVID-19.

A spectrum of neurological disease associated with COVID-19 is becoming increasingly apparent. However, the mechanisms behind these manifestations remain poorly understood, significantly hindering their management. The present review subsequently attempts to address the evolving molecular, cellular and systemic mechanisms of NeuroCOVID, which we have classified as the acute and long-term neurological effects of COVID-19.

ABHD11, a new diacylglycerol lipase involved in weight gain regulation.

Obesity epidemic continues to spread and obesity rates are increasing in the world. In addition to public health effort to reduce obesity, there is a need to better understand the underlying biology to enable more effective treatment and the discovery of new pharmacological agents. Abhydrolase domain-containing protein 11 (ABHD11) is a serine hydrolase enzyme, localized in mitochondria, that can synthesize the endocannabinoid 2-arachidonoyl glycerol (2AG) in vitro.

Hemiparasitic plant impacts animal and plant communities across four trophic levels.

Understanding the impact of species on community structure is a fundamental question in ecology. There is a growing body of evidence that suggests that both subdominant species and parasites can have disproportionately large effects on other organisms. Here we report those impacts for a species that is both subdominant and parasitic, the hemiparasite Rhinanthus minor.

Fragment-based discovery of 6-azaindazoles as inhibitors of bacterial DNA ligase.

Herein we describe the application of fragment-based drug design to bacterial DNA ligase. X-ray crystallography was used to guide structure-based optimization of a fragment-screening hit to give novel, nanomolar, AMP-competitive inhibitors. The lead compound 13 showed antibacterial activity across a range of pathogens.

Sacrohysteropexy with synthetic mesh in Aba, South-Eastern Nigeria: a report of three cases and review of the literature.

The surgical treatment of uterovaginal prolapse in women who wish to preserve their uteri for fertility presents a challenge to a gynecologist. This is particularly more challenging in Nigeria and the rest of Africa where there is not only a strong cultural aversion to hysterectomy but women also prefer large family size and male babies. This underscores the need for fertility friendly, uterus-preserving procedures.

Delayed induced silica defences in grasses and their potential for destabilising herbivore population dynamics.

Some grass species mount a defensive response to grazing by increasing their rate of uptake of silica from the soil and depositing it as abrasive granules in their leaves. Increased plant silica levels reduce food quality for herbivores that feed on these grasses. Here we provide empirical evidence that a principal food species of an herbivorous rodent exhibits a delayed defensive response to grazing by increasing silica concentrations, and present theoretical modelling that predicts that such a response alone could lead to the population cycles observed in some herbivore populations.

Physical defences wear you down: progressive and irreversible impacts of silica on insect herbivores.

1. Silica in the leaves of grasses can act as a defence against both vertebrate and invertebrate herbivores. The mechanisms by which silica affects herbivore performance are not well characterized.

Are silica defences in grasses driving vole population cycles?

Understanding the factors that drive species population dynamics is fundamental to biology. Cyclic populations of microtine rodents have been the most intensively studied to date, yet there remains great uncertainty over the mechanisms determining the dynamics of most of these populations. For one such population, we present preliminary evidence for a novel mechanism by which herbivore-induced reductions in plant quality alter herbivore life-history parameters and subsequent population growth.

Herbivore specific induction of silica-based plant defences.

Induced plant responses to herbivory have major impacts on herbivore feeding behaviour, performance and population dynamics. These effects are well established for chemical defences, but induction of physical defences remains far less studied. However, for many plants, it is physical defences that play the major role in regulating the levels of herbivore damage sustained.

Experimental demonstration of the antiherbivore effects of silica in grasses: impacts on foliage digestibility and vole growth rates.

The impact of plant-based factors on the population dynamics of mammalian herbivores has been the subject of much debate in ecology, but the role of antiherbivore defences in grasses has received relatively little attention. Silica has been proposed as the primary defence in grasses and is thought to lead to increased abrasiveness of foliage so deterring feeding, as well as reducing foliage digestibility and herbivore performance. However, at present there is little direct experimental evidence to support these ideas.

Silica in grasses as a defence against insect herbivores: contrasting effects on folivores and a phloem feeder.

1. Silica, deposited as opaline phytoliths in the leaves of grasses, constitutes 2-5% of dry leaf mass, yet its function remains unclear. It has been proposed that silica may act as an antiherbivore defence by increasing the abrasiveness and reducing the digestibility of grass leaves, although there is little direct experimental evidence to support this.

ABCA2 is a strong genetic risk factor for early-onset Alzheimer's disease.

Recent epidemiological, biological and genetic data indicate a relationship between cholesterol and Alzheimer's disease (AD) including the association of polymorphisms of ABCA1 (a gene that is known to participate in cholesterol and phospholipid transport) with AD prevalence. Based on these data, we postulated that genetic variation in the related and brain-specific ABCA2 gene leads to increase risk of AD. A large case-control study was conducted where the sample was randomly divided into a hypothesis-testing sample (230 cases/286 controls) and a validation sample (210 cases/233 controls).

The UCLA population studies of CORD: X. A cohort study of changes in respiratory function associated with chronic exposure to SOx, NOx, and hydrocarbons.

Two never-smoking cohorts in Southern California, one in Lancaster (N = 2340) exposed only to moderate levels of oxidants and the other in Long Beach (N = 1326) exposed to high levels of SOx, NO2, hydrocarbons and particulates completed spirometry and the single-breath nitrogen test five to six years apart. Forty-seven percent and 45 percent of the participants were retested. Mean results at baseline for those tested and not retested were similar.

The UCLA population studies of chronic obstructive respiratory disease. 9. Lung function changes associated with chronic exposure to photochemical oxidants; a cohort study among never-smokers.

Two cohorts of never-smoking residents of Los Angeles were studied on two occasions five years apart. One cohort (N = 1,099) lived in a community with moderate levels of photochemical pollution and low levels of other pollutants, and the second (N = 1,117) lived in a community with very high levels of photochemical oxidant and relatively high levels of sulfates and particulates. Studies included measurement of forced expiratory volumes and flow rates and single-breath nitrogen washout, as well as use of a standardized questionnaire.