Publications by authors named "Mauricio Castro"

The sudden death of a previously healthy infant is a devastating event for a family-the death of 2 even more unimaginable. Prior to the debunking of Meadow's law, a legal concept attributing multiple unexplained infant deaths to Munchausen by proxy, these events could lead to the wrongful prosecution of those who had lost their children to "sudden unexpected infant death (SUID)." Today, these cases, wherein multiple infants within one family pass inexplicably, raise suspicion for a possible genetic cause and point toward a need for postmortem genetic testing.

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Purpose: This study investigated the impact of four weeks of age-dependent detraining on army soldiers' cardiorespiratory fitness and maximal and explosive strength.

Methods: Fourteen volunteer tactical athletes participated, divided into two age groups (20 to 29 and 30 to 40 years). Before and after the detraining period, we assessed their anthropometric measurements (weight, height, body mass index, fat mass, and fat-free mass), cardiorespiratory fitness (maximal oxygen uptake [VOmax] and ventilatory thresholds [VT1 and VT2]), and kinematic properties during a single-leg counter-moving jump (CMJ) test for both the dominant and non-dominant legs.

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Introduction: Obesity, characterized by excess adipose tissue, is a major public health problem worldwide. Brown adipose tissue (BAT) and beige adipose tissue participate in thermogenesis through uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1). Polyphenols including those from Calafate (a native polyphenol-rich Patagonian berry), are considered as potential anti-obesity compounds due to their pro-thermogenic characteristics.

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Background: Tongue cancer is associated with debilitating diseases and poor prognostic outcomes. The use of imaging techniques like ultrasonography to assist in the clinical management of affected patients is desirable, but its reliability remains debatable. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate the importance of ultrasound use for the clinicopathological management of tongue cancer.

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Antioxidants are considered functional additives against oxidative stress since they avoid nutritional decline in the meat. The main objective of the present study is to evaluate the effect of sweet potato flour (SPF) as a natural antioxidant on carcass yield and physicochemical characteristics of Creole chickens of Mexico (CChM) and Cobb 500 broilers. In total, 210 chickens (105 CChM and 105 Cobb 500 chickens) were randomly assigned to three treatments: 0, 500, and 1000 mg of SPF kg of feed.

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Sulfatases catalyze essential cellular reactions, including degradation of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs). All sulfatases are post-translationally activated by the formylglycine generating enzyme (FGE) which is deficient in multiple sulfatase deficiency (MSD), a neurodegenerative lysosomal storage disease. Historically, patients were presumed to be deficient of all sulfatase activities; however, a more nuanced relationship is emerging.

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Article Synopsis
  • Response to medications varies among individuals, and adverse drug reactions can be serious; pharmacogenetic (PGx) testing helps predict these responses and risks based on genetics.
  • A study conducted at a military clinic in 2022 showed that a significant percentage of patients had abnormal PGx findings related to medications they were taking, indicating a potential need for personalized medication management.
  • The findings suggest that a large number of military health system patients could benefit from PGx testing to optimize their medication regimens based on established clinical guidelines.
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Viscosupplementation (VS) of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) aims to treat temporomandibular dysfunction (TMD) by stimulating synovial cells to improve intracapsular lubrication. The purpose of the present study was to assess a VS protocol planned with the aid of cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) and checked by ultrasonography (US). The study was carried out in 3 stages.

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Aim: To evaluate the effects of progressive root canal enlargements on the unprepared surface area and remaining dentine thickness of three-rooted maxillary first premolars with different root configurations.

Methodology: Thirty three-rooted maxillary first premolars with three root configurations (n = 10) were selected and scanned in a micro-CT device. The root canals were sequentially enlarged with rotary instruments sizes 30.

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Precision medicine is an approach to healthcare that is modifying clinical management by leveraging technological advances in genomics that assess a patient's genetic information to identify unique predispositions. While the civilian sector is integrating genomics widely to personalize diagnosis and treatment, the military medical environment has reacted more slowly. The operational requirements of military service encourage a tailored approach for focusing military precision medicine on occupation-specific conditions.

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Pressed by the accumulating knowledge in genomics and the proven success of the translation of cancer genomics to clinical practice in oncology, the Obama administration unveiled a $215 million commitment for the Precision Medicine Initiative (PMI) in 2016, a pioneering research effort to improve health and treat disease using a new model of patient-powered research. The objectives of the initiative include more effective treatments for cancer and other diseases, creation of a voluntary national research cohort, adherence to privacy protections for maintaining data sharing and use, modernization of the regulatory framework, and forging public-private partnerships to facilitate these objectives. Specifically, the DoD Military Health System joined other agencies to execute a comprehensive effort for PMI.

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Objectives: The purpose of the present scoping review was to determine the contribution of ultrasound images in the diagnosis of inflammatory and obstructive diseases of the major salivary glands (MSGs).

Methods: A search of studies of ultrasonographic assessments of human samples was performed in several electronic databases and grey literature up to July 2021. The extracted data were the examined MSG; the diagnostic value of ultrasound (sensibility, specificity, positive- and negative predictive value, accuracy); features of lesions, including number, echogenicity, echotexture, form, margins, size, posterior acoustic aspect, and location; and related clinical information, such as swelling, palpation, sensible to pain, salivation, lymph nodes, recurrence, duration, and causes.

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Purpose: The use of genomic sequencing (GS) in military settings poses unique considerations, including the potential for GS to impact service members' careers. The MilSeq Project investigated the use of GS in clinical care of active duty Airmen in the United States Air Force (USAF).

Methods: We assessed perceived risks, benefits, and attitudes toward use of GS in the USAF among patient participants (n = 93) and health-care provider participants (HCPs) (n = 12) prior to receiving or disclosing GS results.

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Article Synopsis
  • Multiple sulfatase deficiency (MSD) is a rare neurodegenerative disorder linked to mutations in the SUMF1 gene, impacting sulfatase activation and leading to various sulfatase deficiencies.
  • The study analyzed 35 cases, focusing on the relationship between genetic variants and clinical outcomes, revealing that earlier symptom onset and severe genetic variants were associated with poorer neurological outcomes.
  • Findings highlighted differences between severe and attenuated cases, providing insights that could aid in prognosis and future research on MSD.
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Purpose: With few trained genetics professionals, the Military Health System is ill-equipped to manage the rapid expansion of genomic medicine. The MilSeq Project introduces an alternative service delivery model (ASDM) in which primary health-care providers (HCPs) provide post-test counseling (PTC) to healthy Airmen who have undergone exome sequencing. We describe HCP performance after a prerequisite educational intervention (EI).

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Why do many human beings find bugs repulsive? Disgust, a psychological factor, is believed to be the main reason why consumers would not consider eating foods containing insect ingredients. This study aimed to understand specific consumers' behaviors toward insect based products. A global survey was launched in 13 different countries.

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Background: Genotyping has expanded the number red blood cell (RBC) and platelet (PLT) antigens that can readily be typed, but often represents an additional testing cost. The analysis of existing genomic data offers a cost-effective approach. We recently developed automated software (bloodTyper) for determination of RBC and PLT antigens from whole genome sequencing.

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Objectives: Morphological variations of mandibular canals increase the risk of neurovascular damage and bleeding during surgical procedures by decreasing the predictability of the inferior alveolar neurovascular bundle location. To improve the predictability with such variations, the present study aimed to verify the possibility of a relationship between mandibular canal branches (MCBs) and tooth-related inflammatory lesions, using trough cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) examinations.

Methods: The sample comprised 150 age and sex-matched examinations (50 cases and 100 controls) from two databases.

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Background: Genomic sequencing has become a widely used tool in clinical and research settings in both civilian and military healthcare systems.

Methods: In this paper, we consider potential military-specific implications of returning genomic sequencing secondary findings to ensure the proper protections, policies, and processes are in place for the use of this information.

Results: We specifically use two examples to highlight potential military implications of the return of secondary findings.

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This study evaluated the effects of hyaluronic acid (HA) on bone repair of human dental sockets. Thirty-two lower first premolars were extracted from 16 patients (2 per patient) for orthodontic reasons. Following the extractions, one socket was randomly filled with 1% HA gel, while the other was allowed to naturally fill with blood clot.

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