Computed tomography for visible haematuria - a single nephrographic phase is sufficient for detecting renal cell carcinoma.

Objectives: No previous studies have compared two computed tomography (CT) protocols in patients presenting with visible haematuria, and most patients undergo a multiphase CT in order to detect upper tract malignancies. We aimed to prospectively compare the diagnostic performance of single- and four-phase CT for detecting renal cell carcinoma (RCC) in patients with visible haematuria.

Materials & Methods: 'A Prospective Trial for Examining Hematuria using Computed Tomography' (PROTEHCT) was a single-centre prospective paired diagnostic study in patients referred for CT due to painless visible haematuria between September 2019 and June 2021.

Is a Single Nephrographic Phase Computed Tomography Sufficient for Detecting Urothelial Carcinoma in Patients with Visible Haematuria? A Prospective Paired Noninferiority Comparison.

Background: There is uncertainty about the utility of multiphase computed tomography (CT) compared with single-phase CT in the routine examination of patients with visible haematuria (VH).

Objective: To compare the accuracies of single nephrographic phase (NP) CT and four-phase CT in detecting urothelial carcinoma (UC).

Design Setting And Participants: This was a single-centre, prospective, paired, noninferiority study of patients with painless VH referred for CT before cystoscopy between September 2019 and June 2021.

Could Metformin and Resveratrol Support Glioblastoma Treatment? A Mechanistic View at the Cellular Level.

Glioblastoma, a malignant brain tumor, is a common primary brain tumor in adults, with diabetes mellitus being a crucial risk factor. This review examines how the antidiabetic drug metformin and dietary supplement resveratrol can benefit the treatment of glioblastoma. Metformin and resveratrol have demonstrated action against relevant pathways in cancer cells.

Temporal pathway analysis of cerebrospinal fluid proteome in herpes simplex encephalitis.

Objectives: We examined the temporal changes of the CSF proteome in patients with herpes simplex encephalitis (HSE) during the course of the disease, in relation to anti-N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) serostatus, corticosteroid treatment, brain MRI and neurocognitive performance.

Methods: Patients were retrospectively included from a previous prospective trial with a pre-specified CSF sampling protocol. Mass spectrometry data of the CSF proteome were processed using pathway analysis.

Effectiveness of the pre-Omicron COVID-19 vaccines against Omicron in reducing infection, hospitalization, severity, and mortality compared to Delta and other variants: A systematic review.

Despite widespread mass rollout programs, the rapid spread of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant called into question the effectiveness of the existing vaccines against infection, hospitalization, severity, and mortality compared to previous variants. This systematic review summarizes and compares the effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccines, with respect to the above outcomes in adults, children, and adolescents. A comprehensive literature search was undertaken on several databases.

Predictive Performance of Prospectively Applied ISUP and Fuhrman Grade in Nonmetastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma.

Background/aim: In 2012, the International Society of Urological Pathology (ISUP) recommended replacing Fuhrman with ISUP for grading renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Our aim was to report recurrence-free survival (RFS) and assess prognostic value of ISUP and Fuhrman for predicting recurrence using original pathology assessment and routine follow-up data.

Patients And Methods: In this single-institution retrospective cohort study, 686 patients underwent a single session total or partial nephrectomy due to nonmetastatic RCC (nmRCC).

Correlates of interpersonal emotion regulation problems in Loss of Control eating (LOC) in youth: study protocol of the combined online and App based questionnaire, laboratory and randomized controlled online intervention i-BEAT trial.

Background: Binge Eating Disorder (BED) represents a common eating disorder associated with marked health impairments. A subclinical variant, loss of control eating (LOC) is prevalent in youth. LOC is associated with similar mental distress as full-blown BED, increases the risk to develop a BED and promotes continuous weight gain.

Digest: New insight into sensory trade-off in phyllostomid bats.

Do the relative size of the olfactory bulb, cochlea, and orbit correlate with diet in phyllostomid bats? Hall et al. (2021) found that the degree of frugivory is positively correlated with the relative size of the olfactory bulb and the orbit. The degree of animalivory is negatively correlated with the relative size of the olfactory bulb and the orbit.

Antibody Responses to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 in the Serum and Cerebrospinal Fluid of Patients With Coronavirus Disease 2019 and Neurological Symptoms.

Antibody responses to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples from 16 patients with coronavirus disease 2019 and neurological symptoms were assessed using 2 independent methods. Immunoglobulin G (IgG) specific for the virus spike protein was found in 81% of patients in serum and in 56% in CSF. SARS-CoV-2 IgG in CSF was observed in 2 patients with negative serological findings.

Biomarkers for central nervous system injury in cerebrospinal fluid are elevated in COVID-19 and associated with neurological symptoms and disease severity.

Background And Purpose: Neurological symptoms have been frequently reported in hospitalized patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and biomarkers of central nervous system (CNS) injury are reported to be increased in plasma but not extensively studied in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). This study examined CSF for biomarkers of CNS injury and other pathology in relation to neurological symptoms and disease severity in patients with neurological manifestations of COVID-19.

Methods: Nineteen patients with neurological symptoms and mild to critical COVID-19 were prospectively included.

Author Correction: Structural Features of a Bacteroidetes-Affiliated Cellulase Linked with a Polysaccharide Utilization Locus.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

Neurofeedback training with a low-priced EEG device leads to faster alpha enhancement but shows no effect on cognitive performance: A single-blind, sham-feedback study.

Introduction: Findings of recent studies indicate that it is possible to enhance cognitive capacities of healthy individuals by means of individual upper alpha neurofeedback training (NFT). Although these results are promising, most of this research was conducted based on high-priced EEG systems developed for clinical and research purposes. This study addresses the question whether such effects can also be shown with an easy to use and comparably low-priced Emotiv Epoc EEG headset available for the average consumer.

Survey of parasites in domestic pigeons () in Tripoli, Libya.

This study was a preliminary survey for identification of parasites (endoparasites and ectoparasites) and their prevalence in domestic pigeons () in Tripoli; Libya. One hundred adult domestic pigeons were purchased from different markets of Tripoli. Blood smears were prepared from each bird and examined using light microscopy with oil immersion lens for the presence of blood parasites.

Interspecies cross-feeding orchestrates carbon degradation in the rumen ecosystem.

Because of their agricultural value, there is a great body of research dedicated to understanding the microorganisms responsible for rumen carbon degradation. However, we lack a holistic view of the microbial food web responsible for carbon processing in this ecosystem. Here, we sampled rumen-fistulated moose, allowing access to rumen microbial communities actively degrading woody plant biomass in real time.

From proteins to polysaccharides: lifestyle and genetic evolution of Coprothermobacter proteolyticus.

Microbial communities that degrade lignocellulosic biomass are typified by high levels of species- and strain-level complexity, as well as synergistic interactions between both cellulolytic and non-cellulolytic microorganisms. Coprothermobacter proteolyticus frequently dominates thermophilic, lignocellulose-degrading communities with wide geographical distribution, which is in contrast to reports that it ferments proteinaceous substrates and is incapable of polysaccharide hydrolysis. Here we deconvolute a highly efficient cellulose-degrading consortium (SEM1b) that is co-dominated by Clostridium (Ruminiclostridium) thermocellum and multiple heterogenic strains affiliated to C.

Host-linked soil viral ecology along a permafrost thaw gradient.

Climate change threatens to release abundant carbon that is sequestered at high latitudes, but the constraints on microbial metabolisms that mediate the release of methane and carbon dioxide are poorly understood. The role of viruses, which are known to affect microbial dynamics, metabolism and biogeochemistry in the oceans, remains largely unexplored in soil. Here, we aimed to investigate how viruses influence microbial ecology and carbon metabolism in peatland soils along a permafrost thaw gradient in Sweden.

"Candidatus Paraporphyromonas polyenzymogenes" encodes multi-modular cellulases linked to the type IX secretion system.

Background: In nature, obligate herbivorous ruminants have a close symbiotic relationship with their gastrointestinal microbiome, which proficiently deconstructs plant biomass. Despite decades of research, lignocellulose degradation in the rumen has thus far been attributed to a limited number of culturable microorganisms. Here, we combine meta-omics and enzymology to identify and describe a novel Bacteroidetes family ("Candidatus MH11") composed entirely of uncultivated strains that are predominant in ruminants and only distantly related to previously characterized taxa.

Structural Features of a Bacteroidetes-Affiliated Cellulase Linked with a Polysaccharide Utilization Locus.

Previous gene-centric analysis of a cow rumen metagenome revealed the first potentially cellulolytic polysaccharide utilization locus, of which the main catalytic enzyme (AC2aCel5A) was identified as a glycoside hydrolase (GH) family 5 endo-cellulase. Here we present the 1.8 Å three-dimensional structure of AC2aCel5A, and characterization of its enzymatic activities.

Mixed movements disorders as an initial feature of pediatric lupus.

Unlabelled: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an immunologic disease of the early adulthood. In children, SLE is rare and neurological onset is uncommon. We report on an observation of pediatric lupus in heterozygous twins revealed by mixed movement disorders.

A polysaccharide utilization locus from an uncultured bacteroidetes phylotype suggests ecological adaptation and substrate versatility.

Recent metagenomic analyses have identified uncultured bacteria that are abundant in the rumen of herbivores and that possess putative biomass-converting enzyme systems. Here we investigate the saccharolytic capabilities of a polysaccharide utilization locus (PUL) that has been reconstructed from an uncultured Bacteroidetes phylotype (SRM-1) that dominates the rumen microbiome of Arctic reindeer. Characterization of the three PUL-encoded outer membrane glycoside hydrolases was performed using chromogenic substrates for initial screening, followed by detailed analyses of products generated from selected substrates, using high-pressure anion-exchange chromatography with electrochemical detection.

Do rumen Bacteroidetes utilize an alternative mechanism for cellulose degradation?

Uncultured and therefore uncharacterized Bacteroidetes lineages are ubiquitous in many natural ecosystems which specialize in lignocellulose degradation. However, their metabolic contribution remains mysterious, as well-studied cultured Bacteroidetes have been shown to degrade only soluble polysaccharides within the human distal gut and herbivore rumen. We have interrogated a reconstructed genome from an uncultured Bacteroidetes phylotype that dominates a switchgrass-associated community within the cow rumen.

Non-Invasive Analysis of Recombinant mRNA Stability in Escherichia coli by a Combination of Transcriptional Inducer Wash-Out and qRT-PCR.

mRNA stability is one among many parameters that can potentially affect the level of recombinant gene expression in bacteria. Blocking of the entire prokaryotic transcription machinery by addition of rifampicin is commonly used in protocols for analysis of mRNA stability. Here we show that such treatment can be effectively replaced by a simple, non-invasive method based on removal of the relevant transcriptional inducers and that the mRNA decay can then be followed by qRT-PCR.

QT interval abnormalities are often present at diagnosis in diabetes and are better predictors of cardiac death than ankle brachial pressure index and autonomic function tests.

Objectives: To study serial measures of maximum QT interval corrected for heart rate (QTc) and QT dispersion (QTD) and their association with cardiac mortality patients with non-insulin dependent diabetes and to compare QT abnormalities with other mortality predictors (ankle brachial pressure index (ABPI) and autonomic function tests) in their ability to predict cardiac death.

Setting: Teaching hospital.

Methods And Patients: QT interval analysis, heart rate (RR) variation in response to deep breathing and standing, and ABPI were analysed in 192 patients with non-insulin dependent diabetes.