Evaluation of a 3D-Printed Cleft Palate Obturator Using a Low-Dose Cone Beam Computed Tomography Acquisition Protocol: A Proof-of-Concept Study.

Cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) technology is increasingly utilized in the head and neck region and is valuable in treatment planning for cleft palate patients, potentially enabling the creation of 3D-printed obturators to assist with feeding and speech. This technical report investigates the feasibility of using data from a 360-degree CBCT scan to accurately produce a cleft palate obturator and assesses whether a lower-dose 180-degree CBCT scan can achieve a comparable result. A simulated cleft palate was crafted on a dehydrated human skull, which was then scanned using both 360-degree and 180-degree CBCT scanning protocols.

Evaluation of feline heartworm disease based on gross necropsy, serology, pulmonary histopathology, and radiographic evidence in adult shelter cats in northeastern Alabama.

Background: Veterinary knowledge regarding feline heartworm has been increasing significantly over the past two decades. Necropsy surveys of shelter cats have shown feline adult heartworm infection prevalence to be 5-20% of the rate in unprotected dogs; however, other studies have shown feline heartworm antibody prevalence up to 33%, reflecting higher exposure rates and potential immature adult infections. Thus, the true prevalence of feline heartworm infection is likely underestimated due to the limitations of current diagnostic techniques, inadequate testing protocols, and the high likelihood of cats exhibiting transient clinical signs or dying without confirmation of infection.

Erratum: Role of adipocyte Na,K-ATPase oxidant amplification loop in cognitive decline and neurodegeneration.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.

Effects of doxycycline dose rate and pre-adulticide wait period on heartworm-associated pathology and adult worm mass.

Background: The American Heartworm Society canine guidelines recommend treatment with doxycycline prior to adulticide administration to reduce levels of Wolbachia and its associated metabolites, which are known to be a leading cause of pulmonary pathology. Studies have determined that doxycycline administered at 10 mg/kg BID for 28 days is an effective dose for eliminating Wolbachia, but what has not been determined is the clinical relevance of this elimination. The current guidelines also recommend a 30-day wait period following administration of doxycycline to allow for clearance of metabolites, such as Wolbachia surface protein, and for further reduction in heartworm biomass before administration of adulticide.

Sting and p53 DNA repair pathways are compromised in Alzheimer's disease.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia. A common finding in AD is DNA damage. Double-strand DNA breaks (DSBs) are particularly hazardous to neurons because their post-mitotic state forces neurons to rely on error-prone and potentially mutagenic mechanisms to repair DNA breaks.

Early onset adult deafness in the Rhodesian Ridgeback dog is associated with an in-frame deletion in the EPS8L2 gene.

Domestic dogs exhibit diverse types of both congenital and non-congenital hearing losses. Rhodesian Ridgebacks can suffer from a progressive hearing loss in the early stage of their life, a condition known as early onset adult deafness (EOAD), where they lose their hearing ability within 1-2 years after birth. In order to investigate the genetic basis of this hereditary hearing disorder, we performed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) by using a sample of 23 affected and 162 control Rhodesian Ridgebacks.

Population genomic consequences of life-history and mating system adaptation to a geothermal soil mosaic in yellow monkeyflowers.

Local selection can promote phenotypic divergence despite gene flow across habitat mosaics, but adaptation itself may generate substantial barriers to genetic exchange. In plants, life-history, phenology, and mating system divergence have been proposed to promote genetic differentiation in sympatry. In this study, we investigate phenotypic and genetic variation in Mimulus guttatus (yellow monkeyflowers) across a geothermal soil mosaic in Yellowstone National Park (YNP).

Characterization of persistent atrial fibrillation with non-contact charge density mapping and relationship to voltage.

Background: Despite studies using localized high density contact mapping and lower resolution panoramic approaches, the mechanisms that sustain human persistent atrial fibrillation (AF) remain unresolved. Voltage mapping is commonly employed as a surrogate of atrial substrate to guide ablation procedures.

Objective: To study the distribution and temporal stability of activation during persistent AF using a global non-contact charge density approach and compare the findings with bipolar contact mapping.

Role of adipocyte Na,K-ATPase oxidant amplification loop in cognitive decline and neurodegeneration.

Recent studies suggest that a western diet may contribute to clinical neurodegeneration and dementia. Adipocyte-specific expression of the Na,K-ATPase signaling antagonist, NaKtide, ameliorates the pathophysiological consequences of murine experimental obesity and renal failure. In this study, we found that a western diet produced systemic oxidant stress along with evidence of activation of Na,K-ATPase signaling within both murine brain and peripheral tissues.

Morphology of the nutrient artery and its foramen in relation to femoral bone perfusion rates of laying and non-laying hens.

If arteries penetrate bones through foramina, regional artery blood flow rates can be estimated from the foramen sizes. Femoral bone blood flow rates estimated from nutrient foramen sizes were previously not absolute, but only a relative blood flow index (Q ), because the size relationship between the foramen and the occupying artery was unknown. The current study used vascular contrast and micro-computerized tomographic scanning to investigate femoral nutrient foramen and nutrient artery sizes in three groups of sub-adult chickens (non-laying hens, laying hens, and roosters) of similar ages.

Regional femoral bone blood flow rates in laying and non-laying chickens estimated with fluorescent microspheres.

The metabolic rate of vertebrate bone tissue is related to bone growth, repair and homeostasis, which are all dependent on life stage. Bone metabolic rate is difficult to measure directly, but absolute blood flow rate () should reflect local tissue oxygen requirements. A recent 'foramen technique' has derived an index of blood flow rate () by measuring nutrient foramen sizes of long bones.

Differential effect of clopidogrel and ticagrelor on leukocyte count in relation to patient characteristics, biomarkers and genotype: a PLATO substudy.

Inflammation plays a key role in cardiovascular disease by contributing to atherothrombosis. The PLATelet inhibition and patient Outcomes (PLATO) study (NCT00391872) compared ticagrelor to clopidogrel in patients with acute coronary syndromes and demonstrated fewer cardiovascular events with ticagrelor but lower white blood cell counts (WBC) with clopidogrel. In this further analysis of the PLATO biomarker substudy, we assessed associations between WBC and clinical characteristics, biomarker levels, and polymorphisms.

Five genetic variants explain over 70% of hair coat pheomelanin intensity variation in purebred and mixed breed domestic dogs.

In mammals, the pigment molecule pheomelanin confers red and yellow color to hair, and the intensity of this coloration is caused by variation in the amount of pheomelanin. Domestic dogs exhibit a wide range of pheomelanin intensity, ranging from the white coat of the Samoyed to the deep red coat of the Irish Setter. While several genetic variants have been associated with specific coat intensity phenotypes in certain dog breeds, they do not explain the majority of phenotypic variation across breeds.

Quantitative trait locus mapping reveals an independent genetic basis for joint divergence in leaf function, life-history, and floral traits between scarlet monkeyflower (Mimulus cardinalis) populations.

Premise: Across taxa, vegetative and floral traits that vary along a fast-slow life-history axis are often correlated with leaf functional traits arrayed along the leaf economics spectrum, suggesting a constrained set of adaptive trait combinations. Such broad-scale convergence may arise from genetic constraints imposed by pleiotropy (or tight linkage) within species, or from natural selection alone. Understanding the genetic basis of trait syndromes and their components is key to distinguishing these alternatives and predicting evolution in novel environments.

Selfish chromosomal drive shapes recent centromeric histone evolution in monkeyflowers.

Centromeres are essential mediators of chromosomal segregation, but both centromeric DNA sequences and associated kinetochore proteins are paradoxically diverse across species. The selfish centromere model explains rapid evolution by both components via an arms-race scenario: centromeric DNA variants drive by distorting chromosomal transmission in female meiosis and attendant fitness costs select on interacting proteins to restore Mendelian inheritance. Although it is clear than centromeres can drive and that drive often carries costs, female meiotic drive has not been directly linked to selection on kinetochore proteins in any natural system.

Modulation of proteasome activity by curcumin and didemethylcurcumin.

Modulation of proteasome function by pharmacological interventions and molecular biology tools is an active area of research in cancer biology and neurodegenerative diseases. Curcumin (diferuloylmethane) is a naturally occurring polyphenol that affects multiple signaling pathways. Curcumin shows anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-angiogenic, or anti-apoptotic properties.

Big Data in Conservation Genomics: Boosting Skills, Hedging Bets, and Staying Current in the Field.

A current challenge in the fields of evolutionary, ecological, and conservation genomics is balancing production of large-scale datasets with additional training often required to handle such datasets. Thus, there is an increasing need for conservation geneticists to continually learn and train to stay up-to-date through avenues such as symposia, meetings, and workshops. The ConGen meeting is a near-annual workshop that strives to guide participants in understanding population genetics principles, study design, data processing, analysis, interpretation, and applications to real-world conservation issues.

Ancient and recent introgression shape the evolutionary history of pollinator adaptation and speciation in a model monkeyflower radiation (Mimulus section Erythranthe).

Inferences about past processes of adaptation and speciation require a gene-scale and genome-wide understanding of the evolutionary history of diverging taxa. In this study, we use genome-wide capture of nuclear gene sequences, plus skimming of organellar sequences, to investigate the phylogenomics of monkeyflowers in Mimulus section Erythranthe (27 accessions from seven species). Taxa within Erythranthe, particularly the parapatric and putatively sister species M.

Complex pleiotropic genetic architecture of evolved heat stress and oxidative stress resistance in the nematode Caenorhabditis remanei.

The adaptation of complex organisms to changing environments has been a central question in evolutionary quantitative genetics since its inception. The structure of the genotype-phenotype maps is critical because pleiotropic effects can generate widespread correlated responses to selection and potentially restrict the extent of evolutionary change. In this study, we use experimental evolution to dissect the genetic architecture of natural variation for acute heat stress and oxidative stress response in the nematode Caenorhabiditis remanei.

Radiofrequency ablation of ventricular tachycardia in Anderson-Fabry disease: a case series.

Background: Cardiac involvement in Anderson-Fabry disease (AFD) can lead to arrhythmia, including ventricular tachycardia (VT). The literature on radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for the treatment of VT in AFD disease is limited.

Case Summary: We discuss RFA of drug-refractory VT electrical storm in three males with AFD.