Retrospective and Longitudinal Study of Blood Pressure in School-Aged Children.

Background: Pediatric hypertension (HTN) is increasing over time. Worldwide, the blood pressure (BP) trend has been poorly studied. The aim of our study is to evaluate the recent trend in BP in a school-aged children sample, and to search for factors that might influence BP variability.

Codon bias, nucleotide selection, and genome size predict in situ bacterial growth rate and transcription in rewetted soil.

In soils, the first rain after a prolonged dry period represents a major pulse event impacting soil microbial community function, yet we lack a full understanding of the genomic traits associated with the microbial response to rewetting. Genomic traits such as codon usage bias and genome size have been linked to bacterial growth in soils-however, often through measurements in culture. Here, we used metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) with O-water stable isotope probing and metatranscriptomics to track genomic traits associated with growth and transcription of soil microorganisms over one week following rewetting of a grassland soil.

TFEB triggers a matrix degradation and invasion program in triple-negative breast cancer cells upon mTORC1 repression.

The phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway is frequently hyperactivated in triple-negative breast cancers (TNBCs) associated with poor prognosis and is a therapeutic target in breast cancer management. Here, we describe the effects of repression of mTOR-containing complex 1 (mTORC1) through knockdown of several key mTORC1 components or with mTOR inhibitors used in cancer therapy. mTORC1 repression results in an ∼10-fold increase in extracellular matrix proteolytic degradation.

Substrate softness increases magnetic microdiscs-induced cytotoxicity.

Cytotoxicity of nanoparticles is primarily assessed on cells grown in plastic culture plates, a mechanical environment that is a million times stiffer than most of the human tissues. Here we question whether nanoparticles cytotoxicity is sensitive to the stiffness of the extracellular environment. To this end, we compare the metabolic activity, the proliferation and death rates, and the motility of a glioblastoma cancer cell line and a fibroblast cell line exposed to gold-coated NiFe microdiscs when grown on a glass substrate or on a soft substrate whose mechanical properties are close to physiology.

Percutaneous thermal ablation in hepatocellular carcinoma patients with and without TIPS.

Purpose: Managing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients with a transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) is becoming increasingly common. This study aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of percutaneous thermal ablation for treating HCC in patients with TIPS.

Methods: This retrospective longitudinal study was conducted at Nantes University Hospital.

Exoscope-assisted spine surgery: Current applications and future directions-A short review.

Spine surgery is a critical field that seeks to alleviate pain and restore function in patients with various spinal pathologies. Over the years, spine surgery has seen advancements such as minimally invasive techniques with operative microscopes and robotic surgeries. These techniques, however, demand better visualisation during the procedure.

[Not Available].

Introducción: El tormento físico y emocional hacia los animales durante la infancia y la adultez emergente ha sido relacionado con el diagnóstico de diversos trastornos de la conducta. El objetivo de este estudio fue adaptar y validar la Escala de tormento físico y emocional hacia animales (PET) en una muestra de universitarios del Caribe colombiano. Materiales y método: Estudio cuantitativo de carácter instrumental, con enfoque transver sal.

MIR164B ensures robust Arabidopsis leaf development by compensating for compromised POLYCOMB REPRESSIVE COMPLEX2 function.

Robustness is pervasive throughout biological systems, enabling them to maintain persistent outputs despite perturbations in their components. Here, we reveal a mechanism contributing to leaf morphology robustness in the face of genetic perturbations. In Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), leaf shape is established during early development through the quantitative action of the CUP-SHAPED COTYLEDON2 (CUC2) protein, whose encoding gene is negatively regulated by the co-expressed MICRORNA164A (MIR164A) gene.

A new method for the evaluation of makeup coverage using hyperspectral imaging.

Introduction: The of a makeup foundation is a perceived attribute which is not captured by opacity or any other single optical property. As previous instrumental measurements do not allow us to consistently compare one product to another, we have begun exploring new parameters and analysis methods made available by hyperspectral imaging. Presumably, the coverage of makeup comes from the change in color, homogeneity, and evenness over the face after application, and the ability of the product to hide spots and other blemishes.

Prevention of radiation induced dermatitis in head and neck cancer patients using cryptomphalus aspersa secretion.

Introduction: Radiotherapy (RT) is a technique widely used in oncology, acquiring special prominence in head and neck cancer (HNC). RT of HNC may be associated with secondary effects including skin reaction, being dermatitis the most common radio-induced side effect during treatment.

Purpose: The use of a wide variety of agents is reported to handle skin toxicity.

GPT-4 as a biomedical simulator.

Background: Computational simulation of biological processes can be a valuable tool for accelerating biomedical research, but usually requires extensive domain knowledge and manual adaptation. Large language models (LLMs) such as GPT-4 have proven surprisingly successful for a wide range of tasks. This study provides proof-of-concept for the use of GPT-4 as a versatile simulator of biological systems.

Current status of the intrafollicular transfer of immature oocytes (IFIOT) in cattle: A review.

Intrafollicular Transfer of Immature Oocytes (IFIOT) has emerged as an alternative to the currently used systems for bovine embryo production. This technique associates the rapid multiplication of bovine females under a completely in vivo culture condition, eliminating the need for superstimulatory hormones in the in vivo system (IVD) and the costly laboratory setup required for in vitro embryo production (IVP). Despite being a promising technique, the results obtained to date have been unsatisfactory for commercial use.

[HYPNOSTRESS study: Interest of medical hypnosis in the evaluation of perceived stress and the experience of hospitalization in an internal medicine department].

Background: Patients with chronic illnesses, especially rare autoimmune and/or systemic diseases associated with significant diagnostic uncertainty, have a representation of their illness and a sometimes prolonged hospitalization experience that can be traumatic and anxiety-provoking.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of a non-medicinal medical hypnosis intervention in reducing the stress state and improving the experience of patients hospitalized in an internal medicine department.

Methods: We conducted a prospective study of 24 patients hospitalized in the Internal Medicine Department of Lille University Hospital in 2023.

Soil microbial community response to corrinoids is shaped by a natural reservoir of vitamin B12.

Soil microbial communities perform critical ecosystem services through the collective metabolic activities of numerous individual organisms. Most microbes use corrinoids, a structurally diverse family of cofactors related to vitamin B12. Corrinoid structure influences the growth of individual microbes, yet how these growth responses scale to the community level remains unknown.

Soft extracellular matrix drives endoplasmic reticulum stress-dependent S quiescence underlying molecular traits of pulmonary basal cells.

Cell culture on soft matrix, either in 2D and 3D, preserves the characteristics of progenitors. However, the mechanism by which the mechanical microenvironment determines progenitor phenotype, and its relevance to human biology, remains poorly described. Here we designed multi-well hydrogel plates with a high degree of physico-chemical uniformity to reliably address the molecular mechanism underlying cell state modification driven by physiological stiffness.

Phylogenetic distribution and experimental characterization of corrinoid production and dependence in soil bacterial isolates.

Soil microbial communities impact carbon sequestration and release, biogeochemical cycling, and agricultural yields. These global effects rely on metabolic interactions that modulate community composition and function. However, the physicochemical and taxonomic complexity of soil and the scarcity of available isolates for phenotypic testing are significant barriers to studying soil microbial interactions.

An atlas of causal and mechanistic drivers of interpatient heterogeneity in glioma.

Grade IV glioma, formerly known as glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most aggressive and lethal type of brain tumor, and its treatment remains challenging in part due to extensive interpatient heterogeneity in disease driving mechanisms and lack of prognostic and predictive biomarkers. Using mechanistic inference of node-edge relationship (MINER), we have analyzed multiomics profiles from 516 patients and constructed an atlas of causal and mechanistic drivers of interpatient heterogeneity in GBM (gbmMINER). The atlas has delineated how 30 driver mutations act in a combinatorial scheme to causally influence a network of regulators (306 transcription factors and 73 miRNAs) of 179 transcriptional "programs", influencing disease progression in patients across 23 disease states.

Do Herbal Supplements and Probiotics Complement Antibiotics and Diet in the Management of SIBO? A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) arises from dysbiosis in the small intestine, manifesting with abdominal symptoms. This study aims to assess the efficacy of combined antibiotic therapy, herbal supplements, probiotics, and dietary modifications in SIBO management. A total of 179 SIBO-diagnosed patients underwent clinical evaluation and breath testing.

Dimensionless numbers reveal distinct regimes in the structure and dynamics of pedestrian crowds.

In fluid mechanics, dimensionless numbers like the Reynolds number help classify flows. We argue that such a classification is also relevant for crowd flows by putting forward the dimensionless Intrusion and Avoidance numbers, which quantify the intrusions into the pedestrians' personal spaces and the imminency of the collisions that they face, respectively. Using an extensive dataset, we show that these numbers delineate regimes where distinct variables characterize the crowd's arrangement, namely, Euclidean distances at low Avoidance number and times-to-collision at low Intrusion number.

Acceptability and Feasibility of the Plasma Separation Card for an Integrated Model of Care for HBV and HCV Screening Among People Attending HIV Clinics in Cameroon and Uganda.

Background: Sub-Saharan African countries have a high burden of viral hepatitis and poor access to screening and care. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of using the plasma separation card (PSC) for viral hepatitis B and C screening among people living with HIV (PLHIV) in Cameroon and Uganda.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional study carried out between 05/2021 and 03/2023 including 192 PLHIV in Cameroon (n = 104) and Uganda (n = 88).

A novel bioinformatic approach reveals cooperation between Cancer/Testis genes in basal-like breast tumors.

Breast cancer is the most prevalent type of cancer in women worldwide. Within breast tumors, the basal-like subtype has the worst prognosis, prompting the need for new tools to understand, detect, and treat these tumors. Certain germline-restricted genes show aberrant expression in tumors and are known as Cancer/Testis genes; their misexpression has diagnostic and therapeutic applications.