Spatial profiling of endoplasmic reticulum stress markers in tumor associated cells predicts patient outcomes in pancreatic cancer.

Introduction: The impact of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in tumor-associated cells, such as cancer associated fibroblasts (CAFs), immune cells and endothelial cells, on patient outcomes in clinical specimens have not been examined. For the first time, we characterized the expression and spatial locations of ER stress markers, BiP and CHOP, in tumor-associated cells and assessed their prognostic significance in a panel of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) patient samples.

Methods: Multiplex immunofluorescence was performed on tumor microarrays and images were analyzed using HALO AI software.

Toxin and capsule production by Bacillus cereus biovar anthracis influence pathogenicity in macrophages and animal models.

Bacillus cereus biovar anthracis (Bcbva) causes anthrax-like disease in animals, particularly in the non-human primates and great apes of West and Central Africa. Genomic analyses revealed Bcbva as a member of the B. cereus species that carries two plasmids, pBCXO1 and pBCXO2, which have high sequence homology to the B.

Stressful Body Temperatures as a Maternal Effect on Lizard Reproduction.

AbstractUnderstanding the relationship between the environment parents experience during reproduction and the environment embryos experience in the nest is essential for determining the intergenerational responses of populations to novel environmental conditions. Thermal stress has become commonplace for organisms inhabiting areas affected by rising temperatures. Exposure to body temperatures that approach, but do not exceed, upper thermal limits often induces adverse effects in organisms, but the propensity for these temperatures to have intergenerational consequences has not been explored in depth.

Alternative Pneumocystis Pneumonia Prophylaxis in Solid Organ Transplants.

Background: Despite limited data supporting use in solid organ transplant (SOT) recipients, atovaquone and dapsone are often used as alternatives to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX) for Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia (PJP) prophylaxis.

Methods: This single-center, retrospective cohort study describes a multi-organ program's experience with alternative PJP prophylaxis. Adult SOT recipients transplanted November 13, 2020 to November 13, 2022 who received non-TMP-SMX PJP prophylaxis and had > 1 year follow-up were included.

Olanzapine use for the treatment of adolescents with anorexia nervosa - reflecting on research and clinical practice.

Anorexia nervosa is a complex and potentially devastating mental health (MH) diagnosis that is recognized as having high rates of non-response to treatment, pronounced medical as well as MH morbidity, and elevated mortality rates. Olanzapine is a second-generation atypical antipsychotic that has demonstrated benefit with weight gain in adults with anorexia nervosa (AN), although controlled research involving children and youth remains limited. In this commentary, the authors provide a brief history and review of research relating to olanzapine for the adjunctive treatment of children and adolescents with AN.

Combined inhibition of histone methyltransferases EZH2 and DOT1L is an effective therapy for neuroblastoma.

Background: The child cancer, neuroblastoma (NB), is characterised by a low incidence of mutations and strong oncogenic embryonal driver signals. Many new targeted epigenetic modifier drugs have failed in human trials as monotherapy.

Methods: We performed a high-throughput, combination chromatin-modifier drug screen against NB cells.

A surface lipoprotein on binds complement factor I to promote immune evasion.

is the leading cause of wound infections in humans following animals' bites or scratches. This bacterium is also commonly found in the respiratory tract of many mammals and can cause serious diseases resulting in the brutal rapid death of infected animals, especially cattle. To prevent these infections in cattle, a subunit-based vaccine utilizing the surface lipoprotein PmSLP was developed and showed remarkable protection with a single dose administration.

A noncanonical glycoprotein H complex enhances cytomegalovirus entry.

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) causes severe birth defects, lifelong health complications, and $4 billion in annual costs in the United States alone. A major challenge in vaccine design is the incomplete understanding of the diverse protein complexes the virus uses to infect cells. In , the gH/gL glycoprotein heterodimer is expected to be a basal element of virion cell entry machinery.

Physical activity in the Fontan population: provider recommendations and patient actions.

Background: Emerging evidence suggests that routine physical activity may improve exercise capacity, long-term outcomes, and quality of life in individuals with Fontan circulation. Despite this, it is unclear how active these individuals are and what guidance they receive from medical providers regarding physical activity. The aim of this study was to survey Fontan patients on personal physical activity behaviours and their cardiologist-directed physical activity recommendations to set a baseline for future targeted efforts to improve this.

Residency Wellness: A Historical Narrative Review.

Introduction: The structure of medical residency in the United States has experienced significant changes, paralleling advances in medical science and education. While these changes have enhanced medical training, they have introduced challenges, particularly in resident wellness. The well-being of residents is critical for patient care and the healthcare system.

Tracking sero-molecular trends of swine brucellosis in Hawai'i and the central Pacific.

Introduction: Brucellosis is a zoonotic disease of mammals caused by bacterial species of the genus. The reservoir for disease is typically mammals, with species of found infecting amphibians, bats, and marine mammals. spp.

Total Thrombotic Occlusion of an Extracardiac Fontan Conduit in a Hemodynamically Stable Patient.

Cardiac and extracardiac complications of single-ventricle physiology are well described and carry significant morbidity and mortality risks. We present the case of a 32-year-old patient with a Fontan circulation who presented to the emergency department with epigastric pain, and with chest computed tomography angiography concerning for total thrombosis of the extracardiac conduit.

TetR-like regulator BP1026B_II1561 controls aromatic amino acid biosynthesis and intracellular pathogenesis in .

() causes the tropical disease melioidosis that afflicts an estimated 165,000 people each year. is a facultative intracellular pathogen that transits through distinct intracellular stages including attachment to host cells, invasion through the endocytic pathway, escape from the endosome, replication in the cytoplasm, generation of protrusions towards neighboring cells, and host cell fusion allowing infection to spread without exiting the intracellular environment. We have identified a TetR-like transcriptional regulator, BP1026B_II1561, that is up-regulated during the late stages of infection as protrudes toward neighboring cells.

Serosurveillance of in feral swine populations of Hawai'i and Texas identifies overlap with human Q fever incidence.

Feral swine are invasive in the United States and a reservoir for infectious diseases. The increase in feral swine population and the geographic range are a concern for the spread of zoonotic diseases to humans and livestock. Feral swine could contribute to the spread of the causative agent of human Q fever.

Ocular surface disorders: office procedures for the allergist/clinical immunologist.

Purpose Of Review: Ocular surface disorders (OSDs) are a prevalent and often debilitating condition encountered in clinical practice, particularly by allergists and clinical immunologists.

Recent Findings: A comprehensive guide to office procedures for evaluating and managing OSDs, with a specific focus on ocular allergies, would assist in the evaluation process that begins with an initial patient assessment utilizing standardized forms to systematically gather detailed medical history, symptomatology, and environmental exposure data. This structured approach ensures a thorough understanding of the patient's condition and facilitates targeted interventions.

Development of a Crystallographic Screening to Identify Sudan Virus VP40 Ligands.

The matrix protein VP40 of the highly pathogenic Sudan virus (genus ) is a multifunctional protein responsible for the recruitment of viral nucleocapsids to the plasma membrane and the budding of infectious virions. In addition to its role in assembly, VP40 also downregulates viral genome replication and transcription. VP40's existence in various homo-oligomeric states is presumed to underpin its diverse functional capabilities during the viral life cycle.

Program Evaluation of Pharmacist-Performed Medication Adherence Assessments in Candidates for Living Donor Kidney Transplant.

Medication education and adherence assessments are integral to kidney transplant success. This program evaluation aimed to describe candidate-reported findings using a standardized medication adherence assessment in candidates undergoing living-donor kidney transplantation. This was a single-center retrospective description of medication adherence on adult HIV-negative living-donor candidates from July 1, 2018 to December 1, 2018 who had ≥6 months post-operative follow-up.

Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Situational Judgment Testing Among Applicants to an Anesthesiology Residency Program.

The Computer-Based Assessment for Sampling Personal Characteristics (CASPer) is a situational judgment test (SJT) that assesses noncognitive skills like professionalism, communication, and empathy. There are no reports of the effects of race/ethnicity and sex on CASPer scores among residency applicants. We examined the effects of race/ethnicity, sex, and United States vs international medical school attendance on CASPer performance.

Evaluation of the Use of Phenobarbital and Benzodiazepines in the Management of Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome in Patients Requiring Neurological/Neurosurgical Critical Care: A Propensity-Matched Analysis.

Objective There is growing interest in the use of phenobarbital for alcohol withdrawal syndrome in critically ill patients, though experience in neurologically injured patients is limited. The purpose of this study was to compare the safety and effectiveness of phenobarbital-containing alcohol withdrawal regimens versus benzodiazepine monotherapy in the neurocritical care unit. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study of adult patients admitted to the neurocritical care unit from January 2014 through November 2021 who received pharmacologic treatment for alcohol withdrawal.

Impact of sociodemographic status and sex on chronic rhinosinusitis and olfaction in people with cystic fibrosis.

Background: Sociodemographic status (SDS) including race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status as approximated by education, income, and insurance status impact pulmonary disease in people with cystic fibrosis (PwCF). The relationship between SDS and chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) remains understudied.

Methods: In a prospective, multi-institutional study, adult PwCF completed the 22-Question SinoNasal Outcome Test (SNOT-22), Smell Identification Test (SIT), Questionnaire of Olfactory Disorder Negative Statements (QOD-NS), and Cystic Fibrosis Questionnaire-Revised (CFQ-R).

Direction-aware functional class scoring enrichment analysis of infinium DNA methylation data.

Infinium Methylation BeadChip arrays remain one of the most popular platforms for epigenome-wide association studies, but tools for downstream pathway analysis have their limitations. Functional class scoring (FCS) is a group of pathway enrichment techniques that involve the ranking of genes and evaluation of their collective regulation in biological systems, but the implementations described for Infinium methylation array data do not retain direction information, which is important for mechanistic understanding of genomic regulation. Here, we evaluate several candidate FCS methods that retain directional information.