Osseointegration and fixation opportunities of sacroiliac instrumentation: a preclinical evaluation in a large animal model.

Background: Implant fixation is often the cornerstone of musculoskeletal surgical procedures performed to provide bony fixation and/or fusion. The aim of this study was to evaluate how different design features and manufacturing methods influence implant osseointegration and mechanical properties associated with fixation in a standardized model in cancellous bone of adult sheep.

Methods: We evaluated the performance of three titanium alloy implants: (A) iFuse-TORQ implant; (B) Fenestrated Sacroiliac Device; and (C) Standard Cancellous Bone Screw in the cancellous bone of the distal femur and proximal tibia in 8 sheep.

Randomized study of temporary diaphragm pacing for enhanced recovery after surgery in cardiac surgery patients at risk of prolonged mechanical ventilation.

Objective: Prolonged mechanical ventilation after cardiac surgery significantly increases morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study is to establish the role of diaphragmatic pacing to decrease mechanical ventilation burden in high-risk patients undergoing cardiac surgery.

Methods: This is a prospective, randomized trial of temporary diaphragmatic pacing electrode use in patients undergoing cardiac surgery (NCT04899856).

Impact of Endocrine Disruptors on the Genitourinary Tract.

Over the last decades, the human species has seen an increase in the incidence of pathologies linked to the genitourinary tract. Observations in animals have allowed us to link these increases, at least in part, to changes in the environment and, in particular, to an increasing presence of endocrine disruptors. These can be physical agents, such as light or heat; natural products, such as phytoestrogens; or chemicals produced by humans.

Monitoring data compilations can be leveraged to highlight relationships between estuarine and watershed factors influencing eutrophication in estuaries.

Estuaries have been adversely impacted by increased nutrient loads. Eutrophication impacts from these loads include excess algal blooms and low oxygen conditions. In this study, we leveraged data from 28 monitoring programs in the northeastern US to explore the relationships between eutrophication response variables and watershed and estuarine variables.

Optimization of 3D-printed titanium interbody cage design. Part 2: An in vivo study of spinal fusion in sheep.

Background Context: 3D-printed titanium cage designs can incorporate complex, porous features for bone ingrowth and a greater surface area for minimizing subsidence. In a companion study (Part 1), we determined that increased surface area leads to decreased subsidence; however, it remains unclear how increasing the cage surface area, resulting in a smaller graft aperture, influences fusion.

Purpose: We evaluated the effects of surface area of 3D-printed titanium cages and the use of autologous bone grafts on spinal fusion in sheep.

Oral-Mucosal PCO during hemorrhagic shock closely Monitors its time Course, Severity, and reversal outperforming blood lactate measurement.

Introduction: Given the redistribution of blood flow away from non-immediately vital territories during hemorrhagic shock, we investigate whether monitoring the oral mucosal PCO (PCO) as a surrogate of splanchnic circulation, could closely recognize the onset, assess severity, and identify reversal of hemorrhagic shock.

Material And Methods: The study was performed on six male pigs (38.4 ± 1.

Origin of dedifferentiated adipocyte-derived cells (DFAT) during ceiling culture in an Adiponectin Cre-Recombinase mouse model.

DFAT cells represent an attractive source of stem cells in tissue engineering and in the potential treatment of several clinical conditions. Our objective was to determine whether DFAT cells originate from mature adipocytes and address whether contamination from the stromal vascular fraction (SVF) could be as a source for these cells. A murine adiponectin-creERT;mT/mG model was used with the excision of the cassette induced by tamoxifen injection for the cells expressing adiponectin (adipoq).

The prognostic utility of galectin-3 in patients undergoing cardiac surgery: a scoping review.

Objective: To review the utility of galectin-3 (Gal-3) as a biomarker for postoperative adverse outcomes in patients undergoing cardiac surgery.

Method: This review was conducted in compliance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Electronic database search was conducted in October 2023.

Rapid Systematic Screening of Bispecific Antibody Surrogate Geometries for T-Cell Engagement Using DNA Nanotechnology.

Bispecific antibodies (bsAbs) are emerging immune-therapeutics, and many formats exist that differ considerably in structure. However, little systematic data exist about how the spatial organization of their components influences activity, requiring innovative approaches combining empirical and quantitative frameworks. This study presents a modular DNA nanotechnology platform to generate numerous bsAbs with surrogate geometries that span the structural features of the BiTE, IgG-like, and IgG-conjugate platforms to screen for T-cell engagement.

Sustained improvements in brain health and metabolic markers 24 months following bariatric surgery.

Obesity and its metabolic complications are associated with lower grey matter and white matter densities, whereas weight loss after bariatric surgery leads to an increase in both measures. These increases in grey and white matter density are significantly associated with post-operative weight loss and improvement of the metabolic/inflammatory profiles. While our recent studies demonstrated widespread increases in white matter density 4 and 12 months after bariatric surgery, it is not clear if these changes persist over time.

Molecular characteristics of advanced colorectal cancer and multi-hit PIK3CA mutations.

Introduction: Approximately 20% of patients living with colorectal cancer (CRC) have activating mutations in their tumors in the PIK3CA oncogene. Two or more activating mutations (multi-hit) for the PIK3CA allele increase PI3K⍺ signaling compared to single-point mutations, resulting in exceptional response to PI3K⍺ inhibition. We aimed to identify the prevalence of PIK3CA multi-hit mutations in metastatic CRC to identify patients who may benefit from PI3K inhibitors.

Amphiphilic shuttle peptide delivers base editor ribonucleoprotein to correct the CFTR R553X mutation in well-differentiated airway epithelial cells.

Base editing could correct nonsense mutations that cause cystic fibrosis (CF), but clinical development is limited by the lack of delivery methods that efficiently breach the barriers presented by airway epithelia. Here, we present a novel amphiphilic shuttle peptide based on the previously reported S10 peptide that substantially improved base editor ribonucleoprotein (RNP) delivery. Studies of the S10 secondary structure revealed that the alpha-helix formed by the endosomal leakage domain (ELD), but not the cell penetrating peptide (CPP), was functionally important for delivery.

Recent Advances in Therapeutics and Manufacturing Processes of Recombinant Adeno-Associated Virus for the Treatment of Lung Diseases.

Developing delivery vectors capable of transducing genetic material across the lung epithelia and mucus barrier is a major challenge and of great interest to enable gene therapies to treat pulmonary diseases. Recombinant Adeno-associated Viruses (rAAVs) have emerged as attractive candidates among viral and non-viral vectors due to their broad tissue tropism, ability to transduce dividing and quiescent cells, and their safety profile in current human applications. While rAAVs have demonstrated safety in earlier clinical trials for lung disease applications, there are still some limitations regarding rAAV-transgene delivery in pulmonary cells.

In vivo Assessment of AMP2, a Novel Ceramic-Binding BMP-2, in Ovine Lumbar Interbody Fusion.

Study Design: Assessment of bone formation in an ovine interbody fusion study.

Objective: To compare OsteoAdapt SP, which consists of AMP-2, a modified variant of recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein (rhBMP-2) bound to a tricalcium phosphate-containing carrier, to autologous iliac crest bone graft (ICBG) in a lumbar interbody fusion model.

Summary Of Background Data: Treatment of lumbar disk degeneration often involves spinal fusion to reduce pain and motion at the affected spinal segment by insertion of a cage containing bone graft material.

Elevated myocardial extracellular volume fraction is associated with the development of conduction pathway defects following transcatheter aortic valve replacement.

Background: Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) has become an established method of aortic stenosis treatment but suffers from the risk of heart block and pacemaker requirement. Risk stratification for patients who may develop heart block remains imperfect. Simultaneously, myocardial fibrosis as measured by cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) has been demonstrated as a prognostic indicator of ventricular recovery and mortality following TAVR.

Pericardial fluid troponin in cardiac surgery.

Background And Objective: Pericardial Fluid (PF) is a rich reservoir of biologically active factors. Due to its proximity to the heart, the biochemical structure of PF may reflect the pathological changes in the cardiac interstitial environment. This manuscript aimed to determine whether the PF level of cardiac troponins changes in patients undergoing cardiac surgery.

The distribution of sediment microplastics assemblages is driven by location and hydrodynamics, not sediment characteristics, in the Gulf of Maine, USA.

Microplastics (MP) are found in marine sediments across the globe, but we are just beginning to understand their spatial distribution and assemblages. In this study, we quantified MP in Gulf of Maine, USA sediments. MP were extracted from 20 sediment samples, followed by polymer identification using Raman spectroscopy.

Implant Strength Contributes to the Osseointegration Strength of Porous Metallic Materials.

Creating the optimal environment for effective and long term osseointegration is a heavily researched and sought-after design criteria for orthopedic implants. A validated multimaterial finite element (FE) model was developed to replicate and understand the results of an experimental in vivo push-out osseointegration model. The FE model results closely predicted global force (at 0.

Deciphering patterns in whole fish nitrogen isotopes on a continental scale.

Nitrogen isotopes (δN) have been used as an indicator of anthropogenic nitrogen loading at local and regional scales. We examined δN in fish from estuaries across the continental United States. In the summer of 2015, the U.