Perineal and Rectal Nerve Recruitment Order Varies During Pudendal Neurostimulator Implant Surgery.

Introduction: Pudendal nerve stimulation (PNS) is an off-label therapy for patients experiencing pelvic pain and voiding dysfunction. The pudendal nerve has two efferent branches to the rectum and perineum. Only the rectal branch is monitored via external anal sphincter electromyography during the implant procedure to help determine the lead position.

Comparing Carotid Artery Velocities with Current ASCVD Risk Stratification: A Novel Approach to Simpler Risk Assessment.

Purpose: To explore the potential of a novel approach to simplify risk assessment by comparing carotid artery velocities with current atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk stratification method using nonlinear measurements.

Methods: In this prospective study conducted at a medical center in southern Taiwan from January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2021, 1636 participants aged 40-75 years without prior ASCVD events were enrolled. Carotid flow velocity was obtained through duplex ultrasonography.

Association Between Osteoporosis and Adiposity Index Reveals Nonlinearity Among Postmenopausal Women and Linearity Among Men Aged over 50 Years.

Purpose: Previous research shows conflicting views on the relationship between obesity and osteoporosis, partly due to variations in obesity classification and the nonlinear nature of these relationships. This study investigated the association between adiposity indices and osteoporosis, diagnosed using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), employing nonlinear models and offering optimal thresholds to prevent further bone mineral density decline.

Methods: In 2019, a prospective study enrolled males over 50 years and postmenopausal women.

Association between exposure to organophosphate flame retardants and epidermal growth factor receptor expression in lung cancer patients.

Background: Organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs) are extensively distributed in our environment, prompting concerns about potential health hazards, including lung injuries resulting from OPFR exposure.

Methods: The present study recruited 125 lung cancer patients, assessing their exposure to 10 OPFR compounds through urine samples. The final analysis comprised 108 participants after excluding those lacking epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) status and those with chronic kidney disease.

Tumor Location Is an Independent Prognostic Factor in Completely Resected Pathological Stage I Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: A Multicenter Retrospective Study.

Previous studies suggested that the location of the primary tumor in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is associated with clinical features and prognosis, but results are conflicting. The purpose of this study was to explore tumor location as an independent risk factor of survival for patients with completely resected pathological stage I NSCLC. This was a multicenter retrospective study conducted in Taiwan.

Contribution of anthropogenic aerosols to persistent La Niña-like conditions in the early 21st century.

The discrepancy between the observed lack of surface warming in the eastern equatorial Pacific and climate model projections of an El Niño-like warming pattern confronts the climate research community. While anthropogenic aerosols have been suggested as a cause, the prolonged cooling trend over the equatorial Pacific appears in conflict with Northern Hemisphere aerosol emission reduction since the 1980s. Here, using CESM, we show that the superposition of fast and slow responses to aerosol emission change-an increase followed by a decrease-can sustain the La Niña-like condition for a longer time than expected.

The safety and response of CT guided percutaneous cryoablation for lung nodules by 17-gauge needles.

Background: The safety and efficacy of 17-gauge needles used in CT-guided percutaneous cryoablation for lung nodules were explored in this study. The purpose of the study was to compare the findings with earlier research and multi-center clinical trials that used various needle sizes.

Methods: Between 2016 and 2020, a retrospective study was conducted with approval from the institutional review board.

Community-Based Screening for Hepatitis B and C Infectivity Using Two Quantitative Antigens to Identify Endemic Townships.

Screening and linkage to care are essential to achieve viral hepatitis elimination before 2030. The accurate identification of endemic areas is important for controlling diseases with geographic aggregation. Viral activity drives prognosis of chronic hepatitis B and hepatitis C virus infection.

Distinct roles of the dystrophin-glycoprotein complex: α-dystrobrevin and α-syntrophin in the maintenance of the postsynaptic apparatus of the neuromuscular synapse.

α-syntrophin (α-syn) and α-dystrobrevin (α-dbn), two components of the dystrophin-glycoprotein complex, are essential for the maturation and maintenance of the neuromuscular junction (NMJ) and mice deficient in either α-syn or α-dbn exhibit similar synaptic defects. However, the functional link between these two proteins and whether they exert distinct or redundant functions in the postsynaptic organization of the NMJ remain largely unknown. We generated and analyzed the synaptic phenotype of double heterozygote (α-dbn+/-, α-syn+/-), and double homozygote knockout (α-dbn-/-; α-syn-/-) mice and examined the ability of individual molecules to restore their defects in the synaptic phenotype.

Factors associated with hyperhomocysteinemia in relatively healthy Taiwanese adults: A retrospective medical record study.

Elevated homocysteine levels have been proposed as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study was to evaluate factors associated with hyperhomocysteinemia in relatively healthy Taiwanese adults.A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted using data from the health examination database in a medical center located in southern Taiwan.

Travel for mindfulness through Zen retreat experience: A case study at Donghua Zen Temple.

This study seeks to contribute knowledge of the Zen retreat experience unique to Buddhist tourism. The research setting is the Zen retreats found at the Donghua Zen Temple in China. This study examined feedback obtained from 520 tourists who stayed at Zen retreats.

Phosphorylation of α-dystrobrevin is essential for αkap accumulation and acetylcholine receptor stability.

The maintenance of a high density of the acetylcholine receptor (AChR) is the hallmark of the neuromuscular junction. Muscle-specific anchoring protein (αkap) encoded within the calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase IIα (CAMK2A) gene is essential for the maintenance of AChR clusters both and in cultured muscle cells. The underlying mechanism by which αkap is maintained and regulated remains unknown.

Unusual synchronous double primary treatment-naïve lung adenocarcinoma harboring T790M and L858R mutations in early-stage lung cancer.

Background: Concurrent mutations of synchronous multiple primary non-small cell lung cancer (SMPNSCLC) is rare, and only a few cases have been reported. Herein, we present a case of early-stage SMPNSCLC with T790M and L858R mutations.

Case Presentation: A 68-year-old male patient presented to the Thoracic Surgery Department due to a tumor in the right lower lung.

Beyond the display: phase-only liquid crystal on Silicon devices and their applications in photonics [Invited].

Existing for almost four decades, liquid crystal on Silicon (LCOS) technology is rapidly growing into photonic applications. We review the basics of the technology, from the wafer to the driving solutions, the progress over the last decade and the future outlook. Furthermore we review the most exciting industrial and scientific applications of the LCOS technology.

Protective Effects of Functional Chicken Liver Hydrolysates against Liver Fibrogenesis: Antioxidation, Anti-inflammation, and Antifibrosis.

Via an assay using an Amino Acid Analyzer, pepsin-digested chicken liver hydrolysates (CLHs) contain taurine (365.57 ± 39.04 mg/100 g), carnosine (14.

Augmented reality with image registration, vision correction and sunlight readability via liquid crystal devices.

Augmented reality (AR), which use computer-aided projected information to augment our sense, has important impact on human life, especially for the elder people. However, there are three major challenges regarding the optical system in the AR system, which are registration, vision correction, and readability under strong ambient light. Here, we solve three challenges simultaneously for the first time using two liquid crystal (LC) lenses and polarizer-free attenuator integrated in optical-see-through AR system.

AChRs Are Essential for the Targeting of Rapsyn to the Postsynaptic Membrane of NMJs in Living Mice.

Unlabelled: Rapsyn, a 43 kDa scaffold protein, is required for the clustering of acetylcholine receptors (AChRs) at synaptic sites between mammalian motor neurons and muscle cells. However, the mechanism by which rapsyn is inserted and retained at postsynaptic sites at the neuromuscular junction (NMJ) in vivo remains largely unknown. We found that neither the N-terminal myristoylation nor the cysteine-rich RING H2 domain of rapsyn is required for its stable association with the postsynaptic membrane of NMJs.

Electrically adjustable location of a projected image in augmented reality via a liquid-crystal lens.

An augmented reality (AR) system involving the electrically tunable location of a projected image is implemented using a liquid-crystal (LC) lens. The projected image is either real or virtual. By effectively doubling the LC lens power following light reflection, the position of a projected virtual image can be made to vary from 42 to 360 cm, while the tunable range for a projected real image is from 27 to 52 cm on the opposite side.

Failure of lysosome clustering and positioning in the juxtanuclear region in cells deficient in rapsyn.

Rapsyn, a scaffold protein, is required for the clustering of acetylcholine receptors (AChRs) at contacts between motor neurons and differentiating muscle cells. Rapsyn is also expressed in cells that do not express AChRs. However, its function in these cells remains unknown.

Electrically tunable microlens arrays based on polarization-independent optical phase of nano liquid crystal droplets dispersed in polymer matrix.

Electrically tunable focusing microlens arrays based on polarization independent optical phase of nano liquid crystal droplets dispersed in polymer matrix are demonstrated. Such an optical medium is optically isotropic which is so-called an optically isotropic liquid crystals (OILC). We not only discuss the optical theory of OILC, but also demonstrate polarization independent optical phase modulation based on the OILC.

The knockdown of αkap alters the postsynaptic apparatus of neuromuscular junctions in living mice.

A muscle-specific nonkinase anchoring protein (αkap), encoded within the calcium/calmodulin kinase II (camk2) α gene, was recently found to control the stability of acetylcholine receptor (AChR) clusters on the surface of cultured myotubes. However, it remains unknown whether this protein has any effect on receptor stability and the maintenance of the structural integrity of neuromuscular synapses in vivo. By knocking down the endogenous expression of αkap in mouse sternomastoid muscles with shRNA, we found that the postsynaptic receptor density was dramatically reduced, the turnover rate of receptors at synaptic sites was significantly increased, and the insertion rates of both newly synthesized and recycled receptors into the postsynaptic membrane were depressed.

An electrically tunable imaging system with separable focus and zoom functions using composite liquid crystal lenses.

We demonstrated an electrically tunable optical image system with separable focus function and zoom function based on three tunable focusing composite liquid crystal (LC) lenses. One LC lens in charge of the focus function helps to maintain the formed image at the same position and the other two LC lenses in charge of zoom function assist to continuously form an image at image sensor with tunable magnification of image size. The detail optical mechanism is investigated and the concept is demonstrated experimentally.

Hypoxia-inducible factor 3 is an oxygen-dependent transcription activator and regulates a distinct transcriptional response to hypoxia.

Hypoxia-inducible factors (HIFs) play key roles in the cellular response to hypoxia. It is widely accepted that whereas HIF-1 and HIF-2 function as transcriptional activators, HIF-3 inhibits HIF-1/2α action. Contrary to this idea, we show that zebrafish Hif-3α has strong transactivation activity.