Validation and in silico function prediction of circtial1 as a novel marker of abnormal lung development in nitrofen-induced congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH).

Purpose: Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are stable, non-coding RNAs with tissue- and developmental-specific expression making them suitable biomarkers for congenital anomalies. Current circRNA discovery pipelines have focused on human and mouse. We aim to bridge this gap by combining bioinformatics resources and used circtial1 as a model candidate in the nitrofen rat model of congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH).

Fetal Tracheal Occlusion Corelates with Normalized YAP Expression and Alveolar Epithelial Differentiation in CDH.

Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) is characterized by incomplete closure of the diaphragm. While the ensuing compression to the fetal lung causes lung hypoplasia, specific cellular phenotypes and developmental signaling defects in the alveolar epithelium in CDH are not fully understood. Employing lung samples from human CDH, a surgical lamb model and a nitrogen rat model, we investigate whether lung compression impairs alveolar epithelial differentiation and Yes-associated protein (YAP)-mediated mechanosensing.

Artificial intelligence and pediatric surgery: where are we?

Here, we explore the transformative effects of artificial intelligence (AI) and large language models (LLMs), such as ChatGPT and GEMINI, on pediatric surgery, including preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative care, as well as their influence on medical education and patient communication. We discuss the role of AI in enhancing surgical precision, facilitating personalized care strategies throughout all surgical phases, and improving learning for healthcare professionals and students. AI's application in intraoperative settings, providing real-time decision support and augmenting surgical accuracy, underscores how AI can contribute to safer surgical outcomes.

Yes-associated protein is dysregulated in human congenital diaphragmatic hernia patients during mid and end gestation.

Background: Yes-associated protein (YAP) is implicated in congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH). This study aims to investigate the abundance of YAP and its inactive form, phosphorylated YAP (p-YAP), in fetal human lung tissues from CDH cases compared to control cases at mid-gestation and end-gestation.

Methods: Immunofluorescence was performed to assess the abundance of YAP and p-YAP in lung tissues from human CDH and control fetuses who died from causes other than CDH.