Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2 (G8790A) Gene Polymorphism as a Risk Factor for COVID-19 in Egyptian Children and Adolescents.

Objective: Recently, angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) gene has emerged as a potential candidate gene for susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection. We investigated whether ACE2 G8790A (rs2285666) polymorphism could be a genetic marker for susceptibility to COVID-19 and disease severity in Egyptian children and adolescents.

Methods: This was a prospective case-control study included 580 cases diagnosed with COVID-19, and 580 matched control children and adolescents.

Understanding the public knowledge, attitude, and practice toward screening and risk factors of lung cancer in Saudi Arabia: A cross-sectional study.

Context: Early detection of lung cancer through screening can improve outcomes; yet public knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding lung cancer screening in Saudi Arabia are limited.

Aims: The aim is to assess knowledge, attitudes, and practices toward lung cancer risk factors and screening, and understand the impact of demographic factors on these variables.

Settings And Design: An observational cross-sectional study was conducted from October 2023 to March 2024, involving 708 participants.

Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells expressing Neat-1, Hotair-1, miR-21, miR-644, and miR-144 subsided cyclophosphamide-induced ovarian insufficiency by remodeling the IGF-1-kisspeptin system, ovarian apoptosis, and angiogenesis.

Ovarian insufficiency is one of the common reproductive disorders affecting women with limited therapeutic aids. Mesenchymal stem cells have been investigated in such disorders before yet, the exact mechanism of MSCs in ovarian regeneration regarding their epigenetic regulation remains elusive. The current study is to investigate the role of the bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) lncRNA (Neat-1 and Hotair1) and miRNA (mir-21-5p, mir-144-5p, and mir-664-5p) in mitigating ovarian granulosa cell apoptosis as well as searching BM-MSCs in altering the expression of ovarian and hypothalamic IGF-1 - kisspeptin system in connection to HPG axis in a cyclophosphamide-induced ovarian failure rat model.

Design and implementation of a scalable high-performance computing (HPC) cluster for omics data analysis: achievements, challenges and recommendations in LMICs.

Background: The advent of high-throughput technologies, including cutting-edge sequencing devices, has revolutionized biomedical data generation and processing. Nevertheless, big data applications require novel hardware and software for parallel computing and management to handle the ever-growing data size and analysis complexity. On-premise, high-performance computing (HPC) is increasingly used in biomedical research for big data stewardship.

Total and Out-of-Pocket Costs Surrounding Emergency Department Care Among Older Adults Enrolled in Traditional Medicare and Medicare Advantage.

Study Objective: We sought to quantify differences in total and out-of-pocket health care costs associated with treat-and-release emergency department (ED) visits among older adults with traditional Medicare and Medicare Advantage.

Methods: We conducted a repeated cross-sectional analysis of treat-and-release ED visits using 2015 to 2020 data from the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey. We measured total and out-of-pocket health care spending during 3 time periods: the 30 days prior to the ED visit, the treat-and-release ED visit itself, and the 30 days after the ED visit.

A Study on the Prevalence of Laryngopharyngeal Reflux in Saudi Arabia.

Introduction Laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR) is a condition characterized by the backflow of gastric contents rising through the esophagus, affecting the aerodigestive tract and leading to throat symptoms such as hoarseness, chronic cough, and throat clearing. LPR is recognized as a separate condition from gastroesophageal reflux disease, despite the fact that they both involve the backflow of the stomach contents as their primary pathology. Our study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of LPR within the population of Saudi Arabia.

sRNA-Effector: A tool to expedite discovery of small RNA regulators.

microRNAs (miRNAs) are small regulatory RNAs that repress target mRNA transcripts through base pairing. Although the mechanisms of miRNA production and function are clearly established, new insights into miRNA regulation or miRNA-mediated gene silencing are still emerging. In order to facilitate the discovery of miRNA regulators or effectors, we have developed sRNA-Effector, a machine learning algorithm trained on enhanced crosslinking and immunoprecipitation sequencing and RNA sequencing data following knockdown of specific genes.

Analysis of treatment cost differences in patients undergoing femoral versus radial access in outpatient diagnostic cerebral arteriograms.

Background: Outpatient diagnostic cerebral arteriograms are the most common procedure in neuroendovascular surgery, and the use of transradial access for these studies is growing. Although transradial access has been associated with lower hospital costs for elective diagnostic and interventional neuroendovascular procedures, no study has compared transfemoral access and transradial access costs for a homogenous population of patients undergoing outpatient diagnostic cerebral arteriogram.

Methods: In this single-center retrospective study, the Value Driven Outcomes database was used to evaluate treatment costs for patients who underwent outpatient diagnostic cerebral arteriogram from January 2019 to December 2022.

Closure of small skull base defects with muscle plug napkin ring technique: how I do it.

Background: Defects through the skull base into the paranasal sinuses can occur during anterior skull base procedures, risking cerebrospinal fluid leak and infection if not repaired.

Methods: We describe a muscle plug napkin ring technique for closure of small skull base defects, wherein a free muscle graft slightly bigger than the defect is packed tightly in the defect, half extracranially and half intracranially and sealed with fibrin glue. The technique is illustrated in the case of a 58-year-old woman with a large left medial sphenoid wing/clinoidal meningioma.

Middle meningeal artery embolization as a perioperative adjunct to surgical evacuation of nonacute subdural hematomas: An multicenter analysis of safety and efficacy.

Background: By 2030, nonacute subdural hematomas (NASHs) will likely be the most common cranial neurosurgery pathology. Treatment with surgical evacuation may be necessary, but the recurrence rate after surgery is as high as 30%. Minimally invasive middle meningeal artery embolization (MMAE) during the perioperative period has been posited as an adjunctive treatment to decrease the potential for recurrence after surgical evacuation.

Urinary C-peptide and urinary C-peptide creatinine ratio as markers for insulin resistance in obese children and adolescents.

Background: Obesity is associated with insulin resistance (IR). Identifying high-risk obese children affected with IR is crucial to apply preventive management. We aimed to assess the diagnostic value of urinary C-peptide (UCP) and urinary C-peptide creatinine ratio (UCPCR) to diagnose IR in obese children.

Role for Selenium in Metabolic Homeostasis and Human Reproduction.

Selenium (Se) is a micronutrient essential for life. Dietary intake of Se within the physiological range is critical for human health and reproductive functions. Selenium levels outside the recommended range have been implicated in infertility and variety of other human diseases.

A study of leptin and its gene 2548 G/A Rs7799039 single-nucleotide polymorphisms in Egyptian children: A single-center experience.

Background/objectives: The pathophysiology of obesity is multifactorial, including genetic and environmental factors. Previous studies had highlighted the association of the leptin gene/receptor with obesity. We aimed to study the leptin gene rs7799039 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in children, and its association with the children's characteristics.

Performance of FIB4 and APRI scores for the prediction of fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B virus infection.

Background: The evaluation of hepatic fibrosis is essential in the therapeutic management of chronic hepatitis B virus infection. The development of non-invasive tests for liver fibrosis assessement has allowed to avoid liver biops in some cases.

Aim: To assess the performance of the scores APRI and FIB-4 in the assessment of significant fibrosis in chronic hepatitis B virus infection.

Covid-19: Urgent Call to Action.

Novel Corona Virus 2019 (COVID-19) is a new virus spread rapidly all over the world. It has specific respiratory or gastrointestinal tract symptoms. Its reported complications include respiratory distress, systemic inflammatory response syndrome, and septic shock.

Immunohistological and Ultrastructural Study of the Inflammatory Response to Perforated Polyimide Cortical Implants: Mechanisms Underlying Deterioration of Electrophysiological Recording Quality.

The deterioration of field potential (FP) recording quality and yield by multielectrode arrays (MEA) within days to weeks of implantation severely limits progress in basic and applied brain research. The prevailing hypothesis is that implantation of MEA platforms initiate and perpetuate inflammatory processes which culminate in the formation of scar tissue (the foreign body response, FBR) around the implant. The FBR leads to progressive degradation of the recording qualities by displacing neurons away from the electrode surfaces, increasing the resistance between neurons (current source) and the sensing pads and by reducing the neurons' excitable membrane properties and functional synaptic connectivity through the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines.

Review of some adulteration detection techniques of edible oils.

Edible oils have economical and nutritional benefits. These oils offer nutrients that are essential to human health because they are the primary source of mono- and poly-unsaturated fats. Moreover, edible oils are used in home cooking and industrial food manufacturing.

Two novel mutations in TMPRSS6 associated with iron-refractory iron deficiency anemia in a mother and child.

In an iron deficient child, oral iron repeatedly failed to improve the condition. Whole exome sequencing identified one previously reported plus two novel mutation in the TMPRSS6 gene, with no mutations in other iron-associated genes. We propose that these mutations result in a novel variety of iron-refractory iron deficiency anemia.