Polypharmacy in older patients with asthma: hidden risks and opportunities for improvement.

Introduction: Polypharmacy can be considered the norm in elderly patients, because older individuals experience an increasing number of concomitant respiratory and non-respiratory diseases other than asthma, carrying the risk of drug-to-drug-interactions and drug-to-comorbidities interactions. In this context, asthma in older adults, conventionally aging >65 yrs of age, cannot be adequately managed without considering their individual characteristics, as these challenge the traditional therapeutic algorithms/management strategies commonly applied to younger populations.

Areas Covered: The current article aims at addressing pitfalls and advantages of current pharmacological strategies in older individuals with asthma.

Designing a blockchain technology platform for enhancing the pre-exposure prophylaxis care continuum.

Objectives: Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is a key biomedical intervention for ending the HIV epidemic in the United States, but its uptake is impeded by systemic barriers, including fragmented workflows and ineffective data coordination. This study aims to design PrEPLinker, a blockchain-based, client-centered platform to enhance care to address these challenges by improving care coordination and enabling clients to securely manage their identity and PrEP-related data.

Materials And Methods: Using Houston, Texas, as a use case, we conducted a needs assessment with PrEP collaborators to evaluate existing workflows and identify barriers in the PrEP care continuum.

Mahler measures, elliptic curves, and L-functions for the free energy of the Ising model.

This work establishes links between the Ising model and elliptic curves via Mahler measures. First, we reformulate the partition function of the Ising model on the square, triangular, and honeycomb lattices in terms of the Mahler measure of a Laurent polynomial whose variety's projective closure defines an elliptic curve. Next, we obtain hypergeometric formulas for the partition functions on the triangular and honeycomb lattices and review the known series for the square lattice.

Spin-orbit interaction-mediated measurement of surface chirality.

The spin-orbit ( - ) interaction in a focused-reflected beam of light results in spatially nonuniform polarization in the beam cross section due to the superposition of orthogonal field components and polarization-dependent interface reflection coefficients. Polarization filtering the output beam leads to an interchangeable transformation of =∓2 charge vortex into two (∓) unit charge vortices, for  = ±1 circular polarization of the input Gaussian beam. This transformation follows a trajectory, named optical vortex trajectory, that depends on the input beam's and hence the and reflecting surface characteristics.

Exploring the therapeutic potential of extract: molecular docking, dynamics, and ADMET properties for cancer treatment and anti-inflammatory activity.

Colorectal cancer remains a global health challenge, prompting the exploration of natural compounds for treatment. shows promise as a source of activity biomolecules. This study analyzed the dynamics, molecular docking and ADMET properties of the extract, highlighting interaction with inflammatory protein.

Clear cell myoepithelioma of palate: A rare case report with brief review of literature.

Myoepitheliomas are very rare salivary gland neoplasms seen mainly in the major salivary glands (~40%) followed by minor salivary glands (~21%). Palatal myoepitheliomas are rare, with clear cell types being even rarer. Due to the rarity of this tumor, it lacks specific features that are diagnostic in cytology.

Cracking the Codes for Congenital Diarrhea and Enteropathies (CoDEs): A Case Report and Review.

Congenital diarrhea and enteropathies (CoDEs) condition is a rare cause of chronic diarrhea in infants that can be challenging to diagnose. This article discusses key signs to recognize in considering a CoDEs diagnosis and provides an overview of the diagnostic process. We report a late preterm twin infant with intractable watery diarrhea starting shortly after birth.

Finerenone, Obesity, and Heart Failure With Mildly Reduced/Preserved Ejection Fraction: Prespecified Analysis of FINEARTS-HF.

Background: Obesity is associated with excessive adipocyte-derived aldosterone secretion, independent of the classical renin-angiotensin-aldosterone cascade, and mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists may be more effective in patients with heart failure (HF) and obesity.

Objectives: This study sought to examine the effects of the nonsteroidal mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist finerenone compared with placebo, according to body mass index (BMI) in FINEARTS-HF (FINerenone trial to investigate Efficacy and sAfety superioR to placebo in paTientS with Heart Failure).

Methods: A total of 6,001 patients with HF with NYHA functional class II, III, and IV, a left ventricular ejection fraction of ≥40%, evidence of structural heart disease, and elevated natriuretic peptide levels were randomized to finerenone or placebo.

DEHP and Its Metabolite MEHP Alter the and Gene Expression by Blunting the Interaction of Transcription Factors in L6 Myotubes.

Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) play an important role in the incidence of type-2 diabetes. Di-2-ethyl hexyl Phthalate (DEHP) is one of the endocrine-disrupting chemicals used as a plasticizer to impart flexibility and softness to plastic-containing materials. Mono-2-ethylhexyl Phthalate (MEHP), a DEHP's primary metabolite, is preferentially absorbed once metabolized.

Modified ensemble machine learning-based plant leaf disease detection model with optimized K-Means clustering.

In the farming sector, the automatic detection of plant leaf disease is considered a vital landmark. Farmers move long distances to consult pathologists to observe the disease, which is expensive and time-consuming. Moreover, detection of disease in a premature period is a difficult process in the existing model.

Gold-Induced Cytokine (GOLDIC) for the Management of Knee Osteoarthritis: A Systematic Review.

Gold-induced cytokine (GOLDIC) is a novel orthobiologic approach utilizing gold particles to produce a serum rich in immunoregulating cytokines and growth factors, which is being explored for its potential in tissue regeneration and treating musculoskeletal issues like knee osteoarthritis (OA). This study aims to review its mechanism of action along with the outcomes of , preclinical, and clinical studies, with a secondary focus on documenting clinical trials related to its use in OA of the knee. A systematic search was conducted in four databases (Embase, Scopus, PubMed, Web of Science) for studies on GOLDIC therapy for knee OA, using specific keywords related to knee anatomy and OA.

The global and regional burden of diabetic peripheral neuropathy.

Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) is length-dependent peripheral nerve damage arising as a complication of type 1 or type 2 diabetes in up to 50% of patients. DPN poses a substantial burden on patients, who can experience impaired gait and loss of balance, predisposing them to falls and fractures, and neuropathic pain, which is frequently difficult to treat and reduces quality of life. Advanced DPN can lead to diabetic foot ulcers and non-healing wounds that often necessitate lower-limb amputation.

Image guided cervical brachytherapy practice patterns: 2023/2024 survey of the American brachytherapy society.

Background: An update of the 2007 and 2014 surveys of the American Brachytherapy Society (ABS) will elucidate current practice patterns of cervical cancer brachytherapy.

Methods: A 40-question survey was sent to all ABS members in June-July 2023 and February 2024; 167 responses were received, with 140 used for analysis. Results were compared to the 2014 survey using chi-squared testing.

Response to commentary by Mattos et al. (2024).

Replies to comments made by Mattos et al. (see record 2025-49982-003) on the original article (see record 2024-19816-001). Mattos et al.

PRIMERS: Polydopamine Radioimmunotherapy with Image-Guided Monitoring and Enhanced Release System.

To overcome the side effects of conventional cancer treatment, multifunctional nanoparticles with image-guidance properties are increasingly desired to obtain enhanced therapeutic efficacy without any toxicity of the treatment. Herein, we introduce the potential of Polydopamine Radioimmunotherapy with Image-guided Monitoring and Enhanced (drug) Release System (PRIMERS) to meet the challenges of currently used cancer therapy. The PDA nanobowls were synthesized using an emulsion-induced interfacial anisotropic assembly method followed by surface modification with high-Z material to obtained the final product PRIMERS.

A Comparative Study of Auditory Processing and Working Memory Profiles in Young and Older Adults.

Purpose: This study aimed to profile and compare the auditory processing and working memory skills of young and older adults with near-normal hearing thresholds (up to 2000 Hz) and cognition. This was done to investigate the effect of aging on these skills despite exhibiting near-normal peripheral hearing in low frequencies and normal cognitive skills.

Method: Twenty-five young adults (18 to 35 years) and 35 older adults (56 to 79 years) were recruited for the study.

Carbon Mineralization in Fractured Mafic and Ultramafic Rocks: A Review.

Mineral carbon storage in mafic and ultramafic rock masses has the potential to be an effective and permanent mechanism to reduce anthropogenic CO. Several successful pilot-scale projects have been carried out in basaltic rock (e.g.

Microwave Mediated Acylation of Alcohols, Phenols and Thiophenols in Neat Acetic Anhydride.

A microwave-based method for the acylation of alcohols, phenols, and thiols has been developed without the need of a catalyst or base additives. The reaction is far more rapid than previously reported acylation methods, tolerates a wide variety of functional groups, and provides easy isolation of products in excellent yields without the need for chromatography. Most products can be isolated directly via evaporation under reduced pressure or by pouring the reaction mixture into water and filtering.

Delphi-driven consensus definition for mesenchymal stromal cells and clinical reporting guidelines for mesenchymal stromal cell-based therapeutics.

Background Aims: Despite promising results in pre-clinical studies, mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) face significant challenges in clinical translation. A scoping review by our group highlighted two key issues contributing to this gap: (i) lack of a clear and consensus definition for MSCs and (ii) under-reporting of critical parameters in MSC clinical studies. To address these issues, we conducted a modified Delphi study to establish and implement a consensus definition for MSCs and develop reporting guidelines for MSC clinical studies.