Premed Pressure: Examining whether premed students experience more academic stress compared to non-premeds.

Academic stress is one of the primary factors threatening university students' well-being and performance. Undergraduate students who are working towards applying to medical school, defined as being on the pre-medicine or "premed" pathway, are suspected to have higher academic stress compared to their peers who are not premed. However, what factors contribute to academic stress for premed students is not well understood.

Experiments and modelling of pulmonary surfactant disruption by aerosolised compounds.

Within the deep lung, pulmonary surfactant coats the air-liquid interface at the surface of the alveoli. This complex mixture of amphiphilic molecules and proteins modifies the surface tension and mechanical properties of this interface to assist with breathing. In this study, we examine the effects on pulmonary surfactant function by two industrially used compounds composing surfactants and polymers.

Adaptation to Climate Change in Viticulture: The Role of Varietal Selection-A Review.

Viticulture faces unprecedented challenges due to the rapidly changing climate, particularly in regions like the Mediterranean Basin. Consequently, climate change adaptation strategies are crucial in viticulture, with short-term strategies being widely used despite increasing concerns about their sustainability, and long-term strategies considered promising, though costly. A promising but understudied strategy is varietal selection, as grapevines exhibit vast intervarietal diversity with untapped potential for climate-resilient varieties.

Foveal Avascular Zone development by OCTA: weighing the influence of Gestational Age and neonatal early growth independently of Retinopathy of Prematurity.

Purpose: Focusing the premature birth and its potential complications, this study analyzes Foveal Avascular Zone (FAZ) measured by Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography (OCTA) and its correlation with the severity of prematurity and neonatal growth.

Methods: A cross-sectional comparative study was performed, involving 71 children school-age with history of prematurity and a full-term children control group. Several variables from the neonatal period were collected, such as Gestational Age (GA), Birth Weight (BW), initial Weight Gain (WG) and Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP).

Simvastatin is delivered to the brain by high-strength intranasal cationic SMEDDS and nanoemulsions.

The repurposing of statins as neuroprotective agents and/or anti-brain tumor drugs is limited by challenges in brain bioavailability and systemic off-target effects. Therefore, improved and targeted delivery of statins to the brain is necessary. This study aimed to develop a high-strength liquid formulation of the poorly soluble prodrug simvastatin for intranasal administration, as a strategy to achieve high brain concentrations of the prodrug and/or its active form, tenivastatin.

Advancing Systemic Toxicity Risk Assessment: Evaluation of a NAM-based Toolbox Approach.

For many years, a method that allowed systemic toxicity safety assessments to be conducted without generating new animal test data, seemed out of reach. However, several different research groups and regulatory authorities are beginning to use a variety of in silico, in chemico and in vitro techniques to inform safety decisions. To manage this transition to animal-free safety assessments responsibly, it is important to ensure that the level of protection offered by a safety assessment based on new approach methodologies (NAMs), is at least as high as that provided by a safety assessment based on traditional animal studies.

Over 400 food resources from Brazil: evidence-based records of wild edible mushrooms.

Many species of mushroom-forming fungi have been harvested in the wild and used for food and medicine for thousands of years. In Brazil, the knowledge of the diversity of wild edible mushrooms remains scattered and poorly studied. Based on new samples, bibliographic records revision, and searches through the GenBank, we recorded 409 species of wild edible mushrooms in Brazil, of which 350 can be safely consumed and 59 are edible but with conditions.

Investigating LETd optimization strategies in carbon ion radiotherapy for pancreatic cancer: a dosimetric study using an anthropomorphic phantom.

Background: Clinical carbon ion beams offer the potential to overcome hypoxia-induced radioresistance in pancreatic tumors, due to their high dose-averaged Linear Energy Transfer (LETd), as previous studies have linked a minimum LETd within the tumor to improved local control. Current clinical practices at the Heidelberg Ion-Beam Therapy Center (HIT), which use two posterior beams, do not fully exploit the LETd advantage of carbon ions, as the high LETd is primarily focused on the beams' distal edges. Different LETd-boosting strategies, such as Spot-scanning Hadron Arc (SHArc), could enhance LETd distribution by concentrating high-LETd values in potential hypoxic tumor cores while sparing organs at risk.

Benzocarbazoledinones as SARS-CoV-2 Replication Inhibitors: Synthesis, Cell-Based Studies, Enzyme Inhibition, Molecular Modeling, and Pharmacokinetics Insights.

Endemic and pandemic viruses represent significant public health challenges, leading to substantial morbidity and mortality over time. The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the urgent need for the development and discovery of new, potent antiviral agents. In this study, we present the synthesis and anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity of a series of benzocarbazoledinones, assessed using cell-based screening assays.

Split-Thickness Skin Grafting for the Management of Traumatic Pretibial Hematomas.

Pretibial traumatic hematomas, a subtype of subcutaneous tension hematomas, are a frequent but understudied injury seen predominantly among the elderly. This patient cohort has a high incidence of comorbidities and frailty. They are frequently taking antiplatelet medications and systemic anticoagulants.

Brain-based correlates of depression and traumatic brain injury: a systematic review of structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging studies.

Introduction: Depression is prevalent after traumatic brain injury (TBI). However, there is a lack of understanding of the brain-based correlates of depression post-TBI. This systematic review aimed to synthesize findings of structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies to identify consistently reported neural correlates of depression post-TBI.

Serious Games for Serious Pain: Development and Initial Testing of a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Game for Patients With Advanced Cancer Pain.

Purpose: Cancer-related pain is prevalent among people with advanced cancer. To improve accessibility and engagement with pain-cognitive behavioral therapy (pain-CBT), we developed and tested a serious game hosted within a mobile health intervention that delivers pain-CBT and pharmacologic support. The game focuses on teaching and practicing cognitive restructuring (CR), a central pain-CBT intervention component.

Toward New Therapeutics for Visceral Leishmaniasis: Efficacy and Mechanism of Action of Amides Inspired by Gibbilimbol B.

The problems with current strategies to control canine visceral Leishmaniasis (CVL), which include the euthanasia of infected animals, and also the toxicity of the drugs currently used in human treatments for CVL, add urgency to the search for new therapeutic agents. This study aimed to evaluate the activity against of 12 amides that are chemically inspired by gibbilimbol B, a bioactive natural product that was initially obtained from . Three of these compounds--(2-ethylhexyl)-4-chlorobenzamide (), -(2-ethylhexyl)-4-nitrobenzamide (), and -(2-ethylhexyl)-4-(-butyl)benzamide () -demonstrated activity against the intracellular amastigotes without toxicity to mammalian host cells (CC > 200 μM); compounds , , and resulted in EC values of 12.

The LytSR two-component regulatory system promotes vaginal colonization and virulence .

(or group B , GBS) is a leading cause of neonatal sepsis and meningitis globally. To sense and respond to variations in its environment, GBS possesses multiple two-component regulatory systems (TCSs), such as LytSR. Here, we aimed to investigate the role of LytSR in GBS pathogenicity.

Patterns of inconsistent condom use and risky sexual behaviors among female sex workers in Mozambique.

Background: Female sex workers (FSWs) in Mozambique face significant health risks, including high HIV prevalence, combination of factors, including inconsistent condom use, engagement in risky sexual behaviors, and various socio-ecological determinants of health. Understanding the determinants of these practices is crucial for developing targeted interventions.

Methods: This cross-sectional study analyzed data from the second round of Biobehavioral Survey (BBS) conducted from 2019 to 2020 in five urban areas to examine determinants of inconsistent condom use and risky sexual behaviors among FSWs.

Facilitators and barriers to the implementation of the biobehavioral survey among incarcerated individuals and correctional personnel in Mozambique, 2021- a descriptive study.

Mozambique implemented in 2021 a formative assessment in 22 prisons to identify the operational and logistical needs for the second round of the Biobehavioral Survey (BBS). Barriers and facilitators that could be anticipated in conducting BBS in prisons, in preparation for implementation, was evaluated using semi-structured questionnaires administered to key informants (directors and other kind of managers staff). The data were cleaned and analyzed using Microsoft Excel, and the categorical variables were summarized by means of simple frequencies and percentages.

Raman spectroscopy for classification of neoplastic and non-neoplastic CAM colon tumors.

This paper demonstrates the potential of Raman spectroscopy for differentiating neoplastic from non-neoplastic colon tumors, obtained with the CAM (chicken chorioallantoic membrane) model. For the CAM model two human cell lines were used to generate two types of tumors, the RKO cell line for neoplastic colon tumors and the NCM460 cell line for non-neoplastic colon tumors. The Raman spectra were acquired with a 785 nm excitation laser.

Long-term effects of the chronic administration of doxorubicin on aged skeletal muscle: An exploratory study in mice.

The widely used chemotherapeutic drug doxorubicin (DOX) has been associated with adverse effects on the skeletal muscle, which can persist for years after the end of the treatment. These adverse effects may be exacerbated in older patients, whose skeletal muscle might already be impaired by aging. Nonetheless, the mediators responsible for DOX-induced myotoxicity are still largely unidentified, particularly the ones involved in the long-term effects that negatively affect the quality of life of the patients.

Elastic Scattering Spectroscopy on Patient-Selected Lesions Concerning for Skin Cancer.

Background: Access to dermatologists is limited in parts of the US, making primary care clinicians (PCCs) integral for early detection of skin cancers. A handheld device using elastic scattering spectroscopy (ESS) was developed to aid PCCs in their clinical assessment of skin lesions.

Methods: In this prospective study, 3 PCCs evaluated skin lesions reported by patients as concerning and scanned each lesion with the handheld ESS device.

Clinical-epidemiological profile and factors associated with viral non-suppression in patients living with HIV/AIDS assisted at the Integrated Treatment Center at the Maputo Military Hospital (CITRA/MMH), 2019 to 2020.

Background: HIV remains a critical global public health challenge. In 2022, it was estimated that approximately 39.0 million people worldwide were living with HIV, and of these, around 29.