Background: Postpartum hypertension is a key factor in racial-ethnic inequities in maternal mortality. Emerging evidence suggests that experiences of racism, both structural and interpersonal, may contribute to disparities. We examined associations between gendered racial microaggressions (GRMs) during obstetric care with postpartum blood pressure (BP).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: To determine whether the fatty infiltration of rotator cuff muscles, as measured by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) preoperatively and assessed using the Goutallier fatty degeneration index (GFDI), can predict early postoperative shoulder stiffness (POSS) after rotator cuff repair (RCR).
Methods: This retrospective longitudinal cohort study included patients who underwent primary RCR, had available medical records, and underwent MRI before RCR between November 2012 and July 2022. Patients were excluded on the basis of the following criteria: (1) preoperative shoulder stiffness, (2) additional procedures (e.
Purpose: Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is an inflammatory cytokine implicated in various retinal pathologies and functions primarily through two signaling pathways: cis-signaling via IL-6 binding to its membrane-bound receptor (IL-6Rα), and trans-signaling via IL-6 binding to soluble IL-6 receptor (sIL-6R). Because the differential effects of IL-6 signaling in retinal Müller glial cells (MGCs) remain unclear, we generated an MGC-specific Il6ra-/- knockout (KO) mouse to eliminate IL-6Rα and, consequently, IL-6 cis-signaling in MGCs. In this study, we examined the proteomic changes in MGCs isolated from KO mice lacking a functional IL-6Rα.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and macrovascular invasion (MVI) are recommended to receive systemic therapy according to guidelines. Stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) and surgery are increasingly used in this patient population. This study compares outcomes from these local treatments.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Exploration of medical histories and medications associated with Alzheimer disease neuropathologic change (ADNC) absence and potential resistance may identify protective factors against ADNC. This was a retrospective examination of data from participants age ≥90 years who enrolled in , a longitudinal study based in California. Participants underwent neuropathologic analysis for the presence of neuritic amyloid plaques (NPs) (any), beta amyloid plaques (Thal phase > 0), and neurofibrillary tangles (>2).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNeuroinflammation in the central nervous system (CNS), driven largely by resident phagocytes, has been proposed as a significant contributor to disability accumulation in multiple sclerosis (MS) but has not been addressed therapeutically. Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) is expressed in both B-lymphocytes and innate immune cells, including microglia, where its role is poorly understood. BTK inhibition may provide therapeutic benefit within the CNS by targeting adaptive and innate immunity-mediated disease progression in MS.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTranscranial focused ultrasound (FUS) is a versatile, MR-guided, incisionless intervention with diagnostic and therapeutic applications for neurologic and psychiatric diseases. It is currently FDA-approved as a thermoablative treatment of essential tremor and Parkinson disease. However, other applications of FUS including BBB opening for diagnostic and therapeutic applications, sonodynamic therapy, histotripsy, and low-intensity focused ultrasound neuromodulation are all in clinical trials.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLaboratory automation technologies have revolutionized biomedical research. However, the availability of automation solutions at the single-cell level remains scarce, primarily owing to the inherent challenges of handling cells with such small dimensions in a precise, biocompatible manner. Here, we present a single-cell-level laboratory automation solution that configures various experiments onto standardized, microscale test-tube matrices via our precise ultrasonic liquid sample ejection technology, known as PULSE.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAdvanced biofabrication techniques can create tissue-like constructs that can be applied for reconstructive surgery or as in vitro three-dimensional (3D) models for disease modeling and drug screening. While various biofabrication techniques have recently been widely reviewed in the literature, acoustics-based technologies still need to be explored. The rapidly increasing number of publications in the past two decades exploring the application of acoustic technologies highlights the tremendous potential of these technologies.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIatrogenic pseudoaneurysm is a rare but potentially fatal complication of a thyroid biopsy. However, a standard management strategy has not yet been established. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ultrasound (US)-guided thrombin injection (TI) for thyroid pseudoaneurysms.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMalformations of cortical development (MCD) are structural anomalies that disrupt the normal process of cortical development. Patients with these anomalies frequently present with seizures, developmental delay, neurologic deficits, and cognitive impairment, resulting in a wide spectrum of neurologic outcomes. The severity and type of malformation, in addition to the genetic pathways of brain development involved, contribute to the observed variability.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAcoustic manipulation has emerged as a valuable tool for precision controls and dynamic programming of cells and particles. However, conventional acoustic manipulation approaches lack the finesse necessary to form intricate, configurable, continuous, and 3D patterning of particles. Here, this study reports acoustography by Beam Engineering and Acoustic Control Node (BEACON), which delivers intricate, configurable patterns by guiding particles along custom paths with independent phase modulation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMalignant peripheral nerve sheath tumours (MPNST) are aggressive sarcomas that have nerve sheath differentiation and can present at any anatomical site. They can arise from precursor neurofibroma in the context of neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) or as de novo and sporadic tumours in the absence of an underlying genetic predisposition. The primary therapeutic approach is most often radical surgery, with non-surgical modalities playing an important role, especially in locally advanced or metastatic cases.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Stroke burden is largely due to long-term impairments requiring prolonged care and loss of productivity. We aim to identify and assess studies of different registered pharmacological therapies as treatments for improving post-stroke impairments and/or disabilities.
Methods: In a systematic search and review (PROSPERO registration: CRD42022376973), studies of treatments that have been investigated as recovery-enhancing or recovery-promoting treatments in adult patients who had suffered a stroke will be searched for, screened, and reviewed based on the following: participants (P): adult humans, aged 18 years or older, diagnosed with stroke; interventions (I): registered or marketed pharmacological therapies that have been investigated as recovery-enhancing or recovery-promoting treatments in stroke; comparators (C): active or placebo or no comparator; outcomes (O): stroke-related neurological impairments and functional/disability assessments.
Background: The term 'precision medicine' encompasses strategies to optimize diagnosis and outcome prediction and to tailor treatment for individual patients, in consideration of their unique characteristics. The greater availability of multifaceted datasets and strategies to model such data have made precision medicine increasingly possible in recent years. Precision medicine is especially needed in the migraine field since the response to migraine treatments is not universal amongst all individuals with migraine.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: There have been limited data on idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) in Asians and there remain uncertainties whether a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pressure of 250 mm CSF is an optimum diagnostic cutoff. The aims of the present study included (1) characterization of IIH patients in Taiwan, (2) comparisons among different diagnostic criteria for IIH, and (3) comparisons between patients with CSF pressures of > 250 and 200-250 mm CSF.
Methods: This retrospective study involved IIH patients based on the modified Dandy criteria from two tertiary medical centers in Taiwan.
Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is an inherited disease of the sarcomere resulting in excessive cardiac contractility. The first-in-class cardiac myosin inhibitor, mavacamten, improves symptoms in obstructive HCM. Here we present aficamten, a selective small-molecule inhibitor of cardiac myosin that diminishes ATPase activity by strongly slowing phosphate release, stabilizing a weak actin-binding state.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInvest Ophthalmol Vis Sci
August 2024
Purpose: Dysregulated cholesterol metabolism is critical in the pathogenesis of AMD. Cellular senescence contributes to the development of numerous age-associated diseases. In this study, we investigated the link between cholesterol burden and the cellular senescence of photoreceptors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground Attenuation coefficient (AC) and shear-wave speed (SWS) are established US markers for assessing patients with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), while shear-wave dispersion slope (DS) is not. Purpose To assess the relationship between the multiparametric US imaging markers DS, AC, and SWS and liver histopathologic necroinflammation in patients with MASLD. Materials and Methods This international multicenter prospective study enrolled consecutive patients with biopsy-proven MASLD between June 2019 and March 2023.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTherapeutic apheresis aims to selectively remove pathogenic substances, such as antibodies that trigger various symptoms and diseases. Unfortunately, current apheresis devices cannot handle small blood volumes in infants or small animals, hindering the testing of animal model advancements. This limitation restricts our ability to provide treatment options for particularly susceptible infants and children with limited therapeutic alternatives.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe analysis of histopathology images with artificial intelligence aims to enable clinical decision support systems and precision medicine. The success of such applications depends on the ability to model the diverse patterns observed in pathology images. To this end, we present Virchow, the largest foundation model for computational pathology to date.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWithin a multistate viral genomic surveillance program, we evaluated whether proportions of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections attributed to the JN.1 variant and to XBB-lineage variants (including HV.1 and EG.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFibrotic interstitial lung diseases (fILDs) have poor survival rates and lack effective therapies. Despite evidence for immune mechanisms in lung fibrosis, immunotherapies have been unsuccessful for major types of fILD. Here, we review immunological mechanisms in lung fibrosis that have the potential to impact clinical practice.
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