Virtual reality technology for pain management in advanced cancer.

This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (intervention). The objectives are as follows: Primarily, to determine the effectiveness of a virtual reality (VR) intervention compared to an alternative or no intervention for people living with advanced cancer: on pain intensity, adverse events (AEs) and serious adverse events (SAEs); and secondarily, on additional pain properties (e.g.

Artificial intelligence and large language models in palliative medicine clinical practice and education.

As we approach 2034, we anticipate significant advancements in digital technologies and their impact across various domains, including palliative and end-of-life care and perhaps higher education more generally. Predicting technological breakthroughs, especially in the realm of artificial intelligence (AI), is notoriously difficult. In a sense, you might need an AI to do this effectively.

Imaging body-mind crosstalk in young adults.

Objective: There is evidence that complex relationships exist between motor functions, brain structure, and cognitive functions, particularly in the aging population. However, whether such relationships observed in older adults could extend to other age groups (e.g.

Online stimulation of the prefrontal cortex during practice increases motor variability and modulates later cognitive transfer: a randomized, double-blinded and sham-controlled tDCS study.

The benefits of learning a motor skill extend to improved task-specific cognitive abilities. The mechanistic underpinnings of this motor-cognition relationship potentially rely on overlapping neural resources involved in both processes, an assumption lacking causal evidence. We hypothesize that interfering with prefrontal networks would inhibit concurrent motor skill performance, long-term learning and associated cognitive functions dependent on similar networks (transfer).

Raman-Activated, Interactive Sorting of Isotope-Labeled Bacteria.

Due to its high spatial resolution, Raman microspectroscopy allows for the analysis of single microbial cells. Since Raman spectroscopy analyzes the whole cell content, this method is phenotypic and can therefore be used to evaluate cellular changes. In particular, labeling with stable isotopes (SIPs) enables the versatile use and observation of different metabolic states in microbes.

Age-related decline in GABAergic intracortical inhibition can be counteracted by long-term learning of balance skills.

Ageing induces a decline in GABAergic intracortical inhibition, which seems to be associated not only with decremental changes in well-being, sleep quality, cognition and pain management but also with impaired motor control. So far, little is known regarding whether targeted interventions can prevent the decline of intracortical inhibition in the primary motor cortex in the elderly. Therefore, the present study investigated whether age-related cortical dis-inhibition could be reversed after 6 months of balance learning and whether improvements in postural control correlated with the extent of reversed dis-inhibition.

Enrichment of different taxa of the enigmatic candidate phyla radiation bacteria using a novel picolitre droplet technique.

The candidate phyla radiation (CPR) represents a distinct monophyletic clade and constitutes a major portion of the tree of life. Extensive efforts have focused on deciphering the functional diversity of its members, primarily using sequencing-based techniques. However, cultivation success remains scarce, presenting a significant challenge, particularly in CPR-dominated groundwater microbiomes characterized by low biomass.

A Semi-Mechanistic Population Pharmacokinetic Model of Noscapine in Healthy Subjects Considering Hepatic First-Pass Extraction and CYP2C9 Genotypes.

Introduction: Noscapine is a commonly used cough suppressant, with ongoing research on its anti-inflammatory and anti-tumor properties. The drug has a pronounced pharmacokinetic variability.

Objective: This evaluation aims to describe the pharmacokinetics of noscapine using a semi-mechanistic population pharmacokinetic model and to identify covariates that could explain inter-individual pharmacokinetic variability.

Higher surface folding of the human premotor cortex is associated with better long-term learning capability.

The capacity to learn enabled the human species to adapt to various challenging environmental conditions and pass important achievements on to the next generation. A growing body of research suggests links between neocortical folding properties and numerous aspects of human behavior, but their impact on enhanced human learning capacity remains unexplored. Here we leverage three training cohorts to demonstrate that higher levels of premotor cortical folding reliably predict individual long-term learning gains in a challenging new motor task, above and beyond initial performance differences.

Assessment of body mass-related covariates for rifampicin pharmacokinetics in healthy Caucasian volunteers.

Purpose: Currently, body weight-based dosing of rifampicin is recommended. But lately, fat-free mass (FFM) was reported to be superior to body weight (BW). The present evaluation aimed to assess the influence of body mass-related covariates on rifampicin's pharmacokinetics (PK) parameters in more detail using non-linear mixed effects modeling (NLMEM).

Virtual consultations: the experience of oncology and palliative care healthcare professionals.

Objectives: To maintain continuity of care during the Covid-19 pandemic, virtual consultations (VC) became the mainstay of patient-healthcare practitioner interactions. The aim of this study was to explore the views of oncology and palliative care healthcare professionals (HCPs) regarding the medium of VC.

Method: A cross sectional mixed methodology observational study of oncology and palliative care HCPs, analysed via an inductive thematic approach.

Iron coatings on carbonate rocks shape the attached bacterial aquifer community.

Most studies of groundwater ecosystems target planktonic microbes, which are easily obtained via water samples. In contrast, little is known about the diversity and function of microbes adhering to rock surfaces, particularly to consolidated rocks. To investigate microbial attachment to rock surfaces, we incubated rock chips from fractured aquifers in limestone-mudstone alternations in bioreactors fed with groundwater from two wells representing oxic and anoxic conditions.

Sunglasses for painful red eye.

We present the case of a 62-year-old man who developed an acutely painful red eye with severe photophobia while in an oncology ward after spinal radiotherapy. In a joint effort between palliative care, oncology and ophthalmology clinicians, he was diagnosed with herpes simplex viral keratitis. This was treated with topical and systemic antiviral medication, as well as corticosteroids.

Large-scale, in-cell photocrosslinking at single-residue resolution reveals the molecular basis for glucocorticoid receptor regulation by immunophilins.

The Hsp90 co-chaperones FKBP51 and FKBP52 play key roles in steroid-hormone-receptor regulation, stress-related disorders, and sexual embryonic development. As a prominent target, glucocorticoid receptor (GR) signaling is repressed by FKBP51 and potentiated by FKBP52, but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain poorly understood. Here we present the architecture and functional annotation of FKBP51-, FKBP52-, and p23-containing Hsp90-apo-GR pre-activation complexes, trapped by systematic incorporation of photoreactive amino acids inside human cells.

Changes in Cortical Microstructure of the Human Brain Resulting from Long-Term Motor Learning.

The mechanisms subserving motor skill acquisition and learning in the intact human brain are not fully understood. Previous studies in animals have demonstrated a causal relationship between motor learning and structural rearrangements of synaptic connections, raising the question of whether neurite-specific changes are also observable in humans. Here, we use advanced diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), sensitive to dendritic and axonal processes, to investigate neuroplasticity in response to long-term motor learning.

Metabolic versatility enables sulfur-oxidizers to dominate primary production in groundwater.

High rates of CO fixation and the genetic potential of various groundwater microbes for autotrophic activity have shown that primary production is an important source of organic C in groundwater ecosystems. However, the contribution of specific chemolithoautotrophic groups such as S-oxidizing bacteria (SOB) to groundwater primary production and their adaptation strategies remain largely unknown. Here, we stimulated anoxic groundwater microcosms with reduced S and sampled the microbial community after 1, 3 and 6 weeks.

Seeking Excellence in End of Life Care UK (SEECare UK): a UK multi-centred service evaluation.

Objective: To evaluate the care of patients dying in hospital without support from specialists in palliative care (SPC), better understand their needs and factors influencing their care.

Methods: Prospective UK-wide service evaluation including all dying adult inpatients unknown to SPC, excluding those in emergency departments/intensive care units. Holistic needs were assessed through a standardised proforma.

Differential contribution of nitrifying prokaryotes to groundwater nitrification.

The ecophysiology of complete ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (CMX) of the genus Nitrospira and their widespread occurrence in groundwater suggests that CMX bacteria have a competitive advantage over ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) and archaea (AOA) in these environments. However, the specific contribution of their activity to nitrification processes has remained unclear. We aimed to disentangle the contribution of CMX, AOA and AOB to nitrification and to identify the environmental drivers of their niche differentiation at different levels of ammonium and oxygen in oligotrophic carbonate rock aquifers.

Cefepime Population Pharmacokinetics, Antibacterial Target Attainment, and Estimated Probability of Neurotoxicity in Critically Ill Patients.

Cefepime has been reported to cause concentration-related neurotoxicity, especially in critically ill patients with renal failure. This evaluation aimed to identify a dosing regimen providing a sufficient probability of target attainment (PTA) and the lowest justifiable risk of neurotoxicity in critically ill patients. A population pharmacokinetic model was developed based on plasma concentrations over four consecutive days obtained from 14 intensive care unit (ICU) patients.

Do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation documentation: a quality improvement project.

Objectives: This quality improvement project looked at enhancing do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation (DNACPR) documentation in a Welsh National Health Service trust.

Methods: A full clinical review cycle was carried out, evaluating 50 DNACPR forms in each data collection, totalling 100 forms. The all Wales DNACPR audit template was used to ensure standardised audit criteria.