Distributed, immutable, and transparent biomedical limited data set request management on multi-capacity network.

Objective: Our study aimed to expedite data sharing requests of Limited Data Sets (LDS) through the development of a streamlined platform that allows distributed, immutable management of network activities, provides transparent and intuitive auditing of data access history, and systematically evaluated it on a multi-capacity network setting for meaningful efficiency metrics.

Materials And Methods: We developed a blockchain-based system with six types of smart contracts to automate the LDS sharing process among major stakeholders. Our workflow included metadata initialization, access-request processing, and audit-log querying.

WebQuorumChain: A web framework for quorum-based health care model learning.

Background: Institutions interested in collaborative machine learning to enhance healthcare may be deterred by privacy concerns. Decentralized federated learning is a privacy-preserving and security-robust tool to promote cross-institutional learning, however, such frameworks require complex setups and advanced technical expertise. Here, we aim to improve their utilization by offering an intuitive, user-friendly, and secure system that integrates both front-end and back-end functionalities.

Distributed management of patient data-sharing informed consents for clinical research.

Background: The consent protocol is now a critical part in the overall orchestration of clinical research. We aimed to demonstrate the feasibility of an Ethereum-based informed consent system, which includes an immutable and automated channel of consent matching, to simultaneously assure patient privacy and increase the efficiency of researchers' data access.

Method: We simulated a multi-site scenario, each assigned 10000 consent records.

Effect of puncture position on catheter patency rate during tunnelled dialysis catheter insertion from the right internal jugular vein.

Background: No recommendations have been made regarding the puncture position during tunnelled dialysis catheter (TDC) insertion from right internal jugular vein (RIJV). We investigated the effect of puncture positioning along with other characteristics and clinical factors associated with TDCs to determine their correlation with catheter patency rate.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed TDC insertion procedures performed between January 2018 and December 2020 at a single institution.

True lumen expansion but no aortic remodeling following thoracic endografting and distal bare stent for subacute complicated type B aortic dissection.

Background: The effects of thoracic endovascular aneurysm repair (TEVAR) with additional distal bare metal stents (BMSs) in patients with subacute complicated type B aortic dissection (cTBAD) are unclear and are investigated in this retrospective study.

Methods: The medical records of 67 patients who received TEVAR due to subacute cTBAD were reviewed. Areas of true lumen (TL) and false lumen at five levels-pulmonary artery (PA), diaphragm, renal artery (RA), middle of the infrarenal aorta, and aortic bifurcation-were measured using computed tomography before and 3, 6, and 12 months after surgery.

Anti-osteoporosis drugs reduce mortality in cancer patients: A national cohort study of elderly with vertebral fractures.

Introduction: The most prevalent type of fragility fractures is osteoporotic vertebral fractures (OVFs). However, only a few studies have examined the relationship between anti-osteoporosis treatments and malignancy-related mortality following an OVF. The goal of this study is to determine the effect of anti-osteoporosis therapy on mortality in OVF patients with and without cancer.

Serotonergic Regulation of Synaptic Dopamine Levels Mitigates L-DOPA-Induced Dyskinesia in a Mouse Model of Parkinson's Disease.

Background: The serotonin (5-HT) system can manipulate the processing of exogenous L-DOPA in the DA-denervated striatum, resulting in the modulation of L-DOPA-induced dyskinesia (LID).

Objective: To characterize the effects of the serotonin precursor 5-hydroxy-tryptophan (5-HTP) or the serotonin transporter (SERT) inhibitor, Citalopram on L-DOPA-induced behavior, neurochemical signals, and underlying protein expressions in an animal model of Parkinson's disease.

Methods: MitoPark (MP) mice at 20 weeks of age, subjected to a 14-day administration of L-DOPA/Carbidopa, displayed dyskinesia, referred to as LID.

Targeting circadian transcriptional programs through a cis-regulatory mechanism in triple negative breast cancer.

Circadian clock genes are emerging targets in many types of cancer, but their mechanistic contributions to tumor progression are still largely unknown. This makes it challenging to stratify patient populations and develop corresponding treatments. In this work, we show that in breast cancer, the disrupted expression of circadian genes has the potential to serve as biomarkers.

Biomedical blockchain with practical implementations and quantitative evaluations: a systematic review.

Objective: Blockchain has emerged as a potential data-sharing structure in healthcare because of its decentralization, immutability, and traceability. However, its use in the biomedical domain is yet to be investigated comprehensively, especially from the aspects of implementation and evaluation, by existing blockchain literature reviews. To address this, our review assesses blockchain applications implemented in practice and evaluated with quantitative metrics.

ADAM9 drives the immunosuppressive microenvironment by cholesterol biosynthesis-mediated activation of IL6-STAT3 signaling for lung tumor progression.

Chronic inflammation associated with lung cancers contributes to immunosuppressive tumor microenvironments, reducing CD8 T-cell function and leading to poor patient outcomes. A disintegrin and metalloprotease domain 9 (ADAM9) promotes cancer progression. Here, we aim to elucidate the role of ADAM9 in the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment.

Attenuating mitochondrial dysfunction and morphological disruption with PT320 delays dopamine degeneration in MitoPark mice.

Background: Mitochondria are essential organelles involved in cellular energy production. Changes in mitochondrial function can lead to dysfunction and cell death in aging and age-related disorders. Recent research suggests that mitochondrial dysfunction is closely linked to neurodegenerative diseases.

Early prediction of long hospital stay for Intensive Care units readmission patients using medication information.

Objective: Predicting Intensive Care Unit (ICU) Length of Stay (LOS) accurately can improve patient wellness, hospital operations, and the health system's financial status. This study focuses on predicting the prolonged ICU LOS (≥3 days) of the 2nd admission, utilizing short historical data (1st admission only) for early-stage prediction, as well as incorporating medication information.

Materials And Methods: We selected 18,572 ICU patients' records from the MIMIC-IV database for this study.

Sodium Glucose Transporter 2 Inhibitors Versus Metformin on Cardiovascular and Renal Outcomes in Patients With Diabetes With Low Cardiovascular Risk: A Nationwide Cohort Study.

Background: This study investigated whether initial SGLT2 (sodium-glucose cotransporter 2) inhibitor-based treatment is superior to metformin-based regimens as a primary prevention strategy among low-risk patients with diabetes.

Methods And Results: In this nationwide cohort study, a total of 38 496 patients with diabetes with low cardiovascular risk were identified (age 62.0±11.

A Comparative Study for Blockchain Applications in Nursing Informatics.

We explored blockchain's applications in nursing informatics, highlighting its potential to improve patient care and data management. We compared and analyzed eight studies focusing on blockchain in Electronic Health Records (EHR) management, nursing optimization, and research facilitation. Although most of these studies are in the proposal stage, blockchain's technical features show promise in enhancing nursing practices and supporting nursing informatics researchers with the integration of technologies.

Profiling Clinical Researchers Effectively using Embeddings and Clustering.

Effective researcher profiling is key to support rapid research team formation. We developed a profiling method using (1) widely accessible publication titles, (2) document embedding vector representations to consider background, and (3) both general and specific types of datasets. Our results showed that the most similar researchers have cosine similarities of 0.

Inhibition of ADAM9 promotes the selective degradation of KRAS and sensitizes pancreatic cancers to chemotherapy.

Kirsten rat sarcoma virus (KRAS) signaling drives pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) malignancy, which is an unmet clinical need. Here, we identify a disintegrin and metalloproteinase domain (ADAM)9 as a modulator of PDAC progression via stabilization of wild-type and mutant KRAS proteins. Mechanistically, ADAM9 loss increases the interaction of KRAS with plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1), which functions as a selective autophagy receptor in conjunction with light chain 3 (LC3), triggering lysosomal degradation of KRAS.

Maternal Prenatal Infections and Biliary Atresia in Offspring.

Importance: Investigations into the association of antepartum maternal infections with the pathogenesis of biliary atresia (BA) in human offspring are insufficient.

Objective: To examine the association between prenatal infections in mothers and the development of BA in their offspring.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This population-based case-control study obtained administrative data from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database with linkage to the Taiwan Maternal and Child Health Database, capturing demographic and medical information on nearly all 23 million of the Taiwan population.

Oxidative stress mediates the inhibitory effects of Manzamine A on uterine leiomyoma cell proliferation and extracellular matrix deposition via SOAT inhibition.

Uterine fibroids, the most common benign tumors of the myometrium in women, are characterized by abnormal extracellular matrix deposition and uterine smooth muscle cell neoplasia, with high recurrence rates. Here, we investigated the potential of the marine natural product manzamine A (Manz A), which has potent anti-cancer effects, as a treatment for uterine fibroids. Manz A inhibited leiomyoma cell proliferation in vitro and in vivo by arresting cell cycle progression and inducing caspase-mediated apoptosis.

The Intention of Inhaled Medication Adherence Scale (IMAS): The Development of a New Instrument for Assessing Inhaled Medication Adherence Among Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Using Theory of Planned Behavior.

Purpose: Inhaled medication adherence is an important issue for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) because adhering to inhaled medications could substantially improve their health. However, patients with COPD may not be always adhere to the prescribed inhaled medications. Therefore, understanding the underlying reasons for patients with COPD adhering to inhaled medications is important.

Inhibition of CDCP1 by 8-isopentenylnaringenin synergizes with EGFR inhibitors in lung cancer treatment.

CUB domain-containing protein 1 (CDCP1) contributes to epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) resistance by regulating EGFR signaling pathways and is a potential target in lung cancer treatment. This study aims to identify a CDCP1 reducer that synergistically improves TKI treatment. Utilizing a high-throughput drug screening system, a phytoestrogen 8-isopentenylnaringenin (8PN) was identified.

Breast Tumor Classification using Short-ResNet with Pixel-based Tumor Probability Map in Ultrasound Images.

Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer and is still the second leading cause of death for women in the world. Early detection and treatment of breast cancer can reduce mortality rates. Breast ultrasound is always used to detect and diagnose breast cancer.

Blockchain-enabled immutable, distributed, and highly available clinical research activity logging system for federated COVID-19 data analysis from multiple institutions.

Objective: We aimed to develop a distributed, immutable, and highly available cross-cloud blockchain system to facilitate federated data analysis activities among multiple institutions.

Materials And Methods: We preprocessed 9166 COVID-19 Structured Query Language (SQL) code, summary statistics, and user activity logs, from the GitHub repository of the Reliable Response Data Discovery for COVID-19 (R2D2) Consortium. The repository collected local summary statistics from participating institutions and aggregated the global result to a COVID-19-related clinical query, previously posted by clinicians on a website.

PT320, a Sustained-Release GLP-1 Receptor Agonist, Ameliorates L-DOPA-Induced Dyskinesia in a Mouse Model of Parkinson's Disease.

To determine the efficacy of PT320 on L-DOPA-induced dyskinetic behaviors, and neurochemistry in a progressive Parkinson's disease (PD) MitoPark mouse model. To investigate the effects of PT320 on the manifestation of dyskinesia in L-DOPA-primed mice, a clinically translatable biweekly PT320 dose was administered starting at either 5 or 17-weeks-old mice. The early treatment group was given L-DOPA starting at 20 weeks of age and longitudinally evaluated up to 22 weeks.

Left ventricular assist device exchange from HeartMate II to HeartMate 3 in an Asian patient-a case report and literature review.

Background: Pump exchange surgery of left ventricular assist device (LVAD) has been demonstrated in several studies; however, information for Asian patients was limited.

Case Presentation: A 63-year-old man underwent a pump upgrade from HeartMate II to HeartMate 3 for driveline damage through limited left anterior thoracotomy and lower partial sternotomy. He did not experience any hemodynamic adverse events or device malfunction during postoperative follow-ups of 12 months.

A hierarchical strategy to minimize privacy risk when linking "De-identified" data in biomedical research consortia.

Linking data across studies offers an opportunity to enrich data sets and provide a stronger basis for data-driven models for biomedical discovery and/or prognostication. Several techniques to link records have been proposed, and some have been implemented across data repositories holding molecular and clinical data. Not all these techniques guarantee appropriate privacy protection; there are trade-offs between (a) simple strategies that can be associated with data that will be linked and shared with any party and (b) more complex strategies that preserve the privacy of individuals across parties.