Pancreatic cancer mortality trends in the United States: how much have we moved the needle?

Background: Despite advances made in pancreatic cancer treatment, the extent of progress made in pancreatic cancer mortality at the population level remains unclear. Our cross-sectional study sought to measure trends in pancreatic cancer mortality in the United States in the last 2 decades.

Methods: Patients with pancreatic cancer mortality from 1999 to 2020 were analyzed from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Wide-Ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research (CDC WONDER).

A single-dose intranasal live-attenuated codon deoptimized vaccine provides broad protection against SARS-CoV-2 and its variants.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19) continues its significant health and economic impact globally. Despite the success of spike-protein vaccines in preventing severe disease, long-lasting protection against emerging variants and the prevention of breakthrough infections and transmission remain elusive. We generate an intranasal live-attenuated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, CDO-7N-1, using codon deoptimization.

Rheumatoid Arthritis and Its Implications on Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

Background: The association between inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and arthritis has long been known, but it was not until the 1950s that IBD-associated arthritis was recognized as a distinct pathology independent from rheumatoid arthritis (RA). There is evidence that RA and other autoimmune conditions exist at higher rates in patients with IBD compared to the general population. We aimed to determine if the presence of RA in IBD patients is a factor for mortality and IBD-related surgery in this population.

How have US colorectal cancer mortality trends changed in the past 20 years?

In the last two decades, colorectal cancer (CRC) mortality has been decreasing in the United States. However, the mortality trends for the different subtypes of CRC, including different sides of colon, rectosigmoid, and rectal cancer remain unclear. We analyzed the mortality trends of different subtypes of CRC based on Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Wide-Ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research data from 1999 to 2020.

FHL1 promotes chikungunya and o'nyong-nyong virus infection and pathogenesis with implications for alphavirus vaccine design.

Arthritogenic alphaviruses are positive-strand RNA viruses that cause debilitating musculoskeletal diseases affecting millions worldwide. A recent discovery identified the four-and-a-half-LIM domain protein 1 splice variant A (FHL1A) as a crucial host factor interacting with the hypervariable domain (HVD) of chikungunya virus (CHIKV) nonstructural protein 3 (nsP3). Here, we show that acute and chronic chikungunya disease in humans correlates with elevated levels of FHL1.

Pseudo-Progression of Melanoma Treated with Nivolumab/Ipilimumab: A Case Report.

BACKGROUND Melanoma is an aggressive skin cancer that can be difficult to manage. Its treatment has been transformed by immunotherapy. Melanoma cells frequently have mutations that make them vulnerable to attack by the immune system, and this is how immunotherapy can fight this cancer.

Association of Elevated Glycated Hemoglobin (HbA1c) in COVID-19 Patients Admitted to the Intensive Care Unit and Their Clinical Outcomes.

Aim The study aimed to collect retrospective data to investigate the association between elevated glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels and clinical outcomes in COVID-19 patients admitted to the ICU, including in-hospital mortality and 90-day mortality.  Methods This is an observational retrospective study using electronic health records of patients with diabetes admitted to the ICU with COVID-19 across the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) in Central PA Hospitals. Our retrospective analysis was performed on patients admitted to the ICU between May 1, 2021, to May 1, 2022.

N-Heteroacenes as an Organic Gain Medium for Room-Temperature Masers.

The development of future quantum devices such as the maser, i.e., the microwave analog of the laser, could be well-served by the exploration of chemically tunable organic materials.

Role of MXRA8 in Ross River Virus Disease Pathogenesis.

Arthritogenic alphaviruses such as Ross River virus (RRV) and Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) are responsible for large-scale epidemics that cause debilitating acute and chronic musculoskeletal diseases. MXRA8 was recently discovered as an entry receptor for multiple alphaviruses including CHIKV, RRV, Mayaro virus (MAYV), and O'nyong-nyong virus (ONNV). However, the role of MXRA8 in the development of alphavirus-induced musculoskeletal inflammation has not yet been fully studied.

Move Aside Pentacene: Diazapentacene-Doped para-Terphenyl, a Zero-Field Room-Temperature Maser with Strong Coupling for Cavity Quantum Electrodynamics.

Masers can deliver ultralow-noise amplification of microwave signals in medical imaging and deep-space communication, with recent research being rekindled through the discovery of gain media operating at room-temperature, eschewing bulky cryogenics that hindered their use. This work shows the discovery of 6,13-diazapentacene doped in para-terphenyl (DAP:PTP) as a maser gain medium that can operate at room-temperature, without an external magnetic field. With a maser output power of -10 dBm, it is on par with pentacene-doped para-terphenyl in masing power, while possessing compelling advantages such as faster amplification startup times, being pumped by longer wavelength light at 620 nm and greater chemical stability from nitrogen groups.

Insights into the tumor microenvironment of B cell lymphoma.

The standard therapies in lymphoma have predominantly focused on targeting tumor cells with less of a focus on the tumor microenvironment (TME), which plays a critical role in favoring tumor growth and survival. Such an approach may result in increasingly refractory disease with progressively reduced responses to subsequent treatments. To overcome this hurdle, targeting the TME has emerged as a new therapeutic strategy.

Repurposing of drugs targeting the cytokine storm induced by SARS-CoV-2.

A cytokine storm is one of the leading causes of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and sepsis-associated multiple organ failure in many respiratory viral infections, including severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has caused millions of deaths worldwide, resulting in an urgent need for effective therapeutic interventions. Repurposing immunosuppressive drugs that target cytokines with immunomodulatory properties is a promising approach to counteract SARS-CoV-2-induced ARDS at the infective and post-infective stages.

Treating Hypertriglyceridemia-Induced Pancreatitis With Intravenous Insulin and Plasmapheresis.

Hypertriglyceridemic pancreatitis (HTGP) is well-known but it is extremely rare, especially in younger patients. The main treatment modalities for HTGP are apheresis and intravenous insulin. However, apheresis in severe HTGP is not well established and the efficacy of the treatment is lacking.

Increasing tissue requirements in lymphoma trials may exclude patients with high-risk disease or worse prognosis.

An enhanced understanding of the molecular heterogeneity of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) has opened the door to clinical trials evaluating novel agents with subtype-specific activity. It is an emerging question whether core needle biopsies (CNB) can adequately meet the increasing tissue requirements of these clinical trials. This can potentially lead to selective enrollment of patients who can undergo excisional biopsy (EB).

The Delta SARS-CoV-2 Variant of Concern Induces Distinct Pathogenic Patterns of Respiratory Disease in K18-hACE2 Transgenic Mice Compared to the Ancestral Strain from Wuhan.

Compared to the original ancestral strain of SARS-CoV-2, the Delta variant of concern has shown increased transmissibility and resistance toward COVID-19 vaccines and therapies. However, the pathogenesis of the disease associated with Delta is still not clear. In this study, using K18-hACE2 transgenic mice, we assessed the pathogenicity of the Delta variant by characterizing the immune response following infection.

TIR-Domain-Containing Adapter-Inducing Interferon-β (TRIF)-Dependent Antiviral Responses Protect Mice against Ross River Virus Disease.

Ross River virus (RRV) is the major mosquito-borne virus in the South Pacific region. RRV infections are characterized by arthritic symptoms, which can last from several weeks to months. Type I interferon (IFN), the primary antiviral innate immune response, is able to modulate adaptive immune responses.

Bench-Top Cooling of a Microwave Mode Using an Optically Pumped Spin Refrigerator.

We experimentally demonstrate the temporary removal of thermal photons from a microwave mode at 1.45 GHz through its interaction with the spin-polarized triplet states of photo-excited pentacene molecules doped within a p-terphenyl crystal at room temperature. The crystal functions electromagnetically as a narrowband cryogenic load, removing photons from the otherwise room-temperature mode via stimulated absorption.

Comorbidities in SARS-CoV-2 Patients: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has rapidly spread across the globe at unprecedented speed and is showing no signs of slowing down. The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has led to significant health burden in infected patients especially in those with underlying comorbidities. The aim of this study was to evaluate the correlation between comorbidities and their role in the exacerbation of disease in COVID-19 patients leading to fatal outcomes.

Invasive optical pumping for room-temperature masers, time-resolved EPR, triplet-DNP, and quantum engines exploiting strong coupling.

We explore an approach for optically pumping a body of optically dense magnetic material. This challenge arises in time-resolved electron paramagnetic resonance (TREPR), triplet-based dynamic nuclear polarisation (DNP), and cavity QED. Crystals of pentacene-doped p-terphenyl were grown around variously shaped ends of optical waveguides, through which pump light could be injected deeply into the crystal.

Development of vaccines for SARS-CoV-2.

COVID-19 emerged in late 2019 and has rapidly spread through many countries globally. The causative SARS-CoV-2 virus was not known until recently, and there is little or no natural immunity in human populations. There is an urgent need for vaccines and drugs to combat this new pandemic.

Occurrence of zoonotic Cryptosporidium and Giardia duodenalis species/genotypes in urban rodents.

This report describes the detection of zoonotic Cryptosporidium muris, C. parvum subgenotype IIa and Giardia duodenalis genotype B in urban rodents in Malaysia. A rare occurrence of C.

Arsenic removal from household drinking water by adsorption.

Geogenic inorganic arsenic contamination in drinking water has been raising public health concern especially in developing countries. Cost-effective and stopgap arsenic removal method for household use (cooking and drinking) is very urgent. Several iron treated natural materials such as Fe-treated activated carbon (FeAC), Fe-treated gel beads (FeGB) and iron oxide-coated sand (IOCS), were investigated in this study for arsenic removal from dispersed household drinking water supply (scattered wells in the endemic arsenic poisoning areas).