Objectives: To evaluate the impact of Aquablation on circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in men with localized prostate cancer.
Methods: This prospective study included subjects with biopsy-positive mpMRI visible lesions (PIRADS ≥ 3) who underwent Aquablation. Ten ml blood samples were collected before, during and after the procedure to measure CTC counts using an immunofluorescence assay.
Metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is an agnostic method for broad-based diagnosis of central nervous system (CNS) infections. Here we analyzed the 7-year performance of clinical CSF mNGS testing of 4,828 samples from June 2016 to April 2023 performed by the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) clinical microbiology laboratory. Overall, mNGS testing detected 797 organisms from 697 (14.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTools for rapid identification of novel and/or emerging viruses are urgently needed for clinical diagnosis of unexplained infections and pandemic preparedness. Here we developed and clinically validated a largely automated metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) assay for agnostic detection of respiratory viral pathogens from upper respiratory swab and bronchoalveolar lavage samples in <24 h. The mNGS assay achieved mean limits of detection of 543 copies/mL, viral load quantification with 100% linearity, and 93.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIndoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase (IDO)1 degrades tryptophan, obtained through dietary intake, into immunoregulatory metabolites of the kynurenine pathway. Deficiency or blockade of IDO1 results in the enhancement of autoimmune severity in rodent models and increased susceptibility to developing autoimmunity in humans. Despite this, therapeutic modalities that leverage IDO1 for the treatment of autoimmunity remain limited.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFProc Natl Acad Sci U S A
September 2024
Inflammatory syndromes, including those caused by infection, are a major cause of hospital admissions among children and are often misdiagnosed because of a lack of advanced molecular diagnostic tools. In this study, we explored the utility of circulating cell-free RNA (cfRNA) in plasma as an analyte for the differential diagnosis and characterization of pediatric inflammatory syndromes. We profiled cfRNA in 370 plasma samples from pediatric patients with a range of inflammatory conditions, including Kawasaki disease (KD), multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), viral infections, and bacterial infections.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFImmunotherapy targeting immune checkpoints (ICPs), such as programmed death-ligand-1 (PD-L1), is used as a treatment option for advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, overall response rate to anti-PD-L1 treatment is limited due to antigen heterogeneity and the immune-suppressive tumor microenvironment. Human leukocyte antigen-G (HLA-G), an ICP as well as a neoexpressed tumor-associated antigen, is previously demonstrated to be a beneficial target in combination with anti-PD-L1.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRespiratory infections cause significant morbidity and mortality, yet it is unclear why some individuals succumb to severe disease. In patients hospitalized with avian A(H7N9) influenza, we investigated early drivers underpinning fatal disease. Transcriptomics strongly linked oleoyl-acyl-carrier-protein (ACP) hydrolase (OLAH), an enzyme mediating fatty acid production, with fatal A(H7N9) early after hospital admission, persisting until death.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFChen, P-T, Lin, Y-C, Chang, H-Y, Chiu, C-H, Chen, C-Y, Chen, P, and Lin, Y-H. Effects of shoulder corrective training program on pitching loads and sonographic morphology in elbow joint in youth baseball players. J Strength Cond Res 38(8): e440-e447, 2024-We assessed the effects of a 12-week shoulder corrective training program for shoulder flexibility and strengthening on pitching loads and sonographic morphology of the elbow joints in youth baseball players.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Concerns regarding bleeding remain in cold snare polypectomy (CSP) for small pedunculated (0-Ip) polyps. The aim of this study was to compare the risk of CSP and hot snare polypectomy (HSP) for such lesions.
Methods: Data on 0-Ip colorectal polyps ≤10 mm were extracted from a large, pragmatic, randomized trial.
Context: Although spiritual intervention is crucial in the care of childhood cancer patients (CCPs), its effectiveness has not yet been systematically evaluated.
Objectives: To determine the effectiveness of existing spiritual interventions on psychological, spiritual outcomes, and quality of life (QoL) in CCPs.
Methods: We searched eight databases to identify relevant randomized controlled trials and quasi-experimental studies.
Background: Preeclampsia is a serious disease of pregnancy that lacks early diagnosis methods or effective treatment, except delivery. Dysregulated uterine immune cells and spiral arteries are implicated in preeclampsia, but the mechanistic link remains unclear.
Methods: Single-cell RNA sequencing and spatial transcriptomics were used to identify immune cell subsets associated with preeclampsia.
Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol
March 2024
Background: Integrins mediate the adhesion, crawling, and migration of neutrophils during vascular inflammation. Thiol exchange is important in the regulation of integrin functions. ERp72 (endoplasmic reticulum-resident protein 72) is a member of the thiol isomerase family responsible for the catalysis of disulfide rearrangement.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEducational attainment (EduYears), a heritable trait often used as a proxy for cognitive ability, is associated with various health and social outcomes. Previous genome-wide association studies (GWASs) on EduYears have been focused on samples of European (EUR) genetic ancestries. Here we present the first large-scale GWAS of EduYears in people of East Asian (EAS) ancestry (n = 176,400) and conduct a cross-ancestry meta-analysis with EduYears GWAS in people of EUR ancestry (n = 766,345).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Brain-limited pathogenic somatic variants are associated with focal pediatric epilepsy, but reliance on resected brain tissue samples has limited our ability to correlate epileptiform activity with abnormal molecular pathology. We aimed to identify the pathogenic variant and map variant allele fractions (VAFs) across an abnormal region of epileptogenic brain in a patient who underwent stereoelectroencephalography (sEEG) and subsequent motor-sparing left frontal disconnection.
Methods: We extracted genomic DNA from peripheral blood, brain tissue resected from peri-sEEG electrode regions, and microbulk brain tissue adherent to sEEG electrodes.
Neurol Neuroimmunol Neuroinflamm
September 2023
Objectives: The objective of this study was to report on the development of neuroinvasive West Nile virus (WNV) infection in the context of anti-CD20 monotherapy for multiple sclerosis (MS).
Methods: This is a case series study.
Results: In 2021-2022, we observed 4 cases of neuroinvasive WNV infection in our patient population of 2009 patients with MS on ocrelizumab, compared with a total of 46 cases of neuroinvasive WNV infection reported in Pennsylvania and 40 in New Jersey.
Purpose: To evaluate the functional and structural changes of the meibomian glands and ocular surface in immunoglobulin G4-related ophthalmic disease (IgG4-ROD) patients.
Design: Cross-sectional, matched case-control comparison study.
Methods: This study included 64 patients with biopsy-proven IgG4-ROD (aged 63.
Background: Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS) and toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN) not only cause acute, devastating mucocutaneous reactions but also have long-lasting implications on survivors' lives.
Objectives: To quantify the lifetime burden of SJS/TEN.
Methods: The cumulative incidence rate (CIR), life expectancy (LE), loss-of-life expectancy (LoLE) and lifetime healthcare expenditure (HE) for SJS/TEN were estimated over the period from 2008 to 2019 using data from the National Health Insurance Research Database of Taiwan and life tables of vital statistics.
Neurol Neuroimmunol Neuroinflamm
September 2023
Mutations in the complement factor I () gene have previously been identified as causes of recurrent CNS inflammation. We present a case of a 26-year-old man with 18 episodes of recurrent meningitis, who had a variant in (c.859G>A,p.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInfluenza epidemics and pandemics caused by newly emerging virus strains highlight an urgent need to develop a universal vaccine against viruses. Previously, a monoglycosylated X-181 vaccine demonstrated that the HA possessing a single N-acetylglucosamine at each N-glycosylation site is superior to confer broader protection in mice than conventional vaccines. However, the greatest challenge in conducting clinical trials is the need to develop robust manufacturing processes capable of producing vaccines at the pilot scale with the desired stability, potency, and efficacy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMetagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) has enabled the high-throughput multiplexed identification of sequences from microbes of potential medical relevance. This approach has become indispensable for viral pathogen discovery and broad-based surveillance of emerging or re-emerging pathogens. From 2015 to 2019, plasma was collected from 9586 individuals in Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo enrolled in a combined hepatitis virus and retrovirus surveillance program.
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