High Shear Stress Reduces ERG Causing Endothelial-Mesenchymal Transition and Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension.

Background: Computational modeling indicated that pathological high shear stress (HSS; 100 dyn/cm) is generated in pulmonary arteries (PAs; 100-500 µm) in congenital heart defects causing PA hypertension (PAH) and in idiopathic PAH with occlusive vascular remodeling. Endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EndMT) is a feature of PAH. We hypothesize that HSS induces EndMT, contributing to the initiation and progression of PAH.

Construction and validation of senescence risk score signature as a novel biomarker in liver hepatocellular carcinoma: a bioinformatic analysis.

Background: Globally, liver cancer as one of the most frequent fatal malignancies, hits hard and fast. And the lack of effective treatments for liver hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC), activates the researchers to promote promising precision medicine. Interestingly, emerging evidence proves that cellular senescence is involved in the progression of cancers and is recognized for its hallmark-promoting capabilities.

Glucagon Receptor Antagonist for Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction.

Background: Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is an emerging major unmet need and one of the most significant clinic challenges in cardiology. The pathogenesis of HFpEF is associated with multiple risk factors. Hypertension and metabolic disorders associated with obesity are the 2 most prominent comorbidities observed in patients with HFpEF.

Structurally and mechanically tuned macroporous hydrogels for scalable mesenchymal stem cell-extracellular matrix spheroid production.

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are essential in regenerative medicine. However, conventional expansion and harvesting methods often fail to maintain the essential extracellular matrix (ECM) components, which are crucial for their functionality and efficacy in therapeutic applications. Here, we introduce a bone marrow-inspired macroporous hydrogel designed for the large-scale production of MSC-ECM spheroids.

Prognostic Value of Preoperative MRI-derived 3D Quantitative Tumor Arterial Burden in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma Receiving Transarterial Chemoembolization.

Purpose To investigate the association of tumor arterial burden (TAB) on preoperative MRI with transarterial chemoembolization refractoriness (TACER) and progression-free survival (PFS) in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Materials and Methods This retrospective study included patients with HCC who underwent repeated transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) treatments between January 2013 and December 2020. HCC was confirmed with pathology or imaging, and patients with other tumors, lost follow-up, or with a combination of other treatments were excluded.

Physical Activity, Mental Activity, and Risk of Incident Stroke: A Prospective Cohort Study.

Background: Cumulative evidence suggests a correlation between physical or mental activity and the risk of stroke. However, the combined impact of these activities on stroke onset remains unexplored. This study identified physical and mental activity patterns using principal component analysis and investigated their associations with risk of incident stroke in the general population.

[A multi-center epidemiological study on pneumococcal meningitis in children from 2019 to 2020].

Objectives: To investigate the clinical characteristics and prognosis of pneumococcal meningitis (PM), and drug sensitivity of (SP) isolates in Chinese children.

Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on clinical information, laboratory data, and microbiological data of 160 hospitalized children under 15 years old with PM from January 2019 to December 2020 in 33 tertiary hospitals across the country.

Results: Among the 160 children with PM, there were 103 males and 57 females.

Carbonylation of Runx2 at K176 by 4-Hydroxynonenal Accelerates Vascular Calcification.

Background: Vascular calcification, which is characterized by calcium deposition in arterial walls and the osteochondrogenic differentiation of vascular smooth muscle cells, is an actively regulated process that involves complex mechanisms. Vascular calcification is associated with increased cardiovascular adverse events. The role of 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE), which is the most abundant stable product of lipid peroxidation, in vascular calcification has been poorly investigated.

Drug Exposure and Susceptibility of Pyrazinamide Correlate with Treatment Response in Pyrazinamide-Susceptible Patients with Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis.

Exploring the influence of pyrazinamide exposure and susceptibility on treatment response is crucial for optimizing the management of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). This study aimed to investigate the association between pyrazinamide exposure, susceptibility, and response to MDR-TB treatment, as well as find clinical thresholds for pyrazinamide. A prospective multi-center cohort study of participants with MDR-TB using pyrazinamide was conducted in three TB-designated hospitals in China.

Efficacy of Acupuncture for Chronic Spontaneous Urticaria : A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: The effectiveness of acupuncture for patients with chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU), reported in a few small-scale studies, is not convincing.

Objective: To investigate whether acupuncture leads to better effects on CSU than sham acupuncture or waitlist control.

Design: A multicenter, randomized, sham-controlled trial.

Multiplex Bioanalytical Methods for Comprehensive Characterization and Quantification of the Unique Complementarity-Determining-Region Deamidation of MEDI7247, an Anti-ASCT2 Pyrrolobenzodiazepine Antibody-Drug Conjugate.

Deamidation, a common post-translational modification, may impact multiple physiochemical properties of a therapeutic protein. MEDI7247, a pyrrolobenzodiazepine (PBD) antibody-drug conjugate (ADC), contains a unique deamidation site, N102, located within the complementarity-determining region (CDR), impacting the affinity of MEDI7247 to its target. Therefore, it was necessary to monitor MEDI7247 deamidation status in vivo.

Effects and mechanism of Kedaling tablets for atherosclerosis treatment based on network pharmacology, molecular docking and experimental study.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Kedaling tablets (KDL) are a Chinese patented medicine derived from Corydalis yanhusuo (Y.H. Chou & Chun C.

Endothelial TIE1 Restricts Angiogenic Sprouting to Coordinate Vein Assembly in Synergy With Its Homologue TIE2.

Background: Vascular growth followed by vessel specification is crucial for the establishment of a hierarchical blood vascular network. We have shown that TIE2 is required for vein development while little is known about its homologue TIE1 (tyrosine kinase with immunoglobulin-like and EGF [epithelial growth factor]-like domains 1) in this process.

Methods: We analyzed functions of TIE1 as well as its synergy with TIE2 in the regulation of vein formation by employing genetic mouse models targeting , , and , together with in vitro cultured endothelial cells to decipher the underlying mechanism.

Postnatal Dynamics and Clinical Associations of Fecal Calprotectin in Very Preterm Infants: Implications for Necrotizing Enterocolitis and Feeding Intolerance.

Introduction: To elucidate the postnatal dynamics and clinical associations of fecal calprotectin (FC) in very preterm infants, with a focus on necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) and feeding intolerance (FI).

Methods: We performed a prospective observational cohort study in infants with a gestational age of <32 weeks or birth weight <1,500 g with weekly feces collection. The relationships between FC, NEC, and FI were investigated, adjusting for demographic and clinical factors.

scRNASequest: an ecosystem of scRNA-seq analysis, visualization, and publishing.

Background: Single-cell RNA sequencing is a state-of-the-art technology to understand gene expression in complex tissues. With the growing amount of data being generated, the standardization and automation of data analysis are critical to generating hypotheses and discovering biological insights.

Results: Here, we present scRNASequest, a semi-automated single-cell RNA-seq (scRNA-seq) data analysis workflow which allows (1) preprocessing from raw UMI count data, (2) harmonization by one or multiple methods, (3) reference-dataset-based cell type label transfer and embedding projection, (4) multi-sample, multi-condition single-cell level differential gene expression analysis, and (5) seamless integration with cellxgene VIP for visualization and with CellDepot for data hosting and sharing by generating compatible h5ad files.

Elevated Placental microRNA-155 Is a Biomarker of a Preeclamptic Subtype.

Background: Preeclampsia is a complicated syndrome with marked heterogeneity. The biomarker-based classification for this syndrome is more constructive to the targeted prevention and treatment of preeclampsia. It has been reported that preeclamptic patients had elevated microRNA-155 (miR-155) in placentas or circulation.

Rational identification of potent and broad sarbecovirus-neutralizing antibody cocktails from SARS convalescents.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Omicron sublineages have escaped most receptor-binding domain (RBD)-targeting therapeutic neutralizing antibodies (NAbs), which proves that previous NAb drug screening strategies are deficient against the fast-evolving SARS-CoV-2. Better broad NAb drug candidate selection methods are needed. Here, we describe a rational approach for identifying RBD-targeting broad SARS-CoV-2 NAb cocktails.

A Novel SAVE Score to Stratify Decompensation Risk in Compensated Advanced Chronic Liver Disease (CHESS2102): An International Multicenter Cohort Study.

Introduction: In patients with compensated advanced chronic liver disease (cACLD), the invasive measurement of hepatic venous pressure gradient is the best predictor of hepatic decompensation. This study aimed at developing an alternative risk prediction model to provide a decompensation risk assessment in cACLD.

Methods: Patients with cACLD were retrospectively included from 9 international centers within the Portal Hypertension Alliance in China (CHESS) network.

Prophylactic Antitubercular Therapy Is Associated With Accelerated Disease Progression in Patients With Crohn's Disease Receiving Anti-TNF Therapy: A Retrospective Multicenter Study.

Introduction: Prophylactic antitubercular therapy (ATT) is widely prescribed in patients with Crohn's disease (CD) receiving antitumor necrosis factor (anti-TNF) treatment. However, antitubercular agents have been demonstrated to possess profibrotic effects. We aimed to evaluate whether ATT accelerated disease progression in patients with CD receiving anti-TNF treatment.