The Associations Between Myopia and Fundus Tessellation in School Children: A Comparative Analysis of Macular and Peripapillary Regions Using Deep Learning.

Purpose: To evaluate the refractive differences among school-aged children with macular or peripapillary fundus tessellation (FT) distribution patterns, using fundus tessellation density (FTD) quantified by deep learning (DL) technology.

Methods: The cross-sectional study included 1942 school children aged six to 15 years, undergoing ocular biometric parameters, cycloplegic refraction, and fundus photography. FTD was quantified for both the macular (6 mm) and peripapillary (4 mm) regions, using DL-based image processing applied to 45° color fundus photographs.

Impact of Perceived Discrimination and Pandemic Attitudes on Cancer Screening Behaviors Among Asian American Women: A Sequential Explanatory Mixed-Methods Study.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to assess how pandemic-related health concerns and discrimination affected cancer screenings among Asian American women (AAW).

Methods: A two-phase explanatory mixed-methods study was conducted. In phase 1, a survey was distributed among AAW eligible for lung, breast, or colorectal cancer screening to assess delays during the pandemic, concerns about contracting coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), barriers to care, and experiences of discrimination.

Dihydromyricetin/montmorillonite intercalation compounds ameliorates DSS-induced colitis: Role of intestinal epithelial barrier, NLRP3 inflammasome pathway and gut microbiota.

Dihydromyricetin (DHM), the primary active compound in vine tea possesses various pharmacological effects such as anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, along with high biosafety. However, its oral delivery remains a significant challenge. Montmorillonite (MMT), the primary component of bentonite, is a commonly used drug in the clinical treatment of gastrointestinal diseases and serves as an excellent drug carrier due to its intercalation capability.

Risk of adverse birth outcomes and birth defects among women living with HIV on antiretroviral therapy and HIV-negative women in Uganda, 2015-2021.

Introduction: We assessed the risk of adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes and birth defects among women living with HIV (WLHIV) on antiretroviral therapy (ART) and HIV-negative women.

Methods: We analyzed data on live births, stillbirths, and spontaneous abortions during 2015-2021 from a hospital-based birth defects surveillance system in Kampala, Uganda. ART regimens were recorded from hospital records and maternal self-reports.

Comparison of the Efficacy of Endoscopic Continuous Perfusion Combined With Y-Shaped Incision and Microscopic Retroauricular Incision in the Treatment of Attic Cholesteatoma: A Randomized Prospective Study.

This study aimed to compare the efficacy of continuous perfusion of underwater bone grinding combined with a -shaped incision versus a microscopic posterior ear incision in the treatment of attic cholesteatoma. Clinical trials were prospective studies from the Northern Jiangsu People's Hospital. Adult patients with middle ear cholesteatoma requiring ear surgery agreed to participate between September 2019 and September 2023 (age > 18).

The relationship between adolescent sleep duration and exposure to school bullying: the masking effect of depressive symptoms.

Background: Adolescents who suffer from school bullying are often accompanied by problems such as sleep disorders and depression. However, it remains unclear how depressive symptoms and sleep assessments such as sleep duration interact in the specific mechanisms of exposure to school bullying.

Objective: To understand the role of sleep duration, depressive symptoms on school bullying in adolescents and the mediating role of sleep duration in this context.

A comprehensive and bias-free machine learning approach for risk prediction of preeclampsia with severe features in a nulliparous study cohort.

Preeclampsia is one of the leading causes of maternal morbidity, with consequences during and after pregnancy. Because of its diverse clinical presentation, preeclampsia is an adverse pregnancy outcome that is uniquely challenging to predict and manage. In this paper, we developed racial bias-free machine learning models that predict the onset of preeclampsia with severe features or eclampsia at discrete time points in a nulliparous pregnant study cohort.

Development of Etf-3-specific nanobodies to prevent Ehrlichia infection and LNP-mRNA delivery in cellular and murine models.

Ehrlichia chaffeensis is an obligatory intracellular bacterium that infects monocytes and macrophages and causes human monocytic ehrlichiosis. Ehrlichia translocated factor-3 (Etf-3) is a type IV secretion system effector that binds host-cell ferritin light chain and induces ferritinophagy, thus increasing cellular labile iron pool for Ehrlichia proliferation. To further characterize roles of Etf-3 in Ehrlichia infection, we produced immune libraries of Etf-3-specific nanobodies (Nbs).

Integrative single-cell RNA-seq and ATAC-seq analysis of the evolutionary trajectory features of adipose-derived stem cells induced into astrocytes.

This study employs single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) and assay for transposase-accessible chromatin with high-throughput sequencing technologies (scATAC-seq) to perform joint sequencing on cells at various time points during the induction of adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) into astrocytes. We applied bioinformatics approaches to investigate the differentiation trajectories of ADSCs during their induced differentiation into astrocytes. Pseudotemporal analysis was used to infer differentiation trajectories.

S100A9 Inhibition Mitigates Acute Pancreatitis by Suppressing RAGE Expression and Subsequently Ameliorating Inflammation.

Acute pancreatitis (AP) is a common acute inflammatory abdominal condition. Severe acute pancreatitis (SAP) can provoke a systemic inflammatory response and lead to multiple organ failure. The S100A9 protein, recognized as a major inflammatory biomarker, plays a significant role in both infection and inflammatory responses.

Clinical Characteristics and Prognostic Factors of Patients with Intraocular Foreign Bodies from a Tertiary Eye Center in North China.

Background: This study aims to describe the epidemiology and clinical features of patients with intraocular foreign bodies (IOFBs) and analyze the prognostic factors influencing final vision.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed medical records of patients with IOFBs admitted to Qingdao Eye Hospital of Shandong First Medical University between January 1, 2014, and December 31, 2021. Inclusion criteria involved complete clinical data details of patients diagnosed with intraocular foreign bodies in our hospital who were treated with concurrent surgery and based on IOFB position and characteristics, different surgical methods were employed.

Single-Cell RNA-Seq Reveals the Pseudo-temporal Dynamic Evolution Characteristics of ADSCs to Neuronal Differentiation.

Adipose-derived stromal cells (ADSCs) are commonly used in regenerative medicine, but the genetic features of their development into neuronal cells are unknown. This study used single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) to reveal gene expression changes during ADSCs to neuronal differentiation. Sequencing of the ADSCs group, the prei-1d group, and the induction 1 h, 3 h, 5 h, 6 h, and 8 h groups was performed using the BD Rhapsody platform.

Efficacy and safety of combined low-dose rituximab regimen for chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy.

Objective: To determine the efficacy and safety of combined low-dose rituximab with conventional therapy for chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP) treatment.

Methods: Total 73 patients with CIDP were enrolled for the retrospective cohort study, and divided into conventional first-line therapy cohort (n = 40) and combined low-dose rituximab (100 mg per infusion) cohort (n = 33). The outcome measures include scores of I-RODS, mRS, INCAT, ONLS, TSS, and COMPASS 31 scale at baseline and regular four visits (4, 16, 28, and 52 weeks), as well as proportion of favorable response and outcome, corticosteroids dosage, and deterioration occurrence during follow-up.

A chiral porous organic cage-modified restricted-access material achieves online analysis of serum samples containing enantiomers and positional isomers.

Restricted-access materials (RAMs) allow biological samples to directly enter the chromatographic column for analysis owing to the steric exclusion function ability for biomolecules and extraction function for small-molecule analytes, which promoting the development of rapid, efficient, and automated in vivo drug analysis. Few reports on chiral RAMs that have been used to analyze enantiomers and positional isomers in serum by direct injection in currently. In this study, a chiral porous organic cage material RCC3 was innovatively introduced into the inner surface of silica gel and modified the outer surface with polyethylene glycol to prepare a novel type of chiral RAM-RCC3, and reported the use of chiral RAM-RCC3 as a stationary phase for the separation of chiral compounds and positional isomers in blank serum using high-performance liquid chromatography.

Protective Effects of Isostrictiniin Against High-Fat, High-Sugar Diet-Induced Steatosis in MASLD Mice via Regulation of the AMPK/SREBP-1c/ACC Pathway.

Objectives: Isostrictiniin (ITN), a natural polyphenol extracted from (snow-white waterlily), has antioxidant and hepatoprotective activities that may be beneficial in treating metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). This study aimed to investigate the protective effects of ITN on high-fat, high-sugar diet (HFSD)-induced steatosis in MASLD mice and its mechanisms.

Methods: Kunming mice were randomly divided into normal control and HFSD groups.

Assessing foodborne outbreak risk in Chinese households: A national survey analysis of pork handling practices.

Objective: This study aimed to assess the risk of foodborne outbreaks associated with household food handling practices in China and identify the consumer groups that are at higher risk for foodborne outbreaks.

Methods: A national survey of household pork handling practices was conducted in China. The risk of foodborne outbreaks stemming from consumers' improper handling practices was assessed utilizing the Weighted Harmonic Outbreak Prevention Index (WHOPI).

The relationship between endoplasmic reticulum stress and apoptosis in the process of adipose-derived stromal cells differentiating into astrocytes.

The potential of adult adipose-derived stromal cells (ADSCs) to differentiate into astrocytes holds promise for future cell transplantation therapies. However, the growth of differentiated astrocytes is unstable, and their survival rate is low. Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) pathway mediated apoptosis is one of the causes of cell death, but whether there is ER stress response in the differentiation of ADSCs into astrocytes is still unclear.

Refining antipsychotic treatment strategies in schizophrenia: discovery of genetic biomarkers for enhanced drug response prediction.

Schizophrenia (SCZ) is a severe mental disorder affecting around 1% of individuals worldwide. The variability in response to antipsychotic drugs (APDs) among SCZ patients presents a significant challenge for clinicians in determining the most effective medication. In this study, we investigated the biological markers and established a predictive model for APD response based on a large-scale genome-wide association study using 3269 Chinese schizophrenia patients.

Platelet-activating factor: a potential therapeutic target to improve cancer immunotherapy.

The tumor microenvironment (TME) fosters cancer progression by supporting the differentiation and proliferation of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), which play a critical role in suppressing immune responses and facilitating tumor growth. Recent findings by Dahal et al. reveal that platelet-activating factor (PAF), a lipid mediator elevated in the TME, contributes to the differentiation of neutrophils into immunosuppressive neutrophils.

DNA nanodevice for analysis of force-activated protein extension and interactions.

Force-induced changes in protein structure and function mediate cellular responses to mechanical stresses. Existing methods to study protein conformation under mechanical force are incompatible with biochemical and structural analysis. Taking advantage of DNA nanotechnology, including the well-defined geometry of DNA origami and programmable mechanics of DNA hairpins, we built a nanodevice to apply controlled forces to proteins.

Taxifolin attenuates hepatic ischemia-reperfusion injury by enhancing PINK1/Parkin-mediated mitophagy.

Background: Hepatic ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury stands as a recurring clinical challenge in liver transplantation, leading to mitochondrial dysfunction and cellular imbalance. Mitochondria, crucial for hepatocyte metabolism, are significantly damaged during hepatic I/R and the extent of mitochondrial damage correlates with hepatocyte injury. PINK1/Parkin-mediated mitophagy, is a specialized form of cellular autophagy, that maintains mitochondrial quality by identifying and removing damaged mitochondria, thereby restoring cellular homeostasis.