Optimization of Metal Injection Molding Processing Conditions for Reducing Black Lines and Meld Lines in Bone Plates.

The bone plates used in surgery to assist in fracture healing are often manufactured by metal injection molding (MIM) using a feedstock material consisting of metal powder and polymer binder. However, if the local powder concentration is too low or uneven, black lines may be formed, which impair the product appearance. Furthermore, if the melding temperature is too low, it can lead to meld lines and reduced mechanical properties.

Epileptic Patients with More Clinic Visits Are More Likely to Be Diagnosed with Dementia-A Population-Based Retrospective Cohort Study.

Objective: This retrospective cohort study assessed dementia risk in epilepsy patients associated with the compliance to epileptic treatment visits.

Methods: We used Taiwanese insurance claims data to establish an epilepsy cohort ( = 39,216) diagnosed in 2000-2015 and a matched control cohort without epilepsy ( = 156,864), evaluating the incident dementia by the end of 2016.

Results: The dementia incidence was 2.

Perioperative Stroke Following Implantation of Left Ventricular Assist Device: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Objectives: Stroke is common following left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation, although comprehensive data on perioperative strokes in this uncommon population is lacking. The current study aim was to characterize the presentation, features, and outcomes of perioperative cerebrovascular ischemia post-LVAD implantation at the authors' institution.

Design: Single-center retrospective cohort.

Enhancing the porosity of biphasic calcium phosphate using polyethylene glycol as the porogen for bone regeneration applications.

Biphasic calcium phosphate (BCP) has been used as a material to support bone grafting, repair, recovery, and regeneration over the past decades. However, the inherent weakness of BCP is its low porosity, which limits the infiltration, differentiation, and proliferation of bone cells. To address this issue, porous BCP was synthesized using polyethylene glycol (PEG) 1000 with weight ratio ranging from 20%-60% in BCP as the porogen through the powder-forming method.

Enhancing recanalization success: Thrombectomy plus stent angioplasty by coaxial balloon technique for acute ischemic stroke with tandem occlusions.

Recanalizing acute ischemic stroke with carotid tandem occlusion (CTO) is technically challenging because distal embolic migration during revascularization can significantly influence outcomes. In this study, we aimed to introduce our coaxial balloon technique using a balloon-guiding catheter (BCG), angioplasty catheter, and aspiration catheter sequentially to prevent thrombus migration to a new vascular territory. We used this technique for six patients with CTO.

Early-life polystyrene nanoplastics exposure impairs pathogen avoidance behavior associated with intestine-derived insulin-like neuropeptide (ins-11) and serotonin signaling in Caenorhabditis elegans.

Nanoplastics (NPs) contamination is an emerging global concern due to the widespread use of plastic products and their potentially negative health impact on ecosystems. Despite their ubiquity, the effects of early-life NPs exposure on host-pathogen interactions remain largely unknown. In this study, we show that early-life exposure to polystyrene NPs (PS-NPs, 100-nm) at predicted environmentally relevant concentrations (10 µg/L) significantly impairs food preference and reduces avoidance of the pathogenic bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis in Caenorhabditis elegans.

Serum Methotrexate Level Predicts Acute Kidney Injury After High-Dose Methotrexate: A Case Report and Single-Center Experience.

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a serious complication following high-dose methotrexate (HD-MTX) treatment, despite established preventive measures. This study presents a case report and a retrospective review of patients treated with HD-MTX, aiming to identify risk factors for AKI and propose a modified treatment protocol.

Methods: We report a case of a 43-year-old man with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma who developed severe AKI after HD-MTX therapy.

Right Ventricular Function Following Sternotomy Versus a Less-Invasive Approach for Left Ventricular Assist Device Implant: Retrospective Cohort Study.

Objectives: Durable left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation is traditionally performed via median sternotomy (MS). Less-invasive implantation may lower the incidence of postimplant right ventricular failure (RVF). Our primary objective was to determine whether less-invasive implantation reduces the odds of severe RVF compared to MS.

Secondhand smoke is associated with peptic ulcer disease and gastroesophageal reflux disease in non-smokers in a large Taiwanese population study.

Background: Active smokers are known to be at an increased risk of both gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and peptic ulcer disease (PUD), however the role of passive smoking remains unclear. In this study, we aimed to examine whether secondhand smoke (SHS) is associated with PUD and GERD.

Methods: In this population-based study, we conducted a large-scale analysis with 88,297 never-smokers (male: 18,595; female: 69,702; mean age 50.

Actions of thyroid hormones and thyromimetics on the liver.

Thyroid hormones (triiodothyronine and thyroxine) are pivotal for metabolic balance in the liver and entire body. Dysregulation of the hypothalamus-pituitary-thyroid axis can contribute to hepatic metabolic disturbances, affecting lipid metabolism, glucose regulation and protein synthesis. In addition, reductions in circulating and intrahepatic thyroid hormone concentrations increase the risk of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease by inducing lipotoxicity, inflammation and fibrosis.

Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate disrupts circadian rhythm associated with changes in metabolites and cytochrome P450 gene expression in Caenorhabditis elegans.

The plasticizer di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) is a widespread environmental pollutant due to its extensive use. While circadian rhythms are inherent in most living organisms, the detrimental effects of DEHP on circadian rhythm and the underlying mechanisms remain largely unknown. This study investigated the influence of early developmental exposure to DEHP on circadian rhythm and explored the possible relationship between circadian disruption and DEHP metabolism in the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans.

VADIS: A Visual Analytics Pipeline for Dynamic Document Representation and Information-Seeking.

In the biomedical domain, visualizing the document embeddings of an extensive corpus has been widely used in informationseeking tasks. However, three key challenges with existing visualizations make it difficult for clinicians to find information efficiently. First, the document embeddings used in these visualizations are generated statically by pretrained language models, which cannot adapt to the user's evolving interest.

The food-borne carcinogenic 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP) disrupts circadian rhythms and ameliorated by pterostilbene (PSB) in Caenorhabditis elegans.

The food-borne 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP) is a potential human carcinogen abundant in cooked meat. While circadian rhythms are crucial biological oscillations, the negative impact of PhIP on circadian systems and the potential of mitigation remain underexplored. We investigated the effects of PhIP on circadian rhythms and the mitigating effects of the phytochemical antioxidant pterostilbene (PSB) in Caenorhabditis elegans.

Phyllanretiosides A and B: Two Undescribed Compounds from Phyllanthus Reticulatus with Nitric Oxide Production Inhibition and Antimicrobial Activity.

Phytochemical study on the methanol extract of the leaves of Phyllanthus reticulatus led to the isolation of two new compounds, phyllanretiosides A (1) and B (2) together with ten known ones (3-12). Their chemical structures were determined by HR-ESI-MS, NMR, and ECD spectra in comparison with the literature. Three ellagitannins, phyllanretioside A (1), corilagin (3), and phyllanthusiin C (4) inhibited lipopolysaccharide(LPS)-induced nitric oxide production in RAW 264.

Clinical outcomes of hydrofiber foam dressing in the treatment of abrasion wounds: A retrospective study.

Mopeds are a popular mode of transportation in Taiwan, yet collision accidents often lead to abrasion requiring medical attention. While hydrofiber foam dressing (HFD) have proven to help control exudates, reduce the frequency of dressing changes, and preserve more viable tissue, there is currently no established clinical guideline for the treatment of abrasion wounds with dressings. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the clinical outcomes of abrasions treated with hydrofiber foam dressings.

Timely Shaver Treatment Removes Chronic Tophaceous Mass Improve Surgical Outcomes.

Current treatments with urate-lowering therapy (ULT) are effective for most patients with gout. However, approximately 10% of these patients do not respond well to ULT and develop chronic tophus lesions. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of surgery involving the shaver technique against chronic tophus lesions.

Autophagy and hepatic lipid metabolism: mechanistic insight and therapeutic potential for MASLD.

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) originates from a homeostatic imbalance in hepatic lipid metabolism. Increased fat deposition in the liver of people suffering from MASLD predisposes them to develop further metabolic derangements, including diabetes mellitus, metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), and other end-stage liver diseases. Unfortunately, only limited pharmacological therapies exist for MASLD to date.

Successful Recanalization and Neurological Restoration in Cancerous Embolic Cerebral Infarction via Endovascular Stent-Retriever Embolectomy.

Mechanical thrombectomy has emerged as a promising treatment for acute ischemic stroke caused by large vessel occlusion. However, cases involving cancerous emboli retrieved during endovascular embolectomy are rare. We present a case of a 65-year-old man with a history of heavily treated rectal cancer, who developed a middle cerebral artery (MCA) infarction due to metastatic adenocarcinoma.

Esrra regulates Rplp1-mediated translation of lysosome proteins suppressed in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis and reversed by alternate day fasting.

Objective: Currently, little is known about the mechanism(s) regulating global and specific protein translation during metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH; previously known as non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, NASH).

Methods: Unbiased label-free quantitative proteome, puromycin-labelling and polysome profiling were used to understand protein translation activity in vitro and in vivo.

Results: We observed a global decrease in protein translation during lipotoxicity in human primary hepatocytes, mouse hepatic AML12 cells, and livers from a dietary mouse model of MASH.

New diterpene lactone derivatives from leaves inhibit nitric oxide production in RAW 264.7 cells.

Phytochemical studies on plants have attracted considerable attention over the past few decades due to the structural diversities and significant biological activities of terpenoids produced by these plants. In the present study, five new acyclic diterpene lactone derivatives, aphanamixionolides A-E (1-5), and three known tirucallane-type triterpenes, namely, piscidinol A (6), hispidone (7), and bourjotinolone A (8), were isolated from the leaves of . Their structures were elucidated by comprehensive analyses of HR-ESI-MS and NMR spectroscopic data and by comparison with those reported in the literature.

Temporal variations and chemical characteristics of marine PM at Dongsha Islands, South China Sea: Three-year measurement.

The study of long-range transport effects on marine fine particles (PM), particularly in remote sites such as the Dongsha Islands, is pivotal for advancing our understanding of air pollution dynamics on a regional scale and for formulating effective environmental policies. PM concentrations were examined over three consecutive years and grouped based on their transport routes. The backward trajectory simulation revealed that high PM concentrations were observed in the West Channel, originating from North and Central China, the Korean Peninsula, and the Japanese Islands, opposed to the East Channel.

Clinical characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 infection and its impact on pediatric emergency care in northern Taiwan.

Background: The SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.2 outbreak started in Taiwan in April 2022. The pandemic posed a challenge to pediatric emergency departments (PEDs) because of increased PED visits and diverse clinical presentations.

Five New Furostanol Glycosides from the Fruits of Tribulus terrestris with NO Production Inhibitory Activity.

Eight furostanol glycosides including five undescribed compounds, named tribufurostanosides A-E (1-5), and three known ones (6-8) were isolated from the fruits of Tribulus terrestris L. Their chemical structures were determined by the IR, HR-ESI-MS, 1D-, and 2D-NMR spectra. Furostanols 1-8 significantly inhibited nitric oxide production in LPS activated RAW 264.