Evaluation of physicochemical property changes in 3D-printed biodegradable medical devices under simulated oral physiological conditions.

Biodegradable medical devices undergo degradation following implantation, potentially leading to clinical failure. Consequently, it is necessary to assess the change in their properties post-implantation. However, a standardized method for the precise evaluation of the changes in their physicochemical properties is currently lacking.

Sustained Release of HIF-2α Inhibitors Using Biodegradable Porous Silicon Carriers for Enhanced Immunogenic Cell Death of Malignant Merkel Cell Carcinoma.

Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is a rare but aggressive neuroendocrine skin cancer with limited treatment options, often associated with Merkel cell polyomavirus (MCPyV) and marked by hypoxic tumor microenvironments that promote resistance to therapies. Belzutifan, an FDA-approved hypoxia-inducible factor-2α (HIF-2α) inhibitor, has shown promise in inhibiting tumor growth; however, its clinical efficacy is hindered by its low solubility, rapid clearance, and limited bioavailability. In this study, we present a strategy using porous silicon (pSi) microparticles and nanoparticles as carriers for the sustained delivery of benzoate to MCC cells.

Systematic ocular phenotyping of 8,707 knockout mouse lines identifies genes associated with abnormal corneal phenotypes.

Purpose: Corneal dysmorphologies (CDs) are typically classified as either regressive degenerative corneal dystrophies (CDtrs) or defective growth and differentiation-driven corneal dysplasias (CDyps). Both eye disorders have multifactorial etiologies. While previous work has elucidated many aspects of CDs, such as presenting symptoms, epidemiology, and pathophysiology, the genetic mechanisms remain incompletely understood.

Reactive EEG Biomarkers for Diagnosis and Prognosis of Alzheimer's Disease and Mild Cognitive Impairment.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a devastating neurodegenerative condition characterized by progressive cognitive decline with currently no effective treatment available. One of the most critical areas in AD research is the identification of reliable biomarkers, which are essential for accurate diagnosis, prognostic assessment, and the development of targeted therapies. In this study, we introduce two novel reactive EEG (rEEG) biomarkers aimed at enhancing the diagnosis of AD and mild cognitive impairment (MCI).

Microneedle-mediated intradermal delivery of Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccines for single-dose tuberculosis vaccination.

Tuberculosis (TB) remains a highly lethal infectious disease. The primary preventive measure is Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG), a live attenuated vaccine. However, the current intradermal vaccination method with 10-dose vials faces challenges such as inadequate infant injection, inaccurate dispensing, and unstable storage.

Lung cancer organoid-based drug evaluation models and new drug development application trends.

Lung cancer is a malignant tumor with high incidence and mortality rates in both men and women worldwide. Although anticancer drugs are prescribed to treat lung cancer patients, individual responses to these drugs vary, making it crucial to identify the most suitable treatment for each patient. Therefore, it is necessary to develop an anticancer drug efficacy prediction model that can analyze drug efficacy before patient treatment and establish personalized treatment strategies.

Impact of Smovey Vibration Versus Dumbbell Resistance on Muscle Activation in Women.

BACKGROUND The Smovey Vibroswing exercise device consists of a circular tube containing 4 steel balls, partly covered by a cushioning handle, to strengthen the arm and shoulder muscles. This study aimed to compare the effects of using a Smovey Vibroswing versus dumbbell exercises on muscle activity and body composition of the upper limbs in 23 women under 30 years of age. MATERIAL AND METHODS Subjects were 23 women under the age of 30 years, residing in South Korea, with no musculoskeletal diseases or shoulder surgeries in the past year.

Mouse models for metabolic health research: molecular mechanism of exercise effects on health improvement through adipose tissue remodelling.

Exercise provides health benefits to multiple metabolic tissues through complex biological pathways and interactions between organs. However, investigating these complex mechanisms in humans is still limited, making mouse models extremely useful for exploring exercise-induced changes in whole-body metabolism and health. In this review, we focus on gaining a broader understanding of the metabolic phenotypes and molecular mechanisms induced by exercise in mouse models.

Validation of an acute kidney injury prediction model as a clinical decision support system.

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a critical clinical condition that requires immediate intervention. We developed an artificial intelligence (AI) model called PRIME Solution to predict AKI and evaluated its ability to enhance clinicians' predictions.

Methods: The PRIME Solution was developed using convolutional neural networks with residual blocks on 183,221 inpatient admissions from a tertiary hospital (2013-2017) and externally validated with 4,501 admissions at another tertiary hospital (2020-2021).

The Road to Commercializing Optical Metasurfaces: Current Challenges and Future Directions.

Optical metasurfaces, components composed of artificial nanostructures, are recognized for pushing boundaries of wavefront manipulation while maintaining a lightweight, compact design that surpasses conventional optics. Such advantages align with the current trends in optical systems, which demand compact communication devices and immersive holographic projectors, driving significant investment from the industry. Although interest in commercialization of optical metasurfaces has steadily grown since the initial breakthrough with diffraction-limited focusing, their practical applications have remained limited by challenges such as, massive-production yield, absence of standardized evaluation methods, and constrained design methodology.

Genetic Correlation Analysis of Calving Ease and Gestation Length of Korean Holstein Cattle.

Objective: To investigate genetic correlation between calving ease (CE) and gestation length (GL) traits of Korean Holstein cattle to understand genetic structures of these two traits and their potential implications.

Methods: Records of progenies from first parity (P1, N=117,921) and second parity (P2, N=141,104) Holsteins cows were used for analysis. All phenotypes (CE and GL) were considered as calf traits.

Spatiotemporal Dynamic Immunomodulation by Infection-Mimicking Gels Enhances Broad and Durable Protective Immunity Against Heterologous Viruses.

Despite their safety and widespread use, conventional protein antigen-based subunit vaccines face significant challenges such as low immunogenicity, insufficient long-term immunity, poor CD8 T-cell activation, and poor adaptation to viral variants. To address these issues, an infection-mimicking gel (IM-Gel) is developed that is designed to emulate the spatiotemporal dynamics of immune stimulation in acute viral infections through in situ supramolecular self-assembly of nanoparticulate-TLR7/8a (NP-TLR7/8a) and an antigen with tannic acid (TA). Through collagen-binding properties of TA, the IM-Gel enables sustained delivery and enhanced retention of NP-TLR7/8a and protein antigen in the lymph node subcapsular sinus of mice for over 7 days, prolonging the exposure of vaccine components in both B cell and T cell zones, leading to robust humoral and cellular responses.

A Pharmacokinetic/Pharmacodynamic Study of Esomeprazole Comparing a Dual Delayed-Release Formulation (YYD601) to a Conventional Formulation Following Multiple Administrations in Healthy Adult Subjects.

Background: YYD601 is a new dual delayed-release formulation of esomeprazole, developed to enhance plasma exposure and prolong the duration of acid suppression.

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the safety, pharmacokinetic (PK), and pharmacodynamic (PD) profiles of YYD601 20 mg following single and multiple oral administrations in healthy, fasting adult Koreans, and to compare these outcomes to those of the conventional esomeprazole 20 mg capsule.

Methods: A randomized, open-label, two-period crossover study was conducted in 28 participants, who were divided into two treatment groups: one group received YYD601 20 mg, and the other received conventional esomeprazole 20 mg, once daily for five consecutive days.

Cooking loss estimation of semispinalis capitis muscle of pork butt using a deep neural network on hyperspectral data.

This study evaluated the performance of a deep-learning-based model that predicted cooking loss in the semispinalis capitis (SC) muscle of pork butts using hyperspectral images captured 24 h postmortem. To overcome low-scale samples, 70 pork butts were used with pixel-based data augmentation. Principal component regression (PCR) and partial least squares regression (PLSR) models for predicting cooking loss in SC muscle showed higher R values with multiplicative signal correction, while the first derivative resulted in a lower root mean square error (RMSE).

Beyond Misfolding: A New Paradigm for the Relationship Between Protein Folding and Aggregation.

Aggregation is intricately linked to protein folding, necessitating a precise understanding of their relationship. Traditionally, aggregation has been viewed primarily as a sequential consequence of protein folding and misfolding. However, this conventional paradigm is inherently incomplete and can be deeply misleading.

Redesigning protonic ceramic electrochemical cells to lower the operating temperature.

Protonic ceramic electrochemical cells (PCECs) can operate at intermediate temperatures (450° to 600°C) for power generation and hydrogen production. However, the operating temperature is still too high to revolutionize ceramic electrochemical cell technology. Lowering the operating temperature to <450°C will enable a wider material choice and reduce system costs.

Tissue-Adhesive and Stiffness-Adaptive Neural Electrodes Fabricated Through Laser-Based Direct Patterning.

Recently, implantable devices for treating peripheral nerve disorders have demonstrated significant potential as neuroprosthetics for diagnostics and electrical stimulation. However, the mechanical mismatch between these devices and nerves frequently results in tissue damage and performance degradation. Although advances are made in stretchable electrodes, challenges, including complex patterning techniques and unstable performance, persist.

A Novel Therapeutic Approach Targeting Spinal Accessory and Dorsal Scapular Nerves for the Relief of Posterior Neck, Trapezius, and Interscapular Pain.

Posterior neck, trapezius, and interscapular pain, exacerbated by poor posture such as forward head and rounded shoulders, is common. In this study, we aimed to assess the clinical outcomes of isotonic saline injections at nerve entrapment points (NEPs) within the sternocleidomastoid (SCM) and scalenus medius (SM) muscles for alleviating spinal accessory nerve (SAN) and dorsal scapular nerve (DSN) compression in patients suffering from posterior neck, trapezius, and interscapular pain. In this retrospective study, 68 patients were included, with 34 receiving isotonic saline injections and 34 undergoing Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy (ESWT) as a control.

Maternal and Neonatal Outcomes Based on Changes in Glycosylated Hemoglobin Levels During First and Second Trimesters of Pregnancy in Women with Pregestational Diabetes: Multicenter, Retrospective Cohort Study in South Korea.

This study compared glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels in the first and second trimesters of pregnancy and assessed maternal and neonatal outcomes according to HbA1c variations among women with pregestational diabetes. This retrospective, multicenter Korean study involved mothers with diabetes who had given birth in 17 hospitals. A total of 292 women were divided into three groups based on HbA1c levels during the first and second trimesters: women with HbA1c levels maintained at <6.

Association between calcium channel blocker use and the risk of interstitial lung disease and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis: A longitudinal cohort study.

Introduction: Ca2+ signaling in fibroblasts would be one of the important mediators of lung fibrosis. This study investigated the relationship between calcium channel blocker usage and the risk of developing interstitial lung disease and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

Material And Methods: This cohort study used data from the Korean National Health Screening Cohort spanned from January 1, 2004, to December 31, 2015.

Adenylate kinase 5 deficiency impairs epididymal white adipose tissue homeostasis and decreases fat mass.

Importance: The brain and adipose tissue interact metabolically, and if there is a problem with the energy metabolism of the brain, it cannot maintain the energy balance with the adipose tissue. Therefore, when adenylate kinase 5 (), which regulates energy metabolism in the brain, is knocked out, problems with lipid metabolism may occur.

Objective: We aimed to elucidate the metabolic function and phenotype of , a gene with an unknown function in metabolism.

Wheeze and Crackle Discrimination Algorithm in Pneumonia Respiratory Signals.

A new pneumonia detection method is proposed to provide both pneumonia detection in respiratory sound signals and wheeze and crackle discrimination when pneumonia episodes are detected. In the proposed method, two-step hierarchy, classifying pneumonia in the first step and discriminating wheezing and crackling in the second step, is considered; the conventional pneumonia detection method is modified to improve pneumonia detection performance, while wheezing and crackling discrimination functionality is added to facilitate the application of appropriate remedies for each case. We used resampling techniques to address the imbalance in the ICBHI pneumonia dataset.

Narrative mobile video game-based cognitive training to enhance frontal function in patients with mild cognitive impairment.

Although cognitive training has been proposed as a possible therapeutic modality for mild cognitive impairment (MCI), most serious games focus on specific tasks. This study aimed to investigate the feasibility and efficacy of narrative video game-based cognitive intervention for MCI. A four-week (± 1-week) mobile game intervention was given to 17 MCI participants (mean age (SD) = 72.

Collaborative activities in a biological dosimetry network for radiation emergencies in South Korea.

Purpose: Biological dosimetry is an essential analytic method to estimate the absorbed radiation dose in the human body by measuring changes in biomolecules after radiation exposure. Joint response in a network to mass-casualty radiation incidents is one way to overcome the limitations of biological dosimetry, sharing the workload among laboratories. This study aimed to investigate the current performance, collaborative activities and technical advances of the Korea biodosimetry network (K-BioDos), and suggest the future directions toward successful joint response.