Survival and Its Predictors Among Patients Receiving Transarterial Chemoembolization for Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Ethiopia: A 6-Year Follow-Up Study.

Purpose: To analyze survival and its predictors among patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) receiving transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) in Ethiopia.

Materials And Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study among patients who received TACE for HCC at MCM Hospital from December 1, 2016, to December 31, 2022. Data were extracted from patients' medical records, and vital status was ascertained from the patients' charts or by phone call to the next of kin.

Reactions of SleC, Its Structure and Inhibition in Mitigation of Spore Germination in .

Spore germination in is initiated by a cascade of activities of several proteins that culminates in the activation of SleC, a cell-wall-processing enzyme. We report herein the details of the enzymatic activities of SleC by the use of synthetic peptidoglycan fragments and of spore sacculi. The reactions include the formation of 1,6-anhydromuramate─a hallmark of lytic transglycosylase activity─as well as a muramate hydrolytic product, both of which proceed through the same transient oxocarbenium species.

Ultra-Low-Field Portable Brain Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Patients With Cardiac Devices: Current Evidence and Future Directions.

The use of cardiac devices, including mechanical circulatory support (MCS), cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs), and pacing wires, has increased and significantly improved survival in patients with severe cardiac failure. However, these devices are frequently associated with acute brain injuries (ABIs) including ischemic strokes, intracranial hemorrhages, seizures, and hypoxic-ischemic brain injury which contribute substantially to morbidity and mortality. Computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), the standard imaging modalities for ABI diagnosis, can pose significant challenges in this patient population due to the risks associated with patient transportation and the incompatibility of ferromagnetic components of certain cardiac devices with high magnetic field of the MRI.

Design of a light and Ca switchable organic-peptide hybrid.

The design of organic-peptide hybrids has the potential to combine our vast knowledge of protein design with small molecule engineering to create hybrid structures with complex functions. Here, we describe the computational design of a photoswitchable Ca-binding organic-peptide hybrid. The designed molecule, designated Ca-binding switch (CaBS), combines an EF-hand motif from classical Ca-binding proteins such as calmodulin with a photoswitchable group that can be reversibly isomerized between a spiropyran (SP) and merocyanine (MC) state in response to different wavelengths of light.

Uterine organoids reveal insights into epithelial specification and plasticity in development and disease.

Understanding how epithelial cells in the female reproductive tract (FRT) differentiate is crucial for reproductive health, yet the underlying mechanisms remain poorly defined. At birth, FRT epithelium is highly malleable, allowing differentiation into various epithelial types, but the regulatory pathways guiding these early cell fate decisions are unclear. Here, we use neonatal mouse endometrial organoids and assembloid coculture models to investigate how innate cellular plasticity and external mesenchymal signals influence epithelial differentiation.

Scratching promotes allergic inflammation and host defense via neurogenic mast cell activation.

Itch is a dominant symptom in dermatitis, and scratching promotes cutaneous inflammation, thereby worsening disease. However, the mechanisms through which scratching exacerbates inflammation and whether scratching provides benefit to the host are largely unknown. We found that scratching was required for skin inflammation in mouse models dependent on FcεRI-mediated mast cell activation.

Developing and validating a HEalthCare NAvigation Competency (HECNAC) Scale for refugees in the United States.

The complex healthcare system in the United States (US) poses significant challenges for people, particularly minorities such as refugees. Refugees often encounter additional layers of challenges to healthcare navigation due to unfamiliarity with the system, limited health literacy, and language barriers. Despite their challenges, it is difficult to identify the gaps as few tools exist to measure navigation competency among this population and many conventional tools assume English proficiency, making them inadequate for refugees and other immigrants.

Mechanical properties of a polylactic 3D-printed interim crown after thermocycling.

Polylactic acid (PLA) has garnered attention for use in interim dental restorations due to its biocompatibility, biodegradability, low cost, ease of fabrication, and moderate strength. However, its performance under intraoral conditions, particularly under heat and moisture, remains underexplored. This study evaluated the mechanical properties of PLA interim crowns compared with those of polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) and bisphenol crowns under simulated intraoral conditions with thermocycling.

Entity-enhanced BERT for medical specialty prediction based on clinical questionnaire data.

A medical specialty prediction system for remote diagnosis can reduce the unexpected costs incurred by first-visit patients who visit the wrong hospital department for their symptoms. To develop medical specialty prediction systems, several researchers have explored clinical predictive models using real medical text data. Medical text data include large amounts of information regarding patients, which increases the sequence length.

Impact of Sensitive Skin on Quality of Life, Anxiety, and Depression: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: Sensitive skin (SS) is a common condition reported by many people worldwide. Patient interviews reveal that individuals with SS experience diminished quality of life, anxiety, and depression. Nonetheless, the impact of SS on mental health remains unclear.

Urinary DNA Methylation Test for Bladder Cancer Diagnosis.

Importance: An accurate noninvasive biomarker test is needed for the early diagnosis of bladder cancer.

Objective: To evaluate the performance of a urinary DNA methylation test (PENK methylation) and compare its diagnostic accuracy with that of the nuclear matrix protein 22 (NMP22) test or urine cytology test.

Design, Setting, And Participants: In this prospective multicenter study at 10 sites in the Republic of Korea, individuals 40 years and older with hematuria undergoing cystoscopy within 3 months between March 11, 2022, and May 30, 2024, participated.

Community Racial and Ethnic Representation Among Physicians in US Internal Medicine Residency Programs.

Importance: Increasing underrepresented in medicine (URIM) physicians among historically underserved communities helps reduce health disparities. The concordance of URIM physicians with their communities improves access to care, particularly for American Indian and Alaska Native, Black, and Hispanic or Latinx individuals.

Objectives: To explore county-level racial and ethnic representation of US internal medicine (IM) residents, examine racial and ethnic concordance between residents and their communities, and assess whether representation varies by presence of academic institutions or underserved settings.

Enhanced high-energy proton radiation hardness of ZnO thin-film transistors with a passivation layer.

Metal-oxide thin-film semiconductors have been highlighted as next-generation space semiconductors owing to their excellent radiation hardness based on their dimensional advantages of very low thickness and insensitivity to crystal structure. However, thin-film transistors (TFTs) do not exhibit intrinsic radiation hardness owing to the chemical reactions at the interface exposed to ambient air. In this study, significantly enhanced radiation hardness of AlO-passivated ZnO TFTs against high-energy protons with energies of up to 100 MeV is obtained owing to the passivation layer blocking interactions with external reactants, thereby maintaining the chemical stability of the thin-film semiconductor.

Evolution of Human Pair Bonds as a Consequence of Male-Biased Mating Sex Ratios?

Compared to our closest primate relatives, human life history involves greater longevity, which includes a distinctive postmenopausal life stage. Given mammalian reproductive physiology in which females build a finite stock of cells that can become oocytes early in life, which then continuously deplete mostly through cell death while males produce new sperm throughout adulthood, the postmenopausal stage makes the sex ratio in the fertile pool, called the adult sex ratio (ASR), male biased. Additionally, this affects a more fine-grained ratio, the operational sex ratio (OSR), defined as the ratio of males to females currently able to conceive.

Distinct Aggregation Behavior of -Terminally Truncated Aβ Over Aβ in the Presence of Zn(II).

The deposition of amyloid-β (Aβ) aggregates and metal ions within senile plaques is a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Among the modifications observed in Aβ peptides, -terminal truncation at Phe4, yielding Aβ, is highly prevalent in AD-affected brains and significantly alters Aβ's metal-binding and aggregation profiles. Despite the abundance of Zn(II) in senile plaques, its impact on the aggregation and toxicity of Aβ remains unexplored.

Moving towards single fraction peripheral lung stereotactic body radiation therapy: patient care during and after the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Single-fraction stereotactic body radiation therapy (SF-SBRT) for peripheral lung tumors was reviewed. Medically inoperable peripheral lung tumors eligible for SF-SBRT 34 Gray were treated. Patient characteristics, treatment and toxicity parameters were retrospectively collected, and toxicities were evaluated.

Validation of a Pretransplant Risk Prediction Model for Early Allograft Dysfunction After Living-donor Liver Transplantation.

Background: Early allograft dysfunction (EAD) affects outcomes in liver transplantation (LT). Existing risk models developed for deceased-donor LT depend on posttransplant factors and fall short in living-donor LT (LDLT), where pretransplant evaluations are crucial for preventing EAD and justifying the donor's risks.

Methods: This retrospective study analyzed data from 2944 adult patients who underwent LDLT at 17 centers between 2016 and 2020.

Selective Neurectomy with Regenerative Peripheral Nerve Interface Surgery for Facial Synkinesis.

Selective neurectomy (SN) typically leaves cut nerve endings to be either free-floating or buried in facial muscles. Regenerative peripheral nerve interfaces (RPNIs) use autologous skeletal muscle grafts to provide a nonfacial muscle target for reinnervation. To evaluate the effectiveness of RPNI surgery with SN for improving postoperative facial function through botulinum toxin use and facial movement metrics.

Comparing sputum, nasopharyngeal swabs, and combined samples for respiratory bacterial detection using multiplex PCR.

Unlabelled: Respiratory tract infections are major global health issues that require rapid and accurate diagnostic methods. Multiplex quantitative PCR (qPCR) is commonly used for pathogen detection in respiratory samples. However, the optimal specimen selection for detecting bacterial pathogens is not well-explored.

Selective Synthesis of Acyl-Sulfonyl Hydrazide Isomers: The Role of the Countercation of Base Selection in Palladium-Catalyzed Aminocarbonylations.

Selective synthesis of isomeric -acyl--sulfonyl and ,-acyl-sulfonyl hydrazides is achieved via palladium-catalyzed aminocarbonylation of aryl iodides with sulfonyl hydrazides under CO. The base's countercation, rather than its basicity, controls product isomerism. Conventional bases yield linear isomers, whereas sodium-based bases favor branched ones.

Ultrafast Photoflash Synthesis of High-Entropy Oxide Nanoparticles.

High-entropy metal oxides (HEOs) have recently received growing attention for broad energy conversion and storage applications due to their tunable properties. HEOs typically involve the combination of multiple metal cations in a single oxide lattice, thus bringing distinctive structures, controllable elemental composition, and tunable functional properties. Many synthesis methods for HEOs have been reported, such as solid-state reactions and carbon thermal shock methods.

Superloaded Multiplexed scRNA-seq Data Preserves Primary Immune Cell Heterogeneity but Necessitates Stringent Doublet Removal.

Background: Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) has improved our ability to characterize rare cell populations. In practice, cells from different tissues or donors are simultaneously loaded onto the instrument (multiplexed) at the recommended (standard loading) or higher (superloading) numbers to save time and money. Although cost-effective, superloading can stymie computational analyses owing to high multiplet rates and sample complexity.

It's Not Too Late: Physical and Social Activity Slow Cognitive Decline in Those Living With Mild Cognitive Impairment.

Current evidence concerning the effect of physical activity and social engagement on cognitive functioning in older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is underdeveloped. Drawing upon cognitive reserve theory, we used linear mixed models to investigate the impact of physical activity and social engagement on cognitive functioning in older adults living with MCI utilizing 16 years of data from the Health and Retirement Study ( = 1462). The average cognitive score (sum of immediate and delayed word recall, serial seven subtraction test, counting backwards, range: 0-27) at baseline was 9.

Analysis of Delirium Risk Assessment Tools for Prediction of Postoperative Delirium Following Lumbar Spinal Fusion.

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Objective: Evaluate the utility of Delirium Risk Assessment Score (DRAS), Delirium Risk Assessment Tool (DRAT), and Delirium Elderly At-Risk (DEAR) in patients undergoing posterior lumbar interbody fusions.

Background: Surgical interventions can place patients at risk for postoperative delirium (POD), an acute and often severe cognitive impairment associated with poor outcomes.