A Retrospective Analysis of ALS Clusters Near Algae Blooms in North Carolina (P5-11.019).

Objective: To examine clinical differences between individuals with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) who live near and far from harmful algal blooms (HABs) in North Carolina.

Background: While 10% of ALS cases are associated with genetic mutations, the rest may have environmental causes. Higher than expected numbers of ALS cases have been identified near HABs in North Carolina using data from death certificates between 1999 and 2020 (unpublished).

Localized COUP-TFII pDNA Delivery Modulates Stem/Progenitor Cell Differentiation to Enhance Endothelialization and Inhibit Calcification of Decellularized Allografts.

Decellularized allografts have emerged as promising candidates for vascular bypass grafting, owing to their inherent bioactivity and minimal immunogenicity. However, graft failure that results from suboptimal regeneration and pathological remodeling has hindered their clinical adoption. Recent advances in vascular biology highlight the pivotal role of COUP-TFII in orchestrating endothelial identity, angiogenesis, safeguarding against atherosclerosis, and mitigating vascular calcification.

Four New Furofuran Lignans from Inhibit the Accumulation of Molting Hormones in Armyworm.

Furofuran lignans have been identified as the main substances responsible for the biological activities of the plant genus . Here, four new phrymarolin-type leptolignans A-D (-) and eight previously known lignans were isolated from . Of these, nine exhibited significant antifeedant activity against armyworm () through a dual-choice bioassay, with the EC values ranging from 0.

2D/2D coupled MOF/Fe composite metamaterials enable robust ultra-broadband microwave absorption.

The combination between macroscopic structure designs and microscopic material designs offers tremendous possibilities for the development of advanced electromagnetic wave (EMW) absorbers. Herein, we propose a metamaterial design to address persistent challenges in this field, including narrow bandwidth, low-frequency bottlenecks, and, particularly, the urgent issue of robustness (i.e.

Clinical and genetic factors affecting diagnostic timeline of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a 15-year retrospective study.

Objectives: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) diagnosis can take 10-16 months from symptom onset, leading to delays in treatment and patient counselling. We studied the impact of clinical and genetic risk factors on the diagnostic timeline of ALS.

Methods: Baseline characteristics, family history, gene testing, onset location, time from symptom onset to diagnosis, and time from first doctor visit to suspected ALS was collected.

Chromosome-level genome assembly and annotation of the cold-water species Ophiura sarsii.

The cold-water species Ophiura sarsii, a brittle star, is a key echinoderm in the Arctic continental shelf region, highly sensitive to climate change. However, the absence of a high-quality genome has hindered a thorough understanding of its adaptive evolution. In this study, we reported the first chromosome-level genome assembly of O.

ALSUntangled #75: Portable neuromodulation stimulator therapy.

Spurred by patient interest, ALSUntangled herein examines the potential of the Portable Neuromodulation Stimulator (PoNS™) in treating amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The PoNS™ device, FDA-approved for the treatment of gait deficits in adult patients with multiple sclerosis, utilizes translingual neurostimulation to stimulate trigeminal and facial nerves via the tongue, aiming to induce neuroplastic changes. While there are early, promising data for PoNS treatment to improve gait and balance in multiple sclerosis, stroke, and traumatic brain injury, no pre-clinical or clinical studies have been performed in ALS.

Towards Unified Robustness Against Both Backdoor and Adversarial Attacks.

Deep Neural Networks (DNNs) are known to be vulnerable to both backdoor and adversarial attacks. In the literature, these two types of attacks are commonly treated as distinct robustness problems and solved separately, since they belong to training-time and inference-time attacks respectively. However, this paper revealed that there is an intriguing connection between them: (1) planting a backdoor into a model will significantly affect the model's adversarial examples and (2) for an infected model, its adversarial examples have similar features as the triggered images.

Liver ChREBP deficiency inhibits fructose-induced insulin resistance in pregnant mice and female offspring.

High fructose intake during pregnancy increases insulin resistance (IR) and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) risk. IR during pregnancy primarily results from elevated hormone levels. We aim to determine the role of liver carbohydrate response element binding protein (ChREBP) in insulin sensitivity and lipid metabolism in pregnant mice and their offspring.

Pearls & Oy-sters: Bibrachial Amyotrophy From a Dural Tear.

Bibrachial amyotrophy signifies a clinical phenotype characterized by weakness in both upper extremities with preserved strength in the face, neck, and lower extremities. The underlying causes of bibrachial amyotrophy are broad. We report a patient exhibiting bibrachial amyotrophy who initially received a diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS); however, his clinical course and NCS/EMG were atypical for ALS.

Activation of Ga Liquid Catalyst with Continuously Exposed Active Sites for Electrocatalytic C-N Coupling.

Environmentally friendly electrocatalytic coupling of CO and N for urea synthesis is a promising strategy. However, it is still facing problems such as low yield as well as low stability. Here, a new carbon-coated liquid alloy catalyst, GaCuMo@C is designed for efficient electrochemical urea synthesis by activating Ga active sites.

Symbiotic Relationship of Comasterschlegelii (Crinoidea: Comatulidae) and Gymnolophus obscura (Ophiuroidea: Ophiotrichidae) Derived from Stable Isotope and Fatty Acid Analyses.

Coral reef community exhibits high species diversity and a broad range of biological relationships, including widespread symbiosis and complex food utilization patterns. In our study, we investigated the symbiotic relationship between the commonly crinoid host Comaster schlegelii and its ophiuroid obligatory symbiont Gymnolophus obscura. Using a combination of fatty acid biomarkers and stable isotopic compositions, we explored differences in their organic matter utilization strategies and nutritional relationships.

The Superaerophobic N-Doped Carbon Nanocage with Hydrogen Spillover Effort for Enhanced Hydrogen Evolution.

Under the high current density, the excessive strong adsorption of H* intermediates and H accumulation the catalysts are the major obstacle to the industrial application of hydrogen evolation reaction (HER) catalysts. Herein, through experimental exploration, it is found that the superaerophobic Nitrogen (N)-doped carbon material can promote the rapid release of H and provide H* desorption site for the hydrogen spillover process, which makes it have great potential as the catalysts support for hydrogen spillover. Based on this discovery, this work develops the hydrogen spillover catalyst with electron-rich Pt sites loaded on N-doped carbon nanocage (N-CNC) with adjustable work function.

Design, Synthesis and Antifungal Activities of Novel Pyrazole Analogues Containing the Aryl Trifluoromethoxy Group.

On the basis of the three-component synthetic methodology developed by us, a total of twenty-six pyrazole compounds bearing aryl OCF were designed and synthesized. Their chemical structures were characterized by H and C nuclear magnetic resonance and high-resolution mass spectrometry. These compounds were evaluated systematically for antifungal activities in vitro against six plant pathogenic fungi by the mycelium growth rate method.

ALSUntangled #71: Nuedexta.

Nuedexta is a combination of dextromethorphan hydrobromide and quinidine sulfate and was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2010 to treat pseudobulbar affect (PBA). There have since been anecdotal case reports of bulbar function improvements after Nuedexta treatment. Here, we review the off-label use of Nuedexta for improving bulbar function in people with ALS.

Mortality Prediction in Severe Traumatic Brain Injury Using Traditional and Machine Learning Algorithms.

Prognostic prediction of traumatic brain injury (TBI) in patients is crucial in clinical decision and health care policy making. This study aimed to develop and validate prediction models for in-hospital mortality after severe traumatic brain injury (sTBI). We developed and validated logistic regression (LR), LASSO regression, and machine learning (ML) algorithms including support vector machines (SVM) and XGBoost models.

Nogo-B deficiency suppresses white adipogenesis by regulating β-catenin signaling.

Aims: Obesity is a global epidemic around the world. Reticulon-4B (Nogo-B) is an endoplasmic reticulum-resident protein. Our previous work demonstrated that Nogo-B deficiency inhibited obesity and decreased the size of white adipocytes.

·H effectively enhance electrocatalytic nitrogen fixation.

Nowadays, most reported ammonia (NH) yields and Faradaic efficiency (FE) of electrocatalysts are very low in the field of electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction reactions (NRR). Here, we are reported ·H for the first time in the field of electrocatalytic NRR, which are generated by sulfite (SO) and HO in electrolyte solutions upon exposure to UV light. The high NH yields can achieve 100.

An evaluation of the combination of sodium phenylbutyrate and taurursodiol for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Introduction: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a rapidly progressive, fatal neurodegenerative motor neuron disease. Despite the overwhelming need for effective therapeutics for ALS, riluzole and edaravone were the only two FDA-approved disease-modifying therapies prior to 2022. The randomized, double-blind, multicenter, placebo-controlled CENTAUR trial demonstrated the safety and efficacy of sodium phenylbutyrate-taurursodiol (PB-TURSO) in persons with ALS (PALS), leading to its conditional approval in Canada in June 2022 and full approval in the USA in September 2022.

ALSUntangled #68: ozone therapy.

ALSUntangled reviews alternative and off-label treatments for people living with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (PALS). Here we review ozone therapy. Ozone therapy has possible mechanisms for slowing ALS progression based on its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and mitochondrial effects.

ALSUntangled #65: glucocorticoid corticosteroids.

ALSUntangled reviews alternative and off-label treatments for people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (PALS). Here we review glucocorticoids. Neuroinflammation plays a prominent role in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) pathogenesis, so some hypothesize that glucocorticoids might be an effective ALS therapy through their immunosuppressive effects.

Effects of Frozen Storage Temperature on Water-Holding Capacity and Physicochemical Properties of Muscles in Different Parts of Bluefin Tuna.

The effects of different freezing temperatures on the water-holding capacity and physicochemical properties of bluefin tuna were studied. The naked body, big belly and middle belly parts of bluefin tuna were stored at -18 °C and -55 °C for 180 days. The tuna was evaluated by determining the water-holding capacity, color difference, malondialdehyde (MDA), salt-soluble protein content, free amino acid (FAA), endogenous fluorescent proteins and water distribution and migration.

Association of Atrial Fibrillation Detected after Stroke with Cardiac Dysfunction and Features of Neurogenic Cardiac Injury.

Objectives: Understanding the link between markers of cardiac injury and atrial fibrillation (AF) detected after stroke (AFDAS) may help refine stroke risk stratification and therapeutic approaches in AFDAS.

Materials And Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 988 adult patients admitted for acute ischemic stroke and transient ischemic attack, who presented within 4.5 h from last known well.