Ecofriendly Filtration of Silver Nanoparticles for Ultrasensitive Surface-Enhanced (Resonance) Raman Spectroscopy-Based Detection.

In this study, a widely used colloid of Creighton AgNPs (ORI, 1-100 nm, mostly ≤ 40 nm, ∼10 μg mL) was rapidly manipulated via tangential flow filtration (TFF) for highly reproducible surface-enhanced (resonance) Raman spectroscopy (SE(R)RS) experiments down to the single-molecule (SM) level. The quasi-spherical AgNPs were size-selected, purified, and concentrated in two TFF fractions of a cutoff diameter of ∼40 nm: AgNP ≤ 40 (∼900 μg mL) and AgNP ≥ 40 (∼100 μg mL). The SE(R)S-based sensing capabilities of the two TFF fractions were then tested under pre-resonance (632.

Association Between the Level of Vitamin D and COVID-19 Infection in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review.

The COVID-19 pandemic has exerted a notable impact on worldwide health across diverse age groups. Although children and adolescents were initially considered less vulnerable, they have also shown susceptibility to the virus, emphasizing the importance of understanding associated risk factors. Epidemiological data reveal an increasing number of COVID-19 cases in this age group.

Refractory and Recurrent Idiopathic Granulomatous Mastitis Treatment: Adaptive, Randomized Clinical Trial.

Background: Idiopathic granulomatous mastitis (IGM) is mostly described as an autoimmune disease with higher prevalence among Middle Eastern childbearing-age women. This study aimed to evaluate the best treatment of choice in patients with resistant or recurrent IGM.

Study Design: Patients with established recurrent or resistant IGM who were referred to the Breast Cancer Research Center from 2017 to 2020 were randomly assigned to either one of the following treatment groups: A (best supportive care), B (corticosteroids: prednisolone), and C (methotrexate and low-dose corticosteroids).

Lower eyelid position after ptosis repair in patients with blepharoptosis.

Purpose: To determine the changes in the lower eyelid position, following ptosis surgery of the upper eyelid of the same eye in blepharoptosis patients.

Methods: This prospective interventional before and after study included patients aged more than 5 years with blepharoptosis. Margin reflex distance one (MRD-1), MRD two (MRD-2), and levator function were measured before and the 6 months after the surgery.

Thought Believability and Anxious Feelings about COVID-19: A Case-Control Study in Northeastern Iran.

Background: Believability and thoughts are considered as the pillars of behaviors over time, and anxious feelings are a risk factor for mental disorders, especially during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. This study aimed to explore the thought believability and anxious feelings of COVID-19 among infected and healthy families.

Methods: In this hospital-based matched case-control study, health surveillance files of COVID-19 patients were collected from January to June 2021 and were analyzed statistically.

Association between Serum Vitamin D Levels and Risk of Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss: A cross-sectional Study.

Background: Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) is an autoimmune diseases of the inner ear which is usually defined by acute onset of hearing loss in one or both ears, of 30 dB or more on at least three contiguous audiometric frequencies within 3 days or less. This study aimed to compare the serum levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (VitD) between patients with SSNHL and healthy controls.

Methods: A total of 50 patients with SSNHL and 50 healthy individuals without hearing loss as control group were enrolled in this study.

Epicardial deletion of Sox9 leads to myxomatous valve degeneration and identifies Cd109 as a novel gene associated with valve development.

Epicardial-derived cells (EPDCs) are involved in the regulation of myocardial growth and coronary vascularization and are critically important for proper development of the atrioventricular (AV) valves. SOX9 is a transcription factor expressed in a variety of epithelial and mesenchymal cells in the developing heart, including EPDCs. To determine the role of SOX9 in epicardial development, an epicardial-specific Sox9 knockout mouse model was generated.

A human pilot study on positive electrostatic charge effects in solid tumors of the late-stage metastatic patients.

Background: Correlative interactions between electrical charges and cancer cells involve important unknown factors in cancer diagnosis and treatment. We previously reported the intrinsic suppressive effects of pure positive electrostatic charges (PEC) on the proliferation and metabolism of invasive cancer cells without any effect on normal cells in cell lines and animal models. The proposed mechanism was the suppression of pro-caspases 3 and 9 with an increase in Bax/Bcl2 ratio in exposed malignant cells and perturbation induced in the KRAS pathway of malignant cells by electrostatic charges due to the phosphate molecule electrostatic charge as the trigger of the pathway.

Imaging Brain Injury in Former National Football League Players.

Importance: Pilot studies that involved early imaging of the 18 kDa translocator protein (TSPO) using positron emission tomography (PET) indicated high levels of TSPO in the brains of active or former National Football League (NFL) players. If validated further in larger studies, those findings may have implications for athletes involved in collision sport.

Objective: To test for higher TSPO that marks brain injury and repair in a relatively large, unique cohort of former NFL players compared with former elite, noncollision sport athletes.

Complications in patients with transfusion dependent thalassemia: A descriptive cross-sectional study.

Background And Aims: One of the most common hemoglobinopathies globally related to blood transfusion and iron overload in the body is thalassemia syndrome. Increasing ferritin levels can cause severe damage to the patient's body organs. This study aims to evaluate the complications of iron overload on vital body organs in patients with transfusion-dependent beta-thalassemia.

Tumor characteristics and survival rate of HER2-low breast cancer patients: a retrospective cohort study.

HER2 is an important prognostic marker in breast cancer (BC) patients, which also plays a crucial role in their therapeutic plan. Consequently, a great desire is to thoroughly assess the patients based on their HER2 status. In the current study, we aimed to evaluate HER2-low breast cancer as a new subtype in the standard classification of BC patients and review its characteristics and survival rate in a tertiary center in Iran.

Economic Evaluation Approaches in the Field of Disaster Health Management.

Background: Economic evaluation approaches are needed to establish useful interventions for saving lives, preventing economic damage, and saving recovery costs at the time of disasters. Thus, the present study is aimed to identify the studies that applied economic evaluation approaches/methods for evaluating the economic costs of disasters.

Methods: A scoping review was conducted to find the eligible studies and perform a comprehensive data analysis.

[F]FNDP PET neuroimaging test-retest repeatability and whole-body dosimetry in humans.

Purpose: Soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH) is an enzyme that shapes immune signaling through its role in maintaining the homeostasis of polyunsaturated fatty acids and their related byproducts. [F]FNDP is a radiotracer developed for use with positron emission tomography (PET) to image sEH, which has been applied to imaging sEH in the brains of healthy individuals. Here, we report the test-retest repeatability of [F]FNDP brain PET binding and [F]FNDP whole-body dosimetry in healthy individuals.

Targeted Delivery of Anticancer Drug Loaded Charged PLGA Polymeric Nanoparticles Using Electrostatic Field.

Pure positive electrostatic charges (PPECs) show suppressive effect on the proliferation and metabolism of invasive cancer cells without affecting normal tissues. PPECs are used for the delivery of drug-loaded polymeric nanoparticles (DLNs) capped with negatively charged poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) and Poly(vinyl-alcohol) PVA into the tumor site of mouse models. The charged patch is installed on top of the skin in the mouse models' tumor region, and the controlled selective release of the drug is assayed by biochemical, radiological, and histological experiments on both tumorized models and normal rats' livers.

High-Frequency (30 MHz-6 GHz) Breast Tissue Characterization Stabilized by Suction Force for Intraoperative Tumor Margin Assessment.

A gigahertz (GHz) range antenna formed by a coaxial probe has been applied for sensing cancerous breast lesions in the scanning platform with the assistance of a suction tube. The sensor structure was a planar central layer and a metallic sheath of size of 3 cm connected to a network analyzer (keySight FieldFox N9918A) with operational bandwidth up to 26.5 GHz.

The Effects of Pharmacological Treatment of Nightmares: A Systematic Literature Review and Meta-Analysis of Placebo-Controlled, Randomized Clinical Trials.

Nightmares are highly prevalent and distressing for the sufferer, which underlines the need for well-documented treatments. A comprehensive literature review and meta-analysis of the effects of different pharmacological placebo-controlled randomized clinical trials, covering the period up to 1 December 2022, was performed. Searches were conducted in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, PsychInfo, Cinahl, and Google Scholar, resulting in the identification of 1762 articles, of which 14 met the inclusion criteria: pharmacological intervention of nightmares, based on a placebo-controlled randomized trial published in a European language, reporting outcomes either/or in terms of nightmare frequency, nightmare distress, or nightmare intensity, and reporting sufficient information enabling calculation of effect sizes.

Medical management of pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors in patients with MEN 1: case report.

Objectives: Multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN-1) is a rare inherited autosomal dominant disease which manifests itself with at least one clinical scenario before 45 years of age. The value of somatostatin analogue therapy is unknown in the treatment of non-functioning pancreatic tumours and a few studies have been published in this field.

Case Presentation: We report a young patient with MEN-1 with multiple gastric and pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors that was treated with the monthly injection of Sandostatin LAR before and After Distal Pancreatectomy and partial gastrectomy.

Effectiveness of educational intervention-based compassion therapy on emotional regulation and self-control after discharge of patients With COVID-19.

Background: One of the important causes of anxiety in COVID-19 disease is the inability to regulate emotion and lack of self-control during threatening conditions. The psychotherapy technique has been effective in reducing these symptoms. Therefore, this study attempted to evaluate the effectiveness of compassion-based therapy on emotion regulation and self-control in patients with COVID-19 after discharge.

Evaluation of immune system in patients with transfusion-dependent beta-thalassemia in Rasoul-e-Akram Hospital in 2021: A descriptive cross-sectional study.

Background And Aims: Thalassemia syndromes are the most common hemoglobinopathy globally related to blood transfusion and iron overload in the body. Splenectomy, excessive iron overload, and repeated exposure to antigens in blood transfusions can cause severe damage to the patient's immune system making the patient prone to frequent infection. This study evaluates the immune system status and infection rate in beta-thalassemia major patients receiving iron chelators.

First-in-human use of C-CPPC with positron emission tomography for imaging the macrophage colony-stimulating factor 1 receptor.

Purpose: Study of the contribution of microglia to onset and course of several neuropsychiatric conditions is challenged by the fact that these resident immune cells often take on different phenotypes and functions outside the living brain. Imaging microglia with radiotracers developed for use with positron emission tomography (PET) allows researchers to study these cells in their native tissue microenvironment. However, many relevant microglial imaging targets such as the 18 kDa translocator protein are also expressed on non-microglial cells, which can complicate the interpretation of PET findings.

Selective Fabrication of Robust and Multifunctional Super Nonwetting Surfaces by Diverse Modifications of Zirconia-Ceria Nanocomposites.

The creation of surfaces with various super nonwetting properties is an ongoing challenge. We report diverse modifications of novel synthesized zirconia-ceria nanocomposites by different low surface energy agents to fabricate nanofluids capable of regulating surface wettability of mineral substrates to achieve selective superhydrophobic, superoleophobic-superhydrophilic, and superamphiphobic conditions. Surfaces treated with these nanofluids offer self-cleaning properties and effortless rolling-off behavior with sliding angles ≤7° for several liquids with surface tensions between 26 and 72.

Bioassays of Humoral Cardioprotective Factors Released by Remote Ischemic Conditioning in Patients Undergoing Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery.

Remote ischemic conditioning (RIC) induces the release of circulating cardioprotective factors and attenuates myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury. Evidence for such humoral cardioprotective factor(s) is derived from transfer with plasma (derivatives) from one individual undergoing RIC to another individual's heart, even across species. With transfer into an isolated perfused heart, only a single plasma (derivative) sample can be studied with infarct size as endpoint, and therefore the comparison of samples before and after RIC or between RIC and placebo is hampered by the inter-individual variation of infarct sizes in isolated perfused hearts.

Positive electrostatic therapy of metastatic tumors: selective induction of apoptosis in cancer cells by pure charges.

Background: We discovered that pure positive electrostatic charges (PECs) have an intrinsic suppressive effect on the proliferation and metabolism of invasive cancer cells (cell lines and animal models) without affecting normal tissues.

Methods: We interacted normal and cancer cell lines and animal tumors with PECs by connecting a charged patch to cancer cells and animal tumors. many biochemical, molecular and radiological assays were carried out on PEC treated and control samples.

Plasmon-enhanced fluorimetric and colorimetric dual sensor based on fluorescein/Ag nanoprisms for sensitive determination of mancozeb.

A plasmon-enhanced fluorimetric and colorimetric dual sensor was designed to detect mancozeb based on fluorescein (as a fluorimetric reporter) and AgNPRs (as a fluorescence enhancer and colorimetric reporter). The sensing mechanism was based on the shape transformation of AgNPRs due to etching and anti-etching effect of SO and mancozeb. We observed that AgNPRs enhanced the fluorescence intensity of fluorescein around 4-fold.