Brain Transcriptome Changes Associated With an Acute Increase of Protein O-GlcNAcylation and Implications for Neurodegenerative Disease.

Enhancing protein O-GlcNAcylation by pharmacological inhibition of the enzyme O-GlcNAcase (OGA) has been considered as a strategy to decrease tau and amyloid-beta phosphorylation, aggregation, and pathology in Alzheimer's disease (AD). There is still more to be learned about the impact of enhancing global protein O-GlcNAcylation, which is important for understanding the potential of using OGA inhibition to treat neurodegenerative diseases. In this study, we investigated the acute effect of pharmacologically increasing O-GlcNAc levels, using the OGA inhibitor Thiamet G (TG), in normal mouse brains.

Design and validation of cell-based potency assays for frataxin supplementation treatments.

Friedreich's ataxia (FRDA) is a multisystem, autosomal recessive disorder caused by mutations in the frataxin () gene. As FRDA is considered an FXN deficiency disorder, numerous therapeutic approaches in development or clinical trials aim to supplement FXN or restore endogenous expression. These include gene therapy, protein supplementation, genome editing or upregulation of transcription.

Using a participatory approach to identify priorities to advance LHS implementation at an academic medical center.

Introduction: Like many other academic medical centers, the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) aspires to adopt learning health system (LHS) principles and practices more fully. Applying LHS principles establishes a culture where clinical and operational practices constantly generate questions and leverage information technology (IT) and methodological expertise to facilitate systematic evaluation of care delivery, health outcomes, and the effects of improvement initiatives. Despite the potential benefits, differences in priorities, timelines, and expectations spanning an academic medical center's clinical care, administrative operations, and research arms create barriers to adopting and implementing an LHS.

Using gaming to prepare health professional students to practice systems thinking.

Background: Healthcare professionals face numerous challenges regarding the delivery of care. Creating solutions to these challenges is imperative to improve the quality and safety of care to positively impact patient outcomes. However, health professional students rarely receive formal training regarding systems thinking during didactic components of their professional training.

A Severely Calcified, Undilatable, Coronary Artery Stenosis: Impact of Serial Lithotripsy on Calcium Fracture and Lumen Expansion.

Percutaneous coronary intervention of a severely calcified coronary artery stenosis is associated with stent underexpansion and adverse outcomes. Intravascular lithotripsy (IVL) is a novel technology for fracturing calcified plaque in the coronary artery. We describe the first case of a severely calcified, undilatable coronary artery lesion.

NET Models Meeting 2024 white paper: the current state of neuroendocrine tumour research models and our future aspirations.

Current models for the study of neuroendocrine tumours (NETs) are severely limited. While (e.g.

Exercise Therapy Rescues Skeletal Muscle Dysfunction and Exercise Intolerance in Cardiometabolic HFpEF.

Exercise intolerance, a hallmark of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) exacerbated by obesity, involves unclear mechanisms related to skeletal muscle metabolism. In a "2-hit" model of HFpEF, we investigated the ability of exercise therapy (voluntary wheel running) to reverse skeletal muscle dysfunction and exercise intolerance. Using state-of-the-art metabolic cages and a multiomic approach, we demonstrate exercise can rescue dysfunctional skeletal muscle lipid and branched-chain amino acid oxidation and restore exercise capacity in mice with cardiometabolic HFpEF.

Blastomycosis Awareness: A Crucial Reminder Amidst the Fifth Pneumonia Episode.

Blastomycosis is a rare fungal infection endemic to North America and parts of Africa. It can be challenging to diagnose until it reaches a critical stage. We present a blastomycosis case in Alabama, emphasizing the importance of early recognition and management.

Differences of Sedentary Behavior, Physical Activity, and Metabolic Syndrome Severity Among Metabolic Syndrome Clusters.

: Sedentary behavior (SB), physical activity (PA), and metabolic syndrome (MetS) are risk indicators for cardiometabolic diseases. Novel methods for researching MetS by the 16 unique clusters (i.e.

Physical Activity and Self-Compassion: A Systemic Review.

Physical activity (PA) and self-compassion (SC) have been shown to positively impact mental and physical health. Findings from a prior review provided evidence of the positive effect of PA on SC. The increased interest and published studies in this area in recent years are not surprising.

Association Between Occupational Sitting With High Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein: The Jackson Heart Study.

Modifiable, behavioral risk factors like occupational sitting may contribute to inflammation, an important cardiovascular risk factor. This study evaluated the association of self-reported occupational sitting with changes in c-reactive protein (CRP) and the role of sex. We examined occupational sitting and baseline CRP levels for 2889 African American participants in the Jackson Heart Study.

Medicaid Expansion and Survival Outcomes Among Men With Prostate Cancer.

Introduction: Prostate cancer stands as one of the most diagnosed malignancies among men worldwide. With the recent expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), millions more Americans now have health insurance coverage, potentially influencing healthcare access and subsequent outcomes for various illnesses, including prostate cancer. Yet, the direct correlation between Medicaid expansion and cancer-specific survival among individuals with prostate cancer remains an area warranting comprehensive exploration.

Current Trends in Virtual Exercise Interventions Among People With Disabilities: A Scoping Review.

Objective: To analyze existing literature on virtual exercise interventions delivered to people with disabilities to assess effectiveness, efficiency, usability, satisfaction, and feasibility, and describe current trends that aimed to improve health outcomes among people with disabilities.

Data Sources: CINAHL, MEDLINE, and PsycINFO were searched.

Study Selection: Articles were included if they were (1) incorporated a virtual exercise intervention including people with physical disabilities and mobility limitations aged 18 years and older and (2) published between the years of 2009-August 14, 2024 with free access to full-text, peer-reviewed papers; and (3) published in English.

Variations in Octreotide Dosing in Published Reports of Sulfonylurea Toxicity: A Systematic Review, 1988-Present.

Background: Octreotide is commonly used to treat hypoglycemia due to sulfonylurea toxicity, but optimal dosing for this indication is not well defined.

Methods: We performed a systematic review to identify cases in the medical literature of octreotide use for sulfonylurea poisoning. Literature published on octreotide and sulfonylureas between octreotide's FDA approval on 10/21/1988 and 8/15/2024 was reviewed.

"You're in an Image of a Man but Not a Man": A Qualitative Analysis of Intersectional Stigma Among Men with HIV Experiencing Subfertility in Rural Southwestern Uganda.

Many men with HIV (MWH) want to have children and may encounter HIV- and infertility-related stigma experiences. Integration of reproductive health and HIV care for men is rare. When available, safer conception care focuses on HIV prevention but lacks fertility support.

Unique ultrastructural organization of human rod photoreceptors.

Rod and cone photoreceptor cells are specialized neurons responsible for transforming the information reaching the eyes in the form of photons into the language of neuronal activity. Rods are the most prevalent photoreceptor type, primarily responsible for light detection under conditions of limited illumination. Here we demonstrate that human rods have a morphological organization unique among all described species, whereby the cell soma extends alongside the light-sensitive outer segment compartment to form a structure we have termed the "accessory inner segment.

Recommendations for mitochondria transfer and transplantation nomenclature and characterization.

Intercellular mitochondria transfer is an evolutionarily conserved process in which one cell delivers some of their mitochondria to another cell in the absence of cell division. This process has diverse functions depending on the cell types involved and physiological or disease context. Although mitochondria transfer was first shown to provide metabolic support to acceptor cells, recent studies have revealed diverse functions of mitochondria transfer, including, but not limited to, the maintenance of mitochondria quality of the donor cell and the regulation of tissue homeostasis and remodelling.

Targeted immunotherapy in the treatment of childhood and adolescent classic Hodgkin lymphoma.

Childhood and adolescent classic Hodgkin Lymphoma (cHL) has long been a model for how we balance improved outcomes with increased toxicities in pediatric cancer. The recognition that unacceptable short- and long-term toxicities come with increasing intensity of treatment has led to a decades-long attempt to better understand the patient-specific factors that dictate responses and outcomes. Targeted immunotherapy has emerged as a promising adjunct to cancer treatment; it has been shown to improve outcomes for poorly responding patients, to salvage relapsed disease, and more recently, to replace more toxic therapy modalities such as chemotherapy and radiation while maintaining excellent outcomes.

Phase I study of adavosertib with radiation therapy and temozolomide in newly diagnosed glioblastoma and intratumoral drug levels in recurrent glioblastoma.

Purpose: Adavosertib is an oral small molecular inhibitor of Wee1. The Adult Brain Tumor Consortium performed a phase I study of adavosertib, radiation (RT) and temozolomide (TMZ) in newly diagnosed glioblastoma (GBM) as well as a surgical window of opportunity study in recurrent GBM.

Patients And Methods: The maximum tolerated dose (MTD) of adavosertib was determined in adult patients with newly diagnosed GBM using a standard 3+3 design in 2 separate cohorts: with concurrent RT/TMZ or with adjuvant TMZ.

Community engagement to inform multi-level analyses of the role of neighborhood factors in cancer control behaviors in African Americans.

Background: While community engagement has had a substantial presence in public health research, community input to inform geospatial and health analyses remains underutilized and novel. This manuscript reports on community engagement activities to solicit stakeholder perspectives on the role of neighborhood conditions in health and cancer. We discuss how this community input refined a priori conceptual model to be tested in the larger Families, Friends, and Neighborhoods (FFAN) Study.

Biomarker Panels for Discriminating Risk of CKD Progression in Children.

Background: We have previously studied biomarkers of tubular health (EGF), injury (KIM-1), dysfunction (alpha-1 microglobulin), and inflammation (TNFR-1, TNFR-2, MCP-1, YKL-40, suPAR), and demonstrated that plasma KIM-1, TNFR-1, TNFR-2 and urine KIM-1, EGF, MCP-1, urine alpha-1 microglobulin are each independently associated with CKD progression in children. In this study, we used bootstrapped survival trees to identify a combination of biomarkers to predict CKD progression in children.

Methods: The CKiD Cohort Study prospectively enrolled children 6 months to 16 years old with an eGFR of 30-90 ml/min/1.