A Comparison of Different Machine Learning Classifiers in Predicting Xerostomia and Sticky Saliva due to Head and Neck Radiotherapy using a Multi-objective, Multimodal Radiomics Model.

Although radiotherapy techniques are the primary treatment for head and neck cancer (HNC), they are still associated with substantial toxicity, and side effect. Machine learning (ML) based radiomics models for predicting toxicity mostly rely on features extracted from pre-treatment imaging data. This study aims to compare different models in predicting radiation-induced xerostomia and sticky saliva in both early and late stage of HNC patients using CT and MRI image features along with demographics and dosimetric information.

Harnessing Human-Centered Design for Evidence-Based Psychosocial Interventions and Implementation Strategies in Community Settings: Protocol for Redesign to Improve Usability, Engagement, and Appropriateness.

Background: Although substantial progress has been made in establishing evidence-based psychosocial clinical interventions and implementation strategies for mental health, translating research into practice-particularly in more accessible, community settings-has been slow.

Objective: This protocol outlines the renewal of the National Institute of Mental Health-funded University of Washington Advanced Laboratories for Accelerating the Reach and Impact of Treatments for Youth and Adults with Mental Illness Center, which draws from human-centered design (HCD) and implementation science to improve clinical interventions and implementation strategies. The Center's second round of funding (2023-2028) focuses on using the Discover, Design and Build, and Test (DDBT) framework to address 3 priority clinical intervention and implementation strategy mechanisms (ie, usability, engagement, and appropriateness), which we identified as challenges to implementation and scalability during the first iteration of the center.

Clinical outcomes and care for spontaneous bacterial peritonitis: A national cohort study.

Background Aims: SBP leads to high rates acute kidney injury (AKI) -hepatorenal syndrome and mortality. Population-based studies on contemporary SBP epidemiology are needed to inform care. In a large, national cohort of patients diagnosed with SBP and confirmed by ascitic fluid criteria, we characterized ascitic fluid characteristics, in-hospital and 12-month mortality, AKI, and recurrent SBP.

Provision of Radiology Reports Simplified With Large Language Models to Patients With Cancer: Impact on Patient Satisfaction.

Purpose: To explore the perceived utility and effect of simplified radiology reports on oncology patients' knowledge and feasibility of large language models (LLMs) to generate such reports.

Materials And Methods: This study was approved by the Institute Ethics Committee. In phase I, five state-of-the-art LLMs (Generative Pre-Trained Transformer-4o [GPT-4o], Google Gemini, Claude Opus, Llama-3.

Tooth replacement of the filter-feeding pterosaur Forfexopterus and its implications for ecological adaptation.

A "comb-dentition", characterized by long, needle-like, and closely-spaced teeth, is found in the ctenochasmatid pterosaurs as an adaptation for filter-feeding. However, little is known about their tooth replacement pattern, hindering our understanding of the development of the filter-feeding apparatus of the clade. Here, we describe the tooth replacement of the pterosaur Forfexopterus from the Jehol Biota based on high-resolution X-ray Computed Tomography (CT) reconstruction.

Development and validation of countertransference feeling and behavior awareness measures in an Italian and American clinician sample.

Objective: Countertransference (CT) has been shown to interfere with therapy goals, and its management is crucial to desired treatment outcomes. As a first step, a clinician's awareness of their covert and overt CT reactions is critical to successfully managing CT. Research on CT awareness is scarce, however, mainly because of difficulties in empirically investigating and measuring this construct.

Correcting a pathogenic mitochondrial DNA mutation by base editing in mice.

Primary mitochondrial disorders are most often caused by deleterious mutations in the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). Here, we used a mitochondrial DddA-derived cytosine base editor (DdCBE) to introduce a compensatory edit in a mouse model that carries the pathological mutation in the mitochondrial transfer RNA (tRNA) alanine (mt-tRNA) gene. Because the original m.

Trauma-related psychopathologies after extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) use is associated with substantial psychiatric morbidity in patients and their families. This systematic review and meta-analysis quantifies the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, and depression among ECMO survivors and their families. Included studies enrolled patients on ECMO or their families and reported at least one trauma-related psychopathology.

Empathy and psychological outcomes in informal caregivers of community-dwelling older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objectives: Scholars have increasingly recognized the crucial role that empathy plays as informal caregivers provide unpaid care to their older family and friends (i.e., care recipients).

CAR-T entering a new "phase": Improving CAR-T function by harnessing phase separation.

Biomolecular condensation has emerged as a general principle in organizing biological processes, including immune response. Xu and colleagues recently reported that the cytoplasmic tail of the CD3ɛ subunit of TCR complex, when fused to CAR, can promote CAR condensation by liquid-liquid phase separation. Through sequence engineering, the authors identified modified CD3ɛ sequences that enhance the maturation of the immunological synapse and co-receptor signaling, leading to an improvement of cytotoxicity in vitro and anti-tumor effects in mouse xenograft models.

Diagnostic accuracy of node-RADS for the detection of lymph node invasion: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: To conduct a meta-analysis assessing the diagnostic performance of the node reporting and data system (Node-RADS) for detecting lymph node (LN) invasion.

Method: We performed a systematic literature search of online scientific publication databases from inception up to July 31, 2024. We used the quality assessment of diagnostic accuracy studies-2 (QUADAS-2) to assess the study quality, and heterogeneity was determined by the Q-test and measured with I statistics.

The CT findings of extranodal natural killer/T-cell lymphoma, nasal type involving the gastrointestinal tract.

Objectives: To analyze the CT imaging features of extranodal natural killer/T (NK/T)-cell lymphoma, nasal type (ENKTCL-NT) involving the gastrointestinal tract (GI), and to compare them with those of Crohn's disease (CD) and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL).

Materials And Methods: Data were retrospectively collected from 17 patients diagnosed with GI ENKTCL-NT, 68 patients with CD, and 47 patients with DLBCL. The CT findings of ENKTCL-NT were analyzed and compared with those of CD and DLBCL.

Impact of tissue-independent positron range correction on [Ga]Ga-DOTATOC and [Ga]Ga-PSMA PET image reconstructions: a patient data study.

Purpose: The positron range effect can impair PET image quality of Gallium-68 (Ga). A positron range correction (PRC) can be applied to reduce this effect. In this study, the effect of a tissue-independent PRC for Ga was investigated on patient data.

Development of a novel molecular probe for visualizing mesothelin on the tumor via positron emission tomography.

Objectives: Mesothelin (MSLN) is an antigen that is overexpressed in various cancers, and its interaction with tumor-associated cancer antigen 125 plays a multifaceted role in tumor metastasis. The serum MSLN expression level can be detected using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay; however, non-invasive visualization of its expression at the tumor site is currently lacking. Therefore, the aim of this study was to develop a molecular probe for imaging MSLN expression through positron emission tomography (PET).

Epicardial Pacemaker Lead Related Cardiac Strangulation: The Importance of Early Recognition.

Lead strangulation is a dangerous complication of epicardial pacemaker insertion. This complication has been increasingly highlighted lately. Our institution has recently identified four cases over the past five years.

Ocular Safety and Toxicology of Subretinal Gene Therapy With rAAV.hPDE6A in Nonhuman Primates.

Purpose: Reports of gene therapy-associated retinal atrophies and inflammation have highlighted the importance of preclinical safety assessments of adeno-associated virus (AAV) vector systems. We evaluated in nonhuman primates (NHPs) the ocular safety and toxicology of a novel AAV gene therapy targeting retinitis pigmentosa caused by mutations in PDE6A, which has since been used in a phase I/II clinical trial (NCT04611503).

Methods: A total of 34 healthy cynomolgus animals (Macaca fascicularis) were treated with subretinal injections of rAAV.

Diagnostic Feasibility of Cardiac PET CT in the Evaluation of Inflammatory, Infectious, and Malignant Heart Disease.

Cardiac Positron Emission Tomography (PET) is a power- ful imaging tool with diverse applications in the detection and diagnosis of various cardiac conditions, including inflammatory, infectious, and neoplastic processes. Using the radiotracer 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG), cardiac PET enables the identification of cardiac involvement in diseases such as sarcoidosis and severe infections affecting the heart tissue. Additionally, 18F-FDG PET is valuable in the evaluation of cardiac masses, helping to assess their metabolic activity and potential malignancy.

Advances in Coronary CT Angiography: Applications and Implications for Coronary Artery Disease.

Coronary artery disease (CAD) remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, necessitating advancements in diagnostic techniques. Coronary CT angiography (CCTA) has emerged as a pivotal non-invasive tool for evaluating coronary artery anatomy and detecting atherosclerotic plaque burden with high spatial resolution. This review explores the evolution of CCTA, highlighting its technological advancements, clinical applications, and challenges.

Negative Aging Stereotypes and Clinical Insomnia in Older U.S. Military Veterans.

Background And Objectives: Insomnia symptoms are more prevalent in older age and may be impacted by negative perceptions of aging; however, more research is needed. The present study characterizes the relationship between negative aging stereotypes and clinical insomnia symptoms in a nationally representative sample of older United States (U.S.

Updated Adjustment of the HCAHPS Survey for New Modes of Survey Administration and Patient Mix.

Background: Web-first multimode survey protocols increase HCAHPS survey response rates and representativeness but may result in different HCAHPS scores because of survey mode effects and selective email address availability. A variable absent from many patient-mix adjustment models that may result in more positive patient experiences is whether the hospital admission was planned; adjustment for planned stays may better measure hospital performance.

Objectives: Develop adjustments for new Web-first survey protocols and planned admissions to facilitate comparisons across hospitals.

Craniofacial modularity and the evolution of cranial kinesis in the adaptive radiation of Furnariidae (Aves: Passeriformes).

The role of phenotypic modularity in the evolution of skull morphology in birds has been a subject of debate in recent years. Furnariids (ovenbirds and woodcreepers), a spectacular avian adaptive radiation, are distinguished in their cranial morphology as the only passerines with two types of cranial kinesis, constituting a great model to test whether the evolution of novelties linked to kinesis was associated with shifts in patterns of evolutionary modularity and allometry in the avian skull. Our analyses by means of geometric morphometric tools and phylogenetic comparative methods show that the beak and neurocranium of furnariids evolved in a modular fashion and shaped by the cranial kinesis evolution.

VopX, a novel T3SS effector, modulates host actin dynamics.

Unlabelled: Pathogenic strains cause cholera using different mechanisms. O1 and O139 serogroup strains use the toxin-co-regulated pilus (TCP) and cholera toxin (CT) for intestinal colonization and to promote secretory diarrhea, while non-O1/non-O139 serogroup strains are typically non-toxigenic and use alternate virulence factors to cause a clinically similar disease. An O39 serogroup, TCP/CT-negative strain, named AM-19226, uses a type III secretion system (T3SS) to translocate more than 10 effector proteins into the host cell cytosol.