Dialogue mechanisms between astrocytic and neuronal networks: A whole-brain modelling approach.

Astrocytes critically shape whole-brain structure and function by forming extensive gap junctional networks that intimately and actively interact with neurons. Despite their importance, existing computational models of whole-brain activity ignore the roles of astrocytes while primarily focusing on neurons. Addressing this oversight, we introduce a biophysical neural mass network model, designed to capture the dynamic interplay between astrocytes and neurons via glutamatergic and GABAergic transmission pathways.

The piRNA protein Asz1 is essential for germ cell and gonad development in zebrafish and exhibits differential necessities in distinct types of germ granules.

Germ cells are essential for fertility, embryogenesis, and reproduction. Germline development requires distinct types of germ granules, which contains RNA-protein (RNP) complexes, including germ plasm in embryos, piRNA granules in gonadal germ cells, and the Balbiani body (Bb) in oocytes. However, the regulation of RNP assemblies in zebrafish germline development are still poorly understood.

Comparison of a non-invasive point-of-care measurement of anemia to conventionally used HemoCue devices in Gambella refugee camp, Ethiopia, 2022.

Annual surveys of refugees in Gambella, Ethiopia suggest that anemia is a persistent public health problem among non-pregnant women of reproductive age (NP-WRA, 15-49 years). Measurement of anemia in most refugee camp settings is conducted using an invasive HemoCue 301. We assessed the accuracy and precision of a non-invasive, pulse CO-oximeter in measuring anemia among NP-WRA in four Gambella refugee camps.

Estimating whole-body centre of mass sway during quiet standing with inertial measurement units.

Our ability to balance upright provides a stable platform to perform daily activities. Balance deficits associated with various clinical conditions may affect activities of daily living, highlighting the importance of quantifying standing balance in ecological environments. Although typically performed in laboratory settings, the growing availability of low-cost inertial measurement units (IMUs) allows the assessment of balance in the real world.

Development and effectiveness analysis of a safety management model for SMEs integrating lean management innovation with SQCDP framework.

This study organically integrates the safety, quality, cost, delivery, and people (SQCDP) management mode and lean management to create the SQCDP + lean safety management (SLSM) mode, which addresses certain problems faced by China's small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), such as imperfect safety management systems, poor regulatory implementation, challenging problem correction, and perfunctory management. It then explains the benefits proposed mode for SMEs and the establishment of a novel mode that aligns with the current safety production and operation management of SMEs. The application of the SLSM mode to a private machinery manufacturing company in Wenzhou resulted in the effective shouldering of safety responsibilities by the company, a year-on-year decrease in accident rates, and a significant increase in production efficiency, thereby providing corporate managers with guidance and suggestions for making improvements.

Feasibility and resource utilization of nurse-administered subcutaneous immunoglobulin therapy in antibody deficiency: A cross-sectional study.

Primary and secondary antibody deficiencies (PAD and SAD) are amongst the most prevalent immunodeficiency syndromes, often necessitating long-term immune globulin replacement therapy (IRT). Both intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) and subcutaneous immunoglobulin (SCIG) have demonstrated efficacy in antibody deficiency. Comparative analyses of these two routes of administration are limited to nurse-administered IVIG and home therapy with self-administered SCIG.

Pharmacophore modeling and QSAR analysis of anti-HBV flavonols.

Due to its global burden, Targeting Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in humans is crucial. Herbal medicine has long been significant, with flavonoids demonstrating promising results. Hence, the present study aimed to establish a way of identifying flavonoids with anti-HBV activities.

Effect of exogenous β-hydroxybutyrate on BDNF signalling, cognition, and amyloid precursor protein processing in humans with T2D and insulin resistant rodents.

People with type 2 diabetes (T2D) have a greater risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases, like Alzheimer's disease, in later life. Exogenous ketone supplements containing the ketone body β-hydroxybutyrate (β-OHB) may be a strategy to protect the brain as β-OHB can support cerebral metabolism and promote neuronal plasticity via expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). Parallel human (ClinicalTrials.

In Situ Focused Ion Beam Redeposition Surface Coatings for Site-Specific, Near-Surface Characterization by Atom Probe Tomography.

Atom probe tomography (APT) enables three-dimensional chemical mapping with near-atomic scale resolution. However, this method requires precise sample preparation, which is typically achieved using a focused ion beam (FIB) microscope. As the ion beam induces some degree of damage to the sample, it is necessary to apply a protective layer over the region of interest (ROI).

Improvement in Serum Eosinophilia is Observed in Clinical Responders to Ustekinumab but not Adalimumab in Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

Introduction: In inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), the number of eosinophils increases in the lamina propria of the intestinal tract, but their specific patho-mechanistic role remains unclear. Elevated blood eosinophil counts in active IBD suggest their potential as biomarkers for predicting response to biologic therapies. This study evaluates blood eosinophil count trends and their predictive value for clinical response and endoscopic improvement in patients with IBD receiving ustekinumab or adalimumab induction therapy.

Photoinduced Long-Distance Charge Transfer in Silicanes: The Stacking Matters.

The generation of interlayer charge transfer excitons upon photoexcitation is strongly desirable for two-dimensional (2D) materials stacked through van der Waals interactions. In this work, we investigate photoinduced charge transfer in silicanes (SiH) with three typical stackings. A concept of the regional natural hole orbital and its conjugated particle orbital is developed to characterize excited states in solids.

Addressing Water Scarcity to Achieve Climate Resilience and Human Health.

Water scarcity is projected to affect half of the world's population, gradually exacerbated by climate change. This article elaborates from a panel discussion at the 2023 United Nations Water Conference on Addressing Water Scarcity to Achieve Climate Resilience and Human Health. Understanding and addressing water scarcity goes beyond hydrological water balances to also include societal and economic measures.

Six-Month Outcomes in the Long-Term Outcomes After the Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children Study.

Importance: Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) is a life-threatening complication of COVID-19 infection. Data on midterm outcomes are limited.

Objective: To characterize the frequency and time course of cardiac dysfunction (left ventricular ejection fraction [LVEF] <55%), coronary artery aneurysms (z score ≥2.

Children and divorce: A rapid review targeting cognitive dissonance, in the context of narrative therapy.

Today, for divorcing parents, the social norms of "good" parenting appear to impose obligations to "fight" for shared custody of their children. However, this may intensify conflicts experienced by their children in the form of cognitive dissonance. Authors conducted a rapid review to explore children's experiences of divorce (ages three to 12 years old) in the context of narrative therapy, in order to uncover the mechanism of cognitive dissonance.

Antiviral Medications for Treatment of Nonsevere Influenza: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis.

Importance: The optimal antiviral drug for treatment of nonsevere influenza remains unclear.

Objective: To compare effects of antiviral drugs for treating nonsevere influenza.

Data Sources: MEDLINE, Embase, CENTRAL, CINAHL, Global Health, Epistemonikos, and ClinicalTrials.

Antisemitism on Campus in the Wake of October 7: Examining Stress, Coping, and Depressive Symptoms Among Jewish Students.

The Hamas-led terrorist attacks in Israel on October 7, 2023, were an inflection point that spurred a global rise in antisemitism. College and university campuses were particularly affected. Given the adverse impacts of prejudice and discrimination for mental health and the dearth of research on psychosocial effects of antisemitism, examining stress, coping, and mental health among Jewish students within this context is crucial.

Safety and Efficacy of IV Onasemnogene Abeparvovec for Pediatric Patients With Spinal Muscular Atrophy: The Phase 3b SMART Study.

Background And Objectives: Safety and efficacy of IV onasemnogene abeparvovec has been demonstrated for patients with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) weighing <8.5 kg. SMART was the first clinical trial to evaluate onasemnogene abeparvovec for participants weighing 8.

Global Minimization of Electronic Hamiltonian 1-Norm via Linear Programming in the Block Invariant Symmetry Shift (BLISS) Method.

The cost of encoding a system Hamiltonian in a digital quantum computer as a linear combination of unitaries (LCU) grows with the 1-norm of the LCU expansion. The Block Invariant Symmetry Shift (BLISS) technique reduces this 1-norm by modifying the Hamiltonian action on only the undesired electron-number subspaces. Previously, BLISS required a computationally expensive nonlinear optimization that was not guaranteed to find the global minimum.

Inter-rater agreement and characterization of pleural line and subpleural fields in canine lung ultrasound: a comparative pilot study between high-frequency linear and curvilinear transducers using B- and M-mode ultrasonographic profiles.

Background: Lung ultrasound (LUS) is increasingly utilized in veterinary medicine to assess pulmonary conditions. However, the characterization of pleural line and subpleural fields using different ultrasound transducers, specifically high-frequency linear ultrasound transducers (HFLUT) and curvilinear transducers (CUT), remains underexplored in canine patients. This study aimed to evaluate inter-rater agreement in the characterization of pleural line and subpleural fields using B- and M-mode ultrasonography in dogs with and without respiratory distress.

Autistic Girls but Not Boys Show a Strong Association Between Internalizing Symptoms and Social Motivation.

The current study examined the associations between internalizing symptoms, social motivation, and gender among autistic and non-autistic youth. Caregivers of 386 participants age 6 to 14 years completed measures of their child's internalizing symptoms and social motivation. Correlation and hierarchical regression analyses were conducted to compare internalizing symptoms and social motivation across autistic and non-autistic girls and boys.

Relational Victimization, Coping Styles and Depressive Symptoms: A Test of Bidirectional Associations in Adolescence.

Although evidence from previous studies suggests that adolescents with negative coping styles who experienced victimization are more likely to exhibit depressive symptoms, these associations have not yet been disentangled to separate between-person differences from within-person effects. To investigate the within-person bidirectional relationships among relational victimization, coping styles and depressive symptoms, this study conducted a four-wave random intercept cross-lagged panel model analysis. The final sample consisted of 1506 adolescents, 72.

Dengue virus infection: how platelet-leukocyte crosstalk shapes thrombotic events and inflammation.

Dengue virus (DENV) poses a considerable threat to public health on a global scale, since about two-thirds of the world's population is currently at risk of contracting this arbovirus. Being transmitted by mosquitoes, this virus is associated with a range of illnesses and a small percentage of infected individuals might suffer from severe vascular leakage. This leakage leads to hypovolemic shock syndrome, generally known as dengue shock syndrome, organ failure, and bleeding complications.

What Do Mothers Know About Nutrition? Impacts on Childhood Nutrition Outcomes in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Introduction: Globally, the prevalence of undernutrition is highest in the sub-Saharan African region with over a third of the world's stunted children residing in this region. Many studies have explored child nutrition in sub-Saharan Africa, but they often overlook the intricate nuances of maternal knowledge. We examined the association between maternal nutritional knowledge and childhood nutritional outcomes.

Effects of Food Processing on Allergenicity.

Purpose Of Review: There is an increasing awareness among clinicians that industrial and household food processing methods can increase or decrease the allergenicity of foods. Modification to allergen properties through processing can enable dietary liberations. Reduced allergenicity may also allow for lower risk immunotherapy approaches.