The identification of a SARs-CoV2 S2 protein derived peptide with super-antigen-like stimulatory properties on T-cells.

Severe COVID-19 can trigger a cytokine storm, leading to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) with similarities to superantigen-induced toxic shock syndrome. An outstanding question is whether SARS-CoV-2 protein sequences can directly induce inflammatory responses. In this study, we identify a region in the SARS-CoV-2 S2 spike protein with sequence homology to bacterial super-antigens (termed P3).

Development of stable and porous AgO-loaded hydroxyapatite nanocomposites for enriched photocatalytic degradation of Rhodamine B under visible light.

A simple and inexpensive process from natural phosphate in the presence of Ag ions was used to develop AgO-loaded hydroxyapatite nanocomposites. The structural and textural characterization of the nanocomposites suggests that the AgO nanoparticles are well dispersed on the hydroxyapatite (HAp). The prepared nanocomposites show efficient Rhodamine B (RhB) dye photocatalytic degradation in water under visible and UV-visible light irradiation.

Printed Models for Better Prediction of Surgery in Patients with Double Outlet Right Ventricle.

The complex and variable anatomy of complex double outlet right ventricle makes it imperative to understand the spatial anatomic structures to determine whether it is feasible to repair the anomaly in a biventricular or univentricular fashion. Biventricular repair should be aimed for but is not always feasible. Choosing the correct surgical technique is of great importance in surgical planning of biventricular repair.

Effect of DLPFC rTMS on anhedonia and alpha asymmetry in depressed patients.

Anhedonia, a core symptom of depression, has been defined as the loss of pleasure or lack of reactivity to pleasurable stimuli. Considering the relevance of alpha asymmetry to MDD and anhedonia, we explored the effect of dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) stimulation on frontal and posterior EEG alpha asymmetry (FAA and PAA, respectively), in this exploratory investigation. 61 participants randomly received sham (n = 11), bilateral (BS; n = 25), or unilateral stimulation (US; n = 25) of the DLPFC.

Using telemedicine and virtual healthcare to improve clinical follow-up for survivors of sexual assault and intimate partner violence: a 7-year investigation of emergency department cases.

Introduction: The primary objective was to evaluate the effectiveness of telemedicine for improving clinical follow-up for survivors of sexual assault and intimate partner violence after an emergency department (ED) visit. The Sexual Assault and Partner Abuse Care Program (SAPACP) is an ED-based clinic for survivors of sexual assault/intimate partner violence. Virtual Visit, a telemedicine platform, was introduced at SAPACP in January 2020, allowing patients to attend follow-up virtually.

Impact of an Antenatal Family-based Behavioral Treatment with a Nutrition and Exercise Lifestyle Intervention Program on Infant Weight-for-length at Birth.

Background: World Health Organization (WHO) growth standards, including weight-for-length, are used to monitor infant size. Excessive infant weight-for-length at or above the 85th percentile is a risk for childhood overweight. Although antenatal interventions like the nutrition and exercise lifestyle intervention program (NELIP) have successfully prevented excessive gestational weight gain, strategies to improve the intervention remain of interest.

Chronic Radium-226 Bioaccumulation and Toxicity in the Aquatic Invertebrate Daphnia magna.

Mining operations in Canada, including uranium mining and milling, generate by-products containing radionuclides, including radium-226 (Ra), a long-lived, bioaccumulative calcium (Ca) analog. Despite strict discharge regulations, there is limited evidence to suggest that current thresholds for Ra adequately protect aquatic organisms. Furthermore, Canada lacks a federal water quality guideline for Ra, underscoring the need for protective limits to safeguard aquatic ecosystems.

Burdens of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease attributable to sugar-sweetened beverages in 184 countries.

The consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) is associated with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and cardiovascular diseases (CVD). However, an updated and comprehensive assessment of the global burden attributable to SSBs remains scarce. Here we estimated SSB-attributable T2D and CVD burdens across 184 countries in 1990 and 2020 globally, regionally and nationally, incorporating data from the Global Dietary Database, jointly stratified by age, sex, educational attainment and urbanicity.

Autogene cevumeran with or without atezolizumab in advanced solid tumors: a phase 1 trial.

Effective targeting of somatic cancer mutations to enhance the efficacy of cancer immunotherapy requires an individualized approach. Autogene cevumeran is a uridine messenger RNA lipoplex-based individualized neoantigen-specific immunotherapy designed from tumor-specific somatic mutation data obtained from tumor tissue of each individual patient to stimulate T cell responses against up to 20 neoantigens. This ongoing phase 1 study evaluated autogene cevumeran as monotherapy (n = 30) and in combination with atezolizumab (n = 183) in pretreated patients with advanced solid tumors.

Use of inpatient palliative care in metastatic testicular cancer patients undergoing critical care therapy: insights from the national inpatient sample.

To test for rates of inpatient palliative care (IPC) in metastatic testicular cancer patients receiving critical care therapy (CCT). Within the Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) database (2008-2019), we tabulated IPC rates in metastatic testicular cancer patients receiving CCT, namely invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV), percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy tube (PEG), dialysis for acute kidney failure (AKF), total parenteral nutrition (TPN) or tracheostomy. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression models addressing IPC were fitted.

Thio-modified trianglimines, a novel group of chiral macrocyclic compounds of high structural dynamics.

The embellishing of the macrocycle core with sulfur substituents of varied sterical requirements changes the structural dynamics of chiral, triangular polyimines. Despite their formal high symmetry, these compounds adopt diverse conformations, in which the macrocycle core represents a non-changeable unit. DFT calculations reveal that the mutual arrangement of sulfur-containing substituents is controlled mainly by sterical interactions.

A Collaborative and Scalable Geospatial Data Set for Arctic Retrogressive Thaw Slumps with Data Standards.

Arctic permafrost is undergoing rapid changes due to climate warming in high latitudes. Retrogressive thaw slumps (RTS) are one of the most abrupt and impactful thermal-denudation events that change Arctic landscapes and accelerate carbon feedbacks. Their spatial distribution remains poorly characterised due to time-intensive conventional mapping methods.

Rapid climate action is needed: comparing heat vs. COVID-19-related mortality.

The impacts of climate change on human health are often underestimated or perceived to be in a distant future. Here, we present the projected impacts of climate change in the context of COVID-19, a recent human health catastrophe. We compared projected heat mortality with COVID-19 deaths in 38 cities worldwide and found that in half of these cities, heat-related deaths could exceed annual COVID-19 deaths in less than ten years (at + 3.

Reconstruction of long-term hourly sea level data for Prince Edward Island, Canada.

Regional sea level rise has been regarded a key factor in understanding of climate change impact to coastal communities. As a vulnerable island to sea level rise and storm surges, the province of Prince Edward Island (PEI) in Canada lacks sufficient long-term island-wide historic record of sea level data. This has become a major challenge for further studies on coastal environments and climate change adaptation.

Selectively expressed RNA molecules as a versatile tool for functionalized cell targeting.

Targeting of diseased cells is one of the most urgently needed prerequisites for a next generation of potent pharmaceuticals. Different approaches pursued fail mainly due to a lack of specific surface markers. Developing an RNA-based methodology, we can now ensure precise cell targeting combined with selective expression of effector proteins for therapy, diagnostics or cell steering.

Spatial transcriptomics unveils estrogen-modulated immune responses and structural alterations in the ectocervical mucosa of depot medroxyprogesterone acetate users.

The injectable contraceptive, depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA), is associated with compromised cervical mucosal barriers. High-resolution spatial transcriptomics is applied here to reveal the spatial localization of these altered molecular markers. Ectocervical tissue samples from Kenyan sex workers using DMPA, or non-hormonal contraceptives, underwent spatial transcriptomics and gene set enrichment analyses.

Spatial tumor immune heterogeneity facilitates subtype co-existence and therapy response in pancreatic cancer.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) displays a high degree of spatial subtype heterogeneity and co-existence, linked to a diverse microenvironment and worse clinical outcome. However, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Here, by combining preclinical models, multi-center clinical, transcriptomic, proteomic, and patient bioimaging data, we identify an interplay between neoplastic intrinsic AP1 transcription factor dichotomy and extrinsic macrophages driving subtype co-existence and an immunosuppressive microenvironment.

Paratesticular/inguinal SMARCB1/INI1 deficient carcinomas with yolk sac tumour-like differentiation are aggressive somatic malignancies.

Aims: Extragonadal yolk sac tumour (YST) is rare, and may present a diagnostic challenge. YST differentiation was recently reported in some somatically derived tumours in the sinonasal location and in the female genital tract, together with a SMARCB1/INI1 loss. We report two paratesticular/inguinal tumours with striking morphological and immunohistochemical similarities with YST, further expanding the spectrum of extragonadal tumours with YST-like morphology and SMARCB1/INI1 loss.

Supporting wild bee development with a bacterial symbiont.

Aims: Wild bees foster diverse microbiota that may determine survival success of developing larvae. Here, we compare survivorship and microbial communities of Ceratina calcarata small carpenter bees reared from eggs across three treatments: maternally collected control provisions with diverse microbiota, sterile provisions, and probiotic provisions supplemented with a beneficial symbiont, Apilactobacillus kunkeei.

Methods And Results: Survival probability and adult masses differed across treatments, with the probiotic treatment resulting in highest survivorship and masses.

Leveraging Intramolecular π-Stacking to Access an Exceptionally Long-Lived MC Excited State in an Fe(II) Carbene Complex.

The ability to manipulate excited-state decay cascades using molecular structure is essential to the application of abundant-metal photosensitizers and chromophores. Ligand design has yielded some spectacular results elongating charge-transfer excited state lifetimes of Fe(II) coordination complexes, but triplet metal-centered (MC) excited states─recently demonstrated to be critical to the photoactivity of isoelectronic Co(III) polypyridyls─have to date remained elusive, with temporally isolable examples limited to the picosecond regime. With this report, we show how strong-field donors and intramolecular π-stacking can conspire to stabilize a long-lived MC excited state for a remarkable 4.

Atrial fibrillation screening and clinical outcomes: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Background: Recommendations on atrial fibrillation (AF) screening by various scientific societies are inconsistent due to uncertainty about its benefit. This study aimed to summarize data from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the impact of AF screening on thromboembolism, major bleeding, and mortality.

Methods: We searched PubMed/MEDLINE and Embase to identify studies providing relevant data through September 05, 2024.

Effects of nurse-home visiting on intimate partner violence and maternal income, mental health and self-efficacy by 24 months postpartum: a randomised controlled trial (British Columbia Healthy Connections Project).

Objective: To evaluate the impact of Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP), a home-visiting programme, on exploratory maternal outcomes in British Columbia (BC), Canada.

Design: Pragmatic, parallel arm, randomised controlled trial conducted October 2013-November 2019. Random allocation of participants (1:1) to comparison (existing services) or NFP (plus existing services).

Anti-PD-1 amplifies costimulation in melanoma-infiltrating T1-like Foxp3 regulatory T cells to alleviate local immunosuppression.

Background: Immune checkpoint inhibitors targeting programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1) are the first line of treatment for many solid tumors including melanoma. PD-1 blockade enhances the effector functions of melanoma-infiltrating CD8 T cells, leading to durable tumor remissions. However, 55% of patients with melanoma do not respond to treatment.

Bleomycin sclerotherapy for venous vascular malformations of the tongue.

Background: Venous vascular malformations (VVMs) are congenital vascular anomalies, often impacting quality of life due to discomfort, swelling, and functional impairments. This study evaluates the efficacy of bleomycin sclerotherapy as a treatment for symptomatic VVMs of the tongue.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective review of all patients treated with this method in our institution between 2004 and 2024.