Endoglin as a predictive biomarker for pemetrexed sensitivity in non-small-cell lung cancer: a cellular study.

Objective: Based on our previous research, which demonstrated that elevated plasma endoglin (ENG) levels in lung cancer patients were associated with a better prognosis, increased sensitivity to pemetrexed, and enhanced tumor suppression, this study aims to validate these findings at the cellular level. The focus is on membrane and extracellular ENG and their influence on drug response and tumor cell behavior in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells.

Methods: The correlation between ENG expression and pemetrexed-induced cytotoxicity in eight human non-squamous subtype NSCLC cell lines was analyzed.

A comprehensive systemic review and meta-analysis of the association between lipid profile and hidradenitis suppurativa.

Background: While several studies have suggested a connection between Metabolic Syndrome (MetS) and Hidradenitis Suppurativa (HS), a definitive analysis confirming the association between lipid abnormalities and HS based on actual lipid values is lacking. Previous research, using odds ratios from ICD codes, indicates links between elevated triglycerides and low high-density lipoprotein levels with HS. However, these findings may not fully represent real-life situations, as no comprehensive analysis using actual lipid measurements has been performed.

Histamine N-methyltransferase (HNMT) as a potential auxiliary biomarker for predicting adaptability to anti-HER2 drug treatment in breast cancer patients.

Background: Up to 23% of breast cancer patients recurred within a decade after trastuzumab treatment. Conversely, one trial found that patients with low HER2 expression and metastatic breast cancer had a positive response to trastuzumab-deruxtecan (T-Dxd). This indicates that relying solely on HER2 as a single diagnostic marker to predict the efficacy of anti-HER2 drugs is insufficient.

The added value of anosmic subtype on motor subtype in Parkinson's disease: a pilot study.

This study investigates whether incorporating olfactory dysfunction into motor subtypes of Parkinson's disease (PD) improves associations with clinical outcomes. PD is commonly divided into motor subtypes, such as postural instability and gait disturbance (PIGD) and tremor-dominant PD (TDPD), but non-motor symptoms like olfactory dysfunction remain underexplored. We assessed 157 participants with PD using the University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (UPSIT), Movement Disorder Society-Sponsored Revision of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (M-UPDRS), Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), 39-item Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire Summary Index (PDQ-39 SI), and 99mTc-TRODAT-1 imaging.

Feasibility of substituting soda pulping with high consistency kneaded chemi mechanical pulping for discarded oyster farming bamboo scaffolding.

In the previous study, discarded oyster farming bamboo scaffolding (BS) demonstrated the potential for application in pulping and papermaking through the soda pulping process. However, soda pulping involves high temperatures and chemical dosages. Therefore, this study develops an alternative pulping process to lower temperature and chemical demands by utilizing a high-consistency kneader (HCK), simultaneously promoting the utilization of BS in pulping and papermaking.

4D-printed programmable sample-/eluent-actuated solid-phase extraction device for trace metal analysis.

Background: To integrate valves, manifolds, and solid-phase extraction (SPE) columns into a compact device is technically difficult. Four-dimensional printing (4DP) technologies, employing stimuli-responsive materials in three-dimensional printing (3DP), are revolutionizing the fabrication, functionality, and applicability of stimuli-responsive analytical devices that can show time-dependent shape programming to enable more complex geometric designs and functions. However, 4D-printed stimuli-responsive actuators and valves utilized to control flowing streams in SPE applications remain rare.

Effect of Occupational Noise on Employee Health: A Longitudinal Study.

Objective: This study investigated the long-term health risks associated with occupational noise exposure. By using 9 years of health examination data from a major manufacturing company in Taiwan, this study compared the health indices of employees in noise-intensive and non-noise-intensive work environments.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of 6278 health examination reports spanning 9 years was conducted to compare 20 health indices among 166 employees evenly distributed between noise-intensive and non-noise-intensive workgroups.

Exploring The Formation And Permeability Of Plasmodesmata In The Liverwort, Marchantia polymorpha.

Plasmodesmata are cell-wall-embedded channels that evolved in the common ancestor of land plants to increase cell-to-cell communication. Whether all the fundamental properties of plasmodesmata emerged and were inherited in all land plants at the same time is unknown. Here we show that the bryophyte Marchantia polymorpha (a non-vascular plant) forms mostly simple plasmodesmata in early-developing gemmae.

Peak width of skeletonized mean diffusivity might be a better neuroimage marker for cognitive functions in Cerebral Autosomal Dominant Arteriopathy with Subcortical Infarcts and Leukoencephalopathy (CADASIL).

Background: Cerebral Autosomal Dominant Arteriopathy with Subcortical Infarcts and Leukoencephalopathy (CADASIL) is a monogenic subcortical ischemic vascular dementia (SIVD) caused NOTCH3 gene mutations. Many different neuroimaging methods have been used to investigate the association between neuroimaging changes and clinical symptoms. We investigated the correlation between peak width of skeletonized mean diffusivity (PSMD) values and cognitive functions in preclinical CADASIL patients without a history of stroke or dementia, comparing them to white matter hyperintensities (WMH) volumes.

Exploring the Therapeutic Effect of Perampanel, a Selective AMPA Receptor Antagonist, on Pathophysiological Changes in hAPP‐J20 Transgenic Alzheimer’s Mice.

Background: The initiation of amyloid plaque deposition signifies a crucial stage in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) progression, which often coincides with the disruption of neural circuits and cognitive decline. While the role of excitatory‐inhibitory balance is increasingly recognized in AD pathophysiology, targeted therapies to modulate this balance remain underexplored. This study investigates the effect of perampanel, a selective non‐competitive AMPA receptor antagonist, in modulating neurophysiological changes in hAPP‐J20 transgenic Alzheimer’s mice.

Factors Associated with Postoperative Pain Trajectory, Nausea and Vomiting After Total Knee Arthroplasty: A Retrospective Study.

Objectives: Postoperative pain, nausea and vomiting adversely affect postoperative rehabilitation after total knee arthroplasty (TKA). We aimed to identify factors associated with postoperative pain trajectory and postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) and evaluated the effects of different analgesic modalities.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed patients undergoing unilateral primary TKA from 2017 to 2022.

The q-RASPR approach for predicting the property and fate of persistent organic pollutants.

This study presents a quantitative read-across structure-property relationship (q-RASPR) approach that integrates the chemical similarity information used in read-across with traditional quantitative structure-property relationship (QSPR) models. This novel framework is applied to predict the physicochemical properties and environmental behaviors of persistent organic pollutants, specifically polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). By utilizing a curated dataset and incorporating similarity-based descriptors, the q-RASPR approach improves the accuracy of predictions, particularly for compounds with limited experimental data.

Baseline Impedance via Manometry Predicts Pathological Mean Nocturnal Baseline Impedance in Isolated Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Symptoms.

Background/aims: Distal mean nocturnal baseline impedance (MNBI) measuring via pH-impedance may be valuable in diagnosing patients with suspected laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR). However, its wide adoption is hindered by cost and invasiveness. This study investigates whether baseline impedance measured during high-resolution impedance manometry (HRIM-BI) can predict pathological MNBI.

Characterization of a novel type 4 resistant starch from tapioca and its obesity-preventive effects through gut microbiota modulation in high-fat diet-treated mice.

The rising pandemic of obesity has received significant attention. Yet, more safe and effective targeted strategies must be used to mitigate its impact on individual health and the global disease burden. While the health benefits of resistant starch (RS) are well-documented, the role of RT-90 (a phosphate-modified tapioca RS containing 90.

A novel MOF-on-MOF-derived carbon-encapsulated CeO/Co/CoO humidity-resistant heterojunction with abundant oxygen vacancies for efficient ozone removal.

Ground-level ozone (O) can infiltrate indoor environments, severely impacting the environment and human health. Moisture-induced catalyst deactivation is a major challenge in catalytic ozone removal. MOF-template-derived heterojunctions supported by carbon materials can prevent chemisorption of water vapor at active sites.

Rhythm Control Better Prevents Stroke than Rate Control in Patients with Concomitant Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy and Atrial Fibrillation: A Nationwide Population Based Cohort Study with Long-Term Follow-Up.

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) increases the risks of stroke and mortality. It remains unclear whether rhythm control reduces the risk of stroke in patients with AF concomitant with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM).

Methods: We identified AF patients with HCM who were ≥ 18 years old in the Taiwan National Health Insurance Database.

Vulnerable parafoveal microcirculation quadrant in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a leading cause of vision loss among adults. This study evaluates Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography (OCTA) vessel density (VD) as a marker for DR in diabetes mellitus (DM) patients. An observational study was conducted with 47 type 2 DM patients and 21 healthy controls.

Similar host instar preferences by three sympatric parasitoids of (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae): potential host niche overlapping.

Parasitoids employ diverse oviposition strategies to enhance offspring survival and maximise fitness gains from hosts. Ladybird parasitoids, significant natural enemies of ladybirds, have the potential to disrupt biocontrol efforts, yet their biology and ecology remain poorly understood. This study investigated the host-parasitoid interaction among three sympatric larval endoparasitoids of (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae): (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae), (Hymenoptera: Proctotrupidae) and (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae).

Microbial Communities in and Around the Siboglinid Tubeworms from the South Yungan East Ridge Cold Seep Offshore Southwestern Taiwan at the Northern South China Sea.

To date, only a few microbial community studies of cold seeps at the South China Sea (SCS) have been reported. The cold seep dominated by tubeworms was discovered at South Yungan East Ridge (SYER) offshore southwestern Taiwan by miniROV. The tubeworms were identified and proposed as sp.

TCF12 and LncRNA MALAT1 Cooperatively Harness High Cyclin D1 but Low β-Catenin Gene Expression to Exacerbate Colorectal Cancer Prognosis Independently of Metastasis.

Metastasis is a well-known factor worsening colorectal cancer (CRC) prognosis, but mortality mechanisms in non-metastatic patients with poor outcomes are less understood. TCF12 is a transcription factor that can be physically associated with the long non-coding RNA MALAT1, creating an alliance with correlated expression levels in CRC patients. This TCF12-MALAT1 alliance is linked to poorer prognosis independently of age and metastasis.

Association Between Exposure to Particulate Matter Air Pollution with Risk of Obesity Among Children and Adolescents in Northern and Central Taiwan.

Introduction: The present study investigated the relationship between air pollution, specifically PM and PM, and childhood and adolescent obesity in northern and central Taiwan. Previous research has shown a positive correlation between air pollution and pediatric obesity, but no study has been conducted in Taiwan. We used data from the K-12 Education Administration, Ministry of Education, and the Taiwan Air Quality Monitoring Network to analyze the association between PM and PM exposures and obesity rates among elementary and junior high school students.

Osimertinib as Second- and ≥Third-Line Treatment in Advanced and Recurrence EGFR-Mutant NSCLC Patients Harboring Acquired T790M Mutation.

Background/objectives: Osimertinib is a standard sequential therapy for advanced and recurrent Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR)-mutant non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients with the T790M mutation, following treatment with first- or second-generation EGFR Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors (TKIs). This study aims to investigate the differences in clinical outcomes between osimertinib as a 2nd-line treatment and as a ≥3rd-line treatment in this patient population.

Methods: Between September 2014 and March 2023, we enrolled advanced and recurrent T790M + NSCLC patients who had received osimertinib as sequential treatment for analysis.

Erinacine A-Enriched Mycelium Ethanol Extract Lessens Cellular Damage in Cell and Models of Spinocerebellar Ataxia Type 3 by Improvement of Nrf2 Activation.

Spinocerebellar ataxia type 3 (SCA3), caused by the abnormal expansion of polyglutamine (polyQ) in the ataxin-3 protein, is one of the inherited polyQ neurodegenerative diseases that share similar genetic and molecular features. Mutant polyQ-expanded ataxin-3 protein is prone to aggregation in affected neurons and is predominantly degraded by autophagy, which is beneficial for neurodegenerative disease treatment. Not only does mutant polyQ-expanded ataxin-3 increase susceptibility to oxidative cytotoxicity, but it also hampers antioxidant potency in neuronal cells.

Overcoming the Tradeoff Between Reaction Rate and Overpotential in Dinuclear Cobalt Complex Catalyzed Electrochemical Water Oxidation.

This study focuses on enhancing the water oxidation reaction (WOR) efficacy of dinuclear cobalt complex catalysts from both kinetic (turnover frequency, TOF) and thermodynamic (overpotential, η) perspectives. For this purpose, we synthesized six dinuclear cobalt complexes 1-6 comprising non-innocent ligands with different electronically active substituents (-OMe (1), -Me (2), -H (3), -F (4), -Cl (5), and -CN (6)). The electronic effects on the electrochemical WOR under neutral, acidic, and alkaline conditions were investigated experimentally and computationally.

Excitation Spillover from PSII to PSI in Leaves at 77K.

Heterogeneous distribution of PSI and PSII in thick grana in shade chloroplasts is argued to hinder spillover of chlorophyll excitations from PSII to PSI. To examine this dogma, we measured fluorescence induction at 77K at 690 nm (PSII) and 760 nm (mostly PSI) in the leaf discs of Spinacia oleracea, Cucumis sativus and shade tolerant Alocasia odora, grown at high and low light, and quantified their spillover capacities. PSI fluorescence (FI) consists of the intrinsic PSI fluorescence (FIα) and fluorescence caused by excitations spilt over from PSII (FIβ).