Is there an optimal inter-delivery interval in women who underwent trial of labor after cesarean delivery (TOLAC)?

Background: Inter-delivery interval (IDI) has been proven to be a factor associated with adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes. However, the optimal IDI in trial of labor after cesarean delivery (TOLAC) remains unclear. We aimed to investigate the association between IDI and major maternal and neonatal outcomes in women who underwent TOLAC.

Assessment of growth pattern of preterm infants up to a corrected age of 24 months.

Objectives: To assess the growth of preterm infants up to a corrected age of 24 months, and to understand the growth trend and pattern of preterm infants.

Methods: A preterm infant follow-up database was established based on the Internet Plus follow-up system. A total of 3 188 preterm infants who were born from April 2018 to April 2021 were enrolled.

Regional Differences in Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid and Glutamate Concentrations in the Healthy Newborn Brain.

Background And Purpose: Gamma-aminobutyric acid and glutamate system disruptions may underlie neonatal brain injury. However, in vivo investigations are challenged by the need for special H-MR spectroscopy sequences for the reliable measurement of the neurotransmitters in this population. We used -edited H-MR spectroscopy (Mescher-Garwood point-resolved spectroscopy) to quantify regional in vivo gamma-aminobutyric acid and glutamate concentrations during the early postnatal period in healthy neonates.

Panoramic smoking burden and genetic susceptibility in relation to all-cause and cause-specific mortality: a prospective study in UK Biobank.

Background And Aims: Various smoking behaviors, including smoking initiation, age of initiation, heaviness of smoking and smoking cessation, have been individually related to the risk of mortality; however, no study has assessed these smoking behaviors jointly in relation to mortality. Our study aimed to measure prospectively the association of panoramic smoking burden (PSB), generated from the four aforementioned smoking behaviors, with all-cause and cause-specific mortality, and measure whether such associations are modified by genetic variations.

Design: Prospective cohort study.

mA methyltransferase METTL3-mediated lncRNA FOXD2-AS1 promotes the tumorigenesis of cervical cancer.

Recent studies have indicated that long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) and N-methyladenosine (mA) methylation modification play critical roles in human cancers; however, their regulation on cervical cancer is largely unclear. Here, our study tries to investigate the underlying mechanisms by which lncRNA FOXD2 adjacent opposite strand RNA 1 (FOXD2-AS1) modulates cervical cancer tumorigenesis. Results illuminated that FOXD2-AS1 expression was significantly upregulated in cervical cancer cells and tissue, which was closely correlated to the unfavorable prognosis.

Changes in lower uterine segment thickness during different gestational weeks in pregnant women qualified for trial of labor after cesarean section.

Objective: To investigate the correlation between lower uterine segment thickness (LUST) and gestational weeks (GW) in women who attempted trial of labor after cesarean section (TOLAC) and to estimate the reference ranges of LUST.

Methods: A prospective cohort study was conducted between January 2019 and December 2020 at a tertiary-care center in Foshan, China. A total of 2588 women who attempted TOLAC were included.

IGF2BP2-modified circular RNA circARHGAP12 promotes cervical cancer progression by interacting mA/FOXM1 manner.

Emerging evidence indicates that circular RNA (circRNA) and N-methyladenosine (mA) play critical roles in cervical cancer. However, the synergistic effect of circRNA and mA on cervical cancer progression is unclear. In the present study, our sequencing data revealed that a novel mA-modified circRNA (circARHGAP12, hsa_circ_0000231) upregulated in the cervical cancer tissue and cells.

Maternal and Neonatal Outcomes of Placenta Previa with and without Coverage of a Uterine Scar: A Retrospective Cohort Study in a Tertiary Hospital.

Background: To compare the maternal and neonatal outcomes of placenta previa (PP) with and without coverage of a uterine scar in Foshan, China.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study comparing all singleton pregnancies with PP was conducted at a tertiary, university-affiliated medical center from 1 January 2012 to 31 April 2017 in Foshan, China. Demographic, clinical and laboratory data were extracted from electronic medical records (EMRs).

Perinatal exposure to maternal smoking and adulthood smoking behaviors in predicting cardiovascular diseases: A prospective cohort study.

Background And Aims: Little is known about the associations between perinatal exposure to maternal smoking and cardiovascular disease (CVD) incidence in offspring, and whether such associations are modified by adulthood and genetically determined smoking behaviors.

Methods: A total of 414,588 participants without CVD at baseline were included from the UK Biobank in 2006-2010 and followed up through 2018. Cox-proportional hazard models were used to examine the association of perinatal maternal smoking with CVD, and both multiplicative and additive interaction analyses were performed to investigate the modification effects of own smoking behaviors.

GABA and glutamate in the preterm neonatal brain: In-vivo measurement by magnetic resonance spectroscopy.

Cognitive and behavioral disabilities in preterm infants, even without obvious brain injury on conventional neuroimaging, underscores a critical need to identify the subtle underlying microstructural and biochemical derangements. The gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and glutamatergic neurotransmitter systems undergo rapid maturation during the crucial late gestation and early postnatal life, and are at-risk of disruption after preterm birth. Animal and human autopsy studies provide the bulk of current understanding since non-invasive specialized proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (H-MRS) to measure GABA and glutamate are not routinely available for this vulnerable population due to logistical and technical challenges.

Wavelet Autoregulation Monitoring Identifies Blood Pressures Associated With Brain Injury in Neonatal Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy.

Dysfunctional cerebrovascular autoregulation may contribute to neurologic injury in neonatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE). Identifying the optimal mean arterial blood pressure (MAPopt) that best supports autoregulation could help identify hemodynamic goals that support neurologic recovery. In neonates who received therapeutic hypothermia for HIE, we hypothesized that the wavelet hemoglobin volume index (wHVx) would identify MAPopt and that blood pressures closer to MAPopt would be associated with less brain injury on MRI.

The accuracy and influencing factors for preference of self-sampling in group B streptococcus screening: a cross-sectional study.

Objective: Self-sampling with proper instruction in 35-37 weeks' gestation is an option to clinician sampling to prevent early-onset invasive group B streptococcal disease of infants. We aimed to assess the accuracy of self-sampling and influencing factors of preference for collection method in Chinese women.

Methods: We compared the screening results of self-sampling with clinician collection in a sample of 520 women in late pregnancy.

Prenatal diagnosis of intestinal nonrotation using magnetic resonance imaging: Is it possible?

Background: Malrotation of the bowel refers to any variation in the rotation and fixation of the gastrointestinal tract during the first trimester and is most commonly detected postnatally. Nonrotation of the bowel and incomplete rotation of the bowel are subtypes of malrotation.

Objective: To determine if the nonrotation subtype of malrotation of the bowel can be detected on prenatal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

The key role of the pediatric radiologist in developing a multidisciplinary fetal center.

With the demand for fetal imaging and fetal care programs on the rise, the authors of this manuscript review the components of building a successful fetal imaging center. Creating an environment that engages a multidisciplinary team, utilizing a central coordinator to review clinical and psychosocial aspects of each patient, and ensuring ongoing research and quality control are essential components to the success of growing a program.

Age and Sex Influences Gamma-aminobutyric Acid Concentrations in the Developing Brain of Very Premature Infants.

Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and glutamate are principal neurotransmitters essential for late gestational brain development and may play an important role in prematurity-related brain injury. In vivo investigation of GABA in the preterm infant with standard proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (H-MRS) has been limited due to its low concentrations in the developing brain, and overlap in the spectrum by other dominant metabolites. We describe early postnatal profiles of in vivo GABA and glutamate concentrations in the developing preterm brain measured by using the J-difference editing technique, Mescher-Garwood point resolved spectroscopy.

Functional brain connectivity in ex utero premature infants compared to in utero fetuses.

Brain structural changes in premature infants appear before term age. Functional differences between premature infants and healthy fetuses during this period have yet to be explored. Here, we examined brain connectivity using resting state functional MRI in 25 very premature infants (VPT; gestational age at birth <32 weeks) and 25 healthy fetuses with structurally normal brain MRIs.

Low-pass genome sequencing: a validated method in clinical cytogenetics.

Clinically significant copy-number variants (CNVs) known to cause human diseases are routinely detected by chromosomal microarray analysis (CMA). Recently, genome sequencing (GS) has been introduced for CNV analysis; however, sequencing depth (determined by sequencing read-length and read-amount) is a variable parameter across different laboratories. Variating sequencing depths affect the CNV detection resolution and also make it difficult for cross-laboratory referencing or comparison.

Autonomic nervous system maturation in the premature extrauterine milieu.

Background: In premature infants, we investigated whether the duration of extrauterine development influenced autonomic nervous system (ANS) maturation.

Methods: We performed a longitudinal cohort study of ANS maturation in preterm infants. Eligibility included birth gestational age (GA) < 37 weeks, NICU admission, and expected survival.

Preoperative Prediction of Ki-67 Status in Breast Cancer with Multiparametric MRI Using Transfer Learning.

Rationale And Objectives: Ki-67 is one of the most important biomarkers of breast cancer traditionally measured invasively via immunohistochemistry. In this study, deep learning based radiomics models were established for preoperative prediction of Ki-67 status using multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (mp-MRI).

Materials And Methods: Total of 328 eligible patients were retrospectively reviewed [training dataset (n = 230) and a temporal validation dataset (n = 98)].

Altered local cerebellar and brainstem development in preterm infants.

Background: Premature birth is associated with high prevalence of neurodevelopmental impairments in surviving infants. The putative role of cerebellar and brainstem dysfunction remains poorly understood, particularly in the absence of overt structural injury.

Method: We compared in-utero versus ex-utero global, regional and local cerebellar and brainstem development in healthy fetuses (n ​= ​38) and prematurely born infants without evidence of structural brain injury on conventional MRI studies (n ​= ​74) that were performed at two time points: the first corresponding to the third trimester, either in utero or ex utero in the early postnatal period following preterm birth (30-40 weeks of gestation; 38 control fetuses; 52 premature infants) and the second at term equivalent age (37-46 weeks; 38 control infants; 58 premature infants).

Association of Prenatal Maternal Psychological Distress With Fetal Brain Growth, Metabolism, and Cortical Maturation.

Importance: Prenatal maternal stress is increasingly associated with adverse outcomes in pregnant women and their offspring. However, the association between maternal stress and human fetal brain growth and metabolism is unknown.

Objective: To identify the association between prenatal maternal psychological distress and fetal brain growth, cortical maturation, and biochemical development using advanced 3-dimensional volumetric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS).

Association of Maternal Psychological Distress With In Utero Brain Development in Fetuses With Congenital Heart Disease.

Importance: Prenatal maternal psychological distress can result in detrimental mother and child outcomes. Maternal stress increases with receipt of a prenatal diagnosis of fetal congenital heart disease (CHD); however, the association between maternal stress and the developing brain in fetuses with CHD is unknown.

Objective: To determine the association of maternal psychological distress with brain development in fetuses with CHD.

[Long non-coding RNAs show different expression profiles and display competing endogenous RNA potential in placenta accreta spectrum disorders].

Objective: To investigate the expression profile of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNA) and identify potential lncRNA-related competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNA) in placenta accrete spectrum disorders (PAS).

Methods: Five tissue specimens of placental implantation and 5 adjacent normal placental tissues were collected from cesarean section deliveries complicated by PAS in our hospital between December, 2017 and June, 2018. Human microarrays were used to identify the lncRNAs that were differentially expressed in PAS, and 5 of the identified lncRNAs were further validated using qRT-PCR.

Establishing a Differential Marker Profile for Pregnancy Complications Near Delivery.

Objective: The aim of this work was to define a differential marker profile for pregnancy complications near delivery.

Methods: We enrolled pregnant women who were referred to the outpatient pregnancy clinic of the University Medical Center, Ljubljana, Slovenia, due to symptoms of pregnancy complications and women with a history of pregnancy complications attending the high-risk hospital clinic for close surveillance. They were evaluated for prior risk and were tested for biophysical and biochemical markers at the time of enrolment.

A Robust Polymerase Chain Reaction-based Assay for Quantifying Cytosine-guanine-guanine Trinucleotide Repeats in Fragile X Mental Retardation-1 Gene.

Fragile X syndrome (FXS) and associated disorders are caused by expansion of the cytosine-guanine-guanine (CGG) trinucleotide repeat in the 5' untranslated region (UTR) of the Fragile X mental retardation-1 (FMR1) gene promoter. Conventionally, capillary electrophoresis fragment analysis on a genetic analyzer is used for the sizing of the CGG repeats of FMR1, but additional Southern blot analysis is required for exact measurement when the repeat number is higher than 200. Here, we present an accurate and robust polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based method for quantification of the CGG repeats of FMR1.