Sympathetic neurons can modify the intrinsic structural and functional properties of human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes.

The sympathetic nervous system densely innervates all cardiac chambers and is a key player in cardiac control, yet this relationship has scarcely been investigated using a stem cell-based model. This study investigates the effects that sympathetic neurons (SNs) have on human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hPSC-CMs) in vitro, and whether they induce any degree of functional or structural maturity in these conventionally immature cells. SNs were isolated from neonatal rat pups, and cocultured with hPSC-CMs for up to 15 days.

Modelling inflammation-induced peripheral sensitization in a dish-more complex than expected?

Peripheral sensitization of nociceptors is believed to be a key driver of chronic pain states. Here, we sought to study the effects of a modified version of inflammatory soup on the excitability of human stem cell-derived sensory neurons. For this, we used a preexisting and a novel stem cell line, modified to stably express the calcium sensor GCamP6f.

Clinical and Deep-Learned Evaluation of MR-Guided Self-Supervised PET Reconstruction.

Reduced dose Positron Emission Tomography (PET) lowers the radiation dose to patients and reduces costs. Lower count data, however, degrades reconstructed image quality. Advanced reconstruction methods help mitigate image quality losses, but it is important to assess the resulting images from a clinical perspective.

Trends of acute myocardial infarction-related deaths in US patients from 1999 to 2020.

Introduction: The objective of this study was to analyze the temporal trends and demographic/geographical disparities in acute myocardial infarction (AMI)-related mortality among individuals aged 15 and older across the United Sates (US).

Material And Methods: We evaluated death records from 1999 to 2020 that were obtained from the CDC WONDER database. Age-adjusted mortality rates (AAMRs) per 100,000 persons and annual percent changes (APC) were computed, with stratification by year, sex, race/ethnicity, and geographic region.

Trends and disparities in heart failure-related mortality in the US adult population from 1999 to 2020.

Introduction: The rising incidence of heart failure (HF) among the U.S. population has become a major concern for healthcare providers.

Gender disparity in hepatobiliary endoscopy training and delivery: Results of a nationwide survey.

Background And Study Aims: There are far fewer female, independent endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) practitioners than men in the UK. This study aimed to explore what lies behind the disparity by examining the current state of training, attitudes, and other factors that may influence trainees' decision to pursue ERCP training, with a view to identifying modifiable factors.

Methods: Anonymized responses to an electronic survey distributed to gastroenterology trainees and independent ERCP practitioners in the UK were collected and analyzed.

Substrates of Sudden Cardiac Death in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.

Sudden cardiac death (SCD), the most devastating complication of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), is primarily triggered by ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation. Despite advances in knowledge, the mechanisms driving ventricular arrhythmia in HCM remain incompletely understood, stemming from an interplay of multiple pro-arrhythmic factors. Myocyte disarray and myocardial fibrosis form a structural substrate favorable to re-entrant arrhythmias by altering myocardial electrophysiological properties, while cellular abnormalities predominate in patients without evident structural remodeling.

Uterine Carcinosarcoma-A Retrospective Cohort Analysis from a Tertiary Centre on Epidemiology, Management Approach, Outcomes and Survival Patterns.

Background/objectives: Uterine carcinosarcoma (UCS) refers to a rare high-grade aggressive epithelial non-endometrioid endometrial carcinoma, with tumour cells demonstrating epithelial-mesenchymal metaplastic transition and composed of both carcinomatous epithelial and sarcomatous (homologous or heterologous) components.

Methods: The aim of this study was to evaluate the epidemiology, management approach, outcomes and survival patterns of patients with UCS. Seventy-seven cases of UCS treated with primary surgery in a single tertiary centre underwent retrospective cohort analysis across a ten-year period.

Fetal genetic factors in pregnancy loss: Insights from a meta-analysis and effectiveness of whole exome sequencing.

Spontaneous pregnancy loss commonly occurs during the first trimester and can be caused by various factors including chromosomal abnormalities and submicroscopic aberrations. After the first trimester, the etiology of most pregnancy losses remains undetermined. This study aims to fill this gap by an in-depth investigation of the fetal genome and its effect on pregnancy outcome.

SenSkin™: a human skin-specific cellular senescence gene set.

Cellular senescence gene sets have been leveraged to overcome the inadequate sensitivity or specificity of single markers. However, growing evidence of heterogeneity among tissues in senescent cell phenotypes and gene expression profiles has highlighted the need for tissue-specific gene sets. SenSkin™ was curated by an expert review of literature on cellular senescence in the skin and characterized with pathway analysis.

Is the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) a Single or Two Construct Measure? A Theoretical and Pragmatic Perspective.

The MDAS questionnaire is one of a number of scales available to assess dental anxiety. It is widely used and translated into many world languages; however, it lacks an explicit theoretical backdrop to the content and structure of the measure. This paper draws upon original expositions of dental anxiety: how it develops, is maintained, and how this draws attention to a re-evaluation of the measure.

Mechanical adaptation of the right ventricle to secondary tricuspid regurgitation, and its association with patients' outcomes.

Background: Data regarding the right ventricular (RV) mechanical adaptation to secondary tricuspid regurgitation (STR) is scarce.

Objectives: We investigated the changes in RV contraction pattern in patients with different STR severity and etiology, and their association with outcomes.

Methods: We enrolled 205 patients with STR (60% female, age: 77±12 years), in a single-center prospective observational study.

Rationale, implementation considerations, delineation and planning target objective recommendations for volumetric modulated arc therapy and helical tomotherapy total body irradiation, total marrow irradiation, total marrow and lymphoid irradiation and total lymphoid irradiation.

As a component of myeloablative conditioning before allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), Total Body Irradiation (TBI) is employed in radiotherapy centers all over the world. In recent and coming years, many centers are changing their TBI setup to a conformal isocentric technique, providing superior homogeneity and control of the target prescription dose, and more freedom for individualized organ-at-risk sparing or dose-escalation. Also, more specifically bone-marrow- and/or lymphatics-targeted therapies such as Total Marrow (+ Lymphoid) Irradiation (TMI / TMLI), and Total Lymphoid Irradiation (TLI) are established and prospectively evaluated in several centers.

Respiratory effects of electronic cigarette use in individuals who never smoked: A systematic review.

Current evidence on whether electronic cigarettes (ECs) pose respiratory risks is unclear, due to confounding by cigarette smoking; evidence among never-smoking individuals is needed. Following a narrative review and critical appraisal, a systematic review assessed possible respiratory outcomes prospectively associated with EC use among individuals who never smoked. Bias risk was evaluated using a Joanna Briggs Institute tool.

Automated contouring and radiotherapy treatment planning of spine metastases using atlas-based auto-segmentation and knowledge-based planning approaches.

Objectives: Uncomplicated spine metastases are routinely treated with conventional external beam radiotherapy (cEBRT). In cEBRT, there is no delineation of target volumes or organs at risk (OAR), or attempt to optimise dose distribution to deliver conformal, homogeneous dose distributions with sparing of OAR. Atlas-based auto-segmentation (ABAS) for target volume and OAR delineation, followed by knowledge-based planning (KBP) could facilitate conformal planning of spine metastases.

Association between electronic cigarette use and respiratory outcomes among people with no established smoking history: a comprehensive review and critical appraisal.

Nicotine consumption in many countries is shifting away from combustible cigarettes and toward electronic cigarettes (ECs). Understanding the overall population-level impact requires weighing their possible benefits (e.g.

Abatacept and the risk of malignancy: a meta-analysis across disease indications.

Objectives: To estimate the association between abatacept use and the incidence of malignancy excluding non-melanomatous skin cancers (NMSCs).

Methods: Systematic database searches were performed, to April 2024, to identify phase II/III/IV randomised clinical trials (RCTs), long-term extension (LTE) and observational cohort studies of abatacept in people with rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis. Network and pairwise meta-analyses were performed to estimate incidence rate ratios (IRRs) for malignancy excluding NMSC, comparing abatacept with placebo and tumour necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi) in RCT/LTE studies.

-related disorders: expansion of the phenotypic spectrum and long-term efficacy of deep brain stimulation.

Heterozygous mutations in are associated with an early-onset, progressive and often complex dystonia (DYT28). Key characteristics of typical disease include focal motor features at disease presentation, evolving through a caudocranial pattern into generalized dystonia, with prominent oromandibular, laryngeal and cervical involvement. Although -related disease is emerging as one of the most common causes of early-onset genetic dystonia, much remains to be understood about the full spectrum of the disease.