Reconfiguring Priorities: Breastfeeding Decision-making Among Young Breast Cancer Survivors.

Background: Breast cancer survivors face unique challenges in breastfeeding decisions. Limited research exists on the experiences and decision-making processes of young women with breast cancer regarding breastfeeding.

Objective: To explain the decision-making processes of young women with breast cancer in relation to breastfeeding throughout the cancer trajectory.

Peroxidase (POD) Mimicking Activity of Different Types of Poly(ethyleneimine)-Mediated Prussian Blue Nanoparticles.

Prussian blue nanoparticles (PBNPs) have been identified as a promising candidate for biomimetic peroxidase (POD)-like activity, specifically due to the metal centres (Fe/Fe) of Prussian blue (PB), which have the potential to function as catalytically active centres. The decoration of PBNPs with desired functional polymers (such as amino- or carboxylate-based) primarily facilitates the subsequent linkage of biomolecules to the nanoparticles for their use in biosensor applications. Thus, the elucidation of the catalytic POD mimicry of these systems is of significant scientific interest but has not been investigated in depth yet.

Study of the cortico-anorectal neurophysiology in women with fecal incontinence.

Background: Fecal incontinence (FI) is a prevalent condition that disproportionately impacts women. Although sphincter biomechanics are well studied, the integrity of the cortico-anal motor pathway remains elusive. We evaluated the cortico-spino-anorectal pathway in women with FI against age-matched (AM-HV) and young healthy (Y-HV) volunteers.

Raising awareness and addressing inequities for people with Down syndrome in South Africa.

Globally, individuals with Down syndrome (DS) face profound inequities in social and health care access. These challenges are further compounded by racial disparities as well as a lack of awareness, research, and support, particularly in the Global South. This commentary discusses the multifaceted challenges and disparities encountered by people with DS in South Africa, highlighting the need for targeted interventions.

Early and Mid-Term Disposition of α-PVP and its unknown Metabolites in Urine and Oral Fluid Through a Multi-Analytical Hyphenated Approach Following a Single Non-Controlled Administration to Healthy Volunteers.

Nowadays, synthetic cathinones (SCs) is the second more representative subclass of New Psychoactive Substances, accounting for 104 analogues in the illegal market. Since its first report in 2011, α-pyrrolidinovalerophenone (α-PVP) gained popularity among drug users, provoking an increased number of intoxications. Nonetheless, pharmacokinetics data is still limited in the literature.

The environmental impact of inhalers: a framework for sustainable prescription practices in Spain.

Background: The healthcare sector contributes significantly to global greenhouse emissions, with inhalers being major contributors.

Objective: To develop a framework for reducing the environmental footprint of inhalers in Spain by implementing greener prescription practices.

Methods: A multidisciplinary working group was formed, including hospital pharmacists, pulmonologists, and environmental experts.

Attracting nursing talent to the intensive care unit: A qualitative study on how to create an appealing work environment.

Introduction And Objective: The global shortage of nurses who want to work in the intensive care unit (ICU) is alarming, putting at risk quality of care and patient safety. With efforts put into engagement strategies, optimized recruitment programmes are scarce, specifically in the ICU setting. The aim of this study is to describe and explore ICU nurses' opinions on their work motivational factors that influenced the decision to work in the ICU setting.

Mechanism of syncope: role of ambulatory blood pressure monitoring and cardiovascular autonomic function assessment.

Background And Aims: Identifying the haemodynamic mechanism of autonomic syncope is the essential pre-requisite for effective and personalized therapy aimed at preventing recurrences. The present study assessed the diagnostic efficacy of a two-step assessment.

Methods: Multicentre prospective, cross-sectional, observational study.

Biomarkers.

Background: Alzheimer's Disease (AD) is associated with sleep disturbances. Moreover, individuals with sleep disturbances have been reported to have a higher risk for developing AD. The measurement of sleep behavior therefore opens the opportunity for a potential digital biomarker of AD.

Biomarkers.

Background: Bilingualism can stimulate brain plasticity (Jafari et al. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2021;1505(1):8-22) and is also associated with better executive function (Grundy.

Biomarkers.

Background: Nearly all people with Down Syndrome (DS) develop Alzheimer's dementia (AD) by the 7 decade of life. However, whether the alterations in fluid biomarker levels associated with DS follow the same pattern to those observed in other forms of AD is not well understood.

Method: We used mass spectrometry-based proteomics to measure 1116 proteins in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) across euploid controls (n=130), sporadic late-onset AD (LOAD, n=89), asymptomatic DS (n=117), prodromal DS (n=57), and dementia DS (n=80) cases, and compared the protein changes observed in DS to those in LOAD and to those recently described in autosomal dominant AD (ADAD).

Biomarkers.

Background: Cognitive resilience can be defined as better-than-expected cognitive performance in the context of Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathologies or increased AD risk. We investigated pathways associated with cognitive resilience trajectories in amyloid positive (A+) and/or APOE4 cognitively unimpaired (CU) older adults including brain resilience, resistance to AD pathologies and vascular pathology.

Method: We included 534 CU ADNI participants with available cognitive data, longitudinal amyloid-PET ( [F]florbetaben and [F]florbetapir) and structural MRI (gray matter volumes) and, as ubset with tau-PET ( [F]AV1451) (n = 287) and white matter hyperintensities (n = 467) volume data (n = 534).

Biomarkers.

Background: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a devastating neurodegenerative disease with delayed diagnosis until the manifestation of symptoms. Although the emergence of blood-based biomarkers offers hope for easy detection of AD, existing AD-associated blood biomarkers, known as the "blood ATN biomarkers", mainly capture the pathological hallmarks of AD, overlooking other AD-associated biological processes such as inflammation and vascular dysfunctions. Therefore, developing a blood-based biomarker assay that captures dysregulation beyond the ATN biomarkers may help advance early detection and staging of AD, enabling a comprehensive examination of the disease status METHOD: We leveraged ultrasensitive proteomic technology to develop a blood-based, multiplex biomarker assay for AD.

Biomarkers.

Background: Individuals with Down Syndrome (DS) almost invariably develop Alzheimer's Disease (AD), but detecting early clinical changes is challenging due to comorbid intellectual disability, highlighting the importance of non-invasive biomarkers. Neuroimaging of the medial temporal lobe (MTL), a key site of tau pathology, shows promise as an early AD biomarker. Here, we aimed to characterise volumetric patterns of the MTL in DS across the AD clinical continuum, and define associations with AD cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers.

Biomarkers.

Background: Alzheimer´s disease (AD) is the main cause of death in adults with Down syndrome (DS). We describe the unique contributions of the Down Alzheimer Barcelona Neuroimaging Initiative (DABNI) cohort by studying longitudinal changes in plasma and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) markers.

Method: We included DABNI participants with DS that contributed at least two plasma and/or CSF samples and were asymptomatic (aDS, n=155), had prodromal AD (pDS, n=46) or had AD dementia (dDS; n=53) at baseline, together with 172 euploid cognitively normal controls (CN).

Biomarkers.

Background: In murine models, peripheral blood factors have been identified as having either a brain rejuvenating or ageing effect. However, it is unclear whether these blood factors have similar effects in humans. We aimed at testing the association between these blood factors and cognitive performance in cognitively unimpaired (CU) individuals at risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD).

Biomarkers.

Background: To date, limited data exist concerning the utility of FDG-PET in detecting Alzheimer's Disease (AD) in Down Syndrome (DS). Yet, sensitive biomarkers for neurodegeneration are essential in this population genetically predisposed for AD. Therefore, we aimed at characterizing the effect of age, disease stage and AD pathology on brain metabolism in a large cohort of adults with DS.

Biomarkers.

Background: Primary progressive aphasia (PPA) is a language-based dementia linked with underlying Alzheimer's disease (AD) or frontotemporal dementia. Clinicians often report difficulty differentiating between the logopenic (lv) and nonfluent/agrammatic (nfv) subtypes, as both variants present with disruptions to "fluency" yet for different underlying reasons. In English, acoustic and linguistic markers from connected speech samples have shown promise in machine learning (ML)-based differentiation of nfv from lv.

Public Health.

Background: Cognitive reserve (CR) and Brain Maintenance (BR) are constructs defined at a theoretical level (Stern et al., Neurobiol Aging, 2021 Apr, 124:100-103). Our aim was to propose a reproducible procedure to compare CR-like of BR-like mechanisms underlying interindividual differences in memory stability.

Public Health.

Background: The extended life expectancy in individuals with Down Syndrome (DS) has led to the emergence of age-related diseases, with Alzheimer's disease (AD) being particularly noteworthy due to its nearly full penetrance. The level of intellectual disability (ID), regarded as a proxy for cognitive reserve (CR), explains heterogeneity in cognitive and functional abilities. Despite this, there is a notable lack of exploration into the characterization of resilience factors and their potential influence on the progression along the AD continuum in this population.

Biomarkers.

Background: Prediction of progression to Alzheimer's Disease Dementia (ADD) at the Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) stage is an unmet medical need. Mitochondrial dysfunction in Alzheimer's Disease at the brain and systemic level has been extensively described. Our previous studies showed an altered mtDNA methylation pattern throughout AD progression in human postmortem brains (Blanch et al.

Developing Topics.

Background: Synaptic dysfunction is a prominent feature in neurodegenerative disorders, associating with cognition. In contrast to most synaptic proteins assessed in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), Neuronal pentraxin 2 (NPTX2), essential for synaptic plasticity, exhibits downregulation neurodegenerative disorders through mass spectrometry (MS) methods. While MS-based assays hold promise, their constraints hinder widespread clinical adoption.

Developing Topics.

Background: Synapse loss represents the closest correlate of cognitive decline in Alzheimer's Disease (AD). Standard microscopy, due to increased diffraction of light with tissue depth, imposes a limit on axial resolution extending to ∼ 700nm. Array tomography (AT), developed by Micheva & Smith (2007), extends this axial limit via physical sectioning of resin-embedded tissue into ribbons of 70nm contiguous sections that are serially imaged and reconstructed into 3D volumes; thus, allowing for nanometric synaptic puncta to be resolved at the mesoscale.