47,934 results match your criteria: "J.R.; and University of Barcelona[Affiliation]"

Reverse electrical remodelling after cardiac resynchronization therapy in a patient undergoing left bundle branch area pacing: a case report.

Eur Heart J Case Rep

December 2024

Department of Cardiology, Cardiovascular Research Institute Maastricht (CARIM), Maastricht University Medical Centre (MUMC+), P. Debyelaan 25, 6229 HX Maastricht, The Netherlands.

Background: Left bundle branch area pacing (LBBAP) has been introduced as an alternative to biventricular pacing in cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT). Several studies describe echocardiographic reverse remodelling after LBBAP. Reverse electrical remodelling after LBBAP has not yet been described.

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The molecular mechanisms underpinning the formation of the large, ellipsoidal starch granules of potato tuber are poorly understood. Here, we demonstrate the distinct effects of PROTEIN TARGETING TO STARCH2b (PTST2b) and MYOSIN RESEMBLING CHLOROPLAST PROTEIN (MRC) on tuber starch granule morphology. A gene duplication event in the Solanaceae resulted in two PTST2 paralogs (PTST2a and PTST2b).

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Waveform geometry dictating optimal cruising in animals.

J R Soc Interface

December 2024

Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA.

For sustained swimming and flights, vertebrates and insects oscillate their propulsors periodically within a narrow range of Strouhal number (St), a dimensionless quantity describing the rate and density of the motion, suggesting a close relationship between the range and cruising optimality. The persistence of this range across size and fluids has puzzled biologists and engineers, resulting in multiple interpretations of its cause. Here, we propose that the optimal St range is largely constrained by power output efficiency of the trailing edge of the caudal fin.

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In developing embryos, cells acquire distinct identities depending on their position in a tissue. Secreted signalling molecules, known as morphogens, act as long-range cues to provide the spatial information that controls these cell fate decisions. In several tissues, both the level and the duration of morphogen signalling appear to be important for determining cell fates.

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Human walking gait is a personal story written by the body, a tool for understanding biological identity in healthcare and security. Gait analysis methods traditionally diverged between these domains but are now merging their complementary strengths to unlock new possibilities. Using large ground reaction force (GRF) datasets for gait recognition is a way to uncover subtle variations that define individual gait patterns.

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Uncertainty in COVID-19 transmission could undermine our ability to predict long COVID.

J R Soc Interface

December 2024

Department of Mathematics, Simon Fraser University, 8888 University Dr W, Burnaby, BC V5A 1S6, Canada.

As SARS-CoV-2 has transitioned from a novel pandemic-causing pathogen into an established seasonal respiratory virus, focus has shifted to post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC, colloquially 'long COVID'). We use compartmental mathematical models simulating emergence of new variants to help identify key sources of uncertainty in PASC trajectories. Some parameters (such as the duration and equilibrium prevalence of infection, as well as the fraction of infections that develop PASC) matter more than others (such as the duration of immunity and secondary vaccine efficacy against PASC).

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Background: Studies in the UK and North America have suggested a distinct disease profile in South Asians compared to that of White populations. Disparities in the medical and surgical management of IBD in minority ethnic groups (including Black Americans and Asians) in the US have been shown, while data from Europe, including the UK, have been lacking. This study sought to evaluate South Asian (SA) and White (WH) inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) phenotypes, and to explore treatment approach variations between these cohorts in the UK using the IBD BioResource database.

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Primary Progressive Aphasia Lacking Core Features of Nonfluent and Semantic Variants: Clinical, Neuroimaging, and Neuropathologic Features.

Neurology

November 2024

From the Departments of Neurology (H.W., J.R.D., H.C., J.G.-R., K.A.J.), Psychology (M.M.M.), and Radiology (N.T.T.P., V.J.L., J.L.W.), Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN; and Department of Neuroscience (Neuropathology) (D.W.D.), Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL.

Article Synopsis
  • This study investigates the limitations of the 2011 consensus criteria for primary progressive aphasia (PPA), specifically focusing on features of logopenic variant PPA and aiming to refine the classification system based on clinical and neuroimaging data.
  • A retrospective analysis of 102 PPA patients revealed a predominance of repetition-preserved variants over repetition-impaired ones, suggesting different clinical courses and potential prodromal stages among the subgroups identified (pure-LPA, Wernicke-like, anomic-like, and TCSA-like).
  • Neuroimaging showed consistent left temporoparietal atrophy across groups, with severe hypometabolism linked to repetition deficits, while pathologically, 70% of patients had Alzheimer's disease, with varying
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Inositol 1,4,5-Trisphosphate Receptor 1 Gain-of-Function Increases the Risk for Cardiac Arrhythmias in Mice and Humans.

Circulation

December 2024

Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Libin Cardiovascular Institute, University of Calgary, Canada (B.S., M. Ni, Y.L., Z.S., H.W., H.-L.Z., J.W., D.B., S.C., W.G., J.Y., S.T., J.P.E., R.W., S.R.W.C.).

Article Synopsis
  • * Researchers identified 21 human ITPR1 GOF variants and created a mouse model with one of these variants (ITPR1-W1457G), which was found to be prone to stress-induced ventricular arrhythmias.
  • * Both mouse models and human data suggest that ITPR1 GOF variants increase Ca handling abnormalities and arrhythmia risk, with 7 rare ITPR1 variants in a human database showing similar GOF behavior linked to cardiac
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Article Synopsis
  • Exploiting TRAILR2 activation could improve cancer treatments, but past therapies faced issues like low effectiveness and liver damage.
  • The new TR2/CDH3 BAB antibody targets both CDH3 and TRAILR2, enhancing apoptosis specifically in tumor cells expressing CDH3, showcasing effectiveness in various cancers and CRISPR-engineered models.
  • In pancreatic cancer, where current treatments are lacking, TR2/CDH3 BAB shows promise, especially when used with other chemotherapy drugs, indicating potential for effective cancer therapy with a good safety profile.
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Conjugated diene molecules are highly reactive upon photoexcitation and can relax through multiple reaction channels that depend on the position of the double bonds and the degree of molecular rigidity. Understanding the photoinduced dynamics of these molecules is crucial for establishing general rules governing the relaxation and product formation. Here, we investigate the femtosecond time-resolved photoinduced excited-state structural dynamics of ,-1,3-cyclooctadiene, a large-flexible cyclic conjugated diene molecule, upon excitation with 200 nm using mega-electron-volt ultrafast electron diffraction and trajectory surface hopping dynamics simulations.

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Smile analysis in dentistry and orthodontics - a review.

J R Soc N Z

February 2024

Discipline of Orthodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand.

The desire for an attractive smile is a major reason people seek orthodontic and other forms of cosmetic dental treatment. An understanding of the features of a smile is important for dental diagnosis and treatment planning. The common methods of smile analysis rely on the visual analysis of smile aesthetics using posed photographs, and videos and gathering information about smiles through patient questionnaires and diaries.

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Scrub typhus is a very important cause of acute undifferentiated febrile illness in the Asia-Pacific region. Haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a rare and life-threatening condition characterised by widespread immune system activation, resulting in tissue damage throughout multiple organ systems. HLH is categorised into primary HLH, arising from intrinsic defects in lymphocytes and macrophages, and secondary HLH, primarily triggered by infections or connective tissue disorders.

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Suprachoroidal Triamcinolone Acetonide for Noninfectious Uveitis: Real-World Impact on Clinical Outcomes.

Am J Ophthalmol

December 2024

From the Department of Ophthalmology & Vision Science, University of California (K.P., A.H., P.E.-N., G.Y., K.M.), Davis, Sacramento, California, USA. Electronic address:

Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to assess the effects of suprachoroidal triamcinolone acetonide (TA) injections on patients with noninfectious uveitis, focusing on key outcomes like central subfield thickness (CST) and visual acuity.
  • Data was collected from 61 eyes of 51 patients over two years, revealing a significant reduction in CST from 437.61 microns to 348.17 microns within 6 weeks following treatment, along with an improvement in fluorescein angiography scores.
  • Results showed that while some patients needed additional treatment for macular edema over time, 41.2% of those followed for 24 weeks did not require further interventions, and
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Designing and Delivering a Poetry Workshop for Clinician Well-Being During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Case Study.

J Pain Symptom Manage

December 2024

Division of Palliative Medicine (S.R., B.W.), Wexner Medical Center, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA. Electronic address:

Context: Facilitated poetry writing workshops are used in healthcare settings as a therapeutic approach to address stressful factors that negatively influence clinician well-being. However, owing to the novelty of this intervention and a tendency to combine poetry with other types of narrative-based techniques, proponents of poetic medicine are calling for harmonization across programs in the US. This would facilitate the study of poetry in medicine and the multiple facets of well-being it is said to promote.

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Receptive window might be shorter in patients with endometriosis and lesions cyclically prepare for implantation.

F S Sci

December 2024

Implantation and Pregnancy Research Laboratory, School of Health and Biomedical Sciences, RMIT University, Bundoora, Victoria, Australia. Electronic address:

Objective: To investigate whether endometrial receptivity is affected in patients with endometriosis using podocalyxin (PCX) as a functional biomarker and to study how endometriotic lesions display PCX and the potential pathological implications.

Design: We have previously reported that PCX, an anti-adhesion glycoprotein and barrier protector, is dynamically regulated in the endometrium and acts as a key negative regulator of epithelial receptivity. Early in the cycle both luminal epithelium (LE, lining the endometrial surface) and glandular epithelium (GE, residing within the tissue) strongly express PCX, but in the receptive window, PCX is selectively downregulated in LE, switching the endometrial surface to an adhesive state for embryo attachment/implantation; meanwhile, PCX expression is maintained in GE until postreceptivity.

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A missense variant effect map for the human tumor-suppressor protein CHK2.

Am J Hum Genet

December 2024

The Donnelly Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada; Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Sinai Health, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Computational and Systems Biology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA. Electronic address:

The tumor suppressor CHEK2 encodes the serine/threonine protein kinase CHK2 which, upon DNA damage, is important for pausing the cell cycle, initiating DNA repair, and inducing apoptosis. CHK2 phosphorylation of the tumor suppressor BRCA1 is also important for mitotic spindle assembly and chromosomal stability. Consistent with its cell-cycle checkpoint role, both germline and somatic variants in CHEK2 have been linked to breast and other cancers.

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Feasibility of Simon 2-Stage Futility Trials in Early Parkinson Disease: Analysis of the PRECEPT and DATATOP Trial Datasets.

Neurology

January 2025

From the Department of Clinical Neurosciences (M.W.K., J.R.S.), University of Calgary, Alberta; Division of Neurology (L.V.K.), Department of Medicine, Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Ontario; Department of Medicine (D.W.), University of British Columbia Southern Medical Program, Kelowna; Division of Neurology (T.A.M., M.G.S.), Department of Medicine, University of Ottawa, The Ottawa Hospital Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; Department of Neurology (J.M.), Rijnstate Hospital, Arnhem; Department of Neurology (E.M.M.S., B.U.), MS Center Amsterdam, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, the Netherlands; Section on Statistical Planning and Analysis (A.S.), Department of Neurology, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas; and Department of Biostatistics (G.R.C.), University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Background And Objectives: Disease-modifying treatments (DMTs) are a major unmet need in Parkinson disease (PD). To date, trials investigating DMT candidates in PD most often used a randomized controlled trial (RCT) design. Unfortunately, RCTs to date have not led to a breakthrough, in part because of the large sample sizes and length of follow-up required.

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A Review of Contact Lens Regulations in the Asia Pacific Region.

Eye Contact Lens

December 2024

Department of Ophthalmology (J.R.J.L., B.X.H.L., C.H.L.L.), National University Health System, Singapore, Singapore; Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine (T.H.Y., B.X.H.L., C.H.L.L.), National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore; Monash University School of Medicine (D.L.), Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; Singapore Eye Research Institute (J.S.M., C.H.L.L.), Singapore, Singapore; Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences Academic Clinical Programme (J.S.M.), Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, Singapore; Singapore National Eye Centre (J.S.M.), Singapore, Singapore; School of Optometry and Vision Science (F.S., C.H.L.L.), University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia; and Center for Sustainable Medicine (C.H.L.L.), Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.

The increased usage of nonrefractive cosmetic contact lenses in Asia and a trend toward increased online purchasing of both refractive and cosmetic contact lenses poses unique challenges in the management of contact lens-related complications. However, regulations have lagged behind this increased uptake in the community. This paper reviews regulations surrounding the manufacturing, import, and distribution of contact lenses in the Asia Pacific region and compares them with international regulations from the European Union and United States.

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