Assessing the reliability and feasibility of quality indicators used to evaluate long-term care for older adults.

Aim: Standardized quality indicators for long-term care (QIs-LTC) were previously developed to ensure high-quality holistic nursing care for older adults. This research aimed to assess the feasibility and reliability of unfavorable health outcomes measured by the QIs-LTC and proposed strategies for improvement.

Methods: Thirty-nine pairs of home care nurses assessed 53 clients.

Association Between Joint Line Convergence Angle and Patient-Reported Outcomes of Opening-Wedge High Tibial Osteotomy.

Background: A larger joint line convergence angle (JLCA) increases the stress load on the medial compartment. Few reports, however, have discussed the effect of the JLCA on the cartilage status and clinical outcomes after opening-wedge high tibial osteotomy (OWHTO).

Purpose/hypothesis: To reveal the effect of the JLCA on clinical results after OWHTO.

Epstein-Barr Virus-Induced 3 Attributes to TLR7-Mediated Splenomegaly.

Epstein-Barr virus-induced 3 (EBI3) functions as a component of the heterodimer cytokine IL-27, which regulates innate and acquired immune responses. The expression of EBI3 gene is induced by Toll-like receptors (TLRs). Repeated treatment with imiquimod (IMQ), a TLR7 agonist, induces splenomegaly and cytopaenia due to increased splenic function.

High-resolution 0.25 mm Detector CT Has Limited Impact on Right Adrenal Vein Detectability in Preprocedural Contrast Enhanced CT for Adrenal Venous Sampling.

Objective: This study aims to identify factors associated with the detectability of the right adrenal vein (RAV) on preoperative contrast-enhanced CT scans of adrenal venous sampling (AVS) in the era of high-resolution CT (HRCT).

Materials And Methods: In this retrospective study, 36 patients (15 men and 21 women; mean age, 56 y) who underwent preoperative contrast-enhanced CT [11 patients in HRCT with 0.25 mm detector matrix (Cannon Medical Systems) and 25 patients in conventional multidetector CT with 0.

First molecular detection of hemotropic Mycoplasma spp. and molecular screening of other vector-borne pathogens in camels from the greater Cairo metropolitan area, Egypt.

In Egypt, knowledge about vector-borne bacterial pathogens in camels remains limited. To address this gap, 181 blood samples from adult one-humped camels (Camelus dromedarius) in the greater Cairo metropolitan area were collected from October 2021 to March 2022. Through PCR assays, four pathogens were detected, where Anaplasmataceae being the most common (54.

Accelerated amyloid fibril formation at the interface of liquid-liquid phase-separated droplets by depletion interactions.

Amyloid fibril formation of α-synuclein (αSN) is a hallmark of synucleinopathies. Although the previous studies have provided numerous insights into the molecular basis of αSN amyloid formation, it remains unclear how αSN self-assembles into amyloid fibrils in vivo. Here, we show that αSN amyloid formation is accelerated in the presence of two macromolecular crowders, polyethylene glycol (PEG) (MW: ~10,000) and dextran (DEX) (MW: ~500,000), with a maximum at approximately 7% (w/v) PEG and 7% (w/v) DEX.

Practical management of adverse events in patients receiving tarlatamab, a delta-like ligand 3-targeted bispecific T-cell engager immunotherapy, for previously treated small cell lung cancer.

Tarlatamab is a bispecific T-cell engager immunotherapy targeting delta-like ligand 3 (DLL3) and the cluster of differentiation 3 (CD3) molecule. In the phase 2 DeLLphi-301 trial of tarlatamab for patients with previously treated small cell lung cancer, tarlatamab 10 mg every 2 weeks achieved durable responses and encouraging survival outcomes. Analyses of updated safety data from the DeLLphi-301 trial demonstrated that the most common treatment-emergent adverse events were cytokine release syndrome (53%), pyrexia (38%), decreased appetite (36%), dysgeusia (32%), and an emia (30%).

Identification and structural characterization of a novel acetyl xylan esterase from Aspergillus oryzae.

Acetyl xylan esterase plays a crucial role in the degradation of xylan, the major plant hemicellulose, by liberating acetic acid from the backbone polysaccharides. Acetyl xylan esterase B from Aspergillus oryzae, designated AoAxeB, was biochemically and structurally investigated. The AoAxeB-encoding gene with a native signal peptide was successfully expressed in Pichia pastoris as an active extracellular protein.

Development of the Home Hospice Nursing Care Scale to Support End-of-Life Patients With Cancer and Evaluation of its Reliability and Validity.

This study aimed to develop the "Home Hospice Nursing Care Scale" to assess the care provided by visiting nurses to patients with end-stage cancer and evaluate its reliability and validity. A draft of the scale was created based on a descriptive survey conducted among oncology nurse specialists and certified oncology nurses working as home-visit nurses. A questionnaire survey was administered to 1,770 home-visit nurses working at 296 functionally strengthening home-visit nursing establishments.

Assembly of collagen fibers into contiguous dense and loose regions of subcutaneous fascia.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the collagen fiber structure of the subcutaneous fascia, a connective tissue layer between the skin and epimysium.

Methods: Fascia samples with varying extensibility were examined using biochemical and microscopic methods.

Results: Loose fascia, the more extensible type, displayed sparsely distributed collagen fibers, while dense fascia showed tightly packed collagen fiber bundles.

Effect of temperature cycles on the sleep-like state in Hydra vulgaris.

Background: Sleep is a conserved physiological phenomenon across species. It is mainly controlled by two processes: a circadian clock that regulates the timing of sleep and a homeostat that regulates the sleep drive. Even cnidarians, such as Hydra and jellyfish, which lack a brain, display sleep-like states.

Ester derivatives of Dictyostelium differentiation-inducing factors exhibit antibacterial activity, possibly via a prodrug-like function.

Objective: Dictyostelium differentiation-inducing factors 1 and 3 [DIF-1 (1) and DIF-3 (2), respectively], along with their derivatives, such as Ph-DIF-1 (3) and Bu-DIF-3 (4), demonstrate antibacterial activity in vitro against Gram-positive bacteria, including methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA), methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), vancomycin-sensitive Enterococcus faecalis (VSE), and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium [VRE (VanA)]. This study investigates the therapeutic potential of DIF compounds against these Gram-positive bacteria.

Help-seeking for depression among Vietnamese migrant workers in Japan and factors related to their intentions to seek help from a psychiatrist: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Foreign workers are at risk for depression, and Vietnamese people tend to be reluctant to seek professional mental health care. Although Vietnamese people are the largest population among foreign workers in Japan, evidence concerning their help-seeking experiences and strategies to promote help-seeking in this population is lacking. This study aimed to identify the percentage of Vietnamese migrant workers in Japan who have sought help from healthcare professionals for depressive symptoms and to explore the factors related to their intentions to seek help from a psychiatrist.

Impact of kidney volume on incidence of in-hospital kidney-related adverse outcomes in patients with acute heart failure.

Background: Recent studies revealed an association between small kidney volume and progression of kidney dysfunction in particular settings such as kidney transplantation and transcatheter aortic valve implantation. We hypothesized that kidney volume was associated with the incidence of kidney-related adverse outcomes such as worsening renal function (WRF) in patients with acute heart failure (AHF).

Methods: This study was a single-center retrospective cohort study.

The disparities and development trajectories of nations in achieving the sustainable development goals.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide a comprehensive framework for societal progress and planetary health. However, it remains unclear whether universal patterns exist in how nations pursue these goals and whether key development areas are being overlooked. Here, we apply the product space methodology, widely used in development economics, to construct an 'SDG space of nations'.

Nedosiran in pediatric patients with PH1 and relatively preserved kidney function, a phase 2 study (PHYOX8).

Background: Primary hyperoxaluria type 1 (PH1) is an autosomal recessive disorder with dysregulated glyoxylate metabolism in the liver. Oxalate over-production leads to renal stones, progressive kidney damage and renal failure, with potentially life-threatening systemic oxalosis. Nedosiran is a synthetic RNA interference therapy, designed to reduce hepatic lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) to decrease oxalate burden in PH.

Charge transfer emission between π- and 4f-orbitals in a trivalent europium complex.

Photoinduced metal-to-ligand (or ligand-to-metal) charge-transfer (CT) states in metal complexes have been extensively studied toward the development of luminescent materials. However, previous studies have mainly focused on CT transitions between d- and π-orbitals. Herein, we report the demonstration of CT emission from 4f- to π-orbitals using a trivalent europium (Eu(III)) complex, supported by both experimental and theoretical analyses.