Identification of differentially expressed genes in human testis biopsies with defective spermatogenesis.

Purpose: Sperm morphology and motility are major contributors to male-factor infertility, with many genes predicted to be involved. This study aimed to elucidate differentially expressed transcripts in human testis tissues of normal and abnormal spermatogenesis that could reveal new genes that may regulate sperm morphology and function.

Methods: Human testis biopsies were collected from men with well-characterized phenotypes of normal spermatogenesis, spermatid arrest, and Sertoli cell-only phenotype, and transcriptional differences were quantified by RNA-sequencing (RNA-Seq).

The retinoic acid family-like nuclear receptor SmRAR identified by single-cell transcriptomics of ovarian cells controls oocyte differentiation in Schistosoma mansoni.

Studies on transcription regulation in platyhelminth development are scarce, especially for parasitic flatworms. Here, we employed single-cell transcriptomics to identify genes involved in reproductive development in the trematode model Schistosoma mansoni. This parasite causes schistosomiasis, a major neglected infectious disease affecting >240 million people worldwide.

Bioconversion efficiency and chemical composition of Hermetia illucens larvae fed spent mushroom substrates.

Spent mushroom substrate (SMS) is a by-product remaining after harvesting mushrooms. We evaluated the effect of substituting chicken feed with 0-100% of Pleurotus eryngii and Lentinula edodes SMS at different stocking densities (200-1000 larvae/box) on development, composition, and substrate reduction of black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae. Although the survival rate was not significantly different, feeding pure SMS led to a low growth rate.

Association of intraoperative hypotension and cumulative norepinephrine dose with postoperative acute kidney injury in patients having noncardiac surgery: a retrospective cohort analysis.

Background: Intraoperative hypotension is associated with acute kidney injury (AKI). Clinicians thus frequently use vasopressors, such as norepinephrine, to maintain blood pressure. However, vasopressors themselves might promote AKI.

Implementation of the new DGRh S2e guideline on diagnostics and treatment of adult-onset Still's disease in Germany : Implications for clinical practice in rheumatology.

Background: Adult-onset Still's disease (AOSD) is a rare autoinflammatory disease. Since it can lead to variable organ involvement, including life-threatening complications, and due to newly available therapeutic approaches, the German Society for Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Rheumatologie und klinische Immunologie; DGRh) issued a newly developed S2e guideline in December 2022.

Objective: This study aims to investigate the influence of the new guideline on the diagnosis, management, and outcomes of AOSD.

Iron regulatory protein 1-deficient mice exhibit hypospermatogenesis.

Imbalances in testicular iron levels are linked to compromised sperm production and male infertility. Iron regulatory proteins (IRP) 1 and 2 play crucial roles in cellular iron regulation. We investigated the role of IRP1 on spermatogenesis using Irp1-deficient mice (Irp1).

Occupational anaphylaxis: A Position Paper of the German Society of Allergology and Clinical Immunology (DGAKI).

Background: Anaphylaxis is a systemic allergic reaction that is potentially life-threatening. Occupational anaphylaxis is an anaphylaxis that occurs in an occupational context. In this position paper, we propose diagnostic criteria for occupational anaphylaxis and provide an overview of the current state of knowledge in terms of prevalence, triggers, prevention, and management.

Neuroarchitecture of the Central Complex in the Madeira Cockroach Rhyparobia maderae: Tangential Neurons.

Navigating in diverse environments to find food, shelter, or mating partners is an important ability for nearly all animals. Insects have evolved diverse navigational strategies to survive in challenging and unknown environments. In the insect brain, the central complex (CX) plays an important role in spatial orientation and directed locomotion.

"Higher renal net acid, but not higher phosphate excretion during growth associates with lower adult circulating uromodulin".

Objective: Uromodulin is the most abundant urinary protein in healthy subjects which under physiological conditions protects against kidney stone formation. Acid-base imbalances, especially states with acidic urine, increase the risk for uric acid and oxalate stones, but lower it for phosphate-containing stones. Whether habitual high acid loads and high dietary phosphorus intake (P-In) themselves may influence plasma uromodulin concentrations in the long-term is not known.

Role of AMPK and Sirtuins in Aging Heart: Basic and Translational Aspects.

Aging is a key risk factor for numerous diseases, including cardiac diseases. High energy demands of the heart require precise cellular energy sensing to prevent metabolic stress. AMPK and sirtuins are key intracellular metabolic sensors regulating numerous cell functions, like mitochondrial function and biogenesis, autophagy, and redox balance.

SPARCL1 and NT-proBNP as biomarkers of right ventricular-to-pulmonary artery uncoupling in pulmonary hypertension.

Aims: SPARCL1 was recently identified as a biomarker of right ventricular (RV) maladaptation in patients with pulmonary hypertension (PH), and N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic protein (NT-proBNP) is an established biomarker of RV failure in PH. The present study investigated whether NT-proBNP and SPARCL1 concentrations are associated with load-independent parameters of RV function and RV-to-pulmonary artery (RV-PA) coupling as measured using invasive pressure-volume (PV) loops in the RV.

Methods: SPARCL1 and NT-proBNP were measured in the plasma of patients with idiopathic pulmonary artery hypertension (IPAH, n = 73).

Schistosomiasis transmission: A machine learning analysis reveals the importance of agrochemicals on snail abundance in Rwanda.

Background: Schistosomiasis is an important snail-borne parasitic disease whose transmission is exacerbated by water resource management activities. In Rwanda, meeting the growing population's demand for food has led to wetlands reclamation for cultivation and increased agrochemical enrichment for crop production. However, the ecological consequences of agrochemical enrichment on schistosomiasis transmission remain unexplored.

Peroxisomal dysfunction interferes with odontogenesis and leads to developmentally delayed teeth and defects in distinct dental cells in Pex11b-deficient mice.

Human peroxisomal biogenesis disorders of the Zellweger syndrome spectrum affect skeletal development and induce tooth malformations. Whereas several peroxisomal knockout mouse studies elucidated the pathogenesis of skeletal defects, little information is available on how dental pathologies arise in peroxisomal biogenesis disorder patients. To understand the impact of severe peroxisomal dysfunction on early odontogenesis, here we performed morphometric studies on developing molars of new-born Pex11b knockout mice.

Association of Patients' Knowledge on the Disease and Its Management with Indicators of Disease Severity and Individual Characteristics in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD): Results from COSYCONET 2.

Background: In patients with chronic diseases, including those with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), knowledge on the disease and its self-management is considered as relevant for improving disease control and long-term outcome. We studied to which extent components of knowledge depended on potential predictors, such as participation in educational programs and disease severity. For example, the perception of exacerbations or GOLD grade might modulate the content and reliability of COPD understanding.

Efficacy and safety of sotatercept across ranges of cardiac index in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension: A pooled analysis of PULSAR and STELLAR.

Background: This analysis examined the effects of the activin signaling inhibitor, sotatercept, in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) subgroups stratified by baseline cardiac index (CI).

Methods: Pooled data from PULSAR (N = 106; NCT03496207) and STELLAR (N = 323; NCT04576988) were analyzed using 2 different CI thresholds, <2.0 and ≥2.

TransCatheter aortic valve implantation and fractional flow reserve-guided percutaneous coronary intervention versus conventional surgical aortic valve replacement and coronary bypass grafting for treatment of patients with aortic valve stenosis and complex or multivessel coronary disease (TCW): an international, multicentre, prospective, open-label, non-inferiority, randomised controlled trial.

Background: Patients with severe aortic stenosis present frequently (∼50%) with concomitant obstructive coronary artery disease. Current guidelines recommend combined surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) and coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) as the preferred treatment. Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) and fractional flow reserve (FFR)-guided percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) represent a valid treatment alternative.

FIGO-GCH joint consensus statement on the current status and recommendations for the use of blind intrauterine procedures in the evaluation and management of women with suspected intrauterine pathologies.

Historically, blind intrauterine procedures such as dilation and curettage (D&C) and blind endometrial biopsies have been the primary approach for diagnosing and managing intrauterine pathologies. However, these techniques lack direct visualization, leading to diagnostic limitations, incomplete treatment, and increased complication rates. Despite substantial advances in hysteroscopic technology, including high-definition imaging and minimally invasive instruments, blind procedures remain widely used.

Glycogen synthase kinase-3 inhibition and insulin enhance proliferation and inhibit maturation of human iPSC-derived cardiomyocytes via TCF and FOXO signaling.

Embryonic signaling pathways exert stage-specific effects during cardiac development, yet the precise signals for proliferation or maturation remain elusive. To uncover the cues for proliferation, we performed a combinatory cell-cycle screen for insulin and glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK3) inhibition in spontaneously beating human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs). Our analysis for proliferation, and subsequential downstream sarcomere development, gene expression analysis, and molecular interventions identified a temporal interplay between insulin/Akt/FOXO and CHIR99021/Wnt/GSK3/TCF signaling.

Re-identification of anonymised MRI head images with publicly available software: investigation of the current risk to patient privacy.

Background: Facial recognition software (FRS) has historically been perceived as lacking the capability to identify individuals from cross-sectional medical images. Utilising such data for identification purposes was considered infeasible due to the substantial computational power and specialised technical expertise it would require. However, recent advancements in accessible artificial intelligence-based (AI-based) software and open-source tools have made these applications widely available and easy to use, raising new privacy concerns.

Immediate dam-sourced colostrum provision reduces calf mortality - management practices and calf mortality in large dairy herds.

Background: Farm-specific management practices greatly impact calf mortality rates. This cross-sectional study aimed to analyse the association between calf mortality and management practices in large dairy farms. A total of 93 dairy farms were voluntarily included in the study.

The host genotype actively shapes its microbiome across generations in laboratory mice.

Background: The microbiome greatly affects health and wellbeing. Evolutionarily, it is doubtful that a host would rely on chance alone to pass on microbial colonization to its offspring. However, the literature currently offers only limited evidence regarding two alternative hypotheses: active microbial shaping by host genetic factors or transmission of a microbial maternal legacy.