Basic Science and Pathogenesis.

Background: The APOE ε4 allele is the most prominent genetic predisposition for sporadic Alzheimer's disease (AD). Amylin, a neuroendocrine hormone co-secreted with insulin from the pancreas, is increased in blood in AD and readily forms neurotoxic homo- and hetero-oligomers with β-amyloid in AD. Previously, we showed that intravenously infused ApoE4 in rats expressing human amylin specifically in the pancreas led to increased brain amylin accumulation.

Basic Science and Pathogenesis.

Background: Impaired interstitial fluid drainage in the brain is indicated by the presence of perivascular β-amyloid (Aβ) deposits and is attributed to alterations in contractility and relaxation of vascular smooth muscle cells (SMCs). The brain microvasculature in Alzheimer disease (AD) accumulates amyloid-forming amylin secreted from the pancreas. Here, we tested the hypothesis that cerebrovascular amylin deposits perturbs cerebral Aβ efflux by impairing cerebral vasodilation.

Basic Science and Pathogenesis.

Background: DNA methylation (DNAm) age measures, or 'epigenetic clocks', surpass chronological age in their ability to predict age-related morbidities and mortality. The Louisville Twin Study (LTS) presents an opportunity to clarify the role of early life environmental exposures and development in biological and cognitive aging in midlife. We expect that second-generation DNAm age measures trained to predict age related outcomes and death, independent of chronological age, will be sensitive to cognitive ability in midlife.

Clinical Manifestations.

Background: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the 7 leading cause of death and 6 most burdensome disease among US older adults. With pharmacological treatments for AD being predominantly ill-effective, alternative, non-pharmacological prevention and treatment strategies warrant exploration. Personal health coaching provides individualized strategies designed to improve physical, social, and emotional health leading to positive behavior changes that may improve cognitive ability.

Clinical Manifestations.

Background: Disruption of sleep and circadian rhythms are associated with cognitive decline, preclinical Alzheimer's Disease (AD) pathology, and increased risk of dementia. Alleviating circadian rhythm and sleep disruption may improve cognition and reduce the progression of AD and related dementias (ADRD). Time-restricted eating (TRE), a circadian behavioral intervention that corrects disrupted eating rhythms by aligning food intake to the daytime, has demonstrated improvements in metabolic dysfunction and sleep quality.

Bringing Pandemic Science to the Classroom: Building Public Health Capacity at a Rural Kentucky High School.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, a multidisciplinary team at the University of Kentucky developed an interdisciplinary science, technology, engineering, and mathematics and environmental health unit-the Wastewater Assessment for Coronavirus in Kentucky: Implementing Enhanced Surveillance Technology (WACKIEST) Unit-for high school students in summer 2022. This case study outlines the WACKIEST Unit, which focused on wastewater surveillance and COVID-19, the obstacles faced during development and recruitment, and implementation of the WACKIEST Unit in conjunction with a rural wastewater surveillance initiative. The unit was implemented in spring 2023 at a rural high school in Kentucky, spanning 12 days and engaging 190 students.

Assessing Mental Health Effects of Eastern Kentucky Households After the State's Deadliest Flood: Using a Community Assessment for Public Health Emergency Response (CASPER).

Objectives: On July 28, 2022, eastern Kentucky experienced the state's deadliest flood in recorded history. In response to ongoing mental health concerns from community members who survived the flood, local health department directors in affected communities requested technical assistance from the Kentucky Department for Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Methods: Two simultaneous Community Assessments for Public Health Emergency Response (CASPERs) were conducted 6 weeks after the flood.

Electrosurgical Devices Used During Laparoscopic Hysterectomy.

Background: Hysterectomy is one of the most common surgical procedures performed in the United States and most are now being performed in a minimally invasive approach. Electrosurgery and vessel sealing devices are needed in order to provide hemostasis and vascular coaptation; however, there is no guiding evidence and limited recommendations for the use of the currently available devices for laparoscopic hysterectomy. The purpose of this study is to provide a systematic review of electrosurgical devices used in benign hysterectomy and perform a meta-analysis to find the overall effect of various outcomes.

The effect of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy on PTSD and depression symptoms in trauma-exposed black adults: Pilot randomized controlled trial results.

Low-income, urban-dwelling Black adults are disproportionately affected by traumatic experiences, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and depression and encounter inequities in treatment access. In addition to the benefits Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) for depression, there is preliminary evidence of successful symptom reduction in PTSD via MBCT across two prior pilot studies in veterans. Studies examining the effects of MBCT among trauma-exposed Black adults remains limited, and examination of effects across specific PTSD clusters is almost nonexistent.

Prediction of microvascular invasion in hepatocellular carcinoma using a preoperative serum C-reactive protein-based nomogram.

Microvascular invasion (MVI) diagnosis relies on postoperative pathological examinations, underscoring the urgent need for a novel diagnostic method. C-Reactive Protein (CRP), has shown significant relevance to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) prognosis. This study aims to explore the relationship between preoperative serum CRP levels and microvascular invasion in hepatocellular carcinoma and develop a nomogram model for predicting MVI.

Genetic analysis and association detection of agronomic traits in maize genotypes.

In maize breeding, enhancing yield through genetic insights is crucial yet challenged by the complex interplay of agronomic traits. This study utilized a diallel mating design involving nine advanced early maize lines to dissect the genetic architecture underlying key agronomic traits and their impact on yield. Over two consecutive years (2018-2019 and 2019-2020), 36 hybrids derived from these lines were grown across two locations, Karaj, Alborz, Iran and Kermanshah (2019-2020), Iran, in a randomized complete block design with three replications.

Analysis and research on water hammer protection measures based on KY PIPE for long distance pumping station water transmission engineering with pump stoppage.

In the process of long-distance pressurized pipeline water transmission, in addition to the problem of water hammer hazards that can easily occur in the pipeline, the safety of the pipeline before the pump also presents hidden dangers. When excessive water hammer pressure occurs in the whole pipeline, it can easily lead to pipeline leakage or even pipe bursting. In this work, we analyze the pressure head in the pipeline of a long-distance pumping station using modeling calculations from KY PIPE software, combined with data from an actual water transmission project, to study the effect of stopping the pump water hammer.

L3MBTL3 and STAT3 collaboratively upregulate SNAIL expression to promote metastasis in female breast cancer.

The STAT3 pathway promotes epithelial-mesenchymal transition, migration, invasion and metastasis in cancer. STAT3 upregulates the transcription of the key epithelial-mesenchymal transition transcription factor SNAIL in a DNA binding-independent manner. However, the mechanism by which STAT3 is recruited to the SNAIL promoter to upregulate its expression is still elusive.

Empathy is associated with older adults' social behaviors and verbal emotional expressions throughout the day.

Empathy plays a crucial role in promoting older adults' interpersonal experiences, but it remains unclear how these benefits of empathy occur. To address this gap, we examined associations between empathy and how older adults behave and express emotions during their daily interpersonal encounters. Participants included 268 adults aged 65+ (46% men, n = 124) from the Daily Experiences and Well-being Study.

Cytosolic phospholipase A2 in infiltrating monocyte derived macrophages does not impair recovery after spinal cord injury in female mice.

Spinal cord injury (SCI) leads to permanent motor and sensory loss that is exacerbated by intraspinal inflammation and persists months to years after injury. After SCI, monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) infiltrate the lesion to aid in myelin-rich debris clearance. During debris clearance, MDMs adopt a proinflammatory phenotype that exacerbates neurodegeneration and hinders recovery.

Enhancement of soy protein functionality by conjugation or complexation with polysaccharides or polyphenols: A review.

Soy proteins have good nutritional quality and exhibit a range of useful functional attributes, making them a viable option for replacing animal proteins in the development of more sustainable and eco-friendly plant-based food products. Nevertheless, soy proteins are prone to denaturation and/or aggregation under conditions they encounter in some food and beverage products (including certain pH, ionic, and thermal conditions), which adversely impact their functional performance. This problem can often be overcome by covalently (conjugation) or noncovalently (complexation) linking the soy proteins to polysaccharides or polyphenols, thereby expanding their application scope.

Annual prevalence of geographic atrophy and wet age-related macular degeneration among Medicare Advantage enrollees in a US health plan.

Background: Geographic atrophy (GA) is an advanced form of dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD) that can lead to visual impairment. Published studies estimate approximately 1 million people in the United States have GA in at least 1 eye. There is a lack of real-world evidence from the US payer perspective on the prevalence of AMD and GA among Medicare Advantage prescription drug (MAPD) plan enrollees.

Geographic atrophy and factors associated with disease progression among Medicare Advantage enrollees.

Background: Geographic atrophy (GA) is a form of advanced age-related macular degeneration (AMD) that can cause irreversible vision impairment and is responsible for approximately 20% of legal blindness in the United States. There is limited real-world evidence assessing health outcomes and health care resource use (HCRU) among individuals with GA.

Objective: To examine the progression from GA without subfoveal involvement (SFI) to GA with SFI, progression to irreversible blindness, and HCRU among older individuals with GA enrolled in Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug (MAPD) plans.

Early Identification of Myocardial Microstructural Alterations in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy with in Vivo Cardiac Diffusion-Tensor Imaging.

Purpose To explore the diffusion characteristics of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) using in vivo cardiac diffusion-tensor imaging (cDTI) and to determine whether cDTI could help identify abnormal myocardium beyond cardiac MRI findings of fibrosis and hypertrophy. Materials and Methods In this prospective study conducted from April to August 2023, participants with HCM and healthy volunteers were enrolled for cardiac MRI evaluation, including cine, late gadolinium enhancement (LGE), T1 mapping, and cDT imaging, using a 3.0-T scanner.

Growing empathy through art therapy, life story, and relationships: experiential learning in adult day services.

Introduction: Empathy is a fundamental element of high-quality healthcare, though it has been shown to be in decline among medical students and residents. Appeals have therefore been made for the development of evidence-based empathy-enhancing experiential learning and training models. Bringing Art to Life (BATL) is a service-learning program designed within experiential learning pedagogy for psychology and pre-healthcare students.

Do instrument kinematics and the apical preparation limit influence canal disinfection and bacterial extrusion?

This in vitro research assessed the influence of the instrument kinematics (rotary and reciprocating) and the apical preparation limit on the root canal disinfection and apical bacterial extrusion. After 21 days of Enterococcus faecalis biofilm formation in 72 mesial root canals of mandibular molars, the root canals were distributed into 2 groups (n = 36) according to the systems used for preparation: ProDesign S and Reciproc. The groups were redistributed according to the limit of apical preparation (n = 11): (a) 1 mm up to the apical foramen (TL-1); (b) at the apical foramen (TL = 0); (c) 1 mm beyond the apical foramen (TL + 1).

Description of implementing a mail-based overdose education and naloxone distribution program in community supervision settings during COVID-19.

Introduction: This study uses the Exploration, Preparation, Implementation, and Sustainment (EPIS) model to retrospectively describe the mail-based overdose education and naloxone distribution (OEND) program developed in collaboration with the Kentucky Department of Corrections (DOC) for use in the HEALing Communities Study in Kentucky (HCS-KY) and details the reach of this innovative delivery model.

Methods: HCS-KY is a community-engaged cluster-randomized trial assessing the effects of implementing evidence-based practices, including OEND, on overdose death reduction across 16 communities highly impacted by the opioid epidemic in Kentucky. The study launch coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic.