Longer disease progression milestone-free time in people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis treated versus not treated with intravenous edaravone: results from an administrative claims analysis.

To estimate time-to-progression milestones in people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (PALS) treated versus not treated with intravenous (IV) edaravone (Radicava IV, Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma America [MTPA], hereafter "IV edaravone") in a real-world setting. IV edaravone is US FDA approved for the treatment of ALS and was shown in clinical trials to slow the rate of physical functional decline. This retrospective observational analysis included PALS continuously enrolled in Optum's Clinformatics Data Mart between 8 August 2017 and 31 December 2021.

Indirect treatment comparison of lanadelumab and a C1-esterase inhibitor in pediatric patients with hereditary angioedema.

To compare the efficacy and safety of lanadelumab versus other approved long-term prophylaxis (LTP) treatments in patients with pediatric hereditary angioedema (HAE) aged <12 years. A systematic literature review was conducted to identify studies of LTP in patients with HAE aged <12 years. Two studies met the inclusion criteria in an indirect treatment comparison of efficacy and safety data in pediatric HAE patients.

Design Principles From Natural Olfaction for Electronic Noses.

Natural olfactory systems possess remarkable sensitivity and precision beyond what is currently achievable by engineered gas sensors. Unlike their artificial counterparts, noses are capable of distinguishing scents associated with mixtures of volatile molecules in complex, typically fluctuating environments and can adapt to changes. This perspective examines the multifaceted biological principles that provide olfactory systems their discriminatory prowess, and how these ideas can be ported to the design of electronic noses for substantial improvements in performance across metrics such as sensitivity and ability to speciate chemical mixtures.

Evaluation of Healthcare Outcomes of Patients Treated with 3D-Printed-Titanium and PEEK Cages During Fusion Procedures in the Lumbar Spine.

Purpose: The objective of this observational, real-world study was to describe reoperation, revision, index healthcare utilization and hospital costs among patients treated with PEEK (polyetheretherketone) or 3D-printed-titanium cages during lumbar/lumbosacral posterior fusion procedures, either TLIF (transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion) or PLIF (posterior lumbar interbody fusion). Statistical comparisons were not conducted.

Methods: This was a descriptive, retrospective, observational study.

Plain Language Summary of Publication: What is the effect of the medicine vibegron in the treatment of overactive bladder in patients with and without bladder leakage?

What is this summary about? People with overactive bladder need to use the bathroom many times a day to urinate (pee). This need may often be sudden and may cause some people with overactive bladder to have accidental bladder leakage. The EMPOWUR trial looked at how well a medicine called worked to help people with overactive bladder.

Quantifying the accelerated diffusion and cost savings of global solar photovoltaic supply chains.

Solar photovoltaic (PV) is critical for achieving the 2030 global target of tripling renewable power capacity. Over the past two decades, the global supply chain has significantly reduced the cost of solar PV products enabling widespread adoption. However, many countries are now implementing decoupling measures to enhance supply chain security and boost local economies.

Diagnostic and prognostic performance of urine ubiquitin carboxy-terminal hydrolase L1 across multiple acute brain injury types - A longitudinal prospective cohort study.

Introduction: Ubiquitin carboxy-terminal hydrolase L1 (UCH-L1) is recognized as a diagnostic and prognostic blood biomarker for traumatic brain injury (TBI). This study aimed to evaluate whether UCH-L1 concentrations measured in patients' urine post-injury could serve as a diagnostic or prognostic biomarker for outcomes in various types of acute brain injuries (ABI).

Material And Methods: This pilot study included 46 ABI patients: aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (n = 22), ischemic stroke (n = 16), and traumatic brain injury (n = 8), along with three healthy controls.

Age-related disturbances in rest-activity rhythms and integrity of the hippocampal network: An exploratory study.

To better understand the relationship between the rest-activity rhythms and cognitive impairments during aging, we assessed the longitudinal changes in the rest-activity rhythms in an elderly population and their possible detrimental effect on the hippocampal network. This was done longitudinally in a rural cohort with two actigraphic assessments and brain imaging examinations, seven years apart. A segmentation of the hippocampus and its related structures was used to assess volumes and functional connectivity in this network based on anatomical and resting state functional data.

Variation in faecal testosterone levels in male gray whales on a foraging ground relative to maturity and timing.

Understanding wildlife reproductive seasonality is crucial for effective management and long-term monitoring of species. This study investigates the seasonal variability of testosterone in male Pacific Coast Feeding Group (PCFG) gray whales, using an eight-year dataset (2016-2023) of individual sightings, drone-based photogrammetry and endocrine analysis of faecal samples. We analyzed the relationship between faecal testosterone levels and total body length (TL), body condition (body area index, BAI), sexual maturity and day of the year using generalized additive mixed models.

Fabrication and functional validation of a hybrid biomimetic nanovaccine (HBNV) against -mutant melanoma.

Cancer nanovaccines hold the promise for personalization, precision, and pliability by integrating all the elements essential for effective immune stimulation. An effective immune response requires communication and interplay between antigen-presenting cells (APCs), tumor cells, and immune cells to stimulate, extend, and differentiate antigen-specific and non-specific anti-tumor immune cells. The versatility of nanomedicine can be adapted to deliver both immunoadjuvant payloads and antigens from the key players in immunity (i.

Real world effectiveness, persistence, tolerability, and safety of ofatumumab in clinical practice.

Aims: To describe the 12-month effectiveness, persistence, tolerability, and safety of ofatumumab (OMB), a highly effective disease-modifying therapy (DMT) for relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS), in a real-world MS population.

Patients & Methods: Electronic medical records of patients starting OMB from October 2020 to August 2022 at two comprehensive MS centers were reviewed. Demographics and disease characteristics and 6- and 12-month clinical, patient-reported, and radiologic outcome measures were analyzed.

Association between procedure duration and adverse events in congenital cardiac catheterization.

Background: Procedure duration is an important predictor of patient outcomes in surgery. However, the relationship between procedure duration and adverse events in congenital cardiac catheterization is largely unexplored.

Methods: All cases entered into the Congenital Cardiac Catheterization Project on Outcomes from 2014 to 2017 were included.

Chronic traumatic encephalopathy: State-of-the-science update and narrative review.

Objective: The long-recognized association of brain injury with increased risk of dementia has undergone significant refinement and more detailed study in recent decades. Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a specific neurodegenerative tauopathy related to prior exposure to repetitive head impacts (RHI). We aim to contextualize CTE within a historical perspective and among emerging data which highlights the scientific and conceptual evolution of CTE-related research in parallel with the broader field of neurodegenerative disease and dementia.

Single- versus two-test criteria for cognitive impairment: associations with CSF and imaging markers in former American football players.

 Cognitive impairment is a core feature of traumatic encephalopathy syndrome (TES), the putative clinical syndrome of chronic traumatic encephalopathy-a neuropathological disease associated with repetitive head impacts (RHI). Careful operationalization of cognitive impairment is essential to improving the diagnostic specificity and accuracy of TES criteria. We compared single- versus two-test criteria for cognitive impairment in their associations with CSF and imaging biomarkers in male former American football players.

Next generation bioelectronic medicine: making the case for non-invasive closed-loop autonomic neuromodulation.

The field of bioelectronic medicine has advanced rapidly from rudimentary electrical therapies to cutting-edge closed-loop systems that integrate real-time physiological monitoring with adaptive neuromodulation. Early innovations, such as cardiac pacemakers and deep brain stimulation, paved the way for these sophisticated technologies. This review traces the historical and technological progression of bioelectronic medicine, culminating in the emerging potential of closed-loop devices for multiple disorders of the brain and body.

From physical activity patterns to cognitive status: development and validation of novel digital biomarkers for cognitive assessment in older adults.

Background: This study aims to investigate the associations between signal-level physical activity (PA) features derived from wrist accelerometry data and cognitive status in older adults, and to evaluate their potential predictive value when combined with demographics.

Methods: We analyzed PA data from 3,363 older adults (NHATS: n = 747; NHANES: n = 2,616), with each participant contributing a complete 3-day continuous activity sequence. We extracted the most relevant PA features associated with cognitive function using feature engineering and recursive feature elimination.

Genetic context modulates aging and degeneration in the murine retina.

Background: Age is the principal risk factor for neurodegeneration in both the retina and brain. The retina and brain share many biological properties; thus, insights into retinal aging and degeneration may shed light onto similar processes in the brain. Genetic makeup strongly influences susceptibility to age-related retinal disease.

A novel case of glial transdifferentiation in renal medullary carcinoma brain metastasis.

Renal medullary carcinoma is a rare undifferentiated tumor of the kidney associated with sickle cell trait and characterized by INI1 (SMARCB1) loss. Although metastasis to lungs, lymph nodes, and bone is commonly reported, distant spread to the central nervous system almost never occurs. Here we present an unusual case of a patient with renal medullary carcinoma with metastasis to the brain following treatment which included tazemetostat, an EZH2 inhibitor.

Integrating pharmacogenomics and cheminformatics with diverse disease phenotypes for cell type-guided drug discovery.

Background: Large-scale pharmacogenomic resources, such as the Connectivity Map (CMap), have greatly assisted computational drug discovery. However, despite their widespread use, CMap-based methods have thus far been agnostic to the biological activity of drugs as well as to the genomic effects of drugs in multiple disease contexts. Here, we present a network-based statistical approach, Pathopticon, that uses CMap to build cell type-specific gene-drug perturbation networks and integrates these networks with cheminformatic data and diverse disease phenotypes to prioritize drugs in a cell type-dependent manner.

Kidney failure-related excess mortality during the first three years of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States: a nation-wide, population-based analysis.

Background: The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic has had a detrimental impact on the healthcare system. Patients with kidney failure and related kidney disease are notably vulnerable to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, it remains unclear how mortality trends associated with kidney failure have evolved over the past three years.

Physical behaviours during pregnancy may alter the association of maternal insulin sensitivity with neonatal adiposity: a prospective pre-birth cohort of mother-child pairs.

Background: Lower maternal insulin sensitivity during pregnancy is associated with greater fetal adiposity. Physical activity can improve insulin sensitivity, but it is not known if physical behaviours influence the known association of maternal insulin sensitivity with offspring adiposity. This study aimed to investigate the moderating impact of physical behaviours on this association.

Variants and vaccines impact nasal immunity over three waves of SARS-CoV-2.

Viral variant and host vaccination status impact infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), yet how these factors shift cellular responses in the human nasal mucosa remains uncharacterized. We performed single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) on nasopharyngeal swabs from vaccinated and unvaccinated adults with acute Delta and Omicron SARS-CoV-2 infections and integrated with data from acute infections with ancestral SARS-CoV-2. Patients with Delta and Omicron exhibited greater similarity in nasal cell composition driven by myeloid, T cell and SARS-CoV-2 cell subsets, which was distinct from that of ancestral cases.

Equitable artificial intelligence for glaucoma screening with fair identity normalization.

Glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness globally. Research indicates a disproportionate impact of glaucoma on racial and ethnic minorities. Existing deep learning models for glaucoma detection might not achieve equitable performance across diverse identity groups.