Transforming the tradition of discrete milk yield correction factors: A continuous 1-step DeLorenzo-Wiggans method.

Over the past decades, various methods have been proposed to estimate daily milk yields from partial yields. Many of these methods divide milking interval time into varied classes, assuming that the yield correction factors are constant within classes but vary between classes. The DeLorenzo and Wiggans (D-W) method has been widely used in the United States, typically following a 2-step process.

Efficacy of methods to synchronize follicular wave emergence in pregnant heifers.

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of various methods for synchronization of follicular wave emergence (FWE) in pregnant heifers. Pregnant (60 d of gestation) Holstein heifers (n = 86) arranged in cohorts were randomly assigned to be administered 172 µg of gonadorelin acetate (GnRH), 3,300 IU of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), follicular ablation of follicles >5 mm (FA), or saline (control). Ultrasonography was performed to determine ovulation and emergence of a new follicular wave.

MT-Keyboard: A Bayesian Model-assisted Interval Design to Account for Toxicity Grades and Types for Phase I Trials.

Conventionally, dose finding trials are based on dose-limiting toxicity (DLT) that only captures the most severe toxicities, e.g., treatment related grade 3 or higher toxicity according to the NCI Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events.

Comparative assessment of alcaftadine and olopatadine for allergic conjunctivitis: a meta-analysis.

Introduction: It is unclear to compare the efficacy of alcaftadine versus olopatadine for patients with allergic conjunctivitis, and this meta-analysis aims to perform the comparative assessment of their efficacy for allergic conjunctivitis.

Methods: We systematically searched PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, EBSCO, and Cochrane library databases, and included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing alcaftadine with olopatadine for allergic conjunctivitis. The random-effect model was used for the significant heterogeneity, and otherwise the fixed-effect model was used.

Second-line treatment patterns and outcomes in advanced HCC after progression on atezolizumab/bevacizumab.

Background & Aims: Atezolizumab/bevacizumab (A/B) is now a standard first-line treatment for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but the optimal second-line regimen is not known. We evaluated real-world treatment patterns and outcomes to investigate factors associated with post-progression survival (PPS).

Methods: In this multicenter, international, retrospective study, we examined clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients with advanced HCC who progressed on first-line A/B.

Comparative efficacy of different drugs in acute heart failure with renal dysfunction: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.

Objective: This network meta-analysis was to compare the efficacy of different drugs on cardiac function, renal function, and clinical outcomes in patients with acute heart failure (AHF) accompanied by renal dysfunction.

Methods: PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science were searched to screen all clinical trials of AHF between January 1st 2001 and March 31th 2024. The primary outcome measures were N-terminal pro-B type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP), B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP), glomerular filtration rate (GFR), blood urea nitrogen, serum creatinine, all-cause mortality within 60 days, and cardiovascular mortality.

Rectovaginal Fistula Repair Following Vaginoplasty in Transgender Females: A Systematic Review of Surgical Techniques.

Rectovaginal fistula (RVF) remains a complex complication following gender-affirming vaginoplasty. This review aims to evaluate RVF repair techniques and outcomes following vaginoplasty. A systematic review was performed per PRISMA guidelines.

Current Practices and Trends of Plastic and Oncoplastic Breast Surgeons in Canada.

There is a lack of previous studies investigating oncoplastic practice trends for breast reconstruction in Canada, particularly from the plastic surgeon perspective. Given the rising popularity of oncoplastic techniques, this study aimed to identify current practice trends for breast and plastic surgeons in Canada. A cross-sectional survey study of breast and plastic surgeons performing oncoplastic surgery across Canada was conducted.

Spatio-temporal patterns of tigers in response to prey species and anthropogenic activities.

Understanding factors influencing the spatio-temporal patterns of apex predators is prerequisite for their conservation. We studied space use and diel activity of tigers () in response to prey availability and anthropogenic activities with trail cameras in Nepal during December 2022-March 2023. We used hierarchical occupancy models to evaluate how prey availability (space use of prey species) and anthropogenic activities (number of humans and livestock) contributed to the tigers' space use, while accounting for landscape effects on their detection probability.

Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy for Complex, Chronic, and Treatment-Resistant Conditions.

Over the past 50 years, intensive short-term dynamic psychotherapy (ISTDP) has been developed, implemented, and evaluated with respect to the treatment of a broad spectrum of complex, chronic, and treatment-resistant conditions. This therapy was developed specifically to treat a range of patients, including those who are highly defensive, those who experience the repression of emotions, and those who have cognitive-perceptual disruptions along with primitive defenses. These three groups of patients are characterized by patterns of attachment trauma and deficits related to neglect.

Chemical and physical properties of orthoconic liquid crystals: H NMR spectroscopy and molecular dynamics simulations.

In the field of chiral smectic liquid crystals, orthoconic antiferroelectric liquid crystals (OAFLCs) have attracted the interest of the scientific community due to the very high tilt angle, close to 45°, and the consequent optical properties. In the present study, the first H NMR investigation is reported on two samples, namely 3F5HPhF9 and 3F7HPhF8, showing the phase sequence isotropic-SmC*-SmC* and the phase sequence isotropic-SmA-SmC*-SmC*, respectively, when cooling from the isotropic to the crystalline phases. To this aim, the liquid crystals were doped with a small amount of deuterated probe biphenyl-4,4'-diol-d.

Robotic versus laparoscopic colorectal surgery for patients with obesity: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Obesity poses significant challenges in colorectal surgery, affecting operative difficulty and postoperative recovery. The choice of minimally invasive approach for this patient population remains a challenge during preoperative planning. This review aims to provide an updated synthesis of studies comparing laparoscopic and robotic approaches for adult patients with obesity undergoing colorectal surgery.

Rapid, Accurate and Reproducible Prediction of the Glass Transition Temperature Using Ensemble-Based Molecular Dynamics Simulation.

For the computational design of new polymeric materials, accurate methods for determining the glass transition temperature () are required. We apply an ensemble approach in molecular dynamics (MD) and examine its predictions of and their associated uncertainty. We separate the uncertainty into the aleatoric contributions arising from dynamical chaos and that due to the computational scenarios chosen to compute .

Gaussian Process Approach to Constructing Transferable Force Fields for Thiolate-Protected Gold Nanoclusters.

Gold nanoparticles can exhibit unique physical and chemical properties, such as plasmon resonances or photoluminescence. These nanoparticles have many atoms, which leads to high computational costs for density functional theory (DFT) calculations. In this work, we used the FLARE++ (fast learning of atomistic rare events) code and incorporated an active learning algorithm to construct force fields for gold thiolate-protected nanoclusters.

Dynamic Contrast-enhanced MRI Processing Comparison for Distinguishing True Progression From Pseudoprogression in High-grade Glioma.

Background: Treatment-related changes may occur due to radiation and temozolomide in glioblastoma and can mimic tumor progression on conventional MRI. DCE-MRI enables quantification of the extent of blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption, providing information about areas of suspicious postcontrast T1 enhancement. We compared DCE-MRI processing methods for distinguishing true disease progression from pseudoprogression in high-grade gliomas (HGGs).

Long COVID and its risk factors in migrants: a nationwide register study from Sweden.

Background: Many studies have found more severe COVID-19 outcomes in migrants and ethnic minorities throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, while recent evidence also suggests higher risk of longer-term consequences. We studied the risk of a long COVID diagnosis among adult residents in Sweden, dependent on country of birth and accounting for known risk factors for long COVID.

Methods: We used linked Swedish administrative registers between March 1, 2020 and April 1, 2023, to estimate the risk of a long COVID diagnosis in the adult population that had a confirmed COVID-19 infection.

C-28 linker length modulates the activity of second-generation HIV-1 maturation inhibitors.

Maturation inhibitors (MIs) block HIV-1 maturation by preventing the cleavage of the capsid protein and spacer peptide 1 (CA-SP1). Bevirimat (BVM), a first-in-class MI, displayed sub-optimal efficacy in clinical trials due to presence of SP1:V7A polymorphism in the Gag protein.This polymorphism is inherently present in HIV-1 subtype C and conferred resistance to BVM.

Ibuprofen reduces inflammation, necroptosis and protects photoreceptors from light-induced retinal degeneration.

Background: The retinal degenerative diseases retinitis pigmentosa (RP) and atrophic age- related macular degeneration (AMD) are characterized by vision loss from photoreceptor (PR) degeneration. Unfortunately, current treatments for these diseases are limited at best. Genetic and other preclinical evidence suggest a relationship between retinal degeneration and inflammation.

NLRX1 limits inflammatory neurodegeneration in the anterior visual pathway.

Chronic innate immune activation in the central nervous system (CNS) significantly contributes to neurodegeneration in progressive multiple sclerosis (MS). Using multiple experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) models, we discovered that NLRX1 protects neurons in the anterior visual pathway from inflammatory neurodegeneration. We quantified retinal ganglion cell (RGC) density and optic nerve axonal degeneration, gliosis, and T-cell infiltration in Nlrx1 and wild-type (WT) EAE mice and found increased RGC loss and axonal injury in Nlrx1 mice compared to WT mice in both active immunization EAE and spontaneous opticospinal encephalomyelitis (OSE) models.

Implicit bias assessment by career stage in medical education training: a narrative review.

Implicit biases involve associations outside conscious awareness that lead to a negative evaluation of a person based on individual characteristics. Early evaluation of implicit bias in medical training can prevent long-term adverse health outcomes related to racial bias. However, to our knowledge, no present studies examine the sequential assessment of implicit bias through the different stages of medical training.

Which combination of medical expulsive therapy is more effective for treatment of distal ureteral stone in adults? A systematic review and network meta-analysis.

Background: Medical Expulsive Therapy (MET) has been recommended as an established modality for the treatment of distal ureteral stones due to its clearance rate, pain control, and patient satisfaction while having minimal morbidity in comparison to other urologic interventions. In some studies, a combination of medications has been used, which we assessed in this network meta-analysis (NMA).

Methods: We conducted systematic searches in PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science to identify relevant trials published between 2001 and 2024.

Myricetin exposure reduces PC differentiation in vitro in primary human B cells.

Background: The process of B cell activation and plasma cell (PC) formation involves morphological, transcriptional, and metabolic changes in the B cell. Blocking or reducing PC differentiation is one approach to treat autoimmune diseases that are characterized by the presence of pathogenic autoantibodies. Recent studies have suggested the potential of myricetin, a natural flavonoid with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, to block or reduce PC differentiation.

Characteristics of Patients with Hereditary Angioedema Who Reduced Lanadelumab Treatment Administration Frequency: A Retrospective Observational Study of US Claims Data.

Background: Lanadelumab is the only long-term prophylaxis indicated for reduced administration frequency in patients with hereditary angioedema who have been well controlled for > 6 months. Understanding the characteristics of patients who reduce administration frequency will help identify populations where frequency modifications may be appropriate.

Objective: We aimed to describe characteristics of patients who did and did not reduce lanadelumab administration frequency to inform real-world dosing regimens, and characteristics indicative of sustained frequency reduction.

Leveraging Model Master Files for Long-Acting Injectables.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Center for Research on Complex Generics (CRCG) hosted a public workshop on May 2-3, 2024, titled "Considerations and Potential Regulatory Applications for a Model Master File (Lachaine et al Can J Psychiatry.

Cardiovascular disease, bone fracture, and all-cause mortality risks among postmenopausal women by arthritis and veteran status: A multistate Markov transition analysis.

Arthritis, a chronic inflammatory condition linked to cardiovascular disease (CVD) and bone fracture, is more frequent among military veterans and postmenopausal women. This study examined correlates of arthritis and relationships of arthritis with risks of developing CVD, bone fractures, and mortality among postmenopausal veteran and non-veteran women. We analyzed longitudinal data on 135,790 (3,436 veteran and 132,354 non-veteran) postmenopausal women from the Women's Health Initiative who were followed-up for an average of 16 years between enrollment (1993-1998) and February 17, 2024.