Baseline kidney function and the effects of dapagliflozin on health status in heart failure in DEFINE-HF and PRESERVED-HF.

Aims: Sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitors improve health status and outcomes in the setting of heart failure (HF) across the range of ejection fraction (EF). Baseline kidney disease is common in HF, complicates HF management and is strongly linked to worse health status. This study aimed to assess whether the treatment effects of dapagliflozin on health status vary based on estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR).

Challenges and barriers to WIC participation vary by participation status and language: Findings from focus groups in Missouri.

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is one of the largest federal food and nutrition program serving women and young children and has a low coverage rate of about 50 percent. There is no peer-reviewed article that compares maternal perceptions of challenges and barriers to WIC participation by language and participation status. We compare challenges and barriers faced by English-speaking mothers to those faced by Spanish-speaking mothers to enrollment and retention in WIC within each group: current participants (n = 43), prior participants (dropouts; n = 27), and eligible non-participants (n = 18), using focus groups we conducted in Missouri in 2021-2023.

Development of a peptide-based tumor-activated checkpoint inhibitor for cancer immunotherapy.

Antibody-based checkpoint inhibitors have achieved great success in cancer immunotherapy, but their uncontrollable immune-related adverse events remain a major challenge. In this study, we developed a tumor-activated nanoparticle that is specifically active in tumors but not in normal tissues. We discovered a short anti-PD-L1 peptide that blocks the PD-1/PD-L1 interaction.

Fiber optics-based surface enhanced Raman Spectroscopy sensors for rapid multiplex detection of foodborne pathogens in raw poultry.

A new high-sensitivity, low-cost, Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) sensor allows for the rapid multiplex detection of foodborne pathogens in raw poultry. Self-assembled microspheres are used to pattern a hexagonal close-packed array of nanoantennas onto a side-polished multimode fiber core. Each microsphere focuses UV radiation to a photonic nanojet within a layer of photoresist on the fiber which allows the nanoantenna geometry to be controlled.

High-Throughput Protein-Bound Amino Acid Quantification from Maize Kernels.

In cereal crops, seed quality is determined by the composition and levels of protein-bound amino acids, which account for ∼90% of the seed total amino acid content. In maize particularly, seed quality is affected by the low levels of lysine and tryptophan, two amino acids that humans and animals cannot synthesize and must obtain from the diet. The low levels of these two amino acids in seeds is due to the dominance of seed storage proteins, namely zeins, which are deficient in these two amino acids.

High-Throughput Free Amino Acid Quantification from Maize Tissues.

Amino acids in maize can exist in both a free and protein-bound state. While most amino acids are part of a protein backbone, a small percentage of them remain free and play important biological roles, serving as signaling molecules, nitrogen transporters, osmolytes, and precursors for multiple primary and secondary metabolites. Their levels vary widely especially in maize leaves, depending on the developmental stage and in response to environmental conditions.

Amino Acid Quantification from Maize Tissues.

Amino acid analysis is a vital part of analytical biochemistry. The increasing demand for low nitrogen fertilization and for plant-based diets with balanced amino acid levels and composition have made it crucial to develop reliable, fast, and affordable methods for analyzing amino acids in plants. As maize accounts for 43% of global cereal production, improving the amino acid composition of its kernels (i.

Impact of race on discharge location for stroke survivors: Associations with home discharge from a retrospective analysis.

Background: White stroke survivors often experience better outcome compared to their counterparts. Poststroke discharge location influences the subsequent rehabilitation that can support recovery and improve outcomes. However, few studies have looked at the association of race and discharge to home.

Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial: Integrating the 'Time-limited Trial' in the emergency department.

Introduction: Time-limited trial (TLT) is a structured approach between clinicians and seriously ill patients or their surrogates to discuss patients' values and preferences, prognosis, and shared decision-making to use specific therapies for a prespecified period of time in the face of prognostic uncertainty. Some evidence exists that this approach may lead to more patient-centered care in the intensive care unit; however, it has never been evaluated in the emergency department (ED). The study protocol aims to assess the feasibility and acceptability of TLTs initiated in the ED.

Respiratory Viruses in Patients With Hematological Malignancy in Boreal Autumn/Winter 2023-2024: EPICOVIDEHA-EPIFLUEHA Report.

Community-acquired respiratory viral infections (CARV) significantly impact patients with hematological malignancies (HM), leading to high morbidity and mortality. However, large-scale, real-world data on CARV in these patients is limited. This study analyzed data from the EPICOVIDEHA-EPIFLUEHA registry, focusing on patients with HM diagnosed with CARV during the 2023-2024 autumn-winter season.

Selective Ni-Catalyzed Cross-Electrophile Coupling of Heteroaryl Chlorides and Aryl Bromides at 1:1 Substrate Ratio.

Nickel-catalyzed cross-electrophile coupling (XEC) reactions of (hetero)aryl electrophiles represent appealing alternatives to palladium-catalyzed methods for biaryl synthesis, but they often generate significant quantities of homocoupling and/or proto-dehalogenation side products. In this study, an informer library of heteroaryl chloride and aryl bromide coupling partners is used to identify Ni-catalyzed XEC conditions that access high selectivity for the cross-product when using equimolar quantities of the two substrates. Two different catalyst systems are identified that show complementary scope and broad functional-group tolerance, and time-course data suggest that the two methods follow different mechanisms.

Medical and Surgical Episodes Among Hospital Participants in the Bundled Payments for Care Improvement-Advanced Program.

Importance: Hospital participation in the Bundled Payments for Care Improvement-Advanced (BPCI-A) initiative has been associated with modest savings and stable clinical outcomes overall, but it is unknown whether the program performs differently for medical and surgical or procedural (henceforth, surgical) episodes.

Objective: To assess the association of BPCI-A participation with Medicare spending and clinical outcomes for medical and surgical episodes.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This retrospective difference-in-differences cohort study utilized 100% Medicare fee-for-service inpatient claims for episodes initiated between January 1, 2017, and September 30, 2019, and included 90 days of follow-up.

Discovery of an Orally Efficacious Pyrazolo[3,4-]pyrimidine Benzoxaborole as a Potent Inhibitor of .

Cryptosporidiosis is a diarrheal disease caused by the parasite resulting in over 100,000 deaths annually. Here, we present a structure-activity relationship study of the benzoic acid position (R) of pyrazolo[3,4-]pyrimidine lead SLU-2815 (), an inhibitor of parasite phosphodiesterase PDE1, resulting in the discovery of benzoxaborole SLU-10906 () as a benzoic acid bioisostere. Benzoxaborole is 10-fold more potent than against the parasite in a cell-based infection model (EC = 0.

Pulmonary lysyl oxidase expression and its role in seeding Lewis lung carcinoma cells.

Copper promotes tumor growth and metastasis through a variety of mechanisms, most notably as a cofactor within the lysyl oxidase (LOX) family of secreted cuproenzymes. Members of this family, which include LOX and LOX-like enzymes LOXL1-4, catalyze the copper-dependent crosslinking of collagens and elastin within the extracellular matrix (ECM). Elevated LOX expression is associated with higher incidence and worse prognosis in multiple cancers, including colorectal, breast, pancreatic, and head and neck.

Large Bilobed Flap for Head and Neck Reconstruction: Technique and Outcomes.

Background: Head and neck reconstruction after resection of cutaneous malignancies spans the entire reconstructive ladder. Local flaps, such as the bilobed flap, offer excellent versatility, negligible morbidity, and minimal hospitalization. However, there is sparse data regarding the bilobed flap for large defects of the head and neck.

Psychotropic medication usage in sporadic versus genetic behavioral-variant frontotemporal dementia.

Introduction: Psychotropic medication (PM) use in behavioral-variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD) is higher than in other dementias. However, no information exists on whether PM use differs between sporadic and genetic bvFTD.

Methods: We analyzed data from sporadic and genetic bvFTD participants with PM prescriptions in the Advancing Research and Treatment in Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration/Longitudinal Evaluation of Familial Frontotemporal Dementia Subjects study.

Longitudinal cognitive performance of participants with sporadic early onset Alzheimer's disease from LEADS.

Introduction: Early-onset Alzheimer's disease (EOAD) manifests prior to the age of 65, and affects 4%-8% of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). The current analyses sought to examine longitudinal cognitive trajectories of participants with early-onset dementia.

Methods: Data from 307 cognitively normal (CN) volunteer participants and those with amyloid-positive EOAD or amyloid-negative cognitive impairment (EOnonAD) were compared.

Environmentally-relevant doses of bisphenol A and S exposure in utero disrupt germ cell programming across generations resolved by single nucleus multi-omics.

Background: Exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), such as bisphenol A (BPA), disrupts reproduction across generations. Germ cell epigenetic alterations are proposed to bridge transgenerational reproductive defects resulting from EDCs. Previously, we have shown that prenatal exposure to environmentally relevant doses of BPA or its substitute, BPS, caused transgenerationally maintained reproductive impairments associated with neonatal spermatogonial epigenetic changes in male mice.

I/σI {Rmerg, Rmeas, Rpim, CC1/2} for Crystal Diffraction Data Quality Evaluation.

X-ray crystal diffraction has provided atomic-level structural information on biological macromolecules. Data quality determines the reliability of structural models. In most cases, multiple data sets are available from different crystals and/or collected with different experimental settings.

Multifunctional Porous Soft Composites for Bimodal Wearable Cardiac Monitors.

Wearable heart monitors are crucial for early diagnosis and treatment of heart diseases in non-clinical settings. However, their long-term applications require skin-interfaced materials that are ultrasoft, breathable, antibacterial, and possess robust, enduring on-skin adherence-features that remain elusive. Here, we have developed multifunctional porous soft composites that meet all these criteria for skin-interfaced bimodal cardiac monitoring.

Statins decrease the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is a leading cause of chronic liver disease with a significant risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Recent clinical evidence indicates the potential benefits of statins in cancer chemoprevention and therapeutics. However, it is still unclear if these drugs can lower the specific risk of HCC among patients with MASLD.

Framing resilience linked to parental ethnic-racial socialization as hidden: A hidden resilience conceptual framework.

Parental ethnic-racial socialization is a source of adolescents' resilience against ethnic-racial discrimination. Recent meta-analyses have documented the aspects of ethnic-racial socialization (i.e.

Hepatocellular carcinoma national burden across different geographical regions in the United States between 2001 and 2020.

Background: While prior data showed an increasing incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in the United States, there are limited comprehensive and comparative data on the geographical variations of HCC trends in different demographic-specific populations.

Aim: To evaluate sex and age-specific incidence rates and time trends in different geographical regions in the United States.

Methods: Age-adjusted HCC incidence rates were collected from the United States Cancer Statistics (USCS) database which covers approximately 98% of the population in the United States.