Visual Loss in Geographic Atrophy: Learnings From the Lampalizumab Trials.

Purpose: To assess the correlation of lesion growth rate and baseline factors, including foveal involvement and focality, on visual loss as measured by best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) in patients with geographic atrophy (GA) secondary to age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Design: Retrospective analysis of the lampalizumab phase 3 (NCT02247479 and NCT02247531) and prospective observational (NCT02479386) trials.

Participants: Patients with bilateral GA.

Promoting LC-QToF based non-targeted fingerprinting and biomarker selection with machine learning for the discrimination of black tea geographical origin.

Traceability and mislabelling of black tea for their geographical origin is known as a major fraud concern of the sector. Discrimination among various geographical indications (GIs) can be challenging due to the complexity of chemical fingerprints in multi-class metabolomics analysis. In this study, 302 black tea samples from 9 main cultivation GI regions were collected.

Alkali cation-π interactions in aqueous systems, modulating supramolecular stereoisomerism of nanoscopic metal-organic capsules.

Contrary to common chemical intuition, cation-π interactions can persist in polar, aqueous reaction solutions, rather than in dry non-coordinative solvent systems. This account highlights how alkali ion-π interactions impart distinctive structure-influencing supramolecular forces that can be exploited in the preparation of nanoscopic metal-organic capsules. The incorporation of alkali ions from polar solutions into molecular pockets promotes the assembly of otherwise inaccessible capsular entities whose structures are distinctive to those of common polyoxovanadate clusters in which {V=O} moieties usually point radially to the outside, shielding the molecular entities.

Card9 and MyD88 differentially regulate Th17 immunity to the commensal yeast Malassezia in the murine skin.

The fungal community of the skin microbiome is dominated by a single genus, Malassezia. Besides its symbiotic lifestyle at the host interface, this commensal yeast has also been associated with diverse inflammatory skin diseases in humans and pet animals. Stable colonization is maintained by antifungal type 17 immunity.

Assessing the landscape and charting paths: UK neurology trainees' opinions on neuroinflammation subspecialty.

Therapeutics of neuroinflammatory disorders including multiple sclerosis is one of the fastest growing areas in neurology. However, pressures on higher specialty training in neurology together with an expanding curriculum have led to challenges in adequately preparing trainees for a subspecialist career. In this study we set out to understand current perceptions and barriers to training in neuroinflammatory disorders among neurology trainees in the UK.

Does volunteering reduce epigenetic age acceleration among retired and working older adults? Results from the Health and Retirement Study.

Objectives: The current study aims to explore the relationship between the frequency of volunteering and biological aging, as measured by epigenetic age acceleration. It also investigates whether this relationship differs between retired and working older adults. Understanding this connection could inform interventions promoting healthy aging and reducing age-related chronic health conditions.

AI for Tobacco Control: Identifying Tobacco-promoting Social Media Content Using Large Language Models.

Introduction: Tobacco companies use social media to bypass marketing restrictions. Studies show that exposure to tobacco promotion on social media influences subsequent smoking behavior, yet it is challenging to monitor such content. We developed an artificial intelligence that can automatically identify tobacco-promoting content on social media.

Ileal microbial microbiome and its secondary bile acids modulate susceptibility to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis in dairy goats.

Background: Liver damage from nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) presents a significant challenge to the health and productivity of ruminants. However, the regulatory mechanisms behind variations in NASH susceptibility remain unclear. The gut‒liver axis, particularly the enterohepatic circulation of bile acids (BAs), plays a crucial role in regulating the liver diseases.

DGT and kinetic analyses differentiate Se and Cd bioavailability in naturally enriched paddy soils.

Naturally selenium (Se)-rich soils often contain elevated cadmium (Cd) levels, complicating safe production of Se-enriched rice. This study employed diffusive gradients in thin-films (DGT) and DGT-induced fluxes in soils (DIFS) model to determine Se and Cd bioavailability in paddy soils. We investigated desorption kinetics and accumulation patterns in rice using paired rhizosphere and grain samples from 65 field sites in Guangxi, China, encompassing Se-enriched karst and non-karst soils.

Mobilization of grassland soil arsenic stores due to agronomic management.

The fate of arsenic in mineral soil stores over time is poorly understood. Here we examined arsenic loss over five decades from a managed grassland soil profile through analysing archived material from a long-term slurry (LTS) experiment at Hillsborough, Northern Ireland. A randomized block experiment was established in 1970 where a perennial ryegrass sward was seeded onto the site and subjected to control (no fertilization) and fertilization treatments using conventional (i.

3D-printing of dipyridamole/thermoplastic polyurethane materials for bone regeneration.

Tissue engineering combines biology and engineering to develop constructs for repairing or replacing damaged tissues. Over the last few years, this field has seen significant advancements, particularly in bone tissue engineering. 3D printing has revolutionised this field, allowing the fabrication of patient- or defect-specific scaffolds to enhance bone regeneration, thus providing a personalised approach that offers unique control over the shape, size, and structure of 3D-printed constructs.

ClassifieR 2.0: expanding interactive gene expression-based stratification to prostate and high-grade serous ovarian cancer.

Background: Advances in transcriptional profiling methods have enabled the discovery of molecular subtypes within and across traditional tissue-based cancer classifications. Such molecular subgroups hold potential for improving patient outcomes by guiding treatment decisions and revealing physiological distinctions and targetable pathways. Computational methods for stratifying transcriptomic data into molecular subgroups are increasingly abundant.

A practical approach to quantitative analytical surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy.

Many of the features of SERS, such as its high sensitivity, molecular specificity and speed of analysis make it attractive as an analytical technique. However, SERS currently remains a specialist technique which has not yet entered the mainstream of analytical chemistry. Therefore, this review draws out the underlying principles for analytical SERS and provides practical tips and tricks for SERS quantitation.

Patients' expectations and experiences with the usage of a self-care application for heart failure: A qualitative interview study.

Background: Heart failure (HF) is a chronic disease characterized by high mortality and healthcare expenditures. Digital health solutions, including mobile health applications (apps), offer opportunities to enhance patients' self-care and quality of life. This qualitative study aimed to explore expectations, experiences, and usage behaviour of HF-patients regarding a self-care app ( app).

Saturation of the compression of two interacting magnetized plasma toroids evidenced in the laboratory.

Interactions between magnetic fields advected by matter play a fundamental role in the Universe at a diverse range of scales. A crucial role these interactions play is in making turbulent fields highly anisotropic, leading to observed ordered fields. These in turn, are important evolutionary factors for all the systems within and around.

Fish skin dressing for wound regeneration: A bioactive component review of omega-3 PUFAs, collagen and ECM.

Wound healing is a complex biological process that involves several stages, including hemostasis, inflammation, proliferation, and remodeling. Traditional wound dressings, to a certain extent, can provide wound protection but are limited in promoting wound healing, reducing scar formation, and preventing bacterial infections. In recent years, with the advancement of research in biomedical materials, fish skin dressings have become a research hotspot in the field of tissue regeneration due to their remarkable biocompatibility and precious bioactive components.

Evaluation of physical and chemical modifications to drug reservoirs for stimuli-responsive microneedles.

Hydrogel-forming microneedle (MN) arrays are minimally-invasive devices that can penetrate the stratum corneum, the main barrier to topical drug application, without causing pain. However, drug delivery using hydrogel-forming MN arrays tends to be relatively slow compared to rapid drug delivery using conventional needles and syringes. Therefore, in this work, for the first time, different physical and chemical delivery enhancement methods were employed in combination with PVA-based hydrogel-forming MN arrays.