Laser Irradiation and Property Correlation in Double-Lasing Processes on Laser-Induced Graphene Electrodes.

The fabrication of laser-induced graphene (LIG) electrodes by direct laser writing techniques has received considerable attention due to its simplicity, versatility, and cost-effectiveness for electrochemical applications in both sensing and energy storage. In general, a single-lasing irradiation process is used to prepare LIG electrodes. However, the intrinsic features of LIG can be further improved by taking advantage of additional lasing processes, even without any chemical treatments.

Validation of an In Situ Self-Administered Hearing Test with a Self-Fitting Device for Mild to Moderately Severe Hearing Loss in Various Acoustic Environments.

Objectives: This study compared a simplified in situ self-administered hearing screening test, conducted with a neckband-type self-fitting device, with conventional pure-tone audiometry. It evaluated the maximum speech-shaped noise level for screening (MSNLS), crucial for evaluating the feasibility of this in situ screening test in quiet environments.

Methods: This study included 30 adults with normal hearing and 30 adults with mild to moderately severe hearing impairment.

Tracking malathion resistance in Spanish Ceratitis capitata populations: prevalence of resistance alleles/haplotypes before and after the withdrawal of malathion.

Background: Field resistance to malathion was reported for Mediterranean fruit fly (medfly), Ceratitis capitata, populations collected in Spain in 2004 and 2005, when medfly control mainly relied on malathion bait sprays. The mutation G328A in the acetylcholinesterase (AChE) gene (Ccace2) was then identified as the main resistance mechanism in a field-derived resistant strain. However, outdoor plant protection products containing malathion were withdrawn from the European Union in 2009 and other insecticides gained importance, such as spinosad and pyrethroids, though other organophosphates were occasionally used for medfly control for a few years.

Most infants with prenatal osteogenesis imperfecta diagnosis and poor prognosis survive: experience of a quaternary care osteogenesis imperfecta center.

Osteogenesis imperfecta is a genetic condition with improperly or inadequately produced Type I collagen. Manifestations include bowing deformities, fractures, hydrocephalus, respiratory insufficiency, and feeding difficulty. Moderate or severe OI is often diagnosed prenatally based on ultrasound findings and genetic testing may be labeled as lethal.

Compositional modeling of solution gas-oil ratio (Rs): a comparative study of tree-based models, neural networks, and equations of state.

Accurate knowledge of crude oil pressure-volume-temperature (PVT) properties is essential for both industrial and academic applications. However, traditional experimental methods for determining these properties, particularly the solution gas-oil ratio (R), are time-intensive and costly. In this study, advanced compositional models were developed using a broad range of machine learning (ML) techniques to predict R efficiently and reliably.

Low-dose irradiation of the gut improves the efficacy of PD-L1 blockade in metastatic cancer patients.

The mechanisms governing the abscopal effects of local radiotherapy in cancer patients remain an open conundrum. Here, we show that off-target intestinal low-dose irradiation (ILDR) increases the clinical benefits of immune checkpoint inhibitors or chemotherapy in eight retrospective cohorts of cancer patients and in tumor-bearing mice. The abscopal effects of ILDR depend on dosimetry (≥1 and ≤3 Gy) and on the metabolic and immune host-microbiota interaction at baseline allowing CD8 T cell activation without exhaustion.

Exploring Religion and Spirituality in Social Work Practice: A Wisconsin Case Study.

Research suggests spirituality is linked to positive health outcomes, but social workers report barriers to incorporating it into care planning. The literature suggests general interest in learning and executing social work practice involving religion/spirituality (R/S) intentionally. While some empirical study has been conducted, this work is largely superficial and undeveloped.

Chiral Drug Resolution Nanochannels Inspired by Mitochondrial Membranes.

Fungicides have been widely used in agricultural production; however, their extensive use has caused serious environmental pollution. Because of its high efficiency, low toxicity, and high selectivity, chiral fungicides can effectively reduce the amount of fungicides and increase the efficiency. Hence, how to efficiently separate the enantiomers of chiral drugs with different structures is of significant research value.

Photon-Counting CT: Technology, Current and Potential Future Clinical Applications, and Overview of Approved Systems and Those in Various Stages of Research and Development.

Photon-counting CT (PCCT) has emerged as a transformative technology, with the potential to herald a new era of clinical capabilities. This review provides an overview of the current status and potential future developments of PCCT, including basic physics principles and technical implementation by different vendors, with special attention to applications that have not, to date, been emphasized in the literature. The technologic underpinnings that distinguish PCCT scanners from traditional energy-integrating detector (EID) CT scanners with dual-energy capability are discussed.

Stimuli-Responsive Circularly Polarized Luminescence of Gold Clusters Based on Hydrogen-Bond Driven Intercluster Coupling.

Stimuli-responsive circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) metal clusters hold significant potential in high-security encryption and sensing applications, yet the exploration of hydrogen-bond-driven CPL-active metal clusters remains limited. Here, we report the synthesis of an enantiomeric pair of rhomboid Au4 clusters utilizing chiral R/S-4-hydroxymethyl-5-methyloxazole-2-thione (R/S-HMMT) ligands. Two enantiomeric pairs of self-assembled metal clusters R/S-Au4(HMMT)4-blue and R/S-Au4(HMMT)4-red were obtained, by constructing distinct intercluster hydrogen bonds through the use of different crystalline solvents.

Follicle-stimulating hormone stimulates free radical generation without inducing substantial oxidative stress in human granulosa cells.

Study Question: Does FSH induce free radical generation with substantial oxidative damage in human cumulus granulosa cells (cGCs) and mural granulosa cells (mGCs)?

Summary Answer: FSH of both physiological and supraphysiological concentrations induced free radical generation on subcellular levels, most notably in the mitochondria, while the elevated free radical load caused neglectable oxidative damage in both cGCs and mGCs.

What Is Known Already: FSH is fundamental for regulation of granulosa cell (GC) function and oocyte maturation, during which a physiological level of reactive oxygen species (ROS) is essential, while excessive amounts lead to oxidative damage. Potential adverse effects of high FSH doses on GCs may be mediated by ROS.

GelMA as scaffold material for epithelial cells to emulate the small intestinal microenvironment.

Host-microbe interactions in the intestine play a significant role in health and disease. Novel scaffolds for host cells, capable of potentially supporting these intricate interactions, are necessary to improve our current systems for mimicking host-microbiota interplay in vitro/ex vivo. In this research paper, we study the application of gelatin methacrylamide (GelMA) as scaffold material for intestinal epithelial cells in terms of permeability, mechanical strength, and biocompatibility.

Unveiling the power of R: a comprehensive perspective for laboratory medicine data analysis.

R language has gained traction in laboratory medicine for its statistical power and dynamic tools like RMarkdown and RShiny. However, there is limited literature summarizing R packages and functions tailored for laboratory medicine, making it difficult for clinical laboratory workers to access these tools. Additionally, varying algorithms across R packages can lead to inconsistencies in published reports.

Assessment of complement cascade components in patients with major depressive disorder.

Recent evidence suggests that the rapid-acting antidepressant ketamine has immune regulatory functions. The complement system is an important component of the innate immune response and plays a key role in synaptic plasticity. An increase in complement component 3 (C3) expression was previously found in the prefrontal cortex of individuals with depression.

Elevated Cerebrospinal Fluid Total Tau in Niemann-Pick Disease Type C1: Correlation With Clinical Severity and Response to Therapeutic Interventions.

Niemann-Pick disease, type C1 (NPC1) is an inborn error of intracellular cholesterol transport. Impaired function of NPC1 leads to endolysosomal accumulation of unesterified cholesterol, which results in progressive neurodegeneration. Although the age of onset is variable, classical NPC1 is a pediatric disease.

Evaluation and Management of Chronic Kidney Disease: Synopsis of the Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes 2024 Clinical Practice Guideline.

Description: The Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) organization updated its existing clinical practice guideline in 2024 to provide guidance on the evaluation, management, and treatment of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in adults and children who are not receiving kidney replacement therapy.

Methods: The KDIGO CKD Guideline Work Group defined the scope of the guideline and determined topics for systematic review. An independent Evidence Review Team systematically reviewed the evidence and graded the certainty of evidence for each of the review topics.

The Revised Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Child Version: Adaptation, psychometric properties, and norms in Turkish culture.

The Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Child Version (OCI-CV), which was developed to assess OCD symptoms in children and adolescents, was recently revised (OCI-CV-R) after hoarding was removed as an OCD symptom dimension in the DSM-5. The study aimed to examine the validity of the OCI-CV-R for assessing OCD symptoms in Turkish culture. A total of 1,062 youths, aged 9 to 18 years, participated in this study to assess the OCI-CV-R's psychometric properties in the Turkish culture.

Chirality and Polarity Modulation in Semiconductive Zinc(II) Coordination Polymers Containing Thiolate-Based Ligands.

Recently, chiral semiconductors have attracted considerable attention owing to their potential applicability in optoelectronics and spintronics. In this study, homochiral and heterochiral semiconductive Zn(II) coordination polymers [Zn(tbbt)(()-mba)]·solvent (Htbbt = 4,4'-thiobisbenzenethiol, mba = methylbenzylamine, = , , ) were systematically synthesized. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction analyses revealed that and ( = Kwansei Gakuin framework), of type [Zn(tbbt)(()-mba)]·()-mba, obtained from enantiopure ()-mba and ()-mba isomers, exhibited chiral-nonpolar homochiral one-dimensional (1D) structures with mba lattice solvents, comprising left- and right-handed helical chains, respectively.

Radiation-Enhanced AF1q Moves Center Stage as a Key Driver to Favorable Tumor Stage in Rectal Cancer Patients.

Background: Enhanced protein expression of ALL1-fused gene from chromosome 1q (AF1Q) after (chemo)radiotherapy has been described in vitro, but is largely understudied in gastrointestinal cancer. We aimed to investigate AF1q expression in rectal cancer (RC) patients treated with short-term radiation therapy and a possible correlation with markers crucial for RC prognosis.

Methods: A cohort of 75 RC patients scheduled for surgery was defined and patients with moderately locally advanced tumors (cT3Nx) received preoperative hyperfractionated short-term radiation therapy (cumulative dose 25 Gy).

Radiographic outcomes and subsidence rate in hyperlordotic versus standard lordotic interbody spacers in patients undergoing anterior cervical discectomy and fusion.

Background: Anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) is a common surgery for patients with degenerative cervical disease and current interbody spacers utilized vary based on material composition, structure, and angle of lordosis. Currently, there is a lack of literature comparing subsidence rates or long-term radiographic outcomes with hyperlordotic and standard lordotic spacers. This study compares long-term radiographic outcomes, subsidence rate, and rate of fusion in patients who underwent ACDF with hyperlordotic or standard interbody placement.

Neoadjuvant Treatment in Rectal Cancer.

A major advance in rectal cancer was the evidence supporting short-course radiotherapy and long-course chemoradiotherapy. Both have been shown to improve local outcomes. Total neoadjuvant therapy (TNT) is the new kid on the block that provides further benefit of improving local responses as well as reducing systemic relapses, thus increasing overall survival.

Plasma esketamine and noresketamine levels and antidepressant response with oral esketamine treatment.

Objective: Oral esketamine has relatively low and variable bioavailability, which may complicate broader use as an antidepressant. This study aimed to investigate associations between different pharmacokinetic outcomes and change in depressive symptoms following oral esketamine administration in patients with treatment-resistant depression. Understanding such associations may inform dosing and administration strategies in clinical practice.

Medical Interpreters' Experiences with Patients Who Are Near End-of-Life and Their Family Members.

Context: Medical interpreters play a critical role in communicating with patients and families with non-English language preference (NELP), previously referred to as limited English proficiency , near the end-of-life (EOL) but often receive minimal education about providing this type of care.

Objectives: To understand interpreter experiences with providing services for patients near the end of life and needs for professional support and training in EOL care.

Methods: A 60 question survey, was distributed to 1,660 medical interpreters at two hospitals and one interpreter service company.

Haploinsufficiency of ITSN1 is associated with a substantial increased risk of Parkinson's disease.

Despite its significant heritability, the genetic basis of Parkinson's disease (PD) remains incompletely understood. Here, in analyzing whole-genome sequence data from 3,809 PD cases and 247,101 controls in the UK Biobank, we discover that protein-truncating variants in ITSN1 confer a substantially increased risk of PD (p = 6.1 × 10; odds ratio [95% confidence interval] = 10.

Anti-obesity medication for weight loss in early nonresponders to behavioral treatment: a randomized controlled trial.

Current guidelines recommend behavioral treatment (BT) as the first intervention for patients with obesity. However, a substantial minority (35-50%) do not achieve a clinically meaningful loss of ≥5%. Anti-obesity medications (AOMs) are recommended when target weight loss is not achieved; however, their efficacy among BT nonresponders has not been established.