Magnetic resonance imaging safety in Asia-Oceania: call for action.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) safety is a critical concern in the Asia-Oceania region, as it is elsewhere in the world, due to the unique and complex MRI environment that demands attention. This call-for-action outlines ten critical steps to enhance MRI safety and promote a culture of responsibility and accountability in the Asia-Oceania region. Key focus areas include strengthening education and expertise, improving quality assurance, fostering collaboration, increasing public awareness, and establishing national safety boards.

Palmitate potentiates the SMAD3-PAI-1 pathway by reducing nuclear GDF15 levels.

Nuclear growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF15) reduces the binding of the mothers' against decapentaplegic homolog (SMAD) complex to its DNA-binding elements. However, the stimuli that control this process are unknown. Here, we examined whether saturated fatty acids (FA), particularly palmitate, regulate nuclear GDF15 levels and the activation of the SMAD3 pathway in human skeletal myotubes and mouse skeletal muscle, where most insulin-stimulated glucose use occurs in the whole organism.

Case management in Emergency Care: Impact Evaluation of the CARED Program.

Background: Hospitals face mounting pressure to reduce unplanned utilization amid rising healthcare demands from an aging population. The Case management for At-Risk patients in the Emergency Department (CARED) program is among the first ED transitional care strategies to focus on both frail older adults and Emergency Department (ED) re-attenders to reduce acute hospital utilization. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the CARED program in reducing hospital (re)admissions and ED re-attendances within 30- and 60-days post-discharge.

Efficient Nitrate to Ammonia Conversion on Bifunctional IrCu Alloy Nanoparticles.

Electrochemical nitrate reduction (NORR) to ammonia presents a promising alternative strategy to the traditional Haber-Bosch process. However, the competitive hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) reduces the Faradaic efficiency toward ammonia, while the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) increases the energy consumption. This study designs IrCu alloy nanoparticles as a bifunctional catalyst to achieve efficient NORR and OER while suppressing the unwanted HER.

Data-Driven Discovery of High-Performance Heterobilayer Transition Metal Dichalcogenide-Based Sliding Ferroelectrics.

The development of efficient sliding ferroelectric (FE) materials is crucial for advancing next-generation low-power nanodevices. Currently, most efforts focus on homobilayer two-dimensional materials, except for the experimentally reported heterobilayer sliding FE, MoS/WS. Here, we first screened 870 transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) bilayer heterostructures derived from experimentally characterized monolayer TMDs and systematically investigated their sliding ferroelectric behavior across various stacking configurations using high-throughput calculations.

Towards a Theory of Compassion Fatigue in Palliative Care and Oncology: A Systematic Scoping Review.

Background: In their care of terminally ill patients, palliative care physicians and oncologists are increasingly predisposed to physical and emotional exhaustion, or compassion fatigue (CF). Challenges faced by physicians include complex care needs; changing practice demands, and sociocultural contextual factors. Efforts to better understand CF have, however, been limited.

A pharmacovigilance study on the safety of faricimab in real-world scenario using FDA adverse event reporting system database.

Background: Faricimab is predominantlyprescribed for conditions such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD),diabetic macular edema (DME), and macular edema related to retinal veinocclusion (RVO-ME). Currently, a notable absence of large-scale, real-worldstudies focusing on the adverse reactions of faricimab exists.

Methods: Thisstudy assesses the side effects of faricimab by analyzing reports of adverseevents (AEs) from the FDA's AEReporting System (FAERS) database.

Long-term use of low-dose aspirin for cancer prevention: A 20-year longitudinal cohort study of 1,506,525 Hong Kong residents.

Long-term use of low-dose aspirin has been demonstrated to reduce cancer risk, but the duration of necessary medication use remains uncertain. This study aimed to investigate the long-term chemoprotective effect of aspirin among the Chinese population. This population-based study included all aspirin users between 2000 and 2019.

Deciphering and Enhancing Rate-Determining Step of Sodium Deposition towards Ultralow-Temperature Sodium Metal Batteries.

Achieving high ionic conductivity and stable performance at low temperatures remains a significant challenge in sodium-metal batteries (SMBs). In this study, we propose a novel electrolyte design strategy that elucidates the solvation structure-function relationship within mixed solvent systems. A mixture of diglyme and 1,3-dioxolane was developed to optimize the solvation structure towards superior low-temperature electrolyte.

Characterizing biomarkers of ageing in Singaporeans: the ABIOS observational study protocol.

Ageing is the primary driver of age-associated chronic diseases and conditions. Asian populations have traditionally been underrepresented in studies understanding age-related diseases. Thus, the Ageing BIOmarker Study in Singaporeans (ABIOS) aims to characterise biomarkers of ageing in Singaporeans, exploring associations between molecular, physiological, and digital biomarkers of ageing.

Choroidal thickness under pilocarpine versus cyclopentolate.

Bruch´s membrane (BM) is firmly connected posteriorly to the optic nerve head through the peripapillary choroidal border tissue, and anteriorly through the longitudinal ciliary muscle to the scleral spur. We assessed, whether a difference in the contractile state of the ciliary muscle influences the position of the posterior BM by lifting the posterior BM pole, i.e.

Suppression of Aedes aegypti may not affect sympatric Aedes albopictus populations: findings from two years of entomological surveillance in Singapore.

Globally, multiple trials have successfully demonstrated the effectiveness of novel tools, such as the sterile and incompatible insect techniques, in suppressing Aedes aegypti populations. However, there is concern that Aedes albopictus, another arbovirus-competent vector, may occupy the niches vacated by Ae. aegypti in areas where these species occur in sympatry.

Understanding the role of metabolic syndrome in prostate cancer risk: A UK Biobank prospective cohort study.

Predictive value of metabolic syndrome for prostate cancer risk is not clear. We aimed to assess the association between metabolic syndrome and its components with prostate cancer incidence. The primary outcome was prostate cancer incidence, i.

Lipidic folding pathway of α-Synuclein via a toxic oligomer.

Aggregation intermediates play a pivotal role in the assembly of amyloid fibrils, which are central to the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases. The structures of filamentous intermediates and mature fibrils are now efficiently determined by single-particle cryo-electron microscopy. By contrast, smaller pre-fibrillar α-Synuclein (αS) oligomers, crucial for initiating amyloidogenesis, remain largely uncharacterized.

Nanoconfinement-Enabled Resistance to Water Matrix Components for Selective Degradation of Micropollutants.

Despite recent substantial advances in water treatment, the ability to selectively degrade trace micropollutants in real waters with complex matrix components remains a grand challenge. Here we report rational crafting of graphene oxide (GO)-wrapped defective TiO2 composite catalysts that creates nanoscopic confinement over the TiO2 surface within GO, thereby enabling the selective degradation of micropollutants through effectively excluding natural organic matter (NOM) and anions from the nanoconfined catalytic sites. In contrast to unconfined counterparts, the nanoconfined composite catalysts retain high degradation efficiency when exposed to various concentrations of NOM and anions, even in real water samples.

Safety and Feasibility of Robotic Nipple-Sparing Mastectomy With Immediate Direct-to-Implant Reconstruction - Insights From the One of the Largest Centers in Asia.

Background: The use of robotic-assisted nipple-sparing mastectomy (R-NSM) with immediate direct-to-implant (DTI) reconstruction in treatment of breast cancer has been a controversial topic. The adoption of robotic surgery in breast cancer treatment has gained traction globally due to its minimally invasive nature, potential for improved cosmetic outcomes and better intraoperative visualization. This study provides insights on safety and feasibility robotic mastectomy at one of the largest centers in Asia.

Guidance on the assessment of the functionality of biomaterials for periodontal tissue regeneration: Methodologies and testing procedures.

Innovative biomaterials and tissue engineering strategies show great promise in regenerating periodontal tissues. This guidance provides an overview and detailed recommendations for evaluating the biological functionality of these new biomaterials in vitro, focusing on mineralization, immunomodulatory effects, cellular differentiation, and angiogenesis. Additionally, it discusses the use of in vivo experimental models that mimic periodontitis and scrutinizes methods such as osteogenic differentiation, immunomodulation, and anti-inflammatory responses to assess the effectiveness of these biomaterials in promoting periodontal tissue reconstruction.

Consensus and Guidelines on Diagnosis and Management of Polypoidal Choroidal Vasculopathy (PCV) from the Asia-Pacific Vitreo-retina Society (APVRS).

A panel of 21 international experts are formed by the Asia-Pacific Vitreo-retina Society to work out the consensus and guidelines on polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV). PCV is a common subtype of neovascular age-related macular degeneration and is more prevalent in Asian populations. Recent advancement in imaging technology allows greater understanding of the disease process of PCV.

Outcomes after medical treatment for primary aldosteronism: an international consensus and analysis of treatment response in an international cohort.

Background: Primary aldosteronism can be treated medically but there is no standardised method to evaluate treatment outcomes. We aimed to develop criteria for assessing the outcomes of targeted medical treatment of primary aldosteronism, analyse outcomes across an international cohort, and identify factors associated with a complete treatment response.

Methods: An international panel of 31 primary aldosteronism experts used the Delphi method to reach consensus on the definition of complete, partial, or absent biochemical and clinical outcomes of medical treatment of primary aldosteronism.

Aspirin after completion of standard adjuvant therapy for colorectal cancer (ASCOLT): an international, multicentre, phase 3, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Background: Aspirin is a simple, globally available medication that has been shown to reduce the incidence of colorectal cancer. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of aspirin in the secondary prevention of colorectal cancer.

Methods: This phase 3, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was conducted at 66 centres across 11 countries and territories (ten in Asia-Pacific; one in the Middle East).

Insight into the abundance and optical characteristics of water-soluble organic compounds (WSOC) in PM in urban areas.

Airborne particulate matter (PM) poses significant environmental and health challenges, particularly in urban areas. This study investigated the characteristics of water-soluble organic compounds (WSOC) in PM (PM with an aerodynamic diameter of 2.5 μm or less) in Singapore, a tropical Asian city-state, over a six-month period.