Role of 5-aminosalicylic acid in ulcerative colitis management in 8 Asian territories: a physician survey.

Clinical guidelines typically endorse conventional therapies such as 5-aminosalicylic acid (5-ASA) as the mainstay of ulcerative colitis management. However, the degree of adoption and application of guideline recommendations by physicians within Asia remains unclear. This study aims to understand the prescribing patterns of 5-ASA and implementation of current guideline recommendations across Asian clinical practice.

Elevations in D-dimer levels in patients with Plasmodium infections: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

D-dimer, a byproduct of cross-linked fibrin degradation, arises during the fibrinolysis process, breaking down blood clots in circulation. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to synthesize evidence of D-dimer alteration in people with malaria, including variations in disease severity. The systematic review was registered in PROSPERO with registration number CRD42024528245.

Integrating Ultrabright Polymer Dots and Stereo NIR-II Imager for Assessing Anti-Angiogenic Drugs in Oral Cancer Model.

The development of efficient platforms for the evaluation of anti-angiogenic agents is critical in advancing cancer therapeutics. In this study, we exploited an ultrabright semiconducting polymer dots (Pdots) integrating with a three-dimensional (3D) near-infrared-II (NIR-II) fluorescence imaging system designed to assess the efficacy of potent anti-angiogenic agents PX-478 and BPR0C261 in an oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) tumour model, which depends on angiogenesis for dissemination. PX-478, a hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) inhibitor, and BPR0C261, a microtubule-disrupting agent, were administrated into tumour-bearing mice established using murine MTCQ1 tongue cancer cells through intraperitoneal injection and oral gavage, respectively.

Exploring the Fluorination and Hydroxylation of Pore-space-partitioned Metal‒Organic Frameworks for C2H2/CH4 Separation.

We report three novel pore-space-partitioned metal‒organic frameworks (MOFs) functionalized with fluorine and hydroxyl groups using 2,3,5,6-tetrafluorobenzene-1,4-dicarboxylic acid (F4-BDC) and a new ligand 3,6-difluoro-2,5-dihydroxybenzene-1,4-dicarboxylic acid (F2(OH)2-BDC) as organic building blocks, with 1,3,5-tris(4-pyridyl)-2,4,6-triazine (TPT) as pore partition agent. With the polar fluorine and hydroxyl groups and the open metal sites being blocked by TPT, moderate molecule-framework interactions can be engineered. These three isoreticular microporous frameworks Mn-TPT-BDC-F4 (NCKU-21), Mn-TPT-BDC-F2(OH)2 (NCKU-22), and Mg-TPT-BDC-F2(OH)2 (NCKU-23) (NCKU = National Cheng Kung University) exhibit distinct single-component gas adsorption behaviors.

Cepstral Peak Prominence: A Valuable Measure of Voice Outcome Severity in Patients With Unilateral Vocal Fold Paralysis.

Objectives: This study investigated the relationship between the position of the paralyzed vocal fold and voice quality in patients with unilateral vocal fold paralysis (UVFP) and identified a reliable acoustic analysis tool to enhance the accuracy of voice quality assessments in this population.

Methods: A retrospective case-control study was conducted with 70 patients with UVFP diagnosed at Mackay Memorial Hospital. Acoustic features-jitter, shimmer, the harmonic-to-noise ratio (HNR), and the cepstral peak prominence smoothed (CPPs)-were analyzed using the Praat software.

Meta-Analysis of Randomized, Controlled Trials Assessing the Effectiveness and Safety of Biological Treatments in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Patients.

Anti-interleukin-5 (IL-5), anti-IL-5 receptor and anti-interleukin-4 (IL-4) have emerged as potential treatments for severe eosinophilic asthma, yet their role in treating chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is unclear. A literature review was conducted up to May 31, 2024. Only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing the clinical efficacy and adverse effects of biological treatment (anti-IL-5/ anti-IL-5 receptor /anti-IL-4) in COPD patients were included in this meta-analysis.

Lauric acid-loaded biomimetic, biocompatible, and antioxidant jelly fig (Ficus awkeotsang Makino) pectin hydrogel accelerates wound healing in diabetic rats.

Herein, we have presented a lauric acid (LA)-loaded jelly fig pectin (JFP)-based biocompatible hydrogel, which possesses strong antioxidant and antibacterial properties to treat diabetic wounds. The antioxidant and antibacterial activity of the JFP + LA hydrogels were beneficial in eliminating the reactive oxygen species (ROS) and bacterial infection in the wound bed, thereby protecting the wound surface and accelerating the tissue repair process. The in vivo diabetic wound healing studies demonstrated that applying JFP + LA hydrogels improved the rate of wound contraction and reduced the epithelialization time significantly.

Global Prevalence and Risk Factors of Delirium Among Patients Following Acute Stroke: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background And Objective: The exact prevalence and risk factors of delirium following stroke at an acute stage remains unclear. We aimed to determine the global prevalence and risk factors of delirium following acute stroke.

Method: Observational studies reporting the prevalence of or risk factors for delirium following acute stroke published in the PubMed, Embase, and Scopus databases before April 16, 2024, were identified.

Addition of long-acting injectable antipsychotics during manic episodes in bipolar disorder: A retrospective analysis of rehospitalizations.

Introduction: Bipolar disorder (BD) often necessitates hospitalization, especially during manic episodes. Long-acting injectable antipsychotics (LAIs) are theorized to enhance treatment adherence and decrease rehospitalization rates compared to oral medications. This study aimed to evaluate the real-world effectiveness of LAIs in reducing rehospitalizations among BD patients admitted for bipolar mania.

Estimating the time-varying emission rate of peracetic acid.

The use of peracetic acid (PAA) as a general disinfectant has seen increasing usage in recent years, and although it is a strong irritant, exposure monitoring for PAA may often be difficult due to relatively high costs and the potential for interferences by other co-occurring chemicals such as hydrogen peroxide. These issues with exposure monitoring make modeling a potentially useful tool in exposure assessment of PAA if model parameters can be accurately determined. This study estimates the time-varying mass emission rate of PAA for use in exposure modeling by using the small spill model and examines the effect of various environmental conditions on the PAA evaporation rate, including surface roughness/substrate, general ventilation rate, and local wind speed.

Peritherapeutic intra-arterial flow changes predict long-term stent patency in patients with severe intracranial artery stenosis receiving PTAS.

Background And Purpose: The quantitative intra-arterial flow dynamics following percutaneous transluminal angioplasty and stenting (PTAS) for severe intracranial artery stenosis have never been investigated. We aimed to evaluate peritherapeutic intracranial artery flow dynamics following PTAS with quantitative magnetic resonance angiography (qMRA) to predict long-term stent patency.

Design: This is a prospective, single-center study.

H NMR-based metabolomic analysis of hypersalinity-induced oviparity in brine shrimp.

This study investigated the mechanisms by which high salinity conditions stimulate adult Artemia females to produce diapaused cysts. We used a H NMR-based metabolomic approach to elucidate the metabolic regulation between ovoviviparity and oviparity in Artemia exposed to different salinities. At a salinity of 80 ppt, 100 % of females produced diapaused cysts, compared to 20 % at 50 ppt.

Retraction notice to "Copper oxide nanoparticles synthesized from an endophytic fungus Aspergillus terreus: Bioactivity and anti-cancer evaluations" [Environ. Res. 201 (2021) 111502].

This article has been retracted: please see Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal (https://www.elsevier.com/locate/withdrawalpolicy).

The structure of meaning in schizophrenia: A study of spontaneous speech in Chinese.

Narrative speech production requires the retrieval of concepts to refer to entities, which need to be referenceable more than once for any form of narrative coherence to arise. Such coherence has long been observed to be affected in schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSD), yet the underlying mechanisms have been a longstanding puzzle, with existing evidence predominantly derived from Indo-European languages. Here we analyzed two picture descriptions from 22 native Mandarin Chinese speakers with SSD and 15 healthy controls.

Development of an F-labeled 5-aroylindole derivative for histone deacetylase 6 imaging in spinocerebellar ataxia.

Histone deacetylase 6 (HDAC6) is an enzyme crucial in epigenetic regulation and protein degradation, with implications in various cancers and neurodegenerative disorders. While HDAC6 is recognized as a promising therapeutic target for Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases, its involvement in spinocerebellar ataxias (SCAs) remains underexplored. Currently, there are no direct methods available for characterizing HDAC6 in the brains of living subjects.

Genetic predisposition of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease: a population-based genome-wide association study.

Background/purpose: Although metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) has been proposed to replace the diagnosis of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) with new diagnostic criteria since 2023, the genetic predisposition of MASLD remains to be explored.

Methods: Participants with data of genome-wide association studies (GWAS) in the Taiwan Biobank database were collected. Patients with missing data, positive for HBsAg, anti-HCV, and alcohol drinking history were excluded.

Nonopioid vs opioid analgesics after impacted third-molar extractions: The Opioid Analgesic Reduction Study randomized clinical trial.

Background: Opioids are still being prescribed to manage acute postsurgical pain. Unnecessary opioid prescriptions can lead to addiction and death, as unused tablets are easily diverted.

Methods: To determine whether combination nonopioid analgesics are at least as good as opioid analgesics, a multisite, double-blind, randomized, stratified, noninferiority comparative effectiveness trial was conducted, which examined patient-centered outcomes after impacted mandibular third-molar extraction surgery.

The incidence of and risk factors for axillary web syndrome with limited shoulder movement after surgery for breast cancer, and the effect of early physical therapy intervention.

Background: The aims of this cohort study were to identify (1) the incidence and risk factors for axillary web syndrome (AWS) with shoulder movement limitation within 4 weeks after axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) for Asian women with breast cancer (BC), and (2) whether early intervention with physical therapy (PT) could improve AWS, and how many PT sessions would be needed.

Methods: A cohort study of patients with BC receiving ALND was performed at Changhua Christian Hospital, Taiwan, between January 2019 and December 2020. Those patients who were diagnosed with AWS with shoulder movement limitation were referred to receive PT twice weekly at the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

D-ribose-5-phosphate inactivates YAP and functions as a metabolic checkpoint.

Background: Targeting glucose uptake by glucose transporter (GLUT) inhibitors is a therapeutic opportunity, but efforts on GLUT inhibitors have not been successful in the clinic and the underlying mechanism remains unclear. We aim to identify the key metabolic changes responsible for cancer cell survival from glucose limitation and elucidate its mechanism.

Methods: The level of phosphorylated YAP was analyzed with Western blotting and Phos-tag immunoblotting.

Bacterial proteome microarray technology in biomedical research.

Bacterial proteome microarrays are high-throughput, adaptable tools that allow the simultaneous investigation of thousands of proteins from various bacterial species. These arrays are used to explore bacterial pathogenicity, pathogen-host interactions, and clinical diseases. Recent advancements have expanded their application to profiling human antibodies, identifying biomarkers for infectious and autoimmune diseases, and studying antimicrobial peptides (AMPs).

Conquering the 'Collected Treasures' of Older Adults With Dementia: A Qualitative Study on Caregiver Strategies and Challenges.

Aim: To explore hoarding scenarios in older adults with dementia, document management strategies and assess caregiver challenges in these scenarios.

Design: This study employed interpretative phenomenological analysis to guide data collection and analysis.

Methods: Purposive sampling recruited 20 caregivers of older adults with dementia from long-term care facilities and community elderly centres in Taiwan.