Shaping the structural dynamics of motor learning through cueing during sleep.

Enhancing the retention of recent memory traces through sleep reactivation is possible via Targeted Memory Reactivation (TMR), involving cueing learned material during post-training sleep. Evidence indicates detectable short-term microstructural changes in the brain within an hour after motor sequence learning, and post-training sleep is believed to contribute to the consolidation of these motor memories, potentially leading to enduring microstructural changes. In this study, we explored how TMR during post-training sleep affects performance gains and delayed microstructural remodeling, using both standard Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) and advanced Neurite Orientation Dispersion & Density Imaging (NODDI).

What Can We Learn From Qualitative Impact Evaluations About the Effectiveness of Lobby and Advocacy? A Meta-Evaluation of Dutch aid Programmes and Assessment Tool.

Official development agencies are increasingly supporting civil society lobby and advocacy (L&A) to address poverty and human rights. However, there are challenges in evaluating L&A. As programme objectives are often to change policies or practices in a single institution like a Government Ministry, L&A programmes are often not amenable to large-n impact evaluation methods.

Projections of Public Spending on Pharmaceuticals: A Review of Methods.

Background: Forecasting future public pharmaceutical expenditure is a challenge for healthcare payers, particularly owing to the unpredictability of new market introductions and their economic impact. No best-practice forecasting methods have been established so far. The literature distinguishes between the top-down approach, based on historical trends, and the bottom-up approach, using a combination of historical and horizon scanning data.

Ovarian cancer staging and follow-up: updated guidelines from the European Society of Urogenital Radiology female pelvic imaging working group.

Objective: To provide up-to-date European Society of Urogenital Radiology (ESUR) guidelines for staging and follow-up of patients with ovarian cancer (OC).

Methods: Twenty-one experts, members of the female pelvis imaging ESUR subcommittee from 19 institutions, replied to 2 rounds of questionnaires regarding imaging techniques and structured reporting used for pre-treatment evaluation of OC patients. The results of the survey were presented to the other authors during the group's annual meeting.

Indications for the addition of a patellofemoral joint arthroplasty following a previous unicondylar knee arthroplasty- a literature review and Delphi consensus.

Introduction: The aim of this study was to establish an international consensus statement on the indications for the addition of a patellofemoral joint arthroplasty (PFJA) in patients with a unicondylar knee arthroplasty (UKA) and symptomatic progression of patellofemoral compartment osteoarthritis.

Materials And Methods: A systematic review of the literature was conducted, and the results used to inform the development of a statement by an expert working group. This was then evaluated and modified, using a Delphi process, by members of the European Knee Society (EKS).

Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitor for multiple sclerosis: new hope or false dawn.

The first of several phase 3 trials examining efficacy in relapsing MS has not been able to demonstrate a significant benefit and has also raised important safety concerns. More results are on their way and it will be important to understand whether the safety signals identified are drug- or class-specific and whether other BTKi also fail to reach their endpoints for relapsing MS. However, as reported in preliminary data for another BTKi, it may be that they will have more of a role in progressive disease as hinted by the unraveling of relevant molecular mechanisms and pathways.

Effects of Using Prompts During Parent-Child Shared Reading on the Language Development of Mildly Autistic Children.

The use of literal prompts (LPs) and inferential prompts (IPs) in shared book reading (SBR) facilitates children's use of language and promotes their thinking and understanding about the stories discussed and beyond. Furthermore, SBR provides a platform for mildly autistic children to have multiple rounds of communication with educators. This study investigated the contribution of LPs and IPs on the language development and affective factors of language learning in mildly autistic children.

The Oxford hip score demonstrates moderate ceiling effects at one and two years after total hip arthroplasty: which patients are at risk and does it matter?

Background: The aim was to assess whether the postoperative Oxford Hip Score (OHS) demonstrated a ceiling effect at 1 or 2 years after total hip arthroplasty (THA) and to identify which patients are more likely to achieve a ceiling score and whether this limits assessment of their outcome.

Methods: A retrospective cohort of 7871 patients undergoing primary THA was identified from an established arthroplasty database. Patient demographics, ASA grade, socioeconomic status, OHS and EuroQol questionnaire were collected preoperatively and at 1 and 2 years postoperatively.

Ethnicity-specific patterns of epigenetic age acceleration in rheumatoid arthritis.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an age-related chronic inflammatory disease which may include accelerated biological ageing processes in its pathogenesis. To determine if increased biological age is associated with risk of RA and/or is present once disease is established. We used DNA methylation to compare biological age (epigenetic age) of immune cells in adults at risk of RA and those with confirmed RA, including twins discordant for RA.

Diabesity is associated with a worse joint specific functional outcome following primary total knee replacement.

Introduction: The combined effect of diabetes mellitus and obesity (Diabesity) on total knee replacement (TKR) outcomes is unclear. This study aimed to assess whether diabesity influenced functional outcomes and complication rate following primary TKR.

Materials And Methods: This case-controlled study compared the independent effects of obesity, diabetes, and diabesity on TKR outcomes.

EBSA at 40 - an updated history.

The European Biophysical Societies' Association (EBSA) is an association of 32 biophysical societies in Europe dedicated to the promotion of excellence in biophysics. Through cooperation and collaborative activities, EBSA makes a major and positive impact on the European and International biophysics community. Biennial congresses at various European locations, organized by host societies, are a major activity that engages biophysicists with the wider international scientific community.

Evaluating alignment of UK commercial baby food products with the WHO nutrient and promotion profile model.

Purpose: The first 1000 days of life are critical for long-term health outcomes, and there is increasing concern about the suitability of commercial food products for infants, toddlers, and children. This study evaluates the compliance of UK commercial baby food products with WHO Nutrient and Promotion Profile Model (NPPM) guidelines.

Methods: Between February and April 2023, data on 469 baby food products marketed for infants and children under 36 months were collected from the online platforms of four major UK supermarkets.

Cycling Dof Factor 3 mediates light-dependent ascorbate biosynthesis by activating GDP-L-galactose phosphorylase in Rosa roxburghii fruit.

Light plays an important role in determining the L-ascorbate (AsA) pool size in plants, primarily through the transcriptional regulation of AsA metabolism-related genes. However, the specific mechanism of transcriptional induction responsible for light-dependent AsA biosynthesis remains unclear. In this study, we used a promoter sequence containing light-responsive motifs from GDP-L-galactose phosphorylase 2 (RrGGP2), a key gene involved in AsA overproduction in Rosa roxburghii fruits, to identify participating transcription factors.

Prevalence of Chronic Hand Eczema in adults: A cross-sectional survey of over 60,000 respondents in the general population in Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom.

Background: The lack of attention to Chronic Hand Eczema (CHE) and the lack of a specific International Classification of Diseases code for CHE may have limited the assessment of CHE prevalence. To date, prevalence estimates have primarily been derived from (partly small) single-country studies.

Objectives: To estimate the annual prevalence of self-reported physician-diagnosed CHE across socio-demographic characteristics among adults in Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom (UK).

The Last Decade in Cardiac Amyloidosis: Advances in Understanding Pathophysiology, Diagnosis and Quantification, Prognosis, Treatment Strategies, and Monitoring Response.

Cardiac amyloidosis represents a unique disease process characterized by amyloid fibril deposition within the myocardial extracellular space. Advances in multimodality cardiac imaging enable accurate diagnosis and facilitate prompt initiation of disease-modifying therapies. Furthermore, rapid advances in multimodality imaging have enriched understanding of the underlying pathogenesis, enhanced prognostication, and resulted in the development of imaging-based markers that reflect the amyloid burden, which is of increasing importance when assessing the response to treatment.

Considerations for manufacturing of cell and gene medicines for clinical development.

The global changes from 2001 that elevated substantially modified cell therapies to the definition of "medicinal product" have been the catalyst for the dramatic expansion of the field to its current and future commercial success. Europe was the first to incorporate human somatic cells into drug legislation with the medicines directive of 2001 (2001/83/EC), which led to the development of the term "advanced therapy medicinal products" (ATMPs) to cover all substantially modified products, tissue-engineered products and somatic cells that are not substantially modified but that are used non-homologously. For convenience, I use the term "ATMPs" throughout this review.

Shaping the Emission Directivity of Single Quantum Dots in Dielectric Nanodisks Exploiting Mie Resonances.

Manipulating the optical landscape of single quantum dots (QDs) is essential to increase the emitted photon output, enhancing their performance as chemical sensors and single-photon sources. Micro-optical structures are typically used for this task, with the drawback of a large size compared to the embedded single emitters. Nanophotonic architectures hold the promise to modify dramatically the emission properties of QDs, boosting light-matter interactions at the nanoscale, in ultracompact devices.

Evaporation Kinetics and Final Particle Morphology of Multicomponent Salt Solution Droplets.

In both nature and industry, aerosol droplets contain complex mixtures of solutes, which in many cases include multiple inorganic components. Understanding the drying kinetics of these droplets and the impact on resultant particle morphology is essential for a variety of applications including improving inhalable drugs, mitigating disease transmission, and developing more accurate climate models. However, the previous literature has only focused on the relationship between drying kinetics and particle morphology for aerosol droplets containing a single nonvolatile component.

Transcriptional regulation of the piRNA pathway by Ovo in animal ovarian germ cells.

The gene-regulatory mechanisms controlling the expression of the germline PIWI-interacting RNA (piRNA) pathway components within the gonads of metazoan species remain largely unexplored. In contrast to the male germline piRNA pathway, which in mice is known to be activated by the testis-specific transcription factor A-MYB, the nature of the ovary-specific gene-regulatory network driving the female germline piRNA pathway remains a mystery. Here, using as a model, we combined multiple genomics approaches to reveal the transcription factor Ovo as regulator of the germline piRNA pathway in ovarian germ cells.

Incidence of childhood and youth epilepsy: A population-based prospective cohort study utilizing current International League Against Epilepsy classifications for seizures, syndromes, and etiologies.

Objective: This study was undertaken to describe incidence and distribution of seizures, etiologies, and epilepsy syndromes in the general child and youth population, using the current International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) classifications.

Methods: The study platform is the Norwegian Mother, Father, and Child Cohort Study (MoBa). Epilepsy cases were identified through registry linkages facilitated by Norway's universal health care system and mandatory reporting to the Norwegian Patient Registry.