Overexpression, Biophysical and Functional Characterization of a Recombinant FGF21 (rFGF21).

Fibroblast Growth Factor 21 (FGF21) is an endocrine FGF that plays a vital role in regulating essential metabolic pathways. FGF21 increases glucose uptake by cells, promotes fatty acid oxidation, reduces blood glucose levels, and alleviates metabolic diseases. However, detailed studies on its stability and biophysical characteristics have not been reported.

Efficacy of surgical ablation and left atrial appendage occlusion in patients with AF undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting: A network meta-analysis.

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a prevalent cardiac arrhythmia that greatly elevates the risk of stroke. This risk increases both during and after cardiac procedures, such as coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). There is an increasing interest in non-pharmacological treatments such as left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) and surgical ablation, intending to enhance both immediate and long-term postoperative results.

Public perceptions of brain health in young and middle-aged adults in Cuba: Opportunities for intervention.

Understanding brain health is increasingly important, particularly in light of growing public health challenges related to neurological and psychiatric conditions. These include the rising prevalence of mental health disorders, such as depression and anxiety, as well as neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. Lifestyle factors, including stress, poor diet, and insufficient physical activity, also significantly impact cognitive function.

In-vivo high-resolution χ-separation at 7T.

A recently introduced quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) technique, χ-separation, offers the capability to separate paramagnetic (χ) and diamagnetic (χ) susceptibility distribution within the brain. In-vivo high-resolution mapping of iron and myelin distribution, estimated by χ-separation, could provide a deeper understanding of brain substructures, assisting the investigation of their functions and alterations. This can be achieved using 7T MRI, which benefits from a high signal-to-noise ratio and susceptibility effects.

Damage sensing through TLR9 regulates inflammatory and antiviral responses during influenza infection.

Host response aimed at eliminating the infecting pathogen, as well as the pathogen itself, can cause tissue injury. Tissue injury leads to the release of a myriad of cellular components including mitochondrial DNA, which the host senses through pattern recognition receptors. How the sensing of tissue injury by the host shapes the anti-pathogen response remains poorly understood.

Quantification of Escherichia coli transfer from plastic mulch to field-grown tomatoes and bell peppers.

In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) prohibits distribution of fruit that is dropped from the plant and contacts the ground during harvest. This includes fruit which contacts the ground while attached to the plant, called "drooping" fruit. In the Southeastern US, tomato and pepper are trellised and grown on plastic mulch.

Phase separation of EEF1E1 promotes tumor stemness via PTEN/AKT-mediated DNA repair in hepatocellular carcinoma.

This study aimed to investigate the associations of liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) and tumor stemness in hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC). LLPS-related genes were extracted from DrLLPS, LLPSDB and PhaSepDB databases. Stemness index (mRNAsi) was calculated based on the data from TCGA and Progenitor Cell Biology Consortium.

Advanced profiling and structural analysis of anencephaly gangliosides by ion mobility tandem mass spectrometry.

Anencephaly, the most severe type of neural tube defects (NTDs) in humans, occurs between the third and fourth gestational weeks (GW), involves the cranial part of the NT and results in the absence of the forebrain and skull. Exposed to amniotic fluid toxicity, neural tissue is degraded and prevented from development. Currently, little is known about the molecular bases of the disease and the possible involvement of glycans.

Shorter weeknight sleep duration mediates the relationship between earlier adrenarche and depressed mood in adolescents.

Background: Shorter weeknight sleep duration has not been assessed as a mediating mechanism linking earlier pubertal timing to a greater burden of adolescent depression symptoms.

Methods: Among 1138 participants (48.6 % female) from Project Viva, a pre-birth longitudinal cohort, we examined relationships among pubertal timing measures, actigraphy-captured and self-reported weeknight sleep duration across mid-adolescence, and depression symptoms in late adolescence.

Endothelial Colony-Forming Cells (ECFCs) in Cerebrovascular Aging: Focus on the Pathogenesis of Vascular Cognitive Impairment and Dementia (VCID), and Treatment Prospects.

Endothelial colony-forming cells (ECFCs), a unique endothelial progenitor subset, are essential for vascular integrity and repair, providing significant regenerative potential. Recent studies highlight their role in cerebrovascular aging, particularly in the pathogenesis of vascular cognitive impairment and dementia (VCID). Aging disrupts ECFC functionality through mechanisms such as oxidative stress, chronic inflammation, and cellular senescence, leading to compromised vascular repair and reduced neurovascular resilience.

Associations of Child Amygdala Development with Borderline Personality Symptoms in Adolescence.

Background: The understanding of the neural correlates of borderline personality disorder (BPD) is limited, but suggests alterations in limbic structures play a role in adult BPD. The developmental course of structural neural differences in BPD is unknown. Whether there is specificity for structural alterations in BPD compared with other psychiatric presentations, such as major depressive disorder (MDD), remains unexplored.

Exposure to Ambient Temperature and Functional Connectivity of Brain Resting-State Networks in Preadolescents.

Objective: Exposure to extreme temperatures has been linked to acute mental-health events in young populations, but the underlying neural mechanisms are not well understood. Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging allows for the assessment of connectivity patterns in brain functional networks, which have been associated with mental-health disorders. We investigated the short-term effects of ambient temperature on functional connectivity of brain resting-state networks in preadolescents.

Outcome measures in rodent models for spinal cord injury and their human correlates.

Pre-clinical research is intended to inform clinical research, however, communication between these researchers is lacking. A better understanding of what can be learned from animal and human models and what cannot, is essential. This includes a better understanding of where underlying constructs in outcome measures in rodents and humans align and where they diverge to improve dialogue between human and animal researchers.

Unlocking insights: Clinical associations from the largest 6-minute walk test collection via the my Heart Counts Cardiovascular Health Study, a fully digital smartphone platform.

Background: The six-minute walk test (6MWT) is a prognostic sub-maximal exercise test used clinically as a measure of functional capacity. With the emergence of advanced sensors, 6MWTs are being performed remotely via smartphones and other devices. The My Heart Counts Cardiovascular Health Study is a smartphone application that serves as a digital platform for studies of human cardiovascular health, and has been used to perform 30,475 6MWTs on 8922 unique participants.

Responses of skeletal muscle to mechanical stimuli in female rats following and during muscle disuse atrophy.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the ability of mechanotherapy to enhance recovery or prevent loss of muscle size with atrophy, in female rats. Female F344/BN rats were assigned to weight bearing (WB), hindlimb suspended (HS) for 14 days with reambulation for 7 days without (RA) or with (RAM) mechanotherapy (study 1), or to WB, HS for 7 days, with (HSM) or without mechanotherapy (study 2) to gastrocnemius. Muscle fiber cross sectional area (CSA) and type, collagen, satellite cell number, and protein synthesis (K) and degradation (K) were assessed.

HIV immune evasin Nef enhances allogeneic CAR T cell potency.

Autologous chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells are a genetically engineered therapy that is highly effective against B cell malignancies and multiple myeloma. However, the length and cost of personalized manufacturing limits access and leaves patients vulnerable to disease progression. Allogeneic cell therapies have the potential to increase patient access and improve treatment outcomes but are limited by immune rejection.

Dying in a Homophobic Nation: Addressing Healthcare Disparities, Advance Care Planning and Surrogate Decision-Making Challenges for Sexual and Gender Minority Older Adults at End-of-Life.

Promoting autonomy in medical decision-making is an essential part of palliative care. Therefore, palliative care providers should prioritize supporting the autonomy of sexual and gender minority (SGM) older adults, a community that has historically suffered from healthcare disparities. This support is particularly significant when an illness or injury renders a patient unable to make medical decisions, necessitating the designation of a surrogate decision-maker.

Vaccine efficacy of NVX-CoV2373 against SARS-CoV-2 infection in adolescents in the USA: an ancillary study to a phase 3, observer-blinded, randomised, placebo-controlled trial.

Background: Although existing COVID-19 vaccines are known to be highly effective against severe disease and death, data are needed to assess their ability to reduce SARS-CoV-2 infection. We aimed to estimate the efficacy of the NVX-CoV2373 protein subunit vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 infection, regardless of symptoms, among adolescents.

Methods: We performed an ancillary observational study (SNIFF) to the phase 3, observer-blinded, randomised, placebo-controlled PREVENT-19 trial that assessed vaccine efficacy against symptomatic COVID-19 in the USA.

Automated insulin delivery during the first 6 months postpartum (AiDAPT): a prespecified extension study.

Background: Clinical guidelines in the UK and elsewhere do not specifically address hybrid closed loop (HCL) use in the postpartum period when the demands of caring for a newborn are paramount. Our aim was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of HCL use during the first 6 months postpartum compared with standard care.

Methods: In this prespecified extension to a multicentre, randomised controlled trial, pregnant women with type 1 diabetes at nine UK sites were followed up for 6 months postpartum.

Trauma-informed HIV prevention for forcibly displaced adolescents and young adults.

The number of people forcibly displaced due to conflict is rising rapidly each year. Previous studies have documented associations between mental ill health, HIV risk, and poor engagement with HIV care in conflict-affected populations. Most people forced to migrate are adolescents and young adults, who might already be affected by a high burden of mental ill health due to factors such as high trauma exposure during the developmental period.