Echinocandins Pharmacokinetics: A Comprehensive Review of Micafungin, Caspofungin, Anidulafungin, and Rezafungin Population Pharmacokinetic Models and Dose Optimization in Special Populations.

In recent years, many population pharmacokinetic (popPK) models have been developed for echinocandins to better understand the pharmacokinetics (PK) of these antifungals. This comprehensive review aimed to summarize popPK models of echinocandins (micafungin, caspofungin, anidulafungin, and rezafungin), by focusing on dosage optimization to maximize the probability of attaining the PK/PD target proposed in special populations. A search in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Scopus, supplemented by the bibliography of relevant articles, was conducted from inception to March 2024, including both observational and prospective trials.

Mental health during the 2022 Russo-Ukrainian War: A scoping review and unmet needs.

Introduction: The Russo-Ukrainian War (RUW) poses a significant mental health burden, warranting a scoping review of the evidence to shed light on the unmet needs.

Methods: MEDLINE/PubMed and EMBASE databases were inquired from inception until September 1st, 2023, to address the following a-priori-formulated questions: i) "Which psychiatric population has been assessed? How did the conflict affect the functioning of people with established mental health conditions (e.g.

Digital phenotyping from wearables using AI characterizes psychiatric disorders and identifies genetic associations.

Psychiatric disorders are influenced by genetic and environmental factors. However, their study is hindered by limitations on precisely characterizing human behavior. New technologies such as wearable sensors show promise in surmounting these limitations in that they measure heterogeneous behavior in a quantitative and unbiased fashion.

Hollow fiber bioreactor allows sustained production of immortalized mesenchymal stromal cell-derived extracellular vesicles.

Mesenchymal stromal cell-derived extracellular vesicles (MSC-EVs) have been reported to hold great potential as cell-free therapies due to their low immunogenicity and minimal toxicity. However, the large doses of MSC-EVs that are required for their clinical application highlight the urgency of finding a large-scale system for MSC-EV manufacture. In this study, we aimed to set up a hollow fiber bioreactor system for the continuous homogenous production of functional and high-quality MSC-EVs.

cfDNA fragmentation patterns correlate with tumor burden measured via PSMA PET/CT volumetric parameters in patients with biochemical recurrence of prostate cancer.

Background: Prostate cancer recurrence following primary treatment poses a significant clinical challenge, particularly when detected through biochemical recurrence at low PSA levels. Conventional imaging modalities often fail to localize the disease at this early stage. PSMA PET has demonstrated superior sensitivity in detecting recurrent lesions, even in patients with low PSA.

Hydrogel-antimicrobial peptide association: A novel and promising strategy to combat resistant infections.

Infections from multi-drug resistant bacteria (MDRB) have raised a worldwide concern, with projections indicating that fatalities from these infections could surpass those from cancer by 2050. This troubling trend is influenced by several factors, including the scarcity of new antibiotics to tackle challenging infections, the prohibitive costs of last-resort antibiotics, the inappropriate use of antimicrobial agents in agriculture and aquaculture, and the over-prescription of antibiotics in community settings. One promising alternative treatment is the application of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) against MDRB.

Urinary tartaric acid as a biomarker of wine consumption and cardiovascular risk: the PREDIMED trial.

Background And Aims: Moderate wine consumption has been associated with lower cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in older populations. However, wine consumption information through self-reports is prone to measurement errors inherent to subjective assessments. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between urinary tartaric acid, an objective biomarker of wine consumption, and the rate of a composite clinical CVD event.

Vaccination coverage and access among children and adult migrants and refugees in the Middle East and North African region: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: The Middle East and North African (MENA) region is a major global hotspot for migration with more than 40 million migrants, who may be an under-vaccinated group because of barriers to vaccination within countries of origin, transit, and destination. We systematically synthesised the evidence on coverage, acceptance, drivers of uptake, and policies pertaining to vaccination for children and adult migrants in the region, in order to explore tailored interventions for these groups.

Methods: We searched six databases (including Medline, Embase) for peer-reviewed literature, and other websites (including WHO, IOM, ministries of health) for grey literature on coverage, acceptance, drivers of uptake and policies for any vaccination in migrants in the MENA region from between 2000 and 27 August 2024 in any language.

Less, but more: new insights from appendicularians on chordate Fgf evolution and the divergence of tunicate lifestyles.

The impact of gene loss on the diversification of taxa and the emergence of evolutionary innovations remains poorly understood. Here, our investigation on the evolution of the Fibroblast Growth Factors (FGFs) in appendicularian tunicates as a case study reveals a scenario of "less, but more" characterized by massive losses of all Fgf gene subfamilies, except for the Fgf9/16/20 and Fgf11/12/13/14, which in turn underwent two bursts of duplications. Through phylogenetic analysis, synteny conservation, and gene and protein structure, we reconstruct the history of appendicularian Fgf genes, highlighting their paracrine and intracellular functions.

Pushing the Boundaries of Ampullectomy for Benign Ampullary Tumors: 25-Year Outcomes of Surgical Ampullary Resection Associated with Duodenectomy or Biliary Resection.

Surgical resection for ampullary lesions lacks clear guidelines. Pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) is the standard treatment for malignant ampullary tumors but is often excessive for ampullary adenomas (AAs) due to its high morbidity and mortality. Transduodenal ampullectomy (TDA) is generally reserved for small benign lesions where endoscopic treatment fails, but its role in early ampullary cancers is debatable.

Nocturnal camouflage through background matching against moonlight.

Camouflage is often considered a daytime phenomenon based on light and shade. Nocturnal camouflage can also occur, but its mechanistic basis remains unclear. Here, we analyze the conditions for background matching (BM) of avian predators against the night sky.

Individual Choices of Wintering Areas Drive Adult Survival Heterogeneity in a Long-Lived Seabird.

Seasonal migration has evolved as an adaptation for exploiting peaks of resource abundance and avoiding unfavourable climatic conditions. Differential migratory strategies and choices of wintering areas by long-distance migratory species may impose varying selective pressures and mortality risks with fitness consequences. Recently developed tracking technologies allow wintering movements of migratory species to be studied.

Intestinal permeability biomarkers in patients with schizophrenia: Additional support for the impact of lifestyle habits.

Background: Emerging evidence suggests a potential association between "leaky gut syndrome" and low-grade systemic inflammation in individuals with psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia. Gut dysbiosis could increase intestinal permeability, allowing the passage of toxins and bacteria into the systemic circulation, subsequently triggering immune-reactive responses. This study delves into understanding the relationship between plasma markers of intestinal permeability and symptom severity in schizophrenia.

Influence of agarose in semi-IPN hydrogels for sustained Polymyxin B release.

Hydrogels (HGs) are 3-D polymeric networks with high water content, making them appropriate for biomedical applications such as drug delivery systems. This study examines the impact of agarose in semi-interpenetrating polymer networks (Semi-IPNs) based on poly(acrylic acid) (p(AA)), N, N' Methylenebis(acrylamide) (MBA) and agarose (AGA) on the sustained release of Polymyxin B (PolB). Agarose incorporation improved the mechanical strength, swelling behavior and drug retention capacity of the HG.

Protecting the most vulnerable: The urgent need to include HIV-exposed children in malaria chemoprevention strategies.

Raquel González and colleagues discuss the drugs available to HIV-exposed children to prevent malaria infection and the urgent need to evaluate alternative agents.

Experimental recombining of repetitive motifs leads to large functional metallothioneins and demonstrates their modular evolvability potential.

Protein modularity is acknowledged for promoting the emergence of new protein variants via domain rearrangements. Metallothioneins (MTs) offer an excellent model system for experimentally examining the consequences of domain rearrangements due to the possibility to assess the functional properties of native and artificially created variants using spectroscopic methods and metal tolerance assays. In this study, we have investigated the functional properties of AbiMT4 from the snail Alinda biplicata (Gastropoda, Mollusca), a large MT comprising 10 putative β domains (β3β1), alongside four artificially designed variants differing in domain number, type, or order.

New Upper Limit on the Axion-Photon Coupling with an Extended CAST Run with a Xe-Based Micromegas Detector.

Hypothetical axions provide a compelling explanation for dark matter and could be emitted from the hot solar interior. The CERN Axion Solar Telescope has been searching for solar axions via their back conversion to x-ray photons in a 9-T 10-m long magnet directed toward the Sun. We report on an extended run with the International Axion Observatory pathfinder detector, doubling the previous exposure time.

Prognostic performance of early immune and endothelial activation markers in mild-to-moderate COVID-19 outpatients: a nested case-control study.

Introduction: Evidence on the association of biomarkers of host response to infection with COVID-19 clinical outcomes has focused mainly on hospitalized patients. We investigated the prognostic performance of 39 immune and endothelial activation markers measured early in the course of disease to predict the development of severe COVID-19 and hospitalization.

Methods: We conducted a nested case-control study from a randomized clinical trial evaluating the efficacy of COVID-19 convalescent plasma in outpatients aged 50 years or older presenting with mild-to-moderate COVID-19.

Individual differences in the evolution of causal illusions.

In this research, we investigated individual differences in the formation and persistence of causal illusions. In a re-analysis of existing data, we identified two clusters of participants - persistent and adjusting - based on their trajectories in learning from repeated exposure to null contingencies. The persistent cluster maintained stable causal illusions, while the adjusting cluster demonstrated a reduction over time.

Associations of plasma SMOC1 and soluble IL6RA levels with the progression from mild cognitive impairment to dementia.

Despite the central role attributed to neuroinflammation in the etiology and pathobiology of Alzheimer's disease (AD), the direct link between levels of inflammatory mediators in blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) compartments, as well as their potential implications for AD diagnosis and progression, remains inconclusive. Moreover, there is debate on whether inflammation has a protective or detrimental effect on disease onset and progression. Indeed, distinct immunological mechanisms may govern protective and damaging effects at early and late stages, respectively.