Identification of cancer cell-intrinsic biomarkers associated with tumor progression and characterization of SFTA3 as a tumor suppressor in lung adenocarcinomas.

Background: Recent advancements in contemporary therapeutic approaches have increased the survival rates of lung cancer patients; however, the long-term benefits remain constrained, underscoring the pressing need for novel biomarkers. Surfactant-associated 3 (SFTA3), a long non-coding RNA predominantly expressed in normal lung epithelial cells, plays a crucial role in lung development. Nevertheless, its function in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) remains inadequately understood.

Elevated miR-221-3p inhibits epithelial-mesenchymal transition and biochemical recurrence of prostate cancer via targeting KPNA2: an evidence-based and knowledge-guided strategy.

Background: Prostate cancer (PCa) is commonly occurred among males worldwide and its prognosis could be influenced by biochemical recurrence (BCR). MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are functional regulators in carcinogenesis, and miR-221-3p was reported as one of the significant candidates deregulated in PCa. However, its regulatory pattern in PCa BCR across literature reports was not consistent, and the targets and mechanisms in PCa malignant transition and BCR are less explored.

Development and validation of a five-year cardiovascular risk assessment tool for Asian adults aged 75 years and older.

Background: To identify cardiovascular (CV) risk factors in Asian elderly aged 75 years and older and subsequently develop and validate a sex-specific five-year CV risk assessment tool for this population.

Methods: This study included 12,174 patients aged ≥ 75 years without a prior history of cardiovascular disease at a single hospital in Taiwan. Electronic health records were linked to the National Health Insurance Research Database and the National Death Registry to ensure comprehensive health information.

How age and culture impact the neural correlates of memory retrieval.

Culture can shape memory, but little research has investigated age effects. The present study examined the neural correlates of memory retrieval for old, new, and similar lures in younger and older Americans and Taiwanese. A total of 207 participants encoded pictures of objects and, during fMRI scanning, completed a surprise object recognition task testing discrimination of similar and new from old items.

Medication Hazards and Outcome Patterns of Pediatric Drug-Associated Liver Injury in Taiwan: An Analysis of 1998-2017 Spontaneous Adverse Drug Reaction Reports.

Background And Objectives: Accumulating pediatric efficacy and safety data on drug use is inherently challenging yet essential. This study aimed to analyze the frequency and compute the odds of pediatric drug-associated liver injury across age groups (early childhood, middle childhood, and adolescence) and therapeutic categories using adverse drug reactions (ADRs) reporting data spanning nearly two decades.

Methods: We analyzed the reports of suspected ADRs occurring in children and adolescents in the Taiwan National Adverse Drug Reaction Reporting System during the period from May 1998 until July 2017.

Microbial analyses of infectious keloids on the anterior chest-a case-control study.

Some studies have confirmed that pathogens can cause infection through bacterial cultures on the surface of infectious keloids. However, further exploration of the comparison between infectious and non-infectious keloids and the bacterial flora of infectious foci is lacking. To investigate the differential flora of purulent secretions on the surface of infectious keloids compared to non-infectious keloids and to determine the microbial composition within the infectious foci.

Prenatal Perfluoroalkyl Substance Exposure in Association with Global Histone Post-Translational Methylation in 2-Year-Old Children.

Perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) have elimination half-lives in years in humans and are persistent in the environment. PFASs can cross the placenta and impact fetal development. Exposure to PFASs may lead to adverse effects through epigenetic mechanisms.

Echocardiography interpretation training and internal medicine milestones: A pilot study.

Background/purpose: The competency-based Internal Medicine Milestones (IMM) assesses physician training outcomes through six key competencies. This pilot study introduced IMM concepts through an echocardiography report interpretation course for postgraduate students (PGYs) and residents (Rs). We aimed to help young physicians understand and track competency development as they receive cardiovascular training, with a view to expanding IMM usage for all junior physicians.

Tract-specific white matter hyperintensities and neuropsychiatric syndromes: a multicentre memory clinic study.

Background: White matter hyperintensities (WMH) have been implicated in the pathogenesis of neuropsychiatric symptoms of dementia but the functional significance of WMH in specific white matter (WM) tracts is unclear. We investigate whether WMH burden within major WM fibre classes and individual WM tracts are differentially associated with different neuropsychiatric syndromes in a large multicentre study.

Method: Neuroimaging and neuropsychiatric data of seven memory clinic cohorts through the Meta VCI Map consortium were harmonised.

Indocyanine green-mediated photothermal release of lidocaine from genipin-crosslinked gelatin hydrogel in nerve block.

Local anesthetic (LA)-induced peripheral nerve block (PNB) is an important part of multimodal analgesia to reduce postoperative pain, accelerate postoperative recovery, and improve clinical prognosis. The duration of LA depends on anesthetics, and the repeated nerve positioning, puncture injection or indwelling catheter is often required to prolong the effect of PNB. In this study, the genipin, was used to crosslink gelatin-based hydrogel, and then co-loaded with indocyanine green (ICG) and lidocaine as an LA-controlled release system (ICG@Lido/Gel and ICG@Lido/gGel).

Nanoemulsion-based pseudopolyrotaxane hydrogel for enhanced corneal bioavailability and treatment of corneal inflammation.

Corneal inflammation, a condition that can potentially lead to blindness, is often treated with topical eye drops. However, the limited ocular drug bioavailability of the eye drops necessitates frequent dosing. Herein, a nanoemulsion-based pseudopolyrotaxane hydrogel was fabricated to improve corneal bioavailability and thereby suppress inflammation.

Local structural-functional coupling with counterfactual explanations for epilepsy prediction.

The structural-functional brain connections coupling (SC-FC coupling) describes the relationship between white matter structural connections (SC) and the corresponding functional activation or functional connections (FC). It has been widely used to identify brain disorders. However, the existing research on SC-FC coupling focuses on global and regional scales, and few studies have investigated the impact of brain disorders on this relationship from the perspective of multi-brain region cooperation (i.

TRADD-mediated pyroptosis contributes to diabetic cardiomyopathy.

Regulated cell death like pyroptosis is one vital cause of diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM), which eventually leads to heart failure. Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) receptor-associated death domain protein (TRADD) is an adapter protein with multiple functions that participates in the pathophysiological progress of different cardiovascular disorders via regulating regulated cell death. Studies have shown that TRADD combines with receptor-interacting protein kinase 3 (RIPK3) and facilitates its activation, thereby mediating TNF-induced necroptosis.

Effects of RARα ligand binding domain mutations on breast fibroepithelial tumor function and signaling.

Point mutations in the ligand binding domain of retinoic acid receptor alpha (RARα) are linked to breast fibroepithelial tumor development, but their role in solid tumorigenesis is unclear. In this study, we assessed the functional effects of known RARα mutations on retinoic acid signaling using biochemical and cellular assays. All tested mutants exhibited reduced transcriptional activity compared to wild-type RARα and showed a dominant negative effect, a feature associated with developmental defects and tumor formation.

Lessons from COVID-19 in Taiwan's long-term care facilities: A narrative review.

The coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has disproportionately impacted long-term care facilities (LTCFs), revealing vulnerabilities due to residents' advanced age, comorbidities, and facility infrastructures. In Taiwan, the Central Epidemic Control Center implemented a range of strategies to protect LTCF residents. These included early containment measures to allow time for preparing pharmaceutical intervention, the establishment of infection prevention and control guidelines, the implementation of comprehensive screening and testing protocols, the prioritization of vaccination for both residents and staff, and the expansion of the national stockpile of oral antiviral agents.

CIROZ is dispensable in ancestral vertebrates but essential for left-right patterning in humans.

Four genes-DAND5, PKD1L1, MMP21, and CIROP-form a genetic module that has specifically evolved in vertebrate species that harbor motile cilia in their left-right organizer (LRO). We find here that CIROZ (previously known as C1orf127) is also specifically expressed in the LRO of mice, frogs, and fish, where it encodes a protein with a signal peptide followed by 3 zona pellucida N domains, consistent with extracellular localization. We report 16 individuals from 10 families with bi-allelic CIROZ inactivation variants, which cause heterotaxy with congenital heart defects.

Proximity to petrochemical industry and risk of childhood asthma occurrence.

Adverse effects on the respiratory system were associated with intensive petroleum-related industrial activities. The study aimed to assess the impact of petrochemical exposure on childhood asthma using various surrogate indices. A singleton birth cohort from 2004 to 2017 was conducted, leveraging two linked nationwide databases in Taiwan.

Exhaled Breath Analysis Using a Novel Electronic Nose for Different Respiratory Disease Entities.

Purpose: Electronic noses (eNose) and gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) are two important breath analysis approaches for differentiating between respiratory diseases. We evaluated the performance of a novel electronic nose for different respiratory diseases, and exhaled breath samples from patients were analyzed by GC-MS.

Materials And Methods: Patients with lung cancer, pneumonia, structural lung diseases, and healthy controls were recruited (May 2019-July 2022).

Chitooligosaccharides promote diabetic wound healing by mediating fibroblast proliferation and migration.

Diabetic wounds are notoriously difficult to heal due to impaired cell repair mechanisms, reduced angiogenesis, and a heightened risk of infection. Fibroblasts play a vital role in wound healing by producing extracellular matrix (ECM) components and various growth factors, but their function is inhibited in diabetic wounds. Chitooligosaccharides (COS), intermediate products of chitosan degradation, have shown efficacy in promoting tissue repair, yet their role in diabetic wound healing remains underexplored.

HBV DNA integration and somatic mutations in HCC patients with HBV-HCV dual infection reveals profiles intermediate between HBV- and HCV-related HCC.

Background: In regions with a high prevalence of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections, coinfected patients face a heightened risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), termed HBV/HCV-related HCC (HBCV-HCC). We aimed to investigate the contribution of preexisting chronic hepatitis B (CHB) and subsequent chronic hepatitis C (CHC) to the development of HBCV-HCC.

Methods: We examined HBV's involvement in 93 HBCV-HCC cases by analyzing HBV DNA integration as an indicator of HCC originating from HBV-infected hepatocytes, compared with 164 HBV-HCCs and 56 HCV-HCCs as controls.