Communicating scientific evidence: drugs for Alzheimer's disease as a case study.

This paper reviews the scientific evidence on new anti-amyloid monoclonal antibodies for treating Alzheimer's disease as a case study for improving scientific evidence communication. We introduce five guidelines condensed from the biomedical evidence literature but adapted to the short format of science communication in e.g.

Strengthening autonomy in mental health care through a relational approach.

Respect for autonomy is foundational to all types of clinical care, and receiving mental health care places people in a vulnerable situation that has a direct impact on their ability to live as they choose, making concerns about autonomy central. The classical understanding of personal autonomy, which still influences medical guidelines, is based on an individualistic framework and is inadequate for ethical mental health care. The goal of this Comment is to articulate why the relational autonomy model, developed in feminist bioethics, is a necessary approach for the mental health field.

Anti-amyloid treatments in Alzheimer's disease: elegance, evidence and ethics.

The so-called "amyloid cascade hypothesis" provides an elegant explanation of Alzheimer's disease (AD), has motivated the amyloid-lowering therapeutic strategy, and led to the elaboration of a rich experimental and conceptual toolkit for the field to progress. But it might be incorrect. The scientific evidence base supporting the efficacy and safety of current anti-amyloid antibody treatments in AD is weak.

Cardiac resynchronization therapy in heart failure based on Strauss criteria for left bundle branch block.

Aims: The left bundle branch block (LBBB) is a strong predictor of response to cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT). However, a significant number of patients do not respond to the treatment. The study sought to evaluate the impact of the stricter Strauss criteria for left bundle branch block (St-LBBB) on CRT response, hospitalizations, ventricular arrhythmia (VA) events and mortality.

The role of dementia in the association between APOE4 and all-cause mortality: pooled analyses of two population-based cohort studies.

Background: The ε4 allele of the apolipoprotein E gene (APOE4) plays a role in neurodegeneration and in cardiovascular disease, but findings on its association with mortality are inconsistent. We aimed to examine the association between APOE4 and mortality, and the role of dementia in this association.

Methods: In this pooled analysis, data on White participants aged 45-90 years who underwent APOE genotyping were drawn from two population-based cohorts: the Whitehall II study (UK), which began in 1985 and is ongoing, and the Three-City study (France), initiated in 1999 and ended in 2012.

European stroke organisation (ESO) guideline on cerebral small vessel disease, part 2, lacunar ischaemic stroke.

A quarter of ischaemic strokes are lacunar subtype, typically neurologically mild, usually resulting from intrinsic cerebral small vessel pathology, with risk factor profiles and outcome rates differing from other stroke subtypes. This European Stroke Organisation (ESO) guideline provides evidence-based recommendations to assist with clinical decisions about management of lacunar ischaemic stroke to prevent adverse clinical outcomes. The guideline was developed according to ESO standard operating procedures and Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) methodology.

Retinal microvasculature and incident dementia over 10 years: The Three-City-Alienor cohort.

Introduction: We explored the longitudinal relationship between retinal vascular features and dementia incidence over 10 years.

Methods: Among 584 participants from the Three-City-Alienor (3C-Alienor) population-based cohort, quantitative retinal vascular features (caliber, tortuosity, fractal dimension) were measured using semi-automated software. Dementia was actively diagnosed over the follow-up period.

Electromechanical factors associated with favourable outcome in cardiac resynchronization therapy.

Aims: Electromechanical coupling in patients receiving cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) is not fully understood. Our aim was to determine the best combination of electrical and mechanical substrates associated with effective CRT.

Methods And Results: Sixty-two patients were prospectively enrolled from two centres.

Profiling Hesitancy to COVID-19 Vaccinations in Six European Countries: Behavioral, Attitudinal and Demographic Determinants.

Vaccination hesitancy is an important barrier for the effective control of the COVID-19 pandemic. Identifying determinants of COVID-19 vaccination hesitancy is essential in order to reduce mortality rates. Further, given the variability of the factors and the different recommendations used in each country, it is important to conduct cross-country research to profile individuals who are hesitant toward COVID-19 vaccinations.

Persistence of Vaccine Hesitancy and Acceptance of the EU Covid Certificate Among French Students.

Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy among young adults is a current public health issue that needs to be addressed considering the seasonally driven waves of disease and the administration of vaccine boosters. As a prevention measure, the EU Covid certificate had been implemented to increase vaccine uptake, but its application was controversial. Our study investigated students' opinions and attitudes towards Covid-19 vaccination and the EU Covid certificate through a mixed-methods design.

An RNA Polymerase III General Transcription Factor Engages in Cell Type-Specific Chromatin Looping.

Transcription factors (TFs) bind DNA in a sequence-specific manner and are generally cell type-specific factors and/or developmental master regulators. In contrast, general TFs (GTFs) are part of very large protein complexes and serve for RNA polymerases' recruitment to promoter sequences, generally in a cell type-independent manner. Whereas, several TFs have been proven to serve as anchors for the 3D genome organization, the role of GTFs in genome architecture have not been carefully explored.

Awareness, usage and perceptions of authorship guidelines: an international survey of biomedical authors.

Objectives: To investigate authors' awareness and use of authorship guidelines, and to assess their perceptions of the fairness of authorship decisions.

Design: A cross-sectional online survey.

Setting And Participants: Corresponding authors of research papers submitted in 2014 to 18 BMJ journals.

ASS1 Overexpression: A Hallmark of Sonic Hedgehog Hepatocellular Adenomas; Recommendations for Clinical Practice.

Until recently, 10% of hepatocellular adenomas (HCAs) remained unclassified (UHCA). Among the UHCAs, the sonic hedgehog HCA (shHCA) was defined by focal deletions that fuse the promoter of Inhibin beta E chain with GLI1. Prostaglandin D2 synthase was proposed as immunomarker.

Association Between Blood Pressure Variability and Cerebral Small-Vessel Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background Research links blood pressure variability (BPV) with stroke; however, the association with cerebral small-vessel disease (CSVD) remains unclear. As BPV and mean blood pressure are interrelated, it remains uncertain whether BPV adds additional information to understanding cerebrovascular morphological characteristics. Methods and Results A systematic review was performed from inception until March 3, 2019.

Cognitive Mediators of School-Related Socio-Adaptive Behaviors in ASD and Intellectual Disability Pre- and Adolescents: A Pilot-Study in French Special Education Classrooms.

The school inclusion of students with autism is still a challenge. To address the cognitive underpinnings of school-related adaptive behaviors, 27 students with autism and 18 students with intellectual and/or severe learning disability, aged from 11 to 17, were recruited. They underwent socio-emotional processing and executive functioning assessments, as well as school-related adaptive behavior and quality of life measurements.

Body composition and adipokines changes after initial treatment with darunavir-ritonavir plus either raltegravir or tenofovir disoproxil fumarate-emtricitabine: A substudy of the NEAT001/ANRS143 randomised trial.

Background: Comparison of changes in body composition, adipokines and inflammatory markers after initial therapy with a nucleos(t)ide reverse transcriptase inhibitor (N(t)RTI)- sparing or containing regimen are scarce.

Design: Randomised Clinical Trial.

Methods: This is the body composition substudy of NEAT 001/ANRS 143, a randomised trial comparing darunavir/ritonavir (DRV/r) plus either raltegravir (RAL) or tenofovir disoproxil fumarate/emtricitabine (TDF/FTC) in 805 ART naïve HIV-infected adults.

Amelogenesis imperfecta in familial hypomagnesaemia and hypercalciuria with nephrocalcinosis caused by CLDN19 gene mutations.

Background: Amelogenesis imperfecta (AI) is a group of genetic diseases characterised by tooth enamel defects. AI was recently described in patients with familial hypercalciuria and hypomagnesaemia with nephrocalcinosis (FHHNC) caused by CLDN16 mutations. In the kidney, claudin-16 interacts with claudin-19 to control the paracellular passage of calcium and magnesium.

Claudin-16 Deficiency Impairs Tight Junction Function in Ameloblasts, Leading to Abnormal Enamel Formation.

Claudin-16 protein (CLDN16) is a component of tight junctions (TJ) with a restrictive distribution so far demonstrated mainly in the kidney. Here, we demonstrate the expression of CLDN16 also in the tooth germ and show that claudin-16 gene (CLDN16) mutations result in amelogenesis imperfecta (AI) in the 5 studied patients with familial hypomagnesemia with hypercalciuria and nephrocalcinosis (FHHNC). To investigate the role of CLDN16 in tooth formation, we studied a murine model of FHHNC and showed that CLDN16 deficiency led to altered secretory ameloblast TJ structure, lowering of extracellular pH in the forming enamel matrix, and abnormal enamel matrix protein processing, resulting in an enamel phenotype closely resembling human AI.

Fourier-transform-infrared-spectroscopy based spectral-biomarker selection towards optimum diagnostic differentiation of oral leukoplakia and cancer.

In search of specific label-free biomarkers for differentiation of two oral lesions, namely oral leukoplakia (OLK) and oral squamous-cell carcinoma (OSCC), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy was performed on paraffin-embedded tissue sections from 47 human subjects (eight normal (NOM), 16 OLK, and 23 OSCC). Difference between mean spectra (DBMS), Mann-Whitney's U test, and forward feature selection (FFS) techniques were used for optimising spectral-marker selection. Classification of diseases was performed with linear and quadratic support vector machine (SVM) at 10-fold cross-validation, using different combinations of spectral features.

Secretory Breast Carcinoma: A Histopathologic and Genomic Spectrum Characterized by a Joint Specific ETV6-NTRK3 Gene Fusion.

Secretory breast carcinoma (SBC) is a rare breast carcinoma with distinctive morphologic features and a recurrent specific chromosomal translocation t(12;15)(p13;q25), usually of low histologic grade and favorable prognosis. We describe the morphologic and genetic characteristics of 11 cases of SBC from 10 patients. Histologic and immunohistochemical analyses, fluorescence in situ hybridization using break-apart probes specific to ETV6 on 12p13, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction with in-house probes specific to the ETV6-NTRK3 gene fusion, and DNA copy number variation by array comparative genomic hybridization analyses were performed on all cases.

Pullulan/dextran/nHA macroporous composite beads for bone repair in a femoral condyle defect in rats.

The repair of bone defects is of particular interest for orthopedic, oral, maxillofacial, and dental surgery. Bone loss requiring reconstruction is conventionally addressed through bone grafting. Depending on the size and the location of the defect, this method has limits and risks.