Challenges of Managing Lupus Nephritis in an Emerging Nephrology Centre: A Fijian Cohort Study.

Aim: To characterise the epidemiology and outcomes of Lupus Nephritis (LN) in Fiji.

Methods: All adult LN cases diagnosed from 2016 to 2020 at the national referral hospital were included. Treatment response, kidney failure, dialysis dependence and death were reported.

Soil pH-dependent nitrogen stimulation of plant biomass: magnesium and calcium as key constraints.

Anthropogenic nitrogen (N) deposition can alleviate N limitation and stimulate plant growth in many terrestrial ecosystems. While theoretical models often emphasize phosphorus limitations as a constraint on this positive N effect, the impact of N-induced magnesium (Mg) and calcium (Ca) deficits due to soil acidification has been largely overlooked. Here, we synthesized data from 243 experiments across diverse terrestrial ecosystems to investigate the role of Mg and Ca in plant biomass responses to N addition.

Genetically based trait coordination and phenotypic plasticity of growth, gas exchange, allometry, and hydraulics across the distribution range of Pinus pinaster.

Studying intraspecific trait variation across environments is key for understanding how resource-use strategies evolve. It is hypothesized that plants from mesic environments have evolved toward a more acquisitive strategy with high growth potential and phenotypic plasticity, while populations from xeric continental climates exhibit a conservative strategy with slower growth and better physiological performance under drier conditions. We tested this hypothesis through the phenotypical characterization of 14-yr-old Pinus pinaster Aiton trees from 20 range-wide populations growing in two climatically contrasting common gardens.

Oncological and Survival Endpoints in Cancer Cachexia Clinical Trials: Systematic Review 6 of the Cachexia Endpoints Series.

Background: In patients receiving anti-cancer treatment, cachexia results in poorer oncological outcomes. However, there is limited understanding and no systematic review of oncological endpoints in cancer cachexia (CC) trials. This review examines oncological endpoints in CC clinical trials.

Automated deep learning-based assessment of tumour-infiltrating lymphocyte density determines prognosis in colorectal cancer.

Background: The presence of tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) is a well-established prognostic biomarker across multiple cancer types, with higher TIL counts being associated with lower recurrence rates and improved patient survival. We aimed to examine whether an automated intraepithelial TIL (iTIL) assessment could stratify patients by risk, with the ability to generalise across independent patient cohorts, using routine H&E slides of colorectal cancer (CRC). To our knowledge, no other existing fully automated iTIL system has demonstrated this capability.

Health professionals' perceptions of the Walter Sisulu University's integrated longitudinal clinical clerkship on service delivery in rural district hospitals in Eastern Cape Province, South Africa.

Background: The Integrated Longitudinal Clinical Clerkship (ILCC) is seen as an enabling learning space for medical students and empowering preceptors. The presence of ILCC students in hospitals contributes to delivering health services and sustained improvement in the quality of health services in those facilities. This study explored health professionals' perceptions of the impact of a South African medical university's ILCC on health professionals' workload and service delivery in district hospitals.

LILRB3 genetic variation is associated with kidney transplant failure in African American recipients.

African American (AA) kidney transplant recipients exhibit a higher rate of graft loss compared with other racial and ethnic populations, highlighting the need to identify causative factors. Here, in the Genomics of Chronic Allograft Rejection cohort, pretransplant blood RNA sequencing revealed a cluster of four consecutive missense single-nucelotide polymorphisms (SNPs), within the leukocyte immunoglobulin-like receptor B3 (LILRB3) gene, strongly associated with death-censored graft loss. This SNP cluster (named LILRB3-4SNPs) encodes missense mutations at amino acids 617-618 proximal to a SHP1/2 phosphatase-binding immunoreceptor tyrosine-based inhibitory motif.

Business Intent and Network Slicing Correlation Dataset from Data-Driven Perspective.

Intent-Based Networking (IBN) is an emerging network management technology that enables automated configurations based on user intents. A critical aspect of IBN is the accurate and autonomous extraction of user intents and their translation into a language comprehensible by network management systems. However, the current scarcity of publicly available datasets for intent extraction presents significant challenges.

Impact of liver fibrosis on AAV-mediated gene transfer to mouse hepatocytes.

Liver fibrosis, characterized by scar tissue accumulation due to liver injury, poses significant barriers to liver-targeted gene therapy. Current clinical trials exclude patients with fibrosis, as intact liver architecture is considered essential for efficient and safe adeno-associated viral vector (AAV)-mediated gene delivery. Here, we show that liver fibrosis reduces the efficiency of hepatocyte transduction by AAV8 vectors across three mouse models with diverse fibrotic patterns.

Rare pathogenic structural variants show potential to enhance prostate cancer germline testing for African men.

Prostate cancer (PCa) is highly heritable, with men of African ancestry at greatest risk and associated lethality. Lack of representation in genomic data means germline testing guidelines exclude for Africans. Established that structural variations (SVs) are major contributors to human disease and prostate tumourigenesis, their role is under-appreciated in familial and therapeutic testing.

Far-red light-driven photoautotrophy of chlorophyll f-producing cyanobacterium without red-shifted phycobilisome core complex.

Chlorophyll (Chl) f production expands oxygenic photosynthesis of some cyanobacteria into the far-red light (FRL) region through reconstructed FRL-allophycocyanin (APC) cores and Chl f-containing photosystems. Presently, a unicellular cyanobacterium was isolated for studying FRL photoacclimation (FaRLiP) and classified as a new species Altericista leshanensis. It uses additional Chl f and FRL-APC cores, with retained white light (WL)-phycobiliproteins to thrive FRL conditions.

FGFR1 variation in the divergent settings of congenital hypopituitarism and pituitary tumours.

Purpose: Pituitary tumours are relatively common, and familial in approximately 5% of cases. However, germline genetic contributions to pituitary tumour development are incompletely characterised. Preliminary evidence suggests pituitary tumours may be promoted by variants in pituitary organogenesis genes.

Nanomaterial Innovations and Machine Learning in Gas Sensing Technologies for Real-Time Health Diagnostics.

Breath sensors represent a frontier in noninvasive diagnostics, leveraging the detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in exhaled breath for real-time health monitoring. This review highlights recent advancements in breath-sensing technologies, with a focus on the innovative materials driving their enhanced sensitivity and selectivity. Polymers, carbon-based materials like graphene and carbon nanotubes, and metal oxides such as ZnO and SnO have demonstrated significant potential in detecting biomarkers related to diseases including diabetes, liver/kidney dysfunction, asthma, and gut health.

My Life: A Photovoice Exploration of Aspirations of People With Intellectual Disabilities.

Background: This study aimed to evaluate the everyday ways that individuals with mild and moderate intellectual disabilities exercise choice and control.

Method: Photovoice with 17 adults with mild to moderate intellectual disability who were receiving individual funding was conducted. Focus groups were held to review the photos.

Long-term health, neurodevelopmental and educational outcomes of children born to mothers with hyperemesis gravidarum: A population-based sibling-design record linkage cohort study.

Background: Hyperemesis gravidarum (HG), characterised by severe and constant nausea and vomiting in pregnancy, can lead to nutritional deficiencies and other pregnancy complications. In turn, HG has also been linked with adverse long-term health and neurodevelopmental outcomes for the children of women affected by HG. However, previous studies have not accounted for potential confounding due to shared family-level factors.

Abstract sentence meanings are grounded in the sensory-motor regions in a context-dependent fashion.

Sentences conveying abstract meanings are crucial tools for high-level thinking and communication. Previous research has sparked a debate on whether abstract concepts rely on the representation of the sensory-motor brain areas. We explored this issue with the assumption that abstract meanings at the sentence level could invoke the sensory-motor regions a context-dependent fashion.

Evaluation and Management of Chronic Kidney Disease: Synopsis of the Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes 2024 Clinical Practice Guideline.

Description: The Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) organization updated its existing clinical practice guideline in 2024 to provide guidance on the evaluation, management, and treatment of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in adults and children who are not receiving kidney replacement therapy.

Methods: The KDIGO CKD Guideline Work Group defined the scope of the guideline and determined topics for systematic review. An independent Evidence Review Team systematically reviewed the evidence and graded the certainty of evidence for each of the review topics.

Enhancing green bean crop maturity and yield prediction by harnessing the power of statistical analysis, crop records and weather data.

Climate change impacts require us to reexamine crop growth and yield under increasing temperatures and continuing yearly climate variability. Agronomic and agro-meteorological variables were concorded for a large number of plantings of green bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) in three growing seasons over several years from semi-tropical Queensland.

Population-Based Assessment of Prevalence, Causes, and Risk Factors of Unilateral Vision Impairment in the Elderly Population in Telangana, India.

Purpose: To report the prevalence, causes, and risk factors for unilateral visual impairment (UVI) among the elderly population (≥60 years) in Telangana, India.

Methods: A population-based, cross-sectional study was conducted in four districts of Telangana. Trained teams conducted eye examinations.

Acellular Pertussis Vaccine Given in the Week After Birth Does Not Impair Antibody Responses to Later Childhood Doses.

Background: A birth acellular pertussis vaccine may be a valuable alternative for immunity against infant pertussis when a pregnancy pertussis vaccine has not been administered. We assessed whether a birth dose may impair immunoglobulin G (IgG) responses to childhood pertussis boosters.

Methods: Children from our previous randomized controlled trial who received a monovalent 3-component aP and hepatitis B vaccine at birth (aP group) or hepatitis B only (control group) followed by Infanrix hexa at 2, 4 and 6 months of age were randomized to receive either high or low-dose diphtheria-tetanus acellular pertussis combination vaccine (DTPa-Infanrix/dTpa-Boostrix) at 18 months and 4 years of age.

sp. nov., sp. nov. and sp. nov.: three members of group 1 .

Between 1976 and 2010, four bacterial isolates were collected in New South Wales and Queensland, Australia, and stored as part of routine biosecurity surveillance. Recently, these historic isolates were analysed as part of a larger project to enhance the taxonomic accuracy of our culture collection and improve Australia's biosecurity preparedness. Three isolates were collected from , initially identified as sp.

Global approaches to older abuse research in institutional care settings: A systematic review.

Background: Over the last two decades, abuse of older adults in institutional settings has been underestimated due to challenges in defining and responding to the issue. This systematic review aims to analyze empirical studies on measuring abuse of older people residing in a long-term care facility, specifically staff-to-resident abuse.

Methods: Following PRISMA guidelines, we searched 10 databases from January 2005 till June 2024.

The spectrum of IDH- and H3-wildtype high-grade glioma subgroups occurring across teenage and young adult patient populations.

Background: High-grade gliomas (HGG) occur in any central nervous system (CNS) location and any age. HGGs in teenagers/young adults (TYA) are understudied. This project aimed to characterise these tumours to support accurate patient stratification.