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Abstract Background Advancements in the diagnosis, treatment, and surveillance of castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) have progressed considerably, but a new biomarker that combines existing clinical and pathological data could be useful for a more precise diagnosis and prognosis. Some investigations have found that extracellular vesicle (EV)-derived miRNAs play crucial roles in various types of malignant tumors. The objective of this study was to explore EV miRNA and identify its biologic function as a biomarker for the diagnosis and prognosis of CRPC. Methods Plasma samples were collected from five healthy donors (Control, CT) and 17 CRPC patients, categorizing into two groups based on their endocrine treatment response: partial response (PR; n = 10) and progressive disease (PD; n = 7). Candidate extracellular vesicle (EV) miRNAs were identified using miRNA microarray and RT-qPCR. The biological functions of the selected miRNAs were evaluated using the MTT assay, wound healing assay, trans-well assay, and RNA sequencing in CRPC cells after transient miRNA expression. Results Microarray analysis revealed a significant downregulation of EV-miR-6880-5p in the PD samples compared to both CT and PR samples (p

Abstract Background To identify the association of meteorological factors/ambient air pollutants with medical care utilization for urolithiasis and estimate the effect size/time lags. Methods This is a population-based time-series analysis of 300,000 urolithiasis cases from eight large metropolitan areas in Korea. Seventeen meteorological factors and ambient air pollutants were measured daily during 2002–2017 for each metropolis. Data on daily medical utilization owing to urolithiasis were collected. A generalized additive model was used while factoring in the nonlinear relationship between meteorological factors/ambient air pollutants and urolithiasis and a time lag of ≤10 days. A multivariate analysis was performed. Backward elimination with an Akaike information criterion was used for fitting the multivariate model. Results Urolithiasis was significantly associated with average temperature, diurnal temperature range, sunshine duration, particulate matter (PM) ≤2.5 μm, and carbon monoxide (CO) levels. The incidence of ureteral stones was positively correlated with average temperature, PM ≤2.5 μm level, and CO level (time lags 0–9, 2–4, and 0–9 days, respectively). The incidence of renal stones was positively correlated with PM ≤2.5 μm and CO levels (time lags 2–4 and 0–9 days, respectively). PM ≤2.5 μm (0.05 and 0.07% per 10 μg/m3) and CO (2.05 and 2.25% per 0.1 ppm) conferred the highest excess risk on ureteral and renal stones. Conclusions Urolithiasis is affected by various meteorological factors and ambient air pollutants, PM ≤2.5 μm, and CO levels may be novel potential risk factors for this condition.