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This study explored the association between socioecological factors and outdoor physical activity (PA) and play in children with disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Parents (N = 133) completed a survey to report changes in their child's outdoor PA and play during the pandemic (from prepandemic levels), and child, household, and neighborhood environment factors. Children with a PA-supporting parent and from multichild and White households had lower odds of reporting decreased outdoor PA. Children from multichild, higher income, married couple households and a PA-supporting parent had lower odds of decreased outdoor play. Living in neighborhoods with higher urbanization (i.e., high dwelling density, street intersections, and land-use mix) was associated with greater odds of decreased outdoor PA and play. Future research that uses larger and more representative samples of children with disabilities is needed to test for the multivariate effects of socioecological variables on outdoor PA and play. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

All inkjet‐printed thermal sensors are manufactured based on a metal–insulator–metal (MIM) interface or capacitor architecture, for the adapted device size ranging from 16 to 36 mm2 active area. Two different material inks, namely a nanoparticle conductive silver ink and an inorganic‐polymer‐based hybrid insulator ink, are applied layer by layer on a thin flexible polyimide substrate, for developing the printed MIM devices. To ensure the desired electronic conductivity and insulation from the layers, the manufacturing process steps and parameters are tuned, accordingly. The results show that the inkjet‐printed MIM devices could constitute up to 15 μm thickness and demonstrate average detection of a change in electrical capacitance ranging from 20 to 100 pF, when the temperature is varied between 100 and 300 °C. The investigations also summarize that the change in the electrical response is enough to detect an increment of 50 °C. The printed sensors also display high operational stability and repeatability, when subjected to thermal cycling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Borophene, the lightest member of mono-elemental 2D materials family, has attracted much attention due to its intriguing polymorphism. Among many polymorphs, digitally discovered 8-Pmmn stands out owing to its unique tilted-Dirac fermions. However, the property of interfaces between 8-Pmmn and metal substrates has so far remained unexplored, which has critical importance of its application in any electronic devices. Here, with the help of density functional theory, we show that the unique tilted-Dirac property is completely lost when 8-Pmmn borophene is interfaced with common electrode materials such as Au, Ag, and Ti. This is attributed to the high chemical reactivity of borophene as observed from crystal orbital Hamilton population and electron localization function analysis. In an effort to restore the Dirac property, we insert a graphene/hexagonal-boron-nitride (hBN) layer between 8-Pmmn and metal, a technique used in recent experiments for other 2D materials. We show that while the insertion of graphene successfully restores the Dirac nature for all three metals, hBN fails to do so while interfacing with Ti. The quantum chemical insights presented in this work may aid in to access the Dirac properties of 8-Pmmn in experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Theories of bulk coacervation of oppositely charged polyelectrolytes (PE) obscure single molecule level thermodynamic details, considered significant for coacervate equilibrium, whereas simulations account for only pairwise Coulomb interaction. Also, studies of effects of asymmetry on PE complexation are rare compared to symmetric PEs. We develop a theoretical model, accounting for all entropic and enthalpic contributions at the molecular level, and the mutual segmental screened Coulomb and excluded volume interactions between two asymmetric PEs, by constructing a Hamiltonian following Edwards and Muthukumar. Assuming maximal ion-pairing in the complex, the system free energy comprising configurational entropy of the polyions and free-ion entropy of the small ions is minimized. The effective charge and size of the complex, larger than sub-Gaussian globules as for symmetric chains, increase with asymmetry in polyion length and charge density. The thermodynamic drive for complexation is found to increase with ionizability of symmetric polyions and with a decrease in asymmetry in length for equally ionizable polyions. The crossover Coulomb strength demarcating the ion-pair enthalpy-driven (low strength) and counterion release entropy-driven (high strength) is marginally dependent on the charge density, because so is the degree of counterion condensation, and strongly dependent on the dielectric environment and salt. The key results match the trends in simulations. The framework may provide a direct way to calculate thermodynamic dependencies of complexation on experimental parameters such as electrostatic strength and salt, thus to better analyze and predict observed phenomena for different sets of polymer pairs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the study is to highlight the important amenities listing variables and the pervasiveness of the determinants to the "superhost" status in the online shared destination accommodation of the tourism and hospitality market. The potential guests consider the superhost status as a quality indicator of the Airbnb accommodation and promise of the host for their offered amenities and thus increasing their rental demands resulting in more revenue from more bookings. Using the Airbnb listing dataset of four cities of Canada and eleven cities of the United States, the study applied six different data mining techniques to find the importance of listing variables. It identified essential amenities based on their presence among the top variables in the applied models. The findings of the study were the identification of a reduced set of offered amenities and service variables that influence Airbnb's reward of the "superhost" badge as a visual symbol of trust and credibility. Thus, the findings help to develop better service quality for tourists and at the same time helps to mitigate the complexities confronted by hosts with multiple listings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common inflammatory disease of the skin that begins early in life and can be lifelong. The purpose of our study was to evaluate whether fetal exposure and/or early-life exposure of a child to antibiotics increases the risk of early-onset AD. Objectives We hypothesize that antibiotic exposure in utero or early in life (e.g. first 90 days) increases the likelihood that children develop AD. Methods Utilizing a large, prospectively collected electronic medical records database, we studied the association of antibiotic exposure received in utero or very early in life and the relative risk of onset of AD in a population-based cohort study. Associations were estimated using proportional hazards models as hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results The risk of AD in childhood was increased after in utero or early-life antibiotic exposure. For any in utero antibiotic exposure the HR (CI) was 1.38 (1.36–1.39). However, penicillin demonstrated the strongest association with AD for both in utero exposure [1.43 (1.41–1.44)] and for childhood exposure [1.81 (1.79–1.82)]. HRs were higher in children born to mothers without AD than in those with AD pointing to effect modification by maternal AD status. Conclusions Children born to mothers exposed to antibiotics while in utero had, depending on the mother's history of AD, approximately a 20–40% increased risk of developing AD. Depending on the antibiotic, children who received antibiotics early in life had a 40–80% increased risk of developing AD. Our study supports and refines the association between incident AD and antibiotic administration. It also adds population-based support to therapeutic attempts to treat AD by modifying the skin microbiome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

o‐Aminoazotoluene (OAT), capable of photoisomerization, and o‐vanillin, a potent comutagen, have been used to synthesize a new ligand, HL, [C6H4(CH3)N=NC6H3(CH3)N=CHC6H3(OH)(OCH3)], which, upon complexation with copper(II), results in a new copper(II) complex‐Cu(L)2, [Cu{C6H4(CH3)N=NC6H3(CH3)N=CHC6H3(OCH3)O}2]. Both HL and Cu(L)2 have been characterized by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction measurements along with other analytical techniques, for example, IR spectroscopy, NMR spectroscopy, UV–Vis spectroscopy, elemental analysis and mass spectrometry. These compounds were tested with different in vitro anticancer assay as well as with in silico studies. A comparative study has been demonstrated on anticancer activity of HL and Cu(L)2 with the ligand HAZ, {C6H5N=NC6H4N=CHC6H3(OH)(OCH3)} and its Cu‐complex, [Cu(AZ)2, Cu{C6H5N=NC6H4N=CHC6H3(OCH3)O}2]. The sensing properties of HAZ, along with the synthesis and structural properties of both HAZ and Cu(AZ)2, have been reported by our group earlier. Cytotoxicity measurements on MCF7 cell lines show that Cu(L)2 and Cu(AZ)2 have higher anticancer activity than their corresponding ligands. The apoptotic effect of Cu‐complex was studied through nuclear fragmentation assay and AO/EB dual‐staining assay on MCF7 cell line. The IC50 value of Cu(L)2 in 0.01% DMSO/water after 24‐h treatment was found 4.2 μM, which is one of the lowest values with this response time compared to the other analogous anticancer compounds. Finally, we have evaluated the expression of hERα protein with respect to Cu‐complexes, and it was observed that Cu(L)2 caused more down‐regulation of hERα as compared to Cu(AZ)2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we investigated the discriminative capacity of knee morphology in automatic detection of osteophytes defined by the Osteoarthritis Research Society International atlas, using X‐ray and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data. For the X‐ray analysis, we developed a deep learning (DL) based model to segment femur and tibia. In case of MRIs, we utilized previously validated segmentations of femur, tibia, corresponding cartilage tissues, and menisci. Osteophyte detection was performed using DL models in four compartments: medial femur (FM), lateral femur (FL), medial tibia (TM), and lateral tibia (TL). To analyze the confounding effects of soft tissues, we investigated their morphology in combination with bones, including bones+cartilage, bones+menisci, and all the tissues. From X‐ray‐based 2D morphology, the models yielded balanced accuracy of 0.73, 0.69, 0.74, and 0.74 for FM, FL, TM, TL, respectively. Using 3D bone morphology from MRI, balanced accuracy was 0.80, 0.77, 0.71, and 0.76, respectively. The performance was higher than in 2D for all the compartments except for TM, with significant improvements observed for femoral compartments. Adding menisci or cartilage morphology consistently improved balanced accuracy in TM, with the greatest improvement seen for small osteophyte. Otherwise, the models performed similarly to bones‐only. Our experiments demonstrated that MRI‐based models show higher detection capability than X‐ray based models for identifying knee osteophytes. This study highlighted the feasibility of automated osteophyte detection from X‐ray and MRI data and suggested further need for development of osteophyte assessment criteria in addition to OARSI, particularly, for early osteophytic changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent scholarship on refugee assistance has begun shifting the focus from traditional humanitarian interventions to alternative forms of refugee response, undertaken through more local, informal networks. These forms of humanitarian assistance and solidarity can transcend national refugee politics, and function as an alternative form of political engagement with the issue of refugee protection. Much of this emerging literature focuses on how host communities, diaspora networks, and activist groups support refugees. However, we know very little about how solidarities are generated between different refugee groups in the same host state, which has important implications for understanding the ways in which different refugee groups organise and seek to secure their own welfare in shared displacement. This study draws on evidence from India during the COVID-19 pandemic to analyze how such intergroup cooperation in exile develops. I find, first, that refugees navigate their vulnerabilities through informal, interpersonal forms of care and solidarity, which bolsters identification with shared challenges and goals. Second, such solidarities can generate collective action that helps refugees carve out certain spaces of inclusion in a larger context of structural exclusion. Third, the network structure of these solidarities is shaped by existing policy regimes and social relationships in key ways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patients with cirrhosis are prone to developing acute kidney injury (AKI), a complication associated with a markedly increased in-hospital morbidity and mortality, along with a risk of progression to chronic kidney disease. Whereas patients with cirrhosis are at increased risk of developing any phenotype of AKI, hepatorenal syndrome (HRS), a specific form of AKI (HRS-AKI) in patients with advanced cirrhosis and ascites, carries an especially high mortality risk. Early recognition of HRS-AKI is crucial since administration of splanchnic vasoconstrictors may reverse the AKI and serve as a bridge to liver transplantation, the only curative option. In 2023, a joint meeting of the International Club of Ascites (ICA) and the Acute Disease Quality Initiative (ADQI) was convened to develop new diagnostic criteria for HRS-AKI, to provide graded recommendations for the work-up, management and post-discharge follow-up of patients with cirrhosis and AKI, and to highlight priorities for further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and purpose: The workplace plays a key role in impacting the health and well-being of employees at various levels, including physical, psychological, and social aspects of health. This study aims to identify the drivers of a healthy environment that promotes the well-being of women employed in hospitals. Materials & methods: This qualitative study used purposive sampling to recruit a total of 48 working women across a diverse range of participants with different job categories and socio-demographic statuses. These include clinical health (e.g., nurse, head nurse, practical nurse, supervisor, physicians); allied health (e.g., diagnostic services); public health (e.g., health promotion specialists); and administrative (e.g., hospital managers). Data was collected through semi-structured interviews and were analyzed using content analysis by creating codes, sub-themes, and themes. Results: Content analysis resulted in 31 key codes, that generated 12 sub-themes and 4 key themes. These include Advancing women's health through collaborative leadership; a Psychologically safe environment for women; Thriving for positive social connections; and Advancing holistic health for women. Discussion and Conclusion: Hospital managers and leaders play a pivotal role in creating supportive workplaces for women. They can significantly assist in prioritizing their psychological and social health through personalized approaches tailored to women's needs, positioning them as co-designers of their health and well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study an imbibition problem for porous media. When a wetted layer is above a dry medium, gravity leads to the propagation of the water downwards into the medium. In experiments, the occurrence of fingers was observed, a phenomenon that can be described with models that include hysteresis. In the present paper we describe a single finger in a moving frame and set up a free boundary problem to describe the shape and the motion of one finger that propagates with a constant speed. We show the existence of solutions to the travelling wave problem and investigate the system numerically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spreading of liquids on soft solids often occurs intermittently, i.e., the liquid's wetting front switches between sticking and slipping. Studies of this so-called stick-slip wetting on soft solids mostly are confined within quasi-static or forced spreading conditions. In these situations, because the sticking duration is set much larger than the viscoelastic relaxation time of the solid, a ridge is persistently and fully developed at the wetting front as the soft solid yields to the liquid's surface tension. The sticking duration and spreading velocity, therefore, were shown to have little impact to the contact angle change required for stick-to-slip transitions. For unsteady wetting of soft solids, a commonly encountered but largely unexplored situation, we hypothesize that the stick-to-slip transition is controlled not only by a combination of sticking duration and the spreading velocity, but also by an increasing depinning threshold caused by the growing ridge at the wetting front. We performed unsteady wetting experiment on soft solids by letting water droplets spread freely on soft solid surfaces of various stiffness. We capture both the stick-slip spreading behavior and growing wetting ridges using synchronous high-speed imaging and high-speed interferometry. Recorded data of liquid spreading and solid deforming at the wetting front were analyzed to shed light on the relation between stick-slip characteristics and the growing wetting ridge. We find that intermittent wetting on a soft solid surface results from a competition between three key factors: liquid inertia, capillary force change during sticking, and growing pinning force caused by the solid's viscoelastic response. We theoretically formulate their quantitative contributions to predict how stick-to-slip transitions occur, i.e., how the contact angle change and sticking duration depend on the liquid's spreading velocity and the solid's viscoelastic characteristics. This provides a mechanistic understanding and methods to control unsteady wetting phenomena in diverse applications, from tissue engineering and fabrication of flexible electronics to biomedicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The emergence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) as a global health emergency necessitates continued investigation of the disease progression. This study investigated the relationship between eosinophilia and the severity of COVID-19 in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 73 COPD patients infected by COVID-19 in Afzalipour Hospital, Iran. Peripheral blood samples were collected for hematological parameter testing, including eosinophil percentage, using Giemsa staining. Eosinophilia was defined as≥ 2% and non-eosinophilia as< 2%. The severity of pulmonary involvement was determined based on chest CT severity score (CT-SS) (based on the degree of involvement of the lung lobes, 0%: 0 points, 1–25%: 1 point, 26–50%: 2 points, 51–75%: 3 points, and 76–100%: 4 points). The CT-SS was the sum of the scores of the five lobes (range 0–20). Results: The average age of patients was 67.90±13.71 years, and most were male (54.8%). Non-eosinophilic COPD patients were associated with more severe COVID-19 (P= 0.01) and lower oxygen saturation (P= 0.001). In addition, the study revealed a significant difference in the chest CT severity score (CT-SS) between non-eosinophilic (9.76±0.7) and eosinophilic COPD patients (6.26±0.63) (P< 0.001). Although non-eosinophilic COPD patients had a higher mortality rate, this difference was not statistically significant (P= 0.16). Conclusions: Our study demonstrated that reduced peripheral blood eosinophil levels in COPD patients with COVID-19 correlate with unfavorable outcomes. Understanding this association can help us identify high-risk COPD patients and take appropriate management strategies to improve their prognosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The traditional neuron-centric view of the central nervous system (CNS) is shifting toward recognizing the importance of communication between the neurons and the network of glial cells. This shift is leading to a more comprehensive understanding of how glial cells contribute to CNS function. Alongside this shift, recent discoveries have illuminated the significant role of the human microbiome, comprising trillions of microorganisms, mirroring the number of human cells in an individual. This paper delves into the multifaceted functions of neuroglia, or glial cells, which extend far beyond their traditional roles of supporting and protecting neurons. Neuroglia modulate synaptic activity, insulate axons, support neurogenesis and synaptic plasticity, respond to injury and inflammation, and engage in phagocytosis. Meanwhile, the microbiome, long overlooked, emerges as a crucial player in brain functionality akin to glial cells. This review aims to underscore the importance of the interaction between glial cells and resident microorganisms in shaping the development and function of the human brain, a concept that has been less studied. Through a comprehensive examination of existing literature, we discuss the mechanisms by which glial cells interface with the microbiome, offering insights into the contribution of this relationship to neural homeostasis and health. Furthermore, we discuss the implications of dysbiosis within this interaction, highlighting its potential contribution to neurological disorders and paving the way for novel therapeutic interventions targeting both glial cells and the microbiome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Radio observations from normal pulsars indicate that the coherent radio emission is excited by curvature radiation from charge bunches. In this review, we provide a systematic description of the various observational constraints on the radio emission mechanism. We have discussed the presence of highly polarized time samples where the polarization position angle follow two orthogonal well-defined tracks across the profile that closely match the rotating vector model in an identical manner. The observations also show the presence of circular polarization, with both the right and left handed circular polarization seen across the profile. Other constraints on the emission mechanism are provided by the detailed measurements of the spectral index variation across the profile window, where the central part of the profile, corresponding to the core component, has a steeper spectrum than the surrounding cones. Finally, the detailed measurements of the subpulse drifting behaviour can be explained by considering the presence of non-dipolar field on the stellar surface and the formation of the partially screened gap (PSG) above the polar cap region. The PSG gives rise to a non-stationary plasma flow that has a multi-component nature, consisting of highly energetic primary particles, secondary pair plasma, and iron ions discharged from the surface, with large fragmentation resulting in dense plasma clouds and lower-density inter-cloud regions. The physical properties of the outflowing plasma and the observational constraints lead us to consider coherent curvature radiation as the most viable explanation for the emission mechanism in normal pulsars, where propagation effects due to adiabatic walking and refraction are largely inconsequential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we present numerical and experimental results on helicity oscillations in a liquid-metal Rayleigh–Bénard convection cell with an aspect ratio of 0.5. While the numerical simulations use the finite volume library OpenFOAM, the experimental results are obtained by means of contactless inductive flow tomography. We find that helicity oscillations occur during transitions of flow states with different roll numbers that are characterized by significant changes in the Reynolds number. However, helicity oscillations are also observed when the number of rolls is constant and the Reynolds number is changing only very slowly. Notably, the helicity oscillations observed during the transient double-roll state exhibit characteristics remarkably similar to those associated with the Tayler instability, which points to a rather generic and universal character of this phenomenon. Helicity oscillations are also discussed as a possible mechanism for synchronizing the solar dynamo by tidal forces of the orbiting planets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key Clinical Message: It is essential to consider non‐tuberculosis mycobacterium in HIV‐positive patients with fever, abdominal pain, weight loss, and splenomegaly. Mycobacterium genavense is an opportunistic slow‐growing nontuberculous mycobacterium in patients with immunocompromised backgrounds, especially HIV‐positive patients. In this study, we present two cases of Mycobacterium genovese infection in HIV‐positive patients with a good clinical response to accurate treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The S-shaped swing of the linear polarization position angle (PPA) observed in many pulsars can be interpreted by the rotating vector model (RVM). However, efforts to fit the RVM for a large sample of pulsars observed with the MeerKAT telescope as a part of the Thousand-Pulsar-Array (TPA) programme, only succeeded for about half the cases. High time-resolution studies suggest that the failed cases arise due to the presence of orthogonal polarization modes, or highly disordered distribution of PPA points. One such example is PSR J1645−0317. Recently it has been shown that the RVM can be recovered in this pulsar by using only time samples which are greater than 80 per cent linearly polarized. In this work, we test this novel approach on the brightest 249 pulsars from the TPA sample, of which 177 yield sufficient highly polarized samples to be amenable to our method. Remarkably, only nine of these pulsars (5 per cent) now fail to fit the RVM as opposed to 59 per cent from the original analysis. This result favours the paradigm that the underlying mechanism is coherent curvature radiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a nonhepatotropic virus. It causes mild self-limiting illness characterized by fever, oral ulcer, diarrhea, lymphadenopathy, and hepatosplenomegaly. Rarely it causes acute liver failure (ALF). EBV-related ALF (EBV-ALF) accounts for 0.2% of all ALF cases. The prognosis of EBV-ALF is dismal, and it can affect both immunocompromised and immunocompetent individuals. We performed a partial autopsy on a 30-year-old immunocompetent individual with infectious mononucleosis and ALF. The autopsy showed characteristic histomorphology of EBV-ALF in the form of centrizonal confluent hepatocytic necrosis, portal mixed inflammatory infiltrate, sinusoidal lymphocytosis, numerous hemophagocytic figures, and tissue Epstein-Barr encoded RNA-in situ hybridization (EBER-ISH) positivity. Extensive hemophagocytosis was noted in the liver, spleen, lymph node, and bone marrow. Other features include T-zone expansion of lymph nodes and spleen, interstitial pneumonia pattern in the lungs, and exanthematous skin changes. EBV-DNA polymerase chain reaction from the postmortem blood sample yielded 70,200 copies/µL. The index case highlights the uncommon occurrence of EBV-ALF, its histomorphological features, and its putative pathogenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Myostatin is a known negative regulator of muscle tissue growth. Thus, an inhibitor of myostatin may be therapeutically useful as an anabolic agent for the muscle tissue. A promising gene-silencing approach for gene therapy is DNA interference (DNAi), a sequence that is complementary to the promoter region of a target gene. To confer resistance to nuclease digestion, several modifications such as methylphosphonate or phosphorothioate have been proposed, wherein a nonbridging oxygen atom in the oligonucleotide phosphate backbone is replaced by sulphur. The aim of the present study was to assess the effectiveness of the DNAi molecule with phosphorothioate (PS) and without phosphorothioate (WPS) modification for inhibition of myostatin gene expression in mice. Eighteen four-week-old male BALB/c mice were randomly divided into three groups: DNAi-PS (n = 6), DNAi-WPS (n = 6) and control (n = 6). Intraperitoneal injections of DNAi (10 mg/kg) were given once a week, and mice body weights were measured weekly and sacrificed after three weeks. The expression of myostatin was assessed using real-time quantitative polymerace chain reaction. For histological evaluation, the skeletal muscle tissue was dissected from the biceps. The results were analysed by a t-test. Results demonstrated that administration of DNAi intraperitoneally with modification could suppress myostatin expression by up to 70%. Leg weight and histological analysis proved that chemically modified DNAi significantly suppressed the myostatin gene in mice. Overall, the results on DNA-induced gene silencing by antisense DNA oligonucleotides in animals can provide insight into the treatment of inherited diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study deals with the observation of Rn-222 emanation process in terms of its exhalation rate for 48 h from sub-surface soil at 3 h intervals, using a continuous Rn-222 monitoring system RAD7 at Sidho-Kanho-Birsha University campus in Purulia district, located in the easternmost part of the Chotanagpur Plateau, India based on local weather conditions, over five different seasons. For every season, the diurnal variations of the Rn-222 exhalation rate increase after sunset, reaching to its maximum at mid-night and thereafter starts decreasing until it falls to the minimum around noon time. Local meteorological parameters such as ambient temperature, relative humidity, atmospheric pressure were also recorded during the observation period to study the possible influences of these parameters on the soil gas Rn-222 emission rates using Pearson's correlation matrix. There exists a strong positive correlation between relative humidity and Rn-222 exhalation rate and a positive correlation between atmospheric pressure and Rn-222 exhalation rate for all the observation periods. On the other hand, negative correlations between the atmospheric temperature and the Rn-222 exhalation rate exist for all the seasons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aimed to investigate the effect of turmeric powder (Curcuma langa) and black pepper (Piper nigrum) on growth parameters, blood, immunity, and the relative expression of immune-related genes in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). Rainbow trout (n = 450, average weight 24.95 ± 0.70 g) were fed with four levels (0, 0.25, 0.5, and 1% of diet) of three combined levels of turmeric (C) and black pepper (P) plants (30% C + 70% P, 50% P + 50% C, 70% C + 30% P) in 10 experimental treatments each with three repetitions for 60 days. Growth, hematological and serum biochemical parameters, liver enzymes, serum immune parameters, and the expression of TNF-α and IL-8 genes were evaluated at the end of the period. Based on the results, the highest values of final weight, average daily growth, specific growth rate, and the lowest food conversion coefficient were reported at the 1% level with the 70% C + 30% P combination. Significant changes were also observed in red and white blood cell counts, hemoglobin, hematocrit, total protein, globulin, lysozyme activity, total immunoglobulin, and complement activity at the 1% level with 70% C + 30% P combination. The TNFα gene relative expression decreased significantly in all nutritional treatments with the two combined plants compared to the control. The IL8 gene expression increased significantly in fish fed with the 1% combination of the two plants (70% P + 30% C) compared to the other treatments. Based on the findings, the optimal values of the growth, blood, and immunity parameters mainly at the 1% diet level in the treatments fed with the C and P combination can result from the positive effect of these compounds on the growth performance and immunogenesis in rainbow trout fingerling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Industries rely on the early and efficient detection of bearing faults to enhance the service life of three-phase induction motors. Various bearing health condition monitoring techniques have been proposed for years, majorly involving sound and/or vibration sensors. This paper compares sound- and vibration-based approaches for automated and real-time bearing health diagnosis, evolving a fusion of wavelet scattering transform and a hybrid two-dimensional convolutional neural network architecture with a multi-class support vector machine classifier. In this work, data are collected from our own laboratory-based sample process control application operated through a supervisory control and data acquisition system under harsh industrial environmental conditions, including dynamicity in motor load, speed, and externally induced noise levels from a nearby induction motor. Multiple parameters, such as image resolution, color channel, and intelligent architecture, are optimized for cost-effective real-time fault detection. This study also suggests that the proposed hybrid model, driven by normalized time–frequency feature images, can work with the reduced signal sampling frequency and analog-to-digital converter bit resolution while accomplishing the performance. The robustness of the proposed model is verified on publicly available databases. Rigorously, it is observed that the individual sound and vibration sensor-based measurement systems perform equally well for bearing fault diagnosis with the help of quintessential specification tuning in the data acquisition system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses hepatorenal syndrome (HRS) in patients with cirrhosis, which is a specific type of kidney dysfunction that occurs in the presence of ascites and cirrhosis. The article highlights the high incidence of acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients with cirrhosis, with increased mortality and progression to chronic kidney disease. The diagnostic criteria for AKI and HRS have undergone revisions, and the article presents the recommendations for the definition and diagnosis of these conditions. The article also discusses the specific management of HRS-AKI, including the use of vasoconstrictors and albumin administration. The timing of renal replacement therapy and the role of biomarkers in AKI phenotyping are also discussed. [Extracted from the article]

The Hypothalmic-Pituitary-Adrenal axis also known as the HPA axis is central to stress response. It also acts as the relay center between the body and the brain. We analysed hypothalamic proteome from mice subjected to chronic social defeat paradigm using iTRAQ based quantitative proteomics to identify changes associated with stress response. We identified greater than 2000 proteins after processing our samples analysed through Q-Exactive (Thermo) and Orbitrap Velos (Thermo) at 5% FDR. Analysis of data procured from the runs showed that the proteins whose levels were affected belonged primarily to mitochondrial and metabolic processes, translation, complement pathway among others. We also found increased levels of fibrinogen, myelin basic protein (MBP) and neurofilaments (NEFL, NEFM, NEFH) in the hypothalamus from socially defeated mice. Interestingly, research indicates that these proteins are upregulated in blood and CSF of subjects exposed to trauma and stress. Since hypothalamus secreted proteins can be found in blood and CSF, their utility as biomarkers in depression holds an impressive probability and should be validated in clinical samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study how future Type Ia supernovae (SNIa) standard candles detected by the Vera C. Rubin Observatory (LSST) can constrain some cosmological models. We use a realistic 3-yr SNIa simulated data set generated by the LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration time domain pipeline, which includes a mix of spectroscopic and photometrically identified candidates. We combine these data with cosmic microwave background (CMB) and baryon acoustic oscillation (BAO) measurements to estimate the dark energy model parameters for two models – the baseline Lambda cold dark matter (ΛCDM) and Chevallier–Polarski–Linder (CPL) dark energy parametrization. We compare them with the current constraints obtained from the joint analysis of the latest real data from the Pantheon SNIa compilation, CMB from Planck 2018 and BAO. Our analysis finds tighter constraints on the model parameters along with a significant reduction of correlation between H 0 and σ8,0. We find that LSST is expected to significantly improve upon the existing SNIa data in the critical analysis of cosmological models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past decades, music therapy in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) has been proven effective in physiological and psychological outcomes, including sucking, behaviour, stress reduction, neurodevelopment and promoting emotional bonding. However, not every NICU administers music therapy in their ward. Research on music therapy for neonates and their caregivers has lately accumulated, increasing the evidence of health benefits on brain development and across a variety of NICU‐related pathologies, including neurological, cardiological, pulmonary and gastrointestinal problems. Conclusively, we will present the studied methods of music therapy for clinical benefits in neonatal intensive care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic had a disproportionate impact on the health and wellbeing of people who use drugs (PWUD) in Canada. However less is known about jurisdictional commonalities and differences in COVID-19 exposure and impacts of pandemic-related restrictions on competing health and social risks among PWUD living in large urban centres. Methods: Between May 2020 and March 2021, leveraging infrastructure from ongoing cohorts of PWUD, we surveyed 1,025 participants from Vancouver (n = 640), Toronto (n = 158), and Montreal (n = 227), Canada to describe the impacts of pandemic-related restrictions on basic, health, and harm reduction needs. Results: Among participants, awareness of COVID-19 protective measures was high; however, between 10 and 24% of participants in each city-specific sample reported being unable to self-isolate. Overall, 3–19% of participants reported experiencing homelessness after the onset of the pandemic, while 20–41% reported that they went hungry more often than usual. Furthermore, 8–33% of participants reported experiencing an overdose during the pandemic, though most indicated no change in overdose frequency compared the pre-pandemic period. Most participants receiving opioid agonist therapy in the past six months reported treatment continuity during the pandemic (87–93%), however, 32% and 22% of participants in Toronto and Montreal reported missing doses due to service disruptions. There were some reports of difficulty accessing supervised consumption sites in all three sites, and drug checking services in Vancouver. Conclusion: Findings suggest PWUD in Canada experienced difficulties meeting essential needs and accessing some harm reduction services during the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings can inform preparedness planning for future public health emergencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the constraints provided by the Euclid space observatory on the physical properties of dusty star-forming galaxies (DSFGs) at |$z\gtrsim 1.5$| detected in wide area submillimetre surveys with Herschel. We adopt a physical model for the high- z progenitors of spheroidal galaxies, which form the bulk of DSFGs at |$z\gtrsim 1.5$|⁠. We improve the model by combining the output of the equations of the model with a formalism for the spectral energy distribution (SED). After optimizing the SED parameters to reproduce the measured infrared luminosity function and number counts of DFSGs, we simulated a sample of DSFGs over 100  |$\hbox{deg}^2$| and then applied a |$5\, \sigma$| detection limit of |$37\,$|  mJy at 250  |$\mu$| m. We estimated the redshifts from the Euclid data and then fitted the Euclid + Herschel photometry with the code CIGALE to extract the physical parameters. We found that 100 per cent of the Herschel galaxies are detected in all 4 Euclid bands above |$3\, \sigma$|⁠. For 87 per cent of these sources the accuracy on |$1 + z$| is better than 15 per cent. The sample comprises mostly massive, i.e. |$\log (M_{\star }/{\rm M}_{\odot })\sim 10.5{\!-\!}12.9$|⁠ , highly star forming, i.e. |$\log (\hbox{SFR}/{\rm M}_{\odot }\hbox{yr}^{-1})\sim 1.5{\!-\!}4$|⁠ , dusty, i.e. |$\log (M_{\rm dust}/{\rm M}_{\odot })\sim 7.5{\!-\!}9.9$|⁠ , galaxies. The measured stellar masses have a dispersion of 0.19 dex around the true value, thus showing that Euclid will provide reliable stellar mass estimates for the majority of the bright DSFGs at |$z\gtrsim 1.5$| detected by Herschel. We also explored the effect of complementing the Euclid photometry with that from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory/LSST. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pulmonary sarcoidosis is a multisystem granulomatous interstitial lung disease (ILD) with a variable presentation and prognosis. The early accurate detection of pulmonary sarcoidosis may prevent progression to pulmonary fibrosis, a serious and potentially life-threatening form of the disease. However, the lack of a gold-standard diagnostic test and specific radiographic findings poses challenges in diagnosing pulmonary sarcoidosis. Chest computed tomography (CT) imaging is commonly used but requires expert, chest-trained radiologists to differentiate pulmonary sarcoidosis from lung malignancies, infections, and other ILDs. In this work, we develop a multichannel, CT and radiomics-guided ensemble network (RadCT-CNNViT) with visual explainability for pulmonary sarcoidosis vs. lung cancer (LCa) classification using chest CT images. We leverage CT and hand-crafted radiomics features as input channels, and a 3D convolutional neural network (CNN) and vision transformer (ViT) ensemble network for feature extraction and fusion before a classification head. The 3D CNN sub-network captures the localized spatial information of lesions, while the ViT sub-network captures long-range, global dependencies between features. Through multichannel input and feature fusion, our model achieves the highest performance with accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, precision, F1-score, and combined AUC of 0.93 ± 0.04, 0.94 ± 0.04, 0.93 ± 0.08, 0.95 ± 0.05, 0.94 ± 0.04, and 0.97, respectively, in a five-fold cross-validation study with pulmonary sarcoidosis (n = 126) and LCa (n = 93) cases. A detailed ablation study showing the impact of CNN + ViT compared to CNN or ViT alone, and CT + radiomics input, compared to CT or radiomics alone, is also presented in this work. Overall, the AI model developed in this work offers promising potential for triaging the pulmonary sarcoidosis patients for timely diagnosis and treatment from chest CT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Connectome studies have shown how Alzheimer's disease (AD) disrupts functional and structural connectivity among brain regions. But the molecular basis of such disruptions is less studied, with most genomic/transcriptomic studies performing within-brain-region analyses. To inspect how AD rewires the correlation structure among genes in different brain regions, we performed an Inter-brain-region Differential Correlation (Inter-DC) analysis of RNA-seq data from Mount Sinai Brain Bank on four brain regions (frontal pole, superior temporal gyrus, parahippocampal gyrus and inferior frontal gyrus, comprising 264 AD and 372 control human post-mortem samples). An Inter-DC network was assembled from all pairs of genes across two brain regions that gained (or lost) correlation strength in the AD group relative to controls at FDR 1%. The differentially correlated (DC) genes in this network complemented known differentially expressed genes in AD, and likely reflects cell-intrinsic changes since we adjusted for cell compositional effects. Each brain region used a distinctive set of DC genes when coupling with other regions, with parahippocampal gyrus showing the most rewiring, consistent with its known vulnerability to AD. The Inter-DC network revealed master dysregulation hubs in AD (at genes ZKSCAN1, SLC5A3, RCC1, IL17RB, PLK4, etc.), inter-region gene modules enriched for known AD pathways (synaptic signaling, endocytosis, etc.), and candidate signaling molecules that could mediate region-region communication. The Inter-DC network generated in this study is a valuable resource of gene pairs, pathways and signaling molecules whose inter-brain-region functional coupling is disrupted in AD, thereby offering a new perspective of AD etiology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Considering inhibition of pre-adipocyte cells differentiation in adipose tissue fibrosis, we aimed to explore whether Sirt1 and Hif-1α in pre-adipocytes have a significant effect on fibrotic gene expression. Methods: 3T3-L1 pre-adipocytes were transfected with SIRT1-specific siRNA, confirmed by real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and western blotting. Additionally, cells were treated with varying concentrations of resveratrol and sirtinol as the activator and inhibitor of Sirt1, respectively. Involvement of Hif-1α was evaluated by treatment with echinomycin. Subsequently, we assessed the gene and protein expressions related to fibrosis in the extracellular matrix of adipose tissue, including collagen VI (Col VI), lysyl oxidase (Lox), matrix metalloproteinase-2 (Mmp-2), Mmp-9, and osteopontin (Opn) in pre-adipocytes through RT-PCR and western blot. Results: The current study demonstrated that Sirt1 knockdown and reduced enzyme activity significantly increased the expression of Col VI, Lox, Mmp-2, Mmp-9, and Opn genes in the treated 3T3-L1 cells compared to the control group. Interestingly, resveratrol significantly decreased the gene expression related to the fibrosis pathway. Inhibition of Hif-1α by echinomycin led to a significant reduction in Col VI, Mmp-2, and Mmp-9 gene expression in the treated group compared to the control. Conclusion: This study highlights that down-regulation of Sirt1 might be a predisposing factor in the emergence of adipose tissue fibrosis by enhancing the expression of extracellular matrix (ECM) components. Activation of Sirt1, similar to suppressing of Hif-1α in pre-adipocytes may be a beneficial approach for attenuating fibrotic gene expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Cancer immune evasion poses a significant challenge in developing effective cancer treatments. The interplay between the immune system and tumors influences cancer growth at various stages. While traditional treatments like surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, and targeted drugs remain fundamental, the emergence of immunotherapy has revolutionized cancer care. Harnessing the body's immune system, immunotherapy significantly improves patient outcomes, prompting efforts to enhance treatment efficacy. This review explores recent advancements in understanding cancer immune evasion mechanisms and evaluates various immunotherapy approaches, including cancer vaccines, adoptive cell therapy, and antibody-based treatments. It covers a broad spectrum of treatments, from established ones to those still under investigation, offering important insights for developing new anticancer immunotherapies. By analyzing resistance mechanisms, exploring combination strategies, and employing personalized approaches, the review aims to illuminate pathways for more effective treatments. Overall, this review aims to summarize recent developments in cancer immunology and immunotherapy, detailing new insights into cancer immune evasion mechanisms for identifying novel treatments. Cancer immune evasion represents a leading hallmark of cancer, posing a significant obstacle to the development of successful anticancer therapies. However, the landscape of cancer treatment has significantly evolved, transitioning into the era of immunotherapy from conventional methods such as surgical resection, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and targeted drug therapy. Immunotherapy has emerged as a pivotal component in cancer treatment, harnessing the body's immune system to combat cancer and offering improved prognostic outcomes for numerous patients. The remarkable success of immunotherapy has spurred significant efforts to enhance the clinical efficacy of existing agents and strategies. Several immunotherapeutic approaches have received approval for targeted cancer treatments, while others are currently in preclinical and clinical trials. This review explores recent progress in unraveling the mechanisms of cancer immune evasion and evaluates the clinical effectiveness of diverse immunotherapy strategies, including cancer vaccines, adoptive cell therapy, and antibody-based treatments. It encompasses both established treatments and those currently under investigation, providing a comprehensive overview of efforts to combat cancer through immunological approaches. Additionally, the article emphasizes the current developments, limitations, and challenges in cancer immunotherapy. Furthermore, by integrating analyses of cancer immunotherapy resistance mechanisms and exploring combination strategies and personalized approaches, it offers valuable insights crucial for the development of novel anticancer immunotherapeutic strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fall of the Qajar dynasty and the rise of the Pahlavi government marked the beginning of important changes in Iran. Reza Shah's reign (1925–1941) is significant in shaping the intellectual foundations of modern Iran because of the state's efforts to establish a modern government and create a modern society. The idea of one state, one culture, and one nation as a fundamental principle in state-building predates his coming to power, so, alongside state-building projects, Reza Shah undertook major cultural reforms. He established new institutions and organizations to define and propagate concepts such as national unity, national identity, loyalty to the monarchy, and some elements of modernity. This article examines how one of these institutions, Sazman-e Parvaresh-e Afkar [Thought Development Organization], active between 1938 and 1941, contributed to reconstructing Iranian national identity. It specifically analyzes the activities of the 'Public Speech Commission', a branch of this institution that sought to guide public opinion towards modernity and national unity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Azo dyes are added as coloring agents in food, beverage, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical products owing to their economic viability, aesthetic appeal, and ability to maintain color integrity. Opportunistic bacteria of Gram-negative, Pseudomonas aeruginosa employ N -acyl-homoserine lactone (AHL) communication to coordinate their collective behaviors, enhancing their ability to invade and subsequently establish dominance over higher host species. The regulation of pathogenic activities by quorum sensing (QS) mechanism is a crucial determinant of the virulence exhibited by P. aeruginosa. This study investigates the potential anti-QS effects of commercially available food coloring azo dyes: malachite green, methyl orange, tartrazine, and sunset yellow FCF against P. aeruginosa at determined MIC and sub-MIC concentrations. The research findings revealed that the selected azo dyes inhibited the QS mechanism of P. aeruginosa , diminishing its production like biofilm, EPS, pyocyanin, pyoverdine, rhamnolipid, protease, and elastase. The gene expressed for these activities is quantified by RT-qPCR, which demonstrated a substantial downregulation of QS genes, specifically the malachite green and methyl orange inhibited in the higher percentages. The impact of malachite green on the QS system gene expression suggests its potential importance as a QS inhibitor. Though adding synthetic dyes to foods and other products receives more impact, it proves to have potential anti-QS activity. Thus, this research paves the way for the effective consideration of the selected azo dyes for the antiquorum sensing candidates against P. aeruginosa. [Display omitted] • Investigated anti-quorum sensing (QS) effects of available food coloring azo dyes. • Malachite green, methyl orange, tartrazine, sunset yellow tested with P.aeruginosa. • Azo dyes inhibited the QS mechanism of P. aeruginosa , diminishing activity. • Quantified by RT-qPCR, demonstrated a downregulation of QS genes. • Impact of malachite green on las, rhl system, and PqsE gene expression was noticed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Richards equation is commonly used to model the flow of water and air through soil, and it serves as a gateway equation for multiphase flows through porous media. It is a nonlinear advection–reaction–diffusion equation that exhibits both parabolic–hyperbolic and parabolic–elliptic kind of degeneracies. In this study, we provide reliable, fully computable, and locally space–time efficient a posteriori error bounds for numerical approximations of the fully degenerate Richards equation. For showing global reliability, a nonlocal-in-time error estimate is derived individually for the time-integrated H^1(H^{-1}), L^2(L^2), and the L^2(H^1) errors. A maximum principle and a degeneracy estimator are employed for the last one. Global and local space–time efficiency error bounds are then obtained in a standard H^1(H^{-1})\cap L^2(H^1) norm. The reliability and efficiency norms employed coincide when there is no nonlinearity. Moreover, error contributors such as space discretization, time discretization, quadrature, linearization, and data oscillation are identified and separated. The estimates are also valid in a setting where iterative linearization with inexact solvers is considered. Numerical tests are conducted for nondegenerate and degenerate cases having exact solutions, as well as for a realistic case and a benchmark case. It is shown that the estimators correctly identify the errors up to a factor of the order of unity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prolonged survival of patients with metastatic disease has furthered interest in metastasis-directed therapy (MDT). There is a paucity of data comparing lung MDT modalities. Do outcomes among sublobar resection (SLR), stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT), and percutaneous ablation (PA) for lung metastases vary in terms of local control and survival? Medical records of patients undergoing lung MDT at a single cancer center between January 2015 and December 2020 were reviewed. Overall survival, local progression, and toxicity outcomes were collected. Patient and lesion characteristics were used to generate multivariable models with propensity weighted analysis. Lung MDT courses (644 total: 243 SLR, 274 SBRT, 127 PA) delivered to 511 patients were included with a median follow-up of 22 months. There were 47 local progression events in 45 patients, and 159 patients died. Two-year overall survival and local progression were 80.3% and 63.3%, 83.8% and 9.6%, and 4.1% and 11.7% for SLR, SBRT, and PA, respectively. Lesion size per 1 cm was associated with worse overall survival (hazard ratio, 1.24; P =.003) and LP (hazard ratio, 1.50; P <.001). There was no difference in overall survival by modality. Relative to SLR, there was no difference in risk of local progression with PA; however, SBRT was associated with a decreased risk (hazard ratio, 0.26; P =.023). Rates of severe toxicity were low (2.1%-2.6%) and not different among groups. This study performs a propensity weighted analysis of SLR, SBRT, and PA and shows no impact of lung MDT modality on overall survival. Given excellent local control across MDT options, a multidisciplinary approach is beneficial for patient triage and longitudinal management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This document is a summary of a special issue of the International Journal of Molecular Sciences titled "Advances in Neurodegenerative Diseases Research and Therapy 2.0." The issue focuses on the increasing attention given to neurodegenerative disorders (NDs) and the development of therapeutic strategies to combat them. The aging population is a primary risk factor for NDs, and the number of people above 60 years of age is expected to double by 2050. The special issue covers various aspects of ND research, including drug delivery methods, molecular mechanisms associated with ND etiologies, shared molecular pathways between diseases, and therapeutic approaches. The issue also highlights the importance of understanding the underlying etiologies of NDs, the common and dissimilar pathways between NDs and infections like SARS-CoV-2, and the potential side effects of targeting specific proteins in AD therapy. Finally, the issue presents original research on gene expression modulation as a therapy for Parkinson's disease and a review on the connection between physical exercise, gut microbiota, and Alzheimer's disease. The special issue demonstrates the diverse efforts in ND research and therapy development and emphasizes the need for coherent efforts to develop efficient therapies against NDs. [Extracted from the article]

Background and Objectives: The appropriate use of blood components is essential for ethical use of a precious, donated product. The aim of this study was to report in‐hospital red blood cell (RBC) transfusion after pre‐hospital transfusion by helicopter emergency medical service paramedics. A secondary aim was to assess the potential for venous blood lactate to predict ongoing transfusion. Materials and Methods: All patients who received RBC in air ambulance were transported to a single adult major trauma centre, had venous blood lactate measured on arrival and did not die before ability to transfuse RBC were included. The association of venous blood lactate with ongoing RBC transfusion was assessed using multi‐variable logistic regression analysis and reported using adjusted odds ratios (aOR). The discriminative ability of venous blood lactate was assessed using area under receiver operating characteristics curve (AUROC). Results: From 1 January 2016 to 15 May 2019, there were 165 eligible patients, and 128 patients were included. In‐hospital transfusion occurred in 97 (75.8%) of patients. Blood lactate was associated with ongoing RBC transfusion (aOR: 2.00; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.36–2.94). Blood lactate provided acceptable discriminative ability for ongoing transfusion (AUROC: 0.78; 95% CI: 0.70–0.86). Conclusions: After excluding patients with early deaths, a quarter of those who had prehospital RBC transfusion had no further transfusion in hospital. Venous blood lactate appears to provide value in identifying such patients. Lactate levels after pre‐hospital transfusion could be used as a biomarker for transfusion requirement after trauma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, we report the use of self-assembled amphiphilic pyrene-tagged poly(N-vinyl pyrrolidone) (PyPNVP) micelles as effective anticancer delivery vehicle. Self-assembly phenomenon of PyPNVP has been studied in aqueous medium. Anticancer drug doxorubicin has been encapsulated in the hydrophobic micellar core and in vitro release profiles have been explored in four different pH values (pH 7.4 − 1.4). The drug-loaded construct has shown pH-responsive higher drug release at lower pH. Anticancer activity of the construct has been studied against human squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix uteri cell line. The in vitro study has shown the highly effective tumoricidal activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key Clinical Message: Seckel syndrome is a rare autosomal recessive disorder, characterized by growth retardation and multiple anomalies associated with CNS vasculopathy. We describe a child with Seckel syndrome who developed a stroke due to non‐moyamoya vasculopathy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key Clinical Message: Besides thromboses, it's crucial to also consider the rare possibility of tumors like papillary fibroelastomas when evaluating worsening cardiopulmonary symptoms in patients with severe rheumatic mitral stenosis and atrial fibrillation. Cardiac papillary fibroelastoma is a rare and benign endocardial tumor typically found on the aortic valve. The simultaneous occurrence of rheumatic heart disease affecting the mitral valve and papillary fibroelastoma on the aortic valve is infrequent, with limited documented instances. This unique case can enhance our understanding of the clinical presentation, diagnostic approaches, management options, and implications for patient outcomes in these two conditions. We present the case of a 47‐year‐old woman who was admitted to the hospital due to worsening dyspnea and fatigue, during which time she discovered an aortic valve papillary fibroelastoma. Further investigations revealed two thrombi in her left atrium and left atrial appendage, along with significant rheumatic mitral valve stenosis. The patient underwent thrombectomy, mitral valve replacement, and valve‐sparing aortic valve tumor resection. Following surgery, the patient's recovery was unremarkable. This case report emphasizes the need for a comprehensive evaluation in patients with rheumatic mitral stenosis, considering all possible etiologies. While thrombi are typical in mitral stenosis and atrial fibrillation, the rare presence of tumors like papillary fibroelastomas should be recognized, underscoring the importance of further assessment when suspicion arises. Importantly, individuals with asymptomatic cardiac papillary fibroelastomas should undergo surgical treatment to minimize the potential risk of tumoral embolization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A proportion of end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) patients require kidney replacement therapy to maintain clinical stability. Home dialysis therapies offer convenience, autonomy and potential quality of life improvements, all of which were heightened during the COVID-19 pandemic. While the superiority of specific modalities remains uncertain, patient choice and informed decision-making remain crucial. Missed opportunities for home therapies arise from systemic, programmatic and patient-level barriers. This paper introduces the integrated care model which prioritizes the safe and effective uptake of home therapies while also emphasizing patient-centered care, informed decision-making, and comprehensive support. The integrated care framework addresses challenges in patient identification, assessment, eligibility determination, education and modality transitions. Special considerations for urgent dialysis starts are discussed, acknowledging the unique barriers faced by this population. Continuous quality improvement is emphasized, with the understanding that local challenges may require tailored solutions. Overall, the integrated care model aims to create a seamless and beneficial transition to home dialysis therapies, promoting flexibility and improved quality of life for ESKD patients globally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective(s): Despite the many benefits of mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) transplantation for tissue regeneration, there are some limitations to using them, including the high costs, applying invasive procedures, the possibility of transplant rejection, and cell malignancy. This study aimed to investigate the effect of secretions of bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) with the cell-free strategy on damaged sciatic nerve with an emphasis on the role of apoptosis and the expression of myelin protein zero (MPZ) and nerve growth factor (NGF) proteins. Materials and Methods: BMSCs were cultured and a 25-fold concentrated conditioned medium (CM) from the cells was provided. After creating a crush injury in the left sciatic nerve of male rats, BMSCs or CM were injected into the injured site of the nerve. Four weeks later, the expression of MPZ, NGF, Bax, and Bcl-2 proteins in the sciatic nerve and histological parameters of the sciatic nerve and gastrocnemius muscle were assessed. Results: The results demonstrated that injection of CM decreased apoptosis and increased expression of MPZ and NGF proteins, improving remyelination and regeneration of the sciatic nerve almost as much as the transplantation of the BMSCs themselves compared to the control group. Conclusion: The results suggest that BMSC secretions may improve remyelination and regeneration of damaged sciatic nerve by increasing the expression of MPZ and NGF and decreasing apoptosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Chronic low back pain (CLBP) is known as an important debilitating health condition among older women. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of eight-week virtual reality training (VRT) exercises on postural sway and physical function performance (PFP) among older women suffering from CLBP. METHODS: Twenty-seven older women presenting with CLBP were randomized into experimental and control groups. The experimental group was instructed to perform 30-minute VRT exercises three times a week for eight weeks. Plantar pressure variables [sway velocity (SV) and anterior-posterior (AP) and medial-lateral (ML) fluctuations of the center of pressure (CoP)], 30-second chair stand test (30CST), and timed up and go (TUG) test were recorded. RESULTS: The VRT group exhibited significant decreases in SV (p = 0.002), AP (p = 0.008), and ML (p = 0.02) fluctuations. Also, the performance of the VRT group in the 30CST and TUG tests significantly improved after the exercises (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: According to the results, VRT and the program used in this study should be used to enhance balance and PFP in older women with CLBP who mostly prefer activities that are accessible and feasible in low-risk environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]