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Glioblastoma (GB), a prevalent and highly malignant primary brain tumour with a very high mortality rate due to its resistance to conventional therapies and invasive nature, resulting in 5-year survival rates of only 4-17%. Despite recent advancements in cancer management, the survival rates for GB patients have not significantly improved over the last 10-20 years. Consequently, there exists a critical unmet need for innovative therapies. One promising approach for GB is Targeted Alpha Therapy (TAT), which aims to selectively deliver potentially therapeutic radiation doses to malignant cells and the tumour microenvironment while minimising radiation exposure to surrounding normal tissue with or without conventional external beam radiation. This approach has shown promise in both pre-clinical and clinical settings. A review was conducted following PRISMA 2020 guidelines across Medline, SCOPUS, and Embase, identifying 34 relevant studies out of 526 initially found. In pre-clinical studies, TAT demonstrated high binding specificity to targeted GB cells, with affinity rates between 60.0% and 84.2%, and minimal binding to non-targeted cells (4.0-5.6%). This specificity significantly enhanced cytotoxic effects and improved biodistribution when delivered intratumorally. Mice treated with TAT showed markedly higher median survival rates compared to control groups. In clinical trials, TAT applied to recurrent GB (rGB) displayed varying success rates in extending overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival. Particularly effective when integrated into treatment regimens for both newly diagnosed and recurrent cases, TAT increased the median OS by 16.1% in newly diagnosed GB and by 36.4% in rGB, compared to current standard therapies. Furthermore, it was generally well tolerated with minimal adverse effects. These findings underscore the potential of TAT as a viable therapeutic option in the management of GB., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Currently, the control of rhizosphere selection on farms has been applied to achieve enhancements in phenotype, extending from improvements in single root characteristics to the dynamic nature of entire crop systems. Several specific signals, regulatory elements, and mechanisms that regulate the initiation, morphogenesis, and growth of new lateral or adventitious root species have been identified, but much more work remains. Today, phenotyping technology drives the development of root traits. Available models for simulation can support all phenotyping decisions (root trait improvement). The detection and use of markers for quantitative trait loci (QTLs) are effective for enhancing selection efficiency and increasing reproductive genetic gains. Furthermore, QTLs may help wheat breeders select the appropriate roots for efficient nutrient acquisition. Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) or alignment of sequences can only be helpful when they are associated with phenotypic variation for root development and elongation. Here, we focus on major root development processes and detail important new insights recently generated regarding the wheat genome. The first part of this review paper discusses the root morphology, apical meristem, transcriptional control, auxin distribution, phenotyping of the root system, and simulation models. In the second part, the molecular genetics of the wheat root system, SNPs, TFs, and QTLs related to root development as well as genome editing (GE) techniques for the improvement of root traits in wheat are discussed. Finally, we address the effect of omics strategies on root biomass production and summarize existing knowledge of the main molecular mechanisms involved in wheat root development and elongation., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Alrajhi, Alharbi, Beecham and Alotaibi.)

Objectives: Public awareness initiatives have attracted growing attention globally, as a strategy to reduce low-value care and disinformation. However, knowledge gap remains in determining their effects. The aim of this systematic review was to summarize existing evidence to date on global effectiveness of public awareness initiatives., Methods: Primary quantitative studies focusing on passive delivery of public awareness initiatives that targeted health professionals were included. Eligible studies were identified through search of MEDLINE, Embase, Emcare, the Cochrane Library, PsycINFO, Business Source Complete, Emerald Insight, and Google (initially on December 19, 2018, followed by updated search between July 8-10, 2019, and then between March 8-9, 2022) and the reference list of relevant studies. Methodological quality of included studies was assessed using modified McMaster critical appraisal tool. A narrative synthesis of the study outcomes was conducted., Results: Twenty studies from United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and multicountry were included. Nineteen studies focused on Choosing Wisely initiative and one focused on National Institute of Clinical Excellence reminders. Most studies investigated one recommendation of a specialty. The findings showed conflicting evidence on the effectiveness of public awareness initiatives, suggesting passive delivery has limited success in reducing low-value care among health professionals., Conclusions: This review highlights the complexity of change in an established practice pattern in health care. As passive delivery of public awareness initiatives has limited potential to initiate and sustain change, wide-ranging intervention components need to be integrated for a successful implementation., Competing Interests: The authors disclose no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Adequate sleep is essential for healthy development in childhood and adolescence. Healthy sleep contributes to good physical health, immune function, mental health, and academic performance. The regulation and architecture of sleep change greatly across childhood and adolescence, and the ability to obtain sufficient sleep is impacted by a range of factors that change with maturation. This article describes normal sleep across childhood and adolescence and discusses some of the most common barriers to adequate sleep, including early school start times, technology use, and changes to circadian rhythms, and sleep homeostasis across puberty., Competing Interests: Disclosure The authors have nothing to disclose., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Adequate sleep is essential for healthy development in childhood and adolescence. Healthy sleep contributes to good physical health, immune function, mental health, and academic performance. The regulation and architecture of sleep change greatly across childhood and adolescence, and the ability to obtain sufficient sleep is impacted by a range of factors that change with maturation. This article describes normal sleep across childhood and adolescence and discusses some of the most common barriers to adequate sleep, including early school start times, technology use, and changes to circadian rhythms, and sleep homeostasis across puberty., Competing Interests: Disclosure The authors have nothing to disclose., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Semantic memory (SM) is a type of long-term memory associated with the storage of general information about the world. Here we assessed the characteristics of the SM battery, developed by Catricalà et al. (2013), in a sample of Colombian children. This battery was originally conceived to evaluate adults, and features six subtests that assess SM in different modalities, using a common set of 48 stimuli in both living and nonliving categories. The design of the current study is of a cross-sectional and exploratory type. The sample was composed of 111 children, 57 boys (51%) and 54 girls (49%), who were 6 ( n = 68) and 7 ( n = 43) years old and had no intellectual disability. Robust linear regression models and correlation networks were used. We found an effect of age on general intelligence after correcting for gender, and no differences on the six subtest scores after corrections for gender and age were performed. Furthermore, age was found to be positively associated with the naming of colored photographs ( β = . 75, p = . 039), naming in response to an oral description ( β = 1 . 81, p = . 039), picture sorting at four levels ( β = 7 . 22, p = . 029), and sentence verification ( β = 26 . 66, p = . 01). In addition, there were differences between the results obtained in adults in the original study and in the children of our study. This exploratory study supports the feasibility of the Spanish translation of the Catricalà et al. (2013) battery to assess SM in children with a nonclinical condition. Future studies are needed to evaluate the psychometric properties of this SM battery, and to corroborate and expand our findings in a larger sample of control children, and in children with some degree of intellectual disability or suffering of some neurodegenerative or psychiatric conditions.

Objective: To investigate the association between ABO blood group and upper limb venous thrombosis (VT) risk in patients with peripherally inserted central catheters (PICC)., Methods: Single centre retrospective cohort study. A cohort of patients who underwent PICC insertion from September 2010 to August 2014 were followed up for symptomatic VT presentations diagnosed by ultrasound. Blood group status was identified from hospital information systems., Results: 2270 participants had 3020 PICCs inserted. There were 124 cases of symptomatic VT, an incident rate of 4% [95% confidence interval, CI (3-5%)]. Univariate analysis adjusting for the clustered sample showed that having chemotherapy, two or more previous PICCs, a larger catheter size, a diagnosis of cancer and having a blood group B were all associated with an increased risk of a VT. In the multivariate analysis, PICC diameter, cancer diagnosis and blood group B were all independently associated with increased risk of VT., Conclusion: Patients undergoing PICC insertion with a blood group B appear to have a higher risk of VT, independent of risks attached to the PICC procedure and cancer diagnosis. Without any existing guidelines for PICC-related VT, this investigation creates a platform for further research to be conducted in order to establish guidelines. Advances in knowledge: Previous studies investigating VT risk associated with blood group status related to large heterogeneous populations. In this article, we look at patients specifically with PICC, which reduces the heterogeneity in the cohort. In addition, due to the substantial number of patients enrolled, we had a chance to perform multivariate analyses with statistical significance.

User fees are used to recover costs and discourage unnecessary attendance at primary care clinics in many developing countries. In South Africa, user fees for children aged under 6 years and pregnant women were removed in 1994, and in 1997 all user fees at all primary health care clinics were abolished. The intention of these policy changes was to improve access to health services for previously disadvantaged communities. We investigated the impact of these changes on clinic attendance patterns in Hlabisa health district. Average quarterly new registrations and total attendances for preventive services (antenatal care, immunization, growth monitoring) and curative services (treatment of ailments) at a mobile primary health care unit were studied from 1992 to 1998. Regression analysis was undertaken to assess whether trends were statistically significant. There was a sustained increase in new registrations (P = 0.0001) and total attendances (P = 0.0001) for curative services, and a fall in new registrations (P = 0.01) and total attendances for immunization and growth monitoring (P = 0.0002) over the study period. The upturn in demand for curative services started at the time of the first policy change. The decreases in antenatal registrations (P = 0.07) and attendances (P = 0.09) were not statistically significant. The number of new registrations for immunization and growth monitoring increased following the first policy change but declined thereafter. We found no evidence that the second policy change influenced underlying trends. The removal of user fees improved access to curative services but this may have happened at the expense of some preventive services. Governments should remain vigilant about the effects of new health policies in order to ensure that objectives are being met.