Sex-Specific Risk Factors and Clinical Dementia Outcomes for White Matter Hyperintensities in a large South Korean Cohort.

Objective: White matter hyperintensities (WMH) on brain MRI images are the most common feature of cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD). Studies have yielded divergent findings on the modifiable risk factors for WMH and WMH's impact on cognitive decline. Mounting evidence suggests sex differences in WMH burden and subsequent effects on cognition. Thus, we aimed to identify sex-specific modifiable risk factors for WMH. We then explored whether there were sex-specific associations of WMH to longitudinal clinical dementia outcomes. Methods: Participants aged 49-89 years were recruited at memory clinics and underwent a T2-weighted fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) 3T MRI scan to measure WMH volume. Participants were then recruited for two additional follow-up visits, 1-2 years apart, where clinical dementia rating sum of boxes (CDR-SB) scores were measured. We first explored which known modifiable risk factors for WMH were significant when tested for a sex-interaction effect. We additionally tested which risk factors were significant when stratified by sex. We then tested to see whether WMH is longitudinally associated with clinical dementia that is sex-specific. Results: The study utilized data from 713 participants (241 males, 472 females) with a mean age of 72.3 years and 72.8 years for males and females, respectively. 57.3% and 59.5% of participants were diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) for males and females, respectively. 40.7% and 39.4% were diagnosed with dementia for males and females, respectively. Of the 713 participants, 181 participants had CDR-SB scores available for three longitudinal time points. Compared to males, females showed stronger association of age to WMH volume. Type 2 Diabetes was associated with greater WMH burden in females but not males. Finally, baseline WMH burden was associated with worse clinical dementia outcomes longitudinally in females but not in males. Discussion: Elderly females have an accelerated increase in cerebrovascular burden as they age, and subsequently are more vulnerable to clinical dementia decline due to CSVD. Additionally, females are more susceptible to the cerebrovascular consequences of diabetes. These findings emphasize the importance of considering sex when examining the consequences of CSVD. Future research should explore the underlying mechanisms driving these sex differences and personalized prevention and treatment strategies. Clinical trial registration: The BICWALZS is registered in the Korean National Clinical Trial Registry (Clinical Research Information Service; identifier, KCT0003391). Registration Date 2018/12/14.

Biomedical Device Surface Treatment by Laser-Driven Hydroxyapatite Penetration-Synthesis Technique for Gapless PEEK-to-Bone Integration.

Polyetheretherketone (PEEK), a bioinert polymer known for its mechanical properties similar to bone, is capable of averting stress shielding. Due to these attributes, it finds applications in diverse fields like orthopedics, encompassing cervical disc replacement for the neck and spine, along with dentistry and plastic surgery. However, due to insufficient bonding with bone, various methods such as hydroxyapatite (HA) coating on the surface are attempted. Nonetheless, the interface between the polymer and ceramic, two different materials, tended to delaminate after transplantation, posing challenges in preventing implant escape or dislodgement. This research delves into the laser-driven hydroxyapatite penetration-synthesis technique. Differing from conventional coating methods that bond layers of dissimilar materials like HA and PEEK, this technology focuses on synthesizing and infiltrating ionized HA within the PEEK substrate resulting in an interface-free HA-PEEK surface. Conversely, HA-PEEK with this technology applied achieves complete, gap-free direct bone-implant integration.  Our research involved the analysis of various aspects. By means of these, we quantitatively assesed the enhanced bone bonding characteristics of HA-PEEK surfaces treated with this approach and offered and explanation for the mechanism responsible for direct bone integration.

Multilayered collagen-lipid hybrid nanovesicles for retinol stabilization and efficient skin delivery.

Lipid-based nanocarriers have been extensively utilized for the solubilization and cutaneous delivery of water-insoluble active ingredients in skincare formulations. However, their practical application is often limited by structural instability, leading to premature release and degradation of actives. Here we present highly robust multilamellar nanovesicles, prepared by the polyionic self-assembly of unilamellar vesicles with hydrolyzed collagen peptides, to stabilize all-trans-retinol and enhance its cutaneous delivery. Our results reveal that the reinforced multilayer structure substantially enhances dispersion stability under extremely harsh conditions, like freeze-thaw cycles, and stabilizes the encapsulated retinol. Interestingly, these multilamellar vesicles exhibit significantly lower cytotoxicity to human dermal fibroblasts than their unilamellar counterparts, likely due to their smaller particle number per weight, minimizing potential disruptions to cellular membranes. In artificial skin models, retinol-loaded multilamellar vesicles effectively upregulate collagen-related gene expression while suppressing the synthesis of metalloproteinases. These findings suggest that the robust multilamellar vesicles can serve as effective nanocarriers for the efficient delivery and stabilization of bioactive compounds in cutaneous applications.

Application of ultrasonographic human estimated foetal weight formulas to cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) at 129-132 days of gestation: A comparative study of estimated and actual birthweight.

BACKGROUND: Cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) are essential in biomedical research, including reproductive studies. However, the application of human estimated foetal weight (EFW) formulas using ultrasonography (USG) in these non-human primates is not well established. OBJECTIVES: This study aims to evaluate the applicability of human EFW formulas for estimating foetal weight in cynomolgus monkeys at approximately 130 days of gestation. METHODS: Our study involved nine pregnant cynomolgus monkeys. We measured foetal parameters, including biparietal diameter, head circumference, abdominal circumference and femur length using USG. The EFW was calculated using 11 human EFW formulas. The actual birthweight (ABW) was recorded following Cesarean section, the day after the EFW calculation. For comparing EFW and ABW, we employed statistical methods such as mean absolute percentage error (APE) and Bland-Altman analysis. RESULTS: The ABW ranged between 200.36 and 291.33 g. Among the 11 formulas, the Combs formula showed the lowest APE (4.3%) and highest correlation with ABW (p < 0.001). Notably, EFW and ABW differences for the Combs formula were ≤5% in 66.7% and ≤10% in 100% of cases. The Bland-Altman analysis supported these results, showing that all cases fell within the limits of agreement. CONCLUSIONS: The Combs formula is applicable for estimating the weight of cynomolgus monkey fetuses with USG at approximately 130 days of gestation. Our observations suggest that the Combs formula can be applied in the prenatal care and biomedical research of this species.

The Effect of A2 Milk on Gastrointestinal Symptoms in Comparison to A1/A2 Milk: A Single-center, Randomized, Double-blind, Cross-over Study.

ß-Casein, a major protein in cow's milk, is divided into the A1 and A2 type variants. Digestion of A1 ß-casein yields the peptide ß-casomorphin-7 which could cause gastrointestinal (GI) discomfort but A2 milk containing only A2 ß-casein might be more beneficial than A1/A2 (regular) milk. The aim of this study was to evaluate the differences in GI discomfort after ingestion of A2 milk and A1/A2 milk. A randomized, double-blind, cross-over human trial was performed with 40 subjects who experienced GI discomfort following milk consumption. For each intervention period, either A2 milk first (A2→A1/A2) or A1/A2 milk was first consumed for 2 weeks (A1/A2→A2) following a 2-week washout period. GI symptom rating scale (GSRS) scores, questionnaire for digestive symptoms, and laboratory tests including fecal calprotectin were evaluated. For symptom analysis, generalized estimating equations gamma model was used. A2 milk increased bloating (P = 0.041) and loose stools (P = 0.026) compared to A1/A2 milk in GSRS. However, A2 milk caused less abdominal pain (P = 0.050), fecal urgency (P < 0.001) and borborygmus (P = 0.007) compared to A1/A2 milk in questionnaire for digestive symptoms. In addition, fecal calprotectin also decreased or less increased after consumption of A2 milk compared to A1/A2 milk (P = 0.030), and this change was more pronounced in males (P = 0.005) than in females. There were no significant adverse reactions during the trial. A2 milk alleviated digestive discomfort in Koreans following A2 milk consumption (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT06252636 and CRIS KCT0009301).

Ultrathin, High-Aspect-Ratio Bismuth Sulfohalide Nanowire Bundles for Solution-Processed Flexible Photodetectors.

In this study, a novel synthesis of ultrathin, highly uniform colloidal bismuth sulfohalide (BiSX where X = Cl, Br, I) nanowires (NWs) and NW bundles (NBs) for room-temperature and solution-processed flexible photodetectors are presented. High-aspect-ratio bismuth sulfobromide (BiSBr) NWs are synthesized via a heat-up method using bismuth bromide and elemental S as precursors and 1-dodecanethiol as a solvent. Bundling of the BiSBr NWs occurs upon the addition of 1-octadecene as a co-solvent. The morphologies of the BiSBr NBs are easily tailored from sheaf-like structures to spherulite nanostructures by changing the solvent ratio. The optical bandgaps are modulated from 1.91 (BiSCl) and 1.88 eV (BiSBr) to 1.53 eV (BiSI) by changing the halide compositions. The optical bandgap of the ultrathin BiSBr NWs and NBs exhibits blueshift, whose origin is investigated through density functional theory-based first-principles calculations. Visible-light photodetectors are fabricated using BiSBr NWs and NBs via solution-based deposition followed by solid-state ligand exchanges. High photo-responsivities and external quantum efficiencies (EQE) are obtained for BiSBr NW and NB films even under strain, which offer a unique opportunity for the application of the novel BiSX NWs and NBs in flexible and environmentally friendly optoelectronic devices.

Erratum: Text Correction. Evaluation of the clinical and radiographic effectiveness of treating peri-implant bone defects with a new biphasic calcium phosphate bone graft: a prospective, multicenter randomized controlled trial.

This corrects the article on p. 306 in vol. 53, PMID: 37524378.

Clinical Outcomes of Endoscopic Butterfly Inlay Cartilage Myringoplasty.

OBJECTIVE: To review a 3-year case series of endoscopic butterfly inlay cartilage myringoplasty performed by a single surgeon (W.S.K.) and analyze the clinical surgical outcomes. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective study. SETTING: Tertiary care academic center. PATIENTS: We enrolled 60 ears with tympanic membrane (TM) perforation, receiving endoscopic inlay butterfly myringoplasty between 2019 and 2022. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: We reviewed patients' demographics, size and location of TM perforation, operation time, complications, and postoperative pain evaluated by the numerical rating scale (NRS). We analyzed the graft uptake success rate in 5 weeks and the perforation closure rate in 4 months after surgery. We also compared the air-bone gap (ABG) before and after the surgery. RESULTS: Among the 60 ears included, the mean age was 57.0 years, and 78.3% (47 of 60) had small perforations. The average operation time was 48.9 ± 11.5 minutes, and the postoperative NRS was 2.0 ± 1.6. The immediate graft uptake success rate evaluated at postoperative 5 weeks was 96.7% (58 of 60), with myringitis occurring in three ears. Except for 11 patients lost to follow-up, the perforation closure rate evaluated at postoperative 4 months was 100% (49 of 49). The mean ABG significantly improved from preoperative status (8.87 ± 5.51 dB HL) to postoperative 4 months (6.22 ± 6.03 dB HL) (p = 0.019). CONCLUSIONS: A single surgeon's success rate for endoscopic butterfly inlay cartilage myringoplasty was almost 100%. This surgical procedure is safe and effective, with a high graft success rate.

Comparison of digital and analog [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT for detecting post-prostatectomy biochemical recurrence in prostate cancer patients: a prospective study.

Digital positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) has shown enhanced sensitivity and spatial resolution compared with analog PET/CT. The present study compared the diagnostic performance of digital and analog PET/CT with [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 in prostate cancer patients who experienced biochemical recurrence (BCR) after prostatectomy. Forty prostate cancer patients who experienced BCR, defined as serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) concentrations exceeding 0.2 ng/mL after prostatectomy, were prospectively recruited. These patients were stratified into three groups based on their serum PSA levels. [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 was injected into each patient, and images were acquired using both analog and digital PET/CT scanners. Analog and digital PET/CT showed comparable lesion detection rate (71.8% vs. 74.4%), sensitivity (85.0% vs. 90.0%), and positive predictive value (PPV, 100.0% vs. 100.0%). However, digital PET/CT detected more lesions (139 vs. 111) and had higher maximum standardized uptake values (SUVmax, 14.3 vs. 10.3) and higher kappa index (0.657 vs. 0.502) than analog PET/CT, regardless of serum PSA levels. On both analog and digital PET/CT, lesion detection rates and interrater agreement increased with increasing serum PSA levels. Compared with analog PET/CT, digital PET/CT detected more lesions with a higher SUVmax and better interrater agreement in prostate cancer patients who experienced BCR after prostatectomy.

Treatment outcomes of elective neck dissection in intrathoracic esophageal carcinoma.

In the present study, the outcomes of elective neck dissection in patients with intrathoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma were investigated. From January 2016 to December 2022, 21 patients who underwent esophagectomy and elective neck dissection (both neck level IV) for intrathoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma were enrolled. Of these 21 patients, 19 patients were male and 2 were female. A total of 11 patients received concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) as preoperative treatment. As a result of elective neck dissection at both neck level IV, occult neck metastasis of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma was diagnosed in 3 cases, all of which involved left neck lymph nodes. The incidence of occult neck metastasis was statistically significant in patients with preoperative CCRT, high T stage and high N stage (P<0.05). In addition, 16 out of 21 patients had been under follow-up without disease recurrence after the completion of treatment. However, 3 out of 21 patients succumbed to esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and 2 out of 21 patients were alive with stable disease of esophageal carcinoma. The follow-up period was 19.2±18.4 months. In conclusion, three-field lymph node dissection for intrathoracic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma may be necessary in patients with certain phenotypes, such that collaboration between thoracic surgeons and otolaryngologists may help reduce surgical complications.

Gastric microbiome signature for predicting metachronous recurrence after endoscopic resection of gastric neoplasm.

BACKGROUND: Changes in gastric microbiome are associated with gastric carcinogenesis. Studies on the association between gastric mucosa-associated gastric microbiome (MAM) and metachronous gastric cancer are limited. This study aimed to identify gastric MAM as a predictive factor for metachronous recurrence following endoscopic resection of gastric neoplasms. METHOD: Microbiome analyses were conducted for 81 patients in a prospective cohort to investigate surrogate markers to predict metachronous recurrence. Gastric MAM in non-cancerous corporal biopsy specimens was evaluated using Illumina MiSeq platform targeting 16S ribosomal DNA. RESULTS: Over a median follow-up duration of 53.8 months, 16 metachronous gastric neoplasms developed. Baseline gastric MAM varied with Helicobacter pylori infection status, but was unaffected by initial pathologic diagnosis, presence of atrophic gastritis, intestinal metaplasia, or synchronous lesions. The group with metachronous recurrence did not exhibit distinct phylogenetic diversity compared with the group devoid of recurrence but showed significant difference in ß-diversity. The study population could be classified into two distinct gastrotypes based on baseline gastric MAM: gastrotype 1, Helicobacter-abundant; gastrotype 2: Akkermansia-abundant. Patients in gastrotype 2 showed higher risk of metachronous recurrence than gastrotype (Cox proportional hazard analysis, adjusted hazard ratio [95% confidence interval]: 5.10 [1.09-23.79]). CONCLUSIONS: Gastric cancer patients can be classified into two distinct gastrotype groups by their MAM profiles, which were associated with different risk of metachronous recurrence.

Exosomal miR-196b secreted from bronchial epithelial cells chronically exposed to low-dose PM2.5 promotes invasiveness of adjacent and lung cancer cells.

Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is a risk factor for pulmonary diseases and lung cancer, and inhaled PM2.5 is mainly deposited in the bronchial epithelium. In this study, we investigated the effect of long-term exposure to low-dose PM2.5 on BEAS-2B cells derived from the normal bronchial epithelium. BEAS-2B cells chronically exposed to a concentration of 5µg/ml PM2.5 for 30 passages displayed the phenotype promoting epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and cell invasion. Cellular internalization of exosomes (designated PM2.5 Exo) extracted from BEAS-2B cells chronically exposed to low-dose PM2.5 promoted cell invasion in vitro and metastatic potential in vivo. Hence, to identify the key players driving phenotypic alterations, we analyzed microRNA (miRNA) expression profiles in PM2.5 Exo. Five miRNAs with altered expression were selected: miRNA-196b-5p, miR-135a-2-5p, miR-3117-3p, miR-218-5p, and miR-497-5p. miR-196b-5p was the most upregulated in both BEAS-2B cells and isolated exosomes after PM2.5 exposure. In a functional validation study, genetically modified exosomes overexpressing a miR-196b-5p mimic induced an enhanced invasive phenotype in BEAS-2B cells. Conversely, miR-196b-5p inhibition diminished the PM2.5-enhanced EMT and cell invasion. These findings indicate that exosomal miR-196b-5p may be a candidate biomarker for predicting the malignant behavior of the bronchial epithelium and a therapeutic target for inhibiting PM2.5-triggered pathogenesis.

Recommendations for Adult Immunization by the Korean Society of Infectious Diseases, 2023: Minor Revisions to the 3rd Edition.

The Korean Society of Infectious Diseases has been regularly developing guidelines for adult immunization since 2007. In 2023, the guidelines for the following seven vaccines were revised: influenza, herpes zoster, pneumococcal, tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis (Tdap), human papillomavirus (HPV), meningococcal, and rabies vaccines. For the influenza vaccine, a recommendation for enhanced vaccines for the elderly was added. For the herpes zoster vaccine, a recommendation for the recombinant zoster vaccine was added. For the pneumococcal vaccine, the current status of the 15-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine and 20-valent PCV was described. For the Tdap vaccine, the possibility of using Tdap instead of tetanus-diphtheria vaccine was described. For the HPV vaccine, the expansion of the eligible age for vaccination was described. For the meningococcal vaccine, a recommendation for the meningococcal B vaccine was added. For the rabies vaccine, the number of pre-exposure prophylaxis doses was changed. This manuscript documents the summary and rationale of the revisions for the seven vaccines. For the vaccines not mentioned in this manuscript, the recommendations in the 3rd edition of the Vaccinations for Adults textbook shall remain in effect.

Real-World Application of Artificial Intelligence for Detecting Pathologic Gastric Atypia and Neoplastic Lesions.

PURPOSE: Results of initial endoscopic biopsy of gastric lesions often differ from those of the final pathological diagnosis. We evaluated whether an artificial intelligence-based gastric lesion detection and diagnostic system, ENdoscopy as AI-powered Device Computer Aided Diagnosis for Gastroscopy (ENAD CAD-G), could reduce this discrepancy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively collected 24,948 endoscopic images of early gastric cancers (EGCs), dysplasia, and benign lesions from 9,892 patients who underwent esophagogastroduodenoscopy between 2011 and 2021. The diagnostic performance of ENAD CAD-G was evaluated using the following real-world datasets: patients referred from community clinics with initial biopsy results of atypia (n=154), participants who underwent endoscopic resection for neoplasms (Internal video set, n=140), and participants who underwent endoscopy for screening or suspicion of gastric neoplasm referred from community clinics (External video set, n=296). RESULTS: ENAD CAD-G classified the referred gastric lesions of atypia into EGC (accuracy, 82.47%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 76.46%-88.47%), dysplasia (88.31%; 83.24%-93.39%), and benign lesions (83.12%; 77.20%-89.03%). In the Internal video set, ENAD CAD-G identified dysplasia and EGC with diagnostic accuracies of 88.57% (95% CI, 83.30%-93.84%) and 91.43% (86.79%-96.07%), respectively, compared with an accuracy of 60.71% (52.62%-68.80%) for the initial biopsy results (P<0.001). In the External video set, ENAD CAD-G classified EGC, dysplasia, and benign lesions with diagnostic accuracies of 87.50% (83.73%-91.27%), 90.54% (87.21%-93.87%), and 88.85% (85.27%-92.44%), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: ENAD CAD-G is superior to initial biopsy for the detection and diagnosis of gastric lesions that require endoscopic resection. ENAD CAD-G can assist community endoscopists in identifying gastric lesions that require endoscopic resection.

Kidney, ureter, and urinary bladder segmentation based on non-contrast enhanced computed tomography images using modified U-Net.

This study was performed to segment the urinary system as the basis for diagnosing urinary system diseases on non-contrast computed tomography (CT). This study was conducted with images obtained between January 2016 and December 2020. During the study period, non-contrast abdominopelvic CT scans of patients and diagnosed and treated with urinary stones at the emergency departments of two institutions were collected. Region of interest extraction was first performed, and urinary system segmentation was performed using a modified U-Net. Thereafter, fivefold cross-validation was performed to evaluate the robustness of the model performance. In fivefold cross-validation results of the segmentation of the urinary system, the average dice coefficient was 0.8673, and the dice coefficients for each class (kidney, ureter, and urinary bladder) were 0.9651, 0.7172, and 0.9196, respectively. In the test dataset, the average dice coefficient of best performing model in fivefold cross validation for whole urinary system was 0.8623, and the dice coefficients for each class (kidney, ureter, and urinary bladder) were 0.9613, 0.7225, and 0.9032, respectively. The segmentation of the urinary system using the modified U-Net proposed in this study could be the basis for the detection of kidney, ureter, and urinary bladder lesions, such as stones and tumours, through machine learning.

Mortality in sea lions is associated with the introduction of the H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4b virus in Brazil October 2023: whole genome sequencing and phylogenetic analysis.

Clade 2.3.4.4b highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 virus was detected in the South American sea lions found dead in Santa Catarina, Brazil, in October 2023. Whole genome sequencing and comparative phylogenetic analysis were conducted to investigate the origin, genetic diversity, and zoonotic potentials of the H5N1 viruses. The H5N1 viruses belonged to the genotype B3.2 of clade 2.3.4.4b H5N1 virus, which was identified in North America and disseminated to South America. They have acquired new amino acid substitutions related to mammalian host affinity. Our study provides insights into the genetic landscape of HPAI H5N1 viruses in Brazil, highlighting the continuous evolutionary processes contributing to their possible adaptation to mammalian hosts.

Neuroimaging and natural language processing-based classification of suicidal thoughts in major depressive disorder.

Suicide is a growing public health problem around the world. The most important risk factor for suicide is underlying psychiatric illness, especially depression. Detailed classification of suicide in patients with depression can greatly enhance personalized suicide control efforts. This study used unstructured psychiatric charts and brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) records from a psychiatric outpatient clinic to develop a machine learning-based suicidal thought classification model. The study included 152 patients with new depressive episodes for development and 58 patients from a geographically different hospital for validation. We developed an eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost)-based classification models according to the combined types of data: independent components-map weightings from brain T1-weighted MRI and topic probabilities from clinical notes. Specifically, we used 5 psychiatric symptom topics and 5 brain networks for models. Anxiety and somatic symptoms topics were significantly more common in the suicidal group, and there were group differences in the default mode and cortical midline networks. The clinical symptoms plus structural brain patterns model had the highest area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (0.794) versus the clinical notes only and brain MRI only models (0.748 and 0.738, respectively). The results were consistent across performance metrics and external validation. Our findings suggest that focusing on personalized neuroimaging and natural language processing variables improves evaluation of suicidal thoughts.

Phase I/II trials of human bone marrow-derived clonal mesenchymal stem cells for treatment of adults with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis.

BACKGROUND: Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) play important roles in therapeutic applications by regulating immune responses. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the safety and efficacy of allogenic human bone marrow-derived clonal MSCs (hcMSCs) in subjects with moderate to severe atopic dermatitis (AD). METHODS: The study included a phase I open-label trial followed by a phase II randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial that involved 72 subjects with moderate to severe AD. RESULTS: In phase I, intravenous (IV) administration of hcMSCs at two doses (1×106 and 5×105 cells/kg) was safe and well-tolerated in 20 subjects. Since there was no difference between the two dosage groups (P=0.9), it was decided to administer low-dose hcMSCs only for phase II. In phase II, subjects receiving three weekly IV infusions of hcMSCs at 5x105 cells/kg showed a higher proportion of an eczema area and severity index (EASI)-50 response at week 12 compared to the placebo group (P=0.038). The differences between groups in the dermatology life quality index and pruritus numerical-rating scale scores were not statistically significant. Most adverse events were mild or moderate and resolved by the end of the study period. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings demonstrate that hcMSCs treatment resulted in a significantly higher rate of achieving EASI-50 at 12 weeks compared to the control group in subjects with moderate to severe AD. The safety profile of hcMSCs treatment was acceptable. Further larger-scale studies are necessary to confirm these preliminary findings.

TBHQ Alleviates Particulate Matter-Induced Pyroptosis in Human Nasal Epithelial Cells.

Pyroptosis represents a type of cell death mechanism notable for its cell membrane disruption and the subsequent release of proinflammatory cytokines. The Nod-like receptor family pyrin domain containing inflammasome 3 (NLRP3) plays a critical role in the pyroptosis mechanism associated with various diseases resulting from particulate matter (PM) exposure. Tert-butylhydroquinone (tBHQ) is a synthetic antioxidant commonly used in a variety of foods and products. The aim of this study is to examine the potential of tBHQ as a therapeutic agent for managing sinonasal diseases induced by PM exposure. The occurrence of NLRP3 inflammasome-dependent pyroptosis in RPMI 2650 cells treated with PM < 4 µm in size was confirmed using Western blot analysis and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay results for the pyroptosis metabolites IL-1ß and IL-18. In addition, the inhibitory effect of tBHQ on PM-induced pyroptosis was confirmed using Western blot and immunofluorescence techniques. The inhibition of tBHQ-mediated pyroptosis was abolished upon nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) knockdown, indicating its involvement in the antioxidant mechanism. tBHQ showed potential as a therapeutic agent for sinonasal diseases induced by PM because NLRP3 inflammasome activation was effectively suppressed via the Nrf2 pathway.

Strain-Modulated Flexible Bio-Organic/Graphene/PET Sensors Based on DNA-Curcumin Biopolymer.

In recent years, there has been growing interest in the development of metal-free, environmentally friendly, and cost-effective biopolymer-based piezoelectric strain sensors (bio-PSSs) for flexible applications. In this study, we have developed a bio-PSS based on pure deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and curcumin materials in a thin-film form and studied its strain-induced current-voltage characteristics based on piezoelectric phenomena. The bio-PSS exhibited flexibility under varying compressive and tensile loads. Notably, the sensor achieved a strain gauge factor of 407 at an applied compressive strain of -0.027%, which is 8.67 times greater than that of traditional metal strain gauges. Furthermore, the flexible bio-PSS demonstrated a rapid response under a compressive strain of -0.08%. Our findings suggest that the proposed flexible bio-PSS holds significant promise as a motion sensor, addressing the demand for environmentally safe, wearable, and flexible strain sensor applications.