Prognosis value of heart rate variability measured by Camera HRV application in patients after acute myocardial infarction.

A prospective cohort study was conducted to assess the prognostic significance of heart rate variability (HRV) measured by the HRV Camera application in predicting major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) and all-cause mortality within 3 months after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Of 101 patients, 25 developed MACE and 6 died. Low HRV (SDNN and rMSSD) is associated with increased MACE (p < 0.001 and p = 0.014, respectively) and all-cause mortality rates (p = 0.025 and p = 0.032, respectively). Our study concludes that HRV measured by smartphone applications has significant potential as predictive indicators of MACE and all-cause mortality after PCI, particularly SDNN.

Rescue extracranial vertebral stenting in tandem occlusions: A preliminary Vietnamese study.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The acute vertebrobasilar occlusion associated with the poor prognosis, particularly tandem occlusion. However, few data on the efficacy of the endovascular therapy was indicated in this occlusion. We investigated whether the additional rescue extracranial vertebral stenting improved clinical outcome by modified Rankin scale (mRS) score within 3 months after the procedure. METHODS: This was a retrospective analysis of patients with acute posterior tandem occlusion who were treated with rescue extracranial vertebral stenting between December 2020 and January 2024 at our hospital. Clinical, neuroimaging, procedural, and complication data were collected. Primary outcomes included the rate of good outcomes (mRS ≤ 2) at 3-month follow-up. RESULTS: Nine patients who underwent rescue extracranial vertebral stenting in posterior circulation tandem occlusions were enrolled in the study. All patients were achieved the successful recanalization (mTICI ≥ 2b). Of Dotter technique in the "distal-to-proximal" approach, Diagnostic-Dotter made up 66.7%. Five patients (55.6%) with good outcome (mRS ≤ 2) at 3 months, and 1 patient (11.1%) underwent suboccipital decompressive craniectomy due to the malignant cerebellar infarction. CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that despite the small series with posterior tandem occlusions, the rescue extracranial vertebral stenting could be an important alternative treatment followed by mechanical thrombectomy.

Binding of SARS-CoV-2 Nonstructural Protein 1 to 40S Ribosome Inhibits mRNA Translation.

Experimental evidence has established that SARS-CoV-2 NSP1 acts as a factor that restricts cellular gene expression and impedes mRNA translation within the ribosome's 40S subunit. However, the precise molecular mechanisms underlying this phenomenon have remained elusive. To elucidate this issue, we employed a combination of all-atom steered molecular dynamics and coarse-grained alchemical simulations to explore the binding affinity of mRNA to the 40S ribosome, both in the presence and absence of SARS-CoV-2 NSP1. Our investigations revealed that the binding of SARS-CoV-2 NSP1 to the 40S ribosome leads to a significant enhancement in the binding affinity of mRNA. This observation, which aligns with experimental findings, strongly suggests that SARS-CoV-2 NSP1 has the capability to inhibit mRNA translation. Furthermore, we identified electrostatic interactions between mRNA and the 40S ribosome as the primary driving force behind mRNA translation. Notably, water molecules were found to play a pivotal role in stabilizing the mRNA-40S ribosome complex, underscoring their significance in this process. We successfully pinpointed the specific SARS-CoV-2 NSP1 residues that play a critical role in triggering the translation arrest.

Neuropilin-1 Protein May Serve as a Receptor for SARS-CoV-2 Infection: Evidence from Molecular Dynamics Simulations.

The binding of the virus to host cells is the first step in viral infection. Human cell angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is the most popular receptor for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), while other receptors have recently been observed in experiments. Neuropilin-1 protein (NRP1) is one of them, but the mechanism of its binding to the wild type (WT) and different variants of the virus remain unclear at the atomic level. In this work, all-atom umbrella sampling simulations were performed to clarify the binding mechanism of NRP1 to the spike protein fragments 679-685 of the WT, Delta, and Omicron BA.1 variants. We found that the Delta variant binds most strongly to NRP1, while the affinity for Omicron BA.1 slightly decreases for NRP1 compared to that of WT, and the van der Waals interaction plays a key role in stabilizing the studied complexes. The change in the protonation state of the His amino acid results in different binding free energies between variants. Consistent with the experiment, decreasing the pH was shown to increase the binding affinity of the virus to NRP1. Our results indicate that Delta and Omicron mutations not only affect fusogenicity but also affect NRP1 binding. In addition, we argue that viral evolution does not further improve NRP1 binding affinity which remains in the µM range but may increase immune evasion.

A Comprehensive Strategy for Metabolites Profiling of Flowers and Leaves from Camellia tienii, an Endemic Golden Tea of Vietnam.

Golden camellia is defined as a species of the Camellia genus with yellow flowers, which have long been used as a medicine, food, and cosmetic in many Asian countries. To date, more than 50 golden camellia species are considered endemic in Vietnam; however, more information is needed about its chemical constituents and biological activity. This work aims to unveil the potential of Camellia tienii Ninh, a golden camellia species, as an herbal beverage by examining the presence and abundance of chemical components in flowers and leaves. A comprehensive strategy has been developed using both liquid and gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. Specifically, LC-MS-based widely targeted analyses were opted to characterize 158 polar metabolites belonging mainly to flavonoids, catechins, and amino acids classes, and an untargeted approach using GC-MS annotated 42 major volatile compounds such as terpenes and fatty acids. The extensive profile revealed by these techniques could help understand the significant discrimination between two organs. C. tienii flowers accumulated more flavonoids, amino acids, and fatty acids, while leaves contain more terpenes, suggesting different pharmacological properties of these materials. Overall, this pipeline can be applied for other Camellia species and valorization of these valuable resources for health benefits purposes.

The evolutionarily conserved choroid plexus contributes to the homeostasis of brain ventricles in zebrafish.

The choroid plexus (ChP) produces cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). It also contributes to brain development and serves as the CSF-blood barrier. Prior studies have identified transporters on the epithelial cells that transport water and ions from the blood vasculature to the ventricles and tight junctions involved in the CSF-blood barrier. Yet, how the ChP epithelial cells control brain physiology remains unresolved. We use zebrafish to provide insights into the physiological roles of the ChP. Upon histological and transcriptomic analyses, we identify that the zebrafish ChP is conserved with mammals and expresses transporters involved in CSF secretion. Next, we show that the ChP epithelial cells secrete proteins into CSF. By ablating the ChP epithelial cells, we identify a reduction of the ventricular sizes without alterations of the CSF-blood barrier. Altogether, our findings reveal that the zebrafish ChP is conserved and contributes to the size and homeostasis of the brain ventricles.

Coxsackievirus A24 causing acute conjunctivitis in a 2023 outbreak in Vietnam.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the associated pathogen during the 2023 conjunctivitis outbreak in Vietnam METHODS: RNA-sequencing was used to identify pathogens before and during the outbreak. RESULTS: 24 patients with infectious conjunctivitis between March and October 2023 from Hai Yen Vision Institute in Vietnam were swabbed. Coxsackievirus A24v was the most common pathogen identified. Phylogenetic analysis of these strains demonstrates similarities to the Coxsackievirus identified in the 2022 India outbreak. Human adenovirus D was also circulating. Ocular findings of tearing, purulence, and itching were common in this outbreak. CONCLUSIONS: Multiple viruses can co-circulate during conjunctivitis outbreaks. Hemorrhagic conjunctivitis, commonly associated with coxsackievirus conjunctivitis, was not a common clinical sign in this outbreak. Repeat genetic surveillance, with the notable inclusion of RNA virus detection strategies, is important for outbreak detection.

SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Subvariants Do Not Differ Much in Binding Affinity to Human ACE2: A Molecular Dynamics Study.

The emergence of the variant of concern Omicron (B.1.1.529) of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) exacerbates the COVID-19 pandemic due to its high contagious ability. Studies have shown that the Omicron binds human ACE2 more strongly than the wild type. The prevalence of Omicron in new cases of COVID-19 promotes novel lineages with improved receptor binding affinity and immune evasion. To shed light on this open problem, in this work, we investigated the binding free energy of the receptor binding domain of the Omicron lineages BA.2, BA.2.3.20, BA.3, BA4/BA5, BA.2.75, BA.2.75.2, BA.4.6, XBB.1, XBB.1.5, BJ.1, BN.1, BQ.1.1, and CH.1.1 to human ACE2 using all-atom molecular dynamics simulation and the molecular mechanics Poisson-Boltzmann surface area method. The results show that these lineages have increased binding affinity compared to the BA.1 lineage, and BA.2.75 and BA.2.75.2 subvariants bind ACE2 more strongly than others. However, in general, the binding affinities of the Omicron lineages do not differ significantly from each other. The electrostatic force dominates over the van der Waals force in the interaction between Omicron lineages and human cells. Based on our results, we argue that viral evolution does not further improve the affinity of SARS-CoV-2 for ACE2 but may increase immune evasion.

Mucoadhesive, antioxidant, and lubricant catechol-functionalized poly(phosphobetaine) as biomaterial nanotherapeutics for treating ocular dryness.

Dry eye disease (DED) is associated with ocular hyperosmolarity and inflammation. The marketed topical eye drops for DED treatment often lack bioavailability and precorneal residence time. In this study, we investigated catechol-functionalized polyzwitterion p(MPC-co-DMA), composed of 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (MPC) and dopamine methacrylamide (DMA) monomers, as potential topical nanotherapeutics for DED. The copolymers were synthesized via random free-radical copolymerization, producing different proportions of catecholic functionalization. All as-prepared polymer compositions displayed good ocular biocompatibility. At a feeding ratio of 1:1, p(MPC1-co-DMA1) can facilitate a robust mucoadhesion via Michael addition and/or Schiff base reaction, thus prolonging ocular residence time after 4 days of topical instillation. The hydration lubrication of MPC and radical-scavenging DMA endow the nano-agent to ease tear-film hyperosmolarity and corneal inflammation. A single dose of p(MPC1-co-DMA1) (1 mg/mL) after 4 days post-instillation can protect the cornea against reactive oxygen species, inhibiting cell apoptosis and the over-expression of pro-inflammatory factors (IL-6 and TNF-α). In clinical assessment, DED-induced rabbit eyes receiving p(MPC1-co-DMA1) could increase lacrimal fluid secretion by 5-fold higher than cyclosporine A. The catechol-functionalized polyzwitterion with enhanced lubricity, mucoadhesion, and anti-oxidation/anti-inflammation properties has shown high promise as a bioactive eye drop formulation for treating DED.

Understanding the Solid-Electrolyte-Interface (SEI) Formation in Glyme Electrolyte Using Time-Of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (ToF-SIMS).

Lithium-ion batteries are commonly used for energy storage due to their long lifespan and high energy density, but the use of unsafe electrolytes poses significant health and safety concerns. An alternative source is necessary to maintain electrochemical efficacy. This research demonstrates new safe glyme-based electrolytes for silica/carbon (SiOx/C) nanocomposite derived from Australian rice husk (RH). The quality of SiOx/C was preserved by using deep eutectic solvent-based pre-treatment and single-step carbonization, which was confirmed through the X-ray analysis of the crystalline phase of silica. The electrochemical assessment of SiOx/C anode using various glyme-based electrolytes for LIBs was carried out. Among them, the resultant half cells based on diglyme electrolyte is superior to others with the first discharge capacity at 1274 mAh/g and a reversible discharge capacity of 759.7 mAh/g. Ex-situ SEM and Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (ToF- SIMS) analysis of the electrode indicated that diglyme not only improves the capacity but also sustains the electrode architecture for longer cycle life with more LiF-based components and also showed the absence of HF components. Importantly, the addition of fluoroethylene carbonate (FEC) additive enhanced the cycling stability. These results provide a new perspective on developing advanced SiOx/C anode using glyme electrolytes for Li-ion batteries.

Pediatric suicide: Review of a preventable tragedy.

Concepts of suicide are explored in this issue with a focus on suicide in children and adolescents. The epidemiology of pediatric suicide in the United States is reviewed; also, risk and protective factors, as well as prevention strategies, are discussed. Suicide in the pediatric athlete and the potential protective effect of exercise are examined. In addition, this analysis addresses the beneficial role of psychological management as well as current research on pharmacologic treatment and brain stimulation procedures as part of comprehensive pediatric suicide prevention. Though death by suicide in pediatric persons has been and remains a tragic phenomenon, there is much that clinicians, other healthcare professionals, and society itself can accomplish in the prevention of pediatric suicide as well as the management of suicidality in our children and adolescents.

Automatic categorization of self-acknowledged limitations in randomized controlled trial publications.

OBJECTIVE: Acknowledging study limitations in a scientific publication is a crucial element in scientific transparency and progress. However, limitation reporting is often inadequate. Natural language processing (NLP) methods could support automated reporting checks, improving research transparency. In this study, our objective was to develop a dataset and NLP methods to detect and categorize self-acknowledged limitations (e.g., sample size, blinding) reported in randomized controlled trial (RCT) publications. METHODS: We created a data model of limitation types in RCT studies and annotated a corpus of 200 full-text RCT publications using this data model. We fine-tuned BERT-based sentence classification models to recognize the limitation sentences and their types. To address the small size of the annotated corpus, we experimented with data augmentation approaches, including Easy Data Augmentation (EDA) and Prompt-Based Data Augmentation (PromDA). We applied the best-performing model to a set of about 12K RCT publications to characterize self-acknowledged limitations at larger scale. RESULTS: Our data model consists of 15 categories and 24 sub-categories (e.g., Population and its sub-category DiagnosticCriteria). We annotated 1090 instances of limitation types in 952 sentences (4.8 limitation sentences and 5.5 limitation types per article). A fine-tuned PubMedBERT model for limitation sentence classification improved upon our earlier model by about 1.5 absolute percentage points in F1 score (0.821 vs. 0.8) with statistical significance (p<.001). Our best-performing limitation type classification model, PubMedBERT fine-tuning with PromDA (Output View), achieved an F1 score of 0.7, improving upon the vanilla PubMedBERT model by 2.7 percentage points, with statistical significance (p<.001). CONCLUSION: The model could support automated screening tools which can be used by journals to draw the authors' attention to reporting issues. Automatic extraction of limitations from RCT publications could benefit peer review and evidence synthesis, and support advanced methods to search and aggregate the evidence from the clinical trial literature.

Tandem Mass Spectrometry across Platforms.

PubChem serves as a comprehensive repository, housing over 100 million unique chemical structures representing the breadth of our chemical knowledge across numerous fields including metabolism, pharmaceuticals, toxicology, cosmetics, agriculture, and many more. Rapid identification of these small molecules increasingly relies on electrospray ionization (ESI) paired with tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS), particularly by comparison to genuine standard MS/MS data sets. Despite its widespread application, achieving consistency in MS/MS data across various analytical platforms remains an unaddressed concern. This study evaluated MS/MS data derived from one hundred molecular standards utilizing instruments from five manufacturers, inclusive of quadrupole time-of-flight (QTOF) and quadrupole orbitrap "exactive" (QE) mass spectrometers by Agilent (QTOF), Bruker (QTOF), SCIEX (QTOF), Waters (QTOF), and Thermo QE. We assessed fragment ion variations at multiple collisional energies (0, 10, 20, and 40 eV) using the cosine scoring algorithm for comparisons and the number of fragments observed. A parallel visual analysis of the MS/MS spectra across instruments was conducted, consistent with a standard procedure that is used to circumvent the still prevalent issue of mischaracterizations as shown for dimethyl sphingosine and C20 sphingosine. Our analysis revealed a notable consistency in MS/MS data and identifications, with fragment ions' m/z values exhibiting the highest concordance between instrument platforms at 20 eV, the other collisional energies (0, 10, and 40 eV) were significantly lower. While moving toward a standardized ESI MS/MS protocol is required for dependable molecular characterization, our results also underscore the continued importance of corroborating MS/MS data against standards to ensure accurate identifications. Our findings suggest that ESI MS/MS manufacturers, akin to the established norms for gas chromatography mass spectrometry instruments, should standardize the collision energy at 20 eV across different instrument platforms.

Protective Role of MAVS Signaling for Murine Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Acute Kidney Injury.

Despite treatment advances, acute kidney injury (AKI)-related mortality rates are still high in hospitalized adults, often due to sepsis. Sepsis and AKI could synergistically worsen the outcomes of critically ill patients. TLR4 signaling and mitochondrial antiviral signaling protein (MAVS) signaling are innate immune responses essential in kidney diseases, but their involvement in sepsis-associated AKI (SA-AKI) remains unclear. We studied the role of MAVS in kidney injury related to the TLR4 signaling pathway using a murine LPS-induced AKI model in wild-type and MAVS-knockout mice. We confirmed the importance of M1 macrophage in SA-AKI through in vivo assessment of inflammatory responses. The TLR4 signaling pathway was upregulated in activated bone marrow-derived macrophages, in which MAVS helped maintain the LPS-suppressed TLR4 mRNA level. MAVS regulated redox homeostasis via NADPH oxidase Nox2 and mitochondrial reverse electron transport in macrophages to alleviate the TLR4 signaling response to LPS. Hypoxia-inducible factor 1α (HIF-1α) and AP-1 were key regulators of TLR4 transcription and connected MAVS-dependent reactive oxygen species signaling with the TLR4 pathway. Inhibition of succinate dehydrogenase could partly reduce inflammation in LPS-treated bone marrow-derived macrophages without MAVS. These findings highlight the renoprotective role of MAVS in LPS-induced AKI by regulating reactive oxygen species generation-related genes and maintaining redox balance. Controlling redox homeostasis through MAVS signaling may be a promising therapy for SA-AKI.

Theoretical insights into the HO●-induced oxidation of chlorpyrifos pesticide: Mechanism, kinetics, ecotoxicity, and cholinesterase inhibition of degradants.

The oxidation of the common pesticide chlorpyrifos (CPF) initiated by HO● radical and the risks of its degradation products were studied in the gaseous and aqueous phases via computational approaches. Oxidation mechanisms were investigated, including H-, Cl-, CH3- abstraction, HO●-addition, and single electron transfer. In both phases, HO●-addition at the C of the pyridyl ring is the most energetically favorable and spontaneous reaction, followed by H-abstraction reactions at methylene groups (i.e., at H19/H21 in the gas phase and H22/H28 in water). In contrast, other abstractions and electron transfer reactions are unfavorable. However, regarding the kinetics, the significant contribution to the oxidation of CPF is made from H-abstraction channels, mostly at the hydrogens of the methylene groups. CPF can be decomposed in a short time (5-8 h) in the gas phase, and it is more persistent in natural water with a lifetime between 24 days and 66 years, depending on the temperature and HO● concentration. Subsequent oxidation of the essential radical products with other oxidizing reagents, i.e., HO●, NO2●, NO●, and 3O2, gave primary neutral products P1-P15. Acute and chronic toxicity calculations estimate very toxic levels for CPF and two degradation products, P7w and P12w, in aquatic systems. The neurotoxicity of these products was investigated by docking and molecular dynamics. P7w and P12w show the most significant binding scores with acetylcholinesterases, while P8w and P13w are with butyrylcholinesterase enzyme. Finally, molecular dynamics illustrate stable interactions between CPF degradants and cholinesterase enzyme over a 100 ns time frame and determine P7w as the riskiest degradant to the neural developmental system.

Pathogen Profiles of Infectious Conjunctivitis in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Purpose: Conjunctivitis epidemics and pandemics remain a global burden. This study aims to comprehensively identify pathogens associated with conjunctivitis in Vietnam. Methods: Patients with acute conjunctivitis presented to an outpatient clinic in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, were enrolled from September 2022 to March 2023. Swabs were obtained from conjunctiva and anterior nares of all patients. Unbiased RNA deep sequencing (RNA-seq) was used to identify any replicating pathogens in the samples. Results: Samples from 35 patients were analyzed. A pathogen was identified in 80% of the patients. 72% (95% confidence interval: 54% to 85%) were infected with either HAdV-D or HAdV-B. RNA viruses detected were rhinoviruses and human coronavirus 229E. Bacteria etiologies included Streptococcus pneumoniae, Hemophilus influenza, and Pseudomonas spp. One patient had co-infection of rhinovirus A and HAdV-B. Vittaforma corneae, a fungus, was identified in one patient. Corneal sub-epithelial infiltrates, pseudomembranes, or pre-auricular lymphadenopathy were not reported in any patient. Conclusions: Human adenoviruses are the common circulating pathogens associated with infectious conjunctivitis in Vietnam. HAdV species, however, appear to vary between geographic locations within Vietnam. Other under-recognized pathogens identified in this study, such as RNA viruses, suggest broader pathogen surveillance may be beneficial.