MRE11 as a plausible biomarker and prognostic bioindicator for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma (HNSCC) ranks as the sixth most prevalent form of cancer worldwide. MRE11 protein contains multiple domains that play a role in the initiation of DNA repair. This study aimed to elucidate the expression and prognostic significance of MRE11 in HNSCC. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA-HNSCC) dataset comprising 520 HNSCC tissues and 44 normal tissues was initially used to evaluate the association between MRE11 expression and clinicopathologic characteristics. Kaplan-Meier plot was utilized for survival analysis. MRE11-immune cell interaction was analyzed using Tumor Immune Estimation Resource (TIMER) database. Further, Insilco methods were used to explore the protein network and its association with other pathways. Quantitative reverse transcription PCR (RT-qPCR) was used to validate the MRE11 mRNA expression in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) tissues in patient samples. RESULTS: MRE11 expression was upregulated in HNSCC, and the expression significantly varied across different clinical stages, pathological grades, and initial treatment outcomes. Further, high MRE11 expression is associated with poorer survival outcomes. MRE11 overexpression is also linked to the activation of the HIPPO signaling pathway, the mTOR signaling pathway, and the MYC/MYCN signaling pathway. CONCLUSION: MRE 11 can be considered a novel prognostic biomarker for HNSCC, which can be leveraged for promising treatment outcomes. This research highlights MRE11 as a novel molecular biomarker for HNSCC and offers a new direction for its treatment, explicitly targeting MRE11 and its network for therapeutic intervention.

An Adaptive Elastic Support Seat-Based Magnetorheological Elastomer for Human Body Vibration Reduction.

This paper introduces an electromagnetic structure utilizing the controllable mechanical properties of magnetorheological elastomer (MRE) materials through magnetic flux. An adaptive elastic foundation composed of these materials is explored for vibration reduction and frequency modulation. This study investigates these effects using both a single-mass model and a coupled human-seat model. For objects supported by the adaptive elastic foundation, increasing the magnetic flux enhances the stiffness and damping, thereby significantly reducing the peak response while slightly increasing the resonance frequency. Strategies such as increasing the magnetic flux, reducing the object mass, and minimizing the system's degrees of freedom and internal damping contribute to enhancing the vibration reduction and frequency modulation in the adaptive elastic foundation. The simulation results indicate that for a seated human (weighing between 72.4 kg and 88.4 kg), the adaptive elastic foundation reduces the head peak response by approximately 15.7% and increases the resonance frequency by approximately 3.4% at a magnetic flux of 138 mT.

Liver fibrosis and liver stiffness in patients with obesity and type 1 diabetes.

AIM: To compare hepatic stiffness and fat fraction in patients with obesity and type 1 diabetes (T1D) with type 2 diabetes (T2D) with a similar body mass index (BMI). METHODS: In this prospective cross-sectional study, 90 participants with T1D (BMI 30.5 ± 4.5 kg/m2; diabetes duration 20.5 ± 9.8 years; HbA1c 8.2% ± 1.4%) and 69 with T2D (BMI: 30.8 ± 4.6 kg/m2; diabetes duration: 11.7 ± 7.8 years; HbA1c: 7.3% ± 1.4%) were included. Liver fat fraction and stiffness were examined by magnetic resonance imaging and elastography, respectively. Logistic regressions were used to evaluate associations with biomedical variables. RESULTS: The mean liver stiffness score in patients with obesity and T1D was 2.2 ± 0.5 kPa, while in T2D it was 2.6 ± 0.8 kPa (P < .001). The liver fat fraction in patients with obesity and T1D was 3.7% ± 6.3%, and in T2D it was 10.6% ± 7.9% (P < .001). Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) was present in 13.3% of patients with T1D and in 69.6% of patients with T2D, whereas fibrosis was suggested in 7.8% of patients with T1D and in 27.5% of patients with T2D. Liver stiffness was four times higher in patients with T2D compared with those with T1D (odds ratio = 5.4, 95% confidence interval: 2.1-13.6, P < .001). Aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transaminase, gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT), triglycerides and the android-to-gynoid ratio were associated with elevated fat fraction in both cohorts. AST and GGT were associated with elevated liver stiffness in both cohorts. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with obesity and T1D had lower liver fat and liver stiffness compared with those patients with T2D, despite similar levels of BMI, a longer duration of diabetes and worse glycaemic control.

Prevalence of stricturing, penetrating complications and extraintestinal manifestations in inflammatory bowel disease detected on cross-sectional imaging in a tertiary care setting.

BACKGROUND: Stricturing, penetrating complications and extraintestinal manifestations (EIMs) are frequent in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). There is limited data on the prevalence of these complications in patients with IBD. Therefore, we aimed to assess the burden of these complications detected incidentally on cross-sectional imaging. METHODS: A retrospective study conducted at two tertiary care centers in London, Ontario. Patients (≥18 years) with a confirmed diagnosis of IBD who underwent CT enterography (CTE) or MR enterography (MRE) between 1 Jan 2010 and 31 Dec 2018 were included. Categorical variables were reported as proportions and the mean and standard deviations were reported for continuous variables. RESULTS: A total of 615 imaging tests (MRE: 67.3% [414/615]) were performed in 557 IBD patients (CD: 91.4% [509/557], UC: 8.6% [48/557]). 38.2% (213/557) of patients were male, with mean age of 45.6 years (±15.8), and median disease duration of 11.0 years (±12.5). Among patients with CD, 33.2% (169/509) had strictures, with 7.8% having two or more strictures and 66.3% considered inflammatory. A fistula was reported in 10.6% (54/509), the most common being perianal fistula (27.8% [15/54]), followed by enterocutaneous fistula (16.8% [9/54]), and enteroenteric fistula (16.8% [9/54]). Additionally, 7.4% (41/557) of patients with IBD were found to have an EIM on cross-sectional imaging, with the most prevalent EIM being cholelithiasis (63.4% [26/41]), followed by sacroiliitis (24.4% [10/41]), primary sclerosing cholangitis (4.8% [2/41]) and nephrolithiasis (4.8% [2/41]). CONCLUSIONS: Approximately 40% of patients with CD undergoing cross-sectional imaging had evidence of a stricture or fistulizing disease, with 7% of patients with IBD having a detectable EIM. These results highlight the burden of disease and the need for specific therapies for these disease phenotypes.

Acquisition Efficiency and Technical Repeatability of Dual-Frequency 3D Vector MR Elastography of the Liver.

BACKGROUND: MR elastography (MRE) at 60 Hz is widely used for staging liver fibrosis. MRE with lower frequencies may provide inflammation biomarkers. PURPOSE: To establish a practical simultaneous dual-frequency liver MRE protocol at both 30 Hz and 60 Hz during a single examination and validate the occurrence of second harmonic waves at 30 Hz. STUDY TYPE: Retrospective. SUBJECTS: One hundred six patients (48 females, age: 50.0 ± 13.4 years) were divided as follows: Cohort One (15 patients with chronic liver disease [CLD] and 25 healthy volunteers) with simultaneous dual-frequency MRE. Cohort Two (66 patients with CLD) with second harmonic MRE. FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE: 3-T, single- or dual-frequency MRE at 30 Hz and 60 Hz. ASSESSMENT: Liver stiffness (LS) in both cohorts was evaluated with manually placed volumetric ROIs by two independent analyzers. Image quality was assessed by three independent readers on a 4-point scale (0-3: none/failed, fair, moderate, excellent) based on the depth of wave propagation with 1/3 incremental penetration. The success rate was derived from the percentage of nonzero quality scores. STATISTICAL TESTS: Measurement agreement, bias, and repeatability of LS were assessed using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs), Bland-Altman plots, and repeatability coefficient (RC). Mann-Whitney U tests were used to evaluate the differences in image quality between different methods. A P-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Success rate was 97.5% in Cohort One and 91% success rate for the second harmonic MRE in Cohort Two. The second harmonic and conventional MRE showed excellent agreement in LS (all ICCs >0.90). The quality scores for the second harmonic wave images were lower than those from the conventional MRE (Z = -4.523). DATA CONCLUSION: Compared with conventional and second harmonic methods, simultaneous dual-frequency had better image quality, high success rate and the advantage of intrinsic co-registration, while the second harmonic method can be an alternative if custom waveform is not available. EVIDENCE LEVEL: 3 TECHNICAL EFFICACY: Stage 1.

TLK1 Inhibition Enhances the Anticancer Effect of Deep UV Irradiation Through CHK1 Activation.

BACKGROUND/AIM: A deep ultraviolet (DUV) light-emitting diode (LED) is a device that can irradiate electromagnetic waves from 250 nm to 350 nm. Tousled-like kinase 1 (TLK1) encodes a nuclear serine/threonine kinase, which is thought to influence the effects of DUV irradiation in cancer. The aim of this study was to clarify the interaction of TLK1 with DUV irradiation-induced DNA damage in cancer cells. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Pancreatic cancer cell lines were treated with or without DUV. TLK1 expression and phosphorylation in the two groups were examined. Then, these cancer cell lines were treated with thioridazine (THD), DUV or both. Thereafter, cytomorphology and apoptosis were assessed. Several proteins related to DNA damage, were analyzed in cancer cells treated with DUV and THD. Tumors in a subcutaneous xenograft model were treated with THD, DUV, or both for six weeks. RESULTS: DUV irradiation induced the phosphorylation of TLK1 in pancreatic cancer cell lines. Cytomorphology was significantly changed in pancreatic cancer cells treated with DUV and THD. TLK1 inhibition enhanced DUV irradiation-induced apoptosis in cancer cells. Interestingly, CHK1 and pCHK1 expression was suppressed after TLK1 inhibition. In addition, inhibition of MRE11 led to a decrease in the expression of CHK1 and pCHK1, accompanied by a notable increase in apoptosis. In the subcutaneous xenograft models, the tumor volume in the DUV and THD groups was lower than that in the other groups. CONCLUSION: TLK1 phosphorylation is an important event in DUV irradiation. DUV irradiation combined with TLK1 inhibition has therapeutic potential in pancreatic cancer cells.

Reduced levels of MRE11 cause disease phenotypes distinct from ataxia telangiectasia-like disorder.

The MRE11/RAD50/NBS1 (MRN) complex plays critical roles in cellular responses to DNA double-strand breaks. MRN is involved in end binding and processing, and it also induces cell cycle checkpoints by activating the ataxia-telangiectasia mutated (ATM) protein kinase. Hypomorphic pathogenic variants in the MRE11, RAD50, or NBS1 genes cause autosomal recessive genome instability syndromes featuring variable degrees of dwarfism, neurological defects, anemia, and cancer predisposition. Disease-associated MRN alleles include missense and nonsense variants, and many cause reduced protein levels of the entire MRN complex. However, the dramatic variability in the disease manifestation of MRN pathogenic variants is not understood. We sought to determine if low protein levels are a significant contributor to disease sequelae and therefore generated a transgenic murine model expressing MRE11 at low levels. These mice display dramatic phenotypes including small body size, severe anemia, and impaired DNA repair. We demonstrate that, distinct from ataxia telangiectasia-like disorder caused by MRE11 pathogenic missense or nonsense variants, mice and cultured cells expressing low MRE11 levels do not display the anticipated defects in ATM activation. Our findings indicate that ATM signaling can be supported by very low levels of the MRN complex and imply that defective ATM activation results from perturbation of MRN function caused by specific hypomorphic disease mutations. These distinct phenotypic outcomes underline the importance of understanding the impact of specific pathogenic MRE11 variants, which may help direct appropriate early surveillance for patients with these complicated disorders in a clinical setting.

Test-retest reliability and follow-up of muscle magnetic resonance elastography in adults with and without muscle diseases.

BACKGROUND: We investigated the potential of magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) stiffness measurements in skeletal muscles as an outcome measure, by determining its test-retest reliability, as well as its sensitivity to change in a longitudinal follow-up study. METHODS: We assessed test-retest reliability of muscle MRE in 20 subjects with (n = 5) and without (n = 15) muscle diseases and compared this to Dixon proton density fat fraction (PDFF) and volume measurements. Next, we measured MRE muscle stiffness in 21 adults with Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD) and 21 age-matched healthy controls at baseline, and after 9 and 18 months. We compared two different methods of analysing MRE data in this study: 'Method A' used the stiffness maps generated by the Philips MRE software, and 'Method B' applied a custom-made procedure based on wavelength measurements on the MRE images. RESULTS: Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) of muscle stiffness ranged from good (0.83 for left vastus medialis, P < 0.001) to poor (0.19 for right rectus femoris, P = 0.212) for the examined thigh muscles with Method A, but we did not find a significant test-retest reliability with Method B (P > 0.050 for all). The ICC of muscle PDFF and volume measurements was excellent (>0.90; P < 0.001) for all muscles. At baseline, the average stiffness of all thigh muscles was significantly lower in adults with BMD than in controls for both Method A (-0.2 kPa, P = 0.025) and Method B (-0.6 kPa, P < 0.001). Regardless of which method was used, there was no significant difference in the evolution of muscle stiffness in patients and controls over 18 months. CONCLUSIONS: Test-retest reliability of muscle MRE using a simple 2D technique was suboptimal, and did not reliably measure muscle stiffness changes in adults with BMD as compared with controls over 18 months. While the results provide motivation for testing more advanced 3D MRE methods, we conclude that the simple 2D MRE implementation used in this study is not suitable as an outcome measure for characterizing thigh muscle in clinical trials.

Germline pathogenic variants in the MRE11, RAD50, and NBN (MRN) genes in cancer predisposition: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

The MRE11, RAD50, and NBN genes encode the MRN complex sensing DNA breaks and directing their repair. While carriers of biallelic germline pathogenic variants (gPV) develop rare chromosomal instability syndromes, the cancer risk in heterozygotes remains controversial. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of 53 studies in patients with different cancer diagnoses to better understand the cancer risk. We found an increased risk (odds ratio, 95% confidence interval) for gPV carriers in NBN for melanoma (7.14; 3.30-15.43), pancreatic cancer (4.03; 2.14-7.58), hematological tumors (3.42; 1.14-10.22), and prostate cancer (2.44, 1.84-3.24), but a low risk for breast cancer (1.29; 1.00-1.66) and an insignificant risk for ovarian cancer (1.53; 0.76-3.09). We found no increased breast cancer risk in carriers of gPV in RAD50 (0.93; 0.74-1.16; except of c.687del carriers) and MRE11 (0.87; 0.66-1.13). The secondary burden analysis compared the frequencies of gPV in MRN genes in patients from 150 studies with those in the gnomAD database. In NBN gPV carriers, this analysis additionally showed a high risk for brain tumors (5.06; 2.39-9.52), a low risk for colorectal (1.64; 1.26-2.10) and hepatobiliary (2.16; 1.02-4.06) cancers, and no risk for endometrial, and gastric cancer. The secondary burden analysis showed also a moderate risk for ovarian cancer (3.00; 1.27-6.08) in MRE11 gPV carriers, and no risk for ovarian and hepatobiliary cancers in RAD50 gPV carriers. These findings provide a robust clinical evidence of cancer risks to guide personalized clinical management in heterozygous carriers of gPV in the MRE11, RAD50, and NBN genes.

Distinct Gut Microbial Signature and Host Genetic Variants in Association with Liver Fibrosis Severity in Patients with MASLD.

Gut microbiota might affect the severity and progression of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). We aimed to characterize gut dysbiosis and clinical parameters regarding fibrosis stages assessed by magnetic resonance elastography. This study included 156 patients with MASLD, stratified into no/mild fibrosis (F0-F1) and moderate/severe fibrosis (F2-F4). Fecal specimens were sequenced targeting the V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene and analyzed using bioinformatics. The genotyping of PNPLA3, TM6SF2, and HSD17B13 was assessed by allelic discrimination assays. Our data showed that gut microbial profiles between groups significantly differed in beta-diversity but not in alpha-diversity indices. Enriched Fusobacterium and Escherichia_Shigella, and depleted Lachnospira were found in the F2-F4 group versus the F0-F1 group. Compared to F0-F1, the F2-F4 group had elevated plasma surrogate markers of gut epithelial permeability and bacterial translocation. The bacterial genera, PNPLA3 polymorphisms, old age, and diabetes were independently associated with advanced fibrosis in multivariable analyses. Using the Random Forest classifier, the gut microbial signature of three genera could differentiate the groups with high diagnostic accuracy (AUC of 0.93). These results indicated that the imbalance of enriched pathogenic genera and decreased beneficial bacteria, in association with several clinical and genetic factors, were potential contributors to the pathogenesis and progression of MASLD.

A novel role for the peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerase Cyclophilin A in DNA-repair following replication fork stalling via the MRE11-RAD50-NBS1 complex.

Cyclosporin A (CsA) induces DNA double-strand breaks in LIG4 syndrome fibroblasts, specifically upon transit through S-phase. The basis underlying this has not been described. CsA-induced genomic instability may reflect a direct role of Cyclophilin A (CYPA) in DNA repair. CYPA is a peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerase (PPI). CsA inhibits the PPI activity of CYPA. Using an integrated approach involving CRISPR/Cas9-engineering, siRNA, BioID, co-immunoprecipitation, pathway-specific DNA repair investigations as well as protein expression interaction analysis, we describe novel impacts of CYPA loss and inhibition on DNA repair. We characterise a direct CYPA interaction with the NBS1 component of the MRE11-RAD50-NBS1 complex, providing evidence that CYPA influences DNA repair at the level of DNA end resection. We define a set of genetic vulnerabilities associated with CYPA loss and inhibition, identifying DNA replication fork protection as an important determinant of viability. We explore examples of how CYPA inhibition may be exploited to selectively kill cancers sharing characteristic genomic instability profiles, including MYCN-driven Neuroblastoma, Multiple Myeloma and Chronic Myelogenous Leukaemia. These findings propose a repurposing strategy for Cyclophilin inhibitors.

3D vector MR elastography applications in small organs.

BACKGROUND: Magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) is a rapidly developing medical imaging technique that allows for quantitative assessment of the biomechanical properties of the tissue. MRE is now regarded as the most accurate noninvasive test for detecting and staging liver fibrosis. A two-dimensional (2D MRE) acquisition version is currently deployed at >2000 locations worldwide. 2D MRE allows for the evaluation of the magnitude of the complex shear modulus, also referred to as stiffness. The development of 3D vector MRE has enabled researchers to assess the biomechanical properties of small organs where wave propagation cannot be adequately analyzed with the 2D MRE imaging approach used in the liver. In 3D vector MRE, the shear waves are imaged and processed throughout a 3D volume and processed with an algorithm that accounts for wave propagation in any direction. Additionally, the motion is also imaged in x, y, and z directions at each voxel, allowing for more advanced processing to be applied. PURPOSE: This review describes the technical principles of 3D vector MRE, surveys its clinical applications in small organs, and discusses potential clinical significance of 3D vector MRE. CONCLUSION: 3D vector MRE is a promising tool for characterizing the biomechanical properties of small organs such as the uterus, pancreas, thyroid, prostate, and salivary glands. However, its potential has not yet been fully explored.

Free-breathing motion corrected magnetic resonance elastography of the abdomen.

Background: Magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) is a non-invasive method to measure the viscoelastic properties of tissue and has been applied in multiple abdominal organs. However, abdominal MRE suffers from detrimental breathing motion causing misalignment of structures between repeated acquisitions for different MRE dimensions (e.g., motion encoding directions and wave phase offsets). This study investigated motion correction strategies to resolve all breathing motion on sagittal free-breathing MRE acquisitions in a phantom, in healthy volunteers and showed feasibility in patients. Methods: First, in silico experiments were performed on a static phantom dataset with simulated motion. Second, eight healthy volunteers underwent two sagittal MRE acquisitions in the pancreas and right kidney. The multi-frequency free-breathing spin-echo echo-planar-imaging (SE-EPI) MRE consisted of four frequencies (30, 40, 50, 60 Hz), eight wave-phase offsets, with 3 mm3 isotropic voxel size. Following data re-sorting in different number of motion states (4 till 12) based on respiratory waveform signal, three intensity-based registration methods (monomodal, multimodal, and phase correlation) and non-rigid local registration were compared. A ranking method was used to determine the best registration method, based on seven signal-to-noise and image quality measures. Repeatability was assessed for no motion correction (Original) and the best performing method (Best) using Bland-Altman analysis. Lastly, the best motion correction method was compared to no motion correction on patient MRE data [pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC, n=5) and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) (n=1)]. Results: In silico experiments showed a deviation of shear wave speed (SWS) with simulated motion to the ground truth, which was (partially) resolved using motion correction. In healthy volunteers ranking resulted in the best motion correction method of monomodal registration using nine motion states, while no motion correction was ranked last. Limits of agreement were (-0.18, 0.14), and (-0.25, 0.18) m/s for Best and Original, respectively. Using motion correction in patients resulted in a significant increase in SWS in the pancreas (Original: 1.39±0.10 and Best: 1.50±0.17 m/s). After motion correction PDAC had a mean SWS of 1.56±0.27 m/s (Original: 1.42±0.25 m/s). The fibrotic liver mean SWS was 2.07±0.20 m/s (Original: 2.12±0.18 m/s). Conclusions: Motion correction in sagittal free-breathing abdominal MRE results in improved data quality, inversion precision, repeatability, and is feasible in patients.

Mechanical Properties Comparison of Isotropic vs. Anisotropic Hybrid Magnetorheological Elastomer-Fluid.

Magnetorheological (MR) materials are smart materials that can change their rheological characteristics when exposed to a magnetic field. Such rheological properties include viscosity and dynamic modulus. MR materials have emerged as one of the most efficient smart materials that can modify mechanical and viscoelastic characteristics. Depending on the medium used, MR materials can be classified into two types: magnetorheological fluids (MRFs) and magnetorheological elastomers (MREs). MREs are classified as isotropic or anisotropic based on CIP distribution inside the elastomer matrix. A unique hybrid material incorporating MRE and MRF is constructed in this work to investigate, compare, and the dynamic properties of isotropic, anisotropic, hybrid isotropic, and hybrid anisotropic MREs under various magnetic fields (0, 104, and 160.2 mT). The created samples are subjected to extensive testing, including static and dynamic evaluations. In the static tests, experiments use a compression linear displacement mode with a fixed maximum gap change of 3 mm. The temperature is maintained at a constant level of 24 °C throughout the 40 s test duration for each test, and the magnetic field is incrementally increased by varying the number of magnets, ranging from 0 to 160.2 mT for dynamic qualities using compression oscillations on a dynamic mechanical analyzer (DMA), including frequency and strain-dependent data. These experiments, carried out using sinusoidal shear movements, include an excitation frequency range of 0.1 Hz to 15 Hz while preserving, with a fixed shear strain of 2%.

The degree of bowel remission predicts phenotype progression in Crohn's disease.

BACKGROUND: Patients with Crohn's disease (CD) are at risk of progressing from inflammatory to stricturing and penetrating phenotypes. The influence of the depth of remission on the risk of progression has not been adequately evaluated. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study including surgically naïve CD patients with inflammatory phenotype evaluated concomitantly by magnetic resonance enterography and colonoscopy. The degree of remission was correlated with the risk of progressing to stricturing and penetrating phenotypes. RESULTS: Three hundred nineteen CD patients were included: 27.0% with transmural remission, 16.0% with isolated endoscopic remission, 14.4% with isolated radiologic remission, and 42.6% without remission. Patients with transmural remission presented the lowest rates of phenotype progression (1.2%), with a significant difference compared to isolated radiologic remission (10.9%, p = 0.019), to isolated endoscopic remission (19.6%, p ≤ 0.001), and to no remission (46.3%, p ≤ 0.001). In multivariate regression analysis, transmural remission (OR 0.017 95% CI 0.002-0.135, p < 0.001), isolated radiologic remission (OR 0.139 95% CI 0.049-0.396, p < 0.001), and isolated endoscopic remission (OR 0.301 95% CI 0.123-0.736, p = 0.008) resulted in lower rates of phenotype progression compared to no remission. No patient with transmural or isolated radiologic remission progressed to penetrating phenotypes. CONCLUSION: The degree of bowel remission correlates with the risk of phenotype progression. Patients with transmural remission are at the lowest risk of progressing to stricturing and penetrating phenotypes.

On the relationship between viscoelasticity and water diffusion in soft biological tissues.

Magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) and diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) are complementary imaging techniques that detect disease based on viscoelasticity and water mobility, respectively. However, the relationship between viscoelasticity and water diffusion is still poorly understood, hindering the clinical translation of combined DWI-MRE markers. We used DWI-MRE to study 129 biomaterial samples including native and cross-linked collagen, glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) with different sulfation levels, and decellularized specimens of pancreas and liver, all with different proportions of solid tissue, or solid fractions. We developed a theoretical framework of the relationship between mechanical loss and tissue-water mobility based on two parameters, solid and fluid viscosity. These parameters revealed distinct DWI-MRE property clusters characterizing weak, moderate, and strong water-network interactions. Sparse networks interacting weakly with water, such as collagen or diluted decellularized tissue, resulted in marginal changes in water diffusion over increasing solid viscosity. In contrast, dense networks with larger solid fractions exhibited both free and hindered water diffusion depending on the polarity of the solid components. For example, polar and highly sulfated GAGs as well as native soft tissues hindered water diffusion despite relatively low solid viscosity. Our results suggest that two fundamental properties of tissue networks, solid fraction and network polarity, critically influence solid and fluid viscosity in biological tissues. Since clinical DWI and MRE are sensitive to these viscosity parameters, the framework we present here can be used to detect tissue remodeling and architectural changes in the setting of diagnostic imaging. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: The viscoelastic properties of biological tissues provide a wealth of information on the vital state of cells and host matrix. Combined measurement of viscoelasticity and water diffusion by medical imaging is sensitive to tissue microarchitecture. However, the relationship between viscoelasticity and water diffusion is still poorly understood, hindering full exploitation of these properties as a combined clinical biomarker. Therefore, we analyzed the parameter space accessible by diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) and developed a theoretical framework for the relationship between water mobility and mechanical parameters in biomaterials. Our theory of solid material properties related to particle motion can be translated to clinical radiology using clinically established MRE and DWI.

A novel Mre11 protein from the hyperthermophilic euryarchaeon Thermococcus barophilus Ch5 possesses 5'-3' exonuclease and endonuclease activities.

Mre11 is one of important proteins that are involved in DNA repair and recombination by processing DNA ends to produce 3'-single stranded DNA, thus providing a platform for other DNA repair and recombination proteins. In this work, we characterized the Mre11 protein from the hyperthermophilic euryarchaeon Thermococcus barophilus Ch5 (Tba-Mre11) biochemically and dissected the roles of its four conserved residues, which is the first report on Mre11 proteins from Thermococcus. Tba-Mre11 possesses exonuclease activity for degrading ssDNA and dsDNA in the 5'-3' direction, which contrasts with other reported Mre11 homologs. Maximum degradation efficiency was observed with Mn2+ at 80 °C and at pH 7.5-9.5. In addition to possessing 5'-3' exonuclease activity, Tba-Mre11 has endonuclease activity that nicks plasmid DNA and circular ssDNA. Mutational data show that residues D10, D51 and N86 in Tba-Mre11 are essential for DNA degradation since almost no activity was observed for the D10A, D51A and N86A mutants. By comparison, residue D44 in Tba-Mre11 is not responsible for DNA degradation since the D44A mutant possessed the similar WT protein activity. Notably, the D44A mutant almost completely abolished the ability to bind DNA, suggesting that residue D44 is essential for binding DNA.

Sex Differences in Aging-related Myocardial Stiffening Quantitatively Measured with MR Elastography.

Purpose To investigate the feasibility of using quantitative MR elastography (MRE) to characterize the influence of aging and sex on left ventricular (LV) shear stiffness. Materials and Methods In this prospective study, LV myocardial shear stiffness was measured in 109 healthy volunteers (age range: 18-84 years; mean age, 40 years ± 18 [SD]; 57 women, 52 men) enrolled between November 2018 and September 2019, using a 5-minute MRE acquisition added to a clinical MRI protocol. Linear regression models were used to estimate the association of cardiac MRI and MRE characteristics with age and sex; models were also fit to assess potential age-sex interaction. Results Myocardial shear stiffness significantly increased with age in female (age slope = 0.03 kPa/year ± 0.01, P = .009) but not male (age slope = 0.008 kPa/year ± 0.009, P = .38) volunteers. LV ejection fraction (LVEF) increased significantly with age in female volunteers (0.23% ± 0.08 per year, P = .005). LV end-systolic volume (LVESV) decreased with age in female volunteers (-0.20 mL/m2 ± 0.07, P = .003). MRI parameters, including T1, strain, and LV mass, did not demonstrate this interaction (P > .05). Myocardial shear stiffness was not significantly correlated with LVEF, LV stroke volume, body mass index, or any MRI strain metrics (P > .05) but showed significant correlations with LV end-diastolic volume/body surface area (BSA) (slope = -3 kPa/mL/m2 ± 1, P = .004, r2 = 0.08) and LVESV/BSA (-1.6 kPa/mL/m2 ± 0.5, P = .003, r2 = 0.08). Conclusion This study demonstrates that female, but not male, individuals experience disproportionate LV stiffening with natural aging, and these changes can be noninvasively measured with MRE. Keywords: Cardiac, Elastography, Biological Effects, Experimental Investigations, Sexual Dimorphisms, MR Elastography, Myocardial Shear Stiffness, Quantitative Stiffness Imaging, Aging Heart, Myocardial Biomechanics, Cardiac MRE Supplemental material is available for this article. Published under a CC BY 4.0 license.

Feasibility study of the application of magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) to measure oral posture related changes in stiffness of zygomaticus major muscle.

PURPOSE: Development of a technique for measuring the mechanical properties of zygomaticus major (ZM) may aid advances in clinical treatments for correcting abnormal oral posture. The objective of this work was to demonstrate the feasibility of measuring the stiffness of ZM using an MR elastography technique that incorporates a custom local driver and a phase-gradient (PG) inversion. METHODS: 2D MRE investigations were performed for 3 healthy subjects using a vibration frequency of 90 Hz to test the prediction that the stiffness of ZM would be greater in the mouth-open compared to the mouth-closed position. MRE wave images were acquired along the long axis of ZM and processed using a 2D spatial-temporal directional filter applied in the direction of wave propagation along the long axis of the muscle. Stiffness measurements were obtained by applying the PG technique to a 1D-profile drawn in the phase image of the first harmonic of the wave images and a one-tailed paired t-test was used to compare the ZM stiffness between the two mouth postures (p < 0.05). RESULTS: The mean stiffness and standard deviation (SD) of ZM across the three participants in the mouth-closed and mouth-open postures was 6.75 kPa (SD 3.36 kPa) and 15.5 kPa (SD 5.15 kPa), respectively. Changes of ZM stiffness were significantly greater in the mouth-open than the mouth-closed posture (p = 0.038). CONCLUSION: The feasibility of using the PG MRE technique to measure stiffness changes in a small muscle such as ZM for different mouth postures has been demonstrated. Further investigations are required in a larger cohort of participants to investigate the sensitivity and reproducibility of the technique for potential clinical application as well as in health and beauty related studies.