Major Perioperative Cardiac Risk Assessment: A Review for Cardio-Oncologists and Perioperative Physicians.

The Revised Cardiac Risk Index (RCRI) and the American College of Surgeons (ACS) National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) preoperative risk assessment tools are the most widely used methods for quantifying the risk of major negative perioperative cardiac outcomes that a patient may face during and after noncardiac surgery. However, these tools were created to include as wide a range of surgical factors as possible; thus, some predictive accuracy is sacrificed when it comes to certain surgical subpopulations. In this review, we explore the various surgical oncology patient populations for whom these assessment tools can be reliably applied and for whom they demonstrate poor reliability.

Grf10 regulates the response to copper, iron, and phosphate in Candida albicans.

The pathogenic yeast, Candida albicans, and other microbes must be able to handle drastic changes in nutrient availability within the human host. Copper, iron, and phosphate are essential micronutrients for microbes that are sequestered by the human host as nutritional immunity; yet high copper levels are employed by macrophages to induce toxic oxidative stress. Grf10 is a transcription factor important for regulating genes involved in morphogenesis (filamentation, chlamydospore formation) and metabolism (adenylate biosynthesis, 1-carbon metabolism). The grf10Δ mutant exhibited resistance to excess copper in a gene dosage-dependent manner but grew the same as the wild type in response to other metals (calcium, cobalt, iron, manganese, and zinc). Point mutations in the conserved residues D302 and E305, within a protein interaction region, conferred resistance to high copper and induced hyphal formation similar to strains with the null allele. The grf10Δ mutant misregulated genes involved with copper, iron, and phosphate uptake in YPD medium and mounted a normal transcriptional response to high copper. The mutant accumulated lower levels of magnesium and phosphorus, suggesting that copper resistance is linked to phosphate metabolism. Our results highlight new roles for Grf10 in copper and phosphate homeostasis in C. albicans and underscore the fundamental role of Grf10 in connecting these with cell survival.

Neuroimaging in the Era of Artificial Intelligence: Current Applications.

Background: Artificial intelligence (AI) in medicine has shown significant promise, particularly in neuroimaging. AI increases efficiency and reduces errors, making it a valuable resource for physicians. With the increasing amount of data processing and image interpretation required, the ability to use AI to augment and aid the radiologist could improve the quality of patient care. Observations: AI can predict patient wait times, which may allow more efficient patient scheduling. Additionally, AI can save time for repeat magnetic resonance neuroimaging and reduce the time spent during imaging. AI has the ability to read computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and positron emission tomography with reduced or without contrast without significant loss in sensitivity for detecting lesions. Neuroimaging does raise important ethical considerations and is subject to bias. It is vital that users understand the practical and ethical considerations of the technology. Conclusions: The demonstrated applications of AI in neuroimaging are numerous and varied, and it is reasonable to assume that its implementation will increase as the technology matures. AI's use for detecting neurologic conditions holds promise in combatting ever increasing imaging volumes and providing timely diagnoses.