Reiter's

Crack cocaine is a highly addictive and potent stimulant drug. Animal studies have shown that the cholinergic system plays a role in neurotoxicity induced by cocaine or its active metabolites inhalation. Behavioral alterations associated with crack cocaine use include hyperactivity, depressed mood, and decreased seizure threshold. Here we evaluate the acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) activity, behavioral profile, and the threshold for epileptic seizures in rats that received intrahippocampal pilocarpine (H-PILO) followed by exposure to crack cocaine (H-PILO + CRACK)...

BACKGROUND: Impaired glycemic control and the subsequent development of Cystic fibrosis Related Diabetes (CFRD) are prevalent complications, affecting up to 50% of adults with cystic fibrosis (CF). CFTR modulator (CFTRm) therapies improve pulmonary functions, reduce exacerbation rates, increase survival in people with CF (pwCF) and appear to have a positive effect on extrapulmonary manifestations, such as nutritional state, improvements in upper respiratory symptoms, and quality of life...

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE: Giant ovarian cysts are rare and usually pose significant diagnostic challenges especially in adolescents and young adults. There is limited report of such cases reported in existing literature with hardly any cases published from the Sub-Sharan African region. CASE PRESENTATION: We present the case of a 24-year-old young woman who reported to our gynaecology clinic on the 23rd of January 2023 with a year's history of a progressively increasing abdominopelvic mass...

BACKGROUND: Observational studies of anesthetic neurotoxicity may be biased because children requiring anesthesia commonly have medical conditions associated with neurobehavioral problems. This study takes advantage of a natural experiment associated with appendicitis, in order to determine if anesthesia and surgery in childhood were specifically associated with subsequent neurobehavioral outcomes. METHODS: We identified 134,388 healthy children with appendectomy and examined the incidence of subsequent externalizing or behavioral disorders (conduct, impulse control, oppositional defiant, or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder); or internalizing or mood/anxiety disorders (depression, anxiety, or bipolar disorder) when compared to 671,940 matched healthy controls as identified in Medicaid data between 2001-2018...

BACKGROUND: Understanding the characteristics of multiparametric MRI (mpMRI) in patients from different racial/ethnic backgrounds is important for reducing the observed gaps in clinical outcomes. PURPOSE: To investigate the diagnostic performance of mpMRI and quantitative MRI parameters of prostate cancer (PCa) in African American (AA) and matched White (W) men. STUDY TYPE: Retrospective. SUBJECTS: One hundred twenty-nine patients (43 AA, 86 W) with histologically proven PCa who underwent mpMRI before radical prostatectomy...

Transport of oral nanocarriers across the GI epithelium necessitates transport across hydrophilic mucus layer and the hydrophobic epithelium. Based on hydrophobic-hydrophilic balance, Curcumin-Lipomer (lipid-polymer hybrid nanoparticles) comprising hydrophobic stearic acid and hydrophilic Gantrez™ AN 119 (Gantrez) were developed, by a radical in-situ approach, to successfully traverse both barriers. A monophasic preconcentrate (Cur-Pre) comprising Cur (Curcumin), stearic acid, Gantrez and stabilizers, prepared by simple solution, was added to an aqueous phase to instantaneously generate Curcumin-Lipomer (Cur-Lipo) of nanosize and high entrapment efficiency (EE)...

CMR at 3.0T in the presence of active cardiac implants remains a challenge due to susceptibility artifacts. Beyond a signal void that cancels image information, magnetic field inhomogeneities may cause distorted appearances of anatomical structures. Understanding influencing factors and the extent of distortion are a first step towards optimizing the image quality of CMR with active implants at 3.0T. All measurements were obtained at a clinical 3.0T scanner. An in-house designed phantom with a 3D cartesian grid of water filled spheres was used to analyze the distortion caused by four representative active cardiac devices (cardiac loop recorder, pacemaker, 2 ICDs)...

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a novel dietary supplement, including melatonin and magnesium, delivered via coffee pods on sleep quality, resting metabolic rate (RMR), and body composition in individuals with poor sleep quality disturbances. Using a double-blinded, randomized, crossover trial, we recruited 35 participants to a 4-week intervention with both supplements (1.9 mg melatonin + 200 mg elemental magnesium before sleep) and placebo conditions, considering a 7d washout period between treatments...

Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging allows precise non-invasive quantification of cardiac function. It requires reliable image segmentation for myocardial tissue. Clinically used software usually offers automatic approaches for this step. These are, however, designed for segmentation of human images obtained at clinical field strengths. They reach their limits when applied to preclinical data and ultrahigh field strength (such as CMR of pigs at 7 T). In our study, eleven animals (seven with myocardial infarction) underwent four CMR scans each...

Non-human primate (NHP)-based model systems are highly relevant for biomedical research. However, only few NHP cell lines are available and the generation of additional cell lines is an urgent need to help in the refinement and replacement of these models. Using lentiviral transduction of c-Fos, we established cell lines from the brain of rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). Transcriptome analysis revealed that these cell lines are closely related to astrocytes, which was confirmed by immunoblot and immunofluorescence microscopy detecting expression of the astrocyte marker glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)...

Lysine specific demethylase-1 (LSD1) serves as a regulator of transcription and represents a promising epigenetic target for anticancer treatment. LSD1 inhibitors are in clinical trials for the treatment of Ewing's sarcoma (EWS), acute myeloid leukemia, and small cell lung cancer, and the development of robust inhibitors requires accurate methods for probing demethylation, potency, and selectivity. Here, the inhibition kinetics on the H3K4me2 peptide and nucleosome substrates was examined, comparing the rates of demethylation in the presence of reversible [CC-90011 (PD) and SP-2577 (SD)] and irreversible [ORY-1001 (ID) and tranylcypromine (TCP)] inhibitors...

OBJECTIVE: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease that affects the bony architecture. Nevertheless, it remains uncertain whether these effects are due to disease progression, limited mobility, or medication. We conducted this study to analyze changes in bone mineral density (BMD) in patients with RA and its relationship with various disease parameters, such as demographic factors, disease activity, functional disability, duration since onset of symptoms, cumulative steroid dose, and titers of rheumatoid factor (RF)...

BACKGROUND: Quality of life and survival in Cystic Fibrosis (CF) have improved dramatically, making family planning a feasible option. Maternal and perinatal outcomes in women with CF (wwCF) are similar to those seen in the general population. However, the effect of undergoing multiple pregnancies is unknown. METHODS: A multinational-multicenter retrospective cohort study. Data was obtained from 18 centers worldwide, anonymously, on wwCF 18-45 years old, including isease severity and outcome, as well as obstetric and newborn complications...

Melatonin and sericin exhibit antioxidant properties and may be useful in topical wound healing patches by maintaining redox balance, cell integrity, and regulating the inflammatory response. In human skin, melatonin suppresses damage caused by ultraviolet radiation (UVR) which involves numerous mechanisms associated with reactive oxygen species/reactive nitrogen species (ROS/RNS) generation and enhancing apoptosis. Sericin is a protein mainly composed of glycine, serine, aspartic acid, and threonine amino acids removed from the silkworm cocoon (particularly Bombyx mori and other species)...

UNLABELLED: AbstractBackground: Healthcare professionals (HCPs) are frequently exposed to ethical problems in patient care that can affect the quality of care. Understanding risk factors for ethical problems may help practitioners to address these problems at an early stage. This study aims to provide an overview of ethical risk factors in patient care. Risk factors known from the literature and those found in clinical ethics consultation (CEC) cases are reviewed. METHODS: A scoping review of ethical risk factors in patient care and a CEC case series were conducted, analyzing the documentation (consultation reports, feedback forms, electronic medical records) of 204 CECs from 2012 to 2020 at a somatic and a psychiatric university hospital in Basel, Switzerland...

Ectopic adrenal rests refer to the presence of adrenal tissue outside its normal anatomical location and are usually discovered incidentally on microscopic examination. Literature suggests its occurrence in diverse extrarenal sites, like the genitourinary system and pelvis. Our case describes the rare occurrence of ectopic adrenal rests in the walls of bilateral fallopian tubes of a 43-year-old female patient who presented with a complaint of heavy menstrual bleeding. A total hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy was performed...

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) shares several clinical and immunological features with Kawasaki Disease (KD) and pediatric hyperinflammation, but the immuno-phenotypic overlap among these clinical mimics is still incompletely understood. Here we analyzed serum samples from treatment-naïve patients with MIS-C (n = 31) and KD (n = 11), pediatric hyperinflammation (n = 13) and healthy controls (HC, n = 10) by proximity extension assay (PEA) to profile 184 blood biomarkers...

Ullas BatraIt is well known that patients with cancer are at an increased risk of severe COVID-19. There are no reports that depict the differences in outcomes in cancer patients between the two waves of the pandemic. This is a real-world experience aimed at characterizing the differences in demographics, clinical features, treatment details, and outcomes in COVID-19-positive cancer patients between the two pandemic waves. This was a prospective study of all COVID-19-positive cancer patients attending our specialty out-patient department at Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute and Research Centre between March 2020 and November 2020 (1st wave) and April 2021 and June 2021 (second wave)...

BACKGROUND: Cataclysm refers to a large-scale and violent event involving disaster, catastrophe, calamity, and tragedy. The recent surge of a pandemic (coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)), humanitarian crisis in Sudan, civil unrest, and war, such as the attacks in Syria and Ukraine, reiterate the need to address the trauma attached to such catastrophes. This study focuses on adapting positive psychology, one of the newest branches of psychology to emerge, to help human beings prosper and lead healthy, happy lives...

BACKGROUND: Mismatch negativity (MMN) amplitude is attenuated in schizophrenia patients (SZ). However, variability in illness course among SZ samples and types of deviant stimuli used in MMN paradigms have contributed to inconsistent findings across studies. Though MMN is suggested to be impaired in schizotypy, the potential link between the two is yet to be systematically examined in unaffected first-degree relatives of schizophrenia patients (FDR). METHODS: The SZ sample had twenty-two drug-naïve or drug-free patients (dSZ) and thirty chronic/medicated patients (cSZ)...