Notes

An introduction to Ontologies in Virtual Reality-Based Training for Health-related Area.
Furthermore, this study highlights the utility of WGS-based precise diagnostics for understanding congenital disorders in cattle and the need for continued surveillance for rare lethal genetic disorders in cattle.Thrombocytopenia, which signifies a low platelet count usually below 150 × 109/L, is a common finding following or during many viral infections. In clinical medicine, mild thrombocytopenia, combined with lymphopenia in a patient with signs and symptoms of an infectious disease, raises the suspicion of a viral infection. This phenomenon is classically attributed to platelet consumption due to inflammation-induced coagulation, sequestration from the circulation by phagocytosis and hypersplenism, and impaired platelet production due to defective megakaryopoiesis or cytokine-induced myelosuppression. All these mechanisms, while plausible and supported by substantial evidence, regard platelets as passive bystanders during viral infection. However, platelets are increasingly recognized as active players in the (antiviral) immune response and have been shown to interact with cells of the innate and adaptive immune system as well as directly with viruses. These findings can be of interest both for understanding the pathogenesis of viral infectious diseases and predicting outcome. In this review, we will summarize and discuss the literature currently available on various mechanisms within the relationship between thrombocytopenia and virus infections.The prognostic value of multiple glycemic parameters in poisoned patients was never assessed. We aim to explore the effects of glucose variability on short-term outcomes in nondiabetic and diabetic patients acutely poisoned with undifferentiated xenobiotics. We performed a prospective observational study in a tertiary center for toxicology in northeastern Romania. Over the course of 3 years, we included 1076 adults, older than 18 years, admitted for acute poisoning with a xenobiotic. The mortality rate was 4.1%. The admission blood glucose level (BGL) predicted mortality (OR 1.015, 95% CI 1.011-1.019, p less then 0.001) and complications (OR 1.005, 95% CI 1.001-1.009, p 0.02). The mean glucose level (MGL) after admission (OR 1.007, 95% CI 1.000-1.013, p 0.034) and coefficient of glucose variability (CV) were predictive for complications (OR 40.58, 95% CI 1.35-1220.52, p 0.033), using the same multivariable model. The receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis revealed that BGL had good predictive value for in-hospital mortality (area under the curve (AUC) = 0.744, 95% CI = 0.648-0.841, p less then 0.001), and complications (AUC = 0.618, 95% CI = 0.584-0.653, p less then 0.001). In patients acutely poisoned with xenobiotics, the BGL, MGL and CV can be useful as mortality and short-outcome predictors.In skeletal muscle, long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are involved in dystrophin protein stabilization but also in the regulation of myocytes proliferation and differentiation. Hence, they could represent promising therapeutic targets and/or biomarkers for Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy (DMD/BMD). DMD and BMD are X-linked myopathies characterized by a progressive muscular dystrophy with or without dilatative cardiomyopathy. Two-thirds of DMD gene mutations are represented by deletions, and 63% of patients carrying DMD deletions are eligible for 45 to 55 multi-exons skipping (MES), becoming BMD patients (BMDΔ45-55). We analyzed the genomic lncRNA presence in 38 BMDΔ45-55 patients and characterized the lncRNA localized in introns 44 and 55 of the DMD gene. We highlighted that all four lncRNA are differentially expressed during myogenesis in immortalized and primary human myoblasts. In addition, the lncRNA44s2 was pointed out as a possible accelerator of differentiation. Interestingly, lncRNA44s expression was associated with a favorable clinical phenotype. These findings suggest that lncRNA44s2 could be involved in muscle differentiation process and become a potential disease progression biomarker. Based on these results, we support MES45-55 therapy and propose that the design of the CRISPR/Cas9 MES45-55 assay consider the lncRNA sequences bordering the exonic 45 to 55 deletion.Aging causes a decline in skeletal muscle function, resulting in a progressive loss of muscle mass, quality, and strength. A weak regenerative capacity is one of the critical causes of dysfunctional skeletal muscle in elderly individuals. The extracellular matrix (ECM) maintains the tissue framework structure in skeletal muscle. As shown by previous reports and our data, the gene expression of ECM components decreases with age, but the accumulation of collagen substantially increases in skeletal muscle. We examined the structural changes in ECM in aged skeletal muscle and found restricted ECM degradation. In aged skeletal muscles, several genes that maintain ECM structure, such as transforming growth factor β (TGF-β), tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMPs), matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), and cathepsins, were downregulated. Muscle injury can induce muscle repair and regeneration in young and adult skeletal muscles. Surprisingly, muscle injury could not only efficiently induce regeneration in aged skeletal muscle, but it could also activate ECM remodeling and the clearance of ECM deposition. These results will help elucidate the mechanisms of muscle fibrosis with age and develop innovative antifibrotic therapies to decrease excessive collagen deposition in aged muscle.The current standard for diagnosing cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) is colposcopy followed by punch biopsy. We have developed flexible magnifying endoscopy with narrow band imaging (ME-NBI) for the diagnosis of CIN. Here, we investigated the feasibility of targeted endoscopic forceps biopsy (E-Bx) under guidance of ME-NBI for the diagnosis of CIN. We prospectively enrolled 32 consecutive patients with confirmed or suspected high-grade CIN undergoing cervical conization. Next to colposcopy, the same patients underwent ME-NBI just before conization. ME-NBI was performed, and 30 E-Bx samples were taken from lesions suspicious for high-grade CIN and 15 from non-suspicious mucosa. We recalled 82 punch biopsy (P-Bx) specimens taken from lesions suspicious for high-grade CIN under colposcopic examination before enrollment. The proportion of sufficient biopsy samples, which had an entire mucosal layer with subepithelial tissue, for the diagnosis of CIN was evaluated by both methods. Performance of targeted E-Bx for the final diagnosis of at least high-grade CIN was calculated. Seventeen P-Bx specimens were unavailable. The proportion of sufficient samples with E-Bx was 84%, which was similar to that with P-Bx (87%) (p = 0.672). The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of ME-NBI using E-Bx was 92%, 81%, and 88%, respectively. In conclusion, ME-NBI-guided E-Bx samples were feasible for histological diagnoses of CIN, and further investigation of its diagnostic accuracy is warranted.KL-6 is a sialoglycoprotein antigen which proved elevated in the serum of patients with different interstitial lung diseases, especially in those with a poorer outcome. Given that interstitial pneumonia is the most common presentation of SARS-CoV2 infection, we evaluated the prognostic role of KL-6 in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia. Patients with COVID-19 pneumonia were prospectively enrolled. Blood samples were collected at the time of enrolment (TOE) and on day 7 (T1). Serum KL-6 concentrations were measured by chemiluminescence enzyme immunoassay using a KL-6 antibody kit (LUMIPULSE G1200, Fujirebio) and the cut-off value was set at >1000 U/mL. Fifteen out of 34 enrolled patients (44.1%) died. Patients with unfavourable outcome showed significantly lower P/F ratio and higher IL-6 values and plasmatic concentrations of KL-6 at TOE compared with those who survived (median KL-6 1188 U/mL vs. 260 U/mL, p 1000 U/mL resulted independently associated with death and showed good accuracy in predicting a poorer outcome. KL-6 may thus represent a quick, inexpensive, and sensitive parameter to stratify the risk of severe respiratory failure and death.Escherichia coli Nissle 1917 (EcN) is an intestinal probiotic that is effective for the treatment of intestinal disorders, such as inflammatory bowel disease and ulcerative colitis. EcN is a representative Gram-negative probiotic in biomedical research and is an intensively studied probiotic. However, to date, its genome-wide metabolic network model has not been developed. Here, we developed a comprehensive and highly curated EcN metabolic model, referred to as iDK1463, based on genome comparison and phenome analysis. The model was improved and validated by comparing the simulation results with experimental results from phenotype microarray tests. iDK1463 comprises 1463 genes, 1313 unique metabolites, and 2984 metabolic reactions. Phenome data of EcN were compared with those of Escherichia coli intestinal commensal K-12 MG1655. iDK1463 was simulated to identify the genetic determinants responsible for the observed phenotypic differences between EcN and K-12. Further, the model was simulated for gene essentiality analysis and utilization of nutrient sources under anaerobic growth conditions. These analyses provided insights into the metabolic mechanisms by which EcN colonizes and persists in the gut. iDK1463 will contribute to the system-level understanding of the functional capacity of gut microbes and their interactions with microbiota and human hosts, as well as the development of live microbial therapeutics.This population-based study assessed the prevalence and determinants of symptom-defined post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in a cohort of hospitalized and non-hospitalized patients about 1.5-6 months after their COVID-19 onset. The data were acquired from two mixed postal/web surveys in June-September 2020 from patients all aged ≥18 years with a positive polymerase chain reaction for severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) until 1 June 2020, comprising both hospitalized and non-hospitalized subjects. The catchment areas of the two included hospitals covers about 17% of the population of Norway. In total, 211 hospitalized and 938 non-hospitalized subjects received invitation. The prevalence of symptom-defined PTSD was assessed using the PTSD checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5). Determinants of symptom-defined PTSD and PTSD symptoms were analyzed using multivariable logistic and linear regression analysis. In total, 583 (51%) subjects responded at median 116 (range 41-200) days after COVID-19 onset. The prevalence of symptom-defined PTSD was 9.5% in hospitalized and 7.0% in non-hospitalized subjects (p = 0.80). Female sex, born outside of Norway, and dyspnea during COVID-19 were risk factors for persistent PTSD symptoms. In non-hospitalized subjects, previous depression and COVID-19 symptom load were also associated with persistent PTSD symptoms. Elimusertib In conclusion, COVID-19 symptom load, but not hospitalization, was associated with symptom-defined PTSD and PTSD symptom severity.This short investigation deals with a review of the tensile strength properties of six different types of nanocellulose films (carboxymethylated, carboxymethylcellulose-grafted, enzymatically pretreated, phosphorylated, sulfoethylated, and alkoxylated nanocellulose films) manufactured using identical protocols and the determination of the apparent nanocellulose yield of the same nanocelluloses and their tensile strength properties at different extents of delamination (microfluidization). The purpose was to test a previously suggested procedure to estimate the maximum tensile strength on these different procedures. A second goal was to investigate the impact of the nanocellulose yield on the tensile strength properties. The investigations were limited to the nanocellulose research activities at RISE in Stockholm, because these investigations were made with identical experimental laboratory protocols. The importance of such protocols is also stressed. This review shows that the suggested procedure to estimate the maximum tensile strength is a viable proposition, albeit not scientifically proven.
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