bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Qing-Luo-Yin eases angiogenesis in adjuvant-induced arthritis rats by activating PPARγ
Authors: Song Meng-Ke , Yin Qin , Gu Meng-Fan , Chen Wen-Gang , Olatunji Opeyemi Joshua , Li Yan , Zuo Jian 
Published: August 2024

ABSTRACTObjectiveQing-Luo-Yin (QLY) is an anti-rheumatic herbal formula with potentials activating PPARγ. This study investigated if its anti-angiogenesis effects are related to immune modulation.MethodAdjuvant-induced arthritis (AIA) rats were orally treated by QLY or rosiglitazone (a PPARγ agonist) for 30 days. Their immune and metabolism statues were investigated afterward. Isolated monocytes and lymphocytes were co-cultured reciprocally, and treated by different serums. Healthy rats received blood transfusion from QLY-treated or AIA model rats. Two days ahead of sacrifice, a matrigel plug was planted. The plug and some blood immune indicators were examined. AIA rat serum-incubated THP-1 and Jurkat cells were treated by sinomenine, berberine and palmatine. The medium and T0070907 (a PPARγ inhibitor) were used to stimulate HUVEC cells.ResultsQLY showed similar therapeutic effects on AIA to rosiglitazone, alleviating joint injuries, synovial angiogenesis, and metabolic disorders. Although QLY impaired inflammatory phenotype of AIA monocytes in vivo, the effect was hardly achieved or sustained in vitro. T cells from QLY-treated AIA rats showed the weakened inflammatory phenotype, and were unable to induce monocytes inflammatory polarization. AIA rat lymphocytes induced angiogenesis in the matrigel plug in healthy recipients. In lymphocytes enrichment site, QLY reduced the secretion of IL-17A, IFNγ, and many angiogenesis-related cytokines. QLY-related components affected Jurkat but not THP-1 cells. Jurkat T cells induced angiogenesis of HUVEC cells when cultured by AIA rat serum. Inhibitory effects of the compounds on it were abolished by T0070907.ConclusionPPARγ activation in T cells is a foundation for the anti-angiogenesis property of QLY.
A foundational transformer leveraging full night, multichannel sleep study data accurately classifies sleep stages
Authors: Fox Benjamin , Jiang Joy , Wickramaratne Sajila , Kovatch Patricia , Suarez-Farinas Mayte , Shah Neomi A , Parekh Ankit , Nadkarni Girish N 
Published: August 2024

AbstractStudy ObjectivesTo investigate whether a foundational transformer model using 8-hour, multi-channel data from polysomnograms can outperform existing artificial intelligence (AI) methods for sleep stage classification.MethodsWe utilized the Sleep Heart Health Study (SHHS) visits 1 and 2 for training and validation and the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) for testing of our model. We trained a self-supervised foundational transformer (called PFTSleep) that encodes 8-hour long sleep studies at 125 Hz with 7 signals including brain, movement, cardiac, oxygen, and respiratory channels. These encodings are used as input for training of an additional model to classify sleep stages, without adjusting the weights of the foundational transformer. We compared our results to existing AI methods that did not utilize 8-hour data or the full set of signals but did report evaluation metrics for the SHHS dataset.ResultsWe trained and validated a model with 8,444 sleep studies with 7 signals including brain, movement, cardiac, oxygen, and respiratory channels and tested on an additional 2,055 studies. In total, we trained and tested 587,944 hours of sleep study signal data. Area under the precision recall curve (AUPRC) scores were 0.82, 0.40, 0.53, 0.75, and 0.82 and area under the receiving operating characteristics curve (AUROC) scores were 0.99, 0.95, 0.96, 0.98, and 0.99 for wake, N1, N2, N3, and REM, respectively, on the SHHS validation set. For MESA, the AUPRC scores were 0.56, 0.16, 0.40, 0.45, and 0.65 and AUROC scores were 0.94, 0.77, 0.87, 0.91, and 0.96, respectively. Our model was compared to the longest context window state-of-the-art model and showed increases in macro evaluation scores, notably sensitivity (3.7% increase) and multi-class REM (3.39% increase) and wake (0.97% increase) F1 scores.ConclusionsUtilizing full night, multi-channel PSG data encodings derived from a foundational transformer improve sleep stage classification over existing methods.
The Relationship Between Self-Determination and Burnout: Mental Health Outcomes in Medical Residents
Authors: Mobarak Hassan , Haddad Chadia , Salameh Pascale , Towair Evelyne , El Khoury-Malhame Myriam , Chatila Rajaa 
Published: August 2024

ABSTRACTBackgroundBurnout is a pervasively increasing threat to personal and professional wellbeing and performance. It is yet understudied in relation to basic psychological needs (BPN), especially in at-risk population such as medical residents. This study intends to explore the differential relationship between various aspects of burnout including depersonalization (DP), emotional exhaustion (EE) and lack of personal achievement (PA) and subsets of BPN satisfaction or frustration namely autonomy, relatedness, and competence, with the framework of the Self-Determination Theory (SDT) in healthcare.MaterialsA total of 110 medical residents in various Lebanese hospitals were included. Demographics and standardized scales were used to measure basic psychological need satisfaction and frustration (BPNSFS), burnout (MBI), depression and anxiety (PHQ-4). Residents were also asked about subjective evaluation of academic training and level of impact by ongoing crises (COVID-19 pandemic, Beirut port explosion and financial breakdown).ResultsResult point to alarming prevalence of burnout and mental distress in our sample. It also indicates a differential correlation between gender, financial security and various subsets of burnout. It lastly points to association of DP with overall satisfaction scale (Beta=0.342,p=0.001) and PHQ-4 scores (Beta=-0.234,p=0.017), while feeling burdened to attend lectures and having been physically affected by the Beirut blast correlated with a sense of PA (Beta=0.332,p=0.010, Beta=0.187,p=0.041 respectively) and PHQ-4 (Beta=0.341,p=0.000), interacting with COVID-19 patients (Beta=0.168,p=0.020) and feeling protected in the working environment (Beta=-.231,p=0.002) showed a significant association with EE.DiscussionWithin the SDT framework, this study highlights the complex interplay between collective crises, subjective evaluations or work conditions and other demographics with aspects of burnout in medical residents. It mostly points to the need address this at an individual but also an institutional level to buffer distress in future healthcare providers.
Red blood cell-tumour cell interactions promote tumour cell progression
Authors: Pereira-Veiga Thais , Yáñez-Gómez Celso , Pekkarinen Aleksi , Abuín Carmen , Blechner Christine , González-Conde Miriam , Bauer Alexander T. , Vidal-y-Sy Sabine , Moustafa Ayham , Siebels Bente , Dávila-Ibáñez Ana B. , Cabezas-Sainz Pablo , Santos Maider , Sánchez Laura , Gorgulho Joao , Götze Julian , Meißner Kira , Cueva Juan , Palacios Patricia , Cortegoso Alexia , Curiel Teresa , Rodríguez Carmela , Carmona Marta , Peine Sven , Schmidt Milena , Heuer-Olewinski Nadine , Reck Martin , Abdo Mustafa , López-López Rafael , Windhorst Sabine , Pantel Klaus , Wikman Harriet , Costa Clotilde 
Published: August 2024

AbstractOne critical step in the metastatic cascade is the survival of circulating tumour cells (CTCs) within the bloodstream. While numerous interactions between CTCs and various hematopoietic cells have been described, the role of red blood cells (RBCs) in this process remains underexplored. This study investigates the interactions between tumour cells and RBCs from breast and lung cancer patients, revealing significant phenotypic and functional changes in the tumour cells, unlike when the contact is with RBCs from healthy donors. In vitroco-culture of cancer cell lines with RBCs from metastatic cancer patients resulted in increased tumour cell attachment accompanied by morphological changes. Additionally, RBCs-primed tumour cells showed increased adhesion and disruption of the endothelial barrierin vitroand increased invasiveness bothin vitroandin vivo. Transcriptomic analysis showed that RBCs from metastatic breast cancer patients induce significant gene expression changes, notably upregulatingPAK4, which enhances migration and epithelial-mesenchymal transition. PAK4 inhibition reduced these effects. Proteomic studies revealed substantial remodelling, including actin-related changes and the accumulation of VASP at cell edges, promoting directional migration. Clinically, higher RBC distribution width (RDW) in metastatic breast cancer patients is associated with increased CTC counts and worse outcome. This study highlights the previously unrecognized role of RBCs in promoting metastatic behaviours in cancer cells and suggests potential therapeutic targets, such as PAK4, to counteract these effects. Further exploration of RBCs-tumour cell interactions could provide new insights into metastatic mechanisms and improve cancer prognosis and treatment strategies.Key PointsThis study reveals the previously unknown role of RBCs in enhancing tumour cell invasiveness and metastatic potential.Tumour cells undergo significant phenotypic and functional changes after contact with RBCs from cancer patients.
Trajectories of Cognitive Decline Before and After New-onset Hypertension
Authors: Chen Qingmei , Dong Jianye , Chen GC , Li Haibin , Shen Yueping , Hua Jianian 
Published: August 2024

AbstractBackgroundHypertension is a known factor for cognitive impairment, especially in midlife. However, whether the cognitive function declines before and shortly after new-onset hypertension remains largely unknown.ObjectivesWe aimed to examine the cognitive trajectories before and after new-onset hypertension among community-dwelling midlife and older participants.MethodsThis study included 2,964 participants from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing who were free of hypertension at baseline. Participants who had a stroke at baseline or during follow-up were excluded. Global cognition (a summary of semantic fluency, orientation, and memory) was assessed at baseline (wave 2, 2004) and at least once from wave 3 to wave 9 (2018). New-onset hypertension was defined by self-reported doctor diagnosis, use of antihypertensive medications, and blood measurements < 140/90 mmHg.ResultsOver a median follow-up of 13.6 years, 1,121 (37.8%) participants developed hypertension. The cognitive decline rate among those who later developed hypertension during the pre-hypertension period was similar to the rate among those who remained hypertension-free throughout the study. After the onset of hypertension, the rate of cognitive decline accelerated in global cognition (β, −0.015 SD/year; 95% CI, −0.026 to −0.003;p=0.011), semantic fluency (β, −0.015 SD/year; 95% CI, −0.027 to −0.003;p=0.017), and memory (β, −0.022 SD/year; 95% CI, −0.033 to −0.010;p<0.001), but not in orientation ability (β, −0.012 SD/year; 95% CI, −0.028 to 0.005;p=0.157). Participants who developed hypertension in older age did not experience a reduced impact of post-hypertension cognitive decline compared to those who developed hypertension in midlife.ConclusionsParticipants experienced accelerated cognitive decline upon developing new-onset hypertension. Older participants are equally susceptible to cognitive impairment due to hypertension. Early antihypertensive initiation is crucial in both midlife and later life to protect cognitive health.
Comparative Efficacy of Brush Cytology and Forceps Biopsy in the Diagnosis of Malignant Biliary Strictures: A Single-Center Study in Pakistan
Authors: Khalid Abdullah , Qureshi Sara , Syed Imran Ali , Nadeem Hassan , Malik Ahmad Karim , Aujla Usman Iqbal 
Published: August 2024

ABSTRACTIntroductionThe accurate diagnosis of biliary strictures or narrowing of the bile duct is challenging in clinical practice. Differentiating malignant from benign strictures is critical, because these treatments differ considerably. Although noninvasive imaging techniques help identify these strictures, they do not provide definitive tissue diagnosis, making techniques such as brush cytology and forceps biopsy essential. This study aimed to address the dearth of comparative research on the diagnostic efficacy of brush cytology and forceps biopsy in Pakistan.MethodsThis single-center observational study was conducted at the Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute & Research Center (PKLI&RC), Lahore, from March 2019 to January 2023. Patients with clinically and radiologically suspected biliary strictures were included in the study. Both brush cytology and forceps biopsy samples were subjected to cytopathological analysis by blinded pathologists. Sensitivity, specificity, and predictive values were among the key metrics analyzed.ResultsThe study included 54 patients in the biopsy group and 89 in the brushing group. In terms of diagnostic metrics, the biopsy technique displayed a sensitivity of 65.8%, specificity of 92.3%, positive predictive value (PPV) of 96.4%, and accuracy rate of 72.2%. For the brushing technique, the sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and accuracy were 56.7 %, 93.3%, 83.1%, and 62.9%, respectively. Although both methods showed high specificity, the biopsy technique exhibited a slightly better sensitivity and overall accuracy.ConclusionOur findings underscore the importance of the biopsy method in the accurate diagnosis of malignant biliary strictures, showing marginally superior sensitivity and overall accuracy compared to brush cytology. This knowledge can guide clinicians in Pakistan and similar settings in making informed diagnostic choices to improve patient outcomes.
Assessing the effect of a massive open online course (MOOC) on school water, sanitation, and hygiene improvements in the Philippines
Authors: Rahaman Kh. Shafiur , Marquez Marvin , Bick Sarah , Galban Dexter , Benzian Habib , Monse Bella , Dreibelbis Robert 
Published: August 2024

AbstractImproving the water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services in low-resources setting is a challenge. The Department of Education (DepEd) of the Philippines, supported by GIZ and UNICEF, runs the national WASH in schools program which promotes a stepwise approach to reach national WinS Standards and foster the institutionalization of WASH in the education sector. This includes national-level annual monitoring on WASH service levels in schools, information which is used to set target and allocation resources. Since 2019, the programme has also included a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) for school staff. This platform provides uniform implementation guidance of WinS in the schools across the country. In this analysis, we use annual WASH monitoring data from the 2017/2018 (baseline) and 2021/2022 (endline) and compare this against school-level information on MOOC enrolment and completion. For each school in our analysis, we calculated baseline and endline overall and domain specific star ranking, a standardized 3-point composite measure of school WASH services adopted by DepEd. Linear regression models assessed the relationship between school staff participation in the MOOC and average change in star ranking between baseline and endline and logistic regression models were used to calculate the odds of improvement in star ranking between baseline and endline. Baseline and endline data were available for 28,779 schools. Of those, 5,980 schools had at least 1 teacher enrolled in the MOOC. Overall, MOOC participation was associated with improvements in both overall and domain specific star ranking, with larger improvements seen for hygiene services. The MOOC is a promising key component of the national WASH stategy complementing the annual monitoring process and warrants further investigation in the school management sector.
ANALYSIS OF VIRAL LOAD IN COLOSTRUM OF PUERPERAL WOMEN LIVING WITH HIV USING ANTIRETROVIRAL THERAPY (ART)
Authors: Gonçalves Souza Raphaela Barbosa , Pereira Ribeiro Luiz Claudio , Reis Renata Dias , Motta Bárbara , Carvalho Ancora Luz Julia Rodrigues , Araújo Thais Moraes , Fernandes Santos Julia Freitas , Azevedo Carolina Romão , Jacarandá Julia Monteiro , de Aguiar Sandy Borges , Diaz Horta Isabella Navarro , Rodrigues Gustavo Mourão , Geraldino Barbara Rodrigues , Rocco Regina , Gonçalves Rafael Braga 
Published: August 2024

AbstractHIV transmission occurs during pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding, and can be mitigated through measures such as prenatal HIV screening and antiretroviral therapy (ART). Health institutions are gradually releasing it if a woman has an undetectable viral load in her blood. This study aims to determine the viral load of HIV in colostrum from postpartum women using qRT-PCR, following participant selection based on informed consent criteria. The research includes monitoring participants’ prenatal routine, collecting, storing, and processing colostrum, as well as automated RNA extraction and viral RNA quantification via qRT-PCR. Thirteen participants were recruited, 13 samples of colostrum were subsequently collected, meeting eligibility criteria and signing informed consent. These samples were processed and analyzed by qRT-PCR. Six of nine samples analyzed were undetectable, and three were below the detection limit. We observed that patients with undetectable colostrum had been on ART before conception, while those with colostrum samples detectable had a detectable serum viral load at some point during pregnancy. The immunological, biochemical, and socioeconomic impact of non-breastfeeding on maternal-child health is significant, and analyzing the transmissibility potential of colostrum raises questions about possible breastfeeding with reduced risks of HIV transmission. We think that achieving undetectable or below detection limit levels in colostrum of women on ART is feasible, but further research is needed on the condition of breast milk from women living with HIV under current antiretroviral therapies used in Brazil.
Prevalence, risk factors, and impact of anxiety in early Alzheimer disease: a retrospective study of an autopsy-confirmed cohort
Authors: Patel Palak , Bernard Mark A. , Masurkar Arjun V. 
Published: August 2024

AbstractAnxiety is a neuropsychiatric symptom (NPS) of Alzheimer disease (AD) patients which has been studied primarily in prospective and retrospective studies of clinically diagnosed AD. However, this can be confounded by other primary etiologies. Moreover, anxiety has not been comprehensively studied in autopsy-confirmed AD cases across subjective cognitive decline (SCD), mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and dementia stages. We conducted a retrospective longitudinal analysis of 212 participants with autopsy-confirmed AD, followed from 1986-2013 at the NYU Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center with staging via the Global Deterioration Scale and NPS assessed via BEHAVE-AD. We found that anxiety varied uniquely with stage and was the most common NPS in SCD and MCI (35-40% prevalence). ApoE4 carriage associated with a higher rate of anxiety only at mild dementia. Anxiety in SCD associated with cerebral amyloid angiopathy and arteriosclerosis on brain autopsy, but there were no such associations with concomitant neuropathology at MCI and mild dementia. Anxiety associated with increased progression rate (∼2.5-fold) from SCD to MCI/dementia stages, but not from MCI to dementia. These results suggest an important relationship between anxiety and AD, especially at the preclinical stage. This warrants further study of anxiety as a possible modifiable factor of disease experience and course.
A New Foundation Model’s Accuracy in Glaucoma Detection using Ocular Coherence Tomography Images
Authors: Chuter Benton , Huynh Justin , Walker Evan , Hallaj Shahin , Jalili Jalil , Liebmann Jeffrey , Fazio Massimo A , Girkin Christopher A. , Weinreb Robert N. , Christopher Mark , Zangwill Linda M. 
Published: August 2024

AbstractPurposeTo fine tune and evaluate the performance of the retinal foundation model (RETFound) on a diverse longitudinal clinical research dataset in glaucoma detection from optical coherence tomography (OCT) RNFL scans. Subanalyses of the model performance were evaluated across different subgroups, various dataset sample sizes and training cycles (epochs).DesignEvaluation of a diagnostic technologySubjects, Participants, and Controls15,216 Spectralis OCT RNFL circle scans of 747 individuals of diverse race (56.9% White, 37.8% Black/African American, and 5.3% Other/Not reported, glaucoma severity (30.8% mild, 18.4% moderate-to-severe, and 50.9% no glaucoma), and age (44.8% <60 years, 55.2% >60 years) from the Diagnostic Innovations in Glaucoma Study (DIGS) and the African Descent and Glaucoma Evaluation Study (ADAGES). All OCT scans were labeled as “Non-glaucomatous” or “Glaucomatous.“MethodsRETFound was employed to perform binary glaucoma classification. The diagnostic accuracy of RETFound was iteratively tested across different combinations of dataset sample sizes (50 to 2000 OCT RNFL circle scans), epochs (5 to 50), and study subpopulations stratified by severity of glaucoma, age, and race).Main Outcome MeasuresArea under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) for classifying RNFL scans as “Non-glaucomatous” or “Glaucomatous.“ResultsPerformance metrics improved with larger training datasets and more training cycles, rising from an AUC of 0.61 (50 training images and 5 epochs) to AUC 0.91 (2,000 training images and 50 epochs). Gains in performance were marginal as training size increased beyond 500 scans. Performance was similar across race for all training size and cycle number combinations: African American (AUC=0.90) vs other (AUC=0.93). RNFL scans from older patients (>60 years) led to worse performance (AUC=0.85) compared to younger patients (<60 years, AUC=0.95). Performance was significantly higher for RNFL scans from patients with moderate-to-severe glaucoma vs mild glaucoma (AUC=0.99 vs 0.88, respectively).ConclusionsGood RETFound performance was observed with a relatively small sample size of images used for fine tuning and across differences in race and age. RETFound’s ability to adapt across a range of OCT training conditions and populations suggests it is a promising tool to automate glaucoma detection in a variety of use cases.PrecisThe study found high accuracy for glaucoma detection from OCT optic nerve head RNFL scans in a diverse study population by adapting an existing foundation model (RETFound). Performance improved with larger datasets and more training cycles, achieving an AUC of 0.91 with RNFL scans alone. Results suggest RETFound is promising for automated OCT RNFL-based glaucoma detection across demographics and training conditions.