A Novel Approach for Atrial Fibrillation-related Obstructive Sleep Apnea Detection Using Enhanced Single-Lead ECG Features with Customized Deep Learning Algorithm.

Study Objectives: Atrial fibrillation (AF) and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) are interrelated conditions that substantially increase the risk of cardiovascular complications. However, concurrent detection of these conditions remains a critical unmet need in clinical practice. Current home sleep apnea test (HSAT) devices often fail to detect arrhythmias essential for diagnosing OSA-associated AF due to limited ECG monitoring capabilities, and their integration with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) data for treatment optimization remains underutilized.

LoxCode in vivo barcoding reveals epiblast clonal fate bias to fetal organs.

Much remains to be learned about the clonal fate of mammalian epiblast cells. Here, we develop high-diversity Cre recombinase-driven LoxCode barcoding for in vivo clonal lineage tracing for bulk tissue and single-cell readout. Embryonic day (E) 5.

Enhancing Adherence to Continuous Positive Airway Pressure Therapy in Patients With Obstructive Sleep Apnea Using Augmented Reality: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy is the gold standard treatment for treating obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). However, patient adherence to CPAP therapy remains a critical challenge, with many individuals finding it difficult to maintain consistent use due to discomfort, lack of understanding, or perceived inconvenience. Augmented reality (AR) offers a novel approach to overcoming these barriers by providing interactive real-time guidance to users, potentially enhancing adherence rates.

The RB protein: more than a sentry of cell cycle entry.

Genomic instability is a hallmark of cancer. It fuels cancer progression and therapy resistance. As 'the guardian of the genome', the tumor suppressor protein p53 protects against genomic damage.

Dual-membrane bioinspired nanocarriers for targeted therapy of MRSA-induced acute lung injury and bacteremia.

Bioinspired nanoparticles enhance the targeting of specific organs by facilitating interactions and communication at the nano-bio interface. Combining human neutrophil and lung epithelial cell membranes for nanoparticle cloaking offers distinct advantages in binding to bacteria and pulmonary epithelium, thus targeting infection-induced inflammatory areas. This study aimed to develop rifampicin-loaded biomimetic nanocarriers by wrapping a polymeric core with dual membranes derived from neutrophils and A549 cells, inheriting the membrane characteristics of the native cells.

Clinical Insights into Bilateral Cochlear Implantation for a Child with Dominant Deafness-Onychodystrophy Syndrome.

Dominant deafness-onychodystrophy (DDOD) syndrome is a rare genetic disorder characterized by sensorineural hearing loss and the absence or hypoplasia of nails, associated with defects in the ATP6V1B2 gene. This gene defect significantly affects hearing function, leading to congenital severe-to-profound hearing loss. We present the comprehensive cochlear implant (CI) outcome of a 5-year-old child with DDOD syndrome who received bilateral sequential CIs at the ages of 1  and 4 years.

Risk Factors and Awareness of Bone Fragility in Inflammatory Bowel Disease in Taiwan: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are at a higher risk of developing bone disorders. Awareness and understanding of the disease are crucial for prevention and early diagnosis. Currently, there is no research on the risk factors and knowledge of bone fragility in the population with IBD in Taiwan.

Asymptomatic small gastric subepithelial lesions arising from the muscularis propria: outcomes and surveillance in a medical center.

Background And Aims: Gastric subepithelial lesions (SELs) are frequently identified incidentally during endoscopy, with those originating from the muscularis propria (MP) layer posing diagnostic and management challenges. The optimal surveillance duration for these lesions remains debated. This study aimed to assess size changes in SELs from the MP layer and recommend appropriate surveillance intervals.

Post-operative oropharyngeal rehabilitation suppress oxidative stress and inflammation in obstructive sleep apnea patients with transoral robotic surgery.

Purpose: To demonstrate the effects of postoperative oropharyngeal rehabilitation on inflammatory mediators and antioxidant capacity in adults with obstructive sleep apnea.

Methods: This quasi-experimental study enrolled participants without blinding between January 2020 and December 2022. Patients with obstructive sleep apnea were divided into a conservative treatment group (n = 17), surgery group (n = 23), or surgery combined with oropharyngeal rehabilitation (surgery + rehabilitation) group (n = 19).

Dual cell-penetrating peptide-conjugated polymeric nanocarriers for miRNA-205-5p delivery in gene therapy of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma.

Despite the potential of microRNAs (miRNAs) in suppressing tumorigenesis, the main challenges are achieving tumor-specific selectivity and efficient delivery into cancer cells. In this study, miR-205-5p-loaded polymeric nanoparticles conjugated with dual cell-penetrating peptides (CPPs) were designed for targeting and treating cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC). The CPPs, R9, and p28, demonstrated high cell-penetrating/targeting abilities and antitumor activity.

Novel strategies in topical delivery for psoriasis treatment: nanocarriers and energy-driven approaches.

Introduction: Psoriasis is characterized by abnormal differentiation and hyperproliferation of epidermal keratinocytes. This condition presents significant challenges for effective drug delivery. In addition to overcoming the thickness of the skin, topical treatments must navigate the complex hydrophobic and hydrophilic properties of the skin barrier.

Nanoscopic Supercapacitance Elucidations of the Graphene-Ionic Interface with Suspended/Supported Graphene in Different Ionic Solutions.

Graphene-based supercapacitors have gained significant attention due to their exceptional energy storage capabilities. Despite numerous research efforts trying to improve the performance, the challenge of experimentally elucidating the nanoscale-interface molecular characteristics still needs to be tackled for device optimizations in commercial applications. To address this, we have conducted a series of experiments using substrate-free graphene field-effect transistors (SF-GFETs) and oxide-supported graphene field-effect transistors (OS-GFETs) to elucidate the graphene-electrolyte interfacial arrangement and corresponding capacitance under different surface potential states and ionic concentration environments.

Targeting SETDB1 in cancer and immune regulation: Potential therapeutic strategies in cancer.

SET domain bifurcated histone lysine methyltransferase 1 (SETDB1/ESET), a pivotal H3K9 methyltransferase, has been extensively studied since its discovery over two decades ago. SETDB1 plays critical roles in immune regulation, including B cell maturation, T-cell activity modulation, and endogenous retrovirus (ERV) silencing. While essential for normal immune cell function, SETDB1 overexpression in cancer cells disrupts immune responses by suppressing tumor immunogenicity and facilitating immune evasion.

Enhancement of anti-sarcoma immunity by NK cells engineered with mRNA for expression of a EphA2-targeted CAR.

Background: Paediatric sarcomas, including rhabdomyosarcoma, Ewing sarcoma and osteosarcoma, represent a group of malignancies that significantly contribute to cancer-related morbidity and mortality in children and young adults. These cancers share common challenges, including high rates of metastasis, recurrence or treatment resistance, leading to a 5-year survival rate of approximately 20% for patients with advanced disease stages. Despite the critical need, therapeutic advancements have been limited over the past three decades.

Death Penalty in Modern Japan (1868-1945): Evolving Execution Practices and Their Societal Impact.

This article investigates the evolution of capital executions in modern Japan, focusing primarily on two major aspects: the reform of execution methods to reduce physical suffering, and the implementation of measures to preserve the confidentiality of executions. These aspects created a notable distance between public awareness and the realities of death penalty, particularly regarding actual executions. Consequently, calls for abolition gradually shifted from concerns about the suffering of death-row inmates to societal issues and abstract theoretical considerations.

Timing of bilateral sequential cochlear implantation for children: determination of its benefit.

Purpose: To evaluate monosyllable word recognition in noise under different conditions in bilateral sequential cochlear implants (CIs). Second, to assess subjective hearing benefits among bilateral sequential CIs, bimodal hearing, and CI-only groups. Lastly, to analyze the prognostic factors affecting CI outcomes in children with bilateral sequential CIs.

Effectiveness of Treating Obstructive Sleep Apnea by Surgeries and Continuous Positive Airway Pressure: Evaluation Using Objective Sleep Parameters and Patient-Reported Outcomes.

: Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP), palatal plus nasal surgery (PNS), and continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) are widely implemented treatments for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). This study aims to explore the long-term effects on objective sleep parameters and patient-reported outcomes (PROs) following different therapeutic interventions for OSA. : Data from patients with moderate-to-severe OSA were retrospectively collected from a medical center and a regional hospital, spanning from December 2011 to August 2018.

Vaccine optimization for highly pathogenic avian influenza: Assessment of antibody responses and protection for virus-like particle vaccines in chickens.

Background: Recent outbreaks of clade 2.3.4.

A scalable, spin-free approach to generate enhanced induced pluripotent stem cell-derived natural killer cells for cancer immunotherapy.

Natural killer (NK) cells play a vital role in innate immunity and show great promise in cancer immunotherapy. Traditional sources of NK cells, such as the peripheral blood, are limited by availability and donor variability. In addition, in vitro expansion can lead to functional exhaustion and gene editing challenges.

Reliability Issues of Mobile Nutrition Apps for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention: Comparative Study.

Background: Controlling saturated fat and cholesterol intake is important for the prevention of cardiovascular diseases. Although the use of mobile diet-tracking apps has been increasing, the reliability of nutrition apps in tracking saturated fats and cholesterol across different nations remains underexplored.

Objective: This study aimed to examine the reliability and consistency of nutrition apps focusing on saturated fat and cholesterol intake across different national contexts.

Inclusion of blood pressure parameter increases predictive capability of severe obstructive sleep apnea: A decision tree approach.

Few studies included objective blood pressure (BP) to construct the predictive model of severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). This study used binary logistic regression model (BLRM) and the decision tree method (DTM) to constructed the predictive models for identifying severe OSA, and to compare the prediction capability between the two methods. Totally 499 adult patients with severe OSA and 1421 non-severe OSA controls examined at the Sleep Medicine Center of a tertiary hospital in southern Taiwan between October 2016 and April 2019 were enrolled.

Utilizing Artificial Neural Networks for Establishing Hearing-Loss Predicting Models Based on a Longitudinal Dataset and Their Implications for Managing the Hearing Conservation Program.

Background: Though the artificial neural network (ANN) technique has been used to predict noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL), the established prediction models have primarily relied on cross-sectional datasets, and hence, they may not comprehensively capture the chronic nature of NIHL as a disease linked to long-term noise exposure among workers.

Methods: A comprehensive dataset was utilized, encompassing eight-year longitudinal personal hearing threshold levels (HTLs) as well as information on seven personal variables and two environmental variables to establish NIHL predicting models through the ANN technique. Three subdatasets were extracted from the afirementioned comprehensive dataset to assess the advantages of the present study in NIHL predictions.