Top 10 drugs most frequently associated with adverse events of myocarditis and pericarditis.

Myocarditis and pericarditis are managed with various treatments, yet prior studies and case reports indicate that certain drug classes may elevate the risk for these inflammatory cardiac conditions. This research aimed to systematically identify the leading drugs most frequently associated with myocarditis and pericarditis cases. Analyses were carried out using the global database of individual case safety reports from 1968 to 2024.

Global prevalence of congenital color vision deficiency among children and adolescents, 1932-2022.

Purpose: To estimate the prevalence of congenital color vision deficiency (CVD), categorized by geographical region, ethnicity, type (deutan, protan, and tritan), and severity (anomalous trichromacy, dichromacy, and monochromacy).

Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis of the literature.

Participants: A total of 1,703,619 participants, including 31,493 patients from 56 studies across 21 countries and five continents, were included in our analysis.

Disproportionality analysis from World Health Organization data on migraine-specific medications and cerebrovascular diseases.

Background: Migraine is a major cause of population ill health, with an estimated global prevalence of approximately 14-15%. However, given the limited research on the associations between specific migraine medications and adverse cerebrovascular events, this study aimed to investigate these relationships and their impact on cerebrovascular risk.

Methods: This study utilized data from the global pharmacovigilance database, which covers 170 countries from 1968 to 2024.

ACVR1/ALK2-p21 signaling axis modulates proliferation of the venous endothelium in the retinal vasculature.

The proliferation of the endothelium is a highly coordinated process to ensure the emergence, expansion, and homeostasis of the vasculature. While Bone Morphogenetic Protein (BMP) signaling fine-tunes the behaviors of endothelium in health and disease, how BMP signaling influences the proliferation of endothelium and therefore, modulates angiogenesis remains largely unknown. Here, we evaluated the role of Activin A Type I Receptor (ACVR1/ALK2), a key BMP receptor in the endothelium, in modulating the proliferation of endothelial cells.

Deciphering perivascular macrophages and microglia in the retinal ganglion cell layers.

The classically defined two retinal microglia layers are distributed in inner and outer plexiform layers. Although there are some reports that retinal microglia are also superficially located around the ganglion cell layer (GCL) in contact with the vitreous, there has been a lack of detailed descriptions and not fully understood yet. We visualized the microglial layers by using CX3CR1-GFP (C57BL6) transgenic mice with both healthy and disease conditions including NaIO3-induced retinal degeneration models and IRBP-induced auto-immune uveitis models.

Glycemic Control and Retinal Microvascular Changes in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients without Clinical Retinopathy.

Backgruound: To investigate the association of glycemic control and retinal microvascular changes in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) without diabetic retinopathy (DR).

Methods: This retrospective, observational, cohort study included patients with T2DM without DR. The patients were categorized into intensive control (IC; mean glycosylated hemoglobin [HbA1c] ≤7.

Visuomotor anomalies in achiasmatic mice expressing a transfer-defective Vax1 mutant.

In binocular animals that exhibit stereoscopic visual responses, the axons of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) connect to brain areas bilaterally by forming a commissure called the optic chiasm (OC). Ventral anterior homeobox 1 (Vax1) contributes to the formation of the OC, acting endogenously in optic pathway cells and exogenously in growing RGC axons. Here, we generated Vax1 mice expressing the Vax1 mutant, which is incapable of intercellular transfer.

Development of a novel knockout model of retinitis pigmentosa using -knockout Long-Evans rats.

Although rats with melanin-pigmentated retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells are physiologically more appropriate models for human eye research than their albino counterparts, reliable models from the former strain are not available to study retinal degeneration. Here, we describe the development of a novel -knockout Long-Evans (LE KO) rat model that recapitulates key features of human retinitis pigmentosa (RP). After the generation of the -knockout Sprague-Dawley rats with the CRISPR-Cpf1 system, the LE rat was back-crossed over 5 generations to develop the pigmented LE KO strain.

Deficiency Promotes Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension via HGF/c-Met Signaling.

Background: In large-scale genomic studies, , an endothelial-specific transcription factor, has been suggested as a putative causal gene of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH); however, its role and molecular mechanisms remain to be elucidated. We investigated the functional impacts and acting mechanisms of impaired Sox17 (SRY-related HMG-box17) pathway in PAH and explored its potential as a therapeutic target.

Methods: In adult mice, deletion in pulmonary endothelial cells (ECs) induced PAH under hypoxia with high penetrance and severity, but not under normoxia.

Establishment of the reproducible branch retinal artery occlusion mouse model and intravital longitudinal imaging of the retinal CX3CR1-GFP cells after spontaneous arterial recanalization.

Animal models of retinal artery occlusion (RAO) have been widely used in many studies. However, most of these studies prefer using a central retinal artery occlusion (CRAO) which is a typical global ischemia model of the retina, due to the technical limitation of producing single vessel targeted modeling with real-time imaging. A focal ischemia model, such as branch retinal artery occlusion (BRAO), is also needed for explaining interactions, including the immunological reaction between the ischemic retina and adjacent healthy retina.

Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease and COVID-19 Susceptibility and Outcomes: a Korean Nationwide Cohort.

Background: Evidence for the association between underlying non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), the risk of testing severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) positive, and the clinical consequences of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is controversial and scarce. We aimed to investigate the association between the presence of NAFLD and the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infectivity and COVID-19-related outcomes.

Methods: We used the population-based, nationwide cohort in South Korea linked with the general health examination records between January 1, 2018 and July 30, 2020.

Statin Use and COVID-19 Infectivity and Severity in South Korea: Two Population-Based Nationwide Cohort Studies.

Background: Basic studies suggest that statins as add-on therapy may benefit patients with COVID-19; however, real-world evidence of such a beneficial association is lacking.

Objective: We investigated differences in SARS-CoV-2 test positivity and clinical outcomes of COVID-19 (composite endpoint: admission to intensive care unit, invasive ventilation, or death) between statin users and nonusers.

Methods: Two independent population-based cohorts were analyzed, and we investigated the differences in SARS-CoV-2 test positivity and severe clinical outcomes of COVID-19, such as admission to the intensive care unit, invasive ventilation, or death, between statin users and nonusers.

Physical activity and the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection, severe COVID-19 illness and COVID-19 related mortality in South Korea: a nationwide cohort study.

Purpose: To determine the potential associations between physical activity and risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection, severe illness from COVID-19 and COVID-19 related death using a nationwide cohort from South Korea.

Methods: Data regarding 212 768 Korean adults (age ≥20 years), who tested for SARS-CoV-2, from 1 January 2020 to 30 May 2020, were obtained from the National Health Insurance Service of South Korea and further linked with the national general health examination from 1 January 2018 to 31 December 2019 to assess physical activity levels. SARS-CoV-2 positivity, severe COVID-19 illness and COVID-19 related death were the main outcomes.

ASSOCIATION BETWEEN EPIRETINAL MEMBRANE, EPIRETINAL PROLIFERATION, AND PROGNOSIS OF FULL-THICKNESS MACULAR HOLE CLOSURE.

Purpose: To demonstrate the effects of epiretinal membrane (ERM) and epiretinal proliferation on surgical outcomes for full-thickness macular hole.

Methods: Nested case-control study with propensity score matching. Patients operated on for full-thickness macular hole between January 2011 and March 2020 were enrolled.

Autoimmune inflammatory rheumatic diseases and COVID-19 outcomes in South Korea: a nationwide cohort study.

Background: Real-world evidence on the association between autoimmune inflammatory rheumatic diseases, therapies related to these diseases, and COVID-19 outcomes are inconsistent. We aimed to investigate the potential association between autoimmune inflammatory rheumatic diseases and COVID-19 early in the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: We did an exposure-driven, propensity score-matched study using a South Korean nationwide cohort linked to general health examination records.

COVID-19 Morbidity and Severity in Patients With Age-Related Macular Degeneration: A Korean Nationwide Cohort Study.

Purpose: To determine the potential association between age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a representative chronic age-related degenerative disease of the retina associated with inflammation and aging, and susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection and severe COVID-19 outcomes.

Design: Nationwide cohort study with propensity-score matching.

Methods: A population-based nationwide cohort in Korea was examined.

Estimating COVID-19 Infection and Severity Risks in Patients with Chronic Rhinosinusitis: A Korean Nationwide Cohort Study.

Background: Basic studies suggest that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection can affect chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS), but there is unclear real-world evidence regarding the association of underlying CRS with the risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection and severe coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19).

Objective: We aimed to determine whether CRS is associated with increased risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection and severe COVID-19.

Methods: Altogether, 219,959 adult patients who tested for SARS-CoV-2 in South Korea from January 1 to May 15, 2020 (excluding self-referral) were identified in this nested case-control study with propensity score matching.

Long-term effects of human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived retinal cell transplantation in Pde6b knockout rats.

Retinal degenerative disorders, including age-related macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa (RP), are characterized by the irreversible loss of photoreceptor cells and retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells; however, the long-term effect of implanting both human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived RPE and photoreceptor for retinal regeneration has not yet been investigated. In this study, we evaluated the long-term effects of hiPSC-derived RPE and photoreceptor cell transplantation in Pde6b knockout rats to study RP; cells were injected into the subretinal space of the right eyes of rats before the appearance of signs of retinal degeneration at 2-3 weeks of age. Ten months after transplantation, we evaluated the cells using fundus photography, optical coherence tomography, and histological evaluation, and no abnormal cell proliferation was observed.