Repeat stereotactic radiosurgery for treatment of brain metastases locally recurrent following initial radiosurgery.

Purpose: We report outcomes of repeat stereotactic radiosurgery (rSRS) to sites of tumor progression following initial SRS. Additionally, we sought to determine if, at the time of recurrence following initial SRS, surgical resection of the tumor followed by SRS (surgery + rSRS) provided benefit compared to rSRS alone.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed patients treated with rSRS for local recurrence after initial SRS.

High throughput cryo-EM provides structural understanding for modulators of the lysosomal ion channel TRPML1.

Access to high-resolution structural data for protein-ligand complexes is a prerequisite for structure-based medicinal chemistry, where the ability to iterate cycles of design-structure-redesign is highly desirable. For proteins refractory to X-ray crystallography, such as integral membrane proteins, enablement of high throughput structure determination by cryoelectron microscopy (cryo-EM) has the potential to be transformational for structure-based design. We have applied such an approach to the lysosomal ion channel transient receptor potential mucolipin 1 (TRPML1) in complex with ten chemically diverse modulators, both agonists and antagonists.

Perceptions and Use of Medical Cannabis in Patients with Head and Neck Cancer.

Objectives: A survey was conducted to evaluate perceptions, use, and information sources of medical cannabis (MC) among patients with head and neck cancer and identify opportunities for providers to clarify its use.

Methods: Two hundred eighty-nine consecutive patients with head and neck cancer seen in the radiation oncology department at a single institution in CA (October 2022 to June 2023; November 2023 to January 2024) were screened for eligibility and invited to participate. Surveys were emailed.

The unexplored diversity of rough-seeded lupins provides rich genomic resources and insights into lupin evolution.

Lupin crops provide nutritious seeds as an excellent source of dietary protein. However, extensive genomic resources are needed for crop improvement, focusing on key traits such as nutritional value and climate resiliency, to ensure global food security based on sustainable and healthy diets for all. Such resources can be derived either from related lupin species or crop wild relatives, which represent a large and untapped source of genetic variation for crop improvement.

Robotic radiosurgery for the treatment of pediatric arteriovenous malformations.

Objective: Pediatric intracranial arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) have a greater cumulative lifetime risk of rupture than those in adults. Although obliteration after radiation occurs in a dose-dependent manner, increasing radiation doses must be balanced against the risk of adverse radiation effects (AREs). The authors aimed to assess the efficacy of robotic radiosurgery for pediatric AVMs.

Microbiome data management in action workshop: Atlanta, GA, USA, June 12-13, 2024.

Microbiome research is revolutionizing human and environmental health, but the value and reuse of microbiome data are significantly hampered by the limited development and adoption of data standards. While several ongoing efforts are aimed at improving microbiome data management, significant gaps still remain in terms of defining and promoting adoption of consensus standards for these datasets. The Strengthening the Organization and Reporting of Microbiome Studies (STORMS) guidelines for human microbiome research have been endorsed and successfully utilized by many research organizations, publishers, and funding agencies, and have been recognized as a consensus community standard.

A standards perspective on genomic data reusability and reproducibility.

Genomic and metagenomic sequence data provides an unprecedented ability to re-examine findings, offering a transformative potential for advancing research, developing computational tools, enhancing clinical applications, and fostering scientific collaboration. However, effective and ethical reuse of genomics data is hampered by numerous technical and social challenges. The International Microbiome and Multi'Omics Standards Alliance (IMMSA, https://www.

Association of Histologic Subtype With Radiation Response and Survival Outcomes in Synovial Sarcoma.

Purpose: Synovial sarcoma (SS) is a rare, aggressive soft tissue malignancy that is divided into biphasic and monophasic histologic subtypes. In addition to surgical resection, radiation therapy (RT) improves local control in patients at higher risk of recurrence. This study aimed to investigate the impact of histologic subtype on radiation response and survival outcomes in patients treated with RT as part of definitive management.

Analytical assessment of metagenomic workflows for pathogen detection with NIST RM 8376 and two sample matrices.

We assessed the analytical performance of metagenomic workflows using NIST Reference Material (RM) 8376 DNA from bacterial pathogens spiked into two simulated clinical samples: cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and stool. Sequencing and taxonomic classification were used to generate signals for each sample and taxa of interest and to estimate the limit of detection (LOD), the linearity of response, and linear dynamic range. We found that the LODs for taxa spiked into CSF ranged from approximately 100 to 300 copy/mL, with a linearity of 0.

Single- versus multi-fraction spine stereotactic radiosurgery (ALL-STAR) for patients with spinal metastases: a randomized phase III trial protocol.

Background: For patients with spine metastases, stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) provides excellent local control and pain response. Despite increasing use of this treatment modality, there is no consensus on the optimal dose and fractionation of spine SRS for efficacy and toxicity. We have initiated a single-center phase III randomized trial that compares two dose regimens with similar biological equivalent dose (BED) to determine the isolated effect of SRS fractionation on local control.

A sensitivity analysis of methodological variables associated with microbiome measurements.

The experimental methods employed during metagenomic sequencing analyses of microbiome samples significantly impact the resulting data and typically vary substantially between laboratories. In this study, a full factorial experimental design was used to compare the effects of a select set of methodological choices (sample, operator, lot, extraction kit, variable region, and reference database) on the analysis of biologically diverse stool samples. For each parameter investigated, a main effect was calculated that allowed direct comparison both between methodological choices (bias effects) and between samples (real biological differences).

Predictors of Atrial Fibrillation After Thoracic Radiotherapy.

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) has been associated with thoracic radiotherapy, but the specific risk with irradiating different cardiac substructures remains unknown.

Objectives: This study sought to examine the relationship between irradiation of cardiac substructures and the risk of clinically significant (grade ≥3) AF.

Methods: We analyzed data from patients who underwent definitive radiotherapy for localized cancers (non-small cell lung, breast, Hodgkin lymphoma, or esophageal) at our institution between 2004 and 2022.

Soybean2035: A decadal vision for soybean functional genomics and breeding.

Soybean, the fourth most important crop in the world, uniquely serves as a source of both plant oil and plant protein for the world's food and animal feed. Although soybean production has increased approximately 13-fold over the past 60 years, the continually growing global population necessitates further increases in soybean production. In the past, especially in the last decade, significant progress has been made in both functional genomics and molecular breeding.

Vascular Disturbances of the Skin in Critically Ill Patients: Lines, Dots, Patches.

When an understanding of pathogenesis exists, skin lesions that have the appearance of blood in the skin can provide insight into the mechanisms leading to a systemic process that results in cutaneous manifestations. Of the vascular disturbances of the skin that occur in critically ill patients, some result from a nonhemorrhagic process, whereas others represent bleeding into the skin. The lesions of livedo, petechiae, purpura, and ecchymoses can be approached from such a perspective.

Long-term outcomes of induction immunosuppression for kidney transplant recipients with HIV who have average immunologic risk: An inverse probability treatment weighting analysis.

We analyzed the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (2004-2022) for primary kidney transplant recipients with HIV who had average immunologic risk and were discharged on tacrolimus/mycophenolate mofetil (with or without corticosteroids). Recipients were grouped by induction type: rabbit antithymocyte globulin (r-ATG, n = 688) and human interleukin-2 receptor antagonist (IL2Ra, n = 467). Kaplan-Meier curves were generated to examine recipient and graft survival by induction type.

A Phase 2 Single-Arm Trial of High-Dose Precision Targeted Radiation Therapy Added to Immunotherapy for Patients With Metastatic Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Purpose: For metastatic non-small cell lung cancer, the addition of radiation therapy (RT) to immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) therapy could have synergistic anti-cancer effects and address the most threatening tumors. We posited that the addition of high-dose RT to ICI could prolong progression-free survival (PFS).

Methods And Materials: In this single-arm phase 2 trial, 45 patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer who had received an anti-PD-1/anti-PD-L1 ICI for 4+ weeks were enrolled from July 2017 to May 2021.

Cultural and social barriers to hope in gastrointestinal cancer patients.

Background: Hope is correlated with quality of life and overall survivorship among patients with cancer. We aimed to identify sociodemographic and clinical determinants of hope among patients with gastrointestinal (GI) cancer.

Methods: Patients with GI cancer seen in radiation oncology between 10/2022 and 6/2023 were surveyed with the Adult Hope Scale (AHS) questionnaire, which assesses hope based on goal-setting and goal-striving beliefs.

Safety of Pelvic and Abdominal Radiation Therapy for Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Dosimetric Analysis of Acute Bowel Toxicity.

Purpose: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has been considered a relative contraindication to radiation therapy (RT) because of the potential greater risk of RT-induced toxicities. This study aimed to assess acute toxicity outcomes in patients with IBD treated with abdominal/pelvic RT.

Methods And Materials: After institutional review board approval, patients with IBD who received RT to the abdomen/pelvis were identified from an institutional research repository, and their electronic medical records were reviewed.

Climate change differentially alters distribution of two marten species in a hybrid zone.

Species' ranges are shifting rapidly with climate change, altering the composition of biological communities and interactions within and among species. Hybridization is among the species interactions that may change markedly with climate change, yet it is understudied relative to others. We used non-invasive genetic detections to build a maximum entropy species distribution model and investigate the factors that delimit the present and future ranges of American marten () and Pacific marten () in a contact zone in the Northern Rockies.

Effect of palliative radiation dose on symptom response in metastatic sarcomas.

Purpose: Palliative radiotherapy (RT) plays a crucial role in alleviating symptoms associated with metastatic sarcoma. However, there is a lack of consensus on the optimal palliative radiation dose and fractionation for metastatic sarcomas. We analyzed the association between biologically effective radiation dose and symptom response for patients who underwent palliative RT for metastatic sarcomas.

Chest wall pain after single-fraction thoracic stereotactic ablative Radiotherapy: Dosimetric analysis from the iSABR trial.

Background And Purpose: Concerns over chest wall toxicity has led to debates on treating tumors adjacent to the chest wall with single-fraction stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR). We performed a secondary analysis of patients treated on the prospective iSABR trial to determine the incidence and grade of chest wall pain and modeled dose-response to guide radiation planning and estimate risk.

Materials And Methods: This analysis included 99 tumors in 92 patients that were treated with 25 Gy in one fraction on the iSABR trial which individualized dose by tumor size and location.

Standards for fecal microbiota transplant: Tools and therapeutic advances.

Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) has been demonstrated to be efficacious in preventing recurrent Clostridioides difficile (C. difficile) infections, and is being investigated for treatment of several other diseases including inflammatory bowel disease, cancer, obesity, liver disease, and diabetes. To speed up the translation of FMT into clinical practice as a safe and standardized therapeutic intervention, additional evidence-based technical and regulatory guidance is needed.

Less than whole uterus irradiation for patients with locally advanced cervical cancer.

Introduction: Current consensus guidelines for definitive cervical cancer intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) recommend inclusion of the entire uterus within the clinical target volume, however this is debated. We aimed to evaluate outcomes of patients with cervical cancer who were treated with less than whole uterus irradiation.

Methods: We identified 109 patients with FIGO Stage IB-IVA cervical cancer treated definitively with concurrent chemoradiation, including IMRT and brachytherapy, from 2010 to 2022 at a single institution where the practice was to include the gross cervix tumor with an internal target volume with differences in bladder filing accounted for, plus additional 5 mm planning target volume (PTV) margin.