Backbone cleavage of peptides and proteins cysteine -fluoroacetylation.

-Fluoroacetylation of cysteine residues enables efficient cleavage of main-chain amide bonds in peptides and proteins under neutral aqueous conditions.

Coumarin-facilitated iron transport: An IRT1-independent strategy for iron acquisition in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Iron (Fe) is an essential micronutrient for plant growth and development. Despite its importance, Fe uptake in alkaline soils is challenging for most plants because of its poor bioavailability. Plants have evolved two main strategies to acquire Fe.

First Case Report of Robotic-Assisted Surgery for a Choledochal Cyst in a Pediatric Patient Using the da Vinci SP.

The da Vinci SP, a robotic surgical platform capable of single-port surgery, offers cosmetic advantages; however, its use in pediatric patients has been limited. This report presents the first da Vinci SP operation for a choledochal cyst in a 7-year-old girl with Type Ic disease. The procedure was completed in 300 min, including 192 min of console time, with no intraoperative complications.

Comparing Perioperative Outcomes Using Single and Multiple Robot Systems During the Learning Period for Robot-Assisted Radical Prostatectomy.

Introduction: This study aimed to assess the perioperative outcomes during the learning period for robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) using multiple surgical robot systems, namely hinotori and da Vinci, and compare them with those observed for surgeons trained using only da Vinci.

Methods: This study included two surgeons who learned RARP using multiple robot systems (hinotori and da Vinci Xi [H&D] group) and four surgeons who learned using only da Vinci (D group). We retrospectively collected data from the initial 25 cases of each surgeon.

Effects of neonicotinoid insecticides and a metabolite on phototaxis and growth of two diatoms,Mayamaea pseudoterrestris and Nitzschia palea.

Emerging contaminants in aquatic environments, such as neonicotinoids, are of great concern because of their adverse effects on non-target organisms. This study examined the effects of the neonicotinoid insecticides imidacloprid, dinotefuran, thiacloprid, and thiacloprid-amide on the phototaxis and growth of two diatoms, Mayamaea pseudoterrestris and Nitzschia palea. Neonicotinoids affect phototaxis positively and negatively, depending on the diatom and chemical species.

Neurodevelopmental Outcomes in Preterm Infants at 18 Months of Corrected Age Following Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic-Related Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) Care Changes.

Background:  The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic led to significant changes in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) protocols, including restrictions on parental visitation and suspension of kangaroo mother care. These modifications likely impacted preterm infants' neurodevelopmental outcomes. While previous studies have examined the short-term developmental effects of the pandemic, the long-term neurodevelopmental consequences remain unclear.

Diaphragmatic Compound Muscle Action Potentials Correlate With the Clinical Severity of Myasthenia Gravis.

Introduction/aims: Patients with myasthenia gravis (MG) often experience impairment of respiratory function. Some case reports have explored the diaphragmatic compound muscle action potential (DCMAP) amplitudes in patients with MG using single-stimulus phrenic nerve conduction studies. Herein, we aimed to investigate whether the DCMAP amplitude correlated with the clinical severity of MG and whether this improved with treatment.

Comparing oncological outcomes and safety between photodynamic diagnosis-assisted and white-light transurethral resection in elderly patients with non-muscle invasive bladder cancer.

Objectives: This study aimed to assess the prognostic outcomes and risk of adverse events in elderly non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) patients receiving photodynamic diagnosis-assisted transurethral resection of bladder cancer (PDD-TURBT).

Methods: This study retrospectively included 326 patients who were over 70 years old and received either PDD-TURBT (n = 114, PDD group) or white-light TURBT (n = 212, WL group). Oncological outcomes, namely recurrence-free survival (RFS) and progression-free survival (PFS), and adverse event profiles were compared between the two groups.

Indocyanine green faecal excretion holds potential for diagnosis of neonatal biliary atresia.

Aim Of The Study: This study aimed to establish an objective, simple, and minimally invasive screening method to detect patients with biliary atresia during neonatal checkups by using indocyanine green (ICG) fluorescence in the stool.

Material And Methods: We produced a rat model of extrahepatic biliary obstruction (group O, = 9) and compared the stools from these rats with those of control group rats (group C, = 6) by a fluorescence technique. ICG was administered (0.

Comparing Immuno-oncology Combination Therapy With Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor Monotherapy for Advanced Renal Cell Carcinoma.

Background/aim: Immuno-oncology (IO) improves the prognosis of advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Since research has so far been limited to clinical trials, we herein focused on the effects of IO-tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) combination therapy in real-world clinical settings.

Patients And Methods: We conducted a retrospective study on 125 patients with advanced RCC who received IO-TKI combination therapy or TKI monotherapy.

Assessment of transthyretin instability in patients with wild-type transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy.

The pathophysiology of variant transthyretin (TTR) amyloidosis (ATTRv) is associated with destabilizing mutations in the TTR tetramer. However, why TTR with a wild-type genetic sequence misfolds and aggregates in wild-type transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTRwt) is unknown. Here, we evaluate kinetic TTR stability with a newly developed ELISA system in combination with urea-induced protein denaturation.

The appropriate sample-handling procedure for measuring the plasma β-amyloid level using a fully automated immunoassay.

Plasma β-amyloid (Aβ) assays are a promising tool for Alzheimer's disease diagnosis in clinical practice. To obtain reliable results, establishing an appropriate sample-handling procedure for each analytical platform is warranted. This study proposes an appropriate sample-handling procedure using HISCL analyzer by elucidating the individual/combined effects of pre-analytical parameters on plasma Aβ42/Aβ40 levels.

Guanosine-specific single-stranded ribonuclease effectors of a phytopathogenic fungus potentiate host immune responses.

Plants activate immunity upon recognition of pathogen-associated molecular patterns. Although phytopathogens have evolved a set of effector proteins to counteract plant immunity, some effectors are perceived by hosts and induce immune responses. Here, we show that two secreted ribonuclease effectors, SRN1 and SRN2, encoded in a phytopathogenic fungus, Colletotrichum orbiculare, induce cell death in a signal peptide- and catalytic residue-dependent manner, when transiently expressed in Nicotiana benthamiana.

Nerve enlargement differs among chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy subtypes and multifocal motor neuropathy.

Objective: We aimed to evaluate differences in ultrasonographic nerve enlargement sites among typical chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP), distal CIDP, multifocal CIDP and multifocal motor neuropathy (MMN) in a Japanese population.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed medical records and selected 39 patients (14 with typical CIDP, 7 with multifocal CIDP, 4 with distal CIDP, and 14 with MMN) who underwent ultrasonography. Median and ulnar nerve cross-sectional areas (CSAs) were measured at the wrist, forearm, elbow, and upper arm.

Selective modification of tryptophan in polypeptides C-N coupling with azoles using -generated iodine-based oxidants in aqueous media.

This study demonstrates the C-N coupling of tryptophan with azoles, promoted by an -generated iodine-based oxidant. The protocol was successfully applied to the selective modification of tryptophan in nonprotected polypeptide bearing oxidatively sensitive residues in acidic aqueous media. The present method allows the attachment of reactive handles to polypeptides and the peptide stapling.

Functional integration of protein A binding ability to antibody fragments for convenient and tag-free purification.

Although the development of small therapeutic antibodies is important, the affinity tags used for their purification often result in heterogeneous production and immunogenicity. In this study, we integrated protein A (SpA) binding ability into antibody fragments for convenient and tag-free purification. SpA affinity chromatography is used as a global standard purification method for conventional antibodies owing to its high binding affinity to the Fc region.

A Fluorescence Cross-Correlation-Spectroscopy-Based Immunoassay for Rapid, Selective, and Accurate Protein Sizing in Human Plasma, Applied to the von Willebrand Factor.

Multimeric abnormalities in plasma von Willebrand factor (VWF) cause bleeding or clotting disorders. Electrophoretic analysis of multimers is used to detect such abnormalities but is qualitative, slow, and difficult to standardize. Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) is a good alternative but is affected by low selectivity and concentration bias.

Polyphyllin D induces necroptosis in neuroblastoma cells (IMR-32 and LA-N-2) in mice.

Background: We previously reported that polyphyllin D, the main component of the traditional herbal medicinal Paris polyphylla, exhibited anticancer effects in vitro against human neuroblastoma cells. The aim of this investigation was to examine in vivo antitumor effects of polyphyllin D.

Methods: Subcutaneous tumors were established in immune-deficient BALB/c nude mice using human neuroblastoma cell lines IMR-32 and LA-N-2.

Structural metamorphosis and photophysical properties of thermostable nano- and microcrystalline lanthanide polymer with flexible coordination chains.

Luminescent lanthanide coordination polymer crystals (LCPCs) represent an area of growing interest in materials chemistry owing to their unique and tailorable functional properties. The LCPCs provide a high level of structural tunability, including size- and morphology-dependent properties; therefore, they are promising materials for next-generation phosphors in a wide range of applications such as light emitting diodes. Here, by controlling the morphology of thermostable europium coordination polymer crystals, [Eu(hfa)(dpbp)], hfa: hexafluoroacetylacetonate and dpbp:4,4'-bis(diphenyl　phosphoryl) biphenyl), we realized a novel red phosphor with narrow linewidth emission (FWHM = 7.

[A case of autopsy-confirmed duodenal perforation due to calcium polystyrene sulfonate].

A 77-year-old male patient was referred to our hospital because of jaundice. He was diagnosed with alcoholic liver cirrhosis and was admitted to our hospital because of liver failure. After admission, we observed conservative liver disease, but the liver damage did not improve and gradually worsened.

Iron Nutrition in Plants: Towards a New Paradigm?

Iron (Fe) is an essential micronutrient for plant growth and development. Fe availability affects crops' productivity and the quality of their derived products and thus human nutrition. Fe is poorly available for plant use since it is mostly present in soils in the form of insoluble oxides/hydroxides, especially at neutral to alkaline pH.