Sex Differences in B Cell Dynamics after Seasonal Influenza Vaccination are Dependent on the Age and Hormonal Profile of Vaccinees.

Unlabelled: Sex differences in the humoral immune responses to the seasonal quadrivalent influenza vaccine (QIV) in young adults (YA; 18-49yo) or high dose QIV in old adults (OA; 75+yo) were analyzed to evaluate how age-related changes in steroids impact sex differences in B cell responses. Prior to vaccination, CD19+ B cells from OAs, regardless of sex, showed greater enrichment of hallmark pathways associated with inflammatory responses than YAs. Among YAs, females had greater H3N2, but not H1N1, neutralizing antibody titers and greater proportions of hemagglutinin (HA)+CD19+ B cells and HA+ memory B cells than males through 28 days post-vaccination (DPV), which was not observed among OAs.

Progastrin-Releasing Peptide and Procalcitonin as Additional Markers in the Diagnostic Workup for Medullary Thyroid Carcinoma.

Calcitonin (CT), a well-established tumor marker for medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC), is limited by a high rate of false positives in the diagnostic phase. Potential new markers for MTC are procalcitonin (PCT) and progastrin-releasing peptide (proGRP). Where literature has proven noninferiority for PCT, evidence is lacking for proGRP.

Hair Cortisone Levels and the Metabolic Syndrome: Stronger Links in Younger Compared to Older Adults.

Background: The striking link between Cushing's syndrome, the metabolic syndrome (MetS), and cardiovascular disease suggests that long-term exposure to high glucocorticoid levels catalyzes cardiometabolic deterioration. However, the relation of subtle variations in long-term glucocorticoid levels with MetS remains poorly understood. Specifically, little is known about potential moderating roles of age, sex and mental health status in this association.

Poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the first 1000 days reduce linear growth, lean body mass and bone mineral density at age 3 years.

Background And Aims: Poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are non-degradable, man-made-chemicals. They are considered to be 'Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals' (EDCs), a group of chemicals which interfere with endocrine processes and cause adverse effects on perinatal, neurodevelopmental, metabolic and reproductive outcomes. Especially when exposure occurs during susceptible periods of development, such as early life.

Serum 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid measurements for the diagnosis and follow-up of carcinoid syndrome.

Context: The biochemical diagnosis of carcinoid syndrome (CS) is established through the measurement of 24-hour urine 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA), but these measurements are prone to sampling error and may be troublesome for patients. Serum 5-HIAA measurements might constitute a more reliable and convenient alternative to diagnose CS.

Objective: To assess the diagnostic value of serum 5-HIAA measurements in patients with CS.

Pharmacokinetics of betamethasone in pre-eclampsia: An in vivo and ex vivo study.

Aims: To enhance understanding of betamethasone and its metabolites' pharmacokinetics in pregnancy, specifically early-onset pre-eclampsia, through a population pharmacokinetic model. Additionally, to investigate the placental metabolism and transfer of betamethasone and its main metabolites.

Methods: A prospective, single-centre pharmacokinetic study was conducted in pregnant women (n = 28) with imminent preterm birth treated with intramuscular betamethasone.

Mapping variants in thyroid hormone transporter MCT8 to disease severity by genomic, phenotypic, functional, structural and deep learning integration.

Predicting and quantifying phenotypic consequences of genetic variants in rare disorders is a major challenge, particularly pertinent for 'actionable' genes such as thyroid hormone transporter MCT8 (encoded by the X-linked SLC16A2 gene), where loss-of-function (LoF) variants cause a rare neurodevelopmental and (treatable) metabolic disorder in males. The combination of deep phenotyping data with functional and computational tests and with outcomes in population cohorts, enabled us to: (i) identify the genetic aetiology of divergent clinical phenotypes of MCT8 deficiency with genotype-phenotype relationships present across survival and 24 out of 32 disease features; (ii) demonstrate a mild phenocopy in ~400,000 individuals with common genetic variants in MCT8; (iii) assess therapeutic effectiveness, which did not differ among LoF-categories; (iv) advance structural insights in normal and mutated MCT8 by delineating seven critical functional domains; (v) create a pathogenicity-severity MCT8 variant classifier that accurately predicted pathogenicity (AUC:0.91) and severity (AUC:0.

Prevalence and determinants of diabetes mellitus in 2,338 long-term Dutch childhood cancer survivors (DCCS-LATER2 Study).

Context/objective: Diabetes mellitus (DM), a possible adverse effect of childhood cancer treatment, is strongly associated with cardiovascular disease and early mortality in adult childhood cancer survivors (CCS). Here, we assess the prevalence and determinants of DM in our nationwide CCS cohort.

Design/methods: In this cross-sectional study, the prevalence of DM was assessed in 2,338 CCS, using the Lifelines cohort (n=132,226 adults with no history of cancer) as a reference.

Prevalence and determinants of metabolic syndrome in 2338 childhood cancer survivors: A Dutch Childhood Cancer Survivor LATER 2 study.

Background: Because the occurrence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) might contribute to childhood cancer survivor's excess risk of cardiovascular disease, the authors assessed the prevalence and determinants of MetS in the Dutch Childhood Cancer Survivor Study (DCCSS-LATER2) cohort.

Methods: In total, 2338 adult childhood cancer survivors (CCS) were cross-sectionally assessed for the prevalence of MetS, using the Lifelines cohort (N = 132,226 adults without a history of cancer) as references. The prevalence of MetS was clinically assessed using existing classifications, as well as an alternative method using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry fat% instead of waist circumference to define abdominal adiposity.

Long-term hair cortisone and perceived stress are associated with long-term hedonic eating tendencies in patients with obesity.

Introduction: Long-term biological stress, reflected in hair cortisol and cortisone levels, predicts future weight gain and metabolic deterioration. This is likely at least partially mediated by glucocorticoid-induced increases in hedonic overeating. Yet, the relationship between long-term biological stress and long-term hedonic eating tendencies remains to be elucidated.

Lower hair cortisol concentration in adolescent and young adult patients with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Q-Fever Fatigue Syndrome compared to controls.

Background: In patients with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS), momentary cortisol concentrations in blood, urine, and saliva are lower compared to healthy controls. Long-term cortisol concentration can be assessed through hair, but it is unclear whether these concentrations are also lower. Additionally, it is unknown if lower cortisol extends to other patients suffering from persistent fatigue and how hair cortisol concentration (HCC) relates to fatigue levels.

Early life poly- and perfluoroalkyl substance levels and adiposity in the first 2 years of life.

Importance: Poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are nondegradable, man-made chemicals. They accumulate in humans with potential harmful effects, especially in susceptible periods of human development, such as the first months of life. We found that, in our cohort, exclusively breastfed (EBF) infants had 3 times higher PFAS plasma levels compared with exclusively formula-fed (EFF) infants at the age of 3 months.

Corrigendum: Kidney disease in adults with Prader-Willi syndrome: international cohort study and systematic literature review.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2023.

Intraoperative Music to Promote Patient Outcome (IMPROMPTU): A Double-Blind Randomized Controlled Trial.

Introduction: Perioperative music can have beneficial effects on postoperative pain, anxiety, opioid requirement, and the physiological stress response to surgery. The aim was to assess the effects of intraoperative music during general anesthesia in patients undergoing surgery for esophagogastric cancer.

Materials And Methods: The IMPROMPTU study was a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized multicenter trial.

Ensuring quality in 17OHP mass spectrometry measurement: an international study assessing isomeric steroid interference.

Objectives: Interference from isomeric steroids is a potential cause of disparity between mass spectrometry-based 17-hydroxyprogesterone (17OHP) results. We aimed to assess the proficiency of mass spectrometry laboratories to report 17OHP in the presence of known isomeric steroids.

Methods: A series of five samples were prepared using a previously demonstrated commutable approach.

Leptin Increase During Dexamethasone and Its Association With Hunger and Fat in Pediatric Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.

Context: During treatment, children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) receive high doses dexamethasone, which induce acute side effects.

Objective: To determine the influence of a 5-day dexamethasone course on changes in leptin, fat mass, BMI, hunger, sleep, and fatigue and to explore associations between these changes.

Methods: Pediatric ALL patients were included during maintenance treatment.

The Reliability of Salivary Cortisol Compared to Serum Cortisol for Diagnosing Adrenal Insufficiency with the Gold Standard ACTH Stimulation Test in Children.

The ACTH (adrenocorticotropic hormone) stimulation test is the gold standard for the diagnosis of adrenal insufficiency (AI), performed with ACTH high dose (HDT) or low dose (LDT). As salivary cortisol has been proposed as an alternative to serum cortisol, our aim was to evaluate the reliability of salivary cortisol compared to serum cortisol for diagnosing AI in children. Data were collected retrospectively.

Gastrointestinal Biomarkers and Their Association with Feeding in the First Five Days of Pediatric Critical Illness.

Objectives: Predicting the patients' tolerance to enteral nutrition (EN) would help clinicians optimize individual nutritional intake. This study investigated the course of several gastrointestinal (GI) biomarkers and their association with EN advancement (ENA) longitudinally during pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) admission.

Methods: This is a secondary analysis of the Early versus Late Parenteral Nutrition in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit randomized controlled trial.

Kidney disease in adults with Prader-Willi syndrome: international cohort study and systematic literature review.

Background: Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) is a rare, complex, genetic disorder characterized by hyperphagia, hypotonia, delayed psychomotor development, low muscle mass and hypothalamic dysfunction. Adults with PWS often have obesity, hypertension and type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2), known risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and chronic kidney disease (CKD). Early symptoms of CVD and CKD may be masked by intellectual disability and inability to express physical complaints.

Population pharmacokinetics of dexamethasone in critically ill COVID-19 patients: Does inflammation play a role?

Purpose: The aim of this study is to design a population pharmacokinetic study to gain a deeper understanding of the pharmacokinetics of dexamethasone in critically ill COVID-19 patients in order to identify relevant covariates that can be used to personalize dosing regimens.

Methods: Blood samples from critically ill patients receiving fixed-dose intravenous dexamethasone (6 mg/day) for the treatment of COVID-19 were sampled in a retrospective pilot study. The data were analyzed using Nonlinear Mixed Effects Modeling (NONMEM) software for population pharmacokinetic analysis and clinically relevant covariates were selected and evaluated.