Reduced levels of vascular endothelial growth factor were associated with psychopathology in youth with first-episode schizophrenia.

Background: Youth is a critical period for brain development, yet first-episode schizophrenia (FES) during this stage remains understudied, particularly concerning the role of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in schizophrenia-related psychopathology and cognitive dysfunction.

Methods: This study enrolled 32 youth (ages 12-24) with FES and 35 age-/sex-matched healthy controls. Serum VEGF levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

Depressive symptom domains exert different effects on proinflammatory cytokines and inhibitory control function among patients with major affective disorders.

Background: Studies have demonstrated the shared and distinct etiologies of different depressive symptom domains. However, less is known about the effects of the three depressive symptom domains, namely the dysphoria, retardation, and vegetative domains, on inhibitory control function and proinflammatory cytokine profiles.

Methods: Our study enrolled 327 adolescent and adult patients with major affective disorders, namely bipolar disorder (n = 94) and major depressive disorder (n = 233).

Effectiveness and safety of PARP inhibitors in ovarian cancer: An umbrella review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses.

Background: Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitors (PARPi) have become a key treatment for ovarian cancer, particularly in patients with BRCA mutations or homologous recombination deficiency (HRD).

Methods: This umbrella review synthesizes findings from 35 systematic reviews and meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials to assess the efficacy and safety of PARPi in ovarian cancer.

Results: Across studies, PARPi significantly improved progression-free survival, with the most pronounced benefit in BRCA-mutated and HRD-positive populations.

Unveiling the Hidden Role of Feed Spacer Filament Microstructure in Membrane Fouling.

Membrane fouling is a persistent problem that impairs the performance of spiral wound membrane (SWM) modules used for water treatment. While the feed spacer, which creates feed channels and governs hydrodynamic properties, is essential in SWM modules, the role of its filament microstructures in membrane fouling remains poorly understood. Here, we delved deeply into how the filament's concave and torsion features influence local hydrodynamic behavior and thus membrane fouling.

Interstitial lung disease biomarkers: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: High-resolution CT and pulmonary function tests remain the standard for diagnosing fibrotic interstitial lung diseases (ILDs) butare limited by radiation exposure, access, and inter-observer variability. Blood-based biomarkers could enable earlier, less invasive diagnosis and monitoring. We therefore evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of biomarkers, specifically Krebs von den Lungen-6 (KL-6), surfactant protein A (SP-A), and surfactant protein D (SP-D), in distinguishing fibrotic ILDs from healthy individuals or non-fibrotic respiratory conditions.

Comprehensive evaluation of dual-mode LC-MS conditions for enhanced metabolomic profiling: Application to microplastic exposure studies.

Polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs) are emerging contaminants of concern due to their potential health impacts and widespread presence in the environment. Metabolomics offers a powerful approach to investigate biological responses to such exposures. However, current LC-MS methods are often limited by the suitability of chromatographic conditions for metabolites with diverse physicochemical properties, leading to suboptimal coverage and analytical redundancy.

Real-World Effectiveness and Tolerability of Prolonged Intermittent Theta Burst Stimulation in Older Adults With Treatment-Resistant Depression.

Background: Older treatment-resistant depression (TRD) patients with transportation concerns may struggle to complete 30-36 repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) sessions. Uninsured rTMS medical costs may be another issue in certain nations. 2-Week prolonged intermittent theta-burst stimulation (iTBS1800) to the left-sided dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) demonstrated similar antidepressant efficacy to standard rTMS or iTBS in adults with TRD.

Nodular networks in hydrated polyamide desalination membranes enhance water transport.

For nearly half a century, thin-film composite reverse osmosis membranes have served as key separation materials for desalination. However, the precise structure of their polyamide selective layer under hydrated conditions and its relationship to membrane transport remain poorly understood. Using cryo-electron tomography, we successfully reconstructed the three-dimensional structure of six commercial polyamide membranes under hydrated conditions, revealing a fully swollen nodular network.

Appetite Hormone Regulation Biotypes of Major Affective Disorders in Proinflammatory Cytokines and Executive Function.

Evidence indicates that appetite hormones, namely, insulin, leptin, and adiponectin, play crucial roles in the pathophysiology of major affective disorders. However, whether appetite hormone regulation biotypes differ among patients with major affective disorders remains unclear. A total of 501 patients with major affective disorders (278 with bipolar disorder and 223 with major depressive disorder) were enrolled between 2018 and 2022 and clustered into biotype groups on the basis of fasting insulin, leptin, and adiponectin levels.

Exploring Cordycepin as a Neuroprotective Agent in Huntington's Disease: In Vitro and In Vivo Insights.

Huntington's disease (HD) is a challenging neurodegenerative disorder linked to Huntingtin (HTT) gene mutation, lacking an effective cure despite numerous therapeutic attempts. Cordyceps sinensis, recognized for its health benefits, particularly its constituent cordycepin, exhibits neuroprotective effects in various neurodegenerative diseases. However, the neuroprotective potential of cordycepin in HD remains insufficiently explored.

Triple-network model-based graph theory analysis of the effectiveness of low-dose ketamine in patients with treatment-resistant depression: two resting-state functional MRI clinical trials.

Background: Evidence suggests the crucial role of dysfunctional default mode (DMN), salience and frontoparietal (FPN) networks, collectively termed the triple network model, in the pathophysiology of treatment-resistant depression (TRD).

Aims: Using the graph theory- and seed-based functional connectivity analyses, we attempted to elucidate the role of low-dose ketamine in the triple networks, namely the DMN, salience and FPN.

Method: Resting-state functional connectivity magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fcMRI) data derived from two previous clinical trials of a single, low-dose ketamine infusion were analysed.

Monoamine neurotransmitter-related gene-based genome-wide association study of low-dose ketamine in patients with treatment-resistant depression.

Background: Low-dose ketamine is an N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor antagonist that exerts an antidepressant effect on patients with treatment-resistant depression (TRD). This antidepressant effect may extend beyond the glutamatergic hypothesis. Nevertheless, the roles of genes encoding other monoamine neurotransmitters (i.

Recent in vitro advances in the ocular antimicrobial agents against Acanthamoeba.

This review examines the advancements in antimicrobial drug discovery with in vitro assays for Acanthamoeba, highlighting the efficacy of current topical antimicrobial agents. In recent decades, the treatment and diagnosis of Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK) have presented clinical challenges. Clinicians often rely on clinical judgment, risk factors, and patient travel history to guide initial treatment decisions.

2FA-Platform Generates Dual Fatty Acid-Conjugated GLP-1 Receptor Agonist TE-8105 with Enhanced Diabetes, Obesity, and NASH Efficacy Compared to Semaglutide.

Conjugating two fatty acids (2FAs) to peptide drugs can improve pharmacokinetics and therapeutic effects. However, optimizing FA spacing, chain combination, and attachment site to simultaneously enhance albumin binding and drug efficacy remains challenging. We introduce a multiarm linker technology enabling precise control of 2FA spacing, composition, and attachment.

Effect of capping on the Dirac semimetal CdAson Si grown via molecular beam epitaxy.

Given the promising applications of large magnetoresistance in the Dirac semimetal cadmium arsenide (CdAs), extensive research into Si-compatible CdAsdevices is highly desirable. To prevent surface degradation and oxidation, the implementation of a protection layer on CdAsis imperative. In this study, two vastly different protecting layers were prepared on top of two CdAssamples.

PCR-based diagnosis and clinical insights into parasitic keratitis.

Purpose: This retrospective study aimed to investigate demographic characteristics, predisposing factors, and clinical outcomes in patients with parasitic keratitis.

Methods: Medical records of patients with molecularly confirmed Acanthamoeba or microsporidia, identified through corneal scraping specimens (collected between September 21, 2017, and June 27, 2023), were reviewed. Demographic data, clinical profiles, such as symptom duration before confirmed diagnosis, antiviral treatment pre-diagnosis, contact lens use, tap water and soil contamination, ocular trauma, and treatment regimens, were analyzed.

Short-term and long-term outcomes of acute severe ulcerative colitis in Taiwan: a multicenter study with pre- and post-biologics comparison.

Background/aims: Data from Asia regarding the short-term and long-term outcomes for acute severe ulcerative colitis (ASUC) are limited. We assessed the outcomes of ASUC, identified the risk factors for colectomy, and compared colectomy rates between the pre-biologics and post-biologics eras in Taiwan.

Methods: The patients with an ASUC diagnosis between January 2013 and March 2022 at 5 tertiary medical centers were retrospectively analyzed.

Clinical Characteristics, Management, and Outcomes of Colitis-Associated Colorectal Cancer and the Comparison With Sporadic Colorectal Cancer in Taiwan.

Introduction: We explored the clinical characteristics, treatment, and outcomes of colitis-associated colorectal cancer (CAC) and compared with sporadic colorectal cancer in Taiwan.

Methods: In this retrospective study spanning 1987-2022, CACs diagnosed according to endoscopic and pathological reports from 14 tertiary centers were reported to our cohort. Clinical demographics, endoscopic findings, histological results, treatment modalities, and outcomes were analyzed.

Explicit construction of Penrose diagrams for black hole to white hole transition with spacelike thin shells.

In this article, we explicitly construct the coordinates associated with the Penrose diagram in spacetimes connected via a spacelike thin shell in the following two examples: the generalized black-to-white hole bounce with mass difference and the Schwarzschild-to-de Sitter transition. We point out the issue of the first junction condition in the Penrose diagram constructed by cutting and pasting analytically known metrics with spherical symmetry by a static spacelike thin shell. With the goal of a global conformal coordinate chart associated with the corresponding Penrose diagram without discontinuity at the thin shell, we give a procedure consisting of three conformal transformations that serve different purposes.

Thalamocortical Dysconnectivity in Treatment-Resistant Depression.

Thalamocortical connectivity is associated with cognitive and affective processing. The role of thalamocortical connectivity in the pathomechanism of treatment-resistant depression (TRD) remains unclear. This study included 48 patients with TRD and 48 healthy individuals.