Developing a collaborative network for cystic fibrosis in Africa: A call to action.

Background: Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disorder that remains underrecognized across Africa, where limited diagnostic capacity, low awareness, and competing health priorities contribute to delayed or missed diagnoses [1-4]. Although increasing data suggests CF is more prevalent than previously believed in Africa, survival remains poor [1]. These challenges do not only affect people with CF (pwCF) in Africa but also have implications for global understanding of the disease, particularly among populations historically excluded from CF research and treatment advances.

Beyond the Learning Curve: How Operator Experience Affects Pulsed-Field Ablation Outcomes.

Background: The learning curve for pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) using "single-shot" pulsed-field ablation (PFA) is thought to be short. 3D electro-anatomical mapping (3D-EAM) might provide adjunctive information to shorten the learning curve and improve lesion durability.

Objective: To analyze procedural performance markers over time for PVI using PFA and 3D-EAM.

Rare phenotypes of white coat color in Simmental calves: genetic causes of syndromic forms of albinism and depigmentation.

The aim of this study was to investigate three unrelated Simmental calves with atypical white coat color, identify potential genetic causes using a trio-based whole-genome sequencing approach, and assess the prevalence of the identified variants in the breed. Several inherited alleles affecting coat color, ranging from fawn to red spotted and white-headed, have been described in Simmental cattle originating from Switzerland. However, no genetic variant has yet been associated with an almost completely white coat in this breed.

Regional corneal biomechanics assessment as a function of age using Strain-Stress Index maps.

Purpose: To gain a better understanding of corneal Stress-Strain Index (SSI) maps in healthy eyes and to determine their changes with age.

Method: The eyes of 72 participants (age 43.1 ± 20.

ERS/EULAR clinical practice guidelines for connective tissue diseases associated interstitial lung disease.

Background: Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a frequent manifestation of connective tissue diseases (CTDs) and is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Clinical practice guidelines to standardise screening, diagnosis, treatment and follow-up for CTD-ILD are of high importance for optimised patient care.

Methods: A European Respiratory Society and European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology task force committee, composed of pulmonologists, rheumatologists, pathologists, radiologists, methodologists and patient representatives, developed recommendations based on PICO (Patients, Intervention, Comparison, Outcomes) questions with grading of the evidence according to the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluations) methodology and complementary narrative questions agreed on by both societies.

Benign Metastasizing Leiomyoma Presenting as a Right Ventricular Mass.

Background: Masses in the right ventricle are uncommon, but if present, they are most often attributed to either primary cardiac tumors or metastatic disease.

Case Summary: A 50-year-old woman presented with progressive lower extremity edema and was diagnosed with a right ventricular mass causing severe tricuspid insufficiency and near-total obstruction of the pulmonary artery. She had a history of hysterectomy for uterine leiomyomatosis.

Enantioselective C-H amination catalyzed by homoleptic iron salox complexes.

Iron complexes bearing chiral salicyloxazoline (Salox) ligands catalyze the enantioselective intramolecular C-H bond amination of alkyl azides, reaching 58-76% ee for benzylic C-H bonds. Further, for the first time aliphatic C-H bond amination is demonstrated (∼40% ee). This class of catalysts even activates primary aliphatic C-H bonds, albeit with moderate ee.

Artificial Intelligence-Driven Automated Design of Anterior and Posterior Crowns Under Diverse Occlusal Scenarios.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of occlusion type and artificial intelligence-based computer-aided design (CAD) software on the geometric accuracy and clinical quality of auto-generated anterior and posterior crown designs.

Methods: Five typodont models representing various occlusion types (normal, Class I anterior diastema, Class II division 1, Class II division 2, and Class III anterior crossbite occlusion) underwent crown preparation for the maxillary right central incisor and first molar. Ten sets of intraoral scans were obtained from each prepared model, and crown designs were automatically generated using two software programs: deep learning-based (DL; Dentbird) and conventional automated (CA; Auto Workflow, 3Shape) (n = 10).

Cross-border shopping: evidence from household transaction records.

Cross-border shopping expands product variety and lowers prices for consumers in high-price countries, but it diminishes domestic tax revenues, reduces sales, and shifts demand away from local retailers. Exploiting Switzerland's COVID-19-induced border closure as a natural experiment, I investigate the socioeconomic implications of cross-border shopping. Linking detailed grocery transaction records for 710,000 households to administrative data, I find that the border closure raises domestic grocery expenditures in border areas by an additional 10.

Odanacatib Coating Supports Osseointegration of Implants: A Preclinical Study.

Introduction: Odanacatib (ODN), a cathepsin K inhibitor, is a drug that reduces bone resorption while preserving bone formation. ODN was initially developed for the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis, but further development as a systemic medication has been discontinued. Here, we propose ODN as a topical treatment, the coating of dental implants, to achieve an anabolic shift of early osseointegration.

European Respiratory Society statement on advanced telemedicine for obstructive sleep apnoea (e-Sleep).

Telemedicine (TM) as a means of remote patient-physician interaction is gaining popularity in nearly every field, and (respiratory) sleep medicine is no exception. Because obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is a chronic condition, and requires a continuous treatment and monitoring of therapy success, telematic communications could be useful to establish diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. This Statement summarises the evidence and efficacy of TM options in OSA.

ERS/EULAR clinical practice guidelines for connective tissue disease-associated interstitial lung diseaseDeveloped by the task force for connective tissue disease-associated interstitial lung disease of the European Respiratory Society (ERS) and the European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR)Endorsed by the European Reference Network on rare respiratory diseases (ERN-LUNG).

Background: Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a frequent manifestation of connective tissue diseases (CTDs) and is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Clinical practice guidelines to standardise screening, diagnosis, treatment and follow-up for CTD-ILD are of high importance for optimised patient care.

Methods: A European Respiratory Society and European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology task force committee, composed of pulmonologists, rheumatologists, pathologists, radiologists, methodologists and patient representatives, developed recommendations based on PICO (Patients, Intervention, Comparison, Outcomes) questions with grading of the evidence according to the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluations) methodology and complementary narrative questions agreed on by both societies.

Benchmarking deep learning-designed inlay restorations across operator experience: An in vitro comparison of time efficiency, contact intensity, and contour quality.

Objectives: This in vitro study aimed to evaluate the performance of a deep learning (DL)-based workflow for designing inlays, in terms of time efficiency, contact intensity, and contour quality, by comparing it with human-based workflows. The impact of operator experience was also assessed to examine whether the DL-based workflow could reduce experience-related variability.

Methods: A total of 25 digital scans of maxillary and mandibular arches, including posterior abutments prepared for mesial-occlusal (MO) or distal-occlusal (DO) cavities, were used to design inlays using five different workflows.

Pragmatic evidence and the nature of randomized trials.

Pragmatic trials are increasingly gaining recognition. However, what pragmatic trials are is frequently misunderstood. They are frequently described superficially by their manifestation and surface only, as studies conducted in "real world" settings, having wide inclusion criteria, and less complicated study procedures.

Microbiota-dependent formylated peptide receptor (Fpr1/2) signaling regulates enteric nervous system development and gastrointestinal motility in mice.

Background & Aims: Formylated peptide receptors 1 and 2 (Fpr1/2 or FPRs) are G-protein-coupled pattern recognition receptors that bind bacterial formylated peptides. The role of FPRs in enteric nervous system (ENS) development and gastrointestinal (GI) motility is unknown.

Methods: We generated mice with germline, epithelial-, and neural crest-specific deletion of the Fpr1/2 locus and assessed ENS structure and GI motility.

Light-Driven Double-Layer Polydopamine-Coated Flexible Metal-Organic Frameworks: Balancing Antibacterial and Regenerative Functions.

Burns complicated by antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections present a formidable clinical challenge, characterized by key pathological processes, including pathogen colonization, chronic inflammatory responses, and excessive accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Photocatalytic metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have emerged as a promising nonantibiotic strategy against antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections. However, the ROS generated by MOF-based photocatalysis is often insufficient for effective antibacterial activity, while excessive ROS may induce tissue injury.

The Father's Microbiome: A Hidden Contributor to Fetal and Long-Term Child Health.

The microbiota refers to the entire community of microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses, fungi, archaea, and protozoa, that inhabit various anatomical sites and exert complex influences on human health and disease [...

genome sequences from pediatric diarrhea cases in coastal Kenya.

We report nine nearly complete genome sequences (both segments) recovered from stool samples of pediatric diarrhea patients admitted to Kilifi County Hospital, coastal Kenya. This will be an important resource for monitoring infections in humans.

Lower synovial leucocyte count and polymorphonuclear percentage reliably differentiate periprosthetic joint infection after unicompartmental knee arthroplasty.

Purpose: This study aimed to determine diagnostic thresholds for synovial fluid leucocyte count and polymorphonuclear (PMN) percentage to identify the diagnosis periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) in patients with failed unicompartmental knee arthroplasties (UKAs).

Methods: This multicentre retrospective cohort study included 239 patients who underwent revision of an UKA for either septic or aseptic indications at five university-affiliated medical centres. Among these, 30 patients (13%) underwent revision for PJI and 209 (87%) for noninfectious causes.

Transparent reporting of observational studies emulating a target trial: the TARGET Statement.

Importance: When randomized trials are unavailable or not feasible, observational studies can be used to answer causal questions about the comparative effects of interventions by attempting to emulate a hypothetical pragmatic randomized trial (target trial). Published guidance to aid reporting of these studies is not available.

Objective: To develop consensus based guidance for reporting observational studies performed to estimate causal effects by explicitly emulating a target trial.

Retrospective use of the PRECIS-2 trial design tool to assess design choices in randomised controlled trials; An empirical review.

Introduction: The Pragmatic-Explanatory Continuum Indicator Summary (PRECIS-2) tool has been widely used to help investigators design randomised trials, facilitating the task of aligning design choices with an explanatory or pragmatic primary trial intention. PRECIS-2 is increasingly being used to retrospectively assess the degree of pragmatism or explanatoriness among published trials within reviews. There is little information on the interrater reliability of the tool and no consensus on the preferred method of achieving an accurate and reliable judgement of trial 'pragmatism' when using PRECIS-2 retrospectively.

Deep Learning for Automated 3D Assessment of Rotator Cuff Muscle Atrophy and Fat Infiltration prior to Total Shoulder Arthroplasty.

Introduction: Rotator cuff muscle pathology affects outcomes following total shoulder arthroplasty, yet current assessment methods lack reliability in quantifying muscle atrophy and fat infiltration. We developed a deep learning-based model for automated segmentation of rotator cuff muscles on computed tomography (CT) and propose a T-score classification of volumetric muscle atrophy. We further characterized distinct atrophy phenotypes, 3D fat infiltration percentage (3DFI%), and anterior-posterior (AP) balance, which were compared between healthy controls, anatomic total shoulder arthroplasty (aTSA), and reverse total shoulder arthroplasty (rTSA) patients.

Adolescent Sleep Disruption: Implications for Psychiatric Morbidity.

Adolescence marks a critical developmental period characterized by dramatic brain maturation and heightened vulnerability to psychiatric disorders. This review underscores the pivotal role of sleep in adolescent development and its bidirectional relationship with mental health. We identify how genetic and long- and short-term environmental factors link sleep disturbance to psychiatric vulnerability.

Clopidogrel versus aspirin for secondary prevention of coronary artery disease: a systematic review and individual patient data meta-analysis.

Background: Aspirin monotherapy is recommended indefinitely for patients with established coronary artery disease (CAD). The aim of this individual patient level meta-analysis was to provide a comprehensive evaluation of the comparative efficacy and safety of clopidogrel versus aspirin monotherapy in patients with established CAD, most of whom had undergone percutaneous coronary intervention or had acute coronary syndrome.

Methods: We conducted a systematic search in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Embase to identify randomised trials published from database inception to April 12, 2025, comparing clopidogrel monotherapy with aspirin monotherapy in patients with established CAD who had discontinued or never started dual antiplatelet therapy.

Naturally acquired promoter variation influences Streptococcus pneumoniae infection outcomes.

Streptococcus pneumoniae colonizes human airways, where it acquires sugars from glycosylated mucins using glycoside hydrolases and sugar transport systems. This study identifies widespread nucleotide sequence variation in the promoter of a pneumococcal operon encoding a glycan scavenging system. We identify 78 promoter sequence patterns across 21,155 genomes, with variation clustered within a stretch of adenines, where mutations accumulate via strand slippage during DNA replication.