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Beyond traditional publishing: the British Journal of Anaesthesia and social media in anaesthesia research.
No full textSocial media has fundamentally transformed anaesthesia education, research dissemination, and professional networking. The British Journal of Anaesthesia uses a multi-platform strategy overseen by a dedicated Social Media Editor and Fellows. Despite challenges including misinformation, artificial intelligence-generated content, and platform fragmentation, social media remain essential for bridging the gap between research publications and clinical practice while fostering global academic communities
TrIPP: a Trajectory Iterative pKa Predictor.
No full textSUMMARY: The protonation propensity of ionisable residues in proteins can change in response to changes in the local residue environment. The link between protein dynamics and pK a is particularly important in pH regulation of protein structure and function. Here, we introduce TrIPP (Trajectory Iterative pK a Predictor), a Python tool to track and analyse changes in the pK a of ionisable residues along Molecular Dynamics trajectories of proteins. We show how TrIPP can be used to identify residues with physiologically relevant variations in their predicted pK a values during the simulations, and link them to changes in the local and global environment. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION: TrIPP is available at https://github.com/fornililab/TrIPP. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online
Best constants in subelliptic fractional Sobolev and Gagliardo-Nirenberg inequalities and ground states on stratified Lie groups.
Get PDFIn this paper, we establish the sharp fractional subelliptic Sobolev inequalities and Gagliardo-Nirenberg inequalities on stratified Lie groups. The best constants are given in terms of a ground state solution of a fractional subelliptic equation involving the fractional p-sublaplacian ( 1 < p < ∞ ) on stratified Lie groups. We also prove the existence of ground state (least energy) solutions to nonlinear subelliptic fractional Schrödinger equation on stratified Lie groups. Different from the proofs of analogous results in the setting of classical Sobolev spaces on Euclidean spaces given by Weinstein (Comm. Math. Phys. 87(4):576-676, 1982/1983) using the rearrangement inequality which is not available in stratified Lie groups, we apply a subelliptic version of vanishing lemma due to Lions extended in the setting of stratified Lie groups combining it with the compact embedding theorem for subelliptic fractional Sobolev spaces obtained in our previous paper (Math. Ann. 388(4):4201-4249, 2024). We also present subelliptic fractional logarithmic Sobolev inequalities with explicit constants on stratified Lie groups. The main results are new for p = 2 even in the context of the Heisenberg group
Investigating Leader Cell Dynamics in Re-Epithelialisation Using a High-Throughput Scratch Assay
No full textBuilding a French Florida: the Mission Racine and the ‘touristification’ of the Languedoc-Roussillon
No full textIn the 1960s, the French state began an ambitious tourism project, known as the Mission Racine, to transform the Languedoc-Roussillon coastline into a major tourist destination. The state envisioned modern resorts supported by new infrastructure, reshaping 180 km of the Mediterranean coast. This development responded to both national and regional economic challenges, particularly the region’s declining wine industry, and sought to compete with Spain’s thriving Costa Brava. Architects like Georges Candilis and Jean Balladur were tasked with designing modernist resorts that would harmonise with the natural landscape. While state planners envisioned a ‘civilisation of leisure,’ critics argued that the project displaced local communities and eroded regional identities, likening it to internal colonialism. This article examines how different perspectives on the Mission Racine – political, architectural, and social – were inflected by relationships with the landscape, highlighting tensions between state-driven modernity and regional resistance. Ultimately, the project illustrates broader challenges in balancing economic development with cultural preservation, revealing the complex dynamics of tourism, landscape, and identity in postwar France
Interleukin-6 blockade modulates monocyte recruitment to protect against diastolic dysfunction associated with inflammatory arthritis.
Get PDFBACKGROUND: There is an unmet clinical need to manage heart failure with preserved ejection fraction in people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). One hurdle is the absence of preclinical models to study pathology and pharmacology in settings of inflammatory arthritis. In addition, there is mixed clinical evidence on the effect of current RA therapeutics, such as anti-interleukin-6 (IL-6) therapy, on the incidence of diastolic dysfunction and heart failure in RA patients. METHODS: We have used a transgenic mouse model (K/BxN F1 colony) where inflammatory arthritis develops prior to cardiac dysfunction. Polyarthritis was scored and paw volumes measured by plethysmometry. Heart functionality was assessed by echocardiography and plasma IL-6 was measured by ELISA. An anti-IL-6 receptor monoclonal antibody, MR16-1, was given after joint disease onset. Cardiac cell numbers were quantified by flow cytometry, along with phenotypic characterization of monocytes, macrophages and fibroblasts. In addition, the expression of selected inflammatory genes was quantified by qPCR. RESULTS: K/BxN F1 mice displayed higher IL-6 plasma levels than control mice, specifically after joint disease onset and prior to overt alterations in cardiac function. Treatment of arthritic K/BxN F1 male and female mice with MR16-1 resulted in a modest reduction (~ 15%) in joint disease whereas the development of diastolic dysfunction (monitored as left atrial area, E/A and e'/a' ratios) was prevented. These functional improvements in the heart were accompanied by a significant reduction in pro-inflammatory gene expression (e.g., Il1, Il6), decreased recruitment of classical monocytes (CCR2⁺Ly6C⁺), a lower number of pro-inflammatory macrophages (Gal-3⁺MHCII⁺CD206⁻), and reduced presence of pro-inflammatory cardiac fibroblasts (Thy1.2⁺podoplanin⁺). CONCLUSIONS: Treatment of arthritic mice with an antibody that blocks IL-6 signalling is effective in preventing functional alterations of the heart, likely consequent to regulation of monocyte recruitment, and reductions in numbers of pro-inflammatory macrophages and fibroblasts. These preclinical data could prompt specific studies to determine the efficacy of anti-IL-6 therapy in patients at increased risk of cardiac alterations that lead to heart failure
State of the art in soft eversion robots for colonoscopy: a review.
Get PDFThis review explores the current state of eversion robotics in the context of colonoscopy, given the need for less invasive, more patient-friendly screening technologies. Conventional colonoscopy often leads to discomfort and patient reluctance, contributing to delayed diagnoses and high colorectal cancer mortality rates. Eversion robots, also known as vine robots or soft growing robots are soft, pressure-driven devices that extend by everting from the tip whilst offering a promising option by enabling frictionless advancement and potentially pain-free procedures.

We examine the key challenges and opportunities in adapting eversion robots for clinical endoscopic use, focusing on material selection, actuation, steering, and payload delivery. From the literature, thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) emerges as the most viable material for the robot's sleeve due to its airtightness, biocompatibility, suitability for heat or ultrasonic welding, and availability in highly flexible thin layers. Tip-steering mechanisms are identified as the most effective strategies for navigation, allowing high flexibility without increasing the wall thickness of the robot, as required in alternative approaches using distributed actuation mechanisms.

The review also evaluates strategies for integrating functional tools at the tip of the robot, concluding that cap-free designs provide superior adaptability to the varying colon varying diameter, preserve compressibility, and keep tip friction to a minimum, unlike cap-based payload delivery methods. 

By consolidating current research and identifying pathways for innovation, this review supports the development of eversion soft robots as a next-generation solution for minimally invasive colorectal diagnostics and therapy