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30-day postoperative mortality and the effects of hospital preparedness during the COVID-19 pandemic: a pooled analysis of prospective international cohort studies
Get PDFDrivers of Social Media Engagement on Organizational Communication on Sustainable Technological Innovation: Insights from Developed and Developing Countries
Get PDFUnderstanding how the public engages with messages from organizations is key to getting people to adopt sustainable technological innovation. This study looks at what drives social media interactions with sustainable technological innovation content in both developed and developing countries using language processing, econometric modeling, and machine learning. The study chose hydrogen fuel cell vehicles as an example. By studying large amounts of social media data, the research finds important themes and factors that shape public engagement. The results show that an ideal balance between simple text and technical information leads to higher engagement. Engagement trends vary by region: short-term issues attract more attention in developed countries, while both short- and long-term energy topics appeal to developing countries. Emotional factors like trust and fear play a big role in engagement across different settings. The study provides insights into how messages from organizations can influence public attitudes toward new sustainable technologies. It also gives practical tips to improve content and boost engagement. This way, organizations and policymakers can make better decisions that promote sustainable technology. Overall, the research helps us understand how communication affects the public's interest in renewable energy
Targeting angiogenesis in endometriosis: a systematic review and network meta-analysis of VEGF-directed pharmacotherapies
Get PDFFunctional characterisation of kisspeptin-type signalling in an echinoderm
No full textThe neurohormone kisspeptin regulates reproductive maturation and function in mammals by stimulating hypothalamic production and release of gonadotropin releasing hormone. Little is known about kisspeptin-type neuropeptide function in invertebrates and the evolution of kisspeptin signalling. Here, a deuterostome invertebrate, the starfish Asterias rubens (phylum Echinodermata), was used to address these issues. Unlike mammals that have one kisspeptin precursor protein and one kisspeptin receptor, in A. rubens there are two precursor proteins (ArKPP1, ArKPP2) that give rise to four kisspeptin-type neuropeptides (ArKP1.1, ArKP1.2, ArKP2.1, ArKP2.2) and an expanded family of eleven kisspeptin-type receptors (ArKPR1-11). Use of mRNA in situ hybridisation and immunohistochemistry revealed widespread but different patterns of expression of KP1-type and KP2-type neuropeptides in the central nervous system, locomotory organs, sensory organs, reproductive system and digestive system of A. rubens. In vitro experiments revealed that KP1-type and KP2- type neuropeptides have opposing myoinhibitory and myoexcitatory effects, respectively, on starfish gonad and stomach preparations. When injected in vivo, both KP1-type and KP2-type neuropeptides triggered stomach eversion and KP1-type neuropeptides also affect righting behaviour. These effects in starfish demonstrate that kisspeptin-type neuropeptides are ancient and pleiotropic regulators of processes that extend beyond reproductive physiology. Furthermore, the excitatory actions of ArKP2.2 in A. rubens are consistent with stimulatory effects of kisspeptins in vertebrates and accordingly ArKP2.2 acts as a ligand for a receptor (ArKPR3) that is closely related to vertebrate kisspeptin receptors. On the other hand, phylogenetic analysis of receptors for ArKP1.1 and ArKP1.2 indicates that inhibitory kisspeptin signalling either evolved uniquely in Ambulacraria (echinoderms, hemichordates) or originated in Urbilateria but was lost in chordates. Ligands for some kisspeptin-type receptors in A. rubens remain to be identified. Here, a novel 13-residue peptide with a predicted C-terminal Phe-NH2 motif and a disulphide bridge between cysteines at positions 1 and 9 (ArKP3) was identified as the ligand for the orphan receptor ArKPR4
Estimation of cardiac output based on PRAM algorithm and ARX model from noninvasive radial pressure wave
No full textThere is an increasing need for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Reduced cardiac output (CO) is frequently associated with CVD. Thus, accurate measurement of CO aids its diagnosis and helps to guide treatment. A convenient, real-time, noninvasive way to estimate CO is the Pressure Recording Analytic Method (PRAM). It is based on the non-invasive detection of the pressure wave in a peripheral artery and does not require invasive measurements to calibrate the model parameters. Unfortunately, its accuracy is limited due to its dependence on the patient's height, weight, heart rate, and the mechanical properties of each individual's arteries. Furthermore, compared to the peripheral arterial pressure wave, the aortic pressure wave provides a more accurate and efficient means of estimating CO. Therefore, to improve the accuracy of the original PRAM method, this study incorporates height, weight, and heart rate measurements, as well as an Auto-Regressive with eXogenous input (ARX) model, enabling adaptive estimation of the aortic pressure waveform from radial artery pressure wave measurement. The CO estimations of the original peripheral PRAM (COPRAMper), the improved peripheral PRAM (COIPRAMper) and the improved central PRAM (COIPRAMcen) were compared to MRI results (COMRI), as the ground truth. The correlation coefficients (R2) between the CO estimates using the 3 algorithms and COMRI were 0.271, 0.548 and 0.757, respectively. These R2 values were statistically significant and showed that COIPRAMcen performed best. The mean difference between the CO estimates using the 3 algorithms and COMRI were −0.15 ± 0.44, −0.07 ± 0.24 and −0.04 ± 0.17 L/min, respectively
The role of glycated haemoglobin in predicting disease severity in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease
No full textActivating PRKG1 Variant Enhances Smooth Muscle Cell Deformability To Cause Aortopathy.
Get PDFAortic dissection can strike without warning. Whereas the condition is typically linked to aging and chronic hypertension, rare genetic variants emerge as silent culprits. One variant, V219I in PRKG1, has been found in patients with aortic aneurysms despite near-normal aortic diameters. Vascular smooth muscle cells expressing the V219I variant were larger, more deformable, and showed aberrant actin cytoskeleton dynamics. They exhibited altered extracellular matrix signaling and weakened structural integrity, highlighting a shift toward increased tissue elasticity as the causal molecular pathomechanism. These findings offer a mechanistic model for how PRKG1 variants predispose to aortic dissection
National survey of older people's community mental health teams in England.
Get PDFBACKGROUND: The mental healthcare workforce supporting people with dementia and comorbid mental disorders requires specific skills and knowledge. AIMS: We co-designed and conducted a survey to understand key issues facing community mental healthcare services accessed by older adults. METHOD: We invited all English National Health Service (NHS) older people's community mental health teams (OPCMHTs) in England to complete the survey. We compared service structures, resourcing and waiting times between regions, and considered how responses might inform current policy priorities. RESULTS: A total of 182 out of 242 (75.2%) English NHS OPCMHTs participated. We estimated there were 120 233 referrals to OPCMHT services per year, with 77.5% of services reporting increasing referral rates. In a quarter of services (n = 46, 25.3%), clients waited over a month from referral to initial assessment. Most services (107/181, 59.1%) experienced difficulties accessing in-patient beds for people with dementia, with rural regions more likely to report these difficulties. Half of the services (n = 100, 55.2%) reported providing higher-quality care for people with dementia than 5 years ago, despite increasing caseload complexity. Resource limitations challenged opportunities for prevention, care quality and collaborative working, and respondents rated team relationships with social services (n = 86, 47.8%), general hospital in-patient (n = 74, 41.4%) and out-patient (n = 54, 30.2%) services, and primary care (n = 54, 30.2%) as poor or requiring improvement. CONCLUSIONS: OPCMHT service leads are committed to integrated working, but services are insufficiently resourced to realise their potential. Addressing challenges related to workforce retention, training and ways of working could optimise OPCMHT contributions to integrated care for people with dementia
