Improved Limits on Lepton-Flavor-Violating Decays of Light Pseudoscalars via Spin-Dependent µâ†’e Conversion in Nuclei.

Lepton-flavor-violating decays of light pseudoscalars, P=π^{0},η,η^{'}→µe, are stringently suppressed in the standard model up to tiny contributions from neutrino oscillations, so that their observation would be a clear indication for physics beyond the standard model. However, in effective field theory such decays proceed via axial-vector, pseudoscalar, or gluonic operators, which are, at the same time, probed in spin-dependent µâ†’e conversion in nuclei. We derive master formulas that connect both processes in a model-independent way in terms of Wilson coefficients and study the implications of current µâ†’e limits in titanium for the P→µe decays. We find that these indirect limits surpass direct ones by many orders of magnitude.

Accelerating the pace of value-based transformation for more resilient and sustainable healthcare.

Value-based healthcare (VBHC; delivering the best possible health outcomes for patients in a cost-efficient manner) has been a strategic priority among healthcare stakeholders for years. Pioneering providers embrace VBHC principles (such as organising care delivery around medical conditions, monitoring health outcomes and costs per patient group along the clinical pathway, and using those metrics to drive organisational improvements). Still, widespread adoption has been slow due to multiple factors, one of which is the sheer complexity of such a transformation. However, because of the urgent need for infection control during the COVID-19 pandemic, providers made unprecedented strides towards VBHC and achieved VBHC goals that were unattainable before. This article considers the barriers to adopting VBHC and shares best practices from an extensive knowledge base to advise providers on capitalising on the pandemic's momentum to implement value improvement quickly and efficiently.

No difference in learning outcomes and usability between using controllers and hand tracking during a virtual reality endotracheal intubation training for medical students in Thailand.

PURPOSE: We developed a virtual reality (VR) endotracheal intubation training that applied 2 interaction modalities (hand-tracking or controllers). It aimed to investigate the differences in usability between using hand tracking and controllers during the VR intervention for intubation training for medical students from February 2021 to March 2021 in Thailand. METHODS: Forty-five participants were divided into 3 groups: video only, video with VR controller training, and video with VR hand tracking training. Pre-test, post-test, and practice scores were used to assess learning outcomes. The System Usability Scale (SUS) and User Satisfaction Evaluation Questionnaire (USEQ) questionnaires were used to evaluate the differences between the VR groups. The sample comprised 45 medical students (undergraduate) who were taking part in clinical training at Walailak University in Thailand. RESULTS: The overall learning outcomes of both VR groups were better than those of the video group. The post-test scores (P=0.581) and practice scores (P=0.168) of both VR groups were not significantly different. Similarly, no significant between-group differences were found in the SUS scores (P=0.588) or in any aspects of the USEQ scores. CONCLUSION: VR enhanced medical training. Interactions using hand tracking or controllers were not significantly different in terms of the outcomes measured in this study. The results and interviews provided a better understanding of support learning and training, which will be further improved and developed to create a self-learning VR medical training system in the future.

High efficacy of two artemisinin-based combinations (artesunate + amodiaquine and artemether + lumefantrine) in Caala, Central Angola.

In April 2004, 137 children 6-59 months of age with uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum (Pf) malaria (Caala, Central Angola) were randomized to receive either artemether-lumefantrine (Coartem) or artesunate + amodiaquine (ASAQ). After 28 days of follow-up, there were 2/61 (3.2%) recurrent parasitemias in the Coartem group and 4/64 (6.2%) in the ASAQ group (P = 0.72), all classified as re-infections after PCR genotyping (cure rate = 100% [95%CI: 94-100] in both groups). Only one patient (ASAQ group) had gametocytes on day 28 versus five (Coartem) and three (ASAQ) at baseline. Compared with baseline, anemia was significantly improved after 28 days of follow-up in both groups (Coartem: from 54.1% to 13.4%; ASAQ: from 53.1% to 15.9%). Our findings are in favor of a high efficacy of both combinations in Caala. Now that Coartem has been chosen as the new first-line anti-malarial, the challenge is to insure that this drug is available and adequately used.

Ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF) enhances myelin formation: a novel role for CNTF and CNTF-related molecules.

In multiple sclerosis, myelin repair is generally insufficient despite the relative survival of oligodendrocytes within the plaques and the recruitment of oligodendrocyte precursors. Promoting remyelination appears to be a crucial therapeutic challenge. Using a newly developed enzymatic index of myelination, we screened different neurotrophic factors for their ability to enhance myelination. Neurotrophins [NGF, neurotrophin-3 (NT-3), NT-4/5, BDNF], glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF)-related factors (GDNF, neurturin), and growth factors such as PDGF-AA, FGF-2, and insulin did not increase myelinogenesis. In contrast, among factors belonging to the CNTF family, CNTF, leukemia inhibitory factor, cardiotrophin-1, and oncostatin M induced a strong promyelinating effect. We provide evidence that CNTF acts on oligodendrocytes by favoring their final maturation, and that this effect is mediated through the 130 kDa glycoprotein receptor common to the CNTF family and transduced through the Janus kinase pathway. Our results demonstrate a novel role for neurotrophic factors of the CNTF family and raise the possibility that these factors might be of therapeutic interest to promote remyelination in multiple sclerosis.

Comparative study of stromal cell lines derived from embryonic, fetal, and postnatal mouse blood-forming tissues.

OBJECTIVE: To better understand the differentiation of stromal cells of the hematopoietic microenvironment, we set out to characterize stromal cells from the different developmental sites of hematopoiesis in the mouse (30 bone marrow, 7 spleen, 3 embryonic and 15 fetal liver, 6 yolk sac, and 6 aorta-gonad-mesonephros lines) for expression of 22 cytoskeletal, membrane, and extracellular matrix proteins. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Western blotting, immunofluorescence, and flow cytometry were used. Statistical methods included principal components analysis and analysis of variance. RESULTS: Stromal cells from 11 dpc mouse embryos express mesenchymal and vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) markers. Principal components analysis on the 70 stromal cell lines isolated from different anatomic sites and developmental stages allows classification of stromal lines along a mesenchymal to VSMC differentiation pathway. Stromal cells do not express endothelial and hematopoietic differentiation membrane antigens, but they do express integrin alpha(5), alpha(6), and beta(1) subunits, vascular cell adhesion molecule-1, CD44, stem cell antigen-1, Thy-1, CD34, and endoglin. The intensity of expression of certain markers differs between lines according to the anatomic site of origin. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates that stromal cells, whatever their anatomic site of origin, follow a VSMC differentiation pathway, suggesting a blood-forming tissue-specific differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells. Differential quantitative expression of distinct sets of markers appears to be correlated with the anatomic sites of origin of the stromal cells.