Association of type III collagen turnover with cardiovascular outcomes and impact with canagliflozin in the CANVAS Program: A post hoc analysis.

AIM: To investigate type III collagen (COL III) turnover in participants from the CANVAS Program biomarker substudy. METHODS: Biomarkers of COL III formation (PRO-C3) and COL III degradation fragments (C3M and CTX-III) were assessed in baseline and year 3 plasma from patients enrolled in CANVAS, investigating the effect of canagliflozin in participants with type 2 diabetes. The clinical outcomes investigated in this study were hospitalization for heart failure, cardiovascular death and all-cause mortality. RESULTS: Higher levels of PRO-C3 and C3M at baseline were associated with an increased incidence of all investigated outcomes, whereas levels of CTX-III at baseline were not associated with any of the investigated outcomes. Levels of PRO-C3 decreased and levels of CTX-III increased following canagliflozin treatment. An increase from baseline to year 3 in PRO-C3 in the placebo arm was associated with an increased incidence of cardiovascular outcomes, and in all participants was associated with an increased risk of all-cause mortality. CONCLUSIONS: The changes in PRO-C3 and CTX-III reflect a shift in the dynamics of COL3 turnover following treatment with canagliflozin. These biomarkers are promising pharmacodynamic tools that can be used to monitor the impact of canagliflozin treatment and possibly other sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 inhibitors on tissue remodelling in future interventional trials.

Molecular and supramolecular adaptation by coupled stimuli.

Adaptation transcends scale in both natural and artificial systems, but delineating the causative factors of this phenomenon requires urgent clarification. Herein, we unravel the molecular requirements for adaptation and establish a link to rationalize adaptive behavior on a self-assembled level. These concepts are established by analyzing a model compound exhibiting both light- and pH-responsive units, which enable the combined or independent application of different stimuli. On a molecular level, adaptation arises from coupled stimuli, as the final outcome of the system depends on their sequence of application. However, in a self-assembled state, a single stimulus suffices to induce adaptation as a result of collective molecular behavior and the reversibility of non-covalent interactions. Our findings go beyond state-of-the-art (multi)stimuli-responsive systems and allow us to draw up design guidelines for adaptive behavior both at the molecular and supramolecular levels, which are fundamental criteria for the realization of intelligent matter.

The fibroblast hormone endotrophin is a biomarker of mortality in chronic diseases.

Fibrosis, driven by fibroblast activities, is an important contributor to morbidity and mortality in most chronic diseases. Endotrophin, a signaling molecule derived from processing of type VI collagen by highly activated fibroblasts, is involved in fibrotic tissue remodeling. Circulating levels of endotrophin have been associated with an increased risk of mortality in multiple chronic diseases. We conducted a systematic literature review collecting evidence from original papers published between 2012 and January 2023 that reported associations between circulating endotrophin (PRO-C6) and mortality. Cohorts with data available to the study authors were included in an Individual Patient Data (IPD) meta-analysis that evaluated the association of PRO-C6 with mortality (PROSPERO registration number: CRD42023340215) after adjustment for age, sex and BMI, where available. In the IPD meta-analysis including sixteen cohorts of patients with different non-communicable chronic diseases (NCCDs) (N=15,205) the estimated summary hazard ratio for 3-years all-cause mortality was 2.10 (95% CI 1.75-2.52) for a 2-fold increase in PRO-C6, with some heterogeneity observed between the studies (I2=70%). This meta-analysis is the first study documenting that fibroblast activities, as quantified by circulating endotrophin, are independently associated with mortality across a broad range of NCCDs. This indicates that, irrespective of disease, interstitial tissue remodeling, and consequently fibroblast activities, has a central role in adverse clinical outcomes, and should be considered with urgency from drug developers as a target to treat.

Hypercholesterolaemia treated with inclisiran.

In this case report, a 31-year-old woman with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) underwent treatment with statins and PCSK9 inhibitor but had to discontinue due to elevated creatine kinase levels and neurological and muscular side effects. In 2021, the patient received inclisiran therapy, the first known instance of its application in Denmark. No side effects were reported, and LDL cholesterol levels were significantly reduced. This case report highlights the potential of inclisiran as an effective and well-tolerated treatment for individuals with heterozygous FH.

No Detectable Differences in microRNA Plasma Levels between Diabetic Hypertensive Patients with and without Incident Subclinical Atrial Fibrillation.

Background: Long-term rhythm monitoring (LTRM) can detect undiagnosed atrial fibrillation (AF) in patients at risk of AF and stroke. Circulating microRNAs (miRNAs), which have been shown to play a role in atrial electrical and structural remodelling, could help to select patients who would benefit most from LTRM. The aim of this study was to investigate whether patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) and hypertension and screen-detected subclinical AF (SCAF) using an insertable cardiac monitor (ICM) have significantly different plasma baseline levels of five selected miRNAs playing a role in the modulation of atrial electrical and structural remodelling (miR-21-5p, miR-29b-3p, miR-150-5p, miR-328-3p, and miR-432-5p) compared to those without SCAF. Methods: This study was performed at the outpatient clinic of a secondary academic teaching hospital between December 2013 and November 2015. Eligible patients were ≥65 years of age with DM and hypertension but without known heart diseases. All patients received an ICM. On the day of ICM implantation, blood samples for the measurement of plasma levels of the five miRNAs were drawn. In this post hoc analysis, we investigated their expression by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction. MiRNA plasma levels in patients with and without newly detected SCAF were compared. Results: We included 82 consecutive patients (median age of 71.3 years (IQR 67.4-75.1)), who were followed for a median of 588 days (IQR: 453-712 days). Seventeen patients (20.7%) had ICM-detected SCAF. Plasma levels of miR-328-3p, miR-29b-3p, miR-21-5p, miR-432-5p, and miR-150-5p were slightly but not significantly different in patients with incident SCAF compared with patients without. Conclusions: In patients with hypertension and DM, newly detected SCAF was not significantly associated with changes in expression levels of miR-21-5p, miR-29b-3p, miR-150-5p, miR-328-3p, and miR-432-5p.

Examining Linguistic Differences in Electronic Health Records for Diverse Patients With Diabetes: Natural Language Processing Analysis.

Background: Individuals from minoritized racial and ethnic backgrounds experience pernicious and pervasive health disparities that have emerged, in part, from clinician bias. Objective: We used a natural language processing approach to examine whether linguistic markers in electronic health record (EHR) notes differ based on the race and ethnicity of the patient. To validate this methodological approach, we also assessed the extent to which clinicians perceive linguistic markers to be indicative of bias. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we extracted EHR notes for patients who were aged 18 years or older; had more than 5 years of diabetes diagnosis codes; and received care between 2006 and 2014 from family physicians, general internists, or endocrinologists practicing in an urban, academic network of clinics. The race and ethnicity of patients were defined as White non-Hispanic, Black non-Hispanic, or Hispanic or Latino. We hypothesized that Sentiment Analysis and Social Cognition Engine (SEANCE) components (ie, negative adjectives, positive adjectives, joy words, fear and disgust words, politics words, respect words, trust verbs, and well-being words) and mean word count would be indicators of bias if racial differences emerged. We performed linear mixed effects analyses to examine the relationship between the outcomes of interest (the SEANCE components and word count) and patient race and ethnicity, controlling for patient age. To validate this approach, we asked clinicians to indicate the extent to which they thought variation in the use of SEANCE language domains for different racial and ethnic groups was reflective of bias in EHR notes. Results: We examined EHR notes (n=12,905) of Black non-Hispanic, White non-Hispanic, and Hispanic or Latino patients (n=1562), who were seen by 281 physicians. A total of 27 clinicians participated in the validation study. In terms of bias, participants rated negative adjectives as 8.63 (SD 2.06), fear and disgust words as 8.11 (SD 2.15), and positive adjectives as 7.93 (SD 2.46) on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being extremely indicative of bias. Notes for Black non-Hispanic patients contained significantly more negative adjectives (coefficient 0.07, SE 0.02) and significantly more fear and disgust words (coefficient 0.007, SE 0.002) than those for White non-Hispanic patients. The notes for Hispanic or Latino patients included significantly fewer positive adjectives (coefficient -0.02, SE 0.007), trust verbs (coefficient -0.009, SE 0.004), and joy words (coefficient -0.03, SE 0.01) than those for White non-Hispanic patients. Conclusions: This approach may enable physicians and researchers to identify and mitigate bias in medical interactions, with the goal of reducing health disparities stemming from bias.

Natriuretic Peptides and Prognosis in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and High Risk for Cardiovascular Events.

BACKGROUND: The prognosis of individuals with and without an established heart failure (HF) diagnosis and similarly elevated N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) levels is not well-known. METHODS AND RESULTS: CANVAS (Canagliflozin Cardiovascular Assessment Study) trial participants were stratified according to baseline NT-proBNP quartiles and history of HF at baseline. Adjusted event rates per 1000 patient-years of follow-up for hospitalizations for HF, cardiovascular mortality, and kidney events were assessed, and hazard ratios (HR) were calculated using Cox proportional hazard models. Of the 3507 participants with available NT-proBNP concentrations, 471 (13.4%) had history of HF. The incidence rate per 1000 patient-years for hospitalizations for HF increased across the NT-proBNP quartiles in patients with (0, 2.8, 13.4, and 40.1; P < .001) and without (1.8, 3.1, 6.0, and 19.1; P < .001) HF, with a significantly higher risk in patients with HF compared with those without (with HF, quartile 3 HR 9.28 [interquartile range (IQR) 1.15-75.05]; P = .04; without HF, quartile 4 HR 4.86 [95% CI, 2.08-11.35]; P < .001). A similar higher risk for kidney events was seen in HF patients (with HF, quartile 4 HR 6.94 [95% CI, 2.66-18.08]; P = .001; without HF, quartile 4 HR 4.85 [95% CI, 3.02-7.80]; P = .001). Similar trends were seen for cardiovascular mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular risk, an elevated NT-proBNP level was associated with worse HF and kidney outcomes in general, regardless of history of HF; however, the presence of a clinical diagnosis of HF at baseline was associated with an incrementally higher risk, particularly in higher NT-proBNP quartiles.

Genomic insights on conservation priorities for North Sea houting and European lake whitefish (Coregonus spp.).

Population genomics analysis holds great potential for informing conservation of endangered populations. We focused on a controversial case of European whitefish (Coregonus spp.) populations. The endangered North Sea houting is the only coregonid fish that tolerates oceanic salinities and was previously considered a species (C. oxyrhinchus) distinct from European lake whitefish (C. lavaretus). However, no firm evidence for genetic-based salinity adaptation has been available. Also, studies based on microsatellite and mitogenome data suggested surprisingly recent divergence (c. 2500 years bp) between houting and lake whitefish. These data types furthermore have provided no evidence for possible inbreeding. Finally, a controversial taxonomic revision recently classified all whitefish in the region as C. maraena, calling conservation priorities of houting into question. We used whole-genome and ddRAD sequencing to analyse six lake whitefish populations and the only extant indigenous houting population. Demographic inference indicated post-glacial expansion and divergence between lake whitefish and houting occurring not long after the Last Glaciation, implying deeper population histories than previous analyses. Runs of homozygosity analysis suggested not only high inbreeding (FROH up to 30.6%) in some freshwater populations but also FROH up to 10.6% in the houting prompting conservation concerns. Finally, outlier scans provided evidence for adaptation to high salinities in the houting. Applying a framework for defining conservation units based on current and historical reproductive isolation and adaptive divergence led us to recommend that the houting be treated as a separate conservation unit regardless of species status. In total, the results underscore the potential of genomics to inform conservation practices, in this case clarifying conservation units and highlighting populations of concern.

Exploring Layered Disorder in Lithium-Ion-Conducting Li3Y1-xInxCl6.

Li3Y1-xInxCl6 undergoes a phase transition from trigonal to monoclinic via an intermediate orthorhombic phase. Although the trigonal yttrium containing the end member phase, Li3YCl6, synthesized by a mechanochemical route, is known to exhibit stacking fault disorder, not much is known about the monoclinic phases of the serial composition Li3Y1-xInxCl6. This work aims to shed light on the influence of the indium substitution on the phase evolution, along with the evolution of stacking fault disorder using X-ray and neutron powder diffraction together with solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, studying the lithium-ion diffusion. Although Li3Y1-xInxCl6 with x ≤ 0.1 exhibits an ordered trigonal structure like Li3YCl6, a large degree of stacking fault disorder is observed in the monoclinic phases for the x ≥ 0.3 compositions. The stacking fault disorder materializes as a crystallographic intergrowth of faultless domains with staggered layers stacked in a uniform layer stacking, along with faulted domains with randomized staggered layer stacking. This work shows how structurally complex even the "simple" series of solid solutions can be in this class of halide-based lithium-ion conductors, as apparent from difficulties in finding a consistent structural descriptor for the ionic transport.

Charge Regulation at the Nanoscale as Evidenced from Light-Responsive Nanoemulsions.

Emulsions are indispensable in everyday life, and the demand for emulsions' diversity and control of properties is therefore substantial. As emulsions possess a high internal surface area, an understanding of the oil/water (o/w) interfaces at the molecular level is fundamental but often impaired by experimental limitations to probe emulsion interfaces in situ. Here, we have used light-responsive surfactants (butyl-AAP) that can photoisomerize between E and Z isomers by visible and UV light irradiation to tune the emulsion interfaces. This causes massive changes in the interface tension at the extended o/w interfaces in macroemulsions and a drastic shift in the surfactants' critical micelle concentration, which we show can be used to control both the stability and phase separation. Strikingly different from macroemulsions are nanoemulsions (RH ∼90 nm) as these are not susceptible to E/Z photoisomerization of the surfactants in terms of changes in their droplet size or ζ-potential. However, in situ second-harmonic scattering and pulsed-field gradient nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments show dramatic and reversible changes in the surface excess of surfactants at the nanoscopic interfaces. The apparent differences in ζ-potentials and surface excess provide evidence for a fixed charge to particle size ratio and the need for counterion condensation to renormalize the particle charge to a critical charge, which is markedly different compared to the behavior of very large particles in macroemulsions. Thus, our findings may have broader implications as the electrostatic stabilization of nanoparticles requires much lower surfactant concentrations, allowing for a more sustainable use of surfactants.

Multi-omics subgroups associated with glycaemic deterioration in type 2 diabetes: an IMI-RHAPSODY Study.

Introduction: Type 2 diabetes (T2D) onset, progression and outcomes differ substantially between individuals. Multi-omics analyses may allow a deeper understanding of these differences and ultimately facilitate personalised treatments. Here, in an unsupervised "bottom-up" approach, we attempt to group T2D patients based solely on -omics data generated from plasma. Methods: Circulating plasma lipidomic and proteomic data from two independent clinical cohorts, Hoorn Diabetes Care System (DCS) and Genetics of Diabetes Audit and Research in Tayside Scotland (GoDARTS), were analysed using Similarity Network Fusion. The resulting patient network was analysed with Logistic and Cox regression modelling to explore relationships between plasma -omic profiles and clinical characteristics. Results: From a total of 1,134 subjects in the two cohorts, levels of 180 circulating plasma lipids and 1195 proteins were used to separate patients into two subgroups. These differed in terms of glycaemic deterioration (Hazard Ratio=0.56;0.73), insulin sensitivity and secretion (C-peptide, p=3.7e-11;2.5e-06, DCS and GoDARTS, respectively; Homeostatic model assessment 2 (HOMA2)-B; -IR; -S, p=0.0008;4.2e-11;1.1e-09, only in DCS). The main molecular signatures separating the two groups included triacylglycerols, sphingomyelin, testican-1 and interleukin 18 receptor. Conclusions: Using an unsupervised network-based fusion method on plasma lipidomics and proteomics data from two independent cohorts, we were able to identify two subgroups of T2D patients differing in terms of disease severity. The molecular signatures identified within these subgroups provide insights into disease mechanisms and possibly new prognostic markers for T2D.

Vascular endothelial growth factors and risk of cardio-renal events: Results from the CREDENCE trial.

BACKGROUND: Circulating concentrations of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) family members may be abnormally elevated in type 2 diabetes (T2D). The roles of placental growth factor (PlGF), soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 (sFLT-1), and VEGF-A in cardio-renal complications of T2D are not established. METHOD: The 2602 individuals with diabetic kidney disease (DKD) from the Canagliflozin and Renal Events in Diabetes with Established Nephropathy Clinical Evaluation trial were randomized to receive canagliflozin or placebo and followed for incident cardio-renal outcomes. PlGF, sFLT-1, and VEGF-A were measured at baseline, year 1, and year 3. Primary outcome was a composite of end-stage kidney disease, doubling of the serum creatinine, or renal/cardiovascular death. Cox proportional hazard regression was used to investigate the association between biomarkers with adverse clinical events. RESULTS: At baseline, individuals with higher PlGF levels had more prevalent cardiovascular disease compared to those with lower values. Treatment with canagliflozin did not meaningfully change PlGF, sFLT-1, and VEGF-A concentrations at years 1 and 3. In a multivariable model, 1 unit increases in baseline log PlGF (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.76, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.23, 2.54, P-value = .002), sFLT-1 (HR: 3.34, [95% CI: 1.71, 6.52], P-value < .001), and PlGF/sFLT-1 ratio (HR: 4.83, [95% CI: 0.86, 27.01], P-value = .07) were associated with primary composite outcome, while 1 unit increase in log VEGF-A did not increase the risk of primary outcome (HR: 0.96 [95% CI: 0.81, 1.07]). Change by 1 year of each biomarker was also assessed: HR (95% CI) of primary composite outcome was 2.45 (1.70, 3.54) for 1 unit increase in 1-year concentration of log PlGF, 4.19 (2.18, 8.03) for 1 unit increase in 1-year concentration of log sFLT-1, and 21.08 (3.79, 117.4) for 1 unit increase in 1-year concentration of log PlGF/sFLT-1. Increase in 1-year concentrations of log VEGF-A was not associated with primary composite outcome (HR: 1.08, [95% CI: 0.93, 1.24], P-value = .30). CONCLUSIONS: People with T2D and DKD with elevated levels of PlGF, sFLT-1, and PlGF/sFLT-1 ratio were at a higher risk for cardiorenal events. Canagliflozin did not meaningfully decrease concentrations of PlGF, sFLT-1, and VEGF-A. CLINICAL TRIAL: CREDENCE, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02065791.

PP2A catalytic subunit alpha is critically required for CD8+ T cell homeostasis and anti-bacterial responses.

While the functions of tyrosine phosphatases in T cell biology have been extensively studied, our knowledge on the contribution of serine/threonine phosphatases in T cells remains poor. Protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) is one of the most abundantly expressed serine/threonine phosphatases. It is important in thymocyte development and CD4+ T cell differentiation. Utilizing a genetic model in which its catalytic subunit alpha isoform (PP2A Cα) is deleted in T cells, we investigated its contribution to CD8+ T cell homeostasis and effector functions. Our results demonstrate that T cell intrinsic PP2A Cα is critically required for CD8+ T cell homeostasis in secondary lymphoid organs and intestinal mucosal site. Importantly, PP2A Cα deficient CD8+ T cells exhibit reduced proliferation and survival. CD8+ T cell anti-bacterial response is strictly dependent on PP2A Cα. Expression of Bcl2 transgene rescues CD8+ T cell homeostasis in spleens, but not in intestinal mucosal site, nor does it restore the defective anti-bacterial responses. Finally, proteomics and phosphoproteomics analyses reveal potential targets dependent on PP2A Cα, including mTORC1 and AKT. Thus, PP2A Cα is a key modulator of CD8+ T cell homeostasis and effector functions.

Autoantibodies to Erythropoietin Receptor and Clinical Outcomes in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes and CKD: A Post Hoc Analysis of CREDENCE Trial.

Introduction: Autoantibodies to erythropoietin receptor (anti-EPOR antibodies) have been identified in patients with various kidney diseases. However, data in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) is limited. We assessed the prevalence of anti-EPOR antibodies and their association with clinical outcomes in this population. Methods: The CREDENCE randomized patients with T2D and CKD to canagliflozin or placebo. Serum anti-EPOR antibodies, the exposure of interest, were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The primary outcome was doubling of serum creatinine, end-stage kidney disease, or death from kidney or cardiovascular (CV) causes. Secondary outcomes included CV and all-cause mortality. Multivariable Cox-regression models estimated associations between anti-EPOR antibodies and outcomes. The effects of canagliflozin on hemoglobin and hematocrit, stratified by the presence of anti-EPOR antibodies were assessed with a repeated measures mixed effects model. Results: Of 2600 participants with available biosamples, 191 (7.3%) were positive for anti-EPOR antibodies. Higher baseline anti-EPOR antibodies were associated with increased risk of primary outcome (hazard ratio [HR] per 1-SD increase = 1.12, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.01-1.24, P = 0.04), with CV death (HR = 1.27, 95% CI = 1.08-1.48, P < 0.01) and all-cause mortality (HR = 1.26, 95% CI = 1.11-1.43, P < 0.01). During follow-up, canagliflozin, compared to placebo, increased hemoglobin and hematocrit by 7.0 g/l (95% CI = 6.2-7.9) and 2.4% (2.2-2.7), respectively. These effects were consistent across patients with and without anti-EPOR antibodies (P-interaction = 0.24 and 0.36, respectively). Conclusion: In patients with T2D and CKD, anti-EPOR antibodies were associated with the composite kidney and CV outcome, as well as CV and all-cause mortality. Canagliflozin increased hemoglobin and hematocrit regardless of anti-EPOR antibodies.

Demographics and clinical features associated with rates of electronic message utilization in the primary care setting.

INTRODUCTION: Electronic messages are growing as an important form of patient-provider communication, particularly in the primary care setting. However, adoption of healthcare technology has been under-utilized by underserved patient populations. The purpose of this study was to describe how adoption and utilization of electronic messaging occurred within a large primary care urban-based patient population. METHODS: In this retrospective study, the frequency of electronic messages initiated by adult outpatient primary care patients was observed. Patients were classified as either non-portal adopters, non-message utilizers, low message utilizers, and high message utilizers. Logistic regression modeling was used to compare factors associated with message utilization rates to determine disparities in access. RESULTS: Among a sample of 27,453 ethnically diverse adult patients from the Houston, Texas Metropolitan area, 33,497 unique messages were sent (1.22 messages/patient). Message burden was predominantly derived by a small number of high utilizers (individuals who sent 3 or more messages), who comprised 15.7 % of the study population (n = 4302) but accounted for 77 % of the message volume (n = 25,776). These high utilizers were typically older, White, English speaking, from middle to upper income zip codes, had higher number of comorbidities, and a higher number of clinical visits. CONCLUSIONS: Most inbox messages were generated by a small number of patients. While it was reassuring to see older and sicker individuals utilizing electronic messaging, patients from minority and/or lower income background utilized electronic messaging much less. This may propagate systematic bias and decrease the level of care for traditionally underserved patients.

Determining a urinary-specific antibiogram and risk factors of trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole, ciprofloxacin and multidrug resistance among Enterobacterales in primary care.

BACKGROUND: Risk factors for ciprofloxacin or MDR in primary care urine specimens are not well defined. OBJECTIVES: We created a primary care-specific antibiogram for Escherichia coli isolates from cases with complicated and uncomplicated urinary tract infection (UTI) and evaluated risk factors for ciprofloxacin, trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole and MDR among Enterobacterales. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study to determine resistance and risk factors by collecting urine cultures from all patients (≥18 years) presenting with provider-suspected UTI at two primary care, safety-net clinics in Houston, TX, USA between November 2018 and March 2020. RESULTS: Among 1262 cultures, 308 cultures grew 339 uropathogens. Patients with Enterobacterales (n = 199) were mostly female (93.5%) with a mean age of 48.5 years. E. coli was the predominant uropathogen isolated (n = 187/339; 55%) and had elevated trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (43.6%) and ciprofloxacin (29.5%) resistance, low nitrofurantoin (1.8%) resistance, and no fosfomycin resistance. Among E. coli, 10.6% were ESBL positive and 24.9% had MDR. Birth outside the U.S.A., prior (2 year) trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole resistance, and diabetes mellitus were associated with trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole resistance. Prior (60 day) fluoroquinolone use, prior ciprofloxacin resistance and both diabetes mellitus and hypertension were strongly associated with ciprofloxacin resistance. Prior fluoroquinolone use and a history of resistance to any studied antibiotic were associated with MDR, while pregnancy was protective. CONCLUSIONS: We found elevated resistance to UTI-relevant antimicrobials and novel factors associated with resistance; these data can be incorporated into clinical decision tools to improve organism and drug concordance.

Pressure-Induced Dislocations and Their Influence on Ionic Transport in Li+-Conducting Argyrodites.

The influence of the microstructure on the ionic conductivity and cell performance is a topic of broad scientific interest in solid-state batteries. The current understanding is that interfacial decomposition reactions during cycling induce local strain at the interfaces between solid electrolytes and the anode/cathode, as well as within the electrode composites. Characterizing the effects of internal strain on ion transport is particularly important, given the significant local chemomechanical effects caused by volumetric changes of the active materials during cycling. Here, we show the effects of internal strain on the bulk ionic transport of the argyrodite Li6PS5Br. Internal strain is reproducibly induced by applying pressures with values up to 10 GPa. An internal permanent strain is observed in the material, indicating long-range strain fields typical for dislocations. With increasing dislocation densities, an increase in the lithium ionic conductivity can be observed that extends into improved ionic transport in solid-state battery electrode composites. This work shows the potential of strain engineering as an additional approach for tuning ion conductors without changing the composition of the material itself.

Quantifying 3D MR fingerprinting (3D-MRF) reproducibility across subjects, sessions, and scanners automatically using MNI atlases.

PURPOSE: Quantitative MRI techniques such as MR fingerprinting (MRF) promise more objective and comparable measurements of tissue properties at the point-of-care than weighted imaging. However, few direct cross-modal comparisons of MRF's repeatability and reproducibility versus weighted acquisitions have been performed. This work proposes a novel fully automated pipeline for quantitatively comparing cross-modal imaging performance in vivo via atlas-based sampling. METHODS: We acquire whole-brain 3D-MRF, turbo spin echo, and MPRAGE sequences three times each on two scanners across 10 subjects, for a total of 60 multimodal datasets. The proposed automated registration and analysis pipeline uses linear and nonlinear registration to align all qualitative and quantitative DICOM stacks to Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI) 152 space, then samples each dataset's native space through transformation inversion to compare performance within atlas regions across subjects, scanners, and repetitions. RESULTS: Voxel values within MRF-derived maps were found to be more repeatable (σT1 = 1.90, σT2 = 3.20) across sessions than vendor-reconstructed MPRAGE (σT1w = 6.04) or turbo spin echo (σT2w = 5.66) images. Additionally, MRF was found to be more reproducible across scanners (σT1 = 2.21, σT2 = 3.89) than either qualitative modality (σT1w = 7.84, σT2w = 7.76). Notably, differences between repeatability and reproducibility of in vivo MRF were insignificant, unlike the weighted images. CONCLUSION: MRF data from many sessions and scanners can potentially be treated as a single dataset for harmonized analysis or longitudinal comparisons without the additional regularization steps needed for qualitative modalities.

Allogeneic mesenchymal stem cell therapy for dry eye disease in patients with Sjögren's syndrome: A randomized clinical trial.

PURPOSE: This double-blinded randomized clinical trial aimed to evaluate the efficacy of injecting allogeneic adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ASCs) into the lacrimal gland (LG) for the treatment of dry eye disease (DED) secondary to Sjögren's syndrome (SS). METHODS: Fifty-four participants with severe DED secondary to SS were included and allocated to either ASCs (n = 20), vehicle (n = 20), or a non-randomized observation group (n = 14). The intervention groups received a single injection of either ASCs or an active comparator (vehicle, Cryostor® CS10) into the LG in one eye, while the observation group received lubricating eye drops only. The primary outcome measure was changes in Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) score and secondary outcome measures were non-invasive tear break-up time, tear meniscus height, Schirmer's test, and Oxford score within a 12-month follow-up. RESULTS: A significant reduction in OSDI score was observed in the ASCs and vehicle groups compared to the observation group. In addition, the ASCs group demonstrated a significant increase in non-invasive tear break-up time compared to the vehicle group at the 4-week follow-up and to the observation group at the 12-month follow-up. A significant improvement in ocular surface staining, tear osmolarity, and Schirmer test score from baseline was also observed in the ASCs group; however, these changes were not significant compared to the other groups. CONCLUSION: Improvement of subjective and objective signs and symptoms of DED was observed in both intervention groups following injection into the LG compared to the observation group. Future studies should investigate the mode-of-action of both injection treatments.