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Category: biotech/medical – Page 153

Hip osteoarthritis (HOA), a prevalent condition among those aged 55 years and above, is a significant cause of joint pain and functional impairment and it contributes to the overall burden of chronic pain experienced by the elderly population. While platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and hyaluronic acid (HA) injections have emerged as innovative therapeutic approaches for managing osteoarthritis, their effectiveness in HOA remains a subject of contention. Therefore, the objective of this review was to assess the efficacy of PRP versus HA in terms of pain relief and functional outcomes for the management of HOA. We searched PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar databases from 2013 to 2023 to identify pertinent randomized controlled trials (RCTs). A total of seven trials (478 participants) were included. The selected studies underwent quality assessment using the updated Cochrane risk of bias tool. The pain and functional outcomes were examined using measures of the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) pain scale, visual analog scale (VAS), and Harris hip score (HHS). In the meta-analysis, standard mean differences (SMDs) along with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) to estimate overall effect magnitudes for continuous outcomes were extracted. Statistical significance was determined using p-values below 0.05. At six months, the PRP group experienced a significantly lower standard mean WOMAC pain score (SMD =-0.38, CI =-0.64 — 0.13; p = 0.03). No significant differences in WOMAC pain scores were noted at one to two months (SMD = 0.09, CI =-0.24, 0.43; p = 0.59), and at 12 months (SMD =-0.85, CI =-1.81, 0.12; p = 0.09). Similarly, for VAS, patients on PRP showed a slight improvement in their VAS scores at six months (SMD =-0.50, CI =-0.89,-0.12; p < 0.01). However, no significant differences in VAS between the PRP groups and the HA groups were observed at one to two months (SMD =-0.22, CI =-0.49, 0.04; p = 0.10) and at 12 months (SMD =-0.22, CI:-0.63, 0.19; p = 0.29). In terms of hip dysfunction, there was no statistically significant standard mean difference in HHS between the PRP and HA groups at six months (SMD = 0.02, CI =-0.40, 0.44; p = 0.93), and at 12 months (SMD =-0.31, CI =-0.32, 0.22; p = 0.73). This review and meta-analysis provide insights into emerging treatments for HOA, especially considering that PRP shows potential benefits and safety for patients with HOA during mid-term follow-up in a 12-month period. Nevertheless, it is necessary to conduct research that includes high-quality designs and larger sample sizes to validate the comparative efficacy of these treatments.

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💡 LastestPaper.

📚 🔗 https://brnw.ch/21wPhFj.

🧑🏻‍🔬 By Ms. Cloe García Porta, Dr. Kashif Mahfooz, Mr. Joanna Komorowska, Dr. Sara Garcia-Rates and Dr. Susan Greenfield.

During development, a 14mer peptide, T14, modulates cell growth via the α-7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (α7 nAChR). However, this process could become excitotoxic in the context of the adult brain, leading to pathologies such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Recent work shows that T14 acts selectively via the mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1). This pathway is essential for normal development but is overactive in AD. The triggering of mTORC1 has also been associated with the suppression of autophagy, commonly observed in ageing and neurodegeneration. We therefore investigated the relationship between T14 and autophagic flux in tissue cultures, mouse brain slices, and human Alzheimer’s disease hippocampus.

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Artificial intelligence is quickly becoming an integral tool in health care. In our new collection, the editors of NEJM AI provide insight into how the use of AI in clinical practice can improve patient care and outcomes.

Featured in this collection:

GPT versus Resident Physicians — A Benchmark Based on Official Board Scores Artificial Intelligence–Powered Rapid Identification of ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction via Electrocardiogram (ARISE) — A Pragmatic Randomized Controlled Trial Use of GPT-4 to Diagnose Complex Clinical Cases.

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NEJM AI is a monthly journal from NEJM Group that explores innovative applications of artificial intelligence and machine learning in clinical medicine, serving as a trusted guide to help you navigate the AI revolution.

Access your copy of this valuable collection and discover how AI is transforming and advancing care.

Continue reading “The AI Revolution in Medicine” | >

Within a cell, DNA carries the genetic code for building proteins. To build proteins, the cell makes a copy of DNA, called mRNA. Then, another molecule called a ribosome reads the mRNA, translating it into protein. But this step has been a visual mystery; scientists previously did not know how the ribosome attaches to and reads mRNA.

Now, a team of international scientists, including University of Michigan researchers, has used advanced microscopy to image how ribosomes recruit to mRNA while it’s being transcribed by an enzyme called RNA polymerase (RNAP). Their results, which examine the process in bacteria, are published in the journal Science.

“Understanding how the captures or ‘recruits’ the mRNA is a prerequisite for everything that comes after, such as understanding how it can even begin to interpret the information encoded in the mRNA,” said Albert Weixlbaumer, a researcher from Institut de génétique et de biologie moléculaire et cellulaire in France who co-led the study.

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Abstract. Pharmacological inhibition of the mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway with rapamycin can extend lifespan in several organisms. Although this includes the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, effects in this species are relatively weak and sometimes difficult to reproduce. Here we test effects of drug dosage and timing of delivery to establish the upper limits of its capacity to extend life, and investigate drug effects on age-related pathology and causes of mortality. Liposome-mediated rapamycin treatment throughout adulthood showed a dose-dependent effect, causing a maximal 21.9% increase in mean lifespan, but shortening of lifespan at the highest dose, suggesting drug toxicity. Rapamycin treatment of larvae delayed development, weakly reduced fertility and modestly extended lifespan. By contrast, treatment initiated later in life robustly increased lifespan, even from Day 16 (or ~70 years in human terms). The rapalog temsirolimus extended lifespan similarly to rapamycin, but effects of everolimus were weaker. As in mouse, rapamycin had mixed effects on age-related pathologies, inhibiting one (uterine tumor growth) but not several others, suggesting a segmental antigeroid effect. These findings should usefully inform future experimental studies with rapamycin and rapalogs in C. elegans.

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Resistance to one antibiotic can make bacteria resistant or sensitive to another antibiotic, opening paths for combinatorial treatments. This study presents an approach to systematically discover and understand such antibiotic relationships.

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The new sound-based method moves objects regardless of surroundings or properties.

Researchers have successfully manipulated the movement of objects using sound. They directed floating objects around obstacles in an aquatic environment, unveiling new possibilities for noninvasive, targeted drug delivery and other biomedical applications.

Researchers from EPFL’s School of Engineering employed optics-inspired techniques to achieve this object manipulation.

“Optical tweezers work by creating a light ‘hotspot’ to trap particles, like a ball falling into a hole. But if there are other objects in the vicinity, this hole is difficult to create and move around,” said Romain Fleury, head of the Laboratory of Wave Engineering in EPFL’s School of Engineering.

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