Smartphone as an electronic stethoscope: factors influencing heart sound quality 

Smartphones are equipped with a high-quality microphone which may be used as an electronic stethoscope. We aim to investigate the factors influencing quality of heart sound recorded using a smartphone by non-medical users.Methods and resultsAn app named Echoes was developed for recording heart sounds using iPhone. Information on phone version and users’ characteristics including sex,… Continue reading Smartphone as an electronic stethoscope: factors influencing heart sound quality 

The γδ IEL effector API5 masks genetic susceptibility to Paneth cell death

Loss of Paneth cells and their antimicrobial granules compromises the intestinal epithelial barrier and is associated with Crohn’s disease, a major type of inflammatory bowel disease. Non-classical lymphoid cells, broadly referred to as intraepithelial lymphocytes (IELs), intercalate the intestinal epithelium. This anatomical position has implicated them as first-line defenders in resistance to infections, but their… Continue reading The γδ IEL effector API5 masks genetic susceptibility to Paneth cell death

Evaluation of Early Ketamine Effects on Belief-Updating Biases in Patients With Treatment-Resistant Depression

Key Points Question  What are the effects of ketamine on belief updating in patients with treatment-resistant depression (TRD)? Findings  This case-control study in patients with TRD showed that belief updating became more optimistically biased as soon as 4 hours after a first ketamine infusion. This early cognitive effect of ketamine was formalized by stronger asymmetrical reinforcement learning… Continue reading Evaluation of Early Ketamine Effects on Belief-Updating Biases in Patients With Treatment-Resistant Depression

Ovarian cancer cell fate regulation by the dynamics between saturated and unsaturated fatty acids

SignificanceUnsaturated fatty acids are critical for maintaining membrane fluidity, cellular signaling, and lipid storage. Stearoyl-CoA desaturase (SCD) regulates the dynamics between saturated and unsaturated fatty acids. How SCD is involved in cancer cell fate decisions remains incompletely understood. Here, we leveraged transcriptomics, lipidomics, and single-cell stimulated Raman scattering microscopy to show that increased levels of… Continue reading Ovarian cancer cell fate regulation by the dynamics between saturated and unsaturated fatty acids

Psychological resilience in older adults with type 2 diabetes from the Look AHEAD Trial

BackgroundThere is growing interest in identifying factors associated with healthy aging. This cross-sectional study evaluated associations of psychological resilience with factors associated with aging in older adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).MethodsParticipants were 3199 adults (72.2 ± 6.2 years of age, 61% female, 61% White, body mass index [BMI] = 34.2 ± 8.2 kg/m2) with T2DM enrolled in Look AHEAD (a multi-site… Continue reading Psychological resilience in older adults with type 2 diabetes from the Look AHEAD Trial

Curing the pandemic of misinformation on COVID-19 mRNA vaccines through real evidence-based medicine – Part 1

Background: In response to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), several new pharmaceutical agents have been administered to billions of people worldwide, including the young and healthy at little risk from the virus. Considerable leeway has been afforded in terms of the pre-clinical and clinical testing of these agents, despite an entirely novel mechanism of… Continue reading Curing the pandemic of misinformation on COVID-19 mRNA vaccines through real evidence-based medicine – Part 1

Weight loss strategies, weight change, and type 2 diabetes in US health professionals: A cohort study

BackgroundWeight loss is crucial for disease prevention among individuals with overweight or obesity. This study aimed to examine associations of weight loss strategies (WLSs) with weight change and type 2 diabetes (T2D) risk among US health professionals.Methods and findingsThis study included 93,110 participants (24 to 60 years old; 11.6% male) from the Nurses’ Health Study… Continue reading Weight loss strategies, weight change, and type 2 diabetes in US health professionals: A cohort study

Diabetes and Obesity in Down Syndrome Across the Lifespan: A Retrospective Cohort Study Using U.K. Electronic Health Records

Down syndrome (DS) is the most common form of chromosomal trisomy. Genetic factors in DS may increase the risk for diabetes. This study aimed to determine whether DS is associated with an increased incidence of diabetes and the relationship with obesity across the life span compared with control patients.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSThis matched population–based cohort… Continue reading Diabetes and Obesity in Down Syndrome Across the Lifespan: A Retrospective Cohort Study Using U.K. Electronic Health Records

Sex-specific epigenetic development in the mouse hypothalamic arcuate nucleus pinpoints human genomic regions associated with body mass index

Recent genome-wide association studies corroborate classical research on developmental programming indicating that obesity is primarily a neurodevelopmental disease strongly influenced by nutrition during critical ontogenic windows. Epigenetic mechanisms regulate neurodevelopment; however, little is known about their role in establishing and maintaining the brain’s energy balance circuitry. We generated neuron and glia methylomes and transcriptomes from… Continue reading Sex-specific epigenetic development in the mouse hypothalamic arcuate nucleus pinpoints human genomic regions associated with body mass index