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World Journal of Gastroenterology Jun 2024In this editorial we comment on the article by Agatsuma published in the . They suggest policies for more effective colorectal screening. Screening is the main policy...
In this editorial we comment on the article by Agatsuma published in the . They suggest policies for more effective colorectal screening. Screening is the main policy that has led to lower mortality rates in later years among the population that was eligible for screening. Colonoscopy is the gold standard tool for screening and has preventive effects by removing precancerous or early malignant polyps. However, colonoscopy is an invasive process, and fecal tests such as the current hemoglobin immunodetection were developed, followed by endoscopy, as the general tool for population screening, avoiding logistical and economic problems. Even so, participation and adherence rates are low. Different screening options are being developed with the idea that if people could choose between the ones that best suit them, participation in population-based screening programs would increase. Blood tests, such as a recent one that detects cell-free DNA shed by tumors called circulating tumor DNA, showed a similar accuracy rate to stool tests for cancer, but were less sensitive for advanced precancerous lesions. At the time when the crosstalk between the immune system and cancer was being established as a new hallmark of cancer, novel immune system-related biomarkers and information on patients' immune parameters, such as cell counts of different immune populations, were studied for the early detection of colorectal cancer, since they could be effective in asymptomatic people, appearing earlier in the adenoma-carcinoma development compared to the presence of fecal blood. sCD26, for example, detected 80.37% of advanced adenomas. To reach as many eligible people as possible, starting at an earlier age than current programs, the direction could be to apply tests based on blood, urine or salivary fluid to samples taken during routine visits to the primary health system.
Topics: Humans; Colorectal Neoplasms; Early Detection of Cancer; Colonoscopy; Mass Screening; Biomarkers, Tumor; Occult Blood; Feces; Adenoma
PubMed: 38947291
DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v30.i22.2849 -
World Journal of Gastroenterology Jun 2024Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is the most prevalent chronic liver condition worldwide. Current liver enzyme-based screening methods have...
Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is the most prevalent chronic liver condition worldwide. Current liver enzyme-based screening methods have limitations that may missed diagnoses and treatment delays. Regarding Chen , the risk of developing MAFLD remains elevated even when alanine aminotransferase levels fall within the normal range. Therefore, there is an urgent need for advanced diagnostic techniques and updated algorithms to enhance the accuracy of MAFLD diagnosis and enable early intervention. This paper proposes two potential screening methods for identifying individuals who may be at risk of developing MAFLD: Lowering these thresholds and promoting the use of noninvasive liver fibrosis scores.
Topics: Humans; Liver; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease; Mass Screening; Alanine Transaminase; Algorithms; Biomarkers; Liver Cirrhosis; Risk Factors; Early Diagnosis
PubMed: 38947289
DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v30.i22.2839 -
World Journal of Gastroenterology Jun 2024In this editorial, we comment on the article entitled "Stage at diagnosis of colorectal cancer through diagnostic route: Who should be screened?" by Agatsuma ....
In this editorial, we comment on the article entitled "Stage at diagnosis of colorectal cancer through diagnostic route: Who should be screened?" by Agatsuma . Colorectal cancer (CRC) is emerging as an important health issue as its incidence continues to rise globally, adversely affecting the quality of life. Although the public has become more aware of CRC prevention, most patients lack screening awareness. Some poor lifestyle practices can lead to CRC and symptoms can appear in the early stages of CRC. However, due to the lack of awareness of the disease, most of the CRC patients are diagnosed already at an advanced stage and have a poor prognosis.
Topics: Humans; Colorectal Neoplasms; Early Detection of Cancer; Quality of Life; Neoplasm Staging; Mass Screening; Prognosis; Colonoscopy; Incidence; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Life Style
PubMed: 38946873
DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v30.i23.2959 -
Journal of Hepatocellular Carcinoma 2024The impact of visceral adiposity on overall survival (OS) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) receiving immunotherapy was unclear. We aimed to determine how visceral...
PURPOSE
The impact of visceral adiposity on overall survival (OS) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) receiving immunotherapy was unclear. We aimed to determine how visceral adiposity affected OS and explore the interrelationships between visceral adiposity, body mass index (BMI), and other body compositions.
PATIENTS AND METHODS
Data from three centers were retrospectively analyzed. Skeletal muscle index (SMI), skeletal muscle density (SMD), visceral adipose tissue index (VATI), and subcutaneous adipose tissue index (SATI) were used to define each body composition. The BMI subgroups included the underweight, the normal weight, and the obesity. The Log rank test compared survival curves calculated by the Kaplan-Meier method. The relationships between body compositions and BMI with OS were examined using Cox proportional risk regression models.
RESULTS
A total of 305 patients who met the criteria were included. Patients with low VATI had significantly worse OS ( = 0.001). The protections of VATI ( = 0.011) on OS were independent of covariates. However, after additional adjustment of SMI, the effect of VATI on OS disappeared ( = 0.146), but the effect of SMD on OS did not ( = 0.021). BMI has a significant U-shaped relationship with OS, and the effect of BMI on OS equally disappeared after additional adjustment by SMI.
CONCLUSION
This study first demonstrated that high VATI and mid-level BMI were protective for the survival of patients with HCC receiving immunotherapy. Skeletal muscle status (including SMI and SMD) may be the better predictor for outcomes of patients with HCC receiving immunotherapy.
PubMed: 38946842
DOI: 10.2147/JHC.S453262 -
Experimental & Molecular Medicine Jul 2024The hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) pathway coordinates skeletal bone homeostasis and endocrine functions. Activation of the HIF-1α pathway increases glucose...
The hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) pathway coordinates skeletal bone homeostasis and endocrine functions. Activation of the HIF-1α pathway increases glucose uptake by osteoblasts, which reduces blood glucose levels. However, it is unclear whether activating the HIF-1α pathway in osteoblasts can help normalize glucose metabolism under diabetic conditions through its endocrine function. In addition to increasing bone mass and reducing blood glucose levels, activating the HIF-1α pathway by specifically knocking out Von Hippel‒Lindau (Vhl) in osteoblasts partially alleviated the symptoms of streptozotocin (STZ)-induced type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM), including increased glucose clearance in the diabetic state, protection of pancreatic β cell from STZ-induced apoptosis, promotion of pancreatic β cell proliferation, and stimulation of insulin secretion. Further screening of bone-derived factors revealed that islet regeneration-derived protein III gamma (RegIIIγ) is an osteoblast-derived hypoxia-sensing factor critical for protection against STZ-induced T1DM. In addition, we found that iminodiacetic acid deferoxamine (SF-DFO), a compound that mimics hypoxia and targets bone tissue, can alleviate symptoms of STZ-induced T1DM by activating the HIF-1α-RegIIIγ pathway in the skeleton. These data suggest that the osteoblastic HIF-1α-RegIIIγ pathway is a potential target for treating T1DM.
PubMed: 38945950
DOI: 10.1038/s12276-024-01257-4 -
Nefrologia Jun 2024Sarcopenia and dynapenia are two terms associated with ageing that respectively define the loss of muscle mass and strength. In 2018, the European Working Group on...
Sarcopenia and dynapenia are two terms associated with ageing that respectively define the loss of muscle mass and strength. In 2018, the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP) introduced the EWGSOP2 diagnostic algorithm for sarcopenia, which integrates both concepts. It consists of 4 sequential steps: screening for sarcopenia, examination of muscle strength, assessment of muscle mass and physical performance; depending on these last 3 aspects sarcopenia is categorised as probable, confirmed, and severe respectively. In the absence of validation of the EWGSOP2 algorithm in various clinical contexts, its use in haemodialysis poses several limitations: (a) low sensitivity of the screening, (b) the techniques that assess muscle mass are not very accessible, reliable, or safe in routine clinical care, (c) the sequential use of the magnitudes that assess dynapenia and muscle mass do not seem to adequately reflect the muscular pathology of the elderly person on dialysis. We reflect on the definition of sarcopenia and the use of more precise terms such as "myopenia" (replacing the classic concept of sarcopenia to designate loss of muscle mass), dynapenia and kratopenia. Prospective evaluation of EWGSOP2 and its comparison with alternatives (i.e. assessment of kratopenia and dynapenia only; steps 2 and 4) is proposed in terms of its applicability in clinical routine, resource consumption, identification of at-risk individuals and impact on events.
PubMed: 38945744
DOI: 10.1016/j.nefroe.2023.08.007 -
Food Research International (Ottawa,... Aug 2024Tea trichomes were regarded as an essential evaluation index for reflecting tea flavor quality in terms of aroma and influence on infusion color. This study reveals the... (Comparative Study)
Comparative Study
Tea trichomes were regarded as an essential evaluation index for reflecting tea flavor quality in terms of aroma and influence on infusion color. This study reveals the impact of golden oxidized trichomes on the color, volatile and non-volatile metabolites of black teas through comparative metabolomics combined quantitative analysis on hongbiluo (trichomes-deficiency black teas), hongjinluo (trichomes-rich black teas), and trichomes (from hongjinluo). Forty-six volatile components were detected using headspace solid-phase microextraction gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, while the results suggested that the contribution of trichomes to black teas is limited. A total of 60 marker non-volatile compounds were identified, including catechins, catechin oxidation products, flavonoid glycosides, organic acids, hydrolysable tannins and amino acids. Notably, p-coumaroyl-kaempferol glucosides, and catechin dimers demonstrated high levels in independent trichomes and showed a positive correlation with the brightness and yellow hue of black tea infusions, specifically kaempferol 3-O-di-(p-coumaroyl)-hexoside. Furthermore, results from fractional extraction analysis of separated trichomes provided that N-ethyl-2-pyrrolidinone-substituted epicatechin gallates, acylated kaempferol glycosides, and chromogenic catechins dimers, such as theaflavins, were primary color contributors in oxidized trichomes. Especially, we found that epicatechin gallate (ECG) and its derivates, 3'-O-methyl-ECG and N-ethyl-2-pyrrolidinone-substituted ECG, highly accumulated in trichomes, which may be associated with the varieties of hongbiluo and hongjinluo black teas. Eventually, addition tests were applied to verify the color contribution of trichome mixtures. Our findings employed comprehensive information revealing that golden oxidized trichomes contributed significantly to the brightness and yellow hue of black tea infusion, but their contribution to the aroma and metabolic profile is limited. These findings may contribute to the effective modulation of the infusion color during black tea production by regulating the proportion of tea trichomes or screening trichomes-rich or deficiency varieties.
Topics: Metabolomics; Tea; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; Camellia sinensis; Volatile Organic Compounds; Color; Oxidation-Reduction; Trichomes; Catechin; Solid Phase Microextraction; Plant Leaves; Metabolome; Flavonoids
PubMed: 38945627
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodres.2024.114638 -
Food Research International (Ottawa,... Aug 2024Phytocannabinoids occurring in Cannabis Sativa L. are unique secondary metabolites possessing interesting pharmacological activities. In this study, the dynamics of...
Phytocannabinoids occurring in Cannabis Sativa L. are unique secondary metabolites possessing interesting pharmacological activities. In this study, the dynamics of thermally induced (60 and 120 °C) phytocannabinoid reactions in four cannabis varieties were investigated. Using UHPLC-HRMS/MS, 40 phytocannabinoids were involved in target analysis, and an additional 281 compounds with cannabinoid-like structures and 258 non-cannabinoid bioactive compounds were subjected to suspect screening. As expected, the key reaction was the decarboxylation of acidic phytocannabinoids. Nevertheless, the rate constants differed among cannabis varieties, documenting the matrix-dependence of this process. Besides neutral counterparts of acidic species, ́neẃ bioactive compounds such as hydroxyquinones were found in heated samples. In addition, changes in other bioactive compounds with both cannabinoid-like and non-cannabinoid structures were documented during cannabis heating at 120 °C. The data document the complexity of heat-induced processes and provide a further understanding of changes in bioactivities occurring under such conditions.
Topics: Cannabis; Cannabinoids; Hot Temperature; Inflorescence; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Tandem Mass Spectrometry; Plant Extracts; Phytochemicals
PubMed: 38945557
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodres.2024.114487 -
Lancet (London, England) Jun 2024
Topics: Humans; Armed Conflicts; Epidemics; Mass Screening; Mobile Health Units; Tuberculosis; Ukraine
PubMed: 38945133
DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(24)01342-4 -
Environment International Jun 2024Facing the great threats to ecosystems and human health posed by the continuous release of chemicals into aquatic environments, effect-directed analysis (EDA) has... (Review)
Review
Facing the great threats to ecosystems and human health posed by the continuous release of chemicals into aquatic environments, effect-directed analysis (EDA) has emerged as a powerful tool for identifying causative toxicants. However, traditional EDA shows problems of low-coverage, labor-intensive and low-efficiency. Currently, a number of high-efficiency techniques have been integrated into EDA to improve toxicant identification. In this review, the latest progress and current limitations of high-efficiency EDA, comprising high-coverage effect evaluation, high-resolution fractionation, high-coverage chemical analysis, high-automation causative peak extraction and high-efficiency structure elucidation, are summarized. Specifically, high-resolution fractionation, high-automation data processing algorithms and in silico structure elucidation techniques have been well developed to enhance EDA. While high-coverage effect evaluation and chemical analysis should be further emphasized, especially omics tools and data-independent mass acquisition. For the application status in aquatic environments, high-efficiency EDA is widely applied in surface water and wastewater. Estrogenic, androgenic and aryl hydrocarbon receptor-mediated activities are the most concerning, with causative toxicants showing the typical structural features of steroids and benzenoids. A better understanding of the latest progress and application status of EDA would be beneficial to further advance in the field and greatly support aquatic environment monitoring.
PubMed: 38945088
DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2024.108855