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Return to work among self-employed breast cancer survivors from the CANTO cohort
Abstract The aim of this study was to assess return to work (RTW) after breast cancer (BC) by baseline employment status. Using data from the CANTO cohort (NCT01993498), we examined RTW among women below age 57 at BC diagnosis 2 and 4 years after BC diagnosis. We also assessed continuous work between years 2 and 4 post-diagnosis. Poisson regression models investigated associations between baseline employment (self-employed vs. employees) and RTW outcomes, adjusting for clinical, sociodemographic, and work-related factors and quality of life. We used education (above high school; high school or lower) as a proxy to further distinguish between white collar self-employees vs. blue collar self-employees (vs. employees). About 8% of women were self-employed at diagnosis. RTW was slightly higher among the self-employed compared to employees 2 years ( N = 3178; PR = 1.04, 95%CI 0.98–1.10) and 4 years after diagnosis ( N = 2329; PR = 1.05, 0.99–1.12). This effect was limited to white collar self-employed women. Among those who returned to work 2 years after diagnosis ( N = 1683), self-employed women showed a 1.15 (1.01–1.31) higher prevalence of continuous work until year 4 post-diagnosis than employees. Self-employed women do not strongly differ from employees when assessing RTW at specific time points, however once returned to work, they experience fewer work interruptions than employees. This was observed in adjusted models, showing the intrinsic importance of job status in the RTW process. These findings highlight the importance of viewing RTW as an ongoing process, in order to provide appropriate and sustained support.
Clinically interpretable nomogram combining body composition and clinicopathological features for one year survival prediction in advanced solid tumors
AI-powered Chatbot integration for enhanced accessibility of electronic health records in a pediatric hospital
Conditional effects of source expertise and pre-existing attitudes on objective knowledge in AI-assisted health information verification
A variant in RESF1 is associated with Addison’s disease and multiple autoimmune syndrome in young Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retrievers
Abstract Addison’s disease (AD) results in glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid deficiencies and is often immune-mediated. While AD is uncommon in dogs, Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retrievers (NSDTRs) exhibit increased incidence, suggesting genetic predisposition. Detailed clinical evaluation of 24 juvenile-onset cases revealed that while all dogs presented with adrenal insufficiency, at least 10 dogs (41.7%) had concurrent autoimmune conditions. This suggests juvenile-onset AD in NSDTRs represents part of a broader multiple autoimmune syndrome (MAS) with variable expressivity. Strikingly, NSDTRs affected by juvenile-onset AD had severely decreased lifespans, with a median survival of 2 years despite appropriate treatment. Genome-wide association identified a significant association on chromosome 27 (chr27:29,724,286, p = 6.96 × 10 − 13 ). Whole-genome, short-read sequencing identified a recessive missense variant in RESF1 (Chr27:29,736,795). The variant exhibited 76% penetrance for early-onset disease, and the decreased penetrance was not attributable to differences in Dog Leukocyte Antigen (DLA) haplotypes. Immunohistochemistry confirmed T cell infiltration in the adrenal cortex of two unrelated affected dogs, with necropsy findings including severe bilateral lymphocytic adrenalitis, multisystemic granulomatous inflammation, and lymphoplasmacytic conjunctivitis supporting autoimmune pathogenesis. This study identifies RESF1 as a novel gene associated with autoimmune disease in NSDTRs, ranging from isolated juvenile-onset AD to multi-organ autoimmune manifestations. The findings represent a rare example of monogenic autoimmune disease and establish RESF1 as a candidate gene for further investigation of immune tolerance mechanisms.
Ferulic acid promotes hair growth via estrogen receptor alpha activation in cultured human dermal papilla cells
Author Correction: Building new hydrography and virtual watersheds to conserve freshwater fisheries
Chitosan/pectin bio-composite films enriched with bioactive fraction of Acalypha indica L. as active packaging: a comparative assessment of postharvest fruit quality
Depression and anxiety disorders in patients with atrial fibrillation undergoing a pulmonary vein isolation: A systematic literature review and meta-analysis
Abstract Atrial fibrillation (AF) is globally the most prevalent arrhythmia for which pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) is an effective intervention. A high comorbidity with mental disorders, in particular depressive and anxiety disorders, is described; however, a systematic synthesis of the existing literature is missing. This systematic review and meta-analysis aim to fill in this gap and to examine the prevalence of depressive and anxiety disorders with in-depth analyses of associated factors and predictors of recurrence of AF. A systematic search in PubMed, Web of Science, Trials, Embase, PsycInfo, and the Cochrane library was conducted. Articles on depressive and anxiety disorders according to the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) or the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) in English-language in adults with AF undergoing PVI were included. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were followed. Prevalence rates were synthesized, and meta-analyses were conducted to calculate the pooled point prevalence of depressive and anxiety disorders applying generalized linear mixed-effects models. Subgroup analyses on the prevalence including the age, sex, AF type, comorbid cardiovascular; meta-correlations and meta-regressions were performed. Predictors of recurrence of AF were calculated using logistic regressions. Eighteen studies with a total of 9,691 observations for depressive disorders and 8,855 observations for anxiety disorders were included. The meta-analyses revealed an overall point prevalence of 20.10% [95% Confidence interval (CI): 13.31% to 29.18%] for depressive disorders and 25.18% [95% CI: 11.71% to 46.08%] for anxiety disorders in patients undergoing PVI. Subgroup analyses indicated higher prevalence rates of depressive disorders in younger patients, those with paroxysmal AF, and patients with comorbid conditions such as heart failure, diabetes, hypertension. Older patients and those with cardiovascular disorders showed a higher prevalence of anxiety disorder. The correlation between pre- and post-PVI mental health status was strong ( r = .99 for depression), but neither pre-ablation depression (OR = 1.022, p = .638) nor anxiety (OR = 1.003, p = 0.830) significantly predicted AF recurrence. Meta-regression analyses did not identify significant moderators explaining existing between-study heterogeneity. Depressive and anxiety disorders are highly prevalent among patients with AF undergoing PVI, particularly with higher rates of depression in younger individuals, those with paroxysmal AF, and patients with comorbid cardiovascular conditions. While mental health status improved post-PVI, neither pre-ablation depression nor anxiety were significant predictors of AF recurrence. This suggests that mental health diagnostics and interventions should be integrated into routine care, although they may not directly impact AF recurrence after PVI. Current guidelines address the management of the psychosocial dimension and comorbid mental disorders of AF insufficiently, indicating an unmet need for structured psychosomatic co-management within an interdisciplinary, patient-centered care framework. Following a biopsychosocial approach may be beneficial and warrants further targeted investigation in AF populations.
Author Correction: Myocardial reprogramming by HMGN1 underlies heart defects in trisomy 21
Biogeography from a food matrix: a temporal distribution map of Apis mellifera mitochondrial DNA lineages across Italy, obtained from honey samples
Abstract The genetic integrity of European Apis mellifera subspecies has been increasingly threatened. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis is widely used to investigate honey bee lineage distribution. Honey represents a valuable source of environmental DNA (eDNA), containing traces of all the organisms involved in its production, including the honey bees, and can therefore be used to obtain insights on honey bee population genetics. In this study, DNA was extracted from 4292 honey samples produced in all regions of the Italian Peninsula plus Sardinia and Sicily, from 1985 to 2023, and used to provide a temporal snapshot of the distribution of the main A. mellifera mtDNA lineages. The C lineage was the most frequent mtDNA throughout Italy, except in Sicily where the A lineage was predominant. MtDNA from the A and M lineages were present in all Italian regions. The frequency of the A mtDNA lineage has increased in many Italian regions over the last years, following a climatic gradient over the Peninsula. Beekeeping practices that used non-native genetic stocks, with the subsequent potential combination of genetic adaptation of honey bees carrying the A lineage to climatic conditions, may explain the observed changes over years in the Italian A. mellifera population genetic structure. This is the first temporal biogeographic study obtained from eDNA extracted from a food matrix, namely honey.
Multiscale object detection model based on pyramid vision transformer
Hydrofluorocarbon electrolytes for energy-dense and low-temperature batteries
Construction of complex and diverse DNA sequences using DNA three-way junctions
Abstract The ability to construct entirely new synthetic DNA sequences de novo is essential to engineering and studying biology. However, the ability to produce long complex synthetic DNA sequences and libraries currently lags behind the ability to sequence and edit DNA 1,2 . All existing DNA-assembly technologies rely on DNA sequence information found within the final construct to direct assembly between DNA molecules 3–11 . As a result of this paradigm, these sequences cannot be extensively optimized specifically for assembly without affecting the final sequence. To fundamentally address this challenge, here we show the development of a new DNA assembly technique named Sidewinder that separates the information that guides assembly from the final assembled sequence using DNA three-way junctions. We demonstrate the transformative nature of the Sidewinder technique with highly robust and accurate construction of a 40-piece multifragment assembly, complex DNA sequences of both high GC content and high repeats, parallel assembly of multiple distinct genes in the same reaction and a combinatorial library with a large number of diversified positions across the entire length of the gene for high coverage of a library of 442,368 variants. This technology enables high-fidelity DNA assembly with a misconnection rate at the three-way junction of approximately 1 in 1,000,000.