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Correction: Toward better drivability: Investigating user preferences for tip-in acceleration profiles in electric vehicles
Integrating single-cell RNA sequencing, WGCNA, and machine learning to identify key biomarkers in hepatocellular carcinoma
ATP synthesis of Enterococcus hirae V-ATPase driven by sodium motive force
Analysis of University Students’ Mental Health from the Perspective of Occupational Harmony
Background Mental health problems are common among university students. Based on the Model of Occupational Harmony, we investigated the relationship between occupational engagement and mental health among Chinese university students. Methods A mixed methods approach was adopted. A total of 734 Chinese university students responded to online questionnaires: a socio-demographic questionnaire, the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale, the WHOQOL-BREF, and a self-designed Occupational Harmony Questionnaire. Individual interviews with 11 university students and a focus group of four students provided qualitative data. Results Anxiety, depression, and stress were reported by 11.9%, 9.4%, and 2.9% of the participants, respectively. The level of occupational harmony was negatively correlated with depression, anxiety, and stress (p < .001). The DASS-21 score was significantly different among students who spent different amounts of time on the following activities: exercise, sleep, rest, reflective and consulting activities, study, work, and leisure and entertainment (P < .05). In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the key occupational factors contributing to university students’ mental health problems included excessive mental engagement and insufficient physical engagement, excessive active engagement and insufficient quiet engagement, insufficient social engagement, excessive or insufficient Gong (productive) engagement , and insufficient De (virtuous) engagement, Zhi (rational) engagement, and Kang (health maintenance) engagement, lack of coherence within the family, school, social systems, as well as inadequate schedule planning and time management. Conclusions Occupational disharmony is related to university students’ mental health problems. Occupational therapy can promote university students’ mental well-being by enhancing occupational harmony.
Urine-normetanephrine, a predictor of mortality risk in patients with adrenal adenomas
Abstract Urine-metanephrines are used in the screening for pheochromocytomas in patients with adrenal incidentalomas, but their potential as markers for mortality in patients with adrenal adenomas has not been studied. A retrospective cohort study was designed to investigate if urine-metanephrines were associated with mortality in patients with adrenal adenomas. Participants where consecutively included between 2005 and 2015 at two endocrine centres in southern Sweden and followed until December 31st, 2022. The exposures were 24 h-urine (tU) metanephrine and normetanephrine analysed at inclusion. The endpoint was all-cause mortality. Outcome data were obtained from the Cause of Death Register. 879 adult (≥ 18 years) patients with an incidentally discovered adrenal adenoma were included in the study and followed for a median of 9.9 years. Median age of patients was 66.7 years, and 59.6% were women. 278 patients died during follow-up. tU-normetanephrine was associated with increased mortality, adjusted hazard ratio (HR) 1.47 (95% CI, 1.27–1.69) (HR for an increase of 100 μmol/mol creatinine). There was no significant association between tU-metanephrine and mortality, HR 0.96 (0.64–1.43). tU-normetanephrine seems to be a predictor for mortality in patients with adrenal adenomas. This widely available diagnostic test may be helpful in further risk-stratifying patients with adrenal adenomas.
Pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1 controls triacylglycerol hydrolysis in cardiomyocytes
Correction: Pedestrian POSE estimation using multi-branched deep learning pose net
Co-occurring illicit fentanyl use and psychiatric disorders in emergency department patients
Cargo adaptor identity controls the mechanism and kinetics of dynein activation
Correction: Somatic embryogenesis and shoot organogenesis in peanut cv. ‘Georgia-12Y’ and successful transfer to the soil
Upper limb muscle strength and neuromuscular coordination and other factors as determinants of kinesiophobia in people with cervical and cervicothoracic spine dysfunction
Pak1 dysregulates pyruvate metabolism in PDAC cells by exerting a phosphorylation-mediated regulatory effect on PDHA1
Barriers and enablers for the deployment of large language model-based conversational robots for older adults: A protocol for a systematic review of qualitative studies
Background Artificial intelligence-powered conversational agents have immense potential to provide social companionship and support for older adults. However, the deployment of large language model (LLM)-based conversational robots for seniors faces various technical, user acceptance, and ethical challenges. Objectives This systematic review aims to synthesize insights from prior qualitative studies to identify key factors that influence the real-world application of LLM-based conversational agents for the aging population. The review will inform the user-centered design of these technologies, policy discussions on their governance, and highlight research gaps. Methods and analysis Eleven electronic databases will be searched for qualitative studies exploring stakeholder perspectives on using AI chatbots and robots to assist seniors. Two reviewers will independently screen studies, extract data, and appraise methodological quality using the JBI checklist. Thematic analysis will be conducted to identify major barriers and enablers, and confidence in review findings will be assessed using the GRADE-CERQual approach. The review will adhere to PRISMA-P and ENTREQ reporting guidelines to ensure transparency. Discussion Understanding and addressing obstacles to implementing LLM-powered conversational agents for older adults is crucial for leveraging this technology to support the well-being of the rapidly aging global population. This systematic review will provide timely insights to guide the responsible development and deployment of AI companions for seniors. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov CRD42024601264
Versatile cataract fundus image restoration model utilizing unpaired cataract and high-quality images
Abstract Cataract is one of the most common blinding eye diseases and can be treated by surgery. However, because cataract patients may also suffer from other blinding eye diseases, ophthalmologists must diagnose them before surgery. The cloudy lens of cataract patients forms a hazy degeneration in the fundus images, making it challenging to observe the patient’s fundus vessels, which brings difficulties to the diagnosis process. To address this issue, this paper establishes a new cataract image restoration method named Catintell. It contains a cataract image synthesizing model, Catintell-Syn, and a restoration model, Catintell-Res. Catintell-Syn uses GAN architecture with fully unsupervised data to generate paired cataract-like images with realistic style and texture rather than the conventional Gaussian degradation algorithm. Meanwhile, Catintell-Res is an image restoration network that can improve the quality of real cataract fundus images using the knowledge learned from synthetic cataract images. Extensive experiments show that Catintell-Res outperforms other cataract image restoration methods in PSNR with 39.03 and SSIM with 0.9476. Furthermore, the universal restoration ability that Catintell-Res gained from unpaired cataract images can process cataract images from various datasets. We hope the models can help ophthalmologists identify other blinding eye diseases of cataract patients and inspire more medical image restoration methods in the future.
Unravelling the complexity of gene regulation through multiplexed protein mapping
Microvillus inclusion disease-causing MYO5B point mutations exert differential effects on motor function
Cost-effectiveness analysis of toripalimab combined with nab-paclitaxel as a first-line treatment for advanced TNBC in the US
Introduction Initial immunotherapy outcomes with toripalimab suggest a potential paradigm shift in the treatment of advanced triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), promising extended survival for patients. However, its cost-effectiveness in the treatment of TNBC within the US health care context remains to be determined. Methods A 5-year Markov model was developed using data from the TORCHLIGHT study to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of toripalimab plus nab-paclitaxel as a first-line therapy for metastatic or recurrent TNBC in the US. The model incorporated efficacy and safety data, literature-derived costs and utilities, and calculated ICERs. Sensitivity analyses were conducted to assess the impact of variable uncertainties on the outcomes. Results Toripalimab combined with nab-P chemotherapy for TNBC patients resulted in an additional 2.68 life years (LYs) and 1.72 quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), with an ICER of $593,750 per QALY. Sensitivity analyses indicated that the cost and survival utility of toripalimab significantly influence patient outcomes. At a $100,000/QALY WTP threshold, combination therapy was not cost-effective compared with nab-P alone. Conclusions Our analysis suggests that, from a US health care system perspective, toripalimab in combination with chemotherapy does not demonstrate a significant cost-effective advantage over nab-P chemotherapy as a first-line treatment for patients with TNBC at a WTP threshold of $100,000/QALY and has a limited impact on US health care policy and clinical practice.