Search Results (1,335)

Purpose: Photoselective vaporization of the prostate (PVP) with the GreenLight laser is an established minimally invasive treatment for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), yet its effects on voiding physiology remain incompletely characterized. Most prior studies rely on symptom scores and uroflowmetry as surrogate endpoints. This study evaluates the urodynamic mechanisms underlying clinical improvement following GreenLight PVP using paired pressure-flow studies. Methods: We performed a single-center retrospective review of patients who underwent GreenLight XPS PVP for BPH-related bladder outlet obstruction at a community hospital. Inclusion required complete pre- and postoperative pressure-flow urodynamic studies (UDS) and symptom assessments (IPSS). Key urodynamic parameters included maximum flow rate (Qmax), average flow rate (Qavg), detrusor pressure at maximum flow (Pdet@Qmax), maximum detrusor pressure (max Pdet), bladder outlet obstruction index (BOOI), and post-void residual (PVR). Postoperative UDS were performed at 12 months. Statistical analysis employed the Wilcoxon signed-rank test for continuous variables. Results: Of 98 total patients (mean age 71.3 years), paired uroflowmetry was available in 87 patients and pressure-flow data in 64. IPSS improved significantly from 17.1 to 9.5 at 12 months (p < 0.05). Qmax increased by 76%, from 6.25 to 11.0 mL/s (p < 0.05), and Qavg increased by 35%, from 4.0 to 5.4 mL/s (p < 0.05). Max Pdet decreased significantly from 84.8 to 61.2 cmH₂O (p < 0.05), and BOOI improved from 46.7 to 28.9 (p < 0.05). Pdet@Qmax and PVR did not change significantly. Conclusions: GreenLight PVP produces measurable restoration of voiding mechanics, evidenced by reduced peak detrusor pressures, improved outlet obstruction index, and enhanced urinary flow. These findings confirm that symptomatic improvement is underpinned by objective urodynamic de-obstruction. Larger prospective studies with longer follow-up are warranted. Full article

The hilly agroecosystems of north-western Maharashtra harbor rich agrobiodiversity, but agricultural intensification and widespread adoption of improved cultivars are accelerating the erosion of traditional crop landraces. However, comprehensive information on the current status of on-farm agrobiodiversity and the extent of ongoing genetic erosion in these tribal-dominated landscapes remains limited. This study assessed on-farm agri-horticultural diversity, landrace prevalence, genetic erosion, and indigenous conservation practices across Akole, Igatpuri, Shahada, and Dhadgaon. Field surveys, household interviews, and focus group discussions documented traditional crop landraces, wild edible species, and farmer-led conservation practices. Agrobiodiversity was evaluated using the Prevalence Index, Berger–Parker Index, Menhinick’s Diversity Index, and Shannon Diversity Index. More than 150 traditional landraces representing cereals, millets, pulses, oilseeds, vegetables, fruits, and legumes, together with over 35 wild edible plant species, were recorded. Hyacinth bean (PI = 10.00), mango (PI = 5.35), groundnut (PI = 5.25) and wheat (PI = 4.17) showed the highest prevalence in Akole–Igatpuri, whereas cowpea (PI = 2.50) and pigeonpea (PI = 2.33) predominated in Shahada–Dhadgaon. Shannon diversity values ranged from 0.69 to 3.01 and 1.01 to 2.17, indicating substantial variation in landrace diversity. Community seed banks and farmer-managed seed systems continue to support the conservation of locally adapted landraces despite ongoing varietal replacement. This study provides a comprehensive baseline for understanding the status of on-farm agrobiodiversity in north-western Maharashtra. It highlights the importance of integrating indigenous knowledge with community-based and policy-driven conservation strategies to strengthen the long-term resilience and sustainability of traditional farming systems. Full article

The regional fauna of many Diptera groups is insufficiently studied. Tabanidae are the largest representatives of blood-sucking Diptera. A description of a dataset on the biodiversity of horseflies (Tabanidae) is presented, which includes information obtained by the authors and their colleagues in 2001, 2007–2009, and 2012–2025. The information was received from 14 regions of European Russia. A total of 5740 specimens were processed. In total, samples were obtained from 159 localities. Each record includes information about the species, time and place of collection, the collectors and determiners, as well as the administrative affiliation of the locality, making the dataset suitable for faunistic, biogeographical, and ecological studies. In total, 35 species were reliably identified. The most studied was the Republic of Mordovia, from which 33 species of Tabanidae became known. In turn, 12 species are included in the dataset from the Vladimir Region, and 10 species are included in the dataset from the Ryazan Region. Five species (Chrysops caecutiens, Chrysops viduatus, Haematopota pluvialis, Hybomitra bimaculata, Hybomitra muehlfeldi) were represented in the dataset in the largest number, and they accounted for 61.5% of the total specimens. The dataset also includes one specimen each of five species: Atylotus plebeius, Chrysops nigripes, Chrysops sepulcralis, Hybomitra borealis, and Hybomitra kaurii. Tabanidae activity begins in the first ten days of May and ends in the second ten-day period of September. The maximum species richness was observed in the third ten-day period of June and the first ten days of July, with 24 species recorded in each of these periods. Meanwhile, the maximum value of the Shannon index (2.52) and the minimum value of the Berger–Parker index (0.16) are observed in the first ten days of July. The dataset can be used as a basis for further study of the diversity and distribution of Tabanidae in European Russia. Full article

The contribution of this essay to two rather distinct academic literatures is two-fold. First, it reconceives the significance of Wittgenstein’s remarks on aspect–seeing, which are generally taken to be revelatory of language narrowly conceived, and instead explores the connection between aspect–seeing—what Wittgenstein identifies as one “among the concepts of experience”—and the nature of experience itself. It does so by noting the importance to Wittgenstein of inventing “fictitious natural history” to reveal the connection between what we say and the kind of creature we are. It then examines other fictitious natural histories involving aspect–seeing (or its absence) that illustrate some “very general facts of nature”—facts that, the essay contends, help form the fundamental conditions for our finding one another intelligible. Second, the essay reconceives what constitutes the significance of jazz improvisation (and possibly other forms of spontaneous activity, though those are not explored here) by grounding this significance in these same very general facts of nature. It develops this thought by considering the implications of a different fictitious natural history involving musical performance, and through a remarkable if complex instance of an exemplary improvised jazz solo by Charlie Parker. Full article

Five studies are frequently cited as experimental evidence that photobiomodulation (PBM) may stimulate tumour growth or produce phototoxicity, contributing to a documented barrier to clinical adoption in oncology. We reappraise these studies against their own reported dosimetry. None characterised the spatial power distribution of its beam. Each was assessed for arithmetic consistency, beam profile, device category, and biological-model appropriateness, and re-examined against the Arrhenius framework for thermal damage. In four of the five, the exposures delivered lay outside the therapeutic photobiological window on the authors’ own stated parameters: surface temperatures of 55 °C and, in places, 71 °C, with injury the original authors describe as coagulation and necrosis extending to paralysis and death; irradiances approximately 25 times those used clinically; and, in one case, parameters the authors themselves describe as high. The fifth, a xenograft study, used a dose within the therapeutic range, but its immunodeficient host cannot express the immune-mediated response at issue. A sixth study, from the same group and using the same device as one of the five but operated at a therapeutic irradiance, is included as an internal control and reported therapeutic benefit. Injury in these regimes is best understood as oxygen-dependent, with temperature acting as a sensitising variable and as a marker of the regime rather than as the proximate cause, a reading supported by the original authors’ own helium-substitution, cooling and heated-probe controls. We outline a two-tier mechanistic framework, in which correctly dosed PBM may engage systemic anti-tumour immunity, as a hypothesis for prospective testing rather than as a finding of this analysis. None of these studies provides dosimetrically secure evidence of a hazard from therapeutic-range PBM; equally, the absence of such evidence is not a demonstration of safety. Beam-profile reporting should become standard in PBM oncology research. Full article

Background/Objectives: Healthy macrovascular and microvascular circulation is essential for wound prevention and healing in high-risk feet. While validated methods of assessing lower limb macrocirculation exist, microcirculation assessment often relies on subjective clinical judgement. This study aimed to determine reliability and reproducibility of laser speckle contrast imaging (LSCI) of superficial circulation in the feet of adults attending a high-risk foot clinic. LSCI was undertaken on seven regions of the foot, and then repeated 3–5 min later. Methods: LSCI measures were compared to health and clinical measures using correlations, t-tests or ANOVA, as appropriate, and intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) used to analyse reliability measures. In a sample of 31 participants, good test–retest reliability was found (3–5 min apart), with ICC from 0.94 (95% CI 0.76–0.98) to 0.99 (95% CI 0.96–0.99). Results: A sub-group of 10 participants were available to test reproducibility one week later, with Cronbach’s alpha ranging from 0.83 to 0.97. Lower LSCI perfusion measures were significantly related to longer ulcer duration, use of a walking aid, and presence of respiratory disease or previous cerebro-vascular accident. Conclusions: These findings support the potential role of LSCI as a non-invasive method to evaluate superficial perfusion in high-risk feet. Full article

This study presents a multivariate spatio-temporal clustering framework to characterise joint wind–wave regimes across European seas using the fifth-generation atmospheric reanalysis produced by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ERA5; 1979–2014). Seasonal and annual statistics of significant wave height, mean wave period, wind speed, and wave/wind direction were computed at 0.5° resolution. Principal component analysis was used to reduce dimensionality, retaining 30 components that captured 99% of the variance. K-means clustering was then used to identify nine coherent dynamical regimes with persistent spatio-temporal signatures. These regimes were grouped into open-ocean, transitional, and enclosed/semi-enclosed categories based on internal variability, directional spread, and geographic exposure. Open-Atlantic regimes are found to be energy-rich, exhibiting clear December–February maxima in significant wave height ($H_s$), mean wave period ($T_{02}$), and 10 m wind speed ($W_{s10}$); enclosed and semi-enclosed basins show lower amplitudes and reduced variability, while transitional shelves and the southern Mediterranean display intermediate conditions, characterised by moderate $T_{02}$ levels and seasonal rotation of wave and wind directions, reflecting a mixed influence of locally generated seas and remotely forced swell. Dispersion analysis highlights a clear Atlantic–Mediterranean partition, with transitional shelves forming a dynamical bridge between open-ocean and enclosed basins. Teleconnection analysis shows that the North Atlantic Oscillation and Arctic Oscillation dominate Atlantic regimes, while the Scandinavia, East Atlantic, and Polar/Eurasia patterns modulate variability and directional persistence in transitional and enclosed seas. The classification defines a climatological framework of European wind–wave conditions and establishes a practical basis for renewable energy assessment, engineering design, and long-term change analysis, with methods transferable to other basins. Full article

Reflecting on emotionally challenging experiences with caregivers is a critical developmental process through which children learn to identify, express, and regulate emotions. However, much of the existing literature on caregiver–child emotion socialization has centered White, middle-class families, limiting understanding of how these processes unfold within culturally and contextually situated interactions among Black families. Guided by Margaret Beale Spencer’s Phenomenological Variant of Ecological Systems Theory and the Integrative Conceptual Model of Adaptive Racial/Ethnic and Emotion Socialization, the present study explored how Black girls (ages 5–11) described experiences of sadness, stress, and anger during caregiver-guided conversations embedded within a culturally grounded shared book reading activity. Fifteen Black girls (M = 8.27 years, SD = 1.71) and their caregivers participated in a novel video-recorded shared reading activity followed by a guided discussion about emotions. Black girls described sadness in relation to separation from loved ones, social exclusion, and witnessing harm; stress primarily in response to academic pressures; and anger in response to perceived unfairness and injustice. They also identified diverse emotion regulation strategies, including deep breathing, solitude, cognitive reframing, imaginative coping, and seeking social support. Across emotional contexts, caregivers consistently encouraged elaboration, validated children’s emotional experiences, and reinforced adaptive coping strategies, creating supportive opportunities for collaborative emotional meaning-making. Our findings highlight shared reading as a culturally affirming context for caregiver-supported emotion socialization and underscore the importance of centering Black girls’ voices in research on socioemotional development. Full article

Background: Obesity has a significant genetic component, accounting for up to an estimated 70% of individual susceptibility. Advances in genome-wide association studies (GWASs) and next-generation sequencing (NGS) have enhanced identification and characterization of genetic forms of obesity, facilitating more precise and individualized treatment approaches. The phenotypic heterogenicity of the disease of obesity, along with the limited predictive value of clinical features, hinders the accurate identification of genetic forms of the disease. Therefore, genetic testing represents a critical diagnostic modality to confirm etiology and inform precision-based therapeutic strategies. Aim: To compare the clinical utility, interpretation and potential impact of direct-to-consumer (DTC-GT) and clinician-directed genetic testing for obesity in the context of type 2 diabetes. Methods: This case-based review evaluated a patient with severe obesity and type 2 diabetes who underwent both DTC-GT and clinician-directed genetic testing for obesity. A structured literature review using PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google was undertaken to identify the resources of both testing approaches. Tables and a schematic figure were developed to summarize the findings. Results: Neither testing approach identified clinically actionable obesity-associated genetic variants or a monogenic cause of obesity. However, the DTC-GT report concluded that the patient was at “high risk” of obesity and was provided to the patient without a referral to genetic counseling which contributed to patient misunderstanding. Conclusions: This case, interpreted alongside the reviewed literature, suggests that clinician-directed genetic testing may better support reliable interpretation of obesity-associated genetic findings and disease management than DTC-GT. Larger studies are warranted to confirm these observations. Full article

The role of Chapman’s hydrostatic solar wind model (based on a hydrostatic force balance condition) in Parker’s hydrodynamic solar wind theory is investigated by invoking the de Laval nozzle analogy for the production of flow acceleration in the latter model. The action of solar gravity in Parker’s hydrodynamic solar wind model is shown to be geometrically equivalent to a renormalization of the actual wind channel area and the renormalization factor is exactly Chapman’s hydrostatic radial density profile, which is totally predicated on the hydrostatic force balance condition. This result appears to be traceable to the encapsulation of the solar gravity effects in Parker’s hydrodynamic solar wind model by Chapman’s hydrostatic corona model, even beyond the coronal base. Furthermore, this result is shown to be robust by considering both isothermal gas and polytropic gas models as well as an n-dimensional ($n=$ 1, 2, or 3) underlying space for the solar wind. Full article

Pediatric sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is underdiagnosed despite its associations with adverse neurobehavioral, psychosocial, and cardiometabolic outcomes. Pediatric dental providers routinely evaluate craniofacial growth and maintain longitudinal contact with children, yet practical approaches for integrating SDB risk assessment into dental settings remain limited. This protocol describes a prospective, cross-sectional observational study that will enroll 60 school-aged children aged 8–13 years from a university-based pediatric dental clinic and classify them as low-risk or high-risk for SDB using the Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire (PSQ; threshold ≥ 0.33). The primary aim is to examine associations between PSQ-based risk classification and objective physiologic sleep parameters, including the Apnea–Hypopnea Index, Respiratory Disturbance Index, Sleep Apnea Indicator, and Sleep Quality Index, obtained from a U.S. Food and Drug Administration-cleared wearable home sleep monitor—SleepImage Ring (MyCardio LLC, Denver, CO, USA)—worn for a minimum of three consecutive nights. Secondary aims will evaluate associations between SDB risk classification and body mass index, Mallampati score, Brodsky tonsillar grade, and psychosocial functioning (anxiety, depression, perceived stress, and daytime sleepiness). Exploratory craniofacial analyses will be conducted among participants with clinically available lateral cephalometric radiographs. This protocol could position pediatric dental visits as an accessible touchpoint for early identification of children with unrecognized SDB and inform pathways for timely referral. Protocol Version: 1.4, dated 13 May 2026. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT07581938. Full article

Cancer cachexia (CC) is a devastating, multi-organ syndrome historically defined by the progressive wasting of skeletal muscle and adipose tissue. However, emerging evidence suggests that the skeletal system is also a major, yet underappreciated target of this catabolic state. While bone loss in oncology is primarily attributed to skeletal metastasis or cancer treatment-induced bone loss (CTIBL), clinical and preclinical data has increasingly demonstrated that tumor and host-derived systemic signals can drive severe bone deterioration even in non-metastatic disease. This review synthesizes current information available on bone loss, osteopenia, and skeletal decline in the context of CC, with a specific focus on non-metastatic disease. By examining the available literature, we argue that bone loss is a “hidden” yet fundamental systemic manifestation of the cachectic state. Furthermore, we aim to highlight how concurrent muscle and bone deterioration (osteosarcopenia) dramatically worsens prognosis in several different cancers in both the adult and pediatric populations. Ultimately, this review highlights the potential contribution of cancer cachexia to osteoporosis and skeletal fragility, supporting the need for greater clinical awareness, improved musculoskeletal screening, and the development of targeted therapeutic strategies. Full article

Background/Objectives: Accurate size-matching between donor and recipient is central to adult heart transplantation, yet the optimal operational metric remains unsettled. We compared the predicted heart mass ratio (PHMr) with a ratio pairing measured donor left ventricular mass and predicted recipient left ventricular mass (mLVM:pLVM) to determine how each classifies the size acceptability of donor offers. Methods: In a retrospective single-center cohort of 594 adult donor offers evaluated for 22 recipients during 2023, offers were classified as acceptable under bilateral windows (PHMr 0.86 to 1.14, mLVM:pLVM 0.80 to 1.20) and under lower-bound-only thresholds. Recipient-clustered models with cluster-robust standard errors were the primary analysis, with a generalized estimating equation and a linear mixed model as sensitivity analyses. Prespecified subgroups were defined by sex and body mass index. Results: Under bilateral windows, PHMr classified more offers as acceptable than mLVM:pLVM (46.3% versus 40.1%), but the overall difference was not significant in the primary analysis (cluster-robust risk difference 6.2 percentage points, 95% CI −0.5 to 13.0, p = 0.068) and reached significance only in sensitivity analyses. Agreement was low (Cohen’s κ 0.12 to 0.24). The between-method difference varied by donor sex, confirmed by interaction testing: PHMr classified more male donor offers as acceptable, whereas mLVM:pLVM classified more female donor offers as acceptable. Under lower-bound-only thresholds, significant differences were confined to donor sex. Conclusions: Metric and threshold choice changed which offers were classified as acceptable. These differences reflect operational discordance rather than clinical superiority and warrant validation linked to outcomes. Full article

Through-glass via (TGV) substrates have attracted increasing attention as interposers and core substrates for advanced packaging. However, contaminants adhere to glass surfaces; in particular, airborne organic substances increase the contact angle, hindering the penetration of cleaning solutions into TGVs and thereby reducing the cleaning effect. Reducing the cleaning-solution surface tension by adding a surfactant may promote penetration into TGVs with high contact angles. This study investigated the effect of cleaning-solution surface tension on cleanability inside TGVs. Under the tested conditions, the contact angle outside the TGV after cleaning was 3–4° for all cleaning solutions, regardless of their surface tension. In contrast, the contact angle inside the TGV after cleaning decreased with decreasing surface tension. At 27.5 and 41.8 mN/m, the contact angle inside the TGV after cleaning decreased to 3–4° under both conditions. These results indicate that the surface tension of the cleaning solution affects the cleanability inside the TGV. For a TGV with an opening diameter of 20 μm and an aspect ratio of 10, cleaning with a 27.5 mN/m solution prior to electroless Cu plating was associated with reduced void formation and film thickness variation in the Cu film inside the TGV under the tested conditions. Full article

Background/Objectives: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have transformed the therapeutic landscape of advanced malignancies. However, only a subset of patients respond to treatment. Recent efforts have focused on the identification of novel biomarkers that capture the dynamic and functional state of the tumour immune microenvironment, yet their clinical translation has remained challenging. Methods: To address these limitations, we applied amplified FRET-FLIM (QF-Pro^®) technology to spatially resolve and quantitatively assess functional immune checkpoint interactions directly in cells and FFPE tissue and tumour samples. Results: Using this approach, we demonstrated that PD-1/PD-L1, CTLA-4/CD80, TIGIT/CD155, and LAG-3/MHC-II interactions can be robustly quantified in routine FFPE patient samples from multiple tumour types. Furthermore, in a proof-of-concept study in a melanoma cohort treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) targeting PD-1 or CTLA-4, co-analysis of all four immune checkpoints suggested patterns of concomitant engagement. Notably, patients with high PD-1/PD-L1 interaction levels tended to also exhibit elevated CTLA-4/CD80 interactions. Survival analysis further showed that high LAG-3/MHC-II interaction status was associated with a trend toward improved overall survival even when corrected for tumour stage, irrespective of the specific ICI regimen administered. Conclusions: Although prospective validation in larger independent cohorts would be critical to establish clinical relevance, these findings support the exploration of LAG-3 engagement as a potential biomarker in melanoma immunotherapy, and more broadly highlight immune checkpoint interaction profiling as a promising avenue to examine in patient stratification. Full article