Comparative profiling of skeletal muscle models reveals heterogeneity of transcriptome and metabolism

We acknowledge the Beta Cell in-vivo Imaging/Extracellular Flux Analysis core facility, supported by the Strategic Research Program (SRP) in Diabetes, for the use of the Seahorse flux analyzer. AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS A.M.A. and N.J.P. conceived and designed research; A.M.A., L.S.P., J.A.B.S., B.M.G., M.S., L.D., A.V.C., and N.J.P. performed experiments; A.M.A., L.S.P., J.A.B.S., B.M.G., M.S., L.D., A.V.C., and N.J.P. analyzed data; A.M.A., L.S.P., J.A.B.S., B.M.G., M.S., L.D., A.V.C., A.K., J.R.Z., and N.J.P. interpreted results of experiments; A.M.A. and N.J.P. prepared figures; A.M.A. and N.J.P. drafted manuscript; A.M.A., L.S.P., J.A.B.S., B.M.G., M.S., L.D., A.V.C., A.K., J.R.Z., and N.J.P. edited and revised manuscript; A.M.A., L.S.P., J.A.B.S., B.M.G., M.S., L.D., A.V.C., A.K., J.R.Z., and N.J.P. approved final version of manuscript.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Burnout among surgeons before and during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: an international survey

Background: SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has had many significant impacts within the surgical realm, and surgeons have been obligated to reconsider almost every aspect of daily clinical practice. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study reported in compliance with the CHERRIES guidelines and conducted through an online platform from June 14th to July 15th, 2020. The primary outcome was the burden of burnout during the pandemic indicated by the validated Shirom-Melamed Burnout Measure. Results: Nine hundred fifty-four surgeons completed the survey. The median length of practice was 10 years; 78.2% included were male with a median age of 37 years old, 39.5% were consultants, 68.9% were general surgeons, and 55.7% were affiliated with an academic institution. Overall, there was a significant increase in the mean burnout score during the pandemic; longer years of practice and older age were significantly associated with less burnout. There were significant reductions in the median number of outpatient visits, operated cases, on-call hours, emergency visits, and research work, so, 48.2% of respondents felt that the training resources were insufficient. The majority (81.3%) of respondents reported that their hospitals were included in the management of COVID-19, 66.5% felt their roles had been minimized; 41% were asked to assist in non-surgical medical practices, and 37.6% of respondents were included in COVID-19 management. Conclusions: There was a significant burnout among trainees. Almost all aspects of clinical and research activities were affected with a significant reduction in the volume of research, outpatient clinic visits, surgical procedures, on-call hours, and emergency cases hindering the training. Trial registration: The study was registered on clicaltrials.gov "NCT04433286" on 16/06/2020

Subcritical water technology for wheat straw hydrolysis to produce value added products

The cellulosic nature of agriculture wastes makes them suitable raw materials for conversion processing to produce end products with high value added. The present works described the using of subcritical water technology for the utilization of wheat straw through hydrolysis to produce reducing sugar. The experiments were carried out under different conditions and the optimum hydrolysis parameters were investigated. The results revealed that the optimum conditions for hydrolysis were 190 °C temperature, 30 min hydrolysis time, water to straw ratio of 6/1 and feedstock particle size of 180–355 μm. The maximum obtained yield the reducing sugars (RS) under the optimum hydrolysis condition amounted to 51.5% (as weight percent) of the raw wheat straw. HPLC analysis for the produced RS showed the presence of 3.2% of total RS as glucose and 7.6% as xylose, the balance being other reducing sugars, e.g. arabinose, galactose and probably other oligomers. Finally, the ethanol production from the produced glucose was tested through fermentation process. Based on the obtained results, it was possible to propose a design for a process combining both sugars and bioethanol production

Safety and efficacy of tezepelumab vs. placebo in adult patients with severe uncontrolled asthma: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract Patients with severe uncontrolled asthma still experience acute asthma symptoms and exacerbations, particularly those with non-eosinophilic inflammation who take the maximum amount of standard drug therapy. Tezepelumab, a human monoclonal antibody, can improve lung function and enhance control of asthma symptoms in those patients, regardless of the disease’s baseline characteristics. This study aims to investigate the safety and efficacy of using tezepelumab in controlling severe symptoms of uncontrolled asthma. We performed a comprehensive literature search in several databases, including PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and clinicaltrial.gov, using a well-established search strategy to include all relevant publications. According to our inclusion criteria, we searched for randomized controlled trials comparing tezepelumab versus placebo in patients with severe, uncontrolled asthma. We analyzed the data using The Revman 5.4 program software. The search identified 589 potential articles. After excluding studies inconsistent with selection criteria, four studies were included and analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively. The pooled effect demonstrated the better performance of tezepelumab over the placebo regarding the decrease in annualized asthma exacerbation rate (MD = − 0.74, (95% CI [− 1.04, − 0.44], p < 0.00001)), asthma control questionnaire-6 (ACQ-6) Score MD = − 0.32, (95% CI [− 0.43, − 0.21], p < 0.00001)), blood eosinophil count (MD = − 139.38 cells/mcL, (95% CI [− 150.37, − 128.39], p < 0.00001)), feNO (MD = − 10 ppb, (95% CI [− 15.81, − 4.18], p = 0.0008)) and serum total IgE (MD = − 123.51 UI/ml, (95% CI [− 206.52, − 40.50], p = 0.004)). All tezepelumab groups had higher pre-bronchodilator forced expiratory volume in 1 s than the placebo group (MD = 0.16, (95% CI [0.10, 0.21], p < 0.00001)). Higher efficacy and safety profile was detected for tezepelumab to control the exacerbations of severe uncontrolled adult asthmatics

The efficacy of oxytocin gel in postmenopausal women with vaginal atrophy: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract Background Genitourinary syndrome of menopause (GSM) is a common and disturbing issue in the postmenopausal period. Unlike vasomotor symptoms, it has a progressive trend. Our study aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of oxytocin gel versus placebo gel in postmenopausal women with GSM. Methods A systematic review and meta-analysis synthesizing randomized controlled trials (RCTs) from Web of Science, SCOPUS, PubMed, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials databases on January 18, 2023. Keywords such as “oxytocin,“ “intravaginal,“ “vaginal,“ “atrophic,“ and “atrophy” were used. We used Review Manager (RevMan) version 5.4 in our analysis. We used the risk ratio (RR) for dichotomous outcomes and the mean difference (MD) for continuous outcomes; both were presented with the corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) and were calculated with the Mantel-Haenszel or inverse variance statistical method. Cochrane’s Q test and the I2 statistic were used as measures of statistical inconsistency and heterogeneity. The Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool for RCTs was used for the quality assessment of the included studies. Results Seven studies with 631 patients were included. Regarding the maturation index, there was a statistically insignificant increase in the oxytocin arm (MD = 12.34, 95% CI (-12.52-37.19), P = 0.33). Clinically assessed vaginal atrophy showed a statistically significant reduction in the oxytocin group (RR = 0.32, 95% CI (0.23 − 0.10), P < 0.00001). For dyspareunia, vaginal pH, and histological evaluation of vaginal atrophy, there was a statistically insignificant difference between the two groups (RR = 1.02, 95% CI (0.82–1.27), P = 0.84), (MD = -0.74, 95% CI (-1.58-0.10), P = 0.08), and (MD = -0.38, 95% CI (-0.82-0.06), P = 0.09), respectively. There was no significant difference in the safety profile between the two groups as measured by endometrial thickness (MD = 0.00, 95% CI (-0.23-0.23), P = 0.99). Conclusions Although oxytocin has been proposed as a viable alternative to estrogen in the treatment of GSM, our findings show the opposite. Larger, high-quality RCTs are needed to confirm or refute our results. Trial registration PROSPERO registration number CRD42022334357

Efficacy of Tocilizumab in Management of COVID-19 Patients Admitted to Intensive Care Units: A Multicenter Retrospective Cohort Study

Background and Objectives: Mortality and illness due to COVID-19 have been linked to a condition known as cytokine release syndrome (CRS) that is characterized by excessive production of inflammatory cytokines, particularly interleukin-6 (IL-6). Tocilizumab (TCZ), a recent IL-6 antagonist, has been redeployed as adjunctive treatment for CRS remission in COVID-19 patients. This study aimed to determine the efficacy of Tocilizumab on patients’ survival and the length of stay in hospitalized COVID-19 patients admitted to the intensive care unit. Methods: Between January 2021 and June 2021, a multicenter retrospective cohort study was carried out in six tertiary care hospitals in Egypt’s governorate of Giza. Based on the use of TCZ during ICU stay, eligible patients were divided into two groups (control vs. TCZ). In-hospital mortality was the main outcome. Results: A total of 740 patient data records were included in the analysis, where 630 patients followed the routine COVID-19 protocol, while 110 patients received TCZ, need to different respiratory support after hospitalization, and inflammatory mediators such as C-reactive protein (CRP), ferritin, and Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) showed a statistically significant difference between the TCZ group and the control group. Regarding the primary outcome (discharged alive or death) and neither the secondary outcome (length of hospital stay), there is no statistically significant difference between patients treated with TCZ and the control group. Conclusions: Our cohort of patients with moderate to severe COVID-19 did not assert a reduction in the risk of mortality or the length of stay (LOS) after TCZ administration