Articles

Substance Use Disorder (SUD) is common among patients admitted to the hospital, with particularly high rates among those hospitalized for trauma. It is important to further understand the clinical outcomes of trauma patients with SUD, a key metric for which is hospital length of stay (LOS).

The introduction of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) targeting cytotoxic T-lymphocyte–associated protein 4 (CTLA-4) and later programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) or its ligand (PD-L1) marked a turning point in cancer therapy. These agents validated the principle that durable tumor control can be achieved by releasing inhibitory pathways that restrain antitumor T cell responses. Long-term survival benefits in melanoma, non-small cell lung cancer, and other malignancies have established immunotherapy as a defining development in oncology.

Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) is the most common inherited kidney disorder and a major cause of end-stage renal disease. The disorder is primarily caused by pathogenic variants in PKD1 or PKD2, which encode the ciliary proteins polycystin-1 and polycystin-2. Loss of polycystin function disrupts calcium and cAMP signaling within the primary cilium, altering epithelial proliferation and fluid secretion that drive cyst formation and progressive kidney enlargement.

Fever and inflammatory syndromes of unknown origin (FUO and IUO) represent some of the most challenging diagnostic entities in clinical medicine. These conditions often trigger extensive investigations, prolonged hospitalizations, and sometimes empirical treatments with limited benefit. The diagnostic complexity is even greater in the elderly, where clinical presentations are frequently atypical, underlying conditions are numerous, and physiological responses to illness are blunted or masked. 

We report a case of a 45-year-old female patient with no prior medical history who presented with five days of abdominal pain, vomiting, and cessation of feces and gas. Physical examination revealed diffuse abdominal tenderness with mild distension. Laboratory tests showed an inflammatory syndrome (WBC: 9,400/µL, CRP: 21 mg/L). Abdominal CT revealed small bowel obstruction with a distended ileum and jejunum.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains a leading cause of death in women. Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease score does not encompass inflammatory diseases, which is associated with increased CVD risk. This score may underestimate risk in women with autoimmune liver diseases (AILD) such as autoimmune hepatitis (AIH), primary biliary cholangitis (PBC), and primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC). We investigated if women with AILD had increased CVD risk compared to female and male controls. 

In their detailed review of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of intact  tubal ectopic pregnancies (EPs) treated with methotrexate  (MTX), the benefit of single dose MTX treatment was made  clear,recognizing the easily administered low-cost treatment as having an 81% success rate.

The “Generation Gold Standard” (GGS) initiative, announced by NIH and BARDA, aims to develop universal vaccines for influenza and coronaviruses using β-propiolactone (BPL)–inactivated whole-virus technology. This approach, historically used in vaccines like Sinovac’s CoronaVac, is praised for its scalability but has faced scrutiny for limited durability and cross-protection. As the world seeks robust pandemic preparedness post-COVID-19, GGS’s reliance on an established platform raises questions about its transformative potential.  

Artificial intelligence (AI) has become an indispensable ally in virology, enabling the analysis of enormous datasets that extend from viral genomes to behavioral and clinical information. HIV-1, a rapidly evolving retrovirus with extraordinary genetic diversity and a persistent latent reservoir, poses unique computational challenges that are now approachable through data-driven models.

In an effort to clone polyglutamine-rich factors from activated B lymphocytes of mice, we discovered and describe here a previously uncharacterized isoform of PTIP/PAXIP1. By virtue of a two-nucleotide frameshift followed by alternative pre-mRNA splicing, this shorter isoform of 576 amino acids (termed PTIP576) retained only the two central BRCT domains of previously characterized PTIP and encodes a unique and structurally disordered 50 residue C-terminus.

Postural and psychological dysfunction frequently coexist, especially among sedentary adults. The Lagree Method, a full-body, low-impact exercise system, may simultaneously target musculoskeletal alignment and mental health. This exploratory case series examined whether a six-week Lagree intervention could improve forward head posture (FHP), rounded shoulder posture (RSP), and psychological well-being. 

Students with disabilities are disproportionately affected by co-occurring mental health conditions, yet these needs are often overshadowed by primary diagnoses and treated solely as behavioral concerns. This commentary highlights the urgent need to integrate mental health supports into special education by aligning policy and practice within collaborative school-wide systems of support. Promising practices and recommendations for teacher support are discussed.

The recent study by Zhao et al. in Frontiers in Immunology reported that bile acids induce USP50 expression in macrophages, which then deubiquitinates ASC to promote NLRP3 inflammasome activation and HMGB1 release, ultimately driving gastric cancer progression through PI3K/AKT and MAPK/ERK pathways. These findings provide valuable insights into the potential role of bile reflux-driven inflammation in the pathogenesis of gastric cancer. In general, this is an insightful piece of research. 

The current issue of the Journal of Cellular Signaling brings together a diverse set of studies that collectively broaden our understanding of cellular communication, from canonical biochemical pathways to emergent bioelectric and metabolic signaling systems. This editorial review synthesizes the major findings and conceptual advances presented in Volume 6 Issue 3, highlighting the converging trends that redefine how we view signaling as an integrative, dynamic, and multi-dimensional process.

A key strength of Wang et al.’s study lies in its rigorous integration of single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) and bulk RNA-seq, which overcomes the inherent limitations of each technology alone. ScRNA-seq dissects GBM cellular heterogeneity to identify 21 cell clusters and 1,150 cell-type-specific markers, while bulk RNA-seq captures transcriptomic patterns across large cohorts. 

Bosutinib is a second generation (2G) tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) for the therapy of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). It is effective, as other 2g TKIs and long term, is likely the safest, with few significant issues. Short term adverse events which have inhibited their use in the past can be overcome with some simple maneuvers which will be reviewed here. The background for bosutinib, patient selection, and a process for successfully starting patients on therapy will be outlined. 

Objective: This case series describes the presentation, clinical course, and functional outcomes of four pediatric patients with neuroinvasive Powassan virus infection who were admitted to inpatient rehabilitation with severe neurologic impairments. Design/Methods: Retrospective case series. Results: Inpatient rehabilitation treatment resulted in functional improvement across all patients with the most consistent gains noted in cognitive functions, including comprehension and social interaction. 

In pediatric medicine, the most powerful stories often arise not from common conditions, but from the outliers—the children whose clinical constellations challenge what we think we know about inheritance, phenotype, and disease mechanisms. The report in this issue of Pediatrics describes one such case: a 6-year-old boy presenting with multiple osteochondromas, short stature, and dysmorphic features, in whom next-generation sequencing revealed a single heterozygous pathogenic variant in SMARCAL1, the gene classically associated with Schimke immuno-osseous dysplasia (SIOD). 

Objective: To explore the safety and clinical efficacy of using the ultrasonic bone scalpel (UBS) system for laminectomy, osteotomy of posterior longitudinal ligament (PLL) ossification, combined with correction of kyphosis deformity in the treatment of multilevel thoracic ossification of the PLL. Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on patients with multilevel thoracic ossification of the PLL who underwent laminectomy, osteotomy of PLL ossification, combined with correction of kyphosis deformity using the UBS system from January 2020 to April 2023. 

Introduction: Hypertension (HTN) is a major public health issue and is both a cause and a common complication of chronic kidney disease (CKD). This study aimed to determine the prevalence of HTN and identify its associated factors in patients with advanced CKD in Parakou, Benin. Patients and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in the Nephrology Department of the CHUD-B/A hospital from April 01, 2023, to August 31, 2023. We included all consenting patients aged 15 and over with stage 3 to 5 CKD.