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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on July 21, 2024 at 12:12pm

Comparing individual patient blood samples to their biopsies, the team identified 158 genes that were differentially expressed across all four organs during cases of rejection. That's nearly 20 times higher than what was expected by chance.

This discovery is pivotal as it allows us to develop strategies to enhance the success rates of all transplants.
Some of these shared biomarkers are involved in the secretion of proteins that stimulate white blood cells, enzymes that induce cell death, receptors on cells that allow materials in and out, and bone marrow cells involved in the immune response.
These findings demonstrate a "unifying pan-organ molecular marker".
The research team has made an interactive website that allows scientists around the world to compare possible biomarkers of transplant rejection against other methods, providing a much-needed standardized evaluation. This atlas has led to the development of a proof of principle for a universal blood test that can predict the likelihood of transplant rejection before it occurs.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-024-03030-6

Part 2

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on July 21, 2024 at 12:09pm

Breakthrough Test Predicts Whether Organ Transplants Will Be Rejected

Scientists have figured out a non-invasive way to determine if a transplanted organ is failing to take in a patient – no matter if it's a kidney, liver, lung, or heart.

It's the first time that biomarkers of dysfunction have matched across multiple types of transplanted organs, and it hints at the possibility of a blood test that can diagnose early rejection in all transplant scenarios – a tool that doesn't yet exist.

If more research is done, the newly identified biomarkers could even be used to differentiate between various types of organ rejection, including immune issues, inadequate blood supply, or maladaptive repairs.

The survival of a transplant differs between organs, with a long-term success rate of 59 percent for the lungs, 80 percent for the liver, 82 percent for the kidney, and 73 percent for the heart. Rejection can occur at any time after the surgery, even years later, creating a lifelong threat for patients.

Usually, doctors suspect transplant rejection when there are signs that the organ in question is not working at full capacity. But sometimes, patients might not experience any symptoms before failure occurs, and an invasive biopsy is the only way to tell for sure what is going on.

In recent years, several studies have investigated whether there are signs of organ rejection flowing through a patient's blood or urine that can be accessed more easily than via surgery. But potential biomarkers that have been identified are not yet in clinical practice, and they aren't predictive of all organ rejections, usually just one type.

The current study is a meta-analysis that seeks to bridge that gap. Its authors, led by statistician Harry Robertson from the University of Sydney, have analyzed 54 datasets, including 40 kidney, 5 lung, 5 liver, and 4 heart transplant studies.
Part 1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on July 21, 2024 at 12:01pm

 Eyelash Extension Dangers

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on July 20, 2024 at 11:43am

In the worst cases, the oxygen becomes so depleted that the microbes suffocate and die, often taking larger species with them. Populations of microbe that don't rely on oxygen then feed on the bounty of dead organic material, growing to a density that reduces light and limits photosynthesis to trap the entire water body in a vicious, suffocating cycle called eutrophication.
Aquatic deoxygenation is also driven by an increase in the density difference between layers in the water column. This increase can be attributed to surface waters warming faster than deeper waters and melting ice decreasing surface salinity in the oceans.

The more distinctly defined those layers are, the less movement there is between those layers of the water column, which the vertical strata of underwater life relies upon. These density fluctuations power the movement of oxygenated surface water into the deep, and without this temperature-powered freight, ventilation in the lower depths of aquatic environments grinds to a halt.

All this has wrought havoc on aquatic ecosystems, many of which our own species rely on for our own food, water, incomes, and wellbeing.

The paper's authors call for a concerted, global effort to monitor and research deoxygenation of the 'blue' parts of our planet, along with policy efforts to prevent rapid deoxygenation and the associated challenges we are already beginning to face.

"Reducing greenhouse gas emissions, nutrient runoff and organic carbon inputs (for example, raw sewage loading) would slow or potentially reverse deoxygenation," they write.

"The expansion of the planetary boundaries framework to include deoxygenation as a boundary [will help] to focus those efforts."

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-024-02448-y?utm_medium=affil...

Part 2

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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on July 20, 2024 at 11:42am

Earth's Water Is Rapidly Losing Oxygen

Supplies of dissolved oxygen in bodies of water across the globe are dwindling rapidly, and scientists say it's one of the greatest risks to Earth's life support system.
Just as atmospheric oxygen is vital for animals like ourselves, dissolved oxygen (DO) in water is essential for healthy aquatic ecosystems, whether freshwater or marine. With billions of people relying on marine and freshwater habitats for food and income, it's concerning these ecosystems' oxygen has been substantially and rapidly declining.
A team of scientists is proposing that aquatic deoxygenation be added to the list of 'planetary boundaries', which in its latest form describes nine domains that impose thresholds "within which humanity can continue to develop and thrive for generations to come."

So far, the planetary boundaries are climate change, ocean acidification, stratospheric ozone depletion, interference with the global phosphorus and nitrogen cycles, rate of biodiversity loss, global freshwater use, land-system change, aerosol loading, and chemical pollution.
The observed deoxygenation of the Earth's freshwater and marine ecosystems represents an additional planetary boundary process," the authors write, "that is critical to the integrity of Earth's ecological and social systems, and both regulates and responds to ongoing changes in other planetary boundary processes.

"Relevant, critical oxygen thresholds are being approached at rates comparable to other planetary boundary processes."

The concentration of dissolved oxygen in water drops for a number of reasons. Warmer waters can't hold as much dissolved oxygen, for instance, and with greenhouse gas emissions continuing to raise air and water temperatures above their long-term averages, surface waters are becoming less able to hold on to this vital element.

Dissolved oxygen can also be depleted by aquatic life faster than it is replenished by the ecosystem's producers. Algal blooms and bacterial booms triggered by an influx of organic matter and nutrients in the form of agricultural and domestic fertilizers, sewage, and industrial waste, quickly soak up available dissolved oxygen.
Part1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on July 20, 2024 at 11:01am

The authors postulate that E. coli migrates back and forth between the two niches, infecting cells in both organs and causing the disease to recur despite the prior treatment with antibiotics.
The vagina can serve as a reservoir of enteric bacteria, including E. coli, and cystitis can become intractable. In recurrent cystitis, it is important to target E. coli not only in the urine but also in the vagina.
Researchers are developing Lactobacillus vaginal suppositories, as a means of prevention and treatment of recurrent cystitis. This new 'non-antimicrobial' prevention will reduce the unnecessary administration of antimicrobials and the consequent emergence of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria. The Lactobacillus suppositories will effectively regulate the vaginal environment and reduce the virulence of E. coli.
This study highlights the crucial need to balance the microbial environment to favor protective bacteria for better health outcomes. Implementing new medical strategies based on these insights promises to revolutionize the management of recurrent cystitis, ensuring more effective and targeted treatments.

Takanori Sekito et al, Homology of Escherichia coli isolated from urine and vagina and their antimicrobial susceptibility in postmenopausal women with recurrent cystitis, Journal of Infection and Chemotherapy (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.jiac.2024.05.015

Part 2

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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on July 20, 2024 at 10:58am

Study highlights association between urinary and vaginal pathogenic E. coli in recurrent cystitis

The human body hosts a diverse array of microorganisms that maintain a delicate balance crucial for overall health. This microbial harmony can be disrupted by factors such as infections, aging, and hormonal changes, leading to dysbiosis—a condition where microbial communities become imbalanced and harmful to health.

Postmenopausal women, for instance, are particularly susceptible to recurrent urinary tract infections and inflammation, including cystitis, due to these microbial shifts.

In postmenopausal women, the vaginal flora changes with a decrease in Lactobacillus species. Women experiencing recurrent infections of the urinary system, also known as recurrent cystitis have distinctive vaginal microbial colony compared to those with non-recurring cystitis.

The study, published online in Journal of Infection and Chemotherapy on June 4, 2024, highlights the association between urinary and vaginal pathogenic Escherichia coli in recurrent cystitis.

Pathogenic E. coli causes urinary tract infections. In this study, the team isolated pathogenic Escherichia coli from the urine and vagina of patients with recurrent cystitis and examined the bacterial genome using multiple molecular techniques. The team also examined the sensitivity of isolated E. coli to a panel of anti-microbial agents.

A dendrogram based on pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) revealed that, in a majority of the cases, the pathogenic E. coli isolated from urine and vagina were highly similar or identical. Genomic analysis of extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) gene PCR and multilocus sequence typing (MLST) revealed that the pathogenic E. coli isolated from urine and vagina were identical. The E. coli also showed similar sensitivity to the panel of anti-microbial drugs.

These findings reveal that the disease-causing pathogen was resident in both the urinary bladder and the vagina.

Part 1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on July 20, 2024 at 10:24am

Testing menstrual blood for health conditions

There's good news for anyone who menstruates and doesn't like the needles involved in blood testing. In January 2024, the biotechnology research company Qvin won FDA approval for their Q-Pad product—a menstrual pad with a removable strip to collect blood samples for clinical tests. It offers a needle-free way of testing menstrual blood for signs of diabetes and other health conditions.

Part of that involves a shift away from seeing this blood as a waste product.

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/qvin-introduces-q-pad-tran...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on July 20, 2024 at 9:59am

This study lays the groundwork for infrared molecular fingerprinting to become a routine part of health screening, enabling doctors to detect and manage conditions more efficiently, the researchers say. This is especially important for metabolic disorders such as cholesterol abnormalities and diabetes, where timely and effective interventions can significantly improve outcomes.
The potential applications of this technology extend even further. As researchers continue to refine the system and expand its capabilities, by means of technology development and the establishment of these in the context of clinical studies, there will be even more health conditions and their combinations added to the diagnostic repertoire, the researchers think.
This could lead to personalized health monitoring, where individuals regularly check their health status and catch potential issues long before they become serious.

The combination of infrared spectroscopy with machine learning is set to transform health diagnostics, the researchers say. With a single drop of blood and infrared light, there will be a powerful new tool to keep tabs on our health, catching problems more efficiently and potentially improving health care globally.

 Tarek Eissa et al, Plasma infrared fingerprinting with machine learning enables single-measurement multi-phenotype health screening, Cell Reports Medicine (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2024.101625

Part 2

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on July 20, 2024 at 9:57am

One drop of blood, many diagnoses: Infrared spectroscopy for screening health

Envision a scenario where a single drop of blood provides comprehensive health insights within minutes. Thanks to recent scientific advancements, this vision may become reality in the near future.

Scientists have developed a health screening tool that uses infrared light and machine learning to detect multiple health conditions with just one measurement. The work is published in Cell Reports Medicine.

Infrared spectroscopy, a technique that employs infrared light to analyze the molecular composition of substances, has been a foundational tool in chemistry for decades. It's like giving molecules a fingerprint that can be delivered by a specialized machine called a spectrometer.

When applied to complex biofluids like blood plasma, this physico-chemical technique can reveal detailed information about molecular signals, making it a promising tool for medical diagnostics. Despite its long-standing use in chemistry and industry, infrared spectroscopy has not been established nor integrated into the canon of medical diagnostics.

Researchers initiated an effort to tackle this issue now.

More than 5,000 blood plasma samples were measured using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy.

The researchers applied machine learning to analyze the molecular fingerprints and correlated them with medical data.

They discovered that these fingerprints contain valuable information that enables rapid health screening. A multi-task computer algorithm that is now capable of distinguishing between various health states, including abnormal levels of blood lipids, various changes in blood pressure, seeing type-2 diabetes but also spotting even pre-diabetes, a precursor to diabetes often undetected.

Interestingly, the algorithm could also single out individuals who were healthy and remained healthy over the investigated years. This was very significant for two reasons. First, most people in any random population experience abnormal health changes and, given that we are all different, as well as that we all change over time, it is all but trivial to find fully healthy individuals. Second, many individuals suffer from multiple conditions in various combinations. Traditionally, doctors would need a new test for each disease.

However, this new approach doesn't just pinpoint one condition at a time—it accurately identifies a range of health issues. This machine learning-powered system not only identifies healthy individuals but also detects complex conditions involving multiple illnesses simultaneously. Moreover, it can predict the development of metabolic syndrome years before symptoms appear, providing a window for interventions.

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