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Pyogenic granuloma (PG) or lobular capillary hemangioma (LCH) is a benign vascular tumor characterized by rapid growth, nodular hyperplasia, and bleeding propensity. Though common on skin/oral mucosa, esophageal occurrence is rare. We report a 34-year-old male with recurrent acid reflux. Upper endoscopy (July 2022) revealed a 10-mm polypoid lesion above the esophagogastric junction, absent 13 months prior. It was successfully resected via endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) after submucosal saline injection, with histology confirming esophageal PG (LCH). Our literature review identified and analyzed 21 previous detailed cases. Analysis of 22 total cases shows these lesions predominantly affect Asian males (M:F=19:3; mean age 57.8 ± 14.8 years). Most patients (71.6%) were symptomatic, primarily with dysphagia or gastrointestinal bleeding. Nearly half (50.0%) occurred in the lower esophagus, averaging 11.5 ± 6.2 mm in size. Over 50% appeared as reddish, exudate-covered nodules, typically pedunculated or semi-pedunculated. EMR effectively managed most cases. This report highlights esophageal PG's potential for rapid growth and supports EMR's diagnostic/therapeutic efficacy, underscoring the importance of recognizing this rare entity for appropriate management.

India is the most populous country globally, yet genetic studies involving Indian individuals remain limited. The Indian population is composed of many founder groups and has a mixed genetic ancestry, including an ancestral component not observed anywhere outside of India. This presents a unique opportunity to uncover novel disease variants and develop tailored medical interventions. To facilitate genetic research in India, a crucial first step is to create a foundational resource that serves as a benchmark for future population studies and methods development. Thus, we constructed the largest and most nationally representative linkage disequilibrium (LD) and genotype imputation reference panels in India to date, using high-coverage whole-genome sequencing data of 2,680 participants from the Longitudinal Aging Study in India-Harmonized Diagnostic Assessment of Dementia (LASI-DAD). As an LD reference panel, LASI-DAD includes 69.5 million variants, representing 170% and 213% increases relative to the 1000 Genomes Project (1000G) and TOP-LD South Asian panels, respectively. Besides serving as an LD lookup panel, LASI-DAD facilitates various statistical analyses relying on precise LD estimates. In polygenic risk score (PRS) analyses, LASI-DAD improved the PRS predictive performance by 2.1% to 35.1% across traits and studies. As an imputation reference panel, LASI-DAD enhanced imputation accuracy, measured by the Pearson correlation between imputed and true genotypes, by 3% to 101% (mean = 38%) compared to the TOPMed panel and by 3% to 73% (mean = 27%) compared to the Genome Asia Pilot panel across different allele frequencies. The LASI-DAD reference panel is publicly available to benefit future studies.

Background: Bone tissue engineering requires bioinks that combine suitable rheological properties, printability, and biological activity. Leukocyte and platelet-rich fibrin (L-PRF) is a platelet concentrate providing a sustained release of bioactive molecules involved in angiogenesis and osteogenesis.

Objective: This study aimed to develop and characterize alginate/gelatin/hydroxyapatite (ALG5-GEL5-HAp10) composite bioinks supplemented with lyophilized L-PRF and to evaluate their rheological performance, cytotoxicity, and ability to promote dental pulp stem cell (DPSC) osteogenic differentiation.

Methods: Bioinks were rheologically characterized. Extrusion-based 3D printing produced scaffolds evaluated for cell viability (MTS assay). Growth factor release (PDGF-BB, EGF, VEGF-C, FGF-2, BMP2) from L-PRF-loaded scaffolds was quantified by Luminex for up to 21 days in conditioned medium. Osteogenic differentiation was analyzed by qRT-PCR of key genes (RUNX2, SP7/OSX, ALPL, COL1A1, OCN, OPN, OPG, RANKL, BMP2, TGFB2, VEGF).

Results: Inks exhibited shear-thinning and thixotropic recovery. L-PRF addition increased viscosity and storage modulus (G') while reducing extrusion pressure, improving printability without compromising scaffold fidelity. L-PRF-loaded scaffolds provided sustained growth factor release, with early peaks in PDGF-BB and EGF and detectable BMP2 up to day 7. Conditioned media enhanced DPSC proliferation, peaking at day 3, indicating functional activity of released biomolecules. Bioprinted scaffolds with L-PRF significantly upregulated osteogenic gene expression compared to 3D-printed scaffolds with post-DPSC seeding.

Conclusions: As a proof-of-concept, this study demonstrates that lyophilized L-PRF enhances the rheological, printability, and bioactive properties of ALG-GEL-HAp bioinks, supporting DPSC viability. Bioprinted scaffolds showed higher mRNA osteogenic gene expression. These findings support the potential of L-PRF-loaded bioprinted scaffolds for bone tissue regeneration applications, while highlighting the need for further mechanistic and in vivo validation.

Dental erosion, the chemical dissolution of the tooth surface structures, is an increasing problem in the modern world due to growing trends toward acidic food consumption and can cause permanent dental hard tissue loss. A detailed understanding of the reactivity of dental surfaces to chemicals invading the oral cavity is necessary to devise effective countermeasures. We introduce the use of converged roughness parameters Sq_conv, i.e., roughness parameters calculated at a reduced field of view, to reflect the critical surface building blocks controlling the reactivity, as measured by white light vertical scanning interferometry. By analyzing Sq_conv maps and their histograms, we gain detailed spatiotemporal insights into the surface alterations during processes such as acidic tooth demineralization and remineralization of eroded dental surfaces, harnessing the potential of readily available, easy-to-apply Ca caseinate. Furthermore, the impact of fluoridation on the dental surface reactivity is investigated. We find that the reactivity of the dentine surface is inherently inhomogeneous, with rough surface features being more reactive to erosion/demineralization, remineralization, and fluoridation. Our data reveal that de- and remineralization are mechanistically reversible processes, and both are potentially inhibited by surface fluoridation. However, this can be avoided by utilizing fluoride addition during Ca caseinate remineralization in a combined approach to build up new material that is more resistant to acidic impact. We demonstrate that the growth of biomimetic hydroxyapatite during remineralization occurs at a rate 3 orders of magnitude slower than the demineralization.

Flood retention basin (FRB) is an important measure for the flood control. As the available flood storage capacity of FRB reflects the maximum amount of flood that can be stored, it is often varied due to the changing environment, which impacts on the its flood control function. Based on the principle of allowing only specific areas to be inundated for flood control, a systematic framework is proposed to quantify the variations of the available flood storage capacity of an FRB due to the combined effects of human activities and climate change. The Variable Infiltration Capacity hydrological model is a tool of simulation of flood flow in the framework. A Geodetector model is applied to figure out the contributions of human activities and climate change. Applying the framework to 42 FRBs in the middle reaches of the Changjiang River Basin, the results show a significant 9.6% decrease in total available flood storage capacity from 2000 to 2020, with human activities contributing more than climate change. The decrease of available flood storage capacities in the FRBs bring the increases of frequencies (i.e., the decrease of the standard of flood control) of the flood inflows that represents the maximum preventing flood for FRBs from 0.111%, 0.167%, 0.100% to 0.143%, 0.250% and 0.167%, respectively. Our study will not only help assess variations of the available flood storage capacity, but also contribute to the protection of the FRBs.

Land-use intensification has simplified functional biodiversity in tropical ecosystems, undermining the provision of ecosystem services. Although agroforestry systems (AFS) have been widely promoted as sustainable alternatives to deforestation, it remains unclear how system age influences plant ecological strategies and functional diversity, and how these functional patterns affect the provision of ecosystem services. We evaluated the functional traits and diversity of tree species across eight AFSs in western Amazonia, differing in age. We measured above- and below-ground traits linked to plant ecological strategies, along with ecosystem functions that act as proxies of key ecosystem services. These functions included primary productivity, soil water regulation, soil protection, and nutrient pool, which were linked to regulating ecosystem services following the Common International Classification of Ecosystem Services. We assessed how system age affects functional identity, trait complementarity, and multifunctionality, and how these functional patterns influence these ecosystem functions and, consequently, the provision of regulating ecosystem services. Our findings reveal that the human-driven functional composition of tree communities shifts systematically with AFS age, promoting soil fertility and protection, and aboveground biomass storage, which may reduce external inputs and enhance climate resilience. Also, in long-term AFSs, functional traits converged toward conservative strategies, while above- and below-ground traits remained orthogonal, which support ecosystem multifunctionality and may enhance stability while reducing management costs. Functional identity, particularly traits such as specific leaf area and root tissue diameter, was also related to ecosystem functions, including soil protection and soil water regulation, respectively. These results reinforce the need to consider functional traits in agroforestry planning and policy, which can improve resilience and long-term ecosystem service provision, particularly in degraded tropical areas, strengthening the role of agroforestry in sustainable agriculture.

Neonatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) disrupts the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and destroys nascent vessels, thereby amplifying parenchymal loss and chronic neurological disability. Restoring a competent cerebrovasculature is therefore a critical therapeutic goal. Insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) is already recognized as a neurotrophic factor whose circulating levels correlate with HIE severity and long-term outcome, yet its capacity to drive vascular repair after the insult remains incompletely defined. This study investigated the role of exogenous IGF-1 in BBB repair in neonatal mouse post HI. Our results showed that IGF-1 receptor (IGF-1R) existed on the surface of endothelial cells, which was further upregulated in response to HI challenge. Administration of exogenous IGF-1 apparently attenuated BBB disruption concomitant with a marked enhancement of angiogenesis within the injured cerebral parenchyma. On the contrary, inhibition of the IGF-1R abrogated IGF-1-mediated proangiogenic effects. More importantly, activation of the IGF-1/IGF-1R axis promotes revascularization dependent on upregulation of AKT/eNOS signaling. All together, these findings indicate that IGF-1/IGF-1R axis may represent a potential therapeutic target for blood-brain barrier repair in neonatal HI injury.

Introduction: A standardised Medical Imaging Suite (MIS) request form was developed as an educational tool to simulate real-world clinical documentation and improve radiography students' ability to interpret and communicate medical imaging requests. This form was integrated into the radiography curriculum to support learning outcomes related to clinical reasoning, documentation, and communication. This study evaluates student perceptions of the MIS request form and its influence on their preparedness following their first clinical placement.

Methods: A closed-ended survey was administered to second-year undergraduate (n = 73) and first-year postgraduate (n = 75) diagnostic radiography students at an Australian tertiary institution. The survey captured demographic data; perceived preparedness; communication confidence; usability of the MIS form; and its impact on critical thinking. Quantitative data were analysed descriptively. Optional open-ended questions allowed participants to expand on their responses, and the frequency of each issue was counted and reported as descriptive statistics.

Results: Of 148 eligible students, 137 completed the survey (92.6 % response rate; 48 % undergraduate, 52 % postgraduate). Most respondents were female (78.1 %) and aged 18-25 (84.7 %). Over 75 % agreed that the standardised MIS request form improved their understanding of clinical requests, confidence in interpreting information, and overall preparedness for placement. The redesigned MIS request form was rated clearer and more complete by 84.7 % of students, with 94.5 % recommending its continued use in X-ray practical classes.

Conclusion: Embedding a standardised imaging request form into the radiography curriculum appears to enhance student's clinical preparedness. The form supports the development of critical thinking, documentation accuracy, and interprofessional communication.

Implications for practice: Continued evaluation and refinement of the MIS request form will help maintain strong alignment between university teaching and clinical expectations.