Purpose: The purpose of the study was to identify serum microRNAs providing a link between male subfertility and metabolic syndrome (MetS) and validate their diagnostic potential. Methods: Sera were analyzed for fertility and MetS-related parameters in subfertile men (n = 79) and controls (n = 38). Literature review identified miR-155-5p, miR-122-5p, miR-200a-3p, and miR-200c-3p which previously w

Introduction: Dark chocolate has shown beneficial effects on cardiovascular health and might also modulate hypertensive complications in pregnancy and uteroplacental blood flow. Increased uteroplacental resistance is associated with systemic arterial stiffness. We aimed to investigate the short-term effect of flavonoid-rich chocolate on arterial stiffness and Doppler blood flow velocimetry indexes

OBJECTIVE:: Arterial stiffening increases with age and is associated with increased cardiovascular risk. Several risk factors have been shown to predict the development of arterial stiffening; however, a positive family history (FH+) of cardiometabolic disease (CMD) and hypertension has not been extensively studied. We hypothesize that FH+ of CMD plays a significant role in the development of arte

Background: Since the introduction of high-sensitivity troponin assays a greater proportion of atrial fibrillation (AF) patients present with dynamic troponin elevations. We hypothesize that significant coronary artery disease (CAD) causes relative ischemia in the setting of a rapid heart rate resulting in dynamic troponin elevation. The aim of this study was to examine if patients without known C

BACKGROUND:: Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) was introduced in 2000. The first 7-valent vaccine was followed by a 13-valent vaccine (PCV13) with the same conjugate, and a 10-valent vaccine (PCV10), conjugated to protein D from H. influenzae. The vaccines offer some protection against pneumococcal acute otitis media (AOM), and, with PCV10, possibly also some protection against H. influenzae AO

This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (Overview). The objectives are as follows: To summarize the evidence from systematic reviews regarding the effects and safety of pharmacological interventions related to pain and sedation management in order to prevent GMH-IVH in ventilated preterm infants.

Background: Atypical lipomatous tumor (ALT), well differentiated liposarcoma (WDLS) and dedifferentiated liposarcoma (DDLS) are cytogenetically characterized by near-diploid karyotypes with no or few other aberrations than supernumerary ring or giant marker chromosomes, although DDLS tend to have somewhat more complex rearrangements. In contrast, pleomorphic liposarcomas (PLS) have highly aberrant

The aim of this paper is to explore the establishment of diplomatic representation as a measure of de facto recognition by other state units, and to explain its causes in the “long 19th century” (1817-1914). The premise of the paper is that, at least before the advent of broad-ranging legitimizing international organizations such as the League of Nations or the UN in the 20th century, sending a di

Background. Reconstruction of the right ventricular outflow tract with a conduit is an established surgical procedure in congenital heart disease and reinterventions are common. Objective. An increasing number of patients have a conduit, but there are few population-based studies of long-term outcomes after conduit surgery, reoperations, and transcatheter pulmonary valve replacement. Methods. In A

Background: The aim of this paper was to review the literature on vacuum-Assisted wound closure and mesh-mediated fascial traction (VAWCM) in open abdomen therapy. It was designed as systematic review of observational studies. Methods: A Pub Med, EMBASE and Cochrane search from 2007/01-2016/07 was performed combining the Medical Subject Headings "vacuum", "mesh-mediated fascial traction", "tempora

Cereal grasses of the Triticeae tribe have been the major food source in temperate regions since the dawn of agriculture. Their large genomes are characterized by a high content of repetitive elements and large pericentromeric regions that are virtually devoid of meiotic recombination. Here we present a high-quality reference genome assembly for barley (Hordeum vulgare L.). We use chromosome confo

Background: Causes and consequences of mesenteric embolization after endovascular aorto-iliac procedures have not been studied adequately. Methods: Consecutive patients with mesenteric embolization after endovascular aorto-iliac intervention between 2011 and 2015 (case-group, n = 9) were investigated and compared with age, gender and procedure-matched random controls (n = 36). Results: Compared to

Purpose: The increase in clinical trials with androgen receptor (AR)-targeting drugs emphasizes the need of clarifying the role of AR expression in different breast cancer subtypes. AR confers good prognosis in estrogen receptor positive (ER+) breast cancer, but its role in ER-negative (ER−) breast cancer is unclear. The aim of this study was to elaborate on previous findings of a differential pro

Background: Central nervous system tumours constitute 25% of all childhood cancers; more than half are located in the posterior fossa and surgery is usually part of therapy. One of the most disabling late effects of posterior fossa tumour surgery is the cerebellar mutism syndrome (CMS) which has been reported in up to 39% of the patients but the exact incidence is uncertain since milder cases may

Modern software should satisfy multiple goals simultaneously: it should provide predictable performance, be robust to failures, handle peak loads and deal seamlessly with unexpected conditions and changes in the execution environment. For this to happen, software designs should account for the possibility of runtime changes and provide formal guarantees of the software's behavior. Control theory i