Gumi University

Purpose: This study compared the effects of sitting hip flexion (SHF) and backward rocking exercise (BRE) on hip flexion tension and pelvic posterior tilt angle in individuals with excessive posterior pelvic tilt.The purpose was to examine how two exercises with different neuromuscular control strategies influence the hip flexor output and pelvic alignment during hip flexion.Methods: Eighteen university students with posterior pelvic tilt were assigned randomly to the SHF (n= 9) or BRE group (n= 9).Hip flexion tension was measured using the Smart KEMA tension sensor, and the pelvic posterior tilt angle was assessed using the 4DMT-IMU inclinometer during a standing hip flexion task.The measurements were obtained before and after a single 30-minute exercise session.A 2 2 mixed-design repeated measures ANOVA was performed to analyze the effects of time and group, and post-hoc paired t-tests with a Bonferroni correction were conducted for the within-group comparisons.Results: SHF and BRE increased the hip flexion tension significantly and decreased the pelvic posterior tilt angle significantly after the intervention (p< 0.025).A significant time group interaction was observed for hip flexion tension, indicating a greater increase in the SHF than in BRE.In contrast, no significant time group interaction was observed for pelvic posterior tilt angle, even though both groups showed meaningful reductions following the intervention.Conclusion: SHF and BRE effectively improved hip flexion tension and reduced the posterior pelvic tilt angle during the hip flexion task.SHF produced a greater increase in hip flexion tension, suggesting a stronger facilitation of selective iliopsoas activation, whereas BRE also helped improve pelvic alignment through integrated lumbopelvic stabilization.These findings support the clinical use of both exercises based on specific therapeutic goals.

Bile contains many bacteria that can contribute to various diseases. Therefore, identifying bile microbiome differences between benign and malignant conditions is essential. In this study, bile samples were collected aseptically from 141 patients with biliary tract cancer (BTC) or benign biliary diseases (BBDs) who underwent endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography or biliary tract surgery. Quality control PCR was performed to amplify the V3–V4 region of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene. Metagenomic sequencing of bile was successfully performed in 35 of 56 samples collected from patients with BTC and 24 of 85 samples from patients with BBD. The mean alpha diversity values comprised 2.788 ± 2.833 and 2.319 ± 1.355 in the BBD and BTC groups, respectively (p = 0.399). The bacterial species (4.7%) were shared between groups, whereas 12.3% and 83% were indicated to patients with BTC and BBD, respectively. Bacteroides coprocola, Prevotella copri, and Bacteroides plebeius were more frequently identified in the bile of patients with BTC, whereas Bacteroides vulgatus and Bacteroides uniformis were more abundant in the bile of patients with BBD. Distinct patterns of microorganism abundance between the two groups of patients suggest association of bile microbiome with disease status, so its diagnostic potential should be validated in further studies.

See the retraction notice EPJ Web of Conferences 359 , 00002 (2026), https://doi.org/10.1051/epjconf/202635900002

Background: The role of normal tissues adjacent to tumors (NATs) in biliary tract cancer (BTC) remains unclear, despite their potential contributions to field cancerization. Methods: Targeted genomic profiling of tumor tissues, patient-matched NATs, and peripheral blood leukocytes from 13 patients with BTCs was performed. Clinicopathological data, including inflammatory conditions and precursor lesions (biliary intraepithelial neoplasia [BilIN] and intraductal papillary neoplasm of the bile duct), were integrated with genomic findings. Results: Tumor tissues exhibited recurrent alterations in genes regulating DNA damage response, cell cycle control, and oncogenic signaling. Importantly, rather than being genetically silent, NATs harbor early somatic variants distinct from those in both tumor and germline DNA. These alterations were not directly associated with cancer-related pathways, but rather with extracellular matrix-receptor interactions, suggesting that NATs may represent an intermediate step in carcinogenesis. All patients with extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma presented with BilIN in adjacent tissues, providing histological evidence of field cancerization linked to chronic inflammation. Conclusions: This systematic comparison of tumors, NATs, and germline DNAs in BTCs revealed that NATs contain biologically relevant somatic mutations. The concordance between the inflammatory background, precursor lesions, and genomic alterations supports a multistep carcinogenic model and highlights opportunities for early BTC detection and risk stratification.

Background:Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune disorder primarily affecting joints. Methotrexate (MTX) and hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) are common disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs, yet more comparative outcome studies are needed. This study aimed to compare associations of HCQ versus MTX initiation with mortality, cardiovascular events, and other major health outcomes in RA patients. This retrospective cohort study utilized the TriNetX database (electronic health records from 142 global health care organizations) to compare selected 10-year outcomes in RA patients starting HCQ or MTX therapy.Methods:Patients aged 18–75 years diagnosed with RA (ICD-10 codes) were studied. This retrospective, multi-center cohort study used data from the TriNetX Research Network (analysis: 23 March 2025). Two cohorts, HCQ initiators and MTX initiators, were created. Propensity score matching (PSM) balanced cohorts for age, sex, race, pre-specified comorbidities, and concomitant medications. Primary outcomes were 10-year cumulative incidences of all-cause mortality, non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI), ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), pulmonary hypertension (PAH), end-stage renal disease (ESRD), interstitial lung disease (ILD), osteoporosis, and Alzheimer’s dementia.Results:After PSM, 56 362 patients were in each cohort. HCQ initiation was associated with significantly higher 10-year relative risks (RR) for NSTEMI (RR: 1.217), ESRD (RR: 2.624), ILD (RR: 1.377), PAH (RR: 1.625), and all-cause mortality (RR: 1.379) compared to MTX. No statistically significant RR differences were observed for Alzheimer’s dementia, STEMI, or osteoporosis.Conclusion:In this large, real-world observational study, RA patients initiating HCQ had a higher 10-year risk association for ESRD, ILD, PAH, NSTEMI, and all-cause mortality versus MTX initiators. These findings highlight potential differences in systemic risk profiles and are hypothesis generating. However, the results must be interpreted with significant caution due to major limitations, including the potential for residual confounding from unmeasured variables like disease severity and the absence of adherence data. Further prospective research that addresses these limitations is warranted to confirm these associations and explore underlying mechanisms.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to compare the abdominal muscle activity and thickness of the convex and concave sides of men with mild scoliosis.Methods: This study employed 16 male participants with mild scoliosis (Cobb's angle: 1020).We investigated the differences in muscle activity and thickness of the rectus abdominis (RA), external oblique (EO), and internal oblique (IO) on the convex and concave sides according to mild scoliosis.Muscle activation was measured in the curl-up and plank positions using electromyography, and muscle thickness was measured during maximal exhalation using ultrasound.Results: In terms of muscle activation, the RA and IO muscle activities on the convex side were higher than on the concave side in the curl-up position (RA: p < 0.01, IO: p < 0.01).In the plank position, the RA and IO muscle activities on the concave side were higher than on the convex side (RA: p < 0.01, IO: p < 0.01).In terms of muscle thickness, there was no significant difference in any muscle (RA, EO, or IO) between the convex and concave sides according to scoliosis. Conclusion:According to the results, there was a significant difference in abdominal muscle activity between the convex and concave sides according to mild scoliosis.However, in terms of abdominal muscle thickness, there was no significant difference between the convex and concave sides.Therefore, the results of this study show that mild scoliosis affects abdominal muscle function, such as muscle activity, but does not change abdominal muscle structure.

In vitro fertilization (IVF) is crucial for livestock reproduction; however, pregnancy rates after embryo transfer vary depending on the developmental speeds of the embryos. Although quantitative PCR (qPCR) is used to predict developmental potential, its reliability depends on the selection of appropriate reference genes (RGs) for normalization. To determine suitable RGs in bovine blastocysts with different developing speed, we evaluated the stability of eight candidate RGs (18S, ACTB, GAPDH, HMBS, PPIA, TBP, HPRT1, and SDHA) in early-, mid-, and late-developing IVF blastocysts (E-BL, M-BL, and L-BL, respectively) using RefFinder. Despite morphological similarities, E-BL, M-BL, and L-BL exhibited different biological features, including significantly lower pregnancy rates in L-BL than in the other groups, and less abundant transcript levels of five candidate RGs in L-BL than in E-BL. RefFinder revealed that ACTB was the most stable RG, whereas TBP was the least stable. To emphasize the critical importance of selecting stable RGs, we analyzed the expression of key developmental markers including those of the inner cell mass (ICM; OCT4, SOX2) and trophectoderm (TE; CDX2, GATA3, IFNτ), using various RGs for normalization. For ICM markers, normalization with ACTB showed results consistent with pregnancy rates, whereas moderately stable (18S) and less stable (TBP) RGs yielded contradictory outcomes. Normalization with unstable RGs produced inconsistent TE marker expression patterns (CDX2, GATA3) and overestimated (IFNτ) results across groups, compared with the results of ACTB. These results demonstrate that selecting inappropriate RGs for qPCR normalization can lead to misinterpretation, highlighting the necessity of proper RG evaluation to ensure accurate results in bovine embryo research.