IST Research

This study aimed to fabricate pH-responsive active chitosan films reinforced with the Ixora flower extract and Terminalia chebula fruit oil-based nanoemulsion and evaluate their physicochemical properties. The effects of the Ixora flower extract and the nanoemulsion on the mechanical, physical, and active properties of the chitosan-based films were explored. The results indicated that the anthocyanin-rich Ixora flower extract imparts distinct color changes in acidic, neutral, and basic media (pH = 2–12) introducing the pH sensing property, while the nanoemulsion endows the film with excellent antioxidant activity and antimicrobial properties against common foodborne pathogens Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria. Nanoemulsion incorporation enhanced tensile strength, UV barrier properties, and water contact angles while reduced water vapor permeability and solubility. Films containing both the nanoemulsion and the flower extract showed multifunctional properties, including antimicrobial, antioxidant, and pH sensing activities along with enhanced mechanical and barrier properties, making them useful for active food packaging applications.

Abstract Mendelian randomization (MR) using summary statistics from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) has become a powerful tool for dissecting the causal relationships between exposure and outcomes. As GWAS begins to incorporate samples of diverse ancestries, the optimal strategy to perform MR analysis integrating these GWAS results remains to be determined. To fill in this gap, we proposed a robust method that aggregates the genetic variant–risk factor association summary statistics of multiple ancestries by modelling the genetic effects of the exposure as a function of the principal components of genome-wide allele frequency. This allows borrowing information from different ancestry groups and accounting for potential between-ancestry heterogeneities. The method is general and can be used with different MR methods. We demonstrated that our method improves accuracy and power compared to the inverse-variance weighting method based on only ancestry-stratified samples, with additional benefits in correcting winner’s curse bias. We also illustrated the flexibility and potential of discovering novel causal genes for autoimmune disease traits of our method in practice.

The article provides a comprehensive analysis of the main results of the scientific, scienti-fic-organizational, expert and educational activities of the National Academy of Educational Sciences of Ukraine during the war. It is emphasized that reforming the school education system, in the context of the New Ukrainian School reform, involves the transformation of education on a conceptual basis. Academy’s scientists are at the forefront of creating textbooks for general secondary education students and program and methodological support for the educational process for children with special educational needs. Activities of the National Academy of Educational Sciences of Ukraine are analyzed, which is actively working on new educational standards and textbooks, and provides methodological support to teachers on an ongoing basis. The article highlights the challenges faced by the educational system during the war, including difficulties in accessing education and psychological and pedagogical support for students. Scientific results and achievements of the Academy’s scientists are presented based on the results of fundamental and applied research in the context of russia’s military aggression against Ukraine. The study highlights the research, publishing, scientific and organizational, scientific and expert, scientific and methodological, educational, international, scientific and information activities, cooperation with public authorities and scientific organizations, including international ones. The author concludes that international cooperation and adaptation of educational practices in accordance with modern challenges are important, forming a new generation of Ukrainians with high values and readiness for innovation.

Transplant oncology is an expanding area of cancer therapy that specifically emphasizes the use of liver transplantation (LT) as the preferred treatment for patients with manageable, but unresectable, tumors. The management and optimization of overall survival strategies, accompanied by an arguably decent quality of life, have been at the forefront of liver oncology treatment, as a plurality of all primary liver cancers are identified as either hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) or cholangiocarcinoma (CCA), which are classified as highly aggressive malignancies and frequently remain asymptomatic until they progress to advanced stages, rendering curative procedures, such as resection, impractical. This has led to an increase in utilization of neoadjuvant interventions conducted prior to surgery, which has yielded favorable outcomes. Though this treatment modality has prompted further investigations into the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICPIs) as standalone treatments and in combination with locoregional treatments (LRTs) to bridge more patients into curative eligibility. This multidisciplinary methodology and treatment planning has seen multiple successful trials of immunotherapy regimes and combinate treatments, setting the groundwork for increasing eligibility through downstaging and "bridging" previously ineligible patients within stringent LT criteria. Surveillance after LT is a crucial component of transplant oncology. The emergence of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) has provided a novel approach to identifying the recurrence of cancer in its early stages. Recent research has focused on liquid biopsy, a technique that effectively identifies the dynamics of cancer. This is another innovation to demonstrate the rate at which transplant oncology is rapidly advancing, making the focus of care feel disorienting. Modalities of care are constantly evolving, but when a field is changing as rapidly as this one, it is imperative to reorient to the data and the needs of the patients. In this commentary, we reflect on the update's utilization of ICPIs in neoadjuvant settings as well as the updates on the utilization of liquid biopsy in post-LT follow-up surveillance.

To compare the baseline characteristics of the Headache Assessment via a Digital platform in United States (HeAD-US) and the American Migraine Prevalence and Prevention (AMPP) studies.

To assess the gaps in acute treatment optimization in participants with migraine from the CaMEO-I study.

reportagens e sites com dados e boas prticas de sustentabilidade ambiental.Os mtodos utilizados na pesquisa foram a reviso da literatura nacional e internacional, com a abordagem qualitativa buscando uma viso holstica relacionando ao contexto real do problema e a relevncia socioambiental.Resultados: a pesquisa reconhece que a tecnologia social e a logstica reversa geram bons resultados, apontam evidncias na participao integrada entre representantes do poder pblico, iniciativa privada, universidade e comunidade para discutir, construir e implantar solues de sustentabilidade.

The aim of the study is to evaluate the safety of onabotulinumtoxinA treatment for spasticity across dose ranges in real-world practice. Adult Spasticity International Registry was a multicenter, prospective, observational study (NCT01930786) of onabotulinumtoxinA treatment for adult spasticity over 2 yrs. Adverse events, serious adverse events, treatment-related adverse events, and serious treatment-related adverse events were sorted into five categories (≤200, 201-400, 401-600, 601-800, ≥801 U) based on cumulative dose per session. In 3103 treatment sessions ( T ), 730 patients received ≥1 dose of onabotulinumtoxinA. Dose categories included the following: ≤200 U ( n = 312, T = 811), 201-400 U ( n = 446, T = 1366), 401-600 U ( n = 244, T = 716), 601-800 U ( n = 69, T = 149), and ≥801 U ( n = 29, T = 61). Of these patients, 261 reported 827 adverse events, 94 reported 195 serious adverse events, 20 reported 23 treatment-related adverse events, and 2 patients treated with 201-400 U onabotulinumtoxinA reported 3 serious treatment-related adverse events. Treatment-related adverse events reported included ≤200 U (8/811, 0.9%), 201-400 U (7/1366, 0.5%), 401-600 U (6/716, 0.8%), 601-800 U (1/149, 0.7%), and ≥801 U (1/61, 1.6%). In this post hoc analysis, most treatment sessions were performed with 201-400 U onabotulinumtoxinA. Patients treated with 201-400 U onabotulinumtoxinA had an adverse event profile consistent with onabotulinumtoxinA package inserts globally (e.g., United States, European Union, United Kingdom, Canada). No new safety signals were identified.

This study aimed to ascertain whether level of optimization of acute treatment of migraine is related to work productivity across the spectrum of migraine. Data were from the Chronic Migraine Epidemiology and Outcomes (CaMEO) Study, an internet-based longitudinal survey. Respondents with migraine who reported full-time employment and use of ≥1 acute prescription medication for migraine were included. We determined relationships among lost productive time (LPT; measured with the Migraine Disability Assessment Scale), acute treatment optimization (Migraine Treatment Optimization Questionnaire- ), and monthly headache days (MHDs). There was a direct relationship between LPT and MHD category. Greater acute treatment optimization was associated with lower total LPT, less absenteeism, and less presenteeism within each MHD category. Optimizing acute treatment for migraine may reduce LPT in people with migraine and reduce indirect costs.