Abstract Background Endocardial atrial fibrillation (AF) ablations using thermal energy sources modulate ganglionated plexi (GP). Contrarily, endocardial pulsed field ablation (PFA) has minimal effect on GP located within the epicardial fat-pads. Purpose To determine structural and antiarrhythmic effects of direct epicardial PFA-delivery to atrial GP-sites. Methods Group-1: Epicardial PFA-delivery to GP sites (n=6 pigs). Group-2: Sham-operated (n=2 pigs). Thoracotomy was performed and five epicardial GP-sites were identified and targeted by saline-irrigated bipolar PFA (1,000V, 100μs, 120-pulses, ECG-synchronised). Local atrial electrogram (EGM) amplitude, atrial effective refractory period (aERP) and AF (inducibility and duration) were investigated. Histology was performed on samples from treatment-adjacent structures. Results In Group-1, 120 PFA-pulses were successfully delivered epicardially to each GP-site. Local EGM-amplitudes did not change after PFA-delivery. GPs showed lower intensity of S100-protein expression within the cytoplasm and membrane with preservation of adjacent atrial myocardium. The aERP at the higher and lower lateral right atrium increased from 123±34ms to 173±47ms (p=0.0358) and from 122±32ms to 221±16ms (p=0.0063) after PFA-treatment, respectively. Total AF-inducibility decreased from 100% to 33%, inducible AF-duration decreased from 4.4±0.6min (including 2 cardioversions) at baseline to 1.3±2.1min (including 1 cardioversion) after PFA-delivery (decrease: -3.2±2min, p=0.007). In one pig, the feasibility of thoracoscopic epicardial PFA delivery at all anatomical GP-sites was shown. Conclusion Epicardial PFA-delivery to anatomical GP-sites is feasible in open-chest or thoracoscopic approach, and acutely decreases GP S100-protein intensity, prolongs aERP and reduces AF-inducibility and duration.

The exact cause of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is yet unknown, although possible causes include early childhood, foetal development, gestation, delivery mode, genetics, and environmental variables. Approximately 1% of children worldwide have ASD, and this percentage is rising. The immunological, endocrine, gut microbiota and brain-gut axis quality influence the intensity of ASD symptoms. Deficits in the composition and diversity of gut microbiota are common in children with ASD, accounting for 9-90% of these illnesses, including elevated inflammatory cytokines, inflammation, leaky gut syndrome, and pathological microflora growth. Dysbiosis can be made worse by eating issues that are prevalent in ASD. B vitamins, such as cobalamin and folate, which are essential methyl donors for DNA epigenetic changes, are usually produced by a healthy gut microbiota. 50% of people with ASD have a vitamin B deficit. This work summarises research on the impact of gut microbiota on DNA methylation and B vitamin synthesis in ASD, as well as etiological variables connected to dysbiosis. Probiotics, postbiotics, and vitamin B therapies in kids with ASD should be investigated in future studies.

Iron deficiency (ID) is a major problem in heart failure (HF) patients. Iron deficiency is often pressent in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), can be a cause of fatigue and linked with reduced functional capacity. The relationship between ID and right ventricular (RV) systolic function in patients with RA is still not well understood. The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between ID and RV systolic function. A forty six female patients with seropositive RA were included in our study. Primary goal was to determine association between iron deficiency and echocardiography parameters such as Tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion TAPSE, RV fractional area change (RV FAC), TDI-Derived tricuspid lateral annular systolic velocity (RV TDI S’), Pulmonary artery systolic pressure (PASP); RV free wall global longitudinal strain (RVfwGLS), RV global longitudinal strain (RV GLS) and Right ventriculoarterial coupling (RVAC). The RVAC was determined with the RVfwGLS/PASP ratio. RA was diagnosed according to the ACR/EULAR 2010 classification criteria, without other significant comorbidity. ID was defined as ferritin levels lower than 100 ng/mL and iron levels lower than 10 µmol/L. The mean age of stady population was 57±8 years. Iron deficiency was found in 48% of analysed RA patients. On transthoracic echocardiography the median TAPSE was 18.3 mm, the mean FAC % 38.4±.6.3, the mean RV GLS %-17.2±7.5, the mean RVfwGLS % -20.6±3.8, the mean RV TDI S’ was 10.6±3.9 cm/s, the mean PASP was 29,2±8.7mmHg, the mean RVAC was 0.76. There was no notable difference in demographics or in TAPSE, RV FAC, RV TDI S’, and PASP between patients with iron deficiency and those without. The RVfwGLS (-16.7% vs -21.2%, p = 0.005) was lower in patients with ID. RV GLS (-14.3% vs -18.6%, p=0.005) was lower in patients with ID. Additionally, RVAC (0.65 vs 0.91, p=0.005) was lower in patients with ID. A significant correlation exists between iron deficiency and subclinical RV dysfunction, defined as reduced RV GLS, RVfwGLS and RVAC prior to the decline of parameters commonly used on echocardiography to measure right ventricle systolic function (TAPSE, RV FAC, PASP and RV TDI S'). Screening for iron deficiency in RA patients facilitates early detection and treatment of iron deficiency which may prevent RV dysfunction.

We present a reinforcement learning strategy for use in multi-agent foraging systems in which the learning is centralised to a single agent and its model is periodically disseminated among the population of non-learning agents. In a domain where multi-agent reinforcement learning (MARL) is the common approach, this approach aims to significantly reduce the computational and energy demands compared to approaches such as MARL and centralised learning models. By developing high performing foraging agents, these approaches can be translated into real-world applications such as logistics, environmental monitoring, and autonomous exploration. A re-ward function was incorporated into this approach that promotes role development among agents, without explicit directives. This led to the differentiation of behaviours among the agents. The implicit encouragement of role differentiation allows for dynamic actions in which agents can alter roles dependent on their interactions with the environment without the need for explicit communication between agents.

The problem of robotic synchronisation and coordi-nation is a long-standing one. Combining autonomous, comput-erised systems with unpredictable real-world conditions can have consequences ranging from poor performance to collisions and damage. This paper proposes using coupled oscillators to create a drone swarm that is decentralised and self organising. This allows for greater flexibility and adaptiveness than a hard-coded swarm, with more resilience and scalability than a centralised system. Our method allows for a variable number of drones to spontaneously form a swarm and react to changing swarm conditions. Additionally, this method includes provisions to prevent communication interference between drones, and signal processing techniques to ensure a smooth and cohesive swarm.

Background Belzutifan, a selective hypoxia-inducible factor-2α inhibitor, is approved for von Hippel–Lindau (VHL) disease-associated tumours and is Food and Drug Administration-approved for the management of advanced sporadic clear-cell renal-cell carcinoma. While belzutifan has demonstrated efficacy across VHL-related lesions, real-world safety data remain limited. Patients and methods We report a fatal intracranial haemorrhage occurring within 72 h of belzutifan initiation in a patient with VHL-associated central nervous system haemangioblastomas (CNS-HBs). Results This represents the third post-marketing case of early haemorrhage involving CNS or spinal haemangioblastomas, following previously reported spinal and cerebellar bleeds. Although CNS-HBs are highly vascular, spontaneous haemorrhage is exceedingly rare. The clustering of haemorrhagic events in these cases, within days of treatment initiation, suggests a rare but potentially serious adverse event not currently listed on regulatory labels. Conclusions This case highlights the importance of pharmacovigilance as belzutifan use expands into broader real-world populations, particularly in rare disease settings where trial cohorts are small and long-term safety data are limited.

The object of the study is the process of compressing noisy images in a lossy manner by better portable graphics (BPG) encoder. The subject of the study is the method for adaptive selection of the coder parameter Q depending on noise intensity and image complexity. The goal of the study is to consider the basic characteristics of lossy compression of remote sensing images contaminated by additive white Gaussian noise with giving recommendations of preferable Q setting. Methods used: numerical simulation, verification for test images. Results obtained: 1) the dependencies of compression ratio on Q are monotonically increasing functions; 2) their characteristics are strongly dependent on noise intensity and image complexity; 3) dependencies of logarithm of CR on Q contain information on possible existence and position of optimal operation point for compressed noisy images; 4) compression ratios for large Q contain information on image complexity with low sensitivity to noise presence and intensity; 5) it is possible to get useful information from dependences of compression ratio on Q. Conclusions: the results of this research allow: 1) estimating image complexity; 2) adapting Q to noise intensity and image complexity. 

Introduction: Carcinomas of the right and left sides of the colon are considered different types of cancer due to their different carcinogenesis, epidemiology, pathology and prognosis. Although several studies have described the prevalence and incidence of colorectal carcinoma (CRC) in the different colonic segments, more epidemiologic data are still needed to better understand the implications and relationship to sociodemographic and clinical variables. The aim of this study is to determine the anatomic location and histologic grade of CRC, to investigate the differences in patient gender and age, and to determine the correlation of gender and age with the anatomic location and histologic grading of CRC. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted covering the period from January 2013 to December 2022. Demographic data (gender and age), histological type and anatomical location of the tumor were observed. The study included all patients in the observed period with a diagnosis of colorectal cancer (CRC) at different anatomical locations and with different grades of histological staging. All patients had adenocarcinoma. Patients were divided into four age groups based on their gender (20-40 years, 41-55 years, 56-65 years and over 65 years old). Tumors of the colon ascending to the splenic flexure are defined as tumors of the right side, and distal to the splenic flexure as tumors of the left side of the colon. Results: A total of 183 patients were included in the study. Patients were between 38 and 82 years old, with a mean age of 64.3 ± 8.9 years. No statistically significant difference was found in the proportion of anatomical localization of CRC (p > 0.05). The most common anatomical location of CRC over the 10-year period was found to be the rectum 42.1% and the ascending colon 14.2% and transverse colon 13.1%, with no statistically significant difference in cancer incidence between the right and left sides of the colon. Histologic grade II was predominant in 57.4% of patients. A moderate negative correlation was found between age and histologic grade of CRC (r = −0.067), with no statistically significant difference (p > 0.05). Conclusion: No statistically significant difference was found in the anatomical localization of CRC between the right and left side of the colon. Histologic grade II CRC was the most prevalent. A moderate negative correlation was found between age and histologic grade of CRC.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances and nanoplastics frequently co-occur in environmental matrices, yet the effects of co-exposure on cellular responses upon ingestion are poorly understood. Here, we exposed human intestinal Caco-2 cells to perfluorooctanesulfonic acid, nanoplastics, and their combination. Cell painting-based phenomics was used to map phenotypic alterations across subcellular structures, and untargeted metabolomics using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry was employed to assess metabolic changes. Results show that perfluorooctanesulfonic acid predominantly affected the actin cytoskeleton, Golgi apparatus, and plasma membrane, while nanoplastics primarily targeted mitochondria. Combined exposure disrupted the endoplasmic reticulum, RNA, and mitochondria. Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid reduced levels of carnitines, free fatty acids, nucleotides, and sugars, whereas nanoplastics inhibited ceramides, triglycerides, sphingomyelins, and additional free fatty acids. Combined exposure produced a metabolic profile resembling that of nanoplastics, with specific differences attributed to perfluorooctanesulfonic acid. Overall, nanoplastics appear as the main drivers of the co-exposure effects.

During the lifespan, graphic products are exposed to various external factors. During their use, their properties(physical, mechanical, visual, etc.) change to a greater or lesser extent. It is necessary to observe/monitor changesand influence of external factors on their properties as soon as the product is created. The aim of this research is toexamine the impact of the aging process on the quality of inkjet printing. A different number of layers of black ink (in10 % tonal value (TV) and 100 % TV) and a different number of varnish layers were printed on PVC foil material. The samples were exposed to xenon light (λ > 300 nm) to accelerate the ageing process over a period of 72 and 216 h. They were measured by Datacolor spectrophotometer. As expected, with longer exposure time, greater changes occurred. According to the CIE ΔE*00 formula, the differences ranged from an imperceptible to a large colour change. After 72 h, the biggest changes in colour occurred in the K10 % with one ink layer and three layers of varnish. The smallest changes were in K100 % with one ink layer and no varnish. After 216 h, the greatest changes were observed in the K10 % sample with three layers of ink and two layers of varnish. The smallest differences were K10 % sample with one ink layer and without varnish.

Comparative analysis of red mud reduction techniques was performed using both carbothermal and hydrogen-based reduction methods, combining thermochemical modeling and experimental validation. The reduction process is mostly important because of the high contamination risk assessment of soil with disposed red mud. Therefore, the minimization of red mud during the reduction process can be a novel strategy for the production of metallic iron and solid residue for hydrometallurgical treatment. Different strategies of hydrogen and carbon reduction in static and dynamic conditions were studied between 700 °C and 1700 °C. The separation of solid residue and formed iron was analyzed using magnetic separation. The main aim was to study the advantages and disadvantages of using decarbonizing technologies for the treatment of red mud, aiming to develop an environmentally friendly process. Thermochemical analysis of the reduction offered new data about mass losses during our process through the evaporation, thermal decomposition, and formation of metallic carbide.