Human cell-processed therapeutic products (hCTPs) pose potential tumorigenesis risk due to transformed cell impurities. Sensitive and validated assays for detecting these impurities should be employed to minimize this risk. The digital soft agar colony formation (D-SAC) assay, a highly sensitive and robust test for detecting tumorigenic cells as impurities in hCTPs, requires high proficiency. The recently developed digital low-molecular-weight agar colony formation (D-LAC) assay uses a three-dimensional (3D) culture technique in which the addition of low-molecular-weight agar LA717 to the culture medium controls cell migration and ensures uniform cell dispersion, thereby enabling 3D culture in liquid medium and eliminating the need to layer agarose media of different concentrations, which improves assay operativity. To understand the assay performance validity, we compared the colony-forming efficiency (CFE) of tumorigenic reference cells between several laboratories and investigated the specificity and sensitivity of the D-LAC assay in several laboratories. Cultured human mesenchymal stromal cells were used as model drug products, and positive control samples were prepared by spiking them with HeLa cells. First, we estimated CFEs, assessed their variation and found low intra/inter-laboratory variations, indicating a highly robust test performance. Under the assay conditions, we confirmed the detectability of ultra-low concentrations of HeLa cells and could detect 1 ppm and 0.1 ppm of HeLa cells in hMSCs (10 HeLa cells per 1 × 107 and 1 × 108 hMSCs, respectively) at multiple laboratories. Simply counting the wells in which colonies were present without counting the actual number of colonies resulted in a similar test performance. Furthermore, the formation and shape of colonies of cancer cells varied with each cell line (MIA PaCa-2, PANC-1 and HepG2) in the D-LAC assay. Overall, the D-LAC assay is a highly sensitive and robust test for detecting several types of tumorigenic cells as hCTP impurities. This assay can replace the traditional soft agar colony assay and is potentially more versatile than D-SAC because of its high operativity.

Spring-assisted cranioplasty (SAC) is a minimally invasive surgical technique for the treatment of craniosynostosis that may reduce operative morbidity compared with traditional open cranial vault remodeling procedures. A retrospective review was conducted of all patients who underwent SAC between May 2019 and August 2024 at a single academic institution serving a socioeconomically vulnerable population. Demographic, clinical, and operative variables were collected, including suture involvement, spring configuration, perioperative outcomes, complications, and need for secondary procedures. A total of 43 patients met the inclusion criteria, of whom 84% had single-suture craniosynostosis, most commonly sagittal synostosis (78%). The mean age at surgery was 3.79±0.37 months. Springs remained in place for an average of 89.00±9.59 days with a mean total exertional force of 26.26±2.12 N. No intraoperative complications occurred. Four patients (9.3%) experienced postoperative complications, including hematoma or seroma formation and wound infection, with 1 patient (2.3%) requiring hospitalization for postoperative infection following spring removal. No cases of spring migration or hardware failure were observed. Five patients (11.6%) required additional cranial procedures and were more likely to be female, syndromic, and have multisuture or coronal craniosynostosis. The mean length of stay following spring insertion was 2.81±0.19 days. These findings support the feasibility of implementing SAC in a high-social-vulnerability patient population and demonstrate favorable early outcomes following adoption of this minimally invasive approach for craniosynostosis management.

Background Fusiform and giant aneurysms of the posterior circulation carry a dismal natural history. Flow diversion (FD) and stent-assisted coiling (SAC) are the two principal reconstructive endovascular strategies, yet no meta-analysis of direct comparative studies exists to guide selection between them. Methods A Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses-compliant systematic review of MEDLINE and Embase (2011-2026) identified comparative studies of adult patients with nonsaccular posterior circulation aneurysms reporting outcomes following FD and SAC. Random-effects meta-analyses were performed with the meta package in R (v4.3.3). Two planned sensitivity analyses and leave-one-out analysis assessed robustness. Results Five studies comprising 209 aneurysms (102 FD, 107 SAC) met inclusion criteria. No significant differences were observed between FD and SAC for favorable functional outcome, satisfactory aneurysm occlusion, or ischemic stroke. FD was associated with significantly higher all-cause mortality (odds ratio [OR]: 2.06; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.11-3.84; p = 0.03), aneurysm rupture (OR: 2.59; 95% CI: 1.15-5.82; p = 0.03), and in-stent thrombosis (OR: 8.15; 95% CI: 1.43-46.40; p = 0.03). All three findings demonstrated fragility on sensitivity and leave-one-out testing. Conclusion FD and SAC produce comparable functional outcomes and occlusion rates for nonsaccular posterior circulation aneurysms. FD may carry higher mortality, rupture, and in-stent thrombosis, though these signals did not withstand sensitivity analyses and could not be separated from selection bias toward complex aneurysms. These findings support both modalities as viable reconstructive options while underscoring anatomy-driven treatment selection and the need for prospective validation.

Nickel single atom catalysts (Ni-SACs) perform electrochemical CO2 reduction (ECO2R) with near-unity selectivity, making them promising new catalysts for future industrial applications. However, modern synthesis methods are long and complicated, preventing large-scale economic feasibility. This has spurred interest in finding facile, scalable electrochemical pathways to synthesize SACs at ambient temperatures. Here, we propose a mechanism where highly selective Ni-SACs are generated in situ using a Ni anode as the Ni source. In short, during activation, Ni dissolves from the anode, migrates through the membrane, and electrodeposits as Ni(0) on a nitrogen-doped carbon precatalyst. When voltage is removed, the deposited Ni disperses to active sites throughout the cathode surface. Using this method, a highly active and selective Ni catalyst is generated in situ, achieving ECO2R selectivity of 100% at -2.4 V in chronoamperometric experiments and >90% for 7 h of operation at -2.4 V. Using post-mortem XRD, STEM, EDS, and operando EXAFS, the mechanism for successful generation of the in situ Ni-SAC was uncovered. This study takes a new look at electrochemical SAC synthesis, offering a scalable pathway that maintains the simplicity of electrodeposition techniques while converting selectivity-limiting metal clusters into single atom sites through a simple, in situ cell treatment procedure.

Thelazia callipaeda is an emerging zoonotic eyeworm that infects the ocular tissues of domestic and wild mammals, including humans. This study describes the first molecularly confirmed pediatric case of human ocular thelaziasis caused by T. callipaeda in Türkiye and discusses its epidemiological significance from a One Health perspective. A 2-year-old boy from Kırklareli Province, northwestern Türkiye, presented with ocular itching and stinging sensation of approximately 20 days' duration. Ophthalmological examination revealed a motile nematode in the temporal conjunctival sac of the right eye. Two live worms measuring approximately 1-2 cm were surgically removed under general anesthesia. Clinical recovery was achieved following extraction and topical therapy, with no recurrence during follow-up. Morphological examination demonstrated characteristic features of an adult gravid female Thelazia nematode, including a transversely striated cuticle, a uterus containing embryonated eggs and first-stage larvae, and a tapered posterior extremity. Molecular identification was performed by amplification and sequencing of a partial mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (mt-CO1) gene fragment. BLAST analysis revealed 100% identity with reference T. callipaeda sequences. This report documents the first molecularly confirmed pediatric case of human ocular thelaziasis in Türkiye. The occurrence of infection in the European part of Türkiye, close to endemic Balkan regions, raises the possibility of local transmission, although the absence of concurrent entomological and veterinary investigations precludes confirmation of an autochthonous transmission cycle. Integrated surveillance involving humans, domestic animals, wildlife reservoirs, and vectors is warranted to better understand the epidemiology and public health implications of T. callipaeda in Türkiye.

Exemestane is a third-generation aromatase inhibitor commonly prescribed for estrogen-dependent breast cancer. Given the widespread clinical use of exemestane, various adverse reactions have been reported. However, there are only a limited number of reports on the effects on the immune system. Therefore, it is essential to examine its potential toxicity and mechanism of action. In this research, zebrafish were employed as a model organism to examine the impact of exemestane on embryonic development and immune function. The larvae that were fertilized 8 hours post-fertilization (hpf) were respectively exposed to exemestane solutions of different concentrations (0.9, 1.8 and 2.7 mg/L).The results demonstrated that exemestane exposure induced a concentration-dependent reduction in larval body length and an increase in yolk sac area, indicative of developmental toxicity. Subsequently, exemestane was administered to the corresponding transgenic fish lines, and it was observed that the numbers of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), neutrophils, macrophages, and thymic T cells exhibited dose dependent decreases during exposure. Concurrently, exemestane-exposed zebrafish exhibited significantly elevated oxidative stress levels and an increased incidence of apoptotic cells. Gene expression analysis demonstrated that the immune-related gene NF-kB was downregulated, whereas tlr2 and tlr3 were upregulated in response to treatment. Notably, no significant alterations were observed in the expression levels of il-1b, prl, or lakros. . The use of astaxanthin (AS) and the wnt signaling pathway activator BML-284 can alleviate the embryonic immunotoxicity caused by exemestane. In conclusion, our study represents the first comprehensive evaluation of the immunomodulatory effects of exemestane on zebrafish larvae. These effects are likely associated with exemestane-induced elevation of oxidative stress and suppression of the Wnt signaling pathway.