Citations

Pediatric metabolic dysfunction–associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) has become more prevalent on a global scale over the last decades and is associated with significant comorbidities in childhood and a 40-fold higher risk of early mortality in young adulthood. MASLD has now become the leading indication for liver transplantation in young adults in the United States. However, pediatric MASLD is still perceived as an indolent condition by many patients, families, and clinicians. In this Call to Action, we aim to raise awareness of pediatric MASLD as a public health crisis. Herein, we describe insufficient screening and disease staging practices, and a lack of accurate non-invasive tests and effective pharmacotherapy, both stemming from a paucity of multicenter clinical trials in pediatric MASLD. We provide clear steps to address this public health emergency by promoting awareness campaigns, educating and empowering patients and families, addressing barriers including access to care, nutritional and exercise support programs, establishing multidisciplinary care, launching community initiatives, and conducting clinical trials in pediatric MASLD for an age-based evaluation of novel diagnostic and therapeutic options. We conclude by highlighting the urgent need for comprehensive public health policies to control the tide of pediatric MASLD and call upon stakeholders to act now.

The exact physiological role of BACE2 in endothelial function of systemic arteries is unknown. Our study shows that thromboxane A2 and prostaglandin F2α are responsible for impairment of endothelium-dependent relaxations in endothelium-specific BACE2-deficient mice. The data support an important role of BACE2 in the control of endothelial arachidonic acid metabolism and vasomotor function.

Abstract Atrial fibrillation (AF) is increasingly diagnosed early, close to its first occurrence due to: (i) increased public awareness with self-screening; (ii) health care initiatives including population screening and opportunistic case finding; and (iii) increased use and surveillance of implantable cardiac devices. At its onset, AF is often low burden, and cardiovascular co-morbidities may be absent or at an early stage. Thus, the management of recent-onset AF has become an issue of growing importance. Professional guidelines have traditionally focused on anticoagulant thromboprophylaxis, generally recommending a cautious approach to rhythm control, and priority has been given to rate control to alleviate symptoms. In recent guidelines, the importance of managing lifestyle and co-morbidities has increased. The AF-SCREEN collaboration proposes that a vigorous approach to active management of recent-onset AF may be warranted. This includes addressing co-morbidities and promoting healthy lifestyles to prevent the emergence or progression of AF and associated cardiovascular disease, as well as the initiation of active rhythm control ± anticoagulation to prevent AF-related morbidity and mortality, including stroke and heart failure (HF). Intuitively, intervention early after AF onset would be beneficial since lifestyle and co-morbidity management, plus rhythm control and anticoagulation, are important contributors to improved outcomes in patients with established AF, but robust evidence is lacking for recent-onset AF. There is a delicate balance between achieving favourable outcomes such as preventing strokes, HF and AF progression vs the complications and potential adverse effects of interventions. Given the serious long-term consequences, innovative approaches are necessary to determine the value and risks of initiating active therapy very early in the course of AF. More data are needed to guide the best management of recent-onset AF, bearing AF burden in mind. Long-term studies using large national databases linked to electronic medical records and rhythm monitoring devices offer excellent opportunities. Shorter-term studies focusing on reducing AF burden to slow AF progression and studies focusing on outcomes such as HF could be used in both randomized clinical trials and observational cohort studies.

Abstract Objective To compare iron deposition in the substantia nigra (SN) as measured with quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) on antemortem magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) between individuals with and without Lewy‐related pathology at autopsy. Methods We performed a retrospective cohort study including 54 participants who underwent autopsy and antemortem MRI with QSM. Cases were classified as Lewy body disease (LBD)‐present (n = 13) if they had Lewy‐related pathology and LBD‐absent (n = 41) if they did not have Lewy‐related pathology. QSM was calculated for the whole SN and the two subregions: pars compacta (SNc) and pars reticulata (SNr). Nonparametric Wilcoxon rank‐sum tests were used to compare SN QSM values between LBD‐present and LBD‐absent cases. Area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) analyses tested the accuracy of SN QSM values to distinguish the two groups. Associations of QSM values in the SN and its subregions with clinical features were tested with Spearman's correlations. Results The LBD‐present group had higher QSM values in the SNc ( P = 0.008) than the LBD‐absent group with no differences in SNr. QSM values of the SNc distinguished LBD‐present and LBD‐absent cases with good accuracy (AUC = 0.74) and correlated with the presence of parkinsonism and parkinsonism severity. Conclusions This study provides neuropathological confirmation of the utility of SNc QSM as an in vivo biomarker of Lewy‐related pathology. Imaging evidence of abnormal iron deposition in the SNc could potentially serve as a biomarker for inclusion in emerging research frameworks aimed at defining individuals with LBD based on their biological characteristics. Ultimately, this could facilitate more precise diagnoses and guide treatment strategies in LBD. © 2025 The Author(s). Movement Disorders published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.

ABSTRACTObjectiveClinical outcome measures for autoimmune encephalitis (AE) are not yet well defined. Cognitive outcome measures (CogOs) and patient‐reported outcomes (PROs) may capture the symptoms of AE, beyond clinician‐reported outcomes (ClinROs) (the Modified Rankin Scale [mRS] and Clinical Assessment Scale in Autoimmune Encephalitis [CASE]).MethodsThis retrospective cohort study examined LGI‐1‐IgG AE patients at Cleveland Clinic. CogOs included the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT) and Brief Visuospatial Memory Test (BVMT). PROs included Neuro‐QoL, PROMIS Global Physical (GPH) and Mental Health (GMH). Abnormal RAVLT, BVMT (≤ −1.5 SD), Neuro‐QoL, and PROMIS (≥ 10 T‐scores) proportions were analyzed. CogOs and PROs were correlated with ClinROs using Spearman's rank correlation.ResultsForty‐four patients (64% male, mean age 68 [SD = 11], median follow‐up 19 months) were included. ClinROs improved, with median mRS decreasing from 2.5 (IQR = 2–3) to 2 (IQR = 1–2), and CASE from 5 (IQR = 3–6) to 3 (IQR = 2–3) (all p < 0.05). RAVLT (n = 15), BVMT (n = 16), Neuro‐QoL (n = 21), and PROMIS (n = 34) were available. At > 12 months from diagnosis, cognition was impaired on BVMT (56%) and RAVLT (20%). PROs showed impairments in Neuro‐QoL lower (38%) and upper (27%) extremity function, cognition (31%), and PROMIS‐GPH (25%). RAVLT correlated with Neuro‐QoL cognition, depression, and stigma, while BVMT correlated with PROMIS‐GMH (all unadjusted p < 0.05). Neither RAVLT nor BVMT correlated with ClinROs. ClinROs correlated with Neuro‐QoL lower extremity function, cognition, and social roles (all p < 0.05).InterpretationLGI‐1‐IgG AE patients have long‐term impairments in cognition, physical health, and social roles, which can be objectively measured using CogOs and PROs and are not captured by ClinROs.

Importance Tau positron emission tomography (PET) allows in vivo detection of neurofibrillary tangles, a core neuropathologic feature of Alzheimer disease (AD). Objective To provide estimates of the frequency of tau PET positivity and its associated risk of clinical outcomes. Design, Setting, and Participants Longitudinal study using data pooled from 21 cohorts, comprising a convenience sample of 6514 participants from 13 countries, collected between January 2013 and June 2024. Cognitively unimpaired individuals and patients with a clinical diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment (MCI), AD dementia, or other neurodegenerative disorders were included. Exposures Tau PET with flortaucipir F 18, amyloid-β (Aβ) PET, and clinical examinations. Tau PET scans were visually rated as positive according to a US Food and Drug Administration– and European Medicines Agency–approved method, designed to indicate the presence of advanced neurofibrillary tangle pathology (Braak stages V-VI). Main Outcomes and Measures Frequency of tau PET positivity and absolute risk of clinical progression (eg, progression to MCI or dementia). Results Among the 6514 participants (mean age, 69.5 years; 50.5% female), median follow-up time ranged from 1.5 to 4.0 years. Of 3487 cognitively unimpaired participants, 349 (9.8%) were tau PET positive; the estimated frequency of tau PET positivity was less than 1% in those aged younger than 50 years, and increased from 3% (95% CI, 2%-4%) at 60 years to 19% (95% CI, 16%-24%) at 90 years. Tau PET positivity frequency estimates increased across MCI and AD dementia clinical diagnoses (43% [95% CI, 41%-46%] and 79% [95% CI, 77%-82%] at 75 years, respectively). Most tau PET–positive individuals (92%) were also Aβ PET positive. Cognitively unimpaired participants who were positive for both Aβ PET and tau PET had a higher absolute risk of progression to MCI or dementia over the following 5 years (57% [95% CI, 45%-71%]) compared with both Aβ PET–positive/tau PET–negative (17% [95% CI, 13%-22%]) and Aβ PET–negative/tau PET–negative (6% [95% CI, 5%-8%]) individuals. Among participants with MCI at the time of the tau PET scan, an Aβ PET–positive/tau PET–positive profile was associated with a 5-year absolute risk of progression to dementia of 70% (95% CI, 59%-81%). Conclusions and Relevance In a large convenience sample, a positive tau PET scan occurred at a nonnegligible rate among cognitively unimpaired individuals, and the combination of Aβ PET positivity and tau PET positivity was associated with a high risk of clinical progression in both preclinical and symptomatic stages of AD. These findings underscore the potential of tau PET as a biomarker for staging AD pathology.

Abstract Background β-Quantification (BQ) is the reference method for low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) determination. It is not widely available, making it challenging for laboratories to assess the accuracy of LDL-C methods. Our goal was to develop an indirect graphical approach for comparing LDL-C test results to the BQ reference method. Methods BQ results from Mayo Medical Laboratories (n = 39 969) and the National Institutes of Health (n = 17 825) were used to investigate the interrelationships between lipid panel tests. A plot of LDL-C/non high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (nonHDL-C) vs (triglyceride (TG)/nonHDL-C)0.5 (lipid ratio plot) resulted in a negative linear regression line (y = −34.2x + 115). Based on simulation analysis, the minimum sample size for calculating its slope and intercept with a coefficient of variation of about 7.5% was 80. Results The regression lines for the lipid ratio plot of LDL-C calculated by the Sampson–NIH (y = −37.6x + 118) and enhanced Sampson–NIH (y = −33.1x + 116) equations closely overlapped with the BQ method. In contrast, the Martin–Hopkins equation showed a positive bias with an increasing TG/nonHDL-C ratio and exceeded the recommended bias limit of 4% on hypertriglyceridemic samples (y = −25.5x + 107). The Friedewald equation showed an even larger negative bias with hypertriglyceridemia (y = −47.5x + 126). Lipid ratio plots of the Roche direct assay revealed a fixed positive bias of approximately 4% (y = −33.9x + 120), whereas a much larger proportional positive bias was observed with increasing triglycerides for the Beckman direct assay (y = −14.6x + 97.8). Conclusions The lipid ratio plot is a simple graphical approach that can be readily performed by clinical laboratories for investigating the accuracy of LDL-C assays by calculation methods or direct assays.

ABSTRACTNodal follicular helper T‐cell (T FH) lymphoma of the angioimmunoblastic (AITL) subtype has a dismal prognosis. Using whole‐exome sequencing (n = 124), transcriptomic (n = 78), and methylation (n = 40) analysis, we identified recurrent mutations in known epigenetic drivers (TET2, DNMT3A, IDH2 R172 ) and novel ones (TET3, KMT2D). TET2, IDH2 R172 , DNMT3A co‐mutated AITLs had poor prognosis (p < 0.0001). Genes regulating T‐cell receptor (TCR) signaling (CD28, PLCG1, VAV1, FYN) or activation (RHOA G17V ) or regulators of the PI3K‐pathway (PIK(3)C members, PTEN, PHLPP1, PHLPP2) were mutated. CD28 mutation/fusion was associated with poor prognosis (p = 0.02). WES of purified, neoplastic T‐cell (CD3+PD1+) demonstrated high concordance with whole tumor biopsies and validated the presence of TET2 and DNMT3A in tumor and non‐lymphoid cells, but other mutations (CD28, RHOA G17V , IDH2 R172 , PLCG1) in neoplastic cells. Integrated DNA‐methylation and mRNA expression analysis revealed epigenetic alterations in genes regulating TCR, cytokines, PI3K‐signaling, and apoptosis. RNA‐seq analysis identified fusion transcripts regulating TCR‐activation (8%), revealed a restricted TCR‐repertoire (α = 87%, β = 72%), and showed the presence of Epstein–Barr virus transcriptome (73%). GEP demonstrated the association of B‐cells or dendritic cells in the tumor milieu with prognosis (p < 0.01). RNA‐seq and WES analysis of 12 AITL‐patient‐derived‐xenografts (PDX) showed that bi‐allelic TET2 and DNMT3A mutations or sub‐clonal mutations (PLCG1, PHLPP2) propagated in sequential passages, and gene signatures related to T FH and T CM (central‐memory) were well‐maintained through passages. Gene expression signatures associated with late PDX passages (3rd–5th) were enriched with proliferation and metabolic reprogramming‐related genes and predicted prognosis in an independent AITL series. Low PHLPP2 mRNA expression predicted poor prognosis (p = 0.05) and engineered PHLPP2 or TET2 loss in CD4+ T‐cells showed enhanced PI(3)K activation, thus uncovering a therapeutic target for clinical trials.