Current Issue : July-September Volume : 2026 Issue Number : 3 Articles : 5 Articles
High-level sport induces physiological and electrocardiographic changes in athletes’ hearts. Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is the leading cause of mortality in young athletes during exercise. There is an international consensus that young athletes should undergo pre-participation cardiovascular screening. The aim of this study was to describe the clinical and electrocardiographic characteristics of Nigerien wrestlers who participated in the 45th edition of the National Saber of Traditional Wrestling “Kokowa Dosso 2024”. This descriptive and analytical study included 77 male wrestlers meeting our inclusion criteria. Mean age was 26.7 years (range 19 - 41 years) and mean weight 87.41 kg (range 65 - 115 kg). One case of severe obesity was noted (BMI 37.50 kg/m2). Mean systolic blood pressure was 129.51 mmHg (range 100 - 163 mmHg) and mean diastolic blood pressure 77.3 mmHg (range 56 - 114 mmHg). Mean height was 177 cm (range 128 - 197 cm). The EKG was normal in 63.63% of cases; sinus bradycardia was present in 36.4%, left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) in 26.0%, early repolarization in 11.7%, negative T-waves in 10.4%, right ventricular hypertrophy in 1.3%, and first-degree atrioventricular block in 6.5%. Some EkG abnormalities observed in our study are probably due to competitive sports....
Background: Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the leading cause of death and disability worldwide. The human microbiota, particularly gut bacteria, plays a role in the development of CHD. However, determining the contribution of gut bacteria translocation to systemic circulation in the progression of atherosclerosis remains challenging. Methods and Results: In this exploratory study, we conducted 16S rRNA–based metagenomic analysis to characterize systemic bacterial profiles in a cohort of 27 patients with CHD (9 with severe coronary artery stenosis and 18 with mild to moderate stenosis). We compared microbial diversity between arterial and venous blood and across different blood fractions. For the first time, we observed higher microbial diversity in plasma than in serum. We also identified differences in microbial richness among arterial whole blood, venous whole blood, arterial plasma, venous plasma, arterial serum, and venous serum, with 15, 22, 43, 10, 4, and 3 genera showing significant differences, respectively. Many of the detected blood taxa belonged to genera typically found in intestinal, oral, or skin microbiota, although their precise source cannot be determined from this study. Conclusions: Our study provides preliminary evidence of distinct bacterial profiles between arterial and venous blood fractions in patients with CHD, as determined by 16S rRNA sequencing. These findings should be interpreted with caution given the small sample size and the absence of a healthy control group, and they warrant confirmation in larger, controlled studies....
Background/Objectives: Carfilzomib (CFZ) and bortezomib (BTZ) are proteasome inhibitors used as the first-line therapy for relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma (MM) but are associated with cardiovascular adverse events (CVAEs). This study aims to identify differentially methylated positions (DMPs) and regions (DMRs), and enriched pathways associated with CVAEs related to CFZ or BTZ-based treatment. Methods: Baseline germline DNA methylation profiles from 79 MM patients (49 on CFZ and 30 on BTZ) in the Prospective Study of Cardiac Events During Proteasome Inhibitor Therapy (PROTECT) were analyzed. Epigenome-wide analyses were performed within each group, followed by meta-analyses to identify signals common to CVAEs associated with both medicines. Results: Four DMPs were significantly associated with CFZ-CVAEs, including cg15144237 within ENSG00000224400 (p = 9.45 × 10−10), cg00927646 within TBX3 (p = 9.78 × 10−8), and cg10965131 within WDR86 (p = 1.00 × 10−7). One DMR was identified in the FAM166B region (p = 5.46 × 10−7). There was no evidence of any DMPs in BTZ-treated patients, however two DMPs and one DMR reached a suggestive level of significance (p < 1.00 × 10−5): cg09666417 in DNAJC18 (p = 3.41 × 10−7) and cg12987761 in USP18 (p = 5.00 × 10−7), and a DMR mapped to the WDR86/WDR86-AS1 region (p = 8.11 × 10−8). Meta-analysis did not find any significant DMPs, with the top CpG being cg17933807 in GNL2 (p = 7.38 × 10−5). Pathway enrichment analyses identified peroxisome, MAPK, Rap1, adherens junction, phospholipase D, autophagy, and aldosterone-related pathways to be implicated in CVAEs. Conclusions: Our study identified distinct DMPs, DMRs, and pathways enrichment associated with CVAE, suggesting epigenetic contributors to CVAEs and supporting the need for larger validation studies....
Background: Multiple myeloma (MM) is a hematologic malignancy characterized by clonal plasma cell expansion and diverse genomic rearrangements, including immunoglobulin heavy chain (IGH) translocations. Although RNA sequencing enables the comprehensive detection of IGH-associated fusions, routine molecular monitoring remains limited, particularly in non-secretory MM (NSMM), which lacks measurable serologic markers. Methods: Here, we contracted an integrated system combining RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) and reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) to identify and validate fusion gene-based molecular markers for minimal residual disease (MRD) monitoring. Results: The global fusion landscape was delineated by the sequencing analysis of bone marrow samples from 22 newly diagnosed patients with MM. A total of 362 fusion events were identified, of which 190 non-immunoglobulin fusions were selected for detailed characterization. Recurrent breakpoints were concentrated on chromosomes 1 and 19, and five recurrent fusions, DDX5::EEF1A1, OAZ1::KLF2, OAZ1::KLF16, PFKFB3::LINC02649, and PLXNB2::SCO2, were detected across nine patients. Functional enrichment analyses indicated the significant involvement of these genes in RNA splicing regulation, transcriptional misregulation in cancer-related pathways, and focal adhesion processes. Twenty-three fusion transcripts were validated using RT-PCR and Sanger sequencing, demonstrating high specificity for MM. Longitudinal monitoring revealed that the quantitative assessment of fusion transcript levels enabled earlier relapse detection than flow cytometry, including in NSMM, where conventional MRD tools are ineffective. Conclusions: These findings suggest that individualized fusion transcripts serve as robust molecular markers for MRD surveillance. The proposed RNA-seq–RT-qPCR pipeline offers a clinically practical strategy to enhance precision diagnosis and personalized treatment in MM....
Background: The lead breakage (LB) during transvenous lead extraction (TLE) increases procedural complexity, increases the risk of complications, and decreases procedural efficiency. This study aimed to identify protective and risk factors for the breakage of cardiac electronic device leads during extraction. Methods: Data were sourced from the EXTRACT prospective registry for TLE procedures conducted between January 2016 and June 2025. A total of 702 consecutive TLE procedures involving 1375 leads were enrolled. Multivariate logistic regression was used to identify independent protective and risk factors and develop a model to predict the occurrence of LB during TLE. Results: In the analysed group, 56 (7.98%) of 702 TLE procedures were disrupted by the breakage of at least one lead. The model showed a lower lead breakage rate in procedures when an atrial lead was simultaneously extracted, a locking stylet was used, and when the procedure was conducted in older patients or those who had undergone prior cardiac surgery. Higher risk of LB was proven in the following cases: the extraction of leads implanted a long time ago; the extraction of VDD-type leads; the extraction of abandoned leads; extraction during a prolonged procedure. Occurrence of lead breakage may lead to pericardial effusion requiring intervention, acute kidney injury, or leaving remnants of the leads. Conclusions: Lead breakage is an underestimated procedural difficulty that can occur during transvenous lead extraction. In this study, several clinical and procedural variables were independently associated with lead breakage. Abandoned leads, VDD leads, and prolonged procedure time were associated with increased risk. In contrast, older age, use of a locking stylet, atrial lead extraction, prior cardiac surgery, and later year of implantation demonstrated independent protective associations....
Loading....