by Chunhui Xie  , Lillian Ye  , Yeh-Chuin Poh  and George Harb

Received: 06 May 2019;  Published: 17 July 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.transplant.1903072

Single cell genomics is a powerful tool to study cellular heterogeneity and discover novel cell types. Recent studies used single cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) to analyze the transcriptomes of individual pancreatic islet cells. Islets are a complex mixture of endocrine cells and therefore represent an ideal tissue type for single cell transcriptomic analysis. Adult human islets consist of five known endocrine cell types (α, β, δ, γ, ε) and multiple less well-defined non-endocrine cells. In this review, we discuss [...]

by Mario D. Garrett

Received: 12 June 2019;  Published: 16 July 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.1903063

Simplifying the cause of Alzheimer’s disease has lulled the public into believing that the search for a cure is within reach. The disease has captured the attention of researchers worldwide, catapulting the disease as the third most funded research interest (after cancer and HIV). But after a century of pharmacological failures in stopping or slowing the disease, there is a need to examine how the simplified cause evolved and to explore alternate approaches to understanding Alzheimer’s disease. Going beyond the nar [...]

by Kazuyuki Suzuki  , Akinobu Kato  and Yasuhiro Takikawa

Received: 04 February 2019;  Published: 16 July 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.hg.1903027

Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a neuropsychiatric syndrome showing a wide spectrum and one of the serious complications seen in patients with acute and chronic liver disease or spontaneous portal-systemic shunting. Recently, HE has been classified into two categories: covert HE, which involves minimal HE and is identified solely through psychometric or neurological tests, and overt HE (coma grade II-IV). Although recent therapies based on evidence-based results have improved the therapeutic outcomes of HE patients, [...]

by Tracy Harwood  , John Maltby  and Elizabeta B. Mukaetova-Ladinska

Received: 28 March 2019;  Published: 15 July 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.1903062

Background: Art enhances both physical and mental health wellbeing. The health benefits include reduction in blood pressure, heart rate, pain perception and briefer inpatient stays, as well as improvement of communication skills and self-esteem. In addition to these, people living with dementia benefit from reduction of their non-cognitive, behavioural changes, enhancement of their cognitive capacities and being socially active. Methods: The current study represents a narrative general literature review on availabl [...]

by Jih-Huah Wu

Received: 04 March 2019;  Published: 15 July 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.1903046

Sleep has played a critical role in maintaining the physical and psychological health of humans, especially for women. Many studies reveal that sleep disturbance can cause more inflammation, coagulation, insulin resistance, and psychosocial distress in women than in men. A lot of medications are used to treat sleep disorders, but they can cause various adverse effects. Photobiomodulation therapy (PBMT) has been proved as a safe and easy-to-use therapy. We propose two methods of affecting the autonomic nervous syste [...]

by Samantha Varley  , Kirsten Rossi  , Meghan Murray  and Alissa Nichole

Received: 17 May 2019;  Published: 12 July 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.hg.1903026

Acute pancreatitis (AP) is an inflammatory condition of the pancreas and is one of the most common ailments of the gastrointestinal system that results in significant morbidity and mortality. The main etiologic causes of AP are alcohol consumption, gallstones, hypertriglyceridemia, and biliary stones. The clinical signs and symptoms, and diagnostic criteria of AP are well established in the literature and multiple studies. Multiple scoring systems have been used to predict the severity, prognosis, and mortality a [...]

by Patricia L. Gerbarg  , Richard P. Brown  , Chris C. Streeter  , Martin Katzman  and Monica Vermani

Received: 10 April 2019;  Published: 12 July 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.1903045

Does compassion itself benefit the healing process or does the activation of neurophysiological processes, from which the experience of compassion arises, trigger a cascade of physical and psychological changes that support health and well-being? Exploration of the neurological substrates of compassion reveals multiple healing pathways that can be activated by mind-body practices. Furthermore, these pathways affect physical health, emotion regulation, and how we perceive and relate to others. Physiological states a [...]

by Luis Delaye

Received: 05 May 2019;  Published: 11 July 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1903083

Background: Phylogenetic analysis shows that Pneumocystis have coevolved with their mammalian hosts for millions of years. As a result, infection by Pneumocystis is species specific (i.e. a given Pneumocystis species can infect only a single species of host). This specificity suggests the existence of a Red-Queen dynamic between Pneumocystis and its host. Evidence of this dynamic is provided by the molecular diversity and the elevated rate of non-synonymous versus synonymous (dN/dS) codon substitutions among Pneumo [...]

by Yoko Moriyama  , Timothy Bolt  , Marilyn Luptak  and Nanako Tamiya

Received: 19 February 2019;  Published: 09 July 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.1903061

Background: Many informal caregivers providing at-home care to older family members want to continue serving as the primary caregiver if they get sufficient support. A key service enabling continued at-home care is access to unplanned respite care facilities for temporary institutional care on short notice and in emergencies. Methods: This study used city government survey results on service user satisfaction with the Japanese Long-Term Care Insurance (LTCI) system for a mid-sized, Japanese city. From this a range [...]

by Ibrahim Fathi  , Takehiro Imura  , Kozue Imura  , Megumi Goto  , Yasuhiro Igarashi  , Akiko Inagaki  , Makiko Kikkawa  , Fumiko Ono  , Hiroo Iwata  , Yohichi Yasunami  and Masafumi Goto

Received: 27 March 2019;  Published: 09 July 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.transplant.1903071

Background: The existing non-human primate diabetic models, particularly those induced by total pancreatectomy or streptozotocin (STZ) injection, have several disadvantages, including a lengthy surgical procedure, the need for continual supplementation of digestive enzymes, and delayed oral intake after total pancreatectomy, and severe hypoglycemia and hepatic/renal toxicity following injection of high-dose STZ. This study aimed to develop and optimize a non-human primate diabetic model that would avoid the disadva [...]