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The text is a report on clinical trials and trial design in the field of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and Frontotemporal Degeneration (FTD). It is authored by a large number of researchers and experts in the field. The report provides a comprehensive overview of ongoing clinical trials, trial design considerations, and potential future directions for research in ALS and FTD. It is a valuable resource for library patrons conducting research on these specific topics. [Extracted from the article]

A hexanucleotide repeat expansion in C9ORF72 is the cause of chromosome 9p21-linked ALS-FTD. TDP-43 triggers mitochondrial DNA release via mPTP to activate cGAS/STING in ALS. TDP-43 regulates the alternative splicing of hnRNP A1 to yield an aggregation-prone variant in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. [Extracted from the article]

Backgrounds: Milk of magnesia (MoM) has been reported to accelerate return of bowel function following surgery. However, there is insufficient evidence regarding the impact of MoM on postoperative recovery after colorectal surgery. We aimed to determine the impact of MoM on postoperative length of stay in patients undergoing colorectal surgery., Methods: All patients who underwent colorectal resection without an ileostomy between 2015 and 2018 were included. Patients were divided into two groups based on whether postoperative MoM (MoM) was administered or not, according to surgeons' prescribing preferences. Consecutive patients of surgeons who prescribe MoM were included in the MoM group, while consecutive patients of surgeons who prefer not to prescribe MoM served as the control group. Age, gender, preoperative comorbidities, surgical approach, length of stay, readmission, postoperative complications and mortality were evaluated and compared between the groups., Results: A total of 3292 patients were included; 523 (15.9%) patients were prescribed MoM. Patients in the MoM group were found to be significantly older, with higher BMI and ASA class, and more often undergoing operations for cancer resection or colostomy creations, than the control group. Postoperative complications were comparable between the groups. On multivariable linear regression, MoM use was associated with a 14.1% reduction in length of stay (MoM group 4 (2; 8), control group 5 (3; 8 P = 0.006))., Conclusion: MoM as adjunct medication in the postoperative period following colorectal surgery is associated with reduced length of stay, without an increase in postoperative complications., (© 2022 The Authors. ANZ Journal of Surgery published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Royal Australasian College of Surgeons.)

Impairment of long-term potentiation (LTP) is a common feature of many pre-clinical models of neurological disorders; however, studies in humans are limited by the inaccessibility of the brain. Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) provide a unique opportunity to study LTP in disease-specific genetic backgrounds. Here we describe a multi-electrode array (MEA)-based assay to investigate chemically induced LTP (cLTP) across entire networks of hiPSC-derived midbrain dopaminergic (DA) and cortical neuronal populations that lasts for days, allowing studies of the late phases of LTP and enabling detection of associated molecular changes. We show that cLTP on midbrain DA neuronal networks is largely independent of the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) and partially dependent on brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). Finally, we describe activity-regulated gene expression induced by cLTP. This cLTP-MEA assay platform will enable phenotype discovery and higher-throughput analyses of synaptic plasticity on hiPSC-derived neurons., Competing Interests: Conflicts of interest The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)