26; 95% confidence interval [CI] 5.72 to 9.21; p  less then  0.01), systemic lupus erythematosus (HR 3.15; 95% CI 2.41 to 4.11; p  less then  0.01), rheumatoid arthritis (HR 1.39; 95% CI 1.13 to 1.71; p  less then  0.01), and human immunodeficiency virus (HR 1.28; 95% CI 0.99 to 1.66; p = 0.06). There was no association between psoriasis or inflammatory bowel disease and incident HF, although patients with those CIDs with higher levels of C-reactive protein had higher risks for HF than controls. CONCLUSIONS Systemic sclerosis and systemic lupus erythematosus were associated with the highest risks of HF, followed by rheumatoid arthritis and HIV. Measurements of inflammation were associated with HF risk across different CIDs. BACKGROUND Clinicopathologic characteristics and prognostic and predictive factors offer valuable guidance when selecting optimal first-line treatment in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC). The association between baseline circulating tumor cell (bCTC) count, molecular tumor profile, and clinicopathologic features was analyzed in a chemo-naïve metastatic CRC population. PATIENTS AND METHODS A total of 1202 patients from the Spanish VISNÚ-1 (FOLFIRINOX/bevacizumab vs. FOLFOX/bevacizumab) and VISNÚ-2 (FOLFIRI/bevacizumab vs. FOLFIRI/cetuximab; RAS-wildtype) studies were analyzed for mutational status and bCTC count. https://www.selleckchem.com/products/loxo-101.html The association between clinicopathologic characteristics and bCTC count, mutational status, and microsatellite instability (MSI) was analyzed in 589 eligible patients. RESULTS Interestingly, 41% of the population studied presented ≥3 bCTC count. bCTC count ≥3 was associated with worse performance status (according Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group scale), stage IV at diagnosis, at lecept right-sided primary tumors. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER VISNU 1 ClinicalTrials.gov ID NCT01640405/ VISNU 2 ClinicalTrials.gov ID NCT01640444. INTRODUCTION Bortezomib, melphalan, and prednisone (VMP) is the standard of care for transplant-ineligible newly diagnosed multiple myeloma. The phase III VISTA trial established the bortezomib dosing schedule for VMP. To mitigate bortezomib-associated toxicity, the phase III ALCYONE study of daratumumab plus VMP (D-VMP) versus VMP used modified bortezomib dosing. D-VMP demonstrated improved progression-free survival and overall response rate. Propensity score matching enables indirect comparisons by controlling for differences in baseline covariates. PATIENTS AND METHODS The efficacy and safety of both arms of ALCYONE were compared with VISTA VMP using propensity score matching. ALCYONE D-VMP and VMP patients were matched on selected baseline characteristics to VISTA VMP patients, reducing or eliminating systematic differences between treatment groups. RESULTS After matching, median progression-free survival and overall response rate were comparable for ALCYONE VMP and VISTA VMP, and were significantly improved with ALCYONE D-VMP versus VISTA VMP. Rates of grade 3/4 peripheral sensory neuropathy were significantly lower for both arms of ALCYONE versus VISTA VMP, with or without matching. CONCLUSION This propensity score matching analysis demonstrates significant improvements in efficacy with ALCYONE D-VMP versus VISTA VMP and a significantly lower incidence of peripheral sensory neuropathy in both arms of ALCYONE versus VISTA VMP, although safety improvements may be due to different bortezomib administration routes (ALCYONE, subcutaneous; VISTA, intravenous). RESEARCH QUESTION Is minority race associated with worse oocyte donation outcomes? DESIGN Retrospective analysis of 926 oocyte recipients who underwent a donor cycle with fresh embryo transfer at a single fertility centre between January 2009 and June 2015. Race was self-reported. To adjust for repeat donors within the sample, mixed models were used to analyse donor parameters and recipient outcomes. The recipient outcome models were adjusted for age, body mass index and primary infertility diagnosis. RESULTS The study consisted of 767 (82.8%) White, 41 (4.4%) Black, 63 (6.8%) Asian and 55 (5.9%) Hispanic women. Compared with White recipients, the adjusted odds ratio (aOR) for clinical pregnancy was 0.39 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.19-0.79) for Black, 0.55 (95% CI 0.31-0.98) for Hispanic and 0.88 (95% CI 0.51-1.53) for Asian recipients. The aOR for live birth was 0.47 (95% CI 0.23-0.98) for Black, 0.58 (95% CI 0.32-1.06) for Hispanic and 0.62 (95% 0.35-1.09) for Asian recipients. A subgroup analysis restricted to cycles with racially concordant donors and recipients showed that the odds of clinical pregnancy and live birth were further reduced among Black recipients, with aOR of 0.28 (95% CI 0.09-0.81) and 0.30 (95% CI 0.09-0.98), respectively. CONCLUSIONS Black and Hispanic oocyte donation recipients experience lower clinical pregnancy rates and Black recipients experience lower live birth rates compared with White recipients. Racially discordant donor oocyte cycles involving donors and recipients of different races present an opportunity to further investigate the cause of disparity. Although various types of artificial skeletal muscle tissue have been reported, the contractile forces generated by tissue-engineered artificial skeletal muscles remain to be improved for biological model and clinical applications. In this study, we investigated the effects of extracellular matrix (ECM) and supplementation of a small molecule, which has been reported to enhance α7β1 integrin expression (SU9516), on cell migration speed, cell fusion rate, myoblast (mouse C2C12 cells) differentiation and contractile force generation of tissue-engineered artificial skeletal muscles. When cells were cultured on varying ECM coated-surfaces, we observed significant enhancement in the migration speed, while the myotube formation (differentiation ratio) decreased in all except for cells cultured on Matrigel coated-surfaces. In contrast, SU9516 supplementation resulted in an increase in both the myotube width and differentiation ratio. Following combined culture with a Matrigel-coated surface and SU9516 supplementation, myotube width was further increased.