Boron (B) remains one of the least understood trace elements in human nutrition. Traditionally regarded as non-essential, its biological role has been reevaluated in light of emerging microbiome research. We provide a narrative synthesis of mechanistic, preclinical, and clinical studies to assess whether the colonic actions of B meet accepted criteria for nutritional essentiality. This review revisits B bioavailability through a dual-pathway framework distinguishing plasma-accessible boron (PAB)—small, fully absorbable species with transient systemic effects—from microbiota-accessible boron complexes (MABCs)—indigestible conjugates that reach the colon intact. Evidence indicates that PAB exerts short-term metabolic modulation, whereas MABCs act as prebiotic cofactors that stabilize microbial quorum sensing (autoinducer-2–borate; AI-2B), reinforce the colonic mucus barrier through borate–diol crosslinking, and support host–microbiota symbiosis. Deficiency or low intake of MABCs leads to dysbiosis, barrier fragility, and low-grade inflammation along gut–organ axes—effects reversible by MABC-rich diets. Analytical and clinical tools are proposed to discriminate between PAB and MABC pathways, including fecal B/speciation, AI-2B assays, and mucus-penetration markers. Recognizing B’s essentiality as a microbiota-dependent nutrient reframes its nutritional assessment, guiding future dietary guidelines and prebiotic design toward the microbiome–mucus interface.

Background: Even though there have been improvements in antimicrobial and supportive therapies, sepsis and septic shock are still major causes of death in intensive care units. Early prognostic stratification is very important for helping doctors make decisions. Platelet-derived indices may provide useful, low-cost indicators that signify both inflammatory activation and coagulation irregularities. This study looked at how well different platelet-based ratios could predict death in the hospital from sepsis. Materials and Methods: We performed a prospective observational study spanning one year in a tertiary ICU, enrolling 114 adult patients diagnosed with sepsis or septic shock. Upon admission, four platelet-related biomarkers were measured: the C-reactive protein-to-platelet ratio (CPR), the platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), the platelet-to-white blood cell ratio (PWR), and the platelet-to-creatinine ratio (PCR). Logistic regression models and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analyses were employed to assess predictive accuracy. Results: Compared to survivors, non-survivors (n = 39) had much higher CRP levels and CPR values, alongside lower platelet and lymphocyte counts. The CPR index showed the best ability in differentiating between non-survivors and survivors (AUC 0.757), with a best cutoff of 0.886. In simplified multivariate models, CPR was still an independent predictor of death in the hospital (OR 1.98; 95% CI 1.22–3.21), whereas PLR and PWR were not. PCR showed a non-significant trend toward lower values in not survivors. Conclusions: CPR is a strong and clinically viable predictor of early mortality in sepsis, outperforming other platelet-based indices. Derived from routine laboratory parameters, CPR serves as a valuable adjunct for initial risk stratification in the ICU. To further confirm its prognostic role and incorporation into current scoring systems, large-scale multicenter studies with longitudinal measurements are warranted to validate its prognostic utility and integration into existing scoring systems.

Background/Objectives: Adenomyosis (A) is a benign but invasive uterine condition frequently associated with structural changes in the uterine wall that may contribute to infertility. Methods: This is a retrospective study involving 140 patients: 100 diagnosed with primary infertility (PI) or secondary infertility (SI) and 40 in the control group. All patients were assessed using transvaginal two-dimensional, three-dimensional, and hysterosalpingo-contrast sonography (HyCoSy), performed in the early proliferative phase. Evaluated parameters included uterine dimensions, endometrial thickness, and characteristics of the junctional zone (JZ). Criteria such as JZmax > 5 mm or JZmax − JZmin > 5 mm, alongside other findings, supported the diagnosis of adenomyosis. Results: Patients with PI showed larger uterine longitudinal diameters, while SI patients had thicker JZ measurements. PI patients were significantly younger. Histopathological examination confirmed the presence of endometrial glands and periglandular stroma disrupting myometrial architecture, forming chronic lesions potentially linked to infertility. Conclusions: HyCoSy revealed variable depths of myometrial invasion by A, with some cases extending near the serosa. The chronic lesions found in histopathological examination were potentially linked to infertility.

Lung cancer continues to have the highest mortality rate in the world, non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) representing the most common tumor form. The therapeutic interference of the tumor intercellular adhesion disruption mechanisms can provide therapeutic targets to improve the patients’ prognosis. The study included 52 cases diagnosed with NSCLC, for which the immunohistochemical expressions of E-cadherin, β-catenin and Ezrin were analyzed in relation to the epidemiological and histological prognostic parameters. The histopathological analysis indicated the predominance of high-grade acinar adenocarcinoma (ADK) and non-keratinizing squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), with frequent vascular invasion and in stages II–IV. Final staining scores (FSS) of E-cadherin were superior in the case of acinar, lepidic and papillary ADK, with a high degree of differentiation, without vascular invasion and in initial tumor stages. The same aspect was also observed in the case of β-catenin reactions, which were present only at the membrane level, increased FSS being also present in the case of mucinous carcinomas. The membrane/cytoplasmic immunoexpression of Ezrin was superior in the case of cribriform, solid, micropapillary, lepidic and non-keratinized squamous carcinomas, with vascular invasion and in advanced tumor stages. Membrane reactions of Ezrin prevailed only in the case of acinar, lepidic and papillary ADK. The negative linear correlation of E-cadherin and β-catenin with Ezrin and the relationships of the markers with the histological parameters of NSCLC indicate their utility potential for the identification of aggressive malignant lung tumors.

Background/Objectives: Ectopic pregnancy (EP) remains a major cause of maternal morbidity. This study aimed to describe the clinical, ultrasonographic and histopathological features of EP, including changes following methotrexate (MTX) therapy. Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 60 patients diagnosed with EP between 2018 and 2024. Clinical characteristics, serum β-hCG (beta-human chorionic gonadotropin) dynamics, treatment type, site-specific ultrasonographic features, and histopathological aspects were evaluated. Results: Extrauterine EPs accounted for 63.3% of cases, predominantly tubal ectopic pregnancy (T-EP), while uterine ectopic pregnancy represented 33.3%, including cesarean scar pregnancy (CSP) in 20%. Heterotopic pregnancy was identified in 3.3%. T-EP most frequently required surgical management, whereas MTX was effective in selected T-EP and CSP cases, as demonstrated by a ≥ 15% decline in serum β-hCG levels at 7 days. Transvaginal ultrasonography (TVUS) enabled accurate site-specific localization of ectopic implantation. Histopathological evaluation confirmed ectopic implantation and MTX-related changes in treated cases. Conclusions: Integrating clinical findings, β-hCG dynamics, and targeted TVUS allows accurate diagnosis and individualized management of EP, with histopathology providing definitive confirmation and insight into treatment-related changes.

Background/Objectives: Medication-taking behaviour during pregnancy may be associated with treatment-related beliefs, emotional concerns, information sources, and clinician–patient communication. We examined these cross-sectional associations and the preliminary measurement properties of the Pregnancy Medication Adherence Model (PMAM). Methods: This cross-sectional study included 355 pregnant women with prescribed treatment recruited from nine general practices in Dolj County, Romania. Q25 was analysed on its five-category scale and using an operational threshold of ≥4. Internal consistency, principal component analysis, an ordinal exploratory factor analysis based on polychoric correlations, regression modelling, and review-stage sensitivity analyses addressing criterion overlap were performed. Results: Overall, 255 participants (71.8%) scored ≥4 on Q25. The four multi-item domains had Cronbach’s α values of 0.897–0.935. Parallel analysis and principal-axis factoring with oblique rotation supported four factors; salient loadings were 0.797–0.925 and no secondary loading reached 0.30. In the original adjusted binary model, cognitive understanding, emotional reassurance, clinician–patient communication, and lower endorsement of information-seeking and social-influence items were associated with Q25 ≥ 4. After Q23 was removed from the communication score and Q19 and Q24 were omitted, these four associations persisted (adjusted ORs 1.90–2.55). Conclusions: The findings identify concurrent associations between medication-related perceptions and a single self-reported treatment-behaviour item. PMAM remains an exploratory framework; external psychometric evaluation and prospective assessment against defined medication-specific adherence and clinical outcomes are required before clinical use.