Determining the origin of different variants associated with familial mediterranean fever by machine-learning.

A growing number of familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) patients in Israel do not have a single country of origin for all four grandparents. We aimed to predict the Mediterranean fever gene (MEFV) variant most likely to be found for an individual FMF patient, by a machine learning approach. This study was conducted at the Sheba Medical Center, a referral center for FMF in Israel.

Trends in Psychiatric Emergency Department Visits in Northern Israel During the COVID-19 Outbreak.

During the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), mandatory quarantines increased social isolation and anxiety, with inevitable consequences on mental health and health seeking behavior. We wished to estimate those trends. We examined all psychiatric visits to the emergency department (ED) during March, April 2020, compared to identical months in 2018, 2019.

Identification of cell-specific targets of sumoylation during mouse spermatogenesis.

Recent findings suggest diverse and potentially multiple roles of small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) in testicular function and spermatogenesis. However, SUMO targets remain uncharacterized in the testis due to the complex multicellular nature of testicular tissue, the inability to maintain and manipulate spermatogenesis in vitro, and the technical challenges involved in identifying low-abundance endogenous SUMO targets. In this study, we performed cell-specific identification of sumoylated proteins using concentrated cell lysates prepared with de-sumoylation inhibitors from freshly purified spermatocytes and spermatids.

CDK14 expression is down-regulated by cigarette smoke in vivo and in vitro.

In this study, DNA arrays have been employed to monitor gene expression patterns in testis of mice exposed to tobacco smoke for 24 weeks and compared to control animals. The results of the analysis revealed significant changes in expression of several genes that may have a role in spermatogenesis. Cdk14 was chosen for further characterization because of a suggested role in the testis and in regulation of Wnt signaling.

Rationale and staff evaluation of using a "therapeutic milieu" for substance users within a tuberculosis ward.

Approximately 30% of tuberculosis (TB) patients in Israel were treated, in part, in two dedicated hospital wards during the years 2003-2005. A portion of them manifested severe psychosocial conditions. An intervention based on the "Therapeutic Milieu" (TM) model was implemented in the larger ward and included a staff evaluation of this intervention.

["Injecting clean or being clean?" The international and Israeli experiences of Syringe Exchange Programs among injecting drug users].

Injecting drug users (IDU) are a hard-to-reach population. The treatment objectives are to reduce their risk factors, to guide them to total abstinence or to antagonist treatment. When IDU are not ready for detoxification, they are referred to Syringe Exchange Programs (SEP).