National outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing O145:H28 associated with pre-packed sandwiches, United Kingdom, May-June 2024.

Shiga toxin-producing (STEC) is a group of bacteria that causes gastrointestinal illness and occasionally causes large foodborne outbreaks. It represents a major public health concern due to its ability to cause severe illness which can sometimes be fatal. This study was undertaken as part of a rapid investigation into a national foodborne outbreak of STEC O145.

and as genetic modifiers of KIF18A function in fertility and mitotic progression.

The kinesin family member 18A () is an essential regulator of microtubule dynamics and chromosome alignment during mitosis. Functional dependency on KIF18A varies by cell type and genetic context but the heritable factors that influence this dependency remain unknown. To address this, we took advantage of the variable penetrance observed in different mouse strain backgrounds to screen for loci that modulate germ cell depletion in the absence of KIF18A.

Case report: Successful treatment of intestinal leiomyositis in a dog using adjunctive intravenous immunoglobulin.

A 10-year-old spayed female Dachshund presented with abdominal pain and generalized severe ileus. An exploratory laparotomy was performed, confirming a severe ileus of undetermined origin. Multiple intestinal biopsy results confirmed acute intestinal leiomyositis.

An imminent need for veterinary medical educators: are we facing a crisis?

A potential emerging shortage of veterinary medical educators requires the profession to acknowledge and understand the factors leading to this outcome. Expanding class sizes within existing schools and colleges of veterinary medicine and the expected expansion of new programs seeking AVMA-Council of Education accreditation have heightened the need to address an impending shortage of veterinary medical educators. A solution-oriented approach that accurately projects educator workforce needs and identifies factors contributing to the shortage requires effective collaboration across various partnering organizations to develop innovations in pedagogy and educational delivery methods.

Mortality Associated with Priority Diseases in Flood-Affected Areas Using District Health Information System (DHIS2) During September-December 2022: Pakistan Experience.

Objectives: To quantify the burden of communicable diseases and characterize the most reported infections during public health emergency of floods in Pakistan.

Methods: The study's design is a descriptive trend analysis. The study utilized the disease data reported to District Health Information System (DHIS2) for the 12 most frequently reported priority diseases under the Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) system in Pakistan.

Spindle assembly checkpoint insensitivity allows meiosis-II despite chromosomal defects in aged eggs.

Chromosome segregation errors in mammalian oocyte meiosis lead to developmentally compromised aneuploid embryos and become more common with advancing maternal age. Known contributors include age-related chromosome cohesion loss and spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC) fallibility in meiosis-I. But how effective the SAC is in meiosis-II and how this might contribute to age-related aneuploidy is unknown.

Estimating yield-contributing physiological parameters of cotton using UAV-based imagery.

Lint yield in cotton is governed by light intercepted by the canopy (IPAR), radiation use efficiency (RUE), and harvest index (HI). However, the conventional methods of measuring these yield-governing physiological parameters are labor-intensive, time-consuming and requires destructive sampling. This study aimed to explore the use of low-cost and high-resolution UAV-based RGB and multispectral imagery 1) to estimate fraction of IPAR (IPAR), RUE, and biomass throughout the season, 2) to estimate lint yield using the cotton fiber index (CFI), and 3) to determine the potential use of biomass and lint yield models for estimating cotton HI.

The benefits of a metacognitive lesson on children's understanding of mathematical equivalence, arithmetic, and place value.

Metacognition is theorized to play a central role in children's mathematics learning. The primary goal of the current study was to provide experimental evidence in support of this role with elementary school students learning about mathematical equivalence. The final sample included 135 children (59 first-graders and 76 second-graders) who participated in the study across three sessions in their classrooms.

Tertiary lymphoid structures accompanied by fibrillary matrix morphology impact anti-tumor immunity in basal cell carcinomas.

Tertiary lymphoid structures (TLS) are specialized lymphoid formations that serve as local repertoire of T- and B-cells at sites of chronic inflammation, autoimmunity, and cancer. While presence of TLS has been associated with improved response to immune checkpoint blockade therapies and overall outcomes in several cancers, its prognostic value in basal cell carcinoma (BCC) has not been investigated. Herein, we determined the prognostic impact of TLS by relating its prevalence and maturation with outcome measures of anti-tumor immunity, namely tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and tumor killing.

In vivo tumor immune microenvironment phenotypes correlate with inflammation and vasculature to predict immunotherapy response.

Response to immunotherapies can be variable and unpredictable. Pathology-based phenotyping of tumors into 'hot' and 'cold' is static, relying solely on T-cell infiltration in single-time single-site biopsies, resulting in suboptimal treatment response prediction. Dynamic vascular events (tumor angiogenesis, leukocyte trafficking) within tumor immune microenvironment (TiME) also influence anti-tumor immunity and treatment response.

Community transmission of monkeypox in the United Kingdom, April to May 2022.

Between 7 and 25 May, 86 monkeypox cases were confirmed in the United Kingdom (UK). Only one case is known to have travelled to a monkeypox virus (MPXV) endemic country. Seventy-nine cases with information were male and 66 reported being gay, bisexual, or other men who have sex with men.

Transmission dynamics of COVID-19 in household and community settings in the United Kingdom, January to March 2020.

BackgroundHouseholds appear to be the highest risk setting for COVID-19 transmission. Large household transmission studies in the early stages of the pandemic in Asia reported secondary attack rates ranging from 5 to 30%.AimWe aimed to investigate the transmission dynamics of COVID-19 in household and community settings in the UK.

Genetic control of the pluripotency epigenome determines differentiation bias in mouse embryonic stem cells.

Genetically diverse pluripotent stem cells display varied, heritable responses to differentiation cues. Here, we harnessed these disparities through derivation of mouse embryonic stem cells from the BXD genetic reference panel, along with C57BL/6J (B6) and DBA/2J (D2) parental strains, to identify loci regulating cell state transitions. Upon transition to formative pluripotency, B6 stem cells quickly dissolved naïve networks adopting gene expression modules indicative of neuroectoderm lineages, whereas D2 retained aspects of naïve pluripotency.

Biosecurity Measures in Clinical Practice.

Hospitalized companion animals have increased susceptibility for hospital-acquired/nosocomial infections. Veterinarians have a responsibility to ensure adequate infection control, biosecurity, and biosafety within veterinary hospitals. Through elimination of pathogens and substitution of hazards, as well as implementation of engineering and administrative controls and the use of personal protective equipment, veterinary teams can dramatically reduce unintentional disease transmission.

Mapping the Effects of Genetic Variation on Chromatin State and Gene Expression Reveals Loci That Control Ground State Pluripotency.

Mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) cultured in the presence of LIF occupy a ground state with highly active pluripotency-associated transcriptional and epigenetic circuitry. However, ground state pluripotency in some inbred strain backgrounds is unstable in the absence of ERK1/2 and GSK3 inhibition. Using an unbiased genetic approach, we dissect the basis of this divergent response to extracellular cues by profiling gene expression and chromatin accessibility in 170 genetically heterogeneous mESCs.

Mitotic chromosome alignment ensures mitotic fidelity by promoting interchromosomal compaction during anaphase.

Chromosome alignment at the equator of the mitotic spindle is a highly conserved step during cell division; however, its importance to genomic stability and cellular fitness is not understood. Normal mammalian somatic cells lacking KIF18A function complete cell division without aligning chromosomes. These alignment-deficient cells display normal chromosome copy numbers in vitro and in vivo, suggesting that chromosome alignment is largely dispensable for maintenance of euploidy.

Multiple inputs into a posterior-specific regulatory network in the Ciona notochord.

The gene regulatory networks underlying Ciona notochord fate specification and differentiation have been extensively investigated, but the regulatory basis for regionalized expression within the notochord is not understood. Here we identify three notochord-expressed genes, C11.331, C12.

Diagnostic bone marrow sampling in cats.

Unlabelled: Practical relevance: Hematologic disorders are relatively common in cats, as inflammatory, immune-mediated and infectious diseases have the potential to impact erythroid, myeloid and thrombopoietic lines within the bone marrow. Clinical challenges: Clinicians often benefit from information obtained from bone marrow cytology and histopathology in diagnosing hematologic disorders in feline patients. However, these sampling procedures are ones that many veterinarians are intimidated by and thus not comfortably performing in clinical practice.

Behavioral Emergency Response Team: Implementation Improves Patient Safety, Staff Safety, and Staff Collaboration.

Background: Staff members working on our nonmental health (non-MH) units (i.e., medical-surgical [MS] units) were not educated in recognizing or deescalating behavioral emergencies.

Fluid Therapy: Options and Rational Selection.

Administration of appropriate types and volumes of parenteral fluids is of paramount importance when treating sick and debilitated patients, especially those fighting critical illness. Fluid selection and accurate calculations must be performed logically and accurately to maximize positive outcomes. Knowledge of fluid types, as well as the complex relationship of the body's fluid compartments, helps clinicians develop rational fluid therapy plans for their patients.

Single-Particle Plasmon Voltammetry (spPV) for Detecting Anion Adsorption.

Nanoparticle and thin film surface plasmons are highly sensitive to electrochemically induced dielectric changes. We exploited this sensitivity to detect reversible electrochemical potential-driven anion adsorption by developing single-particle plasmon voltammetry (spPV) using plasmonic nanoparticles. spPV was used to detect sulfate electroadsorption to individual Au nanoparticles.

Hepatocutaneous syndrome in Shih Tzus: 31 cases (1996-2014).

Objective: To characterize findings in Shih Tzus with progressive superficial necrolytic dermatitis and degenerative vacuolar hepatopathy consistent with hepatocutaneous syndrome.

Design: Retrospective case series.

Animals: 31 Shih Tzus.

From tunable core-shell nanoparticles to plasmonic drawbridges: Active control of nanoparticle optical properties.

The optical properties of metallic nanoparticles are highly sensitive to interparticle distance, giving rise to dramatic but frequently irreversible color changes. By electrochemical modification of individual nanoparticles and nanoparticle pairs, we induced equally dramatic, yet reversible, changes in their optical properties. We achieved plasmon tuning by oxidation-reduction chemistry of Ag-AgCl shells on the surfaces of both individual and strongly coupled Au nanoparticle pairs, resulting in extreme but reversible changes in scattering line shape.