Nourishing Change in Houston, Texas: Exploring Grocery Shopping Behaviors and Fruit and Vegetable Consumption Among Low-Income Families in the Brighter Bites Program.

Objective: We qualitatively examine the grocery shopping behaviors and fruit and vegetable consumption of low-income families participating in the Brighter Bites program in Houston, Texas.

Design: We used a single-group observational study design. We used (1) purposive sampling of schools and (2) convenience sampling of parents/caregivers to recruit participants.

Enhancing Meat Analog Texture Using Wet-Spun Fibroin Protein Fibers: A Novel Approach to Mimic Whole-Muscle Meat.

The increasing demand for protein-rich, plant-based foods has driven the development of meat analogs that closely mimic the texture and mouthfeel of animal meat. While plant-based fibrils and electrospun silk fibroin fibers have been explored for texture enhancement and scaffolding in both meat analogs and cell-based meats, the use of wet-spun fibroin protein fibers as a food ingredient remains underexplored. This study investigates the potential of wet-spun recombinant fibroin fibers to enhance the textural properties of meat analogs.

Preparation and Characterization of Egg White Protein-Based Composite Edible Coating Containing Thymol Nanoemulsion.

In this study, thymol-loaded nanoemulsion (THYNE) was incorporated into a mixture of egg white protein and hyaluronic acid to prepare antibacterial biopolymer coatings. The oil phase of the nanoemulsion (NE) was prepared by mixing different mass ratios of thymol and corn oil. NE was formed using ultrasonic emulsification, and the physicochemical properties of the NE were investigated.

Training protocol and calibration of the International Caries Detection and Assessment System in a school-based clinical trial of elementary school-age children.

Objectives: This paper demonstrates International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS) training procedures and inter/intra-examiner reliability for lesion severity, activity, and filling criteria in an elementary school setting.

Methods: ICDAS training was conducted in December 2021 prior to a school-based cluster-randomized controlled trial. A total of 59 children (6-8 years old) in grades 1-2 from one school in Houston, Texas were recruited.

Oncological Outcomes Following Robotic Postchemotherapy Retroperitoneal Lymph Node Dissection for Testicular Cancer: A Worldwide Multicenter Study.

Background And Objective: The feasibility and safety of a robotic approach for postchemotherapy retroperitoneal lymph node dissection (PC-RPLND) in testicular cancer have been demonstrated, but data on long-term oncological outcomes of this procedure are limited. Our aim was to evaluate oncological outcomes following robotic PC-RPLND in this setting.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study included consecutive patients with testicular cancer treated with robotic PC-RPLND at 11 academic centers worldwide between 2011 and 2023.

Cloning and sequencing analysis of whole genome in yeast.

Cloning and transfer of long-stranded DNA in the size of a bacterial whole genome has become possible by recent advancements in synthetic biology. For the whole genome cloning and whole genome transplantation, bacteria with small genomes have been mainly used, such as mycoplasmas and related species. The key benefits of whole genome cloning include the effective maintenance and preservation of an organism's complete genome within a yeast host, the capability to modify these genome sequences through yeast-based genetic engineering systems, and the subsequent use of these cloned genomes for further experiments.

The Impact of potential 'confounders' on the diagnostic sensitivity of circulating free DNA in management of FIT+ patients: a pilot study.

Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) has long been established as a useful diagnostic and prognostic tool in a variety of clinical settings, ranging from infectious to cardiovascular and neoplastic diseases. However, non-neoplastic diseases can act as confounders impacting on the amount of cfDNA shed in bloodstream and on technical feasibility of tumour derived free circulating nucleic acids selecting patients with cancer. Here, we investigated the potential impact of other pathological processes in the clinical stratification of 637 FIT+ patients.

Design, protocol and baseline data of Nurturing Healthy Teachers, a cluster non-randomized controlled trial to improve the health, well-being, and food security of preschool and elementary school teachers in Houston, Texas.

Background: We present the conceptual framework, design, and study measures of Nurturing Healthy Teachers, a quasi-experimental study to examine the short- and long-term effectiveness of the Nurturing Healthy Teachers (NHT) nutrition intervention on food insecurity, dietary behaviors, mental health and cardiometabolic health among preschool and elementary school teachers.

Methods: A convenience sample of 28 elementary schools with pre-kindergarten and elementary classrooms were recruited in Houston, Texas. Nurturing Healthy Teacher intervention includes Brighter Bites, an evidence-based coordinated school health program that combines access to fresh produce and nutrition education, and Create Healthy Futures, a web-based nutrition education program that targets nutrition knowledge, self-efficacy, mindfulness, and social support to create healthy habits among teachers.

A Randomized Phase 2 KINETIC Trial Evaluating SAGE-324/BIIB124 in Individuals with Essential Tremor.

Background: SAGE-324/BIIB124 is an investigational positive allosteric modulator of GABA receptors.

Objective: KINETIC (NCT04305275), a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, phase 2 study, evaluated SAGE-324/BIIB124 in individuals with essential tremor (ET).

Methods: Individuals aged 18 to 80 years were randomly assigned 1:1 to orally receive 60 mg of SAGE-324/BIIB124 or placebo once daily for 28 days.

Design and protocol of a clinic-based comparative effectiveness randomized controlled trial to determine the feasibility and effectiveness of food prescription program strategies in at-risk pediatric populations.

Background: Produce prescription programs are gaining traction in the U.S.; however, data on the impact of such approaches in pediatric populations are limited.

SNAP Participation Moderates Fruit and Vegetable Intake Among Minority Families With Low Income.

Objective: To examine the moderation effect of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participation on the baseline fruit and vegetable (FV) intake of Hispanic/Latino and African American children and parents participating in the Brighter Bites program.

Design: Cross-sectional.

Setting: Houston, Austin, and Dallas, TX; Washington, DC; and Southwest Florida.

Emergency residents' self-perceived readiness for practice: the association of milestones, entrustable professional activities, and professional identities-a multi-institutional survey.

Background: As a successful innovation, competency-based medical education and its assessment tools continue to be a key strategy in training future doctors and tracking their performance trajectories. Linked to professional identity, evidence suggests that clinical competence is related to thinking, acting and feeling like a physician. Thus, incorporating the values and attitudes of healthcare professions as part of their professional identity in the clinical workplace improves professional performance.

Dietary behaviours during COVID-19 among households at risk for food insecurity.

The objective of the present study was to examine associations between variables of COVID-19-related concerns and changes in fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption among a sample of participants from the Brighter Bites program at risk for food insecurity. Cross-sectional data were collected during April-June 2020 using a rapid-response survey to understand social needs, COVID-19-related concerns and diet-related behaviours among families with children participating in Brighter Bites ( 1777) in the 2019-2020 school year at risk for food insecurity, within the surrounding Houston, Dallas, Austin, Texas area; Southwest Florida; Washington, D.C.

Fruit and Vegetable Intake and Home Nutrition Environment among Low-Income Minority Households with Elementary-Aged Children.

Racial/ethnic and socioeconomic differences were shown to have an influence on child fruit and vegetable intake. This study examined the associations between parent and child fruit and vegetable intake and the home nutrition environment among Hispanic/Latino and African American families. Through a cross-sectional study design, self-reported surveys ( = 6074) were obtained from adult-child dyad participants enrolled in Brighter Bites, an evidence-based health promotion program, in the fall of 2018.

Fruit and Vegetable Shopping Behavior and Intake among Low-Income Minority Households with Elementary-Aged Children.

Low-income children and families do not meet the recommendations for fruit and vegetable (FV) intake. This study aimed to assess the association between FV shopping behavior and child FV intake through a cross-sectional study design analyzing self-reported surveys (n = 6074) from adult-child dyads of Hispanic/Latino and African American participants enrolled in the Brighter Bites co-op program. Through quantitative mixed effects linear regression models, accounting for school-level clustering and adjusting for covariates, child FV intake was positively associated with shopping for FV at large chain grocery stores (p < 0.

Design for a cluster randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effects of the CATCH Healthy Smiles school-based oral health promotion intervention among elementary school children.

Background: The top two oral diseases (tooth decay and gum disease) are preventable, yet dental caries is the most common childhood disease with 68% of children entering kindergarten having tooth decay. CATCH Healthy Smiles is a coordinated school health program to prevent cavities for students in kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd grade, and is based on the framework of Coordinated Approach to Child Health (CATCH), an evidence-based coordinated school health program. CATCH has undergone several cluster-randomized controlled trials (CRCT) demonstrating sustainable long-term effectiveness in incorporating the factors surrounding children, in improving eating and physical activity behaviors, and reductions in obesity prevalence among low-income, ethnically diverse children.

Germanium-Tin (GeSn) Metal-Semiconductor-Metal (MSM) Near-Infrared Photodetectors.

Narrow-bandgap germanium-tin (GeSn) is employed to fabricate metal-semiconductor-metal (MSM) near-infrared photodetectors with low-dark currents and high responsivity. To reduce the dark current, the SiO layer is inserted in between the metal and semiconductor to increase the barrier height, albeit at the expense of photocurrent reduction. To couple more incident light into the absorption layer to enhance the responsivity, the distributed Bragg reflectors (DBRs) are deposited at the bottom of the GeSn substrate while placing the anti-reflection layer on the surface of the absorption layer.

Food Insecurity among Low-Income Households with Children Participating in a School-Based Fruit and Vegetable Co-Op.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of a nutrition intervention on food insecurity among low-income households with children. Data were collected from 371 parent−child dyads in a quasi-experimental evaluation study of a 1-year intervention (n = 6 intervention schools receiving Brighter Bites, n = 6 wait-list control schools), and longitudinal follow-up of the intervention group 2 years post-intervention in Houston, Texas. Data were collected at three timepoints: at baseline and 1 year for all participants, and at 2 year follow-up for the intervention group (the wait-list control group received the intervention during that time).

The Spectral Response of the Dual Microdisk Resonator Based on BaTiO Resistive Random Access Memory.

With the resistive random access memory (ReRAM) devices based on the Al/BaTiO (BTO)/ITO structure fabricated at hand, by cross-analyzing the resistive memory characteristics in terms of various barium titanate (BTO) film thicknesses, it is found that the device with 60 nm thick BTO can be switched more than 425 times, while the corresponding SET/RESET voltage, the on-off ratio, and the retention time are -0.69 V/0.475 V, 10, and more than 10 seconds, respectively.

A cluster-randomized controlled trial to assess the impact of a nutrition intervention on dietary behaviors among early care and education providers: The Create Healthy Futures study.

Create Healthy Futures is a self-paced, web-based intervention on improving healthy eating behaviors among Early Care and Education (ECE) providers. We examined the impact of web-based Create Healthy Futures on diet quality measured by the Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI) 2010, dietary behaviors, and related psychosocial and environmental factors among ECE providers. A cluster randomized controlled trial (CRCT) was implemented with baseline surveys administered from October 2019-January 2020, intervention implementation from April-May 2020, and post-intervention from May 2020-August 2020.

Bridging the Gap: Using Consensus to Explore Entrustment Decisions and Feedback Receptivity in Competency-Based Emergency Medicine Residency Programs Through the Construction of a Q-Sample Incorporating a Delphi Technique.

Background: Recent changes in medical education calls for a shift toward student-centered learning. Therefore, it is imperative that clinical educators transparently assess the work-readiness of their medical residents through entrustment-based supervision decisions toward independent practice. Similarly, it is critical that medical residents are vocal about the quality of supervision and feedback they receive.

Food Insecurity and Health-Related Concerns Among Elementary Schoolteachers During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Introduction: US school systems underwent major upheaval, including closures, implementation of virtual and/or hybrid learning, and stringent infection mitigation protocols, during the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. We aimed to examine the association between food insecurity and perceived health, perceived stress, and social determinants of health concerns among elementary schoolteachers serving predominantly low-income children during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: Brighter Bites, a nonprofit organization that weekly distributes fresh fruits and vegetables and nutrition education materials to more than 300 schools serving racial and ethnic minority populations with low income, conducts annual surveys of participating teachers to help determine subsequent efforts to support schools and families during the school year.