SARS-CoV-2 delta variant in African lions (Panthera leo) and humans at Utah's Hogle Zoo, USA, 2021-22.

Aims: We conducted a One Health investigation to assess the source and transmission dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 infection in African lions (Panthera leo) at Utah's Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake City from October 2021 to February 2022.

Methods And Results: Following observation of respiratory illness in the lions, zoo staff collected pooled faecal samples and individual nasal swabs from four lions. All specimens tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).

SARS-CoV-2 morbidity, treatment interventions, and vaccination practices in tigers (Panthera tigris ssp) in North American zoos.

Objective: Evaluate SARS-CoV-2 morbidity, mortality, clinical signs, treatment interventions, and vaccination practices in tigers under professional care.

Animals: Amur (Panthera tigris altaica), Sumatran (Panthera tigris sumatrae), and Malayan (Panthera tigris jacksoni) tigers managed under the Tiger Species Survival Plan (SSP).

Methods: A retrospective, voluntary online survey was sent to all North American zoos holding SSP tigers between January 2020 and June 2023.

Fragmentation of Care in Pancreatic Cancer: Effects on Receipt of Care and Survival.

Background: The impact of fragmentation of care (FC), i.e., receipt of care at > 1 institution, on treatment of pancreatic cancer is unknown.

Palliative Therapies in Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer: Does Medicaid Expansion Make a Difference?

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of medicaid expansion (ME) on receipt of palliative therapies in metastatic pancreatic cancer patients.

Patients And Methods: A difference-in-differences (DID) approach was used to analyze patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer identified from the National Cancer Database diagnosed during two time periods: pre-expansion (2010-2012) and post-expansion (2014-2016). Patients diagnosed while residing in ME states were compared with those in non-ME states.

Neurovascular Dysfunction in Diverse Communities With Health Disparities-Contributions to Dementia and Alzheimer's Disease.

Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) are an expanding worldwide crisis. In the absence of scientific breakthroughs, the global prevalence of ADRD will continue to increase as more people are living longer. Racial or ethnic minority groups have an increased risk and incidence of ADRD and have often been neglected by the scientific research community.

All-cause unplanned readmissions in the United States: insights from the Nationwide Readmission Database.

Background: There are few studies looking into adult, all-cause and age-group-specific unplanned readmissions. The predictors of such unplanned readmissions for all inpatient encounters remain obscure.

Aims: To describe the incidence and factors associated with unplanned readmissions in all inpatient encounters in the United States.

Reproductive suppression of giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) under managed care using a GnRH immunological product.

Giraffe present unique contraception challenges as males persistently pursue females during estrus. Year-round pursuit during frequent recurring estrus can pose significant risk under slippery conditions. Complete ovarian suppression is a useful tool in giraffe because it eliminates estrous behavior, interest from the male, and controls reproduction.

Transcriptional Regulation of Transforming Growth Factor β1 by Glucose: Investigation into the Role of the Hexosamine Biosynthesis Pathway.

Background: The hexosamine biosynthesis pathway (HBP) is hypothesized to mediate many of the adverse effects of hyperglycemia. We have shown previously that increased flux through this pathway leads to induction of the growth factor transforming growth factor-α (TGF-α) and to insulin resistance in cultured cells and transgenic mice. TGF-β is regulated by glucose and is involved in the development of diabetic nephropathy.

Identifying and Overcoming Roadblocks that Limit the Translation of Research Findings to the Achievement of Health Equity.

Almost two decades ago, the Institute of Medicine's Clinical Research Roundtable commented on the major challenges of moving health related basic science discovery to the clinical setting. The roadblocks identified included challenges in evaluating a discovery's application to human disease, and, if justified, getting that application out to the general population. The obstacles to achieving this translation of discovery to improvements in human health remain today and are most evident in populations at highest risk for inequitably poor health.

Using B isotopes and B/Ca in corals from low saturation springs to constrain calcification mechanisms.

Ocean acidification is expected to negatively impact calcifying organisms, yet we lack understanding of their acclimation potential in the natural environment. Here we measured geochemical proxies (δB and B/Ca) in Porites astreoides corals that have been growing for their entire life under low aragonite saturation (Ω: 0.77-1.

Species-specific calcification response of Caribbean corals after 2-year transplantation to a low aragonite saturation submarine spring.

Coral calcification is expected to decline as atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration increases. We assessed the potential of Porites astreoides, Siderastrea siderea and Porites porites to survive and calcify under acidified conditions in a 2-year field transplant experiment around low pH, low aragonite saturation (Ω) submarine springs. Slow-growing S.

Research Apprenticeship and Its Potential as a Distinct Model of Peer Research Practice.

Background: Three models of peer research have emerged: advisory, employment, and partner. We propose a fourth model, the "research apprentice" prototype conceived as a postsecondary workforce development avenue for members of disadvantaged communities.

Objectives: We introduce the research apprenticeship experience and its potential contributions to the fields of health equity and translational research.

The Family Meal Challenge: A Faith-Based Intervention to Empower Families.

African Americans have increased rates of overweight and obesity and are least likely to participate in family meals compared with other racial groups. A Family Meal Challenge (FMC) was developed with the objective of empowering individuals to eat healthy meals together as a family. The FMC was presented through four classes in three churches, two faith-based ministries, and two community service programs in health disparity zip codes.

A Multigenerational Strategy to Transform Health Education into Community Action.

Background: The National Institute for Minority Health and Health Disparities funded Centers of Excellence to address health disparities through research, education and professional training, and community engagement. This article summarizes a decade of multigenerational educational programing embedded in the Community Engagement Core (CEC) of the National Institute for Minority Health and Health Disparities-funded Center for Healthy Communities-Center of Excellence at the University of South Alabama.

Objectives: Our objective is to demonstrate how community-based participatory research (CBPR) initiated the multigenerational approach, uniting the community health education and the educational pipeline programs, and transformed a traditional professional symposium into a mechanism to increase community participation and action.

The effect of health insurance coverage and the doctor-patient relationship on health care utilization in high poverty neighborhoods.

African Americans have higher rates of mortality than whites who are the same age and sex. We hypothesize that in low socioeconomic status neighborhoods, having health insurance coverage and a regular health care provider increases the likelihood of receiving diagnostic tests for cardiovascular disease and diabetes. We use data from a random two-stage cluster sample of 230 adults living in high poverty census tracts to examine the effects of insurance coverage and having a regular doctor on the likelihood receiving diagnostic tests for high cholesterol, high blood sugar, and blood pressure.

Obesity Stigma and Bias.

Overweight and obesity are escalating in epidemic proportions in the United States. Individuals with overweight and obesity are often reluctant to seek medical help, not only for weight reduction but also for any health issue because of perceived provider discrimination. Providers who are biased against individuals with obesity can hinder our nation's effort to effectively fight the obesity epidemic.

MAMMARY GLAND ADENOCARCINOMA IN A MALE BORNEAN ORANGUTAN (PONGO PYGMAEUS).

An adult male Bornean orangutan ( Pongo pygmaeus ) was diagnosed with invasive, poorly differentiated grade 9/9 mammary gland adenocarcinoma from a subcutaneous mass that was surgically removed during a routine preventative health examination. The tumor was tested for estrogen and progesterone receptors, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), and HER2 fluorescence in situ hybridization (HER2 FISH). Whole blood was tested for breast cancer 1 (BRCA1) and breast cancer 2 (BRCA2) genes.

Consolidating the Academic End of a Community-Based Participatory Research Venture to Address Health Disparities.

Although there is strong support for community engagement and community-based participatory research (CBPR) from public health entities, medical organizations, and major grant-funding institutions, such endeavors often face challenges within academic institutions. Fostering the interest, skills, and partnerships to undertake participatory research projects and truly impact the community requires an interdisciplinary team with the competencies and values to engage in this type of research. Discussed in this article is how a CBPR-focused team evolved at a southern university, with emphasis on the activities that supported group identity, contributed to its evolution, and positioned the group to speak with authority in promoting CBPR as a tool for addressing health disparities.

and Loci Identified through Large-Scale Exome Chip Analysis Regulate Kidney Development and Function.

Genome-wide association studies have identified >50 common variants associated with kidney function, but these variants do not fully explain the variation in eGFR. We performed a two-stage meta-analysis of associations between genotypes from the Illumina exome array and eGFR on the basis of serum creatinine (eGFRcrea) among participants of European ancestry from the CKDGen Consortium (: 111,666; : 48,343). In single-variant analyses, we identified single nucleotide polymorphisms at seven new loci associated with eGFRcrea (, , and ; <3.

Recruitment and Succession in a Tropical Benthic Community in Response to In-Situ Ocean Acidification.

Ocean acidification is a pervasive threat to coral reef ecosystems, and our understanding of the ecological processes driving patterns in tropical benthic community development in conditions of acidification is limited. We deployed limestone recruitment tiles in low aragonite saturation (Ωarag) waters during an in-situ field experiment at Puerto Morelos, Mexico, and compared them to tiles placed in control zones over a 14-month investigation. The early stages of succession showed relatively little difference in coverage of calcifying organisms between the low Ωarag and control zones.

Test-Retest Reliability of the Child Occupational Self-Assessment (COSA).

We examined the test-retest reliability of the Child Occupational Self-Assessment (COSA). Fifty-two children ages 6-12 yr completed the COSA on two separate occasions 7-14 days apart. Participant data were analyzed using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs).