Letting Go of the Status Quo: One Program's Experience Discontinuing Ethics Committees and Creating Alternative Structures for Engagement.

AbstractThe authors describe their Ethics Program's transition from utilizing ethics committees to instead implementing a three-initiative structure consisting of Ethics Grand Rounds, an Ethics Liaison Network, and an Ethics Advisory Group. They first outline the history of ethics committees. Then, they discuss the history of their Ethics Program and the challenges that ethics committees posed.

Catalytic peptide-based coacervates for enhanced function through structural organization and substrate specificity.

Liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) in living cells provides innovative pathways for synthetic compartmentalized catalytic systems. While LLPS has been explored for enhancing enzyme catalysis, its potential application to catalytic peptides remains unexplored. Here, we demonstrate the use of coacervation, a key LLPS feature, to constrain the conformational flexibility of catalytic peptides, resulting in structured domains that enhance peptide catalysis.

Aphasia Awareness Among Spiritual Healthcare Providers in the United States.

Spiritual healthcare providers (e.g., chaplains) working in healthcare settings across the United States were surveyed with the goals of (1) understanding their awareness of aphasia (a language disorder affecting reading, writing, verbal communication, and auditory comprehension); (2) determining whether they have received any training in aphasia and what type of training has been received; (3) whether they altered their approach to assessing the spiritual well-being of a person with aphasia; and, (4) what tools were used to augment communication.

Emergent symmetry in TbTerevealed by ultrafast reflectivity under anisotropic strain.

We report ultrafast reflectivity measurements of the dynamics of the order parameter of the charge density wave (CDW) in TbTeunder anisotropic strain. We observe an increase in the frequency of the amplitude mode with increasing tensile strain along the-axis (which drives the lattice into > , withandthe lattice constants), and similar behavior for tensile strain along( > ). This suggests that both strains stabilize the corresponding CDW order and further support the near equivalence of the CDW phases oriented in- and-axis, in spite of the orthorhombic space group.

Nonthermal Bonding Origin of a Novel Photoexcited Lattice Instability in SnSe.

Lattice dynamics measurements are often crucial tools for understanding how materials transform between different structures. We report time-resolved x-ray scattering-based measurements of the nonequilibrium lattice dynamics in SnSe, a monochalcogenide reported to host a novel photoinduced lattice instability. By fitting interatomic force models to the fluence dependent excited-state dispersion, we determine the nonthermal origin of the lattice instability to be dominated by changes of interatomic interactions along a bilayer-connecting bond, rather than of an intralayer bonding network that is of primary importance to the lattice instability in thermal equilibrium.

Ultrafast X-Ray Scattering Reveals Composite Amplitude Collective Mode in the Weyl Charge Density Wave Material (TaSe_{4})_{2}I.

We report ultrafast x-ray scattering experiments of the quasi-1D charge density wave (CDW) material (TaSe_{4})_{2}I following ultrafast infrared photoexcitation. From the time-dependent diffraction signal at the CDW sidebands we identify a 0.11 THz amplitude mode derived primarily from a transverse acoustic mode of the high-symmetry structure.

Surviving critical COVID-19: How functionality, physical, mental and cognitive outcomes evolve?

Purpose: To analyze the long-term consequences of critical COVID-19, regarding physical, mental, cognitive and functional impairments, and to describe its evolution through time.

Methods: Prospective cohort study, with consecutive inclusion of patients admitted due to SARS-CoV-2 to intensive care units(ICU) of a tertiary-care center, between May/2020 and September/2021. All included patients were included in Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine(PRM) inpatient programs during ICU stay.

High-harmonic generation from artificially stacked 2D crystals.

We report a coherent layer-by-layer build-up of high-order harmonic generation (HHG) in artificially stacked transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDC) crystals in their various stacking configurations. In the experiments, millimeter-sized single crystalline monolayers are synthesized using the gold foil-exfoliation method, followed by artificially stacking on a transparent substrate. High-order harmonics up to the 19th order are generated by the interaction with a mid-infrared (MIR) driving laser.

Critical COVID-19 and neurological dysfunction - a direct comparative analysis between SARS-CoV-2 and other infectious pathogens.

Objective: To evaluate whether critical SARS-CoV-2 infection is more frequently associated with signs of corticospinal tract dysfunction and other neurological signs, symptoms, and syndromes, than other infectious pathogens.

Methods: This was a prospective cohort study with consecutive inclusion of patients admitted to intensive care units due to primary infectious acute respiratory distress syndrome requiring invasive mechanical ventilation > 48 hours. Eligible patients were randomly assigned to three investigators for clinical evaluation, which encompassed the examination of signs of corticospinal tract dysfunction.

Ethical Challenges in Staffing: The Importance of Building Moral Muscle.

Addressing ethics issues in healthcare is essential to living out an organization's mission, vision, and values. In addition to exacerbating existing ethical dilemmas, the COVID-19 pandemic raised many new and complex questions for leaders and their organizations. Ethical issues related to the workforce require a deliberate and comprehensive consideration of values.

Automation of mass vaccination against COVID-19 at an academic health center.

As vaccines against COVID-19 became available for distribution, the University of Miami addressed several challenges to facilitate vaccine allocation to the highest risk employees, patients, and students. Advanced use of technology allowed for the automation of key processes in the mass vaccination effort, which expedited vaccine outreach and scheduling, while maintaining routine delivery of healthcare services. The University's employees were initially prioritized for vaccination; employees who opted in were stratified into 5 vaccine administration phases.

Facemasks during aerobic exercise: Implications for cardiac rehabilitation programs during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Introduction And Objectives: During the COVID-19 pandemic, among the safety measures adopted, use of facemasks during exercise training sessions in cardiac rehabilitation programs raised concerns regarding possible detrimental effects on exercise capacity. Our study examined the cardiorespiratory impact of wearing two types of the most common facemasks during treadmill aerobic training.

Methods: Twelve healthy health professionals completed three trials of a symptom-limited Bruce treadmill protocol: Without a mask, with a surgical mask and with a respirator.

All-Optical Probe of Three-Dimensional Topological Insulators Based on High-Harmonic Generation by Circularly Polarized Laser Fields.

We report the observation of an anomalous nonlinear optical response of the prototypical three-dimensional topological insulator bismuth selenide through the process of high-order harmonic generation. We find that the generation efficiency increases as the laser polarization is changed from linear to elliptical, and it becomes maximum for circular polarization. With the aid of a microscopic theory and a detailed analysis of the measured spectra, we reveal that such anomalous enhancement encodes the characteristic topology of the band structure that originates from the interplay of strong spin-orbit coupling and time-reversal symmetry protection.

Facemasks during aerobic exercise: Implications for cardiac rehabilitation programs during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Introduction And Objectives: During the COVID-19 pandemic, among the safety measures adopted, use of facemasks during exercise training sessions in cardiac rehabilitation programs raised concerns regarding possible detrimental effects on exercise capacity. Our study examined the cardiorespiratory impact of wearing two types of the most common facemasks during treadmill aerobic training.

Methods: Twelve healthy health professionals completed three trials of a symptom-limited Bruce treadmill protocol: Without a mask, with a surgical mask and with a respirator.

Corneal structure and endothelial morphological changes after uneventful phacoemulsification in type 2 diabetic and nondiabetic patients.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to compare corneal structure and endothelial morphological changes after uneventful phacoemulsification cataract surgery between type 2 diabetic and nondiabetic patients and to determine the preoperative and intraoperative factors that may predict greater endothelial cell density loss.

Methods: Forty-five diabetic pa-tients (45 eyes) and 43 controls (43 eyes) with age-related cataract were enrolled in this prospective observational study. Corneal (thickness and volume) and anterior segment parameters were measured by Scheimpflug tomography; endothelial cell density and morphology (coefficient of variation of cell size, hexagonal cells) were recorded using noncontact specular microscopy.

Optogenetic stimulation of the basolateral amygdala accelerates acquisition of object-context associations.

The basolateral complex of the amygdala (BLA) is capable of modulating memory and is thought to do so via projections to regions such as the hippocampus. The present study used optogenetic stimulation of glutamatergic projection neurons in the BLA as rats learned object-context associations during a well-studied hippocampus-dependent memory task. Relative to a control condition, optogenetic BLA stimulation resulted in the accelerated acquisition of when stimulation was delivered following correct choices but not when it was delivered during the intertrial interval.

Evaluation of Corneal Structure and Endothelial Morphological Characteristics in Type 2 Diabetic and Non-Diabetic Patients.

Purpose: To compare corneal structure and endothelial morphological features between patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) and non-diabetic patients; and determine if the DM duration, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels, and diabetic retinopathy (DR) stage affect corneal morphological properties.

Patients And Methods: Sixty diabetic patients and 47 age- and sex-matched controls were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. DM group was analyzed according disease duration, HbA1c levels, and presence of retinopathy.

Agreement between IOLMaster 500 and Pentacam HR for keratometry assessment in type 2 diabetic and non-diabetic patients.

Aim: To evaluate inter-device agreement of anterior keratometry obtained by the IOLMaster 500 and Pentacam HR in type 2 diabetic and non-diabetic patients.

Methods: Corneal measurements were sequentially performed in 60 diabetes mellitus (DM) and 48 age and sex-matched controls undergoing cataract surgery. Variables recorded included flat and steep keratometry, mean keratometry (K), astigmatism magnitude, axis location, J0 and J45 components.

Decreased cued fear discrimination learning in female rats as a function of estrous phase.

Relative to males, female rats can show enhanced contextual fear generalization (demonstrating a fear response in a safe or neutral context) dependent on estrogen receptor activation. The current experiment aimed to extend this finding to cued fear conditioning. Females in low-estrogen phases of the estrous cycle showed good discrimination, similar to males, between a conditional stimulus that predicted shock (CS+) and an equally familiar one that did not (CS-), while females in the proestrus (high estrogen) phase demonstrated similar levels of fear between the CS+ and CS-.

Corneal Biomechanical Changes After Uneventful Phacoemulsification in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and Patients Without Diabetes.

Purpose: To compare corneal biomechanical changes after uneventful phacoemulsification cataract surgery between type 2 diabetic (DM) and nondiabetic patients.

Methods: Forty-four diabetic (44 eyes) and 44 (44 eyes) age and sex-matched non-DM controls with age-related cataract were enrolled in this prospective observational study. Corneal hysteresis (CH), corneal resistance factor (CRF), and corneal-compensated intraocular pressure (IOPcc) were evaluated by using the ocular response analyzer; central corneal thickness was recorded by using the Pentacam HR.

Intraocular Pressure and Anterior Segment Morphometry Changes after Uneventful Phacoemulsification in Type 2 Diabetic and Nondiabetic Patients.

Purpose: To compare intraocular pressure (IOP) and anterior segment (AS) morphometry changes after uneventful phacoemulsification between nonglaucomatous eyes with open-angles from patients with and without type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) and determine which factors may predict greater IOP-lowering effect.

Methods: Forty-five diabetic (45 eyes) and 44 (44 eyes) age- and sex-matched non-DM patients with age-related cataract were enrolled in this prospective observational study. Goldmann applanation tonometry and AS Scheimpflug tomography (Pentacam® HR) were performed preoperatively and at 1- and 6-month follow-up.

Femtosecond x-ray diffraction reveals a liquid-liquid phase transition in phase-change materials.

In phase-change memory devices, a material is cycled between glassy and crystalline states. The highly temperature-dependent kinetics of its crystallization process enables application in memory technology, but the transition has not been resolved on an atomic scale. Using femtosecond x-ray diffraction and ab initio computer simulations, we determined the time-dependent pair-correlation function of phase-change materials throughout the melt-quenching and crystallization process.

Structural and Biomechanical Corneal Differences between Type 2 Diabetic and Nondiabetic Patients.

Purpose: To analyze and compare corneal structural and biomechanical properties, characterized by corneal hysteresis (CH) and resistance factor (CRF), between patients with and without type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM), and determine the main ocular variables that influence them.

Methods: Sixty diabetic and 48 age- and sex-matched non-DM patients were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. The DM group was analyzed according to DM duration ( View Article and Find Full Text PDF