Commensal-pathogen dynamics structure disease outcomes during Clostridioides difficile colonization.

Gastrointestinal colonization by Clostridioides difficile is common in healthcare settings and ranges in presentation from asymptomatic carriage to lethal C. difficile infection (CDI). We used a systems biology approach to investigate why patients colonized with C.

Commensal-pathogen dynamics structure disease outcomes during colonization.

Gastrointestinal colonization by is common in healthcare settings and ranges in clinical presentation from asymptomatic carriage to lethal infection (CDI). We used a systems biology approach to investigate why patients colonized with have a range of outcomes. Microbiota-humanization of germ-free mice with fecal samples from toxigenic C.

Racial Differences in Vaginal Fluid Metabolites and Association with Systemic Inflammation Markers among Ovarian Cancer Patients: A Pilot Study.

The vaginal microbiome differs by race and contributes to inflammation by directly producing or consuming metabolites or by indirectly inducing host immune response, but its potential contributions to ovarian cancer (OC) disparities remain unclear. In this exploratory cross-sectional study, we examine whether vaginal fluid metabolites differ by race among patients with OC, if they are associated with systemic inflammation, and if such associations differ by race. Study participants were recruited from the Ovarian Cancer Epidemiology, Healthcare Access, and Disparities Study between March 2021 and September 2022.

Plasma Metabolome Analysis Suggests That L-Arginine Supplementation Affects Microbial Activity Resulting in a Decrease in Trimethylamine N-oxide-A Randomized Controlled Trial in Healthy Overweight Adults with Cardiometabolic Risk Factors.

Background: The effects of supplementation with L-arginine (L-arg), the precursor of nitric oxide (NO), on vascular and cardiometabolic health have largely been explored. Whether other mechanisms of the action of L-arg exist remains unknown, as arginine metabolism is complicated.

Objective: We aimed to characterize the effect of low dose L-arg supplementation on overall human metabolism both in a fasting state and in response to an allostatic stress.

BoGH13A from Bacteroides ovatus represents a novel α-amylase used for Bacteroides starch breakdown in the human gut.

Members of the Bacteroidetes phylum in the human colon deploy an extensive number of proteins to capture and degrade polysaccharides. Operons devoted to glycan breakdown and uptake are termed polysaccharide utilization loci or PUL. The starch utilization system (Sus) is one such PUL and was initially described in Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron (Bt).

Association of reproductive risk factors and breast cancer molecular subtypes: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Associations between reproductive factors and breast cancer (BC) risk vary by molecular subtype (i.e., luminal A, luminal B, HER2, and triple negative/basal-like [TNBC]).

Microbiome-targeting therapies in the neonatal intensive care unit: safety and efficacy.

Microbiome-targeting therapies have received great attention as approaches to prevent disease in infants born preterm, but their safety and efficacy remain uncertain. Here we summarize the existing literature, focusing on recent meta-analyses and systematic reviews that evaluate the performance of probiotics, prebiotics, and/or synbiotics in clinical trials and studies, emphasizing interventions for which the primary or secondary outcomes were prevention of necrotizing enterocolitis, late-onset sepsis, feeding intolerance, and/or reduction in hospitalization length or all-cause mortality. Current evidence suggests that probiotics and prebiotics are largely safe but conclusions regarding their effectiveness in the neonatal intensive care unit have been mixed.

Gut pathogen colonization precedes bloodstream infection in the neonatal intensive care unit.

Bacterial bloodstream infections (BSIs) resulting in late-onset sepsis affect up to half of extremely preterm infants and have substantial morbidity and mortality. Bacterial species associated with BSIs in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) commonly colonize the preterm infant gut microbiome. Accordingly, we hypothesized that the gut microbiome is a reservoir of BSI-causing pathogenic strains that increase in abundance before BSI onset.

Development and Psychometric Evaluation of Healthcare Access Measures among Women with Ovarian Cancer.

Several proposed theoretical frameworks have defined the complex nature of healthcare access (HCA) [...

Single-molecule dynamics of surface lipoproteins in bacteroides indicate similarities and cooperativity.

The gut microbiota comprises hundreds of species with a composition shaped by the available glycans. The well-studied starch utilization system (Sus) is a prototype for glycan uptake in the human gut bacterium Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron (Bt). Each Sus-like system includes outer-membrane proteins, which translocate glycan into the periplasm, and one or more cell-surface glycoside hydrolases, which break down a specific (cognate) polymer substrate.

Association of lipid profile biomarkers with breast cancer by molecular subtype: analysis of the MEND study.

There is conflicting evidence on the role of lipid biomarkers in breast cancer (BC), and no study to our knowledge has examined this association among African women. We estimated odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) for the association of lipid biomarkers-total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and triglycerides-with odds of BC overall and by subtype (Luminal A, Luminal B, HER2-enriched and triple-negative or TNBC) for 296 newly diagnosed BC cases and 116 healthy controls in Nigeria. Each unit standard deviation (SD) increase in triglycerides was associated with 39% increased odds of BC in fully adjusted models (aOR: 1.

Associations of Healthcare Affordability, Availability, and Accessibility with Quality Treatment Metrics in Patients with Ovarian Cancer.

Background: Differential access to quality care is associated with racial disparities in ovarian cancer survival. Few studies have examined the association of multiple healthcare access (HCA) dimensions with racial disparities in quality treatment metrics, that is, primary debulking surgery performed by a gynecologic oncologist and initiation of guideline-recommended systemic therapy.

Methods: We analyzed data for patients with ovarian cancer diagnosed from 2008 to 2015 in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results-Medicare database.

Metabolic Syndrome and Risk of Breast Cancer by Molecular Subtype: Analysis of the MEND Study.

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is characterized by a cluster of biological irregularities. The purpose of this analysis was to examine the association of MetS with BC among Nigerian women, and for the first time evaluate this association by molecular subtype.

Materials And Methods: MetS was defined as having at least 3 out of 5 of: high blood pressure (≥ 130/85 mm Hg), reduced HDL (< 50 mg/dL), elevated triglyceride (> 150 mg/dL), high waist circumference (≥ 80 cm), and prior diagnosis of diabetes or elevated fasting glucose level (≥ 100 mg/dL).

Ovarian Cancer Epidemiology, Healthcare Access and Disparities (ORCHiD): methodology for a population-based study of black, Hispanic and white patients with ovarian cancer.

Introduction: Less than 40% of patients with ovarian cancer (OC) in the USA receive stage-appropriate guideline-adherent surgery and chemotherapy. Black patients with cancer report greater depression, pain and fatigue than white patients. Lack of access to healthcare likely contributes to low treatment rates and racial differences in outcomes.

Association of body composition with odds of breast cancer by molecular subtype: analysis of the Mechanisms for Established and Novel Risk Factors for Breast Cancer in Nigerian Women (MEND) study.

Background: The association between obesity and breast cancer (BC) has been extensively studied among US, European and Asian study populations, with often conflicting evidence. However, despite the increasing prevalence of obesity and associated conditions in Africa, the continent with the highest age-standardized BC mortality rate globally, few studies have evaluated this association, and none has examined in relation to molecular subtypes among African women. The current analysis examines the association between body composition, defined by body mass index (BMI), height, and weight, and BC by molecular subtype among African women.

Association of Life-Course Educational Attainment and Breast Cancer Grade in the MEND Study.

Background: Nigeria reports the highest age-standardized mortality rate for breast cancer (BC) among African countries and disproportionately high rates of high-grade cancer. Histological grade is a strong predictor of mortality, and evidence suggests that educational attainment influences cancer outcomes.

Objective: We characterize the association between educational trends across the life-course and BC grade at diagnosis.

Association of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and odds of breast cancer by molecular subtype: analysis of the MEND study.

Breast cancer (BC) in Nigeria is characterized by disproportionately aggressive molecular subtypes. C-reactive protein (CRP) is associated with risk and aggressiveness for several types of cancer. We examined the association of high-sensitivity CRP (hsCRP) with odds of BC by molecular subtype among Nigerian women.

Racial disparities in palliative care utilization among metastatic gynecological cancer patients living at last follow-up: An analysis of the National Cancer Data Base.

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network recommends palliative care should be integrated in to cancer care starting from cancer diagnosis. However, traditionally palliative care is prioritized for cancer patients at the end-of-life. In our main article titled "Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Palliative Care Utilization Among Gynecological Cancer Patients" we present data describing racial/ethnic disparities among metastatic gynecological cancer patients who were deceased at last follow-up.

RNA splicing and aggregate gene expression differences in lung squamous cell carcinoma between patients of West African and European ancestry.

Objectives: Despite disparities in lung cancer incidence and mortality, the molecular landscape of lung cancer in patients of African ancestry remains underexplored, and race-related differences in RNA splicing remain unexplored.

Materials And Methods: We identified differentially spliced genes (DSGs) and differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in biobanked lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC) between patients of West African and European ancestry, using ancestral genotyping and Affymetrix Clariom D array. DSGs and DEGs were validated independently using the National Cancer Institute Genomic Data Commons.

Racial and ethnic disparities in palliative care utilization among gynecological cancer patients.

Background: Palliative care (PC) is recommended for gynecological cancer patients to improve survival and quality-of-life. Our objective was to evaluate racial/ethnic disparities in PC utilization among patients with metastatic gynecologic cancer.

Methods: We used data from the 2016 National Cancer Database (NCDB) and included patients between ages 18-90 years with metastatic (stage III-IV) gynecologic cancers including, ovarian, cervical and uterine cancer who were deceased at last contact or follow-up (n = 124,729).

Patterns of de-novo metastasis and breast cancer-specific mortality by race and molecular subtype in the SEER population-based dataset.

Purpose: To examine patterns of de-novo metastases (mets) and association with breast cancer-specific mortality across subtypes and racial groups.

Methods: Non-Hispanic (NH) Black and NH-White patients ages 40 years and older with primary breast cancer (BC) between 2010 and 2015 were examined. Multilevel logistic regression and Cox proportional hazards models were used to assess (1) odds of de-novo mets to specific sites by subtype, and (2) association of subtype with risk of BC mortality among patients with de-novo mets by race.

Association of Allostatic Load with All-Cause andCancer Mortality by Race and Body Mass Index in theREGARDS Cohort.

Among 29,701 Black and White participants aged 45 years and older in the Reasons forGeographic and Racial Difference in Stroke (REGARDS) study, allostatic load (AL) was defined asthe sum score of established baseline risk-associated biomarkers for which participants exceeded aset cutoff point. Cox proportional hazard regression was utilized to determine the association of ALscore with all-cause and cancer-specific mortality, with analyses stratified by body-mass index, agegroup, and race. At baseline, Blacks had a higher AL score compared with Whites (Black mean ALscore: 2.

[Adverse obstetric and perinatal outcome with in vitro fertilization technology: A French nationwide population-based study].

Objectives: The objective of this study was to quantify the risk of maternal and perinatal morbidity with in vitro fertilization (IVF) technology compared to non-IVF pregnancies in a recent French national cohort.

Method: The data was extracted from the hospital information data system, including all pregnancies with a delivery from 2013 to 2016. The risks of preterm birth, maternal morbidity (venous and arterial thrombosis, gestational diabetes, vascular disorders, placenta previa, placenta abruption), hypotrophy and congenital malformation were compared in both groups in univariate and multivariate analysis after adjustment on the characteristics of women (age, parity, obesity, tobacco dependence, history of diabetes or high blood pressure), multiple deliveries and sex of children.

Alternative RNA Splicing as a Potential Major Source of Untapped Molecular Targets in Precision Oncology and Cancer Disparities.

Studies of alternative RNA splicing (ARS) have the potential to provide an abundance of novel targets for development of new biomarkers and therapeutics in oncology, which will be necessary to improve outcomes for patients with cancer and mitigate cancer disparities. ARS, a key step in gene expression enabling individual genes to encode multiple proteins, is emerging as a major driver of abnormal phenotypic heterogeneity. Recent studies have begun to identify RNA splicing-related genetic and genomic variation in tumors, oncogenes dysregulated by ARS, RNA splice variants driving race-related cancer aggressiveness and drug response, spliceosome-dependent transformation, and RNA splicing-related immunogenic epitopes in cancer.

[A consultation on the topic of "anxiety in the workplace" as a basis for prevention].

On the initiative of health insurance companies, a group of occupational health professionals has been formed in the Rhône-Alpes region. This has resulted in the creation of a facility dedicated to the management and prevention of anxiety in the workplace. Run by a multidisciplinary team, the facility welcomes professionals who are dealing with toxic situations in the workplace.