Cost of care associated with utilization of telehealth in clinical trials.

Objective: Due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, telehealth was incorporated into standard oncologic care and clinical trial operations. We sought to analyze whether telehealth changed cost of care compared to traditional clinical trial operations.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of gynecologic oncology patients enrolled in therapeutic clinical trials at a National Cancer Institute designated center, comparing the cost of cancer care on trial pre-TELEhealth (9/30/2019 to 3/15/2020) versus during TELEhealth (3/16/2020 to 8/20/2020).

Implementation of a Standardized Protocol for Postpartum Anemia: A Prospective Cohort Study.

Objective:  Implementation of standardized protocols for antepartum anemia increases intravenous iron (IVFe) use and improves predelivery hemoglobin (Hb). However, this condition is often overlooked and inadequately treated in postpartum care settings. We aimed to determine if implementation of a standardized protocol for postpartum anemia increases postpartum IVFe use and affects clinical outcomes.

A fluorescence viewer for rapid molecular assay readout in space and low-resource terrestrial environments.

Fluorescence-based assays provide sensitive and adaptable methods for point of care testing, environmental monitoring, studies of protein abundance and activity, and a wide variety of additional applications. Currently, their utility in remote and low-resource environments is limited by the need for technically complicated or expensive instruments to read out fluorescence signal. Here we describe the Genes in Space Fluorescence Viewer (GiS Viewer), a portable, durable viewer for rapid molecular assay readout that can be used to visualize fluorescence in the red and green ranges.

Validation of Cell-Free Protein Synthesis Aboard the International Space Station.

Cell-free protein synthesis (CFPS) is a rapidly maturing in vitro gene expression platform that can be used to transcribe and translate nucleic acids at the point of need, enabling on-demand synthesis of peptide-based vaccines and biotherapeutics as well as the development of diagnostic tests for environmental contaminants and infectious agents. Unlike traditional cell-based systems, CFPS platforms do not require the maintenance of living cells and can be deployed with minimal equipment; therefore, they hold promise for applications in low-resource contexts, including spaceflight. Here, we evaluate the performance of the cell-free platform BioBits aboard the International Space Station by expressing RNA-based aptamers and fluorescent proteins that can serve as biological indicators.