Quantifying and Characterizing Distributive Conjugal Transfer in Mycobacterium smegmatis.

Horizontal gene transfer (HGT) in prokaryotes disseminates genetic information throughout a population and can facilitate adaptation and evolution of the species. Mycobacteria utilize an atypical method of conjugation called distributive conjugal transfer (DCT), which results in mosaic genomes and the potential for accelerated evolution beyond that enabled by the more classical oriT-mediated conjugation. The following is a description of the basic DCT protocol, some possible variations of the assay, and examples of downstream applications to better understand mycobacterial functions.

Imaging of morphological and biochemical hallmarks of apoptosis with optimized optogenetic tools.

Creation of optogenetic switches for specific activation of cell death pathways can provide insights into apoptosis and could also form a basis for noninvasive, next-generation therapeutic strategies. Previous work has demonstrated that cryptochrome 2 (Cry2)/cryptochrome-interacting β helix-loop-helix (CIB), a blue light-activated protein-protein dimerization module from the plant , together with BCL2-associated X apoptosis regulator (BAX), an outer mitochondrial membrane-targeting pro-apoptotic protein, can be used for light-mediated initiation of mitochondrial outer membrane permeabilization (MOMP) and downstream apoptosis. In this work, we further developed the original light-activated Cry2-BAX system (hereafter referred to as OptoBAX) by improving the photophysical properties and light-independent interactions of this optogenetic switch.

Loneliness among cancer caregivers: A narrative review.

Objective: Providing care to a loved one with cancer places demands on caregivers that result in changes to their daily routines and disruptions to their social relationships that then contribute to loneliness. Though caregivers' psychosocial challenges have been well studied, loneliness - a determinant of health - has not been well studied in this population. This narrative review sought to describe the current evidence on loneliness among caregivers of cancer patients.

menthol sensitivity and the Precambrian origins of transient receptor potential-dependent chemosensation.

Transient receptor potential (TRP) cation channels are highly conserved, polymodal sensors which respond to a wide variety of stimuli. Perhaps most notably, TRP channels serve critical functions in nociception and pain. A growing body of evidence suggests that transient receptor potential melastatin (TRPM) and transient receptor potential ankyrin (TRPA) thermal and electrophile sensitivities predate the protostome-deuterostome split (greater than 550 Ma).

Using videos in a smartphone app logbook to aid obstetricians and gynaecologists with reflection following critical events.

Introduction: Reflection is essential for continuous professional development. Many opportunities to reflect during training in obstetrics and gynaecology are not utilised. A Smartphone App (), allows doctors training in obstetrics and gynaecology to view videos to aid reflection.

A Systematic Review Protocol Investigating Community Gardening Impact Measures.

Existing community gardening research has tended to be exploratory and descriptive, utilising qualitative or mixed methodologies to explore and understand community garden participation. While research on community gardening attracts growing interest, the empirical rigour of measurement scales and embedded indicators has received comparatively less attention. Despite the extensive body of community gardening literature, a coherent narrative on valid, high quality approaches to the measurement of outcomes and impact across different cultural contexts is lacking and yet to be comprehensively examined.

Photophysical properties of organogold(i) complexes bearing a benzothiazole-2,7-fluorenyl moiety: selection of ancillary ligand influences white light emission.

Herein we report three new gold(i) complexes with a benzothiazole-2,7-fluorenyl moiety bound through a gold-carbon σ-bond and either an N-heterocyclic carbene or organophosphine as ancillary ligands. The complexes have been characterized by NMR spectroscopy, X-ray crystallography, high resolution mass spectrometry, elemental analysis, and static and time-resolved optical spectroscopy. These compounds absorb almost strictly in the ultraviolet region and exhibit dual-luminescence following three freeze-pump-thaw cycles in toluene.

Knee Osteoarthritis: Alternative Range of Motion Treatment.

The number of total knee arthroplasty (TKA) surgeries is expected to soar, and an effective nonoperative rehabilitation program is needed. We began treating patients with knee osteoarthritis with a range-of-motion (ROM) -based rehabilitation program that was delivered systematically, starting with ROM exercises for knee extension, followed by exercises for flexion and swelling reduction, before starting a strengthening program. In a group of 396 patients, significant improvements were made in knee extension, flexion, and KOOS subjective scores for pain, symptoms, activities of daily living, sport, and quality of life.

Obstetric violence: Clinical staff perceptions from a video of simulated practice.

Objectives: Obstetric Violence refers to professional deficiencies in maternity care. Examples include non-dignified care, discrimination and abandonment of care. Obstetric violence has been described in both low and high resource settings.

What factors influence community wound care in the UK? A focus group study using the Theoretical Domains Framework.

Objectives: Research has found unwarranted variation across community wound care services in the North of England, with underuse of evidence-based practice and overuse of interventions where there is little or no known patient benefit. This study explored the factors that influence care in community settings for people with complex wounds, to develop a deeper understanding of the current context of wound care and variation in practice.

Design: Qualitative focus group study using the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) to structure the questions, prompts and analyses.

I'll Stay a While: An Unusual Case of a Chronic Migrated Upper Extremity Endovascular Stent.

• Migrated endovascular stent used for dialysis found in the right atrium. • Chronic embedded stent in the right atrium. • Echocardiographic evidence of embedded stent in the right atrium.

What Is the Effect of Body Mass Index on Subjective Outcome Following Vaginal Hysterectomy for Prolapse?

Purpose: Obesity is a significant risk factor for pelvic organ prolapse (POP), but the effects of obesity on outcomes of surgery for POP are poorly understood. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between POP symptomatology, subjective outcomes of surgery and body mass index (BMI) in women undergoing vaginal hysterectomy for POP.

Methods: Pre- and postoperative data from a validated pelvic floor questionnaire (electronic Personal Assessment Questionnaire-Pelvic Floor) were collected prospectively from 60 women undergoing vaginal hysterectomy for POP.

Preventing pressure injury in nursing homes: developing a care bundle using the Behaviour Change Wheel.

Objective: To develop, with nurse specialists and nursing home care staff, a theory and evidence-informed care bundle for use in nursing home settings.

Design: The development of a care bundle.

Methods: We undertook a detailed, multistaged and theoretically driven development process.

Development and initial validation of an electronic personal assessment questionnaire for menstrual, pelvic pain and gynaecological hormonal disorders (ePAQ-MPH).

Objective: Menstrual disorders, pelvic-pain and gynaecological hormonal conditions in women can have a significant impact on quality-of-life. Reliable assessment and monitoring of these intimate conditions is challenging. Patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) can be invaluable in providing objective assessment, but no comprehensive PROM assessing all of these conditions and their impact on quality of life is currently available.

Self-management in women with stress incontinence: strategies, outcomes and integration into clinical care.

The objective of this review is to present and discuss up-to-date conservative treatment strategies for the management of stress urinary incontinence (SUI) in women. This review aims to provide an overview of the importance of initial self-management strategies and conservative management options for women with SUI and how these treatments can be integrated into clinical practice. The various treatment modalities available including pelvic floor physiotherapy, biofeedback, and neuromuscular electrical stimulation devices, in addition to lifestyle changes which can significantly affect symptoms, are discussed.

Patient-reported outcome measures which assess body image in urogynaecology patients: a systematic review.

Aim: Urogynaecological conditions can have a significant impact on body image. Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) are widely used in urogynaecology to assess symptoms and their impact on quality of life. This systematic review aimed to identify currently available PROMs used to assess body image within a urogynaecological population and to identify the most psychometrically robust and appropriate PROM tools to use in this context.

Preventing pressure ulcers in nursing homes using a care bundle: A feasibility study.

Pressure ulcers can be painful and negatively affect health-related quality of life and healthcare costs. Many people living in nursing homes are at risk of developing a pressure ulcer. Nursing home staff, tissue viability nurses and researchers have co-designed the first theory and evidence-informed care bundle specifically for nursing homes, which consists of three prevention practices (skin inspection, support surfaces, repositioning) and a range of behaviour change techniques to promote these practices.

How and Why Consumers View "Little Cigars" as Legally-Defined Cigarettes.

Objective: To test if consumers perceive filtered "little cigars" as legally-defined cigarettes and identify features they associate with cigarettes but not little cigars and vice versa.

Methods: 1,030 adults ( age 31.1 years, 34% male, 25% non-white) were randomized in a 2×2 between-subjects experiment to view images of filtered "little cigars" that varied by package labeling (cigars: yes/no) and the product displayed in front of the packaging (filtered "little cigar" or cigarette).

The decision partner in healthcare decision-making: A concept analysis.

Background: The decision partner concept emerged to describe someone who contributes to healthcare decision-making with a patient. There is a need for greater precision and consensus surrounding its conceptual definition and use in broader populations.

Objective: To define and describe the decision partner concept within the context of healthcare decision-making.

Decreased complexity of glucose dynamics in diabetes in rhesus monkeys.

Until recently, preclinical and clinical work on diabetes has focused on the understanding of blood glucose elevation and its detrimental metabolic sequelae. The advent of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) technology now allows real time monitoring of blood glucose levels as a time series, and thus the exploration of glucose dynamics at short time scales. Previous work has shown decreases in the complexity of glucose dynamics, as measured by multiscale entropy (MSE) analysis, in diabetes in humans, mice, and rats.

Effects of hyaluronidase on ropivacaine or bupivacaine regional anaesthesia of the canine pelvic limb.

Objective: To determine the effect of hyaluronidase on time to onset and offset of anaesthesia in ropivacaine or bupivacaine femoral-ischiatic nerve blocks.

Study Design: Blinded randomized crossover trial.

Animals: Eight dogs.