Considerations for Contraception Following Spinal Cord Injury: A Systematic Review.

Introduction: Counseling and education on women's health, specifically contraception, following spinal cord injury (SCI) is an important component of care for women with SCI. While a plethora of available contraceptive options exists, research in this area is scarce.

Objectives: This systematic review assesses the quality and quantity of research on contraception for individuals with SCI.

The association of multiple sclerosis, traumatic brain injury, and spinal cord injury to acute and long COVID-19 outcomes.

Background: Although persons with disabilities are a high-risk group, little is known about the association between specific disabling conditions and acute or long COVID outcomes.

Objective: To examine the severity of acute SARS-CoV-2 infection and post-COVID outcomes among people with a preexisting diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS), spinal cord injury (SCI), or traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study using the TrinetX Research Database, a large representative database of medical records.

"I'll fill in the gaps": perspectives of HHAs on promoting aging in place for older adults with low incomes.

Older adults with low incomes experience disproportionate rates of cognitive and functional impairment and an elevated risk of nursing home admission. Home health aides (HHAs) may have insight into how to optimize aging in place for this population, yet little is known about HHAs' perspectives on this topic. We conducted 6 focus groups with 21 English-speaking and 10 Spanish-speaking HHAs in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

Headache, Fever, and Myalgias in an HIV-Positive Male with a History of Tuberculosis: Epstein-Barr Virus Aseptic Meningitis.

Background: We describe a case of EBV aseptic meningitis in a patient with HIV with an extensive history of prior infections and exposures. Detailed Case Description: A 35-year-old man with a history of HIV, syphilis, and partially treated tuberculosis presented with headache, fever, and myalgias. He reported recent exposure to dust from a construction site and had sexual contact with a partner with active genital lesions.

Race, ethnicity, and utilization of outpatient rehabilitation for treatment of post COVID-19 condition.

Introduction: Outpatient rehabilitation is recommended in the treatment of post coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) condition. Although racial and ethnic disparities in the incidence and severity of COVID-19 have been well documented, little is known about the use of outpatient rehabilitation among patients with post COVID-19 condition.

Objective: To examine factors associated with outpatient rehabilitation use following COVID-19 and to ascertain whether differential incidence of sequelae explain variation in post COVID-19 rehabilitation utilization by race and ethnicity.

Analysis of the FLVR motif of SHIP1 and its importance for the protein stability of SH2 containing signaling proteins.

Binding of proteins with SH2 domains to tyrosine-phosphorylated signaling proteins is a key mechanism for transmission of biological signals within the cell. Characterization of dysregulated proteins in cell signaling pathways is important for the development of therapeutic approaches. The AKT pathway is a frequently upregulated pathway in most cancer cells and the SH2-containing inositol 5-phosphatase SHIP1 is a negative regulator of the AKT pathway.

High resolution bioprinting of multi-component hydrogels.

Materials capable of directing cell fate by providing spatially-graded mechanical and biomolecular cues are critically important in the reconstitution of living matter. Herein, we report a multi-component inkjet bioprinting method that allows for spatially varying composition and network properties in cell-instructive glycosaminoglycan (GAG)-based biohybrid and pure poly(ethylene glycol) hydrogels with unprecedented (50 μm) resolution. The principle relies on the covalent crosslinking of different polymeric precursors through a very rapid bio-orthogonal Michael type addition scheme adjusted in ways to occur during the fusion of bio-ink droplets prior to and upon contact with the target.

MTrack: Automated Detection, Tracking, and Analysis of Dynamic Microtubules.

Microtubules are polar, dynamic filaments fundamental to many cellular processes. In vitro reconstitution approaches with purified tubulin are essential to elucidate different aspects of microtubule behavior. To date, deriving data from fluorescence microscopy images by manually creating and analyzing kymographs is still commonplace.

Generation and validation of murine monoclonal and camelid recombinant single domain antibodies specific for human pancreatic glycoprotein 2.

Pancreatic secretory zymogen-granule membrane glycoprotein 2 (GP2) has been identified as a major autoantigenic target in Crohn's disease patients. It was reported recently that a long (GP2a) and a short (GP2b) isoform of GP2 exist and that in the outcome of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) GP2-specific autoantibodies probably appear as new serological markers for diagnosis and therapeutic monitoring. To investigate this further and in order to establish diagnostic tools for the discrimination of both GP2 isoforms, a set of different murine monoclonal and camelid recombinant single domain antibodies (camelid VHH) was generated and validated in various enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) formats, immunofluorescence on transgenic cell lines and immunohistochemistry on monkey pancreas tissue sections.

Serological diagnosis and prognosis of severe acute pancreatitis by analysis of serum glycoprotein 2.

Background: Glycoprotein 2 (GP2), the pancreatic major zymogen granule membrane glycoprotein, was reported to be elevated in acute pancreatitis in animal models.

Methods: Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) were developed to evaluate human glycoprotein 2 isoform alpha (GP2a) and total GP2 (GP2t) as specific markers for acute pancreatitis in sera of 153 patients with acute pancreatitis, 26 with chronic pancreatitis, 125 with pancreatic neoplasms, 324 with non-pancreatic neoplasms, 109 patients with liver/biliary disease, 67 with gastrointestinal disease, and 101 healthy subjects. GP2a and GP2t levels were correlated with procalcitonin and C-reactive protein in 152 and 146 follow-up samples of acute pancreatitis patients, respectively.

Autoantibodies to asialoglycoprotein receptor (ASGPR) in patients with autoimmune liver diseases.

Background: The liver asialoglycoprotein receptor (ASGPR) is the only organ-specific autoantigenic target in autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) patients and corresponding autoantibodies (Abs) have been suggested aiding in the serology of autoimmune liver diseases (ALD).

Methods: A novel enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) employing purified rabbit ASGPR was used to detect ASGPR Abs in patients with ALD and controls. ASGPR Ab was determined in sera from 172 patients with AIH type 1, AIH type 2 (n=42), primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) (n=113), cryptogenic liver disease (n=30), toxic liver disease (n=11), primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) (n=27), HCV infection (n=25), non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (n=43) and 100 blood donors.

Conductance measurements of individual polypyrrole nanobelts.

We present here a study on the electrical conduction properties of individual polypyrrole nanobelts by using conductive atomic force microscopy and discuss a general effect while probing soft materials. A length-dependent analysis demonstrates that the tip could induce local defects into the polymer structure and, thus diminishes the electrical conduction.

Near-field photochemical and radiation-induced chemical fabrication of nanopatterns of a self-assembled silane monolayer.

A general concept for parallel near-field photochemical and radiation-induced chemical processes for the fabrication of nanopatterns of a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) of (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (APTES) is explored with three different processes: 1) a near-field photochemical process by photochemical bleaching of a monomolecular layer of dye molecules chemically bound to an APTES SAM, 2) a chemical process induced by oxygen plasma etching as well as 3) a combined near-field UV-photochemical and ozone-induced chemical process, which is applied directly to an APTES SAM. All approaches employ a sandwich configuration of the surface-supported SAM, and a lithographic mask in form of gold nanostructures fabricated through colloidal sphere lithography (CL), which is either exposed to visible light, oxygen plasma or an UV-ozone atmosphere. The gold mask has the function to inhibit the photochemical reactions by highly localized near-field interactions between metal mask and SAM and to inhibit the radiation-induced chemical reactions by casting a highly localized shadow.

Anti-hnRNP B1 (RA33) autoantibodies are associated with the clinical phenotype in Russian patients with rheumatoid arthritis and systemic sclerosis.

Heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoproteins (hnRNPs) are potent autoantigenic targets in systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases (SARD). Loss of tolerance to the RA33 complex consisting of hnRNP A2 and its alternatively spliced variants B1 and B2 has been the interest of rheumatologists. A novel ELISA for the detection of anti-hnRNP B1 autoantibodies has been developed to investigate the prevalence thereof in 397 patients with SARD, including patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), spondyloarthropathy (SPA), juvenile chronic arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), systemic sclerosis (SSc), and Sjögren's syndrome (SS), in comparison to 174 controls.

Coat thickness dependent adsorption of hydrophobic molecules at polymer brushes.

We study the adsorption properties of hydrophobic test particles at polymer brushes with different coat thicknesses via mesoscopic dissipative particle dynamics simulations. Our findings indicate stronger free energies of adsorption at thin polymer brushes. The reason for this difference is mainly given by entropic contributions due to different elastic deformations of the coatings.

Modification of surfaces by chemical transfer printing using chemically patterned stamps.

The preparation of well-defined molecular monolayers and their patterning on the microscale and nanoscale are key aspects of surface science and chemical nanotechnology. In this article, we describe the modification of amine-functionalized surfaces using a new type of contact printing based on chemically patterned, flat PDMS stamps. The stamps have discrete areas with surface-bond tetrafluorophenol (TFP) groups, which allow the attachment of carboxylic acids in the presence of coupling agents such as diisopropylcarbodiimide (DIC).

AFM-based force spectroscopy on polystyrene brushes: effect of brush thickness on protein adsorption.

Herein we present a study on nonspecific binding of proteins at highly dense packed hydrophobic polystyrene brushes. In this context, an atomic force microscopy tip was functionalized with concanavalin A to perform single-molecule force spectroscopy measurements on polystyrene brushes with thicknesses of 10 and 60 nm, respectively. Polystyrene brushes with thickness of 10 nm show an almost two times stronger protein adsorption than brushes with a thickness of 60 nm: 72 pN for the thinner and 38 pN for the thicker layer, which is in qualitative agreement with protein adsorption studies conducted macroscopically by fluorescence microscopy.

Biosupramolecular nanowires from chlorophyll dyes with exceptional charge-transport properties.

Conductive tubes: Self-assembled nanotubes of a bacteriochlorophyll derivative are reminiscent of natural chlorosomal light-harvesting assemblies. After deposition on a substrate that consists of a non-conductive silicon oxide surface (see picture, brown) and contacting the chlorin nanowires to a conductive polymer (yellow), they show exceptional charge-transport properties.

Which comorbidity classification best fits elderly candidates for radical prostatectomy?

Objectives: Comorbidity assessment may assist in the treatment choice for elderly men with prostate cancer. There is, however, no consensus on the best comorbidity classification for this purpose. In this study, we used a heuristic approach to identify an optimal comorbidity classification in elderly men selected for radical prostatectomy.

Aggregation behaviour of peptide-polymer conjugates containing linear peptide backbones and multiple polymer side chains prepared by nitroxide-mediated radical polymerization.

A series of peptides with an alternating sequence of alkoxyamine conjugated lysine and glycine residues were synthesized by classical solution phase peptide coupling. The resulting peptides containing up to eight alkoxyamine moieties were used as initiators in nitroxide-mediated polymerization (NMP) to obtain peptide-polymer conjugates with well defined linear peptide backbones and a defined number of polymeric side chains. Polymerization of styrene and N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAM) occurred in a highly controlled fashion.

Medicines for Malaria Venture: sustaining antimalarial drug development.

The Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) is committed to discovering, developing and delivering new drugs for malaria. Founded in 1999 as a nonprofit organization bringing private sector management methods to bear on a global public health problem, MMV is today recognized as a leader among the public-private partnerships working on diseases for the developing world. Together with its many partners, MMV manages the world's largest malaria research and development portfolio, covering the innovation spectrum from basic drug discovery to late-stage development.

Herbal medicine with curcuma and fumitory in the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome: a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind clinical trial.

Objective: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common functional disorder for which there is no reliable medical treatment. The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of two herbal remedies used in the treatment of IBS.

Material And Methods: In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, IBS patients were randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups: 1) Curcuma xanthorriza 60 mg daily (curcuma group) (n=24), 2) Fumaria officinalis 1500 mg daily (fumitory group) (n=24) and 3) placebo (n=58).