Development and validation of an all-in-one rabies virus Bat-Clade genomic sequencing and host identification protocol.

Rabies virus (RABV), remains a significant public health concern, with bat-maintained lineages accounting for all currently documented cases in Brazil. Despite the availability of pharmacological prophylaxis for humans and animals, the high genetic diversity of RABV in diverse natural bat hosts and continued circulation in multiple animals pose challenges for effective surveillance. Here, we developed and validated a novel, rapidly deployable amplicon-based sequencing approach for RABV genomic surveillance.

Mapping in silico genetic networks of the KMT2D tumour suppressor gene to uncover novel functional associations and cancer cell vulnerabilities.

Background: Loss-of-function (LOF) alterations in tumour suppressor genes cannot be directly targeted. Approaches characterising gene function and vulnerabilities conferred by such mutations are required.

Methods: Here, we computationally map genetic networks of KMT2D, a tumour suppressor gene frequently mutated in several cancer types.

Deep learning enables accurate soft tissue tendon deformation estimation in vivo via ultrasound imaging.

Image-based deformation estimation is an important tool used in a variety of engineering problems, including crack propagation, fracture, and fatigue failure. These tools have been important in biomechanics research where measuring in vitro and in vivo tissue deformations are important for evaluating tissue health and disease progression. However, accurately measuring tissue deformation in vivo is particularly challenging due to limited image signal-to-noise ratio.

Rhabdomyolysis Risk: The Dangers of Tribulus Terrestris, an Over-the-Counter Supplement.

BACKGROUND Over-the-counter (OTC) supplement use is a very common practice within the United States. Supplements are not tightly regulated by the Food and Drug Administration. There are many case reports involving OTC supplement adverse effects and medication interactions, but there remains minimal clinical research regarding these subjects.

Controlled human exposures to diesel exhaust or particle-depleted diesel exhaust with allergen modulates transcriptomic responses in the lung.

The evidence associating traffic-related air pollution (TRAP) with allergic asthma is growing, but the underlying mechanisms for this association remain unclear. The airway epithelium is the primary tissue exposed to TRAP, hence understanding its interactions with TRAP and allergen is important. Diesel exhaust (DE), a paradigm of TRAP, consists of particulate matter (PM) and gases.

Odorant receptors for floral- and plant-derived volatiles in the yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae).

Adult mosquitoes require regular sugar meals, including nectar, to survive in natural habitats. Both males and females locate potential sugar sources using sensory proteins called odorant receptors (ORs) activated by plant volatiles to orient toward flowers or honeydew. The yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus, 1762), possesses a large gene family of ORs, many of which are likely to detect floral odors.

Odorant receptors for floral- and plant-derived volatiles in the yellow fever mosquito, (Diptera: Culicidae).

Adult mosquitoes require regular sugar meals, usually floral nectar, to survive and flourish in natural habitats. Both males and females locate potential sugar sources using sensory proteins called odorant receptors activated by plant volatiles that facilitate orientation toward flowers or honeydew. The Yellow Fever mosquito, (Linnaeus, 1762), possesses a large repertoire of odorant receptors, many of which are likely to support floral odor detection and nectar-seeking.

Variants in transient receptor potential channels and toll-like receptors modify airway responses to allergen and air pollution: a randomized controlled response human exposure study.

Background: Environmental co-exposure to allergen and traffic-related air pollution is common globally and contributes to the exacerbation of respiratory diseases. Individual responses to environmental insults remain variable due to gene-environment interactions.

Objective: This study examined whether single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in lung cell surface receptor genes modifies lung function change and immune cell recruitment in allergen-sensitized individuals exposed to diesel exhaust (DE) and allergen.

A conserved odorant receptor underpins borneol-mediated repellency in culicine mosquitoes.

The use of essential oils derived from the camphor tree to repel mosquitoes is an ancient practice that originated in Southeast Asia and gradually spread to China and across Europe via the Maritime Silk Road. The olfactory mechanisms by which these oils elicit avoidance behavior are unclear. Here we show that plant bicyclic monoterpenoids and borneol specifically activate a neural pathway that originates in the orphan olfactory receptor neuron of the capitate peg sensillum in the maxillary palp, and projects to the mediodorsal glomerulus 3 in the antennal lobe.

Carboxylic acids that drive mosquito attraction to humans activate ionotropic receptors.

The mosquito, Aedes aegypti, is highly anthropophilic and transmits debilitating arboviruses within human populations and between humans and non-human primates. Female mosquitoes are attracted to sources of blood by responding to odor plumes that are emitted by their preferred hosts. Acidic volatile compounds, including carboxylic acids, represent particularly salient odors driving this attraction.

Fibroblast Activation Protein-Targeted Radioligand Therapy for Treatment of Solid Tumors.

Fibroblast activation protein (FAP) has received increasing attention as an oncologic target because of its prominent expression in solid tumors but virtual absence from healthy tissues. Most radioligand therapies (RLTs) targeting FAP, however, suffer from inadequate tumor retention or clearance from healthy tissues. Herein we report a FAP-targeted RLT comprising an FAP6 ligand conjugated to DOTA and an albumin binder (4--iodophenylbutyric acid, or IP) for enhanced pharmacokinetics.

Lung adenocarcinoma promotion by air pollutants.

A complete understanding of how exposure to environmental substances promotes cancer formation is lacking. More than 70 years ago, tumorigenesis was proposed to occur in a two-step process: an initiating step that induces mutations in healthy cells, followed by a promoter step that triggers cancer development. Here we propose that environmental particulate matter measuring ≤2.

Functional conservation of Anopheline linalool receptors through 100 million years of evolution.

Insects rely on olfactory receptors to detect and respond to diverse environmental chemical cues. Detection of semiochemicals by these receptors modulates insect behavior and has a direct impact on species fitness. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are released by animals and plants and can provide contextual cues that a blood meal host or nectar source is present.

Disc geometry measurement methods affect reported compressive mechanics by up to 65.

Mechanical testing is a valuable tool for assessing intervertebral disc health, but the wide range of testing protocols makes it difficult to compare results from different studies. Normalizing mechanical properties by disc geometry allows for such comparisons, but there is little consistency in the methods by which disc geometry is measured. As such, we hypothesized that methods used to measure disc geometry would impact reported mechanical properties.

Recurring germline mosaicism in a family due to reversion of an inherited derivative chromosome 8 from an 8;21 translocation with interstitial telomeric sequences.

Background: Mosaicism for chromosomal structural abnormalities, other than marker or ring chromosomes, is rarely inherited.

Methods: We performed cytogenetics studies and breakpoint analyses on a family with transmission of mosaicism for a derivative chromosome 8 (der(8)), resulting from an unbalanced translocation between the long arms of chromosomes 8 and 21 over three generations.

Results: The proband and his maternal half-sister had mosaicism for a der(8) cell line leading to trisomy of the distal 21q, and both had Down syndrome phenotypic features.

'Better together: collaborative working between emergency medicine and critical care': 1 year on, is this framework still relevant?

In 2021 the Royal College of Emergency Medicine and the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine collaborated to launch the 'Better together' framework to improve outcomes for critically unwell patients in the resuscitation room. One year on from the launch, it remains more relevant than ever.

Effect of traffic-related air pollution on cough in adults with polymorphisms in several cough-related genes.

With prevalent global air pollution, individuals with certain genetic predispositions and sensitivities are at of higher risk of developing respiratory symptoms including chronic cough. Studies to date have relied on patient-filled questionnaires in epidemiological studies to evaluate the gene-by-environment interactions. In a controlled human exposure study, we evaluated whether genetic risk score (GRS) based on cough-related single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are associated with a cough count over 24 h post-exposure to diesel exhaust (DE), a model for traffic-related air pollution.

Dibutyl phthalate exposure alters T-cell subsets in blood from allergen-sensitized volunteers.

Phthalates are ubiquitous environmental contaminants associated with allergic disease in epidemiological and animal studies. This investigation aims to support these associations by interrogating systemic immune effects in allergen-sensitized volunteers after controlled indoor air exposure to a known concentration of dibutyl phthalate (DBP). The phthalate-allergen immune response (PAIR) study enrolled 16 allergen-sensitized participants to a double-blinded, randomized, crossover exposure to two conditions (DBP or control air for 3 hr), each followed immediately by inhaled allergen challenge.

Multi-Year Study of the Chemical and Sensory Effects of Microwave-Assisted Extraction of Musts and Stems in Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah Wines from the Central Coast of California.

Microwave technology (MW) was applied to musts and stems over three consecutive vintages in Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah wines from California (USA). Stems were added to musts at a rate of 50 and 100% (50% Stems and 100% Stems), either as untreated or after MW (50% MW Stems and 100% MW Stems). Stem additions lowered ethanol (up to 1.

Torque- and Muscle-Driven Flexion Induce Disparate Risks of In Vitro Herniation: A Multiscale and Multiphasic Structure-Based Finite Element Study.

The intervertebral disc is a complex structure that experiences multiaxial stresses regularly. Disc failure through herniation is a common cause of lower back pain, which causes reduced mobility and debilitating pain, resulting in heavy socioeconomic burdens. Unfortunately, herniation etiology is not well understood, partially due to challenges in replicating herniation in vitro.