Publications by authors named "J A Menchaca"

Purpose And Objectives: Significant barriers to the implementation of evidence-based policy exist. Establishing an infrastructure and resources to support this process at the state level can accelerate the translation of research into practice. This study describes the adaptation and initial evaluation of the Texas Research-to-Policy Collaboration (TX RPC) Project, focusing on the adaptation process, legislative public health policy priorities, and baseline researcher policy knowledge and self-efficacy.

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  • About 6-13% of women globally experience antenatal depression (AD), which can harm both mother and baby; the study explored the link between vitamin D deficiency and AD in pregnant women in Pelotas, Brazil.
  • A cross-sectional study analyzed blood samples from 180 pregnant women (50 with depression) to measure levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D, finding a significant association between vitamin D deficiency and AD.
  • The findings suggest that maintaining adequate vitamin D levels during pregnancy may help reduce the risk of AD and support maternal mental health, potentially benefiting child development as well.
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  • Mechanical properties are crucial for understanding cellular processes, particularly focusing on how viscoelastic properties relate to cellular mineralization.
  • The study utilized osteoblast-like cells in an osteogenic medium and examined the effects of hydroxyapatite and hydroxyapatite/silver composites on these properties through AFM relaxation experiments.
  • Results indicated that changes in viscoelastic properties during mineralization were influenced by HA and HA/Ag treatments, with HA/Ag notably enhancing cell fluidity, while also highlighting that fluidity and stiffness are independent parameters.
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Different methods and several physical models exist to study cell viscoelasticity with the atomic force microscope (AFM). In search of a robust mechanical classification of cells through AFM, in this work, viscoelastic parameters of the cancer cell lines MDA-MB-231, DU-145, and MG-63 are obtained using two methodologies; through force-distance and force-relaxation curves. Four mechanical models were applied to fit the curves.

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