Publications by authors named "J F Douglass"

Article Synopsis
  • Lymphatic filariasis (LF) leads to severe physical and mental health challenges, requiring lifelong care and significantly impacting the lives of affected individuals in Malawi.
  • Through qualitative research, including 21 life-history interviews, the study explores how mental distress is linked to LF and examines how enhanced self-care practices can alleviate this burdensome syndemic relationship.
  • The findings highlight barriers such as inadequate healthcare access, social stigma, and gender inequalities, suggesting that tailored interventions focusing on the needs of those affected are essential for improving LF care and overall well-being.
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Providing and improving the care of patients suffering from lymphedema remains an essential goal for the clinical management of populations affected by lymphatic filariasis. Although the Essential Package of Care (EPC) recommended by the WHO leads to important positive benefits for many of these lymphedema patients, it is important to continue to address the challenges that remain both in quantifying these effects and in ensuring optimal care. This report, based on the authors' scientific and field experience, focuses on the impact and significance of lymphedema, its clinical presentation, current treatment approaches, and the importance of lymphedema care to the Global Program to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis.

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Two types of engineered T cells have been successfully used to treat patients with cancer, one with an antigen recognition domain derived from antibodies [chimeric antigen receptors (CARs)] and the other derived from T cell receptors (TCRs). CARs use high-affinity antigen-binding domains and costimulatory domains to induce T cell activation but can only react against target cells with relatively high amounts of antigen. TCRs have a much lower affinity for their antigens but can react against target cells displaying only a few antigen molecules.

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Background: Reported outcomes in patients with primary immunodeficiency (PID) infected by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have been variable owing to a combination of viral strain heterogeneity, differences in patient populations and health systems, and local availability of vaccination and specific COVID-19 therapies. There are few reports on the experience of Australian patients with PID during the pandemic.

Objectives: In this retrospective study, we describe the baseline characteristics and short-term outcomes of patients with PID who were infected by COVID-19 and known to the Royal Melbourne Hospital, a major tertiary center in Victoria, Australia.

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Plant microbiomes are known to serve several important functions for their host, and it is therefore important to understand their composition as well as the factors that may influence these microbial communities. The microbiome of has only recently been explored, and studies to-date have primarily focused on characterizing the microbiome of plants in a single region. Here, we present the first characterization of the composition of the microbial communities of across a wide geographical range spanning three distinct regions with varying physicochemical conditions.

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