Understanding networks in rural Cambodian farming communities and how they influence antibiotic use: A mixed methods study.

Biosecurity and preventive animal health services in Cambodian smallholder backyard farming systems are often limited, leading to an over-reliance on antibiotics. However, data on factors influencing antibiotic use in these settings are lacking. We conducted a study in two rural Cambodian farming communities to investigate how social and contextual influences affect both human and animal antibiotic use behaviours.

Reinterpretation of Health Information in the Context of an Emerging Infectious Disease: A Digital Focus Group Study.

Background: Misinformation related to the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated global public concern and panic. The glut of information, or "infodemic," has caused concern for authorities due to its negative impacts on COVID-19 prevention and control, spurring calls for a greater scholarly focus on health literacy during the pandemic. Nevertheless, few studies have sought to qualitatively examine how individuals interpreted and assimilated health information at the initial wave of COVID-19 restrictions.

Using WhatsApp Focus Group Discussions to Collect Qualitative Data Collection During a Pandemic: Exploring Knowledge, Attitudes, and Perceptions of COVID-19 in Singapore.

This qualitative study aimed to explore Singapore residents' knowledge, attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors around COVID-19 as shaped by different information sources. Through utilizing WhatsApp as a means of conducting digital focus group discussions (FGDs), participants were involved in five consecutive days of discussions through both synchronous and asynchronous means. We found that the use of WhatsApp as a means of conducting FGDs not only served as a means of generating essential, time-sensitive data in the community, but also advanced the quality and quantity of data generated, democratized, and enhanced the participatory nature of FGDs, and facilitated the communication of potential issues around data privacy between facilitators and participants.

Public acceptability of COVID-19 control measures in Singapore, Hong Kong, and Malaysia: A cross-sectional survey.

Background: Several countries have implemented control measures to limit SARS-CoV-2 spread, including digital contact tracing, digital monitoring of quarantined individuals, and testing of travelers. These raise ethical issues around privacy, personal freedoms, and equity. However, little is known regarding public acceptability of these measures.

MST1 mediates the N-methyl-D-aspartate-induced excitotoxicity in mouse cortical neurons.

Excessive activation of the ionotropic N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor has been shown to cause abnormally high levels of Ca influx, thereby leading to excitotoxic neuronal death. In this study, exposure of mouse primary cortical neurons to NMDA resulted in the cleavage and activation of mammalian sterile 20-like kinase-1 (MST1), both of which were mediated by calpain 1. In vitro cleavage assay data indicated that calpain 1 cleaves out the autoinhibitory domain of MST1 to generate an active form of the kinase.

COVID-19 and the shifting organisation of sex work markets in Singapore.

While past studies have sought to capture how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted on the health and sexual lives of sex workers internationally, less attention has been paid to the reorganisation of sex markets as a result of COVID-19. We conducted a sequential exploratory mixed methods study using in-depth interviews, cyber ethnography and surveyor-administered structured surveys among sex workers. We report two key findings on how the pandemic has impacted sex markets in Singapore.

Contrasting SARS-CoV-2 epidemics in Singapore: cohort studies in migrant workers and the general population.

Importance: Since January 2020, Singapore has implemented comprehensive measures to suppress SARS-CoV-2. Despite this, the country has experienced contrasting epidemics, with limited transmission in the community and explosive outbreaks in migrant worker dormitories.

Objective: To estimate SARS-CoV-2 infection incidence among migrant workers and the general population in Singapore.

Public knowledge, attitudes and practices related to antibiotic use and resistance in Singapore: a cross-sectional population survey.

Objectives: The WHO's Global Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) includes increasing overall public awareness of appropriate antibiotic use and resistance as a key priority area. We aimed to measure public knowledge, attitudes and practices of antibiotics and antibiotic resistance in Singapore, as well as their healthcare-seeking behaviours relating to respiratory illnesses, providing baseline data against which to measure the progress of future interventions.

Design: A cross-sectional study.

Public knowledge, attitudes and practices surrounding antibiotic use and resistance in Cambodia.

Background: WHO's Global Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance includes as a priority to increase public education surrounding antibiotic use and resistance. Monitoring population-level antibiotic behaviours is crucial for informing intervention strategies, but data from a broad range of settings, particularly lower-resourced countries, are lacking.

Objectives: We measured public knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding antibiotics and antibiotic resistance in Cambodia, providing baseline information against which to monitor the progress of future interventions.

The Impact of the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) on the Health and Social Needs of Sex Workers in Singapore.

We evaluated the impact of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on the sex work industry and assessed how it has impacted the health and social conditions of sex workers in Singapore. We conducted a sequential exploratory mixed methods study amidst the COVID-19 pandemic from April to October 2020, including in-depth interviews with 24 stakeholders from the sex work industry and surveyor-administered structured surveys with 171 sex workers. COVID-19 had a substantial impact on sex workers' income.

Estimating direct and spill-over impacts of political elections on COVID-19 transmission using synthetic control methods.

Mass gathering events have been identified as high-risk environments for community transmission of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Empirical estimates of their direct and spill-over effects however remain challenging to identify. In this study, we propose the use of a novel synthetic control framework to obtain causal estimates for direct and spill-over impacts of these events.

Is "Undetectable = Untransmissible" Good Public Health Messaging?

This article considers merits and drawbacks of "undetectable = untransmissible" (U = U) messaging in the global HIV response. First, viral suppression might be achieved with effective treatment, but not everyone living with HIV has access to such intervention and care. Second, although U = U can help individuals living with HIV, this messaging might stigmatize those for whom interventions have not achieved viral suppression.

Highly functional virus-specific cellular immune response in asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection.

The efficacy of virus-specific T cells in clearing pathogens involves a fine balance between antiviral and inflammatory features. SARS-CoV-2-specific T cells in individuals who clear SARS-CoV-2 without symptoms could reveal nonpathological yet protective characteristics. We longitudinally studied SARS-CoV-2-specific T cells in a cohort of asymptomatic (n = 85) and symptomatic (n = 75) COVID-19 patients after seroconversion.

Population anxiety and positive behaviour change during the COVID-19 epidemic: Cross-sectional surveys in Singapore, China and Italy.

Background: On 31 December 2019, an epidemic of pneumonia of unknown aetiology was first reported in the city of Wuhan, Hubei Province, People's Republic of China. A rapidly progressing epidemic of COVID-19 ensued within China, with multiple exportations to other countries. We aimed to measure perceptions and responses towards COVID-19 in three countries to understand how population-level anxiety can be mitigated in the early phases of a pandemic.

"Do I need to or do I want to?" A typology of HIV status disclosure among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men.

Gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM) are a key population that is disproportionately affected by HIV. However, few studies have explored how and why disclosure of HIV status occurs in this population. To understand disclosure in the context of other socioecological factors, we conducted a qualitative study among 24 self-identified HIV-positive GBMSM, aged 21 and above, and who were Singaporean residents.

Determinants influencing antibiotic use in Singapore's small-scale aquaculture sectors: A qualitative study.

Singapore's Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) national strategic action plan includes inappropriate use of antimicrobials in food-producing animals as a specific priority. Although the use of antibiotics and other drugs are monitored by regulatory bodies, food fish farmers are allowed to buy and administer antimicrobials without a veterinary prescription. We conducted a qualitative study of Singaporean food fish farmers to understand patterns and determinants of antibiotic use, their knowledge of antibiotic resistance, as well as perceptions of on-farm infection prevention and control measures.

Impact of national interventions to promote responsible antibiotic use: a systematic review.

Background: Global recognition of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) as an urgent public health problem has galvanized national and international efforts. Chief among these are interventions to curb the overuse and misuse of antibiotics. However, the impact of these initiatives is not fully understood, making it difficult to assess the expected effectiveness and sustainability of further policy interventions.

"Not a walking piece of meat with disease": meanings of becoming undetectable among HIV-positive gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men in the U = U era.

Gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM) represent a key population disproportionately affected by HIV in various settings. While past studies have investigated how individuals negotiated their identities following their diagnoses of HIV, an emerging area of inquiry considers the implications of viral suppression, or becoming undetectable, on identity and well-being in an undetectable = untransmittable (U = U) era. We conducted 24 in-depth interviews with a purposively recruited sample of GBMSM living with HIV in Singapore.

MST1 Negatively Regulates TNFα-Induced NF-κB Signaling through Modulating LUBAC Activity.

The nuclear factor (NF)-κB pathway plays a central role in inflammatory and immune responses, with aberrant activation of NF-κB signaling being implicated in various human disorders. Here, we show that mammalian ste20-like kinase 1 (MST1) is a previously unrecognized component of the tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα) receptor 1 signaling complex (TNF-RSC) and attenuates TNFα-induced NF-κB signaling. Genetic ablation of MST1 in mouse embryonic fibroblasts and bone marrow-derived macrophages potentiated the TNFα-induced increase in IκB kinase (IKK) activity, as well as the expression of NF-κB target genes.

Health systems reforms in Singapore: A qualitative study of key stakeholders.

In response to a growing chronic disease burden and ageing population, Singapore implemented Regional Health Systems (RHS) in 2008. In January 2017, the MOH announced that the six RHS clusters would be reorganised into three in 2018. This qualitative study sought to identify the health system challenges, opportunities, and ways forward for the implementation of the RHS.