Target product profiles: leprosy diagnostics.

The World Health Organization (WHO) aims to reduce new leprosy cases by 70% by 2030, necessitating advancements in leprosy diagnostics. Here we discuss the development of two WHO's target product profiles for such diagnostics. These profiles define criteria for product use, design, performance, configuration and distribution, with a focus on accessibility and affordability.

The transcriptional legacy of developmental stochasticity.

Genetic and environmental variation are key contributors during organism development, but the influence of minor perturbations or noise is difficult to assess. This study focuses on the stochastic variation in allele-specific expression that persists through cell divisions in the nine-banded armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus). We investigated the blood transcriptome of five wild monozygotic quadruplets over time to explore the influence of developmental stochasticity on gene expression.

Depressive symptoms and their association with age, chronic conditions and health status among middle-aged and elderly people in peri-urban Tanzania.

Background: Depression is a global mental health challenge. We assessed the prevalence of depressive symptoms and their association with age, chronic conditions, and health status among middle-aged and elderly people in peri-urban Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Methods: Depressive symptoms were measured in 2,220 adults aged over 40 years from two wards of Dar es Salaam using the ten-item version of the Center of Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D-10) and a cut-off score of 10 or higher.

The relationship between neighborhood typologies and self-rated health in Maryland: A latent class analysis.

Despite widespread evidence that neighborhood conditions impact health, few studies apply theory to clarify the physical and social factors in communities that drive health outcomes. Latent class analysis (LCA) addresses such gaps by identifying distinct neighborhood typologies and the joint influence that neighborhood-level factors play in health promotion. In the current study, we conducted a theory-driven investigation to describe Maryland neighborhood typologies and examined differences in area-level self-rated poor mental and physical health across typologies.

Typologies of mental healthcare discrimination experiences and associations with current provider care ratings: A latent class analysis.

Background: Discrimination is experienced across demographic attributes (e.g., race and gender) and vantage points (e.

Parallel evolution of reduced cancer risk and tumor suppressor duplications in .

The risk of developing cancer is correlated with body size and lifespan within species, but there is no correlation between cancer and either body size or lifespan between species indicating that large, long-lived species have evolved enhanced cancer protection mechanisms. Previously we showed that several large bodied lineages evolved reduced intrinsic cancer risk, particularly elephants and their extinct relatives (), coincident with pervasive duplication of tumor suppressor genes (Vazquez and Lynch, 2021). Unexpectedly, we also found that (sloths, armadillos, and anteaters) evolved very low intrinsic cancer risk.

Factor analysis of the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale in American Indian women.

The Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) is widely used to assess depressive symptoms in the general population. It lacks validation for widespread use within the American Indian population, however. To address this gap, we explored and confirmed the factor structure of the CES-D among a community sample of southeastern American Indian women.

The Armadillo as a Model for Leprosy Nerve Function Impairment: Preventative and Therapeutic Interventions.

infection of peripheral nerves and the subsequent nerve function impairment (NFI), especially in response to reactional episodes, are hallmarks of leprosy. Improved treatments for -induced nerve injury are needed, as most if not all of the disability and stigma associated with leprosy arises from the direct or indirect effects of NFI. Nine-banded armadillos (), like humans, exhibit the full clinical spectrum of leprosy and extensive involvement of the peripheral nerves.

The Utility of the Brokamp Area Deprivation Index as a Prescreen for Social Risk in Primary Care.

Objectives: To assess the relationship between an Area Deprivation Index (ADI) and a Social Determinant of Health (SDoH) measure within a diverse sample. A prescreening tool based on routinely collected information could reduce clinical burden by identifying patients impacted by SDoH for comprehensive assessment.

Study Design: In total, 499 consented pediatric patient-families who spoke English, Spanish, or Arabic and had a child ≤12 years receiving primary care at a large academic institution were enrolled.

Rapid and Deferred Help Seeking Among African American Parents of Children With Emotional and Behavioral Difficulties.

Objective: Little is known about the factors African American parents consider when seeking care for their child after emotional and behavioral difficulties emerge. This study aimed to examine factors associated with seeking professional care within 30 days after identifying a child's need (i.e.

Perceived healthcare discrimination and well-being among older adults in the United States and Brazil.

Despite well-documented evidence illustrating the relationship between discrimination and health, less is known about the influence of unfair treatment when receiving medical care. Moreover, our current knowledge of cross-national and racial variations in healthcare discrimination is limited in aging populations. This article addresses these gaps using two harmonized data sets of aging populations to clarify the relationship between healthcare discrimination and health in the United States and Brazil.

Mycobacterium lepromatosis as Cause of Leprosy, Colombia.

Leprosy is a granulomatous infection caused by infection with Mycobacterium leprae or M. lepromatosis. We evaluated skin biopsy and slit skin smear samples from 92 leprosy patients in Colombia by quantitative PCR.

Methodological Considerations in Scale Refinement with Diverse Populations: A Case Example Using the CES-D with a Community Sample of American Indian Women.

Although many psychometric assessments are used extensively in population-based research to determine psychopathology, these tools have not been thoroughly validated or appropriately adapted for use in diverse populations. Indeed, depression measurement studies among American Indian and female populations are scarce, omitting key opportunities to tailor psychological measurement for this population. To build psychometric evidence of measures in this population, we used a procedural method to examine a standard psychological instrument-the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D)-with a community sample of southeast American Indian women.

Sensitivity of Mycobacterium leprae to Telacebec.

The treatment of leprosy is long and complex, benefiting from the development of sterilizing, rapidly-acting drugs. Reductive evolution made Mycobacterium leprae exquisitely sensitive to Telacebec, a phase 2 drug candidate for tuberculosis The unprecedented potency of Telacebec against M. leprae warrants further validation in clinical trials.

A Sensitive and Quantitative Assay to Enumerate and Measure Mycobacterium leprae Viability in Clinical and Experimental Specimens.

Mycobacterium leprae, the etiologic agent of leprosy, cannot be cultured on artificial media. This characteristic, coupled with its long generation time, presents a number of unique challenges to studying this pathogen. One of the difficulties facing both researchers and clinicians is the absence of a rapid test to measure the viability of M.

Transcriptome During Growth and Stationary Phases.

, the causative agent of leprosy, is an obligate intracellular pathogen primarily residing within host macrophages and Schwann cells. Whole genome sequencing predicts a highly degraded genome with approximately one third of the coding capacity resulting in the loss of many catabolic pathways. Therefore, it can be assumed that obtains many of the necessary metabolites for intracellular survival and growth from the host cells.

Infection in Ticks and Tick-Derived Cells.

Leprosy is a zoonosis in the southern United States involving humans and wild armadillos. The majority of patients presenting with zoonotic strains of note extensive outdoor activity but only rarely report any history of direct contact with wild armadillos. Whether is transmitted to new vertebrate hosts through the environment independently or with the aid of other organisms, e.

Adolescents' Concerns About School Violence or Shootings and Association With Depressive, Anxiety, and Panic Symptoms.

Importance: The prevalence of internalizing problems among US adolescents has risen in the past decade. The extent to which concerns about school violence or shootings are associated with risk of internalizing problems is unknown.

Objective: To examine the prospective association of concern, worry, and stress related to school violence or shootings with internalizing problems and to examine sex and racial and ethnic differences in the magnitude of the associations.