COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths predicted by SARS-CoV-2 levels in Boise, Idaho wastewater.

The viral load of COVID-19 in untreated wastewater from Idaho's capital city Boise, ID (Ada County) has been used to predict changes in hospital admissions (statewide in Idaho) and deaths (Ada County) using distributed fixed lag modeling and artificial neural networks (ANN). The wastewater viral counts were used to determine the lag time between peaks in wastewater viral counts and COVID-19 hospitalizations as well as deaths (14 and 23 days, respectively). Quantitative measurement of SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA counts in the untreated wastewater was determined three times a week using RT-qPCR over a span of 13 months.

Modeling and integration of N-glycan biomarkers in a comprehensive biomarker data model.

Molecular biomarkers measure discrete components of biological processes that can contribute to disorders when impaired. Great interest exists in discovering early cancer biomarkers to improve outcomes. Biomarkers represented in a standardized data model, integrated with multi-omics data, may improve the understanding and use of novel biomarkers such as glycans and glycoconjugates.

COVID-19 biomarkers and their overlap with comorbidities in a disease biomarker data model.

In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, scientists and medical researchers are capturing a wide range of host responses, symptoms and lingering postrecovery problems within the human population. These variable clinical manifestations suggest differences in influential factors, such as innate and adaptive host immunity, existing or underlying health conditions, comorbidities, genetics and other factors-compounding the complexity of COVID-19 pathobiology and potential biomarkers associated with the disease, as they become available. The heterogeneous data pose challenges for efficient extrapolation of information into clinical applications.

Product Design to Enhance Consumer Liking of Cull Ewe Meat.

The global sheepmeat industry aspires to increase consumer liking for cull ewe meat and thereby increase its value; dry ageing application can increase the consumer appeal of this meat. In order to develop novel consumer-liked dry aged sheepmeat products, an innovation process aligned with design thinking principles was initiated. The objective was to understand optimal dry aged sheepmeat product formats from chef, butcher, producer and consumer perspectives, and use these findings to develop "highly liked" and "premium" dry aged cull ewe meat dishes.

COVID-19 Biomarkers in research: Extension of the OncoMX cancer biomarker data model to capture biomarker data from other diseases.

Scientists, medical researchers, and health care workers have mobilized worldwide in response to the outbreak of COVID-19, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2; SCoV2). Preliminary data have captured a wide range of host responses, symptoms, and lingering problems post-recovery within the human population. These variable clinical manifestations suggest differences in influential factors, such as innate and adaptive host immunity, existing or underlying health conditions, co-morbidities, genetics, and other factors.

Effects of Super Nutritional Hepatic Copper Accumulation on Hepatocyte Health and Oxidative Stress in Dairy Cows.

Concerns regarding excessive hepatic copper concentrations in dairy cows have increased. The objective of this study was to determine the association of hepatic copper concentrations with evidence of liver disease. Blood and liver samples were collected at the time of slaughter in cull dairy cows (n=100).

Multi-layer framework of identifying placenta related research towards Placenta Curated Research Dataset (PCRD) development for the PAT project.

Background: The placenta is a maternal-fetal organ that develops during pregnancy and provides nutrients, oxygen, and removal of waste products to the growing fetus. Better understanding of the placenta promises to help improve health of mothers and children, given its influence on health lasting a lifetime. However, the placenta is poorly understood due to its variability across different species and no live functions available after the baby is delivered.

Fibrocartilaginous embolic encephalopathy of the cerebellum and brainstem in a cat.

A 12-year old male castrated Siamese cat was evaluated for a one-day history of mild obtundation and decerebellate rigidity. Neurological examination findings were consistent with multifocal disease including lesions within the right cerebellum and right brainstem. Investigations included hematology, biochemistry, urinalysis, and urine culture.

A Near Fatal Sneeze Spontaneous Splenic Rupture: A Case Report and Review of the Literature.

A 79-year-old female called 911 for abdominal pain in her left upper quadrant with radiation through to her back and left shoulder for three hours. Upon arrival to the emergency department her physical exam was positive only for tenderness in the left upper quadrant of her abdomen. The patient denied any history of trauma but reported she "did sneeze three times" just prior to the onset of her pain.

Running exercise mitigates the negative consequences of chronic stress on dorsal hippocampal long-term potentiation in male mice.

In the hippocampus, learning and memory are likely mediated by synaptic plasticity, known as long-term potentiation (LTP). While chronic intermittent stress is negatively correlated, and exercise positively correlated to LTP induction, we examined whether exercise could mitigate the negative consequences of stress on LTP when co-occurring with stress. Mice were divided into four groups: sedentary no stress, exercise no stress, exercise with stress, and sedentary with stress.

A discrete transition zone between cuticle and cortex layers of a human hair fibre: changes observed in the presence of breast cancer.

Attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FT-IR) spectroscopy of hair fibres shows a discrete transition zone (DTZ) between the hard protective cuticle layer and the softer elongated cortical cells of the cortex. The DTZ is composed of flattened orthocortical cells located on the outer perimeter of the cortex and appears to range in thickness between 2 and 3.6 μm.

Cannabis: The Issue is Control.

Where is the national issue of cannabis (marijuana) regulation going? Recent actions at the State level are moving to guide us to a national perspective on how to control this new marketplace.

Educating K-12 Professionals and Parents: Finding Health Information for Special Needs Children.

A successful partnership model between an academic health sciences library and a K-12 school district to provide librarians, nurses, and special education staff with access to health information to support special needs children and their parents is presented. Train-the-trainer staff sessions and a parent session were collaboratively developed. Funding support was used to purchase iPads for librarians and nurses to deliver mobile support.

Evaluating the anticancer properties of liposomal copper in a nude xenograft mouse model of human prostate cancer: formulation, in vitro, in vivo, histology and tissue distribution studies.

Purpose: Although Cu complexes have been investigated as anticancer agents, there has been no description of Cu itself as a cancer killing agent. A stealth liposomal Cu formulation (LpCu) was studied in vitro and in vivo.

Methods: LpCu was evaluated in prostate cancer origin PC-3 cells by a metabolic cytotoxicity assay, by monitoring ROS, and by flow cytometry.

Peer recovery support for individuals with substance use disorders: assessing the evidence.

In recent years, peer recovery support services have become an accepted part of the treatment of substance use disorders, providing a more extensive array of services than typically associated with mutual support groups. Peer providers may help consumers set recovery goals, develop a plan, and work toward and maintain recovery. In this literature review, the last in the Assessing the Evidence Base (AEB) Series, the authors review the evidence supporting peer recovery support services, noting that more research is needed to distinguish the effects of peer recovery support from other recovery support activities.

Skill building: assessing the evidence.

Objective: Skill building for adults involves multiple approaches to address the complex problems related to serious mental illness. Individuals with schizophrenia are often the research focus. The authors outline key skill-building approaches and describe their evidence base.

Trauma-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy for children and adolescents: assessing the evidence.

Objective: Trauma-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) is a conjoint parent-child treatment developed by Cohen, Mannarino, and Deblinger that uses cognitive-behavioral principles and exposure techniques to prevent and treat posttraumatic stress, depression, and behavioral problems. This review defined TF-CBT, differentiated it from other models, and assessed the evidence base.

Methods: Authors reviewed meta-analyses, reviews, and individual studies (1995 to 2013).

The effect of breast cancer on the Fourier transform infrared attenuated total reflection spectra of human hair.

Changes in the Synchrotron x-ray diffraction pattern of scalp hair were shown to occur in patients with breast cancer. A preliminary Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy study of scalp hair using attenuated total reflection (ATR) supported the concept that these changes are due to an increase in the lipid content of the hair fibre. This study was undertaken to determine whether the ATR-FT-IR spectrum obtained using a single hair fibre ATR cell could be used in the detection of breast cancer.

Consumer and family psychoeducation: assessing the evidence.

Objective: Psychoeducation provides adult consumers who have serious mental illness or co-occurring substance use disorders with information to support recovery. Some models also provide this service to family members. This review examined the evidence base for psychoeducation models in group and individual formats.

Substance abuse intensive outpatient programs: assessing the evidence.

Objective: Substance abuse intensive outpatient programs (IOPs) are direct services for people with substance use disorders or co-occurring mental and substance use disorders who do not require medical detoxification or 24-hour supervision. IOPs are alternatives to inpatient and residential treatment. They are designed to establish psychosocial supports and facilitate relapse management and coping strategies.

Behavioral management for children and adolescents: assessing the evidence.

Objective: Behavioral management services for children and adolescents are important components of the mental health service system. Behavioral management is a direct service designed to help develop or maintain prosocial behaviors in the home, school, or community. This review examined evidence for the effectiveness of family-centered, school-based, and integrated interventions.

Medication-assisted treatment with methadone: assessing the evidence.

Objective: Detoxification followed by abstinence has shown little success in reducing illicit opioid use. Methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) helps individuals with an opioid use disorder abstain from or decrease use of illegal or nonmedical opiates. This review examined evidence for MMT's effectiveness.

Medication-assisted treatment with buprenorphine: assessing the evidence.

Objective: Buprenorphine maintenance treatment (BMT) and methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) are pharmacological treatment programs for individuals with opioid use disorders. MMT is discussed in a companion article. This article describes BMT and reviews available research on its efficacy.

Assessing the evidence base for behavioral health services: introduction to the series.

The current policy environment provides the opportunity for federal and state agencies to work with private and nonprofit sectors to transform the American health care system through development of a comprehensive set of community-based, recovery-oriented, and evidence-based services for people with mental and substance use disorders. This Assessing the Evidence Base Series (AEB Series) provides science-supported information about selected mental health and substance abuse services for health care leaders. Series authors conducted reviews of research on 14 behavioral health services: behavioral management for children and adolescents, trauma-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy for children and adolescents, recovery housing, residential treatment for individuals with substance use disorders, peer support services for individuals with serious mental illnesses, peer recovery support for individuals with substance use disorders, permanent supportive housing, supported employment, substance abuse intensive outpatient programs, skill building, intensive case management, consumer and family psychoeducation, medication-assisted treatment with methadone, and medication-assisted treatment with buprenorphine.