Publications by authors named "Laura Schmidt"

In recent years, researchers studying fluorogenic samples have steadily shifted from using large, expensive, poorly soluble fluorophores with complex synthetic sequences to smaller, simpler p scaffolds with low molecular weight. This research article presents an in-depth study of the photophysical properties of five bridged single-benzene-based fluorophores (SBBFs) investigated for their solution and solid-state emission (SSSE) properties. The compounds O4, N1O3, N2O2, N3O1, and N4 are derived from a central terephthalonitrile core and vary in the amount of oxygen and nitrogen bridging atoms.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Cannabis use and alcohol use are associated with self-harm injuries, but little research has assessed links between recreational cannabis outlet openings on rates of self-harm within communities or the interactions of cannabis outlets with the density of alcohol outlets. We estimated the associations of recreational cannabis outlets, alcohol outlets, and their interaction on rates of fatal and nonfatal self-harm injuries in California, 2017-2019.

Methods: Using California statewide data on recreational cannabis outlets, alcohol outlets, and hospital discharges and deaths due to self-harm injuries, we conducted Bayesian spatiotemporal analyses of quarterly ZIP code-level data over 3 years, accounting for confounders and spatial autocorrelation.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The Mobile Device Proficiency Questionnaire (MDPQ) has been adapted into German, demonstrating its reliability and validity for assessing mobile device skills in older adults aged 50-95.
  • The research involved two studies in 2020 and 2022 with a total of 824 participants, assessing the questionnaire's internal consistency and test-retest reliability, which were found to be excellent.
  • Findings indicated the expected relationships between mobile device proficiency and factors such as education, technology attitudes, and age differences, suggesting the German MDPQ could be a valuable tool for technology and aging research in German-speaking countries.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The MiT/TFE family gene fusion proteins, such as , drive both epithelial (eg, translocation renal cell carcinoma, tRCC) and mesenchymal (eg, perivascular epithelioid cell tumor, PEComa) neoplasms with aggressive behavior. However, no prior mouse models for -related tumors exist and the mechanisms of lineage plasticity induced by this fusion remain unclear. Here, we demonstrate that constitutive murine renal expression of human using Ksp Cadherin-Cre as a driver disrupts kidney development leading to early neonatal renal failure and death.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: The current medical and nursing curricula place little emphasis on palliative and end-of-life care. Consequently, students are less comfortable in communicating about topics related to death and dying when providing palliative and end-of-life care. Death cafés utilizes a facilitator-led small group to encourage conversations about death and dying to take place alongside food and beverages in a safe environment.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Social norms can influence individual health behaviors. Shifts in social norms for smoking were critical for the effectiveness of tobacco control efforts such as excise taxes. Sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) excise taxes have been implemented in municipalities across the United States to reduce SSB intake and improve health.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: School-based interventions encouraging children to replace sugar-sweetened beverages with water show promise for reducing child overweight. However, students with child food insecurity (CFI) may not respond to nutrition interventions like children who are food-secure.

Design: The Water First cluster-randomised trial found that school water access and promotion prevented child overweight and increased water intake.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Adequate water intake is associated with improved cognitive and physical performance, prevention of dental caries, and overweight and obesity. However, access to free drinking water in schools remains inadequate. Water First, a school-based intervention promoting water consumption, was shown effective in preventing overweight, yet its costs have not been quantified.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Hereditary Leiomyomatosis and Renal Cell Cancer (HLRCC) is an inherited cancer syndrome caused by germline pathogenic variants in the fumarate hydratase (FH) gene. Affected individuals are at risk for developing cutaneous and uterine leiomyomas and aggressive FH-deficient renal cell carcinoma (RCC) with a papillary histology. Due to a disrupted TCA cycle, FH-deficient kidney cancers rely on aerobic glycolysis for energy production, potentially creating compensatory metabolic vulnerabilities.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

CRISPR is revolutionizing the ability to do somatic gene editing in mice for the purpose of creating new cancer models. Inactivation of the tumor suppressor gene is the signature initiating event in the most common form of kidney cancer, clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). Such tumors are usually driven by the excessive HIF2 activity that arises when the gene product, pVHL, is defective.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Recreational cannabis outlets may influence rates of interpersonal violence, but research has yielded inconsistent findings. Modification by alcohol outlet density may help explain inconsistencies. We estimated the impacts of recreational cannabis outlets on neighborhood-level assault injury rates in California and evaluated whether alcohol outlet density moderated these associations.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) is an autosomal-dominant hereditary tumour susceptibility disease associated with pathogenic germline variants in the tumour suppressor gene. VHL patients are at increased risk of developing multiple benign and malignant tumours. Current CLIA-based genetic tests demonstrate a very high detection rate of germline variants in patients with clinical manifestations of VHL.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Through a mixed-methods approach (randomized controlled trial and thematic analysis of pre and post-service-learning reflections), this study evaluated the impact of a student death doula service-learning experience on nursing students' palliative competencies and learning experiences. The intervention group underwent a 2-day student death doula training workshop followed by a 6-month service-learning experience, while the control group received standard palliative care education. Attitudes toward the care of the dying significantly improved for the intervention group but not for compassion competence and palliative care knowledge.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background And Objectives: Subjective age, that is, how old people feel in relation to their chronological age, has mostly been investigated from a macro-longitudinal, lifespan point of view and in relation to major developmental outcomes. Recent evidence also shows considerable intraindividual variations in micro-longitudinal studies as well as relations to everyday psychological correlates such as stress or affect, but findings on the interplay with physical activity or sleep as behavioral factors and environmental factors such as weather conditions are scarce.

Research Design And Methods: We examined data from 80 recently retired individuals aged 59-76 years ( = 67.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Falls in older individuals often result from unexpected balance disturbances during walking, necessitating the analysis of recovery strategies for effective falls prevention. This becomes particularly crucial for individuals with cognitive impairment, who face a higher fall risk compared to cognitively healthy adults. Hence, our study aimed to compare the recovery response to standardized walking perturbations on a treadmill between older adults with cognitive impairment and cognitively healthy older adults.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Cannabis exposures reported to the California Poison Control System increased following the initiation of recreational cannabis sales on 1 January 2018 (i.e., "commercialization").

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: Workplace sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) sales bans can reduce SSB consumption. Because stress and anxiety can promote sugar consumption, we examined whether anxiety among hospital employees during the COVID-19 pandemic was associated with changes in SSB consumption and explored whether this relationship varied by exposure to a workplace SSB sales ban.

Design: In a prospective, controlled trial of workplace SSB sales bans, we examined self-reported anxiety (generalised anxiety disorder-7) and self-reported SSB consumption (fluid ounces/d) before (July 2019) and during (May 2020) the COVID-19 pandemic.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: A polyvalent blood collection tube could potentially reduce the number and volume of blood samples drawn from patients and reduce the risk of tube mix-ups in a point-of-care setting in the emergency department and the intensive care unit.

Methods: Four different concentrations of our experimental heparin anticoagulant with iloprost additive (HEP-ILOP 50 nM, 150 nM, 1000 nM, and 10 μM, respectively) were tested for significant differences and bias performance specifications against EDTA for 29 hematology analytes, and the highest concentration (HEP-ILOP 10 μM) against lithium heparin for 14 chemistry and immunochemistry analytes. Samples were drawn from 79 consenting subjects from the Oncology Department (n = 38) and the Intensive and Intermediary Care Unit (n = 41).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Fall-related sequelae as well as balance and gait impairments are more pronounced in older adults who are cognitively impaired (OACI) compared to older adults who are cognitively healthy (OACH). Evidence is scarce about differences in standing balance and gait in OACH and OACI after a fall, even though these are major risks for recurrent falls. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate early impairments in gait and balance, by adding inertial measurement units (IMUs) to a functional performance test in OACH and OACI after a severe fall with a presentation to the emergency department (ED) and immediate discharge.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Nursing students desire more training and experience in palliative care due to a need for more skills and knowledge. This descriptive qualitative study explored nursing students' experiences in participating in a student death doula service-learning program in palliative care settings. Fourteen final-year undergraduate nursing students participated in semi-structured focus group discussions via Zoom.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Despite evidence for the effectiveness of policies that target obesogenic environments, their adoption remains deficient. Using methods and concepts from complexity and political science (Stock-and-Flow analysis and Punctuated Equilibrium Theory) and a qualitative literature review, we developed system maps to identify feedback loops that hinder policymaking on mitigating obesogenic environments and feedback loops that could trigger and sustain policy change. We found numerous self-reinforcing feedback loops that buttress the assumption that obesity is an individual problem, strengthening the biomedical and commercial weight-loss sectors' claim to "ownership" over solutions.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study looked at how well two different methods measure heart output in pregnant people, especially those with heart problems.
  • One method used was NICOM, a noninvasive monitor, while the other was a 2D echocardiogram, which is more traditional.
  • Results showed that NICOM often gave higher readings than echocardiograms, making it less accurate for measuring heart output, especially in healthy pregnant women.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • - Missouri has high maternal mortality rates, but there are no existing studies on birthing peoples' knowledge regarding this issue, highlighting the need for targeted interventions based on specific population insights.
  • - A survey study involving 1,738 respondents found that a majority (78.2%) were aware of pregnancy-related death risks, with many identifying higher rates of maternal mortality among certain groups such as Black and uninsured birthing people.
  • - The leading causes of maternal death were perceived to be severe bleeding (56.9%), with specific beliefs about the timing of mortality varying by age, suggesting a need for tailored educational efforts to improve understanding of maternal health.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF