The oxDNA Coarse-Grained Model as a Tool to Simulate DNA Origami.

This chapter introduces how to run molecular dynamics simulations for DNA origami using the oxDNA coarse-grained model.

Differences in Measured and Self-Categorized Food Security Status and Related Coping Strategies among College Students.

Qualitative studies suggest that college students with food insecurity (FI) experience stigma and misinterpret some of the USDA Adult Food Security Survey Module (AFSSM) questions, leading to misclassification of food security (FS) status. We aimed to evaluate differences in AFSSM-measured FS status and self-categorized FS status (based on USDA descriptions of the four FS levels) among college students, and to identify differences in the coping strategies and BMI of these students. Data were collected cross-sectionally from a convenience sample via web-based, self-reported surveys.

Multiple regression analyses to determine the effect of sweating rate and tattoo characteristics on sweat outcome measures during exercise.

Purpose: To compare local sweating rate (LSR) and local sweat sodium ([Na]), chloride ([Cl]), and potassium ([K]) concentrations of tattooed skin and contralateral non-tattooed skin during exercise.

Methods: Thirty-three recreational exercisers (17 men, 16 women) with ≥ 1 unilateral permanent tattoo on the torso/arms were tested during cycling, running, or fitness sessions (26 ± 4 °C and 54 ± 13% relative humidity). Forty-eight tattoos with a range of ink colors, ages (3 weeks to 20 years), and densities (10-100%) were included.

Sweating Rate and Sweat Chloride Concentration of Elite Male Basketball Players Measured With a Wearable Microfluidic Device Versus the Standard Absorbent Patch Method.

The purpose of this study was to compare a wearable microfluidic device and standard absorbent patch in measuring local sweating rate (LSR) and sweat chloride concentration ([Cl-]) in elite basketball players. Participants were 53 male basketball players (25 ± 3 years, 92.2 ± 10.

The Role of Alcohol-Related Proactive Dietary Restriction to Feel the Psychoactive Effects of Alcohol Faster on Binge Drinking Frequency among Freshmen College Students.

Background: There is a positive cross-sectional relationship between alcohol-related proactive dietary restriction to feel the effects of alcohol faster (APDR) and binge drinking, a health and safety issue impacting college students. To examine: 1) the longitudinal predictive ability of varying levels of APDR on binge drinking frequency; and 1a) the strength of the relationship between varying levels of APDR and binge drinking frequency during freshman year of college ( = 1,149).

Methods: Ordinal logistic regression was used to model the relationship between APDR and binge drinking frequency.

Measuring Internal Forces in Single-Stranded DNA: Application to a DNA Force Clamp.

We present a new method for calculating internal forces in DNA structures using coarse-grained models and demonstrate its utility with the oxDNA model. The instantaneous forces on individual nucleotides are explored and related to model potentials, and using our framework, internal forces are calculated for two simple DNA systems and for a recently published nanoscopic force clamp. Our results highlight some pitfalls associated with conventional methods for estimating internal forces, which are based on elastic polymer models, and emphasize the importance of carefully considering secondary structure and ionic conditions when modeling the elastic behavior of single-stranded DNA.

Pre-surgical stress and social support predict post-surgical percent excess weight loss in a population of bariatric surgery patients.

Although bariatric surgery is an effective treatment of morbid obesity, many patients fail to lose significant weight or regain weight over time. This study examined pre-surgical psychosocial predictors (stress, social support for healthy eating, emotion regulation, and sleep quality/quantity) of three-month post-surgical percent excess weight loss (EWL) in a population of adult bariatric surgery patients. Overall, findings suggest higher levels of stress (B = -.

Force-Induced Unravelling of DNA Origami.

The mechanical properties of DNA nanostructures are of widespread interest as applications that exploit their stability under constant or intermittent external forces become increasingly common. We explore the force response of DNA origami in comprehensive detail by combining AFM single molecule force spectroscopy experiments with simulations using oxDNA, a coarse-grained model of DNA at the nucleotide level, to study the unravelling of an iconic origami system: the Rothemund tile. We contrast the force-induced melting of the tile with simulations of an origami 10-helix bundle.

Reconstructing folding energy landscape profiles from nonequilibrium pulling curves with an inverse Weierstrass integral transform.

The energy landscapes that drive structure formation in biopolymers are difficult to measure. Here we validate experimentally a novel method to reconstruct landscape profiles from single-molecule pulling curves using an inverse Weierstrass transform (IWT) of the Jarzysnki free-energy integral. The method was applied to unfolding measurements of a DNA hairpin, replicating the results found by the more-established weighted histogram (WHAM) and inverse Boltzmann methods.