Cerebrospinal fluid immunoglobulins in primary progressive multiple sclerosis are pathogenic.

Multiple sclerosis is clinically characterized by relapses and remissions (relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis) that over time may evolve to a progressive course (secondary progressive multiple sclerosis) or as having a progressive course from disease onset (primary progressive multiple sclerosis). At present, it is not definitively known whether these clinical entities constitute a single pathological disease or whether these manifestations represent two distinct disease entities sharing inflammatory demyelination as a pathological feature. Here we show using a novel mouse model that CSF of primary progressive multiple sclerosis patients is unique in its capacity to induce motor disability and spinal cord pathology including demyelination, impaired remyelination, reactive astrogliosis and axonal damage.

A multi-jurisdictional outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium infections linked to backyard poultry-Australia, 2020.

Zoonotic salmonellosis can occur either through direct contact with an infected animal or through indirect contact, such as exposure to an infected animal's contaminated environment. Between May and August 2020, a multi-jurisdictional outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium (STm) infection due to zoonotic transmission was investigated in Australia. In total, 38 outbreak cases of STm with a median age of 5 years were reported.

Australia as a global sink for the genetic diversity of avian influenza A virus.

Most of our understanding of the ecology and evolution of avian influenza A virus (AIV) in wild birds is derived from studies conducted in the northern hemisphere on waterfowl, with a substantial bias towards dabbling ducks. However, relevant environmental conditions and patterns of avian migration and reproduction are substantially different in the southern hemisphere. Through the sequencing and analysis of 333 unique AIV genomes collected from wild birds collected over 15 years we show that Australia is a global sink for AIV diversity and not integrally linked with the Eurasian gene pool.

Usability and Acceptability of Two Smartphone Apps for Smoking Cessation Among Young Adults With Serious Mental Illness: Mixed Methods Study.

Background: Young adults with serious mental illness (SMI) have higher smoking rates and lower cessation rates than young adults without SMI. Scalable interventions such as smartphone apps with evidence-based content (eg, the National Cancer Institute's [NCI's] QuitGuide and quitSTART) could increase access to potentially appealing and effective treatment for this group but have yet to be tested in this population.

Objective: The goal of this user-centered design study is to determine the user experience (including usability and acceptability) of 2 widely available apps developed by the NCI-QuitGuide and quitSTART-among young adult tobacco users with SMI.