Control of SARS-CoV-2 infection in skilled nursing facilities in Detroit, Michigan: a model for emerging infectious diseases.

An infection prevention bundle that consisted of the development of a response team, public-academic partnership, daily assessment, regular testing, isolation, and environmental controls was implemented in 26 skilled nursing facilities in Detroit, Michigan (March 2020-April 2021). This intervention was associated with sustained control of severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 infection among residents and staff.

Pandemic response gaps: Infection prevention and control lessons learned during coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreaks in skilled nursing facilities in Detroit, Michigan.

Background: Hospitalizations among skilled nursing facility (SNF) residents in Detroit increased in mid-March 2020 due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Outbreak response teams were deployed from local healthcare systems, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Detroit Health Department (DHD) to understand the infection prevention and control (IPC) gaps in SNFs that may have accelerated the outbreak.

Methods: We conducted 2 point-prevalence surveys (PPS-1 and PPS-2) at 13 Detroit SNFs from April 8 to May 8, 2020.

COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptability Among Clients and Staff of Homeless Shelters in Detroit, Michigan, February 2021.

Understanding COVID-19 vaccine acceptability among clients and staff of homeless shelters can inform public health efforts focused on communicating with and educating this population about COVID-19 vaccines and thus improve vaccine uptake. The objective of this study was to assess COVID-19 vaccine acceptability and uptake among people in homeless shelters in Detroit, Michigan. A cross-sectional study was conducted from February 9 to 23, 2021.

Upregulation of IFN-Inducible and Damage-Response Pathways in Chronic Graft-versus-Host Disease.

Although chronic graft-versus-host disease (CGVHD) is the primary nonrelapse complication of allogeneic transplantation, understanding of its pathogenesis is limited. To identify the main operant pathways across the spectrum of CGVHD, we analyzed gene expression in circulating monocytes, chosen as in situ systemic reporter cells. Microarrays identified two interrelated pathways: 1) IFN-inducible genes, and 2) innate receptors for cellular damage.

Cytokine Profile of Engraftment Syndrome in Pediatric Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant Recipients.

The biology of engraftment syndrome is poorly understood, and the degree of overlap with acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is unclear. To understand engraftment syndrome better, plasma cytokine profiles were evaluated in 56 pediatric allogeneic bone marrow transplant recipients before transplant, on the day of stem cell infusion, and weekly until day +100. Patients were divided into 4 groups: those with isolated engraftment syndrome (n = 8), acute GVHD (n = 12), both engraftment syndrome and acute GVHD (n = 4), and neither engraftment syndrome nor acute GVHD (n = 32).

Quantum dots thermal stability improves simultaneous phenotype-specific telomere length measurement by FISH-flow cytometry.

Telomere length analysis has been greatly simplified by the quantitative flow cytometry technique FISH-flow. In this method, a fluorescein-labeled synthetic oligonucleotide complementary to the telomere terminal repeat sequence is hybridized to the telomere sequence and the resulting fluorescence measured by flow cytometry. This technique has supplanted the traditional laborious Southern blot telomere length measurement techniques in many laboratories, and allows single cell analysis of telomere length in high-throughput sample formats.