Assessing the Impact of AI Education on Hispanic Healthcare Professionals' Perceptions and Knowledge.

This study investigates the awareness and perceptions of artificial intelligence (AI) among Hispanic healthcare-related professionals, focusing on integrating AI in healthcare. The study participants were recruited from an asynchronous course offered twice within a year at the University of Puerto Rico Medical Science Campus, titled "Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Applied to Health Disparities Research", which aimed to bridge the gaps in AI knowledge among participants. The participants were divided into Experimental ( = 32; data-illiterate) and Control ( = 18; data-literate) groups, and pre-test and post-test surveys were administered to assess knowledge and attitudes toward AI.

Antimalarial Drug Combination Predictions Using the Machine Learning Synergy Predictor (MLSyPred©) tool.

Purpose: Antimalarial drug resistance is a global public health problem that leads to treatment failure. Synergistic drug combinations can improve treatment outcomes and delay the development of drug resistance. Here, we describe the implementation of a freely available computational tool, Machine Learning Synergy Predictor (MLSyPred©), to predict potential synergy in antimalarial drug combinations.

Evaluation of AIML + HDR-A Course to Enhance Data Science Workforce Capacity for Hispanic Biomedical Researchers.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) facilitate the creation of revolutionary medical techniques. Unfortunately, biases in current AI and ML approaches are perpetuating minority health inequity. One of the strategies to solve this problem is training a diverse workforce.

Integrin and microtubule crosstalk in the regulation of cellular processes.

Integrins engage components of the extracellular matrix, and in collaboration with other receptors, regulate signaling cascades that impact cell behavior in part by modulating the cell's cytoskeleton. Integrins have long been known to function together with the actin cytoskeleton to promote cell adhesion, migration, and invasion, and with the intermediate filament cytoskeleton to mediate the strong adhesion needed for the maintenance and integrity of epithelial tissues. Recent studies have shed light on the crosstalk between integrin and the microtubule cytoskeleton.

Long noncoding RNA EWSAT1-mediated gene repression facilitates Ewing sarcoma oncogenesis.

Chromosomal translocation that results in fusion of the genes encoding RNA-binding protein EWS and transcription factor FLI1 (EWS-FLI1) is pathognomonic for Ewing sarcoma. EWS-FLI1 alters gene expression through mechanisms that are not completely understood. We performed RNA sequencing (RNAseq) analysis on primary pediatric human mesenchymal progenitor cells (pMPCs) expressing EWS-FLI1 in order to identify gene targets of this oncoprotein.

Integrins promote cytokinesis through the RSK signaling axis.

Cytokinesis is the final stage in cell division. Although integrins can regulate cytokinesis, the mechanisms involved are not fully understood. In this study, we demonstrate that integrin-regulated ERK (extracellular signal-related kinase) and RSK (p90 ribosomal S6 kinase) signaling promotes successful cytokinesis.

[Characterization of extended-spectrum β-lactamases-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates of two intensive care units].

Background: Extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)- producing Klebsiella pneumonia is more the frequently implied bacterium infections nosocomiales in the Neonatal High Risk Unit (NHRU), and adult intensive care unit (aICU) in the The Andes University Hospital Autonomy Institute.

Aim: To determine the microbiological and molecular characteristics associated with infections caused by this bacterium.

Material And Methods: 17 strains of K.

Frequencies of Functional Polymorphisms in Three Pharmacokinetic Genes of Clinical Interest within the Admixed Puerto Rican Population.

Objective: This cross-sectional study was aimed at determining the allele frequencies for the and (rs662) polymorphisms in the Puerto Rican population. The and genes are known to be associated with functional changes in drug metabolism and activation. Individuals carrying the aforementioned polymorphisms are at a higher risk of suffering from drug-induced adverse events and/ or unresponsiveness from a variety of drugs that includes antidepressants, atypical antipsychotics and antiplatelet compounds.

[Outbreak of multiresistant and extended spectrum β-lactamase producing Klebsiella pneumoniae in a high risk neonatal unit].

Klebsiella pneumoniae as a producer of extended spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) has played an important role as a cause of infection in the neonatal high risk unit (NHRU) of the Autonomous Hospital Institute of the Universidad de Los Andes (AHIULA). In this paper an outbreak caused by this bacterial specie that affected neonates hospitalized in this unit during February 2007 is described. Besides, the environment and the personnel were studied as possible sources of this organism.

The NPIY motif in the integrin beta1 tail dictates the requirement for talin-1 in outside-in signaling.

Protein interactions with the integrin beta-subunit cytoplasmic domain (beta-tail) are essential for adhesion-dependent processes, including cell spreading and the connection of integrins with actin filaments at adhesion sites. Talin-1 binds to the conserved membrane-proximal NPxY motif of beta-tails (NPIY in beta1 integrin) promoting the inside-out activation of integrins and providing a linkage between integrins and the actin cytoskeleton. Here, we characterize the role of interactions between talin-1 and beta-tail downstream of integrin activation, in the context of recombinant integrins containing either the wild type (WT) or the (YA) mutant beta1A tail, with a tyrosine to alanine substitution in the NPIY motif.

Properties of honey from ten species of Peruvian stingless bees.

Honey produced by ten stingless bee species (Melipona crinita, M. eburnea, M. grandis, M.

The function of vascular endothelial growth factor.

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is considered the master regulator of angiogenesis during growth and development, as well as in disease states such as cancer, diabetes, and macular degeneration. This review details our current understanding of VEGF signaling and discusses the benefits and unexpected side effects of promising anti-angiogenic therapeutics that are currently being used to inhibit neovacularization in tumors.

Molecular study of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus isolates at a neonatal high-risk unit in Merida, Venezuela.

Background: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a multiresistant microorganisms which holds first place in the world as a nosocomial pathogen. Special attention has therefore been directed to specific nosocomial surveillance systems and strict infection control measures for this microorganism in which the microbiological laboratory plays an important role by applying phenotypic and genotypic methods that permit establishing their epidemiological relationship especially in hospital outbreaks. In the present study the general objective was to study MRSA strains isolated from neonates with nosocomial infections and from healthcare personnel working in the Neonatal High Risk Unit (NHRU) of the Andes University Hospital Autonomous Institute (AUHAI) in Mérida, Venezuela.

Integrins as regulators of the mitotic machinery.

Mitotic spindle bipolarity defines a unique division plane that promotes the successful transmission of genetic material during cytokinesis. The positioning and orientation of the spindle determines the symmetry of cell division and the relative location of daughter cells, which regulate cell fate decisions that contribute to embryonic development and tissue differentiation. Recent studies have identified integrins as regulators of spindle positioning and orientation, as well as spindle bipolarity and cytokinesis.

[Factors of virulence associated with enteropathogenicity in strains of Aeromonas spp. isolated from children with diarrhea in Mérida, Venezuela].

The feces of 397 patients with acute diarrheal disease (ADD) and of other 121 patients without diarrea (control group) were studied in the state of Mérida, Venezuela, from June 1993 to December 1994. The genus Aeromonas was identified in patients with ADD in 11.83% and in 5.

Molecular epidemiology and characterization of resistance mechanisms to various antimicrobial agents in Acinetobacter baumannii isolated in Mérida, Venezuela.

Background: A. baumannii outbreaks are difficult to control because of the relative ease with which this microorganism spreads and persists in hospital settings. Successive papers reported increased resistance in clinical isolates of A.

Outbreak of infection with Acinetobacter strain RUH 1139 in an intensive care unit.

Objective: To investigate a nosocomial outbreak of infection with Acinetobacter strain RUH 1139, in the unit of high neonatal risk at University Hospital of The Andes (Merida, Venezuela).

Methods: Twenty-eight Acinetobacter strains were detected by biochemical testing and further identified to the species level by examination of the gene encoding 16S ribosomal DNA, using restriction analysis and gene sequencing. The epidemiological relationship between the strains was established by means of repetitive extragenic palindromic polymerase chain reaction (REP-PCR) and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), and antimicrobial susceptibilities were determined by disk diffusion.

[Epidemiology of Staphylococcus aureus nosocomial infections in a high-risk neonatal unit].

Nosocomial infections are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality throughout the world. In developing countries it is difficult to carry out effective surveillance and control programs for this type of infection because of the cost in both human and material resources. These considerations prompted us to perform a prospective study to determine the epidemiologic and microbiologic characteristics of nosocomial infections due to Staphylococcus aureus in the High-risk Neonatal Unit (HRNU) of the Instituto Autónomo Hospital Universitario de Los Andes (IAHULA), during the period of November 1997 to October 1998.

Molecular basis of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase production in nosocomial isolates of Klebsiella pneumoniae from Mérida, Venezuela.

Twelve Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates resistant to expanded-spectrum cephalosporins and aztreonam, from patients with nosocomial septicaemia at the intensive care unit of the Andes University Hospital, Mérida, Venezuela, were studied for production of extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESbetaL) activity. All were also resistant to gentamicin, kanamycin, tetracycline and chloramphenicol but sensitive to cefoxitin, imipenem, amikacin and tobramycin. Production of ESbetaL activity was confirmed by restoring susceptibility to ceftazidime in the presence of clavulanic acid.

[Clinical, epidemiological and microbiological aspects of Mobiluncus sp. in bacterial vaginosis].

Background: In this paper, our goal was to determine the optimal isolation conditions, biochemical characterization, and preservation of species of the genus Mobiluncus, associated with bacterial vaginosis in patients attending the family planning clinic. Also, we tried to relate its presence with demographic variables and criteria used in the clinical diagnosis of bacterial diagnosis.

Methods: The specimen from the posterior fornix were collected and transported to the laboratory in a Stuart medium, one at room temperature and the other at 4 degrees C.

[Characterization of plasmids which mediate resistance to multiple antibiotics in gram-negative bacteria of nosocomial origin].

Background: The genetic and molecular mechanisms involved in antimicrobial resistance of 10 strains of gramnegative bacilli (1 Serratia marcescens; 2 Escherichia coli; 1 Proteus mirabilis; 4 Klebsiella pneumoniae; 1 Enterobacter cloacae y 1 Alcaligenes faecalis), isolated from adult patients with nosocomial pulmonary infection at the in-patient facilities of the University Hospital of Los Andes, Mérida, Venezuela, have been studied.

Methods: The antimicrobial susceptibility was determined by minimum inhibitory concentrations using the dilution method in agar. The study of extrachromosomal genes was carried out by conjugation, bacterial infection with the bacteriophage M13 and curing of plasmid by acridine orange.

[Comparative study of 4 methods for identifying species of the genus Aeromonas].

It is given an explanation of the results obtained with the following methods: AEROKEY II, AEROKEY II + Abbot's scheme, Api 20 NE, and the Biolog System. The study was conducted with 38 strains of Aeromonas isolated from children under 5 with acute diarrheal disease (ADD). The AEROKEY II + Abbot's scheme proved to be the best identification method.

Nitric oxide regulation of superoxide-dependent lung injury: oxidant-protective actions of endogenously produced and exogenously administered nitric oxide.

The influence of endogenous cell .NO production and .NO derived from exogenous sources on oxidant injury to cultured fetal rat lung alveolar epithelium and an animal model of pulmonary oxidant injury was examined.

Interaction of surfactant mixtures with reactive oxygen and nitrogen species.

Increased concentrations of partially reduced oxygen and nitrogen reactive species damage the alveolar epithelium and either cause or exacerbate surfactant deficiency. For this reason, there is a quest to identify surfactant replacement mixtures, which in addition to repleting depleted surfactant stores can also reduce the steady-state concentrations of reactive species in the alveolar space. Herein, we evaluated the ability of natural lung surfactant (NLS) and two mixtures (Exosurf and Survanta) used clinically for the correction of surfactant deficiency to scavenge hydroxyl radical-type species (.