Single-cell data reveal heterogeneity of investment in ribosomes across a bacterial population.

Ribosomes are responsible for the synthesis of proteins, the major component of cellular biomass. Classical experiments have established a linear relationship between the fraction of resources invested in ribosomal proteins and the rate of balanced growth of a microbial population. Very little is known, however, about how the investment in ribosomes varies over individual cells in a population.

Improving the genetic stability of bacterial growth control for long-term bioproduction.

Using microorganisms for bioproduction requires the reorientation of metabolic fluxes from biomass synthesis to the production of compounds of interest. We previously engineered a synthetic growth switch in Escherichia coli based on inducible expression of the β- and β'-subunits of RNA polymerase. Depending on the level of induction, the cells stop growing or grow at a rate close to that of the wild-type strain.

Domesticating data: Traveling and value-making in the data economy.

Data are versatile objects that can travel across contexts. While data's travels have been widely discussed, little attention has been paid to the sites from where and to which data flow. Drawing upon ethnographic fieldwork in two connected data-intensive laboratories and the concept of domestication, we explore what it takes to bring data 'home' into the laboratory.

Slowing down decay: biological clocks in personalized medicine.

This article discusses so-called biological clocks. These technologies, based on aging biomarkers, trace and measure molecular changes in order to monitor individuals' "true" biological age against their chronological age. Drawing on the concept of decay, and building on ethnographic fieldwork in an academic laboratory and a commercial firm, we analyze the implications of the development and commercialization of biological clocks that can identify when decay is "out of tempo.

The impact and experienced barriers menstruation present to football participation in amateur female footballers.

This study (1) assessed the impact different stages of the menstrual cycle has on experienced football performance and exercise ability (2) identified the experienced barriers to football participation menstruation presents in amateur women footballers. An online survey was used. The inclusion criteria were non-professional, women currently experiencing regular menstrual cycles, ≥18 years, ≥60 min football/week in the UK.

Renting Valuable Assets: Knowledge and Value Production in Academic Science.

This paper explores what it takes for research laboratories to produce valuable knowledge in academic institutions marked by the coexistence of multiple evaluative frameworks. Drawing upon ethnographic fieldwork carried out in two UK-based epigenetics research laboratories, I examine the set of practices through which research groups intertwine knowledge production with the making of scientific, health and wealth value. This includes building and maintaining a portfolio of valuable resources, such as expertise, scientific credibility or data and turning these resources into assets by carefully organising and managing their value.

Diversity of mosquito (Diptera: Culicidae) vectors in a heterogeneous landscape endemic for arboviruses.

Background: In Brazil and several countries in the Americas, where dengue, chikungunya and Zika are cocirculating, there is a need to understand how different mosquito species relate to landscape and humans. Mosquito ecology and distribution, especially at finer spatial scales, are key factors to study since the relationship of mosquito communities to their habitats might have important consequences in the risk of disease transmission to humans. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diversity of resident culicids along heterogeneous landscapes in different endemic cities for dengue, chikungunya and Zika.

Supported Molybdenum Carbide and Nitride Catalysts for Carbon Dioxide Hydrogenation.

Catalysts based on molybdenum carbide or nitride nanoparticles (2-5 nm) supported on titania were prepared by wet impregnation followed by a thermal treatment under alkane (methane or ethane)/hydrogen or nitrogen/hydrogen mixture, respectively. The samples were characterized by elemental analysis, volumetric adsorption of nitrogen, X-ray diffraction, and aberration-corrected transmission electron microscopy. They were evaluated for the hydrogenation of CO in the 2-3 MPa and 200-300°C ranges using a gas-phase flow fixed bed reactor.

When more data means better results: Abundance and scarcity in research collaborations in epigenetics.

Drawing upon ethnographic findings from an epigenetics research laboratory in the United Kingdom, this paper explores practices of research collaborations in the field of epigenetics, and epigenomics research consortia in particular. I demonstrate that research consortia are key scientific infrastructures that enable the aggregation of masses of data deemed necessary for the production of results and the fostering of epistemic value. Building on STS scholarship on value production, and the concept of asset, I show that the production of valuable research within epigenomics research consortia rests on the active organisation and management of abundance and scarcity.

Caring for data: Value creation in a data-intensive research laboratory.

Drawing upon ethnographic observations of staff working within a research laboratory built around research and clinical data from twins, this article analyzes practices underlying the production and maintenance of a research database. While critical data studies have discussed different forms of 'data work' through which data are produced and turned into effective research resources, in this paper we foreground a specific form of data work, namely the affective and attentive relationships that humans build with data. Building on STS and feminist scholarship that highlights the importance of care in scientific work, we capture this specific form of data work as care.

Markers as mediators: A review and synthesis of epigenetics literature.

Epigenetics, the study of the processes that control gene expression without a change in DNA sequence, highlights the importance of environmental factors in gene regulation. This paper maps the terrain of epigenetics and identifies four main research subfields: gene expression; molecular epigenetics; clinical epigenetics and epigenetic epidemiology. Within and across these fields, we analyse of what is conceptualised as environment and demonstrate the variable ways authors understand epigenetics environments.

Teaching childbirth with high-fidelity simulation. Is it better observing the scenario during the briefing session?

The design of optimal courses for obstetric undergraduate teaching is a relevant question. This study evaluates two different designs of simulator-based learning activity on childbirth with regard to respect to the patient, obstetric manoeuvres, interpretation of cardiotocography tracings (CTG) and infection prevention. This randomised experimental study which differs in the content of their briefing sessions consisted of two groups of undergraduate students, who performed two simulator-based learning activities on childbirth.

Toward the Standardization of Mycological Examination of Sputum Samples in Cystic Fibrosis: Results from a French Multicenter Prospective Study.

Fungal respiratory colonization of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients emerges as a new concern; however, the heterogeneity of mycological protocols limits investigations. We first aimed at setting up an efficient standardized protocol for mycological analysis of CF sputa that was assessed during a prospective, multicenter study: "MucoFong" program (PHRC-06/1902). Sputa from 243 CF patients from seven centers in France were collected over a 15-month period and submitted to a standardized protocol based on 6 semi-selective media.

Labor induction just after external cephalic version with epidural analgesia at term.

Objective: To analyze the benefits of external cephalic version (ECV) with epidural analgesia at term and labor induction just after the procedure.

Materials And Methods: This is a retrospective observational study with patients who did not want trying a breech vaginal delivery and decided trying an ECV with epidural analgesia at term and wanted labor induction or cesarean section after the procedure. We present the results of 40 ECV with epidural analgesia at term and labor induction or cesarean section just after the ECV.

Prospective Evaluation of a New Aspergillus IgG Enzyme Immunoassay Kit for Diagnosis of Chronic and Allergic Pulmonary Aspergillosis.

Anti-Aspergillus IgG antibodies are important biomarkers for the diagnosis of chronic pulmonary aspergillosis (CPA) and allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA). We compared the performance of a new commercial enzyme immunoassay (EIA) (Bordier Affinity Products) with that of the Bio-Rad and Virion\Serion EIAs. This assay is novel in its association of two recombinant antigens with somatic and metabolic antigens of Aspergillus fumigatus In a prospective multicenter study, 436 serum samples from 147 patients diagnosed with CPA (136 samples/104 patients) or ABPA (94 samples/43 patients) and from 205 controls (206 samples) were tested.

Green autofluorescence, a double edged monitoring tool for bacterial growth and activity in micro-plates.

The intrinsic green autofluorescence of an Escherichia coli culture has long been overlooked and empirically corrected in green fluorescent protein (GFP) reporter experiments. We show here, by using complementary methods of fluorescence analysis and HPLC, that this autofluorescence, principally arise from the secreted flavins in the external media. The cells secrete roughly 10 times more than what they keep inside.

IgG1 anti-cell wall and IgG2 anti-phosphopeptidomannan antibodies in the diagnosis of invasive candidiasis and heavy Candida colonization.

We conducted a retrospective study to evaluate the usefulness of immunoglobulin G (IgG) subclasses against Candida cell wall fragments (CW) and phosphopeptidomannan (PPM) for the diagnosis of invasive candidiasis (IC). We analyzed 54 patients with IC (n = 19), Candida heavy colonization (HC; n = 16), and controls (no IC or HC, n = 19).In nonneutropenic patients (n = 47), the sensitivity and specificity values of IgG1 anti-CW and IgG2 anti-PPM in IC were 88%, 59%, and 88%, 94%, respectively.

Resilience and related factors in urban, mid-aged Spanish women.

Objective: To assess resilience and related factors among urban, mid-aged Spanish women.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional study performed in 227 women aged 40-65 years who filled out the 14-item Wagnild and Young Resilience Scale (WYRS-14), the Menopause Rating Scale (MRS) and a questionnaire containing personal sociodemographic data.

Results: For the whole sample, median (interquartile range) age and total WYRS-14 score were 52.

Inference of quantitative models of bacterial promoters from time-series reporter gene data.

The inference of regulatory interactions and quantitative models of gene regulation from time-series transcriptomics data has been extensively studied and applied to a range of problems in drug discovery, cancer research, and biotechnology. The application of existing methods is commonly based on implicit assumptions on the biological processes under study. First, the measurements of mRNA abundance obtained in transcriptomics experiments are taken to be representative of protein concentrations.

Characteristic and clinical relevance of Candida mannan test in the diagnosis of probable invasive candidiasis.

The gold standard laboratory tests used to diagnose invasive Candida infection (ICI) are based on the in vitro culture of blood or samples from other sterile sites. However, these tests have limited sensitivity (Se) and are generally not diagnostic until late in the infectious process. The Serion Candida mannan kit was evaluated for the diagnosis of ICI at Grenoble University Hospital (France) between 2007 and 2011.

Virus and cystic fibrosis: rhinoviruses are associated with exacerbations in adult patients.

Background: Few studies have suggested the potential role of respiratory viruses in cystic fibrosis (CF) exacerbation, but their real impact is probably underestimated.

Method: Sixty-four sputum samples collected from 46 adult patients were included in the study: 33 samples were collected during exacerbation of CF, and 31 during the stable phase. After extraction, nucleic acids were tested for the presence of respiratory viruses.

Characteristics and outcomes of chronic pulmonary aspergillosis: a retrospective analysis of a tertiary hospital registry.

Introduction: Our objective was to investigate characteristics risk factors and outcomes of patients with chronic pulmonary aspergillosis (CPA).

Methods: The Aspergillosis Committee prospectively collected Aspergillus notifications from January 2000 to December 2011. A retrospective analysis of data was performed.