ARCHWAy: an innovative educational program advancing the public health workforce.

Background: Community health workers (CHWs) are vital yet often invisible contributors to care coordination, health equity, and public health (PH) in medically underserved areas. The Atlanta Regional Community Health Workforce Advancement (ARCHWAy) Program leverages cross-sector partners to increase the number of CHWs on integrated care teams in metro Atlanta in the United States.

Methods: The ARCHWAy Program provides an innovative educational curriculum guided by United States Department of Labor CHW competencies and cross-walked with the Georgia CHW Initiative competencies.

The nurse-led equitable learning framework for training programs: A framework to grow, bolster and diversify the nursing and public health workforce.

Background: Addressing threats to the nursing and public health workforce, while also strengthening the skills of current and future workers, requires programmatic solutions. Training programs should be guided by frameworks, which leverage nursing expertise and leadership, partnerships, and integrate ongoing evaluation.

Purpose Statement: This article provides a replicable framework to grow, bolster, and diversify the nursing and public health workforces, known as the Nurse-led Equitable Learning (NEL) Framework for Training Programs.

Blood-Stream Infections: Causative Agents, Antibiotic Resistance and Associated Factors in Older Patients.

Background: The rate of multi-drug antibiotic resistance in nosocomial bloodstream infections in elderly patients is increasing. This study examined the data for bloodstream infections to gain a better understanding of bacterial antibiotic resistance.

Methods: This was a retrospective study of 817 patients with the first positive blood culture between January 1, 2016 and December 31, 2019.

CRISPR/Cas9 targeted mutations of OsDSG1 gene enhanced salt tolerance in rice.

Salinization is one of the leading causes of arable land shrinkage and rice yield decline, recently. Therefore, developing and utilizing salt-tolerant rice varieties have been seen as a crucial and urgent strategy to reduce the effects of saline intrusion and protect food security worldwide. In the current study, the CRISPR/Cas9 system was utilized to induce targeted mutations in the coding sequence of the OsDSG1, a gene involved in the ubiquitination pathway and the regulation of biochemical reactions in rice.

Evaluating a Low-Cost Disaster Preparedness Simulation for Prelicensure Nursing Students.

Objective: This innovation in simulation evaluated the effectiveness of a time sensible, low-cost simulation on prelicensure nursing students' knowledge and confidence in responding to public health emergencies.

Method: One hundred eighty-two nursing students, in groups of 5, participated in a 75-min emergency preparedness disaster simulation. A mixed methods design was used to evaluate students' knowledge and confidence in disaster preparedness, and satisfaction with the simulation.

Disrupting Sc-uORFs of a transcription factor bZIP1 using CRISPR/Cas9 enhances sugar and amino acid contents in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum).

Induced mutations in the SC-uORF of the tomato transcription factor gene SlbZIP1 by the CRISPR/Cas9 system led to the high accumulation of sugar and amino acid contents in tomato fruits. Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is one of the most popular and consumed vegetable crops in the world. Among important traits for tomato improvement such as yield, biotic and abiotic resistances, appearance, post-harvest shelf life and fruit quality, the last one seems to face more challenges because of its genetic and biochemical complexities.

Impact of antimicrobial stewardship intervention in clean and clean-contaminated surgical procedures at a Vietnamese national hospital.

Objectives: We investigated the characteristics of prophylactic antimicrobial use in clean and clean-contaminated surgical procedures and assessed the efficacy of a prophylactic antimicrobial stewardship intervention at Thong Nhat Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 354 patients who underwent either clean or clean-contaminated surgical procedures at Thong Nhat Hospital. Eligible patients were classified with respect to three periods of intervention from 2017 to 2020.

Agritourism and Kidding Season: A Large Outbreak of Human Shiga Toxin-Producing O157 (STEC O157) Infections Linked to a Goat Dairy Farm-Connecticut, 2016.

The objective of this study was to determine sources of Shiga toxin-producing O157 (STEC O157) infection among visitors to Farm X and develop public health recommendations. A case-control study was conducted. Case-patients were defined as the first ill child (aged <18 years) in the household with laboratory-confirmed STEC O157, or physician-diagnosed hemolytic uremic syndrome with laboratory confirmation by serology, who visited Farm X in the 10 days prior to illness.

Genetic Diversity of Non-O157 Shiga Toxin-Producing Recovered From Patients in Michigan and Connecticut.

Shiga toxin-producing (STEC) are important foodborne pathogens and non-O157 serotypes have been gradually increasing in frequency. The non-O157 STEC population is diverse and is often characterized using serotyping and/or multilocus sequence typing (MLST). Although spacers within clustered regularly interspaced repeat (CRISPR) regions were shown to comprise horizontally acquired DNA elements, this region does not actively acquire spacers in STEC.

Characteristics of Clusters of Salmonella and Escherichia coli O157 Detected by Pulsed-Field Gel Electrophoresis that Predict Identification of Outbreaks.

Introduction: Molecular subtyping of pathogens is critical for foodborne disease outbreak detection and investigation. Many clusters initially identified by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) are not confirmed as point-source outbreaks. We evaluated characteristics of clusters that can help prioritize investigations to maximize effective use of limited resources.

Outbreak of Salmonella enterica serotype Infantis infection in humans linked to dry dog food in the United States and Canada, 2012.

CASE DESCRIPTION--In April 2012, Salmonella enterica serotype Infantis was detected in an unopened bag of dry dog food collected during routine retail surveillance. PulseNet, a national bacterial subtyping network, identified humans with Salmonella Infantis infection with the same genetic fingerprint as the dog food sample. CLINICAL FINDINGS--An outbreak investigation identified 53 ill humans infected with the outbreak strain during January 1 to July 5, 2012, in 21 states and 2 provinces in Canada; 20 (38%) were children ≤ 2 years old, and 12 of 37 (32%) were hospitalized.

Salmonella enterica serotype enteritidis outbreak at a long-term care facility, Connecticut, 2012.

In May of 2012, the Connecticut Department of Public Health (DPH) was notified of three hospitalized residents of a long-term care facility (LTCF) who had gastrointestinal illness, one of whom had a stool culture positive for Salmonella enterica. A multiagency outbreak investigation was initiated and identified a total of 21 possible salmonellosis cases; nine were culture-confirmed Salmonella serotype Enteritidis with an indistinguishable pulsed-field gel electrophoresis pattern (PFGE). This report describes the epidemiologic, environmental, and laboratory investigation conducted as part of DPH's response.

Contributing factors in restaurant-associated foodborne disease outbreaks, FoodNet sites, 2006 and 2007.

An estimated 48 million cases of foodborne illness occur each year in the United States, resulting in approximately 128,000 hospitalizations and 3,000 deaths. Over half of all foodborne disease outbreaks reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are associated with eating in restaurants or delicatessens. We reviewed data from restaurant-associated foodborne disease outbreaks to better understand the factors that contribute to these outbreaks.

Characteristics of foodborne disease outbreak investigations conducted by Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet) sites, 2003-2008.

Background: A mean of ≥ 1000 foodborne disease outbreaks (FBDOs) causing ≥ 20,000 illnesses are reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) annually. We evaluated characteristics of successful outbreak investigations (ie, those that identified an etiologic agent or food vehicle) in the Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet).

Methods: FBDOs were defined as the occurrence of ≥ 2 cases of a similar illness resulting from ingestion of a common food.

Asymmetric type F botulism with cranial nerve demyelination.

We report a case of type F botulism in a patient with bilateral but asymmetric neurologic deficits. Cranial nerve demyelination was found during autopsy. Bilateral, asymmetric clinical signs, although rare, do not rule out botulism.

Salmonella typhimurium infections associated with peanut products.

Background: Contaminated food ingredients can affect multiple products, each distributed through various channels and consumed in multiple settings. Beginning in November 2008, we investigated a nationwide outbreak of salmonella infections.

Methods: A case was defined as laboratory-confirmed infection with the outbreak strain of Salmonella Typhimurium occurring between September 1, 2008, and April 20, 2009.

Ten-year trends and risk factors for non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli found through Shiga toxin testing, Connecticut, 2000-2009.

Background: The epidemiology over time of non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) is unknown. Since 1999, increasing numbers of laboratories in Connecticut have been testing for ST rather than culturing for O157, enabling identification of non-O157 STEC.

Methods: Beginning in 2000, Connecticut laboratories were required to submit ST-positive broths to the State Laboratory for isolation and typing of STEC.

The evolving epidemiology of hepatitis a in the United States: incidence and molecular epidemiology from population-based surveillance, 2005-2007.

Background: The incidence of hepatitis A virus (HAV) disease is the lowest ever in the United States. We describe recent incidence and characteristics of cases of HAV disease from 6 US sites conducting hepatitis surveillance in the Emerging Infections Program.

Methods: Health departments conducted enhanced, population-based surveillance for HAV from 2005 through 2007.

Outbreak of Escherichia coli O157 associated with raw milk, Connecticut, 2008.

Background: In Connecticut, despite hazards of raw milk consumption, attempts to ban raw milk sales have been unsuccessful. In July 2008, 2 children experienced Escherichia coli O157-associated hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) after consuming raw milk purchased at a retail market and a farm (farm X). We investigated to determine the outbreak source and control measures.

Chicken salad as the source of a case of Listeria monocytogenes infection in Connecticut.

Listeriosis is a severe infection with high morbidity and mortality. We report a fatal case of listeriosis in a patient with a history of Crohn's disease who consumed chicken salad purchased from a retail food establishment before developing listeriosis. As part of the regulatory testing programs, the U.

Severe histoplasmosis in travelers to Nicaragua.

We investigated an outbreak of unexpectedly severe histoplasmosis among 14 healthy adventure travelers from the United States who visited a bat-infested cave in Nicaragua. Although histoplasmosis has rarely been reported to cause serious illness among travelers, this outbreak demonstrates that cases may be severe among travelers, even young, healthy persons.