Deep mutational scanning reveals a correlation between degradation and toxicity of thousands of aspartoacylase variants.

Unstable proteins are prone to form non-native interactions with other proteins and thereby may become toxic. To mitigate this, destabilized proteins are targeted by the protein quality control network. Here we present systematic studies of the cytosolic aspartoacylase, ASPA, where variants are linked to Canavan disease, a lethal neurological disorder.

Long-acting reversible contraception use and unmet desire among patients after the Zika Contraception Access Network Program in Puerto Rico.

Objectives: To describe unmet desire for long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) after the Zika Contraception Access Network (Z-CAN) in Puerto Rico during the 2016-2017 Zika outbreak.

Study Design: Z-CAN patients completed surveys about contraception experiences over a 3-year period.

Results: Of 1809 respondents, 3% never used LARC but reported wanting it since their initial visit.

Community-based organizations at the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic: Strategies for building equitable COVID-19 vaccine uptake and distribution.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic highlighted the disproportionate negative health outcomes faced by racial and ethnic minority communities as a result of various factors that affect health equity. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the overwhelming disparities within communities, public health agencies have aimed to establish partnerships with community-based organizations (CBOs) to distribute information about COVID-19 to populations expressing vaccine hesitancy, recognizing that they are necessary partners in ensuring and maintaining equitable distribution of resources. In line with the National Foundation for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC Foundation)'s Health Equity Strategy, the CDC Foundation's Response, Crisis and Preparedness Unit (RCPU) team is responsible for managing the portfolio of more than 110 grants to CBOs across 14 grant opportunities by private and federal funding that supports the COVID-19 response.

Perceptions of the Zika Virus, Contraceptive Access, and Motivation to Participate in the Zika Contraception Access Network Program: Qualitative Analysis of Focusgroup Discussions with Puerto Rican Women.

Objective: During the 2016-2017 Zika virus outbreak in Puerto Rico, the Zika Contraception Access Network (Z-CAN) provided client-centered contraceptive counseling and access to the full range of reversible contraceptive methods at no cost to prevent unintended pregnancies and thereby to reduce Zika-related birth outcomes.

Methods: To understand how Puerto Rican women's perceptions of the Zika virus affected contraceptive decisions and assess how they heard about the Z-CAN program and what influenced their participation, or lack thereof, 24 focus-group discussions were conducted among women of reproductive age who did and did not participate in Z-CAN.

Results: Women who participated in the discussions often had heard about Z-CAN from their physician or friends; non-participants had heard about Z-CAN from Facebook or friends.

A mutational atlas for Parkin proteostasis.

Proteostasis can be disturbed by mutations affecting folding and stability of the encoded protein. An example is the ubiquitin ligase Parkin, where gene variants result in autosomal recessive Parkinsonism. To uncover the pathological mechanism and provide comprehensive genotype-phenotype information, variant abundance by massively parallel sequencing (VAMP-seq) is leveraged to quantify the abundance of Parkin variants in cultured human cells.

A Prospective Cohort Protocol for the Remnant Investigation in Sepsis Study.

Background: Sepsis is a common and deadly syndrome, accounting for more than 11 million deaths annually. To mature a deeper understanding of the host and pathogen mechanisms contributing to poor outcomes in sepsis, and thereby possibly inform new therapeutic targets, sophisticated, and expensive biorepositories are typically required. We propose that remnant biospecimens are an alternative for mechanistic sepsis research, although the viability and scientific value of such remnants are unknown.

The Stress of Advancement: A Nurse Practitioner's Exploration in Providing Culturally Competent Obesity Prevention Counseling in Black Women.

Background: Black women are diagnosed, disabled, and die from obesity and associated chronic diseases at higher rates than any other sex or race. Advanced practice registered nurses (APRN) can potentially improve culturally relevant health education and counseling by using health literacy communication tools.

Objective: Explore individualized barriers and APRNs' role in providing obesity prevention education and counseling by assessing the efficacy of the Teach-Back Method (TBM) to understand health habits and attitudes.

Maximizing Student Outcomes in Schools: Data-Driven Individualized Education Program Goals and Objectives Aligned to the Standards.

Purpose: Federal and state laws require schools to be accountable for student performance on measures of academic achievement in literacy, mathematics, and science skills; monitor high school graduation rates; and track student growth and academic progression throughout the grade levels. Success on these measures gives students pathways to postsecondary options in the workforce, technical education, or college/university education. Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) can utilize existing data sources in the school in conjunction with their knowledge of diagnostics and treatment of cognition, language, and culture to maximize student outcomes beyond the therapy room and in the curriculum standards.

Importance of Public and Private Partnership Supporting Data Disaggregation to Measure Racial, Sexual Orientation, and Gender Identity Disparities in COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed shortcomings in the US public health data system infrastructure, including incomplete or disparate processes related to data collection, management, sharing, and analysis. Public health data modernization is critical to ensure health equity is at the core of preparedness and response efforts and policies that prioritize equitable responses to health emergencies. To address the inequitable uptake and distribution of COVID-19 vaccinations in communities most disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, the CDC Foundation's Response Crisis and Preparedness Unit began partnering with community-based organizations in March 2021 to provide education and outreach and facilitate access to vaccines.

Provider Perceptions of Facilitators of and Barriers to Implementation of the Zika Contraception Access Network: A Qualitative Evaluation.

Objective: From May 2016 through September 2017, the Zika Contraception Access Network (Z-CAN) program increased access to contraception during the Zika virus outbreak in Puerto Rico by providing no-cost client-centered contraceptive counseling and (same-day) access to the full range of US Food and Drug Administration-approved reversible contraceptives to women desirous of not becoming pregnant. The purpose of this study was to identify areas for programmatic improvement and enhance the sustainability of services from the perspectives of participating Z-CAN physicians and other staff.

Methods: From April through July 2017, 49 in-depth key-informant interviews were conducted with Z-CAN physicians and clinic staff.

Engaging Community-Based Organizations to Address Barriers in Public Health Programs: Lessons Learned From COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance Programs in Diverse Rural Communities.

Factors such as geography, community hesitancy, the political landscape, and legislative efforts to limit public health authority have contributed to a disproportionate number of COVID-19 infections and deaths in US rural communities. Community-based organizations are trusted entities that provide social and educational services in the communities where they live and have proven to be effective public health partners in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Recognizing the unique challenges faced by rural communities, coupled with higher rates of vaccine hesitancy, the CDC Foundation awarded grants to 21 community-based organizations serving rural communities in 7 Midwest states to support the equitable uptake and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines.

Building Global Health Systems Capacity During COVID-19 to Improve Vaccination Access and Reduce Hesitancy: Case Studies in Zambia and Tanzania.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the CDC Foundation collaborated with implementing partners in Zambia and Tanzania to address challenges related to vaccination access and hesitancy through strategic partnership, technical assistance, and community engagement. These efforts were successful in fostering collaborations among community partners and health authorities and actively engaging the ministries of health. This article describes 2 case studies from Zambia and Tanzania involving different strategies to build health system capacity through projects that improved vaccination access and reduced hesitancy.

A chemically controlled Cas9 switch enables temporal modulation of diverse effectors.

CRISPR-Cas9 has yielded a plethora of effectors, including targeted transcriptional activators, base editors and prime editors. Current approaches for inducibly modulating Cas9 activity lack temporal precision and require extensive screening and optimization. We describe a versatile, chemically controlled and rapidly activated single-component DNA-binding Cas9 switch, ciCas9, which we use to confer temporal control over seven Cas9 effectors, including two cytidine base editors, two adenine base editors, a dual base editor, a prime editor and a transcriptional activator.

Association Between Preexisting Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction and Fluid Administration Among Patients With Sepsis.

Importance: Intravenous fluid administration is recommended to improve outcomes for patients with septic shock. However, there are few data on fluid administration for patients with preexisting heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF).

Objective: To evaluate the association between preexisting HFrEF, guideline-recommended intravenous fluid resuscitation, and mortality among patients with community-acquired sepsis and septic shock.

Community Perspectives on Contraception in the Context of Zika Virus in American Samoa and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.

The prevention of unintended pregnancy was identified as a primary prevention strategy to reduce Zika-related adverse birth outcomes during the 2016-2017 Zika virus outbreak. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in partnership with local health agencies conducted formative research to guide the development of culturally appropriate messages and materials to increase awareness of the prevention of unintended pregnancy as a strategy to decrease Zika-related adverse outcomes in American Samoa and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Nine focus groups (N=71) were conducted with women and men aged 18-44 years living in American Samoa and CNMI.

Tutorial: Data Collection and Documentation Strategies for Speech-Language Pathologist/Speech-Language Pathology Assistant Teams.

Purpose: This tutorial outlines an approach for best practices for speech-language pathology assistants (SLPAs) to collect data and document services. The tutorial outlines methods for developing accurate and effective data collection skills and provides instructions and tools for collecting various types of data. The authors discuss the importance of data collection as it relates to the roles and responsibilities of speech-language pathologists (SLPs) and SLPAs.

Context and the Perceived Fairness of Price Increases Coming out of COVID-19.

Objective: As the U.S. economy responds to prolonged COVID-19 disruptions, it is important to understand what factors affect the perceived fairness of pandemic-driven price increases.

Food-Focused Media Literacy for Remotely Acculturating Adolescents and Mothers: A Randomized Controlled Trial of the "JUS Media? Programme".

Purpose: Unhealthy eating is a major modifiable risk factor for noncommunicable diseases and obesity, and remote acculturation to U.S. culture is a recently identified cultural determinant of unhealthy eating among adolescents and families in low/middle-income countries.

Impact of a Health Communication Campaign on Uptake of Contraceptive Services during the 2016-2017 Zika Virus Outbreak in Puerto Rico.

The Zika Contraception Access Network (Z-CAN) was established during the 2016-2017 Zika virus outbreak in Puerto Rico as a short-term emergency response program providing client-centered contraceptive counseling and same-day access to the full range of reversible contraceptive methods at no cost to women wishing to delay pregnancy. An evidence-based communication campaign, Ante La Duda, Pregunta (ALDP), was launched to encourage utilization of Z-CAN services. We assessed the effectiveness of campaign tactics in increasing awareness of Z-CAN among women in Puerto Rico.