A Novel Microfluidic Dielectrophoresis Technology to Enable Rapid Diagnosis of Mycobacteria tuberculosis in Clinical Samples.

To achieve the global efforts to end tuberculosis, affordable diagnostics suitable for true point-of-care implementation are required to reach the missing millions. In addition, diagnostics with increased sensitivity and expanded drug susceptibility testing are needed to address drug resistance and to diagnose low-bacterial burden cases. The laboratory-on-a-chip technology described herein used dielectrophoresis to selectively isolate Mycobacterium tuberculosis from sputum samples, purifying the bacterial population ahead of molecular confirmation by multiplex real-time quantitative PCR.

Positive affect dysregulation and its relation to binge eating size and frequency.

Negative affect is an established predictor of binge eating, yet less is known about positive affect. Low positive affect has been theorized to increase binge eating, but a better understanding is needed on the relationship between positive affect and binge eating frequency and size. Participants were 182 treatment-seeking adults (76% self-identified as female; 45% self-identified their race as Black and 40% as White; and 25% self-identified their ethnicity as Hispanic/Latino) with self-reported recurrent binge eating (≥12 binge episodes in the past 3  months).

An Exploratory Study of Financial Health as an Antecedent of Economic Abuse Among Women Seeking Help for Intimate Partner Violence.

Economic abuse is a common component of intimate partner violence (IPV). This study explored whether IPV victim and perpetrator financial health at relationship outset are associated with two types of economic abuse-restriction and exploitation-during the relationship. With a sample of 315 women seeking services for male-perpetrated IPV, the study showed increased use of economic restriction when perpetrators were advantaged in terms of assets or disadvantaged in terms of debt.

Weight Loss Expectations of Adults With Binge Eating: Cross-sectional Study With a Human-Centered Design Approach.

Background: People tend to overestimate their expectations for weight loss relative to what is achievable in a typical evidence-based behavioral weight management program, which can impact treatment satisfaction and outcomes. We are engaged in formative research to design a digital intervention that addresses binge eating and weight management; thus, understanding expectations among this group can inform more engaging intervention designs to produce a digital intervention that can achieve greater clinical success. Studies examining weight loss expectations have primarily focused on people who have overweight or obesity.

SAR of non-hydrolysable analogs of pyridoxal 5'-phosphate against low molecular weight protein tyrosine phosphatase isoforms.

Kinases and phosphatases are key enzymes in cell signal transduction pathways. Imbalances in these enzymes have been linked to numerous disease states ranging from cancer to diabetes to autoimmune disorders. The two isoforms (IFA and IFB) of Low Molecular Weight Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase (LMW-PTP) appear to play a role in these diseases.

Boat anchoring contributes substantially to coral reef degradation in the British Virgin Islands.

Community decline is often linked to anthropogenic activities. Coral reef declines, for example, have been linked to overfishing and climate change, but impacts of coastal development, pollution, and tourism have received increasing attention. Here, we isolated the impact of one little-studied aspect of recreational activity on coral reefs-damage from boat anchoring-by performing a survey of 24 sites in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) subject to varying levels of anchoring activity.

Episodic Disturbance from Boat Anchoring Is a Major Contributor to, but Does Not Alter the Trajectory of, Long-Term Coral Reef Decline.

Isolating the relative effects of episodic disturbances and chronic stressors on long-term community change is challenging. We assessed the impact of an episodic disturbance associated with human visitation (boat anchoring) relative to other drivers of long-term change on coral reefs. A one-time anchoring event at Crab Cove, British Virgin Islands, in 2004 caused rapid losses of coral and reef structural complexity that were equal to the cumulative decline over 23 years observed at an adjacent site.

Therapeutic phlebotomy procedures and their impact on a rural hospital's red blood cell inventory and fiscal stature.

Background: Therapeutic phlebotomy (TP) programs offer an important community service and often provide financial and donor unit resources for the hospital. This study assessed the financial impact and red blood cell (RBC) inventory contribution of a small, rural hospital-based TP program.

Study Design And Methods: TP procedures over 13 months were evaluated at a 142-bed rural hospital.