Perineuronal nets (PNNs) are a condensed form of extracellular matrix primarily found around parvalbumin-expressing (PV+) interneurons. The postnatal maturation of PV+ neurons is accompanied with the formation of PNNs and reduced plasticity. Alterations in PNN and PV+ neuron function have been described for mental disorders such as schizophrenia and autism.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Researchers and policymakers recognize that leveraging data routinely collected in clinical practice can support improved research and patient care. Embedding elements of clinical trials, such as patient identification and trial data acquisition, into clinical practice can enable research access and increase efficiencies by reducing duplication of trial and care activities. Yet, cultural, administrative, and data barriers exist.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSuturing is widely regarded to be a core competency of veterinary education. With curricular requirements expanding, training interventions that improve students' suturing skills without added time would be valuable. This study evaluated the effects of stroboscopic visual resistance training, a technique using intermittent occlusion of vision, and guided visualization on suturing technique and speed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSerological surveillance in animal and human hosts can be a cost-effective strategy for orthoebolavirus detection, but is challenged by accurate estimates of seroprevalence, potential pauci-symptomatic disease presentation, and antigenic cross-reactivity. Here, we describe the use of an envelope glycoprotein (GP)-based multiplex microsphere immunoassay, consisting of nine filovirus GP antigens for the detection of anti-Ebola virus (EBOV) antibodies in a well-characterized cohort of Guinean Ebola virus disease (EVD) survivors and contacts from the 2013 - 2016 West African EVD outbreak. We examined sensitivity and specificity for the detection of anti-EBOV antibodies by GP expressed as recombinant trimeric ectodomains, yielding an assay performance of 95.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFKnee arthroplasty technique is constantly evolving and the opportunity for surgeons to practice new techniques is currently highly dependent on the availability of cadaveric specimens requiring certified facilities. The high cost, limited supply, and heterogeneity of cadaveric specimens has increased the demand for synthetic training models, which are currently limited by a lack of biomechanical fidelity. Here, we aimed to design, manufacture, and experimentally validate a synthetic knee surgical training model which reproduces the flexion dependent varus-valgus (VV) and anterior-posterior (AP) mechanics of cadaveric knees, while maintaining anatomic accuracy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOccup Med (Lond)
February 2024
Background: Prior to any infectious disease emergence as a public health concern, early occupational preparedness is crucial for protecting employees from novel pathogens- coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is no different.
Aims: This study ascertains how occupational safety and health (OSH)/Human Resource (HR) professionals in the Republic of Ireland had managed to prepare their workplaces prior to the advent of COVID-19.
Methods: As part of a larger COVID-19 workplace study, online focus groups were conducted with OSH/HR professionals.
Executive function (EF) abilities have been linked to numerous important life outcomes. We longitudinally characterized EF and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) trajectories across adolescence (initial ages 8-19). Utilizing 3 years of annual data in 99 youth collected between years 2016 and 2020 (70.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a shortage of personal protective equipment, PPE, which resulted in non-certified PPE being used by healthcare staffs. These would not provide the appropriate protection against the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Together with the local NHS Trust (University Hospitals of Derby and Burton (UHDB) NHS Foundation Trust) and a local small and medium enterprise (SME), Riverside Medical Packaging Ltd, the University of Derby (UoD) developed test protocols for PPE with a one-size-fits-all concept.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: To manage injuries effectively, players, head coaches, and medical personnel need to have excellent knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours in relation to the identification of risk factors for injuries, the implementation of injury prevention initiatives, as well as the implementation of effective injury management strategies. Understanding the injury context, whereby specific personal, environmental, and societal factors can influence the implementation of injury prevention initiatives and injury management strategies is critical to player welfare. To date, no qualitative research investigating the context of injuries, has been undertaken in elite-level women's football.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRespiratory infections remain a leading global health concern. Models that recapitulate the cellular complexity of the lower airway of humans will provide important information about how the immune response reflects the interactions between diverse cell types during infection. We developed a 3D human tissue-engineered lung model (3D-HTLM) composed of primary human pulmonary epithelial and endothelial cells with added blood myeloid cells that allows assessment of the innate immune response to respiratory infection.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFExecutive function (EF) and social function are both critical skills that continue to develop through adolescence and are strongly predictive of many important life outcomes. Longstanding empirical and theoretical work has suggested that EF shapes social function. However, there is little empirical work on this topic in adolescence, despite both EF and social function continuing to mature into early adulthood (e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBeef carcases in Europe are classified as a proxy for the quantity and ratio of tissues, commonly referred to as yield. It is important that proxies accurately measure yield as they contribute to financial transactions between abattoirs and producers. The main purpose of the study was therefore to examine the ability of EUROP carcase classification to explain the variation in yield.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFConventional randomized controlled trials (RCTs) can be expensive, time intensive, and complex to conduct. Trial recruitment, participation, and data collection can burden participants and research personnel. In the past two decades, there have been rapid technological advances and an exponential growth in digitized healthcare data.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Objectives: The primary objective is to examine potential racial and ethnic (R/E) disparities in ambulatory neurology quality measures within the American Academy of Neurology Axon Registry. R/E disparities in neurologic US morbidity and mortality have been clearly documented. Despite these findings, there have been no nationwide examinations of how ambulatory neurologic care affects these negative health outcomes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: There is an increasing interest in the use of non-nutritive sweeteners to replace added sugar in food and beverage products for reasons of improving consumer health. Much work has been done to understand safety of sweeteners, but very little on sustainability. To address that gap, this study presents the results of a life cycle assessment (LCA) of production of rebaudioside A 60%, 95% pure (RA60) steviol glycoside mix from leaf grown in Europe.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe emergence of SARS-CoV-2 and the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic triggered considerable attention to the emergence and evolution of novel human pathogens. Bourbon virus (BRBV) was first discovered in 2014 in Bourbon County, Kansas, USA. Since its initial discovery, several cases of BRBV infection in humans have been identified in Kansas, Oklahoma, and Missouri.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAim: The aim of this study was to explore key informants' views on and experiences with Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy in a Dublin community with a high concentration of economic and social disadvantage and to identify feasible, community-centred solutions for improving vaccination acceptance and uptake.
Methods: Qualitative, semi-structured interviews were carried out at a local community-centre and a central hair salon. Twelve key informants from the target community were selected based on their professional experience with vulnerable population groups: the unemployed, adults in recovery from addiction, the elderly, and Irish Travellers.
Background: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a leading viral respiratory pathogen in infants. The objective of this study was to generate RSV live-attenuated vaccine (LAV) candidates by removing the G-protein mucin domains to attenuate viral replication while retaining immunogenicity through deshielding of surface epitopes.
Methods: Two LAV candidates were generated from recombinant RSV A2-line19F by deletion of the G-protein mucin domains (A2-line19F-G155) or deletion of the G-protein mucin and transmembrane domains (A2-line19F-G155S).
Hereditary angioedema (HAE) is a rare genetic disorder in which patients experience sudden onset of swelling in various locations of the body. HAE is associated with uncontrolled plasma kallikrein (PKa) enzyme activity and generation of the potent inflammatory mediator, bradykinin, resulting in episodic attacks of angioedema. Herein, we disclose the discovery and optimization of novel small molecule PKa inhibitors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF