Contemporary Clinical Isolates of Staphylococcus aureus from Pediatric Osteomyelitis Patients Display Unique Characteristics in a Mouse Model of Hematogenous Osteomyelitis.

Osteomyelitis can result from the direct inoculation of pathogens into bone during injury or surgery or from spread via the bloodstream, a condition called hematogenous osteomyelitis (HOM). HOM disproportionally affects children, and more than half of cases are caused by Staphylococcus aureus. Laboratory models of osteomyelitis mostly utilize direct injection of bacteria into the bone or implantation of foreign material and therefore do not directly interrogate the pathogenesis of pediatric hematogenous osteomyelitis.

Osteolineage depletion of mitofusin2 enhances cortical bone formation in female mice.

Mitochondria are essential organelles that form highly complex, interconnected dynamic networks inside cells. The GTPase mitofusin 2 (MFN2) is a highly conserved outer mitochondrial membrane protein involved in the regulation of mitochondrial morphology, which can affect various metabolic and signaling functions. The role of mitochondria in bone formation remains unclear.

Multitasking by the OC Lineage during Bone Infection: Bone Resorption, Immune Modulation, and Microbial Niche.

Bone infections, also known as infectious osteomyelitis, are accompanied by significant inflammation, osteolysis, and necrosis. Osteoclasts (OCs) are the bone-resorbing cells that work in concert with osteoblasts and osteocytes to properly maintain skeletal health and are well known to respond to inflammation by increasing their resorptive activity. OCs have typically been viewed merely as effectors of pathologic bone resorption, but recent evidence suggests they may play an active role in the progression of infections through direct effects on pathogens and via the immune system.

Ethanol Inhibits Mesenchymal Stem Cell Osteochondral Lineage Differentiation Due in Part to an Activation of Forkhead Box Protein O-Specific Signaling.

Background: During bone fracture repair, resident mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) differentiate into chondrocytes, to form a cartilaginous fracture callus, and osteoblasts, to ossify the collagen matrix. Our laboratory previously reported that alcohol administration led to decreased cartilage formation within the fracture callus of rodents and this effect was mitigated by postfracture antioxidant treatment. Forkhead box protein O (FoxO) transcription factors are activated in response to intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), and alcohol has been shown to increase ROS.

Implementation findings from an effectiveness-implementation trial of tablet-based parent training in pediatric primary care.

Introduction: The use of mobile delivery to deliver parent training can address barriers to access and improve the translation of interventions in existing settings like pediatric primary care. Studying implementation provides critical information to identify and address barriers and facilitators and inform sustainability efforts.

Method: This study was a descriptive evaluation using the RE-AIM (Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance) framework as part of a Hybrid Type I Effectiveness-Implementation trial of the Parent Program within 4 pediatric primary care clinics.

Staphylococcus aureus Infects Osteoclasts and Replicates Intracellularly.

Osteomyelitis (OM), or inflammation of bone tissue, occurs most frequently as a result of bacterial infection and severely perturbs bone structure. OM is predominantly caused by , and even with proper treatment, OM has a high rate of recurrence and chronicity. While has been shown to infect osteoblasts, it remains unclear whether osteoclasts (OCs) are also a target of intracellular infection.

Development of a Community-Based Medical Neighborhood for Children with Chronic Conditions.

Background: Children with chronic conditions have unmet health needs. Coordinated Healthcare for Complex Kids (CHECK) is a demonstration project with aims to improve health outcomes using an innovative approach to community-based health care.

Objective: We describe the development and implementation of a community-based medical neighborhood (CBMN).

Summary of the 2018 Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group (AIRIG) meeting.

On January 26, 2018, the 23rd annual Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group (AIRIG) meeting was held at the University of Colorado Denver, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado. The meeting consisted of plenary sessions with oral presentations and a poster presentation session. There were four plenary sessions that covered a wide range of topics relating to alcohol use: Alcohol and Liver Disease; Alcohol, Inflammation and Immune Response; Alcohol and Organ Injury; Heath Consequences and Alcohol Drinking.

Alcohol exposure decreases osteopontin expression during fracture healing and osteopontin-mediated mesenchymal stem cell migration in vitro.

Background: Alcohol consumption is a risk factor for impaired fracture healing, though the mechanism(s) by which this occurs are not well understood. Our laboratory has previously shown that episodic alcohol exposure of rodents negatively affects fracture callus development, callus biomechanics, and cellular signaling which regulates stem cell differentiation. Here, we examine whether alcohol alters chemokine expression and/or signaling activity in the mouse fracture callus during early fracture healing.

Effects of Episodic Alcohol Exposure on BMP2 Signaling During Tibia Fracture Healing.

Objectives: To explore how alcohol affects the BMP-2 signaling pathway, which is known to play a critical role in bone and cartilage formation during fracture healing.

Methods: A rat model was used to demonstrate the detrimental effects of alcohol exposure on tibia fracture healing. Specific components of the BMP-2 pathway were analyzed in fracture callus on days 3, 7, 14, and 21 after fracture via western immunoassays and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

Tobacco Use and Smoke Exposure in Children: New Trends, Harm, and Strategies to Improve Health Outcomes.

Purpose Of Review: Every day in the USA, approximately 4000 adolescents begin smoking and the adolescent brain is particularly susceptible to nicotine addiction. We present current pediatric trends on tobacco use and exposures, various new products used by adolescents, the adverse biological and behavioral effects of tobacco use and exposures, and tobacco control strategies to eliminate tobacco-related illnesses and deaths in the pediatric population.

Recent Findings: Twelve-20% of women continue to smoke during pregnancy.

Alcohol-related deficient fracture healing is associated with activation of FoxO transcription factors in mice.

The process of fracture healing is complex, and poor or incomplete healing remains a significant health problem. Proper fracture healing relies upon resident mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) differentiation into chondrocytes and osteoblasts, which are necessary for callus formation and ossification. Alcohol abuse is a leading contributor to poor fracture healing.

Alcohol inhibits osteopontin-dependent transforming growth factor-β1 expression in human mesenchymal stem cells.

Alcohol (EtOH) intoxication is a risk factor for increased morbidity and mortality with traumatic injuries, in part through inhibition of bone fracture healing. Animal models have shown that EtOH decreases fracture callus volume, diameter, and biomechanical strength. Transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1) and osteopontin (OPN) play important roles in bone remodeling and fracture healing.

A pioneer of Australian paediatrics: Dr Henry Edward Brown (1858-1931).

The emergence of paediatrics as a specialty in Australian medicine dates from the last two decades of the 19th century. Among the pioneers of pre-Federation paediatrics, we include Dr Henry Edward Brown (1858-1931), an Irish-born physician and surgeon who became the first paediatrician to practise in the northern half of the Australian continent. In 1885, he was appointed as the medical superintendent of the Rockhampton Children's Hospital, itself a pioneer institution in the care of sick and injured children.

Acute alcohol exposure impairs fracture healing and deregulates β-catenin signaling in the fracture callus.

Background: Alcohol abuse is a risk factor for bone damage and fracture-related complications. Through precise β-catenin signaling, canonical Wnt signaling plays a key role in fracture repair by promoting the differentiation of new bone and cartilage cells. In this study, we examined the effects of alcohol on the Wnt pathway in injured bone using a murine model of alcohol-induced impaired fracture healing.

Antioxidant therapy attenuates deficient bone fracture repair associated with binge alcohol exposure.

Objectives: Alcohol consumption is a known risk factor for traumatic injuries of all types and has been shown to produce detrimental effects on bone metabolism. Although the mechanisms responsible for these detrimental effects are not well characterized, oxidative stress from alcohol exposure appears to play a central role. This study was designed to examine the effect of a short-term binge alcohol consumption pattern on fracture repair and the effect of an antioxidant, N-acetylcysteine, on fracture healing after binge alcohol consumption.

Long-term modulations in the vertebral transcriptome of adolescent-stage rats exposed to binge alcohol.

Aims: Dangerous alcohol consumption practices are common in adolescents, yet little is known about their consequences on attainment of peak bone mass and long-term skeletal integrity. We previously demonstrated that binge alcohol-exposed adolescent rats showed site-specific reductions in accruement of bone mineral density and bone strength, which were incompletely recovered following prolonged alcohol abstinence. Currently, we analysed the vertebral transcriptome of adolescent rats following alcohol treatment and abstinence to identify long-term molecular changes in the lumbar spine.

Stable, continuously tunable operation of a diode-pumped doubly resonant optical parametric oscillator.

We demonstrate, for what is the first time to our knowledge, long-term stable, continuously tunable operation of a doubly resonant optical parametric oscillator (OPO) pumped by a single-stripe diode laser without the use of an external semiconductor amplifier. The OPO is based on periodically poled lithium niobate and is pumped by a 150-mW distributed Bragg grating diode laser. 18-mW total output power is generated at 1.

Burst initiation and termination in phasic vasopressin cells of the rat supraoptic nucleus: a combined mathematical, electrical, and calcium fluorescence study.

Vasopressin secreting neurons of the rat hypothalamus discharge lengthy, repeating bursts of action potentials in response to physiological stress. Although many electrical currents and calcium-dependent processes have been isolated and analyzed in these cells, their interactions are less well fathomed. In particular, the mechanism of how each burst is triggered, sustained, and terminated is poorly understood.

AHP's, HAP's and DAP's: how potassium currents regulate the excitability of rat supraoptic neurones.

We have constructed mathematical models of the electrical activity of two hypothalamic supraoptic neuro-secretory cell-types, and we support our models with new calcium imaging and in vitro electrophysiological data. These cells are neurones that project to the pituitary gland and secrete either of two hormones, oxytocin or vasopressin, into the blood from their axonal terminals. Oxytocin-secreting and vasopressin-secreting cells are closely related and physically they differ only subtly, however when physiologically stressed their discharge patterns are dramatically distinct.

Collaborative study for the quality control of trace element determinations in paint coatings. Part 2. Certification of alkyd resin paint reference materials for the migratable contents of trace elements (CRMs 620 and 623).

This paper describes the preparation, homogeneity studies and certification of a series of two paint reference materials (mild steel coated with alkyd resin paint, CRM620, and comminuted paint from alkyd resin paint, CRM623) which have been produced in support of the EU Toy Safety Directive (88/378/EEC). The reference materials have been certified for levels of toxic element migration using the method specified in European Standard EN71-3:1994 published by the European Committee for Standardization. As such, the certified values, indicative values and range data quoted for the reference materials in this paper are method specific and relate only to European Standard EN71-3:1994.

Enhanced coding in a cochlear-implant model using additive noise: aperiodic stochastic resonance with tuning.

Analog electrical stimulation of the cochlear nerve (the nerve of hearing) by a cochlear implant is an effective method of providing functional hearing to profoundly deaf people. Recent physiological and computational experiments have shown that analog cochlear implants are unlikely to convey certain speech cues by the temporal pattern of evoked nerve discharges. However, these experiments have also shown that the optimal addition of noise to cochlear implant signals can enhance the temporal representation of speech cues [R.

A phase model of temperature-dependent mammalian cold receptors.

We present a tractable stochastic phase model of the temperature sensitivity of a mammalian cold receptor. Using simple linear dependencies of the amplitude, frequency, and bias on temperature, the model reproduces the experimentally observed transitions between bursting, beating, and stochastically phase-locked firing patterns. We analyze the model in the deterministic limit and predict, using a Strutt map, the number of spikes per burst for a given temperature.

A follow-up study of infants < or = 2000 g birthweight treated in central Queensland.

Objective: This follow-up study was undertaken in an effort to ascertain the morbidity in the survivors of infants < or = 2000 g birthweight cared for in the two Rockhampton intensive care nurseries.

Methodology: The records of all infants < or = 2000 g delivered in or transferred to Rockhampton during the 11 year period 1979 through 1989 inclusive were extracted. Efforts were made to contact and examine all of these children.