Examining Food Security, Fruit and Vegetable Intake, and Cardiovascular Disease Risk Outcomes of Produce Prescription (PPR) Programs: A Systematic Review.

Objective: Outcomes from produce prescription (PPR) programs, an exemplar of a Food is Medicine intervention, have not been synthesized. The objective of this study was to conduct a systematic review to examine the impact of PPR programs on food security, fruit and vegetable (FV) intake, and/or cardiovascular risk factors (HbA1c, blood pressure, and blood lipids).

Design: Searches were conducted across three databases (PubMed, CINAHL, and Web of Science).

Malnutrition and pectoralis muscle index in medical intensive care unit patients: A matched cohort study.

Background: Muscle assessment is an important component of nutrition assessment. The Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM) consortium recently underscored the need for more objective muscle assessment methods in clinical settings. Various assessment techniques are available; however, many have limitations in clinical populations.

Breastfeeding Characteristics and Duration of Feeding Human Milk in Infants With Congenital Heart Disease.

Background: Although infants with congenital heart disease (CHD) are able to breastfeed successfully, the factors that affect feeding human milk across the first year are not well established.

Purpose: The objective of this study was to examine breastfeeding characteristics and their relationships to the exclusivity and duration of feeding human milk among infants with CHD.

Methods: Breastfeeding characteristics data from a cohort of 75 infants with CHD enrolled in a study that examined relationships among milk type and infant growth in the first year of life were analyzed.

Relationship Between Human Milk Feeding Patterns and Growth in the First Year of Life in Infants with Congenital Heart Defects.

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between patterning of human milk feeding and growth of infants with congenital heart defects in the first year of life. Inclusion criteria for this prospective cohort study included infants 0-21 days, who had undergone or had planned neonatal corrective or palliative surgery prior to hospital discharge, and whose mothers planned to feed human milk. Data on anthropometric measures (weight, length, head circumference) and infant milk type (human milk, formula, other) were collected at nine time points (0.

Hydrogel-based biocontainment of bacteria for continuous sensing and computation.

Genetically modified microorganisms (GMMs) can enable a wide range of important applications including environmental sensing and responsive engineered living materials. However, containment of GMMs to prevent environmental escape and satisfy regulatory requirements is a bottleneck for real-world use. While current biochemical strategies restrict unwanted growth of GMMs in the environment, there is a need for deployable physical containment technologies to achieve redundant, multi-layered and robust containment.

Prevalence and characteristics of starvation-related malnutrition in a mid-Atlantic healthcare system: A cohort study.

Background: Malnutrition in the hospital negatively impacts outcomes, including readmissions, mortality, and cost. Starvation-related malnutrition (SRM) is a state of chronic undernutrition with little to no inflammation. Research on SRM within the hospital setting is lacking.

Associations between dietary micronutrient intake and molecular-Bacterial Vaginosis.

Objectives: Bacterial vaginosis (BV), a clinical condition characterized by decreased vaginal Lactobacillus spp., is difficult to treat. We examined associations between micronutrient intake and a low-Lactobacillus vaginal microbiota as assessed by molecular methods (termed "molecular-BV").

Predicting Outcomes in Patients With AsymptomaticModerate to Severe Aortic Stenosis.

Outcomes in asymptomatic patients with aortic stenosis (AS) have been reported primarily from tertiary centers. Whether observations from a community hospital cohort would be similar or if clinical variables would assume a more important role remains uncertain. This retrospective cohort study from one community hospital followed asymptomatic patients with moderate to severe AS for 3 years following an index echocardiogram.

Effect of high-dose cholecalciferol (vitamin D) on bone and body composition in children and young adults with HIV infection: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Unlabelled: It is unknown whether vitamin D supplementation positively impacts body composition and bone outcomes in children and young adults with HIV. This RCT found that despite increasing 25(OH)D concentrations, high dose vitamin D supplementation did not impact bone or body composition in children and young adults with HIV infection.

Introduction: The objective of this paper was to determine the impact of high-dose daily cholecalciferol (vitamin D) supplementation on body composition and bone density, structure, and strength in children and young adults with perinatally acquired (PHIV) or behaviorally acquired (BHIV) HIV infection.

Evolution of translation machinery in recoded bacteria enables multi-site incorporation of nonstandard amino acids.

Expansion of the genetic code with nonstandard amino acids (nsAAs) has enabled biosynthesis of proteins with diverse new chemistries. However, this technology has been largely restricted to proteins containing a single or few nsAA instances. Here we describe an in vivo evolution approach in a genomically recoded Escherichia coli strain for the selection of orthogonal translation systems capable of multi-site nsAA incorporation.

Extraskeletal mesenchymal chondrosarcoma arising in adductor magnus with metastatic foci.

Mesenchymal chondrosarcoma is a rare and aggressive chondrogenic neoplasm arising from the bone or the soft tissue. Mesenchymal chondrosarcomas develop outside the osseous structures in about one-third of cases, and the majority of these occur in the meninges and the brain parenchyma. Intramuscular extraskeletal mesenchymal chondrosarcoma (EMC) is exceedingly rare, with very few cases reported in the literature.

Recoded organisms engineered to depend on synthetic amino acids.

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are increasingly used in research and industrial systems to produce high-value pharmaceuticals, fuels and chemicals. Genetic isolation and intrinsic biocontainment would provide essential biosafety measures to secure these closed systems and enable safe applications of GMOs in open systems, which include bioremediation and probiotics. Although safeguards have been designed to control cell growth by essential gene regulation, inducible toxin switches and engineered auxotrophies, these approaches are compromised by cross-feeding of essential metabolites, leaked expression of essential genes, or genetic mutations.

Multilayered genetic safeguards limit growth of microorganisms to defined environments.

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are commonly used to produce valuable compounds in closed industrial systems. However, their emerging applications in open clinical or environmental settings require enhanced safety and security measures. Intrinsic biocontainment, the creation of bacterial hosts unable to survive in natural environments, remains a major unsolved biosafety problem.

Genomically recoded organisms expand biological functions.

We describe the construction and characterization of a genomically recoded organism (GRO). We replaced all known UAG stop codons in Escherichia coli MG1655 with synonymous UAA codons, which permitted the deletion of release factor 1 and reassignment of UAG translation function. This GRO exhibited improved properties for incorporation of nonstandard amino acids that expand the chemical diversity of proteins in vivo.

Right ventricular myocardial performance index derived from tissue Doppler echocardiography is useful in differentiating apical ballooning syndrome from cardiomyopathy due to left anterior descending coronary artery disease.

Background: Apical ballooning syndrome (ABS) and obstructive coronary artery disease of the left anterior descending coronary artery (LAD) can both result in similar left ventricular apical wall motion abnormalities. The right ventricle may more likely be involved in ABS, and its careful evaluation may help differentiate the two conditions. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the roles of echocardiographic measures of right ventricular (RV) function, namely, Doppler tissue imaging-derived RV index of myocardial performance (RIMP), RV basal free wall systolic excursion velocity (RV S'), and tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion, in differentiating ABS from obstructive LAD disease.

Discordant Doppler right heart catheterization pulmonary artery systolic pressures: importance of pulmonary capillary wedge pressure.

Background: Although the echo Doppler (D) estimation of pulmonary artery systolic pressure (PASP) was initially highly correlated with right heart catheterization (RHC), recent D-RHC studies have questioned its accuracy. The aim of this study was to reevaluate this relationship and to determine possible explanations for disparate D-RHC results.

Methods: We retrospectively identified all patients at one institution who underwent RHC and had an echocardiogram within the prior month.

Delayed small bowel transit in children with cystic fibrosis and pancreatic insufficiency.

Objective: Gastrointestinal disturbances are common in people with cystic fibrosis (CF); however, motility studies in this population have yielded inconsistent results. This study examined gastric emptying (GE) and small bowel transit (SBT) time in children with CF and pancreatic insufficiency compared with a healthy adult reference group.

Methods: Participants consumed an 8-ounce liquid test meal (approximately 550 calories, 32 g of fat) labeled with 300 μCi 99m technetium (Tc) sulfur colloid.

Enhanced phosphoserine insertion during Escherichia coli protein synthesis via partial UAG codon reassignment and release factor 1 deletion.

Genetically encoded phosphoserine incorporation programmed by the UAG codon was achieved by addition of engineered elongation factor and an archaeal aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase to the normal Escherichia coli translation machinery (Park et al., 2011) Science 333, 1151). However, protein yield suffers from expression of the orthogonal phosphoserine translation system and competition with release factor 1 (RF-1).

Development and validation of the type 1 diabetes nutrition knowledge survey.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to develop a survey of general and diabetes-specific nutrition knowledge for youth with type 1 diabetes and their parents and to assess the survey's psychometric properties.

Research Design And Methods: A multidisciplinary pediatric team developed the Nutrition Knowledge Survey (NKS) and administered it to youth with type 1 diabetes (n = 282, 49% females, 13.3 ± 2.

Cardiac stress testing for the diagnosis and management of coronary artery disease: a reference for the primary care physician.

Choosing the appropriate stress test is important in the workup of patients with possible myocardial ischemia. This choice often is challenging and sometimes confusing because of the plethora of tests and guidelines available. We present a broad overview of commonly available stress tests and indications to help physicians select the most appropriate stress test for their patients.

Bacterial vaginosis is associated with variation in dietary indices.

Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a common condition of unknown etiology and has been linked to adverse reproductive and obstetric health outcomes. Prior dietary research on BV has focused on specific macro- and micronutrients, but not dietary indices. We assessed the relationship between BV and selected dietary indicators among a cohort of 1735 nonpregnant women ages 15-44 y from Birmingham, Alabama.

Attenuated maximal muscle strength and peak power in children with sickle cell disease.

Dominant hand maximal handgrip strength evaluated with a handgrip dynamometer and peak power evaluated with a force plate, adjusted for body size and composition, were compared in African-American children aged 5 to 13 years, with and without type SS sickle cell disease (SCD-SS). Children with SCD-SS (n = 35; age, 9.0 ± 2.

Food sold in school vending machines is associated with overall student dietary intake.

Purpose: To examine the association between food sold in school vending machines and the dietary behaviors of students.

Methods: The 2005-2006 U.S.