The interplay between thin film hydrodynamics and solidification produces formidably intricate geophysical structures, such as stalactites and icicles, whose shape is a testimony of their long growth. In simpler settings, liquid films can also produce regular patterns. When coated on the underside of a flat plate, these films are unstable and yield lattices of drops following the Rayleigh-Taylor instability.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFProc Natl Acad Sci U S A
November 2024
Active systems of self-propelled agents, e.g., birds, fish, and bacteria, can organize their collective motion into myriad autonomous behaviors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Major trauma centres (MTCs) save lives but rehabilitation to support return-to-work (RTW) is lacking. This paper describes development of a vocational rehabilitation intervention (the ROWTATE intervention) to support RTW following traumatic injury.
Design: Sequential and iterative person-based approach in four stages- review of evidence about the efficacy and mechanisms of RTW interventions; interviews (n=38) and focus groups (n=25) with trauma survivors and service providers in five UK MTCs to identify the issues, and challenges faced postinjury; : codesign workshops (n=43) with trauma stakeholders in MTCs to conceptually test and identify intervention delivery barriers/enablers; meetings (n=7) with intervention development working group (IDWG) to: (1) generate guiding principles, (2) identify key intervention features (process, components, mechanisms) to address unmet rehabilitation needs; (3) generate a logic model and programme theory to illustrate how the intervention works; and (4) develop a training package to support delivery.
Sepsis is a life-threatening condition arising from a dysregulated host immune response to infection, leading to a substantial global health burden. The accurate identification of bacterial pathogens in sepsis is essential for guiding effective antimicrobial therapy and optimising patient outcomes. Traditional culture-based bacterial typing methods present inherent limitations, necessitating the exploration of alternative diagnostic approaches.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: Major trauma 'Rehabilitation Prescriptions' aim to facilitate continuity of care and describe patient needs following discharge from UK Major Trauma Centre (MTCs), however research suggests rehabilitation prescriptions are not being implemented as intended. We aimed to identify factors influencing completion and use of rehabilitation prescriptions using the Behaviour Change Wheel (BCW) and Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF).
Design: Online survey informed by the TDF and BCW.
Background: Moderately severe or major trauma (injury severity score (ISS) > 8) is common, often resulting in physical and psychological problems and leading to difficulties in returning to work. Vocational rehabilitation (VR) can improve return to work/education in some injuries (e.g.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFront Immunol
April 2024
Background: Cross-reactive SARS-CoV-2-specific memory CD4 and CD8 T cells are present in up to 50% of unexposed, pre-pandemic, healthy individuals (UPPHIs). However, the characteristics of cross-reactive memory CD4 and CD8 T cells associated with subsequent protection of asymptomatic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients (i.e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe first-generation Spike-alone-based COVID-19 vaccines have successfully contributed to reducing the risk of hospitalization, serious illness, and death caused by SARS-CoV-2 infections. However, waning immunity induced by these vaccines failed to prevent immune escape by many variants of concern (VOCs) that emerged from 2020 to 2024, resulting in a prolonged COVID-19 pandemic. We hypothesize that a next-generation Coronavirus (CoV) vaccine incorporating highly conserved non-Spike SARS-CoV-2 antigens would confer stronger and broader cross-protective immunity against multiple VOCs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFront Immunol
February 2024
Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has created one of the largest global health crises in almost a century. Although the current rate of Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections has decreased significantly, the long-term outlook of COVID-19 remains a serious cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, with the mortality rate still substantially surpassing even that recorded for influenza viruses. The continued emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs), including multiple heavily mutated Omicron sub-variants, has prolonged the COVID-19 pandemic and underscores the urgent need for a next-generation vaccine that will protect from multiple SARS-CoV-2 VOCs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFbioRxiv
May 2023
Background: The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has created one of the largest global health crises in almost a century. Although the current rate of SARS-CoV-2 infections has decreased significantly; the long-term outlook of COVID-19 remains a serious cause of high death worldwide; with the mortality rate still surpassing even the worst mortality rates recorded for the influenza viruses. The continuous emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs), including multiple heavily mutated Omicron sub-variants, have prolonged the COVID-19 pandemic and outlines the urgent need for a next-generation vaccine that will protect from multiple SARS-CoV-2 VOCs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDeployable structures capable of significant geometric reconfigurations are ubiquitous in nature. While engineering contraptions typically comprise articulated rigid elements, soft structures that experience material growth for deployment mostly remain the handiwork of biology, e.g.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPseudomonas aeruginosa undergoes diversification during infection of the cystic fibrosis (CF) lung. Understanding these changes requires model systems that capture the complexity of the CF lung environment. We previously identified loss-of-function mutations in the 2-component regulatory system sensor kinase gene pmrB in P.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFI.v. administration of a high-affinity carbon monoxide-binding (CO-binding) molecule, recombinant neuroglobin, can improve survival in CO poisoning mouse models.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: This study aimed to: (1) understand the context for delivering a trauma vocational rehabilitation (VR) intervention; (2) identify potential barriers and enablers to the implementation of a VR intervention post-trauma.
Design: Qualitative study. Data were collected in person or via phone using different methods: 38 semistructured interviews, 11 informal 'walk-through care pathways' interviews, 5 focus groups (n=25), 5 codesign workshops (n=43).
There is interest in utilizing wood ash as an amendment in forestry operations as a mechanism to return nutrients to soils that are removed during harvesting, with the added benefit of diverting this bioenergy waste material from landfill sites. Existing studies have not arrived at a consensus on what the effects of wood ash amendments are on soil biota. We collected forest soil samples from studies in managed forests across Canada that were amended with wood ash to evaluate the effects on arthropod, bacterial and fungal communities using metabarcoding of F230, 16S, 18S and ITS2 sequences as well as enzyme analyses to assess its effects on soil biotic function.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Larval connectivity between distinct benthic populations is essential for their persistence. Although connectivity is difficult to measure in situ, it can be predicted via models that simulate biophysical interactions between larval behaviour and ocean currents. The blue mussel (Mytilus Edulis L.
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