Factors Associated with Disclosure of Sexual Orientation Among Black Sexual Minority Men.

This study evaluated the characteristics associated with sexual orientation disclosure among HIV-negative Black sexual minority men (BSMM) in the greater Atlanta, Georgia area. Survey data were collected from 475 HIV-negative BSMM from 2017 to 2019 as part of a larger behavioral intervention study focused on stigma, prejudice, and HIV-testing uptake. Participants reported their levels of sexual orientation disclosure globally, to their community, and to their family.

PrEP Access Affected by COVID-19 Is Associated With Increased Odds of HIV Seroconversion.

Black and Hispanic/Latino sexual minority men and gender diverse (SMMGD) individuals report lower uptake and adherence to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) compared with White SMMGD. For some, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in reduced access to PrEP prescriptions and related changes to PrEP use, yet little is known how pandemic-related changes to PrEP access and sexual activity might influence sexually transmitted infection (STI) status and HIV seroconversion among SMMGD of color. We used data from 4 waves of a national study of Black and Hispanic/Latino SMMGD's HIV, PrEP, and health experiences to assess whether self-reported changes to sexual activity were associated with STI status, and whether self-reported changes to PrEP access were associated with HIV seroconversion.

Comparative reflections of Australian and African female academics on working from home during COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on women globally, and female academics were no exception to the unprecedented, forced shift to working from home. Increased workloads, additional domestic responsibilities, and extended working hours have led to high levels of dissatisfaction among this group of academics. This disruption has also impacted mental and physical wellbeing.

Effects of sexual and gender minority stress on depressive symptoms among adolescents of color in the United States.

Objective: There is a need for more research on minority stress theory (MST) with sexual and gender minority (SGM) adolescents of color, because of their disproportionate risk for depression.

Method: We recruited 1,627 SGM adolescents of color in the United States to complete measures assessing lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) climate, LGBTQ microaggressions within one's ethnoracial community, internalized LGBTQ stigma, stress management ability, and depressive symptoms. Using structural equation modeling, a hybrid measurement-structural model was tested, indicating good model fit.

A Core Outcome Measurement Set for Pediatric Critical Care.

Objectives: To identify a PICU Core Outcome Measurement Set (PICU COMS), a set of measures that can be used to evaluate the PICU Core Outcome Set (PICU COS) domains in PICU patients and their families.

Design: A modified Delphi consensus process.

Setting: Four webinars attended by PICU physicians and nurses, pediatric surgeons, rehabilitation physicians, and scientists with expertise in PICU clinical care or research ( n = 35).

Predictors of patient delay among pulmonary tuberculosis patients in Northeast Thailand.

Background: Pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) is a major health problem in Thailand. Delay in getting treatment is an important factor which may worsen the disease and increase TB transmission.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the duration and predictors of patient delay among PTB patients in Northeast Thailand.

Modulation of macrophage inflammatory function through selective inhibition of the epigenetic reader protein SP140.

Background: SP140 is a bromodomain-containing protein expressed predominantly in immune cells. Genetic polymorphisms and epigenetic modifications in the SP140 locus have been linked to Crohn's disease (CD), suggesting a role in inflammation.

Results: We report the development of the first small molecule SP140 inhibitor (GSK761) and utilize this to elucidate SP140 function in macrophages.

Substance Use and Healthcare Utilization Across the Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Care Cascade among Black and Latino Men Who Have Sex with Men.

 Despite the documented efficacy of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention, large disparities in uptake and adherence exist among Black and Latino/Hispanic men who have sex with men (BLMSM). Limited data exists among BLMSM on the impact of substance use at different stages of the PrEP Care Cascade. We examined the ways substance (alcohol, cannabis, other drug) use is related to PrEP experiences across the PrEP Care Cascade (PrEP aware/no use; PrEP use/discontinuation; PrEP use/adherent).

Factors That Affect Positivity in Healthcare Building Water Systems from a Large, National Environmental Surveillance Initiative.

growth in healthcare building water systems can result in legionellosis, making water management programs (WMPs) important for patient safety. However, knowledge is limited on prevalence in healthcare buildings. A dataset of quarterly water testing in Veterans Health Administration (VHA) healthcare buildings was used to examine national environmental prevalence from 2015 to 2018.

Human CD99L2 Regulates a Unique Step in Leukocyte Transmigration.

CD99-like 2 (CD99L2 [L2]) is a highly glycosylated 52-kDa type 1 membrane protein that is important for leukocyte transendothelial migration (TEM) in mice. Inhibiting L2 using function-blocking Ab significantly reduces the recruitment of leukocytes to sites of inflammation in vivo. Similarly, L2 knockout mice have an inherent defect in leukocyte transmigration into sites of inflammation.

Intersectional Minority Stress and Alcohol, Tobacco, and Cannabis Use Among Sexual and Gender Minority Adolescents of Color: Moderating Role of Family Support.

We examined the associations between intersectional minority stress and substance use among sexual and gender minority (SGM) adolescents of color and the moderating role of family support on these associations. Data were from a national U.S.

Development and validation of a brief version of the traditional Chinese Stressors in Nursing Students scale among college nursing students in Taiwan.

Objective: The 43-item Stressors in Nursing Students (SINS) scale has been evaluated among nursing students in several countries, including China, Hong Kong, Japan, Pakistan, and Spain. However, the original four-factor structure has not been consistently replicated in all of these populations. The aim of this study was to develop a brief version of the traditional Chinese SINS (TC-SINS) scale and to validate it in Taiwanese nursing students.

Mitochondrial ROS promotes susceptibility to infection via gasdermin D-mediated necroptosis.

Although mutations in mitochondrial-associated genes are linked to inflammation and susceptibility to infection, their mechanistic contributions to immune outcomes remain ill-defined. We discovered that the disease-associated gain-of-function allele Lrrk2 (leucine-rich repeat kinase 2) perturbs mitochondrial homeostasis and reprograms cell death pathways in macrophages. When the inflammasome is activated in Lrrk2 macrophages, elevated mitochondrial ROS (mtROS) directs association of the pore-forming protein gasdermin D (GSDMD) to mitochondrial membranes.

Parental Support, Depressive Symptoms, and LGBTQ Adolescents: Main and Moderation Effects in a Diverse Sample.

Objective: Research has documented the importance of parental support as a protective factor against depressive symptoms among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) youth. In this study, we assessed the relations between LGBTQ-specific parental support and depressive symptoms.

Method: Participants were 6,837 LGBTQ youth (ages 13-17) with diverse racial and ethnic, gender, and sexual identities.

The trispecific DARPin ensovibep inhibits diverse SARS-CoV-2 variants.

The emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants with potential resistance to existing drugs emphasizes the need for new therapeutic modalities with broad variant activity. Here we show that ensovibep, a trispecific DARPin (designed ankyrin repeat protein) clinical candidate, can engage the three units of the spike protein trimer of SARS-CoV-2 and inhibit ACE2 binding with high potency, as revealed by cryo-electron microscopy analysis. The cooperative binding together with the complementarity of the three DARPin modules enable ensovibep to inhibit frequent SARS-CoV-2 variants, including Omicron sublineages BA.

Evaluating a brief intervention for mealtime difficulty on older adults with dementia.

Aims And Objective: To test a spaced retrieval intervention using spaced retrieval to alleviate mealtime difficulties in older people with dementia.

Design: A single-case study design.

Setting: Nursing Homes in North Central England, United Kingdom.

Perceptions of community members in Australia about the risk factors, symptoms and impacts of dementia: A cross-sectional questionnaire study.

Objectives: Ensuring that the Australian public has an accurate understanding of the characteristics of dementia may assist in improving timely detection of dementia. This cross-sectional questionnaire study aimed to examine community members' perceptions of the risk factors, symptoms and impacts of dementia.

Methods: Participants were recruited from outpatient units at a major regional hospital and were aged at least 18 years, a patient or an accompanying support person, did not have a dementia diagnosis, had sufficient English knowledge and were well enough to complete a survey.

PrEP Stigma and logistical barriers remain significant challenges in curtailing HIV transmission among Black and Hispanic/Latinx cisgender sexual minority men and transgender women in the US.

Despite advancements in HIV prevention, such as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), there remain inequities in accessing PrEP among Black and Hispanic/Latinx cisgender sexual minority men and transgender women (SMMTW). Researchers have documented multiple barriers to PrEP uptake, yet the relative impacts of PrEP internalized stigma and logistical barriers (e.g.

Natural Killer cells demonstrate distinct eQTL and transcriptome-wide disease associations, highlighting their role in autoimmunity.

Natural Killer cells are innate lymphocytes with central roles in immunosurveillance and are implicated in autoimmune pathogenesis. The degree to which regulatory variants affect Natural Killer cell gene expression is poorly understood. Here we perform expression quantitative trait locus mapping of negatively selected Natural Killer cells from a population of healthy Europeans (n = 245).

Synthetic Approaches to the New Drugs Approved During 2020.

New drugs introduced to the market are privileged structures that have affinities for biological targets implicated in human diseases and conditions. These new chemical entities (NCEs), particularly small molecules and antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), provide insight into molecular recognition and simultaneously function as leads for the design of future medicines. This Review is part of a continuing series presenting the most likely process-scale synthetic approaches to 44 new chemical entities approved for the first time anywhere in the world during 2020.

Tau as a Biomarker of Neurodegeneration.

Less than 50 years since tau was first isolated from a porcine brain, its detection in femtolitre concentrations in biological fluids is revolutionizing the diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases. This review highlights the molecular and technological advances that have catapulted tau from obscurity to the forefront of biomarker diagnostics. Comprehensive updates are provided describing the burgeoning clinical applications of tau as a biomarker of neurodegeneration.

Covid-19, and the climate change and biodiversity emergencies.

This paper addresses the question, can lessons be learnt by studying the responses to COVID-19 and the human-induced climate change and loss of biodiversity emergencies? It is well recognized that to successfully address each of these issues requires sound scientific knowledge based on strong national and international research programs, cooperation between the research community and policy makers, national, regional and global evidence-based policies and coordinated actions, an informed and receptive public, and political will. A key question is how research and innovation can most effectively inform decision-making leading to cost-effective and socially acceptable action on pandemics, climate change and loss of biodiversity. This paper first describes how the COVID-19 pandemic has been addressed compared to the loss of biodiversity, and climate change, and then considers the use of scientific knowledge for policy-making and communication with the public.

Association of EEG and Blood-Based Brain Injury Biomarker Accuracy to Prognosticate Mortality After Pediatric Cardiac Arrest: An Exploratory Study.

Background: Evaluate the accuracy of brain-based blood biomarkers neuron-specific enolase (NSE) and S100b and electroencephalography (EEG) features alone and in combination with prognosticate 6-month mortality after pediatric cardiac arrest. We hypothesized that the combination of blood brain-based biomarkers and EEG features would have superior classification accuracy of outcome versus either alone.

Methods: Children (n = 58) aged between 1 week and 17 years admitted to the ICU following cardiac arrest at a tertiary care children's hopital were eligible for this secondary study.