Development of a Colorimetric Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification Assay for the Detection of in Low-Resource Settings.

Chagas disease is an inflammatory parasitic infection caused by (). Early diagnosis is crucial in guiding treatment and slowing disease progression; however, current diagnostic methods have insufficient detection limits and often require skilled technicians. Molecular tests, especially isothermal nucleic acid assays, are advantageous due to their excellent sensitivity, specificity, speed, and simplicity.

Identifying Unmet Needs in Major Depressive Disorder Using a Computer-Assisted Alternative to Conventional Thematic Analysis: Qualitative Interview Study With Psychiatrists.

Background: The development of digital health tools that are clinically relevant requires a deep understanding of the unmet needs of stakeholders, such as clinicians and patients. One way to reveal unforeseen stakeholder needs is through qualitative research, including stakeholder interviews. However, conventional qualitative data analytical approaches are time-consuming and resource-intensive, rendering them untenable in many industry settings where digital tools are conceived of and developed.

Ppe.RPT/SSC-1: from QTL mapping to a predictive KASP test for ripening time and soluble solids concentration in peach.

Genomic regions associated with ripening time (RPT) and soluble solids concentration (SSC) were mapped using a pedigreed population including multiple F and F families from the Clemson University peach breeding program (CUPBP). RPT and SSC QTLs were consistently identified in two seasons (2011 and 2012) and the average datasets (average of two seasons). A target region spanning 10,981,971-11,298,736 bp on chromosome 4 of peach reference genome used for haplotype analysis revealed four haplotypes with significant differences in trait values among different diplotype combinations.

Nanoscale polymer discs, toroids and platelets: a survey of their syntheses and potential applications.

Polymer self-assembly has become a reliable and versatile workhorse to produce polymeric nanomaterials. With appropriate polymer design and monomer selection, polymers can assemble into shapes and morphologies beyond well-studied spherical and cylindrical micellar structures. Steadfast access to anisotropic polymer nanoparticles has meant that the fabrication and application of 2D soft matter has received increasing attention in recent years.

Characteristics, incidence, and outcomes of gastrointestinal complications post cardiac surgery in a quaternary referral centre: A retrospective study.

Background: Gastrointestinal (GI) complications after cardiac surgery are associated with high morbidity and mortality. Early identification and treatment of GI complications could improve patient outcomes.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to ascertain the incidence, risk factors, and clinical outcomes of GI complications following cardiac surgery.

ShinyFruit: interactive fruit phenotyping software and its application in blackberry.

Introduction: Horticultural plant breeding programs often demand large volumes of phenotypic data to capture visual variation in quality of harvested products. Increasing the throughput potential of phenomic pipelines enables breeders to consider data-hungry molecular breeding strategies such as genome-wide association studies and genomic selection.

Methods: We present an R-based web application called ShinyFruit for image-based phenotyping of size, shape, and color-related qualities in fruits and vegetables.

Opportunities for digital health technology: identifying unmet needs for bipolar misdiagnosis and depression care management.

Introduction: Digital health technologies (DHTs) driven by artificial intelligence applications, particularly those including predictive models derived with machine learning methods, have garnered substantial attention and financial investment in recent years. Yet, there is little evidence of widespread adoption and scant proof of gains in patient health outcomes. One factor of this paradox is the disconnect between DHT developers and digital health ecosystem stakeholders, which can result in developing technologies that are highly sophisticated but clinically irrelevant.

Improving prediction of psychosis in youth at clinical high-risk: pre-baseline symptom duration and cortical thinning as moderators of the NAPLS2 risk calculator.

Background: Clinical implementation of risk calculator models in the clinical high-risk for psychosis (CHR-P) population has been hindered by heterogeneous risk distributions across study cohorts which could be attributed to pre-ascertainment illness progression. To examine this, we tested whether the duration of attenuated psychotic symptom (APS) worsening prior to baseline moderated performance of the North American prodrome longitudinal study 2 (NAPLS2) risk calculator. We also examined whether rates of cortical thinning, another marker of illness progression, bolstered clinical prediction models.

A multiplexed plant-animal SNP array for selective breeding and species conservation applications.

Reliable and high-throughput genotyping platforms are of immense importance for identifying and dissecting genomic regions controlling important phenotypes, supporting selection processes in breeding programs, and managing wild populations and germplasm collections. Amongst available genotyping tools, single nucleotide polymorphism arrays have been shown to be comparatively easy to use and generate highly accurate genotypic data. Single-species arrays are the most commonly used type so far; however, some multi-species arrays have been developed for closely related species that share single nucleotide polymorphism markers, exploiting inter-species cross-amplification.

Dynamic Prediction of Outcomes for Youth at Clinical High Risk for Psychosis: A Joint Modeling Approach.

Importance: Leveraging the dynamic nature of clinical variables in the clinical high risk for psychosis (CHR-P) population has the potential to significantly improve the performance of outcome prediction models.

Objective: To improve performance of prediction models and elucidate dynamic clinical profiles using joint modeling to predict conversion to psychosis and symptom remission.

Design, Setting, And Participants: Data were collected as part of the third wave of the North American Prodrome Longitudinal Study (NAPLS 3), which is a 9-site prospective longitudinal study.

Genome-wide association identifies key loci controlling blackberry postharvest quality.

Introduction: Blackberry ( subgenus ) is a soft-fruited specialty crop that often suffers economic losses due to degradation in the shipping process. During transportation, fresh-market blackberries commonly leak, decay, deform, or become discolored through a disorder known as red drupelet reversion (RDR). Over the past 50 years, breeding programs have achieved better fruit firmness and postharvest quality through traditional selection methods, but the underlying genetic variation is poorly understood.

The effects of computerised cognitive training on post-CABG delirium and cognitive change: A prospective randomised controlled trial.

Background: Cognitive impairments, including delirium, are common after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Improving cognition pre- and post-operatively using computerised cognitive training (CCT) may be an effective approach to improve cognitive outcomes in CABG patients.

Objectives: Investigate the effect of remotely supervised CCT on cognitive outcomes, including delirium, in older adults undergoing CABG surgery.

A Study to Investigate the Role of Noncoding RNA miR146 Alpha as a Potential Biomarker in Prostate Cancer.

There is a need for additional biomarkers for the diagnosis and prognosis of prostate cancer. MicroRNAs are a class of non-protein coding RNA molecules that are frequently dysregulated in different cancers including prostate cancer and show promise as diagnostic biomarkers and targets for therapy. Here we describe the role of micro RNA 146 a (miR-146a) which may serve as a diagnostic marker for prostate cancer, as indicated from the data presented in this report.

A chromosome-length genome assembly and annotation of blackberry (Rubus argutus, cv. "Hillquist").

Blackberries (Rubus spp.) are the fourth most economically important berry crop worldwide. Genome assemblies and annotations have been developed for Rubus species in subgenus Idaeobatus, including black raspberry (R.

Integration of the Exogenous Tuning of Thraustochytrid Fermentation and Sulfur Polymerization of Single-Cell Oil for Developing Plant-like Oils.

In this study, we have demonstrated a bioprocessing approach encompassing the exogenous addition of low-molecular-weight compounds to tune the fatty acid (FA) profile in a novel thraustochytrid strain to produce desirable FAs. Maximum lipid recovery (38%, dry wt. biomass) was obtained at 1% Tween 80 and 0.

Multi-environment genomic prediction for soluble solids content in peach ().

Genotype-by-environment interaction (G × E) is a common phenomenon influencing genetic improvement in plants, and a good understanding of this phenomenon is important for breeding and cultivar deployment strategies. However, there is little information on G × E in horticultural tree crops, mostly due to evaluation costs, leading to a focus on the development and deployment of locally adapted germplasm. Using sweetness (measured as soluble solids content, SSC) in peach/nectarine assessed at four trials from three US peach-breeding programs as a case study, we evaluated the hypotheses that (i) complex data from multiple breeding programs can be connected using GBLUP models to improve the knowledge of G × E for breeding and deployment and (ii) accounting for a known large-effect quantitative trait locus (QTL) improves the prediction accuracy.

How should we address the inevitable harms from non-negligent variant reclassification in predictive genetic testing?

The process of interpreting genetic variants, in which experts use all available evidence to determine whether an identified variant is associated with a current or future disease, is both scientific and nevertheless subjective. In this paper, we summarize the existing evidence that any given variant could be reclassified and that such a reclassification could lead to harm. Furthermore, the racial gap in genetic databases could lead to a higher likelihood of harm for non-white patients.

Hybrid ablation for atrial fibrillation: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Both catheter and surgical ablation strategies offer effective treatments of atrial fibrillation (AF). The hybrid (joint surgical and catheter) ablation for AF is an emerging rhythm control strategy. We sought to determine the efficacy and safety of hybrid ablation of AF.

Pediatric Amplification: A Proposed Protocol for In-Person Hearing Aid Fittings and Virtual Follow-Ups.

Background: Children with hearing loss and their families face many financial and logistical barriers to accessing audiological care. At Rush University's Student Community Outreach Program of Excellence (SCOPE), a pediatric hearing loss outreach program is under development to address and overcome those barriers through in-person hearing aid fittings and virtual follow-up appointments.

Objectives: The goal of this clinical focus article was to develop a proposed protocol for SCOPE's pediatric hearing loss outreach program that would detail the use of a bimodal model of service delivery for pediatric amplification services.

Clinical Outcomes in Surgical and Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement: An ANZSCTS Database Review 2001-2019.

Background: Since the last formal publication reporting on the findings of the Australian and New Zealand Society of Cardiac and Thoracic Surgeons (ANZSCTS) database on surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) and transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) in 2016, transcatheter approaches have become common practice. There has been an increase in use of TAVR following large, randomised control trials that only report on short-term outcomes in a selective cohort. This study aims to report on primary outcome measures and identify complications associated with SAVR and TAVR from a large national database.

Modelling mercury sorption of a polysulfide coating made from sulfur and limonene.

A polymer made from sulfur and limonene was used to coat silica gel and then evaluated as a mercury sorbent. A kinetic model of mercury uptake was established for a range of pH values and concentrations of sodium chloride. Mercury uptake was generally rapid from pH = 3 to pH = 11.

Quality of life and frailty outcomes following surgical and transcatheter aortic valve replacement.

Background: Our objective was to report on the prospective outcomes in the areas of depression, quality of life, angina, and frailty in SAVR and TAVR patients with aortic stenosis undergoing aortic valve intervention.

Methods: We recruited 300 patients across 3 groups (TAVR, SAVR, and CABG) over 12 months. Depression, quality of life, frailty, and angina were assessed followed by propensity score matching.