Demographic changes in COVID-19 mortality during the pandemic: analysis of trends in disparities among workers using California's mortality surveillance system.

Background: There is limited information on the extent and patterns of disparities in COVID-19 mortality throughout the pandemic. We aimed to examine trends in disparities by demographics over variants in the pre- and post-vaccine availability period among Californian workers using a social determinants of health lens.

Methods: Using death certificates, we identified all COVID-19 deaths that occurred between January 2020 and May 2022 among workers aged 18-64 years in California (CA).

Chromatin context-dependent effects of epigenetic drugs on CRISPR-Cas9 editing.

The efficiency and outcome of CRISPR/Cas9 editing depends on the chromatin state at the cut site. It has been shown that changing the chromatin state can influence both the efficiency and repair outcome, and epigenetic drugs have been used to improve Cas9 editing. However, because the target proteins of these drugs are not homogeneously distributed across the genome, the efficacy of these drugs may be expected to vary from locus to locus.

Widespread chromatin context-dependencies of DNA double-strand break repair proteins.

DNA double-strand breaks are repaired by multiple pathways, including non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ) and microhomology-mediated end-joining (MMEJ). The balance of these pathways is dependent on the local chromatin context, but the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. By combining knockout screening with a dual MMEJ:NHEJ reporter inserted in 19 different chromatin environments, we identified dozens of DNA repair proteins that modulate pathway balance dependent on the local chromatin state.

Exposure and Illness Among Workers Filing for COVID-19-Related Workers' Compensation-California, 2020.

Objectives: The aim of the study is to characterize the incidence of SARS-CoV-2 exposure and COVID-19 infection among California workers' compensation claims in 2020 and examine risk factors for exposure.

Methods: Using a case-control approach, we combined machine learning techniques and job exposure matrices to assess associations between exposures and illness claims and clusters of claims within specific worksites over a 3-week period.

Results: Of the 117,125 COVID-19 claims, most were primarily among younger groups, of shorter tenure, and from health care occupations.

Unmet Mental Health Needs Among California Workers Since the Start of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Objective: We sought to identify worker groups with high prevalence of unmet mental health needs to inform employer benefits programs and outreach to increase access to care.

Methods: We conducted a repeated cross-sectional study to understand unmet mental health needs among workers since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic using the California Health Interview Survey data from 2013 to 2021.

Results: In 2021, 23.