A Pseudo-Surfactant Chemical Permeation Enhancer to Treat Otitis Media via Sustained Transtympanic Delivery of Antibiotics.

Chemical permeation enhancers (CPEs) represent a prevalent and safe strategy to enable noninvasive drug delivery across skin-like biological barriers such as the tympanic membrane (TM). While most existing CPEs interact strongly with the lipid bilayers in the stratum corneum to create defects as diffusion paths, their interactions with the delivery system, such as polymers forming a hydrogel, can compromise gelation, formulation stability, and drug diffusion. To overcome this challenge, differing interactions between CPEs and the hydrogel system are explored, especially those with sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), an ionic surfactant and a common CPE, and those with methyl laurate (ML), a nonionic counterpart with a similar length alkyl chain.

Research Experiences via Integrating Simulations and Experiments (REVISE): A Model Collaborative Research Project for Undergraduate Students in CO Sorbent Design.

Undergraduate research experiences are an instrumental component of student development, increasing conceptual understanding, promoting inquiry-based learning, and guiding potential career aspirations. Moving one step further, as research continues to become more interdisciplinary, there exists potential to accelerate student growth by granting additional perspectives through collaborative research. This study demonstrates the utilization of a model collaborative research project, specifically investigating the development of sorbent technologies for efficient CO capture, which is an important research area for improving environmental sustainability.

Exploring Latine Parent Leaders' and a Program Coordinator's Lived Experiences with a Culturally Adapted Parent-Directed Training Program.

The purpose of the current study was to explore the lived experiences among parent leaders and a program coordinator who participated in a parent-directed training program to support other Latine parents of children with autism spectrum disorder. We used qualitative methods to explore 4 Latine parent leaders' and 1 program coordinator's experiences with a parent-directed training program to support other Latine parents who have children with autism spectrum disorder. We interviewed parent leaders and a program coordinator to learn about their lived experiences as leaders in a parent-directed training program.

Evaluating the feasibility of implementing a prescription drug misuse prevention intervention in the community: a mixed methods study.

Background: This study is part of a state-wide effort to promote the safe disposal of prescription medications and mitigate prescription drug misuse. The objective of this study was to evaluate the implementation of a two-component prevention intervention through Community Prevention Organizations (CPOs) in Texas. The first component involved the distribution of in-home disposal products (IHDP) and the second focused on providing education of the risks of prescription drug misuse.

Engineering the Structure and Rheological Properties of P407 Hydrogels via Reverse Poloxamer Addition.

Aqueous solutions of poloxamer 407 (P407), a commercially available and nontoxic ABA triblock polymer (PEO-PPO-PEO), undergo a solution-to-gel transition with increasing temperature and are promising candidates for injectable therapeutics. The gel transition temperature, modulus, and structure are all dictated by polymer concentration, preventing independent tuning of these properties. Here, we show that addition of BAB reverse poloxamers (RPs) to P407-based solutions dramatically alters the gelation temperature, modulus, and morphology.

Structure-Activity Relationship Insights for Organophosphonate Hydrolysis at Ti(IV) Active Sites in Metal-Organic Frameworks.

Organophosphorus nerve agents are among the most toxic chemicals known and remain threats to humans due to their continued use despite international bans. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have emerged as a class of heterogeneous catalysts with tunable structures that are capable of rapidly detoxifying these chemicals via hydrolysis at Lewis acidic active sites on the metal nodes. To date, the majority of studies in this field have focused on zirconium-based MOFs (Zr-MOFs) that contain hexanuclear Zr(IV) clusters, despite the large toolbox of Lewis acidic transition metal ions that are available to construct MOFs with similar catalytic properties.

The role of community factors in predicting depressive symptoms among Chinese workforce: a longitudinal study in rural and urban settings.

Background: The dual urban-rural division system in China has led to distinguishes in economic development, medical services, and education as well as in mental health disparities. This study examined whether community factors (community cohesion, supportive network size, foreseeable community threat, and medical insurance coverage) predict the depressive symptoms of Chinese workers and how community factors may work differently in rural and urban settings.

Methods: This secondary data analysis was conducted using data from the 2014 and 2016 China Labor-force Dynamics Survey (CLDS).

The Scientific Method as a Scaffold to Enhance Communication Skills in Chemistry.

Scientific success in the field of chemistry depends upon the mastery of a wide range of soft skills, most notably scientific writing and speaking. However, training for scientific communication is typically limited at the undergraduate level, where students struggle to express themselves in a clear and logical manner. The underlying issue is deeper than basic technical skills; rather, it is a problem of students' unawareness of a fundamental and strategic framework for writing and speaking with a purpose.

Inorganic cesium lead mixed halide based perovskite solar materials modified with functional silver iodide.

Inorganic CsPbIBr perovskites have recently attracted enormous attention as a viable alternative material for optoelectronic applications due to their higher efficiency, thermal stability, suitable bandgap, and proper optical absorption. However, the CsPbIBr perovskite films fabricated using a one-step deposition technique is usually comprised of small grain size with a large number of grain boundaries and compositional defects. In this work, silver iodide (AgI) will be incorporated as an additive into the CsPbIBr perovskite precursor solution to prepare the unique perovskite CsI(PbBr)(AgI) The AgI additive in the precursor solution works as a nucleation promoter which will help the perovskite to grow and merge into a continuous film with reduced defects.

Model-assisted deep learning of rare extreme events from partial observations.

To predict rare extreme events using deep neural networks, one encounters the so-called small data problem because even long-term observations often contain few extreme events. Here, we investigate a model-assisted framework where the training data are obtained from numerical simulations, as opposed to observations, with adequate samples from extreme events. However, to ensure the trained networks are applicable in practice, the training is not performed on the full simulation data; instead, we only use a small subset of observable quantities, which can be measured in practice.

Insecticide Resistance in Aedes aegypti Varies Seasonally and Geographically in Texas/Mexico Border Cities.

Insecticide use is the primary method of attempting to reduce or control the spread of mosquito-borne diseases. Insecticide resistance is a major concern as resistance will limit the efficacy of vector-control efforts. The lower Rio Grande Valley region of South Texas has had autochthonous transmission of multiple mosquito-borne diseases including those caused by dengue virus, chikungunya virus, and Zika virus.

Desktop scanning electron microscopy in plant-insect interactions research: a fast and effective way to capture electron micrographs with minimal sample preparation.

The ability to visualize cell and tissue morphology at a high magnification using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) has revolutionized plant sciences research. In plant-insect interactions studies, SEM-based imaging has been of immense assistance to understand plant surface morphology including trichomes [plant hairs; physical defense structures against herbivores], spines, waxes, and insect morphological characteristics such as mouth parts, antennae, and legs, that they interact with. While SEM provides finer details of samples, and the imaging process is simpler now with advanced image acquisition and processing, sample preparation methodology has lagged.

Do nursing and pharmacy students practice what they preach on safe drug storage and disposal? A cross-sectional study.

Background: Research has confirmed a lack of knowledge regarding the risks of unused medications including diversion, misuse, or accidental overdose among health care professionals (Abdulmajeed, 2020). Nurses and pharmacists are often who patients interact with the most regarding medications; therefore, early education on proper storage and disposal is vital (Bowen, Rotz, Patterson, & Sen, 2017; Celio, Ninane, Bugnon, & Schneider, 2018).

Objectives: The study's objective is to explore safe drug storage and disposal knowledge, attitudes, and practices of professional pharmacy (Pharm.

Reporting health data in waiting rooms with mobile technology: Patient expectation and confirmation.

Objectives: Hospitals and medical staff use digital devices such as mobile phones and tablets to treat patients. Prior research has examined patient-reported outcomes, and the use of medical devices to do diagnosis and prognosis of patients, but not whether patients like using, and intend to use in future, mobile devices to self-report medical data. We address this research gap by developing a theoretical model based on the expectancy confirmation model (ECM) and testing it in an empirical study of patients using mobile technology to self-report data.

Beliefs about mental illness in a Spanish-speaking Latin American sample.

The US Hispanic population is large and rapidly growing, with serious healthcare disparities. Alarmingly, 67% of Hispanic adults with a mental illness go untreated. Attempts to increase treatment rates have had limited success, likely partly due to stigma beliefs.

Structural Evolution and Magnetic Properties of GdHfO Nanocrystals: Computational and Experimental Investigations.

Structural evolution in functional materials is a physicochemical phenomenon, which is important from a fundamental study point of view and for its applications in magnetism, catalysis, and nuclear waste immobilization. In this study, we used x-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy to examine the GdHfO (GHO) pyrochlore, and we showed that it underwent a thermally induced crystalline phase evolution. Superconducting quantum interference device measurements were carried out on both the weakly ordered pyrochlore and the fully ordered phases.

Host plant defense produces species-specific alterations to flight muscle protein structure and flight-related fitness traits of two armyworms.

Insects manifest phenotypic plasticity in their development and behavior in response to plant defenses, via molecular mechanisms that produce tissue-specific changes. Phenotypic changes might vary between species that differ in their preferred hosts and these effects could extend beyond larval stages. To test this, we manipulated the diet of southern armyworm (SAW; ) and fall armyworm (FAW; ) using a tomato mutant for jasmonic acid plant defense pathway (), and wild-type plants, and then quantified gene expression of Troponin t () and flight muscle metabolism of the adult insects.

Integer Versus Fractional Order SEIR Deterministic and Stochastic Models of Measles.

In this paper, we compare the performance between systems of ordinary and (Caputo) fractional differential equations depicting the susceptible-exposed-infectious-recovered (SEIR) models of diseases. In order to understand the origins of both approaches as mean-field approximations of integer and fractional stochastic processes, we introduce the fractional differential equations (FDEs) as approximations of some type of fractional nonlinear birth and death processes. Then, we examine validity of the two approaches against empirical courses of epidemics; we fit both of them to case counts of three measles epidemics that occurred during the pre-vaccination era in three different locations.

Intergenerational transmission of socio-economic status: The role of neighborhood effects.

Introduction: Little attention has been paid to the role of neighborhoods as a predictor of intergenerational transmission of socio-economic status. This study uses a nationally representative, longitudinal sample from the United States to examine how neighborhoods impact racial/ethnic disparities in the intergenerational transmission of socio-economic status.

Methods: The study sample is derived from Waves 1 and 4 of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health.

Soil indigenous microbiome and plant genotypes cooperatively modify soybean rhizosphere microbiome assembly.

Background: Plants have evolved intimate interactions with soil microbes for a range of beneficial functions including nutrient acquisition, pathogen resistance and stress tolerance. Further understanding of this system is a promising way to advance sustainable agriculture by exploiting the versatile benefits offered by the plant microbiome. The rhizosphere is the interface between plant and soil, and functions as the first step of plant defense and root microbiome recruitment.

Electron density topological and adsorbate orbital analyses of water and carbon monoxide co-adsorption on platinum.

The electron density topology of carbon monoxide (CO) on dry and hydrated platinum is evaluated under the quantum theory of atoms in molecules (QTAIM) and by adsorbate orbital approaches. The impact of water co-adsorbate on the electronic, structural, and vibrational properties of CO on Pt are modelled by periodic density functional theory (DFT). At low CO coverage, increased hydration weakens C-O bonds and strengthens C-Pt bonds, as verified by changes in bond lengths and stretching frequencies.

Design, Synthesis and Microbiological Evaluation of Novel Compounds as Potential Phenylalanine tRNA Synthetase Inhibitors.

AS THE RESISTANCE of to antibiotics represents a major threat to global health, anti-infectives with novel mechanisms must be developed. Novel compounds were generated as potential phenylalanine tRNA synthetase (PheRS) inhibitors based on the published homology model of PheRS to aid the design process using Molecular Operating Environment (MOE) software. PheRS was selected as it is structurally unique enzyme among the aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (aaRS), it is considerably different from human cytosolic and human mitochondrial aaRS and it is essential and conserved across bacterial species.

Identification and Characterization of Chemical Compounds that Inhibit Leucyl-tRNA Synthetase from .

Background: Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic multi-drug resistance pathogen implicated as the causative agent in a high-percentage of nosocomial and community acquired bacterial infections. The gene encoding leucyl-tRNA synthetase (LeuRS) from P. aeruginosa was overexpressed in Escherichia coli and the resulting protein was characterized.

Determinants of Course Grades in Allied Health Sciences Programs.

Past research has shown that there is a pattern of systematic grade inflation in higher education in the U.S. As a result, it is difficult for prospective employers and graduate school admission directors to distinguish bright candidates when recruiting new graduates.