Recruitment and baseline data of the Aging and Cognitive Health Evaluation in Elders (ACHIEVE) study: A randomized trial of a hearing loss intervention for reducing cognitive decline.

Introduction: Hearing loss is highly prevalent among older adults and independently associated with cognitive decline. The Aging and Cognitive Health Evaluation in Elders (ACHIEVE) study is a multicenter randomized control trial (partially nested within the infrastructure of an observational cohort study, the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities [ARIC] study) to determine the efficacy of best-practice hearing treatment to reduce cognitive decline over 3 years. The goal of this paper is to describe the recruitment process and baseline results.

ADVANCING THE UNDERSTANDING OF CLINICAL SEPSIS USING GENE EXPRESSION-DRIVEN MACHINE LEARNING TO IMPROVE PATIENT OUTCOMES.

Sepsis remains a major challenge that necessitates improved approaches to enhance patient outcomes. This study explored the potential of machine learning (ML) techniques to bridge the gap between clinical data and gene expression information to better predict and understand sepsis. We discuss the application of ML algorithms, including neural networks, deep learning, and ensemble methods, to address key evidence gaps and overcome the challenges in sepsis research.

A TRANSCRIPTOMIC APPRECIATION OF CHILDHOOD MENINGOCOCCAL AND POLYMICROBIAL SEPSIS FROM A PRO-INFLAMMATORY AND TRAJECTORIAL PERSPECTIVE, A ROLE FOR VASCULAR ENDOTHELIAL GROWTH FACTOR A AND B MODULATION?

This study investigated the temporal dynamics of childhood sepsis by analyzing gene expression changes associated with proinflammatory processes. Five datasets, including four meningococcal sepsis shock (MSS) datasets (two temporal and two longitudinal) and one polymicrobial sepsis dataset, were selected to track temporal changes in gene expression. Hierarchical clustering revealed three temporal phases: early, intermediate, and late, providing a framework for understanding sepsis progression.

A multidimensional framework to quantify the effects of urbanization on avian breeding fitness.

Urbanization has dramatically altered Earth's landscapes and changed a multitude of environmental factors. This has resulted in intense land-use change, and adverse consequences such as the urban heat island effect (UHI), noise pollution, and artificial light at night (ALAN). However, there is a lack of research on the combined effects of these environmental factors on life-history traits and fitness, and on how these interactions shape food resources and drive patterns of species persistence.

Transcriptomics for Clinical and Experimental Biology Research: Hang on a Seq.

Sequencing the human genome empowers translational medicine, facilitating transcriptome-wide molecular diagnosis, pathway biology, and drug repositioning. Initially, microarrays are used to study the bulk transcriptome; but now short-read RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) predominates. Positioned as a superior technology, that makes the discovery of novel transcripts routine, most RNA-seq analyses are in fact modeled on the known transcriptome.

Stable pollination service in a generalist high Arctic community despite the warming climate.

Insects provide key pollination services in most terrestrial biomes, but this service depends on a multistep interaction between insect and plant. An insect needs to visit a flower, receive pollen from the anthers, move to another conspecific flower, and finally deposit the pollen on a receptive stigma. Each of these steps may be affected by climate change, and focusing on only one of them (e.

Mammalian predators and vegetated nesting habitat drive reduced protected area nesting success of Kentish plovers, Yellow Sea region, China.

Protected areas provide essential habitats for wildlife by conserving natural and semi-natural habitats and reducing human disturbance. However, whether breeding birds vulnerable to nest predation can benefit from strict land management in the protected area is unclear. Here, we compare the nesting performance of two groups of a ground-nesting shorebird, the Kentish plover (), in the protected area (Liaohekou Natural Reserve, hereinafter PA), and the control non-protected area (non-PA) around the Liaohekou Natural Reserve, in the north of the Yellow Sea, China, and identify which environmental factors, such as nesting habitat and nest materials, influence the daily nest survival rate (DSR).

Transcultural Translation and Validation of Lasater Clinical Judgment Rubric©.

Objectives: to translate and cross-culturally validate the Lasater Clinical Judgment Rubric© (LCJR©) instrument for nursing students.

Methods: the application of LCJR-PT© was preceded by a linguistic translation into Portuguese, based on the translation-back-translation method. This psychometric study involved 32 nursing students from a program in Portugal.

'Now that I am connected this isn't social isolation, this is engaging with people': Staying connected during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: The COVID-19 global pandemic has put adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities at greater risk of being socially excluded due to physical distancing. Technology has been looked at as a tool for adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities to stay connected, however, little is known about this topic. The purpose of this study was to explore how a grassroots disability organisation used technology to help adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities feel socially connected during the pandemic.

Identifying factors influencing study skills engagement and participation for online learners in higher education during COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted education across the world as campuses closed to restrict the spread of the virus. UK universities swiftly migrated to online delivery. The experiences of students and staff during this transition can inform our return to campus and our ability to deal with future disruption.

COVID-opt-aiNet: A clinical decision support system for COVID-19 detection.

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has had a major and sometimes lethal effect on global public health. COVID-19 detection is a difficult task that necessitates the use of intelligent diagnosis algorithms. Numerous studies have suggested the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) techniques to detect COVID-19 infection in patients through chest X-ray image analysis.

The diel activity pattern of mountain hare () on managed heather moorland in Scotland.

The research presented in this paper provides an insight into the behavioral ecology of mountain hares on heather moorland in the Lammermuir Hills of southeast Scotland. We examine the seasonal and diel activity patterns using camera traps over a period of 12 months. The rate of camera detections was calculated for the different divisions of the 24-hr cycle (daylight, dusk, night, and dawn).

Atrial Fibrillation Screen, Management, and Guideline-Recommended Therapy in the Rural Primary Care Setting: A Cross-Sectional Study and Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of eHealth Tools to Support All Stages of Screening.

BACKGROUND Internationally, most atrial fibrillation (AF) management guidelines recommend opportunistic screening for AF in people ≥65 years of age and oral anticoagulant treatment for those at high stroke risk (CHA₂DS₂-VA≥2). However, gaps remain in screening and treatment. METHODS AND RESULTS General practitioners/nurses at practices in rural Australia (n=8) screened eligible patients (≥65 years of age without AF) using a smartphone ECG during practice visits.

Undergraduate nursing and midwifery student's attitudes to mental illness.

Aim: To explore levels of stigma in students of all fields of nursing and midwifery at different years and examine the impact of exposure to people with mental illness.

Design: A cross-sectional survey was used.

Methods: The Community Attitudes to Mental Illness questionnaire was administered to all branches of student nurses (adult health, mental health, child health and learning disability) and midwives in all three years in one Higher Education Institution (HEI) in Scotland.

How To Build a Bone: PHOSPHO1, Biomineralization, and Beyond.

Since its characterization two decades ago, the phosphatase PHOSPHO1 has been the subject of an increasing focus of research. This work has elucidated PHOSPHO1's central role in the biomineralization of bone and other hard tissues, but has also implicated the enzyme in other biological processes in health and disease. During mineralization PHOSPHO1 liberates inorganic phosphate (P) to be incorporated into the mineral phase through hydrolysis of its substrates phosphocholine (PCho) and phosphoethanolamine (PEA).

A qualitative study of experiences of health and social care in home mechanical ventilation.

Aim: To contribute insight into health and social care integration through an exploration of the care experiences of adults with degenerative neuromuscular conditions who use a mechanical ventilator at home.

Design: Descriptive qualitative research.

Methods: Seventeen semi-structured interviews were conducted with patients and family carers living in Scotland during 2015-2016 and thematically analysed.

eHealth Tools to Provide Structured Assistance for Atrial Fibrillation Screening, Management, and Guideline-Recommended Therapy in Metropolitan General Practice: The AF - SMART Study.

Background This eH ealth implementation study aimed to evaluate strategies to promote opportunistic atrial fibrillation ( AF ) screening using electronic screening prompts and improve treatment using electronic decision support ( EDS ) software. Methods and Results An electronic screening prompt appeared whenever an eligible patient's (aged ≥65 years, no AF diagnosis) medical record was opened in participating general practices. General practitioners and practice nurses offered screening using a smartphone ECG, with validated AF algorithm.

A screening tool for predicting gatekeeping behaviour.

Aim: To develop a typology and screening tool for gatekeeping behaviours by nurses responsible for recruitment in palliative care research.

Design: Concurrent analysis.

Method: Two focus groups were conducted in 2015 with nine qualified hospice community nurses involved in recruitment to a trial in palliative care.

Personality and Social Framing in Privacy Decision-Making: A Study on Cookie Acceptance.

Despite their best intentions, people struggle with the realities of privacy protection and will often sacrifice privacy for convenience in their online activities. Individuals show systematic, personality dependent differences in their privacy decision making, which makes it interesting for those who seek to design 'nudges' designed to manipulate privacy behaviors. We explore such effects in a cookie decision task.

Embodied intersubjective engagement in mother-infant tactile communication: a cross-cultural study of Japanese and Scottish mother-infant behaviors during infant pick-up.

This study examines the early development of cultural differences in a simple, embodied, and intersubjective engagement between mothers putting down, picking up, and carrying their infants between Japan and Scotland. Eleven Japanese and ten Scottish mothers with their 6- and then 9-month-old infants participated. Video and motion analyses were employed to measure motor patterns of the mothers' approach to their infants, as well as their infants' collaborative responses during put-down, pick-up, and carry phases.