The Impacts of Programs and Policies to Address Food Insecurity: An Analysis of Change in Income.

Background/objectives: This paper examines hunger over time to analyze how food insecurity is impacted by reduced income, including household funding from the government. Federal policies and community-based programs have the ability to prevent increases in food insecurity, particularly for populations that have risk factors, such as households with children; single-parent households; low-income households, especially those in rural areas; Black and Hispanic households; and, households experiencing economic hardships.

Methods: This study is bas ed on a cross-sectional survey that was administered in 2018 and 2019 to food pantry clients, an already food insecure population accessing resources, in Eastern Massachusetts.

Individual and Joint Associations Between Animal and Plant Protein Intakes with Impaired Fasting Glucose and Type 2 Diabetes in the Framingham Offspring Study.

Objectives: Given the considerable discrepancy in the literature regarding dietary protein and glucose homeostasis, we examined the prospective association between protein intake (total, animal, plant) and risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus or impaired fasting glucose (IFG). We also examined whether these associations differed by sex, body weight, or other risk factors.

Methods: We included 1423 subjects, aged ≥ 30 years, in the Framingham Offspring Study cohort.

Flexible electronic-photonic 3D integration from ultrathin polymer chiplets.

The integration of flexible electronics and photonics has the potential to create revolutionary technologies, yet it has been challenging to marry electronic and photonic components on a single polymer device, especially through high-volume manufacturing. Here, we present a robust, chiplet-level heterogeneous integration of polymer-based circuits (CHIP), where several post-fabricated, ultrathin, polymer electronic, and optoelectronic chiplets are vertically bonded into one single chip at room temperature and then shaped into application-specific form factors with monolithic Input/Output (I/O). As a demonstration, we applied this process and developed a flexible 3D-integrated optrode with high-density arrays of microelectrodes for electrical recording and micro light-emitting diodes (μLEDs) for optogenetic stimulation while with unprecedented integration of additional temperature sensors for bio-safe operations and shielding designs for optoelectronic artifact prevention.

Evaluating the readability of FDA-approved JAK inhibitor medication guides in dermatology.

Prior studies have highlighted significant challenges in the readability of patient educational materials in dermatology, which may represent a barrier to optimal treatment outcomes. As newer Janus kinase inhibitors (JAKi) gain FDA approval and are integrated into treatment regimens, it is crucial for patients to understand their usage, risks, and benefits. We evaluated the readability of FDA-approved JAKi medication guides to see if lessons from prior readability studies have been incorporated into these newer materials.

Exposure to Cadmium and Other Trace Elements Among Individuals with Mild Cognitive Impairment.

Background: A limited number of studies have investigated the role of environmental chemicals in the etiology of mild cognitive impairment (MCI). We performed a cross-sectional study of the association between exposure to selected trace elements and the biomarkers of cognitive decline.

Methods: During 2019-2021, we recruited 128 newly diagnosed patients with MCI from two Neurology Clinics in Northern Italy, i.

Maternal Gut Microbiome-Mediated Epigenetic Modifications in Cognitive Development and Impairments: A New Frontier for Therapeutic Innovation.

Cognitive impairment in various mental illnesses, particularly neuropsychiatric disorders, has adverse functional and clinical consequences. While genetic mutations and epigenetic dysregulations of several genes during embryonic and adult periods are linked to cognitive impairment in mental disorders, the composition and diversity of resident bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract-shaped by environmental factors-also influence the brain epigenome, affecting behavior and cognitive functions. Accordingly, many recent studies have provided evidence that human gut microbiota may offer a potential avenue for improving cognitive deficits.

An Assessment of Multipollutant Exposures Using Silicone Wristbands Among Bangladeshi Youth.

Residents of Bangladesh are exposed to numerous chemicals due to local industries, including dyeing mills, cotton mills, and the use of biomass in daily cooking. It is, therefore, important to characterize the exposome and work to identify risk factors of exposure. We used silicone wristband passive samplers to evaluate exposure to volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds in a sample of 40 children in the Araihazar upazila of Bangladesh.

Improving the Health and Environmental Health Literacy of Professionals: Evaluating the Effect of a Virtual Intervention on Phthalate Environmental Health Literacy.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists provided updated guidance in 2021, recommending that reproductive health professionals should include discussion of environmental exposures with their patients. However, environmental health is seldom included in medical training, with endocrine-disrupting chemicals, such as phthalates-linked to adverse pregnancy outcomes-being among the least discussed. We developed a one-hour virtual educational intervention to train reproductive health professionals on the routes of phthalate exposure, potential associated health impacts, and suggestions on how to discuss exposure reduction with patients.

Examining Virtual Delivery of Strength at Home for Intimate Partner Violence Perpetration.

This study examined the effectiveness of the virtual delivery of the Strength at Home (SAH) intervention program for intimate partner violence in a sample of 605 military veterans across 69 Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Centers through a national implementation of the program. Outcome measures included physical IPV, psychological IPV, coercive control behaviors, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, and alcohol misuse. Significant pre-intervention to post-intervention reductions were found for all the outcomes, with similar effect size estimates relative to a prior investigation of in-person-delivered SAH through the same national VA implementation.

SNP rs6543176 is associated with extreme human longevity but increased risk for cancer.

Using whole-genome sequencing (WGS) might offer insights into rare genetic variants associated with healthy aging and extreme longevity (EL), potentially pointing to useful therapeutic targets. In this study, we conducted a genome-wide association study using WGS data from the Long Life Family Study and identified a novel longevity-associated variant rs6543176 in the SLC9A2 gene. This SNP also showed a significant association with reduced hypertension risk and an increased, though not statistically significant, cancer risk.

Non-invasive screening for laryngeal cancer using the oral cavity as a proxy for differentiation of laryngeal cancer versus leukoplakia: A novel application of ESS technology and artificial intelligence supported statistical modeling.

Objective: This preliminary study tested whether non-invasive, remote Elastic Scattering Spectroscopy (ESS) measurements obtained in the oral cavity can be used as a proxy to accurately differentiate between patients with laryngeal cancer versus laryngeal leukoplakia.

Methods: 20 patients with laryngeal lesions [cancer (n = 10),leukoplakia (n = 10)] were clinically assessed and categorized by otolaryngologists per standard clinical practice. Patient demographics of age, race, sex, and smoking history were collected.

Multiple cell types support productive infection and dynamic translocation of infectious Ebola virus to the surface of human skin.

Ebola virus (EBOV) causes severe human disease. During late infection, EBOV virions are on the skin's surface; however, the permissive skin cell types and the route of virus translocation to the epidermal surface are unknown. We describe a human skin explant model and demonstrate that EBOV infection of human skin via basal media increases in a time-dependent and dose-dependent manner.

Improved Generalizability in Medical Computer Vision: Hyperbolic Deep Learning in Multi-Modality Neuroimaging.

Deep learning has shown significant value in automating radiological diagnostics but can be limited by a lack of generalizability to external datasets. Leveraging the geometric principles of non-Euclidean space, certain geometric deep learning approaches may offer an alternative means of improving model generalizability. This study investigates the potential advantages of hyperbolic convolutional neural networks (HCNNs) over traditional convolutional neural networks (CNNs) in neuroimaging tasks.

Epigenome-Wide and Methylation Risk Score Analysis of Body Mass Index Among People with HIV.

People with HIV (PWH) on antiretroviral therapy (ART) often gain weight, which increases their risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The role of DNA methylation (DNAm) markers in obesity among PWH is understudied. This research explores the relationship between body mass index (BMI) and epigenetic patterns to better understand and manage obesity-related risks in PWH.

Autophagy deficiency protects against ocular hypertension and glaucoma.

Glaucoma encompasses a spectrum of disorders characterized by the chronic degeneration of retinal ganglion cell (RGC) axons and the progressive loss of RGCs, resulting in visual impairment. In this study, we investigated the effect of autophagy deficiency on two glaucoma hypertensive models, the DBA/2J spontaneous glaucoma model, and the TGFβ2 (transforming growth factor β2) chronic ocular hypertensive model. For this, we used the and DBA/2J- mice, this latter generated in our laboratory via CRISPR/Cas9 technology, which display impaired autophagy.

Is trauma associated with plant-based diet choice?

Examinations of links between plant-based diets (e.g., vegetarian and vegan diets) and indices of physical and mental health have received increased attention in the scientific literature in recent years.

Conformal Metamaterials with Active Tunability and Self-Adaptivity for Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

Metamaterials hold great potential to enhance the imaging performance of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as auxiliary devices, due to their unique ability to confine and enhance electromagnetic fields. Despite their promise, the current implementation of metamaterials faces obstacles for practical clinical adoption due to several notable limitations, including their bulky and rigid structures, deviations from optimal resonance frequency, and inevitable interference with the radiofrequency (RF) transmission field in MRI. Herein, we address these restrictions by introducing a flexible and smart metamaterial that enhances sensitivity by conforming to patient anatomies while ensuring comfort during MRI procedures.

Integrated NMR-crystallography-computational approach for molecular recognition studies of human Gαi3 protein by a small molecule inhibitor.

The small molecule IGGi-11 targets Gαi subunits of heterotrimeric guanine nucleotide-binding proteins. Gα subunits are activated by G-protein-coupled receptors in response to extracellular stimuli by accelerating the exchange of GDP for GTP, but they are also activated by intracellular proteins like GIV, of which elevated levels correlate with increased cell migration and cancer metastasis. IGGi-11 disrupts the interaction of Gαi proteins with GIV and inhibits pro-invasive traits of metastatic breast cancer cells without interfering with GPCR signaling.

HCM-Echo-VAR-Ensemble: Deep Ensemble Fusion to Detect Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy in Echocardiograms.

To detect Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM) from multiple views of Echocardiogram (cardiac ultrasound) videos. we propose , a novel framework that performs binary classification (HCM vs. no HCM) of echocardiogram videos directly using an ensemble of state-of-the-art deep VAR architectures models (SlowFast and I3D), and fuses their predictions using majority averaging ensembling.

Caregiver worry about COVID-19 as a predictor of social mitigation behaviours and SARS-CoV-2 infection in a 12-city U.S. surveillance study of households with children.

Objective: Understanding compliance with COVID-19 mitigation recommendations is critical for informing efforts to contain future infectious disease outbreaks. This study tested the hypothesis that higher levels of worry about COVID-19 illness among household caregivers would predict lower (a) levels of overall and discretionary social exposure activities and (b) rates of household SARS-CoV-2 infections.

Methods: Data were drawn from a surveillance study of households with children ( = 1913) recruited from 12 U.

Associations Between Retinal Vascular Occlusions and Dementia.

Background/objectives: Retinal vascular occlusions, such as retinal vein occlusion (RVO) and retinal artery occlusion (RAO), are associated with cognitive impairment, including dementia. Our objective was to examine the odds of dementia among patients with retinal vascular occlusion.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included 474 patients with retinal vascular occlusion and 948 patients without retinal vascular occlusion (comparison group).