The Bacterial and pathogenic landscape of African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) whole blood and serum from Kenya.

Background: African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) is a significant reservoir host for many zoonotic and parasitic infections in Africa. These include a range of viruses and pathogenic bacteria, such as tick-borne rickettsial organisms. Despite the considerations of mammalian blood as a sterile environment, blood microbiome sequencing could become crucial for agnostic biosurveillance.

Gender Differences in the Effects of Trust on Substance Abuse Severity Among Incarcerated Stimulant Offenders in Japan.

Background: Treatment of stimulant offenders in Japan is an urgent issue. One of the more recent support approaches for stimulant offenders in Japan is to understand and support them based on a self-medication hypothesis; however, the effect of trust on substance abuse severity among incarcerated stimulant offenders has not been examined. Additionally, while accounting for gender differences is essential when providing support for them, these differences have not also been examined.

Routine Immunization Microplanning Challenges and Opportunities in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Mixed-Method Landscape Analysis.

Background: Microplanning is widely recognized as a critical tool for improving immunization coverage and equity and is considered a core component of routine immunization. However, there is limited evidence on how microplans are developed and implemented and the effectiveness of microplanning. As such, this study sought to review the existing evidence on implementation and institutionalization of microplanning; identify strategies to improve microplanning; and document evidence on new approaches to microplanning, including digitally enhanced and integrated microplanning.

Mechanistic Relevance of Ventricular Arrhythmias in Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction.

Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is increasing at an alarming rate worldwide, with limited effective therapeutic interventions in patients. Sudden cardiac death (SCD) and ventricular arrhythmias present substantial risks for the prognosis of these patients. Obesity is a risk factor for HFpEF and life-threatening arrhythmias.

Exploring the Potent Roles of an Internally Translated Truncated Connexin-43 Isoform.

Connexins are a family of transmembrane proteins that form membrane channels [...

A truncated isoform of Connexin43 caps actin to organize forward delivery of full-length Connexin43.

While membrane proteins such as ion channels continuously turn over and require replacement, the mechanisms of specificity of efficient channel delivery to appropriate membrane subdomains remain poorly understood. GJA1-20k is a truncated Connexin43 (Cx43) isoform arising from translation initiating at an internal start codon within the same parent GJA1 mRNA and is requisite for full-length Cx43 trafficking to cell borders. GJA1-20k does not have a full transmembrane domain, and it is not known how GJA1-20k enables forward delivery of Cx43 hemichannels.

Cardiac Recovery: Webcast September 24 2024.

This 61-minute webcast features a conversation about "Cardiac Recovery"-the focus of Issue 20.4. Led by the issue's editors, the discussion engages the authors on emerging themes and lessons learned while researching and writing the articles.

Impact of dementia and mild cognitive impairment on bone health in older people.

Mild cognitive impairment, dementia and osteoporosis are common diseases of ageing and, with the increasingly ageing global population, are increasing in prevalence. These conditions are closely associated, with shared risk factors, common underlying biological mechanisms and potential direct causal pathways. In this review, the epidemiological and mechanistic links between mild cognitive impairment, dementia and skeletal health are explored.

Drug release potential of polyacrylamide grafted-Assam Bora rice polysaccharide graft copolymer (ABRS-g-PAM) as effective controlled release polymer.

The research focuses on the characterization and evaluation of drug delivery efficiency of a microwave-assisted, free-radical synthesized polyacrylamide-grafted Assam Bora rice starch (ABRS) graft copolymer (ABRS-g-PAM). Percentage grafting efficiency (% GE) and intrinsic viscosity were chosen as the optimization parameters. The optimized ABRS-g-PAM Grade Formulation 4 (GF4) was found to be the best grade.

Image quality assessment and automation in late gadolinium-enhanced MRI of the left atrium in atrial fibrillation patients.

Background: Late gadolinium-enhanced (LGE) MRI has become a widely used technique to non-invasively image the left atrium prior to catheter ablation. However, LGE-MRI images are prone to variable image quality, with quality metrics that do not necessarily correlate to the image's diagnostic quality. In this study, we aimed to define consistent clinically relevant metrics for image and diagnostic quality in 3D LGE-MRI images of the left atrium, have multiple observers assess LGE-MRI image quality to identify key features that measure quality and intra/inter-observer variabilities, and train and test a CNN to assess image quality automatically.

Heads up-Four Giraffa species have distinct cranial morphology.

Giraffe (Giraffa spp.) are among the most unique extant mammals in terms of anatomy, phylogeny, and ecology. However, aspects of their evolution, ontogeny, and taxonomy are unresolved, retaining lingering questions that are pivotal for their conservation.

Workplace genetic testing: which employees are likely to participate, what are their concerns with employer sponsorship, and which design features could reduce barriers and increase participation?

Voluntary genetic testing (GT) leverages low-cost DNA sequencing and other testing methods to provide genetic risk screening for healthy individuals. Given the potential to prevent disease and promote health, some employers now offer GT as an employee benefit (workplace GT, or wGT), but participation remains low. To investigate facilitators and barriers to wGT participation, we conducted one of the first representative surveys of working U.

In silico based re-engineering of a computationally designed biosensor with altered signalling mode and improved dynamic range.

A current challenge in the rational design of biomolecular sensors is the ability to custom design binding affinities and detection mode in silico. To this end, we re-engineered a previously reported computationally-designed fluorescent maltooligosaccharide (MOS)-detecting biosensor to both alter its ligand-binding affinity and to analyse the underlying sensing mechanism. The dynamic range of the biosensor was expanded through the computer aided introduction of a series of amino acid substitutions in the starting protein scaffold (MalX from Streptococcus pneumoniae), which generated a biosensor set with binding affinities spanning over five orders of magnitude.

Recommendations for the optimal introduction of novel antibiotics to treat uncomplicated gonorrhoea in the face of increasing antimicrobial resistance: a case study with zoliflodacin.

New, first-in-class oral antibiotics like zoliflodacin, developed in a public-private partnership, require an optimal introduction strategy while ensuring antibiotic stewardship. Zoliflodacin, given as a single dose for uncomplicated urogenital gonorrhoea, recently demonstrated non-inferiority to ceftriaxone plus azithromycin and safety in a phase 3 randomised controlled trial. Following regulatory approval, zoliflodacin could improve sexually transmitted infection (STI) management and help address the threat of untreatable gonorrhoea, as levels of resistance to current first-line treatments increase.

Runs of homozygosity assessment using reduced representation sequencing highlight the evidence of random mating in emu ().

The domestication of emu ( began in the 1970s, but their productive characteristics have not undergone significant genetic enhancement. This study investigated the inbreeding and genetic diversity of 50 emus from various farms in Japan using Double digest restriction-site associated DNA sequencing (ddRAD-seq) markers. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) calling revealed 171 975 high-quality SNPs while runs of homozygosity (ROH) analysis identified 1843 homozygous segments, with an average of 36.

Large-scale implementation of a brief treatment program for PTSD in persons with serious mental illness in a mental health agency: The Brief, Relaxation, Education and Trauma Healing (BREATHE) program.

Objective: We examined the feasibility and clinical outcomes of implementing a brief intervention for treating posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in persons with serious mental illness receiving services at a large, urban community mental health agency. The Brief, Relaxation, Education and Trauma Healing (BREATHE) program is a standardized, three-session intervention that targets PTSD symptoms through teaching breathing retraining and personalized psychoeducation about trauma and PTSD.

Method: A total of 60 clinicians were trained in the BREATHE intervention throughout the agency, which was offered to 233 clients who screened positive for probable PTSD.

Predicting blood loss volume in a canine model of hemorrhagic shock using arterial waveform machine learning analysis.

Objective: To determine if the compensatory reserve algorithm validated in humans can be applied to canines. Our secondary objective was to determine if a simpler waveform analysis could predict the percentage of blood loss volume.

Methods: 6 purpose-bred, anesthetized dogs underwent 5 rounds of controlled hemorrhage and resuscitation while continuously recording invasive arterial blood pressure waveforms in this prospective, experimental study.

Barriers and facilitators of the electronic medical record adoption among healthcare providers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Introduction: An electronic medical record (EMR) can enhance the quality of care and patient outcomes. Ethiopia started the implementation of EMR in 2013. However, its adoption among healthcare providers has been low.

Cardiac bridging integrator 1 gene therapy rescues chronic non-ischemic heart failure in minipigs.

Heart failure (HF) is a major cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide, yet with limited therapeutic options. Cardiac bridging integrator 1 (cBIN1), a cardiomyocyte transverse-tubule (t-tubule) scaffolding protein which organizes the calcium handling machinery, is transcriptionally reduced in HF and can be recovered for functional rescue in mice. Here we report that in human patients with HF with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), left ventricular cBIN1 levels linearly correlate with organ-level ventricular remodeling such as diastolic diameter.

Screening and Telephone-Based Intervention for Unhealthy Alcohol Use in a Diverse Federally Qualified Health Center System in Texas.

Background: Screening and brief intervention (BI) can reduce risky alcohol use but has not been widely implemented in primary care settings. We sought to implement a screening and telephone-based program within a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC).

Design: Prior to this program, adult patients were routinely screened using AUDIT-C with no further systematic follow-up.

Decomposing the Poor-Non-Poor Gap in the Prevalence of Undiagnosed and Untreated Hypertension Among Bangladeshi Population.

Objectives: Our objectives were to ascertain: the prevalence and socio-economic distribution of hypertension, as well as the rates of undiagnosed and untreated hypertension; the association between socioeconomic status (SES) and the occurrence of hypertension, as well as the rates of undiagnosed and untreated hypertension; and the factors influencing the poor-non-poor gap in terms of the prevalence, diagnosis, and treatment of hypertension.

Design: Cross-sectional nationally representative study.

Methods: Data from the 2017-18 Bangladesh Demographic Health Survey were used.