Post-Resettlement Food Insecurity: Afghan Refugees and Challenges of the New Environment.

Background: Lack of access to adequate, safe, and nutritious food is a major concern for the Afghan population due to ongoing war and humanitarian crises. Recently resettled Afghan refugees in the US continue to face challenges securing adequate, nutritious food resources in new environments. This study examined Afghan refugees' food access and insecurity in the San Joaquin Valley, California.

Risk factors for hepatitis C virus infection at a large urban emergency department.

In 2020, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released guidelines recommending HCV screening in all adults 18 years and older. In the current study, we aimed to identify risk factors for HCV infection in an ED population. We performed a retrospective analysis of ED patients ≥ 18 years who were screened for HCV between 28 November 2018, and 27 November 2019, at a single urban, quaternary referral academic hospital.

Larrea divaricata: anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects of on macrophages and low density lipoproteins.

Background: The oxidized low density lipoprotein (ox-LDL) contributes to inflammation and oxidative stress through the activation of macrophages under hyperglycemia contributing to the development of diabetes mellitus and to atherosclerosis. Plants are a source of effective and innocuous antioxidants. Larrea divaricata Cav.

Health services and the Project RoomKey COVID-19 initiative for the unhoused: A university and community partnership.

A hotel-based clinic to serve Project RoomKey residents is a model for meeting the health care needs of an unhoused population. The purpose of this paper is to describe the health services provided by students and licensed clinicians at a hotel that was designed to allow unhoused community residents to shelter in place during the early stages of the Covid pandemic (May 1-June 30, 2020). Documents developed for the project may be useful to others who are setting up similar services for unhoused residents in their own communities.

Consuming Sucrose- or HFCS-sweetened Beverages Increases Hepatic Lipid and Decreases Insulin Sensitivity in Adults.

Context: Studies in rodents and humans suggest that high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS)-sweetened diets promote greater metabolic dysfunction than sucrose-sweetened diets.

Objective: To compare the effects of consuming sucrose-sweetened beverage (SB), HFCS-SB, or a control beverage sweetened with aspartame on metabolic outcomes in humans.

Methods: A parallel, double-blinded, NIH-funded study.

A Pilot Study Comparing the Effects of Consuming 100% Orange Juice or Sucrose-Sweetened Beverage on Risk Factors for Cardiometabolic Disease in Women.

Overconsumption of sugar-sweetened beverages increases risk factors associated with cardiometabolic disease, in part due to hepatic fructose overload. However, it is not clear whether consumption of beverages containing fructose as naturally occurring sugar produces equivalent metabolic dysregulation as beverages containing added sugars. We compared the effects of consuming naturally-sweetened orange juice (OJ) or sucrose-sweetened beverages (sucrose-SB) for two weeks on risk factors for cardiometabolic disease.

An Exploration of the Role of Sugar-Sweetened Beverage in Promoting Obesity and Health Disparities.

Purpose Of Review: The mechanistic role of sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) in the etiology of obesity is undetermined. We address whether, compared to other foods, does consumption of SSB (1) automatically lead to failure to compensate for the energy it contains? (2) fail to elicit homeostatic hormone responses? (3) promote hedonic eating through activation of the brain's reward pathways? We followed the evidence to address: (4) Would restriction of targeted marketing of SSB and other unhealthy foods to vulnerable populations decrease their prevalence of obesity?

Recent Findings: The data are lacking to demonstrate that SSB consumption promotes body weight gain compared with isocaloric consumption of other beverages or foods and that this is linked to its failure to elicit adequate homeostatic hormone responses. However, more recent data have linked body weight gain to reward activation in the brain to palatable food cues and suggest that sweet tastes and SSB consumption heightens the reward response to food cues.

New Onset Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation After Electroconvulsive Therapy.

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a safe treatment for various psychiatric disorders. During an ECT treatment, an electrical stimulus produces a transient sympathetic response leading to changes in the cardiac rate and rhythm. Rarely, ECT treatment may precipitate atrial fibrillation (AF).

Effects of Consuming Sugar-Sweetened Beverages for 2 Weeks on 24-h Circulating Leptin Profiles, Ad Libitum Food Intake and Body Weight in Young Adults.

Sugar-sweetened beverage (sugar-SB) consumption is associated with body weight gain. We investigated whether the changes of (Δ) circulating leptin contribute to weight gain and ad libitum food intake in young adults consuming sugar-SB for two weeks. In a parallel, double-blinded, intervention study, participants ( = 131; BMI 18-35 kg/m; 18-40 years) consumed three beverages/day containing aspartame or 25% energy requirement as glucose, fructose, high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) or sucrose ( = 23-28/group).

A Progressive Case of Eosinophilic Myocarditis Due to Eosinophilic Granulomatosis With Polyangiitis in a Caucasian Male.

Vasculitis is an inflammatory process involving blood vessels of various sizes, including the small vessels in the kidneys to the large vessels, such as the aorta. This inflammatory condition is usually autoimmune in nature and is associated with involvement of many locations, such as the sinuses, lungs, kidneys, and even the heart. Specifically, eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA) is a systemic vasculitis that may initially hide as asthma, allergic rhinitis, and/or sinusitis.

Investigating the Correlation Between Anterior-Posterior and Lateral Asymmetric Muscular Balance With Low Back Pain.

Objective The objective of this pilot study was to determine if there is a correlation between the proposed physical testing protocol and low back pain. The proposed physical testing protocol is an attempt to assess muscular asymmetry in the anterior-posterior plane and the lateral plane. Methods A total of 96 volunteers were recruited from Touro University after obtaining IRB approval.

A New Perspective on Spiritual Care: Collaborative Chaplaincy and Nursing Practice.

Spirituality is a key focus and ethical obligation of nursing practice, but many nurses express uncertainty or discomfort with this aspect of their role. The purpose of this article is to explore the domains of religion, spirituality, and culture as commonly conceptualized by chaplains, as a framework for nurses to provide spiritual care interventions to patients in acute care hospitals. Using anecdotes and illustrations from palliative care practice, this article discusses the enhanced benefits to patients and families when spiritual needs are addressed, with specialty-level chaplain interventions, primary spiritual interventions provided uniquely by nurses, or interventions that require the cooperation of both professions.

TeamTalk: Interprofessional Team Development and Communication Skills Training.

Communication training is a hallmark of palliative care education. The purpose of this article is to report on the development, exploratory outcomes, and lessons learned from a pilot project, "TeamTalk," which adapted VitalTalk methodology for interprofessional learners. TeamTalk included a series of interactive workshops led by an interprofessional faculty team at a health sciences university.

Minority Physician Assistant Faculty: A Phenomenological Assessment of Factors Leading to Retention in the Faculty Role.

Improving racial and ethnic diversity in the physician assistant (PA) profession is important to providing better care for underserved communities. The recruitment and retention of minority PA faculty is one aspect of helping to attract and retain a more diverse student body. Previous research has indicated that minority status is associated with the increased attrition of PA faculty but has not provided insight into the specific factors involved in the retention or attrition of minority PA faculty.

End-of-Life Nursing and Education Consortium Communication Curriculum for Interdisciplinary Palliative Care Teams.

Expert communication skills are essential for the delivery of effective palliative care across the domains of care. However, few health care providers receive formal communication training. To promote communication education for interdisciplinary palliative care teams, a train-the-trainer course for interdisciplinary hospital-based palliative care teams was developed to prepare them to teach other health care professionals communication skills.

The Cambia Sojourns Scholars Leadership Program: Projects and Reflections on Leadership in Palliative Care.

Effective leadership is necessary to meet the complex care needs of patients with serious, life-limiting illness. The Cambia Health Foundation Sojourns Scholars Program is advancing leadership in palliative care through supporting emerging leaders. The 2016 Cohort has implemented a range of projects to promote their leadership development.

Interprofessional conflict and conflict management in an educational setting.

: Whenever health professionals work together as a team, conflict is inevitable - some would argue even necessary. However, conflict can have negative effects on patient care, job satisfaction, personal wellness, and professional productivity. : This study aims to describe interprofessional conflicts in a hospital setting from the perspective of three groups of health science students.

Novel flexible heteroarotinoid, SL-1-18, promotes ERα degradation to inhibit breast cancer cell growth.

SL-1-18 (1-(chrysen-6-yl)-3-(4-nitrophenyl)thiourea) is new flexible heteroarotinoid (Flex-Het) analog derived from the parent compound, SHetA2, and our previous study showed comparable activity to SHetA2 in terms of inhibiting ER+ breast cancer cell growth. This current study aims to determine the molecular mechanism underlying SL-1-18's effect on breast cancer cell growth. Our results indicate that SL-1-18 inhibits cell proliferation of ER+ breast cancer cells (MCF-7 and T-47D) by preventing cell cycle progression.

Acute and chronic cadmium exposure promotes E-cadherin degradation in MCF7 breast cancer cells.

Cadmium is an environmental carcinogen that usually enters the body at minute concentrations through diet or cigarette smoke and bioaccumulates in soft tissues. In past studies, cadmium has been shown to contribute to the development of more aggressive cancer phenotypes including increased cell migration and invasion. This study aims to determine if cadmium exposure-both acute and chronic-contributes to breast cancer progression by interfering with the normal functional relationship between E-cadherin and β-catenin.

Improving the review of standard operating procedures: a novel electronic system for compounding pharmacies.

Since the New England Compounding Center disaster in 2012, the importance of following correct procedures during every phase of customized pharmacy has been a focus of governmental interest and action as well as public scrutiny. Many pharmacies rely on the rote review of standard operating procedures to ensure that staff members understand and follow protocols that ensure the safety and potency of all compounds prepared, but that approach to continuing education can be cumbersome and needlessly time-consuming. In addition, documenting and retrieving evidence of employee competence can be difficult.

Using expression profiling to understand the effects of chronic cadmium exposure on MCF-7 breast cancer cells.

Cadmium is a metalloestrogen known to activate the estrogen receptor and promote breast cancer cell growth. Previous studies have implicated cadmium in the development of more malignant tumors; however the molecular mechanisms behind this cadmium-induced malignancy remain elusive. Using clonal cell lines derived from exposing breast cancer cells to cadmium for over 6 months (MCF-7-Cd4, -Cd6, -Cd7, -Cd8 and -Cd12), this study aims to identify gene expression signatures associated with chronic cadmium exposure.

Novel expression of CST1 as candidate senescence marker.

Senescent cells exhibit altered expression of numerous genes. Identifying the significance of the changes in gene expression may help advance our understanding of the senescence biology. Here, we report on the consistent and strong upregulation of CST1 expression during cellular senescence, independent of the initial trigger.

Genetically engineered Tobacco mosaic virus as nanoparticle vaccines.

Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) is an RNA virus that typically infects plants but has recently been adapted for vaccine development, owing to the suitability of the virions for modifications as nanoparticles. TMV also has a simple functional structure of a 6.4 Kb (+)-strand RNA encapsidated by a single coat protein, which permits facile genetic manipulation.