Can gamification improve children's performance in mental rotation?

A common obstacle in cognitive development research is that many cognitive tasks can be long, repetitive, and hence seemingly boring for children. The current study examined whether incorporating gamification elements could make a classic mental rotation task more child-friendly and engaging for young children. A total of 100 children aged 6 to 9 years participated in two mental rotation tasks, where one included gamification elements and the other did not.

New modern and Pleistocene fossil micromammal assemblages from Swartkrans, South Africa: Paleobiodiversity, taphonomic, and environmental context.

The oldest deposit at the hominin-bearing cave of Swartkrans, South Africa, is the Lower Bank of Member 1, dated to ca. 2.2 million years ago.

Effects of benzotriazoles UV-328, UV-329, and UV-P on the self-renewal and adipo-osteogenic differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells.

Benzotriazole ultraviolet stabilizers (BUVSs) are pervasive environmental contaminants that pose significant risks to human health. This study evaluated the effects of three typical BUVSs (UV-328, UV-329, and UV-P) on human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs), which play crucial roles in tissue maintenance and repair. hMSCs were exposed to BUVSs across a range of concentrations, and their maintenance and differentiation capacities were assessed.

BRCA functional domains associated with high risk of multiple primary tumors and domain-related sensitivity to olaparib: the Prometheus Study.

Background: Germline pathogenic variants (gPVs) in the breast cancer susceptibility gene 1/2 (BRCA1/2) genes confer high-penetrance susceptibility to breast cancer (BC) and ovarian cancer (OC). Although most female BRCA carriers develop only a single BRCA-associated tumor in their lifetime, a smaller subpopulation is diagnosed with multiple primary tumors (MPTs). The genetic factors influencing this risk remain unclear.

Association between DNA damage repair alterations and outcomes to Lu-PSMA-617 in advanced prostate cancer.

Background: Lu-prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-617 (LuPSMA) is a radionuclide therapy approved for patients with PSMA-avid metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). We evaluated whether alterations in the DNA damage repair (DDR) pathway were associated with outcomes to LuPSMA.

Patients And Methods: We identified an institutional cohort of men (n = 134) treated with ≥2 cycles of LuPSMA who had panel-based germline and/or tumor genomic sequencing.

Sensory reweighting for balance in people living with Parkinson's Disease: Postural adaptation, muscle co-contraction, and perceptual delays.

Background: Postural instability is common in people with Parkinson's Disease (PwPD), increasing their risk of injurious falls. Evidence suggests a sensory reweighting deficit in PwPD, along with compensatory muscle co-contraction in response to postural challenges. During balance tasks requiring sensory reweighting, older adults exhibit elevated postural sway and muscle co-contraction, as well as longer perceptual delays, compared to young adults.

How do restrictions on opioid prescribing, harm reduction, and treatment coverage policies relate to opioid overdose deaths in the United States in 2013-2020? An application of a new state opioid policy scale.

Background: Identifying the most effective state laws and provisions to reduce opioid overdose deaths remains critical.

Methods: Using expert ratings of opioid laws, we developed annual state scores for three domains: opioid prescribing restrictions, harm reduction, and Medicaid treatment coverage. We modeled associations of state opioid policy domain scores with opioid-involved overdose death counts in 3133 counties, and among racial/ethnic subgroups in 1485 counties (2013-2020).

Effect of siponimod on retinal thickness, a marker of neurodegeneration, in participants with SPMS: Findings from the EXPAND OCT substudy.

Background: People with MS show abnormal thinning of the retinal layers, which is associated with clinical disability and brain atrophy, and is a potential surrogate marker of neurodegeneration and treatment effects.

Objective: To evaluate the utility of retinal thickness as a surrogate marker of neurodegeneration and treatment effect in participants with secondary progressive MS (SPMS) from the optical coherence tomography (OCT) substudy of the EXPAND Phase 3 clinical trial (siponimod versus placebo).

Methods: In the OCT substudy population (n = 159), treatment effects on change in the average thickness of the retinal layer, peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (pRNFL), and combined macular ganglion cell and inner plexiform layers (GCIPL) were analyzed by high-definition spectral domain OCT at months 3, 12, and 24.

Development and psychometric testing of the school-life conflict scale (SLCS) among nursing students.

Background: Nursing students often face a heavy academic burden compared to students in other programs, possibly affecting their personal lives. However, a standardized scale assessing how academic demands interfere with the personal well-being in student nurses is lacking.

Objective: This study was conducted to develop and test the psychometric properties of the School-Life Conflict Scale (SLCS).

Cranial variation across spiny pocket mice (Heteromys, Liomys) in new phylogenetic and taxonomic perspectives.

Spiny pocket mice are usually divided into two genera, Heteromys and Liomys, and more recently the latter have been subsumed into the former, leaving subfamily Heteromyinae with one genus. However, this arrangement conveys false equivalency among heteromyines, and does not represent the great morphological, molecular, and ecological diversity in this subfamily. To address this, geometric morphometric methods were used to explore interspecific cranial variation in this subfamily, which were then evaluated in the context of recent phylogenetic and taxonomic findings.

True cancer stem cells exhibit relative degrees of dormancy and genomic stability.

Background: Cancer stem cells in human tumors have been defined by stem cell markers, embryonal signaling pathways and characteristic biology, ie., namely the ability to repopulate the proliferating population. However, even if these properties can be demonstrated within a tumor cell subpopulation, it does not mean that they are truly hierarchical stem cells because they could have been derived from the proliferating population in a reversible manner.

Comparative outcomes of endovascular vs. surgical treatment in craniocervical junction dural arteriovenous fistulas: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Craniocervical junction dural arteriovenous fistulas (CCJ-DAVFs) are rare and complex vascular malformations that are challenging to diagnose and treat. This study aims to compare surgical and endovascular treatments for CCJ-DAVFs through a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Methods: A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted according to the PRISMA guidelines.

Conquering acceptability: A study of stakeholder inclusion practices in evaluation processes in francophone West African Countries.

Evaluation practices in the French-speaking countries of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) are poorly understood and infrequently documented. Our study is a descriptive analysis that elucidates how stakeholders are conceptualized and involved in evaluation processes in WAEMU. In these countries, evaluators are concerned about the weak stakeholder involvement in evaluation activity and call for greater stakeholder engagement, juxtaposed to the challenges of doing so.

Psyllium: A Nutraceutical and Functional Ingredient in Foods.

Psyllium is an excellent natural source of soluble and insoluble dietary fiber. It has been used as a nutraceutical and functional ingredient in foods. Many efforts have been made to understand and improve its physicochemical, biological, and functional properties to promote its food applications.

How Health Systems World-wide Fail Type 2 Diabetics.

For over 50 years, health systems the world over have failed people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The WHO documents a quadrupling of people with diabetes in a 34-year period to 422 million in 2014, the overwhelming majority of whom were T2DM. This happened despite extensive scientific literature on the causes of, as well as proven treatments for, this disease.

Medical Care or Deportation: Examining Interior Border Checkpoints and Access to Higher-Level Medical Care for Undocumented Immigrants in South Texas.

We examined the impacts of interior border checkpoints on access to higher-level medical care via ground ambulance for undocumented immigrants in South Texas. Using purposive sampling, we conducted interviews (n = 30) with ground ambulance personnel in the lower Rio Grande Valley, Texas. Procedures implemented in 2018 mandate that hospitals notify Border Patrol of a patient's legal status before transfer.

Capillary Electrophoresis-Mass Spectrometry for Top-Down Proteomics.

Mass spectrometry (MS)-based top-down proteomics (TDP) characterizes proteoforms in cells, tissues, and biological fluids (e.g., human plasma) to better our understanding of protein function and to discover new protein biomarkers for disease diagnosis and therapeutic development.

Informing ICU Digital Twins: Dynamic Assessment of Cardiorespiratory Failure Trajectories in Patients with Sepsis.

Understanding clinical trajectories of sepsis patients is crucial for prognostication, resource planning, and to inform digital twin models of critical illness. This study aims to identify common clinical trajectories based on dynamic assessment of cardiorespiratory support using a validated electronic health record data that covers retrospective cohort of 19,177 patients with sepsis admitted to ICUs of Mayo Clinic Hospitals over eight-year period. Patient trajectories were modeled from ICU admission up to 14 days using an unsupervised machine learning two-stage clustering method based on cardiorespiratory support in ICU and hospital discharge status.

Dysregulated Clot Mechanics and Kinetics Impacted by Injury Severity, Predict Mortality After Trauma.

Introduction: Coagulopathy following traumatic injury impairs stable blood clot formation and exacerbates mortality from hemorrhage. Understanding how these alterations impact blood clot stability is critical to improving resuscitation. Furthermore, the incorporation of machine learning algorithms to assess clinical markers, coagulation assays and biochemical assays allows us to define the contributions of these factors to mortality.

Assessing therapist skills in teletherapy: the development and validation of the tele-facilitative interpersonal skills task.

Teletherapy via videoconferencing has become common practice but has unique challenges. We aimed to develop and validate the first performance-based observer-rated measure of teletherapy skills: The Teletherapy Facilitative Interpersonal Skills Performance Task (Tele-FIS). We developed a set of 12 Tele-FIS video stimulus clips as simulations of four research-informed common therapeutic challenges in teletherapy: technology, distraction, boundaries and privacy, and emotional disconnection.

Informing Planetary Protection Policies for the Future Exploration of Ceres: State of Understanding after the Dawn Mission.

We review the current state of understanding of Ceres as it relates to planetary protection policy for future landed missions, including for sample return, to the dwarf planet. The Dawn mission found Ceres to be an intriguing target for a mission, with evidence for the presence of regional, possibly extensive liquid at depth, and local expressions of recent and potentially ongoing activity. The Dawn mission also found a high abundance of carbon in the regolith, interpreted as a mix of carbonates and amorphous carbon, as well as locally high concentrations of organic matter.