The mind, brain, and body study: A protocol for examining the effects of the gut-brain-immune axis on internalizing symptoms in youth exposed to caregiving-related early adversity.

Experiences of caregiving-related adversity are common and one of the strongest predictors of internalizing psychopathology (i.e., anxiety and depression).

Prevalence and determinants of tobacco use among school-going adolescents in 53 African countries: Evidence from the Global Youth Tobacco Survey.

Introduction: Tobacco use typically begins during adolescence. There is a lack of comprehensive evidence on the use of different tobacco products among adolescents in Africa.

Aims And Methods: We used the most recent Global Youth Tobacco Surveys from 53 African countries, covering 2003-2020, to estimate the overall and gender-specific prevalence of each type of tobacco product by country, Africa region, World Bank income group, and age group among adolescents aged 11-17 years.

An image dataset for analyzing tea picking behavior in tea plantations.

Tea is an important economic product in China, and tea picking is a key agricultural activity. As the practice of tea picking in China gradually shifts towards intelligent and mechanized methods, artificial intelligence recognition technology has become a crucial tool, showing great potential in recognizing large-scale tea picking operations and various picking behaviors. Constructing a comprehensive database is essential for these advancements.

High-field MRI findings in epileptic dogs with a normal inter-ictal neurological examination.

Introduction: Epilepsy is one of the most common chronic neurological conditions affecting dogs. Previous research exploring the likelihood of a structural cause of epilepsy specifically in dogs with a normal inter-ictal examination is limited to a small population of dogs using low-field MRI. The aims of this study were to establish high-field (1.

Effects of UV-B light exposure during automatic milking on vitamin D levels in Holstein Friesian cows.

Vitamin D is essential for cattle and can be synthesized in the skin under ultraviolet irradiation. This study investigated the effects of narrow-band UV-B irradiation during automatic milking on blood vitamin D concentration and the influence of hair and black skin areas on cutaneous vitamin D synthesis in Holstein Friesian cows. Fifty-one cows were stratified by milk yield, days after calving, and percentage of black skin, then divided into three groups: shaved and irradiated (80 J/m), unshaved and irradiated (129-305 J/m), and a control group.

Investigating the role of goal motives in predicting bedtime procrastination using a daily diary study design: a registered report.

Objectives: Previous operationalisations of bedtime procrastination were incongruent with its definition. We addressed this gap in knowledge by testing a new operationalisation that incorporates the three necessary and sufficient conditions of bedtime procrastination. We investigate the motivational antecedents of bedtime procrastination in daily life with this new operationalisation.

A systematic review of the cost-effectiveness of anti-VEGF drugs for the treatment of diabetic retinopathy.

Background: Non-proliferative and proliferative diabetic retinopathy are common complications of diabetes and a major cause of sight loss. Anti-vascular endothelial growth factor drugs represent a treatment option for people with diabetic retinopathy and are routinely used to treat various other eye conditions. However, anti-vascular endothelial growth factor drugs are expensive relative to current care options, and it is unclear whether this additional cost is justified when the immediate risk of vision loss is lower compared to patients with more aggressive ophthalmological conditions.

Dynamic tracking of tumor microenvironment modulation using Kaede photoconvertible transgenic mice unveils new biological properties of viral immunotherapy.

CAN-2409 is a replication-defective adenovirus that delivers the herpes simplex virus (HSV)-thymidine kinase gene to infected cells. Intratumoral administration of CAN-2409 followed by prodrug results in the formation of a toxic metabolite able to induce immunogenic cell death, exposure of tumor-associated antigens, and activation of local and systemic immune responses. We used a dynamic labeling model with MC38 tumor cells implanted in photoconvertible Kaede mice.

Harnessing viral internal proteins to combat flu and beyond.

This mini-review examines the strategy of combining viral protein sequence conservation with drug-binding potential to identify novel antiviral targets, focusing on internal proteins of influenza A and other RNA viruses. The importance of combating viral genetic variability and reducing the likelihood of resistance development is emphasised in the context of sequence redundancy in viral datasets. It covers recent structural and functional updates, as well as drug targeting efforts for three internal influenza A viral proteins: Basic Polymerase 2, Nuclear Export Protein, and Nucleoprotein.

A scoping review of somatosensory interaction design for mental health and well-being.

This study explores the efficacy of somatosensory interactions in enhancing mental health care by examining the deployment and impact of these technologies. Based on a scoping review of 46 research studies, our analysis reveals that traditional mental health interventions often fail to align with prevalent technological trends. However, somatosensory interactions bridge this gap by creating immersive and engaging experiences.

Exploiting venom toxins in paratransgenesis to prevent mosquito-borne disease.

Mosquitoes are responsible for the transmission of numerous pathogens, including Plasmodium parasites, arboviruses and filarial worms. They pose a significant risk to public health with over 200 million cases of malaria per annum and approximately 4 billion people at risk of arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses). Mosquito populations are geographically expanding into temperate regions and their distribution is predicted to continue increasing.

Impact of commercial gut health interventions on caecal metagenome and broiler performance.

Background: Maintaining gut health is a persistent and unresolved challenge in the poultry industry. Given the critical role of gut health in chicken performance and welfare, there is a pressing need to identify effective gut health intervention (GHI) strategies to ensure optimal outcomes in poultry farming. In this study, across three broiler production cycles, we compared the metagenomes and performance of broilers provided with ionophores (as the control group) against birds subjected to five different GHI combinations involving vaccination, probiotics, prebiotics, essential oils, and reduction of ionophore use.

Understanding the local-level variations in seasonality of human respiratory syncytial virus infection: a systematic analysis.

Background: While previous reports characterised global and regional variations in RSV seasonality, less is known about local variations in RSV seasonal characteristics. This study aimed to understand the local-level variations in RSV seasonality and to explore the role of geographical, meteorological, and socio-demographic factors in explaining these variations.

Methods: We conducted a systematic literature review to identify published studies reporting data on local-level RSV season onset, offset, or duration for at least two local sites.

Association of healthy sleep patterns with incident sepsis: a large population-based prospective cohort study.

Background: The role that sleep patterns play in sepsis risk remains poorly understood.

Objectives: The objective was to evaluate the association between various sleep behaviours and the incidence of sepsis.

Methods: In this prospective cohort study, we analysed data from the UK Biobank (UKB).

Perceived healthiness of sugary drinks and related social norms among adults in five countries: evidence from the International Food Policy Study.

Background: A better understanding of correlates of sugary drink consumption is essential to inform public health interventions. This study examined differences in perceived healthiness of sugary drinks and related social norms between countries, over time, and sociodemographic groups and associations with sugary drink intake.

Methods: This study used annual cross-sectional data from the International Food Policy Study from 2018 to 2021 in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Mexico.

Knights in shining armour and (M)others in life jackets: Women's experiences of advocating for care alone when suffering recurrent early pregnancy loss during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.

Background: Recurrent early pregnancy loss [rEPL] is a traumatic experience, marked by feelings such as grief and depression, and often anxiety. Despite this, the psychological consequences of rEPL are often overlooked, particularly when considering future reproductive health or approaching subsequent pregnancies. The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic led to significant reconfiguration of maternity care and a negative impact on the perinatal experience, but the specific impact on women's experience of rEPL has yet to be explored.

Post COVID glaucoma service redesign utilising electronic patient triage and community optometry clinics (Fife, Scotland 2020-2022).

Background: COVID-19 caused a huge backlog of patients in glaucoma clinics. This study describes redesign of an entire glaucoma service with electronic patient triage to three levels and utilisation of the Scottish optometry infrastructure of upskilled optometrists.

Methods: 2276 patients in glaucoma clinics were identified and triaged to three levels in keeping with Glauc-strat-fast guidance with local amendments.

scATAC-seq generates more accurate and complete regulatory maps than bulk ATAC-seq.

Bulk ATAC-seq assays have been used to map and profile the chromatin accessibility of regulatory elements such as enhancers, promoters, and insulators. This has provided great insight into the regulation of gene expression in many cell types in a variety of organisms. To date, ATAC-seq has most often been used to provide an average evaluation of chromatin accessibility in populations of cells.

The effect of pregnancy vitamin D supplementation on maternal blood pressure: real-world data analysis within the MAVIDOS randomised placebo-controlled trial.

Purpose: Observational studies have suggested negative associations between maternal 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) status and risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy [pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH) and preeclampsia (PET)]. Data from intervention studies are limited. We hypothesised that vitamin D supplementation would lower maternal blood pressure (BP) during pregnancy and reduce the incidence of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy.

Evaluation of the Digital Ventilated Cage® system for circadian phenotyping.

The study of circadian rhythms has been critically dependent upon analysing mouse home cage activity, typically employing wheel running activity under different lighting conditions. Here we assess a novel method, the Digital Ventilated Cage (DVC, Tecniplast SpA, Italy), for circadian phenotyping. Based upon capacitive sensors mounted under black individually ventilated cages with inbuilt LED lighting, each cage becomes an independent light-controlled chamber.

Transforming CCTV cameras into NO sensors at city scale for adaptive policymaking.

Air pollution in cities, especially NO, is linked to numerous health problems, ranging from mortality to mental health challenges and attention deficits in children. While cities globally have initiated policies to curtail emissions, real-time monitoring remains challenging due to limited environmental sensors and their inconsistent distribution. This gap hinders the creation of adaptive urban policies that respond to the sequence of events and daily activities affecting pollution in cities.

The genetics of neurodegenerative diseases is the genetics of age-related damage clearance failure.

In this perspective we draw together the data from the genome wide association studies for Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and the tauopathies and reach the conclusion that in each case, most of the risk loci are involved in the clearance of the deposited proteins: in Alzheimer's disease, the microglial removal of Aβ, in the synucleinopathies, the lysosomal clearance of synuclein and in the tauopathies, the removal of tau protein by the ubiquitin proteasome. We make the point that most loci identified through genome wide association studies are not strictly pathogenic but rather relate to failures to remove age related damage. We discuss these issues in the context of copathologies in elderly individuals and the prediction of disease through polygenic risk score analysis at different ages.

Emergence of opposing arrows of time in open quantum systems.

Deriving an arrow of time from time-reversal symmetric microscopic dynamics is a fundamental open problem in many areas of physics, ranging from cosmology, to particle physics, to thermodynamics and statistical mechanics. Here we focus on the derivation of the arrow of time in open quantum systems and study precisely how time-reversal symmetry is broken. This derivation involves the Markov approximation applied to a system interacting with an infinite heat bath.