Semiautomated Production of Cell-Free Biosensors.

Cell-free synthetic biology biosensors have potential as effective diagnostic technologies for the detection of chemical compounds, such as toxins and human health biomarkers. They have several advantages over conventional laboratory-based diagnostic approaches, including the ability to be assembled, freeze-dried, distributed, and then used at the point of need. This makes them an attractive platform for cheap and rapid chemical detection across the globe.

A Longitudinal Study of Reading and Mental Health Development in Children With Reported Ear and Hearing Difficulties.

Purpose: Reported ear and hearing difficulties (rEHD) are known to be associated with reading difficulties as well as mental health problems. In this study, we aim to examine the relationship between reading and mental health in children with rEHD.

Method: In this study, we used structural equation modeling to measure the strength of longitudinal relationships between reading and mental health-related variables in children with rEHD-aged 5-11 years-in four large longitudinal databases from the United Kingdom ( = 5,254), the United States (s = 1,541 and 6,401), and Australia ( = 2,272).

Long term latency of highly mutated cells in normal mouse skin is reversed by exposure to tumor promoters and chronic tissue damage.

Historical studies performed nearly a century ago using mouse skin models identified two key steps in cancer evolution: initiation, a likely mutational event, and promotion, driven by inflammation and cell proliferation. Initiation was proposed to be permanent, with promotion as the critical rate-limiting step for cancer development. Here, we carried out whole genome sequencing to demonstrate that initiated cells with thousands of mutagen-induced mutations can persist for long periods and are not removed by cell competition or by immune intervention, thus mimicking the persistence of cells with cancer driver mutations in normal human tissues.

Assessing Total Hip Arthroplasty Outcomes and Generating an Orthopedic Research Outcome Database via a Natural Language Processing Pipeline: Development and Validation Study.

Background: Processing data from electronic health records (EHRs) to build research-grade databases is a lengthy and expensive process. Modern arthroplasty practice commonly uses multiple sites of care, including clinics and ambulatory care centers. However, most private data systems prevent obtaining usable insights for clinical practice.

Amphipathic Antimicrobial Peptides Illuminate a Reciprocal Relationship between Self-assembly and Cytolytic Activity.

Amphipathic character, encoded within polar sequence patterns of antimicrobial peptides, is a critical structural feature that influences membrane disruptive behavior. Similarly, polar sequence patterns induce self-assembly of amphipathic peptides, which results in the formation of ordered supramolecular structures. The relationship between self-assembly and membrane activity remains an open question of relevance for the development of effective antimicrobial peptides.

Type A Aortic Dissection Following Abdominal Solid Organ Transplantation: Population-Level Outcomes in the United States.

Background: This study aims to analyze the patient characteristics, clinical outcomes, and contemporary trends concerning type A aortic dissection (TAAD) in previous recipients of abdominal solid organ transplantation (ASOT) in the United States.

Methods: The National Inpatient Sample was queried to identify all patients aged ≥18 with TAAD and a history of ASOT (TAAD-ASOT) between 2002 and 2015Q3 using ICD-9 diagnosis and procedure codes. Baseline characteristics and in-hospital outcomes were compared between TAAD-ASOT patients and TAAD patients without a history of ASOT (TAAD-non-ASOT).

Exploring the Role of Immersive Virtual Reality Simulation in Health Professions Education: Thematic Analysis.

Background: Although technology is rapidly advancing in immersive virtual reality (VR) simulation, there is a paucity of literature to guide its implementation into health professions education, and there are no described best practices for the development of this evolving technology.

Objective: We conducted a qualitative study using semistructured interviews with early adopters of immersive VR simulation technology to investigate use and motivations behind using this technology in educational practice, and to identify the educational needs that this technology can address.

Methods: We conducted 16 interviews with VR early adopters.

Exploring the Anion Site Disorder Kinetics in Lithium Argyrodites.

Lithium argyrodites LiPS ( = Cl, Br, I) are a promising class of solid-state electrolytes with the potential to achieve high conductivities (>10 mS·cm) necessary for use in solid-state batteries. Previous research has shown that structural factors, in particular, site disorder between the sulfide and halide anions, can impact the ionic conductivity of lithium argyrodites. One current hypothesis for this correlation between anion site disorder and ionic transport is a connection to the lithium-ion substructure.

Digital Assessment of Cognitive Health in Outpatient Primary Care: Usability Study.

Background: Screening for cognitive impairment in primary care is important, yet primary care physicians (PCPs) report conducting routine cognitive assessments for less than half of patients older than 60 years of age. Linus Health's Core Cognitive Evaluation (CCE), a tablet-based digital cognitive assessment, has been used for the detection of cognitive impairment, but its application in primary care is not yet studied.

Objective: This study aimed to explore the integration of CCE implementation in a primary care setting.

Assessment of Fraud Deterrence and Detection Procedures Used in a Web-Based Survey Study With Adult Black Cisgender Women: Description of Lessons Learned and Recommendations.

Background: Online research studies enable engagement with more Black cisgender women in health-related research. However, fraudulent data collection responses in online studies raise important concerns about data integrity, particularly when incentives are involved.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess the strengths and limitations of fraud deterrence and detection procedures implemented in an incentivized, cross-sectional, online study about HIV prevention and sexual health with Black cisgender women living in Texas.

Integrating Ambient In-Home Sensor Data and Electronic Health Record Data for the Prediction of Outcomes in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: Protocol for an Exploratory Feasibility Study.

Background: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) leads to rapid physiological and functional decline before causing untimely death. Current best-practice approaches to interdisciplinary care are unable to provide adequate monitoring of patients' health. Passive in-home sensor systems enable 24×7 health monitoring.

Incorporating Cooking Emissions To Better Simulate the Impact of Zero-Emission Vehicle Adoption on Ozone Pollution in Los Angeles.

Despite decades of emission control measures aimed at improving air quality, Los Angeles (LA) continues to experience severe ozone pollution during the summertime. We incorporate cooking volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions in a chemical transport model and evaluate it against observations in order to improve the model representation of the present-day ozone chemical regime in LA. Using this updated model, we investigate the impact of adopting zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) on ozone pollution with increased confidence.

Exploring the Structural Origins of Optically Efficient One-Dimensional Lead Halide Perovskite Nanostructures.

Metal halide perovskites have excellent optoelectronic properties. This study aims to determine how the optoelectronic properties of a model perovskite, cesium lead bromide (CsPbBr), change with length and thickness in one dimension (1D). By examining the photophysics of CsPbBr quantum dots (QDs), nanowires (NWs), and nanorods (NRs), we observe the influence of confinement, exciton diffusion, and trapping on their optical properties.

A Controlled Trial for Preventing Priapism in Sickle Cell Anemia: Hydroxyurea plus Placebo vs Hydroxyurea plus Tadalafil.

Recurrent ischemic priapism is a common complication of sickle cell anemia (SCA) and is associated with devastating physical and psychosocial consequences. All previous trials for priapism prevention have failed to demonstrate clear efficacy. We conducted a randomized, controlled, double-blind phase 2 feasibility trial comparing fixed moderate-dose hydroxyurea plus placebo (usual care arm) versus fixed moderate-dose hydroxyurea plus tadalafil (experimental arm) in 64 men (18- 40 years) with at least three episodes of SCA-related priapism in the past 12 months.

Large-scale dependency and drug screens characterize the therapeutic vulnerabilities of Multiple Myeloma with 1q.

The development of targeted therapy for patients with multiple myeloma (MM) is hampered by the low frequency of actionable genetic abnormalities. Gain or amplification of chromosome 1q (1q+) is the most frequent arm-level copy number gain in patients with MM and is associated with higher risk of progression and death despite recent therapeutic advances. Thus, developing targeted therapy for MM patients with 1q+ stands to benefit a large portion of patients in need of more effective management.

Observed Mask Wearing and Presence of SARS-CoV-2 in School Wastewater, San Diego County, CA, 2022.

To test the association between directly observed school masking behaviors and the presence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in school wastewater. We randomly sampled a subset of schools participating in a translational study on the effectiveness of passive wastewater surveillance in nonresidential K‒12 settings in San Diego County. Trained observers conducted biweekly systematic observations of masking behaviors between March 2 and May 27, 2022.

Better Together: Implementation of a Public Health Learning Community During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Partnering for Vaccine Equity program was developed during the COVID-19 public health emergency to fund more than 500 community-based organizations working to improve vaccine equity. Organizations were supported by a virtual learning community where members received tailored learning content, peer-to-peer learning opportunities, and resources that facilitated deployment of vaccine-related programming during a dynamic pandemic. Process evaluation metrics indicate successful implementation of the learning community.

Population-Level Risks for HIV Mortality During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the United States by Demographic Characteristics and Medicaid Access, 2020‒2021.

To evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on HIV mortality rates with a focus on demographic predictors and Medicaid access. Using Wide-Ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research, we conducted a descriptive study comparing HIV mortality in the United States 2 years before the COVID-19 pandemic (2018-2019) and the initial 2 years of the pandemic (2020-2021), and identifying HIV mortality factors during the pandemic. During the first 2 years of the pandemic, crude HIV death rates increased and then decreased marginally.

Depolarization Through Public-Sector Leadership Development: Emerging Leaders and Fellows Programs, United States, 2015‒2024.

Directing depolarization efforts toward those with authority over public health funding and population health policies has great potential to improve health outcomes. Two nonpartisan legislative and executive branch state leadership programs demonstrated personal growth and mutual respect among participants necessary for depolarization that was evidenced by cross-state and cross-party policy implementation. Intentional cohort selection of politically and demographically diverse participants, ground rules based on fundamental values, and curriculum emphasizing collective problem-solving built trust and curiosity despite differing viewpoints.

The Fourth Wave of the Opioid Epidemic: Increasing Combination of Fentanyl With Stimulants.

To identify drug prevalence through the analysis of drug material and paraphernalia (DMP) collected from scenes of fentanyl-involved fatal accidental drug overdoses in San Francisco, California, throughout 2022. We conducted gas chromatography-mass spectrometry testing on 409 items of DMP (e.g.

Association of family history of cardiovascular disease with the prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors in young adults in the United Arab Emirates: The UAE healthy future study.

Introduction: Family history of cardiovascular disease (CVD) is an independent risk factor for coronary heart disease, and the risk increases with number of family members affected. It offers insights into shared genetic, environmental and lifestyle factors that influence heart disease risk. In this study, we aimed to estimate the association of family history of CVD and its risk factors, as well as the number of affected parents or siblings, with the prevalence of major cardiometabolic risk factors (CRFs) such as hypertension, dysglycemia, dyslipidemia and obesity in a sample of young adults.

Seizures, Driver Licensure, and Medical Reporting Update: An AAN Position Statement.

This consensus position statement of the American Academy of Neurology, American Epilepsy Society, and Epilepsy Foundation of America updates prior 1994 and 2007 position statements on seizures, driver licensure, and medical reporting. Key consensus positions include the following: (1) in the United States, national driving standards promulgated through a system such as the Uniform Law Commission would reduce confusion and improve adherence with state driving standards; (2) state licensing criteria for medical conditions should be promulgated by regulations and guidelines based on enabling legislation rather than in statutes themselves and should be developed by medical advisory boards working in collaboration with departments of motor vehicles; (3) licensing criteria should be equitable, nondiscriminatory, objective, and compatible with comparable risks in other populations; (4) a minimum seizure-free interval of 3 months should ordinarily be required before driving in all cases and should be extended in individual cases based on review of favorable and unfavorable features by medical advisory boards; (5) individuals with exclusively provoked seizures attributable to provoking factors that are unlikely to reoccur in the future may not require a seizure-free interval before resuming driving; (6) individuals with previously well-controlled epilepsy who experience seizures due to short-term interruptions of antiseizure medications in the setting of hospitalization or practitioner-directed medication-titration may not require a seizure-free interval before driving once previously effective levels of antiseizure medications have been resumed; (7) patients and practitioners should pause driving during tapering and following discontinuation of an antiseizure medication if another such medication is not introduced; (8) individuals whose cognition or coordination is impaired due to medications used to prevent seizures should refrain from driving; (9) health care practitioners should be allowed but not mandated to report drivers who pose an elevated risk; but (10) neither a decision to report a patient suspected of being at elevated risk nor a decision declining to report a patient suspected of being at elevated risk should be subject to legal liability; (11) nations, states, and municipalities should provide alternative methods of transportation and accommodations for individuals whose driving privileges are restricted due to medical conditions.