Cerclage in singleton pregnancies with no prior spontaneous PTB and short cervix: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: PTB (PTB) remains a leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality. Cerclage for short cervical length (CL) ≤25mm in singletons with a history of spontaneous PTB is associated with decreased neonatal morbidity/mortality. Both vaginal progesterone and cerclage individually have level 1 evidence supporting benefit in prevention of PTB in pregnancies complicated by short CL, however there is a paucity of level 1 evidence regarding the potential benefit of cerclage with progesterone compared to progesterone alone for short CL ≤25mm in singletons without a history of spontaneous PTB.

Regulatory requirements for laboratory developed tests in the United States.

Clinical laboratories in the United States are governed by a variety of required regulatory and optional accreditation bodies. All laboratories must comply with the federal Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) or state equivalents, while some laboratories choose additional accreditation partners. While not a regulatory body, International Standards Organization (ISO) is an internationally recognized quality system that includes best practices specific to clinical laboratories.

Structural insights into 2-oxindole-forming monooxygenase MarE: Divergent architecture and substrate positioning versus tryptophan dioxygenases.

MarE, a heme-dependent enzyme, catalyzes a unique 2-oxindole-forming monooxygenation reaction from tryptophan metabolites. To elucidate its enzyme-substrate interaction mode, we present the first X-ray crystal structures of MarE in complex with its prime substrate, (2S,3S)-β-methyl-L-tryptophan and cyanide at 1.89 Å resolution as well as a truncated yet catalytically active version in complex with the substrate at 2.

BENEFICIAL AND HARMFUL TOBACCO USE TRANSITIONS ASSOCIATED WITH ENDS IN THE US.

Introduction: Electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) can benefit those who use combustible tobacco if they transition completely to ENDS. ENDS can also result in nicotine addiction among nicotine naïve people.

Methods: ENDS-related tobacco use transitions were assessed among US youth and adults using weighted Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study wave four (2016-2017) and five (2018-2019) adult and youth data.

National Survey of Lung Cancer Screening Eligibility in United States Veterans.

Introduction: Lung cancer screening is underutilized, especially in rural areas where lung cancer mortality is high. Approximately 11.2% of the United States (US) population over age 50 meet the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) 2021 lung cancer screening eligibility criteria; the proportion of eligible Veterans is unknown.

Website Transparency and Information Dissemination among Urology Residency Programs.

Objective: To evaluate the transparency and quality of information dissemination among urology residency program websites and provide a checklist. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, urology residency programs have had to adjust their typical practices, including the adoption of virtual recruiting. Such efforts have included improving program websites, which are often the starting point for potential applicants to obtain information about programs.

Game On! Improving Learning Engagement Among Massachusetts School Nurses Through Gamification.

Health care professionals must understand the laws and regulations that guide their practice. Training can often be dense and tedious, resulting in less than optimal levels of learner interest and engagement. Gamification provides a unique opportunity to improve the learning experience, promote ease of use, and sustain gained learner knowledge.

Improved growth velocity using a new liquid human milk fortifier in Very Low Birth Weight infants: a multicenter, retrospective study.

Objective: To compare growth outcomes and tolerance among very low birth weight (VLBW) infants receiving a new, liquid human milk fortifier (LHMF-NEW) or a human milk fortifier-acidified liquid (HMF-AL).

Study Design: Retrospective, multicenter study of 515 VLBW infants in three regional NICUs. The primary objective was to compare growth velocity (g/kg/day) during fortification between groups by repeated measures regression.

Xanomeline-Trospium for Adults with Schizophrenia Experiencing Acute Psychosis: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Safety and Tolerability Outcomes.

The United States Food and Drug Administration approved the xanomeline-trospium combination in September 2024 for treating schizophrenia, based in part on three double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled trials in adults with schizophrenia experiencing acute psychosis. This random-effects model pairwise meta-analysis of those three trials found that xanomeline-trospium was comparable to placebo in terms of all-cause discontinuation, discontinuation rate due to adverse events, Simpson-Angus Scale score change, Barnes Akathisia Rating Scale score change, body weight change, body mass index change, blood pressure change, serum total cholesterol change, blood glucose change, QTc interval changes, and the incidence of headache, somnolence, insomnia, dizziness, akathisia, agitation, tachycardia, gastroesophageal reflux disease, diarrhea, increased weight, and decreased appetite. However, xanomeline-trospium was associated with a higher incidence of at least one adverse event, dry mouth, hypertension, nausea, vomiting, dyspepsia, and constipation, and increased serum triglyceride compared with placebo.

Sequence variants in HECTD1 result in a variable neurodevelopmental disorder.

Dysregulation of genes encoding the homologous to E6AP C-terminus (HECT) E3 ubiquitin ligases has been linked to cancer and structural birth defects. One member of this family, the HECT-domain-containing protein 1 (HECTD1), mediates developmental pathways, including cell signaling, gene expression, and embryogenesis. Through GeneMatcher, we identified 14 unrelated individuals with 15 different variants in HECTD1 (10 missense, 3 frameshift, 1 nonsense, and 1 splicing variant) with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), including autism, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and epilepsy.

Pendulum model to compare center of pressure data between different force plates.

Background: Force plates are used to measure postural control. However, force plates differ with regard to the type of sensors and the position of the sensors. The purpose of the study was to introduce a method for testing the comparability of two force plates with different force transducers regarding their center of pressure (CoP) capturing.

Distribution and correlates of long-acting injectable antipsychotic use among community mental health center patients.

Although long-acting injectable antipsychotics (LAIs) are an important pharmaceutical option in the management of schizophrenia and related disorders, little is known about patient characteristics related to LAI use in real-world outpatient settings. We analyzed electronic medical records from 41,401 patients who received psychiatric services from one of 16 regional mental health centers operated by the South Carolina Department of Mental Health in 2022. We compared the use of first- and second-generation LAIs and oral antipsychotics by sociodemographic (age, gender, race/ethnicity, zip code, payment source) and clinical characteristics (psychiatric diagnoses, service use).

Tensor neural networks for high-dimensional Fokker-Planck equations.

We solve high-dimensional steady-state Fokker-Planck equations on the whole space by applying tensor neural networks. The tensor networks are a linear combination of tensor products of one-dimensional feedforward networks or a linear combination of several selected radial basis functions. The use of tensor feedforward networks allows us to efficiently exploit auto-differentiation (in physical variables) in major Python packages while using radial basis functions can fully avoid auto-differentiation, which is rather expensive in high dimensions.

Small-molecule activator of SMUG1 enhances repair of pyrimidine lesions in DNA.

A potentially promising approach to targeted cancer prevention in genetically at-risk populations is the pharmacological upregulation of DNA repair pathways. SMUG1 is a base excision repair enzyme that ameliorates adverse genotoxic and mutagenic effects of hydrolytic and oxidative damage to pyrimidines. Here we describe the discovery and initial cellular activity of a small-molecule activator of SMUG1.

Inter-network functional connectivity increases by beta-amyloid and may facilitate the early stage of tau accumulation.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is pathologically marked by tau tangles and beta-amyloid (Aβ) plaques. It has been hypothesized that Aβ facilitates spread of tau outside of the medial temporal lobe (MTL), but exact mechanism of this facilitation remains unclear. We aimed to test the hypothesis that abnormal Aβ induces an increase in inter-network functional connectivity, which in turn induces early-stage tau elevation in limbic network.

DNAzyme approach for simultaneous mRNA cap and poly(A) tail length analysis: A one-step method to multiple quality attributes.

The dynamic landscape of mRNA technology highlights the need for innovative quality control (QC) strategies. In this study, we described an efficient one-step digestion approach for concurrent generation of 5'- and 3'-end fragments, enabling simultaneous mRNA capping and poly(A) tail analysis. Tailored 10-23-type DNAzymes, designed from 5'- and 3'-Untranslated Regions (UTRs), selectively cleaved mRNA to release both the 5'-Capped or uncapped short fragments and 3'-Poly(A) tail cleavage products.

Preferences for the ocular region aesthetics and elective double eyelid surgery in Chinese: A nationwide discrete choice experiment.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate preferences for elective double eyelid surgery and explore the psychosocial underpinnings influencing ocular aesthetics and attitudes toward aesthetic surgery.

Method: This nationwide online experiment was conducted throughout four tiers of cities in China using quota sampling, which included self-administered Likert scales for general self-efficacy and modified body image and a set of discrete choice experiments (DCE) that measured the relative value and odds ratio of elective double eyelid surgery surgical options and marginal willingness to pay for procedure attributes.

Results: A total of 554 respondents were included in the final analysis (41.

An In-Depth Analysis of the State Laws That License International Medical Graduates Without American Residency Training.

International medical graduates (IMGs) have been integral to the United States (US) healthcare system and have helped tackle physician shortages for over a century. Current data suggest that by 2030, almost half the states will suffer from physician shortage and estimate a deficit of almost 139,000 physician jobs nationally. These numbers raise concern and call for innovative strategies to mitigate the potential problem.

Antimicrobial and antibiofilm activity of prepared thymol@UIO-66 and thymol/ZnONPs@UIO-66 nanoparticles against Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus: A synergistic approach.

This study introduces a novel approach to enhance the antibacterial properties of UIO-66 by incorporating both Thymol and ZnO nanoparticles within its framework which represents a significant advancement like exhibiting a synergistic antibacterial effect, providing a prolonged and controlled release, and mitigating cytotoxicity associated with the release of free ZnO nanoparticles by combining these two antimicrobial agents within a single, well-defined metal-organic framework. UIO-66 frameworks are investigated as carriers for the natural antimicrobial agent, Thymol, and ZnONPs offering a novel drug delivery system for antibacterial applications. Results demonstrated 132, 90, 184, and 223 nm sizes for UIO-66, ZnONPs, UIO-66 encapsulated Thymol, and UIO-66 encapsulated both Thymol and ZnONPs, respectively.

The surface termination of a Fe (III) spin crossover molecular salt.

From a comparison of the known molecular stoichiometry and X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS), it is evident that the Fe(III) spin crossover salt [Fe(qsal)2Ni(dmit)2], where qsal = N(8quinolyl)salicylaldimine, and dmit2- = 1,3-dithiol-2-thione-4,5-dithiolato has a preferential surface termination with the Ni(dmit)2 moiety. This preferential surface termination leads to a significant surface to bulk core level shift for the Ni 2p X-ray photoemission core level, not seen in the corresponding Fe 2p core level spectra. A similar surface to bulk core level shift is seen in Pd 3d in the related [Fe(qsal)2]2Pd(dmit)2, ], where qsal = N(8quinolyl)salicylaldimine, and dmit2- = 1,3-dithiol-2-thione-4,5-dithiolato.

Characterization of motor nerve stimulation using sinusoidal low frequency alternating currents and cuff electrodes.

Objective: Direct electrical neurostimulation using continuous sinusoidal low frequency alternating currents (LFAC) is an emerging modality for neuromodulation. As opposed to the traditional rectangular pulse stimulation, there is limited background on the characteristics of peripheral nerves responses to sinusoidal LFAC stimulation; especially within the low frequency range (<50Hz). In this study, we demonstrate LFAC activation as a means to activate motor nerves by direct bipolar nerve stimulation via cuff electrodes, and characterize the factors of activation.

A family-based behavioral group obesity randomized control feasibility trial across a clinical trials network: a focus on contact hours.

Objective: This ancillary study's purpose is to describe the relationship between dose of treatment and body mass index (BMI) outcomes in a tele-behavioral health program delivered in the IDeA States Pediatric Clinical Trials Network to children and their families living in rural communities.

Methods: Participants randomized to the intervention were able to receive 26 contact hours (15 hr of group sessions and 11 hr of individual sessions) of material focused on nutrition, physical activity, and behavioral caregiver training delivered via interactive televideo. Dose of the intervention received by child/caregiver dyads (n = 52) from rural areas was measured as contact hours.

Potential of dip treatments to disinfest cuttings of the invasive Thrips parvispinus (Thysanoptera: Thripidae).

Thrips parvispinus (Karny) (Thysanoptera: Thripidae), an invasive thrips species, poses a significant threat to global agriculture due to its polyphagous nature and rapid spread. Its recent arrival in the continental United States raises concerns about potential impacts on ornamental and vegetable crops. Dip treatments might serve as a phytosanitary practice for growers to start with plants free of visible pests.