Stimulant-involved overdose deaths: Constructing dynamic hypotheses.

The overdose epidemic in the United States is evolving, with a rise in stimulant (cocaine and/or methamphetamine)-only and opioid and stimulant-involved overdose deaths for reasons that remain unclear. We conducted interviews and group model building workshops in Massachusetts and South Dakota. Building on these data and extant research, we identified six dynamic hypotheses, explaining changes in stimulant-involved overdose trends, visualized using causal loop diagrams.

Leveraging Artificial Intelligence to Develop a Decision-Support Tool for Visual Symptom Assessment of Grapevine Leafroll and Red Blotch Diseases.

The timely detection of viral pathogens in vineyards is a critical aspect of management. Diagnostic methods can be labor-intensive and may require specialized training or facilities. The emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to provide innovative solutions for disease detection but requires a significant volume of high-quality data as input.

Crop rotation effects on the population density of soybean soilborne pathogens under no-till cropping system.

Soilborne diseases are persistent problems in soybean production. Long-term crop rotation can contribute to soilborne disease management. However, the response of soilborne pathogens to crop rotation is inconsistent, and rotation efficacy is highly variable.

Evaluating oomycete pathogen and community responses to chemical- and Slow Sand Filtration-based water treatment strategies to enable water recycling in nursery production systems.

While recycling irrigation water can reduce water use constraints and costs in nurseries, adoption is hindered by the associated risk of recirculating and spreading waterborne pathogens. To enable regional water re-use, this study assessed oomycete re-circulation risks and recycled water treatment efficacy at organismal and community scales. In culture-based analysis of recycled pond water at two Mid-Atlantic nurseries across three years, diverse oomycetes (12+ species) were detected using culture-based analysis, with Phytopythium helicoides as the dominant species; MiSeq analysis detected eight of these species, plus 24 additional taxa.

Construction of tetrahedral mesh phantom for Chinese women of childbearing age.

Although the Boundary Representation (BREP) method creates detailed surface phantoms of Chinese women of childbearing age, these phantoms cannot be directly used in Monte Carlo simulations. They must first be converted into voxel phantoms, a process that may diminish some of the inherent advantages of the surface phantoms. Therefore, the aim of this study is to construct a tetrahedral mesh (TM) phantom of Chinese women of childbearing age based on the BREP phantom, incorporating micron-level structural refinements to certain organ tissues while maintaining the original model's structure.

Investigation on the Heating Effects of Intra-Tumoral Injectable Magnetic hydrogels (IT-MG) for Cancer Hyperthermia.

Capacitive-based radiofrequency (Rf) radiation at 27 MHz offers a non-invasive approach for inducing hyperthermia, making it a promising technique for thermal cancer therapy applications. To achieve focused and site-specific hyperthermia, external material is required that efficiently convert Rf radiation into localized heat. Nanomaterials capable of absorbing Rf energy and convert into heat for targeted ablation are of critical importance.

Biomechanical and Functional Features of the Carrier Erythrocytes Prolonging Circulation Time of Biotherapeutic Targeted to Glycophorin A.

Red blood cells (RBCs) serve as natural transporters and can be modified to enhance the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of a protein cargo. Affinity targeting of Factor IX (FIX) to the RBC membrane is a promising approach to improve the (pro)enzyme's pharmacokinetics. For RBC targeting, purified human FIX was conjugated to the anti-mouse glycophorin A monoclonal antibody Ter119.

Bioconjugation of Synthetic Peptides onto Universal Chimeric Antigen Receptor T Cells for Targeted Cancer Immunotherapies.

The recent development of modular universal chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell platforms that use bifunctional adaptor intermediates to redirect engineered T-cell effector function has greatly expanded the capabilities of adoptive T-cell therapy, enabling safer and more comprehensive cancer treatment. However, universal CAR receptor systems rely on unstable transient recognition of tag-coupled intermediates for T-cell activation, and the array of targeting intermediates has been limited to antibodies and small molecules. Addressing these shortcomings, we engineered universal CAR T-cell receptors that can be covalently modified with synthetic biomaterials by accelerated SpyCatcher003-SpyTag003 chemistry for cancer-cell targeting.

Perspectives on Swedish Regulations for Online Record Access Among Adolescents With Serious Health Issues and Their Parents: Mixed Methods Study.

Background: With the increasing implementation of patient online record access (ORA), various approaches to access to minors' electronic health records have been adopted globally. In Sweden, the current regulatory framework restricts ORA for minors and their guardians when the minor is aged between 13 and 15 years. Families of adolescents with complex health care needs often desire health information to manage their child's care and involve them in their care.

Methods to Adjust for Confounding in Test-Negative Design COVID-19 Effectiveness Studies: Simulation Study.

Background: Real-world COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness (VE) studies are investigating exposures of increasing complexity accounting for time since vaccination. These studies require methods that adjust for the confounding that arises when morbidities and demographics are associated with vaccination and the risk of outcome events. Methods based on propensity scores (PS) are well-suited to this when the exposure is dichotomous, but present challenges when the exposure is multinomial.

Digital Gaming and Subsequent Health and Well-Being Among Older Adults: Longitudinal Outcome-Wide Analysis.

Background: Digital gaming has become increasingly popular among older adults, potentially offering cognitive, social, and physical benefits. However, its broader impact on health and well-being, particularly in real-world settings, remains unclear.

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the multidimensional effects of digital gaming on health and well-being among older adults, using data from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study conducted in Matsudo City, Chiba, Japan.

Establishment and Maintenance of a Digital Therapeutic Alliance in People Living With Negative Symptoms of Schizophrenia: Two Exploratory Single-Arm Studies.

Background: Evidence-based digital therapeutics represent a new treatment modality in mental health, potentially providing cost-efficient, accessible means of augmenting existing treatments for chronic mental illnesses. CT-155/BI 3972080 is a prescription digital therapeutic under development as an adjunct to standard of care treatments for patients 18 years of age and older with experiential negative symptoms (ENS) of schizophrenia. Individual components of CT-155/BI 3972080 are designed based on the underlying principles of face-to-face treatment.

Developing Assessments for Key Stakeholders in Pediatric Congenital Heart Disease: Qualitative Pilot Study to Inform Designing of a Medical Education Toy.

Background: Congenital heart disease (CHD) is a birth defect of the heart that requires long-term care and often leads to additional health complications. Effective educational strategies are essential for improving health literacy and care outcomes. Despite affecting around 40,000 children annually in the United States, there is a gap in understanding children's health literacy, parental educational burdens, and the efficiency of health care providers in delivering education.

Accuracy and Safety of AI-Enabled Scribe Technology: Instrument Validation Study.

Artificial intelligence-enabled ambient digital scribes may have many potential benefits, yet results from our study indicate that there are errors that must be evaluated to mitigate safety risks.

Multimodal Pain Recognition in Postoperative Patients: Machine Learning Approach.

Background: Acute pain management is critical in postoperative care, especially in vulnerable patient populations that may be unable to self-report pain levels effectively. Current methods of pain assessment often rely on subjective patient reports or behavioral pain observation tools, which can lead to inconsistencies in pain management. Multimodal pain assessment, integrating physiological and behavioral data, presents an opportunity to create more objective and accurate pain measurement systems.

Effectiveness of Video Teletherapy in Treating Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder in Children and Adolescents With Exposure and Response Prevention: Retrospective Longitudinal Observational Study.

Background: An effective primary treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in children and adolescents as well as adults is exposure and response prevention (ERP), a form of intervention in the context of cognitive-behavioral therapy. Despite strong evidence supporting the efficacy and effectiveness of ERP from studies in research and real-world settings, its clinical use remains limited. This underuse is often attributed to access barriers such as the scarcity of properly trained therapists, geographical constraints, and costs.

Mass Casualty Incident Training in Immersive Virtual Reality: Quasi-Experimental Evaluation of Multimethod Performance Indicators.

Background: Immersive virtual reality (iVR) has emerged as a training method to prepare medical first responders (MFRs) for mass casualty incidents (MCIs) and disasters in a resource-efficient, flexible, and safe manner. However, systematic evaluations and validations of potential performance indicators for virtual MCI training are still lacking.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate whether different performance indicators based on visual attention, triage performance, and information transmission can be effectively extended to MCI training in iVR by testing if they can discriminate between different levels of expertise.

Enhancing Diagnostic Accuracy of Lung Nodules in Chest Computed Tomography Using Artificial Intelligence: Retrospective Analysis.

Background: Uncertainty in the diagnosis of lung nodules is a challenge for both patients and physicians. Artificial intelligence (AI) systems are increasingly being integrated into medical imaging to assist diagnostic procedures. However, the accuracy of AI systems in identifying and measuring lung nodules on chest computed tomography (CT) scans remains unclear, which requires further evaluation.

Designing the First Pregnancy Guaranteed Income Program in the United States: Qualitative Needs Assessment and Human-Centered Design to Develop the Abundant Birth Project.

Background: Racial inequities in pregnancy outcomes persist despite investments in clinical, educational, and behavioral interventions, indicating that a new approach is needed to address the root causes of health disparities. Guaranteed income during pregnancy has the potential to narrow racial health inequities for birthing people and infants by alleviating financial stress.

Objective: We describe community-driven formative research to design the first pregnancy-guaranteed income program in the United States-the Abundant Birth Project (ABP).

Effectiveness of Frequent Point-of-Care Molecular COVID-19 Surveillance in a Rural Workplace: Nonrandomized Controlled Clinical Trial Among Miners.

Background: Numerous studies have assessed the risk of SARS-CoV-2 exposure and infection among health care workers during the pandemic. However, far fewer studies have investigated the impact of SARS-CoV-2 on essential workers in other sectors. Moreover, guidance for maintaining a safely operating workplace in sectors outside of health care remains limited.

Synthesis and Characterization of Homo- and Heteroleptic Neptunium(IV) Heteroarylalkenolate Complexes.

Heteroleptic An (An = U, Np) chlorido-ketoenaminate complexes of the type [AnCl(TFB-BuA)(THF)] ( type: , ; TFB-BuA = 4-(-butylamino)-1,1,1-trifluorobut-3-en-2-one) and the homoleptic Np heteroarylalkenolate complexes [Np(PyTFP)] (, PyTFP = 1-(pyridin-2-yl)-3,3,3-trifluoroprop-1-en-2-ol) and [Np(DMOTFP)] (, DMOTFP = 1-(4,5-dimethyloxazol-2-yl)-3,3,3-trifluoroprop-1-en-2-ol) were synthesized and characterized (SC-XRD, NMR, Vis-NIR, MS). While their solid-state structures compare well to those of their uranium analogues, the behavior in solution showed significant differences. The binding motif of the DMOTFP ligand in complex can change to form two different complex isomers, as seen by paramagnetic chemical shifts in NMR experiments.

Integrative genomic analysis of DLBCL identifies immune environments associated with bispecific antibody response.

Most diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) patients treated with immunotherapies such as bispecific antibodies (BsAb) or chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells fail to achieve durable treatment responses, underscoring the need for a deeper understanding of mechanisms that regulate the immune environment and response to treatment. Here, an integrative, multi-omic approach was applied to multiple large independent datasets in order to characterize DLBCL immune environments, and to define their association with tumor cell-intrinsic genomic alterations and outcomes to CD19-directed CAR T-cell and CD20 x CD3 BsAb therapies. This approach effectively segregated DLBCLs into four immune quadrants (IQ) defined by cell-of-origin and immune-related gene set expression scores.

Protection of β2GPI-Deficient Mice from Thrombosis Reflects a Defect in PAR3-facilitated Platelet Activation.

Antibodies to β2-glycoprotein I (β2GPI) cause thrombosis in antiphospholipid syndrome, however the role of β2GPI in coagulation in vivo is not understood. To address this issue, we developed β2GPI-deficient mice (Apoh-/-) by deleting exon 2 and 3 of Apoh using CRISPR/Cas9 and compared the development of thrombosis in wild-type (WT) and Apoh-/- mice using rose bengal and FeCl3-induced carotid thrombosis, laser-induced cremaster arteriolar injury, and inferior vena cava (IVC) stasis models. We also compared tail bleeding times and activation of platelets from WT and Apoh-/- mice in the absence and presence of β2GPI.

Babesiosis and Sickle Red blood Cells: Loss of Deformability, Heightened Osmotic fragility, and Hypervesiculation.

Babesiosis in sickle cell disease (SCD) is marked by severe anemia but the underlying red blood cell (RBC) rheological parameters remain largely undefined. Here, we describe altered RBC deformability from both primary (host RBC sickle hemoglobin mediated) and secondary changes (Babesia parasite infection mediated) to the RBC membrane using wild type AA, sickle trait AS and sickle SS RBCs. Our ektacytometry (LORRCA) analysis demonstrates that the changes in the host RBC bio-mechanical properties, pre- and post- Babesia infection, reside on a spectrum of severity, with wild type infected AA cells, despite showing a significant reduction of deformability under both shear and osmolarity gradients, exhibiting only a mild phenotype; compared to infected AS RBCs which show median changes in deformability and infected SS RBCs which exhibit the most dramatic impact of infection on cellular rheology, including an increase in Point of Sickling values.

Factor XIII: Driving (Cross-)Links in Hemostasis, Thrombosis, and Disease.

Blood clots are complex structures composed of blood cells and proteins held together by the structural framework provided by an insoluble fibrin network. Factor (F)XIII is a protransglutaminase essential for stabilizing the fibrin network. Activated FXIII(a) introduces novel covalent crosslinks within and between fibrin and other plasma and cellular proteins, and thereby promotes fibrin biochemical and mechanical integrity.