A new measure of professional caregiver coping in long-term care: The LTC COPE.

Introduction: The professional caregiver workforce (nursing assistants and personal care aides) is critical to quality of care and quality of life in nursing home (NH) and assisted living (AL) settings. The work is highly stressful, so improving responses to stress in this workforce could contribute to satisfaction and retention. This research developed a coping measure appropriate for the diverse professional caregiver workforce.

Stress-related coping and its relationship to well-being in nursing assistants and personal care aides in nursing homes and assisted living.

Introduction: Professional caregivers (nursing assistants and personal care aides) in nursing homes (NH) and assisted living (AL) provide the majority of long-term residential care for persons with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. Their work is stressful, but until recently, no measures were available to assess stress in this workforce. Using the new Long-Term Care Cope (LTC COPE) scale, this study evaluates the relationship of coping with staff demographic characteristics and outcomes; the findings can be used to develop and evaluate interventions to improve staff well-being.

A perspective of lipid nanoparticles for RNA delivery.

Over the last two decades, lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) have evolved as an effective biocompatible and biodegradable RNA delivery platform in the fields of nanomedicine, biotechnology, and drug delivery. They are novel bionanomaterials that can be used to encapsulate a wide range of biomolecules, such as mRNA, as demonstrated by the current successes of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines. Therefore, it is important to provide a perspective on LNPs for RNA delivery, which further offers useful guidance for researchers who want to work in the RNA-based LNP field.

From Surviving to Thriving: Key Considerations for Weight Control Across Diverse Cancer Survivorship Populations.

Background: Obesity is a chronic, relapsing, progressive disease of excess adiposity that increases the risk of dying from at least 16 types of cancer. The prevalence of obesity has increased more rapidly in cancer survivors compared with the general population. Tailored weight management strategies are needed to improve prognosis and health outcomes in the growing population of cancer survivors.

Evaluating Disparities in COVID-19 Clinical Outcomes Among Patients With Cirrhosis in North America and Europe-An International Registry Study.

Background: Patients with decompensated cirrhosis have a higher risk of hospitalization, ICU admission, and death from COVID-19. The impact of demographics on these outcomes remains uncertain.

Methods: The SECURE-Liver and COVID-Hep databases were utilized to evaluate disparities in COVID-19 outcomes.

Combination of polymeric micelle formulation of TGFβ receptor inhibitors and paclitaxel produces consistent response across different mouse models of Triple-negative breast cancer.

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is notoriously difficult to treat due to the lack of targetable receptors and sometimes poor response to chemotherapy. The transforming growth factor beta (TGFβ) family of proteins and their receptors (TGFRs) are highly expressed in TNBC and implicated in chemotherapy-induced cancer stemness. Here, we evaluated combination treatments using experimental TGFR inhibitors (TGFβi), SB525334 (SB), and LY2109761 (LY) with paclitaxel (PTX) chemotherapy.

Development of a biocompatible 3D hydrogel scaffold using continuous liquid interface production for the delivery of cell therapies to treat recurrent glioblastoma.

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common primary malignant brain tumor diagnosed in adults, carrying with it an extremely poor prognosis and limited options for effective treatment. Various cell therapies have emerged as promising candidates for GBM treatment but fail in the clinic due to poor tumor trafficking, poor transplantation efficiency, and high systemic toxicity. In this study, we design, characterize, and test a 3D-printed cell delivery platform that can enhance the survival of therapeutic cells implanted in the GBM resection cavity.

Results of a pilot sequential multiple assignment randomized trial using counseling to augment a digital weight loss program.

Objective: Adaptive interventions may improve the potency and scalability of behavioral weight loss interventions, but the treatments-or treatment combinations-that should be offered are unknown. A two-stage pilot sequential multiple assignment randomized trial was used to test the timing and dose of human support added to a core digital weight loss program.

Methods: In stage 1, 99 adults with overweight/obesity were randomized at baseline to a kick-off with or without additional human support.

Dual light-responsive shape transformations of a nanocomposite hydrogel sheet enabled by etching shaped plasmonic nanoparticles.

We report here on dual shape transformations of the same thermo-responsive hybrid hydrogel sheet under irradiation of a laser with two different wavelengths (808 nm and 450 nm). By etching the silver nanoprisms in the sheet to silver nanodiscs by using chloride ions (Cl), two areas with distinct light extinction properties are integrated in a single sheet. The conversion of photon energy to thermal energy in local areas by the silver nanoprisms or nanodiscs under laser irradiation with an appropriate wavelength heats up the sheet locally and causes a local volumetric shrinkage, and hence a volumetric mismatch in different areas in the sheet.

Comparison of emulsion and spray methods for fabrication of rapamycin-loaded acetalated dextran microparticles.

Rapamycin (rapa), an immunosuppressive medication, has demonstrated considerable effectiveness in reducing organ transplant rejection and treating select autoimmune diseases. However, the standard oral administration of rapa results in poor bioavailability, broad biodistribution, and harmful off-target effects, necessitating improved drug delivery formulations. Polymeric microparticles (MPs) are one such solution and have demonstrated promise in pre-clinical studies to improve the therapeutic efficacy of rapa.

Probing the non-covalent forces key to the thermodynamics of β-hairpin unfolding.

Although it is well understood that the graph of the free energy of unfolding (Δ) of a globular protein with temperature approximates to a negative parabola, there is as yet no link between this global (G) Δ () function and the individual structural elements-residue type and the non-covalent forces between groups-contributing to it. As such, there is little understanding of how each structural element contributes to the globally assessed changes of enthalpy (Δ ), entropy (Δ ), and heat capacity (Δ ) of unfolding calculated from the Δ () function. To address this situation, we consider here an alternative approach to examining fold stability.

Advanced piperazine-containing inhibitors target microbial β-glucuronidases linked to gut toxicity.

The gut microbiome plays critical roles in human homeostasis, disease progression, and pharmacological efficacy through diverse metabolic pathways. Gut bacterial β-glucuronidase (GUS) enzymes reverse host phase 2 metabolism, in turn releasing active hormones and drugs that can be reabsorbed into systemic circulation to affect homeostasis and promote toxic side effects. The FMN-binding and loop 1 gut microbial GUS proteins have been shown to drive drug and toxin reactivation.

Code sharing in ecology and evolution increases citation rates but remains uncommon.

Biologists increasingly rely on computer code to collect and analyze their data, reinforcing the importance of published code for transparency, reproducibility, training, and a basis for further work. Here, we conduct a literature review estimating temporal trends in code sharing in ecology and evolution publications since 2010, and test for an influence of code sharing on citation rate. We find that code is rarely published (only 6% of papers), with little improvement over time.

Integrating computational and experimental chemical biology revealed variable anticancer activities of phosphodiesterase isoenzyme 5 inhibitors (PDE5i) in lung cancer.

Phosphodiesterase 5 (PDE5), an enzyme responsible for catalyzing the degradation of cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP), has been linked to the development of cancer. PDE5 inhibitors (PDE5i), such as sildenafil (Viagra) and tadalafil (Cialis), work by blocking the action of PDE5 and are used primarily as treatments for erectile dysfunction and arterial hypertension. Some studies suggested a potential link between PDE5i and increased cancer risk, while other studies showed preferable antitumor effects.

LifeCourse Socioeconomic Position and Ideal Cardiovascular Health in Hispanic/Latino Adults of the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos.

Background: The Hispanic/Latino population experiences socioeconomic disadvantages across the lifespan. Yet, little is known about the role of these disadvantages in cardiovascular health (CVH). We assessed the association of lifecourse socioeconomic position (SEP) with ideal CVH and change in Hispanic/Latino adults.

Engineering a "muco-trapping" ACE2-immunoglobulin hybrid with picomolar affinity as an inhaled, pan-variant immunotherapy for COVID-19.

Soluble angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) can act as a decoy molecule that neutralizes severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) by blocking spike (S) proteins on virions from binding ACE2 on host cells. Based on structural insights of ACE2 and S proteins, we designed a "muco-trapping" ACE2-Fc conjugate, termed ACE2-(GS)-Fc, comprised of the extracellular segment of ACE2 (lacking the C-terminal collectrin domain) that is linked to mucin-binding IgG1-Fc via an extended glycine-serine flexible linker. ACE2-(GS)-Fc exhibits substantially greater binding affinity and neutralization potency than conventional full length ACE2-Fc decoys or similar truncated ACE2-Fc decoys without flexible linkers, possessing picomolar binding affinity and strong neutralization potency against pseudovirus and live virus.

Wearable Devices, Health Care Use, and Psychological Well-Being in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation.

Background: Wearables are increasingly used by patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) for symptom monitoring and health management, but their impact on patient health care use and psychological well-being is not well understood.

Methods And Results: In this retrospective, propensity-matched study of patients with AF, survey and electronic health record data were merged to compare AF-specific health care use (outpatient/inpatient visits, rhythm-related testing, and procedures) and informal health care use (telephone calls and patient portal messages) over a 9-month period between wearable users and nonusers. We also examined the effects of wearable cardiac monitoring features (eg, heart rate alerts, irregular rhythm notification, and ECG) on patient behavior and well-being.

Genotype Is Associated With Adverse Cardiovascular Outcomes in Black Patients Treated With Clopidogrel Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention.

Background: Cytochrome P450 2C19 (CYP2C19) intermediate and poor metabolizer patients exhibit diminished clopidogrel clinical effectiveness after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). However, outcome studies to date have lacked racial diversity. Thus, the impact of genotype on cardiovascular outcomes in patients treated with clopidogrel who identify as Black or African American remains unclear.

Olfactory Impairment and the Risk of Major Adverse Cardiovascular Outcomes in Older Adults.

Background: Olfactory impairment is common in older adults and may be associated with adverse cardiovascular health; however, empirical evidence is sparse. We examined olfaction in relation to the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke, and congestive heart failure (CHF).

Methods And Results: This study included 2537 older adults (aged 75.