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Disseminated neoplasia (DN) is a form of cancer in bivalve molluscs that can be transmissible between individuals and in some cases across species. Neoplastic cells are highly proliferative, and infection is usually lethal. Commercially valuable bivalve species (mussels, cockles, softshell clams, and oysters) are affected by outbreaks of DN, making disease diagnosis and mitigation an important issue in ecological restoration efforts and aquaculture. Basket cockles (Clinocardiwn nuttallii) are native to the North American Pacific coast from California to Alaska. Recent concern from some Coast Salish Tribes regarding an observed long-term decline in basket cockle populations in Puget Sound. WA has increased interest in monitoring efforts and subsequent collection for aquarium-reared broodstock. Disseminated neoplasia was detected in Puget Sound basket cockle populations, delaying aquaculture efforts so that potential broodstock could be assessed for the presence of DN. This study details a minimally invasive, inexpensive, nonlethal method for high-throughput screening for DN in adult basket cockles. The hemolymph smear screening method to diagnose DN in C. nuttallii can be applied at field sites at low financial cost. Results of the hemolymph smear technique were validated against whole tissue histology, the standard method for DN diagnosis. Due to the similar cellular morphologies of DN in different bivalve species, it is proposed that hemolymph histology can likely be applied for diagnosing DN in other bivalves. KEY WORDS: disseminated neoplasia, Cltnocardiwn nuttallii, disease screening, tissue histology, basket cockle, INTRODUCTION Diverse bivalve species worldwide are susceptible to disseminated neoplasia (DN), a disease in which cancerous cells proliferate in the hemolymph--the blood-like fluid in molluscs containing a mixture of nutrients, [...]

Abstract POT1 variants have been identified in familial melanoma (FM) as well as a number of other germline and somatic malignancies. The functional validation of variants identified from the screening of patients with melanoma gene susceptibility panels is key to understanding the clinical significance of identified variants. Here we report a novel, likely pathogenic POT1 missense variant (p.G95V) in FM and investigate its functional impact. We demonstrate loss of function owing to the inability of the mutant POT1 protein to bind telomeric DNA compared to its wild‐type counterpart. This study provides important functional validation of a novel POT1 variant in FM.

Abstract The QUANT study represents the most extensive open-access evaluation of commercial air quality sensor systems to date. This comprehensive study assessed 49 systems from 14 manufacturers across three urban sites in the UK over a three-year period. The resulting open-access dataset captures high time-resolution measurements of a variety of gasses (NO, NO2, O3, CO, CO2), particulate matter (PM1, PM2.5, PM10), and key meteorological parameters (humidity, temperature, atmospheric pressure). The quality and scope of the dataset is enhanced by reference monitors’ data and calibrated products from sensor manufacturers across the three sites. This publicly accessible dataset serves as a robust and transparent resource that details the methods used for data collection and procedures to ensure dataset integrity. It provides a valuable tool for a wide range of stakeholders to analyze the performance of air quality sensors in real-world settings. Policymakers can leverage this data to refine sensor deployment guidelines and develop standardized protocols, while manufacturers can utilize it as a benchmark for technological innovation and product certification. Moreover, the dataset has supported the development of a UK code of practice, and the certification of one of the participating companies, underscoring the dataset’s utility and reliability.

Providing independent reading opportunities is a critical learning practice often overlooked in many classrooms. This study utilizes expectancy-value theory to explore the motivational beliefs of eight 4th to 8th-grade teachers regarding providing in-class independent reading opportunities. Through semi-structured interviews, data reveal that teachers have varied conceptualizations of independent reading. These conceptualizations and their past teaching experiences influence their beliefs about the success, value, and cost of offering independent reading opportunities, as well as their instructional practices. The findings underscore the importance of understanding the factors influencing teachers' decisions regarding reading opportunities and addressing the challenges of providing this essential learning experience.

Context: As the health care landscape evolves, athletic training students (ATSs) must gain the skills necessary to effectively translate new evidence into practice to optimize patient outcomes. Knowledge translation is an iterative process that promotes the application of new knowledge by users, but little is known about how students perceive this translation process during athletic training education. Objective: To explore ATSs' perceptions of knowledge translation. Design: Cross-sectional. Setting: Web-based survey with open-ended questions. Patients or Other Participants: A total of 255 professional ATSs accessed the survey; 168 students (118 women, 48 men, 2 missing; age = 22 ± 2.3 years) completed the entire survey (69.5% completion rate). Data Collection and Analysis: A Web-based survey composed of 6 open-ended questions was distributed to ATSs via a recruitment e-mail forwarded by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education-accredited athletic training program director on behalf of the research team. Due to the textual nature of the data, we used a multiphased, multianalyst data analysis approach guided by the consensual qualitative research tradition to analyze responses to the open-ended items. Self-reported topics that ATSs translated into clinical practice were categorized into the preestablished practice analysis domains identified by the Board of Certification. Results: Topics within the examination, assessment, and diagnosis domain were most frequently reported by respondents. In addition to the topics translated, 3 themes emerged during data analysis. Students discussed their perceptions regarding the (1) application of knowledge gained in clinical practice, (2) challenges prohibiting successful knowledge translation, and (3) strategies to promote the knowledge translation process. Conclusions: Findings from this study suggest a need to promote synergy between faculty and preceptors to ensure that didactically taught knowledge is aligned with what students are encountering during clinical experiences. Incorporating established knowledge translation strategies may help ATSs bridge the knowledge-to-practice gaps they perceive as current challenges inhibiting successful translation of new knowledge into the clinical environment.

Communication scholars have considered silence in (higher) education as indicative of a range of cultural attitudes and an exercise of power. Some communication scholars consider student silence in classrooms as problematic, wherein a lack of participation in the learning process via student voice constitutes an act of resisting educators and education. Others conceptualize it as a way to challenge oppression or as a part of students' cultural identity. This study examines 21 Black college students' impetus for communicating silence during in-class discussions at a large Asian American Native American Pacific Islander-serving institution (AANAPISI) and a Hispanic-serving institution (HSI) 4-year university on the U.S. West Coast. Given the anti-Black phenomena in recent years (e.g., police violence, anti-Black education laws, Black Lives Matter protests), this study investigates the reasoning behind Black students' reasons for communicating silence within in-class discussions of race/racial phenomena. This study found Black students communicate in-class silence for three overarching reasons: (1) silence due to feeling underrepresented, (2) silence to avoid (negative) peer attention, and (3) silence due to fear of instructor retaliation. Findings inform how instructors can better approach racial discussions by mitigating Black student racial labor, foster civility, and move toward improving cross-racial learning during in-class interactions.

The curriculum review and transformation project reported in this paper represents an intentional and collaborative effort of faculty and administrators in one academic department to implement meaningful changes in undergraduate curricula. Supported by two internal grants from the university, this three-year project included all faculty and administrators of the department. A systematic comparison was conducted between course syllabi content before and after the curriculum content intervention. Results identify changes in syllabi, course learning objectives, units/topics covered, and readings/course materials. Discussion provides implications for curriculum revision and suggestions for best practices to integrate diversity, equity, and inclusion across curricula.

Persons living in long-term care facilities (LTCFs) have experienced disproportionate illnesses and deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic. By June 2020, >50,000 COVID-19 deaths had occurred in LTCF residents in the [...]

THIS ESSAY EXPLORES THE CONTENTIOUS HISTORY OF CHRISTIAN paternalism in Charleston and the surrounding South Carolina Lowcountry during the late antebellum era as the movement repeatedly confronted skepticism and even [...]

Abstract Senescent cells have been linked to the pathogenesis of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). However, the effectiveness of senolytic drugs in reducing liver damage in mice with MASLD is not clear. Additionally, MASLD has been reported to adversely affect male reproductive function. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the protective effect of senolytic drugs on liver damage and fertility in male mice with MASLD. Three-month-old male mice were fed a standard diet (SD) or a choline-deficient western diet (WD) until 9 months of age. At 6 months of age mice were randomized within dietary treatment groups into senolytic (dasatinib + quercetin [D + Q]; fisetin [FIS]) or vehicle control treatment groups. We found that mice fed choline-deficient WD had liver damage characteristic of MASLD, with increased liver size, triglycerides accumulation, fibrosis, along increased liver cellular senescence and liver and systemic inflammation. Senolytics were not able to reduce liver damage, senescence and systemic inflammation, suggesting limited efficacy in controlling WD-induced liver damage. Sperm quality and fertility remained unchanged in mice developing MASLD or receiving senolytics. Our data suggest that liver damage and senescence in mice developing MASLD is not reversible by the use of senolytics. Additionally, neither MASLD nor senolytics affected fertility in male mice.

In times of growing concern about the impacts of air pollution across the globe, lower-cost sensor technology is giving the first steps in helping to enhance our understanding and ability to manage air quality issues, particularly in regions without established monitoring networks. While the benefits of greater spatial coverage and real-time measurements that these systems offer are evident, challenges still need to be addressed regarding sensor reliability and data quality. Given the limitations imposed by intellectual property, commercial implementations are often “black boxes”, which represents an extra challenge as it limits end users' understanding of the data production process. In this paper we present an overview of the QUANT (Quantification of Utility of Atmospheric Network Technologies) study, a comprehensive 3-year assessment across a range of urban environments in the United Kingdom, evaluating 43 sensor devices, including 119 gas sensors and 118 particulate matter (PM) sensors, from multiple companies. QUANT stands out as one of the most comprehensive studies of commercial air quality sensor systems carried out to date, encompassing a wide variety of companies in a single evaluation and including two generations of sensor technologies. Integrated into an extensive dataset open to the public, it was designed to provide a long-term evaluation of the precision, accuracy and stability of commercially available sensor systems. To attain a nuanced understanding of sensor performance, we have complemented commonly used single-value metrics (e.g. coefficient of determination, R2; root mean square error, RMSE; mean absolute error, MAE) with visual tools. These include regression plots, relative expanded uncertainty (REU) plots and target plots, enhancing our analysis beyond traditional metrics. This overview discusses the assessment methodology and key findings showcasing the significance of the study. While more comprehensive analyses are reserved for future detailed publications, the results shown here highlight the significant variation between systems, the incidence of corrections made by manufacturers, the effects of relocation to different environments and the long-term behaviour of the systems. Additionally, the importance of accounting for uncertainties associated with reference instruments in sensor evaluations is emphasised. Practical considerations in the application of these sensors in real-world scenarios are also discussed, and potential solutions to end-user data challenges are presented. Offering key information about the sensor systems' capabilities, the QUANT study will serve as a valuable resource for those seeking to implement commercial solutions as complementary tools to tackle air pollution.

The clonal raider ant, Ooceraea biroi, is a queenless species that reproduces asexually, and these traits make it an attractive model system for laboratory research. However, it is unclear where on the ant phylogeny these traits evolved, partly because few closely related species have been described and studied. Here, we describe a new raider ant species, Ooceraea hainingensis sp. nov., from Zhejiang, China. This species is closely related to O. biroi but can be distinguished by the following features: 1) workers of O. hainingensis sp. nov. have an obvious promesonotal suture and a metanotal groove, whereas these characters are ambiguous in O. biroi; and 2) the subpetiolar process of O. hainingensis is prominent and anteroventrally directed like a thumb with sublinear posteroventral margin, while in O. biroi, it is anteroventrally directed but slightly backward-bent. Molecular phylogenetic analyses confirm that O. hainingensis is genetically distinct from O. biroi. Importantly, unlike O. biroi, O. hainingensis has a queen caste with wings and well-developed eyes. This suggests that the loss of the queen caste and transition to asexual reproduction by workers is specific to O. biroi and occurred after that species diverged from closely related congeneric species.

Brian E Lacy,1 David Rosenbaum,2 Susan Edelstein,2 Kenji Kozuka,2 Laura A Williams,2 David C Kunkel3 1Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL, USA; 2Ardelyx, Inc, Waltham, MA, USA; 3Division of Gastroenterology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USACorrespondence: Brian E Lacy, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Mayo Clinic, Davis Building, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL, 32224, USA, Tel +1 904-953-6319, Fax +1 904-953-7366, Email lacy.brian@mayo.eduAbstract: Increased intestinal permeability has been identified as one of the many pathophysiological factors associated with the development of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a common disorder of gut–brain interaction. The layer of epithelial cells that lines the intestine is permeable to a limited degree, and the amount of paracellular permeability is tightly controlled to enable the absorption of ions, nutrients, and water from the lumen. Increased intestinal permeability to macromolecules can be triggered by a variety of insults, including infections, toxins from food poisoning, or allergens, which in turn cause an inflammatory response and are associated with abdominal pain in patients with IBS. This review article discusses increased intestinal permeability in IBS, focusing on IBS with constipation (IBS-C) through the lens of a patient case with a reported prior diagnosis of “leaky gut syndrome” upon initial contact with a gastrointestinal specialist. We review advantages and disadvantages of several methods of measuring intestinal permeability in patients and discuss when measuring intestinal permeability is appropriate in the therapeutic journey of patients with IBS-C. Furthermore, we discuss a possible mechanism of restoring the intestinal barrier to its healthy state through altering intracellular pH by inhibiting sodium-hydrogen exchanger isoform 3 (NHE3). Tenapanor is a minimally absorbed, small-molecule inhibitor of NHE3 that has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of IBS-C in adults. Preclinical studies showed that tenapanor may restore the intestinal barrier in IBS-C by affecting the conformation of tight junction proteins via NHE3 inhibition to block the paracellular transport of macromolecules from the intestinal lumen. Testing for increased permeability in patients with IBS-C who experience abdominal pain may help inform the choice of therapeutics and alter patients’ misconceptions about “leaky gut syndrome”.Keywords: tenapanor, abdominal pain, leaky gut, gut permeability, IBS-C, tight junction protein, transepithelial resistance

Abstract Water insecurity, the inability to benefit from affordable, adequate, reliable and safe water, is one of the greatest contemporary threats facing humans. While ‘water insecurity’, as a concept, is globally recognized and serves an essential function in policymaking, it does not capture the multiple, relational connections between Indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLCs) and water systems. We contend that studies of water insecurity and health among IPLCs can be improved by applying a systematic approach to the concept of waterscapes. The term waterscape describes the socio‐natural relations between humans and water. To make examining waterscapes more systematic and to draw attention to the importance of health within waterscapes, we use a four‐tiered socio–ecological approach to describe the multi‐level interactions between IPLCs and local water systems in the Amazonian watershed. We then apply this four‐tiered model to the case of the Belo Monte dam in the Brazilian Amazon to identify the specific health impacts of disrupting the Xingu River waterscape. Applying the four‐tiered socio‐ecological approach to the Belo Monte case study showed that this dam led to flooding and compromised water quality that local people associated with an increased risk for chronic health conditions, such as kidney and renal diseases, and vector‐borne diseases, such as dengue. Displacement due to the dam threatened food security, economic security, community cohesion and the cultural survival of multiple IPLCs along the Xingu river. Our approach uncovers not only the direct consequences of the dam on water insecurity but also the broader implications for community well‐being and cultural integrity, addressing the diverse challenges arising from human‐water interactions. The four‐tiered approach for assessing waterscapes offers a framework that enables a comprehensive examination of the intricate relations between water and humans. While there are overlaps among the levels, this framework is applicable to other situations where mining, oil extraction and the construction of hydrovías are substantially altering local waterscapes. Tools such as this one can promote more meaningful engagement between researchers, policymakers, and IPLCs in defining the range of outcomes to be considered in social and environmental impact assessments. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

Abstract Background The Catalan Cancer Plan (CCP) undertakes periodic audits of cancer treatment outcomes, including organ/space surgical site infections (O/S-SSI) rates, while the Catalan Healthcare-associated Infections Surveillance Programme (VINCat) carries out standardized prospective surveillance of surgical site infections (SSI) in colorectal surgery. This cohort study aimed to assess the concordance between these two monitoring systems for O/S-SSI following primary rectal cancer surgery. Methods The study compared O/S-SSI incidence data from CCP clinical audits versus the VINCat Programme in patients undergoing surgery for primary rectal cancer, in 2011-12 and 2015-16, in publicly funded centres in Spain. The main outcome variable was the incidence of O/S-SSI in the first 30 days after surgery. Concordance between the two registers was analysed using Cohen’s kappa. Discordant cases were reviewed by an expert, and the main reasons for discrepancies evaluated. Results Pooling data from both databases generated a sample of 2867 patients. Of these, O/S-SSI was detected in 414 patients—235 were common to both registry systems, with satisfactory concordance (κ = 0.69, 95% confidence interval 0.65–0.73). The rate of discordance from the CCP (positive cases in VINCat and negative in CCP) was 2.7%, and from VINCat (positive in CCP and negative in VINCat) was 3.6%. External review confirmed O/S-SSI in 66.2% of the cases in the CCP registry and 52.9% in VINCat. Conclusions This type of synergy shows the potential of pooling data from two different information sources with a satisfactory level of agreement as a means to improving O/S-SSI detection. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT06104579. Registered 30 November 2023.