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Purpose The purpose of this study was to report trends in the prevalence of early graft failure after endothelial keratoplasty in the United States. Methods Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK) and Descemet stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty (DSAEK) graft volumes were collected from records maintained by 6 major eye banks in the United States from January 1, 2013, to December 31, 2018. The prevalence and presumed cause of early graft failures (defined as a graft with persistent edema or regrafted within 8 weeks after keratoplasty) each year were sourced from surgeon-reported adverse events. Failed graft cases from the 3 eye banks were compared with nonfailures at the donor and recipient levels to perform subset analysis of factors associated with early graft failure. Results A total of 51,887 endothelial keratoplasty tissues were distributed during the study period; 72% were DSAEK grafts. The total number of early graft failures reported was 168 of 14,284 (1.18%) for DMEK and 322 of 37,603 (0.86%) for DSAEK. Early DMEK failures decreased from 2013 (7.69%) to 2018 (0.68%). In generalized linear mixed model analyses adjusting for donor tissue characteristics, recipient age, and diagnosis, an association of borderline significance was found between higher donor age and early failure [odds ratio (95% confidence interval): 1.03 (1.00-1.05); unit change of 1 yr] and DSAEK [odds ratio 1.02 (1.00-1.04); unit of change 1 yr] cases. Conclusions The proportion of early graft failures in DMEK decreased over time and was comparable with failure rates in DSAEK at the end of the study period. The surgical learning curve might have played a role.

INTRODUCTION: Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) in adolescents are a major public health concern, particularly in underserved communities. While STD screening is recommended by the United States Preventive Services Task Force, limited access remains one of a number of barriers. Community-based approaches may provide greater access and enhance screening rates. This study occured in a nationally recognized hot spot for STDs. We used a unique approach of hosting supervised dances at a community venue, during which free STD screening was offered at an attached health care clinic. METHODS: A series of six Friday night dances was held at one community center sponsored by a nonprofit, girl-focused organization from 2018 to 2019. Dance participants could access an on-site health clinic for self-collected screening for chlamydia and gonorrhea. Treatment was provided for detected STDs. STD screening was also available to area youth at the on-site clinic during regular daytime clinic hours. RESULTS: A total of 118 adolescents were screened during the school year, and were predominantly female (88.13%) and African American (85.6%). More than half of the total STD screenings (51.7%) were administered during the dances, doubling the total number of STD screenings when compared to those administered during regular clinic hours. A significantly younger cohort were screened at the dances (mean age 14.8 years) compared to those screened at the regular clinic (mean age of 18.9 years). CONCLUSION: A youth-centric event utilizing community resources can be used to facilitate and enhance screening rates for STDs in youth in an underserved, high-risk community.

The alarming spread and impact of multidrug-resistant

The detection of habitable worlds is one of humanity's greatest endeavors. So far, astrobiological studies show that one of the most critical components for life development is liquid water. Its chemical properties and its capacity to dissolve and hence transport other substances makes this constituent a key piece in the development of life. As a consequence, looking for life as we know it is directly related to the search for liquid water. For a remote detection of life in distant planetary systems, this means looking for planets in the so-called habitable zone. In this sense, K-dwarf stars are the perfect hosts. Contrary to G-dwarfs, the habitable zone is closer, thus making planet detection easier using transit or radial velocity techniques. Contrary to M-dwarfs, the stellar activity is much smaller, hence having a smaller impact in both the detectability and in the true habitability of the planet. Also, K-dwarfs are the quietest in terms of oscillations, and granulation noise. Despite this, there is a dearth of planets in the habitable zone of K-dwarfs due to a lack of observing programs devoted to this parameter space. In response to a call for Legacy Programs of the Calar Alto observatory, we have started the first dedicated and systematic search for habitable planets around K-dwarfs, the K-dwarfs Orbited By habitable Exoplanets (KOBE). This survey is monitoring the radial velocity of 50 carefully pre-selected K-dwarfs with the CARMENES instrument along 5 semesters with an average of 90 data points per target. Based on planet occurrence rates convolved with our detectability limits, we expect to find $1.68\pm 0.25$ planets per star in the KOBE sample and in half of the sample we expect to find one of those planets within the habitable zone. In this paper, we describe the project motivation, goals and target selection and preliminary stellar characterization., Accepted for publication in A&A. 12 pages, 9 figures, 1 table. Language corrected

Human oral cavity is normally colonized for microorganisms including bacteria, fungi, archaea, viruses and protozoa. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of Candida albicans in de oral cavity in a group of medicine students from the north of Mexico. 240 oral samples from healthy students were analyzed by traditional microbiology cultures and DNA sequencing. 57 samples grew in media cultures. Sequence analysis identified the yeast as follow: 28 Clavispora lusitaniae, 20 Candida albicans, 5 Pichia kudriavzevii and 4 Candida parapsilosis. Our finding revealed that 23.75% of healthy population has a potential pathogen in its mouth. Surprisingly Candida albicans is not the predominant yeast, instead of others non-Candida species are the colonizers of the oral cavity in immunocompetent individuals. Oral cavity is colonized by potential pathogen yeast being Clavispora lusitaniae, Candida albicans, Pichia kudriavzevii and Candida parapsilosis.

The development of spaceborne coronagraphic technology is of paramount importance to the detection of habitable exoplanets in visible light. In space, coronagraphs are able to bypass the limitations imposed by the atmosphere to reach deeper contrasts and detect faint companions close to their host star. To effectively test this technology in a flight-like environment, a high-contrast imaging testbed must be designed for operation in a thermal vacuum (TVAC) chamber. A TVAC-compatible high-contrast imaging testbed is undergoing development at the University of Arizona inspired by a previous mission concept: The Coronagraphic Debris and Exoplanet Exploring Payload (CDEEP). The testbed currently operates at visible wavelengths and features a Boston Micromachines Kilo-C DM for wavefront control. Both a vector vortex coronagraph and a knife-edge Lyot coronagraph operating mode are under test. The optics will be mounted to a 1 x 2 meter pneumatically isolated optical bench designed to operate at 10^-8 torr and achieve raw contrasts of 10^-8 or better. The validation of our optical surface quality, alignment procedure, and first light results are presented. We also report on the status of the testbed's integration in the vaccum chamber., 14 pages, 9 figures

Fusarium es un hongo patógeno oportunista que ha adquirido relevancia médica en las últimas décadas ligado al aumento de poblaciones en riesgo de desarrollar enfermedades graves por este microorganismo. El tratamiento de infecciones por Fusarium spp. es actualmente un reto para la clínica debido a la alta resistencia que presentan ante los antifúngicos disponibles. El estudio de los mecanismos de resistencia asociados a las diferentes especies de Fusarium representa una gran área de oportunidad para la ciencia actual.

Bio-mediated techniques have the potential to be an eco-friendly and sustainable solution for engineering problems in the presence of unfavorable soil conditions. During the microbial induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) process, calcium carbonate is the byproduct of a series of biological and chemical reactions in the soil media. Although the shear response of MICP-treated sands with different calcium carbonate content has been extensively investigated, the behavior of this material subjected to varying stress paths with different levels of cementation and particle sizes is still unknown. In this study, the material behavior of MICP-treated sands under axisymmetric compression, radial extension, constant p', and constant q stress paths at moderate and heavy level of cementation is evaluated by conducting drained triaxial tests on specimens with relative density of about 40%. Shear wave velocity was measured during the course of treatment and shearing to monitor cementation and degradation processes. In addition, the effect of stress relaxation and compression after bio-treatment on shear response is evaluated. A previously proposed nonlinear failure envelope for MICP-treated sands is also verified by comparing the shear and normal stresses at failure with those predicted by the nonlinear failure envelope.

Documenting biotic interactions is pivotal for understanding ecosystem processes, and although there is a large amount of data in the scientific literature, it is overly dispersed in thousands of different sources with varying degrees of availability. Despite recent and partially successful efforts to integrate biotic interaction data at a global scale into single databases, those have mostly incorporated data for natural and conserved locations, while urban and densely populated areas remain largely under-sampled. Considering that filling these gaps is essential to make ecological inferences regarding human settlements and their adjacent surrounding environments, we employed Bogota D.C. (Colombia) as a suitable and biogeographically interesting location to extensively compile interaction data into a database by conducting an exhaustive revision of the scientific literature and documenting interactions during field work in several locations within the study area. Moreover, we also developed an online tool to visualize and explore this database in a graphical and interactive way as a large network, with the aim of facilitating both simple and complex inferences from the data and attracting the non-scientific public. The resulting database comprises 4342 unique interaction records, consisting of 1566 species across most of the major clades of the tree of life. Titled as Biotic Interaction Network of Bogota, the interaction record database is continuously updated as new studies and datasets are published, aiming to display a holistic and up-to-date representation of the ecosystem dynamics of Bogota, a nearly unprecedented approach carried out in an area that includes an urban environment.

This study aimed to assess the species distribution and antifungal susceptibility patterns of 200 strains of Aspergillus isolated from clinical specimens (n = 146) and soil samples (n = 54) in Mexico. ITS, β-tubulin, and calmodulin DNA sequencing was performed for species identification. Broth microdilution susceptibility testing for amphotericin B, voriconazole, posaconazole, itraconazole, isavuconazole, anidulafungin, caspofungin, and micafungin was done according to CLSI for all strains. A. fumigatus was most frequently recovered from clinical specimens, while A. niger was commonly encountered in soil, both followed by A. flavus in the second place. A total of 60 (30%) cryptic species were identified, with A. tubingensis and A. tamarii being the most commonly found. The decreased susceptibility to amphotericin B and azoles was 32% for both, and were mainly led by A. fumigatus, whereas this percentage decreased to 9% for caspofungin, particularly in A. terreus. More than 75% of cryptic species were susceptible in vitro to all antifungals. Multi-azole decreased susceptibility was detected only in seven isolates. Given that antifungal resistance in Aspergillus spp. is an increasing worldwide threat that causes major challenges in the clinical management of aspergillosis, these data highlight the need for continuous epidemiological surveillance of these pathogens for the implementation of locally adequate treatment strategies. Lay summary This is an epidemiological study in Mexico. A. fumigatus was most frequent in clinical specimens and A. niger in soil samples. A. tubingensis and A. tamarii were the most common cryptic species. Resistance to amphotericin B and azoles was 32% each, and 9% for caspofungin.

Given an (optimal) dynamic treatment rule, it may be of interest to evaluate that rule – that is, to ask the causal question: what is the expected outcome had every subject received treatment according to that rule? In this paper, we study the performance of estimators that approximate the true value of: (1) an a priori known dynamic treatment rule (2) the true, unknown optimal dynamic treatment rule (ODTR); (3) an estimated ODTR, a so-called “data-adaptive parameter,” whose true value depends on the sample. Using simulations of point-treatment data, we specifically investigate: (1) the impact of increasingly data-adaptive estimation of nuisance parameters and/or of the ODTR on performance; (2) the potential for improved efficiency and bias reduction through the use of semiparametric efficient estimators; and, (3) the importance of sample splitting based on the cross-validated targeted maximum likelihood estimator (CV-TMLE) for accurate inference. In the simulations considered, there was very little cost and many benefits to using CV-TMLE to estimate the value of the true and estimated ODTR; importantly, and in contrast to non cross-validated estimators, the performance of CV-TMLE was maintained even when highly data-adaptive algorithms were used to estimate both nuisance parameters and the ODTR. In addition, we apply these estimators for the value of the rule to the “Interventions” study, an ongoing randomized controlled trial, to identify whether assigning cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) to criminal justice-involved adults with mental illness using an ODTR significantly reduces the probability of recidivism, compared to assigning CBT in a non-individualized way.

Objective. The goal of this study was to use Monte Carlo (MC) simulations and measurements to investigate the dosimetric suitability of an interventional radiology (IR) c-arm fluoroscope to deliver low-dose radiotherapy to the lungs. Approach. A previously-validated MC model of an IR fluoroscope was used to calculate the dose distributions in a COVID-19-infected patient, 20 non-infected patients of varying sizes, and a postmortem subject. Dose distributions for PA, AP/PA, 3-field and 4-field treatments irradiating 95% of the lungs to a 0.5 Gy dose were calculated. An algorithm was created to calculate skin entrance dose as a function of patient thickness for treatment planning purposes. Treatments were experimentally validated in a postmortem subject by using implanted dosimeters to capture organ doses. Main results. Mean doses to the left/right lungs for the COVID-19 CT data were 1.2/1.3 Gy, 0.8/0.9 Gy, 0.8/0.8 Gy and 0.6/0.6 Gy for the PA, AP/PA, 3-field, and 4-field configurations, respectively. Skin dose toxicity was the highest probability for the PA and lowest for the 4-field configuration. Dose to the heart slightly exceeded the ICRP tolerance; all other organ doses were below published tolerances. The AP/PA configuration provided the best fit for entrance skin dose as a function of patient thickness (R2 = 0.8). The average dose difference between simulation and measurement in the postmortem subject was 5%. Significance. An IR fluoroscope should be capable of delivering low-dose radiotherapy to the lungs with tolerable collateral dose to nearby organs.

Personalized intervention strategies, in particular those that modify treatment based on a participant's own response, are a core component of precision medicine approaches. Sequential multiple assignment randomized trials (SMARTs) are growing in popularity and are specifically designed to facilitate the evaluation of sequential adaptive strategies, in particular those embedded within the SMART. Advances in efficient estimation approaches that are able to incorporate machine learning while retaining valid inference can allow for more precise estimates of the effectiveness of these embedded regimes. However, to the best of our knowledge, such approaches have not yet been applied as the primary analysis in SMART trials. In this paper, we present a robust and efficient approach using targeted maximum likelihood estimation (TMLE) for estimating and contrasting expected outcomes under the dynamic regimes embedded in a SMART, together with generating simultaneous confidence intervals for the resulting estimates. We contrast this method with two alternatives (G-computation and inverse probability weighting estimators). The precision gains and robust inference achievable through the use of TMLE to evaluate the effects of embedded regimes are illustrated using both outcome-blind simulations and a real-data analysis from the Adaptive Strategies for Preventing and Treating Lapses of Retention in Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Care (ADAPT-R) trial (NCT02338739), a SMART with a primary aim of identifying strategies to improve retention in HIV care among people living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa.

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the clinical and radiographic outcomes of the number of microthreads on marginal bone over 5 years. Thirty-two implants were placed in 32 patients with partially edentulous maxillae or mandibles. Two implants with the same characteristics were placed: the first one had a 1 mm crest module and 3 microthreads (Q); and the second one had a 3 mm crest module and nine microthreads (S). The prosthesis was inserted 3 months after implant placement. Clinical and radiographic examinations were performed at the one-week, one-month, and three-month follow-up visits and then every six months until a five-year follow-up period was completed. After 5 years of follow-up, five patients withdrew from the study. Complete data were available for 27 implants, with a 100% implant survival rate. No cases of peri-implantitis were diagnosed. The average bone loss was 0.65 mm (C.I. 0.21–1.09) for Q implants and 0.86 mm (C.I. 0.39–1.33) for S implants, with no statistically significant difference. The bone level does not vary between implants with three and nine microthreads or with a 1 mm and 3 mm crest module. No differences in clinical parameters were found.

During large earthquake events where bending moments within soil cements are induced, the tensile strength of cemented soil may govern the deformational behavior of improved ground. Several studies have been conducted to assess the tensile strength of artificially cemented sands that use Portland cement or gypsum; however, the tensile strength of microbially induced carbonate precipitation (MICP)-treated sands with various particle sizes measured through direct tension tests has not been evaluated. MICP is a biomediated improvement technique that binds soil particles through carbonate precipitation. In this study, the tensile strength of nine specimens were measured by conducting direct tension tests. Three types of sand (coarse, medium, and fine) were cemented to reach a heavy level of cementation (e.g., shear wave velocity of ∼900 m/s or higher). The results show that the tensile strength varies between 210 and 710 kPa depending on sand type and mass of carbonate. Unconfined compressive strength (UCS) tests were performed for each sand type to assess the ratio between tensile strength and UCS in MICP-treated sands. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images and surface energy measurements were used to determine the predominant failure mode at particle contacts under tensile loading condition.

BACKGROUND: Ultrasound is indispensable to gestational age estimation and thus to quality obstetrical care, yet high equipment cost and the need for trained sonographers limit its use in low-resource settings. METHODS: From September 2018 through June 2021, we recruited 4695 pregnant volunteers in North Carolina and Zambia and obtained blind ultrasound sweeps (cineloop videos) of the gravid abdomen alongside standard fetal biometry. We trained a neural network to estimate gestational age from the sweeps and, in three test data sets, assessed the performance of the artificial intelligence (AI) model and biometry against previously established gestational age. RESULTS: In our main test set, the mean absolute error (MAE) (±SE) was 3.9±0.12 days for the model versus 4.7±0.15 days for biometry (difference, −0.8 days; 95% confidence interval [CI], −1.1 to −0.5; P

We provide a partial test of the mitonuclear sex hypothesis with the first controlled study of how male frequencies and rates of outcrossing evolve in response to mitonuclear mismatch by allowing replicate lineages of C. elegans nematodes containing either mitochondrial or nuclear mutations of electron transport chain (ETC) genes to evolve under three sexual systems: facultatively outcrossing (wildtype), obligately selfing, and obligately outcrossing. Among facultatively outcrossing lines, we found evolution of increased male frequency in at least one replicate line of all four ETC mutant backgrounds tested—nuclear isp-1, mitochondrial cox-1 and ctb-1, and an isp-1 IV; ctb-1M mitonuclear double mutant—and confirmed for a single line set (cox-1) that increased male frequency also resulted in successful outcrossing. We previously found the same result for lines evolved from another nuclear ETC mutant, gas-1. For several lines in the current experiment, however, male frequency declined to wildtype levels (near 0%) in later generations. Male frequency did not change in lines evolved from a wildtype control strain. Additional phenotypic assays of lines evolved from the mitochondrial cox-1 mutant indicated that evolution of high male frequency was accompanied by evolution of increased male sperm size and mating success with tester females, but that it did not translate into increased mating success with coevolved hermaphrodites. Rather, hermaphrodites’ self-crossed reproductive fitness increased, consistent with sexually antagonistic coevolution. In accordance with evolutionary theory, males and sexual outcrossing may be most beneficial to populations evolving from a state of low ancestral fitness (gas-1, as previously reported) and less beneficial or deleterious to those evolving from a state of higher ancestral fitness (cox-1). In support of this idea, the obligately outcrossing fog-2 V; cox-1 M lines exhibited no fitness evolution compared to their ancestor, while facultatively outcrossing lines showed slight upward evolution of fitness, and all but one of the obligately selfing xol-1 X; cox-1 M lines evolved substantially increased fitness—even beyond wildtype levels. This work provides a foundation to directly test the effect of reproductive mode on the evolutionary dynamics of mitonuclear genomes, as well as whether compensatory mutations (nuclear or mitochondrial) can rescue populations from mitochondrial dysfunction.

El aprendizaje de habilidades de la teoría de la mente (ToM) se considera fundamental para garantizar un buen desempeño adaptativo en el contexto social dado que permite a las personas atribuir estados mentales a sí mismas y a otras, y así poder predecir el comportamiento de los demás. El objetivo del presente estudio consistió en analizar el desempeño en las tareas de ToM y en la comprensión de verbos mentalistas contextualizados en historias en niños con desarrollo normativo. Se utilizó una muestra de 41 niños con edades comprendidas entre 3 y 5 años con una metodología descriptiva. Los resultados muestran que el nivel 3 de ToM fue el que obtuvo menores niveles de logro. En relación con la prueba que evaluaba la comprensión de verbos mentalistas, los resultados más bajos se obtuvieron en aquella que hacía referencia al verbo saber. Los resultados encontrados sugieren que se aprenden primero verbos mentales referidos a deseos antes que a creencias, así como que los niveles de información defendidos por el modelo de ToM de Howlin et al. (1999) no parecerían estar secuenciados en niveles de complejidad. Agencia Nacional de Investigación e Innovación

Tissue biotypes are related to the results of periodontal therapy, conventional prosthodontics, implant therapy and root covering procedures. We conducted a systematic review (SR) of the literature about the relationship between the gingival biotype and the results of root covering surgical procedures.A PICO question was defined. Two independent reviewers conducted electronic and manual literature searches, which covered studies up to August 31, 2020, in the National Library of Medicine (PubMed MEDLINE), EBSCO, Science Direct and Cochrane. The inclusion criteria were all root covering procedures in individuals with different gingival biotypes. The final result of the different surgical techniques was evaluated by the Root Coverage Esthetic Score (RES). The Methodological Index for the identification of biases for Non-Randomized Studies was applied.Only four articles fulfilled the inclusion criteria. These studies adequately reported the percentage of root coverage after surgery, and two recorded the entire RES index. Complete root coverage was achieved in a range between 70 - 86.12% in patients with thin biotype and between 77.8 - 96% in patients with a thick biotype. The aesthetic results were not compromised by the initial classification of the biotype. The treatments used were subepithelial connective tissue graft with coronally displaced flap or its modification. No significant differences were found.When the gingival biotypes are analyzed as independent variables, none of the root coverage procedures are affected by the classification of the gingival biotype.

Resumen Desde la Teoría de los Marcos Relacionales, la toma de perspectiva se concibe como un patrón de responder relacional arbitrariamente aplicable bajo control de claves contextuales deícticas personales, espaciales y temporales. Además, se asume necesaria la capacidad para responder relacionalmente bajo el control de claves contextuales condicionales. Sin embargo, no se ha reportado evidencia empírica que permita identificar la relación existente entre los marcos de condicionalidad y la precisión en el responder relacional deíctico. El objetivo del estudio fue analizar si el entrenamiento en marco de condicionalidad podría facilitar el desempeño sobre el responder deíctico. Participaron cuatro niños con desarrollo normalizado que fueron divididos en dos condiciones experimentales (C1 y C2). Los participantes de ambas condiciones se expusieron a un protocolo de evaluación y entrenamiento en marcos deícticos. A su vez, solo los participantes de la C2 se expusieron a una fase de evaluación y entrenamiento en marcos de condicionalidad previo al entrenamiento en marcos deícticos. Los resultados mostraron que todos los participantes exhibieron mejoras en sus ejecuciones post-test en las relaciones deícticas y que los participantes de C2 obtuvieron mejores resultados con respecto a su pre-test en los niveles de mayor complejidad deíctica tras el entrenamiento en marcos condicionales. Se discute la necesidad de protocolos de toma de perspectiva más naturalistas que posibiliten indagar en cómo se desarrollan los términos relacionales y se abstrae la función de las claves contextuales que permiten interpretar, atribuir y predecir el comportamiento de otro. Abstract According to Relational Frame Theory, perspective taking is conceived as an arbitrarily applicable relational pattern of relational responding under the control of personal, spatial, and temporal deictic contextual cues. Furthermore, the ability to respond relationally under the control of conditional contextual cues is assumed to be necessary. However, no empirical evidence has been reported to identify the relationship between conditionality frames and accuracy in deictic relational responding. The study aimed to analyze whether training in conditionality frames could facilitate performance on deictic responding. Four children with normalized development participated and were divided into two experimental conditions (C1 and C2). Participants in both conditions were exposed to an evaluation protocol and training on deictic frames. In turn, only C2 participants were exposed to an evaluation and training phase in conditionality frames before the training in deictic frames. Results showed that all the participants exhibited improvements in their post-test performances on deictic relations and that the C2 participants performed better with respect to their pre-test on the levels of greater deictic complexity after training in conditional frames. We discuss the need for more naturalistic perspective-taking protocols that allow us to investigate how relational terms are developed and abstract the role of contextual cues that allow us to interpret, attribute, and predict another’s behavior.

[EN] Water diversion and pollution are two pervasive stressors in river ecosystems that often co-occur. Individual effects of both stressors on basal resources available to stream communities have been described, with diversion reducing detritus standing stocks and pollution increasing biomass of primary producers. However, interactive effects of both stressors on the structure and trophic basis of food webs remain unknown. We hypothesized that the interaction between both stressors increases the contribution of the green pathway in stream food webs. Given the key role of the high-quality, but less abundant, primary producers, we also hypothesized an increase in food web complexity with larger trophic diversity in the presence of water diversion and pollution. To test these hypotheses, we selected four rivers in a range of pollution subject to similar water diversion schemes, and we compared food webs upstream and downstream of the diversion. We characterized food webs by means of stable isotope analysis. Both stressors directly changed the availability of basal resources, with water diversion affecting the brown food web by decreasing detritus stocks, and pollution enhancing the green food web by promoting biofilm production. The propagation of the effects at the base of the food web to higher trophic levels differed between stressors. Water diversion had little effect on the structure of food webs, but pollution increased food chain length and trophic diversity, and reduced trophic redundancy. The effects at higher trophic levels were exacerbated when combining both stressors, as the relative contribution of biofilm to the stock of basal resources increased even further. Overall, we conclude that moderate pollution increases food web complexity and that the interaction with water abstraction seems to amplify this effect. Our study shows the importance of assessing the interaction between stressors to create predictive tools for a proper management of ecosystems. Ministerio de Economia, Industria y Competitividad, Gobierno de Espana, Grant/Award Number: GL2016-77487-R; European Social Fund; Diputacion Foral de Bizkaia; Serra Hunter Fellow; Labex, Grant/Award Number: ANR-10-LABX-41; H2020 European Research Council; Eusko Jaurlaritza; Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas; FRAGCLIM Consolidator, Grant/Award Number: 726176

Larger geographical areas contain more species—an observation raised to a law in ecology. Less explored is whether biodiversity changes are accompanied by a modification of interaction networks. We use data from 32 spatial interaction networks from different ecosystems to analyse how network structure changes with area. We find that basic community structure descriptors (number of species, links and links per species) increase with area following a power law. Yet, the distribution of links per species varies little with area, indicating that the fundamental organization of interactions within networks is conserved. Our null model analyses suggest that the spatial scaling of network structure is determined by factors beyond species richness and the number of links. We demonstrate that biodiversity–area relationships can be extended from species counts to higher levels of network complexity. Therefore, the consequences of anthropogenic habitat destruction may extend from species loss to wider simplification of natural communities., This work was supported by the TULIP Laboratory of Excellence (ANR-10-LABX-41 and 394 ANR-11-IDEX-002-02) to J.M.M., by a Region Midi-Pyrenees project (CNRS 121090) to J.M.M., and by the FRAGCLIM Consolidator Grant (726176) to J.M.M. from the European Research Council under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program. The study was also supported by Spanish MICINN projects CGL2009-12646, CSD2008-0040 and CGL2013-41856 to J.B. and A.R. C.E. was funded through the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP 2015/15172-7). V.A.G.B. was funded by National Funds through FCT—Foundation for Science and Technology under the Project UIDB/05183/2020. W.T. received funding from the ERA-Net BiodivERsA—Belmont Forum, with the national funder Agence National pour la Recherche (FutureWeb: ANR-18-EBI4–0009 and BearConnect: ANR-16-EBI3-0003).

Background: Serratia marcescens is an enteric bacterium with increasing incidence in clinical settings, attributed mainly to the opportune expression of diverse virulence determinants plus a wide i...

Microbial-induced calcium carbonate precipitation (MICP) is a sustainable soil improvement method with the potential for improving the engineering properties of sand and silty soils and therefore their resistance to liquefaction-inducing events. Work presented herein experimentally investigates the changes in hydraulic conductivity of fine sands and silty sands as a result of MICP treatment. In addition, numerical modeling is conducted to assess the changes in allowable injection rate and radius of influence for the delivery of the MICP process at the field scale. The hydraulic conductivity of Nevada sand and silty sand with 15% fines content decreased through MICP application with the trend of reduction being similar for both soils. Numerical modeling results show that with the progress of the MICP process, injection rates can be increased for Nevada sand, but remain unchanged for Nevada sand with 15% silt content (after MICP treatment up to a shear wave velocity about 400 m/s.) The presence of fines by itself leads to generation of higher levels of pore-water pressure during the injection process, which necessitates higher strength improvement to prevent development of excessive plastic strains. Therefore, improvement in shear strength and stiffness relative to the magnitude of the hydraulic conductivity level and its rate of change during the MICP process is a key parameter in determining the radius of treatment.

Background: The objective of this study was to assess disposal patterns for “sharps” among a cohort of patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) receiving insulin therapy. Method: A convenience sample of inpatients and outpatients was surveyed about how they disposed of sharps, how often they reused lancets and needles, and what education they had received about proper disposal. Safe disposal was defined as discarding sharps into a formal sharps or sealable container; otherwise, disposal was categorized as unsafe. Results: Of 150 respondents, 56% were men and 75% were white. The mean (SD) age was 56 (15) years; duration of DM, 20 (13) years; and hemoglobin A1c, 8.1% (2.0%). Half the respondents reused a lancet two or more times, and 21% reused an insulin needle two or more times. Thirty-eight percent of respondents discarded lancets unsafely, and 33% discarded insulin needles unsafely, typically by throwing these items into household trash. Most respondents (75%) discarded insulin pens, vials, cartridges, insulin pump supplies, and continuous glucose monitor sensors into household trash. Most (64%) indicated that they had not received education on safe sharps-disposal practices, and 84% had never visited their municipal website for information on medical waste disposal. Conclusion: Approximately one-third of patients unsafely disposed of sharps. Unsafe disposal could cause millions of sharps to appear in the municipal solid waste stream, thereby posing a substantial public health hazard. Point-of-care patient education is important, but a broader public health campaign may be required.

Candida albicans is a commensal fungus of the skin and mucous membranes in humans, but it is also responsible for mucocutaneous and systemic infections in immunocompromised patients like low birth weight neonates and premature newborns. The epicutaneous application of C. albicans is widely used to study the immune response against this pathogen in adult mice models. However, the immune response of newborns against infections caused by the genus Candida is poorly understood. In order to mimic premature human infection, we developed a model of C. albicans epicutaneous infection in newborn mice. We found that yeasts were able to colonize while the pseudohyphae invaded the epidermis. Recruitment of polymorphonuclear and mononuclear cells at the infection zone was observed. Fungal invasion, fungal burden and cellular infiltration displayed a time- and dose-dependent response. Interestingly, newborn mice were able to control C. albicans primary infection. Finally, we showed that the epicutaneous infection of C. albicans in newborn mice at birth results in the induction of cell-mediated immunity as evinced by delayed-type hypersensitivity assays.

The Relational Frame Theory (RFT) approach to language and cognition allows for the laying down of theoretical foundations for a new way of addressing research on perspective taking. RFT perspective-taking protocol has been put into practice in several studies. However, some studies have demonstrated the need to modify said protocol in order to address the skills that have traditionally been studied from a cognitive approach. This study aims to develop a new functional perspective-taking protocol that answers the limitations found in previous studies. Furthermore, we analyse the impact of this training protocol on traditional Theory of Mind tasks in individuals with intellectual disabilities. The results indicate that all the participants experienced an improvement in their Theory of Mind skills.

Spoilage in cooked ham is one of the main challenges where microbial contamination can play a fundamental role. This study aimed to characterize pork-cooked ham's microbial community changes among different food production conditions (formulation and processing) using 16S rRNA sequencing and also to investigate the spoilage bacteria in order to elucidate their contamination route. Samples of three pork-cooked ham references with and without post-pasteurization treatment and in contact with the slicing-packaging conveyor belt and slicer and packager surfaces were performed by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. In order to clarify the contamination route, surfaces were sampled by conventional microbiological methods. Results showed that

Multi-conjugate adaptive optics (MCAO) uses two or more deformable mirrors (DMs) at conjugate altitudes approximately matched to the atmospheric turbulence layers to increase the corrected field of view. An important unresolved problem for MCAO is determining the optimal sequence of the DMs. Theoretical considerations and numerical studies suggest that ordering the DMs from lowest to highest altitude reduces the effects of scintillation, whereas on-sky experiments report that the best performance is attained with the ground-layer DM placed last. Using analytical calculations and numerical experiments with Fresnel propagation of Kolmogorov turbulence, we demonstrate that the scintillation results from spatial frequencies higher than the spatial sampling of high-altitude DMs are able to correct. Hence, the effect of scintillation is not impacted by MCAO correction regardless of the sequence of the DMs. Using end-to-end numerical simulations, we find that the dynamic misregistration between the DMs and the wavefront sensors is minimized by placing the ground-layer DM last, leading to increased loop stability and lower wavefront errors. Contrary to conventional wisdom, we recommend that the DMs be sequenced from highest to lowest altitude.