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Leah L Zullig,1,2 Valerie A Smith,1,2 Jennifer H Lindquist,1 Christina D Williams,3,4 Morris Weinberger,1,5 Dawn Provenzale,1,4 George L Jackson,1,2 Michael J Kelley,6–8 Susanne Danus,1 Hayden B Bosworth1,2,91Center for Health Services Research in Primary Care, Durham Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Durham, NC, USA; 2Department of Population Health Sciences, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA; 3Division of Medical Oncology, Department of Medicine, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA; 4Cooperative Studies Program Epidemiology Center, Durham, NC, USA; 5Department of Health Policy and Management, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA; 6Office of Specialty Care Services, Department of Veterans Affairs, Washington, DC, USA; 7Hematology-Oncology Service, Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA; 8Department of Medicine, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA; 9Departments of Psychiatry and School of Nursing, Duke University, Durham, NC, USAPurpose: The growing number of colorectal cancer (CRC) survivors often have multiple chronic conditions. Comparing nonmetastatic CRC survivors and matched noncancer controls, our objectives were to determine the odds of CRC survivors being diagnosed with cardiovascular disease (CVD)-related chronic conditions and their likelihood of control during the year after CRC diagnosis.Patients and methods: We retrospectively identified patients diagnosed with nonmetastatic CRC in the Veterans Affairs health care system from fiscal years 2009 to 2012 and matched each with up to 3 noncancer control patients. We used logistic regression to assess differences in the likelihood of being diagnosed with CVD-related chronic conditions and control between nonmetastatic CRC survivors and noncancer controls.Results: We identified 9,758 nonmetastatic CRC patients and matched them to 29,066 noncancer controls. At baseline, 69.4% of CRC survivors and their matched controls were diagnosed with hypertension, 52.4% with hyperlipidemia, and 36.7% with diabetes. Compared to matched noncancer controls, CRC survivors had 57% higher odds of being diagnosed with hypertension (OR=1.57, 95% CI=1.49–1.64) and 7% higher odds of controlled blood pressure (OR=1.07, 95% CI 1.02, 1.13) in the subsequent year. Compared to matched noncancer control patients, CRC survivors had half the odds of being diagnosed with hyperlipidemia (OR=0.50, 95% CI=0.48–0.52) and lower odds of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) control (OR 0.88, 95% CI 0.81–0.94). There were no significant differences between groups for diabetes diagnoses or control.Conclusion: Compared to noncancer controls, nonmetastatic CRC survivors have 1) greater likelihood of being diagnosed with hypertension and worse blood pressure control in the year following diagnosis; 2) lower likelihood of being diagnosed with hyperlipidemia or LDL control; and 3) comparable diabetes diagnoses and control. There may be a need for hypertension control interventions targeting cancer survivors.Keywords: Veterans Affairs, colorectal neoplasms, cancer survivors, cardiovascular disease, comorbidity, chronic disease management

Leah L Zullig,1,2 Christina D Williams,3,4 Alice G Fortune-Britt1,51Center for Health Services Research and Development in Primary Care, Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 2Department of Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, 3Medical Service, Division of Hematology-Oncology, Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 4Department of Medicine, Division of Medical Oncology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, 5Department of Health Policy and Management, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USAAbstract: Lung cancer (LC) and colorectal cancer (CRC) are the second- and third-most commonly diagnosed cancers in the Veterans Affairs (VA) health care system. While many studies have evaluated the treatment quality and outcomes of various aspects of VA LC and CRC care, there are no known reviews synthesizing this information across studies. The purpose of this literature review was to describe LC and CRC treatment (ie, surgical and nonsurgical) and outcomes (eg, mortality, psychosocial, and other) in the VA health care system as reported in the existing peer-reviewed scientific literature. We identified potential articles through a search of published literature using the PubMed electronic database. Our search strategy identified articles containing Medical Subject Headings terms and keywords addressing veterans or veterans' health and LC and/or CRC. We limited articles to those published in the previous 11 years (January 1, 2003 through December 31, 2013). A total of 230 articles were retrieved through the search. After applying the selection criteria, we included 74 studies (34 LC, 47 CRC, and seven both LC and CRC). VA provides a full array of treatments, often with better outcomes than other health care systems. More work is needed to assess patient-reported outcomes.Keywords: colorectal neoplasms, health services research, lung neoplasms, outcome assessment (health care), review, United States Department of Veterans Affairs

Leah L Zullig,1,2 William R Carpenter,2 Dawn T Provenzale,1,3 Morris Weinberger,1,2 Bryce B Reeve,2 Christina D Williams,1 George L Jackson1,4 1Center of Excellence for Health Services Research in Primary Care, Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA; 2Department of Health Policy and Management, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA; 3Division of Gastroenterology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA; 4Division of General Internal Medicine, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA Background: Non-small cell lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related mortality in the United States. Patients with late-stage disease (stage 3/4) have five-year survival rates of 2%–15%. Care quality may be measured as time to receiving recommended care and, ultimately, survival. This study examined the association between race and receipt of timely non-small cell lung cancer care and survival among Veterans Affairs health care system patients. Methods: Data were from the External Peer Review Program, a nationwide Veterans Affairs quality-monitoring program. We included Caucasian or African American patients with pathologically confirmed late-stage non-small cell lung cancer in 2006 and 2007. We examined three quality measures: time from diagnosis to (1) treatment initiation, (2) palliative care or hospice referral, and (3) death. Unadjusted analyses used log-rank and Wilcoxon tests. Adjusted analyses used Cox proportional hazard models. Results: After controlling for patient and disease characteristics using Cox regression, there were no racial differences in time to initiation of treatment (72 days for African American versus 65 days for Caucasian patients, hazard ratio 1.04, P = 0.80) or palliative care or hospice referral (129 days versus 116 days, hazard ratio 1.10, P = 0.34). However, the adjusted model found longer survival for African American patients than for Caucasian patients (133 days versus 117 days, hazard ratio 0.31, P < 0.01). Conclusion: For process measures of care quality (eg, time to initiation of treatment and referral to supportive care) the Veterans Affairs health care system provides racially equitable care. The small racial difference in survival time of approximately 2 weeks is not clinically meaningful. Future work should validate this possible trend prospectively, with longer periods of follow-up, in other veteran groups. Keywords: non-small cell lung carcinoma, Veterans Affairs, quality of health care

OBJECTIVE: The sequence and progression of alcohol related life events were investigated in a sample of African Americans and compared with findings from a predominantly Caucasian sample. METHODS: Alcohol dependent participants were recruited from treatment facilities. Participants completed the Semi-Structured Assessment for the Genetics of Alcoholism to assess the physical, psychological and social manifestations of alcoholism and related disorders. RESULTS: The sequence and mean age of appearance of alcohol-related life events were similar for this sample of African-American men and women. While there were similarities in the progression of alcohol related life problems between the African American and the Caucasian samples, the frequency of symptom endorsement for most problems was significantly higher in the Caucasian sample. CONCLUSIONS: Identifying ethnic differences in the clinical course of alcohol dependence may be of importance in developing treatment plans and assist in the development of culturally sensitive intervention and prevention programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE:: Examination of the relationship of impairment to disability in the work psychiatry context and identification of practical strategies for occupational physicians to apply to screening, management, and appropriate referral. METHODS:: Medical literature review. RESULTS:: The determination and differentiation of impairment and disability is a complex psychiatric task which requires consideration of the type of employment, assessment of depression-related functional impairments that can create disability for a particular occupation, and individual factors. CONCLUSIONS:: The authors propose a new and more consistent strategy for identifying impairment severity and its impact on employment, including simple procedures to screen for depression and guidelines to minimize role and boundary confusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Perceived discrimination may contribute to somatic disease. The association between perceived discrimination and breast cancer incidence was assessed in the Black Women's Health Study. In 1997, participants completed questions on perceived discrimination in two domains: 'everyday' discrimination (e.g., being treated as dishonest) and major experiences of unfair treatment due to race (job, housing, and police). Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate incidence rate ratios, controlling for breast cancer risk factors. From 1997 to 2003, 593 incident cases of breast cancer were ascertained. In the total sample, there were weak positive associations between cancer incidence and everyday and major discrimination. These associations were stronger among the younger women. Among women aged less than 50 years, those who reported frequent everyday discrimination were at higher risk than were women who reported infrequent experiences. In addition, the incidence rate ratio was 1.32 (95% confidence interval: 1.03, 1.70) for those who reported discrimination on the job and 1.48 (95% confidence interval: 1.01, 2.16) for those who reported discrimination in all three situations-housing, job, and police-relative to those who reported none. These findings suggest that perceived experiences of racism are associated with increased incidence of breast cancer among US Black women, particularly younger women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is to propose design changes to a food scoop commonly used in the food service industry. A review of literature concerning the design of hand tools is used to justify modifications to the existing design. Changes to the handle and shape of the tool are discussed. Implications of the newly designed food scoop, both for future research and the workplace are reviewed. The conclusion of this article is that the proposed food scoop should have a 40-millimeter diameter, foam rubber handle and should have a lift angle of 35 degrees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study was conducted in the homes of middle school children (average age = 12.7 years, SD = 0.52 years) to determine if an educational intervention would increase both the children's and their parents' knowledge of ergonomically correct setup of a computer workstation and computer use. Six children and their parents (n = 6) participated in this study. The study consisted of two data collection sessions over a two-week period. Results suggest a significant (p < 0.05) increase in knowledge of computer use and workstation setup for both parents and children, however, no significant changes in posture were noted between sessions. It was concluded that education is an effective method to increase knowledge of ergonomics in both middle school children and their parents but more research is indicated to understand the linkage between ergonomic understanding and durable accomodations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: We have investigated a novel nonmyeloablative conditioning regimen in 44 patients with hematological malignancies. The median patient age was 41 years. Many of the patients had high-risk features, including 19 patients with a previous failed transplant. Methods: Recipient conditioning consisted of CAMPATH-1H 20 mg/day on Days -8 to -4, fludarabine 30 mg/m[sup 2] on Days -7 to -3 and melphalan 140 mg/m[sup 2] on Day -2. Thirty-six recipients received unmanipulated G-CSF mobilized PBSC from HLA identical siblings and eight received unmanipulated BM from MUD. GvHD prophylaxis was with CYA alone for 38 patients and CYA plus MTX for six sibling recipients. Results: Forty-two of the 43 evaluable patients had sustained engraftment. Results of chimerism analysis using microsatellite PCR indicate that 18 of 31 patients studied were full donor chimeras, while the other patients were mixed chimeras in one or more lineages. At a median follow-up of 9 months (range, 3–29 months) 33 patients remain alive in CR, or with no evidence of disease progression. Seven patients relapsed or progressed post-transplant and four of them subsequently died. Four patients died from regimen-related complications. There were no cases of Grades III–IV acute GvHD. Only two patients developed Grade II acute GvHD and only one had chronic GvHD. The estimated probability of non-relapse mortality at 1 year was 11%. Results: Although longer follow-up is needed to establish the long-term remission rates, this study demonstrates that this nonmyeloablative preparative regimen is associated with durable engraftment, minimal toxicity and low incidence of GvHD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To determine the prevalence, age of onset, and motivational readiness to change multiple risk behaviors among juvenile offenders. Methods: One hundred eighty male adolescents were interviewed in a short-term detention center. Results:Nearly 60% of the sample reported engaging in all 5 target behaviors. Earliest risk of onset was for alcohol drinking, followed closely by marijuana use, sexual initiation, and cigarette smoking. With the exception of condom use with other partners, less than 20% of the sample were ready to change their multiple risk behaviors. Conclusion: To be effective, interventions need to be developed that target multiple risk behaviors simultaneously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hematometra is usually the result of developmental anomalies or may be secondary to cervical obstruction. Abnormal uterine contractile function (atony) would be an uncommon cause of hematometra. Case: An 18-year-old female with Cornelia De Lange syndrome and abdominal pain was found to have a hematometra on ultrasound examination. On pelvic examination, her cervical canal was patent and was easily dilated, but the hematometra did not drain until suprapubic pressure was applied. Two weeks postoperatively, pelvic magnetic resonance imaging showed a markedly thinned uterine myometrium and a recurrent hematometra, prompting the decision to perform a hysterectomy. Conclusion: Hematometra in a patient with Cornelia De Lange syndrome may be the result of abnormal uterine contractile function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acetaminophen (APAP) overdose is the predominant cause of acute liver failure in the United States. Toxicity begins with a reactive metabolite that binds to proteins. In rodents, this leads to mitochondrial dysfunction and nuclear DNA fragmentation, resulting in necrotic cell death. While APAP metabolism is similar in humans, the later events resulting in toxicity have not been investigated in patients. In this study, levels of biomarkers of mitochondrial damage (glutamate dehydrogenase [GDH] and mitochondrial DNA [mtDNA]) and nuclear DNA fragments were measured in plasma from APAP-overdose patients. Overdose patients with no or minimal hepatic injury who had normal liver function tests (LTs) (referred to herein as the normal LT group) and healthy volunteers served as controls. Peak GDH activity and mtDNA concentration were increased in plasma from patients with abnormal LT. Peak nuclear DNA fragmentation in the abnormal LT cohort was also increased over that of controls. Parallel studies in mice revealed that these plasma biomarkers correlated well with tissue injury. Caspase-3 activity and cleaved caspase-3 were not detectable in plasma from overdose patients or mice, but were elevated after TNF-induced apoptosis, indicating that APAP overdose does not cause apoptosis. Thus, our results suggest that mitochondrial damage and nuclear DNA fragmentation are likely to be critical events in APAP hepatotoxicity in humans, resulting in necrotic cell death. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Risk for colorectal cancer may accumulate through multiple environmental factors. Understanding their effects, along with genetics, age, and family history, could allow improvements in clinical decisions for screening protocols. We aimed to extend the previous work by recalibrating an environmental risk score (e-Score) for colorectal cancer among a sample of US veteran participants of the Million Veteran Program., Methods: Demographic, lifestyle, and colorectal cancer data from 2011 to 2022 were abstracted from survey responses and health records of 227,504 male Million Veteran Program participants. Weighting for each environmental factor's effect size was recalculated using Veterans Affairs training data to create a recalibrated e-Score. This recalibrated score was compared with the original weighted e-Score in a validation sample of 113,752 (n cases = 590). Nested multiple logistic regression models tested associations between quintiles for recalibrated and original e-Scores. Likelihood ratio tests were used to compare model performance., Results: Age (P < 0.0001), education (P < 0.0001), diabetes (P < 0.0001), physical activity (P < 0.0001), smoking (P < 0.0001), NSAID use (P < 0.0001), calcium (P = 0.015), folate (P = 0.020), and fruit consumption (P = 0.019) were significantly different between colorectal cancer case and control groups. In the validation sample, the recalibrated e-Score model significantly improved the base model performance (P < 0.001), but the original e-Score model did not (P = 0.07). The recalibrated e-Score model quintile 5 was associated with significantly higher odds for colorectal cancer compared with quintile 1 (Q5 vs. Q1: 1.79; 95% CI, 1.38-2.33)., Conclusions: Multiple environmental factors and the recalibrated e-Score quintiles were significantly associated with colorectal cancer cases., Impact: A recalibrated, veteran-specific e-Score could be used to help personalize colorectal cancer screening and prevention strategies., (©2024 The Authors; Published by the American Association for Cancer Research.)

The goal of therapeutic cancer vaccines and immune checkpoint therapy (ICT) is to promote T cells with anti-tumor capabilities. Here, we compared mutant neoantigen (neoAg) peptide-based vaccines with ICT in preclinical models. NeoAg vaccines induce the most robust expansion of proliferating and stem-like PD-1 + TCF-1 + neoAg-specific CD8 T cells in tumors. Anti-CTLA-4 and/or anti-PD-1 ICT promotes intratumoral TCF-1 - neoAg-specific CD8 T cells, although their phenotype depends in part on the specific ICT used. Anti-CTLA-4 also prompts substantial changes to CD4 T cells, including induction of ICOS + Bhlhe40 + T helper 1 (Th1)-like cells. Although neoAg vaccines or ICTs expand iNOS + macrophages, neoAg vaccines maintain CX3CR1 + CD206 + macrophages expressing the TREM2 receptor, unlike ICT, which suppresses them. TREM2 blockade enhances neoAg vaccine efficacy and is associated with fewer CX3CR1 + CD206 + macrophages and induction of neoAg-specific CD8 T cells. Our findings highlight different mechanisms underlying neoAg vaccines and different forms of ICT and identify combinatorial therapies to enhance neoAg vaccine efficacy., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests A.M.H. is currently employed by Lifecycle Biotechnologies, and her employment does not pose any direct conflict of interest with the research presented in this article. M.M.G. reports a personal honorarium of US $1,000.00 per year from Springer Nature Ltd (as an associate editor for Nature Precision Oncology) and served as a paid consultant for Merck. M. Colonna reports that they are a member of the scientific advisory board of Vigil Neuro and Cell Signaling Technology, received research grants from Vigil Neuro during the conduct of the study, and has a patent related to TREM2 modulation pending (PCT/US2021/019914). K.E.P. reports an advising relationship with Guardant Health that will result in advising fees., (Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The flow of water confined in nanosize capillaries is subject of intense research due to its relevance in the fabrication of nanofluidic devices and in the development of theories for fluid transport in porous media. Here, using molecular dynamics simulations carried out on 2D capillaries made up of graphite, hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) and a mix of the two, and of sizes from subnanometer to few nanometers, we investigate the relationship between the wettability of the wall capillary, the water diffusion, and its flow rate. We find that the water diffusion is decoupled from its flow properties as the former is not affected either by the height or chemistry of the capillary (except for the subnanometer slits), while the latter is dependent on both. The capillaries containing hBN show a reduced flow rate compared to those that are purely graphitic, likely due to the high friction coefficient between water and hBN. Such resistance to the flow is, however, at its maximum in the smallest capillary and lower for larger ones. Finally, we show that the flow rate values obtained from the Hagen-Poiseuille theory are almost always smaller than those obtained from simulations, indicating that either the slip length or the viscosity of nanoconfined water could be substantially different from the bulk values.

The current study tested a longitudinal mediation model throughout the COVID-19 pandemic focused on whether students' housing instability stress and food/financial instability stress at the beginning of the pandemic in spring 2020 (T1) informed sleep dissatisfaction and duration in fall 2020 (T2) and, in turn, physical and mental health in spring 2021 (T3). Further, we tested whether relations varied based on students' ethnic-racial backgrounds. Participants included 879 Asian, Black, Latine, Multiracial, and White emerging adult college students (Mage = 19.95, SD = 0.33) from a large public university in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States who attended college during the COVID-19 pandemic and completed surveys about their experiences. Findings indicated a significant mediation process, such that T1 housing instability stress predicted greater T2 sleep dissatisfaction and, in turn, less physical health, greater depressive symptoms, and greater anxiety symptoms at T3. Additionally, T1 food/financial instability stress was significantly associated with less T2 sleep duration but was not, in turn, associated with any T3 outcomes. Findings did not vary by students' ethnicity/race. Results highlight that sleep dissatisfaction is an important factor that accounts for relations between COVID-19 stressors predicting mental and physical health outcomes throughout the pandemic., (© 2024 The Authors. Stress and Health published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) respond well to initial treatment with the Bcell lymphoma 2 (BCL2) inhibitor venetoclax. Upon relapse, they often retain sensitivity to BCL2 targeting, but durability of response remains a concern. We hypothesize that targeting both BCL2 and B-cell lymphoma-extra large (BCLXL) will be a successful strategy to treat CLL, including for patients who relapse on venetoclax. To test this hypothesis, we conducted a pre-clinical investigation of LP-118, a highly potent inhibitor of BCL2 with moderate BCLXL inhibition to minimize platelet toxicity. This study demonstrated that LP-118 induces efficient BAK activation, cytochrome C release, and apoptosis in both venetoclax naïve and resistant CLL cells. Significantly, LP-118 is effective in cell lines expressing the BCL2 G101V mutation and in cells expressing BCLXL but lacking BCL2 dependence. Using an immunocompetent mouse model, Eμ-TCL1, LP-118 demonstrates low platelet toxicity, which hampered earlier BCLXL inhibitors. Finally, LP-118 in the RS4;11 and OSU-CLL xenograft models results in decreases in tumor burden and survival advantage, respectively. These results provide a mechanistic rationale for the evaluation of LP-118 for the treatment of venetoclax responsive and relapsed CLL.

Computational simulation methods based on machine learned potentials (MLPs) promise to revolutionise shape prediction of flexible molecules in solution, but their widespread adoption has been limited by the way in which training data is generated. Here, we present an approach which allows the key conformational degrees of freedom to be properly represented in reference molecular datasets. MLPs trained on these datasets using a global descriptor scheme are generalisable in conformational space, providing quantum chemical accuracy for all conformers. These MLPs are capable of propagating long, stable molecular dynamics trajectories, an attribute that has remained a challenge. We deploy the MLPs in obtaining converged conformational free energy surfaces for flexible molecules via well-tempered metadynamics simulations; this approach provides a hitherto inaccessible route to accurately computing the structural, dynamical and thermodynamical properties of a wide variety of flexible molecular systems. It is further demonstrated that MLPs must be trained on reference datasets with complete coverage of conformational space, including in barrier regions, to achieve stable molecular dynamics trajectories., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts to declare., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)

Introduction: The objectives of the current study were the following: (1) to explore multidimensional profiles of Latinx cultural orientation using Spanish language use, familismo, and ethnic-racial identity (ERI) affirmation among Latinx adolescents, (2) to test how Latinx cultural orientation profiles were associated with adolescents' internalizing symptoms (i.e., depressive symptoms and anxiety symptoms), and (3) to test whether associations between profiles and internalizing symptoms were moderated by adolescents' ethnic-racial discrimination experiences., Methods: The study was conducted among a sample of 204 Latinx adolescents (52.4% female; M age  = 14.35, SD age  = 1.75)., Results: Latent profile analysis indicated four profiles of Latinx cultural orientation: higher affirmation and lower Spanish (HALS), higher Spanish (HS), lower familismo and affirmation (LFA), and higher familismo/lower Spanish and affirmation (HFLSA). Latinx adolescents who reported lower levels on more than one Latinx cultural orientation dimension (e.g. LFA or HFSLA) also reported worse health when compared to adolescents who reported higher levels of more than one Latinx cultural orientation dimension (e.g., HSA). The associations between Latinx cultural orientation profiles and internalizing symptoms were not moderated by adolescents' ethnic-racial discrimination., Conclusion: Findings provide researchers and practitioners with an understanding of the various ways in which Latinx adolescents remain connected to their Latinx culture and implications for their outcomes., (© 2024 Foundation for Professionals in Services to Adolescents.)

Objectives: The present study examined whether teen mothers' adaptive cultural characteristics (i.e., familism values, language competency pressures, and involvement in Mexican culture and U.S. mainstream culture) when children were 3 years old (i.e., Wave 4; W4) informed mothers' Spanish language use with their children when children were 4 years old (W5) and, in turn, children's subsequent Spanish receptive vocabulary when children were 5 years old (W6)., Method: The present study included 204 Mexican-origin children (58% male) and their mothers who entered parenthood during adolescence ( M = 16.24, SD = .99 at W1)., Results: Five mediational processes were significant, such that mothers' higher familism values (i.e., emphasizing family support and obligations), Spanish competency pressure (i.e., stress associated with Spanish language competency), and involvement in U.S. mainstream culture at W4 were associated with mothers' lower Spanish language use with children at W5 and, in turn, children's lower levels of Spanish receptive vocabulary at W6. Mothers' greater involvement in Mexican culture and English competency pressure (i.e., stress associated with English language competency) at W4 were associated with mothers' greater Spanish language use with children at W5 and, in turn, children's greater Spanish receptive vocabulary at W6. Additionally, mothers' greater involvement in U.S. mainstream culture at W4 was directly associated with children's lower Spanish language abilities at W6., Conclusions: Findings highlight the importance of the family context in Mexican-origin children's Spanish language skills over time. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Objectives: The study examined the associations between familial cultural values of familismo (familism) and respeto (respect), parental monitoring, and Mexican adolescents' sexual behaviors., Method: The sample consisted of 1,024 Mexican adolescents (12-18 years) from two urban schools in Puebla, Mexico., Results: Findings indicated that respeto was associated with paternal and maternal monitoring, sexual responsibility, sexual intention, and sexual behavior. Further, through indirect effects, among males, respeto was associated with paternal monitoring, which was, in turn, associated with sexual intentions., Conclusions: Findings highlight the relevance of caregivers and cultural values in Mexican adolescents' sexual health. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Molecular simulations have become a key tool in molecular and materials design. Machine learning (ML)-based potential energy functions offer the prospect of simulating complex molecular systems efficiently at quantum chemical accuracy. In previous work, we have introduced the ML-based PairF-Net approach to neural network potentials, that adopts a pairwise interatomic scheme to predicting forces within a molecular system. Here, we further develop the PairF-Net model to intrinsically incorporate energy conservation and couple the model to a molecular mechanical (MM) environment within the OpenMM package. The updated PairF-Net model yields energy and force predictions and dynamical distributions in good agreement with the rMD17 dataset of ten small organic molecules in the gas-phase. We further show that these in vacuo ML models of small molecules can be applied to force predictions in aqueous solution via hybrid ML/MM simulations. We present a new benchmark dataset for these ten molecules in solution, obtained from QM/MM simulations, which we denote as rMD17-aq (https://zenodo.org/records/10048644); and assess the ability of PairF-Net to reproduce the molecular energy, atomic forces and dynamical distributions of these solution conformations via ML/MM simulations., (© 2024 The Authors. Journal of Computational Chemistry published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Introduction: Lung cancer survival is improving in the United States. We investigated whether there was a similar trend within the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), the largest integrated healthcare system in the United States., Materials and Methods: Data from the Veterans Affairs Central Cancer Registry were analyzed for temporal survival trends using Kaplan-Meier estimates and linear regression., Results: A total number of 54,922 Veterans were identified with lung cancer diagnosed from 2010 to 2017. Histologies were classified as non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) (64.2%), small cell lung cancer (SCLC) (12.9%), and 'other' (22.9%). The proportion with stage I increased from 18.1% to 30.4%, while stage IV decreased from 38.9% to 34.6% (both P < .001). The 3-year overall survival (OS) improved for stage I (58.6% to 68.4%, P < .001), stage II (35.5% to 48.4%, P < .001), stage III (18.7% to 29.4%, P < .001), and stage IV (3.4% to 7.8%, P < .001). For NSCLC, the median OS increased from 12 to 21 months (P < .001), and the 3-year OS increased from 24.1% to 38.3% (P < .001). For SCLC, the median OS remained unchanged (8 to 9 months, P = .10), while the 3-year OS increased from 9.1% to 12.3% (P = .014). Compared to White Veterans, Black Veterans with NSCLC had similar OS (P = .81), and those with SCLC had higher OS (P = .003)., Conclusion: Lung cancer survival is improving within the VHA. Compared to White Veterans, Black Veterans had similar or higher survival rates. The observed racial equity in outcomes within a geographically and socioeconomically diverse population warrants further investigation to better understand and replicate this achievement in other healthcare systems., Competing Interests: Disclosure DM is a consultant and/or advisor for AstraZeneca, Delfi Diagnostics, Viewray, and Merck; is a scientific advisor for Lungevity Foundation and GO2 Foundation for Lung Cancer; is co-director of the VA Greater Los Angeles Lung Precision Oncology Program; is on the scientific advisory board and owns stock options in Lung Life AI. DG is a founder of SwitchboardMD, is on the advisory board of Histowiz LLC, and owns stock in PortalBurner LLC, Histowiz LLC, and SwitchboardMD. JL is a board member of Rescue Lung Rescue Life and is Co-director of the Tennessee Valley Healthcare System Lung Cancer Screening Program. LS is a member of the Tennessee Valley Healthcare System Lung Cancer Screening Steering Committee and Vice Chair of Health Equity at Vanderbilt University Medical Center Radiology. CS is a Medical Director of the VAPORHCS lung nodule surveillance system, Director for the VISN 20 Centralized Lung Cancer Screening Program, and Chief Consultant for the VA National Center for Lung Cancer Screening. He does not receive additional remuneration for this role. He has a grant from the Oregon Health and Science University Knight Cancer Institute (KCI) to develop a nodule/lung cancer risk prediction model that includes working with a for-profit company, Optellum, Ltd. Neither he nor the KCI receive remuneration for this collaboration. All other authors declare no conflicts of interest., (Published by Elsevier Inc.)