A Clinical Evaluation of Lifitegrast Ophthalmic Solution 5% in Symptomatic Contact Lens Wearers.

Purpose: To evaluate the effectiveness of lifitegrast ophthalmic solution 5% in alleviating end-of-day dryness and discomfort in symptomatic contact lens (CL) wearers.

Patients And Methods: This was an open-label study in symptomatic CL wearers with ratings of ≥40 for end-of-day dryness on a visual analog scale (VAS; 0-100 scale; 100 worst). Participants wore their habitual CLs and instilled lifitegrast twice daily for 12 weeks with lenses removed.

Development of an Eye Model Using 3D-Printing for Correlating Measured Intraocular Pressure with Actual Internal Pressure.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to develop a 3D-printed eye model to simulate measuring intraocular pressure (IOP) as a training device, and to assess the correlation between measured IOP using common clinical techniques and actual internal pressure.

Methods: The IOP eye model was designed using CAD software and printed with a resin stereolithography (SLA) 3D-printer (Formlabs 3B, Formlabs Inc., MA, USA).

Deep Learning-Based Prediction of PET Amyloid Status Using MRI.

Background And Purpose: Identifying amyloid-beta (Aβ)-positive patients is essential for Alzheimer's disease (AD) clinical trials and disease-modifying treatments but currently requires PET or cerebrospinal fluid sampling. Previous MRI-based deep learning models, using only T1-weighted (T1w) images, have shown moderate performance.

Materials And Methods: Multi-contrast MRI and PET-based quantitative Aβ deposition were retrospectively obtained from three public datasets: ADNI, OASIS3, and A4.

Evaluating the initial and end-of-day wettability of contemporary daily disposable contact lenses using various in vitro methods.

Significance: Contact lens wettability is potentially correlated with friction, which is linked to lens comfort. However, measuring wettability can be highly variable. This study assessed wettability using three techniques for a more accurate profile.

Triage nurse-initiated orders in pediatric emergency care: A single-center retrospective cohort study of appendix and testicular ultrasounds.

Background: Triage nurse-initiated imaging orders (TNIO) are a promising strategy to improve emergency department (ED) efficiency and length of stay (LOS). However, limited data exists on the impact of TNIO ultrasounds in pediatric appendicitis and testicular torsion.

Objectives: This study aimed to measure the utilization of TNIO for appendix and testicular ultrasounds and evaluate their impact on LOS.

These Hips Don't Lie: Deep Vein Thrombosis in an Adolescent With an Inferior Vena Cava Anomaly.

Congenital anomalies of the inferior vena cava can predispose adolescents to deep vein thrombosis. A 13-year-old male with left hip pain after a sports injury was found to have extensive deep vein thromobis due to an interrupted inferior vena cava. The diagnosis led to catheter-directed thrombolysis and anticoagulation, resolving symptoms.

Interprofessional Debrief on Racism, Equity, and Microaggressions (I-DREAM): Using Simulation to Change Awareness, Attitudes, and Abilities Across an Institution.

Purpose: Effective diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) education is imperative to combat bias across health care organizations. The authors evaluated the effectiveness of interprofessional, simulation-based DEI training in improving clinicians' awareness, attitudes, and abilities regarding bias, racism, inclusion, microaggressions, and equity in the workforce.

Method: From October 2021 to June 2022, interprofessional clinicians at Children's National Hospital in Washington, DC, completed the Interprofessional Debrief on Racism, Equity, and Microaggressions (I-DREAM) training.

Evaluation of Generative Artificial Intelligence Models in Predicting Pediatric Emergency Severity Index Levels.

Objective: Evaluate the accuracy and reliability of various generative artificial intelligence (AI) models (ChatGPT-3.5, ChatGPT-4.0, T5, Llama-2, Mistral-Large, and Claude-3 Opus) in predicting Emergency Severity Index (ESI) levels for pediatric emergency department patients and assess the impact of medically oriented fine-tuning.

Low-Volume and Early-Career Surgeons Have Higher Risk for Reoperation and Complications Following Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction.

Purpose: To characterize the population of surgeons performing anterior cruciate ligament reconstructions (ACLRs) in the United States and investigate the relationships between surgeon volume, career duration, and practice setting on surgical outcomes.

Methods: A large nationwide insurance database was queried for patients undergoing primary ACLR. Provider gender, degree type (allopathic vs osteopathic), practice setting (academic vs private as defined by ACGME affiliation), surgeon volume per year, and career duration were obtained.

Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) Accessibility: An Area Deprivation Index (ADI) Analysis of National Basketball Association (NBA) Players' Profiles.

Purpose Of Review: Youth sports are increasingly shifting towards a "pay to play" model which has introduced financial barriers to participation. The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is the main organization for club basketball, serving as a platform where young athletes can compete beyond the recreational level. Outside the realm of athletes who have access to state-of-the-art facilities and top-tier coaching, the pathway to playing basketball at the next level may be predominantly available to those who can afford the considerable costs of AAU participation.

A Rapid Screening Platform for Simultaneous Evaluation of Biodegradation and Therapeutic Release of an Ocular Hydrogel.

This study attempts to address the challenge of accurately measuring the degradation of biodegradable hydrogels, which are frequently employed in drug delivery for controlled and sustained release. The traditional method utilizes a mass-loss approach, which is cumbersome and time consuming. The aim of this study was to develop an innovative screening platform using a millifluidic device coupled with automated image analysis to measure the degradation of Gelatin methacrylate (GelMA) and the subsequent release of an entrapped wetting agent, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA).

SEMPro: A Data-Driven Pipeline To Learn Structure-Property Insights from Scanning Electron Microscopy Images.

Analyzing hydrogel microstructure through scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images is crucial in understanding hydrogel properties. However, the analysis of SEM images in hydrogel research heavily relies on the intuition of individual researchers and is constrained by the limited size of the dataset. To address this, we propose SEMPro, a data-driven solution using web-scraping and deep learning (DL) to compile and analyze the structure-property relationships of hydrogels through SEM images.

A cross-species proteomic map reveals neoteny of human synapse development.

The molecular mechanisms and evolutionary changes accompanying synapse development are still poorly understood. Here we generate a cross-species proteomic map of synapse development in the human, macaque and mouse neocortex. By tracking the changes of more than 1,000 postsynaptic density (PSD) proteins from midgestation to young adulthood, we find that PSD maturation in humans separates into three major phases that are dominated by distinct pathways.

Identification of a drug binding pocket in TMEM16F calcium-activated ion channel and lipid scramblase.

The dual functions of TMEM16F as Ca-activated ion channel and lipid scramblase raise intriguing questions regarding their molecular basis. Intrigued by the ability of the FDA-approved drug niclosamide to inhibit TMEM16F-dependent syncytia formation induced by SARS-CoV-2, we examined cryo-EM structures of TMEM16F with or without bound niclosamide or 1PBC, a known blocker of TMEM16A Ca-activated Cl channel. Here, we report evidence for a lipid scrambling pathway along a groove harboring a lipid trail outside the ion permeation pore.

Mec1-independent activation of the Rad53 checkpoint kinase revealed by quantitative analysis of protein localization dynamics.

The replication checkpoint is essential for accurate DNA replication and repair, and maintenance of genomic integrity when a cell is challenged with genotoxic stress. Several studies have defined the complement of proteins that change subcellular location in the budding yeast following chemically induced DNA replication stress using methyl methanesulfonate (MMS) or hydroxyurea (HU). How these protein movements are regulated remains largely unexplored.

Vaccine coverage and factors associated with vaccine adherence in persons with HIV at an urban infectious disease clinic.

Information on vaccination rates and factors associated with adherence in persons with HIV (PWH) is limited. We report vaccine adherence in 653 adult PWH attending an urban Infectious Disease Clinic from January 2015 to December 2021. Vaccines evaluated included influenza, pneumococcal, tetanus, hepatitis A virus (HAV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV), human papillomavirus (HPV), and zoster vaccines.

Development of a yeast whole-cell biocatalyst for MHET conversion into terephthalic acid and ethylene glycol.

Background: Over the 70 years since the introduction of plastic into everyday items, plastic waste has become an increasing problem. With over 360 million tonnes of plastics produced every year, solutions for plastic recycling and plastic waste reduction are sorely needed. Recently, multiple enzymes capable of degrading PET (polyethylene terephthalate) plastic have been identified and engineered.

Yeast goes viral: probing SARS-CoV-2 biology using .

The budding yeast has long been an outstanding platform for understanding the biology of eukaryotic cells. Robust genetics, cell biology, molecular biology, and biochemistry complement deep and detailed genome annotation, a multitude of genome-scale strain collections for functional genomics, and substantial gene conservation with Metazoa to comprise a powerful model for modern biological research. Recently, the yeast model has demonstrated its utility in a perhaps unexpected area, that of eukaryotic virology.

Relationship Between Food Insecurity and Neighborhood Child Opportunity Index.

Objectives: To evaluate the association between the Child Opportunity Index (COI) and food insecurity.

Study Design: This was a secondary analysis of a comprehensive screening instrument for social determinants of health and behavioral health risks. It was administered in 2 urban pediatric emergency departments to adolescents aged 13-21 years and caregivers of children aged 0-17 years.

RNF168 regulates R-loop resolution and genomic stability in BRCA1/2-deficient tumors.

Germline mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 (BRCA1/2) genes considerably increase breast and ovarian cancer risk. Given that tumors with these mutations have elevated genomic instability, they exhibit relative vulnerability to certain chemotherapies and targeted treatments based on poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibition. However, the molecular mechanisms that influence cancer risk and therapeutic benefit or resistance remain only partially understood.

Sonic hedgehog accelerates DNA replication to cause replication stress promoting cancer initiation in medulloblastoma.

The mechanisms generating cancer-initiating mutations are not well understood. Sonic hedgehog (SHH) pathway activation is frequent in medulloblastoma (MB), with PTCH1 mutations being a common initiating event. Here we investigated the role of the developmental mitogen SHH in initiating carcinogenesis in the cells of origin: granule cell progenitors (GCPs).