Structural and Magnetic Properties of Carbon-Based Nanocomposites Containing Iron Oxides: Effect of Thermal Treatment Atmosphere.

Carbon-based nanocomposites coated with iron oxides were synthesized using a wet impregnation method with thermally annealed coal and an iron nitrate precursor. The influence of the thermal treatment atmosphere (air, vacuum, or nitrogen) on the morphology, structure, and magnetic properties of the nanocomposites was examined by X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. It was found that the vacuum thermal treatment produced carbon-based nanocomposite containing iron oxide with the highest crystallinity, according to XRD analysis, while also inducing the greatest degree of structural defects in the carbon matrix, as evidenced by Raman analysis.

Chronic Stress and Cardiovascular Health: The MESA and MASALA Studies.

Introduction: Research suggests chronic stress is associated with individual cardiovascular health (CVH) metrics (e.g., physical activity and diet quality); however, the association between chronic stress and overall CVH is less well understood.

Clinical and Demographic Characteristics Associated With Diabetes Remission in Six Integrated Health Care Systems: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Objective: To assess the real-world frequency and characteristics associated with type 2 diabetes remission in a large and diverse cohort of U.S. adults.

High Prevalence of Prediabetes Among Asian and Pacific Islander Adolescents With Overweight or Obesity in a Primary Care Population.

Objective: To compare prediabetes prevalence among disaggregated U.S. Asian and Pacific Islander (Asian/PI) adolescents with non-Hispanic White (NHW) adolescents with overweight or obesity in a primary care population.

Discrepancy in Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease Prevalence in a Large Northern California Cohort.

Background And Aims: The estimated prevalence of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) in US adults is 31.3%. However, little is known about MASLD diagnosis rates in clinical practice.

Changes in diabetes screening and exercise during the COVID-19 pandemic in adults with prediabetes.

Aims: To evaluate changes in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) screening and exercise during the COVID-19 shelter-in-place, and whether Medicaid patients and racial/ethnic minoritized groups were disproportionally affected.

Methods: Retrospective cohort study of 578,585 adults with prediabetes aged ≥ 18-89 years with BMI ≥ 25 (≥23 if Asian) at Kaiser Permanente Northern California from January 2019 to December 2021. We used separate interrupted time-series analyses of aggregated weekly T2DM screening rates, or mean exercise minutes, to evaluate any decrease associated with the shelter-in-place (March 19, 2020, to June 1, 2020).

Identifying pre-diabetes 'hotspots' in Northern California using geospatial analysis: opportunities to target diabetes prevention strategies and improve health equity.

Objectives: The US Preventive Services Task Force recommends screening of adults aged 35-70 with a body mass index ≥25 kg/m for type 2 diabetes and referral of individuals who screen positive for pre-diabetes to evidence-based prevention strategies. The diabetes burden in the USA is predicted to triple by 2060 necessitating strategic diabetes prevention efforts, particularly in areas of highest need. This study aimed to identify pre-diabetes hotspots using geospatial mapping to inform targeted diabetes prevention strategies.

Examining student perceptions of school climate, school personnel, and school discipline: Evidence from New York City.

Improving school climate is important to reducing disparities in exclusionary discipline, yet the relationship between school climate and school discipline remains poorly understood. Although prior studies have largely relied on students' perceptions to measure school climate, few studies have examined how school contextual factors such as prior disciplinary history or school personnel may affect students' perception of school climate. In the present study, we used student responses from the annually administered New York City School Survey to examine the relationship between student perception of school climate and school personnel, drawing on a longitudinal student-level sample for public middle and high schools for the years 2011-2012 through 2018-2019 (N = 3,988,020 student-years).

The Fabrication of Gold Nanostructures as SERS Substrates for the Detection of Contaminants in Water.

Gold nanostructures (AuNSs) were used to fabricate surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) substrates. These AuNSs were produced using the solid-state dewetting method from thin films. The fragmentation process was studied at 300 °C, with durations of thermal treatment of 1, 3, 6, and 12 h.

A mixed-methods assessment of engagement in wellness programs for patients with prediabetes: Factors associated with referral and participation in lifestyle wellness programs.

Objective: We assessed factors associated with engagement in lifestyle wellness programs for patients with prediabetes.

Methods: This mixed-methods study, conducted between March 2018 and April of 2021, combined a retrospective cohort study and semi-structured interviews in a Northern California cohort of patients from a randomized controlled pragmatic clinical trial aged 18-75 with body mass index 25 and at least one HbA1c between 5.7-6.

Mass vaccination with reassortment-impaired live H9N2 avian influenza vaccine.

Avian influenza poses a severe threat to poultry production and global food security, prompting the development of vaccination programs in numerous countries. Modified live virus (MLV) vaccines, with their potential for mass application, offer a distinct advantage over existing options. However, concerns surrounding reversion, recombination, and unintended transmission have hindered the progress of MLV development for avian influenza in poultry.

Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease.

Importance: In the US, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been the most rapidly increasing cancer since 1980, and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is expected to soon become the leading cause of HCC.

Objective: To develop a prediction model for HCC incidence in a cohort of patients with MASLD.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This prognostic study was conducted among patients aged at least 18 years with MASLD, identified using diagnosis of MASLD using International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) or International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) diagnosis codes; natural language processing of radiology imaging report text, which identified patients who had imaging evidence of MASLD but had not been formally diagnosed; or the Dallas Steatosis Index, a risk equation that identifies individuals likely to have MASLD with good precision.

Thermal, viscoelastic, and electrical properties of thermoplastic polyurethane films reinforced with multi-walled carbon nanotubes.

Thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) doped with multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) at 1, 3, 5, and 7 wt% has been studied. The effect of MWCNTs on thermal, viscoelastic, and electric properties in the TPU matrix was characterized by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), and by impedance spectroscopy. The results show that the thermal, electrical, and viscoelastic properties, such as the glass transition temperature, shifted towards high temperatures.

Scientific and technological analysis of exchange-spring magnets: Applications and trends.

In this work, a bibliometric study was carried out to perform a scientific and technological analysis of exchange-spring magnets, an alternative permanent magnet synthesized by reducing or eliminating the use of critical raw materials, such as rare earths. The bibliometric analysis utilized the Scopus database, Orbit-Intellixir, VOSviewer, Orbit-Intelligence and Loglet Lab 4 software for maturity analysis, keyword network representations, charts and graphs for scientific articles and/or patents. A special analysis was performed on nanocomposite and thin-films systems based on Nd-Fe-B, SmCo and Mn-Al-C alloys, either mixed or layered with a soft magnetic phase, where relevant information on their magnetic parameters was compilated in tables, highlighting the nanostructured systems that have been exhibited the best permanent magnet properties.

The hormonal profile in women using combined monophasic oral contraceptive pills varies across the pill cycle: a temporal analysis of serum endogenous and exogenous hormones using liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectroscopy.

Oral contraceptive pills, of all types, are used by approximately 151 million women worldwide; however, a clear understanding of the concentrations of endogenous and exogenous hormones across a 28-day combination monophasic oral contraceptive pill pack is not well described. In our study of 14 female participants taking various combination monophasic oral contraceptive pills, we found significant fluctuations in endogenous and exogenous hormone levels throughout the pill cycle. Our analysis revealed significantly greater levels of ethinyl estradiol on the 20th and 21st days of active pill ingestion, compared with (active) and (inactive pill ingestion).

Hospital Readmissions Among Patients Experiencing Homelessness: An Electronic Health Record Data Study.

Background: Population-level tracking of hospital use patterns with integrated care organizations in patients experiencing homelessness has been difficult. A California law implemented in 2019 (Senate Bill 1152) aimed to ensure safety for this population after discharge from the hospital by requiring additional documentation for patients experiencing homelessness, which provides an opportunity to evaluate hospital use by this population.

Methods: In a large integrated health system in California, patients experiencing homelessness were identified through documentation change requirements associated with this law and compared with a matched group from the general population.

American Registry of Ambulatory or acutely decompensated heart failure (AMERICCAASS Registry): First 1000 patients.

Background: About 80% of cardiovascular diseases (including heart failure [HF]) occur in low-income and developing countries. However, most clinical trials are conducted in developed countries.

Hypothesis: The American Registry of Ambulatory or Acutely Decompensated Heart Failure (AMERICCAASS) aims to describe the sociodemographic characteristics of HF, comorbidities, clinical presentation, and pharmacological management of patients with ambulatory or acutely decompensated HF in America.

Morphological Electrical and Hardness Characterization of Carbon Nanotube-Reinforced Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU) Nanocomposite Plates.

The impacts on the morphological, electrical and hardness properties of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) plates using multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) as reinforcing fillers have been investigated, using MWCNT loadings between 1 and 7 wt%. Plates of the TPU/MWCNT nanocomposites were fabricated by compression molding from extruded pellets. An X-ray diffraction analysis showed that the incorporation of MWCNTs into the TPU polymer matrix increases the ordered range of the soft and hard segments.

Sex hormone-mediated change on muscle activation deactivation dynamics in young eumenorrheic women.

The goal of the study was to characterize muscle activation/deactivation dynamics across the menstrual cycle in healthy young women. Twenty-two healthy eumenorrheic women (age: 27.0 ± 4.