Social Interactions and Self-Reported Health Among Resettled Refugees.

The goal of this research is to investigate the relationship between social interactions and self-reported mental and physical health of resettled refugees. Social relationships and interactions consist of different layers extending from individual personal relations to social networking activities to collective engagement. Using data from a public opinion survey of recently resettled Bhutanese and Rohingya refugees in Michigan (N=352), we find that along with their socioeconomic situations, such as employment, social integration is an important determinant of mental and physical health.

An In Vivo Study on the Feasibility of Catheter-Assisted Pulsed Focused Ultrasound Ablation of Atherosclerotic Plaques.

Objective: Atherosclerosis is a condition where arteries become constricted due to plaque deposition, impairing blood supply and potentially leading to stroke and other cardiovascular diseases. This study aims to develop a minimally invasive technology that combines focused ultrasound (FUS) with a catheter to remove arterial plaques through the cavitation effect.

Methods: In this investigation, via an ex vivo study in atherosclerotic plaque samples, we demonstrated that the onset of cavitation events can be enhanced by placing a catheter in the focal spot of the FUS field.

Fertilization-dependent phloem end gate regulates seed size.

Seed formation is essential for plant propagation and food production. We present a novel mechanism for the regulation of seed size by a newly identified "gate" at the chalazal end of the ovule regulating nutrient transport into the developing seed. This gate is blocked by callose deposition in unfertilized mature ovules (closed state), but the callose is removed after central cell fertilization, allowing nutrient transport into the seed (open state).

Evaluation of anemia among pregnant women in a hilly district of western Nepal: A hospital based cross-sectional study.

Iron deficiency anemia remains a significant public health concern, particularly among pregnant women and children. The prevalence of anemia is higher in lower middle income countries including Nepal. Despite government efforts, progress in reducing anemia in the last 15 years has been slow, especially in remote hilly regions.

Rapid clinical assessment of spatial contrast sensitivity changes in retinal disease and ageing.

Evidence suggests best-corrected visual acuity is not sensitive to subtle vision losses in early disease stages, indicating the need for other tests. Here, we quantified contrast sensitivity in 99 people (20-88 years): 52 with eye diseases (10 with early AMD, 9 diabetics without retinopathy, 22 glaucoma suspects, 11 high myopes) and 47 age-matched healthy controls using a new spatial vision chart (0.28-100% Weber contrasts; 3-60 c/° frequencies).

Patterns of Alcohol Use and Daily Smoking Among Men Who Have Sex with Men in Nepal.

Men who have sex with men (MSM) have an elevated risk of adverse health outcomes associated with alcohol use and smoking. Although substantial studies have been conducted globally, little is known about alcohol use and smoking among MSM in Nepal. Therefore, the present study aimed to examine the prevalence and patterns of alcohol use and daily smoking among MSM in Nepal.

An Overview on MADS Box Members in Plants: A Meta-Review.

Most of the studied MADS box members are linked to flowering and fruit traits. However, higher volumes of studies on type II of the two types so far suggest that the florigenic effect of the gene members could just be the tip of the iceberg. In the current study, we used a systematic approach to obtain a general overview of the MADS box members' cross-trait and multifactor associations, and their pleiotropic potentials, based on a manually curated local reference database.

Health literacy and its determinants among school-going children: a school-based cross-sectional study in Nepal.

Limited health literacy is linked to unhealthy behaviors, adverse health outcomes, poor quality of life and financial burdens on society. However, little is known about the level of health literacy, especially among school-going children. This cross-sectional study assesses health literacy levels and their determinants in 354 school children from Kathmandu Metropolitan City, utilizing a multi-stage cluster sampling method.

Melanopsin-mediated amplification of cone signals in the human visual cortex.

The ambient daylight variation is coded by melanopsin photoreceptors and their luxotonic activity increases towards midday when colour temperatures are cooler, and irradiances are higher. Although melanopsin and cone photoresponses can be mediated via separate pathways, the connectivity of melanopsin cells across all levels of the retina enables them to modify cone signals. The downstream effects of melanopsin-cone interactions on human vision are however, incompletely understood.

Transcription Factors behind Regulation: What Does the Discovery of Suggest?

is master regulator of the molecular network involved in pollen tube attraction. Until recently, it was unclear how this gene exhibits exclusively synergid cell-specific expression in ovule. Our recent study has established that a 16-bp-long element is crucial for its synergid cell-specific expression in ovule, and an 84-bp-long fragment harboring is sufficient to drive the process.

Evolutionary assessment of SQUAMOSA PROMOTER BINDING PROTEIN-LIKE genes in citrus relatives with a specific focus on flowering.

Phase transition and floral induction in citrus requires several years of juvenility after germination. Such a long period of juvenility has been a major hindrance to its genetic improvement program. Studies have shown that miR156 along with its downstream genes SQUAMOSA PROMOTER BINDING PROTEINS (SBP) and SBP-LIKE (SPL) mediate the phase transition and floral induction process in plants.

Discovery of a -regulatory element involved in dynamic regulation of synergid-specific .

is a key regulator of the genetic network behind pollen tube attraction toward the female gametophyte. is specifically expressed in the synergid cells (SCs), a female gametophyte component cells specialized for pollen tube attraction. However, it had not been clear how exactly achieves this specific expression pattern.

Protocol for isolation of melanopsin and rhodopsin in the human eye using silent substitution.

Melanopsin-mediated visual and non-visual functions are difficult to study in vivo. To isolate melanopsin responses, non-standard light stimulation instruments are required, with at least as many primaries as photoreceptor classes in the eye. In this protocol, we describe the physical light calibrations of the display instrumentation, control of stimulus artefacts, and correction of individual between-eye differences in human observers.

Granulomatosis With Polyangiitis Presenting With Diffuse Alveolar Hemorrhage: A Systematic Review.

Granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) is a systemic disease that has variable clinical expression. GPA is the most common antineutrophilic cytoplasmic antibody(ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV). Diffuse alveolar hemorrhage (DAH) is one of the least common pulmonary manifestations in patients with GPA.

The high-quality genome of pummelo provides insights into the tissue-specific regulation of citric acid and anthocyanin during domestication.

Citric acid and anthocyanin contents were co-selected during domestication. Pummelo is a founding species in the genus, but the domestication of pummelo has not been well studied. Here, we compared the citric acid and anthocyanin contents of a low citric acid pummelo ( LCA) and its high citric acid variety (HCA) from the same cultivation area in China.

Photonics probing of pup brain tissue and molecular-specific nuclear nanostructure alterations due to fetal alcoholism via light scattering/localization approaches.

Significance: Light is a good probe for studying the nanoscale-level structural or molecular-specific structural properties of brain cells/tissue due to stress, alcohol, or any other abnormalities. Chronic alcoholism during pregnancy, i.e.

A Rare Case of Pyriform Sinus Fistula in an Adult.

The pyriform sinus fistula is very rare in adults, and it can present as recurrent deep neck space infection and abscess formation. The fistula results due to failure of obliteration of the third and fourth pharyngeal pouches. The diagnosis is often challenging, even with standard imaging techniques.

Melanopsin photoreception differentially modulates rod-mediated and cone-mediated human temporal vision.

To evaluate the nature of interactions between visual pathways transmitting the slower melanopsin and faster rod and cone signals, we implement a temporal phase summation paradigm in human observers using photoreceptor-directed stimuli. We show that melanopsin stimulation interacts with and alters both rod-mediated and cone-mediated vision regardless of whether it is perceptually visible or not. Melanopsin-rod interactions result in either inhibitory or facilitatory summation depending on the temporal frequency and photoreceptor pathway contrast sensitivity.

Genome-wide identification of ovate family in Citrus and functional characterization of CitOFP19.

Fruit shape is an important trait for fruit appearance and commercial value. Diversity of fruit-shape has been utilized in the breeding of pummelo (Citrus maxima), a basic species in Citrus. However, little is known about genetic basis of fruit shape in citrus.

Sepsis Due to Haemophilus influenzae and Masked Influenza A Infection.

 is a facultative anaerobe, pleomorphic Gram-negative coccobacillus capable of causing various respiratory and blood stream infections. Introduction of childhood immunization against type b has decreased its prevalence. Invasive infection with non-typeable is increasing specially in vulnerable population.

The role of melanopsin photoreception on visual attention linked pupil responses.

A decision during a visual task is marked by a task-evoked pupil dilation (TEPD) that is linked to the global cortical arousal state. Melanopsin expressing intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) form the afferent pathway for this pupil response. Melanopsin activation also influences mood and arousal and increases activity in decision-making brain areas that receive direct ipRGC projections.

Multi-component redox system for selective and potent antineoplastic activity towards ovarian cancer cells.

Ovarian cancer is the deadliest gynecological cancer which rarely causes symptoms, and goes undetected until reaching the advanced stage of drug-resistant metastases. The cationic porphyrin meso-tetra(4-N-methylpyridyl)porphine (TMPyP) is a well-known photosensitizer (PS) used in photodyamic therapy (PDT) for curing cancer due to its strong affinity for DNA and high yield of reactive oxygen species (ROS) upon light activation. The practicality to irradiate tumor cells alone in the physiological system being slim (due to the close proximity of healthy cells and tumors), we looked for a variation in the PDT using a mixture of TMPyP with 1,5-dihydroxynapthalene (DHN) and Fe(III) ions at a mole ratio of 1:20:17 (drug combo) respectively in aqueous solution.

Photonic technique to study the effects of probiotics on chronic alcoholic brain cells by quantifying their molecular specific structural alterations via confocal imaging.

Molecular specific photonics localization method, the inverse participation ratio (IPR) technique, is a powerful procedure to probe the nano- to submicron scales structural alterations in cells/tissues in their abnormalities due to chronic alcoholism using confocal imaging. Chronic alcoholism introduces abnormalities in brain cells/tissue at the nanoscale level that results in behavioural and psychological disorders which are not well understood. On the other hand, probiotics such as Lactobacillus plantarum enhances brain functions in chronic alcoholism.

Design and validation of a chart-based measure of the limits of spatial contrast sensitivity.

Purpose: Current chart-based tests of spatial contrast sensitivity (SCS) with fixed or narrow frequency ranges (≤18 cycles/°) cannot characterise the limits of spatial contrast vision. Here we present the design and validation of a chart-based measure of the spatial contrast envelope.

Methods: Following the principles of the standard visual acuity (Bailey-Lovie) and contrast sensitivity (Pelli-Robson) charts, a combined spatial-contrast and visual acuity chart was designed using a language-independent triangular symbol for a four-alternative forced-choice procedure plus chart rotation.