Barriers for Individuals with Prediabetes from Enrolling in the YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention Program

Introduction: This qualitative research study examined barriers to enrollment in YMCA of Greater Seattle’s Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) and how to improve the enrollment and referral process. Methodology: This was a quality improvement project that used qualitative methods in the research design. Semi-structured interviews and open-ended questionnaires were used to explore barriers in enrollment and to improve the referral and enrollment process from the perspective of participants with prediabetes referred to the DPP, YMCA staff who facilitate the DPP, and primary care providers who referred participant to the DPP. Results: A total of 10 interviews were conducted with the participants between the ages of 32-78 (P1-P10) who declined enrollment to the DPP. The cohort of participants were African heritage (n=6) , Asian (n=1) and White (n=3). There were a total of 8 women and two men. Five main themes resulted from the thematic analysis: 1) cost, 2) gap in communication, 3) time constraint, 4) adequate knowledge, and 5) program format. Three YMCA staff and one provider expressed similar barriers based on their perspectives. In addition, the referral process can be improved through a more thorough explanation of the DPP to eligible participants and reducing or covering the DPP cost. Conclusion: Better referral management, shared decision-making, and financial assistance seem to be the underpinning elements for the success of the participants’ enrollment into the DPP

Thermosensitive chitosan/poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide) nanoparticles embedded in aniline pentamer/silk fibroin/polyacrylamide as an electroactive injectable hydrogel for healing critical-sized calvarial bone defect in aging rat model

Thermosensitive nanoparticles with phase transition abilities have been considered as suitable materials in biomedical fields, especially drug delivery systems. Moreover, electroactive injectable hydrogels supporting bone regeneration of the elderly will highly be desired in bone tissue engineering applications. Herein, thermosensitive nanoparticles were fabricated using chitosan/poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide) for simvastatin acid delivery. The nanoparticles were incorporated into electroactive injectable hydrogels based on aniline pentamer/silk fibroin/polyacrylamide containing vitamin C. The nanoparticles had thermosensitive properties as simvastatin acid had higher release rates at 37 than 23 °C without significant burst release. The hydrogels also revealed an appropriate gelation time, stable mechanical and rheological characteristics, high water absorbency, and proper biodegradability. In vitro studies indicated that the hydrogel was biocompatible and nontoxic, especially those containing drugs. Implantation of the hydrogels containing both simvastatin acid and vitamin C into the critical calvarial bone defect of the aged rat also demonstrated significant enhancement of bone healing after 4 and 8 weeks post-implantation. We found that the electroactive injectable hydrogels containing thermosensitive nanoparticles exhibited great potential for treating bone defects in the elderly ratsThis work has financially supported National Institute for Medical Research Development (NIMAD) Grant No. 972340. SCK has been the European Research Area Chair of the European Commission and the European Union Framework Programme for Research and Innovation Horizon 2020 (n◦ 668983 — FoReCaST and PTDC/BTM-ORG/28168/2017 of FCT, Portugal supported SCK

A Systematic Review of the Effect of Remittances on Diet and Nutrition

Background: Remittance income is rising rapidly in most low- and middle-income countries. Despite nutrition being a key policy priority for health and development, we know little about the effect of remittance income on diets and nutrition. Objective: To identify the effect of remittance income on nutrition. Method: Systematic review of English-language studies providing information on the impact of remittances on food consumption, food expenditure, or measures of nutritional status, using a narrative synthesis approach for analysis. We searched the English-language published and gray literature using key words ‘‘remittances,’’ ‘‘nutrition,’’ and ‘‘diets.’’ Results: This systematic review identified 20 studies that examined the effect of remittance income on food consumption, dietary intake, and nutritional status, 2 of which were qualitative studies. Overall, the quality of the studies was weak to moderate. These studies show that remittances can increase access to (purchased) food and may have a consumption smoothing effect, reducing households’ vulnerability and leading to improved food security and reductions in underweight. However, remittances appear to have little effect on markers of chronic undernourishment. The studies also suggest that the extra income from remittances may compound trends toward purchasing less healthy (nontraditional) foods that are associated with the nutrition transition. Conclusion: There is an urgent need for further research on the effect of remittances on nutrition and diets, with remittance income forecast to rise rapidly into the future. Programs to ensure that those households receiving remittances move beyond just meeting sufficient calories and improve dietary quality could create nutritional benefits

Integrating a broader notion of food security and gender empowerment into the African Green Revolution

A Green Revolution for Africa is emerging after decades of neglect of Africa’s agricultural systems. To counter these years of neglect, the then United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan called for “a uniquely African Green Revolution”. Since then, a number of initiatives have emerged or are emerging to realize this important vision. As more money and attention galvanizes much-needed action on the African Green Revolution, a vigorous debate is required to ensure that the mission of improving food security on the world’s poorest continent is achieved in the most effective, comprehensive and inclusive manner possible. The African Green Revolution cannot be limited to increasing yields of staple crops but must be designed as a driver of sustainable development, which includes gender empowerment and nutrition elements. This paper first reviews the Asian Green Revolution’s successes and shortcomings from a nutrition and gender perspective and then outlines what the global community can do to ensure that some of the limitations of the Asian Green Revolution, specifically with regard to nutrition and gender, are not repeated

Large-scale expansions of Friedreich's ataxia GAA•TTC repeats in an experimental human system: role of DNA replication and prevention by LNA-DNA oligonucleotides and PNA oligomers

Friedreich's ataxia (FRDA) is caused by expansions of GAA•TTC repeats in the first intron of the human FXN gene that occur during both intergenerational transmissions and in somatic cells. Here we describe an experimental system to analyze large-scale repeat expansions in cultured human cells. It employs a shuttle plasmid that can replicate from the SV40 origin in human cells or be stably maintained in S. cerevisiae utilizing ARS4-CEN6. It also contains a selectable cassette allowing us to detect repeat expansions that accumulated in human cells upon plasmid transformation into yeast. We indeed observed massive expansions of GAA•TTC repeats, making it the first genetically tractable experimental system to study large-scale repeat expansions in human cells. Further, GAA•TTC repeats stall replication fork progression, while the frequency of repeat expansions appears to depend on proteins implicated in replication fork stalling, reversal, and restart. Locked nucleic acid (LNA)-DNA mixmer oligonucleotides and peptide nucleic acid (PNA) oligomers, which interfere with triplex formation at GAA•TTC repeats in vitro, prevented the expansion of these repeats in human cells. We hypothesize, therefore, that triplex formation by GAA•TTC repeats stall replication fork progression, ultimately leading to repeat expansions during replication fork restart

Transmission of α-synucleinopathy from olfactory structures deep into the temporal lobe

Supplemental files to the publication Transmission of α-synucleinopathy from olfactory structures deep into the temporal lobe : Supplemental information (PDF): Materials and methods, tables, and supplemental figures S1-S8 (all supplemental figures are mentioned in the main text). Two mp4 movie files showing perinuclear localization of pSer129 signal (red) around NeuN+ nuclei (green). One movie shows a rotating cell and in the other video, the red pSer129 signal is peeled away to reveal the underlying green NeuN+ nucleus. Four high resolution figures (TIFF files)

Uptake of home-based voluntary HIV testing in sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Improving access to HIV testing is a key priority in scaling up HIV treatment and prevention services. Home-based voluntary counselling and testing (HBT) as an approach to delivering wide-scale HIV testing is explored here