Risk Factors Associated With Aortic and Carotid Intima-Media Thickness in Adolescents and Young Adults The Muscatine Offspring Study

ObjectivesThis study sought to determine whether cardiovascular risk factors are associated with aortic intima-media thickness (aIMT) and carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) in adolescents and young adults.BackgroundAtherosclerotic lesions begin developing in youth, first in the distal abdominal aorta and later in the carotid arteries. Knowledge of how risk factors relate to aIMT and cIMT may help in the design of early interventions to prevent cardiovascular disease.MethodsParticipants were 635 members of the Muscatine Offspring cohort. The mean aIMT and cIMT were measured using an automated reading program.ResultsThe mean (SD) values of aIMT and cIMT were 0.63 (0.14) and 0.49 (0.04) mm, respectively. In adolescents (age 11 to 17 years), aIMT was associated with triglycerides, systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), body mass index (BMI), and waist/hip ratio, after adjusting for age, sex, and height. In young adults (age 18 to 34 years), aIMT was associated with those same 5 risk factors, plus high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and pulse pressure. In adolescents, cIMT was associated with SBP, pulse pressure, heart rate, BMI, and waist/hip ratio. In young adults, cIMT was associated with total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, SBP, DBP, BMI, waist/hip ratio, and glycosylated hemoglobin. In both age groups, aIMT and cIMT were significantly correlated with the Pathobiological Determinants of Atherosclerosis in Youth coronary artery risk score.ConclusionsBoth aIMT and cIMT are associated with cardiovascular risk factors. Using aIMT in adolescents gives information beyond that obtained from cIMT alone. Measurement of aIMT and cIMT may help identify those at risk for premature cardiovascular disease

Human Resources Strategies & Lessons Learned During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Literature Review

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has been the most devastating public health crisis since the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918-1920. COVID-19 has impacted every human being and operational system throughout the land. The pandemic has caused challenging times for businesses, financial markets, government agencies, and academia. One area frequently overlooked is COVID-19’s impact implications for workplaces, working practices, and Human Resource Management (HRM) operationalization. This literature review aims to identify best practices implemented for the sustainability of Human Resources (HR) functions and the survival of institutions in the age of a dynamic public health crisis. This is an effective approach to better understand the disruptions caused by COVID-19 on HRM and examine how this pandemic has impacted organizations. The findings obtained focus on four main pillars: (1) recruitment, retention, and the Great Resignation, (2) employee well-being and wellness, (3) remote work options, practices, and professionalism, and (4) HR practitioners' leadership development. These have continued to be salient themes interwoven throughout many articles. These findings suggest that talent and having the most experienced, operationalized, and professional individuals as part of one’s organization are paramount to its success. Upskilling is imperative, and all stakeholders must be open to the inevitability of change as change is constant

An Abbreviated NAGPRA Inventory of the North Carolina Archaeological Collection

The Research Laboratories of Archaeology's inventory of human skeletal remains and associated and unassociated funerary objects from Native American sites in the North Carolina Archaeological Collection at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Using a model of group psychotherapy to support social research on sensitive topics

This article describes the exploratory use of professional therapeutic support by social researchers working on a sensitive topic. Talking to recently bereaved parents about the financial implications of their child's death was expected to be demanding work, and the research design included access to an independent psychotherapeutic service. Using this kind of professional support is rare within the general social research community, and it is useful to reflect on the process. There are likely to be implications for collection and interpretation of data, research output and the role and experience of the therapist. Here, the primary focus is the potential impact on researcher well-being

Whole-Genome Sequencing and Concordance Between Antimicrobial Susceptibility Genotypes and Phenotypes of Bacterial Isolates Associated with Bovine Respiratory Disease.

Extended laboratory culture and antimicrobial susceptibility testing timelines hinder rapid species identification and susceptibility profiling of bacterial pathogens associated with bovine respiratory disease, the most prevalent cause of cattle mortality in the United States. Whole-genome sequencing offers a culture-independent alternative to current bacterial identification methods, but requires a library of bacterial reference genomes for comparison. To contribute new bacterial genome assemblies and evaluate genetic diversity and variation in antimicrobial resistance genotypes, whole-genome sequencing was performed on bovine respiratory disease-associated bacterial isolates (Histophilus somni, Mycoplasma bovis, Mannheimia haemolytica, and Pasteurella multocida) from dairy and beef cattle. One hundred genomically distinct assemblies were added to the NCBI database, doubling the available genomic sequences for these four species. Computer-based methods identified 11 predicted antimicrobial resistance genes in three species, with none being detected in M. bovis While computer-based analysis can identify antibiotic resistance genes within whole-genome sequences (genotype), it may not predict the actual antimicrobial resistance observed in a living organism (phenotype). Antimicrobial susceptibility testing on 64 H. somni, M. haemolytica, and P. multocida isolates had an overall concordance rate between genotype and phenotypic resistance to the associated class of antimicrobials of 72.7% (P < 0.001), showing substantial discordance. Concordance rates varied greatly among different antimicrobial, antibiotic resistance gene, and bacterial species combinations. This suggests that antimicrobial susceptibility phenotypes are needed to complement genomically predicted antibiotic resistance gene genotypes to better understand how the presence of antibiotic resistance genes within a given bacterial species could potentially impact optimal bovine respiratory disease treatment and morbidity/mortality outcomes

Fitness effects of altering gene expression noise in <i>Saccharomyces cerevisiae</i>

Gene expression noise is an evolvable property of biological systems that describes differences in expression among genetically identical cells in the same environment. Prior work has shown that expression noise is heritable and can be shaped by selection, but the impact of variation in expression noise on organismal fitness has proven difficult to measure. Here, we quantify the fitness effects of altering expression noise for the TDH3 gene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We show that increases in expression noise can be deleterious or beneficial depending on the difference between the average expression level of a genotype and the expression level maximizing fitness. We also show that a simple model relating single-cell expression levels to population growth produces patterns consistent with our empirical data. We use this model to explore a broad range of average expression levels and expression noise, providing additional insight into the fitness effects of variation in expression noise

Epidemiologic Evaluation of Measurement Data in the Presence of Detection Limits

Quantitative measurements of environmental factors greatly improve the quality of epidemiologic studies but can pose challenges because of the presence of upper or lower detection limits or interfering compounds, which do not allow for precise measured values. We consider the regression of an environmental measurement (dependent variable) on several covariates (independent variables). Various strategies are commonly employed to impute values for interval-measured data, including assignment of one-half the detection limit to nondetected values or of “fill-in” values randomly selected from an appropriate distribution. On the basis of a limited simulation study, we found that the former approach can be biased unless the percentage of measurements below detection limits is small (5–10%). The fill-in approach generally produces unbiased parameter estimates but may produce biased variance estimates and thereby distort inference when 30% or more of the data are below detection limits. Truncated data methods (e.g., Tobit regression) and multiple imputation offer two unbiased approaches for analyzing measurement data with detection limits. If interest resides solely on regression parameters, then Tobit regression can be used. If individualized values for measurements below detection limits are needed for additional analysis, such as relative risk regression or graphical display, then multiple imputation produces unbiased estimates and nominal confidence intervals unless the proportion of missing data is extreme. We illustrate various approaches using measurements of pesticide residues in carpet dust in control subjects from a case–control study of non-Hodgkin lymphoma

Halofuginone inhibits TGF-β/BMP signaling and in combination with zoledronic acid enhances inhibition of breast cancer bone metastasis

More efficient therapies that target multiple molecular mechanisms are needed for the treatment of incurable bone metastases. Halofuginone is a plant alkaloid-derivative with antiangiogenic and antiproliferative effects. Here we demonstrate that halofuginone is an effective therapy for the treatment of bone metastases, through multiple actions that include inhibition of TGFβ and BMP-signaling., Halofuginone blocked TGF-β-signaling in MDA-MB-231 and PC3 cells showed by inhibition of TGF-β–induced Smad-reporter, phosphorylation of Smad-proteins, and expression of TGF-β-regulated metastatic genes. Halofuginone increased inhibitory Smad7-mRNA and reduced TGF-β-receptor II protein. Proline supplementation but not Smad7-knockdown reversed halofuginone-inhibition of TGF-β-signaling. Halofuginone also decreased BMP-signaling. Treatment of MDA-MB-231 and PC3 cells with halofuginone reduced the BMP-Smad-reporter (BRE)4, Smad1/5/8-phosphorylation and mRNA of the BMP-regulated gene Id-1. Halofuginone decreased immunostaining of phospho-Smad2/3 and phospho-Smad1/5/8 in cancer cells in vivo., Furthermore, halofuginone decreased tumor-take and growth of orthotopic-tumors. Mice with breast or prostate bone metastases treated with halofuginone had significantly less osteolysis than control mice. Combined treatment with halofuginone and zoledronic-acid significantly reduced osteolytic area more than either treatment alone. Thus, halofuginone reduces breast and prostate cancer bone metastases in mice and combined with treatment currently approved by the FDA is an effective treatment for this devastating complication of breast and prostate-cancer