People in Jail and Prison in Spring 2021

Vera Institute of Justice (Vera) researchers collected data on the number of people in local jails and state and federal prisons throughout 2020 and into spring 2021. Vera researchers estimated the incarcerated population using a sample of approximately 1,600 jail jurisdictions, 50 states, the Federal Bureau of Prisons, the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The data shows that a little more than a year since the first calls to release incarcerated people during the COVID-19 pandemic, decarceration efforts appear to have stalled—even as the pandemic still rages and the country continues to lead the world in incarceration. The relative stasis in incarceration since late 2020 is the result of a refilling of many jails and a small, further decrease in prison populations

A Preliminary Investigation of the Impact of Forest Management Practices on Microhabitat Abiotic Variables in the Southern Appalachian Mountains

Existing research has demonstrated that forest management practices (e.g., clear-cutting, planting) can dramatically impact animal communities. This is particularly the case with amphibian populations due to their sensitivity to microhabitat alterations. However, few studies have investigated the manner by which forest management practices impact the abiotic variables most relevant to healthy amphibian populations. In this study we investigated how spatially localized forest management practices (i.e., at the scale of hundreds of meters) alter the microhabitat variables that have been shown important to amphibian population distributions. We assessed the relationship between forest composition and microhabitat abiotic variables across three localities with differing management histories in Lumpkin County, Georgia. Site A consisted solely of systematically distributed planted pines, Site B was composed of planted pine and mixed hardwoods, and Site C contained only mixed hardwoods. To quantitatively assess these differences in forest composition, we conducted a point-centered quarter tree survey at each locality and measured ambient temperature, soil temperature, air humidity, light intensity, and soil pH daily over a 60-day period. Our results indicate that soil moisture and pH differ across these localities. These data suggest that even at highly resolved spatial scales, forest management practices can dramatically impact the suitability of microhabitats for amphibian populations. This localized impact should be considered more broadly, but especially in regions with particularly dense amphibian population

Improving Nurse Handoff Communication with an End of Shift Summary SmartPhrase

https://digitalcommons.psjhealth.org/summit_all/1059/thumbnail.jp

Association between Depression and Aggression in Rural Women

Rural women represent approximately 20% of women living in the United States, yet research on the specific mental health needs of rural women is limited. Given the well-recognized gender-linked disparity in depression, its correlated symptoms in women still need much investigation. While emerging notions of depression in men embrace potential symptoms related to irritability and aggression, less research has focused on the potential role of aggression in depressed women. This connection may be particularly relevant for rural women who face unique mental health stressors in comparison to their urban counterparts. The purpose of this study was to examine if aggression is linked to depression for rural women in order to identify potential unique symptomatology and presentation for rural women. As part of a larger initiative, a sample of 54 participants was recruited from the patient population at a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in rural southeast Georgia to participate in a quantitative survey. The survey assessed demographics, depression, and aggressive behavior. Mean total score of aggression in depressed women was significantly higher than non-depressed women (p \u3c 0.001), and within the entire sample depression scores were significantly related linearly to aggression, explaining 16% of the variance found in depression scores (β = .399, r2 = .159, p = 0.003). This study suggests that aggressive behavior may be linked to depression for rural women, and underscores the need for future research investigating if depression presents differently for rural women

Physiological intron retaining transcripts in the cytoplasm abound during human motor neurogenesis

Intron retention (IR) is now recognized as a dominant splicing event during motor neuron (MN) development, however the role and regulation of intron-retaining transcripts (IRTs) localized to the cytoplasm remain particularly understudied. Here we show that IR is a physiological process that is spatiotemporally regulated during MN lineage restriction and that IRTs in the cytoplasm are detected in as many as 13% (n=2297) of the genes expressed during this process. We identify a major class of cytoplasmic IRTs, which are not associated with reduced expression of their own genes, but instead show a high capacity for RNA-binding protein and miRNA occupancy. Finally, we show that ALS-causing VCP mutations lead to a selective increase in cytoplasmic abundance of this particular class of IRTs, which in turn temporally coincides with an increase in the nuclear expression level of predicted miRNA target genes. Altogether, our study identifies a previously unrecognized class of cytoplasmic intronic sequences with potential regulatory function beyond gene expression

Cross-cultural equivalence of the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) across four African countries in a multi-national study of adults

The Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) has been widely used to screen psychological distress across many countries. However, its performance has not been extensively studied in Africa. The present study sought to evaluate and compare measurement properties of the K10 across four African countries: Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, and South Africa. Our hypothesis is that the measure will show equivalence across all. Data are drawn from a neuropsychiatric genetic study among adult participants (N = 9179) from general medical settings in Ethiopia (n = 1928), Kenya (n = 2556), Uganda (n = 2104), and South Africa (n = 2591). A unidimensional model with correlated errors was tested for equivalence across study countries using confir- matory factor analyses and the alignment optimization method. Results displayed 30 % noninvariance (i.e., variation) for both intercepts and factor loadings across all countries. Monte Carlo simulations showed a cor- relation of 0.998, a good replication of population values, indicating minimal noninvariance, or variation. Items “so nervous,” “lack of energy/effortful tasks,” and “tired” were consistently equivalent for intercepts and factor loadings, respectively. However, items “depressed” and “so depressed” consistently differed across study coun- tries (R2 = 0) for intercepts and factor loadings for both items

Identification of genomic aberrations in hemangioblastoma by droplet digital PCR and SNP microarray highlights novel candidate genes and pathways for pathogenesis

Background: The genetic mechanisms underlying hemangioblastoma development are still largely unknown. We used high-resolution single nucleotide polymorphism microarrays and droplet digital PCR analysis to detect copy number variations (CNVs) in total of 45 hemangioblastoma tumors. Results: We identified 94 CNVs with a median of 18 CNVs per sample. The most frequently gained regions were on chromosomes 1 (p36.32) and 7 (p11.2). These regions contain the EGFR and PRDM16 genes. Recurrent losses were located at chromosome 12 (q24.13), which includes the gene PTPN11. Conclusions: Our findings provide the first high-resolution genome-wide view of chromosomal changes in hemangioblastoma and identify 23 candidate genes: EGFR, PRDM16, PTPN11, HOXD11, HOXD13, FLT3, PTCH, FGFR1, FOXP1, GPC3, HOXC13, HOXC11, MKL1, CHEK2, IRF4, GPHN, IKZF1, RB1, HOXA9, and micro RNA, such as hsa-mir-196a-2 for hemangioblastoma pathogenesis. Furthermore, our data implicate that cell proliferation and angiogenesis promoting pathways may be involved in the molecular pathogenesis of hemangioblastoma

Nucleocytoplasmic mRNA redistribution accompanies RNA binding protein mislocalization in ALS motor neurons and is restored by VCP ATPase inhibition

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is characterized by nucleocytoplasmic mislocalization of the RNA-binding protein (RBP) TDP-43. However, emerging evidence suggests more widespread mRNA and protein mislocalization. Here, we employed nucleocytoplasmic fractionation, RNA sequencing, and mass spectrometry to investigate the localization of mRNA and protein in induced pluripotent stem cell-derived motor neurons (iPSMNs) from ALS patients with TARDBP and VCP mutations. ALS mutant iPSMNs exhibited extensive nucleocytoplasmic mRNA redistribution, RBP mislocalization, and splicing alterations. Mislocalized proteins exhibited a greater affinity for redistributed transcripts, suggesting a link between RBP mislocalization and mRNA redistribution. Notably, treatment with ML240, a VCP ATPase inhibitor, partially restored mRNA and protein localization in ALS mutant iPSMNs. ML240 induced changes in the VCP interactome and lysosomal localization and reduced oxidative stress and DNA damage. These findings emphasize the link between RBP mislocalization and mRNA redistribution in ALS motor neurons and highlight the therapeutic potential of VCP inhibition

Quantum Instrumentation Control Kit -- Defect Arbitrary Waveform Generator (QICK-DAWG): A Quantum Sensing Control Framework for Quantum Defects

Quantum information communication, sensing, and computation often require complex and expensive instrumentation resulting in a large entry barrier. The Quantum Instrumentation Control Kit (QICK) overcomes this barrier for superconducting qubits with a collection of software and firmware for state-of-the-art radio frequency system on chip (RFSoC's) field programmable gate architecture (FPGA) chips. Here we present a software and firmware extension to QICK, the Quantum Instrumentation Control Kit - Defect Arbitrary Waveform Generator (QICK-DAWG), which is an open-source software and firmware package that supports full quantum control and measurement of nitrogen-vacancy defects in diamond and other quantum defects using RFSoC FPGAs. QICKDAWG extends QICK to the characterization of nitrogen-vacancy defects and other diamond quantum defects by implementing DC-1 GHz readout, AOM or gated laser control, and analog or photon counting readout options. QICK-DAWG also adds pulse sequence programs and data analysis scripts to collect and characterize photoluminescence (PL) intensity, optically detected magnetic resonance (ODMR) spectra, PL readout windows, Rabi oscillations, Ramsay interference spectra, Hahn echo spin-spin relaxation times T$_2$, and spin-lattice relaxation times T$_1$. We demonstrate that QICK-DAWG is a powerful new paradigm of open source quantum hardware that significantly lowers the entry barrier and cost for quantum sensing using quantum defects.Comment: 8 pages, 1 figure, GitHub https://github.com/sandialabs/qick-daw