Concert recording 2018-05-02a

[Track 1]. From 5 Canti all\u27antica. I. Ma come potre [Track 2]. II. Ballata [Track 3]. Nebbie [Track 4]. E se un giorno tornasse / Ottorino Respighi -- [Track 5]. From Italianisches Liederbuch. I. Auch kleine Dinge [Track 6]. II. Ich liess mir sage / Hugo Wolf -- [Track 7]. In uomini in Soldati from Cosi fan tutte / Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart -- [Track 8]. Ain\u27t it a pretty night from Susannah / Carlisle Floyd -- [Track 9]. Summertime from Porgy and Bess / George Gershwin

I Matter: Understanding the Self-Care Practices of School Counselors During the COVID-19 Pandemic and How Internal and External Factors Create Barriers

Diminished self-care practices and heightened stress of school counselors is a continuing problem in education. With role ambiguity, high student-to-counselor ratios, emotional exhaustion, and others adding pressure to the roles and responsibilities of school counselors, this study investigated the self-care practices of Missouri school counselors and the internal and external factors which influence them, specifically within the context COVID-19. Clayton Alderfer’s (1972) Existence, Relatedness, and Growth theory was used as a theoretical framework for chosen self-care practices represented in this study and was supported by Robert Kegan’s and Lisa Lahey’s (2009) Immunity to Change theory to understand the competing commitments combating healthy self-care practices among school counselors. Findings demonstrate the failed attainment of many basic human needs according to literature recommendations and guides for best practices. Additionally, with data collection occurring at the precipice of COVID-19 (i.e., spring of 2020), its impact on the self-care practices of Missouri school counselors was evident. These results indicate three levels of decision making which are paramount to school counselors achieving and sustaining healthy self-care practices—the individual as a decision maker; the organization as a decision maker; and policy as a decision maker

Information Given to Parents of Neonatal-Intensive Care Unit Graduates on Hearing

Preterm infants and neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) graduates are more likely to have risk factors associated with hearing loss than their full-term, healthy peers, making them more prone to experience hearing loss (Behrman & Butler, 2007). This study examined information presented to parents during and after the newborn hearing screening (NBHS). A 22 question survey was posted on NICU and preemie support websites for parents to access and participate in anonymously. Results of the survey were analyzed for respondents indicating that their child was born in the year 2007 to the present. Thirty-nine percent of responding parents were unaware their child had a risk factor for hearing loss. Parents reported that nurses most often delivered NBHS results, although all medical professionals listed in the survey were equally likely to educate parents on risk factors pertaining to their child. Data indicated a gap between medical professionals and parents concerning NBHS follow-up information. Written follow-up procedures after NBHS test results are given to the parents should be included in a discharge packet as well as information relating to the normal development of auditory, speech and language milestones

Hearing loss diagnosis provision of information and support: audiologist and parent perspectives

When a child is diagnosed with hearing loss, the parents are faced with many decisions that will impact their child’s future. This study aimed to obtain data to determine viewpoints on information being provided to parents of children with hearing loss from both audiologist and parent perspectives. Topics of information surveyed included information on modes of communication, Deaf culture, cochlear implants, emotional support, and state resources/laws. A survey was created and shared in Facebook groups for audiologists and parents of Deaf/hard of hearing children. The survey was completed by 91 audiologists and 111 parents. Audiologist and parent survey data was analyzed and compared to look for similarities, differences, and possible biases. The data obtained in the study showed that overall, information on the topics investigated is being provided to parents when their child is initially diagnosed with hearing loss. However, many parents felt that the information that was provided was insufficient; therefore, they did not feel confident in their decision-making process. Audiologists have the responsibility to provide parents with unbiased, extensive information for parents to successfully make informed decisions for their child. Provision of practical, comprehensive information and recommendations may lead to improved parent knowledge and confidence

Machine learning a model for RNA structure prediction

RNA function crucially depends on its structure. Thermodynamic models currently used for secondary structure prediction rely on computing the partition function of folding ensembles, and can thus estimate minimum free-energy structures and ensemble populations. These models sometimes fail in identifying native structures unless complemented by auxiliary experimental data. Here, we build a set of models that combine thermodynamic parameters, chemical probing data (DMS and SHAPE) and co-evolutionary data (direct coupling analysis) through a network that outputs perturbations to the ensemble free energy. Perturbations are trained to increase the ensemble populations of a representative set of known native RNA structures. In the chemical probing nodes of the network, a convolutional window combines neighboring reactivities, enlightening their structural information content and the contribution of local conformational ensembles. Regularization is used to limit overfitting and improve transferability. The most transferable model is selected through a cross-validation strategy that estimates the performance of models on systems on which they are not trained. With the selected model we obtain increased ensemble populations for native structures and more accurate predictions in an independent validation set. The flexibility of the approach allows the model to be easily retrained and adapted to incorporate arbitrary experimental information

Long term cost effectiveness of interventions for obesity:A Mendelian randomisation study

Background The prevalence of obesity has increased in the United Kingdom, and reliably measuring the impact on quality of life and the total healthcare cost from obesity is key to informing the cost-effectiveness of interventions that target obesity, and determining healthcare funding. Current methods for estimating cost-effectiveness of interventions for obesity may be subject to confounding and reverse causation. The aim of this study is to apply a new approach using mendelian randomisation for estimating the cost-effectiveness of interventions that target body mass index (BMI), which may be less affected by confounding and reverse causation than previous approaches. Methods and findings We estimated health-related quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) and both primary and secondary healthcare costs for 310,913 men and women of white British ancestry aged between 39 and 72 years in UK Biobank between recruitment (2006 to 2010) and 31 March 2017. We then estimated the causal effect of differences in BMI on QALYs and total healthcare costs using mendelian randomisation. For this, we used instrumental variable regression with a polygenic risk score (PRS) for BMI, derived using a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of BMI, with age, sex, recruitment centre, and 40 genetic principal components as covariables to estimate the effect of a unit increase in BMI on QALYs and total healthcare costs. Finally, we used simulations to estimate the likely effect on BMI of policy relevant interventions for BMI, then used the mendelian randomisation estimates to estimate the cost-effectiveness of these interventions. A unit increase in BMI decreased QALYs by 0.65% of a QALY (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.49% to 0.81%) per year and increased annual total healthcare costs by £42.23 (95% CI: £32.95 to £51.51) per person. When considering only health conditions usually considered in previous cost-effectiveness modelling studies (cancer, cardiovascular disease, cerebrovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes), we estimated that a unit increase in BMI decreased QALYs by only 0.16% of a QALY (95% CI: 0.10% to 0.22%) per year. We estimated that both laparoscopic bariatric surgery among individuals with BMI greater than 35 kg/m2, and restricting volume promotions for high fat, salt, and sugar products, would increase QALYs and decrease total healthcare costs, with net monetary benefits (at £20,000 per QALY) of £13,936 (95% CI: £8,112 to £20,658) per person over 20 years, and £546 million (95% CI: £435 million to £671 million) in total per year, respectively. The main limitations of this approach are that mendelian randomisation relies on assumptions that cannot be proven, including the absence of directional pleiotropy, and that genotypes are independent of confounders. Conclusions Mendelian randomisation can be used to estimate the impact of interventions on quality of life and healthcare costs. We observed that the effect of increasing BMI on health-related quality of life is much larger when accounting for 240 chronic health conditions, compared with only a limited selection. This means that previous cost-effectiveness studies have likely underestimated the effect of BMI on quality of life and, therefore, the potential cost-effectiveness of interventions to reduce BMI

Characterization of SARS-CoV-2 replication complex elongation and proofreading activity

The replication complex (RC) of SARS-CoV-2 was recently shown to be one of the fastest RNA-dependent RNA polymerases of any known coronavirus. With this rapid elongation, the RC is more prone to incorporate mismatches during elongation, resulting in a highly variable genomic sequence. Such mutations render the design of viral protein targets difficult, as drugs optimized for a given viral protein sequence can quickly become inefficient as the genomic sequence evolves. Here, we use biochemical experiments to characterize features of RNA template recognition and elongation fidelity of the SARS-CoV-2 RdRp, and the role of the exonuclease, nsp14. Our study highlights the 2′OH group of the RNA ribose as a critical component for RdRp template recognition and elongation. We show that RdRp fidelity is reduced in the presence of the 3′ deoxy-terminator nucleotide 3′dATP, which promotes the incorporation of mismatched nucleotides (leading to U:C, U:G, U:U, C:U, and A:C base pairs). We find that the nsp10–nsp14 heterodimer is unable to degrade RNA products lacking free 2′OH or 3′OH ribose groups. Our results suggest the potential use of 3′ deoxy-terminator nucleotides in RNA-derived oligonucleotide inhibitors as antivirals against SARS-CoV-2

Adaptive Gene Expression Divergence Inferred from Population Genomics

Detailed studies of individual genes have shown that gene expression divergence often results from adaptive evolution of regulatory sequence. Genome-wide analyses, however, have yet to unite patterns of gene expression with polymorphism and divergence to infer population genetic mechanisms underlying expression evolution. Here, we combined genomic expression data—analyzed in a phylogenetic context—with whole genome light-shotgun sequence data from six Drosophila simulans lines and reference sequences from D. melanogaster and D. yakuba. These data allowed us to use molecular population genetics to test for neutral versus adaptive gene expression divergence on a genomic scale. We identified recent and recurrent adaptive evolution along the D. simulans lineage by contrasting sequence polymorphism within D. simulans to divergence from D. melanogaster and D. yakuba. Genes that evolved higher levels of expression in D. simulans have experienced adaptive evolution of the associated 3′ flanking and amino acid sequence. Concomitantly, these genes are also decelerating in their rates of protein evolution, which is in agreement with the finding that highly expressed genes evolve slowly. Interestingly, adaptive evolution in 5′ cis-regulatory regions did not correspond strongly with expression evolution. Our results provide a genomic view of the intimate link between selection acting on a phenotype and associated genic evolution

Concert recording 2016-10-26

[Track 1]. Come raggio di sol / Antonio Caldara -- [Track 2]. Wishing you were somehow here again from The phantom of the opera / Andrew Lloyd Webber -- [Track 3]. Nicht mehr zu dir zu gehen / Johannes Brahms -- [Track 4]. You are not rich from La périchole / Jacques Offenbach -- [Track 5]. Una donna a quindici anni from Cosi fan tutte / Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart -- [Track 6]. Stranger in paradise from Kismet / George Forrest -- [Track 7]. Come paride vezzoso from L\u27elisir d\u27amore / Gaetano Donizetti Questo amor, vergogna mia from Edgar / Giacomo Puccini -- [Track 8]. Dein angesicht / Robert Schumann -- [Track 9]. Mai / Gabriel Faure -- [Track 10]. Ganymed / Franz Schubert -- [Track 11]. The sound of music from The sound of music / Richard Rodgers Oscar Hammerstein II -- [Track 12]. Après un rève / Faure -- [Track 13]. Steal me, sweet thief from The old main and the thief / Fian Carlo Menotti -- [Track 14]. Four encore songs / Florence Price -- [Track 15]. Morire / Puccini -- [Track 16]. Come scoglio from Cosi fan tutte / Mozart