Morphological Comparison of Fourth-Instar Larvae from Various Populations of Wyeomyia smithii

Populations of pitcher plant mosquitoes, Wyeomyia smithii, have exhibited recent shifts in blood-feeding behavior, likely in response to changes in climate and food availability. A comparison of various morphological structures in fourth-instar larvae was conducted to investigate the hypothesis that geographic and temporal dietary differences are reflected in changes in organismal size

Trends of MRSA/ORSA from 2000-2013, Cerner data base

Introduction: We have seen an increase in MRSA isolates in staphylococcal infections for the past forty years and the past twenty years we are seeing an increase in community acquired resistant infections.Research Question: Identify the trends of community acquired infections across four regions of the United States: East, South, Midwest, and West.Study Design: Retrospective longitudinal studyMethods: We performed a retrospective study using data obtained within the Cerner electronic medical record that was made available to OSU CHS. The data collected was between the years of 2000 - 2013 using age, sex, and resistance patterns. Data was then analyzed using descriptive statistics in excel.Results: The total number of Staphylococcal infections 82,500 adult cases and 15,215 pediatric cases. The trend was a decline in total number of Staphylococcus aurous infections in the resistant and susceptible groups from 2000 --2013. However, the percent of resistant infections in the community population has increased over this time with the highest percentage in the Southern region and within pediatric groups.Conclusions: Although we have seen a decrease in the total number of reported cases of staphylococcal infections from 2000 -- 2013 there has been an increase in the percent of infections that grow out resistant strains of S. aureus. This data shows that the virulence of MRSA is extending from hospitalized patients that we have traditionally thought of as susceptible out into the general population

Comparison of cortisol samples in the first two weeks of life in preterm infants

Background: Growing literature on negative childhood stress emphasizes the need to understand cortisol values from varying biomarker samples. Objective: This work aimed to examine cortisol samples for usability, associations, and individual stability in neonates. Subjects: The sample consisted of preterm infants (n=31). Materials and methods: Analyses on cortisol collected from cord blood and from saliva and urine samples on days 1, 7, and 14 included Spearman correlations and paired t-tests. Results: Usability rates were 80.6% (cord blood), 85.9% (saliva), and 93.5% (urine). Salivary and urinary cortisol levels had significant correlation on day 1 only (p=0.004). Significant differences in individual stability of cortisol concentrations existed except in urine on days 1 and 7 and in saliva on days 7 and 14. Conclusions: Usability was highest for urine samples. We found little correlation between cortisol sample levels at each time; individual stability of cortisol concentrations was minimal. Interpretation of cortisol findings in all studies should be performed cautiously

Does private vehicle transport in trauma really save you time and money?

Introduction: Current data suggest trauma patients arriving via private vehicle transport (PVT) have improved outcomes compared to patients arriving via EMS due to quicker hospital arrival. Though some researchers have speculated that this may be due to a quicker arrival to the hospital, arrival by PVT may actually impair resuscitation efforts due to the lack of pre-hospital triage leading to delayed mobilization of teams, patient drop-offs at the wrong location, more frequent transfers to another facility, and the transport of patients who may have otherwise been declared dead on scene. This study hypothesizes PVT actually lengthens time to care, impairs resuscitation efforts, and increases overall costs due to the lack of pre-hospital triage. Methods: This is a single-site retrospective study conducted at an academic, regional, Level 1 Trauma Center in Detroit from 2013-2017. Inclusion criteria were trauma patients presenting to the hospital utilizing PVT that were admitted, died in the emergency department, or transferred out of hospital. Exclusion criteria include patients transferred from outside hospitals. Patients with the same inclusion and exclusion criteria utilizing EMS transportation were the comparison group (N=4997, PVT n=1782). The data were obtained from a trauma registry and chart review. To describe statistical significance (p\u3c0.01), chi-square tests were utilized for nominal data and independent samples t-tests were utilized for continuous data. Results: In total, 36% of trauma patients utilized PVT. Of the 11% of patients were transferred out of the hospital, 60% arrived by PVT. The vast majority (76%) of patients transferred were burn or pediatric patients. The overall rate of DOA was 3%, 89% of which arrived by EMS. There was no significant difference in time from arrival to disposition from the ED overall. However time to disposition was shorter for patients arriving by PVT in patients activated at the highest level and longer for patients who were admitted to the ICU. Cost associated with patients who were transferred out of the hospital and those pronounced DOA are described. Conclusions: Though the hypothesis is supported by the significantly higher proportion of patients who arrived by PVT requiring transfer out of our hospital and associated cost, contrary to the hypothesis there was and no difference with time to disposition overall and a lower proportion of patients who were pronounced DOA. A possible explanation is extensive diagnostic studies and procedures for patients arriving by EMS as previous studies demonstrate these patients are more likely to have poly-trauma, injuries to the head or torso and higher injury severity.https://scholarlycommons.henryford.com/merf2019hvc/1007/thumbnail.jp

Step width variability as a discriminator of age-related gait changes

Background There is scientific evidence that older adults aged 65 and over walk with increased step width variability which has been associated with risk of falling. However, there are presently no threshold levels that define the optimal reference range of step width variability. Thus, the purpose of our study was to estimate the optimal reference range for identifying older adults with normative and excessive step width variability. Methods We searched systematically the BMC, Cochrane Library, EBSCO, Frontiers, IEEE, PubMed, Scopus, SpringerLink, Web of Science, Wiley, and PROQUEST databases until September 2018, and included the studies that measured step width variability in both younger and older adults during walking at self-selected speed. Data were pooled in meta-analysis, and standardized mean differences (SMD) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated. A single-decision threshold method based on the Youden index, and a two-decision threshold method based on the uncertain interval method were used to identify the optimal threshold levels (PROSPERO registration: CRD42018107079). Results Ten studies were retrieved (older adults = 304; younger adults = 219). Step width variability was higher in older than in younger adults (SMD = 1.15, 95% CI = 0.60; 1.70; t = 4.72, p = 0.001). The single-decision method set the threshold level for excessive step width variability at 2.14 cm. For the two-decision method, step width variability values above the upper threshold level of 2.50 cm were considered excessive, while step width variability values below the lower threshold level of 1.97 cm were considered within the optimal reference range. Conclusion Step width variability is higher in older adults than in younger adults, with step width variability values above the upper threshold level of 2.50 cm to be considered as excessive. This information could potentially impact rehabilitation technology design for devices targeting lateral stability during walking

Characterizing User Behavior and Information Propagation on a Social Multimedia Network

An increasing portion of modern socializing takes place via online social networks. Members of these communities often play distinct roles that can be deduced from observations of users' online activities. One such activity is the sharing of multimedia, the popularity of which can vary dramatically. Here we discuss our initial analysis of anonymized, scraped data from consenting Facebook users, together with associated demographic and psychological profiles. We present five clusters of users with common observed online behaviors, where these users also show correlated profile characteristics. Finally, we identify some common properties of the most popular multimedia content.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures, 2 tables, to be published in the proceedings of the Int. Workshop on Social Multimedia Research (SMMR) 2013. 2013 IEE

Industry 5 and the human in human-centric manufacturing

The 4th Industrial Revolution, or, Industry 4 (I4) involves a qualitatively new level of interconnectedness between system and point technologies, and human-machine interactions. The calls for a shift to Industry 5 (I5) in digital manufacturing stem from concerns for human labour working in I4, namelyhealth and safety, data generation and extraction. I5 seeks to reframe hu-man-machine relations to reflect a values driven approach based on collaboration and co-design. Sensors play an important role in these developments. This article explores how engineering experts integrate such values into their modelling. Two questions are addressed: 1. To what extent is con-sideration of the human integrated into discussions of advanced operational technologies, whether as end users or as contributors to the process? 2. How do these findings inform I5’s quest for hu-man-centric manufacturing reflecting collaboration and co-design between human and machine? Drawing on an interdisciplinary perspective, a systematic literature review and interpretive coding of academic papers considers relevant I5 technologies (digital twins, cyber-physical systems), and applications (robotics, sensors). Findings demonstrate an increase in output addressing human ac-tivity in modelling and the technologies available to address this concern, but the human-centric approach in I5 so far neglects the potential for human agency to increase the effectiveness of manufacturing systems

LGR5 receptor promotes cell-cell adhesion in stem cells and colon cancer cells via the IQGAP1-Rac1 pathway

Leucine-rich repeat-containing G protein–coupled receptor 5 (LGR5) is a bona fide marker of adult stem cells in several epithelial tissues, most notably in the intestinal crypts, and is highly up-regulated in many colorectal, hepatocellular, and ovarian cancers. LGR5 activation by R-spondin (RSPO) ligands potentiates Wnt/β-catenin signaling in vitro; however, deletion of LGR5 in stem cells has little or no effect on Wnt/β-catenin signaling or cell proliferation in vivo. Remarkably, modulation of LGR5 expression has a major impact on the actin cytoskeletal structure and cell adhesion in the absence of RSPO stimulation, but the molecular mechanism is unclear. Here, we show that LGR5 interacts with IQ motif-containing GTPase-activating protein 1 (IQGAP1), an effector of Rac1/CDC42 GTPases, in the regulation of actin cytoskeleton dynamics and cell–cell adhesion. Specifically, LGR5 decreased levels of IQGAP1 phosphorylation at Ser-1441/1443, leading to increased binding of Rac1 to IQGAP1 and thus higher levels of cortical F-actin and enhanced cell–cell adhesion. LGR5 ablation in colon cancer cells and crypt stem cells resulted in loss of cortical F-actin, reduced cell–cell adhesion, and disrupted localization of adhesion-associated proteins. No evidence of LGR5 coupling to any of the four major subtypes of heterotrimeric G proteins was found. These findings suggest that LGR5 primarily functions via the IQGAP1–Rac1 pathway to strengthen cell–cell adhesion in normal adult crypt stem cells and colon cancer cells