Enhancing Search Strategies to Improve Clinical and Translational Research in Health Promotion

A key component in preparing clinical researchers is the development of more effective and efficient use of information technology. The use of the MeSH Database requires that a researcher have an understanding of how the database functions. The poster provides a step by step plan on how to access, use and refine a literature search

Patterns of Telehealth Usage at a Medical School Ambulatory Practice Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic

What might the attendee be able to do after being in your session? The attendee may be able to better organize their practice in anticipation of future issues that may affect patients’ ability to present to clinic. Furthermore, the attendee may be able to better accommodate patients and provide a higher quality of care via delivery through different healthcare access modes. Description of Problem or Gap Although Telehealth use had been on a slow rise for many years, it significantly increased with the onset of the COVID-19 crisis. The stay at home orders and isolation procedures dramatically changed the way patients could access healthcare and Telehealth became a valuable tool to facilitate contactless access. The objective of this study is to elucidate how patients’ access to health care changed during the pandemic and determine if different access methods (i.e., audio-only, audio with video, or face-to-face visits) were associated with specific diagnoses or patient populations. Methods: This study is a retrospective, cross-sectional study of clinic EHR (Epic) data from the Western Michigan University Homer Stryker, M.D., School of Medicine (WMed)’s ambulatory clinic from 1/2/20-12/30/21. Microsoft Excel/Python were utilized to tabulate descriptive statistics. Results: Usage of Telehealth peaked in April 2020 at the onset of the pandemic with Audio and Video visits reaching 45.8% and 18.07% of total visits, respectively. The next three months showed Audio and Video visits decline to a steady average of 12.47% and 3.58%, respectively. Fluctuations closely followed local COVID-19 case trends. Adult Video visits were most associated with psychiatric diagnoses, while video visits were most associated with the pediatric diagnoses of developmental delay and dermatitis. While White Americans and African Americans made up 62.2% and 22% of total Office visits, respectively, Video visit proportions shifted to 73.3% for White Americans and 11.8% for Black Americans. Discussion of Results: Audio and Video visits remain as continuously utilized methods of receiving healthcare even after COVID-19 mandatory closures with increases in usage predictable during worsening public health situations. Furthermore, different healthcare modalities were utilized heavily for specific diseases. Lastly, Telehealth did show differences in usage between racial/ethnic groups indicating variation in access to healthcare. Conclusion: Telehealth has become integrated into our healthcare system, remaining a viable avenue for accessing care. Differing access patterns by different patient groups and for different predominant diagnoses suggest Telehealth carries varying value propositions in a healthcare landscape marked by inequities in access to care. Attendee’s Take-away Tool: The take-away tool is the strategy for organizing a medical practice to provide improved healthcar

Influence of the algal microbiome on biofouling during industrial cultivation of Nannochloropsis sp. in closed photobioreactors

Industrial cultivation of microalgae is becoming increasingly important, yet the process is still hampered by many factors, including contamination and biofouling of the algal reactors. We characterized a subset of microorganisms occurring in the broth and different biofilm stages of industrial scale photobioreactors applied for the cultivation of Nannochloropsis sp. A total of 69 bacterial strains were isolated, belonging to at least 24 different species. In addition, a green microalga was isolated and identified as Chlamydomonas hedleyi. The effect of C. hedleyi and 24 of the bacterial isolates on the productivity of Nannochloropsis was evaluated through growth and biofilm assays. C. hedleyi was shown to reduce growth and induce biofilm formation in Nannochloropsis. These effects were however indirect as they could be attributed to the bacteria associated to C. hedleyi and not C. hedleyi itself. Although most bacterial strains reported no effect, several were able to induce biofilm formation

Blasticidin-S deaminase, a new selection marker for genetic transformation of the diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum

Most genetic transformation protocols for the model diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum rely on one of two available antibiotics as selection markers: Zeocin (a formulation of phleomycin D1) or nourseothricin. This limits the number of possible consecutive genetic transformations that can be performed. In order to expand the biotechnological possibilities for P. tricornutum, we searched for additional antibiotics and corresponding resistance genes that might be suitable for use with this diatom. Among the three different antibiotics tested in this study, blasticidin-S and tunicamycin turned out to be lethal to wild-type cells at low concentrations, while voriconazole had no detectable effect on P. tricornutum. Testing the respective resistance genes, we found that the blasticidin-S deaminase gene (bsr) effectively conferred resistance against blasticidin-S to P. tricornutum. Furthermore, we could show that expression of bsr did not lead to cross-resistances against Zeocin or nourseothricin, and that genetically transformed cell lines with resistance against Zeocin or nourseothricin were not resistant against blasticidin-S. In a proof of concept, we also successfully generated double resistant (against blasticidin-S and nourseothricin) P. tricornutum cell lines by co-delivering the bsr vector with a vector conferring nourseothricin resistance to wild-type cells

Discovery of a kleptoplastic 'dinotom' dinoflagellate and the unique nuclear dynamics of converting kleptoplastids to permanent plastids

A monophyletic group of dinoflagellates, called ‘dinotoms’, are known to possess evolutionarily intermediate plastids derived from diatoms. The diatoms maintain their nuclei, mitochondria, and the endoplasmic reticulum in addition with their plastids, while it has been observed that the host dinoflagellates retain the diatoms permanently by controlling diatom karyokinesis. Previously, we showed that dinotoms have repeatedly replaced their diatoms. Here, we show the process of replacements is at two different evolutionary stages in two closely related dinotoms, Durinskia capensis and D. kwazulunatalensis. We clarify that D. capensis is a kleptoplastic protist keeping its diatoms temporarily, only for two months. On the other hand, D. kwazulunatalensis is able to keep several diatoms permanently and exhibits unique dynamics to maintain the diatom nuclei: the nuclei change their morphologies into a complex string-shape alongside the plastids during interphase and these string-shaped nuclei then condense into multiple round nuclei when the host divides. These dynamics have been observed in other dinotoms that possess permanent diatoms, while they have never been observed in any other eukaryotes. We suggest that the establishment of this unique mechanism might be a critical step for dinotoms to be able to convert kleptoplastids into permanent plastids.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Prey preference in a kleptoplastic dinoflagellate is linked to photosynthetic performance

Dinoflagellates of the family Kryptoperidiniaceae, known as “dinotoms”, possess diatom-derived endosymbionts and contain individuals at three successive evolutionary stages: a transiently maintained kleptoplastic stage; a stage containing multiple permanently maintained diatom endosymbionts; and a further permanent stage containing a single diatom endosymbiont. Kleptoplastic dinotoms were discovered only recently, in Durinskia capensis; until now it has not been investigated kleptoplastic behavior and the metabolic and genetic integration of host and prey. Here, we show D. capensis is able to use various diatom species as kleptoplastids and exhibits different photosynthetic capacities depending on the diatom species. This is in contrast with the prey diatoms in their free-living stage, as there are no differences in their photosynthetic capacities. Complete photosynthesis including both the light reactions and the Calvin cycle remain active only when D. capensis feeds on its habitual associate, the “essential” diatom Nitzschia captiva. The organelles of another edible diatom, N. inconspicua, are preserved intact after ingestion by D. capensis and expresses the psbC gene of the photosynthetic light reaction, while RuBisCO gene expression is lost. Our results indicate that edible but non-essential, “supplemental” diatoms are used by D. capensis for producing ATP and NADPH, but not for carbon fixation. D. capensis has established a species-specifically designed metabolic system allowing carbon fixation to be performed only by its essential diatoms. The ability of D. capensis to ingest supplemental diatoms as kleptoplastids may be a flexible ecological strategy, to use these diatoms as “emergency supplies” while no essential diatoms are available.Open Access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL.We are grateful to Dr Benjamin Bailleul for discussing the photoactivity possibility of N. inconspicua, and to Prof Dieter Spiteller and Dr Adrien Lapointe for suggesting the feeding experiment of D. capensis with four selected diatoms. We also thank Dr Martin Stöckl, from the Bioimaging Centre at University of Konstanz, for technical support of the CLSM. Our thanks also go to Ms Selina Pucher and Mr Alexander H. Fürst for discussing the RT-qPCR data analyses and evaluation, and to Mr Niccolo Mosesso for discussing the TEM protocol improvement. This research was supported by the Bridging Stipend of University of Konstanz (No.638/20, granted to NY), the DFG Research Grant (No. YA 577/2-1, granted to NY), and the Symbiosis Model Systems Award (No. GBMF9360, granted to NY, RT, DGM, PGK) of the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. The CERCA Programme of Generalitat of Catalonia is also acknowledged. The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh is supported by the Scottish Government’s Rural and Environment Science and Analytical Services Division.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

AUREOCHROME1a-mediated induction of the diatom-specific cyclin dsCYC2 controls the onset of cell division in diatoms (Phaeodactylum tricornutum)

Cell division in photosynthetic organisms is tightly regulated by light. Although the light dependency of the onset of the cell cycle has been well characterized in various phototrophs, little is known about the cellular signaling cascades connecting light perception to cell cycle activation and progression. Here, we demonstrate that diatom-specific cyclin 2 (dsCYC2) in Phaeodactylum tricornutum displays a transcriptional peak within 15 min after light exposure, long before the onset of cell division. The product of dsCYC2 binds to the cyclin-dependent kinase CDKA1 and can complement G1 cyclin-deficient yeast. Consistent with the role of dsCYC2 in controlling a G1-to-S light-dependent cell cycle checkpoint, dsCYC2 silencing decreases the rate of cell division in diatoms exposed to light-dark cycles but not to constant light. Transcriptional induction of dsCYC2 is triggered by blue light in a fluence rate-dependent manner. Consistent with this, dsCYC2 is a transcriptional target of the blue light sensor AUREOCHROME1a, which functions synergistically with the basic leucine zipper (bZIP) transcription factor bZIP10 to induce dsCYC2 transcription. The functional characterization of a cyclin whose transcription is controlled by light and whose activity connects light signaling to cell cycle progression contributes significantly to our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying light-dependent cell cycle onset in diatoms

Evolution and Functional Diversification of Fructose Bisphosphate Aldolase Genes in Photosynthetic Marine Diatoms

Diatoms and other chlorophyll-c containing, or chromalveolate, algae are among the most productive and diverse phytoplankton in the ocean. Evolutionarily, chlorophyll-c algae are linked through common, although not necessarily monophyletic, acquisition of plastid endosymbionts of red as well as most likely green algal origin. There is also strong evidence for a relatively high level of lineage-specific bacterial gene acquisition within chromalveolates. Therefore, analyses of gene content and derivation in chromalveolate taxa have indicated particularly diverse origins of their overall gene repertoire. As a single group of functionally related enzymes spanning two distinct gene families, fructose 1,6-bisphosphate aldolases (FBAs) illustrate the influence on core biochemical pathways of specific evolutionary associations among diatoms and other chromalveolates with various plastid-bearing and bacterial endosymbionts. Protein localization and activity, gene expression, and phylogenetic analyses indicate that the pennate diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum contains five FBA genes with very little overall functional overlap. Three P. tricornutum FBAs, one class I and two class II, are plastid localized, and each appears to have a distinct evolutionary origin as well as function. Class I plastid FBA appears to have been acquired by chromalveolates from a red algal endosymbiont, whereas one copy of class II plastid FBA is likely to have originated from an ancient green algal endosymbiont. The other copy appears to be the result of a chromalveolate-specific gene duplication. Plastid FBA I and chromalveolate-specific class II plastid FBA are localized in the pyrenoid region of the chloroplast where they are associated with β-carbonic anhydrase, which is known to play a significant role in regulation of the diatom carbon concentrating mechanism. The two pyrenoid-associated FBAs are distinguished by contrasting gene expression profiles under nutrient limiting compared with optimal CO2 fixation conditions, suggestive of a distinct specialized function for each. Cytosolically localized FBAs in P. tricornutum likely play a role in glycolysis and cytoskeleton function and seem to have originated from the stramenopile host cell and from diatom-specific bacterial gene transfer, respectively

Plastid thylakoid architecture optimizes photosynthesis in diatoms

Photosynthesis is a unique process that allows independent colonization of the land by plants and of the oceans by phytoplankton. Although the photosynthesis process is well understood in plants, we are still unlocking the mechanisms evolved by phytoplankton to achieve extremely efficient photosynthesis. Here, we combine biochemical, structural and in vivo physiological studies to unravel the structure of the plastid in diatoms, prominent marine eukaryotes. Biochemical and immunolocalization analyses reveal segregation of photosynthetic complexes in the loosely stacked thylakoid membranes typical of diatoms. Separation of photosystems within subdomains minimizes their physical contacts, as required for improved light utilization. Chloroplast 3D reconstruction and in vivo spectroscopy show that these subdomains are interconnected, ensuring fast equilibration of electron carriers for efficient optimum photosynthesis. Thus, diatoms and plants have converged towards a similar functional distribution of the photosystems although via different thylakoid architectures, which likely evolved independently in the land and the ocean.ISSN:2041-172