The Impact of Media on the Public\u27s Perception of Texas Foster Care

This study explores if valid information can mitigate stereotypes of foster care as reflected in popular media, specifically in the context of the State of Texas. A quasiexperimental, post-test only design assessed the role that media plays in the public’s perception of foster care in the state of Texas. Results indicate that media, in the form of a professional presentation, made statistically significant differences between treatment and control groups in regard to the overall perception and general attitudes towards the foster care system in the State of Texas. Results indicate the need for further research in the area of media’s impact on the public’s perception of foster care

The MAGEC System for Spinal Lengthening in Children with Scoliosis: A NICE Medical Technology Guidance

Scoliosis—structural lateral curvature of the spine—affects around four children per 1,000. The MAGEC system comprises a magnetically distractible spinal rod implant and an external remote controller, which lengthens the rod; this system avoids repeated surgical lengthening. Rod implants brace the spine internally and are lengthened as the child grows, preventing worsening of scoliosis and delaying the need for spinal fusion. The Medical Technologies Advisory Committee at the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) selected the MAGEC system for evaluation in a NICE medical technologies guidance. Six studies were identified by the sponsor (Ellipse Technologies Inc.) as being relevant to the decision problem. Meta-analysis was used to compare the clinical evidence results with those of one conventional growth rod study, and equal efficacy of the two devices was concluded. The key weakness was selection of a single comparator study. The External Assessment Centre (EAC) identified 16 conventional growth rod studies and undertook meta-analyses of relevant outcomes. Its critique highlighted limitations around study heterogeneity and variations in baseline characteristics and follow-up duration, precluding the ability to draw firm conclusions. The sponsor constructed a de novo costing model showing that MAGEC rods generated cost savings of £9,946 per patient after 6 years, compared with conventional rods. The EAC critiqued and updated the model structure and inputs, calculating robust cost savings of £12,077 per patient with MAGEC rods compared with conventional rods over 6 years. The year of valuation was 2012. NICE issued a positive recommendation as supported by the evidence (Medical Technologies Guidance 18)

How does the mental health and wellbeing of teachers compare to other professions? Evidence from eleven survey datasets

There is growing concern about the mental health and wellbeing of teachers globally, with the stress caused by the job thought to be a key factor driving many to leave the profession. It is often claimed that teachers have worse mental health and wellbeing outcomes than other occupational groups. Yet academic evidence on this matter remains limited, with some studies supporting this notion, while a handful of others do not. We contribute to this debate by providing the largest, most comprehensive analysis of differences in mental health and wellbeing between teachers and other professional workers to date. Drawing upon data from across 11 social surveys, we find little evidence that teachers have worse health and wellbeing outcomes than other occupational groups. Research in this area must now shift away from whether teachers are disproportionately affected by such issues towards strengthening the evidence on the likely drivers of mental ill‐health within the education profession

Effects of antiplatelet therapy on stroke risk by brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases: subgroup analyses of the RESTART randomised, open-label trial

Background Findings from the RESTART trial suggest that starting antiplatelet therapy might reduce the risk of recurrent symptomatic intracerebral haemorrhage compared with avoiding antiplatelet therapy. Brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases (such as cerebral microbleeds) are associated with greater risks of recurrent intracerebral haemorrhage. We did subgroup analyses of the RESTART trial to explore whether these brain imaging features modify the effects of antiplatelet therapy

Observing Temporally Varying Synoptic-Scale Total Alkalinity and Dissolved Inorganic Carbon in the Arctic Ocean

The long-term absorption by the oceans of atmospheric carbon dioxide is leading to the slow decline of ocean pH, a process termed ocean acidification (OA). The Arctic is a challenging region to gather enough data to examine the changes in carbonate chemistry over sufficient scales. However, algorithms that calculate carbonate chemistry parameters from more frequently measured parameters, such as temperature and salinity, can be used to fill in data gaps. Here, these published algorithms were evaluated against in situ measurements using different data input types (data from satellites or in situ re-analysis climatologies) across the Arctic Ocean. With the lowest uncertainties in the Atlantic influenced Seas (AiS), where re-analysis inputs achieved total alkalinity estimates with Root Mean Squared Deviation (RMSD) of 21 μmol kg−1 and a bias of 2 μmol kg−1 (n = 162) and dissolved inorganic carbon RMSD of 24 μmol kg−1 and bias of −14 μmol kg−1 (n = 262). AiS results using satellite observation inputs show similar bias but larger RMSD, although due to the shorter time span of available satellite observations, more contemporary in situ data would provide further assessment and improvement. Synoptic-scale observations of surface water carbonate conditions in the Arctic are now possible to monitor OA, but targeted in situ data collection is needed to enable the full exploitation of satellite observation-based approaches.publishedVersio

Breast cancer dependence on MCL-1 is due to its canonical anti-apoptotic function-AAM

High levels of the anti-apoptotic BCL-2 family member MCL-1 are frequently found in breast cancer and, appropriately, BH3-mimetic drugs that specifically target MCL-1’s function in apoptosis are in development as anti-cancer therapy. MCL-1 also has reported non-canonical roles that may be relevant in its tumour-promoting effect. Here we investigate the role of MCL-1 in clinically relevant breast cancer models and address whether the canonical role of MCL-1 in apoptosis, which can be targeted using BH3-mimetic drugs, is the major function for MCL-1 in breast cancer. We show that MCL-1 is essential in established tumours with genetic deletion inducing tumour regression and inhibition with the MCL-1-specific BH3-mimetic drug S63845 significantly impeding tumour growth. Importantly, we found that the anti-tumour functions achieved by MCL-1 deletion or inhibition were completely dependent on pro-apoptotic BAX/BAK. Interestingly, we find that MCL-1 is also critical for stem cell activity in human breast cancer cells and high MCL1 expression correlates with stemness markers in tumours. This strongly supports the idea that the key function of MCL-1 in breast cancer is through its anti-apoptotic function. This has important implications for the future use of MCL-1-specific BH3-mimetic drugs in breast cancer treatment

Integrated -omics approach reveals persistent DNA damage rewires lipid metabolism and histone hyperacetylation via MYS-1/Tip60

Although DNA damage is intricately linked to metabolism, the metabolic alterations that occur in response to DNA damage are not well understood. We use a DNA repair–deficient model of ERCC1-XPF in Caenorhabditis elegans to gain insights on how genotoxic stress drives aging. Using multi-omic approach, we discover that nuclear DNA damage promotes mitochondrial b-oxidation and drives a global loss of fat depots. This metabolic shift to b-oxidation gen-erates acetyl–coenzyme A to promote histone hyperacetylation and an associated change in expression of immune-effector and cytochrome genes. We identify the histone acetyltransferase MYS-1, as a critical regulator of this metabolic-epigenetic axis. We show that in response to DNA damage, polyunsaturated fatty acids, especially arachidonic acid (AA) and AA-related lipid mediators, are elevated and this is dependent on mys-1. Together, these findings reveal that DNA damage alters the metabolic- epigenetic axis to drive an immune-like response that can promote age-associated decline.Lewis Katz School of MedicineCardiovascular Science

Perceived Barriers and Facilitators of Behavioral-Health Modality Change Adoption During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review

Introduction: During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 pandemic, there was a surge in demand for mental health services worldwide, presenting challenges for healthcare institutions as they navigated changes in policy and safety regulations. In the United States, this resulted in many behavioral health modality changes to remain in compliance with the Center for Disease Control guidelines. A growing body of literature has documented these, yet few explored barriers and facilitators affecting the adoption of these modality delivery changes. The researchers conducted a systematic review using the PRISMA method, focusing on service delivery changes across healthcare systems in the United States from March 2020 to May 2022. Objective: The study objective was to identify barriers and facilitators affecting the adoption of changes to modality delivery of behavioral health services due to pandemic restrictions. Methods: This was a systematic review that utilized the PRISMA method. The researchers identified 445 initial articles from eight databases using predetermined keywords and implemented a three-round screening process to select the most pertinent articles for this review. The researchers used a thematic analysis focused on user-related, program-related, technology, and environment-related constructs relevant to engagement with digital mental health interventions, and also addressed provider and administrative-related barriers and facilitators of virtual behavioral health modality changes. Barriers and facilitators were operationalized using the Borghouts Model. Results: This systematic review revealed several common barriers and facilitators, including underdeveloped technology infrastructure, privacy and confidentiality concerns, poor technology literacy, availability of diverse technology options, provider technology training, and ease of integration into everyday life. Conclusion: This review provides insights into barriers and facilitators of modality change adoption, which could inform the development and implementation of virtual mental healthcare services and may help optimize the application of these services by improving our understanding and ability to overcome barriers influencing their adoption

MRI-localized biopsies reveal subtype-specific differences in molecular and cellular composition at the margins of glioblastoma

Glioblastomas (GBMs) diffusely infiltrate the brain, making complete removal by surgical resection impossible. The mixture of neoplastic and nonneoplastic cells that remain after surgery form the biological context for adjuvant therapeutic intervention and recurrence. We performed RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) and histological analysis on radiographically guided biopsies taken from different regions of GBM and showed that the tissue contained within the contrast-enhancing (CE) core of tumors have different cellular and molecular compositions compared with tissue from the nonenhancing (NE) margins of tumors. Comparisons with the The Cancer Genome Atlas dataset showed that the samples from CE regions resembled the proneural, classical, or mesenchymal subtypes of GBM, whereas the samples from the NE regions predominantly resembled the neural subtype. Computational deconvolution of the RNA-seq data revealed that contributions from nonneoplastic brain cells significantly influence the expression pattern in the NE samples. Gene ontology analysis showed that the cell type-specific expression patterns were functionally distinct and highly enriched in genes associated with the corresponding cell phenotypes. Comparing the RNA-seq data from the GBM samples to that of nonneoplastic brain revealed that the differentially expressed genes are distributed across multiple cell types. Notably, the patterns of cell type-specific alterations varied between the different GBM subtypes: the NE regions of proneural tumors were enriched in oligodendrocyte progenitor genes, whereas the NE regions of mesenchymal GBM were enriched in astrocytic and microglial genes. These subtypespecific patterns provide new insights into molecular and cellular composition of the infiltrative margins of GBM

Monocytes and macrophages, implications for breast cancer migration and stem cell-like activity and treatment

Macrophages are a major cellular constituent of the tumour stroma and contribute to breast cancer prognosis. The precise role and treatment strategies to target macrophages remain elusive. As macrophage infiltration is associated with poor prognosis and high grade tumours we used the THP-1 cell line to model monocyte-macrophage differentiation in co-culture with four breast cancer cell lines (MCF7, T47D, MDA-MB-231, MDA-MB-468) to model in vivo cellular interactions. Polarisation into M1 and M2 subtypes was confirmed by specific cell marker expression of ROS and HLA-DR, respectively. Co-culture with all types of macrophage increased migration of ER-positive breast cancer cell lines, while M2-macrophages increased mammosphere formation, compared to M1-macrophages, in all breast cancer cells lines. Treatment of cells with Zoledronate in co-culture reduced the “pro-tumourigenic” effects (increased mammospheres/migration) exerted by macrophages. Direct treatment of breast cancer cells in homotypic culture was unable to reduce migration or mammosphere formation. Macrophages promote “pro-tumourigenic” cellular characteristics of breast cancer cell migration and stem cell activity. Zoledronate targets macrophages within the microenvironment which in turn, reduces the “pro-tumourigenic” characteristics of breast cancer cells. Zoledronate offers an exciting new treatment strategy for both primary and metastatic breast cancer