Carlsbad Caverns National Park Air Quality Study 2019

This data set includes fine particle and gas precursor measurements from Carlsbad Caverns National Park. The study was designed to examine the influence of regional sources, including urban emissions, oil and gas development, wildfires, and soil dust on air quality in the park. Field measurements of aerosols, trace gases and deposition were conducted from 25 July through 5 September 2019.Carlsbad Caverns National Park in southeastern New Mexico is adjacent to the Permian Basin, one of the most productive oil and gas regions in the country. The 2019 Carlsbad Caverns Air Quality Study (CarCavAQS) was designed to examine the influence of regional sources, including urban emissions, oil and gas development, wildfires, and soil dust on air quality in the park. Field measurements of aerosols, trace gases, and deposition were conducted from 25 July through 5 September 2019.This work was supported by the National Park Service Q5 [P20AC00679]

Wellness and Multiple Sclerosis: The National MS Society Establishes a Wellness Research Working Group and Research Priorities

Background: People with multiple sclerosis (MS) have identified “wellness” and associated behaviors as a high priority based on “social media listening” undertaken by the National MS Society (i.e. the Society). Objective: The Society recently convened a group that consisted of researchers with experience in MS and wellness-related research, Society staff members, and an individual with MS for developing recommendations regarding a wellness research agenda. Method: The members of the group engaged in focal reviews and discussions involving the state of science within three approaches for promoting wellness in MS, namely diet, exercise, and emotional wellness. Results: That process informed a group-mediated activity for developing and prioritizing research goals for wellness in MS. This served as a background for articulating the mission and objectives of the Society’s Wellness Research Working Group. Conclusion: The primary mission of the Wellness Research Working Group is the provision of scientific evidence supporting the application of lifestyle, behavioral, and psychosocial approaches for promoting optimal health of mind, body, and spirit (i.e. wellness) in people with MS as well as managing the disease and its consequences

Should multiple imputation be the method of choice for handling missing data in randomized trials?

The use of multiple imputation has increased markedly in recent years, and journal reviewers may expect to see multiple imputation used to handle missing data. However in randomized trials, where treatment group is always observed and independent of baseline covariates, other approaches may be preferable. Using data simulation we evaluated multiple imputation, performed both overall and separately by randomized group, across a range of commonly encountered scenarios. We considered both missing outcome and missing baseline data, with missing outcome data induced under missing at random mechanisms. Provided the analysis model was correctly specified, multiple imputation produced unbiased treatment effect estimates, but alternative unbiased approaches were often more efficient. When the analysis model overlooked an interaction effect involving randomized group, multiple imputation produced biased estimates of the average treatment effect when applied to missing outcome data, unless imputation was performed separately by randomized group. Based on these results, we conclude that multiple imputation should not be seen as the only acceptable way to handle missing data in randomized trials. In settings where multiple imputation is adopted, we recommend that imputation is carried out separately by randomized group.T Sullivan was supported by an Australian Postgraduate Award. I White was funded by the Medical Research Council (Unit Programme number U105260558). K Lee was supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council Career Development Fellowship (1053609)

Effect of Feeding Different Types of Byproducts and Concentrations Throughout a Beef Growing System on Ground Beef Color and Lipid Oxidation

The objective of this trial was to evaluate the effect of feeding different concentrations of wet distillers grains during winter backgrounding and either modified wet distillers grains or Sweet Bran® during the finishing phase on ground beef color and lipid oxidation. After a 14 day aging period, ground beef patties were made and placed in a simulated retail display for seven days. There were no overall differences in lipid oxidation between treatments but was a treatment by day interaction for discoloration. Ground beef from heifers finished with modified wet distillers grains discolored at a greater extent when compared to ground beef from heifers finished with Sweet Bran

Analysis of holographic photopolymers for integrated optical systems via quantitative phase microscopy

Optically-driven diffusion of high refractive index molecules within a transparent thermoset polymer matrix is a promising platform for hybrid optics that combines a wide range of optical structures from large scale holograms to micron-scale gradient index waveguides in a single integrated optical system. Design of such a system requires characterization of the optical response of the material at a wide range of spatial scales and intensities. While holographic analysis of the photopolymers is appropriate to probe the smaller spatial scales and lower intensity optical response, quantitative phase mapping of isolated structures is needed to probe the response to the higher intensities and lower spatial frequencies used in direct write lithography of waveguides. We apply the transport of intensity equation (TIE) to demonstrate quantitative refractive index measurements of 10 μm-scale localized gradient index structures written into diffusive photopolymer materials using both single- and two-photon polymerization. These quantitative measurements allow us to study the effect of different exposure conditions and material parameters such as writing beam power, exposure time, and wt% loading of the writing monomer on the overall profile of the refractive index structure. We use these measurements to probe the time scales over which diffusion is significant, and take advantage of the diffusion of monomer with a multiple-write scheme that achieves a peak refractive index contrast of 0.025

Complete Genome Sequence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Reference Strain PAK.

We report the complete genome of Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain PAK, a strain which has been instrumental in the study of a range of P. aeruginosa virulence and pathogenesis factors and has been used for over 50 years as a laboratory reference strain

Suicide Prevention in an Emergency Department Population: The ED-SAFE Study

Importance: Suicide is a leading cause of deaths in the United States. Although the emergency department (ED) is an opportune setting for initiating suicide prevention efforts, ED-initiated suicide prevention interventions remain underdeveloped. Objective: To determine whether an ED-initiated intervention reduces subsequent suicidal behavior. Design, Setting, and Participants: This multicenter study of 8 EDs in the United States enrolled adults with a recent suicide attempt or ideation and was composed of 3 sequential phases: (1) a treatment as usual (TAU) phase from August 2010 to December 2011, (2) a universal screening (screening) phase from September 2011 to December 2012, and (3) a universal screening plus intervention (intervention) phase from July 2012 to November 2013. Interventions: Screening consisted of universal suicide risk screening. The intervention phase consisted of universal screening plus an intervention, which included secondary suicide risk screening by the ED physician, discharge resources, and post-ED telephone calls focused on reducing suicide risk. Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome was suicide attempts (nonfatal and fatal) over the 52-week follow-up period. The proportion and total number of attempts were analyzed. Results: A total of 1376 participants were recruited, including 769 females (55.9%) with a median (interquartile range) age of 37 (26-47) years. A total of 288 participants (20.9%) made at least 1 suicide attempt, and there were 548 total suicide attempts among participants. There were no significant differences in risk reduction between the TAU and screening phases (23% vs 22%, respectively). However, compared with the TAU phase, patients in the intervention phase showed a 5% absolute reduction in suicide attempt risk (23% vs 18%), with a relative risk reduction of 20%. Participants in the intervention phase had 30% fewer total suicide attempts than participants in the TAU phase. Negative binomial regression analysis indicated that the participants in the intervention phase had significantly fewer total suicide attempts than participants in the TAU phase (incidence rate ratio, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.52-1.00; P = .05) but no differences between the TAU and screening phases (incidence rate ratio, 1.00; 95% CI, 0.71-1.41; P = .99). Conclusions and Relevance: Among at-risk patients in the ED, a combination of brief interventions administered both during and after the ED visit decreased post-ED suicidal behavior

Closely related viruses of the marine picoeukaryotic alga Ostreococcus lucimarinus exhibit different ecological strategies

In marine ecosystems, viruses are major disrupters of the direct flow of carbon and nutrients to higher trophic levels. Although the genetic diversity of several eukaryotic phytoplankton virus groups has been characterized, their infection dynamics are less understood, such that the physiological and ecological implications of their diversity remain unclear. We compared genomes and infection phenotypes of the two most closely related cultured phycodnaviruses infecting the widespread picoprasinophyte Ostreococcus lucimarinus under standard- (1.3 divisions per day) and limited-light (0.41 divisions per day) nutrient replete conditions. OlV7 infection caused early arrest of the host cell cycle, coinciding with a significantly higher proportion of infected cells than OlV1-amended treatments, regardless of host growth rate. OlV7 treatments showed a near-50-fold increase of progeny virions at the higher host growth rate, contrasting with OlV1's 16-fold increase. However, production of OlV7 virions was more sensitive than OlV1 production to reduced host growth rate, suggesting fitness trade-offs between infection efficiency and resilience to host physiology. Moreover, although organic matter released from OlV1- and OlV7-infected hosts had broadly similar chemical composition, some distinct molecular signatures were observed. Collectively, these results suggest that current views on viral relatedness through marker and core gene analyses underplay operational divergence and consequences for host ecology

EGLN1 Inhibition and Rerouting of α-Ketoglutarate Suffice for Remote Ischemic Protection

Ischemic preconditioning is the phenomenon whereby brief periods of sublethal ischemia protect against a subsequent, more prolonged, ischemic insult. In remote ischemic preconditioning (RIPC), ischemia to one organ protects others organs at a distance. We created mouse models to ask if inhibition of the alpha-ketoglutarate (αKG)-dependent dioxygenase Egln1, which senses oxygen and regulates the hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) transcription factor, could suffice to mediate local and remote ischemic preconditioning. Using somatic gene deletion and a pharmacological inhibitor, we found that inhibiting Egln1 systemically or in skeletal muscles protects mice against myocardial ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury. Parabiosis experiments confirmed that RIPC in this latter model was mediated by a secreted factor. Egln1 loss causes accumulation of circulating αKG, which drives hepatic production and secretion of kynurenic acid (KYNA) that is necessary and sufficient to mediate cardiac ischemic protection in this setting.Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. SPARC ProgramBurroughs Wellcome Fun