Objective
To identify the differences between circadian rhythm (CR) metrics characterized by different mobile sensors and computational methods.
Methods
We used smartphone tracking and daily survey ...data from 225 college student participants, applied four methods (survey construct automation, cosinor regression, non-parametric method, Fourier analysis) on two types of smartphone sensor data (GPS, accelerometer) to characterize CR. We explored the inter-relations among the extracted circadian metrics as well as between the circadian metrics and participants’ self-reported mood and sleep outcomes.
Results
Compared to GPS signals, smartphone accelerometer activity follows an intradaily distribution that starts earlier in the day, winds down later, reaches half cumulative activity about the same time, conforms less to a sinusoidal wave, and exhibits more intradaily fragmentation but higher CR strength and lower interdaily disruption. We found a notable negative correlation between intradaily variability and CR strength especially pronounced in GPS activity. Self-reported sleep and mood outcomes showed significant correlations with particular CR metrics.
Conclusions
We revealed significant inter-relations and discrepancies in the circadian metrics discovered from two smartphone sensors and four CR algorithms and their bearings on wellbeing indicators such as sleep quality and loneliness.
We describe a collection of aquatic and wetland habitats in an inland landscape, and their occurrence within a terrestrial matrix, as a “freshwater ecosystem mosaic” (FEM). Aquatic and wetland ...habitats in any FEM can vary widely, from permanently ponded lakes, to ephemerally ponded wetlands, to groundwater‐fed springs, to flowing rivers and streams. The terrestrial matrix can also vary, including in its influence on flows of energy, materials, and organisms among ecosystems. Biota occurring in a specific region are adapted to the unique opportunities and challenges presented by spatial and temporal patterns of habitat types inherent to each FEM. To persist in any given landscape, most species move to recolonize habitats and maintain mixtures of genetic materials. Species also connect habitats through time if they possess needed morphological, physiological, or behavioral traits to persist in a habitat through periods of unfavorable environmental conditions. By examining key spatial and temporal patterns underlying FEMs, and species‐specific adaptations to these patterns, a better understanding of the structural and functional connectivity of a landscape can be obtained. Fully including aquatic, wetland, and terrestrial habitats in FEMs facilitates adoption of the next generation of individual‐based models that integrate the principles of population, community, and ecosystem ecology.
Research Impact Statement: Fully including aquatic, wetland, and terrestrial habitats facilitates adoption of next‐generation, individual‐based, models that integrate principles of population, community, and ecosystem ecology.
Tens of thousands of insects are deposited in collections every year as a result of survey-based studies that aim to investigate ecological questions. DNA-based techniques can expand the utility of ...these collections to explore their demographic and evolutionary history, temporal changes in their abundance, and pathogen dynamics. Using museum collections of the non-model bee species Eucera (Peponapis) pruinosa Say 1837 (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Eucerini), we developed a standard minimally-destructive and budget-friendly protocol to extract DNA and amplify common gene-fragments for barcoding, phylogenetic analysis, and pathogens. We also generated genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data from DNA sequencing (ddRADseq) libraries for population structure analyses. We systematically studied the effect of specimen age (≤10 years ago) and tissue type (whole bees vs. abdomen) on DNA quality, single gene-fragment amplification, and SNP calling. We found that all analyses were achievable with both tissue types, yet with variable levels of efficiency because of general DNA degradation. Specifically, we found that not all samples yielded satisfactory results for molecular studies; however, we did not find a systematic effect of specimen age on DNA quality which is encouraging for future studies involving historical specimens. We report the first evidence for the presence of the microsporidian pathogen Nosema spp. in squash bees, opening a window for the study of historical changes in disease pressure in this important agricultural pollinator. Our protocols can be used as a template for the design of future experiments that extract multiple pieces of information using DNA-based methods from insect museum stored specimens.
The purpose of this study was to identify factors that influence a patient's decision to use physical therapy (PT) services for a low back pain (LBP) complaint.
Semi-structured qualitative phone ...interviews were conducted with patients who were offered an early outpatient PT visit secondary to patients’ primary appointment for LBP with a non-operative sports medicine specialist physician. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed to identify themes using an iterative process.
Forty participants were interviewed; 20 accepted early PT services, and 20 did not. Patients' decisions were influenced by perceived provider training, costs, doctor recommendations, wait times, symptoms, and a desire for a diagnosis. Patients preferred the care of non-operative sports medicine doctors over physical therapists for LBP due to their beliefs that favored doctors’ diagnosis and management of LBP. Patients perceived exercise as an effective treatment for back pain. Physical therapists were viewed as an adjunct service, despite positive comments about PT and the belief that exercise is one of the most effective treatments for LBP.
Barriers including costs, patient preferences, and knowledge about physical therapists limited patients' use of PT. Value-based care strategies aimed at improving the management of LBP increasingly promote the early use of PT. For these strategies to be effective, it is critical that patient perceptions and the influence of barriers on PT use are further understood. This study highlights the need to promote confidence in physical therapists’ expertise in the management and diagnosis of lower back pain.
•Patient knowledge limited PT use but not doctor use.•Patients believed exercise is an effective treatment for LBP.•Sport medicine doctors were preferred over physical therapists for LBP.•Challenges navigating the health care system reduced patients' access PT care.•Patient decisions are influenced by a large variety of factors.
The domestic pig is known as an excellent model for human immunology and the two species share many pathogens. Susceptibility to infectious disease is one of the major constraints on swine ...performance, yet the structure and function of genes comprising the pig immunome are not well-characterized. The completion of the pig genome provides the opportunity to annotate the pig immunome, and compare and contrast pig and human immune systems.
The Immune Response Annotation Group (IRAG) used computational curation and manual annotation of the swine genome assembly 10.2 (Sscrofa10.2) to refine the currently available automated annotation of 1,369 immunity-related genes through sequence-based comparison to genes in other species. Within these genes, we annotated 3,472 transcripts. Annotation provided evidence for gene expansions in several immune response families, and identified artiodactyl-specific expansions in the cathelicidin and type 1 Interferon families. We found gene duplications for 18 genes, including 13 immune response genes and five non-immune response genes discovered in the annotation process. Manual annotation provided evidence for many new alternative splice variants and 8 gene duplications. Over 1,100 transcripts without porcine sequence evidence were detected using cross-species annotation. We used a functional approach to discover and accurately annotate porcine immune response genes. A co-expression clustering analysis of transcriptomic data from selected experimental infections or immune stimulations of blood, macrophages or lymph nodes identified a large cluster of genes that exhibited a correlated positive response upon infection across multiple pathogens or immune stimuli. Interestingly, this gene cluster (cluster 4) is enriched for known general human immune response genes, yet contains many un-annotated porcine genes. A phylogenetic analysis of the encoded proteins of cluster 4 genes showed that 15% exhibited an accelerated evolution as compared to 4.1% across the entire genome.
This extensive annotation dramatically extends the genome-based knowledge of the molecular genetics and structure of a major portion of the porcine immunome. Our complementary functional approach using co-expression during immune response has provided new putative immune response annotation for over 500 porcine genes. Our phylogenetic analysis of this core immunome cluster confirms rapid evolutionary change in this set of genes, and that, as in other species, such genes are important components of the pig's adaptation to pathogen challenge over evolutionary time. These comprehensive and integrated analyses increase the value of the porcine genome sequence and provide important tools for global analyses and data-mining of the porcine immune response.
Peer coaching interventions are effective in helping individuals with chronic conditions understand their disease. Most peer coach training programs occur in person, which has become an obstacle ...during the COVID pandemic. We describe our experiences with virtual training for future peer coach interventions.
Individuals with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) between 40 and 75 years of age were recruited and interviewed by the research team. We conducted seven virtual training sessions focused on four main points: Listen, Discuss, Practice, and Certify. The peer coaches provided feedback throughout the program, which was used to refine the training and intervention. A post-training focus group assessed satisfaction with the training program and intervention development process.
Four peer coaches (3 women, 1 man) were trained, including 2 Black and 2 White individuals with advanced degrees. Their ages ranged from 52 to 57, and their RA duration ranged from 5 to 15 years. An iterative process with the coaches and researchers resulted in a nine-week training program. Peer coaches reported satisfaction, confidence, and a preference for the virtual training format.
This virtual peer coach training program was feasible and acceptable for coaches with advanced degrees during the global COVID-19 pandemic. Our approach represents an opportunity to adapt training that has been traditionally done in person. By doing so, our approach facilitates the recruitment and training of a diverse group of coaches and promotes sustainability.
•Prevalence of pneumococcal nasopharyngeal colonization of children 0–17years old was 21.2%.•Of 88 isolates, 16 were vaccine-type (11 were 19F), despite 87% vaccine coverage.•Our results highlight ...the need for local surveillance of pneumococcal epidemiology.
The epidemiology of nasopharyngeal (NP) pneumococcal carriage varies with geography and has changed in response to pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV): a low prevalence (3% or less of colonizing isolates) of colonization by vaccine-type (VT) pneumococcal serotypes after PCV introduction has been reported. The primary goal of this study was to determine the VT serotype prevalence of NP pneumococcal colonization of children residing in the St. Louis, MO, USA metropolitan area following introduction of the 13-valent PCV in 2010. The secondary goal of this study was to identify characteristics associated with NP pneumococcal carriage of any serotype.
Between July 2013 and April 2016, we enrolled 397 healthy children, aged 0–17years, who required sedation for procedures or minor surgeries at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. NP swabs were collected after sedation or anesthesia and cultured for pneumococcus. Vaccine records were obtained from primary care providers or from state immunization databases. Parents/guardians completed a questionnaire to provide demographics, past medical history and household characteristics.
Of the 88 pneumococcal isolates recovered from 84 colonized subjects (21.2% of all enrolled subjects; 95% CI 17.2–25.2%), 16 were VT. Eleven isolates were serotype 19F (12.5%), four (4.5%) were 6A and one (1.1%) was 19A. Prevalence of VT among colonizing isolates was thus 18.2% (CI 10.1–26.1%) in our cohort, despite complete PCV vaccination in 87% of colonized children. Factors associated with pneumococcal colonization by any serotype included younger age and daycare attendance.
Children in St. Louis exhibit a higher prevalence of VT serotypes among pneumococcal carriage isolates than has been reported in other areas in the US, demonstrating the necessity of ongoing surveillance of local epidemiology and providing evidence that serotype 19F can remain prevalent in a pediatric population despite high vaccine uptake.
Background
Students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) were disproportionately impacted by the COVID‐19 pandemic. This study's goal was to assess the effectiveness of 2 messaging ...strategies on participation in SARS‐CoV‐2 weekly testing.
Methods
Cluster randomized trials were conducted at 2 school systems, the special school district (SSD) and Kennedy Krieger Institute (Kennedy) to assess messaging strategies, general versus enhanced, to increase weekly screening for SARS‐CoV‐2. Testing was offered to staff and students from November 23, 2020 to May 26, 2022. The primary outcomes were percentage of students and staff consented weekly and percentage of study participants who had a test performed weekly. Generalized estimating equation models were utilized to evaluate the primary outcomes.
Results
Increases in enrollment and testing occurred during study start up, the beginning of school years, and following surges in both systems. No statistical difference was observed in the primary outcomes between schools receiving standard versus enhanced messaging.
Implications for School Health Policy, Practice, and Equity
Frequent and consistent communication is vital for families and staff. Weekly screening testing within schools is possible and highlighted the importance of utilizing equitable protocols to provide important testing to students with IDD.
Conclusion
Enhanced messaging strategies did not increase the number of participants enrolled or the percentage of enrolled participants being tested on a weekly basis.
A DNA–DNA hybridization method, reverse dot blot analysis (RDBA), was used to identify Anopheles gambiae s.s. and Anopheles arabiensis (Diptera: Culicidae) hosts. Of 299 blood‐fed and semi‐gravid An. ...gambiae s.l. collected from Kisian, Kenya, 244 individuals were identifiable to species; of these, 69.5% were An. arabiensis and 29.5% were An. gambiae s.s. Host identifications with RDBA were comparable with those of conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR) followed by direct sequencing of amplicons of the vertebrate mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. Of the 174 amplicon‐producing samples used to compare these two methods, 147 were identifiable by direct sequencing and 139 of these were identifiable by RDBA. Anopheles arabiensis bloodmeals were mostly (94.6%) bovine in origin, whereas An. gambiae s.s. fed upon humans more than 91.8% of the time. Tests by RDBA detected that two of 112 An. arabiensis contained blood from more than one host species, whereas PCR and direct sequencing did not. Recent use of insecticide‐treated bednets in Kisian is likely to have caused the shift in the dominant vector species from An. gambiae s.s. to An. arabiensis. Reverse dot blot analysis provides an opportunity to study changes in host‐feeding by members of the An. gambiae complex in response to the broadening distribution of vector control measures targeting host‐selection behaviours.
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