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Variation of skin hydration profile with biophysical factors and lifestyle revealed by in vivo terahertz sensing
No full textConsiderations around the inclusion of children and young people’s time in economic evaluation : findings from an international Delphi study
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Customer experience orientation : conceptual model, propositions, and research directions
No full textAncient genomes reveal insights into ritual life at Chichén Itzá
No full textThe ancient city of Chichén Itzá in Yucatán, Mexico, was one of the largest and most influential Maya settlements during the Late and Terminal Classic periods (AD 600–1000) and it remains one of the most intensively studied archaeological sites in Mesoamerica1,2,3,4. However, many questions about the social and cultural use of its ceremonial spaces, as well as its population’s genetic ties to other Mesoamerican groups, remain unanswered2. Here we present genome-wide data obtained from 64 subadult individuals dating to around AD 500–900 that were found in a subterranean mass burial near the Sacred Cenote (sinkhole) in the ceremonial centre of Chichén Itzá. Genetic analyses showed that all analysed individuals were male and several individuals were closely related, including two pairs of monozygotic twins. Twins feature prominently in Mayan and broader Mesoamerican mythology, where they embody qualities of duality among deities and heroes5, but until now they had not been identified in ancient Mayan mortuary contexts. Genetic comparison to present-day people in the region shows genetic continuity with the ancient inhabitants of Chichén Itzá, except at certain genetic loci related to human immunity, including the human leukocyte antigen complex, suggesting signals of adaptation due to infectious diseases introduced to the region during the colonial period
Induction of labour care in the UK : a cross-sectional survey of maternity units
Get PDFObjectives: To explore local induction of labour pathways in the UK National Health Service to provide insight into current practice. Design: National survey. Setting: Hospital maternity services in all four nations of the UK. Sample: Convenience sample of 71 UK maternity units. Methods: An online cross-sectional survey was disseminated and completed via a national network of obstetrics and gynaecology specialist trainees (October 2021-March 2022). Results were analysed descriptively, with associations explored using Fisher’s Exact and ANOVA. Main outcome measures: Induction rates, criteria, processes, delays, incidents, safety concerns. Results: 54/71 units responded (76%, 35% of UK units). Induction rate range 19.2%-53.4%, median 36.3%. 72% (39/54) had agreed induction criteria: these varied widely and were not all in national guidance. Multidisciplinary booking decision-making was not reported by 38/54 (70%). Delays reported ‘often/always’ in hospital admission for induction (19%, 10/54) and Delivery Suite transfer once induction in progress (63%, 34/54). Staffing was frequently reported cause of delay (76%, 41/54 ‘often/always’). Delays triggered incident reports in 36/54 (67%) and resulted in harm in 3/54 (6%). Induction was an area of concern (44%, 24/54); 61% (33/54) reported induction-focused quality improvement work. Conclusions: There is substantial variation in induction rates, processes and policies across UK maternity services. Delays appear to be common and are a cause of safety concerns. With induction rates likely to increase, improved guidance and pathways are critically needed to improve safety and experience of care
Dataset to support : Phase properties of the finite range Wang-Frenkel potential
No full textIn the current work we revisit the potential proposed by Wang et al. as a well defined finite-range alternative to the widely used Lennard-Jones interaction model. The advantage of the proposed Wang-Frenkel potential is that it not only goes smoothly to zero at the cutoff distance, hence eliminating inconsistencies caused by different treatments of the truncation, but with changing the range of the potential, it is capable of describing soft matter-like behaviour as well as traditional "Lennard-Jones-like" properties.
We use the nested sampling method to perform an unbiased sampling of the potential energy surface, and map the pressure-temperature phase diagram of a range of truncation distances. We discuss the relatively small change in the melting line and the appearance of the liquid-vapour co-existence line and critical point at longer interaction ranges. We also present the ground state diagram, demonstrating that different polytypic phases appear to be global minima for the model at different pressures and cutoff values, similar to what had been shown in case of the Lennard-Jones model. Finally, we compare the lowest energy structure of some of the clusters to that of the known minima of Lennard-Jones and Morse potential, using different cutoff values, revealing a behaviour closely resembling that of the Morse clusters
An ensemble framework for projecting the impact of Lymphatic filariasis interventions across sub-Saharan Africa at a fine spatial scale
Get PDFBackground:
Lymphatic filariasis (LF) is a neglected tropical disease targeted for elimination as a public health problem by 2030. Although mass treatments have led to huge reductions in LF prevalence, some countries or regions may find it difficult to achieve elimination by 2030 owing to various factors, including local differences in transmission. Subnational projections of intervention impact are a useful tool in understanding these dynamics, but correctly characterizing their uncertainty is challenging.
Methods:
We developed a computationally feasible framework for providing subnational projections for LF across 44 sub-Saharan African countries using ensemble models, guided by historical control data, to allow assessment of the role of subnational heterogeneities in global goal achievement. Projected scenarios include ongoing annual treatment from 2018 to 2030, enhanced coverage, and biannual treatment.
Results
Our projections suggest that progress is likely to continue well. However, highly endemic locations currently deploying strategies with the lower World Health Organization recommended coverage (65%) and frequency (annual) are expected to have slow decreases in prevalence. Increasing intervention frequency or coverage can accelerate progress by up to 5 or 6 years, respectively.
Conclusions:
While projections based on baseline data have limitations, our methodological advancements provide assessments of potential bottlenecks for the global goals for LF arising from subnational heterogeneities. In particular, areas with high baseline prevalence may face challenges in achieving the 2030 goals, extending the “tail” of interventions. Enhancing intervention frequency and/or coverage will accelerate progress. Our approach facilitates preimplementation assessments of the impact of local interventions and is applicable to other regions and neglected tropical diseases
N-terminal tagging of RNA Polymerase II shapes transcriptomes more than C-terminal alterations
No full textRNA polymerase II (Pol2) has a C-terminal domain (CTD) that is unstructured, consists of a large number of heptad repeats, and whose precise function remains unclear. Here, we investigate how altering the CTD’s length and fusing it with protein tags affects transcriptional output on genome-wide scale in mammalian cells, at single cell resolution. While transcription generally appears to occur in burst-like fashion, where RNA is predominantly made during short bursts of activity that are interspersed with periods of transcriptional silence, the CTD’s role in shaping these dynamics seems gene-dependent; global patterns of bursting appear mostly robust to CTD alterations. Introducing protein tags with defined structures to the N terminus cause transcriptome-wide effects, however. We find the type of tag to dominate characteristics of the resulting transcriptomes. This is possibly due to Pol2-interacting factors, including non-coding RNAs, whose expression correlates with the tags. Proteins involved in liquid-liquid phase separation appear prominently
Presence of phage-plasmids in multiple serovars of Salmonella enterica
Get PDFEvidence is accumulating in the literature that the horizontal spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes mediated by bacteriophages and bacteriophage-like plasmid (phage-plasmid) elements is much more common than previously envisioned. For instance, we recently identified and characterized a circular P1-like phage-plasmid harbouring a blaCTX-M-15 gene conferring extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) resistance in Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi. As the prevalence and epidemiological relevance of such mechanisms has never been systematically assessed in Enterobacterales, in this study we carried out a follow-up retrospective analysis of UK Salmonella isolates previously sequenced as part of routine surveillance protocols between 2016 and 2021. Using a high-throughput bioinformatics pipeline we screened 47 784 isolates for the presence of the P1 lytic replication gene repL, identifying 226 positive isolates from 25 serovars and demonstrating that phage-plasmid elements are more frequent than previously thought. The affinity for phage-plasmids appears highly serovar-dependent, with several serovars being more likely hosts than others; most of the positive isolates (170/226) belonged to S. Typhimurium ST34 and ST19. The phage-plasmids ranged between 85.8 and 98.2 kb in size, with an average length of 92.1 kb; detailed analysis indicated a high amount of diversity in gene content and genomic architecture. In total, 132 phage-plasmids had the p0111 plasmid replication type, and 94 the IncY type; phylogenetic analysis indicated that both horizontal and vertical gene transmission mechanisms are likely to be involved in phage-plasmid propagation. Finally, phage-plasmids were present in isolates that were resistant and non-resistant to antimicrobials. In addition to providing a first comprehensive view of the presence of phage-plasmids in Salmonella, our work highlights the need for a better surveillance and understanding of phage-plasmids as AMR carriers, especially through their characterization with long-read sequencing