167 research outputs found
Unhealthier States have Lower COVID-19 Testing Rates
No full textThis data slice dissects the various rates of state testing for COVID-19 across the country, and explains implications of the low test rates in the unhealthier states
More Kindergarteners are Exempted from Required School Vaccinations than in the Past
No full textThe percentage of kindergarteners being granted exemption from vaccination is growing across the U.S. as parents increasingly request exemptions for philosophical reasons. During the 2017-18 school year, 2.2% of kindergartners were exempted from vaccination. This is up from 1.6% during the 2011-12 school year
COVID-19 Testing Rates are Lower in States with More Black and Poor Residents
No full textThis data slice shows that testing rates to date have been lower in states with higher percent black populations and higher poverty rates. Without proper testing and physical distancing protocols, these states risk a surge in severe COVID-19 cases, overwhelming their already resource strapped healthcare systems
Geographic Disparities in COVID-19 Testing: An Urgent Call to Action
No full textThis research brief shows that testing rates are lower in states with the unhealthiest populations and worst health care access. Disparities in testing rates are troubling because delays in testing increase the risk of a surge in silent spread and severe COVID-19 cases in these states
DNA fusion gene vaccination mobilizes effective anti-leukemic cytotoxic T lymphocytes from a tolerized repertoire
No full textThe majority of known human tumor-associated antigens derive from non-mutated self proteins. T cell tolerance, essential to prevent autoimmunity, must therefore be cautiously circumvented to generate cytotoxic T cell responses against these targets. Our strategy uses DNA fusion vaccines to activate high levels of peptide-specific CTL. Key foreign sequences from tetanus toxin activate tolerance-breaking CD4+ T cell help. Candidate MHC class Ibinding tumor peptide sequences are fused to the C terminus for optimal processing and presentation. To model performance against a leukemia-associated antigen in a tolerized setting, we constructed a fusion vaccine encoding an immunodominant CTL epitopederived from Friend murine leukemia virus gag protein (FMuLVgag) and vaccinated tolerant FMuLVgag-transgenic (gag-Tg) mice. Vaccination with the construct induced epitopespecificIFN-c-producing CD8+ T cells in normal and gag-Tg mice. The frequency and avidity of activated cells were reduced in gag-Tg mice, and no autoimmune injury resulted. However, these CD8+ T cells did exhibit gag-specific cytotoxicity in vitro and in vivo. Also, epitope-specific CTL killed FBL-3 leukemia cells expressing endogenous FMuLVgag antigen and protected against leukemia challenge in vivo. These results demonstrate a simple strategy to engage anti-microbial T cell help to activate epitope-specific polyclonal CD8+ T cell responses from a residual tolerized repertoire
Rural COVID-19 Mortality Rates are Highest in Counties with the Largest Percentages of Blacks and Hispanics
No full textCOVID-19 mortality risk is not distributed equally across the U.S. Among rural counties, the average daily increase in COVID-19 mortality rates has been significantly higher in counties with the largest percentages of Black and Hispanic residents
Democratic Erosion Predicts Rising Deaths from Drug Poisoning and Infectious Disease
No full textStrong democratic functioning is good for population health. However, democratic functioning eroded in many U.S. states in recent decades. The erosion was especially pronounced for one aspect of democratic functioning—electoral democracy, which refers to free and fair elections. This brief summarizes findings from a study examining how changes in electoral democracy in the 50 states predicted changes in the risk of death among adults ages 25-64 during 2000-2019. Findings demonstrate that democratic erosion strongly predicts rising deaths from drug poisoning, infectious disease, suicide, and homicide
COVID‐19 Death Rates Are Higher in Rural Counties With Larger Shares of Blacks and Hispanics
No full textRural-Urban and Within-Rural Differences in COVID-19 Mortality Rates
No full textSince late-2020, COVID-19 mortality rates have been higher in rural than in urban America, but there has also been substantial within-rural heterogeneity. Using CDC data, we compare COVID-19 mortality rates across the rural-urban continuum as well as within rural counties across different types of labor markets and by metropolitan adjacency. As of October 1, 2021, the cumulative COVID-19 mortality rate was 247.0 per 100,000 population in rural counties compared to 200.7 in urban counties. Higher COVID-19 mortality rates in rural counties are explained by lower average educational attainment and lower median household income. Within rural counties, mortality rates have been highest in farming-dependent counties and lowest in recreation-dependent counties. Those differences are similarly explained by differences in educational attainment and median household income. Our findings have implications for ongoing COVID-19 prevention and vaccination efforts as well as for informing preparation efforts for future infectious disease outbreaks
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