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Fungal diseases represent a considerable global health concern, affecting >1 billion people annually. In response to this growing challenge, the World Health Organization introduced the pivotal fungal priority pathogens list (FPPL) in late 2022. The FPPL highlights the challenges in estimating the global burden of fungal diseases and antifungal resistance (AFR), as well as limited surveillance capabilities and lack of routine AFR testing. Furthermore, training programs should incorporate sufficient information on fungal diseases, necessitating global advocacy to educate health care professionals and scientists. Established international guidelines and the FPPL are vital in strengthening local guidance on tackling fungal diseases. Future iterations of the FPPL have the potential to refine the list further, addressing its limitations and advancing our collective ability to combat fungal diseases effectively. Napp Pharmaceuticals Limited (Mundipharma UK) organized a workshop with key experts from Northern Europe to discuss the impact of the FPPL on regional clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has shown that information referring to a named character or to information in the main clause of a sentence is more accessible and facilitates the processing of anaphoric references. We investigated whether the use of such cues are maintained in healthy aging. We present two experiments investigating whether information contained in the main clause of a sentence is more accessible compared with information contained in the subordinate clause. We present two further experiments that explored whether proper names act as controllers of discourse focus. Experiment 1 showed that information contained in the subordinate clause of a sentence decreased the processing efficiency of anaphoric references (more so for older adults), and Experiment 2 found that main clauses facilitated probe recognition. Experiments 3 and 4 showed that named characters increased the processing efficiency of anaphoric references and facilitated probe recognition (younger adults only), whereas older adults displayed a primacy effect.

Introduction: Current SARS-CoV-2 strains continue to mutate and attempt to evade the antibody response elicited by previous exposures and vaccinations. In September of 2022, the first updated SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, designed to create immune responses specific for the variants circulating in 2022, were approved. These new vaccines, known commonly as the bivalent boost(er), include mRNA that encodes both the original Wuhan-Hu-1 spike protein as well as the spike protein specific to the Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 variants. Methods: We recruited volunteers from University of Massachusetts student, faculty and staff members to provide samples of blood and saliva at four different time points, including pre-boost and three times post boost and analyzed samples for antibody production as well as neutralization of virus. Results: Our data provide a comprehensive analysis of the antibody response following a single dose of the bivalent boost over a 6-month period and support previous findings that the response induced after the bivalent boost does not create a strong BA.4/BA.5-specific antibody response. Conclusion: We found no evidence of a specific anti-BA.4/BA.5 response developing over time, including in a sub-population of individuals who become infected after a single dose of the bivalent booster. Additionally, we present data that support the use of saliva samples as a reliable alternative to blood for antibody detection against specific SARS-CoV-2 antigens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aims: Recurrent urinary tract infection (rUTI) has significant negative consequences for a wide variety of quality of life (QoL) domains. Without adequate validation and assessment of the unique insights of people living with rUTI, clinical results cannot be fully understood. The Recurrent UTI Impact Questionnaire (RUTIIQ), a novel patient‐reported outcome measure of rUTI psychosocial impact, has been robustly developed with extensive patient and clinician input to facilitate enhanced rUTI management and research. This study aimed to confirm the structural validity of the RUTIIQ, assessing its strength and bifactor model fit. Methods: A sample of 389 adults experiencing rUTI (96.9% female, aged 18–87 years) completed an online cross‐sectional survey comprising a demographic questionnaire and the RUTIIQ. A bifactor graded response model was fitted to the data, optimizing the questionnaire structure based on item fit, discrimination capability, local dependence, and differential item functioning. Results: The final RUTIIQ demonstrated excellent bifactor model fit (RMSEA = 0.054, CFI = 0.99, SRMSR = 0.052), and mean‐square fit indices indicated that all included items were productive for measurement (MNSQ = 0.52–1.41). The final questionnaire comprised an 18‐item general "rUTI QoL impact" factor, and five subfactor domains measuring "personal wellbeing" (three items), "social wellbeing" (four items), "work and activity interference" (four items), "patient satisfaction" (four items), and "sexual wellbeing" (three items). Together, the general factor and five subfactors explained 81.6% of the common model variance. All factor loadings were greater than 0.30 and communalities greater than 0.60, indicating good model fit and structural validity. Conclusions: The 18‐item RUTIIQ is a robust, patient‐tested questionnaire with excellent psychometric properties, which capably assesses the patient experience of rUTI‐related impact to QoL and healthcare satisfaction. Facilitating standardized patient monitoring and improved shared decision‐making, the RUTIIQ delivers the unique opportunity to improve patient‐centered care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective The aim of this article was to evaluate high-frequency positive pressure ventilation (HFPPV) compared with high-frequency oscillatory ventilation (HFOV) as a rescue ventilation strategy for patients with congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH). HFPPV is a pressure-controlled conventional ventilation method utilizing high respiratory rate and low positive end-expiratory pressure. Study Design Seventy-seven patients diagnosed with CDH from January 2005 to September 2019 who were treated with stepwise progression from HFPPV to HFOV versus only HFOV were included. Fisher's exact test and the Kruskal–Wallis test were used to compare outcomes. Results Patients treated with HFPPV + HFOV had higher survival to discharge (80 vs. 50%, p = 0.007) and to surgical intervention (95.6 vs. 68.8%, p = 0.003), with average age at repair 2 days earlier (p = 0.004). Need for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (p = 0.490), inhaled nitric oxide (p = 0.585), supplemental oxygen (p = 0.341), and pulmonary hypertension medications (p = 0.381) were similar. Conclusion In CDH patients who fail respiratory support with conventional ventilation, HFPPV may be used as an intermediary mode of rescue ventilation prior to HFOV without adverse effects. Key Points HFPPV may be used as an intermediary mode of rescue ventilation prior to HFOV without adverse effect. HFPPV is more widely available and can mitigate the limitations faced when using HFOV. HFPPV allows for intra- or interhospital transfer of neonates with CDH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The WHO recommended the use of the RTS,S/AS01 malaria vaccine (RTS,S) based on a pilot evaluation in routine use in Ghana, Kenya, and Malawi. A longitudinal qualitative study was conducted to examine facilitators and barriers to uptake of a 4-dose RTS,S schedule. Methods: A cohort of 198 caregivers of RTS,S-eligible children from communities where RTS,S was provided through the pilot were interviewed three times over a ≈22-month, 4-dose schedule. The interviews examined caregiver perceptions and behaviors. Children's vaccination history was obtained to determine dose uptake. Results: 162 caregivers remained at round 3 (R3); vaccination history was available for 152/162 children. Despite early rumors/fears, the uptake of initial doses was high, driven by vaccine trust. Fears dissipated by R2, replaced with an enthusiasm for RTS,S as caregivers perceived its safety and less frequent and severe malaria. By R3, 98/152 children had received four doses; 34 three doses; 9 one or two doses; and 11 zero doses. The health system and information barriers were important across all under-dose cases. Fears about AEFIs/safety were important in zero-, one-, and two-dose cases. Competing life/livelihood demands and complacency were found in three-dose cases. Regardless of the doses received, caregivers had positive attitudes towards RTS,S by R3. Conclusions: Findings from our study will help countries newly introducing the vaccine to anticipate and preempt reasons for delayed acceptance and missed RTS,S doses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The use of the PCR to aid in the diagnosis of Pneumocystis pneumonia (PcP) has demonstrated excellent clinical performance, as evidenced through various systematic reviews and meta-analyses, yet there are concerns over the interpretation of positive results due to the potential presence of Pneumocystis colonization of the airways. While this can be overcome by applying designated positivity thresholds to PCR testing, the shear number of assays described limits the development of a universal threshold. Commercial assays provide the opportunity to overcome this problem, provided satisfactory performance is determined through large-scale, multi-centre evaluations. Methods: Retrospective case/control and consecutive cohort performance evaluations of the OLM PneumID real-time PCR assay were performed on DNA eluates from a range of samples sent from patients where "in-house" PCR had been performed as part of routine diagnostic testing. The clinical performance of the PneumID assay was determined before including it in a diagnostic algorithm to provide the probability of PcP (dependent on diagnostic evidence). Results: After being used to test 317 patients (32 with PcP), the overall performance of the PneumID assay was found to be excellent (Sensitivity/Specificity: 96.9%/95.1%). False positivity could be removed by applying a threshold specific to sample type (<33.1 cycles for BAL fluid; <37.0 cycles for throat swabs), whereas considering any positive respiratory samples as significant generated 100% sensitivity, making absolute negativity sufficient to exclude PcP. Incorporating the PneumID assay into diagnostic algorithms alongside (1-3)-β-D-Glucan testing provided high probabilities of PcP (up to 85.2%) when both were positive and very low probabilities (<1%) when both were negative. Conclusions: The OLM PneumID qPCR provides a commercial option for the accurate diagnosis of PcP, generating excellent sensitivity and specificity, particularly when testing respiratory specimens. The combination of PcP PCR with serum (1-3)-β-D-Glucan provides excellent clinical utility for diagnosing PcP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Translation equivalents are widely used in bilingual research concerning word processing (e.g., Eddington & Tokowicz, 2013; Jouravlev & Jared, 2020) and second-language vocabulary learning (e.g., Bracken et al., 2017; Degani et al., 2014). Although translation norms exist in several languages, to date there are no Malay-English translation norms. This study presents the first Malay-English translation norms collected with highly proficient Malay-English bilinguals. Furthermore, the study investigates the impact of lexical characteristics on translation ambiguity. The forward translation (FT) task (N = 30) collected English translations for 1004 Malay words selected from the Malay Lexicon Project (Yap et al., 2010), and subsequently the backward translation (BT) task (N = 30) gathered Malay translations for 845 English words obtained from the FT phase. The data revealed a high prevalence of translation ambiguity in both translation directions. Specifically, verbs, adjectives, and class-ambiguous words were more translation-ambiguous than nouns. Furthermore, within-language semantic variability and word length were positively correlated with translation ambiguity, whereas word frequency only correlated with translation ambiguity in FT. Word length and word frequency of the source words and their translations were positively correlated. Intriguingly, only in FT were bilinguals with higher Malay proficiency more likely to provide accurate and dominant translations for the Malay words. These findings contrast with those reported in translation norming studies involving other language pairs. The translation norms provide a useful resource for bilingual language studies involving Malay-English bilinguals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is no coincidence that the last decade witnessed the growing popularity of university bans on.faculty-studentsex, along with the great Title IX battle over survivors' and respondents' rights. Title IX is now closely scrutinized, heavily regulated, and often litigated. Bans on faculty-student sex, however, have escaped similar scrutiny. By labeling a faculty-student interaction a violation of a ban on faculty-student sex, rather than sexual harassment, university administrators can enable drastically dgerent outcomes at the discretion of the entbrcing oficial. In one context, the ban serves as a back-up plan to Title IX, increasing institutional leverage and ensuring some appropriate action as the result of an investigation. In other contexis, the ban presents an opportunity for select faculty to forego the stigma of sexual misconduct proceedings and an opportunity for university olficials to turn noncompliance with Title IX procedural requirements into harmless error. While scholars havelbcused on the employment law and constitutional implicalions of regulating.faculty-student sex, this article evaluates the impact of campus bans on Title/Xproceedings in light Of thejusti. Acations for the ban. While bans are hailed as one more tool for universities to prevent.faculty student sexual hat*-assment, f his article highlights what the student loses in the process, from the right to an advisor, transparency in the process, the opportunity to be heard, the chance to review evidence and learn of the outcome of the proceedings, and the agency to consent to a university process that risks displacing the student's voice for that of the university. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Background: Treatment for invasive candidiasis (IC) is time-critical, and culture-based tests can limit clinical utility. Nonculture-based methods such as Candida PCR represent a promising approach to improving patient management but require further evaluation to understand their optimal role and incorporation into clinical algorithms. This study determined the performance of the commercially available OLM CandID real-time PCR when testing serum and developed a diagnostic algorithm for IC. Methods: The study comprised a retrospective performance evaluation of the CandID real-time PCR assay when testing surplus serum (n = 83 patients, 38 with IC), followed by a prospective consecutive cohort evaluation (n = 103 patients, 24 with IC) post incorporation into routine service. A combined diagnostic algorithm, also including (1-3)-β-D-Glucan testing, was generated. Results: Prospective CandID testing generated a sensitivity/specificity of 88%/82%, respectively. Specificity was improved (>95%) when both PCR replicates were positive and/or the patient had multiple positive samples. When combining CandID with (1-3)-β-D-Glucan testing, the probability of IC when both were positive or negative was >69% or <1%, respectively. Conclusions: The CandID provides excellent performance and a rapid time-to-result using methods widely available in generic molecular diagnostic laboratories. By combining nonculture diagnostics, it may be possible to accurately confirm or exclude IC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract People who are prone to depression have a tendency to hold negative core beliefs about themselves, others and the future. They may develop assumptions, rules and compensatory strategies to [...]

Summary By taking on the roles of observer, client and co-therapist in cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) workshops, trainee psychological therapists can practise CBT methods on themselves. By doing so, they [...]

Summary This article describes the debate about whether cognitive techniques add to the effectiveness of behavioural methods in the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder, and provides a case study in which [...]

Summary Recruiting participants to research studies in mental health can be problematic. In this article, the first clinical studies officer to be appointed by Hampshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust describes [...]

This article focuses on family processes and adolescent religious attendance and personal religiosity. We find that the closeness and quality of the marital relationship and relationship between adolescent and parents significantly contributes to the strength of adolescent religious conviction and practice. The study used data from the NLSY97 cohort. Predictors include parenting style, closeness, and parent--child closeness; family structure; income, employment, parental education, mother's age at first birth, and number of siblings; adolescent characteristics (e.g., age, gender, race/ethnicity, disability, lying or cheating); and environmental characteristics (e.g., region of country, urbanicity, and physical environment risk). Family religious attendance was dramatically influenced by race in adolescents aged 16 years. Adolescents living with married, biological parents in 1997 were 36% more likely to attend worship services than those living with stepfamilies. Adolescents living in more physically risky environments, with peers who belonged to gangs, cut classes, or had sex, were less likely to attend weekly worship services with their families. Finally, compared with adolescents whose parents had a high-quality marital relationship and who had good relationships with both parents, all other adolescents were less likely to attend weekly worship services with their families. KEYWORDS church attendance, family processes, NLSY97, religious practice, teen religiosity

Nationally representative studies estimate that almost one in five adolescents in the United States is overweight. This is a major concern for individuals' physical and psychological health and the overall economy in terms of health care costs and loss of productivity. A 12-to 14-year-old subsample of 4,688 adolescents from the NLSY97 cohort was used to address the association between family processes, demographic variables, and adolescent body mass index (BMI) percentile over 4 years. The final model indicated that frequency of family meals, gender, race, control, and mothers' BMI were important predictors of adolescent BMI percentile over time. Mothers' BMI was the strongest predictor of adolescent BMI percentile. More frequent family meals led to decreases in BMI percentile over time, whereas males, African Americans, and Latinos had higher average BMI percentiles than other groups. KEYWORDS adolescence, control, family processes, multilevel modeling, obesity, overweight, parenting style

Background: Live oral rotavirus vaccines (LORVs) have significantly reduced rotavirus hospitalizations and deaths worldwide. However, LORVs are less effective in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Next-generation rotavirus vaccines (NGRVs) may be more effective but require administration by injection or a neonatal oral dose, adding operational complexity. Healthcare providers (HPs) were interviewed to assess rotavirus vaccine preferences and identify delivery issues as part of an NGRV value proposition. Objective: Determine HP vaccine preferences about delivering LORVs compared to injectable (iNGRV) and neonatal oral (oNGRV) NGRVs. Methods: 64 HPs from Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Peru, and Senegal were interviewed following a mixed-method guide centered on three vaccine comparisons: LORV vs. iNGRV; LORV vs. oNGRV; oNGRV vs. iNGRV. HPs reviewed attributes for each vaccine in the comparisons, then indicated and explained their preference. Additional questions elicited views about co-administering iNGRV+LORV for greater public health impact, a possible iNGRV-DTP-containing combination vaccine, and delivering neonatal doses. Results: Almost all HPs preferred oral vaccine options over iNGRV, with many emphasizing an aversion to additional injections. Despite this strong preference, HPs described challenges delivering oral doses. Preferences for LORV vs. oNGRV were split, marked by disparate views on rotavirus disease epidemiology and the safety, need, and feasibility of delivering neonatal vaccines. Although overwhelmingly enthusiastic about an iNGRV-DTP-containing combination option, several HPs had concerns. HP views were divided on the feasibility of co-administering iNGRV+LORV, citing challenges around logistics and caregiver sensitization. Conclusion: Our findings provide valuable insights on delivering NGRVs in routine immunization. Despite opposition to injectables, openness to co-administering LORV+iNGRV to improve efficacy suggests future HP support of iNGRV if adequately informed of its advantages. Rationales for LORV vs. oNGRV underscore needs for training on rotavirus epidemiology and stronger service integration. Expressed challenges delivering existing LORVs merit further examination and indicate need for improved delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract An estimated 2.1% of Americans have psoriasis and approximately 30% of them have moderate to severe psoriasis. Although the disease is not associated with mortality, it has a significant [...]

Vein (Vn), a ligand for the Drosophila epidermal growth factor receptor (Egfr), has a complex structure including a PEST, Ig, and EGF domain. We analyzed the structure-function relationships of Vn by assaying deletion mutants. The results show that each conserved domain influences Vn activity. A PEST deletion increases Vn potency and genetic evidence suggests that Vn is regulated by proteasomal degradation. The Ig deletion causes toxic effects not seen following expression of native Vn, but the Ig domain is not required for Vn localization or for the activation of Egfr signaling in wing vein patterning. Remarkably, when the EGF domain is deleted, Vn functions as a dominant negative ligand, implying that Vn normally physically interacts with another factor to promote its activity. We identified additional highly conserved sequences and found several regions that affect Vn potency and one that may mediate the effect of dominant negative Vn molecules. Together the results show that the activity of Vn is controlled both positively and negatively, demonstrating the existence of additional levels at which Egfr signaling can be regulated.

Exposure to fungi is inevitable, yet only a small number of patients with significant clinical risk develop invasive aspergillosis (IA). While timing of exposure in relation to immune status, environmental and occupational factors will influence the probability of developing IA, factors specific to the individual will likely play a role and variation in the host's genetic code associated with the immunological response to fungi have been linked to increased risk of developing IA. Screening for SNPs in genes significantly associated with IA (e.g. Pentraxin-3, Toll-like receptor 4, Dectin-1, DC-SIGN) could form part of the clinical work-up on admission or post allogeneic stem cell transplantation, to complement fungal biomarker screening. Through the combination of clinical and genetic risk with mycological evidence, we are approaching a time when we should be able to accurately predict the risk of IA in the haematology patient, using predictive modelling to stratifying each individual's management. Understanding the host and their immune responses to infection through genomics, transcriptomics and metabolomics/proteomics is critical to achieving how we manage the individual's risk of IA, underpinning personalized medicine. This review will investigate what is known about the genetic risk associated with developing IA, primarily in haematology patients and whether these strategies are ready to be incorporated into routine clinical practice, and if not what are the remaining hurdles to implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research has been conducted on sexually transmitted infection and HIV infection prevention in Kenyan youth. The vulnerability of young adults to HIV infection and the need of intensive intervention in this group have been investigated, and the results demonstrate that the low condom use and little knowledge of these infections indicate the importance of HIV prevention programs for this group of people.

Upon hearing the phrase Some cats meow, a listener might pragmatically infer that 'Some but not all cats meow'. This is known as a scalar implicature and it often arises when a speaker produces a weak linguistic expression instead of a stronger one. Several L2 studies claim that pragmatic inferences are generated by default and their comprehension presents no challenges to L2 learners. However, the evidence obtained from these studies largely stems from offline-based tasks that provide limited information about how scalar implicatures are processed. This study investigated scalar implicature processing among L2 speakers of English and the degree to which differences in L2 proficiency and Theory of Mind abilities would modulate pragmatic responding. The experiment used an online sentence verification paradigm that required participants to judge, among multiple control items, the veracity of under-informative sentences, such as Some cats are mammals, and to respond as quickly as possible. A true response to this item is indicative of a logical some and perhaps all reading and a false response to a pragmatic some but not all reading. Our results showed evidence that scalar inferences are not generated by default. The answer linked to the pragmatic reading some but not all took significantly longer to make relative to the answer that relies on the logical interpretation some and perhaps all. This processing slowdown was also significantly larger among participants with lower English proficiency. Further exploratory analyses of participants' Theory of Mind, as measured by the Social Skill subscale in the Autism Spectrum Quotient, revealed that socially inclined participants are more likely than the socially disinclined to derive a scalar inference. These results together provide new empirical insights into how L2 learners process scalar implicatures and thus implications for processing theories in experimental pragmatics and second language acquisition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• An effective and affordable injectable rotavirus vaccine may be attractive to LMICs. • Co-administering oral and injectable vaccines is acceptable to many stakeholders. • Oral vaccine with a birth dose is favored over a higher cost, standalone injectable. • Providing rotavirus vaccine in a DTP combination is the most preferred option. Currently available live, oral rotavirus vaccines (LORVs) have significantly reduced severe rotavirus hospitalizations and deaths worldwide. However, LORVs are not as effective in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) where rotavirus disease burden is highest. Next-generation rotavirus vaccine (NGRV) candidates in development may have a greater public health impact where they are needed most. The feasibility and acceptability of possible new rotavirus vaccines were explored as part of a larger public health value proposition for injectable NGRVs in LMICs. To assess national stakeholder preferences for currently available LORVs and hypothetical NGRVs and understand rationales and drivers for stated preferences. Interviews were conducted with 71 national stakeholders who influence vaccine policy and national programming. Stakeholders from Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Peru, Senegal, and Sri Lanka were interviewed using a mixed-method guide. Vaccine preferences were elicited on seven vaccine comparisons involving LORVs and hypothetical NGRVs based on information presented comparing the vaccines' attributes. Reasons for vaccine preference were elicited in open-ended questions, and the qualitative data were analyzed on key preference drivers. Nearly half of the national stakeholders interviewed preferred a highly effective standalone, injectable NGRV over current LORVs. When presented as having similar efficacy to the LORV, however, very few stakeholders preferred the injectable NGRV, even at substantially lower cost. Similarly, a highly effective standalone injectable NGRV was generally not favored over an equally effective oral NGRV following a neonatal-infant schedule, despite higher cost of the neonatal option. An NGRV-DTP-containing combination vaccine was strongly preferred over all other options, whether delivered alone with efficacy similar to current LORVs or co-administered alongside an LORV (LORV + NGRV-DTP) to increase efficacy. Results from these national stakeholder interviews provide valuable insights to inform ongoing and future NGRV research and development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]