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Human parainfluenza virus (HPIV) contributes to acute respiratory tract infection burden in young children (1) and adults (2). Persons experiencing homelessness are among those at risk for respiratory viral complications [...]

Congregate homeless shelters are disproportionately affected by infectious disease outbreaks. We describe enterovirus epidemiology across 23 adult and family shelters in King County, Washington, USA, during October 2019-May 2021, by using repeated cross-sectional respiratory illness and environmental surveillance and viral genome sequencing. Among 3,281 participants >3 months of age, we identified coxsackievirus A21 (CVA21) in 39 adult residents (3.0% [95% CI 1.9%-4.8%] detection) across 7 shelters during October 2019-February 2020. We identified enterovirus D68 (EV-D68) in 5 adult residents in 2 shelters during October-November 2019. Of 812 environmental samples, 1 was EV-D68-positive and 5 were CVA21-positive. Other enteroviruses detected among residents, but not in environmental samples, included coxsackievirus A6/A4 in 3 children. No enteroviruses were detected during April 2020-May 2021. Phylogenetically clustered CVA21 and EV-D68 cases occurred in some shelters. Some shelters also hosted multiple CVA21 lineages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tuning graphene conduction states with the remnant polarization of ferroelectric oxides holds much promise for a range of low-power transistor and memory applications. However, understanding how the ferroelectric polarization affects the electronic properties of graphene remains challenging because of a variety of intricate and dynamic screening processes that complicate the interaction. Here, we report on a range of slow electrical conductance relaxation behavior in graphene-ferroelectric field-effect transistors with the extreme case leading to the convergence of two polarization-induced states. Piezoresponse force microscopy through the graphene channel reveals that the ferroelectric polarization remains essentially unchanged during this conductance relaxation. When measured in vacuum, the conductance relaxation is significantly reduced, suggesting equilibration with adsorbates from the ambient atmosphere that can cause charge transfer to and from graphene to be the origin of the slow relaxation.

Graphene's linear dispersion relation and the attendant implications for bipolar electronics applications have motivated a range of experimental efforts aimed at producing p-n junctions in graphene. Here we report electrical transport measurements of graphene p-n junctions formed via simple modifications to a PbZr0.2Ti0.8O3 substrate, combined with a self-assembled layer of ambient environmental dopants. We show that the substrate configuration controls the local doping region, and that the p-n junction behavior can be controlled with a single gate. Finally, we show that the ferroelectric substrate induces a hysteresis in the environmental doping which can be utilized to activate and deactivate the doping, yielding an "on-demand" p-n junction in graphene controlled by a single, universal backgate.

The quality of the home environment is widely recognized as a strong contributor to young children's emergent literacy and social competence and to their subsequent educational success. The present study examined the relationships between family variables (socioeconomic status (SES), social risk factors, and home learning variables) and children's emergent literacy competence and children's social functioning. The sample for this study was obtained by randomly selecting 48 classrooms within three Head Start programs and, then, randomly selecting five girls and five boys from each class. The final sample consisted of 325 families for which information about both child and primary caregiver was obtained from multiple sources (teacher, outside assessor, and primary caregiver). A mediational model was hypothesized and tested using structural equation modeling. The findings are consistent with the hypotheses that family social risk and home learning experiences mediate the association between SES and Head Start children's school readiness in the areas of emergent literacy competence and social functioning.

Homeless shelter residents and staff may be at higher risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, SARS-CoV-2 infection estimates in this population have been reliant on cross-sectional or outbreak investigation data. We conducted routine surveillance and outbreak testing in 23 homeless shelters in King County, Washington, to estimate the occurrence of laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection and risk factors during 1 January 2020–31 May 2021. Symptom surveys and nasal swabs were collected for SARS-CoV-2 testing by RT-PCR for residents aged ≥3 months and staff. We collected 12,915 specimens from 2,930 unique participants. We identified 4.74 (95% CI 4.00–5.58) SARS-CoV-2 infections per 100 individuals (residents: 4.96, 95% CI 4.12–5.91; staff: 3.86, 95% CI 2.43–5.79). Most infections were asymptomatic at the time of detection (74%) and detected during routine surveillance (73%). Outbreak testing yielded higher test positivity than routine surveillance (2.7% versus 0.9%). Among those infected, residents were less likely to report symptoms than staff. Participants who were vaccinated against seasonal influenza and were current smokers had lower odds of having an infection detected. Active surveillance that includes SARS-CoV-2 testing of all persons is essential in ascertaining the true burden of SARS-CoV-2 infections among residents and staff of congregate settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Ossiculoplasty is a surgical procedure that recreates sound transmission of the middle ear in conductive hearing loss. Various materials have been used for ossicular reconstruction, but the most ideal material for ossiculoplasty remains controversial. The purpose of this study was to introduce a novel method of autologous ossiculoplasty, bone‐cartilage composite graft (BCCG) and to compare its surgical results with different types of ossiculoplastic prostheses. Study Design: A retrospective study was performed in a tertiary referral centre. Methods: Data of 275 patients who received ossiculoplasty using the three different materials of BCCG, Polycel® and titanium were analysed according to type of ossiculoplasty: partial or total ossicular replacement prosthesis (PORP or TORP). Hearing results, complication rates and clinical parameters including age, sex, past history, preoperative diagnosis and surgery type were compared among different groups. Results: Ossiculoplasty with BCCG showed satisfactory hearing outcomes and the lowest complication rate among the three different materials. In particular, its extrusion rate was 0%. Conclusion: We propose that the BCCG technique is a useful alternative method for ossiculoplasty, with proper patient selection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]