We analyzed the oxygen isotope composition of biogenic apatite phosphate (δ18Op) in fossil tooth enameloid to investigate the paleoecology of Late Cretaceous sharks in the Gulf Coastal Plain of Alabama, USA. We analyzed six different shark taxa from both the Mooreville Chalk and the Blufftown Formation. We compared shark δ18Op with the δ18Op of a co-occurring poikilothermic bony fish Enchodus petrosus as a reference for ambient conditions. Enchodus petrosus tooth enamel δ18Op values are similar between formations (21.3‰ and 21.4‰ Vienna Standard Mean Ocean Water [VSMOW], respectively), suggesting minimal differences in water δ18O between formations. Most shark taxa in this study are characterized by δ18Op values that overlap with E. petrosus values, indicating they likely lived in similar habitats and were also poikilothermic. Ptychodus mortoni and Cretoxyrhina mantelli exhibit significantly lower δ18Op values than co-occurring E. petrosus (P. mortoni δ18Op is 19.1‰ VSMOW in the Mooreville Chalk; C mantelli δ18Op is 20.2‰ VSMOW in the Mooreville Chalk and 18.1‰ VSMOW in the Blufftown Formation). Excursions into brackish or freshwater habitats and thermal water-depth gradients are unlikely explanations for the lower P. mortoni and C. mantelli δ18Op values. The low P. mortoni δ18Op value is best explained by higher body temperature relative to surrounding temperatures due to active heating (e.g., mesothermy) or passive heating due to its large body size (e.g., gigantothermy). The low C. mantelli δ18Op values are best explained by a combination of mesothermy (e.g., active heating) and migration (e.g., from the Western Interior Seaway, low-latitude warmer waters, or the paleo–Gulf Stream), supporting the hypothesis that mesothermy evolved in lamniform shark taxa during the Late Cretaceous. If the anomalous P. mortoni δ18Op values are also driven by active thermoregulation, this suggests that mesothermy evolved independently in multiple families of Late Cretaceous sharks.

A traditional typological approach to taxonomy often does not adequately account for intraspecific variation and can result in taxonomic oversplitting. For many groups, including ammonoids of the Placenticeras genus, intraspecific variation documented in recent studies (e.g., ontogenetic changes, sexual dimorphism, polymorphism) challenges the historic proliferation of species names. Here, we used a population approach to taxonomy and quantitatively evaluated morphometric variation in a sample of Late Cretaceous (Santonian–Campanian) Placenticeras from Alabama and adjacent counties.

We used linear mixed models (LMMs) to characterize how morphological variables scale with conch size across the sample, exploiting mixed longitudinal data to evaluate individual variation in growth and inform interpretations of multivariate analyses. Extended LMMs incorporating geological formation evaluated morphological changes through time. Principal component analysis and clustering analysis were then used to evaluate the number of distinct clusters that emerged in multivariate morphospace independent of previous taxon name assignments.

Discontinuous scaling relationships and distinct clusters in multivariate space suggest sexual dimorphism characterized by differences in adult size and, secondarily, shape. Previous Stantonoceras and Placenticeras assignments broadly overlap in our morphospace, failing to justify this historic distinction (as sexual dimorphs or as genera or subgenera). Placenticeras conch morphology and ornament placement changed through time, suggesting a potential utility for coarse (stage-level) biostratigraphy. However, temporal changes were not associated with distinct clusters in morphospace, and our data fail to support the plethora of reported species names. As few as one or two (successive) species may be present in our sample (representing 130 years of collection effort). In addition to highlighting the need for a significant taxonomic revision of the Placenticeras genus, this study demonstrates the utility of LMMs for distinguishing between different sources of morphological variation, improving interpretations of morphospace under a population approach to taxonomy, and maximizing the amount of ontogenetic information that can be obtained nondestructively.

We estimated the racial disparity in rates of invasive S. aureus infections based on community coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) rates at the county level. Our data suggest that COVID-19 infection burden (1) affects not only hospital-onset MRSA invasive infection risk but also community-onset S. aureus invasive infection risk and (2) affects Black residents ∼60% more than White residents.

This article traces the development and growth of health justice partnerships (HJPs) in three countries: the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom.

Life course research embraces the complexity of health and disease development, tackling the extensive interactions between genetics and environment. This interdisciplinary blueprint, or theoretical framework, offers a structure for research ideas and specifies relationships between related factors. Traditionally, methodological approaches attempt to reduce the complexity of these dynamic interactions and decompose health into component parts, ignoring the complex reciprocal interaction of factors that shape health over time. New methods that match the epistemological foundation of the life course framework are needed to fully explore adaptive, multilevel, and reciprocal interactions between individuals and their environment. The focus of this article is to (1) delineate the differences between lifespan and life course research, (2) articulate the importance of complex systems science as a methodological framework in the life course research toolbox to guide our research questions, (3) raise key questions that can be asked within the clinical and translational science domain utilizing this framework, and (4) provide recommendations for life course research implementation, charting the way forward. Recent advances in computational analytics, computer science, and data collection could be used to approximate, measure, and analyze the intertwining and dynamic nature of genetic and environmental factors involved in health development.

Here we wanted to assess whether sexual risk behaviour differs dependent by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) status by following 100 HIV− and 137 HIV+ women recruited at two university teaching hospitals in Rwanda. Women were tested for sexually transmitted infections (STIs; trichomoniasis, syphilis, hepatitis B and C) and for reproductive tract infections (RTIs; candidiasis, bacterial vaginosis (BV)) and were interviewed at baseline and 9 months later. BV was the most prevalent infection, while syphilis was the most common STI with a 9-month incidence of 10.9% in HIV+ women. Only 24.5% of women positive for any RTI/STI contacted their health facility and got treatment. More HIV− women than HIV+ women had had more than one sexual partner and never used condoms during the follow-up period. The use of condoms was affected neither by marital status nor by concomitant STIs besides HIV. Our data highlight the importance of public education regarding condom use to protect against STIs in an era when HIV no longer is a death sentence.

OBJECTIVES/SPECIFIC AIMS: Community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs) recurrence ranges from 16% to 43% and presents significant challenges to clinicians, patients, and families. This comparative effectiveness research study aims to disseminate, implement and evaluate whether an existing intervention, consisting of decolonization and decontamination procedures, which has been determined to be effective in hospital intensive care unit settings, can be implemented by Community Health Workers (CHWs) or “promotoras” conducting home visits prevent recurrence of CA-MRSA and transmission within their households for patients presenting to primary care with SSTIs. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: In partnership with 3 Community Health Centers and 4 community hospitals in NYC, this study will recruit patients (n=278) with confirmed MRSA SSTIs and their household members. Participants are randomized to receive either a CHW/Promotora-delivered decolonization-decontamination intervention or usual care, which includes hygiene education. The highly engaged stakeholder team meets monthly to review interim results, identify areas for refinement and new research questions, and develop and implement strategies to improve participant engagement and retention. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: MRSA and MSSA were found in 19% and 21.1% of wound cultures, respectively. 59.5% with MRSA+ wound culture had one or more MRSA+ surveillance culture; 67.8% with MSSA+ wound culture had one or more MSSA+ surveillance culture. The “warm handoff” approach, developed and implemented by the stakeholder team to engage patients from their initial consent to return of lab results and scheduling of the home visits, helped improve completion of baseline home visits by 14%, from 45% to 59% of eligible participants. Home visits have demonstrated that 60% of households had at least one surface contaminated with S. aureus. Of the surfaces that tested positive in the households, nearly 20% were MRSA and 81% were MSSA; 32.5% of household members had at least one surveillance culture positive for S. aureus (MRSA: 7.7%, MSSA: 92.3%). DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACT: This study aims to understand the systems-level, patient-level, and environmental-level factors associated with SSTI recurrence and household transmission, and to examine the interactions between bacterial genotypic and clinical/phenotypic factors on decontamination, decolonization, SSTI recurrence and household transmission. This study will evaluate the barriers and facilitators of implementation of home visits by CHWs in underserved populations, and aims to strengthen the weak evidence base for implementation of strategies to reduce SSTI recurrence and household transmission.

Background: NEDA is a composite measure that may ultimately influence clinical decisions concerning switches of disease modifying therapy (DMT) for relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) patients. Cohort studies from MS clinics suggest NEDA is not sustained over time in most patients despite DMT but may be limited by referral bias. We investigated NEDA in a population-based RRMS cohort. Methods: We identified all incident cases of RRMS in Olmsted County from 01/01/2000-12/31/2011. Retrospective chart review was conducted to determine persistence of NEDA -following RRMS diagnosis. NEDA failure was defined as new MRI activity, relapse, or expanded disability status scale (EDSS) -worsening. Results: There were 93 incident cases of RRMS with 82 individuals having sufficient follow-up to determine persistence of NEDA. Prior to NEDA failure 44 were not on DMT, 37 were on first-tier, injectable DMT, and 1 received mitoxantrone. NEDA was maintained by 63% at 1 year, 38% at 2 years, 19% at 5 years, and 12% at 10 years. Disability measured by EDSS was no different at 10 years in patients maintaining NEDA versus those that failed NEDA at one year (p=0.3). Conclusions: Maintenance of NEDA beyond 2 years is infrequent among a population-based cohort of newly diagnosed RRMS patients and similar to prior clinic-based cohorts.

We compared sepsis “time zero” and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) SEP-1 pass rates among 3 abstractors in 3 hospitals. Abstractors agreed on time zero in 29 of 80 (36%) cases. Perceived pass rates ranged from 9 of 80 cases (11%) to 19 of 80 cases (23%). Variability in time zero and perceived pass rates limits the utility of SEP-1 for measuring quality.

OBJECTIVES/SPECIFIC AIMS: Community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs) recurrence ranges from 16% to 43% and presents significant challenges to clinicians, patients, and families. The number of emergency department visits for SSTIs increased from 1993 to 2005 from 0.48 to 1.16 ED visits per 100 US residents (95% CI 0.94 to 1.39; p<0.001); high safety-net status EDs saw a 4-fold increase in visits. The CA-MRSA Project (CAMP2) comparative effectiveness research (CER) study aims to evaluate a home-based intervention implemented by Community Health Workers (CHWs) or “promotoras” to prevent recurrence and transmission of CA-MRSA in primarily low-income, minority patients presenting to primary care with SSTIs. The intervention disseminates and implements methods found effective in the REDUCE MRSA trial. The present analysis was conducted using publically available data set to characterize the national patterns of healthcare utilization for treatment of SSTIs. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: An analysis was conducted using data downloaded from the CDC National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) and the CDC National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS) from 2012 (most recent data available) to evaluate the addition of Emergency Departments (EDs) as compared to Ambulatory Care as recruitment sources for a clinical trial to reduce CA-MRSA SSTI recurrence and household transmission. “Low-income” population was defined using “Expected Source of Payment” categories “Medicaid” and “Uninsured,” and ICD-9-CM dermatologic diagnosis codes for SSTIs and ICD-9-CM Procedure Codes for Incision and Drainage (I&D) were used to define a visit for SSTI treatment. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: In all patients, I&D was performed at a higher rate in EDs as compared with the ambulatory care setting (49.57 vs. 1.44 per 10,000 US residents in Medicaid and Uninsured; 44.48 vs. 5.24 per 10,000 US residents in all other insurance types). Nationally, low-income patients are 4 times more likely to have I&D procedure performed (OR 4.05, 95% CI 0.614–26.759, p<0.0001) and 5 times more likely to be diagnosed with an SSTI (OR 5.10, 95% CI 2.987–8.707, p<0.001) in the ED setting. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACT: These results confirm that low income patients seek primary care for SSTIs in both EDs and ambulatory care, such as Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs). This also confirms the trend we have experienced in FQHCs in NYC, many of whom refer patients to the ED for the I&D procedure, and those patients return to the FQHC for follow-up. Thus, the most comprehensive test of using CHWs to disseminate and implement the findings from the REDUCE MRSA trial would engage both EDs and Ambulatory Care/FQHCs for patient identification and recruitment.

OBJECTIVES/SPECIFIC AIMS: Community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs) are commonly seen in primary care, with recurrence rates that range from 16% to 43%, and present significant challenges to clinicians, patients, and families. This comparative effectiveness research study aims to develop and evaluate a home-based intervention implemented by Community Health Workers (CHWs) or “promotoras” to prevent recurrence of CA-MRSA in patients presenting to primary care with SSTIs and transmission within their households. This presentation will examine associations between wound microbiology, clinical presentation, and housing characteristics, including housing density and household surfaces contamination. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: In partnership with 3 Community Health Centers and 3 community hospitals in NYC, this study will recruit patients (n=278) with confirmed MRSA SSTIs and their household members. Participants will be randomized to receive either a CHW/Promotora-delivered decolonization-decontamination intervention (based on the REDUCE MRSA trial) or usual care. The highly engaged stakeholder team finalized the intervention protocol, developed and implemented CHW and clinician training, and developed an online health portal application for data management and exchange. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: We have collected 923 isolates from 237 individuals, including 240 wound culture isolates and 683 surveillance culture isolates (nares, axilla, groin). MRSA and MSSA were found in 19% and 21.1% of wound cultures, respectively; 59.5% with MRSA+ wound culture had 1 or more MRSA+ surveillance culture; 67.8% with MSSA+ wound culture had 1 or more MSSA+ surveillance culture. Of those with MRSA or MSSA infections, 70% of subjects were male, with an average age of 37.9 (SD=15.9 y). The most frequent sites of infection were the leg (20%), axilla (18%), buttock (17%), and abdomen/torso (12%). There was no association between the location and type of infection (MRSA/MSSA) (p-value=0.09). The kitchen floor (14.05%) and bedroom floor (14%) were the most common surfaces contaminated with MRSA. These were also the most common surfaces contaminated with MSSA, which was recovered from 10.2% and 9.1% of kitchen floors and bedroom floors, respectively. For individuals with an MRSA or MSSA wound infection, there was an average number of 3.2 (SD=1.6) co-residents per household, and 36.5% of household members were colonized with either MRSA or MSSA. There is no association between household density (number of co-residents) and type of infection (MRSA/MSSA) (Fisher’s p-values=0.171 and 0.371, respectively). In households of participants with MSSA wound infections, the number of colonized sites is positively associated with the level of household MSSA contamination (p=0.027). Further analyses will examine the associations between molecular subtypes, wound location, household surface contamination and household member colonization and infection. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACT: This study aims to understand the patient-level and environmental-level factors associated with SSTI recurrence, surface contamination and household transmission, and to examine the interactions between bacterial genotypic and clinical/phenotypic factors on decontamination, decolonization, SSTI recurrence and household transmission. This study will evaluate the barriers and facilitators to implementation of home visits by CHWs in underserved populations, and aims to strengthen the evidence base for implementation of strategies to identify and reduce household reservoirs and then control SSTI recurrence and household transmission.

The full theory of polarized SiO maser emission from the near-circumstellar environment of Asymptotic Giant Branch stars has been the subject of debate, with theories ranging from classical Zeeman origins to predominantly non-Zeeman anisotropic excitation or propagation effects. Features with an internal electric vector position angle (EVPA) rotation of ∼π/2 offer unique constraints on theoretical models. In this work, results are presented for one such feature that persisted across five epochs of SiO ν = 1, J = 1 − 0 VLBA observations of TX Cam. We examine the fit to the predicted dependence of linear polarization and EVPA on angle (θ) between the line of sight and the magnetic field against theoretical models. We also present results on the dependence of mc on θ and their theoretical implications. Finally, we discuss potential causes of the observed differences, and continuing work.

Salmonella causes an estimated 1·2 million illnesses annually in the USA. Salmonella enterica serotype Javiana (serotype Javiana) is the fourth most common serotype isolated from humans, with the majority of illnesses occurring in southeastern states. The percentage of wetland cover by wetland type and the average incidence rates of serotype Javiana infection in selected counties of the Foodborne Disease Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet) were examined. This analysis explored the relationship between wetland environments and incidence in order to assess whether regional differences in environmental habitats may be associated with observed variations in incidence. Findings suggest that environmental habitats may support reservoirs or contribute to the persistence of serotype Javiana, and may frequently contribute to the transmission of infection compared with other Salmonella serotypes.

Planets form in disks around young stars. The planet formation process may start when the protostar and disk are still deeply embedded within their infalling envelope. However, unlike more evolved protoplanetary disks, the physical and chemical structure of these young embedded disks are still poorly constrained. We have analyzed ALMA data for 13CO, C18O and N2D+ to constrain the temperature structure, one of the critical unknowns, in the disk around L1527. The spatial distribution of 13CO and C18O, together with the kinetic temperature derived from the optically thick 13CO emission and the non-detection of N2D+, suggest that this disk is warm enough (≳ 20 K) to prevent CO freeze-out.