Medical researchers are increasingly prioritizing the inclusion of underserved communities in clinical studies. However, mere inclusion is not enough. People from underserved communities frequently experience chronic stress that may lead to accelerated biological aging and early morbidity and mortality. It is our hope and intent that the medical community come together to engineer improved health outcomes for vulnerable populations. Here, we introduce Health Equity Engineering (HEE), a comprehensive scientific framework to guide research on the development of tools to identify individuals at risk of poor health outcomes due to chronic stress, the integration of these tools within existing healthcare system infrastructures, and a robust assessment of their effectiveness and sustainability. HEE is anchored in the premise that strategic intervention at the individual level, tailored to the needs of the most at-risk people, can pave the way for achieving equitable health standards at a broader population level. HEE provides a scientific framework guiding health equity research to equip the medical community with a robust set of tools to enhance health equity for current and future generations.

Healthcare personnel with severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection were interviewed to describe activities and practices in and outside the workplace. Among 2,625 healthcare personnel, workplace-related factors that may increase infection risk were more common among nursing-home personnel than hospital personnel, whereas selected factors outside the workplace were more common among hospital personnel.

Multi-sire mating of a mob of ewes is commonly used in commercial sheep production systems. However, ram mating success (defined as the number of lambs sired by an individual) can vary between rams in the mating group. If this trait was repeatable and heritable, selection of rams capable of siring larger numbers of lambs could reduce the number of rams required for mating and ultimately lead to increased genetic gain. However, genetic correlations with other productive traits, such as growth and female fertility, could influence the potential for ram mating success to be used as a selection trait. In order to investigate this trait, parentage records (including accuracy of sire assignment) from 15 commercial ram breeding flocks of various breeds were utilised to examine the repeatability and heritability of ram mating success in multi-sire mating groups. In addition, genetic and phenotypic correlations with growth and female fertility traits were estimated using ASReml. The final model used for the ram mating success traits included age of the ram and mating group as fixed effects. Older rams (3+years old) had 15% to 20% greater mating success than younger rams (1 or 2 years of age). Increasing the stringency of the criteria for inclusion of both an individual lamb, based on accuracy of sire assignment, or a whole mating group, based on how many lambs had an assigned sire, increased repeatability and heritability estimates of the ram mating success traits examined. With the most stringent criteria employed, where assignment of sire accuracy was >0.95 and the total number of lambs in the progeny group that failed to have a sire assigned was<0.05, repeatability and heritability for loge(number of lambs) was 0.40±0.09 and 0.26±0.12, respectively. For proportion of lambs sired, repeatability and heritability were both 0.30±0.09. The two ram mating traits (loge(nlamb) and proportion) were highly correlated, both phenotypically and genetically (0.88±0.01 and 0.94±0.06, respectively). Both phenotypic and genetic correlations between ram mating success and growth and other female fertility traits were low and non-significant. In conclusion, there is scope to select rams capable of producing high numbers of progeny and thus increase selection pressure on rams to increase genetic gain.

Introduction: The ECG diagnosis of acute coronary occlusion (ACO) in the setting of ventricular paced rhythm (VPR) is purported to be impossible. However, VPR has a similar ECG morphology to LBBB. The validated Smith-modified Sgarbossa criteria (MSC) have high sensitivity (Sens) and specificity (Spec) for ACO in LBBB. MSC consist of 1 of the following in 1 lead: concordant ST Elevation (STE) 1 mm, concordant ST depression 1 mm in V1-V3, or ST/S ratio <−0.25 (in leads with 1 mm STE). We hypothesized that the MSC will have higher Sens for diagnosis of ACO in VPR when compared to the original Sgarbossa criteria. We report preliminary findings of the Paced Electrocardiogram Requiring Fast Emergency Coronary Therapy (PERFECT) study Methods: The PERFECT study is a retrospective, multicenter, international investigation of ED patients from 1/2008 - 12/2016 with VPR on the ECG and symptoms suggestive of acute coronary syndrome (e.g. chest pain or shortness of breath). Data from four sites are presented. Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) was defined by the Third Universal Definition of AMI. A blinded cardiologist adjudicated ACO, defined as thrombolysis in myocardial infarction score 0 or 1 on coronary angiography; a pre-defined subgroup of ACO patients with peak cardiac troponin (cTn) >100 times the 99% upper reference limit (URL) of the cTn assay was also analyzed. Another blinded physician measured all ECGs. Statistics were by Mann Whitney U, Chi-square, and McNemars test. Results: The ACO and No-AMI groups consisted of 15 and 79 encounters, respectively. For the ACO and No-AMI groups, median age was 78 [IQR 72-82] vs. 70 [61-75] and 13 (86%) vs. 48 (61%) patients were male. The median peak cTn ratio (cTn/URL) was 260 [33-663] and 0.5 [0-1.3] for ACO vs. no-AMI. The Sens and Spec for the MSC and the original Sgarbossa criteria were 67% (95%CI 39-87) vs. 46% (22-72; p=0.25) and 99% (92-100) vs. 99% (92-100; p=0.5). In pre-defined subgroup analysis of ACO patients with peak cTn >100 times the URL (n=10), the Sens was 90% (54-100) for the MSC vs. 60% (27- 86) for original Sgarbossa criteria (p=0.25). Conclusion: ACO in VPR is an uncommon condition. The MSC showed good Sens for diagnosis of ACO in the presence of VPR, especially among patients with high peak cTn, and Spec was excellent. These methods and results are consistent with studies that have used the MSC to diagnose ACO in LBBB.

Alcohol consumption around the time of conception is highly prevalent in Western countries. Exposure to ethanol levels during gestation has been associated with altered development of the mesolimbic reward pathway in rats and increased propensity to addiction, however the effect of exposure only around the time of conception is unknown. The current study investigated the effects of periconceptional alcohol exposure (PC:EtOH) on alcohol and palatable food preferences and gene expression in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and the nucleus accumbens of the adult offspring. Rats were exposed to a liquid diet containing ethanol (EtOH) (12.5% vol/vol) or a control diet from 4 days before mating until 4 days after mating. PC:EtOH had no effect on alcohol preference in either sex. At 15 months of age, however, male PC:EtOH offspring consumed more high-fat food when compared with male control offspring, but this preference was not observed in females. Expression of the dopamine receptor type 1 (Drd1a) was lower in the VTA of male PC:EtOH offspring compared with their control counterparts. There was no effect of PC:EtOH on mRNA expression of the µ-opioid receptor, tyrosine hydroxylase (Th), dopamine receptor type 2 (Drd2) or dopamine active transporter (Slc6a3). These data support the hypothesis that periconceptional alcohol exposure can alter expression of key components of the mesolimbic reward pathway and heighten the preference of offspring for palatable foods and may therefore increase their propensity towards diet-induced obesity. These results highlight the importance of alcohol avoidance when planning a pregnancy.

The subsurface exploration of other planetary bodies can be used to unravel their geological history and assess their habitability. On Mars in particular, present-day habitable conditions may be restricted to the subsurface. Using a deep subsurface mine, we carried out a program of extraterrestrial analog research – MINe Analog Research (MINAR). MINAR aims to carry out the scientific study of the deep subsurface and test instrumentation designed for planetary surface exploration by investigating deep subsurface geology, whilst establishing the potential this technology has to be transferred into the mining industry. An integrated multi-instrument suite was used to investigate samples of representative evaporite minerals from a subsurface Permian evaporite sequence, in particular to assess mineral and elemental variations which provide small-scale regions of enhanced habitability. The instruments used were the Panoramic Camera emulator, Close-Up Imager, Raman spectrometer, Small Planetary Linear Impulse Tool, Ultrasonic drill and handheld X-ray diffraction (XRD). We present science results from the analog research and show that these instruments can be used to investigate in situ the geological context and mineralogical variations of a deep subsurface environment, and thus habitability, from millimetre to metre scales. We also show that these instruments are complementary. For example, the identification of primary evaporite minerals such as NaCl and KCl, which are difficult to detect by portable Raman spectrometers, can be accomplished with XRD. By contrast, Raman is highly effective at locating and detecting mineral inclusions in primary evaporite minerals. MINAR demonstrates the effective use of a deep subsurface environment for planetary instrument development, understanding the habitability of extreme deep subsurface environments on Earth and other planetary bodies, and advancing the use of space technology in economic mining.

Rapid and wide dispersal of passengers after flights makes investigation of flight-related outbreaks challenging. An outbreak of Salmonella Heidelberg was identified in a group of Irish travellers returning from Tanzania. Additional international cases sharing the same flight were identified. Our aim was to determine the source and potential vehicles of infection. Case-finding utilized information exchange using experts' communication networks and national surveillance systems. Demographic, clinical and food history information was collected. Twenty-five additional cases were identified from Ireland, The Netherlands, Norway, USA and Canada. We conducted a case-control study which indicated a significant association between illness and consumption of milk tart (OR 10·2) and an egg dish (OR 6) served on-board the flight. No food consumed before the flight was associated with illness. Cases from countries other than Ireland provided supplementary information that facilitated the identification of likely vehicles of infection. Timely, committed international collaboration is vital in such investigations.

The effects of source field plates on AlGaN/GaN High Electron Mobility Transistor reliability under off-state stress conditions were investigated using step-stress cycling. The source field plate enhanced the drain breakdown voltage from 55V to 155V and the critical voltage for off-state gate stress from 40V to 65V, relative to devices without the field plate. Transmission electron microscopy was used to examine the degradation of the gate contacts. The presence of cracking that appeared on both source and drain side of the gate edges was attributed to the inverse piezoelectric effect. In addition, a thin oxide layer was observed between the Ni gate contact and the AlGaN layer, and both Ni and oxygen had diffused into the AlGaN layer. The critical degradation voltage of AlGaN/GaN High Electron Mobility Transistors during off-state electrical stress was determined as a function of Ni/Au gate dimensions (0.1-0.17μm). Devices with different gate length and gate-drain distances were found to exhibit the onset of degradation at different source-drain biases but similar electric field strengths, showing that the degradation mechanism is primarily field-driven. The temperature dependence of sub-threshold drain current versus gate voltage at a constant drain bias voltage were used to determine the trap densities in AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) before and after the off-state stress. Two different trap densities were obtained for the measurements conducted at 300-493K and 493-573K, respectively.

Using an assay capable of detecting sequence-specific RNA/protein interactions in mammalian cells, we demonstrate that the poliovirus and rhinovirus 3C proteinases are able to bind structured target RNA sequences derived from their respective 5′ noncoding regions in vivo. Specific RNA binding by poliovirus 3C was found to be dependent on the integrity of stem-loop d of the RNA cloverleaf structure located at the 5′ end of poliovirus genomic RNA. In contrast, mutation of stem-loop b did not prevent this in vivo interaction. However, mutation of stem-loop b, which serves as the RNA binding site for a cellular co-factor important for efficient poliovirus replication, did significantly attenuate the efficiency of 3C RNA binding in vivo and 3CD RNA binding in vitro. This in vivo protein:RNA binding assay was also used to identify several residues in 3C that are critical for RNA binding, but dispensable for 3C proteinase activity. The mammalian cell-based RNA binding assay described in this study may have considerable potential utility in the future detection or analysis of in vivo RNA/protein interactions unrelated to the 3C/RNA interaction described here.

In recent years there has been much interest in a newly found member of the fullerene family, carbon nanotubes. As a result of the small dimensions of these structures much of the structural investigation has involved the use of HREM images of the tubes1−3. From these images it has been proposed that the idealised structure of a carbon nanotube comprises closed cylindrical coaxial shells of graphite in which each shell may have its own unique helical pitch due to the numerous ways in which a sheet of graphite may be rolled to form a cylinder. We have previously discussed HREM image simulations of the {100} fringes at the centre of nanotubes which assumed that the top and bottom faces of the tube were parallel4. In this paper attention is focused on image simulations for complete ideal tubes of circular cross-section in order to elucidate further the structure of the tubes. However, due to the complexity and large range of possible configurations and orientations of the tubes, we have not attempted to match the simulations to a particular tube. Instead we have chosen one representative structure and have varied the parameters of the tube in order to observe the effects on the image of the stacking of the shells relative to each other, tilt of the tube along the long axis and helical pitch of the shells. Features which occur in the simulations are compared qualitatively to experimental images.

A total of 1088 females of 14 breed groups (Angus and Hereford purebreds, and 12 first-cross groups) were evaluated over two locations for lifetime survival, numbers of calvings, numbers of calves weaned and cow lifetime records of calf survival. These traits are known to be related to a cow's lifetime productivity. The animals were part of the Ruakura Beef Breed Evaluation, designed to compare the growth and carcasses of steers, and the reproductive and maternal performance of females of different breed groups. Data were from 4 birth years of females and 11 breed-groups at location 1, and from 5 and 10 respectively at location 2, with seven breed-groups common to both locations. Females were first mated as yearlings. Culling at ages 2·5 to 4·5 years was based mainly on females that were non-pregnant on two occasions, whereas in subsequent years any non-pregnant female was culled. At location 1, there was a maximum possible number of mating years of 22 for females in the 1st birth year, declining to a maximum of 9 for those in the 4th birth year; for each age group at location 2 there was a maximum of 9 mating years. The average cow survival (number of mating years) was 7·26 (s.d. 3·02) at location 1 and 5·81 (s.d. 2·31) at location 2, with a coefficient of variation similar at both locations and averaging 0·41. The performances from the poorest to the best breed groups had a 1·5-fold range for number of mating years and a 1·8-fold range for number of calvings and number of calves weaned. The heritability of number of mating years (no. = 150 sire groups) was 0·13 (s.e. 0·08), number ofcalvings 0·11 (s.e. 0·08), number of calves weaned 0·15 (s.e. 0·08), and calf survival as a cow trait 0·027 (s.e. 0·018). This last heritability increased to 0·093 if adjustment was made to the underlying liability scale. There was no significant effect of breed of cow on number of mating years, nor on number of calves weaned per 100 calvings at either location, whilst the effect was significant for number ofcalvings and for number of calves weaned per cow (P < 0·10). The wide breed variation pointed to opportunities for selection among breeds, whilst the low heritabilities suggested that within-breed selection will be slow unless early indicator traits can be found.

A total of 161 bulls from 11 breeds were used to generate crossbred calves from Angus cows in 1973 to 1977 at each of three diverse New Zealand locations, and from Hereford cows at one of the locations in the same years. The bulls comprised four local breeds, Angus, Friesian, Hereford, and Jersey, and seven recently imported breeds, Blonde d'Aquitaine, Charolais, Chianina, Limousin, Maine Anjou, Simmental and South Devon. This paper reports the reproductive and maternal performance of the straightbred and first-cross cows over the first four calvings, with first mating as yearlings at 14 to 16 months of age. A total of 7575 mating records from 2109 cows were analysed. Location differences were greater for reproduction than for growth traits and resulted in genotype × environment interactions for some components of cow performance and particularly the composite traits, weight of calf weaned per cow joined (productivity) and cow ‘efficiency’ (the ratio of productivity to cow weight). At all locations the Friesian-cross cows weaned the greatest weight of calf per head but were matched or surpassed by the lighter Jersey crosses in terms of efficiency of calf production. Most of the European crosses performed relatively much better in the most favourable environment than in the harsh environment and this was particularly marked for the productivity of Simmental crosses. Heterosis as a proportion of the purebred mean was important for cow performance and particularly pregnancy rate (0·12), productivity (0·21) and the efficiency ratio (0·16). Heritabilities for weight and age at puberty were both 0·34 (s.e. 0·08). Repeatabilities and heritabilities for cow reproductive traits were low (0·0 to 0·10) but higher for calf weights up to weaning as a trait of the cow (0·09 to 0·38). In general, the large European breeds which excelled in growth and carcass production produced female progeny which reached puberty at greater ages, had lower reproductive performance (especially in less favourable environments) and larger mature size. Some breed utilization strategies to achieve trade-offs between these genetic antagonisms are discussed.

For many years after its publication in 1912 Berthold Laufer's book Jade: a study in Chinese archaeologh and religion remained a standard reference work for Western scholars. In his third chapter Laufer discusses certain three-lobed jade discs (pl. I); he is in general agreement with the theories of the late-nineteenth-century Chinese scholar Wu Ta-ch'eng , who named the discs hsüan chi and suggested that they were originally intended to be used for astronomical purposes. After Laufer the discussion was taken up by other writers on jade, and was carried a stage further in a series of papers by Henri Michel, beginning in 1947, in which he presented a considerable amount of literary and scientific evidence in support of his interpretation of the astronomical purpose of the discs. Michel's theories were lent additional weight and given a wide circulation by their inclusion in Joseph Needham's survey of Chinese astronomy. Since Michel, those writers who have doubted the astronomical connexions of the discs have nevertheless tended to retain the name huüan chi, which now seems to have become established as the standard term for this particular jade form on museum labels and in archaeological reports in China as well as in the West.