Background: A vital role of hospital employee health is the management, characterization, and targeted prevention of bloodborne pathogen exposures (BPPE) among healthcare workers. A comprehensive review of a health center’s BPPE over time was conducted to identify areas for improvement and target education and training, given changes in BBPE standard operating procedures (SOPs) over time. Methods: A retrospective descriptive analysis was conducted on deidentified BBPE cases reported to employee health at VA Connecticut Healthcare System from 1995-2023 (N=296) using R statistical software. Results: The highest number of BBPE occurred among trainee physicians (N=103, 34.8%, especially surgery and internal medicine), registered nurses (N=60, 20.3%), and non-trainee physicians (N=45, 15.2%). The most frequently implicated devices were hollow-bore (N=103, 34.8%) and suture needles (N=60, 20.3%). Most BBPE occurred during surgical procedures (N=114, 38.5%) or medication administration (N=52, 17.6%). Over half of BBPE occurred during afternoons/nights (N=172, 58.1%). Over half occurred with use of personal protective equipment (PPE) (N=181, 61.1%). The majority of BBPE implicated finger injuries (N=220, 74.3%). Blood was the most frequently reported exposure (N=127, 42.9%), a similar percentage of records did not specifically name a body fluid type (N=121) or whether PPE was used (N=110). In most cases, the source patient was identified (N=282, 95.3%) and tested (N=272, 91.9%). Forty-three sources (14.5%) had positive BBP testing, which included HIV (N=14, 4.7%), hepatitis C (N=23, 7.8%), and hepatitis B (N=6, 2.0%). Most employees presented to employee health for initial evaluation (N=231, 78%) and underwent post-exposure testing (N=266, 89.9%); most had evidence of immunity to hepatitis B (N=246, 83.1%). Eighty-three employees (28%) received HIV PEP (average=1.9 days). Most records did not indicate if this was a first-time BBPE (N=250, 84.5%). No employee records indicated seroconversion for a bloodborne pathogen. Conclusions: Physicians and RNs, those performing surgical procedures and administering medications, and those on second and third shifts are at highest risk and may benefit from additional interventions such as exposure assessment or education. Required recordkeeping has been variable over time. Updated national SOPs have been adapted to employee health, though additional details could be considered for quality improvement purposes, such as duration of employment, level of training, and prior BBPE prevention education. It is unclear if some information such as history of BBPE or PPE use was elicited but not documented – this information could be helpful in management of BBPEs.

Among vertebrates, allomothering (non-maternal care) is classified as cooperative breeding (help from sexually mature non-breeders, usually close relatives) or communal breeding (shared care between multiple breeders who are not necessarily related). Humans have been described with both labels, most frequently as cooperative breeders. However, few studies have quantified the relative contributions of allomothers according to whether they are (a) sexually mature and reproductively active and (b) related or unrelated. We constructed close-proximity networks of Agta and BaYaka hunter–gatherers. We used portable remote-sensing devices to quantify the proportion of time children under the age of 4 spent in close proximity to different categories of potential allomother. Both related and unrelated, and reproductively active and inactive, campmates had substantial involvement in children's close-proximity networks. Unrelated campmates, siblings and subadults were the most involved in both populations, whereas the involvement of fathers and grandmothers was the most variable between the two populations. Finally, the involvement of sexually mature, reproductively inactive adults was low. Where possible, we compared our findings with studies of other hunter–gatherer societies, and observed numerous consistent trends. Based on our results we discuss why hunter–gatherer allomothering cannot be fully characterised as cooperative or communal breeding.

We recently reported on the radio-frequency attenuation length of cold polar ice at Summit Station, Greenland, based on bi-static radar measurements of radio-frequency bedrock echo strengths taken during the summer of 2021. Those data also allow studies of (a) the relative contributions of coherent (such as discrete internal conducting layers with sub-centimeter transverse scale) vs incoherent (e.g. bulk volumetric) scattering, (b) the magnitude of internal layer reflection coefficients, (c) limits on signal propagation velocity asymmetries (‘birefringence’) and (d) limits on signal dispersion in-ice over a bandwidth of ~100 MHz. We find that (1) attenuation lengths approach 1 km in our band, (2) after averaging 10 000 echo triggers, reflected signals observable over the thermal floor (to depths of ~1500 m) are consistent with being entirely coherent, (3) internal layer reflectivities are ≈–60$\to$–70 dB, (4) birefringent effects for vertically propagating signals are smaller by an order of magnitude relative to South Pole and (5) within our experimental limits, glacial ice is non-dispersive over the frequency band relevant for neutrino detection experiments.

Some human settlements endure for millennia, while others are founded and abandoned within a few decades or centuries. The reasons for variation in the duration of site occupation, however, are rarely addressed. Here, the authors introduce a new approach for the analysis of settlement longevity or persistence. Using seven regional case studies comprising both survey and excavation data, they demonstrate how the median persistence of individual settlements varies widely within and among regions. In turn, this variability is linked to the effects of environmental potential. In seeking to identify the drivers of settlement persistence in the past, it is suggested that archaeologists can contribute to understanding of the sustainability and resilience of contemporary cities.

Prenatal glucocorticoid overexposure causes adult metabolic dysfunction in several species but its effects on adult mitochondrial function remain largely unknown. Using respirometry, this study examined mitochondrial substrate metabolism of fetal and adult ovine biceps femoris (BF) and semitendinosus (ST) muscles after cortisol infusion before birth. Physiological increases in fetal cortisol concentrations pre-term induced muscle- and substrate-specific changes in mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation capacity in adulthood. These changes were accompanied by muscle-specific alterations in protein content, fibre composition and abundance of the mitochondrial electron transfer system (ETS) complexes. In adult ST, respiration using palmitoyl-carnitine and malate was increased after fetal cortisol treatment but not with other substrate combinations. There were also significant increases in protein content and reductions in the abundance of all four ETS complexes, but not ATP synthase, in the ST of adults receiving cortisol prenatally. In adult BF, intrauterine cortisol treatment had no effect on protein content, respiratory rates, ETS complex abundances or ATP synthase. Activity of citrate synthase, a marker of mitochondrial content, was unaffected by intrauterine treatment in both adult muscles. In the ST but not BF, respiratory rates using all substrate combinations were significantly lower in the adults than fetuses, predominantly in the saline-infused controls. The ontogenic and cortisol-induced changes in mitochondrial function were, therefore, more pronounced in the ST than BF muscle. Collectively, the results show that fetal cortisol overexposure programmes mitochondrial substrate metabolism in specific adult muscles with potential consequences for adult metabolism and energetics.

Theoretical models relating to the evolution of human behaviour usually make assumptions about the kinship structure of social groups. Since humans were hunter–gatherers for most of our evolutionary history, data on the composition of contemporary hunter–gatherer groups has long been used to inform these models. Although several papers have taken a broad view of hunter–gatherer social organisation, it is also useful to explore data from single populations in more depth. Here, we describe patterns of relatedness among the Palanan Agta, hunter–gatherers from the northern Philippines. Across 271 adults, mean relatedness to adults across the population is r = 0.01 and to adult campmates is r = 0.074, estimates that are similar to those seen in other hunter–gatherers. We also report the distribution of kin across camps, relatedness and age differences between spouses, and the degree of shared reproductive interest between camp mates, a measure that incorporates affinal kinship. For both this this measure (s) and standard relatedness (r), we see no major age or sex differences in the relatedness of adults to their campmates, conditions that may reduce the potential for conflicts of interest within social groups.

Marine bryozoans have been members of benthic skeletal faunas since the Ordovician. These small suspension feeders collect particles in the range of 10 to 100 μm. Specific details of their feeding depend on the morphology of the feeding apparatus, which may be reflected in skeletal characters. While several studies have described the link between the skeletal and soft-body traits of gymnolaemate bryozoans, stenolaemates have received less attention. To fill this gap, we conducted a detailed analysis of morphometry within and across species and attempted to develop robust predictive models that can be used to infer the soft-body morphology from skeletal data. This, in turn, will help with extracting data on ecology of Paleozoic communities of suspension feeders from the extensive bryozoan fossil record. Characters of polypide morphology among New Zealand cyclostomates (single Recent order in Stenolaemata) displayed staggering variability and almost without exception were not connected to skeletal characters at the species level. When this variability is reduced to its central tendency, interspecific trends are more apparent. The relationship is positive, linear, and moderately strong, but the resulting models have wide predictive intervals (plus/minus hundreds of micrometers). A precise estimate of the characters of the feeding apparatus of modern, and especially fossil, stenolaemates may be difficult to attain, at least on the basis of the skeletal traits used here.

OBJECTIVES/SPECIFIC AIMS: Patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer typically have poor outcomes, with a median survival of ~16 months. Novel methods to improve local control are needed. Nab-paclitaxel (abraxane) has shown efficacy in pancreatic cancer and is FDA approved for metastatic disease in combination with gemcitabine. Nab-paclitaxel is also a promising radiosensitizer based on laboratory studies, but it has never been clinically tested with definitive radiotherapy for locally advanced disease. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: We performed a phase 1 study using a 3+3 dose-escalation strategy to determine the safety and tolerability of dose escalated nab-paclitaxel with fractionated radiotherapy for patients with unresectable or borderline resectable pancreatic cancer. Following induction chemotherapy with 2 cycles of nab-paclitaxel and gemcitabine, patients were treated with weekly nab-paclitaxel and daily radiotherapy to a dose of 52.5 Gy in 25 fractions. Final dose-limiting toxicity (DLT) determination was performed at day 65 after the start of radiotherapy. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Nine patients received nab-paclitaxel at a dose level of either 100 mg/m2 (n=3) or 125 mg/m2 (n=6). One DLT (grade 3 neuropathy) was observed in a patient who received 125 mg/m2 of nab-paclitaxel. Other grade 3 toxicities included fatigue (11%), anemia (11%), and neutropenia (11%). No grade 4 toxicities were observed. With a median follow-up of 8 months (range 5–28 months), median survival was 19 months and median progression-free survival was 10 months. Following chemoradiation, 3 patients underwent surgical resection, all with negative margins and limited tumor viability. Of the 3 patients, 2 initially had borderline resectable tumors and 1 had an unresectable tumor. Tumor (SMAD-4, Caveolin-1) and peripheral (circulating tumor cells and microvesicles) biomarkers were collected and are being analyzed. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF IMPACT: The combination of fractionated radiation and weekly nab-paclitaxel was safe and well tolerated. This regimen represents a potentially promising therapy for patients with unresectable and borderline resectable pancreatic cancer and warrants further investigation.

The long-lived (about 20 yr) bryozoan Adeonellopsis sp. from Doubtful Sound, New Zealand, precipitates aragonite in isotopic equilibrium with seawater, exerting no metabolic or kinetic effects. Oxygen isotope ratios (δ18O) in 61 subsamples (along three branches of a single unaltered colony) range from −0.09 to +0.68‰ PDB (mean = +0.36‰ PDB). Carbon isotope ratios (δ13C) range from +0.84 to +2.18‰ PDB (mean = +1.69‰ PDB). Typical of cool-water carbonates, δ18O-derived water temperatures range from 14.2 to 17.5 °C. Adeonellopsis has a minimum temperature growth threshold of 14 °C, recording only a partial record of environmental variation. By correlating seawater temperatures derived from δ18O with the Southern Oscillation Index, however, we were able to detect major events such as the 1983 El Niño. Interannual climatic variation can be recorded in skeletal carbonate isotopes. The range of within-colony isotopic variability found in this study (0.77‰ in δ18O and 1.34 in δ13C) means that among-colony variation must be treated cautiously. Temperate bryozoan isotopes have been tested in less than 2% of described extant species — this highly variable phylum is not yet fully understood.

Researchers from across the social sciences have found consistent deviations from the predictions of the canonical model of self-interest in hundreds of experiments from around the world. This research, however, cannot determine whether the uniformity results from universal patterns of human behavior or from the limited cultural variation available among the university students used in virtually all prior experimental work. To address this, we undertook a cross-cultural study of behavior in ultimatum, public goods, and dictator games in a range of small-scale societies exhibiting a wide variety of economic and cultural conditions. We found, first, that the canonical model – based on self-interest – fails in all of the societies studied. Second, our data reveal substantially more behavioral variability across social groups than has been found in previous research. Third, group-level differences in economic organization and the structure of social interactions explain a substantial portion of the behavioral variation across societies: the higher the degree of market integration and the higher the payoffs to cooperation in everyday life, the greater the level of prosociality expressed in experimental games. Fourth, the available individual-level economic and demographic variables do not consistently explain game behavior, either within or across groups. Fifth, in many cases experimental play appears to reflect the common interactional patterns of everyday life.

We would like to thank the commentators for their generous comments, valuable insights and helpful suggestions. We begin this response by discussing the selfishness axiom and the importance of the preferences, beliefs, and constraints framework as a way of modeling some of the proximate influences on human behavior. Next, we broaden the discussion to ultimate-level (that is evolutionary) explanations, where we review and clarify gene-culture coevolutionary theory, and then tackle the possibility that evolutionary approaches that exclude culture might be sufficient to explain the data. Finally, we consider various methodological and epistemological concerns expressed by our commentators.