Passive Sampling of SARS-CoV-2 for Wastewater Surveillance.

The shedding of pathogens by infected humans enables the use of sewage monitoring to conduct wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE). Although most WBE studies use data from large sewage treatment plants, timely data from smaller catchments are needed for targeted public health action. Traditional sampling methods, like autosamplers or grab sampling, are not conducive to quick ad hoc deployments and high-resolution monitoring at these smaller scales. This study develops and validates a cheap and easily deployable passive sampler unit, made from readily available consumables, with relevance to the COVID-19 pandemic but with broader use for WBE. We provide the first evidence that passive samplers can be used to detect SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater from populations with low prevalence of active COVID-19 infections (0.034 to 0.34 per 10,000), demonstrating their ability for early detection of infections at three different scales (lot, suburb, and city). A side by side evaluation of passive samplers (n = 245) and traditionally collected wastewater samples (n = 183) verified that the passive samplers were sensitive at detecting SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater. On all 33 days where we directly compared traditional and passive sampling techniques, at least one passive sampler was positive when the average SARS-CoV-2 concentration in the wastewater equaled or exceeded the quantification limit of 1.8 gene copies per mL (n = 7). Moreover, on 13 occasions where wastewater SARS-CoV-2 concentrations were less than 1.8 gene copies per mL, one or more passive samplers were positive. Finally, there was a statistically significant (p < 0.001) positive relationship between the concentrations of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater and the levels found on the passive samplers, indicating that with further evaluation, these devices could yield semi-quantitative results in the future. Passive samplers have the potential for wide use in WBE with attractive feasibility attributes of cost, ease of deployment at small-scale locations, and continuous sampling of the wastewater. Further research will focus on the optimization of laboratory methods including elution and extraction and continued parallel deployment and evaluations in a variety of settings to inform optimal use in wastewater surveillance.

Terrestrial Isopods Porcellio scaber and Oniscus asellus (Crustacea: Isopoda) Increase Bacterial Abundance and Modify Microbial Community Structure in Leaf Litter Microcosms: a Short-Term Decomposition Study.

Invasive terrestrial isopods are likely to have altered leaf litter decomposition processes in North American forests, but the mechanisms underlying these alterations and the degree to which they differ among isopod species are poorly characterized. Using mixed-deciduous leaf litter microcosms, we quantified the effects of two common, invasive isopods (Oniscus asellus and Porcellio scaber) on short-term leaf litter decomposition and microbial community structure and function. Microcosms containing ground litter and a microbial inoculant were exposed to one of the two isopod species or no isopods for 21 days. Mass loss was then quantified as the change in litter dry mass after leaching, and microbial respiration was quantified as the mass of CO2 absorbed by soda lime. Litter leachates were plated on agar to quantify culturable bacterial and fungal abundance, and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis of amplified leachate microbial DNA was used to characterize shifts in microbial community structure. Isopod presence increased litter mass loss by a modest ~ 6%, but did not affect litter microbial respiration. Bacterial abundance increased significantly in the presence of isopods, while fungal abundance was either unchanged or reduced. Overall litter microbial species richness was reduced by isopods, with O. asellus specifically reducing fungal abundance and diversity. Isopods modified the microbial community structure by suppressing four bacterial and one fungal species, while promoting growth of four other bacterial species (two unique to each isopod species) and two fungal species (one which was unique to O. asellus).

Predicting the stability of ternary intermetallics with density functional theory and machine learning.

We use a combination of machine learning techniques and high-throughput density-functional theory calculations to explore ternary compounds with the AB2C2 composition. We chose the two most common intermetallic prototypes for this composition, namely, the tI10-CeAl2Ga2 and the tP10-FeMo2B2 structures. Our results suggest that there may be ∼10 times more stable compounds in these phases than previously known. These are mostly metallic and non-magnetic. While the use of machine learning reduces the overall calculation cost by around 75%, some limitations of its predictive power still exist, in particular, for compounds involving the second-row of the periodic table or magnetic elements.

Cryopreservation of putative pre-pubertal bovine spermatogonial stem cells by slow freezing.

Development of techniques for the preservation of mammalian spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) is a critical step in commercial application of SSC based technologies, including species preservation, amplification of agriculturally valuable germ lines, and human fertility preservations. The objective of this study was to develop an efficient cryopreservation protocol for preservation of bovine SSCs using a slow freezing technique. To maximize the efficiency of SSC cryopreservation, the effects of various methods (tissue vs. cell freezing) and cryoprotective agents (trehalose, sucrose, and polyethylene glycol [PEG]) were tested. Following thawing, cells were enriched for undifferentiated spermatogonia by differential plating and evaluated for recovery rate, proliferation capacity, and apoptosis. Additionally, putative stem cell activity was assessed using SSC xenotransplantation. The recovery rate, and proliferation capacity of undifferentiated spermatogonia were significantly greater for germ cells frozen using tissue freezing methods compared to cell freezing methods. Cryopreservation in the presence of 200 mM trehalose resulted in significantly greater recovery rate, proliferation capacity, and apoptosis of germ cells compared to control. Furthermore, cryopreservation using the tissue freezing method in the presence of 200 mM trehalose resulted in the production of colonies of donor-derived germ cells after xenotransplantation into recipient mouse testes, indicating putative stem cell function. Collectively, these data indicate that cryopreservation using tissue freezing methods in the presence of 200 mM trehalose is an efficient cryopreservation protocol for bovine SSCs.

Further evidence of renewal in automatically maintained behavior.

Renewal is a relapse phenomenon that refers to the recurrence of a previously reduced behavior following a change in stimulus conditions. Muething et al. (2022) examined the phenomenology of renewal among individuals with automatically maintained challenging behavior treated at an outpatient clinic. We replicated their findings by retrospectively examining renewal across various topographies of automatically maintained behavior treated at an inpatient hospital, and we extended their work by also examining differences across subtypes of automatically maintained self-injurious behavior. The prevalence of renewal was comparable to that observed by Muething et al., supporting the notion that automatically maintained challenging behavior is susceptible to relapse phenomena. Furthermore, renewal was twice as likely to occur for individuals with Subtype 2 versus Subtype 1 self-injurious behavior, providing additional evidence of behavioral differentiation between subtypes. Our findings suggest that even after apparent stability in treatment, practitioners should remain vigilant for the recurrence of automatically maintained behavior during generalization.

Developments and applications of the OPTIMADE API for materials discovery, design, and data exchange.

The Open Databases Integration for Materials Design (OPTIMADE) application programming interface (API) empowers users with holistic access to a growing federation of databases, enhancing the accessibility and discoverability of materials and chemical data. Since the first release of the OPTIMADE specification (v1.0), the API has undergone significant development, leading to the v1.2 release, and has underpinned multiple scientific studies. In this work, we highlight the latest features of the API format, accompanying software tools, and provide an update on the implementation of OPTIMADE in contributing materials databases. We end by providing several use cases that demonstrate the utility of the OPTIMADE API in materials research that continue to drive its ongoing development.

Efficiency of lagoon-based municipal wastewater treatment in removing microplastics.

Municipal wastewater treatment plants act as a sink, but also are a source of microplastics in the environment. A conventional wastewater lagoon system and an activated sludge (AS)-lagoon system in Victoria (Australia) were investigated through a two-year sampling program to understand the fate and transport of MP in such treatment processes. The abundance (>25 µm) and characteristics (size, shape, and colour) of the microplastics present in the various wastewater streams were determined. The mean values of MP in the influent of the two plants were 55.3 ± 38.4 and 42.5 ± 20.1 MP/L, respectively. The dominant MP size of influent and final effluent was <500 µm, with 25-200 µm accounting for >65 % of the total MP; synthetic fibres were the dominant MP in all wastewater streams. Influent MP concentration was significantly higher in summer than in other seasons for both systems, which was related to the lower plant inflow due to less stormwater entering the sewer during summer. The promising MP removal capability of the lagoon system (97 %) was attributed to its lengthy wastewater detention time (total HRT >250 days, including the storage lagoons) that would allow effective separation of MP from the water column via various physical and biological pathways. For the AS-lagoon system, the high MP reduction efficiency (98.4 %) was attributed to the post-secondary treatment of the wastewater with the lagoon system, in which MP was further removed during the month-long detention in the lagoons. The results indicated the potential of such low-energy and low-cost wastewater treatment systems for MP control.

Repetitive Speech and Problem Behavior: Functional Analysis of Precurrent Contingencies.

When mands and problem behavior co-occur within an individual's repertoire, a functional analysis of precurrent contingencies helps to identify any relation between the two responses, as well as the function of problem behavior. Repetitive behaviors may function similarly to mands and also co-occur with problem behavior; particularly when repetitive behavior is blocked, or when caregivers refrain from participating in repetitive behavior episodes (e.g., the repetitive behavior involves a verbal or physical interaction with a caregiver). The current study presents assessment and treatment results for two participants diagnosed with autism, who demonstrated repetitive speech and problem behavior. Informal observations suggested that problem behavior occurred when an adult failed to emit a specific response to the participant's repetitive speech. Functional analysis results confirmed the informal observations and suggested that problem behavior functioned as a precurrent response to increase the probability of reinforcement for repetitive speech. We report treatment results and discuss the application of precurrent contingency analyses for problem behavior and repetitive behavior.

Investigating the fate and transport of microplastics in a lagoon wastewater treatment system using a multimedia model approach.

Effluents of municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are a major source of microplastics (MP) in the terrestrial and aquatic environment; there is growing concern over the environmental and health impacts of MP pollution. In this study, the MP removal (MP cut-off size= 25 µm) in a lagoon-based wastewater treatment system was predicted by developing a model based on the multimedia modelling approach and utilising MP-specific properties for improving the understanding of the fate and transport of MP in such treatment processes. The high MP removal efficiency of the lagoon treatment system as predicted by the model (99.3%) and determined with the site wastewater samples (97%) could be attributed to its high HRT (>200 days, including that for the storage lagoons) that would allow effective MP removal with the system. Evaluation of the model predictions of MP concentration demonstrated reasonable alignment with measured concentrations in the facultative, maturation and winter storage lagoons of the system. Further evaluation of model predictions for various MP size classes (25-100, 100-200, 200-500 and >500 µm) obtained reasonable predictions for MP within the size range of 25-500 µm, indicating that the model is better used for predicting MP within that size range. The sensitivity analysis revealed the model predictions to be sensitive towards the operating/water quality parameters in the order of influent wastewater flowrate, MP concentration in influent wastewater, and MP settling rate in the water column of the lagoon. The study showed the potential of the developed model as a quantitative assessment tool for better management of MP in lagoon-based WWTPs.

Percutaneous Cystolitholapaxy Is Safe and Effective in Adult Patients With Lower Urinary Tract Reconstruction Utilizing Bowel.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the safety, efficacy, and surgical approach of percutaneous bladder calculi removal in adult patients with prior lower urinary tract reconstruction utilizing bowel using a single-institution database. METHODS: Twenty patients with prior history of lower urinary tract reconstruction (continent cutaneous urinary reservoir, augmentation enterocystoplasty with catheterizable channel, or ileal neobladder) who underwent percutaneous cystolitholapaxy from 2014 to 2020 were identified from an IRB-approved database. Analysis of patient demographics, operative details, stone composition, stone-free rates, recurrence, and associated complications was performed. RESULTS: Percutaneous access and either ultrasonic lithotripter or laser lithotripsy were utilized to remove bladder stones. Over half of the patients also underwent concomitant renal stone removal via percutaneous removal or retrograde ureteroscopy. Postoperative computed tomography imaging revealed complete bladder stone clearance in 90% of patients. There were no notable complications from percutaneous bladder stone removal and most patients were discharged either the same day or within 24hours. Urine and stone analysis revealed infection was present in the majority of patients. Bladder stones recurred in 45% of patients after more than 2years of follow-up, on average. CONCLUSION: Percutaneous cystolitholapaxy is a safe and effective approach for the removal of moderate-sized bladder calculi in adults with prior lower urinary tract reconstruction utilizing bowel. Its efficacy and minimally invasive nature make it the approach of choice at our institution.

Machine-Learning-Assisted Determination of the Global Zero-Temperature Phase Diagram of Materials.

Crystal-graph attention neural networks have emerged recently as remarkable tools for the prediction of thermodynamic stability. The efficacy of their learning capabilities and their reliability is however subject to the quantity and quality of the data they are fed. Previous networks exhibit strong biases due to the inhomogeneity of the training data. Here a high-quality dataset is engineered to provide a better balance across chemical and crystal-symmetry space. Crystal-graph neural networks trained with this dataset show unprecedented generalization accuracy. Such networks are applied to perform machine-learning-assisted high-throughput searches of stable materials, spanning 1 billion candidates. In this way, the number of vertices of the global T = 0 K phase diagram is increased by 30% and find more than ≈150 000 compounds with a distance to the convex hull of stability of less than 50 meV atom-1 . The discovered materials are then accessed for applications, identifying compounds with extreme values of a few properties, such as superconductivity, superhardness, and giant gap-deformation potentials.

A replication and extension of the augmented competing stimulus assessment.

Augmenting competing stimulus assessments by embedding tactics to increase stimulus engagement and disrupt challenging behavior can improve outcomes of treatments for automatically maintained self-injurious behavior, even for treatment-resistant subtypes. This study replicated and extended research on augmented competing stimulus assessments by reporting outcomes for 16 consecutively encountered cases with automatically maintained self-injurious behavior (19 total applications); six participants had treatment-responsive Subtype 1 and 10 had treatment-resistant Subtypes 2 or 3. Fewer high-competition stimuli were identified for individuals with treatment-resistant subtypes. When response-promotion and disruption tactics were applied and withdrawn, outcomes improved for six of eight applications. At least one high-competition stimulus was still effective when maintenance probes were conducted for a subset of participants. Ultimately, at least one high-competition stimulus was identified for each participant. Although augmenting tactics may not be necessary for all individuals, these findings provide additional support for their efficacy with treatment-resistant self-injurious behavior.

Prepubertal human spermatogonia and mouse gonocytes share conserved gene expression of germline stem cell regulatory molecules.

In the human testis, beginning at approximately 2 months of age, gonocytes are replaced by adult dark (Ad) and pale (Ap) spermatogonia that make up the spermatogonial stem cell (SSC) pool. In mice, the SSC pool arises from gonocytes approximately 6 days after birth. During puberty in both species, complete spermatogenesis is established by cells that differentiate from SSCs. Essentially pure populations of prepubertal human spermatogonia and mouse gonocytes were selected from testis biopsies and validated by confirming the presence of specific marker proteins in cells. Stem cell potential of germ cells was demonstrated by transplantation to mouse testes, following which the cells migrated to the basement membrane of the seminiferous tubule and were maintained similar to SSCs. Differential gene expression profiles generated between germ cells and testis somatic cells demonstrated that expression of genes previously identified as SSC and spermatogonial-specific markers (e.g., zinc-finger and BTB-domain containing 16, ZBTB16) was greatly elevated in both human spermatogonia and mouse gonocytes compared to somatic cells. Several genes were expressed at significantly higher levels in germ cells of both species. Most importantly, genes known to be essential for mouse SSC self-renewal (e.g., Ret proto-oncogene, Ret; GDNF-family receptor alpha1, Gfr alpha1; and B-cell CLL/lymphoma 6, member B, Bcl6b) were more highly expressed in both prepubertal human spermatogonia and mouse gonocytes than in somatic cells. The results indicate remarkable conservation of gene expression, notably for self-renewal genes, in these prepubertal germline cells between two species that diverged phylogenetically approximately 75 million years ago.

Expanded Criteria Same Day Catheter Removal After Holmium Laser Enucleation of the Prostate.

Abstract Introduction and Objectives: Holmium laser enucleation of the prostate (HoLEP) is a highly effective treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Technical advances and improved hemostatic properties of holmium lasers have allowed for increased efficiency and outcomes. Same day catheter removal after HoLEP was described at our institution in 2020 after a 30-patient pilot trial. We now present an expanded update after widespread adoption at our facility. Methods: We reviewed patients who underwent same day catheter removal after HoLEP between January 1, 2020 and March 21, 2021. Unlike previous trials, there were no limitations to prostate size. Other changes included catheter removal in phase two of recovery when nursing was available rather than the urology clinic. Descriptive statistics are presented of preoperative, operative, and postoperative data. Univariate and multivariate analysis was performed to assess associations with failure of same day void trial. Results: The success rate of same day catheter removal for the 114 identified patients was 87.7%. Mean age was 69.1 ± 8.6 years and prostate volume was 109.2 ± 61.5 cc, 35% were dependent on catheterization for urinary retention preoperatively and 9% were on antiplatelet/anticoagulant therapy. A total of 26.5% of patients with American Society of Anesthesiology score (ASA) 3 or 4 failed catheter removal compared with 3.9% of patients with ASA 1 or 2 (likelihood ratio 9.32, p = 0.002), ASA status lost significance on multivariate analysis (p = 0.076). Effective catheter removal was not significantly associated with age, body mass index, prostate size, catheter dependency, anticoagulation/antiplatelet therapy, American Urologic Association symptom score, prior BPH surgery, or prostate cancer in final pathology report. Conclusion: Regardless of prostate size, same day catheter removal is a safe and reliable method of post-HoLEP patient management. Patients with an ASA 3 or 4 should be counseled regarding potential risks of temporary re-catheterization. Given ongoing nationwide shortages in hospital beds and staffing, same day discharge and catheter removal may allow for wider availability of surgical treatment for BPH.

A dataset of 175k stable and metastable materials calculated with the PBEsol and SCAN functionals.

In the past decade we have witnessed the appearance of large databases of calculated material properties. These are most often obtained with the Perdew-Burke-Ernzerhof (PBE) functional of density-functional theory, a well established and reliable technique that is by now the standard in materials science. However, there have been recent theoretical developments that allow for increased accuracy in the calculations. Here, we present a dataset of calculations for 175k crystalline materials obtained with two functionals: geometry optimizations are performed with PBE for solids (PBEsol) that yields consistently better geometries than the PBE functional, and energies are obtained from PBEsol and from SCAN single-point calculations at the PBEsol geometry. Our results provide an accurate overview of the landscape of stable (and nearly stable) materials, and as such can be used for reliable predictions of novel compounds. They can also be used for training machine learning models, or even for the comparison and benchmark of PBE, PBEsol, and SCAN.

Early and Midterm Complications of the Continent Catheterizable Indiana Pouch Urinary Diversion: A 7-year Experience.

OBJECTIVES: To describe the most recent 7 year experience with 137 Indiana pouch patients at a single institution and provide data on complications with this type of urinary diversion during the first postoperative year. METHODS: We queried our bladder cancer database to identify all patients who underwent cystectomy with continent catheterizable urinary reservoir between 2012 and 2018. Pre-, intra-, and postoperative data were collected. Complications were stratified into early (within 90 days) and midterm (90-365 days). The primary outcomes were postoperative complications, and overall and cancer-specific mortality. RESULTS: A total of 137 patients underwent open cystectomy with Indiana pouch creation. Of these, 93% were radical cystectomies. On average, the operation took 422 minutes. There were 53 (39%) patients who experienced any type of complication during the first postoperative year (Clavien II-V). Twenty-five patients (18.2%) readmitted in the early postoperative period vs 18 (13.1%) patients midterm. There were 10 (7.3%) patients that required early reoperation and 11 (8%) in the midterm period. The overall mortality rate was 1.5% early and 3.7% midterm, with the majority of the mortality rate attributed to cancer progression (85.7%). CONCLUSION: Patients undergoing continent catheterizable reservoir urinary diversion appear to have comparable complication rates to other urinary diversions published in the literature. At high-volume urologic institutions, Indiana Pouch creation is a suitable option for select patients desiring a continent diversion.

In vivo and in vitro aging is detrimental to mouse spermatogonial stem cell function.

The development of techniques to maintain the spermatogonial stem cell (SSC) in vivo and in vitro for extended periods essentially allows for the indefinite continuation of an individual germline. Recent evidence indicates that the aging of male reproductive function is due to failure of the SSC niche. SSCs are routinely cultured for 6 mo, and no apparent effect of culture over this period has been observed. To determine the effects of SSC aging, we utilized an in vitro culture system, followed by quantitative transplantation experiments. After culture for 6 mo, SSCs that had been aged in vivo for 1500 days had a slower proliferation rate than SSCs that were aged in vivo to 8 or 300 days. Examination of methylation patterns revealed no apparent difference in DNA methylation between SSCs that were aged 8, 300, or 1500 days before culture. Long-term culture periods resulted in a loss of stem cell potential without an obvious change in the visual appearance of the culture. DNA microarray analysis of in vivo- and in vitro-aged SSCs identified the differential expression of several genes important for SSC function, including B-cell CLL/lymphoma 6, member B (Bcl6b), Lim homeobox protein 1 (Lhx1), and thymus cell antigen 1, theta (Thy1). Collectively, these data indicate that, although both in vitro and in vivo aging are detrimental to SSC function, in vitro aging results in greater loss of function, potentially due to a decrease in core SSC self-renewal gene expression and an increase in germ cell differentiation gene expression.

Unhappy Triad: Infection with Leptospira spp. Escherichia coli and Bacteroides uniformis Associated with an Unusual Manifestation of Portal Vein Thrombosis.

Portal vein thrombosis (PVT) is a rare disease with an incidence of 0.7/100,000 inhabitants per year. Septic PVT (pylephlebitis) usually occurs secondary to infection in the anatomic region drained by the portal venous system. We report on a 76-year-old German male who was admitted with a history of recurrent fever and acute renal failure. Blood cultures taken on admission showed Escherichia coli, as well as Bacteroides uniformis after an extended incubation period of 90 h. In addition, infection with Leptospira spp. was diagnosed serologically. Computerized tomography of the abdomen revealed an extensive PVT along with signs of colonic diverticulitis. Symptoms resolved under prolonged antimicrobial therapy with beta-lactams and adequate heparinization. A myeloproliferative disorder could be excluded. There was no evidence of an underlying coagulation disorder. Imaging controls showed an almost complete resolution of the PVT after 6 months of anticoagulation therapy. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of such an "unhappy triad," which includes atypical manifestations of leptospirosis and involvement of other intestinal bacteria.

Correction to: Assessment and Treatment of Challenging Behavior Maintained by a Nonvocal Mands Function.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1007/s40617-020-00486-z.].

Decreasing motor stereotypy with competing stimuli and tasks: Analysis of prompted engagement and response blocking.

Competing stimulus assessments (CSAs) are used to empirically identify stimuli associated with low levels of problem behavior. For some individuals with automatically maintained behavior, it can be difficult to identify effective competing stimuli. Recent research shows that prompting engagement and response blocking can be employed during the CSA to obtain significant reductions in problem behavior. The purpose of the present study was to replicate and extend prior research on the use of these tactics not only with competing stimuli, but also competing tasks, which require the active completion of a discrete response or response sequence. In addition, the current study validated the results of these pretreatment assessments in an extended treatment analysis, and examined the isolated and combined effects of prompting and response blocking within a component analysis. Future research directions and implications for clinical practice are discussed.