Socioeconomic disadvantage and high-effort coping in childhood: evidence of skin-deep resilience.

BACKGROUND: Low socioeconomic status (SES) is a risk factor for poor outcomes across development. Recent evidence suggests that, although psychosocial resilience among youth living in low-SES households is common, such expressions of resilience may not extend to physical health. Questions remain about when these diverging mental and physical health trajectories emerge. The current study hypothesized that skin-deep resilience - a pattern wherein socioeconomic disadvantage is linked to better mental health but worse physical health for individuals with John Henryism high-effort coping - is already present in childhood. METHODS: Analyses focus on 165 Black and Latinx children (Mage = 11.5) who were free of chronic disease and able to complete study procedures. Guardians provided information about their SES. Children reported on their John Henryism high-effort coping behaviors. They also provided reports of their depressed and anxious mood, which were combined into a composite of internalizing symptoms. Children's cardiometabolic risk was captured as a composite reflecting high levels of systolic or diastolic blood pressure, waist circumference, HbA1c, triglycerides, and low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. RESULTS: Among youth who reported using John Henryism high-effort coping, SES risk was unrelated to internalizing symptoms and was positively associated with cardiometabolic risk. In contrast, for youth who did not engage in high-effort coping, SES risk was positively associated with internalizing symptoms and was unrelated to cardiometabolic risk. CONCLUSIONS: For youth with high-effort coping tendencies, socioeconomic disadvantage is linked to cardiometabolic risk. Public health efforts to support at-risk youth must consider both mental and physical health consequences associated with striving in challenging contexts.

Impact of Biomass Burning Organic Aerosol Volatility on Smoke Concentrations Downwind of Fires.

Biomass burning particulate matter (BBPM) affects regional air quality and global climate, with impacts expected to continue to grow over the coming years. We show that studies of North American fires have a systematic altitude dependence in measured BBPM normalized excess mixing ratio (NEMR; ΔPM/ΔCO), with airborne and high-altitude studies showing a factor of 2 higher NEMR than ground-based measurements. We report direct airborne measurements of BBPM volatility that partially explain the difference in the BBPM NEMR observed across platforms. We find that when heated to 40-45 °C in an airborne thermal denuder, 19% of lofted smoke PM1 evaporates. Thermal denuder measurements are consistent with evaporation observed when a single smoke plume was sampled across a range of temperatures as the plume descended from 4 to 2 km altitude. We also demonstrate that chemical aging of smoke and differences in PM emission factors can not fully explain the platform-dependent differences. When the measured PM volatility is applied to output from the High Resolution Rapid Refresh Smoke regional model, we predict a lower PM NEMR at the surface compared to the lofted smoke measured by aircraft. These results emphasize the significant role that gas-particle partitioning plays in determining the air quality impacts of wildfire smoke.

Reducing Unnecessary Acid Suppression Use in Hospitalized Patients: A Description of Targeted Strategies Implemented Across a Large Health System.

Background: Ensuring the appropriate use of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) and histamine type 2-receptor antagonists (H2RAs) is an important hospital patient safety and quality initiative because therapy may be inappropriately continued during transitions of care. In this article, we aim to describe the impact of targeted quality improvement strategies to reduce unnecessary acid suppression use in hospitalized patients across a large health system. Methods: Beginning January 1, 2018, focused quality improvement strategies to prevent unnecessary initiation and continuation of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) and histamine type 2-receptor antagonists (H2RAs) were implemented throughout a large health system. Targeted strategies were initially tested as part of the PPI deprescribing Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) International Innovators Network initiative and were expanded to include H2RAs for hospitalized patients. Strategies to decrease PPIs and H2RAs during hospitalization included standardization of stress ulcer prophylaxis care pathways, evidence-based order set modifications, technology-driven support, and clinical pharmacy metric performance to goal. PPI/H2RA days of therapy (DOT) per 1000 patient days were measured from the first quarter (1Q) of 2017 to the fourth quarter (4Q) of 2021 to determine if implemented strategies resulted in improvement. Results: After quality improvement strategies were implemented, the number of PPI/H2RA DOT was reduced by 7.9 days per 1000 patient days each quarter over 4 years. The average PPI/H2RA DOT per 1000 patient days decreased from 592 (1Q 2017) to 439 (4Q 2021). In the fourth quarter of 2018, 45 hospitals (28%) achieved a 10% reduction in combined PPI/H2RA DOT per 1000 patient days, and 121 hospitals (97%) attained the goal of greater than 25% of eligible patients deprescribed PPI/H2RA for ICU patients in the fourth quarter of 2019. In the fourth quarter of 2020, 97 hospitals (87%) met the metric of 40% or more of eligible patients deprescribed from PPI/H2RA in or after an ICU stay, and 85 hospitals (87%) reached 50% or more of eligible patients deprescribed PPI/H2RA in or after an ICU stay in 4Q2021. Conclusion: Targeted quality improvement strategies decreased unnecessary PPI and H2RA use for a large health system over 4 years. Continually evaluating measured results along with establishing a new clinical pharmacy metric goal each year to encourage further improvement contributed to deprescribing success.

Implementation of Clinical Pharmacy Surveillance Technology and a Pharmacy Practice Model Re-Design Across a Multi-State Health System.

Background: Outcomes-directed pharmacy models are necessary to further comprehensive, patient-centric clinical care. This report describes the implementation of clinical surveillance technology and the development of clinical pharmacy metrics to measure outcomes that support return on investment. The overall goal of clinical surveillance technology implementation in this quality improvement project was to extend the pharmacists' reach and to improve patient safety and clinical outcomes with greater operational efficiencies. Methods: In 2013, a clinical pharmacy surveillance tool was piloted and expanded over the next 2 years to 154 hospitals across the health system. Over the next 6 years, the number of hospitals utilizing the technology, the number of drug therapy modifications, the time to pharmacist intervention, clinical pharmacy metric results, and return on investment were tracked. Results: From 2015 to 2021, the number of hospitals with clinical surveillance technology implemented grew to 177 hospitals. During this same time, the number of frontline clinical pharmacist drug therapy modifications more than doubled, and the time for pharmacists to respond to alerts decreased from 13.9 to 2.6 hours. Since 2015, the percentage of patients on vancomycin de-escalated by 3 days of therapy has increased by 12% and the percentage of patients with a UTI treated with fluoroquinolone decreased by 25%. Hard and soft dollar savings resulted in an annual return on investment of 1:12.9. Conclusion: After implementing the redesigned pharmacy services model, pharmacists were more efficient and patient outcomes improved.

Multi-campaign ship and aircraft observations of marine cloud condensation nuclei and droplet concentrations.

In-situ marine cloud droplet number concentrations (CDNCs), cloud condensation nuclei (CCN), and CCN proxies, based on particle sizes and optical properties, are accumulated from seven field campaigns: ACTIVATE; NAAMES; CAMP2EX; ORACLES; SOCRATES; MARCUS; and CAPRICORN2. Each campaign involves aircraft measurements, ship-based measurements, or both. Measurements collected over the North and Central Atlantic, Indo-Pacific, and Southern Oceans, represent a range of clean to polluted conditions in various climate regimes. With the extensive range of environmental conditions sampled, this data collection is ideal for testing satellite remote detection methods of CDNC and CCN in marine environments. Remote measurement methods are vital to expanding the available data in these difficult-to-reach regions of the Earth and improving our understanding of aerosol-cloud interactions. The data collection includes particle composition and continental tracers to identify potential contributing CCN sources. Several of these campaigns include High Spectral Resolution Lidar (HSRL) and polarimetric imaging measurements and retrievals that will be the basis for the next generation of space-based remote sensors and, thus, can be utilized as satellite surrogates.

The benefits of nurturant-involved parenting for children's internalizing symptoms and cardiometabolic health in high-risk contexts.

Despite evidence that nurturant-involved parenting is linked with children's social, psychological, and physiological development, less is known about the specific contexts in which nurturant-involved parenting is most beneficial for children's mental and physical health. The present study examined how associations between nurturant-involved parenting and children's internalizing symptoms and cardiometabolic risk varied as a function of children's stress and discrimination. Participants included 165 Black and Latinx children (Mage = 11.5 years) and their guardians. Children reported on their ongoing stress, experiences of discrimination, and internalizing symptoms (depression and anxiety). Guardians provided information about their nurturant-involved parenting practices. Children's cardiometabolic risk was assessed as a composite reflecting a high level of systolic or diastolic blood pressure, waist circumference, HbA1c, triglycerides, and low HDL cholesterol. Regression analyses indicated that among youth who reported high levels of stress and discrimination, nurturant-involved parenting was negatively associated with cardiometabolic risk. Although children's stress and discrimination were significantly associated with their internalizing symptoms, neither stress nor discrimination moderated the relation between nurturant-involved parenting and internalizing symptoms. Results highlight the significant role that parents play in shaping children's health, particularly among youth experiencing high levels of stress and discrimination.

Airborne Emission Rate Measurements Validate Remote Sensing Observations and Emission Inventories of Western U.S. Wildfires.

Carbonaceous emissions from wildfires are a dynamic mixture of gases and particles that have important impacts on air quality and climate. Emissions that feed atmospheric models are estimated using burned area and fire radiative power (FRP) methods that rely on satellite products. These approaches show wide variability and have large uncertainties, and their accuracy is challenging to evaluate due to limited aircraft and ground measurements. Here, we present a novel method to estimate fire plume-integrated total carbon and speciated emission rates using a unique combination of lidar remote sensing aerosol extinction profiles and in situ measured carbon constituents. We show strong agreement between these aircraft-derived emission rates of total carbon and a detailed burned area-based inventory that distributes carbon emissions in time using Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite FRP observations (Fuel2Fire inventory, slope = 1.33 ± 0.04, r2 = 0.93, and RMSE = 0.27). Other more commonly used inventories strongly correlate with aircraft-derived emissions but have wide-ranging over- and under-predictions. A strong correlation is found between carbon monoxide emissions estimated in situ with those derived from the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) for five wildfires with coincident sampling windows (slope = 0.99 ± 0.18; bias = 28.5%). Smoke emission coefficients (g MJ-1) enable direct estimations of primary gas and aerosol emissions from satellite FRP observations, and we derive these values for many compounds emitted by temperate forest fuels, including several previously unreported species.

Assessing Vertical Allocation of Wildfire Smoke Emissions Using Observational Constraints From Airborne Lidar in the Western U.S.

Wildfire emissions are a key contributor of carbonaceous aerosols and trace gases to the atmosphere. Induced by buoyant lifting, smoke plumes can be injected into the free troposphere and lower stratosphere, which by consequence significantly affects the magnitude and distance of their influences on air quality and radiation budget. However, the vertical allocation of emissions when smoke escapes the planetary boundary layer (PBL) and the mechanism modulating it remain unclear. We present an inverse modeling framework to estimate the wildfire emissions, with their temporal and vertical evolution being constrained by assimilating aerosol extinction profiles observed from the airborne Differential Absorption Lidar-High Spectral Resolution Lidar during the Fire Influence on Regional to Global Environments and Air Quality field campaign. Three fire events in the western U.S., which exhibit free-tropospheric injections are examined. The constrained smoke emissions indicate considerably larger fractions of smoke injected above the PBL (f >PBL, 80%-94%) versus the column total, compared to those estimated by the WRF-Chem model using the default plume rise option (12%-52%). The updated emission profiles yield improvements for the simulated vertical structures of the downwind transported smoke, but limited refinement of regional smoke aerosol optical depth distributions due to the spatiotemporal coverage of flight observations. These results highlight the significance of improving vertical allocation of fire emissions on advancing the modeling and forecasting of the environmental impacts of smoke.

Utilizing Pharmacists to Optimize Medication Management Strategies During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

As the COVID-19 pandemic swept through the United States, our heath-system mobilized clinical pharmacy services to address critical clinical medication management needs. Reinforcing recommended medication management strategies for clinical pharmacists was key to successful implementation. Best practice strategies include converting patients from intravenous (IV) to oral medication, transitioning to IV push medication administration, evaluating standard medication administration timing, reviewing metered dose inhaler (MDI) and nebulizer utilization, using alternatives for medications in short supply, reviewing coronavirus disease COVID-19 treatment recommendations, reviewing COVID-19 patient care on interdisciplinary rounds, de-prescribing and de-escalating to eliminate unnecessary medications, and assessing for appropriate venous thromboembolism prophylaxis. These strategies served to help protect medication supply, reduce number of staff entries into patient rooms to conserve personal protective equipment, limit nursing time in patient rooms to reduce COVID-19 exposure risk, and to conserve compounding supplies. Here we present example medication management guidance as used by a large healthcare system during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Beyond the Ångström Exponent: Probing Additional Information in Spectral Curvature and Variability of In Situ Aerosol Hyperspectral (0.3-0.7 µm) Optical Properties.

Ångström exponents (α) allow reconstruction of aerosol optical spectra over a broad range of wavelengths from measurements at two or more wavelengths. Hyperspectral measurements of atmospheric aerosols provide opportunities to probe measured spectra for information inaccessible from only a few wavelengths. Four sets of hyperspectral in situ aerosol optical coefficients (aerosol-phase total extinction, σ ext, and absorption, σ abs; liquid-phase soluble absorption from methanol, σ MeOH-abs, and water, σ DI-abs, extracts) were measured from biomass burning aerosols (BBAs). Hyperspectral single scattering albedo (ω), calculated from σ ext and σ abs, provide spectral resolution over a wide spectral range rare for this optical parameter. Observed spectral shifts between σ abs and σ MeOH-abs/σ DI-abs argue in favor of measuring σ abs rather than reconstructing it from liquid extracts. Logarithmically transformed spectra exhibited curvature better fit by second-order polynomials than linear α. Mapping second order fit coefficients (a 1, a 2) revealed samples from a given fire tended to cluster together, that is, aerosol spectra from a given fire were similar to each other and somewhat distinct from others. Separation in (a 1, a 2) space for spectra with the same α suggest additional information in second-order parameterization absent from the linear fit. Spectral features found in the fit residuals indicate more information in the measured spectra than captured by the fits. Above-detection σ MeOH-abs at 0.7 µm suggests assuming all absorption at long visible wavelengths is BC to partition absorption between BC and brown carbon (BrC) overestimates BC and underestimates BrC across the spectral range. Hyperspectral measurements may eventually discriminate BBA among fires in different ecosystems under variable conditions.

Understanding the Evolution of Smoke Mass Extinction Efficiency Using Field Campaign Measurements.

Aerosol mass extinction efficiency (MEE) is a key aerosol property used to connect aerosol optical properties with aerosol mass concentrations. Using measurements of smoke obtained during the Fire Influence on Regional to Global Environments and Air Quality (FIREX-AQ) campaign we find that mid-visible smoke MEE can change by a factor of 2-3 between fresh smoke (<2 hr old) and one-day-old smoke. While increases in aerosol size partially explain this trend, changes in the real part of the aerosol refractive index (real(n)) are necessary to provide closure assuming Mie theory. Real(n) estimates derived from multiple days of FIREX-AQ measurements increase with age (from 1.40 - 1.45 to 1.5-1.54 from fresh to one-day-old) and are found to be positively correlated with organic aerosol oxidation state and aerosol size, and negatively correlated with smoke volatility. Future laboratory, field, and modeling studies should focus on better understanding and parameterizing these relationships to fully represent smoke aging.

Rapid cloud removal of dimethyl sulfide oxidation products limits SO2 and cloud condensation nuclei production in the marine atmosphere.

Oceans emit large quantities of dimethyl sulfide (DMS) to the marine atmosphere. The oxidation of DMS leads to the formation and growth of cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) with consequent effects on Earth's radiation balance and climate. The quantitative assessment of the impact of DMS emissions on CCN concentrations necessitates a detailed description of the oxidation of DMS in the presence of existing aerosol particles and clouds. In the unpolluted marine atmosphere, DMS is efficiently oxidized to hydroperoxymethyl thioformate (HPMTF), a stable intermediate in the chemical trajectory toward sulfur dioxide (SO2) and ultimately sulfate aerosol. Using direct airborne flux measurements, we demonstrate that the irreversible loss of HPMTF to clouds in the marine boundary layer determines the HPMTF lifetime (τHPMTF < 2 h) and terminates DMS oxidation to SO2 When accounting for HPMTF cloud loss in a global chemical transport model, we show that SO2 production from DMS is reduced by 35% globally and near-surface (0 to 3 km) SO2 concentrations over the ocean are lowered by 24%. This large, previously unconsidered loss process for volatile sulfur accelerates the timescale for the conversion of DMS to sulfate while limiting new particle formation in the marine atmosphere and changing the dynamics of aerosol growth. This loss process potentially reduces the spatial scale over which DMS emissions contribute to aerosol production and growth and weakens the link between DMS emission and marine CCN production with subsequent implications for cloud formation, radiative forcing, and climate.

Characteristics Contributing to a Pharmacy Services Excellence Model in a Large Health System.

Objective: To identify characteristics that contribute to and promote a pharmacy services center of excellence model in a large health system. Methods: In 2019, a survey was conducted of 161 acute care pharmacy departments of health system-affiliated hospitals. Information captured included pharmacy practice models, pharmacist resource allocation, training of pharmacy residents, postgraduate training and pharmacist certifications. Results were combined with clinical pharmacy metric performance and centralized electronic data to identify features of top performing pharmacy departments. Results: Survey results were received from 141 of 161 affiliated hospitals (88%). Hospitals with 100 to 299 beds comprised 54% (n = 16 of 30) of the hospitals "at goal" and 66% (n = 26 of 40) of hospitals with "opportunity". Hospitals with top performing pharmacy services had greater participation in interdisciplinary rounds, reporting "always" participating in Adult Critical Care (67% versus 43%) and Medical/Surgical (30% vs. 8%) rounds. Hospitals that trained pharmacy residents had a greater number of clinical pharmacy metrics at goal (5.89 ± 1.59 versus 4.16 ± 1.86, p < 0.001), employed more board-certified pharmacists (2.32 ± 1.49 versus 1.57 ± 1.62, p = 0.019), more postgraduate year 1 (PGY1) trained pharmacists (2.06 ± 1.33 versus 1.19 ± 1.19, p < 0.001) and more PGY2 trained pharmacists (0.58 ± 0.64 versus 0.19 ± 0.44, p = 0.002). When including several key hospital characteristics into a single model, hospitals that trained pharmacy residents were significantly associated with achieving "at goal" status (p = 0.011). Conclusion: Defining characteristics of a pharmacy services center of excellence model included "at goal" clinical pharmacy metrics performance, clinical pharmacist time dedicated to patient care activities, accredited pharmacy residency training programs, presence of pharmacists with advanced training or board certification and optimal operations and scheduling.

Coupling an online ion conductivity measurement with the particle-into-liquid sampler: Evaluation and modeling using laboratory and field aerosol data.

A particle-into-liquid sampler (PILS) was coupled to a flow-through conductivity cell to provide a continuous, nondestructive, online measurement in support of offline ion chromatography analysis. The conductivity measurement provides a rapid assessment of the total ion concentration augmenting slower batch-sample data from offline analysis and is developed primarily to assist airborne measurements, where fast time-response is essential. A conductivity model was developed for measured ions and excellent closure was derived for laboratory-generated aerosols (97% conductivity explained, R2 > 0.99). The PILS-conductivity measurement was extensively tested throughout the NASA Cloud, Aerosol and Monsoon Processes: Philippines Experiment (CAMP2Ex) during nineteen research flights. A diverse range of ambient aerosol was sampled from biomass burning, fresh and aged urban pollution, and marine sources. Ambient aerosol did not exhibit the same degree of closure as the laboratory aerosol, with measured ions only accountable for 43% of the conductivity. The remaining fraction of the conductivity was examined in combination with ion charge balance and found to provide additional supporting information for diagnosing and modeling particle acidity. An urban plume case study was used to demonstrate the utility of the measurement for supplementing compositional data and augmenting the temporal capability of the PILS.

Innovative Conservation of Inhaled Medication Devices During the COVID-19 Pandemic Through a Canister Reassignment Process.

Background: The ideal practice for patients requiring metered-dose inhalers (MDI) with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is to use patient specific MDIs. However, this practice may not be possible during a time of increased usage throughout the country and limited availability of the medication. Nebulized medications are a concern due to the potential for aerosolized virus and increased exposure for health care workers. An alternative program of canister reassignment is proposed to address concerns for infection prevention, cross-contamination of MDI canisters and the shortage of MDI's due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A comprehensive MDI canister reassignment process was developed for facilities affiliated with a large health care system in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The MDI canister reassignment process consisted of 4 components: preservation of supply, reassignment workflow, canister cleaning and operational integration. Albuterol MDI administration data was monitored from January 1st to August 31st, 2020. Results: Following development and rapid implementation of a comprehensive canister reassignment process, albuterol MDI administration data was reviewed from 162 hospitals affiliated with a large health care system. At baseline (prior to the COVID-19 pandemic), 98% of patients received a nebulizer vs. an MDI. After the implementation of the MDI reassignment process (during the COVID-19 pandemic), nebulizer usage decreased by 60% from March 6th to March 31st and was sustained with >50% reduction through August 31st. Conclusion: MDI canister reassignment was an instrumental process to allow the continued delivery of pharmacologic bronchodilator therapy for COVID-19 patients. It also represents an important infection prevention strategy needed to protect our health care providers from the potential aerosolized virus associated with nebulizers.

Smoke radiocarbon measurements from Indonesian fires provide evidence for burning of millennia-aged peat.

In response to a strong El Niño, fires in Indonesia during September and October 2015 released a large amount of carbon dioxide and created a massive regional smoke cloud that severely degraded air quality in many urban centers across Southeast Asia. Although several lines of evidence indicate that peat burning was a dominant contributor to emissions in the region, El Niño-induced drought is also known to increase deforestation fires and agricultural waste burning in plantations. As a result, uncertainties remain with respect to partitioning emissions among different ecosystem and fire types. Here we measured the radiocarbon content (14C) of carbonaceous aerosol samples collected in Singapore from September 2014 through October 2015, with the aim of identifying the age and origin of fire-emitted fine particulate matter (particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to 2.5 µm). The Δ14C of fire-emitted aerosol was -76 ± 51‰, corresponding to a carbon pool of combusted organic matter with a mean turnover time of 800 ± 420 y. Our observations indicated that smoke plumes reaching Singapore originated primarily from peat burning (∼85%), and not from deforestation fires or waste burning. Atmospheric transport modeling confirmed that fires in Sumatra and Borneo were dominant contributors to elevated PM2.5 in Singapore during the fire season. The mean age of the carbonaceous aerosol, which predates the Industrial Revolution, highlights the importance of improving peatland fire management during future El Niño events for meeting climate mitigation and air quality commitments.

Development and characterization of the first dsRNA-resistant insect population from western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte.

The use of dsRNA to control insect pests via the RNA interference (RNAi) pathway is being explored by researchers globally. However, with every new class of insect control compounds, the evolution of insect resistance needs to be considered, and understanding resistance mechanisms is essential in designing durable technologies and effective resistance management strategies. To gain insight into insect resistance to dsRNA, a field screen with subsequent laboratory selection was used to establish a population of DvSnf7 dsRNA-resistant western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera, a major maize insect pest. WCR resistant to ingested DvSnf7 dsRNA had impaired luminal uptake and resistance was not DvSnf7 dsRNA-specific, as indicated by cross resistance to all other dsRNAs tested. No resistance to the Bacillus thuringiensis Cry3Bb1 protein was observed. DvSnf7 dsRNA resistance was inherited recessively, located on a single locus, and autosomal. Together these findings will provide insights for dsRNA deployment for insect pest control.

Physiological and cellular responses caused by RNAi- mediated suppression of Snf7 orthologue in western corn rootworm (Diabrotica virgifera virgifera) larvae.

Ingestion of double stranded RNA (dsRNA) has been previously demonstrated to be effective in triggering RNA interference (RNAi) in western corn rootworm (WCR, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte), providing potential novel opportunities for insect pest control. The putative Snf7 homolog of WCR (DvSnf7) has previously been shown to be an effective RNAi target for insect control, as DvSnf7 RNAi leads to lethality of WCR larvae. Snf7 functions as a part of the ESCRT (Endosomal Sorting Complex Required for Transport) pathway which plays a crucial role in cellular housekeeping by internalization, transport, sorting and lysosomal degradation of transmembrane proteins. To understand the effects that lead to death of WCR larvae by DvSnf7 RNAi, we examined some of the distinct cellular processes associated with ESCRT functions such as de-ubiquitination of proteins and autophagy. Our data indicate that ubiquitinated proteins accumulate in DvSnf7 dsRNA-fed larval tissues and that the autophagy process seems to be impaired. These findings suggest that the malfunctioning of these cellular processes in both midgut and fat body tissues triggered by DvSnf7 RNAi were the main effects leading to the death of WCR. This study also illustrates that Snf7 is an essential gene in WCR and its functions are consistent with biological functions described for other eukaryotes.

Characterizing the mechanism of action of double-stranded RNA activity against western corn rootworm (Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte).

RNA interference (RNAi) has previously been shown to be effective in western corn rootworm (WCR, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte) larvae via oral delivery of synthetic double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) in an artificial diet bioassay, as well as by ingestion of transgenic corn plant tissues engineered to express dsRNA. Although the RNAi machinery components appear to be conserved in Coleopteran insects, the key steps in this process have not been reported for WCR. Here we characterized the sequence of events that result in mortality after ingestion of a dsRNA designed against WCR larvae. We selected the Snf7 ortholog (DvSnf7) as the target mRNA, which encodes an essential protein involved in intracellular trafficking. Our results showed that dsRNAs greater than or equal to approximately 60 base-pairs (bp) are required for biological activity in artificial diet bioassays. Additionally, 240 bp dsRNAs containing a single 21 bp match to the target sequence were also efficacious, whereas 21 bp short interfering (si) RNAs matching the target sequence were not. This result was further investigated in WCR midgut tissues: uptake of 240 bp dsRNA was evident in WCR midgut cells while a 21 bp siRNA was not, supporting the size-activity relationship established in diet bioassays. DvSnf7 suppression was observed in a time-dependent manner with suppression at the mRNA level preceding suppression at the protein level when a 240 bp dsRNA was fed to WCR larvae. DvSnf7 suppression was shown to spread to tissues beyond the midgut within 24 h after dsRNA ingestion. These events (dsRNA uptake, target mRNA and protein suppression, systemic spreading, growth inhibition and eventual mortality) comprise the overall mechanism of action by which DvSnf7 dsRNA affects WCR via oral delivery and provides insights as to how targeted dsRNAs in general are active against insects.

Is the reexcision rate higher if breast conservation surgery is performed by surgical trainees?

BACKGROUND: It is essential that surgical trainees obtain adequate operative experience without compromising patient outcome. The aim of this study was to compare the reexcision and local recurrence rates between consultants (attending surgeons) and surgical trainees (residents) after breast conservation surgery. METHODS: Prospective data were obtained from the local breast cancer registry for all patients who had breast-conservation surgery between 1994 and 2000. Reexcision was carried out if the margins were deemed inadequate after taking the clinical and pathologic features into consideration. RESULTS: The primary operation (n = 505) was wide local excision = 377; wire-guided excisions = 107; and quadrantectomy = 21 patients. Sixty-five percent (n = 330) were operated on by consultants and 35% (n = 175) by residents. Second procedures (n = 137) were performed for involved margins in 95 and close margins in 31 patients. The patients in both groups were equally matched. The reexcision rate was similar for both groups of surgeons (P = 0.58). On multivariate analysis, the factors determining reexcision were nodal status, type of first procedure, and tumor type. The local recurrence rate was comparable in both groups (P = 0.33). CONCLUSIONS: In patients with breast cancer treated by conservation surgery during a 7-year period, the reexcision and local recurrence rates were similar for both groups of surgeons.