surfaltr: An R/Bioconductor package to benchmark surface protein isoforms by rapid prediction and visualization of transmembrane topologies.

Cell surface proteins form a major fraction of the druggable proteome and can be used for tissue-specific delivery of oligonucleotide/cell-based therapeutics. Surface protein isoforms are regulated by alternative splicing, which drives subcellular localization and transmembrane (TM) topology thereby shaping cell type specific signatures. Current advances in multiomic approaches have developed interest in discovery of tissue-specific alternatively spliced or novel surface protein isoforms. However, there exists a need for bioinformatic approaches for rapidly benchmarking the large number of isoforms identified by these approaches. To address this gap, we have developed, surfaltr, an R package which takes user input isoforms, pairs them with the known principal isoform of the gene, predicts TM topologies, and generates a customizable graphical output. Further, surfaltr facilitates prioritization of topologically diverse isoform pairs through incorporation of three different ranking metrics and through protein alignment functions. Here, we demonstrate the utility of our R package by evaluating the mouse retina-specific novel surface protein isoforms identified in Ray et al. 2020. surfaltr is freely available through Bioconductor (https://bioconductor.org/packages/surfaltr) and the vignette provides extensive instructions for implementation.

Big and Mini: A Promising Intergenerational Program for Social Connections.

INTRODUCTION: To help older adults cope with loneliness during COVID-19, a weekly, telephone-based intergenerational program called "Big and Mini" was created in April 2020 to link young and older adults together. As part of an evaluation of Big and Mini, a survey with both close and open-ended questions was sent to participants. METHODS: A total of 63 Bigs and 53 Minis completed the survey. Their stress compared to before COVID-19, loneliness, life satisfaction, intergenerational closeness, and satisfaction with the program were measured for participants. Descriptive, bivariate correlation and conventional content analyses were conducted. RESULTS: On average, Bigs and Minis had participated in the program for 3.73 and 3.49 months, respectively. Approximately half of the Bigs (47.6%) and Minis (52.8%) felt the same stress level compared to before COVID-19. A few participants felt "less stressed" compared to before COVID -9 (14.3 and 7.5%, respectively, for Bigs and Minis). All participants reported medium levels of loneliness, high levels of satisfaction with life, satisfaction with the program, and intergenerational closeness. Content analysis suggested that the reasons to join or expectations of the program were friendship, mutually beneficial intergenerational connections, and coping with loneliness. CONCLUSIONS: The Big and Mini program offers a promising approach with mutual benefits for participants. Strategies to improve the program and implications for intergenerational programs are presented.