Bacterial communities associated with wood rot fungi that use distinct decomposition mechanisms.

Wood decomposer fungi are grouped by how they extract sugars from lignocellulose. Brown rot fungi selectively degrade cellulose and hemicellulose, leaving lignin intact, and white rot fungi degrade all components. Many trees are susceptible to both rot types, giving carbon in Earth's woody biomass, specifically lignin, a flexible fate that is affected not only by the fungal decomposition mechanism but also the associated microbial community. However, little is understood about how rot type may influence the microbial community in decaying wood. In this study, we quantified bacterial communities associated with Fomes fomentarius (white rot) and Fomitopsis betulina (brown rot) found on a shared tree host species, birch (Betula papyrifera). We collected 25 wood samples beneath sporocarps  of F. fomentarius (n = 13) and F. betulina (n = 12) on standing dead trees, and coupled microbial DNA sequencing with chemical signatures of rot type (pH and lignin removal). We found that bacterial communities for both fungi were dominated by Proteobacteria, a commonly reported association. However, rot type exerted significant influence on less abundant taxa in ways that align logically with fungal traits. Amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) were enriched in Firmicutes in white-rotted wood, and were enriched in Alphaproteobacteria, Actinobacteria and Acidobacteria in lower pH brown rot. Our results suggest that wood decomposer strategies may exert significant selection effects on bacteria, or vice versa, among less-abundant taxa that have been overlooked when using abundance as the only measure of influence.

A Mixed Method Evaluation of a Culturally Adapted, Brief, Bullying Bystander Intervention for Middle School Students.

The purpose of this mixed method study was to examine the appropriateness of a brief, bullying bystander intervention (STAC) adapted for a middle school in a low-income, rural community with a predominantly White and Hispanic student body. We were also interested in understanding the experiences of the students who participated in the intervention. Quantitative analysis suggested that students gained knowledge about bullying, increased their confidence to intervene in bullying situations, and used the STAC strategies to intervene in bullying behavior. Analyzing the qualitative data using Consensual Qualitative Research methodology ([CQR] Hill, 2005) revealed four domains in which students a) reported using the STAC strategies across multiple contexts and settings, b) spoke about fears related to intervening in bullying, yet intervened despite those fears, c) described emotional benefits experienced after participating in the intervention and while using the STAC strategies, and d) reported stronger interpersonal relationship after participating in the STAC intervention. This study extends the literature by providing preliminary support for a brief, bystander intervention adapted to address the need for culturally relevant bullying interventions for low-income, rural, ethnically-blended schools.

Deep Sequencing Reveals Novel Genetic Variants in Children with Acute Liver Failure and Tissue Evidence of Impaired Energy Metabolism.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: The etiology of acute liver failure (ALF) remains elusive in almost half of affected children. We hypothesized that inherited mitochondrial and fatty acid oxidation disorders were occult etiological factors in patients with idiopathic ALF and impaired energy metabolism. METHODS: Twelve patients with elevated blood molar lactate/pyruvate ratio and indeterminate etiology were selected from a retrospective cohort of 74 subjects with ALF because their fixed and frozen liver samples were available for histological, ultrastructural, molecular and biochemical analysis. RESULTS: A customized next-generation sequencing panel for 26 genes associated with mitochondrial and fatty acid oxidation defects revealed mutations and sequence variants in five subjects. Variants involved the genes ACAD9, POLG, POLG2, DGUOK, and RRM2B; the latter not previously reported in subjects with ALF. The explanted livers of the patients with heterozygous, truncating insertion mutations in RRM2B showed patchy micro- and macrovesicular steatosis, decreased mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) content <30% of controls, and reduced respiratory chain complex activity; both patients had good post-transplant outcome. One infant with severe lactic acidosis was found to carry two heterozygous variants in ACAD9, which was associated with isolated complex I deficiency and diffuse hypergranular hepatocytes. The two subjects with heterozygous variants of unknown clinical significance in POLG and DGUOK developed ALF following drug exposure. Their hepatocytes displayed abnormal mitochondria by electron microscopy. CONCLUSION: Targeted next generation sequencing and correlation with histological, ultrastructural and functional studies on liver tissue in children with elevated lactate/pyruvate ratio expand the spectrum of genes associated with pediatric ALF.

Community-level distribution of misoprostol to prevent postpartum hemorrhage at home births in northern Nigeria.

In Nigeria, most deaths due to postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) occur in the absence of skilled birth attendants. A study using community mobilization and the training of community drug keepers to increase access to misoprostol for PPH prevention was conducted in five communities around Zaria in Kaduna State, Nigeria. Community-oriented resource persons (CORPs) and traditional birth attendants (TBAs) recruited and counseled pregnant women on bleeding after delivery, the importance of delivery at a health facility, and the role of misoprostol. Drug keepers stored and dispensed misoprostol during a woman's third trimester of pregnancy. TBAs and CORPs enrolled 1,875 women from January through December 2009. These results are based on 1,577 completed postpartum interviews. Almost all women delivered at home (95%) and skilled attendance at delivery was low (7%). The availability of misoprostol protected 83% of women who delivered at home against PPH who otherwise would not have been protected. Policymakers working in similar contexts should consider utilizing commuity-level distribution models to reach women with this life-saving intervention.

Bypassing primary care facilities for childbirth: a population-based study in rural Tanzania.

In an effort to reduce maternal mortality, developing countries have been investing in village-level primary care facilities to bring skilled delivery services closer to women. We explored the extent to which women in rural western Tanzania bypass their nearest primary care facilities to deliver at more distant health facilities, using a population-representative survey of households (N = 1204). Using a standardized instrument, we asked women who had a delivery within 5 years about the place of their most recent delivery. Information on all functioning health facilities in the area were obtained from the district health office. Women who delivered in a health facility that was not the nearest available facility were considered bypassers. Forty-four per cent (186/423) of women who delivered in a health facility bypassed their nearest facility. In adjusted analysis, women who bypassed were more likely than women who did not bypass to be 35 or older (OR 2.5, P

Tgfbr2 regulates the maintenance of boundaries in the axial skeleton.

Previously, we showed that deletion of the TGF-beta type II receptor (Tgfbr2) in Type II Collagen (Col2a) expressing cells results in defects in the development of the axial skeleton. Defects included a reduction in size and alterations in the shape of specific vertebral elements. Anterior lateral and dorsal elements of the vertebrae were missing or irregularly shaped. Vertebral bodies were only mildly affected, but the intervertebral disc (IVD) was reduced or missing. In this manuscript, we show that alterations in the initiation or proliferation of cartilage are not detected in the axial skeleton. However, the expression domain of Fibromodulin (Fmod), a marker of the IVD, was reduced and the area of the future IVD contained peanut agglutinin (PNA) staining cartilage. Next, we show that the expression domains of Pax1 and Pax9, which are preferentially expressed in the caudal sclerotome, are expanded over the entire rostral to caudal length of the sclerotome segment. Dorsal-ventral patterning was not affected in these mice as accessed by expression of Pax1, Pax9, and Msx1. Proliferation was modestly reduced in the loose cells of the sclerotome. The results suggest that signaling through Tgfbr2 regulates the maintenance of boundaries in the sclerotome and developing axial skeleton.

Single-nucleotide polymorphisms in tumor necrosis factor receptor genes: definition of novel haplotypes and racial/ethnic differences.

OBJECTIVE: To characterize allele frequencies of known single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in tumor necrosis factor receptor (TNFR) genes in African Americans with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), healthy African Americans, and healthy Caucasians. METHODS: One TNFRSF1B SNP (196 G/T) that influences susceptibility to familial RA in Caucasians and 3 SNPs in the 5' flanking region of the TNFRSF1A gene (-609G/T, -580A/G, and -383A/C) were genotyped in 108 African Americans with RA, 62 healthy African Americans, and 59 healthy Caucasians. RESULTS: There were no differences in TNFRSF1A allele frequencies between African Americans with RA and healthy African Americans. Allele frequencies were strikingly different, however, between healthy African Americans and healthy Caucasians: 0.13 versus 0.42 for -609T, 0.49 versus 0 for -580G, and 0.14 versus 0 for -383C. We identified 4 novel haplotypes defined by the 3 TNFRSF1A SNPs, the distribution of which was markedly different in healthy Caucasians and healthy African Americans (P = 0.000001 by chi-square test-. The frequencies of the TNFRSF1B 196 genotypes were similar in African Americans with RA and healthy African Americans but differed between healthy African Americans and healthy Caucasians (P = 0.05). CONCLUSION: Although we observed no associations between known TNFR SNPs or haplotypes and RA, significant racial differences were observed at both loci. Comparison of these data with other published frequencies of TNFRSF1A and TNFRSF1B genotypes according to race suggests that the distribution in African American, Caucasian, and Asian populations differs significantly. These striking racial/ethnic differences in TNFR SNP frequencies may influence the likelihood of familial RA, severe disease, or response to TNF inhibitors and may have important evolutionary implications.