Genomic insights into the TTSS island of enteropathogenic <Emphasis Type="Italic">E. coli</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Salmonella</Emphasis> and its conjugational transfer

Whole genome sequences of the non-pathogenic K12 and pathogenic O127:H6 strains of Escherichia coli were analyzed using Mauve software. The genomes showed 80% similarity with few desert regions including a 35.99 kb region in pathogenic strain. This region contained Locus of Enterocyte Effacement (LEE) and Type III Secretion System (TTSS) genes. Whole genome alignment of this E. coli pathogenic strain and Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Newport str. SK254 showed 40% homology. Intimin protein coding escU gene of E. coli and ssaU gene of S. enterica were analyzed by BLASTn and ClustalW and cross referred with Pathogenicity Island Database (PDI DB) to check similarity with other foodborne bacterial species. The ssaU gene of Salmonella was found to be designated as escU in E. coli database. Comparison of these genes at nucleotide and amino acid sequence level revealed possible codon redundancies. Six clinical isolates of E. coli (designated as SBANU 1 to 6) were screened for salt aggregation and hemolysin production abilities followed by PCR analysis of escU gene. The E. coli isolate SBANU 6 was further used in induced conjugation assay with S. enterica as donor. PCR analysis and sequencing of the amplified DNA in E. coli transconjugant cells revealed the possible acquiring of ssaU gene from S. enterica.     

Age of diagnosis in familial Barrett’s associated neoplasia

Familial Cancer - The identification of hereditary cancer genes for esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) and its precursor, Barrett’s esophagus (BE), may prove critical for the development of...     

A comparison of breastfeeding rates by obesity class

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to compare breastfeeding initiation rates for women across body mass index (BMI) classes, including normal BMI (18.50?24.99?kg/m²), overweight (25.00?29.99?kg/m²), obese (30.00?39.99?kg/m²), morbidly obese (40.00?49.99?kg/m²) and extreme obesity (≥50.00?kg/m²).

Materials and methods: Retrospective cohort of women with singleton pregnancies, delivering in St. John’s, NL between 2002 and 2011. The primary outcome was any breastfeeding on hospital discharge. Breastfeeding rates across BMI categories were compared, using univariate analyses. Multivariate analysis included additional maternal and obstetric variables.

Results: Twelve thousand four hundred twenty-two women were included: 8430 breastfed and 3992 did not breastfeed on hospital discharge. Progressively decreasing rates of breastfeeding were noted with increasing obesity class: normal BMI (71.1%), overweight (69.1%), obese (61.6%), morbidly obese (54.2%), and extremely obese women (42.3%). Multivariate analysis confirmed that increasing obesity class resulted in lower odds of breastfeeding: overweight (adjusted odds ratios (aOR) 0.86, 95%CI 0.76–0.98), obese (aOR 0.65, 95%CI 0.57–0.74), morbidly obese (aOR 0.57, 95%CI 0.44–0.74), and extreme obesity (aOR 0.37, 95%CI 0.19–0.74).

Conclusion: Women in higher obesity classes are progressively less likely to initiate breastfeeding. Women with the highest prepregnancy BMIs should be particularly counseled on the benefits of breastfeeding.     

Neural Correlates Underlying Social-Cue-Induced Value Change

As humans are social beings, human behavior and cognition are fundamentally shaped by information provided by peers, making human subjective value for rewards prone to be manipulated by perceived social information. Even subtle nonverbal social information, such as others'' eye gazes, can influence value assignment, such as food value. In this study, we investigate the neural underpinnings of how gaze cues modify participants'' food value (both genders) by means of functional magnetic resonance imaging. During the gaze-cuing task, food items were repeatedly presented either while others looked at them or while they were ignored by others. We determined participants'' food values by assessing their willingness to pay before and after a standard gaze-cuing training. Results revealed that participants were willing to pay significantly more for food items that were attended to by others compared with the unattended to food items. Neural data showed that differences in subjective values between the two conditions were accompanied by enhanced activity in the inferior frontal gyrus, middle temporal gyrus, and caudate after food items were attended to. Furthermore, the functional connectivity between the caudate and the angular gyrus precisely predicted the individual differences in the preference shift. Our results unveil the key neural mechanism underlying the influence of social cues on the subjective value of food and highlight the crucial role of social context in shaping subjective value for food rewards in human.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT We investigated how social information like others'' gaze toward foods affects individuals'' food value. We found that individuals more often choose food items that were looked at by another person compared with food items that were ignored. Using neuroimaging, we showed that this increased value for attended to food items was associated with higher brain activity in the inferior frontal gyrus, middle temporal gyrus, and caudate. Furthermore, functional connectivity between the caudate and the angular gyrus was associated with individual differences in values for food items that were attended to by others versus being ignored. These findings provide novel insights into how the brain integrates social information into food value and could suggest possible interventions like using gaze cuing to promote healthier food choices.     

Anxiety in children: A review on how to address it in the perioperative setting post-pandemic

In this paper, we review the psychological burden of SARS-CoV-2 on children and how health care workers can play a role in mitigating its mental health impact during anesthetic procedures. We evaluate the societal changes that have affected children over 2 years of the pandemic and the subsequent soaring rates of anxiety and depression reported. Unfortunately, the perioperative setting is a stressful experience at baseline and the addition of COVID-19 has only exacerbated the situation. Anxiety and depression are often linked to maladaptive behavior post-surgery, including increased rates of emergence delirium. Providers can utilize techniques based on developmental milestones, Certified Child Life Specialists, parental presence during induction, and medications to reduce anxiety. As health care workers, we need to recognize and address these concerns as untreated mental health issues can leave long-term consequences for children.     

A single-centre retrospective case series of Anakinra for incident calcium pyrophosphate deposition disease

Clinical Rheumatology - In this 2-year retrospective case series, we characterise the calcium pyrophosphate deposition disease (CPPD) inpatient cohort at a single centre and assess the efficacy and...