Multifunctional polypeptide-based hydrogel bio-adhesives with pro-healing activities and their working principles

Wound healing is a complex physiological process involving hemostasis, inflammation, proliferation, and tissue remodeling. Therefore, there is an urgent need for suitable wound dressings for effective and systematical wound management. Polypeptide-based hydrogel bio-adhesives offer unique advantages and are ideal candidates. However, comprehensive reviews on polypeptide-based hydrogel bio-adhesives for wound healing are still lacking. In this review, the physiological mechanisms and evaluation parameters of wound healing were first described in detail. Then, the working principles of hydrogel bio-adhesives were summarized. Recent advances made in multifunctional polypeptide-based hydrogel bio-adhesives involving gelatin, silk fibroin, fibrin, keratin, poly-γ-glutamic acid, ɛ-poly-lysine, serum albumin, and elastin with pro-healing activities in wound healing and tissue repair were reviewed. Finally, the current status, challenges, developments, and future trends of polypeptide-based hydrogel bio-adhesives were discussed, hoping that further developments would be stimulated to meet the growing needs of their clinical applications.

Healthcare team resilience during COVID-19: a qualitative study

BACKGROUND

Resilience, in the field of Resilience Engineering, has been identified as the ability to maintain the safety and the performance of healthcare systems and is aligned with the resilience potentials of anticipation, monitoring, adaptation, and learning. In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic challenged the resilience of US healthcare systems due to the lack of equipment, supply interruptions, and a shortage of personnel. The purpose of this qualitative research was to describe resilience in the healthcare team during the COVID-19 pandemic with the healthcare team situated as a cognizant, singular source of knowledge and defined by its collective identity, purpose, competence, and actions, versus the resilience of an individual or an organization.

METHODS

We developed a descriptive model which considered the healthcare team as a unified cognizant entity within a system designed for safe patient care. This model combined elements from the Patient Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety (SEIPS) and the Advanced Team Decision Making (ADTM) models. Using a qualitative descriptive design and guided by our adapted model, we conducted individual interviews with healthcare team members across the United States. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis and extracted codes were organized within the adapted model framework.

RESULTS

Five themes were identified from the interviews with acute care professionals across the US (N = 22): teamwork in a pressure cooker, consistent with working in a high stress environment; healthcare team cohesion, applying past lessons to present challenges, congruent with transferring past skills to current situations; knowledge gaps, and altruistic behaviors, aligned with sense of duty and personal responsibility to the team. Participants' described how their ability to adapt to their environment was negatively impacted by uncertainty, inconsistent communication of information, and emotions of anxiety, fear, frustration, and stress. Cohesion with co-workers, transferability of skills, and altruistic behavior enhanced healthcare team performance.

CONCLUSION

Working within the extreme unprecedented circumstances of COVID-19 affected the ability of the healthcare team to anticipate and adapt to the rapidly changing environment. Both team cohesion and altruistic behavior promoted resilience. Our research contributes to a growing understanding of the importance of resilience in the healthcare team. And provides a bridge between individual and organizational resilience.

Flock members experience gas pressures higher than lone individuals

Local interactions between flock members in absence of centralized control generate collective dynamics characterized by coherent large-scale patterns. We investigate whether aggregates of individuals like birds, swarms and fishes behaving in concert with their neighbors may modify the physical properties of the fluid medium in which they are embedded. Using the K-Nearest Neighbors algorithm to simulate collective animal behavior, we showed that the occurrence of collective dynamics can modify the physical parameters of the phase space in which the interacting individuals' trajectories take place. This means that lone individuals experience the nearby fluid medium (i.e., the air in case of birds/insects and the water in case of fishes) differently from flock members. In particular, our framework suggests that a bird belonging to a group and acting collectively with its neighbors perceives the nearby atmosphere as denser, compared with an isolated bird.

Global panel data on World governance and state fragility from 2006 to 2022

This global panel dataset contains information collected from two different sources (The Fund for Peace and World Bank), on the governance and stability levels of 178 countries between 2006 and 2022. The dataset includes information on 1) Cohesion (security apparatus (C1), factionalized elites (C2), and group grievance (C3)), 2) Economic (economy (E1), economic inequality (E2), and human flight and brain drain (E3)), 3) Political (state legitimacy (P1), public services (P2), and human rights (P3)) indicators, 4) Social and cross-cutting (demographic pressures (S1), refugees and internally displaced persons (S2), and external intervention (X1)), and 5) Governance (voice and accountability (G1), political stability and absence of violence/terrorism (G2), government effectiveness (G3), regulatory quality (G4), rule of law (G5), and control of corruption (G6)). Data analysis was carried out using SPSS version 29 software to ensure a complete description of the data (labels, type and measure of variables, and uniformity of decimals), as well as the imputation possibility of missing data, which will allow future researchers to study both cross-sectional and longitudinal relationships between the five types of indicators and the eighteen indicators reported.

Effect of repeated freeze-thaw cycles on mechanical properties of clay

To investigate the variation in the mechanical properties of clay under freeze-thaw cycles (FTCs), a series of experiments were conducted in the laboratory. Samples with different water contents and dry densities were subjected to FTCs ranging from 0 to 11 times. Then, cohesion, shear strength, internal friction angle and elastic modulus were obtained using triaxial test. The results show that with the increase in the number of FTCs, the shear strength, cohesion and elastic modulus decreased, while the internal friction angle increased slightly. However, the variation in the internal friction angle is not obvious, and the maximum increment is within 4°. The cohesion exhibited the most decrease after the first freeze-thaw action. Besides, under a same number of FTCs, four mechanical properties are significantly affected by water content and dry density. The shear strength, cohesion, elastic modulus and internal friction angle decrease with water content while increasing with dry density. Additionally, the elastic modulus is associated with confining pressure, which increases with confining pressure. This study provides evidence for the variation in mechanical properties of the soils subjected to FTCs and guides the design and construction of the cold regional engineering.

Comparing the effectiveness of structural family therapy and mindfulness-based family therapy in cohesion and adaptability in couples with marital dissatisfaction

The present study was conducted with the aim of comparing the effectiveness of structural family therapy and mindfulness-based family therapy in cohesion and adaptability in couples with marital dissatisfaction. The research was a semi-experimental study with a pretest-posttest control group design and a two-month follow-up. The research population comprised all couples with marital dissatisfaction who referred to family counseling centers in Tehran (Iran) in the first 6 months of 2021. Out of this number, 30 couples with marital dissatisfaction were selected using convenience and purposive sampling and were randomly assigned to three groups: structural family therapy, mindfulness-based family therapy and the control group. The research tool was the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scale by Olson, Portner and Lavee (1996). In order to analyze the data, repeated measures analysis of variance was used. The findings demonstrated that there is a significant difference between the two experimental groups and the control group in cohesion and adaptability scores. This means that both experimental groups had a significant effect on cohesion and adaptability components (p < 0.05). Further, the results suggested that there is a significant difference between the two experimental groups of structural family therapy and mindfulness-based family therapy in terms of the effectiveness in the components of cohesion and adaptability. Accordingly, the effect of structural family therapy on couple's cohesion and adaptability was greater than that of mindfulness-based family therapy (p < 0.05).

Family functioning in students of health sciences in four Latin American countries: a study of the structure and factorial invariance of the FACES III scale. A cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Psychometric studies of the FACES III scale in Spanish-speaking countries show a lack of agreement on the factorial structure of the scale. In addition, most of the studies have only performed exploratory analyses of its factorial structure.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of the present study was to confirm the structure and factorial invariance of the FACES III scale in nursing and obstetric students from Chile, Colombia, Peru, and Mexico.

METHODS

A total of 3303 students from the four countries participated in this study (Colombia = 1559, Chile = 1224, Peru = 215, Mexico = 305).

RESULTS

The results of the study showed that the Bi-factor model presents the best-fit indexes to the data from Colombia, Chile, and Mexico, but not from Peru. In addition, it was found that this model showed evidence of being strictly invariant among the three countries in the sequence of the invariance models proposed: metric invariance (ΔRMSEA = .000), scalar (ΔRMSEA = .008), and strict (ΔRMSEA = .008). The bi-factor model also showed adequate reliability indexes in the three countries.

CONCLUSION

It is concluded that the FACES III scale shows adequate psychometric performance under a bi-factor model in nursing and obstetric students from Colombia, Chile, and Mexico. The lack of fit of the model in Peru could be associated with the small sample size.

Staying away from the breaking point: Probing the limits of epithelial cell elimination

Epithelial tissues are dramatically remodelled during embryogenesis and tissue homeostasis and yet need to maintain their sealing properties to sustain their barrier functions at any time. Part of these remodellings involve the elimination of a large proportion of cells through apoptosis. Cell extrusion, the remodelling steps leading to seamless dying cell expulsion, helps to maintain tissue cohesion. However, there is an intrinsic limit in the system that can only accommodate a certain proportion/rate of cell elimination as well as certain spatiotemporal distributions. What are then the critical conditions leading to epithelial rupture/tear/sealing defects upon cell elimination and which mechanisms ensure that such limits are never reached? In this short review, I document the conditions in which epithelial rupture has been observed, including in the contexts of epithelial cell death, and the mechanical parameters influencing tissue rupture, and review feedback mechanisms which help to keep the epithelia away from the breaking point.

Evaluation of the psychometric properties of the family adaptability and cohesion scale (FACES III) through item response theory models in students from Chile and Colombia

BACKGROUND

A psychometric study of the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Scale (FACES III) has been conducted in Spanish-speaking countries from the perspective of the classical test theory. However, this approach has limitations that affect the psychometric understanding of this scale.

OBJECTIVE

Accordingly, this study used the item response theory to investigate the psychometric performance of the items. Furthermore, it evaluated the differential performance of the items for Colombia and Chile.

METHOD

For this purpose, 518 health science students from both countries participated. Confirmatory Factor Analysis was used.

RESULTS

The study results revealed that the cohesion and adaptability items presented adequate discrimination and difficulty indices. In addition, items 5, 8, 13, 17, and 19 of cohesion indicated differential functioning between students from both countries, with Chilean students exhibiting a greater discriminatory power. Further, the Colombian group exhibited a greater discriminatory power for item 18 of adaptability.

CONCLUSIONS

The study concluded that the items of FACES III indicated adequate psychometric performance in terms of their discriminative capacity and difficulty in Chile and Colombia.

The effects of paranoia and dopamine on perception of cohesion and conspiracy: a pre-registered, double-blind, placebo-controlled experiment

Paranoia is a common symptom of psychotic disorders but is also present on a spectrum of severity in the general population. Although paranoia is associated with an increased tendency to perceive cohesion and conspiracy within groups, the mechanistic basis of this variation remains unclear. One potential avenue involves the brain's dopaminergic system, which is known to be altered in psychosis. In this study, we used large-N online samples to establish the association between trait paranoia and perceptions of cohesion and conspiracy. We further evaluated the role of dopamine on perceptions of cohesion and conspiracy using a double-blind, placebo-controlled laboratory experiment where participants received levodopa or a placebo control. Our results were mixed: group perceptions and perceptions of cohesion were higher among more paranoid individuals but were not altered under dopamine administration. We outline the potential reasons for these discrepancies and the broader implications for understanding paranoia in terms of dopamine dysregulation.

In situ generated hemostatic adhesives: From mechanisms of action to recent advances and applications

Conventional surgical closure techniques, such as sutures, clips, or skin closure strips, may not always provide optimal wound closure and may require invasive procedures, which can result in potential post-surgical complications. As result, there is a growing demand for innovative solutions to achieve superior wound closure and improve patient outcomes. To overcome the abovementioned issues, in situ generated hemostatic adhesives/sealants have emerged as a promising alternative, offering a targeted, controllable, and minimally invasive procedure for a wide variety of medical applications. The aim of this review is to provide a comprehensive overview of the mechanisms of action and recent advances of in situ generated hemostatic adhesives, particularly protein-based, thermoresponsive, bioinspired, and photocrosslinkable formulations, as well as the design challenges that must be addressed. Overall, this review aims to enhance a comprehensive understanding of the latest advancements of in situ generated hemostatic adhesives and their mechanisms of action, with the objective of promoting further research in this field.

Association between having a meal together with family and smoking: a cross-sectional nationwide survey

BACKGROUND

Smoking is a major risk factor that significantly affects public health. Although the South Korean government spends significant money on smoking cessation services, the smoking rate remains stagnant. Families influence health-conscious decisions, and family meals can positively affect smoking suppression and health behaviors. Therefore, this study investigated whether family meals are correlated with adults' smoking behaviors.

METHODS

This study used data from the 2019-2021 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Having a meal together with family was defined as "yes" for those who have at least one meal with their family each day and "no" for those who do not. Current smoking status was classified as having smoked at least 5 packs of cigarettes (100 cigarettes) in one's lifetime and having used either conventional cigarettes or e-cigarettes in the last 30 days. Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to examine the association between eating together, smoking, and weight application.

RESULTS

When comparing the group that ate with their family compared to the group that did not, the odds ratio for current smoking status was 1.27 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.05-1.54) for male participants and 1.90 (95% CI: 1.33-2.71) for female participants. This showed a dose-dependent effect according to the frequency of family meals. Those who smoked conventional cigarettes had a strong association (men: OR 1.28, 95% CI 1.00-1.67; women: OR 2.22, 95% CI 1.42-3.46). However, those who only vaped e-cigarettes or used both conventional cigarettes and e-cigarettes had no statistically significant correlations.

CONCLUSION

This study provides evidence suggesting that eating meals as a family is related to smoking behavior and can positively affect smoking cessation intentions in adults. Consequently, a smoking cessation program can be developed that uses social support, such as encouraging family meals.

Sticky stuff: biological cohesion for scour and erosion prevention

This study examines the potential for biological cohesion to arrest scour erosion at marine infrastructure. Biological cohesion occurs naturally in sedimentary environments, and is caused by extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) which result from the life cycles of microorganisms. EPS is known to dramatically increase the resistance of natural biomediated sediment to erosive hydrodynamic forces. In this study, we test, for the first time, whether EPS can be deliberately added to a sediment to mitigate against scour erosion - a process we term 'biostabilisation'. A systematic laboratory experiment is used to investigate the effects of an EPS additive on scour erosion around a monopile in a sand substrate. Results show that increasing EPS content causes a progressive reduction in equilibrium scour depth, the volume of excavated material and the timescale required to reach equilibrium scour morphology. These parameters are linearly related to EPS content, showing that the effects of EPS on the physical processes required for erosion to occur are concentration dependent. It can be concluded that biostabilisation offers a potential new ecologically engineered, nature-based solution to a range of scour and erosion scenarios. The economic and environmental advantages are discussed, and a methodology for biostabilisation use in individual erosion mitigation scenarios is proposed.

Relational climate and openness to plant-forward diets among cohabitating couples

Plant-forward diets offer a potential solution to many of the health and ecological crises that we find ourselves facing today. A key barrier to the adoption and maintenance of plant-forward diets is an anticipated lack of support from family members, friends and romantic partners. The present study examined how relational climate (i.e., the cohesion and flexibility of a partnership) contributes to the tension individuals anticipate in their relationship when a member reduces their animal-product consumption, and their own openness to reducing. Four hundred and ninety-six coupled individuals took part in an online survey. Analyses revealed that couples with more flexible leadership styles anticipated less tension should they or their partner adopt a plant-forward diet. However, dimensions of relational climate were largely unrelated to openness to plant-forward diets. Romantic couples who perceived themselves to be matched in terms of dietary habits were less open to reducing their animal-product consumption than unmatched couples. Politically left-leaning couples and females were more open to plant-forward diets. The meat attachments of male partners were reported as a particular barrier to dietary goals, as were practical concerns about meal coordination, finance, and health. Implications for promoting plant-forward dietary transitions are discussed.

Testing the temporal precedence of family functioning and child psychopathology in the LONGSCAN sample

Family functioning may serve as protective or risk factors in the development of youth psychopathology. However, few studies have examined the potentially reciprocal relation between child psychopathology and family functioning. To fill this gap in the literature, this study tested for time-ordered associations between measures of family functioning (e.g., cohesion, conflict, and emotional expressiveness) and child psychopathology (e.g., total behavior problems, externalizing, and internalizing problems) using data from the Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN; N = 1143, 52.3% female, Nwaves = 5). We used a random-intercept cross-lagged panel model to identify whether child psychopathology preceded and predicted family functioning, the reverse, or both processes occurred simultaneously. At the between-person level, families who tended to have more cohesion, who lacked conflict, and who expressed their emotions had lower levels of child psychopathology. At the within-person level in childhood, we found minimal evidence for time-ordered associations. In adolescence, however, a clear pattern whereby early psychopathology consistently predicted subsequent family functioning emerged, and the reverse direction was rarely found. Results indicate a complex dynamic relation between the family unit and child that have important implications for developmental models that contextualize risk and resilience within the family unit.

Daisy-shaped liquid bridges in foam-filled granular packings

HYPOTHESIS

Many applications of liquid foams use them to fill the porosity of various granular media. How is the liquid distributed in such foam-filled systems, in which the geometry of the bubble assembly can be strongly constrained by pore confinement?

EXPERIMENTS

We study how the liquid is distributed in a grain packing filled with liquid foam, as a function of both liquid content and bubble-to-grain size ratio. Moreover, Surface Evolver simulations are carried out at the scale of a single bubble confined into a tetrahedral pore.

FINDINGS

We reveal that foam-filled granular assemblies exhibit a robust pendular-like regime, which is reminiscent of the pendular regime in unsaturated media. The main difference is that here the liquid bridges are daisy-shaped, i.e. with a liquid core bounded by bubbly petals. A simple theoretical model is proposed to describe the foam liquid bridges between contacting grains. In the case of large bubbles, the model is compared with the Surface Evolver simulation. The model is also applied to the case of wall liquid bridge, which is compared with the experimental observation. Beyond their geometrical characteristics, the presence of these liquid bridges, which can represent almost 25% of the liquid contained in the porosity, makes it possible to imagine a new approach (binder foam-based) to bind granular assemblies and turn them to solid materials.

Investigation of root traits of Dendrocalamus strictus cultivated on organically amended coalmine overburden and its potential use for slope stabilization

The active and abandoned coalmine overburden (OB) dumps are prone to slope instability under the influence of external agents. Estimating the mechanical reinforcement imparted by the grassroots on the coalmine overburden dumps is vital. This paper discusses the effect of organic amendment on the growth characteristics and root distribution of native grass Dendrocalamus strictus species (common name: Bamboo) in the Jharkhand region, India. A pot experiment was conducted wherein the OB was amended with different proportions of cow dung (OA) and garden soil (GS) to be used as growth substrates known as treatments (T1-T5). A pot having only GS (T6) was used as a control. The growth of six D. strictus saplings under each treatment was monitored for survival, shoot height, and canopy area. The root distribution, root area ratio (RAR) with depth, root tensile strength (Tr) vs. root diameter (d) relationship, and variation of additional cohesion (root cohesion, cr) with depth were studied for each species (Wu method). The pot experiment shows that the chosen grass can survive on the OB dumps with a suitable external amendment and can exhibit a well-developed root system and produce higher root reinforcement when allowed to grow under unrestricted conditions.

Effects of moisture content and landfill age on the shear strength properties of municipal solid waste in Xi'an, China

With the continued expansion of waste landfills, accidents may occur if the landfills are not properly stabilized. In this study, samples of municipal solid waste (MSW) from a waste landfill in Xi'an, China were collected through on-site drilling. Considering the effects of nine landfill ages (1, 2, 3, 11, 12, 13, 21, 22, and 23 y) and six moisture contents (natural, 20, 40, 60, 80, and 100%), 324 groups of MSW were tested in the laboratory using a direct shear test apparatus. The results indicate the following: (1) with an increase in horizontal shear displacement, the shear stress of MSW gradually increases without a peak stress phenomenon, which is a displacement hardening curve; (2) with an increase in landfill age, the shear strength of MSW increases; (3) with an increase in moisture content, the shear strength of MSW increases; (4) with an increase in landfill age, the cohesion (c) decreases and the internal friction angle (φ) increases; and (5) with an increase in moisture content, the c and φ of MSW increases. The c range found in this study was 6.04-18.69 kPa, while the φ was 10.78-18.26°. The results of this study can provide a reference for stability calculations for MSW landfills.

Descriptive network analysis and the influence of timescale on centrality and cohesion metrics from a system of between-herd dairy cow movements in Ontario, Canada

Previous research has demonstrated that static monthly networks of between-herd dairy cow movements in Ontario, Canada were highly fragmented, reducing potential for large-scale outbreaks. Extrapolating results from static networks can become problematic for diseases with an incubation period that exceeds the timescale of the network. The objectives of this research were to: 1) describe the networks of dairy cow movements in Ontario, and 2) describe the changes that occur among network analysis metrics when conducted at seven different timescales. Networks of dairy cow movements were created using Lactanet Canada milk recording data collected in Ontario between 2009 and 2018. Centrality and cohesion metrics were calculated after aggregating the data at seven timescales: weekly, monthly, semi-annual, annual, biennial, quinquennial, and decennial. There were 50,598 individual cows moved between Lactanet-enrolled farms, representing approximately 75% of provincially registered dairy herds. Most movements occurred over short distances (median = 39.18 km), with fewer long-range movements (maximum = 1150.80 km). The number of arcs increased marginally relative to the number of nodes with longer network timescales. Both mean out-degree, and mean clustering coefficients increased disproportionately with increasing timescale. Conversely, mean network density decreased with increasing timescale. The largest weak and strong components at the monthly timescale were small relative to the full network (267 and 4 nodes), whereas yearly networks had much higher values (2213 and 111 nodes). Higher relative connectivity in networks with longer timescales suggests pathogens with long incubation periods and animals with subclinical infection present increased potential for wide-spread disease transmission among dairy farms in Ontario. Careful consideration of disease-specific dynamics should be made when using static networks to model disease transmission among dairy cow populations.

Cancer patient and caregiver communication about economic concerns and the effect on patient and caregiver partners' perceptions of family functioning

PURPOSE

Financial strain and stressful life events can constrain open communication within families. A cancer diagnosis can bring heightened emotional stress and financial strain for most cancer patients and their families. We evaluated how level of comfort and willingness to discuss important but sensitive economic topics affected longitudinal assessments of family relationships, exploring both within-person and between partner effects over 2 years after a cancer diagnosis.

METHODS

A case series of hematological cancer patient-caregiver dyads (n = 171) were recruited from oncology clinics in Virginia and Pennsylvania and followed for 2 years. Multi-level models were developed to examine the associations between comfort discussing economic aspects of cancer care and family functioning.

RESULTS

Broadly, caregivers and patients who were comfortable discussing economic topics reported higher family cohesion and lower family conflict. Dyads' assessments of family functioning were influenced both by their own and their partners level of communication comfort. Overtime, caregiver but not patients perceived a significant decrease in family cohesion.

CONCLUSIONS

Efforts to address financial toxicity in cancer care should include examination of how patients and families communicate as unaddressed difficulties can have detrimental effects on family functioning in the long term. Future studies should also examine whether the prominence of specific economic topics, such as employment status, varies depending on where the patient is in their cancer journey.

IMPLICATIONS FOR CANCER SURVIVORS

In this sample, cancer patients did not perceive the decline in family cohesion that was reported by their family caregiver. This is an important finding for future work that aims to identify the timing and nature to best intervene with caregiver supports to mitigate caregiver burden that may negatively impact long-term patient care and QoL.

Hydrodynamics-driven community coalescence determines ecological assembly processes and shifts bacterial network stability in river bends

Community coalescence, i.e., the mixing and merging of microbial communities and their surrounding environments, is prevalent in various ecosystems and potentially acts on ecological processes. River bends are distinguished by significant cross-stream velocities and spiral flow. The flow in river bends causes the mixing of microbial communities, thus making the resultant community (after mixing) different from its precursors (before mixing) through ecological processes. However, so far, no studies have explored the effect of community coalescence on ecological processes and network stability under the hydrodynamic processes of river bends. Here, we explored bacterial community assembly and community coalescence in river bends by coupling hydrodynamic profiling, aqueous biogeochemistry, DNA sequencing, and ecological theory. The results showed that the water flow dominated the community coalescence by regulating the movement of suspended sediments. The main ecological process determining the bacterial community compositions in water was the dispersal process, whereas in sediments it was the selection process. Furthermore, the negative cohesion results showed that community coalescence determined the stability of bacterial networks through competition and predation. This study depicted the bacterial community coalescence in river bends and highlighted their associations with network stability, which might provide new insights into bacterial community assembly and coalescence under complex hydrodynamics in the aquatic environment.

Self-report and facial expression indicators of team cohesion development

Ad hoc teams are formed to complete tasks across formal and informal environments. More effective teams tend to report higher cohesion, more strongly identifying as a group. Dynamic theories of team processes suggest that cohesion changes as teams form and perform to achieve a goal. The present research examined approaches for rapidly measuring team dynamics to investigate how cohesion developed in newly formed teams as they completed a series of video game matches. Self-report ratings of cohesion were collected via manikin-based measures designed to be rapidly completed. In addition, the emotion valence and arousal of facial expressions of teammates were estimated via video recordings. Results suggested that perceptions of cohesion rapidly changed as teams completed video game matches. The present study indicates that manikin-based self-report measures and emotion valence of facial expressions are dynamic and could be used as behavioral indicators of team cohesion development.

When a Robot Is Your Teammate

Creating effective teamwork between humans and robots involves not only addressing their performance as a team but also sustaining the quality and sense of unity among teammates, also known as cohesion. This paper explores the research problem of: how can we endow robotic teammates with social capabilities to improve the cohesive alliance with humans? By defining the concept of a human-robot cohesive alliance in the light of the multidimensional construct of cohesion from the social sciences, we propose to address this problem through the idea of multifaceted human-robot cohesion. We present our preliminary effort from previous works to examine each of the five dimensions of cohesion: social, collective, emotional, structural, and task. We finish the paper with a discussion on how human-robot cohesion contributes to the key questions and ongoing challenges of creating robotic teammates. Overall, cohesion in human-robot teams might be a key factor to propel team performance and it should be considered in the design, development, and evaluation of robotic teammates.

Strength characteristics of geosynthetic reinforced mechanically biologically treated waste by triaxial test

The reinforcement strength characteristics of mechanically biologically treated (MBT) waste were studied by conducting consolidated undrained triaxial tests with MBT waste collected from the Hangzhou Tianziling landfill pilot project. In the tests, the effects of the reinforcement material used (geomembrane, geotextile, and geogrid) and the number of reinforcement layers used (one, two, and three layers) were assessed. The results showed the following: (1) even through the axial strain increases up to 25%, the deviator stress of MBT waste could not reach a well-defined peak; (2) the reinforcement effect is related to the type of reinforcement material, with geogrid exhibiting the best reinforcement effect and geomembrane the worst; (3) the strength ratio of reinforced MBT waste is related to the confining pressure and the number of reinforcement layers, with a greater strength ratio in the MBT waste attained with a lower confining pressure in a logarithmic relationship and a greater strength ratio in the MBT waste attained with a greater number of reinforcement layers in a linear relationship; (4) the reinforced MBT waste shear strength parameter variation ranges for the cohesion (c), internal friction angle (φ), effective cohesion (c'), and effective internal friction angle (φ') are 3.92-13.69 kPa, 19°-29°, 10.10-27.94 kPa, and 24°-45°, respectively; and (5) the deviations in the test values from the apparent cohesion method and the semi-empirical formula method are less than 15%, indicating that these two theories of reinforced sand can also be applied to MBT waste. The results of this study are useful as a baseline reference for the stability assessment of MBT waste landfills.

We stick together! COVID-19 and psychological adjustment in youth residential care

BACKGROUND

Children and youth residential care institutions were forced to introduce adaptations to their regular functioning in order to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic challenges.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of the lockdown on the adolescents' psychological adjustment and whether adolescents' perceived cohesion mitigated the increase of adolescents' psychological adjustment problems.

PARTICIPANTS

Participants were 243 adolescents aged 12 to 18 years, living in 21 different residential care institutions.

RESULTS

The results suggested a moderating role of cohesion on the stability of adolescents' emotional distress across time. Lower levels of cohesion were related with higher emotional distress stability across time. On the contrary, as cohesion increased, the association between adolescents' emotional distress at T0 and T1 decreased.

DISCUSSION

Results are discussed considering the mechanisms raised by the institutions to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and minimize the negative effects on the psychological adjustment of adolescents living in residential care.

Psychometric properties of the FACES IV package for Spanish adolescents

The family plays an essential role in the life of an adolescent. Hence, an acceptable understanding and an evaluation of family functioning is fundamental for effective interventions with adolescents in the psychological, social, and educational fields. The main purpose of this study is to examine the psychometric properties of the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scale (FACES IV), the Family Communication Scale (FCS), and the Family Satisfaction Scale (FSS), for assessing the family functioning of Spanish adolescents. The sample was comprised of 1187 adolescents between 14 -18 years old (49.96% boys and 50.04% girls; M = 16.17; SD = 1.31) from Castile and Leon (Spain), selected from 23 educational centers, 10 university degree courses, and 18 specific juvenile centers for adolescents with either family or behavioral problems. The scales of Balanced Cohesion, Balanced Flexibility and Disengaged showed good convergent validity, while Enmeshed, Rigid, and Chaotic did not. For this reason some items were removed, obtaining a shortened version of FACES IV, that demonstrated acceptable reliability, and good convergent and predictive validity. The FCS and FSS scales yielded excellent psychometric properties. The results confirmed the factorial structure of the FACES IV, its transcultural applicability, and its validity for different ages. The hypotheses of the circumplex model were confirmed, except for the dysfunctionality of two scales, Enmeshed and Rigid, that contrary to what was expected, showed positive correlations with Family Communication, Family Satisfaction, Balanced Cohesion, and Balanced Flexibility. In brief, our results present the FACES IV package as a useful instrument for the assessment of family functioning of Spanish adolescents. Future studies will be necessary to confirm the trend observed for the two aforementioned scales among adolescents.

Understanding cancer caregiver burden over time: Dyadic assessments of family cohesion, conflict and communication

OBJECTIVE

Previously we identified three distinct cancer communication concordance groups among cancer patient-caregiver dyads. This secondary analysis examined patient and caregiver reports of family functioning (cohesion and conflict) as associated with cancer communication concordance and assessed each as independent predictors of perceived caregiver burden among hematological cancer caregivers.

METHODS

A case series of hematological cancer patient-caregiver dyads (n = 171) were recruited from oncology clinics in Virginia and Pennsylvania and followed for 2 years. Using the previously identified communication groups this analysis prospectively examines patient and caregiver perceptions of family cohesion and conflict and the association with burden over time.

RESULTS

Caregiver burden decreased over time. Caregiver, but not patient perceptions of family cohesion decreased over time; decreased cohesion and increased conflict was associated with greater cancer communication discordance.

CONCLUSIONS

This work lends further support to the use of cancer communication congruence typologies for identifying potentially vulnerable dyads. Discordant cancer communication and declining caregiver perceptions of family cohesion may represent opportunities to intervene using family focused supportive services.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

Only caregiver perceptions of family functioning were associated with burden therefore identifying and supporting those caregivers with worsening communication and family function is important.

Approaching biology through the retrocausal apex in physics

Quantum stochasticity carries two incompatible implications. One is for the statistical divergence upon the prior absence of complete controllability over boundary conditions applied to mechanistic causation. One more alternative is for the statistical convergence upon the posterior decidability of measurement despite the absence of the prior decidability. Decidable measurement lacking the prior decidability is retrocausal. The quantum physical likelihood for the life world may derive from the statistical convergence proceeding in a durable manner. This observation suggests that there must have been some type of observers even internal to the lifeless world, otherwise no likelihood of identifying the objects of interest could be available there. Measurement activity intrinsic to the internal observers is indexical, while the similar activity specific to the external observer like us can be symbolic. The difference is in the phenomenological qualification since both are the observers of different types. A most conspicuous case demonstrating the phenomenological difference is revealed in the different nature of time to be employed and experienced there. Time serves as a principal attribute qualifying the phenomenon to be experienced as such. Qualification of time is observer dependent.

Perceived Impact of the COVID-19 Lockdown on the Family Context of Foster and Non-Foster Families

The COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting lockdown have had a far-reaching impact across all levels of society. In Spain, severe restrictions were placed on people's mobility, and leaving the home was only possible under special circumstances. This study analyzes the impact of lockdown on the family context of foster and non-foster families, focusing particularly on their levels of cohesion, adaptability, and perceived stress. It also examines a series of variables that may have influenced foster families' perceptions of their family context during lockdown. Data were gathered through an online survey that was completed by 347 individuals corresponding to 100 foster families and 247 non-foster families from different regions of Spain. Analyses were descriptive and exploratory in nature. The results appear to suggest that lockdown has had a greater impact on the family context of non-foster families. With respect to foster families' experiences of lockdown, variables such as loss of employment and having a child with special educational needs would seem to be important. For both types of families, lockdown has provided an opportunity to improve certain aspects of their family context. Given that further lockdowns of some degree may be necessary in the future, it is important to ensure that families have access to the psychoeducational resources they need to maintain, as far as possible, a positive family context.

Carrier particle emission and dispersion in transient CFD-DEM simulations of a capsule-based DPI

The dispersion of carrier-based formulations in capsule-based dry powder inhalers depends on several factors, including the patient's inhalation profile and the motion of capsule within the device. In the present study, coupled computational fluid dynamics and discrete element method simulations of a polydisperse cohesive lactose carrier in an Aerolizer® inhaler were conducted at a constant flow rate of 100 L/min and considering an inhalation profile of asthmatic children between 5 and 17 years approximated from literature data. In relevant high-speed photography experiments, it was observed that the powder was distributed to both capsule ends before being ejected from the capsule. Several methods of ensuring similar behavior in the simulations were presented. Both the constant flow rate simulation and the profile simulations showed a high powder retention in the capsule (7.37-19.00%). Although the inhaler retention was negligible in the constant flow rate simulation due to consistently high air velocities in the device, it reached values of around 7% in most of the profile simulations. In all simulations, some of the carrier powder was ejected from the capsule as particle clusters. These clusters were larger in the profile simulation than in the constant flow rate simulation. Of the powder discharged from the capsule, a high percentage was bound in clusters in the profile simulation in the beginning and at the end of the inhalation profile while no more than 10% of the powder ejected from the capsule in the 100 L/min constant flow rate simulation were in clusters at any time. The powder emission from the capsule was studied, indicating a strong dependency of the powder mass flow from the capsule on the angular capsule position. When the capsule holes face the inhaler's air inlets, the air flow into the capsule restricts the powder discharge. The presented results provide a detailed view of some aspects of the powder flow and dispersion of a cohesive carrier in a capsule-based inhaler device. Furthermore, the importance of considering inhalation profiles in addition to conventional constant flow rate simulations was confirmed.

Research on direct shear strength characteristics of mechanically biologically treated waste

AbstractMechanically and biologically treated (MBT) waste has significant characteristics such as high stability and low moisture content, which can reduce water, soil, and gas pollution in subsequent treatments. This pre-treatment method is environmentally friendly and sustainable and has become a popular research topic in the field of environmental geotechnical engineering. Using a direct shear test apparatus and five shearing rates (0.25, 1, 5, 10, and 20 mm/min), the shear strength characteristics of MBT waste at the Hangzhou Tianziling Landfill were studied. The results indicate the following: (1) With the increase in horizontal shear displacement, the shear stress of MBT waste gradually increases without a peak stress phenomenon, which is a displacement hardening curve; (2) the shear strength increases with an increase in the shearing displacement rate, and the sensitivity coefficient is 0.64-2.66; (3) a shear strength, shearing rate, and normal stress correlation model is established, and the model has a high degree of fit with the overall experimental data; (4) cohesion (c), internal friction angle (φ), and the logarithm of the shearing rate are linear; (5) the range of c of MBT waste is 22.32-39.51 kPa, and φ is 64.24-68.52°. Meanwhile, the test data are compared with the test data in the literature. The ranges of c and φ of municipal solid waste determined via the shear test are found to be wider than those of MBT waste. The results of this study can provide a reference for the stability calculation of MBT landfills.

Living with the emergence of agents on physical terms

Evolutionary emergence of agents in the empirical world is a direct consequence of the indexicality of matter itself. It is grounded upon the act of quantum origin that is accessible indexically with use of our language. One unique aspect of our language rests upon its appraisal of different grammatical tenses, such as the present progressive tense and the perfect one. Both the tenses are indexical in pointing to some movements in progress or registered in stasis as such out there as admitting no anthropocentric interventions. In particular, the material movement mediated by the transfer of the quantum particles is punctuated by the event of the transfer completed so far that can be referred to in the present perfect tense. At the same time, the transfer of the quantum particles can constantly induce the similar transfer in sequence in the following present progressive tense. Constant update of the present perfect tense in the subsequent progressive tense is agential in keeping no inconsistency between the two left behind in the finished record. That is the inconsistency-mediating cohesion acting between the present perfect and the progressive tenses. A most conspicuous case demonstrating the competency of inconsistency-mediating cohesion may be the origins of life. Molecular recognition widely observed in the biological realm is a specific instance of demonstrating such a molecular cohesion.

Group treatments for individuals at risk for suicide: A PRISMA scoping review (ScR)

BACKGROUND

This PRISMA scoping review explored worldwide research of interventions for suicide prevention delivered within a group setting. Research on group treatments underscores the importance of peer connection in diminishing social isolation and increasing social support. Additional benefits of group treatment include cost efficiency and maximization of staff time. However, the clinical outcomes of group treatments with individuals at risk for suicide are less understood and under researched.

AIM

This scoping review had two objectives: 1) To identify existing group treatments where suicidal thoughts and behaviors are openly discussed; 2) To examine the outcomes of these identified treatments, with special attention to treatment integrity.

METHOD

To address these aims the authors searched Medline (Ovid), Embase (Ovid), and PsycINFO (Ovid), on November 25, 2020. At the Full Text stage, articles were included that were peer reviewed, described a suicide specific group intervention and reported suicide specific outcomes. An additional requirement was open dialogue of suicide in the group intervention.

RESULTS

Only ten research reports of suicide-specific group treatments were identified in our PRISMA-ScR. In spite of many differences in setting, population, length, and frequency of sessions, all ten groups reported improvements in varying aspects of suicide symptoms. The only adverse impacts were reported by two studies wherein two (of 92) participants attempted suicide and a small number (7%) of adolescents reported feeling triggered with suicidal thinking during a session. Despite our focus on empirical data in this review, the methodological rigor of the studies evaluated was limited.

CONCLUSION

Despite the paucity of group treatment research in which suicidal thoughts and behaviors are openly discussed, the outcomes of these treatments were promising in decreasing suicide risk. These results may be due to unfounded fears of contagion. Further implications of these findings are considered along with limitations that may have excluded clinical work from meeting inclusion criteria for this review. Nonetheless, this evidence suggests that, suicide-focused groups have great potential for prevention of suicidal symptoms and should be further expanded in the future.

Physical and mechanical properties of waste ground at inert waste landfills

The physical and mechanical properties of waste ground were examined at 14 locations across 4 inert waste landfills in Japan with the goal of establishing a safe and cost-effective design methodology specific to inert waste landfills. Composition analysis, basic physical properties, angle of repose, CASPOL impact value tests, and in situ direct shear tests were conducted. Inert wastes were comprised of three main components: fibrous, granular, and soil-like content, and their compositions varied between 3.6-54%, 13-45%, and 43-74%, respectively. As the fibrous content and age after reclamation increased, the water content increased but the percentage air voids decreased. The impact value (I_a), which is an indicator of the bearing capacity, increased as the dry density increased. For all locations, the angle of repose after avalanche (α_a) was found between 34 and 44°. In direct shear tests, the cohesion (c) and internal angle of friction (φ) ranged from 2 to 21 kN/m² and 22-59°, respectively. The shear stresses obtained from these c and φ values were higher than those for the municipal solid wastes, particularly for landfills with fibrous fractions ranging 14-31% under a normal stress of 25.55 kN/m². c increased and φ decreased as the dry density increased. The correlation calculated for c and φ with I_a for inert waste landfill were c = 4.10I_a - 21.32 and φ = -4.61I_a + 82.37. Finally, the utilization of the results obtained in this study is discussed in three design stages: planning, landfilling, and future expansion.

Recent Developments in Group Psychotherapy Research

This article reviews group psychotherapy research published within the past 30 years, predominantly focusing on outcomes of group treatments for patients with various mental disorders. Additionally, meta-analyses on the efficacy of group treatments for patients with cancer or chronic pain are summarized. Results strongly support the use of group therapy and demonstrate outcomes equivalent to those of individual psychotherapy. The research also appears to emphasize the effect of feedback on outcomes in group treatments and an association between treatment outcomes and group cohesion and alliance. Other promising developments in the field of group therapy are discussed.

The Kunitz-type serine protease inhibitor Spint2 is required for cellular cohesion, coordinated cell migration and cell survival during zebrafish hatching gland development

We have previously shown that the Kunitz-type serine protease inhibitor Spint1a, also named Hai1a, is required in the zebrafish embryonic epidermis to restrict the activity of the type II transmembrane serine protease (TTSP) Matriptase1a/St14a, thereby ensuring epidermal homeostasis. A closely related Kunitz-type inhibitor is Spint2/Hai2, which in mammals plays multiple developmental roles that are either redundant or non-redundant with those of Spint1. However, the molecular bases for these non-redundancies are not fully understood. Here, we study spint2 during zebrafish development. It is co-expressed with spint1a in multiple embryonic epithelia, including the outer/peridermal layer of the epidermis. However, unlike spint1a, spint2 expression is absent from the basal epidermal layer but present in hatching gland cells. Hatching gland cells derive from the mesendodermal prechordal plate, from where they undergo a thus far undescribed transit into, and coordinated sheet migration within, the interspace between the outer and basal layer of the epidermis to reach their final destination on the yolk sac. Hatching gland cells usually survive their degranulation that drives embryo hatching but die several days later. In spint2 mutants, cohesion among hatching gland cells and their collective intra-epidermal migration are disturbed, leading to a discontinuous organization of the gland. In addition, cells undergo precocious cell death before degranulation, so that embryos fail to hatch. Chimera analyses show that Spint2 is required in hatching gland cells, but not in the overlying periderm, their potential migration and adhesion substrate. Spint2 acts independently of all tested Matriptases, Prostasins and other described Spint1 and Spint2 mediators. However, it displays a tight genetic interaction with and acts at least partly via the cell-cell adhesion protein E-cadherin, promoting both hatching gland cell cohesiveness and survival, in line with formerly reported effects of E-cadherin during morphogenesis and cell death suppression. In contrast, no such genetic interaction was observed between Spint2 and the cell-cell adhesion molecule EpCAM, which instead interacts with Spint1a. Our data shed new light onto the mechanisms of hatching gland morphogenesis and hatching gland cell survival. In addition, they reveal developmental roles of Spint2 that are strikingly different from those of Spint1, most likely due to differences in the expression patterns and relevant target proteins.

How to form a software engineering capstone team?

This research paper answers the question that how shall the students of software engineering undergraduate courses form teams for the capstone projects that can be cohesive too. In this research, 128 criteria for team formation are proposed for building teams for self-managing software engineering capstone projects. A comparison is also conducted to ascertain the level of cohesion among those teams that were formed using the proposed criteria and those that were not formed using the proposed criteria. The criteria were identified through a combination of qualitative questionnaire survey targeted at the graduated students of the past batches of Computer Science degree program and through synthesizing the literature on engineering capstone project teams identified under the guidance of KSAO framework for software engineering students. To check the effectiveness of the criteria, 100 students were asked to form the teams using the proposed criteria and other 100 students formed the teams without the proposed criteria. Those students that had used the proposed criteria for building teams and those that had formed teams without using the proposed criteria were asked to fill the modified Group Environment Questionnaire to ascertain the level of cohesion among the team members. The results were analyzed qualitatively and through descriptive quantification. The results show that the level of cohesion in teams that were formed using the proposed team building criteria was higher. There was a need for team building criteria in the literature on software engineering capstone project teams that conforms to a conceptual, theoretical framework; this gap is now filled through this research. This paper may also serve as a literature review paper for some readers.

Adaptability and cohesion in youth at clinical high-risk for psychosis: A multi-informant approach

BACKGROUND

Families can play a critical role in the development of psychosis. Adaptability (i.e., flexibility) and cohesion (i.e., emotional bonding) are important markers of family functioning, but have rarely been studied in youth at clinical high risk for developing psychosis (CHR), especially not from a multi-informant perspective.

METHODS

The current study examined adaptability and cohesion (using youth and mother reports) and clinical symptoms (in youth) among 75 youth at CHR and their mothers (N = 48) and 79 matched healthy controls and their mothers (N = 42).

RESULTS

Findings showed that (1) youth at CHR and their mothers reported lower adaptability and cohesion than their healthy control counterparts. (2) All youth reported lower adaptability than mothers, but only youth at CHR (not control youth) reported lower cohesion than their mothers. (3) There were no significant links between CHR youth and mother reports of adaptability and cohesion and clinical symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings support existing literature that families with a youth at CHR are at risk for poorer functioning and demonstrate pronounced youth-mother discrepancies with youth at CHR (but not controls) reporting lower emotional bonding than their mothers. Future studies may further probe multi-informant perspectives of family environment as a clinical marker in the clinical high risk state.

A work motivational grounded theory study of workers in caring roles

The aim of this study was to examine and construct a theoretical model of key elements that care workers perceive to have an impact on their autonomy, cohesion, and work motivation. Grounded theory was used for data collection and analysis. There were 20 participants from social welfare service, geriatric care, and women's aid settings (women = 18, men = 2, mean age = 37.6). The analysis resulted in the following categories: (a) Being-a-Cohesive-Team; (b) Agency-Making; (c) Living-Up-to-Expectations; and (d) Developing-Support-and-Feedback. The results identified potential interactions between these factors and suggested how they influenced each other, showing how cohesion, autonomy, and motivation are interdependent and amplified.

Glucocorticoids do not promote prosociality in a wild group-living fish

Individuals often respond to social disturbances by increasing prosociality, which can strengthen social bonds, buffer against stress, and promote overall group cohesion. Given their importance in mediating stress responses, glucocorticoids have received considerable attention as potential proximate regulators of prosocial behaviour during disturbances. However, previous investigations have largely focused on mammals and our understanding of the potential prosocial effects of glucocorticoids across vertebrates more broadly is still lacking. Here, we assessed whether experimentally elevated glucocorticoid levels (simulating endogenous cortisol responses mounted following disturbances) promote prosocial behaviours in wild groups of the cichlid fish, Neolamprologus pulcher. Using SCUBA in Lake Tanganyika, we observed how subordinate group members adjusted affiliation, helping, and submission (all forms of prosocial behaviour) following underwater injections of either cortisol or saline. Cortisol treatment reduced affiliative behaviours-but only in females-suggesting that glucocorticoids may reduce overall prosociality. Fish with elevated glucocorticoid levels did not increase performance of submission or helping behaviours. Taken together, our results do not support a role for glucocorticoids in promoting prosocial behaviour in this species and emphasize the complexity of the proximate mechanisms that underlie prosociality.

Ecuadorian mothers of preschool children with and without intellectual disabilities: Individual and family dimensions

BACKGROUND

Approximately 71,454 children younger than 5 years old have a disability in Ecuador.

AIMS

Our objective was to compare and relate family cohesion, adaptability, coping, perceived stress, and control with family satisfaction of Ecuadorian mothers of preschool children with and without intellectual disabilities (ID).

METHOD

Participants were 384 Ecuadorian mothers: 111 had a child with ID and 273had a child without ID. The FACES II, Family Satisfaction Scale and Moos Coping Response Inventory were used.

RESULTS

No significant differences were found between mothers of children with and without intellectual disabilities on their perceptions of family cohesion, adaptability or family satisfaction. Mothers of children with ID perceived less stress and more control over their children and adopted more approach coping strategies compared to mothers of children without ID. The mothers 'family satisfaction was positively related to approach coping strategies and to family cohesion and adaptability, and negatively related to avoidant coping strategies-regardless of whether their children had a disability or not.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

These data are in accordance with an adaptive approach to disability and emphasise the capacity of individuals and families to cope.

Molecular basis of reproductive senescence: insights from model organisms

PURPOSE

Reproductive decline due to parental age has become a major barrier to fertility as couples have delayed having offspring into their thirties and forties. Advanced parental age is also associated with increased incidence of neurological and cardiovascular disease in offspring. Thus, elucidating the etiology of reproductive decline is of clinical importance.

METHODS

Deciphering the underlying processes that drive reproductive decline is particularly challenging in women in whom a discrete oocyte pool is established during embryogenesis and may remain dormant for tens of years. Instead, our understanding of the processes that drive reproductive senescence has emerged from studies in model organisms, both vertebrate and invertebrate, that are the focus of this literature review.

CONCLUSIONS

Studies of reproductive aging in model organisms not only have revealed the detrimental cellular changes that occur with age but also are helping identify major regulator proteins controlling them. Here, we discuss what we have learned from model organisms with respect to the molecular mechanisms that maintain both genome integrity and oocyte quality.

Chronic loss of STAG2 leads to altered chromatin structure contributing to de-regulated transcription in AML

Background

The cohesin complex plays a major role in folding the human genome into 3D structural domains. Mutations in members of the cohesin complex are known early drivers of myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) and acute myeloid leukaemia (AML), with STAG2 the most frequently mutated complex member.

Methods

Here we use functional genomics (RNA-seq, ChIP-seq and HiChIP) to investigate the impact of chronic STAG2 loss on three-dimensional genome structure and transcriptional programming in a clinically relevant model of chronic STAG2 loss.

Results

The chronic loss of STAG2 led to loss of smaller loop domains and the maintenance/formation of large domains that, in turn, led to altered genome compartmentalisation. These changes in genome structure resulted in altered gene expression, including deregulation of the HOXA locus and the MAPK signalling pathway, resulting in increased sensitivity to MEK inhibition.

Conclusions

The altered genomic architecture driven by the chronic loss of STAG2 results in altered gene expression that may contribute to leukaemogenesis and may be therapeutically targeted.

Relationships between shear strength parameters and microstructure of alkaline-contaminated red clay

The leachate (pH = 14) from alumina production changes the mechanical properties of red clay, and the shear strength parameters of the system vary due to the multiple-dimensional interactions of the microscopic parameters. In this paper, the alumina production liquid and the concentrations of the NaOH solution were designed to contaminate the red clay during 80 days. The cohesion and friction angle of the alkaline-contaminated red clay were obtained from direct shear tests. Through qualitative and quantitative analyses using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), the microstructure was observed. Based on the rock engineering systems (RES) theory, interactions among microscopic parameters were analysed, and the relationships between shear strength parameters and microscopic parameters of alkaline-contaminated red clay were established. Results show that both of the cohesion and friction angle of alkaline-contaminated red clay are increased in general; the adsorption in alumina production liquid and dispersing effect of 0.7% NaOH concentration are noticeable, and the interactions of the microscopic parameters are intense; the ratio of the intra-aggregate pore number, the probability distribution index and the number of particles can significantly influence cohesion; the particle morphology fractal dimension, aspect and probability entropy have a severe effect on friction angle. This work is expected to serve as a reference for future research on the relationship between macroscopic properties and microcosmic structure of soil.

Estimating Contextual Effects from Ego Network Data

Network concepts are often used to characterize the features of a social context. For example, past work has asked if individuals in more socially cohesive neighborhoods have better mental health outcomes. Despite the ubiquity of use, it is relatively rare for contextual studies to employ the methods of network analysis. This is the case, in part, because network data are difficult to collect, requiring information on all ties between all actors. This paper asks whether it is possible to avoid such heavy data collection while still retaining the best features of a contextual-network study. The basic idea is to apply network sampling to the problem of contextual models, where one uses sampled ego network data to infer the network features of each context, and then uses the inferred network features as second-level predictors in a hierarchical linear model. We test the validity of this idea in the case of network cohesion. Using two complete datasets as a test, we find that ego network data are sufficient to capture the relationship between cohesion and important outcomes, like attachment and deviance. The hope, going forward, is that researchers will find it easier to incorporate holistic network measures into traditional regression models.

Balanced adhesion and cohesion of chitosan matrices by conjugation and oxidation of catechol for high-performance surgical adhesives

Catechol-conjugated chitosan (CCs), used as tissue adhesive, wound dressing, and hemostatic materials, has been drawing much more attention. However, most CCs tissue adhesives exhibit poor adhesion strength, and few studies on optimization of cohesion and adhesion strength of CCs derivatives have been conducted. This work focused on the balance between cohesion and adhesion strength of catechol-conjugated chitosan (CCs) derivatives via different mechanisms of chemical and enzymatic conjugation. CCs derivatives were characterized regarding its mechanical property, cytotoxicity, platelet adhesion and wound healing test. Mechanical properties could be optimized by the degree of catechol substitution, pH and the presence of oxidizing agent, resulting in that the highest value of adhesive shear strength to the porcine tissue is 64.8 ± 5.7 kPa. In addition, CCs derivatives exhibit decreased toxicity and promoted in vivo wound healing effects as comparing to a commercially available adhesive (Dermabond®). All the results demonstrate that CCs derivatives can be used as well-optimized tissue adhesives as well as a hemostat.

A Randomized Comparison of Two Psychosocial Interventions on Family Functioning in Adolescents with Bipolar Disorder

Impairments in family functioning are associated with more severe depressive and manic symptoms, earlier recurrences, and more suicidal behaviors in early-onset bipolar disorder. This study examined whether family-focused treatment for adolescents (FFT-A) with BD I or II disorder led to greater increases in family cohesion and adaptability and decreases in conflict over 2 years compared to a briefer psychoeducational treatment (enhanced care, EC). Participants were 144 adolescents (mean age: 15.6 ± 1.4 years) with BD I or II with a mood episode in the previous 3 months. Adolescents and parents were randomized to either FFT-A (21 sessions) or EC (three sessions). Patients received guideline-based pharmacotherapy throughout the 2-year study. Trajectories of adolescent- and parent-rated family cohesion, adaptability, and conflict were analyzed over 2 years. FFT-A had greater effects on adolescent-rated family cohesion compared to EC over 2 years. Participants in FFT-A and EC reported similar improvements in family conflict across the 2 years. In the FFT-A group, low-conflict families had greater adolescent-rated family cohesion throughout the study compared to high-conflict families. High-conflict families in both treatment groups tended to show larger reductions in conflict over 2 years than low-conflict families. Family psychoeducation and skills training may improve family cohesion in the early stages of BD. Measuring levels of family conflict at the start of treatment may inform treatment responsiveness among those receiving FFT-A.

Cep44 functions in centrosome cohesion by stabilizing rootletin

The centrosome linker serves to hold the duplicated centrosomes together until they separate in late G2/early mitosis. Precisely how the linker is assembled remains an open question. In this study, we identify Cep44 as a novel component of the linker in human cells. Cep44 localizes to the proximal end of centrioles, including mother and daughter centrioles, and its ablation leads to loss of centrosome cohesion. Cep44 does not impinge on the stability of C-Nap1 (also known as CEP250), LRRC45 or Cep215 (also known as CDK5RAP2), and vice versa, and these proteins are independently recruited to the centrosome. Rather, Cep44 associates with rootletin and regulates its stability and localization to the centrosome. Our findings reveal a role of the previously uncharacterized protein Cep44 for centrosome cohesion and linker assembly.

Integrating field and laboratory approaches for ripple development in mixed sand-clay-EPS

The shape and size of sedimentary bedforms play a key role in the reconstruction of sedimentary processes in modern and ancient environments. Recent laboratory experiments have shown that bedforms in mixed sand-clay develop at a slower rate and often have smaller heights and wavelengths than equivalent bedforms in pure sand. This effect is generally attributed to cohesive forces that can be of physical origin, caused by electrostatic forces of attraction between clay minerals, and of biological origin, caused by 'sticky' extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) produced by micro-organisms, such as microalgae (microphytobenthos) and bacteria. The present study demonstrates, for the first time, that these laboratory experiments are a suitable analogue for current ripples formed by tidal currents on a natural mixed sand-mud-EPS intertidal flat in a macrotidal estuary. Integrated hydrodynamic and bed morphological measurements, collected during a spring tide under weak wave conditions near Hilbre Island (Dee Estuary, north-west England, UK), reveal a statistically significant decrease in current ripple wavelength for progressively higher bed mud and EPS contents, and a concurrent change from three-dimensional linguoid to two-dimensional straight-crested ripple planform morphology. These results agree well with observations in laboratory flumes, but the rate of decrease of ripple wavelength as mud content increased was found to be substantially greater for the field than the laboratory. Since the formation of ripples under natural conditions is inherently more complex than in the laboratory, four additional factors that might affect current ripple development in estuaries, but which were not accounted for in laboratory experiments, were explored. These were current forcing, clay type, pore water salinity and bed EPS content. These data illustrate that clay type alone cannot explain the difference in the rate of decrease in ripple wavelength, because the bed clay contents were too low for clay type to have had a measurable effect on bedform development. Accounting for the difference in current forcing between the field and experiments, and therefore the relative stage of development with respect to equilibrium ripples, increases the difference between the ripple wavelengths. The presence of strongly cohesive EPS in the current ripples on the natural intertidal flat might explain the majority of the difference in the rate of decrease in ripple wavelength between the field and the laboratory. The effect of pore water salinity on the rate of bedform development cannot be quantified at present, but salinity is postulated herein to have had a smaller influence on the ripple wavelength than bed EPS content. The common presence of clay and EPS in many aqueous sedimentary environments implies that a re-assessment of the role of current ripples and their primary current lamination in predicting and reconstructing flow regimes is necessary, and that models that are valid for pure sand are an inappropriate descriptor for more complex mixed sediment. This study proposes that this re-assessment is necessary at all bed clay contents above 3%.

Cohesion and adherence in exercise groups of patients with chronic heart diseases - a prospective study

Objective: In cardiac rehabilitation, long-term adherence to exercise prescription is an important prerequisite to reduce mortality and the risk of recurrent cardiac events. Cohesion seems to be an important predictor of adherence when exercise is conducted in prevention settings, but in clinical settings, this relationship is currently unknown. To address this gap, the goal of this study was to determine the relationship between group cohesion and adherence in cardiac rehabilitation programs considering the duration of membership as a moderator.Design: The study was conducted with 474 participants (21.7% women), in three rehabilitation centres in North Rhine Westphalia, Germany, assessing cohesion, adherence and group membership in outpatient cardiac exercise groups.Main Outcome Measures: Cohesion was assessed using the KIT-FG and adherence was operationalized as the total number of sessions attended over a 7-week period.Results: Moderated hierarchical stepwise regression analyses revealed that perceptions of the social dimension of group cohesion significantly predicted adherence behaviour only for members with a rather long duration of membership.Conclusion: Our findings suggest that cohesion might have a differential effect on an individual's decision to regularly participate in exercise, depending on the duration of membership in the group.