Towards a strategic assessment of brain sciences in Latin America: current status, strengths and structural needs.

A 58-year-old woman presented with painless progressive bilateral blurred vision, worse in the right eye, over several days. Two months prior, she developed a diffuse pruritic rash that spared her face. On examination, she was found to have reduced visual acuity bilaterally, optic nerve edema, anterior uveitis, and scattered intraretinal and peripapillary nerve fiber layer hemorrhages. Diagnostic evaluation demonstrated optic nerve head enhancement on MRI. Her serum workup showed positive antibodies for Borrelia burgdorferi with a negative Lyme disease Western blot and positive Treponema pallidum antibodies with an rapid plasma reagin titer of 1:1,024. CSF showed normal protein, a slight elevation in nucleated cells with lymphocytic predominance, and a negative Venereal Disease Research Laboratory. We examine the differential diagnosis for bilateral optic nerve edema and uveitis and explore challenges around interpreting diagnostic testing for a neuro-ophthalmic pathology of ongoing public health interest.

The Pennsylvania legislature is considering limiting the number of patients nurses care for to promote safe care. To determine whether variation in nurse workloads is associated with adverse consequences for patients, nurses, and hospital costs in Pennsylvania. Observational study of 547,689 medical and surgical patients and 2782 direct care nurses in 132 Pennsylvania hospitals. The independent variable was medical-surgical nurse staffing ratios. Patient outcomes included 30-day mortality, 30-day readmissions, and length of stay. Nurse outcomes included burnout, job dissatisfaction, intent to leave, and evaluations of hospital management and patient care. Hospital outcomes were HCAHPS Star Ratings and cost offsets associated with better staffing. Hospital nurse staffing ranged from 3 to 9 patients per nurse (average 5.9). Each additional patient per nurse was associated with higher odds of 30-day mortality (AOR: 1.08, 95% CI: 1.03, 1.13, P <0.001), longer length of stay (IRR: 1.02, 95% CI: 1.00, 1.04, P <0.05) and higher odds of readmission (AOR: 1.04, 95% CI: 1.01, 1.07, P <0.05). Worse staffing was associated with higher odds of nurse burnout, job dissatisfaction, and intent to leave, and lower patient satisfaction. Cost savings from patient outcomes and nurse retention were projected to offset costs of additional nurses needed for hospitals to meet a minimum safe nurse staffing level proposed in legislation. Large differences across Pennsylvania hospitals in the amount of nursing care patients receive are associated with negative consequences. A state policy establishing minimum safe nurse staffing requirements in hospitals is in the public's interest.

Whole-body MRI: social media perspectives and opportunities for radiologist engagement.

Psychosomatic medicine, consultation-liaison psychiatry, and integrated care in Taiwan: Snapshot 2026.

ABSTRACT Background The proposal to involve patients and the public (Patient and Public Involvement; PPI) in research is increasingly recognised as important in research concerning speech, language, and hearing and communication difficulties. Whilst there is extensive guidance about PPI involvement by national agencies such as the National Institute of Health Research in the UK, little information is currently available concerning whether these expectations are met in any area of healthcare provision. Aims This systematic review aimed to identify, describe and evaluate how PPI has been implemented and reported in research concerning childhood speech, language, hearing and communication difficulties. Methods Six electronic databases were systematically searched for eligible studies reporting PPI in these fields. Records were screened against predefined eligibility criteria. Data were extracted on study characteristics, PPI contributors, stages and methods of involvement, reported impacts, and quality of PPI reporting. The methodological and PPI quality were assessed using MMAT and GRIPP2 Short Form, and findings were synthesised narratively. Results Twenty‐one studies were included. PPI was reported variously across speech, language, hearing and communication topics, the implementations varied considerably. Parents, carers and professionals were more commonly involved than children and young people themselves. Most studies used consultation‐based approaches, often during early stages (e.g., study design or material development), while fewer reported involvement in later stages (e.g., dissemination, implementation or evaluation). Reporting was inconsistent, particularly regarding contributor characteristics, accessibility adaptations, decision‐making influence, and the impact of PPI. Conclusions The systematic review showed that PPI in childhood speech, language, and hearing difficulties has advanced significantly, with the growing interest and number of publications, particularly in the past five years. The review also highlighted challenges such as confusion and heterogeneity of PPI concepts, representativeness issues, tokenistic practices, lack of support given to lay contributors, and limited impact evaluation. Future research should distinguish PPI from research participation, involve children and young people more directly where appropriate, report contributors’ roles and influence more transparently, and consider accessibility and communication support throughout the involvement process. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS What is already known on the subject Health service providers and research funders now require attention to Patients and Public Involvement (PPI) in healthcare research. PPI highlights the need to work jointly with stakeholders at all steps involved in research to allow them to take governance over their health conditions. Whilst emphasis on PPI applies to health issues in general, there is no specific review of PPI considerations in research on health factors that affect hearing and communication difficulties. This omission is particularly noteworthy when considering issues that arise in early development. What this study adds to existing knowledge A systematic review was conducted to assess current progress with respect to PPI for hearing and communication research in childhood and adolescence. The review identified research involving PPI that met quality requirements. Challenges related to PPI were highlighted in further analyses that revealed confusion and heterogeneity in PPI concepts, representativeness issues, tokenistic practices, a lack of support given to lay contributors, and a limited evaluation of the impacts of PPI. What are the clinical implications of this work? PPI involvement in clinical research for communication and hearing difficulties should have a positive impact on the well‐being of children and adolescents. Four challenges were highlighted when considering the current state of research on PPI in this domain: shallow involvement of the public and patients, conflicting expectations between groups participating in research, lack of clarity of research outcomes as they relate to PPI and variable standards of reporting PPI findings across studies. Tentative recommendations concerning how each of these matters could be addressed are offered.

Genetic discrimination in workplace, insurance industry and legal system: A review.

Removal of arsenic and heavy metals from soil-washing effluents of contaminated mine sites using a novel Fe-assisted electrodeposition approach, amino-functionalized magnetic biochar, and chitosan-based column filtration systems.

ABSTRACT This study conceptualises latent communicative figurations, which are quasi-visible relational structures formed through social media affordances, for example as provided by partnership advertisement systems. We argue that latent communicative figurations are facilitated by platform affordances that enable the curation of visibility, allowing actors to form latent ties for mobilising partners to create and publish social media content that serve specific strategic interests. A systematic approach is proposed to map the positionality of two types of actors – partners (investors) and pages – who contribute to latent communicative figurations, situated between platform designers and the broader networked publics. A sample of branded Facebook posts related to renewable energy is used to construct four bi-partite networks, revealing the structure of latent relations and dominant actors within them. The results show the emergence of a primarily organisational and professional set of latent ties, which mobilises public reactions surrounding renewable energy. The results evidence a dual process of deinstitutionalisation and reinstitutionalisation where actors such as news media transition from their conventional roles to those that are demanded by profit-driven platform logics. The tensions inherent in this transition – where actors must balance the expectations of strategic partners against the public interest – reveal the fundamental antagonisms within networked social environments.

This study aims to analyze the resolution of breach of contract in lease agreements under Islamic law. A breach (wanprestasi) in an ijarah (lease) contract occurs when one party fails to fulfill agreed obligations, such as late payment, misuse of the leased object, or violation of contractual terms. In Islamic law, the resolution of such breaches emphasizes the principles of justice (‘adl), public interest (maslahah), and good faith between the parties. Dispute resolution is primarily conducted through mutual deliberation (ṣulḥ) to reach an amicable settlement without harming either party. If such efforts fail, the dispute may be brought before judicial institutions, where decisions are made based on evidence and sharia principles. Sanctions for breach in Islamic law are not punitive in nature but aim to restore rights and obligations proportionally, including compensation (ta‘wīḍ) for actual losses incurred. Additionally, contract termination (fasakh) may be applied in cases of substantial violation. Therefore, the resolution of breach of contract in Islamic law highlights a balance between enforcement of rights, responsibilities, and moral values grounded in sharia principles.

The indoor environment changes based on a variety of different factors, therefore changing the genotoxic potential of that environment. Despite the associations of exposure to outdoor air pollution and links to health impacts, enough is not currently known about the impacts to human health indoor air may have. Due to the variable nature of the indoor environment (multiple things can change this environment, including but not limited to, the use, occupants, materials within the environment, animals, the outside environment and ventilation) this can prove difficult. Indoor particulate matter (PM) of various sizes (PM2.5-PM10 for example) has been shown to induce reactive oxygen species, increase markers in oxidative stress, double strand DNA breaks, and cause 8-oxoguanine lesions in both in vitro and in vivo models (including humans). The particle type and source influence these responses, highlighting heating and cooking fuel sources that may be more genotoxic than others. A similar pattern has also been observed with volatile organic compounds (VOCs) with various mixtures of VOCs and different VOC compositions inducing DNA damage differently, with diet also being a contributing factor to genotoxic potential. A significant knowledge gap in the potential genotoxicity of indoor air pollution is the exposure of various biologicals found indoors. Moulds, other fungi, and allergens are an emerging health risk and are of significant public interest. Little is known about the inhalation toxicology and mechanisms of action of these components, and this is becoming increasing important to understand due to public deaths linked to them. There is overlap with the health effects of outdoor air pollution where there has been much more research focus. Therefore, the aim of this review is to establish what is already known, the potential limitations of the current work and where we should focus research in the future.

Improving skin condition has attracted growing public interest, motivating the development of wearable transdermal drug delivery systems. Ultrasound-assisted delivery enhances skin permeability noninvasively, but existing wearable devices, even highly stretchable ones, fail to achieve complete conformal contact with the complex concave-convex topography of the human face, limiting full-area treatment. Here, we present an exoshell-assisted fully conformal ultrasonic facial mask (FCUFM) that mechanically guides stretchable electronics to achieve intimate contact across the full facial surface. The engineered outer shells gently press the device onto the skin, ensuring stable conformity while maintaining low surface pressure for comfortable wear. This approach enables full (∼100%) midfacial coverage that far exceeds the value of ∼51% in the conventional bendable-stretchable approach. Optimized fabrication and encapsulation processes further enable scalable manufacturing suitable for medical applications. Electrical, acoustic, and thermal performances are systematically characterized at the device level. Cytotoxicity assays and histological analyses confirm biosafety, while enhanced drug delivery is demonstrated through Franz diffusion cell measurements and validated in human facial experiments. These results establish a scalable strategy for wearable therapeutic devices capable of conforming to complex three-dimensional biological surfaces, highlighting the potential of curvature-adaptive ultrasonic platforms for advanced transdermal therapy and personalized skin treatment.

There is a regulation regarding oil and gas business activities that includes criminal sanctions is Law Number 22 of 2001 concerning Oil and Gas as amended by Law Number 11 of 2020 concerning Job Creation in conjunction with Law Number 6 of 2023 concerning the Preparation of Work and Budget Plans. Which explicitly regulates that every downstream business activity, including transportation, storage, trade, and processing, must have government permission, and that the trade in subsidized fuel can only be conducted by businesses with a trade license. Violations of these provisions are subject to criminal sanctions, indicating that the state takes the misuse of subsidized fuel management and distribution seriously. Although the law has prohibited and threatened heavy penalties and a regulatory framework is available, in reality, many people still engage in the misuse of transportation and trade licenses for subsidized diesel fuel. The purpose of this research is to explain the application of criminal penalties against subsidized solar traders without a business license in court rulings. The research method used is empirical juridical, which is legal research conducted by examining legal events in the field. The research results show that the application of criminal penalties against subsidized diesel traders without a business license in the court decisions reviewed reflects the state's commitment to protecting public interests, securing state finances, and creating order in the subsidized fuel distribution system. However, the effectiveness of criminal penalties as an instrument of law enforcement will only be optimally achieved if it is balanced with consistency in the imposition of sanctions, strengthening the supervision of subsidized fuel distribution in the field, and the continuous enhancement of public legal awareness.

ABSTRACT This study examines how private philanthropy influences the development of urban policies. It analyzes the Taconic Foundation’s role in shaping the Chicago-based Gautreaux program and elevating that local experiment into the national Moving to Opportunity (MTO) program. We conduct a novel historical analysis of paired archival materials from the Taconic Foundation and its grantee, Business and Professional People for the Public Interest (BPI), examining grant cycles, correspondence, and decision-making processes from 1977 to 1996. With both financial and social capital, Taconic helped enable the U.S.’s most significant experiment in housing mobility, while also amplifying white liberal preferences for suburban solutions over community-centered approaches. This research demonstrates the value of organizational archives for understanding urban policy development in the 20th century and makes visible a typically invisible institutional actor. Archival materials expose the presence of marginalized voices and alternative approaches that were overshadowed by philanthropic influence.

In an attempt to avoid the inequitable outcome of the COVID-19 pandemic whereby High-Income Countries received the overwhelming majority of vaccine doses after they became available, the World Health Organization initiated negotiations in December 2021 on a legally binding Pandemic Agreement. This paper uses a variety of documents and personal experience to examine how the Canadian government communicated with its domestic stakeholders about the stances that Canada was taking during the negotiations and to illustrate what positions Canada was advancing at the negotiations table in Geneva. This article argues that the government lacked transparency in its communications and gave no indication that it was listening to the feedback it was receiving. During the negotiations, aside from advancing a progressive position of gender equality, the government pushed to weaken the obligations of countries and the commercial sector to ensure that vaccines, treatments and technology would be available on an equitable basis globally in any future pandemic. Now that the Pandemic Agreement has been adopted by the World Health Assembly, there is still the task of agreeing on an annex on pathogen access and benefit sharing. Past experience suggests that during these negotiations Canada will favor commercial over public health interests.

COVID-19, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, has become a global public health crisis with diverse clinical manifestations affecting multiple organ systems, including the integumentary system. One notable cutaneous manifestation, referred to as "COVID toes," involves the development of pernio-like chilblains, characterized by red-to-violet macules, plaques, or nodules, primarily on toes and fingers. This characteristic clinical feature gained significant attention due to its apparent association with COVID-19, especially during the early stages of the pandemic when individuals with mild or asymptomatic cases exhibited these symptoms. Concurrently, digital platforms such as Google Trends have emerged as tools for tracking public interest in health-related topics, offering insights into real-time patterns of disease awareness. Previous research has demonstrated that Google Trends data may correlate with the incidence of infectious diseases, suggesting that search interest can be a proxy for disease outbreaks. In this study, we sought to explore the potential relationship between public interest in COVID toes, as reflected in Google Trends, and the incidence and mortality rates of COVID-19. Specifically, we examined whether peaks in search interest for "COVID toes" corresponded with surges in COVID-19 cases and deaths. By analyzing trends in search data, we aimed to assess the utility of digital platforms as an epidemiological tool for monitoring disease progression and public awareness. Our findings provide insights into the potential role of digital search data in forecasting outbreaks and highlight the interplay between public perception and the clinical burden of COVID-19, emphasizing the importance of real-time data in public health surveillance and response.

A Critical Review of the Science on "Highly" Processed Food Intake and Body Weight.

Abstract This study examines the antecedents of public service motivation (PSM) among Taiwanese college students who have considered applying for public office through Taiwan’s examination-based civil service system. Drawing on PSM theory and research on pre-entry public career motivation, the study analyzes data from the 2023 Taiwan Government Bureaucrat Survey (TGBS) to investigate how perceived career attractiveness of public office, innovation potential, and political perceptions are associated with students’ PSM. Using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling, the study models PSM as a multidimensional construct comprising public interest, compassion, and self-sacrifice, and examines its relationship with three contextually grounded antecedents: perceived public office incentives, innovation potential, and political perceptions. The results show that all three antecedent domains are positively associated with PSM, with perceived career attractiveness of public office also positively related to innovation potential and political perceptions. These findings suggest that PSM among potential public-sector entrants is shaped not only by value-oriented motives but also by students’ perceptions of institutional legitimacy, career fit, and their own action-oriented capacities. Rather than explaining general willingness to enter civil service among all college students, the study focuses on motivational variation within a pre-entry group already open to public careers. Willingness to hold public office is therefore treated only as an exploratory descriptive outcome, not as the principal dependent variable in the structural model. By clarifying the antecedents of PSM in Taiwan’s institutional context, the study contributes to scholarship on PSM contextualization and offers evidence relevant to public-sector recruitment and talent development in East Asian democracies.

Fleeting public interest in the Viking mission inspired Carl Sagan to devise a new mode of science communication. One result was the Cosmos television series. Carl's global success offended many in the scientific community, and he was punished despite his solid research credentials. Almost 50 years later, the importance of public outreach by scientists seems to have reached greater professional acceptance. Key Words: Science communication-Viking-Cosmos-Mars-Public outreach. Astrobiology 00, 000-000.

Finerenone, a nonsteroidal mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist, has demonstrated greater receptor selectivity and fewer adverse effects compared with older mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists. Clinical trials support its efficacy in reducing kidney disease progression, cardiovascular events, and heart failure outcomes across various patient populations; however, anecdotally, the drug appears infrequently used in clinical practice. A serial, cross-sectional analysis of IQVIA's National Prescription Audit, which covers >70% of US outpatient prescription activity, was conducted from July 2021 to December 2024 to examine finerenone prescribing trends, focusing on cardiologists and nephrologists. For added context, prescription rates of finerenone were compared with those of 2 other medications with related mechanisms or indications commonly used in cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic syndrome, spironolactone and empagliflozin. Prescribing trends were correlated with total search activity using Google Trends. We found that finerenone was prescribed at a rate of 30 180 prescriptions/month in December 2022, increasing to 45 420 prescriptions/month in December 2023, and to 60 756 prescriptions/month in December 2024. This modest increase correlated with changes in Google search activity, with mild inflections after the release of major clinical trial data. The ratio of total prescriptions from nephrologists (15.81 prescriptions per nephrologist)/cardiologists (0.70 prescriptions per cardiologist) in 2024 was ≈23:1. The proportion of finerenone prescriptions to other cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic therapies remained low, with finerenone prescriptions numerically representing 3.0% of empagliflozin prescriptions and 2.6% of spironolactone prescriptions in 2024. The adoption of finerenone has been modest, especially among cardiologists compared with nephrologists, and lags behind other cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic therapies. However, recent trends show an upward shift in its use that correlates with public interest related to clinical trial results.