Project description:Purpose: This study aimed to analyze gene expression changes in the whole blood of healthcare workers before and after a night shift, to investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying these changes and their potential impact on health. Methods: A single-center, prospective, observational study was conducted involving four medical doctors working night shifts in the emergency department. Blood samples were collected at 10 a.m. on the day of work and at 10 a.m. the following day after the shift. RNA sequencing was performed to analyze gene expression changes, followed by Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA) for core analysis and analysis match. Results: A total of 302 genes were upregulated, and 78 genes were downregulated (p < 0.05, |log2-fold change| > 0.5) after the night shift. Core analysis consistently predicted the activation of immune and inflammatory responses. Analysis match indicated that gene expression patterns after the night shift correlated with several diseases, including major depressive disorder, based on immune and inflammatory response profiles.
Project description:Toxigenic Clostridioides difficile and Vancomycin-resistant Enterococci – new mode of transmission by shoes of healthcare workers? A prospective cohort study.
Project description:We used whole-genome fire ant microarrays to examine the molecular basis for division of labor in fire ant workers by comparing foraging and non-foraging workers from monogyne colonies. Fire ant colonies were collected in the field and transported into the lab were they were reared in standard conditions. We created a nesting chamber containing the queen, the brood and workers performing nursing tasks and a foraging area, separated from the nesting chamber and provided with food and water sources. Foraging workers were collected in the foraging area while non-foraging workers were collected in the nesting chamber. Total RNA was isolated from pools of whole workers and processed for microarrays.
Project description:We assessed the dynamics of hand microbial community structure of 34 healthcare workers from a single surgical intensive care unit over a short (3 week) time period, whilst taking into account the technical sources of variability introduced by specimen collection, DNA extraction, and sequencing. Sample collection took place at 3 different time points. Only the sampling collection method appeared to have a significant impact on the observed hand microbial community structure among the healthcare workers. Analysis of samples collected using glove-juice showed a slightly more similar microbial composition within individual hand samples over time than between the hands of different individuals over time. This was not true for samples collected using a swab, where samples from a single individual were no more similar to each other over time than those among other individuals over time, suggesting they were essentially independent. DNA extraction techniques (lysozyme only versus enzyme cocktail) and sequencing (replicate set 1 versus 2) using Ion Torrent Personal Genome Machine, were not influential to the microbial community structures. Glove-juice sample collection may likely be the method of choice in hand hygiene studies in the healthcare setting.
Project description:Apis mellifera workers in temperate climates display two castes; short lived summer bees that engage in nursing, hive maintenance and foraging, and long lived winter bees (diutinus bees) which remain within the hive and are essential for thermoregulation. Label free quantitative proteomic analysis was conducted on A. mellifera workers sampled from July to October 2019 to compare the proteomes of workers as the colony progresses through the year. Proteomic analysis revealed a shift in protein expression in workers in September and October in comparison to July and August samples. Workers samples in September and October had a higher abundance of proteins associated with oxidative phosphorylation and storage proteins such as hexamerin. Interestingly, a shift in protein expression was detected in newly emerged bees between July to October, providing evidence that workers have adapted to emerge with a different protein profile in preparation for the winter months.
Project description:We used whole-genome fire ant microarrays to examine the molecular basis for social organization in Solenopsis invicta. Monogyne (single queen) fire ant colonies were collected in the field and transported into the lab were they were reared in standard conditions for two weeks. At this point, each colony was split into two sub-colonies: one sub-colony contained the functional mother queen (queenright) while the other was left queenless. Each sub-colony included a nesting chamber, containing the brood and workers performing nursing tasks, and a foraging area, separated from the nesting chamber and provided with food and water sources. For both queenright and queenless sub-colonies, foraging workers were collected in the foraging area while non-foraging workers were collected in the nesting chamber. Total RNA was isolated from pools of 10 whole workers and processed for microarrays.
Project description:In fire ants, a complex colony level phenotype, colony queen number, is completely associated with a single Mendelian factor marked by the gene Gp-9. The first aim of this study was to investigate whether variation in the genomic region marked by Gp-9 is associated with differences in patterns of expression of genes other than Gp-9 in workers. The second aim was to study how the social environment (i.e., presence or absence of nestmate workers with the b allele) can alter individual gene expression patterns. Keywords: Genotype comparison and social form comparison
