by Swaraj Mohanty  , Soumya Lipsa Rath  , Poornima Sharma  and Yasmin Ahmad

Received: 11 January 2023;  Published: 04 July 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.2303186

The outbreak of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) had a striking impact on the worldwide healthcare system within a very short period. The availability of a large number of clinical data on SARS-CoV-2, conventional precautionary majors, and treatment strategies with the existing therapeutic antiviral drug molecules also fails to control progression and disease transmission among the population. Hence, we implemented pharmacoinformatics approaches to facilitate the drug discovery by repurposing naturally available [...]

by Angela Cheng  , Xanthe Lea  and Alice Shires

Received: 13 March 2025;  Published: 23 June 2025;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2502026

This study aims to investigate the barriers and facilitators to meditation in the general population. This research is significant because understanding these factors can inform the design of more effective public mental health interventions and support the integration of meditation into daily life. A qualitative thematic analysis was conducted on the qualitative component of wider survey responses. Participants were recruited from MeditationHQ, which offers weekly group meditation sessions on beaches around Austra [...]

by Mahintaj Dara  , Zahra Karimi  , Mehdi Dianatpour  and Hadi Aligholi

Received: 02 June 2024;  Published: 30 September 2024;  doi: 10.21926/obm.neurobiol.2403246

Zebrafish (Danio rerio) is a vertebrate with unique characteristics, making it an excellent biomedical research animal model. One research area involves investigating changes in gene expression during neurodegenerative processes, aging-related changes, and behavioral studies in zebrafish. To achieve this, high-quality and quantity RNA must be extracted from zebrafish. This study aims to develop an optimized RNA extraction method from zebrafish larvae brains. After rearing and maintaining the zebrafish in suitable c [...]

by Rail M. Shamionov  , Marina V. Grigoryeva  , Elena S. Grinina  , Aleksey V. Sozonnik  and Alina S. Bolshakova

Received: 13 November 2022;  Published: 09 January 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.neurobiol.2301150

Students' academic adaptation during the pandemic is the key problem for the educational system. Even though certain success has been achieved in the organization of education with distance learning technologies and additional learning tools, there are still plenty of other difficulties that affect students' adaptation. The purpose of the study is to conduct a comparative analysis of academic adaptation's structure during and before the pandemic and to study the role of subjective assessments of the pandemic situat [...]

by Richell Booijink  and Ruchi Bansal

Received: 27 March 2019;  Published: 21 June 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.hg.1902024

Chronic liver diseases affects millions of people worldwide each year. Upon chronic liver injury, a wound healing process ensues, leading to the accumulation of extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins. If the injury persists, this leads to liver fibrosis with excessive scarring of the liver and loss of liver function. Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA), a signaling molecule has shown to be involved in various biological processes, including wound healing process. Elevated plasma levels of LPA and its catalyst autotaxin (ATX), [...]

by Shih-Ang Hsu

Received: 13 December 2020;  Published: 06 July 2021;  doi: 10.21926/jept.2103031

In September 2020 Hurricane Sally affected the north central Gulf of Mexico. Making use of the anemometers data available at 4 oil rigs over the affected region, it is found that, when the atmospheric stability was near-neutral, the gust factor (G) decreases linearly with height from approximately 1.28 at 35m above the sea surface to 1.18 at 160 m. In other words, G decreases linearly at the rate around 8% per 100 m from the typical hub height to beyond common hub height. Based on the linear equation found in this [...]

by Upasana Ramphal  , Derek Tshiabuila  , Yajna Ramphal  , Jennifer Giandhari  , Carel van Heerden  , Cheryl Baxter  , Stephanie van Wyk  , Sureshnee Pillay  , Oluwakemi Laguda-Akingba  , Eduan Wilkinson  , Richard Lessells  and Tulio de Oliveira

Received: 01 March 2024;  Published: 30 May 2024;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.2402239

During the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies like the Ion Torrent S5 and Illumina MiSeq, alongside advanced software, improved genomic surveillance in South Africa. This study analysed anonymized samples from the Eastern Cape using Genome Detective and NextClade, showing Ion Torrent S5 and Illumina MiSeq success rates of 96% and 94%, respectively. The study focused on genomic coverage (above 80%) and mutation detection (below 100), with the Ion Torrent S5 achieving 99% coverage comp [...]

by Gerald Jandl  , Rainer Horn  , Richard Schroeder  , Kai-Uwe Eckhardt  and Peter Leinweber

Received: 23 November 2022;  Published: 22 March 2023;  doi: 10.21926/jept.2301012

The increasing number of biogas plants with various digested organic materials and output of digestates calls for more detailed investigations of their suitability as soil amendments. In a trial in Northern Germany two replicate plots each were treated with fresh or prolonged fermented digestate to investigate the influence of digestates on the composition of soil organic matter (SOM). The relative proportions of relevant SOM compound classes were determined by pyrolysis-field ionization mass spectrometry (Py-FIMS) [...]

by Joep Geraedts

Received: 13 April 2017;  Published: 26 April 2017;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1702003

Mark Stoneking, who is a member of the Editorial Board of OBM Genetics has written a textbook on molecular anthropology

by Beren Crim Sabuncu  , Wenyi Li  and Amy L. Ai

Received: 03 November 2022;  Published: 06 April 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2302017

There has been a paucity in the literature on the protective effects of spiritual and social support as it pertains to trauma symptoms following a disaster. This secondary analysis investigated: a) the longitudinal analysis of the effect of perceived spiritual support (PSS; measured using PSSS-S2) on posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS); and b) the effect of social support and Wave-1 PTSS results on Wave-2 PTSS among Hurricane-Katrina (H-K) volunteers. We hypothesized that, 1. The shortform PSSS-S2 would have an ad [...]

by Inês Pessanha  , Catarina Cunha  , Cláudia Piedade  , Emanuel Furtado  and Maria Francelina Lopes

Received: 09 August 2020;  Published: 05 January 2021;  doi: 10.21926/obm.transplant.2101131

Diaphragmatic Hernia (DH) after Liver Transplantation (LT) is a rare complication with unclear pathophysiology. Among 261 LT, we recognized six DH during the post transplant period (2.30%). All patients with DH had received a left lateral segment (LLS) reduced graft. The mean graft weight was 340g with a mean graft-to-recipient body weight ratio (GBWR) of 4.20%. LLS grafts, a GBWR > 4%, previous abdominal surgery and direct trauma during surgery can be enumerated as potential risk factors for DH post-LT. These chil [...]

by Hossein Hosseinkhani

Received: 26 August 2024;  Published: 12 December 2024;  doi: 10.21926/rpm.2404027

Viral and non-viral vectors for nucleic acids (DNA/RNA) therapeutics are important in development of pharmaceutical industries. Although viral vectors have shown significant impact in transfection of DNA/RNA, but numerus studies have shown that non-viral vectors are also effective for the safe and targeted delivery of DNA/RNA to exact location in the body with high percentage of efficacy, safety, and low-immunogenicity. It is also important to protect the nucleic acids from degradation and large-scale production ca [...]

by Ala Masri  and Marwan Ghanem

Received: 28 September 2022;  Published: 19 December 2022;  doi: 10.21926/aeer.2204053

The main research objective is to highlight the potentiality of artificial groundwater recharge in Al-Qilt catchment- Jericho - Palestine regarding the water shortage in the groundwater-supplied areas. Artificial recharge can be a possible option in increasing the storability of the underground aquifer, which will add values to the Palestinian strategy to optimize the total accessibility of groundwater resources. The increase of water demands and the scarcity of water resources in the Jordan Rift areas are putting [...]

by Michael Chapman  , Jennifer Philip  and Paul Komesaroff

Received: 20 December 2018;  Published: 17 June 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.1902056

Alzheimer’s Disease is increasingly seen as the major health problem in developed countries supplanting cancer and heart disease. The terror with which we respond to dementia, is grounded in a view of dementia as a monstrous descent, ambushing our healthy ageing through an incursion of pathology. The pervasiveness of this view can mean that other perspectives and even the views of those most touched by the challenges of dementia remain unheard. Part of the cultural conversation around dementia is informed by [...]

by Beth Levant  , Emma Nguyen  , Jennifer A. Villwock  and Ann M. Manzardo

Received: 27 February 2023;  Published: 10 April 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2302018

Impostorism is prevalent in medical students and negatively impacts wellness, contributing to stress and burnout. Perceived competence is noted as one attribute underlying impostorism. A curricular change that resulted in improved United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) Step 1 scores and student self-perceptions of preparedness for clinical training was used as a natural experiment to assess the effects higher competence/preparedness, based on an objective indicator and self-perceptions, on impostorism, [...]

by Daniel Thiel

Received: 21 February 2023;  Published: 15 May 2023;  doi: 10.21926/aeer.2302031

This research aims to model and compare two strategies for locating new hydrogen refueling stations (HRS) in a context of high uncertainty on H2 demand and on the spatial distribution of demand points. The first strategy S1 represented by an agent-based model integrating a particle swarm optimization metaheuristic consists of finding the best HRS locations by adapting to the real evolution of the demand. A second strategy S2 consists in solving a classical capacitated p-median problem based on H2 consumption foreca [...]

by Jessica Walls  , Charlotte V. Farewell  , Kara Traikoff  , Haley Burns  , Joanne Whalen  , Meredith Shefferman  and Jenn A. Leiferman

Received: 31 May 2022;  Published: 26 August 2022;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2203038

Many women experience depression and/or anxiety during pregnancy and/or the postpartum period. Mind-Body Interventions (MBIs) have shown great efficacy in the mitigation of these symptoms; however, there is limited research spanning the postpartum period and exploring long-term sustainability of mindfulness practice. Furthermore, little is known about specific facilitators that contribute to sustainability. The primary objective of this mixed-methods study is to use the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) framework to [...]

by A. Guillermo Bracamonte

Received: 16 September 2023;  Published: 26 December 2023;  doi: 10.21926/rpm.2304037

This review intended to resume key Research reports and publications that open many themes and topics related to Carbon-based semiconductors and Quantum emitters. The Design and synthesis of highly pure materials such as Graphene, Carbon Nanotubes, fullerenes, and other Carbon-based allotropes were shown. They presented their most important and promising properties concerning new studies and developments in photonics. Carbon-based Quantum dots, semiconductors, and higher sized Nanoplatforms allowed us to discuss fu [...]

by Alessia Bartolacci  , Fabrizio Stocchi  , Vilberto Stocchi  and Sabrina Donati Zeppa

Received: 17 November 2024;  Published: 08 April 2025;  doi: 10.21926/rpn.2502007

In recent years, there has been an alarming increase in the incidence of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which includes both Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), particularly in Western countries. This chronic condition is intricately linked to the composition and health of the gut microbiota (GM) — a complex community of microorganisms residing in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Despite extensive research, the underlying pathogenesis of IBD remains poorly understood, making it a wide area of invest [...]

by Philip Brown  , Dana Buelsing Sowards  , Mary Pittman  , Gisele Leger  and Susan DeSipio Manns

Received: 27 February 2023;  Published: 25 May 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.2302237

In August 2022, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) adopted its first-ever nutrition electronic clinical quality measure (eCQM), known as the Global Malnutrition Composite Score (GMCS) as part of the Inpatient Hospital Quality Reporting (IQR) Program. Starting in January 2024, hospitals can self-select to include the GMCS as one of three optional eCQMs for reporting. This article focuses on the importance of addressing malnutrition to improve the overall health of the aging population, reduce preve [...]

by Elizabeth Midlarsky

Received: 14 August 2019;  Published: 25 November 2019;  doi: 10.21926/obm.geriatr.1904088

Louise H., Ph.D was referred to me by her long-term primary care physician (PCP) who was certain that his patient was seriously depressed and in need of medication and possibly psychotherapy. My own assessment, in consultation with a neurologist, was that Louise’s problems with coping were primarily neurological, and that her issues were due to serious (and in one case embarrassing) symptoms. Her neurological problems (mild Parkinsonism and PseudoBulbar Affect, or PBA) are currently being addressed by the neurologi [...]

by Abhay Vashishth  , Mohd Shuaib  , Tanya Bansal  and Shashank Kumar

Received: 03 September 2022;  Published: 21 June 2023;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.2302183

Lung cancer is a leading cause of death among all the cancer worldwide and it has the highest occurrence and mortality rates. Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) induced tuberculosis has been known as one of the risk factors for lung carcinogenesis. The exact mechanism of MTB is understood to date. Several research and epidemiological studies about the link between tuberculosis and lung cancer exist. It has been proposed that tuberculosis causes chronic inflammation, which increases the risk of lung cancer by creating [...]

by Paul Fagan

Received: 10 August 2022;  Published: 16 February 2023;  doi: 10.21926/aeer.2301021

Focusing upon the United Kingdom reveals that centralised provisions of energy have historically failed to uphold standards of human rights. Even if a transition is made to renewable energy, existing centralised distribution systems cannot promise improvement. This work would recommend the transition to domestic renewables, whereby energy is harnessed and used in situ, as it may support the more desirable notion of social justice with regard to energy usage. Domestic renewables are likely to become an inevitability [...]

by Gregor Reid  , Azza A. Gadir  , Scarlett Puebla Barragan  and Raja Dhir

Received: 11 December 2020;  Published: 01 February 2021;  doi: 10.21926/obm.hg.2101055

The human intestinal microbiota represents a complex microbial community that plays an essential role in the maintenance of host health. Over the last decade, metagenomic and metabolomic analyses have revealed the influence of intestinal microbial diversity and composition on a range of biological functions in the host. While overall taxonomic composition of the intestinal microbiome is informative, changes in spatial dynamics within the community also have profound biological significance as microbial functions ar [...]

by OBM Integrative and Complementary Medicine Editorial Office

Received: 25 January 2022;  Published: 28 January 2022;  doi: 10.21926/obm.icm.2201004

Interview with Dr. Paul J. Arciero. Precision lifestyle medicine and implementation science are the emerging frontiers of research in his field. He is an applied physiology and nutrition scientist, specializing in evidence-based scientific research on integrative and complementary lifestyle strategies to optimize health, wellness, and performance in individuals and organizations of all ages, fitness and health status. Specifically, his PRISE® Life protocol emphasizes a qualitative approach to nutrition, fitness, an [...]