M. Walker

Mind the viscous modulus: The mechanotransductive response to the viscous nature of isoelastic matrices regulates stem cell chondrogenesis

This study shows that varying the viscous properties of hydrogels, not just their elastic modulus, can enhance chondrogenesis of human mesenchymal stem cells.

Sensitivity and specificity of human point-of-care circulating cathodic antigen (POC-CCA) test in African livestock for rapid diagnosis of schistosomiasis: a Bayesian latent class analysis

This study evaluates the sensitivity and specificity of the POC-CCA test for detecting livestock schistosomiasis in Senegal, finding variable performance by parasite species and location.

Heavy metal pollution impacts soil bacterial community structure and antimicrobial resistance at the Birmingham 35th Avenue Superfund Site

This study examines how heavy metal pollution affects soil bacterial communities and antimicrobial resistance at a Superfund site, finding reduced diversity and increased AMR gene prevalence in contaminated soils.

Dynamic model of bovine brucellosis to investigate control strategies in endemic settings

The paper develops a stochastic, age-structured model to evaluate brucellosis control strategies in dairy cattle herds in India, finding that vaccination of replacement calves and long-term commitment to vaccination are key for effective control.

A slow dynamic switch regulates processing of microRNA-21

The paper identifies a slow conformational switch in pre-miR-21 that regulates its processing efficiency and shows how ligands can modulate this switch.

Modeling the effects of Aedes aegypti's larval environment on adult body mass at emergence

This study models how larval density affects adult body mass in Aedes aegypti mosquitoes and finds larval density has a greater impact on body mass than development time.

Flexible RSV prefusogenic fusion glycoprotein exposes multiple neutralizing epitopes that may collectively contribute to protective immunity

This study compares the immunogenicity of native prefusogenic RSV F glycoprotein variants in animal models, finding that native F elicits broader neutralizing antibodies targeting multiple epitopes compared to variants with structural modifications.

Time dependent stress relaxation and recovery in mechanically strained 3D microtissues

This study measures time-dependent stress relaxation and recovery in 3D microtissues under mechanical strain, finding stretched exponential behavior and a linear relationship between residual elasticity and stress relaxation.

Structural and mechanical remodeling of the cytoskeleton maintains tensional homeostasis in 3D microtissues under acute dynamic stretch

This study investigates how 3D microtissues maintain mechanical homeostasis under dynamic stretch by remodeling their cytoskeleton, showing strain softening and recovery without fluidization.

Pex11 β knockdown decreases peroxisome abundance and reverses the inhibitory effect of palmitate on pancreatic beta-cell function.

This study shows that reducing Pex11β decreases peroxisomes and reverses palmitate's negative impact on beta-cell function.

Mechanical stretch sustains myofibroblast phenotype and function in microtissues through latent TGF-β1 activation

This study shows mechanical stretch maintains myofibroblast activation through latent TGF-β1 activation in microtissues, promoting fibrosis progression.

Estimation of sinking velocities using free-falling dynamically scaled models: foraminifera as a test case

The paper develops a method to estimate sinking velocities of microscale particles using 3D printed scale models, validated with foraminifera as a test case.

Isolates from colonic spirochaetosis in humans show high genomic divergence and carry potential pathogenic features but are not detected by 16S amplicon sequencing using standard primers for the human microbiota

The paper isolates and genomes Brachyspira species from colonic spirochaetosis cases, showing genetic diversity and potential pathogenic features, but finds standard 16S primers fail to detect them.

Discovery of the role of a SLOG superfamily biological conflict systems associated protein IodA (YpsA) in oxidative stress protection and cell division inhibition in Gram-positive bacteria

This paper identifies YpsA, a SLOG superfamily protein in Bacillus subtilis, as a regulator of cell division and oxidative stress response, with conserved function in Staphylococcus aureus.