BL19U1, an energy-tunable protein complex crystallography beamline at the Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility, has emerged as one of the most productive MX beamlines since opening to the public in July 2015. As of October 2023, it has contributed to over 2000 protein structures deposited in the Protein Data Bank (PDB), resulting in the publication of more than 1000 scientific papers. In response to increasing interest in structure-based drug design utilizing X-ray crystallography for fragment library screening, enhancements have been implemented in both hardware and data collection systems on the beamline to optimize efficiency. Hardware upgrades include the transition from MD2 to MD2S for the diffractometer, alongside the installation of a humidity controller featuring a rapid nozzle exchanger. This allows users to opt for either low-temperature or room-temperature data collection modes. The control system has been upgraded from Blu-Ice to MXCuBE3, which supports website-mode data collection, providing enhanced compatibility and easy expansion with new features. An automated data processing pipeline has also been developed to offer users real-time feedback on data quality.

Facemasks remain worn as firefighter paramedic Jorge Miranda, holding syringe, speaks with Eduardo Vasquez, who has lived homeless on the streets of Los Angeles since 1992, before administering the one-shot Johnson and Johnson' Janssen Covid-19 vaccine as part of outreach to the homeless by members of the Los Angeles Fire Department's Covid Outreach unit on June 14, 2021 in Los Angeles.; Credit: FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images

In our continuing series looking at the latest medical research and news on COVID-19, Larry Mantle speaks with UCSF’s Dr. Peter Chin-Hong. 

Topics today include:

• Two weeks after reopening, LA County’s new COVID-19 cases have doubled

• CDC: Infected vaccinated people carry less COVID-19 virus

• Delta variant is now detected in all 50 states

• J&J: “At present, there is no evidence to suggest need for a booster dose to be administered”

• Novavax claims vaccine’s overall efficacy is 89.7%

• Another respiratory virus is spreading in the U.S.

• Curevac’s final trial show shot is far less effective than other vaccines

• Can we now live with the coronavirus?

• Israel scrambles to curb rising COVID-19 infection rates

• Is it time to rethink “one-size-fits-all” approach for masking?

Guest:

Peter Chin-Hong, M.D., infectious disease specialist and professor of medicine at the UCSF Medical Center; he tweets @PCH_SF

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Detail of boxes with the U.S. donated Johnson & Johnson vaccine against Covid-19 at Universidad de Baja California on June 17, 2021 in Tijuana, Baja California. ; Credit: Francisco Vega/Getty Images

In our continuing series looking at the latest medical research and news on COVID-19, Larry Mantle speaks with Dr. Annabelle De St. Maurice from University of California Los Angeles/Mattel Children’s hospital.

Topics today include:

• J&J says its vaccine is effective against Delta variant

  • J&J vaccine lasts at least 8 months

• WHO says all vaccines it authorized should be recognized by reopening countries

• White House says it will miss July 4 vaccination goal

• Postpartum depression on the rise during the pandemic

• Experts believe Novavax may play a role in combating vaccine hesitancy

• Delta variant is not driving a surge in hospitalization rates in England

Guest: 

Annabelle De St. Maurice, M.D., assistant professor of pediatrics in the division of infectious diseases and the co-chief infection prevention officer at University of California Los Angeles/Mattel Children’s hospital; she tweets @destmauricemd

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

A passenger wearing a protective face covering to combat the spread of the coronavirus, checks her phone while travelling on a bus along Oxford Street in central London on July 5, 2021.; Credit: DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP via Getty Images

In our continuing series looking at the latest medical research and news on COVID-19, Larry Mantle speaks with Professor Kristen Choi of UCLA. 

Topics today include:

• Biden to announce new efforts on vaccination campaign as Delta variant spreads

• Hospitalization rates getting worse for black residents of L.A. County 

• Which parts of the U.S. could be breeding grounds for variants?

• New Israeli data about effectiveness of Pfizer against Delta variant

• England to lift mask restrictions

• Cases on rise in immigration detention centers in the U.S. 

• Bay area zoo is vaccinating big cats and some other animals 

Guest:

Kristen R. Choi, professor of nursing and public health at UCLA; registered nurse practicing at Gateways Hospital, based in Echo Park

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

A waitress wears a face mask while serving at Langer's Delicatessen-Restaurant in Los Angeles on June 15.; Credit: Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images

Normal is not easily defined.

The past 15 months, though, have certainly been anything but.

Americans are starting to believe a "sense of normal" is approaching fairly soon, however, according to a new NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist survey. The poll also found that with the coronavirus receding in this country, mask-wearing is declining and Americans are going out more. But they remain cautious about being in large crowds.

As the country continues to open up, more focus turns to the economy, which cratered during the beginning of the pandemic last year. And Americans are split by race, gender and politics on whether President Biden's ambitious policies are helping or not.

Race, gender, party divides on Biden and the economy

Three months ago, in a similar survey, 49% of adults said the president's policies were strengthening the economy, while 44% said they were weakening it.

Now, that's declined a net of 6 points, as 44% of respondents in the new poll say Biden's policies have strengthened the economy and 45% say the opposite. The percentage who were unsure also jumped 4 points. It's all a little bit of a warning sign for Biden, as he pushes for two large — and expensive — spending packages.

There are significant splits by race and gender:

• Just 39% of whites said Biden's policies have strengthened the economy, but 52% of people of color say they have.
• 54% of independent men say his policies have weakened the economy, while 56% of independent women say they've strengthened it. 
• 45% of white male college grads say Biden has strengthened the economy, but a significantly higher 64% of white women with college degrees said so.

Inflation vs. wages by party

A quarter of Americans rank inflation as the U.S. economy's top concern. That's followed by wages, unemployment, housing costs, labor shortages, gas prices and interest rates.

But there's a sharp political divide on the question. Republicans and independents rank inflation as their top concern, while for Democrats, it was wages. Just 4% of Republicans said wages were their top concern.

Return to "normal"

Americans are growing increasingly optimistic about when life will return to a "sense of normal," as the survey labels it.

In April, three-quarters of Americans said they believe it will take six months or more. Now, it's just half. About a quarter (27%) say it will be less than six months, up from 15% two months ago.

People are also growing more comfortable doing certain things, saying they're:

• dining out at restaurants (78%) and 
• visiting unvaccinated friends and family (75%).

But they are not as comfortable doing others:

• almost 7-in-10 are not going out to bars; 
• about two-thirds are not attending live concerts or sporting events (65%);
• and a majority have also not resumed going to in-person religious services (54%).

COVID-19 vaccines and going back to work

While half say they are concerned about another coronavirus surge, almost 9-in-10 U.S. adults with jobs say they are at least somewhat comfortable returning to work.

Notably, a majority (57%) of those with jobs do not believe employers should require COVID-19 vaccines as a condition to return to in-person work.

More than a quarter of Americans say they will not get vaccinated. The most resistant to getting vaccinated continue to be supporters of former President Donald Trump. Half of them say they won't get the shot, the highest of any group surveyed. Trump has touted the vaccine and got it himself.

Since Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines came out, noting that Americans who have been vaccinated can largely set masks aside, there's been a double-digit decline in those saying they wear a mask even when it's not required.

There's also been a double-digit increase in those saying they generally do not wear a mask. In May, 49% said they wore masks even when it was not required. Now, that's just 36%.

One-in-five said they generally do not wear masks. Two months ago, it was less than one-in-10.

Affordability, not coronavirus, limiting vacations

Speaking of getting back to normal, a majority of Americans say they plan to take a vacation this summer.

But of the significant minority (45%) who say they aren't taking one, almost three times as many cited affordability (35%) as the main reason for not going, as opposed to concerns about COVID-19 (12%).

Methodology: The poll of 1,115 U.S. adults was conducted using live telephone interviewers from June 22 through June 29. Survey questions were available in English or Spanish. The full sample has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.7 percentage points, with larger margins of error for smaller group subsets.

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Questlove attends Questlove's "Summer Of Soul" screening & live concert at Marcus Garvey Park in Harlem on June 19, 2021 in New York City.; Credit: Roy Rochlin/Getty Images

The 1960s was a decade that held a lot of historical markers for American history. For the Black community, social inequality and systemic racism lead to political action in many different forms.

The end of the decade saw the death of many integral leaders to the civil rights movement, which led to more civil unrest and mourning. One way this community was able to get through this moment in history was through the power of music. The 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival was a special moment in musical and Black history that was all a product of the other 8 years prior to it.

It’s a historical marker for Harlem that Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson’s film “Summer of Soul” depicts in-depth, bringing this story to life using archival footage and interviews. The Harlem Cultural Festival took place for 6 weeks, having some of the greatest Black musical acts the world has ever seen. Through this communal experience, attendees found themselves at ease with artists like Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone and the 5th Dimension bringing this community of Harlem residents together. 

Today on FilmWeek, Larry Mantle speaks with Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson about his feature directorial debut, “Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised),” and its chronicling of a major point in African American history.

Guest:

Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, director of the documentary “Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised),” drummer for The Roots and The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon; he tweets @questlove

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Screenshot of the event "FilmWeek & Chill: ‘Airplane!’" broadcasted on June 3, 2021.

The iconic 1980 film “Airplane!” from the ZAZ directing team, Jim Abrahams, David Zucker and Jerry Zucker parodies the plot and characters from the 1957 disaster flick “Zero Hour!” It broke out as a leading example of comedy done right and one of the funniest films of the 80s. It was the ZAZ team’s feature directorial debut. I talked with the directors during our virtual film series, FilmWeek and Chill, along with the film’s stars Robert Hays and Lorna Patterson Lembeck, casting director Joel Thurm and KPCC’s own Tim Cogshell and Christy Lemire. Today on FilmWeek, we bring you a portion of the conversation.

You can watch the entire FilmWeek and Chill event here.

Guests:

Jim Abrahams, co-director of “Airplane!” and member of the directing team Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker (ZAZ)

Tim Cogshell, film critic for KPCC, Alt-Film Guide and CineGods.com; he tweets @CinemaInMind

Robert Hays, actor who played Ted Striker in "Airplane!"

Lorna Lembeck, actress who played Randy the singing stewardess in “Airplane!”

Christy Lemire, film critic for KPCC, RogerEbert.com, and co-host of the “Breakfast All Day” podcast; she tweets @christylemire

Joel Thurm, casting director for "Airplane!"

David Zucker, co-director of “Airplane!” and member of the directing team Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker (ZAZ)

Jerry Zucker, co-director of “Airplane!” and member of the directing team Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker (ZAZ)

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Catawba County Animal Services has a DOMESTIC MH CAT ready for you to adopt! She is approximately 1 year(s) old.6 month(s) old.

Catawba County Animal Services has a DOMESTIC SH CAT ready for you to adopt! She is approximately 2 year(s) old.

The Catawba County Sheriff�s Office, in conjunction with The Cognitive Connection and The Foothills Coalition, is sponsoring an Operation Pill Stoppers program that now provides fixed locations for citizens to properly dispose of their unused and unwanted medications.

The Catawba County Library System has received two awards from the North Carolina Public Library Directors� Association. Library Director Karen Foss was on hand to accept honors for the new Conover Branch facility and Battle of the Books programming presented at the NCPLDA annual awards banquet December 6 in Winston-Salem.

Charter Communications' Government Channel for Catawba County will move from Channel 3 to Channel 192 effective January 28, 2014.

Scientific evidence is insufficient to prove or disprove the theory that exposure to polio vaccine contaminated with a monkey virus between 1955 and 1963 has triggered cancer in humans, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies.

Veterans who participated in a series of tests during the 1960s known as Project SHAD (Shipboard Hazard and Defense) show no significant increase in adverse health outcomes, specific causes of death, or death rates compared with a similar group of veterans who were not involved in the tests, says a new report from a committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

Victoria A. Arroyo, executive director of the Georgetown Climate Center, and Leslie S. Richards, secretary of transportation for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT), have been appointed as chair and vice chair, respectively, to the 2019 Transportation Research Board (TRB) Executive Committee, which provides oversight of TRB activities.

The Gulf Research Program (GRP) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine is now accepting applications for its Early-Career Research Fellowships and Science Policy Fellowships for 2019.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are now accepting nominations for the 2019 Communication Awards to recognize excellence in reporting and communicating science, engineering, and medicine to the public during 2018.

To celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), proclaimed by the UN General Assembly on December 10, 1948, this year the Committee on Human Rights (CHR) will be sharing stories of scientists, engineers, and health professionals who have used their expertise to promote and protect human rights.

International thought leaders will join the next generation of engineers in London from Sept. 16 to 18 for the Global Grand Challenges Summit 2019. The summit aims to help inspire and equip future engineering leaders to address the rapidly evolving challenges of an unpredictable world.

The Gulf Research Program of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine has announced the nine recipients of its 2019 Science Policy Fellowships.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine announced today the recipients of the 2019 Communication Awards. Supported by the W.M. Keck Foundation since 2003 as part of the Keck Futures Initiative, these prestigious awards in four categories -- each of which includes a $20,000 prize -- recognize excellence in reporting and communicating science, engineering, and medicine to the general public.

The Gulf Research Program of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine announced today the recipients of its 2019 Early-Career Research Fellowships.

The National Academy of Medicine (NAM) has selected five outstanding health professionals for the class of 2019 NAM Fellowships. The fellows were chosen based on their professional qualifications, reputations as scholars, professional accomplishments, and relevance of current field expertise to the work of the NAM and the Health and Medicine Division of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (the National Academies).

The winners of the seventh annual D.C. Public Health Case Challenge were announced at this year’s National Academy of Medicine (NAM) Annual Meeting. The challenge aims to promote interdisciplinary, problem-based learning around a public health issue of importance to the Washington, D.C., community.

The National Academy of Sciences, in partnership with The Kavli Foundation and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, will host a symposium to consider the future of science in the U.S. and how it can best serve society in the 21st century.

The National Academies stand ready to convene America’s best minds in research, government, medicine, and private industry to marshal evidence-based insights and advice for confronting today’s pandemic and future crises.

In light of the present situation in the U.S., we believe that it is essential to explore a wide range of options for treating the increasing numbers of very ill patients with COVID-19 respiratory illness.

As the COVID-19 pandemic grips the nation and the world, policymakers and the public are counting on science, engineering, and medicine to discover how the virus infects humans, slow its spread, treat those infected, and provide solutions that lay the groundwork for recovery.

The recently formed National Academies Standing Committee on Emerging Infectious Diseases and 21st Century Health Threats, assembled at the request of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, has been providing rapid expert consultations on several topics, such as social distancing and severe illness in young adults.

A new rapid expert consultation from a standing committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine responds to questions from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) regarding survival of the COVID-19 virus in relation to temperature and humidity and potential for seasonal reduction and resurgence of cases.

As a novel coronavirus spreads throughout the world and the number of cases and deaths continues to rise, almost no country or community remains untouched by this rapidly evolving threat.

A new rapid expert consultation from a standing committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

A new rapid expert consultation from a standing committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine responds to questions from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) regarding the effectiveness of homemade fabric masks to protect others from the viral spread of COVID-19 from potentially contagious asymptomatic or presymptomatic individuals.

It is critical for the U.S. to continue its funding for the World Health Organization in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic given the WHO’s lead role in coordinating an international response, especially in developing countries.

At colleges and universities around the nation, scientists and graduate students are seeking out ways to bring their knowledge, skills, and resources to bear in the struggle against COVID-19.

Researchers are scrambling to find effective treatments for COVID-19, which has infected more than 1 million people around the word.

Anthony Fauci and other panelists explored the status of the pandemic, research underway, and the key role of vaccines in bringing the pandemic to an end.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and the National Science Foundation announced today the formation of a Societal Experts Action Network (SEAN) to connect social and behavioral science researchers with decision-makers who are leading the response to COVID-19. SEAN will respond to the most pressing social, behavioral, and economic questions that are being asked by federal, state, and local officials by working with appropriate experts to quickly provide actionable answers.

When it comes to COVID-19 testing, questions remain about which of the tests available are reliable, how much testing is needed, and how to ensure access to testing. The latest COVID-19 Conversations webinar explored the challenges ahead.

The 1.3 million nursing home residents in the U.S. make up less than 0.5 percent of the nation’s population, but represent approximately 15 percent of COVID-19 related deaths to date.

The novel coronavirus has been called “the great equalizer,” when in reality, it has only exacerbated health inequities that racial and ethnic minorities have experienced for decades.

The Committee on Human Rights (CHR) of the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine fully endorses the Call for a Human Rights-Based Approach to COVID-19, issued by the Executive Committee of the International Human Rights Network of Academies and Scholarly Societies (IHRN).

As the number of cases of COVID-19 reached about 4.5 million worldwide last week, an international virtual conference explored how science, technology, and innovation (STI) can respond to the global crisis – and continue to drive progress toward the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

This week the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted an above-normal 2020 hurricane season, with the possibility of three to six major hurricanes this summer looming over millions of Americans.

Many U.S. colleges and universities responded to the COVID-19 pandemic this spring by swiftly moving courses online, but they now face a range of longer-term quandaries, from weighing how to safely reopen campuses to navigating new financial challenges.

The recently formed National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Societal Experts Action Network (SEAN), which connects social and behavioral science researchers with decision-makers leading the response to COVID-19, today released a rapid expert consultation to guide leaders using COVID-19 measurements like hospitalizations and reported confirmed cases to understand the spread of the disease in their communities.

It normally takes 15 to 20 years to develop a vaccine, but due to the urgency of the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers are accelerating the vaccine development process.

The Transportation Research Board’s Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) has selected winners for its annual University Design Competition for Addressing Airport Needs.

The COVID-19 pandemic has upended the lives and routines of people with disabilities in countless ways, said panelists during a recent National Academies webinar.