Bagnoud Observatory

We aim to characterize the nearby (23.78 pc), low-mass planetary system GJ,7 (TOI-198), which consists of an M0-type star and a terrestrial planet. Using photometric data from three sectors of the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite TESS ) and a follow-up on the planetary transit observed by the Characterizing ExOPlanets Satellite ( CHEOPS ), along with 87 precise radial velocities obtained with the Echelle SPectrograph for Rocky Exoplanets and Stable Spectroscopic Observations (ESPRESSO) spectrograph, we confidently confirm the planet and infer its properties. Planet GJ,7,b has a mass of M_p = 3.17 ^ +0.64 _ -0.65 M_⊕ and a radius of R_p = 1.36 ± 0.13 R_⊕. It orbits at a distance of a = 0.0675 ^ +0.0067 _ -0.0082 au from its host star with an orbital period of P = 10.215213 ^ +0.000011 _ -0.000010 d. We impose a 3σ upper limit on the planetary eccentricity of e łe 0.15. These parameters imply that GJ,7,b has a high density, ̊ho_p = 6.89 ^ +4.27 _ -2.78 g,cm -3 $, positioning it within the region of the rocky, Earth-like planets on the mass--radius diagram and interior to the inner edge of the habitable zone around its parent star. Additionally, we find that the host star is a slow rotator and is slightly metal-depleted ( Fe/H = -0.66 ± 0.10 dex), making GJ,7 one of the few planetary systems accurately characterized in the domain of subsolar iron abundances. TESS photometry does not show additional transit-like features attributable to planets with radii greater than ≈90,% that of Earth. The high number of radial velocity measurements enables us to determine that possible transiting and non-transiting planet candidates with masses lower than half the mass of GJ,7,b would have eluded detection in our in-depth study. The stellar activity, although moderate, shows a significant radial velocity amplitude of about 4 m,s$^ -1 and poses a challenge for detecting planets with masses lower than Earth around GJ,7.

BackgroundThe burden of advanced cancer is rising in Africa. Cancer care involves complex conversations between providers, patients, and families. International guidelines recommend communication skills training for all cancer care providers, and patient-provider communication and training needs are strongly influenced by culture. As oncology and palliative care capacity expand in African settings such as Rwanda, participatory research is needed to culturally adapt communication skills training to best fit local contexts.MethodsGuided by the Cultural Adaptation Process model, this study aimed to set the stage for adaptation and implementation of serious illness communication skills training in the Rwandan context. We conducted focus group discussions with interdisciplinary cancer care providers at Butaro Hospital in Rwanda to understand their communication training priorities and describe pertinent contextual factors. The focus groups were audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using the framework method of thematic analysis.ResultsA total of 17 cancer care providers participated in one of three focus groups, including six physicians, seven nurses, two psychologists, and two social workers. Participants identified delivering bad news and responding to emotion as the most challenging aspects of clinical communication and the highest priorities for training. They expressed concerns about the psychological toll of difficult conversations on providers, advocating for future trainings to include burnout mitigation strategies. Participants described several key contextual factors that should inform adaptations of communication training for Rwandan cancer care. These include barriers common to low-resource settings as well as several local assets: interdisciplinary collaboration, dedicated clinical psychologists, group counseling sessions, peer support among patients, and strong community networks. Several findings will be directly applied to the design of an initial pilot communication training in Rwanda. Areas requiring further investigation and opportunities to broaden the scope of communication interventions beyond patient-provider encounters were identified.ConclusionsThis study sets the stage for adapted communication skills training in Rwanda that is guided by the priorities and recommendations of local cancer care providers. Several pertinent cultural and structural factors were identified that are common across diverse African settings. Therefore, our training adaptations, as well as the methodology used for adaptation, have the potential for widespread reach.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12904-025-01879-z.

We evaluate the three-year community-based FXBVillage poverty-alleviation model, which provides extremely poor families with sustained social support and graduated material support for education, healthcare, housing, nutrition, and income-generation. We combine a pre/post analysis of participant households in Rwanda (n=912) and Uganda (n=628) with construction and assessment of a combined multivariable household wealth index comparing FXBVillage data with national Demographic Health Surveys. Many FXBVillage households shifted to higher household wealth quintiles. This shift was particularly strong in Rwanda. Increases among relevant household characteristics included (in Rwanda/Uganda): ≥3 meals/day (5-88%)/(44-86%), school attendance 5-17years (79-97%)/(64-89%), adequate school supplies (7-97%)/(4-71%), and communal financial support if needed (27-98%)/(29-87%). Universal bednet ownership and water treatment was nearly attained; vaccine coverage was not, especially in Uganda. The model likely supports poverty-alleviation among participants. The variability of improvements, across indicators and countries, highlights the need for better understanding of interactions within programs and between programs and implementation settings, as well as how these interactions matter to poverty-reduction strategies.

The larger number of models of asteroid shapes and their rotational states derived by the lightcurve inversion give us better insight into both the nature of individual objects and the whole asteroid population. With a larger statistical sample we can study the physical properties of asteroid populations, such as main-belt asteroids or individual asteroid families, in more detail. Shape models can also be used in combination with other types of observational data (IR, adaptive optics images, stellar occultations), e.g., to determine sizes and thermal properties. We use all available photometric data of asteroids to derive their physical models by the lightcurve inversion method and compare the observed pole latitude distributions of all asteroids with known convex shape models with the simulated pole latitude distributions. We used classical dense photometric lightcurves from several sources and sparse-in-time photometry from the U.S. Naval Observatory in Flagstaff, Catalina Sky Survey, and La Palma surveys (IAU codes 689, 703, 950) in the lightcurve inversion method to determine asteroid convex models and their rotational states. We also extended a simple dynamical model for the spin evolution of asteroids used in our previous paper. We present 119 new asteroid models derived from combined dense and sparse-in-time photometry. We discuss the reliability of asteroid shape models derived only from Catalina Sky Survey data (IAU code 703) and present 20 such models. By using different values for a scaling parameter cYORP (corresponds to the magnitude of the YORP momentum) in the dynamical model for the spin evolution and by comparing synthetics and observed pole-latitude distributions, we were able to constrain the typical values of the cYORP parameter as between 0.05 and 0.6.

The impact of behavioral functioning on medication adherence in children with perinatally acquired HIV infection is not well-explored, but has important implications for intervention. This report addresses the relationship between behavioral functioning and child self-report or caregiver report of medication adherence among children and adolescents enrolled in Pediatric AIDS Clinical Trials Group Protocol 219C (conducted 2000-2007). A total of 1134 participants, aged 3-17 years, received a behavioral evaluation and adherence assessment. Complete adherence was defined as taking 100% of prescribed antiretroviral medications during three days preceding the study visit. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to evaluate associations between adherence and behavioral functioning, adjusting for potential confounders, including demographic, psychosocial, and health factors. Children demonstrated higher than expected rates of behavioral impairment (≈7% expected with T > 65) in the areas of conduct problems (14%, z = 7.0, p < 0.001), learning problems (22%, z = 12.2, p < 0.001), somatic complaints (22%, z = 12.6, p < 0.001), impulsivity-hyperactivity (20%, z = 11.1, p < 0.001), and hyperactivity (19%, z = 10.6, p < 0.001). Children with behavioral impairment in one or more areas had significantly increased odds of nonadherence [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 1.49, p = 0.04]. The odds of nonadherence were significantly higher for those with conduct problems and general hyperactivity (aOR = 2.03, p = 0.005 and aOR = 1.68, p = 0.02, respectively). Psychosocial and health factors, such as recent stressful life events and higher HIV RNA levels, were also associated with nonadherence. Knowledge of behavioral, health, and social influences affecting the child and family should guide the development of appropriate, evidence-based interventions for medication adherence.