Immune System Diseases Commons^™

Development And Implementation Of An Evidence Based Practice Guideline Related To The Management Of Adult Angioedema, Megan Przybysz

Doctor of Nursing Practice Scholarly Projects

Angioedema (AE) is a potentially life-threatening medical condition that occurs with a higher frequency than medical providers may expect, with the emergency department (ED) serving as the usual first point of medical contact for patients. Any hesitation in recognizing AE or inconsideration of the disease process in differential diagnoses may lead to a dangerous delay of care. Due to the potential rapid progression of airway obstruction in AE, inexperienced providers should not attempt intubation, instead deferring to providers experienced in alternative airway techniques (i.e., anesthesia providers). The primary goal of this project is to develop an evidencebased practice guideline for …

Investigating Vital Neutrophil Extracellular Trap Pathogen Response In Neutropenic Individuals, Ryan Illig

Thinking Matters Symposium

Neutrophils, also called polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs), constitute the majority of innate immune cells. These cells possess a complex arsenal of functions that allow them to detect and eliminate a broad spectrum of pathogens. Neutropenia is characterized by decreased levels of neutrophils in the bloodstream, typically falling below the normal range. Moderate to severe neutropenia can increase the risk of pathogenic infections and without treatment can be life-threatening. Although the concentration of neutrophils in neutropenic individuals is decreased, upon activation, neutrophils still release neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). NETs are pivotal in combating a spectrum of pathogens through their non-selective nature. Overreactive …

Interstitial Lung Disease Associated With Certolizumab Pegol Monotherapy In Psoriatic Arthritis, Tan T. Tran, Raesham Bukhari, Mahmood Danishwar, Mohammad Abu Tineh, Syed Jaleel

Tower Health Research Day

No abstract provided.

Remitting Seronegative Symmetrical Synovitis With Pitting Edema (Rs3pe) - A Hidden Inflammation Unveiled, Tirumala Nischal Jasty, Jon Nesfeder

Tower Health Research Day

No abstract provided.

Examining The Matrix: A Case Of Anti-Nuclear Matrix Protein 2 (Nxp-2) Positive Dermatomyositis, Victoria Cuello, Ramiro Oquita, Emilia Dulgheru

Research Symposium

Background: Dermatomyositis is a disease characterized by proximal muscle weakness, elevated muscle enzymes and cutaneous skin findings including heliotrope rash, periungual erythema, Gottron’s papules/sign and shawl-sign. Myositis-specific autoantibodies (MSA) can be used to predict disease manifestations, response to therapy and prognosis. Specifically, patients with dermatomyositis with positive anti-nuclear matrix protein (NXP-2) typically present with classical skin findings, subcutaneous edema, profound muscle weakness, severe dysphagia and hypophonia.

Case Presentation: A 21-year-old Hispanic lady presented to the hospital for severe muscle weakness. She reported soreness in her thighs for three months prior to presentation followed by arm soreness. She also developed a …

A True Bloody Emergency: An Unusual Case Of Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura, Joshua M. Ninan

Research Symposium

Background: Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) is a primary thrombotic microangiopathy that is classically characterized by thrombocytopenia and microangiopathic hemolytic anemia (MAHA). Although rare with an annual incidence of 3.7 cases per one million adults, it is considered a true hematological emergency due to its fatality rate of almost 100% if appropriate treatment is not initiated immediately. This makes it vitally important to identify and treat patients with TTP, a task that becomes unusually challenging in the absence of the disorder’s other characteristically diagnostic clinical features such as mucosal bleeding, fever, or presence of schistocytes.

Case Presentation: A 30-year-old gentleman with …

Image-Based Multiplex Immune Profiling Of Cancer Tissues: Translational Implications. A Report Of The International Immuno-Oncology Biomarker Working Group On Breast Cancer., Chowdhury Arif Jahangir, David B. Page, Glenn Broeckx, Claudia A. Gonzalez, Caoimbhe Burke, Clodagh Murphy, Jorge S. Reis-Filho, Amy Ly, Paul Harms, Shahin Sayed

Pathology, East Africa

Recent advances in the field of immuno-oncology have brought transformative changes in the management of cancer patients. The immune profile of tumours has been found to have key value in predicting disease prognosis and treatment response in various cancers. Multiplex immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence have emerged as potent tools for the simultaneous detection of multiple protein biomarkers in a single tissue section, thereby expanding opportunities for molecular and immune profiling while preserving tissue samples. By establishing the phenotype of individual tumour cells when distributed within a mixed cell population, the identification of clinically relevant biomarkers with high-throughput multiplex immunophenotyping of tumour …

Avaren-Fc, A Novel Immunotherapeutic, Recruits Nk Cells In B16f10 Melanoma Tumor Tissue, Sreevatsa Vemuri, Katarina Mayer, Nobuyuki Matoba

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Melanoma is the fifth most common cancer in the US, with limited effective immunotherapeutic options available for patients. Avaren-Fc (AvFc) is a novel experimental immunotherapeutic agent with a unique “lectibody” property. It is capable of targeting cancer cells through the selective recognition of high mannose glycans, which are aberrantly overrepresented on the surface of malignant cells. AvFc can interact with circulating effector immune cells equipped with Fc receptors, such as natural killer (NK) cells to induce antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) and kill cancer cells. Previous work has shown that AvFc effectively induces ADCC activity against B16F10 cancer cells in vitro …

A Rare Case Of Iga Vasculitis In An Adult Patient With Mssa Bacteremia And Prostate Abscess, Maria E Mesalles, Erinolaoluwa F Araoye, Anees Siddiqi, Adrien Janvier

Journal of Community Hospital Internal Medicine Perspectives

IgA vasculitis, previously known as Henoch Schönlein Purpura (HSP), is a disease more common in children and occurs when IgA1 immune complexes attach to the walls of small blood vessels causing inflammation. This case report is of an adult male who presented with a purpuric rash affecting both legs, microhematuria, and knee pain. Blood cultures were positive for Methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA). Computed tomography of the pelvis revealed a prostate abscess. Skin biopsy demonstrated IgA and C3 in the dermal vessels. To our knowledge, this is the first report of IgA vasculitis associated with MSSA bacteremia due to a prostate …

Examining The Efficacy Of Treatments For Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, Michael Podcasy

Capstone Showcase

Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) is a disease that affects the sensory, motor, sudomotor, vasomotor and trophic systems of patients. The pathophysiology is currently unknown and the diagnostic criteria that is used, the Budapest criteria, has its own shortcomings. This had led to hurdles in the research of the disease and well as a lack of high-quality studies on the efficacy of the many treatments currently being used to treat CRPS today. This poster explores those concepts.

A Bullous Eruption In An 81-Year-Old Male, Garrett S. Furth, Christian J. Scheufele, Carlos S. Bahrami, Stephen E. Weis

North Texas Research Forum 2024

INTRODUCTION: When a patient presents with a blistering rash arriving at the diagnosis can seem overwhelming. Bullous Pemphigoid (BP) is the most common autoimmune blistering disease and tends to affect older individuals, with a mean age of presentation of eighty. It is caused by antibodies targeting the basement membrane zone, the structure between epidermis and dermis, specifically affecting the BP180 (Type-XVII collagen) and BP230 (a plakin) proteins. Antibody-antigen complexes lead to complement activation and destruction of these transmembrane proteins, causing separation of the epidermis and dermis, and formation of tense, subepidermal blisters and bullae. Identification of key clinical features and …

A Retrospective Study On The Effect Of Raas Pathway Inhibitors At Decreasing The Risk Of Acute Coronary Syndrome In Hypertensive Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis As Compared To Other Antihypertensives, Yousuf Sherwani, Asad Risvi, Senthil Thambidorai

North Texas Research Forum 2024

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic multi-system inflammatory disease of which is characterized by articular and extra-articular involvement. Patients with RA have a higher risk of mortality when compared with the general population, which is due predominantly to increased cardiovascular disease. Due to the higher incidence of CVD and MI in RA patients it has been postulated that enhanced systemic inflammation plays an important role in the pathogenesis of CVD in RA patients. Previous studies have shown that ant inflammatory medication such as systemic steroids and immune blockers have been shown to decrease the risk of MI in patients with …

An Atypical Presentation Of Systematic Lupys Erythematosus (Sle), Devante Shootes, Jeremiah Ling, Omer Farooq

Gulf Coast Division Research Day 2024

No abstract provided.

Mycophenolate Associated Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy In A Woman With Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, Zaur Komachkov, Yacoub Khatab

Gulf Coast Division Research Day 2024

No abstract provided.

Thoracic Spine Lesion With Paralysis: A Rare Presentation Of Plasmacytoma, Daniel Khashchuk, Natarajan Venkatayan

Gulf Coast Division Research Day 2024

No abstract provided.

Quantification Of Antiviral Drug Tenofovir (Tfv) By Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (Sers) Using Cumulative Distribution Functions (Cdfs), Marguerite R. Butler, Jana Hrncirova, Meredith Clark, Sucharita Dutta, John B. Cooper

Chemistry & Biochemistry Faculty Publications

Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is an ultrasensitive spectroscopic technique that generates signal-enhanced fingerprint vibrational spectra of small molecules. However, without rigorous control of SERS substrate active sites, geometry, surface area, or surface functionality, SERS is notoriously irreproducible, complicating the consistent quantitative analysis of small molecules. While evaporatively prepared samples yield significant SERS enhancement resulting in lower detection limits, the distribution of these enhancements along the SERS surface is inherently stochastic. Acquiring spatially resolved SERS spectra of these dried surfaces, we have shown that this enhancement is governed by a power law as a function of analyte concentration. Consequently, by definition, …

Case Report: Unilateral Internuclear Ophthalmoplegia As First Manifestation In Multiple Sclerosis, Imaad Zaman, Tyler Adame, Steven Do, Kien Nham, Azeem Muhammad

North Texas Research Forum 2024

Multiple Sclerosis is an inflammatory disorder of the central nervous system secondary to myelin degeneration. The disease is mediated by reactive lymphocytes where the spinal cord, brain and optic nerves are attacked. Diagnosis of MS is made clinically and confirmed via MRI with T2 hyperintensities. On presentation, a 26-year-old female with no significant past medical history presented with frequent headaches and blurry vision. There was right eye nystagmus on L lateral gaze with CN III deficits with absent medial rotation. MRI Head presented with a classic presentation of T2 hyperintensities in the subcortical and deep white matter. Further confirmed with …

Bridging The Gap For Hiv Education In Primary Care Setting, Oregon Mcdiarmid, Lindsay Porter

North Texas Research Forum 2024

No abstract provided.

Thymoma With Paraneoplastic Myasthenia Gravis, Dallin Beus, Sherwin Thomas, Amnah Andrabi

North Texas Research Forum 2024

Background: Myasthenia gravis is an autoimmune neuromuscular disorder characterized by muscle weakness and fatigue. Paraneoplastic myasthenia gravis, a rare manifestation of this condition, is often associated with underlying malignancies, such as thymic tumors. We present the case of a 51-year-old female patient with a mediastinal mass who developed paraneoplastic myasthenia gravis, highlighting the diagnostic challenges and therapeutic considerations in such cases. Case Description: A 51-year-old female presented with a one-month history of progressive muscle weakness, diplopia, and dysphagia. Clinical examination and serological tests led to the diagnosis of myasthenia gravis. Computed tomography (CT) imaging revealed a 6 cm mediastinal mass, …

Fungal Empyema Thoracis, A Rare But An Emerging Entity: A Retrospective Case Series From Pakistan, Nousheen Iqbal, Akbar Shoukat Ali, Aqusa Zahid, Kauser Jabeen, Muhammad Irfan

Section of Pulmonary & Critical Care

Background and objective: Fungal empyema is a rare entity which is associated with high mortality. It is mostly seen in immune-compromised hosts. However, there is limited data available on fungal empyema from developing countries regarding risk factors, treatment, and outcome. This study was conducted to determine the risk factors, clinical features, treatment, and outcome of fungal empyema.
Methods: A retrospective observational study was performed on proven fungal empyema cases, admitted at Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan during January 2018 to May 2021. We excluded all those patients with polymicrobial bacterial and fungal empyema or with negative pleural fluid cultures. …