Digital Commons Network^™

Bacteroides Ovatus Alleviates Dysbiotic Microbiota-Induced Graft-Versus-Host Disease, Eiko Hayase, Tomo Hayase, Akash Mukherjee, Stuart C Stinson, Mohamed A Jamal, Miriam R Ortega, Christopher A Sanchez, Saira S Ahmed, Jennifer L Karmouch, Chia-Chi Chang, Ivonne I Flores, Lauren K Mcdaniel, Alexandria N Brown, Rawan K El-Himri, Valerie A Chapa, Lin Tan, Bao Q Tran, Yao Xiao, Christopher Fan, Dung Pham, Taylor M Halsey, Yimei Jin, Wen-Bin Tsai, Rishika Prasad, Israel K Glover, Altai Enkhbayar, Aqsa Mohammed, Maren Schmiester, Katherine Y King, Robert A Britton, Pavan Reddy, Matthew C Wong, Nadim J Ajami, Jennifer A Wargo, Samuel Shelburne, Pablo C Okhuysen, Chen Liu, Stephanie W Fowler, Margaret E Conner, Zoe Katsamakis, Natalie Smith, Marina Burgos Da Silva, Doris M Ponce, Jonathan U Peled, Marcel R M Van Den Brink, Christine B Peterson, Gabriela Rondon, Jeffrey J Molldrem, Richard E Champlin, Elizabeth J Shpall, Philip L Lorenzi, Rohtesh S Mehta, Eric C Martens, Amin M Alousi, Robert R Jenq

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Acute lower gastrointestinal GVHD (aLGI-GVHD) is a serious complication of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Although the intestinal microbiota is associated with the incidence of aLGI-GVHD, how the intestinal microbiota impacts treatment responses in aLGI-GVHD has not been thoroughly studied. In a cohort of patients with aLGI-GVHD (n = 37), we found that non-response to standard therapy with corticosteroids was associated with prior treatment with carbapenem antibiotics and a disrupted fecal microbiome characterized by reduced abundances of Bacteroides ovatus. In a murine GVHD model aggravated by carbapenem antibiotics, introducing B. ovatus reduced GVHD severity and improved survival. These beneficial effects …

Evaluation Of The Influence Of Training In An Immersive Virtual Reality Environment On Sports Skills In Table Tennis, Martin Škopek, Josef Heidler, Štefan Balkó, Lenka Vojtíková, Radka Ulrichová

Baltic Journal of Health and Physical Activity

Introduction: This study explores the possibilities of leveraging immersive virtual reality (VR) training for the improvement of table tennis skills. The primary objective was to assess the in-fluence of VR intervention on the development of table tennis skills. Materials and Methods: Thirty-eight participants, whose mean age was 17.37 ± 0.84 years and who lacked previous table tennis experience, were divided into experimental (n = 21) and control (n = 17) groups. The experimental group engaged in six sessions of VR training aimed at enhancing table tennis skills, and their performance was evaluated using a comprehensive test battery. In contrast, the …

Mitochondrial Reprogramming By Activating Oxphos Via Glutamine Metabolism In African American Patients With Bladder Cancer, Karthik Reddy Kami Reddy, Danthasinghe Waduge Badrajee Piyarathna, Jun Hyoung Park, Vasanta Putluri, Chandra Sekhar Amara, Abu Hena Mostafa Kamal, Jun Xu, Daniel Kraushaar, Shixia Huang, Sung Yun Jung, Livia S Eberlin, Jabril R Johnson, Rick A Kittles, Leomar Y Ballester, Krishna Parsawar, M Minhaj Siddiqui, Jianjun Gao, Adriana Langer Gramer, Roni J Bollag, Martha K Terris, Yair Lotan, Chad J Creighton, Seth P Lerner, Arun Sreekumar, Benny Abraham Kaipparettu, Nagireddy Putluri

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Bladder cancer (BLCA) mortality is higher in African American (AA) patients compared with European American (EA) patients, but the molecular mechanism underlying race-specific differences are unknown. To address this gap, we conducted comprehensive RNA-Seq, proteomics, and metabolomics analysis of BLCA tumors from AA and EA. Our findings reveal a distinct metabolic phenotype in AA BLCA characterized by elevated mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS), particularly through the activation of complex I. The results provide insight into the complex I activation-driven higher OXPHOS activity resulting in glutamine-mediated metabolic rewiring and increased disease progression, which was also confirmed by [U]13C-glutamine tracing. Mechanistic studies further …

Transcriptomic And Proteomic Differences In Btk-Wt And Btk-Mutated Cll And Their Changes During Therapy With Pirtobrutinib, Burcu Aslan, Ganiraju Manyam, Lakesla R Iles, Shady I Tantawy, Sai Prasad Desikan, William G Wierda, Varsha Gandhi

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Covalent Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitors (cBTKis), which bind to the BTK C481 residue, are now primary therapeutics for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Alterations at C481, primarily C481S, prevent cBTKi binding and lead to the emergence of resistant clones. Pirtobrutinib is a noncovalent BTKi that binds to both wild-type (WT) and C481S-mutated BTK and has shown efficacy in BTK-WT and -mutated CLL patient groups. To compare baseline clinical, transcriptomic, and proteomic characteristics and their changes during treatment in these 2 groups, we used 67 longitudinal peripheral blood samples obtained during the first 3 cycles of treatment with pirtobrutinib from 18 patients …

Sensory Dysfunction, Microbial Infections, And Host Responses In Alzheimer's Disease, Praveen Bathini, Emanuele Brai, Brian J Balin, Lynn Bimler, David B Corry, Davangere P Devanand, Richard L Doty, Garth D Ehrlich, William A Eimer, Tamas Fulop, David L Hahn, Christine J Hammond, Joseph Infanti, Ruth Itzhaki, Richard Lathe, Christopher Scott Little, Rima Mcleod, Shima T Moein, Amy R Nelson, George Perry, Or A Shemesh, Rudolph E Tanzi, Wilmore C Webley, Nikki M Schultek, Lavinia Alberi Auber

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Sensory functions of organs of the head and neck allow humans to interact with the environment and establish social bonds. With aging, smell, taste, vision, and hearing decline. Evidence suggests that accelerated impairment in sensory abilities can reflect a shift from healthy to pathological aging, including the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other neurological disorders. While the drivers of early sensory alteration in AD are not elucidated, insults such as trauma and infections can affect sensory function. Herein, we review the involvement of the major head and neck sensory systems in AD, with emphasis on microbes exploiting sensory pathways …

Cardiomyocyte-Derived Small Extracellular Vesicle: A New Mechanism Driving Diabetic Cardiac Fibrosis And Cardiomyopathy, Yu Li, Yunhui Du, Yang Liu, Xiuhuan Chen, Xinxin Li, Yanru Duan, Yanwen Qin, Huirong Liu, Xinliang Ma, Shaoping Nie, Huina Zhang

Department of Emergency Medicine Faculty Papers

Rationale: Diabetic cardiomyopathy is one of the major diabetic cardiovascular complications in which fibrosis plays a critical pathogenetic role. However, the precise mechanisms by which diabetes triggers cardiac fibrosis in the heart remain elusive. Small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) play an important role in the cellular communication. Nevertheless, whether and how diabetes may adversely alter sEVs-mediated cardiomyocyte-fibroblast communication, promoting diabetic cardiac fibrosis and contributing to diabetic cardiomyopathy, has not been previously investigated. Methods and results: High-fat diet (HFD)-induced and genetic (db/db) type 2 diabetic models were utilized. Cardiomyocyte sEVs (Myo-sEVs) were isolated by ultracentrifugation. Normal cardiomyocyte-derived Myo-sEVs attenuated diabetic cardiac fibrosis …

Interactions Between Oral Cancer Cells And Enterococcus Fecalis And Their Impact On Perineural Invasion, Sree Ramya Bhamidipaati

All ETDs from UAB

Oral and oropharyngeal squamous cell cancers (OSCC and OPSCC) are some of the most common cancers in the world. The overall 5-year survival rate is 68.5%, which drops to 39.3% in patients with later-stage cancers. This research aims to evaluate the effects of Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis) on the OSCC and OPSCC's tumor progression. E. faecalis is associated with asymptomatic, persistent endodontic infections and was found at a higher rate in OSCC patients. We hypothesize that cancer cells and Enterococcus faecalis (Ef) interact to affect the tumorigenic properties of oral cancer cells. OSCC cells from different parts of the oral …

Training Robust T1-Weighted Magnetic Resonance Imaging Liver Segmentation Models Using Ensembles Of Datasets With Different Contrast Protocols And Liver Disease Etiologies, Nihil Patel, Adrian Celaya, Mohamed Eltaher, Rachel Glenn, Kari Brewer Savannah, Kristy K Brock, Jessica I Sanchez, Tiffany L Calderone, Darrel Cleere, Ahmed Elsaiey, Matthew Cagley, Nakul Gupta, David Victor, Laura Beretta, Eugene J Koay, Tucker J Netherton, David T Fuentes

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Image segmentation of the liver is an important step in treatment planning for liver cancer. However, manual segmentation at a large scale is not practical, leading to increasing reliance on deep learning models to automatically segment the liver. This manuscript develops a generalizable deep learning model to segment the liver on T1-weighted MR images. In particular, three distinct deep learning architectures (nnUNet, PocketNet, Swin UNETR) were considered using data gathered from six geographically different institutions. A total of 819 T1-weighted MR images were gathered from both public and internal sources. Our experiments compared each architecture's testing performance when trained both …

Barriers To Health Care Among Adults With Disabilities In Connecticut, Mary Beth Bruder Phd, Tara M. Lutz Phd, Kelly E. Ferreira Phd

Developmental Disabilities Network Journal

It is estimated that 25% of adults in the US are living with one or more disabilities. Persons with disabilities (PWD) have unmet health care needs, experience health disparities compared to those without disabilities. Barriers to quality health care include structural barriers such as access to transportation, physical access to facilities, and lack of accessible medical equipment. Other barriers include the knowledge, skills, beliefs, and attitudes of health care providers to meet the needs of PWD. To examine the barriers to health care experienced by adults with disabilities in Connecticut, the University of Connecticut Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities …

Consensus Of The National Heart Center In Collaboration With The Saudi Arabian Cardiac Interventional Society On The Clinical Use Of Intracoronary Imaging, Mirvat Alasnag, Mognee Alameer, Ahmed Alshehri, Hind Alosaimi, Faisal Alqoofi, Hussain Alzayer, Wail Alkashkari, Adel Tash, Waqar H Ahmed

Journal of the Saudi Heart Association

Objectives: Studies show that intracoronary imaging (ICI)-guided PCI is associated with a significantly lower risk of stroke, Q-wave myocardial infarction, and death compared to angiography-guided PCI in the management of acute coronary syndromes, complex coronary lesions and left-main interventions. Despite these well-established clinical benefits, the utilization of ICI-guided PCI in Saudi Arabia remains suboptimal.

Methods: The National Heart Center (NHC) and the Saudi Arabian Cardiac Interventional Society (SACIS) gathered national experts to develop a consensus document on how to integrate ICI-guided PCI in routine clinical practice in Saudi Arabia. The consensus was based on the nominal group technique, whereby a …

Identification Of A Clade-Specific Hla-C*03:02 Ctl Epitope Gy9 Derived From The Hiv-1 P17 Matrix Protein, Samuel Kyobe, Savannah Mwesigwa, Gyaviira Nkurunungi, Gaone Retshabile, Moses Egesa, Eric Katagirya, Marion Amujal, Busisiwe C Mlotshwa, Lesedi Williams, Hakim Sendagire, On Behalf Of The Cafgen Consortium, Dithan Kiragga, Graeme Mardon, Mogomotsi Matshaba, Neil A Hanchard, Jacqueline Kyosiimire-Lugemwa, David Robinson

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Efforts towards an effective HIV-1 vaccine have remained mainly unsuccessful. There is increasing evidence for a potential role of HLA-C-restricted CD8+ T cell responses in HIV-1 control, including our recent report of HLA-C*03:02 among African children. However, there are no documented optimal HIV-1 CD8+ T cell epitopes restricted by HLA-C*03:02; additionally, the structural influence of HLA-C*03:02 on epitope binding is undetermined. Immunoinformatics approaches provide a fast and inexpensive method to discover HLA-restricted epitopes. Here, we employed immunopeptidomics to identify HLA-C*03:02 CD8+ T cell epitopes. We identified a clade-specific Gag-derived GY9 (GTEELRSLY) HIV-1 p17 matrix epitope potentially restricted to HLA-C*03:02. Residues …

Anxiety And Depression Amongst Female Athletes, Dp Golden, Re Obmann, Em Moore

Clinical Practice in Athletic Training

Context: Anxiety (categorized by a feeling of fear, dread, and uneasiness) and depression (mood disorder causing feelings of persistent sadness and loss of interest in things an individual once loved) are two major mental health disorders effecting females considerably who participate in sport. Females are more likely to present with anxiety (55-60%)1 and depression (1.844 times)2 compared to males. The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence between mental health comorbidities (anxiety and depression), across female athletes aged 18-40. Methods: An anonymous survey was distributed via snowball sampling using social media. Demographic data, Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), validated …

A Qualitative Study Evaluating Athletic Trainers’ Self-Perceived Knowledge And Knowledge Acquisition Of Concussion Biomarkers, Kgs Swindell, T Mccormick, Jm Allen

Clinical Practice in Athletic Training

Context: Rapid movement of the brain caused by a concussion can damage brain cells and create chemical changes within the brain, which may cause lasting neurological, cognitive, and behavioral symptoms. It is suggested that following a trauma, biomarkers can be released which may be useful in accurately diagnosing concussions. Potential biomarkers being studied include β-amyloid peptide 42 [Aβ42], S100 calcium-binding protein B [S100B], glial fibrillation acidic protein [GFAB], microtubule-associated protein 2 [MAP2], and 2’,3’-cyclic-nucleotide 3'- phosphodiesterase [CNPase]. This study focuses on evaluating AT knowledge and awareness of biomarkers, with sub-analyses evaluating ATs’ perception of current knowledge of biomarkers, and the …

Specific Barriers To Athletic Trainers’ Familiarity With And Attitudes Toward Concussion Biomarkers: A Phenomenological Qualitative Study, Te Mccormick, Jm Allen, Kgs Swindell, Tr Campbell

Clinical Practice in Athletic Training

Context: The diagnosis of concussions is largely reliant on subjective information in conjunction with objective measures that might not be the most valid and/or reliable. There is now new research being performed evaluating the use of biological indicators, or biomarkers in the diagnosis and management of concussion. However, the amount of knowledge about biomarkers among athletic trainers is unknown. Additionally, the barriers preventing ATs from using such biomarkers has yet to be studied. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine athletic trainers’ familiarity with and their attitude towards concussion biomarkers, while evaluating specific barriers preventing their use in …

90y Sir-Spheres Activity Measurement With New Siros D-Vial Delivery Kit, Benjamin P Lopez, S Cheenu Kappadath

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

A new 90Y SIR-Spheres delivery kit (SIROS D-vial and shield) has been introduced with a different physical form from the legacy V-Vial kit. Here, we establish the dose calibrator settings and exposure-rate-to-activity conversion factor to assay 90Y SIR-Spheres activity in the new SIROS kit.

Methods: Eight D-vials with initial 90Y activities from 1.2 to 6.6 GBq within acrylic shields were assayed with dose calibrators and exposure-rate meters until activities decayed to approximately 0.1 GBq. The dose calibrator settings resulting in the lowest median activity errors and the best-fit slope of exposure rate versus activity were identified.

Results: SIROS D-vial 90Y …

Targeting Igf2 To Reprogram The Tumor Microenvironment For Enhanced Viro-Immunotherapy, Min Hye Noh, Jin Muk Kang, Alexandra A Miller, Grace Nguyen, Minxin Huang, Ji Seon Shim, Alberto J Bueso-Perez, Sara A Murphy, Kimberly A Rivera-Caraballo, Yoshihiro Otani, Eunju Kim, Seung-Hee Yoo, Yuanqing Yan, Yeshavanth Banasavadi-Siddegowda, Hiroshi Nakashima, E Antonio Chiocca, Balveen Kaur, Zhongming Zhao, Tae Jin Lee, Ji Young Yoo

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: The FDA approval of oncolytic herpes simplex-1 virus (oHSV) therapy underscores its therapeutic promise and safety as a cancer immunotherapy. Despite this promise, the current efficacy of oHSV is significantly limited to a small subset of patients largely due to the resistance in tumor and tumor microenvironment (TME).

METHODS: RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) was used to identify molecular targets of oHSV resistance. Intracranial human and murine glioma or breast cancer brain metastasis (BCBM) tumor-bearing mouse models were employed to elucidate the mechanism underlying oHSV therapy-induced resistance.

RESULTS: Transcriptome analysis identified IGF2 as one of the top-secreted proteins following oHSV treatment. …

A Clinician’S Perspective On The New Organ Mesentery And Non-Vascular Mesenteropathies, Monjur Ahmed

Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology Faculty Papers

Mesentery was discovered as a new organ in 2017. It is a continuous membranous tissue from the duodenojejunal flexure to the anorectal junction. It has distinct anatomy, physiology, and disease states. Primary mesenteropathies include vascular and non-vascular diseases. Some of them are common, and some of them are rarely seen in clinical practice. Secondary mesenteropathies occur when infection or malignancy in another organ spreads to the mesentery. Each entity has specific diagnostic and treatment protocols. Increased awareness of different mesenteropathies and an understanding of their various presentations at different stages of life can help in early diagnosis and improved clinical …

Myc Induces Oncogenic Stress Through Rna Decay And Ribonucleotide Catabolism In Breast Cancer, Jitendra K Meena, Jarey H Wang, Nicholas J Neill, Dianne Keough, Nagireddy Putluri, Panagiotis Katsonis, Amanda M Koire, Hyemin Lee, Elizabeth A Bowling, Siddhartha Tyagi, Mayra Orellana, Rocio Dominguez-Vidaña, Heyuan Li, Kenneth Eagle, Charles Danan, Hsiang-Ching Chung, Andrew D Yang, William Wu, Sarah J Kurley, Brian M Ho, Joseph R Zoeller, Calla M Olson, Kristen L Meerbrey, Olivier Lichtarge, Arun Sreekumar, Clifford C Dacso, Luke W Guddat, Dominik Rejman, Dana Hocková, Zlatko Janeba, Lukas M Simon, Charles Y Lin, Monica C Pillon, Thomas F Westbrook

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Upregulation of MYC is a hallmark of cancer, wherein MYC drives oncogenic gene expression and elevates total RNA synthesis across cancer cell transcriptomes. Although this transcriptional anabolism fuels cancer growth and survival, the consequences and metabolic stresses induced by excess cellular RNA are poorly understood. Herein, we discover that RNA degradation and downstream ribonucleotide catabolism is a novel mechanism of MYC-induced cancer cell death. Combining genetics and metabolomics, we find that MYC increases RNA decay through the cytoplasmic exosome, resulting in the accumulation of cytotoxic RNA catabolites and reactive oxygen species. Notably, tumor-derived exosome mutations abrogate MYC-induced cell death, suggesting …

Crizotinib Enhances Parp Inhibitor Efficacy In Ovarian Cancer Cells And Xenograft Models By Inducing Autophagy, Janice M Santiago-O'Farrill, Alicia Blessing Bollu, Hailing Yang, Vivian Orellana, Marc Pina, Xudong Zhang, Jinsong Liu, Robert C Bast, Zhen Lu

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitors (PARPi) can encounter resistance through various mechanisms, limiting their effectiveness. Our recent research showed that PARPi alone can induce drug resistance by promoting autophagy. Moreover, our studies have revealed that anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) plays a role in regulating the survival of ovarian cancer cells undergoing autophagy. Here, we explored whether the ALK-inhibitor crizotinib could enhance the efficacy of PARPi by targeting drug-induced autophagic ovarian cancer cell and xenograft models. Our investigation demonstrates that crizotinib enhances the anti-tumor activity of PARPi across multiple ovarian cancer cells. Combination therapy with crizotinib and olaparib reduced cell viability and …

Prospects And Challenges Of Tissue-Derived Extracellular Vesicles, Justin C Lee, Roslyn M Ray, Tristan A Scott

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are considered a vital component of cell-to-cell communication and represent a new frontier in diagnostics and a means to identify pathways for therapeutic intervention. Recently, studies have revealed the importance of tissue-derived EVs (Ti-EVs), which are EVs present in the interstitial spaces between cells, as they better represent the underlying physiology of complex, multicellular tissue microenvironments in biology and disease. EVs are native, lipid bilayer membraned nano-sized particles produced by all cells that are packaged with varied functional biomolecules including proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids. They are implicated in short- and long-range cellular communication and may elicit …

Parasitic Contamination Of Soil In The Southern United States, Christine Crudo Blackburn, Sally Mingshuang Yan, David Mccormick, Lauren Nicholas Herrera, Roumen Borilov Iordanov, Mark Daniel Bailey, Maria Elena Bottazzi, Peter J Hotez, Rojelio Mejia

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Parasites are generally associated with lower income countries in tropical and subtropical areas. Still, they are also prevalent in low-income communities in the southern United States. Studies characterizing the epidemiology of parasites in the United States are limited, resulting in little comprehensive understanding of the problem. This study investigated the environmental contamination of parasites in the southern United States by determining each parasite's contamination rate and burden in five low-income communities. A total of 499 soil samples of approximately 50 g were collected from public parks and private residences in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Texas. A technique using …

Tomivosertib Reduces Ectopic Activity In Dorsal Root Ganglion Neurons From Patients With Radiculopathy, Yan Li, Megan L Uhelski, Robert Y North, Juliet M Mwirigi, Claudio E Tatsui, Kathleen E Mcdonough, Juan P Cata, German Corrales, Greg Dussor, Theodore J Price, Patrick M Dougherty

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Spontaneous activity in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons is a key driver of neuropathic pain in patients suffering from this largely untreated disease. While many intracellular signalling mechanisms have been examined in preclinical models that drive spontaneous activity, none have been tested directly on spontaneously active human nociceptors.

Using cultured DRG neurons recovered during thoracic vertebrectomy surgeries, we showed that inhibition of mitogen-activated protein kinase interacting kinase (MNK) with tomivosertib (eFT508, 25 nM) reversibly suppresses spontaneous activity in human sensory neurons that are likely nociceptors based on size and action potential characteristics associated with painful dermatomes within minutes of treatment. …

Pancreatic Epithelial Il17/Il17ra Signaling Drives B7-H4 Expression To Promote Tumorigenesis, Susana Castro-Pando, Rian M Howell, Le Li, Marilina Mascaro, Erika Y Faraoni, Olivereen Le Roux, David Romanin, Virginia Tahan, Erick Riquelme, Yu Zhang, Jay K Kolls, James P Allison, Guillermina Lozano, Seyed J Moghaddam, Florencia Mcallister

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

IL17 is required for the initiation and progression of pancreatic cancer, particularly in the context of inflammation, as previously shown by genetic and pharmacological approaches. However, the cellular compartment and downstream molecular mediators of IL17-mediated pancreatic tumorigenesis have not been fully identified. This study examined the cellular compartment required by generating transgenic animals with IL17 receptor A (IL17RA), which was genetically deleted from either the pancreatic epithelial compartment or the hematopoietic compartment via generation of IL17RA-deficient (IL17-RA-/-) bone marrow chimeras, in the context of embryonically activated or inducible Kras. Deletion of IL17RA from the pancreatic epithelial compartment, but not from …

Yeast Endog Prevents Genome Instability By Degrading Extranuclear Dna Species, Yang Yu, Xin Wang, Jordan Fox, Ruofan Yu, Pilendra Thakre, Brenna Mccauley, Nicolas Nikoloutsos, Yang Yu, Qian Li, P J Hastings, Weiwei Dang, Kaifu Chen, Grzegorz Ira

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

In metazoans mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) or retrotransposon cDNA released to cytoplasm are degraded by nucleases to prevent sterile inflammation. It remains unknown whether degradation of these DNA also prevents nuclear genome instability. We used an amplicon sequencing-based method in yeast enabling analysis of millions of DSB repair products. In non-dividing stationary phase cells, Pol4-mediated non-homologous end-joining increases, resulting in frequent insertions of 1-3 nucleotides, and insertions of mtDNA (NUMTs) or retrotransposon cDNA. Yeast EndoG (Nuc1) nuclease limits insertion of cDNA and transfer of very long mtDNA ( >10 kb) to the nucleus, where it forms unstable circles, while promoting the …

Investigation Of Change And Stability In Medical Students’ Ophthalmology Specialty Intention From Matriculation To Graduation: Gender And Racial/Ethnic Differences, Douglas Grbic

Journal of Academic Ophthalmology

Purpose

Using data from a national sample of graduating medical students, this study describes the patterns of change and stability in ophthalmology intentions relative to various other specialties and explains how those patterns vary by the intersection of gender and race/ethnicity.

Method

National survey data from MD-granting medical school graduates who matriculated between 2013-2014 and 2018-2019 and graduated by 2021-2022 were examined. The outcome consisted of four groups based on ophthalmology specialty intention at matriculation and graduation: non-ophthalmology, switched out, switched to, and reaffirmation. Percentages for “reaffirmation” and “switched to” were each compared to the median values for 13 major …

Microrna-532-3p Modulates Colorectal Cancer Cell Proliferation And Invasion Via Suppression Of Foxm1, Ketakee Mahajan, Ani V. Das, Suresh K. Alahari, Ramesh Pothuraju, S. Asha Nair

School of Graduate Studies Faculty Publications

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a heterogeneous disease and classified into various subtypes, among which transcriptional alterations result in CRC progression, metastasis, and drug resistance. Forkhead-box M1 (FOXM1) is a proliferation-associated transcription factor which is overexpressed in CRC and the mechanisms of FOXM1 regulation have been under investigation. Previously, we showed that FOXM1 binds to promoters of certain microRNAs. Database mining led to several microRNAs that might interact with FOXM1 3’UTR. The interactions between shortlisted microRNAs and FOXM1 3’UTR were quantitated by a dual-luciferase reporter assay. MicroRNA-532-3p interacted with the 3’UTR of the FOXM1 mRNA transcript most efficiently. MicroRNA-532-3p was ectopically …

Scintruler: Guiding The Integration Of Multiple Single-Cell Rna-Seq Datasets With A Novel Statistical Metric, Yue Lyu, Steven H Lin, Hao Wu, Ziyi Li

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Motivation: The growing number of single-cell RNA-seq (scRNA-seq) studies highlights the potential benefits of integrating multiple datasets, such as augmenting sample sizes and enhancing analytical robustness. Inherent diversity and batch discrepancies within samples or across studies continue to pose significant challenges for computational analyses. Questions persist in practice, lacking definitive answers: Should we use a specific integration method or opt for simply merging the datasets during joint analysis? Among all the existing data integration methods, which one is more suitable in specific scenarios?

Result: To fill the gap, we introduce SCIntRuler, a novel statistical metric for guiding the integration of …

Emerging Special Pathogen C4i: Readiness Is Achieved Through Commitment, Collaboration, Coordination, Cooperation, And Innovation, Darrell Ruby, Christa Arguinchona, Lindsey Bandow, David Brett-Major, Barb Dunham, Heather M. Flavell, Jake Lacore, James Lawler, Patti Lord, Brian Rogge, Mark Vazquez, Jana Broadhurst

Conferences

High Consequence Infectious Disease preparedness in Alaska, a partnership. This presentation will detail how civilian and military stakeholders worked together to enhance readiness for management of an emerged special pathogen. Providence, as the Region 10 Emerging Special Pathogen Treatment Center (RESPTC), leveraged regional relationships and partnered with the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) to integrate frontline special pathogen preparedness training in Alaska with an operational exercise to test interoperability of local high consequence infection prevention and control and case management workflows with the Isolation System for Treatment and Agile Response for High-Risk Infections (ISTARI). Providence led detailed frontline training …

Special Considerations For The Child With Obesity: An Obesity Medicine Association (Oma) Clinical Practice Statement (Cps) 2024., Suzanne Cuda, Marisa Censani, Valerie O'Hara, Jennifer Paisley, Roohi Kharofa, Rushika Conroy, Brooke Sweeney, Cristina Fernandez Md, Meredith Dreyer, Nancy T. Browne

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

BACKGROUND: This Obesity Medicine Association (OMA) Clinical Practice Statement (CPS) details assessment and management of the child with overweight or obesity. The term "child" is defined as the child between 2 and 12 years of age. Because children are in a continual state of development during this age range, we will specify when our discussion applies to subsets within this age range. For the purposes of this CPS, we will use the following definitions: overweight in the child is a body mass index (BMI) ≥ 85th andpercentile, obesity in the child is a BMI ≥95th percentile, and severe obesity is …

Annual Adherence Of Asian American Individuals In A Lung Cancer Screening Program Compared With Other Racial Groups, Benjamin Tasevac, Christine S. Shusted, Brooke Ruane, Emily Muse, Olugbenga Okusanya, Tyler Grenda, Nathaniel R. Evans, Gregory C. Kane, Kuang-Yi Wen, Hee-Soon Juon, Julie Barta

Department of Medicine Faculty Papers

Racial differences in lung cancer screening (LCS) eligibility and outcomes persist despite recent expansion of the US Preventive Services Task Force criteria and greater recognition of screening disparities. Research Question: What is the annual screening adherence rate for US Preventive Services Task Force-eligible Asian American individuals receiving LCS through a centralized screening program? Study Design and Methods: Individuals screened through a centralized LCS program were identified retrospectively using the Jefferson LCS Program Registry. Sociodemographic and clinical data were extracted from the prospectively maintained registry. Frequency statistics were compared by race including among Asian American subgroups, and multivariate logistic regression was …