Digital Commons Network^™

The Spectrum And Severity Of Bleeding In Adolescents With Low Von Willebrand Factor-Associated Heavy Menstrual Bleeding., Lakshmi Srivaths, Charles G. Minard, Sarah H. O'Brien, Allison P Wheeler, Eric Mullins, Mukta Sharma, Robert Sidonio, Shilpa Jain, Ayesha Zia, Margaret V. Ragni, Roshni Kulkarni, Jennifer E. Dietrich, Peter A. Kouides

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Low von Willebrand factor (VWF) in adults is associated with significant bleeding, most notably heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB) and postpartum hemorrhage, although this has not been characterized in adolescents. The objectives of this analysis of a multicenter single arm observational cohort study in adolescents with low VWF-associated HMB were to describe the bleeding phenotype, HMB severity, and related complications. Eligibility criteria included postmenarchal females(Pictorial Blood Assessment Chart [PBAC] score >100) and low VWF (2 values of VWF activity ≥30 and ≤50 IU/dL). Patients diagnosed with other bleeding disorders were ineligible. Clinical phenotype data, including PBAC and Bleeding Assessment Tool (BAT) …

Drug-Resistant Epilepsy In Children With Juvenile Huntington's Disease: A Challenging Case And Brief Review, Abdulhafeez Khair, Jessica Kabrt, Stephen Falchek

Department of Neurology Faculty Papers

Huntington's Disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disorder with a progressive decline in cognitive, motor, and psychological function. Chorea tends to be the most common associated movement disorder, although other variants of several abnormal movements are also seen. Adult-onset HD is the most common subtype. Juvenile Huntington's disease (JHD) accounts for 5%-10% of all HD cases and presents as a rapidly progressive disorder with a multitude of characteristics. We report on a 9-year-old male with JHD who presented with refractory epilepsy. His EEG findings, seizure type, and antiepileptic drug usage are discussed with a brief review of the currently …

Reduced Intensity Conditioning For Acute Myeloid Leukemia Using Melphalan- Vs Busulfan-Based Regimens: A Cibmtr Report, Zheng Zhou, Rajneesh Nath, Jan Cerny, Hai-Lin Wang, Mei-Jie Zhang, Hisham Abdel-Azim, Vaibhav Agrawal, Gulrayz Ahmed, A Samer Al-Homsi, Mahmoud Aljurf, Hassan B Alkhateeb, Amer Assal, Ulrike Bacher, Ashish Bajel, Qaiser Bashir, Minocher Battiwalla, Vijaya Raj Bhatt, Michael Byrne, Jean-Yves Cahn, Mitchell Cairo, Hannah Choe, Edward Copelan, Corey Cutler, Moussab B Damlaj, Zachariah Defilipp, Marcos De Lima, Miguel Angel Diaz, Nosha Farhadfar, James Foran, César O Freytes, Aaron T Gerds, Usama Gergis, Michael R Grunwald, Zartash Gul, Mehdi Hamadani, Shahrukh Hashmi, Mark Hertzberg, Gerhard C Hildebrandt, Nasheed Hossain, Yoshihiro Inamoto, Luis Isola, Tania Jain, Rammurti T Kamble, Muhammad Waqas Khan, Mohamed A Kharfan-Dabaja, Partow Kebriaei, Natasha Kekre, Nandita Khera, Hillard M Lazarus, Jane L Liesveld, Mark Litzow, Hongtao Liu, David I Marks, Rodrigo Martino, Vikram Mathews, Asmita Mishra, Hemant S Murthy, Arnon Nagler, Ryotaro Nakamura, Sunita Nathan, Taiga Nishihori, Rebecca Olin, Richard F Olsson, Neil Palmisiano, Sagar S Patel, Mrinal M Patnaik, Attaphol Pawarode, Miguel-Angel Perales, Ioannis Politikos, Uday Popat, David Rizzieri, Brenda M Sandmaier, Bipin N Savani, Sachiko Seo, Nirav N Shah, Geoffrey L Uy, David Valcárcel, Leo F Verdonck, Edmund K Waller, Youjin Wang, Daniel Weisdorf, Baldeep Wirk, Eric Wong, Jean A Yared, Wael Saber

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

There is a lack of large comparative study on the outcomes of reduced intensity conditioning (RIC) in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) transplantation using fludarabine/busulfan (FB) and fludarabine/melphalan (FM) regimens. Adult AML patients from Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research who received first RIC allo-transplant between 2001 and 2015 were studied. Patients were excluded if they received cord blood or identical twin transplant, total body irradiation in conditioning, or graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) prophylaxis with in vitro T-cell depletion. Primary outcome was overall survival (OS), secondary end points were leukemia-free survival (LFS), nonrelapse mortality (NRM), relapse, and GVHD. Multivariate survival …

Insufficient Sun Exposure Has Become A Real Public Health Problem, Lars Alfredsson, Bruce K Armstrong, D. Allan Butterfield, Rajiv Chowdhury, Frank R. De Gruijl, Martin Feelisch, Cedric F. Garland, Prue H. Hart, David G. Hoel, Ramune Jacobsen, Pelle G. Lindqvist, David J. Llewellyn, Henning Tiemeier, Richard B. Weller, Antony R. Young

Chemistry Faculty Publications

This article aims to alert the medical community and public health authorities to accumulating evidence on health benefits from sun exposure, which suggests that insufficient sun exposure is a significant public health problem. Studies in the past decade indicate that insufficient sun exposure may be responsible for 340,000 deaths in the United States and 480,000 deaths in Europe per year, and an increased incidence of breast cancer, colorectal cancer, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease, autism, asthma, type 1 diabetes and myopia. Vitamin D has long been considered the principal mediator of beneficial effects of sun exposure. …

Assessment And Treatment Of Down Syndrome-Associated Arthritis: A Survey Of Pediatric Rheumatologists., Anna Nicek, Nasreen Talib, Daniel Lovell, Chelsey Smith, Mara L. Becker, Jordan T. Jones

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Background: Inflammatory arthritis in children with Down syndrome (DS) was first described in 1984 and is now termed Down syndrome-associated arthritis (DA). Studies have shown that DA is under-recognized with a 19-month average delay in diagnosis. Additionally, most patients present with polyarticular, rheumatoid factor (RF) and anti-nuclear antibody (ANA) negative disease. Current therapies for juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) have been used, but appear to be poorly tolerated, more toxic and less effective in patients with DA. There is currently no standardized approach to the assessment or management of DA. The objective of this study was to describe provider perspectives toward …

Inter-Tumor Heterogeneity-Melanomas Respond Differently To Gm-Csf-Mediated Activation., Adi Moshe, Sivan Izraely, Orit Sagi-Assif, Sapir Malka, Shlomit Ben-Menachem, Tsipi Meshel, Metsada Pasmanik-Chor, Dave Hoon, Isaac P Witz

Articles, Abstracts, and Reports

Granulocyte-monocyte colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) is used as an adjuvant in various clinical and preclinical studies with contradictory results. These were attributed to opposing effects of GM-CSF on the immune or myeloid systems of the treated patients or to lack of optimal dosing regimens. The results of the present study point to inter-tumor heterogeneity as a possible mechanism accounting for the contrasting responses to GM-CSF incorporating therapies. Employing xenograft models of human melanomas in nude mice developed in our lab, we detected differential functional responses of melanomas from different patients to GM-CSF both in vitro as well as in vivo. …

Endocrine Significance Of Sars-Cov-2'S Reliance On Ace2, Eric Lazartigues, Mirza Muhammad Fahd Qadir, Franck Mauvais-Jarvis

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

The current COVID-19 pandemic is the most disruptive event in the past 50 years, with a global impact on health care and world economies. It is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), a coronavirus that uses angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) as an entry point to the cells. ACE2 is a transmembrane carboxypeptidase and member of the renin-angiotensin system. This mini-review summarizes the main findings regarding ACE2 expression and function in endocrine tissues. We discuss rapidly evolving knowledge on the potential role of ACE2 and SARS coronaviruses in endocrinology and the development of diabetes mellitus, hypogonadism, and pituitary and …

Catastrophic Cardiac Complications Of Takayasu's Arteritis., Sara Godil Md, Bilal Saqi Md, Kareem Godil Md, Syed Rafay Ali Sabzwari, Yasotha Rajeswaran Md

Department of Medicine

Takayasu's arteritis (TA) causes inflammation and necrosis of vessel walls, leading to aneurysm formation, extensive coronary damage and valvular abnormalities. We review a case of recurrent coronary, aortic and mitral valve involvement in a patient with TA and discuss the various treatment options available for such patients.

Inhibition Of Hdac1/2 Along With Trap1 Causes Synthetic Lethality In Glioblastoma Model Systems, Trang T. T. Nguyen, Yiru Zhang, Enyuan Shang, Chang Shu, Catarina M. Quinzii, Mike-Andrew Westhoff, Georg Karpel-Massler, Markus D. Siegelin

Publications and Research

The heterogeneity of glioblastomas, the most common primary malignant brain tumor, remains a significant challenge for the treatment of these devastating tumors. Therefore, novel combination treatments are warranted. Here, we showed that the combined inhibition of TRAP1 by gamitrinib and histone deacetylases (HDAC1/HDAC2) through romidepsin or panobinostat caused synergistic growth reduction of established and patient-derived xenograft (PDX) glioblastoma cells. This was accompanied by enhanced cell death with features of apoptosis and activation of caspases. The combination treatment modulated the levels of pro- and anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 family members, including BIM and Noxa, Mcl-1, Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL. Silencing of Noxa, BAK and …

Mapping Gadolinium Contrast In A Complex Ionic And Photosynthesis Environment Of Pineapple By Near-Infrared And X-Ray Imaging, Subhendra Sarkar, Zoya Vinokur, Chen Xu, Tetiana Soloviova, Amina Shahbaz, Aldona Gjoni

Publications and Research

This work explores the diffusivity of a lanthanide complex, Eovist (Gadolinium-Ethoxy Benzyl Diethylenetriamine pentaacetate) that is stable in neutral media but is not in acidic environment. In the current work an acidic fruit model like pineapple that is rich in transition metals was used and a possible transmetallation reaction among Eovist and transition metal complexes was tested using X-ray imaging. Another goal of this work was to perturb the usual and the unusual photosynthesis systems that pineapple has maintained for millions of years during the evolution of circadian genes for efficient water conservation by dark photosynthesis. To detect such photosynthesis …

Perfusion-Guided Sonopermeation Of Neuroblastoma: A Novel Strategy For Monitoring And Predicting Liposomal Doxorubicin Uptake, Aditi Bellary, Arelly Villarreal, Rojin Eslami, Quincy J Undseth, Bianca Lec, Ann M Defnet, Naina Bagrodia, Jessica J Kandel, Mark A Borden, Sumbul Shaikh, Rajiv Chopra, Theodore W Laetsch, Lauren J. Delaney, Colette Shaw, Md, John R. Eisenbrey, Sonia L Hernandez, Shashank R Sirsi

Department of Radiology Faculty Papers

Neuroblastoma (NB) is the most common extracranial solid tumor in infants and children, and imposes significant morbidity and mortality in this population. The aggressive chemoradiotherapy required to treat high-risk NB results in survival of less than 50%, yet is associated with significant long-term adverse effects in survivors. Boosting efficacy and reducing morbidity are therefore key goals of treatment for affected children. We hypothesize that these may be achieved by developing strategies that both focus and limit toxic therapies to the region of the tumor. One such strategy is the use of targeted image-guided drug delivery (IGDD), which is growing in …

Facts About Mold: An Aiha Perspective For Ieq Investigators, Physicians, And Engineers, Cheri Marcham

Publications

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Institute of Medicine of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI), Health Canada, and the World Health Organization all agree that living or working in a building with mold-damaged building materials results in increased risk of respiratory diseases such as asthma.

The American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) has worked to translate the advice from these public health and medical authorities into state-of-the-art inspection and sampling protocols. These protocols are captured in AIHA’s Recognition, Evaluation and Control of Indoor Mold publication, also known …

A Prospective Study To Validate The Functional Assessment Of Cancer Therapy (Fact) For Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Inhibitor (Egfri)-Induced Dermatologic Toxicities Fact-Egfri 18 Questionnaire: Swog S1013, Siu Fun Wong, Joseph M. Unger, James L. Wade Iii, Lynne I. Wagner, Mario E. Lacouture, Keisha C. Humphries, Anna Moseley, Kathryn Arnold, Mario R. Velasco Jr., Justin D. Floyd, Benjamin T. Esparaz, Afsaneh Barzi, Heinz-Josef Lenz, Marianna Koczywas, Shaker Dakhil, Gary V. Burton, Michael J. Fisch, N. Lynn Henry, Dawn L. Hershman, Carol M. Moinpour

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Background

Papulopustular rash is a common class effect of epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitors (EGFRI) that can affect patients’ health-related quality of life and cause disruptions to treatment. SWOG S1013 (NCT01416688) is a multi-center study designed to validate the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy EGFRI 18 (FACT-EGFRI 18) using 7-items from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) version 4.0 to assess EGFRI-induced skin-related toxicities and their impact on functional status.

Methods

Patients with a diagnosis of colorectal or lung cancer to receive EGFRI therapies for at least 6 weeks were enrolled. Patient self-assessments using …

Inflammatory Pathway Analytes Predicting Rapid Cognitive Decline In Mci Stage Of Alzheimer’S Disease, Jagan A. Pillai, Gurkan Bebek, Lynn M. Bekris, Aaron Bonner-Jackson, Stephen M. Rao, Mark R. Chance, James B. Leverenz

Faculty Scholarship

Objective: To determine the inflammatory analytes that predict clinical progression and evaluate their performance against biomarkers of neurodegeneration. Methods: A longitudinal study of MCI-AD patients in a Discovery cohort over 15 months, with replication in the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) MCI cohort over 36 months. Fifty-three inflammatory analytes were measured in the CSF and plasma with a RBM multiplex analyte platform. Inflammatory analytes that predict clinical progression on Clinical Dementia Rating Scale-Sum of Boxes (CDR-SB) and Mini Mental State Exam scores were assessed in multivariate regression models. To provide context, key analyte results in ADNI were compared against biomarkers …

Metformin Enhances Autophagy And Normalizes Mitochondrial Function To Alleviate Aging-Associated Inflammation, Leena P Bharath, Madhur Agrawal, Grace Mccambridge, Dequina A Nicholas, Hatice Hasturk, Jing Liu, Kai Jiang, Rui Liu, Zhenheng Guo, Jude Deeney, Caroline M Apovian, Jennifer Snyder-Cappione, Gregory S Hawk, Rebecca M Fleeman, Riley M F Pihl, Katherine Thompson, Anna C Belkina, Licong Cui, Elizabeth A Proctor, Philip A Kern, Barbara S Nikolajczyk

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Age is a non-modifiable risk factor for the inflammation that underlies age-associated diseases; thus, anti-inflammaging drugs hold promise for increasing health span. Cytokine profiling and bioinformatic analyses showed that Th17 cytokine production differentiates CD4+ T cells from lean, normoglycemic older and younger subjects, and mimics a diabetes-associated Th17 profile. T cells from older compared to younger subjects also had defects in autophagy and mitochondrial bioenergetics that associate with redox imbalance. Metformin ameliorated the Th17 inflammaging profile by increasing autophagy and improving mitochondrial bioenergetics. By contrast, autophagy-targeting siRNA disrupted redox balance in T cells from young subjects and activated the Th17 …

Foundational Research And Nih Funding Enabling Emergency Use Authorization Of Remdesivir For Covid-19, Ekaterina Galkina Cleary, Matthew J. Jackson, Zoë Folchman-Wagner, Fred D. Ledley

Natural & Applied Sciences Faculty Publications

Emergency Use Authorization for remdesivir months after discovery of COVID-19 is unprecedented. Typically, decades of research and public-sector funding are required to establish the mature body of foundational research requisite for efficient, targeted drug discovery and development. This work quantifies the body of research related to remdesivir’s biological target, RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp), or parent chemical structure, nucleoside analogs (NcAn), through 2019, as well as NIH funding for this research 2000–2019. There were 6,567 RdRp-related publications in PubMed, including 1,263 with NIH support, and 11,073 NcAn-related publications, including 2,319 with NIH support. NIH support for RdRp research comprised 2,203 Project …

Insulin-Like Growth Factor 2 Mrna-Binding Protein 3 Modulates Aggressiveness Of Ewing Sarcoma By Regulating The Cd164-Cxcr4 Axis, Caterina Mancarella, Giulia Caldoni, Irene Ribolsi, Alessandro Parra, Maria Cristina Manara, Arthur M Mercurio, Andrea Morrione, Katia Scotlandi

Department of Pathology, Anatomy, and Cell Biology Faculty Papers

Ewing sarcoma (EWS) is the second most common bone and soft tissue-associated malignancy in children and young adults. It is driven by the fusion oncogene EWS/FLI1 and characterized by rapid growth and early metastasis. We have previously discovered that the mRNA binding protein IGF2BP3 constitutes an important biomarker for EWS as high expression of IGF2BP3 in primary tumors predicts poor prognosis of EWS patients. We additionally demonstrated that IGF2BP3 enhances anchorage-independent growth and migration of EWS cells suggesting that IGF2BP3 might work as molecular driver and predictor of EWS progression. The aim of this study was to further define the …

A Comparative Study Of Sleep And Diurnal Patterns In House Mouse (Mus Musculus) And Spiny Mouse (Acomys Cahirinus), Chanung Wang, Lauren E. Guerriero, Dillon M. Huffman, Asma'a A. Ajwad, Trae C. Brooks, Sridhar Sunderam, Ashley W. Seifert, Bruce F. O'Hara

Biomedical Engineering Faculty Publications

Most published sleep studies use three species: human, house mouse, or Norway rat. The degree to which data from these species captures variability in mammalian sleep remains unclear. To gain insight into mammalian sleep diversity, we examined sleep architecture in the spiny basal murid rodent Acomys cahirinus. First, we used a piezoelectric system validated for Mus musculus to monitor sleep in both species. We also included wild M. musculus to control for alterations generated by laboratory-reared conditions for M. musculus. Using this comparative framework, we found that A. cahirinus, lab M. musculus, and wild M. musculus were …

Polyspike Ictal-Onset Absence Seizures In A Pediatric Patient With Down Syndrome., Sherouk A. Abdelmoity, Mohammed Ilyas

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Polyspike ictal-onset absence seizure has been reported in adult patients with genetic generalized epilepsy but is a novel pattern in the pediatric population. Absence seizures are usually associated with generalized spike-and-wave on EEG. However, we present the case of a 10-year-old girl with Down syndrome and developmental delays who presented with atypical absence seizure associated with an unusual electroencephalographic (EEG) pattern of polyspike ictal-onset. Recognition of this ictal pattern in the pediatric population, as previously reported in adult populations, is important as it can have therapeutic and prognostic implications.

Convalescent Plasma In Covid-19, Ranjit S. Banwait, Joshua K. Salabei, Troy J. Fishman, Uma G. Iyer

HCA Healthcare Journal of Medicine

The recent pandemic of SARS-CoV-2, which causes novel coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), has had devastating impact on a global and national scale. In order to overcome this outbreak it is imperative we find treatments that are safe and effective. To date, no definitive treatment is available that can curtail the spread of this viral syndrome. Convalescent plasma (CP) is one such option that has repeatedly served as an important tool in treatment of various bacterial and viral infections, especially in the setting of no specific antimicrobial or vaccination against an infectious disease. Herein, we review the history of CP, prior …

A Primer On Cognitive Errors Illustrated Through The Lens Of A Neurosurgical Practice, Jeffrey Evan Florman, Lisa Almeder, Robert Trowbridge

Journal of Maine Medical Center

Problem Statement:

Diagnostic error is often attributed to cognitive errors, including biased thinking patterns, rather than knowledge or data limitations, and education on cognitive bias deserves review in all spheres of practice.

Background:

The cognitive biases of practitioners create an inherent fallibility in recognizing and treating medical conditions. Awareness of cognitive errors is valuable for mitigating risk of diagnostic error.

The impact of cognitive error is substantial in the management of neurosurgically relevant disease. Remarkably broad differential diagnoses often accompany neurologic symptoms. Both focal and non-focal symptoms lend themselves to diagnostic inertia that contributes to errors. Further, initial diagnostic direction …

A Comparison Efficacy Study Of Commercial Nasopharyngeal Swabs Versus A Novel 3d Printed Swab For The Detection Of Sars-Cov-2, Forest W. Arnold, Gerald Grant, Phillip F. Bressoud, Stephen P. Furmanek, Donghoon Chung, Nadine Sbaih, Dipan Karmali, Meredith Cahill, George Pantalos

The University of Louisville Journal of Respiratory Infections

Introduction: The large volume of diagnostic tests required by the response to the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a shortage of commercial nasopharyngeal swabs. In an effort to alleviate the shortage, swabs created by 3D printing may be a solution.

Methods: We designed and produced 3D printed swabs and sought to compare their ability to detect SARS-CoV-2 in patients admitted for COVID-19 or who were suspected of having COVID-19.

Results: A total of 30 patients were swabbed with a commercial and a 3D printed swab. Results matched in 27 of 30 patients (90%). Two patients were discordant with a positive commercial …

Multi-Omics: Differential Expression Of Ifn-Γ Results In Distinctive Mechanistic Features Linking Chronic Inflammation, Gut Dysbiosis, And Autoimmune Diseases, Heekyong R. Bae, Patrick S. C. Leung, Deborah L. Hodge, John M. Fenimore, Seon Min Jeon, Vishal Thovarai, Amiran Dzutsev, Andrew A. Welcher, Michael Boedigheimer, Michael A. Damore, Myung Sook Choi, Richard A. Fravell, Giorgio Trinchieri, M. Eric Gershwin, Howard A. Young

United States Public Health Resources

Low grade, chronic inflammation is a critical risk factor for immunologic dysfunction including autoimmune diseases. However, the multiplicity of complex mechanisms and lack of relevant murine models limit our understanding of the precise role of chronic inflammation. To address these hurdles, we took advantage of multi-omics data and a unique murine model with a low but chronic expression of IFN-γ, generated by replacement of the AU-rich element (ARE) in the 3’ UTR region of IFN-γ mRNA with random nucleotides. Herein, we demonstrate that low but differential expression of IFN-γ in mice by homozygous or heterozygous ARE replacement triggers distinctive gut …

Defining A Research Agenda For Layperson Prehospital Hemorrhage Control: A Consensus Statement, Eric Goralnic, Chibuike Ezeib, Muhammad Ali Chaudhary, Justin Mccarty, Juan P. Herrera-Escobar, Tomas Andriotti, Elzerie De Jager, Daniel Ospina-Delgado, Craig Goolsby, Adil H. Haider

Section of General Surgery

Importance: Trauma is the leading cause of death for US individuals younger than 45 years, and uncontrolled hemorrhage is a major cause of trauma mortality. The US military's medical advancements in the field of prehospital hemorrhage control have reduced battlefield mortality by 44%. However, despite support from many national health care organizations, no integrated approach to research has been made regarding implementation, epidemiology, education, and logistics of prehospital hemorrhage control by layperson immediate responders in the civilian sector.
Objective: To create a national research agenda to help guide future work for prehospital hemorrhage control by laypersons.
Evidence review: The 2-day, …

A Novel Indication For Oocyte Cryopreservation Prior To Autologous Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation For Refractory Multiple Sclerosis, Neal R. Trulock, Luke Ying, Edward Zbella, Mark Sanchez

West Florida Division GME Research Day 2020

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an immune mediated inflammatory diseases of the central nervous system characterized by focal ovoid like lesions of demyelination seen on MRI(1,2). The etiology of MS is unknown, however inflammation followed by CNS demyelination and axonal degeneration are known to be part of the pathologic processes that lead to the disease (1). The mean age of onset of MS is 28-31 years old and tends to affect women more often then men with a ratio of 2.3:1 (3,4) . Other risk factors associated with MS include vitamin D deficiency, smoking, and certain viruses (5). The pattern of …

H2s Donor Gyy4137 Ameliorates Paclitaxel-Induced Neuropathic Pain In Mice, Bedoor Qabazard, Willias Masocha, Maitham Khajah, Philip Adebayo

Faculty of Health Sciences, East Africa

Paclitaxel-induced neuropathic pain (PINP) is a dose-limiting side effect that largely affects the patient’s quality of life and may limit the use of the drug as a chemotherapeutic agent for treating metastatic breast cancer and other solid tumors. Recently, a putative role for the gaseous mediator hydrogen sulfide (H2S) in nociception modulation has been suggested. The aim of the present study was to investigate the potential efficacy of the slow release H2S donor GYY4137 to alleviate and prevent PINP. Female BALB/c mice that were intraperitoneally (i.p.) injected with paclitaxel (2 mg/kg) for 5 consecutive days developed thermal hyperalgesia, cold and …

Association Of Circulatory Kisspeptin Levels And Hormonal Interplay With Male Infertility: A Cross-Sectional Study In Karachi, Pakistan, Rehana Rehman, Kaleem Ahmed, Nida Zahid, Faiza Alam, Syeda Sadia Fatima

Department of Biological & Biomedical Sciences

Objectives: To determine the impact of Kisspeptin on male reproductive axis in a selected urban population.
Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted at the Sindh Institute of Reproductive Medicine in collaboration with Aga Khan University, Karachi, from July, 2017, to February, 2018, and comprised infertile males with abnormal sperm parameters who were placed in Group A and fertile males with normal sperm parameters placed in Group B. Serum samples were estimated for Kisspeptin, follicle stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, testosterone and sex hormone-binding globulin using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Data was analysed using SPSS 22.
Results: Of the 313 male subjects, 178(57%) …

A Phase Ii Single-Arm Study Of Pembrolizumab With Enzalutamide In Men With Metastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer Progressing On Enzalutamide Alone., Julie N Graff, Tomasz M Beer, Joshi J Alumkal, Rachel E Slottke, William L. Redmond, George V Thomas, Reid F Thompson, Mary A Wood, Yoshinobu Koguchi, Yiyi Chen, Emile Latour, Raymond C Bergan, Charles G Drake, Amy E Moran

Articles, Abstracts, and Reports

BACKGROUND: Checkpoint inhibitors can induce profound anticancer responses, but programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1) inhibition monotherapy has shown minimal activity in prostate cancer. A published report showed that men with prostate cancer who were resistant to the second-generation androgen receptor inhibitor enzalutamide had increased programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression on circulating antigen-presenting cells. We hypothesized that the addition of PD-1 inhibition in these patients could induce a meaningful cancer response.

METHODS: We evaluated enzalutamide plus the PD-1 inhibitor pembrolizumab in a single-arm phase II study of 28 men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mprogressing on enzalutamide alone. Pembrolizumab 200 mg …

Characterization Of Patients With Axial Spondyloarthritis By Enthesitis Presence: Data From The Corrona Psoriatic Arthritis/Spondyloarthritis Registry., Philip Mease, Mei Liu, Sabrina Rebello, Winnie Hua, Robert R Mclean, Esther Yi, Yujin Park, Alexis Ogdie

Articles, Abstracts, and Reports

OBJECTIVE: To compare the characteristics of patients with axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) who had enthesitis versus those without enthesitis.

METHODS: This study included adult patients with axSpA enrolled in the Corrona Psoriatic Arthritis/Spondyloarthritis Registry (March 2013 to August 2018). Enthesitis was assessed at enrollment via the Spondyloarthritis Research Consortium of Canada Enthesitis Index. Characteristics were compared between patients with and without enthesitis using t tests or Wilcoxon rank-sum tests for continuous variables and χ

RESULTS: Of 477 patients with axSpA, 121 (25.4%) had enthesitis (mean, 3.9 sites) at enrollment. Higher proportions of patients with enthesitis were female and had nonradiographic axSpA …

A Comparison Between Rectal Dose In Prostate Radiotherapy Patients Treated With Spaceoar Hydrogel Present Versus Patients Treated Without Spaceoar Hydrogel., David Desano

Masters Projects

Introduction: External beam radiation therapy is a common treatment option for prostate cancer patients with localized disease. Radiation-induced side effects associated with the rectum can impact a patient’s ability to complete treatment or affect the quality of life years after radiation treatment. Spaceoar hydrogel has been developed to reduce radiation dose to nearby pelvis structures, and therefore decreasing potential side effects.

Methods: A total of 20 patients who received definitive radiation therapy to the prostate and seminal vesicles were selected and placed into 2 groups (10 spaceoar, 10 non-spaceoar). The individuals’ age ranged from 60 to 79 years old with …