Digital Commons Network^™

Selection Methods For Genetically-Modified T Cells: In Support Of Translational Therapy, David Rushworth

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

T cells are blood cells which organize the immune system of the host. These cells are necessary for the host to respond appropriately to threats from foreign organisms and cancerous growth. However, in the case of certain infections and cancer, T cells are unable to respond appropriately to a threat and establish immunity. This leads to disease when the infection or cancer is not sufficiently eliminated. On the other hand, T cells can lack tolerance for healthy tissue and perceive healthy tissue as infected. The ensuing over-reactive immune response also leads to disease. A delicate balance must exist between immunity …

Evaluation Of Current Knowledge Of Genetics Among Dental Students, Residents And Dental Hygiene Students, Carla Mcgruder

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Genetic testing is increasingly available in clinical settings. To provide personalized patient care, dental health professionals must have a greater understanding of genetics. The Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) credentials all dental schools in the United States and currently does not mandate genetics training for official approval of programs. There is little information about dental genetics education and no known studies that have evaluated dental students, residents and dental hygiene students’ knowledge of human genetics. It is crucial to assess genetics knowledge of this population to ascertain if dental schools are preparing students for the future of personalized dentistry. This …

The Effect Of Room Environment On Patient Experience In A Prenatal Genetic Counseling Session, Elizabeth C. Baack

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

An important facet of aesthetic design, a topic of increasing interest in healthcare, is the concept of using positive distractions to promote wellness (Ulrich, 1991). To date, this concept has largely been explored in long-term, in-patient care settings and findings suggest these positive distractions decrease patient anxiety. This study sought to understand the effects of a supportive healthcare design characterized by positive distractions on patients receiving short term, out-patient care, specifically prenatal genetic counseling. Participants were patients at a Houston high-risk pregnancy clinic randomly assigned to one of two room environments: an experimental room which incorporated positive distractions, …

Actions Of Pi3k-Delta Inhibitor, Idelalisib, And Its Combination With Bendamustine In Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia, Prexy Modi

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Class I phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase isoforms (α, β, δ, and γ) play a major role in cancer cell growth and survival. PI3K α and β are most studied. PI3K pathway is highly dysregulated in many cancers and aberrant PI3K signaling is associated with oncogene mutations and disease progression in solid tumors and in hematologic malignancies.

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is driven by B-cell receptor (BCR) signaling that promotes B-cell proliferation and survival. PI3K is a critical node in BCR pathway and PI3Kδ has a pivotal role in B-cell development and maintenance and this isoform is over-expressed in many B-cell malignancies, including …

Investigating The Roles Of P63 And P73 Isoforms To Therapeutically Treat P53-Altered Cancers, Avinashnarayan Venkatanarayan

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Investigating the roles of p63 & p73 isoforms to therapeutically treat

p53-altered cancers

Avinashnarayan Venkatanarayan, M.S.

Supervisory Professor: Elsa R. Flores, Ph.D.

The TP53 tumor suppressor is mutated in approximately 50% of human cancers rendering cancer therapies ineffective. p53 reactivation suppresses tumor formation in mice. However, this strategy has proven difficult to implement therapeutically. An alternate approach to overcome p53 loss is to manipulate the p53-family members, p63 and p73, which interact and share structural similarities to p53. p63 and p73, unlike p53 are less frequently mutated and have two major isoforms with distinct functions …

Isoform Selective Regulation Of Adenylyl Cyclase By Small Molecule Inhibitors And Gbetagamma Protein, Cameron S. Brand

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

The nine membrane-bound isoforms of adenylyl cyclase (AC), via synthesis of the signaling molecule cyclic AMP (cAMP), are involved in many isoform specific physiological functions. All nine isoforms share a similar structural organization; thus, AC isoform differences in physiological function are due to different regulatory profiles. A physiological example is Gβγ, which can conditionally enhance stimulation of ACs 2, 4, 5, 6, and 7, but inhibit ACs 1, 3, and 8. There is also pharmacological control of AC isoforms through small molecule inhibitors.

Isoform specific AC functions could be explained by regulatory differences as subtle as single amino acid changes. …

Impact Of Differentiation Status Of Kidney Progenitors In Wilms Tumor Development, Le Huang

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Wilms tumor is one of the most common solid tumors in children. It is an embryonic cancer of the kidney and is thought to arise from undifferentiated renal mesenchyme. However, the differentiation status of cells in the mesenchyme that can give rise to Wilms tumors is unknown. Gene expression analysis of a large panel of Wilms tumor patients has identified different subsets of Wilms tumors that are distinct in their clinical outcomes and gene expression signatures. These subsets express specific genes that correspond to different stages of differentiation during renal development, suggesting that Wilms tumors may arise from transformed cells …

Human Trafficking And Domestic Violence: Etiology, Intervention, And Overlap With Child Maltreatment, Robert D. Sanborn, Angelo P. Giardino

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

Robert Sanborn and Angelo P. Giardino's introduction to The Allstate Foundation-sponsored Volume 6, Issue 1: Human Trafficking and Domestic Violence: Etiology, Intervention, and Overlap with Child Maltreatment.

Implementing A Coordinated Care Model For Sex Trafficked Minors In Smaller Cities, Mary Burke, Heather L. Mccauley, Anne Rackow, Bradley Orsini, Bridget Simunovic, Elizabeth Miller

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

Background

Addressing the social and clinical service needs of minors who have been sexually exploited remains a challenge across the United States. While larger metropolitan centers have established shelters and service provision specific for trafficked persons, in smaller cities and more rural settings, survivors of trafficking (especially minors) are usually served by multiple, disparate social service and health providers working across different systems. Sexually exploited minors present an even greater challenge due to intersections with child welfare and juvenile justice systems, histories of abuse by family that limit placement options, and limited services that address the complex medical, mental health, …

Understanding Victim Resistance: An Exploratory Study Of The Experiences Of Service Providers Working With Victims Of Child Trafficking, Amanda West, Phd, Lcsw, Diane N. Loeffler

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

Objective: The objective of this study was to explore the experiences of service providers working with victims of child trafficking.

Methods: A grounded theory, qualitative methodology was employed for the study in which fifteen providers working with the child trafficking population were interviewed at length. Interviews were then transcribed, coded for themes using Atlas, t.i. data management software, and interpreted.

Results: As a result of the interviews conducted with providers, a specific theme related the resistance of victims to participate in services was consistently observed throughout the data. Five specific areas of victim resistance were discussed including; “good” and “bad” …

Letting Kids Be Kids: Employing A Developmental Model In The Study Of Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking, Hadar S. Schwartz

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

As American society has become increasingly aware of the plight of sex trafficked American children, attention has shifted from delinquency to victimhood (Mitchell, Finkelhor, & Wolak, 2010) with a corresponding awareness of the trauma that victims endure. This reconceptualization is incomplete without a larger understanding of the developmental vulnerabilities that leave children uniquely susceptible to recruitment and exploitation. Since the average age of entry into the commercial sex trade within the United States is 12-14 (Estes & Weiner, 2001), an exploration of the particular vulnerabilities of young teenagers--separation from parents; the process of identity formation; yearning for love and attention; …

Trafficking And Domestic Violence: Where Are We And Where Are We Going, Megan Bair-Merritt, Michele R. Decker, Emily F. Rothman Scd

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

Editors explain their view on the intersection of commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) and domestic violence.

Gsbs News, Spring 2015, Graduate School Of Biomedical Sciences, University Of Texas Health Science Center At Houston/M.D. Anderson Cancer Center

GSBS News

No abstract provided.

Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation Despite Challenging Vascular Access, Angelo Nascimbene, Federico Azpurua, James J Livesay, R David Fish, Zvonimir Krajcer

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

We describe transcatheter aortic valve implantation in a patient who had severe peripheral artery disease. The patient's vascular condition required additional preliminary peripheral intervention to enable adequate vascular access.

A 78-year-old man with severe aortic stenosis, substantial comorbidities, and severe heart failure symptoms was referred for aortic valve replacement. The patient's 20-mm aortic annulus necessitated the use of a 23-mm Edwards Sapien valve inserted through a 22F sheath, which itself needed a vessel diameter of at least 7 mm for percutaneous delivery. The left common femoral artery was selected for valve delivery. The left iliac artery and infrarenal aorta underwent …

Pathways Involved In Interleukin-1Β-Mediated Murine Cardiomyocyte Apoptosis, Yi Shen, Jie Qin, Peili Bu

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

Accumulating evidence suggests that interleukin-1 (IL-1) signaling plays an essential role in the pathogenesis of heart failure by inducing cardiomyocyte apoptosis, but the mechanisms of this process are poorly defined. We further explored these molecular pathways.

We isolated cardiomyocytes from neonatal mice and then cultured and stimulated them with murine IL-1β in vitro. Cell apoptotic ratios were measured by means of flow cytometry. Expression of effector molecules was analyzed by means of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, Western blotting, and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction. The results showed that IL-1β induced murine cardiomyocyte apoptosis through a release of cytochrome c into cytoplasm …

When The Chief Complaint Tells It All, Herbert L Fred

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

No abstract provided.

Regression Of Left Ventricular Mass After Implantation Of The Sutureless 3f Enable Aortic Bioprosthesis, Giovanni Concistrè, Antonio Miceli, Federica Marchi, Francesca Chiaramonti, Mattia Glauber, Marco Solinas

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

Left ventricular hypertrophy in aortic stenosis is considered a compensatory response for the maintenance of systolic function but a risk factor for cardiac morbidity and death. We investigated the degree of left ventricular mass regression after implantation of the sutureless Medtronic 3f Enable® Aortic Bioprosthesis.

We studied 19 patients who, from May 2010 through July 2011, underwent isolated aortic valve replacement with the 3f Enable bioprosthetic valve, with clinical and echocardiographic follow-up at 6 months. The mean age was 77.1 ± 5.1 years (range, 68–86 yr); 14 patients were women (73.7%); and the mean logistic EuroSCORE was 15.4% ± 11.8%. …

Prenatal Diagnosis Of Left Pulmonary Artery-To-Pulmonary Vein Fistula And Its Successful Surgical Repair In A Neonate, Oleksii Ostras, Andrii Kurkevych, Lyubomyr Bohuta, Tetyana Yalynska, Tammo Raad, Mark Lewin, Illya Yemets

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

Pulmonary arteriovenous fistula is a rare disease. To the best of our knowledge, prenatal diagnosis of a fistula between the left pulmonary artery and the left pulmonary vein has not been described in the medical literature. We report a case of the prenatal diagnosis of a left pulmonary artery-to-pulmonary vein fistula, followed by successful neonatal surgical repair.

Ms171: Interview With Asha Kapadia, Asha Kapadia Ph.D., Houston Academy Of Medicine-Texas Medical Center Library

Texas Medical Center - Women's History Project

An oral history interview with Asha Kapadia, PhD of University of Texas School of Public Health. See more at Texas Medical Center-Women's History Project and its finding aid.

More Than A Drop In The Bucket: The Social And Economic Costs Of Dropouts And Grade Retentions Associated With Exclusionary Discipline, Miner P. Marchbanks Iii, Jamilia J. Blake, Danielle Smith, Allison L. Seibert, Dottie Carmichael, Eric A. Booth, Tony Fabelo

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

Each year many students are subject to exclusionary discipline, in fact, 60% of students in Texas are disciplined at-least once between grades 7 through 12. The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of school discipline contact on students’ risk for grade retention and school dropout using a statewide sample of nearly one million 7th grade students tracked through their 12th grade year. Results indicate that school discipline relates to a 24% increase in high school dropout. These additional dropouts are associated with an economic effect of between $750 million and $1.35 billion per year.

Results also indicate …

Disturbing Inequities: Exploring The Relationship Between Racial Disparities In Special Education Identification And Discipline, Daniel Losen, Cheri Hodson, Jongyeon Ee, Tia Martinez

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

This study used negative binomial regression to investigate whether exposure to novice teachers and risk for identification for special education predicted suspension rates. Data from the 2009-2010 Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) was used. The sample was comprised of 72,168 schools from nearly 7,000 school districts from nearly every state. Identification as having emotional disturbance and specific learning disabilities were found to predict an increase in suspension rates for some subgroups across some school levels. Conversely, identification as being autistic was found to predict a decrease in suspension rates for some subgroups across some school levels. Policy implications are discussed.

Reconsidering The Alternatives: The Relationship Between Suspension, Disciplinary Alternative School Placement, Subsequent Juvenile Detention, And The Salience Of Race, Judi Vanderhaar, Marco Munoz, Joseph Petrosko

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

Background: Alternative school settings for students who are identified as “disruptive or dangerous” are playing an increasingly prominent role in the world of public education, yet significant gaps in our understanding of their efficacy remain.

Objective: This longitudinal investigation within a large school district serving 100,000 students examines multiple factors to determine how the risk of placement in the disciplinary alternative schools is systematically related to predictors and the risk of juvenile subsequent juvenile detention between 3rd and 12th grade.

Methods: Four groups of discrete-time hazard models were run separately to determine the most significant predictors in each variable category …

Sent Home And Put Off-Track: The Antecedents, Disproportionalities, And Consequences Of Being Suspended In The Ninth Grade, Robert Balfanz, Vaughan Byrnes, Joanna Fox

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

This study is based upon a longitudinal analysis of data for a cohort of 181,897 Florida state students who were first time 9^th graders in the 2000-01 school year and follows them trough to high school and post-secondary outcomes. Analysis of 9^th grade suspension data finds that black students, students who are economically disadvantaged, and special education students are three demographics subgroups that are disproportionately suspended, both in the frequency of suspensions and the duration in number of school days lost. While poverty and ethnicity are themselves highly correlated, poverty alone does not explain the disproportionate suspension rates …

Eliminating The Racial Disparity In Classroom Exclusionary Discipline, Anne Gregory, Joseph P. Allen, Amori Yee Mikami, Christopher A. Hafen, Robert Pianta

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

Advocates call for schools with high suspension rates to receive technical assistance in adopting “proven-effective” systematic supports. Such supports include teacher professional development. This call is justified given evidence that good teaching matters. But what types of professional development should be funded? Increasingly, research points to the promise of programs that are sustained, rigorous, and focused on teachers’ interactions with students. The current study tests whether a professional development program with these three characteristics helped change teachers’ use of exclusionary discipline practices—especially with their African American students. Exclusionary discipline is when a classroom teacher sends a student to the administrators’ …

Misbehavior, Suspensions, And Security Measures In High School: Racial/Ethnic And Gender Differences, Jeremy D. Finn, Timothy J. Servoss

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

This study used merged data from three national surveys to address questions about security measures in American high schools, suspension rates, and student misbehavior. First, the study identified the characteristics of schools that implemented the most extreme security measures and those with the highest levels of discipline. Second, the study used data on individual students to examine misbehavior and race and gender disparities in suspensions not attributable to misbehavior. The main findings were: (1) In-school suspensions serve a ‘gateway’ function with regard to out-of-school suspensions. They may provide a time and place to address behavior problems before they escalate or …

Unintended Consequences: Reverberations Of Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, Lauren Heidbrink

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

This paper details the socio-legal factors that shape the relationship between the child, the family, and the state, and the ways unaccompanied migrant children’s lives have come to be defined and contested. The legal identity of migrant children is socially situated within a history that intertwines social movements of helping professionals, legal jurisdictions characterized by increasingly intolerant approaches to juveniles, and shifts in the treatment of unauthorized migrant youth under immigration law over time. In a globalized world, this triangular relationship between children, families, and the state becomes increasingly complex and dynamic. Social policies and legal norms often lag far …

The Journey To Oz: How Practice, Research, And Law Have Been Used To Combat Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking In Kansas, Karen I. Countryman-Roswurm, Bailey Patton Brackin

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking is a form of modern day slavery and is one of the most hidden means of child abuse in the United States. In response to encountering the reality of this abuse and exploitation of our children, multidisciplinary professionals in Kansas were impassioned to develop and implement collaborative practices, community-based research, and law and policy in order to combat trafficking. This paper presents a summary of such efforts that, expanding over a decade, have culminated in a new Kansas Anti-Trafficking Law. A brief summary of the definitions and demographics of trafficking are provided followed by a …

Education Not Incarceration: A Conceptual Model For Reducing Racial And Ethnic Disproportionality In School Discipline, Kent Mcintosh, Erik J. Girvan, Robert H. Horner, Keith Smolkowski

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

Extension of retribution- and incapacitation-based criminal justice policies and practices to schools has exacerbated racial and ethnic disproportionality in school discipline, a serious and unsolved threat to equity in education and social opportunity. Common approaches implemented to reduce discipline disproportionality have not been shown to be widely effective. A more comprehensive, theory-driven understanding of the factors associated with disproportionate discipline is needed to enhance equity. In this article, we propose a conceptual model of how racial and ethnic bias affects school discipline, with direct implications for practical interventions. The model includes a multidimensional view of bias, informed by research from …

Housing And Child Health: Safety Net Strategies, Regulations And Neighborhood Challenges, Daniel Skinner Ph.D., Jenelle Donovan-Lyle, Kelly J. Kelleher M.D., M.P.H.

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

Abstract: “Improving Neighborhoods: An Innovative Program of Hospital-Community Collaboration”

Although often overlooked as a key factor in health status, stable and affordable housing plays a critical role in protecting children and adolescents. This article examines possibilities as well as challenges in health-oriented housing interventions for children, with particular attention to understanding how the law—and its limits—shape the nature of non-profit housing work. First, the authors discuss the scholarly literature on the relationship between health and housing to consider why healthcare institutions generally and children’s hospitals specifically might enter into the challenging fray of housing advocacy for the poor. They then …

Early Detection Of A Cavopulmonary Tumor Embolus With The Use Of Transesophageal Echocardiography, Magdy M El-Sayed Ahmed, Raed M Al-Najjar, Muhammad Aftab, James M Anton, John S Colen, Ross M Reul

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

Pulmonary tumor embolization from renal cell carcinoma is associated with severe cardiopulmonary morbidity and high perioperative mortality rates. We report the case of a 71-year-old woman who presented with right-sided abdominal pain. Magnetic resonance images revealed a mass originating from the upper pole of the right kidney and extending into the infrahepatic portion of the inferior vena cava. Transesophageal echocardiography was continuously used to monitor the mass during intended radical nephrectomy and tumor resection. When the right kidney was mobilized, intracaval thrombus detached and migrated to the patient's right atrium, causing severe hemodynamic instability. After emergent sternotomy and during the …