Digital Commons Network^™

Protocol For A Pilot Clinical Trial Of The Senolytic Drug Combination Dasatinib Plus Quercetin To Mitigate Age-Related Health And Cognitive Decline In Mental Disorders [Version 2; Peer Review: 1 Approved, 2 Approved With Reservations], Abigail Schweiger, Breno Diniz, Ginger Nicol, Julie Schweiger, Andes E Dasklakis-Perez, Eric J Lenze

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Major depressive disorder (MDD) and schizophrenia are linked to accelerated aging leading to reduced lifespan, health span and cognitive decline. Cellular senescence, in which cells lose proliferative capacity and develop a senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP), plays a role in this process. Emerging research suggests that the senolytic regimen of dasatinib+quercetin (D+Q) reduces senescent cells, potentially mitigating age-related health and cognitive decline. This pilot study aims to assess the feasibility and safety of D+Q in older adults with schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, and treatment-resistant depression (TRD).

METHODS: This single-center study will recruit 30 participants total aged 50 years or older with …

Cognitive And Functional Performance And Plasma Biomarkers Of Early Alzheimer's Disease In Down Syndrome, Emily K Schworer, Beau M Ances, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

INTRODUCTION: People with Down syndrome (DS) have a 75% to 90% lifetime risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD). AD pathology begins a decade or more prior to onset of clinical AD dementia in people with DS. It is not clear if plasma biomarkers of AD pathology are correlated with early cognitive and functional impairments in DS, and if these biomarkers could be used to track the early stages of AD in DS or to inform inclusion criteria for clinical AD treatment trials.

METHODS: This large cross-sectional cohort study investigated the associations between plasma biomarkers of amyloid beta (Aβ)42/40, total tau, and …

Impahct: A Randomized Phase 2b/3 Study Of Inhaled Imatinib For Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension, Hunter Gillies, Murali M Chakinala, Benjamin T Dake, Jeremy P Feldman, Marius M Hoeper, Marc Humbert, Zhi-Cheng Jing, Jonathan Langley, Vallerie V Mclaughlin, Ralph W Niven, Stephan Rosenkranz, Xiaosha Zhang, Nicholas S Hill

2020-Current year OA Pubs

AV-101 (imatinib) powder for inhalation, an investigational dry powder inhaled formulation of imatinib designed to target the underlying pathobiology of pulmonary arterial hypertension, was generally well tolerated in healthy adults in a phase 1 single and multiple ascending dose study.

Script-Based Implementation Of Automatic Grid Placement For Lattice Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy, Wesley W Tucker, Thomas R Mazur, Matthew C Schmidt, Jessica Hilliard, Shahed Badiyan, Matthew B Spraker, James A Kavanaugh

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Spatially fractionated radiation therapy (SFRT) has demonstrated promising clinical response in treating large tumors with heterogeneous dose distributions. Lattice stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) is an SFRT technique that leverages inverse optimization to precisely localize regions of high and lose dose within disease. The aim of this study was to evaluate an automated heuristic approach to sphere placement in lattice SBRT treatment planning.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: A script-based algorithm for sphere placement in lattice SBRT based on rules described by protocol was implemented within a treatment planning system. The script was applied to 22 treated cases and …

Pathfinder: A Novel Graph Transformer Model To Infer Multi-Cell Intra- And Inter-Cellular Signaling Pathways And Communications, Jiarui Feng, Haoran Song, Michael Province, Guangfu Li, Philip R O Payne, Yixin Chen, Fuhai Li

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Recently, large-scale scRNA-seq datasets have been generated to understand the complex signaling mechanisms within the microenvironment of Alzheimer's Disease (AD), which are critical for identifying novel therapeutic targets and precision medicine. However, the background signaling networks are highly complex and interactive. It remains challenging to infer the core intra- and inter-multi-cell signaling communication networks using scRNA-seq data. In this study, we introduced a novel graph transformer model, PathFinder, to infer multi-cell intra- and inter-cellular signaling pathways and communications among multi-cell types. Compared with existing models, the novel and unique design of PathFinder is based on the divide-and-conquer strategy. This model …

Awareness, Access, And Communication: Provider Perspectives On Early Intervention Services For Children With Sickle Cell Disease, Andrew M Heitzer, Erin Macarthur, Mollie Tamboli, Ashley Wilson, Jane S Hankins, Catherine R Hoyt

2020-Current year OA Pubs

PURPOSE: This study aimed to identify determinants influencing the utilization of early intervention services among young children with sickle cell disease (SCD) based on perspectives from medical and early intervention providers.

DESIGN AND METHODS: Early intervention and medical providers from the catchment area surrounding St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and Washington University were recruited (20 total providers). Interviews were completed over the phone and audio recorded. All interviews were transcribed verbatim, coded, and analyzed using inductive thematic analysis.

RESULTS: Three overarching themes were identified from both groups: Awareness (e.g., lack of awareness about the EI system and SCD), Access (e.g., …

Children With Non-Central Nervous System Tumors Treated With Platinum-Based Chemotherapy Are At Risk For Hearing Loss And Cognitive Impairments, Allison J L'Hotta, Anne Spence, Taniya E Varughese, Kara Felts, Susan S Hayashi, Megan Jones-White, Emily Lafentres, Judith E C Lieu, Robert J Hayashi, Allison A King

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Childhood cancer survivors (CCS) with chemotherapy induced sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) are at risk for neurocognitive impairments. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between SNHL and cognitive function among CCS.

PROCEDURE: Inclusion: non-CNS solid tumor diagnosis; history of platinum chemotherapy (cisplatin and/or carboplatin); 8-17 years of age; off anti-cancer treatment for ≥6 months; and English speaking. Exclusion: history of intrathecal chemotherapy, cranial radiation, or baseline neurocognitive disorder. Participants completed the NIH Toolbox Cognition Battery at enrollment.

RESULTS: Fifty-seven individuals enrolled; 52 completed full cognitive testing. Participants were on average 12.2 years of age and 7.0 …

Neurocognitive Outcome In Children With Sickle Cell Disease After Myeloimmunoablative Conditioning And Haploidentical Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation: A Non-Randomized Clinical Trial, Suzanne Braniecki, Shalini Shenoy, Robert C Mckinstry, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Due to the risk of cerebral vascular injury, children and adolescents with high-risk sickle cell disease (SCD) experience neurocognitive decline over time. Haploidentical stem cell transplantation (HISCT) from human leukocyte antigen-matched sibling donors may slow or stop progression of neurocognitive changes.

OBJECTIVES: The study is to determine if HISCT can ameliorate SCD-associated neurocognitive changes and prevent neurocognitive progression, determine which specific areas of neurocognitive functioning are particularly vulnerable to SCD, and determine if there are age-related differences in neurocognitive functioning over time.

METHODS: We performed neurocognitive and neuroimaging in SCD recipients following HISCT. Children and adolescents with high-risk SCD …

Social Relationships, Amyloid Burden, And Dementia: The Aric-Pet Study, Renée C Groechel, Albert C Liu, Chelsea Liu, David S Knopman, Silvia Koton, Anna M Kucharska-Newton, Pamela L Lutsey, Thomas H Mosley, Priya Palta, A Richey Sharrett, Keenan A Walker, Dean F Wong, Rebecca F Gottesman

2020-Current year OA Pubs

INTRODUCTION: This study aimed to assess whether social relationships in mid-life reduce the risk of dementia related to amyloid burden.

METHODS: Participants in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study were assessed for social support and isolation (visit 2; 1990-1992). A composite measure, "social relationships," was generated. Brain amyloid was evaluated with florbetapir positron emission tomography (PET); (visit 5; 2012-2014). Incident dementia cases were identified following visit 5 through 2019 using ongoing surveillance. Relative contributions of mid-life social relationships and elevated brain amyloid to incident dementia were evaluated with Cox regression models.

RESULTS: Among 310 participants without dementia, strong mid-life …

The Association Of Dementia Risk Symptoms And Functional Activity In Adults With Down Syndrome, Selena E Washington, Amy E Bodde, Brian C Helsel, Rebecca M Bollinger, Nora Smith, Lauren T Ptomey, Beau Ances, Susan L Stark

2020-Current year OA Pubs

INTRODUCTION: Adults with Down syndrome (DS) have an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD) dementia, often showing neuropathological indicators by age 40. Physical function and activities of daily living (ADLs) are understudied areas of function that may inform dementia risk. We investigated associations among age, physical function (gait/balance, grip strength, and lower extremity strength), ADLs, and dementia risk symptoms in adults with DS. We hypothesized that compromised physical function and lower independence with ADLs would be associated with an informant/caregiver-reported measure of dementia risk symptoms.

METHODS: A secondary analysis for this cross-sectional study was completed using data from two academic …

Hack24f: Ai And Mental Health: Addressing The Therapy Gap, Samatrai Piam, Digvijay Mahawar, Meric Kinali, Luxman Surentha, Jackson Comeau, Gail Rauch, Cody Turner

Paul English Applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) Institute Publications

Real-World Problem: There is a global shortage of mental health professionals, especially in underserved areas. AI-based chatbots could help fill this gap, but there are serious ethical concerns about the quality of care and efficacy of such chatbots.

Solution: This is a non-technical project that involved conversing with existing chatbots in an effort to develop a normative framework that could be used by future AI therapy bot developers. This framework seeks to build on, and operationalize, some of the insights from the recently published whitepaper on the ethics of chatbot therapy by the UMass Boston Applied Ethics Center. This presentation …

Hack24f: Ai Audio Extractor, David Wu, Tiffany Nham

Paul English Applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) Institute Publications

I want to make a next.js website locally and then be able to hopefully deploy on Vercel. Within the website I want to be able to use AI to separate the instruments (vocals, piano, guitar, drums, bass, etc.) and also identify which notes are being played. I was thinking that we might be able to use an AI stem splitter to separate the audio tracks and use another AI model for note detection.

Hack24f: Ai Attacking Ai, Emry Hankins, Sofia Escobar, Yinxin Wan

Paul English Applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) Institute Publications

As MLaaS gains popularity, it also attracts new threats, in particular, model extraction attacks. These attacks involve unauthorized attempts to access and replicate AI models by querying and analyzing the response. Not only do these attacks pose a threat to security and safety but also compromises valuable intellectual property. Because businesses are increasing accessibility to their models that contain sensitive data, it is crucial that they are able to keep them safe and secure.

Hack24f: Careplus: Ai Chatbot, Arianna Fernandez, Sophia Cherkaoui

Paul English Applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) Institute Publications

90% of patients Google symptoms before they talk to their doctor. What are we developing? An app that asks for user symptoms and personal information, users AI to determine medical conditions and provides a plan of action, including recommended medications and suggested doctors to visit.

Hack24f: Llms And World Knowledge Problems, Chengtaon Lin, Joseph Lobo, Huuthanhvy Nguyen, Brian Santos, Ting Xu

Paul English Applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) Institute Publications

While AI “hallucinations” have been widely publicized by the media as shortcomings of Large Language Models (LLMs), there is much less awareness about shortcomings that derive from the potential lack of understanding of the world, from a potential lack of commonsense knowledge. We want to raise awareness among our student body about the potential fallibility of LLMs when they the problems that they need to solve require a basic understanding of the world. We hope that this awareness will prompt everyone to question more carefully the outputs generated by LLMs.

Hack24f: Examine The Human Creativity And Productivity In Ai Generated Content, Jongsoo Ha, Dante Barton, Onkar Khedkar, Neeti Shah, Yash Gondkar, Youxiang Zhu, Xiaohui Liang

Paul English Applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) Institute Publications

This project, presented at the Fall 2024 Hackathon, explores the balance between human creativity and productivity in the age of AI-generated content. With tools such as ChatGPT and Grammarly becoming integral to students’ academic workflows, questions surrounding originality, intellectual property, and academic integrity have grown increasingly urgent. The team addresses the challenge of distinguishing between human and AI contributions in content creation, particularly as current AI detection tools prove unreliable. Their proposed solution involves a system that not only detects AI-generated text using watermarking techniques but also quantifies contributions from humans and AI throughout the writing process.

Hack24f: Ai Conversations In Healthcare, Patrick Finger, Hannah Neale, Anthony Ferreira, Ayaz Mohammed

Paul English Applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) Institute Publications

Nursing students often complete clinical hours under the supervision of instructors in traditional hospital settings. However, obtaining individualized, consistent feedback from patients about their interactions with nursing students is often not feasible. This limits students' ability to fully understand how their communication skills are perceived and how they can improve. Currently, there are no models that represent realistic real life conversations with patients. Most virtual simulation models used for nursing students provide scripted responses that do not feel genuine.

Hack24f: Tori Project: An Llm Powered Personal Assistant That Speaks, Inal Mashukov, Avi Felzenstein

Paul English Applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) Institute Publications

The problem: remember Jarvis from Iron Man? If not, Jarvis is an AI personal assistant to Tony Stark, aka Iron Man, which can speak in a human-like manner, and is in charge of the systems of the Iron Man suit. Tony Stark also relies on Jarvis for direct access to information, automation of his projects, and helping with work in general. Currently, the “best” real-world alternatives to Jarvis are Siri and Alexa. These are NOT particularly intelligent. Wouldn't it be nice to have a Jarvis-like assistant that is: actually intelligent and resourceful, sounds human, runs locally/offline on your phone or …

Hack24f: Beacon Pathway, Michael Agbesi, Ciara Santiago, David Martinez, Olivia Moos, Mohammed Mustafa

Paul English Applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) Institute Publications

The problem: There are a multitude of students from different backgrounds who are feeling lost in their academic journey at UMass Boston & need help with finding opportunities that fit their needs.

The solution: Developing Beacon Pathway, a user-centered platform designed to empower UMass Boston students from diverse backgrounds by streamlining their academic journey. This solution focuses on providing personalized resources, tailored opportunities, and community engagement, ensuring every student feels supported and connected as they navigate their unique paths to success

Hack24f: Alzcare Ai Assist: Empowering Alzheimer's Care, Yao Zhang, Chengjie Zheng, Oliver Francois, Lingling Zhang

Paul English Applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) Institute Publications

AlzCare AI Assist is a groundbreaking solution that leverages the power of artificial intelligence to revolutionize Alzheimer's care. By delivering personalized assessments, psychological support, and caregiver assistance, we aim to transform the lives of those affected by this debilitating condition.

Hack24f: Painsync, Zihan Li, Zhen Lu, Ping Chen

Paul English Applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) Institute Publications

Pain is one of the most disruptive human experiences, influencing not only physical well-being but also emotional and mental health. The PainSync project proposes a technology-assisted framework for pain recognition, monitoring, and management, using AI-driven tools to bridge the gap between patient experiences and professional care. PainSync begins by recognizing an individual’s discomfort and offering immediate support through a chatbot that collects symptom information and provides preliminary guidance. The system then tracks vital signs and daily activities, generating data that is subsequently analyzed by custom-built AI models to detect patterns, assess severity, and identify potential causes of pain. This analysis …

Hack24f: The Empathy Architects, Michael Rejtig, Ajanee Igharo, Emma Kelminson, Jackson Comeau

Paul English Applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) Institute Publications

Problem Statement: We want to help patients from underserved communities feel more safe, respected and comfortable in interacting with healthcare providers during the initial in-person encounters while also helping providers build empathy and implement socio-emotionally competent communication behaviors. Solution: Empathy Evolution is an AI-powered role-playing game that helps patients simulate their ideal communication with healthcare providers.

A Global Scoping Review Of Adaptations In Nurturing Care Interventions During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Lidia Godoi, Simone Schenkman, Ana A Baumann, Aylene Bousquat, Gabriela Buccini

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: During the COVID-19 pandemic, children faced a disproportionate burden of malnutrition and poor health outcomes. Nurturing care interventions (NCIs) including actions toward good health, adequate nutrition, responsive care, opportunities for early learning, and security and safety are critical for promoting equity. Due to the need for evidence-based responses and preparedness, we analyzed adaptations in NCIs' implementation strategies during COVID-19 according to the Framework for Reporting Adaptations and Modifications to Evidence-based Implementation Strategies (FRAME-IS).

METHOD: We conducted a global scoping review including peer-reviewed and non-peer-reviewed literature. The databases searched were PubMed, Embase, Scopus, BVS, Scielo, and Web of Science. This …

Co-Occurring Autism, Adhd, And Gender Dysphoria In Children, Adolescents, And Young Adults With Eating Disorders: An Examination Of Pre- Vs. Post-Covid Pandemic Outbreak Trends With Real-Time Electronic Health Record Data, Tashalee R Brown, Madeline O Jansen, A Ning Zhou, Dominic Moog, Hui Xie, Katherine V Liebesny, Kevin Y Xu, Binx Y Lin, Wisteria Y Deng

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Incidence rates of autism, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and gender dysphoria (GD) are rising not only in the general population, but particularly among children, adolescents, and young adults with eating disorders (EDs). While ED rates have risen during the COVID pandemic, trends in co-occurring autism, ADHD, and GD have yet to be investigated in detail or at scale by way of large electronic medical record data.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate trends in rates of co-occurring autism, ADHD, and GD among children, adolescents, and young adults with EDs in years prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS: We utilized a de-identified …

Assessment Of Sociodemographic And Psychiatric Characteristics Of Transgender Adults Seen At A Midwest Tertiary Medical Center, Samuel Cortez, Dominic Moog, Elizabeth Baranski, Kelley Williams, Jinli Wang, Ginger Nicol, Thomas Baranski, Cynthia J Herrick

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: The National Academy of Medicine has formally identified transgender adults as an understudied population in critical need of health research. While national surveys, like the US Transgender survey, have characterized higher rates of depression, anxiety, suicidality and socioeconomic need in the transgender community, studies have not examined the impact of sociodemographic and clinical characteristics on mental health related outcomes.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the sociodemographic and mental health characteristics of transgender adults seen at a large Midwest transgender clinic and to determine factors associated with self-reported mental health conditions.

METHODS: Descriptive, retrospective, cross-sectional study of new transgender patients 18 years …

Recarving The Future: Bridging Car T-Cell Therapy Gaps With Synthetic Biology, Engineering, And Economic Insights, Alaa Ali, John F Dipersio

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy has revolutionized the treatment of hematologic malignancies, offering remarkable remission rates in otherwise refractory conditions. However, its expansion into broader oncological applications faces significant hurdles, including limited efficacy in solid tumors, safety concerns related to toxicity, and logistical challenges in manufacturing and scalability. This review critically examines the latest advancements aimed at overcoming these obstacles, highlighting innovations in CAR T-cell engineering, novel antigen targeting strategies, and improvements in delivery and persistence within the tumor microenvironment. We also discuss the development of allogeneic CAR T cells as off-the-shelf therapies, strategies to mitigate adverse effects, and …

Changing Hearts And Minds: Theorizing How, When, And Under What Conditions Three Social Influence Implementation Strategies Work, Bryan J Weiner, Rosemary D Meza, Predrag Klasnja, Rebecca Lengnick-Hall, Gretchen J Buchanan, Aaron R Lyon, Kayne D Mettert, Marcella H Boynton, Byron J Powell, Cara C Lewis

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Opinion leadership, educational outreach visiting, and innovation championing are commonly used strategies to address barriers to implementing innovations and evidence-based practices in healthcare settings. Despite voluminous research, ambiguities persist in how these strategies work and under what conditions they work well, work poorly, or work at all. The current paper develops middle-range theories to address this gap.

METHODS: Conceptual articles, systematic reviews, and empirical studies informed the development of causal pathway diagrams (CPDs). CPDs are visualization tools for depicting and theorizing about the causal process through which strategies operate, including the mechanisms they activate, the barriers they address, and …

Gender Wage Gap: Analysis Of Women In Statistical Industries And Financial Effects Of The Wage Gap, Renee Delos

Honors Projects in Mathematics and Economics

Women in statistical and mathematical industries are continuing to be mistreated within the workforce. Women are constantly being paid less than men, despite prior qualifications that should show otherwise. An overall pay gap between male and female employees not only affects the women’s work at the company, but also their lives outside of the corporate world. This thesis analyzes the direct effects of this pay difference, and how women are truly treated throughout the working world. The data collected through surveys is used as the basis in determining the real pay gap, and the overall emotions and degree of comfort …

Scott Patterson, Petitioner–Appellant V. State Of Utah, Respondent–Appellee: Brief Of Appellant

Utah Appeals Court Briefs

Appeal from final judgment denying postconviction relief, in the Second Judicial District, Davis County, the Honorable Rita Cornish presiding

The State Of Utah, Plaintiff/Appellee V. Levon Garo Meguerditchian, Defendant/Appellant: Brief Of Appellee

Utah Appeals Court Briefs

Appeal from convictions for murder and aggravated kidnapping, first -degree felonies; and other felonies, in the Third Judicial District, Salt Lake County, the Honorable Elizabeth A. Hruby-Mills presiding