Digital Commons Network^™

Metacognition And The 5cs Of Positive Youth Development Programs: A Review Of Metacognitive Interventions, Omolola A. Odejimi, Leslie F. Clark

Journal of Youth Development

Positive youth development (PYD) programs have increased positive outcomes for adolescents, however research on the underlying change processes in these programs remains limited. The 5Cs (Competence, Confidence, Character, Caring and Connection) of PYD are a framework of desirable outcomes for youth programs. Change to metacognition is proposed as a mechanism by which PYD programming accomplishes these outcomes. This review describes findings from metacognitive interventions with PYD-relevant outcomes in adolescents aged 10-24. Fifteen electronic databases were searched using keyword phrases related to “metacognitive intervention” and “adolescents”. Seventeen studies met inclusion criteria. Included studies addressed 2 of the 5 goals of PYD …

Phase 3 Validation Of Paam For Hepatocellular Carcinoma Risk Stratification In Cirrhosis, Naoto Fujiwara, Camden Lopez, Tracey L Marsh, Indu Raman, Cesia A Marquez, Subhojit Paul, Sumit K Mishra, Naoto Kubota, Courtney Katz, Hiroaki Kanzaki, Michael Gonzalez, Lisa Quirk, Sneha Deodhar, Pratibha Selvakumar, Prithvi Raj, Neehar D Parikh, Lewis R Roberts, Myron E Schwartz, Mindie H Nguyen, Alex S Befeler, Stephanie Page-Lester, Sudhir Srivastava, Ziding Feng, K Rajender Reddy, Saira Khaderi, Sumeet K Asrani, Fasiha Kanwal, Hashem B El-Serag, Jorge A Marrero, Amit G Singal, Yujin Hoshida

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background & aims: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) risk stratification is an urgent unmet need for cost-effective HCC screening and early detection in patients with cirrhosis to improve poor HCC prognosis.

Methods: Molecular (prognostic liver secretome signature with α-fetoprotein) and clinical (aMAP [age, male sex, albumin-bilirubin, and platelets] score) variable-based scores were integrated into PAaM (prognostic liver secretome signature with α-fetoprotein plus age, male sex, albumin-bilirubin, and platelets), which was subsequently validated in 2 phase 3 biomarker validation studies: the statewide Texas HCC Consortium and nationwide HCC Early Detection Strategy prospective cohorts, following the prospective specimen collection, retrospective blinded evaluation design. The …

Distinct Single-Cell Transcriptional Profile In Cd4+ T-Lymphocytes Among Obese Children With Asthma, Vickram Tejwani, Rulin Wang, Andres Villabona-Rueda, Karthik Suresh, Tianshi David Wu, Ian M Adcock, Nazanin Z Kermani, Joe Zein, Nadia N Hansel, Srinivasan Yegnasubramanian, Meredith C Mccormack, Franco R D'Alessio

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Obesity is a risk factor for asthma morbidity, associated with less responsiveness to inhaled corticosteroids. CD4+ T cells are central to the immunology of asthma and may contribute to the unique obese asthma phenotype. We sought to characterize the single-cell CD4+ transcriptional profile differences in obese children with asthma compared with normal-weight children with asthma. Eight normal-weight and obese participants with asthma were clinically phenotyped and matched based on asthma control. Peripheral blood (PB) CD4+ T cells were sorted, and single-cell RNA sequencing was conducted. Cell clusters were identified by canonical gene expression and differential gene expression and reactome pathway …

Diet-Enhanced Lrg1 Expression Promotes Insulin Hypersecretion And Er Stress In Pancreatic Beta Cells, Desirae D. Morales, Jiyoon Ryu, Cong Wei, Jason T. Hadley, Juli Bai, Juan C. Lopez-Alvarenga, Srinivas Mummidi, Ravi Duggirala, Jane L. Lynch, Feng Liu, Lily Q. Dong

School of Medicine Publications

Aims/hypothesis: Upregulation of serum leucine-rich α-2-glycoprotein 1 (LRG1) has been implicated in diet-induced obesity and metabolic disorders. However, its specific hormonal actions remain unclear. This study aimed to determine whether diet-enhanced serum LRG1 levels promote hyperinsulinaemia by directly stimulating insulin secretion from pancreatic beta cells.

Methods: Human serum samples were obtained from individuals (both male and female) undergoing plastic surgery. Male C57BL/6 wild-type and Lrg1 whole-body knockout (Lrg1KO) mice were fed a 45% high-fat diet, with serum samples collected every 2 weeks to monitor LRG1 and insulin levels throughout diet-induced obesity. MIN6 beta cells were used to investigate the effects …

Targeting The Mycn-Mdm2 Pathways For Cancer Therapy: Are They Druggable?, Wei Wang, Yi Du, Sayantap Datta, Josef F Fowler, Hannah T Sang, Najah Albadari, Wei Li, Jennifer Foster, Ruiwen Zhang

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Targeting oncogenes and their interactive partners is an effective approach to developing novel targeted therapies for cancer and other chronic diseases. We and others have long suggested the MDM2 oncogene being an excellent target for cancer therapy, based on its p53-dependent and -independent oncogenic activities in a variety of cancers. The MYC family proteins are transcription factors that also regulate diverse biological functions. Dysregulation of MYC, such as amplification of MYCN, is associated with tumorigenesis, especially for neuroblastoma. Although the general survival rate of neuroblastoma patients has significantly improved over the past few decades, high-risk neuroblastoma still presents a …

Protective Effects Of Nerolidol On Thrombotic Events, Systemic Inflammation, Oxidative Stress, And Dna Damage Following Pulmonary Exposure To Diesel Exhaust Particles, Naserddine Hamadi, Sumaya Beegam, Nur Elena Zaaba, Ozaz Elzaki, Alreem Alderei, Maha Alfalahi, Shamma Alhefeiti, Dana Alnaqbi, Salama Alshamsi, Abderrahim Nemmar

All Works

Background/Objectives: Inhalation of environmental particulate air pollution has been reported to cause pulmonary and systemic events including coagulation disturbances, systemic inflammation, and oxidative stress. Nerolidol, a naturally occurring sesquiterpene alcohol, has effective antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. Hence, the aim in the present investigation was to evaluate the potential ameliorative effects of nerolidol on the coagulation and systemic actions induced by pulmonary exposure to diesel exhaust particles (DEPs). Methods: Nerolidol (100 mg/kg) was given to mice by oral gavage one hour before the intratracheal instillation of DEPs (0.5 mg/kg), and 24 h later various markers of coagulation and systemic toxicity were …

Exploration Of Cytokines And Microbiome Among Males And Females With Diarrhea-Predominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Li Juen Chen, Anna M Plantinga, Robert Burr, Kevin Cain, Pamela Barney, Tor Savidge, Robert J Shulman, Margaret Heitkemper, Kendra Kamp

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Whether pathophysiological factors differ between males and females with irritable bowel syndrome-diarrhea (IBS-D) remains to be tested. To better understand potential sex differences, males with IBS-D were compared to naturally cycling females and to females with IBS-D taking hormonal contraception on plasma levels of cytokines and gut microbiome characteristics.

Methods: Males and females with Rome III IBS-D completed questionnaires and kept a daily symptom diary for 28 days. Blood and stool samples were collected between days 3 and 8 of the daily diary (estrogen-dominant days in naturally cycling females). Blood samples were analyzed for lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated and unstimulated cytokine …

Early Life Epigenetics And Childhood Outcomes: A Scoping Review, Srirupa Hari Gopal, Theresa Alenghat, Mohan Pammi

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Epigenetics is the study of changes in gene expression, without a change in the DNA sequence that are potentially heritable. Epigenetic mechanisms such as DNA methylation, histone modifications, and small non-coding RNA (sncRNA) changes have been studied in various childhood disorders. Causal links to maternal health and toxin exposures can introduce epigenetic modifications to the fetal DNA, which can be detected in the cord blood. Cord blood epigenetic modifications provide evidence of in-utero stressors and immediate postnatal changes, which can impact both short and long-term outcomes in children. The mechanisms of these epigenetic changes can be leveraged for prevention, early …

Learning Soft Tissue Deformation From Incremental Simulations, Nathan Lampen, Daeseung Kim, Xuanang Xu, Xi Fang, Jungwook Lee, Tianshu Kuang, Hannah H Deng, Michael A K Liebschner, Jaime Gateno, Pingkun Yan

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Surgical planning for orthognathic procedures demands swift and accurate biomechanical modeling of facial soft tissues. Efficient simulations are vital in the clinical pipeline, as surgeons may iterate through multiple plans. Biomechanical simulations typically use the finite element method (FEM). Prior works divide FEM simulations into increments to enhance convergence and accuracy. However, this practice elongates simulation time, thereby impeding clinical integration. To accelerate simulations, deep learning (DL) models have been explored. Yet, previous efforts either perform simulations in a single step or neglect the temporal aspects in incremental simulations.

Purpose: This study investigates the use of spatiotemporal incremental modeling …

Science Under Siege: Protecting Scientific Progress In Turbulent Times, James Briscoe, Craig E Franklin, Daniel A Gorelick, E Elizabeth Patton, Michael Way

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

No abstract provided.

Causes Of Mortality In The Congenital Disorders Of Glycosylation, Hana Alharbi, Seishu Horikoshi, Sabrina Malone Jenkins, Fernando Scaglia, Christina Lam, Eva Morava, Austin Larson, Andrew C Edmondson

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Congenital Disorders of Glycosylation (CDG) are a group of some 200 genetic disorders with PMM2-CDG being the most common disease. These disorders individually remain rare with poorly understood natural history (NH) and causes of mortality. We established a NH study for CDG and collected both prospective and retrospective data on CDG outcomes. In the current data set analysis on deceased patients, we describe the clinical phenotype and causes of death for thirty-seven individuals with various genetic causes of CDG. About a third of this cohort were affected with PMM2-CDG. All of the patients presented with multisystem features with involvement of …

The Glu86 Residue In Tbx4 Proves Critical For Human Lung Development, Przemyslaw Szafranski, Tomasz Gambin, Gail Deutsch, Salma A Nassef, Mary Clay Bailey, Debra L Kearney, Paweł Stankiewicz

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

T-box transcription factors are a group of evolutionarily conserved T-box-containing regulators of mesoderm specification and development. Heterozygous single nucleotide variants (SNVs) or copy-number variant (CNV) deletions involving dosage-sensitive TBX4 have been associated with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), ischiocoxopodopatellar syndrome with or without PAH, and lethal lung developmental disorders (LLDDs), including acinar dysplasia (AcDys), congenital alveolar dysplasia (CAD), and other unspecified primary pulmonary hypoplasias. Loss- and gain-of-function variants have been proposed to cause pediatric PAH and LLDDs, and adult forms of PAH, respectively. Of more than 50 missense SNVs scattered across the entire TBX4, only three have been reported in patients …

A High-Lipid Diet Leads To Greater Pathology And Lower Tolerance During Infection, Weston Gerald Perrine, Erin Sauer, Ashley C. Love, Ashley Morris, Johnathan Novotny, Sarah Durant

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Altered food landscapes contribute importantly to wildlife disease dynamics and may play a critical role in host heterogeneity in disease outcomes through changes in host diet composition. We explored the effects of dietary macronutrient composition on disease pathology and feeding behavior of canaries (Serinus canaria domestica) infected with Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG). In the first experiment, we provided canaries with isocaloric diets composed of identical ingredients that varied in macronutrient content (high protein or high lipid) then MG- or sham-inoculated birds. In the second experiment, we offered both diets to canaries before and after MG or sham inoculation. In experiment one, …

Thorium Ore Dust Research Applicable To Mineral Sands Industry Workers, Gregory S. Hewson, M. I. Ralph, M. Cattani

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Historically, radiation exposure to mineral sands workers arose primarily from intake of thorium associated with monazite dust generated in mineral separation plants. Research investigations in the 1990s provided greater insight into the characteristics of inhaled thorium ore dust and bioassay studies inferred that some workers had accumulated significant lung burdens of thorium. Recent changes to biokinetic models have increased the radiation dose assessed to arise from thorium intake, raising questions on the appropriateness of current assumptions used in exposure assessment and feasibility of further bioassay research. Past radiation research undertaken in the Western Australian mineral sands industry is summarised and …

Genomic Characterisation Of The Relationship And Causal Links Between Vascular Calcification, Alzheimer’S Disease, And Cognitive Traits, Emmanuel O. Adewuyi, Simon M. Laws

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background/Objectives: Observational studies suggest a link between vascular calcification and dementia or cognitive decline, but the evidence is conflicting, and the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Here, we investigate the shared genetic and causal relationships of vascular calcification—coronary artery calcification (CAC) and abdominal aortic calcification (AAC)—with Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and five cognitive traits. Methods: We analyse large-scale genome-wide association studies (GWAS) summary statistics, using well-regarded methods, including linkage disequilibrium score regression (LDSC), Mendelian randomisation (MR), pairwise GWAS (GWAS-PW), and gene-based association analysis. Results: Our findings reveal a nominally significant positive genome-wide genetic correlation between CAC and AD, which becomes non-significant after …

Pathways To Chronic Disease Detection And Prediction: Mapping The Potential Of Machine Learning To The Pathophysiological Processes While Navigating Ethical Challenges, Ebenezer Afrifa-Yamoah, Eric Adua, Emmanuel Peprah-Yamoah, Enoch O. Anto, Victor Opoku-Yamoah, Emmanuel Acheampong, Michael J. Macartney, Rashid Hashmi

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes are leading drivers of mortality worldwide, underscoring the need for improved efforts around early detection and prediction. The pathophysiology and management of chronic diseases have benefitted from emerging fields in molecular biology like genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, glycomics, and lipidomics. The complex biomarker and mechanistic data from these “omics” studies present analytical and interpretive challenges, especially for traditional statistical methods. Machine learning (ML) techniques offer considerable promise in unlocking new pathways for data-driven chronic disease risk assessment and prognosis. This review provides a comprehensive overview of state-of-the-art applications of ML algorithms for …

Abnormal Urine Drug Screens In Pregnancy- Opportunity For Laboratory Stewardship, Anil K Chokkalla, Sahil Malik, Ridwan Ibrahim, Sridevi Devaraj

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Clinical testing for drugs of abuse typically involves initial screening followed by confirmatory testing. Due to limited evidence-based guidelines, the healthcare provider makes the decision to confirm abnormal screens based on the clinical context. This two-step approach proved to be inadequate in scenarios like maternal substance abuse and subsequent fetal/ newborn exposure. The goal of this study is to assess and improve the confirmatory testing rate of abnormal screens among pregnant patients at our women's center.

Methods: A retrospective chart review was conducted to assess the confirmation rates among positively screened pregnant patients, and a lab stewardship initiative was …

Evaluating Predictors Of Kinase Activity Of Stk11 Variants Identified In Primary Human Non-Small Cell Lung Cancers, Yile Chen, Kyoungyeul Lee, Junwoo Woo, Dong-Wook Kim, Changwon Keum, Giulia Babbi, Rita Casadio, Pier Luigi Martelli, Castrense Savojardo, Matteo Manfredi, Yang Shen, Yuanfei Sun, Panagiotis Katsonis, Olivier Lichtarge, Vikas Pejaver, David J Seward, Akash Kamandula, Constantina Bakolitsa, Steven E Brenner, Predrag Radivojac, Anne O'Donnell-Luria, Sean D Mooney, Shantanu Jain

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Critical evaluation of computational tools for predicting variant effects is important considering their increased use in disease diagnosis and driving molecular discoveries. In the sixth edition of the Critical Assessment of Genome Interpretation (CAGI) challenge, a dataset of 28 STK11 rare variants (27 missense, 1 single amino acid deletion), identified in primary non-small cell lung cancer biopsies, was experimentally assayed to characterize computational methods from four participating teams and five publicly available tools. Predictors demonstrated a high level of performance on key evaluation metrics, measuring correlation with the assay outputs and separating loss-of-function (LoF) variants from wildtype-like (WT-like) variants. The …

Predicting The Impact Of Rare Variants On Rna Splicing In Cagi6, Jenny Lord, Carolina Jaramillo Oquendo, Htoo A Wai, Andrew G L Douglas, David J Bunyan, Yaqiong Wang, Zhiqiang Hu, Zishuo Zeng, Daniel Danis, Panagiotis Katsonis, Amanda Williams, Olivier Lichtarge, Yuchen Chang, Richard D Bagnall, Stephen M Mount, Brynja Matthiasardottir, Chiaofeng Lin, Thomas Van Overeem Hansen, Raphael Leman, Alexandra Martins, Claude Houdayer, Sophie Krieger, Constantina Bakolitsa, Yisu Peng, Akash Kamandula, Predrag Radivojac, Diana Baralle

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Variants which disrupt splicing are a frequent cause of rare disease that have been under-ascertained clinically. Accurate and efficient methods to predict a variant's impact on splicing are needed to interpret the growing number of variants of unknown significance (VUS) identified by exome and genome sequencing. Here, we present the results of the CAGI6 Splicing VUS challenge, which invited predictions of the splicing impact of 56 variants ascertained clinically and functionally validated to determine splicing impact. The performance of 12 prediction methods, along with SpliceAI and CADD, was compared on the 56 functionally validated variants. The maximum accuracy achieved was …

Assessing Predictions On Fitness Effects Of Missense Variants In Hmbs In Cagi6, Jing Zhang, Lisa Kinch, Panagiotis Katsonis, Olivier Lichtarge, Milind Jagota, Yun S Song, Yuanfei Sun, Yang Shen, Nurdan Kuru, Onur Dereli, Ogun Adebali, Muttaqi Ahmad Alladin, Debnath Pal, Emidio Capriotti, Maria Paola Turina, Castrense Savojardo, Pier Luigi Martelli, Giulia Babbi, Rita Casadio, Fabrizio Pucci, Marianne Rooman, Gabriel Cia, Matsvei Tsishyn, Alexey Strokach, Zhiqiang Hu, Warren Van Loggerenberg, Frederick P Roth, Predrag Radivojac, Steven E Brenner, Qian Cong, Nick V Grishin

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

This paper presents an evaluation of predictions submitted for the "HMBS" challenge, a component of the sixth round of the Critical Assessment of Genome Interpretation held in 2021. The challenge required participants to predict the effects of missense variants of the human HMBS gene on yeast growth. The HMBS enzyme, critical for the biosynthesis of heme in eukaryotic cells, is highly conserved among eukaryotes. Despite the application of a variety of algorithms and methods, the performance of predictors was relatively similar, with Kendall's tau correlation coefficients between predictions and experimental scores around 0.3 for a majority of submissions. Notably, the …

Analysis And Benchmarking Of Small And Large Genomic Variants Across Tandem Repeats, Adam C English, Egor Dolzhenko, Helyaneh Ziaei Jam, Sean K Mckenzie, Nathan D Olson, Wouter De Coster, Jonghun Park, Bida Gu, Justin Wagner, Michael A Eberle, Melissa Gymrek, Mark J P Chaisson, Justin M Zook, Fritz J Sedlazeck

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Tandem repeats (TRs) are highly polymorphic in the human genome, have thousands of associated molecular traits and are linked to over 60 disease phenotypes. However, they are often excluded from at-scale studies because of challenges with variant calling and representation, as well as a lack of a genome-wide standard. Here, to promote the development of TR methods, we created a catalog of TR regions and explored TR properties across 86 haplotype-resolved long-read human assemblies. We curated variants from the Genome in a Bottle (GIAB) HG002 individual to create a TR dataset to benchmark existing and future TR analysis methods. We …

Physicians' Perceptions Of Barriers And Facilitators To The Improvement Of Healthcare Equity For Children Hospitalized With Traumatic Brain Injury: Preliminary Findings From A Pilot Multicenter Pediatric Trauma Study From The United States, Chelsea D Hicks, Heather Barnett, Jennifer Shi, Julia Velonjara, Mauricio A Escobar, Darci Evans, John Fisher, Arnett Klugh Iii, Katrina M Morgan, Morgan K Richards, Sarah Risen, Courtney Robertson, Irim Salik, Dennis W Simon, Arul S Thirumoorthi, Deidre L Wyrick, Bryan J Weiner, Theresa J Hoeft, Monica S Vavilala

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background and objective: Disparities in outcomes for pediatric patients with traumatic brain injuries (TBI) in rural populations and for racial and ethnic minority groups have been documented. In light of this, we examined physician champions' perceptions of healthcare equity for hospitalized children with TBI.

Methods: We surveyed 10 physician TBI champions at 10 US pediatric trauma centers (PTCs) regarding organizational characteristics, barriers, and facilitators (domains and specific) in terms of improving healthcare equity, and priorities to redress inequities.

Results: Level I center TBI champions reported more pediatric beds and higher staffing-to-patient ratios while Level II TBI champions reported more pediatric …

Anesthetic Considerations For Endovascular Repair Of The Thoracic Aorta, Olivia M Valencia, Thomas Powell, Ali Khalifa, Vicente Orozco-Sevilla, Daniel A Tolpin

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Thoracic aorta pathologies, especially those of the ascending aorta and aortic arch, were traditionally approached via open surgical repair. This carries risk of ischemic end-organ damage and other complications. Endovascular repair of ascending aorta and aortic arch pathologies is becoming more successful and widespread, thereby posing numerous challenges to the anesthesiologist. This article reviews the anesthesia-pertinent pathophysiology, repair techniques, preoperative evaluation, intraoperative management, and postoperative care of patients presenting for endovascular repair of thoracic aorta pathologies.

Comparison Of Deep Learning And Traditional Machine Learning Models For Predicting Mild Cognitive Impairment Using Plasma Proteomic Biomarkers, Kesheng Wang, Donald A. Adjeroh, Wei Fang, Suzy M. Walter, Danqing Xiao, Ubolrat Piamjariyakul, Chun Xu

Health & Biomedical Sciences Faculty Publications

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a clinical condition characterized by a decline in cognitive ability and progression of cognitive impairment. It is often considered a transitional stage between normal aging and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). This study aimed to compare deep learning (DL) and traditional machine learning (ML) methods in predicting MCI using plasma proteomic biomarkers. A total of 239 adults were selected from the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) cohort along with a pool of 146 plasma proteomic biomarkers. We evaluated seven traditional ML models (support vector machines (SVMs), logistic regression (LR), naïve Bayes (NB), random forest (RF), k-nearest neighbor …

Should All Pediatric Patients With Type 1 Autoimmune Hepatitis Be Screened For Inflammatory Bowel Disease?, Richard Kellermayer

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

No abstract provided.

Bpen: Brain Posterior Evidential Network For Trustworthy Brain Imaging Analysis, Kai Ye, Haoteng Tang, Siyuan Dai, Igor Fortel, Paul M. Thompson, R. Scott Mackin, Alex Leow, Heng Huang, Liang Zhan

Computer Science Faculty Publications

The application of deep learning techniques to analyze brain functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data has led to significant advancements in identifying prospective biomarkers associated with various clinical phenotypes and neurological conditions. Despite these achievements, the aspect of prediction uncertainty has been relatively underexplored in brain fMRI data analysis. Accurate uncertainty estimation is essential for trustworthy learning, given the challenges associated with brain fMRI data acquisition and the potential diagnostic implications for patients. To address this gap, we introduce a novel posterior evidential network, named the Brain Posterior Evidential Network (BPEN), designed to capture both aleatoric and epistemic uncertainty in …

Waste, Property, And Useless Things, Meredith Render

Articles

How should the law respond to intentionally useless objects that are constructed from scarce materials and thrust into an overcrowded world?

Approximately sixty million tons of electronic waste, or "e-waste" -for example, discarded iPhones, refrigerators, desktop computers -is produced each year. This annual pile of electronic rubbish represents sixty-two billion dollars' worth of tangible raw materials (such as gold and other scarce metals) that has been rendered useless. In addition to wasting raw materials, e-waste clogs our landfills, poisons the groundwater, and taxes our capacity to store it. Worst of all, much of this waste is intentionally created …

Irisin-Mediated Muscle-Renal Crosstalk As A Protective Mechanism Against Contrast-Induced Acute Kidney Injury Via Cgas-Sting Signalling Inhibition, Long Peng, Suhua Li, Qiang Huang, Yuxiang Sun, Juan Sun, Ting Luo, Yanlin Wang, Zhaoyong Hu, Weiyan Lai, Hui Peng

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI) continues to pose a pressing clinical challenge during invasive cardiovascular procedures due to the limited availability of preventative strategies. We aimed to demonstrate that irisin, a myokine induced by exercise, protects against CI-AKI by inhibiting the cGAS-STING inflammatory pathway.

Methods and results: We explored the relationship between serum irisin levels and CI-AKI incidence in patients administered the contrast media iohexol. Notably, lower serum irisin levels were strongly associated with an increased incidence of CI-AKI following contrast media administration. To establish a causal link between serum irisin levels and CI-AKI, we utilised a mouse model …

Unveiling Vaginal Fibrosis: A Novel Murine Model Using Bleomycin And Epithelial Disruption, Jennifer M Mccracken, Gisele A Calderon, Felipe Rivas, Dorothea Erxleben, Taylor Moseley, Lishore A Kumar, Daniel E Kennedy, Swathi Balaji, Adam Hall, Julie C E Hakim

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Vaginal fibrosis induced by cancer therapy continues to take a physical and psychoemotional burden. To advance the efforts to generate a reproducible and cost-effective animal model, we tested the effect of repeated bleomycin instillations with mucosal layer disruption on induction of vaginal fibrosis. Tissue samples collected at various time points were analyzed for fibrosis-related gene expression changes and collagen content. Low (1.5 U/kg) and high-dose (2.5 U/kg) bleomycin instillations alone did not induce fibrosis, but when high-dose bleomycin was combined with epithelial disruption, increased profibrotic gene expression and trichrome staining were observed. To evaluate spatial and temporal changes in the …

Assessment Of Physiological & Biochemical Changes In Tomato Plants Treated With Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria (Pgpr) Under Salinity Stress Conditions, Mohammed Sharif Alhosani

Theses

Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPRs) can effectively mitigate the negative impacts of salt stress on plants. The present study reports the isolation of PGPRs from a high-saline mangrove ecosystem in Abu Dhabi, with isolates exhibiting ACC deaminase (ACCD) activity to reduce stress-induced ethylene, along with additional plant growth-promoting (PGP) characteristics, including phosphate solubilization (P+). A total of 57 salt-tolerant bacterial isolates from the mangrove rhizosphere were initially screened for ACCD and P+ activities. Of these, 24 isolates tested positive for PGP characteristics and were further evaluated for their ability to enhance salt stress tolerance in tomato seedlings. In addition, seedlings inoculated …