Digital Commons Network^™

An Accurate And Rapidly Calibrating Speech Neuroprosthesis, Nicholas S Card, Matthew F Glasser, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Brain-computer interfaces can enable communication for people with paralysis by transforming cortical activity associated with attempted speech into text on a computer screen. Communication with brain-computer interfaces has been restricted by extensive training requirements and limited accuracy.

METHODS: A 45-year-old man with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) with tetraparesis and severe dysarthria underwent surgical implantation of four microelectrode arrays into his left ventral precentral gyrus 5 years after the onset of the illness; these arrays recorded neural activity from 256 intracortical electrodes. We report the results of decoding his cortical neural activity as he attempted to speak in both prompted …

5Β-Dihydrosteroids: Formation And Properties, Trevor M Penning, Douglas F Covey

2020-Current year OA Pubs

5β-Dihydrosteroids are produced by the reduction of Δ

Hybridizing Mechanistic Modeling And Deep Learning For Personalized Survival Prediction After Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Immunotherapy, Joseph D Butner, Prashant Dogra, Caroline Chung, Eugene J Koay, James W Welsh, David S Hong, Vittorio Cristini, Zhihui Wang

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

We present a study where predictive mechanistic modeling is combined with deep learning methods to predict individual patient survival probabilities under immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) immunotherapy. This hybrid approach enables prediction based on both measures that are calculable from mechanistic models of key mechanisms underlying ICI therapy that may not be directly measurable in the clinic and easily measurable quantities or patient characteristics that are not always readily incorporated into predictive mechanistic models. A deep learning time-to-event predictive model trained on a hybrid mechanistic + clinical data set from 93 patients achieved higher per-patient predictive accuracy based on event-time concordance, …

Infant And Adult Human Intestinal Enteroids Are Morphologically And Functionally Distinct, Grace O Adeniyi-Ipadeola, Julia D Hankins, Amal Kambal, Xi-Lei Zeng, Ketki Patil, Victoria Poplaski, Carolyn Bomidi, Hoa Nguyen-Phuc, Sandra L Grimm, Cristian Coarfa, Fabio Stossi, Sue E Crawford, Sarah E Blutt, Allison L Speer, Mary K Estes, Sasirekha Ramani

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

UNLABELLED: Human intestinal enteroids (HIEs) are gaining recognition as physiologically relevant models of the intestinal epithelium. While HIEs from adults are used extensively in biomedical research, few studies have used HIEs from infants. Considering the dramatic developmental changes that occur during infancy, it is important to establish models that represent infant intestinal characteristics and physiological responses. We established jejunal HIEs from infant surgical samples and performed comparisons to jejunal HIEs from adults using RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) and morphologic analyses. We then validated differences in key pathways through functional studies and determined whether these cultures recapitulate known features of the infant …

Final Phase 1 Substudy Results Of Ivosidenib For Patients With Mutant Idh1 Relapsed/Refractory Myelodysplastic Syndrome, Courtney D Dinardo, Gail J Roboz, Justin M Watts, Yazan F Madanat, Gabrielle T Prince, Praneeth Baratam, Stéphane De Botton, Anthony Stein, James M Foran, Martha L Arellano, David A Sallman, Mohammad Hossain, Dylan M Marchione, Xiaofei Bai, Prapti A Patel, Stephanie M Kapsalis, Guillermo Garcia-Manero, Amir T Fathi

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Ivosidenib is a first-in-class mutant isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (mIDH1) inhibitor with efficacy and tolerability in patients with advanced mIDH1 hematologic malignancies, leading to approval in frontline and relapsed/refractory (R/R) mIDH1 acute myeloid leukemia. We report final data from a phase 1 single-arm substudy of once-daily ivosidenib in patients with R/R mIDH1 myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) after failure of standard-of-care therapies. Primary objectives were to determine safety, tolerability, and clinical activity. The primary efficacy end point was the complete remission (CR) + partial remission (PR) rate. Nineteen patients were enrolled; 18 were included in the efficacy analysis. Treatment-related adverse events occurred in …

A Simplified G-Csf-Free Procedure Allows For In Vivo Hsc Gene Therapy Of Sickle Cell Disease In A Mouse Model, Chang Li, Anna K Anderson, Peter Ruminski, Michael Rettig, Darja Karpova, Hans-Peter Kiem, John F Dipersio, André Lieber

2020-Current year OA Pubs

We have reported the direct repair of the sickle cell mutation in vivo in a disease model using vectorized prime editors after hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) mobilization with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF)/AMD3100. The use of G-CSF for HSC mobilization is a hurdle for the clinical translation of this approach. Here, we tested a G-CSF-free mobilization regimen using WU-106, an inhibitor of integrin α4β1, plus AMD3100 for in vivo HSC prime editing in sickle cell disease (SCD) mice. Mobilization with WU-106 + AMD3100 in SCD mice was rapid and efficient. In contrast to the G-CSF/AMD3100 approach, mobilization of activated granulocytes and …

Pediatric Glioma Immune Profiling Identifies Tim3 As A Therapeutic Target In Braf Fusion Pilocytic Astrocytoma, Shashwat Tripathi, Hinda Najem, Corey Dussold, Sebastian Pacheco, Ruochen Du, Moloud Sooreshjani, Lisa Hurley, James P Chandler, Roger Stupp, Adam M Sonabend, Craig M Horbinski, Rimas V Lukas, Joanne Xiu, Giselle Lopez, Theodore P Nicolaides, Valerie Brown, Nitin R Wadhwani, Sandi K Lam, Charles David James, Ganesh Rao, Maria G Castro, Amy B Heimberger, Michael Decuypere

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Despite being the leading cause of cancer-related childhood mortality, pediatric gliomas have been relatively understudied, and the repurposing of immunotherapies has not been successful. Whole-transcriptome sequencing, single-cell sequencing, and sequential multiplex immunofluorescence were used to identify an immunotherapeutic strategy that could be applied to multiple preclinical glioma models. MAPK-driven pediatric gliomas have a higher IFN signature relative to other molecular subgroups. Single-cell sequencing identified an activated and cytotoxic microglia (MG) population designated MG-Act in BRAF-fused, MAPK-activated pilocytic astrocytoma (PA), but not in high-grade gliomas or normal brain. T cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain 3 (TIM3) was expressed on MG-Act and …

Pediatric Glioma Immune Profiling Identifies Tim3 As A Therapeutic Target In Braf Fusion Pilocytic Astrocytoma, Shashwat Tripathi, Hinda Najem, Corey Dussold, Sebastian Pacheco, Ruochen Du, Moloud Sooreshjani, Lisa Hurley, James P Chandler, Roger Stupp, Adam M Sonabend, Craig M Horbinski, Rimas V Lukas, Joanne Xiu, Giselle Lopez, Theodore P Nicolaides, Valerie Brown, Nitin R Wadhwani, Sandi K Lam, Charles David James, Ganesh Rao, Maria G Castro, Amy B Heimberger, Michael Decuypere

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Despite being the leading cause of cancer-related childhood mortality, pediatric gliomas have been relatively understudied, and the repurposing of immunotherapies has not been successful. Whole-transcriptome sequencing, single-cell sequencing, and sequential multiplex immunofluorescence were used to identify an immunotherapeutic strategy that could be applied to multiple preclinical glioma models. MAPK-driven pediatric gliomas have a higher IFN signature relative to other molecular subgroups. Single-cell sequencing identified an activated and cytotoxic microglia (MG) population designated MG-Act in BRAF-fused, MAPK-activated pilocytic astrocytoma (PA), but not in high-grade gliomas or normal brain. T cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain 3 (TIM3) was expressed on MG-Act and …

Vigorous Exercise In Patients With Congenital Long Qt Syndrome: Results Of The Prospective, Observational, Multinational Live-Lqts Study, Rachel Lampert, Sharlene Day, Barbara Ainsworth, Matthew Burg, Bradley S Marino, Lisa Salberg, Maria Teresa Tome Esteban, Dominic J Abrams, Peter F Aziz, Cheryl Barth, Elijah R Behr, Cheyanne Bell, Charles I Berul, Johan M Bos, David Bradley, David S Cannom, Bryan C Cannon, Maryann Anandi Concannon, Marina Cerrone, Richard J Czosek, Anne M Dubin, James Dziura, Christopher C Erickson, N A Mark Estes, Susan P Etheridge, Ilan Goldenberg, Belinda Gray, Carla Haglund-Turnquist, Kimberly Harmon, Cynthia A James, Christopher Johnsrude, Prince Kannankeril, Alice Lara, Ian H Law, Fangyong Li, Mark S Link, Silvana M Molossi, Brian Olshansky, Peter A Noseworthy, Elizabeth V Saarel, Shubhayan Sanatani, Maully Shah, Laura Simone, Jonathan Skinner, Gordon F Tomaselli, James Simon Ware, Gregory Webster, Wojciech Zareba, Douglas P Zipes, Michael J Ackerman

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Whether vigorous exercise increases risk of ventricular arrhythmias for individuals diagnosed and treated for congenital long QT syndrome (LQTS) remains unknown.

Methods: The National Institutes of Health-funded LIVE-LQTS study (Lifestyle and Exercise in the Long QT Syndrome) prospectively enrolled individuals 8 to 60 years of age with phenotypic and/or genotypic LQTS from 37 sites in 5 countries from May 2015 to February 2019. Participants (or parents) answered physical activity and clinical events surveys every 6 months for 3 years with follow-up completed in February 2022. Vigorous exercise was defined as ≥6 metabolic equivalents for >60 hours per year. A …

A Social Media Game To Increase Physical Activity Among Older Adult Women: Protocol Of A Randomized Controlled Trial To Evaluate Challenge, Michael C Robertson, Maria Chang Swartz, Karen M Basen-Engquist, Yisheng Li, Kristofer Jennings, Debbe Thompson, Tom Baranowski, Elena Volpi, Elizabeth J Lyons

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Older adult women often do not engage in sufficient physical activity (PA) and can encounter biological changes that exacerbate the negative effects of inadequate activity. Wearable activity monitors can facilitate PA initiation, but evidence of sustained behavior change is lacking. Supplementing wearable technologies with intervention content that evokes enjoyment, interest, meaning, and personal values associated with PA may support long term adherence. In this paper, we present the protocol of an NIA-funded study designed to evaluate the efficacy of CHALLENGE for increasing step count and motivation for PA in insufficiently active older women (Challenges for Healthy Aging: Leveraging Limits …

Mif/Nr3c2 Axis Regulates Glucose Metabolism Reprogramming In Pancreatic Cancer Through Mapk-Erk And Ap-1 Pathways, Shouhui Yang, Wei Tang, Azadeh Azizian, Jochen Gaedcke, Yuuki Ohara, Helen Cawley, Nader Hanna, Michael Ghadimi, Trisha Lal, Subrata Sen, Chad J Creighton, Jianjun Gao, Nagireddy Putluri, Stefan Ambs, Perwez Hussain

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Inflammation and aberrant cellular metabolism are widely recognized as hallmarks of cancer. In pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), inflammatory signaling and metabolic reprogramming are tightly interwoven, playing pivotal roles in the pathogenesis and progression of the disease. However, the regulatory functions of inflammatory mediators in metabolic reprogramming in pancreatic cancer have not been fully explored. Earlier, we demonstrated that pro-inflammatory mediator macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) enhances disease progression by inhibiting its downstream transcriptional factor nuclear receptor subfamily 3 group C member 2 (NR3C2). Here, we provide evidence that MIF and NR3C2 interactively regulate metabolic reprogramming, resulting in MIF-induced cancer growth …

Personalized Neoantigen Vaccines As Early Intervention In Untreated Patients With Lymphoplasmacytic Lymphoma: A Non-Randomized Phase 1 Trial, Szymon J Szymura, Lin Wang, Tiantian Zhang, Soung-Chul Cha, Joo Song, Zhenyuan Dong, Aaron Anderson, Elizabeth Oh, Vincent Lee, Zhe Wang, Sapna Parshottam, Sheetal Rao, Jasper B Olsem, Brandon N Crumpton, Hans C Lee, Elisabet E Manasanch, Sattva Neelapu, Larry W Kwak, Sheeba K Thomas

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma (LPL) is an incurable low-grade lymphoma with no standard therapy. Nine asymptomatic patients treated with a first-in-human, neoantigen DNA vaccine experienced no dose limiting toxicities (primary endpoint, NCT01209871). All patients achieve stable disease or better, with one minor response, and median time to progression of 72+ months. Post-vaccine single-cell transcriptomics reveal dichotomous antitumor responses, with reduced tumor B-cells (tracked by unique B cell receptor) and their survival pathways, but no change in clonal plasma cells. Downregulation of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class II molecules and paradoxical upregulation of insulin-like growth factor (IGF) by the latter suggest resistance mechanisms. …

Mitochondrial Permeability Transition Dictates Mitochondrial Maturation Upon Switch In Cellular Identity Of Hematopoietic Precursors, Sandeep P Dumbali, Paulina D Horton, Travis I Moore, Pamela L Wenzel

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP) is a supramolecular channel that regulates exchange of solutes across cristae membranes, with executive roles in mitochondrial function and cell death. The contribution of the mPTP to normal physiology remains debated, although evidence implicates the mPTP in mitochondrial inner membrane remodeling in differentiating progenitor cells. Here, we demonstrate that strict control over mPTP conductance shapes metabolic machinery as cells transit toward hematopoietic identity. Cells undergoing the endothelial-to-hematopoietic transition (EHT) tightly control chief regulatory elements of the mPTP. During EHT, maturing arterial endothelium restricts mPTP activity just prior to hematopoietic commitment. After transition in cellular …

Proximity Analysis Of Native Proteomes Reveals Phenotypic Modifiers In A Mouse Model Of Autism And Related Neurodevelopmental Conditions, Yudong Gao, Daichi Shonai, Matthew Trn, Jieqing Zhao, Erik J Soderblom, S Alexandra Garcia-Moreno, Charles A Gersbach, William C Wetsel, Geraldine Dawson, Dmitry Velmeshev, Yong-Hui Jiang, Laura G Sloofman, Joseph D Buxbaum, Scott H Soderling

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

One of the main drivers of autism spectrum disorder is risk alleles within hundreds of genes, which may interact within shared but unknown protein complexes. Here we develop a scalable genome-editing-mediated approach to target 14 high-confidence autism risk genes within the mouse brain for proximity-based endogenous proteomics, achieving the identification of high-specificity spatial proteomes. The resulting native proximity proteomes are enriched for human genes dysregulated in the brain of autistic individuals, and reveal proximity interactions between proteins from high-confidence risk genes with those of lower-confidence that may provide new avenues to prioritize genetic risk. Importantly, the datasets are enriched for …

The Dna Methylome Of Pediatric Brain Tumors Appears Shaped By Structural Variation And Predicts Survival, Fengju Chen, Yiqun Zhang, Lanlan Shen, Chad J Creighton

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Structural variation heavily influences the molecular landscape of cancer, in part by impacting DNA methylation-mediated transcriptional regulation. Here, using multi-omic datasets involving >2400 pediatric brain and central nervous system tumors of diverse histologies from the Children's Brain Tumor Network, we report hundreds of genes and associated CpG islands (CGIs) for which the nearby presence of somatic structural variant (SV) breakpoints is recurrently associated with altered expression or DNA methylation, respectively, including tumor suppressor genes ATRX and CDKN2A. Altered DNA methylation near enhancers associates with nearby somatic SV breakpoints, including MYC and MYCN. A subset of genes with SV-CGI methylation associations …

Video And Phone Visit Use Differed By Language Preference Among Us Latino And Chinese Adults During The First 9 Months Of The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Electronic Health Record Study, Nancy P Gordon, Teresa Y Lin, Antonia Torreblanca, Mary E Reed

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: During the first nine months of the COVID-19 emergency, patients were encouraged to use virtual versus clinic visits if in-person care was not deemed necessary by clinical staff. This study examined the association of spoken language preference and ethnicity with use of video versus phone virtual visits by US Latino and Chinese adult patients who got care in the same healthcare system.

METHODS: We analyzed electronic health record data for four groups of adults aged 26-85y who had ≥ 1 primary or specialty care outpatient clinician visits during April-December 2020: 80,869 Latino adults preferring Spanish (LEP Latino); 214,765 Latino …

Cefiderocol Heteroresistance Associated With Mutations In Tonb-Dependent Receptor Genes In Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Of Clinical Origin, Stephanie L Egge, Samie A Rizvi, Shelby R Simar, Manuel Alcalde, Jose R W Martinez, Blake M Hanson, An Q Dinh, Rodrigo P Baptista, Truc T Tran, Samuel A Shelburne, Jose M Munita, Cesar A Arias, Morgan Hakki, William R Miller

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The siderophore-cephalosporin cefiderocol (FDC) presents a promising treatment option for carbapenem-resistant (CR) P. aeruginosa (PA). FDC circumvents traditional porin and efflux-mediated resistance by utilizing TonB-dependent receptors (TBDRs) to access the periplasmic space. Emerging FDC resistance has been associated with loss of function mutations within TBDR genes or the regulatory genes controlling TBDR expression. Further, difficulties with antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) and unexpected negative clinical treatment outcomes have prompted concerns for heteroresistance, where a single lineage isolate contains resistant subpopulations not detectable by standard AST. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of TBDR mutations among clinical isolates of P. aeruginosa …

Pkd1 Mutant Clones Within Cirrhotic Livers Inhibit Steatohepatitis Without Promoting Cancer, Min Zhu, Yunguan Wang, Tianshi Lu, Jason Guo, Lin Li, Meng-Hsiung Hsieh, Purva Gopal, Yi Han, Naoto Fujiwara, Darren P Wallace, Alan S L Yu, Xiangyi Fang, Crystal Ransom, Sara Verschleisser, David Hsiehchen, Yujin Hoshida, Amit G Singal, Adam Yopp, Tao Wang, Hao Zhu

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Somatic mutations in non-malignant tissues are selected for because they confer increased clonal fitness. However, it is uncertain whether these clones can benefit organ health. Here, ultra-deep targeted sequencing of 150 liver samples from 30 chronic liver disease patients revealed recurrent somatic mutations. PKD1 mutations were observed in 30% of patients, whereas they were only detected in 1.3% of hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs). To interrogate tumor suppressor functionality, we perturbed PKD1 in two HCC cell lines and six in vivo models, in some cases showing that PKD1 loss protected against HCC, but in most cases showing no impact. However, Pkd1 haploinsufficiency …

Stroke Severity, Caregiver Feedback, And Cognition In The Regards-Cares Study, Jason A Blake, D Leann Long, Amy J Knight, Burel R Goodin, Michael Crowe, Suzanne E Judd, J David Rhodes, David L Roth, Olivio J Clay

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Cognitive impairment after stroke is common and is present in up to 60% of survivors. Stroke severity, indicated by both volume and location, is the most consequential predictor of cognitive impairment, with severe strokes predicting higher chances of cognitive impairment. The current investigation examines the associations of 2 stroke severity ratings and a caregiver-report of poststroke functioning with longitudinal cognitive outcomes.

METHODS AND RESULTS: One hundred fifty-seven caregivers and stroke survivor dyads participated in the CARES (Caring for Adults Recovering From the Effects of Stroke) project, an ancillary study of the REGARDS (Reasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in …

Large-Scale Mutational Analysis Identifies Unc93b1 Variants That Drive Tlr-Mediated Autoimmunity In Mice And Humans., Victoria E. Rael, Julian A. Yano, John P. Huizar, Leianna C. Slayden, Madeleine A. Weiss, Elizabeth A. Turcotte, Jacob M. Terry, Wenqi Zuo, Isabelle Thiffault, Tomi Pastinen, Emily G. Farrow, Janda L. Jenkins, Mara L. Becker, Stephen C. Wong, Anne M. Stevens, Catherine Otten, Eric J. Allenspach, Devon E. Bonner, Jonathan A. Bernstein, Matthew T. Wheeler, Robert A. Saxton, Undiagnosed Diseases Network, Bo Liu, Olivia Majer, Gregory M. Barton

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Nucleic acid-sensing Toll-like receptors (TLR) 3, 7/8, and 9 are key innate immune sensors whose activities must be tightly regulated to prevent systemic autoimmune or autoinflammatory disease or virus-associated immunopathology. Here, we report a systematic scanning-alanine mutagenesis screen of all cytosolic and luminal residues of the TLR chaperone protein UNC93B1, which identified both negative and positive regulatory regions affecting TLR3, TLR7, and TLR9 responses. We subsequently identified two families harboring heterozygous coding mutations in UNC93B1, UNC93B1+/T93I and UNC93B1+/R336C, both in key negative regulatory regions identified in our screen. These patients presented with cutaneous tumid lupus and juvenile idiopathic arthritis plus …

Epigenetic Associations With Neonatal Age In Infants Born Very Preterm, Particularly Among Genes Involved In Neurodevelopment., Kenyaita M. Hodge, Amber A. Burt, Marie Camerota, Brian S. Carter, Jennifer Check, Karen N. Conneely, Jennifer Helderman, Julie A. Hofheimer, Anke Hüls, Elisabeth C. Mcgowan, Charles R. Neal, Steven L. Pastyrnak, Lynne M. Smith, Sheri A. Dellagrotta, Lynne M. Dansereau, T Michael O'Shea, Carmen J. Marsit, Barry M. Lester, Todd M. Everson

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

The time from conception through the first year of life is the most dynamic period in human development. This time period is particularly important for infants born very preterm (< 30 weeks gestation; VPT), as they experience a significant disruption in the normal developmental trajectories and are at heightened risk of experiencing developmental impairments and delays. Variations in the epigenetic landscape during this period may reflect this disruption and shed light on the interrelationships between aging, maturation, and the epigenome. We evaluated how gestational age (GA) and age since conception in neonates [post-menstrual age (PMA)], were related to DNA methylation in buccal cells collected at NICU discharge from VPT infants (n = 538). After adjusting for confounders and applying Bonferroni correction, we identified 2,366 individual CpGs associated with GA and 14,979 individual CpGs associated with PMA, as well as multiple differentially methylated regions. Pathway enrichment analysis identified pathways involved in axonogenesis and regulation of neuron projection development, among many other growth and developmental pathways (FDR q < 0.001). Our findings align with prior work, and also identify numerous novel associations, suggesting that genes important in growth and development, particularly neurodevelopment, are subject to substantial epigenetic changes during early development among children born VPT.

Disability In Cluster Headache Is More Than Attack Frequency – Results From And Validation Of The English Version Of The Cluster Headache Impact Questionnaire (Chiq), Katharina Kamm, Andreas Straube, Mark Burish, Ruth Ruscheweyh

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Cluster headache (CH) is associated with high disability. The Cluster Headache Impact Questionnaire (CHIQ) is a short, disease-specific disability questionnaire first developed and validated in German. Here, we validated the English version of this questionnaire.

METHODS: The CHIQ was assessed together with nonspecific headache-related disability questionnaires in CH patients from a tertiary headache center and an American self-help group.

RESULTS: 155 active episodic and chronic CH patients were included. The CHIQ showed good internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.91) and test-retest reliability (ICC = 0.93, n = 44). Factor analysis identified a single factor. Convergent validity was shown by …

Tumour-Intrinsic Endomembrane Trafficking By Arf6 Shapes An Immunosuppressive Microenvironment That Drives Melanomagenesis And Response To Checkpoint Blockade Therapy, Yinshen Wee, Junhua Wang, Emily C Wilson, Coulson P Rich, Aaron Rogers, Zongzhong Tong, Evelyn Degroot, Y N Vashisht Gopal, Michael A Davies, H Atakan Ekiz, Joshua K H Tay, Chris Stubben, Kenneth M Boucher, Juan M Oviedo, Keke C Fairfax, Matthew A Williams, Sheri L Holmen, Roger K Wolff, Allie H Grossmann

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Tumour-host immune interactions lead to complex changes in the tumour microenvironment (TME), impacting progression, metastasis and response to therapy. While it is clear that cancer cells can have the capacity to alter immune landscapes, our understanding of this process is incomplete. Herein we show that endocytic trafficking at the plasma membrane, mediated by the small GTPase ARF6, enables melanoma cells to impose an immunosuppressive TME that accelerates tumour development. This ARF6-dependent TME is vulnerable to immune checkpoint blockade therapy (ICB) but in murine melanoma, loss of Arf6 causes resistance to ICB. Likewise, downregulation of ARF6 in patient tumours correlates with …

G12/13 Signaling In Asthma, Elizabeth L. Mcduffie, Reynold A Panettieri, Charles P. Scott

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Faculty Papers

Shortening of airway smooth muscle and bronchoconstriction are pathognomonic for asthma. Airway shortening occurs through calcium-dependent activation of myosin light chain kinase, and RhoA-dependent calcium sensitization, which inhibits myosin light chain phosphatase. The mechanism through which pro-contractile stimuli activate calcium sensitization is poorly understood. Our review of the literature suggests that pro-contractile G protein coupled receptors likely signal through G12/13 to activate RhoA and mediate calcium sensitization. This hypothesis is consistent with the effects of pro-contractile agonists on RhoA and Rho kinase activation, actin polymerization and myosin light chain phosphorylation. Recognizing the likely role of G12/13 signaling in the pathophysiology …

Mucosal Immunization With Chad-Sars-Cov-2-S Prevents Sequential Transmission Of Sars-Cov-2 To Unvaccinated Hamsters, Tamarand L Darling, Houda H Harastani, Astha Joshi, Traci L Bricker, Nadia Soudani, Kuljeet Seehra, Ahmed O Hassan, Michael S Diamond, Adrianus C M Boon

2020-Current year OA Pubs

COVID-19 vaccines have successfully reduced severe disease and death after severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Nonetheless, COVID-19 vaccines are variably effective in preventing transmission and symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection. Here, we evaluated the impact of mucosal or intramuscular vaccine immunization on airborne infection and transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in Syrian hamsters. Immunization of the primary contact hamsters with a mucosal chimpanzee adenoviral-vectored vaccine (ChAd-CoV-2-S), but not intramuscular messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine, reduced infectious virus titers ~100-fold and 100,000-fold in the upper and lower respiratory tract of the primary contact hamster following SARS-CoV-2 exposure. This reduction in virus titer in …

Lipid Droplet-Associated Hydrolase Mobilizes Stores Of Liver X Receptor Sterol Ligands And Protects Against Atherosclerosis, Young-Hwa Goo, Janeesh Plakkal Ayyappan, Francis D Cheeran, Sushant Bangru, Pradip K Saha, Paula Baar, Sabine Schulz, Todd A Lydic, Bernhard Spengler, Andreas H Wagner, Auinash Kalsotra, Vijay K Yechoor, Antoni Paul

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Foam cells in atheroma are engorged with lipid droplets (LDs) that contain esters of regulatory lipids whose metabolism remains poorly understood. LD-associated hydrolase (LDAH) has a lipase structure and high affinity for LDs of foam cells. Using knockout and transgenic mice of both sexes, here we show that LDAH inhibits atherosclerosis development and promotes stable lesion architectures. Broad and targeted lipidomic analyzes of primary macrophages and comparative lipid profiling of atheroma identified a broad impact of LDAH on esterified sterols, including natural liver X receptor (LXR) sterol ligands. Transcriptomic analyzes coupled with rescue experiments show that LDAH modulates the expression …

Znf397 Deficiency Triggers Tet2-Driven Lineage Plasticity And Ar-Targeted Therapy Resistance In Prostate Cancer, Yaru Xu, Yuqiu Yang, Zhaoning Wang, Martin Sjöström, Yuyin Jiang, Yitao Tang, Siyuan Cheng, Su Deng, Choushi Wang, Julisa Gonzalez, Nickolas A Johnson, Xiang Li, Xiaoling Li, Lauren A Metang, Atreyi Mukherji, Quanhui Xu, Carla R Tirado, Garrett Wainwright, Xinzhe Yu, Spencer Barnes, Mia Hofstad, Yu Chen, Hong Zhu, Ariella B Hanker, Ganesh V Raj, Guanghui Zhu, Housheng H He, Zhao Wang, Carlos L Arteaga, Han Liang, Felix Y Feng, Yunguan Wang, Tao Wang, Ping Mu

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Cancer cells exhibit phenotypical plasticity and epigenetic reprogramming that allows them to evade lineage-dependent targeted treatments by adopting lineage plasticity. The underlying mechanisms by which cancer cells exploit the epigenetic regulatory machinery to acquire lineage plasticity and therapy resistance remain poorly understood. We identified zinc finger protein 397 (ZNF397) as a bona fide coactivator of the androgen receptor (AR), essential for the transcriptional program governing AR-driven luminal lineage. ZNF397 deficiency facilitates the transition of cancer cell from an AR-driven luminal lineage to a ten-eleven translocation 2 (TET2)-driven lineage plastic state, ultimately promoting resistance to therapies inhibiting AR signaling. Intriguingly, our …

Renal Mass Imaging Modalities: Does Body Mass Index (Bmi) Matter?, Young Son, Mark E. Quiring, Raeann M. Dalton, Brian Thomas, Noah Davidson, Dayna Devincentz, Collin Payne, Sahil H. Parikh, Benjamin A. Fink, Thomas Mueller, Gordon Brown

Jefferson Health - New Jersey Papers

PURPOSE: Accurate measurement of renal mass size is crucial in the management of renal cancer. With the burdensome cost of imaging yet its need for management, a better understanding of the variability among patients when determining mass size remains of urgent importance. Current guidelines on optimal imaging are limited, especially with respect to body mass index (BMI). The aim of this study is to discern which modalities accurately measure renal mass size and whether BMI influences such accuracy.

METHODS: A multi-institutional chart review was performed for adult patients undergoing partial or radical nephrectomy between 2018 and 2021, with 236 patients …

Safety And Feasibility Of Third-Party Cytotoxic T Lymphocytes For High-Risk Patients With Covid-19, Dolores Grosso, John L. Wagner, Allyson O'Connor, Kaitlyn Keck, Yanping Huang, Zi-Xuan Wang, Hilary Mehler, Benjamin Leiby, Phyllis Flomenberg, Usama Gergis, Neda Nikbakht, Michael Morris, Julie Karp, Alexis R. Peedin, Neal Flomenberg

COVID-19 Papers, Posters, and Presentations

Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) destroy virally infected cells and are critical for the elimination of viral infections such as those caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Delayed and dysfunctional adaptive immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 are associated with poor outcomes. Treatment with allogeneic SARS-CoV-2-specific CTLs may enhance cellular immunity in high-risk patients providing a safe, direct mechanism of treatment. Thirty high-risk ambulatory patients with COVID-19 were enrolled in a phase 1 trial assessing the safety of third party, SARS-CoV-2-specific CTLs. Twelve interventional patients, 6 of whom were immunocompromised, matched the HLA-A∗02:01 restriction of the CTLs and received …

Diagnosing Liposarcoma On (Peri)-Renal Mass Biopsy: A Clinicopathological Study Of 30 Cases, Susan K. Potterveld, Aysha Mubeen, William J. Anderson, Michael R. Clay, Melanie Bourgeau, Gregory W. Charville, Ankur R. Sangoi

Pathology Research and Scholarship

AIMS: Classification of renal neoplasms on small tissue biopsies is in increasing demand, and maintaining broad differential diagnostic considerations in this setting is necessary. When evaluating a renal or perirenal tumour biopsy with sarcomatoid morphology, together with sarcomatoid renal cell carcinoma and sarcomatoid urothelial carcinoma as top diagnostic considerations, it is vital to additionally consider the possibility of well-differentiated and de-differentiated liposarcoma.

METHODS AND RESULTS: This study reports a series of 30 biopsy samples from sites in or around the kidney collected from four institutions in which the correct diagnosis was either well-differentiated or de-differentiated liposarcoma. The majority (26 of …