Digital Commons Network^™

Interim Estimates Of 2025-26 Seasonal Influenza Vaccine Effectiveness - United States, September 2025-February 2026., Patrick Maloney, Emily L. Reeves, Kristina Wielgosz, Ashley M. Price, Karthik Natarajan, Malini B. Desilva, Kristin Dascomb, Nicola P. Klein, Sara Y. Tartof, Stephanie A. Irving, Shaun J. Grannis, Toan C. Ong, Zachary A. Weber, Jennifer E. Schuster, Danielle M. Zerr, Marian G. Michaels, Julie A. Boom, Natasha B. Halasa, Mary A. Staat, Geoffrey A. Weinberg, Stacey L. House, Elie A. Saade, Krissy Moehling Geffel, Manjusha Gaglani, Karen J. Wernli, Vel Murugan, Emily T. Martin, Natalie A B Bontrager, Marie K. Kirby, Amanda B. Payne, Fatimah S. Dawood, Ayzsa Tannis, Heidi L. Moline, Sifang Kathy Zhao, Katherine Adams, Jennifer Decuir, Samantha M. Olson, Jessie R. Chung, Nathaniel Lewis, Brendan Flannery, Carrie Reed, Shikha Garg, Sascha Ellington, Cdc Influenza Vaccine Effectiveness Collaborators

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

In the United States, annual influenza vaccination has been recommended for all persons aged ≥6 months, including during the 2025-26 season. Interim influenza vaccine effectiveness (VE) estimates were calculated for patients with acute respiratory illness-associated outpatient visits and hospitalizations from three U.S. respiratory virus VE networks during the 2025-26 influenza season, using a test-negative case-control design. Among children and adolescents aged < 18 years, VE was 38%-41% against influenza outpatient visits and 41% against influenza-associated hospitalization. Among adults aged ≥18 years, VE was 22%-34% against influenza outpatient visits and 30% against influenza-associated hospitalization. Among children and adolescents, VE against influenza A ranged from 37% (against outpatient visits) to 42% (against hospitalization) across settings; among adults, VE against influenza A ranged from 30% (against hospitalization) to 34% (against outpatient visits) across settings. Among children and adolescents, VE against influenza A(H3N2)-associated outpatient visits was 35% and against influenza A(H3N2)-associated hospitalization was 38%. VE against influenza B outpatient visits ranged from 45%-71% among children and adolescents and was 63% among adults. Other estimates of VE were not statistically significant or were not reportable. Although interim influenza VE is lower during the 2025-26 influenza season than it was during recent influenza seasons, these findings demonstrate that influenza vaccination still provides protection against influenza. CDC recommends influenza vaccination; U.S. influenza vaccines remain available for persons aged ≥6 months.

Longitudinal Profiles Of Executive Function In Autistic And Non-Autistic Children At High Likelihood Of Autism, Tanya St John, Neva M Corrigan, Ariel Rokem, Annette M Estes, Heather C Hazlett, Juhi Pandey, Robert T Schultz, Natasha Marrus, Lonnie Zwaigenbaum, Chimei M Lee, Stephen R Dager, Joseph Piven, Ibis Network

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Executive functioning (EF) difficulties are common in autistic children and may aggregate in families. Longitudinal studies examining EF development in autistic children and their siblings are limited. In the current study, we characterized EF development from later infancy through school-age in autistic and non-autistic high likelihood (HL; with an older autistic sibling) and low likelihood (LL; without older autistic sibling) children. METHODS: Participants were 83 autistic and 235 non-autistic HL children, and 132 LL children from the Infant Brain Imaging Study. EF was assessed at ages 12 and 24 months using the A-not-B task and ages 5–14 years (school-age) …

Leveraging Patient Data To Detect Systematic Shifts In Daptomycin Susceptibility Testing Associated With Reduced Prescribing, Mark A Zaydman, Laurel Glaser, Daniel S Herman, Mason Kressloff, Vahid Azimi, Christine R Lockowitz, Rebekah E Dumm

2020-Current year OA Pubs

UNLABELLED: Systemic shifts in antimicrobial resistance rates can be due to epidemiologic shifts in microbial susceptibility patterns or artifactual shifts introduced by technical biases in antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST)-both ultimately leading to changes in antimicrobial prescribing. To reduce technical variability, quality control (QC) criteria for AST are published by manufacturers and standards organizations. However, traditional QC metrics, in isolation, are fallible. In this study, we describe a systematic shift in daptomycin AST results between 2022 and 2025 in isolates tested in two independent health systems. Comprehensive analysis of clinical isolate AST results and retrospective mining of QC data from this …

Improving Rigor And Reproducibility Through Implementation Of The Isscr Standards For Human Stem Cell Use In Research., Yvonne Fischer, Jack Mosher, Ivana Barbaric, Claudia Spits, Martin Pera

Faculty Research 2026

The International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) document "Standards For Human Stem Cell Use in Research" put forward a checklist for scientific journals to use in the assessment of compliance with its reporting standards. A trial implementation of this checklist at Stem Cell Reports revealed consistent gaps in the reporting of critical data relating to the cells and experimental methodologies employed in published manuscripts.

Improving Rigor And Reproducibility Through Implementation Of The Isscr Standards For Human Stem Cell Use In Research., Yvonne Fischer, Jack Mosher, Ivana Barbaric, Claudia Spits, Martin Pera

Faculty Research 2026

The International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) document "Standards For Human Stem Cell Use in Research" put forward a checklist for scientific journals to use in the assessment of compliance with its reporting standards. A trial implementation of this checklist at Stem Cell Reports revealed consistent gaps in the reporting of critical data relating to the cells and experimental methodologies employed in published manuscripts.

Virtual Reality For The Management Of Postoperative Pain And Anxiety In Children And Adolescents Undergoing Nuss Repair Of Pectus Excavatum: Randomized Controlled Trial, Charlotte M. Walter, Dillon Froass, Nora Bell, Lauren Haack, Chloe Boehmer, Claudia Bruguera Torres, Rachel Spivak, Max Chou, Kristie Geisler, Keith O'Conor, Sara E. Williams, Lili Ding, Christopher D. King, Vanessa A. Olbrecht

Department of Medicine Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: Virtual reality (VR) is a novel technology with implications for pain and sensory processing. VR may serve as a novel, scalable method to deliver clinically validated therapy for pain management as an alternative or adjunct to opioids for acute pain. Given that psychological factors and pain perception are both components of postoperative pain, it may also be beneficial to incorporate modalities that decrease anxiety, such as active relaxation and guided meditation with VR. Unfortunately, these therapies are not widely available due to multiple barriers. VR has the potential to deliver pain-reducing, psychologically based therapy to children, thereby enhancing multimodal …

Recommendations For The Diagnosis And Management Of Cln3 Disease (Batten Disease) Using The Delphi Consensus Methodology, Jonathan W Mink, Jonathan D Cooper, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: CLN3 disease, also called Juvenile Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis (JNCL), or Batten disease, is an ultra‑rare, neurodegenerative lysosomal storage disorder generally affecting individuals during the first decade of life. There can be a delay in diagnosis or misdiagnosis due to a lack of awareness, and when the most common presenting symptom of visual loss is attributed to more common conditions affecting vision. METHODS: We used a previously published Expert Mapping Tool (EMT) to identify multidisciplinary professionals with diagnostic or clinical management expertise, as well as patient advocates with experience of CLN3 disease. A systematic literature review of published evidence using …

International Consensus-Driven Recommendations For Patient-Reported Outcome Research Objectives In Early Phase Dose-Finding Oncology Trials: Optimise-Ror, Emily Alger, Olalekan Lee Aiyegbusi, Amylou C Dueck, Anna Minchom, Madeline Pe, Claire Snyder, Roger Wilson, Ethan Basch, Yu Qiao, Susan E Bates, Helen Bulbeck, Lizzie Dean, Massimo Di Maio, Aaron R Hansen, Olga Kholmanskikh, Ken Kobayashi, Dónal Landers, Christophe Le Tourneau, J Jack Lee, Brigette B Y Ma, Lynley V Marshall, Sheetal Patel, Joan Petrie, Gregory R Pond, Kieran Prior, Khadija R Rantell, John F Reeve, Olga Solovyeva, Nolan A Wages, Harald A Weber, Melanie J Calvert, Christina Yap

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Purpose: There is growing scientific interest in incorporating patient-reported outcomes (PROs) in early phase dose-finding oncology trials (DFOTs) to assess tolerability, inform dose selection, and guide later stage trial design. However, research indicates that PRO objectives in DFOTs are often unclear. The Incorporating Patient-Reported Outcomes in Dose-Finding Trials-Research Objectives Recommendations (OPTIMISE-ROR) project was established to support trialists to effectively incorporate PROs into DFOTs.

Methods: Using the Enhancing Quality and Transparency of Health Research (EQUATOR) Network's methodological framework, guideline development included the following: (1) a methodological review of published DFOTs incorporating PROs; (2) candidate item generation, refined through expert consultation; (3) …

The Use And Utility Of Wearable Devices For Tracking Sleep And Activity In Inpatient Mental Health Settings: Protocol For A Rapid Review, Gillian Strudwick, Hwayeon Danielle Shin, Iman Kassam, Karishini Ramamoorthi, Benjamin Rosen, Michelle A Patriquin, Justin Baker, Nicholas Neufeld

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Wearable devices offer an opportunity to objectively monitor and capture sleep and activity in psychiatric inpatient settings, where traditional approaches often rely on subjective reporting or staff observation, both of which have inherent flaws. Technologies such as Fitbit, Garmin, Oura Ring, GENEActiv, Empatica, and WHOOP (among others) have been used to passively collect physiological data that may inform care planning and clinical decision-making. Despite growing interest, the extent to which these wearables are feasible, acceptable, and useful in inpatient mental health settings remains unclear. Synthesizing this evidence is essential to inform their potential integration into psychiatric care.

Objective: This …

Penile Prosthetic Infections: What Can Be Learned From Orthopedics?, Kenneth B Mathis, Alisina Shahi

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Crossing The Finish Line Towards A Disease-Modifying Treatment For Angelman Syndrome, Matthew C Judson, Jason J Yi, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Recent progress in the development of genetic therapies promises that impactful treatments for single-gene neurodevelopmental disorders are imminent. But can derailed neurodevelopmental processes be mended after broken genes are replaced or otherwise restored? The results of ongoing clinical trials for Angelman syndrome will soon yield answers to this pressing question, yet the trials face significant obstacles. Here we identify insights needed to aid the quest for a disease-modifying Angelman syndrome therapy, which could serve as a roadmap for the expeditious development of genetic therapies for other single-gene neurodevelopmental disorders.

Multi-Stakeholder Perspectives On Barriers To Mental Health Support For Informal Caregivers, Maria Lizette Rangel, Donaji Stelzig, Cassandra Martinez Enriquez, Hoda Badr

Department of Medical Oncology Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: Informal caregivers experience elevated psychological distress but face substantial challenges in accessing mental health support. Prior research has focused primarily on individual or interpersonal determinants, with less attention to how organizational, community, and policy contexts shape access and contribute to inequities in service availability.

METHODS: Fifty-one stakeholders, including 17 informal caregivers, 23 community health workers (CHWs), and 11 mental health professionals, completed a demographic survey and 60-90-min semi-structured interviews in English or Spanish. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis, combining deductive coding guided by the Socioecological Model with inductive identification of emergent themes.

RESULTS: Participants identified both barriers and …

Is Male Infertility An Early Warning Of More Serious Diseases?, Dolores J. Lamb

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

About 12% of couples worldwide are infertile. Male factor infertility causes or is contributory to a couple's ability to conceive in approximately 50% of cases. Evidence has emerged that infertile men have poor overall health and increased morbidity and mortality, yet the causes for this are poorly understood. Although these men may appear healthy, research shows that they can harbor a wide variety of systemic diseases and illnesses that may share common links with the causes of their infertility. In fact, as semen parameters decline, their risks of several health conditions increase. In the early 1990s to the present, studies …

Integrating Interferon Gamma Receptor Pathways, Antigenicity, And Immune Contexture As Predictors Of Immunotherapeutic Strategies For Mucosal Melanomas, Matilde Monti, Jinglun Li, Obi Griffith, Malachi Griffith, William Vermi, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Mucosal melanomas (MM) arise from mucosal melanocytes at various anatomical sites. These tumors are rare, highly aggressive, and often associated with poor outcomes. Current treatments, including immune checkpoint inhibitors, show limited efficacy in advanced disease. Compared with cutaneous melanomas, there is a lack of data on the immunogenicity and interferon (IFN)-γ sensitivity of MM. In this study, we examined these features in sino-nasal melanomas (SN-MM) cell lines and clinical samples using microscopy and functional genomics.

METHODS: The immune contexture of SN-MM was analyzed by immunohistochemistry on 48 tumor biopsies. RNA sequencing and mass spectrometry-based proteomic approaches were used to …

Identification Of De Novo Variants From Parent-Proband Duos Via Long-Read Sequencing, Leandros Boukas, Emmanuèle C. Délot, Georgia Pitsava, Christine Lambert, Cairbre Fanslow, Primo Baybayan, Sami Belhadj, Bojan Losic, John Harting, Krista Bluske, Jonathan Lotempio, Huda B. Al-Kouatly, Rachid Karam, William J. Rowell, Changrui Xiao, Eric Vilain, Seth I. Berger

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Faculty Papers

While de novo variants cause many Mendelian disorders, their detection currently requires sequencing of the proband and both biological parents. This is not feasible when only one parent is available, a limitation for millions of families. Here, we develop duoNovo, which identifies de novo variants from parent-proband duos using long-read sequencing followed by haplotype reconstruction and detection of identical-by-descent haplotype blocks. We sequenced 104 trios with PacBio HiFi sequencing and applied duoNovo to each of the 208 duos constructed by masking one parent, classifying over 55 million variants according to their de novo status. We evaluated duoNovo's performance against classifications …

Randomized Phase 2b Dose-Escalation Trial Of Stem Cell Therapy With Laromestrocel For Aging Frailty, Julian Javier, Jeffrey Rosen, Robert Perry, Antonio Blanco, Pedro Ylisastigui, Jeremy Walston, Hidenori Arai, Elena Volpi, Anne B Newman, Brittany Varnado, Lisa Mcclain-Moss, Eric Naioti, Danial Mehranfard, Dan Gincel, Chao Wang, Michael J Mintzer, Joel Danisi, Geoff A Green, Jeffrey Botbyl, Zarin Zainul, Brian G Rash, Joshua M Hare

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Frailty, a syndrome that decreases healthspan in older individuals, lacks effective therapies. We conducted a randomized, dose-finding clinical trial to test whether human bone marrow-derived allogeneic mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs; laromestrocel) improve physical functioning and patient self-reported outcomes in ambulatory individuals with frailty (ClinicalTrials.gov #NCT03169231; N = 148). Laromestrocel infusion results in clinically meaningful, dose- and time-dependent increases in the 6-min walk test (6MWT; primary endpoint) compared with placebo: 63.4 m (95% confidence interval [CI]: 17.1-109.6 m; p = 0.0077) at month 9 and 41.3 m (95% CI: -2.4-84.9 m; p = 0.0635) at month 6. Increased 6MWT distance correlates …

Bi-Allelic Variants In Nrdc Cause A Neurodevelopmental Disorder Characterized By Neonatal Lethality, Microcephaly, And Brain Abnormalities, François Lecoquierre, Aisha M Al Shamsi, Gyu S Lee, Osman Yesilbas, Preston Taylor, Matthew B Mcdougal, Vahid Bahrambeigi, Omid Aryani, Juan Felipe Ramirez, Khalid Hama Salih, Chadi Al Alam, Heba Morsy, Haytham Hussien, Tarek Omar, Ibrahim M Abdelrazek, Anne Claire Brehin, Dana Marafi, Tugba Kalayci, Jubran Abu Rahma, Jawabreh Kassem Talbeya, Husein Dabbah, Eric Verspyck, Toktam Moosavian, Jawid M Fatih, Tadahiro Mitani, Gulsen Akay, Daniel G Calame, Anne-Marie Guerrot, Wendy K Chung, Henry Houlden, James R Lupski, Adel Shalata, Wan Hee Yoon

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Nardilysin (NRDC) plays a role in multiple cellular functions in diverse cellular compartments, including ectodomain shedding in the plasma membrane, as well as chaperoning a key Krebs cycle enzyme in mitochondria. We had previously reported limited clinical information from two individuals with homozygous frameshift variants in NRDC. With inclusion of previously published individuals, here we report 14 individuals (10 females, four males) from nine unrelated families carrying homozygous NRDC pathogenic variants. Common clinical features include severe to profound developmental delay/intellectual disability (12/12), microcephaly (13/13), prematurity (5/13), lethality in the first 3 years of life (9/14), seizures (7/11), joint contractures (4/8), …

Proteomics Analysis Of Plasma For Risk Of Sepsis: Findings From The Atherosclerosis Risk In Communities Study, Thomas R Austin, Jingsha Chen, Bruce M Psaty, David Dowdy, Christie M Ballantyne, Morgan E Grams, Josef Coresh, James S Floyd, Kunihiro Matsushita

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Sepsis is a life-threatening complication of infection with high mortality. A high-throughput analysis of circulating blood proteins may provide mechanistic insight and potent therapeutic targets for the prevention of sepsis.

Methods: We used multivariable Cox regression analysis to examine the association of 4955 plasma proteins, measured by SomaScan, with the risk of incident sepsis among 11 065 participants of the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study (visit 3 in 1993 to 1995; mean age, 60.1 years, 54.4% female, 21.0% Black). Proteins (false discovery rate [FDR] of P < 0.05) discovered at visit 3 were replicated using data at visit 5 (n = 4869 in 2011 to 2013: mean age, 75.5 years) and in the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS) (n = 3512 in 1992 to 1993; mean age, 74.5 years). Canonical pathways were identified by enrichment analyses.

Results: At ARIC visit three, 669 proteins were associated with the risk …

Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonists And Risk Of Substance Use Disorders Among Us Veterans With Type 2 Diabetes: Cohort Study, Miao Cai, Taeyoung Choi, Yan Xie, Ziyad Al-Aly

2020-Current year OA Pubs

OBJECTIVES: To investigate whether initiation of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists is associated with both reduced risks of incident alcohol, cannabis, cocaine, nicotine, opioid, and other substance use disorders (SUDs) in people with no history of SUDs (protocol 1) and with reduced risk of SUD related adverse clinical outcomes among people with a pre-existing SUD (protocol 2).

DESIGN: Emulation of eight parallel, new user, active comparator target trials using electronic health records: seven trials for each incident SUD outcome (protocol 1) and one trial for adverse outcomes in people with pre-existing SUD (protocol 2).

SETTING: US Department of Veterans Affairs. …

Medial Pulvinar Nucleus As A Causal Hub For Heteromodal Naming, Oscar Woolnough, Tessy Thomas, Kathryn M Snyder, Ellery Wheeler, Jay Gavvala

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Our ability to retrieve the names of objects in our environment is a fundamental aspect of everyday life. This process requires a complex, dynamic network of cortical and subcortical interactions. While the cortical constituents of this network have been extensively studied with intracranial recordings, the subcortical nodes of the naming network are unclear. We probed the role of the left medial pulvinar nucleus in naming with direct intracranial recordings and stimulation in eight humans (three male, five female) as they named objects using pictures and auditory and written descriptions. We found a spectrotemporal signature of naming in the left medial …

Sex-Related Differences In Clinical Profile, Management, And Outcomes Of Patients With Type A And B Acute Aortic Dissection: Observations From Irad, Elizabeth Jackson, Andreina Carbone, Sherene Shalhub, Chih-Wen Pai, Marek Ehrlich, Toru Suzuki, G Chad Hughes, Anil Bhan, Rumi Faizer, Antonio Cittadini, Alan Braverman, Eric Isselbacher, Kim Eagle, Christoph Nienaber, Eduardo Bossone

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Available data about sex differences in patients with acute aortic dissection (AAD) are scant and conflicting. The aim of this study is to assess sex-related differences in clinical characteristics, presentation, diagnostic findings, management, and outcomes among patients with type A (TA-AAD) and type B AAD (TB-AAD).

METHODS: Data about 11 586 patients enrolled in the IRAD (International Registry of Acute Aortic Dissection) from 1996 to 2022, were analyzed; 7819 (67.5%) experienced TA-AAD and 3867 (33.0%) TB-AAD. Men and women were compared with regard to diagnosis, treatment, and in-hospital and long-term survival.

RESULTS: One third of patients were women (TA-AAD, …

Circulating Ketone Bodies And Incident Cardiovascular Outcomes And Mortality: Insights From The Uk Biobank, Parag Anilkumar Chevli, Saeid Mirzai, Richard Kazibwe, Jeff Kingsley, Alexis C Wood, Joseph Yeboah, Leandro Slipczuk, Anurag Mehta, Harpreet S Bhatia, Ambarish Pandey, Michael D Shapiro

Children’s Nutrition Research Center Staff Publications

Background: Ketone bodies (KB) are endogenous energy sources synthesized by the liver in response to metabolic stress. Their associations with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), heart failure (HF), and mortality and their potential beneficial or harmful effects have yet to be determined. This study aimed to examine the association between KB and incident cardiovascular outcomes and mortality in a large general population cohort free from ASCVD and HF at baseline.

Methods: This analysis included 90 987 participants (mean age 56.4 ± 8.1 years; 54.7% women) from the UK Biobank without prevalent ASCVD or HF. KB were measured by nuclear magnetic resonance …

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder And Risk Of All-Cause And Cause-Specific Mortality: A Nationwide Population And Sibling-Controlled Cohort Study In Taiwan, Chih-Wei Hsu, Yang-Chieh Brian Chen, Liang-Jen Wang, Mu-Hong Chen, Yao-Hsu Yang, Chih-Sung Liang, Edward Chia-Cheng Lai

Children’s Nutrition Research Center Staff Publications

Aims: Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may shorten life expectancy, but evidence for Asian populations and cause-specific mortality remains limited. The aim of this study is to investigate the association between PTSD and mortality risk in an Asian population.

Methods: We used Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database (2000-2022) to assemble a cohort of 28,777 individuals with incident PTSD and 115,108 age- and sex-matched unexposed individuals, plus a sibling cohort of 13,305 affected patients and 22,030 unaffected siblings. Cox models estimated adjusted hazard ratios (AHRs) for all-cause, unnatural-cause (suicide and accidents) and natural-cause mortality, with progressive adjustment for sociodemographic factors, comorbidity …

Clinical Validation Of Perfusion Imaging With Pulmonary Function Test Data Using Voronoi-Based Discretization, Jorge Cisneros, Caleb J. Herrera, Yi-Kuan Liu, Lisa V. Du, Yevgeniy Vinogradskiy, Richard Castillo, Girish Nair, Edward Castillo

Department of Medicine Faculty Papers

Objective.Accurate lung function assessment is essential for diagnosing and managing diseases like chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder, pulmonary emboli, and lung cancer. Single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) provides valuable 3D functional imaging of ventilation and perfusion, but is limited by low spatial resolution, availability, additional radiation, and cost. Alternative methods, including CT-based perfusion (CT-P) and deep learning models, require large datasets to validate results that are often scarce. Pulmonary function tests (PFTs) offer rapid and noninvasive global lung function measures and are clinically widely used. While ventilation correlates well with PFTs, perfusion imaging presents challenges due to complex blood flow and …

Ten Years Real-World Experience With Sacubitril/Valsartan In Patients With Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction, Antoni Bayes-Genis, Seok Min Kang, Byung-Su Yoo, Carlos Eid, Biykem Bozkurt, Javed Butler

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Introduction: Sacubitril/valsartan (Sac/Val) represents a cornerstone of heart failure (HF) with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) management. This systematic review provides a comprehensive overview of real-world evidence (RWE) regarding the implementation, clinical effectiveness, and safety of Sac/Val in patients with HFrEF.

Methods: A systematic literature search of PubMed was conducted through March 2024 following PRISMA guidelines.

Results: The review included 45 manuscripts from 30 different studies, primarily from Europe (44%) and the US (30%). RWE confirmed that Sac/Val was associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular mortality (10%-16%), HF hospitalization (10%-38%), and all-cause mortality (10%-25%). Sac/Val was significantly associated with cardiac …

Influence Of Body Composition On The Efficacy Of Nivolumab Plus Ipilimumab For Metastatic Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma, Kabir Grewal, Maria Julia Moura Nascimento Santos, Pankaj Kumar Chauhan, Kai Yu, Nizar M Tannir, Neha Venkatesh, Amado J Zurita, Andrew C Johns, Matthew T Campbell, Sangeeta Goswami, Jianjun Gao, Eric Jonasch, Jennifer L Mcquade, Omar Alhalabi, Pavlos Msaouel, Andrew W Hahn

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy (ICI) with nivolumab+ipilimumab is a first-line (1L) standard for metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC), yet outcomes remain heterogeneous. Increasing evidence suggests that host factors influence the tumor microenvironment and response to ICI. Although higher body mass index (BMI) has been associated with improved outcomes in several malignancies, BMI is an imprecise surrogate for underlying adipose and muscle compartments. We evaluated the association between body composition and outcomes with 1L nivolumab+ipilimumab in metastatic ccRCC.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed patients with mccRCC treated with 1L nivolumab+ipilimumab at MD Anderson Cancer Center between June 2015 and …

Proteomic Profiling Of Pulmonary Function And Cardiovascular Disease Risk In The Atherosclerosis Risk In Communities Study, Yura Lee, Astrid M Manuel, Ngoc Quynh H Nguyen, Christine Ladd-Acosta, Alanna C Morrison, Eric Boerwinkle, Zhongming Zhao, Stephanie J London, Bing Yu

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Pulmonary function is linked to cardiovascular disease risk; however, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. We aimed to identify protein biomarkers associated with pulmonary function and examine their impact on incident chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, coronary heart disease, heart failure, and all-cause mortality.

Methods: Data from White and Black Americans in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study (visit 2: N=11 354, mean age=57 years; visit 5: N=3517, mean age=75 years), a prospective cohort, were analyzed. Linear regression assessed associations between protein levels and pulmonary function measures, including forced expiratory volume in 1 second and forced vital capacity. The impact of …

Ifn Signaling Is Associated With Radiotherapy Response In Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumors., Iowis Zhu, Julian Chien, Gabriel E Rech, Kanish Mirchia, Sixuan Pan, Kaeli Miller, Joanna Pak, Rosanna Wustrack, Varun Monga, Steve E Braunstein, Mark D Adams, Line Jacques, Melike Pekmezci, S John Liu, Harish N Vasudevan

Faculty Research 2026

Patients with malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors (MPNSTs) have poor outcomes despite multimodal treatment with surgery, radiation, and systemic therapy. The responses to radiotherapy (RT) are mixed, and the biologic mechanisms underlying this heterogeneity in the radiation response of MPNSTs are not understood. Here, we combined bulk and single-cell transcriptomics, genome-wide CRISPR interference screens, and multiplatform molecular analysis across MPNST cells, mouse allograft models, and patients' samples to understand the mediators of the radiation response. Our data revealed that MPNSTs, but not benign plexiform neurofibromas, induced a type I IFN signature that functionally mediated the radiation response. Moreover, irradiation of …

Ifn Signaling Is Associated With Radiotherapy Response In Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumors., Iowis Zhu, Julian Chien, Gabriel E Rech, Kanish Mirchia, Sixuan Pan, Kaeli Miller, Joanna Pak, Rosanna Wustrack, Varun Monga, Steve E Braunstein, Mark D Adams, Line Jacques, Melike Pekmezci, S John Liu, Harish N Vasudevan

Faculty Research 2026

Patients with malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors (MPNSTs) have poor outcomes despite multimodal treatment with surgery, radiation, and systemic therapy. The responses to radiotherapy (RT) are mixed, and the biologic mechanisms underlying this heterogeneity in the radiation response of MPNSTs are not understood. Here, we combined bulk and single-cell transcriptomics, genome-wide CRISPR interference screens, and multiplatform molecular analysis across MPNST cells, mouse allograft models, and patients' samples to understand the mediators of the radiation response. Our data revealed that MPNSTs, but not benign plexiform neurofibromas, induced a type I IFN signature that functionally mediated the radiation response. Moreover, irradiation of …

The Development Of Ace-Iii Performance Validity Tests For Dementia Screening, Donnchadh Murphy, Rupert Noad

Peninsula Medical School

Objective: Performance validity tests (PVTs) are an essential component of a neuropsychological evaluation. There is a lack of brief validated PVTs for use alongside cognitive screening assessments for dementia. The current study sought to develop and evaluate a series of brief PVTs, which could be embedded into the Addenbrooke’s Cognitive Examination (ACE-III) and used in a dementia clinic. Method: This study used a diagnostic accuracy design to compare the performance of 31 individuals with Alzheimer’s disease dementia and 26 healthy older adults who simulated having Alzheimer’s disease. Participants were asked to complete ACE-III, the Test of Memory Malingering (TOMM), and …