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The Utah Statesman, February 17, 2025, Utah State University

The Utah Statesman

Weekly student newspaper of Utah State University in Logan.

Religion And Attitudes Toward Xenotransplantation: Results Of A Nationwide Survey In The United States., Daniel J Hurst, Luz A Padilla, Amanda Zink, Brendan Parent, Laura L Kimberly

Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine Departmental Research

Religious viewpoints have been shown to influence the ways in which many persons approach medical decision-making and have been noted as a potential barrier to xenotransplantation acceptance. This study sought to explore how attitudes toward xenotransplantation differ among various religious beliefs. A national Likert-scale survey was conducted in 2023 with a representative sample in the United States. Religious belief was self-reported. Regression analysis was used to identify associations with religious belief and hesitations about xenotransplantation. Five thousand and eight individuals across the United States responded to the survey. The two biggest concerns about xenotransplantation across religious groups were the current …

The Unfolding Story Of Protein Misfolding Causing Alzheimer Disease In Recipients Of Human Pituitary Growth Hormone, Evan G. Graber, Sayed M. Hadi Hosseini, Darrell M. Wilson, Alan D. Rogol

Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolic Diseases Faculty Papers

Human growth hormone (hGH) has been in clinical use for children with GH deficiency (GHD) since the late 1950s. The original formulations were considered very safe with few adverse events reported. That changed remarkably in 1985 when the first patients with GHD, who had been treated with cadaveric hGH, were diagnosed with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). Fortunately, that same year a robust supply of recombinant hGH was released to the market whose adverse event profile did not include CJD. Patients who had received National Hormone and Pituitary Program hGH have been continuously followed since 1985. It is clear that prions are …

The Integrative Genomic And Functional Immunological Analyses Of Colorectal Cancer Initiating Cells To Modulate Stemness Properties And The Susceptibility To Immune Responses., Issam Tout, Salim Bougarn, Mohammed Toufiq, Neha Gopinath, Ola Hussein, Abbirami Sathappan, Evonne Chin-Smith, Fazulur Rehaman, Rebecca Mathew, Lisa Mathew, Kun Wang, Li Liu, Abdulrahman Salhab, Oleksandr Soloviov, Sara Tomei, Waseem Hasan, Sahar Da'as, Yosra Bejaoui, Nady El Hajj, Karama Makni Maalej, Said Dermime, Kakil Rasul, Paolo Dellabona, Giulia Casorati, Alice Turdo, Matilde Todaro, Giorgio Stassi, Soldano Ferrone, Xinhui Wang, Cristina Maccalli

Faculty Research 2025

BACKGROUND: Colorectal cancer (CRC) initiating cells (CICs) possess self-renewal capabilities and are pivotal in tumor recurrence and resistance to conventional therapies, including immunotherapy. The mechanisms underlying their interaction with immune cells remain unclear.

METHODS: We conducted a multi-omics analysis-encompassing DNA methylation, total RNA sequencing, and microRNAs (miRNAs; N = 800) profiling on primary CICs and differentiated tumor cell lines, including autologous pairs. Functional immunological assays were performed to assess the impact of miRNA modulation.

RESULTS: CICs exhibited distinct methylation patterns, transcriptomic profiles, and miRNA expressions compared to differentiated tumor cells (p < 0.05 or 0.01). Notably, miRNA-15a and -196a were implicated in regulating tumorigenic pathways, such as epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), TGF-β signaling, and immune modulation. The transfection of CICs with miRNA mimics led to the downregulation of oncogenic EMT markers (CRKL, lncRNA SOX2-OT, JUNB, SMAD3) and TGF-β pathway, resulting in a significant reduction of the in vitro proliferation and the tumorigenicity and migration in a zebrafish xenograft model. Additionally, miRNA-15a enhanced the expression of antigen processing machinery and decreased the expression of immune checkpoints (PD-L1, PD-L2, CTLA-4) and immunosuppressive cytokines (IL-4). The co-culture of HLA-matched lymphocytes with CICs overexpressing the miRNA-15a, elicited robust tumor-specific immune responses, characterized by a shift toward central and effector memory T cell phenotypes and prevented their terminal differentiation and exhaustion. The combination of miRNA modulation with Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase blockade and immunomodulating agents further potentiated these effects.

CONCLUSIONS: Our study demonstrates that the modulation of miRNA-15a …

Student Senate Meeting Minutes February 17, 2025, Student Senate-Winona State University

Student Senate Meeting Minutes

This document is the official Winona State University Student Senate Minutes for February 17, 2025.

Rna Methyltransferase Spout1/Cenp-32 Links Mitotic Spindle Organization With The Neurodevelopmental Disorder Spadmiss, Avinash V Dharmadhikari, Maria Alba Abad, Sheraz Khan, Reza Maroofian, Tristan T Sands, Farid Ullah, Itaru Samejima, Yanwen Shen, Martin A Wear, Kiara E Moore, Elena Kondakova, Natalia Mitina, Theres Schaub, Grace K Lee, Christine H Umandap, Sara M Berger, Alejandro D Iglesias, Bernt Popp, Rami Abou Jamra, Heinz Gabriel, Stefan Rentas, Alyssa L Rippert, Christopher Gray, Kosuke Izumi, Laura K Conlin, Daniel C Koboldt, Theresa Mihalic Mosher, Scott E Hickey, Dara V F Albert, Haley Norwood, Amy Feldman Lewanda, Hongzheng Dai, Pengfei Liu, Tadahiro Mitani, Dana Marafi, Hatice Koçak Eker, Davut Pehlivan, Jennifer E Posey, Natalie C Lippa, Natalie Vena, Erin L Heinzen, David B Goldstein, Cyril Mignot, Jean-Madeleine De Sainte Agathe, Nouriya Abbas Al-Sannaa, Mina Zamani, Saeid Sadeghian, Reza Azizimalamiri, Tahere Seifia, Maha S Zaki, Ghada M H Abdel-Salam, Mohamed S Abdel-Hamid, Lama Alabdi, Fowzan Sami Alkuraya, Heba Dawoud, Aya Lofty, Peter Bauer, Giovanni Zifarelli, Erum Afzal, Faisal Zafar, Stephanie Efthymiou, Daniel Gossett, Meghan C Towne, Raey Yeneabat, Belen Perez-Duenas, Ana Cazurro-Gutierrez, Edgard Verdura, Veronica Cantarin-Extremera, Ana Do Vale Marques, Aleksandra Helwak, David Tollervey, Sandeep N Wontakal, Vimla S Aggarwal, Jill A Rosenfeld, Victor Tarabykin, Shinya Ohta, James R Lupski, Henry Houlden, William C Earnshaw, Erica E Davis, A Arockia Jeyaprakash, Jun Liao

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

SPOUT1/CENP-32 encodes a putative SPOUT RNA methyltransferase previously identified as a mitotic chromosome associated protein. SPOUT1/CENP-32 depletion leads to centrosome detachment from the spindle poles and chromosome misalignment. Aided by gene matching platforms, here we identify 28 individuals with neurodevelopmental delays from 21 families with bi-allelic variants in SPOUT1/CENP-32 detected by exome/genome sequencing. Zebrafish spout1/cenp-32 mutants show reduction in larval head size with concomitant apoptosis likely associated with altered cell cycle progression. In vivo complementation assays in zebrafish indicate that SPOUT1/CENP-32 missense variants identified in humans are pathogenic. Crystal structure analysis of SPOUT1/CENP-32 reveals that most disease-associated missense variants are …

Woven Interpretations, R. Darden Bradshaw

Marian Library Blog Archive

The exhibit Warp & Weft: Weaving Mary and Identity was curated by the University of Dayton's Darden Bradshaw.

Should Owners Of American Land Be . . . American? An Examination Of The Global Implications Of U.S. Agricultural Land Ownership And The Need For A Federal Regulation, Mattie Zepernick

LSU Journal of Energy Law and Resources

No abstract provided.

We Know About The Right To Bear Arms, But What About The Rights Of Bears Ears, Brandon Andrews

LSU Journal of Energy Law and Resources

No abstract provided.

The Case Against E-Waste In The Bayou State: Proposing E-Waste Recycling Legislation In Louisiana, Elizabeth Bueche

LSU Journal of Energy Law and Resources

No abstract provided.

America Runs On Biodiesel: Implementation Of A New Federal Mandate For Increased Renewable Energy Fuel, Asia Jackson

LSU Journal of Energy Law and Resources

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Urinary Microbiome Analysis In The Diagnostic Approach And Management Of Urinary Incontinence: A Systematic Review, Pouyan Shaker, Zohreh Roshani, Ehsan Timajchi, Zahra Sharifi, Sarah Nikzadfar Goli, Behrooz Broumand, Mohammad Ali Shafiee

Student Publications

Urinary incontinence (UI) is a significant global health issue that impacts mainly middle-aged women, severely affecting their quality of life. Emerging research highlights the urinary microbiome's complex role in the etiology and management of UI, with microbial dysbiosis potentially influencing symptom severity and treatment outcomes. This systematic review aimed to evaluate the current evidence on the urinary microbiome's role in diagnosing and managing UI, focusing on variations in microbial composition across UI subtypes. We identified 21 studies, mostly employing 16S rRNA sequencing to characterize urinary microbiota and their associations with various UI subtypes, including urgency urinary incontinence (UUI), overactive bladder …

The Rider (2025-02-17), Rebeca Salinas

The Rider Archives

Vol. 10, No. 19

Recent Developments In Heterologous Expression Of Cellulases Using The Pichia Pastoris Expression System: A Comprehensive Literature Review, Nazish Muzaffar, Abdur Raziq, Muhammad Waseem Khan, Niaz Muhammad Khan, Bushra Shahid, Anbareen Gul, Hayat Ullah

Biological Engineering Student Research

Cellulosic biomass is considered an important and sustainable source of renewable energy, which needs a complex mixture of different enzymes for its degradation. After amylase, cellulases are the second most important enzymes, gain more importance due to their broad range of applications at the industrial level, and are considered more economical and environmentally friendly; researchers have focused more on the production of cellulase with its higher expression rate and low cost. Pichia pastoris, a methylotrophic yeast strain, has a more effective and well-established system for the production of heterologous proteins, particularly for industrial enzymes. Moreover, its readily achievable high-density …

Impulsivity Facets And Substance Use Involvement: Insights From Genomic Structural Equation Modeling, Laura Vilar-Ribó, Alexander S Hatoum, Andrew D Grotzinger, Travis T Mallard, 23andme Research Team, Sarah Elson, Pierre Fontanillas, Abraham A Palmer, Daniel E Gustavson, Sandra Sanchez-Roige

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Impulsivity is a multidimensional trait associated with substance use disorders (SUDs), but the relationship between distinct impulsivity facets and stages of substance use involvement remains unclear.

METHODS: We used genomic structural equation modeling and genome-wide association studies (

RESULTS: We found that the SU and SUD factors were strongly genetically inter-correlated (

CONCLUSIONS: Our findings show that specific impulsivity facets confer risk for distinct stages of substance use involvement, with potential implications for SUDs prevention and treatment.

Small Molecule-Mediated Inhibition Of The Oxidoreductase Ero1a Restrains Aggressive Breast Cancer By Impairing Vegf And Pd-L1 In The Tumor Microenvironment, Ersilia Varone, Jaehyung Cho, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Cancer cells adapt to harsh environmental conditions by inducing the Unfolded Protein Response (UPR), of which ERO1A is a mediator. ERO1A aids protein folding by acting as a protein disulfide oxidase, and under cancer-related hypoxia conditions, it favors the folding of angiogenic VEGFA, leading tumor cells to thrive and spread. The upregulation of ERO1A in cancer cells, oppositely to the dispensability of ERO1A activity in healthy cells, renders ERO1A a perfect target for cancer therapy. Here, we report the upregulation of ERO1A in a cohort of aggressive triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) patients in which ERO1A levels correlate with a higher …

Criminal Responsibilities Arising From Artificial Intelligence Crimes, Sahar Fouad Majeed Al-Najjar

Imam Ja'afar Al-Sadiq University Journal of Legal Studies

The digital revolution that emerged in the twentieth century had a radical impact on various aspects of life, especially in the economic industry, which included three forms (Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things, and Big Data. With regard to artificial intelligence, it was discovered in the mid-fifties of the last century, and its real birth was at the conference organized in the United States of America by the scientists John McCarthy and Marvin Minsky. Over the years, artificial intelligence techniques have developed rapidly until some applications have reached the ability to self-learn from the situations that they encounter and …

Leagal Adaptation Of The Container And Its Delivery Contract In The Field Of Cargo Transportation, Haifaa Mezher Falhi, Shatha Abdul – Jabbar Khandan

Imam Ja'afar Al-Sadiq University Journal of Legal Studies

The study of the legal nature of the container and the contract for its presentation in the field of transporting goods is one of the issues that aroused the interest of jurisprudence, legislation and the judiciary because of the problems and difficulties it reflects, the solution of which requires identifying the party providing the container, the nature of the contract concluded in its regard, and the fact that the container provided by the shipper is called the description of the goods, or it A first-degree packaging means, and the contract concluded in respect of it is often a lease contract …

Western Australia’S Marine Heatwave Update - 16 February 2025, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Marine Heatwave Notification Reports

No abstract provided.

Sustainable Model For Analyzing The Impact Of Social Media On Customer Buying Behavior: A Case Study, Bshair Alharthi, Mohammed A. Farsi

Sustainable Machine Intelligence Journal

In today's digital landscape, chatbots have become widely used across various applications, particularly in systems that provide intelligent assistance to users. To enhance user experience, these systems are often equipped with chatbots capable of processing user inquiries and delivering accurate, timely responses. This study proposes a structured framework for evaluating the impact of social media on customer buying behavior through a case study focused on selecting the most suitable Online Chatbot Platform (OCP). The selection of an optimal OCP is a complex multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) problem, involving multiple interdependent and often conflicting factors. One of the key challenges in this …

Three Walks Along Wascana Creek, Ken Wilson

The Goose

"Three Walks Along Wascana Creek" recalls the author's walking along Wascana Creek in Regina, Saskatchewan, in June 2021.

A New Dictionary Of Archives Terminology, Jody Baltessen

The Goose

Poetry by Jody Baltessen.

"A Fate For Fire”: A Review Of Knife On Snow By Alice Major, Kate Rogers

The Goose

A review of Knife on Snow, by Alice Major.

Review Of Earth To Tables Legacies: Multimedia Food Conversations Across Generations And Cultures By Deborah Berndt, Lauren E. Baker, And Alexandra Gelis With The Earth To Table Legacies Collaborators, Daniel Coleman

The Goose

Book review of Review of Earth to Tables Legacies: Multimedia Food Conversations across Generations and Cultures by Deborah Berndt, Lauren E. Baker, and Alexandra Gelis with the Earth to Table Legacies Collaborators.

Found: Three Trashed Poems, Tanis Macdonald

The Goose

Three poems about garbage, what is leftover and found.

Video Poem: What Remains, Edie Steiner

The Goose

What Remainsis a three-minute poetry film I created to address the issue of “becoming-with” (Wright 2014). In the film, I document two large-scale, public-art spectacles I witnessed in Toronto, as historical markers of collective becoming-with. I contrast super-8mm film footage of the 1984 outdoor public performance “Shibola” at the Bell Trinity Square building in Toronto, by the Japanese Butoh dance group Sankai Juku, with digital video of “A Tribute to Toronto,” Judy Chicago’s 2022 Smoke Sculpture on the Toronto waterfront. I then intercut these images with digital recordings of ruins and relics, both ancient and modern, merging as …

Review Of Ecologies Of A Storied Planet In The Anthropocene By Serpil Oppermann, Mailyn Abreu Toribio

The Goose

A review of Ecologies of a Storied Planet in the Anthropocene, by Serpil Oppermann.

We Are All Strays Now (Now), Grace Moore

The Goose

Drawing on ideas of kinship and straying, this piece of creative non-fiction considers my relationship with a "neighbourhood cat," dying from a coronavirus, just prior to the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. It addresses how we make kin with strays, and the ways in which animals insert themselves into human lives.

Mining Waste In The Himalayas, Leslie Leong

The Goose

Materiality is a key aspect of the fourteen artworks I created over one month as Artist-in-Residence at Sagarmatha Next, the experience centre for sustainable tourism in the Khumbu region of Nepal. My intention with the residency is to create work from the human discards that accumulate in the area around Mount Everest, known as Sagarmatha in Nepali. The artwork I created during this residency are deeply rooted in the materiality of their components and serve as powerful commentaries on environmental issues, the passage of time, and the potential for transformation inherent in discarded materials. Through the deliberate use of waste, …

My Art Is Garbage, Beth Shepherd

The Goose

In “My Art is Garbage,” I describe three recent art projects where garbage is both a theme and an artistic medium used to critique the overuse of and inability to reuse or safely dispose of plastics we use every day. The first work, Untitled (Plastic Film Balls), uses non-recyclable single-use household plastic made to form an installation of shimmering balls and alludes to the environmental footprint of the artworld. Plastic Shores, a series of monotype prints, reminds us that plastics in the environment are deleterious to species that we see every day. Finally Plastic Pests, a series …