Digital Commons Network^™

A Β-Lactamase Inhibitory Protein Mutant Displays High Potency And A Broad Inhibition Profile Due To An Altered Binding Mode With Β-Lactamases, Paola Rivera, Shuo Lu, Dignite Ngango, Banumathi Sankaran, Bidadi Venkataram Prasad, Timothy Palzkill

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

β-lactamase enzymes inactivate β-lactam antibiotics, leading to drug resistance. The β-lactamase inhibitory protein (BLIP) is a naturally occurring inhibitor of β-lactamases, with inhibition constants (Ki) ranging from picomolar to micromolar values. For example, BLIP inhibits CTX-M-14 β-lactamase with a Ki of 330 nM, whereas the Ki for CTX-M-15 is 3 nM, despite CTX-M-14 and CTX-M-15 sharing 83% sequence identity. We used a genetic screen to identify a BLIP mutant, E73W, that potently inhibited CTX-M-14. Subsequent purification and testing of BLIP E73W revealed that it is a potent, broad-spectrum inhibitor of class A β-lactamases. We determined …

Unmasking Hidden Clues In Cutaneous Viral Infections: Histopathological Insights Into Keratinocytic Features Of Herpes Simplex Virus, Varicella Zoster Virus, And Molluscum Contagiosum, Tania Platero Portillo, Dilshad Dhaliwal, Sepideh Mehravaran, Megan Ketcham, Julie Wu, Nisha Ramani, Abdul Hafeez Diwan

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Objective: This case study aimed to explore primarily the keratinocytic changes of cutaneous viral infections caused by herpes simplex virus (HSV), varicella-zoster virus (VZV), and molluscum contagiosum (MC). The focus was on identifying features and diagnostic clues in cases without typical findings.

Methods: A retrospective analysis encompassing 14 HSV/VZV cases (January 2000 to October 2023) and 22 MC cases (January 2013 to December 2015) was conducted.

Results: In HSV/VZV cases, 71% (10 of 14) exhibited distinctive histopathological features in the adjacent keratinocytes, including nucleolar enlargement and atypical features. Immunohistochemical studies in 40% of the cases (4 of 10) revealed positive …

Difficult Conversation Case: Death Notification, Charles Lei, Tiffany Moadel, Suzanne Bentley, Amrita Vempati, David Fernandez, Daniela Ortiz, Anita Rohra, Stephanie Stapleton, Hillary Moss

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Audience: This case is meant for senior emergency medicine (EM) resident physicians as a preparatory tool for the American Board of Emergency Medicine Certifying Exam. However, it is applicable for EM residents at all levels of training.

Introduction: Difficult conversations are an integral part of the practice of emergency medicine. Competent EM physicians routinely engage in challenging conversations with patients and their families (eg, delivering bad news, disclosing medical errors, providing death notifications).1 Despite their importance, communication skills are often not formally taught in residency training.2 Instead, learners frequently rely on role modeling to develop the skills necessary to navigate …

Gender Matters: A State-Of-The-Art Review Of Transcatheter Structural Interventions In Older Women Vs Men, Jing Liu, Radmila Lyubarova, Jennifer Riggs, Jina Chung, Puja Kiran Mehta, Simrat Kaur, Abdulla Al Damluji, Vasilis Babaliaros, Leslie Cho

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

With rising life expectancy, the population of older adults over the age of 65 is rapidly expanding, with women comprising the majority. Structural heart disease is common in this group, and transcatheter interventions have transformed its management. Optimal outcomes require careful consideration of sex-specific differences. This review examines transcatheter structural heart interventions in older adults with a focus on sex-based outcomes, procedural planning, and current knowledge gaps.

Vaccine Hesitancy At Nine Community Sites Across The United States, Early In Covid-19 Vaccine Rollout, Aneeka Ratnayake, Julie H Hernandez, Jessica Justman, Jason E Farley, Yael Hirsch-Moverman, Ken Ho, Stockton Mayer, Abiodun Oluyomi, Magdalena E Sobieszczyk, Shobha Swaminathan, Timothy Skalland, Jean De Dieu Tapsoba, Patricia J Kissinger

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Vaccine hesitancy has been a significant concern throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Vaccine hesitancy can be attributed to lack of confidence in vaccines, complacency about the health threat, or lack of convenience of vaccination. To date, few studies have used methods designed to include populations underrepresented in research when identifying factors associated with vaccine hesitancy.

Methods: Between January and July 2021, potential participants were recruited from community venues selected through time-location sampling in 15 defined communities in the United States. Study staff administered a questionnaire on demographics, COVID-19 behaviors and attitudes, and vaccination status or intention to consenting individuals. Vaccine …

Adenovirus Types In Us Children Hospitalized Or Seen In The Emergency Department With Acute Respiratory Illness, 2016-2019, Tess Stopczynski, Varvara Probst, Adam Gailani, Justin Z Amarin, Olla Hamdan, Haya Hayek, Laura S Stewart, Herdi K Rahman, Rangaraj Selvarangan, Jennifer E Schuster, Christopher J Harrison, Mary E Moffatt, Marian G Michaels, John V Williams, Julie A Boom, Leila C Sahni, Vasanthi Avadhanula, Mary Allen Staat, Elizabeth P Schlaudecker, Christina Quigley, Geoffrey A Weinberg, Peter G Szilagyi, Janet A Englund, Eileen J Klein, Aaron T Curns, Heidi L Moline, Ariana P Toepfer, James D Chappell, Andrew J Spieker, Natasha B Halasa

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Human adenovirus (HAdV) is a common cause of pediatric acute respiratory illness (ARI), contributing to 5-13% of cases worldwide. Clinical manifestations vary by HAdV species and type; therefore, delineating type-specific disease presentations and understanding severity of specific HAdV types' disease may help develop targeted interventions.

Methods: We conducted a multicenter, prospective study within the New Vaccine Surveillance Network to characterize HAdV types. Children < 18 years old with ARI were enrolled in the emergency department or inpatient setting at 7 US children's hospitals from 1 December 2016 to 30 November 2019. Respiratory specimens were collected and tested for HAdV and other viruses. Subsequently, typing was conducted on HAdV specimens using single-plex real-time PCR assays targeting sequences in the hexon gene. Comparisons between HAdV types were performed to determine differences in characteristics and outcomes. Generalized linear mixed effects models were used to evaluate severity.

Results: Among the 1843 HAdV-positive cases, 1402 specimens (76%) were typed. The most common types detected were HAdV-C1 (n = 439), HAdV-C2 (n = 393), and HAdV-B3 (n = 221). Children with HAdV-B7 (n = 78) …

Bypassing Cisplatin Resistance In Nrf2 Hyperactivated Head And Neck Cancer Through Effective Pi3kinase Targeting, Pedram Yadollahi, Kelli A Mccord, Yang Li, Hussam Dayoub, Kalil Saab, Fonma Essien, Sean Hyslop, Emerald Kan, Kazi M Ahmed, Parker R Kirby, Vasanta Putluri, Chandra Shekar R Ambati, Karthik Reddy Kami Reddy, Patricia Castro, Heath D Skinner, Cristian Coarfa, William K Decker, Abdullah A Osman, Rutulkumar Patel, Jeffrey N Myers, Stephen Y Lai, Nagireddy Putluri, Faye M Johnson, Mitchell J Frederick, William H Hudson, Vlad C Sandulache

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: For patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), failure of definitive radiation combined with cisplatin nearly universally results in death. Although hyperactivation of the Nrf2 pathway can drive radiation and cisplatin resistance along with suppressed anti-tumor immunity, treatment-refractory HNSCC tumors may retain sensitivity to targeted agents secondary to synergistic lethality with other oncogenic drivers (e.g., NOTCH1 mutations).

Methods: Using state of the science mechanistic, metabolomic and spatial transcriptomic approaches combined with preclinical models of HNSCC, we tested whether a novel PI3K inhibitor, gedatolisib, can bypass hyperactivation of the Nrf2 pathway.

Results: The PI3K pathway is activated in …

Exploration Of Zileuton Protective Mechanisms Against Vancomycin-Associated Nephrotoxicity, Cole S Hudson, James E Smith, Rongjin Sun, Linh T Vuong, Luan D Truong, David Sheikh-Hamad, Masayuki Nigo, Ming Hu, Vincent H Tam

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Vancomycin is one of the most commonly used parenteral antibiotics for treating drug-resistant bacterial infections, however, it is hindered by nephrotoxicity. We previously demonstrated that zileuton could delay the onset of vancomycin-associated nephrotoxicity in rats. Here, we sought to understand the mechanism(s) of zileuton renal protection. Sprague-Dawley rats were administered vancomycin (200 mg/kg) and zileuton (1 and 4 mg/kg) daily for 10 days. After 3 days, kidneys were collected from select animals for histopathological analysis of renal injury. Single-dose vancomycin serum pharmacokinetics and renal tissue spatial distribution with adjuvant zileuton were evaluated. In vitro, proximal tubular cells were exposed …

Racial And Ethnic Disparities In Pediatric Autoimmune Encephalitis: A Systematic Review, Jennifer H Yang, Kristen S Fisher, Julia Dumcum, Sophie Zacharek, Alexandra B Kornbluh, Kelsey Poisson, Mary C Karalius, Leigh Sepeta

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Objectives: Health disparities and social determinants of health are increasingly recognized as important predictors for clinical outcomes in autoimmune disease. However, this is poorly studied in pediatric autoimmune encephalitis (AE).

Methods: We conducted a systematic literature review in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. Searches included Medline (Pubmed), EMBASE, and Web of Science databases from inception years to October 4, 2024. Inclusion criteria were: 1) Patients diagnosed with AE ≤ 18 years old; 2) any report of race and/or ethnicity, 3) report of specific diagnostics and disease outcomes, 4) observational cohort studies, epidemiological studies or case series/ cohort studies of n ≥ …

A Transdiagnostic, Multi-Modal Approach To Understanding Apathy: Methodological And Analytical Framework, Yunglin Gazes, Hideo Suzuki, Lee-Anne Morris, Seonjoo Lee, Zekai Jin, Edward D Huey, Bryan B Chen, Campbell Le Heron, Sarah R Heibronner, Nora Vanegas-Arroyave

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Apathy is characterized by loss of motivation and manifests as a reduction of goal-directed behavior. Apathy is highly prevalent across neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and Parkinson's Disease (PD), and is an important contributor to the disability and reduce quality of life in these conditions. The treatment of apathy remains challenging due to a lack of specific therapies, largely attributed to an incomplete understanding of its cognitive and neuroanatomical underpinnings, crucial for developing targeted interventions. Apathy can be mechanistically studied through effort-based decision-making (EBDM) paradigms, where individuals choose between low- and high-effort tasks for varying reward magnitudes. Anatomically, apathy …

Changing Lives, Transforming Communities: How Young Feminist Organizations Create Change In Mexico And Kenya—Slide Deck, Population Council Kenya

Adolescents and Young People

No abstract provided.

Reply To Chaïbi And Tandjaoui-Lambiotte And To Young And Scott, Joan B Soriano, Francesca Polverino

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

No abstract provided.

Modeling Reemergence Of Vaccine-Eliminated Infectious Diseases Under Declining Vaccination In The United States, Mathew V Kiang, Kate M Bubar, Yvonne Maldonado, Peter J Hotez, Nathan C Lo

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

(Abstracted from JAMA 2025;333(24):2176-2187) The development of childhood vaccine protocols has led to the elimination of many infectious diseases from the United States, including measles, rubella, diphtheria, and polio, by maintaining herd immunity. In recent years, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic, vaccination rates have declined due to policy changes, misinformation, distrust, and broader societal shifts.

Emerging Tick-Borne Disease Risk In An Urban Center Of Harris County, Texas, Alisa Nelson, Michelle Downey, Maya Murry, Brianna Weber, Erik Aguirre, Richard Scott Mccrea, Jerrod Mims, Max Vigilant, Courtney Standlee, Kristy O Murray, Alex Kneubehl, Eric L Brown, Heather T Essigmann, Sarah M Gunter

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Tick-borne diseases are an endemic and emerging public health concern in the United States. Ongoing tick range expansion, invasive species, and newly identified pathogens are rapidly altering disease epidemiology. Surveillance is critical to understanding vector ecology and disease risk. Harris County, Texas, with nearly five million residents and diverse ecological zones, offers a unique setting to study local tick dynamics.

Methods: From January 2021 to December 2022, we conducted weekly tick surveillance across 63 sites in Harris County (City of Houston), Texas. Ticks were morphologically identified and tested for Rickettsia, Borrelia, Ehrlichia, and Anaplasma via real-time PCR. Samples positive …

Why Teens Are Particularly Vulnerable To The Harms Of Vaping Addiction: A Literature Review, Chloe Manning-Floch

University Honors Theses

This literature review examines the factors that have been found to place teens aged 12-18 at particular risk of the harms of vaping addiction. Sixteen relevant research studies are cited, along with four other sources containing information from the FDA, CDC, and NPR, to determine which themes are the most significant and widely identified as risk factors adding to teens' vulnerability. While the body of research on teen vaping addiction is relatively new, strong consensus exists: the most significant factors placing teens at risk of vaping addiction's harms are sweet flavoring appealing to young people, marketing of vapes that has …

Security Vulnerabilities And Defense Tactics For Generative Ai Application Development, Kyle Klein

University Honors Theses

Generative AI (GenAI) applications such as OpenAI's ChatGPT leverage large language models (LLMs) trained on enormous amounts of data to accomplish tasks such as document editing, summarization, and query response. Chatbots and LLM programs that are equipped with retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) have the ability to draw upon data provided by developers and users to improve the quality of the program's responses. LLM technology has even expanded to generate images, audio, and video from user instructions. Designed around unpredictable user input and typically composed of many opaque components, LLM software products face a paradigm shift of new, constantly evolving security challenges. …

A Capstone Review: Strategic Solutions For A Small Macrame Business, Jenna Sarieddine

University Honors Theses

This essay presents an overview of the Business Capstone project, focusing on a macramé business currently facing a $10,000 debt due to limited marketing and financial management skills. The purpose of the project is to support the business in developing an effective elevator pitch, improving its social media presence, strengthening its financial statements, and enhancing both personal and business financial practices. The essay explores the company's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, as well as the team's collaborative approach to addressing these challenges. It outlines the goals established for the company, the strategies selected based on our academic backgrounds and business …

Money At Work: How The Inflation Reduction Act Reshaped The Irs, Richard Hansen

University Honors Theses

This thesis seeks to analyze and explore the ways in which the funding increase for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) present in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) has impacted the real life operations of the agency. These impacts will be examined across two broad categories: the ways in which the IRS has offered improved taxpayer services, and the ways in which the IRS has been better equipped to collect owed taxes and enforce tax compliance since the passage of the IRA. Existing data and literature indicates that the increased IRS funding has been correlated with some improvements across …

Decomposition Processes And Insect Indicators In Forensic Investigations, Eli Taylor

University Honors Theses

Insects play an essential biological and ecological role in human life, and their predictable relationship with decomposing remains has positioned them as a cornerstone of modern forensic science. Since the early 20th century, forensic entomology has provided critical evidence for estimating the postmortem interval (PMI), relying on patterns of colonization, species succession, and insect developmental timelines. Accurate PMI estimations are vital to medicolegal investigations, influencing the interpretation of biological evidence, guiding resource allocation, and informing determinations of cause and manner of death. However, insect activity is profoundly shaped by environmental and ecological variables, including temperature, humidity, seasonal shifts, and geographic …

Interventions For Online Gambling Addiction With Vulnerable Populations, Ethan Sarin

University Honors Theses

This paper looks at the modern rise of online gambling, what has been done to address it, and how we can improve upon them in the future. Online gambling is gambling done through a digital medium with two distinct forms: gambling adjacent activities (GAAs), and general online gambling. GAAs are activities that highly resemble gambling, but are legally distinct from gambling due to different kinds of obfuscation like using in-game currency to gamble instead of directly real world money. General online gambling is much clearer about it being gambling with many kinds of gambling activities to partake in from digital …

Abca4-Mutant Human Retinal Organoids Sequencing Reveals Organoids Application In Inherited Retinal Diseases, Yourong Bao, Sujung Soh, Jean Li, Zhen Zuo, Salma Ferdous, Xinye Qian, Jin Li, Jiaxiong Lu, Xuesen Cheng, Anna Matynia, Yumei Li, Rui Chen

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

In the studies of Inherited Retinal Diseases (IRDs), the knockout of traditional animal models like mice often fails to accurately replicate human phenotypes due to genetic and anatomical differences. Human retinal organoids (ROs) derived from stem cells have emerged as promising developmental models in retinal studies to delineate cell growth, but their ability to represent the characteristics of late-onset IRDs remains unclear. This study aims to validate ROs as a disease model for Stargardt's Disease (STGD) caused by ABCA4 mutations. Using single-cell RNA sequencing, ROs from 2 STGD patients were compared with healthy control-derived ROs at two developmental stages on …

Group Concept Mapping To Develop A Salon-Based Hpv Self-Collection Intervention, Kelly N B Palmer, Namoonga M Mantina, Adebola Adegboyega, Itunu O Sokale, Kathleen Pryor, Azaria Suero-Davis, Trevon Brooks, Jennifer Hatcher

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Black women in the US face higher cervical cancer mortality rates due to delayed diagnoses linked to lower screening rates. Contributing factors include provider bias, costs, and limited access, particularly affecting women aged 40-64. While innovative approaches like clinical and home-based HPV self-collection exist, equitable dissemination remains challenging. Distributing HPV self-collection kits in unconventional sites like hair salons may offer a solution. Using concept mapping, we gathered community insights to design a salon-based cervical cancer screening intervention.

Methods: We employed groupwisdom™ and REDCap platforms for community-based participatory intervention development. Participants included members of the Black Community Advisory Council of …

Method For Generation And Ex Vivo Expansion Of Genetically Edited Mouse Tregs, Yosef Gilad, Adam M Dean, Yan Xia, Sang Jun Han, David M Lonard, Bert W O'Malley

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Regulatory T cells (Tregs) play a crucial role in the immune system, and their dysfunction can lead to the development of autoimmune conditions. In cancer, tumors frequently hijack the immunosuppressive function of Tregs to evade immune responses. Due to their central role in key pathological processes, Tregs have gained increasing attention as promising targets for various clinical applications. However, their relative scarcity (∼5% to 10% of CD4+ T cells) and instability presents a technical challenge for research and therapeutic development. In congenic animal models used to investigate autologous cell transfer-based therapies, this challenge is even greater, as Treg donor animals …

Rbm8a Deficiency Causes Hematopoietic Defects By Modulating Wnt/Pcp Signaling, Agnese Kocere, Elena Chiavacci, Charlotte Soneson, Seth T Jacobson, Emma N Harrison, Kevin Manuel Méndez-Acevedo, Jacalyn S Macgowan, Harrison H Wells, Max S Hiltabidle, Azhwar Raghunath, Jordan A Shavit, Daniela Panáková, Margot L K Williams, Mark D Robinson, Christian Mosimann, Alexa Burger

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Thrombocytopenia-Absent Radius (TAR) syndrome is a rare congenital condition with reduced platelets, forelimb anomalies, and variable heart and kidney defects. TAR syndrome is caused by mutations in RBM8A/Y14, a component of the exon junction complex. How perturbing a general mRNA-processing factor causes the selective TAR Syndrome phenotypes remains unknown. Here, we connect zebrafish rbm8a perturbation to early hematopoietic defects via attenuated non-canonical Wnt/Planar Cell Polarity (PCP) signaling. In hypomorphic rbm8a zebrafish, we observe a reduction of cd41-positive thrombocytes. rbm8a-mutant zebrafish accumulate mRNAs with retained introns, including non-canonical Wnt/PCP pathway components resulting in convergent extension defects. We found that reduced rbm8a …

Renal Replacement Therapy In Lupus Nephritis-Related End-Stage Kidney Disease: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Hassan Kawtharany, Jessica N Williams, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact of renal replacement therapy in people with lupus nephritis (LN)-associated end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) and support the development of the 2024 American College of Rheumatology LN treatment guidelines.

METHODS: We conducted a systematic literature review and meta-analysis to address three Population, Intervention, Comparison, and Outcome (PICO) questions related to renal replacement therapy for ESKD due to LN, including comparisons of kidney transplant versus dialysis, hemodialysis versus peritoneal dialysis, and preemptive kidney transplant versus no preemptive kidney transplant. Outcomes of interest included mortality, cardiovascular (CV) events, infections, lupus flares, disease-related damage, graft failure, and quality of …

Long-Term Illness In Adults Hospitalized For Respiratory Syncytial Virus Disease, United States, February 2022-September 2023, Aleda M Leis, Jennie H Kwon, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) can cause severe illness, but little is known about long-term consequences in hospitalized adults. We surveyed adults (>18 years of age) who survived hospitalization for RSV or COVID-19 during February 2022-September 2023 about physical functioning and quality of life; surveys were conducted 6-12 months after hospitalization. We compared outcomes after RSV hospitalization by age (< 60 vs. >60 years) and to those hospitalized for COVID-19 by using multivariable regression models. Among 146 adults hospitalized with RSV, 27.4% reported severe breathlessness and 21.9% poor quality of life at follow-up. Few differences were seen in posthospital illness by age. …

Circadian Rhythms And Neuroendocrine Dysregulation In Adhd: Therapeutic Insights From Omega-3 Fatty Acids, Ayesha Zafar Iqbal, Patricia Marest Suwindi, Sunny Yin-Shan Chen, Lindsay Liang-Tien Cho, Kuan-Pin Su, Jane Pei-Chen Chang

BioMedicine

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neurodevelopmental condition often accompanied by circadian rhythm disturbances, particularly delayed sleep phase. These involve superchiasmatic nucleus (SCN) dysregulation, altered melatonin secretion, and hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis activity, which may be exacerbated by artificial light exposure. Genetic studies further implicate circadian mechanisms, linking ADHD with polymorphisms in clock genes such as PER and CLOCK.

Nutraceuticals, particularly omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs), have been proposed as modulators of circadian rhythms. N-3 PUFAs are essential for brain health and may influence melatonin synthesis and sleep–wake regulation. Preclinical and clinical findings suggest that supplementation can improve cognitive …

Review Of All In All (More Or Less): Rhetorical Considerations In Literature, Thought, And Experience By Walter Jost, Sean Meehan

Turning Toward Being: The Journal of Ontological Inquiry in Education

Review of All in All (More or Less): Rhetorical Considerations in Literature, Thought, and Experience by Walter Jost

Disclosing That Which Has Been Made Invisible: Collective Ontological Inquiry With Vanessa Machado De Oliveira, Dorothy Cococinno Ladybugboss, Aiden Cinnamon Tea, And Aiden Senior, Raphael Borges, Witneiris Constanzo, Samantha Encarnacion, Kaley Klapisch, Carolyne J. White

Turning Toward Being: The Journal of Ontological Inquiry in Education

An unconventional and collaboratively written text begun as a Book Review that expands into a hybrid Book Review-Notes From The Field-Article as we sought to do justice to our encounter with three provocative books that elicit ontological inquiry inside and outside our classrooms, inquiry that challenges us, confuses us, confronts us to unlearn and loosen the grip of ontological constraints we were thrown into within modernity and our embeddedness within the everyday life. Our reading of these books elicits much needed hope for the precarious times we are living through with this earth.

Ontological Inquiry: A Foundation For Intercultural Communication Competence For Peace, Maria Stergiou

Turning Toward Being: The Journal of Ontological Inquiry in Education

Beyond what we have discovered through research and what we claim to know about learning and teaching intercultural global competencies, I advocate for the inclusion of a pedagogy of ontological inquiry. Informed by my work as the International Cooperation Advisor for Higher Education at the Swiss Agency for Exchange and Cooperation, as well as my lived experience with ontological inquiry for more than 25 years, here I illuminate the access an ontological pedagogy provides to the realization of interculturalcommunication competencies as a foundation for peace.