Digital Commons Network^™

Going "Beyond" Mere Transformation: Warhol And Reconciliation Of The Derivative Work Right And Fair Use, Shyamkrishna Balganesh, Peter S. Menell

Faculty Scholarship

The Supreme Court’s recent decision in Andy Warhol Foundation for Visual Arts, Inc. v. Goldsmith is a watershed moment in the story of copyright jurisprudence. At its broadest, the decision articulates a unified vision — one that had been dormant in the lower court fair use jurisprudence — about the role of copyright and the manner in which to make sense of its effort to balance exclusivity with its myriad limitations. This Essay focuses on how the Court reconciled the working of the statute’s derivative work right with the breadth and reach of the “transformative use” version of the fair …

The Surprising Survival – So Far – Of The Corporate Contribution Ban, Richard Briffault

Faculty Scholarship

In Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, the Supreme Court invalidated the longstanding ban on the expenditure of corporate funds in federal election campaigns. In so doing, the Court dismissed outright an argument that had long been the foundation for the restriction of corporate money in election campaigns — that, due to the “substantial aggregations of wealth amassed by the special advantages which go with the corporate form[,]” corporate money poses a distinct threat to the integrity of democracy. Instead, viewing corporations as essentially “associations of citizens,” Citizens United determined that “the First Amendment does not permit Congress to …

The National Security Exception At The Wto: Should It Just Be A Matter Of When Members Can Avail Of It? What About How?, Mona Pinchis-Paulsen, Kamal Saggi, Petros C. Mavroidis

Faculty Scholarship

The GATT security exceptions were practically in hibernation until recently. The recent WTO disputes panel activity concerning such exceptions is characterized by a standard of review that places the accent on ‘when’ action should be taken and not so much on ‘what’ action should be taken. We see two problems with this construction. First, the ‘when’ might be a function of privileged information that those possessing it might be unwilling to divulge in a transparent manner. Second, national security is an amorphous concept, and unless we disaggregate it, it is impossible to pronounce the appropriateness of measures adopted to pursue …

Performance Of The Hawc Observatory And Tev Gamma-Ray Measurements Of The Crab Nebula With Improved Extensive Air Shower Reconstruction Algorithms, A. Albert, R. Alfaro, C. Alvarez, A. Andrés, J. C. Arteaga-Velázquez, D. Avila Rojas, H. A. Ayala Solares, R. Babu, E. Belmont-Moreno, A. Bernal, K. S. Caballero-Mora, T. Capistrán, A. Carramiñana, F. Carreón, S. Casanova, U. Cotti, J. Cotzomi, S. Coutiño De León, E. De La Fuente, C. De Leon, D. Depaoli, N. Di Lalla, R. Diaz Hernandez, B. L. Dingus, M. A. Duvernois, K. Engel, T. Ergin, C. Espinoza, K. L. Fan, K. Fang, N. Fraija, S. Fraija, J. A. Garcia-Gonzalez, F. Garfias, H. Goksu, M. M. Gonzalez, J. A. Goodman, S. Groetsch, J. P. Harding, S. Hernandez-Cadena, I. Herzog, J. Hinton, D. Huang, F. Hueyotl-Zahuantitla, P. Huntemeyer, A. Iriarte, S. Kaufmann, A. Lara, J. Lee, H. Leon Vargas, J. T. Linnemann, A. L. Longinotti, G. Luis-Raya, K. Malone, J. Martinez-Castro, J. A. Matthews, P. Miranda-Romagnoli, J. A. Montes, E. Moreno, M. Mostafa, L. Nellen, M. U. Nisa, R. Noriega-Papaqui, L. Olivera-Nieto, N. Omodei, M. Osorio-Archila, Y. Perez Araujo, E. G. Perez-Perez, C. D. Rho, D. Rosa-Gonzalez, E. Ruiz-Velasco, H. Salazar, D. Salazar-Gallegos, A. Sandoval, M. Schneider, G. Schwefer, J. Serna-Franco, A. J. Smith, Y. Son, R. W. Springer, O. Tibolla, K. Tollefson, I. Torres, R. Torres-Escobedo, R. Turner, F. Urena-Mena, E. Varela, Xiaojie Wang, I. J. Watson, K. Whitaker, E. Willox, H. Wu, S. Yu, S. Yun-Carcamo, H. Zhou

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

The High-Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC) Gamma-Ray Observatory, located on the side of the Sierra Negra volcano in Mexico, has been fully operational since 2015. The HAWC collaboration has recently significantly improved their extensive air shower reconstruction algorithms, which has notably advanced the observatory performance. The energy resolution for primary gamma rays with energies below 1 TeV was improved by including a noise-suppression algorithm. Corrections have also been made to systematic errors in direction fitting related to the detector and shower plane inclinations, O ( 0 .° 1 ) biases in highly inclined showers, and enhancements to the core reconstruction. The …

Tev Analysis Of A Source-Rich Region With The Hawc Observatory: Is Hess J1809-193 A Potential Hadronic Pevatron?, A. Albert, R. Alfaro, C. Alvarez, J. C. Arteaga-Velázquez, D. Avila Rojas, R. Babu, E. Belmont-Moreno, A. Bernal, M. Breuhaus, K. S. Caballero-Mora, T. Capistrán, A. Carramiñana, S. Casanova, J. Cotzomi, E. De La Fuente, D. Depaoli, N. Di Lalla, R. Diaz Hernandez, B. L. Dingus, M. A. Duvernois, C. Espinova, K. L. Fan, K. Fang, B. Fick, N. Fraija, J. A. Garcia-Gonzalez, F. Garfias, A. Gonzalez Munoz, M. M. Gonzalez, J. A. Goodman, S. Groetsch, J. P. Harding, S. Hernandez-Cadena, I. Herzog, D. Huang, F. Hueyotl-Zahuantitla, P. Huntemeyer, A. Iriarte, V. Joshi, S. Kaufmann, A. Lara, J. Lee, H. Leon Vargas, A. L. Longinotti, G. Luis-Raya, K. Malone, J. Martines-Castro, J. A. Matthews, P. Miranda-Romagnoli, J. A. Montes, J. A. Morales-Soto, E. Moreno, M. Mostafa, L. Nellen, M. Newbold, M. U. Nisa, R. Noriega-Papaqui, M. Osorio, Y. Perez Araujo, E. G. Perez-Perez, C. D. Rho, D. Rosa-Gonzalez, E. Ruiz-Velasco, H. Salazar, A. Sandoval, M. Schneider, J. Serna-Franco, A. J. Smith, Y. Son, R. W. Springer, O. Tibolla, K. Tollefson, I. Torres, R. Torres-Escobedo, R. Turner, F. Urena-Mena, E. Varela, Xiaojie Wang, I. J. Watson, E. Willox, S. Yun-Carcamo, H. Zhou

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

HESS J1809-193 is an unidentified TeV source, first detected by the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) collaboration. The emission originates in a source-rich region that includes several supernova remnants (SNRs) and pulsars including SNR G11.1+0.1, SNR G11.0-0.0, and the young radio pulsar PSR J1809-1917. Originally classified as a pulsar wind nebula candidate, recent studies show the peak of the TeV region overlapping with a system of molecular clouds. This resulted in the revision of the original leptonic scenario to look for alternate hadronic scenarios. Marked as a potential PeVatron candidate, this region has been studied extensively by H.E.S.S. due to …

Observation Of The Galactic Center Pevatron Beyond 100 Tev With Hawc, A. Albert, R. Alfaro, C. Alvarez, A. Andrés, J. C. Arteaga-Velázquez, D. Avila Rojas, H. A. Ayala Solares, R. Babu, E. Belmont-Moreno, A. Bernal, K. S. Caballero-Mora, T. Capistrán, A. Carramiñana, S. Casanova, U. Cotti, J. Cotzomi, S. Coutiño De León, E. De La Fuente, C. De Leon, D. Depaoli, N. Di Lalla, R. Diaz Hernandez, B. L. Dingus, M. A. Duvernois, J. C. Diaz-Velez, K. Engel, T. Ergin, C. Espinoza, K. L. Fan, K. Fang, N. Fraija, S. Fraija, J. A. Garcia-Gonzalez, F. Garfias, H. Goksu, M. M. Gonzalez, J. A. Goodman, S. Groetsch, J. P. Harding, S. Hernandez-Cadena, I. Herzog, J. Hinton, D. Huang, F. Hueyotl-Zahuantitla, T. B. Humensky, P. Huntemeyer, A. Iriarte, S. Kaufmann, D. Kieda, A. Lara, W. H. Lee, J. Lee, H. Leon Vargas, J. T. Linnemann, A. L. Longinotti, G. Luis-Raya, K. Malone, O. Martinez, J. Martinez-Castro, J. A. Matthews, P. Miranda-Romagnoli, J. A. Montes, J. A. Morales-Soto, E. Moreno, M. Mostafa, M. Najafi, L. Nellen, M. Newbold, M. U. Nisa, R. Noriega-Papaqui, L. Olivera-Nieto, N. Omodei, M. Osorio-Archila, Y. Perez Araujo, E. G. Perez-Perez, C. D. Rho, D. Rosa-Gonzalez, E. Ruiz-Velasco, H. Salazar, D. Salazar-Gallegos, A. Sandoval, M. Schneider, G. Schwefer, J. Serna-Franco, A. J. Smith, Y. Son, R. W. Springer, O. Tibolla, K. Tollefson, I. Torres, R. Torres-Escobedo, R. Turner, F. Urena-Mena, E. Valera, Xiaojie Wang, Z. Wang, I. J. Watson, E. Willox, H. Wu, S. Yu, S. Yun-Carcamo, H. Zhou

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

We report an observation of ultrahigh-energy (UHE) gamma rays from the Galactic center (GC) region, using 7 yr of data collected by the High-Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC) Observatory. The HAWC data are best described as a point-like source (HAWC J1746-2856) with a power-law spectrum ( d N / d E = ϕ E / 26 TeV γ ), where γ = −2.88 ± 0.15stat − 0.1sys and ϕ = 1.5 x 10⁻¹⁵ (TeV cm² s)⁻¹ ± 0.3 stat − 0.13 sys + 0.08 sys extending from 6 to 114 TeV. We find no evidence of a spectral …

Draft Genome Sequence Of Ruoffia Tabacinasalis Isolated From A Bovine Nasal Swab: A Novel Member Of The Bovine Nasal Microbiota, Samantha Howe, Xiaoyuan Wei, Jasna Kovac, Jiangchao Zhao

Animal Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

We report the isolation and draft genome sequence of Ruoffia tabacinasalis, a novel member of the bovine nasal microbiota. The genome, which is estimated to be 90.5% complete, is composed of one contig comprising 2,363,349 bp with a GC content of 36.66%.

Reexamination Of Vacuum-Polarization Corrections To The Self-Energy In Muonic Bound Systems, B. Ohayon, Ulrich D. Jentschura

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

In muonic bound systems, the dominant radiative correction is due to vacuum polarization. Yet, for the interpretation of precision experiments, self-energy effects are also important. In turn, additional vacuum-polarization loops perturb the self-energy. Here we show that combined self-energy vacuum-polarization effects can perturb the bound-state self-energy at the percent level in one-muon bound systems with nuclear charges Z=1-6. We also update previous treatments of the corrections for muonic hydrogen, muonic deuterium, and muonic helium bound systems.

Enhancing Ammonium And Bicarbonate Tolerance In Chlorella Sorokiniana Through Ems-Induced Mutagenesis, Wentao Yang

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

This study explores the enhancement of ammonium and bicarbonate tolerance in Chlorella sorokiniana via EMS-induced mutagenesis, aimed at improving the microalgae's resilience and growth under high-stress conditions of elevated NH4+ and HCO3 concentrations. By mutating C. sorokiniana using EMS, we developed mutant strains capable of thriving in conditions that are inhibitory to the wild type strain. The successful adaptation of these strains demonstrates a significant increase in biomass production and tolerance to environmental stressors, highlighting the potential of EMS mutagenesis in industrial algal applications for sustainable biofuel production and environmental remediation.

Assessment Of Novel Protein Ingredient Arthrospira Platensis And Soybean Genotype Amino Acid And Oil Selection Improvements On Broiler Performance For A 28-42 D Feeding Period, Savannah C. Wells-Crofton, Kenneth B. Nelson, Garrett J. Mullenix, Craig W. Maynard, Michael T. Kidd

Poultry Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Two experiments were conducted to assess the efficiency of including the novel protein ingredient Arthrospira platensis or improved soybean meal in a broiler diet. The first experiment aimed to determine the feeding value of soybean meal produced from varieties of soybeans bred for increased amino acid content (SBAA) and improved oil content (SBO) compared to a conventional soybean variety in an ANOVA design fed to Cobb 500 female broilers for 28–42 d. The SBAA and SBO soybeans contained overall higher amino acid content and lower oligosaccharide content compared to the conventional soybean variety in addition to improved oil quality. The …

Research Note: Carcass Yield And Meat Quality In High- And Low-Water Efficient Broiler Lines Exposed To Heat Stress, Sara Orlowski, Elizabeth Greene, Kentu Lassiter, Travis Tabler, Walter Bottje, Sami Dridi

Poultry Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Heat stress (HS) and water scarcity are significant challenges to sustainable poultry production worldwide. It is, therefore, critical to identify effective strategies to prevent, withstand, or adapt to these challenges. After four generations of divergent selection for water efficiency, the present study was undertaken to determine the effect of HS on meat quality and muscle myopathy incidences in high (HWE)- and low (LWE)-water efficient broilers. Day-old male chicks (240 chicks/line) were allotted randomly by line and body weight-matched groups to 12 controlled-environmental chambers (2 pens/chamber). At d29, birds were exposed to 2 environmental conditions …

Titration Of Dietary Histidine During A 15 To 35 D Feeding Period In Male Cobb 500 Broilers, K. B. Nelson, S. C. Wells-Crafton, M. F. Costa, B. L. Angel, S. K. Rao, G. J. Mullenix, C. W. Maynard, Michael T. Kidd

Poultry Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Dietary CP reductions in broilers can result in increased FCR when 6 or 7 feed-grade amino acids are allowed to enter formulation, and a partial explanation may be a dietary limitation of His. Histidine requirement data are sparce in the current body of literature, especially beyond 3 wk post-hatch. Therefore, a His dose-response experiment (expressed as a percentage of Lys) was conducted with male Cobb 500 broilers from 15 to 35 d post-hatch. A His deficient test diet was formulated to contain a digestible His to digestible Lys (dHis:dLys) ratio of 28.0%. Graded increments of L-His were added to the …

Glycine, Serine, And Arginine Additions To Cobb 500 Female Broilers Fed Dietary Variations In Crude Protein, M. A. Anas, N.S.B.M. Atapattu, K. B. Nelson, S. W. Crafton, Michael T. Kidd

Poultry Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

This study investigated the effects of supplemental Gly, Ser, and Arg on growth performance, carcass traits, footpad dermatitis, and litter ammonia emission of broilers fed low-protein diets from 18 to 42 d of age. A total 576 one-day-old female Cobb 500 broilers were divided into 6 dietary treatments: 1) control, high CP (HCP 20%), 2) medium CP (MCP 18%), 3) low CP (LCP 16%), 4) LCP + 0.20% Gly+Ser, 5) LCP + 0.20% Arg, and 6) LCP + 0.20% Gly+Ser + 0.20% Arg. Although BW gain and feed intake were not affected by treatments, reducing CP to LCP (16% CP) …

Early 1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3-Glycosides Supplementation: An Efficient Feeding Strategy Against Bacterial Chondronecrosis With Osteomyelitis Lameness In Broilers Assessed By Using An Aerosol Transmission Model, Andi Asnayanti, Khawla Alharbi, Anh Dang Trieu Do, Layla Al-Mitib, Kathrin Buhler, Jan Dirk Van Der Klis, Javier Gonzalez, Michael T. Kidd, Adnan A. Alrubaye

Poultry Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Bacterial chondronecrosis with osteomyelitis (BCO) lameness is a leg disorder in broilers leading to huge economic losses, food safety concerns, and animal welfare issues in the poultry industry. The active metabolite of vitamin D₃, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃, plays pivotal roles in mineral homeostasis, bone health, and immune systems which are essential for protection against BCO. Thus, we hypothesized that supplementation with a Solanum glaucophyllum-derived source of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ (1,25(OH)₂D₃-glycosides) would be an effective measure to control lameness. Here, we report the optimum concentration of 1,25(OH)₂D₃-glycosides …

Optimal Timing Of Delivery For Pregnant Individuals With Mild Chronic Hypertension, Torri D Metz, Hui-Chien Kuo, Lorie Harper, Baha Sibai, Sherri Longo, George R Saade, Lorraine Dugoff, Kjersti Aagaard, Kim Boggess, Kirsten Lawrence, Brenna L Hughes, Joseph Bell, Rodney K Edwards, Kelly S Gibson, David M Haas, Lauren Plante, Brian Casey, Sean Esplin, Matthew K Hoffman, Kara K Hoppe, Janelle Foroutan, Methodius Tuuli, Michelle Y Owens, Hyagriv N Simhan, Heather Frey, Todd Rosen, Anna Palatnik, Susan Baker, Phyllis August, Uma M Reddy, Wendy Kinzler, Emily J Su, Iris Krishna, Nguyet A Nguyen, Mary E Norton, Daniel Skupski, Yasser Y El-Sayed, Dotun Ogunyemi, Ronald Librizzi, Leonardo Pereira, Everett F Magann, Mounira Habli, Shauna Williams, Giancarlo Mari, Gabriella Pridjian, David S Mckenna, Marc Parrish, Eugene Chang, Joanne Quiñones, Zorina S Galis, Namasivayam Ambalavanan, Rachel G Sinkey, Jeff M Szychowski, Alan T N Tita

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Objective: To investigate the optimal gestational age to deliver pregnant people with chronic hypertension to improve perinatal outcomes.

Methods: We conducted a planned secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial of chronic hypertension treatment to different blood pressure goals. Participants with term, singleton gestations were included. Those with fetal anomalies and those with a diagnosis of preeclampsia before 37 weeks of gestation were excluded. The primary maternal composite outcome included death, serious morbidity (heart failure, stroke, encephalopathy, myocardial infarction, pulmonary edema, intensive care unit admission, intubation, renal failure), preeclampsia with severe features, hemorrhage requiring blood transfusion, or abruption. The primary …

Thickened Submucosal Adipose Tissue Layer During Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection Of Inflammatory Bowel Disease Dysplasia, Motasem Alkhayyat, Ashwin Akki, Emre Gorgun, Florian Rieder, Amit Bhatt

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

No abstract provided.

Potentially Functional Variants Of Chmp4a And Panx1 In The Pyroptosis-Related Pathway Predict Survival Of Patients With Non-Oropharyngeal Head And Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma, Xiaozhun Tang, Huiling Wang, Hongliang Liu, Guojun Li, Erich M Sturgis, Sanjay Shete, Qingyi Wei

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Pyroptosis has been implicated in the advancement of various cancers. Triggering pyroptosis within tumors amplifies the immune response, thereby fostering an antitumor immune environment. Nonetheless, few published studies have evaluated associations between functional variants in the pyroptosis-related genes and clinical outcomes of patients with non-oropharyngeal head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (NON-ORO HNSCC).

Methods: We conducted an association study of 985 NON-ORO HNSCC patients who were randomly divided into two groups: the discovery group of 492 patients and the replication group of 493 patients. We used Cox proportional hazards regression analysis to examine associations between genetic variants of the …

Determining Predictors Of Actual Living Kidney Donation Based On Potential Donor Characteristics, Andrea M Meinders, Edward A Graviss, Duc T Nguyen, Jonathan Daw, Krista L Lentine, John Devin Peipert, Ahmed Osama Gaber, David A Axelrod, Francis L Weng, Amy D Waterman

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Living donor kidney transplantation is the optimal treatment for end-stage kidney disease; however, few living donor candidates (LDCs) who begin evaluation actually donate. While some LDCs are deemed medically ineligible, others discontinue for potentially modifiable reasons.

Methods: At five transplant centers, we conducted a prospective cohort study measuring LDCs' clinical and psychosocial characteristics, educational preparation, readiness to donate, and social determinants of health. We followed LDCs for 12 months after evaluation to determine whether they donated a kidney, opted to discontinue, had modifiable reasons for discontinuing, were medically ineligible, or had other recipient-related reasons for discontinuing.

Results: Among 2184 …

Episodes Of Acute Methotrexate-Related Neurotoxicity Linked To Compromised Long-Term Neurocognitive Function, Rachel D Harris, Olga A Taylor, Kimberly P Raghubar, Mariana Matheus Gonzalez, Mark Zobeck, M Monica Gramatges, Karen R Rabin, Michael E Scheurer, Austin L Brown

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Methotrexate is a critical component of curative chemotherapy for pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), but is associated with neurotoxicity. Information on long-term outcomes following an acute neurotoxic event is limited. Therefore, this report compares neurocognitive performance more than 12 months post diagnosis (mean = 4 years) between ALL patients with (n = 25) and without (n = 146) a history of acute neurotoxicity. Compared to children with no documented on-treatment neurotoxic event, children who experienced a neurotoxic event during treatment exhibited poorer performance on measures of fine motor function (p = .02) and attention (p = .02). Children with ALL …

Correction: Predicting Wait Time For Pediatric Kidney Transplant: A Novel Index, Alexandra Alvarez, Ashley Montgomery, Nhu Thao Nguyen Galván, Eileen D Brewer, Abbas Rana

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

This corrects the article "Predicting wait time for pediatric kidney transplant: a novel index" on page 2483.

Older And Better: A Narrative Review Of Successful Aging And Adaptation To Pain In Late Life, Emanuel Narcis Husu

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

"Invariably, the self-assessed QoL was far better than I, as a physician, would have anticipated from the diseases and disabilities that you reported." -Ben Eiseman, MD, based on a survey of his octogenarian Yale University classmates.

Background: Chronic pain control is a high priority for the elderly; it is one of the most frequently encountered medical problems in this group. Chronic pain affects 60%-75% of people aged 65 years and older. Chronic pain's prevalence is even higher in those living in assisted living or nursing homes. Based on epidemiological data, the prevalence of chronic pain is directly proportional to age …

Targeting Calpain-2-Mediated Junctophilin-2 Cleavage Delays Heart Failure Progression Following Myocardial Infarction, Satadru K Lahiri, Jiao Lu, Yuriana Aguilar-Sanchez, Hui Li, Lucia M Moreira, Mohit M Hulsurkar, Arielys Mendoza, Mara R Turkieltaub Paredes, Jose Alberto Navarro-Garcia, Elda Munivez, Brooke Horist, Oliver M Moore, Gunnar Weninger, Sören Brandenburg, Christof Lenz, Stephan E Lehnart, Rana Sayeed, George Krasopoulos, Vivek Srivastava, Lilei Zhang, Jason M Karch, Svetlana Reilly, Xander H T Wehrens

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a prevalent cardiac disease that causes over 370,000 deaths annually in the USA. In CHD, occlusion of a coronary artery causes ischemia of the cardiac muscle, which results in myocardial infarction (MI). Junctophilin-2 (JPH2) is a membrane protein that ensures efficient calcium handling and proper excitation-contraction coupling. Studies have identified loss of JPH2 due to calpain-mediated proteolysis as a key pathogenic event in ischemia-induced heart failure (HF). Our findings show that calpain-2-mediated JPH2 cleavage yields increased levels of a C-terminal cleaved peptide (JPH2-CTP) in patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy and mice with experimental MI. We created …

The Role Of Complement In Kidney Disease: Conclusions From A Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (Kdigo) Controversies Conference, Marina Vivarelli, Jonathan Barratt, Laurence H Beck, Fadi Fakhouri, Daniel P Gale, Elena Goicoechea De Jorge, Marta Mosca, Marina Noris, Matthew C Pickering, Katalin Susztak, Joshua M Thurman, Michael Cheung, Jennifer M King, Michel Jadoul, Wolfgang C Winkelmayer, Richard J H Smith, For Conference Participants

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Uncontrolled complement activation can cause or contribute to glomerular injury in multiple kidney diseases. Although complement activation plays a causal role in atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome and C3 glomerulopathy, over the past decade, a rapidly accumulating body of evidence has shown a role for complement activation in multiple other kidney diseases, including diabetic nephropathy and several glomerulonephritides. The number of available complement inhibitor therapies has also increased during the same period. In 2022, Kidney Diseases: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) convened a Controversies Conference, "The Role of Complement in Kidney Disease," to address the expanding role of complement dysregulation in the …

Mortality In Recipients Of Durable Left Ventricular Assist Devices Undergoing Ventricular Tachycardia Ablation, Patrick T Lynch, Alexandra Maloof, Anish Badjatiya, Payam Safavi-Naeini, Matthew W Segar, Jitae A Kim, Qussay Marashly, Joanna E Molina-Razavi, Leo Simpson, Selby B Oberton, Lola X Xie, Andrew Civitello, Nilesh Mathuria, Jie Cheng, Abdi Rasekh, Mohammad Saeed, Mehdi Razavi, Ajith Nair, Mihail G Chelu

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Left ventricular assist device (LVAD) recipients have a higher incidence of ventricular tachycardia (VT). However, the role of VT ablation in this population is not well-established.

Objectives: This single-center retrospective cohort study sought to examine the impact of post-LVAD implant VT ablation on survival.

Methods: This retrospective study examined a cohort of patients that underwent LVAD implantation at Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center and Texas Heart Institute between January 2011 and January 2021. All-cause estimated mortality was compared across LVAD recipients based on the incidence of VT, timing of VT onset, and the occurrence and timing of VT ablation …

Bempedoic Acid In Secondary Prevention, Idine Mousavi, Vijay Nambi, Layla A Abushamat, Sadeer G Al-Kindi, Michael D Shapiro, Laurence Sperling, Salim S Virani, Abdul Mannan Khan Minhas

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

•Bempedoic acid has been shown to reduce major adverse cardiovascular outcomes in patients unable to take statins due to statin-associated side effects.•Analysis of CLEAR Outcomes trial data reveals possible differences in baseline characteristics between the primary and secondary prevention subgroups.•Further research is needed to optimize use of bempedoic acid and clarify its impact on cardiovascular outcomes in diverse patient populations.

Clinical Outcomes Of Patients With Newly Diagnosed Large B-Cell Lymphoma In A Safety-Net Hospital System, Jun Y Jiang, Chijioke Nze, Danielle Guffey, Rockbum Kim, Abiodun O Oluyomi, Omar Rosales, Raka Bandyo, Courtney N Miller-Chism, Mark M Udden, Martha P Mims, Hilary Ma, Gustavo A Rivero, Akiva Diamond, Purnima S Teegavarapu, Ang Li, Christopher R Flowers

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Real-world outcome data for patients with large B-cell lymphomas (LBCLs) who are uninsured or have socioeconomic barriers to care are limited. We performed a retrospective cohort study of patients with newly diagnosed LBCL treated in a large safety-net hospital system. Between January 2011 and June 2022, 496 patients aged >18 years were diagnosed with LBCL at Harris Health System, Houston, Texas. The median age was 53 years, 75% were uninsured, and 81% were in the most disadvantaged Area Deprivation Index national quartiles. Most (69%) had stage III/IV disease, 44% had poor-risk disease by the Revised International Prognostic Index (R-IPI), and …

X-Linked Genetic Associations In Sporadic Thoracic Aortic Dissection, Fadi I Musfee, Goo Jun, Laura E Mitchell, Han Chen, Dongchuan Guo, Siddharth K Prakash, Shaunak Sanjay Adkar, Megan L Grove, Ryan Bohyun Choi, Derek Klarin, Million Veteran Program, Eric Boerwinkle, Dianna M Milewicz

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

The male predominance in sporadic thoracic aortic aneurysm and dissection (TAD) suggests that the X chromosome contributes to TAD, but this has not been tested. We investigated whether X-linked variation-common (minor allele frequency [MAF] ≥0.01) and rare (MAF < 0.01)-was associated with sporadic TAD in three cohorts of European descent (Discovery: 364 cases, 874 controls; Replication: 516 cases, 440,131 controls, and ARIC [Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study]: 753 cases, 2247 controls). For analysis of common variants, we applied a sex-stratified logistic regression model followed by a meta-analysis of sex-specific odds ratios. Furthermore, we conducted a meta-analysis of overlapping common variants between the Discovery and Replication cohorts. For analysis of rare variants, we used a sex-stratified optimized sequence kernel association test model. Common variants results showed no statistically significant findings in the Discovery cohort. An intergenic common variant near SPANXN1 was statistically significant in the Replication cohort (p = 1.81 × 10-8). The highest signal from the meta-analysis of the Discovery and Replication cohorts was a ZNF182 intronic common variant (p = 3.5 × 10-6). In rare variants results, RTL9 reached statistical significance (p = 5.15 × 10-5). Although most of our results were statistically insignificant, our analysis is the most comprehensive X-chromosome association analysis of sporadic TAD to date.

Contributions Of White Adipose Tissue To Energy Requirements For Female Reproduction, Elizabeth S Anaya, Evelyn L De Groot, John P Lydon, Stephanie A Pangas, Sean M Hartig

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Body composition impacts female fertility and there are established relationships between adipose tissue and the reproductive system. Maintaining functional adipose tissue is vital for meeting the energetic demands during the reproductive process, from ovulation to delivery and lactation. White adipose tissue (WAT) shows plastic responses to daily physiology and secretes diverse adipokines that affect the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis, but many other interorgan interactions remain to be determined. This review summarizes the current state of research on the dialogue between WAT and the female reproductive system, focusing on the impact of this crosstalk on ovarian and endometrial factors essential for fecundity.

Transcriptional Coactivation Of Nrf2 Signaling In Cardiac Fibroblasts Promotes Resistance To Oxidative Stress, Lisa K Mcclendon, Rainer B Lanz, Anil Panigrahi, Kristan Gomez, Michael J Bolt, Min Liu, Fabio Stossi, Michael A Mancini, Clifford C Dacso, David M Lonard, Bert W O'Malley

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

We recently discovered that steroid receptor coactivators (SRCs) SRCs-1, 2 and 3, are abundantly expressed in cardiac fibroblasts (CFs) and their activation with the SRC small molecule stimulator MCB-613 improves cardiac function and dramatically lowers pro-fibrotic signaling in CFs post-myocardial infarction. These findings suggest that CF-derived SRC activation could be beneficial in the mitigation of chronic heart failure after ischemic insult. However, the cardioprotective mechanisms by which CFs contribute to cardiac pathological remodeling are unclear. Here we present studies designed to identify the molecular and cellular circuitry that governs the anti-fibrotic effects of an MCB-613 derivative, MCB-613-10-1, in CFs. We …

Leveraging Preclinical Models Of Metastatic Breast Cancer, Diego A Pedroza, Yang Gao, Xiang H-F Zhang, Jeffrey M Rosen

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Women that present to the clinic with established breast cancer metastases have limited treatment options. Yet, the majority of preclinical studies are actually not directed at developing treatment regimens for established metastatic disease. In this review we will discuss the current state of preclinical macro-metastatic breast cancer models, including, but not limited to syngeneic GEMM, PDX and xenografts. Challenges within these models which are often overlooked include fluorophore-immunogenic neoantigens, differences in experimental vs spontaneous metastasis and tumor heterogeneity. Furthermore, due to cell plasticity in the tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) of the metastatic landscape, the treatment efficacy of newly approved immune …