Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Nutritional Considerations For A New Era: A Cf Foundation Position Paper, Amanda Leonard, Marina Litvin, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

OBJECTIVE: To provide interim advice and considerations to the CF Community around CF nutrition in the current era.

METHODS: The Cystic Fibrosis (CF) Foundation organized a multidisciplinary committee to develop a Nutrition Position Paper based on the rapidly changing nutrition landscape in CF, due in part to widespread use of cystic fibrosis transmembrane regulator highly effective modulator therapy (HEMT). Four workgroups were formed: Weight Management, Eating Behavior/Food Insecurity, Salt Homeostasis and Pancreatic Enzyme use. Each workgroup conducted their own focused review of the literature.

RESULTS: The committee summarized current understanding of issues pertaining to the four workgroup topics and provided …

Association And Prediction Utilizing Craniocaudal And Mediolateral Oblique View Digital Mammography And Long-Term Breast Cancer Risk, Simin Chen, Rulla M Tamimi, Graham A Colditz, Shu Jiang

2020-Current year OA Pubs

UNLABELLED: Mammographic percentage of volumetric density is an important risk factor for breast cancer. Epidemiology studies historically used film images often limited to craniocaudal (CC) views to estimate area-based breast density. More recent studies using digital mammography images typically use the averaged density between craniocaudal (CC) and mediolateral oblique (MLO) view mammography for 5- and 10-year risk prediction. The performance in using either and both mammogram views has not been well-investigated. We use 3,804 full-field digital mammograms from the Joanne Knight Breast Health Cohort (294 incident cases and 657 controls), to quantity the association between volumetric percentage of density extracted …

Comparison Of Bivalent And Monovalent Sars-Cov-2 Variant Vaccines: The Phase 2 Randomized Open-Label Covail Trial, Angela R Branche, Rachel M Presti, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Vaccine protection against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection wanes over time, requiring updated boosters. In a phase 2, open-label, randomized clinical trial with sequentially enrolled stages at 22 US sites, we assessed safety and immunogenicity of a second boost with monovalent or bivalent variant vaccines from mRNA and protein-based platforms targeting wild-type, Beta, Delta and Omicron BA.1 spike antigens. The primary outcome was pseudovirus neutralization titers at 50% inhibitory dilution (ID

Clusters Of Sars-Cov-2 Infection Across Six Schools For Students With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities, Michael Gemmell, Tyler Walsh, Michael Sherby, Adwoa Imbeah, Kelly Bono, Megan Baldenweck, Christina Gurnett, Jason G Newland

2020-Current year OA Pubs

INTRODUCTION: Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities are at increased risk for adverse outcomes from coronavirus disease 2019. Clusters of COVID-19 infections can be used to track SARS-CoV-2 transmission. This is particularly important in environments frequently used for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, such as schools. The objective of this study was to compare the number of clusters of student and staff cases identified during three distinct periods (pre-Delta, Delta, and Omicron) of the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS: Weekly COVID-19 testing occurred from November 23, 2020 to May 27, 2022 during three phases of the COVID-19 pandemic: pre-Delta, Delta, and …

Initial Clinical Experience Building A Dual Ct- And Mr-Guided Adaptive Radiotherapy Program, Alex T Price, Joshua P Schiff, Eric Laugeman, Matthew Schmidt, Tong Zhu, Francisco Reynoso, Yao Hao, Taeho Kim, Eric Morris, Xiaodong Zhao, Geoffrey D Hugo, Gregory Vlacich, Carl J Deselm, Pamela P Samson, Clifford G Robinson, Hyun Kim, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

INTRODUCTION: Our institution was the first in the world to clinically implement MR-guided adaptive radiotherapy (MRgART) in 2014. In 2021, we installed a CT-guided adaptive radiotherapy (CTgART) unit, becoming one of the first clinics in the world to build a dual-modality ART clinic. Herein we review factors that lead to the development of a high-volume dual-modality ART program and treatment census over an initial, one-year period.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: The clinical adaptive service at our institution is enabled with both MRgART (MRIdian, ViewRay, Inc, Mountain View, CA) and CTgART (ETHOS, Varian Medical Systems, Palo Alto, CA) platforms. We analyzed patient …

Evaluation Of Plasma Biomarkers To Predict Major Adverse Kidney Events In Hospitalized Patients With Covid-19, Steven Menez, Madhurima Kaushal, Sanjay Jain, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

RATIONALE & OBJECTIVE: Patients hospitalized with COVID-19 are at increased risk for major adverse kidney events (MAKE). We sought to identify plasma biomarkers predictive of MAKE in patients hospitalized with COVID-19.

STUDY DESIGN: Prospective cohort study.

SETTING & PARTICIPANTS: A total of 576 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 between March 2020 and January 2021 across 3 academic medical centers.

EXPOSURE: Twenty-six plasma biomarkers of injury, inflammation, and repair from first available blood samples collected during hospitalization.

OUTCOME: MAKE, defined as KDIGO stage 3 acute kidney injury (AKI), dialysis-requiring AKI, or mortality up to 60 days.

ANALYTICAL APPROACH: Cox proportional hazards regression …

Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis Of Clinical Outcomes After Management Of Posterior Cruciate Ligament Tibial Avulsion Fractures, Varun Gopinatth, Enzo S. Mameri, Felipe J. Casanova, Zeeshan A. Khan, Garrett R. Jackson, Johnathon R. Mccormick, Robert H. Brophy, Derrick M. Knapik, Robert F. Laprade, Jorge Chahla

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: There is no consensus regarding the management of posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) avulsion fractures and the expected outcomes after treatment.

PURPOSE: To systematically review clinical outcomes and complications after management of tibial-sided avulsion fractures of the PCL.

STUDY DESIGN: Systematic review; Level of evidence, 4.

METHODS: A literature search of Scopus, PubMed, Medline, and the Cochrane Central Register for Controlled Trials was performed in accordance with the 2020 Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Included were studies with evidence levels 1 to 4 that reported clinical outcomes after treatment of PCL tibial-sided avulsion fractures in …

Characteristics Associated With Noncompliance Of Current Pitch Smart Guidelines In High School Baseball Pitchers Throughout The United States, Brandon J Erickson, Eric N Bowman, Christopher Camp, Michael T Freehill, Matthew V Smith, Nicholas Serio, Hiroaki Ishikawa, Karch Smith, Peter N Chalmers

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Although pitch count and rest guidelines have been promoted for youth and adolescent baseball players for nearly 2 decades, compliance with guidelines remains poorly understood.

PURPOSE/HYPOTHESIS: The purpose of this study was to determine the frequency of compliance with Major League Baseball (MLB) Pitch Smart guidelines as well as the association between compliance and range of motion (ROM), strength, velocity, injury, and pitcher utilization. It was hypothesized that pitchers in violation of current recommendations would have increased strength, velocity, and injury.

STUDY DESIGN: Case-control study; Level of evidence, 3.

METHODS: This was a prospective, multicenter study of 115 high …

Implementing An Interdisciplinary Procedure Curriculum, Bryce Montane, Abey Abraham, Sergio Bustamante, Tushar Vachharajani, Sabry Ayad, Jagan Devarajan, Dustin Thompson, Ran Lee, Penelope Rampersad, Brian Gage, Emily Reznicek, Chongliang Luo, Richard Wardrop

2020-Current year OA Pubs

INTRODUCTION: This curriculum was designed to improve access to procedures for our internal medicine residents.

METHODS: We created an interdisciplinary procedure course (IDPC) composed of two simulation sessions and a one-week procedural rotation supervised by multiple specialties including nephrology, cardiology, cardiothoracic anesthesiology, general anesthesiology, and interventional radiology. After the course, residents completed two surveys documenting the number of procedures and their level of confidence on a Likert scale (1 = very unconfident to 5 = very confident) prior to and after completing the curriculum.

RESULTS: Sixteen residents participated in the course from September 2021 to June 2022. The collective number …

The Role Of Bmi In Allostatic Load And Risk Of Cancer Death, Sydney E Andrzejak, Marquita W Lewis-Thames, Marvin E Langston, Yunan Han, Saira Khan, Darryl A Nettles, Lindsay N Fuzzell, Martha S Tingen, Justin X Moore

2020-Current year OA Pubs

INTRODUCTION: Obesity and proinflammatory conditions are associated with increased risks of cancer. The associations of baseline allostatic load with cancer mortality and whether this association is modified by body mass index (BMI) were examined.

METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed in March-September 2022 using National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey years 1988 through 2010 linked with the National Death Index through December 31, 2019. Fine and Gray Cox proportional hazard models were stratified by BMI status to estimate subdistribution hazard ratios of cancer death between high and low allostatic load status (adjusted for age, sociodemographics, and health factors).

RESULTS: In …

The Spectrum Of Covid-19-Associated Chorioretinal Vasculopathy, Piero Carletti, Aaditya Shah, Christopher Bair, Christian Curran, Anthony Mai, Rachel Patel, Ramana Moorthy, Natalia Villate, Janet L Davis, Albert T Vitale, Akbar Shakoor, Lynn Hassman

2020-Current year OA Pubs

PURPOSE: Although conjunctivitis represents the most common ocular manifestation of COVID-19 infection, sight-threatening retinal involvement has been reported. Herein, we report and characterize with multimodal retinal imaging 5 cases of acute vision loss secondary to presumed chorioretinal vasculopathy temporally associated with COVID-19 infection with varying severity, visual morbidity, and treatment response, and review the available literature on the association between COVID-19 infection and retinal microvascular changes.

DESIGN: Observational case series and literature review.

METHODS: Multicenter case series of 5 patients who presented to academic centers and private offices with acute vision loss temporally associated with COVID-19 infection. A review of …

Safety And Tolerability Of Moxidectin And Ivermectin Combination Treatments For Lymphatic Filariasis In Côte D'Ivoire: A Randomized Controlled Superiority Study, Catherine M. Bjerum, Benjamin G. Koudou, Allassane F. Ouattara, Daphne Lew, Charles W. Goss, Pascal T. Gabo, Christopher L. King, Peter U. Fischer, Gary J. Weil, Philip J. Budge

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Moxidectin is a macrocyclic lactone registered for the treatment of human onchocerciasis. The drug has a good safety profile, large volume of distribution and a long elimination half-life. This paper reports tolerability data from the first use of moxidectin in persons with Wuchereria bancrofti infection.

METHODS: In this randomized, open-label, masked-observer superiority trial, adults with Wuchereria bancrofti microfilaremia in Côte d'Ivoire were randomized to 1 of 4 treatment arms: ivermectin + albendazole (IA), moxidectin + albendazole (MoxA), ivermectin + diethylcarbamazine (DEC) + albendazole (IDA), or moxidectin + DEC + albendazole (MoxDA). As part of a larger efficacy trial, all …

Benzodiazepine-Free Cardiac Anesthesia For Reduction Of Postoperative Delirium (B-Free): A Protocol For A Multi-Centre Randomized Cluster Crossover Trial, Jessica Spence, Michael Avidan, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Delirium is common after cardiac surgery and is associated with adverse outcomes. Administration of benzodiazepines before and after cardiac surgery is associated with delirium; guidelines recommend minimizing their use. Benzodiazepine administration during cardiac surgery remains common because of its recognized benefits. The

Beginning To Address An Implementation Gap In Asthma: Clinicians' Views Of Prescribing Reliever Budesonide-Formoterol Inhalers And Smart In The United States, James G Krings, Tejas C Sekhar, Vanessa Chen, Kathryn V Blake, Kaharu Sumino, Aimee S James, Amber K Clover, Eric J Lenze, Ross C Brownson, Mario Castro

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: The Global Initiative for Asthma and National Asthma Education and Prevention Program recently made paradigm-shifting recommendations regarding inhaler management in asthma. The Global Initiative for Asthma now recommends that combination inhaled corticosteroid (ICS)-formoterol inhalers replace short-acting β-agonists as the preferred reliever therapy at all steps of asthma management. Although the most recent guidelines of the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program did not review reliever ICS-formoterol usage in mild asthma, they similarly recommended single maintenance and reliever therapy (SMART) at steps 3 and 4 of asthma management. Despite these recommendations, many clinicians-particularly in the United States-are not prescribing new …

Lower Levels Of Th1 And Th2 Cytokines In Cerebrospinal Fluid (Csf) At The Time Of Initial Csf Shunt Placement In Children Are Associated With Subsequent Shunt Revision Surgeries, Tamara D Simon, Sabrina Sedano, Yael Rosenberg-Hasson, Ramon Durazo-Arvizu, Kathryn B Whitlock, Paul Hodor, Jason S Hauptman, David D Limbrick, Patrick Mcdonald, Jeffrey G Ojemann, Holden T Maecker, Cerebrospinal Fluid Microbiota In Shunts Climb Study Group

2020-Current year OA Pubs

OBJECTIVE: We compare cytokine profiles at the time of initial CSF shunt placement between children who required no subsequent shunt revision surgeries and children requiring repeated CSF shunt revision surgeries for CSF shunt failure. We also describe the cytokine profiles across surgical episodes for children who undergo multiple subsequent revision surgeries.

METHODS: This pilot study was nested within an ongoing prospective multicenter study collecting CSF samples and clinical data at the time of CSF shunt surgeries since August 2014. We selected cases where CSF was available for children who underwent an initial CSF shunt placement and had no subsequent shunt …

Novel Roles For The Transcriptional Repressor E4bp4 In Both Cardiac Physiology And Pathophysiology, Sobuj Mia, David R Rawnsley, Sumanth D Prabhu, Abhinav Diwan, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Circadian clocks temporally orchestrate biological processes critical for cellular/organ function. For example, the cardiomyocyte circadian clock modulates cardiac metabolism, signaling, and electrophysiology over the course of the day, such that, disruption of the clock leads to age-onset cardiomyopathy (through unknown mechanisms). Here, we report that genetic disruption of the cardiomyocyte clock results in chronic induction of the transcriptional repressor E4BP4. Importantly, E4BP4 deletion prevents age-onset cardiomyopathy following clock disruption. These studies also indicate that E4BP4 regulates both cardiac metabolism (eg, fatty acid oxidation) and electrophysiology (eg, QT interval). Collectively, these studies reveal that E4BP4 is a novel regulator of both …

Ube4a Maintains Metabolic Homeostasis And Facilitates Insulin Signaling In Vivo, Sandip Mukherjee, Andrew J Lutkewitte, Brian N Finck, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

OBJECTIVE: Defining the regulators of cell metabolism and signaling is essential to design new therapeutic strategies in obesity and NAFLD/NASH. E3 ubiquitin ligases control diverse cellular functions by ubiquitination-mediated regulation of protein targets, and thus their functional aberration is associated with many diseases. The E3 ligase Ube4A has been implicated in human obesity, inflammation, and cancer. However, its in vivo function is unknown, and no animal models are available to study this novel protein.

METHODS: A whole-body Ube4A knockout (UKO) mouse model was generated, and various metabolic parameters were compared in chow- and high fat diet (HFD)-fed WT and UKO …

Sleep Disturbance Among Adults With Overactive Bladder: A Cross-Sectional Survey, H H Lai, D Walker, D Elsouda, A Lockefeer, K Gallington, E D Bacci

2020-Current year OA Pubs

OBJECTIVE: To examine differences in sleep disturbance, nocturia, and depression among adults with overactive bladder (OAB) by treatment type.

METHODS: A cross-sectional survey of adults with OAB assessed sleep disturbance, nocturia, and depression using patient-reported outcome measures, including the Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS)-29 Profile v2.1 (Sleep Disturbance and Depression domains), Lower Urinary Tract Dysfunction Research Network Symptom Index-10, and PROMIS Sleep Disturbance Short Form 8B. Treatment groups included antimuscarinics, β-3 adrenergic agonists, and no treatment. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used to test for differences in study endpoints; Bonferroni-adjusted pairwise tests (P < .05/3) were performed to compare differences in least squares means between groups.

RESULTS: One hundred participants were …

Smoking Cessation, Harm Reduction, And Biomarkers Protocols In The Phenx Toolkit: Tools For Standardized Data Collection, Laura Jean Bierut, Tabitha P Hendershot, Neal L Benowitz, K Michael Cummings, Robin J Mermelstein, Megan E Piper, Scott I Vrieze, Theodore L Wagener, Mark D Nelms, Cataia Ives, Deborah Maiese, Carol M Hamilton, Gary E Swan

2020-Current year OA Pubs

The use of standard protocols in studies supports consistent data collection, improves data quality, and facilitates cross-study analyses. Funded by the National Institutes of Health, the PhenX (consensus measures for

Fidelity And Adherence To A Liquefied Petroleum Gas Stove And Fuel Intervention: The Multi-Country Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (Hapin) Trial, Kendra N Williams, Lindsay J Underhill, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Reducing household air pollution (HAP) to levels associated with health benefits requires nearly exclusive use of clean cooking fuels and abandonment of traditional biomass fuels.

METHODS: The Household Air Pollution Intervention Network (HAPIN) trial randomized 3,195 pregnant women in Guatemala, India, Peru, and Rwanda to receive a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) stove intervention (n = 1,590), with controls expected to continue cooking with biomass fuels (n = 1,605). We assessed fidelity to intervention implementation and participant adherence to the intervention starting in pregnancy through the infant's first birthday using fuel delivery and repair records, surveys, observations, and temperature-logging stove …

Modified Bare-Back Micro-Retrograde Tibial Arterial Access To Facilitate Peripheral Endovascular Therapy, Faiz Gani, Momodou L Jammeh, Mohamed A Zayed

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Patients with critical limb threatening ischemia often present with complex segmental peripheral arterial chronic total occlusions, which might not be amenable to traditional antegrade revascularization techniques. For these patients, alternative retrograde revascularization techniques could be necessary. In the present report, we describe a novel modified retrograde cannulation technique using a bare back technique that eliminates the need for conventional tibial access sheath placement and, instead, facilitates distal arterial blood sampling, blood pressure monitoring, retrograde administration of contrast agents and vasoactive substances, and a rapid-exchange strategy. This cannulation strategy can serve as part of the armamentarium in the treatment of patients …

The Pyruvate Dehydrogenase Complex Regulates Mitophagic Trafficking And Protein Phosphorylation, Panagiota Kolitsida, Vladimir Nolic, Jianwen Zhou, Michael Stumpe, Natalie M Niemi, Jörn Dengjel, Hagai Abeliovich

2020-Current year OA Pubs

The mitophagic degradation of mitochondrial matrix proteins in

Novel Genetic Risk Variants And Clinical Predictors Associated With Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis In Patients With Ulcerative Colitis, Ming-Hsi Wang, Jessica J. Friton, Nancy Rebert, Kelly Monroe, Billy D. Nix, Claudio Fiocchi, Laura E. Raffals, Jonathan A. Leighton, Shabana F. Pasha, Michael F. Picco, Rodney D. Newberry, Jean-Paul Achkar, William A. Faubion

2020-Current year OA Pubs

INTRODUCTION: Patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) who are likely to have primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) should be identified because PSC can influence UC clinical behavior and outcomes.The aim of this study was to establish a model incorporating clinical and genetic risk predictors that identifies patients with UC at risk of developing PSC.

METHODS: We conducted a retrospective case-control study. Inflammatory bowel disease cohorts from multiple institutions were used as discovery and replicate datasets. Quality control criteria, including minor allele frequency, call rates, Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, cryptic relatedness, and population stratification (through principal components), were used. Discriminative accuracy was evaluated with area …

Fluorescence-Guided Surgical System Using Holographic Display: From Phantom Studies To Canine Patients, Mebin B. George, Benjamin Lew, Zuodong Liang, Steven Blair, Zhongmin Zhu, Nan Cui, Jamie Ludwig, Mohamed Zayed, Laura Selmic, Viktor Gruev

2020-Current year OA Pubs

SIGNIFICANCE: Holographic display technology is a promising area of research that can lead to significant advancements in cancer surgery. We present the benefits of combining bioinspired multispectral imaging technology with holographic goggles for fluorescence-guided cancer surgery. Through a series of experiments with 43D-printed phantoms, small animal models of cancer, and surgeries on canine patients with head and neck cancer, we showcase the advantages of this holistic approach.

AIM: The aim of our study is to demonstrate the feasibility and potential benefits of utilizing holographic display for fluorescence-guided surgery through a series of experiments involving 3D-printed phantoms and canine patients with …

The Effect Of Fibre Cell Remodelling On The Power And Optical Quality Of The Lens, J Rodriguez, Q Tan, H Šikić, L A. Taber, S Bassnett

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Vertebrate eye lenses are uniquely adapted to form a refractive index gradient (GRIN) for improved acuity, and to grow slowly in size despite constant cell proliferation. The mechanisms behind these adaptations remain poorly understood. We hypothesize that cell compaction contributes to both. To test this notion, we examined the relationship between lens size and shape, refractive characteristics and the cross-sectional areas of constituent fibre cells in mice of different ages. We developed a block-face imaging method to visualize cellular cross sections and found that the cross-sectional areas of fibre cells rose and then decreased over time, with the most significant …

Geospatial Modelling Of Lymphatic Filariasis And Malaria Co-Endemicity In Nigeria, Obiora A Eneanya, Lisa J Reimer, Peter U Fischer, Gary J Weil

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Lymphatic filariasis (LF) and malaria are important vector-borne diseases that are co-endemic throughout Nigeria. These infections are transmitted by the same mosquito vector species in Nigeria and their transmission is similarly influenced by climate and sociodemographic factors. The goal of this study was to assess the relationship between the geospatial distribution of both infections in Nigeria to better coordinate interventions.

METHODS: We used national survey data for malaria from the Demographic and Health Survey dataset and site-level LF mapping data from the Nigeria Lymphatic Filariasis Control Programme together with a suite of predictive climate and sociodemographic factors to build …

Optimum Threshold Of The 4kscore For Biopsy In Men With Negative Or Indeterminate Multiparametric Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Ricardo De Almeida S Jr, Eric H Kim, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

OBJECTIVE: The study aims to identify the optimal 4Kscore thresholds to determine the need for a prostate biopsy when multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (mpMRI) is negative or indeterminate.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: We analysed retrospective data from men in eight different institutions who underwent an mpMRI, 4Kscore and prostate biopsy for evaluation of prostate cancer. We selected men with a negative (PIRADS ≤2) or indeterminate (PIRADS 3) mpMRI. 4Kscore values were categorized into ranges of 1-7, 8-19, 20-32 and greater than 32. We evaluated the proportion of men with grade group 2 or higher (GG2+) cancer in groups defined by …

Biochemical Characterization Of Patients With Dihydrolipoamide Dehydrogenase Deficiency, Parith Wongkittichote, Sanmati R Cuddapah, Stephen R Master, Dorothy K Grange, Dennis Dietzen, Stephen M Roper, Rebecca D Ganetzky

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Dihydrolipoamide dehydrogenase (DLD; E3) oxidizes lipoic acid. Restoring the oxidized state allows lipoic acid to act as a necessary electron sink for the four mitochondrial keto-acid dehydrogenases: pyruvate dehydrogenase, alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase, branched-chain α-keto-acid dehydrogenase, and 2-oxoadipate dehydrogenase. DLD deficiency (DLDD) is caused by biallelic pathogenic variants in

Loss Of Stearoyl-Coa Desaturase 2 Disrupts Inflammatory Response In Macrophages, Joseph B. Lin, Amy Mora, Tzu Jui Wang, Andrea Santeford, Darksha Usmani, Marianne M. Ligon, Indira U. Mysorekar, Rajendra S. Apte

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Macrophages are innate immune cells that patrol tissues and are the first responders to detect infection. They orchestrate the host immune response in eliminating invading pathogens and the subsequent transition from inflammation to tissue repair. Macrophage dysfunction contributes to age-related pathologies, including low-grade inflammation in advanced age that is termed "inflammaging." Our laboratory has previously identified that macrophage expression of a fatty acid desaturase, stearoyl-CoA desaturase 2 (SCD2), declines with age. Herein, we delineate the precise cellular effects of SCD2 deficiency in murine macrophages. We found that deletion of

Intensive Care Unit Sinks Are Persistently Colonized With Multidrug Resistant Bacteria And Mobilizable, Resistance-Conferring Plasmids, Luke Diorio-Toth, Meghan A. Wallace, Christopher W. Farnsworth, Bin Wang, Danish Gul, Jennie H. Kwon, Saadia Andleeb, Carey-Ann D. Burnham, Gautam Dantas

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Contamination of hospital sinks with microbial pathogens presents a serious potential threat to patients, but our understanding of sink colonization dynamics is largely based on infection outbreaks. Here, we investigate the colonization patterns of multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs) in intensive care unit sinks and water from two hospitals in the USA and Pakistan collected over 27 months of prospective sampling. Using culture-based methods, we recovered 822 bacterial isolates representing 104 unique species and genomospecies. Genomic analyses revealed long-term colonization by