Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Higher Hepatic Mir-29 Expression In Undernourished Male Rats During The Postnatal Period Targets The Long-Term Repression Of Insulin-Like Growth Factor 1, Gurjeev Sohi, Andrew Revesz, Julie Ramkumar, Daniel B. Hardy

Physiology and Pharmacology Publications

A nutritional mismatch in postnatal life of low birth weight offspring increases the risk of developing the metabolic syndrome. Moreover, this is associated with decreased hepatic insulin-like growth factor 1 (Igf1) expression, leading to impaired growth and metabolism. Previously we have demonstrated that the timing of nutritional restoration in perinatal life can differentially programhepatic gene expression. While micro RNAs also play an important role in silencing gene expression, to date, the impact of a nutritional mismatch in neonatal life on their long-term expression has not been evaluated. Given the complementarity of miR-29 to the 3i-UTR of Igf1, we examined how …

Rasch Analysis Of The Patient Rated Elbow Evaluation Questionnaire, Joshua I. Vincent, Joy C. Macdermid, Graham J.W. King, Ruby Grewal

Bone and Joint Institute

© 2015 Vincent et al. Background: The Patient Rated Elbow Evaluation (PREE) was developed as an elbow joint specific measure of pain and disability and validated with classical psychometric methods. More recently, Rasch analysis has contributed new methods for analyzing the clinical measurement properties of self-report outcome measures. The objective of the study was to determine aspects of validity of the PREE using the Rasch model to assess the overall fit of the PREE data, the response scaling, individual item fit, differential item functioning (DIF), local dependency, unidimensionality and person separation index (PSI). Methods: A convenience sample of 236 patients …

Increased Expression Of Simple Ganglioside Species Gm2 And Gm3 Detected By Maldi Imaging Mass Spectrometry In A Combined Rat Model Of A Beta Toxicity And Stroke, Sarah Caughlin, Jeffrey D. Hepburn, Dae Hee Park, Kristina Jurcic, Ken K. -C. Yeung, David F. Cechetto, Shawn N. Whitehead

Anatomy and Cell Biology Publications

The aging brain is often characterized by the presence of multiple comorbidities resulting in synergistic damaging effects in the brain as demonstrated through the interaction of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and stroke. Gangliosides, a family of membrane lipids enriched in the central nervous system, may have a mechanistic role in mediating the brain's response to injury as their expression is altered in a number of disease and injury states. Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization (MALDI) Imaging Mass Spectrometry (IMS) was used to study the expression of A-series ganglioside species GD1a, GM1, GM2, and GM3 to determine alteration of their expression profiles in …

Intact Lkb1 Activity Is Required For Survival Of Dormant Ovarian Cancer Spheroids, Teresa M. Peart, Yudith R. Valdes, Rohann J.M. Correa, Elena Fazio, Monique Bertrand, Jacob Mcgee, Michel Prefontaine, Akira Sugimoto, Gabriel E. Dimattia, Trevor G. Shepherd

Anatomy and Cell Biology Publications

Metastatic epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) cells can form multicellular spheroids while in suspension and disperse directly throughout the peritoneum to seed secondary lesions. There is growing evidence that EOC spheroids are key mediators of metastasis, and they use specific intracellular signalling pathways to control cancer cell growth and metabolism for increased survival. Our laboratory discovered that AKT signalling is reduced during spheroid formation leading to cellular quiescence and autophagy, and these may be defining features of tumour cell dormancy. To further define the phenotype of EOC spheroids, we have initiated studies of the Liver kinase B1 (LKB1)-5′-AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) …

Retinoic Acid And The Development Of The Endoderm, Gregory M. Kelly, Thomas A. Drysdale

Paediatrics Publications

Retinoic acid (RA) is an important signaling molecule in the development of the endoderm and an important molecule in protocols used to generate endodermal cell types from stem cells. In this review, we describe the RA signaling pathway and its role in the patterning and specification of the extra embryonic endoderm and different endodermal organs. The formation of endoderm is an ancient evolutionary feature and RA signaling appears to have coevolved with the vertebrate lineage. Towards that end, we describe how RA participates in many regulatory networks required for the formation of extraembryonic structures as well as the organs of …

Long Non-Coding Rna Malat1 Regulates Hyperglycaemia Induced Inflammatory Process In The Endothelial Cells., Prasanth Puthanveetil, Shali Chen, Biao Feng, Anirudh Gautam, Subrata Chakrabarti

Pathology Publications

To examine whether the long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) metastasis associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (MALAT1) is altered in the endothelial cells in response to glucose and the significance of such alteration. We incubated human umbilical vein endothelial cells with media containing various glucose levels. We found an increase in MALAT1 expression peaking after 12 hrs of incubation in high glucose. This increase was associated with parallel increase in serum amyloid antigen 3 (SAA3), an inflammatory ligand and target of MALAT1 and was further accompanied by increase in mRNAs and proteins of inflammatory mediators, tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin …

Fusion Analysis Of Functional Mri Data For Classification Of Individuals Based On Patterns Of Activation., Mahdi Ramezani, Purang Abolmaesumi, Kris Marble, Heather Trang, Ingrid Johnsrude

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

Classification of individuals based on patterns of brain activity observed in functional MRI contrasts may be helpful for diagnosis of neurological disorders. Prior work for classification based on these patterns have primarily focused on using a single contrast, which does not take advantage of complementary information that may be available in multiple contrasts. Where multiple contrasts are used, the objective has been only to identify the joint, distinct brain activity patterns that differ between groups of subjects; not to use the information to classify individuals. Here, we use joint Independent Component Analysis (jICA) within a Support Vector Machine (SVM) classification …

Immediate Versus Delayed Sequential Bilateral Cataract Surgery: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Monali S. Malvankar-Mehta, Yufeng Nancy Chen, Sangita Patel, Angela Pui-Kei Leung, Man Mohan Merchea, William G. Hodge

Department of Medicine Publications

BACKGROUND: Immediately sequential bilateral cataract surgery (ISBCS), the cataract surgery that is performed in both eyes simultaneously, is gaining popularity worldwide compared to the traditional treatment paradigm: delayed sequential bilateral cataract surgery (DSBCS), the surgery that is performed in each eye on a different day as a completely separate operation. ISBCS provides advantages to patients and patients' families in the form of fewer hospital visits. Additionally, patients enjoy rapid rehabilitation, lack of anisometropia - potentially reducing accidents and falls, and avoid suboptimal visual function in daily life. The hospital may benefit due to lower cost.

OBJECTIVE: To perform a systematic …

Serum Vitamin D Status Is Associated With The Presence But Not The Severity Of Primary Open Angle Glaucoma., Aurélien Goncalves, Dan Milea, Philippe Gohier, Ghislaine Jallet, Stéphanie Leruez, Mani Baskaran, Tin Aung, Cédric Annweiler

Medical Biophysics Publications

OBJECTIVES: Vitamin D is involved in visual health and function. Our objective was to determine whether age-related vitamin D insufficiency was associated with the presence and the severity of primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) in a case-control study of older adults.

STUDY DESIGN: Case-control study.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: One hundred fifty cases diagnosed with moderate-to-severe POAG (mean, 75.1±8.5 years; 42.0% female) and 164 healthy controls (mean, 73.0±7.9 years; 59.8% female) were included. POAG diagnosis was based on classical diagnostic criteria of optic nerve cupping and/or RNFL thinning, measured with optical coherence tomography. Severe POAG was defined as Humphrey visual field …

Ventilation Heterogeneity In Ex-Smokers Without Airflow Limitation., Damien Pike, Miranda Kirby, Fumin Guo, David G Mccormack, Grace Parraga

Medical Biophysics Publications

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: Hyperpolarized (3)He magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) ventilation abnormalities are visible in ex-smokers without airflow limitation, but the clinical relevance of this is not well-understood. Our objective was to phenotype healthy ex-smokers with normal and abnormally elevated ventilation defect percent (VDP).

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty ex-smokers without airflow limitation provided written informed consent to (3)He MRI, computed tomography (CT), and pulmonary function tests in a single visit. (3)He MRI VDP and apparent diffusion coefficients (ADCs) were measured for whole-lung and each lung lobe as were CT measurements of emphysema (relative area [RA] with attenuation ≤-950 HU, RA950) and …

Increased Airway Reactivity And Hyperinsulinemia In Obese Mice Are Linked By Erk Signaling In Brain Stem Cholinergic Neurons, Luiz O. S. Leiria, Fernanda M. Arantes-Costa, Marina C. Calixto, Eduardo C. Alexandre, Rodrigo F. Moura, Franco Folli, Carla M. Prado, Marco Antonio Prado, Vania F. Prado, Licio A. Velloso, Jose Donato Jr., Edson Antunes, Milton A. Martins, Mario J. A. Saad

Anatomy and Cell Biology Publications

Obesity is a major risk factor for asthma, which is characterized by airway hyperreactivity (AHR). In obesity-associated asthma, AHR may be regulated by non-T(H)2 mechanisms. We hypothesized that airway reactivity is regulated by insulin in the CNS, and that the high levels of insulin associated with obesity contribute to AHR. We found that intracerebroventricular (ICV)-injected insulin increases airway reactivity in wild-type, but not in vesicle acetylcholine transporter knockdown (VAChT KDHOM-/-), mice. Either neutralization of central insulin or inhibition of extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERK) normalized airway reactivity in hyperinsulinemic obese mice. These effects were mediated by insulin in cholinergic nerves located …

Identification Of Risk Factors For Suicide Amongst Psychiatric Patients: Can Structured Measurement Tools Be More Specific?, Amresh Shrivastava, Robbie Campbell, Megan Johnston, Coralee Berlmont, Miky Kaushal, Avinash Desousa, Larry Stitt, Charles Nelson

Data and Test Instruments

Background One of the main challenges in suicide prevention is that it cannot be predicted. Significant number of patients attempt suicide while being under psychiatric treatment. Lethality and intent of each risk factor varies and remains inconsistent. Though structured instruments have also been useful with limited success search for newer methods remains an urgent clinical need. We believe risk is multifactorial and a scale based upon fundamental domains of biological, psychological, social, environmental, spiritual and clinical origin can elucidate more specific factors. Scale for impact of suicidality- Management, Assessment and Planning of care-brief screener (SISMAP-bcs) is 23 item scale which …

Pthrp-Related Hypercalcaemia In Infancy And Congenital Anomalies Of The Kidney And Urinary Tract (Cakut), Nardeen Kodous, Guido Filler, Ajay Parkash Sharma, Tamara Angela Van Hooren

Paediatrics Publications

BACKGROUND: Severe hypercalcaemia is a rare but clinically significant condition in infancy and childhood. Parathyroid hormone-related peptide (PTHrP)-mediated hypercalcaemia resulting from a malignancy is rare and only a handful of case reports have outlined its incidence alongside a benign condition.

OBJECTIVES: To describe the diagnostic workup and management of an infant with hypercalcaemia, renal dysplasia, and elevated PTHrP levels.

DESIGN: Case report.

SETTING: The Victoria Hospital campus of the London Health Sciences Centre in London, Ontario, Canada.

PATIENTS: A child with congenital anomalies of the kidneys and urinary tract (CAKUT), stage 2 chronic kidney disease (CKD), and renal dysplasia who …

Uwomj Volume 84, Number 1, Spring 2015, Western University

University of Western Ontario Medical Journal

Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry

Using The Re-Aim Framework To Evaluate A Community-Based Summer Camp For Children With Obesity: A Prospective Feasibility Study, Shauna M. Burke, Sheree Shapiro, Robert J. Petrella, Jennifer D. Irwin, Michelle Jackman, Erin S. Pearson, Harry Prapavessis, Joel Kevin Shoemaker

Health Studies Publications

Background

Increasing rates of childhood overweight and obesity highlight a need for the evaluation of lifestyle interventions. The purpose of the study was to determine the Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation and Maintenance of a novel family-focused program targeting children with obesity (i.e., the Children’s Health and Activity Modification Program [C.H.A.M.P.]) using the RE-AIM framework, an evaluation tool for community-based health interventions.

Methods

A single-centre, single cohort interventional feasibility study was conducted over the course of two years. Children with obesity and their families completed a 4-week group-based lifestyle intervention in Year 1 (n = 15; M_age = 10.6; …

The Physical Activity Levels And Sedentary Behaviors Of Latino Children In London (Ontario, Canada), Gillian E. Mandich, Shauna Burke, Anca Gaston, Patricia Tucker

Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Publications

OBJECTIVE: To assess the physical activity and sedentary behaviors of a sample of Latino children in London, Ontario, Canada.

METHODS: Seventy-four Latino children (54.1% male; mean age = 11.4) completed self-report questionnaires related to physical activity and sedentary behaviors. A subset of children (n = 64) wore Actical (Mini Mitter, Respironics) accelerometers for a maximum of four days.

RESULTS: Latino children self-reported moderate levels of physical activity (i.e., mean score of 2.8 on 5-point scale). Accelerometer data revealed that children spent an average of 50.0 min in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA; 59.2 min on weekdays and 50.6 min on weekend …

Reliability Of Three Landmarking Methods For Dual Inclinometry Measurements Of Lumbar Flexion And Extension, Joy C. Macdermid, Vanitha Arumugam, Joshua I. Vincent, Kimberly L. Payne, Aubrey K. So

Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Publications

Background

To examine the intra and inter-rater reliability of lumbar flexion and extension measurements attained using three landmarking methods for dual inclinometry.

Methods

This was a repeated measures reliability study. Convenience sampling was used to obtain forty volunteer subjects. Two assessors measured a series of lumbar flexion and extension movements using the J-Tech™ dual inclinometer. Three different landmarking methods were used: 1) straight palpation of PSIS and L1, 2) palpation of PSIS and the site of the nearest 5 cm interval point closest to L1 and 3) location of PSIS and 15 cm cephalad. Upon landmarking, adhesive tape was used …

The Impact Of Childhood Symptoms Of Conduct Disorder On Driver Aggression In Adulthood, Christine Wickens, Evelyn R. Vingilis, Robert Mann, Patricia Erickson, Maggie Toplak, Natan Kolla, Jane Seeley, Anca Ialomiteanu, Gina Stoduto, Gabriela Ilie

Family Medicine Publications

Background: Despite limited empirical investigation, existing scientific literature suggests that individuals with a history or current diagnosis of conduct disorder (CD) may be more likely to demonstrate reckless and aggressive driving. Much of the limited research in this field examines the impact of childhood CD on driver behaviour and collision risk in young adults. Few, if any, studies assess the impact of this disorder on driver behaviour beyond age 21 years. The current research is a population-based study of the impact of CD symptoms during childhood on the risk of engaging in driver aggression during adulthood.

Methods: Data are based …

Connectionist Perspectives On Language Learning, Representation And Processing., Marc F Joanisse, James L Mcclelland

Brain and Mind Institute Researchers' Publications

The field of formal linguistics was founded on the premise that language is mentally represented as a deterministic symbolic grammar. While this approach has captured many important characteristics of the world's languages, it has also led to a tendency to focus theoretical questions on the correct formalization of grammatical rules while also de-emphasizing the role of learning and statistics in language development and processing. In this review we present a different approach to language research that has emerged from the parallel distributed processing or 'connectionist' enterprise. In the connectionist framework, mental operations are studied by simulating learning and processing within …

Istent As A Solo Procedure For Glaucoma Patients: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Monali S. Malvankar-Mehta, Yufeng Nancy Chen, Yiannis Iordanous, Wan Wendy Wang, John Costella, Cindy M. L. Hutnik

Department of Medicine Publications

BACKGROUND: Glaucoma is a leading cause of irreversible blindness. It is firmly entrenched in the traditional treatment paradigm to start with pharmacotherapy. However, pharmacotherapy is not benign and has been well documented to have a number of significant challenges. Minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS) that targets the outflow pathway with minimal to no scleral dissection has resulted in the need to reconsider the glaucoma treatment paradigm.

PURPOSE: To perform a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate and quantify the effect on post-operative intraocular pressure (IOP) and number of topical glaucoma medications, in patients receiving the iStent MIGS device as the …

The Flip-Side To Readmission: Focused After-Care, Amresh Srivastava

Data and Test Instruments

paper 1. Suicidality in hospitalized early psychosis patients at time of discharge The purpose of this study was to investigate the presence and nature of suicidal risk among early psychosis patients at the time of discharge from hospital. Is it only related to the involvement of a suicidal attempt at admission? Thirty such patients, who were admitted after a suicide attempt were compared with 30 patients similarly diagnosed, but admitted for clinical reasons not involving a suicide attempt. Dependent measures of psychopathology, adjustment and suicidality were used. It was found that the two groups did not differ in suicidality, which …

Phenotypic Analysis Of Long Bones In Pannexin 3 Knockout Mice, Deidre Caskenette

Masters of Clinical Anatomy Projects

Pannexin 3 (Panx3) is a channel forming glycoprotein that is highly expressed in skeletal tissues. Panx3 is induced at the growth plate of long bones where it regulates cell proliferation and differentiation, a key role in bone formation.

This study analyzes the phenotype of long bones in a novel Panx3 knockout (KO) mouse to assess the role of Panx3 in bone formation.

Ten KO and 10 wild-type (WT) adult mice were scanned using in vivo micro-CT. Right femora / humeri were digitized using homologous landmarks. Geometric morphometric analysis (multivariate statistical methods) allowed for quantitative comparison of shape, size and variation …

3d Visualization Of The Glomerulus Within Kidney Tissue Made Transparent Through Passive Optical Clearing, Tristan Conciatori

Masters of Clinical Anatomy Projects

No abstract provided.

Evaluation Of User Performance In Simulation-Based Diagnostic Cerebral Angiography Training, Oleksiy Zaika

Masters of Clinical Anatomy Projects

Simulation of anatomically complex procedures, such as angiography, is becoming more practical, however, computer-based modules require extensive research to assess their effectiveness. We organized two training schemas – alternating cases and consistent cases – and hypothesized that the alternating practice cases would be beneficial to test performance. Eight residents (4 radiology/4 neurosurgery) and 8 anatomy graduate students were trained on the Simbionix™ simulator in order to assess skill acquisition in diagnostic cerebral angiography over 8 sessions. We found that participants improve on total procedure time and total fluoroscopy time (p<0.05), but not on contrast injected or roadmaps created. There were no significant differences between alternating and consistent training types. Additional work needs to be done with higher sample numbers and visuospatial scores as criteria.

Establishing Anatomical Proximity Between The Coronary Circumflex Artery And Mitral Valve Annulus: Implications For Mitral Valve Surgery, Eliot Winkler

Masters of Clinical Anatomy Projects

The circumflex artery (CX) lies in the left atrioventricular groove, running intimately parallel to the mitral annulus. Thus, unintentional damage to the CX can occur during mitral valve surgery, typically reported in hearts with a left dominant circulation. This study aims to elucidate the anatomical CX-annulus relationship with respect to dominance, and evaluate unintentional CX damage following three surgical repairs. Using cadaveric hearts (n=27), coronary circulation was dissected and dominance assigned. Following a left atriotomy, a clock face was overlaid on the mitral valve (12:00 positioned at A2 leaflet midline) and the CX-annulus distance was measured at each hour. The …

Mapping Cortical Plasticity Induced By Noise Exposure Using C-Fos Immunoreactivity, Paul Sirek

Masters of Clinical Anatomy Projects

Using in vivo electrophysiological recordings in rats, our lab has recently observed that high-intensity noise exposure causes an increase in the number of neurons in the auditory and multisensory cortices that are responsive to visual stimuli (i.e., cortical crossmodal plasticity). To extend this work, the present study evaluated our hypothesis that this noise-induced crossmodal plasticity can also be assessed by mapping the expression of the activity marker, c-Fos, across multiple cortical areas in response to visual stimuli. Adult male rats were exposed to a 120dB noise (0.8-20kHz) for two hours, and the level of hearing loss was assessed with an …

Comparative Assessment Of Hard Palate Thickness Using Micro - Ct And Gross Cadaveric Measurements: Implications For The Safe Placement Of Orthodontic Miniscrews, Jillian Phillips

Masters of Clinical Anatomy Projects

The hard palate is a preferred area for orthodontic miniscrew (OMS) insertion due to easy surgical access and favorable anatomical configuration. However, accurate measurement of palatal bone thickness (BT) is crucial for choosing appropriate OMS lengths and insertion sites. The aim of this study is to determine the accuracy of micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) for assessing palatal BT, such that we can determine if it is an objective standard for use in research, to which clinical measurements of BT can be compared. Ten cadaveric maxillae (54 -98 yrs.) were cleaned of soft tissue and imaged using micro-CT imaging. Bone thickness was …

A Histological Examination Of The Lumbar Sympathetic Trunk, Noah Mintz

Masters of Clinical Anatomy Projects

Current anatomical and histological descriptions of the lumbar sympathetic trunk suggest that its neuronal cell bodies are located in discrete ganglia linked to each other by nerve fibres. Despite well-documented variations in the morphology of the lumbar sympathetic trunk (e.g., number and placement of ganglia), a detailed histological examination of the arrangement of neuronal cell bodies within the trunk is lacking. Thus, the present study aims to examine the microscopic organization of the lumbar sympathetic trunk using standard histological techniques (n=1). A 95mm length of the sympathetic trunk (from L3-L5) was serially-sectioned (5μm thick) in the longitudinal plane and stained …

The Left Atrial Appendage (Laa): Proximity Of The Circumflex Artery And Evaluation Of A Novel Method Of Closure, Bayan Malakouti-Nejad

Masters of Clinical Anatomy Projects

The left atrial appendage (LAA) is an area of interest because of its thrombogenic potential in patients with atrial fibrillation. The current standard for LAA removal is epicardial excision, which may leave residual volume thereby undermining its effectiveness. Also, LAA surgery may injure the nearby circumflex artery. This investigation aims to measure the proximity of the circumflex artery to the LAA at various points, and evaluate pericardial patch exclusion as a novel method of LAA closure in a cadaveric model. After performing both procedures in all (n=27) hearts, epicardial excision left 24% of the original volume while pericardial patch exclusion …

Development Of An Online Tool For Periodontal Disease Education, Sari Johnston

Masters of Clinical Anatomy Projects

Worldwide research has indicated that 50-90% of the population suffers from gingivitis, a mild form of periodontal disease (Armitage, 2000). Recently it has become hypothesized that not only is gum disease, or periodontal disease, detrimental to one’s oral health but may also have systemic consequences (Watt & Petersen, 2012). According to Bedgley (1994), when patients see, hear and participate in patient learning the retention of knowledge increases up to 80%. Computer based learning is now commonplace and has the potential to reach the masses. Thus, computer-based patient education could be highly effective in decreasing periodontal disease rates. Therefore, creation of …