Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Ucva Ontology: Standardizing Local Context Factors To Support The Analysis Of Unwarranted Clinical Variation, Apollo Mcowiti, Xubing Hao, Rebecca Z Lin, Laila Rasmy-Bekhet, Cui Tao, Susan Fenton

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Objectives: Unwarranted clinical variation (UCV), defined as care provided to a patient that is not proportional to the patient's needs, clinical characteristics, or preferences, results in negative patient outcomes. UCV detection is performed to compare healthcare outcomes across regions or organizations and reduce UCV incidences. However, the lack of standardized UCV concepts and the local context factors hinder the interoperability of UCV analyses between organizations. Currently, UCV analysis relies on centralized analysis, posing challenges due to the proprietary nature of an organization's healthcare and operational data. Standardizing analysis factors enables interoperable analyses by establishing a common context between organizations. This …

Growth Hormone Pathway As A Prognostic And Therapeutic Biomarker In Patients With Unresectable Hepatocellular Carcinoma Treated With Radiation Therapy, Joe R Eid, Safa Kaseb, Lianchun Xiao, Ryan Sun, Mahesh Kumar Kannan, Manal Hassan, Asif Rashid, Hop S Tran Cao, Hesham M Amin, Eugene J Koay

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Purpose: Radiation therapy (RT) has emerged as an effective local therapy option for patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and is associated with improved overall survival (OS). However, some patients still have poor outcomes after RT, and biomarkers are needed to stratify prognostic groups. High circulating growth hormone (GH) levels promote HCC proliferation and survival and are associated with aggressive disease. In this study, we evaluated whether pretreatment GH levels are associated with OS and progression-free survival (PFS) in patients who underwent RT for unresectable HCC.

Methods and materials: Patients undergoing RT for HCC during 2017-2023 were identified from a …

Creating Space For New Ideas And Advancing Gender Equity In Physical Activity And Health Research: Reflections On The Nature Portfolio Physical Activity Series, Andrea Ramírez Varela, Deborah Salvo, Pedro C Hallal, Erica Hinckson

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Computational Modeling Meets 3d Bioprinting: Emerging Synergies In Cardiovascular Disease Modeling, Tanmay Mukherjee, Mehdi Salar Amoli, Sarah Rezapourdamanab, Lama Rita El Shammas, Martin L Tomov, Emilio A Mendiola, Vahid Serpooshan, Reza Avazmohammadi

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) remain the leading cause of death worldwide, underscoring the need for improved strategies in diagnosis, treatment, and disease modeling. Traditional in vitro models often fall short in replicating human CV physiology, prompting efforts to advance cardiac tissue engineering and computational modeling. Among these, three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting has emerged as a transformative tool, enabling the creation of biomimetic CV constructs that more faithfully replicate native tissue structure and function. However, challenges persist in achieving appropriate mechanical properties and long-term performance of engineered CV constructs. Computational modeling offers powerful solutions to assist with these challenges, providing predictive insights into …

Psychotropic Medications And Their Interactions With Subcortical Brain Volume In Bipolar Disorder: An Enigma Mega-Analysis, Sinead King, John O'Connor, Emma Corley, Giulia Tronchin, Elisa Fontana, Leila Nabulsi, Melody J Y Kang, Joaquim Radua, Brian Hallahan, Christoph Abé, Martin Alda, Dag Alnæs, Silvia Alonso-Lana, Silvia Amoretti, Jochen Bauer, Francesco Benedetti, Klaus Berger, Michael Berk, Erlend Bøen, Joscha Böhnlein, Birgitte Boye, Beatrice Bravi, Erick J Canales-Rodríguez, Udo Dannlowski, Caroline Demro, Annabella Di Giorgio, Ana M Diaz-Zuluaga, Torbjørn Elvsåshagen, Pauline Favre, Tracy Erwin-Grabner, María Florencia Forte, Janice M Fullerton, Lisa S Furlong, Susan L Rossell, David C Glahn, Benjamin I Goldstein, Ian H Gotlib, Roberto Goya-Maldonado, Melissa J Green, Dominik Grotegerd, Oliver Gruber, Bartholomeus C M Haarman, Tim Hahn, Tomas Hajek, Leonie Hater, Marco Hermesdorf, Josselin Houenou, Fleur M Howells, James A Karantonis, Kody G Kennedy, Tilo Kircher, Anna Luisa Klahn, Maximilian Konowski, Bernd Krämer, Elijah Lahud, Rayus Kuplicki, Mikael Landén, Carlos López-Jaramillo, Bradley J Macintosh, Hannah Meinert, Susanne Meinert, Elisa M T Melloni, Philip B Mitchell, Benson Mwangi, Igor Nenadić, Bronwyn J Overs, Nadine Parker, Godfrey Pearlson, Edith Pomarol-Clotet, James J Prisciandaro, Yann Quidé, Gloria Roberts, Amanda Rodrigue, Elena Rodríguez-Cano, Lisa Rauer, Matthew D Sacchet, Raymond Salvador, Fabio Sambataro, Theodore D Satterthwaite, Jonathan Savitz, Freda Scheffler, Navid Schürmeyer, Chen Shen, Kang Sim, Jair C Soares, Aleix Solanes, Márcio Gerhardt Soeiro-De-Souza, Scott R Sponheim, Dan J Stein, Frederike Stein, Henk S Temmingh, Lea Teutenberg, Sophia I Thomopoulos, Snezana Urosevic, Tamsyn E Van Rheenen, Eduard Vieta, Lars T Westlye, Daniel H Wolf, Mon-Ju Wu, Lakshmi N Yatham, Giovana B Zunta-Soares, Dara M Cannon, Paul M Thompson, Ole A Andreassen, Christopher R K Ching, Colm Mcdonald

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

MRI studies in bipolar disorder (BD) have yielded inconsistent findings, partly due to the varied use of psychotropic medications. This study utilised a mega-analysis approach, accounting for concurrent medication status (syndrome-based and Neuroscience-based Nomenclature (NbN) classifications), in order to assess the association of medication status with subcortical brain volumes in BD. Data from 2,664 BD patients and 4,065 controls (CN) were pooled from 34 research groups as part of the ENIGMA Bipolar Disorder Working Group. Standardized ENIGMA protocols were used to measure subcortical brain volumes. Linear-mixed-effects regression evaluated the association between psychotropic medications and subcortical volumes, and moderation analyses explored …

Structural Brain Differences Associated With Panic Disorder: An Enigma-Anxiety Working Group Mega-Analysis Of 4924 Individuals Worldwide, Laura K M Han, Willem B Bruin, Janna Marie Bas-Hoogendam, Nynke A Groenewold, Kevin Hilbert, Anderson M Winkler, Andre Zugman, Takeshi Asami, Jacques P Barber, Francesco Benedetti, Robert J R Blair, Joscha Böhnlein, Paolo Brambilla, Fabian Breuer, Randy L Buckner, Robin Bülow, Monica E Calkins, Natalia Chechko, Udo Dannlowski, Katharina Dohm, Katharina Domschke, Thomas Dresler, Angelika Erhardt-Lehmann, Gregory A Fonzo, Andreas J Forstner, Hans J Grabe, Dominik Grotegerd, Raquel E Gur, Ruben C Gur, Catherine Harmer, David Hofmann, Odile A Van Den Heuvel, Neda Jahanshad, Tilo T J Kircher, Katharina Koch, Max A Laansma, Till Langhammer, Sang-Hyuk Lee, Elisabeth J Leehr, Eleonora Maggioni, Claire E Marino, Susanne Meinert, Hannah Meinert, Barbara Milrod, Benson Mwangi, Jared A Nielsen, Patricia Ohrmann, Spiro P Pantazatos, Martin P Paulus, Brenda W J H Penninx, Sara Poletti, Andrea Reinecke, Isabelle C Ridderbusch, Pavel Rjabtsenkov, Philipp G Sämann, Theodore D Satterthwaite, Lianne Schmaal, Elisabeth Schrammen, Jair C Soares, Nili Solomonov, Murray B Stein, Benjamin Straube, Thomas Straube, Benjamin Suarez-Jimenez, Jordan W Smoller, Ardesheer Talati, Sophia I Thomopoulos, Carlos E Vazquez, Henry Völzke, Katharina Wittfeld, Mon-Ju Wu, Yunbo Yang, Giovana B Zunta Soares, Ulrike Lueken, Paul M Thompson, Daniel S Pine, Dan J Stein, Nic J A Van Der Wee, Dick J Veltman, Moji Aghajani

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Neuroanatomical findings on panic disorder (PD) are typically difficult to replicate, with inconsistent effects. These concerns prompted a paradigm shift towards large-scale collaborations, focused on harmonized data extraction and processing for robust examination of PD brain correlates. Hence, leveraging the largest-ever multi-site neuroimaging database on PD (Age: 10–66 years; global sites: 28), compiled by the ENIGMA-Anxiety Working Group, we report on cortical and subcortical differences in individuals with PD (N = 1146) versus healthy controls (HC: N = 3778). The analyses revealed lower thickness and smaller cortical surface area within fronto-temporo-parietal regions in PD (Cohen’s ds: −0.08–0.13), along with lower …

Intravenous Buprenorphine Reversed Opioid-Induced Respiratory Depression Without Precipitating Withdrawal In Emergency Department Patients, Anthony Spadaro, Nicholas Imperato, Jaclyn Scalgione, Cynthia Santos

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Objective: Buprenorphine is a high-affinity partial agonist that can displace full opioid agonists and could be used to reverse opioid-induced respiratory depression. There is scant evidence to support the use of buprenorphine in an acute opioid overdose to reverse respiratory depression in the era of high fentanyl prevalence in the drug supply. This is a case series of four patients with signs and symptoms of an opioid overdose who showed clinical improvement after receiving intravenous buprenorphine.

Method: A case series of adult emergency department patients treated at a single urban academic medical center was reviewed by the authors, who determined …

Declaring Futility After Traumatic Injury And The Burden Of Failure On The Surgeon, Jan-Michael Van Gent, Bryan A Cotton

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

In this edition of the THOR supplement in Transfusion, there are two articles that deal with resuscitation futility and transfusion. In one article, Yazer et al. delve into the details of the studies outlined in this editorial and summarize the literature on the topic of transfusion and futility. The second article by Dr. Jay Malone discusses the ethical issues surrounding massive transfusion and resuscitation. Taken together, these articles address the clinical and ethical issues surrounding this very emotive and difficult topic.

The Impact Of Rapid Infusers On The Hemostatic Potential Of Cryoprecipitate Products, Connor D Purvis, Samantha Redden, Andrew Jacobson, Yao-Wei Wang, Julie Campbell, Jessica Cardenas, Jan-Michael Van Gent, Bryan A Cotton

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: In cases of massive transfusion, intravenous access can be limited. Additionally, delivering different products through separate lines and infusion methods adds unnecessary steps. RBC, plasma, and whole blood (WB) are delivered via rapid infusers; cryoprecipitate (CRYO) is infused through separate access and is not approved with these devices.

Study design and methods: We examined the impact of different transfusion methods on hemostatic performance and factor activity using two available CRYO products. Ten bags of CRYO, ten bags pathogen-reduced CRYO (Intercept® Fibrinogen Complex, IFC), and 20 units of WB were obtained. Each CRYO bag was infused with one unit of …

Estrogen As A Therapeutic Agent: Targeting Endotheliopathy And Coagulopathy In Trauma, Niruktha Raghavan, Mira Patel, Bryan A Cotton, Julia Coleman, Donald Jenkins

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Traumatic injury remains a leading cause of death, often due to uncontrolled hemorrhage and trauma-induced coagulopathy (TIC). TIC is critically triggered by the endotheliopathy of trauma, involving endothelial cell injury and glycocalyx degradation. Despite conventional advances, the stable casualty rate underscores the urgent need for new precision resuscitation strategies that acknowledge factors like biological sex.

Design: The central hypothesis is that estrogen confers a survival advantage in hormonally active females through a dual action: endothelial cell stabilization (halting glycocalyx shedding) and its inherent procoagulant effect. The analysis assesses the therapeutic potential of both exogenous estrogen and female-derived blood products …

A Rare Case Of Gastric Ascariasis, Sharon Pan, Kevin Yu, Blaine A Mathison, Yan Gao, Marc Roger Couturier, Salem Muayad, Violeta Chávez, Ranya Selim

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Ascariasis, caused by the parasitic roundworm Ascaris lumbricoides, is one of the most common helminthic infections globally. Spread by contaminated soil through the fecal-oral route, A. lumbricoides typically infects the small intestine and has rarely been reported to infect the stomach.

Case summary: We describe an unusual case of a male in his 30s with a history of neuroendocrine tumor (NET) who immigrated from Colombia and who underwent esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) and colonoscopy for further evaluation of abdominal pain. He was incidentally found to have a female Ascaris worm in his stomach that was retrieved during the EGD.

Conclusion: …

Vo: The Vaccine Ontology, Jie Zheng, Asiyah Yu Lin, Anthony Huffman, Anna Maria Masci, Rebecca Racz, Guanming Wu, Kallan Roan, Edison Ong, Sirarat Sarntivijai, Joy Hu, Eliyas Asfaw, Hayleigh Kahn, Xingxian Li, Xumeng Zhang, Joshua Monickaraj, Nilufer Kosar, Jianfu Li, Warren Manuel, Rashmie Abeysinghe, Hasin Rehana, Benu Bansal, Yuanyi Pan, Jinjing Guo, Virginia He, Justin Song, Andrey I Seleznev, Katelyn Hur, Anna He, Alexander Davydov, Qi Yang, Anna Ostropolets, Randi Vita, Bjoern Peters, Alan Ruttenberg, Alexander D Diehl, Charles Tapley Hoyt, Paola Roncaglia, Rachael P Huntley, Richard H Scheuermann, Melanie Courtot, Thomas Todd, Samantha Sayers, Fang Chen, Xinna Li, Feng-Yu Yeh, Zuoshuang Xiang, Arzucan Ozgur, Patricia L Whetzel, Mark A Musen, Christopher J Mungall, Wolfgang W Leitner, Licong Cui, Lesley A Colby, Harry L T Mobley, Brian D Athey, Gilbert S Omenn, Lindsay G Cowell, Cui Tao, Junguk Hur, Barry Smith, Yongqun He

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Vaccines are widely used in both research and clinical settings. To facilitate FAIR data practices, we urgently need to standardize vaccine representation, integrate information across diverse vaccine types, and support computer-assisted reasoning. Accordingly, we have since 2007 developed the community-based Vaccine Ontology (VO), which aligns with the Basic Formal Ontology and adheres to OBO Foundry principles. VO ontologically models vaccines, vaccine components, vaccine immune responses, vaccine investigation studies and other vaccine-related topics. VO represents more than 10,000 vaccines targeting 289 infectious pathogens and cancers in humans and over 30 nonhuman animal species. VO provides mappings to external resources such as …

Admixture-Informed Polygenic Risk Reporting Using The Eprs Framework, Yu-Jyun Huang, Nuzulul Kurniansyah, Matthew O Goodman, Brian W Spitzer, Jiongming Wang, Adrienne Stilp, Cecelia Laurie, Paul S De Vries, Han Chen, Yuan-I Min, Mario Sims, Gina M Peloso, Xiuqing Guo, Joshua C Bis, Jennifer A Brody, Laura M Raffield, Jennifer A Smith, Wei Zhao, Jerome I Rotter, Stephen S Rich, Susan Redline, Myriam Fornage, Robert Kaplan, Nora Franceschini, Daniel Levy, Alanna C Morrison, Eric Boerwinkle, Nicholas L Smith, Charles Kooperberg, Bruce M Psaty, Sebastian Zöllner, Tamar Sofer

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Polygenic risk score values vary with genetic ancestry due to differences in population-specific allele frequencies and linkage disequilibrium patterns. We present a framework to calibrate polygenic risk scores based on ancestral makeup. We propose the "expected polygenic risk score" or ePRS, defined as the expected value of a polygenic risk score based on one's global or local admixture patterns. We further define the "residual polygenic risk score" or rPRS as measuring the deviation of the polygenic risk score from the ePRS. The ePRS reflects the baseline ancestry-driven component of genetic risk, whereas the rPRS isolates an ancestry-agnostic measure of genetic …

Hyperdynamic Microtubule-Based Structural Changes In Monocyte-Derived-Neuronal-Like Cells From Patients With Schizophrenia, Alfredo Bellon, Alonso Cortez-Resendiz, Lauren N Forrest, Omar Elmarasi, Janani Iyer, Anjali Iyer, Chachrit Khunsriraksakul, Dajiang Liu, L Elliot Hong, Therese M Jay, Marie-Odile Krebs, Anne Hosmalin

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

A consistent postmortem finding in schizophrenia (SCZ) is reduction in dendrites' size. However, neurons with larger dendritic trees have also been encountered. In vitro experiments with neurons and neuronal-like cells coming directly from patients with SCZ showed similar results, evidencing at times more extensions and at others less arborizations. The process of extending and retracting neuronal outgrowths depends on microtubules polymerization and depolymerization. The possibility that microtubule polymerization/depolymerization is related to defects in the neuronal structure comes from several microtubular anomalies reported in SCZ such as its abnormal distribution in the cytoplasm, irregular shape of microtubules and even absence of …

The Right Time For A Synapse To Change: Windows And Mechanisms Of Multiday Training Trials, Rong-Yu Liu, Yili Zhang, Roberta Calvo, Paul Smolen, John H Byrne

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Although learning over multiple days is more effective than a single day of training, the underlying cellular mechanisms of repeated training trials remain poorly understood. With a combination of empirical and computational approaches, we determined a critical time window for a second stimulus block of a multiday training protocol to augment long-term synaptic facilitation (LTF) of the Aplysia sensorimotor synapse and long-term enhancement of neuronal excitability (LTEE), two cellular correlates of learning and memory. A second stimulus block delivered 24 h after the first block significantly enhanced LTF and LTEE, but was without effect at 18 or 32 h. This …

Rosai-Dorfman Disease In A Rare Cardiac Presentation: Left Ventricular Mass Causing Ventricular Tachycardia, Motaz Al Yafi, Swetha Pasala, Valentina Robila, Cory Trankle, Bharadhwaj Kolipakkam, Patricia Nicolato

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Rosai-Dorfman disease (RDD) is a rare, benign histiocytic disorder that most often presents with nodal involvement. Cardiac involvement is exceedingly uncommon and poses significant diagnostic and therapeutic challenges.

Case summary: A 51-year-old woman presented with shortness of breath and palpitations and was found to have monomorphic ventricular tachycardia. Imaging revealed a left ventricular mass, and biopsy confirmed RDD. The lesion was surgically excised with cryoablation and CorMatrix reinforcement. The patient recovered uneventfully and remains disease free 25 months postoperatively.

Discussion: RDD with cardiac involvement has been reported in only approximately 25 cases, with very few affecting the left ventricle. …

Cross-Sectional Associations Of Metabolically Healthy Obesity, Lifestyle Factors, And Steatotic Liver Disease In Adults From The Fels Longitudinal Study, Ariana L Garza, Audrey C Choh, John Blangero, Cici X Bauer, Stefan A Czerwinski, Miryoung Lee

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Objective: To examine the associations of metabolic health and obesity phenotypes with liver fat accumulation and hepatic steatosis in adults.

Methods: We analyzed 676 non-Hispanic white adults (18-95 years; 55.8% female) from the Fels Longitudinal Study using a cross-sectional design. Participants were classified into metabolically healthy normal weight (MHNW), metabolically healthy obesity (MHO), metabolically unhealthy normal weight (MUNW), and metabolically unhealthy obesity (MUO) phenotypes. Metabolically unhealthy status was defined as the presence of ≥1 metabolic dysfunction, consistent with prior epidemiological definitions; secondary analyses using ≥2 were also performed. Obesity was defined using DXA-derived body fat percentage. Liver fat (%) was …

Serum Metabolites Associated With Depression And Anxiety In The Hispanic Community Health Study/Study Of Latinos, Xinye Qiu, Yu Zhang, Yogesh Purushotham, Qibin Qi, Bing Yu, Jan Bressler, Krista M Perreira, Humberto Parada, Martha L Daviglus, Alejandra Cid Vega, Carmen R Isasi, Linda C Gallo, Tamar Sofer

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Omics signatures for psychiatric conditions have been under-investigated. In this study, we used data from a representative observational cohort study of Hispanic/Latino adults to identify serum metabolites associated with symptoms of depression or anxiety and to develop and assess metabolite risk scores (MRSs) of these phenotypes. We conducted a metabolome-wide association study of 768 metabolites with depression and anxiety symptoms, using two separate assay batches measured from baseline samples collected between June 2008 and July 2011 for discovery (batch 1: n = 4002 adults) and replication (batch 2: n = 2178 adults). We estimated the associations via survey-based generalized linear …

Vestibular Schwannoma Microsurgery In The Era Of Multimodal Treatment: Advances In Technique And Patient Selection, Ibrahem Albalkhi, Basel Musmar, Nimer Adeeb, Hussam Abou-Al-Shaar, Jacques J Morcos

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: The management of vestibular schwannoma (VS) has traditionally prioritized gross total resection to achieve high tumor control, often at the cost of cranial nerve injuries and quality of life impairment. However, advances in surgical approaches and intraoperative technologies, coupled with active surveillance and/or adjuvant treatment, have shifted the management paradigm towards prioritizing patient-centered outcomes, which are as critical as oncological control.

Content: The authors reviewed the technical advances driving this paradigm shift, including endoscopic assistance in the different microsurgical approaches (retrosigmoid, translabyrinthine, and middle cranial fossa approaches) of VS resection and advanced neuromonitoring (facial nerve electromyography and cochlear/auditory evoked …

Risk Of Alzheimer Dementia After High-Dose Vs Standard-Dose Influenza Vaccination, Avram Samuel Bukhbinder, Yaobin Ling, Lauren Jhin, Elizabeth He, Kristofer Harris, Mya Rodriguez, Jenna Thomas, Gabriela Cruz, Kamal Phelps, Yejin Kim, Luyao Chen, Xiaoqian Jiang, Paul E Schulz

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background and objectives: Previous studies, including large cohort analyses comparing vaccinated and unvaccinated adults, suggest that routine immunizations such as inactivated influenza vaccines (IIVs) may reduce Alzheimer dementia (AD) risk. Whether AD risk differs after high-dose IIV (H-IIV) vs standard-dose IIV (S-IIV) remains unexamined. We hypothesized that AD risk would be lower among adults ≥65 years after H-IIV compared with S-IIV.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study analyzed data spanning 2014-2019 from IQVIA PharMetrics Plus for Academics, a US health care claims database. Eligible participants were ≥65 years with ≥2 years of continuous medical and pharmaceutical coverage and no previous diagnostic …

Breathing-Controlled Electrical Stimulation (Breestim) Selectively Modulates Affective And Cognitive Components Of Pain-An Eeg Study, Ahmad Z Rao, Michael Houston, Hao Meng, Shengai Li, Yingchun Zhang, Sheng Li

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Breathing-controlled electrical stimulation (BreEStim) is an innovative neuromodulation intervention that synchronizes deep voluntary breathing with peripheral electrical stimulation. Prior studies have shown its analgesic effects in healthy adults and spinal cord injury patients with neuropathic pain. The present study used EEG to examine BreEStim's neural effects on sensory, affective, and cognitive components of pain. Fourteen healthy participants (7 M, 7 F) completed 30 min of BreEStim and conventional electrical stimulation (EStim) interventions in a randomized, crossover within-subject design. Electrical pain thresholds (EPT) and EEG were recorded pre- and post-intervention. Event-related potentials (ERPs) at pre-EPT-level stimuli before and immediately after each …

Engineering Function In Lung Biology: Integrating Imaging, Regenerative Constructs, And Functional Biodesign, Rene A Girard, Jamie Tran, Yuqing Cai, Mary C Farach-Carson, Hadi T Nia, Allison M Greaney, Laura E Niklason, Killian Hurley, Elvin Blanco, Sinem Koc-Günel, Harry Karmouty-Quintana

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The lung is a uniquely demanding target for regeneration because function depends on the coordinated integration of cellular diversity, three-dimensional architecture, cyclic mechanical forces, vascular perfusion, immune surveillance, and extracellular matrix remodeling. While single-cell and spatial profiling, lineage tracing, and iPSC-derived models have transformed our understanding of lung cell states and developmental potential, these descriptive approaches have also highlighted a central bottleneck: the field still lacks broadly adopted platforms to test whether engineered tissues and regenerative interventions restore function under physiologic load. In this review, we focus on emerging technologies that enable functional biodesign in lung biology by coupling engineered …

A Risk-Based Model For Unplanned Cesarean Delivery Following Induction Of Labor In Term Hypertensive Nulliparas., Avihu Krieger, Michal Axelrod, Baha Sibai, Shalom Mazaki-Tovi, Michal Fishel Bartal

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Purpose: To develop a practical risk-stratification framework for unplanned cesarean delivery (CD) among term nulliparous individuals with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) undergoing induction of labor (IOL).

Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study at a single tertiary care center (January 2010-March 2025) of nulliparous individuals with singleton gestations diagnosed with HDP undergoing IOL at ≥ 37 + 0 weeks. We excluded multiple gestations, major fetal anomalies, planned CD, or intrauterine fetal death. We included demographic and pregnancy characteristics available prior to induction and evaluated association with unplanned CD. Stepwise backward logistic regression was used to build a model for …

Modeling Early Human Heart Development Using An Ipsc-Based 3d Bioprinted Model Of Embryonic Heart Tube, Linqi Jin, Christian Park, Sunder Neelakantan, Shweta Karnik, Arnab Dey, Sarah Fineman, Roshni Nandwani, Carmen J Gil, Boeun Hwang, Melissa A Cadena, Vani Sridhar, Jing Wang, Yuxiao Wu, Connor J Evans, Lan Li, Sarah Rezapourdamanab, Mehdi Salar Amoli, Martin L Tomov, Ryan K Roeder, Reza Avazmohammadi, Lakshmi Prasad Dasi, Hanjoong Jo, Eric Weeks, Holly D Bauser-Heaton, Sean M Wu, Vahid Serpooshan

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Human heart development depends on tightly coordinated genetic programs and biomechanical cues, yet the underlying cell-microenvironment interactions remain poorly understood because the developing heart is difficult to study in utero and accurate experimental models are lacking. Recent advances in stem cell biology and three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting now allow the construction of human tissue analogues with defined structure and function. Here we show a perfusable 3D bioprinted model of the human embryonic heart tube composed of layered myocardium, cardiac jelly, and endocardium. Human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes and endothelial cells are cultured under controlled flow conditions, producing constructs with high …

Latent Class Patterns Of Medication Attitudes And Their Correlates Among Older Adults In The United States, Jiaming Liang, Min Ji Kwak, Mona Shirvani, Alexander Testa, Rafael Samper-Ternent, Zhigang Xie, Jack Tsai

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Development Of A Multiplex Assay For Early Detection Of Pancreatic Cancer In High-Risk Groups, Sheng Pan, Ramesh Karki, Lisa A Lai, Chad J Creighton, Teresa A Brentnall, Randall E Brand, Ru Chen

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Perceived Inadequate Neighborhood Food Shopping And Cardiovascular Disease Risk: The Multi-Ethnic Study Of Atherosclerosis, Amier Haidar, Ghadi Ghanem, Rishi Rikhi, Karol E Watson, Shreela V Sharma, Michael D Shapiro

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Individuals with access to healthy food have healthier diets, improved cardiometabolic risk profiles, and decreased cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, previous studies have focused on the neighborhood food environment as distance to and density of food retailers. Our study examines the association between an individual's perceived adequacy of neighborhood food shopping and incident CVD.

Methods: We analyzed data from 6814 participants in the MESA (Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis), a prospective cohort study of individuals aged 45 to 84 who were enrolled in the study between 2000 and 2002 and followed longitudinally. Cox proportional hazards models estimated hazard ratios (HRs) for …

Changes In Internet Search Term Popularity In Elder Mistreatment (2018-2023): Infodemiology Study Of Google Trends Data, Nicholas Sevey, Melvin Livingston, Kristin Lees-Haggerty, Olanike Ojelabi, Randi Campetti, Jason Burnett, Carolyn E Z Pickering, David Hancock, Rachit Sabharwal, Michael Brad Cannell

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Elder mistreatment (EM) is a significant public health problem that is frequently underdetected and underreported. Insufficient public recognition and engagement have been hypothesized as one contributor to this underreporting; however, few data sources exist to quantify public awareness or engagement with EM at the population level.

Objective: This study examined relative internet search interest in EM compared with other forms of abuse (child abuse and domestic violence) in the United States using Google Trends data.

Methods: We analyzed Google Trends data to compare the Relative Search Index (RSI) for the terms "elder abuse," "child abuse," and "domestic violence" in …

There Is Strength In Numbers: The Case For Another Model Of Cardiometabolic Hfpef, Sadia Ashraf, Hunter A Hidalgo, Romain Harmancey

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Diagnostic Potential For Igm Antibody Detection By The Dpp Syphilis Tnt Assay In Neonates At Risk For Congenital Syphilis, Irene A Stafford, Lierni Ugartemendia Ugalde, Laura M Goetzl, Analuisa Mosqueda, Sabrina Dacosta, Dhammika Gunasekera, Mark Rivieccio, Javan Esfandiari, Konstantin P Lyashchenko

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Neonatal IgM antibodies reflect an in utero immune response to Treponema pallidum and may offer added diagnostic value. This study evaluated the test performance of treponemal IgM levels measured by the research-use-only (RUO) Dual Path Platform (DPP) Syphilis TnT point-of-care (POC) assay for congenital syphilis (CS) risk stratification. Conducted from May 2023 to May 2025, this study tested neonatal serum samples from infants born to mothers with syphilis using the DPP Syphilis TnT RUO POC assay, which reports treponemal and nontreponemal IgM levels as relative light units (RLU). Neonates were classified as confirmed proven or highly probable CS, possible …