Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Adaptive Deep Brain Stimulation Targeting The Subthalamic Nucleus In A Patient With Parkinson's Disease: A Care Compliant Case Report, Tirath Patel, Christopher Hanani, Anaya Noor, Shamikha Cheema, Muhammad Farhan, Rohab Sohail, Abhishek Goyal, Jabez David John, Adekunle E. Omole, Richard M. Millis

School of Nursing Faculty Publications

RATIONALE: Adaptive deep brain stimulation (aDBS) represents a notable advancement in treating Parkinson's disease (PD), as it offers enhanced therapeutic outcomes and personalized management by adjusting stimulation parameters in real-time according to individual neural signals. This approach minimizes adverse effects commonly associated with standard continuous deep brain stimulation (cDBS). This case report describes the progress of a 62-year-old man with severe PD who demonstrated notable enhancement in motor symptoms and quality of life throughout a 3-month trial period using aDBS. PATIENT CONCERNS: A 62-year-old man who has been suffering from Parkinson's disease. DIAGNOSES: The patient had been diagnosed with PD …

The 10-Year Anniversary Of The Dissemination And Implementation Models In Health Interactive Webtool: History, Refinement, Use, And Guidance, Borsika A Rabin, Bryan Ford, Rachel G Tabak, Rebekah Gomes, Kera N Swanson, Sara Malone, Maggie Padek Kalman, Ross C Brownson, Russell E Glasgow

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Theories, models, and frameworks (TMFs) are essential tools in dissemination and implementation (D&I) research, yet selecting and applying the most appropriate TMF is routinely a challenge, particularly for those new to the field. To address this need, we developed the

Multivariate Protein Landscape Of Host Response In Hospitalised Patients With Suspected Infection In The Emergency Department, Pratik Sinha, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Suspected infection requiring hospitalisation has highly heterogenous presentation. Yet, variances in host response and its implications are largely unknown. In this multicentre cohort of 3802 individual patients presenting to the Emergency Department (ED) with suspected infection requiring hospitalisation, we apply uniform manifold approximation and projections and K-means clustering to 29 plasma proteins to identify biologically discrete host response clusters. In this work, we first describe two large clusters, called "Dysregulated" and "Undifferentiated", with abnormal protein concentrations and adverse outcomes in the former. Through further clustering, we identify 4 sub-clusters in the Dysregulated cluster, each with discrete biological signatures, clinical correlates, …

Exposure-Inducible Genes May Contribute To Missingness In Rnaseq-Based Gene Expression Analyses, Olga Y Gorlova, Ivan P Gorlov, R Taylor Ripley, Chao Cheng, Yafang Li, Bo Peng, Yanhong Liu, Hee-Jin Jang, Sung Wook Kang, Claire Lee, Priyanka Ranchod, Bryan M Burt, Hyun-Sung Lee, Christopher I Amos

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Missing gene expression values are a common issue in RNAseq-based analyses of gene expression. However, an analysis of genetic and environmental factors contributing to data missingness in RNAseq-based assessment of gene expression has never been conducted. In this study we tried to identify factors in RNAseq data missingness. We used RNAseq data from 66 lung adenocarcinoma tumors and corresponding adjacent normal lung tissues. We found a strong negative association between the gene expression level and missingness, supporting the idea that the borderline expression level is a key contributor to missingness. In a more detailed analysis, the relationship between gene expression …

Efficacy Of Submuscular Transposition For Revision Cubital Tunnel Release: Comparative Outcomes Analysis, Joshua Riklan, Alexzandra Mattia, Markos Mardourian, Harvey Chim

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

Purpose: To assess outcomes after revision cubital tunnel release and submuscular transposition and compare these to a cohort of patients undergoing primary release with in situ decompression. Methods: Patients who underwent revision cubital tunnel release and submuscular transposition (n = 16) were enrolled. Mean follow-up was 21.4 months (range 12.8–55.6). Patients were evaluated in person using the Michigan Hand Outcomes Questionnaire (MHQ) and Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH). Dellon stage, McGowan grade, visual analog scale for pain, and improvement of symptoms using the Messina's criteria and Modified Bishop score were assessed. Comparative analysis was performed with a …

Oncogenic Effects Of Ecm Remodeling In Obesity And Breast Cancer, Mackenzie L. Hawes, Marcus A. Moody, Caroline R. Mccauley, Abigail G. Huddleston, Maansi Solanky, Dara H. Khosravi, Ayushi R. Patel, Ronald M. Lynch, Suresh K. Alahari, Bruce A. Bunnell, Jorge A. Belgodere, Van T. Hoang, Matthew E. Burow, Elizabeth C. Martin

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

Extracellular matrix (ECM) components are key regulators in breast cancer progression, as ECM remodeling is essential for breast cancer cells to invade into surrounding tissue. This process is characterized by the alignment of fibrillar collagens, breakdown of basement membrane components, and increased interstitial collagen stiffness. In patients with obesity, pre-existing ECM changes, including excessive collagen deposition and heightened matrix stiffness, mimic alterations detected in breast cancer. Given that obesity is a predictor of poor prognosis and resistance to treatment in breast cancer, it is crucial to understand how ECM conditioned by obesity affects disease outcomes. In this review, we highlight …

Prolonging Lung Cancer Response To Egfr Inhibition By Targeting The Selective Advantage Of Resistant Cells, Lisa Brunet, David Alexandre, Jiyoung Lee, Maria Del Mar Blanquer-Rosselló, David Bracquemond, Alexis Guernet, Houssein Chhouri, Mathilde Goupil, Zoulika Kherrouche, Arnaud Arabo, Maicol Mancini, Dorthe Cartier, Shen Yao, David Godefroy, Julie Dehedin, Jian-Rong Li, Céline Duparc, Philippe Jamme, Audrey Vinchent, Caroline Bérard, David Tulasne, Sabrina Arena, Alberto Bardelli, Chao Cheng, Byoung Chul Cho, Olivier Wurtz, Cédric Coulouarn, Antonio Maraver, Stuart A Aaronson, Alexis B Cortot, Youssef Anouar, Luca Grumolato

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLCs) treated with tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) almost invariably relapse in the long term, due to the emergence of subpopulations of resistant cells. Through a DNA barcoding approach, we show that the clinically approved drug sorafenib specifically abolishes the selective advantage of EGFR-TKI-resistant cells, while preserving the response of EGFR-TKI-sensitive cells. Sorafenib is active against multiple mechanisms of resistance/tolerance to EGFR-TKIs and its effects depend on early inhibition of MAPK-interacting kinase (MKNK) activity and signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) phosphorylation, and later down-regulation of MCL1 and …

Caf-Macrophage Crosstalk Fuels Immunotherapy Resistance, Yang Liu, Linghua Wang

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Safety Of Contemporary Radiation Therapy In Patients With Cardiac Implantable Electronic Devices: Implications For Clinical Practice, Kaveh Karimzad, Shalin Shah, Stephen F Kry, Christopher Peeler, Julianne Pollard-Larkin, Amit Koduri, Martin Chacon Portillo, Siddharth Chauhan, Atia Amatullah, Chase Miller, Amanda Strang, Juhee Song, Khatera Mir Zaman Shah, Donelo Lopez, Darla Wagner, January Tsai, Shital Vachhani, Dilip Thakar, Cezar Iliescu, Jean-Bernard Durand, Anne H Dougherty, Bharat Kantharia, Anita Deswal

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Radiation therapy (RT) can cause cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) malfunction, primarily reset. Given changes in RT and CIED technologies, large observational studies examining malfunction of contemporary CIEDs during modern-day RT are needed to guide clinical practice.

Methods: Electronic medical records of all consecutive patients with CIEDs who underwent RT at a large tertiary cancer center between January 2015 and January 2022 were reviewed. All patients had CIED interrogation before and after completion of RT. Device-related data and RT-specific variables were collected. Statistical analyses were performed at the RT course level.

Results: Over a period of 7 years, 677 …

Factors Associated With Adolescents' Self-Efficacy To Meet With Their Health Care Provider Alone, Albert C Hergenroeder, Blanca Sanchez-Fournier, Cassandra Enzler, Mary Majumder, Beth H Garland, Constance M Wiemann

Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy Staff Publications

Adolescents with special health care needs (ASHCNs) must develop self-management skills to effectively transition into adult-based care. This requires having the self-efficacy to meet with their health care provider independent of caregivers. This study aims to identify the factors associated with self-efficacy in meeting with a provider alone among ASHCN preparing for this transition.Eighty-three English-speaking 18-year olds with renal, gastrointestinal, neurologic, or rheumatologic diseases, and their English- or Spanish-speaking caregivers were recruited at a large children's hospital, and completed a one-time assessment as the historical control group for a larger intervention study. The main outcome measure was self-efficacy to meet …

A Multimodal Approach To Assess A Liposomal Carrier’S Biodistribution, Stability, And Clearance, Cayla A Wood, Claire E Jones, Ananthakrishnan Soundaram Jeevarathinam, Riley Watson, Sangheon Han, Jennifer Meyer, Konstantin V Sokolov, Richard R Bouchard

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Liposomal carriers, used for site-specific drug delivery, are being investigated for diagnostic approaches by replacing the therapeutic with an imaging contrast agent, exploring potential for selective treatment planning. There remains a critical need to improve in vivo assessment of biodistribution, stability, and clearance kinetics of liposomal carriers. This pilot study presents a multimodal approach in which liposome-encapsulated J-aggregated indocyanine green (ICG) dye (Lipo-JICG) is imaged with high spatial resolution using both in vivo photoacoustic (PA) imaging, to assess the absorbance characteristics of JICG and monomeric ICG, and ex vivo cryofluorescence tomography (CFT), to measure ICG fluorescence. An in vitro assay …

A Case Of Adrenal Insufficiency Presenting With Seizures, Complicated By Developmental Cerebral Venous Anomaly And Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy: A Case Report, Katrina Villegas, Brittany Eason, Karolina Janiec, Alaa Musallam, Ahmed Hammouda, Samia Ammar Aldwaik, Radhika Tailor

Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine Departmental Research

BACKGROUND: Adrenal insufficiency is a potentially life-threatening condition that often presents with nonspecific symptoms. While fatigue, hypotension, and electrolyte disturbances are common features, seizures and stress-induced cardiomyopathy are rare initial manifestations. This case is reported for its atypical presentation and to highlight the diagnostic challenge it posed in the absence of classic biochemical findings.

CASE PRESENTATION: We report a case of a 68-year-old Hispanic woman with diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and hypopituitarism secondary to Sheehan syndrome, who presented with new-onset seizures after abruptly discontinuing chronic steroid therapy. Her symptoms included progressive weakness and behavioral changes over several weeks. Initial evaluation revealed …

Enhancing Interprofessional Competence Among Speech Pathology, Nursing, Social Work, And Psychology Students Using Simulated Case Presentations, Elizabeth Oommen, Emily Helder, Kayla Johnson, Stacia L. Hoeksema, Laura Schipper

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

Background: This study assesses the impact of an Interprofessional Education (IPE) program (which included simulated case presentations), on the perceived competence and quality of interprofessional (IP) work products of undergraduate social work, nursing, psychology students, and graduate students in speech-language pathology.

Methods: Participants included 123 students who participated in IP colloquiums through reviewing clinical cases, developing IP assessment and treatment goals, and presenting these to fellow students and faculty. Pre- and post-testing using IPEC Competency Self-Assessment Tool was used for assessment. For each colloquium, the students from all disciplines also submitted a single worksheet for their assigned case, …

Nevada Medical Residencies, 2025, Olivia K. Cheche, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Health

This fact sheet highlights medical residency data for the 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025 graduating classes of the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) School of Medicine. This fact sheet presents data on residency program matches at the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV and the UNR School of Medicine, shows where Nevada medical school graduates pursue their residencies, and updates findings from a 2024 fact sheet exploring 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 graduating class data.

Quantifying "Medical Renal Disease": A Pediatric Pilot Study Using Ultrasound Radiomics For Differentiating Acute Kidney Injury And Chronic Kidney Disease, Laura De Leon-Benedetti, Laith Sultan, Hansel Otero, Tatiana Morales-Tisnés, Joya Sims, Kate Fitzpatrick, Julie Fitzgerald, Susan Furth, Benjamin Laskin, Bernarda Viteri

SKMC Student Presentations and Publications

Background: Differentiating acute kidney injury (AKI) from chronic kidney disease (CKD) in children remains a critical unmet need due to the limitations of current clinical and biochemical markers. Conventional ultrasound lacks the sensitivity to discern subtle parenchymal alterations. This study explores the application of ultrasound radiomics—a novel, non-invasive, and quantitative image analysis method—for distinguishing AKI from CKD in pediatric patients. Methods: In this retrospective cross-sectional pilot study, kidney ultrasound images were obtained from 31 pediatric subjects: 8 with oliguric AKI, 14 with CKD, and 9 healthy controls. Renal parenchyma was manually segmented, and 124 advanced texture features were extracted using …

Does Patient Age Influence Procedural Management Of Kidney Trauma?, Nizar Hakam, Behzad Abbasi, Umar Ghaffar, Kevin D Li, Hiren Patel, Charles P Jones, Joseph Cuschieri, Benjamin N Breyer

2020-Current year OA Pubs

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to examine the association between patient age and procedural intervention, especially nephrectomy, in patients with renal trauma in the National Trauma Data Bank (NTDB).

MATERIALS AND METHODS: We queried the 2013-2020 NTDB for adult renal trauma patients with an American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST) grade. Patients without AAST grade or with no sign of life were excluded. We constructed a multinomial logistic regression model to demonstrate the association between age and procedural interventions (renal angioembolization, renorrhaphy and nephrectomy). Models were adjusted for patient, hospital, and clinical factors.

RESULTS: Our cohort was comprised of 49,884 …

Leveraging Sequences Missing From The Human Genome To Diagnose Cancer, Ilias Georgakopoulos-Soares, Christopher A Maher, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Cancer diagnosis using cell-free DNA (cfDNA) has the potential to improve treatment and survival but has several technical limitations.

METHODS: In this study, we developed a prediction model based on neomers, DNA sequences 13-17 nucleotides in length that are predominantly absent from the genomes of healthy individuals and are created by tumor-associated mutations.

RESULTS: We show that neomer-based classifiers can accurately detect cancer, including early stages, and distinguish subtypes and features. Analysis of 2577 cancer genomes from 21 cancer types shows that neomers can distinguish tumor types with higher accuracy than state-of-the-art methods. Generation and analysis of 465 cfDNA …

Evaluating Snapshotnir For Tissue Oxygenation Measurement Across Skin Types After Mastectomy, Saif Badran, Sara Saffari, William R Moritz, Gary B Skolnick, Amanda M Westman, Mitchell A Pet, Justin M Sacks

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Accurate monitoring of mastectomy skin flap (MSF) perfusion is critical, especially in patients with darker skin pigmentation at higher risk of misdiagnosed tissue ischemia. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) devices, such as SnapshotNIR, offer real-time tissue oxygen saturation measurements (StO

Understanding And Predicting Flossing Behavior In A Rural Appalachian Community Using The Multi-Theory Model, Rahib K. Islam, Manoj Sharma, Amanda H. Wilkerson, Bradford Layman, Clyde Dunn, Shamima A. Somi, Ratnesh Sharma, Karen Gruszynski, Syed S. Quadri, Vinayak K. Nahar, Robert E. Davis

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

Effective flossing is essential for preventing periodontal disease. However, in a rural Appalachian community, adherence to flossing routines remains low, contributing to significant oral health disparities. The purpose of this study was to conceptualize intention of initiation and sustenance of flossing behaviors using the multi-theory model (MTM) of health behavior change. A cross-sectional survey was administered to individuals recruited from a shopping mall in rural Appalachia. The MTM constructs were measured and data were analyzed using multiple linear regression models. Of the 228 participants, 55% did not floss daily. Behavioral confidence (β = 0.571, p < 0.001) was a significant predictor for the intention of initiation of flossing among non-daily flossers, while emotional transformation (β = 0.377, p = 0.836) significantly explained sustenance among non-daily flossers. For daily flossers, changes in the physical environment (β = 0.432, p = 0.003) significantly predicted the intention of initiation of flossing, whereas emotional transformation (β = 0.344, p = 0.008) and practice for change (β = 0.594, p < 0.001) significantly predicted sustenance of flossing behavior. The MTM appears to be a robust framework for understanding and predicting flossing behaviors in rural Appalachian populations. Interventions designed to enhance behavioral confidence, physical environment changes, emotional transformation, and practice for change could improve flossing adherence. Further research should explore these constructs to develop targeted public health strategies.

Racial And Socioeconomic Disparities In Long Term Survival After Surgery And Radiation For Spinal Cord Hemangioblastoma, Abdul Karim Ghaith, Xinlan Yang, Joshua Weinberg, Shaan Bhandarkar, Taha Khalilullah, Abdel-Hameed Al-Mistarehi, Khaled Zaitoun, Meghana Bhimreddy, Arjun K. Menta, Antony A. Fuleihan, Kamel Chebaro, Jawad Khalifeh, Andrew Grossbach, Nicholas Theodore, Daniel Lubelski

Department of Medicine Faculty Papers

Spinal cord hemangioblastomas are rare, benign, intradural tumors that, despite their nonmalignant histopathology, can lead to substantial neurological morbidity. While disparities in outcomes based on race and socioeconomic status have been well-documented in other spinal tumor populations, their role in spinal cord hemangioblastoma remains poorly understood. In this study, we utilize the National Cancer Database (NCDB) to evaluate the influence of race, socioeconomic factors, and healthcare access on survival outcomes in patients with spinal cord hemangioblastoma. Additionally, we explore the utility of machine learning-based survival models to improve individualized risk prediction and to identify key clinical and sociodemographic determinants of …

Covid-19-Associated Mucormycosis Mimicking Odontogenic Pain: A Report Of Three Cases, Pegah Sarraf, Mahboube Hasheminasab, Mehrfam Khoshkhounejad, Seyed A. Abaee, Pardis Akbari, Mohammad H. Nekoofar, Paul M.H. Dummer

Pacific Faculty Work

Aim: The aim of this study was to present three cases of COVID-19-related mucormycosis mimicking endodontic pain and to discuss the relevant dental and medical literature for this potential life-threatening disease. Summary: Mucormycosis (previously called zygomycosis) is a rare but serious infection caused by a group of fungi called mucormycetes. Mucormycosis mainly affects people who are medically compromised and have systemic health conditions or take drugs that lower their immune response. There has been an increase in case reports/series of mucormycosis in individuals diagnosed with COVID-19. This is likely attributable to the high doses and prolonged use of corticosteroids in …

Objective Performance Status: Enhancing Cancer Patient Fitness Assessment With Wearable Technology., Joseph Mccollom Do, Mazie Tsang

PCI Publications and Projects

Research output: Contribution to journal › Editorial › peer-review

Organizational Climate And Decision Aid Sustainability In Lupus Care: Mixed Methods Study, Aizhan Karabukayeva, Larry R Hearld, Nathan W Carroll, Reena Kelly, Jasvinder A Singh

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Digital decision aids (DAs) are increasingly used in health care to support shared decision-making and promote patient engagement. In the context of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a complex autoimmune disease characterized by diverse symptoms and uncertain prognoses, DAs offer guidance to patients in navigating treatment risks and benefits. Although numerous studies have examined the initial implementation of evidence-based tools, there is limited evidence on the organizational factors that influence their long-term sustainability in clinical practice. This gap is particularly salient for digital interventions, where integration into routine workflows and ongoing use require alignment with clinic readiness and culture. This …

Human Interpretable Grammar Encodes Multicellular Systems Biology Models To Democratize Virtual Cell Laboratories, Jeanette A I Johnson, Daniel R Bergman, Heber L Rocha, David L Zhou, Eric Cramer, Ian C Mclean, Yoseph W Dance, Max Booth, Zachary Nicholas, Tamara Lopez-Vidal, Atul Deshpande, Randy Heiland, Elmar Bucher, Fatemeh Shojaeian, Matthew Dunworth, André Forjaz, Michael Getz, Inês Godet, Furkan Kurtoglu, Melissa Lyman, John Metzcar, Jacob T Mitchell, Andrew Raddatz, Jacobo Solorzano, Aneequa Sundus, Yafei Wang, David G Denardo, Andrew J Ewald, Daniele M Gilkes, Luciane T Kagohara, Ashley L Kiemen, Elizabeth D Thompson, Denis Wirtz, Laura D Wood, Pei-Hsun Wu, Neeha Zaidi, Lei Zheng, Jacquelyn W Zimmerman, Jude M Phillip, Elizabeth M Jaffee, Joe W Gray, Lisa M Coussens, Young Hwan Chang, Laura M Heiser, Genevieve L Stein-O'Brien, Elana J Fertig, Paul Macklin

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Cells interact as dynamically evolving ecosystems. While recent single-cell and spatial multi-omics technologies quantify individual cell characteristics, predicting their evolution requires mathematical modeling. We propose a conceptual framework-a cell behavior hypothesis grammar-that uses natural language statements (cell rules) to create mathematical models. This enables systematic integration of biological knowledge and multi-omics data to generate in silico models, enabling virtual "thought experiments" that test and expand our understanding of multicellular systems and generate new testable hypotheses. This paper motivates and describes the grammar, offers a reference implementation, and demonstrates its use in developing both de novo mechanistic models and those informed …

Β-Catenin Functions As A Molecular Adapter For Disordered Cbaf Interactions, Yuen San Chan, Qinyu Gao, Sarah A Robinson, Wenzhi Wang, Ruzena Filandrova, Lisa-Maria Weinhold, Mario Loeza Cabrera, Miao Zhang, Chandra Shekar R Ambati, Antonio M Lerario, Nagireddy Putluri, Katja Kiseljak-Vassiliades, Margaret E Wierman, Mouhammed Amir Habra, Gary D Hammer, Vaclav Veverka, Katerina Cermakova, H Courtney Hodges

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BAF (SWI/SNF) chromatin remodelers engage binding partners to generate site-specific DNA accessibility. However, the basis for interaction between BAF and divergent binding partners has remained unclear. Here, we tested the hypothesis that scaffold proteins augment BAF's binding repertoire by examining β-catenin (CTNNB1) and steroidogenic factor 1 (SF-1, NR5A1), a transcription factor central to steroid production in human cells. BAF inhibition rapidly opposed SF-1/β-catenin enhancer occupancy, impairing SF-1 target activation and SF-1/β-catenin autoregulation. These effects arise due to β-catenin's role as a molecular adapter between SF-1 and an intrinsically disordered region (IDR) of the canonical BAF (cBAF) subunit ARID1A. In contrast …

Phytochemical Analysis And Appraisal Of Antiproliferative Activity Of Magnolia Alejandrae, José E. Caballero-Chávez, Alma D. Paz-Gonzalez, Diana V. Navarrete-Carriola, Fabian E. Olazarán, María Miriam Estevez-Carmona, Benjamin Nogueda-Torres, Fernando Emiliano Jiménez-Mondragón, Melany X. Márquez-Aguilar, Carmen Michelle Pineda-Alcala, Debasish Bandyopadhyay

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences Faculty Publications

Background: Magnolia alejandrae is a tree endemic to Tamaulipas, Mexico, distributed in the forests of the Sierra Madre Oriental. Objective: Our objective was to analyze the secondary metabolite profile of different parts of M. alejandrae and evaluate their antiproliferative activity in vitro. Methods: Different extracts of leaf, bark, and fruit were obtained using conventional and unconventional extraction methods with solvents of different polarity. The extracts were analyzed by Ultra-Performance Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectra (UPLC-MS), and their antiproliferative activity against cancer cell lines was determined. Results: The primary yields of the extracts obtained from M. alejandrae ranged from 8.32% to 36.19%. Three …

Association Of Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonists With Cancer Risk In Older Adults With Type 2 Diabetes, Ying Lu, Hao Dai, Huilin Tang, William T Donahoo, Thomas J George, Ramon C Sun, Sizun Jiang, Aik Choon Tan, Yi Guo, Jonathan D Licht, John M Allen, Kelvin P Lee, Jingchuan Guo, Jiang Bian

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Objective: The real-world evidence on the association between glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) and cancer risk remains limited and mixed.

Methods: In 2013-2020 national Medicare claims data, we included cancer-naïve patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). We identified those who initiated GLP-1 RA, sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitor (SGLT2i), or dipeptidyl peptidase 4 inhibitor (DPP4i) and conducted 1:1 propensity score matching for confounding adjustment. Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HR) of nine obesity-associated cancers (thyroid, pancreatic, bladder, colorectal, lung, kidney, breast, endometrial, and prostate cancer).

Results: In the matched GLP-1RA versus SGLT2i cohort (n = 21,362 …

Circzfr/Ythdf3 Axis Drives Lymph Node Metastasis In Cervical Cancer Via Fasn Translation, Mingyi Zhou, Yan Gao, Yong Zhang, Lian He, Bo Gao, Yue Zhang, Francois X Claret, George A Calin, Danbo Wang

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Lymph node metastasis is a key driver of poor outcomes in cervical cancer. However, the molecular mechanisms of circular RNAs (circRNAs) driving cervical cancer lymph node metastasis remain unclear.

Methods: We identified circZFR, fatty acid synthase (FASN) and YTH N6-methyladenosine RNA binding protein F3 (YTHDF3) protein expression in the cervical cancer patients with long and short disease-free survival (DFS). Functional experiments were performed to investigate the function of circZFR, FASN and YTHDF3 on cell migration and invasion. MeRIP-qPCR, RNA pulldown, RNA Immunoprecipitation (RIP), and Co-Immunoprecipitation (Co-IP) assays were executed to investigate the mechanism of circZFR regulating FASN protein expression. …

Phase 1/2 Trial Of Encorafenib, Cetuximab, And Nivolumab In Microsatellite Stable Brafv600e Metastatic Colorectal Cancer, Van K Morris, Christine M Parseghian, Vahid Bahrambeigi, Nourhan Abdelfattah, Lianchun Xiao, Anjali Agrawal, Kangyu Lin, Kanwal P S Raghav, Robert A Wolff, Arvind Dasari, Ryan W Huey, Bryan K Kee, Michael J Overman, Jason A Willis, Phat H Le, Michelle Escano, Yunyu C Baig, Kelsey Pan, David Menter, Alda L Tam, Wai C Foo, Li Shen, Hey Min Lee, Thomas D Gallup, Cori Margain, Dave Gallup, Kimal I Rajapakshe, Paola A Guerrero, Jing Wang, Ryan B Corcoran, Anirban Maitra, Kyuson Yun, Scott Kopetz

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The BRAF inhibitor encorafenib and anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) antibody cetuximab modestly improve survival for patients with microsatellite stable (MSS) BRAFV600E metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC), characterized by higher immune activation than MSS BRAFwild-type colorectal cancer (CRC). In this phase 1/2 study (NCT04017650) of 26 participants with MSS BRAFV600E mCRC who received encorafenib, cetuximab, and anti-PD-1 antibody nivolumab, we report an overall response rate of 50% (95% confidence interval [CI] 29–71) and median progression-free survival of 7.4 months (95% CI, 5.6–9.6). Transcriptomic profiling of pretreatment biopsies and extracellular vesicle RNA (evRNA) isolated from plasma show …

Prefrontal Cortex Astrocytes Modulate Distinct Neuronal Populations To Control Anxiety-Like Behavior, Eunyoung Kim, Hairuo Du, Yanqi Tan, Brandon L Brown, Yaowen Chang, Blanca Díaz-Castro, Jonathan V Sweedler, Xinzhu Yu

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Accumulating evidence has supported diverse regulatory functions of astrocytes in different neural circuits as well as various aspects of complex behaviors. However, little is known about how astrocytes regulate different neuronal subpopulations that are linked to specific behavioral aspects within a single brain region. Here, we show that astrocytes in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) encode anxiogenic environmental cues in freely behaving mice. Silencing mPFC astrocyte Ca