Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Diagnostic Imaging And Hematological And Cytological Analyses Play A Vital Role In Clinical Investigation And Selection Of Therapeutic Approaches In A Polo Pony With Septic Olecranon Bursitis, Rungrueang Yodsheewan, Ravisara Limsripan, Metha Chanda

The Thai Journal of Veterinary Medicine

A 19-year-old gelding polo pony was presented with a prominent protuberance at the tip of the right elbow and five days later, developed a marked swelling on the entire right foreleg with a high fever. Ultrasonography, performed on the caudal elbow region, demonstrated heterogeneous echogenic materials encapsulated in the fibrous capsule. The initial hematological analysis revealed anemia and a normal white blood count (WBC). Hyperbilirubinemia was detected biochemically. Pale yellow/turbid fluid was aspirated from the protuberance area, which showed septic exudate characteristics and contained Streptococcus spp. The pony was diagnosed with septic olecranon bursitis associated with streptococcal infection. The fluid-filled …

Mycotic Pyogranulomatous Enteritis In A German Shepherd: Imaging Diagnosis And Treatment, Phasamon Saisawart, Somchin Sutthigran, Apichart Srifawattana, Onjira Mitroupathum, Tanhatai Krajarngjang, Anudep Rungsipipat, Nan Choisunirachon

The Thai Journal of Veterinary Medicine

A five-year old, intact male, German Shepherd dog was presented to the hospital due to a history of depression, anorexia, vomiting and diarrhea. Physical examination revealed moderate emaciation and showed mild abdominal pain when Palpation. Abdominal radiographs and ultrasounds showed the distension of the small bowel loop due to partial obstruction of the colon by mural concentric thickening. Computed tomography (CT) scan showed an homogeneous, soft tissue mass with asymmetric thickening of the cecum traversing the colonic wall. Pre-operative blood profiles indicated normocytic normochromic mild anemia, hypoalbuminemia and mild hyperglobulinemia. Intestinal resection and anastomosis at the distal ileum to the …

Association Of Alcohol Use And Physical Activity With Body Mass Index In Mexican-Origin Adults, Natalia I Heredia, Qiong Dong, Shine Chang, Lorna H Mcneill

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Studies across racial/ethnic groups indicate that physical activity (PA) and alcohol consumption are positively associated, and that alcohol consumption is negatively associated with body mass index (BMI), but this relationship is less often evaluated in Hispanics. The purpose of this study was to assess the relationships between alcohol consumption, PA, and BMI in Hispanic adults.

METHODS: In this secondary data analysis of a Mexican-American cohort, we collected self-reported PA, alcohol consumption, and demographics, and measured height and weight. Linear regression assessed the association between PA and alcohol consumption with BMI, controlling for covariates. Total sample for analyses was n …

External Validation Of A Model Determining Risk Of Neoplastic Progression Of Barrett’S Esophagus In A Cohort Of Us Veterans, Theresa H Nguyen, Aaron P Thrift, Gyanprakash A Ketwaroo, Xianglin L Du, Luis Leon Novelo, Rollin George, Daniel G Rosen, Hashem B El-Serag

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) in those with Barrett's esophagus (BE) is 11-fold greater than the general population. It remains unclear which BE patients are at highest risk of progression to EAC. We aimed to validate a predictive model risk-stratifying BE patients.

METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study at the Houston Veteran Affairs Medical Center of consecutive patients with a new diagnosis of BE from November 1990 to January 2019. Study follow-up was through February 2020. Patients were excluded if they had no follow-up EGD with esophageal biopsy sampling after the initial BE-diagnosing EGD or evidence …

Assessing The Established Competency Categories Of The Biosafety, Infection Prevention, And Public Health Professions: A Guide For Addressing Needed Professional Development Training For The Current And Next Pandemic, Robert J Emery, Scott J Patlovich, Kristin G King, John M Lowe, Janelle Rios

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

A recent series of widespread infectious disease outbreaks has highlighted commonalities and differences between three key professions that operate on the front lines of response in support of research and/or direct healthcare providers: biosafety, infection prevention, and public health. This assessment, which builds upon previous study by the authors, examines the stated professional competency categories for these three areas, highlighting similarities and differences. This assessment is important as these professions are being drawn together in an operational environment driven by the current pandemic and inevitably future disease outbreaks. Cross-training opportunities for the various professions are proposed.

Leveraging Single Cell Technologies For The Characterization And Treatment Of Refractory Pancreatic Cancer, Maria Monberg

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Heterogeneity is a hallmark of cancer, and the advent of multimodal single-cell technologies has helped uncover heterogeneity in a high-throughput manner in different cancers across varied contexts at an unprecedented resolution. In an effort to improve precision medicine approaches in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), a highly lethal malignancy with a mere 11% 5-year survival rate, this dissertation focuses on first questioning the assumptions of the most basic models used to study PDAC via multimodal single-cell characterization methods at multiple levels of biological organization (scCNVseq and snATACseq for DNA assays, scRNAseq for transcriptomics, and paired protein assays such as multiplexed immunofluorescence …

Responding To Natural And Industrial Disasters: Partnerships And Lessons Learned, Elaine Symanski, Heyreoun An Han, Inkyu Han, Michelle Mcdaniel, Kristina W Whitworth, Sheryl Mccurdy, William Brett Perkison, Amal Rammah, P Grace Tee Lewis, George L Delclos, Elena Craft, Melissa Bondy, Cheryl Lyn Walker, Loren Hopkins, José Guillermo Cedeño Laurent, Daisy James

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to provide insights learned from disaster research response (DR2) efforts following Hurricane Harvey in 2017 to launch DR2 activities following the Intercontinental Terminals Company (ITC) fire in Deer Park, Texas, in 2019.

METHODS: A multidisciplinary group of academic, community, and government partners launched a myriad of DR2 activities.

RESULTS: The DR2 response to Hurricane Harvey focused on enhancing environmental health literacy around clean-up efforts, measuring environmental contaminants in soil and water in impacted neighborhoods, and launching studies to evaluate the health impact of the disaster. The lessons learned after Harvey enabled rapid DR2 …

External Validation Of A Model Determining Risk Of Neoplastic Progression Of Barrett's Esophagus In A Cohort Of Us Veterans, Theresa H Nguyen, Aaron P Thrift, Gyanprakash A Ketwaroo, Xianglin L Du, Luis Leon Novelo, Rollin George, Daniel G Rosen, Hashem B El-Serag

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) in those with Barrett's esophagus (BE) is 11-fold greater than the general population. It remains unclear which BE patients are at highest risk of progression to EAC. We aimed to validate a predictive model risk-stratifying BE patients.

METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study at the Houston Veteran Affairs Medical Center of consecutive patients with a new diagnosis of BE from November 1990 to January 2019. Study follow-up was through February 2020. Patients were excluded if they had no follow-up EGD with esophageal biopsy sampling after the initial BE-diagnosing EGD or evidence …

Integrative Analysis Of Clinical And Epigenetic Biomarkers Of Mortality, Tianxiao Huan, Steve Nguyen, Elena Colicino, Carolina Ochoa-Rosales, W David Hill, Jennifer A Brody, Mette Soerensen, Yan Zhang, Antoine Baldassari, Mohamed Ahmed Elhadad, Tanaka Toshiko, Yinan Zheng, Arce Domingo-Relloso, Dong Heon Lee, Jiantao Ma, Chen Yao, Chunyu Liu, Shih-Jen Hwang, Roby Joehanes, Myriam Fornage, Jan Bressler, Joyce B J Van Meurs, Birgit Debrabant, Jonas Mengel-From, Jacob Hjelmborg, Kaare Christensen, Pantel Vokonas, Joel Schwartz, Sina A Gahrib, Nona Sotoodehnia, Colleen M Sitlani, Sonja Kunze, Christian Gieger, Annette Peters, Melanie Waldenberger, Ian J Deary, Luigi Ferrucci, Yishu Qu, Philip Greenland, Donald M Lloyd-Jones, Lifang Hou, Stefania Bandinelli, Trudy Voortman, Brenner Hermann, Andrea Baccarelli, Eric Whitsel, James S Pankow, Daniel Levy

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

DNA methylation (DNAm) has been reported to be associated with many diseases and with mortality. We hypothesized that the integration of DNAm with clinical risk factors would improve mortality prediction. We performed an epigenome-wide association study of whole blood DNAm in relation to mortality in 15 cohorts (n = 15,013). During a mean follow-up of 10 years, there were 4314 deaths from all causes including 1235 cardiovascular disease (CVD) deaths and 868 cancer deaths. Ancestry-stratified meta-analysis of all-cause mortality identified 163 CpGs in European ancestry (EA) and 17 in African ancestry (AA) participants at p < 1 × 10

Regularized Regression On Compositional Trees With Application To Mri Analysis, Bingkai Wang, Brian S Caffo, Xi Luo, Chin-Fu Liu, Andreia V Faria, Michael I Miller, Yi Zhao

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

A compositional tree refers to a tree structure on a set of random variables where each random variable is a node and composition occurs at each non-leaf node of the tree. As a generalization of compositional data, compositional trees handle more complex relationships among random variables and appear in many disciplines, such as brain imaging, genomics and finance. We consider the problem of sparse regression on data that are associated with a compositional tree and propose a transformation-free tree-based regularized regression method for component selection. The regularization penalty is designed based on the tree structure and encourages a sparse tree …

Gene-Lifestyle Interactions In The Genomics Of Human Complex Traits, Vincent Laville, Timothy Majarian, Yun J Sung, Karen Schwander, Mary F Feitosa, Daniel I Chasman, Amy R Bentley, Charles N Rotimi, L Adrienne Cupples, Paul S De Vries, Michael R Brown, Alanna C Morrison, Aldi T Kraja, Mike Province, C Charles Gu, W James Gauderman, Charge Gene-Lifestyle Interactions Working Group, D C Rao, Alisa K Manning, Hugues Aschard

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The role and biological significance of gene-environment interactions in human traits and diseases remain poorly understood. To address these questions, the CHARGE Gene-Lifestyle Interactions Working Group conducted series of genome-wide interaction studies (GWIS) involving up to 610,475 individuals across four ancestries for three lipids and four blood pressure traits, while accounting for interaction effects with drinking and smoking exposures. Here we used GWIS summary statistics from these studies to decipher potential differences in genetic associations and G×E interactions across phenotype-exposure-ancestry combinations, and to derive insights on the potential mechanistic underlying G×E through in-silico functional analyses. Our analyses show first that …

Multi-Phenotype Analyses Of Hemostatic Traits With Cardiovascular Events Reveal Novel Genetic Associations, Gerard Temprano-Sagrera, Colleen M Sitlani, William P Bone, Miguel Martin-Bornez, Benjamin F Voight, Alanna C Morrison, Scott M Damrauer, Paul S De Vries, Nicholas L Smith, Maria Sabater-Lleal

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Multi-phenotype analysis of genetically correlated phenotypes can increase the statistical power to detect loci associated with multiple traits, leading to the discovery of novel loci. This is the first study to date to comprehensively analyze the shared genetic effects within different hemostatic traits, and between these and their associated disease outcomes.

OBJECTIVES: To discover novel genetic associations by combining summary data of correlated hemostatic traits and disease events.

METHODS: Summary statistics from genome wide-association studies (GWAS) from seven hemostatic traits (factor VII [FVII], factor VIII [FVIII], von Willebrand factor [VWF] factor XI [FXI], fibrinogen, tissue plasminogen activator [tPA], plasminogen …

Hiv Response Interventions That Integrate Hiv Molecular Cluster And Social Network Analysis: A Systematic Review, Daniel J Gore, Kellie Schueler, Santhoshini Ramani, Arno Uvin, Gregory Phillips, Moira Mcnulty, Kayo Fujimoto, John Schneider

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Due to improved efficiency and reduced cost of viral sequencing, molecular cluster analysis can be feasibly utilized alongside existing human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevention strategies. The goal of this paper is to elucidate how HIV molecular cluster and social network analyses are being integrated to implement HIV response interventions. We searched PubMed, Scopus, PsycINFO, and Cochrane Library databases for studies incorporating both HIV molecular cluster and social network data. We identified 32 articles that combined analyses of HIV molecular sequences and social or sexual networks. All studies were descriptive. Six studies described network interventions informed by molecular and social data …

Understanding Implementation Strategies To Support Classroom-Based Physical Activity Approaches In Elementary Schools: A Qualitative Study, Timothy J Walker, Jacob Szeszulski, Michael C Robertson, Paula M Cuccaro, Maria E Fernandez

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Classroom-based physical activity approaches can improve children's physical activity levels during school. However, the implementation of these approaches remains a challenge. The purpose of this study was to examine implementation strategies to support the delivery of classroom-based physical activity approaches from the perspectives of elementary school staff.

METHODS: We conducted individual interviews with elementary school staff from a mid-sized school district in Texas. Interviews lasted approximately 60 min and were audio recorded and transcribed for analyses. We used directed content analysis and an iterative categorization approach to identify emerging themes related to implementation strategies.

RESULTS: We interviewed 15 participants …

Discovering Novel Polyextremotolerant Fungi And Determining Their Ecological Role Within The Biological Soil Crust Consortium, Erin C. Carr

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The ecological niche of polyextremotolerant fungi within oligotrophic ecosystems such as biological soil crusts has not yet been determined. These fungi persist in locations where nutrients are depleted while simultaneously surrounded by autotrophic microbes such as algae and cyanobacteria. Yet it has not been shown that they are engaging in any exchange of nutrients the way lichens do. However, there is seemingly no other way for these fungi to obtain vital nutrients, such as carbon or nitrogen, other than from these microbes. Here we have isolated polyextremotolerant fungi from cold desert biological soil crusts which are a microbial biofilm that …

Cardiovascular Risk Factors And Markers Of Myocardial Injury And Inflammation In People Living With Hiv In Nairobi, Kenya: A Pilot Cross-Sectional Study, Hassan Adan Ahmed, Jeilan Mohamed, Isaiah G. Akuku, Kuan Ken Lee, Shirjel R. Alam, Pablo Perel, Jasmit Shah, Mohammed K. Ali, Sherry Eskander, Michael H. Chung

Internal Medicine, East Africa

Objectives: To determine the prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors and explore associations with high-sensitivity cardiac troponin I (hscTnI) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) in people living with HIV (PLHIV) in Kenya.

Design: Pilot cross-sectional study.

Setting: Data were collected from community HIV clinics across two sites in Nairobi, Kenya, from July 2019 to May 2020.

Participants: Convenience sample of 200 PLHIV (≥30 years with no prior history of CVD).

Outcome measures: Prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors and its association with hsTnI and hsCRP levels.

Results: Across 200 PLHIV (median age 46 years, IQR 38–53; 61% women), the …

Protocol For A Sequential, Prospective Meta-Analysis To Describe Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid-19) In The Pregnancy And Postpartum Periods, Emily R. Smith, Erin Oakley, Siran He, Rebecca Zavala, Kacey Ferguson, Gargi Wable Grandner, Ibukun-Oluwa Omolade Abejirinde, Yalda Afshar, Homa Ahmadzia, Marleen Temmerman

Obstetrics and Gynaecology, East Africa

We urgently need answers to basic epidemiological questions regarding SARS-CoV-2 infection in pregnant and postpartum women and its effect on their newborns. While many national registries, health facilities, and research groups are collecting relevant data, we need a collaborative and methodologically rigorous approach to better combine these data and address knowledge gaps, especially those related to rare outcomes. We propose that using a sequential, prospective meta-analysis (PMA) is the best approach to generate data for policy- and practice-oriented guidelines. As the pandemic evolves, additional studies identified retrospectively by the steering committee or through living systematic reviews will be invited to …

Integrated Multilayer Omics Reveals The Genomic, Proteomic, And Metabolic Influences Of Histidyl Dipeptides On The Heart, Keqiang Yan, Zhanlong Mei, Jingjing Zhao, Md Aminul Islam Prodhan, Detlef Obal, Kartik Katragadda, Benjamin Doelling, David Hoetker, Dheeraj Kumar Posa

Internal Medicine, East Africa

Background: Histidyl dipeptides such as carnosine are present in a micromolar to millimolar range in mammalian hearts. These dipeptides facilitate glycolysis by proton buffering. They form conjugates with reactive aldehydes, such as acrolein, and attenuate myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury. Although these dipeptides exhibit multifunctional properties, a composite understanding of their role in the myocardium is lacking.

Methods and Results: To identify histidyl dipeptide-mediated responses in the heart, we used an integrated triomics approach, which involved genome-wide RNA sequencing, global proteomics, and unbiased metabolomics to identify the effects of cardiospecific transgenic overexpression of the carnosine synthesizing enzyme, carnosine synthase (Carns), in …

Midlife Determinants Of Healthy Cardiovascular Aging: The Atherosclerosis Risk In Communities (Aric) Study, Xiaoming Jia, Caroline Sun, Vijay Nambi, Salim S Virani, George Taffet, Eric Boerwinkle, Jan Bressler, Chiadi Ndumele, B Gwen Windham, James A De Lemos, Kunihiro Matsushita, John William Mcevoy, Ron C Hoogeveen, Elizabeth Selvin, Christie M Ballantyne

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Risk factor cutoffs are derived from associations with clinical cardiovascular disease (CVD), but how these risk factors associate with preserved cardiovascular health into old age is not well studied. We investigated midlife determinants of healthy versus nonhealthy cardiovascular aging in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study.

METHODS: ARIC participants were categorized by cardiovascular status in older age (mean age 75.8 ± 5.3 years, range 66-90): healthy, subclinical disease (assessed by biomarkers and left ventricular function), clinical CVD (coronary heart disease, stroke, or heart failure), or prior death. We examined associations of midlife (mean age 52.1 ± …

Real-Time Feedback Of Air Quality In Children’S Bedrooms Reduces Exposure To Secondhand Smoke, Vincent Berardi, Bradley N. Collins, Laura M. Glynn, Stephen J. Lepore, E. Melinda Mahabee-Gittens, Karen M. Wilson, Melbourne F. Hovell

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Introduction:
Secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure creates health risks for nonsmokers and is especially detrimental to children. This study evaluated whether immediate feedback in response to poor indoor air quality in children’s bedrooms can reduce the potential for SHS exposure, as measured by adherence to a World Health Organization (WHO) indoor air standard.

Methods:
Homes that contained children and an adult who regularly smoked inside (n=298) had an air particle monitor installed in the child’s bedroom. These devices measured the concentration of particulate matter (PM2.5) for approximately three months and, for half of the participants, immediately provided aversive feedback …

Better Care For Older Hispanics: Identifying Priorities And Harmonizing Care, Rafael Samper-Ternent, Mary Tinetti, Lee A Jennings, Rebeca Wong, Jennifer Arney, Aanand D Naik

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Assessment Of Oral And Overall Health Parameters Using The Sillha Oral Wellness System, Shawn S Adibi, Ryan Hanson, David F Fray, Tania Abedi, Brianna Neil, Danielle Maher, Gena Tribble, Ben F Warner, Mary C Farach-Carson

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

OBJECTIVE: The study evaluated use of a multipoint saliva analyzer to assess patient wellness in a contemporary dental practice setting.

STUDY DESIGN: Unstimulated saliva from a diverse 104 patient cohort was analyzed using the SillHa Oral Wellness System. The device measures the following 7 analytes present in the patient's oral rinse: cariogenic bacteria, acidity, buffer capacity, blood, leukocytes, protein, and ammonia. Data obtained were compared with validated clinical assessment data independently provided by credentialed dental professionals.

RESULTS: Measured leukocyte and protein levels were higher in patients with periodontal disease and/or deep gingival pockets. Patients with a history of cancer and/or …

Host And Gut Microbial Tryptophan Metabolism And Type 2 Diabetes: An Integrative Analysis Of Host Genetics, Diet, Gut Microbiome And Circulating Metabolites In Cohort Studies, Qibin Qi, Jun Li, Bing Yu, Jee-Young Moon, Jin C Chai, Jordi Merino, Jie Hu, Miguel Ruiz-Canela, Casey Rebholz, Zheng Wang, Mykhaylo Usyk, Guo-Chong Chen, Bianca C Porneala, Wenshuang Wang, Ngoc Quynh Nguyen, Elena V Feofanova, Megan L Grove, Thomas J Wang, Robert E Gerszten, Josée Dupuis, Jordi Salas-Salvadó, Wei Bao, David L Perkins, Martha L Daviglus, Bharat Thyagarajan, Jianwen Cai, Tao Wang, Joann E Manson, Miguel A Martínez-González, Elizabeth Selvin, Kathryn M Rexrode, Clary B Clish, Frank B Hu, James B Meigs, Rob Knight, Robert D Burk, Eric Boerwinkle, Robert C Kaplan

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

OBJECTIVE: Tryptophan can be catabolised to various metabolites through host kynurenine and microbial indole pathways. We aimed to examine relationships of host and microbial tryptophan metabolites with incident type 2 diabetes (T2D), host genetics, diet and gut microbiota.

METHOD: We analysed associations between circulating levels of 11 tryptophan metabolites and incident T2D in 9180 participants of diverse racial/ethnic backgrounds from five cohorts. We examined host genome-wide variants, dietary intake and gut microbiome associated with these metabolites.

RESULTS: Tryptophan, four kynurenine-pathway metabolites (kynurenine, kynurenate, xanthurenate and quinolinate) and indolelactate were positively associated with T2D risk, while indolepropionate was inversely associated with …

On The Front Lines Of The Covid-19 Pandemic: Occupational Experiences Of The Intimate Partner Violence And Sexual Assault Workforce, Leila Wood, Rachel Voth Schrag, Elizabeth Baumler, Dixie Hairston, Shannon Guillot-Wright, Elizabeth Torres, Jeff R Temple

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

In the face of increasing risk for intimate partner violence (IPV) and sexual assault during the COVID-19 pandemic, there is an urgent need to understand the experiences of the workforce providing support to survivors, as well as the evolving service delivery methods, shifting safety planning approaches, and occupational stress of frontline workers. We addressed this gap by conducting an online survey of members of IPV and sexual assault workforce using a broad, web-based recruitment strategy. In total, 352 staff from 24 states participated. We collaborated with practitioner networks and anti-violence coalitions to develop the brief survey, which included questions about …

The Role And Immunogenicity Of Cbfa2t3-Glis2 In Pediatric Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia, Elizabeth A. Garfinkle

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

CBFA2T3-GLIS2 is the most prevalent fusion oncogene in pediatric acute megakaryoblastic leukemia in patients without Down syndrome (non-DS-AMKL) and is associated with an event free survival of only 8% even with high intensity chemotherapy and stem cell transplant in first remission. A cryptic inversion event on chromosome 16 joins the three nervy homology regions (NHR) of CBFA2T3 to the five zinc fingers of GLIS2. This configuration enables the encoded chimeric transcription factor to bind GLIS consensus sequences throughout the genome and recruit transcriptional activators and repressors to alter gene expression and enhance self-renewal capability. Few cooperating mutations have been identified …

Identification Of Therapeutic Targets For Th17 Cell-Mediated Diseases, Jin Wang

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

Hypersensitivity and autoimmune diseases are complex synergistic effect of environmental, genetic and other factors. T helper 17 (Th17) cells play a critical role in the immune pathology. Th17 cells are a group of specialized CD4+ T cells with potential pro-inflammatory function which are different from other T cells such as T helper 1 (Th1) cells or T helper 2 (Th2) cells. Th17 cell development and differentiation processes are strictly regulated through complex pathways. Th17 cells are characterized by secreting cytokines such as IL-17 and IL-22. Studies have shown that Th17 cells and IL-17 have been implicated in the pathogenesis of …

Host-Pathogen Interactions During Leptospirosis In Male C3h/Hej Mice, Advait Bhaskar Shetty

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease transmitted from reservoir hosts like rodents to other animals and humans, who are incidental hosts. This infection is prevalent in the areas of Southeast Asia, Africa and South America. Inactivated Leptospira serovars vaccines are available in endemic areas but they have certain limitations such as serovar specificity and short-term protection. Antibiotics are effective treatment strategies useful at least during early stages of infection. Early diagnosis of Leptospirosis is difficult due to lack of accessible laboratory and point of care tests and due to clinical similarities with other diseases. Thus, it is important to understand host-Leptospira …

Validation Of A Whole Genome Methylation Profiling Classifier For Central Nervous System Tumors, Lucas Santana-Santos, Kwok Ling Kam, David Dittman, Stephanie De Vito, Matthew Mccord, Pouya Jamshidi, Hailie Fowler, Xinkun Wang, Alan Aalsburg, Daniel Brat, Craig Horbinski, Lawrence Jennings

Conference Presentation Abstracts

Whole genome methylation profiling is proving to be an incredibly powerful tool to diagnose tumors that are otherwise difficult to classify by histopathology and sequencing. The reference library of tumor DNA methylation data, using a machine learning-based tumor classifier, was developed by the German Cancer Research Network (DKFZ), and is available publicly on a research basis. However, medical institutions desiring to implement that classifier for routine clinical care need to import, adapt, and validate the classifier internally. We did this for our own DNA methylation-based classifier of central nervous system (CNS) tumors, using the same training and validation datasets as …

A Guide For Managing Patients With Stage I Nsclc: Deciding Between Lobectomy, Segmentectomy, Wedge, Sbrt And Ablation-Part 4: Systematic Review Of Evidence Involving Sbrt And Ablation, Henry S. Park, Frank C. Detterbeck, David C. Madoff, Brett C. Bade, Ulas Kumbasar, Vincent J. Mase, Andrew X. Li, Justin D. Blasberg, Gavitt A. Woodard, Whitney S. Brandt, Roy H. Decker

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Background: Clinical decision-making for patients with stage I lung cancer is complex. It involves multiple options [lobectomy, segmentectomy, wedge, stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT), thermal ablation], weighing multiple outcomes (e.g., short-, intermediate-, long-term) and multiple aspects of each (e.g., magnitude of a difference, the degree of confidence in the evidence, and the applicability to the patient and setting at hand). A structure is needed to summarize the relevant evidence for an individual patient and to identify which outcomes have the greatest impact on the decision-making.

Methods: A PubMed systematic review from 2000-2021 of outcomes after SBRT or thermal ablation

Results: Short-term …

Remote Patient Monitoring As A Means To Reduce 30-Day Readmissions In Skilled Patients: An Integrative Review, Sharee Lenae Birkett

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Readmissions among skilled patients are a problem nationwide with rising rates despite federal mandates. Per the AHRQ (2021), readmission costs are estimated to average $15, 200 per patient. Interventions are needed to reduce readmissions and improve patient outcomes. Remote patient monitoring (RPM), especially with continuous vital sign monitoring (CVM) is one method that could reduce readmission rates. The purpose of this integrative review is to determine whether RPM could be used to reduce emergency department and 30-day readmission visits for Medicare part A skilled nursing patients. Utilizing the Whittemore and Knafl (2005) framework, 29 articles were reviewed with resulting themes …