Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Read The Data For Diverse Truths-And Quantitative Myocardial Perfusion Versus Angiography, Kenneth Lance Gould, Nils P Johnson

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Sex Differences In Atherosclerotic Coronary Artery Disease Patterns, Kazumasa Ikeda, Daniel Munhoz, Sofie Brouwers, Jeroen Sonck, Hitoshi Matsuo, Toshiro Shinke, Hirohiko Ando, Brian Ko, Simone Biscaglia, Fernando Rivero, Thomas Engstrøm, Ketina Arslani, Antonio Maria Leone, Domenico Galante, Lokien X Van Nunen, William F Fearon, Evald Høj Christiansen, Stephane Fournier, Liyew Desta, Andy Yong, Julien Adjedj, Javier Escaned, Masafumi Nakayama, Ashkan Eftekhari, Frederik M Zimmermann, Koshiro Sakai, Tatyana Storozhenko, Bruno R Da Costa, Gianluca Campo, Colin Berry, Damien Collison, Thomas Johnson, Tetsuya Amano, Divaka Perera, Allen Jeremias, Ziad Ali, Bernard De Bruyne, Frederic Bouisset, Takashi Kubo, Nobuhiro Tanaka, Kazuhiro Satomi, Nils P Johnson, Carlos Collet, Takuya Mizukami

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Sex differences in coronary artery disease (CAD) have been increasingly recognized, as women present with distinct clinical characteristics and outcomes compared with men. This study investigated the impact of sex on pathophysiological CAD patterns (focal versus diffuse) in stable patients undergoing percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI).

Methods: We conducted a subanalysis of the PPG Global (Pullback Pressure Gradient Global Registry) study, a multicenter, prospective trial including 993 patients (236 [23.8%] women and 757 [76.2%] men) with hemodynamically significant CAD, defined as fractional flow reserve ≤0.80. The pullback pressure gradient metric categorized CAD patterns as focal or diffuse. Patient-reported outcomes were …

Vessel-Specific Myocardial Mass In Patients With Stable Coronary Artery Disease, Nikolaos Stalikas, Takuya Mizukami, Frederic Bouisset, Kazumasa Ikeda, Atomu Tajima, Daniel Munhoz, Thabo Mahendiran, Adriaan Wilgenhof, Koshiro Sakai, Bjarne Noorgard, Thomas Engstroem, Jonathon Leipsic, Giulio Stefanini, Antonio Bartorelli, Timothy Fairbairn, Alan Bagnall, Brian Ko, Nils P Johnson, Colin Berry, Divaka Perera, Evald Høj Christiansen, Toshiro Shinke, Hiromase Otake, Bon Kwon Koo, Emanuele Barbato, Salvatore Brugaletta, Damien Collison, Gianluca Campo, Eric Van Belle, Tommaso Goori, Lokien Van Nunen, Adam Witkowski, Patricio Astudillo, James Spratt, Tetsuya Amano, Hirohiko Ando, Georgios Sianos, Jeroen Sonck, Daniele Andreini, Bernard De Bruyne, Carlos Collet

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Assessing the myocardial mass at risk is essential in evaluating patients with coronary artery disease. This study aims to establish reference values for vessel-specific myocardial mass derived from coronary computed tomography angiography, providing a quantitative assessment of the myocardial mass subtended by each epicardial vessel.

Methods: Left ventricular (LV) and vessel-specific myocardial mass were calculated from coronary computed tomography angiography using the Voronoi method in patients with stable coronary artery disease. Myocardial mass was quantified for each epicardial coronary artery with a diameter >1.5 mm.

Results: We included 948 patients with 9228 epicardial coronary artery branches. Mean age was …

Role Of Endoscopy In The Diagnosis And Management Of Esophageal Cancer, Jennifer Ma, Sharon Pan, Rachel Mortan, Faisal Shaukat Ali, Nirav Thosani, Vaibhav Wadhwa

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Esophageal cancer cases are predicted to reach 957,000 by 2040. Prior mortality rates average 6.5% in men and 2.2% in women, with a poor 5-year prognosis of 20%. A deficiency in screening guidelines, an incomplete understanding of pathophysiology, and limited treatment options contributed to this poor prognosis. Now, as technology and knowledge evolve, endoscopy serves a primary role in improving morbidity and mortality around esophageal cancer, in which early detection and treatment play a profound role. Advances in diagnostic modalities, including higher frequency ultrasound, acquisition of larger specimens, and nodal characterization, all improve esophageal cancer diagnostic accuracy and treatment planning. …

Apathy Self-Awareness And Its Neural Correlates In Parkinson’S Disease, Hannah Conn, Hideo Suzuki, Zekai Jin, Ana Marin, Xi Zhu, Seonjoo Lee, Edward Huey, Ratko Radakovic, Sarah R Heilbronner, Nora Vanegas-Arroyave

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Apathy is a prevalent non-motor symptom in Parkinson's disease (PD) that negatively impacts quality of life. Impaired self-awareness of apathy (ISA-a) further impacts patient care by limiting engagement. While apathy has been associated with reduced fronto-striatal functional connectivity (FC), the neural basis of ISA-a remains unclear. We examined ISA-a in 52 individuals and the neural basis of ISA-a in 35 individuals with PD using a dimensional approach (i.e., initiation, executive, and emotional apathy) and resting-state fMRI (3T scanner). Apathetic PD patients (42%) showed poorer self-awareness than non-apathetic peers. Apathetic PD patients showed a trend towards reduced FC between the left …

Elastic Cytomatrix Dynamics Influences Metabolic Rate And Tumor Microenvironment Formation, Tattym E Shaiken, Tulendy T Nurkenov, Meruyert S Kurmanbayeva, David Y Graham

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

In healthy cells, the cytomatrix mechanics utilize mitochondrial respiration to control cytosolic motion and fine-tune the chemical processes. In cancer, the cytosolic motion is energized by glycolytic fermentation (the Warburg effect), which provides additional energy to supply the needs of the cytomatrix. Here, we describe the physical and chemical processes of the integrated and cooperative cytomatrix cytoarchitecture, in which structure and function are inseparable. The extracellular matrix is interconnected with the intracellular cytomatrix and functions as two integrated elastic solid phases. This finding led us to propose mechanisms of tumor microenvironment formation resulting from the mutational burden, in which altered …

Allergenai: A Deep Learning Model Predicting Allergenicity Based On Protein Sequence, Jiajia Liu, Surendra S Negi, Chengyuan Yang, Xiaobo Zhou, Catherine H Schein, Werner Braun, Pora Kim

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Innovations in protein engineering offer promising solutions for redesigning allergenic proteins to minimize adverse reactions in sensitive individuals. Earlier models for predicting allergenicity have relied on the knowledge of physicochemical properties and sequence homology to assess the potential risk. However, to better understand the allergenic proteins’ sequence features, we need a novel sequence-based deep learning model for predicting allergenicity.

RESULTS: We present a novel AI-based tool, AllergenAI, to quantify the allergenic potential of a protein’s sequence without using any other known features. Our study utilized allergenic protein sequence data archived in the three well-established databases, SDAP 2.0, COMPARE, and …

Using Machine Learning For Early Prediction Of In-Hospital Mortality During Icu Admission In Liver Cancer Patients, Zhuo Zheng, Jinhong Xia, Jiawei Luo, Lei Du, Xiaobo Zhou, Xiaoyan Yang, Yan Xia, Mengyao Liu, Shixin Huang

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Liver cancer has a high incidence and mortality rate globally, particularly in patients requiring intensive care unit (ICU) admission. Early prediction of in-hospital mortality for these patients is crucial, yet lacking reliable tools. This study aims to develop and evaluate machine learning (ML) models for predicting in-hospital mortality in critically ill liver cancer patients admitted to the ICU. This retrospective study used data from the MIMIC-III and MIMIC-IV databases, including 862 patients from MIMIC-III (training cohort) and 692 patients from MIMIC-IV (validation cohort). The study focused on patients diagnosed with liver cancer, identified by specific ICD codes. Four ML algorithms, …

Insights Into The Relevance Of Targeting Fibroblasts To Control Cancer, Viktoria Boeker, Raghu Kalluri

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) in the tumor microenvironment (TME) have garnered significant research attention in the last decade. As key stromal cells of the TME, studies have explored them as a potential target for controlling cancer. Using high-throughput technologies like single-cell RNA sequencing coupled with proteomics, the classification of different CAF subgroups reveals a complex system that varies by cancer type. Unraveling novel big data, potentially through AI platforms, will be key to identifying the role of CAFs in tumor progression and therapy escape mechanisms, enabling new therapies that manipulate CAFs to increase patients' survival. We summarize and discuss new developments …

Voices: Future Directions In Targeting The Tumor Microenvironment, Tanja De Gruijl, Catherine Sautès-Fridman, Daniela S Thommen, Michael A Curran

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

What do you envision as the most promising future directions for therapeutic strategies aimed at modulating the tumor microenvironment?

Prognosis And Treatment Response Stratification According To Loss Of Proofreading (Lop), Giulia Maddalena, Fadl A Zeineddine, Saikat Chowdhury, Mohammad A Zeineddine, Abdelrahman M Yousef, Francesca Bergamo, Sara Lonardi, Timothy A Yap, Michael Geoffrey White, Michael J Overman, Scott Kopetz, John Paul Shen

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Only a subset of polymerase epsilon (POLE) mutations is associated with hypermutant phenotype; we hypothesized that only loss-of-proofreading (LOP) POLE mutations are associated with favorable immunotherapy response.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study included a pan-cancer cohort of 69,223 patients from cBioPortal and a cohort of patients with 41 POLE mutant metastatic colorectal (CRC) treated with immunotherapy at the MD Anderson Cancer Center between January 2017 and May 2023. We evaluated prognosis according to POLE mutation functionality.

Results: In the pan-cancer cBioPortal cohort (n=69,223) POLE was mutated in 2.8% (1,965) of tumors; of these, only 7.5% (n=148) had …

Identification Of Therapeutic Targets For Renal Medullary Carcinoma Via Integrated Genomic And Transcriptomic Profiling, Pavlos Msaouel, Nizar M Tannir, Funda Meric-Bernstam, Jennifer M King, Martin H Voss, Jessica P Cheng, Susan S Thomas, Zita D Lim, Menuka Karki, Rong He, Giannicola Genovese, Rahul A Sheth, Davis R Ingram, Diana Shamsutdinova, Khalida M Wani, Wei-Lien Wang, Alexander J Lazar, Dominique Knipper-Davis, Amber Berlinski, Tayla Soares, Danil Stupichev, Kirill Kryukov, Suren Davitavyan, Anna Novokreshchenova, Dmitry Lebedev, Stanislav Kurpe, Andrey Kravets, Dmitrii Belousov, Michael Hensley, Alexander Bagaev, Francesca Paradiso, Vladimir Kushnarev

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Renal medullary carcinoma (RMC) is a rare but highly aggressive kidney cancer that resists conventional therapies. To identify therapeutic targets, this study employs histopathologic, genomic, and transcriptomic profiling of 25 RMC samples. TROP2, EPCAM, CLDN6, and CDH6 are significantly overexpressed compared with other renal and solid tumors. Pathway analyses indicate Hippo pathway upregulation and a tumor microenvironment rich in fibroblasts and neutrophils. We subsequently explore treatment of four heavily pretreated patients, all with high TROP2 expression, using sacituzumab govitecan, a TROP2-targeted antibody-drug conjugate. Of these four patients, one patient achieves a partial response with symptom improvement, two patients maintain stable …

Bladder Health And The Urogenital Microbiome In Community-Dwelling Adult Females, L Brubaker, D Mcdonald, S Putnam, C Brennan, C S Fok, C E Lewis, J L Lowder, M G Mueller, L M Rickey, E R Mueller, S J Song, K Rudser, R Knight, E S Lukacz, Plus Consortium

2020-Current year OA Pubs

UNLABELLED: Despite the established association with lower urinary tract symptoms, the relationship between a healthy bladder and the urogenital microbiome is unknown. This observational cohort study of 435 community-dwelling women examined bladder health and function using a validated instrument. Voided urine samples were self-collected, shipped to a repository, and underwent 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing. Two hundred seventy-four (56%) samples were retained following a limit-of-detection analysis for low biomass samples. A differential abundance analysis showed that

IMPORTANCE: There is increasing awareness that human microbiomes impact health and modulate certain health conditions. Recently, investigators developed a validated assessment of bladder health in …

Two Unrelated Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Phages Require The Exopolysaccharide Psl For Infection, Kristen Amyx-Sherer, Leila C Awasthi, Amanda Zheng, Anna Johannesman, Michele Leroux, Courtney Reichhardt

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Bacteria commonly protect themselves from a variety of threats by forming biofilms, which are communities of bacteria that are tightly packed together within an extracellular matrix. Biofilm formation has generally been thought to protect bacteria from phage infection. The opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa produces biofilm matrices that can contain three distinct exopolysaccharides that contribute to the difficulty in treating infected patients. Here, we demonstrate that two diverse P. aeruginosa phages have evolved to exploit this biofilm matrix to access the bacterial cells by both binding to and degrading a major biofilm exopolysaccharide, Psl. We examined the effect of these phages …

Depth-Variant Deconvolution Applied To Widefield Microscopy For Rapid Large-Volume Tissue Imaging, Daniel D Lee, Kevin A Telfer, Mark A J Koenis, Yim K Lee, Kevin W Namink, Brian T Saunders, Heyun Lee, Hailey Kelley, Heather S Ruiz, Joseph P Gaut, Gwendalyn J Randolph, Bernd H Zinselmeyer

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Innovations in 3D tissue imaging have revolutionized research, but limitations stemming from lengthy protocols and equipment accessibility persist. Widefield microscopy is fast and accessible but often excluded from 3D imaging workflows due to its lack of optical sectioning. Here we combine tissue clearing with a commercial depth-variant deconvolution approach that we optimized for large-volume widefield imaging. By implementing prefiltering with z-brick splitting, we achieve subnuclear axial resolution in tissues to a depth of 500 µm in multi-tile scan images. We illustrate the utility of this method in a model of ileitis and to gain a 3D perspective in thick brain …

Belonging Without Borders: A Missionary Kid Reflects On Nursing School, Julia Beth Stamp

Wisdom & Compassion: The LUSON Journal

This reflective essay examines the experience of pursuing a nursing degree while living far from home as a Missionary Kid. It explores how the absence of close family ties during nursing school intensified feelings of loneliness, challenged motivation, and strained emotional well-being. Interwoven with personal narrative and supported by recent literature, the reflection highlights the way that community— through peers, mentors, and faculty— emerged as a vital source of resilience. The essay argues that resilience in nursing education is not the product of individual grit alone but grows from interdependence and the willingness to seek and receive support. Through recounting …

Sacred Lessons In The Last Moments: Faith Integration And Holistic Nursing, Meredith Lemmi

Wisdom & Compassion: The LUSON Journal

No abstract provided.

Where Pain Meets Grace, Callie Messick

Wisdom & Compassion: The LUSON Journal

No abstract provided.

The Heart Of A Nurse, Mikayla Lang

Wisdom & Compassion: The LUSON Journal

No abstract provided.

Resistance Is Not Futile: Plotting A Future Of Critical Thinking With Ai In Nursing Education, Alex Boggs

Wisdom & Compassion: The LUSON Journal

No abstract provided.

Nurse Faculty Burnout: A Narrative Literature Review, Susan Braud, Cynthia Goodrich, Amanda Martin

Wisdom & Compassion: The LUSON Journal

Background: Nursing faculty burnout significantly impairs teaching effectiveness and contributes to high turnover rates, threatening the future nursing workforce and overall quality of patient care.

Purpose: This review explores the contributing factors, consequences, and potential interventions related to nurse faculty burnout—a key driver of faculty attrition.

Method: An integrative literature review guided by the Whittemore and Knafl (2005) framework was conducted using the Melynk’s Level of Evidence Scale applied to assess the strength and quality of selected studies.

Results: Burnout in nurse faculty is multifactorial, stemming from overwhelming workloads, insufficient institutional support, and persistent systemic challenges. If unaddressed, it leads …

What Methods Do Pre-Licensure Bsn Students At A Christian University Use To Improve Resilience: A Qualitative Case Study, Beth Kelley

Wisdom & Compassion: The LUSON Journal

The purpose of this mixed-methods single-case study was to explore methods that pre-licensure Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) students at a Christian university used to improve their resilience. Lazarus and Folkman's Transactional Model of Stress and Coping (1984) was employed as a theoretical framework, and the study asked: What methods did pre-licensure Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) students at a Christian university use to manage stress and improve resilience? A convenience sample of 91 students was obtained to complete the demographic questionnaire, the Brief Resilience Scale, and the Perceived Stress Scale. Of those students, 25 volunteered for interviews …

Advancing Holistic Nursing: Bridging The Gap In Spiritual Care, Rachel Joseph

Wisdom & Compassion: The LUSON Journal

No abstract provided.

Empowered By The Almighty: A Journey Of Faith And Nursing, Diane Bridge

Wisdom & Compassion: The LUSON Journal

No abstract provided.

Volume 3, Issue 1 - Complete Issue

Wisdom & Compassion: The LUSON Journal

No abstract provided.

Vitamin D Deficiency And Cardiovascular Health Disparities In High-Melanin Populations: A Scoping Review, Jalen K. Luter, Silver R. Kaylor, Michael S. Boyer

Doctoral Projects

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains a leading cause of mortality and disproportionately affect individuals with darker skin tones, partly due to vitamin D deficiency (Sabzmakan et al., 2014). This Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) project uses a scoping review methodology to examine the relationship between vitamin D deficiency and cardiovascular outcomes, with an emphasis on high-melanin populations. Guided by the Joanna Briggs Institute Framework, the review synthesizes existing evidence, identifies gaps in representation and biomarker use, and highlights social and biological contributors to disparity. Databases including PubMed, CINAHL, EMBASE, and Scopus were searched, and studies were screened using standardized inclusion criteria: …

The Impact Of Peer Mentorship In Certified Registered Nurse Anesthesia Programs: A Scoping Review, Karoline Gasque, Kelly Mcreynolds, Shelia Crump

Doctoral Projects

Abstract
Problem statement: Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) programs are known for
their rigorous curriculum, which predisposes Student Registered Nurse Anesthetists (SRNAs) to
challenges such as mental health issues, stress, and isolation.
Purpose: Review the literature and assess gaps in the literature to determine if peer mentorship
programs benefit SRNAs’ well-being, promote support, reduce stress, and improve retention.
Method: Databases were searched using keywords and inclusion criteria. Studies were
considered if they discussed peer mentorship in students, healthcare professionals, or nursing.
Patterns and themes were assessed to derive conclusions from the literature available. The
Population, Concept, and Context framework was …

Cv: Eleftheria Karapas (Nursing), Eleftheria Karapas

Nursing Department Faculty Curricula Vitae

No abstract provided.

Over Reliance On Antidepressant Medication In Long-Term Care Facilities: Rethinking Mental Health Approaches, Kaylene Elder

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Depression is a prevalent mental health condition among older adults in long-term care (LTC) facilities and is often managed primarily through antidepressant medications. While these medications can be effective, their overuse in elderly populations increases the risk of falls, sedation, cognitive decline, and adverse drug interactions. This project addresses the need for safer, evidence-based alternatives by promoting non-pharmacological interventions that support holistic well-being. The proposed approach integrates gratitude journaling, vitamin D testing to identify deficiencies, and vitamin D supplementation for residents experiencing mild to moderate depressive symptoms. Implementation is led by nursing staff and supported by the interdisciplinary care team, …

From Urban Models To Rural Realities: Adapting Hepatitis C (Hcv) Care For Underserved Communities, Caitlin A. Mccain

2025 Fall Honors Capstones Projects - Archive

This literature review examines how Hepatitis C (HCV) screening and care programs can better serve underserved populations, particularly Spanish-speaking rural communities in border states. The research supports the Hep C- Colonias Advancing & Restoring Esperanza (C.A.R.E) program’s mission by incorporating recent findings from 32 studies gathered through PubMed, Medline and Google Scholar. Hep C C.A.R.E expanded from the HepVISTA expansion project provides HCV screening, education, vaccination and linkage to care for uninsured patients at partner sites in Laredo and Maverick County. Results indicate that while HCV elimination is feasible, significant gaps persist among rural uninsured and minority populations. Effective strategies …