Hemic and Immune Systems Commons^™

5-Fluorouracil Induced Oxidative Stress Is Variable Across Triple Negative Breast Cancer Cell Lines, Rachel L. Walker

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an aggressive subtype of breast cancer with treatment limited to chemotherapy. However, not all patient tumors respond to chemotherapy. The variable cytotoxic effects of chemotherapies may be due to how cancer cells regulate reactive oxygen species (ROS). In this study, we examined two mouse breast cancer cell lines: 4T1 and EO771, vary when treated with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and 5-Fluorouracil (5FU), known ROS-inducing substances. In 4T1 cells H2O2 increased oxidized DNA but caused minimal cell death. While in EO771 cells that same amount of H2O2 caused complete apoptosis. Cell number, ROS, and cell death showed …

Hemodynamic Collapse From Perforated Splenic Angiosarcoma: A Rare Case, Juliette Camejo, Tiffany Guillen, Rahul Ramakrishnan, Romany Harkas

HCA-NSU MD Research Day

Introduction: Splenic angiosarcoma is an uncommon, malignant neoplasm of vascular endothelial origin. Given its unique nature and rupture potential, we present a case of perforated splenic angiosarcoma. Case Description: A 79 year-old female with a history of vocal cord paralysis, recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy, and thyroidectomy presented for a second time with stridor and worsening shortness of breath. Due to desaturation and bradycardia, unsuccessful intubation led to a tracheostomy and ICU transfer. She stabilized and showed no major complications for seven days. On discharge day, the patient became diaphoretic, pale, and non-responsive, prompting a rapid response and code blue. Major …

Sars-Cov-2 Infection Induces Human Milk Antibodies Capable Of Mediating Multiple Functional Activities, Jared Sheehan, Aline Andres, Laxmi Yeruva, Alistair J. Ramsay

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

Background and Aims: Passive transfer of antibodies through breastfeeding is a potential mode of protection for newborns and infants following maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection. The primary goal of this study was to evaluate and characterize SARS-CoV-2 Spike (S)-specific antibodies in human milk samples collected longitudinally from a cohort of convalescent mothers. Methods: SARS-CoV-2 infected participants enrolled in this study were lactating women aged 29–36 years with a confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis who donated milk samples at intervals over the six-month study period. Samples were evaluated for antibody subclass SARS-Cov-2 S glycoprotein binding activity by ELISA, and for the capacity of antibodies purified …

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy In The Atls/Acls Resuscitative Management Of Acutely Ill Or Severely Injured Patients With Severe Anemia: A Review, Keith W. Van Meter

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

For short periods, even without the presence of red blood cells, hyperbaric oxygen can safely allow plasma to meet the oxygen delivery requirements of a human at rest. By this means, hyperbaric oxygen, in special instances, may be used as a bridge to lessen blood transfusion requirements. Hyperbaric oxygen, applied intermittently, can readily avert oxygen toxicity while meeting the body's oxygen requirements. In acute injury or illness, accumulated oxygen debt is shadowed by adenosine triphosphate debt. Hyperbaric oxygen efficiently provides superior diffusion distances of oxygen in tissue compared to those provided by breathing normobaric oxygen. Intermittent application of hyperbaric oxygen …

Mouse Monocytes Express Cd127 By Immune Cells, Not Lps, Reza Yazdani, Mozhde Askari, Amir Moghadam-Ahmadi, Gholamreza Azizi, Bogoljub Ciric, Alexandra Boehm, Guang-Xian Zhang, Mohamad Rostami

Department of Neurology Faculty Papers

The essential role of interleukin 7 (IL-7) signaling via its receptor (IL-7Rα; CD127) in T cell development and function has been well documented. However, CD127 expression and function in myeloid cells, including monocytes, are less clear, especially in mice. In the present study we report an inducible CD127 expression in mouse monocytes/macrophages. This induction is dependent on the presence of other immune cells, highlighting that regulation of CD127 expression on monocytes differs in mice and humans. We demonstrate that CD127 is functional, as IL-7 downregulated its expression. We also saw decreased CD127 expression during inflammation in vivo. Overall, upregulation …

Csf1r Inhibition Depletes Brain Macrophages And Reduces Brain Virus Burden In Siv-Infected Macaques, Diana G. Bohannon, Laurent D. Zablocki-Thomas, Evan S. Leung, Jinbum K. Dupont, Julian B. Hattler, Jolanta Kowalewska, Miaoyun Zhao, Jiangtao Luo, Marco Salemi, Angela M. Amedee, Qingsheng Li, Marcelo J. Kuroda, Woong-Ki Kim

School of Graduate Studies Faculty Publications

Perivascular macrophages (PVMs) and, to a lesser degree, microglia are targets and reservoirs of HIV and simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) in the brain. Previously, we demonstrated that colony-stimulating factor 1 receptor (CSF1R) in PVMs was upregulated and activated in chronically SIV-infected rhesus macaques with encephalitis, correlating with SIV infection of PVMs. Herein, we investigated the role of CSF1R in the brain during acute SIV infection using BLZ945, a brain-penetrant CSF1R kinase inhibitor. Apart from three uninfected historic controls, nine Indian rhesus macaques were infected acutely with SIVmac251 and divided into three groups (n = 3 each): an untreated control and …

Splenic Artery Aneurysm Masquerading As Chest Pain: A Case Report Of A Rare Clinical Presentation, Emily Forester, Anjeanette Brown

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Background: Splenic artery aneurysms most commonly present with vague epigastric or left upper quadrant abdominal pain that may radiate to the left shoulder. Chest pain associated with splenic artery aneurysm is an unusual phenomena. This case presents a rare occurrence of a splenic artery aneurysm originally presenting as atypical chest pain. Case Presentation: A 46 year old G3P2 AAF patient with family history of hypertension presented to the ER with pleuritic left chest pain, episodes of shortness of breath, and new onset hypertension. Chest x-ray and ECG were unremarkable. Pertinent labs included a hemoglobin of 10.6 and D-dimer of 4.10. …

Ikaros Expression Drives The Aberrant Metabolic Phenotype Of Macrophages In Chronic Hiv Infection, Cecilia Vittori, Celeste Faia, Dorota Wyczechowska, Amber Trauth, Karlie Plaisance-Bonstaff, Mary Meyaski-Schluter, Krzysztof Reiss, Francesca Peruzzi

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

The increased risk for acquiring secondary illnesses in people living with HIV (PLWH) has been associated with immune dysfunction. We have previously found that circulating monocytes from PLWH display a trained phenotype. Here, we evaluated the metabolic profile of these cells and found increased mitochondrial respiration and glycolysis of monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) from PLWH. We additionally found that cART shifted the energy metabolism of MDMs from controls toward increased utilization of mitochondrial respiration. Importantly, both downregulation of IKAROS expression and inhibition of the mTOR pathway reversed the metabolic profile of MDMs from PLWH and cART-treated control-MDMs. Altogether, this study reveals …

Avaren-Fc, A Novel Immunotherapeutic, Recruits Nk Cells In B16f10 Melanoma Tumor Tissue, Sreevatsa Vemuri, Katarina Mayer, Nobuyuki Matoba

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Melanoma is the fifth most common cancer in the US, with limited effective immunotherapeutic options available for patients. Avaren-Fc (AvFc) is a novel experimental immunotherapeutic agent with a unique “lectibody” property. It is capable of targeting cancer cells through the selective recognition of high mannose glycans, which are aberrantly overrepresented on the surface of malignant cells. AvFc can interact with circulating effector immune cells equipped with Fc receptors, such as natural killer (NK) cells to induce antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) and kill cancer cells. Previous work has shown that AvFc effectively induces ADCC activity against B16F10 cancer cells in vitro …

Predicting Radiation-Induced Immune Suppression In Lung Cancer Patients Treated With Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy, Jonathan Colen, Cam Nguyen, Seth W. Liyanage, Eric Aliotta, Joe Chen, Clayton Alonso, Kara Romano, Sean Peach, Timothy Showalter, Paul Read, James Larner, Krishni Wijesooriya

Data Science Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) is known to modulate the immune system and contribute to the generation of anti-tumor T cells and stimulate T cell infiltration into tumors. Radiation-induced immune suppression (RIIS) is a side effect of radiation therapy that can decrease immunological function by killing naive T cells as well as SBRT-induced newly created effector T cells, suppressing the immune response to tumors and increasing susceptibility to infections.

PURPOSE: RIIS varies substantially among patients and it is currently unclear what drives this variability. Models that can accurately predict RIIS in near real time based on treatment plan characteristics …

St-Elevation In Avr With Diffuse St-Segment Depression: Need For Urgent Catheterization?, Bruce M. Lo, Megyn K. Christensen, Katherine E. Schaffer, Theodore J. Tzavaras

Department of Emergency Medicine Faculty Publications

Case Presentation: A 33 year old female with a history of antiphospholipid syndrome presented with exertional chest pain and ST-elevation in aVR with diffuse ST-depression. An emergent catheterization was performed which showed an isolated 99% stenosis in the left main coronary artery. The remaining coronary arteries were without any stenosis. Successful stent placement was performed, and the patient was discharged without complications.

Discussion: Previous guidelines suggested that ST-elevation with diffuse ST-depression should be treated as a STEMI-equivalent involving the left-main or proximal left anterior descending coronary artery. However recent data suggests that the majority of these cases may not involve …

Tim/Tam Receptors: A Potential Biomarker For Predicting Sensitivity To Zika Virus-Induced Oncolysis In Non-Small Cell Lung Cancers, Shankari Somasekar

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLC) constitute 80-85% of lung cancers and are the leading cause of cancer-related deaths globally. The most common cause is prolonged smoking. Current treatment options for NSCLC include surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, targeted drug therapy, and immunotherapy. Although these medications are effective in the short term, patients often face issues of drug resistance and debilitating side effects with prolonged use. Currently, the use of Zika virus (ZIKV) is being researched as a possible alternative treatment for cancer, which minimizes side effects and the risk of drug resistance. TIM/TAM proteins are identified as the putative ZIKV receptors on …

Triphlapan: Predicting Hla Molecules Binding Peptides Based On Triple Coding Matrix And Transfer Learning, Meng Wang, Chuqi Lei, Jianxin Wang, Yaohang Li, Min Li

Computer Science Faculty Publications

Human leukocyte antigen (HLA) recognizes foreign threats and triggers immune responses by presenting peptides to T cells. Computationally modeling the binding patterns between peptide and HLA is very important for the development of tumor vaccines. However, it is still a big challenge to accurately predict HLA molecules binding peptides. In this paper, we develop a new model TripHLApan for predicting HLA molecules binding peptides by integrating triple coding matrix, BiGRU + Attention models, and transfer learning strategy. We have found the main interaction site regions between HLA molecules and peptides, as well as the correlation between HLA encoding and binding …