Diseases Commons^™

Cardiovascular Hemodynamics In Mice With Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptor-Associated Factor 2 Mediated Cytoprotection In The Heart, Andrea G Marshall, Kit Neikirk, Zer Vue, Heather K Beasley, Edgar Garza-Lopez, Larry Vang, Taylor Barongan, Zoe Evans, Amber Crabtree, Elsie Spencer, Josephs Anudokem, Remi Parker, Jamaine Davis, Dominique Stephens, Steven Damo, Thuy T Pham, Jose A Gomez, Vernat Exil, Dao-Fu Dai, Sandra A Murray, Mark L Entman, George E Taffet, Antentor O Hinton, Anilkumar K Reddy

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

INTRODUCTION: Many studies in mice have demonstrated that cardiac-specific innate immune signaling pathways can be reprogrammed to modulate inflammation in response to myocardial injury and improve outcomes. While the echocardiography standard parameters of left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction, fractional shortening, end-diastolic diameter, and others are used to assess cardiac function, their dependency on loading conditions somewhat limits their utility in completely reflecting the contractile function and global cardiovascular efficiency of the heart. A true measure of global cardiovascular efficiency should include the interaction between the ventricle and the aorta (ventricular-vascular coupling, VVC) as well as measures of aortic impedance and …

Novel Banana Lectin Car-T Cells To Target Pancreatic Tumors And Tumor-Associated Stroma, Mary K Mckenna, Ada Ozcan, Daniel Brenner, Norihiro Watanabe, Maureen Legendre, Dafydd G Thomas, Christopher Ashwood, Richard D Cummings, Challice Bonifant, David M Markovitz, Malcolm K Brenner

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: Cell therapies for solid tumors are thwarted by the hostile tumor microenvironment (TME) and by heterogeneous expression of tumor target antigens. We address both limitations with a novel class of chimeric antigen receptors based on plant lectins, which recognize the aberrant sugar residues that are a 'hallmark' of both malignant and associated stromal cells. We have expressed in T cells a modified lectin from banana, H84T BanLec, attached to a chimeric antigen receptor (H84T-CAR) that recognizes high-mannose (asparagine residue with five to nine mannoses). Here, we tested the efficacy of our novel H84T CAR in models of pancreatic ductal …

Transcriptomic Analyses Of Ovarian Clear-Cell Carcinoma With Concurrent Endometriosis, Kaitlyn E Collins, Xiyin Wang, Yuliya Klymenko, Noah B Davis, Maria C Martinez, Chi Zhang, Kaman So, Aaron Buechlein, Douglas B Rusch, Chad J Creighton, Shannon M Hawkins

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

INTRODUCTION: Endometriosis, a benign inflammatory disease whereby endometrial-like tissue grows outside the uterus, is a risk factor for endometriosis-associated ovarian cancers. In particular, ovarian endometriomas, cystic lesions of deeply invasive endometriosis, are considered the precursor lesion for ovarian clear-cell carcinoma (OCCC).

METHODS: To explore this transcriptomic landscape, OCCC from women with pathology-proven concurrent endometriosis (n = 4) were compared to benign endometriomas (n = 4) by bulk RNA and small-RNA sequencing.

RESULTS: Analysis of protein-coding genes identified 2449 upregulated and 3131 downregulated protein-coding genes (DESeq2, P< 0.05, log2 fold-change > |1|) in OCCC with concurrent endometriosis compared to endometriomas. Gene set enrichment …

Allogeneic Haematopoietic Cell Transplant In Patients With Relapsed/Refractory Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma, Fateeha Furqan, Kwang W Ahn, Yue Chen, Manmeet Kaur, Syed A Abutalib, Nausheen Ahmed, Sairah Ahmed, Mohamed A Kharfan-Dabaja, Johnathan Friedberg, Tara Gregory, Laquisa Hill, Cole Sterling, Stephan K Barta, Mazyar Shadman, Miguel-Angel Perales, Jasmine Zain, Alex F Herrera, Craig Sauter, Mehdi Hamadani

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

The prognosis of relapsed/refractory (R/R) anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL) is poor. Large studies evaluating outcomes of allogeneic haematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT) in systemic R/R ALCL are not available. Using the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research (CIBMTR) database, we evaluated outcomes of 182 adults (aged ≥18 years) with R/R ALCL undergoing allo-HCT between 2008 and 2019. Non-relapse mortality (NRM), disease relapse/progression (REL), progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) were modelled using Cox proportional hazards models. The median (range) follow-up of survivors was 62 (3-148) months. The 1-year NRM was 18%. The 5-year REL, PFS and OS …

Emerging Challenges To Cellular Therapy Of Cancer, Premal D Lulla, Malcolm Brenner

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Cellular immunotherapy of cancer in the form of chimeric antigen receptor-modified T-cell therapy has become a standard treatment for lymphoid and more recently plasma cell malignancies. Although their successes in these cancers represent a breakthrough for adoptive cell therapy, there are several challenges to their continued growth in the field of cancer medicine. In this review, we discuss the progress made thus far toward achieving "off-the-shelf" accessibility of cell therapies that has the potential to greatly offset the costs associated with the current practice of making patient-specific products. We also review the innovations under investigation that attempt to make cellular …

Covid-19 And Pregnancy: Clinical Outcomes; Mechanisms, And Vaccine Efficacy, Deepak Kumar, Sonam Verma, Indira U Mysorekar

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues into its third year, emerging data indicates increased risks associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy, including pre-eclampsia, intrauterine growth restriction, preterm birth, stillbirth, and risk of developmental defects in neonates. Here, we review clinical reports to date that address different COVID-19 pregnancy complications. We also document placental pathologies induced by SARS-CoV-2 infection, entry mechanisms in placental cells, and immune responses at the maternal-fetal interface. Since new variants of SARS-CoV-2 are emerging with characteristics of higher transmissibility and more effective immune escape strategies, we also briefly highlight the genomic and proteomic features of SARS-CoV-2 investigated to …

Alveolar Macrophages In Lung Cancer: Opportunities Challenges, Cheng-Yen Chang, Dominique Armstrong, David B Corry, Farrah Kheradmand

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Alveolar macrophages (AMs) are critical components of the innate defense mechanism in the lung. Nestled tightly within the alveoli, AMs, derived from the yolk-sac or bone marrow, can phagocytose foreign particles, defend the host against pathogens, recycle surfactant, and promptly respond to inhaled noxious stimuli. The behavior of AMs is tightly dependent on the environmental cues whereby infection, chronic inflammation, and associated metabolic changes can repolarize their effector functions in the lungs. Several factors within the tumor microenvironment can re-educate AMs, resulting in tumor growth, and reducing immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) efficacy in patients treated for non-small cell lung cancer …

Engaging Patients In Antimicrobial Stewardship: Co-Designed Educational Tool To Improve Periprocedural Care Through De-Implementation Of Guideline-Discordant Antimicrobial Use, Hawra Al Lawati, Marlena Shin, Rebecca Lamkin, Tyler Thompson, Isabella Epshtein, Hillary Mull, Dipandita Basnet Thapa, Dimitri Drekonja, Maria C Rodriguez-Barradas, Teena Huan Xu, Howard Gold, A Rani Elwy, Judy Strymish, Westyn Branch-Elliman

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Effective de-implementation models often include replacement of an ineffective practice with an alternative. We co-developed patient education materials as a replacement strategy for inappropriate post-procedural antibiotics in cardiac device procedures. Lessons learned and developed materials may be used to promote infection prevention in other periprocedural settings.

Combining Charlson Comorbidity And Vacs Indices Improves Prognostic Accuracy For All-Cause Mortality For Patients With And Without Hiv In The Veterans Health Administration, Kathleen A Mcginnis, Amy C Justice, Vincent C Marconi, Maria C Rodriguez-Barradas, Ronald G Hauser, Krisann K Oursler, Sheldon T Brown, Kendall J Bryant, Janet P Tate, Veterans Aging Cohort Study Affiliations

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

INTRODUCTION: As people age with HIV (PWH), many comorbid diseases are more common than among age matched comparators without HIV (PWoH). While the Veterans Aging Cohort (VACS) Index 2.0 accurately predicts mortality in PWH using age and clinical biomarkers, the only included comorbidity is hepatitis C. We asked whether adding comorbid disease groupings from the Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) improves the accuracy of VACS Index.

METHODS: To maximize our ability to model mortality among older age groups, we began with PWoH in Veterans Health Administration (VA) from 2007-2017, divided into development and validation samples. Baseline predictors included age, and components …

Clinical Approach To Evaluation Of Underlying Cardiac Device Infection In Patients Hospitalized With Bacteremia, Dierdre B Axell-House, Sarwat Khalil, M Rizwan Sohail

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

More than 400,000 cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs), including permanent pacemakers, implantable cardioverter-defibrillators, and cardiac resynchronization therapy devices, are implanted every year in the United States (US). Infection is a serious complication of CIED therapy and is associated with high morbidity and mortality. While CIED pocket infection can be diagnosed based on clinical exam findings, positive blood culture may be the only manifestation of CIED lead infection. Thus, management of bacteremia in patients living with CIEDs requires special consideration. This review summarizes contemporary data in the context of the recently updated 2023 Duke-International Society for Cardiovascular Infectious Diseases Criteria for …

Bacteriuria In Older Adults Triggers Confusion In Healthcare Providers: A Mindful Pause To Treat The Worry, Eva M Amenta, Robin L P Jump, Barbara W Trautner

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

The evidence base for refraining from screening for or treating asymptomatic bacteriuria (ASB) in older adults is strong, but both practices remain prevalent. Clinical confusion over how to respond to a change from baseline, when to order a urinalysis and urine culture, and what to do with a positive urine culture fuels unnecessary antibiotic use for ASB. If the provider can take a mindful pause to apply evidenced-based assessment tools, the resulting increased clarity in how to manage the situation can reduce overtreatment of ASB.

Prognostic Model For Predicting Overall And Cancer-Specific Survival Among Patients With Superficial Spreading Melanoma: A Seer Based Study, Qiang Ji, Jun Tang, Shulian Li, Junjie Chen

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Skin malignant melanoma is one of the most aggressive skin tumors. Superficial spreading melanoma (SSM) is the most common histological type, which can originate from different body skin sites, and some patients can still accumulate regional lymph nodes and even have distant metastasis in some cases. This study used the relevant data from the monitoring, epidemiology and results database of the National Cancer Institute database to study the overall survival (OS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS) of SSM patients and established an SSM nomogram to evaluate the prognosis of patients. A total of 13,922 patients were collected from the monitoring, epidemiology …

Influence Of Waist Circumference Measurement Site On Visceral Fat And Metabolic Risk In Youth, Sojung Lee, Yejin Kim, Minsub Han

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Although the rate of childhood obesity seems to have plateaued in recent years, the prevalence of obesity among children and adolescents remains high. Childhood obesity is a major public health concern as overweight and obese youth suffer from many co-morbid conditions once considered exclusive to adults. It is now well demonstrated that abdominal obesity as measured by waist circumference (WC) is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease and metabolic dysfunction in youth. Despite the strong associations between WC and cardiometabolic risk factors, there is no consensus regarding the optimal WC measurement sites to assess abdominal obesity and obesity-related health …

Measurement Of Force And Intramuscular Pressure Changes Related To Thrust Spinal Manipulation In An In Vivo Animal Model, William R Reed, Carla R Lima, Michael A K Liebschner, Christopher P Hurt, Peng Li, Maruti R Gudavalli

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Simple Summary

Spinal manipulation is recommended by clinical guidelines to treat low back pain. However, our understanding of how spinal manipulation alleviates pain and knowledge of the role that viscoelastic tissue properties play in the dampening of applied spinal manipulation forces in vivo is limited. Superficial and deep intramuscular pressures and applied forces were measured using miniature pressure catheters and a force transducer during low back spinal manipulation using a clinically available spinal manipulation device (Activator V) or a feedback motor in a deeply anesthetized animal model. Viscoelastic properties of muscle and other soft tissues greatly diminished applied spinal manipulative …

Assembling A Global Database Of Child Pneumonia Studies To Inform Who Pneumonia Management Algorithm: Methodology And Applications, Helena Martin, Jennifer Falconer, Emmanuel Addo-Yobo, Satinder Aneja, Luis Martinez Arroyo, Rai Asghar, Shally Awasthi, Salem Banajeh, Abdul Bari, Sudha Basnet, Ashish Bavdekar, Nita Bhandari, Shinjini Bhatnagar, Zulfiqar A Bhutta, Abdullah Brooks, Mandeep Chadha, Noel Chisaka, Monidarin Chou, Alexey W Clara, Tim Colbourn, Clare Cutland, Valérie D'Acremont, Marcela Echavarria, Angela Gentile, Brad Gessner, Christopher J Gregory, Tabish Hazir, Patricia L Hibberd, Siddhivinayak Hirve, Shubhada Hooli, Imran Iqbal, Prakash Jeena, Cissy B Kartasasmita, Carina King, Romina Libster, Rakesh Lodha, Juan M Lozano, Marilla Lucero, Norman Lufesi, William B Macleod, Shabir Ahmed Madhi, Joseph L Mathew, Irene Maulen-Radovan, Eric D Mccollum, Greta Mino, Charles Mwansambo, Mark I Neuman, Ngoc Tuong Vy Nguyen, Marta C Nunes, Pagbajabyn Nymadawa, Kerry-Ann F O'Grady, Jean-William Pape, Glaucia Paranhos-Baccala, Archana Patel, Valentina Sanchez Picot, Mala Rakoto-Andrianarivelo, Zeba Rasmussen, Vanessa Rouzier, Graciela Russomando, Raul O Ruvinsky, Salim Sadruddin, Samir K Saha, Mathuram Santosham, Sunit Singhi, Sajid Soofi, Tor A Strand, Mariam Sylla, Somsak Thamthitiwat, Donald M Thea, Claudia Turner, Philippe Vanhems, Nitya Wadhwa, Jianwei Wang, Syed Ma Zaman, Harry Campbell, Harish Nair, Shamim Ahmad Qazi, Yasir Bin Nisar, World Health Organization Pneumonia Research Partnership To Assess Who Recommendation (Prepare) Study Group

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: The existing World Health Organization (WHO) pneumonia case management guidelines rely on clinical symptoms and signs for identifying, classifying, and treating pneumonia in children up to 5 years old. We aimed to collate an individual patient-level data set from large, high-quality pre-existing studies on pneumonia in children to identify a set of signs and symptoms with greater validity in the diagnosis, prognosis, and possible treatment of childhood pneumonia for the improvement of current pneumonia case management guidelines.

METHODS: Using data from a published systematic review and expert knowledge, we identified studies meeting our eligibility criteria and invited investigators to …

Clinical Significance Of Glycolytic Metabolic Activity In Hepatocellular Carcinoma, Joann Jung, Sowon Park, Yeonwoo Jang, Sung-Hwan Lee, Yun Seong Jeong, Sun Young Yim, Ju-Seog Lee

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

High metabolic activity is a hallmark of cancers, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the molecular features of HCC with high metabolic activity contributing to clinical outcomes and the therapeutic implications of these characteristics are poorly understood. We aimed to define the features of HCC with high metabolic activity and uncover its association with response to current therapies. By integrating gene expression data from mouse liver tissues and tumor tissues from HCC patients (n = 1038), we uncovered three metabolically distinct HCC subtypes that differ in clinical outcomes and underlying molecular biology. The high metabolic subtype is characterized by poor …

Anti-Cancer Mechanisms Of Action Of Therapeutic Alternating Electric Fields (Tumor Treating Fields [Ttfields]), Shadi Shams, Chirag B Patel

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Despite improved survival outcomes across many cancer types, the prognosis remains grim for certain solid organ cancers including glioblastoma and pancreatic cancer. Invariably in these cancers, the control achieved by time-limited interventions such as traditional surgical resection, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy is short-lived. A new form of anti-cancer therapy called therapeutic alternating electric fields (AEFs) or tumor treating fields (TTFields) has been shown, either by itself or in combination with chemotherapy, to have anti-cancer effects that translate to improved survival outcomes in patients. Although the pre-clinical and clinical data are promising, the mechanisms of TTFields are not fully elucidated. Many …

Mechanical Ventilation In Patients With Cardiogenic Pulmonary Edema: A Sub-Analysis Of The Lung Safe Study, Laura Amado-Rodríguez, Raquel Rodríguez-Garcia, Giacomo Bellani, Tài Pham, Eddy Fan, Fabiana Madotto, John G Laffey, Guillermo M Albaiceta, Lung Safe Investigators

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Patients with acute respiratory failure caused by cardiogenic pulmonary edema (CPE) may require mechanical ventilation that can cause further lung damage. Our aim was to determine the impact of ventilatory settings on CPE mortality.

METHODS: Patients from the LUNG SAFE cohort, a multicenter prospective cohort study of patients undergoing mechanical ventilation, were studied. Relationships between ventilatory parameters and outcomes (ICU discharge/hospital mortality) were assessed using latent mixture analysis and a marginal structural model.

RESULTS: From 4499 patients, 391 meeting CPE criteria (median age 70 [interquartile range 59-78], 40% female) were included. ICU and hospital mortality were 34% and 40%, …

Control Of Sars-Cov-2 Infection By Mt1-Mmp-Mediated Shedding Of Ace2, Xuanming Guo, Jianli Cao, Jian-Piao Cai, Jiayan Wu, Jiangang Huang, Pallavi Asthana, Sheung Kin Ken Wong, Zi-Wei Ye, Susma Gurung, Yijing Zhang, Sheng Wang, Zening Wang, Xin Ge, Hiu Yee Kwan, Aiping Lyu, Kui Ming Chan, Nathalie Wong, Jiandong Huang, Zhongjun Zhou, Zhao-Xiang Bian, Shuofeng Yuan, Hoi Leong Xavier Wong

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has caused a global pandemic. Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is an entry receptor for SARS-CoV-2. The full-length membrane form of ACE2 (memACE2) undergoes ectodomain shedding to generate a shed soluble form (solACE2) that mediates SARS-CoV-2 entry via receptor-mediated endocytosis. Currently, it is not known how the physiological regulation of ACE2 shedding contributes to the etiology of COVID-19 in vivo. The present study identifies Membrane-type 1 Matrix Metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP) as a critical host protease for solACE2-mediated SARS-CoV-2 infection. SARS-CoV-2 infection leads to increased activation of MT1-MMP that is colocalized with ACE2 in human lung …

Period 2 Regulates Low-Dose Radioprotection Via Per2/Pgsk3Β/Β-Catenin/Per2 Loop, Aris T Alexandrou, Yixin Duan, Shanxiu Xu, Clifford Tepper, Ming Fan, Jason Tang, Jonathan Berg, Wassim Basheer, Tyler Valicenti, Paul F Wilson, Matthew A Coleman, Andrew T Vaughan, Loning Fu, David J Grdina, Jefferey Murley, Aijun Wang, Gayle Woloschak, Jian Jian Li

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

During evolution, humans are acclimatized to the stresses of natural radiation and circadian rhythmicity. Radiosensitivity of mammalian cells varies in the circadian period and adaptive radioprotection can be induced by pre-exposure to low-level radiation (LDR). It is unclear, however, if clock proteins participate in signaling LDR radioprotection. Herein, we demonstrate that radiosensitivity is increased in mice with the deficient Period 2 gene (Per2def) due to impaired DNA repair and mitochondrial function in progenitor bone marrow hematopoietic stem cells and monocytes. Per2 induction and radioprotection are also identified in LDR-treated Per2wt mouse cells and in human skin (HK18) and breast (MCF-10A) …

Concurrent Mutations In Sf3b1 And Phf6 In Myeloid Neoplasms, Zhuang Zuo, L Jeffrey Medeiros, Sofia Garces, Mark J Routbort, Chi Young Ok, Sanam Loghavi, Rashmi Kanagal-Shamanna, Fatima Zahra Jelloul, Guillermo Garcia-Manero, Kelly S Chien, Keyur P Patel, Rajyalakshmi Luthra, C Cameron Yin

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

It has been reported that gene mutations in SF3B1 and PHF6 are mutually exclusive. However, this observation has never been rigorously assessed. We report the clinicopathologic and molecular genetic features of 21 cases of myeloid neoplasms with double mutations in SF3B1 and PHF6, including 9 (43%) with myelodysplastic syndrome, 5 (24%) with acute myeloid leukemia, 4 (19%) with myeloproliferative neoplasms, and 3 (14%) with myelodysplastic/myeloproliferative neoplasms. Multilineage dysplasia with ring sideroblasts, increased blasts, and myelofibrosis are common morphologic findings. All cases but one had diploid or non-complex karyotypes. SF3B1 mutations were detected in the first analysis of all the …

Ototoxicity Of Topical Antibiotic Ear Drops In Chronic Suppurative Otitis Media In Humans: A Review Of The Literature, Syed Zohaib Maroof Hussain, Syed S Hashmi, Asad Qayyum

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

An electronic search of the literature was performed for reported cases of ototoxicity associated with the use of topical antibiotic ear drops in humans. The dosage, duration, and type of ototoxic preparations involved were recorded. Due to the scant quantity of low-quality information that is currently available, there was uncertainty about the usefulness of topical antibiotics in enhancing the resolution of ear discharge in patients with chronic suppurative otitis media. However, despite this uncertainty, there are some data to show that using topical antibiotics in comparison to a placebo or in conjunction with a systemic antibiotic may be useful. Additionally, …

Total Transfemoral Percutaneous Endovascular Aortic Arch Repair Using 3-Vessel Inner Branch Stent-Graft, Emanuel R Tenorio, Thanila A Macedo, Laura Ocasio, Marina Dias Neto, Guilherme B Barbosa Lima, Aidin Baghbani-Oskouei, Anthony L Estrera, Abhijeet Dhoble, Shao Feng Zhou, Gustavo S Oderich

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Endovascular repair has been introduced to decrease the morbidity and mortality associated with open surgical repair of aortic arch pathology. We illustrate total percutaneous transfemoral approach with a 3-vessel inner branch stent-graft to treat aortic arch aneurysm. (Level of Difficulty: Advanced.).

Pleiomorphism Plurihormonal Pit-1-Positive Macroadenoma With Central Hyperthyroidism: A Rare Case Report And Literature Review, Guiliang Peng, Chuanhong Guo, Yangfan Lv, Dandan Li, Ling Zhou, Rufei Shen, Yong Chen, Xin Zheng, Zheng Sun, Hongting Zheng, Min Long

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: Thyrotropin-secreting pituitary neuroendocrine tumors (PitNETs) are rare pituitary adenomas that are occasionally accompanied by hypersecretion of other anterior pituitary hormones, such as growth hormone (GH) and prolactin (PRL). The clinical, biochemical, and pathological characteristics may represent diverse circumstances.

CASE PRESENTATION: In this report, a 33-year-old female diagnosed with a TSH PitNET co-secreting GH presented no obvious clinical symptoms. The main characteristics were elevated thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), free tri-iodothyronine (FT3), and free thyroxine (FT4) levels accompanied by slightly elevated GH and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) levels. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) detected a pituitary macroadenoma (18 × 16 × 16 mm) …

Labial Frenotomy For Symptomatic Isolated Upper Lip Tie, Cecilia G Freeman, Jason F Ohlstein, Nicholas A Rossi, John B Mcintire, Luis D Neve, Shiva Daram, Harold S Pine

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: The benefits and challenges of successful breastfeeding for both mother and child have been well-established in the literature. While ankyloglossia, or tongue tie, alone or in combination with upper lip tie has been the focus of several previous studies, very few have directly addressed isolated symptomatic upper lip tie and the role of surgical correction for breastfeeding difficulties.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seven infants with isolated upper lip tie and breastfeeding difficulty were taken to the operating room for labial frenotomy. These infants were assessed at their follow-up visits for their degree of weight gain since their procedure. Their mothers …

Stabilization Of Mcl-1 By E3 Ligase Traf4 Confers Radioresistance, Ming Li, Feng Gao, Xiaoying Li, Yu Gan, Shuangze Han, Xinfang Yu, Haidan Liu, Wei Li

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

The E3 ligase TNF receptor-associated factor 4 (TRAF4) is frequently overexpressed and closely related to poor prognosis in human malignancies. However, its effect on carcinogenesis and radiosensitivity in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) remains unclear. The present study found that TRAF4 was significantly upregulated in primary and relapsed OSCC tumor tissues. Depletion of TRAF4 markedly improved the sensitivity of OSCC cells to irradiation (IR) treatment, showing that tumor cell proliferation, colony formation and xenograft tumor growth were reduced. Mechanistically, IR promoted the interaction between TRAF4 and Akt to induce Akt K63-mediated ubiquitination and activation. TRAF4 knockout inhibited the phosphorylation of …

Landscape Of Tb Infection And Prevention Among People Living With Hiv, Anca Vasiliu, Rebecca Abelman, Yousra Kherabi, Antonia Morita Iswari Saktiawati, Alexander Kay

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the leading causes of mortality in people living with HIV (PLHIV) and contributes to up to a third of deaths in this population. The World Health Organization guidelines aim to target early detection and treatment of TB among PLHIV, particularly in high-prevalence and low-resource settings. Prevention plays a key role in the fight against TB among PLHIV. This review explores TB screening tools available for PLHIV, including symptom-based screening, chest radiography, tuberculin skin tests, interferon gamma release assays, and serum biomarkers. We then review TB Preventive Treatment (TPT), shown to reduce the progression to active …

Characterization Of Pulmonary Vascular Remodeling And Microrna-126-Targets In Copd-Pulmonary Hypertension, Khushboo Goel, Nicholas Egersdorf, Amar Gill, Danting Cao, Scott D Collum, Soma S Jyothula, Howard J Huang, Maor Sauler, Patty J Lee, Susan Majka, Harry Karmouty-Quintana, Irina Petrache

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Despite causing increased morbidity and mortality, pulmonary hypertension (PH) in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients (COPD-PH) lacks treatment, due to incomplete understanding of its pathogenesis. Hypertrophy of pulmonary arterial walls and pruning of the microvasculature with loss of capillary beds are known features of pulmonary vascular remodeling in COPD. The remodeling features of pulmonary medium- and smaller vessels in COPD-PH lungs are less well described and may be linked to maladaptation of endothelial cells to chronic cigarette smoking (CS). MicroRNA-126 (miR126), a master regulator of endothelial cell fate, has divergent functions that are vessel-size specific, supporting the survival …

3d Imaging Analysis On An Organoid-Based Platform Guides Personalized Treatment In Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma, Ya'an Kang, Jenying Deng, Jianhua Ling, Xinqun Li, Yi-Ju Chiang, Eugene J Koay, Huamin Wang, Jared K Burks, Paul J Chiao, Mark W Hurd, Manoop S Bhutani, Jeffrey H Lee, Brian R Weston, Anirban Maitra, Naruhiko Ikoma, Ching-Wei D Tzeng, Jeffrey E Lee, Ronald A Depinho, Robert A Wolff, Shubham Pant, Florencia Mcallister, Matthew Hg Katz, Jason B Fleming, Michael P Kim

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUNDPancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is one of the most lethal malignancies, with unpredictable responses to chemotherapy. Approaches to assay patient tumors before treatment and identify effective treatment regimens based on tumor sensitivities are lacking. We developed an organoid-based platform (OBP) to visually quantify patient-derived organoid (PDO) responses to drug treatments and associated tumor-stroma modulation for personalized PDAC therapy.METHODSWe retrospectively quantified apoptotic responses and tumor-stroma cell proportions in PDOs via 3D immunofluorescence imaging through annexin A5, α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), and cytokeratin 19 (CK-19) levels. Simultaneously, an ex vivo organoid drug sensitivity assay (ODSA) was used to measure responses to standard-of-care …

Detection Of Stroke With Retinal Microvascular Density And Self-Supervised Learning Using Oct-A And Fundus Imaging, Samiksha Pachade, Ivan Coronado, Rania Abdelkhaleq, Juntao Yan, Sergio Salazar-Marioni, Amanda Jagolino, Charles Green, Mozhdeh Bahrainian, Roomasa Channa, Sunil A Sheth, Luca Giancardo

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Acute cerebral stroke is a leading cause of disability and death, which could be reduced with a prompt diagnosis during patient transportation to the hospital. A portable retina imaging system could enable this by measuring vascular information and blood perfusion in the retina and, due to the homology between retinal and cerebral vessels, infer if a cerebral stroke is underway. However, the feasibility of this strategy, the imaging features, and retina imaging modalities to do this are not clear. In this work, we show initial evidence of the feasibility of this approach by training machine learning models using feature engineering …