Immune System Diseases Commons^™

Dietary Restriction In Drosophila Melanogaster Increases Flight Duration, Nelson Nunez, Mark Frye, Phd, Mehmet Keles, Phd Candidate

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Caloric restriction extends the lifespan in several model animals, including fruit flies, but less is known about the influence upon endurance and sensory-motor performance. For this experiment, all flies will be raised on standard media. At the point of eclosion, they will be transferred to rich, standard, or restricted media. The endurance of a fruit fly can be tested by monitoring how long it is able to maintain active flight. Flight power is quantified by measuring wing beats per second and total wing stroke amplitude. Sensory-motor performance is measured by the animal’s ability to actively fixate on a black bar …

Application Of The Transtheoretical Model In Hispanic And African American Populations To Assess Deceased Kidney Donor Noncompliance, Cynthia Mancilla, Amy D. Waterman, Phd, Crystal Kynard-Amerson, Mph, Aubre Parnicky, Msw

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Given existing health disparities such as financial barriers, lack of education and inadequate health care in minority communities, the rates of deceased kidney donation continues to decline. The transtheoretical model (TTM) assesses the patients’ willingness to pursue deceased kidney donation through application of a stage structured curriculum.

Patients are evaluated into five different stage groups; pre-contemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance. This assessment of behavior change as applied to the willingness of a patient to pursue a deceased kidney donor transplant can be tracked over time and used to help determine what stage of change a patient is in during …

Exploration Of Antagonist Efficacy For Lpra2 Like Peptide, Ayobami Loye, Ruben R. Gonzalez-Perez, Phd

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Leptin is a small protein hormone that controls satiety and is produced by adipocytes. Obese people have increased levels of circulating leptin. Excessive leptin levels cause a break down in the control of leptin signaling pathways leading to increased angiogenesis, proliferation, cell migration, invasion, and anti-apoptotic events. Obesity and leptin signaling have been linked to cancer progression. Literature shows that LPrA2 is an effective leptin antagonist as it decreases proliferation of breast cancer cells in vitro.

This project compares the effectiveness of LPrA2 like compounds in breast cancer cell-line MDA-MB-468 (M-468 BCs). We hypothesize that the new peptide antagonists have …

Design And Optimization Of A Mycoplasma Detection Assay, Carlos J. León-Rodríguez, Richard J. Noel, Jr., Phd, Tirtsa Porrata-Doria, Ms

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Mycoplasma are among the smallest free living microorganisms. These bacteria grow slowly, lack a rigid cell wall and are not eliminated by filter sterilization methods used in tissue culture. Mycoplasma infection affects biochemical and genetic aspects of cultured cells, resulting in experimental inconsistency. Therefore, it is necessary to establish routine testing for mycoplasma contamination in tissue culture laboratories.

Our goal is to develop a reliable and cost-effective test for mycoplasma in cell culture based on established methods found in literature. We first cloned and sequenced a PCR product from a commercial mycoplasma detection kit. Sequencing revealed the 16s rRNA as …

Role Of Hiv-1 Nef Lysine Residues 4 And 7 In The Interaction With Calnexin And Inhibition Of Abca1 Activity, Valeria Kaufman, Michael Burkinsky, Md, Phd, Ruth Hunegnaw, Msc, Phd Candidate

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Patients infected with HIV are at increased risk of developing atherosclerosis, a result due partly to the functional impairment of cellular cholesterol transporter, ATP-binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1). This transporter mediates efflux of cholesterol from cells to high density lipoprotein, thus allowing cells to maintain normal levels of cholesterol. When ABCA1 function is inhibited, cells, and in particular macrophages, accumulate cholesterol, resulting in formation of atherosclerotic plaques. The HIV-1 protein, Nef downregulates ABCA1 and inhibits the activity of this protein, thereby reducing cholesterol efflux and promoting atherosclerosis, but the molecular mechanism by which Nef inhibits ABCA1 is unknown.

Previous studies …

Collagen Iv Assembly: Production Of A Recombinant Construct For Mechanistic Studies, Kennedy Harris, Billy Hudson, Phd, Isi Ero-Tolliver, Phd, Kyle Brown, Phd

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Basement membranes, specialized extracellular matrix, provide mechanical support for epithelial cells and shape cell behavior by interacting with cell receptors. Collagen IV, the predominant component of basement membrane, comprises six genetically distinct alpha chains (α1 to α6) that assemble to form protomers, which associate to form hexamers, in the scaffold. Non-assembly due to mutations within alpha chains give rise to kidney diseases. Yet, the mechanism of assembly is poorly understood.

Preliminary data in our lab indicated that amino acid 78 of collagen IV α2 NC1 (non-collagenous) domains may play a role in a chloride-dependent switch that supports hexamer formation. We …

Sex Differences In The Sex Differences In The Effects Of Environmental Enrichment After An Early Life Stressor, Alfredo Gutierrez, Annelyn Torres-Reverón, Phd, Raura Doreste-Méndez

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Studies have shown that environmental enrichment can compensate for the effects of an early life stressor such as maternal separation. Behavioral responses and immunohistochemical markers in rats are affected by environmental enrichment after maternal separation. In this study we seek to investigate whether sex influences the behavioral responses of environmental enrichment after maternal separation.

Prior scientific evidence suggests that there are behavioral sex differences in: 1) neural processes underlying successful or failed fear extinction (Gruene et al, 2014); (2) prenatal stress exposure and response to behavioral anxiety tests (Said et al, 2015); and (3) glutamate receptor expression in response to …

Cox2 Plays An Important Role In Maintenance Of Mammary Cancer Stem Cell Population In Human Breast Cancer Cell Lines, Mayra Garcia, Shehla Pervin, Phd, Easter Thames, Meher Parveen, Phd, Melanie Baker

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Breast cancer is a malignant growth in the adipose-rich mammary gland. Initiation and progression of breast tumors involve multiple cell types, among which mammary cancer stem cells play an important role. There are two main types of adipocytes; white adipocytes have previously been found to influence the disease while brown adipocytes, which uniquely express uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1), were recently detected in breast tumors.

We have detected Myf5, a transcription factor, which is expressed in the progenitor population of brown adipocytes, in breast cancer cell lines. We also found an association between expression of Myf5 and COX2 (or Ptgs2), which …

The Role Of Integrin-Associated Protein “Pinch” In Kidney Development, Tyrone Gamble Jr, Roy Zent, Phd, Bertha C. Elias, Phd

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

PINCH (a particularly interesting new cysteine-histidine-rich protein) is a protein that binds with Integrin-linked kinase and Parvin, to form an IPP complex. This complex is formed only when integrin molecules are activated upon interaction with the basement membrane. The IPP complex then acts as a platform for other proteins to come together and regulate cell signaling to and from the extracellular matrix (ECM). This allows for various cellular activities to progress like cell adhesion, migration, proliferation, etc. There are two types of PINCH proteins, PINCH-1 and PINCH-2. Studies from our group have shown that the lack of PINCH-1 in the …

Nitric Oxide And Cyclic Gmp Signaling In Cancer Therapy, Armond Dorsey, Ferid Murad, Md, Phd, Ka Bian, Md, Phd

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

The nitric oxide-3’,5’-cyclic guanosine monophosphate signaling pathway (NO-cGMP signaling pathway) is a well-known signal transduction pathway which elicits several physiological processes including: cell proliferation, vasodilation, cardiac protection, etc. In this pathway, NO binds to the ferrous heme of histidine-105 on the prosthetic heme of the β₁ subunit of soluble guanylyl cyclase, resulting in the production of cGMP. This pathway, however, is inhibited in certain cancer cells—as observed in glioma cell lines. As a result, the production of cGMP is reduced. This mechanism may facilitate uncontrolled tumor cell growth.

The cancers under research—lung carcinoma, glioma, and pancreatic carcinoma—are all highly …

Potential Cost Savings Of Not Doing Cd4 Counts In Hiv Positive People In Rhode Island With An Undetectable Viral Load, Ruth Dele-Oni, Ferdinand Schumacher, Zachary Markus, Timothy Flanigan, Md

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

CD4 cells fight infections in the body. When someone contacts Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), their CD4 cells are taken over by HIV which turns them into manufacturers of many copies of the virus. The Viral Load (VL) measures the amount of virus in the blood. When HIV takes over the CD4 cells, the VL increases while the number of necessary CD4 cells decreases. When patients maintain stable treatment, their CD4 counts rise, and VLs may become undetectable, indicating the virus is too little to be detected in their blood. Knowing this, is frequent CD4 counts necessary for those with undetectable …

Defining The Role For Zbp-89 In Atm-Mediated Dna Damage Response To Irradiation In The Intestine, Christine Carethers, Juanita L. Merchant, Md, Phd

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

ZBP-89 (ZNF148, Zfp148) is a zinc-finger transcription factor that inhibits cellular proliferation when overexpressed in cell lines. ZBP-89 forms a protein-protein interaction with p53 and Ataxia-telangiectasia mutated (ATM). However, it is unclear how the interaction modulates the function of these two proteins in vivo.

Double strand DNA breakage induced by -irradiation induces ATM phosphoinositol kinase activity, which initiates a cascade of events culminating in cell cycle arrest, DNA repair or apoptosis. Elevated levels of ZBP-89 induce growth arrest and apoptosis in gastrointestinal cell lines. Therefore, we hypothesize that ZBP-89 facilitates cell growth arrest and activation of the DNA repair pathway …

Induction Of Dusp9 In Xenografts From Human Breast Cancer Cell Lines Increases Mammary Cancer Stem Cells, Albert Barrios, Meher Parveen, Phd, Easter Thames, Melanie Baker, Shelha Pervin, Phd

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Breast cancer remains a complex disease that kills 40,000 women every year. Initiation and progression of breast cancer is influenced by heterogeneous groups of cells, including mammary cancer stem cells (MCSCs). Progression of this dreadful disease is driven by many signaling pathways among which MAPK pathway is highly prominent. Since targeting prominent kinases in MAPK pathway has been unsuccessful to control breast cancer, it is important to examine the phosphatases that regulate the activity of these kinases.

Using xenograft model from breast cancer cell lines, our lab has found that during the initial stages of xenograft development (week 1-4, 100-200mg …

Preparing Underrepresented High School Students To Increase Diversity In The Research And Health Professions, Dolores E. Caffey-Fleming, Ms, Mph, Christopher Reid, Md, Phd

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

This article introduces the work that was done through the Coordinating Center at Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science.

The Step Up Program, Lawrence Agodoa, Md

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

The Short-Term Research Experience Program for Underrepresented Persons (STEP-UP) was established as part of the NIDDK Strategic Plan on Minority Health Disparities. This article provides an overview and introduction of this program. All of the articles that are included in this special issue reflect the work of our coordinating centers, the mentors and their staff, as well as the students.

Role Of B Cell And Hematopoietic Cell Intrinsic Actions Of Erα In Lupus Pathogenesis, Dana E. Tabor

Theses & Dissertations

Lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by the presence of autoimmune B and T cells and the production of pathogenic antibodies against nuclear antigens. Lupus predominately affects women between menarche and menopause. There are both genetic and environmental risk factors which affect an individuals’ risk of developing lupus. Estrogens are a risk factor for developing lupus and are thought to contribute significantly to the initiation and progression of disease. In lupus-prone mice, genetic knockout of a receptor for estrogen, estrogen receptor alpha (ERα), causes significant attenuation of lupus. Previous studies have not identified the cell type or …

Results Of A Nine Month Home-Based Physical Activity Intervention For People Living With Hiv., Jason R. Jaggers, Joanna M. Snead, Felipe Lobelo, Gregory A. Hand, Wesley D. Dudgeon, Vivek K. Prasad, Stephanie Burgess, Steven N. Blair

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Background: The purpose of this investigation was to test the feasibility of a home-based moderate-intensity physical activity (MPA) program for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) currently taking antiretroviral therapy (ART). Methods: 68 participants recruited for a 9-month home-based PA intervention aimed to reduce risk factors of cardiovascular disease for PLWHA taking ART. All participants received an educational weight loss workbook and a pedometer for self-monitoring of physical activity. The intervention group received elastic Therabands® for strength training in addition to telephone based behavioral coaching. Clinical assessments were conducted at baseline and each follow-up which also included psychometric questionnaires and PA …

Mechanism Of Action And Applications Of Interleukin 24 In Immunotherapy, Leah Persaud, Dayenny De Jesus, Oliver Brannigan, Maria Richiez-Paredes, Jeannette Huaman, Giselle Alvarado, Linda Riker, Gissete Mendez, Jordan Dejoie, Moira Sauane

Publications and Research

Interleukin 24 (IL-24) is an important pleiotropic immunoregulatory cytokine, whose gene is located in human chromosome 1q32-33. IL-24’s signaling pathways have diverse biological functions related to cell differentiation, proliferation, development, apoptosis, and inflammation, placing it at the center of an active area of research. IL-24 is well known for its apoptotic effect in cancer cells while having no such effect on normal cells. IL-24 can also be secreted by both immune and non-immune cells. Downstream effects of IL-24, after binding to the IL-20 receptor, can occur dependently or independently of the JAK/STAT signal transduction pathway, which is classically involved in …

A Bi-Stable Switch In Virus Dynamics Can Explain The Differences In Disease Outcome Following Siv Infections In Rhesus Macaques, Stanca Ciupe, Christopher Miller, Jonathan Forde

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Asthma Control Screening Using The Electronic Health Record, Accursia A. Baldassano, Jonathon Mack

Doctor of Nursing Practice Final Manuscripts

ABSTRACT

Experts in asthma care globally recommend screening for asthma control in all patients with asthma through the use of an evidence-based tool. This project embedded the Asthma Control Test (ACT) in the electronic health record to determine if screening for control would change compared to standard care.

Methods

An electronic template of the ACT was embedded in the electronic health record system for a community faith-based family medicine clinic. All patients 12 years and older with a previous diagnosis of asthma were included in this project. These patients were screened for asthma control using the template at every appointment. …

Hiv-1 Genetic Variation Resulting In The Development Of New Quasispecies Continues To Be Encountered In The Peripheral Blood Of Well-Suppressed Patients., Will Dampier, Michael R Nonnemacher, Joshua Mell, Joshua Earl, Garth D Ehrlich, Vanessa Pirrone, Benjamas Aiamkitsumrit, Wen Zhong, Katherine Kercher, Shendra Passic, Jean W Williams, Jeffrey M Jacobson, Brian Wigdahl

Kimmel Cancer Center Faculty Papers

As a result of antiretroviral therapeutic strategies, human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection has become a long-term clinically manageable chronic disease for many infected individuals. However, despite this progress in therapeutic control, including undetectable viral loads and CD4+ T-cell counts in the normal range, viral mutations continue to accumulate in the peripheral blood compartment over time, indicating either low level reactivation and/or replication. Using patients from the Drexel Medicine CNS AIDS Research and Eradication Study (CARES) Cohort, whom have been sampled longitudinally for more than 7 years, genetic change was modeled against to the dominant integrated proviral quasispecies with …

Parents Of Children With Arthritis-Related Diseases: An Examination Of Knowledge Of And Participation In Select Support Programs And Services Offered By The Arthritis Foundation, Margo B. Deihl

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

The purpose of this pilot study was to identify the knowledge of and participation in select Arthritis Foundation support programs and services among parents of children with arthritis-related diseases. Parents attending the 2014 Juvenile Arthritis National Conference in Keystone, Colorado completed an online survey that asked about their knowledge of and participation in these programs. The data collected for the study was quantitative and qualitative. Respondents were given the opportunity to add comments to some survey items, and these items were analyzed by grouping them according to common themes. Results indicated that the parents were more knowledgeable about the Juvenile …

Role Of Interleukin-3 In An Experimental Model Of Mouse Cerebral Malaria Caused By Plasmodium Berghei Anka, Brendon R. Perry

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Malaria is a life-threatening mosquito-borne disease caused by parasites of the genus Plasmodium, with about 200 million new cases reported each year. In rodent models of malaria, a variety of immune proteins called cytokines have been noted to either promote or suppress protective immunity. While the cytokine interleukin-3 (IL-3) clearly promotes host defense against some intestinal nematode parasites, few studies have reported a similar function for IL-3 in the pathophysiology of malaria. In this study, we investigated the role of IL-3 in a mouse model of cerebral malaria caused by Plasmodium berghei ANKA. We infected wild-type (WT) and IL-3 …

Recurrent Mutations Of T-Cell Receptor And Co-Stimulatory Signaling Proteins In Peripheral T-Cell Lymphomas, Joseph Rohr

Theses & Dissertations

Peripheral T-cell lymphomas (PTCLs) comprise a heterogeneous group of mature T-cell neoplasms with a poor prognosis. Recently, mutations in TET2 and other epigenetic modifiers as well as RHOA have been identified in these diseases, particularly in angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma (AITL). CD28 is the major co-stimulatory receptor in T-cells which, upon binding ligand, induces sustained T-cell proliferation and cytokine production when combined with T-cell receptor stimulation, through many signaling molecules including VAV1. This thesis identifies recurrent mutations in CD28 in PTCLs, as well as mutations in VAV1. Two residues of CD28 – D124 and T195 – were recurrently mutated in 11.3% …

Fecal Transplant Vs Vancomycin For Recurrent Clostridium Diffile, Lauren M. Taylor, Todd E. Edwards

Physician Assistant Capstones, 2016 to 2019

Objective: To compare fecal transplant and vancomycin in the treatment of recurrent clostridium difficile to determine which has the higher cure rate. Design: Systematic literature review. Methods: Pubmed, Google Scholar, and TRIP database using the search terms “recurrent clostridium difficile.” Filters were implemented in the Pubmed database including: randomized control trials, English, and published in the past 5 years. Records were screened for RCT with fecal transplant and full-text. Results: van Nood et al. revealed an initial cure rate of 81% for the infusion group, and a re-treated cure rate of 94%, compared to the vancomycin alone group of 31% …

The Role Of Drak2 In T Cell Function And Autoimmunity, Tarsha L. Harris

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

The immune system utilizes many regulatory mechanisms to limit immune responses and ensure that immune cells target foreign pathogens and not healthy cells of the body. However, some immune cells can escape these checkpoints and attack the body’s healthy cells, leading to tissue destruction and devastating autoimmune disorders. For example, multiple sclerosis (MS) occurs when immune cells attack the myelin sheath surrounding neurons of the central nervous system (CNS). Likewise, the destruction of pancreatic islet cells by dysregulated immune cells leads to type 1 diabetes (T1D). Remarkably, there are more than 80 types of autoimmune diseases. An estimated 50 million …

Antibodies To Heterogenous Nuclear Ribonucleoprotein A1 Penetrate Neurons Leading To Multiple Downstream Effects Resulting In Neurodegeneration, Joshua Nathan Douglas

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is the most common demyelinating disorder of the central nervous system. MS is believed to occur in genetically susceptible individuals due to an unknown environmental stimulus. MS patients produce autoantibodies to heterogenous nuclear ribonuclearprotein A1 (hnRNP A1), an RNA binding protein (RBP) highly expressed in neurons. hnRNP A1 functions in pre-mRNA splicing, mRNA trafficking, and translation. Furthermore, the anti-hnRNP A1 antibodies are specific to a N-terminal region termed ‘M9’ which serves as a nuclear export sequence/nuclear localization sequence (NES/NLS) responsible for nuclear/cytoplasmic transport of the protein. In this manuscript we will provide data revealing that anti-hnRNP A1 …

Pten Signaling In Regulatory T Cells And Inflammatory Disease, Sharad Krishna Shrestha

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

Regulatory T (Treg) cells suppress CD4+ T cell responses during homeostasis and inflammation to prevent autoimmunity and other immune disorders. Although the transcriptional and epigenetic programs impacting Treg cell function have been extensively studied, the signaling and metabolic pathways underlying Treg stability and function are not fully understood. In this study, we determined the role of the phosphatase PTEN in Treg cells. We found that specific depletion of PTEN in Treg cells results in excessive TH1 and T follicular helper cells (TFH) responses, associated with elevated germinal center (GC) B cells and spontaneous development of autoimmune and lymphoproliferative disease in …

Torn Between Two Diseases: Changes In Tgfβ Signaling Prevents Diabetes But Promotes Neuropathy, Vasalya Panchumarthi

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is an autoimmune disease that affects millions of children and adults worldwide. In this disease, white blood cells (Leukocytes) invade, attack, and destroy the Islets of Langerhans in the pancreas, resulting in increased blood glucose levels. Patients with T1D must use exogenous insulin injections, which can lead to many side effects over the lifespan of the person. Therefore, understanding the pathogenesis of this disease is crucial to develop new treatments for patients. The non-obese diabetic (NOD) mouse is a rodent model of T1D as well as other autoimmune diseases such as Sjogren’s syndrome, where immune cells …

The Feminization Of Hiv/Aids In Yunnan, China, Leah Pinckney

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The feminization of HIV is a global phenomenon in which more women are becoming HIV-positive. This not only has tragic consequences for those women but also signifies how HIV transmission in China is changing. Increased sexual transmission has given HIV the ability to move from at-risk groups, such as intravenous drug users and commercial sex workers, to the general population. Despite China’s improved health policies and programs about HIV, this situation poses a serious public health issue allowed to perpetuate because of societal problems surrounding gender. These problems are compounded by socioeconomic inequality brought upon by economic change. While much …