Medical Specialties Commons^™

Navigating Adolescence With A Chronic Health Condition: A Perspective On The Psychological Effects Of Hair-An Syndrome On Adolescent Girls, Kimberly K. Mcclanahan, Hatim A. Omar

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

HAIR-AN syndrome is a subphenotype of polycystic ovary syndrome and is characterized by acne, obesity, hirsutism, and acanthosis nigricans. It usually manifests in early adolescence, a time of significant developmental change in females across physical, cognitive, social, and emotional domains. We contend that adolescent development for females is difficult, even in the best of circumstances, and having a chronic health condition, like HAIR-AN syndrome, will likely impact the afflicted individual's development and psychological well-being. While many researchers have discussed the long-term health effects of HAIR-AN and similar disorders, little has been written about the potential psychological sequelae of HAIR-AN on …

Effects Of A Personified Guide On Adherence To An Online Program For Alcohol Abusers., Daniel Z Lieberman

Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Faculty Publications

The quality of the therapeutic alliance has robust effects on the outcome of psychotherapy and psychopharmacologic interventions. Automated behavioral health programs that are being developed to increase access to mental health treatment are administered in the absence of direct human participation, thereby precluding the development of a traditional therapeutic relationship. The aim of this study was to develop a personified guide designed to stimulate reactions similar to those experienced in a therapeutic relationship, and evaluate the effect of the guide on adherence to and satisfaction with an online alcohol use evaluation program. After completing a battery of four standard questionnaires …

Treatment Evolution In High-Risk Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia: Ten Years' Experience With Diaphragmatic Agenesis, Kevin P Lally, Pamela A Lally, Krisa P Van Meurs, Desmond J Bohn, Carl F Davis, Bradley Rodgers, Jatinder Bhatia, Golde Dudell

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of newer therapies on the highest risk patients with congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH), those with agenesis of the diaphragm.

SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA: CDH remains a significant cause of neonatal mortality. Many novel therapeutic interventions have been used in these infants. Those children with large defects or agenesis of the diaphragm have the highest mortality and morbidity.

METHODS: Twenty centers from 5 countries collected data prospectively on all liveborn infants with CDH over a 10-year period. The treatment and outcomes in these patients were examined. Patients were followed until death …

Time To Renal Disease And End-Stage Renal Disease In Profile: A Multiethnic Lupus Cohort, Graciela S. Alarcón, Gerald Mcgwin, Michelle Petri, Rosalind Ramsey-Goldman, Barri J. Fessler, Luis M. Vilá, Jeffrey C. Edberg, John D. Reveille, Robert P. Kimberly

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Renal involvement is a serious manifestation of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE); it may portend a poor prognosis as it may lead to end-stage renal disease (ESRD). The purpose of this study was to determine the factors predicting the development of renal involvement and its progression to ESRD in a multi-ethnic SLE cohort (PROFILE).

METHODS AND FINDINGS: PROFILE includes SLE patients from five different United States institutions. We examined at baseline the socioeconomic-demographic, clinical, and genetic variables associated with the development of renal involvement and its progression to ESRD by univariable and multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression analyses. Analyses of …

Pregnant Teenager Involvement In Sexual Activity And The Social Context, Maria José Carvalho Sant'anna, Júlia Kerr Catunda, Kepler Alencar Mendes Carvalho, Verônica Coates, Hatim A. Omar

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Pregnancy during adolescence represents a challenge to society as a whole. Its incidence is increasing and brings about social and medical consequences to both the teen mothers and their children. The purpose of this study was to evaluate pregnant teenager involvement in sexual activity and the social context. The group studied comprised 152 pregnant teenagers attending the Department of Pediatrics, Santa Casa de Sao Paulo (SCSP) General Hospital. All information was analyzed. The age at first intercourse was 14.2 years and the average period between first intercourse and pregnancy was 1.4 years. Most pregnancies (75%) were neither planned nor wanted, …

Cell-Cycle Regulatory Proteins In The Podocyte In Collapsing Glomerulopathy In Children., Tarak Srivastava, Robert E. Garola, H K. Singh

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Podocyte is a terminally committed cell in G1 arrest of cell cycle, and is unable to overcome G1/S transition phase in children with minimal change disease (MCD) and classic focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS), in contrast to dysregulated proliferative phenotype of idiopathic collapsing glomerulopathy (CGN) in adults. Forty-two kidney biopsies, MCD (14), FSGS (12), CGN (4), and normal (CON) (12), were evaluated by immunohistochemistry using dual staining for expression of p27, p21, and p57, and cyclins D and A, in podocytes of children with CGN. On light microscopy, all podocytes expressed p27, whereas p21 and p57 expression was seen in a …

Transcriptional Regulation Of The Borrelia Burgdorferi Antigenically Variable Vlse Surface Protein, Tomasz Bykowski, Kelly Babb, Kate Von Lackum, Sean P Riley, Steven J Norris, Brian Stevenson

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The Lyme disease agent Borrelia burgdorferi can persistently infect humans and other animals despite host active immune responses. This is facilitated, in part, by the vls locus, a complex system consisting of the vlsE expression site and an adjacent set of 11 to 15 silent vls cassettes. Segments of nonexpressed cassettes recombine with the vlsE region during infection of mammalian hosts, resulting in combinatorial antigenic variation of the VlsE outer surface protein. We now demonstrate that synthesis of VlsE is regulated during the natural mammal-tick infectious cycle, being activated in mammals but repressed during tick colonization. Examination of cultured B. …

Correlation Between Number Of Retrieved Oocytes And Pregnancy Rate After In Vitro Fertilization/Intracytoplasmic Sperm Infection, Tanya Timeva, Tanya Milachich, Irena Antonova, Tanya Arabaji, Atanas Shterev, Hatim A. Omar

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

The implementation of safe and maximally effective ovarian stimulation is a major aim for in vitro fertilization (IVF) teams. The goal of controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (COH) is to supply enough oocytes with normal maturation to insure the consequent biological procedures. A variety of different stimulation protocols have been suggested and an individual selection of the correct stimulation protocol is mandatory. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the correlation between number of retrieved oocytes and clinical pregnancy rate (CPR) after IVF or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) procedures. We reviewed 1017 cycles in a total of 975 patients. The …

Dissociation Of Automatic And Strategic Lexical-Semantics: Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Evidence For Differing Roles Of Multiple Frontotemporal Regions, Brian T. Gold, David A. Balota, Sara J. Jones, David K. Powell, Charles D. Smith, Anders H. Andersen

Neuroscience Faculty Publications

Behavioral research has demonstrated three major components of the lexical-semantic processing system: automatic activation of semantic representations, strategic retrieval of semantic representations, and inhibition of competitors. However, these component processes are inherently conflated in explicit lexical-semantic decision tasks typically used in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) research. Here, we combine the logic of behavioral priming studies and the neurophysiological phenomenon of fMRI priming to dissociate the neural bases of automatic and strategic lexical-semantic processes across a series of three studies. A single lexical decision task was used in all studies, with stimulus onset asynchrony or linguistic relationship between prime and …

Depression, Sensation Seeking, And Maternal Smoking As Predictors Of Adolescent Cigarette Smoking, Judy Van De Venne, Kay Bradford, Catherine A. Martin, Megan Cox, Hatim A. Omar

Family Sciences Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to examine maternal and adolescent depression, maternal and teen sensation seeking, and maternal smoking, and their associations with adolescent smoking. Data were collected from a sample of 47 male and 66 female adolescents (ages 11-18 years) and their mothers from three different health clinics. The findings indicated that maternal sensation seeking was linked indirectly with adolescent smoking through teen sensation seeking, both of which were significantly associated with teen smoking (β = 0.29, p < 0.001 and β = 0.32, p < 0.001, respectively). Teen depression was associated positively with teen smoking (β = 0.24, p < 0.01) when controlling for sensation seeking behaviors. Maternal smoking was also directly linked to adolescent smoking (β = 0.20, p < 0.05). These findings underscore a potentially important role of sensation seeking in the origins of adolescent smoking, and clarify pathways of influence with regard to maternal attitudes and behaviors in subsequent teenage nicotine use.

Biomolecular Study Of The Correlation Between Papillomatosis Of The Vulvar Vestibule In Adolescents And Human Papillomavirus, Geni Beznos, Verônica Coates, Jose Focchi, Hatim A. Omar

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

The main goal of this study was to investigate, through a biomolecular study, the correlation between papillomatosis of the vulvar vestibule and human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, as well as to establish the necessity of treatment. A total of 44 female adolescents between 12 and 18 years of age were selected through a prospective study with a confirmed diagnosis of papillomatosis of the vulvar vestibule. Vulvar biopsies were obtained for the histological and biomolecular detection of HPV DNA through polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Twenty (45%) adolescents were virgins (group A), the other 24 (55%) were sexually active. The virgin adolescents (group …

A Pilot Study: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Sensation Seeking, And Pubertal Changes, Catherine A. Martin, Greg Guenthner, Christopher Bingcang, W. Jackson Smith, Thomas E. Curry, Hatim A. Omar, Mary Kay Rayens, Tom H. Kelly

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

This study was designed to examine the relationship of pubertal changes and sensation seeking (SS) in adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Patients with current or past histories of uncomplicated stimulant medication use for ADHD between the ages of 11 and 15 (13 ± 1.5) were recruited from a Child Psychiatry and a General Pediatric Clinic. SS was measured using the SS Scale for Children. Pubertal development was measured using Tanner staging, free testosterone, and DHEAS. Subjects and their parent were interviewed with the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children (DISC). SS total score was correlated with Tanner stage, free …

Molecular Diagnosis Of Burkitt's Lymphoma., Sandeep S. Dave, Kai Fu, George W. Wright, Lloyd T. Lam, Philip Kluin, Evert-Jan Boerma, Timothy Greiner, Dennis D. Weisenburger, Andreas Rosenwald, German Ott, Hans-Konrad Müller-Hermelink, Randy D. Gascoyne, Jan Delabie, Lisa M. Rimsza, Rita M. Braziel, Thomas M. Grogan, Elias Campo, Elaine S. Jaffe, Bhavana J. Dave, Warren Sanger, M Bast, Julie M. Vose, James O. Armitage, Joseph M. Connors, Erlend B. Smeland, Stein Kvaloy, Harald Holte, Richard I. Fisher, Thomas P. Miller, Emilio Montserrat, Wyndham H. Wilson, Manisha Bahl, Hong Zhao, Liming Yang, John Powell, Richard Simon, Wing C. Chan, Louis M. Staudt

Journal Articles: Pathology and Microbiology

BACKGROUND: The distinction between Burkitt's lymphoma and diffuse large-B-cell lymphoma is crucial because these two types of lymphoma require different treatments. We examined whether gene-expression profiling could reliably distinguish Burkitt's lymphoma from diffuse large-B-cell lymphoma.

METHODS: Tumor-biopsy specimens from 303 patients with aggressive lymphomas were profiled for gene expression and were also classified according to morphology, immunohistochemistry, and detection of the t(8;14) c-myc translocation.

RESULTS: A classifier based on gene expression correctly identified all 25 pathologically verified cases of classic Burkitt's lymphoma. Burkitt's lymphoma was readily distinguished from diffuse large-B-cell lymphoma by the high level of expression of c-myc target …

Imaging Breast Adipose And Fibroglandular Tissue Molecular Signatures By Using Hybrid Mri-Guided Near-Infrared Spectral Tomography, Ben Brooksby, Brian W. Pogue, Shudong Jiang, Hamid Dehghani, Subhadra Srinivasan, Christine Kogel, Tor D. Tosteson, John Weaver, Steven P. Poplack, Keith D. Paulsen

Dartmouth Scholarship

Magnetic resonance (MR)-guided near-infrared spectral tomography was developed and used to image adipose and fibroglandular breast tissue of 11 normal female subjects, recruited under an institutional review board-approved protocol. Images of hemoglobin, oxygen saturation, water fraction, and subcellular scattering were reconstructed and show that fibroglandular fractions of both blood and water are higher than in adipose tissue. Variation in adipose and fibroglandular tissue composition between individuals was not significantly different across the scattered and dense breast categories. Combined MR and near-infrared tomography provides fundamental molecular information about these tissue types with resolution governed by MR T1 images.

Incidence Of Galactorrhea In Young Women Using Depot-Medroxyprogesterone Acetate, Hatim A. Omar, Rana M. Zakharia, Shibani Kanungo, Marlene B. Huff, Kimberly K. Mcclanahan

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Galactorrhea is rarely mentioned as a possible side effect of the use of Depot-Medroxyprogesterone Acetate (DMPA). Over the last few years, we have noticed an increased number of patients complaining of galactorrhea. A review of clinical data showed that between 1999 and 2005, 360 adolescents in our clinic used DMPA for at least 6 months. After medical follow-up, 13 (3.6%) of these patients were found to have developed galactorrhea. The mean age of the patients was 19.4 years with a range from 13-24. Prolactin levels in these patients were normal, and in all subjects, the galactorrhea resolved spontaneously within the …

Successful Treatment Of Depot Medroxyprogesterone Acetate-Related Vaginal Bleeding Improves Continuation Rates In Adolescents, Kristin M. Rager, Amy Fowler, Hatim A. Omar

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

High discontinuation rates for depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA) in adolescents may contribute to the number of unintended pregnancies. Many cite vaginal bleeding as a reason for discontinuing DMPA use. In this study, we attempted to determine if treating DMPA-associated vaginal bleeding with monophasic oral contraceptive pills (OCP) raised continuation rates. A total of 131 patients who reported vaginal bleeding while on DMPA were included in this study and 83 were treated with monophasic OCP. Of those who received OCP, 38.7% reported that vaginal bleeding stopped completely, 51.8% reported that vaginal bleeding stopped temporarily, and 6.0% reported no change. Overall, 94% …

Clinical Holistic Medicine: Holistic Sexology And Acupressure Through The Vagina (Hippocratic Pelvic Massage), Søren Ventegodt, Birgitte Clausen, Hatim A. Omar, Joav Merrick

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Many gynecological and sexological problems (like urine incontinence, chronic pelvic pains, vulvodynia, and lack of lust, excitement, and orgasm) are resistant to standard medical treatment. In our work at the Research Clinic for Holistic Medicine in Copenhagen, we have found that vaginal acupressure, or Hippocratic pelvic massage, can help some of these problems. Technically, it is a very simple procedure as it corresponds to the explorative phase of the standard pelvic examination, supplemented with the patient's report on the feelings it provokes and the processing and integration of these feelings. Sometimes it can be very difficult to control the emotions …

Hepatic And Renal Cytochrome P450 Gene Regulation During Citrobacter Rodentium Infection In Wild-Type And Toll-Like Receptor 4 Mutant Mice, Terrilyn A Richardson, Melanie Sherman, Leposava Antonovic, Sean S Kardar, Henry W Strobel, Daniel Kalman, Edward T Morgan

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Citrobacter rodentium is the rodent equivalent of human enteropathogenic Escherichia coli infection. This study investigated regulation of hepatic and renal cytochrome P450 (P450) mRNAs, hepatic P450 proteins, cytokines, and acute phase proteins during C. rodentium infection. Female C3H/HeOuJ (HeOu) and C3H/HeJ (HeJ) mice [which lack functional toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)] were infected with C. rodentium by oral gavage and sacrificed 6 days later. Hepatic CYP4A10 and 4A14 mRNAs were decreased in HeOu mice (

Androgen Excess Disorders In Women: The Severe Insulin-Resistant Hyperandrogenic Syndrome, Hair-An, Kristin M. Rager, Hatim A. Omar

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

HAIR-AN syndrome (hyperandrogenism, insulin resistance, acanthosis nigricans) is a subset of the polycystic ovary syndrome, where the patients demonstrate severe insulin resistance. It is theorized that both genetic and environmental factors, such as obesity, give rise to the development of HAIR-AN. Diagnosis is primarily clinical, with laboratory values lending further support. Treatment is aimed at decreasing insulin resistance, regulating ovulation, and decreasing acne, acanthosis nigricans, and hirsutism.

Na+/K+ -Atpase Regulates Tight Junction Formation And Function During Mouse Preimplantation Development., Michelle I Violette, Pavneesh Madan, Andrew J Watson

Obstetrics & Gynaecology Publications

Research applied to the early embryo is required to effectively treat human infertility and to understand the primary mechanisms controlling development to the blastocyst stage. The present study investigated whether the Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase regulates tight junction formation and function during blastocyst formation. To investigate this hypothesis, three experimental series were conducted. The first experiments defined the optimal dose and treatment time intervals for ouabain (a potent and specific inhibitor of the Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase) treatment. The results demonstrated that mouse embryos maintained a normal development to the blastocyst stage following a 6-h ouabain treatment. The second experiments investigated the effects of ouabain treatment …

Pharmacological Studies Of Nicotine And Galantamine Effects On Age Associated Memory Impairment And The Neurotrophic System In Aged Female Rats, Kristen L. French

MUSC Theses and Dissertations

Nicotine and Galantamine were studied for their pharmacological effects on age associated memory impairment (AAMI) and the neurotrophin system in the aged female F344 rat. Nicotine was found to have dose dependent effects on cognition in the 24 month old rat. A low dose of nicotine improved both working and reference memory (WM, RM) performance on the water radial arm maze and also improved the ability of aged rats to handle an increasing WM load. A high dose did not improve WM and caused deficits in RM, and high cotinine levels in these subjects correlated with worse performance. Nicotine treatment …

Classification And Risk Stratification Of Invasive Breast Carcinomas Using A Real-Time Quantitative Rt-Pcr Assay., Laurent Perreard, Cheng Fan, John F Quackenbush, Michael Mullins, Nicholas P Gauthier, Edward Nelson, Mary Mone, Heidi Hansen, Saundra S Buys, Karen Rasmussen, Alejandra Ruiz Orrico, Donna Dreher, Rhonda Walters, Joel Parker, Zhiyuan Hu, Xiaping He, Juan P Palazzo, Olufunmilayo I Olopade, Aniko Szabo, Charles M Perou, Philip S Bernard

Department of Pathology, Anatomy, and Cell Biology Faculty Papers

INTRODUCTION: Predicting the clinical course of breast cancer is often difficult because it is a diverse disease comprised of many biological subtypes. Gene expression profiling by microarray analysis has identified breast cancer signatures that are important for prognosis and treatment. In the current article, we use microarray analysis and a real-time quantitative reverse-transcription (qRT)-PCR assay to risk-stratify breast cancers based on biological 'intrinsic' subtypes and proliferation. METHODS: Gene sets were selected from microarray data to assess proliferation and to classify breast cancers into four different molecular subtypes, designated Luminal, Normal-like, HER2+/ER-, and Basal-like. One-hundred and twenty-three breast samples (117 invasive …

Analysis Of Epstein-Barr Virus Reservoirs In Paired Blood And Breast Cancer Primary Biopsy Specimens By Real Time Pcr., R Serene Perkins, Katherine Sahm, Cindy Marando, Diana Dickson-Witmer, Gregory R Pahnke, Mark Mitchell, Nicholas J Petrelli, Irving M Berkowitz, Patricia Soteropoulos, Virginie M Aris, Stephen P Dunn, Leslie J Krueger

Department of Surgery Faculty Papers

INTRODUCTION: Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is present in over 90% of the world's population. This infection is considered benign, even though in limited cases EBV is associated with infectious and neoplastic conditions. Over the past decade, the EBV association with breast cancer has been constantly debated. Adding to this clinical and biological uncertainty, different techniques gave contradictory results for the presence of EBV in breast carcinoma specimens. In this study, minor groove binding (MGB)-TaqMan real time PCR was used to detect the presence of EBV DNA in both peripheral blood and tumor samples of selected patients. METHODS: Peripheral blood and breast …

Placental Expression Of Angiopoietin-1, Angiopoietin-2 And Tie-2 During Placental Development In An Ovine Model Of Placental Insufficiency-Fetal Growth Restriction., Amy S Erickson Hagen, Ryan J Orbus, Randall B Wilkening, Timothy Regnault, Russell V Anthony

Paediatrics Publications

Fetal growth restriction (FGR) is associated with increased perinatal morbidity and mortality, and often results from functional placental insufficiency. Placentation requires extensive vasculogenesis and subsequent angiogenesis, in both maternal and fetal tissues. Angiopoietin-1 (Ang-1) and Angiopoietin-2 (Ang-2) are angiogenic growth factors expressed in the placenta, and compete for binding to a common receptor, Tunica interna endothelial cell kinase-2 (Tie-2). Our objective was to examine Ang-1, Ang-2 and Tie-2 expression in ovine placental tissue obtained from normal and FGR pregnancies throughout gestation. Fetal cotyledon and maternal caruncle tissue concentrations of Ang-1, Ang-2 and Tie-2 mRNA were assessed by real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase …

Resident Efficiency In A Pediatric Emergency Department., M Denise Dowd, Celeste Tarantino, Theodore M. Barnett, Laura Fitzmaurice, Jane F. Knapp

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

OBJECTIVES: To measure the hourly rate of patients evaluated and treated by resident physicians in an academic pediatric emergency department (PED) and examine differences in the rate by subspecialty and year of training.

METHODS: For all residents rotating in an academic, urban children's hospital PED, the rate of patients seen per hour over the course of their rotation was calculated using an electronic tracking system, EmSTAT, for calendar year 2000. Rates are reported as the mean number of patients seen per resident hour worked. Mean differences are reported for resident subspecialties (emergency medicine, pediatrics, and family practice) and postgraduate year …

Near-Infrared Characterization Of Breast Tumors In Vivo Using Spectrally-Constrained Reconstruction, Subhadra Srinivasan, Brian W. Pogue, Ben Brooksby, Shudong Jiang, Hamid Dehghani, Christine Kogel, Wendy A. Wells, Steven P. Poplack, Keith D. Paulsen

Dartmouth Scholarship

Multi-wavelength Near-Infrared (NIR) Tomography was utilized in this study to non-invasively quantify physiological parameters of breast tumors using direct spectral reconstruction. Frequency domain NIR measurements were incorporated with a new spectrally constrained direct chromophore and scattering image reconstruction algorithm, which was validated in simulations and experimental phantoms. Images of total hemoglobin, oxygen saturation, water, and scatter parameters were obtained with higher accuracy than previously reported. Using this spectral approach, in vivo NIR images are presented and interpreted through a series of case studies (n=6 subjects) having differing abnormalities. The corresponding mammograms and ultrasound images are also evaluated. Three of six …

P38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase (Mapk) First Regulates Filamentous Actin At The 8-16-Cell Stage During Preimplantation Development., Andrew J M Paliga, David R Natale, Andrew J Watson

Obstetrics & Gynaecology Publications

BACKGROUND INFORMATION: The MAPK (mitogen-activated protein kinase) superfamily of proteins consists of four separate signalling cascades: the c-Jun N-terminal kinase or stress-activated protein kinases (JNK/SAPK); the ERKs (extracellular-signal-regulated kinases); the ERK5 or big MAPK1; and the p38 MAPK group of protein kinases, all of which are highly conserved. To date, our studies have focused on defining the role of the p38 MAPK pathway during preimplantation development. p38 MAPK regulates actin filament formation through the downstream kinases MAPKAPK2/3 (MAPK-activated protein kinase 2/3) or MAPKAPK5 [PRAK (p38 regulated/activated kinase)] and subsequently through HSP25/27 (heat-shock protein 25/27). We recently reported that 2-cell-stage murine …

Effects Of Estradiol On Lipopolysaccharide And Pam3cys Stimulation Of Ccl20/Macrophage Inflammatory Protein 3 Alpha And Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha Production By Uterine Epithelial Cells In Culture, Mardi A. Crane-Godreau, Charles R. Wira

Dartmouth Scholarship

We have previously demonstrated that rat uterine epithelial cells (UEC) produce CCL20/macrophage inflammatory protein 3 alpha (MIP3alpha) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) in response to live and heat-killed Escherichia coli and to the pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMP) lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and Pam3Cys. To determine whether estradiol (E2) modulates PAMP-induced CCL20/MIP3alpha and TNF-alpha secretion, primary cultures of rat UEC were incubated with E2 for 24 h and then treated with LPS or Pam3Cys or not treated for an additional 12 h. E2 inhibited the constitutive secretion of TNF-alpha and CCL20/MIP3alpha into culture media. Interestingly, E2 pretreatment enhanced CCL20/MIP3alpha secretion due to …

A Model Program For Youth Suicide Prevention, Hatim A. Omar

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Youth suicide continues to be one of the leading causes of death in the United States. Nation wide it is the third leading cause of death in the 10-24 year old age group. The rate of suicide varies somewhat from state to state. In the state of Kentucky, youth suicide is the second leading cause of death. This article describes a grass root, community-based program for youth suicide prevention and its impact on the community. The Stop Youth Suicide Campaign was launched in October 2000 and included more than 30 local agencies. This program worked. through public education, education of …

Stress Levels, Psychological Symptoms, And C-Reactive Protein Levels In Covid-19: A Cross-Sectional Study, Jian Zhang, Wei Li, Hideo Hoshi, Stephen L Mills, Stephen C Massey

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The correlation between cholinergic sensitivity and the level of stratification for ganglion cells was examined in the rabbit retina. As examples, we have used ON or OFF alpha ganglion cells and ON/OFF directionally selective (DS) ganglion cells. Nicotine, a cholinergic agonist, depolarized ON/OFF DS ganglion cells and greatly enhanced their firing rates but it had modest excitatory effects on ON or OFF alpha ganglion cells. As previously reported, we conclude that DS ganglion cells are the most sensitive to cholinergic drugs. Confocal imaging showed that ON/OFF DS ganglion cells ramify precisely at the level of the cholinergic amacrine cell dendrites, …