Pathology Commons^™

High-Fat Diets Promote Peritoneal Inflammation And Augment Endometriosis-Associated Abdominal Hyperalgesia, Tristin Herup-Wheeler, Mingxin Shi, Madeleine E Harvey, Chandni Talwar, Ramakrishna Kommagani, James A Maclean, Kanako Hayashi

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Immune dysfunction is one of the central components in the development and progression of endometriosis by establishing a chronic inflammatory environment. Western-style high-fat diets (HFD) have been linked to greater systemic inflammation to cause metabolic and chronic inflammatory diseases, and are also considered an environmental risk factor for gynecologic diseases. Here, we aimed to examine how HFD cause an inflammatory environment in endometriosis and discern their contribution to endometriotic-associated hyperalgesia. Our results showed that HFD-induced obesity enhanced abdominal hyperalgesia that was induced by endometriotic lesions. Peritoneal inflammatory macrophages and cytokine levels increased by lesion induction were elevated by chronic exposure …

Rapid Gene Fusion Testing Using The Nanostring Ncounter Platform To Improve Pediatric Leukemia Diagnoses In Sub-Saharan Africa, Julie M Gastier-Foster, Fredrick Lutwama, Olive Mbabazi, Steven Mlenga, Kennedy Ulaya, Ruth Namazzi, E Faith Hollingsworth, Dolores Lopez-Terrada, Kevin E Fisher, Angshumoy Roy, Carl E Allen, David G Poplack, Rizine Mzikamanda, Nmazuo Ozuah, Peter Wasswa

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Risk stratification and molecular targeting have been key to increasing cure rates for pediatric cancers in high-income countries. In contrast, precise diagnosis in low-resource settings is hindered by insufficient pathology infrastructure. The Global HOPE program aims to improve outcomes for pediatric cancer in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) by building local clinical care and diagnostic capacity. This study aimed to assess the feasibility of implementing molecular assays to improve leukemia diagnoses in SSA. Custom NanoString nCounter gene fusion assays, previously validated in the US, were used to test samples from suspected leukemia patients. The NanoString platform was chosen due to relatively low …

Translational And Oncologic Significance Of Tertiary Lymphoid Structures In Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma, Zachary Gao, Joseph Azar, Huili Zhu, Sophia Williams-Perez, Sung Wook Kang, Celia Marginean, Mark P Rubinstein, Shalini Makawita, Hyun-Sung Lee, E Ramsay Camp

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is an aggressive tumor with poor survival and limited treatment options. PDAC resistance to immunotherapeutic strategies is multifactorial, but partially owed to an immunosuppressive tumor immune microenvironment (TiME). However, the PDAC TiME is heterogeneous and harbors favorable tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) populations. Tertiary lymphoid structures (TLS) are organized aggregates of immune cells that develop within non-lymphoid tissue under chronic inflammation in multiple contexts, including cancers. Our current understanding of their role within the PDAC TiME remains limited; TLS are complex structures with multiple anatomic features such as location, density, and maturity that may impact clinical outcomes such as …

Structure And Funding Of Clinical Informatics Fellowships: A National Survey Of Program Directors, Tushar N Patel, Aaron J Chaise, John J Hanna, Kunal P Patel, Karl M Kochendorfer, Richard J Medford, Dara E Mize, Edward R Melnick, Jonathan D Hron, Kenneth Youens, Deepti Pandita, Michael G Leu, Gregory A Ator, Feliciano Yu, Nicholas Genes, Carrie K Baker, Douglas S Bell, Joshua M Pevnick, Steven A Conrad, Aarti R Chandawarkar, Kendall M Rogers, David C Kaelber, Ila R Singh, Bruce P Levy, John T Finnell, Joseph Kannry, Natalie M Pageler, Vishnu Mohan, Christoph U Lehmann

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: In 2011, the American Board of Medical Specialties established clinical informatics (CI) as a subspecialty in medicine, jointly administered by the American Board of Pathology and the American Board of Preventive Medicine. Subsequently, many institutions created CI fellowship training programs to meet the growing need for informaticists. Although many programs share similar features, there is considerable variation in program funding and administrative structures.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of our study was to characterize CI fellowship program features, including governance structures, funding sources, and expenses.

METHODS: We created a cross-sectional online REDCap survey with 44 items requesting information on program administration, …

Fluoxetine And Sertraline Inhibit Height Growth And Growth Hormone Signaling During Puberty, Chadi Calarge, Chima Amushie, Stephanie Dinh, James A Mills, Sridevi Devaraj, Griselda Barba-Villalobos, Jacqueline Nguyen, Jose M Garcia, Stephanie Sisley, Fida Bacha, Babette Zemel

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Purpose: The aim of this study was to examine the effect of fluoxetine and sertraline on height growth and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) during puberty.

Methods: In this 6-month cohort study, electronic medical records were used to identify 8- to 15-year-old participants, within 1 month of starting fluoxetine (n = 39) or sertraline (n = 27), and sexual maturation stages 2 to 4 were confirmed. Conditions that interfere with height growth led to exclusion. Participants underwent anthropometric assessments and phlebotomy. Healthy, unmedicated children (n = 36) also provided anthropometric data.

Results: After the baseline height Z-score, sex, Tanner stage, daily …

Pharmacological Inhibition Of The Map2k7 Kinase In Human Disease, H Daniel Lacorazza

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

The MAP2K7 signaling pathway activates the c-Jun NH2-terminal protein kinase (JNK) in response to stress signals, such as inflammatory cytokines, osmotic stress, or genomic damage. While there has been interest in inhibiting JNK due to its involvement in inflammatory processes and cancer, there is increasing focus on developing MAP2K7 inhibitors to enhance specificity when MAP2K7 activation is associated with disease progression. Despite some progress, further research is needed to fully comprehend the role of MAP2K7 in cancer and assess the potential use of kinase inhibitors in cancer therapy. This review examines the role of MAP2K7 in cancer and the development …

Childhood And Adolescent Relapsed/Refractory Aggressive B-Cell Lymphomas With T(8;14) And Bcl2 Expression, Burkitt Lymphoma Versus Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma: A Diagnostic Challenge, Fouad El Dana, Sofia Alexandra Garces Narvaez, Nader K El-Mallawany, Jennifer E Agrusa, Zoann E Dreyer, Andrea N Marcogliese, Mohamed Tarek Elghetany, Jyotinder N Punia, Chi Young Ok, Keyur P Patel, Dolores H Lopez-Terrada, Kevin E Fisher, Choladda V Curry

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

We present 2 diagnostically challenging cases of pediatric/adolescent relapsed/refractory aggressive mature B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (B-NHL) within the spectrum of Burkitt lymphoma and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma and illustrate the different therapeutic regimens that are employed for pediatric and adult cancer centers. Both cases displayed varying-sized lymphoma cells with occasional single prominent nucleoli and heterogeneous BCL2 expression. Cytogenetics revealed complex karyotypes with t(8:14)(q24.2;q32) and IGH::MYC rearrangement by FISH. Next generation sequencing revealed deleterious TP53 and MYC mutations. We concluded that both could be diagnosed as “DLBCL-NOS with MYC rearrangement” using the current pathologic classifications, 2022 International Consensus Classification (ICC) and World …

Molecular Profiling Of A Hepatocellular Neoplasm Not Otherwise Specified (Hcn-Nos) Demonstrates Distinct Molecular Features In Hepatoblastoma And Hcc-Like Components, Yan Chen Wongworawat, Stephen F Sarabia, Martin Urbicain, Paola Francalanci, Pavel Sumazin, Rita Alaggio, Dolores H López-Terrada

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Hepatoblastomas (HB) are embryonal tumors with quiet genomes diagnosed mostly in children under 3 years of age and often cured by surgical resection and chemotherapy. However, a subset of HBs behave aggressively, displaying characteristic histologic features and higher genomic instability. Hepatocellular neoplasm-not otherwise specified (HCN-NOS) is a provisional diagnostic category for tumors exhibiting either intermediate or a combination of both HB and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) histological features. In this study, we characterized an HCN-NOS diagnosed in a 3-year-old patient presenting with a liver mass, in which both HB and HCC histological components were amendable to macro-dissection and molecular profiling. The …

Genetic Variation Between Small Bowel And Colon-Predominant Crohn's Disease, Halee Patel, R Alan Harris, Justin H Qian, Numan Oezguen, Ashleigh Watson, Reka G Szigeti, Stanley Cho, Wenly Ruan, Savini Britto, Antone Opekun, Geoffrey Preidis, Richard Kellermayer

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

No abstract provided.

The Involvement Of Hepatic Cytochrome P450s In The Cytotoxicity Of Lapatinib, Si Chen, Xilin Li, Yuxi Li, Xiaobo He, Matthew Bryant, Xuan Qin, Feng Li, Ji-Eun Seo, Xiaoqing Guo, Nan Mei, Lei Guo

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Lapatinib, an oral tyrosine kinase inhibitor used as a first-line treatment for HER2-positive breast cancer, has been reported to be associated with hepatotoxicity; however, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. In this study, we report that lapatinib causes cytotoxicity in multiple types of hepatic cells, including primary human hepatocytes, HepaRG cells, and HepG2 cells. A 24-h treatment with lapatinib induced cell cycle disturbances, apoptosis, and DNA damage, and decreased the protein levels of topoisomerase in HepG2 cells. We investigated the role of cytochrome P450 (CYP)-mediated metabolism in lapatinib-induced cytotoxicity using our previously established HepG2 cell lines, which express each of 14 …

Endometrial Tgfβ Signaling Fosters Early Pregnancy Development By Remodeling The Fetomaternal Interface, Sydney E Parks, Ting Geng, Diana Monsivais

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

The endometrium is a unique and highly regenerative tissue with crucial roles during the reproductive lifespan of a woman. As the first site of contact between mother and embryo, the endometrium, and its critical processes of decidualization and immune cell recruitment, play a leading role in the establishment of pregnancy, embryonic development, and reproductive capacity. These integral processes are achieved by the concerted actions of steroid hormones and a myriad of growth factor signaling pathways. This review focuses on the roles of the transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) pathway in the endometrium during the earliest stages of pregnancy through the …

Navigating Relapsed Hepatoblastoma: Predictive Factors And Surgical Treatment Strategy, Andres F Espinoza, Kalyani R Patel, Priya B Shetty, Richard S Whitlock, Pavel Sumazin, Xinjian Yu, Stephen F Sarabia, Martin Urbicain, Andras Heczey, Prakash Masand, Sarah E Woodfield, Dolores H López-Terrada, Sanjeev A Vasudevan

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Objective: Hepatoblastoma (HB) is the most common primary hepatic malignancy in childhood. Relapse occurs in more than 50% of high-risk patients with a high mortality due to ineffective salvage therapies. The purpose of this study is to identify risk factors for relapsed HB and predictors of survival in a single tertiary referral center.

Methods: A retrospective chart review showed 129 surgically treated HB patients from October 2004 to July 2020. Of the cohort, 22 patients presented with relapsed HB. Relapse was defined as re-appearance of malignancy after 4 weeks of normalized AFP and disappearance of all tumors on imaging.

Results: …

Microbial Products Linked To Steatohepatitis Are Reduced By Deletion Of Nuclear Hormone Receptor Shp In Mice, Ryan Mifflin, Jung Eun Park, Mikang Lee, Prasant Kumar Jena, Yu-Jui Yvonne Wan, Hazel A Barton, Mirjavid Aghayev, Takhar Kasumov, Li Lin, Xinwen Wang, Robert Novak, Feng Li, He Huang, Leah P Shriver, Yoon-Kwang Lee

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Deletion of the nuclear hormone receptor small heterodimer partner (Shp) ameliorates the development of obesity and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) in mice. Liver-specific SHP plays a significant role in this amelioration. The gut microbiota has been associated with these metabolic disorders, and the interplay between bile acids (BAs) and gut microbiota contributes to various metabolic disorders. Since hepatic SHP is recognized as a critical regulator in BA synthesis, we assessed the involvement of gut microbiota in the antiobesity and anti-NASH phenotype of Shp−/− mice. Shp deletion significantly altered the levels of a few conjugated BAs. Sequencing the 16S …

Wire Snare Close Loop: A Novel Technique To Retrieve Embolized Devices, Manish Bansal, Gary E Stapleton, Srinath T Gowda, Athar M Qureshi

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

No abstract provided.

Invasive Community-Onset Gram-Positive Infections From July 2018 Through December 2022 At 2 Children's Hospitals, Eric E Engstrom, Alexander S Plattner, J Chase Mcneil, Kristina G Hulten, Patrick J Reich, Mary G Boyle, James J Dunn, Stephanie A Fritz, Sheldon L Kaplan

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: Invasive infections caused by Streptococcus pyogenes (invasive group A streptococcus [iGAS]) and Streptococcus pneumoniae (invasive pneumococcal disease [IPD]) decreased substantially at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our study sought to evaluate the extent of this decrease and the trends of these infections since reversion of societal adjustments incident to the pandemic. We also wanted to compare the frequency of these infections with invasive community-onset Staphylococcus aureus (I-CO-SA) infections and common respiratory viral infections in this period.

METHODS: Cases of iGAS, IPD, and I-CO-SA infections were identified prospectively and retrospectively at 2 large US children's hospitals by positive cultures …

Highly Invasive Biliary Cancer Presenting As Multiple Extrabiliary Lesions Masquerading As Abscesses, Alexander Lu, Alireza Mojtahedi, Lukman Cheraghvandi, David Wynne, Neda Zarrin-Khameh, Mohammad Ghasemi Rad

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Carcinosarcomas of the biliary tract are an extremely rare type of malignancy and may be low on a differential when presenting as multiple metastatic masses. In this case report, we report a case of a female who presented with an aggressive late-stage disease whose initial workup did not indicate a malignant process. Further complicating her care, biopsy samples taken from extra-hepatic masses were culture-positive for Lactobacillus rhamnosu. Given the late stage of the patient’s disease, hospice care was initiated. The patient passed away four months after the initial presentation.

Best Practices For Effective Management Of Point Of Care Testing, Anil K Chokkalla, Brandy D Recio, Sridevi Devaraj

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

With the recent COVID-19 pandemic, point-of-care testing has gained tremendous attention, particularly in acute care settings. The point-of-care testing landscape is rapidly expanding and being contemplated for any crucial test with a central laboratory turnaround time >25% of the clinical decision time. A typical point-of-care testing program within a large hospital system encompasses a multitude of operators utilizing a wide range of devices across multiple testing sites. Thus, managing a large point-of-care testing network remains a daunting task with challenges related to staffing, standardization, quality management, training and competency assessment, and data management. This review will focus on understanding the …

Pediatric Hepatocellular Adenomas: What Is Known And What Is New?, Andres F Espinoza, Sanjeev A Vasudevan, Prakash M Masand, Dolores H Lòpez-Terrada, Kalyani R Patel

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Current understanding and classification of pediatric hepatocellular adenomas (HCA) are largely based on adult data. HCAs are rare in children and, unlike in adults, are often seen in the context of syndromes or abnormal background liver. Attempts to apply the adult classification to pediatric tumors have led to several "unclassifiable" lesions. Although typically considered benign, few can show atypical features and those with beta-catenin mutations have a risk for malignant transformation. Small lesions can be monitored while larger (>5.0 cm) lesions are excised due to symptoms or risk of bleeding/rupture, etc. Management depends on gender, age, underlying liver disease, …

Accuracy-Based Glomerular Filtration Rate Assessment By Plasma Iohexol Clearance In Kidney Transplant Donors, Zhicheng Jin, Rongrong Huang, Paul Christensen, Roger L Bertholf, Xin Yi

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: An accurate measurement of the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) is essential for detecting renal insufficiency in living kidney donors. Iohexol is a "near-ideal" exogenous filtration marker for GFR measurements that has attracted increasing interest in clinical practice because it is non-toxic, non-radioactive, readily available, and easy to measure. In this study, we aimed to set up a laboratory test to conveniently assess the plasma clearance of iohexol in living kidney donors.

Methods: A workflow was established in the institution's infusion clinic to administer iohexol and to collect three timed blood samples from renal transplant donors. Iohexol was thereafter measured …

A High-Throughput Protocol For Measuring Solution Ph Of Bacterial Cultures Using Uv-Vis Absorption Spectrophotometry, Kristen A Engevik, Hyland Gonzalez, Clay Daniels, Ronald K Stavert, Numan Oezguen, Melinda A Engevik, Thomas D Horvath

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

We present a protocol for measuring the pH of cell-free bacterial-conditioned media based on changes in the ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) absorbance spectrum using the pH indicator dye litmus. This protocol includes detailed procedures for performing bacterial culturing, examining bacterial growth, collecting cell-free supernatant, litmus dye addition, and pH-based calibration curve preparations. This assay has been designed for flexible formatting that can accommodate both high-volume and low-volume sample sets.

Small-Molecule Chemical Probes For The Potential Therapeutic Targets In Alcoholic Liver Diseases, Ashish Dogra, Feng Li

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) encompasses a range of conditions resulting from prolonged and excessive alcohol consumption, causing liver damage such as alcoholic fatty liver, inflammation, fibrosis, and cirrhosis. Alcohol consumption contributes to millions of deaths each year. So far, the effective treatments for ALD are limited. To date, the most effective treatment for ALD is still prevention by avoiding excessive alcohol consumption, and only few specialized medicines are in the market for the treatment of patients suffering from ALD. Small molecules targeting various pathways implicated in ALD pathogenesis can potentially be used for effective therapeutics development. In this review, we …

Equine Bronchial Epithelial Cells Are Susceptible To Cell Entry With A Sars-Cov-2 Pseudovirus But Reveal Low Replication Efficiency, Rebecca M Legere, Angelica R Allegro, Yvonne Affram, Bibiana Petri Da Silveira, Jennifer L Fridley, Kelsey M Wells, Numan Oezguen, Robert C Burghardt, Gus A Wright, Jeroen Pollet, Angela I Bordin, Paul De Figueiredo, Julian L Leibowitz, Noah D Cohen

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Objective: To examine the susceptibility of cultured primary equine bronchial epithelial cells (EBECs) to a severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pseudovirus relative to human bronchial epithelial cells (HBECs).

Sample: Primary EBEC cultures established from healthy adult horses and commercially sourced human bronchial epithelial cells (HBECs) were used as a positive control.

Methods: Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) expression by EBECs was demonstrated using immunofluorescence, western immunoblot, and flow cytometry. EBECs were transduced with a lentivirus pseudotyped with the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein that binds to ACE2 and expresses the enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP) as a reporter. Cells were transduced …

Polygenic Genetic Variation Affecting Antibody Formation Underlies Hypertensive Renal Injury In The Stroke-Prone Spontaneously Hypertensive Rat, Isha S Dhande, Yaming Zhu, Aniket S Joshi, M John Hicks, Michael C Braun, Peter A Doris

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

During development of the spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR), several distinct but closely related lines were generated. Most lines are resistant to hypertensive renal disease. However, the SHR-A3 line (stroke-prone SHR) experiences end-organ injury (EOI) and provides a model of injury susceptibility that can be used to uncover genetic causation. In the present study, we generated a congenic line in which three distinct disease loci in SHR-A3 are concurrently replaced with homologous loci from an injury-resistant SHR line (SHR-B2). Verification that all three loci were homozygously replaced in this triple congenic line [SHR-A3(Trip B2)] while the genetic background of SHR-A3 was …

Unexpected Drug-Induced Liver Injury Associated With Menofit: A Synbiotic Menopause Supplement, Apaar Dadlani, Azubuogu Anudu, E Celia Marginean

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

MenoFit is a widely available over-the-counter synbiotic supplement, which is marketed for use in relieving menopausal symptoms. So far, there is no published data on liver injury because of its use. We present the first reported case of MenoFit-induced liver injury in a patient who presented with 1 week of jaundice and abnormal liver biochemical tests in the absence of other risk factors and negative comprehensive workup for known etiologies of liver disease.

Stratification Of Pediatric Covid-19 Cases Using Inflammatory Biomarker Profiling And Machine Learning., Devika Subramanian, Aadith Vittala, Xinpu Chen, Christopher Julien, Sebastian Acosta, Craig Rusin, Carl Allen, Nicholas Rider, Zbigniew Starosolski, Ananth Annapragada, Sridevi Devaraj

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

While pediatric COVID-19 is rarely severe, a small fraction of children infected with SARS-CoV-2 go on to develop multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C), with substantial morbidity. An objective method with high specificity and high sensitivity to identify current or imminent MIS-C in children infected with SARS-CoV-2 is highly desirable. The aim was to learn about an interpretable novel cytokine/chemokine assay panel providing such an objective classification. This retrospective study was conducted on four groups of pediatric patients seen at multiple sites of Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX who consented to provide blood samples to our COVID-19 Biorepository. Standard laboratory markers of …

A Defective Mechanosensing Pathway Affects Fibroblast-To-Myofibroblast Transition In The Old Male Mouse Heart, Aude Angelini, Joann Trial, Alexander B Saltzman, Anna Malovannaya, Katarzyna A Cieslik

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

The cardiac fibroblast interacts with an extracellular matrix (ECM), enabling myofibroblast maturation via a process called mechanosensing. Although in the aging male heart, ECM is stiffer than in the young mouse, myofibroblast development is impaired, as demonstrated in 2-D and 3-D experiments. In old male cardiac fibroblasts, we found a decrease in actin polymerization, α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), and Kindlin-2 expressions, the latter an effector of the mechanosensing. When Kindlin-2 levels were manipulated via siRNA interference, young fibroblasts developed an old-like fibroblast phenotype, whereas Kindlin-2 overexpression in old fibroblasts reversed the defective phenotype. Finally, inhibition of overactivated extracellular regulated kinases …

The Rise Of Degrader Drugs, Mingxing Teng, Nathanael S Gray

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

The cancer genomics revolution has served up a plethora of promising and challenging targets for the drug discovery community. The field of targeted protein degradation (TPD) uses small molecules to reprogram the protein homeostasis system to destroy desired target proteins. In the last decade, remarkable progress has enabled the rational development of degraders for a large number of target proteins, with over 20 molecules targeting more than 12 proteins entering clinical development. While TPD has been fully credentialed by the prior development of immunomodulatory drug (IMiD) class for the treatment of multiple myeloma, the field is poised for a "Gleevec …

Monocytic And Blastic Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cell Differentiation In Acute Leukemia With Kmt2a Rearrangement, Owen Xue, Choladda V Curry, Hong Fang, Carlos E Bueso-Ramos, L Jeffrey Medeiros, Wei Wang

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Acute leukemia with KMT2A rearrangement shows a spectrum of immunophenotypic presentation, but blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell differentiation is extremely rare. Here we present a case of KMT2A rearranged acute leukemia with a hybrid immunophenotype in which a single blast population showed both blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell and monocytic differentiation. This unusual case contributes to the diversity of the immunophenotypic spectrum in KMT2A rearranged acute leukemia and also sheds light on the cell of origin of plasmacytoid dendritic cells.

Comparison Of Random Urine Protein/Creatinine Ratio With 24-Hour Urine Protein In Suspected Pre-Eclampsia, Lily Olayinka, Emily Garnett, Brian Burnett, Sridevi Devaraj

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

INTRODUCTION: Proteinuria is one of the classical criteria for the diagnosis of pre-eclampsia. The gold standard remains the measurement of 24-h urine protein which is time consuming and prone to preanalytical errors. Random urine protein creatinine ratio (UPCR) is endorsed by clinical practice guidelines as a faster alternative. The aim of this study was to evaluate the correlation between the 24-h urine protein excretion and UPCR in the identification of proteinuria in suspected preeclamptic patients.

METHOD: A total of 51 women with suspected pre-eclampsia from the maternal fetal clinic of our institution were retrospectively studied. The correlation between the UPCR …

The Role Of Fas Receptor Methylation In Osteosarcoma Metastasis, Jiayi M Sun, Wing-Yuk Chow, Gufeng Xu, M John Hicks, Manjula Nakka, Jianhe Shen, Patrick Kwok Shing Ng, Aaron M Taylor, Alexander Yu, Jason E Farrar, Donald A Barkauskas, Richard Gorlick, Jaime M Guidry Auvil, Daniela Gerhard, Paul Meltzer, Rudy Guerra, Tsz-Kwong Man, Ching C Lau, On Behalf Of The Target Osteosarcoma Consortium

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Osteosarcoma is the most frequent primary malignant bone tumor with an annual incidence of about 400 cases in the United States. Osteosarcoma primarily metastasizes to the lungs, where FAS ligand (FASL) is constitutively expressed. The interaction of FASL and its cell surface receptor, FAS, triggers apoptosis in normal cells; however, this function is altered in cancer cells. DNA methylation has previously been explored as a mechanism for altering FAS expression, but no variability was identified in the CpG island (CGI) overlapping the promoter. Analysis of an expanded region, including CGI shores and shelves, revealed high variability in the methylation of …