COVID-19 Commons^™

Critical Appraisal Of Multidrug Therapy In The Ambulatory Management Of Patients With Covid-19 And Hypoxemia. Part Ii: Causal Inference Using The Bradford Hill Criteria, Eleftherios Gkioulekas, Peter A. Mccullough, Colleen Aldous

School of Mathematical & Statistical Sciences Faculty Publications

We continue the critical appraisal of three published case series of 119 COVID-19 patients with hypoxemia, treated in the United States, Zimbabwe, and Nigeria with similar ivermectin-based multidrug treatments, to assess the available evidence supporting a causal relationship between treatment and reduction in hospitalizations and mortality. A narrative review was conducted to assess the Bradford Hill criteria for a causal association. We used a previously proposed refinement of the Bradford Hill criteria that reorganized them into three categories of direct, mechanistic, and parallel evidence. The efficacy of the two most aggressive ivermectin-based multidrug protocols is supported by the Bradford Hill …

The Impact Of Covid-19 On The United States Higher Education System, Phoenix Daniel Van Wormer

University Honors Theses

In the spring of 2020, colleges across the United States rapidly transitioned to online/remote learning during the COVID-19 global pandemic. Since then, online and remote learning have evolved into an integral component of higher education. This thesis examines the extent to which COVID-19-mandated remote and online learning impacted students pursuing higher education in the United States. By utilizing research that compares academic structures before and after the pandemic, I demonstrate how the shift to online and remote learning has changed teaching and learning methods. I also evaluate the impact of these changes on student performance and engagement, with particular focus …

A Narrative Review Of The Covid-19 Infodemic And Censorship In Healthcare, Mitchell Liester, Sohaib Ashraf, Patricia Callisperis, Hector Carvallo, Shankara Chetty, Robert Enzenauer, Carlos Franco-Paredes, Raul Pineda, Panagis Polykretis, Rachel Wilkenson, Peter Mccullough

Secrecy and Society

Ideological and financial motivations have undermined science for decades. In this narrative review, we explore how organizations and governments used misinformation, disinformation, censorship, and secrecy to manage the COVID-19 pandemic. Various rationales for employing censorship and secrecy during the COVID-19 pandemic are examined including how organizations and governments create confusion about the risks associated with their products and blame avoidance to shift responsibility and to avoid accountability for their actions. Methods of censorship employed during the COVID-19 pandemic are reviewed, examples are provided, and the consequences of these actions are reviewed. Information included in this review was obtained from scientific …

Older Women In The U.S. Were Lonelier Than Men During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Qiyu Deng

Population Health Research Brief Series

Loneliness damages health and quality of life. The COVID-19 pandemic increased social isolation and loneliness among some groups in the U.S. This data slice uses data from the 2020 Health and Retirement Study to examine gender and age differences in loneliness among older adults (50+) in the U.S. during the first year of the pandemic. The author finds that loneliness was more prevalent among women than among men, with the highest rate among women ages 80 and older.

Association Of Messenger Rna Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid-19) Vaccination And Reductions In Post Covid Conditions Following Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Infection In A Us Prospective Cohort Of Essential Workers, Josephine Mak, Sana Khan, Amadea Britton, Spencer Rose, Lisa Gwynn, Katherine D Ellingson, Jennifer Meece, Leora R Feldstein, Harmony Tyner, Laura J Edwards, Matthew S Thiese, Allison Naleway, Manjusha Gaglani, Natasha Solle, Jefferey L Burgess, Julie Mayo Lamberte, Meghan Shea, Taryn Hunt-Smith, Alberto Caban-Martinez, Cynthia Porter, Ryan Wiegand, Ramona Rai, Kurt T Hegmann, James Hollister, Ashley Fowlkes, Meredith Wesley, Andrew L Philips, Patrick Rivers, Robin Bloodworth, Gabriella Newes-Adeyi, Lauren E W Olsho, Sarang K Yoon, Sharon Saydah, Karen Lutrick

Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy Staff Publications

Background: Data are limited on whether vaccination reduces post COVID conditions (PCCs) risk after less severe nonhospitalized coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This study assessed whether COVID-19 vaccination protected against PCCs in persons with mild initial infections during Delta and Omicron variant predominance.

Methods: This study utilized a case-control design, nested within the HEROES-RECOVER cohort. Participants aged ≥18 years with test-confirmed severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus disease 2 (SARS-CoV-2) between 28 June 2021 and 14 September 2022 were surveyed for PCCs, defined by symptoms lasting >4 weeks after initial infection. Cases self-reported PCCs and controls self-reported no PCCs. The exposure was …

Precision Phenotyping For Curating Research Cohorts Of Patients With Unexplained Post-Acute Sequelae Of Covid-19, Alaleh Azhir, Jonas Hügel, Jiazi Tian, Jingya Cheng, Ingrid V Bassett, Douglas S Bell, Elmer V Bernstam, Maha R Farhat, Darren W Henderson, Emily S Lau, Michele Morris, Yevgeniy R Semenov, Virginia A Triant, Shyam Visweswaran, Zachary H Strasser, Jeffrey G Klann, Shawn N Murphy, Hossein Estiri

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Scalable identification of patients with post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC) is challenging due to a lack of reproducible precision phenotyping algorithms, which has led to suboptimal accuracy, demographic biases, and underestimation of the PASC.

METHODS: In a retrospective case-control study, we developed a precision phenotyping algorithm for identifying cohorts of patients with PASC. We used longitudinal electronic health records data from over 295,000 patients from 14 hospitals and 20 community health centers in Massachusetts. The algorithm employs an attention mechanism to simultaneously exclude sequelae that prior conditions can explain and include infection-associated chronic conditions. We performed independent chart reviews …

The Learning Crisis In The United States Three Years After Covid-19, Harry Anthony Patrinos, Maciej Jakubowski, Tomasz Gajderowicz

Education Reform Faculty and Graduate Students Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic caused widespread disruptions to education, with school closures affecting over one billion children. These closures, aimed at reducing virus transmission, resulted in significant learning losses, particularly in mathematics and science. Using United States data from TIMSS, this study analyzes the impact of school closure on learning outcomes. The losses amount to 0.36 SD for mathematics and 0.16 SD for science. The declines are similar across grades. The average decline in mathematics performance among U.S. students is substantially greater than the global average. n science, the decline observed among U.S. students does not significantly differ from the global …

False Narratives, Real Consequences, Russell W. Cantrell, Matt Campbell

Shelby Hall Graduate Research Forum Posters

Social media is an increasingly significant tool in modern cyber warfare, capable of rapidly shaping public opinion. The swift dissemination of information complicates efforts to distinguish fact from fiction [1]. During public health crises, healthcare professionals use these platforms to share updates, yet their credible content must contend with false or deliberately misleading narratives [2]. This environment creates an opportunity for cyberattacks through social media influence campaigns [3]. While disinformation's role in political interference has been widely studied, its potential to destabilize healthcare remains largely unexplored. Prior research primarily focuses on how vaccine misinformation affects the general public [4]. This …

The Importance Of Public Health In College Populations: Why Vaccines Are Important, Kashish Poore

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

This paper examines the importance of vaccines in college populations, where high-density living environments create unique vulnerabilities to infectious disease outbreaks. Despite vaccine mandates at most institutions, research indicates that many college students possess incomplete understanding of vaccine mechanisms and importance. The paper addresses three interconnected aspects: the biological foundations of vaccine-induced immunity, the significance of vaccination in collegiate settings, and the current state of vaccine literacy among students. Historical outbreaks on campuses, including meningitis at Princeton and mumps across several institutions, highlight the consequences of undervaccination. Social media misinformation has contributed significantly to vaccine hesitancy, particularly since COVID-19. The …

Long Covid Illness: Disparities In Understanding And Receipt Of Care In Emergency Department Populations, Robert M Rodriguez, Karen Reyes, Vijaya Arun Kumar, Brian Chinnock, Stephanie A Eucker, Kristin L Rising, Zubaid Rafique, Michael Gottlieb, Graham Nichol, Dana Morse, Melanie Molina, Mireya I Arreguin, Lindsey Shughart, Christopher Conn, Svea Eckstrand, Heba Mesbah, Lauren Chakraborty, Robert D Welch

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Study objective: Most long coronavirus disease (long COVID) studies rely on traditional surveillance methods that miss underserved populations who use emergency departments (EDs) as their primary health care source. In medically underserved ED populations, we sought to determine (1) whether there are gaps in awareness and self-declared understanding about long COVID illness, and (2) the prevalence, impact on school/work attendance, and receipt of care for long COVID symptoms.

Methods: This study was a cross-sectional, convenience sample survey study of adult patients at 11 geographically representative US EDs from December 2022 to October 2023. Awareness and self-declared understanding about long COVID …

Reducing Burnout Among Physiatry Trainees During The Pandemic: Instituting A Wellness Retreat, Edwin Amirianfar, Oliver Acosta, Eduard Tiozzo, Joslyn Gober, Monica Verduzco-Gutierrez

Journal of Wellness

Introduction: Burnout has been described as “a state of mental and physical exhaustion related to work or caregiving activities.” Among resident physicians, burnout is a serious concern that can lead to medical errors and negative patient outcomes. To combat burnout among physiatry trainees during the COVID-19 pandemic, an innovative wellness retreat was created and implemented at the University of Miami’s Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) Residency Program in March 2021 and February 2022.

Methods: The retreat curriculum was designed by the PM&R Residency Wellness Committee and supported by departmental funding. The retreat(s) consisted of three strategies: education and discussion on …

Complement Activity And Autophagy Are Dysregulated In The Lungs Of Patients With Nonresolvable Covid-19 Requiring Lung Transplantation, Pooja Shivshankar, Stacey L Mueller-Ortiz, Aleksey Y Domozhirov, Weizhen Bi, Scott D Collum, Marie-Francoise Doursout, Manish Patel, Isabella N Lefebvre, Bindu Akkanti, Simon Yau, Howard J Huang, Rahat Hussain, Harry Karmouty-Quintana

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)-induced coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has challenged the current understanding of the complement cascade mechanisms of host immune responses during infection-induced nonresolvable lung disease. While the complement system is involved in opsonization and phagocytosis of the invading pathogens, uncontrolled complement activation also leads to aberrant autophagic response and tissue damage. Our recent study revealed unique pathologic and fibrotic signature genes associated with epithelial bronchiolization in the lung tissues of patients with nonresolvable COVID-19 (NR-COVID-19) requiring lung transplantation. However, there is a knowledge gap if complement components are modulated to contribute to tissue …

Relationship Between Prevalence Of Disability And Receiving The Covid-19 Vaccine Abstract, Brady Beard, Michael Treichler, Kevin Gittner

Symposium of Student Scholars

COVID-19 vaccines were developed to reduce the spread and severity of the virus, particularly among vulnerable populations. People with disabilities are at higher risk of severe outcomes from COVID-19 due to underlying health conditions, limited access to healthcare, and potential barriers to preventive measures like social distancing. Despite their vulnerability, disabled individuals may face challenges in accessing vaccines, such as physical barriers, transportation issues, or a lack of tailored information. Additionally, vaccine hesitancy may be influenced by concerns about potential side effects harming existing disabilities. This study investigates the research question: "Is there a relationship between receiving the COVID-19 vaccine …

Building Blocks For New Kinship Partnerships And Coalitions, Kathy L. Dial, Daniel J. Koltz, Janet Salo, Erin Beasley

GrandFamilies: The Contemporary Journal of Research, Practice and Policy

Building successful kinship partnerships and coalitions requires intentional effort to establish trust, align goals, and foster inclusivity. These collaborations are essential for addressing the unique and evolving needs of kinship families, who often face limited access to resources due to the informal nature of many caregiving arrangements. Effective partnerships prioritize clear missions, open communication, and active engagement with stakeholders, particularly those with lived experiences such as kinship caregivers. Research demonstrates that coordinated efforts among organizations enhance resource availability, improve advocacy capabilities, and strengthen service delivery. By integrating diversity, equity, and inclusion principles, coalitions can ensure that diverse perspectives shape solutions …

The Multifaceted Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Perceptions Of Overall Health, Krystal Robinson, Grace Godfrey, Jacob Godfrey, Carissa Salamatin, Renee Chang, Payson Broome, Dominique Gillette, Kevin Tarrio, Sherli Koshy-Chenthittayil, Karen Duus

Annual Research Symposium

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines health as a “state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” Previous studies have indicated both mental health and overall physical health can decline due to heightened sedentary behavior. This project investigates these concepts further by analyzing individual’s perceptions of their overall physical and mental health during the pandemic using Qualtrics and R. Participants aged 18 and older (n > 200) provided pre- and post-quarantine data with subgroup comparisons by gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, age, residence, and coping mechanisms. Initial results revealed a significant decline in …

Mutational Scanning And Binding Free Energy Computations Of The Sars-Cov-2 Spike Complexes With Distinct Groups Of Neutralizing Antibodies: Energetic Drivers Of Convergent Evolution Of Binding Affinity And Immune Escape Hotspots, Mohammed Alshahrani, Vedant Parikh, Brandon Foley, Nishank Raisinghani, Gennady M. Verkhivker

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

The rapid evolution of SARS-CoV-2 has led to the emergence of variants with increased immune evasion capabilities, posing significant challenges to antibody-based therapeutics and vaccines. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive structural and energetic analysis of SARS-CoV-2 spike receptor-binding domain (RBD) complexes with neutralizing antibodies from four distinct groups (A–D), including group A LY-CoV016, group B AZD8895 and REGN10933, group C LY-CoV555, and group D antibodies AZD1061, REGN10987, and LY-CoV1404. Using coarse-grained simplified simulation models, rapid energy-based mutational scanning, and rigorous MM-GBSA binding free energy calculations, we elucidated the molecular mechanisms of antibody binding and escape mechanisms, identified key …

Increasing Covid-19 Testing And Vaccination Uptake In The Take Care Texas Community-Based Randomized Trial: Adaptive Geospatial Analysis, Kehe Zhang, Jocelyn V Hunyadi, Marcia C De Oliveira Otto, Miryoung Lee, Zitong Zhang, Ryan Ramphul, Jose-Miguel Yamal, Ashraf Yaseen, Alanna C Morrison, Shreela Sharma, Mohammad Hossein Rahbar, Xu Zhang, Stephen Linder, Dritana Marko, Rachel White Roy, Deborah Banerjee, Esmeralda Guajardo, Michelle Crum, Belinda Reininger, Maria E Fernandez, Cici Bauer

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Geospatial data science can be a powerful tool to aid the design, reach, efficiency, and impact of community-based intervention trials. The project titled Take Care Texas aims to develop and test an adaptive, multilevel, community-based intervention to increase COVID-19 testing and vaccination uptake among vulnerable populations in 3 Texas regions: Harris County, Cameron County, and Northeast Texas.

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to develop a novel procedure for adaptive selections of census block groups (CBGs) to include in the community-based randomized trial for the Take Care Texas project.

METHODS: CBG selection was conducted across 3 Texas regions over a 17-month period …

Quantitative Characterization And Prediction Of The Binding Determinants And Immune Escape Hotspots For Groups Of Broadly Neutralizing Antibodies Against Omicron Variants: Atomistic Modeling Of The Sars-Cov-2 Spike Complexes With Antibodies, Mohammed Alshahrani, Vedant Parikh, Brandon Foley, Nishank Raisinghani, Gennady M. Verkhivker

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

A growing body of experimental and computational studies suggests that the cross-neutralization antibody activity against Omicron variants may be driven by the balance and tradeoff between multiple energetic factors and interaction contributions of the evolving escape hotspots involved in antigenic drift and convergent evolution. However, the dynamic and energetic details quantifying the balance and contribution of these factors, particularly the balancing nature of specific interactions formed by antibodies with epitope residues, remain largely uncharacterized. In this study, we performed molecular dynamics simulations, an ensemble-based deep mutational scanning of SARS-CoV-2 spike residues, and binding free energy computations for two distinct groups …

One Center's Experience Of Pulmonary Embolism After Covid-19: Impact Of Vaccination Status, Cara Gose, Kaylee Dixon, Andrea M. Bodine Md

Advances in Clinical Medical Research and Healthcare Delivery

Background: The incidence of pulmonary embolism (PE) has increased since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and may be due to the observed hypercoagulable state. There is conflicting evidence that thromboembolism risk increases after vaccination and that vaccines decrease the probability of having a thromboembolic event. This study aimed to explore how vaccination status impacts occurrence of PE after a positive COVID-19 test. The hypothesis was that vaccinated, immunocompetent patients have a lower incidence of PE after COVID-19 compared to unvaccinated patients.

Methods: This was a retrospective chart review at a teaching hospital in New England from 1/01/2021 to 3/31/2023 …

A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial Of Il-7 In Critically Ill Patients With Covid-19, Manu Shankar-Hari, Bruno Francois, Kenneth E Remy, Cristina Gutierrez, Stephen Pastores, Thomas Daix, Robin Jeannet, Jane Blood, Andrew H Walton, Reinaldo Salomao, Georg Auzinger, David Striker, Robert S Martin, Nitin J Anand, James Bosanquet, Teresa Blood, Scott Brakenridge, Lyle L Moldawer, Vidula Vachharajani, Cassian Yee, Felipe Dal-Pizzol, Michel Morre, Frederique Berbille, Marcel Van Den Brink, Richard Hotchkiss

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Lymphopenia and failure of lymphocytes to mount an early IFN-γ response correlate with increased mortality in COVID-19. Given the essential role of CD4 helper and CD8 cytotoxic cells in eliminating viral pathogens, this profound loss in lymphocytes may impair patients' ability to eliminate the virus. IL-7 is a pleiotropic cytokine that is obligatory for lymphocyte survival and optimal function.

Methods: We conducted a prospective, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial of CYT107, recombinant human IL-7, in 109 critically ill, patients with lymphopenia who have COVID-19. The primary endpoint was to assess CYT107's effect on lymphocyte recovery with secondary clinical endpoints including …

Skin Manifestations And Related Clinical Characteristics Of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome In Children: A Descriptive Retrospective Cohort Study At Texas Children’S Hospital, Matthew Penna, Lauren Pupa, Grace Lee, Soo Jung Kim

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: Little is known about the dermatologic manifestations of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) in children and adolescents.

OBJECTIVE: We sought to describe the demographic background, key clinical features, and the clinical consequences of developing rash manifestations in MIS-C patients at Texas Children's Hospital.

METHODS: Descriptive retrospective cohort study of 290 hospitalized eligible patients between May 2020 and April 2022.

RESULTS: Among MIS-C patients, 51% exhibited a rash. We found that younger children (8.62 vs 9.49 years of age,

LIMITATIONS: Rash characteristics were initially described by a variety of physicians in the pediatric primary care services.

CONCLUSION: Rash manifestations …

Hybrid Versus Vaccine Immunity Of Mrna-1273 Among People Living With Hiv In East And Southern Africa: A Prospective Cohort Analysis From The Multicentre Covpn 3008 (Ubuntu) Study, Nigel Garrett, Asa Tapley, Aaron Hudson, Sufia Dadabhai, Bo Zhang, Nyaradzo M Mgodi, Jessica Andriesen, Azwidihwi Takalani, Leigh H Fisher, Jia Jin Kee, Craig A Magaret, Manuel Villaran, John Hural, Erica Andersen-Nissen, Guido Ferarri, Maurine D Miner, Bert Le Roux, Eduan Wilkinson, Richard Lessells, Tulio De Oliveira, Jackline Odhiambo, Parth Shah, Laura Polakowski, Margaret Yacovone, Taraz Samandari, Zvavahera Chirenje, Peter James Elyanu, Joseph Makhema, Ethel Kamuti, Harriet Nuwagaba-Biribonwoha, Sharlaa Badal-Faesen, William Brumskine, Soritha Coetzer, Rodney Dawson, Sinead Delany-Moretlwe, Andreas Henri Diacon, Samantha Fry, Katherine Margaret Gill, Zaheer Ahmed Ebrahim Hoosain, Mina C Hosseinipour, Mubiana Inambao, Craig Innes, Steve Innes, Dishiki Kalonji, Margaret Kasaro, Priya Kassim, Noel Kayange, William Kilembe, Fatima Laher, Moelo Malahleha, Vongane Louisa Maluleke, Grace Mboya, Kirsten Mcharry, Essack Mitha, Kathryn Mngadi, Pamela Mda, Tumelo Moloantoa, Cissy Kityo Mutuluuza, Nivashnee Naicker, Vimla Naicker, Anusha Nana, Annet Nanvubya, Maphoshane Nchabeleng, Walter Otieno, Elsje Louise Potgieter, Disebo Potloane, Zelda Punt, Jamil Said, Yashna Singh, Mohammed Siddique Tayob, Yacoob Vahed, Deo Ogema Wabwire, M Juliana Mcelrath, James G Kublin, Linda-Gail Bekker, Peter B Gilbert, Lawrence Corey, Glenda E Gray, Yunda Huang, Philip Kotze, Covpn 3008 Ubuntu Study Team

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: With limited access to mRNA COVID-19 vaccines in lower income countries, and people living with HIV (PLWH) largely excluded from clinical trials, Part A of the multicentre CoVPN 3008 (Ubuntu) study aimed to assess the safety of mRNA-1273, the relative effectiveness of hybrid versus vaccine immunity, and SARS-CoV-2 viral persistence among PLWH in East and Southern Africa during the omicron outbreak.

METHODS: Previously unvaccinated adults with HIV and/or other comorbidities associated with severe COVID-19 received either one (hybrid immunity) or two (vaccine immunity) 100-mcg doses of ancestral strain mRNA-1273 in the first month, depending on baseline evidence of prior …

Examining Health Insurance And Non-Medical Challenges Among Vietnamese Americans In Texas During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Alexander Le, Saba Siddiqi, Celine Nguyen, Ben King, Paul Gerardo Yeh, Jannette Diep, Lauren Gilbert, Bich-May Nguyen

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

When COVID-19 data on Asian Americans are available, they are frequently aggregated, concealing community-specific concerns. Consequently, there is limited COVID-19 literature on Vietnamese Americans. In this study, we investigated the association between health insurance coverage and non-medical challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, in Vietnamese Americans in Texas. The NIH Community Engagement Alliance (CEAL) Common Survey 2 was administered electronically in English and Vietnamese and contained 23 questions about non-medical drivers of health, COVID-19 vaccination, and research participation. Vietnamese American adults in Texas were recruited between September 2021 and March 2022 via partnerships with community organizations. Responses were compared and analyzed …

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid-19) Real World Data Infrastructure: A Big-Data Resource For Study Of The Impact Of Covid-19 In Patient Populations With Immunocompromising Conditions, James M. Crawford, Lynne Penberthy, Ligia A. Pinto, Keri N. Althoff, Magdalene M. Assimon, Oren Cohen, Laura Gillim, Tracy L. Hammonds, Shilpa Kapur, Harvey W. Kaufman, David Kwasny, Jean W. Liew, William A. Meyer 3rd, Shannon L. Reynolds, Cheryl B. Schleicher, Suki Subbiah, Catherine Theruviparampil, Zachary S. Wallace, Jeremy L. Warner, Suhyeon Yoon, Yonah C. Ziemba

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

Background. We developed a United States–based real-world data resource to better understand the continued impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on immunocompromised patients, who are typically underrepresented in prospective studies and clinical trials. Methods. The COVID-19 Real World Data infrastructure (CRWDi) was created by linking and harmonizing de-identified HealthVerity medical and pharmacy claims data from 1 December 2018 to 31 December 2023, with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 virologic and serologic laboratory data from major commercial laboratories and Northwell Health; COVID-19 vaccination data; and, for patients with cancer, 2010 to 2021 National Cancer Institute Surveillance, Epidemiology, and …

Multicenter Prospective Pilot Study Identifying Thrombomodulin As A Potential Biomarker For Neurocognitive Outcomes In Immune Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura, Aaron B Boothby, Michael D Evans, Shangbin Yang, Senthil Sukumar, James G Scott, Deirdra R Terrell, Spero Cataland, Marshall Mazepa

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background/Objectives: Immune thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (iTTP) is a rare, chronically relapsing disorder that causes life-threatening thrombotic microangiopathy. Many survivors in clinical remission show evidence of ongoing silent cerebral infarction and neurocognitive deficits. Prospective longitudinal studies of this population are needed to acquire a complete understanding of the mechanism behind this ongoing neurologic injury. We aimed to assess the feasibility of a multicenter prospective study of neuropsychological and cognitive function in iTTP survivors in remission and examine novel biomarkers.

Methods: We aimed to enroll 50 iTTP patients across three USTMA consortium sites between 2019 and 2022 in a 24-month …

Decriminalizing Disease: A Health Justice Approach To Infectious Diseases And Criminal Law, Sean E. Bland

Arkansas Law Review

Infectious diseases, also called communicable diseases, are largely a public health issue and should not be criminalized. This Article seeks to re-frame the discussion around the legal framework for infectious diseases in a way that moves beyond a punishment mindset and toward a health justice mindset. The focus in this Article is on health justice rather than traditional understandings of public health, defined as the science and practice of improving the health of people and their communities. The Article makes three novel contributions. First, it applies a health justice framework to the critique of infectious disease criminalization. Second, the Article …

Neutralizing Antibody Immune Correlates In Covail Trial Recipients Of An Mrna Second Covid-19 Vaccine Boost, Bo Zhang, Youyi Fong, Lauren Dang, Jonathan Fintzi, Shiyu Chen, Jing Wang, Nadine G Rouphael, Angela R Branche, David J Diemert, Ann R Falsey, Daniel S Graciaa, Lindsey R Baden, Sharon E Frey, Jennifer A Whitaker, Susan J Little, Satoshi Kamidani, Emmanuel B Walter, Richard M Novak, Richard Rupp, Lisa A Jackson, Chenchen Yu, Craig A Magaret, Cindy Molitor, Bhavesh Borate, Sydney Busch, David Benkeser, Antonia Netzl, Derek J Smith, Tara M Babu, Angelica C Kottkamp, Anne F Luetkemeyer, Lilly C Immergluck, Rachel M Presti, Martín Bäcker, Patricia L Winokur, Siham M Mahgoub, Paul A Goepfert, Dahlene N Fusco, Robert L Atmar, Christine M Posavad, Jinjian Mu, Mat Makowski, Mamodikoe K Makhene, Seema U Nayak, Paul C Roberts, Peter B Gilbert, Dean Follmann

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Neutralizing antibody titer has been a surrogate endpoint for guiding COVID-19 vaccine approval and use, although the pandemic's evolution and the introduction of variant-adapted vaccine boosters raise questions as to this surrogate's contemporary performance. For 985 recipients of an mRNA second bivalent or monovalent booster containing various Spike inserts [Prototype (Ancestral), Beta, Delta, and/or Omicron BA.1 or BA.4/5] in the COVAIL trial (NCT05289037), titers against 5 strains were assessed as correlates of risk of symptomatic COVID-19 ("COVID-19") and as correlates of relative (Pfizer-BioNTech Omicron vs. Prototype) booster protection against COVID-19 over 6 months of follow-up during the BA.2-BA.5 Omicron-dominant period. …

What Factors Influenced Covid-19 Vaccine Hesitancy? Evidence From Social Media, Huseyin Zeyd Koytak

Population Health Research Brief Series

Vaccine hesitancy is one of the most significant threats to global public health efforts. Despite the rapid development and deployment of effective vaccines, resistance to vaccination has persisted in many communities, undermining collective immunity and prolonging health crises, including most recently the COVID-19 pandemic. This brief summarizes findings from a study that used data from over 50 million tweets (later rebranded as X) from 2020 to 2022 to investigate the patterns, justifications, and socioeconomic roots of vaccine hesitancy in the United States. The authors find that Twitter users in states with lower levels of education, higher poverty and unemployment rates, …

Uncovering The Binding Mechanism Of Mutated Omicron Variants Via Computational Strategies, Sajjad Haider, Nadeem Ahmad, Muhammad Shafiq, Ali Raza Siddiqui, Mohammad Nur-E-Alam, Aftab Ahmed, Zaheer Ul-Haq

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

The COVID-19 pandemic, triggered by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, has resulted in nearly 630 million cases and 6.60 million fatalities globally, as of November 2022. SARS-CoV-2, a species of the Coronaviridae family, has a single-stranded positive-sense RNA genome as well as four main structural proteins (S, E, M, and N) required for viral entrance into target cells. The spike protein (S) influences this entry through interactions with human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (hACE2) receptor. The World Health Organization (WHO) recognized numerous variants of concern (VOCs) that involve Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, and Omicron, having multiple mutations within the spike protein, altering infection …

Dissecting The Binding Affinity Of Anti-Sars-Cov-2 Compounds To Human Transmembrane Protease, Serine 2: A Computational Study, Yue-Hui Shi, Jian-Xin Shen, Yan Tao, Yuan-Ling Xia, Zhi-Bi Zhang, Yun-Xin Fu, Ke-Qin Zhang, Shu-Qun Liu

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The human transmembrane protease, serine 2 (TMPRSS2), essential for SARS-CoV-2 entry, is a key antiviral target. Here, we computationally profiled the TMPRSS2-binding affinities of 15 antiviral compounds. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations for the docked complexes revealed that three compounds exited the substrate-binding cavity (SBC), suggesting noncompetitive inhibition. Of the remaining compounds, five charged ones exhibited reduced binding stability due to competing electrostatic interactions and increased solvent exposure, while seven neutral compounds showed stronger binding affinity driven by van der Waals (vdW) interactions compensating for unfavorable electrostatic effects (including electrostatic interactions and desolvation penalties). Positive and negative hotspot residues were identified …