Publications by authors named "A Mahurkar"

Article Synopsis
  • Intense wildfires are increasingly impacting air quality, raising concerns about potential negative effects on cardiopulmonary health for people exposed to smoke, particularly in the Eastern US.
  • A study aimed to examine the relationship between smoke from wildfires in Western Canada and respiratory diseases in various demographic groups in Eastern US populations, using data from the University of Maryland Medical System.
  • Findings showed significantly higher rates of cardiopulmonary clinical encounters during "hotspot days" with elevated PM2.5 levels, indicating a correlation between increased pollution and health issues, especially during notable air quality deteriorations in June 2023.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Many datasets are being produced by consortia that seek to characterize healthy and disease tissues at single-cell resolution. While biospecimen and experimental information is often captured, detailed metadata standards related to data matrices and analysis workflows are currently lacking. To address this, we develop the matrix and analysis metadata standards (MAMS) to serve as a resource for data centers, repositories, and tool developers.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The molecular mechanisms underlying age-related declines in learning and long-term memory are still not fully understood. To address this gap, our study focused on investigating the transcriptional landscape of a singularly identified motor neuron L7 in Aplysia, which is pivotal in a specific type of nonassociative learning known as sensitization of the siphon-withdraw reflex. Employing total RNAseq analysis on a single isolated L7 motor neuron after short-term or long-term sensitization (LTS) training of Aplysia at 8, 10, and 12 months (representing mature, late mature, and senescent stages), we uncovered aberrant changes in transcriptional plasticity during the aging process.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • - Substance use disorders (SUD) and drug addiction significantly impact public health, particularly among individuals and their communities, with a notable overlap between SUD and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections.
  • - The connection between SUD and HIV is complex, as HIV can increase the risk of SUD through chronic pain treatment, while those with SUD are more likely to contract HIV, highlighting the need for integrated research.
  • - The SCORCH consortium aims to utilize single-cell genomics to examine the interactions between SUD and HIV at a cellular level, leveraging human brain tissue collections and animal models for in-depth study.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Molecular responses to alcohol consumption are dynamic, context-dependent, and arise from a complex interplay of biological and external factors. While many have studied genetic risk associated with drinking patterns, comprehensive studies identifying dynamic responses to pharmacologic and psychological/placebo effects underlying binge drinking are lacking. We investigated transcriptome-wide response to binge, medium, and placebo alcohol consumption by 17 healthy heavy social drinkers enrolled in a controlled, in-house, longitudinal study of up to 12 days.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF