"Do My Friends Only Like the School Me or the True Me?": School Belonging, Camouflaging, and Anxiety in Autistic Students.

Unlabelled: The prevalence of autistic students in schools is continuously increasing. Typically, the social and sensory differences associated with autism can make the school environment difficult to manage. Autistic students are more likely to experience mental health difficulties than their non-autistic peers.

Characterizing features affecting local ancestry inference performance in admixed populations.

In recent years, significant efforts have been made to improve methods for genomic studies of admixed populations using local ancestry inference (LAI). Accurate LAI is crucial to ensure that downstream analyses accurately reflect the genetic ancestry of research participants. Here, we test analytic strategies for LAI to provide guidelines for optimal accuracy, focusing on admixed populations reflective of Latin America's primary continental ancestries-African (AFR), Amerindigenous (AMR), and European (EUR).

Biomarkers of cellular senescence and major health outcomes in older adults.

The geroscience hypothesis proposes that underlying biological processes, such as the accumulation of senescent cells, have deleterious effects on multiple tissues and increase the risk of many chronic conditions with aging. Senescent cells produce heterogenous biomarkers, also called senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP). Circulating concentrations of senescence biomarkers may reflect an underlying burden of senescent cells in various tissues.

Pharmacogenetic and microRNA mechanisms of beta blocker use on bone.

Motivated by studies showing an association between beta blocker (BB) use and positive bone outcomes, a pilot randomized control trial (RCT) was performed at the Mayo Clinic which randomized postmenopausal women to placebo, propranolol (40 or 80 mg twice daily), atenolol (50 mg/day), or nebivolol (5 mg/day) to determine changes in bone turnover markers (BTMs) and in bone mineral density (BMD) over 20 weeks. Pharmacogenetic effects and microRNA-mediated mechanisms involving beta adrenergic receptor and related genes have previously been found. We sought to validate these effects and discover new candidates in an ancillary study to the pilot clinical trial.

Cognition in patients with mild autonomous cortisol secretion at baseline and post-adrenalectomy.

Objectives: The impact of mild autonomous cortisol secretion (MACS) on cognition is incompletely characterized. We aimed to assess cognition in patients with MACS, identify factors associated with lower cognition, and determine the impact of adrenalectomy on cognition.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study (4/2019 to 10/2022) and a longitudinal cohort study (10/2021 to 9/2023) of adults with MACS and referent subjects.

IL-23R is a senescence-linked circulating and tissue biomarker of aging.

Cellular senescence is an aging mechanism characterized by cell cycle arrest and a senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP). Preclinical studies demonstrate that senolytic drugs, which target survival pathways in senescent cells, can counteract age-associated conditions that span several organs. The comparative efficacy of distinct senolytic drugs for modifying aging and senescence biomarkers in vivo has not been demonstrated.

Performance of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate and baseline cortisol in assessing adrenal insufficiency.

Context: Diagnosing adrenal insufficiency (AI) often requires complex testing which can be time consuming and expensive. Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) is a promising marker of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis function, however its diagnostic performance has not yet been evaluated in a large-scale study.

Objective: Evaluate the performance of DHEAS and baseline cortisol in assessing AI.

Anxiety and depressive symptoms as predictors of substance use initiation among adolescents living on and near a Tribal reservation in the Great Plains region of the U.S.

Introduction: This study examines the impacts of anxiety and depressive symptoms on subsequent initiation of alcohol use, cannabis use, and prescription opioid misuse among diverse adolescents attending high schools on or near a Tribal reservation in a rural Great Plains region of the U.S.

Methods: In collaboration with Emory University and a Great Plains Tribal nation's behavioral health organization, a community randomized trial of 20 high schools was conducted to prevent substance misuse.

Age Variation Among US Adults' Social Media Experiences and Beliefs About Who Is Responsible for Reducing Health-Related Falsehoods: Secondary Analysis of a National Survey.

Background: We live in a digital age where social media has become an essential part of people's lives. It is also one of the leading platforms responsible for spreading health-related falsehoods. This study explores who adults of different age groups perceive as responsible for reducing health-related falsehoods on social media.

Senescence Biomarkers and Trajectories of Frailty and Physical Function After Kidney Transplantation.

Cellular senescence is a biological mechanism of aging and age-related diseases. The aim of this study was to examine whether senescence biomarkers are associated with frailty and physical function trajectories in patients undergoing kidney transplantation (KT). We also discussed the relationship between senescence biomarkers and KT function.

Building trust and inclusion with under-served groups: a public involvement project employing a knowledge mobilisation approach.

Background: Certain groups are commonly under-served by health research due to exclusionary models of research design/delivery. Working in partnership with under-served groups is key to improving inclusion. This project aimed to explore the use of a knowledge mobilisation approach to start building partnerships with under-served groups based on trust and mutual understanding.

The influence of body mass index on biomarkers of cellular senescence in older adults.

Obesity accelerates the onset and progression of age-related conditions. In preclinical models, obesity drives cellular senescence, a cell fate that compromises tissue health and function, in part through a robust and diverse secretome. In humans, components of the secretome have been used as senescence biomarkers that are predictive of age-related disease, disability, and mortality.

Effect of Guanidinoacetic Acid Supplementation on the Performance of Calves Fed Milk Replacer.

Guanidinoacetic acid (GAA) is the direct precursor to creatine, which serves as an energy reserve mechanism in the body. We evaluated the effects of GAA supplementation on the growth performance of calves fed milk replacer. Forty-five Holstein-Angus steer calves (40.

A blended genome and exome sequencing method captures genetic variation in an unbiased, high-quality, and cost-effective manner.

We deployed the Blended Genome Exome (BGE), a DNA library blending approach that generates low pass whole genome (1-4× mean depth) and deep whole exome (30-40× mean depth) data in a single sequencing run. This technology is cost-effective, empowers most genomic discoveries possible with deep whole genome sequencing, and provides an unbiased method to capture the diversity of common SNP variation across the globe. To evaluate this new technology at scale, we applied BGE to sequence >53,000 samples from the Populations Underrepresented in Mental Illness Associations Studies (PUMAS) Project, which included participants across African, African American, and Latin American populations.

Development and evaluation of a training curriculum to engage researchers on accessing and analyzing the All of Us data.

Objective: The All of Us Evenings with Genetics (EwG) Research Program at Baylor College of Medicine (BCM), funded to engage research scholars to work with the All of Us data, developed a training curriculum for the Researcher Workbench, the platform to access and analyze All of Us data. All of Us EwG developed the curriculum so that it could teach scholars regardless of their skills and background in programming languages and cloud computing. All of Us EwG delivered this curriculum at the first annual All of Us EwG Faculty Summit in May 2022.

Experiences in providing a community educational resource for the All of Us Researcher Workbench.

Objective: Educational offerings to fill the bioinformatics knowledge gap are a key component to enhancing access and use of health data from the All of Us Research Program. We developed a Train the Trainer-based, innovative training series including project-based learning, modular on-demand demonstrations, and unstructured tutorial time as a model for educational engagement in the All of Us community.

Materials And Methods: We highlight our training modules and content, with training survey data informing cycles of development in the creation of a 6-module training series with modular demonstrations.

Characterizing features affecting local ancestry inference performance in admixed populations.

In recent years, significant efforts have been made to improve methods for genomic studies of admixed populations using Local Ancestry Inference (LAI). Accurate LAI is crucial to ensure downstream analyses reflect the genetic ancestry of research participants accurately. Here, we test analytic strategies for LAI to provide guidelines for optimal accuracy, focusing on admixed populations reflective of Latin America's primary continental ancestries - African (AFR), Amerindigenous (AMR), and European (EUR).

Multi-trait and multi-ancestry genetic analysis of comorbid lung diseases and traits improves genetic discovery and polygenic risk prediction.

While respiratory diseases such as COPD and asthma share many risk factors, most studies investigate them in insolation and in predominantly European ancestry populations. Here, we conducted the most powerful multi-trait and -ancestry genetic analysis of respiratory diseases and auxiliary traits to date. Our approach improves the power of genetic discovery across traits and ancestries, identifying 44 novel loci associated with lung function in individuals of East Asian ancestry.

Multiple sclerosis in Somali Americans: Nature or nurture?

Background: Differences in the MS course between White and Black populations is well accepted. The existence of a large Somali immigrant population in Minnesota facilitates a study of MS characteristics in this immigrant native African population. The objective of this study was to compare Somali American (SA), African American (AA), and White American (WA) persons with MS (pwMS) regarding clinical features and disease modifying therapy (DMT) use.

Epigenetic disease markers in primary sclerosing cholangitis and primary biliary cholangitis-methylomics of cholestatic liver disease.

Background: The epigenome, the set of modifications to DNA and associated molecules that control gene expression, cellular identity, and function, plays a major role in mediating cellular responses to outside factors. Thus, evaluation of the epigenetic state can provide insights into cellular adaptions occurring over the course of disease.

Methods: We performed epigenome-wide association studies of primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) and primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) using the Illumina MethylationEPIC Bead Chip.

Steroid Profiling and Circadian Cortisol Secretion in Patients with Mild Autonomous Cortisol Secretion: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Context: Mild autonomous cortisol secretion (MACS) is diagnosed based on post-dexamethasone cortisol>1.8 mcg/dL. Scarce evidence exists on steroid circadian secretion and steroid metabolome in MACS.

Evaluation of candidate International Standards for meningococcal capsular polysaccharide groups W and Y.

Two candidate International Standards for meningococcal capsular group W and Y (MenW and MenY, respectively) polysaccharides were assessed for their suitability as quantitative standards in various physicochemical assays. The study was designed to evaluate the intended purpose of these standards, namely, to standardize the quantification of the respective polysaccharide content in meningococcal polysaccharide and conjugate vaccines and their intermediate components. Twelve laboratories from eleven different countries participated in the collaborative study of candidate preparations for International Standards for MenW and MenY polysaccharide (coded 16/152 and 16/206, respectively).

Exploring the complexity of systemic sclerosis etiology by trio whole genome sequencing.

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a heterogeneous rare autoimmune fibrosing disorder affecting connective tissue. The etiology of systemic sclerosis is largely unknown and many genes have been suggested as susceptibility loci of modest impact by genome-wide association study (GWAS). Multiple factors can contribute to the pathological process of the disease, which makes it more difficult to identify possible disease-causing genetic alterations.