Publications by authors named "C D Robles-Espinoza"

Ultraviolet (UV)-induced DNA mutations produce genetic drivers of cutaneous melanoma initiation and numerous neoantigens that can trigger anti-tumor immune responses in the host. Consequently, melanoma cells must rapidly evolve to evade immune detection by simultaneously modulating cell-autonomous epigenetic mechanisms and tumor-microenvironment interactions. Angiogenesis has been implicated in this process; although an increase of vasculature initiates the immune response in normal tissue, solid tumors manage to somehow enhance blood flow while preventing immune cell infiltration.

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Background: Multiplexed Assays of Variant Effects (MAVEs) can test all possible single variants in a gene of interest. The resulting saturation-style functional data may help resolve variant classification disparities between populations, especially for Variants of Uncertain Significance (VUS).

Methods: We analyzed clinical significance classifications in 213,663 individuals of European-like genetic ancestry versus 206,975 individuals of non-European-like genetic ancestry from All of Us and the Genome Aggregation Database.

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Exposure to particulate matter (PM) has been linked to an increased risk of multiple diseases, primarily lung cancer, through various molecular mechanisms. However, the mutagenic potential of PM remains unclear. This study aimed to provide a comprehensive description of genetic mutations and mutagenic signatures resulting from chronic exposure to PM or PM.

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Article Synopsis
  • Combination immune checkpoint blockade targeting PD-1 and CTLA-4 shows lower efficacy in acral lentiginous melanoma (ALM) compared to cutaneous melanoma (CM), with an objective response rate of only 18.3%.
  • In a study of 109 patients, most had advanced cancer (stage IV), with median progression-free survival of 4.2 months and overall survival of 17 months.
  • Significant treatment-related adverse events were common, indicating similar toxicity levels, but specific demographic factors like Asian ethnicity were linked to worse overall survival, highlighting the need for new treatment strategies for ALM.
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