Publications by authors named "Erin R Okawa"

Hypothyroidism can have a significant impact on cardiac contractility, vascular resistance, blood pressure, and cardiac rhythm. Ventricular arrhythmias induced by hypothyroidism are infrequently reported, especially in pediatric cases. A 15-year-old girl with autoimmune hypothyroidism experienced pulseless ventricular arrhythmias on 2 separate occasions because of nonadherence to levothyroxine medication.

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With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the development of widespread vaccination strategies, there have been case reports in the adult literature suggesting an increase in thyroiditis after COVID-19 vaccination. We herein describe 2 children who presented with thyroiditis after COVID-19 vaccination. Two children who received Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 messenger RNA vaccines later developed symptoms of thyroid hyperactivity, had positive thyroid-stimulating immunoglobulin (TSI) levels and received treatment directed toward Graves disease.

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The insulin and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) receptors are important for the growth and development of embryonic tissues. To directly define their roles in the maintenance of pluripotency and differentiation of stem cells, we knocked out both receptors in induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). iPSCs lacking both insulin and IGF-1 receptors (double knockout, DKO) exhibited preserved pluripotency potential despite decreased expression of transcription factors Lin28a and Tbx3 compared to control iPSCs.

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Secondary amenorrhea is not uncommon in the adolescent female population. There are multiple etiologies to consider, and a comprehensive evaluation is often pursued. Sometimes, however, despite a thorough workup, the diagnosis remains unclear.

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The association between thyroid disorders and breast cancer remains controversial, in part, due to small cohort sizes and inconsistent findings. We investigated this association in postmenopausal women to determine whether hyper- or hypothyroidism is associated with the risk of developing breast cancer and to determine whether menopausal hormone therapy (MHT) further modifies the risk. We conducted a prospective cohort study of multiethnic U.

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Investigation of cell-cycle kinetics in mammalian pancreatic β cells has mostly focused on transition from the quiescent (G0) to G1 phase. Here, we report that centromere protein A (CENP-A), which is required for chromosome segregation during the M-phase, is necessary for adaptive β cell proliferation. Receptor-mediated insulin signaling promotes DNA-binding activity of FoxM1 to regulate expression of CENP-A and polo-like kinase-1 (PLK1) by modulating cyclin-dependent kinase-1/2.

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Diabetes is a progressive disease affecting millions of people worldwide. There are several medications and treatment options to improve the life quality of people with diabetes. One of the strategies for the treatment of diabetes could be the use of human pluripotent stem cells or induced pluripotent stem cells.

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Neuroblastoma (NB), a tumor of the sympathetic nervous system, is the most common extracranial solid tumor of childhood. We and others have identified distinct patterns of genomic change that underlie diverse clinical behaviors, from spontaneous regression to relentless progression. We first identified CHD5 as a tumor suppressor gene that is frequently deleted in NBs.

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Purpose Of Review: Graves' disease is the most common cause of hyperthyroidism in the pediatric population. It occurs more often in adolescence and in girls; however, prepubertal children tend to have more severe disease, require longer medical therapy, and have a lower rate of remission as compared with pubertal children. The choice of which of the three therapeutic options to use (medical therapy, radioactive iodine ablation, or surgery) must be individualized.

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Background: Neuroblastomas are characterized by hemizygous 1p deletions, suggesting that a tumor suppressor gene resides in this region. We previously mapped the smallest region of consistent deletion to a 2-Mb region of 1p36.31 that encodes 23 genes.

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Substantial genomic and functional evidence from primary tumors and cell lines indicates that a consistent region of distal chromosome 1p is deleted in a sizable proportion of human neuroblastomas, suggesting that this region contains one or more tumor suppressor genes. To determine systematically and precisely the location and extent of 1p deletion in neuroblastomas, we performed allelic loss studies of 737 primary neuroblastomas and genotype analysis of 46 neuroblastoma cell lines. Together, the results defined a single region within 1p36.

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