Intraperitoneal oxygen microbubble therapy: A novel approach to enhance systemic oxygenation in a smoke inhalation model of acute hypoxic respiratory failure.

Background: Patients suffering from severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) face limited therapeutic options and alarmingly high mortality rates. Refractory hypoxemia, a hallmark of ARDS, often necessitates invasive and high-risk treatments. Oxygen microbubbles (OMB) present a promising approach for extrapulmonary oxygenation, potentially augmenting systemic oxygen levels without exposing patients to significant risks.

Colonic oxygen microbubbles augment systemic oxygenation and CO removal in a porcine smoke inhalation model of severe hypoxia.

Inhalation injury can lead to pulmonary complications resulting in the development of respiratory distress and severe hypoxia. Respiratory distress is one of the major causes of death in critically ill patients with a reported mortality rate of up to 45%. The present study focuses on the effect of oxygen microbubble (OMB) infusion via the colon in a porcine model of smoke inhalation-induced lung injury.

Rat model of smoke inhalation-induced acute lung injury.

Background: Acute lung injury (ALI)/acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a lethal disease with limited therapeutic options and an unacceptably high mortality rate. Understanding the complex pathophysiological processes involved in the development of ALI/ARDS is critical for developing novel therapeutic strategies. Smoke inhalation (SI) injury is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with burn-associated ALI/ARDS; however, to our knowledge few reliable, reproducible models are available for pure SI animal model to investigate therapeutic options for ALI/ARDS without the confounding variables introduced by cutaneous burn or other pathology.

A novel large animal model of smoke inhalation-induced acute respiratory distress syndrome.

Background: Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is multifactorial and can result from sepsis, trauma, or pneumonia, amongst other primary pathologies. It is one of the major causes of death in critically ill patients with a reported mortality rate up to 45%. The present study focuses on the development of a large animal model of smoke inhalation-induced ARDS in an effort to provide the scientific community with a reliable, reproducible large animal model of isolated toxic inhalation injury-induced ARDS.

Identification of a novel TGFβ/PKA signaling transduceome in mediating control of cell survival and metastasis in colon cancer.

Background: Understanding drivers for metastasis in human cancer is important for potential development of therapies to treat metastases. The role of loss of TGFβ tumor suppressor activities in the metastatic process is essentially unknown.

Methodology/principal Findings: Utilizing in vitro and in vivo techniques, we have shown that loss of TGFβ tumor suppressor signaling is necessary to allow the last step of the metastatic process - colonization of the metastatic site.