Publications by authors named "Kevin Patterson"

Article Synopsis
  • AI communities experience uranium exposure from abandoned mines and contaminated water, but dietary impacts are under-researched.
  • The study assessed urinary uranium levels among American Indians from different regions, finding geographical variations and specific dietary factors influencing uranium levels in urine.
  • Results showed higher uranium levels were linked to organ meat and cereals, particularly in North Dakota and South Dakota, while some foods like fries and chips were associated with lower levels; dietary factors accounted for just 1.71% of variability in urinary uranium.
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Objectives: Antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV) commonly presents with diffuse alveolar haemorrhage (DAH) and/or glomerulonephritis. Patients who present with DAH but without kidney involvement have been understudied.

Methods: Patients with DAH diagnosed by bronchoscopy and attributed to AAV over 8.

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  • Chronic exposure to inorganic arsenic (As) and uranium (U) in the U.S. primarily comes from private wells and community water systems, with assumptions that their contribution to total exposure is low when concentrations are low.
  • The study investigated how much these water sources contributed to urinary biomarkers in American Indian and diverse urban communities, analyzing data from over 8,000 participants.
  • Results indicated that both As and U levels in urine significantly increased with higher concentrations of these contaminants in the water, highlighting their substantial impact on internal exposure to these harmful substances.
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Background: Patients who were incarcerated were disproportionately affected by COVID-19 compared with the general public. Furthermore, the impact of multidisciplinary rehabilitation assessments and interventions on the outcomes of patients admitted to the hospital with COVID-19 is limited.

Objective: We aimed to compare the functional outcomes of oral intake, mobility, and activity between inmates and noninmates diagnosed with COVID-19 and examine the relationships among these functional measures and discharge destination.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Recent studies show that there are no safe levels of inorganic arsenic or uranium in drinking water, and these contaminants show significant sociodemographic and regional inequalities across the US public water systems.
  • - An analysis from 2000-2011 reveals that counties with higher proportions of Hispanic/Latino and American Indian/Alaskan Native residents often have greater levels of arsenic and uranium, with varying associations based on race and region.
  • - The research highlights racial and ethnic disparities in water quality, which could help push for environmental justice efforts through better regulations and support for affected communities.
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Objectives: Overutilization of laboratory services is now recognized as harmful to patients and wasteful. In fact, the American Board of Internal Medicine's Choosing Wisely campaign recommends against ordering routine testing that does not answer a clinical question. Per peer benchmarking, our institution as a whole occupied an extreme outlier position at the 100th percentile for laboratory utilization.

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  • Myxopapillary ependymoma (MPE) is a rare and aggressive tumor usually found in specific areas of the spinal cord, with ectopic cases often leading to distant metastases.
  • Treatment options for MPE are limited due to the scarcity of documented cases, making standard care difficult to establish.
  • A case study of a 25-year-old woman with metastatic MPE revealed that treatment with the investigational immunotherapy tislelizumab resulted in a long-lasting positive response and no significant side effects, suggesting immunotherapy's potential in rare tumors.
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Nitrous oxide is a commonly abused inhalant by adolescents and young adults. There is limited data describing the adverse effects of nitrous oxide abuse, known colloquially as "whippets". We present a 21-year-old female with no medical history who presented to the emergency department for confusion, hallucinations, weakness, and falls.

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We present the nanosurgery on the cytoskeleton of live cells using AFM based nanorobotics to achieve adhesiolysis and mimic the effect of pathophysiological modulation of intercellular adhesion. Nanosurgery successfully severs the intermediate filament bundles and disrupts cell-cell adhesion similar to the desmosomal protein disassembly in autoimmune disease, or the cationic modulation of desmosome formation. Our nanomechanical analysis revealed that adhesion loss results in a decrease in cellular stiffness in both cases of biochemical modulation of the desmosome junctions and mechanical disruption of intercellular adhesion, supporting the notion that intercellular adhesion through intermediate filaments anchors the cell structure as focal adhesion does and that intermediate filaments are integral components in cell mechanical integrity.

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There remain major gaps in our knowledge regarding the detailed mechanisms by which autoantibodies mediate damage at the tissue level. We have undertaken novel strategies at the interface of engineering and clinical medicine to integrate nanoscale visual and structural data using nanorobotic atomic force microscopy with cell functional analyses to reveal previously unattainable details of autoimmune processes in real-time. Pemphigus vulgaris is a life-threatening autoimmune blistering skin condition in which there is disruption of desmosomal cell-cell adhesion structures that are associated with the presence of antibodies directed against specific epithelial proteins including Desmoglein (Dsg) 3.

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Context: Palliative care consult services have emerged as an excellent resource for physicians seeking help with patients' symptoms. Symptoms include those of a psychiatric nature (e.g.

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Integrins are dynamic transmembrane cation-dependent heterodimers that both anchor cells in position and transduce signals into and out of cells. We used an atomic force microscope (AFM)-based nanorobotic system to measure integrin-binding forces in intact human intestinal epithelial Caco-2 cells. The AFM-based nanorobot enables human-directed, high-accuracy probe positioning and site-specific investigations.

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Unlabelled: Distinct biochemical, electrochemical and electromechanical coupling processes of pancreatic β-cells may well underlie different response patterns of insulin release from glucose and capsaicin stimulation. Intracellular Ca(2+) levels increased rapidly and dose-dependently upon glucose stimulation, accompanied with about threefold rapid increases in cellular stiffness. Subsequently, cellular stiffness diminished rapidly and settled at a value about twofold of the baseline.

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The atomic force microscope (AFM) is a popular instrument for studying the nano world. AFM is naturally suitable for imaging living samples and measuring mechanical properties. In this article, we propose a new concept of an AFM-based nano robot that can be applied for cellular-level surgery on living samples.

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Article Synopsis
  • Researchers typically use β(-) particle detection to measure (14)C tracer distribution in plant tissue, but this method is limited to thin materials due to the short detection range.
  • The study introduced X-ray detectors to monitor Bremsstrahlung radiation, which can penetrate deeper into plant tissues, allowing for more comprehensive in vivo measurements.
  • Experiments on small kiwifruit plants revealed that root pruning increased carbohydrate supply to fruits over roots, indicating the fruit's stronger competitive ability for photosynthate, with diurnal variations and tracer export patterns also observed.
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  • The study examined how kiwifruit vines respond hydraulically after cutting off a portion of their roots, measuring both plant and root hydraulic conductance.
  • Techniques like heat dissipation and compensation heat pulse were used to monitor sap flow, revealing that transpiration and root conductance decreased significantly after severing 80% of the roots, and did not recover over six weeks.
  • Interestingly, while photosynthesis and stomatal conductance were reduced, the intact roots' sap flux increased without a change in root conductance, indicating that the roots were adequately supplying water to support shoot growth and fruit development despite the root pruning.
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Alterations in the protein tyrosine phosphatase N22 (PTPN22) gene affect the threshold for lymphocyte activation. The PTPN22 1858T polymorphism leads to uninhibited T-cell receptor cascade propagation. An elevated PTPN22 1858C/T genotype frequency has been correlated with several autoimmune disorders which have T-cell and humoral components.

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  • Metastatic carcinoid tumors (MCTs) are rare neuroendocrine tumors with a generally slow progression; this study evaluates treatment trends and their effectiveness over time at a specific health center.
  • Out of 92 identified carcinoid tumor patients from 1985 to 2007, 49 had MCT; survival rates improved as treatment options expanded, notably with long-acting somatostatin analogs, which showed a median survival of 112 months compared to 53 months for non-users.
  • The research indicates that while long-acting somatostatin analogs positively influence disease control and survival, there's limited use of other treatments, highlighting the need for new therapies targeting tumor
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Little has been known about Tlr13 (Toll-like receptor 13), a novel member of the Toll-like receptor family. To elucidate the molecular basis of murine Tlr13 gene expression, the activity of the Tlr13 gene promoter was characterized. Reporter gene analysis and electrophoretic mobility shift assays demonstrated that Tlr13 gene transcription was regulated through three cis-acting elements that interacted with the Ets2, Sp1, and PU.

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Objectives: From 2001 through 2005, African Americans accounted for the largest percentage of new cases of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/ acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in all age categories, especially among people aged 13 to 24 years. Although students attending historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) report many of the behaviors that promote HIV transmission, their risk behaviors and HIV testing practices have not been well-characterized. We compared the demographic and behavioral characteristics of people who have been previously tested for HIV with those of people tested for the first time in this demonstration project to increase HIV testing at HBCUs.

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Background: Relatively few studies have examined positive character traits that are associated with lower HIV/STD risks.

Purpose: In the present study, the relationships of character strengths with sexual behaviors and attitudes were assessed among 383 African-American adolescents.

Method: Character strengths were measured using the Values in Action Inventory of Strengths.

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