Publications by authors named "Kristin Retzlaff"

Article Synopsis
  • During the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, the risks of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in pregnant women were unclear, highlighting the need for research on infection rates in this population.
  • The study aimed to estimate SARS-CoV-2 infection rates among pregnant women in Washington State and assess disparities based on race, ethnicity, and English language proficiency.
  • Researchers identified 240 pregnant patients with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infections, with over 70% belonging to minority racial and ethnic groups, indicating notable disparities in infection rates.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Pregnant patients with COVID-19 in Washington State showed increased risks of severe disease, hospitalization, and mortality, with 1 in 11 developing severe illness and 1 in 80 dying during the study period.
  • Hospitalization rates for pregnant patients were significantly higher, at 10%, compared to 2.8% for similarly aged adults, indicating a 3.5-fold increase in risk.
  • Those hospitalized were more likely to have underlying health conditions, such as asthma, hypertension, and obesity, revealing a link between pre-existing morbidities and severe COVID-19 outcomes in pregnancy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: The impact of coronavirus disease 2019 on pregnant women is incompletely understood, but early data from case series suggest a variable course of illness from asymptomatic or mild disease to maternal death. It is unclear whether pregnant women manifest enhanced disease similar to influenza viral infection or whether specific risk factors might predispose to severe disease.

Objective: To describe maternal disease and obstetrical outcomes associated with coronavirus disease 2019 in pregnancy to rapidly inform clinical care.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The p53 protein has not only important tumor suppressor activity but also additional immunological and other functions, whose nature and extent are just beginning to be recognized. In this article, we show that p53 has a novel inflammation-promoting action in the intestinal tract, because loss of p53 or the upstream activating kinase, ATM, protects against acute intestinal inflammation in murine models. Mechanistically, deficiency in p53 leads to increased survival of epithelial cells and lamina propria macrophages, higher IL-6 expression owing to enhanced glucose-dependent NF-κB activation, and increased mucosal STAT3 activation.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Colonic cancers with a serrated morphology have been proposed to comprise a molecularly distinct tumor entity following an alternative pathway of genetic alterations independently of APC mutations. We demonstrate that intestinal epithelial cell specific expression of oncogenic K-ras(G12D) in mice induces serrated hyperplasia, which is characterized by p16(ink4a) overexpression and induction of senescence. Deletion of Ink4a/Arf in K-ras(G12D) expressing mice prevents senescence and leads to invasive, metastasizing carcinomas with morphological and molecular alterations comparable to human KRAS mutated serrated tumors.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The balance between the supply and utilization of carbon (C) changes continually. It has been proposed that plants respond in an acclimatory manner, modifying C utilization to minimize harmful periods of C depletion. This hypothesis predicts that signaling events are initiated by small changes in C status.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF