Publications by authors named "L-J Baker"

The introns of the gene encoding the long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) GAS5 host up to 10 C/D box small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs). However, whether there is a regulatory and functional relationship between these snoRNAs and GAS5 is unknown. Here, we show that the expression of SNORD80, but not the other snoRNAs, parallels GAS5 expression and is regulated alongside GAS5 in response to cellular stress.

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The use of monoclonal antibodies for the control of drug resistant nosocomial bacteria may alleviate a reliance on broad spectrum antimicrobials for treatment of infection. We identify monoclonal antibodies that may prevent infection caused by carbapenem resistant Acinetobacter baumannii. We use human immune repertoire mice (Kymouse platform mice) as a surrogate for human B cell interrogation to establish an unbiased strategy to probe the antibody-accessible target landscape of clinically relevant A.

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  • Patients with transposition of the great arteries (TGA) and systemic right ventricle face serious heart-related risks, and researchers sought to determine if specific invasive hemodynamic measures can predict outcomes.
  • The study included 242 adults who underwent cardiac catheterization from 1994 to 2020, analyzing various hemodynamic parameters over an average follow-up period of 11.4 years.
  • Results indicated that a low aortic pulsatility index (<1.5) strongly predicts negative outcomes such as death or the need for heart transplantation, with the cold/wet hemodynamic profile presenting the highest associated risk.
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  • COVID-19 has significantly affected global health, but most studies on dementia's impact during the pandemic have focused on Europe and Asia without differentiating dementia subtypes.
  • A study analyzing health records from 21 U.S. healthcare systems found that all-cause dementia was linked to higher mortality rates, while Alzheimer's and vascular dementia did not independently show this association.
  • Patients with any form of dementia had longer hospital stays and were less likely to be admitted to the ICU, indicating a unique set of health care challenges for these individuals during the pandemic.
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Over the past century, genetics and genomics ("genomics") have contributed significantly to our knowledge of human biology and disease. Genomics has also bolstered inaccurate and harmful arguments about "essential" differences between socially defined groups. These purported differences have reinforced class hierarchies and justified the mistreatment of groups such as Black people, Indigenous people, and other people of color and/or people with disabilities.

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  • PTSD genetics have been difficult to study compared to other psychiatric disorders, limiting our biological understanding of the condition.
  • A large-scale meta-analysis involving over 1.2 million individuals identified 95 genome-wide significant loci, with 80 being new discoveries related to PTSD.
  • Researchers identified 43 potential causal genes linked to neurotransmitter activity, developmental processes, synaptic function, and immune regulation, enhancing our knowledge of the neurobiological systems involved in PTSD.
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The Selux Next-Generation Phenotyping (NGP) system (Charlestown, MA) is a new antimicrobial susceptibility testing system that utilizes two sequential assays performed on all wells of doubling dilution series to determine MICs. A multicenter evaluation of the performance of the Selux NGP system compared with reference broth microdilution was conducted following FDA recommendations and using FDA-defined breakpoints. A total of 2,488 clinical and challenge isolates were included; gram-negative isolates were tested against 24 antimicrobials, and gram-positive isolates were tested against 15 antimicrobials.

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Rehydration is important for athlete performance and recovery. However, it can be challenging to follow appropriate fluid replacement practices due in part to difficulties in tracking fluid intake in real time. The purpose of this study was to determine the accuracy of a smart bottle in measuring fluid intake during exercise.

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Background: Whether vaccination during pregnancy could reduce the burden of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)-associated lower respiratory tract illness in newborns and infants is uncertain.

Methods: In this phase 3, double-blind trial conducted in 18 countries, we randomly assigned, in a 1:1 ratio, pregnant women at 24 through 36 weeks' gestation to receive a single intramuscular injection of 120 μg of a bivalent RSV prefusion F protein-based (RSVpreF) vaccine or placebo. The two primary efficacy end points were medically attended severe RSV-associated lower respiratory tract illness and medically attended RSV-associated lower respiratory tract illness in infants within 90, 120, 150, and 180 days after birth.

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  • The REGAIN trial found that spinal and general anesthesia provide similar outcomes regarding ambulation and survival after hip fracture surgery.
  • In a secondary analysis, researchers compared pain levels, analgesic use, and patient satisfaction between the two anesthesia types.
  • Results indicated that spinal anesthesia led to more severe pain in the first 24 hours post-surgery and higher prescription analgesic use at 60 days, while patient satisfaction remained comparable across both groups.
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Background: Nrf2 regulates cellular antioxidant defence in lung cells, including epithelial cells and alveolar macrophages (AM). The Nrf2/Keap-1 pathway can be modulated by activators with different modes of action; electrophilic compounds and protein-protein interaction (PPI) inhibitors. We assessed Nrf2 and Keap-1 protein and gene levels in COPD compared to controls and the effect of Nrf2 activators on COPD AM.

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Background: Sensor-based monitoring tools fill a critical gap in multiple sclerosis (MS) research and clinical care.

Objective: The aim of this study is to assess performance characteristics of the Floodlight Proof-of-Concept (PoC) app.

Methods: In a 24-week study (clinicaltrials.

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We used F-FDG-PET to investigate the frequency of crossed cerebellar diaschisis (CCD) in 197 patients with various syndromes associated with neurodegenerative diseases. In a subset of 117 patients, we studied relationships between CCD and cortical asymmetry of Alzheimer's pathology (β-amyloid (C-PIB) and tau (F-Flortaucipir)). PET images were processed using MRIs to derive parametric SUVR images and define regions of interest.

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Objective: To assess whether Alzheimer disease (AD) clinical presentation and relate to the burden and topography of β-amyloid (Aβ) and tau pathologies using in vivo PET imaging.

Methods: We studied 119 Aβ-positive symptomatic patients aged 48-95 years, including 29 patients with logopenic variant primary progressive aphasia (lvPPA) and 21 with posterior cortical atrophy (PCA). Pittsburgh compound B (PiB)-Aβ and flortaucipir (tau)-PET standardized uptake value ratio (SUVR) images were created.

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  • Smoking is the main cause of health problems and deaths that can be prevented, and our genes play a role in how we smoke and quit.
  • Scientists studied DNA from 58,000 smokers and found important genetic spots that affect nicotine dependence, including two new ones they hadn’t discovered before.
  • These genetic findings help us understand why some people find it harder to quit smoking and how their bodies react to nicotine.
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Relatively little is known about the possible effects of personalized genetic risk information on smoking, the leading preventable cause of morbidity and mortality. We examined the acceptability and potential behavior change associated with a personalized genetically informed risk tool () among current smokers. Current smokers ( = 108) were enrolled in a pre-post study with three visits.

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Rural populations face significant smoking-related health disparities, such as a higher prevalence of lung cancer and cancer mortality, higher prevalence of smoking, and lower likelihood of receiving cessation treatment than urban counterparts. A significant proportion of health disparities in rural populations could be eliminated with low-barrier, easy-access treatment delivery methods for smoking cessation. In this study, we assessed treatment engagement among patients in rural and urban settings.

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The risk of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following trauma is heritable, but robust common variants have yet to be identified. In a multi-ethnic cohort including over 30,000 PTSD cases and 170,000 controls we conduct a genome-wide association study of PTSD. We demonstrate SNP-based heritability estimates of 5-20%, varying by sex.

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Background: Thyroid peroxidase antibodies are associated with an increased risk of miscarriage and preterm birth, even when thyroid function is normal. Small trials indicate that the use of levothyroxine could reduce the incidence of such adverse outcomes.

Methods: We conducted a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial to investigate whether levothyroxine treatment would increase live-birth rates among euthyroid women who had thyroid peroxidase antibodies and a history of miscarriage or infertility.

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Background: Conventional definitions of sarcopenia based on lean mass may fail to capture low lean mass relative to higher fat mass, that is, relative sarcopenia. The objective of this study is to determine the associations of sarcopenia and relative sarcopenia with mortality independent of co-morbidities, and whether chronic kidney disease (CKD) and adiposity alter these associations.

Methods: Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry-derived appendicular lean mass index (ALMI, kg/m ) and fat mass index (FMI, kg/m ) were assessed in 14 850 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey participants from 1999 to 2006 and were linked to death certificate data in the National Death Index with follow-up through 2011.

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Objective: To assess the relationships between fluid and imaging biomarkers of tau pathology and compare their diagnostic utility in a clinically heterogeneous sample.

Methods: Fifty-three patients (28 with clinical Alzheimer disease [AD] and 25 with non-AD clinical neurodegenerative diagnoses) underwent β-amyloid (Aβ) and tau ([F]AV1451) PET and lumbar puncture. CSF biomarkers (Aβ, total tau [t-tau], and phosphorylated tau [p-tau]) were measured by multianalyte immunoassay (AlzBio3).

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The microtubule-associated protein tau (MAPT, tau) forms neurotoxic aggregates that promote cognitive deficits in tauopathies, the most common of which is Alzheimer's disease (AD). The 90-kDa heat shock protein (Hsp90) chaperone system affects the accumulation of these toxic tau species, which can be modulated with Hsp90 inhibitors. However, many Hsp90 inhibitors are not blood-brain barrier-permeable, and several present associated toxicities.

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Chronological age represents the single greatest risk factor for human disease. One plausible explanation for this correlation is that mechanisms that drive ageing might also promote age-related diseases. Cellular senescence, which is a permanent state of cell cycle arrest induced by cellular stress, has recently emerged as a fundamental ageing mechanism that also contributes to diseases of late life, including cancer, atherosclerosis and osteoarthritis.

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Background: Epidemiologic and genomewide association studies have linked loss-of-function variants in ANGPTL3, encoding angiopoietin-like 3, with low levels of plasma lipoproteins.

Methods: We evaluated antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) targeting Angptl3 messenger RNA (mRNA) for effects on plasma lipid levels, triglyceride clearance, liver triglyceride content, insulin sensitivity, and atherosclerosis in mice. Subsequently, 44 human participants (with triglyceride levels of either 90 to 150 mg per deciliter [1.

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