Publications by authors named "Merrill M"

Metabolism-disrupting agents (MDAs) are chemical, infectious or physical agents that increase the risk of metabolic disorders. Examples include pharmaceuticals, such as antidepressants, and environmental agents, such as bisphenol A. Various types of studies can provide evidence to identify MDAs, yet a systematic method is needed to integrate these data to help to identify such hazards.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Variations in access to drugs globally make it hard to assess the effectiveness of modern treatments for patients with relapsed and refractory mature T-cell and NK-cell lymphomas in a study of 925 patients.
  • * The study found that relapsed lymphoma patients had better overall survival rates compared to refractory patients after second-line treatment, with several factors identified as predictors of survival.
  • * A new prognostic index (PIRT) categorizes patients based on risk factors into low, intermediate, or high risk, impacting 3-year overall survival rates, and highlights the superior outcomes of novel therapies compared to traditional chemotherapy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The insecticide dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and its persistent metabolite, dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE), have been associated with increased adiposity and obesity in multiple generations of rodents and humans. These lipophilic pollutants accumulate in adipose tissue and appear to decrease energy expenditure through the impairment of thermogenesis in brown adipose tissue (BAT). We hypothesized that impaired thermogenesis is due to persistent epigenetic modifications of BAT.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Autism spectrum disorder comprises a group of neurodevelopmental conditions currently diagnosed by behavioral assessment in childhood, although neuropathology begins during gestation. A poorly understood male bias for ASD diagnosis is thought to be due to both biological sex differences and cultural biases against female diagnosis of ASD. Identification of molecular biomarkers of ASD likelihood in newborns would provide more objective screening and early intervention.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates the link between per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), specifically perfluoroheptanoic acid (PFHpA), and the risk of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) in obese adolescents.
  • Results show that higher PFHpA plasma concentrations correlate with increased MASLD risk and that PFHpA disrupts liver metabolism, particularly lipid metabolism.
  • The research also introduces a novel approach to identify individuals at high risk for PFHpA-induced MASLD and suggests potential early intervention strategies based on molecular signatures.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • PFAS are synthetic chemicals that persist in the environment and can negatively impact human health, and microRNAs can serve as biomarkers for understanding their effects.
  • This study aimed to explore the relationship between PFAS levels and miRNA alterations in children using data from two cohorts in the U.S. and Greece.
  • Findings showed that PFAS exposure was linked to changes in numerous miRNAs, particularly decreased levels of miR-148b-3p and miR-29a-3p, which may be associated with chronic diseases like cardiovascular issues and cancer.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Exposure to per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) is ubiquitous due to their persistence in the environment and in humans. Extreme weight loss has been shown to influence concentrations of circulating persistent organic pollutants (POPs). Using data from the multi-center perspective Teen-Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery (Teen-LABS) cohort, we investigated changes in plasma-PFAS in adolescents after bariatric surgery.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: Dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE), an obesogen accumulating in adipose tissue, is released into circulation with weight loss, although its impact is underexplored among adolescents. We tested the association using an integrative translational approach of epidemiological analysis among adolescents with obesity and in vitro measures exploring the impact of DDE on adipogenesis via preadipocytes.

Methods: We included 63 participants from the Teen-Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery (Teen-LABS) cohort.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are persistent, toxic chemicals that pose significant hazards to human health and the environment. Screening large numbers of chemicals for their ability to act as endocrine disruptors by modulating the activity of nuclear receptors (NRs) is challenging because of the time and cost of in vitro and in vivo experiments. For this reason, we need computational approaches to screen these chemicals and quickly prioritize them for further testing.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a prevalent chronic liver condition among children and adolescents, with varying severity levels, including nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) which features inflammation and fibrosis.
  • Researchers investigated the link between plasma microRNA (miRNA) levels and various histological features of NAFLD in adolescents, analyzing samples from 81 affected individuals and 54 healthy controls.
  • The study found significant associations between specific upregulated and downregulated miRNAs and features of NAFLD, suggesting that certain miRNAs may play a role in the disease's pathology and could serve as potential biomarkers for NAFLD severity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study focuses on clonal hematopoiesis of indeterminate potential (CHIP) in breast cancer patients, finding that 15% had CHIP before treatment but few developed new mutations during treatment.* -
  • Chemotherapy (CT) increased the risk of developing new CHIP variants, particularly those with a higher variant allele fraction, while endocrine therapy (ET) did not show significant differences in mutation emergence.* -
  • Overall, CHIP prevalence is common among breast cancer patients, and while most had a low risk of treatment-related myeloid neoplasms (t-MN), the emergence of certain mutant CHIP during CT raises concerns that need more research.*
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Weight loss is critical to reduce diabetes risk. Diabetes Prevention Programs (DPPs) are effective for weight loss, although less is known about digital DPPs. This study explores the association between Brook+, a 52-week digital DPP, and weight loss.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are chemicals characterized by their environmental persistence. Evidence suggests that exposure to POPs, which is ubiquitous, is associated with microRNA (miRNA) dysregulation. miRNA are key regulators in many physiological processes.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Triphenyl phosphate (TPhP), a widely used organophosphate-flame retardant, is ubiquitously found in household environments and may adversely affect human health. Evidence indicates that TPhP exposure causes metabolic dysfunctions in vivo; however, the underlying mechanism of such adverse effects has not been comprehensively investigated. Herein, we utilized two in vitro models including mouse and human preadipocytes to delineate adipogenic mechanisms of TPhP.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Germline genetic testing for cancer predisposition genes has become an essential component of cancer treatment and risk reduction. The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) releases annual genetic testing guidelines that identify characteristics of patients that could be affected by a hereditary cancer syndrome. These guidelines have broadened over time and the implications for past patients of cancer genetics clinics are not well understood.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Animal studies have pointed at the liver as a hotspot for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) accumulation and toxicity; however, these findings have not been replicated in human populations. We measured concentrations of seven PFAS in matched liver and plasma samples collected at the time of bariatric surgery from 64 adolescents in the Teen-Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery (Teen-LABS) study. Liver:plasma concentration ratios were perfectly explained ( > 0.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In this real-world evaluation of tafasitamab-lenalidomide (TL) in relapsed or refractory LBCL, patients receiving TL had higher rates of comorbidities and high-risk disease characteristics, and substantially lower progression-free survival and overall survival, compared with the L-MIND registration clinical trial for TL.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Oncogenic fusions involving transcription factors are present in the majority of pediatric leukemias; however, the context-specific mechanisms they employ to drive cancer remain poorly understood. CBFA2T3-GLIS2 (C/G) fusions occur in treatment-refractory acute myeloid leukemias and are restricted to young children. To understand how the C/G fusion drives oncogenesis we applied CUT&RUN chromatin profiling to an umbilical cord blood/endothelial cell (EC) co-culture model of C/G AML that recapitulates the biology of this malignancy.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) is often used as consolidation for several subtypes of peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL) in first remission. However, many patients relapse after ASCT and have a very poor prognosis. There are no approved treatment options for posttransplantation maintenance or consolidation in PTCL.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

On September 7 and 8, 2022, Healthy Environment and Endocrine Disruptors Strategies, an Environmental Health Sciences program, convened a scientific workshop of relevant stakeholders involved in obesity, toxicology, or obesogen research to review the state of the science regarding the role of obesogenic chemicals that might be contributing to the obesity pandemic. The workshop's objectives were to examine the evidence supporting the hypothesis that obesogens contribute to the etiology of human obesity; to discuss opportunities for improved understanding, acceptance, and dissemination of obesogens as contributors to the obesity pandemic; and to consider the need for future research and potential mitigation strategies. This report details the discussions, key areas of agreement, and future opportunities to prevent obesity.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Methylparaben (MP) and propylparaben (PP) are commonly used as food, cosmetic, and drug preservatives. These parabens are detected in the majority of US women and children, bind and activate estrogen receptors (ER), and stimulate mammary tumor cell growth and invasion in vitro. Hemizygous B6.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Gestational exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) has been associated with elevated risk for neurodevelopmental disorders. Placental epigenetics may serve as a potential mechanism of risk or marker of altered placental function. Prior studies have associated differential placental DNA methylation with maternal PCB exposure or with increased risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Due to their persistence and toxicity, perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) constitute significant hazards to human health and the environment. Their effects include immune suppression, altered hormone levels, and osteoporosis. Recently, the most studied PFAS, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), was shown to competitively binding to the Vitamin D receptor (VDR).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Brain-tumor-initiating cells (BTICs) of proneural and mesenchymal origin contribute to the highly malignant phenotype of glioblastoma (GB) and resistance to current therapies. BTICs of different subtypes were challenged with oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) inhibition with metformin to assess the differential effects of metabolic intervention on key resistance features. Whereas mesenchymal BTICs varied according to their invasiveness, they were in general more glycolytic and less responsive to metformin.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF