Publications by authors named "N L Abney"

Concomitant with the opioid epidemic, there has been a rise in pregnant women diagnosed with opioid use disorder and cases of infants born with neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS). NOWS refers to signs and symptoms following cessation of prenatal opioid exposure that comprise neurological, gastrointestinal, and autonomic system dysfunction. A critical indicator of NOWS severity is excessive, high-pitched crying.

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Article Synopsis
  • Opioid use during pregnancy can cause serious health issues for infants, like neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS), which involves various dysfunctions that require tailored treatment approaches.* -
  • A study on neonatal mice revealed increased ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) during opioid withdrawal, with significant behavioral and mRNA changes associated with kappa opioid receptors implicated in stress responses.* -
  • Findings suggest that the kappa opioid receptor plays a critical role in withdrawal-related distress, particularly in female mice, highlighting variations in USV patterns and responses in males and females during this process.*
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Rationale: Opioid use during pregnancy can lead to negative infant health outcomes, including neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS). NOWS comprises gastrointestinal, autonomic nervous system, and neurological dysfunction that manifest during spontaneous withdrawal. Variability in NOWS severity necessitates a more individualized treatment approach.

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The colony-stimulating factor 3 receptor (CSF3R) controls the growth of neutrophils, the most abundant type of white blood cell. In healthy neutrophils, signaling is dependent on CSF3R binding to its ligand, CSF3. A single amino acid mutation in CSF3R, T618I, instead allows for constitutive, ligand-independent cell growth and leads to a rare type of cancer called chronic neutrophilic leukemia.

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The ubiquity of C-H bonds presents an attractive opportunity to elaborate and build complexity in organic molecules. Methods for selective functionalization, however, often must differentiate among multiple chemically similar and, in some cases indistinguishable, C-H bonds. An advantage of enzymes is that they can be finely tuned using directed evolution to achieve control over divergent C-H functionalization pathways.

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