Publications by authors named "Saikat Kumar B Ghosh"

Chronic inflammation contributes to the prevalence of cardiovascular disease in people living with HIV (PLWH). The immune mechanisms driving atherosclerosis progression in PLWH remain unclear. This study conducted comprehensive assessments of medium-sized coronary arteries and aorta from deceased PLWH and controls without HIV using DNA/RNA assays, spatial transcriptomics, and high-resolution mass spectrometry.

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Background: The success rate of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for chronic total occlusion (CTO) is lower and the risk for complications higher compared with other non-CTO PCI. Although interventionalists focus on intimal plaque characteristics, the coronary media is an important (especially for techniques involving antegrade dissection and re-entry) but poorly understood structure in CTO PCI.

Objectives: The aim of the present study was to investigate coronary medial wall thinning in CTO lesions and determine how this thinning might affect CTO PCI.

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Background: Cell phenotype switching is increasingly being recognized in atherosclerosis. However, our understanding of the exact stimuli for such cellular transformations and their significance for human atherosclerosis is still evolving. Intraplaque hemorrhage is thought to be a major contributor to plaque progression in part by stimulating the influx of CD163 macrophages.

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Background: Smooth muscle cells (SMCs), which make up the medial layer of arteries, are key cell types involved in cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide. In response to microenvironment alterations, SMCs dedifferentiate from a contractile to a synthetic phenotype characterized by an increased proliferation, migration, production of ECM (extracellular matrix) components, and decreased expression of SMC-specific contractile markers. These phenotypic changes result in vascular remodeling and contribute to the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease, including coronary artery disease, stroke, hypertension, and aortic aneurysms.

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  • The RECOVER-Pathology study focuses on analyzing the long-term effects of SARS-CoV-2 (long COVID) by examining postmortem tissue to better understand the prevalence and types of organ injuries related to PASC.
  • The study will involve detailed autopsies of individuals who died at least 15 days after their initial COVID-19 infection, with the aim of linking pathological findings to clinical characteristics and identifying potential causes of ongoing symptoms.
  • As the largest autopsy study on long COVID in the U.S., RECOVER-Pathology seeks to contribute significantly to knowledge about the mechanisms behind organ damage and to help guide future treatments.
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  • Polygenic risk scores (PRSs) can enhance predictions of coronary artery disease (CAD) risk, and this study investigates their link to histopathologic features of CAD based on autopsy data from 4327 sudden death cases.
  • The analysis involved 954 participants, revealing that those with the highest PRS quintile exhibited significantly worse atherosclerosis characteristics, such as higher %stenosis and greater calcification rates, even when accounting for traditional risk factors.
  • The study concludes that individuals in the highest PRS quintile are at a markedly increased risk of severe atherosclerosis and CAD-related death, especially in those aged 50 and below.
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Background: Studies in humans and mice using the expression of an X-linked gene or lineage tracing, respectively, have suggested that clones of smooth muscle cells (SMCs) exist in human atherosclerotic lesions but are limited by either spatial resolution or translatability of the model.

Methods: Phenotypic clonality can be detected by X-chromosome inactivation patterns. We investigated whether clones of SMCs exist in unstable human atheroma using RNA in situ hybridization (BaseScope) to identify a naturally occurring 24-nucleotide deletion in the 3'UTR of the X-linked (biglycan) gene, a proteoglycan highly expressed by SMCs.

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  • Intravascular lithotripsy (IVL) is being studied for its effects on calcium build-up in coronary arteries, but its specific histological impacts have not been thoroughly analyzed.
  • Research involved treating coronary lesions with IVL and comparing the results to traditional balloon angioplasty (POBA), using advanced imaging techniques like optical coherence tomography (OCT) and micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) to assess calcium fractures.
  • Results showed that IVL significantly increased the occurrence of calcium fractures compared to POBA, and while micro-CT effectively measured fracture depth, OCT was less accurate, underestimating both the occurrence and the depth of those fractures.
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  • A study was conducted to evaluate the relationship between polygenic risk scores (PRS) for coronary artery disease (CAD) and the severity of atherosclerosis in subjects who died suddenly.
  • From over 4,300 subjects, 954 cases were analyzed, revealing that those in the highest PRS quintile exhibited more severe atherosclerosis and higher rates of critical plaque features compared to those in the lowest quintile.
  • The findings suggest that higher PRS is linked to increased odds of severe atherosclerosis and CAD-related deaths, particularly in younger individuals, marking a significant advancement in understanding CAD risk factors.
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  • The study investigated the occurrence of medial arterial calcification (MAC) fractures after using the Auryon laser atherectomy on human cadaver limbs with atherosclerosis.
  • Two calcified arterial sections were treated and analyzed using micro-CT and histology to assess calcium disruption.
  • Results indicated that the Auryon laser treatment led to significant fractures in 6 out of 9 zones, particularly in areas with larger arcs of uninterrupted calcification, suggesting it may be an effective therapy for calcified arterial lesions.
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Background: Device-related thrombus (DRT) after left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) procedures is a rare but potentially serious event. Thrombogenicity and delayed endothelialization play a role in the development of DRT. Fluorinated polymers are known to have thromboresistant properties that may favorably modulate the healing response to an LAAC device.

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Plaque rupture, plaque erosion, and COVID-19 infection can cause acute coronary syndromes (ACS). We illustrate case examples demonstrating the distinctive and characteristic pathologic findings underlying each of these various causes of acute myocardial infarction. A deeper understanding of the pathophysiology of ACS is necessary for the development of newer agents and techniques to improve outcomes after ACS.

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Background: A deeper understanding of coronary medial thickness is important for coronary intervention because media thickness can limit the safety and effectiveness of interventional techniques. However, there is a paucity of detailed data on human coronary medial thickness so far.

Materials And Methods: We investigated the thickness of the media by histologic analysis.

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  • Researchers discovered that CD163+ macrophages, which respond to hemorrhages in plaques, have an inverse relationship with VC, suggesting they may help inhibit calcification.
  • The study highlighted that these macrophages regulate VC via NF-κB signaling and enhance the production of hyaluronan, an important component of the extracellular matrix, impacting plaque stability and development.
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Background: Neighborhood disadvantage is associated with a higher risk of sudden cardiac death. However, autopsy findings have never been investigated in this context. Here, we sought to explore associations between neighborhood disadvantage and cardiovascular findings at autopsy in cases of sudden death in the State of Maryland.

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Introduction: Atherosclerosis-based ischemic heart disease is still the primary cause of death throughout the world. Over the past decades there has been no significant changes in the therapeutic approaches to atherosclerosis, which are mainly based on lipid lowering therapies and management of comorbid conditions such as diabetes and hypertension. The involvement of macrophages in atherosclerosis has been recognized for decades.

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Over the last few years, new high-throughput biotechnologies and bioinformatic methods are revolutionizing our way of deep profiling tissue specimens at the molecular levels. These recent innovations provide opportunities to advance our understanding of atherosclerosis using human lesions aborted during autopsies and cardiac surgeries. Studies on human lesions have been focusing on understanding the relationship between molecules in the lesions with tissue morphology, genetic risk of atherosclerosis, and future adverse cardiovascular events.

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Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a complex inflammatory disease involving genetic influences across cell types. Genome-wide association studies have identified over 200 loci associated with CAD, where the majority of risk variants reside in noncoding DNA sequences impacting cis-regulatory elements. Here, we applied single-nucleus assay for transposase-accessible chromatin with sequencing to profile 28,316 nuclei across coronary artery segments from 41 patients with varying stages of CAD, which revealed 14 distinct cellular clusters.

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MI is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Coronary artery thrombosis is the final pathologic feature of the most cases of acute MI primarily caused by atherosclerotic coronary artery disease. The concept of vulnerable plaque has evolved over the years but originated from early pioneering work unveiling the crucial role of plaque rupture and subsequent coronary thrombosis as the dominant cause of MI.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Recent studies indicate the potential benefits of 1-month dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) for patients using drug-eluting stents (DES), focusing on the thromboresistance of different stent types under single antiplatelet therapy (SAPT).
  • - The study compared the thrombogenicity of fluoropolymer-coated everolimus-eluting stent (FP-EES), BioLinx polymer zotarolimus-eluting stent (BL-ZES), and biodegradable polymer everolimus-eluting stent (BP-EES) using swine models and confocal microscopy techniques.
  • - Findings showed that FP-EES had significantly lower platelet and inflammatory cell adhesion than the other stents, suggesting
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In recent years, several studies have examined the gut microbiome of lepidopteran larvae and how factors such as host plant affect it, and in turn, how gut bacteria affect host plant responses to herbivory. In addition, other studies have detailed how secretions of the labial (salivary) glands can alter host plant defense responses. We examined the gut microbiome of the cabbage looper (Trichoplusia ni) feeding on collards (Brassica oleracea) and separately analyzed the microbiomes of various organs that open directly into the alimentary canal, including the labial glands, mandibular glands, and the Malpighian tubules.

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Phloem and plant sap feeding insects invade the integrity of crops and fruits to retrieve nutrients, in the process damaging food crops. Hemipteran insects account for a number of economically substantial pests of plants that cause damage to crops by feeding on phloem sap. The brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB), Halyomorpha halys (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae) and the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP), Diaphorina citri Kuwayama (Hemiptera: Liviidae) are hemipteran insect pests introduced in North America, where they are an invasive agricultural pest of high-value specialty, row, and staple crops and citrus fruits, as well as a nuisance pest when they aggregate indoors.

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