Publications by authors named "Shawn M Simpson"

Next-generation T-cell-directed vaccines for COVID-19 focus on establishing lasting T-cell immunity against current and emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants. Precise identification of conserved T-cell epitopes is critical for designing effective vaccines. Here we introduce a comprehensive computational framework incorporating a machine learning algorithm-MHCvalidator-to enhance mass spectrometry-based immunopeptidomics sensitivity.

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Article Synopsis
  • Acute megakaryoblastic leukemia (AMKL) is a rare and dangerous childhood cancer linked to specific genetic fusions, with key subtypes associated with high mortality rates.
  • Researchers created models from human cord blood to study CG2 AMKL, revealing that these leukemic cells have unique surface markers and a block in normal cell differentiation, as well as a reliance on the survival factor BCL-XL.
  • Targeting BCL-XL with drugs like navitoclax showed promise in reducing leukemic cells, indicating a potential new treatment approach for CG2 and NUP98r AMKL, especially when used alongside low-dose chemotherapy.
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Background: COVID-19 is usually a time-limited disease. However, prolonged infections and reinfections can occur among immunocompromised patients. It can be difficult to distinguish a prolonged infection from a new one, especially when reinfection occurs early.

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selection of remdesivir-resistant severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) revealed the emergence of a V166L substitution, located outside of the polymerase active site of the Nsp12 protein, after 9 passages of a single lineage. V166L remained the only Nsp12 substitution after 17 passages (10 μM remdesivir), conferring a 2.3-fold increase in 50% effective concentration (EC).

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The first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Quebec, Canada, occurred at Verdun Hospital on February 25, 2020. A month later, a localized outbreak was observed at this hospital. We performed tiled amplicon whole genome nanopore sequencing on nasopharyngeal swabs from all SARS-CoV-2 positive samples from 31 March to 17 April 2020 in 2 local hospitals to assess viral diversity (unknown at the time in Quebec) and potential associations with clinical outcomes.

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