Publications by authors named "Yvonne Chang"

Article Synopsis
  • - Recent studies highlight the need to understand how chemical and non-chemical stressors, like pollution and inflammation, affect public health, particularly regarding lung toxicity from inhaled pollutants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).
  • - In this research, primary human bronchial epithelial cells (HBEC) were cultivated to study the effects of inflammation induced by IL-13 on the toxicity of the pollutant benzo[a]pyrene (BAP), revealing that inflamed cells had poorer barrier integrity and more significant inflammatory responses.
  • - RNA sequencing indicated that IL-13-treated HBEC might have a higher risk of uncontrolled cell growth and a diminished immune response following exposure to BAP, providing new insights into how environmental factors
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  • There is an increasing necessity for new methods to assess the safety of mixtures containing polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), as current methods are limited and often inadequate.
  • This study explores creating similarly structured mixtures by utilizing various data streams, such as environmental concentrations and toxicity data, to prioritize PAH components for mixture formulation.
  • The research identified that the combination approach, which considers both toxicity and chemical abundance, yielded the best results for predicting hazards, with the toxicity-based method proving to be the most potent in testing models.
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The Axin family of scaffolding proteins regulates a wide array of developmental and post-developmental processes in eukaryotes. Studies in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans have shown that the Axin homolog PRY-1 plays essential roles in multiple tissues. To understand the genetic network of pry-1, we focused on a set of genes that are differentially expressed in the pry-1-mutant transcriptome and are linked to reproductive structure development.

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Article Synopsis
  • Exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are linked to health issues like cancer, is often assessed using the relative potency factor (RPF) method to estimate the cancer risk of PAH mixtures compared to a standard reference carcinogen, benzo[a]pyrene (BAP).
  • The study utilized a 3D human bronchial epithelial cell model to analyze gene expression changes following PAH exposure, employing a weighted gene coexpression network analysis (WGCNA) to identify gene sets linked to RPF and other risk values.
  • Over 3000 genes involved in critical processes like cell cycle regulation and inflammation were found to be associated with increased RPF, suggesting these gene sets could serve as potential biomarkers
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Vaping is the process of inhaling and exhaling an aerosol produced by an e-cigarette, vape pen, or personal aerosolizer. When the device contains nicotine, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) lists the product as an electronic nicotine delivery system or ENDS device. Similar electronic devices can be used to vape cannabis extracts.

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Article Synopsis
  • Evaluating the risks of chemicals in mixtures, particularly polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), poses major challenges for risk assessment due to their complex behaviors.
  • A classification model using systems biology data from mice was applied to a human in vitro model using 3D bronchial epithelial cells, effectively categorizing PAHs based on their carcinogenic potential.
  • Findings revealed that the best gene sets for identifying PAH carcinogenicity differed significantly from those responsive to benzo[a]pyrene (BAP), prompting a reevaluation of existing assumptions about PAH toxicity and highlighting the benefits of systems toxicology in hazard assessment.
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  • Recent research suggests that polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) may trigger cancer through different mechanisms rather than a single common pathway.
  • In a study using a 3D bronchial epithelial culture model, significant differences in gene expression were observed when comparing benzo[a]pyrene (BAP) and dibenzo[def,p]chrysene (DBC) against a complex PAH mixture.
  • The findings indicate that BAP and DBC uniquely affect pathways related to inflammation, DNA damage, and oxidative stress, highlighting the need for a more nuanced understanding of PAH toxicity and carcinogenic potential in humans.
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  • The Bioinformatics Resource Manager (BRM) is a web-based tool designed for converting and integrating data identifiers across multiple species, specifically humans, mice, rats, zebrafish, and macaques, while also facilitating miRNA-target analysis.
  • BRM allows users to perform cross-species identifier lookups, integrate datasets seamlessly, and query miRNA targets, helping to identify common biomarkers related to exposure from substances like benzo[a]pyrene (BAP) in experiments involving human lung cells and zebrafish.
  • The tool is user-friendly for biologists with minimal programming experience, enabling them to analyze and visualize omics data effectively without extensive coding knowledge.
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Background And Aims: The structural properties of leaf venation and xylem anatomy strongly influence leaf hydraulics, including the ability of leaves to maintain hydraulic function during drought. Here we examined the strength of the links between different leaf venation traits and leaf hydraulic vulnerability to drought (expressed as P50leaf by rehydration kinetics) in a diverse group of 26 woody angiosperm species, representing a wide range of leaf vulnerabilities, from four low-nutrient sites with contrasting rainfall across eastern Australia.

Methods: For each species we measured key aspects of leaf venation design, xylem anatomy and leaf morphology.

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HIV prevalence in correctional populations is approximately five times that of the general adult population. This systematic review examines the broad question of HIV prevention and interventions to reduce inmate HIV-related risk behaviors in U.S.

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While there is a growing body of literature on medical mistrust and its relevance to public health, research on formerly incarcerated Black and Latino men and their perception of mistrust toward medical providers and medical institutions remains scant. Very little is known about whether formerly incarcerated Black and Latino men mistrust medical and clinical providers given their previous experiences with the criminal justice system. It is important to determine whether medical mistrust play a key role in the health and health behaviors of released Black and Latino men.

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Close coordination between leaf gas exchange and maximal hydraulic supply has been reported across diverse plant life forms. However, it has also been suggested that this relationship may become weak or break down completely within the angiosperms. We examined coordination between hydraulic, leaf vein, and gas-exchange traits across a diverse group of 35 evergreen Australian angiosperms, spanning a large range in leaf structure and habitat.

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This study explored the challenges of informed consent and understanding of the research process among Black and Latino men under community supervision (e.g., parole and/or probation).

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Background And Aims: Vulnerability of the leaf hydraulic pathway to water-stress-induced dysfunction is a key component of drought tolerance in plants and may be important in defining species' climatic range. However, the generality of the association between leaf hydraulic vulnerability and climate across species and sites remains to be tested.

Methods: Leaf hydraulic vulnerability to drought (P50leaf, the water potential inducing 50 % loss in hydraulic function) was measured in a diverse group of 92 woody, mostly evergreen angiosperms from sites across a wide range of habitats.

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Article Synopsis
  • The diversity of bark traits is influenced by both environmental factors and intrinsic tradeoffs between the various functions of bark, such as protection and storage.
  • Researchers studied 90 species' bark traits, highlighting significant associations between bark mechanics, thickness, and photosynthetic activity, suggesting that thicker bark enhances stem stiffness and water retention.
  • Most trait variation occurred within specific sites rather than across different locations, indicating that functional tradeoffs among bark, wood, and leaf traits play a critical role in determining bark ecology and evolution.
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The vertebrate axial skeleton (vertebral column and ribs) is derived from embryonic structures called somites. Mechanisms of somite formation and patterning are largely conserved along the length of the body axis, but segments acquire different morphologies in part through the action of Hox transcription factors. Although Hox genes' roles in axial skeletal patterning have been extensively characterized, it is still not well understood how they interact with somite patterning pathways to regulate different vertebral morphologies.

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Like IGF-I, progranulin (pgrn) is a growth factor involved in tumorigenesis and wound healing. We report here the identification and characterization of pgrn cDNA in tilapia and the regulation of its expression by growth hormone (GH). The tilapia pgrn cDNA was cloned by RT-PCR amplification, using gene specific oligonucleotides as amplification primers.

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