236 results match your criteria: "Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC; Virginia Tech; Roanoke[Affiliation]"

Restrictions of cigarette and e-cigarette flavor and filter ventilation on demand and substitution in the Experimental Tobacco Marketplace.

Drug Alcohol Depend

October 2024

Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at Virginia Tech Carilion, Roanoke, VA, USA; Department of Psychology, College of Science, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA. Electronic address:

Significance: Tobacco product design features, including flavors and cigarette filter ventilation, are subject to regulation. This study examined the effects of cigarette and e-cigarette flavors on demand and substitution by preferred cigarette flavor and ventilation in the Experimental Tobacco Marketplace (ETM).

Methods: In a mixed between-group (usual cigarette flavor and ventilation)/within-subject design (policy conditions), individuals who use tobacco (n=176 cigarette (60.

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species predominate the human vagina and are associated with positive vaginal health, including an acidic pH (<4.5). The prevalence of vaginal increases with increased oestrogen due to increased glycogen production within the vagina.

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The role of protein kinase D (PKD) in obesity: Lessons from the heart and other tissues.

Biochim Biophys Acta Mol Cell Res

October 2024

Institute for Physical Activity and Nutrition, School of Exercise and Nutrition Science, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia. Electronic address:

Obesity causes a range of tissue dysfunctions that increases the risk for morbidity and mortality. Protein kinase D (PKD) represents a family of stress-activated intracellular signalling proteins that regulate essential processes such as cell proliferation and differentiation, cell survival, and exocytosis. Evidence suggests that PKD regulates the cellular adaptations to the obese environment in metabolically important tissues and drives the development of a variety of diseases.

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It is unknown how the Addictions Neuroclinical Assessment markers-negative affect, sensation seeking, and executive function-contribute to substance use development. This study examined whether associations of negative affect and sensation seeking with substance use vary by executive function. Participants were 167 adolescents (47% female) who participated annually for four years (M = 14.

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Face processing relies on predictive processes driven by low spatial frequencies (LSF) that convey coarse information prior to fine information conveyed by high spatial frequencies. However, autistic individuals might have atypical predictive processes, contributing to facial processing difficulties. This may be more normalized in autistic females, who often exhibit better socio-communicational abilities than males.

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Background: Research on delay discounting (DD) is mixed on whether DD is a domain-specific component related to specific behaviors or a domain-general process that cuts across various behaviors. A pivotal group to test the associations between DD and unhealthy behaviors is individuals in recovery from substance use disorders (SUD), as they are moving away from a disorder toward a healthier state.

Methods: Individuals in SUD recovery (n = 317) completed the Temptation Scale, the Health Behaviors Questionnaire, and an Adjusting Delay Discounting Task.

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The present study examined whether internalizing and externalizing symptoms may mediate the association between adolescent-mother and adolescent-father attachment and substance use. The sample included 167 adolescents (47% girls) who were assessed at five time points with approximately 1 year between each assessment, beginning in middle adolescence (M= 14.07) and ending in the transition to young adulthood (M= 18.

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Development and characterization of the mode-of-action of inhibitory and agonist peptides targeting the voltage-gated sodium channel SCN1B beta-subunit.

J Mol Cell Cardiol

September 2024

Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, Virginia Polytechnic University, Roanoke, VA, United States; School of Medicine, Virgina Polytechnic University, Roanoke, VA, United States; Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics, Virginia Polytechnic University, Roanoke, VA, United States. Electronic address:

Cardiac arrhythmia treatment is a clinical challenge necessitating safer and more effective therapies. Recent studies have highlighted the role of the perinexus, an intercalated disc nanodomain enriched in voltage-gated sodium channels including both Na1.5 and β1 subunits, adjacent to gap junctions.

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New focus on cardiac voltage-gated sodium channel β1 and β1B: Novel targets for treating and understanding arrhythmias?

Heart Rhythm

January 2025

Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, Virginia Polytechnic University, Roanoke, Virginia; School of Medicine, Virgina Polytechnic University, Roanoke, Virginia; Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics, Virginia Polytechnic University, Blacksburg, Virginia. Electronic address:

Voltage-gated sodium channels (VGSCs) are transmembrane protein complexes that are vital to the generation and propagation of action potentials in nerve and muscle fibers. The canonical VGSC is generally conceived as a heterotrimeric complex formed by 2 classes of membrane-spanning subunit: an α-subunit (pore forming) and 2 β-subunits (non-pore forming). Na1.

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We overview of our whole room indirect calorimeter (WRIC), demonstrate validity and reliability of our WRIC, and explore a novel application of Bayesian hierarchical modeling to assess responses to small carbohydrate loads. To assess WRIC validity seven gas infusion studies were performed using a gas blender and profiles designed to mimic resting and postprandial metabolic events. Sixteen participants underwent fasting and postprandial measurements, during which they consumed a 75-kcal drink containing sucrose, dextrose, or fructose in a crossover design.

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Circadian clock gene polymorphisms implicated in human pathologies.

Trends Genet

October 2024

Integrated Cellular Responses Laboratory, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, Virginia Tech, Roanoke, VA, USA; Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA; Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, Virginia Tech, Roanoke, VA, USA; Academy of Integrated Sciences, College of Science, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA. Electronic address:

Circadian rhythms, ~24 h cycles of physiological and behavioral processes, can be synchronized by external signals (e.g., light) and persist even in their absence.

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Neurostimulation protocols are increasingly used as therapeutic interventions, including for brain injury. In addition to the direct activation of neurons, these stimulation protocols are also likely to have downstream effects on those neurons' synaptic outputs. It is well known that alterations in the strength of synaptic connections (long-term potentiation, LTP; long-term depression, LTD) are sensitive to the frequency of stimulation used for induction; however, little is known about the contribution of the temporal pattern of stimulation to the downstream synaptic plasticity that may be induced by neurostimulation in the injured brain.

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Resistance to chemotherapies such as temozolomide is a major hurdle to effectively treat therapy-resistant glioblastoma. This challenge arises from the activation of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), which makes it an appealing therapeutic target. However, non-selectively blocking PI3K kinases PI3Kα/β/δ/γ has yielded undesired clinical outcomes.

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A machine-learning approach for differentiating borderline personality disorder from community participants with brain-wide functional connectivity.

J Affect Disord

September 2024

Independent Max Planck Research Group for Social Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany; Department of Psychiatry, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany.

Background: Functional connectivity has garnered interest as a potential biomarker of psychiatric disorders including borderline personality disorder (BPD). However, small sample sizes and lack of within-study replications have led to divergent findings with no clear spatial foci.

Aims: Evaluate discriminative performance and generalizability of functional connectivity markers for BPD.

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It is unclear how delay discounting and substance use develop across adolescence and whether contextual factors alter their trajectories. The present study used a longitudinal design to examine whether socioeconomic status is related to developmental trajectories of delay discounting and substance use across adolescence. The sample included 167 adolescents (M = 14 at Time 1; 53% male) and their parents who participated annually across four years.

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Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a severe vascular disease characterized by persistent precapillary pulmonary hypertension, leading to right heart failure and death. Despite intense research in the last decades, PAH remains an incurable disease with high morbidity and mortality. New directions and therapies to improve understanding and treatment of PAH are desperately needed.

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Article Synopsis
  • Pontocerebellar hypoplasia (PCH) is linked to mutations in the X-linked CASK gene, causing microcephaly and cerebellar degeneration, particularly in females, while being more lethal in males.
  • Researchers created knockout mice to study the impacts of CASK deletion at different developmental stages, revealing that deletion post-adulthood leads to cerebellar degeneration and ataxia but not immediate death.
  • Findings suggest that damaging mutations in boys can cause microcephaly and brain dysfunction without PCH, indicating CASK has both shared functions across species and unique roles in the vertebrate brain, particularly in the forebrain and cerebellum.
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Article Synopsis
  • * The study involved interviewing 17 individuals with expertise in opioid overdose responses, using qualitative analysis to uncover key themes related to different types of overdoses.
  • * Findings highlight the importance of contextual details (like environment and bystander reactions) in creating realistic simulation scenarios for training programs, aiming to improve responses to out-of-hospital overdoses.
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Purpose: Sleep and stress show an interdependent relationship in physiology, and both are known risk factors for relapse in substance use disorder (SUD) recovery. However, sleep and stress are often investigated independently in addiction research. In this exploratory study, the associations of sleep quality and perceived stress with delay discounting (DD), effort discounting (ED), and quality of life (QOL) were examined concomitantly to determine their role in addiction recovery.

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Neuroscience research underscores the critical impact of adverse experiences on brain development. Yet, there is limited understanding of the specific pathways linking adverse experiences to accelerated or delayed brain development and their ultimate contributions to psychopathology. Here, we present new longitudinal data demonstrating that neurocognitive functioning during adolescence, as affected by adverse experiences, predicts psychopathology during young adulthood.

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Gene variants that hyperactivate PI3K-mTOR signaling in the brain lead to epilepsy and cortical malformations in humans. Some gene variants associated with these pathologies only hyperactivate mTORC1, but others, such as , , and , hyperactivate both mTORC1- and mTORC2-dependent signaling. Previous work established a key role for mTORC1 hyperactivity in mTORopathies, however, whether mTORC2 hyperactivity contributes is not clear.

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Acute Adenoviral Infection Elicits an Arrhythmogenic Substrate Prior to Myocarditis.

Circ Res

March 2024

Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics, College of Engineering (R.G.G., S.P., J.W.S.), Virginia Tech, Blacksburg.

Article Synopsis
  • Viral cardiac infections, particularly myocarditis caused by adenovirus, present significant challenges due to the lack of understanding of how these infections lead to sudden cardiac issues, especially in young adults.
  • The study utilizes mouse adenovirus type-3 to model acute cardiac infections, revealing that infection leads to decreased conduction velocity and altered gap junction function before major immune responses occur.
  • Findings indicate that both mouse and human adenoviruses affect cardiac function by increasing Cx43 phosphorylation, which impacts action potential duration and cell synchrony, suggesting a need for further exploration of these mechanisms in both species.
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Dopamine and serotonin are hypothesized to guide social behaviours. In humans, however, we have not yet been able to study neuromodulator dynamics as social interaction unfolds. Here, we obtained subsecond estimates of dopamine and serotonin from human substantia nigra pars reticulata during the ultimatum game.

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Objective: Dissociation is a conscious state characterized by alterations in sensation and perception and is thought to arise from traumatic life experiences. Previous research has demonstrated that individuals with high levels of dissociation show impairments in cognitive-emotional processes. Therefore, using the Competing Neurobehavioral Decisions System (CNDS) theory, we used statistical modeling to examine whether dissociative experience and trauma symptoms are independently predicted by impulsivity, risk-seeking, affective state (i.

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