9,957 results match your criteria: "Louisiana State University System; ursula.white@pbrc.edu.[Affiliation]"

Environmentally persistent free radicals (EPFRs) are a recently recognized component of particulate matter that cause respiratory and cardiovascular toxicity. The mechanism of EPFR toxicity appears to be related to their ability to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS), causing oxidative damage. EPFRs were shown to affect P450 function, inducing the expression of some forms through the Ah receptor.

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The Role of Whole Food Plant-Based Food Intake on Postprandial Glycemia in Type 1 Diabetes.

J Clin Endocrinol Metab

October 2024

Division of Pediatric Endocrinology, Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.

Background: Whole food plant-based diet (WFPBD), minimally processed foods with limited consumption of animal products, is associated with improved health outcomes. The benefits of WFPBD are underexplored in individuals with type 1 diabetes (T1D). The primary objective of this analysis is to evaluate the association between WFPBD on glycemia in individuals with T1D.

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Predicting the Presence of Pain in Youth Baseball Pitchers Using the Concept of Biomechanical Efficiency.

Orthop J Sports Med

October 2024

Sports Medicine and Movement Laboratory, School of Kinesiology, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama, USA.

Background: Increases in peak shoulder distraction force and peak elbow valgus torque may influence throwing-arm pain and injury risk in youth pitchers.

Purpose/hypothesis: The purpose of this study was to determine whether shoulder distraction force and elbow valgus torque while accounting for anthropometrics and pitch velocity can predict the presence of pain in youth baseball pitchers. It was hypothesized that throwing-arm pain could be predicted using the concept of biomechanical efficiency, where a pitcher who is less efficient (having higher force or torque with the same pitch velocity) is more likely to experience pain.

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Factors associated with COVID-19 vaccination or intent to be vaccinated across three U.S. states.

Vaccine

December 2024

Department of Emergency Management and Disaster Health Systems, University of Maryland Baltimore County, 900 Walker Ave, Baltimore, MD 21250, United States. Electronic address:

Objectives: Vaccine hesitancy represents an important challenge to the effective control of the COVID-19 pandemic. In prior research on seasonal influenza, childhood vaccination, and emergency vaccination programs, hesitancy has been associated with a wide range of demographic, psychological, and compliance factors.

Methods: In January 2021, an online survey was distributed using the Qualtrics (Provo, UT) platform to a proportional quota sample of individuals in three states: Louisiana, New York, and Washington.

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Introduction: We assessed the prognostic utility of circulating levels of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and tissue inhibitors of matrix metalloproteinases (TIMPs) in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) in the IPF-PRO Registry.

Methods: MMP and TIMP concentrations were quantified by ELISA in plasma from 300 patients. A Cox proportional hazard regression model was used to assess associations between select MMPs and TIMPs and death and disease progression (absolute decline in forced vital capacity ≥10% predicted, death, or lung transplant).

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Suitability evaluation of toehold switch and EXPAR for cell-free MicroRNA biosensor development.

Biotechnol Notes

November 2023

Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA, 70803, USA.

The development of a robust and cost-effective sensing platform for microRNA (miRNA) is of paramount importance in detecting and monitoring various diseases. Current miRNA detection methods are marred by low accuracy, high cost, and instability. The toehold switch riboregulator has shown promising results in detecting viral RNAs integrated with the freeze-dried cell-free system (CFS).

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Importance: In the US, there are more than 1.5 million adults living with congenital heart disease (CHD). The Congenital Heart Initiative (CHI) is a digital, online, patient-empowered registry that was created to advance multicenter research and improve clinical care by gathering patient-reported outcomes (PROs) in adults with CHD.

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Article Synopsis
  • Opioids, particularly those targeting the mu opioid receptor (MOR), are effective for severe pain but have serious side effects that limit their use.
  • Researchers developed cyclic glycopeptide endomorphin (glycoEM) analogs that provided pain relief similar to morphine while reducing side effects, including lower abuse potential.
  • In studies with male and female mice, two glycoEM analogs exhibited higher potency and longer-lasting pain relief at much lower doses than morphine, suggesting potential for future clinical applications.
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Background: Timely treatment of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) reduces risks of cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Gaps in timely treatment persist, especially among underserved safety-net populations. We aim to evaluate gaps and disparities in CHB treatment in the United States.

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  • The article provides a comprehensive overview for U.S. clinicians on assessing and managing spinal cord injuries (SCI), covering initial care, acute management, complications, and future research.
  • Initial care focuses on minimizing secondary injuries through neurological evaluations and stabilizing vital functions, especially for patients with serious neurological decline.
  • The document also highlights emerging therapies and biomarkers that could improve outcomes and predictions for recovery, suggesting a multidisciplinary approach is essential for holistic patient care.
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  • This study investigated the relationship between ABO blood types and the risk of postoperative adjacent segment degeneration (ASD) after lumbar spine fusion surgery.
  • It included 445 patients with various blood types and assessed factors like spinopelvic alignment, perioperative care, and patient outcomes, finding no significant differences in recovery and complications based on blood type, except for increased epidural hematomas in A+ patients.
  • The research concluded that ABO blood type is a non-modifiable risk factor linked to a higher likelihood of developing ASD, particularly in B+ patients, marking a significant first step in understanding this association.
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Older adults are at a higher risk of complications after burn injuries since many physical and mental changes are compounded by increasing age. Few studies have targeted the long-term effects of burns on older adults. Therefore, this study will investigate the long-term physical and mental health outcomes in older adults.

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A Veteran Affairs Health Care System (VAHCS) in the Southeast region implemented the Social Workers as Lead Community Care Coordinators (SWLCCC) program to prevent delays in care coordination for veterans admitted to community hospitals. This study examines community hospital care coordinators' perceptions and satisfaction levels with the SWLCCC program. An explanatory sequential mixed method research design was used.

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Background: The National Library of Medicine's Integrated Academic/Advanced Information Management Systems (IAIMS) initiative played a central role in the evolution of health informatics over the project's lifetime (1983-2009) and continues to do so.

Aim: Our objective is to demonstrate how IAIMS and two key IAIMS concepts, integration and outreach, have functioned at very different times during this evolutionary process.

Approach: Using a framework drawn from Lorenzi and Stead's 2021 history of IAIMS, we examine the role of integration and outreach in work at the University of Maryland Baltimore (UMB) in the early 1980s and at the University of Texas Arlington (UTA) in 2020.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates how varying levels of sperm competition affect the evolution of reproductive traits and genes in mice and rats (Murinae), focusing on 78 species.
  • Researchers discovered that species with smaller testes mass tend to experience relaxations in evolutionary pressures, leading to faster molecular evolution of genes related to sperm production.
  • The findings highlight the impact of postcopulatory sexual selection on male reproductive evolution and suggest that certain genetic changes could be linked to male fertility.
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Self-Charging Zinc-Ion Battery Using a Piezoelectric Separator Immersed in a Hydrogel Electrolyte.

ACS Appl Mater Interfaces

October 2024

Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70803, United States.

Article Synopsis
  • - A new self-charging zinc-ion battery is developed, using a unique combination of materials that includes a piezoelectric separator and a quasi-solid-state hydrogel electrolyte, making it suitable for wearable electronics.
  • - The battery generates energy through tapping without needing external charging, achieving a potential of 181.23 mV with continuous tapping and showing stable potential afterward.
  • - This innovative battery design represents a significant advancement in sustainable and safe energy systems for wearable devices, being the first of its kind utilizing a piezoelectric approach.
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Endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EndoMT) plays an important role in pulmonary hypertension (PH) but the molecular mechanisms regulating EndoMT remain to be defined. We demonstrate that the axis of the transcription factors PPARγ (Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor gamma) and ETV2 (ETS variant 2) play important roles in the pathogenesis of PH. Decreased levels of the expression of PPARγ and ETV2 along with reduced endothelial and increased EndoMT markers are consistently observed in lungs and pulmonary artery endothelial cells (PAECs) of idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension patients, in hypoxia-exposed mouse lungs, human PAECs, and in induced-EndoMT cells.

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  • Adolphe Quetelet's 1835 work provided a mathematical analysis showing that body weight is approximately proportional to height in adults, a concept that later evolved into what we now call body mass index (BMI).
  • BMI has become a global standard for assessing body fatness at both individual and population levels, evolving through extensive scientific discourse.
  • The rise of effective weight loss treatments has sparked renewed examination of BMI's origins and its appropriateness for diagnosing obesity, emphasizing the importance of understanding its historical and mathematical basis for students and practitioners in health fields.
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Multi-View Integrative Approach For Imputing Short-Chain Fatty Acids and Identifying Key factors predicting Blood SCFA.

bioRxiv

September 2024

Tulane Center for Biomedical Informatics and Genomics, Deming Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, USA.

Article Synopsis
  • Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) are key metabolites created by gut bacteria from dietary fiber, influencing overall body health but often studied with incomplete data due to research limitations.
  • A new method called MAE (Multi-task Multi-View Attentive Encoders) has been developed to better predict blood SCFA levels by analyzing gut microbiome data alongside dietary and host characteristics.
  • Tests on data from 964 and 171 subjects showed that MAE significantly outperforms older methods in predicting SCFAs and highlights the important roles of gut bacteria, diet, and individual traits in SCFA production.
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We report the synthesis of two rotaxanes (1 and 2) whose rings have appended thiourea units for the selective recognition of Cl anions. Rotaxane 1 transports Cl across synthetic lipid bilayers more efficiently than 2, exhibiting EC values of 0.243 mol% 0.

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Modeling health risks using neural network ensembles.

PLoS One

October 2024

Amazon.com, LLC, Washington, D. C, United States of America.

This study aims to demonstrate that demographics combined with biometrics can be used to predict obesity related chronic disease risk and produce a health risk score that outperforms body mass index (BMI)-the most commonly used biomarker for obesity. We propose training an ensemble of small neural networks to fuse demographics and biometrics inputs. The categorical outputs of the networks are then turned into a multi-dimensional risk map, which associates diverse inputs with stratified, output health risk.

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Article Synopsis
  • Active immunization provides long-lasting immunity but takes time to develop, while passive immunization offers immediate protection but is short-lived and costly.
  • Researchers created a nanoparticle called "FcRider," engineered from a human IgG1 fragment, which is stable, easy to produce, and has its own immune-boosting properties.
  • FcRider can combine benefits of both active and passive immunizations, showing promise in generating strong immune responses and potentially advancing cancer treatments.
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  • A study looked at how chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects different groups of rats with high blood pressure and salt sensitivity.
  • The researchers found that only a certain group of these rats developed proteinuria (weird stuff in urine) and kidney damage, while another group did not.
  • The results showed that a protein called alpha-klotho, which helps protect the kidneys, was much lower in the rats with high salt intake, leading to more kidney problems.
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Objective: The objective was to establish consensus-based competencies for oncology within physical therapist professional education programs in the United States.

Methods: A mixed-methods approach implementing a sequential exploratory design that included 3 phases was used to establish oncology competencies for physical therapist professional education programs. Participants in each phase were physical therapists representing diverse practice settings, experience levels, and geographical regions.

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