November 2024 Member Publications

  1. Ali S, Alemu FW, Owen J, Eells TD, Antle B, Lee JT, Wright JH. Cost-Effectiveness of Computer-Assisted Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Depression Among Adults in Primary Care. JAMA Netw Open. 2024 Nov 4;7(11):e2444599. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.44599. PMID: 39541120; PMCID: PMC11565263.
    Impact Statement: This study demonstrates that clinician-supported computer-assisted cognitive behavioral therapy (CCBT) is a cost-effective treatment for depression in a diverse primary care population, including individuals with low income and limited internet access. The findings have significant policy implications, highlighting CCBT as a viable solution to bridge the treatment gap for underserved communities and improve mental health outcomes. 
  2. Ranker LR, Tofu DA, Lu M, Wu J, Bhatnagar A, Robertson RM, Wijaya D, Hong T, Fetterman JL, Xuan Z. Concurrent Mentions of Vaping and Alcohol on Twitter: Latent Dirichlet Analysis. J Med Internet Res. 2024 Nov 12;26:e51870. doi: 10.2196/51870. PMID: 39531640; PMCID: PMC11599884.
    Impact Statement: This study highlights how social media discussions of alcohol and vaping co-use during the COVID-19 pandemic and regulatory changes often portrayed both behaviors positively, with debates centered on the perceived overregulation of vaping compared to alcohol. The findings suggest that social media analysis can offer valuable insights into public perceptions and concerns, aiding policymakers in navigating the evolving landscape of substance use regulation. 
  3. Jalleh RJ, Jones KL, Islam MS, Cai L, Horowitz M. Surgical or medical treatment of obesity-associated type 2 diabetes-an increasing clinical conundrum. World J Diabetes. 2024 Oct 15;15(10):2036-2040. doi: 10.4239/wjd.v15.i10.2036. PMID: 39493561; PMCID: PMC11525724.
    Impact Statement: This editorial highlights the comparative effectiveness of bariatric surgery and GLP-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1RA) therapy in managing type 2 diabetes (T2D) associated with obesity, noting their benefits for cardiovascular outcomes across different age groups. It calls for further trials to evaluate the long-term efficacy and safety of these treatments, especially considering the absence of postprandial hypoglycemia with GLP-1RAs and the growing need for data in younger and older populations. 
  4. Wu Z, Chen SY, Zheng L. Sulforaphane Attenuates Ethanol-Induced Teratogenesis and Dysangiogenesis in Zebrafish Embryos. Int J Mol Sci. 2024 Oct 27;25(21):11529. doi: 10.3390/ijms252111529. PMID: 39519082; PMCID: PMC11546994.
    Impact Statement: This study demonstrates that sulforaphane (SFN) can alleviate key features of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD), such as growth retardation, malformations, and vascular development deficits. These findings underscore the potential of SFN as a therapeutic approach for preventing and intervening in FASD. 
  5. La Merrill MA, Smith MT, McHale CM, Heindel JJ, Atlas E, Cave MC, Collier D, Guyton KZ, Koliwad S, Nadal A, Rhodes CJ, Sargis RM, Zeise L, Blumberg B. Consensus on the key characteristics of metabolism disruptors. Nat Rev Endocrinol. 2024 Nov 29. doi: 10.1038/s41574-024-01059-8. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 39613954.
    Impact Statement: This publication introduces 12 key characteristics (KCs) that provide a systematic framework for identifying metabolism-disrupting agents (MDAs) based on their effects on metabolic processes and disease pathways. By integrating these KCs into hazard identification, the approach offers a comprehensive method to better understand and mitigate the risks associated with MDAs, including chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and environmental agents. 
  6. Xu M, Taylor MS, Hill BG, Li X, Rouchka EC, McClain CJ, Song M. Intestine epithelial-specific hypoxia-inducible factor-1α overexpression ameliorates western diet-induced MASLD. Hepatol Commun. 2024 Nov 25;8(12):e0572. doi: 10.1097/HC9.0000000000000572. PMID: 39585307; PMCID: PMC11596589.
    Impact Statement: This study provides compelling evidence that both pharmacological and genetic activation of intestinal HIF-1α can ameliorate metabolic dysfunction and steatotic liver disease induced by a western diet, highlighting a sex-dependent effect. The results suggest that HIF-1α activation enhances glycolysis, epithelial cell proliferation, and gut barrier function, offering potential therapeutic avenues for treating metabolic liver diseases.
  7. Ghosh S, Singh R, Goap TJ, Sunnapu O, Vanwinkle ZM, Li H, Nukavarapu SP, Dryden GW, Haribabu B, Vemula PK, Jala VR. Inflammation-targeted delivery of Urolithin A mitigates chemical- and immune checkpoint inhibitor-induced colitis. J Nanobiotechnology. 2024 Nov 13;22(1):701. doi: 10.1186/s12951-024-02990-8. PMID: 39533380; PMCID: PMC11558909.
    Impact Statement: This study introduces inflammation-targeting nanoparticles (ITNPs) as a novel approach to improve drug delivery for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), enhancing therapeutic efficacy while reducing systemic side effects. By enabling targeted, sustained release of urolithin A and its analogues, ITNPs offer a promising alternative to conventional IBD treatments with greater precision and reduced dosage requirements. 
  8. Yorek M, Jiang X, Liu S, Hao J, Yu J, Avellino A, Liu Z, Curry M, Keen H, Shao J, Kanagasabapathy A, Kong M, Xiong Y, Sauter ER, Sugg SL, Li B. FABP4-mediated lipid accumulation and lipolysis in tumor-associated macrophages promote breast cancer metastasis. Elife. 2024 Nov 8;13:RP101221. doi: 10.7554/eLife.101221. PMID: 39513934; PMCID: PMC11548877.
    Impact Statement: This study identifies the FABP4/CEBPα pathway as a key mechanism through which unsaturated fatty acids promote lipid accumulation in tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), enhancing breast cancer metastasis. By demonstrating the pivotal role of FABP4 in lipid metabolism within TAMs, the research highlights potential therapeutic targets to disrupt lipid-driven tumor progression in breast cancer. 
  9. Robinson T, Knott K, Liu Z, Kong M, Telang S. Implementation of an EOS calculator-based protocol decreased infant antibiotic exposure in chorioamnionitis without correlation with placental histopathology. J Perinatol. 2025 Jan;45(1):104-110. doi: 10.1038/s41372-024-02167-z. Epub 2024 Nov 9. PMID: 39521889.
    Impact Statement: The implementation of an Early Onset Sepsis (EOS) calculator protocol significantly reduced antibiotic exposure in infants born to mothers with clinical chorioamnionitis without missing any EOS cases. However, no correlation was found between EOS calculator-guided antibiotic treatment and placental histopathology, suggesting that the calculator's effectiveness may not be directly linked to histological findings. 
  10. Sak M, Chariker JH, Park JW, Rouchka EC. Gene Expression and Alternative Splicing Analysis in a Large-Scale Multiple Sclerosis Study. Int J Mol Sci. 2024 Nov 7;25(22):11957. doi: 10.3390/ijms252211957. PMID: 39596026; PMCID: PMC11593658.
    Impact Statement: This study uncovers novel gene expression changes, alternative splicing events, and RNA-binding motifs in multiple sclerosis (MS) tissues, offering insights into the disease's pathogenesis. The identification of unique genes and splicing mechanisms provides potential new targets for therapeutic development aimed at treating MS and its associated neurodegeneration.
  11. Jin A, Holm RH, Smith T, DuPré N, Kavalukas S. Does Wastewater Analysis Play a Role in Tracking Colorectal Cancer Hot Spots to Guide Geotargeted Neighborhood Interventions? ACS ES T Water. 2024 Sep 13;4(9):3623-3625. doi: 10.1021/acsestwater.4c00641. Epub 2024 Aug 15. PMID: 39600559; PMCID: PMC11588027.
    Impact Statement: This study advocates for the use of wastewater-based surveillance to track environmental carcinogens and identify colorectal cancer (CRC) hot spots, providing a novel approach to address healthcare disparities and improve screening efforts in at-risk communities. By integrating wastewater data with environmental toxins, cancer registries, and biospecimens, this approach has the potential to guide targeted interventions and reduce CRC incidence in marginalized populations. 
  12. Li K, Smith ML, Blazier JC, Kochan KJ, Wood JMD, Howe K, Kwitek AE, Dwinell MR, Chen H, Ciosek JL, Masterson P, Murphy TD, Kalbfleisch TS, Doris PA. Construction and evaluation of a new rat reference genome assembly, GRCr8, from long reads and long-range scaffolding. Genome Res. 2024 Nov 20;34(11):2081-2093. doi: 10.1101/gr.279292.124. PMID: 39516046; PMCID: PMC11610589.
    Impact Statement: The newly constructed Rattus norvegicus reference genome assembly, GRCr8, offers a more complete and accurate representation of the rat genome, with significant improvements in chromosome size, gene annotation, and repetitive sequence inclusion. This updated assembly, now adopted by the Genome Reference Consortium, enhances the utility of the rat as an experimental model and provides a critical resource for further genomic and functional research. 
  13. Gripshover TC, Treves RS, Rouchka EC, Chariker JH, Zheng S, Hudson E, Smith ML, Singal AK, McClain CJ, Hardesty JE. Visium spatial transcriptomics and proteomics identifies novel hepatic cell populations and transcriptomic signatures of alcohol-associated hepatitis. Alcohol Clin Exp Res (Hoboken). 2024 Nov 26. doi: 10.1111/acer.15494. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 39592394.
    Impact Statement: This study provides a detailed analysis of the cellular and molecular alterations in alcohol-associated hepatitis (AH), revealing distinct changes in cell populations and gene/protein expression compared to non-ALD controls. These findings enhance our understanding of AH's cellular plasticity and offer potential targets for the development of novel therapeutic strategies. 
  14. Anderson J, Owen EB, Mayes S, Sullivan JE, McDonald MJ. Pharmacokinetics and Safety of Endotracheal Lidocaine for Endotracheal Intubation in Critically Ill Children. Paediatr Drugs. 2024 Nov 8. doi: 10.1007/s40272-024-00662-6. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 39516449.
    Impact Statement: This pilot study demonstrates that at the doses utilized for lidocaine administration via endotracheal tube (ETT) in critically ill pediatric patients, there was no detectable toxic serum concentrations and no adverse effects following suctioning. Lidocaine is often used in patients with head trauma or those at risk of increased intracranial pressure. It is administered via the endotracheal tube to blunt the cough reflex which may cause an increase in intracranial pressure. Additional studies are required with a broader range of doses to confirm both safety and efficacy. 
  15. Bolatimi OE, Hua Y, Ekuban FA, Gripshover TC, Ekuban A, Luulay B, Watson WH, Hardesty JE, Wahlang B. Low dose exposure to dioxins alters hepatic energy metabolism and steatotic liver disease development in a sex-specific manner. Environ Int. 2024 Nov 17;194:109152. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2024.109152. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 39577358.
    Impact Statement:     This study highlights the sex-dependent effects of low-level dioxin mixtures on the development of steatotic liver disease, revealing more pronounced hepatic disruptions and metabolic dysfunctions in females compared to males. The findings underscore the need to reconsider current dioxin exposure thresholds and emphasize the potential risks associated with prolonged, low-level environmental exposure to these persistent pollutants.