September 2021 Member Publications

  1. Boakye E, Obisesan OH, Uddin SMI, El-Shahawy O, Dzaye O, Osei AD, Benjamin EJ, Stokes AC, Robertson RM, Bhatnagar A, Blaha MJ. Cannabis vaping among adults in the United States: Prevalence, trends, and association with high-risk behaviors and adverse respiratory conditions. Prev Med. 2021 Sep 11;153:106800. doi: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2021.106800. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34520787.
    Impact Statement: The e-cigarette or vaping product-use-associated lung injury outbreak in the United States has raised concerns about the potential health effects of cannabis vaping, a method of cannabis use that is becoming increasingly popular. Although the study found there was no association between cannabis vaping and asthma or other respiratory symptoms, the increasing trends of cannabis vaping, particularly among young adults, raise concern and underscore the need for continued surveillance.
  2. Hamorsky KT, Bushau-Sprinkle AM, Kitterman K, Corman JM, DeMarco J, Keith RJ, Bhatnagar A, Fuqua JL, Lasnik A, Joh J, Chung D, Klein J, Flynn J, Gardner M, Barve S, Ghare SS, Palmer KE. Serological assessment of SARS-CoV-2 infection during the first wave of the pandemic in Louisville Kentucky. Sci Rep. 2021 Sep 14;11(1):18285. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-97423-z. PMID: 34521900; PMCID: PMC8440627.
    Impact Statement: Serological assays intended for diagnosis, sero-epidemiologic assessment, and measurement of protective antibody titers upon infection or vaccination are essential for managing the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. We developed an Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) methods for measuring IgG, IgA, and IgM responses to SARS-CoV-2, Spike (S), receptor binding domain (RBD), and nucleocapsid (N) proteins. Our analyses demonstrate a broad immune response among individuals and suggest some non-RBD specific S IgG and IgA antibodies neutralize SARS-CoV-2.
  3. Dunlap NE, van Berkel V, Cai L. COVID-19 and low-dose radiation therapy. Radiat Med Prot. 2021 Sep 10. doi: 10.1016/j.radmp.2021.09.004. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34522905; PMCID: PMC8429076.
    Impact Statement: Global health authorities working on the COVID-19 outbreak continue to explore methods to reduce the rate of its transmission to healthy individuals. Low dose radiation (LDR) as an alternative approach has attracted more attention due to its several advantages compared to the current drugs and medicines. To date more than 10 case reports and pilot clinical trial preliminary outcomes are available from different countries, therefore, this summarized the potential rationales and mechanisms of LDR therapy for COVID-19 patients, and its current clinical status and potential use.
  4. Roberts AM, Moulana NZ, Jagadapillai R, Cai L, Gozal E. Intravital Assessment of Pre-capillary Pulmonary Arterioles of Type-1 Diabetic Mice Shows Oxidative Damage and Increased Tone in Response to NOS Inhibition. J Appl Physiol (1985). 2021 Sep 30. doi: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00395.2021. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34590907.
    Impact Statement: Diabetes is characterized by hyperglycemia, metabolic dysfunction, inflammation systemic vascular complications and oxidative damage affecting multiple organs but its effect on the lung and its large capillary network, have often been disregarded. This study finds that diabetes-induced changes in the lung involve microvascular dysfunction, platelet activation and altered vasoreactivity potentially impairing alveolar perfusion. Elucidating the mechanisms of diabetes-induced microangiopathy may provide novel therapeutic strategies to prevent or reverse diabetes consequences on multiple organs.
  5. Klinge CM, Piell KM, Petri BJ, He L, Zhang X, Pan J, Rai SN, Andreeva K, Rouchka EC, Wahlang B, Beier JI, Cave MC. Combined exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls and high-fat diet modifies the global epitranscriptomic landscape in mouse liver. Environ Epigenet. 2021 Sep 17;7(1):dvab008. doi: 10.1093/eep/dvab008. PMID: 34548932; PMCID: PMC8448424.
    Impact Statement: A goal of our research is to understand how exposure to persistent environmental pollutants may contribute to the rise in metabolic diseases, including nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, seen in human populations. This publication is the first examination of how a high fat diet and PCB exposure affect post-transcriptional chemical modifications of RNA in mice as a model for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
  6. Nabeta HW, Kouokam JC, Lasnik AB, Fuqua JL, Palmer KE. Novel Antifungal Activity of Q-Griffithsin, a Broad-Spectrum Antiviral Lectin. Microbiol Spectr. 2021 Sep 8:e0095721. doi: 10.1128/Spectrum.00957-21. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34494857.
    Impact Statement: Although multiple antifungals have been developed against Candida species, the currently increasing candidiasis incidence and resistance acquired by some strains demand new agents. In this study, Q-griffithsin (Q-GRFT), an algal protein with broad-spectrum activity against enveloped viruses, showed growth-inhibitory effects on several Candida strains, suggesting its potential use to tackle such infections.
  7. Koo H, Hwang JY, Jung S, Park H, Bok J, Park JW. Position Specific Alternative Splicing and Gene Expression Profiles Along the Tonotopic Axis of Chick Cochlea. Front Mol Biosci. 2021 Sep 8;8:726976. doi: 10.3389/fmolb.2021.726976. PMID: 34568429; PMCID: PMC8456117.
    Impact Statement: Our study shows another level of genetic regulation to accomplish the task of frequency discrimination in chick cochlea. We found that many genes involved in sound sensing and processing undergo progressively different alternative splicing along the tonotopic axis. This differentiated transcriptome along the tonotopic axis suggests that the cochlea expresses different combinations of proteins depending on cochlear location, although encoded in the same set of genes, to have unique functional properties suitable for sensing different sound frequencies.
  8. O'Brien SJ, Scheurlen K, Rochet A, Fiechter C, Paas M, Pan J,Rai SN, Galandiuk S. Increased Expression of Long Non-coding RNA H19 is Associated With Colon Cancer Recurrence. J Surg Res. 2021 Sep 11;269:59-68. doi: 10.1016/j.jss.2021.08.004. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34520983.
    Impact Statement: This study focuses on the analysis of an oncogenic long non-coding RNA H19 and its association with worse recurrence-free survival in patients with colon cancer, and in particular stage II colon cancer. These results suggest that H19 may have a specific role in the risk stratification of patients and may help inform decisions regarding the use and/or escalation of adjuvant therapy.
  9. Wise JP Jr, Young JL, Cai J, Cai L. Current understanding of hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)] neurotoxicity and new perspectives. Environ Int. 2021 Sep 20;158:106877. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2021.106877. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34547640.
    Impact Statement: This review paper discusses the neurotoxicity of hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)], a widely recognized human carcinogen and health hazard, drawing from literature studying humans, animals, and cell cultures over the last 50+ years. Traditionally, Cr(VI) has not been considered a neurotoxicant and Cr(VI) neurotoxicity has been largely left out of discussions pertaining to human health and regulations protecting health. This review conclusively describes Cr(VI) as a neurotoxicant and calls for increased efforts to consider Cr(VI) neurotoxicity research and regulations.
  10. Wood LA, Tomlinson MM, Pfeiffer JA, Walker KL, Keith RJ, Smith T, Yeager RA, Bhatnagar A, Kerstiens S, Gilkey D, Gao H, Srivastava S, Hart JL. Time spent outdoors and sleep normality: A preliminary investigation. Popul Med. 2021 Mar;3:7. doi: 10.18332/popmed/132119. Epub 2021 Mar 4. PMID: 34485920; PMCID: PMC8411876.
    Impact Statement: This study found associations between sleep normality and lower odds of bodily pain and depression. These findings will contribute to public health by adding to the overall knowledge base on the role of sleep on health and to provide a base for related investigation.