March 2024 Member Publications

  1. Riggs DW, Bhatnagar A. Invited Perspective: A Natural Prescription for Hypertension? Environ Health Perspect. 2024 Mar;132(3):31301. doi: 10.1289/EHP14482. Epub 2024 Mar 1. PMID: 38427032; PMCID: PMC10906658.
    Impact Statement: The publication will raise awareness about the significant impact of green spaces on public health, highlighting how living in neighborhoods with ample greenery can lower the risk of hypertension and other health issues. By emphasizing the positive health effects of urban greenery, it could influence urban planning policies to prioritize the integration of green spaces into city landscapes, ultimately promoting healthier living environments and mitigating the adverse effects of urbanization on public health. 
  2. Ranker LR, Wu J, Hong T, Wijaya D, Benjamin EJ, Bhatnagar A, Robertson RM, Fetterman JL, Xuan Z. Social media use, brand engagement, and tobacco product initiation among youth: Evidence from a prospective cohort study. Addict Behav. 2024 Feb 28;154:108000. doi: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2024.108000. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38461745.
    Impact Statement:     This study adds to a growing evidence-base describing the exposure of youth to tobacco-related social media content. Such content-often generated by tobacco companies-may contribute to youth tobacco initiation. 
  3. Amraotkar AR, Hoetker D, Negahdar MJ, Ng CK, Lorkiewicz P, Owolabi US, Baba SP, Bhatnagar A, O'Toole TE. Comparative evaluation of different modalities for measuring in vivo carnosine levels. PLoS One. 2024 Mar 27;19(3):e0299872. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0299872. PMID: 38536838; PMCID: PMC10971688.
    Impact Statement:     Carnosine is an endogenous peptide (beta-alanine-L-histidine) and dietary supplement with anti-oxidant and metal chelating properties. Yet common methods to measure levels of carnosine in bodily tissues involve invasive procedures or are cumbersome and costly. This study examines the utility of different approaches and tissues for the assessment of carnosine levels, especially in the context of large-scale clinical studies. 
  4. Xie W, Berlowitz JB, Raquib R, Harlow AF, Benjamin EJ, Bhatnagar A, Stokes AC. Association of cigarette and electronic cigarette use patterns with all-cause mortality: A national cohort study of 145,390 US adults. Prev Med. 2024 Mar 28;182:107943. doi: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2024.107943. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38552720.
    Impact Statement:     The addition of e-cigarette use to smoking does not reduce mortality risk compared with exclusive smoking. However, transitioning completely from cigarettes to e-cigarettes may be associated with mortality risk reduction. Further research is needed to verify these findings in larger cohorts and over longer periods of follow-up. 
  5. Piell KM, Petri BJ, Xu J, Cai L, Rai SN, Li M, Wilkey DW,Merchant ML, Cave MC, Klinge CM. Chronic Aroclor 1260 exposure alters the mouse liver proteome, selenoproteins, and metals in steatotic liver disease. Environ Toxicol Pharmacol. 2024 Mar 27;107:104430. doi: 10.1016/j.etap.2024.104430. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38552755.
    Impact Statement:     This paper reports that a single oral exposure of male C57Bl/6J mice to the PCB mixture Aroclor 1260 while on a normal diet that resulted in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) after 34 wks. altered the abundance of 128 liver proteins including four selenoproteins. Metallomic analysis of the livers revealed that liver selenium, copper, and zinc were increased and iron was reduced. These data demonstrate that Ar1260 exposure alters the (seleno)proteome, Se, and metals in MASLD-associated pathways. 
  6. Chandy M, Hill T 3rd, Jimenez-Tellez N, Wu JC, Sarles SE, Hensel E, Wang Q, Rahman I, Conklin DJ. Addressing Cardiovascular Toxicity Risk of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems in the Twenty-First Century: "What Are the Tools Needed for the Job?" and "Do We Have Them?". Cardiovasc Toxicol. 2024 Mar 31. doi: 10.1007/s12012-024-09850-9. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38555547.
    Impact Statement:     At present we are unsure of the risk that Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS) use poses to the human cardiovascular system. There are multiple technologies that are being coupled together as a cardiovascular toxicity testing platform to assess ENDS toxicity and risk. As with any new approach method (NAM), there remains uncertainties as to how robustly these potential NAM platforms will predict population-relevant effects in humans – but this will never be known until the work is attempted. 
  7. Schulman-Geltzer EB, Fulghum KL, Singhal RA, Hill BG, Collins HE. Cardiac Mitochondrial Metabolism During Pregnancy and the Postpartum Period. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2024 Mar 29. doi: 10.1152/ajpheart.00127.2024. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38551485.
    Impact Statement: This study sheds light on the dynamic changes in maternal cardiac mitochondria during pregnancy and post-birth, indicating an enhanced capacity to utilize specific energy sources after birth. Understanding these metabolic adaptations could lead to targeted interventions to support maternal cardiac health during the peripartum period, potentially reducing the risk of cardiac complications postpartum. 
  8. Mathis M, Steffner KR, Subramanian H, Gill GP, Girardi NI, Bansal S, Bartels K, Khanna AK, Huang J. Overview and Clinical Applications of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning in Cardiac Anesthesiology. J Cardiothorac Vasc Anesth. 2024 May;38(5):1211-1220. doi: 10.1053/j.jvca.2024.02.004. Epub 2024 Feb 15. PMID: 38453558; PMCID: PMC10999327.
    Impact Statement: Review of 3 recent applications relevant to cardiac #anesthesiology, including depth of anesthesia monitoring, operating room resource optimization, and transthoracic/transesophageal echocardiography, as conceptual examples to explore strengths and limitations of #artificialintelligence within healthcare, and characterize this evolving landscape.
  9. Hwang JY, Kook TL, Paulus SM, Park JW. Translation of Circular RNAs: Functions of Translated Products and Related Bioinformatics Approaches. Curr Bioinform. 2024;19(1):3-13. doi: 10.2174/1574893618666230505101059. Epub 2023 Oct 3. PMID: 38500957; PMCID: PMC10947221.
    Impact Statement:     This paper offers a deeper understanding of circRNA, its functions, translation of circRNA, and tools for circRNA analysis. This deeper understanding of circRNA and the development of analysis tools pave the way for significant advancements in cancer research.
  10. Wechman S, Jala VR, Bermudez-Humaran LG, Gomez-Gutierrez JG. Editorial: Recombinant microbes-mediated cancer immunotherapy. Front Immunol. 2024 Feb 22;15:1386574. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1386574. PMID: 38455064; PMCID: PMC10917935.
    Impact Statement: This publication presents research in cancer immunotherapy, highlighting the potential of microbial-based treatments to stimulate immune responses against tumors and improve therapeutic outcomes. By elucidating mechanisms of action and demonstrating efficacy in preclinical models, these studies pave the way for the development of innovative cancer therapies that harness the power of the immune system to combat malignancies effectively. 
  11. Xu R, Liu H, Yuan F, Kim S, Kirpich I, McClain CJ, Zhang X. Lipid Wizard: Analysis Software for Comprehensive Two-Dimensional Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry-Based Lipid Profiling. Anal Chem. 2024 Apr 9;96(14):5375-5383. doi: 10.1021/acs.analchem.3c04419. Epub 2024 Mar 24. PMID: 38523323.
    Impact Statement: The lipid profiling platform, comprehensive two-dimensional liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HILCxRPC-MS), developed in CREAM can simultaneously quantify over 4000 lipids in one experiment. Lipid Wizard software assigns lipids based on their precursor ion m/z value, the first and the second dimensional retention times, to greatly increase the confidence of lipid assignment for large-scale lipidomics studies. 
  12. Kouokam JC, Speer RM, Meaza I, Toyoda JH, Lu H, Wise JP Sr. Transcriptomic analysis reveals particulate hexavalent chromium regulates key inflammatory pathways in human lung fibroblasts as a possible mechanism of carcinogenesis. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol. 2024 Mar 11;485:116889. doi: 10.1016/j.taap.2024.116889. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38479592.
    Impact Statement: This study used a transcriptomics approach to demonstrate that hexavalent chromium regulates key inflammatory pathways in human lung fibroblasts. These findings provide novel insights into the mechanisms by which hexavalent chromium causes lung cancer. 
  13. Lindsey ML, Brunt KR, Kleinbongard P, Carter JR, Ripplinger CM, Kassiri Z, Hansell Keehan K, LeBlanc AJ, Kirk JA. The heart of physiological reports. Physiol Rep. 2024 Mar;12(5):e15962. doi: 10.14814/phy2.15962. PMID: 38439748; PMCID: PMC10912920.
    Impact Statement: This editorial celebrates Physiological Reports' 10-year anniversary, highlighting its role in the cardiovascular research community as a platform for sound science in basic, translational, and clinical physiology. With a strong reputation for solid publications, Physiol Reports offers a viable option for cardiovascular researchers, including those whose work may not meet the criteria for publication in other journals like AJP Heart and Circ, providing a valuable outlet for impactful research findings. 
  14. Lindsey ML, Kirk JA, LeBlanc AJ, Brunt KR, Carter JR, Hansell Keehan K, Ripplinger CM, Kleinbongard P, Kassiri Z. Looking Backward to Plan for Forward. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2024 Mar 29. doi: 10.1152/ajpheart.00154.2024. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38551484.
    Impact Statement: On January 1, 2024, the executive editorial team of the American Journal of Physiology Heart and Circulatory Physiology (AJP-Heart and Circ) began its second 3-year term. The purpose of this editorial is to highlight the successes of the first term and showcase plans for the next term. 
  15. Hardesty J, Hawthorne M, Day L, Warner J, Warner D, Gritsenko M, Asghar A, Stolz A, Morgan T, McClain C , Jacobs J, Kirpich IA. Steroid responsiveness in alcohol-associated hepatitis is linked to glucocorticoid metabolism, mitochondrial repair, and heat shock proteins. Hepatol Commun. 2024 Mar 4;8(3):e0393. doi: 10.1097/HC9.0000000000000393. PMID: 38437061; PMCID: PMC10914234.
    Impact Statement: This publication identifies hepatic protein expression patterns associated with corticosteroid response and survival in alcohol-associated hepatitis patients, informing personalized treatment approaches and prognostic strategies. These findings have the potential to improve patient management and outcomes, thereby contributing to public health by enhancing the effectiveness of interventions for alcohol-associated hepatitis. 
  16. Wise JTF, Lu H, Meaza I, Wise SS, Williams AR, Wise JY, Mason MD, Wise JP Sr. Prolonged Particulate Hexavalent Chromium Exposure Induces DNA Double-Strand Breaks and Inhibits Homologous Recombination Repair in Primary Rodent Lung Cells. Biol Trace Elem Res. 2024 Mar 18. doi: 10.1007/s12011-024-04136-1. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38499919.
    Impact Statement: This study reveals prolonged exposure to hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)] in rodent lung cells leads to DNA double-strand breaks and subsequent inhibition of repair mechanisms, mirroring similar effects observed in human lung cells. The findings suggest that rodent models can be valuable in studying metal-induced lung carcinogenesis and further distinguish these responses from those observed in whales, where repair mechanisms are not inhibited after exposure to Cr(VI). 
  17. Lu H, Toyoda JH, Wise SS, Browning CL, Speer RM, Croom-Pérez TJ, Bolt A, Meaza I, Wise JP. A whale of a tale: whale cells evade the driving mechanism for hexavalent Chromium-Induced chromosome instability. Toxicol Sci. 2024 Mar 27:kfae030. doi: 10.1093/toxsci/kfae030. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38539048.
    Impact Statement: The study demonstrates whale lung cells resist hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)]-induced chromosome instability, a key mechanism for Cr(VI) carcinogenesis in humans. Cr(VI) causes the same amount of DNA breaks in human and whale cells, but unlike human lung cells, whale cells maintain effective DNA repair and avoid structural changes that lead to cancer, providing insights into the whales' lower cancer rates despite long-term Cr(VI) exposure and suggesting whales may provide insights into have to help prevent human cancer. 
  18. Zhang, C. H., Sears, C. G., Guinn, B., & Zierold, K. M. (2024). EXPLORING ENVIRONMENTAL INJUSTICE IN EXPOSURE TO AIRBORNE LEAD RELEASED FROM INDUSTRIAL FACILITIES IN KENTUCKY, UNITED STATES. Geographical Review, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/00167428.2024.2325976
    Impact Statement: The findings of this study contribute to raising public awareness about the persistent risks associated with exposure to airborne lead from industrial facilities across Kentucky. Insights into racial/economic inequalities in lead exposure highlighted by the study can inform public health policies to tackle environmental injustices and health disparities.