Search Our Scientific Publications & Authors

Sci Immunol 2022 Jun 30:eabl9943. Epub 2022 Jun 30.

Immunome, Inc., Exton, PA, U.S.A.

Monoclonal antibodies are an efficacious therapy against SARS-CoV-2. However, rapid viral mutagenesis, led to escape from most of these therapies, outlining the need for an antibody cocktail with a broad neutralizing potency. Using an unbiased interrogation of the memory B cell repertoire of convalescent COVID-19 patients, we identified human antibodies with broad antiviral activity in vitro and efficacy in vivo against all tested SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern, including Delta, Omicron BA. Read More

PLoS One 2022 30;17(6):e0268959. Epub 2022 Jun 30.

College of Agronomy, Liaocheng University, Liaocheng City, Shandong Province, P. R. China.

Complement component 3 (C3) is the key molecule of the three pathways of complement activation (alternative, classical, and lectin pathways), which are involved in phagocytosis, inflammation, and immunoregulation processes to destroy infectious microorganisms. In this study, three novel single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (g.-1293C>G located in the 5'-flanking region, g. Read More

Front Psychol 2022 13;13:818724. Epub 2022 Jun 13.

Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, NC, United States.

Drug recalls and lawsuits against pharmaceutical manufacturers are accompanied by announcements emphasizing harmful drug side-effects. Those with elevated health anxiety may be more reactive to such announcements. We evaluated whether health anxiety and financial incentives affect subjective symptom endorsement, and objective outcomes of cognitive and physiological functioning during a mock drug recall. Read More

PLoS One 2022 29;17(6):e0270747. Epub 2022 Jun 29.

Department of Entomology & Nematology, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America.

The rapid invasion of Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura) throughout Europe and the Americas has led to an increased reliance on calendar-based broad-spectrum insecticide programs among berry and cherry growers. Relatively few active ingredients (AIs) are currently available for effective D. suzukii management, and studies from multiple growing regions indicate that susceptibility to at least some of these materials is declining. Read More

Eur J Oper Res 2022 Jun 22. Epub 2022 Jun 22.

Management School, University of York, Heslington, York YO10 5ZF, United Kingdom.

In response to the recent outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2 virus governments have aimed to reduce the virus's spread through, , non-pharmaceutical intervention. We address the question when such measures should be implemented and, once implemented, when to remove them. These issues are viewed through a real-options lens and we develop an SIRD-like continuous-time Markov chain model to analyze a sequence of options: the option to intervene and introduce measures and, after intervention has started, the option to remove these. Read More

Sci Rep 2022 Jun 28;12(1):10927. Epub 2022 Jun 28.

Department of Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, 75390, USA.

Research examining the potential for circulating miRNA to serve as markers for preneoplastic lesions or early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is hindered by the difficulties of obtaining samples from asymptomatic individuals. As a surrogate for human samples, we identified hub miRNAs in gene co-expression networks using HCC-bearing C3H mice. We confirmed 38 hub miRNAs as associated with HCC in F2 hybrid mice derived from radiogenic HCC susceptible and resistant founders. Read More

JMIR Form Res 2022 May 14. Epub 2022 May 14.

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, US.

Background: The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) results from infection by SARS-CoV-2 virus to produce a range of mild to severe physical, neurologic and mental health symptoms. Indirectly, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant emotional distress, triggering emergence of mental health symptoms in persons not previously affected, or exacerbating symptoms in those with existing mental health conditions. Emotional distress and some mental health conditions can lead to violent ideation and disruptive behavior, including aggression, threatening acts, deliberate harm towards other people or animals, and inattention or noncompliance with education or workplace rules. Read More

PLoS One 2022 28;17(6):e0270412. Epub 2022 Jun 28.

Superfund Research Program, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, United States of America.

Background: Individuals with respiratory conditions, such as asthma, are particularly susceptible to adverse health effects associated with higher levels of ambient air pollution and temperature. This study evaluates whether hourly levels of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and dry bulb globe temperature (DBGT) are associated with the lung function of adult participants with asthma. Read More

ACS Infect Dis 2022 Jun 28. Epub 2022 Jun 28.

Division of Bioanalytical Chemistry, Research Center Borstel, Leibniz Lung Center, 23845 Borstel, Germany.

One-fourth of the global human population is estimated to be infected with strains of the complex (MTBC), the causative agent of tuberculosis (TB). Using lipidomic approaches, we show that tuberculostearic acid (TSA)-containing phosphatidylinositols (PIs) are molecular markers for infection with clinically relevant MTBC strains and signify bacterial burden. For the most abundant lipid marker, detection limits of ∼10 colony forming units (CFUs) and ∼10 CFUs for bacterial and cell culture systems were determined, respectively. Read More

Cogn Res Princ Implic 2022 06 28;7(1):56. Epub 2022 Jun 28.

Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, The George Washington University, 2125 G St NW, Washington, DC, 20052, USA.

Visual search-looking for targets among distractors-underlies many critical professions (e.g., radiology, aviation security) that demand optimal performance. Read More

Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care 2022 Jul;25(4):260-264

Lynda K and David M Underwood Center for Digestive Disorders, Houston Methodist Hospital and Weill Cornell Medical College, Houston, Texas, USA.

Purpose Of Review: Food ingestion is an exacerbator of gastrointestinal symptoms, regardless of origin. Sufferers mistakenly assume that they have suffered an allergic reaction to a given food. Although classical IgE-mediated allergic reactions are rarely culpable, evidence for a role for intolerance to certain carbohydrates in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and related conditions increases. Read More

Infect Dis Model 2022 Jun 22. Epub 2022 Jun 22.

Escola de Matemática Aplicada - EMAp, FGV, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.

In this work we fit an epidemiological model SEIAQR ( - - - - - ) to the data of the first COVID-19 outbreak in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Particular emphasis is given to the unreported rate, that is, the proportion of infected individuals that is not detected by the health system. The evaluation of the parameters of the model is based on a combination of error-weighted least squares method and appropriate B-splines. Read More

Cardiovasc Diabetol 2022 Jun 27;21(1):117. Epub 2022 Jun 27.

Department of Cardiology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Coronary Heart Disease Prevention, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital, Guangdong Cardiovascular Institute, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, China.

Background: Previous research has linked elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and remnant cholesterol (RC) with diabetes mellitus (DM). The present study aims to estimate the RC-related DM risk beyond LDL-C, and to investigate the extent to which the association of RC and DM is mediated via insulin resistance and inflammation.

Methods: We enrolled 7308 individuals without previous history of DM into the present study from the China Health and Nutrition Survey. Read More

Sci Rep 2022 Jun 27;12(1):10840. Epub 2022 Jun 27.

Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Católica del Maule, 3480112, Talca, Chile.

Human interactions and perceptions about health risk are essential to understand the evolution over the course of a pandemic. We present a Susceptible-Exposed-Asymptomatic-Infectious-Recovered-Susceptible mathematical model with quarantine and social-distance-dependent transmission rates, to study COVID-19 dynamics. Human activities are split across different location settings: home, work, school, and elsewhere. Read More

Am J Physiol Cell Physiol 2022 Jun 27. Epub 2022 Jun 27.

Faculty of Dental Medicine and Oral Health Sciences, McGill University, Montréal, Canada.

Gene mutations in the extracellular matrix protein fibrillin-1 cause connective tissue disorders including Marfan syndrome (MFS) with clinical symptoms in the cardiovascular, skeletal, and ocular systems. MFS patients also exhibit alterations in adipose tissues, which in some individuals leads to lipodystrophy, whereas in others to obesity. We have recently demonstrated that fibrillin-1 regulates adipose tissue homeostasis. Read More

Physica A 2022 Jun 22:127804. Epub 2022 Jun 22.

College of Science, Northeastern University, Shenyang 110819, Liaoning, China.

This paper is focused on the design of optimal control strategies for COVID-19 and the model containing susceptible individuals with awareness of protection and susceptible individuals without awareness of protection is established. The goal of this paper is to minimize the number of infected people and susceptible individuals without protection awareness, and to increase the willingness of susceptible individuals to take protection measures. We conduct a qualitative analysis of this mathematical model. Read More

Nat Comput 2022 Jun 18:1-13. Epub 2022 Jun 18.

Faculdade de Computação e Informática & Pós-Graduação em Engenharia Elétrica e Computação, Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie, Rua da Consolação 896, Consolação, 01302-907 São Paulo, SP Brazil.

In the context of the propagation of infectious diseases, when a sufficient degree of immunisation is achieved within a population, the spread of the disease is ended or significantly decreased, leading to collective immunity, meaning the indirect protection given by immune individuals to susceptible individuals. Here we describe the estimates of the collective immunity to COVID-19 from a stochastic cellular automaton based model designed to emulate the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in a population of static individuals interacting only via a Moore neighbourhood of radius one, with a view to analyze the impact of initially immune individuals on the dynamics of COVID-19. This impact was measured by comparing a progression of initial immunity ratio-the percentage of immunised individuals before patient zero starts infecting its neighbourhood-from 0 to 95% of the initial population, with the number of susceptible individuals not contaminated, the peak value of active cases, the total number of deaths and the emulated pandemic duration in days. Read More

Ochsner J 2022 ;22(2):169-175

Department of Neurocritical Care, Ochsner Clinic Foundation, New Orleans, LA.

Mucormycosis is a serious angioinvasive fungal infection. Immunocompromised patients are more likely to be susceptible to mucormycosis than immunocompetent individuals. Cerebral mucormycosis has been reported, but cases have primarily been unilateral. Read More

Cureus 2022 May 22;14(5):e25220. Epub 2022 May 22.

Internal Medicine, Nepal Medical College Teaching Hospital, Kathmandu, NPL.

Drug-induced gingival overgrowth is an adverse effect of certain drugs, including amlodipine, in genetically susceptible individuals. Although the exact mechanism of gingival hypertrophy remains unclear, a unifying multifactorial hypothesis has been constructed. Gingival hypertrophy causes difficulty in speech and mastication, poor oral hygiene, and poor aesthetic appearance. Read More

J Ren Nutr 2022 Jun 22. Epub 2022 Jun 22.

Senior Scientist, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Department of Urology; and Clinical Nutritionist, UW Health University Hospital and Clinics, 1685 Highland Avenue, 3258 MFCB, Madison, WI 53705-2281.

Objective: In susceptible individuals, high dietary acid load may contribute to the formation of certain types of kidney stones via lowering urine pH and citrate excretion. The objective of this study was to determine the contribution of dietary acid from food groups in people with urolithiasis.

Design: & Methods: Patients with calcium urolithiasis (n=83) who completed food records were used for this retrospective analysis. Read More

Int J Biometeorol 2022 Jun 24. Epub 2022 Jun 24.

Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China.

The independent associations of extreme temperature and ambient air pollutant with the admission to hospital and mortality of ischemic stroke have been widely investigated. However, knowledge about the modification effects of variation in season and temperature on the association between exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO) and ischemic stroke onset is still limited. This study purposed to explore the effect of NO on daily ischemic stroke onset modified by season and ambient temperature, and identify the potential population that susceptible to ischemic stroke onset connected with NO and ambient temperature. Read More

Environ Int 2022 Jun 16;166:107353. Epub 2022 Jun 16.

School of Medicine, Nankai University, Tianjin, China. Electronic address:

Background: The impacts of long-term high exposure to PM in workplace on glucose metabolism in asymptomatic working adults (AWAs) have rarely been explored.

Objectives: To assess the relationship between long-term exposure to workplace PM and glucose metabolism in asymptomatic general working adults in heavily polluted regions.

Methods: We used the baseline data of the asymptomatic working participants from the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Medical Examination Cohort, which recruited adults undergoing medical examinations. Read More

Aging (Albany NY) 2022 Jun 21;14(undefined). Epub 2022 Jun 21.

School of Public Health, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C.

Background: Identification of candidate SNPs from transcription factors (TFs) is a novel concept, while systematic large-scale studies on these SNPs are scarce.

Purpose: This study aimed to identify the SNPs of six TF binding sites (TFBSs) and examine the association between candidate SNPs and osteoporosis.

Methods: We used the Taiwan BioBank database; University of California, Santa Cruz, reference genome; and a chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing database to detect 14 SNPs at the potential binding sites of six TFs. Read More

Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2022 7;10:882363. Epub 2022 Jun 7.

Department of Chemistry, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI), Dublin, Ireland.

Poly (ethylene glycol) (PEG) is a widely used polymer in a variety of consumer products and in medicine. PEGylation refers to the conjugation of PEG to drugs or nanoparticles to increase circulation time and reduce unwanted host responses. PEG is viewed as being well-tolerated, but previous studies have identified anti-PEG antibodies and so-called pseudoallergic reactions in certain individuals. Read More

Viruses 2022 Jun 17;14(6). Epub 2022 Jun 17.

Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UK.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has resulted in over 6 million deaths and significant morbidity across the globe. Alongside common respiratory symptoms, COVID-19 is associated with a variety of cardiovascular complications in the acute and post-acute phases of infection. The suggested pathophysiological mechanisms that underlie these complications include direct viral infection of the myocardium via the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) protein and a cytokine release syndrome that results in indirect inflammatory damage to the heart. Read More

Nutrients 2022 Jun 18;14(12). Epub 2022 Jun 18.

Department of Biomedical and Dental Science and Morphofunctional Imaging, University of Messina, 98125 Messina, Italy.

The immune system is highly dynamic and susceptible to many alterations throughout pregnancy. Since December 2019, a pandemic caused by coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) has swept the globe. To contain the spread of COVID-19, immediate measures such as quarantine and isolation were implemented. Read More

Life (Basel) 2022 Jun 10;12(6). Epub 2022 Jun 10.

Teaching Hospital Internal Medicine, Lindenhofgruppe, 3006 Berne, Switzerland.

Increasing evidence exists that higher levels of androgens can be found in individuals with autism. Evidence yields to a susceptible role of Cytochrome P450 17A1 (CYP17A1) with its catalyzation of the two distinct types of substrate oxidation by a hydroxylase activity (17-alpha hydroxylase) and C17/20 lyase activity. However, to what extent steps are altered in affected children with autism versus healthy controls remains to be elucidated. Read More

J Pers Med 2022 May 25;12(6). Epub 2022 May 25.

Oncology Research Nucleus, Universidade Federal do Pará, Belém 66073-005, PA, Brazil.

A number of genomic variants related to native American ancestry may be associated with an increased risk of developing Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL), which means that Latin American and hispanic populations from the New World may be relatively susceptible to this disease. However, there has not yet been any comprehensive investigation of the variants associated with susceptibility to ALL in traditional Amerindian populations from Brazilian Amazonia. We investigated the exomes of the 18 principal genes associated with susceptibility to ALL in samples of 64 Amerindians from this region, including cancer-free individuals and patients with ALL. Read More

Int J Mol Sci 2022 Jun 7;23(12). Epub 2022 Jun 7.

School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, Chaminade University of Honolulu, Honolulu, HI 96816, USA.

The receptor of advanced glycation end products (RAGE) is a receptor that is thought to be a key driver of inflammation in pregnancy, SARS-CoV-2, and also in the comorbidities that are known to aggravate these afflictions. In addition to this, vulnerable populations are particularly susceptible to the negative health outcomes when these afflictions are experienced in concert. RAGE binds a number of ligands produced by tissue damage and cellular stress, and its activation triggers the proinflammatory transcription factor Nuclear Factor Kappa B (NF-κB), with the subsequent generation of key proinflammatory cytokines. Read More

Biomolecules 2022 May 24;12(6). Epub 2022 May 24.

Clinical Physiology Institute-CNR, 56124 Pisa, Italy.

Primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) is a complex autoimmune disorder that particularly affects the salivary and lachrymal glands, generally causing a typical dryness of the eyes and of the mouth. The disease encompasses diverse clinical representations and is characterized by B-cell polyclonal activation and autoantibodies production, including anti-Ro/SSA. Recently, it has been suggested that autoantibody profiling may enable researchers to identify susceptible asymptomatic individuals in a pre-disease state. Read More