Identity‐Based Motivation: Implications for Health and Health Disparities

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/107506/1/josi12056.pd

STAINING OF OVCA1 ANTIBODY IN HUMAN MALIGNANCIES

poster abstractImmunohistochemistry biomarkers are currently being developed to tar-get specific proteins found in cancer cells. The biomarker and putative tumor suppressor, OvCa1, has a function that is not well characterized. Due to lack of reagents, we developed monoclonal antibodies of OvCa1 to examine mul-tiple human malignancies. Primary cancers with different histologic grades as well as with metastatic lesions were examined with the monoclonal anti-bodies. Ovarian cancer tissue samples from the IU Simon Cancer Center Tis-sue Bank were used for this study. The samples were fixed in neutral buff-ered formalin and processed into a paraffin block. The slides were microtomed, and immunohistochemistry (IHC) with the OvCa1 antibody was performed. Thirty-one low, medium, and high grade tumors as well as meta-static ovarian carcinomas were evaluated. All cases revealed a range of staining intensity with OvCa1. The results indicated that OvCa1 had the highest immunostaining in the high grade, Stage 3 to 4 ovarian carcinomas. Medium grade tumors had less OvCa1 expression, while the metastatic tu-mors had less staining than any of the other three grades. Immunostaining was observed primarily in the cytoplasm and nucleus of the tumor cells. In addition, we evaluated approximately 20 tumors from various different or-gans. These included prostate, breast, spleen, lung, colon, stomach, and kidney tumors, which were positive for immunostaining with the OvCa1 anti-body. In summary, the results indicate that all histologic grades express the biomarker, OvCa1, and the staining intensity was highest in the high grade, Stage 3 and 4 tumors. Our preliminary studies demonstrate a further need to delineate OvCa1 as a potential biomarker, which could be used for early detection and diagnosis of ovarian cancer

Dementia and Mild Cognitive Impairment: Epidemiologic Research of Risk Factors

University of Minnesota Ph.D. dissertation. July 2019. Major: Epidemiology. Advisor: Aaron Folsom. 1 computer file (PDF); xi, 151 pages.Dementia and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) are often caused by progressive and irreversible pathologic brain changes. Alzheimer’s disease, cerebrovascular disease, and Lewy body-related diseases are the most common causes with many individuals having mixed etiologies. Characterizing risk factors for dementia and MCI is complex due to overlapping etiologies, long latency periods, and the influence of cognitive reserve. While major risk factors including advanced age, hypertension, and the ApoE4 allele have been identified, further investigation of early- and mid-life risk factors is needed. Using data from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Neurocognitive Study, we examined prospectively risk factors for dementia and MCI. In the first manuscript, we assessed the association between life course socioeconomic status (LC-SES) and dementia and MCI. Low individual-level LC-SES was associated with an increased risk of dementia. Low individual-level economic factors of LC-SES (e.g. income, home ownership) were associated with increased risk of dementia independent of educational attainment. However, neighborhood-level LC-SES was not associated with risk of dementia or MCI. The second manuscript assessed the association between thyroid dysfunction (measured via autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD) and thyroid hormone levels) and risk of dementia and MCI. We found no association between AITD and dementia and MCI. Subclinical hypothyroidism was associated with a lower risk of dementia while overt hyperthyroidism, particularly with very elevated serum FT4 hormone levels, was associated with an increased risk of dementia compared to euthyroid participants. The third manuscript examined the association between lifetime history of migraine symptoms and risk of dementia and MCI. Despite published evidence of brain abnormalities in migraineurs, which might lead to cognitive impairment, we found no association between migraine and dementia and MCI. This dissertation extends our understanding of risk factors for cognitive impairment underscoring the importance of early- and mid-life exposures on late-life risk of dementia and MCI

Programming and Design for Dementia: Development of a 50 Person Residential Environment

The monograph describes an applied research project whose goals are: 1) to extend understanding of optimal micro-environmental design for people with dementia; 2) to present a systematic process for the planning, programming and design of environments for people with dementia; and 3) to illustrate this by the planning, programming and design of a model 50-person residential facility. Sponsored by Helen Daniel Bader, Milwaukee.https://dc.uwm.edu/caupr_mono/1014/thumbnail.jp

A novel antibody-based biosensor method for the rapid measurement of PAH contamination in oysters

Conventional PAH analytical methods are time-consuming and expensive, limiting their utility in time sensitive events (i.e. oil spills and floods) or for widespread environmental monitoring. Unreliable and inefficient screening methods intended to prioritize samples for more extensive analyses exacerbate the issue. Antibody-based biosensor technology was implemented as a quantitative screening method to measure total PAH concentration in adult oysters (Crassostrea virginica) — a well-known bioindicator species with ecological and commercial significance. Individual oysters were analyzed throughout the historically polluted Elizabeth River watershed (Virginia, USA). Significant positive association was observed between biosensor and GC–MS measurements that persisted when the method was calibrated for different regulatory subsets of PAHs. Mapping of PAH concentrations in oysters throughout the watershed demonstrates the utility of this technology for environmental monitoring. Through a novel extension of equilibrium partitioning, biosensor technology shows promise as a cost-effective analysis to rapidly predict whole animal exposure to better assess human health risk as well as improve monitoring efforts

ADVOCATING FOR ADOLESCENT SUBSTANCE USE RECOVERY: AN ALTERNATIVE MODEL

Adolescents at risk for substance use disorders face unique challenges in recovery when compared with adults. Counselors may seek to address developmental considerations with such clients, but often lack diagnostic and community resources necessary to provide holistic care. The Alternative Peer Group model shows promise in addressing adolescent recovery, however, more research is needed. We conclude from the limited research that has been conducted on APGs that there are positive aspects to consider in implementing this model including a positive peer group that offers support in recovery, 12-step meetings that are adapted specifically for adolescents, parent education and support, and community outreach to other treatment facilities and mental health providers. We also suggest that an important way to advocate for adolescent recovery from substance use disorder is for researchers to continue to conduct rigorous studies on this model as well as other promising recovery support systems for adolescents while recognizing the unique differences between adult and adolescent recovery

Climate modulates internal wave activity in the Northern South China Sea

Author Posting. © American Geophysical Union, 2015. This article is posted here by permission of American Geophysical Union for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Geophysical Research Letters 42 (2015): 831–838, doi:10.1002/2014GL062522.Internal waves (IWs) generated in the Luzon Strait propagate into the Northern South China Sea (NSCS), enhancing biological productivity and affecting coral reefs by modulating nutrient concentrations and temperature. Here we use a state-of-the-art ocean data assimilation system to reconstruct water column stratification in the Luzon Strait as a proxy for IW activity in the NSCS and diagnose mechanisms for its variability. Interannual variability of stratification is driven by intrusions of the Kuroshio Current into the Luzon Strait and freshwater fluxes associated with the El Niño–Southern Oscillation. Warming in the upper 100 m of the ocean caused a trend of increasing IW activity since 1900, consistent with global climate model experiments that show stratification in the Luzon Strait increases in response to radiative forcing. IW activity is expected to increase in the NSCS through the 21st century, with implications for mitigating climate change impacts on coastal ecosystems.This work was supported by NSF award 1220529 to Anne Cohen, by the Academia Sinica (Taiwan) through a thematic project grant to G.T.F.W. and Anne Cohen, by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and the WHOI Oceans and Climate Change Institute/Moltz Fellowship through awards to K.B.K., and by an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship to T.M.D.2015-08-1

Mass coral mortality under local amplification of 2°C ocean warming

© The Author(s), 2017. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Scientific Reports 7 (2017): 44586, doi:10.1038/srep44586.A 2°C increase in global temperature above pre-industrial levels is considered a reasonable target for avoiding the most devastating impacts of anthropogenic climate change. In June 2015, sea surface temperature (SST) of the South China Sea (SCS) increased by 2 °C in response to the developing Pacific El Niño. On its own, this moderate, short-lived warming was unlikely to cause widespread damage to coral reefs in the region, and the coral reef “Bleaching Alert” alarm was not raised. However, on Dongsha Atoll, in the northern SCS, unusually weak winds created low-flow conditions that amplified the 2°C basin-scale anomaly. Water temperatures on the reef flat, normally indistinguishable from open-ocean SST, exceeded 6°C above normal summertime levels. Mass coral bleaching quickly ensued, killing 40% of the resident coral community in an event unprecedented in at least the past 40 years. Our findings highlight the risks of 2°C ocean warming to coral reef ecosystems when global and local processes align to drive intense heating, with devastating consequences.This research was funded by the National Science Foundation (OCE-1031971 and OCE-1605365 to A.L.C), the Sustainability Science Research Program of the Academia Sinica (G.T.F.W. and A.L.C), a Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Coastal Ocean Institute award to T.M.D., and a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship awarded to T.M.D

Imaging striatal dopamine release using a nongenetically encoded near infrared fluorescent catecholamine nanosensor.

Neuromodulation plays a critical role in brain function in both health and disease, and new tools that capture neuromodulation with high spatial and temporal resolution are needed. Here, we introduce a synthetic catecholamine nanosensor with fluorescent emission in the near infrared range (1000-1300 nm), near infrared catecholamine nanosensor (nIRCat). We demonstrate that nIRCats can be used to measure electrically and optogenetically evoked dopamine release in brain tissue, revealing hotspots with a median size of 2 µm. We also demonstrated that nIRCats are compatible with dopamine pharmacology and show D2 autoreceptor modulation of evoked dopamine release, which varied as a function of initial release magnitude at different hotspots. Together, our data demonstrate that nIRCats and other nanosensors of this class can serve as versatile synthetic optical tools to monitor neuromodulatory neurotransmitter release with high spatial resolution