PREDICTING MAXIMUM OXYGEN UPTAKE (VO2max) USING A DYNAMICAL SYSTEMS MODEL IN ACUTE LEUKEMIA PATIENTS

PURPOSE: To determine if a dynamical systems model can estimate VO2max using data from a CPET on a cycle ergometer in acute leukemia patients prior to treatment. METHODS: Seventeen patients performed a CPET. The VO2peak obtained during the CPET and predicted values from the dynamical systems model were compared using paired samples t-tests. RESULTS: Significant differences between VO2peak obtained during the CPET ((18.09 ± 4.89) p=.001) and dynamical systems prediction (22.45 ± 7.00 mL/kg/min) was observed. A significant correlation between the predicted and obtained values for the time series was observed (r (16) = 0.96 p <.05), while the model had a percent error of 25%. CONCLUSION: Since transient changes captured in VO2 in response to the demands placed on the equilibria of the dynamical system, the system is not subject to the same physiological CPET limitations, potentially providing a more precise VO2max determination.Master of Art

A Better Life: Factors that Help and Hinder Entry and Retention in MAT from the Perspective of People in Recovery

Introduction: Opioid addiction and opioid-related overdoses and deaths are serious public health problems nationally and in West Virginia, in particular. Medication-assisted treatment (MAT) is an effective yet underutilized treatment for opioid use disorder (OUD). Purpose: Research examining factors that help individuals succeed in MAT has been conducted from provider and program perspectives, but little research has been conducted from the perspective of those in recovery. Methods: This study, co-developed with individuals in recovery, took place in West Virginia-based MAT programs using an exploratory sequential mixed methods approach. The survey was open February through August 2021. Data were analyzed late 2021 through mid 2022. Results: Respondents experienced many barriers to MAT entry and retention, including community bias / stigma, lack of affordable programming, and lack of transportation. Respondents sought MAT primarily for personal reasons, such as being tired of being sick, and tired of having to look for drugs every day. As one respondent shared, “I wanted to better my life, to get it under control.” Implications: Programs and policies should make it easy for individuals to enter treatment when ready, through affordable and accessible treatment options, reduced barriers to medications, focused outreach and education, individualized care, and reduced stigmatization

Macro-level Modeling of the Response of <i>C. elegans</i> Reproduction to Chronic Heat Stress

A major goal of systems biology is to understand how organism-level behavior arises from a myriad of molecular interactions. Often this involves complex sets of rules describing interactions among a large number of components. As an alternative, we have developed a simple, macro-level model to describe how chronic temperature stress affects reproduction in C. elegans. Our approach uses fundamental engineering principles, together with a limited set of experimentally derived facts, and provides quantitatively accurate predictions of performance under a range of physiologically relevant conditions. We generated detailed time-resolved experimental data to evaluate the ability of our model to describe the dynamics of C. elegans reproduction. We find considerable heterogeneity in responses of individual animals to heat stress, which can be understood as modulation of a few processes and may represent a strategy for coping with the ever-changing environment. Our experimental results and model provide quantitative insight into the breakdown of a robust biological system under stress and suggest, surprisingly, that the behavior of complex biological systems may be determined by a small number of key components.</p

Are large-scale flow experiments informing the science and management of freshwater ecosystems?

Greater scientific knowledge, changing societal values, and legislative mandates have emphasized the importance of implementing large-scale flow experiments (FEs) downstream of dams. We provide the first global assessment of FEs to evaluate their success in advancing science and informing management decisions. Systematic review of 113 FEs across 20 countries revealed that clear articulation of experimental objectives, while not universally practiced, was crucial for achieving management outcomes and changing dam-operating policies. Furthermore, changes to dam operations were three times less likely when FEs were conducted primarily for scientific purposes. Despite the recognized importance of riverine flow regimes, four-fifths of FEs involved only discrete flow events. Over three-quarters of FEs documented both abiotic and biotic outcomes, but only one-third examined multiple taxonomic responses, thus limiting how FE results can inform holistic dam management. Future FEs will present new opportunities to advance scientifically credible water policies

Macro-level Modeling of the Response of C. elegans Reproduction to Chronic Heat Stress

A major goal of systems biology is to understand how organism-level behavior arises from a myriad of molecular interactions. Often this involves complex sets of rules describing interactions among a large number of components. As an alternative, we have developed a simple, macro-level model to describe how chronic temperature stress affects reproduction in C. elegans. Our approach uses fundamental engineering principles, together with a limited set of experimentally derived facts, and provides quantitatively accurate predictions of performance under a range of physiologically relevant conditions. We generated detailed time-resolved experimental data to evaluate the ability of our model to describe the dynamics of C. elegans reproduction. We find considerable heterogeneity in responses of individual animals to heat stress, which can be understood as modulation of a few processes and may represent a strategy for coping with the ever-changing environment. Our experimental results and model provide quantitative insight into the breakdown of a robust biological system under stress and suggest, surprisingly, that the behavior of complex biological systems may be determined by a small number of key components

The semester I led a double (reading) life : my experiences with creating and teaching an honors college colloquium : an honors thesis (HONRS 499)

This thesis project was designed to satisfy a dual purpose: to allow me space and time to further my research of Waste Land and Fisher King imagery in literature from 1925 to 1945, and to give me the invaluable and unique experience of designing and teaching a college course. While the actual thesis experience, teaching the course, occurred in the Fall 2000 semester, I have included a written component here in order to record, reflect upon, and compile the materials specific to the course. This collection begins with a retrospective narrative that contains my reflections and self-critique on teaching the course. Following the narrative are five appendices: the first includes my syllabus and handouts created during the semester; the second contains samples of student work as it progressed through the semester; the third is comprised of a mid-term evaluation form that I created, as well as the students' anonymously recorded responses; the fourth includes my final evaluations from the official university forms; and the fifth is made up of an essay and two summaries of essays written during my fellowship on novels that were then covered in the course. The purpose of including six categories of information is to offer a composite, inclusive look at the teaching experience in my voice and my students’ voice. This collection is also intended to provide a possible model for materials needed for teaching an Honors colloquium.Honors CollegeThesis (B.A.

Standing up to the cardiometabolic consequences of hematological cancers

Hematological cancer survivors are highly vulnerable to cardiometabolic complications impacting long-term health status, quality of life and survival. Elevated risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease arises not only from the effects of the cancers themselves, but also from the toxic effects of cancer therapies, and deconditioning arising from reduced physical activity levels. Regular physical activity can circumvent or reverse adverse effects on the heart, skeletal muscle, vasculature and blood cells, through a combination of systemic and molecular mechanisms. We review the link between hematological cancers and cardiometabolic risk with a focus on adult survivors, including the contributing mechanisms and discuss the potential for physical activity interventions, which may act to oppose the negative effects of both physical deconditioning and therapies (conventional and targeted) on metabolic and growth signaling (kinase) pathways in the heart and beyond. In this context, we focus particularly on strategies targeting reducing and breaking up sedentary time and provide recommendations for future research

Patient and physician preferences for first-line treatment of classical Hodgkin lymphoma in Germany, France and the United Kingdom

First-line treatments for classical Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) include ABVD (adriamycin, bleomycin, vinblastine, dacarbazine) and BEACOPP(escalated) (escalated dose bleomycin, etoposide, adriamycin, cyclophosphamide, vincristine, procarbazine, prednisone). To further improve overall outcomes, positron emission tomography-driven strategies and ABVD or BEACOPP variants incorporating the antibody-drug conjugate brentuximab vedotin (BV) or anti-PD1 antibodies are under investigation in advanced-stage patients. The present study aimed to elicit preferences for attributes associated with ABVD, BEACOPP(escalated) and BV-AVD (BV, adriamycin, vinblastine and dacarbazine) among patients and physicians. Cross-sectional online discrete choice experiments were administered to HL patients (n = 381) and haematologists/oncologists (n = 357) in France, Germany and the United Kingdom. Included attributes were progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and the risk of neuropathy, lung damage, infertility and hospitalisation due to adverse events. Whereas 5-year PFS and OS were the most important treatment attributes to patients, the relative importance of each attribute and preference weights for each level varied among physicians according to the description of the hypothetical patient for whom treatment was recommended. PFS and OS most strongly influenced physicians' recommendations when considering young female patients who did not want children or young male patients. Infertility was more important to physicians' treatment decision than PFS when considering young women with unknown fertility preferences, whereas hospitalisations due to adverse events played the largest role in treatment decisions for older patients

Chronic temperature stress exposes heterogeneous physiological response of the reproductive system in <i>C. elegans</i>.

<p>The brood sizes for animals reproducing at 20 (A) and 25°C (B) are normally distributed. However, at higher temperatures, 28 (C) and 29°C (D), the distribution of brood sizes reflects a heterogeneous population. At these temperatures, the brood size distributions (solid lines) can no longer be approximated as single normal distributions. Instead, each is better explained as a mixture of two distinct components (dashed lines), the relative weight of which is dependent on temperature. Red boxes in the left panels highlight the data shown in the right panels.</p

Experiments performed to determine the dynamics of <i>C. elegans</i> reproductive behavior.

<p>Experiments performed to determine the dynamics of <i>C. elegans</i> reproductive behavior.</p