We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.
This journal utilises an Online Peer Review Service (OPRS) for submissions. By clicking "Continue" you will be taken to our partner site
https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/jcts.
Please be aware that your Cambridge account is not valid for this OPRS and registration is required. We strongly advise you to read all "Author instructions" in the "Journal information" area prior to submitting.
To save this undefined to your undefined account, please select one or more formats and confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you used this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your undefined account.
Find out more about saving content to .
To send this article to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about sending to your Kindle.
Find out more about saving to your Kindle.
Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.
Objectives/Goals: To identify the genomic mechanisms underlying cross-species regulation of longevity among mammals and birds and to characterize the impact of those conserved pathways on human aging. More broadly, this study aims to develop a novel evolutionary approach to understand the genetics of complex traits. Methods/Study Population: High-quality genome sequences for 194 bird species and 295 mammal species with reliable longevity and body size data were obtained from publicly available resources. The data include coding sequence alignments of 16,863 mammalian and 14,565 avian one-to-one orthologous genes. Gene-wise relative evolutionary rates (RERConverge) and maximum likelihood phylogenetics (PAML) were computed to assess for evidence of purifying selection and positive selection for longevity. As part of ongoing analysis, human orthologs of selected results will be examined in the UK Biobank for validation. Results/Anticipated Results: Preliminarily, we have found a signal of concordant positive selection between two classes of vertebrates separated by hundreds of millions of years. Several genes show signals of positive selection in long-lived species of both birds and mammals. Ongoing work focuses on elucidating the relationship between relative evolutionary rates and positive selection, the overlap in selection signature between long-lived animals with large body sizes and those who are exceptionally long lived for their body size, and further elaborating on convergence between mammals and birds. Discussion/Significance of Impact: Currently, most scientific knowledge about aging is from experiments on short-lived model organisms. By systematically studying the genomes of long-lived mammals and birds, we aim to develop a new method for studying complex traits and uncover novel insights into the mechanisms of longevity.
Objectives/Goals: The aim of the study is to identify resistance factors for substance use (i.e., factors that explicitly help to avoid or reduce drug use). Identification of resistance factors could inform strategies that seek to reduce the prevalence of substance use and related disorders. Methods/Study Population: Adult twins aged 30–70 years were recruited from the Mid-Atlantic Twin Registry. A mixed-method approach, group concept mapping, was used to identify factors influencing participants to resist using substances. Approximately 155 participants produced 97 statements reflecting substance use resistance factors. Hierarchical cluster analysis and multidimensional scaling assessed how participants sorted and rated statements for their lifetime and current importance. Factor analysis was used to reduce data dimensionality. Reliability analyses were conducted to identify a subset of statements anticipated to consistently represent each cluster. Results were shared with participants to assess accuracy with their experiences. Results/Anticipated Results: Participants sorted 97 statements into 9 thematic clusters: (1) Controlling Personal, Negative Consequences; (2) Concern About Health and Well-being; (3) Lack of Desire; (4) Outside Influences; (5) Social Norms and My Reputation; (6) Career and Legal Impacts, (7) Avoiding Harm to Family and Relationships; (8) Preserving Family Relationships; and (9) Family and Friends Impact on Me. Participants consistently identified health concerns as an important substance use resistance factor. The statements will be further reduced to represent a smaller subset for future use as a scale to measure exposure to resistance factors. Discussion/Significance of Impact: Health concerns related to substance use were identified as an important resistance factor. This has been supported by research on smoking cessation and implemented in smoking prevention campaigns. Therefore, prioritizing health-related outcomes in prevention may be important to reduce substance use prevalence.
Objectives/Goals: Infectious keratitis is the leading cause of corneal blindness worldwide, causing two million cases of monocular blindness per year. Of these cases, developing countries are disproportionately affected, in part due to sociodemographic disparities. Our study examined risk factors for severe keratitis presentation in a South Indian population. Methods/Study Population: 156 patients aged ≥ 16 years with clinically diagnosed infectious keratitis presenting to Aravind Eye Hospital in Pondicherry, India, from January 1, 2023 to July 31, 2024, were retrospectively reviewed. Univariate logistic regression was used to evaluate associations between specific potential risk factors (including age, sex, awareness of keratitis, travel distance to hospital, education level, missed work wages, and ability to afford care) and keratitis clinical severity (defined using thresholds of poor visual acuity, size of stromal infiltrate measured on slit lamp examination, occurrence of perforation, and need for corneal transplant surgery). Individual risk factors found to be significant were incorporated into a multivariable logistic regression model. Results/Anticipated Results: We anticipate that the results of this study will identify multiple risk factors for more severe keratitis presentations among patients at baseline. We expect these factors to include increased travel distance from the patient’s home to the base hospital, delays between time of diagnosis and initiation of treatment, treatment nonadherence, lower educational levels, lack of familiarity with keratitis, treatment and transportation costs, increased time off work, and missed work wages, among others. Discussion/Significance of Impact: This study elucidates barriers to early keratitis diagnosis in a low-resource setting. Study findings can inform strategies to improve keratitis prevention using decentralized care approaches such as community eye screenings and expanding outreach via vision centers. Such strategies can improve timely access to care for vulnerable populations.
Objectives/Goals: We investigate how the gut microbiome protects against arsenic toxicity, showing antibiotic perturbation increases toxicity and causes interindividual susceptibility to a sepsis-like disease state in mice. Here, we aim to understand how baseline microbiomes from various mouse vendors impact these outcomes and characterize the observed disease. Methods/Study Population: We developed a novel mouse model where mice are exposed to an antibiotic (cefoperazone) for 2 days, followed by co-exposure to the antibiotic and 100 ppm arsenate. So far, we have evaluated C57BL/6N mice from MSU’s in-house colony, Taconic Biosciences (TAC), and Jackson Labs (JAX), along with C57BL/6J mice from JAX. To determine if the baseline microbiome drives inter-vivarium differences, we established in-house breeding colonies of TAC- and JAX-origin mice at MSU. This allowed us to assess whether, when housed under identical conditions, these mice still show differences in mortality based on their original microbiomes. To characterize the arsenic-induced sepsis-like disease, we performed blood biochemistry assays to quantify the white blood cell populations, and sepsis biomarkers used in clinical settings. Results/Anticipated Results: We observed differences in survival rates between genetically identical mice from MSU (45%), TAC (30%), and JAX (2.5%) in our model. From this, we characterized the baseline composition of the gut microbiomes of these mice and found they were significantly different from each other. We are still awaiting results from our in-house TAC and JAX experiments but expect them to have similar gut microbiome compositions to those directly purchased from TAC and JAX and respond similarly. In our blood biochemistry analysis, we found sick mice presented with low WBC counts and notable biomarkers indicative of liver, heart, and kidney distress. We also anticipate that 16S sequencing results of cecal contents will further support findings by providing evidence of a bacterial infection in the ceca of sick mice. Discussion/Significance of Impact: Collectively, our work demonstrates that antibiotic perturbation of the gut microbiome induces an inter-individual and inter-vivarium susceptibility to an arsenic-induced sepsis-like disease state. This work highlights the importance of considering antibiotic use in the risk assessment of arsenic to better protect the health of those exposed.
Objectives/Goals: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (IO) have dramatically improved survival outcomes in patients with metastatic melanoma. Still, many patients do not respond these treatments, and others may experience harmful adverse events (irAEs). Thus, there an unmet need for biomarkers for real-time monitoring and management of patients exposed to IO therapies. Methods/Study Population: Serial serum samples were collected from patients with BRAFV600-mutant metastatic melanoma treated with ipilimumab/nivolumab (IO, n = 14) or dabrafenib/trametinib (TT, n = 10). Methylated cell-free DNA (cfDNA) was isolated and sequenced using enzymatic methyl-seq. We develop a robust computational pipeline to identify the top 250 cell-type specific regions of differential methylation (DMRs) across 24 cell-types. Using these differentially methylated regions, a deconvolution tool was developed to determine the abundance of cell type-specific cfDNA in patient serum, and changes in abundance were tracked over treatment time-course to assess response treatment and identify signals of adverse events. Results/Anticipated Results: We demonstrated improved precision in DMR detection evidenced by a higher area under the receiver operator characteristic curve (AUROC) of 0.85 on average. Pathway and functional annotation analysis revealed melanocyte-specific methylation marker regions regulated genes related to melanocyte development and differentiation, including MITF, SOX9/10, and FOXD3. We show these regions are conserved through the transformation to malignant melanoma, indicating melanocyte cfDNA abundance can be used as a marker for tumor burden. We characterize the dynamics of melanocyte-derived cfDNA over the course of treatment in responders and nonresponders to both IO and TT. We observe that changes in concentrations of cfDNA from other cell types correlate with clinically observed irAE-mediated damage to normal tissue. Discussion/Significance of Impact: We demonstrated the utility of decoding the origins of cfDNA fragments obtained from serial liquid biopsy samples. Using cell-specific methylation marks, we identified a signature from the primary melanoma to assess response to treatment, while also obtaining a signal from other tissues throughout the body to monitor immune related adverse events.
Objectives/Goals: The overall goal of this project is to determine bacterial transcriptional signatures from clinical sputum and assess their potential to monitor treatment response and predict the outcome of drug therapy in patients with tuberculosis (TB). Methods/Study Population: We are developing a novel transcript capture sequencing (TC-Seq) approach to sequence the mRNA of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) and analyze transcriptomes from clinical samples containing minimal amounts of bacterial RNA. This protocol generates single-stranded biotinylated probes from Mtb DNA. Probes are hybridized to and allow enrichment of Mtb-specific mRNA within next-generation RNA sequencing libraries. We will apply TC-Seq to sputum samples collected throughout an 18-month Phase II clinical trial investigating response to TB treatment to compare the transcriptome of Mtb between patients whose treatment results in cure or relapse. Results/Anticipated Results: We have refined a technique to generate biotinylated probes starting from DNA of lab grown Mtb. This protocol achieves robust and unbiased sampling of the Mtb transcriptome from mixed samples containing both human and Mtb RNA. Preliminary sequencing of clinical sputum collected pretreatment has generated 1–4 million Mtb-specific reads, a sequencing depth that allows examination of the entire bacterial transcriptome. We will measure differential gene expression before and during treatment as well as between cure and relapse cases. These results will allow us to characterize bacterial response to treatment and identify bacterial markers that correlate with relapse. Discussion/Significance of Impact: Understanding Mtb activity during treatment will offer new ways to assess the efficacy of different treatment regimens. Crucially, identifying clear bacterial markers that demarcate a cure or relapse outcome will have a significant impact on determining patient eligibility for shorter drug therapy.
Objectives/Goals: This poster discusses key methodological and theoretical issues in translation and implementation for improving HPV vaccine recommendations in clinics serving rural communities. Methods/Study Population: Leveraging implementation science, the study of how to improve the uptake of evidence-based practices, this pilot study uses a mixed-methods effectiveness-implementation design to engage local experts in identifying a bundle of locally-tailored implementation strategies to facilitate uptake of evidence-based HPV vaccine recommendations. In partnership with the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Rural Research Network, we will follow an evidence-based quality improvement process to develop locally tailored implementation strategies, which we will then evaluate for acceptability, feasibility, and effectiveness. Results/Anticipated Results: This study aims to generate actionable insights into the design and implementation of tailored, evidence-based communication strategies that can be scaled to improve HPV vaccine uptake in rural communities. Findings from this pilot study will be used to support a future full-scale Hybrid-Type 3 effectiveness-implementation trial to evaluate the bundle of tailored implementation strategies. Discussion/Significance of Impact: By addressing the rural-specific determinants of evidence-based HPV vaccine recommendations, this research will contribute to a deeper understanding of how to support high-quality, evidence-based provider recommendations in rural, underserved communities, and will mitigate rural disparities in HPV-related cancers.
Objectives/Goals: The timing of neurosurgery is highly variable for post-hemorrhagic hydrocephalus (PHH) of prematurity. We sought to utilize microvascular imaging (MVI) in ultrasound (US) to identify biomarkers to discern the opportune time for intervention and to analyze the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) characteristics as they pertain to neurosurgical outcome. Methods/Study Population: The inclusion criteria for the study are admission to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) with a diagnosis of Papile grade III or IV. Exclusion criteria are congenital hydrocephalus and hydrocephalus secondary to myelomeningocele/brain tumor/vascular malformation. We are a level IV tertiary referral center. Our current clinical care pathway utilizes brain US at admission and at weekly intervals. Patients who meet certain clinical and radiographic parameters undergo temporary or permanent CSF diversion. Results/Anticipated Results: NEL was implemented at our institution for PHH of prematurity in fall 2022. To date, we have had 20 patients who were diagnosed with grade III or IV IVH, of which 12 qualified for NEL. Our preliminary safety and feasibility results as well as the innovative bedside technique pioneered at our institution are currently in revision stages for publication. Preliminary results of the MVI data have yielded that hyperemia may confer venous congestion in the germinal matrix, which should then alert the neurosurgeon to delay any intervention to avoid progression of intraventricular blood. With regard to CSF characteristics, we anticipate that protein, cell count, hemoglobin, iron, and ferritin will decrease with NEL. Discussion/Significance of Impact: The timing of PHH of prematurity is highly variable. We expect that MVI will offer radiographic biomarkers to guide optimal timing of neurosurgical intervention. A better understanding of CSF characteristics could potentially educate the neurosurgeon with regard to optimal timing of permanent CSF diversion based on specific CSF parameters.
Objectives/Goals: Understanding systematic review results help prioritise more valuable studies. However, evaluating whether a systematic review has conclusively answered a question is difficult, and it is unclear which tools are available for such assessments. Thus, we mapped the extent of methods for determining the conclusiveness of systematic review results. Methods/Study Population: We searched Medline (Ovid), EMBASE (Ovid), and Web of Science to find papers with methods to determine whether systematic review results were conclusive or should be updated. The characteristics of primary references for included methods are presented. We classified and summarized available methods. Results/Anticipated Results: A total of 58 unique methods were identified. Many have been published since 2010 and often did not include a worked example. We found 25 mathematical methods for the conclusiveness of meta-analyses, which included cumulative meta-analysis, fail-safe number, fragility index, prediction and machine learning model, simulation-based power, conditional power, and graphical approaches. There were 15 methods for the conclusiveness of cumulative meta-analyses, such as quality control approach, trial sequential analysis, sequential meta-analysis, and law of iterated logarithm. And, 18 methods assessed the conclusiveness of systematic reviews: GRADE framework, the strength of a body of evidence approach, methods for assessing the need to update a systematic review, and methods for specific clinical domains. Discussion/Significance of Impact: We found a wide range of methods that can be used to determine the conclusiveness of systematic review results. End-users of systematic reviews can review our results to find the most appropriate methods for their contexts and decisions.
Objectives/Goals: To determine the role of carcinoembryonic antigen cell adhesion molecule 6 (CEACAM6) in signaling cascade and interaction with other cell surface proteins in human epithelial solid tumors such pancreatic adenocarcinoma and colon cancer Methods/Study Population: In this study, we employed three-dimensional (3D) tumor models to replicate the in vivo tumor microenvironment better, allowing for a more accurate assessment of cellular responses compared to traditional two-dimensional (2D) cultures. We used immunoprecipitate to pull down the CEACAM6 protein and investigate the integrins expression level. Results/Anticipated Results: The expression and functional activity of CEACAM6 are susceptible to modulation by various surface proteins, leading to notable alterations in cellular behavior. Integrins, particularly Integrin B4, are one such protein whose expression is influenced by CEACAM6-mediated intracellular signaling cascades, suggesting a complex interplay that enhances CEACAM6 activation.The 3D models facilitate cell–cell interactions, enabling tumor cells to proliferate and undergo metabolic changes that reflect actual tumor biology. Thereby enhancing the relevance of crosstalk between CEACAM6 and integrins. These findings underscore the potential of CEACAM6 as a promising therapeutic target. They reveal a molecular mechanism that could inform the development of innovative therapeutic strategies in cancer. Discussion/Significance of Impact: These findings underscore the potential of CEACAM6 as a promising therapeutic target, revealing a novel molecular mechanism that could inform the development of innovative therapeutic strategies for pancreatic and colon cancer and potentially other malignancies.
Objectives/Goals: Planning research studies can be daunting for early-career investigators. The UW Madison Institute for Clinical and Translational Research (ICTR) has many services to assist, but navigating them can be convoluted. Therefore, we developed a method to streamline services for investigators. Methods/Study Population: Investigators were reaching out to ICTR research support services for assistance in the wrong order, delaying their study progress. To streamline ICTR services and improve investigator support, we developed the ICTR COllaborative Network (ICON) that meets weekly to discuss investigator needs and how best ICTR services can assist them. This group consists of members from ICTR’s Research and Protocol Development Program, the Recruitment and Retention Resource Center, and the Collaborative Center for Health Equity. After discussion and decision-making, a member of the group schedules a studio, bringing key services together at one time to help investigators more efficiently. Results/Anticipated Results: The group has worked with 22 investigators, decreasing the time to study implementation. One investigator indicated ICON saved her team over four months of work. Other investigators indicated the assistance with finding community partners and collaborators was essential to their success. We expect ICON, with its goal to streamline regulatory submissions and study planning, will continue to help investigators improve organization during study start up and execution, while enhancing recruitment strategies. This will result in quicker study completion and the capability to move forward with future projects and grant submissions. Discussion/Significance of Impact: ICON streamlined the consult process, improved efficiency of study planning, and brought together various experts for studio meetings with investigators. This efficient method can improve study function and execution for early-career investigators resulting in improved study success.
Objectives/Goals: Imaging neuromas, benign tumors of nerve tissue, can be difficult in amputees with osseointegrated (OI) prostheses, in which a metal rod is implanted into the residual limb. Magnetic resonance imaging can be inadequate due to the implanted metal. The aim of this study is to assess the use of ultrasound to detect neuromas in patients with OI prostheses. Methods/Study Population: This is a single-institutional observational study of 7 patients undergoing lower limb OI prostheses. Lower extremity nerve ultrasounds with 2-D grayscale and Doppler were completed at postoperative follow-up visits following OI prosthesis implantation. Specifically, the sciatic nerve, tibial nerve, common peroneal nerve, and sural nerve were targeted for imaging. Neuromas found on ultrasound were measured by maximal length in three planes. Results/Anticipated Results: Our study to date includes two patients with OI prostheses. The remaining patients will be accrued by the end of December. The first patient with a left below-the-knee amputation completed imaging 3 years after OI prosthesis implantation. The common peroneal nerve showed preserved fascicular architecture and morphology, with no distinct neuroma formation. However, the sural nerve demonstrated a 6 × 5 × 4 mm neuroma with minimal pain with deep palpation. The tibial nerve demonstrated a 14 × 11 × 8 mm neuroma within the medial calf musculature, with mild pain with deep palpation. The second patient with a right above-the-knee amputation was imaged 10 months after OI prosthesis implantation. The sciatic nerve demonstrated preserved fascicular morphology and terminated in a smooth taper. There was no defined neuroma. Discussion/Significance of Impact: In conclusion, we have preliminarily shown in the first two patients that ultrasound can successfully image neuromas in patients with OI prostheses in the postoperative period. Furthermore, despite a patient that was 3 years postoperative with two neuromas, the neuromas produced minimal to mild pain with targeted palpation.
Objectives/Goals: To create raciolinguistically sensitive emotion recognition assessment materials, we will (i) identify the prosodic cues that signal differences between raciolects (Black vs. White American English) and (ii) identify the prosodic cues that signal different emotions (angry, happy, and sad). Methods/Study Population: Research evaluating prosodic differences between raciolects and emotions both implicate pitch. For example, Black speakers tend to produce speech lower in pitch, and sad speech tends to be narrower in pitch range. In our study, 50 Black and 50 White American healthy adults will hear manipulated recordings of Black and White speakers uttering pseudoword strings that vary by mean pitch and pitch range. In the race task, participants will choose whether the stimulus was produced by a Black or White speaker. In the emotion task, they will choose whether the stimulus sounded happy, angry, or sad. Linear mixed-effects models will be used to determine the pitch correlates for each emotion by race. Results/Anticipated Results: If mean pitch (high, low) and pitch range (wide, narrow) function as acoustic correlates for emotions but differ by race, we expect the following: first, members in each participant group (Black, White) will converge on correlates that differentiate emotions and race; and second, the emotion correlates will differ between groups. Preliminary results using stimuli from only White speakers suggest convergence across groups for emotions (angry: low mean pitch, happy: high mean pitch, and sad: narrow pitch range) but not race. Ongoing data collection including stimuli from White and Black speakers will be used to conduct planned comparisons as well as test same-race, different-race differences. Discussion/Significance of Impact: Characterizing the prosodic differences in emotion recognition between races helps us understand disparities in post-stroke aprosodia. Additionally, developing a linguistically informed strategy for assessing deficits between dialects can be readily implemented across diverse linguistic communities.
Objectives/Goals: Despite efforts to support healthcare researchers to navigate translational gaps and achieve health impact, impact remains rare. We were interested in determining whether, when, and how researchers were taking actions to optimize the translational potential and impact of their research. We also wanted to identify ways to support optimization. Methods/Study Population: Our sample was drawn from Tufts CTSI’s annual outcomes survey respondents (2017–2022) and included tufts principal investigators who had at least one project that reported an outcome (e.g., publication, presentation, funding application, research products, intellectual property protection, and implementation) on the survey. We excluded individuals no longer based at Tufts, no longer working in research, and holding a non-leadership role in their research. We drew a random sample of 58 researchers from the database. Of these, 11 (19%) were excluded, 32 (55%) did not respond to our invitation, 3 (5%) declined to take part, and 12 (21%) were interviewed. The study was approved by Tufts IRB and semi-structured interviews were recorded via Zoom, transcribed in full, and analyzed using the qualitative software Dedoose. Results/Anticipated Results: We interviewed 12 participants, both male (5) and female (7), from 11 different fields, working in preclinical (2), clinical (6), and public health (4) research at assistant (3), associate (5), and full professor (4) rank. There was variety in the way that researchers conceptualized and anticipated pathways to impact. While researchers almost always described their motivation as connected to improved patient care, their ideas of impact were commonly described as research products or outputs, and there was little attention to planning and executing for real-world use. Researchers spoke about challenges related to competing career demands, institutional barriers, organizational culture, and lack of connections. Strategies to address these challenges included mentorship, collaboration, and policy work. Discussion/Significance of Impact: The disconnect between researchers’ ideas of output and impact was notable, and while researchers sometimes mentioned dissemination via publications and committees, use of dissemination and implementation frameworks were very infrequent. Fragmented approaches and implementation science gaps remain significant barriers to health impact.
Objectives/Goals: To discuss the challenges faced by National Drug Early Warning System (NDEWS; PI Cottler) in monitoring emerging drug trends and disseminating data to maximize public health impact. Drug trends are constantly in flux, with various communities facing different harms. To provide salient information, NDEWS must triangulate data from multiple sources. Methods/Study Population: In 2020, NDEWS was funded at University of Florida through a cooperative agreement with NIDA. A Scientific Advisory Group meets regularly for overall guidance, and 17 Sentinel Sites provide local perspectives. Now in its fifth year, NDEWS has utilized traditional data such as death reporting and drug seizures and has launched several novel surveillance components. Rapid Street Reporting conducts anonymous surveys of drug use in a Sentinel Site or hotspot each month. Machine learning methods applied to Reddit reveal new trends and novel substances. County-level alerts are generated by analysis of 911-dispatch data accessed through biospatial.io. Wastewater-based epidemiology provides city-level data. Findings are disseminated primarily through email weekly briefings and by peer-reviewed articles. Results/Anticipated Results: In its first iteration, NDEWS has expanded available data sources and worked to integrate data to reveal trends that impact communities across the USA. These patterns vary substantially over time and by region and population, complicating analysis, but inclusion of multiple data sources is imperative for a full understanding of the landscape. NDEWS continues to explore novel routes of disseminating information to those who need it, including contacting local health departments with high overdose rates. Establishing networks for bidirectional communication with stakeholder groups such as toxicologists and educational affiliates is underway. NDEWS seeks to deepen ties with survivors unions (those with lived experience) and harm reduction organizations, which can be difficult due to mistrust of research. Discussion/Significance of Impact: Monitoring the rapidly changing drug landscape in the USA is challenging, and its importance has only grown in recent years as new substances arise and adulterated drug supply has become the norm, promulgating the rise of dangerous substances such as fentanyl and xylazine. Ensuring that information filters out to those who use substances is critical.
Objectives/Goals: To assess the feasibility, safety, and preliminary efficacy of implementing a supervised, outpatient aerobic and strength exercise regimen in newly diagnosed pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). We hypothesize that early implementation of exercise is feasible and may prevent well-known cardiometabolic late effects. Methods/Study Population: We will enroll 10–20 children (both males and females) with newly diagnosed ALL between the ages of 11–21 years to participate in a 12-month supervised, structured outpatient exercise regimen (STRONGER ALL). This regimen will consist of low- to moderate-intensity aerobic and strength exercises (either in person or coached virtually per patient preference) 3 times a week. This study will include 2 physical fitness assessments: 1) baseline and 2) end of study. Assessments will include resting energy expenditure, peak oxygen uptake, bone density, upper and lower extremity strength, flexibility, and questionnaires (feasibility and quality of life). Additionally, blood and urine specimens will undergo metabolomic analysis to identify biomarkers predictive of future cardiometabolic outcomes. Results/Anticipated Results: We expect that early implementation of STRONGER ALL in children undergoing chemotherapy will be feasible and preliminarily effective at mitigating risk factors for long-term cardiometabolic outcomes in survivors. Feasibility will be defined by recruitment capability (at least 50% of eligible patients agree to enroll), acceptance/compliance (at least 50% of participants complete the program with participation in at least 50% of sessions), data acquisition (collection and outcomes measures are appropriate), and practicability (program shows promise of being successful with pediatric ALL patients as measured by validated surveys administered to patients and caregivers). We anticipate that ALL patients participating in STRONGER ALL will have improved fitness and quality of life. Discussion/Significance of Impact: Evidence on the benefits of physical activity for ALL patients has not changed clinical practice. We aim to overcome the translational science barrier of patient- and system-level blockade in implementation of exercise in children with ALL. The evidence generated from this research may also be generalizable to other childhood cancer survivors.
Objectives/Goals: Intra-amniotic inflammation (IAI) is one of the leading causes of maternal/fetal morbidity globally, yet it is undiagnosed in 90–95% of cases. The purpose of this study was to assess precision and accuracy of a novel microsampling device for measuring cytokines in amniotic fluid (AF) to enable noninvasive evaluation of localized inflammation. Methods/Study Population: AF was obtained from discarded amniocentesis samples from 3 deidentified patients without known inflammation. Samples were spiked to 5 concentrations of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-a (TNF-a), then sampled using the Neoteryx Mitra volumetric microsampling device (20 µL). Dried/reconstituted samples were analyzed using the Luminex R&D Mag XL multiplex (IL-6, TNF-α) and compared to free-flowing AF. Inter-and intra-assay performances were evaluated across 5-runs in 3 standard cytokine concentrations. Recovery/linearity was assessed by a recovery curve and parameter estimates. Precision was assessed between-run and within-run using coefficients of variance (%CV). Accuracy was evaluated as agreement between microsampled and free-flowing AF using Bland–Altman plots. Results/Anticipated Results: TNF-α results were linear for all 3 patients across 5 concentrations. However, accuracy and recovery consistently failed (mean±SD percent recovery 176±21%). TNF-α results had acceptable precision with %CV within-run of 6.8–12.1% and across-runs of 14.0–15.9%. Microsampled TNF-α agreed with free-flowing sample: 16 of 18 (89%) were within 1SD of the mean difference (-24±36 pg/ml). IL-6 results were linear for 1/3 patients and had unacceptable accuracy and recovery for 13/15 samples (mean±SD percent recovery 764±469%). IL-6 results had acceptable precision (%CV within-run 6.2%, 7.5% and 11.2%; across-run .9–15.2%). Microsampled IL-6 agreed with free-flowing sample; 17 of 18 (94%) were within 1SD of the mean difference (-148±180pg/ml). Free-flowing vs. microsampling methods agreed best at low concentration. Discussion/Significance of Impact: This study provides preliminary support for noninvasive measurement of cytokines leveraging small amounts of leaking AF providing a promising alternative to amniocentesis and potential for assessing inflammation intrapartum. Clinical application requires development of reference ranges and association between cytokine levels and outcomes.
Objectives/Goals: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a highly aggressive and prevalent breast cancer subtype that lacks targeted therapies. This study aims to investigate whether the niclosamide derivative HJC0152 can modulate tumor-derived PD-L1 expression and enhance the effectiveness of anti-PD-1 immunotherapy in treating TNBC. Methods/Study Population: Niclosamide derivative HJC0152 was developed as a novel cancer therapeutic and immunomodulating agent. Human TNBC cell line (MDA-MB-231) was treated with HJC0152, and activation of the STAT3 signaling pathway was evaluated using Western blotting. RNA-Seq was employed to analyze the expression of protein-coding genes, particularly those related to immune response. To study therapeutic potential in vivo, TNBC mouse models will be treated with single agent treatments as well as a combination therapy of HJC0152 and anti-PD-1. Tumor volume and mass will be measured over time to determine growth inhibition. Results/Anticipated Results: Preliminary studies indicate that HJC0152 exhibits enhanced solubility compared to Niclosamide, along with high anticancer potency both in vitro and in vivo. HJC0152 was found to effectively inhibit the activation of phosphorylated STAT3 (p-STAT3) in MDA-MB-231 cells, a key signaling pathway associated with cancer progression and immune evasion. RNA-Seq analysis of HJC0152-treated MDA-MB-231 cells revealed a decrease in PD-L1 expression, an essential immune checkpoint protein involved in tumor immune suppression. These findings suggest that HJC0152 is a promising immune modulator that may enhance the efficacy of immune checkpoint blockade therapy for TNBC. Discussion/Significance of Impact: This study explores an innovative immunotherapy for TNBC using the Niclosamide derivative HJC0152, which inhibits STAT3 signaling and downregulates PD-L1. Results from this study will provide a foundation for HJC0152’s inclusion in clinical trials and potentially offer a new and promising therapeutic option for TNBC treatment.
Objectives/Goals: Early identification and profiling of planned studies is a critical administrative challenge in providing timely support for clinical trials. Here we describe the collaborative design and development of a clinical trial tracking dashboard to enhance support and quality improvement for investigator-initiated clinical trials at our institution. Methods/Study Population: Trial-CARE organized a workgroup with key stakeholders from WashU business units that manage grants, information technology, bioinformatics, data repository stewardship, and clinical trial support. The workgroup strategized next steps in a “proof-of-concept” effort to determine whether NIH investigator-initiated clinical trial metrics would be accessible via the WashU Data Warehouse. The WashU Data Warehouse is a data repository that pulls in pre-award and post-award data from sources such as the WashU Research-Grant Management System (RMS) and the NIH Reporter Tool. The proof-of-concept findings lead to implementing a plan for Phase 1 of the design, development, and piloting of a visual dashboard to track and offer targeted and timely support to NIH investigator-initiated clinical trials at WashU. Results/Anticipated Results: WashU currently has 217 grants submitted and 114 grants awarded for NIH clinical trials. In the proof of concept, we confirmed and successfully matched over 100 awarded NIH investigator-initiated clinical trials at WashU across RMS and the NIH Reporter Tool. We determined Phase I of the dashboard would track clinical trial data from these two sources via the WashU Data Warehouse. The pilot of Phase I of the dashboard will begin in February 2025. We also identified mission critical data elements not accessible via the WashU Data Warehouse (e.g., enrollment diversity, IND, and IDE). The plan to procure this data will require continued stakeholder support in Phase II of the dashboard to (1) expand data capture in RMS and (2) ingest additional data into the WashU Data Warehouse from RMS or new systems (e.g., ClinicalTrials.gov). Discussion/Significance of Impact: Early access to robust data about NIH investigator-initiated clinical trials via our newly created Phase I dashboard will better position our centralized service cores to support trial success, compliance, and quality improvement across the lifecycle of these clinical trials. In Phase II, we plan to expand the data available in the dashboard.
Objectives/Goals: Syncope is a common diagnosis in observation medicine, and characterization of observation patients is often limited to single unit, single center, or single payer systems. TriNetX, a federated deidentified multicenter national public database, provides an opportunity to study these patients from across the USA. Methods/Study Population: This retrospective cohort study queried data from 56 health care organizations (HCO) in TriNetX to examine differences between observation patients with syncope who required admission vs. those who were discharged. All observation stays with a diagnosis of syncope, defined by ICD-10, CPD, and SNOWMED codes, were queried. A total of 281,162 observation encounters were included in analysis, of which 46.4% (n = 130,357) were admitted and 53.6% (n = 150,805) were discharged. Data on age, gender, race, ethnicity, presence of congestive heart failure, EKG, and serum labs were collected for comparative analysis. T-test and Chi-square analyses were deployed with significance = p Results/Anticipated Results: The cohorts demonstrated statistically significant differences across all demographic factors, however, they were not clinically meaningful. Clinically significant differences include that only 72.8% of admitted patients and 68.3% of discharged patients had an EKG recorded in TriNetX during the period of observation (p Discussion/Significance of Impact: Patients admitted from observation status were more likely to have CHF, higher BNP, and pro-BNP values. TriNetX is a powerful tool to study patients across multiple hospital systems and payer types. Limitations, however, include incomplete data and inaccuracies among claims records.