Abstract Submitted for Presentation

Kevin Egan was responsible for creating and submitting the abstract for this presentation, which I do not have access to. The focus of the presentation, however, was discussing the roles collaboration plays on interdisciplinary learning. The specific example referenced was how Drexel University crafts its Custom Design major and how students navigate each step of this process. 

Real-time alerting systems for infections using wearable data leverage advanced wearable technology to detect early signs of COVID-19 and influenza in solid organ transplant recipients (SOTR). Utilizing smartwatches, the system collects physiological data, including heart rate, step count, and sleep patterns, analyzed in real-time to identify deviations from the individual's baseline, indicative of infection. 3,318 participants were enrolled, with data collected via smartwatches. The MyPHD app facilitated participant enrollment and data collection, ensuring secure data transfer. The system employed three detection algorithms: NightSignal, RHRAD, and CuSum. NightSignal, the primary algorithm, provided real-time alerts by detecting outlier signals that could signify early signs of infection. Participants received and were required to annotate daily alerts through surveys on symptoms, activities, and COVID-19 test results. The alerts were presented as either red or green, indicating abnormal or normal physiological states, respectively. Among the participants, 84 tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, with 80% of infections being detected at or before the onset of symptoms. The median lead time for pre-symptomatic detection was approximately three days. NightSignal demonstrated a high sensitivity (80%) for detecting COVID-19 infections pre-symptomatically. Additionally, other stress events, though triggering fewer alerts, were detectable. Preliminary results indicate the wearable-based monitoring system is effective in early detection of infections among SOTR. Future research will focus on refining the algorithms, particularly enhancing the specificity and reducing false-positive rates. Expanding the system's application to a broader population and other infectious diseases could further demonstrate its scalability and utility in public health.

National Conference of Undergraduate Research (NCUR)April 10th, 2024, Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center, Long Beach, CA
Podium Presentation
Title: Extent of Vascular Damage at Varying Degrees of Stretch in Hypoxic Neonatal Brachial Plexus
Abstract:Neonatal brachial plexus palsy (NBPP) is an injury to brachial plexus (BP) nerves due to over-stretching during complex birthing scenarios. NBPP has an incidence of 1-4 cases per 1000 live births. Neonatal hypoxia can also occur as a result of obstetric complications, such as disrupted blood supply due to umbilical cord compression. Characterizing the extent of vascular damage of hypoxic neonatal BP at varying degrees of stretch can further the understanding of the injury thresholds of NBPP.  All procedures were approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. 15 neonatal piglets (3-5 days old) were anesthetized and exposed to FiO2 of 7% for 1 hour to induce hypoxia and re-perfused to FiO2 of 21%. Immediately post hypoxia, the BP was exposed and stretched at a rate of 500 mm/min to predetermined low- (<15%) and high- (>15%) strains. BP nerves were harvested and OCT-embedded. Ten-µm-thick serial longitudinal sections were stained with Hematoxylin-Eosin (H&E). Using the Olympus BX53 microscope, stitched stained H&E images (10x) of the entire nerve were obtained. Using a custom MATLAB script, regions of interest (ROI) were identified for each nerve and scored for vascular damage on a scale of 0-2 (0-no damage, 1-torn vessel, 2-scattered blood cells) by an independent-blinded observer. Based on our modified scoring system, preliminary results show that vascular damage increased with increasing stretch injury such that no (n=30), low (n=33), and high (n=30) stretch ROIs reported average scores of 0.6±0.3, 1.0±0.3, and 1.1±0.3 respectively. Similar degrees of damage were observed in the central and peripheral regions of the stretched nerve.  This ongoing study is the first to characterize vascular damage of hypoxic neonatal BP nerves with respect to varying degrees of stretch and helps further our understanding of NBPP.

Name of Conference: SEA Symposium 2024
Location of Conference: Virtual
Dates of Conference: 4/12/24-4/14/24
Funding: N/A 

Title: There are no mistakes, only happy accidents: Deviation from phage amplification protocol yielded high titers of the novel Actinobacteriophage OldNelly (EA1) 

As part of the 2023-2024 SEA-PHAGES program, freshmen students from Drexel University used the host Microbacterium foliorum NRRL B-24224 to isolate 34 novel bacteriophages. Among these, one phage was generated in a slightly unconventional manner. A soil sample was collected from a garden along a nearby Drexel University building in Philadelphia, PA. The subsequent isolated phage was named OldNelly. During amplification, an unintentional deviation was made from the standard procedure while trying to increase the overall lysate volume. Instead of properly flooding a webbed plate with phage buffer, the plate was flooded with a previously collected lysate of the same phage - a technique resembling “lysate double-dipping”. As a result of this protocol deviation, the resulting augmented lysate yielded almost a four-fold increase in titer compared to the original lysate, and recovered a high DNA concentration with minimal contamination ratios. Having demonstrated positive results from the flooding with lysate protocol, it was replicated by other lab groups whose lysates were below the required titer concentration of 5x10^9 pfu/mL to proceed. As expected, they also were able to increase their titer concentration considerably, past the minimum titer threshold for archiving and DNA extraction. Subsequently, OldNelly and 5 other phages (following standard protocol) were sent to be sequenced at The Pittsburgh Bacteriophage Institute using Illumina Sequencing: OldNelly (subcluster EA1), Pharpay (cluster EF), PHISB (cluster EB), Phiderman (subcluster EA1), SoilGremlin (subcluster EA1), and Delphidian (subcluster EA1). The latter 2 were submitted to the genome exchange and have been adopted to be annotated by 2 other institutions. There appeared to be no irregularities with generating a genome or during bioanalysis, which showed that OldNelly is a lytic phage, with 99% similarity to other archived EA1 subcluster phages. Collaboratively, the several sections of our cohort worked to produce and ensure accurate genome annotation. While the technique did not appear to introduce contamination in the case of OldNelly, further extensive studies can be performed to be certain whether phage purity is being affected. We propose that this technique can be widely adopted to significantly help other students in the SEA-PHAGES community, as well as further expand the existing phage archive. Additionally, students have begun planning independent projects which may focus on OldNelly. Examples of possible studies include to test UV (ultra-violet) coupled with temperature deviation or dye exposure (with or without UV), exposures to Zinc and Iron, nicotine, and EDTA. These will lend greater insight into its and other phages’ behavior and morphology.

Name of event: Start Talking Science  

 Date of presentation : Nov 3rd, 2023

Type of presentation : Poster Presentation  

Title & Text of abstract: Neutrino Physics with the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment 

Abstract: Neutrinos are invisible elementary particles that travel nearly at the speed of light, filling our surroundings at all times. These particles possess intriguing quantum properties and hold the distinction of being the most abundant particles with mass in the universe, playing a foundational role in cosmic processes. The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) holds the key to understanding neutrinos' fundamental nature. Operating within the Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility, DUNE employs a high-intensity neutrino beam created by a proton accelerator. This beam is a crucial tool for exploring neutrinos. After a collision with a target, three focusing horns direct the beam into the decay pipe, where secondary pions and kaons decay into muons and muon neutrinos. The beam then passes through a hadron absorber, resulting in a beam consisting mainly of muons. Before reaching the Near Detector, the muon beam is sent into three muon alcoves. This poster presentation focuses on quantifying and investigating flux and energy-related uncertainties in the muon beam through advanced simulations and data analysis, making contributions to the DUNE mission. Through this analysis, we contribute to understanding neutrinos and advancing our comprehension of the universe.

Dr. Anandibai Joshee was the first woman of Indian origin to earn a medical degree. To accomplish such a feat was not without its challenges, however. From leaving her loved ones behind to attend medical school in the United States to balancing her education and personal health issues, Dr. Joshee overcame many hurdles to become the first female Indian doctor. While her achievements were extraordinary, not many know about Dr. Joshee’s seminal position as an Indian woman physician. Through HNRS 306: Exploring Drexel’s Collections taught by Dr. Lloyd Ackert, I aimed to explore the life of Dr. Joshee to help develop an intimate understanding of who she was as a student, physician, and overall individual. As a graduate of the Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania (WMCP), a predecessor institution to what is now known as the Drexel University College of Medicine (DUCOM), I utilized archival materials from the Drexel Legacy Center such as letters, photographs, and advertisements to gain a composite view of Dr. Joshee before, during, and after her medical schooling. I seek to reveal how Dr. Josheeserved to be a remarkable figure in proving it was not only possible but necessary for people of diverse backgrounds to be medical providers. Moreover, I want to showcase the value of historical archives in allowing the stories of groundbreaking, but often ignored, individuals like that of Dr. Joshee to be known and shared.

Name of event: National Conference of Undergraduate Research (NCUR)

Date of presentation: 04/09/2024

Type of presentation: poster presentation
 
Title: Identification of novel ACSS2 inhibitors in regulating breast cancer brain metastatic growth

Text of abstract:

Triple negative breast cancer accounts for about 15% of all breast cancers. The overall survival rate of these patients is 77% but drops to 12% once tumors metastasize to the brain which equates to less than 6 months. There are currently no effective drug treatments for patients with brain metastasis, thus there is an urgent need to develop novel treatment strategies. Breast cancer cells that have metastasized to the brain depend on acetate for growth and survival rather than glucose. The acetyl CoA synthetase 2 (ACSS2) enzyme converts acetate to acetyl CoA which is critical for the fatty acid production and gene regulation in tumors in the brain. Our lab has previously shown that genetically targeting ACSS2 can reduce the growth and survival of breast cancer brain metastasis cells in the brain. Further, we have identified novel ACSS2 inhibitor analogs that can cross the blood brain barrier to treat breast cancer brain metastasis. Here, we tested novel secondary analogs of ACSS2 inhibitors for anti-cancer effects using breast cancer brain metastatic (BCBM) cells in vitro and whether they blocked downstream targets of the ACSS2 metabolic pathway. Here, we show that treating BCBM cells with inhibitors 2749, 7033 and 4855 was able to block cell growth measured by crystal violet staining with 4855 having similar effect as first-generation analog 8007. These novel inhibitors were tested further through western blotting and show that novel ACSS2 inhibitor 4855 lead to a reduction in E2F1: a downstream protein of the ACSS2 metabolic pathway. These results suggest a crucial role for ACSS2 in the regulation of breast cancer brain metastasis and identifies ACSS2 inhibitor 4855 as a potent novel ACSS2 inhibitor of BCBM cell growth and supports further testing of these drugs as novel therapeutic agents for the treatment of breast cancer brain metastatic growth.

Name of the event: 3rd International MXene Conference, MXenes: Changing the World
Date : Aug 5-7, 2024
Type of Presentation : Research Poster


Title: MXene for Air filtration
Abstract:

With the increase in harmful emissions from vehicle exhaust, smoke, industrial emissions, pollen, chemicals, or biological pathogens like viruses, the quality of the air we breathe is getting worse every day with an increased risk of respiratory tract diseases.  This project will explore an innovative route to design, optimize, and produce regenerative air filtration systems based on 2D nanomaterial called MXenes. MXenes in a microscopic scale consist of alternating transition metal and carbon or nitrogen layers which equips it with unique properties such as high electrical conductivity, hydrophilic nature, biocompatibility, and electromagnetic wave absorption and shielding properties. Our systems have shown promising results with improved air filtration capacities compared to traditional commercial HEPA filters for particulate matter less than 100nm (which have a larger surface area and are more risk-averse). The commonly found HEPA filters in the market can only filter particulate matter that is less than 2.5 µm or 10 µm in diameter. So, this project aims to target nanoparticles, metallic particles, or biological particle filtration via an innovative and regenerative MXene air filter system that could be used for longer periods for a more sustainable and efficient future.

Macrophages, integral to the innate immune system, are involved in numerous disease and injury models due to their unique ability to interact with neighboring cells. Consequently, macrophage cell therapy has become a promising approach. However, these cells can quickly alter their phenotype in response to local cues, often assuming an undesired state. Thus, maintaining their phenotype becomes critical in cell therapy. Our laboratory uses microparticles to intrinsically control this, even against external stimuli. In this work, we explored the effects of particle size on drug release kinetics and phenotype and screened potential drugs candidates for macrophage cell therapy in fibrotic models.

 The intersection of the COVID-19 pandemic and burnout within the medical field is catastrophic. Medical professionals, previously tasked with working long hours under stressful conditions, are being tasked with handling even tougher circumstances. From making decisions concerning who should get a ventilator, to choosing whether or not to keep working when proper personal protective equipment is not available, professionals throughout the United States are struggling with weighing their morals and their mental health. This project aims to review magazine and newspaper literature about burnout in medicine and examine how burnout has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted a structured keyword search in ProQuest, and excluded articles outside of the United States. We included a total of 150 articles in our preliminary search. Results largely indicate burnout persisting or worsening during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many individuals are of the opinion that healthcare won’t ever be the same. A narrative of healthcare workers being overworked and underappreciated is also presented with charged language describing professionals as at their ‘breaking point’ by many sources. Strong crisis language, while used to sell magazines or newspapers, is alarming to consider when discussing healthcare workers. This problem lends itself to a gap in the quality of patient care that can directly relate to worsened outcomes for patients. Future research should examine ways to minimize the impact of burnout for medical professionals in order to ensure that the well-being of both patients and health care teams are prioritized. 

 The intersection of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Opioid Epidemic is a threat to public health in the 21st Century. Opioid use disorders (OUDs), disproportionately impact racial and ethnic minorities. These groups have historically experienced limited access to healthcare, even before COVID-19 lockdowns were in place. This project aims to review literature on racial/ethnic disparities in OUD outcomes in urban areas in the United States, and to examine how these disparities have shifted during the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted a structured keyword search in PubMed, and excluded articles that did not report OUD outcomes in urban areas for racial/ethnic minorities. We included a total of nine articles. Results largely indicate disparities in opioid outcomes in many United States cities. In some cities, these disparities have worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results also point to worsening of opioid outcomes among Black and LatinX individuals due to policies to mitigate the pandemic such as shelter-in-place orders. Future research should examine ways to minimize the impact of the pandemic among vulnerable groups with Opioid Use Disorders, including programs and policies to promote equitable access to healthcare, including medication assisted treatment.