Faculty Bibliography

Spanish-speaking emergent bilingual learners (EBLLs) are the fastest-growing group of children under five in the United States. Yet, there is a limited number of early childhood education (ECE) teachers who speak Spanish. This study examines mainstream English-instruction ECE teachers' beliefs about how a language match supports EBLLs' learning and development. Semi-structured interviews with 20 ECE teachers who varied in levels of Spanish-language proficiency were conducted. Qualitative results illustrated that most teachers demonstrated sociolinguistic consciousness regarding their beliefs about the value of using Spanish in the classroom and highlighted important sociopolitical factors that influence their beliefs and practices. The findings indicate several policy and practice implications, such as the need for language policies that encourage the use of Spanish and English in the classroom and pre-service/in-service education on the best practices for supporting EBLLs.

Introduction: Tracheostomy in patients with COVID-19 is a controversial and difficult clinical decision. We hypothesized that a recently validated COVID-19 Severity Score (CSS) would be associated with survival in patients considered for tracheostomy. Methods: We reviewed 77 mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients evaluated for decision for percutaneous dilational tracheostomy (PDT) from March to June 2020 at a public tertiary care center. Decision for PDT was based on clinical judgment of the screening surgeons. The CSS was retrospectively calculated using mean biomarker values from admission to time of PDT consult. Our primary outcome was survival to discharge, and all patient charts were reviewed through August 31, 2021. ROC curve and Youden index were used to estimate an optimal cut-point for survival. Results: The mean CSS for 42 survivors significantly differed from that of 35 nonsurvivors (CSS 52 versus 66, P = 0.003). The Youden index returned an optimal CSS of 55 (95% confidence interval 43-72), which was associated with a sensitivity of 0.8 and a specificity of 0.6. The median CSS was 40 (interquartile range 27, 49) in the lower CSS (<55) group and 72 (interquartile range 66, 93) in the high CSS (≥55 group). Eighty-seven percent of lower CSS patients underwent PDT, with 74% survival, whereas 61% of high CSS patients underwent PDT, with only 41% surviving. Patients with high CSS had 77% lower odds of survival (odds ratio = 0.2, 95% confidence interval 0.1-0.7). Conclusions: Higher CSS was associated with decreased survival in patients evaluated for PDT, with a score ≥55 predictive of mortality. The novel CSS may be a useful adjunct in determining which COVID-19 patients will benefit from tracheostomy. Further prospective validation of this tool is warranted.

Knowledge on the role in cancer etiology of environmental exposures as pesticides is a pre-requisite for primary prevention. We review 62 epidemiological studies on exposure to pesticides and cancer risk in humans published from 2017 to 2021, with emphasis on new findings, methodological approaches, and gaps in the existing literature. While much of the recent evidence suggests causal relationships between pesticide exposure and cancer, the strongest evidence exists for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and colorectal cancer (CRC), diseases in which the observed associations were consistent across several studies, including high quality prospective studies and those using biomarkers for exposure assessment, with some observing dose-response relationships. Though high-quality studies have been published since the IARC monograph on organophosphate insecticides in 2017, there are still gaps in the literature on carcinogenic evidence in humans for a large number of pesticides. To further knowledge, we suggest leveraging new techniques and methods to increase sensitivity and precision of exposure assessment, incorporate multi-omics data, and investigate more thoroughly exposure to chemical mixtures. There is also a strong need for better and larger population-based cohort studies that include younger and non-occupationally exposed individuals, particularly during developmental periods of susceptibility. Though the existing evidence has limitations, as always in science, there is sufficient evidence to implement policies and regulatory action that limit pesticide exposure in humans and, hence, further prevent a significant burden of cancers.

Myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody-associated disease (MOGAD) is a recently described CNS inflammatory disorder that may manifest with optic neuritis, myelitis, seizures, and/or acute disseminated encephalomyelitis. While MOG-specific antibodies in patients with MOGAD are IgG1, a T-cell-dependent antibody isotype, immunologic mechanisms of this disease are not fully understood. Thymic hyperplasia can be associated with certain autoimmune diseases. In this report we describe a case of MOGAD associated with thymic hyperplasia in a young adult.

Children suffer disproportionately from disease and disability due to environmental hazards, for reasons rooted in their biology. The contribution is substantial and increasingly recognized, particularly due to ever-increasing awareness of endocrine disruption. Regulatory actions can be traced directly to reductions in toxic exposures, with tangible benefits to society. Deep flaws remain in the policy framework in industrialized countries, failing to offer sufficient protection, but are even more limited in industrializing nations where the majority of chemical production and use will occur by 2030. Evidence-based steps for reducing chemical exposures associated with adverse health outcomes exist and should be incorporated into anticipatory guidance.

AIM/OBJECTIVE:To test the hypothesis that glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists have beneficial effects on vascular endothelial function, fibrinolysis and inflammation through weight loss-independent mechanisms. MATERIALS AND METHODS/METHODS:Individuals with obesity and prediabetes were randomized to 14 weeks of the GLP-1R agonist liraglutide, hypocaloric diet or the dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitor sitagliptin in a 2:1:1 ratio. Treatment with drug was double blind and placebo-controlled. Measurements were made at baseline, after 2 weeks prior to significant weight loss and after 14 weeks. The primary outcomes were measures of endothelial function: flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD), plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) and urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio (UACR). RESULTS:Eighty-eight individuals were studied (liraglutide N = 44, diet N = 22, sitagliptin N = 22). Liraglutide and diet reduced weight, insulin resistance and PAI-1, while sitagliptin did not. There was no significant effect of any treatment on endothelial vasodilator function measured by FMD. Post hoc subgroup analyses in individuals with baseline FMD below the median, indicative of greater endothelial dysfunction, showed an improvement in FMD by all three treatments. GLP-1R antagonism with exendin (9-39) increased fasting blood glucose but did not change FMD or PAI-1. There was no effect of treatment on UACR. Finally, liraglutide, but not sitagliptin or diet, reduced the chemokine monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1). CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:Liraglutide and diet reduce weight, insulin resistance and PAI-1. Liraglutide, sitagliptin and diet do not change FMD in obese individuals with prediabetes with normal endothelial function. Liraglutide alone lowers the pro-inflammatory and pro-atherosclerotic chemokine MCP-1, indicating that this beneficial effect is independent of weight loss.

Neurologists have long-recognized the importance of the visual system in the diagnosis and monitoring of neurological disorders. This is particularly true since approximately 50% of the brain's pathways subserve afferent and efferent aspects of vision. During the past 30 years, researchers and clinicians have further refined this concept to include investigation of the visual system for patients with specific neurologic diagnoses, including multiple sclerosis (MS), concussion, Parkinson's disease (PD) and conditions along the spectrum of Alzheimer's disease (AD, mild cognitive impairment [MCI] and subjective cognitive decline [SCD]). This review, highlights the visual "toolbox" that has been developed over the past three decades and beyond to capture both structural and functional aspects of vision in neurologic disease. While the efforts to accelerate the emphasis on structure-function relationships in neurological disorders began with MS during the early 2000's, such investigations have broadened to recognize the need for outcomes of visual pathway structure, function and quality of life for clinical trials of therapies across the spectrum of neurological disorders. This review begins with a patient case study highlighting the importance utilizing the most modern technologies for visual pathway assessment, including optical coherence tomography (OCT). We emphasize that both structural and functional tools for vision testing can be used in parallel to detect what might otherwise be sub-clinical events or markers of visual and, perhaps, more global neurological, decline. Such measures will be critical as clinical trials and therapies become more available across the neurological disease spectrum.

The present study examined the associations between physical characteristics of neighborhoods and sleep health outcomes and assessed the mediating role of physical activity on these associations. A longitudinal study (PHRESH Zzz, n=1,051) was conducted in two low-income, predominately African-American neighborhoods with repeated measures of neighborhood characteristics and sleep health outcomes from 2013 to 2018. Built environment measures of walkability, urban design, and physical neighborhood disorder were captured from systematic field observations. Sleep health outcomes included insufficient sleep, sleep duration, wakefulness after sleep onset (WASO), and sleep efficiency measured from 7-day actigraphy data. G-computations based on structural nested mean models were used to examine the total effects of each built environment feature and causal mediation analyses were used to evaluate direct and indirect effects through physical activity. Urban design features were associated with decreased WASO (β: -1.26, 95% confidence interval [-4.31, -0.33]). Neighborhood disorder (β: -0.46, CI [-0.86, -0.07]) and crime rate (β: -0.54, CI [-0.93, -0.08]) were negatively associated with sleep efficiency. Neighborhood walkability was not associated with sleep outcomes. We did not find a strong and consistent mediating role of physical activity. Interventions to improve sleep should target modifiable factors, including urban design and neighborhood disorder.