Vanderbilt University

The role of multisensory integration in child development: Perception, cognition, and action

Multisensory integration (MSI) is a cornerstone of human development, essential for how children perceive, interact with, and understand the world. This review proposes that the developmental trajectory of MSI is characterized by asynchronous maturation of the different sensory s...

MutexaGPT: an intuition-to-design translator for physics-based enzyme engineering

Abstract Physical intuition about how enzyme structure and dynamics shape function has guided successful engineering efforts, yet a systematic approach is still lacking for translating these qualitative and abstract ‘thoughts’ into quantitative, actionable principles for enzyme d...

Arterial Spin Labeling Hemodynamic Indices Relate to Cognitive and Small Vessel Disease Trajectories Over 11 Years

BACKGROUND: Hemodynamic insufficiency may contribute to the development of neuroimaging signs of cerebral small vessel disease (SVD). The arterial spin labeling (ASL) spatial coefficient of variation (ASL-sCoV) is a proxy marker of arterial transit time and may better capture SVD...

Interventions to Reduce Financial Toxicity of Childhood, Adolescent, and Young Adult Cancer Survivors: A Scoping Review

Financial toxicity (FT) worsens health outcomes and quality of life for childhood, adolescent, and young adult (CAYA) cancer survivors. This scoping review examines interventions designed to alleviate FT among CAYA cancer survivors and identifies the levels of influence within th...

The plausible relationship between deep long-period earthquakes and volatiles: a case study of the Alaska-Aleutian arc

Abstract Deep long-period (DLP) earthquakes are observed beneath volcanoes in various tectonic settings during background activity, unrest, and eruption. The exact processes generating DLPs have been subject to ongoing debate, as they may provide insight into deep magmatic plumbi...

Composition and size of close social networks among older adults in same-sex and different-sex couples

Abstract Objectives This study examines differences in the composition and size of the close social network among older adults in same-sex and different-sex coresidential unions. Methods Using pooled, probability-based, cross-sectional data from the 2006–2022 Health and Retiremen...

Emission reduction potential of freeway stop-and-go wave smoothing

The real-world potential of stop-and-go wave smoothing at scale remains largely unquantified. Smoothing freeway waves requires opening a gap large enough for them to dissipate, but that gap is often impractically large. We propose a counterfactual wave-smoothing benchmark that re...

Clostridioides difficile couples responses to host nutritional immunity and a commensal-derived antibiotic to enable growth in the gut

The Gram-positive opportunistic pathogen Clostridioides difficile colonizes the gut by adapting to an array of threats from the host and the microbiome. A potential threat from the microbiome is the antimicrobial peptide bacitracin, which is produced by the commensal Bacillus lic...

Divergent biological consequences of APOE isoforms across industrialized and non-industrial environments

Abstract The apolipoprotein ε4 (APOE ε4) isoform directly alters cholesterol and immune biology and is associated with an increased risk of neurodegenerative and cardiometabolic disease in industrialized settings; nevertheless, APOE ε4—which is ancestral in humans—has persisted o...

Artifact Correction of Clinical Diffusion Weighted Imaging in Acute Ischemic Stroke

ABSTRACT Background Susceptibility‐induced geometric distortions and non‐physiologic hyperintensities confound acute ischemic stroke diagnosis on diffusion weighted imaging (DWI). Reverse phase‐encoded imaging needed for artifact correction is rarely acquired acutely. Structural...

Designing multi‐site studies for external validity: Site selection via synthetic purposive sampling

Abstract Multi‐site/context studies have become popular strategies to address the most common and challenging external validity concerns about contexts. Under such studies, scholars conduct causal studies in each site and evaluate whether findings generalize across sites. Despite...

Characterization of Regioisomeric Conjugates Arising from Pixantrone at AP Sites in DNA

Abstract Alkylation at N7 of guanine leads to formation of abasic (AP) sites in DNA. These equilibrate between α and β anomers and form conjugates with 6,9-bis[(2-aminoethyl)amino]benzo[g]isoquinoline-5,10-dione (Pixantrone, PIX). NMR revealed that these conjugates formed as regi...

Early-life colonization with Clostridioides difficile remodels the developing gut

Clostridioides difficile causes severe disease in adults but commonly colonizes infants asymptomatically. The consequences of early-life colonization on host development remain unknown. In a neonatal mouse model, C. difficile colonization drove proinflammatory and tissue repair r...

Nucleus Accumbens and Ventral Tegmental Area Functional Connectivity as a Marker of Reward Sensitivity in Infancy

ABSTRACT Early functional connectivity within the brain's reward circuitry may provide insight into the developmental origins of individual differences in pleasure and motivation. This study examined resting‐state functional connectivity between two key reward‐related regions, th...

A cross-instrument closure and polarimetric study for improving sub-millimeter polarimeter-radiometer ice cloud microphysics retrievals

Abstract. Ice cloud microphysical properties, such as phase, shape, size and density, introduce significant uncertainties and biases that affect our understanding of how clouds influence weather and climate. The upcoming spaceborne sub-millimeter radiometers are expected to help...

The Effects of Immigration on Agricultural Development: Brazil in the Age of Mass Migration

We study the effects of immigration during the Age of Mass Migration (1855–1920) on Brazil’s agricultural development in 1920. Instrumenting for a municipality’s immigrant share using the interaction of aggregate immigrant inflows and the expansion of Brazil’s railway network, we...

Modeling and Design Optimization of Looped Water Distribution Networks using MS Excel: Developing the Open-Source X-WHAT Model

Abstract Cost-effective water distribution network (WDN) design is crucial for reliable urban water supply. This paper introduces the open-source Excel for Water system Hydraulic Analysis Tool (X-WHAT) for WDN simulation and preliminary design. Unlike traditional spreadsheet appr...

Neural tracking of surprisal in Spanish-English bilingual children during naturalistic heritage language listening

Our understanding of the neurobiology of language development is imprecise, particularly for bilingual children in their heritage language, since much research focuses on monolingual children or societal majority languages. In this study, we use a novel computational approach wit...

Long-term evaluation of kidney biopsy outcomes to guide continuous quality improvement

Abstract Background Kidney biopsy is essential for diagnosis and management but carries bleeding risks. Efforts to reduce bleeding may compromise tissue adequacy, highlighting the need to systematically evaluate biopsy performance. Understanding factors that influence both safety...

Use of Electroconvulsive Therapy for Catatonia in Down Syndrome Regression Disorder: A Systematic Review, Case Series, and Analysis

Abstract Purpose Down syndrome regression disorder (DSRD) is a condition occurring in young people with Down syndrome. It is associated with functional decline, new onset psychopathology, and increased support needs. DSRD is often associated with catatonia, for which electroconvu...