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Introduction: Hypertension (HTN) develops at a disproportionately higher rate among African Americans compared to any other racial group. Substantial evidence indicates that aerobic exercise mitigates HTN. However, only 41% of African Americans report meeting leisure-time aerobic exercise recommendations, the lowest percentage compared to other racial groups. Household activities have been reported as the most common, daily PA among African Americans compared to occupational and leisure-time PA. Household activities, such as major cleaning and caretaking, are a type of light-to-moderate intensity PA that is associated with blood pressure (BP) reductions. Among African Americans, women report higher levels of household tasks than men. Hypothesis: We assessed the hypothesis that the association between household PA and HTN among African Americans varies by sex. Methods: The JHS is a longitudinal, community-based, observational study among African Americans residing in Jackson, Mississippi’s tri-county area. Of the 5,306 African American participants from JHS’s Exam 1, 1,419 had missing data on key variables, leaving a total of 3,887 for the analytic sample. HTN, the outcome variable, was defined using JNC-7’s standards, systolic BP ≥ 140 mmHg and/or diastolic BP ≥ 90mmHg, given that baseline data was collected between 2000-04. Household PA, the primary independent variable, was categorized as high or low frequency. PA was assessed at the baseline, in-home interview using the 30-item JHS PA Survey, which is a modification of the Baecke and Atherosclerosis Risk in the Community activity questionnaires. Sociodemographic characteristics, cardiovascular disease risk factors, and area-level factors were included as covariates. Total sample and sex-stratified multivariable logistic regression models were estimated to examine the association between household PA and HTN using STATA/SE Version 16. Results: Approximately 55% of the sample had HTN and 65.6% reported low frequency household PA. A significant difference in HTN status was found. The proportion of those with HTN was lower for those reporting high frequency household PA than the corresponding percentage for low frequency household PA (OR = 0.78, 95% CI: 0.69-0.90). A greater percentage of individuals under age 50 reported high frequency household PA. This association did not hold in the adjusted models. Household PA was not related to HTN (OR = 0.90, 95% CI: 0.74-1.09). The interaction term between household PA and sex was not associated with HTN (OR = 1.06, 95% CI: 0.77-1.44). Age was a confounder that attenuated the association. Conclusions: In conclusion, we found that household activities are not associated with HTN; however, this type of light-to-moderate intensity PA may be beneficial for improving BP among African Americans, especially among those who are otherwise physically inactive.

Objective: This systematic review aims to examine the spectrum of research studies including cross-cultural and international studies that have focused on weight and health-related quality of life in children and adolescents. Methods: Following the PRISMA guidelines, studies published in the past 25 years from 1995 until 2020 that pertain to weight and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in children and adolescents were identified through the use of Pubmed, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, and PsycInfo databases. Two authors independently conducted a focused analysis and reached a final consensus on which studies to include using specific selection criteria followed by a quality check of the studies, resulting in the final selection of 25 studies. Results: The selected studies particularized the level of impaired quality of life among normal-weight, overweight and obese children and adolescents, and distinctly found that higher participant weight was correlated with a lower HRQoL score. Conclusion: Studies showed a significant negative correlation between weight and HRQoL. Multiple types of prevention and treatment programs are critically needed to provide resources to improve quality of life in overweight and obese children and adolescents.

Humans often say they prefer certain attributes and trait levels and yet choose options inconsistent with those preferences, a phenomenon known as the stated-revealed preference gap. In this article, we compare preferences and choices in the decision to adopt a dog, a social-choice problem that is largely one-sided. We used existing and newly gathered field data about the dog adoption process to study how people make their choices of companion animals and how those choices can be improved. We found that in the real-world choice of dogs within an animal shelter, individuals generally showed a large amount of overlap between their stated preferences and their ratings of the traits of their chosen dog. However, there was little relationship between an adopter's perceptions of their chosen dog's behavioral traits and third-party in-shelter behavior evaluations of the same dogs, suggesting that it is difficult to predict which dogs will satisfy an adopter's preferences. We also tested which commonly collected factors impact how quickly dogs are adopted from animal shelters. Overall, this work provides insight into the process of combining experimentally collected data and big data to elucidate choice behavior.

The COVID-19 pandemic is a public health crisis. College student alcohol use is highly prevalent and primarily occurs in social settings where risk for COVID-19 transmission is heightened. This study explored the associations between alcohol use frequency, quantity, motives, and context with: (i) quarantine due to COVID-19 exposure and (ii) a positive diagnosis for COVID-19. A sample of n = 409 college student drinkers completed an online survey about their health and behaviors during the Fall 2020 semester. Since the start of the semester, 36% of students quarantined and 13% of students received a COVID-19 diagnosis. More frequent alcohol use was associated with increased odds of both quarantine and COVID-19 diagnosis. More frequent drinking for social motives was associated with increased likelihood of quarantine, and more frequent drinking for conformity motives was associated with increased likelihood of COVID-19 diagnosis. Participants who often drank alone or with a small group of friends were about half as likely to have quarantined, while those who often drank with a large group of friends were almost twice as likely to have quarantined. Participants who often drank in a bar or nightclub had almost three times the odds of a COVID-19 diagnosis. Frequent alcohol use and drinking for social and conformity motives and in certain contexts are linked to increased likelihood of COVID-19 exposure and diagnosis. Alcohol use prevention efforts, coupled with messaging to discourage large social gatherings in public places, might help to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 among college students.

Background The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has resulted in unprecedented challenges for the oncology community. For people living with cancer, treatments are interrupted, surgeries cancelled, and regular oncology evaluations rescheduled. People with cancer and their physicians must balance plausible fears of coronavirus disease 2019 and cancer treatment with the consequences of delaying cancer care. Objective We aim to evaluate the experience of women with ovarian cancer during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. Study Design Women with a current or previous diagnosis of ovarian cancer completed an online survey focusing on treatment interruptions and quality of life. The quality of life was measured with the Cancer Worry Scale and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. The survey was distributed through survivor networks and social media. Univariate and multivariable linear regression analysis were used to evaluate the effect of participant characteristics on quality of life survey scores. Results A total of 603 women, from 41 states, visited the survey website between March 30, 2020, and April 13, 2020, and 555 (92.0%) completed the survey. The median age was 58 years (range, 20–85). At the time of survey completion, 217 participants (43.3%) were in active treatment. A total of 175 participants (33%) experienced a delay in some component of their cancer care. Ten (26.3%) of the 38 participants scheduled for surgery experienced a delay, as did 18 (8.3%) of the 217 participants scheduled for nonsurgical cancer treatment. A total of 133 participants (24.0%) had a delayed physician appointment, 84 (15.1%) laboratory tests, and 53 (9.6%) cancer-related imaging. Among the cohort, 88.6% (489) reported significant cancer worry, 51.4% (285) borderline or abnormal anxiety, and 26.5% (147) borderline or abnormal depression. On univariate analysis, age less than 65 years, being scheduled for cancer treatment or cancer surgery, delay in oncology care, being self-described as immunocompromised, and use of telemedicine were all associated with higher levels of cancer worry. Higher anxiety scores were associated with age less than 65 years and being self-described as immunocompromised. Higher depression scores were associated with age less than 65 years, being scheduled for cancer surgery, delay in oncology care, being self-described as immunocompromised, and use of telemedicine. On multivariable linear regression analysis, age less than 65 and being self-described as immunocompromised were independently predictive of greater cancer worry, anxiety, and depression, and delay in cancer care was predictive of anxiety and depression. Conclusion The coronavirus disease 2019 crisis is affecting care of patients with ovarian cancer; surgeries, treatments, scheduled physician appointments, laboratory tests, and imaging are cancelled or delayed. Younger age, presumed immunocompromise, and delay in cancer care were associated with significantly higher levels of cancer worry, anxiety, and depression. Providers must work with patients to balance competing risks of coronavirus disease 2019 and cancer, recognizing that communication is a critical clinical tool to improve quality of life in these times.

Gestational trophoblastic neoplasia (GTN) includes invasive mole, choriocarcinoma, and placental site trophoblastic tumors (Morgan, 2008). Approximately 50% of GTN are diagnosed after hydatidiform molar pregnancy, with diagnosis being made by the clinical and/or histopathologic criteria based on the following Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) recommendations: (1) an hCG plateau for at least four values over 3 weeks; (2) an hCG increase of 10% or greater for at least three values over 2 weeks; (3) hCG persistence 6 months after molar pregnancy evacuation, (4) histopathologic diagnosis of choriocarcinoma; or (5) presence of metastatic disease (Morgan, 2008). Once GTN is diagnosed, patients are categorized by FIGO Stage and World Health Organization (WHO) risk score, and their stage and score dictate the initial treatment regimen to assure the best possible outcomes with the least morbidity (Lurain, 2003). Low risk disease defined as, patients with nonmetastatic (stage I) and low-risk metastatic GTN (stages II and III, score

Objectives: Poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitor maintenance (PARPm) therapy is now available to all women with advanced ovarian cancer following response to initial chemotherapy. As the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in unprecedented challenges for cancer patients, we aimed to evaluate the unique experience for women on maintenance PARP inhibitors. Methods: Women with a current or prior diagnosis of ovarian cancer completed an online survey focusing on treatment interruptions and quality of life (QOL). QOL was measured with the Cancer Worry Scale and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. The survey was distributed through survivor networks and social media. The chi-square and ANOVA test were used with a Bonferroni correction to account for multiple comparison testing. Results: Six hundred and three women, from 41 states, visited the survey website between March 30 and April 13, 2020 and 525 (87%) completed the survey and provided information on current treatment status. Sixty-four women (12%) were on PARPm, 153 (29%) on other anti-cancer therapy and 308 (59%) on no treatment. Other anticancer therapies included intravenous chemotherapy (61, 40%), anti-angiogenic (29, 19%), hormonal (25, 16%), oral chemotherapy (12, 8%), immunotherapy (10, 6.5%) and other (16, 10%). There were no differences among women on PARPm, no treatment or other treatment for disease stage, medical comorbidities, COVID-19 symptoms or treatment delays. Women on PARPm were more likely to be self-described as immunocompromised versus women not on treatment (79% vs. 34%, P Download : Download high-res image (96KB) Download : Download full-size image Conclusions: The COVID-19 crisis is impacting cancer care and it is critical that providers consider and address the unique stressors facing women with ovarian cancer during this challenging time. Women on PARPm, in particular, perceive themselves as immunocompromised, perhaps making them more open to alternative means of care delivery, as demonstrated by their willingness to adopt telemedicine. Women with ovarian cancer on PARPm report similar cancer worry, anxiety and depression to women not on treatment and those on other anti-cancer treatment.

Objectives: Risk reducing surgery remains the most effective strategy to reduce the risk of ovarian cancer in women with a Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer (HBOC) syndrome. Despite the substantial survival benefit, women often do not undergo risk reducing bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (RRBSO) within the NCCN-recommended timeframes. The aim of this study was to examine factors impacting the timing and surgical uptake of RRBSO in high-risk patients receiving care at our academic urban health care system. Methods: Patients who underwent RRBSO between January 1, 2017 and September 1, 2020 at our health care system were identified using ICD codes. Demographic information collected included age, race, mutation type, personal history of cancer, family history of cancer, and type of insurance. Dates of initial gynecologic presentation, genetic testing, and surgery were recorded. Descriptive statistics were completed using SPSS 2.0 software and multiple linear regression modeling was performed to assess factors impacting timing to RRBSO. Results: One hundred sixty seven patients underwent gynecologic RRBSO during the study period. The median age of patients at time of RRBSO was 47 years (range 30-74), 134 (80.5%) identified as White, 155 (92.8%) as non-Hispanic, 159 (95.2%) spoke English as their primary language, 135 (80.8%) had private insurance. 62 (37.1%) had a BRCA1 mutation, 69 (41.3%) a BRCA2 mutation, and 17 (10.1%) another HBOC-related mutation. 61 (36.4%) had a personal history of cancer while 19 (11.5%) had a family history of cancer. Of the 167 patients who underwent RRBSO, 5 (2.9%) had a serous tubal intraepithelial carcinoma precursor lesion or occult invasive cancer diagnosed at time of surgery.Privately insured patients underwent RRBSO at a median age of 40 (range 28-74) whereas publicly insured patient were 46 (range 23-69) (p=0.849). The median age for genetic testing was 40 years (range 28-74) in privately insured patients and 46 years (range 23-69) in publicly insured (p=0.849). The median time from genetic testing to surgery was 51 weeks (range 3-650). On multivariate analysis, age (p Conclusions: In our cohort, publicly insured HBOC patients underwent genetic testing and RRBSO at a later median age compared to privately insured patients. While this difference was not statistically significant, it suggests a socioeconomic disparity in the age at which genetic testing and RRBSO are being completed, with RRBSOs falling outside the age recommendation of guideline-directed care. Optimizing implementation of genetic testing and RRBSO among publicly insured HBOC patients could lead to earlier identification of those at increased risk and a better opportunity to reduce the risk of cancer.

It is said that we lose track of time - that “time flies” - when we are engrossed in a story. How does engagement with the story cause this distorted perception of time, and what are its neural correlates? People commit both time and attentional resources to an engaging stimulus. For narrative videos, attentional engagement can be represented as the level of similarity between the electroencephalographic responses of different viewers. Here we show that this measure of neural engagement predicted the duration of time that viewers were willing to commit to narrative videos. Contrary to popular wisdom, engagement did not distort the average perception of time duration. Rather, more similar brain responses resulted in a more uniform perception of time across viewers. These findings suggest that by capturing the attention of an audience, narrative videos bring both neural processing and the subjective perception of time into synchrony.

This brief summarizes findings and recommendations from a study of the prevalence and characteristics of sexual harassment, gender discrimination, racial/ethnic harassment, and racial/ethnic discrimination at the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Animals foraging for resources often need to alternate between searching for and benefiting from patches of those resources. Here we explore whether such patterns of behavior can usefully be applied to the human search for romantic relationships. Optimal foraging theory suggests that foragers should alter their time spent in patches based on how long they typically spend searching between patches. We test whether human relationship search can be described as a foraging task that fits this OFT prediction. By analyzing a large, demographically representative dataset on marriage and cohabitation timing using survival analysis, we find that the likelihood of a relationship ending per unit time goes down with increased duration of search before that relationship, in accord with the foraging prediction. We consider the possible applications and limits of a foraging perspective on mate search and suggest further directions for study.

Objectives: To describe the clinical course and associated mortality and morbidity of gynecologic cancer patients with COVID-19 infection with respect to cancer status, demographics, and comorbidities. Methods: An IRB approved prospective registry was initiated of all gynecologic oncology patients with COVID-19 infections at a health care system in New York City from March 1 to June 1 2020. Clinical and demographic data was abstracted from the electronic medical record. Univariate and multivariate regression analyses were performed to identify factors associated with development of an adverse event defined as the composite of death, intubation, or ICU admission. Results: In total, 57 gynecologic cancer patients with documented COVID-19 positivity were identified. The median age of identified patients was 68 years (range 32 - 91years). 29 patients (50.9%) required hospital admission and 28 (49.1%) patients required supplemental oxygen. 17 patients (30%) experienced an adverse event, defined as the composite of death, intubation, or ICU admission. Specifically 7 (12%) were intubated, 13 (23%) were admitted to the ICU, and 16 (27%) patients died from acute complications of COVID-19. All patients who were intubated and/or admitted to the ICU died from COVID-19 complications. Patients with elevated white blood cell count (WBC), absolute neutrophil count (ANC) and/or elevated prothrombin time (PT) were significantly more likely to experience an adverse event (WBC: 47 vs 12%, p=0.01; ANC: 37 vs 8%, p=0.04; PT: 61 vs 17%, p=0.04). On multivariable analysis, ECOG status of 1 or greater was associated with a 26-fold increase in the odds of an adverse event (OR=26, 95% CI: 2 - 415, p=0.02), and seven or more abnormal lab values was associated with a 305-fold increase in the odds of an adverse event (p=0.007). The presence of active cancer (n=33. 57.9%) or receipt of systemic therapy (n=18, 31.6%) was not associated with the development of an adverse event (p=0.205, p=0.81 respectively). Type of systemic therapy (chemotherapy, immunotherapy, radiation) was not associated with adverse event development. Download : Download high-res image (83KB) Download : Download full-size image Conclusions: In this study, we analyzed the outcomes of gynceocologic oncology patients with COVID-19 infections at an urban New York City hospital. Over 50% of patients required hospital admission for COVID-19 related symptoms, with a case fatality rate of 27%. Age, active cancer status, or recent systemic therapy was not associated with subsequent intubation, ICU admission, or mortality, while performance status and multiple abnormal lab values were significant risk factors. Further characterization of associated poor prognostic factors is needed in order to formulate best oncologic practices during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Objectives: There is no one best treatment option for women with recurrent ovarian cancer and the treatment plan is usually determined via shared decision-making. The primary objective of this study was to prospectively assess the feasibility of implementing a patient-centered Priorities Assessment Tool (PAT) in gynecologic-oncology clinics. Methods: Inclusion criteria included diagnoses of recurrent ovarian cancer and English language proficiency. Exclusion criteria included cognitive impairment and non-engagement in treatment decision-making. Clinic schedules were reviewed in advance and eligible patients were contacted prior to their gynecologic-oncology appointment about the study. The study team approached interested subjects immediately prior to their visit to complete demographic information, the FACT FOSI-18 and the PAT instrument. Following the visit, patients and providers completed PAT evaluation forms. Feasibility was defined as the proportion of patients who completed all 3 study forms prior to meeting with their physician. A secondary objective was the identification of factors from the demographic form and FACT FOSI-18 associated with priority assessments from the PAT. Institutional review board (IRB) approval was obtained. Results: Between October 2018 and December 2019, 115 women with recurrent ovarian cancer were considered for enrollment. Of these, 63 enrolled, 13 declined, and 39 were ineligible due to being non-English speaking. Reasons for declining included lack of time or interest. A total of 97% (60) of patients completed all three forms prior to their doctor's visit. The median age range was 61-70 years old, 48% (30) were of race or ethnicity other than non-Hispanic white, and 47% (29) had graduated college. A total of 18% (11) had no evidence of disease, and 78% (47) were receiving treatment. Prioritization included “having enough energy to do the things that are important to me” (66%, 41), caring for others (32%, 20), and hobbies (21%, 13). FACT FOSI-18 (Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy Symptom Index) top concerns are shown in Figure 1. 79% (49), which indicated wanting to be involved in treatment decisions, 39% (24) needed help understanding their disease, and 76% (47) understood their goals of care. When FACT FOSI-18 scores were correlated with PAT responses, quality of life was inversely associated with wanting to be involved in treatment decision-making (Pearson Correlation -.273, p=0.031). In evaluating the tool after their visits, 98% (60) said the PAT was easy to use and 61% (38) reported that it helped to communicate goals and priorities with the medical team. Download : Download high-res image (81KB) Download : Download full-size image Conclusions: Implementation of the PAT was feasible with 97% of enrolled patients completing all study forms prior to their appointment. The PAT allowed participants to share their treatment-related priorities and highlights that the majority of women with ovarian cancer want to engage in shared-decision making with their providers, especially those with diminished quality of life. This finding demonstrates the increasing importance of patient-physician communication over the cancer continuum.

Background: AA men have higher PC incidence and mortality than white men. Healthcare access and other socioeconomic factors contribute to these disparities. The high cost of NGS can become an additional factor for disparity. Indeed, minority and uninsured pts were underrepresented in prior NGS studies and NGS-based Precision Oncology clinical trials. Methods: Ben Taub Hospital (BTH) is a safety net hospital serving a racially/ethnically diverse pt population (91% minorities). We retrospectively analyzed NGS data obtained via Tempus|xT tissue assay (DNA sequencing of 648 genes in tumor tissue at 500x depth) and/or Tempus|xF liquid biopsy assay (ctDNA sequencing of 105 genes at 5,000x depth) for germline and/or somatic mutations detected in 117 BTH pts [61 self-identified AA and 56 white (including white Hispanic)] receiving treatment for locally advanced, biochemically recurrent or metastatic PC. We also analyzed de-identified NGS data from a nationwide cohort of 2090 metastatic PC pts (225 AA) previously sequenced with xT and/or xF by Tempus Labs (Chicago, IL). Results: AA BTH PC pts exhibited high frequencies of BRCA2 (14.8%), SPOP (19.7%), AR (16.4%) and TP53 (49.1%) mutations (respective frequencies in white BTH pts were 9%, 7%, 3.6% and 12.5%). TMPRSS2 fusions were less frequent in AA than white pts. Upon treatment with active therapy (hormonal or taxane), the allele frequency of PC-derived ctDNA mutations in the liquid biopsy declined significantly and concordantly to the biochemical (PSA) response. In addition, two out of 61 (3.3%) AA BTH PCs had microsatellite instability [a frequency comparable to that seen in white BTH PC pts (3.6%) and in the nationwide Tempus Labs cohort (3.6% of AA PC pts)], and experienced prompt and durable clinical, biochemical and molecular responses to pembrolizumab, including disappearance of PC-derived mutant ctDNA. On the other hand, four AA PC pts who had progressed on abiraterone or enzalutamide with ctDNA findings of AR mutations previously reported as sensitive in vitro to the newest FDA-approved AR antagonist darolutamide, did not achieve clinical or biochemical response on darolutamide treatment and that was paralleled by lack of molecular (ctDNA fraction) response. Conclusions: The high mutation frequency in key PC drivers in AA pts at our safety net hospital can be attributed to underlying disease biology or the more advanced disease at presentation in AA pts with socioeconomic factors delaying access to healthcare. Wide use of NGS testing is necessary to improve early access of underserved minority populations to novel targeted therapies and to biomarker-based Precision Oncology clinical trials. Liquid biopsy is a minimally invasive tool that allows longitudinal monitoring of response (or lack thereof) to treatment. Citation Format: Tamer Khashab, Salma Kaochar, Alexander D. Le, Samantha Cohen, Attiya B. Noor, Heidi Dowst, Neda Zarrin-Khameh, Michael A. Brooks, Guilherme Godoy, Maria A. Berezina, Anna E. Schwarzbach, Michael E. Scheurer, Martha P. Mims, Nicholas Mitsiades. Genomic characterization and monitoring molecular response to treatment in African American (AA) advanced prostate cancer (PC) patients (pts) via next-generation sequencing (NGS): Real-world experience in a safety net hospital Oncology clinic [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2021; 2021 Apr 10-15 and May 17-21. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2021;81(13_Suppl):Abstract nr 549.

16 Background: African American (AA) men have higher prostate cancer (PC) incidence and PC-specific mortality than non-AA men. Socioeconomic/healthcare access and environmental factors contribute to the disparity in clinical outcomes. Moreover, AA PC exhibits increased inflammatory and immune response signaling, which may contribute to its aggressive behavior, but also allow for therapeutic intervention. Microsatellite instability (MSI) is a tissue-agnostic biomarker predictive of response to immune-checkpoint inhibition (pembrolizumab) that can be assessed by NGS testing of tumor tissue or circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA, liquid biopsy). The latter is particularly relevant for patients with PC, a disease which frequently metastasizes to bone and other deep sites, making conventional tissue biopsies invasive, painful and potentially risky. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed NGS results obtained via Tempus|xT tissue assay and/or Tempus|xF liquid biopsy assay for MSI, as well as clinical data (response to pembrolizumab), from 100 PC patients (53 AA) receiving androgen deprivation therapy for locally advanced, biochemically recurrent or metastatic disease at Ben Taub Hospital (BTH, a safety net hospital in Houston serving a patient population of which 91% are racial/ethnic minorities). We also analyzed de-identified NGS data from a nationwide cohort of 2090 metastatic PC patients (225 AA) previously sequenced with xT and/or xF by Tempus Labs (Chicago, IL). Results: MSI-High status (MSI-H) was detected using xT and/or xF assays in 4/100 (4%) of patients in the BTH cohort and in 62/2090 (3%) of metastatic PC patients in the nationwide Tempus Labs cohort. Specifically, within the AA PC patient population, MSI-H was detected in 2/53 (3.7%) in the BTH cohort and in 8/225 (3.6%) in the nationwide Tempus Labs cohort. For those patients who had both tissue and liquid biopsy testing, there was 100% concordance in MSI-H detection between the two assays. Genomically-driven treatment of two MSI-H AA CRPC patients with pembrolizumab resulted in prompt and durable clinical, biochemical and molecular responses, with precipitous decline in PSA levels to below detection limit, complete radiographic response of metastatic lymphadenopathy, radiographic non-progression of visceral disease (per iRECIST and PC Working Group 3 criteria) and disappearance of PC-derived ctDNA mutations in the liquid biopsy. Conclusions: MSI-H status is present in advanced AA PC at a frequency comparable to non-AA PC. Liquid biopsy (xF assay) is a minimally invasive tool that allows detection of MSI-H in PC patients, as well as longitudinal monitoring of response to treatment with pembrolizumab. Liquid biopsy conversion from positive to negative may provide reassurance that any residual lesions seen on imaging represent treated/inactive disease.

14 Background: The largest US cancer health disparity exists in prostate cancer (PC), with African American (AA) men having: ~1.6-1.8-fold higher risk of developing PC; younger age and more advanced stage at diagnosis; increased risk of recurrence after radical prostatectomy; and up to 2.5-fold higher mortality rate relative to men of other ancestries. Access to healthcare and other socioeconomic and environmental factors contribute to the disparity in clinical outcomes. However, genetic factors may also be involved, and their role and prevalence need to be better defined, especially in real-world clinical settings, as the high cost of next-generation sequencing (NGS) may have resulted in underrepresentation of uninsured and minority patients in prior studies. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed NGS data obtained via Tempus|xT tissue assay (DNA sequencing of 648 genes in tumor and matched normal samples at 500x depth) and/or Tempus|xF liquid biopsy assay (ctDNA sequencing of 105 genes in peripheral blood samples at 5,000x depth) for germline and/or somatic mutations detected in 100 patients (53 AA) receiving androgen deprivation therapy for locally advanced, biochemically recurrent or metastatic PC at Ben Taub Hospital (BTH), a safety net hospital in Harris County/Houston serving a patient population of which 91% are racial/ethnic minorities. For confirmation, we analyzed de-identified NGS data from a nationwide cohort of 1,211 metastatic PC patients (213 AA) previously sequenced with xT and/or xF by Tempus Labs (Chicago, IL). Results: We found higher frequencies of AR (18.9%), TP53 (41.5%), SPOP (20.7%) and homologous recombination repair (HRR) pathway gene mutations, in particular BRCA2 (17%), in our AA BTH cohort, as compared to PC patients of other races/ethnicities. The latter finding was confirmed in the nationwide Tempus Labs cohort, with 91/213 (42.7%) AA patients exhibiting mutation in at least one of 14 HRR pathway genes associated with PC sensitivity to PARP inhibitors, compared to 347/998 (34.7%) non-AA patients (P < 0.05). This difference was mainly driven by higher frequency of BRCA2 (16.9%), CDK12 (8%) and PALB2 (5.2%) mutations in AA patients. In both cohorts, TMPRSS2 fusions were much less common in AA PC patients. Conclusions: The observed high frequency of mutations in key PC drivers in AA patients may reflect differences in disease biology between racial/ethnic groups or the more advanced disease presentation of AA patients due to socioeconomic factors delaying access to healthcare. Our study provides a real-world snapshot of the genomic landscape of advanced PC in a safety net hospital serving large racial/ethnic minority populations and highlights the role that NGS testing can play to improve their access to treatment with novel targeted therapies and to biomarker-based Precision Oncology clinical trials.

Online educational materials are largely disseminated through videos, and yet there is little understanding of how these videos engage students and fuel academic success. We hypothesized that components of the electroencephalogram (EEG), previously shown to reflect video engagement, would be predictive of academic performance in the context of educational videos. Two groups of subjects watched educational videos in either an intentional learning paradigm, in which they were aware of an upcoming test, or in an incidental learning paradigm, in which they were unaware that they would be tested. “Neural engagement” was quantified by the inter-subject correlation (ISC) of the EEG that was evoked by the videos. In both groups, students with higher neural engagement retained more information. Neural engagement also discriminated between attentive and inattentive video viewing. These results suggest that this EEG metric is a marker of the stimulus-related attentional mechanisms necessary to retain information. In the future, EEG may be used as a tool to design and assess online educational content.

Neural development is generally marked by an increase in the efficiency and diversity of neural processes. In a large sample (n=114) of human children and adults with ages ranging from 5 to 44 yr, we investigated the neural responses to naturalistic video stimuli. Videos from both real-life classroom settings and Hollywood feature films were used to probe different aspects of attention and engagement. For all stimuli, older ages were marked by more variable neural responses. Variability was assessed by the intersubject correlation of evoked electroencephalographic responses. Young males also had less-variable responses than young females. These results were replicated in an independent cohort (n = 303). When interpreted in the context of neural maturation, we conclude that neural function becomes more variable with maturity, at least during the passive viewing of real-world stimuli. Fil: Petroni, Agustín. City University of New York; Estados Unidos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Cohen, Samantha S.. City University of New York; Estados Unidos Fil: Ai, Lei. City University of New York; Estados Unidos Fil: Langer, Nicolas. City University of New York; Estados Unidos Fil: Henin, Simon. City University of New York; Estados Unidos Fil: Vanderwal, Tamara. City University of New York; Estados Unidos Fil: Milham, Michael P.. City University of New York; Estados Unidos Fil: Parra, Lucas C.. City University of New York; Estados Unidos

Urban stormwater is an increasing environmental problem for cities worldwide. Many cities have turned to green infrastructure solutions, which provide water treatment and retention while also harnessing other ecosystem services. This study considered the design of detention ponds and treatment wetlands with the goal of improving hydraulic performance (specifically reducing short-circuiting) while also increasing habitat diversity. Fifty-four basin topographies, including a variety of islands and berms, were compared to an open and a traditional serpentine basin. Using scaled physical models the hydraulic performance of each design was evaluated using tracer studies to construct the residence time distribution and to visually observe the circulation pattern. In addition, the earthwork construction cost and habitat diversity index (based on the Shannon-Weaver entropy measure) were estimated at field scale. The results reveal multiple design options that improve hydraulic performance, relative to both the open and serpentine basins, and which represent a range of habit diversity and cost. General guidelines for optimal configurations are discussed. Keywords: Stormwater detention ponds; Treatment wetlands; Residence time; Green infrastructure design

Innovations in methods and technologies are equipping researchers with unprecedented capabilities for detecting and characterizing pathologic processes in the developing human brain. As a result, there is growing enthusiasm about the prospect of achieving clinically useful tools that can assist in the diagnosis and management of mental health and learning disorders. For these ambitions to be realized, it is critical to accrue large-scale multimodal datasets that capture a broad range of commonly encountered clinical psychopathology. To this end, the Child Mind Institute has launched the Healthy Brain Network (HBN), an ongoing initiative focused on creating and sharing a biobank comprised of data from 10,000 New York City area children and adolescents (ages 5-21). The HBN has adopted a community-referred recruitment model. Specifically, study advertisements seek the participation of families who have concerns about one or more psychiatric symptoms in their child. The HBN Biobank houses data about psychiatric, behavioral, cognitive, and lifestyle (e.g., fitness, diet) phenotypes, as well as multimodal brain imaging, electroencephalography, digital voice and video recordings, genetics, and actigraphy. In this paper, we present the motivation, rationale and design for the HBN along with the initial implementation and evolution of the HBN protocols. We describe the first major open data release (n = 664) containing descriptive, electroencephalography, and multimodal brain imaging data (resting state and naturalistic viewing functional MRI, diffusion MRI and morphometric MRI). Beyond accelerating transdiagnostic research, we discuss the potential of the HBN Biobank to advance related areas, such as biophysical modeling, voice and speech analysis, natural viewing fMRI and EEG, and methods optimization.

We present a dataset combining electrophysiology and eye tracking intended as a resource for the investigation of information processing in the developing brain. The dataset includes high-density task-based and task-free EEG, eye tracking, and cognitive and behavioral data collected from 126 individuals (ages: 6-44). The task battery spans both the simple/complex and passive/active dimensions to cover a range of approaches prevalent in modern cognitive neuroscience. The active task paradigms facilitate principled deconstruction of core components of task performance in the developing brain, whereas the passive paradigms permit the examination of intrinsic functional network activity during varying amounts of external stimulation. Alongside these neurophysiological data, we include an abbreviated cognitive test battery and questionnaire-based measures of psychiatric functioning. We hope that this dataset will lead to the development of novel assays of neural processes fundamental to information processing, which can be used to index healthy brain development as well as detect pathologic processes. Fil: Langer, Nicolas. Universitat Zurich; Suiza. Child Mind Institute; Estados Unidos Fil: Ho, Erica J.. Child Mind Institute; Estados Unidos. University of Yale; Estados Unidos Fil: Alexander, Lindsay M.. Child Mind Institute; Estados Unidos Fil: Xu, Helen Y.. Child Mind Institute; Estados Unidos Fil: Jozanovic, Renee K.. Child Mind Institute; Estados Unidos Fil: Henin, Simon. City College of New York; Estados Unidos Fil: Petroni, Agustín. City College of New York; Estados Unidos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Cohen, Samantha. City College of New York; Estados Unidos. City University of New York; Estados Unidos Fil: Marcelle, Enitan T.. Child Mind Institute; Estados Unidos. University of California Berkeley; Estados Unidos Fil: Parra, Lucas C.. City College of New York; Estados Unidos Fil: Milham, Michael P.. Child Mind Institute; Estados Unidos. Nathan S. Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research; Estados Unidos Fil: Kelly, Simon P.. City College of New York; Estados Unidos. University College Dublin; Irlanda

Objective High-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) that is resistant to platinum-based chemotherapy has a particularly poor prognosis. Response to platinum has both prognostic survival value and dictates secondary treatment strategies. Using transcriptome analysis, we sought to identify differentially expressed genes/pathways based on a tumor's platinum response for discovering novel predictive biomarkers. Methods Seven primary HGSOC tumor samples, representing two extremes of platinum sensitivity/timing of disease recurrence, were analyzed by RNA-Seq, Ingenuity Pathways Analysis (IPA) and Upstream Regulator Analysis (URA), and used to explore differentially expressed genes and prevalent molecular and cellular processes. Progression-free and overall survival (PFS, OS) was estimated using the Kaplan–Meier method in two different sample sets including GEO and TCGA data sets. Results IPA and URA highlighted an IRF1-driven transcriptional program ( P =0.0017; z-score of 3.091) in the platinum sensitive improved PFS group. QRT-PCR analysis of 31 HGSOC samples demonstrated a significant difference in PFS between low and high IRF1 expression groups ( P =0.048) and between groups that were platinum sensitive versus not ( P =0.016). In a larger validation data set, increased levels of IRF1 were associated with both increased PFS ( P =0.043) and OS ( P =0.019) and the effect on OS was independent of debulking status (optimal debulking, P =0.025; suboptimal, P =0.041). Conclusion Transcriptome analysis identifies IRF1, a transcription factor that functions both in immune regulation and as a tumor suppressor, as being associated with platinum sensitivity and an independent predictor of both PFS and OS in HGSOC.