Clinical trials

Cardiovascular disease risk factors, including higher BMIs and poor cholesterol profiles, are on the rise and contribute to the United States' growing disease burden. The bioactive compounds contained in tree nuts have been shown to beneficially affect cardiometabolic health outcomes. Pecans contain more total phenols, sterols, and flavonoids than any other tree nut. They also are a rich source of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), fiber, vitamin A, vitamin E, folic acid, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, and zinc. These bioactive components in pecans are likely the reason for the previously documented improvements in cardiometabolic health. This study aims to examine the impact of a low dose of pecans on changes in fasting and postprandial lipid metabolism/blood lipids and markers of chronic disease risk. The specific aims of this study are to: * Examine the effect of pecan consumption at a dose of 6% of total energy needs for 12 weeks on fasting and postprandial blood lipids. * Examine the effect of pecan consumption at a dose of 6% of total energy needs for 12 weeks on other markers of chronic disease risk. Participants will be asked to: * Consume pecans daily for 12 weeks or maintain their current habitual diet. * Attend two short visits at 4 and 8 weeks for fasting blood draws, body measurements, and to collect their next 4 weeks' supply of study materials. * Attend two longer (5 h) testing visits, which include eating a standard breakfast meal and having their blood drawn periodically before and after breakfast. Researchers will compare the Pecan and Control groups to examine the physiologic effects of incorporating a low dose of pecans into one's diet.

Optimal knee joint loading, which refers to the forces acting on the knee caused by daily activities such as daily steps, plays an essential role in maintaining knee articular cartilage health and reducing the risk of osteoarthritis (OA). After anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR), individuals take fewer daily steps as compared to uninjured controls resulting in insufficient knee joint loading to joint tissues, but it is unclear how changes in daily steps impact knee joint cartilage health in OA development. Therefore, the overall single arm, longitudinal pre-test post-test study objective is to determine the mechanistic links between knee joint loading as measured by daily steps and comprehensive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measures of knee joint cartilage health post-ACLR. The central hypothesis is that individuals post-ACLR who take low daily steps will demonstrate deconditioned, less resilient cartilage characterized by poor tibiofemoral cartilage composition and greater cartilage strain.

Time-restricted Eating (TRE) is a dietary approach that limits food intake to 4 - 12-hour windows without intentionally altering diet quality. TRE has several benefits including modest reductions in body weight and fat mass, improved glucose control, and reduced inflammatory markers. While research supports the metabolic and weight related benefits of TRE, there is limited evidence of its effects on physical activity (PA), sedentary behavior (SB) and sleep - the core components of 24-hour Activity Cycle (24-HAC), which is a holistic framework that integrates the three health-related activities. TRE research has largely focused on clinical populations, leaving its feasibility and adherence in healthy younger adults understudied. Within this group, college students' misaligned circadian rhythms and unpredictable schedules may make adherence to TRE challenging, highlighting the need for research on its practicality in this group. These outcomes are also particularly important to investigate in women, considering that SB is more prevalent among college-aged women (69%) compared to men (46%). To address these issues, we will conduct a three-week intervention to study the effects of TRE on the 24-HAC outcomes. College aged women will be screened and enrolled, then assigned to either a control or TRE group. Participants in the TRE group will self-select the timing of their 8-hour eating window which they will maintain throughout the study (with compliance on at least six days per week needed to be considered adherent). The control group will receive a basic nutrition education at the start of the study and will have no restriction on eating times. 24 HAC behaviors will be measured continuously for one-week of baseline measurement and throughout the intervention by wrist-worn ActiGraph GT9X monitors. Participants will also record the timing of their first and last meal each day and receive periodic reminders to report their hunger and satiety ratings using visual analog scales.

180 young adult vapers who are not current smokers will participate in a baseline functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) experiment, prospectively linked to a 1-year randomized controlled trial. Baseline fMRI tasks will probe critical neurocognitive markers with high potential to account for individual differences in nicotine use prognosis and responsiveness to anti-vaping public service announcements (PSAs). Participants will be assigned randomly to a survey-only control condition, or one of two intervention orders, Regular PSA then Flavor PSA, and Flavor PSA then Regular PSA (n=60 each) in a 1-year counterbalanced crossover design. Every week intervention groups will receive anti-vaping PSAs either do not specifically address harms associated with vaping flavors (regular PSAs) or PSAs with a theme focusing on the harms of flavored vape products (flavor PSAs). Participants of the intervention groups will switch PSA exposure condition after 6 months. Their evaluations of the PSAs will be assessed with brief weekly online surveys. The links to the weekly online surveys will be sent via e-mail and text which allow them to access the surveys using any device with an internet browser. During the survey, the PSA of that week will first be displayed to PSA groups (n=120), followed by a query to provide message evaluation. Afterward, the survey questions will also assess their e-cigarette, cigarette, other tobacco use, and nicotine dependence, during the past week. The control group (n=60) will complete the surveys without viewing PSAs. In-person assessments at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months will biochemically confirm nicotine exposure.

Cardiovascular disease risk factors, including higher BMIs and poor cholesterol profiles, are on the rise and contribute to the United States' growing disease burden. Cottonseed oil (CSO) is found readily in the food supply, and the investigator's previous studies have demonstrated that incorporating CSO into the diet is sufficient to improve fasting and postprandial blood lipids and other markers of chronic disease risk in both healthy and at-risk populations. This study aims to examine the impact of intermittent CSO consumption at different doses (consumed three times per week (3x/wk)) on changes in fasting and postprandial lipid metabolism/blood lipids and markers of chronic disease risk. The specific aims are: \*Examine the impact of intermittent CSO consumption (3x/week) at two different doses on fasting and postprandial lipids. \*Examine the impact of intermittent CSO consumption (3x/week) at two different doses on other markers of chronic disease risk. Participants will be asked to: \*Consume provided meal replacement shakes and snacks 3 times per week for 56 days. \*Attend three bi-weekly (every other week) short visits for fasting blood draws, body measurements, and collection of the next two weeks' study materials. \*Attend two longer (5.5h) testing visits, which include eating a standardized breakfast meal and having blood drawn periodically before and after breakfast. Researchers will compare CSO-30, CSO-20, and Control groups (receiving no oil) to see if intermittent CSO consumption imparts the same health benefits as previously shown with daily doses of CSO.

Evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and usability of the intervention (primary outcomes) and coping skills and resilience (secondary outcomes) of the telehealth intervention over two months (8 weekly sessions) in a waitlist-controlled, randomized pilot trial using a cross-over design among 40 PWID. The primary outcomes will be feasibility, acceptability, and usability of the intervention. Secondary outcomes will be increased coping skills and resilience, which in turn, will increase status neutral HIV and HCV care and MOUD uptake (longer-term outcomes). Outcomes will be assessed using pre- and post-intervention surveys.

Pilot testing of EMPOWER, a group sexual health intervention, to increase uptake and persistence of PrEP

Cardiovascular disease risk factors, including higher BMIs and poor cholesterol profiles, are on the rise and contribute to the United States' growing disease burden. Cottonseed oil (CSO) is found readily in the food supply, and the investigator's previous studies have demonstrated that incorporating CSO into the diet is sufficient to improve fasting cholesterol profile and improve postprandial lipid and/or glycemic responses in both healthy, and at-risk populations. This study aims to compare CSO to a fatty acid composition-matched diet, on changes in fasting and postprandial lipid metabolism and markers of chronic disease risk. The specific aims are: * Examine the impact of CSO vs. PUFA on fasting and postprandial lipids. * Examine the impact of CSO on other markers of chronic disease risk. Participants will be asked to: * Consume provided meal replacement shakes daily for 28-days. * Attend three weekly short visits for fasting blood draws, body measurements, and collect the next week of study materials, * Attend two longer (5.5h) testing visits which include eating a standardized breakfast meal and having blood drawn periodically before and after breakfast. Researchers will compare CSO vs. PUFA and control groups (receiving a mixture of oils) to see if CSO is unique in imparting health benefits when compared with similar matched oil diets.

Suicide is a leading cause of death in Veterans. Suicide rates among Veterans have increased approximately 36% from 2001 to 2020. Veterans are at increased risk for suicide compared to non-Veterans, with the rate of suicide death being 57.3% higher for Veterans than non-Veterans. The present study will pilot test a virtual couple-based crisis response plan (CRP-C) for Veterans in order to reduce crisis symptoms and decrease suicide risk.

This study aims to design, implement, and evaluate a pilot test of a web-based Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention (MBRP) continuing care intervention to support individuals with alcohol use disorder (AUD) exiting standard outpatient treatment. Guided by the Centre for eHealth and Wellbeing Research (CeHRes) roadmap, the project follows a structured framework for digital intervention development: (1) contextual inquiry, (2) value specification, (3) design, (4) operationalization, and (5) summative evaluation. Contextual inquiry is defined as gathering information from the intended users and the environment in which the technology will be implemented. The next step, value specification, is defined as the quantification of the values of the key stakeholders, where the user requirements for the technology and the most favorable solutions emerge. This process elaborates on what was discovered in the contextual inquiry step and an analytical hierarchy is conducted to assign quantifiable values to the stakeholders' priorities for the intervention. Design is the step defined as the process of building prototypes of the technology that fit with the values and requirements of the stakeholders, and then testing the prototype in realistic situations. Operationalization is the implementation of the intervention. The final step, summative evaluation, is the assessment of the intervention's impact. The research team plans to conduct a needs assessment (Aim 1a), develop (Aim 1b), implement (Aim 2a), and evaluate (Aim 2b) a pilot test of a web-based MBRP continuing care intervention, named "Renewed Recovery", targeting individuals exiting standard outpatient treatment for alcohol. Aim 1: Design a web-based mindfulness continuing care intervention. Aim 1a: Conduct a community needs assessment. To understand the need for such an intervention, semi-structured qualitative interviews with program administrators (n=3) from partnering substance use treatment facilities will be conducted (contextual inquiry). To better understand the recovery journey after exiting standard outpatient treatment, semi-structured interviews with individuals (n\~10) who have been in treatment more than once will be conducted (contextual inquiry). After interviewing the 2 stakeholder groups, a meeting will be held to determine their list of priorities for this project (value specification). Aim 1b: Develop the intervention website (design). The website for the intervention will be created by creating multiple wireframe iterations and presenting them to the stakeholders to determine the best formatting. The curriculum on the site will be modeled after the original MBRP curriculum. After coming to a consensus on the best version of the website, a usability test will be conducted of a newly created prototype with the same 10 individuals who identified as having been in treatment more than once. A quantitative survey will be employed and a focus groups will be held to assess the usability, equitability, enjoyability, and usefulness of the website. Aim 2: Implement and evaluate the pilot test at partnering treatment facilities. Aim 2a: Implement the pilot test of the web-based MBRP continuing care intervention (operationalization). After altering the intervention based on the usability test, the program will begin to be implemented. 30 people (3 groups of 10) will. Be recruited to participate in the intervention that will be 8 weeks in length (1 module per week, for a total of 8 modules), composed of a self-guided curriculum of text and videos, as well as two zoom sessions to practice meditating as a group. Aim 2b: Evaluate the pilot test to determine process and behavior outcomes (summative evaluation). To measure process outcomes, surveys will be employed asking about the usability, equitability, enjoyability, and usefulness of the website as well as their overall satisfaction with the intervention. Recruitment and retention rates will be another identifier of process outcomes. To measure behavior outcomes, participants will be given a multitude of measures at baseline to measure relapse, anxiety, depression, self-efficacy, coping mechanisms, social support, acceptance, mindfulness, and reactivity to triggers. Analysis of these measures will be done via multilevel modeling. These measures will also be given at the completion of the program and at 3 months after completion.

The current study examines the efficacy of a cognitive training intervention for improving emotion regulation in psychotic disorders. it is hypothesized that the cognitive training program will enhance prefrontal activation, leading to enhanced emotion regulation.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, and the non-Hispanic Black (NHB) population is disproportionately affected. Our research has previously demonstrated that oxidative stress may contribute to reduced vascular function in otherwise healthy NHB adults, potentially predisposing them to the development of hypertension and CVD. This study is designed to examine whether the mitochondria are an important source of oxidative stress-induced vascular dysfunction in healthy NHB adults.

The Health and Resilience Project (HARP): Foundations is investigating the efficacy of the Strong African American Families (SAAF) intervention in promoting the health and well being of African American adolescents. Youth age 10-13 and their primary caregivers are randomly assigned to receive SAAF or to a control group. Participants complete baseline and follow-up measures regarding vulnerability to substance use based on a neuroimmune model of stress coping.