HJBR Jul/Aug 2025

56 JUL / AUG 2025  I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF BATON ROUGE   Healthcare Briefs Intimacy • School of Health Professions Showcase Jillian Perry and Elaine Purdy, Title: Candida Auris: The Emerging Threat and The Need for Screening • Faculty Showcase • Mandy Broussard, Ross Castille, Cal- lie Dorn, William Schreiter, and Lind- say Williams, Title: Aligning SEE Score Benchmarks with Educational Out- comes: A Policy Change in Nurse Anes- thesia Education • Rebecca Simoneaux and Sarah Gon- calves, Title: Bridging the Gap: Trauma Simulation for Radiologic Technology Students to Build Confidence and Pre- paredness in Real-World Trauma Events • School of Arts and Sciences Showcase Gabriella Ragusa and Latoya Paul, Title: Evaluating the Gross Anatomical Effects of Ethanol Toxicity During Embryonic Devel- opment in Larval Stage Zebrafish • Doctoral Research Showcase • First Place: Jordan Taylor, Kevin Ker- schner, and Hylda Nugent, Title: Timing of Ondansetron Administration • Second Place: Anna Pitfield, Seth Scantling, and Joshua Todd, Title: In Post-Cardiac Bypass Patients With Vasoplegia Syndrome, is Angiotensin II (ANG II) More Effective Than Methy- lene Blue (MB) in Reducing Vasopres- sor Requirements and Increasing Mean Arterial Pressure (MAP)? • DPT Student Choice Award Caitlyn Thibodeaux, Mitch Roe, and Jaime Caillet, Title: Effects of Different Dry Nee- dling Techniques on Latent Trigger Points in Gluteus Medius Muscle Strength in Healthy Young Adults South Central Louisiana Human Services Authority Celebrates Grand Opening of NewHouma Location South Central Louisiana Human Services Authority (SCLHSA) has held the grand opening of its newly relocated offices for Developmental Disabilities Services and the Terrebonne Behav- ioral Health Center, now located at 803 and 805 NewBrainMapping Technique Sheds Light on Alzheimer’s Development Researchers at Tulane University have created a subcellular map of an area of the brain commonly affected by Alzheimer’s disease. The study, published in Nature Communica- tions, illuminated the genetic mechanisms that cause the loss of brain cells that allow the dis- ease to progress and identified a key protein as a potential target for treatment. More than 55 million people worldwide suffer from dementia, with Alzheimer’s accounting for 60–70% of those cases. Despite the prevalence, little is known about the cause of Alzheimer’s and existing medications can only ease symp- toms temporarily, not prevent the disease from progressing. “The human brain is the most complex organ in the human body and the mechanism of many diseases like Alzheimer’s is elusive,” said senior author Hui Shen, associate director of the Cen- ter for Biomedical Informatics & Genomics (CBIG) at Tulane University School of Medicine. “Using spatial transcriptomics, we were able to create a map of a part of the prefrontal cortex with single cell resolution to try to understand the underly- ing factors of Alzheimer’s.” The researchers used stereo sequencing to examine a small section of the prefrontal cortex – the region responsible for decision-making and emotional control – in six brains at varying stages of Alzheimer’s. This technology allowed them to “map” the brain tissue at nearly 250 times the resolution of older tools, essentially zooming in to reveal genetic interactions within a single cell and how those shift as the disease progresses. The study found that genetic modules tasked with protecting neurons weaken or disappear in Alzheimer’s patients, allowing harmful proteins linked to the disease to build up and damage cells.Researchers identified a protein, ZNF460, as crucial to these modules’ neuroprotective pro- cesses and as a potential target for treatment. In another discovery, the study found that lay- ered structure of the brain disappears as the dis- ease advances, a phenomenon that lead author Yun Gong, instructor at CBIG, said “had not been observed before.” Going forward, Shen and Gong said they hope to further research ZNF460 and ascertain whether its absence alone can be linked to the onset of Alzheimer’s. Louisiana House Oversight Committee Releases COVIDReport The Nov/Dec 2024 issue of Healthcare Jour- nal of Baton Rouge, included transcripts and in- depth coverage of the Louisiana House Select Committee on Homeland Security’s COVID-19 oversight hearings, including testimony from Surgeon General Ralph Abraham, MD, and the committee’s questioning of the state’s healthcare COVID-19 response. Representative Charles A. Owen, Vice Chairman of the committee, has released the committee’s formal report, State Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic, to the Journal. The document outlines the committee’s findings, perspectives, and leg- islative recommendations — some of which may raise questions among healthcare leaders about their practicality and potential implications. Read the full HR133 Committee Report https://healthcarejournalbr.com/sites/default/ files/HSCHS%20HR%20133%20report%20 adopted%205-22-25%20%281%29%5B3%5D%20 %283%29.pdf. FranUHolds 2025 Research & Scholarship Showcase The 2025 Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady University Research & Scholarship Showcase, held April 28 through May 2, featured more than 70 presentations from faculty and students across FranU’s three academic schools. The week-long showcase offered a public forum to celebrate academic exploration, inter- disciplinary collaboration, and student-faculty engagement. 2025 Showcase Winners • School of Nursing Showcase Sarah Kerr and Lindsay Mullins, Title: GLP-1 RAs as a Bridge for Treatment of Controlled Hypertension and Hyperlipid- emia in Obese Adults Aged Less Than 65 Years with Neuropathic Conditions • Liberal Arts Humanities Showcase Bryce Cormier, Title: Poetic Analysis: Divine