COVID-19 and mental health among college students in the southwestern United States.

Objective: We examined COVID-19-related experiences, mental health, and future plans among US undergraduate and graduate students in the initial months of the pandemic. Participants: 72 students (68% female; 51.4% white; age x- =24.4) from 21 colleges in the US southwest concurrently enrolled in a stress-reduction study. Methods: Between March and June 2020, participants completed an online survey about demographics, personal and vicarious COVID-19 experiences, mood, and future plans. Anxiety and depression symptoms were assessed with the GAD-7 and PHQ-9, respectively. Results: Worry about COVID-19 was associated with anxiety and depression symptoms and personal and vicarious experiences with COVID-19. COVID-19 worry varied by illness severity and level of intimacy with those impacted. Most participants reported changing educational (66.7%) and life (55.6%) plans due to COVID-19. Conclusions: Given the continued impact of COVID-19 on physical/emotional health and future plans, universities should assist students in managing COVID-19-related stress so they can continue to learn and grow.

The earliest step in B lineage differentiation from common lymphoid progenitors is critically dependent upon interleukin 7.

Little is known about the signals that promote early B lineage differentiation from common lymphoid progenitors (CLPs). Using a stromal-free culture system, we show that interleukin (IL)-7 is sufficient to promote the in vitro differentiation of CLPs into B220(+) CD19(+) B lineage progenitors. Consistent with current models of early B cell development, surface expression of B220 was initiated before CD19 and was accompanied by the loss of T lineage potential. To address whether IL-7 receptor (R) activity is essential for early B lineage development in vivo, we examined the frequencies of CLPs and downstream pre-pro- and pro-B cells in adult mice lacking either the alpha chain or the common gamma chain (gamma(c)) of the IL-7R. The data indicate that although gamma(c)(-/-) mice have normal frequencies of CLPs, both gamma(c)(-/-) and IL-7R(alpha)(-/-) mice lack detectable numbers of all downstream early B lineage precursors, including pre-pro-B cells. These findings challenge previous notions regarding the point in B cell development affected by the loss of IL-7R signaling and suggest that IL-7 plays a key and requisite role during the earliest phases of B cell development.

An integrated flow cytometry-based platform for isolation and molecular characterization of circulating tumor single cells and clusters.

Comprehensive molecular analysis of rare circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and cell clusters is often hampered by low throughput and purity, as well as cell loss. To address this, we developed a fully integrated platform for flow cytometry-based isolation of CTCs and clusters from blood that can be combined with whole transcriptome analysis or targeted RNA transcript quantification. Downstream molecular signature can be linked to cell phenotype through index sorting. This newly developed platform utilizes in-line magnetic particle-based leukocyte depletion, and acoustic cell focusing and washing to achieve >98% reduction of blood cells and non-cellular debris, along with >1.5 log-fold enrichment of spiked tumor cells. We could also detect 1 spiked-in tumor cell in 1 million WBCs in 4/7 replicates. Importantly, the use of a large 200µm nozzle and low sheath pressure (3.5 psi) minimized shear forces, thereby maintaining cell viability and integrity while allowing for simultaneous recovery of single cells and clusters from blood. As proof of principle, we isolated and transcriptionally characterized 63 single CTCs from a genetically engineered pancreatic cancer mouse model (n = 12 mice) and, using index sorting, were able to identify distinct epithelial and mesenchymal sub-populations based on linked single cell protein and gene expression.