In primary membranous nephropathy, rituximab was associated with less kidney disease progression than calcineurin inhibitors, with similar remission and relapse outcomes, according to study in #ASNKidney360. kidney.pub/KID1265 @jarcyzphd.bsky.social
Jarcy Zee
@jarcyzphd.bsky.social
(she/her) Asst Prof of Biostatistics @UPenn DBEI and @CHOP. Survival, observational, and high-dimensional data methods and kidney disease researcher. Views are my own. www.zeelab.org
@chopresearch.bsky.social Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Receives Funding to Launch Largest Trial for Children with Chronic Kidney Disease share.google/VDEplEYtZKZD...
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Receives Funding to Launch Largest Trial for Children with Chronic Kidney Disease
CHOP announced that PCORI approved a five year award to fund PRESERVE 2.0 – the largest randomized trial on blood pressure management in children with CKD. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) announced that the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) approved a five‑year funding award to support PRESERVE 2.0, a research project entitled “Alternative Approaches for Managing Blood Pressure in Children With Chronic Kidney Disease.” The study is set to become the largest randomized controlled trial focused on blood pressure management in children with chronic kidney disease (CKD).Hypertension affects roughly half of children with CKD and is a major, modifiable driver of kidney function decline. Loss of kidney function can lead to kidney failure requiring dialysis or transplant. Despite this, high-quality evidence guiding exactly how tightly to control blood pressure and which drugs to use as first-line therapy in most pediatric CKD patients is limited, resulting in wide practice variation and suboptimal blood pressure control for many children. PRESERVE 2.0 aims to fill these evidence gaps.The five-year study, which evolved from the original PCORnet® designated PRESERVE study, will launch in October 2026 and will be led by Co-Principal Investigators, Michelle Denburg, MD, MSCE and Christopher Forrest, MD, PhD at CHOP. The study will enroll 700 children ages 2 to 17 with CKD stages 2 to 4 across 30 U.S. healthcare institutions within PEDSnet and the other six PCORnet® clinical research networks. Participants will be followed for 24 months to compare two blood pressure goals – the usual target and a lower, more intensive target, and to see which first-line blood pressure medicines work better and are safer. Ultimately, PRESERVE 2.0 will answer two high-priority questions for pediatric CKD care: which clinic blood pressure target best protects kidney and heart health, and which medication class should be used first-line to treat hypertension in children with CKD. Michelle Denburg, MD, MSCE “If successful, PRESERVE 2.0 will provide the strongest available evidence about BP targets and first-line antihypertensive choice for most children with CKD,” said Denburg, who is also an attending physician in CHOP’s Division of Nephrology, and co-director of the Penn-CHOP Kidney Innovation Center. “Results are expected to directly inform clinical practice, guideline development, and shared decision-making tools for children with CKD, their families, and clinicians. Findings will be widely disseminated via webinars, infographics, videos, and professional meetings.”Learn more
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PARASOL Project is expanding focus to include biomarkers & endpoints in APOL1 kidney disease and primary MN as well as FSGS. Learn more: eu1.hubs.ly/H0nr8Lv0 @tobias-b-huber.bsky.social @miktmc.bsky.social @jarcyzphd.bsky.social @ohiostatemed.bsky.social @utoronto.ca @nu-nephrology.bsky.social
PARASOL Project Expands Focus to APOL1, Membranous Nephropathy
PARASOL Project expands to focus on APOL1 kidney disease and primary membranous nephropathy, aiming to improve clinical trial endpoints for these conditions.
eu1.hubs.ly
🚨NEW paper alert🚨 co-led by Fan Fan, Jane (Qian) Liu (from the zeelab.org), and an interdisciplinary, multi-institutional team using computational image analysis and machine learning methods to identify novel tubular features associated with clinical outcomes above and beyond known risk factors👇
Clinical relevance of computationally derived tubular features and their spatial relationships with the interstitial microenvironment in minimal change disease/focal segmental glomerulosclerosis
Visual scoring of tubular damage has limitations in capturing the full spectrum of structural changes and prognostic potential. Here, we investigated if computationally quantified tubular features can...
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New from Dr Barisoni and colleagues in Kidney International Clinical relevance of computationally derived tubular features and their spatial relationships with the interstitial microenvironment in minimal change disease/focal segmental glomerulosclerosis pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih....
Want to become a pro in statistical analysis? Know someone who might be interested in Biostatistics graduate programs? 📈🧮🖥️🎓 Share and come to the @upenn.edu @dbei-upenn.bsky.social Open House on 9/12/25. Registration is *free* and you could even win some swag! www.med.upenn.edu/ggeb/biostat...
“In an unusual act of public protest, more than 340 scientists and staff at the National Institutes of Health today released a statement charging NIH officials and their superiors with politicizing science.” www.science.org/content/arti... #StandUpForScience #BethesdaDeclaration
NIH staff and biomedical community sound alarm about agency politicization, funding slowdown
In test of NIH director’s support of dissent, NIH staff sign Bethesda Declaration urging reversal of grant cuts and freezes
science.org
Proud to sign on this this open letter. Join me.... www.standupforscience.net/open-letter-...
Open Letter in Support of Science — STAND UP FOR SCIENCE
standupforscience.net
🚨New paper alert🚨 from the zeelab.org. @dbei-upenn.bsky.social PhD biostats candidate Shalini Ramachandra found high variability in creatinine generation among GN pts over time, yet we usually assume it's stable to calculate sCr-based eGFR 😩. Check it out 👇 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Variations in Creatinine Generation Among Patients With Glomerular Disease: Evidence From the NEPTUNE and CureGN Studies
Estimation of glomerular filtration rate (GFR) assumes that creatinine generation (crG) is relatively stable. This study identified factors associated…
sciencedirect.com
A call to action for researchers to advocate not only for funding but to put pressure on universities, professional societies, and government representatives to protect academic freedom, international scholars, and science as a whole: rdcu.be/elOdv
US researchers must stand up to protect freedoms, not just funding | Nature
Curtailment of freedoms and disregard for the rule of law in the United States is destroying the ability of science to serve the nation’s, and the world’s, interests. Researchers can take action. Curtailment of freedoms and disregard for the rule of law in the United States is destroying the ability of science to serve the nation’s, and the world’s, interests. Researchers can take action.
rdcu.be
Came across this list of free datasets: hbiostat.org/data/#vanderbilt-biostatustics-datasets -- great resource for teaching (and maybe research too)!
Datasets
hbiostat.org
Some movement toward NIH support at the congressional hearing on biomedical research today: www.politico.com/live-updates...
Collins says Trump’s research cuts ‘must be reversed’
The Maine Republican could use her chair at Senate Appropriations to push back.
politico.com
ACTION ITEM-----ACTION ITEM Implementation of Schedule F This is what a lot of us have been worried about. This allows for many civil service positions to replaced with political appointees. This could include NIH institute directors and even POs. BUT THERE IS A COMMENT PERIOD... 1/n
the word alert is in a purple circle
ALT: the word alert is in a purple circle
media.tenor.com
Seems to restrict free speech outside of the conduct of the funded project. They wanted an excuse to cancel any grant...
NIH just posted a Notice with the new Terms and Conditions... grants.nih.gov/grants/guide...
The damage to the medical school and health sciences will be irreversible. NIH freezes all research grants to Columbia University | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/arti...
NIH freezes all research grants to Columbia University
Amid negotiations with Trump, the university could risk losing nearly $700 million
science.org
Urgently reposting! University leadership need to actively check the SEVIS database every day (studyinthestates.dhs.gov/sevis-help-hub). Ask your chair to commit to it. Yesterday, UW discovered 9 visa cancellations & only found out b/c they ran a status check. www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...
UW students’ visas revoked without notice by Trump administration
The University of Washington plans to provide the affected students access to legal services that are paid for by their student fees.
seattletimes.com
A concrete ask for every department head: commit to checking SEVIS portal every day. Student visa revocation emails go to address they applied with - potentially consultants/brokers. Correct & current info is a specific, urgent need. If you don't have access, find out who does & make same ask.
Creative solutions to large, short-term funding deficits that don't sacrifice values nor leave already marginalized communities behind?? 👍👍👍 www.dailyprincetonian.com/article/2025...
Princeton considers issuing bonds same day as federal government pauses grants
The University announced its consideration to sell approximately $320 million of taxable bonds on Tuesday, following a notification from government agencies about the suspension of research grants.
dailyprincetonian.com
🎉🎉CONGRATULATIONS to zeelab.org member and @dbei-upenn.bsky.social student Dr. Jeremy Rubin (@super-jrub.bsky.social) who just successfully defended his biostatistics PhD dissertation on "Statistical Methods for Variable Selection and Prediction with Pathomic Features"
In the Literature ( @nejm.org ) by Clara J. Fischman and Lawrence B. Holzman: Identification of Nephrin Autoantibodies Signals New Chapter for Glomerular Disease bit.ly/3XMpvI6 (FREE)
regarding Columbia University, I just learned about this (anonymous) account of negotiations of the Hitler regime in the 1930s with Frankfurt University -- Germany's most prestigious university at the time:
1/9 In recent grant terminations, you might have seen vague justifications about “no longer effectuates agency priorities” (NIH example below). Where did that language come from and what does it mean? BUCKLE UP for a wild ride starting from **8 years ago** 🧵
Georgetown has put together resources for federal workers who may be facing a transition in jobs. These include various seminars and workshops, as well as tuition scholarships providing a discount on many master's programs and certificates. Please spread the word to anybody who might benefit.
Federal Workforce Transition Resources - Georgetown Graduate School
The Georgetown Graduate School of Arts and Sciences is offering resources to assist in federal workforce transitions. Check out our career seminars to learn more.
grad.georgetown.edu
🚨New Paper Alert🚨from the zeelab.org, Jonathan Hogan, @kirylukk.bsky.social, and Laurence Beck @BMC that used PRE-BIOPSY samples from a cohort of proteinuric patients to evaluate MN dx using different cutoffs and combinations of ELISA and IIF, with and without genetics. Check it out! 👇
Combined PLA2R-Ab testing with ELISA and IIF provided optimal test characteristics in making a non-invasive diagnosis of MN before or soon after kidney biopsy. Further studies needed to assess whether genetic data can augment this approach. bit.ly/CJASN0671 #ASNCJASN @jarcyzphd.bsky.social
Dr Rasha Alawieh, assistant professor in transplant nephrology at Brown, detained at airport after travel to Lebanon, despite valid H-1B visa #nephsky #transplantsky #medsky www.browndailyherald.com/article/2025... @kateschapira.bsky.social @brownmedicine.bsky.social
Brown University professor held by customs officials at airport after travel to Lebanon
Serving the Brown community since 1891
browndailyherald.com
Continuing our Women’s History Month series, we celebrate Dr. Kay See Tan, Associate Attending Biostatistician at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, for her efforts in diversifying and training the next generation of biostatisticians. #ENAR #WomensHistoryMonth
Artist formerly known as CDC's website has been restored to its pre Jan 20 state by a few good volunteers restoredcdc.org/www.cdc.gov/ #Goodfight #GoodTrouble
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
restoredcdc.org
What’s the difference between a right-censored covariate and a missing covariate? Can they be treated the same? If you’re attending #2025ENAR, join my presentation! I’ll answer these questions + introduce robust and efficient estimators for regression analysis with a right-censored covariate!
Happy Women’s History Month! Today, we’re featuring HarLeigh Haynie, a biostatistician at Wake Forest School of Medicine. Her favorite R package is Janitor, and she shares a stats joke: Why did the statistician break up with the mathematician? They couldn’t find a common variable! #ENAR