Scholarly Articles

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Open Access
Broadening the Environmental Lens to Include Social and Structural Determinants of Women's Health Disparities.
(Environmental health perspectives, 2024-01) Smarr, Melissa M; Avakian, Megan; Lopez, Adeline R; Onyango, Brenda; Amolegbe, Sara; Boyles, Abee; Fenton, Suzanne E; Harmon, Quaker E; Jirles, Bill; Lasko, Denise; Moody, Rosemary; Schelp, John; Sutherland, Vicki; Thomas, Laura; Williams, Carmen J; Dixon, Darlene
Background
Due to the physical, metabolic, and hormonal changes before, during, and after pregnancy, women-defined here as people assigned female at birth-are particularly susceptible to environmental insults. Racism, a driving force of social determinants of health, exacerbates this susceptibility by affecting exposure to both chemical and nonchemical stressors to create women's health disparities.
Objectives
To better understand and address social and structural determinants of women's health disparities, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) hosted a workshop focused on the environmental impacts on women's health disparities and reproductive health in April 2022. This commentary summarizes foundational research and unique insights shared by workshop participants, who emphasized the need to broaden the definition of the environment to include upstream social and structural determinants of health. We also summarize current challenges and recommendations, as discussed by workshop participants, to address women's environmental and reproductive health disparities.
Discussion
The challenges related to women's health equity, as identified by workshop attendees, included developing research approaches to better capture the social and structural environment in both human and animal studies, integrating environmental health principles into clinical care, and implementing more inclusive publishing and funding approaches. Workshop participants discussed recommendations in each of these areas that encourage interdisciplinary collaboration among researchers, clinicians, funders, publishers, and community members. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP12996.
Open Access
How senior leaders support innovations in large learning health systems: Insights from United States Veterans Health Administration national program office leaders
(Learning Health Systems, 2025) Lopez, Jaifred Christian; Allgood, Sallie; Sheahan, Kate; White, Brandolyn; Kirshner, Miriam; Shirley, Suzanne; Coffee, Madison; Milo, Amanda; Cutrona, Sarah; Damschroder, Laura; Fix, Gemmae; Nevedal, Andrea; Reardon, Caitlin; Widerquist, Marilla; Arasim, Maria; Gifford, Allen; DeLaughter, Kathryn; Jackson, George
Open Access
Induction of lipid production through controlled acidification: A transcriptional insight into the metabolism of Scenedesmus obtusiusculus AT-UAM
(Process Biochemistry, 2024-12) Estrada-Graf, Adrián A; Sigala, Juan-Carlos; Sánchez-Pérez, Mishael; Morales-Ibarría, Marcia
Open Access
Integrating microbial communities into algal biotechnology: a pathway to enhanced commercialization.
(Frontiers in microbiology, 2025-01) Koneru, Hari; Bamba, Safiatou; Bell, Aksel; Estrada-Graf, Adrian A; Johnson, Zackary I
Microalgae are increasingly recognized for their potential in wastewater treatment and the sustainable production of feedstock for fuel, feed, food, and other bioproducts. Like conventional agricultural systems, algal cultivation involves complex microbial communities. However, despite their pivotal role in cultivation outcomes, especially at the commodity-scale, the critical interactions between microalgae and their microbiomes are often overlooked. Here we synthesize current knowledge on the taxonomic diversity, ecological roles, and biotechnological potential of algal microbiomes, with a focus on their interactions with algal hosts through nutrient exchange, growth modulation, pathogen defense, and environmental conditioning. We also examine how environmental factors such as nutrient availability, salinity, and temperature influence these interactions. Advances in microbiome engineering, including synthetic biology and ecological approaches, offer opportunities to enhance beneficial algal-microbiome interactions, thereby improving growth, resilience, and yield. These advancements could lead to more sustainable and economically viable microalgae cultivation, with far-reaching implications for environmental management and biotechnological innovation. By addressing key economic and environmental barriers, microbiome engineering holds transformative potential to revolutionize large-scale algae cultivation and provide sustainable solutions to global challenges.
Open Access
Biomitigation of CO₂ from flue gas by Scenedesmus obtusiusculus AT-UAM using a hybrid photobioreactor coupled to a biomass recovery stage by electro-coagulation-flotation.
(Environmental science and pollution research international, 2020-08) Estrada-Graf, Adrián; Hernández, Sergio; Morales, Marcia
The microalga Scenedesmus obtusiusculus AT-UAM efficiently captured CO₂ from two flue gas streams in a hybrid photobioreactor located in a greenhouse. Uptake rates of CO₂, NO, and SO₂ from a formulated gas stream were 160.7 mg L^-1 day^-1, 0.73 mg L^-1 day^-1, and 1.56 mg L^-1 day^-1, respectively, with removal efficiencies of 100% for all gases. Exhaust gases of a motor generator were also removed with uptake rates of 111.4 mg L^-1 day^-1, 0.42 mg L^-1 day^-1, and 0.98 mg L^-1 day^-1, obtaining removal efficiencies of 77%, 71%, and 53% for CO₂, NO_x, and SO₂, respectively. On average, 61% of the CO₂ from both flue gas streams was assimilated as microalgal biomass. The maximum CO₂ uptake rate of 182 mg L^-1 day^-1 was achieved for formulated flue gas flow rate above 100 mL min^-1. The biomass recovery of 88% was achieved using a 20-L electro-coagulation-flotation chamber coupled to a settler with a low specific power consumption of 0.27 kWh kg^-1. The photobioreactor was operated for almost 7 months without contamination of invasive species or a decrease in the activity. It is a very encouraging result for long-term operation in flue gas treatment.
Open Access
Do Patients with high ASA Grades Benefit from CSM Surgery?: A Report From the Quality Outcomes Database.
(Clinical spine surgery, 2025-04) Ambati, Vardhaan S; Patel, Arati; Dada, Abraham; Macki, Mohamed; Chan, Andrew K; Chou, Dean; Bisson, Erica; Bydon, Mohamad; Asher, Anthony; Coric, Domagoj; Potts, Eric; Foley, Kevin; Wang, Michael; Fu, Kai-Ming; Virk, Michael; Knightly, John; Meyer, Scott; Park, Paul; Upadhyaya, Cheerag; Tumialán, Luis; Turner, Jay; Uribe, Juan; Gottfried, Oren; Shaffrey, Christopher; Haid, Regis W; DiGiorgio, Anthony; Mummaneni, Praveen V
Analysis of prospectively collected data. To assess if systemic illness severity affects cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM) surgery outcomes. It remains unclear if CSM patients with poor physical status/severe systemic illness benefit as much from surgery as those in good condition. Using the Quality Outcomes Database CSM cohort and the American Association of Anesthesiology (ASA) grade as a surrogate for illness burden, we compared patients with (ASA 3-4) and without (ASA 1-2) severe systemic illness, including rates of readmission and 24-month minimal clinically important differences (MCID) achievement for patient-reported outcomes (PROs)-numerical rating score (NRS) arm and neck pain, neck pain-related disability (NDI), and quality of life (EQ-5D). Of 1141 CSM patients, 1062 had ASA grades recorded. Of these 1062 patients, 70.2% had a 2-year follow-up for mJOA, and 81%-84% had a follow-up for NRS arm and neck, NDI, and EQ-5D. Five hundred twenty-one patients (49.1%) had mild (ASA 1-2) and 541 (50.9%) had severe systemic illness (ASA 3-4). The severe disease cohort was older (63.3±11.0 vs. 57.4±11.7), had higher BMI (31.4±7.0 vs. 28.9±5.6), had more comorbidities (diabetes, coronary artery disease, depression), and had less independent ambulation (71.3% vs. 90.6%) (P<0.05). At baseline, severe disease patients had worse NRS arm (5.2±3.5 vs. 4.7±3.4) and neck (5.5±3.2 vs. 5.1±3.3) pain, NDI (40.5±20.1 vs. 36.8±21.0), and EQ-5D (0.53±0.22 vs. 0.59±0.22) scores (P<0.05). Perioperatively, the severe disease cohort had longer hospitalizations (2.4±2.6 vs. 1.7±2.0 days) and increased nonhome discharges (17% vs. 5%) (P<0.05).The severe disease cohort had higher 90-day readmissions (7.6% vs. 2.5%), including surgery-related (3.7% vs. 1.5%) and non-surgery-related reasons (3.9% vs. 1.0%) (P<0.05). On multivariate analysis, increased ASA grade was significantly associated with 90-day readmissions (OR: 2.55 per 1-grade increase, 95% CI: 1.38-4.83). However, both severe and mild disease cohorts had similarly high rates of achieving 2-year MCID for mJOA (67.5% vs. 66.0%), NRS arm (72.0% vs. 74.1%), neck (69.5% vs. 69.4%) pain, NDI (63.1% vs. 68.1%), and EQ-5D (67.9% vs. 66.9%) (P>0.05). Patients with severe systemic illness (higher ASA) have worse baseline PROs and higher 90-day readmissions. However, they achieve similar MCID rates for mJOA and all measured PROs 2 years postoperatively.
Open Access
Imprints in the cosmic background radiation: Franz Kafka and the multiverse
(German Quarterly, 2024-09-01) Gellen, K
Open Access
“German Erinnerungskultur and the Gaza War.“
(Interjekte) Engelstein, Stefani
Open Access
Proximal Junctional Kyphosis and Failure Prophylaxis Improves Cost Efficacy, While Maintaining Optimal Alignment, in Adult Spinal Deformity Surgery.
(Neurosurgery, 2025-04) Passias, Peter G; Krol, Oscar; Williamson, Tyler K; Bennett-Caso, Claudia; Smith, Justin S; Diebo, Bassel; Lafage, Virginie; Lafage, Renaud; Line, Breton; Daniels, Alan H; Gum, Jeffrey L; Protopsaltis, Themistocles S; Hamilton, D Kojo; Soroceanu, Alex; Scheer, Justin K; Eastlack, Robert; Mundis, Gregory M; Kebaish, Khaled M; Hostin, Richard A; Gupta, Munish C; Kim, Han Jo; Klineberg, Eric O; Ames, Christopher P; Hart, Robert A; Burton, Douglas C; Schwab, Frank J; Shaffrey, Christopher I; Bess, Shay; International Spine Study Group
Background and objectives
To investigate the cost-effectiveness and impact of prophylactic techniques on the development of proximal junctional kyphosis (PJK) and proximal junctional failure (PJF) in the context of postoperative alignment.
Methods
Adult spinal deformity patients with fusion to pelvis and 2-year data were included. Patients receiving PJK prophylaxis (hook, tether, cement, minimally-invasive surgery approach) were compared to those who did not. These cohorts were further stratified into "Matched" and "Unmatched" groups based on achievement of age-adjusted alignment criteria. Costs were calculated using the Diagnosis-Related Group costs accounting for PJK prophylaxis, postoperative complications, outpatient health care encounters, revisions, and medical-related readmissions. Quality-adjusted life years were calculated using Short Form-36 converted to Short-Form Six-Dimension (SF-6D) and used an annual 3% discount rate. Multivariate analysis controlling for age, sex, levels fused, and baseline deformity severity assessed outcomes of developing PJK/PJF if matched and/or with use of PJK prophylaxis.
Results
A total of 738 adult spinal deformity patients met inclusion criteria (age: 63.9 ± 9.9, body mass index: 28.5 ± 5.7, Charlson comorbidity index: 2.0 ± 1.7). Multivariate analysis revealed patients corrected to age-adjusted criteria postoperatively had lower rates of developing PJK or PJF (odds ratio [OR]: 0.4, [0.2-0.8]; P = .011) with the use of prophylaxis. Among those unmatched in T1 pelvic angle, pelvic incidence lumbar lordosis mismatch, and pelvic tilt, prophylaxis reduced the likelihood of developing PJK (OR: 0.5, [0.3-0.9]; P = .023) and PJF (OR: 0.1, [0.03-0.5]; P = .004). Analysis of covariance analysis revealed patients matched in age-adjusted alignment had better cost-utility at 2 years compared with those without prophylaxis ($361 539.25 vs $419 919.43; P < .001). Patients unmatched in age-adjusted criteria also generated better cost ($88 348.61 vs $101 318.07; P = .005) and cost-utility ($450 190.80 vs $564 108.86; P < .001) with use of prophylaxis.
Conclusion
Despite additional surgical cost, the optimization of radiographic realignment in conjunction with prophylaxis of the proximal junction appeared to be a more cost-effective strategy, primarily because of the minimization of reoperations secondary to mechanical failure. Even among those not achieving optimal alignment, junctional prophylactic measures were shown to improve cost efficiency.
Open Access
Performance of Urinalysis Parameters in Predicting Urinary Tract Infection: Does One Size Fit All?
(Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, 2024-09) Advani, Sonali D; North, Rebecca; Turner, Nicholas A; Ahmadi, Sahra; Denniss, Julia; Francis, Adero; Johnson, Rachel; Hasan, Anum; Mirza, Faryal; Pardue, Sarah; Rao, Meghana; Rosshandler, Yasmin; Tang, Helen; Schmader, Kenneth E; Anderson, Deverick J
In a multihospital cohort study of 3392 patients, positive urinalysis parameters had poor positive predictive value for diagnosing urinary tract infection (UTI). Combined urinalysis parameters (pyuria or nitrite) performed better than pyuria alone for ruling out UTI. However, performance of all urinalysis parameters was poor in older women.
Open Access
Diverse Circular DNA Viral Communities in Blood, Oral, and Fecal Samples of Captive Lemurs.
(Viruses, 2024-07) Paietta, Elise N; Kraberger, Simona; Lund, Michael C; Vargas, Karla L; Custer, Joy M; Ehmke, Erin; Yoder, Anne D; Varsani, Arvind
Few studies have addressed viral diversity in lemurs despite their unique evolutionary history on the island of Madagascar and high risk of extinction. Further, while a large number of studies on animal viromes focus on fecal samples, understanding viral diversity across multiple sample types and seasons can reveal complex viral community structures within and across species. Groups of captive lemurs at the Duke Lemur Center (Durham, NC, USA), a conservation and research center, provide an opportunity to build foundational knowledge on lemur-associated viromes. We sampled individuals from seven lemur species, i.e., collared lemur (Eulemur collaris), crowned lemur (Eulemur coronatus), blue-eyed black lemur (Eulemur flavifrons), ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta), Coquerel's sifaka (Propithecus coquereli), black-and-white ruffed lemur (Varecia variegata variegata), and red ruffed lemur (Varecia rubra), across two lemur families (Lemuridae, Indriidae). Fecal, blood, and saliva samples were collected from Coquerel's sifaka and black-and-white ruffed lemur individuals across two sampling seasons to diversify virome biogeography and temporal sampling. Using viral metagenomic workflows, the complete genomes of anelloviruses (n = 4), cressdnaviruses (n = 47), caudoviruses (n = 15), inoviruses (n = 34), and microviruses (n = 537) were determined from lemur blood, feces, and saliva. Many virus genomes, especially bacteriophages, identified in this study were present across multiple lemur species. Overall, the work presented here uses a viral metagenomics approach to investigate viral communities inhabiting the blood, oral cavity, and feces of healthy captive lemurs.
Open Access
Partnering for Progress: Enhancing Mental Health Crisis Response in Rural North Carolina through Faith-Based Training
(Progress in Community Health Partnerships: Research, Education, and Action) Grenon, Sarah
Open Access
Naming God: Addressing the Divine in Philosophy, Theology, and Scripture by JanetSoskice (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2023), ix + 256 pp.
(Modern Theology, 2025-01) Casarella, Peter
Open Access
Persistent elevations of alkaline phosphatase as an early indicator of GM1 gangliosidosis.
(Molecular genetics and metabolism reports, 2025-03) Menkovic, Iskren; Williams, Monika; Makhijani, Neelam; Wei, Ruhan; Young, Sarah P; El-Gharbawy, Areeg; Stiles, Ashlee R
GLB1-related disorders are autosomal recessive lysosomal diseases caused by enzymatic deficiency of β-galactosidase. Enzymatic deficiency of β-galactosidase may lead to one of two phenotypes, GM1 gangliosidosis or mucopolysaccharidosis IVB (MPS IVB). GM1 gangliosidosis is a neurodegenerative disorder with variable skeletal disease and involvement of other systems. The age of onset correlates with the extent of neurological involvement and established genotype/phenotype correlations. Mucopolysaccharidosis IVB is characterized by a skeletal dysplasia without neurological involvement. Diagnostic work-up for GLB1-related disorders includes enzyme analysis, biomarker analysis, molecular testing, and laboratory imaging studies. We report a patient who presented with persistent elevations of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and subtle dysmorphic facial features. An initial skeletal survey at birth was unrevealing; however, a repeat at 3 months of age was abnormal with anterior beaking of the lumbar vertebrae and hemivertebrae of the lower cervical spine. Urinary glycosaminoglycan (GAG) analysis revealed a marked elevation of keratan sulfate (KS). Clinical exome sequencing revealed pathogenic heterozygous variants in GLB1, consistent with GLB1-related GM1 gangliosidosis. Our case demonstrates that persistent elevations of ALP may be an early indicator for GM1 gangliosidosis in an infant with progressive multisystem disease, indicating the need for early genetic consultation. This case also highlights the utility of repeat skeletal surveys with abnormalities detected at 3 months of age.
Open Access
The Cry of the Heart: Russian and Ottoman Literary Enlightenments
(Comparative Critical Studies, 2025-02) Dolcerocca, Özen Nergis; Flaherty, Jennifer
This article examines the works of Alexander Radishchev and Namık Kemal to explore how Russian and Ottoman Enlightenments conceptualized emotion as integral to political subjectivity. Moving beyond conventional interpretations of these traditions as reactionary or subordinate to Western Enlightenment ideals, the study argues that both thinkers redefined emotion as the foundation of autonomy and collective identity, challenging binaries between rationalism and sentimentality. Radishchev’s Journey from Petersburg to Moscow demonstrates how emotional introspection enables the critique of social and political systems, transforming individual awareness into communal ethical engagement. Similarly, Kemal’s writings merge Romantic individualism with Enlightenment rationality, advocating for emotional conscience as a basis for modernization and cultural reform in the Ottoman Empire. This comparative study situates Radishchev and Kemal within the broader nineteenth-century intellectual field, where tensions between reason and emotion, individuality and collectivism and internal versus external authority shaped debates about modernity. It ultimately reveals the transnational complexity of Enlightenment thought and its enduring relevance for understanding the intersections of emotional and rational paradigms in shaping modern political and cultural discourses.
Open Access
THE NEW MAN AND THE PEOPLE: THE LYRICAL VOICE AND POETIC DEMOCRACY IN N. A. NEKRASOV
(Russkaia Literatura, 2021-01-01) Flaherty, J
This article analyzes the expression of individual limitation in Nekrasov’s poetry as a model of democratic pathos which departs from the 1860s standard of self-sacrifi ce. Who Lives Well in Russia is treated as a culminating expression of Nekrasov’s unique combination of individual lyric voice and the shared affective experiences created by sound, which symbolizes a bid for agency among the intelligentsia and the narod alike and draws attention to linguistic form as a combined poetic and political act.
Open Access
In the Peasant's Place: Social Problems and Narrative Practice in Turgenev's Notes from a Hunter
(Russian Review, 2021-07-01) Flaherty, J
This article is concerned with the aesthetic and social tensions of the countryside in Ivan Turgenev's Notes from a Hunter (Zapiski okhotnika, 1847–52) as a site where two temporalities–history and immediacy–collide, producing shifts in narrative perspective and descriptive style. Behind these technical changes lie greater intellectual developments, refracting the nationalist discourses of the 1840s and the complex demands they produced for literature. Envisioned as what I call “the place of the peasant,” the countryside represents an ideal that combines aesthetic, social, and nationalist elements, accommodating the “here-and-now” as well as the socio-historical structures that make it readable. Here, identity is contiguous with the environment, transparent to a sensitive observer, and supportive of a descriptive style that favors details in and of themselves. Building on scholarship that treats Notes from a Hunter as a laboratory for new narrative forms, I interpret social themes behind a search for a narrative perspective that modulates authorial distance, the emergence of character from type, and an increasingly selective descriptive style. Approaching the question of social tensions in Notes from a Hunter from a literary-historical perspective, I also reconsider such topics as the ironization of gentry ignorance. On my account, at stake in the formulation of a new realist aesthetics in Notes from a Hunter is an essentialization of literature as a discourse closely associated with a mystique of peasant life and, by extension, a valorization of “the concrete” as a bulwark against history, otherness, self-confrontation, and preceding literary styles. Through analyses of several stories of Notes from a Hunter against the background of theories of nationalism and histories of description and narration, I posit mutually illuminating connections between social and literary forms, from visions of character as socially displaced and narrative perspective as socially stable to Russian realism itself as a movement dependent on an ambiguous contrast with a peasant other.
Open Access
Circadian rhythm dysfunction and clinical heterogeneity in pediatric ADHD: A critical need for innovation in assessment and treatment.
(JCPP advances, 2025-03) Lunsford-Avery, Jessica R; Davis, J Lynn; Willoughby, Michael T
Despite success of pharmacologic and psychosocial treatments, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) frequently results in significant personal impairment and socioeconomic burden. A challenge for the development of effective treatments targeting functional deficits in ADHD is the substantial heterogeneity in clinical features such as comorbidity, executive dysfunction, and cognitive disengagement. In this editorial perspective, we consider circadian dysfunction as a potentially critical mechanism underlying clinical heterogeneity and discuss current barriers to identifying and treating circadian dysfunction in pediatric ADHD. Recent advances in wearable sensors may offer new opportunities to elucidate the underlying role of circadian dysfunction in ADHD heterogeneity and support the development of personalized sleep treatments with the power to improve long-term educational, interpersonal, and occupational outcomes for children with ADHD.
Open Access
Obesity alters the collagen organization and mechanical properties of murine cartilage.
(Scientific reports, 2021-01) Collins, Amber T; Hu, Guoli; Newman, Hunter; Reinsvold, Michael H; Goldsmith, Monique R; Twomey-Kozak, John N; Leddy, Holly A; Sharma, Deepika; Shen, Leyao; DeFrate, Louis E; Karner, Courtney M
Osteoarthritis is a debilitating disease characterized by cartilage degradation and altered cartilage mechanical properties. Furthermore, it is well established that obesity is a primary risk factor for osteoarthritis. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of obesity on the mechanical properties of murine knee cartilage. Two-month old wild type mice were fed either a normal diet or a high fat diet for 16 weeks. Atomic force microscopy-based nanoindentation was used to quantify the effective indentation modulus of medial femoral condyle cartilage. Osteoarthritis progression was graded using the OARSI system. Additionally, collagen organization was evaluated with picrosirius red staining imaged using polarized light microscopy. Significant differences between diet groups were assessed using t tests with p < 0.05. Following 16 weeks of a high fat diet, no significant differences in OARSI scoring were detected. However, we detected a significant difference in the effective indentation modulus between diet groups. The reduction in cartilage stiffness is likely the result of disrupted collagen organization in the superficial zone, as indicated by altered birefringence on polarized light microscopy. Collectively, these results suggest obesity is associated with changes in knee cartilage mechanical properties, which may be an early indicator of disease progression.
Open Access
Transient receptor potential vanilloid 4 as a regulator of induced pluripotent stem cell chondrogenesis.
(Stem cells (Dayton, Ohio), 2021-11) Willard, Vincent P; Leddy, Holly A; Palmer, Daniel; Wu, Chia-Lung; Liedtke, Wolfgang; Guilak, Farshid
Transient receptor potential vanilloid 4 (TRPV4) is a polymodal calcium-permeable cation channel that is highly expressed in cartilage and is sensitive to a variety of extracellular stimuli. The expression of this channel has been associated with the process of chondrogenesis in adult stem cells as well as several cell lines. Here, we used a chondrogenic reporter (Col2a1-GFP) in murine induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to examine the hypothesis that TRPV4 serves as both a marker and a regulator of chondrogenesis. Over 21 days of chondrogenesis, iPSCs showed significant increases in Trpv4 expression along with the standard chondrogenic gene markers Sox9, Acan, and Col2a1, particularly in the green fluorescent protein positive (GFP+) chondroprogenitor subpopulation. Increased gene expression for Trpv4 was also reflected by the presence of TRPV4 protein and functional Ca²⁺ signaling. Daily activation of TRPV4 using the specific agonist GSK1016790A resulted in significant increases in cartilaginous matrix production. An improved understanding of the role of TRPV4 in chondrogenesis may provide new insights into the development of new therapeutic approaches for diseases of cartilage, such as osteoarthritis, or channelopathies and hereditary disorders that affect cartilage during development. Harnessing the role of TRPV4 in chondrogenesis may also provide a novel approach for accelerating stem cell differentiation in functional tissue engineering of cartilage replacements for joint repair.