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Identification Of The Mechanisms Through Which Botanicals Attenuate Pathogenesis Of Human Diseases, Esraah Alharris
Identification Of The Mechanisms Through Which Botanicals Attenuate Pathogenesis Of Human Diseases, Esraah Alharris
Theses and Dissertations
Plant products have been used for a long time in treatment of diseases. In fact, more than half of approved medicines are derived from plants or other natural products. Even though the synthetic drugs are effective in treating many human diseases, there is no cure against several clinical disorders. Moreover, a significant number of diseases can be prevented thereby causing less burden on societal healthcare costs as well as promoting healthy lifestyles. Thus, botanicals offer a unique opportunity to explore novel compounds to prevent and treat various clinical disorders as well as understand their mode of action so that new …
Turning Up Antitumor Immunity Against Breast Cancer, Johnie Hodge
Turning Up Antitumor Immunity Against Breast Cancer, Johnie Hodge
Theses and Dissertations
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women worldwide, and is the second leading cause of cancer-related death in spite of significant advances in treatment and emphasis on early diagnosis. While treatment of localized disease is often successful, metastatic breast cancer, especially of the triple negative molecular subtype, carries a much poorer prognosis. The significant role of the immune system in the progression from localized to metastatic disease is becoming more and more appreciated. Tumor escape from immune surveillance and immune suppression in the tumor microenvironment have become therapeutic targets in addition to the traditional goals of directly killing …
Development Of Rule-Based Recognition Systems For Continuous Monitorization Of Pulse Oximetry, Brian Delehanty
Development Of Rule-Based Recognition Systems For Continuous Monitorization Of Pulse Oximetry, Brian Delehanty
Senior Theses
Pulse Oximeters provide a convenient, non-invasive method to quickly gather information about a patient's pulse rate (PR) and arterial blood oxygen saturation (SpO2). Many pulse oximeters lack alert systems that notify caregivers if a patient's readings go outside the healthy range, and pulse oximeters that have these mechanisms are significantly more expensive. This project set out to write a program using LabVIEW that collects pulse oximeter data via Bluetooth and generates an alert when readings persist in the abnormal range for more than fifteen seconds. Due to privacy laws that allow pulse oximeter manufacturers to not disclose the …
Osteon Mimetic Scaffolding, Janay Clytus
Osteon Mimetic Scaffolding, Janay Clytus
Senior Theses
The purpose of this research is to provide an alternative to naturally derived bone grafts. There is a gap in the supply of donors and the demand of bone tissue. Artificial scaffold creation can work as an implant and decrease the shortage of bone grafts and increase the range of injuries that can be repaired. Current research focuses on optimizing mechanical properties such as porosity, improving vascularization using cells, and generating osteoconductivity. For osteodifferentiation, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) can differentiate into mesodermal lineages such as chondrocytes, osteoblasts, adipocytes, and tenocytes by supplementing cultures with lineage-specific soluble factors (Marchetti). Co-culturing ECFCs …
Integration Of A Sensory Driven Model For Hand Grasp Function In 3d Printed Prostheses, Austin T. Hetherington
Integration Of A Sensory Driven Model For Hand Grasp Function In 3d Printed Prostheses, Austin T. Hetherington
Senior Theses
My Honors Thesis was completed through the Biomedical Engineering senior design project I worked on. Our project took a mechanically operated 3D printed prosthetic hand and automated the process by which it makes a grasp. The purpose of this project was to provide an affordable, automatic prosthetic hand to those either capable and incapable of wrist flexion. The current 3D printed prosthetic models require users to bend their wrist to initiate a simple grasp. However, our design took an alternative approach by using an EMG sensor placed on the ventral side of the forearm to record muscle activity, which, upon …
Optimization Of Microfluidic Chip Fabrication Via Femtosecond Laser Ablation, Kenneth Aycock
Optimization Of Microfluidic Chip Fabrication Via Femtosecond Laser Ablation, Kenneth Aycock
Senior Theses
Microfluidic devices have become staple tools in biomedical research and have a promising future as low cost, point-of-care (POC) diagnostic devices. Despite the advancements in microfluidic device technology, the manipulation and fabrication of these systems can be tedious and expensive. Repeatable techniques in which computer-aided designs are translated into microfluidic systems in a matter of minutes are highly desirable both for researchers and manufacturers. Laser ablation of tape substrates has shown promise in producing cost-effective, rapidly manipulable devices, but the work done thus far has utilized continuous wave lasers that perform suboptimally due to the relatively short wavelengths used and …
Increasing Drug Delivery Efficacy Of Drug-Coated Balloons, Alexander Galan, Eric Bidinger, Franco Godoy, Shrusti Patel
Increasing Drug Delivery Efficacy Of Drug-Coated Balloons, Alexander Galan, Eric Bidinger, Franco Godoy, Shrusti Patel
Senior Theses
Peripheral artery disease (PAD), the narrowing of peripheral arteries located in areas such as the arms and legs, is a common disease that affects 12% to 20% of people over 65. Numerous therapies have been developed to treat PAD, the most recent technology being drug-coated balloons. Drug-coated balloons release drugs, such as Paclitaxel (PTX), into the arterial wall during balloon angioplasty to locally treat PAD. Current levels of drug transfer from the balloon to the vascular endothelium are at a low 10%-18%. Our Biomedical Engineering Senior Design project aims to increase drug delivery of drug-coated balloons by manipulating the clinically-controllable …
A Comprehensive Reengineering Of The Hospital Emergency Triage System, Nicholas D. Boltin
A Comprehensive Reengineering Of The Hospital Emergency Triage System, Nicholas D. Boltin
Theses and Dissertations
Hospital emergency triage and specifically Mass Casualty Incidents (MCIs) are of major concern with regard to treatment and patient outcomes. Traditional emergency department triage models are oversimplified and often lead to over/under triaging of patients. Furthermore, triage models do not account for the full spectrum of different types of MCIs which often results in misclassification. In this thesis, we begin by looking at traditional triage models currently being used in hospital systems and identify several shortcomings of using these models within the context of a chemical related MCI. I will then move to describe a new approach to creating a …
Changes Of Dispersal Ability In An Isolated Population, Connor Bacon
Changes Of Dispersal Ability In An Isolated Population, Connor Bacon
Theses and Dissertations
Dispersal is a core mechanism in the maintenance of metapopulations. It maintains genetic diversity by connecting subpopulations and generates new populations to replace those that die out. However, as populations become more isolated, as occurs in habitat fragmentation, dispersal becomes more difficult. This should lead to selective pressure against dispersive individuals, causing a reduction in dispersal traits. Over time, this can lead to variation in dispersal traits among populations. We examine this idea using an extreme case of isolation in Euphydryas gillettii, a population that has remained completely isolated for forty years. By comparing this population to a baseline established …
Screening Of Novel Active Salicylic Acid Analogs And Identification Of A Bacterial Effector Targeting Key Proteins Involved In Salicylic Acid-Mediated Defense, Ian Palmer
Theses and Dissertations
The master regulator of salicylic acid (SA)-mediated plant defense, NPR1 (NONEXPRESSER OF PR GENES 1), and its paralogs NPR3 and NPR4 act as SA receptors. After the perception of a pathogen, plant cells produce SA in the chloroplast. In the presence of SA, NPR1 protein is reduced from oligomers to monomers, and translocated into the nucleus. There, NPR1 binds to TGA and WRKY transcription factors to induce expression of plant defense genes. EDS1 and PBS3 are two key proteins involved in SA biosynthesis. Previous research has shown that several plant pathogens produce SA hydroxylases. These pathogen-produced hydroxylases act to degrade …
Regulation Of Pituitary Progenitor Differentiation By Β-Catenin, Julie Leann Youngblood
Regulation Of Pituitary Progenitor Differentiation By Β-Catenin, Julie Leann Youngblood
Theses and Dissertations
The pituitary gland is a critical organ that is necessary for many physiological processes, including growth, reproduction, and stress response. These vital processes are regulated through the secretion of pituitary hormones from specialized cell types. Pituitary hormone-producing cells arise from a common pool of pituitary progenitors in the developing Rathke’s pouch, and mutations that disrupt the formation and differentiation of pituitary progenitors often result in hypopituitarism, pituitary adenomas, or craniopharyngiomas. Thus, it is necessary to determine the mechanisms of pituitary development in order to understand the ways in which these congenital defects and tumors develop and disrupt pituitary function. Canonical …
Matrix Stiffness Modulates Mesenchymal Stem Cell Sensitivity To Geometric Asymmetry Signals, Maria Eugenia Piroli
Matrix Stiffness Modulates Mesenchymal Stem Cell Sensitivity To Geometric Asymmetry Signals, Maria Eugenia Piroli
Theses and Dissertations
Human stem cells hold significant potential for the treatment of various diseases. However, their use as a therapy is hampered by the limited understanding of the mechanisms by which stem cells respond to environmental stimuli. Efforts to understand extracellular biophysical cues have demonstrated the critical roles of geometric and mechanical signals in determining the fate of stem cells. The goal of this study was to explore the interplay between cell polarity and matrix stiffness in stem cell lineage specification. We hypothesize that confining cells to asymmetric extracellular matrix (ECM) islands will impart polarity at a single-cell level and result in …
Plants As Biofactories To Produce Mammalian Tumor Suppressor Micrornas, John Lachlan Macarthur
Plants As Biofactories To Produce Mammalian Tumor Suppressor Micrornas, John Lachlan Macarthur
Theses and Dissertations
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small noncoding single stranded RNAs that are considered master regulators of gene expression. They are also an emerging class of therapeutic agents with significant potential for the prevention and treatment of many diseases, including cancer. Many different forms of cancer are associated with loss or reduced accumulation of one or more miRNAs that function as tumor suppressors. In animal models, restoration of missing tumor suppressor miRNAs prevents the initiation, progression and/or spread of the disease. However, the current absence of an efficient method for delivery of therapeutic miRNAs is a critical barrier to their use. The research …
The Visual Ecology Of Speyeria Mormonia, Natalie Sanchez Gonzalez
The Visual Ecology Of Speyeria Mormonia, Natalie Sanchez Gonzalez
Theses and Dissertations
Variations in environmental factors such as temperature, precipitation, and day length during larval development are known to affect morphological traits in butterflies related to their visual ecology, including eye size and wing color. These vision-related traits are important for the ability of diurnal butterfly species to detect mates, especially at long distances. Thus, changes in environmental conditions may result in phenotypic modifications to butterflies which may alter their visual ecology and subsequently, their reproductive fitness. To study the interaction of phenotypic plasticity and visual ecology in the Mormon Fritillary, Speyeria mormonia, I set up a natural-laboratory experiment at the Rocky …
Modulation Of Amyloid-Β Aggregation Via Small Molecules And Glycine Zipper Alterations, Steven Zebulon Vance
Modulation Of Amyloid-Β Aggregation Via Small Molecules And Glycine Zipper Alterations, Steven Zebulon Vance
Theses and Dissertations
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common form of neurodegenerative disease. Nationally, AD is the 6th leading cause of death and the only top 10 killer of Americans that cannot be slowed, cured, or prevented. AD is characterized by the deposition of extracellular plaques of aggregated amyloid-β protein (Aβ). Aβ originates from the amyloid precursor protein (APP), a transmembrane protein that is cleaved to form a short and inert protein fragment called Aβ. However, Aβ undergoes a nucleation process wherein aggregates from soluble oligomers to insoluble fibrils are formed. While uncertainty remains as to the exact mechanism, studies have associated …
Association Between Mechanics And Biology In Vascular Graft Remodeling, David Andrew Prim
Association Between Mechanics And Biology In Vascular Graft Remodeling, David Andrew Prim
Theses and Dissertations
Coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) restores myocardial perfusion in patients with severe coronary artery disease by utilizing autografts – usually at least one of the internal thoracic artery (ITA), radial artery (RA), and great saphenous vein (GSV) – to bypass stenosed regions of coronary arteries. While decades of research and clinical improvements have made CABG an indispensable procedure, tens of thousands of grafts fail each year, which is due, at least in part, to an inability of the source vessels to adapt to the altered stimuli of the coronary circulation. In this dissertation, we first quantify and compare the mechanical …