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Investigation Of Flow Disturbances And Multi-Directional Wall Shear Stress In The Stenosed Carotid Artery Bifurcation Using Particle Image Velocimetry, Amanda L. Dicarlo

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Hemodynamics and shear forces are associated with pathological changes in the vascular wall and its function, resulting in the focal development of atherosclerosis. Flow complexities that develop in the presence of established plaques create environments favourable to thrombosis formation and potentially plaque rupture leading to stroke. The carotid artery bifurcation is a common site of atherosclerosis development. Recently, the multi-directional nature of shear stress acting on the endothelial layer has been highlighted as a risk factor for atherogenesis, emphasizing the need for accurate measurements of shear stress magnitude as well direction. In the absence of comprehensive patient specific datasets numerical …

The Use Of Current Steering During Subthalamic Deep Brain Stimulation To Alleviate Upper Limb Symptoms Of Parkinson's Disease, Shabna Iftikar Mohideen

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Subthalamic (STN) deep brain stimulation (DBS) is an established treatment to alleviate the appendicular motor symptoms of Parkinson's Disease (PD). Current steering during DBS allows the unequal fractionation of current between two electrodes on the lead, resulting in a non-spherical electrical field. It is hypothesized that the way the electrical field is shaped will affect a patient’s upper limb symptom alleviation. Seven PD patients who underwent bilateral STN-DBS were tested over four weeks post-operation. 16 current fractionation settings were tested each week at an amplitude that increased weekly. Optimal setting was defined as the setting that provided the best …

First Canadian Experience With Robotic Laparoendoscopic Single-Site Vs. Standard Laparoscopic Living-Donor Nephrectomy: A Prospective Comparative Study, Patrick P Luke, Shahid Aquil, Bijad Alharbi, Hemant Sharma, Alp Sener

Anatomy and Cell Biology Publications

INTRODUCTION: We aimed to compare the outcomes of robotic laparoendoscopic single-site living donor nephrectomy (R-LESS LDN) vs. standard laparoscopic living donor nephrectomy (LLDN).

METHODS: Between October 2013 and November 2015, 39 patients were allocated to either standard LLDN (n=25) or R-LESS LDN (n=14). Patient demographics, perioperative outcomes, analgesic requirement, visual analogue scale of pain at postoperative days 1, 3, 7, and 30, and a health-related quality of life and body image questionnaire were prospectively collected.

RESULTS: There were no significant differences in demographics and intraoperative outcomes between the two cohorts. The R-LESS LDN cohort had lower analgesic requirement (p=0.002) and …

Cardiodynamic Associations With Resilience In Undergraduate Students And The Effect Of A Mentorship Intervention, Rachel J. Knetsch

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The National College Health Assessment (NCHA) indicates that a majority of Canadian university students report feeling overwhelmed, stressed, and anxious during their undergraduate studies. Resilience refers to positive adaptation, or the ability to maintain or regain mental health, despite experiencing adversity (Herrman et al., 2011). While autonomic indices have been used to describe chronic physiological stress, the role of heart rate variability (HRV) as an index of resilience remains unclear. This research tested the hypotheses that (1) there is a relationship between HRV and resilience scoresand (2) a mentorship intervention will improve HRV and resilience outcomes. Fifty-seven first year students …

Effects Of Maternal Protein Restriction On The Pulmonary Surfactant System During The Early Life And Adulthood, Reza Khazaee

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Fetal growth restriction (FGR) is defined by low birth weight and contributes to a variety of adult-onset diseases with different severities between males and females. However, the effects of FGR on the pulmonary surfactant are not fully elucidated. In this thesis, first, we investigated the FGR effects on the lung function and the surfactant system at the early postnatal life. It was hypothesized that FGR contributes to alterations of lung mechanics and the surfactant system during the neonatal period. Second, we assessed the FGR effects on the surfactant system in response to sepsis in adulthood. It was hypothesized that FGR …

Un/Dead Animal Art: Ethical Encounters Through Rogue Taxidermy Sculpture, Miranda Niittynen

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Beginning in 2004, the Minnesota Association of Rogue Taxidermists began an art movement of taxidermied animal sculptures that challenged conventional forms of taxidermied objects massively produced and displayed on an international scale. In contrast to taxidermied ‘specimens’ found in museums, taxidermied ‘exotic’ wildlife decapitated and mounted on hunters' walls, or synthetic taxidermied heads bought in department stores, rogue taxidermy artists create unconventional sculptures that are arguably antithetical to the ideologies shaped by previous generations: realism, colonialism, masculinity. As a pop-surrealist art movement chiefly practiced among women artists, rogue taxidermy artists follow an ethical mandate to never kill animals for the …

Motor Variability In Rowing, Maude Potvin-Gilbert

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The aim of the study was to analyze the impact of environment, intensity and distance rowed on temporal variability of strokes and on knee angle variability. 11 participants rowed 2,000 m at high and low intensities on an ergometer and at high intensity in a single on-water. Data were collected at the beginning and at the end of each exercise. All the factors influenced significantly the temporal variability (respectively beta=-0.013 and p .007=; beta= 0.007 and p=.021; beta=0.06 and p=.028). The difference of visual information and the need of the rower to adapt to environmental factors might explain …

Measurement And Protection Of Lung Health In Poultry Farmers Of Southwestern Ontario, Rose-Marie Doyon Dolinar

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Chronic obstructive lung disease (COPD), develops gradually, and tends to be noticed by farmers only after there has been a significant loss of lung function. People with symptoms of COPD often present for health care in later stages of disease, because they accept cough or breathlessness as “normal”.

Measurement of lung health for those at risk of developing COPD provides an opportunity for early detection of lung disease, and deter the progression toward irreversible damage to the lungs. COPD is, however, under-diagnosed.

The importance of bringing primary care providers and farmers together, and acknowledging the high-risk nature of occupational exposures, …

Analysis Of Added Sugar Intake Of Canadian Children And Adolescents: Findings From The Canadian Community Health Survey On Nutrition, Ulaina Tariq

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Background: The added sugar intake of children and adolescents in Canada warrants more research due to its contribution to obesity, diabetes, and other chronic and mental health issues.

Objective: To assess the trends and correlates of added sugar intake in Canadians aged 6 to 17.

Methods: Data were provided by the Canadian Community Health Survey-Nutrition 2004 and 2015. Statistical analysis included multivariable regression and t-tests.

Results: In 2015, 35.66% of Canadians aged 6 to 17 met sugar intake guidelines. Compared to 2004, in 2015 intake of fruit and vegetables was higher, while sugar and caloric intake was lower. Sedentary activity, …

“And, Needless To Say, I Was Athletic, Too:” Southern Ontario Black Women And Sport (1920s – 1940s), Ornella Nzindukiyimana

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This dissertation presents a two-part study of sporting practices of Southern Ontario Black women, between the 1920s and the 1940s, aimed at developing a socio-cultural history of sport that includes narratives from marginalized groups. Given sport’s traditional position as a masculine domain, as well as Canada’s status as a patriarchal White supremacy, the accounts presented in this work centre Black women’s sport experiences through an intersectional perspective. It is argued that, by virtue of their simultaneously racialized and gendered identities, Black women had distinct sporting experiences from those of White women and men and Black men.

The first study used …

Participatory Action Research Examining The Role Of Physical Activity In Mentoring For Resilience, Francesca Gable

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This study examined the use of physical activity-based mentorship programs to positively influence student mental health and resilience in post-secondary institutions. The process of relationship building was observed through regularly implemented physical activity interactions over time. The purpose was to determine the ability of a physical activity-based mentorship relationship to positively influence student resilience. A participatory action research methodology was used to engage with a population of ninety undergraduate Kinesiology students (30 mentors:60 protégés) over an eight-month period. Sixty interviews and thirteen focus groups were conducted, and fifteen-hundred pages of journal reflections were consulted to further understand the relationship building …

Cognitive Changes Following Multiple-Modality Exercise And Mind-Motor Training In Older Adults With Subjective Cognitive Complaints: The M4 Study, Narlon Cassio Boa Sorte, Dawn P. Gill, Adrian M. Owen, Teresa Liu-Ambrose, Vladimir Hachinski, Ryosuke Shigematsu, Robert J. Petrella

Anatomy and Cell Biology Publications

Background We investigated the effects of multiple-modality exercise with additional mind-motor training on cognition in community-dwelling older adults with subjective cognitive complaints. Methods Participants (n = 127, mean age 67.5 [7.3] years, 71% women) were randomized to receive 45 minutes of multiple-modality exercise with additional 15 minutes of either mind-motor training (M4, n = 63) or control (balance, range of motion and breathing exercises [M2, n = 64]). In total, both groups exercised 60 minutes/day, 3 days/week, for 24 weeks. Standardized global cognitive functioning (GCF), concentration, reasoning, planning, and memory were assessed at 24 weeks and after a 28-week no-contact …

The Incidence And Characteristics Of Stroke In Urban-Dwelling Iranian Women, Amin Amiri Md, Moira Kapral Md Msc, Amanda G. Thrift Phd, Luciano A. Sposato, Hamidreza Saber Md, Reza Behrouz Do Phd, Mahdiyeh Erfanian, Mohammad Taghi Farzadfard Md, Naghmeh Mokhber Md, Reza Azarpazhooh Md

Anatomy and Cell Biology Publications

Background: Population-based data regarding stroke among women are scarce in developing countries. This study was designed to determine whether sex differences exist in stroke incidence, mortality, and recurrence.

Methods: The Mashhad Stroke Incidence Study is a population-based cohort study in Iran. For a period of 1 year, all patients with stroke in 3 geographical regions in Mashhad were recruited and then followed up for 5 years. Age- and sex-specific crude incidence rates were standardized to the World Health Organization New World Population. Male-to-female incidence rate ratios were assessed for all age groups and all subtypes of first-ever stroke (FES). …

Characterization Of Urinary Microbiome And Their Association With Health And Disease, Yige Bao

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

There has been a growing interest in human microbiome studies in the past decade, with the development of high-throughput sequencing techniques. These microorganisms interact and respond to the host as an entity, and are involved in various homeostatic functions including nutrition digestion, immune response, metabolism and endocrine regulation. The urinary microbiome, however, remains relatively under-investigated.

One of the technical challenges of urinary microbiome studies is the samples usually contain a large number of host cells and low microbial biomass. These samples with the high host, low microbial abundance (“high-low” samples) are associated with increased risk of compromised quality of …

Characterizing The Role Of Thymine Dna Glycosylase In Transcriptional Regulation And Cancer In Vivo, Mohammad Haider Hassan

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Cytosine methylation (5mC) is essential for transcriptional control and genomic stability and is often used as a prognostic marker in cancer. Although 5mC has long been considered a relatively stable epigenetic mark, recent studies have demonstrated that it can be reversed enzymatically by TET proteins which oxidize 5mC into 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5-hmC), and then to 5-formylcytosine (5-fC) and 5-carboxylcytosine (5caC). This mechanism is known as active DNA demethylation and the base excision repair enzyme Thymine DNA Glycosylase (TDG) plays an essential role in this process by removing 5-fC and 5-caC which are subsequently replaced by the unmethylated cytosine. Importantly, homozygous loss …