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Dendritic Spine Density And Morphology In The Dorsolateral Striatum Following A High Fat Diet, Tikva Nabatian

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Obesity rates have been dramatically rising in recent years and in 2017-2018 more than 42% of adults in the United States were obese. Obesity is associated with numerous health problems, including cardiovascular disease, stroke, insulin resistance, and type II diabetes. The prevalence of highly palatable and calorically dense foods high in fats and sugars is a significant factor in the increase in obesity rates. Many suggest that palatable food affects the brain in ways similar to drugs of abuse, reinforcing the consumption of highly palatable foods in the same way drugs reinforce drug use. While numerous weight loss programs and …

Risk-Factor Induced Changes In The Breast Microenvironment Facilitate Inflammatory Breast Cancer Progression And Lymphovascular Invasion, Wintana Balema, Wintana Balema

Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)

Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) is a rapidly progressing, rare and highly lethal form of breast cancer. IBC is a clinical diagnosis, requiring >1/3 involvement on the affected breast and/or skin by erythema, and disease onset of < 6 months. The clinical symptoms of IBC vary in severity and presentation, these include redness, warmth, skin thickening and bruised or pink/purple discoloration appearance and skin changes such as peau d’orange. These skin symptoms are not attributed to inflammation, rather IBC is characterized by florid lymphovascular tumor emboli clogging dermal lymphatics. This leads to “classic” symptoms of breast swelling and skin edema or discoloration. To date, unique genomic drivers which differentiate IBC from non-IBC invasive breast cancers have not been identified highlighting a role for the microenvironment. Several epidemiological studies have unveiled subtype-specific risk factors associated with IBC that are known to alter the microenvironment. Obesity is an established risk factor for all subtypes of IBC. Never-breastfeeding increases risk for developing the most aggressive, triple-negative IBC. Further, never breastfeeding is associated with later clinical stage and worse outcomes. We worked to model these overlapping risk factors to understand microenvironment changes that may lead to the lymphatic change’s indicative of IBC.

First, we investigated the association of a “classic” triad of clinical IBC signs with overall survival among patients to demonstrate the most overt clinical findings of lymphatic involvement were impacting prognosis. We evaluated a triad of IBC signs, including swollen involved breast, nipple change, and diffuse skin change, using breast medical photographs from patients enrolled on a prospective IBC registry. We reported that the …

Dietary Regulation Of Silent Synapses In The Dorsolateral Striatum, Allison M. Meyers

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Obesity and drugs of abuse share overlapping neural circuits and behaviors. Cravings for drugs of abuse increase during abstinence, a phenomenon known as incubation. In obesity, increased craving is observed in individuals during dieting. Diets often fail, with return to- or increase above- original weight. The extent to which this reflects an incubation phenomenon has not been carefully examined. One mechanism underlying incubation is the reemergence of a developmental mechanism called silent synapses. Silent synapses are 'temporary' synapses that are important for remodeling brain circuits. They are prevalent during early development but largely disappear by adulthood. Drugs of abuse increase …

Sprague Dawley Rats Were Able To Ferment Purified Resistant Starch And Whole Grain Starch On Moderate And High Fat Diets, Justin Lamont Guice

LSU Master's Theses

Whole grain (WG) and fat content of the diet have been previously shown to affect intestinal fermentation and phenotype conferred by high–amylose maize starch (HAM), a form of fermentable dietary fiber. The current study was designed to compare rodent gut health following consumption of whole grain and non–whole grain prebiotics on moderate fat (MF) and high fat (HF) diets using a 2x2x2 factorial design. MF and HF diets were prepared to contain the following diet sources: (1) control starch with no WG or RS [CON], (2) whole grain waxy corn flour with low RS [WWG], (3) purified HAM resistant starch …

Chronic Resveratrol Treatment Ameliorates Cognitive Deficits Associated With A High Fat Diet, Kelsey E. O'Leary

Biological Sciences

Resveratrol is a polyphenol antioxidant found in red wine known to have anti-aging, anti-cancer, and anti-obesity effects in both humans and animals. Resveratrol's primary biological action is as an antioxidant, causing a reduction in reactive oxygen species (ROS). ROS are produced as byproducts of normal metabolic functions, but become abnormally elevated in individuals who consume a high fat diet (HFD) or who have metabolic conditions like Type II Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM); in these circumstances, abnormal elevation in ROS leads to cellular damage and cell death. Another common effect of a diet high in fat and calories is cognitive impairment: specifically, …

High Fat Diet Increased Serum Glutamate Dehydrogenase More Than Chronic Acetaminophen Dosing In Female Mice, Elizabeth Ruth Behmer

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This laboratory study examined the effects of acetaminophen overdose in normal fed and high-fat fed female mice. Forty female mice were placed on normal and high-fat diets at 4 weeks old. When the mice were significantly different in weight (between 6 and 9 months old), half the mice were dosed with acetaminophen. These mice were daily given an overdose of acetaminophen for 14 days. The dose used was 300 mg/kg mouse (LD50 = 338 mg/kg). The control group was given 10 µl water/g mouse. Levels of serum glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) were measured to indicate liver damage. GDH is released from …

Effect Of Resistant Starch On Microbial Content Of The Intestinal Tract, Reshani Nisansala Senevirathne

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Resistant starch (RS) increases beneficial gastro-intestinal bacterial populations simultaneously increasing short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) such as butyrate. Butyrate acts as energy source for epithelial cells of colonic mucosa which stimulates intestinal cell proliferation and has been implicated as important in reducing obesity, diabetes and cancer. The Lactobacillus spp, Bifidobacterium spp, Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron, Clostridium cluster IV and Clostridium cluster XIV are mainly involved in the production of butyrate by fermenting RS in the large intestine. With age there is a decline in these gut bacteria, but in the present study RS and diet restriction both enhanced the bacteria involved in butyrate …