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Utilizing Bloodless Medicine To Decrease Infection Rates In Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation: A Literature Review, Samantha Saint Fort

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Aim: To determine if a significant relationship exists between bloodless medicine practices and decreased infection rates in oncology patients following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation by performing a literature review.

Background: It is not uncommon for healthcare professionals to encounter Jehovah's Witnesses (JW) seeking medical treatment in the acute care hospital setting and outpatient clinics alike. However, JW's pose a unique challenge to healthcare providers. Their refusal of blood transfusions makes them a population of interest within the medical community. The refusal of blood transfusions also poses a serious challenge to successful treatment in oncology JW patients, and many hospitals will …

A Retrospective Dosimetry Comparison To Define Uncertainties Found In A Novel Intensity Modulated Electron Therapy (Imet) Treatment Technique For Use In Radiation Therapy, Marco A. Masciantonio

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This study will investigate the difference in radiation at different volumes between traditional electron beam therapy and a novel IMET. The difference in dose will be recorded between the novel IMET and the IMET with a slight shift in the target area. The percent difference between this new model treatment and the model treatment with a shift will be calculated. The main goal of this project is to determine if the target area is still sufficiently treated with this slight shift of the patient in different directions. The percent difference is crucial for the success of this project. It will …

A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis Of The Relationship Between The Creb Protein's Neuroplastic Functions And The Implications In Neurodegenerative Diseases: A Possible Link Between Synaptic Plasticity And Neurodegenerative Diseases, Mani Sarmast

Honors Undergraduate Theses

In this two-part study, I investigated whether the cyclic-adenosine monophosphate response element-binding (CREB) protein has the potential to be clinically modulated as a therapeutic target for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. Part one consisted of a systematic review that was conducted on select articles gathered through a stepwise method to explore (1) the relationship between diseased, neurodegenerative brains and levels of active, phosphorylated CREB (pCREB), (2) increased activation of CREB as a treatment for neurodegenerative symptoms, and (3) a potential therapeutic drug for neurodegenerative diseases that can target CREB signaling. The results of the systematic review showed evidence that suggested …

Mechanical Understanding And Optimization Of Template Guided Core Needle Biopsy, Isaac Girgis

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Prostate cancer is the second highest cause of cancer related deaths among men. According to the diagnostic pathway for prostate cancer, a prostate biopsy is performed if an individual showed signs of lesions through high prostate-specific antigen (PSA) concentration or suggestive digital rectal exam (DRE) results. The core biopsy mechanism involves inserting a beveled needle into the organ and removing a cylindrical fragment of tissue. Many factors affect the histological quality of the sample, including fragmentation, needle deflection, and needle insertion velocity. If a biopsy core is not clinically viable, an alternative core will need to be taken, resulting in …

Evaluation Of Interactions Of Covid Nonstructural Proteins 3, 5, And 6 With Human Proteins And Potentially Therapeutic Molecules, Jessica Huitsing

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2, or SARS-CoV-2, has been ongoing for over two years. The virus spreads easily and is more unpredictable than well-known viruses like the flu, making it important to have reliable combative measures before we fully drop non-vaccine preventive actions, like mask-wearing.Therefore, we used computational protein modeling to investigate the interactions of three nonstructural proteins (abbreviated Nsp) encoded in the viral RNA genome– Nsp3, Nsp5, and Nsp6 – which are involved in the viral life cycle, with human P-type polyamine transporting ATPases ATP13A2 and ATP13A3, whose disease symptoms when mutated mimic …

Investigating The Relationship Between Biological Age And Mutant Huntingtin Misfolding, Ratnesh Kesineni

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Huntington Disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disease caused by an expansion of a CAG trinucleotide repeat tract in the huntingtin (HTT) gene. This CAG tract expansion causes production of mutant HTT (mtHTT) protein, which misfolds and forms inclusions in the brain that accumulate with age. Misfolded mtHTT aggregates have been linked with increased cell death in neuron cell culture, leading to speculation that mtHTT aggregates cause cell death. However, there are mouse lines that have robust mtHTT inclusion deposition, but no HD-like signs or neurodegeneration. Furthermore, neuronal HD cultured cells with inclusions were found to be …

The Effect Of Young Blood Anti-Aging Treatment On Protein Markers Of Age And Huntington Disease, Sujena H. Koilpillai

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Huntington disease (HD) is a neurodegenerative disorder caused by expansion of a polyglutamine tract within the huntingtin (HTT) protein, forming mutant HTT (mtHTT). HD patients suffer from psychiatric, behavioral, cognitive, and motor abnormalities, with death typically occurring 15-20 years after symptom onset. Currently, there are no treatments able to slow disease progression or delay onset. HD is a disease of aging. Despite the mtHTT protein being produced throughout life, symptoms do not typically appear until adulthood. Furthermore, many cellular effects of normal aging are also seen in HD, including altered intercellular communication and loss of proteostasis. Recently, our lab found …

Regulation Of The Protease Activity For The Mitochondrial Omi/Htra2, Simon Larson

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Human High Temperature requirement A2 (HtrA2) also known as Omi, is a serine protease located in the mitochondria with an important function in both cell survival and death. My results show the proteolytic activity of Omi/HtrA2 varies under different conditions. I characterized the optimal condition for Omi/HtrA2 protease activity using an in vitro assay system. Additionally, I identified a new allosteric regulation of Omi/HtrA2 through interaction with a specific substrate, the MUL1 protein. MUL1 is a multifunctional E3 ubiquitin ligase anchored in the outer mitochondrial membrane with domains both inside mitochondria and in the cytoplasm. The data shown here strongly …

The Role Of Ms-818 In Altering Age-Related Characteristics Of An In Vitro Model Of Senescence In Neural Stem Cells, Sandeep Sreerama

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Aging of the brain is the leading risk factor for neurodegenerative diseases and brain cancers and has deleterious effects on brain functions. It follows that attempts to reverse the aging process may be therapeutically valuable. Neural stem cells (NSC) have been shown to play a critical role in maintaining brain functions, and their number is severely decreased with age. The development of senescence-like characteristics and declining functions in NSCs have been proposed to be responsible for brain aging and tumorigenesis. MS-818 is a pyrrolopyrimidine that has been shown to increase the NSC population and reverse the decline of behavioral function …

Developing A Targeted Ultrasound-Responsive Nanobubble-Based Gene Delivery System For Osteoporosis Treatment, Angela Shar

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The overall goal of this project was to develop, optimize, and test an ultrasound-responsive targeted nanobubble for delivering osteoporosis-related silencing genes such as Cathepsin K small interfering RNA (CTSK siRNA) for osteoporosis treatment. The nanobubbles were synthesized using an in situ sonochemical method. The nanobubble (NB) is composed of a gas core made from perfluorocarbon, stabilized with albumin, encapsulated with CTSK siRNA, and embedded with alendronate (AL) for bone targeting (CTSK siRNA-NB-AL). Following its development, the responsiveness of CTSK siRNA-NB-AL to a therapeutic ultrasound probe was examined. The results of biocompatibility tests with human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells proved …

Detection Of A Peptide Hormone - Somatostatin - Label-Free Split-Aptameric Probes, Charles A. Dowis

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Peptide hormones are important biomolecules that transduce downstream effects such as cell proliferation, regulation, and gene expression. Their levels have been upregulated in various disorders such as cancer, yet detection methods are lacking. We designed two split aptamer-based assays for the detection of a peptide hormone – Somatostatin (SST) – with different signal readouts: fluorescent readout based on light-up aptamers and the colorimetric readout of ABTS peroxidation from a G-quadruplex. We used an already selected split-aptamer –SSTA5–for SST for our designs and we had expected the developed detection systems to exhibit detection and quantification capabilities that would hopefully allow their …

Nanopore-Based Metagenomic Comparison Of Airway Colonizers Between Cystic Fibrosis Patients And Healthy Individuals, Anita Samadabadi

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is an autosomal recessive genetic disorder involving a mutation in the CF transmembrane conductance regulator protein (CFTR), which causes dysfunctional transport of chloride ions across cell membranes. CF affects multiple body systems and a few of its symptoms include chronic cough, difficulty breathing, obstructive airway disease, bacterial pulmonary infections, maldigestion, malabsorption, pancreatitis, and male infertility. Until recently, treatment options have been limited to alleviating symptoms, but a new classification of drugs, CFTR modulators, provide an opportunity to slow the progression of the disease and improve clinical outcomes. The effect of CFTR modulators may be attributed to the …

Systematic Literature Review Of Cognitive Behavioral Treatments For Patients With Classical, Secondary, And Idiopathic Trigeminal Neuralgia, Linnea B. Herzog

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Trigeminal neuralgia is a painful neuralgia with a complicated pathology that is not clearly understood. Due to the ambiguity of the condition, patients often have to search for medical providers that specialize in trigeminal neuralgia, and even with the guidance of a specialist, some patients do not respond well to treatment.¹ Despite the uncertainty surrounding the specifics of the disease, there are treatments available that can provide some level of pain relief for patients suffering from this disorder. When a patient does not respond well to medical therapy, surgery can be the next appropriate step in patient care management. …

Overview Of Direct Thrombin Inhibitors For Use In Staphylococcus Aereus Infections, Joseph C. Risler

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The pathogenicity and intractable nature of the microorganism Staphylococcus aureus (SA) has been long documented and highlighted by many health care agencies, with emphasis on its ability to exploit the human coagulation system to deadly effect. Two drugs from a class of inhibitors known as Direct Thrombin Inhibitors (DTI) have been shown to have a substantial effect on the enzyme secreted by SA known as Staphylocoagulase (SC), but up until now the application of this potential treatment has been limited. This paper strives to supply an overview of these clinical studies and propose a novel protocol for testing DTI's on …

Long-Term Outcomes Of Neonatal Herpes Simplex Virus Infection And Treatment, Genesis M. Brador

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The prevalence of herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection globally is high, and although there is no cure for it, the antiviral drug acyclovir is used to alleviate symptoms. There are two types of HSV: HSV-1, which typically infects the oral area, and HSV-2, which is associated with genital infections. A mother who carries the infection may transmit it to a neonate in different ways, most commonly via vaginal delivery in the presence of active lesions. There are three types of HSV disease that affect newborns: skin, eyes or mouth (SEM) disease, central nervous system (CNS) disease, or disseminated disease. The …

Impact Of Work-Life Balance On Health-Related Quality Of Life Among College Students, Emily Vernet

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Work-life balance involves the management of work and social responsibilities. Specifically, it describes the ability to meet the demands of multiple roles involving academics, social, personal, and professional life. Literature has shown that there is an increasing number of students who are working while taking classes at a university. Previous research has described how young adults balance working and going to school and how work hours influence student's mental, physical, and health behaviors. The purpose of this study is to examine the association between a student's ability to balance work demands, student and life responsibilities, and health outcomes. Using a …

The Role Of Activin A Signaling In Gastric Reflux-Related Diseases And The Progression To Esophageal Adenocarcinoma, Cedric J. Roudebush

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), or acid reflux, affects 6-9 million people in the United States. It is characterized by a reflux of gastric acid and bile salts from the stomach into the esophagus, causing injuries to the esophagus known as Barrett's esophagus (BE). BE is the main risk factor for the development of esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC), a devastating cancer in the esophagus whose molecular roots remain poorly understood. In recent years, evidence points to the esophageal epithelium itself as responsible for causing and promoting inflammation upon injury by gastric reflux, namely via an increase in inflammatory cytokine secretion. This project …

Total Salivary Protein Concentration And Its Correlation To Dental Caries, Emyli Peralta

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Introduction: According to the World Health Organization, dental cavities are the number one chronic disease in children. Saliva coats the teeth all day and can serve many functions to maintain and protect teeth. Saliva has many proteins that can be both detrimental and essential to the preservation of tooth enamel. The purpose of this study is to determine if a correlation exists between the total protein concentration in saliva and the prevalence of cavities in the mouth. We hypothesized that there would be a positive correlation with total salivary protein concentration and the prevalence of cavities in the participant. Methods: …

Targeted Delivery Of A Therapeutic Protein For The Treatment Of Alzheimer's Disease, Heather Holman

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease are linked to mitochondrial dysfunction and the underexpression of TOM40, a protein with chaperone-like qualities that is responsible for transporting precursor proteins into the mitochondria. Overexpression of TOM40 is reported to partially restore mitochondrial dysfunction and decrease the accumulation of neurotoxic aggregates of α-synuclein. Our goal is to develop an effective method for delivery of TOM40 protein to the brain.

Previous studies have used lentiviruses to carry TOM40 into the hippocampus of α-synuclein transgenic mice. The disadvantage of lentiviral transfection is the random insertions of the target gene into the host …

The Effect Of Mismatch Primers On The Efficiency Of Amplification In Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reactions, Molly C. Dawkins

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a method used in many research protocols to amplify a small amount of a short segment of DNA to millions of copies. PCR is used for many taxonomic studies, as well as for some medical diagnostic procedures. Through PCR, short DNA primers bind to the template DNA to allow the thermostable DNA polymerase to copy the DNA. Often, researchers create universal primers to target a conserved region of DNA in multiple species, for example, the 16S rRNA gene in bacteria. The problem with these universal primers is that they do not always perfectly match the …

Effects Of The Influenza Vaccine On The Oral Cavity, Laura Sawires

Honors Undergraduate Theses

According to existing literature, there is a suggested correlation between certain vaccinations and oral cavity symptoms. Studies have shown that the Diphtheria, Tetanus, Acellular Pertusis, as well as Polio Vaccinations have an association with presented symptoms of bleeding gums, sores, ulcers, white spots in the mouth or on lips, and unpleasant breath odor. Although these symptoms may not occur simultaneously or directly after administration of the immunization, there has been supported evidence of correlation. Given the relevance of an association between vaccinations and orally manifested side effects, an investigation on the presence of such association with the widely administered flu …

The Effects Of Emerging Technology On Healthcare And The Difficulties Of Integration, Skyler J. Pavlish-Carpenter

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Background: Disruptive technology describes technology that is significantly more advanced than previous iterations, such as: 3D printing, genetic manipulation, stem cell research, innovative surgical procedures, and computer-based charting software. These technologies often require extensive overhauls to implement into older systems and must overcome many difficult financial and societal complications before they can be widely used. In a field like healthcare that makes frequent advancements, these difficulties can mean that the technology will not be utilized to its full potential or implemented at all.

Objective: To determine the inhibiting factors that prevent disruptive technology from being implemented in conventional healthcare.

Methods: …

Parasympathetic Nerve Derived Exosomes Inhibit Hyperglycemia Induced Apoptosis In Cardiomyoblast Cells, Reetish K. Singla

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Diabetic cardiomyopathy involves both forms of cardiac cell cell death such as apoptosis and necrosis. However, this remains unknown whether hyperglycemia induced apoptosis in the cell culture system is inhibited by parasympathetic nerve derived exosomes. We isolated parasympathetic and sympathetic nerves and derived exosomes. We developed hyperglycemia induced apoptosis in H9c2 cells. H9c2 cells were divided into 4 groups: 1) Control, 2) H9c2+ Glucose 100 mmol, 3) H9c2+ Glucose +parasympathetic-exo, 4) H9c2+ Glucose+sympathetic-exo. We determined cell proliferation and viability with MTT assay kit and apoptosis with TUNEL staining and cell death detection ELISA kit. Data was further confirmed with pro-apoptotic …

Can Nox1 Activity Initiate Parkinson's-Like Pathology In An Enteroendocrine Cell Line?, Evan Adler

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Increased attention has been given to the gut lately in a number of conditions, from maintaining health via the use of probiotics to treating Autism Spectrum Disorder. Parkinson's Disease has a history with the gut starting with the Braak hypothesis, in which eminent researcher Heiko Braak observed that the spread of Parkinson's (PD) seemed to occur along either olfactory or enteric neurons prior to reaching the substantia nigra in the midbrain, where the classical disease symptoms become evident. Though this finding was largely ignored at the time, the possibility of a gut origin for PD has received interest lately as …

Effects Of Energy-Based Therapies On Postoperative Recovery: An Integrative Review Of The Literature, Emily M. Wooten

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Associated with health care reform, there has been a growing interest among healthcare professionals regarding use of energy-based therapies as a complementary therapeutic intervention. The purpose of this integrative literature review was to examine the impact of energy-based therapies (i.e. healing touch, reiki, therapeutic touch) on patients’ postoperative recovery. The methodology included identifying appropriate peer-reviewed, English-language research articles on the topic area that were published between 2006 to 2018. Following a search in select data bases, articles focusing on the topic were critiqued, analyzed and synthesized by the researcher. Consistent and inconsistent findings along with gaps in the literature are …

Development Of Methods To Modulate Natural Killer Cells, Kari A. Shaver

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Natural Killer (NK) cell based immunotherapies have demonstrated success against malignancies and hematological cancers. However, tumors have developed mechanisms to evade detection by and suppress the immune system, commonly through altering the expression of cell-surface proteins. Overexpression of human leukocyte antigen-E (HLA-E), which binds to the inhibitory NKG2A on NK cells, protects malignant cells from lysis. Downregulating the NKG2A receptor on NK cells should release NK cell inhibition, but proves challenging as NK cells are difficult to transfect and no good methods currently exist. This project is designed to investigate the use of exosomes – small vesicles and natural carriers …

The Effect Of K562-Il21-2 Plasma Membrane Particles On The Proliferation Of Natural Killer Cells To Fight Cancer, Michelle Prophete

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Immunotherapy has emerged as a current and future paradigm of cancer treatment, which utilizes the body’s immune system to eradicate cancer. Natural Killer (NK) cells as part of the innate immune system have immense potential in their anti-tumor cytotoxic activities and host cell surveillance properties. NK cells comprise approximately five to fifteen percent of peripheral blood lymphocytes and can be proliferated in vitro using recently developed methods with co-cultures with feeder cells (derived from engineered tumor cells) or plasma membrane (PM) particles, produced from the fore mentioned feeder cells, in combination with soluble cytokines. For efficient growth and maintenance of …

The Role Of Frabin (Fgd4) In Aggressive Prostate Cancer, Alexia M. Bossan

Honors Undergraduate Theses

A major problem in prostate cancer (PCa) management is the development of drug resistance. It is known that there are changes in PCa biology upon prolonged treatment with drugs, including anti-androgen drugs that alter cellular signaling processes leading to the development of castration resistant PCa. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are regulatory molecules that modulate gene expression through inhibition of protein translation and modulate cellular functions. Altered expression of miRNAs is often noted in drug resistant cancer including PCa. Studies from our laboratory have identified a number of down-regulated miRNAs in PCa, including miR-l 7-92a miRNAs. Frabin (FGD4) is a target of the …

An Rnai Screen To Identify Components Of A Polyamine Transport System, Adam J. Foley

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Polyamines, specifically putrescine, spermidine, and spermine, are small cationic molecules found in all organisms. Cells can biosynthetically make these molecules, or alternatively, they can be transported from the extracellular environment. Malignant cells have been shown to require relatively high amounts of polyamines. There is a chemotherapeutic agent, DFMO, used to block the biosynthesis of polyamines. Many malignant cells can circumvent DFMO therapy by activating their transport system. A potential solution is to simultaneously block biosynthesis and transport of polyamines. However, little is known about the polyamine transport system in higher eukaryotes.

This thesis aims to add to the basic biological …

Validating Drug Targets Through Inhibition Of Protein-Protein Interactions In Mycobacterium Tuberculosis, Erin C. Driscoll

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Tuberculosis is the leading cause of death by single infectious disease worldwide; novel antibiotics are needed to continue to treat this disease. To goal of this project is to provide proof-of-principle support for the idea that targeting protein-protein interactions (PPI) is an appropriate course for the discovery of new drugs. This study optimized the M-PFC assay, which allows detection of PPI in Mycobacteria, through the use of stronger promoters and inducible expression of a peptide blocker by riboswitch. To accomplish this, promoter induction studies were used to find stronger promoters for the M-PFC, optimization of the riboswitch as a …