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Protein Kinase M Zeta-Mediated Ltp Maintenance In The Non-Human Primate Hippocampus: A Role For Stress And Serotonergic Signaling In Affective Processing, Sasha L. Fulton

Theses and Dissertations

Early-Life Stress (ELS) is associated with vulnerability to mood disorder, but it’s not well understood how ELS contributes to deficits in cognitive function. Atypical PKMzeta is critical for LTP maintenance and memory. The current study aims to characterize the ELS phenotype with respect to this key marker of hippocampal LTP.

Psychological Well-Being And Heart Disease: The Utility Of Mental Health And Management Plans, Jennifer Anne Heath

Theses and Dissertations

This paper explores the correlation between mental health and coronary heart disease (CHD) and the usefulness of including mental health treatment into disease management plans. Consistent with previous research and literature regarding the correlation between CHD and depression, results suggest individuals experiencing CHD experience more symptoms of depression, including feelings of hopelessness and worthlessness. Additionally, individuals with CHD also tend to experience more difficulty with relationships and completing household chores. Individuals who have management plans created by their healthcare providers experience less depressive symptoms than those without management plans. This suggests management plans are crucial in the treatment of mental …

The Effect Of Depression And Antidepressants On Cost, Survival And Adherence To Hormone Therapy In Breast Cancer, Virginia Noxon

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Breast cancer patients with a depression diagnosis before or after cancer diagnosis have increased cost, shorter survival time and reduced adherence to hormone therapy. Treating depression in these patients should improve these outcomes; however, there is scarce literature on this topic. Currently, no study has determined the association of concurrent depression while adjusting for a history of depression or treating depression with antidepressants with cost, survival and adherence to hormone therapy. This study has two objectives: 1) to determine the association of concurrent depression with cost, survival and adherence to hormone therapy adjusting for a history of depression 2) …

Longitudinal Examination Of Observed Family Hostility And Adolescent Anxiety And Depression As Mediated By Adolescent Perspective Taking And Empathic Concern, Trevor Dennis Dahle

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this longitudinal study was to examine hostility in family interaction and its impact on adolescent depression and anxiety with adolescent perspective taking and empathic concern as mediators. Gender differences were also examined. Adolescents were from 353 two-parent families in a large north-western city in the United States and on average were 13.25 years old (SD=1.01) for girls and 13.30 years (SD=.99) for boys at the beginning of the study. This study utilized data from waves 3-5. Earlier waves of data were not used because some of the measures were not available for earlier waves. Results indicated that …

A Brief Rational Disputation Exercise Enhances Cardiovascular, Anxiety, And Affective Recovery Following Worry-Recall, Michelle Rosalie Di Paolo

Theses and Dissertations

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) (Ellis, 1958), educates a client on the relationship between one’s irrational beliefs (IBs) and the dysfunctional emotional/behavioral consequences of maintaining those beliefs such as symptoms of anxiety, depression, and sleep dysfunction (Ellis, Gordan, Neenan, & Palmer, 1997), symptoms also commonly correlated with high trait perseverative cognition (PC; Verkuil, Brosschot, de Beurs, & Thayer, 2009). In addition to symptoms of anxiety and depression, high levels of PC, a construct comprised of measures of trait worry and rumination, have been linked to acute cardiovascular (CV) health concerns that overtime when left unmitigated may lead to chronic conditions …

The Relationship Between The Poor Parenting In Childhood And Current Adult Symptoms Of Anxiety And Depression: Attachment As A Mediator, Kayla Lynn Burningham

Theses and Dissertations

Both anxiety and depression have been shown to be a result of early negative attachment experiences. The quality of parenting is one variable that affects attachment security, therefore correlating with the development of anxiety and depression in adulthood. The purpose of this study was to examine the mediating effect of attachment in the relationship between mother and father's parenting in childhood and adult symptoms of anxiety and depression. The study focused on 680 married or remarried heterosexual couples that took the RELATE questionnaire between 2011 and 2013. Results indicated insecure attachment mediates the relationship between poor parenting and symptoms of …

Behavioral Phenotyping Of Vmat1 Knockout Mice: Relevance To Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Kevin A. Webster Ph.D.

Theses and Dissertations

Schizophrenia is a debilitating mental disorder that causes a large economic burden and is prevalent across all cultures and countries around the world. Although both environmental factors and genetics are known to play an important role in the etiology of schizophrenia, the exact role of genetics and its interaction with environmental factors in an individual’s predisposition to develop schizophrenia is poorly understood. Schizophrenia is characterized by symptoms that include positive symptoms (e.g. delusions, hallucinations, disorganized thinking and speech), negative symptoms (e.g. avolition, anhedonia, depressive-like behavior), and cognitive dysfunctions (e.g. executive functioning deficits in learning and memory, attention, and vigilance). Genomic …

Depression Among Pregnant Latinas In South Carolina, Andrew Fogner

Theses and Dissertations

The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence of depression among pregnant Latinas. To bring to light the importance of prenatal depression prevention, we assessed the effect of the quality of healthcare providers among South Carolina Latinas (n=171). Women answered a validated CES-D and were categorized as depressed (score >16). In multivariate analyses, good perception of quality of healthcare was more likely among women who were not depressed; adjusted odds ratio of 0.75, 95% confidence interval 0.37 – 1.55. The findings show the need for tailoring healthcare to Latinas with prenatal depression prevention. It is imperative to understand …

Behaviorally Induced Insufficient Sleep Syndrome And Insomnia: Prevalence And Relationship To Depression In College Students, Allison Baylor

Theses and Dissertations

Background: College students are at increased risk for general sleep issues as well as specific disorders, including Behaviorally Induced Insufficient Sleep Syndrome (BISS) and insomnia. These disorders can have deleterious daytime consequences, which can be compounded by exacerbating depression. The present study aims to establish college prevalence of BISS/insomnia, to characterize sleep characteristics in this sample, and to compare depression across BISS/insomnia.

Methods: Data from a college risk behaviors and health study (n=989) was used. Insomnia and BISS were defined as mutually exclusive disorders, using ICD-10/DSM-5 criteria, and Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index items.

Results: Overall, the results of this study …

Examining The Effects Of Psychosocial Stress On The Hypertension Self-Management Behaviors Of African American Women, Michelle Laws

Theses and Dissertations

Hypertension is a preventable and yet major risk factor for early death and morbidity among African Americans. Compared to other women in the US, African American women continue to die earlier and more frequently from preventable and controllable chronic health conditions that are notably due to hypertension and hypertension-related illnesses. While there are multiple factors contributing to the high death rates of African American women, hypertension is one of the most common and modifiable risk factors associated with fatal health outcomes among African American women. The rate of death resulting from hypertension is more than double for African American females …

Exploring The Concept Of Human Oct3 Inhibitors As A Novel Class Of Antidepressants, Kavita A. Iyer

Theses and Dissertations

The Dukat laboratory developed 2-amino-6-chloro-3,4-dihydroquinazoline (A6CDQ) as a 5-HT₃ receptor ligand. A6CDQ and one of its positional isomers, the 7-chloro analog A7CDQ, produced antidepressant-like effects in the mouse tail suspension test (TST). We investigated and systematically ruled out a solely 5-HT₃ receptor or hSERT mediated mechanism of antidepressant-like effect for both A6CDQ and A7CDQ.

The role of organic cation transporter 3 (OCT3) as an alternative mechanism in the regulation of neurotransmitters including serotonin (5-HT) and the therapeutic potential of targeting hOCT3 to achieve antidepressant effects has been established. By virtue of possessing protonatable nitrogen atoms, 2-aminodihyroquinazolines could potentially …

Self-Perceived Cognitive Decline, Neuropsychological Functioning, And Depressive Symptoms In Hiv+ Spanish-Speakers, Ahoo Karimian

Theses and Dissertations

Within the United States, HIV is a growing epidemic that has important neuropsychological and functional consequences. Early detection and treatment of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder (HAND) is associated with better outcomes. In major metropolitan areas such Los Angeles County, HIV disproportionately impacts the Latino community. For those individuals who are primarily Spanish-speakers, there may be limited access to comprehensive neuropsychological assessment in the preferred language. Consequently, self-reports of cognitive functioning are often relied on to help determine the presence of HAND. However, self-reports of cognitive decline may be influenced by factors such as depressed mood, variable motivation, and culture, raising important …