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An Evaluation Of The Frankfort Mandibular Plane Angle Bisector (Fmab) Wits Appraisal In The Assessment Of Anteroposterior Jaw Relationships, Natalie Swoboda

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

An accurate anteroposterior measurement of jaw relationships is essential in orthodontic diagnosis and treatment planning. The purpose of this longitudinal study was to establish a new cephalometric Wits appraisal using a bisector of the mandibular plane angle, named the Frankfort Mandibular Plane Angle Bisector (FMAB). The FMAB was used to assess the sagittal jaw relationship in a sample of Class I individuals, and compare this measurement to the ANB angle and the Wits appraisal using the Maxillomandibular Bisector (MMB).

The data were collected from pre-treatment (T0), immediate post-treatment (T1) and two year post-retention (T2) lateral cephalograms of 61 male and …

Orthodontic Retainers: A Survey Of Patient Compliance And Satisfaction, Bhavana Sawhney

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

PURPOSE

Retention is an important aspect of orthodontics, which may influence the long-term outcome and satisfaction level of patients who undergo orthodontic treatment. The objective of this study was to identify commonly used orthodontic retainers and retention protocols, and assess patients’ opinions and satisfaction levels with these regimens in relation to several pre-defined variables.

METHODS:

A 149 question survey was created with advanced skip and branching logic. The survey was administered to orthodontic patients at either the one or two year regularly scheduled retention appointment and the overall response rate was 99% (n=131). Data collection included queries on demographics, treatment …

An In-Vitro Study Evaluating The Fracture Resistance And Insertion Torque Of Self-Drilling Mini-Implants Upon Insertion Into Synthetic High Density Mandibular Bone., Angie L. Smith

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Introduction: Self-drilling mini-implants are commonly used in orthodontics, but there is little information regarding their fracture resistance in areas of high density bone without pre-drilling.

Purpose: To determine the peak fracture torques of six commonly used self-drilling mini-implants, and to examine how each performs in extreme conditions without pre-drilling.

Materials and Methods: Fifteen mini-implants from six different manufacturers were drilled into acrylic blocks using a custom-made insertion device incorporating a 6-DOF load cell for torque measurements. Peak fracture torques were recorded and compared for each of the six manufacturers. Additionally, ten mini-implants from each manufacturer were inserted into high density …

Measuring The Sixth Vital Sign: A Descriptive Analysis Of Distress In Individuals With Head And Neck Cancer And Their Caregivers, Catherine C. Bornbaum

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Introduction: Distress has become so problematic in oncology that it has been recognized as the “sixth vital sign” implying that distress monitoring should occur as routinely as the monitoring of one’s temperature or blood pressure. The research reported herein investigated the impact of head and neck cancer on levels of distress, commonly reported problems, and perceptions of quality of life in individuals with head and neck cancer and their caregivers.

Method: Two distinct studies were conducted; the first explored the patient experience of distress and quality of life while the second assessed the caregiver experience of these same constructs. A …

Construing Natural Restorative Environments In Individuals Treated For Cancer, Adam M.B. Day

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Restorative environments (RE) are increasingly being explored for their potential to foster psychophysiologic restoration and promote health and well-being. However, there is a paucity of research that focuses on oncology populations. The purpose of this study was to explore whether individuals treated for cancer with chemotherapy construed natural restorative environments (NREs) differently than age- and gender-matched individuals never treated for cancer. Fifteen individuals treated for cancer with chemotherapy (11 females and 4 males; treatment group) and 15 age- and gender-matched individuals (comparison group) participated in interviews and completed repertory grids based on construing NREs. Constructs were elicited directly from participants …

Characterization Of Staphylococcus Aureus Lipase, Vithooshan Vijayakumaran

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

USA300, a strain of community-associated methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA), has become prevalent in the community. Colonization of human skin requires mechanisms that allow this bacterium to overcome the innate immune defenses on the skin, including secretion of antimicrobial lipids. Antimicrobial lipids inhibit S. aureus growth and induce the staphylococcal proteolytic cascade, producing aureolysin (Aur) which processes the lipase glycerol ester hydrolase (Geh). Nearly all S. aureus strains secrete Geh, yet little information exists concerning its function. Using purified Aur and Geh we confirm that aureolysin processes proGeh to Geh. We then confirmed that geh was required for lipase activity …

The Role Of Il-22 Produced By Th17 Cells In Type 1 Diabetes, Stacey M. Bellemore

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Interleukin-22 (IL-22) is produced by T helper 17 (Th17) cells. Th17 cells have been shown to be pathogenic in autoimmune diseases, however their role in type 1 diabetes (T1D) remains controversial. We have shown that Th17-differentiation of naïve T cells can be driven by IL-23 + IL-6 to produce large amounts of IL-22 and induce T1D. Conversely, polarizing T cells using TGF-β + IL-6 led to nonpathogenic Th17 cells that produced lower IL-22 levels. We have shown that neutralizing IFN-γ during polarization leads to a drastic increase in IL-22. We have also found IL-22-producing cells in the pancreas of diabetic …

Folate Receptor-Targeting Liposomes For The Delivery Of Antisense Molecules To Cancer Cells, Colin J. Way

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

RNAi (RNA interference) is emerging as a promising tool for cancer therapy. Small interfering RNA (siRNA) molecules are activated in that pathway to reduce specific tumour cell RNAs that mediate malignancy. SiRNA treatment has been primarily limited to in vitro studies: lack of efficient, preferential in vivo delivery to target cells remains a major obstacle. Many human tumours overexpress folate receptors (FR), and siRNA-mediated reduction of thymidylate synthase (TS) sensitizes tumour cells to anti-TS drugs. I developed a folate-containing cationic liposome to preferentially deliver anti-TS siRNA to FR-expressing human tumour cells. I show, in vitro, that liposome-encapsulated siRNA (but …

Identification Of The Salivary Proteome In Children Throughout The Course Of Dental Eruption, Nada Tabbara

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The salivary proteome is recognized as a valuable source of potential oral and systemic disease biomarkers. Major efforts in salivary research have been dedicated to identify and characterize salivary proteins present in saliva using both classical biochemical methods and proteomics approaches in adults. Despite considerable research on the salivary proteome, little attention has been given to the changes in the salivary proteome occurring in children, specifically from 0-3 years of age. Through the use of anionic PAGE, SDS PAGE, HPLC and MS/MS, salivary protein profiles in children before, during and after dental eruption were compared with edentulous adult controls. We …

The Effectiveness Of Gain- Versus Loss-Framed Advertisements To Minimize Hazardous Drinking Among University Students: A Test Of Regulatory Fit, Barlas Gunay

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

University binge drinking is a concern. Traditionally, social norms marketing campaigns have been employed. Regulatory focus theory – based on the premise that behavior is driven either by the motivation to maximize gains (promotion) or to minimize losses (prevention) – offers an alternative approach to crafting persuasive appeals in this population. This study investigated the effectiveness of gain-framed versus loss-framed advertisements in lowering drinking intentions in a university sample. It further explored whether the effects were moderated by regulatory focus – primed and dispositional – and trait reactance. Online surveys were completed by 208 Introductory Psychology students (51.7% female, mean …

Human Adenovirus E1a Binds And Retasks Cellular Hbre1, Blocking Interferon Signalling And Activating Virus Early Gene Transcription, Gregory J. Fonseca

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Upon infection, human adenovirus (HAdV) must block interferon signaling and activate the expression of its early genes to reprogram the cellular environment to support virus replication. During the initial phase of infection, these processes are orchestrated by the first HAdV gene expressed during infection, early region 1A (E1A). E1A binds and appropriates components of the cellular transcriptional machinery to modulate cellular gene transcription and activate viral early genes transcription. We have identified hBre1/RNF20 as a novel target of E1A. hBre1 is an E3 ubiquitin ligase which acts with the Ube2b E2 conjugase and accessory factors RNF40 and WAC1 to monoubiquitinate …

Characterizing Stomatin-Like Protein 2 And Its Role In Neuron Survival, Lisa A. Foris

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Stomatin-like Protein 2 (SLP-2) has been identified as a stress-inducible transcript and has been shown to interact with and stabilize mitochondrial proteins. Since mitochondria are critical for neuronal function, we hypothesized that SLP-2 regulates neuron survival in response to stressful stimuli. A conditional SLP-2 knockout mouse (deletion) and the SN56 cell line (upregulation) were employed to study the role of SLP-2 in mitochondrial dynamics and neuron survival. SLP-2 deficient primary cortical neurons displayed significantly decreased levels of various mitochondrial respiratory chain proteins, indicating SLP-2 contributes to maintenance of mitochondrial membrane integrity. SLP-2 was up-regulated in response to oxidative stress and …

Elongation Factor 1a-1 And Hepatocyte Response To Fatty Acid Excess, Alexandra M. Stoianov

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Obesity is associated with elevated levels of serum fatty acids, which accumulate in nonadipose tissues including the liver. Elongation factor 1A-1 (EF1A-1) has previously been shown to participate in the cell stress and death response of cardiomyocytes to excess saturated fatty exposure, and in steatotic mouse myocardium. In this thesis, the hypothesis that the hepatocyte response to fatty acid overload involves EF1A-1 was tested. EF1A-1 expression was induced in the livers of obese mice in association with severe hepatic steatosis, and in HepG2 human hepatoma cells in response to excess palmitate. Partial translocation of EF1A-1 from the ER to polymerized …

The Role Of Pu.1 And Spi-B In B Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, Shereen Turkistany

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

ETV6-RUNX1 is the most common chromosomal alteration in pediatric B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. ETV6-RUNX1 represses RUNX1 target genes. However, little is known about the target genes of ETV6-RUNX1 that are involved in promoting leukemogenesis. A recent study with two human leukemia cell lines AT-2 and REH, which express ETV6-RUNX1, suggested that SPIB was one of the top of the genes that were up regulated after knocking down the ETV6-RUNX1 fusion protein. In addition, our lab showed that deletion of PU.1 and Spi-B in B cells in mice resulted in the development of B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia with 100% …

Immunohistochemical Studies Of Expression And Correlation Of Osteopontin, Cd44, And Integrin Αvβ3 In Selected Benign And Malignant Salivary Gland Tumours, Tommy Fok

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Osteopontin (OPN) is a phosphorylated acidic glycoprotein that has been shown to play a vital role in tumourigenesis and metastases. The objective of this study was to determine the expression of OPN and its receptors (CD44 and integrin α_vβ₃) in several salivary gland cancers, and assess its clinical correlations.

Immunohistochemical techniques were used to semi-quantify the level of OPN expression and its receptors in normal salivary glands and different types of salivary gland tumour.

Our results show that in tumours of salivary gland origin, higher levels of OPN were detected in tumours which were malignant compared …

The Role Of Non-Canonical Wnt/Planar Cell Polarity Signalling In Breast Cancer Progression, Connor D. Macmillan

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The role of planar cell polarity (PCP) signalling in breast cancer is unclear, as evidence shows that activation of this pathway with WNT5A can either promote or inhibit progression. Using the 21T cells, which represent distinct stages of breast cancer progression when grown in a mouse xenograft model (21PT, atypical ductal hyperplasia; 21NT ductal carcinoma in situ; 21MT-1, invasive mammary carcinoma), I hypothesized that WNT5A will promote progression only when VANGL1, another component of PCP signalling, is elevated.

Each 21T cell line showed distinct stage-specific morphologies when grown in a Matrigel “on-top” assay. WNT5A overexpression promoted progression to an invasive …

Ethnic Identity And The Perception Of Facial Profile Aesthetics: A Preliminary Study, Paul Michael Glasser

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

In a multicultural society, the orthodontist is often faced with the challenge of interpreting an individual’s aesthetic preferences, which depending on the individual might differ from Eurocentric standards. Psychological researchers have recognized that ethnicity is dynamic, and better defined as a perception of self, influenced by social interaction and cultural involvement. Ethnic identity was investigated using three broad ethnic groups (Caucasian-American, African-American and Asian-American) with an established Multicultural Ethnic Identity Measure (Revised [MEIM-R]). Profiles for males and females of each group were constructed using published soft tissue data. Each profile was modified from subnasale to soft tissue B-point by displacing …

Immune Responses To Homocitrullinated Protein/Peptide In Rheumatoid Arthritis, Mathias J. Scinocca

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is an inflammatory autoimmune disease which causes joint destruction. RA pathogenesis involves citrullinated peptides binding to the shared epitope (SE) during autoantigen presentation, and subsequent Anti-Citrulline Antibody (ACA) production. Their target, citrulline, is very similar to homocitrulline.

The main objective of this study was to investigate anti-homocitrulline immune responses in RA. Specifically, it investigated if: i) Anti-Homocitrulline Antibodies (AHA) were RA specific by screening patients with various inflammatory rheumatic diseases and healthy individuals. ii) ACA also bound homocitrulline by affinity purification and characterization. iii) anti-homocitrulline immune responses involved the SE by computer modelling and immunization of mice. …

Differential Effects Of Macaque Dorsolateral Prefrontal Deactivations During Uncued And Cued Role Conditions, Sabeeha Hussein

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Cognitive control enables us to guide our behaviour in an appropriate, context-dependent manner. This behavioral flexibility is probed by task-switching paradigms, which require working memory to maintain relevant rules and flexibility to switch between rules. The dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) has been implicated in rule maintenance by neuroimaging and electrophysiological studies. While these studies have identified a correlation between DLPFC activity and rule maintenance, deactivation studies allow us to establish a causal relationship. Here we have examined the effect of bilateral deactivation of areas 46 and 9/46d on rule maintenance, while a monkey (Macacca mulatta) performed blocks of …

Hearts And Minds: Examining The Evolution Of The Egyptian Excerebration And Evisceration Traditions Through The Impact Mummy Database, Andrew D. Wade

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Egyptian mummification and funerary rituals were a transformative process, making the deceased a pure being; free of disease, injury, and disfigurements, as well as ethical and moral impurities. Consequently, the features of mummification available to specific categories of individuals hold social and ideological significance. This study refutes long-held classical stereotypes, particularly dogmatic class associations; demonstrates the apocryphal nature of universal heart retention; and expands on the purposes of excerebration and evisceration implied by synthetic and radiological analyses.

Features of the embalming traditions, specifically the variable excerebration and evisceration traditions, represented the Egyptian view of death. Fine-grain analyses, through primary imaging …

Restriction Of Hiv-1 Replication By Unique Trim22 Isoforms., Clayton Hattlmann

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Understanding how the immune system reacts to HIV infection and why normal antiviral defenses are insufficient to fight infection is a key step towards creating better therapies. Several interferon-induced proteins, such as the tripartite motif protein TRIM22, are capable of restricting HIV-1 replication; however single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) can dramatically impact the actions of these proteins. While the trim22 gene contains numerous SNPs, no study has addressed how these may affect TRIM22 functions. Here we provide the first direct comparison of two TRIM22 unique isoforms. Through confocal microscopy we observed these isoforms exhibit different patterns of localization. In vitro studies …

Modulatory Effects Of North American Ginseng Extracts On Human Innate And Adaptive Immune Responses, Holly Rebecca Lemmon

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Ginseng has played a vital role in traditional Chinese medicine for thousands of years. There are 22 variants of ginseng including North American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) and Asian ginseng (Panax ginseng). The use of North American ginseng has increased dramatically and there is a strong need to understand its immunomodulatory effects. This is because the majority of current research focusing on the Asian ginseng variant. Human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) were used to test the immunomodulatory properties of 3 North American ginseng extracts, COLD-FX^® and deglycosylated individual ginsenosides. Microarray analysis of PBMC exposed to …

Planning, Implementation, And Formative Evaluation Of A Food Literacy Program, Heather M. Thomas

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The overall purpose of this dissertation was to examine the planning, implementation, and formative evaluation of a community-based food literacy program for youth. Article 1 provided a summary of the community-based cooking program for at-risk youth. Objectives included the provision of applied food literacy and cooking skills education augmented with fieldtrips to local farms. Eight at-risk youth (five girls and three boys, mean age = 14.6) completed the intervention. Post intervention, five of eight participants completed in-depth interviews about their experiences.

Article 2 was a formative evaluation of the cooking program focused on gaining an understanding of participants’ (i.e., at-risk …

Magnetic Field Effects On The Neuroprocessing Of Pain, John A. Robertson

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Magnetic fields can affect behaviour in a variety of ways, in a manner that is dependent on the particulars of the magnetic field exposure. A specific pulsed magnetic field with analgesic properties was investigated using functional magnetic resonance imaging with acute thermal pain. The functional activation of pain was significantly different pre/post exposure vs. a sham condition within areas of the brain associated with the affective component of pain, in particular the anterior cingulate and the right insula. Sleep was found to be a significant confound with a 45-minute exposure. This was the first time fMRI has been used as …

In Vivo Cellular Mri In Experimental Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury, Laura E. Gonzalez-Lara

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Spinal cord injury (SCI) remains one of the most devastating conditions in medicine; it is a complex medical condition with no cure currently available. Inflammation plays an important role in SCI as it can have both beneficial and detrimental effects. Cell therapy has emerged as a promising treatment for SCI due to the potential for stem cells, including multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC), for tissue regeneration and immunomodulation of the inflammatory cascade after the initial trauma. However, there are still important, unresolved questions regarding cell therapy that magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can help to address by producing high-resolution images with …