Life Sciences Commons^™

Long Term Estrogen Loss Worsens Heart Function In Aged Female Mice, Pamela Avendaño-Rubí

Tennessee Posters at the Capitol

Heart disease is the leading cause of death worldwide and according to the American Heart Association, the risk of HD in aging menopausal women doubles compared to men of the same age. Excessive contractility of blood vessels is a common feature in heart disease. Clinical and animal studies further support that estrogen loss worsen the contractility in the heart but the details remain unclear. Thus, the overall goal of this work was to examine how the timing and duration of estrogen loss affects heart failure. Our hypothesis is that long-term estrogen loss following heart failure worsens cardiac function of the …

Deficiency Of Ataxia Telangiectasia-Mutated Kinase (Atm) Preserves Heart Function By Affecting Cardiac Remodeling In Response To Western-Type Diet (Wd) In Female Mice, Paulina Ramirez

Tennessee Posters at the Capitol

WD and deficiency of ATM protein independently associates with heart disease. Previous work demonstrated that WD in male ATM deficient mice induces accelerated body weight gain and heart dysfunction (Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2021;320:H2324-H2338). Conversely, WD in female ATM deficient mice attenuates weight gain and preserves heart function (unpublished). Here, we investigated the mechanism by which ATM deficiency preserves heart function in female mice. Female wild-type (WT) and ATM heterozygous knockout (hKO) mice, aged 6 weeks, were fed with normal chow (NC) or WD for 14 weeks. Heart sections were stained with Masson’s trichrome to quantify fibrosis, TUNEL-stained …

Relationship Satisfaction & Diet: Exploring The Mechanisms Through Which Intimate Relationships Influence Physical Health, Lindsey Robinson, Dylan Hillock, Dr. Josh Novak

Southeastern Council on Family Relations Conference

Understanding how intimate relationships influence physical health has been an important topic of focus; however, research remains unclear on the mechanisms through which this influence occurs. The purpose of this study was to examine how relationship satisfaction relates to diet quality, through mental health (depression and anxiety) and diet self-efficacy. Using a dyadic mediation model with a sample of 234 heterosexual couples, researchers found that women's higher relationship satisfaction was associated with better diet through lower depression and higher diet self-efficacy. Results revealed the same association between women's relationship satisfaction and diet through lower anxiety. Interestingly, rather than mediation through …

Determining The Physiological And Behavioral Methods Of Salinity Tolerance In Corbicula Fluminea, John Warren Roden Iii

Appalachian Student Research Forum

While a significant degree of salinity tolerance has been observed in the bivalve mollusk species Corbicula fluminea, the physiological and behavioral responses to changes in salinity by these organisms are not completely understood. It was hypothesized that Corbicula would initially avoid any salinity stress behaviorally through valve closure, but would eventually have to open to dispel anaerobic waste products and deal with the salinity. To explore this, Corbicula were collected and put through a series of experiments at salinity exposures of 0, 2.5, and 5.0ppt, with tissue water content and hemolymph osmolality being measured. After an initial 96-hour exposure …

Refrigerated Stability Of Diluted Cisatracurium, Rocuronium, And Vecuronium For Skin Testing After Perioperative Anaphylaxis, Kristen Dinsmore, Bethany Campbell, Timothy Archibald, Greg Mosier, Stacy Brown Phd, Alexei Gonzalez-Estrada Md

Appalachian Student Research Forum

Rationale: The purpose of this study is to investigate the stored stability of dilutions of neuromuscular blocking agents (NMBAs), namely cisatracurium, rocuronium, and vecuronium, for skin prick/intradermal testing.

Methods: Concentrations of NMBAs were monitored by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for a period of 14 days. Dilutions of NMBAs were prepared in saline by factors of 10x, 100x, 1,000x, 10,000x, and 100,000x as sensitivity of the assay allowed. Diluted drug products were stored in a laboratory refrigerator until sampling. On sampling days, aliquots of each dilution were removed and compared to a freshly prepared set of reference dilutions.

Results: The results …

Inhibition Of Tnf-Alpha Decreases Microglia Activation In Rats Neonatally Treated With Poly I:C, Heath W. Shelton, Russell W. Brown

Appalachian Student Research Forum

Introduction: Current medical treatment for individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia (SCHZ) primarily relies on the inhibition of the dopamine D₂ receptor that has been shown to be supersensitive in these patients. Treatment occurs through the use of antipsychotic medication which leads to a number of debilitating dose-dependent side effects, such as weight gain, agranulocytosis, and seizures. Patients diagnosed with SCHZ have also been shown to have increased inflammation in their central nervous system (CNS), particularly within specific brain regions such as the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus. This is in large part due to the interaction between a pro-inflammatory cytokine called …

Increasing Fruits And Vegetable Consumption Among Snap Recipients Through An Innovative Prescription Program: Appalachian Farmacy, Kiriinya Mwirigi, Beenish Kamran

Appalachian Student Research Forum

Introduction:

Food insecurity prevalence in Washington County, TN is 14.3% yet 61% of SNAP eligible residents are food insecure. Food insecurity is associated with inadequate consumption of fruits and vegetables, as well as increased risk of chronic disease. Tennessee ranks 47^th in the Nation with only 6.7% consuming the recommended fruits and vegetable intake. The Farmacy Pilot Program was developed to encourage increased consumption of produce and to reduce food insecurity among SNAP recipients.

Methods:

This program provided vouchers to SNAP recipients and their families to buy fresh fruits and vegetables at the farmers market and in the grocery …