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Effect Of Oasis-Ultra Matrix On The Healing Rate Of Stage Iv Pressure Wounds, Abdelfatah Shaban Abou Issa Jan 2016

Effect Of Oasis-Ultra Matrix On The Healing Rate Of Stage Iv Pressure Wounds, Abdelfatah Shaban Abou Issa

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Introduction: (Oasis-ultra) is an extra cellular collagen rich matrix derived from porcine intestinal sub-mucosa. A prospective, multi-centered, randomized, single-blinded clinical trial was conducted to study the effects of Oasis-ultra combined with negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) on the healing rate of stage IV pressure wounds versus NPWT alone. Materials and Methods: Twelve subjects were involved in the study: six patients in the study group and six in the control group. NPWT was changed twice a week for all subjects, and Oasis-ultra was applied weekly. The wounds were measured weekly, and the healing rate was calculated for each subject for 12 …


Examination Of A Post-Stroke Drug Treatment For Its Effect On Blood Brain Barrier Permeability, And Gene Expression Changes In The Peri-Infarct Region, Ankita Anil Patel Jan 2016

Examination Of A Post-Stroke Drug Treatment For Its Effect On Blood Brain Barrier Permeability, And Gene Expression Changes In The Peri-Infarct Region, Ankita Anil Patel

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In this current study, we have investigated this a combination of fluoxetine, simvastatin and ascorbic acid administered daily beginning at 20-26 hours after stroke induction. We hope to understand therapeutic abilities by studying its effectiveness on the blood brain barrier permeability and gene expression changes of the microglial subtypes involved in neuro-inflammation and neurogenesis factors in the peri-infarct region. Our results indicate that S-enantiomer of fluoxetine may be more beneficial compared to the R-enantiomer. The S-enantiomer was effective in tightening the blood brain barrier in contrast to the R-enantiomer, in which the latter showed a greater Evans Blue dye permeability …


Effects Of Synthetic Ligands On Heterodimer Pairs Regarding Full-Length Human Pparα, Rxrα And Lxrα, Emily Delman Jan 2016

Effects Of Synthetic Ligands On Heterodimer Pairs Regarding Full-Length Human Pparα, Rxrα And Lxrα, Emily Delman

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Nuclear receptor study is critically relevant in therapeutic medicine since the intricate details of disease states pertaining to atherosclerosis and diabetes are poorly understood. Three nuclear receptors of interest regulate target genes pertaining to cholesterol and fatty acid regulation, linking these receptors to therapeutic medicine. The first is the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARa), which resides in liver and muscle, coordinating lipoprotein and fatty acid homeostasis [1]. Cholesterol homeostasis is dictated by the liver X receptor alpha (LXRa), targeting genes pertaining to the kidney, intestine, liver and adipose tissues [2]. A common partner receptor to PPARa and LXRa is known …


The Use Of Doublecortin To Quantify The Effects Of Pharmacological Treatment On Neurogenesis And Functional Recovery After Stroke, Amber Lee Hensley Jan 2016

The Use Of Doublecortin To Quantify The Effects Of Pharmacological Treatment On Neurogenesis And Functional Recovery After Stroke, Amber Lee Hensley

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Ischemic strokes account for 87% of all strokes and can have debilitating effects on language, sensory, and motor skills. Currently, tPA is the only medication approved by the FDA for the treatment of ischemic stroke, but the window of time to administer the drug is very small. In this thesis, we investigate the use of a simvastatin and fluoxetine drug combination (FS) as a possible treatment for ischemic stroke victims. To analyze the effects of FS on neurogenesis and functional recovery, we utilize the Montoya Staircase and quantify the amount of neurogenesis using doublecortin. Although the results of this study …


Instability At Trinucleotide Repeat Dnas, Rujuta Yashodhan Gadgil Jan 2016

Instability At Trinucleotide Repeat Dnas, Rujuta Yashodhan Gadgil

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Trinucleotide repeats (TNRs) are sequences prone to formation of non-B DNA structures and mutations; undergo expansions in vivo to cause various inherited neurodegenerative diseases. Hairpin structures formed during DNA replication or repair can cause replication fork stalling and if left unrepaired could cause single or double strand DNA breaks. To test and study this hypothesis we have devised a novel two color marker gene assay to detect DNA breaks at TNRs. By inducing replication stress our results show that TNRs are prone to DNA strand breaks and it is dependent on the repeat tract length. Double strand breaks at structured …


Cross Sensitization Of Depressive-Like Behavior Through Two Depression Related Paradigms: Maternal Separation And Its Effect On The Forced Swim Test In The Guinea Pig, Amanda Danielle Schreibeis Jan 2016

Cross Sensitization Of Depressive-Like Behavior Through Two Depression Related Paradigms: Maternal Separation And Its Effect On The Forced Swim Test In The Guinea Pig, Amanda Danielle Schreibeis

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Separation and Its Effect on the Forced Swim Test In the Guinea Pig Early-life stress such as parental neglect, absence, or abandonment, has been hypothesized to increase the susceptibility for developing depression later in life via sensitization of stress-responsive physiological systems (e.g., pro-inflammatory cytokines, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis). Guinea pigs offer a potential model, but study has been limited to behavioral observations obtained during maternal separation tests. This thesis examined the generalization of this response by asking whether it would cross-sensitize to behavior in another depressive-related paradigm, the forced swim test. In three experiments, pups underwent three forced swim trials, in shallower …


The Expression Of Dopamine-Related Genes And Behavioral Performance In Mice, Victoria Lynne Dershem Jan 2016

The Expression Of Dopamine-Related Genes And Behavioral Performance In Mice, Victoria Lynne Dershem

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While the neurotransmitter dopamine has been well-studied for its role in mood regulation and activation of the intrinsic reward pathway, several psychiatric disorders linked to dopamine are also known to cause memory impairment, a phenomenon which has attracted much less attention. In the current study, whole-transcriptome RNA sequencing was performed, and transcript levels of several dopamine-related genes were compared to results of behavioral assays designed to test spatial and emotional memory, as well as anxiety. The results suggest a positive relationship between expression level of Nurr1, a nuclear receptor known to initiate transcription of genes necessary for dopaminergic signaling, …


Genetic Analysis Of Male-Specific Lethality Between Caenorhabditis Briggsae:: Caenorhabditis Nigoni F1 Hybrids, Vaishnavi Ragavapuram Jan 2016

Genetic Analysis Of Male-Specific Lethality Between Caenorhabditis Briggsae:: Caenorhabditis Nigoni F1 Hybrids, Vaishnavi Ragavapuram

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Speciation occurs when there is a lack of reproduction due to genetic barriers. These genetic barriers to gene flow are referred as reproductive isolation mechanisms. Pre-zygotic and post-zygotic isolation are types of reproductive isolation mechanisms. In this project, post-zygotic isolation mechanisms were examined. Haldane's Rule states that in F1 hybrids, individuals of the heterogametic sex are less fit than those of the homogametic sex. Darwin's Corollary to Haldane's rule states that there is asymmetry in hybrid progeny between interspecific reciprocal crosses. Crosses done between Caenorhabditis briggsae males to Caenorhabditis nigoni females produce viable F1 hybrid females and males, yet the …


Genomic Signatures Of Population History In A Pair Of Recently Diverged Australian Teal Support Strong Selection On The Z Sex-Chromosome, Kevin Kyle Hawkins Jan 2016

Genomic Signatures Of Population History In A Pair Of Recently Diverged Australian Teal Support Strong Selection On The Z Sex-Chromosome, Kevin Kyle Hawkins

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Sex chromosomes are thought to be an important component of the genome associated with speciation and the buildup of reproductive isolation. Recent advances in sequencing technologies and improvements in population genetics and modeling techniques have made it possible to better assess genomic signatures of selection, genetic drift and gene flow in diverging lineages. Recent studies have shown elevated differentiation on the Z sex-chromosome between the Australian grey teal (Anas gracilis) and chestnut teal (Anas castanea). Here, we used next generation sequencing to scan ~3,400 autosomal loci and ~190 Z loci to examine genomic differentiation and signatures of selection and gene …


Novel Insight Into The Role Of Lxrα In Metabolic Regulation Via Dna Binding As A Heterodimer With Pparα And As A Homodimer, Andrea M. Klingler Jan 2016

Novel Insight Into The Role Of Lxrα In Metabolic Regulation Via Dna Binding As A Heterodimer With Pparα And As A Homodimer, Andrea M. Klingler

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Liver X receptor a (LXRa) plays a critical role in the maintenance of energy homeostasis within a cell through tight transcriptional regulation of genes involved in metabolism of lipids, glucose, and cholesterol. Although LXRa has been established to function as a heterodimer with the retinoid X receptor a (RXRa), recent studies have determined that LXRa also interacts directly with peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor a (PPARa). However, little is known regarding the functionality of this heterodimer, if any exists at all. This study determined that a heterodimer of PPARa and LXRa is capable of binding to candidate response elements in vitro with …


Cell Viability, Cytoskeleton Organization And Cytokines Secretion Of Raw 264.7 Macrophages Exposed To Gram-Negative Bacterial Components, Ali Awadh Alshehri Jan 2016

Cell Viability, Cytoskeleton Organization And Cytokines Secretion Of Raw 264.7 Macrophages Exposed To Gram-Negative Bacterial Components, Ali Awadh Alshehri

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Macrophages play an important role in innate immunity by controlling cellular responses. In this study, the effects of gram-negative bacterial components (Flagellin, lipoprotein, lipopolysaccharides (LPS), outer membrane proteins-A (OMP-A) and peptidoglycan) were determined on cell viability, morphology, cytoskeletal filament and cytokines secretion of murine RAW 264.7 macrophages at 24 hours. The effect of LPS, flagellin and peptidoglycan from gram negative bacteria on viability murine RAW 264.7 macrophages were evaluated using different concentrations (1, 5 and 10 µg/ml). Cells stimulated with LPS displayed ~ 2-fold decrease (P=0.001) in cell viability compared to control cells at 24 hours whereas cells stimulated with …


Investigation Of Exoribonuclease-1 Function In Regulation Of Stem Cells During Planarian Regeneration, Steven Gobinsing Sayson Jan 2016

Investigation Of Exoribonuclease-1 Function In Regulation Of Stem Cells During Planarian Regeneration, Steven Gobinsing Sayson

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Precise regulation of gene expression is crucial for the maintenance of pluripotency and proper differentiation of stem cells. Due to their exceptional capacity for stem cell-driven regeneration, planarians are ideal models to dissect mechanisms regulating gene expression that secure stem cell function in vivo. While mechanisms of transcriptional regulation of gene expression in stem cells have been extensively investigated, less is known about regulation at the post-transcriptional level. Exoribonuclease-1 (XRN-1) is a conserved enzyme in eukaryotes that catalyzes 5' to 3' exonucleolytic degradation of RNA. XRN-1 is known to be required for proper regeneration of Dugesia japonica. Here, I …


Development And Validation Of Virus And Ebola Misconceptions Assessment (Viremia): Ebola Virus Misconceptions In College Students, Michele Miller Jan 2016

Development And Validation Of Virus And Ebola Misconceptions Assessment (Viremia): Ebola Virus Misconceptions In College Students, Michele Miller

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In this study an assessment (VirEMiA) on college students' knowledge and misconceptions of the Ebola virus was created and validated. VirEMiA was then used to determine what misconceptions college students have about Ebola, if there is a difference in misconceptions between students with and without a strong science background, and if Just-in-Time Teaching (JiTT) increases students' knowledge of Ebola and decreases their misconceptions. VirEMiA was shown to be a valid and reliable assessment whether confidence was integrated (seprel=0.97) or not (seprel=0.98), and for measuring misconceptions (seprel=0.97). If psychology and nursing majors were considered to have a strong background in science, …


Social Buffering By Unfamiliar Adult Males In Preweaning Guinea Pigs (Cavia Pocellus): The Effects On Hpa Activity And Fos Induction In The Medial Prefrontal Cortex, Withayapon Watanasriyakul Jan 2016

Social Buffering By Unfamiliar Adult Males In Preweaning Guinea Pigs (Cavia Pocellus): The Effects On Hpa Activity And Fos Induction In The Medial Prefrontal Cortex, Withayapon Watanasriyakul

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Social buffering, a phenomenon in which the presence of a social partner can reduce stress responses, is often most effective between strongly attached partners. Our laboratory previously found a surprising buffering effect of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) response in preweaning guinea pigs by unfamiliar adult males. It was hypothesized that this HPA-buffering effect was driven by social interactions between the two partners and may involve an activation of the prelimbic cortex. Therefore, the current study examined these potential associations. To limit social interactions, the adult male was anesthetized in one condition compared to another condition where the adult male remained conscious. …


How Specialist And Generalist Herbivores Are Responding To Invasive Plant Threats, Lauren Elizabeth Shewhart Jan 2016

How Specialist And Generalist Herbivores Are Responding To Invasive Plant Threats, Lauren Elizabeth Shewhart

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The purpose of this study was to investigate novel interactions of native herbivores (Abia inflata, Abia americana, Zaschizonyx montana, and Hyphantria cunea) with non-native plants in Ohio. No-choice and choice bioassays were conducted with adults and larvae to examine life history traits, performance, and preference of these herbivores feeding exclusively on native and non-native species and damaged and undamaged foliage. It was found that all organisms in this study can perform well and complete their whole life cycle on L. maackii. Adult A. americana will oviposit in non-native hosts however newly emerged larvae have …


Characterization Of Sterility And Germline Defects Caused By Smed-Boule Rna-Interference, Jessica Kathryne Steiner Jan 2016

Characterization Of Sterility And Germline Defects Caused By Smed-Boule Rna-Interference, Jessica Kathryne Steiner

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Evolutionarily conserved molecular processes involved in construction of the germline and embryonic development are essential for the procreation of many species. Infertility affects 15% of couples in the world and can be caused by dysfunctions during egg and sperm development, anatomic defects, as well as faulty embryonic development. Although there are some infertility disorders that are genetically defined, such as Turner and Klinefelter syndromes, many clinical infertility cases are diagnosed as idiopathic due to the lack of understanding of basic fertility mechanisms. Schmidtea mediterranea is a freshwater planarian species that has the ability to regenerate complete organisms, including germ cells …


Changes In Cytoskeleton Proteins In Hsv-1 Infection Of J774a.1 Macrophage Phenotype, Riham Abbas Subahi Jan 2016

Changes In Cytoskeleton Proteins In Hsv-1 Infection Of J774a.1 Macrophage Phenotype, Riham Abbas Subahi

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The cell cytoskeleton, a unique intracellular matrix found in all eukaryotes, is composed of three main protein structures, microtubules, microlaments and intermediate laments. The cytoskeleton maintains cell shape and internal structures providing mechanical support that facilitates intracellular transport (Parker et al., 2014). Many viruses such as the herpesviruses use the cytoskeleton system of the cell for infectivity (Henry Sum, M. S. 2015). HSV-1 utilizes the cell cytoskeleton in many steps of its life cycle from entry through assembly to egress (Lyman et al., 2008). During infection, HSV-1 viral proteins cause drastic changes and rearrangement of the cellular actin and cell …


Host Location And Host-Associated Divergence In Parasitoids Of The Gall Midge, Asteromyia Carbonifera, Jeffrey L. Howell Jan 2016

Host Location And Host-Associated Divergence In Parasitoids Of The Gall Midge, Asteromyia Carbonifera, Jeffrey L. Howell

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Some of the world's greatest mysteries are the series of ecological and behavioral processes that promote adaptive radiation: when one species rapidly diverges into multiple descendants due to ecological selective pressures. Selective pressures from natural enemies have the potential to drive such radiations, as has been suggested in the diversification of the goldenrod gall-midge, Asteromyia carbonifera (Stireman et al., 2008, 2012). This complex, multitrophic system involves the midge species complex, their goldenrod host plants (Solidago sp.), and a suite of parasitoid enemies in the diverse wasp superfamily, Chalcidoidea. There is evidence that the midge is undergoing host-associated differentiation (HAD), in …


The Genomics Of Speciation Within The Globally Distributed Blue-Winged Ducks, Joel Thomas Nelson Jan 2016

The Genomics Of Speciation Within The Globally Distributed Blue-Winged Ducks, Joel Thomas Nelson

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The ability to disperse over long distances can result in a high propensity for colonizing new geographic regions and lead to lineage diversification via allopatric speciation. However, high vagility can also result in gene flow between otherwise allopatric populations, and in some cases, parapatric or divergence-with-gene-flow models of speciation might be more applicable to widely distributed lineages. Here, I used five nuclear introns and the mitochondrial control region to examine divergence, gene flow, and phylogenetic relationships within a cosmopolitan lineage comprising six species, the blue-winged ducks (genus Anas), which inhabit all continents except Antarctica. I found two primary sub-lineages, the …


Comparing Antibody-Coated Immune Beads With Flow Cytometry To Measure Ss-2-Microglubulin+ Murine Spleen Cells, Amal Fahad Alajman Jan 2016

Comparing Antibody-Coated Immune Beads With Flow Cytometry To Measure Ss-2-Microglubulin+ Murine Spleen Cells, Amal Fahad Alajman

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In diseases like AIDS, Multiple Myeloma, Multiple Sclerosis (MS), Type 1 Diabetes, and Systemic Lupus Erythromatosus the detection of major histocompatibility complex type 1 molecules (MHC 1) can be a helpful component of disease diagnosis and prognosis. Most somatic mammalian cells display to varying degrees major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class 1 antigen on the cell surface. MHC1 molecules consist of a polymorphic alpha a chain and a monomorphic beta chain, beta 2 microglubulin (ß2m). The ß2M composition is fairly constant within a species whereas the alpha chain is not. The polymorphic alpha chain is encoded by an MHC complex gene …


The Impact Of Hsv-1 Infection, Socs1 Peptide, And Socs3 Peptide Mimetic On Cell Viability, Morphology, And Cytoskeleton Proteins Of Unpolarized And Cytokine-Polarized M1 Raw 264.7 Murine Macrophages, Mubarak Almutairi Jan 2016

The Impact Of Hsv-1 Infection, Socs1 Peptide, And Socs3 Peptide Mimetic On Cell Viability, Morphology, And Cytoskeleton Proteins Of Unpolarized And Cytokine-Polarized M1 Raw 264.7 Murine Macrophages, Mubarak Almutairi

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Mubarak Huraysan Almutairi. M.S. Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Wright State University, 2016. The Impact of HSV-1 Infection, SOCS1 peptide, and SOCS3 peptide mimetic on Cell Viability, Morphology, and Cytoskeleton Proteins of Unpolarized and Cytokine-Polarized M1 RAW 264.7 Murine Macrophages. The immune response against HSV-1 involves macrophages in both innate and adaptive immunity by limiting HSV-1 replication. In this study, the effects of HSV-1 challenge on cell viability, morphology, and cytoskeletal filament in unpolarized and cytokine-polarized murine RAW 264.7 macrophages at 24 and 48 hours were monitored. Because the distribution of cytoskeleton throughout the cell is critical in cell viability …


Parasitoid Communities Of Remnant And Constructed Prairie Fragments In Western Ohio, Michael Drew Sheaffer Jan 2016

Parasitoid Communities Of Remnant And Constructed Prairie Fragments In Western Ohio, Michael Drew Sheaffer

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The ability of organisms to disperse to, utilize, and persist in novel habitats in a fragmented landscape is vital to the success of many ecosystem restoration and construction efforts. With less than four percent of original tallgrass prairie persisting across its range, conservationists have made efforts to both protect and restore remnant prairies as well as to plant new prairies. Previous studies suggest that restored ecosystems do not support the same levels of biodiversity and ecosystems services as their remnant counterparts. In this study I measured tachinid fly diversity and orthopteran parasitism rates in order to assess ecological similarity of …


Correlating Innate Functional Recovery From Stroke Either With Stem Cell Proliferation And/Or Limb Rehabilitation, Devipriyanka Nagarajan Jan 2016

Correlating Innate Functional Recovery From Stroke Either With Stem Cell Proliferation And/Or Limb Rehabilitation, Devipriyanka Nagarajan

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In the present study 10-12 month female rats were examined for functional recovery from stroke and this recovery was compared with the stem cell/progenitor cell proliferation in the brain (which was measured by Ki67). The cell proliferation indicated by Ki67 showed a 6 fold increase in control animals compared to the rehabilitation animals. The contralateral functional recovery in control animals were 46.6% and in the rehabilitation animals were 24.5%. The physical rehabilitation was carried out to determine if limb rehabilitation can promote greater functional recovery. The results showed that when the animals were made to over use their impaired limb …


Delineating ΔNp63α'S Function In Epithelial Cells, Suraj Sakaram Jan 2016

Delineating ΔNp63α'S Function In Epithelial Cells, Suraj Sakaram

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ΔNp63α, the most physiologically relevant isoform of p63, a p53 family member protein, maintains the proliferative capacity of the basal layer of epithelial tissues and is highly expressed in non-melanoma skin cancer. It has been implicated in a variety of different cancers, including breast, lung, and prostate cancers, however the complex role it plays in disease remains poorly understood. Elucidating ΔNp63α’s regulatory network may provide insight into its role in epithelial tissues and in cancer progression. The objective of this thesis is to investigate ΔNp63α’s upstream regulation in the context of non-melanoma skin cancer as well as expand on ΔNp63α’s …


Regulation Of Mitotic Progression By Btf And Trap150, Divya Cheedu Jan 2016

Regulation Of Mitotic Progression By Btf And Trap150, Divya Cheedu

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Serine-arginine-rich (SR) or SR-like splicing factors interact with exon junction complex proteins during pre-mRNA processing to promote mRNA packaging into mature messenger ribonucleoproteins (mRNPs) and to dictate mRNA stability, nuclear export, and translation. In this thesis, I examined if depletion of two homologous non-classical serine-arginine-rich (SR) splicing factors, Btf (BCLAF1) and TRAP150, impacts regulation of cell cycle regulator transcripts and mitosis. Previous work showed that depletion of these proteins by RNAi causes mitotic defects including chromosome misalignment in metaphase. However, since Btf and/or TRAP150 did not co-localize with mitotic structures during mitosis, I hypothesized that Btf and/or TRAP150 depletion affect …


Chemosensitivity In Mealworms And Darkling Beetles (Tenebrio Molitor) Across Oxygen And Carbon Dioxide Gradients, Andrew King Patterson Jan 2016

Chemosensitivity In Mealworms And Darkling Beetles (Tenebrio Molitor) Across Oxygen And Carbon Dioxide Gradients, Andrew King Patterson

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Breathing in most insects is controlled through a negative feedback loop consisting of signals (O2, CO2, pH), sensors (chemoreceptors), integrators (neural ganglia), and effectors (spiracles over tracheae). I hypothesized that mealworms and their adult counterparts Darkling beetles, Tenebrio molitor, can sense anoxic and hyperoxic environments and preferentially avoid these environments. I also hypothesize that mealworms are attracted to hypercarbia while Darkling beetles avoid hypercarbia. I constructed a test arena to create an O2 or CO2 gradient. Velocity, total distance traveled, and time spent in each area of the O2 or CO2 gradients …


The Expression Of Major Histocompatibility Class I And Major Histocompatibility Class Ii On Macrophages In The Presence Of Aryl Hydrocarbon Antagonist (Ch-223191), Caitlin Wilson Jan 2016

The Expression Of Major Histocompatibility Class I And Major Histocompatibility Class Ii On Macrophages In The Presence Of Aryl Hydrocarbon Antagonist (Ch-223191), Caitlin Wilson

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Macrophages are crucial for ridding the body of debris and foreign cells. The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) also plays a critical role in immunity. This study examined the effect of the AhR on the expression of major histocompatiability complex class I (MHCI) and MHC class II (MHCII) in two murine macrophage cell lines. This study used Raw264.7 and J774A.1 murine macrophage cell lines. The Raw264.7 cells are from male BALB/c mice while the J774A.1 cells are from female BALB/cN mice. The addition of the AhR anatagonist CH-223191 (AhRa) showed that the AhR does not significantly impact MHCI expression. However, MHCII …


The Effects Of Various Laundering Factors On The Recoverability Of Dna, Erin L. Houston Jan 2016

The Effects Of Various Laundering Factors On The Recoverability Of Dna, Erin L. Houston

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Criminals have been documented to launder clothing in an attempt to hide evidence; however, there limited studies on this type of evidence manipulation. This study looked at: 1) the effects of eighteen laundry additives at diluted and undiluted strengths on human blood, 2) the effects of a delay between deposit and laundering, 3) the amount of recoverable DNA on laundered clothing with different deposited volumes of blood, and 4) the transfer of genetic material within a primary load and between primary/secondary and primary/tertiary loads. There was a reduction in volume of DNA for some laundry additives. Nevertheless, all genotyped samples …


Determining Protein-Protein Interactions Of Als-Associated Sod1, Leah A. Shurte Jan 2016

Determining Protein-Protein Interactions Of Als-Associated Sod1, Leah A. Shurte

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Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disorder that occurs due to the death of motor neurons and leads to paralysis and death within three to five years after symptoms present (Byrne et al., 2013). Superoxide Dismutase 1 (SOD1) was first identified to be associated with ALS in 1993. The objective of this study is to determine which proteins interact with wild type and mutant SOD1 and find any similarities or differences between them. ALS is attributed to a gain of toxicity, therefore abnormal protein interactions in mutant SOD1 are important. The results of this study will provide insight on …


Interaction Of Na+/K+ Atpase With Bcl-2 Proteins: Isolated Enzyme Vs Epithelial Cell Extracts, Chandra Kumar Maharjan Jan 2016

Interaction Of Na+/K+ Atpase With Bcl-2 Proteins: Isolated Enzyme Vs Epithelial Cell Extracts, Chandra Kumar Maharjan

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The nearly complete inhibition of Na+/K+ ATPase (NKA) in fetal human lens (FHL) epithelial cells by chelerythrine (CHE), a Bcl-2 homology (BH)3-mimetic quaternary benzophenanthridine alkaloid was proposed to be the consequence of CHE binding at a BH1-like hydrophobic groove at the cytosolic aspect of NKA. This conclusion was based on in silico analysis showing at least two motifs in the N-terminal domain of NKA’s a1 subunit- i) aa 59-71 (ARAAEILARDGPN) and ii) aa 42-48 (DELHRKY) homologous to the BH1 and BH3 motifs of Bcl-2 (B-cell lymphoma) respectively, leading to a novel hypothesis that NKA could interact with these proteins by …