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Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences

Zebrafish As A Model To Understand The Impact Of Inactivity And Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation On Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, Elisabeth Kilroy Aug 2020

Zebrafish As A Model To Understand The Impact Of Inactivity And Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation On Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, Elisabeth Kilroy

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Skeletal muscle plasticity is imperative for functional adaptation to changing demands in activity. Although a great deal is known about the structural and functional plasticity of healthy skeletal muscle, far less is known about plasticity in diseased muscle. Here, we combined the power of the zebrafish model with the adaptability of neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) to study the basic mechanisms of plasticity in the zebrafish model of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD). Four NMES paradigms, defined by their frequency, delay, and voltage, were designed to emulate the repetition and load schemes of human resistance training programs. Additionally, two inactivity paradigms were …


Evaluating The Effects Of Antibody-Conjugated Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes In Combination With Microwave Irradiation, Amy Chall Jan 2019

Evaluating The Effects Of Antibody-Conjugated Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes In Combination With Microwave Irradiation, Amy Chall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Cancer remains one of the largest public health concerns of our day, particularly in developed countries where technological advances have allowed populations to live well into their eighth decade. In America, those in their 80’s have a 1 in 2 chance of developing cancer in their lifetime. Prostate cancer, specifically is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in males. Traditional cancer therapies cause high levels of toxicity to the patient due to mechanisms of action that often attack cancer cells and healthy cells alike. The holy grail of cancer research is to find a treatment that targets the cancer …


Host Mediated Mechanisms Of Fungal Cell Spread In A Transparent Zebrafish Infection Model, Allison Scherer Dec 2018

Host Mediated Mechanisms Of Fungal Cell Spread In A Transparent Zebrafish Infection Model, Allison Scherer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Innate immunity has developed elegant processes for the detection and clearance of invasive fungal pathogens. Disseminated candidiasis is of significant concern for those with suppressed immune systems or indwelling medical equipment, and mortality in these groups approaches 70%. Poor patient outcomes have spurred the need to understand how this non-motile pathogen spreads in the host. Technical limitations have previously hindered our ability to visualize the role of innate immunity and host tissue barriers in the spread of C. albicans in vivo. Using the zebrafish model to overcome these limitations, we have examined three potential host-mediated mechanisms of dissemination: movement …


Characterizing The Role Of Fungal Shape In A Zebrafish Model Of Invasive Candidiasis, Brittany Seman Jun 2018

Characterizing The Role Of Fungal Shape In A Zebrafish Model Of Invasive Candidiasis, Brittany Seman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Candida albicans is a common hospital-acquired fungal infection, and disseminated disease claims up to one-half of those afflicted. C. albicans has a unique ability to differentiate its shape during infection, and this differentiation is thought to be a major virulence factor during invasive infections. Each shape is proposed to have a specialized role: filaments drive tissue invasion and yeast mediate dissemination to the bloodstream. However, it has been difficult to test these hypotheses for two reasons. First, rigorous testing of shape-specific roles requires diverse strategies of shape modulation that restrict the possibility of manipulation-specific artifacts. Second, although connecting shape to …


Expression Profiling Of Non-Coding Rna By Environmental Interactions In Innate Immunity, Jacob R. Longfellow Aug 2017

Expression Profiling Of Non-Coding Rna By Environmental Interactions In Innate Immunity, Jacob R. Longfellow

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disorder that affects 30,000 people in the United States and currently has no cure. Although CF affects all of the body’s systems, it is largely characterized as a lung disease. CF is caused by a mutation in both copies of the gene for cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR). A mutation in the CFTR gene leads to improper movement of chloride ions and water into the airways, which dysregulates the airway surface liquid volume and composition. Individuals with CF are prone to lung infections due to inefficient bacterial clearance and by the age of …


Saffron Extract And Its Active Constituents As Preventative And/Or Treatment Agents For Prostate Cancer Using In Vitro And In Vivo Models, Faisal Fayih Albaqami Jan 2016

Saffron Extract And Its Active Constituents As Preventative And/Or Treatment Agents For Prostate Cancer Using In Vitro And In Vivo Models, Faisal Fayih Albaqami

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Saffron extract and its active constituents were evaluated as chemopreventatives and/or treatments for prostate cancer. Different models of prostate cancer (in vitro and in vivo) were used for studying saffron and its constituents’ mechanisms. In normal prostate cells, saffron extract, crocetin, and safranal, in non-toxic concentrations, possessed antioxidant properties against the reactive oxygen species induced by H2O2 which further supports saffron constituents as chemopreventative agents. Moreover, saffron and its active constituents produced cytotoxicity in prostate cancer cells through intrinsic apoptosis pathways. Potential efficacy in minimizing prostate cancer metastasis was also examined. Saffron extract, crocetin, and safranal decreased the migration and …


Total Synthesis Of Biologically Active Natural And Unnatural Products, Julia Heimberger Jan 2015

Total Synthesis Of Biologically Active Natural And Unnatural Products, Julia Heimberger

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Herbarin A and B were isolated from the fungal strains of Cladosporium herbarum found in marine sponges Aplysina aerophoba and Callyspongia aerizusa. Total synthesis of Herbarin A and B was achieved by carrying out a multi-step synthesis approach, and the antioxidant properties were evaluated using FRAP assay. Toxicity of these compounds was determined using a zebrafish embryo model. Furthermore, synthesis of C-6 alkyl-azaarene derivatives of nucleosides by Csp3-H bond functionalization were investigated. Effective incorporation of 2-methylazaarene moiety at the C-6 position of the protected inosine nucleoside provided a new class of compounds with anticipated enhanced biological activity.