American Studies Commons^™

Evaluation Of Common Inherited Variants In Mitochondrial-Related And Microrna-Related Genes As Novel Risk Factors For Ovarian Cancer, Jennifer Permuth Wey

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality among women in the United States, and the etiology is incompletely understood. Common, low penetrant genetic variants such as single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) likely contribute to a significant proportion of EOC. We examined whether SNPs in two understudied yet biologically important types of genes, mitochondrial-related and miRNA-related genes, may contribute to EOC susceptibility using data from a large, homogeneous study population of 1,815 EOC cases and 1,900 controls (frequency-matched on age-group and race/ethnicity) genotyped through stage 1 of an ongoing genome-wide association study. Inter-individual variation in genes involved …

Design And Synthesis Of Beta-Hairpin Peptidomimetics For Modulating Integrin Mediated Cell Adhesion, Abeta Fibrillogenesis And P53-Mdm2 Protein-Protein Interactions, Priyesh Jain

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Inhibiting therapeutically important protein-protein interactions has been a tremendous challenge for medicinal chemists. The folded 3D structures of peptides and proteins, mainly comprise secondary structural elements i.e α-helices and β-sheet have created an opportunity to design small molecules and peptidomimetic inhibitors of protein-protein interaction (PPI). Hence, information about the formation and stabilization of these secondary structures is vital for designing future drugs. In this dissertation, several cyclic beta-hairpin peptidomimetics that mimic the recognition surface have been designed and synthesized as inhibitors for different targets such as integrin mediated extracellular matrix -cell adhesion in multiple myeloma, p53-MDM2 PPI, amyloid beta fibrillogenesis …

Epidemiological Study Of Contributing Factors In The Development Of Peptic Ulcer And Gastric Cancer Initiated By Helicobacter Pylori Infection In India, Rahul Suresh Mhaskar

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Background: Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection is a significant risk factor for peptic ulcer (PU) and gastric cancer (GC). Apart from the virulent CagA genotype of H. pylori environmental and dietary factors influence disease outcomes. There have been no studies addressing these factors in Western India. Hence, we conducted a case control study enrolling PU, GC patients and controls at Pune, India.

Methods: Risk factors for PU and H. pylori infection were assessed in participant interview. H. pylori status was assessed from stool by monoclonal antigen detection. To understand treatment effect, we followed 100 H. pylori positive patients.

Results: We …

Dna Methylation And Its Association With Prenatal Exposures And Pregnancy Outcomes, Jennifer Straughen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Altered DNA methylation may lead to suboptimal fetal programming, increasing the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes such as small for gestational age (SGA); however, few studies have examined the associations between DNA methylation, prenatal exposures, and fetal outcomes. Cross-sectional data from a larger, ongoing study were used to assess the impact of prenatal smoking on gene specific methylation of umbilical cord blood derived DNA and to investigate the association between gene-specific methylation and risk of SGA. The association between gene-specific DNA methylation and birthweight was also assessed. Maternal and infant covariates were abstracted from medical records, cigarette smoke exposure was …

Aspects Of The Life History Of The Snowy Grouper, Epinephelus Niveatus, In The Gulf Of Mexico, Kelley Kowal

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Knowledge of many life history parameters are essential to properly assess and manage fish species. Although the snowy grouper, Epinephelus niveatus, is a commercially valuable fish, which is harvested throughout the Gulf of Mexico, little is known about its age, growth, and reproduction from this region. In this study, snowy grouper from the northern and eastern regions of the Gulf of Mexico were examined primarily using commercially-derived samples that were collected between 1984 and 2004. A total of 1,200 snowy grouper with fork lengths between 242 and 1,190 mm were collected. Sectioned saggital otoliths were used to determine the age …

Discovery Of Novel Viruses From Animals, Plants, And Insect Vectors Using Viral Metagenomics, Terry Fei Fan Ng

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Understanding emerging viruses is critical for disease monitoring and prediction; however, surveys of novel viruses are hindered by the lack of a universal assay for viruses. Viral metagenomics, consisting of viral particle purification and shotgun sequencing, is a powerful technique for discovering viruses in a wide variety of sample types. However, current protocols are not effective on tissue samples (e.g., lungs, livers and tumors), where they are hindered by the high amount of host nucleic acids which limits the percentage of sequences that originate from viruses. In this dissertation, a modified viral metagenomics protocol was developed and utilized to effectively …

Antecedents And Consequences Of Channel Alienation: An Empirical Investigation Within Franchised Channels Of Distribution, Ivan Lapuka

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Investigating an important overlooked phase of interorganizational relationship evolution, which is currently hypothesized to progress through five stages of awareness, exploration, expansion, commitment, and dissolution, this dissertation proposes that in the long road between commitment and dissolution, the quintessential interfirm relationship is likely to be characterized by aprolonged period of relationship alienation, which then becomes the immediate precursor to the dissolution stage.

The dissertation utilizes social learning theory, behavior constraint theory, and alienation theory to explain apathetic behaviors of franchisees. The principal proposition is that certain characteristics of the franchise system’s operating environment inadvertently condition franchisee estrangement and failure, and …

1,2,3,4-Tetrahydroacridones As Potential Inhibitors Of Atovaquone-Resistant And Atovaquone- Susceptible P. Falciparum Isolates Tm90-C2b And W2, Lisa Luong

Honors Thesis and Capstone Projects

Malaria is one of the most significant parasitic diseases affecting mankind today, exceeding 200 million annual cases worldwide1. This disease has been a serious issue due to developed resistance to commonly available antimalarial drugs including atovaquone and artemisinin2, the most relevant modern treatment (figure 1.1). This project focuses on the preparation of 1,2,3,4- tetrahydroacridones (figure 1.2) that can be tested for their activity against P. falciparum isolates TM90-C2B (an atovaquone-resistant parasitic strain) and W2 (an atovaquone-susceptible parasite). In the past, studies have shown that endochins (4(1H)-quinolones) 3 and acridines (figure 1.1) have been found to exhibit antimalarial activity4. The research …

Planning To Make A Difference: A Retrospective Account On Learning How To Organize, Christina Gomez

Honors Thesis and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Robertson, J. Lee, B. 1922 (Fa 535), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Project 535. Interview with J. Lee Robertson conducted by Kenneth Hines and Gil Calhoun in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Robertson reminisces about the U.S. Army during World war II and his long association with Western Kentucky University.

A Multi-Level Study Investigating The Impact Of Workplace Civility Climate On Incivility And Employee Well-Being, Raymond Charles Ottinot

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study used Zohar‟s (2000) multi-level model of climate to examine the extent to which shared perceptions of workplace civility climate relate to teacher job satisfaction, affective commitment, and counterproductive work behaviors (CWB-abuse) towards other teachers. Workplace civility climate is defined as employee perceptions of how management uses policies, procedures, and practices to maintain a civil workplace. An online-survey was used to assess a cross-sectional sample of K-12 teachers (N = 2222) nested in 207 schools in a large US school district. There was adequate agreement among teacher perceptions of school civility climate for aggregation and between-group variance of civility …

Design, Synthesis And Sar Of A New Class Of Small Molecule Inhibitors Of Β-Secretase., Jordan M. Anderson

Honors Thesis and Capstone Projects

β-Secretase is the enzyme responsible for the Amyloid-β plaques found in Alzheimer’s disease. Inhibition of this enzyme should prove to be very useful in combating Alzheimer’s disease by preventing this build-up. After a computational screening of the NCID-2 library a molecule was found to possess a 2- propanol structure with aromatic groups on either side. This moiety was replicated by a combinatorial library of 150 compounds. These compounds were screened initially against β-secretase at 100, 50, and then 25 μM to narrow down to 17 structures showing 50% inhibition at 25 μM. The IC50 for each of the 17 molecules …

Sullivan, Brendan J. (Fa 533), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full text (click on "Additional Files" below) for Folklife Archives Project 533. Folklore material classified by genre. Information collected by Brendan J. Sullivan related to folklore genres for a folk studies class at Western Kentucky University.

Davis, Nathan William (Fa 534), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Project 534. Folklore material classified by genre. Information collected by Nathan William Davis related to folklore genres for a folk studies class at Western Kentucky University.

The Pragmatic Influences On Thou And Ye In Some Middle English Romances, Aislinn Meyer

Honors Thesis and Capstone Projects

The standard explanation of the semantics of power and solidarity for second person Middle English pronoun choice, advanced by Roger Brown and Albert Gilman and accepted by many Middle English scholars since, has proven insufficient to explain many choices between thou and ye that fictional characters make. This paper applies the discourse theories of pragmatics and politeness, developed by Penelope Brown and Stephen C. Levinson, to the relatively untouched data set of non-Chaucerian romances in order to account for some of those anomalies. By examining the pronouns of address in Floris and Blancheflour, Havelok the Dane, Ywain and Gawain, …

Shift To Cesareans As Preferred Birthing Method: Implications, Risks, And Recommendations, Elizabeth Angelica Bernstein

Honors Thesis and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

The John Muir Newsletter, Winter 2010/2011, The John Muir Center

Muir Center Newsletters (1981-2015)

Page 1 transcription missing

PAGE 2 John Muir Back and Newsletter Going Digital After a year, we are back! Last year we announced that we would become an "occasional" newsletter, projecting two issues per year. We only released one issue this past year. In an age of high cost of reproduction and mailing we have decided to follow the trail of other newsletters by going digital. Those with e mail can continue to receive at no charge the newsletter as part of a web serve list. Simply e mail us at [email protected] and we will include you in our future …

"Their Past In My Blood": Paule Marshall, Gayl Jones, And Octavia Butler's Response To The Black Aesthetic, Williamenia Miranda Walker Freeman

Dissertations

Paule Marshall’s The Chosen Place, The Timeless People (1969), Gayl Jones’ Corregidora (1975), and Octavia Butler’s Kindred (1979) enhance our conceptualization of black aestheticism and black nationalism as cultural and political movements. The writers use the novel as genre to question the ideological paradigm of a black nationalist aesthetic by providing alternative definitions of community, black women’s sexuality, and race relations. Because of the ways in which these writers respond to black aestheticism and black nationalism, they transform our understanding of movements often perceived as sexist, racist, homophobic, and anti-Semitic. An examination of their works reveals the need for additional …

Isolation And Identification Of Eastern Equine Encephalitis Virus In Mosquito Pools, Timothy Bender

Honors Thesis and Capstone Projects

The Eastern Equine Encephalitis Virus (EEEV) is transmitted to humans by mosquitoes of many genera. This virus has a high mortality rate and frequent life-altering complications for survivors of infection. The current practice for isolating and identifying the EEEV has been restricted to testing pools of 50 or less mosquitoes. A procedure for simulating one infected mosquito in a pool of 100 was established and tested. Data collected shows the threshold pool size can be increased to 100 without loss of specificity or accuracy. This increased will be met with many benefits including economic savings and increased time efficiency.

No Country For Moral Men, William J. Devlin

Bridgewater Review

No abstract provided.