Digital Commons Network^™

Integrating Cover Crops And Targeted Herbicide Applications In Cotton Production, Tristen H. Avent, Jason K. Norsworthy, Gerson L. Drescher

Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Cover crops are part of integrated weed control management to help mitigate herbicide resistance evolution. Targeted sprays from the John Deere See & Spray are currently not recommended in cover crops. Experiments were conducted yearly from 2022 to 2024 in Keiser, AR, to evaluate targeted applications (TAs) with cover crops in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.). Treatments assessed the main effect of winter cover crop (fallow, cereal rye [Secale cereale L.], or hairy vetch [Vicia villosa Roth]), herbicide application methods (nontreated, broadcast [BC], TA + BC residuals [TA + BCRs], or TA only), and the interaction on cotton tolerance, weed control, …

Protein Word Detection Using Text Segmentation Techniques, Ashish V. Tendulkar, Sutanu Chakraborti, Ganesh Devi

Journal of Global Awareness

Literature in Molecular Biology is abundant with linguistic metaphors. There has been works in the past that attempt to draw parallels between linguistics and biology, driven by the fundamental premise that proteins have a language of their own. Since word detection is crucial to the decipherment of any unknown language, we attempt to establish a problem mapping from natural language text to protein sequences at the level of words. Towards this end, we explore the use of an unsupervised text segmentation algorithm for the task of extracting "biological words” from protein sequences. We demonstrate the effectiveness of using domain knowledge …

Thsd1 Is A Multifaceted Regulator In Health And Disease, Mengjun Dai, Kuizhi Qu, Sophie Liu, Zhen Xu, Yan-Ning Rui

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Thrombospondin Type 1 Domain-Containing Protein 1 (THSD1) is a transmembrane protein increasingly recognized for its critical roles in vascular biology and disease pathogenesis. Initially identified as a marker of hematopoietic stem and endothelial cells during embryogenesis, THSD1 has since been implicated in a wide spectrum of physiological and pathological processes. This paper consolidates current knowledge on THSD1, with a focus on its roles in vascular integrity, perinatal disorders, and tumorigenesis. In vascular systems, THSD1 promotes focal adhesion assembly and suppresses autophagy-mediated adhesion turnover, thereby stabilizing endothelial attachment and maintaining barrier function. Genetic and functional studies support its protective role against …

Comparative Efficacy Of Combined Versus Singular Auditory Alpha-Theta Brainwave Entrainment And Hypnotherapy Modalities In Chronic Pain Management, Jennifer Nicole Leavitt

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This experimental quantitative research, a randomized controlled trial, evaluated combined efficacy of auditory alpha-theta brainwave entrainment (BWE) and hypnotherapy in chronic pain management versus each modality alone. Chronic pain is a serious clinical challenge that may benefit from novel, nonpharmacological interventions. Previous studies have demonstrated benefits of both BWE and hypnotherapy for pain; but research on combined effects was not identified. This study hypothesized that a synergistic approach would offer superior pain relief compared to singular modalities. The study utilized a randomized controlled trial design with a sample size of 38 participants, initially, aged 25 to 65 years old, recruited …

More Than 9 Lives: Improving Shelter Cat Intake And Adoption Rates, Arthur S. Loomis

Masters Theses

Municipal animal shelters across the United States struggle to properly care for the cats housed in their facilities due to overpopulation. The sheer volume of cats entering shelters greatly outpaces the rate in which they are adopted out, resulting in an immense resource strain that too often results in the euthanasia of millions of shelter cats across the country each year. The enormous influx of cats is largely due to abandonment or considerable populations of feral, stray, or community cats living on the streets. In addition, shelter cat adoptions occur at a much slower pace, with many cats spending months, …

Intergenerational Toxic Stress In Preschool Children, Cynthia R. Rovnaghi

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Worldwide there is an outcry for understanding, integrating, preventing, coordinating, and collaboratively treating the neuropsychosocial components of intergenerational transmission of trauma-induced toxic stress (ITTS). The purpose of this quasi-experimental, cross-sectional, secondary analysis of the Hair Biomarkers Study Phase I (HBS-I) was to obtain empirical evidence supporting the introduction of the Theory of Neurogenesis Abruption (ToNA) and to standardize the use of hair biomarkers and child developmental scales for early detection of central nervous system (CNS) dysregulation. Birth and developmental outcomes of children born to parents with a diagnosed serious mental health condition (DSMHC) and/or substance (ab)use (SA/SU) disorder (children, n …

Factors Influencing Student Motivations And Experiences In Stem Course Office Hours, Gabriella R. Dauber, Jeremy L. Hsu

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Office hours are a part of nearly all science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses, with many academic and affective benefits for students who attend. However, despite their ubiquity, there has only been limited past work examining the sources of knowledge students draw from to shape their perceptions of office hours, as well as the factors that influence students' experiences in STEM course office hours. Here, we conducted semistructured interviews with 20 students enrolled in an introductory STEM course to investigate what motivates students to attend STEM course office hours, the factors that shape their experiences in office hours, and …

Enhancing Inclusivity In Sports: A Focus On Adaptive Synergy For Disabled Athletes, Lawrence W. Judge, Matt Moore, Aidan Biddle, Adam Smith, Donald L. Hoover

International Journal of Exercise Science

International Journal of Exercise Science 18(1): 470-494, 2025. Sport science serves many crucial functions in facilitating improvements in human performance, including advancing inclusivity. This may be realized through the conceptual framework of Adaptive Synergy, which integrates Adapted Physical Activity for athletes with physical disabilities while simultaneously optimizing athletic performance for all individuals. This paper introduces the Adaptive Synergy conceptual framework to sport science, applying this cross-disciplinary concept to biomechanics, exercise physiology, sport psychology, and neuroscience to more specific application of adaptive techniques and methods, which are essential to improving both accessibility and innovation in sports. Key areas of focus include …

Skin Cancer Diagnosis Utilizing Hybrid Discrete Cosine Transform And High-Performance Convolutional Neural Networks, Mohammed M. Abo-Zahhad, Mohammed Abo-Zahhad

Mansoura Engineering Journal

Detecting skin cancer early and accurately is crucial for successfully treating this potentially fatal disease. Enhancing the accuracy of visual inspection techniques is often necessary to improve clinical decision-making and increase the chance of successful treatment outcomes. In this research, high-performance deep learning (DL) models for automated skin cancer categorization and early skin cancer diagnosis screening are developed and evaluated in conjunction with the discrete cosine transform (DCT). For this purpose, features are extracted from medical images using both techniques. The DCT is used for feature extraction and dimensionality reduction, while deep learning (DL) trains fully connected models for classification …

The Role Of Cephalic Mechanosensory Bristles In Flight Initiation Of The Oleander Hawkmoth, Daphnis Nerii, Maitri Manjunath

Theses and Dissertations

During flight, insects sense air movement past their bodies via sensory bristles distributed all over their body. These bristles provide mechanosensory feedback to their nervous system, thereby modulating wing motion to cope with ambient wind conditions. In many insect systems including locusts, moths, etc., flight can be rapidly initiated by stimulating a set of bristles called cephalic bristles on their head. Rapid initiation of flight requires diverse, distributed flight-related reflexes to be simultaneously activated.

Thus, we hypothesized that cephalic bristles directly and simultaneously trigger diverse flight-related reflexes. We tested this hypothesis using the Oleander hawkmoth, Daphnis nerii, as our study …

Renal Patients’ Perception Of Self-Efficacy Through Rapport And Trust With Registered Dietitians, Michelle Denise Broussard

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

End stage renal disease requires dietary education and behavior modifications to manage the condition. The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate the role of rapport and trust between the patients and registered dietitians and its impact on self-efficacy. The study was implemented over 12 weeks in multi-site dialysis units in urban Georgia. The health belief model was used as the framework to explain the participants’ desire toward self-efficacy. Data were obtained for the 14-item Health Care Relationship Trust scale and the self-efficacy scales and analyzed using multiple linear regression. A convenience sample of 125 patients between the ages …

It Is Not Clear How Well Physical Activity Promotion Materials Are Understood: Findings From A Rapid Literature Review, Jafra D. Thomas, Jasmine C. Wong, Regina F. Hockert, Yi Sheng Wu, Winston Kennedy

Topics in Exercise Science and Kinesiology

Topics in Exercise Science and Kinesiology Volume 6: Issue 1, Article 6, 2025. Efforts to promote physical activity and other health-related behaviors are more effective when resource materials are understood by a wide and diverse audience. Before our lab’s previous investigations (Thomas et al., 2024), only one study seemed to use the cloze procedure to directly test the comprehension (i.e., readability) of physical activity promotion material (Cardinal & Seidler, 1995). Thus, this rapid literature review sought to (a) determine the extent the cloze procedure has been used to study physical activity promotion material comprehension in lay adults and (b) collate …

Getting The Most Out Of Your Maternity Leave, Joey Averett

Family Perspectives

No abstract provided.

Poverty In Association To Academic Achievement In Children, Sara Tolley

Family Perspectives

This paper explores the impact of poverty on academic achievement in children. It begins by outlining the general effects of poverty before delving into its specific consequences for educational outcomes. Findings indicate that poverty significantly affects self-esteem and family relationships, which, in turn, contribute to lower academic performance among children. Additionally, the paper proposes underlying causes for these outcomes and potential interventions. These insights are supported by a diverse range of data, highlighting the urgent need to address this critical issue.

Suicidal Ideation Of Queer Adolescents, Haley Kamikawa

Family Perspectives

Suicide is the second leading cause of death in youth ages 15-29 around the world. This literature review examines some of the reasons why adolescents are likely to experience suicidal ideation and emphasizes why queer adolescence are at a much greater risk for suicidal ideation (Li Kitts, 2005; McDermott et al., 2018; Wichstrøm & Hegna, 2003). Bullying and lack of parental support were found to be the greatest contributors for queer adolescence experiencing suicidal ideation (Czyz et al., 2018; Sultana et al., 2023; Wedell, 2024). Bullying and lack of parental acceptance has been found to increase levels of emotional distress …

How To Face Conflict In Marriage And Emerge As A Stronger Couple, Taylor Lancaster

Family Perspectives

No abstract provided.

The Unicorn And Christ – Metamorphosis And Symbology, Luis Mendonça De Carvalho, Francisca Maria Fernandes, Maria Fátima Nunes, Ana Maria Costa, Paula Nozes, Ana Paula Figueira

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

The unicorn is a legendary chimaera that, for centuries, has been present in the mindset of Euro-Mediterranean cultures. Although its morphological description changed, tradition identifies it as an animal like a horse, albeit smaller and with a spiralling horn on its head pointing forward. The unicorn has been known since Antiquity, with references by authors such as Ctesias and Pliny. However, its relevance for medieval Europeans began with the Biblical references to this animal in several Old Testament verses. These verses gave legitimacy to the unicorn, and it was accepted as a tangible animal. During the Middle Ages and early …

Simultaneous Targeting Of Tumor Cells And Tumor-Associated Macrophages To Reprogram Glioblastoma Using Trypsinized Extracellular Vesicles Carrying Tumor Suppressive Microrna, Grace H Nguyen, Minhye Noh, Jin Muk Kang, Alexandra A Miller, Minxin Huang, Jiyeon Kim, Jeong-Yeon Lee, Sangwoon Chung, Hongyu Wang, George A Calin, Cynthia Ju, Holger K Eltzschig, Yeshavanth Banasavadi-Siddegowda, Zhongming Zhao, Ji Young Yoo, Tae Jin Lee

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Glioblastoma (GBM) remains difficult to treat due to poor drug delivery across the blood-brain barrier and an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME). Tumor-suppressive microRNAs (miRNAs) offer a promising strategy to reprogram both tumor cells and the TME, but inefficient delivery systems limit their clinical application. We previously reported that tumor-suppressive miR-138 regresses tumor growth in preclinical GBM models. Here, we demonstrate that trypsin digestion of extracellular vesicles (EVs) enhances labeling efficiency with folate (FA), enhancing selective targeting of folate receptor (FR)-positive GBM cells and enabling simultaneous targeting of tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs). FA-labeled trypsinized EVs (tEVs) loaded with miR-138 inhibit tumor growth, …

Global Dna Methylation Differences Involving Germline Structural Variation Impact Gene Expression In Pediatric Brain Tumors, Fengju Chen, Yiqun Zhang, Wei Li, Fritz J Sedlazeck, Lanlan Shen, Chad J Creighton

Children’s Nutrition Research Center Staff Publications

The extent of genetic variation and its influence on gene expression across multiple tissue and cellular contexts is still being characterized, with germline Structural Variants (SVs) being historically understudied. DNA methylation also represents a component of normal germline variation across individuals. Here, we combine germline SVs (by short-read sequencing) with tumor DNA methylation across 1292 pediatric brain tumor patients. For thousands of methylation probes for CpG Islands (CGIs) or enhancers, rare and common SV breakpoints upstream or downstream associate with differential methylation in tumors spanning various histologic types, a significant subset involving genes with SV-associated differential expression. Cancer predisposition genes …

Administering A Mitophagy Inducing Compound (Mic) To Suppress Neuropathology In A Mouse Model Of Alzheimer’S Disease, Zachary Mayeri

Natural Sciences and Mathematics | Biological Sciences Master's Theses

Despite FDA-approved amyloid-beta (Aβ) therapies in Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Tau pathology remains untreated and is closely linked to cognitive decline. Mitophagy, the process of mitochondrial degradation, is vital for maintaining neuronal health, and its dysregulation is implicated in AD. Recently, our lab identified a mitophagy inducing compound (MIC) that extends the lifespan of C. elegans. We hypothesized that MIC would significantly mitigate neuropathology in an AD mouse model. In this study, aged 3x-Tg AD mice were fed an MIC-containing diet, and immunohistochemistry (IHC) was performed on hippocampal tissue to visualize Aβ and phospho-Tau (pTau) lesions. While MIC had little …

Informatics Hygiene To Support Reuse Of Routinely Collected Health Care Data For Evidence-Based Practice, Elmer V Bernstam, Alejandro Araya, Matthew Decaro, Todd R Johnson

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Histone Methyltransferase Ash1l Primes Metastases And Metabolic Reprogramming Of Macrophages In The Bone Niche, Chenling Meng, Kevin Lin, Wei Shi, Hongqi Teng, Xinhai Wan, Anna Debruine, Yin Wang, Xin Liang, Javier Leo, Feiyu Chen, Qianlin Gu, Jie Zhang, Vivien Van, Kiersten L Maldonado, Boyi Gan, Li Ma, Yue Lu, Di Zhao

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Bone metastasis is a major cause of cancer death; however, the epigenetic determinants driving this process remain elusive. Here, we report that histone methyltransferase ASH1L is genetically amplified and is required for bone metastasis in men with prostate cancer. ASH1L rewires histone methylations and cooperates with HIF-1α to induce pro-metastatic transcriptome in invading cancer cells, resulting in monocyte differentiation into lipid-associated macrophage (LA-TAM) and enhancing their pro-tumoral phenotype in the metastatic bone niche. We identified IGF-2 as a direct target of ASH1L/HIF-1α and mediates LA-TAMs' differentiation and phenotypic changes by reprogramming oxidative phosphorylation. Pharmacologic inhibition of the ASH1L-HIF-1α-macrophages axis elicits …

Factors Impacting The Variability Of Post-Fire Forest Regeneration In Central European Pine Plantations, Florent Jouy, Maren Schüle, Yojana Adhikari, Anja Binder, Danica Clerc, Werner Gerwin, Thilo Heinken, Thomas Raab, Frank Repmann, Susanne Rönnefarth, Marina Schirrmacher, Marie-Therese Schmehl, Jens Schröder, Pierre L. Ibisch

Aspen Bibliography

Fire is increasingly posing a risk to forests and plantations, even in the temperate latitudes of central Europe. Little is known about fire ecology in this region, and therefore, appropriate approaches for the management and reforestation of burned sites are mostly lacking. In a Scots pine plantation region in Brandenburg (northeast Germany), the early tree regeneration of two nearby areas that burned 1 year apart was investigated. We observed that 3 years after the fire events, the forest in one study area showed a relatively high regeneration with a mean density of 7765 saplings/ha, clearly dominated by European aspen (93%); …

An Aquatic Treadmill Alters Lower Limb Walking Dynamics In Typically Developing Children And Children With Cerebral Palsy, Oluwaseye P. Odanye, Joseph Harrington, Aaron Likens, David Kingston, Brian Knarr

Journal Articles

This block-randomized crossover study investigated how a speed-modulated aquatic treadmill (AT) impacts the walking biomechanics of pediatric gait. Eight cerebral palsy (CP) and fifteen typically developing (TD) children walked at normal, slow, and fast treadmill speeds in AT and dry treadmill (DT) conditions. The joint angles of participants were calculated from inertial measurement units to derive sample entropy (SE) measures that quantified the regularity or complexity of motion. A hierarchical statistical model revealed that the CP group had lower SE values for the hip, knee, and ankle joints in the AT and at slower than faster treadmill speeds. Only the …

Network Analysis Of Antimicrobial Resistance In Staphylococcus Aureus: Characterization Of Hub Genes And Their Functional Implications, Md Imran Hasan, Davida Smyth, Jeong Yang, Ashley Teufel

Masters Theses (Archived)

Antimicrobial resistance is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with S. aureus infections. In this study, we analyzed genes, molecular mechanisms, and pathways driving drug resistance in S. aureus using network analysis. Using whole-genome sequencing (WGS) data and systems biology approaches, we identified 229 AMR-associated genes and constructed a protein-protein interaction network among these genes. Through network topology and functional enrichment analyses, we not only confirmed their association with resistance, but also highlighted the central roles of these genes in resistance pathways, such as efflux, target replacement, and target protection, which are directly linked to multiple drug …

Discrimination Of Sprat Species (Clupeonella Spp.) In The Caspian Sea And The Sea Of Marmara Using Otolith Shape Analysis, Mohammad Reza Shariati, Mohammad Sadegh Alavi-Yeganeh, Mehdi Ghanbarifardi, Gülşah Saç, Müfi̇t Özuluğ, Erdoğan Çi̇çek

Turkish Journal of Zoology

This study evaluates the discriminating power of sagittal otolith shape among three species of the genus Clupeonella endemic to the Caspian Sea (Clupeonella grimmi, Clupeonella caspia, and Clupeonella engrauliformis) and one species from the Sea of Marmara (Clupeonella Cultriventris). Identification of these species is challenging due to their morphological similarities, and the taxonomic validity of C. caspia and C. cultriventris remains ambiguous because of their resemblance. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images were utilized to examine the morphological characteristics of otoliths. Stereomicroscope images were used to calculate six shape indices: rectangularity, roundness, ellipticity, circularity, aspect ratio, and form factor. The outline …

Protein Composition Of The Foam Nest Of Rhacophorus Reinwardtii (Schlegel, 1840) (Anura: Rhacophoridae), With Notes On Breeding Sites Characteristics And Biomedical Applications, Muhammad Asyraf Rijalullah, Nia Kurniawan, Nia Kurnianingsih

Turkish Journal of Zoology

Rhacophorus reinwardtii is endemic to Java Island and is currently experiencing a population decline. Therefore, the sustainability of its offspring is important to prevent species extinction. Foam nest as a biosurfactant structure plays a crucial role as egg protection through major protein components function. However, studies on the functional proteins of rhacophoridae foam nests are limited. Thus, this study aims to uncover the protein-specific components and functions of the R. reinwardtii foam nest. Additionally, the characteristics of breeding sites, including abiotic factors, were also assessed. Total protein concentration of the R. reinwardtii foam nest was determined to be 747.7 μg/mL …

Thermal Physiology Of The Giant Day Gecko, Phelsuma Grandis, Infinity Alvarez

Masters Theses (Archived)

Ectotherms rely on their environment to regulate and maintain their body temperature. For this reason, environmental fluctuations strongly impact their biology. Lizards are ectotherms that are suitable models to investigate thermal physiology. However, the bulk of this research has been studied using new world Anolis lizards. In this study, the giant day gecko, (P.grandis), native to Madagascar but invasive in Florida, was selected as a model for comparison. In our physiotype of P.grandis we included measurements such as metabolic rates, sprint speed at relevant temperatures, thermal preference, critical thermal minimum, and voluntary thermal maximum. Our findings showed that …

Honey Bee & Reward Loss: A Deep Dive Into The Alarm Pheromone, Citlalli Guadarrama

Masters Theses (Archived)

No abstract provided.

Engineering Hiv-1 Env Protein To Elucidate In Situ Structural Dynamics Of Env, Narendra Kumar Gonepudi

Biotechnology Theses

The HIV-1 Envelope (Env) glycoprotein trimers undergo structural changes upon interacting with host receptor CD4 and coreceptors (CCR5/CXCR4) for virus entry. As the only surface-exposed viral protein, Env is a key antibody target but evades recognition through structural changes. Studying Env dynamics with respect to the coreceptor binding region (V3 loop) provides insights into virus entry and immune evasion. Fluorescence labeling via genetic code expansion (amber–TAG suppression) offers a minimally invasive approach for fluorescence microscope-based Env dynamics studies. Here, two V3-related dual-amber Env constructs (A135_TAG-P308_TAG, P308_TAG-E395_TAG) were generated by incorporating two non-canonical …