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Hysteroscopic Resection Of Uterine Septum Improves Reproductive Performance In Women With Unexplained Infertility, Selçuk Ayas, Ayşe Gürbüz, Güray Tuna, Mehmet Aki̇f Sargin, Aki̇f Alkan, Sadi̇ye Eren

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

To evaluate the reproductive outcome after hysteroscopic metroplasty in women with a septate uterus, with particular focus on patients suffering from unexplained infertility. Materials and methods: Hysteroscopic septum resection was performed on 181 patients with uterine septa, including 98 patients with infertility and 83 patients with secondary infertility. Patients were placed into 1 of 3 groups: those with unexplained infertility, those who had experienced 1 miscarriage, and those who had experienced 2 or more miscarriages. All were analyzed retrospectively in terms of their reproductive outcome. Results: After undergoing the hysteroscopic septum resection, 43 out of 98 primary infertility patients became …

Analyzing Dependence Structure Of Thyroid Hormones: A Copula Approach, Burcu Üçer

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

To model the level and structure of the dependence between thyroid hormones by using the copula approach. Materials and methods: Dependence models were constructed with the help of copula functions explaining the relationships between thyroid hormones for the data supplied by Dokuz Eylül University's Faculty of Medicine's endocrine laboratory. For this purpose, 684 patients aged 0-85 were examined. Results: Results indicated that none of the pairs of thyroid hormones exhibited a tail dependence structure; however, valid models exhibited a symmetric dependence structure. The findings implied that both the T3 and T4 levels had a significant dependence structure with TSH levels. …

Psychosocial Evaluation Of Physicians Receiving Adaptation Training In Family Practice, Olgun Göktaş, Oğuz Teki̇n, Sevsen Cebeci̇

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

To identify the psychosocial conditions of physicians who received the first phase of the transition period adaptation training for family medicine practice in Bursa, and develop an efficient and reliable scale to take measurements during subsequent training processes. Materials and methods: A pilot test was given, using survey methodology, to physicians (442 people) who attended the first phase of the transition period adaptation training for family medicine practice in province of Bursa, Turkey, in 2008. The survey questions were designed to assess 3 factors: A- Adaptation to the program, B- Occupational self-confidence, and C- Non-exhaustion. Each factor was represented by …

A Comparison Of Intravenous General Anesthesia And Paracervical Block For In Vitro Fertilization: Effects On Oocytes Using The Transvaginal Technique, Sevi̇l Bümen, İlkben Günüşen, Vi̇cdan Firat, Semra Karaman, Ayşi̇n Akdoğan, Ege Nazan Tavmergen Göker

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

To compare the effects of 2 different anesthetic techniques used for oocyte retrieval. Comparison was made based on the number of retrieved and fertilized oocytes, metaphase 2 (M2, mature) oocytes, and transferred embryos, as well as fertilization, pregnancy, and live birth rates. Ultrasound-guided transvaginal oocyte retrieval for in vitro fertilization is one of the most common minor surgical procedures. Despite this, it is stressful and painful for the patient; most patients request sedation and/or pain relief. Propofol, which is frequently used for general anesthesia in such procedures, has been suspected to damage oocytes. Materials and methods: Results from 70 patients …

Developing And Comparing Two Different Prognostic Indexes For Predicting Disease-Free Survival Of Nonmetastatic Breast Cancer Patients, Zehra Füsun Tokatli, Mevlüt Türe, İmran Kurt Ömürlü, Ruşen Çoşar Alas, Mustafa Cem Uzal

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

To determine 2 different prognostic indexes (PI) for the differentiation of subgroups of nonmetastatic breast cancer patients with the Cox regression analysis and survival tree (ST) methods and the additional usage of the Kaplan-Meier estimates to investigate the predictive power of these methods. Materials and methods: Prognostic factors data were collected for 410 patients. The Cox regression analysis examines the relationship of the survival distribution and covariates. The ST method is a tree-structured survival analysis based on a recursive partitioning algorithm. In this study, Harrell's concordance indexes of models for training and test sets were computed. Furthermore, survival curves were …

Physician Compliance With American Heart Association Guidelines For Prevention Of Bacterial Endocarditis In Dental Procedures, Banu Özveri̇ Koyuncu, Servet Kandemi̇r, Fatma Bahar Sezer, Tayfun Günbay

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

To evaluate physicians' compliance level with the American Heart Association (AHA) 2007 guidelines concerning the management of dental patients at risk for bacterial endocarditis. Materials and methods: This study included 103 patients with cardiac problems. The mean age was 41.02 ± 15.22 years. According to consultations with physicians, the selection of the antibiotic, the timing, and the dosage were recorded on patients' forms prior to dental procedures by the researchers of the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Department of Oral Diagnosis and Radiology. Physicians' compliance level with the AHA 2007 recommendations was evaluated. Results: Antibiotic prophylaxis was prescribed …

Long-Term Outcomes Of 23-Gauge Transconjunctival Sutureless Vitrectomy, Mehmet Çitirik, Coşar Batman, Tolga Bi̇çer, Arsen Akinci

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

To assess the long-term efficacy and safety of 23-gauge transconjunctival sutureless pars plana vitrectomy in the management of vitreoretinal diseases. Materials and methods: In this study, 53 eyes of patients who underwent 23-gauge transconjunctival sutureless pars plana vitrectomy were included. A complete ophthalmological examination was performed preoperatively and at day 1, week 1, and months 1, 3, 6, and 12 after the surgery. Results: The mean age of the patients was 56.3 years (range: 22-73). Overall, the mean preoperative best-corrected visual acuity was 20/800, and the final mean postoperative best-corrected visual acuity at the 12-month visit was 20/160. The overall …

Attitudes To The Challenges Of Life Among Different Occupation Groups, Olgun Göktaş, Oğuz Teki̇n, İrfan Şencan

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

To determine the attitudes of some occupation groups towards challenges. Materials and methods: In the present study, data were collected by administering the Fatih-Bursa Scale of Attitude to Challenges (F.B.-SATC) to various occupation groups. The participants were divided into 6 occupation groups: healthcare workers, educators, technical staff (engineers, architects, etc.), self-employed people, security staff (police offices, military staff), and housewives. Data were assessed with a F.B.-SATC scoring system measuring attitudes towards challenges. The scale has 5 factors: Thoughts about Challenges (TAC), Outlook on Life (OL), Problem Solving (PS), Targets and Ideals (AI), and Social State (SS) factors. The tool included …

Biomimetic Precipitation Of Uniaxially Grown Calcium Phosphate Crystals From Full-Length Human Amelogenin Sols, Vuk Uskoković, Wu Li, Stefan Habelitz

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Human dental enamel forms over a period of 2 – 4 years by substituting the enamel matrix, a protein gel mostly composed of a single protein, amelogenin with fibrous apatite nanocrystals. Self-assembly of a dense amelogenin matrix is presumed to direct the growth of apatite fibers and their organization into bundles that eventually comprise the mature enamel, the hardest tissue in the mammalian body. This work aims to establish the physicochemical and biochemical conditions for the synthesis of fibrous apatite crystals under the control of a recombinant fulllength human amelogenin matrix in combination with a programmable titration system. The growth …

Lysophosphatidic Acid Production And Signaling In Platelets, Zachary Bennett Fulkerson

Theses and Dissertations--Physiology

Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) belongs to a class of extracellular lipid signaling molecules. In the vasculature, LPA may regulate platelet activation and modulate endothelial and smooth muscle cell function. LPA has therefore been proposed as a mediator of cardiovascular disease.

The bulk of circulating LPA is produced from plasma lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) by autotaxin (ATX), a secreted lysophospholipase D (lysoPLD). Early studies suggest that some of the production of circulating LPA is platelet-dependent. ATX possesses an N-terminal somatomedin B-like domain suggesting the hypothesis that ATX interacts with platelet integrins which may localize ATX to substrate in the membrane and/or alter the catalytic …

Effects Of Plasma Lipids And Smoking On Cognitive Function, Oğuz Teki̇n, Adem Özkara, Burcu Yanik, M. Ramazan Yi̇ği̇toğlu, Ati̇lla İlhan, Erkan Kibrisli, İrfan Şencan, Meti̇n Canbal

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

To research the relations between plasma lipids and smoking as they affect cognitive functions. Some studies have suggested a relationship between plasma cholesterol concentration, smoking, and the frequency of cognitive disturbances. Our hypothesis was that plasma lipids and smoking are related to cognitive impairment. Materials and methods: The plasma lipid profiles and cognitive functions of the subjects were measured and the relations among plasma lipid levels, smoking, and cognitive functions were observed. The study was performed on subjects with no history of chronic disease. Mental status was evaluated by the mini-mental state examination (MMSE) in patients over 40 years of …

First Trimester Maternal Serum Papp-A Levels And Macrosomia In Nondiabetic Mothers, Ebru Tarim, Servet Özden Haciveli̇oğlu, Tayfun Çok, Hali̇l Tayfun Bağiş

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

To determine whether or not there is a relationship between first-trimester maternal serum pregnancy-associated placental protein (PAPP-A) levels and fetal macrosomia in nondiabetic mothers. Materials and methods: In this study, 63 consecutive term macrosomic neonates (Group 1) (birth weight >= 4000 g) and 100 consecutive appropriate-for-gestational-age (AGA) term neonates (Group 2) were included. Transabdominal ultrasound examinations were performed to diagnose any major fetal defects and to measure crown-rump length (CRL) and fetal nuchal translucency (NT) thickness. Blood samples were drawn from each woman in order to obtain fasting blood glucose, PAPP-A, and free beta-human chorionic gonadotropin (beta-hCG) levels. Ultrasound measurements …

The Prenatal Diagnosis Of Familial Satellited Yq Chromosomes, Sezi̇n Yakut, Saffet Öztürk, Mehmet Şi̇mşek, İbrahi̇m İnanç Mendi̇lci̇oğlu, Güven Lüleci̇

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

To report a rare chromosomal abnormality, familial satellited Y chromosome (Yqs), in 3 Turkish prenatal cases. Material and methods: Metaphase chromosomes were prepared from amniocytes for prenatal cases and from lymphocytes for their fathers according to the standard methods. Results: In all cases, the analysis of all GTG-banded metaphases showed satellites on the long arms of chromosome Y as 46, XYqs karyotype. The indications for cytogenetic study were advanced maternal age and abnormal ultrasonographic findings with increased risk in the first trimester screening test. Cytogenetic studies of the fathers revealed that the Yqs were inherited. The satellites were positively stained …

The Role Of Olfactory Cues In The Sequential Radiation Of A Gall-Boring Beetle, Bradley Rhodes

Master’s Theses

Species diversity itself may cause additional species diversity. According to recent findings, some species modify their environment in such a way that they facilitate the creation of new niches for other species to evolve to fill. Given the vast speciesdiversity of insects, the occurrence of such sequential radiation of species is likely common among herbivorous insects and the species that depend on them, many of them being insects as well. Herbivorous insects often have close associations with specific host plants and their preferences for mating and ovipositing on a specific host-plant species can reproductively isolate host-specific populations, facilitating speciation. Previous …

Mechanisms And Consequences Of Thy-1 Shedding, John Edwin Bradley

All ETDs from UAB

Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) is characterized by chronic fibrosis in the lung interstitium of unknown etiology, and causes death within 2 to 4 years after diagnosis. There are no clinical interventions save for lung transplantation that give any survival benefit. Aberrant collagen deposition and aggregates of proliferating fibroblasts and myofibroblasts called fibroblastic foci (FF) are the classic features of IPF. Therefore, the cell type most often implicated as pathogenic in IPF is the fibroblast, especially its differentiated phenotype, the myofibroblast. Fibroblasts are a remarkably heterogeneous cell type. Expression of the cell surface glycoprotein Thy-1 (Thymocyte differentiation antigen 1) delineates a …

Understanding Molecular Mechanisms Of Breast Cancer Metastasis Using Genetically-Engineered Mice, Leah M. Cook

All ETDs from UAB

Morbidity and mortality of breast cancer patients are drastically increased when primary tumor cells metastasize to distant organ sites. Effective treatment of metastatic disease has been limited; therefore, an increased molecular understanding to identify biomarkers and therapeutic targets is needed. Breast cancer metastasis suppressor 1 (BRMS1) suppresses development of metastases when expressed in a variety of cancer types, including metastatic mammary carcinoma. Little is known of Brms1 function throughout the initiation and progression of mammary carcinoma. Thus Brms1 transgenic mice (derived on C57BL/6 background) were generated by utilizing MMTV promoter expression (for mammary-selective overexpression) or the beta-actin promoter (for ubiquitous …

Limited Transplantation Of Antigen-Expressing Hematopoietic Stem Cells Induces Long-Lasting Cytotoxic T Cell Responses And Effect Of Altered Suppressive Myeloid Population On Hiv-Disease Progression, Warren L. Denning

All ETDs from UAB

While each type of cancer and chronic viral infection has its own specific pathology, they share two common mechanisms of immune evasion. The first mechanism is the exhaustion or deletion of antigen-specific T cells. The second mechanism is the formation of an immunosuppressive environment responsible for the block of T cell function. Elicitation of antigen-specific T cells be accomplished by immunotherapy in place of conventional treatments such as HAART and chemotherapy. In addition, immunotherapy can alleviate the side-effects associated with long-term use of conventional therapies while reducing the total cost. The results presented here provide an alternative to conventional methods …

Is Chronic Use Of Bacopa Monnieri An Effective Treatment To Improve Memory Performance In Healthy And Aging Adults?, Brian M. Kairalla

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

OBJECTIVE: The objective of the systematic review is to determine whether or not chronic use of Bacopa monnieri is an effective treatment to improve memory performance in healthy and aging adults.

Effects Of Managed Care On The Health And Health-Care Of The Non-Elderly With Diabetes, Meihua Lu

Wayne State University Dissertations

This dissertation attempts to examine the quality effect of managed care plans (as compared with traditional fee-for-service plans, or FFS) on the health outcome and health care use of patients with diabetes. As the number of diabetics is growing rapidly with many of them are relying on managed care plans, knowing better the effects of different plans on health status and health care utilization is of great interest and significance to consumers, employers, and policymakers, especially at a time that universal health care is under being implemented.

Using up-to-date data from MEPS, a nationally representative survey, I compared 484 HMO …

Frazzled And Abelson Interact To Regulate The Actin Cytoskeleton In Drosophila, Bridget Elsa Varughese

Wayne State University Dissertations

Guidance receptors such as Frazzled affect cell shape and motility by directly or indirectly modulating the cytoskeleton. Fra is particularly needed for the formation of the posterior commissures in a developing Drosophila embryo. The cytoplasmic tyrosine kinase, Abelson Kinase (Abl) enhances the loss of commissures observed in fra mutant. Abl physically interacts with Frazzled to help guide commissural axons across the midline. Furthermore, the loss of commissural axons is only seen when the actin dynamics are perturbed. Abl is also known to regulate actin-dependent processes underlying formation of filopodia, microspikes and membrane ruffles. So, we established a Drosophila S2 cell …

Mechanisms Of Translation Arrest Following Focal Brain Ischemia, Monique K. Lewis

Wayne State University Dissertations

MECHANISMS OF TRANSLATION ARREST FOLLOWING FOCAL BRAIN

ISCHEMIA

by

MONIQUE K. LEWIS

August 2011

Advisor: Dr. Donald DeGracia

Major: Physiology

Degree: Doctor of Philosophy

The loss of blood flow to the brain is termed ischemia and the subsequent resumption of blood flow is termed reperfusion. Brain ischemia and reperfusion (I/R) occurs primarily following resuscitation from cardiac arrest and stroke and presents one of the most significant clinical challenges. At present, there are no clinically effective pharmacologic interventions to halt brain damage following I/R. The major Aim of this dissertation will be to investigate possible mechanisms involved in neuron death following …

Expression Of Microbial Rhodopsins In Retinal Neurons With Subcellular Targeting Motifs: For The Study Of The Structure/Function Of Aii Amacrine Cells And For Vision Restoration, Chaowen Wu

Wayne State University Dissertations

Protein-targeting motifs serve as addresses for subcellular protein localization. This feature of targeting-motifs was used to study the retina. The first part of the dissertation reports in the axonless spiking AII amacrine cell of the mammalian retina a dendritic process sharing organizational and functional similarities with the axon initial segment, the typical site of action potential initiation. This process was revealed through viral-mediated expression of channelrhodopsin-2-GFP (ChR2-GFP) with the AIS-targeting motif of sodium channels (NavII-III) and was shown to be the site of spike initiation. The second part of the dissertation aimed to improve microbial rhodopsin-mediated gene therapy for vision …

Processing Random Signals In Neuroscience, Electrical Engineering And Operations Research, Kalyan Raman

Wayne State University Dissertations

The topic of this dissertation is the study of noise in electrical engineering, neuroscience, biomedical engineering, and operations research through mathematical models that describe, explain, predict and control dynamic phenomena. Noise is modeled through Brownian Motion and the research problems are mathematically addressed by different versions of a generalized Langevin equation. Our mathematical models utilize stochastic differential equations (SDEs) and stochastic optimal control, both of which were born in the soil of electrical engineering. Central to this dissertation is a brain-physics based model of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) dynamics, whose structure is fundamentally determined by an electrical circuit analogy. Our general …

Cellular Inhibitor Of Apoptosis 1 (Ciap-1) Degradation By Caspase 8 During Tnf-Related Apoptosis-Inducing Ligand (Trail)-Induced Apoptosis., Maria Eugenia Guicciardi, Justin L. Mott, Steven F. Bronk, Satoshi Kurita, Christian D. Fingas, Gregory J. Gores

Journal Articles: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) is a potential chemotherapeutic agent with high selectivity for malignant cells. Many tumors, however, are resistant to TRAIL cytotoxicity. Although cellular inhibitors of apoptosis 1 and 2 (cIAP-1 and -2) are often over-expressed in cancers, their role in mediating TRAIL resistance remains unclear. Here, we demonstrate that TRAIL-induced apoptosis of liver cancer cells is associated with degradation of cIAP-1 and X-linked IAP (XIAP), whereas cIAP-2 remains unchanged. Lower concentrations of TRAIL causing minimal or no apoptosis do not alter cIAP-1 or XIAP protein levels. Silencing of cIAP-1 expression, but not XIAP or cIAP-2, as well as …

Robust Rnai-Based Resistance To Mixed Infection Of Three Viruses In Soybean Plants Expressing Separate Short Hairpins From A Single Transgene, Xiuchun Zhang, Shirley Sato, Xiaohong Ye, Anne E. Dorrance, Thomas Jack Morris, Thomas E. Clemente, Feng Qu

Nebraska Center for Virology: Faculty Publications

Transgenic plants expressing double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) of virus

origin have been previously shown to confer resistance to virus infections

through the highly conserved RNA-targeting process termed RNA silencing

or RNA interference (RNAi). In this study we applied this strategy to

soybean plants and achieved robust resistance to multiple viruses with a

single dsRNA-expressing transgene. Unlike previous reports that relied

on the expression of one long inverted repeat (IR) combining sequences

of several viruses, our improved strategy utilized a transgene designed to

express several shorter IRs. Each of these short IRs contains highly conserved

sequences of one virus, forming dsRNA of …

The Zambia Children's Ks-Hhv8 Study: Rationale, Study Design, And Study Methods, Veenu Minhas, Kay L. Crabtree, Ann Chao, Janet M. Wojcicki, Adrian M. Sifuniso, Catherine Nkonde, Chipepo Kankasa, Charles D. Mitchell, Charles Wood

Nebraska Center for Virology: Faculty Publications

The epidemic of human immunodeficiency virus in Zambia has led to a dramatic rise in the incidence of human herpesvirus-8 (HHV-8)–associated Kaposi's sarcoma in both adults and children. However, there is a paucity of knowledge about the routes of HHV-8 transmission to young children. The Zambia Children's KS-HHV8 Study, a large, prospective cohort study in Lusaka, Zambia, was launched in 2004 to investigate the role of household members as a source of HHV-8 infection in young children and social behaviors that may modify the risk of HHV-8 acquisition. This cohort is distinct from other epidemiologic studies designed to investigate HHV-8 …

Advances And Future Challenges In Adenoviral Vector Pharmacology And Targeting, Reeti Khare, Christopher Y. Chen, Eric A. Weaver, Michael A. Barry

Nebraska Center for Virology: Faculty Publications

Adenovirus is a robust vector for therapeutic applications, but its use is limited by our understanding of its complex in vivo pharmacology. In this review we describe the necessity of identifying its natural, widespread, and multi-faceted interactions with the host since this information will be crucial for efficiently redirecting virus into target cells. In the rational design of vectors, the notion of overcoming a sequence of viral “sinks” must be combined with re-targeting to target populations with capsid as well as shielding the vectors from pre-existing or toxic immune responses. It must also be noted that most known adenoviral pharmacology …

Intrinsically Photosensitive Retinal Ganglion Cells, Gary E. Pickard, Patricia J. Sollars

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) respond to light in the absence of all rod and cone photoreceptor input. The existence of these ganglion cell photoreceptors, although predicted from observations scattered over many decades, was not established until it was shown that a novel photopigment, melanopsin, was expressed in retinal ganglion cells of rodents and primates. Phototransduction in mammalian ipRGCs more closely resembles that of invertebrate than vertebrate photoreceptors and appears to be mediated by transient receptor potential channels. In the retina, ipRGCs provide excitatory drive to dopaminergic amacrine cells and ipRGCs are coupled to GABAergic amacrine cells via gap …

Long-Term Clinicopathological Characteristics Of Alpacas Naturally Infected With Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus Type Ib, D. Bedenice, Edward J. Dubovi, Clayton Kelling, Jamie N Henningson, Christina L. Topliff, N. Parry

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background: Substantial bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV)-related production losses in North American alpaca herds have been associated with BVDV type Ib infection.

Objectives: To classify and differentiate the long-term clinicopathological characteristics of BVDV type Ib infection of al- paca crias, after natural virus exposure. We hypothesized that persistently infected (PI) alpacas specifically demonstrate growth retardation, clinicopathological evidence of opportunistic infections, and early mortality.

Animals: Thirty-five crias naturally exposed to BVDV (18 acute, 3 chronic, 14 PIs), and 19 healthy cohort controls of 5 northeastern alpaca farms were prospectively evaluated over 2 years (September 2005–September 2008).

Methods: Observational cohort-control study.

Results: …

Consensus-Based Reporting Standards For Diagnostic Test Accuracy Studies For Paratuberculosis In Ruminants, Ian A. Gardner, Søren S. Nielsen, Richard J. Wittington, Michael T. Collins, Douwe Bakker, Beth Harris, Srinand Sreevatsan, Jason E. Lombard, Raymond Sweeney, David R. Smith, Jerrie Gavalchin, Shigetoshi Eda

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

The Standards for Reporting of Diagnostic Accuracy (STARD) statement was developed to encourage complete and transparent reporting of key elements of test accuracy studies in human medicine. The statement was motivated by widespread evidence of bias in test accuracy studies and the finding that incomplete or absent reporting of items in the STARD checklist was associated with overly optimistic estimates of test performance characteristics. Although STARD principles apply broadly, specific guidelines do not exist to account for unique considerations in livestock studies such as herd tests, potential use of experimental challenge studies, a more diverse group of testing purposes and …