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The Role Of Intermittent Preventive Treatment For Malaria In Saving Lives And Promoting Drug Resistance, Carrie Manore

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

Role Of Viruses Within Metaorganisms: Ciona Intestinalis As A Model System, Brittany A. Leigh

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Marine animals live and thrive in a literal sea of microorganisms, yet are often able to maintain specific associations that are largely dictated by the environment, host immunity and microbial interactions. Animal-associated microbiomes include bacteria and viruses that vastly outnumber host cells, especially in the gut environment, and are considered to be integral parts of healthy, functioning animals that act as a metaorganism. However, the processes underlying the initial establishment of these microbial communities are not very well understood. This dissertation focuses on the establishment of a well-known developmental animal model, Ciona intestinalis (sea squirt), to study the establishment and …

Comparison Of Adaptive Randomized Trial Designs For Time-To-Event Outcomes That Expand Versus Restrict Enrollment Criteria, To Test Non-Inferiority, Josh Betz, Jon Arni Steingrimsson, Tianchen Qian, Michael Rosenblum

Johns Hopkins University, Dept. of Biostatistics Working Papers

Adaptive enrichment designs involve preplanned rules for modifying patient enrollment criteria based on data accrued in an ongoing trial. These designs may be useful when it is suspected that a subpopulation, e.g., defined by a biomarker or risk score measured at baseline, may benefit more from treatment than the complementary subpopulation. We compare two types of such designs, for the case of two subpopulations that partition the overall population. The first type starts by enrolling the subpopulation where it is suspected the new treatment is most likely to work, and then may expand inclusion criteria if there is early evidence …

Challenges In Modeling Complexity Of Neglected Tropical Diseases: A Review Of Dynamics Of Visceral Leishmaniasis In Resource Limited Settings, Swati Debroy, Olivia F. Prosper, Austin Mishoe, Anuj Mubayi

Mathematics Faculty Publications

Objectives: Neglected tropical diseases (NTD), account for a large proportion of the global disease burden, and their control faces several challenges including diminishing human and financial resources for those distressed from such diseases. Visceral leishmaniasis (VL), the second-largest parasitic killer (after malaria) and an NTD affects poor populations and causes considerable cost to the affected individuals. Mathematical models can serve as a critical and cost-effective tool for understanding VL dynamics, however, complex array of socio-economic factors affecting its dynamics need to be identified and appropriately incorporated within a dynamical modeling framework. This study reviews literature on vector-borne diseases and collects …

Level Of Exposure Of Childhood Tuberculosis With Adult Pulmonary Tuberculosis Household Contacts, Al Asyary, Tris Eryando, Purwantyastuti Purwantyastuti, Purnawan Junadi, Carol Clark, Edwin Van Teijlingen

Kesmas

Tuberkulosis paru (TB) pada anak kian menjadi masalah kesehatan global yang masih terlupakan seiring dengan peningkatan proporsi TB di Indonesia. Penularan penyakit ini di populasi umum seringkali berdampak pada anak, terlebih ketika kontak TB terjadi di rumah tangga. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk memperoleh faktor protektif sehingga anak tetap sehat meskipun memiliki kontak dengan penderita TB dewasa serumah. Penelitian ini dilakukan dengan pendekatan kasus kontrol pada 132 responden anak yang berasal dari delapan rumah sakit rujukan dan beberapa puskesmas di Provinsi Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta. Penelitian dilakukan dalam periode Januari hingga Desember 2014 yang hasilnya dianalisis dengan uji bivariat (kai kuadrat) dan …

Risk Differences Between Elderly Men And Women Toward Doctor-Diagnosed Diabetes Mellitus In Urban Areas In Indonesia: 2013 National Basic Health Research Data, Meiwita Budiharsana

Kesmas

Diabetes melitus (DM) adalah salah satu penyakit tidak menular yang paling umum di Indonesia. DM disebabkan berbagai faktor risiko. Peningkatan prevalensi DM salah satunya disebabkan oleh perubahan gaya hidup di perkotaan. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menguji perbedaan prevalensi DM yang didiagnosis dokter pada laki-laki dan perempuan usia 15 tahun keatas yang tinggal di daerah perkotaan di Indonesia. Analisis menggunakan data sekunder Riset Kesehatan Dasar (Riskesdas) 2013 dengan desain studi potong lintang. Total sampel sebanyak 333.731 responden. Metode analisis menggunakan regresi logistik ganda. Hasil menunjukkan bahwa DM yang didiagnosis dokter pada laki-laki dan perempuan usia 15-39 tahun di perkotaan tidak berbeda. …

The Profile And Determinant Factors Of Quality Of Life In Patients With Diabetic Neuropathy, Rizaldy Taslim Pinzon, Kadek Sinthia Grahita Adnyana, Marta Lisnawati Zalukhu

Kesmas

Neuropati merupakan salah satu komplikasi tersering pada diabetes melitus (DM). Neuropati dapat memengaruhi kualitas hidup, derajat kesehatan, maupun tingkat ekonomi. Oleh karena itu, penting untuk mengetahui kualitas hidup pasien DM dengan neuropati beserta dampak yang ditimbulkannya terlebih dahulu agar mendapatkan penanganan yang tepat demi meningkatkan kualitas hidup pasien. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui profil kualitas hidup pasien DM dengan neuropati. Penelitian ini merupakan studi observasional menggunakan Short Form 8 (SF-8) Health Survey Standard Indonesia terhadap pasien diabetes melitus dengan neuropati yang diambil secara konsekutif pada bulan Maret hingga Agustus 2016 di Poli Saraf Rumah Sakit Bethesda, Yogyakarta. Terdapat 57 subjek …

Lyme Disease And Youtube™: A Cross-Sectional Study Of Video Contents, Corey H. Basch, Lindsay A. Mullican, Kwanza D. Boone, Jingjing Yin, Alyssa Berdnik, Marina E. Eremeeva, Isaac Chun-Hai Fung

Environmental Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Objectives: Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne disease. People seek health information on Lyme disease from YouTubeTM videos. In this study, we investigated if the contents of Lyme disease-related YouTubeTM videos varied by their sources.

Methods: Most viewed English YouTubeTM videos (n = 100) were identified and manually coded for contents and sources.

Results: Within the sample, 40 videos were consumer-generated, 31 were internet-based news, 16 were professional, and 13 were TV news. Compared with consumer-generated videos, TV news videos were more likely to mention celebrities (odds ratio [OR], 10.57; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.13–52.58), prevention of Lyme disease …

Nonparametric Variable Importance Assessment Using Machine Learning Techniques, Brian D. Williamson, Peter B. Gilbert, Noah Simon, Marco Carone

UW Biostatistics Working Paper Series

In a regression setting, it is often of interest to quantify the importance of various features in predicting the response. Commonly, the variable importance measure used is determined by the regression technique employed. For this reason, practitioners often only resort to one of a few regression techniques for which a variable importance measure is naturally defined. Unfortunately, these regression techniques are often sub-optimal for predicting response. Additionally, because the variable importance measures native to different regression techniques generally have a different interpretation, comparisons across techniques can be difficult. In this work, we study a novel variable importance measure that can …

The Future Is Coming : Research On Maritime Communication Technology For Realization Of Intelligent Ship And Its Impacts On Future Maritime Management, Jiacheng Ke

Maritime Safety & Environment Management Dissertations (Dalian)

No abstract provided.

Math Department Newsletter, 2017, University Of Dayton. Department Of Mathematics

Department of Mathematics Newsletters

No abstract provided.

Uses Of The Hypergeometric Distribution For Determining Survival Or Complete Representation Of Subpopulations In Sequential Sampling, Brooke Busbee

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis will explore the hypergeometric probability distribution by looking at many different aspects of the distribution. These include, and are not limited to: history and origin, derivation and elementary applications, properties, relationships to other probability models, kindred hypergeometric distributions and elements of statistical inference associated with the hypergeometric distribution. Once the above are established, an investigation into and furthering of work done by Walton (1986) and Charlambides (2005) will be done. Here, we apply the hypergeometric distribution to sequential sampling in order to determine a surviving subcategory as well as study the problem of and complete representation of the …

Biocidal Defeat Agents Produced By Silver-Iodine Nanoenergetic Gas Generators, Ivan Davila

Theses and Dissertations

Nanostructured aluminum (Al), iodine pentoxide (I2O5) nano-rods, and silver oxide (Ag2O) nanoparticles, (Al-I2O5-Ag 2O) were used to compose the ternary thermite composition that serves as a Nanoenergetic Gas Generator (NGG). This composition produces biocidal gases giving the mixture the ability to destroy highly pathogenic microorganisms or bacteria. The dissemination of the biocidal gas in combustion chamber was observed using a high-speed camera. The testing of NGG combustion process against the living Escherichia coli (E.coli) K-12 strain cells, that were cultivated/placed on the sample/chamber surfaces, demonstrated that iodine and silver atoms clouds were deposited to the bacteria surface. The 10/75/15 wt …

A Comparison Of Outdoor Bioaerosol And Particulate Measurements In Las Vegas, Tanviben Yogeshkumar Patel

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The urbanization of the Las Vegas Valley has turned the desert into a green oasis by introducing many non-native plant species, some of which are allergenic. Outdoor bioaerosols consist of microorganisms, pollen, spores, and other agents that could cause infections or affect the health of humans. Studies have suggested that exposure to bioaerosols through inhalation can lead to various human health risks. Typically, one monitoring station is established per city to obtain pollen and mold counts for an entire metropolitan area, and the site may not be representative of community exposures. The objective of this study was to measure and …

Crispr/Cas9 In Leishmania Genome Editing : Towards A Proof Of Concept, Zein Kasbo

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Leishmaniasis is a parasitic Neglected Tropical Disease (NTD) that affects mostly poor countries of the third word due to their limited access to clean water and health care. The disease is transmitted through the bite of a sand fly of the genus Phlebotomus in the Old World, and of the genus Lutzomyia in the New World. Historically, NTDs have not been given adequate attention or research funding and finding curative treatments has been slow. However, the fact that the insect vector and the parasite can live and thrive in any ecological system in the world, and under the current circumstances …

Viruses In Marine Animals: Discovery, Detection, And Characterizarion, Elizabeth Fahsbender

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Diseases in marine animals are emerging at an increasing rate. Disease forecasting enabled by virus surveillance presents a proactive solution for managing emerging diseases. Broad viral surveys aid in disease forecasting by providing baseline data on viral diversity associated with various hosts, including many that are not associated with disease. However, these viruses can become pathogens due to expansion in host or geographic range, as well as when changing conditions shift the balance between commensal viruses and the host immune system. Therefore, it is extremely valuable to identify and characterize viruses present in many different hosts in a variety of …

Modeling The Influence Of El Niño On Parasite Transmission In Sand Crab Populations And Seabird Abundance Along The Californian Coast, Aboubacar Dio Seck

Theses and Dissertations

Pacific mole crabs (Emerita analoga) are one of the most important and abundant

invertebrates in sandy beach environments. Consequently, they are a common food source

for seabirds and sea otters. Since the mole crab serves as the primary intermediate host for

acanthocephalan parasites, they have been linked to a number of mortality events. It is

currently estimated that 13-16% of deaths in the threatened California sea otter population

have been caused by infection. In addition, unusually high loads of acanthocephalan

parasites have been linked to episodic deaths of thousands of surf scoters. Studies suggest

that acanthocephalan development and transmission may …

Rational Drug Design Directed At Blocking The Initial Signaling Events In Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Sepsis., Christopher A. Tipton

Theses

Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (SIRS) is classified as an immune system response to an infectious state. If left untreated, SIRS leads to sepsis, septic shock, end-organ dysfunction, and death. As a patient progresses through these stages, associations of acute respiratory distress, disseminated intravascular coagulation, and acute renal failure persist, resulting in millions of deaths annually. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a bacterial endotoxin, is released into the blood stream, triggering SIRS. LPS is found in the outer cell-wall of Gram-negative bacteria and is responsible for initiation of a devastating cytokine storm. One of the regions of LPS, lipid A, is a polyacylated glucosamine …

Bat Community Composition And Monitoring For White-Nose Syndrome At First State National Historical Park, Delaware And Pennsylvania, Juliet Nagel, J. Edward Gates

United States National Park Service: Publications

Abstract

In recent years, bats have faced increasingly deadly threats on multiple fronts. Cave-dwelling bats have been decimated by the emergence of a disease, white-nose syndrome (WNS), caused by a fungal pathogen, Pseudogymnoascus destructans; and tree bats are dying in large numbers at wind power facilities. First State National Historical Park (FRST) is a new national park unit located in northern Delaware and Pennsylvania. Prior to this study, little information was available on bat species and their activity and distribution within FRST. To fill this knowledge gap, we conducted an inventory of bat species present at FRST. We used …

Generating Enzyme And Radical‐Mediated Bisubstrates As Tools For Investigating Gcn5‐Related N‐Acetyltransferases, Cory T. Reidl, Karolina A. Majorek, Joseph Dang, David Tran, Kristen Jew, Melissa Law, Yasmine Payne, Wladek Minor, Daniel P. Becker, Misty L. Kuhn

Chemistry: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Gcn5‐related N‐acetyltransferases (GNATs) are found in all kingdoms of life and catalyze important acyl transfer reactions in diverse cellular processes. While many 3D structures of GNATs have been determined, most do not contain acceptor substrates in their active sites. To expand upon existing crystallographic strategies for improving acceptor‐bound GNAT structures, we synthesized peptide substrate analogs and reacted them with CoA in PA4794 protein crystals. We found two separate mechanisms for bisubstrate formation: (a) a novel X‐ray induced radical‐mediated alkylation of CoA with an alkene peptide and (b) direct alkylation of CoA with a halogenated peptide. Our approach is widely …

Identification Of Chemical Compounds That Inhibit Protein Synthesis In Pseudomonas Aeruginosa, Stephanie O. Palmer, Yanmei Hu, Megan Keniry, James M. Bullard

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences Faculty Publications

Four inhibitory compounds were identified using a poly-uridylic acid (polyU) mRNA-directed aminoacylation/translation (A/T) protein synthesis system composed of phenylalanyl-tRNA synthetases (PheRS), ribosomes, and ribosomal factors from Pseudomonas aeruginosa in an in vitro screen of a synthetic compound library. The compounds were specific for inhibition of bacterial protein synthesis. In enzymatic assays, the compounds inhibited protein synthesis with IC50 values ranging from 20 to 60 μM. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) were determined in cultures for a panel of pathogenic organisms, including Enterococcus faecalis, Escherichia coli, Haemophilus influenzae, P. aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, and Streptococcus pneumoniae. All the compounds were observed to have …

Evaluation Of Multiple Interventions Using A Stepped Wedge Design, Vivian H. Lyons, Lingyu Li, James Hughes, Ali Rowhani-Rahbar

UW Biostatistics Working Paper Series

Background: Stepped wedge cluster randomized trials are a class of unidirectional crossover studies that have historically been limited to evaluating a single intervention. This design is especially suitable for pragmatic trials where the study feasibility can be improved with a phased introduction of the intervention. We examined variations of stepped wedge designs that would support evaluation of multiple interventions. Methods: We propose four different design variants for implementing a stepped wedge trial with two interventions: concurrent design, supplementation, replacement, and factorial designs. Analyses were conducted comparing the precision of the estimated intervention effects for the different designs. Results: Concurrent, …

Numerically Solving A System Of Pdes Modeling Chronic Wounds Treated With Oxygen Therapy, Stefan Stryker

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Chronic wounds such as diabetic foot ulcers are the leading cause of non-traumatic amputations in developed countries. For researchers to better understand the physiology of these wounds, a mathematical model describing oxygen levels at the wound site can be used to help predict healing responses. The model utilizes equations that are modified from work by Guffey (2015) that consists of four variables – oxygen, bacteria, neutrophils, and chemoattractant within a system of partial differential equations. Our research focuses on numerically solving these partial differential equations using a finite volume approach. This numerical solver will be important for future research in …

Pollen Forecasting In Sarasota, Florida, Daniel J. Gessman

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Current predictions of pollen levels rely strictly on historical Averages, regardless of environmental factors that might affect the timing of pollen release by different plants. For this thesis, the goal was to develop a statistical model that will accurately forecast pollen levels by correlating those daily counts to atmospheric and meteorological conditions. This project used ARIMA modeling on IBM’s SPSS Statistics 24 of daily pollen count information for multiple allergenic pollens in the Sarasota County, Florida area over a 11-year period. The pollen species in question for this project are oak and cypress trees, grass, and ragweed pollens; and Alternaria …

Analysis Of A Potential A(H7n9) Influenza Pandemic Outbreak In The U.S., Walter A. Silva Sotillo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation presents a collection of manuscripts that describe development of models and model implementation to analyze impact of potential A(H7N9) pandemic influenza outbreak in the U.S. Though this virus is still only animal-to-human transmittable, it has potential to become human-to-human transmittable and trigger a pandemic. This work is motivated by the negative impact on human lives that this virus has already caused in China, and is intended to support public health officials in preparing to protect U.S. population from a potential outbreak of pandemic scale.

An agent-based (AB) simulation model is used to replicate the social dynamics of the …

Safety Of Induced Sputum Collection In Children Hospitalized With Severe Or Very Severe Pneumonia., Andrea N Deluca, Laura L Hammitt, Julia Kim, Melissa M Higdon, Henry C Baggett, Daniel E Park, +Several Additional Authors

Epidemiology Faculty Publications

Background.: Induced sputum (IS) may provide diagnostic information about the etiology of pneumonia. The safety of this procedure across a heterogeneous population with severe pneumonia in low- and middle-income countries has not been described.

Methods.: IS specimens were obtained as part a 7-country study of the etiology of severe and very severe pneumonia in hospitalized childrenbefore, during, and after the procedure to record oxygen requirement, oxygen saturation, respiratory rate, consciousness level, and other evidence of clinical deterioration. Criteria for IS contraindications were predefined and serious adverse events (SAEs) were reported to ethics committees and a central safety monitor.

Results.: A …

Data Management And Data Quality In Perch, A Large International Case-Control Study Of Severe Childhood Pneumonia., Nora L Watson, Christine Prosperi, Amanda J Driscoll, Melissa M Higdon, Daniel E Park, Megan Sanza, Andrea N Deluca, Juliet O Awori, Doli Goswami, Emily Hammond, Lokman Hossain, Catherine Johnson, Alice Kamau, Locadiah Kuwanda, David P Moore, Omid Neyzari, Uma Onwuchekwa, David Parker, Patranuch Sapchookul

Epidemiology Faculty Publications

The Pneumonia Etiology Research for Child Health (PERCH) study is the largest multicountry etiology study of pediatric pneumonia undertaken in the past 3 decades. The study enrolled 4232 hospitalized cases and 5325 controls over 2 years across 9 research sites in 7 countries in Africa and Asia. The volume and complexity of data collection in PERCH presented considerable logistical and technical challenges. The project chose an internet-based data entry system to allow real-time access to the data, enabling the project to monitor and clean incoming data and perform preliminary analyses throughout the study. To ensure high-quality data, the project developed …

Colonization Density Of The Upper Respiratory Tract As A Predictor Of Pneumonia-Haemophilus Influenzae, Moraxella Catarrhalis, Staphylococcus Aureus, And Pneumocystis Jirovecii., Daniel E Park, Henry C Baggett, Stephen R C Howie, Qiyuan Shi, Nora L Watson, W Abdullah Brooks, Perch Study Group

Epidemiology Faculty Publications

Background.

There is limited information on the association between colonization density of upper respiratory tract colonizers and pathogen-specific pneumonia. We assessed this association for Haemophilus influenzae, Moraxella catarrhalis, Staphylococcus aureus, and Pneumocystis jirovecii. Methods.

In 7 low- and middle-income countries, nasopharyngeal/oropharyngeal swabs from children with severe pneumonia and age-frequency matched community controls were tested using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Differences in median colonization density were evaluated using the Wilcoxon rank-sum test. Density cutoffs were determined using receiver operating characteristic curves. Cases with a pathogen identified from lung aspirate culture or PCR, pleural fluid culture or …

Microscopic Analysis And Quality Assessment Of Induced Sputum From Children With Pneumonia In The Perch Study., David R Murdoch, Susan C Morpeth, Laura L Hammitt, Amanda J Driscoll, Daniel E Park, +Several Additional Authors

Epidemiology Faculty Publications

Background.

It is standard practice for laboratories to assess the cellular quality of expectorated sputum specimens to check that they originated from the lower respiratory tract. The presence of low numbers of squamous epithelial cells (SECs) and high numbers of polymorphonuclear (PMN) cells are regarded as indicative of a lower respiratory tract specimen. However, these quality ratings have never been evaluated for induced sputum specimens from children with suspected pneumonia. Methods.

We evaluated induced sputum Gram stain smears and cultures from hospitalized children aged 1–59 months enrolled in a large study of community-acquired pneumonia. We hypothesized that a specimen representative …

Is Higher Viral Load In The Upper Respiratory Tract Associated With Severe Pneumonia? Findings From The Perch Study., Daniel R Feikin, Wei Fu, Daniel E Park, Qiyuan Shi, Melissa M Higdon, Henry C Baggett, +Several Additional Authors

Epidemiology Faculty Publications

Background.

The etiologic inference of identifying a pathogen in the upper respiratory tract (URT) of children with pneumonia is unclear. To determine if viral load could provide evidence of causality of pneumonia, we compared viral load in the URT of children with World Health Organization–defined severe and very severe pneumonia and age-matched community controls.

Methods.

In the 9 developing country sites, nasopharyngeal/oropharyngeal swabs from children with and without pneumonia were tested using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction for 17 viruses. The association of viral load with case status was evaluated using logistic regression. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were constructed …