Digital Commons Network^™

Aviation Cinema, Kevin L. Ferguson

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Historical And Contemporary Demography Of Leaf-Toed Geckos (Phyllodactylidae: Phyllodactylus) In The Mexican Dry Forest, Christopher Blair, Victor H. Jiménez Arcos, Fausto R. Méndez De La Cruz, Robert W. Murphy

Publications and Research

Disentangling the relative influence of historical versus contemporary processes shaping the spatial distribution of genetic variation is critical if we are to effectively mitigate key biodiversity issues. We utilize a comprehensive approach based on different molecular marker types and analytical methods to understand the demographic consequences of recent habitat fragmentation in a spatially explicit context. We focus our efforts on native leaf-toed geckos (Phyllodactylus tuberculosus saxatilis) throughout fragmented habitat in the tropical dry forest of northern Mexico as recent evidence suggests that geographic ranges for these geckos may be much smaller than currently realized. However, no data are …

Experimental Shifts In Intraclutch Egg Color Variation Do Not Affect Egg Rejection In A Host Of A Non-Egg-Mimetic Avian Brood Parasite, Rebecca Croston, Mark E. Hauber

Publications and Research

Avian brood parasites lay their eggs in the nests of other birds, and impose the costs associated with rearing parasitic young onto these hosts. Many hosts of brood parasites defend against parasitism by removing foreign eggs from the nest. In systems where parasitic eggs mimic host eggs in coloration and patterning, extensive intraclutch variation in egg appearances may impair the host’s ability to recognize and reject parasitic eggs, but experimental investigation of this effect has produced conflicting results. The cognitive mechanism by which hosts recognize parasitic eggs may vary across brood parasite hosts, and this may explain variation in experimental …

College Senate Minutes March 26, 2015, Bronx Community College Senate

BCC Governance Archives

Minutes for the meeting of the College Senate on March 26, 2015.

Glycine And Gabaa Receptors Mediate Tonic And Phasic Inhibitory Processes That Contribute To Prepulse Inhibition In The Goldfish Startle Network, Paul C.P. Curtin, Thomas Preuss

Publications and Research

Prepulse inhibition (PPI) is understood as a sensorimotor gating process that attenuates sensory flow to the startle pathway during early stages (20--1000 ms) of information processing. Here, we applied in vivo electrophysiology and pharmacology to determine if PPI is mediated by glycine receptors (GlyRs) and/or GABAA receptors (GABAARs) in the goldfish auditory startle circuit. Specifically, we used selective antagonists to dissect the contributions of target receptors on sound-evoked postsynaptic potentials (PSPs) recorded in the neurons that initiate startle, the Mauthner-cells (M-cell). We found that strychnine, a GlyR antagonist, disrupted a fast-activated (5 ms) and rapidly (<50 >ms) decaying (feed-forward) inhibitory …

The Φ6 Cystovirus Protein P7 Becomes Accessible To Antibodies In The Transcribing Nucleocapsid: A Probe For Viral Structural Elements, Alexandra Alimova, Hui Wei, Al Katz, Linda Spatz, Paul Gottlieb

Publications and Research

Protein P7 is a component of the cystovirus viral polymerase complex. In the unpackaged procapsid, the protein is situated in close proximity to the viral directed RNA polymerase, P2. Cryo-electron microscopy difference maps from the species ϕ6 procapsid have demonstrated that P7 and P2 likely interact prior to viral RNA packaging. The location of P7 in the post-packaged nucleocapsid (NC) remains unknown. P7 may translocate closer to the five-fold axis of a filled procapsid but this has not been directly visualized. We propose that monoclonal antibodies (Mabs) can be selected that serve as probe- reagents for viral assembly and structure. …

From The Field To The Lab: Best Practices For Field Preservation Of Bat Specimens For Molecular Analyses, Angelique Corthals, Alynn Martin, Omar M. Warsi, Megan Woller-Skar, Winston Lancaster, Amy Russell, Liliana M. Dávalos

Publications and Research

Studies in molecular ecology depend on field-collected samples for genetic information, and the tissue sampled and preservation conditions strongly affect the quality of the DNA obtained. DNA yields from different tissue types have seldom been compared, and the relative performance of storage media has never been directly tested, even though these media may influence DNA degradation under field conditions. We analyzed DNA yield from buccal swabs and wing punches harvested from live bats using nucleic acid quantification as well as quantitative PCR for a single-copy nuclear locus. We also compared DNA yields from wing tissue preserved in three media: ethanol, …

Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation In Psychiatric Disorders, Gabriel Tortella, Roberta Casati, Luana V M Aparicio, Antonio Mantovani, Natasha Senço, Giordano D'Urso, Jerome Brunelin, Fabiana Guarienti, Priscila Mara Lorencini Selingardi, Débora Muszkat, Bernardo De Sampaio Pereira Junior, Leandro Valiengo, Adriano H. Moffa, Marcel Simis, Lucas Borrione, Andre R. Brunoni

Publications and Research

The interest in non-invasive brain stimulation techniques is increasing in recent years. Among these techniques, transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has been the subject of great interest among researchers because of its easiness to use, low cost, benign profile of side effects and encouraging results of research in the field. This interest has generated several studies and randomized clinical trials, particularly in psychiatry. In this review, we provide a summary of the development of the technique and its mechanism of action as well as a review of the methodological aspects of randomized clinical trials in psychiatry, including studies in affective …

A Rna-Seq Approach To Identify Putative Toxins From Acrorhagi In Aggressive And Non-Aggressive Anthopleura Elegantissima Polyps, Jason Macrander, Mercer R. Brugler, Marymegan Daly

Publications and Research

Background The use of venom in intraspecific aggression is uncommon and venom-transmitting structures specifically used for intraspecific competition are found in few lineages of venomous taxa. Next-generation transcriptome sequencing allows robust characterization of venom diversity and exploration of functionally unique tissues. Using a tissue-specific RNA-seq approach, we investigate the venom composition and gene ontology diversity of acrorhagi, specialized structures used in intraspecific competition, in aggressive and non-aggressive polyps of the aggregating sea anemone Anthopleura elegantissima (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Hexacorallia: Actiniaria: Actiniidae). Results Collectively, we generated approximately 450,000 transcripts from acrorhagi of aggressive and non-aggressive polyps. For both transcriptomes we identified 65 …

National Livestock Policy Of Nepal: Needs And Opportunities, Upendra B. Pradhanang, Soni M. Pradhanang, Arhan Sthapit, Nir Y. Krakauer, Ajay K. Jha, Tarendra Lakhankar

Publications and Research

This paper describes Nepal’s national livestock policies and considers how they can be improved to help meet the pressing national challenges of economic development, equity, poverty alleviation, gender mainstreaming, inclusion of marginalized and underprivileged communities, and climate vulnerability. Nepal is in the process of transforming its government from a unitary system to a federal democratic structure through the new constitution expected by 2015, offering the opportunity to bring a new set of priorities and stakeholders to policymaking. Nepal’s livestock subsector comes most directly within the purview of the National Agricultural Policy 2004, Agro-Business Policy, 2006 and Agricultural Sectoral Operating Policies …

Remotely-Supervised Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (Tdcs) For Clinical Trials: Guidelines For Technology And Protocols, Leigh E. Charvet, Margaret Kasschau, Abhishek Datta, Helena Knotkova, Michael C. Stevens, Angelo Alonzo, Colleen Loo, Kevin R. Krull, Marom Bikson

Publications and Research

The effect of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is cumulative. Treatment protocols typically require multiple consecutive sessions spanning weeks or months. However, traveling to clinic for a tDCS session can present an obstacle to subjects and their caregivers. With modified devices and headgear, tDCS treatment can be administered remotely under clinical supervision, potentially enhancing recruitment, throughput, and convenience. Here we propose standards and protocols for clinical trials utilizing remotely-supervised tDCS with the goal of providing safe, reproducible and well-tolerated stimulation therapy outside of the clinic. The recommendations include: (1) training of staff in tDCS treatment and supervision; (2) assessment of …

Una Reflexión Sobre La Violencia Y La Construcción De Paz Desde El Teatro Y El Arte, Patricia Tovar

Publications and Research

Este artículo es una invitación a pensar en el arte y el legado de la violencia y la injusticia en la historia de la humanidad y en los esfuerzos trabajados desde diferentes proyectos artísticos en la resolución de conflictos y en la promoción de la paz en el mundo. Se presentan y analizan algunas de esas experiencias y se examina cómo han sido aplicadas por diferentes disciplinas para resolver o avanzar sobre algunos de los problemas que aquejan a la sociedad. Es también importante pensar en el uso del arte, del teatro y de la creatividad como estrategia metodológica y …

Now You See It, Now You Don’T: Flushing Hosts Prior To Experimentation Can Predict Their Responses To Brood Parasitism, Daniel Hanley, Peter Samas, Josef Heryán, Mark E. Hauber, Tomáš Grim

Publications and Research

Brood parasitic birds lay their eggs in other birds’ nests, leaving hosts to raise their offspring. To understand parasite-host coevolutionary arms races, many studies have examined host responses to experimentally introduced eggs. However, attending parents often need to be flushed from their nests to add experimental eggs. If these birds witness parasitism events, they may recognize and reject foreign eggs more readily than parents who did not. We found that, after being flushed, female blackbirds, Turdus merula, remained close to their nests. Flushed females were more likely to eject foreign eggs and did so more quickly than females that …

Tnfα Transport Induced By Dynamic Loading Alters Biomechanics Of Intact Intervertebral Discs, Benjamin A. Walter, Morakot Likhitpanichkul, Svenja Illien-Junger, Peter J. Roughley, Andrew C. Hecht, James C. Iatridis

Publications and Research

Objective Intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration is an important contributor to the development of back pain, and a key factor relating pain and degeneration are the presence of pro-inflammatory cytokines and IVD motion. There is surprisingly limited understanding of how mechanics and inflammation interact in the IVD. This study investigated interactions between mechanical loading and pro-inflammatory cytokines in a large animal organ culture model to address fundamental questions regarding (i.) how inflammatory mediators arise within the IVD, (ii.) how long inflammatory mediators persist, and (iii.) how inflammatory mediators influence IVD biomechanics. Methods Bovine caudal IVDs were cultured for 6 or 20-days …

New Functionally-Enhanced Soy Proteins As Food Ingredients With Anti-Viral Activity, Aizhan Sabirzhanovna Turmagambetova, Nadezhda Sergeevna Sokolova, Andrey Pavlinovich Bogoyavlenskiy, Vladimir Eleazvich Berezin, Mary Ann Lila, Diana M. Cheng, Vyacheslav Dushenkov

Publications and Research

Respiratory viruses are a major public health problem because of their prevalence and high morbidity rate leading to considerable social and economic implications. Cranberry has therapeutic potential attributed to a comprehensive list of phytochemicals including anthocyanins, flavonols, and unique A-type proanthocyanidins. Soy flavonoids, including isoflavones, have demonstrated anti-viral effects in vitro and in vivo. Recently, it was demonstrated that edible proteins can efficiently sorb and concentrate cranberry polyphenols, including anthocyanins and proanthocyanins, providing greatly stabilized matrices suitable for food products. The combination of cranberry and soy phytoactives may be an effective dietary anti-viral resource. Anti-viral properties of both cranberry juice-enriched …

College Senate Minutes February 26, 2015, Bronx Community College Senate

BCC Governance Archives

Minutes for the meeting of the College Senate on February 26, 2015.

Three Dimensional Microfluidic Cell Arrays For Ex Vivo Drug Screening With Mimicked Vascular Flow, Zeynep Dereli-Korkut, H. Dogus Akaydin, A. H. Rezwanuddin Ahmed, Xuejun Jiang, Sihong Wang

Publications and Research

Currently, there are no reliable ex vivo models that predict anticancer drug responses in human tumors accurately. A comprehensive method of mimicking a 3D microenvironment to study effects of anticancer drugs on specific cancer types is essential. Here, we report the development of a three-dimensional microfluidic cell array (3D μFCA), which reconstructs a 3D tumor microenvironment with cancer cells and microvascular endothelial cells. To mimic the in vivo spatial relationship between microvessels and nonendothelial cells embedded in extracellular matrix, three polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) layers were built into this array. The multilayer property of the device enabled the imitation of the drug …

Iarc Monographs: 40 Years Of Evaluating Carcinogenic Hazards To Humans, Neil Pearce, Aaron Blair, Paolo Vineis, Wolfgang Ahrens, Aage Andersen, Josep M. Anto, Bruce K. Armstrong, Andrea A. Baccarelli, Frederick A. Beland, Amy Berrington, Pier Alberto Bertazzi, Linda S. Birnbaum, Ross C. Brownson, John R. Bucher, Kenneth P. Cantor, Elisabeth Cardis, John W. Cherrie, David C. Christiani, Pierluigi Cocco, David Coggon, Franklin E. Mirer

Publications and Research

Background: Recently, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) Programme for the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans has been criticized for several of its evaluations, and also for the approach used to perform these evaluations. Some critics have claimed that failures of IARC Working Groups to recognize study weaknesses and biases of Working Group members have led to inappropriate classification of a number of agents as carcinogenic to humans. Objectives: The authors of this Commentary are scientists from various disciplines relevant to the identification and hazard evaluation of human carcinogens. We examined criticisms of the IARC classification process …

Memory Distortion For Traumatic Events: The Role Of Mental Imagery, Deryn Strange, Melanie K. T. Takarangi

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Rational Design Of A Chalcogenopyrylium-Based Surface-Enhanced Resonance Raman Scattering-Nanoprobe With Attomolar Sensitivity, Stefan Harmsen, Matthew A. Bedics, Matthew A. Wall, Ruimin Huang, Michael R. Detty, Moritz F. Kircher

Publications and Research

High sensitivity and specificity are two desirable features in biomedical imaging. Raman imaging has surfaced as a promising optical modality that offers both. Here, we report the design and synthesis of a group of near infrared absorbing 2-thienyl-substituted chalcogenopyrylium dyes tailored to have high affinity for gold. When adsorbed onto gold nanoparticles, these dyes produce biocompatible SERRS-nanoprobes with attomolar limits of detection amenable to ultrasensitive in vivo multiplexed tumor and disease marker detection.

The Ticker, February 9, 2015

The Ticker

The Ticker is the student newspaper of Baruch College. It has been published continuously since 1932, when the Baruch College campus was the School of Business and Civic Administration of the City College of New York.

The Regulatory Function Of Sphingosine-1-Phosphate Signaling Axis On Regulatory T Cells In Colorectal Cancer, Andrew V. Nguyen, Yuan-Yuan Wu, Elaine Y. Lin

Publications and Research

In tumors associated with inflammation such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and colorectal cancer (CRC), high numbers of regulatory T cells (Tregs) are associated with both favorable and poor prognoses. The functions of Tregs in CRC remain elusive and have yet to be clearly defined. With new evidence supporting many subsets of Tregs, the research on the development and functions of these cells has begun to come to fruition. The sphingosine 1 phosphate (S1P) pathway was recently reported to regulate the development and function of regulatory T cells. This pathway may shine new light into the pleiotropic nature of these …

Towards The Total Synthesis Of (+/-)-Gephyrotoxin 287c, Maciej E. Domaradzki

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Studies directed toward the total synthesis of (+/-)-Gephyrotoxin 287C are described herein. Even though the target alkaloid has been synthesized four times to date, it still presents an interesting synthetic challenge. Our ultimate goal is to develop an efficient enantioselective synthetic route utilizing oxazolone chemistry in order to demonstrate its utility as a dienophilic component in intramolecular Diels-Alder reactions. This is part of a greater ongoing study aimed at a range of suitable alkaloid targets.

Chapter 1 provides introduction to frog toxins as secondary metabolites and subsequently shifts to the target alkaloid. (+/-)-Gephyrotoxin 287C was originally described by Daly and …

Was There A Sensory Trade-Off In Primate Evolution? The Vomeronasal Groove As A Means Of Understanding The Vomeronasal System In The Fossil Record., Eva Christine Garrett

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Primates have remarkable visual adaptations compared to most other mammals, long explained as associated with a trade-off with olfaction (smell). However, as more information comes to light on the role of olfaction in primate behavior it becomes apparent that olfaction is not a trivial sense. Even humans use smell to communicate, albeit in subtle ways, and the olfactory systems of the lemurs and lorises are very well-developed. Olfaction, however, is actually comprised of two distinct systems - the main olfactory and vomeronasal systems. These two systems overlap in many functions, but the main olfactory system is considered fairly generalized while …

Sibling Self-Management: Programming For Generalization To Improve Interactions Between Typical Siblings And Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders, Lauren Kryzak

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Interactions between children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and their typically developing siblings are often of lower quality compared to their typical peers. Teaching behavior change strategies to typical siblings and their siblings with ASD can improve their interactions, but there is limited empirical evidence that it results in generalized improvements. One method to program for generalization is to teach learners to monitor their engagement in behavior change tactics (i.e., self-management). A multiple baseline probe design across typical sibling-sibling with ASD dyads was used to demonstrate a functional relationship between behavioral skills training with typical siblings and their engagement in …

The Neurophysiology Of Intersensory Selective Attention And Task Switching, Jeremy W. Murphy

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Our ability to selectively attend to certain aspects of the world and ignore others is fundamental to our day-to-day lives. The need for selective attention stems from capacity limitations inherent in our perceptual and cognitive processing architecture. Because not every elemental piece of our environment can be fully processed in parallel, the nervous system must prioritize processing. This prioritization is generally referred to as selective attention. Meanwhile, we are faced with a world that is constantly in flux, such that we have to frequently shift our attention from one piece of the environment to another and from one task to …

What The Tortoise Said To Kripke: The Adoption Problem And The Epistemology Of Logic, Romina Padro

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In chapter 1 I introduce the main topics to be addressed and provide a summary of the dissertation. In chapter 2 I summarize Lewis Carroll's famous note "What the Tortoise Said to Achilles" and briefly review some of its most influential interpretations. The rest of the chapter is devoted to Kripke's unpublished interpretation of Carroll's note and the moral he draws from it: in section 2.2 I present and discuss what I call the "adoption problem" and in section 2.3 I clarify certain aspects of it. In chapter 3 I consider a modification of the original set up of the …

The Literary Legacy Of The Federal Writers' Project, Sara Rendene Rutkowski

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Established by President Roosevelt in 1935 as part of the New Deal, the Federal Writers' Project (FWP) put thousands of unemployed professionals to work documenting American life during the Depression. Federal writers--many of whom would become famous, including Ralph Ellison, Nelson Algren, Saul Bellow, Zora Neale Hurston, Richard Wright, Margaret Walker, and Dorothy West--collected reams of oral histories and folklore, and produced hundreds of guides to cities and states across the country. Yet, despite both the Project's extraordinary volume of writing and its unprecedented support for writers, few critics have examined it from a literary perspective. Instead, the FWP has …

Pagh-Paan's No-Ul: Korean Identity Formation As Synthesis Of Eastern And Western Music, Ji Hyun Son

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In this dissertation, I address a gap in a great many syntheses of Eastern and Western music, including the crucial moment in Korean music history that brought about revival of traditional music, resulting in the international impetus it has today. In addressing this gap, I chose Younghi Pagh-Paan and her music to initiate a deeper discussion of Korean composers contributing toward the golden age of Korean music, a welcome development in Korean society; it has also heightened pride and respect for the culture and resulted in a robust Korean identity in their music.

I have demonstrated ways in which Pagh-Paan …

The Labyrinths Of Venice: Environment And Identity In Anna Pavignano's Novel "Venezia, Un Sogno" And Other Works In Literature And Film, Viviana Torrero

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation consists of the translation of Anna Pavignano's novel Venezia, un sogno and of an essay presenting a comment and critical analysis of the work.

The essay itself is divided into the following sections:

--An introduction to my translation of Venezia, un sogno and a reflection on my choice of Venice as a setting and background for my dissertation work.

--An introduction to the author and a description of her previous works.

--A discussion on the theory of translation and its challenges.

--A comparison between Venezia, un sogno and other literary and cinematic works set in Venice with a …