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Damon Hill, Elizabeth Welch Jan 2017

Damon Hill, Elizabeth Welch

LSU Master's Theses

“Damon Hill” acts as a physical record of the family folklore of a group of people formed by landscape and kinship. As a member of this group, I have translated my family’s stories into a visual narrative as a way to process my own identity in relation to our shared identity. The focus of “Damon Hill” rests primarily on the lives of my female predecessors, as a way for me to contribute their unique voice to the overarching feminine narrative. I incorporate the visual representation of traditionally feminine handicrafts in order to relay their stories through the primary means of …


Design And Humoral Analysis Of Two Epitope-Based Brucella Abortus Dna Vaccines, Michael Mcgee Jan 2017

Design And Humoral Analysis Of Two Epitope-Based Brucella Abortus Dna Vaccines, Michael Mcgee

LSU Master's Theses

Brucella is a genus of Gram negative, facultative intracellular pathogens which cause brucellosis, one of the most wide spread zoonotic diseases. Brucellosis causes a severe economic burden due to reproductive loss in animals and human infection. Vaccination of animals has proven to be the most effective means of controlling brucellosis; however the current live-attenuated vaccines are not considered ideal. The live-attenuated vaccines Brucella abortus Strain 19 and RB51 remain pathogenic to humans, and the former interferes with diagnostic tests due to induction of antibodies against the O-polysaccharide. DNA vaccination with single antigens has proven to be successful at protecting mice …


Pharmacokinetics Of Micronized Progesterone Administration In Female Dogs, Raphael Anthony Malbrue Jan 2017

Pharmacokinetics Of Micronized Progesterone Administration In Female Dogs, Raphael Anthony Malbrue

LSU Master's Theses

Hypoluteoidism in the bitch is described as a reproductive condition in which insufficient levels of endogenous progesterone are present resulting in failure to maintain a functional secretory endometrium. This condition can prevent normal embryo implantation, development, and ultimately end in pregnancy loss. Hypoluteoidism in the bitch is a rising concern in small animal theriogenology and current medical therapies available to veterinarians are limited. The aim of this study was to determine the pharmacokinetics (PK) of intravaginally (Crinone®, Serono Laboratories, Norwell, MA) and orally delivered micronized progesterone (Prometrium®, Solvay Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Marietta, GA) in the bitch. We hypothesized that both vaginal …


Biology And Ecology Of Crapemyrtle Bark Scale, Acanthococcus Lagerstroemiae (Kuwana) (Hemiptera: Eriococcidae), Zinan Wang Jan 2017

Biology And Ecology Of Crapemyrtle Bark Scale, Acanthococcus Lagerstroemiae (Kuwana) (Hemiptera: Eriococcidae), Zinan Wang

LSU Master's Theses

The crapemyrtle bark scale, Acanthococcus lagerstroemiae (Kuwana) (Hemiptera: Eriococcidae), is an exotic pest on crapemyrtles, Lagerstroemia spp. (Myrtales: Lythraceae). Because of its recent arrival in the US, little is known about its biology and ecology. The purpose of my thesis was to improve the knowledge about A. lagerstroemiae in four aspects involving its thermal tolerance, physiological adaptations to cold temperatures, temperature-dependent development and host range. Thermal tolerance was determined to understand how temperature extremes constrain the distribution of A. lagerstroemiae in the US. Results suggested that A. lagerstroemiae can tolerant high heat, but its potential distribution to the northern US …


Comparative Viability Of Spray Dried Lactobacilli Affected By Different Protective Agents And Storage Conditions, Vondel Vandeker Reyes Ortega Jan 2017

Comparative Viability Of Spray Dried Lactobacilli Affected By Different Protective Agents And Storage Conditions, Vondel Vandeker Reyes Ortega

LSU Master's Theses

Because of their health benefits, probiotics are a significant part of the functional food industry. Spray drying is reported as the most common method used in the food industry to encapsulate probiotics. The objectives of this study were to investigate the effects of protective agents on the viability of lactobacilli after spray drying and during storage at different conditions and to evaluate spray drying conditions to produce these probiotic powders. Lactobacillus plantarum NRRL B-4496 (LP) and Lactobacillus acidophilus NRRL B-4495 (LA) were separately grown (~109 CFU/ml) and suspended in a 200 g/L solution of high maize starch (HM); maltodextrin (MD); …


Characterization Of Hybrid Synthetic/Adipose-Derived Ecm Scaffolds, John Nicholas Poche Jan 2017

Characterization Of Hybrid Synthetic/Adipose-Derived Ecm Scaffolds, John Nicholas Poche

LSU Master's Theses

Evolving out of a need to address growing concerns regarding current methods of tissue transplantation, the field of tissue engineering seeks to facilitate the regeneration of viable tissue through the use of cellular scaffolds. The first aim of this thesis was to provide a summary of the current literature on advances in biomaterial synthesis and pertaining methods of stem cell delivery in tissue engineering. Improvements in the processing of decellularized tissue and the expansion of synthetic hydrogels as platforms for stem cell encapsulation have led to the development of extracellular matrix (ECM)-based hybrid hydrogels. These stem cell scaffolds are currently …


Interactive Web-Based Visualization Of Atomic Position-Time Series Data, Simron Thapa Jan 2017

Interactive Web-Based Visualization Of Atomic Position-Time Series Data, Simron Thapa

LSU Master's Theses

Extracting and interpreting the information contained in large sets of time-varying three dimensional positional data for the constituent atoms of simulated material system is a challenging task. This thesis work reports our initial implementation of a web-based visualization system and its use-case study. The system allows the users to perform the desired visualization task on a web browser for the position-time series data extracted from the local or remote hosts. It involves a pre-processing step for data reduction, which involves skipping uninteresting parts of the data uniformly (at full atomic configuration level) or non-uniformly (at atomic species level or individual …


Susceptibility Of The Southern House Mosquito, Culex Quinquefasciatus, In East Baton Rouge Parish To Larval Insecticides, Nicholas Alexander Delisi Jan 2017

Susceptibility Of The Southern House Mosquito, Culex Quinquefasciatus, In East Baton Rouge Parish To Larval Insecticides, Nicholas Alexander Delisi

LSU Master's Theses

Mosquito control districts in Louisiana focus their efforts on Culex quinquefasciatus, the primary vector of West Nile virus in the southern United States, with rigorous larvicide treatments. However, the development of resistant populations of Cx. quinquefasciatus in response to extensive insecticide application has been demonstrated repeatedly. Examining changes in insecticide susceptibility and larvicide efficacy in real world scenarios can help inform mosquito control districts as to whether or not their treatments are killing mosquitoes. We hypothesized that frequent larvicide applications for the control of mosquitoes in East Baton Rouge Parish had lowered susceptibility of wild Cx. quinquefasciatus to insecticides, and …


The Effect Of Storage Temperature And Time On The Quality Of Spray Dried Egg Powder, Fallon Polette Salinas Gonzalez Jan 2017

The Effect Of Storage Temperature And Time On The Quality Of Spray Dried Egg Powder, Fallon Polette Salinas Gonzalez

LSU Master's Theses

Dehydration is a good approach for egg preservation. However, dried egg products may still suffer from deterioration if stored in an abused temperature environment or prolonged times. Storage conditions can induce undesirable reactions and loss of functionality and quality. The objective of this study was to evaluate the physicochemical characteristics and functionality of spray dried egg yolk powders, which included plain whole egg (PLWE), free flow yolk (FFY), enzyme modified yolk (EMY), and free flow whole egg (FFWE) stored at 4 °C, 25 °C, 43 °C or 54 °C, over a 2-month period; and provide useful suggestions to maximize quality …


The Immediate And Extended Effect Of Diet And Exercise On Metabolic Flexibility, Timothy Allerton Jan 2017

The Immediate And Extended Effect Of Diet And Exercise On Metabolic Flexibility, Timothy Allerton

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Metabolic inflexibility is an emerging physiological marker indicative of metabolic dysfunction and associated with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and obesity. Exercise is a potent stimulus to improve metabolic health, however, not much is known about the acute effects of exercise on metabolic flexibility (METFLEX). The purpose of this dissertation was study the time-course of diet and exercise and its effects on METFLEX. Three studies were conducted to investigate molecular and clinical aspects of diet and exercise and how these stimuli may alter the metabolic response to fuel. The first study was conducted on obesity-prone, Osborne-Mendel (OM) and obesity-resistant S5B/Pl (S5B) …


Assessing The Effects Of The Smartphone As A Learning Tool On The Academic Achievement And Motivation Of High School Agriculture Students In Louisiana, Henry Eric Smith Jan 2017

Assessing The Effects Of The Smartphone As A Learning Tool On The Academic Achievement And Motivation Of High School Agriculture Students In Louisiana, Henry Eric Smith

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Perhaps the most influential device in modern society is the smartphone. Over 90% of Americans aged 18-29 own a smartphone and 74% of teenagers reported using a smartphone as their primary internet connection. Students perceived that using smartphones in the classroom aided learning. However, two-thirds of American high schools ban students from using phones in the classroom. Secondary science curriculum focuses on subjects that regard the biodiversity of plant and animal species, but disregard the student’s ability to identify species. Consequently, secondary students in general are very poor at identifying species of trees. Previous research supports the idea that advanced …


Lignocellulosic Syrup Production From Energy Cane Bagasse And Fumaric Acid Fermentation, Fang Deng Jan 2017

Lignocellulosic Syrup Production From Energy Cane Bagasse And Fumaric Acid Fermentation, Fang Deng

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Lignocellulosic syrup from dilute ammonia pretreated energy cane bagasse is a promising fermentable sugar feedstock that can improve the logistics associated with long-distance transportation, long-time storage, and year-round supply of lignocellulosic biomass to processing industries. However, non-sugar compounds such as organic acids, furans and phenolic compounds formed during pretreatment can have negative effects on downstream processes such as fermentation. This dissertation focused on addressing challenges associated with the bioconversion of energy cane bagasse to syrup and its fermentation to fumaric acid. The first goal (Chapter 2) was to evaluate the removal of non-sugar compounds with minimal sugar losses from dilute …


Questing With Grandma: Building Closer Families Through Intergenerational Video Gaming, Sanela Osmanovic Vukelic Jan 2017

Questing With Grandma: Building Closer Families Through Intergenerational Video Gaming, Sanela Osmanovic Vukelic

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

While small and large technological miracles have undoubtedly made our lives easier, they have potentially also made a significant part of our daily social routine obsolete. People live in the same space but rarely spend quality time together, interacting and bonding. One of the solutions to diminishing family relationships may lie in the technology itself—video games. Previous research having shown the sociability of video games, and in this study, we examined their potential in creating closer family relationships, especially among different generations. Participants (n = 183), mainly grandparents and grandchildren, were asked to play video games together over a period …


Symbolic And Deep Learning Based Data Representation Methods For Activity Recognition And Image Understanding At Pixel Level, Manohar Karki Jan 2017

Symbolic And Deep Learning Based Data Representation Methods For Activity Recognition And Image Understanding At Pixel Level, Manohar Karki

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Efficient representation of large amount of data particularly images and video helps in the analysis, processing and overall understanding of the data. In this work, we present two frameworks that encapsulate the information present in such data. At first, we present an automated symbolic framework to recognize particular activities in real time from videos. The framework uses regular expressions for symbolically representing (possibly infinite) sets of motion characteristics obtained from a video. It is a uniform framework that handles trajectory-based and periodic articulated activities and provides polynomial time graph algorithms for fast recognition. The regular expressions representing motion characteristics can …


Evolutionary History Of A Large-Genome Salamander Across Five Disjunct Regions Of The Southeastern United States, Catherine Elizabeth Newman Jan 2017

Evolutionary History Of A Large-Genome Salamander Across Five Disjunct Regions Of The Southeastern United States, Catherine Elizabeth Newman

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The southeastern United States has a dynamic geologic history. Mountain range uplift, sea level fluctuations, and river basin evolution have shaped species geographic distributions in the region. My dissertation objectively identifies amphibian species with highly fragmented distributions in the Southeast (Chapter 2) and examines the phylogeographic history of one of those species, Plethodon serratus. This salamander species has a widely disjunct range across five regions: the Appalachians, the Ozarks, the Ouachitas, and two allopatric sites in Louisiana. Analyses of mitochondrial and nuclear loci (Chapter 3) showed that P. serratus is comprised of multiple genetic lineages, and the five regions are …


Elephants, Local Livelihoods, And Landscape Change In Tsavo, Kenya., Peter Ngugi Kamau Jan 2017

Elephants, Local Livelihoods, And Landscape Change In Tsavo, Kenya., Peter Ngugi Kamau

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation provides a historical context for socio-ecological relationships in Tsavo, Kenya by focusing on the interaction between elephants and people in the landscape. A better understanding of the relationship between elephants and people in the Tsavo landscape promotes opportunities for better policy outcomes. The dissertation engages with the analytical approach of political ecology, which has enabled it to provide a more nuanced understanding of the relationship between elephants and people in Tsavo. Apolitical accounts of human-elephant conflicts in Tsavo do not adequately address the colonial roots of human-elephant conflicts or their consequences for local livelihoods. This dissertation demonstrates how …


Epigenetic Response Of Imprinted Domains During Carcinogenesis, Corey Lane Bretz Jan 2017

Epigenetic Response Of Imprinted Domains During Carcinogenesis, Corey Lane Bretz

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The first part of this work induced T-cell lymphoma in mice by employing a breeding scheme involving mouse strains expressing the KrasG12D oncoprotein and mice expressing cyclic recombinase from the mouse mammary tumor virus promoter. Imprinted domains were then systematically surveyed for DNA methylation changes during tumor progression using combined bisulfite restriction analysis and next-generation-bisulfite-sequencing. Hyper-or hypomethylation was detected at the imprinting control regions (ICRs) of the Dlk1, Peg10, Peg3, Grb10 and Gnas domains. These DNA methylation changes at ICRs were more prevalent and consistent than those observed at the promoter regions of well-known tumor suppressors, such as Mgmt, Fhit …


A Performer's Guide To Joelle Wallach's A Revisitation Of Myth, Lauren Brown Jan 2017

A Performer's Guide To Joelle Wallach's A Revisitation Of Myth, Lauren Brown

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this document is to serve as a performance guide to Joelle Wallach’s A Revisitation of Myth, a song cycle containing four songs scored for viola, piano and medium voice. Discussed within this guide will be important characteristics found in the songs, overview and analysis of each song, as well as performance recommendations. According to Wallach, this cycle has never been successfully performed to completion. This document will include biographical information about the composer, Joelle Wallach, as well as commentary about the four poets, Luann Keener, Muriel Rukeyser, Denise Levertov, and Delmore Schwartz, whose texts are set in …


The Machine Gun Hand: Robots, Performance, And American Ideology In The Twentieth Century, Benjamin Michael Phelan Jan 2017

The Machine Gun Hand: Robots, Performance, And American Ideology In The Twentieth Century, Benjamin Michael Phelan

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Twentieth-century Marxist philosopher Louis Althusser argued in his famous essay “Ideology and Ideological State Apparatuses” that capitalism reproduces itself by interpellating individuals as subjects. For Althusser, the subject has a dual definition: a person who imagines him or herself to be a free subject who then “chooses” capitalism, and a person who, once they have “chosen” capitalism, gives up their free will to the Subject (Law, God, Authority, the State). This dual definition of the subject mirrors the dual definition of “robot.” A robot is both a mechanical being that moves on its own and a person who acts in …


American Crusade: The Political Thought Of Dwight Eisenhower, John Kitch Jan 2017

American Crusade: The Political Thought Of Dwight Eisenhower, John Kitch

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Dwight Eisenhower has long been thought of as a president who did not think about politics in a coherent way. This project finds, however, that Eisenhower was a coherent and systematic thinker about politics. The first chapter explores the sources of Eisenhower’s political thought. In this chapter I establish that he had both the resources and inclination to reflect seriously on politics from early adulthood forward. Next, in Chapter 2, I outline his view of freedom in conjunction with how he thought about the state and society. Here, I find that he held that the state must be powerful enough …


Documentation Of Siderophore Activity, Metal Binding, And Its Effect On Symptomatology Of Cercospora Leaf Blight Caused In Soybean By Cercosporin From Cercospora Cf. Flagellaris, Brian Michael Ward Jan 2017

Documentation Of Siderophore Activity, Metal Binding, And Its Effect On Symptomatology Of Cercospora Leaf Blight Caused In Soybean By Cercosporin From Cercospora Cf. Flagellaris, Brian Michael Ward

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Cercospora leaf blight of soybean (Glycine max) is a serious problem in the mid-south of the United States and is present in most soybean-growing regions of the world. The causal organisms, Cercospora kikuchii, C. cf. flagellaris and C. cf. sigesbeckiae, utilize the photo-activated toxin cercosporin as the primary pathogenicity factor. The disease has historically been understood to progress from a purpling or bronzing of the leaves to a blight in which tissue dies. Previous literature showed possible binding of cercosporin to metals and previous work in our group showed possible use of minor element nutrition in the plant to reduce …


Fluorescent Probe Interrogation Of A Cytoprotective Cancer-Linked Oxidoreductase In Two-Dimensional Human Cell Cultures And Solid Tumor Mimics, Bijeta Prasai Jan 2017

Fluorescent Probe Interrogation Of A Cytoprotective Cancer-Linked Oxidoreductase In Two-Dimensional Human Cell Cultures And Solid Tumor Mimics, Bijeta Prasai

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Fluorescence molecular imaging is an emerging field with potential to aid in optically guided surgery for cancer treatment. To overcome the drawbacks of always-on fluorescent probes, such as indocyanine green, activatable fluorescent probes are being developed that allow high signal-to-background imaging for better discrimination of cancerous cells from normal cells. For activation, turn-on fluorescent probes rely on the presence of biomarkers such as antibodies, cell-surface receptors or enzymes that are highly specific to tumor cells. hNQO1 (human NAD(P)H: quinone oxidoreductase isoenzyme 1) is considered as one of such cancer-associated biomarkers that are present intracellularly in cancers of multiple origins. It …


Microscopic Evaluations Of Bone In Equine And Muroid Models, Heather Ashley Richbourg Jan 2017

Microscopic Evaluations Of Bone In Equine And Muroid Models, Heather Ashley Richbourg

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The use of advanced imaging techniques has greatly improved orthopedic research and education. Histology of bone is a method of evaluating bone morphology, bony cells, and bone remodeling in two-dimensions, while micro-computed tomography (microCT) is a three-dimensional analysis of bone morphology. Combined, these methods assist in providing a comprehensive analysis of bone. In this dissertation, these techniques were utilized to answer questions currently outstanding in veterinary medicine: the effect of bisphosphonates on equine bone, and variation in murine tarsal anatomy. Bisphosphonates are drugs that reduce osteoclast-mediated bone resorption and have recently been approved for the use in horses. Despite prolific …


The Truth About Your Monsters, Cassidy Creek Jan 2017

The Truth About Your Monsters, Cassidy Creek

LSU Master's Theses

The Truth About Your Monsters is an immersive and dialogical exhibition formatted as a walk-through storybook environment. Viewers are transported into a child’s make believe world through hands-on stations. By building on the skeleton of an archetypal narrative, audience members are encouraged to tap into their own experience as they contribute imagery and action to the narrative. I call on audience members to discuss personal or universal fears by prompting them to draw images of monsters that represent their fear.


Improving Nitrogen Use Efficiency And Yield In Louisiana Sugarcane Production Systems, Daniel Ernesto Forestieri Jan 2017

Improving Nitrogen Use Efficiency And Yield In Louisiana Sugarcane Production Systems, Daniel Ernesto Forestieri

LSU Master's Theses

Proper nitrogen (N) management is essential to optimize crop production. This study was conducted to evaluate different N fertilizer management strategies to improve N use efficiency and yield in sugarcane production in Louisiana. This research was initiated in 2013 at the Sugar Research Station in St. Gabriel, LA and was arranged in a randomized complete block design with four replications consisting of different N rates (0, 45, 90, and 135 kg N ha-1) and sources (urea-46% N, ammonium nitrate [AN]-34% N, and urea-ammonium-nitrate solution [UAN]-32% N dribbled and knifed-in) as treatments. Sensor readings were taken from different N response trials …


Baby's Day Out, Andrea Nicole Berg Jan 2017

Baby's Day Out, Andrea Nicole Berg

LSU Master's Theses

Baby's Day Out explores the world through a phenomenological newness that is expressed within abstract figurative painting. Fact and fiction blend in this fantastical array of emotions and real-world referents. I relied on quick mark-making, intuition, and gestural brushwork to explore representations of psychic and emotional states. The results are reminiscent of dreams, poems, secret whispers, unconscious fantasies, and delusions. The viewer is left to navigate the aporia of the space, by gingerly extending each limb forward and backward, to wander from piece to piece. Meaning is relative as the content of each painting is dependent on the interpretive lens …


Redefining The Image Of The Afro-Puerto Rican Woman In Recent Narrative By Mayra Santos-Febres, Chassidy Latrece Simmons Jan 2017

Redefining The Image Of The Afro-Puerto Rican Woman In Recent Narrative By Mayra Santos-Febres, Chassidy Latrece Simmons

LSU Master's Theses

Many 20th century Puerto Rican writers focused on establishing a national identity through their works. Although the island has very diverse culture, some aspects of Puerto Rican identity have been ignored entirely or inaccurately represented in popular and literary culture. In this thesis I use Nuestra señora de la noche and La amante de Gardel by Mayra Santos-Febres to examine how the writer depicts race and gender based issues in Puerto Rico. With post-colonial theory and otherness theory, I examine how Santos-Febres—a descendant of colonized Puerto Rican people—decolonizes the Afro-Caribbean woman through her writing techniques and reconstructs the image of …


Composting The Garden: Hybrid Geographies Of Baton Rouge Urban Gardens, Lauren Hull Jan 2017

Composting The Garden: Hybrid Geographies Of Baton Rouge Urban Gardens, Lauren Hull

LSU Master's Theses

Home gardens are intimate spaces of interaction between humans and the natural world. This study examines how relations and practices within gardens both perpetuate and disrupt perspectives on human separateness from nature. Nine Baton Rouge gardeners participated in this study, sharing stories about their lives and garden through interviews and garden walk-throughs. By adopting more-than-human social theory, this study explores these stories to answer three questions: (1) What types of relationships are found between garden inhabitants in Baton Rouge? (2) How do these relationships influence garden practices? And (3) How do relationships and practices create hybrid garden spaces? Garden inhabitants …


St. John Publishing Business Plan, Nicholas Leo Jan 2017

St. John Publishing Business Plan, Nicholas Leo

Honors Capstones

No abstract provided.


Play With Power: A City Park Along The Trinity River, Xiwei Shen Jan 2017

Play With Power: A City Park Along The Trinity River, Xiwei Shen

Honors Capstones

No abstract provided.