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Angiotensin Iii Induced Stat3 Phosphorylation In Cultured Rat Astrocytes, Nancy Sarmiento Apr 2012

Angiotensin Iii Induced Stat3 Phosphorylation In Cultured Rat Astrocytes, Nancy Sarmiento

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Angiotensin (Ang) III is a biologically active metabolite of Ang II with similar effects and receptor binding properties as Ang II. Most Ang III studies delineate physiological effects of the peptide but, the intracellular pathways leading to the actions are unknown and are a focus of ongoing studies in the laboratory. Recently, we showed that Ang III induces mitogen activated protein kinases and astrocyte growth in a similar manner as Ang II. In these studies, we investigated in cultured brainstem rat astrocytes whether Ang III stimulates signal transducer and activators of transcription (STAT) 3. STAT3 is an important link between …

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Antibacterial Properties Of Meso-Substituted Cationic And Anionic Porphyrins, Mohamad Elchurafa Apr 2012

Antibacterial Properties Of Meso-Substituted Cationic And Anionic Porphyrins, Mohamad Elchurafa

Undergraduate Student Symposium

In the conducted research work we tested various synthetic meso-substituted cationic and anionic porphyrin’s antibacterial properties on gram positive and gram negative bacterial strains. Previous in vitro studies suggest that meso-substituted cationic porphyrins demonstrate effective antibacterial properties on gram negative strains; in contrast, anionic meso-substitued porphyrins prove to be efficient antibacterial agents with gram positive strains. Evidence suggests that the porphyrin’s charge predisposes its reactivity on the bacteria’s cell membrane, thus immobilizes reproduction at the site of administration. An antibiogram test was coordinated by way of diffusimetric method. Filter paper disks were impregnated with a specific metallated porphyrin and dispensed …

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Because You're A Good Man... Right?: A Deconstructive Analysis Of Flannery O'Connor's "A Good Man Is Hard To Find", Dan Abella Apr 2012

Because You're A Good Man... Right?: A Deconstructive Analysis Of Flannery O'Connor's "A Good Man Is Hard To Find", Dan Abella

Undergraduate Student Symposium

The meaning and “correct” use of semantic opposites––up:down, male:female, black:white, and good:evil, for example––seem obvious and uncontested in casual speech. Yet the understanding of such pairs remains anything but simple according to deconstructionist critical theory. Founded by French philosopher Jacques Derrida, deconstruction, employed as a literary and linguistic analysis, revels in the uncertainty of language, especially in the dynamic “play” of binary opposites. Hence, Derrida's theories broaden the possibilities of meaning in speech and writing by refusing to ascribe absolute referents to words. Flannery O'Connor's landmark short story “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” thoroughly meditates on …

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Bridget Jones: Post Feminist, Or Frantically Fawning?, Alison Parente Apr 2012

Bridget Jones: Post Feminist, Or Frantically Fawning?, Alison Parente

Undergraduate Student Symposium

This essay contrasts Helen Fielding’s ‘Bridget Jones’s Diary’ to Jane Austen’s ‘Pride and Prejudice’ on the feminist aspects of both works. The piece argues that Austen’s protagonist Elizabeth Bennet is ironically more forward thinking in challenging gender stereotypes than Fielding’s Bridget Jones, though Elizabeth Bennet lived during a period of discrimination against women that imposed severe restrictions upon female lives.

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Cholera Outbreak Along The Congo River In Relation To Climatic And Environmental Changes, Anazilta Edward Apr 2012

Cholera Outbreak Along The Congo River In Relation To Climatic And Environmental Changes, Anazilta Edward

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Approximately five million cholera cases and one hundred and twenty thousand resulting deaths are reported annually. Past and present trends in cholera outbreaks along the Congo have led to great speculation about the influence of climate change on public health in that region. Thus, the research conducted sought to examine recent and past weather changes in relation to cholera outbreaks along the Congo River. Recent literature and correlation studies were used to associate the abundance and distribution of Vibrio cholerae with sea surface temperature, ocean currents, and weather changes. It was found that in several countries such as Peru, Mexico, …

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Effect Of Retinoic Acid On Osteogenesis Of Human Umbilical-Cord Stem Cells, Stephanie Chery Apr 2012

Effect Of Retinoic Acid On Osteogenesis Of Human Umbilical-Cord Stem Cells, Stephanie Chery

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are currently being used as a promising tool for bone tissue engineering. The application of these stem cells to bone tissue engineering requires inducing in vitro differentiation of these cells to bone forming cells; osteoblasts. Retinoic acid (RA), a metabolite of vitamin A, is involved in many cell functions including osteogenic differentiation. The objective of this study was to investigate the potential role of retinoic acid as an inducer of osteogenic differentiation in human umbilical cord derived mesenchymal stem cells (hUMSCs).This was done by exploring its applications in bone tissue engineering, specifically for the repair and …

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Effectiveness Of A Biocontrol Agent On Aphid Infestations, Saamia Shaikh, Darshan Solanki Apr 2012

Effectiveness Of A Biocontrol Agent On Aphid Infestations, Saamia Shaikh, Darshan Solanki

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Aphids, insects in family Aphididae, are common, minute organisms (~ 5mm) that thrive in agricultural settings by sucking phloem sap via stylets that penetrate the plants vascular tissue. Past research has demonstrated the effectiveness of pesticide treatments to eradicate these destructive insects, however many of the most commonly used pesticides are highly toxic synthetic compounds. In our previous research we examined the effectiveness of synthetic, organic, and insecticidal soap pesticides on aphid infestations. This current study aims to determine the effectiveness of another alternative, known as biological control, for treating aphid problems. The biocontrol agent used in this study was …

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Evaluation Of Fluoride And Fluorosis, Jessica Bouzo Apr 2012

Evaluation Of Fluoride And Fluorosis, Jessica Bouzo

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Fluoride consumption has been linked to dental and skeletal fluorosis as well as osteosclerosis, cancer, renal failure, fertility problems and cognitive effects for years. In this research, the fluoride concentrations of different mouthwashes, teas, toothpastes and water were evaluated. The results showed a broad spectrum of values but none of the values exceeded the average daily intake maximum (0.05-0.07 mg per kilograms per day) for adults. Considering that all the counties in the United States have their fluoride concentration in water at two parts per million (secondary drinking water standard) a person that drinks 64 oz of water every day …

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Exploring A Potential Pathway For Secondary Organic Aerosol Formation In Urban Atmosphere By Laboratory Experiments, Melanie Campbell, Elizabeth Mortazavi Apr 2012

Exploring A Potential Pathway For Secondary Organic Aerosol Formation In Urban Atmosphere By Laboratory Experiments, Melanie Campbell, Elizabeth Mortazavi

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Formaldehyde, other carbonyl compounds and amines are common atmospheric pollutants emitted from industrial sources in urban areas. These compounds have been proposed to contribute to secondary organic aerosol formation, thus urban air pollution, through a process known as the Mannich reaction. Here we report a laboratory study of the reactions among carbonyl and amine precursor compounds in the bulk phase to determine if the anticipated Mannich-type products form. The reactions are performed under various temperatures ranging from 0°C to 55°C using low concentrations of inorganic or organic acids as the catalyst. The products are characterized by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GCMS) …

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Forever In My Heart, Vittoria Santini Apr 2012

Forever In My Heart, Vittoria Santini

Undergraduate Student Symposium

“Forever in My Heart” is a coming-of-age dramatic short film about an 18-year-old university student, Jackie, who was drugged and raped at a party. Shortly after this incident, Jackie discovers that she is pregnant, and she must decide whether to have the baby or get an abortion. The film is directed by Vittoria Santini. Other crew members and actors include Victoria Rajkumar, Davis Yahn, Esther Swilley, Maggy Klingberg, Anthony Anania, and Joseph Anania.

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Lemuel, The Egocentric Human, Sasha Strelitz Apr 2012

Lemuel, The Egocentric Human, Sasha Strelitz

Undergraduate Student Symposium

This essay investigates Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels, spotlighting a central message of his, warning humankind against the folly of vanity. Following his protagonist, Lemuel Gulliver, through four fantastical worlds, one begins to see a pattern of unwinding humanity. Before arriving in Lilliput (the first whimsical land), Gulliver is a typical human being, with typical hard-wired narcissism. After years of voyaging, and after a memorable stay with the Yahoos, Gulliver rejects his humanity as being brutish, vain, and egocentric. However, banished from Houyhnhnm Land, he finds solace and sanity in horse stables. Perhaps this seems excessive, but this reader attributes …

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Loop Hole, Esther Swilley Apr 2012

Loop Hole, Esther Swilley

Undergraduate Student Symposium

"Loop Hole" is a short film about two lifelong friends who have found themselves failing their first semester of college. Kathy and Heather desperately attempt to find a loophole which will allow them to pass their classes. The film is directed by Esther Swilley. Other crew members include Davis Yahn, Victoria Rajkumar and Vittoria Santini.

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Mathematical Modeling, Simulation, And Compression Of Images, Jonathan Reyna Apr 2012

Mathematical Modeling, Simulation, And Compression Of Images, Jonathan Reyna

Undergraduate Student Symposium

This project builds a mathematical model that obtains parameters and statistical properties of residuals taken from a picture in JPEG format, to later simulate replicas of the original picture. The importance of this problem stems from the large amount of bandwidth required to transmit a high resolution picture over the Internet. The mathematical model built from this picture and its set of residuals has a much smaller magnitude than the original picture elements (pixels). This implies that if one were to transmit the parameters alone, a high compression rate would be achieved, thus saving bandwidth. In order to replicate the …

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Paleoceanographic Productivity Reconstructions Using Marine Mammal Bone Collagen, Jonathan H. Gomez Apr 2012

Paleoceanographic Productivity Reconstructions Using Marine Mammal Bone Collagen, Jonathan H. Gomez

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Changes in primary ocean productivity play a key role in determining the structure and biomass yield of the North Pacific ecosystem. Are recent dramatic fluctuations in marine ecosystem productivity a function primarily of industrial and other anthropogenically induced changes or part of larger ecosystem scale processes? Archaeofaunal remains of pinnipeds and cetaceans from the Aleutian Islands, Alaska are used as a proxy for marine productivity changes over decade, century and millennial scales throughout the Holocene. Marine vertebrate remains from several previously excavated well-dated archaeological deposits on Unalaska Island span the period AD 1912-5500 BP. Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios …

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Peeking Behind The Mask Of Tolerance: Investigating Implicit Views Towards Gay Adoption, Christine Harlow Apr 2012

Peeking Behind The Mask Of Tolerance: Investigating Implicit Views Towards Gay Adoption, Christine Harlow

Undergraduate Student Symposium

We examined implicit attitudes (Fazio & Olson, 2003) towards same-sex couples’ rights to adopt. Although there is no clear scientific evidence to suggest that gay couples are less capable of raising adopted children, those opposed to gay adoption argue, from intuition or ideology, that placing adopted children with same-sex parents is detrimental to the children’s well-being. If those opposed to gay adoption base their decision on the well-being of the child rather than the parents’ sexual orientation, it follows that they would also share concern for at-risk children adopted by heterosexual parents and that sexual orientation per se would not …

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Spartacus: Blood And Oil, Holly Buttach, Lisa De La Vega, Dean Gardner, Daniel Strien Apr 2012

Spartacus: Blood And Oil, Holly Buttach, Lisa De La Vega, Dean Gardner, Daniel Strien

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Population dynamics and socioeconomic factors are closely entwined and play a large role in shaping civilizations. Among the many factors influencing populations are resource production and allocation and the impact of violence, either predatory or retaliatory. Of the resources crucial to civilizations today, few are as important as oil, as oil is used in a variety of applications and is a finite resource. Differential equations can be used to model associations between oil production and various other elements of society in order to predict future events. It is by using such equations that we will examine the relationship between rates …

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The Function Of Sleep Disorders In Explaining Gender Differences In Adolescent Depression, Jaibel Makiyil Apr 2012

The Function Of Sleep Disorders In Explaining Gender Differences In Adolescent Depression, Jaibel Makiyil

Undergraduate Student Symposium

The purpose of this literature review is to discuss gender differences in adolescent depression, and the role of sleep disorders in this difference. There is an evidenced gender disparity in adolescent depression in that women are more than twice as likely to experience depression. Similarly, women have a greater preponderance for lower sleep quality, and certain sleep disorders such as insomnia.

Adolescent depression is the most widespread psychiatric disorder globally, and affects more than eighteen million Americans annually. The average age of adolescent onset has been progressively decreasing over the last thirty years. It is during adolescence that a “gender …

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The Influence Of Emotional Stimuli On Response Inhibition, Sarah Yassin Apr 2012

The Influence Of Emotional Stimuli On Response Inhibition, Sarah Yassin

Undergraduate Student Symposium

It has been shown in numerous studies that emotion affects cognition. This study looks at the interaction between emotion regulation and response inhibition. Specifically, it looks at how negative pictures impact one’s performance on a complex task that requires inhibition of an on-going response. This was tested by presenting negative and neutral pictures within the context of a stop signal task while measuring electroencephalograph (EEG) Event Related Potentials (ERPs). We found that there was an increase in the amplitude of an ERP measure of attention to emotional stimuli (the LPP) to negative pictures compared to neutral pictures. We further found …

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The Preparation Of Ultrapure Isolated Glycosylated Hemoglobin, Arash Nasajpour Apr 2012

The Preparation Of Ultrapure Isolated Glycosylated Hemoglobin, Arash Nasajpour

Undergraduate Student Symposium

One of the most important techniques of research is purification. The objective of the experiment was to collaborate with Veterinarian Scott Hay DVM and Roche Diagnostics to explore the use of purified horse hemoglobin as a model to research glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) in human disease diabetes mellitus types I and II. The international Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine have set global standard values for calibrators of HbA1c and the current targets for HbA1c are ~7%. Throughout the experiment horse hemoglobin was isolated by anionic exchange chromatography and glycosylated in-vitro. HbA1c is primarily used for quantification of average …

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To Remove The Hook Or Not: Degradation Rates Of Fishing Hooks: Preliminary Results, John W. Coker, Jesse J. Secord Apr 2012

To Remove The Hook Or Not: Degradation Rates Of Fishing Hooks: Preliminary Results, John W. Coker, Jesse J. Secord

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Post-release survival is the foundation of sustainability upon which most management plans for Gulf and Atlantic finfish exist. An inherent assumption is that a substantial percentage of fish survive capture. We critically evaluate the merits of leaving hooks in released fish. The work examines the degradation of commonly used hooks in recreational and commercial fisheries. Ten separate hook types, 4 commercial and 6 recreational, were used to represent a variety of fishing applications. Acid solution testing was run for a period of 3 months. Saltwater testing was done for a period of 6 months. These data suggest that seawater may …

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Zendikar: The Cancerous Mathamagics, Abbiana Arenas, Megan Brewster, Sharbel Bousemaan, Evan Cavallini, Mark Glover Apr 2012

Zendikar: The Cancerous Mathamagics, Abbiana Arenas, Megan Brewster, Sharbel Bousemaan, Evan Cavallini, Mark Glover

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Mathematics grants us a wide variety of problem solving from simple arithmetic to the theoretical weight of the sun. The mathematics of differential equations is used to describe a relationship of continuous variables as time and space go on. Described as systems of functions, these equations are used to predict what will happen to the variables included within the functions. Real world applications of these functions attempt to correlate dynamic variables, and predict the outcome of those variables as different factors are slowly introduced to the model. In this project, we will state unique models that are manipulated over time …

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A B Cell Driven Model Of Antibody Response In An Immunocompromised System, Adam Abdulhafid Apr 2012

A B Cell Driven Model Of Antibody Response In An Immunocompromised System, Adam Abdulhafid

Undergraduate Student Symposium

There are many ways in which the body responds to infections. The collective response of the innate and adaptive immune responses is called the immune response. The adaptive response is more sophisticated, and therefore requires greater study to understand it. It is the adaptive response that controls infections and prevents recurring disease. One of the main adaptive responses is the antibody response that can bind to virions and prevent them from infecting cells. Most studies of infection are done based on a single infectious agent and how it interacts with the immune system. In many cases there are multiple infections …

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A Cytotoxic Investigation Of Urtica Dioica And Pumpkin Seed On Lncap Prostate Cancer Cell Line, Jackie Lynne Jornadal, Rajeswari Murugan, Yanira Quinonez Apr 2012

A Cytotoxic Investigation Of Urtica Dioica And Pumpkin Seed On Lncap Prostate Cancer Cell Line, Jackie Lynne Jornadal, Rajeswari Murugan, Yanira Quinonez

Undergraduate Student Symposium

This study compared the cytotoxic effects of Urtica dioica and pumpkin seed on the LNCaP prostate cancer cell line. Various studies have shown that Urtica dioica and pumpkin seed exert positive clinical effects in cases of benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) through the inhibition of testosterone's conversion in dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Indeed, Utrica dioica has shown additional effects in lessening the symptoms of prostate cancer by increasing the urinary slow of affected men, and pumpkin seed has shown some supplementary effects in inflammatory prostatitis, including an increase in prostate secretions; this study hypothesized that Urtica dioica and pumpkin seed would inhibit prostate …

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A Tale Of Two Cities: Comparison Of Air Quality Between Los Angeles And Miami Metropolitan Areas, Raquel Prol, Enrique E. Serrano, Hung Pham Apr 2012

A Tale Of Two Cities: Comparison Of Air Quality Between Los Angeles And Miami Metropolitan Areas, Raquel Prol, Enrique E. Serrano, Hung Pham

Undergraduate Student Symposium

The quality of air we breathe is an important public health concern that is often overlooked unless an imminent threat such as a brush fire is present. This study aims to gain an in-depth understanding of the air quality of South Florida through a quantitative comparison to that of Southern California, two coastal, urban regions with distinctive demographic and geographic features. It is an attempt to understand not only the characteristic health hazards currently in both regions, but also the measures being taken to prevent and control air pollution. This task is performed by creating time-series profiles of air pollutants …

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Applications Of Ethical Theories In Evaluating The Use Of Performance Enhancing Drugs, Prasanna Maranthe Apr 2012

Applications Of Ethical Theories In Evaluating The Use Of Performance Enhancing Drugs, Prasanna Maranthe

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Steroid use is a reality in professional and high school sports. Some fall into the traps of peer pressure and some are obsessed with breaking records. However, like most quick fixes, there is a large price to pay. Steroid users risk their own health. But, denouncing steroid use by simply saying, “That’s bad, don’t do it,” will not change attitudes. In order to persuade and appeal to current and future steroid users, focused, lucid, and valid ethical reasoning must be applied, even if that means steroid use cannot be condemned in a black and white, absolutist manner. By admitting and …

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Attitudes Towards Business Ethics: A Study Of Austrian Student Views, Dominique Wimmer Apr 2012

Attitudes Towards Business Ethics: A Study Of Austrian Student Views, Dominique Wimmer

Undergraduate Student Symposium

The Attitudes Towards Business Ethics Questionnaire (ATBEQ) has been used extensively to measure respondent views towards ethical business philosophies and situations. This study reports the ATBEQ survey results for a sample of 171 Austrian students. Results indicate that Austrian students believe that while morality is important in the business environment, the business world operates under its own set of rules. This thinking fits with an ethical business philosophy leading towards Machiavellianism. In addition, Austrian respondents reported support for an unethical decision, which unfairly favors the individual financially at the expense of an insurance company. These and other results are discussed …

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Beyond The Borders, Anakarina Cuccurullo Apr 2012

Beyond The Borders, Anakarina Cuccurullo

Undergraduate Student Symposium

“Beyond the Borders’’ is a love story about the relationship between two young students, Jennifer and Jack. The story begins when Jennifer arrives in Miami with the dream of having a better life. Her family is making every effort to pay for her tuition, and she has set a goal of becoming a doctor. Her true dream is to become an artist, but the hard circumstances her family is experiencing drives Jennifer to pursue medical school. At Jennifer’s university, there is a good-looking guy named Jack, whose secret is that he has been living illegally in Miami for four years. …

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Bilingual Text Comprehension, Irina Cossio, Belkis L. Rivas Apr 2012

Bilingual Text Comprehension, Irina Cossio, Belkis L. Rivas

Undergraduate Student Symposium

There are competing theories regarding how bilingual individuals process language. The language selectivity view suggests that bilinguals only activate the language being used at that moment; therefore only one language is active in the brain at once. Other views, such as the language non-selectivity view, suggest that both languages are activated regardless of which language may be in use. Recent studies have provided evidence that both languages may be activated depending upon the context. Context is important because research examining monolinguals has shown that the left hemisphere is associated with processing contextually appropriate words such as inferences strongly implied by …

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Complete Protection And Glycosylation Of 5-Hydroxy-Dl-Lysine, Rina M. Bhalani, Lindsey Nowland Apr 2012

Complete Protection And Glycosylation Of 5-Hydroxy-Dl-Lysine, Rina M. Bhalani, Lindsey Nowland

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Adiponectin, a protein hormone, has been shown to play a role in preventing the development of atherosclerosis, a common cardiovascular disease. Altering some of the amino acids in adiponectin can provide beneficial effects towards that goal. One such amino acid, Hydroxylysine, can often undergo posttranslational modifications, such as glycosylation, the addition of a sugar molecule.

Hydroxylsine (Hyl) has the molecular formula of C6H14N2O3, and contains four functional groups: a hydroxyl group, a carboxylic group, and two amino groups. The ultimate goal of the proposed research is to galactosylate Hydroxylysine, that is, add …

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Examining Relationships Of Transferrin Adhesion To Hilafilcon, Omafilcon, And Tisifilcon A Contact Lenses, Darshan Solanki Apr 2012

Examining Relationships Of Transferrin Adhesion To Hilafilcon, Omafilcon, And Tisifilcon A Contact Lenses, Darshan Solanki

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Lacrimal glands adjacent to the eye secrete tear proteins that deposit onto contact lenses. In order to study this process, three types of FDA group II contact lenses fabricated from hilafilcon, omafilcon and tisifilcon A were incubated in 2.0 mg/mL solutions of holo-transferrin for 1, 2, 3 and 4 days. The degree of protein adhesion was determined by bicinchoninic acid assay. Transferrin adhered to hilafilcon contact lenses in an increasing pattern from day 1 to day 3, with a decrease on day 4. Transferrin adhesion to omafilcon contact lenses followed the same trend with greater protein adhesion than the …

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