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Targeting Tau-Mediated Nmdar Hypofunction Reverses Deficits In A Mouse Model Of Frontotemporal Dementia, Brian Andrew Warmus Jan 2014

Targeting Tau-Mediated Nmdar Hypofunction Reverses Deficits In A Mouse Model Of Frontotemporal Dementia, Brian Andrew Warmus

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Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is a rapidly progressive and lethal disease, with no disease-modifying treatments. It is known that tau mutations cause FTD, but the underlying neurobiology is undefined. We sought to identify how tau affects the neurobiology in order to find potential treatment targets. Here, we address this question using a new mouse model expressing human tau with an FTD-associated mutation. We studied behavior, physiology, biochemistry, and neuropathology in several cohorts of mice at different ages. These mutant tau mice had abnormal repetitive behavior characteristic of FTD and synaptic deficits selectively in regions associated with FTD (ventral striatum and insula). …

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Syndecan Knockdown In The Insulin Producing Cells Of Drosophila Melanogaster Affects Energy Metabolism And Life Span, Jonathan Lund Warren Jan 2014

Syndecan Knockdown In The Insulin Producing Cells Of Drosophila Melanogaster Affects Energy Metabolism And Life Span, Jonathan Lund Warren

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Drosophila melanogaster is a powerful model organism for studying human metabolic disease due to the conservation of various signaling processes and pathways. The insulin producing cells (IPCs) in the brain of adult flies sense circulating nutrients and respond by producing three insulin-like peptides (dILP2, dILP3, and dILP5). Several studies have shown that dILPs play a major role in Drosophila reproduction, metabolism, growth, and longevity. Previous data showed that flies homozygous for a hypomorphic mutation in the Drosophila syndecan (dSdc) gene had defects in energy metabolism and lower expression of brain dilp2-3 and dilp5 genes. Syndecan is a transmembrane proteoglycan that …

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Print Vs. Pulpit: Representations Of Religion In The Harlem Renaissance, Sondra Bickham Washington Jan 2014

Print Vs. Pulpit: Representations Of Religion In The Harlem Renaissance, Sondra Bickham Washington

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At the turn of the twentieth century, African American race leaders believed that literature and other creative works could strengthen the fight against the social, economic, and political oppression facing members of their race across the country. However, when younger writers began explicitly focusing their narratives and poems on the more taboo and less religious elements of African American life such as heavy drinking, sensual dancing at jazz and blues clubs, and unmarried sexual relationships, black religious leaders often expressed opposition to their creative work. This sometimes harsh disapproval only served to create a larger gap between the religious and …

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Peripheral Neuropathy In The Teetering Mice Results From Mutation Of The Escrt Component Hrs, Jennifer Ashley Watson Jan 2014

Peripheral Neuropathy In The Teetering Mice Results From Mutation Of The Escrt Component Hrs, Jennifer Ashley Watson

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The sorting and degradation of endocytosed cargo by the endosome regulates many cellular functions common to all cells. Neural cells appear to be particularly vulnerable to perturbation in endo-lysosomal transport, and several neurological disorders are caused by a primary deficit in this pathway. In this dissertation, I show that the spontaneously occurring neurological mutation teetering (tn) is a single nucleotide substitution in the endosomal cargo-sorting component hepatocyte growth factor-regulated tyrosine kinase substrate (Hgs/Hrs) that reduces the abundance of HRS. By 3 weeks of age, the tn mice exhibit heightened pain sensitivity, muscle weakness and reduced muscle size. The loss of …

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Understanding The Described Experiences Of Court Judges, Court Appointed Special Advocates (Casa) Volunteers, Department Of Human Resources Caseworkers, And Foster Parents, Mitsy Collier Wilbourne Jan 2014

Understanding The Described Experiences Of Court Judges, Court Appointed Special Advocates (Casa) Volunteers, Department Of Human Resources Caseworkers, And Foster Parents, Mitsy Collier Wilbourne

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UNDERSTANDING THE DESCRIBED EXPERIENCES OF COURT JUDGES, COURT APPOINTED SPECIAL ADVOCATES (CASA) VOLUNTEERS, DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES'CASEWORKERS, AND FOSTER PARENTS MITSY COLLIER WILBOURNE EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to identify the described experiences of court judges, Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) volunteers, Department of Human Resources' caseworkers, and foster parents in the southeastern United States to enhance the early childhood educational needs and development of children in out-of-home care. The study was designed with cases so various perspectives were examined. Children who were neglected and abused, specifically those who must be removed from their parent's …

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A Mixed Methods Study Of Health Literacy And Its Role In Hpv Vaccine Uptake Among College Students, Michelle Sharonda Williams Jan 2014

A Mixed Methods Study Of Health Literacy And Its Role In Hpv Vaccine Uptake Among College Students, Michelle Sharonda Williams

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Health literacy includes the ability to understand and process written and spoken health information, and numbers and calculations related to health information. Low health literacy is associated with negative health outcomes, and poor patient-provider communication. In order to advance health literacy research, there is a need to assess health literacy comprehensively and to develop an understanding of how health literacy impacts people at various stages of their lives. A sequential explanatory mixed methods study was conducted to assess college students' health literacy. During the quantitative phase, the Short Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults (S-TOFHLA), the Newest Vital Sign …

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Modulation Of Neocortical Gabaergic Interneurons By Voltage-Gated Ion Channels, Sidney B. Williams Jan 2014

Modulation Of Neocortical Gabaergic Interneurons By Voltage-Gated Ion Channels, Sidney B. Williams

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GABAergic interneurons provide the main source of inhibition in the neocortex and are important in regulating neocortical network activity. In the presence of the K+ channel blocker 4-AP and the glutamate receptor blockers, CNQX and D-APV, large amplitude evoked and spontaneous depolarizing responses are observed in the neocortex. These large propagating responses are blocked by GABAA receptor antagonists indicating that these events are due to synchronized activity of GABAergic interneurons. Cortical GABAergic networks are comprised of several types of interneurons, each with its own protein expression pattern, receptor profile, firing properties, synaptic targets and role in network activity. Voltage-gated ion …

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Combined Effects Of Corexit Ec 9500a With Secondary Abiotic And Biotic Stressors In The Rotifer Brachionus Plicatilis, Michael Britt Williams Jan 2014

Combined Effects Of Corexit Ec 9500a With Secondary Abiotic And Biotic Stressors In The Rotifer Brachionus Plicatilis, Michael Britt Williams

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Following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill the dispersant Corexit EC 9500A (C-9500) was applied to facilitate rapid oil degradation. C-9500 toxicity has been evaluated on a number of marine species; however, many of these studies do not account for environmental conditions that may increase negative outcomes related to dispersant exposure in the wild. We examined lethality and behavioral effects of C-9500 exposure on the model marine zooplankton Brachionus plicatilis. We also evaluated interactions of abiotic and biotic stressors that may alter outcomes of exposure. C-9500 exposure at standard husbandry conditions (17.5ppt, 24°C, 200 rotifer*ml-1 density) produced a 24 hr median …

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Four Women Of Courage: A Historiography Of Early Childhood Education For African American Children In Alabama, Sharon Webb Abrams Jan 2014

Four Women Of Courage: A Historiography Of Early Childhood Education For African American Children In Alabama, Sharon Webb Abrams

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This qualitative study used a tailored historical narrative approach to raise a con-nection with the reader that is not possible with approaches that are more impersonal and thus illustrated some of the richness of historical techniques. The purpose of this historical narrative study was to explore how early childhood African American women in the state of Alabama perceive the disparity within African American education for young children and advanced early childhood programs and schools based on need, desire, and care. The central questions that the researcher probed within this study included: (a) How did four heroic African American women construct, …

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Osteoblast And Odontoblast Specific Regulatory Actions Of Runx2 For The Development Of Mineralized Tissues, Mitra Darice Adhami Jan 2014

Osteoblast And Odontoblast Specific Regulatory Actions Of Runx2 For The Development Of Mineralized Tissues, Mitra Darice Adhami

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The Runx2 transcription factor is necessary for commitment and differentiation of mesenchymal cells into the chondroblasts, osteoblasts and odontoblasts. Runx2 induces the expression of several key genes involved in mineralization of both the bone and dentin matrices. Global Runx2-null mice are completely void of mineralized tissue and do not express osteoblast markers, indicating that Runx2 is required for commitment to the osteoblast lineage. Tooth development in Runx2-null mice is arrested in the bell stage, prior to the differentiation of odontoblasts. Thus, Runx2 is essential for development of osteoblast and odontoblast lineages. However, the functional requirements of Runx2 after commitment to …

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Employment Of Physician Administrators (Ceos) In Acute Care Hospitals And Their Impact On Hospital Performance, Muhammad H. Al-Midani Jan 2014

Employment Of Physician Administrators (Ceos) In Acute Care Hospitals And Their Impact On Hospital Performance, Muhammad H. Al-Midani

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that arribada nesting enhances the survival of eggs and hatchlings through the confusing

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Combinatorial Effects Of Corexit 9500a And Temperature Stressors On Embryo Development In The Zebrafish Danio Rerio, Erica Davis Anderson Jan 2014

Combinatorial Effects Of Corexit 9500a And Temperature Stressors On Embryo Development In The Zebrafish Danio Rerio, Erica Davis Anderson

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the Kemp’s Ridley Recovery Program during the 2005-2008 nesting seasons. This

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Modulating The Cxcl12/Cxcr4 Axis In The Pulmonary Vasculature By Adenoviral Vector-Mediated Delivery Of Soluble Cxcr4 (Scxcr4): A Prophylactic Approach To The Prevention Of Cancer Metastasis To The Lung, Anand Chandrasekaran Annan Jan 2014

Modulating The Cxcl12/Cxcr4 Axis In The Pulmonary Vasculature By Adenoviral Vector-Mediated Delivery Of Soluble Cxcr4 (Scxcr4): A Prophylactic Approach To The Prevention Of Cancer Metastasis To The Lung, Anand Chandrasekaran Annan

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The results also indicate that in situ nests were cooler than egg corral nests but still

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Fatigue Testing Of Straight And Angled Abutments In A High Torque Dental Implant System, Rana M. Atieh Jan 2014

Fatigue Testing Of Straight And Angled Abutments In A High Torque Dental Implant System, Rana M. Atieh

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Root form dental implants are a common solution used today to replace missing teeth. However current designs still suffer from a number of limitations. Angled abutments are used for incisors, where maximum human bite forces are normally < 200N, while straight abutments are used for molars subjected to higher forces > 200 N. The aim of this study was to evaluate the mechanical performance of a novel dental implant system by fatigue testing straight and 15-degree angled abutments. It was hypothesized that the novel thread design will dissipate the load evenly throughout the implant allowing the system to withstand normal chewing forces. Implants with 4.2mm diameter were tested according to ISO 14801 in specimen …

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Assessing System Congruence By Analyzing The Relationship Between Employee And Patient Driven Outputs, Timothy J. Harlin Jan 2014

Assessing System Congruence By Analyzing The Relationship Between Employee And Patient Driven Outputs, Timothy J. Harlin

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Patients are at risk for employee driven preventable adverse events during hospital stays. These adverse events are varied and include such things as medication errors, pressure ulcers, hospital acquired infections, and falls. Preventable adverse events continue at alarming frequency despite significant academic, regulatory, and management attention to the topic over the past 14 years since the Institute of Medicine's (IOM) To Err is Human report. In addition to being at risk for preventable adverse events, patients experience aspects of the health care system such as ease of access, employee attitude, skill and efficiency of staff, and perceived value. Although purporting …

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An Examination Of The Services That Contribute To Positive Vocational Outcomes In Adults With Developmental Disabilities, Abbey N. Harris Jan 2014

An Examination Of The Services That Contribute To Positive Vocational Outcomes In Adults With Developmental Disabilities, Abbey N. Harris

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One of the most pressing issues concerning persons with developmental disabilities is making sure their needs are met once they reach adulthood. As adults, they should have the abilities and skills to be as independent as possible and to be contributing members of society. Without the proper services and help, though, this may not be possible for a large portion of this population. Research suggests that supportive employment services alone may not be enough to meet their unique vocational needs and to improve the likelihood of their achieving personal and financial independence. The purpose of this study was to determine …

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Sialic Acid: A Signal For Pneumococcal Egress From The Nasal Mucosa Into The Central Nervous System, Brandon L. Hatcher Jan 2014

Sialic Acid: A Signal For Pneumococcal Egress From The Nasal Mucosa Into The Central Nervous System, Brandon L. Hatcher

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Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus) is one of the leading causes of bacterial meningitis world-wide. The classic paradigm in the establishment of bacterial meningitis is that in the absence of physical trauma, infection in the peripheral blood is needed to cause invasion of the central nervous system (CNS). Our previous studies have shown that pneumococci, a frequent colonizer of the nasopharynx, can cause bacterial meningitis through a nonhematogenous route by which bacteria appear to travel along the olfactory nerves, through the cribriform plate to the olfactory bulbs and into the rest of the CNS. However, with the frequency of nasopharyngeal colonization and …

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Depression And Alcohol Use Disorders As Gendered Phenotypes Of 5-Httlpr, Bryant Walker Hamby Jan 2014

Depression And Alcohol Use Disorders As Gendered Phenotypes Of 5-Httlpr, Bryant Walker Hamby

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The serotonin transporter linked polymorphic region (5-HTTLPR) has been associated with both depression and alcohol use disorders in previous gene-environment interaction studies, but these associations have not been consistent. Previous research on mental health has posited that depression and alcohol use disorders are functionally equivalent manifestations of distress, with men displaying alcohol use disorders and women displaying depression in response to stress. This paper assesses whether the presence of the risk-conferring serotonin gene alleles increase an individual's chance of expressing distress as either depression or alcohol use disorders, depending on gender. The hypotheses that more symptoms of depression would be …

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An Analysis Of Tax-Revenue Diversifcation Of State Governments (2000-2011), Muhammad Ali Hanif Jan 2014

An Analysis Of Tax-Revenue Diversifcation Of State Governments (2000-2011), Muhammad Ali Hanif

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States are facing tremendous challenges in the Twenty-First Century. Changing federal-state relationships, demographic changes, and economic changes are creating fiscal stress for states. Within all these challenges, one of most important one is frequent economic fluctuations that are creating fiscal instability for American States. Theorists have argued that states needs to overcome revenue instability for continuation of state programs, which can be done by increasing revenue diversification. Thus, by using data from the US Census Bureau between years 2000 to 2011, this paper attempts to determine whether states are increasing revenue diversification over time. The findings suggest that states have …

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Baseline Measures Associated With Subsequent Weight Loss In Overweight Girls, Alexandra French Jan 2014

Baseline Measures Associated With Subsequent Weight Loss In Overweight Girls, Alexandra French

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Purpose: To evaluate the relationships among baseline weight, resting energy expenditure (REE), and aerobic fitness (AF) with subsequent weight loss in pre-pubertal overweight girls (7-11) undergoing a dietary weight-loss program. Methods: Using data from a prior study (PRIMO Study, PI Krista Casazza, PhD, RD at UAB) baseline measures of baseline weight, REE, and AF of 22 participants were analyzed using SPSS statistical program. The purpose of the PRIMO Study was to compare two diets differing in carbohydrate and fat content in improving metabolic outcomes, and to achieve weight loss in overweight pre-pubertal girls aged 7-11. The inclusion criteria for the …

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Unraveling The Mechanisms Of Skeletal Muscle Hyperplasia: Juxtaposing Divergent Growth Paradigms, Jacob Michael Froehlich Jan 2014

Unraveling The Mechanisms Of Skeletal Muscle Hyperplasia: Juxtaposing Divergent Growth Paradigms, Jacob Michael Froehlich

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During the course of vertebrate evolution, two major growth paradigms have appeared: determinate, one in which an animal's final size is largely governed by predisposed genetic potential; and indeterminate, a paradigm involving life-long, largely environmentally governed somatic growth. Of the tissues constituting an adult vertebrate, skeletal muscle comprises ≥60% of that organism's mass, making it an important factor in overall body growth. To better understand the process by which many teleost fishes grow throughout their natural lifespans, the clade Danioninae and the model rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) were utilized in a comparative manner. Contrary to current hypotheses, fish with indeterminate …

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Exploring Novel System Biology Approaches To Understand The Molecular Mechanisms Of Immune Responses, Cassandra Camille Garbutt Jan 2014

Exploring Novel System Biology Approaches To Understand The Molecular Mechanisms Of Immune Responses, Cassandra Camille Garbutt

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nesting behavior on sex ratios and survival of eggs and hatchlings. The results indicate

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Tumorgraft Models As A Platform For Molecular Characterization And Drug Evaluation In Pancreaticobiliary Malignancies, Patrick Lee Garcia Jan 2014

Tumorgraft Models As A Platform For Molecular Characterization And Drug Evaluation In Pancreaticobiliary Malignancies, Patrick Lee Garcia

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arribada nesting behavior. The first chapter addresses the potential effects of a nest’s

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Urbanization And Land-Use Change In Puerto Maldonado, Peru: Categorizing The Landscape Using High-Resolution Satellite Imagery For Potential Use In Public Health Research, Laura Brianna Gast Jan 2014

Urbanization And Land-Use Change In Puerto Maldonado, Peru: Categorizing The Landscape Using High-Resolution Satellite Imagery For Potential Use In Public Health Research, Laura Brianna Gast

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Environmental change, especially rapid urbanization, has measurable effects on human health. Over 70 percent of the global population is expected to live in urban areas by 2025, and at least 1 in 3 of these individuals will live in extreme poverty. Living in a slum or shantytown exposes individuals to health and safety risks including inadequate sanitation, lack of access to clean water, air pollution, violence, over-crowding and risk of infectious disease. Remote sensing technologies are an effective tool for detection and prediction of areas with significant land use change, which enables identification of populations with the highest risk of …

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A Spatiotemporal Model For Repeated Imaging Data, Brandon George Jan 2014

A Spatiotemporal Model For Repeated Imaging Data, Brandon George

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Longitudinal imaging studies have increased in popularity as clinical researchers seek to investigate how phenomena within the body change over time. Analysis of data from these studies is complicated by correlation between repeated measures over time and different locations in the body. To address this problem we propose the use of a linear model with a separable parametric correlation structure. This model considers spatial and temporal correlation independently and incorporates the correlation using parametric functions that have the potential to be much more efficient than an unstructured approach. Our model also has the ability to control for time- and space-varying …

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Using Mce4 Sirna Molecular Beacons For Detection And Eradication Of Mycobacterial Infection In Macrophages, Remo George Jan 2014

Using Mce4 Sirna Molecular Beacons For Detection And Eradication Of Mycobacterial Infection In Macrophages, Remo George

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temperatures. The third chapter represents the most comprehensive evaluation to date of

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Innate Immune Defense Against The Fungal Pathogen Aspergillus Fumigatus, Melissa Ann Gessner Jan 2014

Innate Immune Defense Against The Fungal Pathogen Aspergillus Fumigatus, Melissa Ann Gessner

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The opportunistic fungal pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus is a ubiquitous mold that causes severe, invasive life-threatening infections in patients that are severely immunocompromised. Major risk factors include neutropenia, neutrophil dysfunction and immunosuppressive therapies. Recently, however, rising incidences of colonizing A. fumigatus have been reported in patients without classical risk factors. We sought out to elucidate non-classical pre-disposing conditions that may render a lung environment susceptible to fungal colonization as well as mechanisms involved in immune defense against the invading fungal pathogen. Further defining a role for Dectin-1 in an Aspergillus fumigatus infection, we demonstrated a critical role for Dectin-1 dependent interleukin-22 …

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Assessing Patient Care Quality From Hospital Employed Physicians, Kerry Gil Gillihan Jan 2014

Assessing Patient Care Quality From Hospital Employed Physicians, Kerry Gil Gillihan

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ASSESSING PATIENT CARE QUALITY FROM HOSPITAL EMPLOYED PHYSICIANS KERRY GILLIHAN ADMINISTRATION-HEALTH SERVICES ABSTRACT Background: Physician employment by hospitals and healthcare systems has become a growing phenomenon in America. Also the emphasis on improving patient care quality is receiving increasing attention. Moreover, recent changes in federal regulation and reimbursement have made improving patient care quality an imperative for hospitals and their medical staffs. The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a demonstrable relationship between hospital employed physicians and the quality of their patient care. Methods: Physician quality measurements were obtained from a prominent community hospital with roughly …

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Mitochondrial Dysfunction In Response To Neurotoxins And The Role Of Mitophagy, Samantha Giordano Jan 2014

Mitochondrial Dysfunction In Response To Neurotoxins And The Role Of Mitophagy, Samantha Giordano

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Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder. Two major factors in both familial and sporadic PD are mitochondrial dysfunction and insufficient autophagy. My thesis research focuses on the interplay between these activities in PD. To investigate the common and differential effects of PD-inducing neurotoxins on mitochondrial bioenergetics and their relationships to cell survival, we used an in vitro culture system, differentiated dopaminergic SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells. We found that the neurotoxins rotenone, 1-methyl-4- phenylyridinium (MPP+) and 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA), decreased mitochondrial respiration and induced cell death in these cells. The extent and characteristics of mitochondrial dysfunction in response to …

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Three Studies On Family Meals: Examining The Predictors Of Family Meals And Its Impact On Adolescent Health, Samantha Sittig Goldfarb Jan 2014

Three Studies On Family Meals: Examining The Predictors Of Family Meals And Its Impact On Adolescent Health, Samantha Sittig Goldfarb

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This three-manuscript dissertation addresses gaps in the literature related to the predictors of family meals and its impact on adolescent health behavior. Sharing dinner as a family has been promoted by the media and many researchers as an ideal environment to enrich the parent-child bond and subsequently reduce adolescent risk behaviors such as substance use and delinquency. This dissertation centers on three topics, in particular: (1) the nature of the family meal literature given the multiple adolescent health behavior outcomes, study designs, and model types investigated and used by researchers, (2) the impact of family dinners on adolescent school problems, …

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