Digital Commons Network^™

Stability Studies Of Novel Oligodeoxynucleotides In Tlr-9 Mediated Cellular Invasion, Elise M. Ottenfeld, Jason S. Hudson, David E. Graves

Inquiro (undergraduate research journal)

pp. 84-86

The Effects Of Fatigue And Difficulty On Cardiovascular Response To Aerobic Exercise Challenge: An Obesity Simulation, Jin Joo Shim, Rex A. Wright

Inquiro (undergraduate research journal)

pp. 95-99

The Development Of Nanotechnology: An Interview With Dr. Andrei Stanishevsky, Kavita Nadendla

Inquiro (undergraduate research journal)

pp. 93-94

Inquiro 4 (End Matter), Inquiro Staff

Inquiro (undergraduate research journal)

pp. 101-106

2010 Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship Recipients, Timothy Fernandez

Inquiro (undergraduate research journal)

p. 100

A Question Of Salience: A Gender Analysis Of The Work -Family Interface, Sarah Ballard

All ETDs from UAB

No abstract provided.

Developing A Screen To Identify Small Molecule Inhibitors That Disrupt Protein-Protein Interactions In Mycobacteria, Deborah Mai

All ETDs from UAB

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) is the causative agent of tuberculosis (TB) and infects nearly one-third of the world's population. The same TB chemotherapeutic regimen has been administered for more than 50 years, and can be improved by developing innovative methods to discover new anti-TB drugs. This work describes a newly established high-throughput screen (HTS) platform technology based on Mycobacterial-Protein Fragment Complementation (M-PFC) to identify small molecule inhibitors of protein-protein interactions in mycobacteria. M-PFC HTS employs both whole cell and target-based approaches, and offers flexibility in selecting an appropriate protein interaction target for HTS. Selectable drug targets can include interactions of essential …

Evolutionarily Conserved Cis-Acting Elements Regulate Lineage-Specific Expression Of Ifng, Anand Balasubramani

All ETDs from UAB

The ability to differentially manipulate available genetic information in order to generate diverse cellular identities represents an innovation of complex multicellular eukaryotic organisms. Cis-acting modules that regulate transcription play extremely important roles in ensuring lineage-specific expression of genes that define cellular identities. In our studies, using Interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma, a cytokine encoded by the gene Ifng), a cytokine encoded by T, NK and NKT cells as a model, we have identified and characterized the roles of key cis regulatory elements that facilitate T lineage specific induction as well as repression of Ifng transcription. In particular, our studies have highlighted the role …

Molecular Mechanisms Of Breast Cancer Metastasis: Gap Junction Intercellular Communication And The Bone Microenvironment, Thomas Morgan Bodenstine

All ETDs from UAB

Metastatic disease accounts for the overwhelming majority of cancer related deaths. More specifically, breast cancer remains one of the leading causes of death in women and breast cancer cells metastasize to bone more than any other secondary site. Upon arriving within the bone microenvironment, breast cancer cells interact with bone marrow cells, leading to changes in bone biology that favor growth of the cancer cells. Additionally, some cancer cells are capable of direct cellular communication with cells at metastatic sites via dysregulation of a family of proteins known as connexins. This direct, physical communication is known as gap junctional intercellular …

Preclinical Pharmacology Of Novel Synthetic Iminoquinones As Anticancer Agents, Scharri Ezell

All ETDs from UAB

Prostate cancer is the most common male malignancy and the second leading cause of cancer related death in the United States. Despite recent advances in the detection, diagnosis, and treatment of prostate cancer, there is a need for more effective therapies. Unfortunately, most conventional therapeutic modalities, such as androgen ablation therapy, frequently result in androgen-independent cancers. These cancers are typically more aggressive, metastatic, and resistant to chemotherapeutic agents than androgen-dependent prostate cancer. Therefore, agents that are effective against both androgen-sensitive and androgen-independent, as well as genetically diverse cancers are critically needed. The objective of the dissertation research was to address …

Identification And Validation Of Biodosimetry Markers In Multiple Models Of Radiation Exposure, Ashley Nicole Filiano

All ETDs from UAB

Following a radiological or nuclear disaster, radiation dose assessment is imperative to minimize morbidity and mortality through rationally directed medical intervention. Current methods of retrospective dosimetry are not amenable to mass exposure scenarios and remain limited to monitoring of clinical symptoms (nausea/vomiting and lymphocyte depletion) and cytogenetic analysis. The goal of this study was to identify radiation biomarkers capable of qualitative (non-irradiated/irradiated) and quantitative (dose) assessment of radiation exposure. Initial analyses revealed 17 radiation-responsive cytokine/chemokine genes in blood samples from 6 pediatric cancer patients undergoing fractionated total body irradiation (TBI). These 17 genes were combined with 29 additional IR-inducible genes …

Fabrication And Dynamic Mechanical Analysis Of Hydroxyapatite Nanoparticle /Gelatin Porous Scaffolds, Hicham K. Ghossein

All ETDs from UAB

The application of engineered biomaterial scaffolds for hard tissue repair critically depends on the scaffold's internal architecture at various length scales. The pore size, shape, surface morphology, and pore connectivity are among the most important factors that affect the scaffold's mechanical properties and biointegration. Reported in this thesis are the results of the investigation of porous constructs fabricated by a freeze-drying process from synthetic nanosized hydroxyapatite / gelatin (nanoHA/Gel) dispersions with different nanoHA/Gel ratios (nanoHA loading was varied from 0 to 50 % by weight). The fabricated scaffolds had porosity up to 90% with pore size in the range of …

Regulation Of Apoptosis By Smac, Iaps , And The Ubiquitin Proteasome System, Stephen Peter Burke

All ETDs from UAB

iii

The Effects Of Environmental Ozone Exposure On Vascular Function, Oxidative Stress, And Atherosclerosis, Gin Chuang

All ETDs from UAB

Exposure to air pollutants are known to induce airway inflammation, decrease lung function, and worsen existing pulmonary conditions such as asthma. Additionally, air pollutant exposure has also been shown to impact cardiovascular health. Although these pollutant-induced cardiovascular effects were considered to be mediated by the direct action of pollutants upon the cardiovascular tissue and/or the indirect release of pro-inflammatory factors into the circulation, the relative contribution of the two pathways remained equivocal. Recently, several epidemiology studies associated ozone exposure with cardiovascular mortalities. However, relatively few studies to date have examined ozone in this context. In order to address our hypothesis …

My Phage, My Miracle, Mira Patel

Inquiro (undergraduate research journal)

p. 15

Use Of A Modified Surface Killing Assay To Test The Killing Of S. Pneumoniae Serotype 3 Strain Wu2 Using An Anti-Pspa Monoclonal Antibody, Eunlim Kim, Kristopher Genschmer, David E. Briles

Inquiro (undergraduate research journal)

pp. 38-43

The Fruit Of Locke's Experience, Yvette D. Riley

Inquiro (undergraduate research journal)

pp. 19-20

Gulf Oil Spill: Uab Department Of Biology's Approach, Toral Patel

Inquiro (undergraduate research journal)

pp. 9-11

Development Of A Biofidelic Material Model For Brain Tissue And Its Application To The Impact Response Of The Human Head, Sandeep Kulathu, David L. Littlefield

Early Career Technical Journal (ECTJ)

Proceedings of the ASME Early Career Technical Conference, October 1-2, 2010. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia

pp. 1-8

Asme Early Career Technical Journal (Complete Issue), Asme Ectc Coordinating Committee

Early Career Technical Journal (ECTJ)

Proceedings of the ASME Early Career Technical Conference, October 1-2, 2010. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia

Adaptive Multi Airbag Shoe Insert For Diabetic Foot Care, Vidya K. Nandikolla, Jenna Matthews, Marco P. Schoen, Suhas S. Pharkute, Uwe Reischl, Ajay Mahajan

Early Career Technical Journal (ECTJ)

Proceedings of the ASME Early Career Technical Conference, October 1-2, 2010. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia

pp. 124-129

The Bacterial Community Of A Freshwater Sponge, Radiospongilla Cerebellata: A Comparison Of Terminal Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphisms (T -Rflp) And 16s Rrna Clone Library Methods, Andrew Stephen Mobley

All ETDs from UAB

No abstract provided.

Development Of Multi-Shot Parse Mri Techniques, Rajiv G. Menon

All ETDs from UAB

Fast imaging Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) techniques such as Echo Planar Imaging (EPI) often suffer from artifacts such as signal dropouts, geometric distortions and susceptibility artifacts due to background gradients. Parameter Assessment by Retrieval from Signal Encoding (PARSE) was introduced as a single shot, inverse estimation technique that models the MRI process more accurately and estimates the initial transverse magnetization, M0 and its phase, the decay rate R2* and local frequency at each pixel. This technique is devoid of the aforementioned artifacts seen in EPI techniques. The goal of this work is to develop multi-shot parameter assessment by retrieval from …

Sexual Risk Behavior Among African-American Adolescents: Trajectories And Their Predictors, Maureen Muchimba

All ETDs from UAB

Although adolescents in the United States are at high risk of sexually transmitted infections and HIV, research indicates that many do not use condoms consistently and have high numbers of lifetime multiple sexual partners. Among adolescents, different subgroups exhibit distinct patterns of sexual behavior over time. The purpose of this dissertation was to identify trajectories of sexual risk behavior among adolescents and to determine individual, family and community factors that are predictive of membership to trajectory groups. Data were collected on sexual risk behavior among low-income African-American adolescents in Mobile County, Alabama. Gender-balanced subsamples of risky sex (N = 1294) …

Fiber Modification Of Adenoviral Vectors For Cancer Gene Therapy, Miho Murakami

All ETDs from UAB

Cancer still remains a major public health concern despite improvements in primary prevention, early detection and advanced treatments. Cancer gene therapy using human adenovirus serotype 5 (HAdV-5) as a vector has been explored as a new therapeutic approach. HAdV-5 infection is initiated by binding to the coxsackie virus and adenovirus receptor (CAR), its primary cellular receptor. However, the levels and patterns of expression of CAR vary greatly in clinical tumor tissue samples, and the expression lev-els tend to decrease as the tumors progress. The low level expression of CAR in target cancer cells diminishes the utility of HAdV-5 as a …

Organizational Support, Perceived Social Support, And Intent To Turnover Among Psychiatric Nurses: A Mixed Methods Study., Beverly Jean Myers

All ETDs from UAB

Nurse turnover compromises the quality of patient care and leads to an increase in organizational costs. Nurse turnover is defined as the intent to leave one's current job position either to transfer to another unit within the organization or to terminate employment with the organization. Few studies have examined the role social support received at work as well as at home, personal characteristics and work factors play in guiding psychiatric nurses' decisions to leave a current nursing position (turnover). The overall purpose of this mixed-methods sequential explanatory study was to explore factors that contribute to psychiatric nurses' intent to turnover. …

Oral Lesions As Clinical Markers For Antiretroviral Therapy Failure In Hiv Patients, Irene M. Tamí-Maury

All ETDs from UAB

The true nature of the association of oral lesions (OL) and gold standards of HIV progression, CD4+ T cell counts (CD4) and HIV-1 RNA viral load (VL), is not completely clear, especially when patients are on antiretroviral therapy (ART). Our aim was to assess the association between OL and virologic failure among HIV/AIDS patients on ART. We conducted a retrospective study of 744 HIV patients who entered care between 2000 and 2006 at the UAB 1917 Clinic. Data was collected for 2 years after enrollment. Prevalence of OL was 35.8%. Oropharyngeal candidiasis (OPC) was the most prevalent OL (74.9%). Among …

Growth Of Chromium-Doped Zinc Selenide Thin Films By Pulsed Laser Deposition For Mid-Infrared Applications, Jonathan Ezekiel Williams

All ETDs from UAB

Transition metal doped II-VI semiconductor materials features excellent spectroscopic and lasing characteristics in the middle infrared (mid-IR). Among this class of laser material, the most impressive results have been obtained from chromium-doped zinc selenide (Cr2+:ZnSe) crystals. To date, Cr2+:ZnSe materials are arguably the best choice of laser gain material for the advancements of high power mid-IR lasers broadly tunable over the 2-3 μm spectral range. The dissertation objectives are to demonstrate technological advancements in the development Cr2+:ZnSe thin films by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) thus establishing a viable route for the synthesis of mid-IR laser gain media based on Cr2+:ZnSe …

Contributions Of The Atrial Natriuretic Peptide Gene System To The Relationship Between Pediatric Body Fat, Free Fatty Acids, And Blood Pressure, Amanda Willig

All ETDs from UAB

Elevated blood pressure and nonesterified fatty acids (NEFA) in children can lead to increased chronic disease risk during adulthood. The atrial natriuretic peptide precursor A (NPPA) and natiuretic peptide receptor A (NPR1) genes encode for atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) and its cell receptor, respectively, and may influence levels of blood pressure and NEFA. Additionally, it is unclear how body composition, physical activity, physical fitness, and racial genetic ancestry influence pediatric NEFA and blood pressure. In order to understand the associations among these factors, five investigations were performed. For experimental aim 1, the association between blood pressure and body composition measures …

Small Molecule Inhibitors Of Acid Sensing Ion Channel-1, Yawar J. Qadri

All ETDs from UAB

Acid Sensing Ion Channel 1 is one of the many proteins in the Epithelial Sodium Channel/Degenerin family. The proteins in this family interact to form cation channels with unique biophysical properties and can all be inhibited by the small molecule amiloride. Their expression in many different cell types underlies their involvement in a large variety of physiological and pathophysiological processes. ASIC-1 containing channels, specifically, are an important therapeutic target for ischemic stroke, nociception, the invasiveness of glioblastoma cells, and many other processes including anxiety and memory formation. Of the members of the ENaC/Deg family, chicken ASIC-1 is the only protein …