Digital Commons Network^™

Novel Tri-Biopolymer Thin Film With Superior Antimicrobial Efficacy, Ashraf Al-Goraee, Ali Alshami, Abdulrahman Al-Shami, Jason Power, Jadyn Guidinger, Christopher Buelke, Musabbir Jahan Talukder, Xiaodong Hou

Chemical Engineering Faculty Publications

This work reports a novel synthesis, characterization, and performance of antimicrobial polymeric thin films utilizing unreported ternary blend of Chitosan, PLA, and PCL. For binary systems, the selection of matching polymers has improved the material’s structures and properties; however, the transition to using a ternary system is not well-established yet. The ability to homogeneously blend 3 biopolymers would expand the potential to prepare new materials with tailored properties. Herein, unary, binary, and ternary films were produced by physical blending using the casting and solvent evaporation method. The films were then characterized using different techniques for comparing the properties of 3 …

Reimagining Large River Management Using The Resist–Accept–Direct (Rad) Framework In The Upper Mississippi River, Nicole K. Ward, Abigail J. Lynch, Erik A. Beever, Joshua Booker, Kristen L. Bouska, Holly Embke, Jeffrey N. Houser, John F. Kocik, David J. Lawrence, Mary Grace Lemon, Doug Limpinsel, Madeline R. Magee, Bryan M. Maitland, Owen Mckenna, Andrew Meier, John M. Morton, Jeffrey D. Muehlbauer, Robert Newman, Devon C. Oliver, Heidi M. Rantala, Greg G. Sass, Aaron Shultz, Laura M. Thompson, Jennifer L. Wilkening

Biology Faculty Publications

Background Large-river decision-makers are charged with maintaining diverse ecosystem services through unprecedented social-ecological transformations as climate change and other global stressors intensify. The interconnected, dendritic habitats of rivers, which often demarcate jurisdictional boundaries, generate complex management challenges. Here, we explore how the Resist–Accept–Direct (RAD) framework may enhance large-river management by promoting coordinated and deliberate responses to social-ecological trajectories of change. The RAD framework identifies the full decision space of potential management approaches, wherein managers may resist change to maintain historical conditions, accept change toward different conditions, or direct change to a specified future with novel conditions. In the Upper Mississippi …

Campus Building, Shilo Virginia Previti, Grant Mcmillan, Samuel Amendolar

Digital Press Books

This book celebrates Merrifield Hall on the campus of the University of North Dakota. This century-old building is now enduring a radical renovation designed to keep it relevant for the next generation of students on the UND campus.

The editors’ goal with this book was both to respect Merrifield Hall’s past and look forward to its now in-process future. It is our hope that this book will offer a space of thoughts, memories, fragments, criticisms, and jokes for all those who have walked the halls of this building and for all those who may one day dance—intellectually and materially—its halls, …

Information Literacy Curriculum Mapping In The Health Sciences, Devon Olson, Sandi Bates, Shannon Yarbrough, Sara Westall, Megan Keely Carroll Denis, Montanna Barnett

Librarian Publications

Instructional medical librarians are uniquely positioned in a context governed by multiple instructional frameworks emerging from librarianship and the professions with which they liaise. Yet very little literature exists on medical librarians’ use of curriculum mapping to align their instruction with these frameworks. This review illuminates the current state of curriculum mapping in medical librarianship.We searched five bibliographic databases for articles published between 2010 and August 2021 and centred on information literacy(IL)curriculum mapping within a health sciences university context. Studies were included based upon pre-determined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Data were extracted using an instrument developed primarily a priori, with …

Examining Underrepresented Minority Stem Faculty Members’ Motivation For Research, Mojdeh J. Mardani, Muhammad Salahuddin, Robert Stupnisky

Education, Health & Behavior Studies Faculty Publications

Underrepresented minority (URM) university faculty can be identified as those whose representation based on gender, race, and/or ethnicity in particular fields, such as Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM), are smaller than in the US population. Studies on URM faculty have found discrimination and affiliated stress impact faculty in many aspects of their work, such as performance in research. In the current study, we examined STEM faculty who self-identify as URM, their experiences of workplace discrimination, and how these encounters affect their self-determined motivation to conduct research. Six-hundred and fifty-one faculty from 10 US institutions completed an online survey. Of …

Streamlined Synthesis Of Potential Dual-Emissive Fluorescent Silicon Quantum Dots (Siqds) For Cell Imaging, Di Sun, Steven Wu, Jeremy P. Martin, Kirati Tayutivutikul, Guodong Du, Colin Combs, Diane Darland, Julia Zhao

Biology Faculty Publications

One of the current challenges of working with nanomaterials in bioapplications is having a tool that is biocompatible (non-toxic) and produces stable, intense fluorescence for bioimaging. To address these challenges, we have developed a streamlined and one-pot synthetic route for silicon-based quantum dots (SiQDs) using a hydrothermal method. Part of our unique approach for designing the SiQDs was to incorporate (3-aminopropyl) triethoxysilane (APTES), which is an amphipathic molecule with hydroxyl and amine functional groups available for modification. In order to reduce the toxicity of APTES, we chose glucose as a reducing agent for the reaction. The resulting SiQDs produced potent, …

Are Scientific Memes Motivating And Does Public Sharing Affect Motivation?, Virginia Clinton-Lisell, Alison E. Kelly

Education, Health & Behavior Studies Faculty Publications

In recent years, renewable assignments, or student creations that have value outside of a course, have received considerable attention. However, there is little theoretically grounded inquiry into students’ motivation for renewable assignments such as scientific memes. Moreover, it is unknown how public sharing of renewable assignments affects students’ perceived value and learning from coursework. In addition, public sharing could logically affect students’ pride and anxiety related to the renewable assignment, but this lacks empirical testing. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of public sharing of renewable assignments on students’ perceived value, learning, pride, and anxiety relevant …

Simtutor Module: Antibodies, Heather Gilbert

Teaching, Learning, and Scholarship (TLAS) Academy Projects

Antibody simulation module developed for use in MLS 226: Introduction to Clinical Immunology and Molecular Diagnostics. The module was designed to reinforce lecture material and was developed utilizing SimTutor software.

Learning outcomes:

1. Define antibody.
2. Differentiate between innate and adaptive immunity.
3. Differentiate between cellular and humoral immunity.
4. Describe the four pathways of antibody acquisition.
5. Identify the three functions of an antibody.
6. Identify and describe the structure of an antibody including the following components and regions: light chain, heavy chain, constant region, variable region, Fc Fragment, Fab Fragment, and hinge region.
7. List the antibody classes and their key features.
8. Differentiate between the …

Sex-Dependent Effects Of Intestinal Microbiome Manipulation In A Mouse Model Of Alzheimer’S Disease, Harpreet Kaur, Suba Nookala, Surjeet Singh, Santhosh Mukundan, Kumi Nagamoto-Combs, Colin K. Combs

Biomedical Sciences Faculty Publications

Mechanisms linking intestinal bacteria and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are still unclear. We hypothesized that intestinal dysbiosis might potentiate AD, and manipulating the microbiome to promote intestinal eubiosis and immune homeostasis may improve AD-related brain changes. This study assessed sex differences in the effects of oral probiotic, antibiotics, and synbiotic treatments in the AppNL-G-F mouse model of AD. The fecal microbiome demonstrated significant correlations between bacterial genera in AppNL-G-F mice and Aβ plaque load, gliosis, and memory performance. Female and not male AppNL-G-F mice fed probiotic but not synbiotic exhibited a decrease in Aβ plaques, microgliosis, brain …

Hla-Ii Alleles Influence Physical And Behavioral Responses To A Whey Allergen In A Transgenic Mouse Model Of Cow's Milk Allergy, Danielle L. Germundson, Suba Nookala, Nicholas A. Smith, Yassmine Warda, Kumi Nagamoto-Combs

Biomedical Sciences Faculty Publications

The symptoms of food allergies vary significantly between individuals, likely due to genetic determinants. In humans, allergy development is initiated by antigen-presenting cells via class II human leukocyte antigen (HLA-II). The HLA-II gene is highly polymorphic, and its allelic variance is thought to influence the susceptibility of individuals to a particular allergen. However, whether antigen presentation by different HLA-II variants contributes to symptom variation is not clear. We hypothesized that HLA-II allelic variance affects symptom phenotypes, including immediate physical reactions and delayed behavioral changes, in individuals with food hypersensitivity. To test our hypothesis, male and female mice of three transgenic …

Asymptomatic Sensitization To A Cow's Milk Protein Induces Sustained Neuroinflammation And Behavioral Changes With Chronic Allergen Exposure, Afrina Brishti, Danielle L. Germundson-Hermanson, Nicholas Smith, Angela E. Kearney, Yassmine Warda, Kumi Nagamoto-Combs

Biomedical Sciences Faculty Publications

Mouse models of food allergy have contributed to our understanding of various aspects of the disease, including susceptibilities, symptom spectra, cellular mechanisms, and therapeutic approaches. Previously, we used a mouse model of non-anaphylactic cow’s milk allergy (CMA) and investigated sex- and strain-dependent differences in immunological, neurological, and behavioral sequelae. We showed that male C57BL/6J mice sensitized to a bovine whey protein, β-lactoglobulin (BLG; Bos d 5), exhibited anxiety- and depression-like behavior upon acute allergen challenge. Systemic levels of BLG-specific immunoglobulins, cytokines and chemokines were also elevated in the sensitized mice. Furthermore, neuroinflammation and intestinal dysbiosis were evident as the possible …

Hla-Ii-Dependent Neuroimmune Changes In Group A Streptococcal Necrotizing Fasciitis, Ganesh Ambigapathy, Santhosh Mukundan, Kumi Nagamoto-Combs, Colin Combs, Suba Nookala

Biomedical Sciences Faculty Publications

Streptococcus pyogenes (Group A Streptococcus, GAS) bacteria cause a spectrum of human diseases ranging from self-limiting pharyngitis and mild, uncomplicated skin infections (impetigo, erysipelas, and cellulitis) to highly morbid and rapidly invasive, life-threatening infections such as streptococcal toxic shock syndrome and necrotizing fasciitis (NF). HLA class II allelic polymorphisms are linked with differential outcomes and severity of GAS infections. The dysregulated immune response and peripheral cytokine storm elicited due to invasive GAS infections increase the risk for toxic shock and multiple organ failure in genetically susceptible individuals. We hypothesized that, while the host immune mediators regulate the immune responses against …

Generative Ai-Assisted Pathway Analysis And Interpretation Of Rna-Seq Experiment Data, Junguk Hur

AI Assignment Library

No abstract provided.

September 7, 2023: Agenda, University Of North Dakota

University Senate Meeting Minutes

Agenda for the September 7, 2023, meeting of the University Senate. 11 pages

Ten Tips Taylored For Successful Talks With Landowners In Ranching And Range Management Landscapes, Taylor J. Linder, Susan N. Ellis-Felege, Christopher J. Felege

Biology Faculty Publications

Privately owned lands offer substantial land area that have the potential to contribute greatly to wildlife conservation. However, it is dubious for private landowners to engage in such programs that have not readily accepted their input. Given the future directions of wildlife conservation and needing to heavily integrate private lands into habitat objectives to meet wildlife population standards, it will be of growing importance to consider the needs and wants of private landowners to meet production goals and simultaneously wildlife habitat goals (and not the other way around). We recognize the important methodological research that has built foundations for current …

Summer Commencement: August 4, 2023, University Of North Dakota

UND Commencement Programs

UND Summer Commencement program from August 4, 2023.

Workload Assessment For Community Corrections Staffing For The Washington Department Of Corrections, Nathan Lowe, Adam K. Matz, Benjamin Korelitz, Angela Greene, Kathryb Hogan

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

About 20 years ago, the Washington State Department of Corrections (WADOC) participated in two workload evaluations with the aim of identifying key tasks associated with community corrections work and the time to complete such tasks, and utilized these data to inform the amount of resources needed to carry out the responsibilities of the Community Corrections Division (CCD). Those evaluations set a precedent for how WADOC made informed decisions that shaped practice and policy for staffing. Then, in the fall of 2021, WADOC contracted with Westat, Inc. to conduct an updated, full-scale workload assessment of staff members who carry out the …

Mitogenomes Revealed The History Of Bison Colonization Of Northern Plains After The Last Glacial Maximum, Igor V. Ovtchinnikov, Blake Mccann

Biology Faculty Publications

American bison demonstrated differential patterns of extinction, survival, and expansion since the terminal Pleistocene. We determined population dynamics of the Northern Great Plains bison using 40 mitochondrial genomes from radiocarbon dated remains with the age ranging from 12,226 to 167 calibrated years before present. Population dynamics correlated with environmental and anthropogenic factors and was characterized by three primary periods: terminal Pleistocene population growth starting 14,000 years ago, mid Holocene demographic stability between 6700 and 2700 years ago, and late Holocene population decline in the last 2700 years. Most diversification of mtDNA haplotypes occurred in the early Holocene when bison colonized …

Creation Of A Hyperplane Device For Horizontal Cellular Migration Assays, Nicholas M. Bittner, Nelofar Nargis, Ghoulem Ifrene, Brent Jeffrey Voels, Colin K. Combs

Biomedical Sciences Posters and Presentations

Cell culture studies routinely seek to monitor cell migration in response to chemoattractant stimuli. Common assays of cell migration employ well inserts and vertical cell migration assessment. This approach does not allow real-time monitoring of cell behavior. To address this need, we sought to develop a horizontal culture platform conducive to time course cell assessment changes in migration, morphology, phenotype etc. Modification of a commercial chamber slide allowed us to quantify cell migration in response to a 20% serum gradient. Based upon this finding, we designed and fabricated a prototype chamber slide for high replicate, real time assessment of cell …

Spring Commencement: May 13, 2023, University Of North Dakota

UND Commencement Programs

UND Spring Commencement program from May 13, 2023.

Histrionicus Histrionicus Histrionicus: Common Wild Ducks And Storytelling Animals, Kira Symington

Floodwall Magazine

No abstract provided.

The English Coulee, Jona L. Pedersen

Floodwall Magazine

No abstract provided.

Two Drawings, Jona L. Pedersen

Floodwall Magazine

No abstract provided.

The Day After, Autumn Thompson

Floodwall Magazine

No abstract provided.

Physical Therapy Management Of Lower Exteremity Weakness And Balance Dysfunction Due To Sarcopenia And Frailty: A Case Report, Carla J. Maurstad

Physical Therapy Scholarly Projects

Introduction: The aging population is on the rise and is expected to increase from 8.5% to 16.5% for those aged sixty-five years and older by 2050. With the expected rise comes the increased prevalence of frailty that leads to a decline in physiological function placing individuals at risk for sarcopenia, disability, falls, hospitalization, and death. The purpose of this case study is on lower extremity muscle weakness (sarcopenia) and frailty and the effectiveness of physical therapy to improve muscle strength, balance, proprioception, and functional mobility to decrease the risk of falls, improve performance with daily activities, and improve …

The Correlation Between The Season Of Birth And Early Child Development In Healthy Children: Evidence From The Midwestern Region Of The United States: A Pilot Study, Elizabeth G. Bodensteiner

Physical Therapy Scholarly Projects

Background and Purpose: Research has been conducted in countries like Japan and China assessing the impact of various factors on gross motor development. One variable that has been researched and discussed within studies in other countries is the relationship between gross motor development and birth season. This study aimed to address the impact of birth season on gross motor development, specifically within the Midwestern region of the United States. There is limited research regarding this topic within the Midwestern region of the United States.

Materials and Methods: Parents of 114 children completed self-reports on their children’s gross and …

Report: North Dakota Alzheimer’S And Dementia State Plan: Current Status Of, And Recommendations For, Meeting The Needs Of Individuals And Families With Alzheimer’S Disease And Other Dementias, Shawnda Schroeder, Rebecca Quinn, Laura Hand, Gretchen Dobervich

Indigenous Health Faculty Publications

North Dakota reports the fourth highest mortality rate for Alzheimer’s disease in the United States (U.S.) at 52.9 per 100,000 North Dakota residents. The rate for the U.S. is 37 per 100,000 residents. Although leading in mortality, North Dakota is one of a few states with a State Plan for Alzheimer’s and Dementia over 12 years old. This plan was written in July of 2007 and is less than two pages. Although it does mention Alzheimer’s and other other dementias, it does not specifically outline a plan to address services for those living with, or supporting those living with, dementia …

May 4, 2023: Agenda, University Of North Dakota

University Senate Meeting Minutes

Agenda for the May 4, 2023, meeting of the University Senate. 57 pages

The Effects Of Food On Mood: Can Symptoms Associated With Depression Be Improved By What You Eat?, Kaitlyn Prochnow

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

The purpose of this research and literature review is to determine whether adherence to a Mediterranean diet or a plant-based diet has better effects on decreasing depression prevalence and/or symptom severity. A variety of keywords were used to search the online database, PubMed. Clinical trials and randomized controlled trials conducted within the last 20 years were included in the initial search. Exclusions were made if studies were not specific to Mediterranean or plant-based diets, or if they were focused on other psychiatric illnesses besides depression. For the final review, ten articles were selected. After thorough analyses and comparisons of the …

Active Toxoplasmosis Infection: Efficacy And Safety Of Treatment Options, Daniele Krouse

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

This literature review intends to investigate the safety and efficacy of two different drug treatment regimens, pyrimethamine versus trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, for active toxoplasmosis infections. Affecting nearly 11% of the United States population and up to 80% of the populations of tropical countries, Toxoplasmosis infection is the second leading cause of death from food borne illness. Current classic management of active infection with pyrimethamine is correlated with numerous undesirable side effects, high cost and need for complex use of adjunctive medications. It is necessary to identify alternative treatment options with fewer side effects, less complex regimens, lower cost, and easier access for …