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Nir Light Activated Hollow Gold Nanoshell Structures Based On Layersome Template, Yaser Kashcooli

Open Access Master's Theses

In biomedical applications, nanocarriers provide specific advantages such as deliveryand biopolymers and lipids. On the other hand, stimuli-responsive nanocarriers provide a safe method for drug delivery applications. These carriers use different triggers (including temperature) to release the drug. Light can be used as an external trigger to increase the temperature and finally releasing the drug. This thesis describes the development of functionalized liposomes via using different polyelectrolyte coatings to template the synthesis of light activated nanocarriers.

In the first part, layer-by-layer coating of liposomes with strong biopolyelectrolytes was examined to have a better understanding of structure-property relationship of polyelectrolytes and …

A Novel Genetic Algorithm And Its Application To Optimize Manufacturing Schedules, Arash Nasrollahishirazi

Open Access Dissertations

John Holland and his colleagues at the University of Michigan introduced genetic algorithms (GAs) in 1992. The algorithmic coding of Genetic Algorithms was described by Goldberg. Since of the real world problems studied in operations research and management science are too complex to be solved by using conventional optimization techniques, genetic algorithms have been widely used in their solution. Furthermore, problems with stochastic characteristics are also typical in analysis, design, and operation of modern systems. Stochastic optimization methods are even more complex than deterministic methods. Since the 1960’s researches have tried to simulate biological process for solving hard optimization problems …

An Fto Gene Variant Moderates The Association Between Parental Restriction And Child Bmi, Alison Tovar, Jennifer A. Emond, Erin Hennessy, Dianne Gilbert-Diamond

Nutrition Faculty Publications

Objective:

This study aimed to explore whether a common variant in the FTO gene moderates the relationship between parental restriction and child BMI.

Methods:

This study reports on baseline data from 178 parent-child (ages 9–10 years) dyads. Parents completed the Child Feeding Questionnaire and reported on socio-demographic characteristics. Each child’s height, weight and FTO rs9939609 genotype was assessed. Ordinary least squares regression was used to fit the child’s BMI-percentile on parental restriction and the child’s FTO genotype, adjusted for covariates. A likelihood ratio test was used to compare a model with and without a multiplicative interaction term between …

Web Based Bioinformatics Tool For Contributing Content To The Anti-Microbial Peptide Editable Database, Abraham Herrera

Open Access Master's Theses

The goal of the work described in this thesis is to improve the software tool used to extract relevant data from an existing larger database, the Protein Data Bank (PDB), in order to populate the newly designed AMPed database that has been developed by Professor Lenore Martin's microbial peptide research group at URI. However, not all data from the PDB site can be automatically loaded into the AMPed database. Thus, this work describes a user-friendly secure web-based tool for manually transferring, editing, and contributing structural and anti-microbial experimental data generated by research labs around the globe into the AMPed.

Once …

Measuring Adherence With Antidepressant Medication: Comparison Of Hedis And Pdc Methodologies, Carmen Monica Telinoiu

Open Access Master's Theses

Depression is a significant problem for the managed care system. Antidepressant medication helps ameliorate the symptoms of depression yet adherence to medication is known to be poor. The current approach to adherence measurement (i.e HEDIS) is limited or lacking. Other methods are used (e.g Proportion of Days Covered –PDC) in other chronic diseases to measure adherence. Medication adherence is a growing concern for clinicians and other health care stakeholders (e.g payer) because of the increasing evidence that non-adherence is prevalent and places patients at an increased risk for adverse health outcomes and higher cost of care.

We conducted a retrospective …

Graphical User Interface For Antimicrobial Peptide Database, Tripti Garg

Open Access Master's Theses

This thesis describes the design and implementation of Anti-Microbial Peptide Editable Database (“AMPed”), a tool to enable researchers to efficiently search, display, manipulate and store data about antimicrobial peptides. The tool is implemented as a secure website, created primarily using PHP and MySQL. The website exposes the data collected from a wide variety of sources via a set of common rules and nomenclature making it easy and intuitive for researchers to work with it. The website was evaluated on a variety of web browsers, as well as with a variety of users. It solves the need of non-technical users who …

Growth, Grazing And Starvation Survival In Three Heterotrophic Dinoflagellate Species, Sean Anderson

Open Access Master's Theses

We measured growth and grazing rates of three heterotrophic dinoflagellate species Oxyrrhis marina, Gyrodinium dominans and G. spirale exposed to starved versus continuously-fed prey conditions and assessed their starvation survival ability. All three dinoflagellate species survived long periods (>10 days) without prey, up to 118 days in the case of O. marina. After 1-3 weeks, starvation led to a 17-57% decrease in grazer cell volume and cells became more deformed and transparent over time. Starved grazers rapidly ingested new prey within 3 hours as evidenced by increased cell volumes of 4-17%. Grazer cultures that were starved had …

Bile Acids And Premature Labor In Intrahepatic Cholestasis Of Pregnancy, Sangmin You

Open Access Master's Theses

The association between serum bile acid levels and preterm birth has been reported. Clinical studies have shown that significant increase of serum bile acids during intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP) is associated with higher rate of preterm birth. However, the role of bile acids in preterm birth has not been established. In this study, we found that preterm birth was induced in mice by increasing plasma bile acids with cholic acid (CA) or carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) treatment. CCl4 treatment increased plasma bile acids by causing acute liver injury which down-regulated bile salt export pump (BSEP) in the liver. The data …

Thalassiosira Community Composition And Diversity In Narragansett Bay, Sarah Flickinger

Open Access Master's Theses

Diatoms contribute 40-45% of marine primary production. Understanding the contributions of individual species to diatom communities is important in light of warming ocean waters and changing food webs. Here, the diatom genus Thalassiosira, which exhibits irregular pulses in abundance in Narragansett Bay, is examined using data from the Narragansett Bay Long Term Phytoplankton Time Series. High-throughput sequencing (HTS) at the highly-variable V4 region of the 18S ribosomal gene identified fourteen Thalassiosira taxa in monthly samples over a six-year time period (December 2008-December 2014), seven of which had not previously been identified in this time series. During the same time …

Effect Of Disease State On Human Carboxylesterase 1 Expression And Activity, Abdullah Aljutayli

Open Access Master's Theses

Background: Human carboxylesterase 1, CES1, is a phase I drug metabolizing enzyme that catalyzes the hydrolysis of about 20% of therapeutic agents. Factors, such as metabolic syndrome, ethnicity, gender and genetic polymorphism can influence the activity and/or the expression of drug metabolizing enzymes. Consequently, these factors can affect the pharmacokinetics of drugs leading to toxicity or therapeutic failure.

Objective: The objective of our study is to investigate the possible influence of ethnicity, gender, age, genetic polymorphism, metabolic syndrome or fatty liver on CES1 gene expression and activity.

Methods: Expression of CES1 hepatic mRNA was measured in 89 …

Bayesian Network Meta-Analysis For Biologic Therapies In Rheumatoid Arthritis, Yizhou Ye

Open Access Master's Theses

Meta-analysis can only compare studies with the same interventions, while a network meta-analysis can analyze studies with different interventions. Without medical data for direct comparisons, network meta-analysis can utilize existing trials to assess the relative efficacy of competing treatments. Three classes of statistical models are proposed to perform a network meta-analysis: fixed-effects, random-effects, and mixed-effects (meta-regression). The most appropriate model should be selected with the aid of a series of statistical tests including I2 statistic for heterogeneity and DIC for model fitness. Bayesian network meta-analysis provides pooled effect sizes (odds ratio for dichotomous outcome) for each treatment and their 95% …

Immunohistochemical Localization Of Rf-Amide And Gabaa Receptors In The Hypostome And Tentacles Of Hydra Vulgaris, Jessica Eason

Open Access Master's Theses

This study examined the distribution and localization of the neuropeptide arginine phenylalanine-amide (RF-amide) and GABA_A receptors in the hypostomal and tentacular nerve net of the cnidarian polyp Hydra vulgaris. Immunohistochemical techniques were used to visualize two distinct anti-GABAA α-1 subunit positivereceptor ring structures, nerve cell bodies, neurites and epithelial cells, as well as an anti-RF-amide positive nerve ring, nerve cell bodies and neurites throughout the ectoderm of the hypostome and tentacles of ablated hypostomes. One proximal anti- GABA_A positive-receptor ring, exclusively labeling ectodermal effector cells, coinciding with an anti-α-tubulin- positive proximal nerve ring labeling nerve fibers is …

The Perceived Ability To Cope And Adapt To Management Changes In Young And Old Fishers In Two New England Fishing Ports, Angela Elena Silva

Open Access Master's Theses

The present research aims at examining commercial fishermen’s subjective resilience to management changes in two Southern New England fishing ports. This study also aims at analyzing the relationship between job satisfaction and level of occupational attachment with fishermen’s perceived ability to adapt and cope to change. The two age groups examined were categorized into a younger and older generation by splitting the mean age value of 46.6 to

Evaluating The Effect Of Minimal Risk Natural Products For Control Of The Tick, Ixodes Scapularis, Megan C. Dyer

Open Access Master's Theses

I evaluated the knock-down and residual activity of eleven minimal risk natural products (MRNP) against host-seeking nymphal stage blacklegged ticks (Ixodes scapularis Say) using a novel micro-plot product screening system in a landscape setting similar to a wooded residential property. The micro-plot system reduced variability between testing sites typically seen in larger field trials and provided the opportunity to compare results of studies conducted under the same environmental conditions, saving both time and money by confining product application and tick sampling to a 0.3 m diameter arena. By seeding the arenas with a known number of laboratory-raised blacklegged tick …

Risk Classification In High Dimensional Survival Models, Daven Amin

Open Access Master's Theses

Sparse regression models are an actively burgeoning area of statistical learning research. A subset of these models seek to separate out significant and non-trivial main effects from noise effects within the regression framework (yielding so-called “sparse” coefficient estimates, where many estimated effects are zero) by imposing penalty terms on a likelihood-based estimator. As this area of the field is relatively recent, many published techniques have not yet been investigated under a wide range of applications. Our goal is to fit several penalty-based estimators for the Cox semiparametric survival model in the context of genomic covariates on breast cancer survival data …

Development And Testing Of A Pressure Sensor Integrated Foil, Alexander Robert Stott

Open Access Master's Theses

Autonomous underwater vehicles are becoming increasingly more prevalent in exploring and studying the bodies of water found all over the world. Having a way to detect and identify the surrounding environment in close range would allow vehicles to move more efficiently and safely through hazardous environments or in groups of many. This study took biological inspiration from the fish sensory organ known as the lateral line to design, fabricate, and test a pressure sensor integrated foil. It examined the ability of pressure sensors to detect flow structures as well as variation in flow structures during a dynamic, flapping foil sinusoidal …

Fifteen Years Of Rhode Island Oyster Restoration: A Performance Evaluation And Cost-Benefit Analysis, Matthew Griffin

Open Access Master's Theses

Federal, state and local non-profit organizations have long recognized the ecological and socioeconomic importance the oyster, Crassostrea virginica, represents to coastal communities. Shellfish restoration programs in Rhode Island date to the early 1900s and have been making considerable progress and gaining popularity in the past decade. To better understand both short and long term performance of oyster restoration in Rhode Island a compilation of all oyster restoration activities from 2000 to 2015 was undertaken. Restoration performance was assessed by comparisons of growth, survival, disease and recruitment over eleven years in two distinct programs; Roger Williams University’s Oyster Gardening for …

Smart Fog Computing Interface For Healthcare Domain Applications, Admir Monteiro

Open Access Master's Theses

Technology is advancing tremendously in this day and age where more and more devices are being deployed in the market of digital devices; so much so that the market is being oversaturated with many different kinds of digital devices to simplify our everyday needs in life. This advancement can have negative consequences, however, there may also be benefits that stem from this technological advancement- especially in healthcare.

One possible benefit is to utilize the device’s capabilities to give real time feedback to people with medical diagnoses. Furthermore, that device could be connected to a stream of other devices to have …

Isolation, Synthesis, And Metabolism Of Polyphenols: Stilbenoids, Gallotannins And Ellagitannins, Daniel B. Niesen

Open Access Dissertations

The roles of dietary polyphenols, such as resveratrol found in red wine and grape seed extract, have become an increasingly more popular research topic. Dietary polyphenols have even achieved media success for their potential benefits on human health and disease. The success is frequently attributed to the compounds’ antioxidant and reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging abilities. Not only are polyphenols highlighted as the benefitial health constituents of herbal remedies, but there are also two plant-polyphenol drugs approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration, Crofelemer (a proanthocyanidin oligomer from Croton lechleri) and Veregen (catechins from Camellia sinensis). …

Global Dynamics Of Some Discrete Dynamical Systems With Applications, Arzu Bilgin

Open Access Dissertations

In my first manuscript, I investigate the global character of the difference equation of the form

x_n+1 = f(x_n, x_n-1), n = 0, 1, ... (1)

with several period-two solutions, where f is increasing in all its variables. I show that the boundaries of the basins of attractions of different locally asymptotically stable equilibrium solutions or period-two solutions are in fact the global stable manifolds of neighboring saddle or non-hyperbolic equilibrium solutions or period two solutions. An application of my results give global dynamics of three feasible models in population dynamics which includes …

Linking Protistan Herbivory To Environmental And Biotic Controls, Françoise Morison

Open Access Dissertations

Phagotrophic protists have been established as the major consumers of ocean primary production and as such occupy a pivotal position in pelagic food webs, yet knowledge gaps remain regarding the seasonal and spatial variability of protistan grazing, and of its drivers, both environmental and biotic. The aim of the present research was to address such gaps. To do so, I gathered field measurements and observations and evaluated modifications and alternatives to current methods used to estimate grazing rates and characterize plankton communities. In a study conducted in the Western Antarctic Peninsula aimed at quantifying the seasonal variability of protistan herbivory …

Improved Modeling Of Image-Guided Thermal Ablation Procedures Towards Patient-Specific Treatment Planning Applications, Garron Deshazer

Open Access Dissertations

Microwave ablation (MWA) is a minimally-invasive modality that is playing an increasingly vital role in the treatment of cancer and benign disease. These procedures involve the use of a microwave antenna (or an array of antennas) to deliver energy to raise tissue temperature above a thermal threshold to induce irreversible cell damage. Commonly used clinical MWA systems operate at frequencies of 2450 MHz and 915 MHz. Image-guided percutaneous MWA treatments can be guided by intraoperative ultrasound or computed tomography (CT) fluoroscopy, which allows the physician to deliver treatments precisely. As such, image-guided MWA has received substantial attention for the treatment …

Asiri: An Ocean–Atmosphere Initiative For Bay Of Bengal, Hemantha W. Wijesekera, Melissa M. Omand, Et Al

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

Air–Sea Interactions in the Northern Indian Ocean (ASIRI) is an international research effort (2013–17) aimed at understanding and quantifying coupled atmosphere–ocean dynamics of the Bay of Bengal (BoB) with relevance to Indian Ocean monsoons. Working collaboratively, more than 20 research institutions are acquiring field observations coupled with operational and high-resolution models to address scientific issues that have stymied the monsoon predictability. ASIRI combines new and mature observational technologies to resolve submesoscale to regional-scale currents and hydrophysical fields. These data reveal BoB’s sharp frontal features, submesoscale variability, low-salinity lenses and filaments, and shallow mixed layers, with relatively weak turbulent mixing. Observed …

Physical And Optical Properties Of Phytoplankton-Rich Layers In A Coastal Fjord: A Step Toward Prediction And Strategic Sampling Of Plankton Patchiness, Jason R. Graff, Susanne Menden-Deuer

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

Dense aggregations of phytoplankton in layers or patches alter the optical and physical properties of the water column and result in significant heterogeneity in trophic and demographic rates of local plankton populations. Determining the factors driving patch formation, persistence, intensity, and dissipation is key to understanding the ramifications of plankton patchiness in marine systems. Regression and multi-parametric statistical analyses were used to identify the physical and optical properties associated with 71 phytoplankton-rich layers (PRLs) identified from 158 CTD profiles collected between 2008 and 2010 in East Sound, Washington, USA. Generalized additive models (GAMs) were used to explore water column properties …

Ecological Effects Of Nutrient Enrichment On A Coastal Fringe Mangrove Forest, Brita Juliet Jessen

Open Access Dissertations

Mangrove ecosystems are highly productive coastal wetlands that connect tropical terrestrial and marine systems. Increasing human populations and land use changes are enhancing nutrient loading to tropical coastlines, potentially leading to eutrophic conditions for marine systems. The carbon (C) cycle is critical for mangrove forest structure, function, and resilience under environmental change. Increasing trends of nutrient enrichment in tropical coastal waters may have an effect on organic C mineralization by alleviating nutrient limitation of the heterotrophic microbial community, which may lead to a loss of within-stand carbon sequestration. To better understand and predict the consequences of increased nutrient input, a …

Do Psychologists Help? Assessment And Evaluation Of An Integrative Care Approach To Cancer Treatment, Miryam Yusufov

Open Access Dissertations

Psychosocial care has been shown to improve psychological and physiological functioning in cancer patients. However, as few as five percent of cancer patients engage in psychosocial care. Therefore, Study 1 of this dissertation developed measures of core TTM constructs (Stage of Change, Decisional Balance, Self- Efficacy) relevant for increasing engagement in psychosocial care among individuals diagnosed with cancer.

Measure development entailed qualitative methods for item development and refinement followed by a series of quantitative analyses. The Stage of Change measure was validated against external constructs such as subjective present and future well-being. As expected, a chi-square test indicated that individuals …

Healthcare Costs And Impact Of Medication Adherence On Outcomes In Patients On Novel Anticoagulant Therapy, Chinmay Deshpande

Open Access Dissertations

Introduction: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a very common condition that causes cardiac rhythm disturbance and affects 2.7 to 6.1 million individuals in the United States (US). Warfarin, which is considered as a gold standard anticoagulant for the last 50 years to treat AF has limitations pertaining to the risk of bleeding, interaction with drugs and requires frequent monitoring. Novel Oral Anti-Coagulants (NOAC including dabigatran and rivaroxaban) are new promising drugs which have shown better or similar efficacy to lower stroke risk and fewer side effects compared to warfarin in the clinical trials. To compete with warfarin, NOACs may need …

Nanoparticles Toxicity On Escherichia Coli: Batch And Kinetic Approach, Nelson M. Anaya-Archila

Open Access Dissertations

Silver and dysprosium oxide are two examples of materials used for the manufacturing of nanoparticles with current and future commercial relevance, respectively. Silver nanoparticles (nAg or AgNPs) are one of the most commonly used nanomaterials in consumer products and medical applications due to their antimicrobial properties. Dysprosium oxide nanoparticles (nDy₂O₃) are gaining interest for biomedical applications because of their fluorescence and paramagnetic properties, which can be used as contrast agents in magnetic resonance analysis. However, the fate of nAg and nDy₂O₃ and their possible negative impacts on the environment and public health are …

Soft Robotic Grippers For Biological Sampling On Deep Reefs, Kevin C. Galloway, Kaitlyn P. Becker, Brennan Phillips, Jordan Kirby, Stephen Licht, Dan Tchernov, Robert J. Wood, David F. Gruber

Ocean Engineering Faculty Publications

This article presents the development of an underwater gripper that utilizes soft robotics technology to delicately manipulate and sample fragile species on the deep reef. Existing solutions for deep sea robotic manipulation have historically been driven by the oil industry, resulting in destructive interactions with undersea life. Soft material robotics relies on compliant materials that are inherently impedance matched to natural environments and to soft or fragile organisms. We demonstrate design principles for soft robot end effectors, bench-top characterization of their grasping performance, and conclude by describing in situ testing at mesophotic depths. The result is the first use of …

Sequential Release Of Nanoparticle Payloads From Ultrasonically Burstable Capsules, Stephen Kennedy, Jennifer Hu, Cathal Kearney, Hadas Skaat, Luo Gu, Marco Gentili, Herman Vandenburgh, David Mooney

Electrical, Computer, and Biomedical Engineering Faculty Publications

In many biomedical contexts ranging from chemotherapy to tissue engineering, it is beneficial to sequentially present bioactive payloads. Explicit control over the timing and dose of these presentations is highly desirable. Here, we present a capsule-based delivery system capable of rapidly releasing multiple payloads in response to ultrasonic signals. In vitro, these alginate capsules exhibited excellent payload retention for up to 1 week when unstimulated and delivered their entire payloads when ultrasonically stimulated for 10–100 s. Shorter exposures (10 s) were required to trigger delivery from capsules embedded in hydrogels placed in a tissue model and did not result in …