Digital Commons Network^™

Nonviolent Law? Linking Nonviolent Social Change And Truth And Reconciliation Commissions, James W. Mccarty Iii

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Fred Zain, The Csi Effect, And A Philosophical Idea Of Justice: Using West Virginia As A Model For Change, Kathleen Keough Griebel

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

White Clover Mgmt Univ Ga B 1251_3, John Andrae

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Asoka As Philanthropist, Roger A. Lohmann

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Philanthropy is one of the oldest concepts associated with western civilization. Although it is generally traced to ancient Greece, there is no clear indication where the Greeks got the idea. My earlier paper on Buddhist philanthropy was one of the first published studies in the third sector literature of evidence of Buddhist practices in this area. This unpublished paper explores more fully the history and legends associated with one of the major figures in the Buddhist philanthropic division. Asoka was the third ruler of the Maurian empire in northern India. A great warrior, Asoka is reputed to have given up …

Firm Size And Higher Education Graduate Employment In West Virginia 2010, George Hammond

Bureau of Business & Economic Research

No abstract provided.

Gag Order: Muting, Mortification, And Motherhood In Eminem’S “Cleaning Out My Closet”, Lynne Stahl

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Assessment Of Pulmonary Fibrogenic Potential Of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes In Human Lung Cells, Anurag Mishra, Yon Rojanasakul, Bean T. Chen, Vincent Castranova, Robert R. Mercer, Liying Wang

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Multiwalled carbon nanotubes have been shown to possess unusual fibrogenic activity in vivo and are currently the focus of intense toxicological investigations. This study further determines the fibrogenic potential of well-dispersed MWCNT in human lung cell culture models and to develop a novel platform for understanding the cellular mechanisms of MWCNT-induced lung fibrosis. Survanta, a natural lung surfactant, showed effectiveness in dispersing agglomerates of MWCNT to fine structures similar in size to aerosolized one. At relevant low doses (0.002–0.2 μg/cm2), MWCNT exhibited a dose-dependent bio-effect on the human lung epithelial cells which is more pronounced in dispersed-MWCNT compared to non-dispersed …

Assessment Of The Dining Environment On And Near The Campuses Of Fifteen Post-Secondary Institutions, Tanya M. Horacek, Maria B. Edman, Carol Byrd-Bredbenner, Gale Carey, Sarah M. Colby, Geoffrey W. Greene, Wen Guo, Kendra K. Kattelmann, Melissa D. Olfert, Jennifer Walsh, Adrienne B. White

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Objective: The present study evaluated the restaurant and dining venues on and near post-secondary campuses varying in institution size. Design: The Nutrition Environment Measures Survey for Restaurants (NEMS-R) was modified to evaluate restaurants as fast food, sit down and fast casual; and campus dining venues as dining halls, student unions and snack bar/cafe ́s. ANOVA with post hoc Tukey’s B and T tests were used to distinguish differences between dining venues and associated institutions by size.

Setting: The study was conducted at fifteen US post-secondary institutions, 2009–2011. Subjects: Data presented are from a sample of 175 restaurants and sixty-eight on-campus …

Genes Involved In Sex Pheromone Discrimination In Drosophila Melanogaster And Their Background-Dependent Effect, Benjamin Houot, Stephane Fraichard, Ralph J. Greenspan, Jean-Francois Ferveur

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Mate choice is based on the comparison of the sensory quality of potential mating partners, and sex pheromones play an important role in this process. In Drosophila melanogaster, contact pheromones differ between male and female in their content and in their effects on male courtship, both inhibitory and stimulatory. To investigate the genetic basis of sex pheromone discrimination, we experimentally selected males showing either a higher or lower ability to discriminate sex pheromones over 20 generations. This experimental selection was carried out in parallel on two different genetic backgrounds: wild-type and desat1 mutant, in which parental males showed high and …

Factoring-In Agglomeration Of Carbon Nanotubes And Nanofibers For Better Prediction Of Their Toxicity Versus Asbestos, Ashley R. Murray, Elena R. Kisin, Alexey V. Tkach, Naveena Yanamala, Robert Mercer, Shih-Houng Young, Bengt Fadeel, Valerian E. Kagan, Anna A. Shvedova

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Background

Carbon nanotubes (CNT) and carbon nanofibers (CNF) are allotropes of carbon featuring fibrous morphology. The dimensions and high aspect ratio of CNT and CNF have prompted the comparison with naturally occurring asbestos fibers which are known to be extremely pathogenic. While the toxicity and hazardous outcomes elicited by airborne exposure to single-walled CNT or asbestos have been widely reported, very limited data are currently available describing adverse effects of respirable CNF.

Results

Here, we assessed pulmonary inflammation, fibrosis, oxidative stress markers and systemic immune responses to respirable CNF in comparison to single-walled CNT (SWCNT) and asbestos. Pulmonary inflammatory and …

Nedd9 Stabilizes Focal Adhesions, Increases Binding To The Extra-Cellular Matrix And Differentially Effects 2d Versus 3d Cell Migration, Jessie Zhong, Jaime B. Baquiran, Navid Bonakdar, Justin Lees, Yu W. Ching, Elena Pugacheva, Ben Fabry, Geraldine M. O'Neill

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

The speed of cell migration on 2-dimensional (2D) surfaces is determined by the rate of assembly and disassembly of clustered integrin receptors known as focal adhesions. Different modes of cell migration that have been described in 3D environments are distinguished by their dependence on integrin-mediated interactions with the extra-cellular matrix. In particular, the mesenchymal invasion mode is the most dependent on focal adhesion dynamics. The focal adhesion protein NEDD9 is a key signalling intermediary in mesenchymal cell migration, however whether NEDD9 plays a role in regulating focal adhesion dynamics has not previously been reported. As NEDD9 effects on 2D migration …

Bisphenol A And Metabolic Syndrome: Results From Nhanes, Srinivas Teppala, Suresh Madhavan, Anoop Shankar

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Background. Bisphenol A (BPA) is detected in the urine of 95% of US adults. Recent evidence from population-based studies suggests that BPA is associated with individual components for metabolic syndrome (MetS). However, no previous study has examined the direct association between BPA and MetS. Methods. We examined 2,104 participants from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2003–2008. The main outcome was the presence of MetS (). Results. Increasing levels of urinary BPA were positively associated with MetS, independent of confounders such as age, gender, race/ethnicity, smoking, alcohol intake, physical activity, and urinary creatinine. Compared to tertile 1 (referent), the …

Genome Sequence Of The Mesophilic Thermotogales Bacterium Mesotoga Prima Mesg1.Ag.4.2 Reveals The Largest Thermotogales Genome To Date, Olga Zhaxbayeva, Kristen S. Swithers, Julia Foght, Anna G. Green, David Bruce, Chris Detter, Shunsheng Han, Hazuki Teshima, James Han, Tanja Woyke, Sam Pitluck, Matt Nolan, Natalia Ivanova, Amrita Pati, Miriam L. Land, Marlena Dlutek, W Ford Doolittle, Kenneth M. Noll, Camilla L. Nesbo

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Here we describe the genome of Mesotoga prima MesG1.Ag4.2, the first genome of a mesophilic Thermotogales bacterium. Mesotoga prima was isolated from a polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB)-dechlorinating enrichment culture from Baltimore Harbor sediments. Its 2.97 Mb genome is considerably larger than any previously sequenced Thermotogales genomes, which range between 1.86 and 2.30 Mb. This larger size is due to both higher numbers of protein-coding genes and larger intergenic regions. In particular, the M. prima genome contains more genes for proteins involved in regulatory functions, for instance those involved in regulation of transcription. Together with its closest relative, Kosmotoga olearia, it also …

Insight Into The Transmission Biology And Species-Specific Functional Capabilities Of Tsetse (Diptera: Glossinidae) Obligate Symbiont Wigglesworthia, Rita V M Rio, Rebecca E. Symula, Jinhwen Wang, Claudia Lohs, Yi-Neng Wu, Anna K. Snyder, Robert D. Bjornson, Kenshiro Oshima, Bryan S. Biehl, Nicole T. Perna, Masahira Hattori, Serap Aksoy

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Ancient endosymbionts have been associated with extreme genome structural stability with little differentiation in gene inventory between sister species. Tsetse flies (Diptera: Glossinidae) harbor an obligate endosymbiont, Wigglesworthia, which has coevolved with the Glossina radiation. We report on the ~720-kb Wigglesworthia genome and its associated plasmid from Glossina morsitans morsitans and compare them to those of the symbiont from Glossina brevipalpis. While there was overall high synteny between the two genomes, a large inversion was noted. Furthermore, symbiont transcriptional analyses demonstrated host tissue and development-specific gene expression supporting robust transcriptional regulation in Wigglesworthia, an unprecedented observation in other obligate mutualist …

Common Variants At 9p21 And 8q22 Are Associated With Increased Susceptibility To Optic Nerve Degeneration In Glaucoma, Janey L. Wiggs, Brian L. Yaspan, Michael A. Hauser, Jae H. Kang, R Rand Allingham, Lana M. Olson, Wael Abdrabou, Bao J. Fan, Dan Y. Wang, Wendy Brodeur, Donald L. Budenz, Joseph Caprioli, Andrew Crenshaw, Kristy Crooks, Elizabeth Delbono, Kimberly F. Doheny, David S. Friedman, Douglas Gaasterland, Terry Gaasterland, Cathy Laurie, Richard K. Lee, Paul R. Lichter, Stephanie Loomis, Yutao Liu, Felipe A. Medeiros, Cathy Mccarty, Daniel Mirel, Joshua D. Stein, Edward H. Trager, Paul Vanveldhuisen, Douglas Vollrath, Gadi Wollstein, Sachiko Yoneyama, Kang Zhang, Louis R. Pasquale, Jonathan L. Haines, Sayoko E. Moroi, David C. Musch, Anthony Realini, Frank W. Rozsa, Joel S. Schuman, Kathleen Scott, Kuldev Singh, Robert N. Weinreb, Jason Ernst, Manolis Kellis, Tomohiro Masuda, Don Zack, Julia E. Richards, Margret Pericak-Vance

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Optic nerve degeneration caused by glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness worldwide. Patients affected by the normal-pressure form of glaucoma are more likely to harbor risk alleles for glaucoma-related optic nerve disease. We have performed a meta-analysis of two independent genome-wide association studies for primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) followed by a normal-pressure glaucoma (NPG, defined by intraocular pressure (IOP) less than 22 mmHg) subgroup analysis. The single-nucleotide polymorphisms that showed the most significant associations were tested for association with a second form of glaucoma, exfoliation-syndrome glaucoma. The overall meta-analysis of the GLAUGEN and NEIGHBOR dataset results (3,146 cases …

Association Between Serum Uric Acid Levels And Sleep Variables: Results From The National Health And Nutrition Survey 2005–2008, R Constance Wiener

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Sleep disordered breathing as well as high serum uric acid levels are independent risk factors for cardiovascular disease. However, studies evaluating the relationship between sleep-disordered breathing and hyperuricemia are limited. We examined the 2005–2008 National Health and Nutrition Examination survey's sleep variables and high serum uric acid among 6491 participants aged ≥ 2 0 years. The sleep variables included sleep duration, snoring, snorting, and daytime sleepiness. The main outcome was high serum uric acid level, defined as levels of serum uric acid > 6 . 8 mg/dL in males and > 6 . 0 mg/dL in females. We found that snoring more …

2012 Symposium Brochure

Programs

No abstract provided.

Evaluation Of Novel Sigma Receptor Antagonists Against Meth-Induced Neurotoxicity: In Vivo And In Vitro Studies, Nidhi Kaushal

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Methamphetamine (METH) is a highly addictive psychostimulant drug of abuse, causing hyperthermia and neurotoxicity at high doses. Currently, there is no clinically proven pharmacotherapy to treat these effects of METH, necessitating identification of potential novel therapeutic targets. Earlier studies showed that METH binds to sigma receptors in the brain at physiologically relevant concentrations, where it acts in part as an agonist. AC927 (1-(2-phenethyl)piperidine oxalate), CM156 (3-(4-(4-cyclohexylpiperazin-1-yl)butyl)benzo[d]thiazole-2(3H)-thione) and SN79 (6-acetyl-3-(4-(4-(4-florophenyl)piperazin-1-yl)butyl)benzo[d]oxazol-2(3H)-one) were synthesized as putative sigma receptor antagonists with nanomolar affinity and selectivity for sigma receptors over 29-80 other binding sites. AC927, CM156 and SN79 pretreatment afforded protection against METH-induced hyperthermia and …

The Role Of Src-Homology 2 Domain-Containing Tyrosine Phosphatase 2 In Signaling And Tumorigenesis Of Basal Type/Triple Negative Breast Cancer, Fatimah Kh. Matalkah

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Basal type/triple negative breast cancer (BTBC) represents a distinct tumor group that is characterized by an aggressive disease phenotype and poor clinical outcome. Patients with this subtype cannot benefit from the available anti-hormone and anti-HER2 targeted therapies (e.g. tamoxifen and herceptin). Therefore, characterizing potential therapeutic targets is urgently needed. We reasoned that the Src-homology 2 domain-containing tyrosine phosphatase 2 (SHP2) could serve as a therapeutic target in BTBC, because of its critical regulation of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) which is overexpressed in BTBC. Here, we demonstrated that SHP2 knockdown in BTBC cell lines suppressed cell proliferation, migration, and transformation. …

Testing An Emerging Paradigm In Migration Ecology Shows Surprising Differences In Efficiency Between Flight Modes, Adam E. Duerr, Tricia A. Miller, Michael Lanzone, Dave Brandes, Jeff Cooper, Kieran O'Malley, Charles Maisonneuve, Junior Tremblay, Todd Katzner

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

To maximize fitness, flying animals should maximize flight speed while minimizing energetic expenditure. Soaring speeds of large-bodied birds are determined by flight routes and tradeoffs between minimizing time and energetic costs. Large raptors migrating in eastern North America predominantly glide between thermals that provide lift or soar along slopes or ridgelines using orographic lift (slope soaring). It is usually assumed that slope soaring is faster than thermal gliding because forward progress is constant compared to interrupted progress when birds pause to regain altitude in thermals. We tested this slope-soaring hypothesis using high-frequency GPS-GSM telemetry devices to track golden eagles during …

The Nutritional Regulation Of Hepatic Fibroblast Growth Factor 21: A Novel Anti-Diabetic Hormone., Holly Ann Cyphert

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Previous studies have shown that fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) is partially regulated by the activation of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-α (PPARα) following starvation or the consumption of a high fat, low carbohydrate (HF-LC) ketogenic diet. To understand the nutritional regulation of FGF21, I employed the use of primary rat hepatocytes and screened for factors that could potentially mediate the nutritional regulation of FGF21 mRNA and protein secretion. In preliminary experiments, I discovered that bile acids enhance FGF21 mRNA expression and protein secretion. Bile acids are known ligands for the farnesoid X receptor, a nuclear receptor. Activation of FXR by …

Effects Of Exotic Morrow's Honeysuckle (Lonicera Morrowii) On Migratory Songbirds., Holly Merredith Mcchesney

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

In much of the eastern United States, bush honeysuckles (Lonicera spp.) threaten the integrity of old-fields used as songbird habitat. From 2007–2009, we studied old-field systems in two areas of southwestern Pennsylvania: Fort Necessity National Battlefield and Ohiopyle State Park. Old fields at Fort Necessity consisted of a dense cover of Morrow’s honeysuckle (Lonicera morrowii), whereas those at Ohiopyle were relatively free of this shrub species. We captured birds in mist nets during the breeding and post-breeding seasons to assess species composition at both locations and found that the species composition of breeding birds was correlated with the presence of …

Assessment Of Pulmonary Fibrogenic Potential Of Multi Walled Carbon Nanotubes In Vitro., Anurag Mishra

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) have many applications due to their unique mechanical and electrical properties. However, these fiber shaped materials have been shown to possess unusual fibrogenic activity in vivo and are currently the focus of intense toxicological investigations. To date very few detailed mechanistic studies on the fibrogenic activity of CNT have been reported. The aim of this series of studies is to determine fibrogenic potential of well dispersed MWCNT in human lung cell culture models and develop a novel platform for understanding the cellular mechanisms of MWCNT-induced lung fibrosis. Dispersion of large agglomerates of MWCNT in suspension to …

Infection Models Of Intracellular Staphylococcus Aureus And The Impact Of Interleukin 12 On Macrophage Killing Activity, Therwa Hamza

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is the predominant cause of bone and joint infections worldwide. These infections may lead to severe bone and joint destruction and high mortality. Treatment of bone infections frequently requires long-term hospitalization for repeated debridement and prolonged antibiotic treatment. Bacteria including S. aureus, however, are often surprisingly successful in overcoming both host defense mechanisms and antibiotic treatments resulting in chronic and recurrent bone infections. Indeed, a high rate of recurrence or relapse of bone infections has been reported where ∼17% of infections related to traumatic extremity injuries recur or relapse. One thought is that bacteria like S. …

Temporal Patterns Of Gene Expression In The Mntb During Calyx Of Held Development, Douglas Richard Kolson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Brain development is inextricably linked to changes in gene expression. Providing insight into the mechanisms controlling these complex events is a current challenge in neuroscience. Neurons in the medial nucleus of the trapezoid body (MNTB) receive large specialized glutamatergic nerve terminals, the calyces of Held, which grow very quickly between postnatal day 2 (P2) and P4. Through both quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) and microarray analysis, we examined the gene expression over time for a select group of voltage-gated potassium channels controlling ion channel function and composition to finely tune their biophysical properties. Low threshold activated potassium channels subunits Kv1.1 (Kcna1) …

Discrimination Of Temporally Remote Causal Relations By Pigeons: Effects Of Signals That Mediate The Temporal Gaps, Toshikazu Kuroda

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The discriminative effect of the response-reinforcer relation may contribute to the change in response rates that occur when reinforcement is delayed. The present study investigated this possibility using a discrete-trials conditional discrimination procedure. Each trial began with a sample component where a variable-interval schedule was assigned either to a left or right key. The key peck that ended the schedule, which served as the sample response, in different conditions initiated delays with a signal fully mediating the delay interval, delays with a signal present only during the first second of the interval, or delays with the absence of signal. The …

Evidence Of A Role For Three Neuropeptides That Mediate Steroid Negative Feedback On Gonadotropin Releasing Hormone/Luteinizing Hormone Secretion In The Ewe: Kisspeptin, Neurokinin B And Orphanin Fq, Casey C. Nestor

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) is the final common output from the central nervous system for controlling luteinizing hormone (LH) secretion from the anterior pituitary. GnRH, and subsequently LH, secretion for most of the menstrual/estrous cycle occurs in an episodic pattern that is controlled by the inhibitory actions of estradiol and progesterone. However, GnRH neurons are devoid of the appropriate steroid receptors, therefore, estradiol and progesterone must mediate their effects on GnRH/LH secretion through interneurons. Three likely candidates are neurons containing kisspeptin, neurokinin B (NKB) and orphanin FQ (OFQ).;Puberty in the ewe is marked by an increase in GnRH/LH secretion which in …

Diversity Of Bacterial And Archaeal Populations In Artificial Rumen Fermentors Fed Differing Pasture Diets, Smita Singh

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Rumens harbor diverse groups of microorganisms. These microorganisms help ruminants in efficient digestion of a wide variety of feed materials. Most of these microorganisms are anaerobic and work symbiotically with the host. The amount of microbial diversity depends on the types of substrates present in the feed. Although some of these microorganisms have been cultured and characterized, the majority of them are unknown because they are unculturable. With the development of molecular techniques such as Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis (DGGE), Temperature Gradient Gel Electrophoresis (TGGE), Automated Ribosomal Intergenic Spacer Analysis (ARISA), Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP), Terminal Restriction Fragment Length …

Study Of The Effect Of Surface Modification And Sulfur Impurities In Syngas On The Fischer-Tropsch Performance Of Cobalt Catalysts, Ashish Suresh Bambal

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The effect of surface modification of the silica support on the Fischer-Tropsch (FT) activity and the selectivity of cobalt catalyst were studied. The catalysts were characterized by N2- physisorption, X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), temperature programmed reduction (TPR) and hydrogen chemisorption. FT was carried out in a fixed-bed reactor at 230 °C, 20 bar and 9000 sccm/h/gcat, using syngas with H2 /CO = 2.0. Surface modification with chelating agents (CAs), i.e., nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA) and ethylenediaminetetracetic acid (EDTA), results in a smaller crystallite size of cobalt oxides after the calcination. In addition, the CA-modified catalysts contain well-dispersed cobalt …

Compositional And Functional Characteristics Of Materials Recovered From Headed Gutted Silver Carp (Hypophthalmichthys Molitrix) By Isoelectric Solubilization And Precipitation Using Organic Acids, Ilgin Paker

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) is one of the main freshwater fish species with a high nutritional value; however, it is hard to process the fish due to its boney carcass. Therefore, isoelectric solubilization and precipitation (ISP) processing was applied to headed gutted silver carp to separate the protein from the bones, scales, skin, fins, etc. Different solubilization strategies (pH 2.5, 3.0. 11.5 and 12.0) using organic acids, either acetic acid (AA) or a 30% formic and lactic acid combination (F&L), were applied during ISP and the different effects of treatments on the materials recovered from the initial silver carp were …