Digital Commons Network^™

Accessing The Functional Capabilities Of The Tick Microbiome Through Metagenomics, Darin Lee Shrewsberry Jr

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The black-legged tick Ixodes scapularis is a common ectoparasite of animals and an obligate blood feeder, attaching to a host animal and taking a blood meal once per life stage (i.e. 3 times during its life). Unfortunately for the tick, blood represents a nutrient poor diet largely consisting of lipids and proteins but notably lacking in essential nutrients such a B vitamins (e.g., biotin, riboflavin, niacin) Other exclusive blood feeders such as the tsetse fly harbor symbiotic bacteria that provision B-complex vitamins to their host. I. scapularis harbors Rickettsia buchneri an endoparasitic bacterium that intriguingly possesses two copies of a …

Trees, Fungi, Insects: How Host Plant Genetics Builds A Community, Sandra Jeanne Simon

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Organisms, such as fungi and insects, can cause millions of acres of agricultural and forest damage, while others provide billions of dollars in ecological services such as education, aesthetic enjoyment, pollination, and gardening. Plant breeding and biotechnology can potentially help establish a balance between the proliferation of detrimental pests and attraction of beneficial insects. Variation in plant physiological and morphological characteristics are extremely important in the ability of host tissues to support many different types of organisms. When that variation is genetically heritable in a plant population, shifts in the underlying genes can have predictable consequences in structuring entire ecosystems. …

Obese Zucker Rats As A Reverse Translational Model Of Human Left Ventricular Hypertrophy, Mackenzie Shelby Newman

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Heart failure is a lifelong disability that for over half of those affected leads to mortality within five years after initial diagnosis. Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) is one of the most reliable independent predictors of heart failure. Pathological LVH is irreversible, but early diagnosis is often missed due to its asymptomatic nature. Obese Zucker rats (OZR), which develop obesity due to dysfunctional leptin signaling, naturally exhibit a LVH that mimics the obese human condition. Animal models are necessary because human donor tissue is scarce. The central hypothesis is that genes and proteins that are differentially expressed during development of LVH, …

Association Of Diet Quality With Fall Risk Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults In A Fall-Prevention Program, Jae Hyun Kim

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Falls are a serious threat to older adults' quality of life. Evidence is lacking regarding the influence of diet on fall risk factors. This study aims to assess the relationship between diet, functional measures, and fall risk among older adults participating in a fall-prevention intervention. Cross-sectional analysis of baseline data from 192 participants with an average age of 70.9 years was conducted using Chi-square tests, t-test, Wilcoxon test, and nominal logistic analysis. Based on Dietary Screening Tool (DST) scores, 39.5% of participants were classified as nutritionally being “at-risk,” 46.1% were at “possible-risk,” and 14.4% were “not-at-risk.” Fall risk was assessed …

Effect Of Sire Breed On Grass-Based Lamb Production, Camren L. Maierle

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Improvement of lamb performance in low-input operations may prove vital for the sustainability of eastern US sheep production. Maintaining growth while improving carcass conformation using terminal sire crossbreeding systems may increase value in a pasture-based system. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare effects of terminal sire breed on parasitism, growth, marketability of grazing lambs. Suffolk (SU; n = 2) and Texel (TX; n = 2) sires were mated to commercial ewes at the WVU Organic Farm. April-born lambs were managed on pasture as one group until weaning (mid-June), then were separated into 3 replicates per sire breed. …

Shifting The Gaze Of The Physician From The Body To The Body In A Place: A Qualitative Analysis Of A Community-Based Photovoice Approach To Teaching Place-Health Concepts To Medical Students, Lauri Andress, Matthew P. Purtill

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Medical practitioners, trained to isolate health within and upon the body of the individual, are now challenged to negotiate research and population health theories that link health status to geographic location as evidence suggests a connection between place and health. This paper builds an integrated place-health model and structural competency analytical framework with nine domains and four levels of proficiency that is utilized to assess a community-based photovoice project’s ability to shift the practice of medicine by medical students from the surface of the body to the body within a place. Analysis of the medical student’s photovoice data demonstrated that …

Risk Factors Associated With Infection Of Blood-Borne Virus Among People Who Used Methamphetamine, Yilin Cai, Sijin Wen, Ruchi Bhandari

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Background

The surge of methamphetamine use has been a complicating factor compounding the steeply increasing number of drug overdose deaths in the U.S. Infection from blood-borne viruses including hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV) and HIV, related to methamphetamine use continue to grow. This study aims to examine the risk factors associated with HBV, HCV and HIV among people who used methamphetamine.

Methods

People who ever used methamphetamine were identified from five National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) cohorts, 2007 to 2016. The outcome was either positive or negative for blood-borne viruses as identified from laboratory tests. …

Suitable Methods For Isolation, Culture, Storage And Identification Of Wheat Blast Fungus Magnaporthe Oryzae Triticum Pathotype, Dipali Rani Gupta, Musrat Zahan Surovy, Nur Uddin Mahmud, Moutoshi Chakraborty, Sanjoy Kumar Paul, Md. Shaid Hossain, Pallab Bhattacharjee, Md. Shabab Mehebub, Kanistha Rani, Rumana Yeasmin, Mahfuzur Rahman, Md Tofazzal Islam

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Wheat blast disease caused by a South American lineage of Magnaporthe oryzae Triticum (MoT) pathotype has emerged as a serious threat to wheat production in Bangladesh since its first emergence in 2016. Efficient and suitable methods for isolation, storage, inoculum production and molecular characterization of the pathogen can help in achieving the target of sustainable management of the disease in a relatively short period of time. In this study, we aimed to develop suitable methods for isolation, storage and morphological characterization and molecular identification of MoT isolates collected from the blast-infected wheat fields in Bangladesh. This process included modification of …

Breastfeeding Duration Is Associated With Regional, But Not Global, Differences In White Matter Tracts, Christopher E. Bauer, James W. Lewis, Julie Julie Brefczynski-Lewis, Chris Frum, Margeaux M. Schade, Marc W. Haut, Hawley E. Montgomery-Downs

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Extended breastfeeding through infancy confers benefits on neurocognitive performance and intelligence tests, though few have examined the biological basis of these effects. To investigate correlations with breastfeeding, we examined the major white matter tracts in 4–8 year-old children using diffusion tensor imaging and volumetric measurements of the corpus callosum. We found a significant correlation between the duration of infant breastfeeding and fractional anisotropy scores in left-lateralized white matter tracts, including the left superior longitudinal fasciculus and left angular bundle, which is indicative of greater intrahemispheric connectivity. However, in contrast to expectations from earlier studies, no correlations were observed with corpus …

Light Interception And Growth In Pastures Under Ideal And Stressful Conditions On The Allegheny Plateau, Edward Barrow Rayburn

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Wheat Blast: A New Threat To Food Security, M. Tofazzal Islam, Dipali Rani Gupta, Akbar Hossain, Krishna K. Roy, Xinyao He, Muhammad R. Kabir, Pawan K. Singh, Md. Arifur Rahman Khan, Mahfuzur Rahman, Guo-Liang Wang

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Wheat blast, caused by the Magnaporthe oryzae Triticum (MoT) lineage (synonym Pyricularia oryzae Triticum lineage), is a destructive disease in South America and Bangladesh. It is primarily a disease of wheat head, which can cause yield loss up to 100% under favorable disease conditions. The head infection results in complete or partial bleaching of the spike above the point of infection with either no grain or shriveled grain with low test weight. Due to low fungicide efficacy against the disease and lack of availability of resistant varieties, an integrated management program should be adopted to control this serious wheat disease. …

Exploring Aspects Of Science Literacy Demonstrated By Early Undergraduate Stem Majors Through A Manuscript-Style Writing Assignment, Samantha Lynn Jusino

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Over the past twenty years, scientific literacy amongst undergraduates has not improved despite their exposure to higher education science classes. Underlying mechanisms of science literacy development are poorly understood; however, exposure to authentic practices in science has been demonstrated as a means to fostering science literacy development. A unique approach to studying science literacy is through examining the three domains of the science literacy conceptual framework developed in this study, Science as Access, Science as Process, and Science as a Sociopolitical Factor and their components as they emerge through the process of writing a manuscript-style writing assignment. In …

A Contemporary Tale Of Two Countries - State Of Children In India And Pakistan, Arijit Ray

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Some common economic problems of the Indian subcontinent are its low per-capita income, major dependence on agriculture, heavy population pressure, chronic unemployment, slow capital formation, limited opportunity for human capital development, rising pollution, and heavy inequality in the wealth distribution. Each of these problems affects its children in its unique way, both directly and indirectly. However, some problems are human-made which directly affect its own existence. I focus on two countries in the Indian subcontinent: India and Pakistan, where such problems exist. In both societies, female children are valued less than male children, a common theme across many other countries …

Advancing Quantitative Understanding Of Escherichia Coli Concentrations In A Contemporary Mixed Land-Use Watershed, In West Virginia, Usa, Fritz Petersen

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

A scarcity of field-based research investigating the relationships between E. coli (fecal matter) concentration, suspended particulate matter (SPM; including size distribution), physicochemical parameters (water temperature, pH, SPC, DO, chloride) and land use practices and the importance of these relationships, particularly for human health, policy makers, and water resource managers, provided the impetus for this research. A 22-site, nested-scale, experimental watershed study design was implemented to investigate E. coli concentrations and the aforementioned relationships in a contemporary mixed land use watershed in the Appalachian region of the eastern United States. Results from a reduced (n=4 sites) study showed SPM in the …

The Role Of High-Fat Diets In Exacerbating Cognitive Deficits After Traumatic Brain Injury, Michelle A. Frankot

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) can cause chronic psychiatric-like impairments that may be driven by inflammation in the brain. In the current study, inflammation was upregulated using a high-fat diet (HFD) to assess the role of inflammation in TBI-induced deficits. Rats were randomly assigned to receive an HFD or calorie-matched low-fat diet (LFD) for the duration of the experiment. After two weeks of free access to their respective diets, rats began behavioral training on the Rodent Gambling Task (RGT), during which they were allowed to freely choose to nosepoke in one of four holes in a standard operant chamber. Responses in …

Effect Of Western Diet And Caloric Substitution With Apple Pomace On Fatty Acid Composition And Gene Expression In The Hypothalamus Of Growing Female Sprague-Dawley Rats, Ayad Abdulhamid Alawadi

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The hypothalamus plays a major role in regulating food-intake and energy-expenditure. Hypothalamic dysfunction implicated in neurodegenerative diseases is characterized by diet-induced neuroinflammation and energy dysregulation. Apple pomace, a waste byproduct of processing, is rich in polyphenols and soluble fibers, has the potential to ameliorate diet-inducing inflammation. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of Western diet and caloric substitution of Western diet with 10% apple pomace on brain fatty acid composition and gene expression related to hypothalamic function and health in growing female rats. Growing female Sprague-Dawley rats (age 22-29 days) were randomly assigned (n=8 rats/group) to …

Perceived Effects Of Bush Burning On Agriculture And Wildlife Resources In Ghana, Caitlin A. Wilson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Peace Corps was started in the 1960s by President John F. Kennedy. Ghana was one of the first established host countries that received Peace Corps Volunteers. There are five different sectors that volunteers can work in education, health, agriculture, environment, or community and economic development. Peace Corps service begins with ten weeks of pre-service training before volunteers swear in and are placed in communities throughout the country. Training covers topics such as global Peace Corps policy, health and security concerns, local language, and technical skills. I was placed in a small, rural community in the Northern Region of Ghana. My …

Genetic And Biochemical Characterization Of Ergot Alkaloid Synthesizing Fungi And Their Symbionts, Matthew Duane Maust

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Ergot alkaloids are fungal tryptophan derived toxins which affect mammalian circulation and neurotransmission. These compounds are biosynthesized by a conserved genetic pathway, known as the ergot alkaloid synthesis (EAS) pathway by fungi belonging to the ascomycete families Trichocomaceae and Clavicipitaceae. Several Ipomoea species and related plants in the morning glory family harbor vertically transmitted symbiotic fungi in the genus Periglandula, also members of Clavicipitaceae, that produce ergot alkaloids. Metabolomic analysis of seeds identified a previously uncharacterized glycoside form of the pharmaceutically important ergot alkaloid, ergonovine. Several species belonging to the fungal genus Metarhizium have recently been shown to have the …

Wv Dental Hygienists' Knowledge And Educational Approach For Pregnant Women, Isabella Hope Mcdaniel

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Background: Adverse pregnancy outcomes have become a concern for dental professionals caring for pregnant women with poor oral health. Pregnant women may not be aware of their increased risk of bacterial infections in their oral tissues and how it could relate to adverse pregnancy outcomes such as pre- term birth (PTB) and low birthweight babies (LBW). Dental healthcare professionals need to be well informed of risk related to poor oral health and have confidence to effectively educate pregnant women. PTB and LBW babies account for 1 million infant deaths annually. It is the responsibility of dental healthcare professionals to be …

The Effects Of Internal Physiology On Polyphenic Horn Development In The Dung Beetle Onthophagus Taurus, Naomi Garrett Williamson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

An organism’s phenotype can be affected in development by alterations to gene expression based on environmental inputs. Nutrition is one such environmental input and the central regulator of development of large horn or small horn phenotypes in the dung beetle species, Onthophagus taurus. However, little is known about the nature of chemical compounds that are critical to this plastic horn development. To better understand these compounds, we are utilizing an untargeted metabolomic approach as well as a targeted gene approach. Through the metabolomic approach, it was uncovered that environmental conditions tend to have a greater impact on metabolomic composition …

Evaluating Inorganic Feed Phosphate Type And Further Potential Of Phytase Supplementation Using A Commercial Broiler Model, Angela Elsie Lamp

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Optimizing feed formulation of poultry diets may be achieved by proper utilization of nutrients and feed additives. This will provide a less expensive and nutrient efficient diet to the bird. An experiment was conducted to evaluate early broiler performance, tibia mineralization, and mineral digestibility of broilers fed diets that differed in inorganic feed phosphates (IFP) but that were formulated to be either similar in dietary non-phytate phosphorus (nPP) and calcium to phosphorus ratio (Ca:P), total mineral content, or calculated prececal digestible phosphorus (CPDP). Dicalcium phosphate (DCP), monodicalcium phosphate (MDP), monocalcium phosphate (MCP), and defluorinated phosphate were used in formulations with …

Asthma-Copd Overlap: Economic Burden And Medication Adherence, Mona Nili

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

In many older adults, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) coexist as “Asthma-COPD overlap” (ACO). This dissertation pursued three Aims: 1) estimate the economic burden of ACO and its contributory factors; 2) evaluate the association of ACO to “cost-related medication nonadherence” (CRN); and 3) identify adherence trajectory patterns and examine the impact of initial maintenance therapies (IMT) type (inhaled corticosteroids monotherapy (ICS) vs. fixed-dose combination of ICS and long-acting beta agonist (ICS/LABA)) on adherence trajectory patterns among older adults Medicare Beneficiaries. The first and second Aims were cross-sectional studies by using Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey data. For the third …

Characterization Of The Biochemical Properties Of Nudt8, A Novel Coa-Degrading Enzyme That Localizes To The Mitochondria, Evan W. Kerr

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Coenzyme A (CoA) is a vital cofactor that is required for a variety of metabolic reactions including the TCA cycle and the synthesis and oxidation of fatty acids, amino acids and ketone bodies. The importance of CoA is underscored by its tight regulation, as prolonged elevations or inability to synthesize adequate amounts of this cofactor lead to severe metabolic dysfunction. Regulation of CoA biosynthesis has been extensively characterized, however less is known about regulation of CoA and its thioesters via degradation. Presently, two CoA-degrading enzymes, Nudt7 and Nudt19 have been identified as regulators of the peroxisomal pool of (acyl-)CoA in …

Nutrient Cycling-Tree Species Relationships In Appalachian Forests, Philip Michael Crim

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Since the colonization of North America by Europeans, ecosystems in Appalachia and across the continent have been in a prolonged state of flux. Areas particularly rich in natural resources, such as Appalachia, have historically borne the brunt of these swift changes, often with devastating consequences. Downwind of much of the power generation facilities of the Ohio Valley, Appalachian forests have been geographically predisposed to high rates of acidic deposition, a circumstance mitigated by the passage of Clean Air Legislation beginning in the 1970s. Nevertheless, decades of elevated nitrogen (N) and sulfur (S) inputs had a profound impact on the ecology …

The Effects Of Acute Photobiomodulation On Anaerobic Exercise Performance, Jillian Danielle Forsey

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Optimal performance in sport requires a balance between training stress and recovery. Therapeutic modalities that allow athletes to maintain this balance while training hard are in high demand, but many lack research. Photobiomodulation is a red and near-infrared light therapy that is proposed to enhance exercise performance and hasten recovery. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of acute whole body photobiomodulation, applied pre-exercise, on anaerobic exercise performance.

Forty-eight healthy, active subjects participated in this single-blind, crossover study. Subjects visited the lab three times to complete a repeat Wingate test, with one week between each visit. All …

Injury-Related Infant Mortality In West Virginia, 2010-2014, Wilson A. Koech

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Background and objective

Infant mortality in United States is high relative to other more developed nations. Therefore, there is a need to curb this trend, especially in states with high infant mortality rates. Hence, this research investigated and examined characteristics associated with injury-related infant death in West Virginia. The objective of this retrospective study was to 1) investigate maternal and infant characteristics associated with injury-related infant deaths in West Virginia, 2) examine the relationship between unintentional-injury-related infant death and rurality in West Virginia, holding other variables in the model constant, and 3) compare differences in the unintentional-injury related infant mortality …

Developmental Mechanisms For The Diversification Of Polyphenic Morphs In The Head Horn Of Onthophagine Beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae Onthophagus Taurus): Plasticity Through Nutrition, Logan Paul Zeigler

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Developmental plasticity is the phenotypic variation between organisms that is caused by environmental interactions affecting the developmental systems of organisms. The research focused primarily on nutrition-responsive developmental plasticity. In this research we used the nutritionally determined head horn development of Onthophagus taurus to better understand the developmental mechanisms and genetic underpinnings of nutrition-responsive trait development. We focused specifically on altering the availability of specific nutrition-related primary metabolites, cholesterol and palmitic acid, identified in the activity of The Hedgehog pathway, a critical pathway in head horn development. By altering diet composition using cholesterol, reducing transcript expression of an acyltransferase gene, rasp …

Assessment Of Protein Quality, Lipid Metabolism, Hepatic Transcriptome And Safety Of A Silver Carp (Hypophthalmichthys Molitrix) Derived Sarcoplasmic Protein Powder., Derek Cole Warren

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Fishery resources are currently operating either near optimal yield or at levels with elevated risk for fish stock depletion. A solution for overcoming limitations of natural fish resources is through utilization of less desirable fish species and fish processing by-products. Water-soluble sarcoplasm proteins consist of 25 – 30% of protein in carp, are lost in wash water during processing and can be recovered and freeze-dried to produce a protein-rich powder (CSP). The objective of this project was to evaluate the protein quality and safety of CSP, assess diets consisting of CSP or commercial milk proteins effects on lipid metabolism, and …

Therapeutic Approaches To Recovery In West Virginia, Rachel A. Wattick

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Substance use disorder (SUD) is a prevalent problem in the United States, with 19.7 million Americans aged 12 and older battling an SUD in 2017. Multiple factors influence the risk that someone will develop an SUD, including family history, childhood trauma, community factors, and poverty. West Virginia has the highest rate of overdose deaths in the nation, and individuals in WV are at high risk of SUD due to the aforementioned risk factors. There are a variety of treatment options available to someone with an SUD. These include outpatient or inpatient treatment, detoxification, therapeutic communities, and collegiate recovery programs. Despite …

Investigating Effects Of Carbonate Minerals On Shale- Hydraulic Fracturing Fluid Interactions In The Marcellus Shale, Brennan Matthew Ferguson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Natural gas extracted from tight shale formations, such as the Marcellus Shale, represent an important and developing front in energy exploration. By fracturing these formations using pressurized fracturing fluid, previously unobtainable hydrocarbon reserves may be tapped. While pursuing this resource hydraulic fracturing operations leave chemically complex fluids in the shale formation for at least two weeks. This provides a substantial opportunity for the hydraulic fracturing fluid (HFF) to react with the shale formation at reservoir temperature and pressure. In this study, we investigated the effects of the carbonates on shale-HFF reactions with a focus on the Marcellus Shale. We determined …