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How Does Loss Of Pulsatility Lead To Non-Surgical Bleeding In Continuous Flow Ventricular Assist Device Patterns, Khahn Tu Nguyen Jan 2022

How Does Loss Of Pulsatility Lead To Non-Surgical Bleeding In Continuous Flow Ventricular Assist Device Patterns, Khahn Tu Nguyen

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The primary goal of this study is to evaluate the effect of diminished pulsatility associat-ed with Continuous Flow Ventricular Assist Devices (CF-VADs) on endothelial respons-es of pro-angiogenic/proinflammatory soluble factors and von Willebrand Factor (vWF). Non-surgical bleeding is one of the most common adverse events after CF-VAD implan-tation and is a major cause of morbidity in patients supported by CF-VAD therapy. Alt-hough the exact mechanisms remain unclear, development of arteriovenous malfor-mations (AVMs) and acquired von Willebrand factor syndrome (AVWS) are widely be-lieved to be major risk factors. Another challenge with the study of pulsatility is that pre-clinical studies to understand how …

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The Roles Of Repressive And Activating Epigenetic Factors In Vertebrates Neural And Neural Crest Development, Saeid Mohammad Parast Jan 2022

The Roles Of Repressive And Activating Epigenetic Factors In Vertebrates Neural And Neural Crest Development, Saeid Mohammad Parast

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The vertebrate nervous system comes from specific regions of the ectoderm that comprises of the neural plate and the neural crest. Although genetic mechanisms governing vertebrate neural development have been investigated in depth, there is a knowledge gap regarding the roles of epigenetic mechanisms in this process. As epigenetic modulators, the COMPASS (also known as SET1/MLL complex) and HP1 proteins are responsible for regulating chromatin accessibility to transcription factors. COMPASS is responsible for deposition of activating histone H3K4 methylation marks at promoters and enhancers and thus creates open chromatin domains. The critical structural and regulatory subunits of COMPASS, Dpy30 and …

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Predictors And Disparities Associated With Pain (Pandda-P) Study: A Comparison Of Pediatric Rheumatology Patients, Kathryn Ann Thompson Jan 2022

Predictors And Disparities Associated With Pain (Pandda-P) Study: A Comparison Of Pediatric Rheumatology Patients, Kathryn Ann Thompson

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Background: Chronic pain is a prominent feature of many pediatric rheumatic conditions. However, the diagnosis, experience, and treatment of musculoskeletal pain varies by condition. Therefore, the overall aim of the present study is to elucidate group differences and examine biopsychosocial correlates of pain in children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), juvenile primary fibromyalgia syndrome (JPFS), non-specific chronic pain (NSCP), and pain-free controls.Methods: We recruited 117 (66% female, 73% White) school-aged children from Children’s of Alabama Rheumatology and Allergy Clinics and the community. Participants self-reported their pain, physical function, sleep, pain-related stigma, and somatic symptoms and underwent experimental pain tasks. Caregivers …

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A Comparison Of Growth Factor Release Between Platelet Rich Fibrin And Recombinant Human Platelet Derived Growth Factor Bb (Rhpdgf-Bb) And Beta-Tricalcium Phosphate: An In Vitro Analysis, Maggie Ann Misch Jan 2022

A Comparison Of Growth Factor Release Between Platelet Rich Fibrin And Recombinant Human Platelet Derived Growth Factor Bb (Rhpdgf-Bb) And Beta-Tricalcium Phosphate: An In Vitro Analysis, Maggie Ann Misch

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Patients presenting with significant alveolar bone loss can pose challenges for the clinician. Traditional bone augmentation techniques may be inadequate in achieving necessary gains to restore missing teeth with dental implants. The adjunctive use of growth factors may accelerate the healing process and enhance tissue regeneration. GEM21S is a product that includes a recombinant growth factor approved by the Federal Drug Administration for oral surgery. It is delivered as a two-component system: 1) recombinant human platelet-derived growth factor-BB (rhPDGF-BB) and 2) betatricalcium phosphate (β-TCP).[1] The research on GEM 21S for ridge augmentation is mostly limited to case studies.[2- 4] Biologically, …

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A Systematic Study Of Data Security Issues In Smart Home Iot Devices, Hilal Nur Issi Jan 2022

A Systematic Study Of Data Security Issues In Smart Home Iot Devices, Hilal Nur Issi

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The best description of IoT comes from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), which defines it as "a global infrastructure for the information society, enabling advanced services by interconnecting things based on existing and evolving interoperable information and communication technologies" (ITU, 2013). Different things, equipment, and household are employed in daily living in our world. The advantages that smart technology provides have piqued the curiosity of academics and practitioners alike. Home appliances have received a lot of attention, since smart technology has been extensively explored and put into practice. A great deal of research has gone into automating the house, making …

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The Association Between Paraquat Exposure And Parkinson's Disease Mortality: A County-Level Ecological Study In The United States, Alexander Kozuch Jan 2022

The Association Between Paraquat Exposure And Parkinson's Disease Mortality: A County-Level Ecological Study In The United States, Alexander Kozuch

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Objectives: The current study reports the results of an ecological study regarding the association between PQ exposure and Parkinson’s disease mortality in the United States. Methods: The outcome of interest for this study was mortality due to Parkinson’s disease, obtained from CDC Wonder. The exposure of interest was PQ exposure at the county level which was obtained from the United States Geological Survey (USGS). Statistical analysis was done using the mortality data, grouped into ten-year age groups, and focused on data from 2015-2019 to account for the lag time between initial Paraquat exposure and Parkinson’s Disease mortality. A Negative Binomial …

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Comparison Of [18f]Fdg With 18f-Labeled Amino Acids For Pet Imaging Of Breast Cancer, Ugur Akca Jan 2022

Comparison Of [18f]Fdg With 18f-Labeled Amino Acids For Pet Imaging Of Breast Cancer, Ugur Akca

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Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) are identified by their lack of estrogen re-ceptor, progesterone receptor, and overexpression of human epidermal growth factor re-ceptor 2-gene. The glucose analog, 2-deoxy-2-[18F]-fluoro-D-glucose (FDG) is the most often utilized PET tracer for imaging TNBC. The use of FDG for imaging primary and metastatic brain tumors is limited by high FDG uptake in normal brain tissue and some forms of inflammation. Also, MRI brain imaging methods have limitation in determining the differentiation between recurrent malignant and treatment effect. Radiolabeled amino acids (AAs), which have a lower uptake in normal brain and inflammation compared to FDG, can be …

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Nox2-Derived Superoxide And Mda5-Dependant Responses Contribute To Autoimmune Diabetes, Samuel Isaac Blum Jan 2022

Nox2-Derived Superoxide And Mda5-Dependant Responses Contribute To Autoimmune Diabetes, Samuel Isaac Blum

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NADPH oxidase 2 (NOX2)-derived superoxide, a precursor for many reactive oxygen species (ROS), regulates cell signaling, cellular trafficking, melanoma differentiation-associated protein 5 (MDA5) responses, and Type 1 diabetes (T1D). Previously, we demonstrated that NOX2-derived superoxide promotes chemokine synthesis, spontaneous and virus-accelerated T1D, and MDA5 responses to coxsackievirus B3 (CVB3), an associated environmental trigger for T1D. Yet, it remains unknown if ROS is necessary for diabetogenic T cell trafficking into islets or how MDA5 responses affect T1D. First, using non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice that contain an in-frame deletion within the helicase 1 domain of MDA5 (ΔHel1) or lack MDA5 expression (KO), …

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Changes In Pain Intensity And Physical Activity Levels In Individuals With Acetabular Dysplasia Undergoing Periacetabular Osteotomy: A Longitudinal Cohort Study, Naif Z. Alrashdi Jan 2022

Changes In Pain Intensity And Physical Activity Levels In Individuals With Acetabular Dysplasia Undergoing Periacetabular Osteotomy: A Longitudinal Cohort Study, Naif Z. Alrashdi

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Acetabular dysplasia (AD) is a condition of the hip joint that is characterized by incomplete acetabulum development leading to lack of bony coverage of the femoral head. As a result of intra-articular injury from lack of bony congruency, often, individuals with AD report hip joint instability, pain, decreased hip-related function, and are at high risk for early development of hip osteoarthritis (OA). AD is primarily affects young-to-middle-aged adults, is more common in females and those with history of a breech birth position. Periacetabular osteotomy (PAO) is the currently-recommended surgical treatment for AD that aims to reposition the acetabulum to increase …

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Mice With Ghrh Deficiency Are Resistant To The Detrimental Health Effects Of High Fat Diet, Joseph Jablonsky Jan 2022

Mice With Ghrh Deficiency Are Resistant To The Detrimental Health Effects Of High Fat Diet, Joseph Jablonsky

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According to our previous study, mice with a CRISPR/Cas9 mediated deletion of the GHRH gene have decreased bodyweight, respiratory exchange ratio (RER), energy expenditure compared to wild type animals, and increased insulin sensitivity and enhanced longevity. Calorie restriction enhances lifespan and delays multiple aging related phenotypes; however it is not known how these animals respond to nutritional stressors such as high fat diet (HFD) during the aging process. We subjected 18 month old GHRH-/- male and female mice to a high fat diet to determine differences in response to HFD in aged animals. After HFD exposure, GHRH-/- mice have increased …

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A Framework For Designing Blockchain Systems In A Smart City Setting, Mohammad Alhefdi Jan 2022

A Framework For Designing Blockchain Systems In A Smart City Setting, Mohammad Alhefdi

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As main characteristics of successful smart cities, the high demand for increased data security and accessibility and citizen engagement mean the role of blockchain technology has begun to increase. Nonetheless, blockchain technology also faces several challenges, which have slowed its adoption. In response, this dissertation introduces a framework for designing blockchain systems in a smart city setting and considers the smart city and blockchain challenges. Researchers have proposed several smart city models that study and analyze the complexity of smart cities to improve city security, functionality, services, and smartness. The proposed information-theoretical modeling approach to generate an innovated blockchain model …

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Elucidating The Role Of Stat4 In Cd4 T Cell Mediated Pathogenicity, Ashlyn E. Anderson Jan 2022

Elucidating The Role Of Stat4 In Cd4 T Cell Mediated Pathogenicity, Ashlyn E. Anderson

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While the exact cause of many autoimmune diseases is currently unknown, many genetic factors are associated with increased disease susceptibility such as single nucleotide polymorphisms in the STAT4 gene locus. Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 4 (STAT4) is critical for the development and function of Th1 cells; however, many Th1 associated molecules are dispensable for CD4 mediated inflammation such as IFNγ, T-bet, and IL-12Rβ2, suggesting that STAT4 may function outside of the Th1 cell lineage. Importantly, Stat4 has recently been correlated with an inflammatory Th17 cell phenotype. Using a murine model of neuroinflammation, we illustrate that Th17 intrinsic STAT4 …

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Role Of Dietary Compounds On Modulation Of Epigenetic Mechanisms And Gut Microbiota In Prevention Of Breast Cancer, Manvi Sharma Jan 2022

Role Of Dietary Compounds On Modulation Of Epigenetic Mechanisms And Gut Microbiota In Prevention Of Breast Cancer, Manvi Sharma

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Breast cancer is the second leading causes of mortality among women living in the United States, representing a major public health issue. The current chemoprevention therapies can result into various adverse effects. Therefore, the use of dietary bioactive compounds has been of great interest due to their safer, non-toxic and efficacious properties. Sulforaphane (SFN) is an isothiocyanate found in various cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli sprouts (BSp) and green-tea polyphenols (GTPs) contain a major polyphenol, (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG). These compounds have been shown to exhibit several anticancer properties especially as an epigenetic modifier. We investigated the efficacy of BSp or GTPs …

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Bacterial Community Structures And Species Delimitation Of Five-Armed Luidia In The Northern Gulf Of Mexico, Michelle D. Shilling Jan 2022

Bacterial Community Structures And Species Delimitation Of Five-Armed Luidia In The Northern Gulf Of Mexico, Michelle D. Shilling

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Luidia spp. (Family Luidiidae) are important predators in the benthic food web and are abundant in near-shore, shallow soft-bottom habitats throughout the northern Gulf of Mexico. Climate change-related environmental changes, such as ocean warming and acidification, are rapidly intensifying in this region and can have consequences for species diversity as well as individual sea star health through modification of host-associated bacterial communities. Our knowledge of sea star-associated bacterial community structure and dynamics is limited and conflicting genetic evidence has called into question the accuracy of species delimitation of five-armed Luidia in the northern GOM. The primary purpose of this dissertation …

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Molecular Mechanism And Impact Of Sox2 Regulation By The Transforming Growth Factor-Ss Members In Ovarian Cancer Survival And Metastasis, Zainab Shonibare Jan 2022

Molecular Mechanism And Impact Of Sox2 Regulation By The Transforming Growth Factor-Ss Members In Ovarian Cancer Survival And Metastasis, Zainab Shonibare

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Ovarian cancer is the second most common and deadliest cancer of the female reproductive system affecting women in the United States and worldwide. The poor survival outcome seen in ovarian cancer is attributed to the subtleness of its early-stage symptoms, resulting in a majority of patients at initial diagnosis presenting with an advanced-stage disease with metastasis to other parts of the body. Hence, there is an urgent need to better understand the molecular etiology of metastasis to help develop effective therapeutic options and improve clinical outcomes in ovarian cancer patients. Ovarian cancer, an intra-abdominal cancer, most preferably undergoes metastasis via …

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Applying Pet Imaging To Cancer Immunotherapy To Improve Clinical Outcomes, Kirsten M. Reeves Jan 2022

Applying Pet Imaging To Cancer Immunotherapy To Improve Clinical Outcomes, Kirsten M. Reeves

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The use of biomarkers has significantly enhanced patient outcome by improving diagnosis, personalizing therapy, and monitoring therapeutic response yet most cancers remain non-responsive. Thus, there is a need to better understand the underlying biological mechanisms and tumor microenvironment to enhance therapeutic efficacy. Molecular imaging, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT), and positron emission tomography (PET) are used to assess response during oncology therapy. Molecular imaging can also provide a noninvasive approach to accurately quantify biomarkers correlated with the tumor microenvironment, including glucose metabolism and hypoxia. 18F-Fluoromisonidazole (18F-FMISO) hypoxia targeted cellular uptake has been shown to correlate with negative …

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The Identification And Phenotypic Characterization Of Circulating Flagellin Antigen-Specific Cd4+ T Cells In Crohn's Disease Patients, Nadine N. Morgan Jan 2022

The Identification And Phenotypic Characterization Of Circulating Flagellin Antigen-Specific Cd4+ T Cells In Crohn's Disease Patients, Nadine N. Morgan

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The incidence of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) is increasing worldwide. Crohn’s disease (CD) and Ulcerative colitis (UC), the two main subtypes of IBD, are chronic intestinal conditions driven by CD4+ T-cell inflammatory responses to commensal antigen. Both conditions are incurable, and medical treatments involve drugs that require long-term usage but have limited efficacy and significant side effects. To develop therapies targeting the antigen-reactive T cells involved in sustaining these conditions, we must first gain knowledge concerning the microbial antigen-reactive T cell phenotypes and functionality in health and disease. To investigate the phenotypic and functional characteristics of the flagellin-reactive T cell …

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Disease And Diet-Induced Disruption Of Effector T Cell Homeostasis, Patrick Axel Molina Jan 2022

Disease And Diet-Induced Disruption Of Effector T Cell Homeostasis, Patrick Axel Molina

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Homeostatic departure is a central feature across all diseases and disease processes. Currently, the average individual in the US consumes an inordinate quantity of salt. However, it is unclear if only individuals that have proven blood pressure elevation with an acute load of salt should be wary. Here we demonstrate, alongside a growing body of science, that the canonical definition of salt-sensitivity is insufficient. We show that salt-resistant mice demonstrate salt-sensitivity in non-blood pressure focused phenomena, such as the acute activation of CD4+ T cells to mobilize and induce a defective effector cytokine program with high salt. We demonstrate that …

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Tissue Engineered Cardiac Muscle Patches With Human Pluripotent Stem Cells Enhance The Repairing Efficacy Of Infarcted Cardiac Muscle In Mouse Model, Xi Lou Jan 2022

Tissue Engineered Cardiac Muscle Patches With Human Pluripotent Stem Cells Enhance The Repairing Efficacy Of Infarcted Cardiac Muscle In Mouse Model, Xi Lou

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Myocardial infarction (MI) remains one of the major contributors to heart failure, which can lead to death, and there has been a lack of effective treatments so far. Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) have been found to be an encouraging candidate for MI treatment. But it is facing challenge of low engraftment, limited integration of transplanted cells with host myocardium. To enhance the therapeutic efficacy of stem cell therapy of MI treatment, two approaches have been explored: 1)The first approach was to overexpress N-cadherin (CDH2), a cell-cell adhesion molecule, in human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (CDH2-hiPSC-CMs), and examine its …

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Regulation Of Stromal Cells Through Inflammatory Signalling, Victoria Matkins Jan 2022

Regulation Of Stromal Cells Through Inflammatory Signalling, Victoria Matkins

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The bone marrow is a complex organization of hematopoietic and nonhematopoietic cells that form niches to maintain systemic homeostasis during stress and disease. Stromal cells are non-hematopoietic cells first proposed in 1978 in the bone marrow to be essential for hematopoietic stem cells (HSC). Since then, mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC) have been shown to be critical for the HSC self-renewal, retention, and differentiation through chemokines, cytokines, and adhesion molecules. However, like HSCs, MSCs are multipotent progenitors that differentiate into osteoblasts, adipocytes, and chondrocytes to from tissues of the skeletal, endocrine, and connective systems. These multipotent progenitors are tightly regulated in …

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Power And Sample Size Calculations For Linear Mixed Models Of Longitudinal Data Using The Kenward-Roger Adjusted Wald Test, Tarrant Oliver Mcpherson Jan 2022

Power And Sample Size Calculations For Linear Mixed Models Of Longitudinal Data Using The Kenward-Roger Adjusted Wald Test, Tarrant Oliver Mcpherson

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The linear mixed model has become a popular technique for the analysis of longitudinal data, but Wald test statistics of fixed effects for these models frequently lack well defined distributions. A common approach to this problem uses the Kenward-Roger adjustment, which attempts to approximate the distribution of the Wald statistic by matching its moments obtained via Taylor expansion to those of an F distribution. However, this approach only matches moments obtained under the null hypothesis of no effect and cannot currently be used to approximate the distribution of the test statistic under some alternative hypothesis. This limitation prevents a straightforward …

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Role Of Electrophysiological Markers In Cognition In Parkinson's Disease, Adeel A. Memon Jan 2022

Role Of Electrophysiological Markers In Cognition In Parkinson's Disease, Adeel A. Memon

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Parkinson's disease (PD) is more than a movement disorder, and non-motor symptoms, including cognitive deficits and sleep disorders, present early and adversely affect the quality of life of a person with Parkinson's disease (PwP). Unfortunately, no pharmacological therapies slow or halt the progression of cognitive decline in PD. A substantial obstacle to developing effective cognitive therapies is the heterogeneous cognitive profile in PD, as well as a lack of a reliable biomarker of cognitive impairment. Moreover, the ideal biomarker would be generalizable, widely accessible, easily measured, non-invasive, and, ideally, modifiable. Unfortunately, thus far, proposed markers of cognitive deficits often include …

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Exploring The Relationship Between Chronic Stressors And Protective Factors And Preterm Risk In An African American Pregnant Population, Megan Mileski Jan 2022

Exploring The Relationship Between Chronic Stressors And Protective Factors And Preterm Risk In An African American Pregnant Population, Megan Mileski

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BACKGROUND: In the United States, infant mortality is a serious public health issue, particularly for the African American (AA) population. Despite ample research investigating explanations for the significantly higher infant mortality rate (IMR) for AA infants in the United States, the reason for the racial disparity remains unknown. Reports suggest that chronic, life-course stressors may increase risk of preterm birth (PTB), the leading contributor to the high IMR for AA infants. Adverse childhood experiences and perceived racial discrimination, experienced over the life course, have the potential to increase a stress response in AA women, leading to PTB. Psychosocial resources may …

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Roles Of Chemokine Receptors In T Cell Accmulation In Omental Tumors, Mingyong Liu Jan 2022

Roles Of Chemokine Receptors In T Cell Accmulation In Omental Tumors, Mingyong Liu

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The omentum is an adipose tissue in the peritoneal cavity that contains immune aggregates termed milky spots. Functionally similar to conventional lymphoid tissues, these specialized leukocyte clusters harbor effector and suppressor cells, mount immune responses to antigens, and sustain peritoneal homeostasis. However, the pre-existing leukocytes fail to protect the tissue from tumor colonization. In fact, the omentum is frequently involved in peritoneal metastasis, during which the balance between effector and suppressor immune cells is compromised with the latter gaining dominance. Regulatory T cells (Tregs) represent a major immunosuppressive population in the omentum and rapidly accumulate after tumor implantation. The increased …

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Characterizing The Role Of Tissue-Specific Retinol Dehydrogenases, Kelli Rae Goggans Jan 2022

Characterizing The Role Of Tissue-Specific Retinol Dehydrogenases, Kelli Rae Goggans

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The bioactive form of vitamin A, retinoic acid is essential for development, cellular differentiation, epigenetic modifications, the immune system, and a variety of other processes due to its ability to regulate over 500 genes through activation of nuclear receptors. While many studies have focused on characterizing the biosynthesis and signaling of retinoic acid in embryogenesis, few have focused on adult tissues. Recent research has identified a novel retinol dehydrogenase, retinol dehydrogenase epidermal 2 (RDHE2), and shown RDHE2 is a potent, physiologically relevant retinol dehydrogenase in Xenopus. The work in this dissertation characterizes RDHE2 in mammalian models. We identify a paralog …

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Epigenetic Regulation Of Gene Expression In Temporal Lobe Epilepsy, Rebecca Mary Hauser Jan 2022

Epigenetic Regulation Of Gene Expression In Temporal Lobe Epilepsy, Rebecca Mary Hauser

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Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) is the most common form of focal epilepsy and is characterized by seizures originating from the temporal lobe of the brain. A frequent seizure focus in TLE is the hippocampus, a structure located within the temporal lobe crucial for its role in memory formation. Seizures are an excess of synchronous excitation in the brain caused by a surplus of excitatory neurotransmission and a lack of sufficient inhibitory transmission. Coordinating the process of neuronal transmission is differential expression of genes likely resulting in an increase or decrease in proteins responsible for neural signaling such as neurotransmitters, ion …

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Il-2-Mediated Stat3 Activation Controls Effector T Regulatory Cell Development, Emma C. Dean Jan 2022

Il-2-Mediated Stat3 Activation Controls Effector T Regulatory Cell Development, Emma C. Dean

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Heterogeneity in phenotype and function of Treg cells is becoming increasingly appreciated, especially in the context of creating potent Treg cell–based therapeutics in the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease. One of the barriers to developing such therapeutics is the limited understanding of the signals that play a role in the development of Treg cell subsets. Here, we found STAT3 signaling to be enriched in induced IL-10 competent Treg (iTreg) cells in the colon. Through the development of a new in vitro system, we found that STAT3 was required for proper development of IL-10 competent iTreg cells and that IL-2 regulated …

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Integrated Phenotypic And Molecular Expression Circuits In End-Stage Osteoarthritis, Devin J. Drummer Jan 2022

Integrated Phenotypic And Molecular Expression Circuits In End-Stage Osteoarthritis, Devin J. Drummer

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Osteoarthritis (OA) is a debilitating, inflammatory, joint degeneration disorder, and is the most common form of arthritis. Individuals reaching end-stage OA often pursue elective total hip/knee arthroplasty (THA/TKA) to relieve pain and improve mobility and quality of life. However, approximately one third of THA/TKA patients suffer long-term mobility impairments following surgery, likely in part due to an inability to repair the damaged muscle surrounding the diseased joint. Mechanisms driving this impaired recovery remain poorly understood, therefore it is prudent to interrogate the molecular signatures in skeletal muscle at the time of surgery to provide candidate markers that may improve upon …

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The Role Of Mitochondrial Genetic Background In Cellular Function, Response To Cell Stress And Disease Susceptability, Jamelle A. Brown Jan 2022

The Role Of Mitochondrial Genetic Background In Cellular Function, Response To Cell Stress And Disease Susceptability, Jamelle A. Brown

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There is a differential susceptibility associated with several diseases including cardiovascular disease (CVD) and hypertension, with Blacks being more likely to develop these conditions. Blacks are also more likely to die from these diseases. To explain the genetic etiology underlying CVD pathogenesis, the primary focus has been on nuclear genetics-environmental interactions, whereas the contribution of mitochondrial genetics is less explored. Therefore, we sought to determine whether differences exist in cellular function and response to cell stress in healthy and diseased individuals with distinct mitochondrial genetic backgrounds. To determine this, we sought first to develop a technique to detect and quantify …

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Mechanotransduction Signaling On Ovarian Cancer Results In Increased Proliferation, Migration, And Chemoresistance In 2d And 3d In Vitro And In Vivo Models, Molly Buckley Jan 2022

Mechanotransduction Signaling On Ovarian Cancer Results In Increased Proliferation, Migration, And Chemoresistance In 2d And 3d In Vitro And In Vivo Models, Molly Buckley

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Mechanical forces imparted on an ovarian tumor have recently been shown to have a grave impact on cancer development, progression, metastasis, and chemoresistance. The forces present include compression throughout the tumor, intrinsic and extrinsic shear stresses from ascitic fluid present in the peritoneal cavity as well as blood flow through the tumor via leaky and disorganized vessels created through tumor angiogenesis, and tension at the tumor periphery because of the constantly growing mass. Studies of the signaling pathways impacted by these mechanical forces could give great insight into new therapeu-tic targets for ovarian cancer, however, these studies have been severely …

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