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Evaluating Multiparametric Imaging Biomarkers For Guiding Targeted Therapies In Her2+ Breast Cancer, Ameer Mansur Jan 2025

Evaluating Multiparametric Imaging Biomarkers For Guiding Targeted Therapies In Her2+ Breast Cancer, Ameer Mansur

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Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 positive (HER2+) breast cancer is a biologically diverse disease, in which intratumoral heterogeneity plays a significant role in tumor progression. Advanced medical imaging and image processing techniques offer the potential to noninvasively characterize the underlying intratumoral biology. Capturing these complex changes can allow for assessing therapeutic response and eventually guiding personalized therapeutic strategies. This work evaluates single and multiparametric imaging biomarkers to characterize tumor biology, identify treatment-induced changes, and predict response to targeted therapies. First, the utility of 3’-Deoxy-3’-[18F]Fluorothymidine positron emission tomography ([18F]FLT-PET) was assessed as a biomarker of proliferation for monitoring response to …

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Investigating Potential Therapeutic Vulnerabilities And Elucidating Molecular Mechanisms For The Tumor Suppressors Nfkbia And Anxa7 In Diffuse Gliomas, Aran Merati Jan 2025

Investigating Potential Therapeutic Vulnerabilities And Elucidating Molecular Mechanisms For The Tumor Suppressors Nfkbia And Anxa7 In Diffuse Gliomas, Aran Merati

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Gliomas, and especially diffuse gliomas, can be a devastating disease when attempting treatment in the clinic. Diffuse gliomas are typically malignant and pose definitive problems with respect to patient care predominantly due to their ability to exist outside of the bulk tumor by invading into the surrounding brain parenchyma. Consequently, not every cancerous cell can be fully removed by surgical resection and therapeutic resistance, so the stem-like population left behind can repopulate a recurrent tumor from a single cell. There is a desperate need for pinpointing novel therapeutic vulnerabilities in diffuse gliomas, which could potentially involve the targeting of key …

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Maternal Immune Activation Causes Oligodendrocyte Deficits In The Hypothalamus, Kate Miller Jan 2025

Maternal Immune Activation Causes Oligodendrocyte Deficits In The Hypothalamus, Kate Miller

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Maternal immune activation (MIA) refers to the occurrence of an inflammatory immune response during any stage of pregnancy. This manifests as the upregulation of proinflammatory cytokines and can be caused by air pollution, obesity, or viral infection. When this occurs during the first trimester in humans, it increases the offspring’s susceptibility to developing neuropsychiatric disorders such as autism (ASD) and schizophrenia (SZ), in males more commonly than females. In addition to behavioral manifestations of neuropsychiatric disorders, metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a common comorbidity, defined as the co-occurrence of three or more symptoms including but not limited to hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and …

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Reducing Stress: The Role Of The Rcl Operon In Bacterial Stress Response To Hypothiocyanite, Julia Meredith Jan 2025

Reducing Stress: The Role Of The Rcl Operon In Bacterial Stress Response To Hypothiocyanite, Julia Meredith

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The human immune system utilizes a variety of weapons against bacterial communities within the body, which allow it to control the overall microbial population. Understanding how some bacterial species are able to better deal with and survive damage by the immune system while others are not, can help us elucidate the complex relationship between us and our microbiome. One tool that immune cells use for microbial control is the potent oxidant hypothiocyanite/hypothiocyanous acid (-OSCN/HOSCN). The response mounted by Escherichia coli and other bacterial species in order to survive damage caused by HOSCN is the focus of this dissertation. In the …

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Understanding Submerged Plant Microbiome And Exploring Plant Microbe Interaction Through Plasma Optimization Studies, Binoop Mohan Jan 2025

Understanding Submerged Plant Microbiome And Exploring Plant Microbe Interaction Through Plasma Optimization Studies, Binoop Mohan

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The master's thesis presents research on enhancing plant resilience and growth through the study of the microbiome of submerged aquatic plants and the application of plasma technology in agriculture. We isolated 177 endophytic microbial strains from submerged plants collected from various locations. Screening revealed 50 strains producing ACC deaminase, an enzyme that mitigates plant stress by reducing ethylene levels. Predominant genera included Pseudomonas, Bacillus, and Acinetobacter. Metagenomic analysis characterized the diverse bacterial communities associated with these plants. Different plasma treatments were tested to optimize their effects on plant growth. Atmospheric jet and globe plasma treatments significantly improved root length and …

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An Investigation Into The Effects Of Preservatives On Ss-Hydroxybutyrate Concentrations Measured By Commercial Ketone Meter And Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry, Kerry F. Murr Jan 2025

An Investigation Into The Effects Of Preservatives On Ss-Hydroxybutyrate Concentrations Measured By Commercial Ketone Meter And Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry, Kerry F. Murr

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Ketoacidosis occurs when fatty acids are metabolized into ketone bodies in the liver and released into the bloodstream. This condition, which can be fatal, is commonly observed in diabetics, alcoholics, and individuals who experienced starvation or hypothermia. Although the ketone ß-hydroxybutyrate (BHB) is an accepted biomarker of ketoacidosis, the effects of preservatives on BHB concentrations in postmortem blood are unaddressed. The first aim of this research was to determine whether preservatives affect ketone levels as measured by a point-of-care device. Paired preserved and unpreserved blood samples were obtained from the Jefferson County morgue: preserved samples in grey top tubes and …

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Therapeutic Implications Of Fractionated Radiotherapy And Marcks’ Regulation Of Tunneling Nanotubes In Glioblastoma, Lauren Catherine Nassour-Caswell Jan 2025

Therapeutic Implications Of Fractionated Radiotherapy And Marcks’ Regulation Of Tunneling Nanotubes In Glioblastoma, Lauren Catherine Nassour-Caswell

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Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common primary brain malignancy in adults and the gradual development of treatment resistance prevents patients from achieving remission. A primary objective in the field is to devise strategies to overcome this. We predicted this could be achieved by improving existing therapies, creating better models to study GBM, and by identifying a potential therapeutic target. Fractionated radiotherapy (RT) has been used in GBM standard of care for over a century but does not account for GBM heterogeneity. We first hypothesized that in silico mathematical modeling would be a useful tool for cytotoxicity prediction. While this model …

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Environmental Exposure To Metals In Children And Their Effects On Autism Spectrum Disorder, Oludesola Ogunesan Jan 2025

Environmental Exposure To Metals In Children And Their Effects On Autism Spectrum Disorder, Oludesola Ogunesan

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ABSTRACT As scientific understanding of environmental determinants of health advances, growing attention has turned to the role of toxic metal exposures in exacerbating neurodevelopmental outcomes, particularly in vulnerable populations such as children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This dissertation investigates the intersection of environmental metal exposure, biomonitoring innovation, and social factors shaping ASD severity in Alabama. Using a multidisciplinary framework, four interrelated studies explore biological, environmental, and participatory dimensions of ASD research and public health. The first study evaluates the utility of Volumetric Absorptive Microsampling (VAMS) for measuring exposure to cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), lead (Pb), manganese (Mn), and mercury …

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Unveiling The Other: Feminine And Colonial Subjugation In Mary Elizabeth Braddon's England, Kaylie Rastegar Jan 2025

Unveiling The Other: Feminine And Colonial Subjugation In Mary Elizabeth Braddon's England, Kaylie Rastegar

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Just a few years after England experienced major societal shifts, both domestically in the passage of revolutionary women’s rights legislation and internationally in the Indian Mutiny, Mary Elizabeth Braddon’s Lady Audley’s Secret (1862) offered Victorian readers a way to confront their anxieties and uncertainties about the nation’s future. The traditional power structures of British imperialism and patriarchy faced growing resistance as Indian rebels and women’s rights reformers challenged their assumed natural authority. Past scholarship contextualizes the novel within these major historical events, viewing them in relation to each other in which the struggles of Indian colonial subjects equate to those …

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Sex Differences In The Development Of T-Bet+ B Cells In Lupus, Kathryn A. Sullivan Jan 2025

Sex Differences In The Development Of T-Bet+ B Cells In Lupus, Kathryn A. Sullivan

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Cardinal features of lupus include elevated B cell activation and autoantibody production with a female sex preponderance. Development of T-bet+ B cells, driven by aberrant TLR7 and interferon (IFN) signaling, is a key pathogenic feature of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). In the present study, we developed two novel approaches to elucidate the mechanisms of female sex predisposition to lupus. We (i) quantified interactions of sex and genetic variation on the development of autoimmune B-cell phenotypes and autoantibodies in the BXD2 murine model of lupus using a cohort of backcrossed progeny (BXD2 x C57BL/6J) x BXD2; (ii) used a combination approach …

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Parsing Clinical And Neurobiological Heterogeneity In First-Episode Psychosis Patients With And Without Features Of The Deficit Syndrome Of Schizophrenia, Matheus Teles Gomes De Araujo Jan 2025

Parsing Clinical And Neurobiological Heterogeneity In First-Episode Psychosis Patients With And Without Features Of The Deficit Syndrome Of Schizophrenia, Matheus Teles Gomes De Araujo

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Schizophrenia is highly heterogeneous in its neurobiological and clinical presentations, which hinders attempts to understand its pathophysiology, limits efforts to identify biomarkers, and deters optimal patient care. A way to parse clinical heterogeneity is to subtype patients based on clinical presentations. The deficit syndrome (DS) is a possible subtype, characterized by primary and enduring negative symptoms. Evidence for neurobiological abnormalities dissociating DS from other forms of schizophrenia is inconsistent as most studies do not account for heterogeneity within patient groups due to limitations of group-level comparisons. The question remains whether DS presents a unique and less heterogeneous neurobiological phenotype. The …

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An Examination Of Sleep Quality And Experimental Pain Sensitivity In People With Hiv And Insomnia, Caroline Kathryn Webb Jan 2025

An Examination Of Sleep Quality And Experimental Pain Sensitivity In People With Hiv And Insomnia, Caroline Kathryn Webb

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Prior research has established a bidirectional relationship between sleep and pain, yet this relationship has been understudied in people living with HIV. The current study investigated the relationship between HIV status (H+/H-) and insomnia status (I+/I-) on sleep and quantitative sensory testing (QST) variables. The study was comprised of two research visits where participants were screened and completed the QST protocol. Participants completed the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), Dysfunctional Beliefs and Attitudes about Sleep (DBAS), and actigraphy as subjective and objective measures of sleep. There were four groups: H-/I- (n=46), H-/I+ (n=37), H+/I- (n=14), and H+/I+ (n=39) (N=136). Results showed …

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Exploring Environmental Health Awareness And Knowledge In 9th – 12th Grade Students: A Mixed Methods Approach, Crystal Stephens Jan 2025

Exploring Environmental Health Awareness And Knowledge In 9th – 12th Grade Students: A Mixed Methods Approach, Crystal Stephens

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EXPLORING ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS AND KNOWLEDGE IN 9TH – 12TH GRADE STUDENTS: A MIXED METHODS APPROACH CRYSTAL T. STEPHENS ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SCIENCES ABSTRACT Safe environments provide accessibility and community protections preventing residents from exposure to contaminants or facing health risks. Unfortunately, environmental exposures such as air pollution and neighborhood-level concerns can adversely impact human health. Environmental justice communities are overburdened with increased adverse environmental exposures and subsequent health disparities. Adolescents may be more vulnerable to exposure risks and provide an opportunity to introduce environmental health education. With their power of peer association and determination, adolescents can influence the health and …

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Chronic Pain And Resilience: Associations And Interactions With Diet, Asia Wiggins Jan 2025

Chronic Pain And Resilience: Associations And Interactions With Diet, Asia Wiggins

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Chronic pain is a significant issue globally, affecting millions of people. One relatively new way mechanism to reduce pain is to promote resilience. Yet, the effect of resilience on chronic pain may differ by sociodemographic factors (like racialized group). Furthermore, access to therapies that promote resilience may be limited across populations. However, the utilization of diet interventions for chronic pain symptoms has also been well-examined. In addition, research has shown that diets can be related to psychological resilience. Therefore, beneficial diets could potentially be utilized as a catalyst to, not only promote resilience, but also reduce pain (in combination with …

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Uncovering The Role Of Heparanase-Armed Extracellular Vesicles In Sepsis-Associated Vascular Endotheliopathy, Robert Patrick Richter Jan 2025

Uncovering The Role Of Heparanase-Armed Extracellular Vesicles In Sepsis-Associated Vascular Endotheliopathy, Robert Patrick Richter

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Sepsis remains one of the most frequent causes of mortality and life-altering morbidity in humans of all ages globally. Though sepsis pathobiology is incompletely understood, it is clear that a unifying feature of all sepsis phenotypes is systemic vascular endotheliopathy and damage to the luminal glycocalyx of endothelial cells, or eGC, that leads to organ injury. While prior work has established that heparan sulfate (HS) is an especially important eGC constituent that helps regulate a host of endothelial cell (EC) functions, its role in promoting endotheliopathy during sepsis has not been fully characterized. Additionally, previous studies in the context of …

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Child Risk For Obesity And Physical Activity, Bethany Moore Oct 2024

Child Risk For Obesity And Physical Activity, Bethany Moore

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Childhood obesity is a significant health problem in the United States with consequences presenting themselves in the short- and long-term. Physical activity is a modifiable factor associated with adiposity and can at least partially attenuate the consequences of childhood obesity. There are many factors which influence children’s participation in regular physical activity, some of which are also associated with pediatric obesity. The overarching purpose of this research is to investigate potential influences on the association of obesity and physical activity among typically developing children. Aim 1 used a secondary analysis of n=163 children to explore independent and interactive effects of …

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O-Glcnac Transferase Regulates Tgf-Β Signaling And Fibrotic Resolution In Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis, Shia Vang Sep 2024

O-Glcnac Transferase Regulates Tgf-Β Signaling And Fibrotic Resolution In Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis, Shia Vang

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Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive, chronic lung disease that causes scarring of the lungs. IPF is often characterized by altered growth factor signaling, excessive extracellular matrix (ECM) deposition, fibroblast hyperproliferation, and dysregulated metabolism. The etiology of IPF is unknown, but fibroblasts and myofibroblasts are the known effector cells in IPF pathology. Current treatments, such as pirfenidone and nintedanib, target growth factor signaling pathways to slow fibrogenesis, but are unable to cure the disease. The transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) is a master regulator of fibrosis, including IPF, and is a powerful inducer of the fibroblast-to-myofibroblast transition (FMT). In IPF, …

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Neighborhood Disadvantage, Parenting, And Dna Methylation During Childhood, Malcolm Barker-Kamps Sep 2024

Neighborhood Disadvantage, Parenting, And Dna Methylation During Childhood, Malcolm Barker-Kamps

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Being raised in a disadvantaged neighborhood increases the risk of adult obesity, chronic inflammation, and epigenetic aging even when adjusting for family socioeconomic status (SES). Because little is understood regarding the timing of these outcomes through development and possible moderating effects of the family environment, this project investigated the relationship between neighborhood disadvantage and DNA methylation in children and whether this association varies across child age, parenting behaviors, or neighborhood cohesion. The study included 112 parents (Mage=27.5; SD=1.06) and 160 children, ages 0-14 (Mage =3.89, SD=3.29; 54% female; 90% African American; 10% White), from the Birmingham Youth Violence Study. Neighborhood …

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Computational Approaches To Identify Circular Rnas In Parkinson's Disease, Lisa Shrestha Sep 2024

Computational Approaches To Identify Circular Rnas In Parkinson's Disease, Lisa Shrestha

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Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disease, affecting approximately a million individuals in the United States. Despite its high prevalence, PD is generally diagnosed at a progressed stage after the manifestation of characteristic motor symptoms (bradykinesia, tremor, rigidity, etc.). Hence, it is imperative to understand the underlying molecular mechanisms involved in the progression of PD at an early stage. Several non-coding RNAs have emerged as important regulators in several key cellular processes, among which circular RNAs' role has not been studied well enough. Here, we explore the changes in the expression of circRNAs with respect to the …

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Biochemical Characterization Of Rna Polymerases Across The Domains Of Life, Stephanie Lois Cooper Sep 2024

Biochemical Characterization Of Rna Polymerases Across The Domains Of Life, Stephanie Lois Cooper

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RNA polymerases perform the essential function of RNA synthesis from a DNA template. This process, known as transcription, is critical for all living species and a key point for regulation of gene expression. The function of RNA polymerases allow species from all domains of life to not only survive, but also respond to environmental changes such as heat and nutrient deprivation. In biological taxonomy, the highest classification is domain. The three domains are Eukarya, Bacteria, and Archaea. The domain Eukarya contains all eukaryotic organisms, ranging from yeast, to plants, to metazoans. Bacteria and Archaea are both prokaryotic domains, the species …

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Sleep And Stigma: Novel Factors In The Relationship Between Weight Status And Cognitive Function?, Lindsay M. Stager Sep 2024

Sleep And Stigma: Novel Factors In The Relationship Between Weight Status And Cognitive Function?, Lindsay M. Stager

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U.S. obesity rates are rising. Impaired cognitive function (CF) negatively correlates with obesity and may impact food consumption. However, the mechanisms of action demand assessment. This study aimed to identify adiposity-based differences in adolescent CF and food consumption and determine the roles of sleep and stigma within these relationships. Adolescents completed questionnaires including the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function and Brief Version of the Stigmatizing Situations Inventory assessing weight stigma. Actigraphy and food diaries assessed typical sleep duration and food consumption. Participants then completed two sleep conditions in a randomized order: adequate (AS; >8 hours asleep) and restricted (RS; <5 hours asleep) sleep. Each condition was preceded by a 2-night washout period (9 hours in bed per night) and followed by a morning lab visit involving a cognitive battery and self-serve breakfast. Adolescents with healthy weight (HW) demonstrated greater performance-based episodic memory compared to adolescents with overweight/obesity (OWOB), but self-reported poorer inhibition, self-monitoring, and planning/organizing. Findings were similar in models using total body fat percent (TBF%) as a predictor, and stigma did not mediate these relationships. Adiposity did not relate to typical self-reported food consumption. RS predicted poorer performance-based global cognition, fluid cognition, and cognitive flexibility for adolescents with OWOB and improved cognitive flexibility among adolescents with HW. Adolescents with OWOB also had poorer attention compared to adolescents with HW following RS, while there were no group differences following AS. Findings were similar in models using TBF% as a predictor. However, adolescents with TBF% elevated above 42, also had poorer processing speed following RS, and the relationship between sleep and attention did not vary based on TBF%. RS also predicted decreased consumption of total calories, calories from processed foods, and fat for both BMI groups. This study increases understanding of the relationships among weight, CF, and food consumption, and the roles of sleep and stigma within these relationships. Adolescents with OWOB were more vulnerable to the negative cognitive effects of RS and RS predicted decreased consumption of calories and fat. Promotion of improved sleep hygiene and duration may be critical for the cognitive health of adolescents with OWOB.

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Beyond Chronic Fatigue: Studying The Role Of Neuroinflammation, Glutamate, And Glutamine, Indonesia Alohn Jordan Sep 2024

Beyond Chronic Fatigue: Studying The Role Of Neuroinflammation, Glutamate, And Glutamine, Indonesia Alohn Jordan

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Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is a complex, multifaceted disease characterized by persistent, severe fatigue lasting six months or longer that is not relieved by rest. An estimated 20 million people worldwide suffer from ME/CFS. ME/CFS has long been suspected to be a post-viral illness, as viral infections can stimulate inflammatory cytokine production. Millions of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients are also predicted to develop persistent symptoms that mimic ME/CFS symptomology after the resolution of the acute infection, referred to as Post-Acute Sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC). Inflammatory mediators produced by sustained microglia activation have been shown to lead to illness …

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Investigation On The Epigenetic Mechanisms Modified By Dietary Phytochemicals In Inhibiting Mammary Cancer, Mohammad Mijanur Rahman Sep 2024

Investigation On The Epigenetic Mechanisms Modified By Dietary Phytochemicals In Inhibiting Mammary Cancer, Mohammad Mijanur Rahman

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Breast cancer (BC) is global burden for the health of women. It is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women and the second leading cause of cancer mortality among women in the United States. One in every eight women in the USA has a chance of developing invasive BC in her lifetime. The limitations of the available therapeutics for BC treatment have brought the dietary prevention of BC to the attention of the scientific community as a safe, natural, and easy to implement therapeutic strategy. In this regard, our laboratory with many other laboratories have demonstrated the anti-BC effect of …

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Investigating The Role Of The Static And Hyperviscous Mucus Defect On The Development Of Bacterial Infection In The Cystic Fibrosis Rat, Mikayla Murphree-Terry Sep 2024

Investigating The Role Of The Static And Hyperviscous Mucus Defect On The Development Of Bacterial Infection In The Cystic Fibrosis Rat, Mikayla Murphree-Terry

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INVESTIGATING THE ROLE OF THE STATIC AND HYPERVISCOUS MUCUS DEFECT ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF BACTERIAL INFECTION IN THE CYSTIC FIBROSIS RAT MIKAYLA MURPHREE-TERRY GRADUATE BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES - MICROBIOLOGY ABSTRACT Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disease caused by mutation in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene, resulting in dysfunctional CFTR. In the lungs, CFTR dysfunction results in dehydrated mucus that is adherent to epithelia. In the gut, thick mucus can mix with feces to form an obstruction, known as distal intestinal obstruction syndrome (DIOS). Additionally, CF mucus has a higher percentage of solids. The main solid component of …

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Combination Of 64/67cu Theranostics And Immunotherapy Targeting Fibroblast Activation Protein In Triple Negative Breast Cancer, Fnu Sharmila Sridhar Sep 2024

Combination Of 64/67cu Theranostics And Immunotherapy Targeting Fibroblast Activation Protein In Triple Negative Breast Cancer, Fnu Sharmila Sridhar

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Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) makes up 10-20% of breast cancer cases. Even with advancements in science, TNBC is treatment resistant due to the lack of any type of hormonal receptors on the cell surface making it difficult for targeted hormonal therapy. New research avenues have led to studies of the Tumor-microenvironment (TME) in detail. TME is a complex network of stromal cells, extracellular matrix (ECM) and cancer associated fibroblasts (CAFs) with pro-tumorigenic properties and plays a major role in tumor growth. Fibroblast activation protein (FAP) is a marker of CAF and promotes ECM remodeling through several pathways and has …

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The Relationship Between Socioeconomic Status And Polygenic Risk Scores On Body Mass Index Among Non-Hispanic White Americans, Tomiwa Joshua Ayetigbo Sep 2024

The Relationship Between Socioeconomic Status And Polygenic Risk Scores On Body Mass Index Among Non-Hispanic White Americans, Tomiwa Joshua Ayetigbo

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The prevalence of obesity in the United States remains high, especially among individuals of low socioeconomic status (SES). Studies examining the joint influence of genetics and social factors, such as early life SES and education, in association with obesity remain underreported. These social factors might be related to a heightened risk of obesity. Genetic factors may further exacerbate the high-weight predisposition of those at risk. Genetic and social factors may act together to shape individuals’ weight. Therefore, this research ex-amined (a) whether the association between polygenic risk for BMI (PGS-BMI) and Body Mass Index (BMI) is independently modified by early …

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Oral Administration Of Alpha-Cyclodextrin Corrects Diabetes Induced Retinopathy And Bone Marrow Pathology By Modulation Of The Gut-Retina Axis., Yvonne Adu-Agyeiwaah Sep 2024

Oral Administration Of Alpha-Cyclodextrin Corrects Diabetes Induced Retinopathy And Bone Marrow Pathology By Modulation Of The Gut-Retina Axis., Yvonne Adu-Agyeiwaah

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Diabetic retinopathy represents a common complication of diabetes, exerting a significant financial burden globally across nations, particularly impacting the working-age population and thereby affecting productivity. Extensive investigations have unveiled its multifaceted etiology, implicating a convergence of diverse causative factors. Notably, seminal studies such as the Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes (ACCORD) Eye Study have underscored the pivotal role of cholesterol dysregulation and dyslipidemia in the pathogenesis of diabetic retinopathy. This dysregulation stems from an imbalance characterized by heightened cholesterol production coupled with deficient cholesterol efflux or removal mechanisms. Liver X receptors (LXRs), ligand-activated nuclear receptors function in transcriptional …

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Experiences Of Discrimination And Stress In People With And Without Hiv: Associations With Experimental Pain Sensitivity And Substance Use, Joanna Hobson Sep 2024

Experiences Of Discrimination And Stress In People With And Without Hiv: Associations With Experimental Pain Sensitivity And Substance Use, Joanna Hobson

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People living with HIV (PLWH) are at an increased risk for experiencing not only discrimination, but the adverse health outcomes that are related to discrimination. Specifically, studies have identified direct relationships between HIV, discrimination and substance use, pain, poor sleep (e.g. insomnia symptoms) and depression. Thus, this study aimed to elucidate the relationships between discrimination, stress, experimental pain sensitivity, mood and substance abuse. We used various questionnaires to measure mood and health behavior. Lastly, participants underwent a series of pain experiments to measure group differences in experimental pain sensitivity. We found group differences in cortisol levels (p = .031) and …

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Non-Invasive Pet Imaging Probes For Immune Activation And Fibrosis In Cancer And Pulmonary Fibrosis, Yujun Zhang Sep 2024

Non-Invasive Pet Imaging Probes For Immune Activation And Fibrosis In Cancer And Pulmonary Fibrosis, Yujun Zhang

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Immune activation plays an important role in the development and treatment of tumor and fibrotic diseases. Granzyme B is a serine protease granzymes secreted by cytotoxic T cells or natural killer (NK) cells, which induces target cell apoptosis. Measuring granzyme B level is a way to quantify immune activation non-invasively. [68Ga]-NOTA-GZP PET imaging was applied in 4T1 breast cancer mouse model and LLC non-small cell lung cancer mouse model after treated with combination of 12 Gy irradiation and dual checkpoint inhibitors. There was a tumor growth and metastasis inhibition in the combination treatment group. The uptake of [68Ga]-NOTA-GZP on day …

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The Association Between Environmental Factors And Substance Use Outcomes Among A Vulnerable Veteran Population, Leah Nixon Bryan Sep 2024

The Association Between Environmental Factors And Substance Use Outcomes Among A Vulnerable Veteran Population, Leah Nixon Bryan

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Background. Illicit substance use among veterans is a complex and multifaceted issue. As individuals who have served in the armed forces return to civilian life, they may face a range of challenges, including mental health issues, physical injuries, and difficulties readjusting to societal norms. Unfortunately, for some veterans, these challenges can contribute to the allure of illicit substances as a coping mechanism. The intersection of the unique stressors associated with military service creates a population with an increased vulnerability to select health and psychosocial issues and susceptible to substance misuse (Tsai & Rosenheck, 2015). In addition to military experiences, environmental …

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