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Evaluation Of Pre And Post Treatment Filtration Performance Of Kinetico Macrolite® Ceramic Media Compared To Traditional Sand/Anthracite And Gac Filters In Drinking Water Treatment Process, Jeff Cochran Jan 2008

Evaluation Of Pre And Post Treatment Filtration Performance Of Kinetico Macrolite® Ceramic Media Compared To Traditional Sand/Anthracite And Gac Filters In Drinking Water Treatment Process, Jeff Cochran

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This study was conducted in conjunction with the Birmingham Water Works Board to evaluate Kinetico ceramic filter media against GAC (Granular Activated Carbon) and Sand/Anthracite filters. The Birmingham Water Works Board Water Treatment Pilot Plant was located and operated on the Shades Mountain Filter Plant (SMFP) premises. The evaluation was conducted in three phases: plant matching, plant optimization, and pre-filter testing. The initial phase called for determining the best combination of Kinetico Macrolite Ceramic media to match or outperform the existing Sand/Anthracite dual media filters located at SMFP. At the end of the testing it was determined that 18 inches …

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Human-Centered Semantic Retrieval In Multimedia Databases, Xin Chen Jan 2008

Human-Centered Semantic Retrieval In Multimedia Databases, Xin Chen

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The research described in this dissertation has proposed a human-centered retrieval framework that can automatically retrieve multimedia data based on their semantic content. In particular, the framework queries and searches images and videos in a multimedia database according to their visual content. In order for computers to understand the semantic contents of images and videos, human guidance is necessary. By incorporating the user’s Relevance Feedback (RF) on the retrieval results into the learning and retrieval mechanism, the semantic gap between humans and computers can be gradually bridged. High-dimensional feature vectors of multimedia data can cause a dramatic increase in computation …

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Analysis Of The Role Of Fcrl5 And Figlers In B Cell Development, Signaling, And Malignancy, Christopher L. Haga Jan 2008

Analysis Of The Role Of Fcrl5 And Figlers In B Cell Development, Signaling, And Malignancy, Christopher L. Haga

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The regulation of signaling and migration is critical to B lymphocyte development, activation, and proliferation. This dissertation reports a functional role for Fc receptor-like molecule 5 (FCRL5), a B cell specific member of the Fc receptor-like family of molecules, and the discovery of a novel family of conserved transmembrane proteins with fibronectin, immunoglobulin, and leucine-rich repeat domains (FIGLER) expressed in bone marrow and B lineage cells. Until now, the signaling potential of FCRL5 was unknown. A panel of FcRIIB/FCRL5 chimeric receptors were created and expressed in a B cell line lacking endogenous FcRIIB. Coligation of the chimeric receptor with the …

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Techniques For Context-Free Grammar Induction And Applications, Faizan Javed Jan 2008

Techniques For Context-Free Grammar Induction And Applications, Faizan Javed

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Grammar Inference is the process of learning a grammar from examples, either positive (i.e., the grammar generates the string) and/or negative (i.e., the grammar does not generate the string). Although grammar inference has been successfully applied to many diverse domains such as speech recognition and robotics, its application to software engineering has been limited. This research investigates the applicability of grammar inference to software engineering and programming language development challenge problems, where grammar inference offers an innovative solution to the problem, while remaining tractable and within the scope of that problem. Specifically, the following challenges are addressed in this research: …

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Mechanism Of Interferon-Beta-Mediated Inhibition Of Il-8 Gene Expression, Travis Laver Jan 2008

Mechanism Of Interferon-Beta-Mediated Inhibition Of Il-8 Gene Expression, Travis Laver

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Interleukin-8 (IL-8) is a potent chemoattractant of numerous cells, particularly neutrophils, in the innate immune response. In addition to immune functions, IL-8 is known to contribute to the pathogenesis of a number of diseases, including cancer. Interferon-β (IFN-β), a Type I interferon, inhibits the expression of IL-8, but the details of this effect are not known. In this study we investigate transcriptional control of the IL- 8 gene and the mechanism by which IFN-β exerts inhibitory effects on IL-8. Herein we show that stimulation of U87-MG glioma cells with phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) results in a rapid recruitment of NF-κB …

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Air Pollution And Preterm Births In Atlanta, Georgia, Corey Masuca Jan 2008

Air Pollution And Preterm Births In Atlanta, Georgia, Corey Masuca

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Exposure to ambient outdoor air pollution exposure is one of the many extraneous factors associated with preterm births. Many epidemiological studies involving preterm births and ambient air pollution have repeatedly indicated positive associations. However, for many such studies, results may be statistically significant but weakly associated or inconclusive. Such results may be primarily attributable to the fact that most studies include only single or multiple criteria air pollutants but not the total air pollution mixture of criteria air pollutants and air toxic pollutants (e.g., PAHs) to which people are actually exposed. This study assessed associations between pollutant classes, including criteria …

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The Impact Of Feedback On Self-Rated Driving Ability Among Older Adults, Michelle Lynn Ackerman Jan 2008

The Impact Of Feedback On Self-Rated Driving Ability Among Older Adults, Michelle Lynn Ackerman

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No abstract provided.

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Multiracial Tobacco, Alcohol, And Drug Use: An Investigation Of The Function Of Racial Identity In A Longitudinal Sample From Youth To Young Adulthood, Julia Katrina Crumly Jan 2008

Multiracial Tobacco, Alcohol, And Drug Use: An Investigation Of The Function Of Racial Identity In A Longitudinal Sample From Youth To Young Adulthood, Julia Katrina Crumly

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The purpose of the research is threefold. The first purpose is to determine if multiracial individuals are at a higher risk for alcohol, tobacco, and drug use. The second purpose is to determine the relationship between racial identity and risk behaviors. The third purpose is to determine how the change/no change of racial identity longitudinally contributes to one’s risk to engage in risk behaviors. A national representative longitudinal data set was obtained and analyzed for the purpose of this study. Results of the study reveal that there are differences in multiracial groups for risk behaviors, minority identification is not necessarily …

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The Effects Of Maternal Prenatal Insults On The Bmi Growth Trajectory Of Children Between The Ages Of 5-12 Years, Anthony Goudie Jan 2008

The Effects Of Maternal Prenatal Insults On The Bmi Growth Trajectory Of Children Between The Ages Of 5-12 Years, Anthony Goudie

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The level of childhood obesity in the United States is at epidemic proportions. Most population studies looking at the factors contributing to childhood obesity focus on obesity as a dichotomous outcome. The purpose of this study is to test for the effects of maternal prenatal insult behaviors on the growth trajectory of a sample of children 5-12 years of age in the United States. This is the first known study to use a latent growth curve model and a cohort-concurrent analytical design to test the association between maternal prenatal insult behaviors and the annual longitudinal increase in body mass index …

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Gender Difference In Cardiovascular Risk Indicator And Cardiovascular Disease Among Veterans With Ptsd, Elizabeth Frazier Jan 2008

Gender Difference In Cardiovascular Risk Indicator And Cardiovascular Disease Among Veterans With Ptsd, Elizabeth Frazier

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Using the allostatic load model of disease processes, this study investigated gender differences on cardiovascular risk and cardiovascular disease among PTSD and MDD veterans. Cross-sectional analysis of 884 de-identified veteran's data from four VISN7 primary care clinics was completed via ANCOVAs and binary logistic regression analyses. Veterans with PTSD had significantly higher levels of SBP. Among female veterans without PTSD, MDD was associated with increased DBP. Among veterans with neither PTSD nor MDD, male veterans had higher levels of DBP. Veterans without PTSD and men had higher rates of cardiovascular disease. Study results support continued focus on gender differences in …

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Growth Hormone Signaling And Action In Osteoblasts, Douglas J. Digirolamo Jan 2008

Growth Hormone Signaling And Action In Osteoblasts, Douglas J. Digirolamo

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Growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) exert profound growth promoting actions during pre- and post-natal skeletal development. GH and IGF- 1 appear to cause these anabolic actions by influencing a variety of effects on osteoblast proliferation, differentiation, and survival. However, because GH stimulates the production of IGF-1 from the liver and other GH-responsive peripheral tissues, including bone, the individual contributions of these two molecules to anabolic responses in bone remains poorly defined. In this dissertation research, I sought to distinguish the direct and indirect (IGF-1 dependent) GH actions on osteoblasts. In the first section of this thesis, I …

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Effects Of Aerobic Exercise On The Asthmatic Lung, Matthew M. Hewitt Jan 2008

Effects Of Aerobic Exercise On The Asthmatic Lung, Matthew M. Hewitt

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Asthma is identified by the clinical symptoms of wheezing, chest tightness, dyspnea and cough, and by the presence of airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) to inhaled stimuli. We have reported previously that repeated bouts of moderate intensity aerobic exercise attenuate airway inflammatory responses in a mouse model of atopic asthma. Because the effects of exercise on physiological responses are dependent upon several variables, including total exercise duration, the hypothesis of the current work was that differing amounts of moderate intensity aerobic exercise exert dissimilar effects on AHR and airway inflammation. The aims to test this hypothesis included: 1) determine the effect of …

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Molecular Regulation Of Pax5-Mediated Biological Functions, Ti He Jan 2008

Molecular Regulation Of Pax5-Mediated Biological Functions, Ti He

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B lineage cells are major players in the adaptive immune system. Pax5 is essential for B lineage cell development and function. Pax5 controls B lineage cell developmental progression by regulating expression of many B lineage specific genes and the B lineage specific VH to DJH recombination; and the meantime, Pax5 also represses the transcription of lineage- and developmental stage- inappropriate genes to restrict the B lineage developmental pathway. It is not clear how Pax5-mediated function can be regulated to fulfill its role in different biological reactions. In this dissertation, we focused on the study of the molecular regulation of Pax5-mediated …

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Biogenesis, Trafficing, And Function Of Wild-Type And Mutant Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator (Cftr), Asta Jurkuvenaite Jan 2008

Biogenesis, Trafficing, And Function Of Wild-Type And Mutant Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator (Cftr), Asta Jurkuvenaite

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Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disease resulting from mutations in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR), a cAMP-activated chloride channel that functions at the apical surface of epithelial cells and plays a critical role in mucociliary clearance. The most common mutation in the CFTR gene involves a deletion of phenylalanine at position 508 in the protein (ΔF508 CFTR). ΔF508 CFTR is recognized as misfolded in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and is degraded. In vitro manipulations such as culturing cells at 27°C can “rescue” ΔF508 CFTR to the plasma membrane (rΔF508 CFTR), but no pharmacological agent has produced comparable …

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Wavelet-Based Regression And Classification For Longitudinal Diffusion Tensor Imaging Data, William R. Prucka Jan 2008

Wavelet-Based Regression And Classification For Longitudinal Diffusion Tensor Imaging Data, William R. Prucka

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Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique capable of in vivo characterization of the spatial and angular dependence of free water diffusion in tissue. By studying intra- and extra-cellular water mobility, inference can be made about the surrounding medium. The non-uniform angular dependence of diffusion, known as anisotropy, is evident in fibrous tissues, which exhibit greater diffusion parallel versus perpendicular to the fiber orientation. DTI’s sensitivity to anisotropy makes it an effective tool for measuring the integrity of fibrous myelinated white matter tracts in the brain. For demyelinating diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS), DTI has …

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The Role Of Ddx3 In Regulating Apoptosis, P53 And Snail, Mianen Sun Jan 2008

The Role Of Ddx3 In Regulating Apoptosis, P53 And Snail, Mianen Sun

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Cancer is a common disease that causes high rates of lethality. Resistance to cancer therapy is one major obstacle for producing an effective cancer treatment. Clarifying mechanisms of cancer development, such as resistance to apoptosis and metastasis, can provide important information for developing effective cancer treatment strategies. In the present study, DDX3 was demonstrated to have effects on both responses to cancer treatment and cancer development. DDX3 together with glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3) was found to impede death receptor-induced apoptosis, which is important because death receptors are activated by some cancer treatments. Additionally, DDX3 was shown to regulate two proteins …

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Electrospun Tri-Layer Micro/Nano-Fibrous Scaffold For Vascular Tissue Engineering, Xing Zhang Jan 2008

Electrospun Tri-Layer Micro/Nano-Fibrous Scaffold For Vascular Tissue Engineering, Xing Zhang

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No abstract provided.

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The Role Of Bhlh Gene Ash1 In The Developing Chick Eye, Weiming Mao Jan 2008

The Role Of Bhlh Gene Ash1 In The Developing Chick Eye, Weiming Mao

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No abstract provided.

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Indicators Of Self-Rated Driving Ability Among A Community-Based Sample Of Older Adults, Michelle Lynn Ackerman Jan 2008

Indicators Of Self-Rated Driving Ability Among A Community-Based Sample Of Older Adults, Michelle Lynn Ackerman

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No abstract provided.

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Hyposialylation Regulates Α4ss1 Integrin Binding To Vcam-1, Alencia V. Woodard-Grice Jan 2008

Hyposialylation Regulates Α4ss1 Integrin Binding To Vcam-1, Alencia V. Woodard-Grice

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No abstract provided.

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Effects Of Defucosylation On Human Breast Cancer Cells, Kun Yuan Jan 2008

Effects Of Defucosylation On Human Breast Cancer Cells, Kun Yuan

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No abstract provided.

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Microarray Data Analysis For Snp Effects And Inferring Alternative Splicing, Lang Chen Jan 2008

Microarray Data Analysis For Snp Effects And Inferring Alternative Splicing, Lang Chen

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No abstract provided.

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Effects Of Hexosamine Biosynthesis On An In Vitro Model Of Cardiacischemia, Voraratt Champattanachai Jan 2008

Effects Of Hexosamine Biosynthesis On An In Vitro Model Of Cardiacischemia, Voraratt Champattanachai

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Increased levels of protein O-linked-N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc) have been correlated with increased cell survival following stress. Therefore the goal of this study was to determine whether enhanced flux through the hexosamine biosynthesis pathway (HBP), which leads to elevated levels of O-GlcNAc, improved the tolerance of isolated neonatal rat ventricular myocytes (NRVMs) to ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. NRVMs were exposed to hypoxic medium for 4 hours, followed by oxygenated complete medium for 16 hours. Acute treatment with 5 mM glucosamine showed an increase in viability and decreased both necrosis and apoptosis following I/R. Glucosamine increased O-GlcNAc levels maximally at 2 hours and went …

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Structural And Functional Properties Of Human Αa-Crystallin, Jose Mauro Chaves Jan 2008

Structural And Functional Properties Of Human Αa-Crystallin, Jose Mauro Chaves

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The three specific aims of the project were: (1) compare effects of deamidation alone (i.e., αA-N101D, αA-N123D, αA-N101/123D), truncation alone (αA-NT mutant [deletion of residue no. 1-63], or αA-CT mutant [deletion of residue no. 140-173]), or both truncation plus deamidation on structural and functional properties of human lens αA-crystallin; (2) identify components of complexes in the water soluble-high molecular weight (WS-HMW) proteins of normal aging and cataractous human lenses; and (3) determine interactions among WT-αA, αA-NT and αA-CT crystallin species with filensin and phakinin (beaded filament proteins) in vitro. The comparative structural and functional differences between αA-deamidated and/or truncated mutants …

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The Reproductive Cycle Of Lytechinus Variegatus (Echinodermata: Echinoidea) From The Florida Panhandle, Adele Cunningham Jan 2008

The Reproductive Cycle Of Lytechinus Variegatus (Echinodermata: Echinoidea) From The Florida Panhandle, Adele Cunningham

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The range of the regular echinoid Lytechinus variegatus extends from the Carolinas along the US Atlantic coast to Brazil. To our knowledge, the present study is the northernmost study to examine histology of the reproductive cycle of Lytechinus variegatus. From April 2001 to September 2003, at intervals of about 4-6 weeks, L. variegatus with an average diameter of 45 mm were collected at Eagle Harbor in St. Joseph’s Bay, Florida.. A staging system for gamete development and maturation based on histology of the gonad was devised for female and male L. variegatus. Histology indicated a period of nutrient storage and …

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Microbial Biofilm Attachment To Caenorhabditis Elegans, Kevin Drace Jan 2008

Microbial Biofilm Attachment To Caenorhabditis Elegans, Kevin Drace

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The closely related bacterial species Xenorhabdus nematophila, Yersinia pestis and Y. pseudotuberculosis make biofilms capable of adhering to the head of the model nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Y. pestis uses biofilms to block the digestive tract of its vector, the flea, in order to enhance its efficiency of transmission. I investigated the role of biofilms in X. nematophila and found that, like its Yersinia sp. counterparts, production of biofilm requires a four-gene operon: hmsHFRS. X. nematophila is an insect pathogen and an obligate symbiont of the nematode Steinernema carpocapsae. However, an X. nematophila hmsH mutant that failed to make biofilms on …

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Examining Pre-Service Instructors' Use Of Powerpoint Based On Pre-Service Students' Perceptions: A Mixed Methods Study, Jennifer Fritschi Jan 2008

Examining Pre-Service Instructors' Use Of Powerpoint Based On Pre-Service Students' Perceptions: A Mixed Methods Study, Jennifer Fritschi

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This study explored pre-service instructors’ use of PowerPoint based on pre-service students’ perceptions, and it identified pre-service students’ perceptions of the efficacy of specific elements of PowerPoint design and delivery. The effectiveness of various elements of PowerPoint design and delivery was based on an extensive literature review and was framed on the Cognitive Theory of Multimedia (Mayer, 2000). The findings of the study identified pre-service instructors’ practices and pre-service students’ perceptions of the effectiveness of specific elements of design and delivery and were then compared with what research and expert literature purported were effective. This one year study was conducted …

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Role Of The Gm/Gn Glycoprotein Complex In The Final Assembly And Egress Of The Human Cytomegalovirus (Hcmv), Magdalena Anna Krzyzaniak Jan 2008

Role Of The Gm/Gn Glycoprotein Complex In The Final Assembly And Egress Of The Human Cytomegalovirus (Hcmv), Magdalena Anna Krzyzaniak

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HCMV consists of a dsDNA genome enclosed by, an icosahedral capsid surrounded by a layer of tegument proteins; the virion structure is enclosed in a lipid envelope rich in virus expressed glycoproteins. The HCMV envelope contains an incompletely defined number of glycoproteins. The glycoprotein M (gM) and glycoprotein N (gN) form a gM/gN protein complex which is the most abundant protein component of the HCMV envelope. Recent studies have indicated that deletion of the viral gene encoding either gM or gN is lethal for HCMV. The gM C-terminal cytoplasmic tail (gM-CT) revealed an acidic cluster and a tyrosine-based trafficking motifs. …

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English Oral Language Usage Of Caregivers In Selected Orphanages Of Eastern India: A Phenomenological Study, Constance Diane Lawrence Jan 2008

English Oral Language Usage Of Caregivers In Selected Orphanages Of Eastern India: A Phenomenological Study, Constance Diane Lawrence

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The purpose of this research was to determine the situation and frequency of the use of English oral language by caregivers with young children who are orphaned. Two orphan centers in the state of West Bengal, India were chosen for this study. Interviews and observations of caregivers were used to determine the caregivers’ self-perceptions of their own fluency in English and the amount of English utilized by the caregivers with children in the orphan centers. A total of twelve caregivers participated in this study. Seven caregivers, three full-time and four part-time, three females and four males, participated at Center One. …

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Punctal Occlusion Impact On Tear Film Immuno-Regulatory Proteins Measured By Cytometric Bead-Based Assay, Martin W. Lafrance Jan 2008

Punctal Occlusion Impact On Tear Film Immuno-Regulatory Proteins Measured By Cytometric Bead-Based Assay, Martin W. Lafrance

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PURPOSE: This study compares vendor reagents used for cytometric bead-based assay (CBA) of cytokines in human tears and validates a protocol for use in evaluating punctal occlusion, a treatment for keratoconjunctivitis sicca. It has been proposed that punctal occlusion may alter tear cytokine concentrations based on the facts that: (1) tear clearance, a measure of the balance between tear production and elimination, declines following occlusion and (2) reduced tear clearance and increased levels of pro-inflammatory tear cytokines are correlated in dry eye patients. This study compares tear clearance values and the level of 24 tear cytokines measured by CBA following …

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