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The Role Of The Glycerol Metabolism Regulator Glpr On Pseudomonas Aeruginosa’S Physiology, Nicholas Jordan Evans Sep 2025

The Role Of The Glycerol Metabolism Regulator Glpr On Pseudomonas Aeruginosa’S Physiology, Nicholas Jordan Evans

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Chronic infections with Pseudomonas aeruginosa are a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in people with cystic fibrosis. P. aeruginosa persists in the CF lung through adaptations, including altering the expression of metabolic genes to acquire nutrients that are abundant in the CF airway. Glycerol in the airway is imported and metabolized by proteins encoded in the glp regulon, which is regulated in part by GlpR. The loss of GlpR was previously shown to increase biofilm development in a P. aeruginosa CF isolate compared to a wound isolate. In the first half of this work, we investigated the influence that …

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Investigating The Role Of Fibroblast Growth Factor Signaling In The Cystic Fibrosis Airways, Meghan June Hirsch Sep 2025

Investigating The Role Of Fibroblast Growth Factor Signaling In The Cystic Fibrosis Airways, Meghan June Hirsch

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Cystic fibrosis (CF) is an autosomal recessive disorder caused by mutations in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene which results in complications in organs such as the lung, pancreas, liver, and intestines. In the lung, defective CFTR results in thick, sticky mucus that causes susceptibility to colonization of opportunistic pathogens such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA), progressive lung damage, and ultimately a decrease in life expectancy in affected individuals depending on severity of disease. Additionally, one of the characteristics of this disease, with and without PA infection, is chronic inflammation. Chronic inflammation has also been associated with accelerated aging …

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A Short Trip: A Mixed Methods Investigation Of The Perceived Effects Of Vaporized Dmt Vs Vaporized 5-Meo-Dmt, Cynthia Estrella Ortiz Sep 2025

A Short Trip: A Mixed Methods Investigation Of The Perceived Effects Of Vaporized Dmt Vs Vaporized 5-Meo-Dmt, Cynthia Estrella Ortiz

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The rise in psychedelic use has been accompanied by increased interest in alternative routes of administration, including vaporization. However, little is known about the characteristics and outcomes associated with vaporized forms of N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT). This mixed-methods study examined the subjective experiences and mental health correlates of individuals who reported using vaporized DMT, vaporized 5-MeO-DMT, or psilocybin mushrooms in the past six months. A total of 209 adults completed an online survey assessing demographic variables, substance use, and psychological functioning, including measures of global health (PROMIS), subjective happiness, magical ideation, spiritual connection, psychosis-like experiences (CAPE-42), and hypomanic symptoms. …

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Mcl1 And Hexokinase 2 Form A Glucose Metabolic Regulatory Axis, Robert Lee Sep 2025

Mcl1 And Hexokinase 2 Form A Glucose Metabolic Regulatory Axis, Robert Lee

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Hexokinase 2 (HK2) initiates glucose metabolism by catalyzing the conversion of glucose to glucose-6-phosphate providing the starting substrate for a vast array of metabolic pathways such as glycolysis, pentose phosphate pathway (PPP), amino acid biosynthesis and others. While HK2’s metabolic role in normal physiologic function (such as in cardiomyocytes) and cancers (through driving the Warburg Effect) are well established, there is emerging evidence that supports HK2 is also a critical mediator of protein-protein interactions that regulate cell survival. Through comprehensive review, we explore how HK2 contributes to cell survival through metabolic and protein scaffolding roles. We also investigate a novel …

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Analysis Of Telomeric Conformational Dynamics At The Single Molecule Level, Arianna Lacen Sep 2025

Analysis Of Telomeric Conformational Dynamics At The Single Molecule Level, Arianna Lacen

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In eukaryotes, the telomere serves as a safeguard against DNA damage and loss during replication and other events. To do so, telomeric DNA folds into a variety of protective secondary and tertiary structures whose formation and conformational dynamics have not been well characterized. We have identified a slow conformational rearrangement in telomeric single stranded DNA that results in a G-Quadruplex (G4) that cannot be unfolded by a complementary strand. We have also determined how the accessibility of G4 forming sequences changes in response to different high K+ environments, which may have implications on how the nascent telomeric overhang interacts with …

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The Eco-Evolutionary Consequences Of Spatial Patterning Of Macroalgal Life Cycle Stages And Reproductive Mode Variation, Alexis Oetterer Sep 2025

The Eco-Evolutionary Consequences Of Spatial Patterning Of Macroalgal Life Cycle Stages And Reproductive Mode Variation, Alexis Oetterer

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Haploid-diploid life cycles offer valuable insight into the evolution of sex and ploidy cycling, but empirical research has largely focused on diploid-dominant taxa, such as angiosperms. Expanding empirical studies to include a broader range of eukaryotic diversity is critical to ultimately understand responses to climate change. This dissertation addresses gaps in our understanding of macroalgal reproductive modes by examining macroalgae Gracilaria vermiculophylla and Ulva spp. along the Delmarva Peninsula. To understand how hard and soft bottom habitats have structured genetic diversity and reproductive modes in Gracilaria vermiculophylla and how these habitats have shaped colonization of this area, we used nine …

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Interactions Between Staphylococcus Aureus And Corynebacterium Species In The Context Of Chronic Rhinosinusitis, Joshua Tucker Huffines Sep 2025

Interactions Between Staphylococcus Aureus And Corynebacterium Species In The Context Of Chronic Rhinosinusitis, Joshua Tucker Huffines

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Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is a complex inflammatory disease affecting the upper respiratory tract (URT) for a large portion of the populace, leading to significant economic burdens. Staphylococcus aureus is considered as a significant contributor to CRS inflammation through the production of toxins regulated through quorum sensing (QS). Microbiome studies have characterized the microbial communities present in the healthy URT and in CRS. These studies show that the genus Corynebacterium is associated with the healthy URT, decreased in CRS, and has a negative correlation with S. aureus regardless of health status. A few studies have partially characterized a mechanism to explain …

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Compartmentalized Antigen Presentation By Intestinal Epithelial Cells Directs Cd4 T Cell Fate, Christopher Garrett Wilson Sep 2025

Compartmentalized Antigen Presentation By Intestinal Epithelial Cells Directs Cd4 T Cell Fate, Christopher Garrett Wilson

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The intestinal epithelium maintains a complex relationship with both commensal microbiota and enteric pathogens while orchestrating local immune responses. Although intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) can express MHC class II molecules during inflammation, their functional contribution to pathogen-specific adaptive immunity and immunological memory remains poorly defined. This dissertation investigates the hypothesis that IECs actively shape CD4+ T cell responses through antigen presentation, using Citrobacter rodentium infection as a physiologically relevant model of human attaching and effacing bacterial pathogens. The C. rodentium model offers unique advantages for dissecting epithelial-immune interactions: it naturally infects mice through oral inoculation, exhibits precise anatomical tropism for …

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Modeling The Basal Ganglia Network Using Leaky Integrate-And-Fire Neurons To Explore Its Role In Facilitating Purposive Saccades, Saarth Anjali Chitale Sep 2025

Modeling The Basal Ganglia Network Using Leaky Integrate-And-Fire Neurons To Explore Its Role In Facilitating Purposive Saccades, Saarth Anjali Chitale

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Saccadic eye movements provide a well-defined behavioral readout for investigating how the basal ganglia (BG) contribute to action selection. While saccades are controlled by multiple brain regions, including direct excitatory inputs from various cortices, the BG exerts a key inhibitory influence. Decades of experimental work using saccadic behavioral paradigms in non-human primates have yielded important insights into the activity of BG populations. These include the caudate nucleus, subthalamic nucleus, globus pallidus externus, and substantia nigra pars reticulata, as well as dopaminergic afferents from the substantia nigra pars compacta and efferent projections to the superior colliculus, which controls eye movements. Despite …

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Virulence Factors And Their Binding Partners: A Biochemical Study, Morgan E. Blake Sep 2025

Virulence Factors And Their Binding Partners: A Biochemical Study, Morgan E. Blake

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Virulence factors are an important mechanism by which viruses combat the host immune system, therefore a thorough understanding of the workings of these proteins will be of significant value in prevention of disease associated with viral infections. In this dissertation we investigate the main virulence factors of two viruses, the Influenza A Virus (IAV) and SARS-CoV-2, and their interactions with host proteins, providing critical information for structure-based drug design. In chapter one we studied the nonstructural protein 1 (NS1) of IAV and its interaction with the 30-kda subunit of the cleavage and polyadenylation specificity factor (CPSF30) to inhibit host cell …

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Amygdala Npy+ Interneurons Are Activated By Aversive Stim-Uli, Patric Perez Sep 2025

Amygdala Npy+ Interneurons Are Activated By Aversive Stim-Uli, Patric Perez

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Neuropeptide Y (NPY) serves as a critical endogenous anxiolytic and stress-buffering molecule, yet the temporal and spatial dynamics of NPY+ cells during fear learning re-main unknown. Temporal dynamics can be measured with in vivo calcium imaging tech-niques, which enable real-time monitoring of cell-type-specific neural activity in freely behaving animals. Snapshots of neuronal activation can be measured using c-Fos im-munohistochemistry, thereby providing excellent spatial resolution. Here, I employ cut-ting-edge approaches to characterize the temporal and spatial activation patterns of NPY+ cells in amygdala, a key fear-regulating brain region negatively impacted by aversive events. I first used in vivo fiber photometry, together …

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Standardizing Sea Urchin Husbandry: Tank Effects, Gamete Production, And Co-Culture, Raven Amber Edwards Sep 2025

Standardizing Sea Urchin Husbandry: Tank Effects, Gamete Production, And Co-Culture, Raven Amber Edwards

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This dissertation seeks to further knowledge of sea urchin husbandry in three major areas that have so far not been investigated substantially: optimal conditions for housing sea urchins in a lab-based recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS), impacts of repetitive spawning regimens on reproductive output, and co-culture utilizing juvenile oysters. All studies utilize a commercial recirculating aquaculture system that is relatively novel for culturing sea urchins. The first chapter investigated the influence of housing conditions on sea urchin growth outcomes. Under the conditions of this study, the size of the tank showed limited influence on growth; however, stocking density was found to …

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Structural And Functional Investigation Of The Influenza Nuclear Export Protein, Andrew James Staup Sep 2025

Structural And Functional Investigation Of The Influenza Nuclear Export Protein, Andrew James Staup

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The influenza A nuclear export protein (NEP) is a multi-functional protein that mediates the export of progeny viral ribonucleoprotein (vRNP) complexes from the host nucleus, regulates the activity of the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp), and is implicated in zoonosis. It is therefore critical to understand the mechanisms of NEP’s functions at the molecular level to inform its roles in the viral lifecycle and influenza zoonosis. In this dissertation, we report the structure of NEP in complex with the host nuclear export holo-complex as well as investigate the biophysical effects of the adaptive M16I mutation on NEP. We solved the cryo-electron …

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Access To Care, Structural Barriers, And Recovery Identity In Mental Health And Substance Use Disorder Treatment, Yahya Alnashri Sep 2025

Access To Care, Structural Barriers, And Recovery Identity In Mental Health And Substance Use Disorder Treatment, Yahya Alnashri

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Substance use disorders (SUDs) remain one of the most pressing public health and economic challenges in the United States, with growing recognition that recovery is a multidimensional process shaped by clinical, social, and structural factors. This dissertation explores recovery at the levels of health policy, population, and experiential levels to assess gaps in access to recovery support services, identify patterns and predictors of recovery identity, and highlight the lived experiences of individuals with opioid use disorder. First, we evaluated whether state Medicaid expansion under the ACA (2010–2019) was associated with changes in the availability of consumer-run peer support services in …

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Pao Induces Er Stress In Endothelial Cells Leading To Barrier Function Dysfunction And Inhibition Of Brd4 Prevents Lewisite-Induced Peribronchial Fibrosis, Huaxiu Zeng Sep 2025

Pao Induces Er Stress In Endothelial Cells Leading To Barrier Function Dysfunction And Inhibition Of Brd4 Prevents Lewisite-Induced Peribronchial Fibrosis, Huaxiu Zeng

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Arsenicals are members of one of the most important global environmental vesicants and are a persistent bio accumulative carcinogen. One of the vesicants and chemical warfare agents is lewisite, which causes lung injury with pulmonary edema, hemorrhage, and respiratory failure. A single cutaneous exposure to lewisite in mice induces systemic lung injury through arsenical-mediated mechanisms. Some subjects develop Bronchiolitis Obliterans Syndrome (BOS) where there is evidence of airway dysfunction and pathologic narrowing of the airways with extracellular protein deposition and fibroblast invasion. In vitro for human lung endothelial cells, Phenyl arsine Oxide (PAO) exposure, as surrogate of lewisite, leads to …

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Leveraging Computational Modelling/Simulation, Machine Learning, And Additive Manufacturing For Customized Design Of Periodontal And Bone Tissue Scaffolds, Rakesh Pemmada Sep 2025

Leveraging Computational Modelling/Simulation, Machine Learning, And Additive Manufacturing For Customized Design Of Periodontal And Bone Tissue Scaffolds, Rakesh Pemmada

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The current dissertation presents an overarching pipeline for the development and production of custom-made scaffolds for periodontal tissue regeneration using finite element analysis (FEA), machine learning (ML), and additive manufacturing (AM).CAD anatomically realistic scaffolds were generated from CT-based maxilla and mandible models. The FEA simulation results under masticatory (100 N), parafunctional (500–550 N), and traumatic (800–850 N) loads showed region-specific distribution of stresses and strains, which guided structural reinforcement strategies. Over 1000 3D-printed PCL scaffolds were printed using various pore diameters (200–300 µm) and filament diameters. Five ML models were constructed for predicting print quality based on process factors. Classification …

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Proteasome Augmentation Is Protective Against Alzheimer’S Disease And Agerelated Cognitive Decline, Kanisa Davidson Sep 2025

Proteasome Augmentation Is Protective Against Alzheimer’S Disease And Agerelated Cognitive Decline, Kanisa Davidson

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Proteostasis is essential for the degradation of oxidized, misfolded proteins and proper function of neuronal plasticity. Proteasome inhibition has been shown to exacerbate cognitive and behavioral deficits in aging and Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) models. Proteasomal activity is decreased across human and animal models of AD. We hypothesize that aging and AD markers, β-amyloid and/or hyperphosphorylated tau, impair proteasome function, thereby preventing the proteasome’s capacity to degrade critical synaptic proteins essential for memory formation. We investigated the role of pharmacological and genetic augmentation on proteasomal function, to rescue aging and AD-like cognitive deficits in cell culture, Drosophila, and mice. We demonstrate …

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Promoting Mental Health And Social-Emotional Development In Underserved Families, Brianna Paquette Sep 2025

Promoting Mental Health And Social-Emotional Development In Underserved Families, Brianna Paquette

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The overarching goal of this dissertation was to investigate interventions that aimed to support mental health and child development in underserved families. Individuals from low-income households often experience mental health difficulties, such as higher rates of caregiver depression. Additionally, children from disadvantaged backgrounds are more likely to face difficulties with social and emotional development. This dissertation is comprised of three papers exploring interventions to facilitate child development and well-being in low-income families. The first paper is a systematic review and meta-analysis on home visiting interventions aimed at supporting the social-emotional development of children from birth to five years of age. …

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Strength Of Self-Adhesive Resin Cements To Shortened Zirconia Crowns With And Without An Additional Coat Of Adhesive, Abraham John Sep 2025

Strength Of Self-Adhesive Resin Cements To Shortened Zirconia Crowns With And Without An Additional Coat Of Adhesive, Abraham John

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Self-adhesive cements have gained popularity due to their ease of manipulation as they do not require a separate etch, primer, or bonding agent to bond to the tooth or crown surfaces. However, the use of an adhesive bonding agent with a self-adhesive resin cement has been claimed to improve its bond strength. The objective of this study is to compare the retention bond strength of 2 self-adhesive cements on to the tooth surface with and without the use of bonding agents with a known control. Materials and Methods: A total of 50 extracted non-carious second premolar teeth were collected. The …

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Psychedelics And Psychosis: An Interdisciplinary Re-Examination, Haley Maria Dourron Sep 2025

Psychedelics And Psychosis: An Interdisciplinary Re-Examination, Haley Maria Dourron

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Psychedelics have long been described as potential drug models of psychosis. There is also concern that psychedelics might worsen psychotic symptoms in individuals with a history of psychotic disorders. This dissertation examines the overlap between psychedelic-induced states and non-affective psychotic disorders (NAPD) from both subjective and neurological perspectives, as well as the perceived impact of psychedelic use in people with a history of NAPD. Nineteen people with a history of NAPD who had used psychedelics were interviewed about their experiences. Participants generally described psychedelic and psychotic experiences as distinct, though both affected similar experiential domains, such as sensory alterations. Altered …

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Murder On The Axonal Express: Synucleinopathy Disruption Of 14-3-3 Protein-Protein Interactions Impairs Axonal Trafficking, Frank Sanders Pair Sep 2025

Murder On The Axonal Express: Synucleinopathy Disruption Of 14-3-3 Protein-Protein Interactions Impairs Axonal Trafficking, Frank Sanders Pair

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14-3-3s are a family of proteins highly expressed in the brain. These proteins exert their functions mainly through protein-protein interactions (PPIs) and have thousands of binding partners. 14-3-3s have been shown to be present in pro-teinaceous aggregates of alpha-synuclein (αsyn), a pathological hallmark of synucleinopathies. This includes such diseases as Parkinson’s Disease (PD) and Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB). 14-3-3 proteins, particularly the 14-3-3θ isoform, have been shown to be protective in multiple synucleinopathy models. However, reduced soluble levels of 14-3-3s and increased phosphorylation of 14-3-3θ at S232 observed in synucleinopathies like DLB may impair their protec-tive ability, potentially due …

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Air Pollution And Environmental Injustice Are Related To Respiratory Complications In Individuals With Sickle Cell Disease, Kelsey M. Maclin Sep 2025

Air Pollution And Environmental Injustice Are Related To Respiratory Complications In Individuals With Sickle Cell Disease, Kelsey M. Maclin

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Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a genetically inherited blood disorder affecting people of African descent. SCD is characterized by painful episodes and an acute lung injury known as acute chest syndrome (ACS). Patients with SCD have a life expectancy <19 years compared to Blacks without SCD. There is minimal research investigating air pollution and health complications in SCD. The aims of this research were to investigate whether pulmonary function is affected by exposure to ambient air pollution, whether higher air pollution concentrations are associated with hospitalizations for ACS, and whether environmental injustice impacts the respiratory health of children and young adults with SCD. Air pollution data on the criteria air pollutants (CAPs) was obtained from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Patient health data were obtained from Children’s Hospital of Alabama electronic medical records. Logistic regression, distributed lag non-linear regression, Granger Causality, and Getis-Ord Gi* hot spot analysis were used to analyze our data. The EPA’s EJScreen tool was used as a measure of exposure to environmental injustice. ArcGIS was used to map the EJScreen data. Exposure to short-term air pollution is significantly associated with a reduction in pulmonary function in children and young adults with SCD. Children and young adults exposed to a one-unit increase in the monthly average concentrations of sulfur dioxide (SO2) experienced an increase in the odds of having abnormal pulmonary function. We observed the trends of each criteria air pollutant in our study to be closely aligned with the trends in the hospitalizations for ACS. Most of our study participants with a history of ACS lived in areas burdened by greater environmental injustices. Specifically, the hot spots for ACS overlapped with the hot spots for PM2.5. Unequal exposure to environmental injustices leads to increases in hospitalizations for respiratory complications in individuals with SCD. Reductions in air pollution could be greatly beneficial to the pulmonary function and overall respiratory health of individuals with SCD. Further research is needed to examine associations between air pollution and hospitalizations for ACS in individuals with SCD.

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Core Body Temperature (Cbt) Monitoring Among Groundskeepers Under Heat Stress, Lara Anne Parker Sep 2025

Core Body Temperature (Cbt) Monitoring Among Groundskeepers Under Heat Stress, Lara Anne Parker

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Heat is the leading cause of death for outdoor workers. In Alabama, there are an estimated 11,160 - 21,460 workers employed in the landscaping and groundskeeping industry, which are vulnerable to heat-related illnesses (HRI). In this study, core body temperature (CBT) and wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) index were examined as potential indicators of heat stress. A SlateSafety (SS) Band V2 wearable CBT device and a WBGT monitor were used to collect CBT and WBGT values, respectively. Sampling for the main two measurements was performed over five days for two participants. An additional CBT device option, the e-Celsius performance ingestible pill, …

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Origin And Differentiation Of Uterine Natural Killer Cells, Morgan Elizabeth-Carolyn Greene Sep 2025

Origin And Differentiation Of Uterine Natural Killer Cells, Morgan Elizabeth-Carolyn Greene

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Uterine natural killer (uNK) cells are specialized tissue-resident lymphocytes that are essential for successful pregnancy, yet the molecular pathways governing their development remain poorly defined. This knowledge gap hinders our ability to understand and treat immunological complications of pregnancy, such as recurrent pregnancy loss and pre-eclampsia. This dissertation addresses the fundamental question of how human uNK cells arise and differentiate, first within the non-pregnant endometrium and subsequently within the decidua of early pregnancy. Using single-cell RNA sequencing of matched human blood and endometrial samples, we first delineate the developmental trajectory of endometrial NK (eNK) cells. We demonstrate that eNK cells …

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An Analysis Of Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid Levels With Structural And Functional Connectivity In Antipsychotic Medication-Naïve First Episode Psychosis Patients, Genelle Dano Samson Sep 2025

An Analysis Of Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid Levels With Structural And Functional Connectivity In Antipsychotic Medication-Naïve First Episode Psychosis Patients, Genelle Dano Samson

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Schizophrenia is a complex psychiatric disorder characterized by hallucinations, delusions, disorganized thinking, and abnormalities in emotional expression, social interaction, and motivation. Cognitive deficits and alterations in perception are core features of psychosis spectrum disorders, though the neurobiological bases of these impairments are not thoroughly understood. Examination of the structures responsible for cognition, along with how their connectivity and neurochemistry are altered in psychosis, is crucial to understanding and treating schizophrenia. Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) is the primary inhibitory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system and plays a crucial role in the regulation of neuronal activity. Evidence from animal models and postmortem …

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Understanding The Roles Of Individual And Family-Based Resilience Resources And Mechanisms In Youth With Painful Disorders Of Gut-Brain Interaction, Corinne Taylor Evans Jun 2025

Understanding The Roles Of Individual And Family-Based Resilience Resources And Mechanisms In Youth With Painful Disorders Of Gut-Brain Interaction, Corinne Taylor Evans

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Background Children living with chronic pain are at risk for many negative physical and mental health consequences. However, certain positive attributes and factors can help lessen or prevent such consequences. Children with painful disorders of gut-brain interaction (DGBIs) experience deficits in social, emotional, and physical functioning. However, it is unknown whether a combination of individual and family-based resilience factors may lower these risks and contribute to improved physical and mental health responses. Methods 120 children with painful DGBIs were recruited from a pediatric gastroenterology clinic. Children and caregivers completed a series of questionnaires measuring individual and family-based resilience resources (e.g., …

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The Bone Is Not Alone: Skeletal Muscle Is A Novel Source Of Fibroblast Growth Factor 23, Kylie Heitman Jun 2025

The Bone Is Not Alone: Skeletal Muscle Is A Novel Source Of Fibroblast Growth Factor 23, Kylie Heitman

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Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a major public health issue often accompanied by various pathologies. Hyperphosphatemia contributes to a range of complications, including vascular calcification, systemic inflammation, anemia, left ventricular hypertrophy, and skeletal muscle atrophy. Phosphate homeostasis is tightly regulated through a combination of renal excretion and its storage in bones, with fibroblast growth factor (FGF) 23 playing a central role in this regulation. Produced primarily by osteocytes in response to elevated serum phosphate, FGF23 helps maintain phosphate balance by promoting renal phosphate excretion and inhibiting the synthesis of vitamin D and parathyroid hormone. Dysregulation of FGF23 is associated both …

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Antifungal Efficacy And Flexural Strength Of Silver Nanoparticles Reinforced Cad/Cam And Heat-Cured Pmma Polymers: An In-Vitro Study, Himanshi Aggarwal Jun 2025

Antifungal Efficacy And Flexural Strength Of Silver Nanoparticles Reinforced Cad/Cam And Heat-Cured Pmma Polymers: An In-Vitro Study, Himanshi Aggarwal

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Background: PMMA denture base resins have high propensity for C. albicans growth. Previous studies have found that silver nanoparticle (SNP) addition into conventional PMMA resin improves fungal resistance without interfering with its flexural strength. Recently, CAD/CAM dentures have become highly popular, but they are also prone to fungal in-growth. However, little is known about the effect of addition of silver nanoparticles in CAD/CAM printed PMMA resin material. Objective: To compare the effect of the addition of cytocompatible concentration (1 µm/ml) of SNP on the antifungal efficacy and flexural strength of CAD/CAM printed and heat-cured PMMA polymers. Materials and methods: A …

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Cardiac-Derived Fibroblast Growth Factor 23 Contributes To Physiologic And Pathologic Cardiac Remodeling, Isaac Daniel Campos Jun 2025

Cardiac-Derived Fibroblast Growth Factor 23 Contributes To Physiologic And Pathologic Cardiac Remodeling, Isaac Daniel Campos

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Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is a global health risk that increases patients’ risk for premature mortality and is accompanied by pathologic cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis. Declining kidney function results in elevations of serum phosphate and Fibroblast Growth Factor (FGF) 23, a bone-derived phosphaturic hormone. Hyperphosphatemia and elevated FGF23 are associated with cardiovascular mortality in CKD. FGF23 can directly target cardiac myocytes via FGF Receptor (FGFR) 4 and induce cardiac hypertrophy and blocking FGFR4 signaling in CKD models reduces cardiac hypertrophy, but not fibrosis. FGF23 elevations are also observed following exercise and during pregnancy, two scenarios of physiologic hypertrophy not associated …

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Experiences Of Discrimination And Neighborhood Cohesion In Risk Of Poor Mental Health Outcomes Among Older, Community-Dwelling Participants In The Regards Study, Marquita S. Brooks Jun 2025

Experiences Of Discrimination And Neighborhood Cohesion In Risk Of Poor Mental Health Outcomes Among Older, Community-Dwelling Participants In The Regards Study, Marquita S. Brooks

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Mental health disorders impact approximately 14% of persons aged 65 and older and often are undertreated or underrecognized. Assessment of factors that link environmental, sociocultural, behavioral, and biological factors to overall health and disease is integral to guiding research on health disparities in older populations. Although research suggests associations between environmental factors (i.e., discrimination and neighborhood cohesion) and mental health outcomes, there is limited research on these factors within the U.S. Therefore, our study assessed the relationship between discrimination, neighborhood cohesion, and mental health outcomes in the REasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) study, a national, prospective …

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