Digital Commons Network^™

Impact Of Gums On The Growth, Viability, And Enzyme Activity Of Lactobacillus Species, Bernice D. Karlton-Senaye

Dissertations

This study investigated the impact of ten selected gums (carrageenan, carrageenan-maltodextrin, guar, locust bean, pectin, pectin- dextrose, pectin-carrageenan, guar-locust bean-carrageenan, inulin, and xanthan) on the growth of eight Lactobacillus strains in laboratory media. The bacterial population for eight Lactobacillus strains was determined in modified basal media at different concentration (0%, 0.25% and 0.5% w/v) of gums stored up to 12 hours at 37 °C. Findings show significant differences (p < 0.05) between the treated and control sample. Guar was found to be the best gum to enhance growth of L. rhamnosus GG B101, L. rhamnosus GG B101, L. delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus SD35, L. delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus SD33, L. acidophilus SD 16, L. acidophilus EF7, L. reuteri DSM20016, L. reuteri CF2-2F during 12 hours of storage at 37 C in laboratory media. The population of L. rhamnosus GGB101 in the samples containing gums were significantly (p < 0.05) higher than the control without gums. Samples containing 0.5% gums showed slightly higher bacterial population than those with 0.25% of gum. A minimum of 12 hour of incubation period was shown to be adequate to reach a bacterial population of 6 log CFU/mL in the presence of gums. Addition of guar (0.5%) led to the highest (1.31 log CFU/mL) increase in population of the treated L. rhamnosus GGB101 over the control. There was no marked (p < 0.05) change in pH and titratable acidity. Four different gums (carrageenan, carrageenan-maltodextrin, pectin-carrageenan, guar-locust bean-carrageenan) were selected to determine the effect on the growth, viability and betagalactosidase activity of four selected Lactobacillus strains (L. rhamnosus GG B101, L. rhamnosus GG B101, L. reuteri DSM20016, L. reuteri CF2-2F). Effect of the four selected gums on thegrowth L. rhamnosus GG B101, L. rhamnosus GG B101, L. reuteri DSM20016 in milk were compared to those in modified basal media. Results showed that xanthan induced highest growth of L. rhamnosus GG B103, L. rhamnosus GG B101 in milk whereas carrageenanmaltodextrin led to highest growth of L. reuteri DSM 20016 in the media. Marked differences (p < 0.05) in viability were observed between milk samples containing gums and the control. The presence of carrageenan-maltodextrin led to the highest viable counts (8.76 ± 0.03 log CFU/mL) of L. rhamnosus GGB103 during storage. The average population of L. rhamnosus GGB101 and Lactobacillus rhamnosus GGB103 was 8 log CFU/mL, whereas that of Lactobacillus reuteri DSM20016 and Lactobacillus reuteri SD2112 decreased slightly ( 0.15-0.64 log CFU/mL) to 7 log CFU/mL during the storage period. Viable counts were retained at 7-8 log CFU with no significant difference in the control versus treated strains except in the presence of carrageenanmaltodex. Guar-locust bean-carrageenan led to significant (p < 0.05) highest levels of β-gal activity of L. rhamnosus GGB103 (1287 ± 4.24 Miller units/ mL) compared to the control (78 ± 2.83 Miller units/ mL). L. rhamnosus GG B101and L. rhamnosus GG B103 were the best strains to attain enhanced levels of β-galactosidase activity. This shows that the inclusion of carrageenan-maltodextrin and guar-locust bean-carrageenan in milk could improve growth, viability and achieve an enhanced level of β-galactosidase activity in L. rhamnosus GG B101 and L. rhamnosus GG B103. The information gleaned from this study could be used in the food industry to improve the quality of probiotic functional foods and thereby contribute to the alleviation of lactose malabsorption.

Documenting The Experiences And Perceptions Of Youth Participants In The Shelton Leadership Challenge Program, Kimberly E. Ingold

Dissertations

This ethnographic case study (Flyvbjerg, 2011) drew on intensive participant observation, interviewing, and analysis of archival materials, to document the experiences and perspectives of high school and college age participants in the Shelton Challenge, a summer camp designed to inspire and scaffold values-based, transformative leadership. This study focused in particular on youth reports of the impact of the Shelton Challenge experience on their use of reflection, critical thinking, and values in decision-making. Purposeful sampling (Creswell, 2009) across 13 high school and 4 college students ages 14-19, allowed depiction of differently-positioned informant perspectives. Participant observation (Hammersley & Atkinson, 2009); fieldnotes (Emerson, …

Perception Analytics Of An In-Depth Observational Analysis Of 6th Grade African American Male Students' Personal Agency, Devetta Holman Nash

Dissertations

Existing scholarship on self-concept and its relevance to personal agency in the classroom does not incorporate the lived experiences of African American middle school boys. Today, in the United States, only 10% of 8th grade African American boys can read proficiently (Holzman, 2011). This research study investigates the perceptions of seventeen middle school African American males' classroom experiences to determine factors that contribute to their classroom engagement and personal agency. The study also illustrates that there is a significant need for greater self-identity and self-concept within the learning environment, which allows African American male students to self–actualize their sense of …

The Rate And Process Of Mangrove Forest Expansion On Above- And Belowground Carbon Relations In Coastal Louisiana, Hai Thanh Pham

Dissertations

Global climate change is a major environmental threat to natural and cultural resources in low-lying coastal zones and deltas worldwide. It is expected to have a significant effect on the development of coastal wetlands by changing species range expansion. In fact, recent studies have shown that there has been an increasing mangrove encroachment poleward in the Southern and Northern Hemispheres into temperate saltmarsh zones due to the lack of freeze events. This phenomenon could have a critical impact on the structure and function of tidal wetlands at critical latitudes, especially in carbon sequestration, since mangroves are thought to sequester more …

Doctoral Students Mentoring Experiences And Their Perceptions Of The Impact On Research Behaviors: A Focus On Historically Black Colleges And Universities, Nadielka D. Bishop

Dissertations

Studies report that mentoring has a positive correlation with research development of doctoral students in higher education. Ten percent of Black doctoral degree recipients receive their education at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Therefore, research mentoring at HBCUs should be examined. Understanding these environments can ensure diversity in higher education mentoring, tenured faculty positions, and research funding opportunities. This qualitative case study seeks to collect the research mentoring experiences reported by doctoral students at two HBCUs in the state of North Carolina and to report their perceptions of these experiences for characteristics relative to ten elements of Research Training …

Direct Writing Of Polymeric Coatings For Corrosion Control And Tunable Release Of Bioactive Materials, Eben Adarkwa

Dissertations

The interface between a medical device and its surrounding tissue can be critical to biocompatibility, performance and therapeutic effectiveness. Careful choice and application of materials at this interface is therefore a key to the success of any medical device. This research employed a novel direct-write inkjet printing technique for polymeric surface modification of bioresorbable AZ31 Mg alloy towards corrosion control and tunable release of bioactive agents. In the first phase of this research, the direct-write inkjet printing technique was successfully used to fabricate thin films of different blends of poly (ester-urethane) urea embedded with taxol coatings on mechanically polished AZ31 …

The Correlation Between The Geographical Region Of A High School And The Enrollment Ratio Of Males To Females In Accelerated College-Preparatory Level Mathematics Courses, Mary Anne Latragna

Dissertations

Females, in this modern age of feminism, have excelled in all fields of study and graduate from college in larger numbers than males. However, few women go into the STEM fields (Hill, Corbett, & St. Rose, 2010). To close this gap in mathematics-related fields, it is paramount that high schools produce female students who are advanced in Mathematics. The problem was the underrepresentation of females in mathematical fields of study, with a more pressing issue of underrepresentation of females in college preparatory mathematics classes at the high school level. The purpose of this study was to determine if the geographical …

Coronavirus Proteases As Therapeutic Targets: Development Of Biosensors To Detect Inhibition Of Protease Activity And Separation Of The Multiple Functions Of Coronavirus Papain-Like Proteases, Andrew Kilianski

Dissertations

Coronaviruses are important human pathogens and have the potential to severely impact public health on an international scale. The emergence of SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV highlight the need for research to identify antivirals and vaccines against coronaviruses. To develop therapeutics against current and potentially emergent coronaviruses, I utilized two approaches targeting the proteases encoded within all coronaviruses. The papain-like protease and 3C-like protease of coronaviruses are responsible for cleaving viral polyproteins early during infection, and this step is required for viral replication. To quantitatively assess the inhibition by small-molecule compounds on MERS-CoV protease activity, I developed a luciferase-based biosensor to monitor …

The Restorative Justice Talking Circle Process With Probation Officers: A Phenomenological Approach, Constance Marie Sheehan

Dissertations

Restorative justice seeks to bring together stakeholders in the justice system by acknowledging harm caused by offending behavior and finding ways to repair that harm. The activities associated with restorative justice create the potential for meaningful and positive outcomes for all stakeholders within the system. Restorative justice asks, what is the harm?, who are the stakeholders?, and, how can the harm best be repaired? A particular restorative practice - the talking circle - is a common practice of restorative justice efforts. The potential for restorative justice practices, like the talking circle, is developing of a new way of understanding for …

Portraits Of Successful Thai English Teachers: An Exploration Of Teaching Journeys, Denchai Prabjandee

Dissertations

This study is an exploration of the journey to becoming a Thai English teacher. Guided by narrative epistemology and by utilizing the theoretical lens of goodness, I employed life story interviews, classroom observations, photo-elicitations, shadowing techniques, and artifacts to collect the data necessary for this study. The teachers were recruited through the combination of a principal’s suggestion, a department head’s recommendation, a teacher’s reference, and their willingness to participate in the study. The data were analyzed by using the portraiture methods and the Zoom model. The data revealed that the journey to becoming an English teacher for each participant was …

Wheel Of Innovation : How Leaders' Attitudes And Behaviors Drive Disruptive Technology In The U.S. Navy, Eddy Wayne Witzel

Dissertations

Problem and Purpose

Innovative solutions in national defense are needed to respond to national security threats in our uncertain environment. Leader attitudes and behaviors have a substantial impact on innovation. Unfortunately we did not completely understand the effect of leader attitudes and behaviors on innovation and the team dynamics that lead to innovation, especially in the military. The purpose of this study was to determine how leadership attitudes and behaviors contribute to product innovation within the U.S. Navy and how leadership emerges within this complex adaptive system of innovation.

Method

The research was a qualitative design based on a multiple …

Effects Of Cultural Awareness Training In Conjunction With An Established Bullying Prevention Program, Megan Kallie Polanin

Dissertations

While many school bullying prevention programs have been designed to thwart school bullying perpetration, victimization, and physical aggression, empirical support is limited. To date, few researchers have addressed bullying within the context of children's cultural systems, and cultural awareness training has not yet been utilized as a mechanism to decrease bullying behaviors in the context of school bullying prevention programs.

This study examined the utility of incorporating multicultural training aimed at reducing prejudice within the context of school bullying prevention programming efforts within a diverse educational setting. This researcher hypothesized that the addition of meaningful culture curriculum would further reduce …

Evaluation Of A Conceptual Model Of Student Retention At A Public Urban Commuter University, Hoa Khuong

Dissertations

A new conceptual model of student retention was developed and evaluated for first-year retention and for second-year retention of students at an urban, mid-western commuter university. The model captured the joint effects of academic engagement and environmental factors on academic performance and persistence of commuter students in their first two years of college attendance. The academic engagement and environmental factors incorporated into the model included: pre-college academic achievement, Deep Learning, Study Time per Week, College Math Readiness, Major Selection, Hours of Employment, receiving (or not receiving) a Pell Grant Award and Financial Concerns. Structural equation modeling techniques were utilized to …

Regulation And Targeting Of Fyn In Human Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma, Sarah Fenton

Dissertations

Fyn, a member of the Src family kinases, is an oncogene in murine epidermis and is associated with cell-cell adhesion turnover and migration. Introduction of active H-Ras(G12V) into the HaCaT human keratinocyte cell line resulted in upregulation of FYN mRNA (200-fold) and protein, but did not increase the expression of other SFKs. We identified two nucleotides 74 bases upstream of the human FYN gene transcription start site as necessary for FYN upregulation in HaCaT-Ras cells. Further studies identified Lef-1 as the transcription factor most likely binding to this site and mediating FYN upregulation.

Transduction of active Ras or Fyn was …

Studying Team Effectiveness : A Longitudinal Study Of Variation And Associated Factors, Richard Mathias Suever Jr.

Dissertations

Teams have evolved from a means of accomplishing work to influencing how work is performed. The success of teams and organizations are linked; however, the literature suggests that teams are not achieving their maximum potential. Successful business strategies must enhance team effectiveness. This research investigated team effectiveness, defined as the combination of team health and team performance. The objective was to understand how team effectiveness varied over time and what factors influenced that variation. This research investigated the use of statistical process control methods to place observed variations in the proper context. Team effectiveness was measured by the Team Success …

The Relationship Between Role Conflict And Employee Retention In A Government Engineering Organization, Michelle C. La Duca

Dissertations

Retention of employees is a significant concern for employers. Vacancy rates and turnover in the workforce is disruptive and costly. As a result employers spend a great deal of money and time on policies and programs to improve retention. Previous research in this area has focused on linking motivation to retention. While there has been much success in this area of research, assessing motivation is difficult and actually motivating employees into staying has been elusive for managers. This study will assess the relationship of role value and role conflict as factors in employee retention. The hypothesis being tested is that …

Traveling Wave Solutions Of A Chemotaxis Model : Existence And Stability, Reem N. Albashaireh

Dissertations

In this dissertation, we investigate the existence and stability of traveling wave solutions of a chemotaxis model system, which consists of two reaction-diffusion equations, of which containing the chemotaxis term. We prove the existence of a family of traveling wave solutions, one for each wave speed c > c_* for some c_* > 0. Due to continuity of these wave solutions on c, they are unstable in the Banach space X := C ( R ̅) × C(R ̅), where C(R ̅) is the Banach space, equipped with the uniform norm, of all continuous functions U on R with both U(±∞) being …

Dynamics Of Shrub Fires Investigated Via Physics Based Modeling, Ambarish Dahale

Dissertations

A physics based model, capable of predicting fire spread through a multiphase porous media, is formulated and described in detail. The resulting governing equations of fluid dynamics, combustion, heat transfer and thermal degradation of solid fuel, are solved using discrete numerical methods. The burning of an isolated chamise (Adenostoma fasciculatum) shrub approximately 1 m in height, similar to previously reported experimental study, was investigated using this physics based model. Global quantities including burning time, total mass consumed, time history of mass loss rate and time to reach maximum mass loss rate are found to be in good agreement with experimental …

Status Quo Bias And Ambiguity Aversion In Engineers, Christopher L. Brown

Dissertations

Systems engineers routinely engage in exercises, such as a trade studies or Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis processes, to select the best among multiple options. Managers ideally assume that these processes are conducted in a manner that is strictly rational and repeatable. A cognitive bias leading to selection of a sub-optimal choice could then have significant consequences. Research has demonstrated a number of biases in the general population, but these have not been specifically studied in systems engineers. Two such biases are ambiguity aversion and status quo bias. A survey instrument was developed to test for ambiguity aversion and status quo …

The Effect Of Prosody Instruction On Reading Fluency And Comprehension Among Third-Grade Students, Tammy B. Overstreet

Dissertations

Problem

Many students are failing to become proficient readers with current instructional methods used in American schools. Students frequently make improvements in two of fluency’s dimensions, rate and accuracy, but these improvements have not consistently correlated to improvements in reading comprehension, which is the objective of reading. The automaticity plus prosody (APP) model was developed by this researcher from Topping’s deep processing fluency model to explain why teaching and assessing the multiple dimensions of fluency (rate, accuracy, and prosody) improve comprehension. The purpose of this study was to compare students in a private school in a small town in southwestern …

An Exploratory, Correlational, Self-Rater Study On Authentic Leadership Values Of Adventist Local Conference Chief Financial Officers In The United States, Juan R. Prestol-Puesán

Dissertations

The Problem

Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) local conference treasurers, or Chief Financial Officers, are trusted by church members to manage the finances of the church and provide financial leadership, yet the denomination does not know how treasurers develop their values and leadership capacity as financial administrators. This study examined how treasurers compare with the leadership values of morality, integrity, and fairness prevalent today in positive forms of leadership theories. It explores SDA treasurer or financial officer self-assessment with the rating that their team members provide, allowing us to know the authenticity of their values as leaders.

Method

This is a census …

John Bruce, Jr. : A Sixty-Nine Year Leadership Journey Throughout Change In The United States Army, Joseph Rakocy

Dissertations

Problem and Purpose

The U.S. Army has changed radically in the 68 years since World War II ended, from uniforms to vehicles, from weaponry to organizational changes. While still the Army, its workforce has changed greatly in gender, ethnic, and age composition. John Bruce, Jr. saw many of these changes during his 69-year career as both soldier and executive. How this leader responded to the changes in the U.S. Army over nearly seven decades was the problem I explored. The purpose of the study was to describe how 94-year-old John Bruce, senior executive at the U.S. Army’s Tank-automotive and Armaments …

Perceptions Of Leadership Characteristics Of Principals Who Influence Positive School Culture In A Midwest Adventist Union : A Qualitative Study, Evelyn P. Savory

Dissertations

Problem. Principals struggle to sustain a positive culture in their schools. Many studies have identified that principals play a key role in influencing the school culture. However, no known study has examined leadership characteristics of Adventist principals and their influence on positive school culture in Adventist schools.

Purpose. The purpose of this study was to understand and describe leadership characteristics of principals, who foster a positive culture in Adventist schools in a Midwest Seventh-day Adventist Union.

Method. This qualitative multiple-case study design was utilized to explore and describe the lived experiences of principals and key stakeholders, school board chairs, and …

Collaborative Leadership Roles In The Implementation Of Adventist Health Lifestyle: A Case Study Of The Chinese Union Mission, James Wu

Dissertations

Problem

Little is known about the roles of the institutional leader’s role in the collaborative implementation of the Adventist health lifestyle programs of the Chinese Union Mission of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Hong Kong and Taiwan. Such an understanding would provide clues regarding how collaborative leadership and the implementation of Adventist lifestyle programs meet the challenge of non-communicable diseases. According to the World Health Organization report, about 36 million people died in 2008 of non-communicable diseases, and the trend continues upward. Evidence-based research, such as the China Study and the Adventist Health Studies, provides a strong support for the …

Paramedic Professional And Leadership Development Using High-Fidelity Healthcare Simulation And Audiovisual Feedback : One Michigan Community College Case Study, Chester L. Dalski

Dissertations

Problem: Paramedic educators have a short time frame (840 didactic/laboratory plus 500 clinical/internship hours) and limited resources to prepare their students to have competent clinical skills, safe medical practice, and appropriate leadership and teamwork skills. New learning approaches including simulation, audiovisual feedback, and structured debriefing have been suggested as a way to meet this challenge within paramedic education. While some individual components have been studied, no study has examined these three technologies together in paramedic training programs. The overarching research question that guided this study was: What and how do paramedic students learn in a high-fidelity healthcare simulation program that …

Attitudes And Beliefs Of Seventh-Day Adventists Concerning Psychology, Counseling, And Mental Health Issues, Kristy Koeppe

Dissertations

Problem. As in the mainstream population, Adventists are dealing with a variety of mental health issues, and there has been no empirical research which explored their attitudes and beliefs concerning psychology, counseling, and mental health issues.

Method. A survey was used to collect data on beliefs about psychology, attitudes towards counseling, beliefs about mental health issues, and beliefs about medical care from a sample of 317 Adventist adults from the Illinois Conference. Data were also analyzed to understand the relationship between the independent variables—gender, utilization of psychological services, the Seventh-day Adventist’s degree of knowledge about the writings of Ellen G. …

Perceptions Of Seventh-Day Adventist Church Elders In Ghana And The United States On Servant Leadership And Culture: A Correlational Study, Appiah Kubi Kwarteng

Dissertations

Servant leadership has been discussed and described mostly in the North American context. Thus, there are concerns that this model of leadership may be culturally anchored in North American metaphors and thinking and may have limited universal applicability outside that context. In recent times, the Seventh-day Adventist Churchhas seen its membership swell mainly in non-Western areas such as Sub-Saharan Africa.

With the changes taking place in the church membership globally, and the challenges these changes impose on leadership, this study was pursued with a twofold purpose. One was to investigate the differences in the perceptions of elders of the Seventh-day …

Adventist Medical Mission In Botswana: Toward An Effective And Appropriate Model, Olaotse Obed Gabasiane

Dissertations

Since holistic health is central to Africans, they will seek it from all possible health-care systems that include (1) African traditional medicine, (2) Western-oriented medicine, (3) Christian medical mission, as well as (4) African Independent Churches (AICs) with emphasis on spiritual healing. However, at times this comes with negative consequences.

This research sought to understand why medicalpluralism exists in Botswana and the rest of southern Africa, and why it finds concurrent use by Africans; solutions can help Christian medical missions develop more effective and holistic ways to serve Africans. The research can also help Christian medical missionsunderstand how they can …

The Sin Against The Holy Spirit In The Writings Of G. C. Berkouwer And E. G. White: A Comparative Study And Ethical Implications, Michael Davey Pearson

Dissertations

While compatibilists claim that divine sovereignty either elects individuals to salvation or inevitably consigns them to damnation without the involvement of human response, non-compatibilism claims that divine love requires both human choice along with a behavioral response. This dissertation examines these respective dilemmas in the context of the sin against the Holy Spirit with the purpose of ascertaining how these views impact the sovereignty and character of God and the resulting ethical implications. Compatibilism is examined through the writings and theology of G. C. Berkouwer, while non-compatibilism is appraised through the writings and thought of Ellen G. White.

This dissertation …

An Evaluation Of The Bachelor Degree In Accounting Program In A Ghanaian Private University, Samuel Adaboh

Dissertations

Problem: There is the growing demand by all stakeholders (teachers, students, employers, governments, and society) for universities and colleges to be more accountable in preparing their products for the challenges of the 21 ^st century. Such demands have fueled interest in the evaluation of student learning in virtually all disciplines in college. There are calls for pedagogic innovations that will improve student learning in college. If any success can be achieved in addressing the challenge of improving the quality of products from higher education, then colleges and universitieshave need for reliable data. Such data can be obtained partly through an …