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Statin-Mediated Attenuation Of Chemokine Expression In Peripheral Nerve Vascular Endothelial Cells, Kelly Ann Langert

Dissertations

Pro-inflammatory cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS), a debilitating autoimmune disorder that affects the peripheral nervous system. By up-regulating endothelial expression of chemokines and cell adhesion molecules (CAMs), TNF-α facilitates the recruitment and trafficking of autoreactive leukocytes across the blood-nerve barrier and into peripheral nerves, an early pathological hallmark of GBS. Literature indicates that TNF-α, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) are locally increased in patients with GBS, correlating with disease severity. Similar findings have been demonstrated in an animal model of GBS, experimental autoimmune neuritis …

Wet Chicago: Prohibition And The Development Of The Informal Alcohol Economy, Brian Doumeth Jolet

Dissertations

The Prohibition-era presents a story of both continuity and change. While the illegal alcohol manufacturing and selling that occurred during the period was not an aberration from the past, the resultant increased wealth and sway of the criminal underworld and the increasing disrespect for the law were new transformations. This dissertation seeks to understand the informal economy in alcohol by examining the multitude of men and women who participated in this black market in the city of Chicago, Illinois. The analysis describes the movement from small-time bootleggers operating within a narrow market to the development of a complex and hierarchical …

Effects Of Binge Alcohol Exposure On Canonical Wnt Signaling During Fracture Repair, Kristen Leigh Lauing

Dissertations

Excessive alcohol consumption is associated with increased fracture risk, delayed bone healing and fracture non-union. Binge alcohol consumption has occurred in 25-40% of all orthopaedic trauma cases. The canonical Wnt pathway, through tight regulation of stabilized beta-catenin, plays an essential and pivotal role in the formation of new bone and cartilage to initiate bone repair. We sought to determine the molecular mechanisms behind alcohol-related fracture complications by testing the hypothesis that binge alcohol exposure deregulates canonical Wnt signaling in the fracture callus, leading to impaired healing.

To test this, C57BL/6 or beta-catenin/TCF-reporter male mice were exposed to intraperitoneal alcohol or …

Mothers' Perceptions Of Social Work Helpgiving Practices: Implications For The Role Of The School Social Worker, Kristina Lind

Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Parents' Perceptions Of Teenage Pregnancy, Mayra Nava

Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to shed light on Latino/a parents' perceptions and attitudes about adolescent pregnancy. This study aims to reveal how parental perceptions and attitudes may impact parental communication with their children about teen pregnancy. Considering that parents play in important role in adolescent pregnancy prevention, this research study attempts to shed light on the nature of how parents perceive adolescent pregnancy and communication about teen pregnancy. The goal of this study was to answer the following two questions: 1.What are some of the variables that influence how Latino/a parents of high school students at an urban …

Analysis Of Illicit Drugs, Their Metabolites And Other Micropollutants In Water By Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometry, Deepika P. Panawennage

Dissertations

The goal of this project is to develop liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS) methods for the analysis of different, novel micropollutants in waste water and natural water. Micropollutants are compounds that can exert adverse environmental and human health effects at low concentrations. Most of these compounds include personal care products and pharmaceuticals, such as antibiotics and controlled substances. In the first part of this study, we focused in the analysis of illicit drugs and drug metabolites because these analyses have the potential to serve as markers of drug abuse. We have detected over sixteen different illicit drugs and their …

A Qualitative Exploration Of The Influence Of Racism On Identity Development For African American Adolescent Males, John Corey Steele

Dissertations

The life circumstances facing African American adolescent males are reported with a fair amount of frequency by numerous media outlets in our society. Reports generally communicate negative circumstances facing African American adolescent males in the educational, economic, social, and political arenas. These sorts of life experiences have the potential to have a tremendous impact on the lives and development, particularly identity developmental process of young African American men; however, few research efforts have been devoted to specifically exploring the identity development process of African American adolescent males. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the meaning of being …

An Exploratory Evaluation Of A Culturally Specific Model Of Psychological Well-Being For An African American Population, Kyle J. Telander

Dissertations

Research related to eudaimonic or psychological well-being (PWB) has relied heavily upon the Scales of Psychological Well-Being (SPWB), a rationally developed multidimensional measure intended to assess the extent to which individuals are achieving their optimal potential over the lifespan. However, questions remain regarding the proposed dimensional structure of the SPWB, as well as the extent to which the measure is situated within a specific, Eurocentric cultural context. This study sought to explore the factor structure of the 42-item version of the SPWB when combined with items measuring constructs relevant to African Americans, including communalism, spirituality/religiosity, and critical consciousness. Utilizing a …

The Effects Of Smooth Muscle Cells On Engineered Microvasculatures In Fibrin Hydrogels, Areck A. Ucuzian

Dissertations

Capillaries are comprised of two cell types: the endothelial cells (ECs) which line the lumen of the capillary, and the supporting pericytes which are closely apposed to the abluminal surface of the capillary wall (sometimes called mural cells). These pericytes are phenotypic derivations of mesenchymal organ stromal cells (from smooth muscle cells and fibroblasts in blood vessels, for example), are recruited and incorporate into the neocapillaries, and are known to mediate reciprocal interactions with ECs during angiogenesis. The overall purpose of this project is to determine how smooth muscle cells (SMCs) affect angiogenesis during microvascular development in fibrin hydrogels using …

Using Robust Standard Errors To Combine Multiple Regression Estimates With Meta-Analysis, Ryan T. Williams

Dissertations

Combining multiple regression estimates with meta-analysis has continued to be a difficult task. A variety of methods have been proposed and used to combine multiple regression slope estimates with meta-analysis, however, most of these methods have serious methodological and practical limitations. The purpose of this study was to explore the use of robust variance estimation for combining commonly specified multiple regression models and for combining sample-dependent focal slope estimates from diversely specified models. A series of Monte-Carlo simulations were conducted to investigate the performance of a robust variance estimator for each of these approaches. Key meta-analytic parameters were varied throughout …

An Exploratory Study Of Principals' Attitudes Regarding The Provision Of Special Education Services Using The Traditional Special Education Model Compared To Using The Response To Intervention Model, Deirdre Marie Williams

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the attitudes of principals regarding the provision of special education services using the traditional special education model compared to using the response to intervention model. The major research and related research questions were identified by the investigator to explore the attitudes of Illinois public elementary school principals regarding special education services, in relation to: (1) resources; (2) amount of faculty time spent; and (3) the role of the principal. The major research question and the related research question was addressed through seven survey questions, six through Likert–scaled questions and one through an …

Serving Through Adversity: Community-Based Nonprofits Negotiating Race, Place, And A State Budget Crisis, 2007-2011, Eilleen Rollerson

Dissertations

This qualitative study examines the ways in which the leadership and staff of four community-based organizations in a high-poverty African American community in Chicago perceived and were impacted by economic, political, and social changes in their community from 2007 to 2011. During a time of economic hardship caused in part by the state's budget crisis that threatened their very survival, these nonprofits connected residents with community institutions, government, and church in response to their needs.

Processes of acquiring resources and capital, prioritizing the needs, shifting programs and people for maximum benefit, and finally shedding expendable programs and people for the …

Compositional Determinants Of The Pharmacological Actions Of Heparins, Angel Lee Gray-Shah

Dissertations

This dissertation primarily focuses on how differences in molecular weight (MW) and structural composition affect the pharmacological activity of heparin and its derivatives. Heparins are a mixture of glycosaminoglycans chains which are used to prevent thrombosis in a number of clinical indications. Heparins promote the inhibition of blood coagulation via their plasmatic cofactors antithrombin (AT) and heparin cofactor II (HCII).

In these studies, various heparins with molecular weights ranging from 2.6 to 16.5 kDa were investigated. Not only the molecular weight but also the oligosaccharide composition greatly varied in these agents. One of the major objectives of this research was …

Moral Landscapes: Religion, Secularism, And Symbolic Boundaries, Thomas Jose Josephsohn

Dissertations

This dissertation is a comparison of three religious congregations and one secular congregation on the moral boundaries they use to understand themselves and others. Through a newly developed graphical instrument, in-depth interviews, and surveys, this dissertation shows that contemporary theories on how people use religiously oriented beliefs to separate themselves from others insufficiently capture the ideas, groups, and categories that are salient to people in making these distinctions. Ultimately, it argues that sociologists need to take into account the saliency and moralization of arguments and ideologies for individuals rather than assuming these things a priori or from fringe members of …

Forebrain Noradrenergic Alterations And Anxiety After Myocardial Infarction, Jaimee Glasgow

Dissertations

Thirty to 45% of patients who suffer a myocardial infarction (MI) develop anxiety disorders and/or depression, and the development of mood and anxiety disorders following MI is a major risk factor for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Depressed post-MI patients have an increased risk of fatal arrhythmias, which are often precipitated by emotional stressors. However, the central nervous system mechanisms that contribute to post-MI anxiety and arrhythmia susceptibility are unknown. Therefore, the studies reported in this dissertation were designed to test the hypothesis that alterations in noradrenergic transmission in the forebrain contribute to the development of anxiety disorders and arrhythmia susceptibility …

Theological Plunderphonics: Public Theology And "The Fragment", William Myatt

Dissertations

In response to methodological vagueness in public theology, I construct a theory of "the fragment" that enables the public theologian to respond adequately to contemporary exigencies and appropriately to traditional self-understandings. After surveying four streams of public-theological thought (chapter one), I consider the debate between David Tracy (chapter two) and George Lindbeck (chapter three). The various observations of these three chapters give way to a suggested criteriology for public theology. I then turn to Paul Ricoeur (chapter four) and Walter Benjamin (chapter five) to assist in constructing a theory of the fragment (chapter six). The thesis defended by this dissertation …

Divine Sovereignty, Divine Providence, And Prayer In The Thought Of Evagrius Ponticus, Chris Steven Gombos

Dissertations

In the thought of Evagrius Ponticus, we discern an interdependent relationship between prayer and theological belief, particularly between prayer and divine sovereignty and divine providence. We find that Evagrius's teachings on divine sovereignty and divine providence inform and govern his teachings on prayer, specifically the forms of prayer known as petition and pure prayer. And conversely Evagrius's teachings on prayer inform and deepen his teachings on divine sovereignty and divine providence, thereby demonstrating the full interdependence between spiritual practice and theological belief in the thought of one of the early Church's monastic masters.

The first chapter is divided into two …

Populus Defense And Stress Response Regulation During Ectomycorrhizal Symbiosis With Laccaria As Revealed By Global Transcriptome Analysis, Avinash Sreedasyam

Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Continuous- And Discrete-Time Structured Malaria Models And Their Dynamics, Junliang Lu

Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Positive Behavior Intervention And Support: An Alternative Approach, Lucy Bridges

Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of PBIS on behavior in relation to the number of office discipline referrals, suspensions, and expulsions. Because of the current school discipline policies, black male students have been overrepresented in the exclusionary practices of office discipline referrals, suspensions, and expulsions. PBIS offers a viable alternative to current school discipline practices.

Agnes Nestor: Labor Leader, Politician, And Social Reformer--A Portrait Of A Leader, Timothy Michael Grivois-Shah

Dissertations

School leadership is about effecting change in education and promoting excellence in teaching and learning. School leaders, however, practice leadership in multiple arenas with diverse stakeholders. Students, local community members, faculty, staff, and each layer of government represent unique and often conflicting interests. Understanding how a leader such as Agnes Nestor resolved conflicts of interests has the potential for helping school leaders access various sources of power to effect change in their milieu.

This study explores the life of Agnes Nestor, a labor leader, politician, and social reformer. Nestor's public life included organizing women workers in Chicago in the early …

Rethinking Nation-Building: A Christian Socio-Ethical And Theo-Political Task For Appropriating The Common Good, Artemus Wlemongar Gaye

Dissertations

nation-building as a coomon good

Modeling And Optimal Mitigation Of Impulsive Low Frequency, Meng Vang

Dissertations

Low-frequency outdoor noise is very common in urban environments and can propagate over long distances. Residents living in the vicinity of a military base and other noisy areas often are annoyed by this noise. Most of the theoretical and experimental work that have been done to study and reduce this type of noise involved the use of barriers and sound proofing the residential houses. The attenuation of acoustic waves propagating above hard surfaces over long distances depends on the shape of the surface. Therefore, the landscape is a factor in combating outdoor noise. In this dissertation, an anti-propagation approach involving …

Ultra-Low Power Wake Up Receiver For Medical Implant Communications Service Transceiver, James Griggs

Dissertations

The Medical Implant Communications Service (MICS) is an ultra-low power, unlicensed, mobile radio service for transmitting data in support of diagnostic or therapeutic functions associated with implanted medical devices. Medical devices that are implanted in the human body have limited size and battery capacity thus requires ultralow power circuitry. Due to the power consumed by the radio transceiver when the system is active, system level power saving techniques such as “sleep mode” is very essential to achieve “low-power”. A wake up receiver (WuRx) is used to detect wireless traffic directed to a node’s receiver and activate it upon detection, without …

An Examination Of The Use Of Assessing Capacity To Stimulate Capacity Building With Nonprofit Organizations, Pamela M. Palmer

Dissertations

An in-depth examination of the use of assessing capacity to stimulate capacity building was conducted with member nonprofits of the Guilford Nonprofit Consortium, in Guilford County, North Carolina. The primary research question was "to what extent and in what ways does assessing the capacity of a nonprofit organization help that organization‘s executive director engage in capacity building?" As an academic and practitioner in nonprofit leadership and management, the researcher was interested in exploring the use of assessing capacity prior to implementing capacity building initiatives. The research question prescribes the mixing of research methods and stipulated a connected mixed methods design …

Measurement And Modeling Of Isocyanic Acid (Hnco) In The Troposphere, Anthony Kozeque Cochran

Dissertations

A recent study of biomass fires and some field measurements have revealed that isocyanic acid can reach levels as high as 600 ppbv near fires and up to 200 pptv in ambient air. After the solubility was measured for the first time, it was then possible for any potential human health effects of HNCO to be evaluated. HNCO is highly soluble in the human body given that the physiological pH is 7.4, and there exists an increased risk for atherosclerosis, cataracts, and rheumatoid arthritis via protein carbamylation. Based on preliminary experimental results conducted at a pH of 3.0 ± 0.1 …

Molecular Dynamics Modeling Of Scalable Micro/Nano Manufacturing, Ravindra Damodarrao Kaware

Dissertations

In this research, 'Droplet Based Direct Write' micro/nano manufacturing is investigated using a molecular dynamics modeling and simulation approach. The aim of this investigation is characterization of the direct write inkjet printing process to promote optimization for the enhancement of scalability. The study was completed in four phases; nanodroplet evaporation modeling, substrate-nanodroplet interaction modeling, nanodroplet impingement study and nanodroplet-patterned substrate interaction modeling. For the evaporation study, the two typical solvents water and acetone were used. Under this phase, characterization of nanodroplet evaporation was accomplished including evaluation of droplet size variations at different temperatures and time scales. The results of evaporation …

Biofunctional Coatings Using Direct-Write Fabrication Technique For Surgical Implant Devices, Jessica L. Perkins

Dissertations

Surface modification of biomaterials is of critical value to attain desired functionality of biomedical devices and implants. Many of the conventional manufacturing methods used for the fabrication of thin film coatings lack the ability to precisely dispense biological compounds without compromising its chemical integrity. This research investigates the use of direct-write inkjet technique for the deposition of multi-layer coatings of biodegradable polymers. The Direct Write inkjet method provides selective deposition and patterning capability for depositing multi-material coatings on biomaterials for a vast array of surgical implant devices (e.g. stents for cardiovascular applications and orthopedic implants). In the first phase of …

Synthesis And Photoluminescence (Pl) Of Gold (I) And Silver (I) Metal Complexes With 1-Methylbenzimidazole Diphenylphosphine (Mbdp): Potential Sensing Applications For Volatile Organic Compounds, Darkus Elizabeth Jenkins

Dissertations

Volatile organic compound(s), VOC(s), detection have become a highly demanding area of research due to potential harmful effects to the ecosystem. The search for methods of VOC sensor devices has led to the examination of photoluminescence and photoluminescent materials such as metal complexes. Their luminescent properties markedly with phosphine and/or nitrogen based ligands, bridging ligands, have the ability to accommodate metal atoms with short metal – metal distances. It is of great interest to accomplish short metal interactions as the photoluminescent properties can be altered. We show the synthesis and structural characterization of the bridging ligand, 1-methylbenzimidazole diphenylphosphine. We examined …

Juvenile Injustice: Disproportionate Minority Contact In Oklahoma's Juvenile Justice System, Patrick M. Polasek

Dissertations

Statistics show that minority overrepresentation in the juvenile justice system is not a new phenomenon. The problem, however, is not going away and might even be getting worse. In 2008, the FBI's Uniform Crime Report showed that 52% of juvenile Violent Crime Index arrests, and 33% of juvenile Property Crime Index arrests, are black youths. This occurring while black youth only accounted for 16% of the youth population. These statistics illustrate disproportionate minority contact. The question is whether disproportionate minority contact has improved, and what is influencing minority overrepresentation.

In this dissertation, I examine whether minorities are overrepresented in Oklahoma's …