Digital Commons Network^™

High Frequency Of The D Allele Of The Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Gene In Arabic Populations, Abdel Halim Salem, Mark A. Batzer

Faculty Publications

Background. The angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) gene in humans has an insertion-deletion (I/D) polymorphic state in intron 16 on chromosome 17q23. This polymorphism has been widely investigated in different populations due to its association with the renin-angiotensin system. However, similar studies for Arab populations are limited. This study addresses the distribution of the ACE gene polymorphism in three Arab populations (Egyptians, Jordanians and Syrians). Findings. The polymorphisms of ACE gene were investigated using polymerase chain reaction for detection of an I/D mutation. The results showed a high frequency of the ACE D allele among the three Arab populations, Egyptians (0.67), Jordanians …

The Structure And Peroxidase Activity Of A 33-Kda Catalase-Related Protein From Mycobacterium Avium Ssp. Paratuberculosis, Svetlana Pakhomova, Benlian Gao, William E. Boeglin, Alan R. Brash, Marcia E. Newcomer

Faculty Publications

True catalases are tyrosine-liganded, usually tetrameric, hemoproteins with subunit sizes of ∼55-84 kDa. Recently characterized hemoproteins with a catalase-related structure, yet lacking in catalatic activity, include the 40-43 kDa allene oxide synthases of marine invertebrates and cyanobacteria. Herein, we describe the 1.8 Å X-ray crystal structure of a 33 kDa subunit hemoprotein from Mycobacterium avium ssp. paratuberculosis (annotated as MAP-2744c), that retains the core elements of the catalase fold and exhibits an organic peroxide-dependent peroxidase activity. MAP-2744c exhibits negligible catalatic activity, weak peroxidatic activity using hydrogen peroxide (20/s) and strong peroxidase activity (∼300/s) using organic hydroperoxides as co-substrate. Key amino …

Allele Frequencies Of The Human Platelet Antigen-1 In The Egyptian Population, Abdel Halim Salem, Kyudong Han, Mark A. Batzer

Faculty Publications

Background. The human platelet alloantigen system HPA-1 in the Egyptian population was examined by polymerase chain reaction using sequence-specific primers (PCR-SSP). The objectives of this study were to evaluate the allele frequency of HPA-1a and -1b in healthy Egyptian individuals and compare these with the international literature. Human platelet antigen (HPA) systems are associated with alloimmunization and organ transplantation rejection as well as the development of cardiovascular disease. Of the various HPA systems, HPA-1 specifically has been considered to be the most important antigenic system implicated in the Caucasian population. No study has yet examined this system in the Egyptian …

Three-Way Tiling Sets In Two Dimensions, David R. Larson, Peter Massopust, Gestur Ólafsson

Faculty Publications

In this article we show that there exist measurable sets W⊂ℝ2 with finite measure that tile ℝ2 in a measurable way under the action of a expansive matrix A, an affine Weyl group W ̃ and a full rank lattice Γ⊂ ℝ 2 . This note is follow-up research to the earlier article "Coxeter groups and wavelet sets" by the first and second authors, and is also relevant to the earlier article "Coxeter groups, wavelets, multiresolution and sampling" by M. Dobrescu and the third author. After writing these two articles, the three authors participated in a workshop at the Banff …

Estimation Of Cardiac Respiratory-Motion By Semi-Automatic Segmentation And Registration Of Non-Contrast-Enhanced 4d-Ct Cardiac Datasets, Joyoni Dey, Tinsu Pan, David J. Choi, Dennis Robotis, Mark S. Smyczynski, P. Hendrik Pretorius, Michael A. King

Faculty Publications

The goal of this work is to investigate, for a large set of patients, the motion of the heart with respiration during free-breathing supine medical imaging. For this purpose we analyzed the motion of the heart in 32 non-contrast enhanced respiratory-gated 4D-CT datasets acquired during quiet unconstrained breathing. The respiratory-gated CT images covered the cardiac region and were acquired at each of 10 stages of the respiratory cycle, with the first stage being end-inspiration. We devised a 3-D semi-automated segmentation algorithm that segments the heart in the 4D-CT datasets acquired without contrast enhancement for use in estimating respiratory motion of …

Secondary Tracheoesophageal Puncture With In-Office Transnasal Esophagoscopy, Brad Lebert, Andrew J. Mcwhorter, Melda Kunduk, Rohan R. Walvekar, Jan S. Lewin, Katherine A. Hutcheson, Denise A. Barringer, Amy C. Hessel, F. Christopher Holsinger

Faculty Publications

Objective: To evaluate the outcomes of voice restoration using office-based transnasal esophagoscopy (TNE) to guide placement of the secondary tracheoesophageal puncture (TEP). Design: Retrospective chart review. Setting: Two tertiary care medical centers. Patients: The study included 39 patients who underwent the TNE-TEP procedure from January 2004 to December 2008. Main Outcome Measures: Clinical, demographic, and TE speech-related data were recorded to examine the ease, efficiency, complications, and speech-related outcomes. Results: Among 39 patients identified, the average age was 65 years (age range, 47-83 years), with 32 male (82%) and 7 female (16%) patients. Twenty-five patients (64%) underwent total laryngectomy; 8 …

Existing Biomass Infrastructure And Theoretical Potential Biomass Production In The U.S, Jeremy R. Porter, Frank M. Howell, Philip B. Mason, Troy C. Blanchard

Faculty Publications

The recent and projected status of energy production and consumption in the U.S., resulting in substantial dependencies upon foreign oil, has continued to provide pressure on domestic energy security. All told, bio-energy systems, and biomass crop production in particular, will be important elements of national security, economic vitality, and public policy. Using biomass crop estimates based upon models developed at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, we identify potential biomass crop production zones within the contiguous 48 states of the United States using spatially centered analytic methods. The Midwest and the South regions of the United States are, by far, the …

Treatment Of Late-Life Insomnia, Christina S. Mccrae Phd, Joseph M. Dzierzewski Ms, Daniel Kay

Faculty Publications

Insomnia, defined as difficulty initiating and/or maintaining sleep at least 3 nights/week that is accompanied by complaints of sleep-related daytime impairment 1, 2, is the most common sleep disturbance in later life. Although insomnia can occur as an acute disorder (7 days or less), older adults are often afflicted with chronic insomnia (12 months or more3 ). Additionally, insomnia in older individuals is most frequently co-morbid in nature, occurring in the context of age-related medical/psychiatric conditions, increased medication usage, and/or polypharmacy. This chapter will focus on the conceptualization, assessment and treatment of late-life insomnia from a behavioral sleep medicine perspective. …

How Values In Scientific Discovery And Pursuit Alter Theory Appraisal, Kevin C. Elliott, Daniel J. Mckaughan

Faculty Publications

Philosophers of science readily acknowledge that nonepistemic values influence the discovery and pursuit of scientific theories, but many tend to regard these influences as epistemically uninteresting. The present paper challenges this position by identifying three avenues through which nonepistemic values associated with discovery and pursuit in contemporary pollution research influence theory appraisal: (1) by guiding the choice
of questions and research projects, (2) by altering experimental design, and (3) by affecting the creation and further investigation of theories or hypotheses. This analysis indicates that the effects of these values are sufficiently complex and epistemically significant to merit further attention.

Heterologous Expression Studies Of Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Reveal Two Distinct Trypanosomatid Caax Protease Activities And Identify Their Potential Targets, David Z. Mokry, Surya P. Manandhar, Kristen A. Chicola, George M. Santangelo, Walter K. Schmidt

Faculty Publications

The CaaX tetrapeptide motif typically directs three sequential posttranslational modifications, namely, isoprenylation, proteolysis, and carboxyl methylation. In all eukaryotic systems evaluated to date, two CaaX proteases (Rce1 and Ste24/Afc1) have been identified. Although the Trypanosoma brucei genome also encodes two putative CaaX proteases, the lack of detectable T. brucei Ste24 activity in trypanosome cell extracts has suggested that CaaX proteolytic activity within this organism is solely attributed to T. brucei Rce1 (J. R. Gillespie et al., Mol. Biochem. Parasitol. 153: 115-124. 2007). In this study, we demonstrate that both T. brucei Rce1 and T. brucei Ste24 are enzymatically active when …

Cellular Biophysics During Freezing Of Rat And Mouse Sperm Predicts Post-Thaw Motility, Mie Hagiwara, Jeung Hwan Choi, Ramachandra V. Devireddy, Kenneth P. Roberts, Willem F. Wolkers, Antoine Makhlouf, John C. Bischof

Faculty Publications

Though cryopreservation of mouse sperm yields good survival and motility after thawing, cryopreservation of rat sperm remains a challenge. This study was designed to evaluate the biophysics (membrane permeability) of rat in comparison to mouse to better understand the cooling rate response that contributes to cryopreservation success or failure in these two sperm types. In order to extract subzero membrane hydraulic permeability in the presence of ice, a differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) method was used. By analyzing rat and mouse sperm frozen at 5°C/min and 20°C/min, heat release signatures characteristic of each sperm type were obtained and correlated to cellular …

Circadian Disruption, Per3, And Human Cytokine Secretion, Jaclyn Guess, James B. Burch, Kisito Ogoussan, Cheryl A. Armstead, Hongmei Zhang, Sara Wagner, James R. Hébert, Patricia Wood, Shawn D. Youngstedt, Lorne J. Hofseth, Udai P. Singh, Dawen Xie, William J. M. Hrushesky

Faculty Publications

Circadian disruption has been linked with inflammation, an established cancer risk factor. Per3 clock gene polymorphisms have also been associated with circadian disruption and with increased cancer risk. Patients completed a questionnaire and provided a blood sample prior to undergoing a colonoscopy (n=70). Adjusted mean serum cytokine concentrations (IL-6, TNF-alpha, gamma-INF, IL-I ra, IL-I-beta, VEGF) were compared among patients with high and low scores for fatigue (Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory), depressive symptoms (Beck Depression Inventory II), or sleep disruption (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index), or among patients with different Per3 clock gene variants. Poor sleep was associated with elevated VEGF, and fatigue-related …

Exempting High-Level Employees And Small Employers From Legislation Invalidating Predispute Employment Arbitration Agreements, E. Gary Spitko

Faculty Publications

On February 12, 2009, lawmakers in the U.S.House of Representatives introduced the "Arbitration Fairness Act of 2009. " This bill, if enacted, will invalidate any predispute arbitration agreement between an employer and its employee. Last year, the 110th Congress considered the narrower "Preservation of Civil Rights Protections Act of 2008, " which would have invalidated such predispute arbitration agreements if they required "arbitration of a dispute arising under" federal civil rights laws. This Article explores how best to structure any such invalidation of predispute employment arbitration agreements, both in light of the rationales for and against regulation of the employment …

The Fiduciary Constitution Of Human Rights, Evan Fox-Decent, Evan J. Criddle

Faculty Publications

We argue that human rights are best conceived as norms arising from a fiduciary relationship that exists between states (or statelike actors) and the citizens and noncitizens subject to their power. These norms draw on a Kantian conception of moral personhood, protecting agents from instrumentalization and domination. They do not, however, exist in the abstract as timeless natural rights. Instead, they are correlates of the state’s fiduciary duty to provide equal security under the rule of law, a duty that flows from the state’s institutional assumption of irresistible sovereign powers.

The 600-Step Program For Type I Diabetes Self-Management In Youth: The Magnitude Of The Self-Management Task, Ronald D. Coffen

Faculty Publications

This article demonstrates the complexity of the type 1 diabetes regimen and describes the physician's role in safely promoting self-management of diabetes by youth. Literature describing type 1 diabetes and the required regimen, issues related to regimen adherence by youth, demonstration of the magnitude of the regimen, and implications for physicians are addressed. A task analysis and tool for physicians is presented that contains over 600 tasks. Given the magnitude of the regimen, issues related to the physician's promotion of the gradual transfer of regimen control to youth are illustrated. The importance of understanding broad areas of the regimen (eg, …

Hdtv Systems, Alan J. Kirkpatrick, Leonard K. Gashugi

Faculty Publications

Case Description: The primary subject matter of HDTV Systems is capital budgeting within a mid-size electronics firm, and analysis of a possible merger with a large firm of international scale. HDTV Systems is recommended for students who have already had exposure to capital budgeting, cost of capital, and valuation techniques; thus, it is most appropriate for upper-level undergraduate students and second year graduate students. The case can be taught in two class hours, and student preparation should require no more than two hours. Case Synopsis: This case involves both quantitative and qualitative aspects of capital budgeting in a firm whose …

Time Trends In The Use Of Anti-Hypertensive Medications: Results From The Multi-Ethnic Study Of Atherosclerosis, Joseph A.C. Delaney, Robyn L. Mcclelland, Curt D. Furberg, Richard Cooper, Steven Shea, Gregory Burke, Bruce M. Psaty

Faculty Publications

Background: Previous reports have suggested that new evidence of the comparative effectiveness of different medication classes from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) does not always alter treatment decisions for first-line anti-hypertensive therapy. Objectives: To evaluate the association of RCT evidence in December 2002 from the Anti-hypertensive and Lipid-Lowering treatment to prevent Heart Attack Trial (ALLHAT) on use of anti-hypertensive medications in a multi-ethnic cohort. Methods: The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) study, a prospective cohort study of 6814 adults from four ethnic groups, had four separate assessments of drug use. Users of anti-hypertensive medications at baseline were excluded. We evaluated temporal …

Prospective Associations Between Objective Measures Of Physical Activity And Fat Mass In 12-14 Year Old Children: The Avon Longitudinal Study Of Parents And Children (Alspac), Chris J. Riddoch, Sam D. Leary, Andy R. Ness, Steven N. Blair, Kevin Deere, Calum Mattocks, Alex Griffiths, George Davey Smith, Kate Tilling

Faculty Publications

Objective: To investigate associations between physical activity at age 12 and subsequent adiposity at age 14.

Design: Prospective birth cohort study with data collected between 2003 and 2007.

Setting: Original recruitment in 1991-2 of 14,541 pregnant women living in the former County of Avon (United Kingdom).

Participants: At age 12, 11,952 children were invited to attend the research clinic. Of these, 7159 attended, and 4150 (1964 boys, 2186 girls) provided sufficient data on exposure, outcome, and confounding variables.

Main outcome measure: Fat mass at age 14, measured by dual emission x ray absorptiometry, associated with physical activity at age 12, …

Alu Repeats Increase Local Recombination Rates, David J. Witherspoon, W. Scott Watkins, Yuhua Zhang, Jinchuan Xing, Whitney L. Tolpinrud, Dale J. Hedges, Mark A. Batzer, Lynn B. Jorde

Faculty Publications

Background: Recombination rates vary widely across the human genome, but little of that variation is correlated with known DNA sequence features. The genome contains more than one million Alu mobile element insertions, and these insertions have been implicated in non-homologous recombination, modulation of DNA methylation, and transcriptional regulation. If individual Alu insertions have even modest effects on local recombination rates, they could collectively have a significant impact on the pattern of linkage disequilibrium in the human genome and on the evolution of the Alu family itself. Results: We carried out sequencing, SNP identification, and SNP genotyping around 19 AluY insertion …

Current Substance Use Behavior Among Severely Mentally Ill Individuals Diagnosed With Hiv And Hcv, Michelle Hampton, Linda Chafetz, Carmen Portillo

Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Infection with HIV and HCV is higher among severely mentally ill (SMI) individuals than the general population. The literature addressing prevention focuses primarily on sexual risk, though substance-related risk is significant. Insufficient data is available about substance use behavior in this population to formulate effective secondary prevention interventions. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was a secondary analysis of a RCT. Subjects reporting a diagnosis of HIV/HCV (reporters) were compared to non-reporters. Data were extracted from interviews that included the Addiction Severity Index (ASI). Data were analyzed using logistic regression. RESULTS: Of 275 subjects, 64(23.3%) reported a HIV/HCV diagnosis. Compared to …

3d-Surfer: Software For High-Throughput Protein Surface Comparison And Analysis, David La, Juan Esquivel-Rodríguez, Vishwesh Venkatraman, Bin Li, Lee Sael, Stephen Ueng, Steven Ahrendt, Daisuke Kihara

Faculty Publications

Summary: We present 3D-SURFER, a web-based tool designed to facilitate high-throughput comparison and characterization of proteins based on their surface shape. As each protein is effectively represented by a vector of 3D Zernike descriptors, comparison times for a query protein against the entire PDB take, on an average, only a couple of seconds. The web interface has been designed to be as interactive as possible with displays showing animated protein rotations, CATH codes and structural alignments using the CE program. In addition, geometrically interesting local features of the protein surface, such as pockets that often correspond to ligand binding sites …

6-Azahemiporphycene: A New Member Of The Porphyrinoid Family, Federica Mandoj, Sara Nardis, Giuseppe Pomarico, Manuela Stefanelli, Luca Schiaffino, Gianfranco Ercolani, Luca Prodi, Damiano Genovese, Nelsi Zaccheroni, Frank R. Fronczek, Kevin M. Smith, Xiao Xiao, Jing Shen, Karl M. Kadish, Roberto Paolesse

Faculty Publications

The reaction of 5,10,15-triarylcorrole with 4-amino-4H-1,2,4-triazole provides another example of corroie ring expansion to give the corresponding 6-azahemiporphycene, a novel porphyrin analogue. The facile oxidation of the corroie ring is a required step for the ring expansion and for this reason the reaction fails in the case of corroles bearing meso-phenyl groups carrying electron-withdrawing substituents. Sterlc requirements also limited the scope of the reaction, which is not successful In the case of 2,6-disubstituted meso-aryl corroles. The occurrence of an initial oxidation is further supported by formation of the 6-azahemiporphycene derivative when the reaction is carried out under the same conditions, …

Computer-Based Cognitive Interventions For Persons With Dementia: Feasibility And Outcomes, Nidhi Mahendra, Allegra Apple, Susan Carroll, Adithya Chandregowda

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Barriers Influencing Minority Clients’ Access To Speech Language Pathology Services. Poster, Nidhi Mahendra, Katie Schoneman, Nisha Engineer

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Comparative Acute Toxicity Of Neonicotinoid And Pyrethroid Insecticides To Non-Target Crayfish (Procambarus Clarkii) Associated With Rice-Crayfish Crop Rotations, Gary C. Barbee, Michael J. Stout

Faculty Publications

Background: Most insecticides used to control rice water weevil (Lissorhoptrus oryzophilus Kuscel) infestations are pyrethroids. However, pyrethroids are highly toxic to non-target crayfish associated with rice-crayfish crop rotations. One solution to the near-exclusive reliance on pyrethroids in a rice-crayfish pest management program is to incorporate neonicotinoid insecticides, which are insect specific and effective against weevils but not extremely toxic to crayfish. This study aimed to take the first step to assess neonicotinoids as alternatives to pyrethroids in rice-crayfish crop rotations by measuring the acute toxicities of three candidate neonicotinoid insecticides, clothianidin, dinotefuran and thiamethoxam, to juvenile Procambarus clarkii (Girard) crayfish …

Edwardsiella Ictaluri Encodes An Acid-Activated Urease That Is Required For Intracellular Replication In Channel Catfish (Ictalurus Punctatus) Macrophages, Natha J. Booth, Judith B. Beekman, Ronald L. Thune

Faculty Publications

Genomic analysis indicated that Edwardsiella ictaluri encodes a putative urease pathogenicity island containing the products of nine open reading frames, including urea and ammonium transporters. In vitro studies with wild-type E. ictaluri and a ureG::kan urease mutant strain indicated that E. ictaluri is significantly tolerant of acid conditions (pH 3.0) but that urease activity is not required for acid tolerance. Growth studies demonstrated that E. ictaluri is unable to grow at pH 5 in the absence of urea but is able to elevate the environmental pH from pH 5 to pH 7 and grow when exogenous urea is available. Substantial …

Arabidopsis Actin-Related Protein Arp5 In Multicellular Development And Dna Repair, Muthugapatti K. Kandasamy, Elizabeth C. Mckinney, Roger B. Deal, Aaron P. Smith, Richard B. Meagher

Faculty Publications

Actin-related protein 5 (ARP5) is a conserved subunit of the INO80 chromatin-remodeling complex in yeast and mammals. We have characterized the expression and subcellular distribution of Arabidopsis thaliana ARP5 and explored its role in the epigenetic control of multicellular development and DNA repair. ARP5-specific monoclonal antibodies localized ARP5 protein to the nucleoplasm of interphase cells in Arabidopsis and Nicotiana tabacum. ARP5 promoter-reporter fusions and the ARP5 protein are ubiquitously expressed. A null mutant and a severe knockdown allele produced moderately dwarfed plants with all organs smaller than the wild type. The small and slightly deformed organs such as leaves and …

Reading Between The Lines To See Into The Past, David A. Ray, Roy N. Platt, Mark A. Batzer

Faculty Publications

Transposable elements (TEs) are an important source of genome diversity and play a crucial role in genome evolution. A recent study by Zhao et al. describes novel patterns of TE diversification in the genome of the extinct mammoth Mammuthus primigenius. Analysis of Mammuthus has provided a unique genome landscape, a pivotal species for understanding TEs and genome evolution and hints at the diversity we verge on discovering by expanding our taxonomic sampling among genomes. Strategies based on this work might also revolutionize investigations of the interface between TE dynamics and genome diversity. © 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

5́-Transducing Sva Retrotransposon Groups Spread Efficiently Throughout The Human Genome, Annette Damert, Julija Raiz, Axel V. Horn, Johannes Löwer, Hui Wang, Jinchuan Xing, Mark A. Batzer, Roswitha Löwer, Gerald G. Schumann

Faculty Publications

SVA elements represent the youngest family of hominid non-LTR retrotransposons, which alter the human genome continuously. They stand out due to their organization as composite repetitive elements. To draw conclusions on the assembly process that led to the current organization of SVA elements and on their transcriptional regulation, we initiated our study by assessing differences in structures of the 116 SVA elements located on human chromosome 19. We classified SVA elements into seven structural variants, including novel variants like 3′-truncated elements and elements with 5′-flanking sequence transductions. We established a genome-wide inventory of 5′-transduced SVA elements encompassing ∼8% of all …

A National Physical Activity Plan For The United States, Russell R. Pate

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.