Digital Commons Network^™

This Name Thing, Hyveth Williams

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Tunable Cytotoxicity Of Rhodamine 6g Via Anion Variations, Paul K.S. Magut, Susmita Das, Vivian E. Fernand, Jack Losso, Karen Mcdonough, Brittni M. Naylor, Sita Aggarwal, Isiah M. Warner

Faculty Publications

Chemotherapeutic agents with low toxicity to normal tissues are a major goal in cancer research. In this regard, the therapeutic activities of cationic dyes, such as rhodamine 6G, toward cancer cells have been studied for decades with observed toxicities toward normal and cancer cells. Herein, we report rhodamine 6G-based organic salts with varying counteranions that are stable under physiological conditions, display excellent fluorescence photostability, and more importantly have tunable chemotherapeutic properties. Our in vitro studies indicate that the hydrophobic compounds of this series allow production of nanoparticles which are nontoxic to normal cells and toxic to cancer cells. Furthermore, the …

Mammalian Cells Preferentially Internalize Hydrogel Nanodiscs Over Nanorods And Use Shape-Specific Uptake Mechanisms, Rachit Agarwal, Vikramjit Singh, Patrick Jurney, Li Shi, S. Sreenivasan, Krishnendu Roy

Faculty Publications

Size, surface charge, and material compositions are known to influence cell uptake of nanoparticles. However, the effect of particle geometry, i.e., the interplay between nanoscale shape and size, is less understood. Here we show that when shape is decoupled from volume, charge, and material composition, under typical in vitro conditions, mammalian epithelial and immune cells preferentially internalize disc-shaped, negatively charged hydrophilic nanoparticles of high aspect ratios compared with nanorods and lower aspect-ratio nanodiscs. Endothelial cells also prefer nanodiscs, however those of intermediate aspect ratio. Interestingly, unlike nanospheres, larger-sized hydrogel nanodiscs and nanorods are internalized more efficiently than their smallest counterparts. …

Another Look At The Gospel, Hyveth Williams

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Amp-Activated Protein Kinase Mediates Myogenin Expression And Myogenesis Via Histone Deacetylase 5, Xing Fu, Jun Xing Zhao, Junfang Liang, Mei Jun Zhu, Marc Foretz, Benoit Viollet, Min Du

Faculty Publications

There is a global epidemic of obesity, and obesity is known to inhibit AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activity and impairs myogenesis. Myogenin mediates the fusion of myoblasts into myotubes, a critical step in myogenesis. We observed that inhibition of AMPK1 downregulates myogenin expression and myogenesis, but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. We postulated that AMPK regulates myogenin expression through phosphorlytion of histone deacetylase 5 (HDAC5). In C2C12 cells, HDAC5 knockdown increased while HDAC5 stablization by MC1568 reduced myogenin expression. Consistently, using luciferase assay, we observed that myogenin promoter activity was negatively regulated by HDAC5. Using RNA interference and primary myoblasts …

Microfluidic Valves Made From Polymerized Polyethylene Glycol Diacrylate, Gregory P. Nordin

Faculty Publications

Pneumatically actuated, non-elastomeric membrane valves fabricated from polymerized polyethylene glycol diacrylate (poly-PEGDA) have been characterized for temporal response, valve closure, and long-term durability. A ∼100 ms valve opening time and a ∼20 ms closure time offer valve operation as fast as 8 Hz with potential for further improvement. Comparison of circular and rectangular valve geometries indicates that the surface area for membrane interaction in the valve region is important for valve performance. After initial fabrication, the fluid pressure required to open a closed circular valve is ∼50 kPa higher than the control pressure holding the valve closed. However, after ∼1000 …

Day-Night Differences In Neural Activation In Histaminergic And Serotonergic Areas With Putative Projections To The Cerebrospinal Fluid In A Diurnal Brain, Alexandra Castillo-Ruiz, Andrew J. Gall, Laura Smale, Antonio A. Nunez

Faculty Publications

In nocturnal rodents, brain areas that promote wakefulness have a circadian pattern of neural activation that mirrors the sleep/wake cycle, with more neural activation during the active phase than during the rest phase. To investigate whether differences in temporal patterns of neural activity in wake-promoting regions contribute to differences in daily patterns of wakefulness between nocturnal and diurnal species, we assessed Fos expression patterns in the tuberomammillary (TMM), supramammillary (SUM), and raphe nuclei of male grass rats maintained in a 12:12 h light-dark cycle. Day-night profiles of Fos expression were observed in the ventral and dorsal TMM, in the SUM, …

The Effects Of Hematopoietic Growth Factors On Neurite Outgrowth, Ye Su, Lili Cui, Chunshu Piao, Bin Li, Li Ru Zhao

Faculty Publications

Stem cell factor (SCF) and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) are initially discovered as the essential hematopoietic growth factors regulating bone marrow stem cell proliferation and differentiation, and SCF in combination with G-CSF (SCF+G-CSF) has synergistic effects on bone marrow stem cell mobilization. In this study we have determined the effect of SCF and G-CSF on neurite outgrowth in rat cortical neurons. Using molecular and cellular biology and live cell imaging approaches, we have revealed that receptors for SCF and G-CSF are expressed on the growth core of cortical neurons, and that SCF+G-CSF synergistically enhances neurite extension through PI3K/AKT and NFκB …

Trauma History And Depression Predict Incomplete Adherence To Antiretroviral Therapies In A Low Income Country, Kathryn Whetten, Kristen Shirey, Brian Wells Pence, Jia Yao, Nathan Thielman, Rachel Whetten, Julie Adams, Bernard Agala, Jan Ostermann, Karen O'Donnell, Amy Hobbie, Venance Maro, Dafrosa Itemba, Elizabeth Reddy, Chat Research Team

Faculty Publications

Background: As antiretroviral therapy (ART) for HIV becomes increasingly available in low and middle income countries (LMICs), understanding reasons for lack of adherence is critical to stemming the tide of infections and improving health. Understanding the effect of psychosocial experiences and mental health symptomatology on ART adherence can help maximize the benefit of expanded ART programs by indicating types of services, which could be offered in combination with HIV care. Methodology: The Coping with HIV/AIDS in Tanzania (CHAT) study is a longitudinal cohort study in the Kilimanjaro Region that included randomly selected HIV-infected (HIV+) participants from two local hospital-based HIV …

Fine Mapping And Identification Of Bmi Loci In African Americans, Jian Gong, Fredrick Schumacher, Unhee Lim, Lucia A. Hindorff, Jeff Haessler, Steven Buyske, Christopher S. Carlson, Stephanie Rosse, Petra Bůžková, Myriam Fornage, Myron Gross, Nathan Pankratz, James S. Pankow, Pamela J. Schreiner, Richard Cooper, Georg Ehret, C. Charles Gu, Denise Houston, Marguerite R. Irvin, Rebecca Jackson, Lew Kuller, Brian Henderson, Iona Cheng, Lynne Wilkens, Mark Leppert, Cora E. Lewis, Rongling Li, Khanh Dung H. Nguyen, Robert Goodloe, Eric Farber-Eger, Jonathan Boston, Holli H. Dilks, Marylyn D. Ritchie

Faculty Publications

Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) primarily performed in European-ancestry (EA) populations have identified numerous loci associated with body mass index (BMI). However, it is still unclear whether these GWAS loci can be generalized to other ethnic groups, such as African Americans (AAs). Furthermore, the putative functional variant or variants in these loci mostly remain under investigation. The overall lower linkage disequilibrium in AA compared to EA populations provides the opportunity to narrow in or fine-map these BMI-related loci. Therefore, we used the Metabochip to densely genotype and evaluate 21 BMI GWAS loci identified in EA studies in 29,151 AAs from the …

Connecting Numbers To Discrete Quantification: A Step In The Child’S Construction Of Integer Concepts, Emily Slusser, A. Ditta, B. Sarnecka

Faculty Publications

The present study asks when young children understand that number words quantify over sets of discrete individuals. For this study, 2- to 4-year-old children were asked to extend the number word five or six either to a cup containing discrete objects (e.g., blocks) or to a cup containing a continuous substance (e.g., water). In Experiment 1, only children who knew the exact meanings of the words one, two and three extended higher number words (five or six) to sets of discrete objects. In Experiment 2, children who only knew the exact meaning of one extended higher number words to discrete …

Graduate Students’ Geropsychology Training Opportunities And Perceived Competence In Working With Older Adults, Erin Woodhead, Erin Emery, Nancy Pachana, Theresa Scott, Candace Konnert, Barry Edelstein

Faculty Publications

The current study surveyed clinical and counseling graduate students in the United States (n = 380), Canada (n = 211), Australia (n = 117), and New Zealand (n = 20) to assess geropsychology training opportunities and perceived competency in working with older adults. More geropsychology opportunities were available to participants from the United States and Australia/New Zealand than from Canada. Participants not enrolled in programs with specialty geropsychology tracks reported a lower proportion of faculty doing research, F(1, 537) = 182.13, p < .001 and clinical work, F(1, 452) = 36.13, p < .001 with older adults, lower perceived level of interest among faculty in increasing aging content, F(1, 584) = 59.98, p < .001, fewer aging courses taken, F(1, 582) = 46.91, p < .001, and fewer total practicum hours with older adult clients, F(1, 313) = 10.88, p = .001. For participants enrolled in a program with a specialty track, higher levels of perceived competency were associated with higher levels of perceived interest among faculty in increasing aging content (β = 0.29, p = .045) and more courses that included geropsychology topics (β = 0.42, p = .020). Significant associations were similar for participants not enrolled in a program with a specialty track, except that more practicum sites with older adults (β = 0.19, p = .002) and more total practicum hours with older adults (β = 0.31, p < .001) were also associated with ratings of perceived competency. Participants anticipated working with older adults in their future careers via seeing a wide age range of clients in independent practice, working in a specialty that includes older adults (neuropsychology), or including older family members in services. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved)

Preparing Public Librarians For Consumer Health Information Service: A Nation-Wide Study, L. Luo, Van M. Ta Park

Faculty Publications

A nationwide survey study was conducted to gain understanding as to how to prepare public librarians for consumer health information service. Findings indicate that the popular health information needs encountered by public librarians cover a wide variety of topics, including the human body, a medical/health condition, a disease, a medical concept, and fitness/diet/nutrition. The top two challenges faced by public librarians when providing consumer health information service are difficulty in interpreting patrons' questions and lack of knowledge about available and trusted/appropriate medical/health information sources. Public librarians wish to receive training on a number of topics that could help address the …

Constitutional Conundrums In Arbitration: Book Review Of Arbitration And The Constitution, S. I. Strong

Faculty Publications

The combination of arbitration and constitutional law is the topic of Professor Peter Rutledge's new book, and the focus of this review essay, which will consider, among other things, whether these two subjects are compatible.

Biometric Id Cybersurveillance, Margaret Hu

Faculty Publications

The implementation of a universal digitalized biometric ID system risks normalizing and integrating mass cybersurveillance into the daily lives of ordinary citizens. ID documents such as driver’s licenses in some states and all U.S. passports are now implanted with radio frequency identification (RFID) technology. In recent proposals, Congress has considered implementing a digitalized biometric identification card—such as a biometric-based, “high-tech” Social Security Card—which may eventually lead to the development of a universal multimodal biometric database (e.g., the collection of the digital photos, fingerprints, iris scans, and/or DNA of all citizens and noncitizens). Such “hightech” IDs, once merged with GPS-RFID tracking …

Social Descent With Territory Loss Causes Rapid Behavioral, Endocrine And Transcriptional Changes In The Brain, Karen P. Maruska, Lisa Becker, Anoop Neboori, Russell D. Fernald

Faculty Publications

In social species that form hierarchies where only dominant males reproduce, lower-ranking individuals may challenge higherranking ones, often resulting in changes in relative social status. How does a losing animal respond to loss of status? Here, using the African cichlid fish Astatotilapia burtoni, we manipulated the social environment, causing males to descend in rank, and then examined changes in behavior, circulating steroids and immediate early gene (IEG) expression (cfos, egr-1) in micro-dissected brain regions as a proxy for neuronal activation. In particular, we examined changes in the conserved 'social behavior network' (SBN), a collection of brain nuclei known to regulate …

Silencing Histone Deacetylase-Specific Isoforms Enhances Expression Of Pluripotency Genes In Bovine Fibroblasts, Jaroslaw Staszkiewicz, Rachel A. Power, Lettie L. Harkins, Christian W. Barnes, Karen L. Strickler, Jong S. Rim, Kenneth R. Bondioli, Kenneth J. Eilersten

Faculty Publications

Histone deacetylases (HDACs) catalyze deacetylation of histones that results in altered transcriptional activity. Inhibitors of HDACs have been shown to induce transcriptional changes that contribute positively to reprogramming somatic cells either by nuclear transfer or inducing a pluripotent state. However, the exact molecular mechanisms whereby HDAC inhibitors function and the specificity of the HDAC isoforms in cell reprogramming are not yet fully understood. Herein, we report the ability of individual isoform-specific HDACs to modulate endogenous expression of pluripotency-associated genes in bovine somatic cells. This in vitro study showed that a transient selective depletion of HDACs resulted in elevated mRNA levels …

We Know Who You Are And What You Are Made Of: The Illusion Of Internet Anonymity And Its Impact On Protection From Genetic Discrimination, Christine S. Davik

Faculty Publications

Recent advances in technology allow the online activities of Internet users to be monitored, gathered, and recorded without their knowledge. New electronic tools can compile extensive data on exactly what an individual is doing on the Web. This information can then be almost simultaneously cross-referenced with additional data to create detailed dossiers, including the user’s age, zip code, gender, and even health-related issues. While there is a vast amount of consumer information that can easily be accessed, at present there are very few restrictions on how the data amassed can be used. As a result, when consumers go online to …

Triacylglycerol Mobilization Is Suppressed By Brefeldin A In Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii, Naohiro Kato, Trung Dong, Michael Bailey, Tony Lum, Drury Ingram

Faculty Publications

Brefeldin A suppresses vesicle trafficking by inhibiting exchange of GDP for GTP in ADP-ribosylation factor. We report that brefeldin A suppresses mobilization of triacylglycerols in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, a model organism of green microalgae. Analyses revealed that brefeldin A causes Chlamydomonas to form lipid droplets in which triacylglycerols accumulate in a dose-dependent manner. Pulse labeling experiment using fluorescent fatty acids suggested that brefeldin A inhibits the cells from degrading fatty acids. The experiment also revealed that the cells transiently form novel compartments that accumulate exogenously added fatty acids in the cytoplasm, designated fatty acid-induced microbodies (FAIMs). Brefeldin A up-regulates the formation …

Homologous Rig-I-Like Helicase Proteins Direct Rnaimediated Antièiral Immunity In C. Elegans By Distinct Mechanisms, Xunyang Guo, Rui Zhang, Jeffrey Wang, Shou Wei Ding, Rui Lu

Faculty Publications

RNAi-mediated antièiral immunity in Caenorhabditis elegans requires Dicer-related helicase 1 (DRH-1), which encodes the helicase and C-terminal domains homologous to the mammalian retinoic acid inducible gene I (RIG-I)-like helicase (RLH) family of cytosolic immune receptors. Here we show that the antièiral function of DRH-1 requires the RIG-I homologous domains as well as its wormspecific N-terminal domain. We also demonstrate that the helicase and C-terminal domains encoded by either worm DRH-2 or human RIG-I can functionally replace the corresponding domains of DRH-1 to mediate antièiral RNAi in C. elegans. Notably, substitutions in a three-residue motif of the C-terminal regulatory domain of …

Two New Species Of Eimeria Schneider, 1875 (Apicomplexa: Eimeriidae) From Emerald Tree Skinks, Lamprolepis Smaragdina (Lesson) (Sauria: Scincidae) From Papua New Guinea And The Philippines, Chris T. Mcallister, R. Scott Seville, Donald W. Duszynski, Sarah E. Bush, Robert N. Fisher, Christopher C. Austin

Faculty Publications

Two new species of Eimeria Schneider, 1875, from emerald tree skinks, Lamprolepis smaragdina (Lesson) are described from specimens collected in Papua New Guinea (PNG) and the Philippines. Oöcysts of Eimeria nuiailan n. sp. from the only L. smaragdina from PNG are ovoidal, with a smooth, colourless, bi-layered wall, measure 23.7 × 19.1 μm, and have a length/width (L/W) ratio of 1.3; both micropyle and oöcyst residuum are absent, but a fragmented polar granule is present. Sporocysts are ovoidal to ellipsoidal, 11.9 × 7.0 μm, L/W 1.7, and the wall is composed of two valves joined by a longitudinal suture; neither …

Association Of Healthy Aging With Parental Longevity, Sangkyu Kim, David A. Welsh, Katie E. Cherry, Leann Myers, S. Michal Jazwinski

Faculty Publications

Various measures incorporated in geriatric assessment have found their way into frailty indices (FIs), which have been used as indicators of survival/mortality and longevity. Our goal is to understand the genetic basis of healthy aging to enhance its evidence base and utility. We constructed a FI as a quantitative measure of healthy aging and examined its characteristics and potential for genetic analyses. Two groups were selected from two separate studies. One group (OLLP for offspring of long-lived parents) consisted of unrelated participants at least one of whose parents was age 90 or older, and the other group of unrelated participants …

Patients’ Online Reviews Of Physicians, Eric Goldman

Faculty Publications

This short essay explores how doctors and other healthcare professionals have responded to patient reviews of their services and addresses how they should deal with patient reviews in the future.

Perceptions Of Parental Awareness Of Emotional Responses To Stressful Life Events, Lisa Jobe-Shields, Gilbert R. Parra, Kelly E. Buckholdt

Faculty Publications

There is a need to better understand family processes related to recovery from past stressful life events. The present study aimed to investigate links between perceptions of parental awareness regarding stressful life events, continued event-related rumination, and current symptoms of depression. Students at a diverse, urban university completed a Life Events Checklist and a semistructured interview regarding family processing of stressful life events, as well as self-report measures of event-related rumination and depression. Results indicated that perceptions of mothers’ and fathers’ awareness of sadness regarding stressful life events as well as mothers’ and fathers’ verbal event processing predicted symptoms of …

The Relationship Between Implementation Of School-Wide Positive Behavior Intervention And Supports And Performance On State Accountability Measures, Adriana M. Marin, Hollie Gabler Filce

Faculty Publications

This study examined data from 96 schools in a Southeastern U.S. state participating in training and/or coaching on School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (SWPBIS) provided by the State Personnel Development Grant (SPDG) in their state. Schools studied either received training only (“non-intensive” sites) or training and on-site coaching (“intensive” sites). Fidelity of implementation was self-evaluated by both types of schools using the Benchmarks of Quality (BOQ). Some schools were also externally evaluated using the School-Wide Evaluation Tool (SET), with those scoring 80% or higher determined “model sites.” Using an independent sample t-test, analyses revealed statistically significant differences between …

Where The Judiciary Prosecutes In Front Of Itself: Missouri's Unconstitutional Juvenile Court Structure, Josh Gupta-Kagan

Faculty Publications

This article is the first scholarly examination of Missouri’s unusual juvenile court structure: Missouri law charges a “juvenile officer” with exclusive authority to determine which child welfare or delinquency cases to file and what to charge in each case. The juvenile officer is hired and supervised by juvenile court judges, and the juvenile officer litigates cases in front of those same judges. This structure differs from the typical procedures in juvenile courts around the United States, which have generally adapted their juvenile courts to reflect the norm of executive branch agencies or attorneys (not court staff) filing cases to intervene …

A Proposal To Improve The Workplace Law Curriculum From A Corporate Compliance Perspective, Nicole Buonocore Porter

Faculty Publications

The goal of this Article is to explore and propose a course [in labor and employment law] that I believe will be very valuable for law students. The goal of the course will be two-fold. The first goal will be to integrate the three areas of workplace law [Employment Discrimination, Labor Law, and Employment Law] into one course, exploring the ways that these areas of the law intersect and interact with one another. The second goal will be to teach non-litigation practical skills that will benefit students when eventually called upon to advise employers on the compliance of our workplace …

Genomic Pathway Analysis Reveals That Ezh2 And Hdac4 Represent Mutually Exclusive Epigenetic Pathways Across Human Cancers, Adam L. Cohn, Stephen R. Piccolo, Luis Cheng, Rafaella Soldi, Bing Han, W. Evan Johnson, Andrea H. Bild

Faculty Publications

Background: Alterations in epigenetic marks, including methylation or acetylation, are common in human cancers. For many epigenetic pathways, however, direct measures of activity are unknown, making their role in various cancers difficult to assess. Gene expression signatures facilitate the examination of patterns of epigenetic pathway activation across and within human cancer types allowing better understanding of the relationships between these pathways.

Methods: We used Bayesian regression to generate gene expression signatures from normal epithelial cells before and after epigenetic pathway activation. Signatures were applied to datasets from TCGA, GEO, CaArray, ArrayExpress, and the cancer cell line encyclopedia. For TCGA data, …

Femoroacetabular Impingement: A Guide To Diagnosis In Primary Care, Alec Rimmasch Jr., Patricia K. Ravert

Faculty Publications

Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) has been a diagnosis for approximately a decade in the medical field. Although FAI was once considered uncommon, it is now documented as 1 of the most common hip disorders. FAI is a variance or overgrowth within the femoral head neck space, acetabular ring, labrum, or cartilage. Patients with FAI frequently present in a general practice setting and endure months of pain and physical therapy before a correct diagnosis is ascertained. Understanding FAI and appropriate treatment and diagnostic procedures will facilitate early diagnosis in the primary care setting, providing the best chance for patient recovery.

The Size Of A Melanin-Based Plumage Ornament Correlates With Glucocorticoid Receptor Concentrations In The Skin Of That Ornament, Christine R. Lattin, L. Michael Romero

Faculty Publications

© 2013 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved. Glucocorticoid hormones such as corticosterone (CORT) play crucial roles in many physiological processes. CORT's actions are primarily mediated via binding to two receptors (glucocorticoid receptors (GRs) and mineralocorticoid receptors (MRs)) in different target tissues. CORT receptors can be independently regulated from circulating hormone titres, from tissue to tissue and even within different regions of the same tissue type. Increasing evidence has shown relationships between circulating CORT and melaninbased pigmentation in skin and feathers, yet to our knowledge, there have been no studies of CORT receptors in the skin …