Digital Commons Network^™

The Structure Of A Receptor With Two Associating Transmembrane Domains On The Cell Surface: Integrin ΑIibΒ3, Jieqing Zhu, Bing Hao Luo, Patrick Barth, Jack Schonbrun, David Baker, Timothy A. Springer

Faculty Publications

Structures of intact receptors with single-pass transmembrane domains are essential to understand how extracellular and cytoplasmic domains regulate association and signaling through transmembrane domains. A chemical and computational method to determine structures of the membrane regions of such receptors on the cell surface is developed here and validated with glycophorin A. An integrin heterodimer structure reveals association over most of the lengths of the α and β transmembrane domains and shows that the principles governing association of hetero and homo transmembrane dimers differ. A turn at the Gly of the juxtamembrane GFFKR motif caps the α TM helix and brings …

Barriers To Mitigation: A Pilot Study, James Lee, Crystal Paul, Guna Selvaduray

Faculty Publications

This pilot research was undertaken to discover barriers that prevent homeowners from mitigating earthquake hazards in their homes. There is a relatively significant body of literature on disaster mitigation, which is reviewed and summarized in this report. However, no studies address how these barriers may be overcome so that homeowners would be more proactive in mitigation. If the barriers can be identified, then future communications and policy actions that address these barriers can be taken, resulting in more widespread mitigation implementation that reduces the injury and damage potential that communities face, leading to a reduction in the post-disaster response requirement, …

Mathematical Aspects Of Vacuum Energy On Quantum Graphs, G. Berkolaiko, J. M. Harrison, J. H. Wilson

Faculty Publications

We use quantum graphs as a model to study various mathematical aspects of the vacuum energy, such as convergence of periodic path expansions, consistency among different methods (trace formulae versus method of images) and the possible connection with the underlying classical dynamics. In our study we derive an expansion for the vacuum energy in terms of periodic paths on the graph and prove its convergence and smooth dependence on the bond lengths of the graph. For an important special case of graphs with equal bond lengths, we derive a simpler explicit formula. With minor changes this formula also applies to …

Friendship And Romantic Relationship Qualities In Emerging Adulthood: Differential Associations With Identity Development And Achieved Adulthood Criteria, Carolyn Mcnamara Barry, Stephanie D. Madsen, Larry J. Nelson, Jason S. Carroll, Sarah Badger

Faculty Publications

This study examined how emerging adults’ identity development and achievement of adulthood criteria were related to qualities of their friendships and romantic relationships. Participants included 710 emerging adults (ages 18–26). Results indicated that identity achievement was related positively to four romantic relationship qualities, but not to any friendship qualities. Several achieved adulthood criteria were related positively to romantic relationship qualities; however, achieved adulthood criteria were related negatively to friendship qualities. It appears that progress on salient developmental tasks of adulthood carries important implications for emerging adults’ social relationships, but in ways that are more differentiated than commonly assumed.

Environmentally Persistent Free Radicals Amplify Ultrafine Particle Mediated Cellular Oxidative Stress And Cytotoxicity, Shrilatha Balakrishna, Slawo Lomnicki, Kevin M. Mcavey, Richard B. Cole, Barry Dellinger, Stephania A. Cormier

Faculty Publications

Background: Combustion generated particulate matter is deposited in the respiratory tract and pose a hazard to the lungs through their potential to cause oxidative stress and inflammation. We have previously shown that combustion of fuels and chlorinated hydrocarbons produce semiquinone-type radicals that are stabilized on particle surfaces (i.e. environmentally persistent free radicals; EPFRs). Because the composition and properties of actual combustion-generated particles are complex, heterogeneous in origin, and vary from day-to-day, we have chosen to use surrogate particle systems. In particular, we have chosen to use the radical of 2-monochlorophenol (MCP230) as the EPFR because we have previously shown that …

Polyubiquitination Of The Demethylase Jhd2 Controls Histone Methylation And Gene Expression, Douglas P. Mersman, Hai Ning Du, Ian M. Fingerman, Paul F. South, Scott D. Briggs

Faculty Publications

The identification of histone methyltransferases and demethylases has uncovered a dynamic methylation system needed to modulate appropriate levels of gene expression. Gene expression levels of various histone demethylases, such as the JARID1 family, show distinct patterns of embryonic and adult expression and respond to different environmental cues, suggesting that histone demethylase protein levels must be tightly regulated for proper development. In our study, we show that the protein level of the yeast histone H3 Lys 4 (H3 K4) demethylase Jhd2/ Kdm5 is modulated through polyubiquitination by the E3 ubiquitin ligase Not4 and turnover by the proteasome. We determine that polyubiquitin-mediated …

Increased Gene Expression Of A Facilitated Diffusion Urea Transporter In The Skin Of The African Lungfish (Protopterus Annectens) During Massively Elevated Post-Terrestrialization Urea Excretion, Carrie Y.C. Hung, Fernando Galvez, Yuen K. Ip, Chris M. Wood

Faculty Publications

The full-length cDNA sequence of a putative urea transporter (IfUl) of the facilitated diffusion UT-A type has been cloned from the African lungfish Protopterus annectens. The IFUTcDNA is 1990bp in length and its open reading frame encodes a 409 amino acid long protein, with a calculated molecular mass of 44,723 Da. The sequence is closest to those of amphibians (∼65% amino acid homology), followed by mammals and elasmobranchs (∼60%), and then teleosts (∼50%). IfUT was clearly expressed in gill, kidney, liver, skeletal muscle and skin. Upon re-immersion in water after 33days of air exposure ('terrestrialization'), lungfish exhibited a massive rise …

Civil War Finance: Lessons For Today, Jeffrey Rogers Hummel

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Language Characteristics Of Individuals With Down Syndrome, Gary E. Martin, Jessica Klusek, Bruno Estigarribia, Joanne E. Roberts

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Quantifying The Effectiveness Of Interactive Tutorials In Medical Library Instruction, Rozalynd P. Anderson, Steven P. Wilson

Faculty Publications

The goal of this study was to determine whether a passive or an interactive tutorial design improves understanding of key concepts, as measured by pre- and post-test data. The authors also collected data regarding the participants’ preference for taking an interactive versus a passive tutorial. The interactive tutorial group improved statistically significantly from pre-test to post-test for all three learning questions. While the passive tutorial group improved from pre-test to post-test on all three questions, the improvement was statistically significant for just two of the three questions. The majority of the participants preferred interactive tutorials (78%) to passive tutorials (22%).

Intact And Top-Down Characterization Of Biomolecules And Direct Analysis Using Infrared Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Electrospray Ionization Coupled To Ft-Icr Mass Spectrometry, Jason S. Sampson, Kermit K. Murray, David C. Muddiman

Faculty Publications

We report the implementation of an infrared laser onto our previously reported matrix-assisted laser desorption electrospray ionization (MALDESI) source with ESI post-ionization yielding multiply charged peptides and proteins. Infrared (IR)-MALDESI is demonstrated for atmospheric pressure desorption and ionization of biological molecules ranging in molecular weight from 1.2 to 17 kDa. High resolving power, high mass accuracy single-acquisition Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance (FT-ICR) mass spectra were generated from liquid- and solid-state peptide and protein samples by desorption with an infrared laser (2.94 μm) followed by ESI post-ionization. Intact and top-down analysis of equine myoglobin (17 kDa) desorbed from the solid …

But 'Will It Write'? How Writing Sharpens Decision-Making, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Creating A "Green Bubble" On Campus: A Model For Programming In A Green Living-Learning Community, David Whiteman

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Standing As An Article Ii Nondelegation Doctrine, Tara Leigh Grove

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Not Very Collegial: Exploring Bans On Illegal Immigrant Admissions To State Colleges And Universities, Marcia A. Yablon-Zug, Danielle R. Holley-Walker

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Candles In The Wind: Resisting Repression In Liberia (1979-2003), Robert Press

Faculty Publications

Scholars have been extending social-movement analysis beyond its base in the industrialized West to Latin America and Asia, but rarely to Africa. Social movements resisting repression in nondemocratic settings have usually had the help of external "opportunities" or favorable circumstances. This study, however, examines a peaceful social movement in Liberia, a movement that resisted repression under two regimes, advocating for human rights and democratic freedom without such "opportunities." How did this happen? The study finds four explanations: the formation of a microsocial movement with no formal leadership and only loosely connected strands of resistance, which were harder to control; a …

Metal-Dielectric-Metal Plasmonic Waveguide Devices For Manipulating Light At The Nanoscale, Georgios Veronis, Zongfu Yu, Şükrü Ekin Kocabaş, David A.B. Miller, Mark L. Brongersma, Shanhui Fan

Faculty Publications

We review some of the recent advances in the development of subwavelength plasmonic devices for manipulating light at the nanoscale, drawing examples from our own work in metal-dielectric-metal(MDM) plasmonic waveguide devices. We introduce bends, splitters, and mode converters for MDM waveguides with no additional loss. We also demonstrate that optical gain provides a mechanism for on/off switching in MDM plasmonic waveguides. Highly efficient compact couplers between dielectric waveguides and MDM waveguides are also introduced. © 20009 Chinese Optics Letters.

Legal And Social Perspectives On Local Enforcement Of Immigration Under The Section 287(G) Program, Hannah Gill, Mai Thi Nguyen, Katherine Lewis Parker, Deborah Weissman

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Soil Zinc Content, Groundwater Usage, And Prostate Cancer Incidence In South Carolina, Sara E. Wagner, James B. Burch, Jim Hussey, Tom Temples, Susan Bolick-Aldrich, Catishia Mosley-Broughton, Yuan Liu, James R. Hébert

Faculty Publications

Background

Prostate cancer (PrCA) incidence in South Carolina (SC) exceeds the national average, particularly among African Americans (AAs). Though data are limited, low environmental zinc exposures and down-regulation of prostatic zinc transporter proteins among AAs may explain, in part, the racial PrCA disparity.

Methods

Age-adjusted PrCA rates were calculated by census tract. Demographic data were obtained from the 1990 census. Hazardous waste site locations and soil zinc concentrations were obtained from existing federal and state databases. A geographic information system and Poisson regression were used to test the hypothesis that census tracts with reduced soil zinc concentrations, elevated groundwater use, …

What Should We Be Doing To Reduce Or End Campus Violence?, Jason A. Laker

Faculty Publications

Over the last several years, there have been a number of high-profile incidents of violence on college and university campuses. These have precipitated discussions and new initiatives on campuses and within our professional organizations intended to prevent and respond to violence.

Swearing In The Cinema: An Analysis Of Profanity In Us Teen-Oriented Movies, 1980-2006, Dale Cressman, Mark Callister, Tom Robinson, Chris Near

Faculty Publications

The exposure of children to profanity continues to be a concern for parents, media researchers, and policy makers alike. This study examines the types, frequency, and usage of profanity in movies directed at and featuring teenagers. A review of relevant literature explores the nature, use, and psychology of profanity, its potential social effects, and its prevalence in the media. A content analysis was conducted of the ninety top-grossing domestic teen films in the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s (thirty from each decade) in the US based on domestic gross box-office amounts. Results indicate no change in preferences in types of profanity …

A Functional Type I Topoisomerase From Pseudomonas Aeruginosa, Teesta Jain, Benjamin J. Roper, Anne Grove

Faculty Publications

Background: Pseudomonas aeruginosa encodes a putative topoisomerase with sequence similarity to the eukaryotic type IB topoisomerase from Vaccinia virus. Residues in the active site are conserved, notably Tyr292 which would be predicted to form the transient covalent bond to DNA. Results: The gene encoding the P. aeruginosa topoisomerase I was cloned and expressed in E. coli. The enzyme relaxes supercoiled DNA, while a mutant containing a Tyr292 to Phe substitution at the active site was found to be catalytically inert. This is consistent with the role of Tyr in forming the covalent intermediate. Like Vaccinia topoisomerase, the P. aeruginosa topoisomerase …

Patrons Cataloging? The Role And Quality Of Patron Tagging In Item Description, William Lund, Allyson Washburn

Faculty Publications

With the advent of Web 2.0 technologies, user participation in the description and evaluation of content has come to the library. User tagging is almost a given in applications such as Del.icio.us, Flickr, and LibraryThing. The question is whether tagging provided by users with their own motivations is better in some sense then descriptions provided by professionals. Is the tagging provided by the wisdom of the crowd a better description of an item?

A Public Privilege, Colin Miller

Faculty Publications

If a rule is only as good as its exceptions, and a reporter is only as good as her sources, then, according to a recent Supreme Court of Pennsylvania opinion, Pennsylvania's reporter's privilege is the best of privileges and the worst of privileges. In that opinion, the justices failed to carve a crime-fraud exception out of Pennsylvania's reporter's privilege - its "Shield Law" - despite having previously read a similar exception into every other evidentiary privilege. Ironically, this alleged act of judicial passivism transformed the Shield Law into both a shield and a sword and mischaracterized the purposes served by …

Religion And Hiv In Tanzania: Influence Of Religious Beliefs On Hiv Stigma, Disclosure, And Treatment Attitudes, James Zou, Yvonne Yamanaka, Muze John, Melissa Watt, Jan Ostermann, Nathan Thielman

Faculty Publications

Background

Religion shapes everyday beliefs and activities, but few studies have examined its associations with attitudes about HIV. This exploratory study in Tanzania probed associations between religious beliefs and HIV stigma, disclosure, and attitudes toward antiretroviral (ARV) treatment.

Methods

A self-administered survey was distributed to a convenience sample of parishioners (n = 438) attending Catholic, Lutheran, and Pentecostal churches in both urban and rural areas. The survey included questions about religious beliefs, opinions about HIV, and knowledge and attitudes about ARVs. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to assess how religion was associated with perceptions about HIV, HIV treatment, and …

Enhancing The Communication Competency Of Business Undergraduates: A Consumer Socialization Perspective, K. C. Gehrt, M. O'Brien, David Mease

Faculty Publications

Explaining how individuals acquire the necessary skills and knowledge to effectively participate in society is often accomplished through Socialization Theory. We investigate numerous socialization agents and their relationship with the communication competency of university business majors. Communication competency (reading, writing, and verbal) was measured via both a standardized skill test and self report. Exploratory analysis was conducted upon high and low communication competency groups that were identified via cluster analysis. Our findings generally indicate the most important socialization agents are via personal interactions whereas the least important socialization agents are influencing via primarily electronic or media-based methods.

“Publishers Did Not Take The Bait”: A Forgotten Precursor To The Nih Public Access Policy, Jonathan Miller

Faculty Publications

This article compares the recent National Institutes of Health (NIH) Public Access Policy (2005–07) with the United States Office of Education policy on copyright in funded research (1965–70).The two policies and the differing technological and political contexts of the periods are compared and contrasted. The author concludes that a more nuanced approach to copyright, the digital information environment, and the support of an energized user community auger well for the success of the NIH policy, but that it is still too soon to tell.

Was Money Really Easy Under Greenspan?, Jeffrey Rogers Hummel, David R. Henderson

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Electronic Media Exposure And Its Association With Activity-Related Outcomes In Female Adolescents: Cross-Sectional And Longitudinal Analyses, Felipe Lobelo, Marsha Dowda, Karin A. Pfeiffer, Russell R. Pate

Faculty Publications

Background: Few investigations have assessed in adolescent girls the cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between elevated exposure to electronic media (EM) and activity-related outcomes such as compliance with physical activity (PA) standards or cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF). Methods: Four-hundred thirty-seven white and African American girls were assessed at the 8th, 9th, and 12th grades. PA and EM (TV/video watching, electronic games, Internet use) were self-reported, and CRF was estimated using a cycle-ergometer test. Hi EM exposure was defined as ≥ four 30-minute blocks/d. Results: 8th-, 9th-, and 12th-grade girls in the Hi EM group showed lower compliance with PA standards and had …

Growth-Regulated Expression Of A Bacteriocin, Produced By The Sweet Potato Pathogen Streptomyces Ipomoeae, That Exhibits Interstrain Inhibition, Jing Wang, Kevin L. Schultyp, Gregg S. Pettis

Faculty Publications

Certain strains of the bacterial sweet potato pathogen Streptomyces ipomoeae produce the bacteriocin ipomicin, which inhibits other sensitive strains of the same species. Within the signal-sequence-encoding portion of the ipomicin structural gene ipoA exists a single rare TTA codon, which is recognized in Streptomyces bacteria by the temporally accumulating bldA leucyl tRNA. In this study, ipomicin was shown to stably accumulate in culture supernatants of 5. ipomoeae in a growth-regulated manner that did not coincide with the pattern of ipoA expression. Similar growth-regulated production of ipomicin in Streptomyces coelicolor containing the cloned ipoA gene was found to be directly dependent …