Digital Commons Network^™

Genetic Variation And Immune Response In The Wolf Spider: Rabidosa Rabida, Patrice Louise Jones

Honors Theses

Genetic variation has been shown to positively correlate with the strength of the immune response, especially in vertebrates. Smaller populations have less genetic diversity than larger populations as a result of random genetic drift. We estimated heterozygosity levels for six populations, which were known to vary significantly in size^ using 15 microsatellite loci. We wished to see if generalized loss of genetic variation, as measured by a random sample of neutral loci, would correlate with levels of immune response to a physical challenge (needle prick). Experiments were performed using the wolf spider species Rabidosa rabida. Immune response was measured as …

Environment, Behavior, And Internal Consciousness: A Study Of Space And Time In Dostoevsky, Laura Claire Bagwell

Honors Theses

Individual and public space creates the reality of daily existence for a human being. The ideological perspectives a person maintains are direct products of individual space experience because the larger societal context of a region constructs the norms for behavior and belief Dostoevsky writes concentration narratives that focus on the urban and rural space surrounding a protagonist, and contrasts between these two settings to illustrate the impact of environment on the human psyche. This study examines the use of external conditions to describe literary characters and the ideologies and behaviors they maintain. In researching space and time in the literature …

Targeted Gene Expression As A Means Of Killing Specific Glial Cells In Drosophila Embryos, Ryan Anthony Yates

Honors Theses

Complex nervous systems require both neurons and glial cells for proper functioning. While neurons have been the primary focus of neuroscience research, much more attention is now being demanded by the glia, whose numerous unknown functions become clearer. Studies on Drosophila melanogaster have been key to our understanding of the nervous system, as the development of both neurons and glia has been well characterized in this organism. In Drosophila, the effects of manipulating the nervous system can be readily observed using immunostaining of different cell types. This study examined the consequences of expressing reaper {rpr) in the most medial cell …

Cruciform Extrusion In Methylation-State Variants Of Pbr322 Plasmid, Lucas Morgan Mcelwain

Honors Theses

The presence of DNA secondary structures in genomic DNA has been observed in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Specifically, sections of ssDNA may melt out and form cruciform/hairpin structures within palindromic sequences or areas of high purine content. Negative supercoiling of the DNA is necessary for energetic favorability of such an event. These noncanonical structures may serve as molecular switches, providing additional regulation of DNA transactions such as transcription and perhaps replication and recombination. Secondary structures associated with regulatory regions are of particular interest as potential sites for the binding of small molecules, which could alter the expression of genes. The …

The Usa Patriot Act: A Constitutional Analysis, Dean Sterling Kidd

Honors Theses

This thesis is an examination of various arguments for and against the constitutionality of the USA Patriot Act in regard to the First and Fourth Amendments. The arguments are generally in a framework of competing interests: national security and civil liberties. Specifically, Sections 203, 206, 213, 215, 216, 218, and 505 of the Act are discussed. The analysis of these sections includes their actual language, and commentary from law journal articles. Relevant Supreme Court and lower court cases that relate to national security are also incorporated. The thesis also has a general commentary about the teiTor attacks which led to …

Gardening Programs In Schools: A Proposed Solution To Reverse The Consequences Of The Current American Food Culture, Charlotte Grace Blessey

Honors Theses

This thesis examines the problems with current food consumption and production practices, and proposes the implementation of school gardening programs as a possible remedy to these problems. Methods and procedures consisted of research on current publications, periodicals, internet sources and scholarly articles concerning these topics. It was found that current diet is a significant factor in widespread health problems facing populations today. This diet is intertwined with an environmentally destructive and vulnerable system of intensive industrial agriculture based on centralization, mass distribution, and standardization. School garden programs target children beginning at a young age and help to counter the culture …

Comparative Rates Of Ndna Degradation Using Rat Models In Southeastern Tennessee, Matthew F. Pullen

Honors Theses

The advent of DNA identification methods has revolutionized forensic science. It is now possible to identify criminals from trace evidence, eliminate false leads, and discover the identity of a deceased individual long after their death. As DNA plays such important roles in criminal investigatious, determining the quality of DNA due to its exposure time enviroment is imperative. This experiment seeks to help narrow down the time frame that useful nuclear DNA (nDNA) can be extracted from a decaying body. The rate of DNA degradation was measured in Sprague-Dawlwy rat models placed in varied environmnts of Southeastern Tennessee. The environments included …

A Youth In Upheaval!, Christine E. Nagel

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

Articulating Silence In The Postcolonial Indian Novel, Kaelin O'Connell

Honors Theses

Whatever is worth seeing or hearing in India can be expressed in writing. As soon as everything of importance is expressed in writing, a man who is duly qualified may obtain more knowledge of India in one year, in his closet in England, than he could obtain during the course of the longest life, by the use of his eyes and ears in India.

-James Mill, The History of British India, 1817.

This quotation, from the first philosophical history of India, posits the common British colonial notion that language, specifically the written word, might capture all that is "worth …

Complicating "Female Suicide Bombers" : Violence, Agency And Gender In The Rhetoric Of Shahida, Chelsea Rock

Honors Theses

Since 2002, popular Western news media has become fixated with the "advent" of the Palestinian female suicide bomber when a woman named Wafa Idris detonated herself on a busy Jaffa Road in Israel. Questions about gender, domesticity, violence, subjectivity, and technology arise as researchers, journalists and others confront culturally conceived notions about women and their roles in both Islamic and Western societies. Proposing a broader concept of violence that is cognizant of women's violent histories and struggles over agency, this essay suggests that analyses of women and violence are incomplete without critically thinking about the "female suicide bomber"--or shahida--within their …

Social Hierarchy In Leaderless Groups, Angie B. White

Honors Theses

The idea of social rank-ordering (indicative of status. dominance. or potential leadership capacity) was first extensively researched by Robert F. Bales in the early I 950's. Bales shaped group communication around the principle that groups inevitably evolve into unequal power structures and develop a hierarchy of participation and status (Bales et. al, 1951 ). This hierarchy is evident in many different areas of life, such as social interactions, socio-economic status, and task-related rank, and the idea of dominance is established early on in life. From 1961, when Gellert observed dyads of 4- to 6- year-old children and found that a …

Examination Of The Ace And Actn3 Genes In Utc Varsity Athletes And Sedentary Students, Ian Mayne

Honors Theses

Growing evidence suggests that genetic variants of certain genes are linked to athletic performance. This study presents a comparative analysis of genetic variation of the ACE and ACTN3 genes in varsity athletes (n=90) and sedentary students (n=48) at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. The ACE gene codes for the Angiotensin Converting Enzyme (ACE), which is an integral part of the Renin-Angiotensin system. It is responsible for regulating blood volume,arterial pressure, electrolyte balance, and cardiac and vascular function.Polymorphisms of the ACE gene effect serum and tissue levels of the enzyme, and are genetically distinguished by either an insertion (I-allele) or …

Synthesis Of 2-Oxo-16-(3', 4'-Methylenedioxyphenyl)-Trans-15-Hexadecene, Adelajda Zorba

Honors Theses

This work presents the progress made towards synthesizing 2-oxo-16-(3', 4'methylenedioxyphenyl)-trans-15-hexadecene, an antimycobacterial compound that was originally isolated from the leaves of Piper Sanctum. The hydrocarbon chain of the molecule was synthesized first by opening a 15-pentadecanolactone ring by means of HI, and performing an E2 elimination reaction on the molecule followed by an organolithium reaction with CH3Li. Hexadec-15-en-2-one that was afforded this way was later reacted with 5-bromobenzo[d][1,3]dioxole following the appropriate Heck reaction protocol that allows for the formation of a palladium catalyzed carbon-carbon bond.

The modes of action of 2-oxo-16-(3', 4'-methylenedioxyphenyl)-trans-15hexadecene are comparable to the ones of rifampicin, a …

A Broad-Spectrum Mer Operon In A Multi-Drug Resistant Strain Of The Fish Pathogen, Aeromonas Salmonicida, Erin Parry

Honors Theses

Aeromonas salmonicida AS03, a potential fish pathogen, was isolated from Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar, in 2003. This strain was found to be resistant to ≥1000 mM HgCl2 and ≥32 mM phenylmercuric acetate as well as multiple antimicrobials. Mercury (Hg) and antibiotic resistance genes are often located on the same mobile genetic elements, so the genetic determinants of both resistances and the possibility of horizontal gene transfer were examined. Specific PCR primers were used to amplify and sequence distinctive regions of the mer operon. A. salmonicida AS03 was found to have a pDU1358-like broad-spectrum mer operon, containing merB as well as …

Characterization Of The Wheat Grain Pkaba1-Interacting Protein Tawd40, Natalie Wayne

Honors Theses

Abscisic acid (ABA)-mediated gene expression is a critical component of plant responses to this important hormone, which affects plant growth, development, and responses to environmental stresses. Plant responses to ABA are mediated by a number of factors including PKABA 1> an ABA-induced protein kinase involved in ABA-suppressed gene expression in cereal grains, and TaWD40, which has previously been shown to physically interact with PKABA1. A full-length 1.9 kb TaWD40 cDNA, CK210682, was sequenced as part of this project. Based on the deduced protein sequence, it is thought that TaWD40 may belong to the family of E3 ubiquitin ligases, possibly targeting …

Resistance Of Forest Community Types To Structural And Compositional Change Following Beech Bark Disease Infestation, Sarah Ann Hoskinson

Honors Theses

Pathogens change forest composition and structure by selectively eliminating susceptible individuals and species. Caused by a complex between an exotic scale insect and fungi, beech bark disease has infected mature American beech (Fagus grandifolia) trees through most of the species range. Before succumbing to the disease, infected trees generate root sprouts, transforming beech from a dominant canopy species into an abundant subcanopy species. Root sprouting can create dense beech thickets that interfere with the regeneration of other species. Exclusion of species from the understory has ecological and economic implications. This study compared forest community types for their resistance to compositional …

Non-Adherence: A Symptom Of The Current Health Care Model, Margaret Duggan

Honors Theses

This paper aims to provide a systematic review of the discourse surrounding patient adherence in an effort to illustrate the extent of the problem, how it is framed, and how intervention is currently approached. The paper begins with a general review of adherence, to ground the reader in the current discourse. The next section of the paper will focus specifically on adherence through the lens of HIV/AIDS. Since HIV/AIDS treatment and adherence to antiretroviral drugs is pertinent to adherence issues due to the complexity and lifelong duration of treatment. Furthermore, adherence with HIV/AIDS medications is particularly important due to the …

The Presence, Prevalence And Antibiotic Resistance Of Microbes In The Pamunkey River Basin, Christina Mcdowell

Honors Theses

This project examined the presence, prevalence and antibiotic resistance of Coliforms (mainly Escherichia coli), Staph/occocus aureus, fecal Streptococcus, andEnterobacteriacae found in the water samples taken from three selected sites on the North Anna, South Anna, and Little Rivers of the Pamunkey River Basin. The diversity and concentration of the microbes isolated from these sites was evaluated in late January and late March allowing for a comparison of the occurrence of microbes at different times and between the different sites. Over the course of two months the concentration of colonies increased based on colony counts from Nutrient agar. The rate of …

The Effects Of P53 Status And Egf On Timp-2 And Other Proteins Related To Migration In Human Glioblastoma Cell Cultures, Lisa M. Lint

Honors Theses

The effects of epidermal growth factor (EGF) on proteins that have been implicated in the migration of the Grade IV brain tumor, glioblastoma multiforme, were investigated in this study. Differential expression levels of TIMP-2, MMP-2, and MT1-MMP in response to EGF treatment were compared by immunoprecipitation, and immunoblotting. This study involved two different cultured glioma cell lines, U87, which expresses wild-type p53, and T98, which has a mutation in the p53 gene, in order to determine if the status of the p53 tumor suppression gene is a factor in the regulation of proteins involved in this migration pathway. It was …

What's Behind Genocide?: The Social Construction Of Ethnicity And Mass Killing, Brianna Marie Phillips

Honors Theses

This thesis offers insight into the causes of genocide through a comparative analysis of four incidents, two that are seen as ideologically-based and two that are seen as the result of ethnic conflict: the mass killing that occurred during Joseph Stalin’s reign in the Soviet Union, specifically the period from the early 1930s to the late 1940s, the genocide that occurred in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, that which took place against Bosnian Muslims from 1992 to 1995, and the Rwandan genocide of 1994. To determine the of each of the respective genocides, constructivist theories of the factors behind ethnic …

The Effect Of Tgf-B And Egf On Mmp-2 Activation And Mt1-Mmp Phosphorylation In U87mg And T98g Human Glioma Cells, Jacquelyn B. Knupp

Honors Theses

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), a high-grade, malignant brain tumor of astrocyte origin, invades normal brain tissue and most often results in death ofthe patient withinayearofdiagnosis. In order to invade the surrounding tissue and thereby metastasize, these tumor cells must migrate through the extracellular matrix. The pmpose ofthis research project is to investigate the family ofmatrix metalloproteinases responsible for extracellular degradation. Specifically, this investigation looks at MMP-2 activation via MT 1-MMP and the possible importance of phosphorylation of the tyrosine residue on the cytoplasmic tail of MTl-MMP. U87wildtypegliomacellsaswellasT98 p53 mutant glioma cells were treated with transforming growth factor beta (TGF-P). Preliminary results …

Development Of Proliferation Assays To Explore The Role Of Calcium Activated Potassium Channels In Cell Proliferation, Sean Foster

Honors Theses

Due to the large variety of K^† channel families implicated in cancer cell proliferation, it is desirable to develop techniques capable of quickly and reliably screening a variety of potential channels for a role in proliferation. While there are many established cell counting procedures, the time-consuming nature of such protocols limits their usefulness in broadly identifying particular channels in uncharacterized cell lines. For this reason, a primary goal of the present research was the development of techniques capable of implicating particular ion channels in proliferation with both qualitative and quantitative data. Once this goal was accomplished, the project sought …

The Effects Of Single-Sex Student Leadership Positions On Leadership Style Used, Perceptions Of Effective Leadership, Self-Efficacy, Domain Identification, Intent To Lead In The Future, And Perceptions And Evaluations Of Leaders, Alyson Emrick

Honors Theses

Included in this paper are two studies, a survey study, and a vignette study. The survey research, Study 1, examined the effects of single-sex student leadership positions on leadership style used, perceptions of effective leadership, leadership self-efficacy, domain identification, and intent to lead in the future. It compared a group of male and female leaders of single-sex organizations, a group of men and women holding leadership positions in coeducational groups, and a group of male and female non-leaders. Male and female leaders reported using different leadership styles; men reported higher levels of the autocratic-task style while women reported higher levels …

The Impact Of Gender-Linked Tasks On Female And Male Leaders, Ashley Pyle

Honors Theses

Because gender inequalities still exist, research is needed to better understand the differences in leadership perceptions and preference between genders. This research examines the role of gender, sex role orientation, and gender-linked tasks in shaping leadership efficacy, perceived preference, and leadership persistence. It was predicted that men and women will have higher levels of leadership efficacy, perceive themselves as better leaders, have a stronger desire to attain leadership roles in the future and be more likely to persist in the leadership role for the gender congruent task than the gender incongruent task. I also predicted that sex role orientation will …

Sigma Receptor Modulation Of Intracellular Calcium In Smooth Muscle, Katy Anna Grisham

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of Carrageenan-Induced Inflammatory Nociception On Distress Vocalizations And The Anxiolytic Efficacy Of Drugs In The Chick Separation Stress Paradigm, Ralph Brooks Vance Jr.

Honors Theses

RALPH BROOKS VANCE, JR: The Effect of Carrageenan-Induced Inflammatory Nociception on Distress Vocalizations and the Anxiolytic Efficacy ofDrugs in the Chick Separation Stress Paradigm. (Under the direction ofKenneth J. Sufka)

The effects ofstress on pain perception have been well studied, but only limited research has been conducted on the opposite relationship, the effect ofpain on stress level. Femandez-Guasti (2005) found that nociception caused by uric acid injections, attenuated the anxiety-like behavior ofrats in both the elevated plus maze and in the burying behavior test. Additionally, they discovered that the anxiolytic effectiveness of buspirone and diazepam were weakened by the mild …

The Effects Of A Pre-Operative Education Program On Anxiety And Cortisol Levels Prior To And Following Surgery, Lou Ann Balducci

Honors Theses

Evidence suggests that lower levels of stress may negatively impact the healing process and tissue repair after surgery. The purpose of the investigation was to assess the effectiveness of a pre-operative educational program on reducing pre-operative and post¬ operative anxiety levels for patients having orthopedic surgery. Three subjects volunteered to participate in this study. The State Anxiety Inventory, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and Perceived Stress Scale questionnaires all showed that Subject 1 (treatment subject) did not have the highest anxiety or stress levels. In addition. cortisol levels were lower in Subject 1. Furthermore, Subject 1 was the most confident …

The Effects Of Heart Rate Variability, Measures Of Impulsivity, And Activity Level In College Students, Laura Katie Laird

Honors Theses

The objectives of this study were to assess the relationships of breathingassociated heart rate variability and measures of impulsivity using EKG-derived heart rate, the BaiTatt Impulsivity Scale (BIS-11), and the Conners’ Continuous Performance Test (CPT-II). To measure activity level as a proxy for fitness. activity monitors were worn by most participants and all participants completed the International Physical Activity Questiomiaire (IPAQ). Fifty-two college students (23 male and 29 female, ages 18-22) participated in the study. Auscultatory blood pressure, EKG-derived heart rate, and mean successive difference of interbeat intervals were collected during 2 ten-minute rest periods and during the CPT-II. Participants …

The Treatment Of Medicine In Literature, Nicholas Shawn Whipple

Honors Theses

In my thesis I explore the treatment of medicine in literature. I have analyzed six works of literature and drawn from others to create this piece of scholarship. Over the past year and a half, I have read thousands of pages from classic literature, modem mystery, and personal accounts. They have all broadened my view of the medical field and the doctor-patient relationship. I am better prepared to begin my medical training and career for having taken part in this venture.

Beyond The Binary: Rorty Rushdie, Zachary Mori Bonner

Honors Theses

Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children is a two-pronged postcolonial critique. Saleem Sinai's metanarrative of emancipation that also overhauls the postcolonial episteme.^ While Rushdie's confrontation of native subjectivity and the epistemic structures that inhibit the native's agency are plainly rooted in the postcolonial conversation, the major theorists in the field do not offer models of opposition that properly house his intervention. The work of Edward Said, Homi K. Bhabha, and Gayatri Spivak is representative of the trajectory of the strategies of discursive opposition to the employed by postcolonial theory. None of these theorists' metaphors for opposition create sufficient distance from the knowledge …