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This Too Shell Pass: Investigating The Function Of B Cells During An Immune Response In The Red-Eared Slider, Trachemys Scripta, Christen Renee Fairow

Theses and Dissertations

B cells are crucial components of the immune system during an infection that produce antibodies. It is not known how B cells function or if different cell subsets exist in reptiles. Understanding how B cells function in reptiles can help protect endangered species by clarifying how their immune system may be different from other vertebrates but may also allow for the development of new human medicines. First, we aimed to identify turtle leukocytes based on their morphological characteristics. Blood smears were made and photos were taken on a light microscope equipped with a digital camera. Using this method, we were …

Behavioral And Physiologic Relationships Between Sensory Processing, Attention, And Prediction In Autistic Children: An Eye Tracking Study, Courtney Hunter

Theses and Dissertations

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) prevalence has risen to one out of every 36 children born in the United States being diagnosed. Many individuals diagnosed experience sensory processing difficulties that make life challenging for them and their caregivers. However, there is no clear consensus on why sensory processing issues occur. Previous research has linked attention function to atypical sensory processing. Our study aimed to understand potential underlying mechanisms and correlates of this relationship. We theorized that prediction is a key contributing factor to how attention and sensory processing interact. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between sensory …

Investigation Of Intramolecular Oxidopyrylium-Based [ 5 +2 ] Cycloadditions, Kwabena Darko

Theses and Dissertations

The cycloaddition reaction is an important transformation in the field of organic chemistry since it serves as an indispensable tool in organic synthesis. The oxidopyrylium-based [5+2] cycloaddition reaction has received enormous attention in chemical synthesis due to its usefulness in the formation of seven-membered heterocyclic ring systems present in bioactive natural products.1,2,3,4 In spite of the tremendous attention paid to this reaction, there still exist stereo and regioselectivity limitations. Further investigation is critical in light of these limitations. The intramolecular oxidopyrylium-based [5+2] cycloaddition is known to afford these ring systems with high stereo and regioselectivity since with the intramolecular type …

Non-Tuberculous Mycobacterium Correlation With Geochemical Characteristics Of Soil And Basalt In Hawaii, Leeza Marie Wells

Theses and Dissertations

Non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) cause opportunistic lung disease though environmental exposure pathways. Among the United States, Hawaii has a significantly higher infection rate. Preliminary studies have shown certain environmental factors, such as phosphorus and other select soil geochemical characteristics, to be statistically significant to NTM occurrence. However, a model to predict NTM occurrence based on soil geochemistry had yet to be attempted. A selection of 40 NTM positive and 40 NTM negative soils from Oahu were selected for a geochemical analysis to search for possible correlations to mineralogy and elemental abundances that may promote, or inhibit, NTM growth in the environment. …

Sex-Specific Variation In Deep Brain Shape Is Attenuated In Schizophrenia - An Enigma Consortium Meta-Analysis, Delaina Brooke Cimmino

Theses and Dissertations

Schizophrenia (SCZ) is characterized by a disconnect from reality that manifests as various clinical and cognitive symptoms, as well as consistent neurobiological abnormalities. However, unique sex-related differences have been observed regarding clinical presentation that imply separate brain substrates. The present study characterized deep-brain morphology using shape features to understand whether the neurobiology of schizophrenia varies as a function of sex. This study analyzed multi-site archival data from 1,579 male (M) and 836 female (F) participants with SCZ, as well as 1,934 male and 1,828 female healthy controls (CON) from twenty-four cross-sectional study samples from the ENIGMA Schizophrenia Workgroup. Harmonized shape …

Can Community Resilience Be Achieved? An Investigation Of Subjective Household Resilience, Place Meanings, And Individual Perceived Preparedness To Respond To Environmental Threats, Anh Minh Ly

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the effects of place meanings and perceived individual preparedness on subjective household resilience and socio-psychological community resilience. Earlier research has shown an active controversy of whether place meanings and individual preparedness could transform into the perception of household resilience and community resilience. Thus, while place meanings, in a transformative norm, perform like place attachment and may support adaptation to change and strengthen the perception of resilience, it can present in forms of place dependence or inflexibility which might be a barrier for household and community resilience. Similarly, individual preparedness is claimed to be essential but insufficient to …

A Multimodal Immune System Inspired Defense Architecture For Detecting And Deterring Digital Pathogens In Container Hosted Web Services, Islam Khalil

Theses and Dissertations

With the increased use of web technologies, microservices, and Application Programming Interface (API) for integration between systems, and with the development of containerization of services on operating system level as a method of isolating system execution and for easing the deployment and scaling of systems, there is a growing need as well as opportunities for providing platforms that improve the security of such services. In our work, we propose an architecture for a containerization platform that utilizes various concepts derived from the human immune system. The goal of the proposed containerization platform is to introduce the concept of slowing down …

Investigating Eco-Evolutionary Interactions Between Hosts And Members Of Their Gut Microbiota, Logan A. Sauers

Theses and Dissertations

Evolutionary and ecological interactions between hosts and their associated microbial communities, their microbiota, and between members of these communities are vital to understand. Microbial communities are widespread across diverse host taxa and hosts receive a variety of well-documented benefits from their microbial communities. Despite the importance of understanding eco-evolutionary dynamics for colonization outcomes and the benefits these communities provide to their hosts, our current knowledge in this area remains incomplete. For example, we do not know the full extent of coevolution and specific relationships between hosts and microbes, and between the microbes themselves, across host taxa. Questions remain about how …

Adolescent's Perceptions Of The Parent's Marital Relationship And The Impact On Their Suicide Risk, Savannah Heaton Hurt

Theses and Dissertations

Suicide risk is rapidly increasing in children and adolescents. It is vital that research explores the causes in child and adolescent suicide risk. Research has failed to identify if the marital relationship may be correlated with this increase in suicide ideation in children. This study set out to determine if a child's perception of their parents' marital conflict impacts the child's suicidal risk. Using the Family Foundations of Youth Development project this study analyzed 1,692 parent and child participants to test if the child's perceptions of the marital conflict impacted their suicide risk and if the parent's own report of …

Enhancing Construction Safety Training Of Bridges Using Augmented Reality And Virtual Reality, Mohamed Sherif Elrifaee

Theses and Dissertations

Infrastructure development projects are widely acknowledged as some of the most complex and challenging projects to undertake. The construction of bridges, in particular, has proven to be a significant safety risk for workers, with a considerable number of accidents reported on construction sites. There is a lack of comprehensive training programs specifically designed for bridge construction safety, and only a few studies have explored the use of both AR and VR to enhance safety training in construction. As such, this research aims to improve the safety of bridge construction sites through the implementation of Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality …

Non-Degenerate Two-Photon Absorption And Excited State Line Shapes In Alkali Vapors, Timothy M. True

Theses and Dissertations

The rubidium 5S-5D two-photon transitions were probed between 758-798 nm, where a six order of magnitude change in the cross section was observed and the polarization dependence was seen explicitly. Collisional rates are measured in cesium on the 6P-9S and 5D-10F transitions, with broadening rates as large as 710 MHz/Torr and shifting rates as large as 273 MHz/Torr. We observe Stark broadening on the cesium 5D-10F line shape, with Lorentzian width increasing from 200 MHz to 40 GHz. The influence of electron impact is discussed under these conditions and with 0-20 Torr of helium. Cascade amplified spontaneous emission is seen …

The Effect Of The Carbon Nanotubes’ Surface Area On The Morphology And Performance Of Cellulose Acetate Nanocomposite Membranes In Nanofiltration Applications, Nouran Elbadawi

Theses and Dissertations

Population increase and climate change have significantly affected the availability of fresh water for consumption. Studies by UNESCO showed that more than 28% of the world population didn’t have access to clean safe drinking water in 2020. This situation is expected to get more serious over the coming 30 years with the limited availability of natural fresh water sources. The need to find solutions from alternative non-freshwater resources for drinking or irrigation is becoming a necessity. Within the context of desalination technologies, thousands of investigations are conducted to find the cheapest most efficient way of water treatment aiming at expanding …

Acyl Derivatives Of Α-Hydroxyhippuric Acid: Comparison Of A Charged Substrate Vs A Neutral Substrate For The Aqueous Kinetics, Elise Kerkemeyer

Theses and Dissertations

The Nagorski group’s interest in carbinolamides stems from their role as an intermediate in the mechanism of the peptidylglycine-α-amidating monooxygenase (PAM) enzyme. Various carbinolamide roles have been studied as they pertain to biological processes, but no efforts have been put forth to understand how they react mechanistically. This group has set its focus on the kinetics of the breakdown of various carbinolamide derivatives in aqueous environments. The results gathered have been used to determine the mechanisms by which they break down in different regions of a full pH profile so that light may be shed on how to manipulate them …

Catecholamine System Function Of The Medial Prefrontal Cortex Following Repetitive Mild Traumatic Brain Injury And The Use Of Benzoyl Chloride To Quantify And Identify Neurotransmitters, Leah Horvat

Theses and Dissertations

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a serious global health burden that causes a wide range of neurocognitive symptoms. These cognitive processes are regulated by catecholamine signaling within the prefrontal cortex (PFC) region of the brain. To quantify functional deficits in catecholamine signaling after TBI, norepinephrine (NE) and dopamine (DA) levels within the PFC were quantified from microdialysate samples using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrochemical detection. A method for benzoyl chloride derivatization of neurotransmitters and analysis with liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry instrumentation was also developed to detect and analyze these neurotransmitters. Overall, it was found that catecholamine signaling …

The Connective Tissue Of Well-Developed Interests: A Case Study Of A Science Research Classroom, Deborah M. Brand

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine ways that long-term interests in high school students could be inspired and facilitated in educational contexts. In particular, it explored how a high school Science Research (SR) program cultivated belonging and supported autonomy in ways that inspired and promoted well-developed individual interests. This type of interest is characterized by an enduring desire to pursue learning out of an intellectual and emotional need to gain understanding; it drives behavior, motivation, and cognition toward particular activities and ideas. Classroom belonging is derived from this sense of connection and purpose a student feels from the …

Recommending Answers To Math Questions Using Kl-Divergence And The Approximate Xml Tree Matching Approach, Siqi Gao

Theses and Dissertations

Mathematics is the science and study of quality, structure, space, and change. It seeks out patterns, formulates new conjectures, and establishes the truth by rigorous deduction from appropriately chosen axioms and definitions. The study of mathematics makes a person better at solving problems. It gives someone skills that (s)he can use across other subjects and apply in many different job roles. In the modern world, builders use mathematics every day to do their work, since construction workers add, subtract, divide, multiply, and work with fractions. It is obvious that mathematics is a major contributor to many areas of study. For …

Dd Slug Migration: Mathematical Model And Numerical Results, Joy Song

Theses and Dissertations

Amoebae are commonly studied to understand embryogenesis, and the best-characterized amoebozoan species is Dictyostelium discoideum (Dd). Dd has a very simple life cycle with a range of developmental stages, among which we are most interested in the stage of a migrating slug. It has been observed that different sizes of Dd slugs maintain a proportional distribution of prestalk cells and prespore cells: prestalk cells occupy the anterior 20% of the slug, while prespore cells occupy the posterior 80%. However, it remains unknown how the migrating slug forms and preserves this anterior-posterior proportional pattern under so many different dynamics including cell …

Ionic Nanomaterials And Doped Carbon Materials: Synthesis, Characterization, And Application In Cancer, Energy, And Environment, Samantha Paige Macchi

Theses and Dissertations

Materials is a crucial area of science which encompasses the design, synthesis, and application of various chemicals or other materials. Determining the relationship between materials’ physical, chemical, and photophysical properties on their performance is crucial to design the most optimal materials. This dissertation is focused on two types of materials: ionic liquids and heteroatom doped carbons as well as their various applications. Part A of this dissertation is focused on the development of various frozen ionic liquids (ionic materials, IMs) and nanoparticles derived from IMs as cancer therapeutics. The effect of various counterions on the photophysical and cytotoxic properties of …

Biopolymer-Coated Magnetite Nanoparticles For The Removal Of Emerging Contaminants From Aqueous Solutions, Hebatullah Farghal

Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Biopolymers are gaining interest as promising materials for water purification due to their functionality, biodegradability, abundance, and safe use. In this work, three biopolymer-based systems were developed as adsorbents for removing emerging contaminants from water. The first system of biopolymeric nanocomposites was synthesized by coating chitosan/xylan biopolymeric nanocomposites on magnetite nanoparticles (CsXM) to facilitate their separation from water via a magnetic field. The prepared mesoporous CsXM nanocomposite was thermally stable and possessed a particle size of 11 nm and a neutral to slightly negative charge over the studied pH range of about 3 to 10. The nanocomposite efficiently removed …

Morphogenetic Engineering Of Synthetic Protocell Systems, Qinyu Zhu

Theses and Dissertations

Observing and studying how life forms behave, i.e., their movement, adaptability, and so on, have enabled human beings to develop new technologies or optimize existing ones. One of the more noticeable phenomena in Nature is morphogenesis. Morphogenetic processes exist in different stages of biological development, from cellular division to tissue and organ formation. It is easy to observe shape development during mophogenesis due to emerging imaging techniques. However, it is hard to understand this process due to its complex organization, and the morphogenetic responses can be induced by a variety of chemicals or mechanical stresses and are subject to the …

Contingency Management For Opioid Use Disorder: Early Treatment Adherence And Mood, Shelby Renee Goodwin

Theses and Dissertations

Opioid use results in potentially devastating consequences, but medications for opioid use disorder, such as buprenorphine, serve as effective ways to curb cravings and withdrawal, helping an individual reduce their use. Unfortunately, around half of patients discontinue buprenorphine treatment within 30 days and co-occurring conditions such as mood symptoms may serve as additional barriers and decrease engagement. This study sought to examine contingency management (CM; incentives for meeting behavioral goals) as a potential intervention to increase early treatment engagement, as well as the role of total depression, anxiety, and stress (mood) severity in the efficacy of contingency management. New patients …

Development Of A Modular Agricultural Robotic Sprayer, Paolo Rommel P. Sanchez

Theses and Dissertations

Precision Agriculture (PA) increases farm productivity, reduces pollution, and minimizes input costs. However, the wide adoption of existing PA technologies for complex field operations, such as spraying, is slow due to high acquisition costs, low adaptability, and slow operating speed. In this study, we designed, built, optimized, and tested a Modular Agrochemical Precision Sprayer (MAPS), a robotic sprayer with an intelligent machine vision system (MVS). Our work focused on identifying and spraying on the targeted plants with low cost, high speed, and high accuracy in a remote, dynamic, and rugged environment. We first researched and benchmarked combinations of one-stage convolutional …

Artemisinin And Its Derivatives Reactions: Characterization Of The Reaction Products Using Lc/Tof Ms, Kogila Vijayan

Theses and Dissertations

Artemisinin (ART) is a sesquiterpene lactone and a popular malaria drug with potential anticancer properties. In this work, LC/TOF MS was used to investigate the reaction of ART with DNA bases and estradiol. ART-deoxyadenosine and ART-deoxycytidine interactions were studied in the presence of Fe (II) ions. ART-deoxyadenosine and ART-deoxycytidine reaction mixtures gave chromatographic signatures that remained unchanged at room temperature but grew after incubation at 37°C. The change in temperature from room temperature to 37°C was the main driver of adduct formation in these reactions. ART was found to react with Fe (II) ions as observed from several new chromatographic …

Computational Study Of Foldamer-Based Water Channels, Shadi Houshyar Azar

Theses and Dissertations

One of the most serious global challenges of this century is water scarcity, stemming primarily from the growing demand for freshwater and the depletion of freshwater resources. Water desalination has the potential to address this problem, but current technologies are expensive and inadequate. Here, we present novel, computationally designed channels with high water permeability and selectivity against ions, inspired by natural water channels, aquaporins. Aquaporin's unique property of transporting water while rejecting protons and other ions has led to numerous studies on incorporating such channels into different membranes for water purification applications. However, use of an aquaporin-incorporated membrane is limited …

Development Of New Chemical Probes To Delineate The Polyamine Regulation & Molecular Strategies To Unravel Protein Polyamination, Vennela Tulluri

Theses and Dissertations

Polyamines such as putrescine, spermidine, and spermine modulate critical cellular processes, including gene expression and cell proliferation. Cellular polyamine regulation is a complex mechanism controlled by three different proteins: Ornithine decarboxylase (ODC), Antizyme (OAZ), and Antizyme Inhibitor (AZIN). While ODC is directly involved in polyamine biosynthesis, OAZ, and AZIN regulate the ODC activity via protein-protein interactions. The dysregulation of ODC, OAZ, and AZIN leads to elevated polyamines in numerous pathologies, making them attractive targets for controlling polyamine levels. Besides regulating polyamine synthesis, OAZ modulates polyamine transport. However, the precise mechanism remains elusive. In this research, we discuss our approach to …

The Intolerance Of Uncertainty: Transdiagnostic Connections Across Schizophrenia And Mood Spectrums, Obsessive Beliefs, And Physical Health, Sharanjit D. Pujji

Theses and Dissertations

The ways in which we classify mental health symptoms are closely tied to etiological understandings and interventions. While prominent diagnostic systems are categorical in nature, dimensional and transdiagnostic conceptualizations may provide increased precision and specificity that are more representative of “real-world” symptom presentations. The intolerance of uncertainty (IOU), an aversive state formed in reaction to the fear of the unknown, may have transdiagnostic value across mental and physical health. The current study sought to examine dimensionality across traditionally distinct symptoms and the transdiagnostic role of IOU across physical and mental health through the lens of the schizophrenia spectrum with an …

Targeting The Warburg And Q Effect: Novel Strategy To Disrupt Cancer Metabolism, Mahmoud Adel Mohamed

Theses and Dissertations

One of the hallmarks of cancer cells is their altered metabolism, which serves their need to grow and proliferate. Cancer cells exhibit a marked increase in glucose consumption (Warburg effect). In addition, cancer cells also exhibit excessive uptake of glutamine, for biomass synthesis and for energy production through mitochondrial substrate level phosphorylation (glutaminolysis pathway). Glutamine metabolism is enhanced upon inhibition of glycolysis, also interference of glutamic metabolism leads to upregulation of glucose metabolism. So, simultaneous inhibition of glycolysis and glutaminolysis presents promising metabolic intervention strategy. In this study, we investigated high dose Vitamin C mechanism of action through MTT assays …

Detecting Gene-Gene Or Gene Environment Interactions In Association With Complex Disease Outcomes, Taiwo Adetunji Famuyiwa

Theses and Dissertations

Identifying gene–gene and gene–environment interaction is complicated and gainsaying most especially because of high multifactor dimensions involve in the analysis of such combination discrediting the functionality of parametric statistical method like Logistic Regression. [22] developed a multi-factor-dimensionality reduction (MDR) method for detecting and characterizing high-order gene-gene and gene-environment interactions in case-control and discordant-sib-pair studies with relatively small samples, which is inspired by the combinatorial partitioning method of [18]. [16] proposed Generalized MDR (GMDR) framework based on the score of a generalized linear model which allows adjustment of covariates, provides a unified framework for handling both dichotomous and quantitative phenotypes. However, …

Identification And Quantification Of Allelochemicals Associated With Weed Suppression In Sweetpotato, Varsha Varsha

Theses and Dissertations

Mississippi ranks among the leading states in sweetpotato production in the US. However, managing weeds in sweetpotato fields presents a significant challenge, and the limited availability of herbicides labeled for use in sweetpotato makes it even more challenging. The widespread and repeated use of herbicides has led to the development of weed resistance. In addition, herbicides are incompatible with the organic production system. Finding sustainable weed management strategies to provide weed control options for organic cultivation and detain the development of herbicide-resistant weeds under conventional crop production is imperative. The natural chemicals released by the plants, also called allelochemicals, can …

Understanding Vascular Calcification Through The Lens Of Canonical Wnt Signaling, Karlee Mcneel

Theses and Dissertations

Every 37 seconds, someone in the United States dies from cardiovascular disease. Vascular calcification is one of the underlying causes of these fatal events. Medial calcification develops following arteriosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries. Medial calcification is characterized by the deposition of hydroxyapatite in the medial layer of the arteries after normal vascular smooth muscle cells undergo a phenotypic switch to resemble osteoblast-like cells. It is hypothesized that this switch is caused by the wingless related (WNT)-Signaling pathway. The WNT-Signaling pathway, upon activation, causes the upregulation of osteogenic markers for the development of osteoblast-like cells. Current treatments alleviate consequences of …