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Applied Anthropology Of Addiction In Clinical Spaces: Co-Developing And Assessing A Novel Opioid Treatment Pathway, Heather Diane Henderson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Historically, there has been no clear treatment pathway for opioid use disorder (OUD) patients who seek emergency care. Utilizing a trajectories of addiction framework, this dissertation presents insights from an applied anthropology of addiction study in an acute care setting to build a medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) treatment pathway, aiming to break down the stigma related to opioid use disorder (OUD) and mitigate a lack of treatment options. This dissertation took place in an urban trauma center in Florida, from 2018 to 2021. With almost 1500 hours of participant observation, hundreds of informal interviews, and 30 formal interviews, …

Understanding Food Insecurity As A Multidimensional Construct: A Mixed Methods Approach To Assess Changes In Food Insecurity Status Among People Seeking Emergency Food Assistance, Whitney M. Fung Uy

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Background: In the United States, 13.8 million households were food insecure in 2020, or 10.5% of the country’s population. Although the annual food insecurity rates remained stable between 2019 and 2020, largely due to increased COVID-19 pandemic relief efforts, many households experienced food insecurity and hardship at unprecedented rates. Food assistance provided by the largest government nutrition and food program, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and emergency food providers (EFPs) such as food banks and pantries intended to provide short-term solutions have ended up as chronic, long-term methods of survival for many of these families, especially during COVID-19 and the …

Development Of Enhanced Algae Strains And Sustainable Cultivation Processes For Production Of Algal Lipids For Biofuels And Bioproducts, Enlin Lo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The establishment of an algae industry is crucial for addressing global biofuel and bioproduct demand that meets the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) worldwide. Photosynthetic microalgae are excellent sources for food, fiber, fuel, feed, and fertilizer, which are the 5Fs of the SDG. However, at present, algae-based materials are not cost-competitive or sufficiently sustainable. Improved productivity, lower cultivation cost, and reduced use of resources are required to transition from lab to industry, necessitating the development of superior strains that have high productivity and can tolerate environmental stress, such as temperature and salinity, so they can be cultivated at large scale outdoors …

Oral Narrative Interventions Implemented By Teachers, Speech-Language Pathologists, And Parents, Megan S. Kirby

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Children’s oral language skills in preschool through early elementary grades can predict reading, writing, and social outcomes ten years into the future. Oral narrative language, which includes storytelling, is a long-established cultural practice in communities around the world. Narratives are the monologic re/telling of a real of fictitious event and people have used them for centuries to entertain, make sense of current and past events, and provide instruction. Oral storytelling does not require physical materials and can be tailored to the cultural and linguistic values of the community in which they are used. Thus, the portability, utility, and ubiquitous nature …

Geothermal Development In Kenya: Gender Based Socio-Cultural And Socio-Economic Implications, Faye N. Ricker

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is an ethnographic case study that analyzes the gendered socio-cultural and socio-economic implications for a community that was displaced in order to develop a geothermal energy system in Kenya. The implications are rendered particularly interesting because the displaced community is also one of the communities served by the geothermal power grid. The analysis employs a composite framework of Feminist Political Ecology and the Political Ecology of Climate Change Mitigation. This work explores gendered perceptions and control of energy, livelihood activities, place attachment, and the cultural/spiritual significance of geothermal energy.

Geothermal energy is a potentially promising source of low-carbon …

A Mixed Methods Analysis Of Maternal-Infant Feeding Interactions Between Dyads With Opioid Exposure, Kailey T. Rinaldi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Infants diagnosed with neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS) exhibit neurobehavioral dysregulation that may make them challenging to feed, potentially impeding positive early maternal-infant interactions. The goal of this study was to investigate dyadic behavior during the maternal-infant feeding interaction, specifically infant dysregulation and maternal sensitivity, between dyads with opioid exposure in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). This was a secondary data analysis using a mixed-methods design to analyze videorecorded feeding interactions of mothers with opioid use disorder (OUD) and their infants with NOWS. An integrative literature review investigating maternal sensitivity in mothers with OUD was conducted. Verbalizations expressed by …

Phenotypic Variability In Ipsc-Induced Cardiomyocytes And Cardiac Fibroblasts Carrying Diverse Lmna Mutations, Jiajia Yang

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Mutations in the LMNA gene (encoding lamin A/C) are the second most common cause of familial arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy. Diverse LMNA variants in cardiomyocytes have been associated with cardiac phenotypes. Moreover, cardiac fibroblasts make up a large fraction of the myocardium's non-myocyte component, intrinsically linked to extracellular matrix synthesis and turnover as well as secreting large amounts of bioactive metabolites. However, our understanding of how different mutation sites and the non-myocyte niche mediate cardiomyocyte function is limited. To fill this gap, in this thesis I investigated the hypothesis that variable LMNA mutations have significant effects on the genetic, structure and electrophysiological …

The Role Of Eicosanoid Metabolism In Mammalian Wound Healing And Inflammation, Kenneth D. Maus

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Inflammatory wounds, both chronic and acute, lead to increased morbidity and mortality rates, especially in the elderly population. The annual healthcare cost for chronic wound care alone is over $39B in the US and the demographic of susceptible patients is steadily increasing due to an aging population and lifestyle-related diseases (e.g., hyperlipidemia, obesity, and type 2 diabetes). In fact, many chronic wounds currently have a worse 5-year outlook than certain types of cancers. This shows the need for expediting the wound healing process in such a way that compresses inflammatory signaling and encourages wound resolution without sacrificing pathogen removal and …

An Internet Of Medical Things (Iomt) Approach For Remote Assessment Of Head And Neck Cancer Patients, Ruchitha Chinthala

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Internet-of-Medical-Things (IoMT) allows for a smart healthcare system to remotely monitor and assess patient’s progress at home. Head and neck cancers (HNC) are treated with various treatment options which are associated with significant side effects, mainly shoulder dysfunction, and trismus (spasm of jaw muscles). However, measurement of patient’s progress, and side effects while undergoing treatment, is limited to evaluation received based on scheduled appointments. Development of strategies to enhance monitoring during follow-up period is needed for earlier identification of problems such as trismus and shoulder dysfunction. In this interdisciplinary research, for the first time, we develop an IoMT enabling application, …

Using Fine-Scale Aquatic Habitat Data To Construct Dreissenid Sdms In The Laurentian Great Lakes, Grace C. Henderson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The invasion of the Laurentian Great Lakes by aquatic invasive species (AIS) has been the subject of investigation for decades, due to their dramatic alterations to the ecosystem and high economic costs. Two AIS with the largest impacts are dreissenid zebra and quagga mussels, and though these species have been studied extensively, questions remain about what factors control their distributions, and whether lake warming will alter these distributions. Species distribution models (SDMs) offer a powerful tool to examine the relationship between species presences and environmental variables, which are typically bioclimactic data. The creation of the Aquatic Habitat (AqHab) dataset containing …

Moderators Of Cannibalism Among Herbivorous Insects, Christyn A. Geniesse

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cannibalism, or the killing and consumption of individuals of the same species, is historically regarded as uncommon among carnivores, but even more so among herbivorous, plant-eating animals. However, recently there is a rapidly growing literature on herbivorous insects, and here I conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of these new studies with the goals to synthesize what can moderate or promote cannibalism in this trophic group. After screening 3,791 candidate articles, I identified 50 studies that report manipulative experiments of cannibalism among herbivorous insects and found 20 different moderators—such as presence of predators, herbivore age, starvation status, temperature, and injury. …

Quantitative Assessment Of The Trophic Ecology Of The Oceanic Ctenophore, Bolinopsis Infundibulum, In Monterey Bay, California, Victoria C. Scriven

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Bolinopsis infundibulum is a wide-ranging, ubiquitous ctenophore whose fragile nature makes the collection of specimens and quantification of key predator-prey activities in controlled laboratory experiments, challenging. Thus, in situ methods often represent the best means for data collection. However, while present in surface waters, these animals can also be abundant at depths well beyond those attainable by divers. As a result, very little empirical data exist over the depth range of their natural habitats which limits our ability to assess key predator-prey interactions needed to assess their ecological role in midwater food webs. Working in Monterey Bay, California, remotely operated …

Chlorine Taste Threshold And Acceptability As A Water Disinfectant Among Indigenous Ngäbe And Non-Indigenous In Rural Panama, Ashley Osler

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

More than two billion people globally still lack access to safely managed drinking water (WHO & UNICEF, 2021). Although gains in access to water service over the past two decades have been large, universal access to safe and affordable drinking water (SDG 6, target 6.1) is not on track to be achieved. In Panama, safely managed drinking water access has not been measured. However, the data on basic water access illustrates the large disparities between rural and urban areas of Panama. While 98% of urban Panamanian households have basic access to water, only 86% of rural Panamanian households, and 54% …

Characterizing The Impact Of Postharvest Temperature Stress On Polyphenol Profiles Of Red And White-Fruited Strawberry Cultivars, Alyssa N. Smith

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

All living organisms have developed mechanisms that help them prevent internal stress and survive under harsh conditions. For fruits, specifically strawberries, stress is fought against primarily by increasing the synthesis of polyphenols, which are secondary plant metabolites with bioactive activity. Characterizing these bioactive compounds and the differences between strawberry cultivars can be vital for strawberry breeders. Furthermore, understanding the mechanisms that trigger the synthesis of polyphenols and their levels within different strawberry cultivars will provide breeders with tools to successfully identify cultivars with higher resistance to pre- and postharvest stressors. To gain that understanding, this study aimed to characterize the …

A Biocultural Analysis Of The Impacts Of Interactions Between West Africans And Europeans During The Trans-Atlantic Trade At Elmina, Ghana, Heidi Ellen Miller

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This project utilizes a biocultural approach to assess the demographics and health of the West African population from Elmina, Ghana. Elmina, selected by the Portuguese in 1482 as the site of the first European trade fort in sub-Saharan Africa, grew from a small coastal fishing village to a large settlement over the course of more than 400 years of trade and cultural entanglement. Taken over by the Dutch and then ceded to the British, the people of Elmina navigated significant cultural changes, changes and experiences that can be detected in their skeletal remains. Bioarchaeological research concerned with the effects of …

Learning Connections Inventory© Validation Using A Physician Assistant Training Program, Roberta Worsham

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to validate the Learning Connections Inventory for use with the military Physician Assistant students at the Interservice Physician Assistant Program at Fort Sam Houston, TX. The 61 participants in this study completed both a demographic survey and the Learning Connections Inventory (LCI©). The results of the demographic questionnaire depicted the characteristics of the participants and the LCI© described the learning patterns of each participant.

Research Questions one, confirmation of the current LCI© model, and two, the instructor assessment and the current model agreement, were answered using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and construct validity. The …

Effectiveness Of An Early Literacy Intervention For Increasing Teen Parents' Child-Directed Speech And Conversational Turns, Deborah H. Christie

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Children’s language ability upon entry to kindergarten is a powerful predictor of reading achievement throughout elementary school; yet disparities in children’s language growth have been detected as early as 18 months of age. These disparities have been linked to the quantity and quality of speech provided to children as they are learning to talk. The current study employed a single-case multiple-baseline across participants experimental design to evaluate the effectiveness of an early literacy intervention to increase teen parents’ child-directed speech and conversational turns. The intervention was delivered one-on-one via videoconferencing by a teen parent peer coach. Participants included teen parents …

Learning, Planning For, And Reflecting On Teaching Mathematics For Social Justice: A Case Study Investigation Of A High School Mathematics Methods Course, Queshonda J. Kudaisi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

While much is known about learning to teach for social justice in other content areas, less is known about how mathematics education students learn to teach mathematics for social justice, specifically at the high school level. Hence, this mixed-methods convergent case study addresses this gap in the research literature by examining and describing the experiences of mathematics education students learning to teach mathematics for social justice within the context of a high school mathematics methods course at a large research university in the southeastern United States. The data sources accessed for this study include a survey measuring beliefs about teaching …

Microbial Dark Matter: Culturing The Uncultured In Search Of Novel Chemotaxonomy, Sarah J. Kennedy

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Although <1% of environmental isolates can be cultured, insights into the culturable fraction refine future techniques to unlock the cryptic biodiversity. This cryptic biodiversity is omnipresent within culture-independent surveys of environmental bacterial populations. Subsequently, these elusive organisms are termed “microbial dark matter” due to the intrigue surrounding their potential taxonomic and biosynthetic impacts. To this end of investigating bacterial-specific dark matter, we employed high-throughput culturing techniques to examine Gulf of Mexico sediments and sponges for chemotaxonomically important bacteria. Through stepwise implementation of permissive and selective recovery techniques, we succeeded in recovering over 150 unique bacterial isolates. We observed several isolates that pose as chemotaxonomically interesting, including several strains that belong to critical bioremediation taxa. In addition to these biotechnological-amenable isolates, we have also succeeded in culturing taxa historically attributed with antibacterial discoveries. One such isolate was a previously sponge-associated organism belonging to the rarely cultured Verrucosispora genus. Through extensive comparative genomics, we identified it as a novel species and subsequently named it Verrucosispora sioxanthis sp. nov. with the published genome serving as a resource for continued microbial dark matter investigations. Following continued passaging of the organism, we observed improved growth, biomass, and liquid growth dispersal within each increasingly sub-passaged generation of the isolate. As such, the laboratory attenuation, or domestication, of the organism warranted in-depth whole genomic analyses to generate insight into the increased laboratory sustainability. Through phenotypically-guided bioinformatics, we determined that the domestication was mediated through genome-wide selective pseudo- or non-pseudogenization of genes. As the previously sponge-associated organism evolved with the selection pressures of the static laboratory, we demonstrate that isolate effectively underwent genomic atrophy to resolve into a largely stable, sustainable laboratory-domesticated strain. Collectively, our chemotaxonomic discovery pipeline expands on the culturable bacterial biodiversity and ultimately provides a previously uncultured model organism for initial forays into resolving the microbial dark matter knowledge gap.

Sanitation Marketing In Uganda: The Impact Of Gender On Participation And Outcomes, Elizabeth Vicario

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Uganda aims to reach universal access to basic sanitation under Sustainable Development Goal #6, but achieving this target by 2030 would require doubling the annual rate of progress. Women are disproportionately affected by poor sanitation due to their health needs and risk of facing violence, but they have historically been excluded from sanitation planning. Low household demand and poor service delivery have stalled progress in Uganda. Market-based sanitation (MBS) is a novel method of developing a sanitation market through stimulating demand and supporting a competitive atmosphere for product and service providers. This research studies the sanitation marketing activities implemented by …

Evaluating Daily Systemic Betaine Delivery In Alleviating Dry-Amd Pathophysiology, Dawin Khiev

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

MnSod (Sod2) deletion in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) of Sod2flox/floxVMD2-cre mice leads to oxidative stress-induced apoptosis of the RPE and photoreceptor cells that show salient features of dry-AMD. The purpose of this study was to investigate the potential antioxidant effect of betaine in protecting retinal health in Sod2flox/floxVMD2-cre mice. Betaine low dose (50mg/Kg Body Weight) and high dose (500mg/kg Body Weight, n=9) were administered intraperitoneally to 8-weeks old male and female Sod2flox/floxVMD2-cre mice daily for four months, while the control group (Sod2flox/floxVMD2-cre mice; n=9) received saline. We used spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT), retinal outer nuclear layer (ONL) thickness …

Seasonality In Competence To Transmit West Nile Virus For A Widespread Reservoir, Kyle L. Koller

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

All organisms face a central conflict; a limited supply of resources must beoptimally allocated to competing biological functions. Utilizing robust immune defenses can be energetically costly;, thus, immune function is often diminished when other processes, such as reproduction, molt, or migration demand energy. As wild animals residing in temporally dynamic environments face seasonal patterns in resource availability, infectious disease risk, and environmental suitability, many species have evolved endogenous biological rhythms so that the performance of reproduction, molt, or migration and the associated trade-off with immune function be completed when doing so best promotes fitness. In turn, this demand to optimize …

Computer Simulation For Continuous Centrifugation Of High-Density Cell Cultures, Hironori Tomizawa

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Perfusion bioreactors are used for cell production for cell therapies. The system uses cell separation devices such as centrifuge to facilitate cell growth by separating cells and spent media and allows constant media replacement. However, current cell separation technologies can increase shear stress, are generally not continuous processes, and are not as efficient as desired. These limit the amount of media replaced per unit time. Therefore, there is a need for a new system or a method that operates continuously to minimize cell damage, yield high cell concentration, and exchange media effectively. A set of research questions was formulated: (1) …

Who To Choose? Rating Broker Best Practices In The Medicare Advantage Industry, Darwin R. Hale

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to help navigate the U.S. Healthcare system in a way that maximizes value and minimizes risk to Medicare Beneficiaries. We do this through the creation of a tool that will aid in the selection of an independent health broker. Brokers are the trusted resource who have the responsibility and expertise to optimize client value through needs analysis, education, and expectations setting. Beneficiaries need help with life impacting health and wellness decisions and ongoing support across the continuum of care. The qualitative research included interviews of industry experts with combined Medicare experience of more than …

Mitigation Strategies For Central Nervous System Oxygen Toxicity In Rodents: Ketone Metabolic Therapy And Mitochondrial Antioxidant Therapy, Christopher Manuel Hinojo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Hyperbaric oxygen (HBO2) is a frequently encountered condition in undersea medicine and hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT). The risk of CNS oxygen toxicity (CNS-OT) seizures limits its use in hyperbaric medicine and limits bottom time for diving operations. In this study, we sought to understand the role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in two mitigation strategies for CNS-OT; ketone metabolic therapy (KMT), which is known to delay onset of CNS-OT seizures, and mitochondria targeted antioxidant therapy (MitoTAT), which has never been tested under HBO2 conditions. We specifically focused on superoxide anions, one of the early reduction products of molecular oxygen, and …

Water Regulation For Enhancing Soil Quality Using Cactus Mucilage: A Theoretical And Experimental Analysis, Khuloud Alrashdi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As water is one of the primary sources of life, it is essential in an endless number of systems and processes to be utilized efficiently in nature and in practical applications. One of these applications includes farming, which depletes a lot of water as the water irrigation systems cover large soil areas. While water is a critical factor in growing crops, a question here stands, can the irrigation process be transformed? This is the overarching goal of my work since it is centered on studying if cactus mucilage, a natural substance, is capable of improving water absorption processes on crops …

"25 Years Later And I'M Still Here...Still Positive": Older Black Males' Lived Experiences Of Aging With Hiv In Hillsborough County, Fl, Bernice Kathleen Lopez-Mccoy

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Today, adults aged fifty and older are the fastest growing segment of those living with HIV/AIDS. Yet, little remains known about the socio-cultural consequences of aging with HIV, and whether social and health care infrastructure is currently adequate to meet the unique needs of this population. Particularly understudied are older minority men aging with HIV. Drawing from an anthropological life course perspective and tenets of Becker’s (1997) framework on life disruption and reorganization, this dissertation research investigated older, Black males’ experiences of disruption and reorganization from aging with HIV in the present landscape of HIV care.This research comprised of the …

Healthcare Data Analytics For Predicting Health Outcomes Of Older Adults And Emergency Responses Of Aged Care Facilities, Nazmus Sakib

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The United States (US) is experiencing rapid growth in its older adult population, who may suffer from multiple chronic diseases, injuries, and impairments. To meet with the excess demand without compromising the quality of care for older adults, the current aged care systems, such as nursing home systems, will face unprecedented challenges of healthcare resource shortage with rising costs. Accurate prediction of health outcomes of individual older adults will facilitate the aged care professionals to better prioritize healthcare resources for the most at-risk individuals with more focused care and provide more proactive and individualized treatment and care delivery. In addition, …

School Nurses’ Attitudes And Perceptions Toward Supporting Students With Chronic Health Conditions In An Ecological System, Destiny L. Singleton

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Chronic health conditions impact one in four school-aged youth (Van Cleave, Gortmaker, & Perrin, 2010). Supplemental to the medical challenges that students with chronic health conditions face, they also are at risk for a variety of academic, behavioral, and social-emotional adversities. Using an ecological approach for addressing the diverse needs of students with chronic health conditions has been deemed valuable due to the array of key stakeholders, institutions, policies, and cultural norms that impact the development of the pediatric population. A key stakeholder in supporting the functioning of school-aged children with chronic illnesses is the school nurse. School nurses’ skills …

Knowledge Extraction And Inference Based On Visual Understanding Of Cooking Contents, Ahmad Babaeian Babaeian Jelodar

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, we discuss our work on analyzing cooking content for the ultimate goal ofautomatic robotic manipulation. For a robot to perform a cooking task, it will need to both have an understanding of the scene and utilize prior knowledge. We will explore two main sub-problems: knowledge extraction and inference, and visual understanding of the scene in this dissertation. Visual understanding of a scene, requires algorithms that can visually infer information from a single image or video. Many algorithms in the area of image classification, object detection, or activity recognition can be used in this area. Although great advances …