Digital Commons Network^™

Activation Of Toll-Like Receptor 2 Through Tlr2-Lrr Binding Synthetic Peptides, Christopher Benton

Master's Theses and Capstones

Bacterial sepsis and systemic inflammatory immune responses continue to be major causes of illness and death despite extensive research into the development of antimicrobial agents. There is a need for novel therapeutic reagents designed to modulate these responses. Toll-like receptor 2 plays a key role in the development of innate and adaptive immune responses to microbial products that interact with the receptor's extracellular leucine-rich repeat ligand-binding domain. In a preliminary study, five peptides were synthesized that bound to the leucine-rich repeat region of Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2). We tested the hypothesis that the novel TLR 2 leucine rich repeat binding …

Standard And Routine Metabolic Rates Of Juvenile Sandbar Sharks (Carcharhinus Plumbeus), Including The Effects Of Body Mass And Acute Temperature Change, W. Wesley Dowd, Richard W. Brill, Peter G. Bushnell, John A. Musick

Biology Faculty Works

Standard and routine metabolic rates (SMRs and RMRs, respectively) of juvenile sandbar sharks (Carcharhinus plumbeus) were measured over a range of body sizes (n=34) and temperatures normally associated with western Atlantic coastal nursery areas. The mean SMR Q10 (increase in metabolic rate with temperature) was 2.9 ±0.2. Heart rate decreased with increasing body mass but increased with temperature at a Q10 of 1.8−2.2. Self-paired measures of SMR and RMR were obtained for 15 individuals. Routine metabolic rate averaged 1.8 ±0.1 times the SMR and was not correlated with body mass. Assuming the maximum metabolic rate of sandbar sharks is 1.8−2.75 …

Estimating Consumption Rates Of Juvenile Sandbar Sharks (Carcharhinus Plumbeus) In Chesapeake Bay, Virginia, Using A Bioenergetics Model, W. Wesley Dowd, Richard W. Brill, Peter G. Bushnell, John A. Musick

Biology Faculty Works

Using a bioenergetics model, we estimated daily ration and seasonal prey consumption rates for six age classes of juvenile sandbar sharks (Carcharhinus plumbeus) in the lower Chesapeake Bay summer nursery area. The model, incorporating habitat and species-specific data on growth rates, metabolic rate, diet composition, water temperature (range 16.8−27.9°C), and population structure, predicted mean daily rations between 2.17 ±0.03 (age-0) and 1.30 ±0.02 (age-5) % body mass/day. These daily rations are higher than earlier predictions for sandbar sharks but are comparable to those for ecologically similar shark species. The total nursery population of sandbar sharks was predicted to consume ~124,000 …

Comparison Of Geometric Morphometric Outline Methods In The Discrimination Of Age-Related Differences In Feather Shape, Kristen M. Covino

Biology Faculty Works

Background: Geometric morphometric methods of capturing information about curves or outlines of organismal structures may be used in conjunction with canonical variates analysis (CVA) to assign specimens to groups or populations based on their shapes. This methodological paper examines approaches to optimizing the classification of specimens based on their outlines. This study examines the performance of four approaches to the mathematical representation of outlines and two different approaches to curve measurement as applied to a collection of feather outlines. A new approach to the dimension reduction necessary to carry out a CVA on this type of outline data with modest …

An Ethogram Developed On Captive Eastern Coyotes Canis Latrans, Eric Strauss

Biology Faculty Works

We studied capture Eastern Coyotes (Canis latrans) from 27-585 days of age and compiled an ethogram on them. A total of 72247 15-sec samples were taken, amounting to 301 h of field time varying between 59.4-61.3 h per Coyote. A total of 540 behavioral patterns was observed amongst the 16 behaviour categories ranging from 9 (miscellaneous) to 72 (explore/investigate) action patterns per parent category. The 16 parent categories that we believed best described and appropriately sorted the behavioural actions were resting, sitting, sitting1, sitting2, standing, traveling, explore/investigating, hunting, feeding, infantile, greeting, self play, play initiating, playing, agonistic, and miscellaneous. Exploring …

Rat Poison Kills A Pack Of Eastern Coyotes, Canis Latrans, In An Urban Area, Eric Strauss

Biology Faculty Works

We document the death of a pack of Eastern Coyotes (Canis latrans) from high levels of brodifacoum, a second generation poison that is the active ingredient in some forms of rat poison (e.g., d-Con®). The Coyotes died within a week of each other during late March/early April 2005. This incident indicates the vulnerability of wild animals to commercial over-the-counter rodenticides.

The Roadless Rule That Never Was: Why Roadless Areas Should Be Protected Through National Forest Planning Instead Ofagency Rulemaking, Heather S. Ferdriksen

University of Colorado Law Review

The 2001 Roadless Rule would have barred construction of new roads on 58.5 million acres of national forest land. Within months of its inception, however, a barrage of legal challenges and reversal of policy under the Bush Administration precluded its implementation. Regardless of its ecological merits, the backlash against the Roadless Rule suggests that agency rulemaking may not be the best way to achieve roadless area protection. This comment argues that the traditional process, forest planning under the National Forest Management Act of 1976 ("NFMA "), offers a preferable alternative to agency rulemaking in this context. It also offers recommended …

Coping Processes Of Couples Experiencing Infertility, Brennan Peterson, Christopher R. Newton, Karen H. Rosen, Robert S. Shulman

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

This study explored the coping processes of couples experiencing infertility. Participants included 420 couples referred for advanced reproductive treatments. Couples were divided into groups based on the frequency of their use of eight coping strategies. Findings suggest that coping processes, which are beneficial to individuals, may be problematic for one's partner. Couples where men used high amounts of distancing, while their partner used low amounts of distancing, reported higher levels of distress when compared to couples in the other groups. Conversely, couples with women who used high amounts of self-controlling coping, when paired with men who used low amounts of …

Identifying The Challenges In Teaching Computer Science Topics Online, Yuwanuch Gulatee, Barbara Combes

EDU-COM International Conference

In an attempt to provide educational opportunities for students who are working or who are located at a distance, many universities have developed wholly online distance education programs. These online courses use web technology as a distributed learning mechanism. However, online distance learning in Computer Science courses remains challenging for both teachers and students. Research has shown that there is a significant risk factor for online courses in Computer Science. Course developers and teachers need to be aware of the particular needs of Computer Science students when establishing online courses, if they wish to graduate successful and satisfied students. This …

Economic Salvation In A Restive Age: The Demand For Secular Salvation Has Not Abated, Steven J. Eagle

Case Western Reserve Law Review

No abstract provided.

Homophobic Hate Propaganda In Canada, Ellen Faulkner

Journal of Hate Studies

While the typical hate crime is perceived to be of a violent nature perpetrated by individuals connected to Nazi and neo-Nazi groups and white supremacists, a more insidious form of hatred exists in the form of hate propaganda (Kinsella 1994; Martin 1995; Sher 1983; Sunahara 1981; Abella and Trooper 1982; Barrett 1987; Betcherman 1975; Bolaria and Li 1985; Frideres 1976). In Canada “hate messages take a variety of forms including flaming crosses, heckling at memorial services, music, and desecration of synagogues, mosques, or temples” (Commission for Racial Equality 1999, quoted in Kazarian 1998, 204). “In the winter of 1992, alone …

Northeastern Illinois University, 2006-2007 Academic Catalog, Northeastern Illinois University

Course Catalogs

No abstract provided.

The Power Of One, Walt Alderman

The University Dialogue

This paper provides a blueprint for anyone who would join the effort to prevent future wars by choosing a less energy intensive lifestyle today.

An Assessment Of Plankton Populations, Toxic Cyanobacteria, And Potential Impact Of Introduced Marine Alewife (Alosa Pseudoharengus) In Pawtuckaway Lake, New Hampshire, Jessica V. Trout-Haney

Center for Freshwater Biology

A field study was conducted during the summer, 2005 to evaluate the lake water quality and planktonic communities in Pawtuckaway Lake, NH. Of special concern was the condition of the plankton populations since the lake had been subjected to introductions of adult sea-run alewife

Overall water quality ranged from mesotrophic to eutrophic based on total phosphorus (8-31 !g L-1), chlorophyll a (max South, 5.0 !g L-1) and Secchi disk transparency (max North 5.1 m, min South 2.8 m). Of the three sites sampled, Fundy, North and South, Fundy (Zmax < 2 m) did not stratify and had the highest concentrations of total phosphorus, followed by North and South sites, respectively. North and South sites stratified throughout the summer and developed anoxic hypolimnia, with the most severe oxygen deficit at the North site

Potentially toxigenic cyanobacteria were detected at all three sites. Throughout the …

Migration Of Net Phytoplankton And Zooplankton In Mendum’S Pond, New Hampshire, Amanda L. Murby

Center for Freshwater Biology

The study examines the vertical distribution and migratory behavior of net phytoplankton and zooplankton of Mendum’s Pond in Barrington, N.H. The cyanobacteria, Microcystis and Aphanocapsa were the dominant net phytoplankton in this lake. Dominant zooplankton included Daphnia ambigua, Daphnia catawba, Bosmina longirostris, and both calanoid and cyclopoid copepods. Vertical distribution of net phytoplankton suggested migratory behavior, but no consistent pattern was observed. The zooplankton migrated nocturnally, however, calanoid copepods seemed to simultaneously migrate nocturnally and reversely at sunset, suggesting the presence of separate species or different age classes. Diel vertical migration (DVM) of zooplankton was not correlated with the distributions …

Institutional Review Boards And The Statutory Compliance "Defense" To Intentional Tort Liability, Kevin M. Samuels

Case Western Reserve Law Review

No abstract provided.

18. Commentary To Amcc V. A -Environmental Issues, Aviators Code Initiative

Commentary, Aviators Model Code of Conduct

a. recognize and seek to mitigate the environmental impact of aircraft operations

Understanding What We Cannot See: An Investigation Of Research On Signals And Ultraviolet Plumage Reflectance, Peter Nowogrodzki

Alison Scott Ricker Research Award

No abstract provided.

Economic-Ecological Relationships In Coastal Wetland Restoration, Gisele Marie Magnusson

Open Access Dissertations

Proactive coastal wetland restoration addresses historical losses and is not for compensatory regulation. Such restoration requires a net benefits economic framework. This dissertation, in three manuscripts, addresses three aspects necessary to implement this net benefits framework. The first manuscript used a dynamic analytical model to show that restoration should start at a high level and decline to take advantage of the natural maturity in wetland attributes. The model identifies needed information which is not currently available, including information on the maturity relationships between wetland attributes and wetland functions, the public's marginal values for wetland functions and the marginal costs of …

Youth At Risk For Alcohol Use And Smoking: A Longitudinal Examination Of Profiles Of Prevention, Andrea Eastwood Paiva

Open Access Dissertations

The current study was designed to examine the Profiles of Prevention among non-drinking and non-smoking adolescents. Research across age groups (elementary, middle and high school), populations (U.S., U.K., and Israel), and substances (tobacco, alcohol and other drugs) has consistently identified four profiles of non-users who vary in their risks for substance use: (1) Most Protected from substance use; (2) Most Tempted to use substances; (3) Most Negative about staying substance free; and (4) Least Positive about being substance free. These profiles have demonstrated both internal and external validity in cross-sectional data. This longitudinal research focuses on students who remain substance …

Particle Dynamics And Shelf-Basin Interactions In The Western Arctic Ocean Investigated Using Radiochemical Tracers, Kate Hagstrom

Open Access Dissertations

A fundamental question in Arctic carbon cycling is the extent to which particulate organic carbon produced over the shelves is exported to the slope and interior basins. In this dissertation, the particle-reactive radionuclides 234Th (t1/2 = 24.1 d), 228Th (t1/2 = 1.9 y), and 210Pb (t1/2 = 22.3 y) were used as tracers of particulate organic carbon (POC) export fluxes, rates of particle aggregation, and sediment focusing. Samples were collected as part of the Shelf-Basin Interactions (SBI) Phase II field program in the shelf-slope region of the Chukchi Sea along a series of shelf-basin transects during the spring and summer …

Self, Other And The Sociopolitical In Politically Active Women Survivors Of Domestic Violence, Molly Ann Hedrick

Open Access Dissertations

This research examined experiences with interpersonal, intrapersonal, and structural violence in politically active women survivors of domestic violence. This study also explored how (if at all) these women described processes which Freire (2003) called critical consciousness and liberating action, and what these women can tell us about the processes of change. Participants were 16 survivors of domestic violence recruited from Sisters Overcoming Abusive Relationships (SOAR) in Rhode Island. SOAR is an organization run entirely by survivors of domestic violence and provides political activism with the goal of ending domestic violence. I utilized a mixed-methods, transformative and social constructivist concurrent design. …

Functional Silane Based Polymers For Sensing And Separations, Aruna M. Velamakanni

Open Access Dissertations

The work reported in this dissertation has focused primarily on two areas: Synthesis of functional silane based polymers and application of these polymers for separations and sensing. In the first part we reported on the design of a library of silane based copolymers synthesized with various side groups and substitutions on phenyl ring and their characterization using FTIR, UV, H1NMR, TGA and DSC. In the second part of this work, we describe the self-assembly of the above mentioned copolymers into multilayer onto various substrates, characterization of the materials on layered substrates and finally application of these polymers as sensors. The …

Identifying The Functional Interaction Of Pcbp And Sp Proteins In Regulation Of Mu-Opioid Receptor Gene Expression, Aida Rivera-Gines

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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Taxonomic Revision Of Zelomorpha Ashmead, 1900 And Hemichoma Enderlein, 1920 (Braconidae: Agathidinae) With A Phylogenetic Analysis Of Color Patterns, Carlos Eduardo Sarmiento-Monroy

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

A revision and a phylogenetic analysis of the genera Zelomorpha Ashmead, 1900 and Hemichoma Enderlein, 1920 were conducted. Phylogenetic analyses used molecular and morphological data. A total of 39 sequences were obtained for COI (887 bases long) and 57 for 28S (1254 bases long). DNA sequences were aligned manually and also aligned with ClustalW (Thompson et al. 1997). Parsimony, Maximum Likelihood, and Bayesian approaches were applied to phylogenetic analyses with each gene region analyzed separately and in a combined analysis. The phylogenetic analysis analyses supported the monophyletic status of the genera Zelomorpha, as defined by Sharkey et al. (2006), and …

Jimmy Hit His First Home Run, Eileen N. Rafferty

Theses and Dissertations

This document begins with the end of a life and ends with the beginning of hope. It is a brief description of the artist's history, artistic and literary influences, and subsequent works produced during graduate school, specifically Dichotomy, Swan Dive, and Jimmy Hit His First Home Run. Topics discussed include Human Physiology, Transference, Buddhism, and Bubbles. This document was created in Microsoft Word 2004 for Mac, Version 11.2.

Functional Consequences Of Matrix Metalloproteinase-1 Over-Expression In Human Gliomas, Emily Mullet

Theses and Dissertations

Malignant brain tumors are among the deadliest of human cancers. Despit recent advancements in conventional therapies, glioblastomas remain incurable, largel y due to their ability to invade surrounding tissue. Matrix metalloproteinases are thought to contribute to the invaseive phenotype of human gliomas. Absent in normal brain, matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1) has been shown to be present in gliomas, and in particular in glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). To begin to examine the role of MMP-1 in these tumore, two human glioma cell lines were stably transfected with MMP-1 cDNA. Confirmation of MMP-1 over-expression in these cells was achieved through real-time PCR and Western …

The Effect Of Adding Drag-Reducing Polymers To Resuscitation Fluid During Hemorrhagic Shock On Skeletal Muscle Microcirculation, Geoffrey C. Alexander

Theses and Dissertations

Previous studies have shown an increase in survival when a minute amount of drag-reducing polymers were added to a resuscitation fluid. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the effect of adding a minute amount of the drag-reducing polymer polyethylene glycol to a resuscitation fluid, on the microcirculation of skeletal muscle during a volume-controlled hemorrhage model. The spinotrapezius muscle in twelve male Sprague Dawley rats was exteriorized for microvascular measurements of the arterioles. The diameters of the three levels of arterioles, interstitial fluid PO2, and RBC velocity in the feed arteriole were measured. Flow in the feed arteriole was …

The Ins And Outs Of School Provider Literature: A Multi-Year Content Analysis On Lgbt Youth, Caitlin Conor Ryan

Theses and Dissertations

This study is based on a content analysis of two primary sources: 1) literature published on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) youth in professional journals for school providers (school counselors, nurses, psychologists and social workers) over more than a 30-year period; and 2) materials developed for school providers on LGBT youth by states with laws, regulations and professional policies related to sexual orientation and/or gender identity in schools. Fifteen professional journals were identified that serve as primary and secondary journals for school providers. A total of 41 articles were published in these journals on LGBT youth between 1937 and …

Intercellular Spreading Of Porphyromonas Gingivalis Infection In Primary Gingival Epithelial Cells, Özlem Yilmaz, Philippe Verbeke, Richard J. Lamont, David M. Ojcius

All Dugoni School of Dentistry Faculty Articles

Porphyromonas gingivalis, an important periodontal pathogen, is an effective colonizer of oral tissues. The organism successfully invades, multiplies in, and survives for extended periods in primary gingival epithelial cells (GECs). It is unknown whether P. gingivalis resides in the cytoplasm of infected cells throughout the infection or can spread to adjacent cells over time. We developed a technique based on flow cytofluorometry and fluorescence microscopy to study propagation of the organism at different stages of infection of GECs. Results showed that P. gingivalis spreads cell to cell and that the amount of spreading increases gradually over time. There was a …