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2007

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Sexual Violence And Correlates Among Women In Hiv Discordant Union, Uganda, Donath Emusu Jan 2007

Sexual Violence And Correlates Among Women In Hiv Discordant Union, Uganda, Donath Emusu

All ETDs from UAB

We sought to estimate the prevalence of sexual violence and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), identify risk factors for sexual violence and STDs among women in Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) discordant unions, and investigate the lived experiences of sexual violence among women in HIV discordant unions attending post-test club services at AIDS Information Centers (AICs) in Uganda. We carried out a prospective cohort study of women in HIV discordant and HIV negative concordant unions after disclosure of their HIV serostatus. We estimated prevalence of STDs in the two study cohorts and compared them for occurrence of risk factors for sexual violence …


Characterization, Community Structure And Ecological Importance Of Sponge-Associated Bacteria, Patrick M. Erwin Jan 2007

Characterization, Community Structure And Ecological Importance Of Sponge-Associated Bacteria, Patrick M. Erwin

All ETDs from UAB

The study of sponge-bacteria symbioses is emerging as a prominent field in marine biology and biotechnology, with implications ranging from a fundamental understanding of sponge ecology and insight into the evolution of prokaryote-eukaryote symbiotic interactions to natural products prospecting and bioactive metabolite synthesis. The research conducted herein integrates molecular genetic techniques with ecological methodologies to address fundamental issues of sponge-microbe associations. Bacterial communities associated with the marine sponges Hymeniacidon heliophila and Xestospongia sp. were compared to microbial assemblages from ambient seawater and the sympatric tunicate, Didemnum sp, using replicated clone libraries of 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes and terminal restriction …


Use Of The 15-Second Lateral Step-Up For Comparison Of Hip Function Between Two Surgical Approaches For Intramedullary Nailing Of Femur Fractures, Lydia A. Futch Jan 2007

Use Of The 15-Second Lateral Step-Up For Comparison Of Hip Function Between Two Surgical Approaches For Intramedullary Nailing Of Femur Fractures, Lydia A. Futch

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Study Type: Cohort, between and within group comparison Objective: To determine the efficacy of the 15-second lateral step-up (15-SLSU) test for comparing hip function between patients treated with two different intramedullary nailing (IMN) approaches for femur fractures. In addition, to determine whether the 15-SLSU detects differences in hip function between the surgical and non-surgical limb of subjects treated with IMN. Background: Historically, two surgical approaches have been used for IMN of femur fractures. Determining tests that can detect whether various surgical approaches result in differences in hip function is important for making decisions about treatment. Methods and Measures: Subjects were …


Protein Interaction And Cell Surface Trafficking Differences Between Wild-Type And Δf508 Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator, Rebecca F. Goldstein Jan 2007

Protein Interaction And Cell Surface Trafficking Differences Between Wild-Type And Δf508 Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator, Rebecca F. Goldstein

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Cystic fibrosis (CF) is caused by mutation of one protein, the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR), which normally functions as a chloride channel at the apical surface of epithelial cells. The most common CFTR mutation results in the deletion of a single amino acid (phenylalanine) at position 508, which causes the protein to fold improperly. The ΔF508 CFTR is a temperature-sensitive (TS) processing mutant: At the restrictive temperature, 37°C, ΔF508 CFTR misfolds in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and is degraded, but at the permissive temperature, 27°C, it is “rescued” from degradation (rΔF508). In particular, rΔF508 CFTR folds correctly enough …


On The Dynamical, Geometric, And Arithmetic Properties Of Euclidean Lattices, Lee Michael Goswick Jan 2007

On The Dynamical, Geometric, And Arithmetic Properties Of Euclidean Lattices, Lee Michael Goswick

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This dissertation consists of three papers concerning certain aspects of Euclidean lattices. The first two examine dynamical properties of 2D billiards in the lattices Z2 and Z2 ∪(1/2, 1/2) + Z2. The third explores arithmetic and geometric properties of Z3 by exploiting the algebraic structure of the quaternions and the Gaussian integers.


The Decision To Move: An Analysis Of Factors That Influence African Americans In The Ghetto, Lonnie Hannon Jan 2007

The Decision To Move: An Analysis Of Factors That Influence African Americans In The Ghetto, Lonnie Hannon

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The decision to move among African Americans in a poor community encom-passes individual, household, and neighborhood characteristics. Previous research fo-cuses on the frequently studied middle class. Meanwhile substantive analyses on African Americans from poor communities remain largely understudied. The current study uses data from a low income African American community to study residential mobility deci-sions. A systematic, random sample of respondents completed a survey concerning their residential situation. Data were triangulated to add reliability and richness to the find-ings. The results show that the decision to move is not a function of residential satisfac-tion, but is influenced by neighborhood and …


Interference With Hiv-1 Primer Selection By Sirna Directed To The Hiv-1 Primer Binding Site, Wenlong Han Jan 2007

Interference With Hiv-1 Primer Selection By Sirna Directed To The Hiv-1 Primer Binding Site, Wenlong Han

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The replication of Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) is characterized by the process of reverse transcription, which converts the viral RNA genome into a DNA intermediate prior to integration into the host cell chromosome. The initiation of reverse transcription needs a cellular tRNA primer, which binds to a region in the viral RNA genome, designated as the primer binding site (PBS). The 18-nucleotide PBS region of HIV-1, which is complementary to the 3′ terminal 18 nucleotides of tRNALys,3, is absolutely conserved among all HIV-1. The highly conserved PBS is a very good target for HIV-1 therapy. My dissertation research …


Regulation Of The Human Heme Oxygenase-1 Gene, Thomas D. Hock Jan 2007

Regulation Of The Human Heme Oxygenase-1 Gene, Thomas D. Hock

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The heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) gene encodes a microsomal enzyme that catalyzes the conversion of heme to carbon monoxide, Iron, and biliverdin. HO-1 transcription is induced upon a plethora of cellular stresses including heme, heavy metal exposure, hy-poxia, oxidative stress and many others. The goal of this work was to explore the molecu-lar regulation of HO-1 transcription. Four DNase 1 hypersensitive sites are detected within the HO-1 promoter extending from ~-40bp to ~-9.2kb relative to the transcription start site. Dimethylsulfate (DMS) in vivo footprinting is shown for two regulatory re-gions and reveals nine protected guanines in all. Mutational analyses indicates that …


Prostate Cancer Chemoprevention With Genistein And Resveratrol In Models Of Spontaneously Developing Prostate Cancer, Curt E. Harper Jan 2007

Prostate Cancer Chemoprevention With Genistein And Resveratrol In Models Of Spontaneously Developing Prostate Cancer, Curt E. Harper

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Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related death among men in the United States. The goal of this research was to investigate the potential of three nutriceutical polyphenols, genistein, resveratrol, and epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), to suppress prostate cancer. Cancer chemoprevention and mechanism of action studies were carried out in transgenic models of prostate cancer. In TRansgenic Adenocarcinoma of the Mouse Prostate (TRAMP) model, resveratrol suppressed poorly differentiated tumors by 86%, whereas EGCG suppressed precancerous lesions, but failed to prevent late-stage prostate cancer. Agents that were chemopreventive in the TRAMP model were subsequently evaluated alone, and in combination, in the …


Quantitation Of Antiretrovirals In Alternative Matrices, Chantelle Bennetto Hood Jan 2007

Quantitation Of Antiretrovirals In Alternative Matrices, Chantelle Bennetto Hood

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The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) pandemic is a growing concern, affecting almost 40 million people worldwide. Treatment for HIV infection consists of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) to block different steps in the viral lifecycle, ultimately reducing HIV RNA to undetectable levels in the plasma. However, HIV RNA can be detected in numerous reservoirs outside of the blood despite the use of HAART. Therefore, measurement of antiretroviral (ARV) drugs in other biological matrices is important to broaden our understanding of HIV transmission, the development of viral resistance with sub-optimal ARV exposure, and fetal and neonatal drug exposure. This work describes …


The Educational And Psychological Experiences Of Children Orphaned By Aids In Western Kenya, Grace Jepkemboi Jan 2007

The Educational And Psychological Experiences Of Children Orphaned By Aids In Western Kenya, Grace Jepkemboi

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The purpose of this study was to describe the perceptions of teachers and caregivers concerning the psychological and educational experiences of children orphaned by AIDS in Western Kenya. On the basis of qualitative inquiry, the design of the study focused on phenomenology inquiry. Audio-taped interviews were used as the primary source to gather data for this study. The questions that guided the study were "What are the psychological characteristics of children orphaned by AIDS in Kenya?" "What are the educational experiences of children orphaned by AIDS?" and "What strategies do the teachers and caregivers at the orphanages use to help …


Titania Coated Hollow Glass Microspheres For Environmental Applications, Mark C. Koopman Jan 2007

Titania Coated Hollow Glass Microspheres For Environmental Applications, Mark C. Koopman

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The potential applicability of titania coated hollow glass microspheres (HGMs) to the photocatalytic degradation of microbiological and organic chemical water pollutants could have dramatic positive effects on improving the quality of industrial wastewaters that empty into rivers and streams, as well as potential use in economically improving the quality of drinking water. Heterogeneous photocatalysis using titania has been extensively studied since the 1990’s because of its non-toxic nature, its high quantum yield of electrons and photo-holes, and its ability to use ambient solar radiation as a power source. Although titania embodies extraordinarily attractive properties for a range of environmental applications, …


The Role Of Complement In The Clearance Of Streptococcus Pneumoniae Through Immune Adherence, Jie Li Jan 2007

The Role Of Complement In The Clearance Of Streptococcus Pneumoniae Through Immune Adherence, Jie Li

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Streptococcus pneumoniae is the most frequently isolated pathogen causing bacteremia in young children and elderly adults. Complement-dependent opsonophagocytosis is thought to be essential to eliminate pneumococci from the circulation. Pneumococci are reported to attach to erythrocytes through immune adherence (IA), a complement and antibody- dependent process that facilitates phagocytosis of pneumococci. In these studies we have determined that protein (chapter 1) and polysaccharide (chapter 2) virulence factors of pneumococci can interfere with this process and that antibody to pneumococci can enhance this process. Using PspA and/or PspC negative strains and complement-deficient mouse sera, we demonstrated that PspA inhibits complement C1q …


Joining Of Aluminum And Long Fiber Thermoplastic (Lft) Composites, Rahul R. Kulkarni Jan 2007

Joining Of Aluminum And Long Fiber Thermoplastic (Lft) Composites, Rahul R. Kulkarni

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Metal/polymer joints are used in variety of areas: aerospace, automotive, prosthetic devices, electronic packaging, etc. The present study involves a tailcone, which is currently made of aluminum and a new design will involve a joint between aluminum and long fiber thermoplastic (LFT) composite. The new tailcones were processed by insert molding, also called as extrusion-compression molding. Finite element (FE) models were used to obtain a temperature profile during cooling of tailcone from processing and to estimate thermal stresses generated. Experimental verification of the temperature profile was obtained by IR thermography. It was observed that the LFT part of the tailcone …


Numerical And Experimental Study Of Three Imaging Advancements In Phase Contrast Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Longchuan Li Jan 2007

Numerical And Experimental Study Of Three Imaging Advancements In Phase Contrast Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Longchuan Li

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This study aimed at the numerical simulation of three imaging options in phase contrast magnetic resonance (PC-MR), developed jointly at University of Alabama at Birmingham and Allegheny Research Institute. The three methods were: 1) Fragmented Regional Interpolation Segmentation for K-space (FRISK); 2) Enhanced Temporal Resolution (ETR) technique; and 3) Self Reference (SR) PC-MR. The three methods were tested on various physiologic platforms and the data accuracy and acquisition time savings processed by these methods were directly compared to those processed by conventional (CON) PC-MR. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) data of: a) two-chamber orifice flow model simulating valvular regurgitation, b) a …


A Model Transformation Approach To Automated Model Evolution, Yuehua Lin Jan 2007

A Model Transformation Approach To Automated Model Evolution, Yuehua Lin

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It is well-known that the inherent complex nature of software systems adds to the challenges of software development. The most notable techniques for addressing the complexity of software development are based on the principles of abstraction, problem decomposition, separation of concerns and automation. As an emerging paradigm for developing complex software, Model-Driven Engineering (MDE) realizes these principles by raising the specification of software to models, which are at a higher level of abstraction than source code. As models are elevated to first-class artifacts within the software development lifecycle, there is an increasing need for frequent model evolution to explore design …


Qospl: A Quality Of Service-Driven Software Product Line Engineering Framework For Design And Analysis Of Component-Based Distributed Real-Time And Embedded Systems, Shih-Hsi Liu Jan 2007

Qospl: A Quality Of Service-Driven Software Product Line Engineering Framework For Design And Analysis Of Component-Based Distributed Real-Time And Embedded Systems, Shih-Hsi Liu

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Software complexity may be reduced and productivity may be increased by the synergy of Component-Based Software Engineering and Software Product Line En- gineering. The synergistic techniques decrease complexity by uplifting software ar- tifacts to a higher abstraction level, namely the component level, and de¯ning the interfaces, interactions, and contexts of such artifacts for composing software systems. Such synergistic techniques also facilitate productivity increase by promoting feature reusability, leveraging component replacement and o®ering selectivity among prod- uct variants. When applied to Distributed Real-time and Embedded (DRE) systems, however, these technologies must ful¯ll such systems' time-critical missions and nu- merous functional and …


Delayed Childbearing, Pregnancy Spacing And Impact On Subsequent Pregnancy Outcomes: Missouri Resident Mothers 1978-1997, Sarah K. Nabukera Jan 2007

Delayed Childbearing, Pregnancy Spacing And Impact On Subsequent Pregnancy Outcomes: Missouri Resident Mothers 1978-1997, Sarah K. Nabukera

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Introduction The main objective of the study was to examine reproductive health issues among women delaying initiation of childbearing until age 30 or older. Specifically, it examined pregnancy spacing patterns, relationship between pregnancy spacing and subsequent perinatal outcomes as well as racial differences in spacing and adverse perinatal outcomes. Methods A retrospective cohort study was conducted using the Missouri maternally linked live birth, fetal death and infant death files 1978-1997. The study sample was limited to mothers residing in Missouri during the study period, having first pregnancy at age 20-50 years, as well as a subsequent second pregnancy. Final study …


The Function Of Hiv-1 A-Loop On Primer Selection, Na Ni Jan 2007

The Function Of Hiv-1 A-Loop On Primer Selection, Na Ni

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Reverse transcription is the hallmark of retroviruses, such as HIV-1. A cellular tRNA bound to the primer binding site region (PBS) is used for initiation of reverse transcription. HIV-1 specially selects tRNALys3 as primer, although changing the PBS can force HIV-1 to use alternative tRNAs as a primer. However, HIV-1 reverts back to use tRNALys3 following in vitro replication. The A-loop, located upstream of PBS, interacts with the anti-codon of primer tRNA. The inclusion of A-loop modification has been shown to stabilize the utilization of some alternative tRNAs. The studies in this dissertation focus on further defining the role of …


Association Between The Exposure To Aflatoxin And Micronutrient Status Of Hiv Infected Adults In Ghana, Francis Ayodele Obuseh Jan 2007

Association Between The Exposure To Aflatoxin And Micronutrient Status Of Hiv Infected Adults In Ghana, Francis Ayodele Obuseh

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Aflatoxins, found naturally in some foods are toxic metabolites of some Aspergillus species.They constitute the most potent hepatocarcinogens known and are also mutagenic and hepatotoxic. The preponderance of evidence indicates that aflatoxin is the major cause of hepatocellular cancer. In studies conducted in Africa, food-borne aflatoxin exposure is common (Oyelami et al. 1996; Egal et al. 2005). There is a critical need for additional information on health outcomes associated with exposure to aflatoxin in humans, especially in developing countries with a higher degree of malnutrition and likelihood of HIV infections. We sought to test the hypothesis that aflatoxin B1 and …


Temperament, Sensation-Seeking, Sleep Patterns, And Alcohol Use During A Competitive Athletic Season: Predicting Injuries In College Athletes, Zachary H. Osborn Jan 2007

Temperament, Sensation-Seeking, Sleep Patterns, And Alcohol Use During A Competitive Athletic Season: Predicting Injuries In College Athletes, Zachary H. Osborn

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Temperament, sensation-seeking, general personality variables, sleep patterns, and alcohol use have all been shown to be related to injuries in both community-based and athlete samples. However, these variables have not been studied in concert with one another to examine how they might interact to predict injuries. One-hundred and seventy-eight athletes (both football and soccer) completed pre-season alcohol use and sleep pattern questionnaires, as well as personality measures. The results indicated that playing football predicted more total injuries. No other personality, sleep, or alcohol use variables were predictive of injuries or injury related variables. Analyses also indicated that football players suffered …


Regulation Of Vertebrate Gastrulation By Erbb Signaling, Shuyi Nie Jan 2007

Regulation Of Vertebrate Gastrulation By Erbb Signaling, Shuyi Nie

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ErbB receptor tyrosine kinases have long been implicated in cancer formation and progression by regulating cell division, migration, and survival. ErbBs are also essential in multiple processes during invertebrate development; however, their activities during vertebrate embryogenesis are not well understood. For functional characterization of ErbB signaling during vertebrate development, frog model Xenopus laevis was used in our studies. The expression pattern and the general activities of ErbB receptors during early frog development were first analyzed and results shown that ErbBs regulate gastrulation, somite organization and head patterning. As gastrulation is the first major morphogenetic event in vertebrate development, I focused …


Surveying The Chromosomal Supercoiling Levels In Rapidly Growing Wild Type And Gyrase Mutant Strains Of Salmonella Enterica Serovar Typhimurium With Γδ Resolvase-Mediated Recombination Assay, Zhenhua Pang Jan 2007

Surveying The Chromosomal Supercoiling Levels In Rapidly Growing Wild Type And Gyrase Mutant Strains Of Salmonella Enterica Serovar Typhimurium With Γδ Resolvase-Mediated Recombination Assay, Zhenhua Pang

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A gyrase mutant strain (gyrB652) has severe growth defect at 42°C. The survival at high temperature is dependent on DNA repair proteins. The purified mutant gyrase was assayed for supercoiling acitivity and quinolone-induced DNA cleavage activity. The results suggested that the mutant enzyme is not temperature-sensitive, but has slower kinetics than the wild type gyrase. The DNA supercoiling levels at multiple chromosomal loci in exponential phase cells were monitored with γδ resolvase-mediated recombination assay. The wild type cells showed homogenous supercoiling levels throughout most of the chromosome. But the superhelicity at dif locus was significantly lower than the other loci. …


Insulin Dynamics In African Americans And European Americans: Mechanistic Aspects, And Association With Inflammation, Radhika P. Phadke Jan 2007

Insulin Dynamics In African Americans And European Americans: Mechanistic Aspects, And Association With Inflammation, Radhika P. Phadke

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Identification and characterization of ethnic differences in insulin dynamics, insulin sensitivity (SI), and inflammation may shed light on the greater risk for type 2 diabetes in African Americans (AA), relative to European Americans (EA). Ideally, such studies should take into account the potential confounding roles of adiposity, fat distribution, genetic background, and socioeconomic status (SES). The objectives of this study were, 1) to evaluate ethnic differences in insulin dynamics in AA and EA children and adults using robust measures of insulin secretion and clearance; 2) to identify the contributions of genetic admixture and SES to insulin dynamics; 3) to examine …


Enterprise Configuration Management In A Service-Oriented Architecture Environment Delivering It Services, Robert E. Raygan Jan 2007

Enterprise Configuration Management In A Service-Oriented Architecture Environment Delivering It Services, Robert E. Raygan

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Information Technology (IT) is a collaboration environment for business and engineering. The past decade has seen a reduction in business understanding of engineering principles because of the lack of trained engineers working in IT, while businesses have become increasingly dependent upon new and complex technologies. These new technologies, often still evolving, are system-of-systems environments and present significant challenges to early implementers. Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) is one such system-of-systems that pushes the discipline of Software Configuration Management (SCM) beyond traditionally defined bounds. Evolving standards associated with SOA and the nature of SOA contribute to these challenges of governance and management: loose …


The Role Of Complement In Experimental Autoimmune Uveitis, Russell W. Read Jan 2007

The Role Of Complement In Experimental Autoimmune Uveitis, Russell W. Read

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The complement system has been increasingly implicated in the pathophysiology of autoimmune disease. Complement expression in the normal human eye had not been previously completely defined. We performed immunohistochemical studies for membrane complement proteins in normal human retina to provide a baseline for future studies. We found expression of the anaphylatoxin receptors, CD55, and CD59 in the inner retina and CD46 in a polarized fashion on the retinal pigment epithelium. Previous studies in uveitis have shown activated fragments of complement in human eyes with uveitis and animal models have shown an effect on disease by complement depletion with cobra venom …


A Perception Of Parents, Teachers, And Community Leaders Regarding A School District's Strategic Plan As Related To The Use Of Assessment Data, Zanetta Andrea Simmons Jan 2007

A Perception Of Parents, Teachers, And Community Leaders Regarding A School District's Strategic Plan As Related To The Use Of Assessment Data, Zanetta Andrea Simmons

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The purpose of this study was to find out if school personnel and community stakeholders were using assessment data from the strategic plan to help meet the No Child Left Behind mandates for achieving Adequate Yearly Progress. This study examined the perceptions of ten public school stakeholders. Information for this study was gathered by interviewing and analyzing qualitative data of ten purposely-selected subjects from the faculty, central office personnel, community leaders, and parents who were involved in the strategic planning process and helped with the development of various plans that had an influence on student learning outcomes. The constant comparative …


A Grounded Theory Study: Hispanic Adolescents' Experience Of Being Overweight, Wilma Powell Stuart Jan 2007

A Grounded Theory Study: Hispanic Adolescents' Experience Of Being Overweight, Wilma Powell Stuart

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The number of overweight adolescents worldwide has continued to increase over the past several decades. Intervention studies for weight management with overweight adolescents are challenged by high rates of attrition and have failed to achieve sustained outcomes. Hispanic adolescents have a higher risk of being overweight than their African American and White peers do. However, Hispanic overweight adolescents have been poorly represented in intervention studies with overweight adolescents. The factors that influence the Hispanic overweight adolescents’ perceptions of weight and weight loss management are not known. This qualitative study used ground theory methodology to identify the factors that influence perceptions …


Bacillus Anthracis Spore-Host Interactions, Melissa K. Swiecki Jan 2007

Bacillus Anthracis Spore-Host Interactions, Melissa K. Swiecki

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The use of Bacillus anthracis as a bioweapon depends on the dispersal of its spores into the environment, entrance into the body, spore uptake by human host cells, germination of the spores in the host and the pathological consequences of the virulence factors produced by the vegetative cells. Prior to 2001, very little was known about the mechanisms of spore entry into the host, including targeting cell types at airway, digestive and skin surfaces, potential spore receptors on these cells and spore encounters with cellular and humoral elements of the innate and adaptive immune systems. To this end, we have …


Relaxation Rate-Based Magnetic Resonance Imaging Quantification Of Myocardial Infarction, Pal Suranyi Jan 2007

Relaxation Rate-Based Magnetic Resonance Imaging Quantification Of Myocardial Infarction, Pal Suranyi

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Ischemic heart disease is the leading cause of mortality in western societies. Treatment needs to be tailored for each individual, which requires accurate assessment of the underlying pathology. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is a relatively young modality in the field of cardiovascular imaging, and boasts with the lack of harmful radiation, excellent soft tissue contrast, and high spatial-temporal resolution. The very foundation of the concept of MRI was the finding that pathology causes changes in the relaxation rates of tissues. Measurement of relaxation rates is more time consuming than generating simple signal intensity images weighted by the longitudinal or transverse …