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Discovery Of A Novel Metalloregular Family: Structure/Function Studies Of E. Coli Rcnr, Jeffrey Iwig

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

The first row transition metal ions- Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu and Zn are vital cofactors for proteins involved in diverse processes including photosynthesis, oxidative respiration and protein translation. Despite these essential functions, excess metal ions can lead to cell death through the generation of oxidative damage or the occupation of non-native metal sites. Acquiring metal ions from the environment while limiting possible toxic effects requires the coordinated regulation of metal uptake, trafficking and efflux, which in bacteria is often carried out by metal-responsive transcription factors: metalloregulators). Nickel homeostasis in E. coli is an ideal model system for understanding the …

Maternal Antibody Transfer And Meningeal Worm Infection Rates In Kentucky Elk, Willie Elwood Bowling

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

Elk (Cervus elaphus) were historically present throughout Kentucky, but were extirpated by the mid 19th century. Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources initiated elk reintroduction efforts in 1997, resulting in a self-sustaining population. I designed this project to study the effects of a parasitic nematode, meningeal worm (Parelaphostrongylus tenuis), on Kentucky’s elk herd. I examined potential maternal transfer of P. tenuis antibodies to elk calves, and investigated the relationship between elk habitat use and meningeal worm infection. I captured neonatal elk in 2004-06, fitted them with VHF transmitters, and collected blood samples for an enzyme-linked …

Het-Cam For The Identification Of Ocular Irritancy In Seawater/Salt Water Sources, Alexander Clovis Winters

Masters Theses

"The Hens Egg Test on the Chorionallantoic Membrane (HET-CAM) is an ocular irritation test proposed to replace tradition ocular investigations such as the Draize eye test that has been criticized because of its use of animals. In this study, the ocular irritation potential of seawater and saltwater sources dosed with different disinfectants has been evaluated using the HET-CAM. The seawater and salt water tested was taken from the main show pools from three aquatic theme parks (San Diego, San Antonio, and Orlando). The three disinfectants considered were sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl), calcium hypochlorite (Ca(OCl)₂), and ozone (O₃).

Three different HET-CAM methods …

F₂-Isoprostanes Study After Exposure To Selected Nanoparticles By Liquid Chromatography/Tandem Mass Spectrometry And Investigation Of Nanoparticles On The Cytotoxicity Effect Of Arsenic In Vitro, Xiaoqian Liu

Doctoral Dissertations

"Nanopartices as a new class of materials found their applications in industry, aerospace, clinical diagnosis and cancer therapy. Recently, the health effects of nanoparticles have caused people great concerns. This dissertation studies the mechanisms of nanoparticle cytotoxicity in human lung epithelial cells (A549). F₂-isoprostanes are novel reliable biomarkers for lipid peroxidation. In the first part of this work, total free F₂-isoprostanes were quantified by high performance liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry followed by the exposure of SiO₂ (15 nm), CeO₂ (20 nm), Fe₂O₃ (30 nm), and ZnO (70 nm) nanoparticles for 24 hours. For the first time, the results showed that F₂-isoprostanes …

Coiled-Coil-Mediated Dimerization Is Not Required For Myosin Vi To Stabilize Actin During Spermatid Individualization In Drosophila Melanogaster, Tatsuhiko Nogushi, Deborah J. Frank, Mamiko Isaji, Kathryn G. Miller

Biology Faculty Research

Myosin VI is a pointed-end-directed actin motor that is thought to function as both a transporter of cargoes and an anchor, capable of binding cellular components to actin for long periods. Dimerization via a predicted coiled coil was hypothesized to regulate activity and motor properties. However, the importance of the coiled-coil sequence has not been tested in vivo. We used myosin VI's well-defined role in actin stabilization during Drosophila spermatid individualization to test the importance in vivo of the predicted coiled coil. If myosin VI functions as a dimer, a forced dimer should fully rescue myosin VI loss of function …

The Role Of Astrocyte Activation In Infantile Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis, Shannon Macauley-Rambach

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses: INCLs), or Batten Disease, is an inherited neurodegenerative lysosomal storage disorder affecting the central nervous system: CNS) during infancy or childhood. Hallmark pathological changes include accumulation of autofluorescent material, neuronal loss, cortical thinning, and brain atrophy, which ultimately lead to cognitive deficits, motor dysfunction, seizure activity, and blindness. INCL is the result of mutations in the CLN1 gene leading to a deficiency in the lysosomal enzyme, palmitoyl protein thioesterase 1: PPT1). A mouse model of INCL, the PPT1-deficient: PPT1-/-) mouse, was recently created by a targeted disruption in the CLN1 gene. The phenotype of the PPT1-/- …

Training And Transfer Of Attentional Control In Older Adulthood, Anna Mackay-Brandt

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Recent research in cognitive aging has brought renewed interest to a decades old question. Can cognitive skills be trained, and if so, how widely does that trained skill transfer? Previous research has demonstrated that older adults are able to improve their performance on laboratory cognitive tests and in some cases these benefits can transfer to other similar tests: e.g. Kramer et al., 2004). A few cases have demonstrated transfer to more distal outcomes: Willis et al., 2006). This area of research is still in an early stage, and reports are mixed with regard to the efficacy of cognitive training. These …

Expression Analysis And Stem Cell Engineering, Cara Rieger

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

The overall goal of the thesis was to develop tools to advance Investigations of stem cells in tissue engineering therapeutics for neurodegenerative disease and spinal cord injury. Two tools to characterize cell fate and a tool to separate a subset of neural cells were developed and evaluated. In the first study, a digital PCR technology, called polonies, was applied to measure mRNA from several key stem cell genes in small numbers of ES cells. Due to its properties, we hypothesized that polonies would be uniquely poised to profile stem cells. Polonies were counted for Oct3 in a sample of 10 …

Subunit Compositions Of Arabidopsis Dna-Dependent Rna Polymerases And The Roles Of The Plant-Specific Rna Polymerases Iv And V In Gene Silencing, Thomas Ream

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

In addition to RNA polymerases I, II and III, the essential RNA polymerases present in all eukaryotes, plants have two additional nuclear RNA polymerases, abbreviated as Pol IV and Pol V, that play non-redundant roles in siRNA-directed DNA methylation and gene silencing. Using a combination of affinity purification and protein identification by mass spectrometry, my studies show that Arabidopsis Pol IV and Pol V are composed of subunits that are paralogous or identical to the twelve subunits of Pol II. Four subunits of Pol IV are distinct from their Pol II paralogs, six subunits of Pol V are distinct from …

Age Differences In Prospective Memory: An Examination Of The Role Of Fluctuations In Executive Control, Shannon Robertson

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Prospective memory: ProM)-remembering to carry out intended actions at appropriate times-is a cognitive function that relies on controlled or automatic processing to various degrees. Age differences in ProM are most likely to be observed on tasks that rely heavily on controlled processes. This is consistent with certain frontal lobe theories of cognitive aging that also make predictions regarding age differences in performance variability on speeded components of ProM tasks that vary in the extent to which controlled processes are required. This study consisted of two experiments designed to test those predictions. In the first experiment, the degree to which controlled …

The Role Of Knowledge Accessibility In Episodic Future Thought, Karl Szpunar

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

The capacity to think about specific events that one might encounter in the future--episodic future thought--involves the flexible: re)organization of knowledge. However, little is known about the cognitive mechanisms that guide this process. The reported studies demonstrate evidence for the role of knowledge accessibility as one such mechanism. First, comparisons were drawn between episodic future thought and other cognitive tasks that similarly require participants to produce open-ended responses and for which the role of knowledge accessibility is well established. Second, three experiments: N = 270) provided direct tests of whether accessible knowledge becomes incorporated into episodic future thought. In Experiments …

Structually Diverse Cu-64-Labeled Rgd Peptide Conjugates For Pet Imaging Of Αvβ3 Expression, Ashley Fiamengo

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Radiolabeled receptor-binding peptides have emerged as an important class of radiopharmaceuticals for diagnostic imaging and cancer therapy. Following radionuclide labeling, the specific receptor-binding properties of the ligand can be exploited to guide the radioactivity to tissues expressing a particular receptor. This dissertation reports on the development of integrin α_vβ₃-targeting radiopharmaceuticals for medical imaging applications from the perspective of both the radiometal-labeled chelator as well as the targeting peptide. Several macrocyclic copper(II) chelators have been studied with the goal of improving kinetic and in vivo stability. Structurally diverse bifunctional RGD: arginine-glycine-aspartic acid) peptides were investigated for α …

Sleeping To Remember: Spontaneous Retrieval Of Prospective Memories Across Sleep And Wake Delays, Michael Scullin

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Laboratory-based prospective memory tasks have rarely examined the effect of retention interval on later remembering. In the current study, participants had to remember to perform an intended action: press Q in response to a target cue) after a short delay: approximately 20 min), a 12-hr sleep delay, or a 12-hr wake delay. The results demonstrated a large decline in prospective memory performance after a 12-hr wake delay: relative to the short delay condition). Interestingly, prospective remembering was not only better following a 12-hr sleep delay than a 12-hr wake delay but performance in this condition did not differ significantly from …

Today’S Student And Virtual Schooling: The Reality, The Challenges, The Promise, Michael K. Barbour

Education Faculty Publications

Introduction:

In 2008 I was approached to deliver a keynote address at the biennial conference of the Distance Education Association of New Zealand (DEANZ) in Wellington on the topic of today’s student and K–12 distance education. Several months ago, Mark Nichols asked me if I would be interested in putting some of the ideas that I discussed as a part of that August 2008 presentation into a manuscript for the Journal of Distance Learning. This paper represents my best efforts to summarise and expand on those ideas.

As in my 2008 keynote, I want to discuss three main themes …

Surplus Production And Socio-Political Change During The Viking/Medieval Transition: A Paleoethnobotanical Investigation Of Quoygrew Farm, Orkney, Catrina Adams

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

In this dissertation, I examine the process of state formation during the Viking/Medieval transition: c. 1050 A.D.) as it took place in the North Atlantic region. Specifically, I use paleoethnobotanical analysis of remains from Quoygrew farm, an archaeological site located on Westray in the Orkney Islands, to examine the reciprocal relationship between farm production and changes associated with state formation and the Viking/Medieval transition. Towards this goal, I analyzed carbonized plant remains from midden contexts as well as from floor deposits, hearths, pit fills, and dumps. Seed densities and distributions reveal a closely integrated system of farm production including cereal …

Improving The Cathode Conditions By Pressurizing And Carbon Dioxide Addition To Enhance The Practicality Of Mfc Treatment Of Wastewater, Jeffrey Fornero

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

An increasing global energy demand coupled with a more rigorous governmental regulatory environment: including identifying carbon dioxide as a pollutant) is becoming more and more incompatible with engineering practices that were developed in an era of lower energy costs and less regulation. It is, therefore, not a surprise that researchers are looking towards bioelectrochemical systems: BESs) as a potential superior technology to produce environmentally-benign and sustainable energy, replace energy intensive processes, and/or produce chemical products. The overall tenet of my thesis-based research was to understand the important mechanisms that limit the power output for BESs during wastewater treatment and to …

Automated Offspring Sizing In Evolutionary Algorithms, André Chidi Nwamba

Masters Theses

"Evolutionary Algorithms (EAs) are a class of algorithms inspired by biological evolution. EAs are applicable to a wide range of problems; however, there are a number of parameters to set in order to use an EA. The performance of an EA is extremely sensitive to these parameter values; setting these parameters often requires expert knowledge of EAs. This prevents EAs from being more widely adopted by nonexperts. Parameter control, the automation of dynamic parameter value selection, has the potential to not only alleviate the burden of parameter tuning, but also to improve performance of EAs on a variety of problem …

Localization Of Nodes In Wired And Wireless Networks, Hindu Kothapalli

Masters Theses

"This thesis focuses on the implementation of algorithms for localization of nodes in wired and wireless networks. The thesis is organized into two papers. The first paper presents the localization algorithms based on time of arrival (TOA) and time difference of arrival (TDOA) techniques for computer networks such as the Internet by using round-trip-time (RTT) measurements obtained from known positions of the gateway nodes. The RTT values provide an approximate measure of distance between the gateway nodes and an unknown node. The least squares technique is then used to obtain an estimated position of the unknown node. The second paper …

Geodesic Grassfire For Computing Mixed-Dimensional Skeletons, Lu Liu, Tao Ju

All Computer Science and Engineering Research

Skeleton descriptors are commonly used to represent, understand and process shapes. While existing methods produce skeletons at a fixed dimension, such as surface or curve skeletons for a 3D object, often times objects are better described using skeleton geometry at a mixture of dimensions. In this paper we present a novel algorithm for computing mixed-dimensional skeletons. Our method is guided by a continuous analogue that extends the classical grassfire erosion. This analogue allows us to identify medial geometry at multiple dimensions, and to formulate a measure that captures how well an object part is described by medial geometry at a …

Open Workflows: Context-Dependent Construction And Execution In Mobile Wireless Settings, Louis Thomas, Justin Wilson, Grui-Catalin Roman, Christopher Gill

All Computer Science and Engineering Research

Existing workflow middleware executes tasks orchestrated by rules defined in a carefully handcrafted static graph. Workflow management systems have proved effective for service-oriented business automation in stable, wired infrastructures. We introduce a radically new paradigm for workflow construction and execution called open workflow to support goal-directed coordination among physically mobile people and devices that form a transient community over an ad hoc wireless network. The quintessential feature of the open workflow paradigm is dynamic construction and execution of custom, context-specific workflows in response to unpredictable and evolving circumstances by exploiting the knowledge and services available within a given spatiotemporal context. …

Fuel Economy And Emissions Benefits From Diesel Fuel Additives, Geoffrey James Newlin

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

With the spike in fuel costs during 2008, fuel consumption, and methods to reduce it, has come to the forefront of society, and recognition that inexpensive energy sources for mobile transportation may be a thing of the past. Even though fuel costs did significantly decrease by 75% after this spike [1], they will most likely continue to rise. Improvements to mobile transportation and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions are a major agenda item of the United States and many industrialized nations. New and improved technologies will be developed and employed for future transportation needs of society. However, the existing …

Functions Of Rx In Early Vertebrate Ocular Development, Brian G. Zamora

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Patterning of the optic vesicle is a crucial step in early vertebrate eye development that organizes uncommitted optic vesicle cells into distinct distal, dorsal, and proximal regions that will give rise to the neural retina, retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), and optic stalk, respectively. Originating from the same sheet of anterior neuroectoderm, uncommitted optic vesicle cells are patterned into neural and non-neural (RPE) retinal domains through the coordinated activities of extrinsic signaling molecules and intrinsic transcription factors. Neural retinal specification is driven by FGF signals emanating from the surface ectoderm and developing lens, while RPE is specified by signals from the …

Recruiting And Equipping Postmodern Immigrant Youth Preachers In Emmaus, Christian Fellowship, And Community Tabernacle Seventh-Day Adventist Churches, Anthony L. Usher

Doctor of Ministry Projects

After spending over six years at Emmaus SDA church, on January 1, 2004, the author was assigned to Christian Fellowship SDA Church and Community Tabernacle Mission. He observed that the fierce shifting winds of postmodernism have fueled the retardation of youth evangelism. If the trajectory of this dreaded trend goes unchecked, youth preaching in these churches will spiral downward into the obscure corridors of oblivion. A relevant profile, as well as a specific demographic composition of all three congregations, enhanced the development of an empowering argument that potentially could reverse the momentum of this encroaching tide back to God’s side. …

Encouraging Hispanic Fathers To Become More Effectively Involved In Their Children's Lives, Enoch Aguilar

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

When Hispanic people immigrate to the United States, they come with their own traditions, ideas, and values. Many of these values and teachings are different from North American values, however, each system strives to achieve similar goals in forming functional families. Many of these values conflict with traditional North American values. This natural conflict can make the transition from their native countries to the United States difficult, especially when analyzing the different ways each country’s government intervenes on behalf of children. If parents are unable to modify the social norms of their native country to allow the child to …

Four Observations About Hate Speech Articles & Essays, Richard Delgado, Jean Stefancic

Articles

No abstract provided.

Examining Novice Teacher Development Through The Clinical Supervision Process: A Participatory Action Research, Chad Daloia

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The first clinical supervision experience can significantly impact a novice teacher's overall success during the early years of their teaching career (Robinson, 1998). It is a very stressful, challenging time, and for many, it is the first time he/she is asked to take on multiple roles aside from direct instruction and professional responsibilities (Sykes, 1996). As districts work to better align policies and induction programs with the changing needs of novice teachers, they must face the fact that they serve powerful roles as teacher educators, mentors, and retainers. It is important for administrators to self-assess how districts are meeting or …

An Mdm2 Antagonist (Mi-319) Restores P53 Functions And Increases The Life Span Of Orally Treated Follicular Lymphoma Bearing Animals, Ramzi M. Mohammad, Jack Wu, Asfar S. Azmi, Amro Aboukameel, Angela Sosin, Sherwin Wu, Dajun Yang, Shaomeng Wang, Ayad M. Al-Katib

Wayne State University Associated BioMed Central Scholarship

Abstract

Background

MI-319 is a synthetic small molecule designed to target the MDM2-P53 interaction. It is closely related to MDM2 antagonists MI-219 and Nutlin-3 in terms of the expected working mechanisms. The purpose of this study was to evaluate anti-lymphoma activity of MI-319 in WSU-FSCCL, a B-cell follicular lymphoma line. For comparison purpose, MI-319, MI-219 and Nutlin-3 were assessed side by side against FSCCL and three other B-cell hematological tumor cell lines in growth inhibition and gene expression profiling experiments.

Results

MI-319 was shown to bind to MDM2 protein with an affinity slightly higher than that of MI-219 and Nutlin-3. …

Primate Phylogenomics: Developing Numerous Nuclear Non-Coding, Non-Repetitive Markers For Ecological And Phylogenetic Applications And Analysis Of Evolutionary Rate Variation, Zuogang Peng, Navin Elango, Derek E. Wildman, Soojin V. Yi

Wayne State University Associated BioMed Central Scholarship

Abstract

Background

Genetic analyses are often limited by the availability of appropriate molecular markers. Markers from neutrally evolving genomic regions may be particularly useful for inferring evolutionary histories because they escape the constraints of natural selection. For the majority of taxa however, obtaining such markers is challenging. Advances in genomics have the potential to alleviate the shortage of neutral markers. Here we present a method to develop numerous markers from putatively neutral regions of primate genomes.

Results

We began with the available whole genome sequences of human, chimpanzee and macaque. Using computational methods, we identified a total of 280 potential …

Incorporation Of Membrane-Bound, Mammalian-Derived Immunomodulatory Proteins Into Influenza Whole Virus Vaccines Boosts Immunogenicity And Protection Against Lethal Challenge, Andrew S. Herbert, Lynn Heffron, Roy Sundick, Paul C. Roberts

Wayne State University Associated BioMed Central Scholarship

Abstract

Background

Influenza epidemics continue to cause morbidity and mortality within the human population despite widespread vaccination efforts. This, along with the ominous threat of an avian influenza pandemic (H5N1), demonstrates the need for a much improved, more sophisticated influenza vaccine. We have developed an in vitro model system for producing a membrane-bound Cytokine-bearing Influenza Vaccine (CYT-IVAC). Numerous cytokines are involved in directing both innate and adaptive immunity and it is our goal to utilize the properties of individual cytokines and other immunomodulatory proteins to create a more immunogenic vaccine.

Results

We have evaluated the immunogenicity of inactivated cytokine-bearing influenza …

New Targets For The Treatment Of Follicular Lymphoma, Nishant Tageja, Subhash Padheye, Prasad Dandawate, Ayad Al-Katib, Ramzi M. Mohammad

Wayne State University Associated BioMed Central Scholarship

Abstract

The last two decades have witnessed striking advances in our understanding of the biological factors underlying the development of Follicular lymphoma (FL). Development of newer treatment approaches have improved the outlook for many individuals with these disorders; however, with these advances come new questions. Given the long-term survival of patients with FL, drugs with favourable side-effect profile and minimal long-term risks are desired. FL is incurable with current treatment modalities. It often runs an indolent course with multiple relapses and progressively shorter intervals of remission. The identification of new targets and development of novel targeted therapies is imperative to …