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Adolescent Dietary Patterns Are Associated With Lifestyle Family Psycho-Social Factors, Gina L. Ambrosini, Wendy H. Oddy, Monique Robinson, Therese A. O'Sullivan, Beth P. Hands, Nick H. De Klerk, Sven Silburn, Stephen R. Zubrick, Garth E. Kendall, Fiona Stanley, Lawrence Beilin

Health Sciences Papers and Journal Articles

Background/ Objectives: Dietary intake during adolescence contributes to lifelong eating habits and the development of early risk factors for disease in adulthood. Few studies have examined the dietary patterns of adolescents and the social and environmental factors that may affect them during this life stage. The present study describes dietary patterns in a cohort of adolescents and examines their associations with socioeconomic factors, as well as parental and adolescent risk factor behaviours.

Design: A semi quantitative FFQ was used to assess study adolescents’ usual dietary intake over the previous year. Information was collected on family functioning and various socio economic …

Taking Be Proud! Be Responsible! To The Suburbs: A Replication Study, Elaine A. Borawski, Erika S. Trapl, Kimberly Adams-Tufts, Laura L. Hayman, Merdith A. Goodwin, Loren D. Lovegreen

Ellmer School of Nursing Faculty Publications

CONTEXT: An important phase of HIV prevention research is replicating successful interventions with different groups and in different settings.

METHODS: Be Proud! Be Responsible!, a successful intervention originally targeting black urban males and carried out in nonschool settings, was presented in health classes at urban and suburban schools with diverse student bodies. A group-randomized intervention study, which included 1,357 ninth and 10th graders from 10 paired schools in a Midwestern metropolitan area, was conducted in 2000-2002. Half the schools received the intervention, and half received a general health promotion program. Students' reports of their sexual behavior and selected cognitive mediators …

Pulmonary Delivery Of Anorectic Gut Secreted Peptides For Appetite Suppression In Rats, Priya Nadkarni

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation project aimed to demonstrate that pulmonary delivery of two anorectic gut secreted peptides, peptide YY (PYY) and oxyntomodulin (OXM) enabled food intake suppression and reduced body weight gain in rats via their systemic absorption from the lung and interaction with the brain. After PYY and OXM were administered to the lungs at varying doses, food intake and body weight gain were monitored in freely feeding rats. Significant 30-35 % food intake suppression was achieved for 4-6 h following pulmonary administration of endogenously active PYY3-36 and OXM1-37 at 0.80 and 0.50 mg/kg, respectively. Moreover, when administered daily for 7 …

Website About Chinese Food: Information Design Promoting Culture Identify By Website, Xiaoqiu Shan

Theses

Information design for the web and interactive multimedia integrates content with visual indicators. Legibility and clear communication of information and direction are important to the success of graphical user interface design. This thesis is a systematic introduction about Chinese fish dishes. The information is built into a website. The objective of the thesis is to increase the efficiency of transmitting information to users, making it more easily understandable and less time-consuming to be comprehended. Users can find information on classic Chinese fish dishes conveniently from the website. The project includes five parts, they are: Home page, Introduction, Restaurant, Kitchen and …

The Pros And Cons Of Comprehensive Community Initiatives At The City Level: The Case Of The Urban Health Initiative, Diana Silver, Beth C. Weitzman

The Foundation Review

· This article describes the trade-offs between the city-level and neighborhood-based approaches in examining the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s (RWJF’s) Urban Health Initiative (UHI), an $80 million, 10-year effort to improve the health and safety of young people.

· Eight cities engaged in a two-year planning process; five received funding for an eight-year implementation phase. Plans that engaged in bottom-up activities, but left power and control in the hands of civic, business, social service, and political leaders, were favored. Those who had focused exclusively on neighborhood-based approaches were not funded for implementation.

· RWJF chose a city-level focus because they …

Setting The Table For A Sustainable And Just Food System, Kien Lee, Kolu Zigbi, Marjorie Nemes

The Foundation Review

· As consumers and producers, people of color have been affected disproportionately by systemic problems in the food system.

· This article describes the Diversifying Leadership for Sustainable Food Policy initiative, a joint effort of the Jessie Smith Noyes Foundation and the W. K. Kellogg Foundation to build the capacity of organizations led by people of color to engage in policy and advocacy work.

· Grantees successfully built their capacity to engage in policy work (e.g., increased capacity to identify policy targets), increased their organizational capacity (e.g., diversified boards), improved their communities’ capacity (e.g., created opportunities for dialogue and improved …

Finding The Win In Wicked Problems: Lessons From Evaluating Public Policy Advocacy, John Sherman, Gayle Peterson

The Foundation Review

· Many of the social issues private foundations and other philanthropies attempt to address — poverty, homelessness, global climate change — are wicked problems. That is, they defy easy definition, lack permanent solutions, and have multiple stakeholders.

· The wicked problems framework helps make explicit the challenging nature of the issue to be addressed, requires an inclusive style of leadership that seeks stakeholder involvement, and demands candid exchange among stakeholders about the nature of the problem and effectiveness of efforts to address it.

· A wicked problems framework provides a set of criteria and questions for evaluators of advocacy efforts …

Assessment Of The System Of Professional Development For West Virginia Pre-K Teachers, Sally Byard

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This study examined the system for professional development that exists in West Virginia for education staff who teach in the West Virginia Pre-K program. This information should be used to increase the understanding of policy makers and early childhood system planners within a framework of policy areas as described by the National Association for the Education of Young Children in Workforce Designs: A Policy Blueprint for State Early Childhood Professional Development Systems to support quality improvement. While several components of a comprehensive professional development system are present, further coordination and alignment is necessary to meet the diverse needs of individual …

The Politics Of Disaster Relief Policy (1947--2005), Viviane E. Foyou

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Like other studies of agenda setting, this research builds on the work of Baumgartner and Jones (1993), King (1997), Worsham (1997) and Tzoumis (2001), and most recently, Wilkerson, Feeley, Schiereck, and Sue (1999). Specifically, the focus of this study is on disaster relief policy. Two basic objectives guide the study. The first is to examine the origins and evolution of disaster relief policy in order to understand its shifting image. The second is to understand how Congress governs the agenda of disaster relief policy in the post-war period.;The analysis in this dissertation is derived from data collected on disaster relief-related …

The Fate Of Salmonella Tennessee And Salmonella Typhimurium In Peanut Butter Subjected To Electron Beam Irradiation, Andrea Lynn Hvizdzak

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Peanut butter and peanut paste products were implicated as the vehicle of contamination in an outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium that began in September 2008 and in the November 2006 outbreak of Salmonella Tennessee; therefore based on the apparent need for intervention measure, the purpose of this research was to evaluate the effectiveness of non-thermal electron beam irradiation for reduction of Salmonella serovars Tennessee (ATCC 10722) and Typhimurium (ATCC 14028) in creamy peanut butter. Each strain was studied independently. Peanut butter samples were inoculated with approximately 7.0 log CFU/g of Salmonella and exposed to e-beam doses ranging from 0--3.1 kGy. Doses …

Everybody Playing Together: West Virginia Educators' Perspective On The Implementation Of The Universal Preschool Policy, Ashley Atkins Martucci

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation examines West Virginia's Universal Access to a Quality Early Education System (Policy 2525) mandate for mandatory universal preschool through a study of the roles of stakeholders in the implementation, understanding, and perspectives about the issues. Thirteen interviews were conducted to gain multiple perspectives of West Virginia educators'. The interviewees included: a state government representative, three early childhood state administrators, three early childhood county administrators, three early childhood local administrators, and three early childhood teachers. The policy provides a framework for the interviews conducted and the language utilized by the interviewees. This discourse and discrepancy analysis unveiled complex perspectives …

Investigating Distribution And Treatments For Effective Mechanical And Herbicide Application For Controlling Oriental Bittersweet (Celastrus Orbiculatus Thunb.) Vines In An Appalachian Hardwood Forest, Amanda L. Lynch

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This document discusses two exotic-invasive plant species related research studies that were conducted in an Appalachian hardwood forest in north central West Virginia. The first study characterizes the distribution of oriental bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus Thunb.) in a timber harvested area in north central West Virginia. Canopy profiles were used to create a visual picture of distribution of C. orbiculatus vines from the forest edge transition to the interior of the forest. In the second study, the efficacy of herbicides triclopyr and glyphosate were tested using basal bark, cut-stump, mechanical cut, and deer fencing to control C. orbiculatus.

The Effect Of A Flaxseed-Oil Enhanced Diet On The Shelf Life And Sensory Characteristics Of Farmed Brook Trout (Salvelinus Fontinalis), Courtney Anne Simmons

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The effect of dietary modification with flaxseed-oil (Flax) enhanced feed on the sensory characteristics and shelf life of brook trout fillets was examined. The diets were composed of a commercial feed supplemented with either fish oil (control diet, CD) or Flax (treatment diet).

Synovium-Derived Stem Cell-Based Meniscal Reconstruction On Small Intestinal Submucosa, Yunbing Tan

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This study was aimed at investigating the feasibility of co-culturing meniscus cells and synovium-derived stem cells on small intestinal submucosa (SIS) in order to establish an innovative method and further to optimize the culture conditions for engineering in vitro meniscus constructs. First, two groups of individual cells and a co-culture group were mixed with fibrin gel and seeded onto SIS discs, then incubated in a serum-free defined medium for one month. Electron and fluorescent microscopy were utilized to evaluate cell attachment and migration. Through histology, biochemical quantification, real time PCR, and compressive modulus, the co-culture group showed greater cell viability …

The Effect Of Nutrients Upon The Activity Of Sr Proteins, Callee Mcconnell Walsh

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

RNA splicing is an important component of gene expression that contributes immensely to the biological complexity of higher eukaryotes. The regulation of splicing by external stimuli, such as nutrients, is poorly understood, however. The experiments contained herein sought to understand how the activity of splicing factors called SR proteins is regulated by insulin and polyunsaturated fatty acids in the liver using the model mRNA glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD). RNA affinity and chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments demonstrated that refeeding of rodents stimulates the binding of SR proteins to the splicing regulatory element of G6PD; and this was especially relevant for SRp20. In vitro …

Functional Analysis Of Arabidopsis Cold Shock Domain Proteins, Yongil Yang

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

To understand the function of cold shock domain proteins in planta, I analyzed AtCSP3 (At2g17870), which is one of four A&barbelow;rabidopsis t&barbelow;haliana c&barbelow;old s&barbelow;hock domain p&barbelow;roteins (AtCSPs). Taq-Man probe quantitative RT-PCR (qRT-PCR) analysis confirmed that AtCSP3 transcripts were expressed dominantly in reproductive and meristematic tissues. The homozygous loss of function mutant atcsp3 displays a distinct phenotype with an overall reduced sized of seedlings, small sized orbicular rosette leaves, and curled leaf blades. Microscopic visualization of cleared leaves revealed a reduction in size and increased circular shape of palisade mesophyll cells in atcsp3 leaves. Image analysis of palisade cell layers indicated …

Risk Of Dementia Associated With Elevated Plasma Homocysteine In A Latin American Population, Inara J. Chacon, Aldrín E. Molero, Gloria Pino-Ramírez, José A. Luchsinger, Joseph H. Lee, Gladys E. Maestre

School of Medicine Publications

The relationship between total homocysteine (tHcy) and dementia risk remains controversial, as the association varies among populations and dementia subtypes. We studied a Venezuelan population that has high prevalence of both elevated tHcy and dementia. We tested the hypotheses that (1) elevated tHcy is associated with increased dementia risk, (2) the risk is greater for vascular dementia (VaD) than for Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and (3) a history of stroke may partly explain this association. 2100 participants (≥55 years old) of the Maracaibo Aging Study underwent standardized neurological, neuropsychiatric, and cardiovascular assessments. Elevated tHcy was significantly associated with dementia, primarily VaD. …

Principal Perceptions Of Their Preparedness And The Preparedness Of Their Staff To Deal With Students Of Poverty In The Classroom, Lisa Anne Donmoyer

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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Early Childhood Education: The Sustainability Of The Benefits Of Preschool Participation In Abbott Districts, Norma Fernandez

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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Gender Equality In Secondary Education: A Study Of Girls' Educational Access And Participation In Jordan Between 2000 And 2005, Fatima Omar Belal

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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Evaluation Of Aflatoxicosis In Hens Fed With Commercial Poultry Feed, Dharumadurai Dhanasekaran, Annamalai Panneerselvam, Nooruddin Thajuddin

Turkish Journal of Veterinary & Animal Sciences

The effect of aflatoxin in the growth of hens was histopathologically analyzed. Mycotoxigenic fungi were isolated and characterized as Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus niger. The aflatoxin was extracted from Aspergillus flavus and their impact on the growth pattern of hens was evaluated. The histopathological analysis reveals that more lesions were found in the vital organs of hens in comparison with the control chick group. In the present study, it is concluded that the quality of poultry feed plays the most important role in a poultry farm. It is suggested that the use of chicks resistant to aflatoxicosis will help in …

Ameliorative Effect Of Esterified Glucomannan, Sodium Bentonite, And Humic Acid On Humoral Immunity Of Broilers During Chronic Aflatoxicosis, Hasan Ghahri, Ali̇reza Talebi, Mohamad Chamani, Houshang Lotfollahian, Nazar Afzali

Turkish Journal of Veterinary & Animal Sciences

A study was conducted on the impact of aflatoxin (AF) and mycotoxin binders on immunization against Infectious Bursal Disease (IBD) and Infectious Bronchitis (IB) in chickens. Broiler chicks (7-day-old) were randomly assigned to 9 dietary treatments with 4 replicates of 12 chicks each. Treatments were 1) control; 2) diet containing corn naturally contaminated with AF (NCD); 3) NCD + 0.2% Farmagülatör DRYTM humate (FH); 4) NCD + 0.4% FH; 5) NCD + 0.6% FH; 6) NCD + 0.8% FH; 7) NCD + 1% FH; 8) NCD + 0.5% sodium bentonite (SB); and 9) NCD + 0.1% esterified glucomannan (E-GM). Data …

The Political Ecology Of Intestinal Parasites Among Nicaraguan Immigrants In Monteverde, Costa Rica, Jason D. Lind

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Over the past 15 years Monteverde, Costa Rica has undergone rapid economic, social, political, and environmental change due to a flourishing ecotourism economy. While the effects of ecotourism development in Monteverde are many, two important consequences have been: 1) the immigration of Nicaraguan nationals to the area seeking low-skilled wage labor; and 2) compromised water resources management due to pollution and rapid population growth. The objective of this research is to investigate and identify the inter-relationships between ecotourism development in Monteverde and its affect on infectious diseases outcomes within the context of immigration and water resources management. Specifically, this dissertation …

Afro-Colombian Welfare: An Application Of Amartya Sen’S Capability Approach Using Multiple Indicators Multiple Causes Modeling – Mimic, Paula Lezama

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research analyzes welfare conditions of Afro-Colombians vis-à-vis non Afro-Colombians using Amartya Sen's Capability Approach as the theoretical framework, and the latent variable modeling as the empirical method. Multiple Indicators Multiple Causes (MIMIC) models are estimated using data from the Colombian Quality of Life Survey, 2003. Two latent constructs, namely, 'knowledge' and 'being adequately sheltered', represent the two 'Capability' dimensions to be analyzed. Ethnic background appears to have a consistently negative influence after controlling statistically by a set of relevant variables (e.g. being poor, area, marital status, age and gender, among others) included in the models as exogenous "causes" or …

Maternal Knowledge, Attitudes And Practices And Health Outcomes Of Their Preschool-Age Children In Urban And Rural Karnataka, India, Angela Lloyd

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This cross-sectional, community-based study was designed to compare the health outcomes of 2 - 5 year-old children in different types of preschools. The Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), run by the government of India, created a system of preschools, called anganwadis, to combat malnutrition, provide health education for mothers, and preschool for children 2 - 6 years old in 1975. Many children attend their local anganwadis, while others attend private schools, and others do not attend school at all. A pre-tested questionnaire was used to interview 125 urban and 130 rural mothers regarding their knowledge, attitudes, and practices about acute …

Cardiovascular Risk Factors For Mild Cognitive Impairment, Michael Malek-Ahmadi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The relationship between cardiovascular conditions and the presence of Alzheimer's disease (AD) has been well-documented in a number of recent studies. Generally, the presence of cardiovascular conditions such as high total cholesterol and hypertension have been shown to significantly increase the risk for the development of AD. Given the results of these studies, it is possible that these same risk factors might also increase the risk of developing mild cognitive impairment (MCI). An analysis of 216 subjects (119 cognitively normal (CN), 77 aMCI, 20 naMCI) found that after adjusting for age, education, ethnicity, and gender, only hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) showed …

Functional Characterization Of Cytochrome B5 Reductase And Its Electron Acceptor Cytochrome B5 In Plasmodium Falciparum, Lucio Malvisi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Malaria is a disease of major public health importance, killing approximately one million people and causing about 250 million cases of fever annually. It mostly affects children under the age of five and pregnant women in many developing countries, making it a prominent issue in international health and maternal and child health. The most aggressive form of malaria is caused by the parasite Plasmodium falciparum which is responsible for 80% of infections and 90% of deaths from malaria, and is most prevalent in sub-Saharan Africa. Public Health interventions include the implementation of prevention programs, health education, and chemotherapy. The latter …

Trophic Enrichment Patterns Of Δ13C In Organic Matter Of Molluscan Shell: Implications For Reconstructing Ancient Environments And Food Webs, Julie Mcknight

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Shell organic matrix proteins in fossils are valuable geochemical archives for studying ancient environments and food webs. Compound-specific studies of stable carbon isotope ratios offer particularly good resolution of trophic level of consumers and the identities of primary producers and can be used to detect diagenetic alteration of isotopic ratios. To interpret compound specific isotope data, however, controlled diet studies in the laboratory are needed to reveal trophic enrichment patterns of ¹³C in tissues and shell organic matter.

This study examines the relationship between δ¹³C of 11 amino acids in diet, soft tissues, and shell organic matter …

Data Acquisition For Modeling And Visualization Of Vascular Tree, William Lafayette Mondy

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Data can be acquired from tissue's vascular structure and used for modeling and visualization. To acquire data from a vascular tree, we make its structure available for the gathering of data by separating it from the structures of surrounding tissues, which includes the capillary structure. The capillary structure contains important information, but, because of its size, is the most difficult to acquire data from. In this work, we look at methods for contrasting the vascular structure from surrounding tissues, and focus on the use of corrosion casting for this procedure. We collected image data using micro-computer tomography (micro-CT) and converted …

Particulate Carbon, Nitrogen And Phosphorus Stoichiometry Of South West Florida Waters, Susan Mary Murasko

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The southwestern Florida shelf marine environment has often been characterized as oligotrophic, yet these waters can support large, high biomass, persistent phytoplankton blooms, including blooms of the toxin producing dinoflagellate Karenia brevis. Little is known regarding which major nutrient potentially limits primary production in these waters as both inorganic nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations are often near the limits of analytical detection and it is difficult to estimate what percentage of the dissolved organic pool is available for phytoplankton uptake. To assess the nutrient status of phytoplankton populations on the southwest Florida shelf, this project examines the particulate nutrient stoichiometry of …