Digital Commons Network^™

Metabolomic Investigation Of A New Rat Model Of Autosomal Recessive Polycystic Kidney Disease, Hayley White

Theses : Honours

Metabolomics is complementary to genomics, transcriptomics and proteomics; however, it has the capacity to reflect the activities of the organism at a functional level. Metabolomics can therefore be used as a diagnostic tool by identifying the up- or down-regulation of metabolites in the cell, tissue, plasma, serum or urine. Specifically, these are, but are not limited to, identifying biomarkers of disease, monitoring drug treatments, and monitoring surgical procedures such as organ transplant. Autosomal recessive polycystic kidney disease (ARPKD) makes up 5-8% of patients requiring kidney dialysis and/or transplantation and of these, an estimated 50% of patients progress to end-stage renal …

Reasons For Migration And Cultural Distance In South African Women's Migratory Adjustment Experiences: A Phenomenological Account, Ida Steyn

Theses : Honours

Researchers have identified migration to a new country as a stressful life event that is associated with loss of family, friends and community, and adjustment difficulties in the new country (Markovizky & Samid, 2008). In addition, involuntary migration and adaption to a new cultural environment is known to be a factor of psychological distress. Much is unknown about the adjustment of involuntary migrants during the critical period of reestablishment in the new environment. Moreover, less is known about transition processes between similar cultural contexts. It might be that transition is not as well supported when there is cultural similarity between …

Balancing Multiple Roles: A Pilot Study Exploring The Complexity Of Role Balance In Working Mothers With Primary School Aged Children, Katherine Prince

Theses : Honours

For working mothers, maintaining a balance between work and parenting roles is a challenge. Each role presents its own set of physical, mental and temporal demands which frequently compete for the limited personal and environmental resources available to the mother. These competing demands can create conflict and stress, which prompts a coping response. The coping response initiated is a physiological reaction to the mother's appraisal of her situational conflict, and follows a process of appraisal. Firstly the working mother appraises the conflict itself. This is followed by the appraisal of the personal and environmental resources, constraints and demands. Finally, a …

Trauma Practitioners' Lived Experience Of The Impact Of Therapy On Trauma Recovery Outcomes, Francess M. Day

Theses : Honours

Much has been written about evidence-based treatments for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). A number of treatment guides have been written (e.g. AMCPH, 2007; Briere 2006; Foa Keane, & Friedman, 2000;). Medicare criteria based on empirical research and outcome measures stipulate which treatments and practitioner qualifications will be funded. However, little is known about the relationship between these guidelines and what clinicians actually utilize in trauma treatment and use as indicators of good outcomes. The research studies compromise external validity by excluding the majority of typical PTSD clientele, necessitating exploration of treatment effectiveness in diverse real-life populations (Spinazzola, Blaustein, & van …

Constellations, Pathways Through The Body : An Exploration Creating New Movement Pathways Using Dual Patterning, Gemma Laing

Theses : Honours

This research paper is an exploration of the creation of movement using dual patterning, which is the tracing of two patterns simultaneously as a dual task. This piece of writing discusses practitioners Twyla Tharp, Trisha Brown and Lisa Kraus in their experiments with altering bodily habit. It also discusses patterns, imagery, bodily knowledge, and coordination to help facilitate the experiment. Thoughts and findings from the studio are discussed from the process to gain understanding of the experiment. Utilizing bodily intelligence or bodily knowledge, the body initially experiences a separation of hemispheres or halves of the body to enable the process …

Youth Aspirations And Sense Of Place In A Changing Rural Economy: The Coos Youth Study, Nena F. Stracuzzi

Carsey Publications

Youth in rural Coos County have surprisingly strong ties to their communities, finds a new report from the Carsey Institute. The brief is the first to report on a ten-year panel study of students who began seventh and eleventh grades in 2007 in Coos, New Hampshire's northernmost and most rural county.

Universal Health Insurance Coverage: Progress And Issues., Jonathan Gruber

Center for Policy Research

Jonathan Gruber was a key architect of Massachusetts’ ambitious health reform effort, and in 2006 became an inaugural member of the Health Connector Board, the main implementing body for that effort. He delivered this lecture on October 2, 2009, and his references are to Congressional bills that were under consideration on that date. He laid out the universal coverage debate that’s gone on for a long time in the United States; described a new solution that he think they found for Massachusetts; described how the Massachusetts reform works; and how it can be extended nationally. Finally he spent time on …

Role Of Mel-18 In Regulating Protein Sumoylation And Identification Of A New Polymorphism In Bmi-1, Jie Zhang

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) regulates numerous biological functions. In a previous study we found that sumoylation of HSF2 is involved in regulating HSF2 bookmarking function, but the mechanism that mediates this regulation was unknown. The results in my work support the intriguing hypothesis that polycomb protein, Mel-18, actually functions as an anti-SUMO E3 protein, interacting both with HSF2 and the SUMO E2 Ubc9, but acting to inhibit Ubc9 activity and thereby decrease sumoylation of the HSF2.

This study also suggested that Mel-18 negatively regulates the sumoylation of other cellular proteins, and we extend its targets to RanGAP1 protein. The results …

Evaluating The Effects Of Organic And Conventional Inputs On Soil Chemical And Biological Properties In A Four-Year Vegetable Rotation And The Investigation Of Soil Microbial Properties On Plant Gene Expression, Audrey Law

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

The objective of this research was to determine the effects of conventional inputs on soil chemical and biological properties compared to organic systems in a four year vegetable rotation. Tillage and cover crops were the same in all treatments to avoid confounding factors often present in similar research. Additional experiments investigated plant gene expression in organic and conventional management systems and in soils with decreased microbial diversity. Experimental plots were prepared in the spring of 2004; four replications of three management treatments, organic, low-input and conventional, were arranged in a randomized complete block design. The rotation consisted of edamame soybean, …

Alterations Of Zinc Transporters In Alzheimer's Disease, Ganna Lyubartseva

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Alzheimer’s disease (AD), one of the major causes of disability and mortality in Western societies, is a progressive age-related neurodegenerative disorder. Increasing evidence suggests the etiology of AD may involve disruptions of zinc (Zn) homeostasis. We hypothesize that disruption of Zn homeostasis leads to alterations of Zn transporter (ZnT) proteins, resulting in increased production of neurotoxic amyloid beta (Aβ) peptide in AD brain. To address this hypothesis we carried out the following studies.

1. We characterized alterations of ZnT-1, ZnT-4 and ZnT-6 in the brain of preclinical AD (PCAD) subjects, who show no overt clinical manifestations of AD but demonstrate …

Neuroscience And Health Law: An Integrative Approach?, Stacey A. Tovino

Faculty Articles

Clinicians and scientists use functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to map sensory, motor, and cognitive function and to study the neural correlates of a range of physical and mental conditions, behaviors, characteristics, and preferences. Due to its move outside the clinical and research contexts, fMRI raises a number of ethical, legal, and social issues that are being examined within the overlapping fields of neuroethics and neurolaw. The early neuroethics and neurolaw scholarship focused heavily on the implications of fMRI for evidence law, criminal law, criminal procedure, and constitutional law. Little attention has been paid, however, to the implications of advances …

Index Of Titles And Authors, Volumes 1-20

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

[Introduction To] Racism And Sexual Oppression In Anglo-America: A Genealogy, Ladelle Mcwhorter

Bookshelf

Does the black struggle for civil rights make common cause with the movement to foster queer community, protest anti-queer violence or discrimination, and demand respect for the rights and sensibilities of queer people? Confronting this emotionally charged question, Ladelle McWhorter reveals how a carefully structured campaign against abnormality in the late 19th and early 20th centuries encouraged white Americans to purge society of so-called biological contaminants, people who were poor, disabled, black, or queer. Building on a legacy of savage hate crimes—such as the killings of Matthew Shepard and James Byrd—McWhorter shows that racism, sexual oppression, and discrimination against the …

Subcellular Localization Of Marine Bacterial Alkaline Phosphatases, H. Luo, Ronald Benner, R. A. Long, Jianjun Hu

Faculty Publications

Bacterial alkaline phosphatases (APases) are important enzymes in organophosphate utilization in the ocean. The subcellular localization of APases has significant ecological implications for marine biota but is largely unknown. The extensive metagenomic sequence databases from the Global Ocean Sampling Expedition provide an opportunity to address this question. A bioinformatics pipeline was developed to identify marine bacterial APases from the metagenomic databases, and a consensus classification algorithm was designed to predict their subcellular localizations. We identified 3,733 bacterial APase sequences (including PhoA, PhoD, and PhoX) and found that cytoplasmic (41%) and extracellular (30%) APases exceed their periplasmic (17%), outer membrane (12%), …

Integrative Disease Classification Based On Cross-Platform Microarray Data, C.-C. Liu, Jianjun Hu, M. Kalakrishnan, H. Huang, X. J. Zhou

Faculty Publications

Background

Disease classification has been an important application of microarray technology. However, most microarray-based classifiers can only handle data generated within the same study, since microarray data generated by different laboratories or with different platforms can not be compared directly due to systematic variations. This issue has severely limited the practical use of microarray-based disease classification.

Results

In this study, we tested the feasibility of disease classification by integrating the large amount of heterogeneous microarray datasets from the public microarray repositories. Cross-platform data compatibility is created by deriving expression log-rank ratios within datasets. One may then compare vectors of log-rank …

Emotional Exhaustion And Workload Demands Of Kidney Transplant Social Workers, Joseph R. Merighi, Teri Browne, Sarah Keenan

Faculty and Staff Publications

This exploratory study examined training issues, emotional exhaustion and workload demands in U.S. kidney transplant socialworkers. Online survey data were obtained from 91 respondents who represented all 18 End-Stage Renal Disease networks.Findings indicated that the majority of the respondents’ employers provided resources for educational training and paid timeoff associated with these trainings. With regard to hours per week spent on specific job tasks, respondents indicated that pretransplantactivities were the most time-consuming, followed by post-transplant and inpatient work. Generally, emotionalexhaustion and workload demands were slightly lower than reported for dialysis social workers. Implications for social workpractice and research are discussed.

Agents And Service-Oriented Computing For Autonomic Computing: A Research Agenda, Frances M.T. Brazier, Jeffrey O. Kephart, H. Van Dyke Parunak, Michael N. Huhns

Faculty Publications

Autonomic computing is the solution proposed to cope with the complexity of today's computing environments. Self-management, an important element of autonomic computing, is also characteristic of single and multiagent systems, as well as systems based on service-oriented architectures. Combining these technologies can be profitable for all - in particular, for the development of autonomic computing systems.

Gibberellic Acid Promotes Seed Germination In Penstemon Digitalis Cv. Husker Red, Anderson Machado De Mello, Nereu Augusto Streck, Erin E. Blankenship, Ellen Paparozzi

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Penstemon seed often shows an inconsistent or a low germination percentage. Although most select cultivars are propagated by cuttings, for export to other countries, seed is preferred. Three experiments were conducted to determine if soaking seed in gibberellic acid (GA₃) would increase seed germination of Penstemon digitalis cv. Husker Red. GA₃ concentrations used were 0, 10, 50, 100, 200, and 500 mg∙L^–1 (first experiment); 0, 500, 1000, and 1500 mg∙L^–1 (second experiment); and 0, 500, and 1000 mg∙L^–1 (third experiment). The first and second experiments were conducted in a growth chamber, whereas the third …

Replacing Fertilizer Nitrogen With Dried Distillers Grains Supplement To Yearling Steers Grazing Bromegrass Pastures: Economics And Modeling, Matthew A. Greenquist, Terry J. Klopfenstein, Walter H. Schacht, Galen E. Erickson

Nebraska Beef Cattle Reports

An economic analysis of a three-year study evaluated use of N fertilizer and dried distillers grains plus solubles (DDGS) supplementation to yearling steers grazing smooth bromegrass in eastern Nebraska (Nebraska Beef Report, 2009, pp. 26-28). Costs of gain tended to be lower for cattle on fertilized pastures. Grazing profitability was lowest for cattle on non-fertilized pastures, intermediate for cattle supplemented with DDGS, and highest for cattle on fertilized pastures. The weight advantage (9%) of steers supplemented with DDGS during the grazing period was maintained through the finishing period, leading to greater profitability. Profitability for steers supplemented with DDGS at the …

Pricing And Welfare Impacts Of New Crop Traits: The Role Of Iprs And Coase's Conjecture Revisited, Richard K. Perrin, Lilyan E. Fulginiti

Department of Agricultural Economics: Faculty Publications

Crop traits are durable when embedded in varieties, and thus they may be subject to Coase's conjecture that monopolists who sell durables may be unable to earn normal monopoly rents, or in the extreme case, not any rents at all. To determine the potential relevance of this conjecture for the crop traits market, we analyze the theoretical time path of trait prices under three systems of intellectual property rights (utility patents, plant breeders' rights, and none), alternative assumptions about sellers' ability to commit to future action, and alternative assumptions that buyers are either myopic or far-sighted with respect to expectations …

The Role Of Litigation In Combating Obesity Among Poor Urban Minority Youth: A Critical Analysis Of Pelman V. Mcdonald's Corp., Ashley B. Antler

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

The note argues that litigation, particularly when focused on low-income urban minority youth, could serve as a strategic tool to address childhood obesity by reframing the issue and catalyzing policy and industry change. It critiques the Pelman v. McDonald's Corp. lawsuit for failing to address the socioeconomic and racial disparities underlying obesity rates, thereby missing an opportunity to advance meaningful solutions. The analysis suggests that public health litigation, when strategically framed, can complement broader advocacy efforts and push for environmental changes to combat the obesity epidemic.

Annotated Legal Bibliography On Gender

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

No abstract provided.

An Overview Of The Procedures Applicable To Marine Construction And Dredging Processes, Kirby Aarsheim

Sea Grant Law Fellow Publications

No abstract provided.

Crosslinking Of Cell-Derived 3d Scaffolds Up-Regulates The Stretching And Unfolding Of New Extracellular Matrix Assembled By Reseeded Cells, Kristopher Kubow

Selected Works

No abstract provided.

Optimization Strategies For Electrospun Silk Fibroin Tissue Engineering Scaffolds, Kristopher Kubow

Selected Works

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of Early Childhood Education Upon The Black-White Achievement Gap, Linda Zane

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

It can be argued that the current Black-White achievement gap provides evidence for a long-standing history of racial inequity within American society, as well as an informative barometer of progress toward educational parity. By all accounts, the measurements registered by this barometer continue to be cause for alarm. The disturbing Black-White achievement gap has been shown to be present in both mathematics and reading at every grade studied, from grades one through twelve (Jacobson, Olsen, Rice, Sweetland, & Ralph, 2001).

Many solutions have been put forth in an effort to reduce or eliminate this gap, but the findings of this …

Social Impact, Edward F. Lawler, Ellen Rostand, Michelle Kassman, Julie Kennedy, Jessica Martin, Toky Branding + Design, Donna Boyd, A.J. Agee

Social Impact Publication

From the Dean: Our Work in this Economy.;

Interview: Q&A with Paul C. Brophy;

Bookshelf: Understanding Assets: Two new books explore the impact of ownership and assets on individuals and communities;

Perspectives with Matthew Kreuter: Communication Connections;

Building a New Paradigm: Transdisciplinary Research Comes to the Forefront;

A Sense of Place: Place-Based Initiatives Help Communities and Students;

Notebook: Research: Tutoring Produces Big Gains in Student Learning;

Notebook: Research: Free Exercise and Nutrition Program in Brazil Could Serve as Model in United States;

Notebook: Research: Growing Problem for Veterans-Domestic Violence;

Notebook: Message of Service Drives Surge in Peace Corps Applications;

Notebook: …

Premenstrual Symptoms And Academic Stress In Emerging Adulthood Women, Pam Hulstein

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

Premenstrual symptoms are a universal event during a woman’s reproductive life but little is known about the experience of emerging adulthood women aged 18-25 years. The purpose of this study was to determine feasibility of daily symptom data collection via an electronic diary and to examine the relationship between premenstrual symptom perception, severity and distress with academic stress. This sample consisted of 50 women with a mean age of 20(±.9) years living in campus housing of a private undergraduate rural college. Results determined it is feasible to utilize an electronic diary for daily prospective symptom and academic demand data collection. …

Cosmological Vision(S) : History, Modernism, And American Renewal In Hart Crane's The Bridge, Lauren Grewe

Honors Theses

With the help of recent Crane studies, along with my own ear, I intend to prove the worth of Crane's myth of bridging as a way of responding to and eventually reforming the Elitonian vision of the modem world. The Bridge counters Eliot as a way to offer hope to the modem world in place of despair, as a way to offer a system of belief that is neither dogmatic nor futile, that incorporates a vision of the future just as much as a vision of the past.

Through A Scanner Darkly: The Use Of Fmri As Evidence Of Mens Rea, Teneille Brown, Emily R. Murphy

Journal of Law and Health

Tonight we are pleased to host an event exploring fMRI and its legal significance. Although [neuroimaging] is still an emerging technology, it has proven to be very consequential in at least one situation. In September 2008, the New York Times reported that a court in India allowed the use of brain scan images in a criminal case, which ultimately led to the conviction of an Indian woman accused of poisoning her fiance. To this day, the Indian woman maintains her innocence. Hank Greely, a bioethicist at Stanford Law School and a colleague of our speakers, commented on the verdict, [characterizing …