Digital Commons Network^™

The Effects Of Psychosocial Stress And Social Support On Memory, Dong T. H Nguyen

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Perception And Use Of Graywater In Berkeley, California, Chung M. Khong

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Assessing Forearm Fractures From Eight Prehistoric California Populations, Diane Marie Digiuseppe

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

U.S. Missile Shield In Europe : Framing In The New York Times And Izvestiya, Abdufarrokh Turaev

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Gene Flow Among Pacific Harbor Seals In Northern California, Michele Maria Conrad

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

A Comparison Of Aquatic Insect Communities Between Man-Made And Natural Ponds, Kristy Kay Whiteson

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Detecting Mutations Related To Antibiotic Resistance In Pseudomonas Aeruginosa, Neda Nemat-Gorgani

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Regeneration Of Damaged Growth Plate Using Igf-I Plasmid-Releasing Porous Plga Scaffolds, Nirmal Ravi

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Growth plate injuries account for 15-30% of long bone fractures in children. About 10% of these result in significant growth disturbances due to formation of a boney bar. If not treated correctly, this can lead to life-lasting consequences of limb length inequalities and angular deformities. Current treatments for growth plate injuries include removal of boney bar and insertion of fat, silicone, bone cement, etc.. This treatment y is inadequate, leaving almost half of these patients with continued deformities. This dissertation reports characterization of a DNA–containing porous poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) scaffold system, chondrogenesis using insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) plasmid-releasing scaffolds …

The Pharmacogenomics Of Egfr-Dependent Nsclc: Predicting And Enhancing Response To Targeted Egfr Therapy, Justin M. Balko

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

The introduction of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) targeting the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitors to the clinic has resulted in an improvement in the treatment of non small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, many patients treated with EGFR TKIs do not respond to therapy. The burden of failed treatment is largely placed on the healthcare field, limiting the effectiveness of EGFR TKIs. Furthermore, responses are hindered by the emergence of resistance. Thus, two questions must be addressed to achieve maximum benefit of EGFR inhibitors: How can patients who will benefit from EGFR TKIs be selected a priori? How …

The Interplay Between The Expression And Functions Of Wnt13 Isoforms During Apoptosis In Bovine Aortic Endothelial Cells, Tao Tang

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Wnt proteins are crucial for development/homeostasis by controlling cell fate including apoptosis (Moon RT et al. 1997). Three humanWnt13 isoforms were identified: the secreted Wnt13A, mitochondrial Wnt13B, and nuclear Wnt13C forms; and nuclear Wnt13 had an increased sensitivity to LPS/TNF-induced apoptosis in primary endothelial cells (EC); both Wnt13B and C mRNA contain two start codons (AUG+1 and +74), but the same protein encoded from AUG+74 by Wnt13C was expressed lower than Wnt13B (Struewing IT et al.2006). We hypothesize that during EC apoptosis, the nuclear Wnt13C expression is regulated translationally; nuclear Wnt13 favors apoptosis through regulating the activity/expression of apoptosis-related factors; …

Role Of Thyroid Hormone In The Intestinal Development Of Eleutherodactylus Coqui, Srikanth Singamsetty

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Thyroid hormone (TH) is required for the metamorphosis of the long, coiled tadpole gut in Xenopus laevis into a shorter mature adult gut. Eleutherodactylus coqui, a direct developing frog, lacks a tadpole. Its embryonic gut is a miniature adult form with a mass of yolky endodermal cells attached to the small intestine to provide nutrition. The requirement of TH for the gut development in E. coqui was tested in this study. Inhibition of TH synthesis with methimazole arrested gut development in its embryonic form. T3, the active form of TH, induced gut development. Embryos treated with methimazole failed to utilize …

A Comparative Study Of Larval Gene Expression Between A Paedomorphic And Metamorphic Species Of Ambystomatid Salamander, Meredith A. Boley

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

Ambystoma tigrinum undergoes an obligatory metamorphosis while A. mexicanum fails to metamorphose and exhibits paedomorphosis. While it is clear that salamander paedomorphosis is associated with genetic changes that delay developmental timing, it is not clear when and how these changes manifest during development. It is possible that paedomorphic and metamorphic larvae show equivalent patterns of developmental until late in the larval period, when brain regions become competent to stimulate the release of metamorphic hormones. To test this hypothesis, I compared gene expression patterns between the brains of A. mexicanum and A. t. tigrinum larvae. In support of the developmental equivalence …

Comparison Of Rope-Wick And Broadcast Treatments For Control Of Canada Thistle And Tall Ironweed, Daisy M. Fryman

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

Tall ironweed (Vernonia altissima) and Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense) control in cool season grass pastures was evaluated in 2007 and 2008. Tall ironweed was evaluated in Fayette and Boone Counties, KY and Canada thistle was evaluated at Spindletop Research Farm. Herbicides applied selectively with a rope-wick were compared to a broadcast foliar spray. Treatments were a broadcast treatment, of aminopyralid + 2, 4-D and six rope-wick treatments: aminopyralid at three concentrations, glyphosate, triclopyr and clopyralid at one concentration each. The Boone County location had five broadcast foliar treatments: aminopyralid at three rates, triclopyr + fluroxpyr, and …

Towards Reducing Fungicide Use In The Control Of Dollar Spot (Sclerotinia Homoeocarpa F.T. Bennett) Disease On Creeping Bentgrass (Agrostis Stolonifera L.), Kenneth Lee Cropper

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

Creeping bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera L.) is commonly used on golf course greens and fairways in cool-humid regions but is plagued by numerous fungal diseases, one of which is dollar spot disease (Sclerotinia homoeocarpa F. T. Bennett). Dollar spot occurs frequently throughout the growing season requiring biweekly fungicide applications for complete control. The objective of this study was to investigate methods of reducing the number of fungicide applications needed to maintain dollar spot at acceptable levels through dew removal and potential mechanisms of resistance in bentgrass. In the first study, a combination of mowing three times a week and …

Design And Analysis Of Nano-Gap Enhanced Surface Plasmon Resonance Sensors, Phillip Donald Keathley

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensors are advantageous to other techniques of sensing chemical binding, offering quantitative, real-time, label-free results. Previous work has demonstrated the effectiveness of using dual-mode SPR sensors to differentiate between surface and background effects, making the sensors more robust to dynamic environments. This work demonstrates a technique that improves upon a previously optimized planar film dual-mode SPR sensor’s LOD by introducing a periodic array of subwavelength nano-gaps throughout the plasmon supporting material. First, general figures of merit for a sensor having an arbitrary number of modes are studied. Next, the mode effective index dispersion and magnetic field …

The Faster You Copy, The Less You Infringe: Beating Copyrights Without Fair Use, David Overcash

SMU Science and Technology Law Review

No abstract provided.

Quon V. Arch Wireless: The Ninth Circuit Correctly Assess Fourth Amendment Privacy Interests In Workplace Text-Messaging, Marvin A. Liang

SMU Science and Technology Law Review

No abstract provided.

Low Density Lipoprotein Receptor And Alzheimers Disease, Rangaraj K. Gopalraj

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Since apoE allele status is the predominant Alzheimers disease (AD) genetic risk factor, functional single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in brain apoE receptors represent excellent candidates for association with AD. Therefore, three low density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR) SNPs were evaluated by TaqMan allelic discrimination assays for association with AD and I found that certain haplotypes alter the odds of AD. A SNP within LDLR exon 12, rs688, was identified in silico as neutralizing a putative exon splicing enhancer (ESE). Since LDLR is a major apoE receptor in the brain, I hypothesized that rs688 modulates LDLR splicing in neural tissues and associates …

Physiological Genomics Of Spinal Cord And Limb Regeneration In A Salamander, The Mexican Axolotl, James Robert Monaghan

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Salamanders have a remarkable ability to regenerate complex body parts including the limb, tail, and central nervous system. Although salamander regeneration has been studied for several hundred years, molecular-level studies have been limited to a relatively few important transcription factors and signaling molecules that are highly conserved among animals. Physiological genomic approaches were used here to investigate spinal cord and limb regeneration. Chapter 2 reports that hundreds of gene expression changes were identified during spinal cord regeneration, showing that a diverse injury response is activated in concert with extracellular matrix remodeling mechanisms during the early acute phase of natural spinal …

Manufacturing Kleptomania: The Social And Scientific Underpinnings Of A Pathology, Daisy V. Domínguez

Publications and Research

This paper aims to show the ways in which the kleptomania diagnosis expressed displaced societal fears and led to the ostracism and exculpation of groups based on an interesting mix of gender and class biases.

The Momentum Of Posthumous Conception: A Model Act, Raymond C. O'Brien

Scholarly Articles

This Article addresses the scenario of when, through advanced medical technology, a procedure is performed resulting in the birth of a child more than three hundred days-a time suggested by some statutes-after the death of the gamete provider. The embryo may result from in vitro fertilization or from a woman being artificially inseminated with the sperm of a deceased male gamete provider. And of course the woman could have predeceased too and left a viable ova, that was then fertilized with the sperm of a living or a deceased male to create an embryo, which was then placed into a …

In Gratitude For What We Are Given: A Common Morality For The Global Age, William J. Wagner

Scholarly Articles

This introduction, first, sets out and evaluates the reciprocal, antiphonal steps of "Vatican initiative" and "university response" at this collection of essays' genesis. Once having done so, it offers the reader not only a basic synthesis of the authors' separate contributions but also of the contours of the collection as a whole. In these ways it offers readers an introductory roadmap to the wealth of insights that the collection contains and those that it may in turn inspire.

Biology Of Ultramafic Rocks And Soils: Research Goals For The Future, R S. Boyd, A R. Kruckeberg, N Rajakaruna

Faculty Publications, Biological Sciences

At this, the 6th International Conference on Serpentine Ecology, it seems timely to review briefly the present status of the field and to project the needs for future research. Although a great deal of serpentine research was done prior to 1960, as summarized by Krause (1958) and discussed briefly by Brooks (1987), much of our progress in learning how serpentine geology affects plant and animal life occurred in the mid- to late 20th century. In that era, it was the landmark studies of several scientists worldwide that initiated a meteoric increase in published serpentine research. Key players in setting the …

Adiantum Viridimontanum, Aspidotis Densa, Minuartia Marcescens, And Symphyotrichum Rhiannon: Additional Serpentine Endemics From Eastern North America, T B. Harris, N Rajakaruna

Faculty Publications, Biological Sciences

Serpentine outcrops around the world are known to harbor disproportionately high rates of plant endemism. Remarkable cases of serpentine endemism occur in New Caledonia and Cuba, with 3178 and 920 endemic taxa, respectively, found solely on serpentine. Despite the patchy occurrence of serpentine in eastern North America from Québec and Newfoundland south to Alabama, only one taxon, Cerastium velutinum var. villosissimum, has been broadly recognized as a serpentine endemic for the region. Based on reports in the literature, we suggest that Adiantum viridimontanum, Minuartia marcescens, and Symphyotrichum rhiannon be considered endemic to serpentine soils from the east coast of North …

The Tower Clock 2009, Tower Clock

Tower Clock Yearbooks

No abstract provided.

Dynamics And Rheology Of Biaxial Liquid Crystal Polymers, Sarthok K. Sircar

Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis we derive a hydrodynamical kinetic theory to study the orientational response of a mesoscopic system of nematic liquid crystals in the presence of an external flow field. Various problems have been attempted in this direction. First, we understand the steady-state behavior of uniaxial LCPs under an imposed elongational flow, electric and magnetic field respectively. We show that (1) the Smoluchowski equation can be cast into a generic form, (2) the external field is parallel to one of the eigenvectors of the second moment tensor, and (3) the steady state probability density function is of the Boltzmann type. …

Nigel Parsons On Israel's Occupation By Neve Gordon. Berkley, Ca: University Of California Press, 2008. 318pp., Nigel Parsons

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Israel's Occupation by Neve Gordon. Berkley, CA: University of California Press, 2008. 318pp.

Smuggling Versus Trafficking: Do The U.N. Protocols Have It Right?, Carolyn Burke

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The terms “human trafficking” and “human smuggling” are often thought of as interchangeable due to their similar connections with irregular migration and the clandestine movement of people. However, trafficking and smuggling maintain their own differences, especially pertaining to their organizational dynamics, their forms, and their voluntary and involuntary natures that revolve around trust and exploitation. Current understandings of these terms stem from the widely accepted United Nations Protocols that were resultant from the Convention against Transnational Organized Crime.

Narrowing The Scope Of Auditor Duties, David Margulies

Bankruptcy Research Library

(Excerpt)

The tort of “deepening insolvency” refers to an action asserted by a representative of a bankruptcy estate against directors, officers, lenders, or others based on their pre-petition interactions with the debtor. 9 NORTON BANKR. L. & PRAC. 3d § 174:22. Liability under deepening insolvency has been imposed where “the defendant’s conduct, either fraudulently or even negligently, prolongs the life of a corporation, thereby increasing the corporation's debt and exposure to creditors.” In re LTV Steel Co., Inc., 333 B.R. 397, 421 (Bankr. N.D. Ohio 2005). Damages under the theory are sometimes awarded to a bankrupt corporation when, by delaying …

Transcriptional Regulation Of The Porcine Type Ii Gnrh Receptor Gene, Vanessa M. Brauer

Department of Animal Science: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The classical mammalian form of gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH), GnRH I, is a hypothalamic neuropeptide that functions as a key regulator of reproduction. The interaction between GnRH I and its receptor, GnRH receptor I (GnRHR I), stimulates gonadotropin secretion from the anterior pituitary gland. The gonadotropins, luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), act on the gonads to stimulate either steroidogenesis and ovulation or gametogenesis, respectively. The steroid hormones produced in the gonads act through a feedback pathway to regulate the production of both GnRH I from the hypothalamus and gonadotropins from the anterior pituitary.

Another form of GnRH, …