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2010

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Give Me Your Engineers, Your Ph.D.S, Yearning To Fund My Welfare State. Fiscal Crises And High-Skilled Immigration Policies, Mariana Medina Garciadiego Jan 2010

Give Me Your Engineers, Your Ph.D.S, Yearning To Fund My Welfare State. Fiscal Crises And High-Skilled Immigration Policies, Mariana Medina Garciadiego

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Points systems, immigration policies in which potential immigrants make an application to enter the country and then are selected on the basis of their skills, age, and occupation, have been proven to be more successful attracting high-skilled immigrants, but very few countries have implemented them. This is particularly paradoxical since high-skilled immigrants are more beneficial in fiscal terms: they are expected to pay more taxes than low skilled immgirants, and not depend heavily on government provided welfare. My core argument is that left of center governments in liberal welfare states implement points systems during a fiscal crisis as a mean …

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The Impact Of Interferon Regulatory Factor 3 On The Immune Response To Herpes Simplex Virus Type I Infection, Vineet Menachery Jan 2010

The Impact Of Interferon Regulatory Factor 3 On The Immune Response To Herpes Simplex Virus Type I Infection, Vineet Menachery

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

The type I interferon: IFN) cascade is critical in control of herpes simplex virus type I: HSV-1) infection and relies on specific recognition molecules to rapidly signal viral infection via interferon regulatory factor-3: IRF-3) -dependent pathways. The absence of these recognition molecules or the loss of IRF-3 would be predicted to render early recognition pathways inoperative and thus impact viral infection. However, previous results had produced contradictory results in terms of the role of IRF-3 during HSV-1 infection. In this study, infected IRF-3-/- immune cells were found to support increased HSV-1 replication compared to control cells. In addition, IRF-3 deficient …

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Exploring Tissue Microstructure In Healthy And Diseased Lung Tissue, Michelle Milne Jan 2010

Exploring Tissue Microstructure In Healthy And Diseased Lung Tissue, Michelle Milne

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

This thesis is divided into two parts. The first part examines diffusion in a number of human lung samples, while the second deals with diffusion in the more simplified environment of a single capillary tube. In the lung study we examine various types of lung samples: healthy and diseased) at a variety of diffusion lengths. Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging: MRI) has been a very useful tool in the study of lungs and lung disease, particularly diffusion MRI using hyperpolarized gases, such as helium or xenon. However, since the polarized gas is difficult to prepare and, once prepared, suffers decay of …

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An Investigation Of The Cognitive And Perceptual Mechanisms Involved In Mania-Proneness, Kimberly Mercer Jan 2010

An Investigation Of The Cognitive And Perceptual Mechanisms Involved In Mania-Proneness, Kimberly Mercer

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

The present research investigates the cognitive and perceptual mechanisms involved in mania-proneness. Building on the work of Depue and colleagues: Depue & Iacono, 1989; Depue & Zald, 1993) and Gray: 1994), which identifies links between the Behavioral Activation System: BAS) and the symptoms observed in mania, this research investigates the hypothesis that people who are prone to mania exhibit cognitive and perceptual biases in information processing when presented with achievement-oriented stimuli both at baseline, and after the receipt of a reward. These hypothesized biases were measured via an affective flanker task, a suboptimal priming task, and a judgment task about …

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Racial Disparities In Hiv Seroprevalence Among Male Street Sex Workers, Larry Morton Jan 2010

Racial Disparities In Hiv Seroprevalence Among Male Street Sex Workers, Larry Morton

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

This dissertation examined whether racial disparities in HIV/AIDS between African American and Caucasian male street sex workers: MSSWs) existed and, if so, what were the possible reasons for these disparities. African American MSSWs were significantly more likely to report being HIV/AIDS-positive. However, when included in binary logistic models, the relationship between HIV risk factors: of syphilis and sexual assault) and HIV status did not significantly vary between African American and Caucasian MSSWs. Mediation of sexual assault and/or syphilis between race and HIV/AIDS could not be tested due to not meeting the assumptions for mediation. African American MSSWs are over twice …

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Essays On Online Browsing And Purchase, Ciju Nair Jan 2010

Essays On Online Browsing And Purchase, Ciju Nair

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Essay One: Modeling Online Browsing and Purchase of Airline Tickets Online purchases are increasingly becoming a significant portion of total purchases in most product categories. While prior research in marketing has looked at information search and purchase decisions separately, we use a joint framework to study consumers' online browsing and purchase of airline tickets in a unique dataset of household-level dynamic click stream panel data. We use a three-stage model to study: i) the choice of the first website visited,: ii) the duration of browsing on travel websites before making a purchase: iii) the choice of the website where consumers …

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Bodies Of Parchment: Representing The Passion And Reading Manuscripts In Late Medieval England, Sarah Noonan Jan 2010

Bodies Of Parchment: Representing The Passion And Reading Manuscripts In Late Medieval England, Sarah Noonan

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

In a diverse range of late-fourteenth- and fifteenth-century devotional literature, Christ's body is metaphorically related to a book or a document at the moment of his crucifixion. His skin transforms into parchment, whips and scourges become pens, and a steady flow of blood, of ink, covers his body and the written page. And each word written onto his parchment body welcomes sustained study, acting as a potential meditative focal point for the devout reader. Through this metaphor and the accompanying materiality of the texts that include it, medieval authors and audiences could imagine intimately interacting with Christ's body during the …

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The Function And Regulation Of Senescent Stromal-Derived Osteopontin, Ermira Pazolli Jan 2010

The Function And Regulation Of Senescent Stromal-Derived Osteopontin, Ermira Pazolli

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Our understanding of tumors as complex organs has increased our appreciation for each component of the tumor microenvironment and its respective contribution to tumorigenesis. Fibroblasts found within a tumor actively participate in the growth, progression and metastasis of cancer cells. Senescent fibroblasts, which are permanently arrested yet metabolically active, accumulate in tissue over time where they may promote the proliferation and malignant conversion of preneoplastic cells in older individuals. I have examined the relationship between senescent fibroblasts and preneoplastic keratinocytes and identified the secreted multifunctional protein osteopontin: OPN) as a critical stromal mediating factor. RNAi-directed reduction of stromal OPN leads …

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Genetic Influences On Preterm Birth, Jevon Plunkett Jan 2010

Genetic Influences On Preterm Birth, Jevon Plunkett

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Preterm birth: PTB) is a leading cause of mortality and disease burden globally; however, determinants of human parturition remain largely uncharacterized, making prediction and prevention of difficult. Genetic studies are one way in which we can attempt to better understand this disorder. We first sought to develop a model for the genetic influences on PTB to facilitate gene discovery. Study of standard measures of familial aggregation, the sibling risk ratio and the sibling-sibling odds ratio, and segregation analyses of gestational age, a quantitative proxy for preterm birth, lend support to a genetic component contributing to birth timing, since preterm deliveries …

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Characterization Of The Role For Nmnat, Kinase Cascades, And Purines In Axonal Degeneration, Craig Press Jan 2010

Characterization Of The Role For Nmnat, Kinase Cascades, And Purines In Axonal Degeneration, Craig Press

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Axonal degeneration is a prominent feature of many neurological disorders including Parkinson's disease: PD), motor neuron disease, inherited, diabetic, and drug-induced peripheral neuropathies. It is now thought that axonal degeneration is an active process, due in large part to studies of the Wlds mutant mouse, which undergoes delayed Wallerian degeneration in response to axonal injury. Wlds mice have slower disease progression in numerous models of neurodegenerative diseases. The Wlds mutation results in the production of a chimeric protein that containing nicotinamide mononucleotide adenylyltransferase 1: Nmnat1). Increased expression of Nmnat isoforms are sufficient for axonal protection in vitro and in vivo. …

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Phylogenetics And Phylogeography Of Moray Eels (Muraenidae), Joshua Reece Jan 2010

Phylogenetics And Phylogeography Of Moray Eels (Muraenidae), Joshua Reece

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

This dissertation describes the evolutionary history of Moray eels: Muraenidae). Moray eels are apex predators on coral reefs around the world, but they are not well studied because of their cryptic habitats and occasionally aggressive behaviors. I provide the first molecular phylogeny of moray eels with widespread taxonomic and geographic coverage, including 44 species representing two subfamilies, eight genera, and all tropical ocean basins. Phylogenetic relationships among these taxa are estimated from portions of mitochondrial loci cytochrome b and cytochrome oxidase subunit 1, and portions of the nuclear loci RAG-1 and RAG-2. I test four sets of contrasting phylogenetic hypotheses …

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Reducing False Hearing In The Elderly: Variability Training In Meta-Audition, Chad Rogers Jan 2010

Reducing False Hearing In The Elderly: Variability Training In Meta-Audition, Chad Rogers

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

A large body of work supports the conclusion that older adults derive more benefit than young adults from the addition of contextual information in speech perception: Hutchinson, 1989; Pichora-Fuller, Schneider, & Daneman, 1995; Pichora-Fuller, 2008). More recent work by Rogers, Jacoby, and Sommers: in prep) showed that when contextual information and sensory information favored competing responses, older adults were more likely to falsely "hear" the word favored by context. The current research describes two experiments that attempt to mitigate this age-related increase on contextual reliance. Experiment 1 assessed whether the effects of context in Rogers, Jacoby, & Sommers: in prep) …

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A Processing Approach To The Working Memory/Long-Term Memory Distinction: Evidence From A Levels-Of-Processing Span Task, Nathan Rose Jan 2010

A Processing Approach To The Working Memory/Long-Term Memory Distinction: Evidence From A Levels-Of-Processing Span Task, Nathan Rose

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Recent studies have raised questions about the extent to which working memory: WM) is dissociable from secondary or long-term memory: LTM). Although many similarities may exist between immediate retrieval on WM span tasks and delayed retrieval on LTM tests, important differences exist as well. To illustrate this point, Craik and Tulving's classic levels-of-processing paradigm was adapted for use in a WM span task: Participants made visual, phonological, or semantic judgments about 33 words using the same stimuli and instructions as Craik and Tulving: 1975), but were to recall words immediately after every 3 or 8 words: rather than after all …

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The Role Of The Clock Gene Bmal1 In Female Fertility And Parturition, Christine Ratajczak Jan 2010

The Role Of The Clock Gene Bmal1 In Female Fertility And Parturition, Christine Ratajczak

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Successful reproduction is essential for survival of species. For humans, reproductive problems can cause large emotional and medical burdens. Evidence in both humans and rodents indicates that circadian rhythmicity is important for supporting reproductive function. A molecular clock orchestrates circadian rhythmicity. Impairment in fertility and parturition are observed in female mice expressing a mutant form of Clock, suggesting critical roles for clock genes in reproduction. Since the clock gene Bmal1, but not Clock, is necessary for the generation of circadian rhythmicity, exploring the role of Bmal1 in reproduction may yield a better understanding of the importance of the molecular clock …

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Conservation Of The Intracellular Bacterial Community Pathogenic Pathway In Urinary Tract Infection, David Rosen Jan 2010

Conservation Of The Intracellular Bacterial Community Pathogenic Pathway In Urinary Tract Infection, David Rosen

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Urinary tract infections: UTIs) affect 13 million women annually in the United States. Uropathogenic Escherichia coli: UPEC) is the predominant etiologic agent of UTI; however, several other uropathogens, including Klebsiella pneumoniae, are also significant causative agents. In a murine cystitis model, UPEC utilize a multistep pathogenic pathway in which they invade and form intracellular bacterial communities: IBCs) within bladder facet cells. Type 1 pili, adhesive fimbriae, are necessary for UPEC binding and invasion of urothelial cells and formation of IBCs. UPEC ultimately disperse from the IBC, many with filamentous morphology, and proceed to infect other host urothelial cells. This work …

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The Mechanisms And Roles Of Neural Feedback Loops For Visual Processing, Debajit Saha Jan 2010

The Mechanisms And Roles Of Neural Feedback Loops For Visual Processing, Debajit Saha

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Feedback pathways are widely present in various sensory systems transmitting time-delayed and partly-processed information from higher to lower visual centers. Although feedback loops are abundant in visual systems, investigations focusing on the mechanisms and roles of feedback in terms of micro-circuitry and system dynamics have been largely ignored. Here, we investigate the cellular, synaptic and circuit level properties of a cholinergic isthmic neuron: Ipc) to understand the role of isthmotectal feedback loop in visual processing of red-ear turtles, Trachemys scripta elegans. Turtle isthmotectal complex contains two distinct nuclei, Ipc and Imc, which interact exclusively with the optic tectum, but are …

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Structural And Functional Studies On Bk(Ca) Channels, Akansha Saxena Jan 2010

Structural And Functional Studies On Bk(Ca) Channels, Akansha Saxena

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

The long term goal of this research is to study the structure and function of the BKCa channels, by focusing on the effect of a single residue mutation, the epilepsy mutation. BKCa channels are potassium channels, activated by voltage, Ca2+ and Mg2+ ions. These factors control the opening and closing of the channel pore and thus regulate the large K+ current passing through them. Recently, a mutation D434G in humans, was found to make the channel hyperactive and more sensitive to the Ca2+ ions. The single residue mutation, resulting from a substitution of an Asp to Gly, was …

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Response Mapping In Evaluative Priming, Laura Scherer Jan 2010

Response Mapping In Evaluative Priming, Laura Scherer

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Recently, Scherer and Lambert: 2009) proposed a new model of priming, which they called the Response Mapping: RM) Model. That model assumes that under some circumstances, priming effects are the result of an unintentional tendency for participants to impose the target categorization task onto the primes: which they are supposed to ignore). In the present dissertation, the RM model is reviewed, and the implications and boundary conditions of the model are explored. In Experiments 1 and 2, it was predicted and found that response mapping processes can result in evaluative conditioning effects. That is, priming tasks do not always simply …

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An Archaeological Model Of The Construction Of Monks Mound And Implications For The Development Of The Cahokian Society (800 - 1400 A.D.), Timothy Schilling Jan 2010

An Archaeological Model Of The Construction Of Monks Mound And Implications For The Development Of The Cahokian Society (800 - 1400 A.D.), Timothy Schilling

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

This dissertation presents a model for the development of Cahokian society through the lens of monumental construction. Previous models of Cahokian society have emphasized the accumulation of individual power and domination of the many by a few. Using analogies from the ethnography and ethnohistory of Dhegian Siouan speakers, I argue the Cahokian system likely contained both achieved and ascribed statuses mediated through a worldview that emphasized balance and integration of the whole. In the face of a growing population, this kind of structural organization may have precluded the development of class conflict and, at the same time, permitted the development …

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Implementation Of Hypertension Treatment Recommendations, Veronica Shead Jan 2010

Implementation Of Hypertension Treatment Recommendations, Veronica Shead

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

There are currently lifestyle modifications and medications that are highly successful in controlling hypertension. Nevertheless, many hypertensive individuals do not implement lifestyle changes and fail to adhere to medication regimens. The current study sought to understand both sociodemographic and intrinsic factors associated with the implementation of recommended lifestyle modifications for treatment of hypertension. The study represents the first step in the application of the Information-Motivation-Behavioral Skills: IMB) model of health behavior and health promotion to hypertension. The primary goal was to provide a profile of the variables relevant for adherence to the multifaceted treatment recommendations for the hypertensive population. 151 …

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Adaptive Ofdm Radar For Target Detection And Tracking, Satyabrata Sen Jan 2010

Adaptive Ofdm Radar For Target Detection And Tracking, Satyabrata Sen

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

We develop algorithms to detect and track targets by employing a wideband orthogonal frequency division multiplexing: OFDM) radar signal. The frequency diversity of the OFDM signal improves the sensing performance since the scattering centers of a target resonate variably at different frequencies. In addition, being a wideband signal, OFDM improves the range resolution and provides spectral efficiency. We first design the spectrum of the OFDM signal to improve the radar's wideband ambiguity function. Our designed waveform enhances the range resolution and motivates us to use adaptive OFDM waveform in specific problems, such as the detection and tracking of targets. We …

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The Ethics Of Forcible Democratization, David Speetzen Jan 2010

The Ethics Of Forcible Democratization, David Speetzen

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Recent wars have led many to believe that the promotion of democracy cannot justify foreign intervention, but this is rash. A government's right to non-intervention should hinge on whether it adequately: 1) protects its subjects' human rights and: 2) represents their collective political will. I argue that when and where the international legal system's ability to enforce human rights matures and the social conditions for better representation emerge, the standards for adequate protection and representation should rise. Since democracy significantly augments both functions of government, eventually the right to non-intervention should depend on maintaining democratic institutions. Failure to do so …

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Implicit And Explicit Racial Attitudes: Moderation Of Racial Typicality Evaluations, Elena Stepanova Jan 2010

Implicit And Explicit Racial Attitudes: Moderation Of Racial Typicality Evaluations, Elena Stepanova

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Previous research has shown that racial images representing more typical Afrocentric phenotypic characteristics result in more negative evaluations, whether assessed by explicit or implicit attitudes measures. However, the factors that define and moderate the perception of racial typicality have not been sufficiently explored. The current research investigated additive and interactive influences of skin tone and facial physiognomy on racial typicality evaluations, as well as the degree to which those effects were moderated by explicit and implicit racial attitudes, ethnicity of participants, and availability of cognitive resources. Using a 6-point scale ranging from very African American to very Caucasian, participants: N …

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Examination Of Molecular Recognition In Protein-Ligand Interactions, Yat Tang Jan 2010

Examination Of Molecular Recognition In Protein-Ligand Interactions, Yat Tang

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

This dissertation is a compilation of two main projects that were investigated during my thesis research. The first project was a prospective study which identified and characterized drug-like inhibitors of a prototype of bacterial two-component signal transduction response regulator using computational and experimental methods. The second project was the development and validation of a scoring function, PHOENIX, derived using high-resolution structures and calorimetry measurements to predict binding affinities of protein-ligand interactions. Collectively, my thesis research aimed to better understand the underlying driving forces and principles which govern molecular recognition and molecular design. A prospective study coupled computational predictions with experimental …

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High-Speed Photoacoustic Microscopy In Vivo, Liang Song Jan 2010

High-Speed Photoacoustic Microscopy In Vivo, Liang Song

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

The overarching goal of this research is to develop a novel photoacoustic microscopy: PAM) technology capable of high-speed, high-resolution 3D imaging in vivo. PAM combines the advantages of optical absorption contrast and ultrasonic resolution for deep imaging beyond the quasi-ballistic regime. Its high sensitivity to optical absorption enables the imaging of important physiological parameters, such as hemoglobin concentration and oxygen saturation, which closely correlate with angiogenesis and hypermetabolism--two hallmarks of cancer. To translate PAM to the clinic, both high imaging speed and high spatial resolution are desired. With high spatial resolution, PAM can detect small structural and functional changes early; …

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Role Of Fibroblast Growth Factor Signaling In Epicardial Development And Function, Mónica Vega-Hernández Jan 2010

Role Of Fibroblast Growth Factor Signaling In Epicardial Development And Function, Mónica Vega-Hernández

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

In this thesis I examined the function of Fibroblast Growth Factor: FGF) signaling in epicardial cells. Epicardial cells serve as the outer layer of the heart and as a signaling center for the growing myocardium. In addition, during development, epicardial cells differentiate into vascular smooth muscle cells: vsmc) and interstitial fibroblasts. Epicardial cells undergo an epicardial to mesenchymal transition: EMT) to give rise to these various cell types, which are termed epicardial derived cells: EPDCs). Epicardial-derived vsmc are an essential component of the arterial network in the myocardium, and the interstitial fibroblasts become part of the fibrous skeleton of the …

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Accounting For Mysteries: Narratives Of Intuition And Empiricism In The Victorian Novel, Brooke Taylor Jan 2010

Accounting For Mysteries: Narratives Of Intuition And Empiricism In The Victorian Novel, Brooke Taylor

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

This dissertation explores the tensions between an empirical epistemology and an intuitive method of knowing the world as depicted in popular Victorian novels. These narratives attempt to assimilate alternate modes of understanding; however, the uneasiness of the relationship between empiricism and intuition speaks to larger cultural tensions about the possibility of reconciling fact and feeling in the mid- to late-nineteenth century. I argue that intuitive and imaginative modes of cognition are continually privileged in novels that explicitly claim to adhere to empirical forms of knowledge. As I examine the work of Charles Dickens, Mary Elizabeth Braddon, Wilkie Collins, and George …

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Proteomics Assisted Discovery Of Novel Proteins In Assembly And Regulation Of Photosystem Ii, Kimberly Wegener Jan 2010

Proteomics Assisted Discovery Of Novel Proteins In Assembly And Regulation Of Photosystem Ii, Kimberly Wegener

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Cyanobacteria, the only prokaryotes capable of oxygenic photosynthesis, are present in diverse ecological niches and play crucial roles in global carbon and nitrogen cycles. To proliferate in nature, cyanobacteria utilize a host of stress responses to maintain photosynthesis under periodic changes in environmental conditions. Recent advances in proteomic study have enabled a systems-level analysis of cellular functions in many systems. Because proteins are directly responsible for cellular functions, measurements of protein abundances provide significant clues to the modulation of cellular functions during different environmental perturbations. A detailed knowledge of the composition of, as well as the dynamic changes in, the …

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Pacemaker Heterogeneity In The Suprachiasmatic Nucleus: Origins And Network Implications, Alexis Webb Jan 2010

Pacemaker Heterogeneity In The Suprachiasmatic Nucleus: Origins And Network Implications, Alexis Webb

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

In mammals, the suprachiasmatic nuclei: SCN) in the ventral hypothalamus function as a circadian pacemaker, controlling daily rhythms in behavior and physiology. Together the SCN contain approximately 20,000 neurons that maintain rhythms in firing rate and gene expression. Previous studies led to the assumption that single SCN neurons are capable of self-sustained circadian rhythms. Whether and which SCN neurons can maintain cell-autonomous daily oscillations has not been extensively tested. We measured PERIOD2::LUCIFERASE expression in isolated SCN neurons over multiple days to determine if all SCN neurons were circadian. We then examined neuropeptide content of the recorded neurons. We found that …

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The Small Animals Of Maasai Settlements: Ethnoarchaeological Investigations Of The Commensalism Model, Lior Weissbrod Jan 2010

The Small Animals Of Maasai Settlements: Ethnoarchaeological Investigations Of The Commensalism Model, Lior Weissbrod

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

This research was designed to test Tchernov's model of commensalism and the idea that remains of commensal species that today coexist with humans in settlement environments could be used to detect early sedentism in the archaeological record. The validity of the model has been questioned due to the lack of empirical knowledge on commensalism in a wide range of settlement environments including sedentary and more mobile ones. This study examined the commensalism model by focusing on seasonally occupied settlements of Maasai pastoralists in East Africa. Methods from ecology, ethnography, and archaeology were used to document the impact of Maasai settlements …

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