Digital Commons Network^™

Attractor Divergence As A Metric For Assessing Walking Balance, Max J. Kurz, Katerina Markopoulou, Nikolaos Stergiou

Journal Articles

: Individuals with Parkinson's disease and the aged have a high prevalence of falls. Since an increase in the number of falls is associated with physical and psychological harm, it is prudent that biomechanical metrics be established that will accurately assess an individual's walking balance. In this investigation, we initially used a simple bipedal walking computer model to theoretically establish the relationship between attractor divergence and walking balance. The Lyapunov exponent was used to quantify the amount of divergence present in the walking attractor. Simulations from our model indicated that attractors that have a greater amount of divergence are more …

A New Case Of Gaba Transaminase Deficiency Facilitated By Proton Mr Spectroscopy, Megumi Tsuji, Noriko Aida, Takayuki Obata, Moyoko Tomiyasu, Noritaka Furuya, Kenji Kurosawa, Abdellatif Errami, K. Michael Gibson, Gajja S. Salomons, Cornelis Jakobs, Hitoshi Osaka

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Background: Deficiency of 4-aminobutyrate aminotransferase (GABA-T) is a rare disorder of GABA catabolism, with only a single sibship reported. We report on a third case, a Japanese female infant with severe psychomotor retardation and recurrent episodic lethargy with intractable seizures, with the diagnosis facilitated by proton magnetic resonance (MR) spectroscopy (1H-MRS). Methods: Neuroimaging was performed at the first episode of lethargy. For 1H-MRS, locations were placed in the semioval center and the basal ganglia. Quantification of metabolite concentrations were derived using the LCModel. We confirmed the diagnosis subsequently by enzyme and molecular studies, which involved direct DNA sequence analysis and …

Insectigator: Bug Or Insect – Do You Know The Difference?, Kerry Elsen

Department of Entomology: Distance Master of Science Projects

The Insectigator encourages families to go outside and investigate wildlife around them. It provides an opportunity for youth to explore and investigate the natural world we live in. It was created for beginning entomologists, especially those between 8 and 11 years old. It can also be used with younger youth with an adult. Anyone who has an interest in insects is encouraged to use this manual, regardless of age. Clubs can use the manual and contents for club activities or project demonstrations. Youth are encouraged to do their investigation in groups and share their findings with other club members. Fair …

Displaced: Stories Of Struggle In South Africa, Sarah Bryant, Shannon Lauber, Christina Devries, Jenna Gibson, Logan Meier, Anna Mostek, Kate Veik, Chris Slaughter, Vanessa Skocz, Chelsey Manhart, Bruce Thorson, Charlie Mitchell

College of Journalism and Mass Communications: Student Media

In June 2008, a group from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln — two advisers, seven student photographers, two student reporters and one student videographer — traveled to South Africa for 18 days. Their project, which had been in the making for the previous six months, focused on documenting immigration issues in South Africa. Howard Buffett, a documentary photographer, funded the trip, which was a partnership involving UNL, Arizona State University and the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. The group arrived in South Africa amidst the aftermath of xenophobic violence that tore through the country in the several weeks leading up …

The Return Of Logos: Language And Meaning In Hamlet, James Funk

The Oswald Review: An International Journal of Undergraduate Research and Criticism in the Discipline of English

No abstract provided.

The Oswald Review Undergraduate Research And Criticism In The Discipline Of English: Volume 12 Fall 2010

The Oswald Review: An International Journal of Undergraduate Research and Criticism in the Discipline of English

No abstract provided.

Law And The Social Control Of American Capitalism, William J. Novak

Articles

This Essay is part of a larger, ongoing investigation of the role of law in the creation of a modern American state from 1877 to 1932. That project charts the decline of an early nineteenth-century world of local, common law self government (what I called in a previous work a “well-regulated society”) and the rise of a distinctly modern administrative regulatory state in the United States. This new legal-political regime was rooted in three interlinked developments: the centralization of public power; the individualization of private right; and the constitutionalization of the rule of law. Beginning soon after the Civil War, …

An Outsider's View Of Dassonville And Cassis De Dijon: On Interpretation And Policy, Donald Regan

Articles

My interest in the EC law on free movement of goods is long-standing and more than casual, but much less than scholarly. So I am delighted to contribute some remarks without pretending to expertise.

Mulieris Dignitatem And The Exclusivity Of Marriage Under Law, Howard Bromberg

Articles

Jesus Christ established monogamy, the marriage of one man to one woman, as the canonical norm of his church and the juridical norm for all nations. This was a unique event in the history of the cultures and religions of the world. The Catholic Church has always defended its canonical norm of monogamy, often with great opposition. Through its influence, monogamy has been established as law in the Western world and in almost all cultures influenced by Western law and norms. The emerging jurisprudence of the United States, however, rejects any religious derivation as the basis of our laws. With …

Mast Cells And Hypoxia Drive Tissue Metaplasia And Heterotopic Ossification In Idiopathic Arthrofibrosis After Total Knee Arthroplasty., Theresa A Freeman, Javad Parvizi, Craig J Dela Valle, Marla J Steinbeck

Department of Orthopaedic Surgery Faculty Papers

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Idiopathic arthrofibrosis occurs in 3-4% of patients who undergo total knee arthroplasty (TKA). However, little is known about the cellular or molecular changes involved in the onset or progression of this condition. To classify the histomorphologic changes and evaluate potential contributing factors, periarticular tissues from the knees of patients with arthrofibrosis were analyzed for fibroblast and mast cell proliferation, heterotopic ossification, cellular apoptosis, hypoxia and oxidative stress. RESULTS: The arthrofibrotic tissue was composed of dense fibroblastic regions, with limited vascularity along the outer edges. Within the fibrotic regions, elevated numbers of chymase/fibroblast growth factor (FGF)-expressing mast cells were …

The Accelerator, Volume 4 Issue 7, Winter 2010, Christa Santos

The Accelerator

No abstract provided.

A Synthetic Uric Acid Analog Accelerates Cutaneous Wound Healing In Mice, Srinivasulu Chigurupati, Mohamed R. Mughal, Sic L. Chan, Thiruma V. Arumugam, Akanksha Baharani, Sung-Chun Tang, Qian-Sheng Yu, Harold W. Holloway, Ross Wheeler, Suresh Poosala, Nigel H. Greig, Mark P. Mattson

Faculty Bibliography 2010s

Wound healing is a complex process involving intrinsic dermal and epidermal cells, and infiltrating macrophages and leukocytes. Excessive oxidative stress and associated inflammatory processes can impair wound healing, and antioxidants have been reported to improve wound healing in animal models and human subjects. Uric acid (UA) is an efficient free radical scavenger, but has a very low solubility and poor tissue penetrability. We recently developed novel UA analogs with increased solubility and excellent free radical-scavenging properties and demonstrated their ability to protect neural cells against oxidative damage. Here we show that the uric acid analog (6, 8 dithio-UA, but not …

Multistate Modeling Of Habitat Dynamics: Factors Affecting Florida Scrub Transition Probabilities, David R. Breininger, James D. Nichols, Brean W. Duncan, Eric D. Stolen, Geoffrey M. Carter, Danny K. Hunt, John H. Drese

Faculty Bibliography 2010s

Many ecosystems are influenced by disturbances that create specific successional states and habitat structures that species need to persist. Estimating transition probabilities between habitat states and modeling the factors that influence such transitions have many applications for investigating and managing disturbance-prone ecosystems. We identify the correspondence between multistate capture-recapture models and Markov models of habitat dynamics. We exploit this correspondence by fitting and comparing competing models of different ecological covariates affecting habitat transition probabilities in Florida scrub and flatwoods, a habitat important to many unique plants and animals. We subdivided a large scrub and flatwoods ecosystem along central Florida's Atlantic …

Detection Of Multidecadal Changes In Uvb And Total Ozone Concentrations Over The Continental Us With Nasa Toms Data And Usda Ground-Based Measurements, Zhiqiang Gao, Wei Gao, Ni-Bin Chang

Faculty Bibliography 2010s

Thinning of the atmospheric ozone layer leads to elevated levels of Ultraviolet-B (UVB) at the Earth's surface, resulting in an increase of health risks to living organisms due to DNA damage. This paper examines the multidecadal changes of total column ozone from 1979 to 2005 with the aid of ground-based UVB stations using the ultraviolet multifilter rotating shadow-band radiometer (UV-MFRSR). For the purpose of demonstration, four USDA ground stations, WA01, CO01, MD01, and AZ01, were selected for detailed comparisons against the satellite data. The major finding of this study is that over the course of the time series, on a …

Joint Torques And Powers Are Reduced During Ambulation For Both Limbs In Patients With Unilateral Claudication, Panagiotis Koutakis, Iraklis Pipinos, Sara A. Myers, Nikolaos Stergiou, Thomas G. Lynch, Jason Johanning

Journal Articles

Objectives: Symptomatic peripheral arterial disease (PAD) results in significant gait impairment. In an attempt to fully delineate and quantify these gait alterations, we analyzed joint kinematics, torques (rotational forces), and powers (rotational forces times angular velocity) in patients with PAD with unilateral claudication for both the affected and nonaffected legs.

Methods: Twelve patients with unilateral PAD (age, 61.69 ± 10.53 years, ankle-brachial index [ABI]: affected limb 0.59 ± 0.25; nonaffected limb 0.93 ± 0.12) and 10 healthy controls (age, 67.23 ± 12.67 years, ABI >1.0 all subjects) walked over a force platform to acquire gait kinetics, while joint kinematics were …

Nonlinear Analysis Of Ambulatory Activity Patterns In Community-Dwelling Older Adults, James T. Cavanaugh, Naomi Kochi, Nikolaos Stergiou

Journal Articles

Background The natural ambulatory activity patterns of older adults are not well understood. User-worn monitors illuminate patterns of ambulatory activity and generate data suitable for analysis using measures derived from nonlinear dynamics.

MethodsAmbulatory activity data were collected continuously from 157 community-dwelling older adults for 2 weeks. Participants were separated post hoc into groups based on the mean number of steps per day: highly active (steps ≥ 10,000), moderately active (5,000 ≤ steps < 10,000 steps), and inactive (steps

Results All groups displayed patterns of fluctuating step count values containing complex temporal structure. DFA, ER, and ApEn parameter values increased monotonically and significantly with increasing activity …

The Impact Of Environmental Noise On Robot-Assisted Laparoscopic Surgical Performance, Ka-Chun Siu, I. H. Suh, Mukul Mukherjee, D. Oleynikov, Nikolaos Stergiou

Journal Articles

Background. An operating room is a noisy environment. How noise affects performance during robotic surgery remains unknown. We investigated whether noise during training with the da Vinci surgical robot (Intuitive Surgical, Inc., Sunnyvale, CA) would affect the performance of simple operative tasks by the surgeon.

Methods. Twelve medical students performed 3 inanimate operative tasks (bimanual carrying, suture tying, and mesh alignment) on the da Vinci Surgical System with or without the presence of noise. Prerecorded noise from an actual operating room was used. The kinematics of the robotic surgical instrument tips and the muscle activation patterns of the subjects were …

Complexity And Human Gait, Leslie M. Decker, Fabien Cignetti, Nikolaos Stergiou

Journal Articles

Recently, the complexity of the human gait has become a topic of major interest within the field of human movement sciences. Indeed, while the complex fluctuations of the gait patterns were, for a long time, considered as resulting from random processes, the development of new techniques of analysis, so-called nonlinear techniques, has open new vistas for the understanding of such fluctuations. In particular, by connecting the notion of complexity to the one of chaos, new insights about gait adaptability, unhealthy states in gait and neural control of locomotion were provided. Through methods of evaluation of the complexity, experimental results obtained …

Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction Results In Alterations In Gait Variability, Constantina O. Moraiti, Nikolaos Stergiou, Haris S. Vasiliadis, Eustathios Motsis, Anastasios D. Georgoulis

Journal Articles

Introduction: The temporal structure of gait variability has shown that healthy human gait exhibits long- range correlations and deterministic properties which allow the neuromuscular system to be flexible and adaptable to stresses. Pathology results in deterioration of these properties. We examined structure of gait variability after ACL reconstruction with either BPTB or quadrupled ST/G tendon autografts.

Methods: Six patients with BPTB reconstruction, six with ST/G reconstruction and six healthy controls walked on a treadmill at their self-selected pace. Two minutes of continuous kinematic data were recorded with a 6-camera optoelectronic system. The nonlinear measure of the largest Lyapunov …

Study Of Catalytic Activities Of Nanostructure Copper And Cobalt Supported Zsm-5 Catalysts For Conversion Of Volatile Organic Compounds, Aligholi Niaei, Dariush Salari, Seyed Ali Hosseini

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

This paper reports the comparison of the activities of nanostructure Cu-ZSM-5 and Co-ZSM-5 catalysts for conversion of ethyl acetate and toluene and deals with the relationship between activity and structure of catalysts. The catalysts were characterized by ICP-AES, XPS, EDX, XRD, SEM, and TEM techniques. Catalytic studies were carried out under atmospheric pressure and in a temperature range of 200-500 °C. Cu-ZSM-5 catalysts showed better activity than Co-ZSM-5, revealing higher activity of copper cations. The higher activity was ascribed to higher electro-negativity, smaller cation radius, good distribution, and specific coordination of copper cations inside Cu-ZSM-5 catalysts. The activity of catalysts …

Electro-Oxidation Of Some Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs On An Alumina Nanoparticle-Modified Glassy Carbon Electrode, Mahla Tabeshnia, Hossein Heli, Ali Jabbari, Ali A. Moosavi-Movahedi

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

The electro-oxidation of mefenamic acid, diclofenac, and indomethacin on glassy carbon and alumina nanoparticle-modified glassy carbon electrodes in a phosphate buffer solution at physiological pH was studied. The techniques of cyclic voltammetry, chronoamperometry, impedance spectroscopy, and steady state polarization measurements were applied. The drugs were irreversibly oxidized on bath electrodes via an anodic peak and the process was controlled by diffusion in the bulk of solution. Alumina nanoparticles increased the oxidation current, and lowered the peak and onset potentials. As such, alumina nanoparticles had an electrocatalytic effect, both kinetically and thermodynamically. The kinetic parameters of heterogeneous electron transfer and diffusion …

Synthesis Of Some Pyridazine Derivatives Carrying Urea, Thiourea, And Sulfonamide Moieties And Their Antimicrobial Activity, Deni̇z S. Doğruer, Şölen Urlu, Ti̇jen Önkol, Berri̇n Özçeli̇k, M. Fethi̇ Şahi̇n

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

Some pyridazine derivatives carrying urea, thiourea, and sulfonamide groups were synthesized and evaluated for their antimicrobial activity against gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, and fungi by using broth microdilution. The structures of these new compounds were confirmed by ^1H-NMR, mass spectrum, and elemental analysis. The synthesized compounds exhibited generally promising inhibitory activity against S. aureus (MIC ranging from 2 to 4 \mu g/mL) and E. coli (MIC ranging from 4 to 16 \mu g/mL). Moreover, all compounds showed antifungal activity against both C. albicans and C. parapsilosis, with a MIC value of 8 \mu g/mL.

Multichannel Spectrophotometry For Analysis Of Organophosphate Paraoxon In Beverages, Miroslav Pohanka, Jana Zdarova Karasova, Kamil Kuca, Jiri Pikula

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

Multichannel spectrophotometry was performed to assay for paraoxon in spiked beverages. A 96-well microplate was used for this purpose. The measuring protocol was based on inhibition of the enzyme acetylcholinesterase by paraoxon that resulted in decreased or no reaction of the enzyme product thiocholine with Ellman's reagent (5,5'-dithiobis [2-nitrobenzoic acid]). The above assay was practically tested using spiked drinking water, mineral water, and coffee. Analytical parameters such as the limit of detection, time, and sample size consumption were adequate. The limit of detection for beverages ranged from 32 to 48 ppb corresponding to 0.32-0.48 ng of paraoxon in absolute values. …

I-Kappa-Kinase-2 (Ikk-2) Inhibition Potentiates Vincristine Cytotoxicity In Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, Ayad Al-Katib, Alan A. Arnold, Amro Aboukameel, Angela Sosin, Peter Smith, Anwar N. Mohamed, Frances W. Beck, Ramzi M. Mohammad

Wayne State University Associated BioMed Central Scholarship

Abstract

Background

IKK-2 is an important regulator of the nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) which has been implicated in survival, proliferation and apoptosis resistance of lymphoma cells. In this study, we investigated whether inhibition of IKK-2 impacts cell growth or cytotoxicity of selected conventional chemotherapeutic agents in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Two established model systems were used; Follicular (WSU-FSCCL) and Diffuse Large Cell (WSU-DLCL2) Lymphoma, both of which constitutively express p-IκB. A novel, selective small molecule inhibitor of IKK-2, ML120B (N-[6-chloro-7-methoxy-9H-β-carbolin-8-yl]-2-methylnicotinamide) was used to perturb NF-κB in lymphoma cells. The growth inhibitory effect of ML120B (M) alone and in combination with cyclophosphamide monohydrate (C), …

The Wnt/Β-Catenin Pathway Regulates Growth And Maintenance Of Colonospheres, Shailender S. Kanwar, Yingjie Yu, Jyoti Nautiyal, Bhaumik B. Patel, Adhip Pn Majumdar

Wayne State University Associated BioMed Central Scholarship

Abstract

Background

Recent evidence suggests that epithelial cancers, including colorectal cancer are driven by a small sub-population of self-renewing, multi-potent cells termed cancer stem cells (CSCs) which are thought to be responsible for recurrence of cancer. One of the characteristics of CSCs is their ability to form floating spheroids under anchorage-independent conditions in a serum-free defined media. The current investigation was undertaken to examine the role of Wnt/β-catenin pathway in regulating the growth and maintenance of colonospheres. Human colon cancer cells HCT-116 (p53 wild type; K-ras mutant), HCT-116 (p53 null; K-ras mutant) and HT-29 (p53 mutant) were used.

Results

Colonospheres …

Loss Of The Sin3 Transcriptional Corepressor Results In Aberrant Mitochondrial Function, Valerie L. Barnes, Bethany S. Strunk, Icksoo Lee, Maik Hüttemann, Lori A. Pile

Wayne State University Associated BioMed Central Scholarship

Abstract

Background

SIN3 is a transcriptional repressor protein known to regulate many genes, including a number of those that encode mitochondrial components.

Results

By monitoring RNA levels, we find that loss of SIN3 inDrosophilacultured cells results in up-regulation of not only nuclear encoded mitochondrial genes, but also those encoded by the mitochondrial genome. The up-regulation of gene expression is accompanied by a perturbation in ATP levels in SIN3-deficient cells, suggesting that the changes in mitochondrial gene expression result in altered mitochondrial activity. In support of the hypothesis that SIN3 is necessary for normal mitochondrial function, yeastsin3null mutants exhibit very poor …

A Novel Mechanism Of Cell Growth Regulation By Cell Cycle And Apoptosis Regulatory Protein (Carp)-1, Yan Jiang, Vineshkumar T. Puliyappadamba, Liyue Zhang, Wenjuan Wu, Anil Wali, Michael B. Yaffe, Joseph A. Fontana, Arun K. Rishi

Wayne State University Associated BioMed Central Scholarship

Abstract

Background

CARP-1/CCAR1, a perinuclear phospho-protein, regulates signaling by adriamycin, steroids, or growth factors. However, intracellular events that regulate CARP-1-dependent cell growth are not fully understood.

Results

Here we investigated whether CARP-1 is involved in signaling induced by the protein kinase A inhibitor H89. Treatments of human breast cancer cells with H89 resulted in apoptosis that involved enhanced CARP-1 threonine phosphorylation and expression. Depletion of CARP-1, on the other hand, abrogates apoptosis induced by H89. CARP-1 binds with signal transducer TAZ and over-expression of TAZ inhibits apoptosis by CARP-1. CARP-1 (651-759) interacts with a novel, N-terminal epitope of TAZ. H89 …

Esomeprazole For The Treatment Of Erosive Esophagitis In Children: An International, Multicenter, Randomized, Parallel-Group, Double-Blind (For Dose) Study, Vasundhara Tolia, Nader N. Youssef, Mark A. Gilger, Barry Traxler, Marta Illueca

Wayne State University Associated BioMed Central Scholarship

Abstract

Background

Acid suppression with a proton pump inhibitor is standard treatment for gastroesophageal reflux disease and erosive esophagitis in adults and increasingly is becoming first-line therapy for children aged 1-17 years. We evaluated endoscopic healing of erosive esophagitis with esomeprazole in young children with gastroesophageal reflux disease and described esophageal histology.

Methods

Children aged 1-11 years with endoscopically or histologically confirmed gastroesophageal reflux disease were randomized to esomeprazole 5 or 10 mg daily (< 20 kg) or 10 or 20 mg daily (≥ 20 kg) for 8 weeks. Patients with erosive esophagitis underwent an endoscopy after 8 weeks to assess healing of erosions.

Results

Of 109 patients, 49% had erosive esophagitis and 51% had histologic evidence of reflux esophagitis without erosive esophagitis. Of the 45 patients who had …

Acute Subarachnoid Hemorrhage And Cardiac Abnormalities: Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy Or Neurogenic Stunned Myocardium? A Case Report, C Franco, B Khaled, L Afonso, M Raufi

Wayne State University Associated BioMed Central Scholarship

Abstract

Introduction

Cardiac abnormalities can be seen with subarachnoid hemorrhage. To date, there have been isolated case reports of transient left ventricular apical ballooning cardiomyopathy, also known as Takotsubo cardiomyopathy in patients suffering from subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Case presentation

An adult female was brought to the emergency department with somnolence. A 3 × 3 mm ruptured basilar aneurysm was found and successfully embolized. Two days after the patient developed acute heart failure. Troponin-I was elevated to 4.2 (normal <0.4). On ECG, new symmetric T wave inversion in V3, V4, V5 with prolonged QT were evident. Transthoracic echocardiogram showed severe systolic dysfunction with an ejection fraction of 20% and akinetic apex along with the distal left ventricular segments, consistent with Takotsubo cardiomyopathy. Myocardial contrast echocardiography showed a decrease in capillary blood flow and volume in the akinetic areas with delayed contrast replenishment, sparing the basal segments. A repeat study 2 weeks later showed near normalization of the perfusion parameters. The patient improved with medical management. A repeat echocardiogram, a month later revealed an ejection fraction of 45% with no identifiable wall motion abnormality.

Conclusion

Our case, as well as others reported previously, supports the diagnosis of Takotsubo cardiomyopathy in patients with Subarachnoid Hemorrhage who fulfill the …

Utility Of Immunohistochemical Markers In Differentiating Benign From Malignant Follicular-Derived Thyroid Nodules, Husain A. Saleh, Bo Jin, John Barnwell, Opada Alzohaili

Wayne State University Associated BioMed Central Scholarship

Abstract

Background

Thyroid nodules are common among adults though only a small percentage is malignant, which can histologically mimic benign nodules. Accurate diagnosis of these thyroid nodules is critical for the proper clinical management.

Methods

We investigated immunoexpression in 98 surgically removed benign thyroid nodules including 52 hyperplastic nodules (HN) and 46 follicular/Hurthle cell adenomas (FA), and 54 malignant tumors including 22 follicular carcinoma (FC), 20 classic papillary carcinoma (PTC), and 12 follicular variant papillary carcinoma (FVPC).

Results

The staining results showed that malignant tumors express galectin-3, HBME-1, CK19 and Ret oncoprotein significantly more than benign nodules. The sensitivity of …