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Optimality Principles For Model-Based Prediction Of Human Gait, Marko Ackermann, Antonie J. Van Den Bogert

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

Although humans have a large repertoire of potential movements, gait patterns tend to be stereotypical and appear to be selected according to optimality principles such as minimal energy. When applied to dynamic musculoskeletal models such optimality principles might be used to predict how a patient's gait adapts to mechanical interventions such as prosthetic devices or surgery. In this paper we study the effects of different performance criteria on predicted gait patterns using a 2D musculoskeletal model. The associated optimal control problem for a family of different cost functions was solved utilizing the direct collocation method. It was found that fatigue-like …

Soundings 2010-04, N/A N/A

Soundings

No abstract provided.

A Molecular Investigation Of Inbreeding In Captive Addra Gazelles, Laney Redus

Biology Honors Theses

Captive breeding of individuals to augment or reestablish a wild population requires the maintenance of maximum possible genetic variation to reflect the genetic variation present in the original wild population and reduce the occurrence of genetic drift or inbreeding in the captive population. Critically threatened addra gazelles (Nanger dama ruficollis) have been maintained in a captive breeding program since 1969 (10-15 generations) with no introduction of genetic material beyond the original 22 founders, of which only 8 have recorded descendents in the current population. Results from this study show a strong relationship between infant mortality and inbreeding, and a substantial …

Predicting Functional Protein Complexes In The Glycolytic Pathway: Computer Simulations Of Compartmentation And Channeling In Glycolysis, Neville Y. Forlemu

Theses and Dissertations

Functional protein-protein interactions are essential for many physiological processes. For example, the association of glycolytic enzymes to F-actin is proposed to be one mechanism through which glycolytic enzymes are compartmentalized, and as a result, plays essential roles such as regulation of the glycolytic pathway, substrate channeling and increasing glycolytic flux. An accurate molecular picture describing such interaction, however, is not yet generalized. Similarly, questions about the specificity and extensive nature of such functional complexes in a variety of cells, tissues, or organisms, still remain ambiguous. Examination of these interactions in various animal species tests this hypothesis by observing whether binding …

Basal And Metal-Induced Expression Of Metallothionein And Zinc Transporters In The Rwpe-1 Human Prostate Epithelial Cell Line, Amy L. Albrecht

Theses and Dissertations

Prostate cancer is a leading cause of death among men world wide; while prostate cancer has many factors leading to its development; one such factor is cadmium exposure. Cadmium is a known human carcinogen and is an environmental factor that has been linked with prostate cancer progression. Metallothionein (MT) is a cadmium binding protein that is expressed within human tissues that may play a role in prostate carcinogenesis. Zinc is an important metal within the body and the prostate contains high levels of this metal within the cytosol of the cells, whereas the prostate cancer cells do not retain this …

The Development And Initial Validation Of A Relational Health Scale, Darcie M. Sell

Theses and Dissertations

The characteristics of healthy relationships are an important area of study that have received increasing amounts of attention in recent years. John Gottman has developed a theory of healthy relationships that includes constructs relating to conflict management and everyday interactions. Most researchers (including Gottman) focus on relational health in the context of marriage. While the dynamics in a marriage are certainly important to study, including the examination of the relational quality of other dyads (e.g. dating partners, friends, siblings) provides an opportunity to better understand how people relate to the closest person in their life, regardless of relationship status. This …

Adrenergic Receptor Modulation Of Hippocampal Ca3 Network Activity, Christopher W. D. Jurgens

Theses and Dissertations

Norepinephrine (NE) is an endogenous neurotransmitter distributed throughout the mammalian brain. NE has demonstrated proconvulsant and antiepileptic properties. In higher cortical structures such as the hippocampus, a region often involved in temporal lobe epilepsy, NE has been shown to reinforce the cognitive processes of attention and memory. However, the specific mechanism of these actions has not been clearly established. To address this, the effects of NE were studied on hippocampal CA3 network activity. Frequency changes of burst discharges in response to NE were biphasic; low concentrations increased the number of bursts, while higher concentrations suppressed the number of bursts, suggesting …

App Is A Novel Proinflammatory Receptor On Vascular Endothelium That Is Involved In The Vascular Dysfunction Associated With Atherosclerosis And Ad, Susan A. Austin

Theses and Dissertations

Amyloid precursor protein (APP) is a ubiquitously expressed type one integral membrane protein. Due to its ability to bind components of the extracellular matrix and propagate signaling responses via its cytoplasmic phosphotyrosine binding motif it has been suggested to function in cellular adhesion. Here, we utilized brain tissue and aorta from human and apolipoprotein E -/- (apoE-/-) mice to examine vascular inflammation associated changes related to APP. We also examined AD brain tissue for similar changes. Human atherosclerotic aorta, human AD cerebrovasculature and mouse apoE-/- aorta and cerebrovasculature revealed strong endothelial immunoreactivity for APP, APP phosphorylated at tyrosine residue 682 …

Role Of Dendritic Cells In Spontaneous Polychondritis: Pathogenesis And Prevention, Maninder Sidhu

Theses and Dissertations

Spontaneous polyarthritis (SA) is an autoimmune disease that develops spontaneously at 4 months of age in the HLA-DQ6αβ8αβ double transgenic (tg) mice. The disease is characterized by lymphocyte infiltration in joints leading to chronic polyarthritis in the extremities similar to human rheumatoid arthritis. Immature dendritic cells (iDCs) have a tolerogenic potential due to low expression of important costimulatory cell surface molecules required for antigen presentation and induction of an effective immune response. In this study it has been shown that injection of iDCs pulsed with chick type II collagen (CII) significantly delayed the onset and suppressed the severity of SA …

Monitor Newsletter April 19, 2010, Bowling Green State University

Monitor

Official Publication of Bowling Green State University for Faculty and Staff

Central Florida Future, Vol. 42 No. 26, April 19, 2010

Central Florida Future

Football spring game; Spring Step; UCF closes in on new provost; Florida universities could get tier system; Benefits not offered at all; Office links students to experts.

The Meaning Of Development Of Filipinos By Filipinos In Diaspora: Rhetorical Vision In Participatory Communication, Louella Lim Lofranco

Theses and Dissertations

Development is currently one of the drivers of international migration resulting in south-to-north or third-to-first world movements of immigrants seeking for a better life in more developed countries. Consequently, new economic diaspora communities are being formed, most of which help alleviate poverty of relatives back home through regular remittances, now considered an important source of foreign capital in many developing economies. Amidst new challenges for the field of development is the question of the relevance of development communication in migration and diaspora. This exploratory study investigates the role of participatory development communication in expanding diaspora contributions to their home countries. …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Optically-Active Oxazoline-Based Endo And Exo Cyclopalladated Complexes, Relindis Y. Mawo

Theses and Dissertations

Cyclopalladated complexes constitute a fair portion of species in the organometallic family. They have interesting properties and potential applications in a variety of areas. Optically-active cyclopalladated complexes can serve as catalysts or pre-catalysts in asymmetric synthesis, reagents for chiral resolution, chiral derivatizing agents for optical purity determination, and starting materials for preparation of more complex enantiopure compounds. This dissertation focuses on preparation and characterization of new optically-active cyclopalladated and Pd(II) coordination complexes of monodentate oxazolines. New and previously reported optically-active oxazolines were synthesized from commercially available chiral α-amino alcohols using published procedures. Regioselectivity of oxazoline cyclopalladation was studied using (S)-2-tert-butyl-4-phenyl-2-oxazoline. …

Photochemistry Of Multiple Metal Coordination Compounds With And Without Metal -Metal Bonding, Ladislav Sallai

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this work is twofold. First, the study of the photochemistry of metal-metal bonded compounds in the presence of stannylenes and the proposition of the mechanisms of the reactions may aid in possible uses of these compounds as radical scavengers, as catalysts for hydrogenation of olefins and also in desulfurization of coal and petroleum feedstocks, also as super reducing agents and bifunctional catalysts for Fischer-Tropsch process. Secondly, in the iron(III)-carboxylate photochemistry the determination of the factors influencing the photochemistry are crucial in solving the important questions of photoreactivity. This study is important as one of the possible ways …

Interrogating Identity Construction: Bodies Versus Community In Cynthia Kadohata’S In The Heart Of The Valley Of Love, Nicole Myoshi Rabin

Asian American Literature: Discourses & Pedagogies

In an interview for the journal MELUS, Hsiu-chuan Lee claims that Cynthia Kadohata suggests her novel In the Heart of the Valley of Love does not directly take “any specific ethnicity as its central concern,” nor deal explicitly with the “identity issue” (165, 179). Despite these assertions by the author, In the Heart of the Valley of Love is mainly taught at the university level in Asian American Literature courses. While Kadohata’s novel has been established within this specific canon of Asian American Literature, her novel deals with issues that resonate among all racial groups. This paper considers the ways …

Spartan Daily April 19, 2010, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily (School of Journalism and Mass Communications)

Volume 134, Issue 39

Proteasome-Dependent Entry Of Herpes Simplex Virus, Mark Delboy

Theses and Dissertations

Herpes simplex virus entry into cells is a multistep process that engages the host cell machinery. The proteasome is a large, ATP-dependent, multisubunit protease that plays a critical role in the maintenance of cell homeostasis. A battery of assays were used to demonstrate that proteasome inhibitors blocked an early step in herpes simplex virus entry that occurred after capsid penetration into the cytosol but prior to capsid arrival at the nuclear periphery. Proteasome-dependent viral entry was not reliant on host or viral protein synthesis. MG132, a peptide aldehyde that competitively inhibits the degradative activity of the proteasome, had a reversible …

Newsroom, Georgia Southern University

Newsroom (2006-2023)

• Georgia Southern University Expert: Think ‘Green’ When Choosing Plants for Your Home

The Factors Of Gender, Ethnicity And Academic Achievement As Predictors Of Early Career Interests, Fang Yang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

There is an increasing concern about the labor shortage in the area of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) in the workforce in U.S. The present study examined the issue by looking at the career interest development during adolescence. The study investigated how gender, race and academic performance are related to the early STEM career interests, the nature of the changes of these career interests, and how gender, race and academic performance accounted for these career interest changes.Archival assessment data of more than three thousand students from the Memphis City Schools were used in the study. The data contained students’ …

Accelerating Ai, John O. Mcginnis

NULR Online

Recently, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become a subject of major media interest. For instance, last May the New York Times devoted an article to the prospect of the time at which AI equals and then surpasses human intelligence. The article speculated on the dangers that such an event and its “strong AI” might bring. Then in July, the Times discussed computer-driven warfare. Various experts expressed concern about the growing power of computers, particularly as they become the basis for new weapons, such as the predator drones that the United States now uses to kill terrorists.

These articles encapsulate the twin …

Medical School Watercooler Newsletter - April 18, 2010, Lindsey Lyle

Watercooler Newsletter

This is the April 18, 2010 edition of the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine's newsletter - Watercooler.

Contents include:

• Dr. Anne Cross to Present Lectures on Multiple Sclerosis
• USA Awarded $7.5 Million Grant To Lead Alabama's Effort To Improve Health Care Through Electronic Medical Records
• USA Cardiology Granted Accreditation for Nuclear Stress Testing
• Walter Beckham Retirement Reception
• "The Mitochondrial Paradigm for Disease Susceptibility: Prehistoric Events Influencing Contemporary Disease Risk"

Ua68/1/2 Student Awards Ceremony, Wku Potter College Of Arts & Letters

WKU Administration Documents

Program recognizing outstanding students and mentors of WKU Potter College of Arts & Letters.

From The Old To The New World: The Transformation Of Kongo Minkisi In African American Art, Mary Mccurnin

Theses and Dissertations

Minkisi (sing. nkisi) were sacred objects that housed ancestral spirits and were used for divination, healing and social justice by the Kongo people of Central Africa. When the Kongo were brought as slaves to the New World, they contributed significantly to the development of African American artistic and spiritual culture. In the Caribbean, aspects of minkisi have been retained in the creolized spiritual beliefs of Haitian Vodou, Cuban Palo Monte Mayombe and Brazilian Candomble. In North America, evidence of Kongo influence is apparent in examples of folk art and culture, including quilts, mojo hands, Afro-Carolinian face vessels, memory jugs and …

Excitability Changes In The Sciatic Nerve And Triceps Surae Muscle After Spinal Cord Injury In Mice, Zaghloul Ahmed, Robert Freedland, Andrzej Wieraszko

Publications and Research

Background From the onset to the chronic phase of spinal cord injury (SCI), peripheral axons and muscles are subjected to abnormal states of activity. This starts with very intense spasms during the first instant of SCI, through a no activity flaccidity phase, to a chronic hyperactivity phase. It remains unclear how the nature of this sequence may affect the peripheral axons and muscles. Methods We set out to investigate the changes in excitability of the sciatic nerve and to characterize the properties of muscle contractility after contusive injury of the mouse thoracic spinal cord. Results The following changes were observed …

Gpsa Council Meeting, 4/17/2010, Graduate And Professional Student Association

GPSA Meeting Agendas and Minutes

No abstract provided.

Seventeenth Annual Csbs Student Research Conference Program, April 17, 2010, University Of Northern Iowa

INSPIRE Student Research & Engagement Conference Programs

A program for the INSPIRE conference where undergraduate and graduate students present their research, internship, volunteer and study abroad experiences, club activities and creative performances.

Can We Remain Yup'ik In These Contemporary Times? A Conversation Of Three Yugtun-Speaking Mothers, Veronica E. Michael

Linguistics

The Yup'ik people of southwestern Alaska are experiencing language shift from Yugtun to English. This study is a conversation between three Yugtun speaking mothers who are trying to understand this shift and wondering if they can maintain their identity, and that of their children, in this changing world. The study takes place in the village of Kuiggluk. Data collection included a research journal and focus group discussions. In this study, I have tried to paint a picture of who we are as Yup'ik mothers in our contemporary lives. Qayaruaq, Mikngayaq and I carry with us our own mothers' teachings, while …

Investigating A Yup'ik Immersion Program: What Determines Success?, Jean Renee Green

Linguistics

This research stems from my connectedness to a particular village, which will be referred to as Naparyaraq1. Unlike the majority of research on Alaska Native language issues, which primarily are from the point of view from an outsider, this research is unique in that my role as a community member has allows me an insider perspective of our Yup'ik Immersion Program. When dealing with Indigenous language issues, it is important that the impetus for change and improvements come from the local people. The primary goal of the Naparyaraq Immersion Program resulted from the communities desire to create change Community members …

Targeting Of Her-2 Overexpressing Breast Cancer Cells With Immunoliposomes, Max P. Kullberg

Chemistry and Biochemistry

The goal of the research described in this thesis is to develop a liposome based drug delivery system which targets Her-2 overexpressing breast tumors with high specificity. Overexpression of the Her-2 receptor occurs in many cancers but is most prevalent in breast tumors, with 20--30 percent of all cases displaying overexpression of the receptor. In addition, Her-2 overexpressing breast tumors are often aggressive and have a high probability of metastasizing. In the research reported here, a drug delivery system has been created that selectively targets Her-2 overexpressing mammary cells by combining three liposomal technologies. First, a Her-2 targeting antibody was …

Central Nervous System Regulation Of Metabolic Suppression In Arctic Ground Squirrels, Tulasi Ram Jinka

Chemistry and Biochemistry

The main focus of this dissertation is central nervous system regulation of metabolic suppression in hibernating mammals in general, and the Arctic ground squirrel (Urocitellus parryii) as a model for seasonal hibernation. Hibernation is a unique physiological, morphological, and behavioral adaptation to overcome the periods of resource limitation. Metabolic suppression seen in torpor during hibernation has several biomedical applications. A multitude of studies have revealed the role of the central nervous system in regulating hibernation, including a role for neurotransmitters and neuromodulators. Previous studies have shown that the neuromodulator adenosine mediates altered thermoregulation during induction of torpor in facultative hibernators, …