Digital Commons Network^™

Brain Magnetic Resonance Image Segmentation Using Novel Improvement For Expectation Maximizing, Mohammad A. Balafar, Abdul-Rahman Ramli, Syamsiah Mashohor

Neurosciences

OBJECTIVE: To improve the quality of expectation maximizing (EM) for brain image segmentation, and to evaluate the accuracy of segmentation results. METHODS: This brain segmentation study was conducted in Universiti Putra Malaysia in Serdong, Malaysia between February and November 2010 on simulated and real images using novel improvement for EM. The EM-1 (proposed algorithm) was compared with neighborhood based extensions for fuzzy C-mean (FCM). The EM-1 was also applied to all 20 normal real MRI volumes and compared with reported results from the Internet Brain Segmentation Repository. RESULTS: In simulated images, the EM-1 outperforms neighborhood based extensions for FCM. The …

Can Propofol Cause Seizures? An Experimental Study, Ajay Prakash, Bikash Medhi, Sazal Patyar, Prasadbyrav D. Shivaramaiah, Suchit Khanduja, Shilpa Palhora, Biman Saikia

Neurosciences

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of The Neurotensin-1 Receptor Agonist Pd149163 On Visual Signal Detection Task Performance In Rats, Todd M. Hillhouse

All NMU Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Methylation And Patterns Of Evolution In Imprinted Genes In The Mouse, Tori A. Lafleur

All NMU Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Contribution To The Knowledge Of The Pompilidae (Hymenoptera, Aculeata) Fauna Of Turkey With The Checklist Of Species, Erol Yildirim, Raymond Wahis

Turkish Journal of Zoology

This study is based upon material of family Pompilidae collected from different localities in Turkey between 2000 and 2009; the other related studies on the Pompilidae in Turkey were reviewed. Dicyrtomellus kizilkumii (Radoszkowski, 1877) is a new record for Turkish fauna. The authors present also an updated checklist of the Pompilidae fauna of Turkey. Including the new taxon determined in this study a total of 200 species and 5 subspecies from 35 genera of the family Pompilidae were recorded from Turkey to date. Among them, the type localities of 23 species and 1 subspecies from Pompilidae are situated in Turkey. …

Protein And Lipid Amounts Of The Parasitoid Bracon Hebetor Say (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) At Constant And Alternating Temperatures, Özgür Varer Işitan, Nevran Eylem Akman Gündüz, Adem Gülel

Turkish Journal of Zoology

Bracon hebetor Say (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) is a gregarious synovigenic parasitoid that attacks late stage larvae of many important lepidopterous species. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the influence of 3 constant (18, 25, and 35 °C) and 1 alternating temperature (incubator programmed to vary daily between 18, 25, and 35 °C at 8 h intervals) on protein and lipid amounts of female and male parasitoids. Protein amounts of female parasitoids were highest when exposed to alternating temperature. At all the temperatures tested, 1-day-old males had similar amounts of protein, but 5- and 10-day-old males had higher amounts …

A Comparison Of Skeletal Muscle Protein Bands In Pelophylax Ridibundus (Pallas, 1771) And Pelophylax Caralitanus (Arıkan, 1988) Populations In Turkey Using Sds-Page, Ufuk Bülbül, Bi̇lal Kutrup

Turkish Journal of Zoology

In this study, skeletal muscle protein bands of Pelophylax ridibundus specimens from 31 populations inhabiting all geographic regions of Turkey and Pelophylax caralitanus specimens from the Isparta (Lake Eğirdir) population were compared using sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). In total, 270 adult (134 females, 136 males) P. ridibundus specimens and 12 adult (5 females, 7 males) P. caralitanus specimens were used in SDS-PAGE characterization. The first group (31 different populations of P. ridibundus) had 27 homologous protein bands whereas the second group (1 population of P. caralitanus from Lake Eğirdir) had 28 bands. It was shown that the …

Eulophid Parasitoids (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) Of The Horse Chestnut Leafminer, Cameraria Ohridella (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae), From İstanbul, Turkey, Haci Hüseyi̇n Cebeci̇, Giselher Grabenweger, Hami̇t Ayberk

Turkish Journal of Zoology

The eulophid parasitoids (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) of Cameraria ohridella Deschka and Dimic (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae) on horse chestnuts (Aesculus hippocastanum L.) in İstanbul were determined for the first time. Horse chestnut leaves infested with leafminers were collected in 2008 and adult parasitoids were obtained in emergence cages in the laboratory. A total of 10 eulophid parasitoid species were identified, 5 of which, namely Cirrospilus viticola (Rondani), Pnigalio mediterraneus (Ferriére and Delucchi), Minotetrastichus frontalis (Nees), M. platanellus (Mercet), and Closterocerus trifasciatus Westwood, were recorded for the first time in Turkey. All of the identified parasitoid species have already been reported as parasitoids of …

New Records Of Two Cheyletid Mite Species (Acari: Cheyletidae) From Iran, Sali̇h Doğan, Mahdi Jalaeian, Hashem Kamali

Turkish Journal of Zoology

Two species of the family Cheyletidae (Acari: Prostigmata), Cheletonella vespertilionis Womersley and Cheyletus kuznetzovi Bochkov and Khaustov, are given as new records for the Iranian fauna. This is also the first report of the genus Cheletonella Womersley from Iran.

Revenge Of The Sunrise Shift, Susan Weich

Theses

This novella is a fictional account of a journalist's struggle with her own integrity as it relates to her job covering the crime beat and as a victim of a brutal crime. The story explores how Kendra Hall's attack changes her perspective of the people she covers on a daily basis and resurrects a lesson about justice taught to her by her police detective grandfather, who caused her to go into a career in police reporting in the first place. When Hall realizes that the assault isn't over, she must face a series of decisions that have repercussions for her …

Genes Differentially Expressed At 1 Day, 6 Weeks, And 6 Months Of Age In Aortas Of Spontaneously Atherosclerotic White Carneau Pigeons, Suzanne Lee Pearlman

Master's Theses and Capstones

Genetics is reported to be the primary causative factor for individuals diagnosed with atherosclerosis, in the absence of known risk factors. The development of atherosclerosis in White Carneau (WC) pigeons is of genetic origin, making it an excellent model to study genetic factors.

Representational Difference Analysis (RDA) was used to determine genes differentially upregulated between three ages, at the celiac bifurcation of the aorta in WC pigeons. Genes responsible for spontaneous initiation of atherosclerosis were hypothesized as being differentially expressed at 1 day, while those differentially expressed at 6 weeks and 6 months were related to progression.

Multiple candidate genes …

Child Fatalities In Tennessee 2009, Tennessee. Department Of Health.

Child Fatalities in Tennessee Report

No abstract provided.

Rate-Limiting Step Of Cone Phototransduction Recovery And Oguchi Disease Mechanisms, Frank Chen

Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT RATE-LIMITING STEP OF CONE PHOTOTRANSDUCTION RECOVERY AND OGUCHI DISEASE MECHANISMS By Frank Sungping Chen Advisor: Ching-Kang Jason Chen, Ph.D. Retinal photoreceptors provide the first gateway in which light information from the environment is transformed into neuronal signals. The cone and rod photoreceptors are responsible for day and night vision, respectively. Understanding rod and cone phototransduction is to figure out how these cells differ in their temporal and spatial sensitivities to allow perception of a broad dynamic range of stimuli. Phototransduction is mediated through a Gprotein signaling cascade. Light absorption by visual pigment triggers the isomerization of 11- cis-retinal covalently …

Hiv Protease Inhibitors Trigger Lipid Metabolism Dysregulation Through Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress And Autophagy, Beth Shoshana Zha

Theses and Dissertations

HIV protease inhibitors (PI) are core components of Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART). HIV PIs are extremely effective at suppressing viral load, but have been linked to lipodystrophy and dyslipidemia, which are major risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Recent studies indicate that activation of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress is an important cellular mechanism underlying HIV PI-induced dysregulation of lipid metabolism. However, the exact role of ER stress in HIV PI-associated lipodystrophy and dyslipidemia remains to be identified. Hepatocytes and adipocytes are important players in regulating lipid metabolism and the inflammatory state. Dysfunction of these two cell types is closely linked …

Synthesis, Screening And Cocrystallization Of Adenosine Based Inhibitors With Methyltransferases, Ermc' And Ksga, Matthew Baker

Theses and Dissertations

Antibiotic resistance threatens to throw mankind back into an era when infectious disease was the predominant cause of death. In an effort to mitigate this danger, we targeted ErmC’ and KsgA. Both methylate N6-adenosine of ribosomal RNA, though each serve different roles in their bacterial host. ErmC’ dimethylates A2058 on 23S rRNA, conferring resistance to MLSB antibiotics (macrolides, lincosamides, streptogramin B). KsgA aids in ribosome assembly, binding inactive 30S until dimethylating A1518/A1519 of 16S rRNA. Like most methyltransferases, ErmC’ and KsgA use cofactor S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) as their methyl source, which binds adjacent to their specific adenosine substrate. ErmC’ inhibitors could …

Biobehavioral Relationships And Health Related Quality Of Life In Persons With End Stage Renal Disease On Hemodialysis, Avis Allen

Theses and Dissertations

The study of immune status and biobehavioral measures is limited in professional nursing. The purpose of the pre-pilot study was to describe levels of cytokines prior to, during, and after dialysis, examine changes in cytokine levels from immediate pre-dialysis to immediate post-dialysis, and to compare cytokine patterns prior to and after dialysis. A within subject descriptive study was conducted as part of a larger pilot study to describe levels of cytokines prior to, during, and after dialysis, examine changes in cytokine levels from immediate pre-dialysis to immediate post-dialysis, and to compare cytokine patterns prior to and after dialysis. Serum cytokine …

Morphometric And Genetic Variation Among Populations Of The Southern Short-Tailed Shrew, Blarina Carolinensis, Located Along The Coastal Plain Of Virginia, Devon Kersten

Theses and Dissertations

The distribution of short-tailed shrews, Blarina carolinensis and B. brevicauda, demonstrates contiguous allopatry in peninsular situations in the Coastal Plain of Virginia, and in other areas. The distribution of these two species is unusual in that they do not exhibit syntopy except within a narrow corridor along the borders of their ranges. Interestingly, along the Coastal Plain of Virginia, B. carolinensis is generally found only at the distal ends of the peninsular areas, existing as local populations that appear to be isolated from each other and from the primary population that exists in south-central Virginia. It is thought that the …

The Synergy Of Visual Projections And Contemporary Dance, Hannah Molly Timbrell

Theses : Honours

Projections are becoming an increasingly common part of contemporary dance performance, however, I believe that choreographers do not always integrate the media to form a dependent synergy. My research addresses the principal question: What are the factors that indicate that there is a critical relationship (synergy) between projection, including art work, moving images or light and the dancer in a contemporary dance performance? A brief history explains the background and development of lighting technology, through to film and more recently motion capture technology. Through sources of pre-existing literature and my interpretation of video excerpts of contemporary dance, I explore various …

Transdermal And Oral Dl-Methylphenidate-Ethanol Interactions In C57bl/6j Mice, Guinevere Hannah Bell

MUSC Theses and Dissertations

The persistence of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHO) into adulthood has been increasingly recognized over the past few decades and the stimulant drug dl-methylphenidate (MPH) has remained a first-line pharmacotherapeutic agent in the treatment of ADHD. Many adult ADHD patients who are prescribed MPH report concomitant use with ethanol. In humans, coadministration of dl-MPH and ethanol results in pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic drug - drug interactions. Ethanol elevates biological concentrations of the pharmacologically active d-MPH isomer and yields the metabolic transesterification product ethylphenidate (EPH). EPH appears to be formed through the actions of carboxylesterase 1 (CES1) which exhibits I-MPH substrate enantioselectivity in both …

Consulting The Architect When Problems Arise – The Divine Law, Brian Mccall

Faculty Articles

In The Architecture of Law: Building Law on a Solid Foundation- The Eternal and Natural Law, I began laying the foundation for a particular form of legal architecture. Taking inspiration from St. Thomas Aquinas’ description of God as the artificer or architect, I argued that the Law is a multi storied edifice comprised of different types of law. I explored the nature of the foundational law, the Eternal Law and its relationship to justice. I considered how the frame of Natural Law is erected upon or participates in the foundation of Eternal Law. Finally, I discussed some of the most …

The Wonderful World Of Disney Visas, Kit Johnson

Faculty Articles

International workers play an important role in perpetuating the carefully crafted fantasy that to visit the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida is to be transported to far-off destinations around the globe. This Article examines how Disney has filled its need for these workers in two ways. For one, Disney has used a blend of chutzpah and ingenuity to forge new federal law establishing the Q visa. Additionally, Disney has dexterously used the existing J visa, along with an on-resort academic program, to bring international workers to Florida as students. An examination of Disney’s immigration practices offers insight into …

Assessing The Impact Of Learning Communities As An Alternative Delivery Model For The Public Speaking Course, Katherine N. Kinnick, Emily Holler, Marla Bell

Basic Communication Course Annual

This study provides empirical evidence of the impact of learning communities on outcomes for public speaking students, including grades, speaking anxiety, and student and instructor perceptions. Subjects (n = 236, half of whom took the course in freshman learning communities and half in traditional sections) perceived the learning community as the preferable environment for public speaking, and students with greater speaking anxiety were more likely to self-select into learning communities. Perception, however, was not reality: Participation in a learning community made no measurable difference in terms of course outcomes of grades or decline in speaking anxiety.

The findings challenge assumptions …

Technology Corner: Virtual Crime Scene Reconstruction: The Basics Of 3d Modeling, Nick V. Flor

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

Digital crime scenes take place in the context of physical crime scenes. Virtual crime scene reconstruction is an activity where investigators create a 3- dimensional (3-D) model of an actual crime scene for the purpose of determining the events that lead to the crime. While virtual crime scene reconstruction is currently used for analyzing physical scenes, it can also help investigators visualize and explore ways digital media could have been used to perpetrate a crime. In this technology corner we explore one of the technologies underlying virtual crime scene reconstruction: 3-D modeling.

Analogous Mechanisms Of Resistance To Benzothiazinones And Dinitrobenzamides In Mycobacterium Smegmatis, Ana Luisa Ribeiro, Giulia Degiacomi, Fanny Ewann, Silvia Buroni, Maria Loreto Incandela, Laurent R. Chiarelli, Giorgia Mori, Jaeseung Kim, Monica Contreras-Dominguez, Young-Sam Park, Sung-Jun Han, Priscille Brodin, Giovanna Valentini, Menico Rizzi, Giovanna Riccardi, Maria Rosalia Pasca

Faculty and Staff Publications

Tuberculosis is still a leading cause of death worldwide. The selection and spread of Mycobacterium tuberculosis multidrug-resistant (MDR-TB) and extensively drug-resistant strains (XDR-TB) is a severe public health problem. Recently, two different classes of chemical series, the benzothiazinones (BTZ) and the dinitrobenzamide (DNB) derivatives have been found to be highly active against M. tuberculosis, including XDR-TB strains. The target of BTZs is DprE1 protein which works in concert with DprE2 to form the heteromeric decaprenylphosphoryl-β-D-ribose 2'-epimerase, involved in Decaprenyl-Phospho-Arabinose (DPA) biosynthesis. Interestingly, it has been shown that the DNBs block the same pathway thus suggesting that both drugs could share …

The Tea Party Movement And The Perils Of Popular Originalism, Jared A. Goldstein

Law Faculty Scholarship

The Tea Party movement presents something of a curiosity for constitutional theory because it combines originalist ideology and popular constitutionalist methods. Like minotaurs, werewolves, and other half-man, half-animal hybrids of myth and legend, the Tea Party's hybrid of originalism and popular constitutionalism serves to expose the limitations of both sources upon which it draws. Although originalists assert that interpreting the Constitution according to its original meaning would take politics out of constitutional law, the Tea Party movement shows that originalism also provides a powerful political rhetoric. Moreover, while popular constitutionalists assert that democracy would be advanced by empowering the people …

Soil Fertility And Crop Yields In Long-Term Organic And Conventional Cropping Systems In Eastern Nebraska, Samuel E. Wortman, Tomie D. Galusha, Stephen C. Mason, Charles A. Francis

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Organic agriculture aims to build soil quality and provide long-term benefits to people and the environment; however, organic practices may reduce crop yields. This long-term study near Mead, NE was conducted to determine differences in soil fertility and crop yields among conventional and organic cropping systems between 1996 and 2007. The conventional system (CR) consisted of corn (Zea mays L.) or sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench)–soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.)–sorghum or corn–soybean, whereas the diversified conventional system (DIR) consisted of corn or sorghum– sorghum or corn–soybean–winter wheat (wheat, Triticum aestivum L.). The animal manure-based organic system (OAM) …

Moving Micronutrients From The Soil To The Seeds: Genes And Physiological Processes From A Biofortification Perspective, Brian M. Waters, Renuka P. Sankaran

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

The micronutrients iron (Fe), zinc (Zn), and copper (Cu) are essential for plants and the humans and animals that consume plants. Increasing the micronutrient density of staple crops, or biofortification, will greatly improve human nutrition on a global scale. This review discusses the processes and genes needed to translocate micronutrients through the plant to the developing seeds, and potential strategies for developing biofortified crops.

Review: Lipid Addition To Corn Finishing Diets, Virgil R. Bremer, Galen Erickson, Terry Klopfenstein Klopfenstein

Nebraska Beef Cattle Reports

The fat content of distillers grains with solubles (DGS) partially accounts for DGS feeding value being greater than corn. Finishing diets containing DGS to supply up to 8% of diet DM as fat may be fed without depressing cattle performance. However, feeding diets containing 8% diet fat with corn oil depresses cattle performance. The difference in rumen metabolism of these two fats is due to physical protection of DGS fat from interaction with rumen microbes. Due to an unknown mechanism, condensed corn distillers solubles, a liquid fat source, does not limit ruminal metabolism like corn oil. Optimum dietary fat level …

Meta-Analysis Of Feeding Calf-Feds Or Yearlings Wet Distillers Grains With Different Corn Processing Types, Virgil R. Bremer, Kathryn J. Hanford, Galen Erickson Erickson, Terry Klopfenstein

Nebraska Beef Cattle Reports

Meta-analyses of University of Nebraska–Lincoln feedlot research feeding wet corn distillers grains plus solubles (WDGS) with dry-rolled corn (DRC) and high moisture corn (HMC) to either calf-feds or yearlings was conducted to calculate the feeding values of WDGS relative to corn. The feeding valueof wet distillers grains plus solubles (WDGS) was superior to dry-rolled corn (DRC) and high moisture corn (HMC). The feeding value of WDGS was greater for yearlings than for calf-feds. The combination of WDGS and HMC provided cattle performance superior to DRC with or without WDGS.

Relationship Between Morbidity And Performance In Feedlot Cattle, Galen Erickson, Virgil R. Bremer, Terry Klopfenstein Klopfenstein, David R. Smith, Kathryn J. Hanford, Robert E. Peterson, Luis O. Burciaga-Robles, Dan B. Faulkner, Clint R. Krehbiel

Nebraska Beef Cattle Reports

Five datasets from Canada, Oklahoma, Illinois, and Nebraska were used to determine the impact of bovine respiratory disease (BRD) on performance, with emphasis on dry matter intake (DMI) and feed to gain ratio (F:G). Data included pens and individually fed cattle. In general, cattle treated for BRD had lower DMI and average daily gain (ADG) with little to no effect on F:G. When BRD occured early in the feeding period (days), little change in performance was observed.