Digital Commons Network^™

Clinical Use Of Probiotics: A Survey Of Physicians’ Beliefs And Practice Patterns, Anastasia Ensminger

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Background: Probiotics have the potential to be used as a preventive agent or adjuvant therapy for various medical conditions, and recent research is beginning to illuminate some of the associated benefits. Some clinicians currently prescribe probiotics in practice. Understanding physicians’ beliefs and practice patterns regarding the use of probiotics will help identify current practices, barriers preventing their acceptance, and the sources of information that impact clinical practice.

Objective: To identify and describe physicians’ beliefs and practice patterns regarding the use of probiotics.

Methods: A cross-sectional online questionnaire was administered to 130 physicians employed by or affiliated with Danville …

A Review Of Flavobacterium Psychrophilum Biology, Clinical Signs, And Bacterial Cold Water Disease Prevention And Treatment, Michael E. Barnes, Michael L. Brown

Natural Resource Management Faculty Publications

Flavobacterium psychrophilum is a ubiquitous bacterium in the aquatic environment, particularly in freshwater [1]. As the etiological agent of bacterial coldwater disease, it is a serious fish pathogen causing substantial economic losses and rearing difficulties to both commercial and conservation aquaculture [2]. This review paper describes the epidemiology, clinical signs, prevention, and treatment of the fish diseases attributed to this pathogen, which are similar despite the different geographic labels. In addition, the basic biology of F. psychrophilum and the techniques required for successful bacterial culture, isolation, and identification are discussed.

Haiti Earthquake January 2010: What Actions And Policies Can The Government Of Haiti Implement To Improve Emergency Management Response, Steve Cohen

Master's Projects

In 2010, Haiti experienced a devastating earthquake that destroyed much of its capital city and the governmental offices that should have guided the response to the disaster. This research focuses on how Haiti can benefit from the Caribbean Disaster Management Agency’s standards for disaster resilience as it works to recover from the earthquake. Unfortunately, Haiti has long been dependent on assistance from non-governmental organizations due to its extreme poverty; its recovery is complicated by the need to integrate disaster assistance and on-going economic and social assistance into its development of a more resilient society.

Blowing Out All The Candles: A Few Thoughts On The Twenty-Fifth Birthday Of The Sentencing Reform Act Of 1984, J. C. Oleson

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Effectiveness And Safety Of Antibiotic Treatment In Healing Tympanic Membrane Perforation In Aboriginal Children, Shannon M. Rice

PCOM Physician Assistant Studies Student Scholarship

The objective of this systematic review is to determine whether or not antibiotic treatment is safe and effective in healing tympanic membrane (TM) perforation in Aboriginal children diagnosed with chronic suppurative otitis media and otitis media with effusion less than 16 years of age.

A Validation Of A Prototype Dry Electrode System For Electroencephalography, Jason Monnin

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Current physiologically-driven operator cognitive state assessment technology relies primarily on electroencephalographic (EEG) signals. Traditionally, gel-based electrodes have been used; however, the application of gel-based electrodes on the scalp requires expertise and a considerable amount of preparation time. Additionally, discomfort can occur from the abrasion of the scalp during preparation, and the electrolyte will also begin to dry out over extended periods of time. These drawbacks have hindered the transition of operator state assessment technology into an operational environment. QUASAR, Inc., (San Diego, CA) has developed a prototype dry electrode system for electroencephalography that requires minimal preparation. A comparison of the …

Novel Approaches To The Control Of Infectious Diseases, Damaris Agathe Meujo Foping

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As part of our ongoing efforts to find new drug leads against infectious diseases, several terrestrial and marine macro- and microorganisms were investigated. Several bioactive molecules, presented below, were isolated from these natural products. The mass-screening of dozens of marine Actinomycetes was completed and several Streptomyces with interesting biological activity profiles identified. A few examples are the Streptomyces code H747 and the Streptomyces code H668, a bacterium from which a new (5) and two known polyethers, the antimalarial agent K41-A (6) and its C-29 analog (7) were isolated. Five new six-membered ring cyclic peroxides: plakinastreloic acid A (8), methyl plakinastreloate …

Safety And Health Education For Demolition And Reconstruction, Mark Shaurette

Bowen School of Construction Faculty Publications

In the fall semester of 2005, the Department of Building Construction Management (BCM) at Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, USA, offered their first course in Demolition and Reconstruction Management. This first college level course developed with input from the demolition industry, offered in the newly created demolition and reconstruction management area of concentration, mirrors many of the general requirements of a traditional construction management curriculum. These include coverage of construction science, planning, regulation, estimating, safety, project management, and business management as they apply to projects that do not begin with a vacant site and a blank sheet of …

Crystallographic, Molecular Dynamics, And Enzymatic Studies Of Multi-Drug Resistant Hiv-1 Protease And Implications For Structure Based Drug Design (Project 1); Crystallographic Studies Of Human Myelin Protein Zero (Project 2), Zhigang Liu

Wayne State University Dissertations

Under drug selection pressure, emerging mutations render HIV-1 protease drug resistance, leading to the therapy failure in anti-HIV treatment.Tthe multidrug-resistant 769 (MDR) HIV-1 protease (resistant mutations at residues 10, 36, 46, 54, 62, 63, 71, 82, 84, 90) is selected for the present study to understand drug resistance issue.

Ten additional mutations are introduced to MDR769 HIV-1 protease to study the structural influences brought by these mutations. We get crystal structures of four variants (I10V, A82F, A82S and A82T) of MDR769 HIV-1 protease. All these mutations fail to further open the flaps and expand the active site cavity of MDR769 …

Ctla-4 Transcriptional Activation: Regulation Of Induced Expression, Heather Gibson

Wayne State University Dissertations

Cytotoxic T-lymphocyte antigen 4 (CTLA-4) is a T cell surface protein that is homologous to CD28 and binds to the B7 family of ligands. Unlike CD28, CTLA-4 interaction transmits a negative signal in T cells, leading to suppression of proliferation. CTLA-4 is constitutively expressed on regulatory T cells (Tregs) but is also inducible in effector T cells. The mechanisms driving transcriptional regulation of CTLA-4 are poorly understood. Our previous work identified a bona fide NFAT1 binding site in the proximal promoter for effector T cells. In addition, we found histone acetylation occurred after stimulation.

As a result of its role …

Pleiotropic Regulatory Function Of The Lysr Family Transcriptional Regulator Cpsy During Streptococcus Iniae Systemic Infection, Jonathan Paul Allen

Wayne State University Dissertations

The ability of a pathogen to metabolically adapt to the local environment for optimal expression of virulence determinants is a continued area of research. Orthologs of the Streptococcus iniae LysR family regulator CpsY have been shown to regulate methionine biosynthesis and uptake pathways, but appear to influence expression of several virulence genes as well. A S. iniae mutant with an in-frame deletion of cpsY is highly attenuated in a zebrafish infection model. The cpsY deletion mutant displays a methionine-independent growth defect in serum, which differs from the methionine-dependent defect observed for orthologous mutants of S. mutans and S. agalactiae. …

Conflict, Climate Change, And Environmental Catastrophe: How Mediators Can Help Save The Planet, Kenneth Cloke

Cardozo Journal of Conflict Resolution

The recent oil spill by British Petroleum in the Gulf of Mexico highlights an escalating set of difficulties in our responses to environmental catastrophes, with echoes that resonate and reverberate with experiences responding to Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, earthquakes in Haiti and Peru, firestorms in Russia, flooding in Pakistan, the tsunami in Indonesia, and others.

Partitioning Of Anthropogenic Watering Sites By Desert Carnivores., Todd C. Atwood, Tricia L. Fry, Bruce Leland

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

We investigated the role of water features as focal attractors for gray foxes (Urocyon cinereoargenteus), coyotes (Canis latrans), and bobcats (Felis rufus) in west Texas to determine if they were foci for interspecific interaction. Mixed effects models indicated that species partitioned use of water features spatially and temporally. Linear models indicated factors influencing relative activity at water features varied by species. For coyotes and bobcats, the water availability model, containing days since last rainfall and nearest-neighbor distance to water was best supported by the data, with relative activity increasing with time between rainfall and distance between waters. For gray foxes, …

Efficacy Of European Starling Control To Reduce Salmonella Enterica Contamination In A Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation In The Texas Panhandle, James C. Carlson, Richard M. Engeman, Doreene R. Hyatt, Rickey L. Gilliland, Thomas J. Deliberto, Larry Clark, Michael J. Bodenchuck, George M. Linz

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Background: European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) are an invasive bird species known to cause damage to plant and animal agriculture. New evidence suggests starlings may also contribute to the maintenance and spread of diseases within livestock facilities. Identifying and mitigating the risk pathways that contribute to disease in livestock is necessary to reduce production losses and contamination of human food products. To better understand the impact starlings have on disease transmission to cattle we assessed the efficacy of starling control as a tool to reduce Salmonella enterica within a concentrated animal feeding operation. We matched a large facility, slated for operational …

Mediation Of Host Immune Responses After Immunization Of Neonatal Calves With A Heat-Killed Mycobacterium Avium Subsp. Paratuberculosis Vaccine, Judith R. Stabel, W.R. Waters, John Bannantine, Konstantin P. Lyashchenko

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

A major drawback of current whole-cell vaccines for Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis is the interference with diagnostic tests for bovine tuberculosis (TB) and paratuberculosis. The current study was designed to explore the effects of immunization with a heat-killed whole-cell vaccine (Mycopar) on diagnostic test performance and to characterize host immune responses to vaccination over a 12-month period. Neonatal dairy calves were assigned to treatment groups consisting of (i) controls, not vaccinated (n 􏰊 5), and (ii) vaccinates, vaccinated with Mycopar vaccine (n 􏰊 5). The results from this study demonstrated a rapid initiation of M. avium subsp. paratuberculosis-specific gamma interferon …

Evaluation Of Two Mutants Of Mycobacterium Avium Subsp. Paratuberculosis As Candidates For A Live Attenuated Vaccine For Johne’S Disease, Kun Taek Park, Andrew J. Allen, John P. Bannantine, Keun Seok Seo, Mary J. Hamilton, Gaber S. Abdellrazeq, Heba M. Rihan, Amanda Grimm, William C. Davis

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Control of Johne’s disease, caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis, has been difficult because of a lack of an effective vaccine. To address this problem we used targeted gene disruption to develop candidate mutants with impaired capacity to survive ex vivo and in vivo to test as a vaccine. We selected relA and pknG, genes known to be important virulence factors in Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium bovis, for initial studies. Deletion mutants were made in a wild type Map (K10) and its recombinant strain expressing the green fluorescent protein (K10-GFP). Comparison of survival in an ex vivo …

A Spatially Explicit Degree-Day Model Of Rift Valley Fever Transmission Risk In The Continental United States, Sarah K. Konrad, Scott N. Miller, Will K. Reeves

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

A spatially explicit degree-day model was used to evaluate the risk of Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) transmission by mosquitoes to humans and livestock within five target states in the continental United States: California, Minnesota, Nebraska, New York, and Texas. A geographic information system was used to model potential virus transmission based on a 12-day moving window assessment of the extrinsic incubation period theorized for RVFV in the United States. Risk of potential virus transmission in each state was spatially evaluated on a 10-km grid using average historical daily temperature data from 1994 to 2003. The highest levels of transmission …

Effects Of Patch Size, Isolation, And Habitat Characteristics On Small Mammal Community Structure In The Grand Sable Dunes Of Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Sarah Lou Malick

All NMU Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

A Two-Year Temporal And Spatial Investigation Of Questing Ticks In Marquette County, Michigan, Tiffany J. Opalka

All NMU Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Development, Optimization, And Validation Of A Classical Swine Fever Virus Real-Time Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction Assay, August J. Eberling, Jill Bieker-Stefanelli, Monica M. Reising, David Siev, Barbara M. Martin, Michael T. Mcintosh, Tammy R. Beckham

Zoonotics and Wildlife Disease: Publications

Classical swine fever (CSF) is an economically devastating disease of pigs. Instrumental to the control of CSF is a well-characterized assay that can deliver a rapid, accurate diagnosis prior to the onset of clinical signs. A real-time fluorogenicprobe hydrolysis (TaqMan) reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for CSF was developed by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) at the Plum Island Animal Disease Center (CSF PIADC assay) and evaluated for analytical and diagnostic sensitivity and specificity. A well-characterized panel including Classical swine fever virus (CSFV), Bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV), and Border disease virus (BDV) isolates was utilized in …

Professional Preparation Of Secondary Health Education Teachers In Mississippi, Ensley Howell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the professional preparation of secondary health education teachers in Mississippi. All four-year institutions of higher learning were contacted to determine the requirements for an approved program in order to obtain a supplemental endorsement in health, to compare the similarities and differences, and to determine the extent to which the approved programs reflect the ten content areas of the Mississippi Comprehensive Health Framework. This study also examined the status of secondary school health education programs in Mississippi by utilizing selected data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease …

The Role Of Starlings In The Spread Of Salmonella Within Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, James C. Carlson, Alan B. Franklin, Doreene R. Hyatt, Susan E. Pettit, George M. Linz

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

1. Characterizing and mitigating the disease risks associated with wildlife use of concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) can reduce the spread of micro-organisms throughout the environment while increasing agricultural productivity. To better understand the disease risks associated with bird use of CAFOs, we assessed the capacity of European starlings Sturnus vulgaris to spread Salmonella enterica to cattle, their feed and water.

2. We sampled starlings, cattle feed, cattle water and cattle faeces from 10 CAFOs in Texas, USA. Samples were screened for Salmonella enterica to investigate: (i) the prevalence of S. enterica in starlings using CAFOs, (ii) whether there was …

Rodents And Other Vertebrate Invaders In The United States, Michael W. Fall, Michael L. Avery, Tyler A. Campbell, Peter J. Egan, Richard M. Engeman, David Pimentel, William C. Pitt, Stephanie A. Shwiff, Gary W. Witmer

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Contents

Introduction

Assessing impacts of rodents and other vertebrate invaders

Accounts of some important vertebrate invaders
Norway rat (Rattus norvegicus)
Roof rat (Rattus rattus)
Polynesian rat (Rattus exulans)
House mouse (Mus Musculus)
Nutria (Myocastor coypus)
Gambian giant pouched rat (Cricetomys gambianus)
Feral swine (Sus scofa)
Small Indian Mongoose (Herpestes javanicus)
Rock pigeon (Columba livia)
House sparrow (Passer domesticus)
European starling (Sturnus vulgaris)
Monk parakeet (Myiopsitta monachus)
Brown tree snake (Boiga irregularis)
Burmese python (Python …

The Relative Abundance Of Deer Mice With Antibody To Sin Nombre Virus Corresponds To The Occurrence Of Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome In Nearby Humans, Charles H. Calisher, James N. Mills, J. Jeffrey Root, Jeffrey B. Doty, Barry J. Beaty

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Sin Nombre virus (SNV) is the principal cause of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) in the United States and deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus) are its principal rodent host, and thus the natural cycle of the virus is related to the occurrence of HPS. Prevalence of rodent infection appears to be associated with fluctuations in deer mouse populations and, indirectly, with timing and amount of precipitation, a complex of biologic events. Given that rodent population abundances fluctuate, often acutely, it is not unreasonable to assume a direct correlation between the numbers of infected rodents and the number of human infections, …

Movements Of White-Tailed Deer In Riparian Habitat: Implications For Infectious Diseases, Gregory M. Clements, Scott E. Hygnstrom, Jason M. Gilsdorf, David M. Baasch, Myndi J. Clements, Kurt C. Vercauteren

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Movements of male white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) are of great concern with respect to spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD) across landscapes because most yearlings males disperse and adult males have higher prevalence of CWD than do females and younger deer. We radio-collared and monitored 85 male white-tailed deer in the middle Missouri River Valley of eastern Nebraska and western Iowa, USA from 2004 to 2008. Average size (±SE) of fixed-kernel annual home ranges (95%) and core areas (50%) for resident deer were 449 (±32) ha and 99 (±7) ha, respectively. Resident deer exhibited a high degree of …

Citizen Journalism And Digital Voices: Instituting A Collaborative Process Between Global Youth, Technology And Media For Positive Social Change, Robin Worley

Theses and Dissertations

Millions of youths in developing countries are described by UNICEF as "invisible and excluded." They live at the margins of society, facing challenges to their daily existence, powerless to make positive changes. But the emergence of citizen journalism and digital storytelling may offer these youths a chance to share their voices and positively impact their lives. The Internet and mobile devices have allowed ordinary citizens to become citizen journalists by sharing news when and where it happens with a global audience. Digital storytelling is also growing as a means of sharing one's personal story with a larger audience than ever …

Enhanced Surveillance And Characterisation Of Three Significant Gram-Positive Pathogens, Annmarie Mollaghan

Theses

Clinical microbiology has been revolutionised in recent years by the introduction of molecular biology. Traditionally, the gold standard for diagnosis in the clinical microbiology laboratory has been culture, which in some cases, is gradually being replaced by molecular detection methods, particularly where the pathogen is difficult to grow or to identify, or when the significance of an organism is dependent on the detection of specific markers of pathogenicity, such as toxins. Many fastidious bacteria which are difficult to culture and present public health implications, i.e. Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoea, can now be detected using commercial molecular assays …

Identification And Characterization Of Equine Rotaviruses In Southern Ireland, Crystal Cronin

Theses

Group A Rotaviruses(GARVs) are enteric pathogens which induce acute gastroenteritis in infants, neonates and the young of many animal species. During a 4 year study (2005-2009), 64 fecal samples from symptomatic foals, from several counties, in the south of Ireland, were molecularly characterized to determine the VP& (G type), VP4 (P type), and NSP4 antigenic specificities. Globally, G3 [P12] and G14[P12] are recognized as the predominant equine GARV strains. Twenty-two samples (34.38%) were found to contain G3 viruses, while 21 samples (32.81%) contained G14 viruses. In this study, there was a distinct increase in the incidence of mixed infections circulating …

Surveillance And Reporting Of Zoonotic Diseases: Perception Of Partnership And Communication Between And Among State Animal Health Officials And State Public Health Veterinarians, Kimberly Leigh Mcdonald, Steven Little, Angeleque Akin-Little

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

The transmission of zoonotic diseases from wild and domestic animals to human beings is considered a global public health threat. Developing guidelines to establish communication between and among animal health and health public agencies is paramount. Constant monitoring of the exchange of information and the reporting of zoonotic disease episodes constitute effective surveillance techniques. However, past research has indicated that communication and reporting methods vary widely among U.S. states, with some states having minimal or no collaboration between and among animal health professionals and public health agencies. Therefore, guided by a social network theory, the current research examined whether communication …

Prevalence And Cause Of Caries In Children Under The Age Of 18 And Subsequent Effects, Amy Sue Rosinsky

Undergraduate Theses and Senior Projects

No abstract provided.