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Improvement Of A Surrogate Assay For Protective Antibodies To Pneumococcal Surface Protein A, Eun Lim Kim

All ETDs from UAB

Despite the availability of vaccines for pneumococcal infections, their protective efficacy is not ideal. This problem is due to the replacement of the strains that are not covered by the current vaccines. One potential resolution of this problem is to develop a pneumococcal vaccine that is not limited to serotypes of Streptococcus pneumoniae . On the surface of pneumococci, there are several virulence factors in addition to capsule. Pneumococcal surface protein A (PspA) is a major virulence factor that presents on the surface of virtually all pneumococcal strains. PspA is also known to elicit protective immune responses and as a …

Molecular Piracy In The Mobilization Of Staphylococcus Aureus Pathogenicity Island 1, Michael Spilman

All ETDs from UAB

Staphylococcus aureus bacteriophage 80α is a temperate, double-stranded DNA phage that serves as a "helper" phage for the mobilization of several S. aureus pathogenicity islands (SaPIs), including SaPI1. When mobilized by 80α, SaPI1 genomes are packaged into smaller phage-like transducing particles composed of 80α capsid (gp47), scaffolding (gp46) and portal (gp42) proteins. In this dissertation, I utilize electron microscopy and biochemistry to tease apart the structural and genetic controls and consequences of SaPI1 as a molecular pirate. More specifically, I show that two SaPI1 proteins shift assembly from 63-nm, T = 7 icosahedral capsids to 47-nm, T = 4 capsids, …

Role Of Vdr In Host Immune Response To Porphyromonas Gingivalis Infection, Gulam Yezdani

All ETDs from UAB

Porphyromonas gingivalis is one of the etiologic factors of periodontal disease, a chronic inflammatory disorder characterized by the destruction of periodontal connective tissue and the subsequent loss of alveolar bone. Epidemiological and genetic studies have indicated an association between periodontal disease and the vitamin D system. However, little is known regarding how vitamin D signaling regulates the inflammatory immune process of this disease. The purpose of the study was to understand the role of the vitamin D receptor (VDR) in regulating the host response to P. gingivalis infection by using a dual chamber mouse model. These chambers served both as …

Exhaustion Renders Cd8 T Cells Unresponsive To Antigen-Independent Activation And Is Characterized By Il-18 Receptor Downregulation, Jennifer T. Ingram

All ETDs from UAB

During many chronic infections virus-specific CD8 T cells succumb to exhaustion as they lose their ability to respond to antigenic activation. Combinations of interleukin (IL)-12, IL-18, and IL-21 have been shown to induce the antigen-independent production of IFN-γ by effector and memory CD8 T cells. In this study we investigated whether exhausted CD8 T cells are sensitive to activation by these cytokines. We show that effector and memory, but not exhausted, CD8 T cells produce interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) and upregulate CD25 following exposure to certain combinations of IL-12, IL-18, and IL-21. This unresponsiveness was associated with downregulation of the IL-18 receptor …

Substance-Dependent Tasc Offenders Taking Psychotropic Pharmacotherapy--Associated Factors, Substance Use Outcomes, And Criminal Diversion Outcomes, Dorothy Octavia Jackson

All ETDs from UAB

Current evidence suggests that persons with co-occurring disorders (COD) are at risk for poorer treatment outcomes in terms of substance use and recidivism. Studies have examined this trend in incarcerated individuals, but few have examined COD offenders under community supervision. The purpose of this study was to develop a predictive model to identify offenders under community corrections supervision with substance use diagnoses who were actively taking psychotropic medications (SUPM) as an index of COD and to compare demographics, social histories, and sexual risk behaviors for SUPM offenders to offenders with a substance use disorder (SUD) only and those who met …

Faculty Publications 2010, Lsu Health Sciences Center New Orleans

Historical Faculty Publications

This Faculty bibliography contains 844 publications.

Why Does The United States Give Foreign Aid?, Abalo Awesso

Masters Theses

This thesis examined many controversies surrounding the distribution of U.S. foreign aid, most precisely the factors explaining the allocation of U.S. foreign aid, the congressional foreign policy behavior related to foreign aid decisions, and the impact of foreign lobbying. The findings suggest that the United States' security interests appear to be the central basis on which the United States distributes its Gross Bilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA). Meanwhile, the congressional foreign policy behavior reveals that even though the Democrats are more likely to sponsor most foreign aid bills the Democratic Party's control in Congress does not guarantee that all or …

Crossing Borders: A Trips-Like Treaty On Quarantines And Human Rights, Courtney Maccarone

Brooklyn Journal of International Law

No abstract provided.

Beyond The Bedside: A Human Rights Approach To Adolescent Health, Jonathan Todres

Journal of Law and Policy

No abstract provided.

Biosafety Concerns Involving Genetically Modified Mosquitoes To Combat Malaria And Dengue In Developing Countries, Graciela R. Ostera, Lawrence O. Gostin

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

Malaria and dengue are the most prevalent mosquito-borne infections worldwide. Because traditional vector control methods have proven to be insufficient to control mosquito populations in endemic areas, scientists are actively working in the design of new strategies, such as genetically modified (GM) mosquitoes, to reduce disease transmission. The replacement of natural populations with GM mosquitoes is becoming a tangible possibility, however, many fear that the release of these organisms into the environment could constitute a significant risk to biodiversity and may cause the unintended spread of GM organisms across national borders.

The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, an international agreement originally …

Different Challenges And Different Blessings: Life Experiences Of Young Mothers Of Children With Down Syndrome, Janice Driscoll Nugent

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Life experiences of young mothers of preschool aged children with Down syndrome were explored in this qualitative narrative study. Intensive interviews of four purposefully chosen young women were conducted. The findings of this study illustrate the impact of a preschool aged child with Down syndrome on the life of a young woman.

A variety of themes were identified. The primary themes were the background of the woman, including her public school experience, learning of the diagnosis of Down syndrome, supports, the child's medical complications, learning to cope and the impact of that disability on their day-to-day lives.

Child care and …

An Assessment Of The Hiv Prevention Needs Of Men Who Have Sex With Men In Montana, Kelly A. Hart

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The purpose of this study was to collect information about the HIV prevention needs of men who have sex with men (MSM) living in Montana. Prevention needs were explored by identifying the environmental factors and behaviors that put MSM at risk for HIV infection, describing the demographic and contextual factors that influence those behaviors, and comparing current prevention needs to existing resources and services. To evaluate the prevention needs, primary qualitative data was collected in the form of four focus groups and nine key informant interviews. Supporting secondary quantitative and qualitative data in the form of an online survey and …

Interactions Between The Glycosylated Gag Protein Of A Murine Leukemia Virus And Murine Apobec3: Novel Insights Into How A Murine Leukemia Virus Counteracts A Restriction Factor, Angelo Kolokithas

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

APOBEC proteins have evolved in mice and humans as potent innate defences against retroviral infections. APOBEC3G (hA3G) in humans and mouse APOBEC3 (mA3) deaminate cytidine in single-stranded DNA which ultimately results in hypermutation of newly synthesized proviral DNA. Other deaminase-independent mechanisms of inhibition have been identified, such as directly inhibiting reverse transcription. Both HIV and murine leukemia viruses (MuLVs) have evolved mechanisms to evade the action of the APOBEC proteins. HIV encodes the Vif protein which binds to hA3G and facilitates its rapid degradation through the proteasome. The mechanism(s) by which exogenous MuLVs evade mA3 inhibitory activity is unknown.

Exogenous …

Apns And Program Planning: An Example Of A Primary Care Provider Educational Program On Tb In The Us Foreign Born, Allison Huffman

Nursing Doctoral

No abstract provided.

Introduction To Confronting The Climate Crisis: Catholic Theological Perspectives, Jame Schaefer

Theology Faculty Research and Publications

Confronting the Climate Crisis: Catholic Theological Perspectives is the culmination of a three-year study by participants in the Catholic Theology and Global Warming Interest Group of the Catholic Theological Society of America (CTSA). This interest group was established in 2008 when several members of the CTSA shared a desire to respond theologically to the complex and vexing problem of global climate change. Some had already been addressing environmental issues from the perspectives of the various sub-disciplines of theology in which we have been trained (e.g., biblical, historical, systematics, ethics) because inherent in our vocation as theologians is a calling by …

Bacterial Vaginosis Is Associated With Uterine Cervical Human Papillomavirus Infection: A Meta-Analysis, Evy Gillet, Joris Fa Meys, Hans Verstraelen, Carolyne Bosire, Philippe De Sutter, Marleen Temmerman, Davy Vanden Broeck

Obstetrics and Gynaecology, East Africa

Background: Bacterial vaginosis (BV), an alteration of vaginal flora involving a decrease in Lactobacilli and predominance of anaerobic bacteria, is among the most common cause of vaginal complaints for women of childbearing age. It is well known that BV has an influence in acquisition of certain genital infections. However, association between BV and cervical human papillomavirus (HPV) infection has been inconsistent among studies. The objective of this meta-analysis of published studies is to clarify and summarize published literature on the extent to which BV is associated with cervical HPV infection.

Methods: Medline and Web of Science were systematically searched for …

Assessing The Influence Of Socioeconomic Factors, Knowledge Level, Attitudes, And Practices On Malaria Prevention Among The Gusii People Of Kenya, Christopher Nyakundi Arori

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Global morbidity and mortality associated with malaria is rampant, and most of the clinical malaria cases are found in sub Saharan Africa. Previous and current research show that malaria is both preventable and treatable and that socioeconomic variables have a profound influence on how persons in rural Africa respond to malaria infections and the associated preventive strategies. This study assessed two key research questions for malaria cases in the Gusii region of Kenya regarding: First, whether a community education program on malaria has an impact in changing malaria preventive behaviors; and, second, if a relationship exists between socioeconomic factors and …

Effect Of Education On Stigma Of Epilepsy In South Eastern Nigeria, Augustina Chinyelu Maduakor-Ugo

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

There is a need for epilepsy-based health education programs to enlighten Nigerian communities and reduce the stigma associated with epilepsy. Epilepsy in Nigeria is viewed by some as a contagious and an infectious disease or a condition imposed from the gods, possessed by demons, as the work of witchcraft, or punishment from ancestral spirits, which are all related to a lack of knowledge about epilepsy leading to stigmatization of persons with epilepsy. Guided by the stigma theory, the purpose of this community-based, cross sectional study was to quantitatively examine the effect of an educational program on interpersonal, internalized, and institutional …

Old Lessons For A New World: Applying Adoption Research And Experience To Art, Naomi R. Cahn

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

This article suggests that knowledge derived from adoption-related research and experience can be used to improve law, policy and practice in the world of assisted reproductive technologies (ART), particularly with respect to sperm, egg and embryo "donations." While there are numerous and significant differences between adoption and ART, the article identifies several areas in which adoption's lessons could be useful. These include secrecy and the withholding of information; a focus on the best interests of children; the creation of "nontraditional" families, particularly as more single, gay and lesbian adults use ART; the impact of market forces; and legal and regulatory …

Problems In Climate Change And Human Rights, Dinah L. Shelton

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

This "case study" was intended to be included in Anton & Shelton, Environmental Problems and Human Rights (Cambridge, 2011), but space limitations forced its omission from the printed text. The link between adverse impacts of climate change and human rights was pushed to the fore recently by a 2005 petition by Sheila Watt-Cloutier on behalf of the Inuit people of the Artic regions to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Human Rights challenges to harmful climate change activities and impacts have also been launched in a number of national courts. In Nigeria and Australia substantive and procedural rights have been …

Evaluation Of Capacity For Best Practice Of Clinical Vaccine Research In Western Kenya, Sylvie Anne Kwedi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

African institutions that perform health research need to continuously evaluate their practices in order to ensure compliance with international standards of good clinical practice (GCP). This mixed-methods study, undertaken at one clinical research site in Western Kenya, was an evaluation of GCP compliance at the site, research participants' satisfaction with research procedures, and research participants' comprehension of informed consent. The qualitative portion of the study involved audit of the site's compliance with GCP standards. The quantitative portion was an assessment of participant satisfaction and informed consent comprehension, undertaken through interviews with a sample of 297 participants. Thematic analysis of the …

Faculty Masthead, Mjlst Editorial Board

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

Comparative Analysis Of Salt And Water Fluoridation In Non-Industrialized Countries, Chelsea Elizabeth Mitchell

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

Molecular Analysis Of Endophytic Bacteria Associated With Lettuce., Shelly Leigh Osborn

Honors Theses

Bacteria associated with lettuce and spinach have been linked to outbreaks of infectious diseases in humans. While studies have examined the culturable bacteria residing on lettuce surfaces, few have evaluated the non-culturable bacteria within the plant. This study used molecular techniques to examine the bacterial community present in five different salad greens (green leaf lettuce, red leaf lettuce, romaine lettuce, iceberg lettuce, and baby spinach). Both conventionally and organically grown samples of each salad type were examined, and samples were processed as purchased and following surface sterilization. DNA was extracted from homogenized samples and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used …

Water, Water Everywhere: An Analysis Of The Effectiveness Of World Bank's And Unicef's Efforts To Provide Access To Clean Water In Nigeria, Jessica-Phillips Tyson

Honors Theses

This thesis examines the debate surrounding the effectiveness of international aid organizations’ efforts to reduce poverty and promote economic development. Its goal is consider two major international organizations, World Bank and UNICEF, in order to make a judgment on which approach is more effective: direct government aid or community-based efforts. Specifically, this thesis examines World Bank’s and UNICEF’s efforts to provide access to clean water in Nigeria. In the first chapter, it reports on the significance of clean water to an individual, the United States, developing nations, and the world at large. This thesis provides its own criteria for an …

Publishing On Policy: Trends In Public Health, Amy A. Eyler, Mariah Dreisinger

Open Access Publications

No abstract provided.

Serostatus Disclosure Among Adults With Hiv In The Era Of Hiv Therapy, Enbal Shacham, Eusebius Small, Nur Onen, Kate Stamm, E. Turner Overton

Open Access Publications

No abstract provided.

Catalytic And Non-Catalytic Roles For The Mono-Adp-Ribosyltransferase Arr In The Mycobacterial Dna Damage Response, Christina L. Stallings, Linda Chu, Lucy X. Li, Michael S. Glickman

Open Access Publications

No abstract provided.

Tissue And Stage-Specific Distribution Of Wolbachia In Brugia Malayi, Kerstin Fischer, Wandy L. Beatty, Daojun Jiang, Gary J. Weil, Peter U. Fischer

Open Access Publications

No abstract provided.

Plasmodium Protease Rom1 Is Important For Proper Formation Of The Parasitophorous Vacuol, Iset Medina Vera, Wandy L. Beatty, Photini Sinnis, Kami Kim

Open Access Publications

No abstract provided.