Digital Commons Network^™

Social Activity And Cognitive Functioning Over Time: A Coordinated Analysis Of Four Longitudinal Studies, Cassandra L. Brown, Laura E. Gibbons, Robert F. Kennison, Annie Robitaille, Magnus Lindwall, Meghan B. Mitchell, Steven D. Shirk, Alireza Atri, Cynthia R. Cimino, Andreana Benitez, Stuart W.S. Macdonald, Elizabeth M. Zelinski, Sherry L. Willis, K. Warner Schaie, Boo Johannson, Roger A. Dixon, Dan M. Mungas, Scott M. Hofer, Andrea M. Piccinin

Psychology Faculty Publications

Social activity is typically viewed as part of an engaged lifestyle that may help mitigate the deleterious effects of advanced age on cognitive function. As such, social activity has been examined in relation to cognitive abilities later in life. However, longitudinal evidence for this hypothesis thus far remains inconclusive. The current study sought to clarify the relationship between social activity and cognitive function over time using a coordinated data analysis approach across four longitudinal studies. A series of multilevel growth models with social activity included as a covariate is presented. Four domains of cognitive function were assessed: reasoning, memory, fluency, …

Red-Tailed Hawk Attacks Wild Turkey On Bait: Can Baiting Affect Predation Risk?, Michael Cherry, Vanessa R. Lane, Robert J. Warren, L. Mike Conner

Oriole

No abstract provided.

Discovery: The Student Journal Of Dale Bumpers College Of Agricultural, Food And Life Sciences - Volume 13 2012, Several Authors

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Risk And Responsibility: State Regulation And Enforcement Of The Direct-To-Consumer Genetic Testing Industry, Helen C. Dick

Saint Louis University Journal of Health Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Automatic Identification Of The Number Of Food Items In A Meal Using Clustering Techniques Based On The Monitoring Of Swallowing And Chewing, Paulo Lopez-Meyer, Stephanie Schuckers, Oleksandr Makeyev, Juan M. Fontana, Edward Sazonov

Electrical, Computer, and Biomedical Engineering Faculty Publications

The number of distinct foods consumed in a meal is of significant clinical concern in the study of obesity and other eating disorders. This paper proposes the use of information contained in chewing and swallowing sequences for meal segmentation by food types. Data collected from experiments of 17 volunteers were analyzed using two different clustering techniques. First, an unsupervised clustering technique, Affinity Propagation (AP), was used to automatically identify the number of segments within a meal. Second, performance of the unsupervised AP method was compared to a supervised learning approach based on Agglomerative Hierarchical Clustering (AHC). While the AP method …

Which Providers Can Bridge The Health Literacy Gap In Lifestyle Risk Factor Modification Education: A Systematic Review And Narrative Synthesis, S Dennis, A Williams, J Taggart, A Newall, E Denny-Wilson, N Zwar, T Shortus, M Harris

Nursing Papers and Journal Articles

Background: People with low health literacy may not have the capacity to self-manage their health and prevent the development of chronic disease through lifestyle risk factor modification. The aim of this narrative synthesis is to determine the effectiveness of primary healthcare providers in developing health literacy of patients to make SNAPW (smoking, nutrition, alcohol, physical activity and weight) lifestyle changes.

Methods: Studies were identified by searching Medline, Embase, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, Joanna Briggs Institute, Psychinfo, Web of Science, Scopus, APAIS, Australian Medical Index, Community of Science and Google Scholar from 1 January 1985 to 30 April 2009. Health literacy and …

Eating Green : Customers' Willingness For Adoption Of Ecological Food Consumption Behaviors : A Comparative Study Between Malaysian And Singaporean Consumers / Maryam Kashani Nazari, Maryam Kashani Nazari

Student Works (2010-2019)

Purpose-This study attempted to examine Malaysian and Singaporean consumers‘ willingness for adoption of ecological food consumption behaviors through inspecting the effect of consumers‘ attitudes and perception on environmentally friendly activities, motives for meat reduction and increasing consumption of seasonal and regional fruits and vegetables and green marketing strategies on encouraging consumers towards consuming green food. Design/methodology/approach-The survey was done in Malaysia and Singapore to identify about consumers‘ willingness for adoption of ecological food consumption behaviors and to investigate the effect of factors such as consumers‘ environmental perception, motives and green marketing strategies on consumers‘ willingness towards green food consumption. It …

Immunomodulatory And Anti-Metastatic Activities Of Selected Zingiberaceae Species / Chew Ann Jee, Ann Jee Chew

Student Works (2010-2019)

No abstract provided.

Production Of Cloned-Caprine Embryos In Vitro Obtained From Interspecies Nuclear Transfer Using Bovine Cytoplast And Caprine Karyoplast / Soh Hui Hui, Hui Hui Soh

Student Works (2010-2019)

Production of cloned-caprine embryos using the intraspecies somatic cell nuclear transfer is limited by low source of caprine oocytes as the recipient cytoplast in Malaysia. Therefore, using the bovine oocytes as recipient cytoplast in interspecies somatic cell nuclear transfer is an alternative approach to produce large number of cloned-caprine embryos and subsequently offspring at a rapid rate. This study was aimed to produce cloned-caprine embryos in vitro by specifically evaluating the interspecies nuclear transfer technique such as enucleation methods, nuclear transfer methods and in vitro culture systems. Briefly, the bovine ovaries were collected from local abattoir and transported to the …

The Effects Of Hylocereus Polyrhizus And Hylocereus Undatus On Physiocochemical, Proteolysis, Exopolysaccharides Production, And Therapeutic Properties Of Yogurt / Khairul Hazmi Bin Zainoldin, Khairul Hazmi Zainoldin

Student Works (2010-2019)

Yogurt is generally recognized as a healthy and multifunctional food. It is a coagulated milk product obtained from the lactic acid fermentation by the action of Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus. In this present studies, dragon fruit Hylocereus polyrhizus and Hylocereus undatus extract was added in milk and their effects during yogurt fermentation were investigated. The changes in pH and Titratable Acidity (TA) were measured during fermentation and after 14 days of storage at 4°C. The yogurt extracts were subsequently analysed for their syneresis, proteolysis, peptide content, total phenolic content, antioxidant activities, inhibitory activities on α-amylase and α-glucosidase, presence of …

Enzyme Production Using Organic By-Products As Substrate In Solid State Fermentation / Nithiya Arumugam, Nithiya Arumugam

Student Works (2010-2019)

Brewery spent grain (BSG) which was used as the main organic material in this research is the by-product of brewing industries. Every 100 liter of beer generates 20kg of BSG. A Malaysian brewery (Carlsberg (M) Sdn. Bhd) alone generates 31,000 tonnes of BSG yearly. Almost all the BSG are being dumped into landfills, since there is no proper and separate guideline for industrial organic waste management in Malaysia. BSG materials are rich in nutrients and high in fermentable sugar as well as lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose. Dumping this high nutritional substrate into the landfills could contribute to adverse environmental impacts, …

Biological And Chemical Characterisation Of Marine Streptomycetes Active Against Selected Pathogenic Yeasts / Mumtaz Hidayahtullah Atau @ Yatau, Atau @ Yatau Mumtaz Hidayahtullah

Student Works (2010-2019)

Streptomyces spp. have been the most abundant sources of all types of antibiotics. The success of marine natural products has promoted the marine environment as a source of novel chemical diversity for drug discovery. In Malaysia, the marine actinomycetes niche remains virtually unexplored and is a promising resource for the biotechnological applications including drug discovery. Screening for antifungal activity revealed that six out of 44 putative Streptomyces spp. isolated from sponges from Tioman Island showed strong antifungal activities against Candida albicans and Schizosaccharomyces pombe. Some physiological characterisation was done to these six potential strains to facilitate the strain identification including …

Antioxidant, Genoprotective And Hepatoprotective Activities Of Panus Giganteus (Berk.) Corner / Wong Wei Lun, Wei Lun Wong

Student Works (2010-2019)

Panus giganteus, a culinary and medicinal mushroom consumed by selected indigenous communities in Malaysia is currently being considered for large scale cultivation. This study was performed to investigate the medicinal potential of P. giganteus fruiting bodies and wheat grains fermented by P. giganteus including antioxidant, genoprotective and hepatoprotective properties. Ethanol extracts of P. giganteus fruiting bodies, wheat grains fermented by P. giganteus and unfermented wheat grains exhibited moderate antioxidant properties by virtue of DPPH free radical scavenging activity, reducing power, antioxidant capacity and inhibition of lipid peroxidation. The extracts also contained moderate amounts of phenolic compounds. Fruiting bodies were more …

Biodiversity Of Malaysian Mangrove Fungi And Phylogeography Of Verruculina Enalia From Selected Southeast Asian Countries / Siti Sarah Sharuddin, Siti Sarah Sharuddin

Student Works (2010-2019)

Mangroves are important to the ecosystem as it protects the coastline from erosion, act as a nursery ground for the young sea life creatures and become a habitat for many organisms including hundreds of species of birds (both migratory and resident),monkeys, and lizards. Mangroves also provide a wide variety of substrates for fungi to grow. However, this study will focus on the lignocellulosic material only. Biodiversity of lignicolous mangrove fungi were sampled from three study sites of the Peninsular Malaysia mangrove forest. Cape Rachado (a sandy mangrove forest dominated by Rhizophora apiculata), Telok Pelandok (rocky shores with sandy mangroves dominated …

Livestock And Climate Change – Annotated Bibliography, Julia Christian, Andrew Kirchner, Derek Nelson, Jessica A. Wentz

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Over the past two decades, efforts to address climate change have primarily focused on reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) from fossil fuel combustion. The potential contribution of livestock production to climate change has been largely overlooked. Recent scholarship suggests that activities related to livestock production constitute a significant proportion of anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Although estimates of livestock’s contribution to our overall GHG emissions range broadly – from 18% to 51% – there is no question that this impact warrants serious consideration from policy makers.

Honors Research Symposium Program [2012], University Honors Program Students And Staff

Honors College: News & Publications (2008-2020)

No abstract provided.

Honors @ Georgia Southern, University Honors Program Students And Staff, Georgia Southern University

Honors College: News & Publications (2008-2020)

• Albania
• Two Generations
• 30th Anniversary
• Honors Annual Report
• Honors in Action

Amur Tiger Predation And Energetic Requirements In The Russian Far East: New Insights From Global Positioning System Collars, Clayton Steele Miller

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The IUCN Red List has classified all subspecies of tigers (Panthera tigris) as endangered with prey depletion being widely recognized as one of the primary drivers of tiger declines. Due to substantial energetic requirements, tigers can only survive and reproduce in areas with healthy prey populations. This may be particularly important for Amur tigers (P. t. altaica) in the Russian Far East, living at the northern limits and with the lowest prey densities of any tiger population. Few studies have been able to rigorously investigate annual prey requirements for any tiger population. We deployed Global Positioning System (GPS) collars on …

Proline Dehydrogenase Is Essential For Proline Protection Against Hydrogen Peroxide Induced Cell Death, Sathish Kumar Natarajan, Weidong Zhu, Xinwen Liang, Lu Zhang, Andrew Demers, Matthew C. Zimmerman, Melanie A. Simpson, Donald F. Becker

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Proline metabolism has an underlying role in apoptotic signaling that impacts tumorigenesis. Proline is oxidized to glutamate in the mitochondria with the rate limiting step catalyzed by proline dehydrogenase (PRODH). PRODH expression is inducible by p53 leading to increased proline oxidation, reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation, and induction of apoptosis. Paradoxical to its role in apoptosis, proline also protects cells against oxidative stress. Here we explore the mechanism of proline protection against hydrogen peroxide stress in melanoma WM35 cells. Treatment of WM35 cells with proline significantly increased cell viability, diminished oxidative damage of cellular lipids and proteins, and retained ATP …

Transgenic Expression Of Lactoferrin Imparts Enhanced Resistance To Head Blight Of Wheat Caused By Fusarium Graminearum, Jigang Han, Dilip K. Lakshman, Leny C. Galvez, Sharmila Mitra, P. Stephen Baenziger, Amitava Mitra

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

Background: The development of plant gene transfer systems has allowed for the introgression of alien genes into plant genomes for novel disease control strategies, thus providing a mechanism for broadening the genetic resources available to plant breeders. Using the tools of plant genetic engineering, a broad-spectrum antimicrobial gene was tested for resistance against head blight caused by Fusarium graminearum Schwabe, a devastating disease of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) that reduces both grain yield and quality.

Results: A construct containing a bovine lactoferrin cDNA was used to transform wheat using an Agrobacterium …

Rna-Seq Analysis Of The Sclerotinia Homoeocarpa – Creeping Bentgrass Pathosystem, Angela M. Orshinsky, Jinnan Hu, Stephen O. Opiyo, Venu Reddyvari-Channarayappa, Thomas K. Mitchell, Michael J. Boehm

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

Sclerotinia homoeocarpa causes dollar spot disease, the predominate disease on highly-maintained turfgrass. Currently, there are major gaps in our understanding of the molecular interactions between S. homoeocarpa and creeping bentgrass. In this study, 454 sequencing technology was used in the de novo assembly of S. homoeocarpa and creeping bentgrass transcriptomes. Transcript sequence data obtained using Illumina’s first generation sequencing-by-synthesis (SBS) were mapped to the transcriptome assemblies to estimate transcript representation in different SBS libraries. SBS libraries included a S. homoeocarpa culture control, a creeping bentgrass uninoculated control, and a library for creeping bentgrass inoculated with S. homoeocarpa and incubated for …

Modeling An Improvement In Phosphorus Utilization In Tropical Agriculture, David Edelstein, David J. Tonjes

Technology & Society Faculty Publications

Studies of Terra Preta soils have generated interest in recreating their fertility elsewhere. Much of the research has focused on soil amendment charcoal (“biochar”). Terra Preta also contains bone fragments, producing a high concentration of phosphorus. Some forecast worldwide declines in phosphorus supplies, and better agricultural system management is required to improve phosphorus use efficiency. A conceptual model is offered to consider the influence of charcoal on bioavailability of phosphorus. The model describes a system where improvements in the chemical and biological condition of the soil result in increased phosphorus availability and cycling. Mechanisms of phosphorus/charcoal interaction are considered, and …

Fact Book 2012-13, Western Michigan University

Western Michigan University Fact Books

• General Information
• Enrollment Information
• Institutional Comparison
• Student Information
• Faculty Information
• Budgets and Resources

2011 Annual Report Town Of Candia, New Hampshire Town And School District Reports For The Year Ending December 31, 2011., Candia Town Representatives

Candia, NH Annual Reports

This is an annual report containing vital statistics for a town/city in the state of New Hampshire.

Research Annual Report 2012, Children's Mercy Hospital

Research Annual Reports

Annual report of the research at Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City MO, a pediatric medical center.

Coplanar Pcb77 And Angii Induced Vascular Disorders, Madhura Parulkar

Theses and Dissertations--Nutritional Sciences

Previous studies demonstrated that coplanar PCBs promote inflammation by release of pro-inflammatory cytokines like TNF, MCP-1, and VCAM-1 from endothelial cells as well as adipocytes. Also these PCBs at small doses may contribute to the development of obesity by inducing adipocyte differentiation. Obesity is a known risk factor that promotes cardiovascular disorders like atherosclerosis and AAAs. Evidence shows Ang II, a component of the RAS, leads to the formation of atherosclerosis and AAAs in both normal as well as hyperlipidemic mice. Earlier studies in our laboratory have also shown that coplanar PCB-77 promotes atherosclerotic lesion formation in ApoE-/- mice. The …

Diet, Bacteria And Inflammation: The Intestinal Mucosa And Metabolic Syndrome, Nadeem K. Mohammed

Theses and Dissertations--Nutritional Sciences

Long term consumption of a high fat diet (HFD) increases the risk of developing Metabolic Syndrome and type 2 diabetes. This led us to hypothesize that long term HFD consumption impairs immune tolerance to the intestinal bacteria. Our studies had two goals. First, we characterized the effect of long term HFD consumption on the systemic immune response by comparing C57BL6 mice fed a HFD and low fat diet (LFD). Plasma immunoglobulin G (IgG) against Escherichia coli (LF-82), E. coli (Nissle 1917), Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron and Lactobacillus acidophilus were measured by a lab-developed ELISA. Fasting blood glucose and inflammation were measured in …

Associations Between Serum Concentrations Of Polychlorinated Biphenyls, Serum Carotenoids, And The Probability Of Metabolic Syndrome In The National Health And Nutrition Examination Survey 2003-2004, Carolyn R. Hofe

Theses and Dissertations--Nutritional Sciences

Diabetes and cardiovascular disease are leading causes of death and disability in the United States. These chronic diseases are clinical sequelae of metabolic syndrome (MetS), a condition that affects approximately one-third (1/3) of American adults. Metabolic syndrome occurs in response to environmental and genetic influences, among them food intake, a sedentary lifestyle, BMI, advancing age, and exposure to persistent organic pollutants (POPs). POPs are known to cause endocrine disruption and PCBs cause oxidative stress, disrupt endothelial cell integrity, and promote atherosclerosis. Nutrition plays a significant role in the prevention and management of these chronic diseases and has been shown to …

Effects Of Adipocyte Deficiency Of Angiotensin Type 1a Receptors In Models Of Obesity And Hypercholesterolemia, Kelly Anne Putnam

Theses and Dissertations--Nutritional Sciences

Adipocytes express angiotensin II (AngII) receptors; however the direct effects of AngII at the adipocyte remain unclear. Knockout mouse models of renin-angiotensin system components exhibit reduced body weight, reduced adiposity, improved glucose tolerance, and improved blood pressure when fed high fat diets, which may be due to reduced action of AngII through the AT1aR in adipocytes. Additionally, hypercholesterolemic AT1aR deficient mice are protected from AngII-induced increases in atherosclerosis and abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) formation. We hypothesized that deficiency of AT1aR in adipocytes would reduce the development of obesity, obesity-induced disorders, and vascular diseases. To test this hypothesis, we created a …

Deficiency Of Ace2 In Bone-Marrow-Derived Cells Increases Expression Of Tnf-Α In Adipose Stromal Cells And Augments Glucose Intolerance In Obese C57bl/6 Mice, Sean E. Thatcher, Manisha Gupte, Nicholas Hatch, Lisa A. Cassis

Graduate Center for Nutritional Sciences Faculty Publications

Deficiency of ACE2 in macrophages has been suggested to promote the development of an inflammatory M1 macrophage phenotype. We evaluated effects of ACE2 deficiency in bone-marrow-derived stem cells on adipose inflammation and glucose tolerance in C57BL/6 mice fed a high fat (HF) diet. ACE2 activity was increased in the stromal vascular fraction (SVF) isolated from visceral, but not subcutaneous adipose tissue of HF-fed mice. Deficiency of ACE2 in bone marrow cells significantly increased mRNA abundance of F4/80 and TNF-α in the SVF isolated from visceral adipose tissue of HF-fed chimeric mice, supporting increased presence of inflammatory macrophages in adipose tissue. …