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The Inhibition Of Splicing Of Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase Mrna During Starvation By Heterogeneous Nuclear Ribonucleoprotein K, Travis Cyphert

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Splicing of nascent RNA transcripts is an essential step in gene expression and a target of nutrient regulation. Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) is a lipogenic gene whose expression is regulated exclusively at this posttranscriptional stage. Expression of G6PD mRNA increases 15- to 17-fold during refeeding and is inhibited 80-90% by starvation and the addition of polyunsaturated fat to the diet. The large changes in the accumulation of G6PD mRNA are due to changes the rate of pre-mRNA splicing and not changes in its transcription. In this regard, dietary carbohydrate enhances intron removal, which increases the accumulation of G6PD mRNA. Starvation alters …

Occupational Risk Factors In Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, Bent C. Doney

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Introduction: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) causes increased disability and mortality in the U.S. population. Approximately 15% of cases of COPD can be attributed to occupational exposure. There are gaps in the knowledge of the relationships between occupational exposure and COPD and further investigation can provide information helpful in improving COPD preventive strategies in the workplace. The objective of this project was to assess COPD prevalence in population based studies and characterize the relationship between COPD and occupational exposure.;Methods/Results: Three separate U.S. population-based cross-sectional studies of COPD were conducted. In the first study, a COPD job exposure matrix (JEM) was …

Microfluidic Impedance-Metric Biosensor For Monitoring Carbon Nanotube-Induced Epithelial Permeability, Zhouchun Huang

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Carbon nanomaterials, including carbon nanotubes (CNTs) gain increasing interest in commercial and biomedical applications. Adverse health effects of engineered CNTs may result from either direct exposure during production, inadvertent exposure during use of by-products, and/or release of these materials into the environment. Recent studies have shown that CNTs can induce cytotoxicity, apoptosis, DNA damage, and tumor formation in animals, suggesting their potential toxicity in humans. To address the current needs in developing in vitro cell assays for assessment of the adverse health effects of CNTs in lung respiratory, we have developed a microfluidic impedance-metric biosensor for investigation of multi-walled CNTs …

A Study Of Determinants Of Coping In Childhood Cancer Survivors, Lea Helene Mallett

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

OBJECTIVES: The purposes of this research were to (1) determine the association between time since the completion of cancer treatment and the type of stressor (cancer-related versus non-cancer-related) identified; (2) determine whether the stressor identified (cancer-related or non-cancer-related) and strategies utilized to cope with that stressor change over time; (3) determine whether type of cancer and treatment are associated with specific coping strategies, and (4) determine if family characteristics (household structure, median household income, and presence of siblings) impact the endorsement and efficacy of coping strategies utilized to cope with a stressor.;BACKGROUND: Cancer alters children's lives in many ways, beginning …

Characterizing Runoff Responses In A Mountaintop Mine Impacted And Forested Catchment In The Coalfields Of West Virginia, Andrew J. Miller

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Mountaintop mining (MTM) represents the largest land cover/landuse change in the Central Appalachian region. By 2012, the U.S. EPA estimates that MTR will have impacted approximately 6.8% of the predominately forested Appalachian Coalfield region of West Virginia (WV), Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia with nearly 4,000 miles of headwater streams buried under valley fills (VF). In spite of the scale and extent of MTM, its hydrologic impacts are poorly understood. Several devastating floods in the region have been attributed to MTM, but there is little evidence to either confirm or refute this belief. Existing research on the hydrologic impacts of MTM …

An Investigation Of The Sublethal Effects Of Carbon Dioxide On The Common Sea Urchin Lytechinus Variegatus And The Carbonate Chemistry Of Its Nearshore Habitat, Roberta Challener

All ETDs from UAB

Increases in CO2 concentrations, whether from accumulation of metabolic waste under intensive culturing conditions or from increases in atmospheric levels, lead to decreases in seawater pH and carbonate saturation states. Lytechinus variegatus survive chronic exposure to hypercapnic conditions (pH 7.4 -7.8, partial pressure of CO2 (pCO2) 1738-4290 μatm) in synthetic seawater, yet aspects of growth and development are affected. Rates of embryonic and larval development were delayed and larval size and arm length reduced under high pCO2 conditions. Fecal production rates were higher and ash absorption efficiency (%) was lower in individuals exposed to hypercapnic conditions, suggesting that the ability …

Identification Of Staphylococcus Aureus Sortase A Inhibitors As Potential Antibacterial Agents, Bala Chandra Chenna

All ETDs from UAB

Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is the causative organism for a wide range of infectious diseases from superficial skin infections to dangerous bacteremias. Six pathogens named ESKAPE pathogens are responsible for majority of antibiotic resistant bacterial infections. MRSA is the single most prevalent ESKAPE pathogen. Many of the nosocomial MRSA strains are multi-drug resistant, and even methicillin-sensitive strains can be deadly. S. aureus has recently taken on a new role in causing an escalating number of community-acquired infections in non-hospitalized persons without predisposing risk factors. Due to the increase in the number of infections caused by multi-drug resistant S. aureus and …

Bcl9 And C9orf5 Are Associated With Negative Symptoms In Schizophrenia: Meta-Analysis Of Two Genome-Wide Association Studies, Chun Xu, Nagesh Aragam, Xia Li, Erika Cynthia Villa, Liang Wang, David Briones, Brenda Bin Su, Michael A. Escamilla, Kesheng Wang

Health & Biomedical Sciences Faculty Publications

Schizophrenia is a chronic and debilitating psychiatric condition affecting slightly more than 1% of the population worldwide and it is a multifactorial disorder with a high degree of heritability (80%) based on family and twin studies. Increasing lines of evidence suggest intermediate phenotypes/endophenotypes are more associated with causes of the disease and are less genetically complex than the broader disease spectrum. Negative symptoms in schizophrenia are attractive intermediate phenotypes based on their clinical and treatment response features. Therefore, our objective was to identify genetic variants underlying the negative symptoms of schizophrenia by analyzing two genome-wide association (GWA) data sets consisting …

Structure-Function Analysis Of Tyrosyl-Dna Phosphodiesterase I, Evan Comeaux

All ETDs from UAB

Tyrosyl-DNA phosphodiesterase I (Tdp1) functions to remove 3'phospho-DNA adducts, such as eukaryotic DNA Topoisomerase I (Top1) covalently bound to the DNA by a 3'phospho-tyrosyl bond. As member of the Phospholipase D superfamily Tdp1 contains two HxK(n)N motifs, each of which provide a catalytic histidine: one functioning as a nucleophile to bind the 3'phosphate and the other as a general acid/base to hydrolyze Tdp1's 3'phospho-histidyl bond. Mutation of the general acid/base catalytic histidine (Hisgab) to arginine has been implicated in the autosomal recessive neurodegenerative disease SCAN1. Further study of the yeast enzyme revealed that substitution of Hisgab in yeast Tdp1 to …

Tgf-Ss And Erg In Intervertebral Disc Development, Megan Karen Cox

All ETDs from UAB

The intervertebral disc (IVD) is a fibrocartilaginous tissue that acts as a shock absorber between adjacent vertebrae in the spinal column. It is comprised of two parts, the inner jelly-like nucleus pulposus (NP) and the outer more fibrous annulus fibrosus (AF). Most IVD research has focused on the development of the NP, which is derived from condensations of the notochord involving sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling. In contrast, very little is known about the molecular mechanisms underlying the specific development of the AF of the IVD. The AF is derived from the sclerotome, which is formed by the ventral half of …

Utilizing A Hydroxyapatite-Binding Domain To Deliver Bone Regenerative Molecules To Hydroxyapatite And Allograft Bone To Enhance Osteogenesis, Bonnie Kathleen Culpepper

All ETDs from UAB

Hydroxyapatite (HA) makes up the mineral component of bone, and synthetic HA is commonly used to coat metal implants for use in dentistry and orthopedics. Additionally, allograft and synthetic HA are common alternatives to autograft bone, to circumvent the complications associated with a second surgery site. While both HA and allograft are known to be osteoconductive, osteoinductivity is limited. In this work, we developed methods for anchoring osteoinductive factors onto multiple types of HA biomaterials and human allograft bone, with the goal of enhancing their osteoregenerative potential. Specifically, a HA-binding domain, heptaglutamate (E7), modeled on bone-binding domains within native proteins, …

An Investigation Of Trem-Like Transcript 2 Expression, Kimberly Anne Thomas

All ETDs from UAB

Acute inflammation is a necessary component for the clearance of pathogens. Cells at the site of infection utilize highly conserved receptors to both recognize microbes and induce the production of pro-inflammatory stimuli. These stimuli set off a chain reaction that includes localized vasodilation, leukocyte infiltration, and tissue destruction, collectively known as inflammation. Tightly controlled, this process is protective, and can compartmentalize the damage to a defined area, but when dysregulated can be catastrophic, inducing chronic inflammation and even death. Families of innate receptors can modulate inflammatory processes, and in doing so, increase or decrease their severity, as well as tailor …

Influence Of Implant Angulation On The Fracture Resistance Of Zirconia Abutments, Shreedevi Thulasidas

All ETDs from UAB

Zirconia-based implant abutments are widely used in prosthetic dentistry. Custom made abutments are utilized to correct for non-ideal implant positions and can successfully accommodate the morphologic requirements of the overlying crown. It was hypothesized that there will be difference in fracture strength and fracture mode of artificially aged zirconia implant abutments supported by implants at varying angulation, when load is applied to failure on overlying zirconia crowns. The implant-abutment-crown assemblies were subjected to steam autoclaving to induce some degree of phase transformation from tetragonal to weaker monoclinic form and to thermo-cycling to artificially age the samples. The effects of loading …

Glioma-Vasculature Interactions, Stacey Watkins

All ETDs from UAB

Malignant gliomas are highly invasive brain tumors, which lack effective treatment options. To date, the standard therapy includes surgical debulking followed by chemotherapy and radiation. Despite efforts to eradicate the disease, the median patient survival time is only 14 months. In an attempt to discover novel therapies, research has focused on understanding the heterogeneous biological mechanisms employed by these cells. Uniquely, they do not metastasize through the vasculature or lymphatics like other solid cancers but alternatively, glioma cells utilize the abluminal surface of the vasculature to guide invasion and migration throughout the brain. The intimate association between glioma cells and …

Hur Regulation In Central Nervous System Disorders, Crystal G. Wheeler

All ETDs from UAB

In inflammatory diseases of the central nervous system (CNS), astrocytes play a major role in the systemic response to disease by either enhancing or limiting the inflammatory response through secretion of growth factors or cytokines. HuR RNA binding protein regulates many genes involved in inflammation. Inflammatory diseases such as brain tumors, Amylotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), and Multiple Sclerosis (MS), have been linked to HuR, by our laboratory and others. To determine whether astrocytic overexpression of HuR would regulate inflammation in diseases of the CNS, we designed a transgenic mouse in which the HuR gene is overexpressed. In the first study, …

Visible Learning In A Reggio Emilia Inspired Kindergarten: Parents' Descriptions Of Documentation, Melissa Gibbons Whetstone

All ETDs from UAB

The purpose of this qualitative study was to reveal multiple perspectives and thoughts of seven parents and a family member in a Reggio Emilia inspired kindergarten classroom in a southeastern state of the United States regarding pedagogical documentation, an essential tool for teaching practice and reflection. It served to make knowledge construction visible through children's interpretive concrete work. Throughout the study, pedagogical documentation was defined as both a learning process as well as the products of early childhood content. The content were concrete materials in the form of notes, photographs, audio and video recordings, computer graphics, and examples of children's …

Neural Mechanisms Supporting The Learning-Related Emotional Response To A Threat, Kimberly H. Wood

All ETDs from UAB

Successful regulation of the emotional response to a threat allows one to react more effectively under threatening conditions. The prefrontal cortex (PFC) and amygdala are key brain regions that mediate the regulation and expression of emotion. We employed Pavlovian fear conditioning to investigate the neural mechanisms that influence the emotional response to a threat. These procedures were designed to investigate conditioned diminution of the unconditioned response (UCR). The specific aims were to better understand the role of associative learning, expectation, controllability, and predictability in modulating UCR expression. This project employed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to assess the magnitude of …

Non-Random Snp Formation And Contextual Bias Within Murine And Hominid Genomes, Zackery Ezekiel Plyler

All ETDs from UAB

Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) are traditionally seen as forming in a stochastic manner, with final distribution ascribed to processes such as purifying natural selection, genetic drift, shift, etc. The present study investigated contextual biases that underlie SNP patterns in 16 distinct murine strains, and tested relevance of these observations to human genomic DNA. We establish stereotypic nucleotide motifs that surround single base replacements in mammalian genes and propose a novel mechanism of SNP regulation. The findings contrast traditional notions in which SNPs occur `randomly' followed by purifying selection or are attributable to more `neutral' (unselected) formation. Instead, we propose that …

Epigenetic Regulation Of Hippocampus-Dependent Learning, Laura Qadri

All ETDs from UAB

Knowledge of the molecular mechanisms that underlie learning and memory has advanced a great deal. Research into the role of epigenetics, or modifications above the genome, has the promise of providing an even greater understanding of the precise mechanisms involved in memory formation. Studies of epigenetic regulation of memory in the rodent hippocampus have primarily focused on associative learning using contextual fear conditioning. While these studies have provided valuable insight into the role that epigenetics plays in cognition, it remains to be seen whether the findings generalize to other forms of hippocampus-dependent learning. This work examines the role of epigenetic …

Socioeconomic Predictors Of 30-Day Readmission Of Elderly Patients With Initial Discharge Destination Of Home Health Care, Dianne Marrie Richmond

All ETDs from UAB

Introduction The purpose of this study was to examine the association of social determinants of health with 30-day rehospitalization among elderly patients who were discharged from an acute care hospital with an initial discharge destination of home with home health care support and to explore the social determinants' ability to accurately predict the odds of rehospitalization. Methods A secondary data analysis was performed on data obtained from the home healthcare agency. A total of 4,717 unique patients found in the data set. Some patients were represented in the data more than once during the observation period. To examine the relationship …

Capturing The Semantics Of Evolving Software Ecosystem Architectures, David E. Robbins

All ETDs from UAB

Current software modeling techniques emphasize the modeling of individual software systems using formal modeling tools, such as the Unified Modeling Language. With recent advances in the conceptualization of software ecosystems, the need for modeling techniques capable of describing the interaction between diverse software systems within the environment in which they are created and used has become apparent. This dissertation presents a semantic framework for the modeling of software ecosystems, including a concept-map based notation. Concretely, this modeling framework comprises a semantic web ontology with three classes and two properties. As validated by application to three app-centric software ecosystem case studies, …

A Phenomenological Study Of The Lived Experiences Of African American Female School Leaders In Suburban School Districts, Armentress Denise Robinson

All ETDs from UAB

Abstract The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore and gain an in-depth understanding of the personal, professional, and sociocultural experiences of African American female school leaders in suburban school districts. These school districts were identified as suburban locations because of low to no student poverty, stellar performances on standardized tests, high graduation and college going rates, and champion academic and athletic team honors. This qualitative study employed a phenomenological design to allow the researcher the opportunity to investigate and gather data through open-ended, face-to-face, one hour interviews with study participants. Three theoretical frameworks--critical race theory, racial identity development …

Studies Of Dna Gyrase Activity In Escherichia Coli And Salmonella Enterica Serovar Typhimurium., Nikolay Sergeyevich Rovinskiy

All ETDs from UAB

Gyrase introduces negative supercoils into bacterial DNA. In balance with topoisomerase I, it contributes to the maintenance of constant negative DNA supercoiling. It was shown that in Escherichia coli negative supercoil density of pBR322 plasmid is higher than in Salmonella typhimurium. One of the possible explanations of this phenomenon is a difference of DNA gyrase activity between E. coli and S. typhimurium. We developed in vitro assay of gyrase activity which has shown that DNA gyrases of E. coli and S. typhimurium have the same supercoiling end point, but E. coli gyrase works slightly faster than the S. typhimurium enzyme. …

Role Of Gsk3 In The Immunopathogenesis Of Eae, Amber Rowse

All ETDs from UAB

Lithium, a glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3) inhibitor, ameliorates experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), the murine model of multiple sclerosis (MS) in different mouse models. However, the mechanism of lithium's attenuation of EAE and the role of GSK3 in these processes are currently unknown. IFN-g producing Th1 cells and IL-17-producing Th17 cells are both effector cells in MS and in EAE models. However, relapsing remitting MS patients segregate into Th1 or Th17 serum cytokine signatures and each is differentially responsive to IFN-ß therapy, a first line therapy for MS. Studies in this dissertation revealed a differential effect of lithium on Th1 …

The Relationship Between Inflammatory Biomarkers And Cognitive Function In Older Adults, Andrea C. Sartori

All ETDs from UAB

Recent literature indicates associations between inflammation, aging, and cognitive function. Inflammatory processes have also been implicated in the onset of pathological and neurodegenerative conditions. Current study aims were to examine the associations between inflammatory biomarkers and cognitive function in older adults, and to explore the interrelationships of inflammatory biomarkers, depressive symptoms, health conditions, and cognitive function. Two studies were utilized for the current project: 1) a cross-sectional sample of sedentary older adults aged 65+ from the Physical and Cognitive Exercise Study (PACES; n=54); and 2) a longitudinal study (UAB Study of Aging) of community-dwelling older African Americans and Caucasians (n=393). …

Role Of Endothelial Mannose Residues In Monocyte Adhesion Under Flow, David Wayne Scott

All ETDs from UAB

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease of the vessel wall and underlying cause of most cardiovascular disease. Much is understood about the nature of atherosclerosis development, including contributions from leukocytes that drive the disease process forward. The general process by which leukocytes are trafficked to sites of atherosclerosis development, and sites of inflammation in general, is understood and relies upon endothelial expressed protein adhesion molecules which serve as ligands for cognate leukocyte receptors. While these adhesion molecules share the post-translation modification of N-glycosylation, relatively little is known as to what functional role these modification plays in: i) interactions of leukocytes …

Spatial Analysis Of Cardiovascular Mri Data, Samantha Seals

All ETDs from UAB

The goal of this dissertation is to investigate applying currently available Frequentist spatial analysis methods to cardiovascular MRI (cMRI) data. This data is typically analyzed using methods dependent summary statistics; our goal is to analyze using the full dataset. In our first paper, we explore application of spatial covariance structures to cMRI data via a generalized linear model. In our second paper, we examine the effects of misspecification of the covariance structure when analyzing spatially correlated data utilizing generalized linear models via Monte Carlo simulation. Finally, in our third paper, we propose an alternative family of covariance structures that lends …

The Effects Of Practice On The Concurrent Performance Of A Speech And Postural Task In Persons With Parkinson Disease And Healthy Controls, Christopher Dromey, K Bo Foreman, Stuart Sondrup, Eon Jarvis, Shawn Nissen, Leland E. Dibble

Faculty Publications

Purpose. Persons with Parkinson disease (PD) demonstrate deficits in motor learning as well as bidirectional interference (the performance of one task concurrently interferes with the performance of another task) during dual-task performance. Few studies have examined the practice dosages necessary for behavioral change in rehabilitation relevant tasks. Therefore, to compare the effects of age and PD on motor learning during dual-task performance, this pilot study examined persons with PD as well as neurologically healthy participants during concurrent performance of postural and speaking tasks. Methods. Seven persons with PD and 7 healthy age-matched and 10 healthy young control subjects were tested …

Consumptive And Non-Consumptive Effects Of Predatory Fishes On Lobster In Southern Maine, Erin B. Wilkinson

All Theses And Dissertations

The American lobster, Homarus americanus, is an important consumer in the Gulf of Maine benthic community and supports the most valuable fishery in New England. Many fish predators that feed on juvenile lobster are found in the Gulf of Maine, but their abundance has varied over the previous decades. For example, striped bass, Morone saxatilis, have recovered from near extinction to become a viable recreational fishery on the east coast, and previous work examining the gut contents of striped bass found that juvenile lobsters were a large component of their diet during the summer in Massachusetts. However, striped …

Orientocreadium Batrachoides Tubangui, 1931 (Orientocreadiidae): The Only Trematode Parasite Of Clarias Gariepinus (Burchell, 1822) (Clariidae) From The Asi River (Southern Turkey), Tayha Tepe, Mehmet Cemal Oğuz, Mark C. Belk, Remzi Özgen

Faculty Publications

Objective: Some information is available about the parasite fauna and incidence for Clarias gariepinus in Turkey, but digenean parasites have received little attention. The purpose of the study is to contribute to the parasite fauna of Turkey.

Methods: From 2007 to 2008, a total 63 Clarias gariepinus that were caught in the Asi River were purchased from the fish market in Hatay and brought on ice to the Parasitology Research Laboratory at Atatürk University. The fish were dissected. The obtained parasites were fixed with AFA, dyed with Mayer’s Carmalum, and mounted with Canada Balsam.

Results: Forty-eight fish were infected with …