Digital Commons Network^™

Essay: Eight Nails Into Katz's Coffin, Amitai Etzioni

Case Western Reserve Law Review

No abstract provided.

A Thin Blue Line And The Great Black Divide: The Inter And Intra Departmental Conflict Among Black Police Officers, Their Agencies, And The Communities In Which They Work Regarding Police Use Of Force Perception By Black Americans In A Southwestern State, Vance Debral Keyes

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

This study explores the relationship between Black police officers, Black citizens, and their external environment using a group of 30 police officers and citizens to establish the connection between police officer race and perceptions by same race citizens within the context of police use of force. I use the term Black to be inclusive of African Americans as well as others of African descent without regard to their ethnicity or national origin. Criminal justice means system application whereas criminology is the study of criminal behavior. In America, there exists a history of volatility between the police and Black communities. While …

Teacher Perceptions Of Violence Prevention Approaches And Self-Efficacy: Where Do We Go From Here?, Kristie Jo Redfering

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

This research project explored teachers’ beliefs of violence prevention approaches and self-efficacy. Relevant research indicates the value of violence prevention and conflict resolution education as well as the importance of teacher support of such programs. Theories of decision-making and self-efficacy provide the foundation for the variables that were examined through use of a survey instrument developed by Dr. K. King and Dr. T. Kandakai. Participants were sampled from two Florida school districts. Independent variables included teacher background and experience indicators including demographics and teaching/training experience. Dependent variables were comprised of multiple indicators of outcome value, efficacy expectation, and outcome expectation. …

Shifting The Ultimatum: Political Alienation And Participation, Grace Cale

Theses and Dissertations--Sociology

Common knowledge dictates that cynicism and mistrust of politics is rampant among US citizens, wreaking havoc on participation in the American political process. Social Capital theories are commonly used to effectively explain US political behavior, but fail to account for alienation from the political process or the influence of peers. I argue that models of political participation would be improved by the inclusion of political alienation variables, which have fallen into disuse in recent decades. Using data from the US Citizenship, Involvement, and Democracy Survey (2006), this paper relies upon negative binomial regression with nested models to compare the explanatory …

Science Wars As Culture Wars: Fracking And The Battle For The Hearts And Minds Of Women, Jenrose D. Fitzgerald

Theses and Dissertations--Sociology

In this thesis, I examine how claims regarding the environmental and health impacts of hydraulic fracturing or “fracking” are constructed by industry advocates who promote the practice and environmental and social justice groups who reject it. More specifically, I examine the cultural underpinnings of the debate over fracking, and the prominence of gender as a central framing device in that debate. While the controversy over fracking is often presented as scientific or technical in nature, I maintain that it is as much a culture war as it is a science war. I demonstrate this by showing how both pro-fracking and …

Neuropilin In The Vascular System: Mechanistic Basis Of Angiogenesis, Hou-Fu Guo

Theses and Dissertations--Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry

The vascular system is critical for maintaining homeostasis in all vertebrates. Structural studies of Neuropilin (Nrp), an essential angiogenic receptor, have defined its role in regulating angiogenesis, the formation of new vessels from the existing vasculature. Utilizing biochemical and biophysical tools we describe the ability of Nrp to function as a co-receptor for the VEGFR receptor tyrosine kinase. Two families of Nrp-1 ligands, Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A (VEGF-A) and Semaphorin3F (Sema3F), physically compete for binding to the Nrp-1 b1 domain, and have opposite roles. VEGF-A is a potent pro-angiogenic cytokine while Sema3F is an angiogenesis inhibitor. Using coupled structural …

Characterization Of Jabba, A Ricin-Resistant Mutant Of Leishmania Donovani, Megan Rhea Phillips

Theses and Dissertations--Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry

The abundant cell-surface lipophosphoglycan (LPG) of Leishmania parasites plays a central role throughout the eukaryote’s life cycle. A number of LPG-defective mutants and their complementing genes have been isolated and have proven invaluable in assessing the importance of LPG and related glycoconjugates in parasite virulence. While ricin agglutination selection protocols frequently result in lpg- mutants, one L. donovani variant we isolated, named JABBA, was found to be lpg+. Procyclic (logarithmic) JABBA expresses significant amounts of a large-sized LPG, larger than observed from procyclic wild-type but similar in size to LPG from wild-type from metacyclic (stationary) phase.

Structural analysis of …

Regulation Of Glucose Homeostasis By The Phlpp1 Phosphatase, Kara L. Larson

Theses and Dissertations--Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry

Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disease that affects one in ten people in the United States. It is caused by a combination of genetics and lifestyle factors. Disease progression begins with insulin resistance in peripheral tissues followed by pancreatic beta-cell failure. The mechanisms behind disease progression are not completely understood. PH domain leucine rich repeat protein phosphatase 1 (PHLPP1) is a known regulator of Akt and other members of the AGC kinase family. Akt has been established to play a role in numerous metabolic signaling pathways, including insulin action. It is hypothesized that as a regulator of Akt, …

Molecular Mechanisms Of Neuropilin-Ligand Binding, Matthew W. Parker

Theses and Dissertations--Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry

Neuropilin (Nrp) is an essential cell surface receptor with dual functionality in the cardiovascular and nervous systems. The first identified Nrp-ligand family was the Semaphorin-3 (Sema3) family of axon repulsion molecules. Subsequently, Nrp was found to serve as a receptor for the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) family of pro-angiogenic cytokines. In addition to its physiological role, VEGF signaling via Nrp directly contributes to cancer stemness, growth, and metastasis. Thus, the Nrp/VEGF signaling axis is a promising anti-cancer therapeutic target. Interestingly, it has recently been shown that Sema3 and VEGF are functionally opposed to one another, with Sema3 possessing potent …

Leptin Resistance Induced Obesity And Diabetes Promote Neuropathological Changes In The Aging Brain, Thomas Platt

Theses and Dissertations--Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry

The aging brain is prone to the development of pathology and dementia. With a rapidly growing elderly population diagnoses of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD), frontotemporal dementia (FTD), and Parkinson’s disease are on the rise. Additionally, diabetes and obesity are linked to an increased risk of dementia. The convergence of this increasingly aged population with the obesity and diabetes epidemic give rise to new concerns regarding the future of prevention and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. Our lab has previously shown that leptin, an adipokine involved in signaling satiety to the hypothalamus, can modulate the generation of the amyloid …

Modified Seed Growth Of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles In Benzyl Alcohol: Magnetic Nanoparticles For Radio Frequency Hyperthermia Treatment Of Cancer, Stanley E. Gilliland Iii

Theses and Dissertations

Iron oxide nanoparticles have received sustained interest for biomedical applications as synthetic approaches are continually developed for precise control of nanoparticle properties. This thesis presents an investigation of parameters in the benzyl alcohol synthesis of iron oxide nanoparticles. A modified seed growth method was designed for obtaining optimal nanoparticle properties for magnetic fluid hyperthermia. With a one or two addition process, iron oxide nanoparticles were produced with crystallite sizes ranging from 5-20 nm using only benzyl alcohol and iron precursor. The effects of reaction environment, temperature, concentration, and modified seed growth parameters were investigated to obtain precise control over properties …

Tissue Engineering Scaffold Fabrication And Processing Techniques To Improve Cellular Infiltration, Casey Grey

Theses and Dissertations

Electrospinning is a technique used to generate scaffolds composed of nano- to micron-sized fibers for use in tissue engineering. This technology possesses several key weaknesses that prevent it from adoption into the clinical treatment regime. One major weakness is the lack of porosity exhibited in most electrospun scaffolds, preventing cellular infiltration and thus hosts tissue integration. Another weakness seen in the field is the inability to physically cut electrospun scaffolds in the frontal plane for subsequent microscopic analysis (current electrospun scaffold analysis is limited to sectioning in the cross-sectional plane). Given this it becomes extremely difficult to associate spatial scaffold …

Using Structural Analysis To Investigate The Function Of Suppressor Of Ikk-Epsilon (Sike), Sean W. Mckinley

Theses and Dissertations

The innate immune system provides the body’s first line of defense against pathogenic challenge through pathogen recognition and initiation of the immune response. Among the various cellular mechanisms of pathogen recognition in mammals, Toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3) recognizes viral dsRNA. Stimulation of TLR3 signaling pathway leads to transcription of pro-inflammatory cytokines and type-1 Interferons. Suppressor of IKKε (SIKE) interacts with two kinases in the signaling pathway, IKKε and TANK binding kinase 1 (TBK1), inhibiting the transcription of type I interferons. Recently, the Bell Laboratory discovered that SIKE blocks TBK1-mediated activation of type I interferons by acting as a high affinity, …

Reforming California Sentencing Practice And Policy: Are We There Yet?, Michael Vitiello

McGeorge School of Law Scholarly Articles

No abstract provided.

Toward Improved Discoverability Of Scholarly Content: Cross-Sector Collaboration Essentials, Mary M. Somerville, Lettie Y. Conrad

University Libraries Librarian and Staff Articles and Papers

By way of follow-up to earlier work in understanding and improving discoverability of scholarly content, this article reports on recent data and reflections that led to clearer definitions of discovery and discoverability, as well as deeper cross-sector collaborations on standards, transparency, metadata, and new forms of partnerships. Recent advances in discoverability are also described - from enhanced librarybased web-scale searching to serving researcher needs through the Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID) registry. The article points to a 2014 SAGE white paper that presents in greater detail opportunities for wider collaboration among libraries, publishers, service providers, and researchers in the …

Characterization Of Small Conductance Calcium-Activated Potassium Channels In A Human Lens Epithelium Cell Line (B3), Wedad Ali Saqar

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Small conductance calcium-activated potassium (SK) channels belong to the family of K+ channels. They play a significant role in cell volume regulation and in lens homeostasis, and thus are associated with cataract formation. This study was designed to demonstrate the presence of the four different isoforms of SK channels (SK1, SK2, SK3, and SK4) in human lens epithelial (HLE)-B3 cell line using Western blot (WB), immunofluorescence (IF), and reverse transcriptase coupled to the polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Cataract formation involves SK-mediated K+ loss and gain of Na+ ions by lens cells. Further, it has been shown in previous studies that …

The Subject Librarian Newsletter, Education And Human Performance, Spring 2014, Terrie Sypolt

Libraries' Newsletters

No abstract provided.

The Subject Librarian Newsletter, History, Spring 2014, Richard Harrison

Libraries' Newsletters

No abstract provided.

Inactivation Of At1a Receptors Attenuate Lactate Accumulation And Improve Cardiac Performance And Acid-Base Homeostasis During Endurance Exercise, Ahmad Mohammed Alhajoj

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Angiotensin Type 1 (AT1) receptors are involved in cardiovascular pathology. Losartan, the AT1 receptor blocker, in combination with exercise has been shown to be effective in improving cardiac performance. The goal of the study was to investigate the role of AT1a receptors on cardiac function, and exercise tolerance in response to aerobic exercise using AT1a receptor knockout (AT1aKO) mice. An exercise wheel system was used for the exercise paradigm. Male (C57BL/6) wild type (WT) and AT1aKO mice were randomly assigned to four groups: WT control (n=6), WT exercise (WTEX, n=8), AT1a KO (KO) control (n=5), and AT1a KO exercise (KOEX, …

Destruction Of Chlorinated Hydrocarbons By Zero-Valent Zinc And Bimetallic Zinc Reductants In Bench-Scale Investigations, Christopher Scott Cushman

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Many remediation technologies have been developed to treat extensive subsurface contamination by chlorinated hydrocarbons (CHCs). One such technology is a permeable reactive barrier (PRB), which contains reactive media that acts as an electron donor in order to reduce CHCs. Extensive effort has been placed on finding the most suitable reactive media in PRBs, with zero-valent iron (ZVI) being the most commonly utilized media. However, zero-valent zinc (ZVZ) is a promising replacement for ZVI in PRBs as it will more readily donate electrons, resulting in more rapid degradation of CHCs. In addition, amending a secondary/catalytic metal to primary metal surface can …

The Camkkβ Inhibitor Sto-609 Causes Artefacts In Ca2+ Imaging And Selectively Inhibits Bkca In Mouse Carotid Body Type I Cells, Jennifer G. Jurcsisn

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

It has previously been reported that AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) may be critical for hypoxic chemotransduction in carotid body type I cells (Wyatt et al, 2007). This study sought to determine the importance of the regulatory upstream kinase of AMPK, CamKKβ, in the acute response to hypoxia in isolated mouse type I cells.

Initial studies indicated several previously unreported artefacts associated with using the CamKKβ inhibitor STO-609 and calcium imaging techniques. Strong STO-609 autofluorescence meant that Fura-2 could not be used and X-Rhod-1 imaging revealed that STO-609 quenched fluorescence even in the absence of intracellular Ca2+. The whole-cell configuration of …

A Feminist Oversight: The Reproductive Rights Of Women In Prisons, Rebecca Burgan

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Historically, the value of a woman has been based on her ability to produce healthy and successful (male) children, leaving little room for worth based on intelligence or other achievements. Second wave feminists made significant strides for women's reproductive choices, acknowledging that motherhood is not the only way for a woman to have fulfillment or value. While women throughout the United States have more access, opportunity, and choice, women in United States prisons have not benefited from the same advancements in reproductive freedom. The denial of women's reproductive freedoms in prison can be attributed to the high costs of pregnancy …

American Insanity: The Demise Of The Elite And A Critical/Historical Analysis Of The Dsm, Tiffany B. Hunter

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

The International Classification of Diseases, Sixth Edition (ICD-6; World Health Organization, 1949) is a universal health care management tool for examining the pathology of diseases and how to properly diagnose and treat said diseases. The birth of the first edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-I; American Psychiatric Association, 1952) is the product of the ICD and the American Medico-psychological Association and first delivered shortly after the end of the Second World War. As per request of the American Armed Forces, which were ill-equipped to manage the surge of mental disorders after the war, the need …

Early Increase Of Cd11c In Human Monocyte-Derived Dendritic Cells In The Presence Of A/California/07/2009 (H1n1pdm), Amber M. Braddock

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Influenza A continues to cause significant morbidity and mortality. Vaccine production time, viral antigenic variability and low vaccine efficacy contribute to the annual pandemics and seasonal epidemics. A better understanding of human immune responses to influenza A could result in more effective vaccines. Dendritic cells (DCs) play an important role in the initiation of immune responses. Populations of B lymphocytes secrete protective antibodies but the role of different populations of B cells in the protective response is unknown. In this thesis we developed assays to determine subclasses of influenza specific antibodies. Mononuclear cells were assessed using flow cytometry to identify …

The Modulatory Role Of Circulating Microvesicles In Endothelial Progenitor Cell Function Is Altered In T2dm, Hala Mustafa Ammar

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Circulating microvesicles (cMVs) are the extracellular MVs released from the cells in the blood and on the vascular wall. Our previous study demonstrates that cMVs of diabetic mouse are detrimental to endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs), which are known to be very important for maintaining normal endothelial function and structure. In this study, we compared the levels of circulating EPCs and EPC-derived MVs (EPC-MVs) in diabetic and healthy subjects. Also, the migration ability, apoptosis rate and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production of EPCs cultured from diabetic and healthy subjects were determined. More importantly, we evaluated whether cMVs from healthy subjects (ch-MVs) …

Development And Application Of An Analyst Process Model For A Search Task Scenario, Hendrickson K. Karl

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

A key intelligence analyst role in open source search is the transformation of data into understanding. Better comprehension is needed of how new tools impact the analyst search process. The use of function analysis, heuristic analysis, and a usability study combine to provide the basis for developing an analyst process model, which affords the researcher with a structure to measure the impact of tools and expertise in performing a search task. The experiment utilized representative analyst scenario tasks in comparing baseline tools with the Geospatial Open Search Toolkit (GOST). The results show error rates increase when using a new toolset …

Characterization Of A Utica Shale Reflector Package Using Well Log Data And Amplitude Variation With Offset Analysis, Andrei Butterfield

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Using well logs and AVO gradient analysis, I identify and characterize a package of reflectors associated with the Utica Shale from vibroseis data collected by Wright State University at the Gabor Gas Storage field near Canton, Ohio. I also correlate TOC measurements from wells to densities and velocities at the same depths. On the seismic data, I interpret prominent reflections from the top and bottom of the Utica Shale and an intra-Utica reflector of varying frequency content associated with a velocity/density low in well log data. I investigate the possibility that the lateral variation in frequency content and change in …

Modeling Physical And Hydraulic Properties Of Disordered Porous Media: Applications From Percolation Theory And Fractal Geometry, Behzad Ghanbarian-Alavijeh

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A fundamental component of the hydrologic cycle is the movement of fluids in the pore space of geological formations and soils. Prediction of the motion of fluids in such porous materials requires first modeling the physical properties of the medium itself, and second, invoking a capable theory to describe fluid transport in tortuous interconnected pathways. In this dissertation, for the former we use fractal geometry since most phenomena in nature are fractal, and for the latter percolation theory is applied because it has successfully described flow and transport in disordered networks and media. We propose models for the soil water …

Development Of A Co-Culture System To Mimic The Transfection Of Hsv-1 From Keratinocytes To Neuronal Cells, David A. Dixon

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To more closely mimic the in vivo progression of HSV-1 a novel in vitro method was created. In this study HEL-30 keratinocytes were infected with a 0.1 MOI of HSV-1 and plated unto a membrane with 8μm diameter pores. The membrane insert was then placed into culture wells that contained Neuro-2a cells (N2A). The neurites from the neuronal cells made cell-to-cell contact with the infected HEL-30 cells and the virus was transmitted into the neuronal cells. To determine if infection occurred in the N2A cells the cells were lysed and the lysate incubated with Vero cells to titrate virus plaque …

Evaluation Of Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy (Fnirs) For Assessment Of The Visual And Motor Cortices In Adults, Brenna Giacherio

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Introduction: Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a relatively young technique in the field of medical imaging. As such, it has yet to be widely implemented for clinical use, despite its promising advantages. However, unlike fMRI-its much bulkier and costly counterpart-fNIRS has yet to be proven as a standalone imaging tool within a clinical setting, particularly that of ophthalmology or physical therapy.

Methods: Ten healthy young adults (23.8 ± 4.8 years) participated in the study. Activation of the visual cortex was achieved utilizing various reversing checkerboard stimuli across three data collection sessions for each participant. Further, activation of the motor cortex …