Digital Commons Network^™

A Realistic Forecast For U.S. Climate Action, Sam Crockett Neel

American University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Assessment Of Apparent Diffusion Coefficient Values As Predictor Of Aggressiveness In Peripheral Zone Prostate Cancer: Comparison With Gleason Score, Shayan Sirat Maheen Anwar, Zahid Anwar Khan, Rana Shoaib Hamid, Fahd Haroon, Raza Sayani, Madiha Beg, Yasir Jamil Khattak

Department of Radiology

Purpose. To determine association between apparent diffusion coefficient value on diffusion-weighted imaging and Gleason score in patients with prostate cancer. Methods. This retrospective case series was conducted at Radiology Department of Aga Khan University between June 2009 and June 2011. 28 patients with biopsy-proven prostate cancer were included who underwent ultrasound guided sextant prostate biopsy and MRI. MRI images were analyzed on diagnostic console and regions of interest were drawn. Data were entered and analyzed on SPSS 20.0. ADC values were compared with Gleason score using one-way ANOVA test. Results. In 28 patients, 168 quadrants were biopsied and 106 quadrants …

The Journal Of Undergraduate Research: Volume 12

The Journal of Undergraduate Research

This is the complete issue of the South Dakota State University Journal of Undergraduate Research, Volume 12.

“Doing Gender” In Public Speaking Education: A Focus Group Analysis Of Biological Sex And Gender Identity In Public Speaking Education, Heather A. Coburn

The Journal of Undergraduate Research

This exploratory focus group analysis examines the ways in which students of a Capstone Communication Studies course (N = 15) perceive factors, such as their communication studies education, biological sex, and gender roles, that have impacted their experiences with Public Speaking Anxiety (PSA) and Self-Perceived Communication Competence (SPCC), as well as the effectiveness of various treatment methods for the reduction of PSA. Three independent student focus groups were conducted – one comprised of biological females (n = 5), one of males (n = 3), and one containing subjects of both biological sexes (n = 7). Herein participants discussed their personal …

Jamie Leighton, Jamie Leighton

Journal of Pedagogy, Pluralism, and Practice

No abstract provided.

Impact Of Gain-Of-Function Mutations In The Low-Density Lipoprotein Receptor Related Protein 5 (Lrp5) On Glucose And Lipid Homeostasis, Dinah Foer

Yale Medicine Thesis Digital Library

IMPACT OF GAIN-OF-FUNCTION MUTATIONS IN THE LOW DENSITY LIPOPROTEIN RECEPTOR RELATED PROTEIN 5 (LRP5) ON GLUCOSE AND LIPID HOMEOSTASIS. Dinah Foer, Meiling Zhu, Christine Simpson, Grace Lee, Rebecca Sullivan, and Karl L. Insogna. Section of Endocrinology, Department of Internal Medicine, Yale University, School of Medicine, New Haven, CT.

Investigations in animal models suggest a physiologic link between LRP5 and glucose and lipid homeostasis. However, the data in human studies is far from consensus. While LRP5 has been shown to be critical to Wnt signaling, the molecular mechanism for the effect on metabolism is unknown. We hypothesize that a high bone …

Longitudinal Characteristics Of Depression And Mood States Beginning In Primary Hiv Infection, Jessica Ashley Gold

Yale Medicine Thesis Digital Library

LONGITUDINAL CHARACTERIZATION OF DEPRESSION AND MOOD STATES BEGINNING IN PRIMARY HIV INFECTION. Jessica A. Gold, Marie Grill, Julia Peterson, Christopher Pilcher, Evelyn Lee, Frederick M. Hecht, Dietmar Fuchs, Constantin T. Yiannoutsos, Richard W. Price, Kevin Robertson, and Serena Spudich. Department of Neurology, Yale University, School of Medicine, New Haven, CT.

Though depression is known to frequently afflict those with chronic HIV, mood during the early course of HIV is not well characterized. In a prospective study we assessed mood during primary HIV infection (PHI, <1 year duration), its association with neuropsychological performance and markers of neurological disease, and its longitudinal course including effects of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Profile of Mood States (POMS) subscales were longitudinally administered prior to and after HAART in PHI subjects. This evaluation of mood was done concurrently with blood, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and neuropsychological (total z and global deficit score, GDS) evaluation at each visit. Analysis employed Spearman's rho, logistic regression, and linear mixed models. 47.7% of the 65 men recruited at a median 3.5 months HIV duration met BDI criteria for clinical depression at baseline, classified as `mild' (n=11), `moderate' (n=11), or `severe' (n=9). Drug, alcohol, and depression history did not associate with BDI score. Proportional somatic-performance scores were worse than cognitive-affective scores (p=. 0045). Vigor subscore of POMS was reduced compared to norms and correlated with total z (r=0.33, p=0.013) and GDS (r=-0.32, p=0.016). BDI and POMS correlated with one another (r=0.85, p< .0001), but not with CSF or plasma HIV RNA, white blood cell (WBC) count, albumin ratio or neopterin. Improvement was not observed in BDI and POMS over 330 total follow-up visits, even after initiation of HAART. Depression was prevalent during PHI in our subjects, associated with abnormal somatic-performance and vigor scores. Neither neuropsychological performance nor disease biomarkers correlated with depressed mood. Mood indices did not improve over time in the presence of HAART.

Genomic Predictor Of Residual Risk Of Recurrence After Chemotherapy In High Risk Estrogen Receptor Positive Breast Cancers, Sabrina Khan

Yale Medicine Thesis Digital Library

Gene signature based prognostic tests can help improve adjuvant treatment decisions in early stage estrogen receptor positive (ER) breast cancers. Available tests in the clinic include Oncotype DX recurrence score (RS), PAM50 molecular class, and the Genomic Grade Index (GGI), which can identify high risk tumors that are likely to recur and have less favorable survival when treated with surgery and endocrine therapy alone. These high risk patients are recommended to also receive chemotherapy to improve their chance of survival. A subset of these "high risk" tumors is highly sensitive to adjuvant chemotherapy due to their high proliferation rates, and …

Prevalence Of Tuberculosis Symptoms And Latent Tuberculosis Infection Among Prisoners In Northeastern Malaysia, Benjamin Margolis

Yale Medicine Thesis Digital Library

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is a known public health threat to prison systems due to poor hygiene, crowded living conditions, poor health of inmates, and poor prison healthcare systems. The large population of HIV-infected people living in prisons is especially susceptible to increased TB transmission and higher mortality. In Northeastern Malaysia, there is no screening for active or latent TB infection (LTBI) in the prison system.

Aims and Hypothesis: This study serves to measure the prevalence and correlates of LTBI and active TB symptoms in HIV-infected and non-HIV-infected prisoners in Northeastern Malaysia. Given the host of factors that contribute to TB …

Characterization Of The Effect Of Braf Inhibitors On Melanoma Metabolism In Vitro And In Vivo, Alexander Marzuka

Yale Medicine Thesis Digital Library

Vemurafenib is the first FDA-approved personalized treatment for metastatic melanoma to show an improvement in survival. This serine threonine kinase inhibitor targets the mutated BRAF V600E protein, which occurs in approximately 50% of melanomas. The downstream effect of BRAF V600E blockade is inhibition of cell proliferation. Little is known about the effect of vemurafenib on glucose metabolism in melanoma cells. The Warburg effect, or the use aerobic glycolysis to generate energy and building blocks for cell proliferation, is a hallmark of cancer. Normal cells, in contrast, metabolize glucose through oxidative phosphorylation in the presence of oxygen and through glycolysis in …

A Novel Controlled Release Platform For In Situ Vascular Tissue Engineering, Joseph Thomas Patterson

Yale Medicine Thesis Digital Library

Autologous tissue engineered vascular grafts (TEVGs) are limited by graft stenosis. Small diameter TEVGs implanted as unseeded scaffolds are prone to failure by occlusive luminal proliferation of smooth muscle cells derived from endothelial precursors within a critical period of two weeks. The development, validation, and application novel platform for controlling TEVG performance by local delivery of peptide and/or small molecule therapeutic agents from the TEVG scaffold is presented with insights into the autologous TEVG biology and development.

We hypothesized that inhibition of TGF-βR1 by local delivery of SB-431542, a competitive inhibitor of ALK5/TGFβR1 signaling, is superior to systemic administration of …

Evaluation And Characterization Of The Biomechanical Properties Of Tissue Engineered Vascular Grafts Implanted In The Arterial Circulation, Brooks Van Udelsman

Yale Medicine Thesis Digital Library

We used a murine model to assess the in vivo evolving biomechanical properties of tissue engineered vascular grafts (TEVGs) implanted in the arterial circulation. The initial polymeric tubular scaffold was fabricated from (poly)lactic acid (PLA) and coated with a 50:50 copolymer of (poly)caprolactone and (poly)lactic acid (P[PC/LA]). Following seeding with syngeneic bone marrow derived mononuclear cells, the TEVGs (n=50) were implanted as aortic interposition grafts in wild-type mice and monitored serially using ultrasound. A custom biaxial mechanical testing device was used to quantify in vitro the circumferential and axial mechanical properties of grafts explanted at 3 or 7 months. At …

Identification Of Novel Anti-Brain Tumor-Initiating Cell Compounds Using High-Throughput Screening, Garth William Strohbehn

Yale Medicine Thesis Digital Library

Glioblastoma multiforme is the most common malignant primary intracranial tumor in adults. Despite years of advances in basic science knowledge about this disease including but not limited to cellular hierarchy, genetics, and mechanisms of proliferation and spread, overall survival of patients has remained unmoved for the past fifteen years, and long-term survivors are nearly nonexistent. Barriers to improved treatment occur in the realms of engineering and drug discovery: creation of an efficient delivery vehicle and identification of novel, efficacious small molecule compounds are necessary to achieve survival benefit in this disease.

In the following thesis, I describe efforts made by …

Commonthought (2014), Commonthought Staff

Commonthought

This issue features works created by Lesley University students and covers a broad range of topics. The work itself crosses many disciplines from creative writing to visual arts.

Canonical Heroes Redefined For Postmodern Readership, Catey Bayse

Senior Theses

"The 'hero' has figured as an important archetypal construction throughout literary history that has evolved over centuries. Instead of tracing the evolution of the hero chronologically, this essay will present a postmodern reading of the hero in John Milton’s Paradise Lost and Homer’s Iliad by rereading those texts through James Joyce’s Ulysses. Through this retrospective reading, heroic construction comes to mean something different than it does to classicists or Romanticists. In his construction of Leopold Bloom as the everyman, modern hero, Joyce is unconcerned with physical strength, youth, honor, virtue, lineage, or glory. Rather, Joyce constructs Bloom as a hero …

Boron Nutrition Of Burley And Dark Tobacco, Laura Ann Frakes Mitchell

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

The incidences of suspected Boron (B) deficiency have increased recently in Kentucky tobacco fields, potentially due to recent changes in management practices. The symptoms observed in the field include; hollow stalk, stunted growth, deformed or no bud formation, small slits on the lower leaf midrib and uncontrollable breaking of the midrib approximately two inches from the stalk. B is a micronutrient tobacco needs in minute amounts, however excessive additions of B could cause toxicity. The objectives of this work were to 1) establish critical points for B sufficiency, 2) describe and define B deficiency and toxicity symptoms and 3) develop …

I Can't Hear You But I'M Not Sure I'M Going To Tell You: Perceptions Of Stigma And Disclosure For Individuals Who Are Deaf Or Hard Of Hearing, Brittany Nicole Lash

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

Communication processes can be affected by stigma – a negative evaluation of an individual’s attributes that discredits or identifies the individual as not normal (Goffman, 1963). One such communicative process that is affected by stigma is disclosure. Disclosure is when individuals share personal information that reveals something not previously known (Charmaz, 1991). One such group of individuals who may be forced to choose between disclosing (to get accommodations or social support) and avoiding stigma (by not disclosing) is individuals with disabilities (Braithwaite, 1991; Charmaz, 1991).

This study focuses on one particular population of individuals with disabilities – those with a …

Increasing Compliance With A Tobacco-Free Policy Via A Campus Campaign, Rachael A. Record

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

The implementation of a tobacco-free policy is the leading recommendation among health institutes for reducing the harms associated with tobacco exposure–for both smokers and nonsmokers–on college campuses. Despite the health benefits associated with tobacco-free policies, compliance with these policies remains a serious challenge on college campuses. Interventions aimed at increasing smokers’ willingness to comply with tobacco-free policies are essential for improving public health.

Guided by the theory of planned behavior (TPB), the purpose of this study was to (a) investigate the factors associated with tobacco-free policy compliance among undergraduate students and (b) design and evaluate a theory-based campaign aimed at …

Nanochromosome Copy Number Does Not Correlate With Rna Levels Though Patterns Are Conserved Between Strains Of The Ciliate Morphospecies Chilodonella Uncinata, Jie Huang, Laura A. Katz

Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

In some ciliates, extensive genome fragmentation leads to a macronucleus (i.e. somatic nucleus) containing gene-sized chromosomes that vary in copy number. Yet the relationship between copy number and expression level is not well understood as previous work has shown a variety of patterns. For example, nanochromosome copy numbers are positively correlated to mRNA levels in spirotrichous ciliates, while one study of Chilodonella uncinata suggested that they were inversely correlated. To study further copy number and expression levels in C. uncinata, we analyzed 11 members in five gene families (SSU-rDNA, actin, alpha-tubulin, histidine acid phosphatase family protein and a protein kinase …

The Marine Microbial Eukaryote Transcriptome Sequencing Project (Mmetsp): Illuminating The Functional Diversity Of Eukaryotic Life In The Oceans Through Transcriptome Sequencing, Patrick J. Keeling, Fabien Burki, Heather M. Wilcox, Bassem Allam, Eric E. Allen, Linda A. Amaral-Zettler, E. Virginia Armbrust, John M. Archibald, Arvind K. Bharti, Callum J. Bell, Bank Beszteri, Kay D. Bidle, Connor T. Cameron, Lisa Campbell, David A. Caron, Rose Ann Cattolico, Jackie L. Collier, Kathryn Coyne, Simon K. Davy, Phillipe Deschamps, Sonya T. Dyhrman, Bente Edvardsen, Ruth D. Gates, Christopher J. Gobler, Spencer J. Greenwood, Stephanie M. Guida, Jennifer L. Jacobi, Kjetill S. Jakobsen, Erick R. James, Bethany Jenkins, Uwe John, Matthew D. Johnson, Andrew R. Juhl, Anja Kamp, Laura A. Katz

Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Altered Mucins (Muc) Trafficking In Benign And Malignant Conditions., Suhasini Joshi, Sushil Kumar, Amit Choudhury, Moorthy P. Ponnusamy, Surinder K. Batra

Journal Articles: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Mucins are high molecular weight O-glycoproteins that are predominantly expressed at the apical surface of epithelial cells and have wide range of functions. The functional diversity is attributed to their structure that comprises of a peptide chain with unique domains and multiple carbohydrate moieties added during posttranslational modifications. Tumor cells aberrantly overexpress mucins, and thereby promote proliferation, differentiation, motility, invasion and metastasis. Along with their aberrant expression, accumulating evidence suggest the critical role of altered subcellular localization of mucins under pathological conditions due to altered endocytic processes. The mislocalization of mucins and their interactions result in change in the density …

Myo/Nog Cells: Targets For Preventing The Accumulation Of Skeletal Muscle-Like Cells In The Human Lens, Jacquelyn Gerhart, M. Greenbaum, V. Scheinfeld, P. Fitzgerald, M. Crawford, Arturo Bravo Nuevo, M. Pitts, Mindy George-Weinstein

PCOM Scholarly Works

Posterior capsule opacification (PCO) is a vision impairing condition that arises in some patients following cataract surgery. The fibrotic form of PCO is caused by myofibroblasts that may emerge in the lens years after surgery. In the chick embryo lens, myofibroblasts are derived from Myo/Nog cells that are identified by their expression of the skeletal muscle specific transcription factor MyoD, the bone morphogenetic protein inhibitor Noggin, and the epitope recognized by the G8 monoclonal antibody. The goal of this study was to test the hypothesis that depletion of Myo/Nog cells will prevent the accumulation of myofibroblasts in human lens tissue. …

Chewing Through The Miocene: An Examination Of The Feeding Musculature In The Ground Sloth Hapalops From South America (Mammalia: Pilosa), Virginia L Naples, Robert Mcafee

PCOM Scholarly Works

Hapalops, a smaller-sized and early sloth of the Megatheroidea, appeared in the middle Miocene Santa Cruz formation of Argentina. This genus is part of the group from which later, larger megatheroids arose, i.e., Nothrotheriops and Megatherium. Many cranial characters support this idea; however Hapalops is not merely a smaller antecedent of the later forms. Specifically, Hapalops retains short anterior caniniform teeth, and a temporomandibular joint elevated above the cheek tooth row; a combination distinct among sloths. An elevated temporomandibular joint occurs in Bradypus, a tree sloth with anterior chisel-shaped teeth instead of caniniforms, and the tree sloth Choloepus, which is …

A Study Of 17 Short Tandem Repeat Loci Mutation In Thai Population, K Vongpaisarnsin, N Tansrisawad, U Hoonwijit, T. Jongsakul

Chulalongkorn Medical Journal

Background : In paternity testing, differences at genetic loci between the alleged parent and the child would lead to the exclusion of biological paternity. Although rare, transmission inconsistent in paternity testing or single mismatches in DNA profiles may occur, possibly due to either germline or somatic mutation. When single locus discrepancy is present, the mutant allele is hypothesized that mutation occurs possibly in either father or mother. Objective : The objective of this paper is to report the mutation events related to many short tandem repeat (STR) loci that are frequently used and applied in various scenarios of forensic statistics. …

Experimental Perspective On Fallback Foods And Dietary Adaptations In Early Hominins, Jeremiah E. Scott, Kevin R. Mcabee, Meghan M. Eastman, Matthew J. Ravosa

Publications

The robust jaws and large, thick-enameled molars of the Plio–Pleistocene hominins Australopithecus and Paranthropus have long been interpreted as adaptations for hard-object feeding. Recent studies of dental microwear indicate that only Paranthropus robustus regularly ate hard items, suggesting that the dentognathic anatomy of other australopiths reflects rare, seasonal exploitation of hard fallback foods. Here, we show that hard-object feeding cannot explain the extreme morphology of Paranthropus boisei. Rather, analysis of long-term dietary plasticity in an animal model suggests year-round reliance on tough foods requiring prolonged postcanine processing in P. boisei. Increased consumption of such items may have marked …

Seabird Nutrient Subsidies Benefit Non-Nitrogen Fixing Trees And Alter Species Composition In South American Coastal Dry Forests, Gilles Havik, Alessandro Catenazzi, Milena Holmgren

Publications

Marine-derived nutrients can increase primary productivity and change species composition of terrestrial plant communities in coastal and riverine ecosystems. We hypothesized that sea nutrient subsidies have a positive effect on nitrogen assimilation and seedling survival of non-nitrogen fixing species, increasing the relative abundance of non-nitrogen fixing species close to seashore. Moreover, we proposed that herbivores can alter the effects of nutrient supplementation by preferentially feeding on high nutrient plants. We studied the effects of nutrient fertilization by seabird guano on tree recruitment and how these effects can be modulated by herbivorous lizards in the coastal dry forests of northwestern Peru. …

Novel Roles For Actin In Mitochondrial Fission, Anna L. Hatch, Pinar S. Gurel, Henry N. Higgs

Dartmouth Scholarship

Mitochondrial dynamics, including fusion, fission and translocation, are crucial to cellular homeostasis, with roles in cellular polarity, stress response and apoptosis. Mitochondrial fission has received particular attention, owing to links with several neurodegenerative diseases. A central player in fission is the cytoplasmic dynamin-related GTPase Drp1, which oligomerizes at the fission site and hydrolyzes GTP to drive membrane ingression. Drp1 recruitment to the outer mitochondrial membrane (OMM) is a key regulatory event, which appears to require a pre-constriction step in which the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and mitochondrion interact extensively, a process termed ERMD (ER-associated mitochondrial division). It is unclear how ER-mitochondrial …

2014-2015 Southern Illinois University Bulletin Carbondale Campus (Graduate Catalog), Southern Illinois University Carbondale

SIU Bulletins and Course Catalogs Archives

No abstract provided.

2014-2015 Southern Illinois University Bulletin Carbondale Campus (Undergraduate Catalog), Southern Illinois University Carbondale

SIU Bulletins and Course Catalogs Archives

No abstract provided.

The Lantern Walk, Georgia Southern University

George-Anne Media Group: Newsletters & Magazines

• Spring 2014 Ceremonies
• History of the Lantern Walk
• A Letter from the President
• Through the Years