Digital Commons Network^™

Regulation And Inhibition Of Pro-Tumorigenic Microenvironments, Elise Oster Alspach

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Age is the number one risk factor for the development of cancer. While accumulation of epithelial cell mutations is a driving factor for this risk, the role that the tumor microenvironment plays in this process is now well established. Indeed, seminal work has shown that tumorigenic cells unable to grow in xenografts can form tumors when supportive stromal cells are present. Work by many laboratories has demonstrated that a wide variety of cells including endothelial cells, immune cells, the extracellular matrix and fibroblasts can all assume a pro-tumorigenic phenotype.

Like cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), senescent cells promote all stages of tumor …

The Role Of Novel Gene Ul79 Encoded By Human Cytomegalovirus In Viral Replication, Yi-Chieh Perng

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a ubiquitous pathogen that infects the majority of the world's population. Even though HCMV infection is usually asymptomatic, it acts as an opportunistic pathogen and is the major cause of morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised individuals, including transplant recipients and AIDS/HIV patients. Understanding HCMV biology is critical to the development of HCMV therapeutics. However, our current knowledge of HCMV biology is limited by the fact that only less than half of the HCMV genes have been characterized, especially viral essential and augmenting genes which play critical roles in viral replication.

To study the function of HCMV …

Anger And Punishment: Natural History And Normative Significance, Isaac Thane Wiegman

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

I argue that the evolutionary history of anger has substantive implications for normative ethics, undercutting some of the evidence for retributive theories of punishment. In the process, I develop an evolutionary account of anger, its relation to psychological traits of other animals, and its influence on action. First, I offer a tentative evolutionary story about anger that can explain retributive intuitions concerning punishment. This explanation undercuts these intuitions as evidence for retributive beliefs by showing that they were selected for their biological consequences rather than their accuracy (concerning the value of retributive punishment). I develop the evolutionary explanation by raising …

Optimal Control And Synchronization Of Dynamic Ensemble Systems, Anatoly Zlotnik

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Ensemble control involves the manipulation of an uncountably infinite collection of structurally identical or similar dynamical systems, which are indexed by a parameter set, by applying a common control without using feedback. This subject is motivated by compelling problems in quantum control, sensorless robotic manipulation, and neural engineering, which involve ensembles of linear, bilinear, or nonlinear oscillating systems, for which analytical control laws are infeasible or absent. The focus of this dissertation is on novel analytical paradigms and constructive control design methods for practical ensemble control problems. The first result is a computational method %based on the singular value decomposition …

Ucc Minutes, September 23, 2014, University Curriculum Council

UCC Agendas/Minutes

No abstract provided.

Female Mating Adaptations: Salient Features And The Influence Of Fertility Status, Katherine Melton

Modern Psychological Studies

Modern human beings share the adaptive mating strategies of their ancestral predecessors, even though the adaptive environment is a relic of the past. Due to the large parental investment mammalian females must contribute in order to reproduce, women face unique challenges in their quest for reproductive fitness. This review endeavors to address behavioral, strategic, and perceptual shifts in female mating adaptations within the context of the menstrual cycle in order to yield a greater understanding of modern women and the evolutionary basis for behavior.

Extended Formation Flight At Transonic Speeds, Andrew Ning, Ilan Kroo, Michael Aftosmis, Marian Nemec, James Kless

Faculty Publications

Aircraft flown in formation can realize significant reductions in induced drag by flying in regions of wake upwash. However, most transports fly at transonic speeds where the impact of compressibility on formation flight is not well understood. This study utilizes an Euler solver to analyze the inviscid aerodynamic forces and moments of transonic wing/body configurations flying in a two-aircraft formation. Formations with large streamwise separation distances (10-50 wingspans) are considered.

This work indicates that compressibility-related drag penalties in formation flight may be eliminated by slowing 2-3% below the nominal out-of-formation cruise Mach number (either at fixed lift coefficient or fixed …

Modelling Storm Hydrodynamics On Gravel Beaches With Xbeach-G, R. T. Mccall, G. Masselink, T. G. Poate, J. A. Roelvink, L. P. Almeida, M. Davidson, P. E. Russell

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

Crystal Structure Of Clostridium Acetobutylicum Aspartate Kinase (Caak): An Important Allosteric Enzyme For Amino Acids Production, Mark R. Chance

Faculty Scholarship

Aspartate kinase (AK) is an enzyme which is tightly regulated through feedback control and responsible for the synthesis of 4-phospho-l-aspartate from l-aspartate. This intermediate step is at an important branch point where one path leads to the synthesis of lysine and the other to threonine, methionine and isoleucine. Concerted feedback inhibition of AK is mediated by threonine and lysine and varies between the species. The crystal structure of biotechnologically important Clostridium acetobutylicum aspartate kinase (CaAK; E.C. 2.7.2.4; Mw = 48,030 Da; 437aa; SwissProt: Q97MC0) has been determined to 3 Å resolution. CaAK acquires a protein fold similar to the other …

Phragmites Control At The Urban/Rural Interface, Larry Rupp, Ralph Whitesides, Karin Kettenring, Eric Hazelton

All Current Publications

The non-native version of common reed (Phragmites australis) was introduced to North America from Eurasia in the late 1700s to early 1800s. It is an aggressive, tall, dense wetland grass that crowds out native vegetation. In Utah it has colonized vast acreages around the Great Salt Lake and other wetlands resulting in a loss of habitat for wildlife and access by people. It is also found in smaller wetland areas at the urban/rural interface. Controlling small, urban populations is important to reducing the spread of this weed.

How To Use Anti-Mullerian Hormone Testing To Diagnose Granulosa Cell Tumors In Mares, Dirk K. Vanderwall, Kerry A. Rood

All Current Publications

This fact sheet describes how to use Anti-Mullerian hormone testing to diagnose granulosa cell tumors in mares.

Sexual Plumage Dichromatism In A Size Monomorphic Seabird, Stefanie M.H. Ismar, Claire Daniel, Branislav Igic, Peter K. Morrison-Whittle, Grant Ballard, Craig D. Millar, Andrew E. Fidler, Kevin J. Mcgraw, Kazumasa Wakamatsu, Brent M. Stephenson, Phillip Cassey, Donald C. Dearborn, Mark E. Hauber

All Faculty Scholarship

Data on the extent to which the sexes may differ in their phenotypes are critical for a full understanding of the biology and management of any species. We previously quantified behavioral differences and vocal similarities between genetically-sexed Australasian Gannets (Morus serrator). Here, we quantify size monomorphism and plumage dichromatism in this socially monogamous, colonial seabird. In comparison with other sulids, the Australasian Gannet is characterized by low sexual dimorphism indices in various size metrics, and most physical dimensions are statistically similar between adult female and male gannets. In contrast, we found indications of sexually dichromatic plumage traits in the melanin-based, …

Steatocystoma Multiplex: Those Little Tumours., Ellen H. De Moll, W. Clark Lambert, Lawrence Charles Parish

Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Biology Faculty Papers

No abstract provided.

What Is Nanoscience?' - A Hermeneutic Phenomenological Study Of Nanoscience Researchers' Experiences, Deepa Chari

Doctoral

Nanoscience and nanotechnology have been described as a research area that integrates many scientific and engineering disciplines. However, the integration of disciplines is so complex that the disciplinarity of nanoscience and nanotechnology remains undefined. As a result, the nanoscience and nanotechnology area is viewed as multidisciplinary, or interdisciplinary science, or even as a separate discipline and there is no consensus regarding its disciplinarity. The previous studies conducted in order to describe the disciplinarity associated with this area have focused mainly on political, institutional and external factors while the cognitive aspects of disciplinarity of nanoscience and nanotechnology are still less understood. …

The Land Of Opportunity Doesn't Apply To Everyone: The Immigrant Experience, Race, And Asian American Career Choices, Oiyan Poon

Education: School of Education Faculty Publications and Other Works

Despite their popular portrayal as high achieving and structurally incorporated, race continues to shape the career choices of Asian American college students. As second-generation Americans, Asian Americans negotiate a constellation of factors when deciding their career choices, most notably, pressures from immigrant parents, awareness of labor market discrimination, fear of being tokenized in particular occupational fields, and influences from peer networks. These findings help elucidate how race and the social context of immigrant adaptation can affect the occupational trajectories of Asian Americans and other children of immigrants in the United States, regardless of their educational achievement and socioeconomic status.

A Biblical Foundation Counseling Strategy To Direct Couples To Become One Flesh In Marriage, Colin Seager

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This project will outline steps in counseling newly married couples to develop biblical, physical, emotional, social, and spiritual unity within marriage. A review of currently available marital and pre-marital counseling suggests the focus centers on intimacy, communication issues, and being happy together versus truly becoming one flesh. This ministry tool will enable pastors to counsel and prepare couples effectively for marriage with the richness God designed for marriage and to fortify them against marital temptation and marital fatigue. Based on a review of available resources and data collected from a control group comprised of sixty individuals, an implementable discipleship program …

Why Primate Models Matter, Kimberley A. Phillips, K. L. Bales, J. P. Capitanio, A. Conley, P. W. Czoty, B. A. 'T Hart, William D. Hopkins, S.L. Hu, L. A. Miller, M. A. Nader, P. W. Nathanielsz, J. Rogers, C. A. Shively, M.L. Voytko

Psychology Faculty Research

Research involving nonhuman primates (NHPs) has played a vital role in many of the medical and scientific advances of the past century. NHPs are used because of their similarity to humans in physiology, neuroanatomy, reproduction, development, cognition, and social complexity – yet it is these very similarities that make the use of NHPs in biomedical research a considered decision. As primate researchers, we feel an obligation and responsibility to present the facts concerning why primates are used in various areas of biomedical research. Recent decisions in the United States, including the phasing out of chimpanzees in research by the National …

Inflammation And C-Reactive Protein In Atrial Fibrillation: Cause Or Effect?, Roberto Galea, Maria Teresa Cardillo, Annalisa Caroli, Maria Giulia Marini, Chiara Sonnino, Maria L Narducci, Luigi M Biasucci

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

Atrial fibrillation is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality rates. The incompletely understood pathogenesis of this cardiac dysrhythmia makes it difficult to improve approaches to primary and secondary prevention. Evidence has accumulated in regard to a relationship between inflammation and atrial fibrillation. Investigators have correlated the dysrhythmia with myocarditis, pericardiotomy, and C-reactive protein levels, suggesting that inflammation causes atrial fibrillation or participates in its onset and continuation. Conversely, other investigators suggest that atrial fibrillation induces an inflammatory response. In this review, we summarize and critically discuss the nature and clinical role of inflammation and C-reactive protein in atrial fibrillation.

Social Script Ipad Application Versus Usual Care Before Undergoing Medical Imaging: Two Case Studies Of Children With Autism, Norah L. Johnson, Octavia Alexis Bree

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are neurodevelopmental disorders of socialization, communication, and repetitive behaviors. Children with ASD have underlying anxiety leading to challenging behaviors in unfamiliar situations. The anxiety impacts timely completion of an imaging procedure. The purpose of the case study was to describe the process of the social script intervention delivered using the iPad application on parent and child anxiety, child behaviors, and imaging procedure length between two parent and child dyads. The case study of two parent-child dyads demonstrated the process for comparing the social script intervention iPad app for preparing for imaging versus usual care. Parent anxiety …

Comparison Of Abstinence And Coital Frequency Between 2 Natural Methods Of Family Planning, Richard J. Fehring, Mary Schneider

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Introduction

The length of periodic abstinence, due to overestimation of the fertile phase of the menstrual cycle, is often a cause for dissatisfaction, discontinuation, and user error with natural family planning (NFP) methods. The objective of this research was to compare the length of required abstinence (ie, estimated fertility) and coital frequency between 2 NFP methods.

Methods

This was an analysis of data from a 12-month prospective comparison study in which participants were randomized into either an electronic hormonal fertility monitor (EHFM) group or a cervical mucus monitoring (CMM) group—both of which included a fertility algorithm as a double check …

Amygdaloid And Non-Amygdaloid Fear Both Influence Avoidance Of Risky Foraging In Hungry Rats, Earnest S. Kim, Eun Joo Kim, Regina Yeh, Minkyung Shin, Jake Bobman, Franklin B. Krasne, Jeansok J. Kim

Faculty Publications - Psychology Department

Considerable evidence seems to show that emotional and reflex reactions to feared situations are mediated by the amygdala. It might therefore seem plausible to expect that amygdala-coded fear should also influence decisions when animals make choices about instrumental actions. However, there is not good evidence of this. In particular, it appears, though the literature is conflicted, that once learning is complete, the amygdala may often not be involved in instrumental avoidance behaviours. It is therefore of interest that we have found in rats living for extended periods in a semi-naturalistic ‘closed economy’, where they were given random shocks in regions …

Evaluation Of Environmental Materials As Thermal Witness Materials, Shashank Vummidi Lakshman

Dissertations

New and complex energetic materials are under development for achieving tunable pyrotechnical events for applications such as neutralization of biological weapons, bunker busters and many others. To guide the development of hybrid materials, the pyrotechnical environment they produce requires higher degree of characterization i.e. good description of spatial and temporal temperature distribution.

Temperature measurements in pyrotechnical events are especially challenging, where the temperature of the environment rises more than 2000 K on microseconds to few milliseconds time scale. These environments produce high thermal stress where traditional sensors like thermocouples, optical pyrometers struggle to describe the dynamic changes in the environment. …

Novel Scrubbing Systems For Post-Combustion Co2 Capture And Recovery, Tripura Mulukutla

Dissertations

Power plant emissions of flue gas releases considerable CO₂ to the atmosphere; CO₂ is considered to be the main contributor to global warming. Several gas absorption techniques are being investigated to reduce the capital and operating costs for CO₂ capture from post-combustion flue gas. Conventional method of CO₂ capture by an aqueous solution of monoethanolamine (MEA) and its subsequent stripping in a separate tower with steam at 120°C, is a highly energy intensive process. The low partial pressure of CO₂ in the flue gas inhibits the application of CO₂-selective membranes unless methods are …

The Experience Of Reducing Environmental Risks In An Environmental Justice Community, Gabriela Dory

Dissertations

Research on Environmental Justice (EJ) communities has focused on quantitative assessment of environmental hazards and general physical health problems. Little is known about how individuals living in EJ communities perceive their environmental risks and how they reduce environmental risks. The purpose of the study is to explore and describe the perceived environmental risks and the experience of reducing environmental risk among individuals living in an EJ community.

A qualitative and longitudinal design with a descriptive phenomenological method is used to recruit 23 participants living in a known EJ community in the urban area of New Jersey. A total of 43 …

Medical School Watercooler Newsletter - August 31, 2014, Lindsey Lyle

Watercooler Newsletter

This is the August 31, 2014 edition of the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine's newsletter - Watercooler.

Contents Include:

• USA Center for Lung Biology Hosts Lung Bowl
• Students: Mark Your Calendar for Jag Health and Wellness Day
• USA Welcomes Dr. Brett Baskovich
• TEDMED to be Streamed Live at USA Biomedical Library
• Basic Medical Sciences Graduate Program Student Receives Edwin R. Hughes Award
• Benefit of USA Children's Clinic Reading Program Validated Through New AAP Policy

Ignition Mechanism In Nanocomposites Thermites, Rayon Williams

Dissertations

Nanocomposite thermites (n-thermites) have been actively investigated for a wide range of potential applications including propellants, explosives, and pyrotechnics. There have been several recent efforts aimed at understanding ignition mechanisms of nanocomposite reactive materials. Although significant progress has been made, ignition mechanisms remain elusive. At the same time, a robust ignition model is required to incorporate these materials in practical energetic formulations. A challenge of this effort is to describe the mechanisms of ignition of n-thermites prepared by Arrested Reactive Milling (ARM) with different stimuli, including heat, spark and impact and also develop a multi-step kinetic model describing different processes …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Metal-Based Reactive Powders, Yasmine Aly

Dissertations

Aluminum added to propellants, explosives, and pyrotechnics, boosts their energy density. Different approaches were investigated that could shorten aluminum ignition delays, increase combustion rates, and decrease the tendency of aluminum droplets to agglomerate. Here, Al-based reactive, mechanically milled materials are prepared and characterized.

For powders with Fe, Ni, or Zn additives, the particles consist of an aluminum matrix and inclusions of Fe, Ni, or Zn comprising 10 at % of the bulk composition. For additives of Ni and Zn, only short milling times can be used to prepare composites; intermetallic phases form at longer milling times. Thermogravimetric analysis shows selective …

Asupan Vitamin D Rendah Dan Keparahan Demam Berdarah Dengue Pada Anak Usia 1-14 Tahun, Nur Siyam, Siswanto Agus Wilopo, Mohammad Hakimi

Kesmas

Demam berdarah dengue (DBD) menimbulkan syok dan kematian. Penderita DBD di Yogyakarta sebagian besar usia 1 - 12 tahun dengan DBD parah. Asupan vitamin D rendah diasumsikan penyebab DBD parah. Asumsi ini perlu dibuktikan dengan menganalisis pengaruh asupan Vitamin D dan keparahan DBD. Rancangan penelitian adalah studi kasus kontrol. Penelitian di bangsal rawat inap anak dan instalasi catatan medik RS Jogja dan RSUP Dr. Sardjito. Kasus adalah anak usia 1 - 14 tahun dengan DBD grade III & IV, kontrolnya DBD grade I & II. Data asupan vitamin D diambil dengan food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). Variabel luar adalah indeks massa …

Investigating Propargyl-Linked Antifolates In Inhibiting Bacterial And Fungal Dihydrofolate Reductase, Joshua Andrade

Honors Scholar Theses

Antimicrobial agents have been invaluable in reducing illness and death associated with bacterial infection. However, over time, bacteria have evolved resistance to all major drug classes as a result of selective pressure. The advancement of new drug compounds is therefore vital. The Anderson-Wright Lab has focused on developing potent and selective inhibitors of dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR), an enzyme key in cell proliferation and survival, in several pathogenic species. The lab has found that a set of compounds, known as propargyl-linked antifolates, are DHFR inhibitors that are both biologically effective and have strong pharmacokinetic properties.

The efficacy of novel propargyl-linked antifolates …

Translation And Transcription Are Required For Endogenous Bursting After Long Term Removal Of Neuromodulators, Stefanie Eisenbach

Theses

Motor pattern-generating networks depend on neuromodulatory inputs to regulate the network activity. The pyloric network of the Cancer borealis stomatogastric ganglion (STG), a rhythmic motor pattern-generating network, requires modulatory inputs to generate this activity. When neuromodulatory inputs are removed, the pyloric network falls silent. However, patterned pyloric activity recovers spontaneously in about 24 hours in organ culture. To determine if synthesis of new proteins are involved in the recovery of pyloric activity after prolonged elimination of neuromodulators, translation inhibitors are tested on the recovery process of pyloric activity in C. borealis. In vitro experiments are conducted; the STG is …