Digital Commons Network^™

The Initial Effects Of Community Variables On Sand Prairie Restoration: Species Establishment And Community Responses, Robert Christopher Roos

Masters Theses

We established a sand prairie restoration experiment in northern Lower Michigan’s pine-oak barrens to analyze the effect of different community variables (vegetative cover, species richness, biomass, diversity, and floristic quality) when comparing: (1) how our restoration efforts (seeded treatments) compare to natural community succession (control plots), (2) how different seeding treatments affect these community variables, specifically when evaluating (2a) the effect of grass seeding densities; and (2b) the effect of different forb guilds (early flowering, late flowering, and legumes) during the initial two growing seasons of restoration establishment. In general, a comparison between seeded treatments and non-seeded control treatments indicates …

Spatial And Temporal Variation Of Macroinvertebrate Communities In The Muskegon River And Bigelow Creek, Michigan, Travis Hauri Foster

Masters Theses

The first objective of this study was to determine the relationship between zebra mussel densities/biomass and benthic macroinvertebrate composition and density in the Muskegon River at a site near Croton Dam, Thirteen benthic quadrat samples were taken along a range of zebra mussel and macroinvertebrate densities at a single sample location. Turbellaria was the only taxa to have a significant positive relationship with zebra mussel density and biomass, Simuliidae had a positive, non-significant relationship with both. No macroinvertebrate taxa decreased because of zebra mussel density/biomasss. The other objectives of this study were to compare current macroinvertebrate communities in the Muskegon …

Historical Demography And Dispersal Patterns In The Eastern Pipistrelle Bat (Perimyotis Subflavus), Alynn M. Martin

Masters Theses

The recent emergence of threats to North American bat conservation has prompted increased population genetics research on high risk species. The eastern pipistrelle bat is affected by both white-nose syndrome and wind turbine mortality. However, little work has been done regarding the population structure and effective population size of this species. Using the HVI region of the mitochondria and eight microsatellite loci, I analyzed male and female structure across the sample range of P. subflavus and estimated the effective population size of their populations. Pairwise F_ST values indicate that there is one panmictic population based on microsatellite data, while …

Postmodern And Posthuman Literature, John P. Gallagher

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

The thesis is an analysis and application of Posthuman theory. Beginning with a debate on societal progress between Slavoj Zizek and Francis Fukuyama, the thesis explores the possibility of a Posthuman ethics. The main theoretical contributors are Carey Wolfe, Corey Anton, and Benedict Anderson. The primary texts analyzed are Eric Blair's (George Orwell) 1984, Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, and William Gibson's Neuromancer.

A Dendrochronological Analysis Of Insect Outbreaks And Climate Effects On Tamarack From Indiana And Michigan, Nicholas Lorin Flinner

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Disturbances have a strong impact on tree stand dynamics across the world. In North America, the larch sawfly (Pristiphora erichsonii) and larch casebearer (Cleophora laricella) are two non-native species of insects affecting tamarack across much of their native range. The majority of research on the effects of larch sawfly on tamarack (Larix laricina) has been conducted in Canada with very little dendrochronological work in the United States along the geographical boundary of tamarack or on the effects of larch casebearer on radial growth. As a consequence, very little is known about the relationship between tamarack and these insects’ outbreaks in …

Novel Synergistic Protective Efficacy Of Atovaquone And Diclazuril On Fetal-Maternal Toxoplasmosis, Helieh S. Oz

Internal Medicine Faculty Publications

Over 1 billion people globally are estimated to be infected with Toxoplasma gondii with severe or unknown consequences and no safe and effective therapies are available against congenital or persistent chronic infection. We propose that atovaquone and diclazuril synergistically protect against fetal-maternal toxoplasmosis.

METHODS: Programmed pregnant mice were treated with atovaquone and diclazuril monotherapy, or combined (atovaquone + diclazuril) therapy and infected with tachyzoites (0, 300, 600) and the course of infection was studied.

RESULTS: Infected dams with low dose (300) developed moderate toxoplasmosis complications and treatments were similarly effective with minor differences between monotherapies. In contrast, major differences were …

Multiple Account Identity Deception Detection In Social Media Using Nonverbal Behavior, Michail Tsikerdekis, Sherali Zeadally

Information Science Faculty Publications

Identity deception has become an increasingly important issue in the social media environment. The case of

blocked users initiating new accounts, often called sockpuppetry, is widely known and past efforts, which have attempted to detect such users, have been primarily based on verbal behavior (e.g., using profile data or lexic al features in text). Although these methods yield a high detection accuracy rate, they are computationally inefficient for the social media environment, which often involves databases with large volumes of data. To date, little attention has been paid to detecting online decep- tion using nonverbal behavior. We present a detection …

Genetic And Mechanistic Analysis Of Rat Mammary Cancer Susceptibility., Jennifer Sanders

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Breast cancer is a complex disease, which is influenced by genetic, epigenetic and environmental components. Genetic susceptibility to breast cancer is made up of high, moderate and low penetrance alleles. High and moderate penetrance alleles are rare and constitute only a small percentage of the genetic susceptibility. Most variation in genetic susceptibility is controlled by low- penetrance, common polymorphisms. Comparative genetics uses model organisms to study human disease. Rat strains exhibit different susceptibility phenotypes to chemical induced carcinogenesis. The Wistar-Furth (WF) rat strain is susceptible to chemically induced mammary carcinogenesis, while the Wistar-Kyoto (WKy) and Copenhagen (COP) rat strains are …

Classification System Of The Physical Streambed Habitat., Abolfazl Shafaie

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A streambed is the channel bottom of a stream, river, or creek; the physical confine of the normal water flow. It provides necessities for fish and microinvertebrate including shelter, food, and breeding spots. Therefore, it is an essential part of aquatic animal habitats and often seen as an index of stream health. There is no generally accepted method to quantify streambed physical components and depending upon state and organization a variety of methods are used. The procedure provided in the rapid bioassessment protocol (RBP) (Kaufmann et al., 1999; Sylte and Fischenich, 2002) is probably the most widely used method to …

Reactive Oxygen Species And P21 Waf1/Cip1 Are Both Essential For, Alison Fitzgerald

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Treatment of Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma, HNSCC, often requires multimodal therapy, including radiation therapy. The efficacy of radiotherapy in controlling locoregional recurrence, the most frequent cause of death from HNSCC, is critically important for patient survival. One potential biomarker to determine radioresistance is TP53, whose alterations are predictive of poor radiation response. The following work shows that the p53 transcriptional target, p21, is crucial in initiating and maintaining senescence in HNSCC, through its ability to regulate reactive oxygen species (ROS). With the use of a novel system to evaluate the impact of the TP53 missense mutations, we …

Host Specificity And Ectoparasite Load Of Bat Flies In Utila, Honduras, Courtney Miller

Senior Honors Theses

Bat flies (Streblidae) are obligate blood-feeding ectoparasites of bats that display varying degrees of host specificity. A total of 265 streblid bat flies were collected from 122 bats belonging to the families Phyllostomidae and Natalidae from Utila, the smallest bay island of Honduras. Out of four host-parasite associations, three were considered primary. Out of the three bat species analyzed, one had significantly lower parasite prevalence and another had significantly higher parasite load and intensity. Both male and female bats were equally likely to be infested and variables of parasite density did not differ amongst host sex for any species. However, …

08-01-2014 El Centro News, El Centro De La Raza

Newsletters

No abstract provided.

A Micro-Level Analysis Of Behavioral Dynamics In Parent-Child Synchrony, Kadie L. Ausherman

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study investigates parent-child synchrony, a multilevel construct that has not been operationalized in a precise or standardized way. Synchrony is frequently discussed theoretically, yet there still lacks a clear means of measuring it, even on the behavioral level. When parent-child synchrony is operationalized in a study, it is rarely analyzed in such a way that reflects the dyadic dynamics that unfold as the parent and child are interacting. The aim of this study is to operationalize parent-child synchrony in terms of the dyadic behavior patterns. An overview of the current literature with regard to synchrony as a multilevel construct …

A Mixed Methods Approach To Examining The Getting Ready Intervention For Supporting Young Children With Challenging Behaviors, Miriam E. Kuhn

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Families and preschool teachers of children with persistent challenging behaviors are taxed daily by difficulties presented in care and management of such children in their homes and early education settings. This study utilized a sequential explanatory mixed methods approach in three phases to better understand a collaborative partnership model of intervention, Getting Ready (Sheridan, Marvin, Knoche, & Edwards, 2008), for supporting preschoolers with challenging behaviors attending Head Start or state-funded pre-kindergarten programs. Preschool teachers received professional development and individual coaching to help them improve partnerships and collaboratively plan with parents to promote children’s growth, and enhance parent-child interactions.

In Phase …

Single Tube, Multiple Enzyme Reaction For Detection Of Uv And Oxidative Damage In Forensic Physiological Stains, Nicholas J. Eurek

Department of Biochemistry: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

For decades, the use of DNA as a biological tool has revolutionized forensic investigations. The primary use of this genetic evidence is for identification of a victim or suspect through short tandem repeat (STR) profiling. However, the usefulness of this evidence can be compromised through inhibition of PCR, damage to the DNA, or low copy number. Here, we investigate damage induced to DNA by environmental factors. UV light is known to damage DNA by the formation of cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers, 6-4 photoproducts, and strand breaks. These lesions can stall polymerase action or misincorporate bases during extension. Oxidative damage is also …

Rna Interference As A Tool For The Functional Analysis Of Genes In The Colorado Potato Beetle, Leptinotarsa Decemlineata (Say), Ashley Danielle Yates

Department of Entomology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

RNA interference (RNAi) is a naturally occurring phenomenon in eukaryotes in which a double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) suppresses the expression of a target gene. RNAi has markedly changed the way in which functional genetics studies are performed, especially in non-model organisms. In insects, the efficacy of RNAi is influenced by several factors, including the species and the methods of dsRNAs delivery.

The Colorado potato beetle (CPB), Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say), is a pest of the plant family Solanaceae. RNAi in the CPB is of interest for potential use in insect management and as a tool to study the interaction with host plants. …

A Case Study Of Changing Cropping Diversity And Agricultural Risk In The Doulthabad Mandal Of Telangana State In India, Srikanth Kondabolu

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The Doulthabad^[1] Mandal is a hot semi-arid agro-ecological sub-region (Rao et al. 2006) located in Mahbubnagar District on the North Telangana Plateau in the state of Telangana. Agriculture is the main occupation in this region, which is populated mostly with small and marginal farmers. This study uses the time period from 1971 to 2004 to study the variation in cropping pattern diversity and distribution of rainfall during the monsoons and understand the implications on production risk in agriculture. Quantitative methods were used in determining the changes in rainfall while qualitative methods were used to study cropping system changes. The …

What You Don’T Know Can Hurt You: Early Life Course Racial Health Disparities In Undiagnosed Diabetes, Anna C. Bellatorre

Department of Sociology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This dissertation addresses several issues related to racial health disparities in undiagnosed diabetes in American young adults in a three-article format. The first chapter examines rates of diabetes severity across age-matched samples of young adults from two large nationally representative studies. Although the purpose of this study was to explore the impact of nonresponse on prevalence estimates, I find that the prevalence discrepancies have less to do with which respondents are missing blood samples and more to do with the samples coming from initial samples that are not equivalent.

The second chapter uses an adaptation of the Stress Process Model …

Evaluation Of Pre-Harvest Screening For Antibiotics And Flunixin Meglumine In Cattle, Shuna A. Jones

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Many antibiotics and medications used in the treatment of animals have a withdrawal time; residues are a concern for the meat industry. The most recently published 2009 USDA-FSIS Residue Program Data Report listed 135,389 Inspector-in-Charge-Generated (IICG) residue samples from 43,142,500 beef and dairy cattle inspected that year at harvest. Of these samples, 1,306 contained violative antibiotic residues and 327 violative flunixin meglumine residues. Two classes of antimicrobials comprised over half of the documented violative antimicrobial residues (beta-lactams that include ceftiofur and sulfa drugs that include sulfadimethoxine). While the violative residue rate seems small, violative residues are unacceptable. Management of carcasses …

The Use Of Drug Therapy For Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (Adhd) In The Management Of Oppositional Defiant Disorder (Odd): A Literature Review, Shaina Flowers

HIM 1990-2015

Children with oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) and a concurrent Axis I diagnosis are often prescribed drug therapy for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) to manage disruptive behavior. However, ODD symptoms tend to be poorly controlled, raising questions about the effectiveness of drug therapy in children with the condition. Safety and long term consequences of pharmacological agents for ODD are important factors clinicians must consider before initiating treatment. The purpose of this literature review is to examine the pharmacodynamics and efficacy of drug therapy used for ODD in school-age children and adolescents. Additionally, awareness of poor behavior patterns and recognition of …

The Acquisition Of Student Nurses' Knowledge Of Genetics And Genomics And Attitudes Toward The Application Of Their Knowledge In Clinical Practice, Theresa Munroe

HIM 1990-2015

BACKGROUND: Nurses have the opportunity to bring a unique perspective to genetic and genomic healthcare through their emphasis of health promotion, prevention, screening, caring, and patient, family, and community relationships. Nurses are expected to have genetic and genomic knowledge that can be integrated into clinical practice. However, researchers today are finding nursing students are not competent or comfortable in the clinical applications of genetics and genomics, even though these students will soon be working in healthcare as it advances in these fields. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the genetic and genomic knowledge of nursing undergraduate students and …

The Effect Of Dietary Interventions On Fetal Birth Weights In Pregnant Adolescents: A Systematic Review, Seeta Nath

HIM 1990-2015

Nutrition status during adolescent pregnancy and childbearing is a complex, multifaceted condition that can impact the health status of the teen mother and her baby. Adolescent mothers are at higher risk for low birth weight infants because of the unique dietary requirements needed to accommodate for both the growth needs of the adolescent mother and her unborn child. The purpose of this research was to examine dietary interventions that have the greatest effect on fetal birth weight outcomes in adolescent mothers. Secondly, this study explored dietary nutrients effective in reducing the likelihood of complications commonly associated with low birth weight …

Determining The Minimum Number Of Individuals And Significance Of The Kuelap Ossuary In Chachapoyas, Peru, Vu Tran

HIM 1990-2015

The pre-Hispanic archaeological site of Kuelap in Chachapoyas, Peru, is representative of the variation in mortuary practices observed throughout the Chachapoya region. The goal of this study was to analyze the human skeletal remains excavated in the center of the Circular Platform between residential structures at Kuelap by creating an inventory of the remains (n=2,573) and determine the minimum number of individuals originally interred in the mortuary context. This study observed a total of 171 femora, 159 humeri, 74 calcanei, 110 ilium bones, 86 temporal bones, and 74 maxillae. Results show that this mortuary context was an ossuary of secondarily, …

Forum, Volume 38, No. 2, Summer 2014, Florida Humanities Council, Barbara O'Reilley

FORUM: The Magazine of Florida Humanities

Contents: Letter from the Director -- Listen for the Voices -- Have You Not Hard of Floryda? -- Poetry -- General Fiction -- Visual Arts -- General Nonfiction -- Humanities Alive! -- Winner of our Florida Micro-Fiction Challenge -- Novelist Time Dorsey Takes up the Challenge! -- Florida Nonfiction -- Popular Fiction -- Spanish Language -- Young Adult -- Children's Literature -- A Writing Life

An Examination Of The Relationship Between Attachment Style And Body Image In Adolescent Girls: A Focus On The Mother-Daughter Relationship, Jaclyn Bex

Dissertations - ALL

Using Bowlby's attachment theory and a family systems perspective, this study explored the relationships between attachment between mother and daughters, daughter's body image, and the daughter's perception of what her mother thinks of her body. It was hypothesized that secure attachment would correlate with satisfied body image in the daughters and the belief that their mother's had a satisfied image of the daughter's body. Participants were female undergraduate students recruited from a private university. Participants completed self-report questionnaires about attachment (Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment, IPPA), body image (Contour Drawing Rating Scale, CDRS), and a researcher created demographic questionnaire. …

Detection Of Dementia Risk In Primary Care: Preliminary Investigation Of A Composite Dementia Risk Score In Veterans, Jonathan Deright

Dissertations - ALL

Dementia is becoming a significant public health concern as the United States population rapidly ages. Veterans, accounting for a substantial portion of the United States population, may be at even higher risk for developing dementia as they generally have more risk factors for dementia than the general population. The current study sought to develop a modifiable composite dementia risk score, based on routinely gathered data from the primary care setting, that would predict an individual's risk for developing dementia in 10 years. A composite risk score--based on age, hypercholesterolemia, hypertension, current smoking, alcohol use disorder, and pulse pressure--was created using …

Analysis Of Copper (I) Oxide Thin Films Grown In A Photo-Assisted Chemical Vapor Deposition Reactor For Photovoltaic Applications, Omar H. Mohiuddin

All Theses

Copper (I) oxide (Cu20) has enormous potential for photovoltaic applications. Cu20 is a p-type semiconductor with a direct band gap of 2.2 eV. When grown on silicon, thin film Cu20 has the potential to increase photovoltaic efficiency. Cu20 is a suitable photovoltaic material because it is inexpensive, non-toxic and abundant in the earth's crust.

Understanding The Role Of Regulators Of Homologous Recombination, Shivani B. Shah

All Theses

DNA double strand breaks (DSB) are the most genotoxic lesions because they affect the integrity of the genome. DSBs can be caused by exogenous factors such as ionizing radiation or induced during meiosis. Failure to repair DSBs can cause genome instability, cancer and cell death. DSBs can be repaired by one of three main pathways, homologous recombination (HR), non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) and microhomology mediated end joining (MMEJ). NHEJ and MMEJ are error-prone but HR is relatively error-free since it relies on a homologous DNA sequence. Studies have shown that HR accounts for repair of about 50% of induced DSBs. …

Association Of Cardiorespiratory Fitness And Adiposity With Inflammatory Biomarkers In Young Adults, Eunduck Park

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Background: Low grade systemic inflammation plays a key role in atherosclerosis, and C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor- alpha (TNF -a), markers of systemic inflammation, are associated with cardiovascular events and adiposity. Cardiorespiratory fitness has shown health benefits by reducing circulating levels of inflammatory markers. However, it remains uncertain whether the negative association between cardiorespiratory fitness and inflammatory biomarkers is due to cardiorespiratory fitness itself or results from lower levels of adiposity. Moreover, the evidence examining the interaction between cardiorespiratory fitness and adiposity in inflammation in young adults is lacking.

Purpose: The aims of this study were …

Barriers To Swimming And Water Safety Education For African Americans, Gail H. Ito

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

No abstract provided.