Digital Commons Network^™

Structural Elucidation Of The Interaction Between Neurodegenerative Disease-Related Tau Protein With Model Lipid Membranes, Emmalee Jones

Nanoscience and Microsystems ETDs

A protein's sequence of amino acids determines how it folds. That folded structure is linked to protein function, and misfolding to dysfunction. Protein misfolding and aggregation into β-sheet rich fibrillar aggregates is connected with over 20 neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease (AD). AD is characterized in part by misfolding, aggregation and deposition of the microtubule associated tau protein into neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs). However, two questions remain: What is tau's fibrillization mechanism, and what is tau's cytotoxicity mechanism? Tau is prone to heterogeneous interactions, including with lipid membranes. Lipids have been found in NFTs, anionic lipid vesicles induced aggregation of the …

Development Of Optical Systems And Imaging Analyses For Hyperspectral Microscopy And 3d Super-Resolution Imaging, Sheng Liu

Optical Science and Engineering ETDs

Many of the unanswered questions in cellular biology involve the functionality and structural composition of different cells. Generally, most of the unanswered questions that are of interest require information regarding protein-protein interactions or information on the general structure of the cell. Most of these features exist on size scales of 10 to 200 nm, of which conventional fluorescence microscopy is incapable of resolving details less than 200 nm. Therefore, many advanced fluorescence microscopy techniques have been developed over the past few decades to address the demands of higher resolutions (both spatial and temporal) as well as multicolor imaging in order …

The Support And Encouragement For Expression Of The Circle Of Courage Values By Special Education Teachers, Daisy Thompson

Special Education ETDs

The study examined whether [or not] Special Education teachers were familiar with or utilized the Circle of Courage values (mastery, independence, generosity, and belonging) of Native American children with disabilities including intellectual disability in daily classroom interaction at three levels (elementary, middle, and high school). This study sought to examine the methods and strategies utilized by the teachers based on three research questions: (1) Are urban special education teachers familiar with the Circle of Courage values of belonging, mastery, generosity, and independence? (2) How do urban special education teachers support and encourage [or not] the expression of the Circle of …

"Fat For An Asian": The Embodiment Of Asian Stereotypes In An Online Community, Mallory Fallin

Sociology ETDs

Previous research has suggested that different racial groups have differing expectations of body size, but Asian Americans have largely been absent from this literature. Thick Dumpling Skin, a blog that focuses on body image issues and eating disorders in the Asian American community, provides an opportunity to study this unexplored topic. Thick Dumpling Skin is highly interactive and features submitted posts from multiple users. Using qualitative content analysis to code archived blog posts from 2011 to 2014, this paper studies how online users in this community come to embody stereotypes regarding the Asian body. In my analysis, I discuss how …

A Model Citizen: Ethos, Conservation, And The Rhetorical Construction Of Aldo Leopold, Daniel Cryer

English Language and Literature ETDs

This dissertation explores the changing, multifaceted ethos of Aldo Leopold (1887-1948), one of the twentieth centurys most versatile environmental communicators. Drawing on scholarship in environmental rhetoric, rhetorical genre theory, citizenship theory and ecofeminism, I argue that throughout his career Leopold offered evolving rhetorical versions of himself as ideals of ecological behavior to be emulated by his readers. The chapters analyze Leopold's ethos as it was constructed in his early-career writings in the New Mexico Game Protective Association Pine Cone, a wildlife protection broadsheet; in the Report on a Game Survey of the North Central States, his first book; in reports …

Volume 52, Number 24: January 28, 2015, University Of North Dakota

University Letter Archive

No abstract provided.

Role Discrepancy, Maternal Hardiness And Depression In Mothers Of Toddlers: A Qualitative Exploration, Angela Delgrande

Nursing ETDs

Maternal depression is a serious mental health and public health issue with the majority of research focused on depression occurring within the first postnatal year. Studies exploring maternal depression beyond the postpartum period have been conducted however the focus is typically the negative effects of maternal depression on child development. Thematic analysis was used to understand the subjective experience of mothering a toddler from the perspective of both depressed (n = 5) and non-depressed (n = 16) women with children between 12 to 24 months of age, using Mercer's role transition theory, Becoming a mother, Higgin's Self-discrepancy Theory and a …

The Candidate Cancer Gene Database: A Database Of Cancer Driver Genes From Forward Genetic Screens In Mice, Kenneth L. Abbott, Erik T. Nyre, Juan Abrahante, Yen Yi Ho, Rachel Isaksson Vogel, Timothy K. Starr

Faculty Publications

Identification of cancer driver gene mutations is crucial for advancing cancer therapeutics. Due to the overwhelming number of passenger mutations in the human tumor genome, it is difficult to pinpoint causative driver genes. Using transposon mutagenesis in mice many laboratories have conducted forward genetic screens and identified thousands of candidate driver genes that are highly relevant to human cancer. Unfortunately, this information is difficult to access and utilize because it is scattered across multiple publications using different mouse genome builds and strength metrics. To improve access to these findings and facilitate metaanalyses, we developed the Candidate Cancer Gene Database (CCGD, …

Geology & Geography News, Georgia Southern University

Earth, Environment & Sustainability: News & Publications (2013-2021)

• Geology & Geography graduates go to sea

Modes Of Engagement: Multi-Modal Curriculum And Instruction; A School-Wide Curricular Design Without Textbooks, Gael Keyes

Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs

One of the most challenging aspects of teaching and studying teaching is that the domain of teaching is so complex. This complexity has made it difficult for teachers to design curriculum and critique that evolving curriculum through ongoing reconsideration and revision in order to improve the effectiveness of instruction. An alternative curricular/instructional construct, called Modes of Engagement, was created and has been sustained for 24 years, by the principal and faculty at Desert Willow Family School, a K-8 Albuquerque Public Schools' alternative school. The Modes of Engagement, as they are employed in the teaching of mathematics at Family School, are …

Pokeweed Antiviral Protein, A Ribosome Inactivating Protein: Activity, Inhibition And Prospects, Artem V. Domashevskiy, Dixie J. Goss

Publications and Research

Viruses employ an array of elaborate strategies to overcome plant defense mechanisms and must adapt to the requirements of the host translational systems. Pokeweed antiviral protein (PAP) from Phytolacca americana is a ribosome inactivating protein (RIP) and is an RNA N-glycosidase that removes specific purine residues from the sarcin/ricin (S/R) loop of large rRNA, arresting protein synthesis at the translocation step. PAP is thought to play an important role in the plant’s defense mechanism against foreign pathogens. This review focuses on the structure, function, and the relationship of PAP to other RIPs, discusses molecular aspects of PAP antiviral activity, the …

Are States With Larger Than Average Black Populations Really The Worst Places To Live In The Usa? A Spatial Equilibrium Approach To Ranking Quality Of Life, Maury Granger, Gregory N. Price

Journal of Public Management & Social Policy

Quality-of-life rankings based on location-specific attributes/local amenities could induce elected official and policy makers into incorrectly constructing economic development plans if the ranking scheme was flawed. Hierarchical rankings of states in the USA in terms of quality-of-life that use an explicit amenity accounting method, typically assign lower ranks to states with large Black American populations. We show that these rankings utilize methodologies that are not based on economic theory, and that they arbitrarily construct ranking schemes about what individuals and firms value about the places where they locate. This pick-and-choose amenities accounting approach has its merits; however, we show that …

Evaluation Of Disinfectants To Prevent Mechanical Transmission Of Viruses And A Viroid In Greenhouse Tomato Production, Rugang Li, Fulya Baysal-Gurel, Zaid Abdo, Sally A. Miller, Kai-Shu Ling

Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Faculty Research

Background

In recent years, a number of serious disease outbreaks caused by viruses and viroids on greenhouse tomatoes in North America have resulted in significant economic losses to growers. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the effectiveness of commercial disinfectants against mechanical transmission of these pathogens, and to select disinfectants with broad spectrum reactivity to control general virus and viroid diseases in greenhouse tomato production.

Methods

A total of 16 disinfectants were evaluated against Pepino mosaic virus (PepMV), Potato spindle tuber viroid (PSTVd), Tomato mosaic virus (ToMV), and Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV). The efficacy of each disinfectant to …

The Legacy, January 27, 2015, Lindenwood University

The Legacy (2007-2018)

Student Newspaper of Lindenwood University

Minutes, Arts & Sciences Academic Affairs Committee Meeting, Tuesday, January 27, 2015, Arts & Sciences Academic Affairs Committee

Academic Affairs Committee Minutes

No abstract provided.

Ua12/2/1 College Heights Herald, Vol. 90, No. 27, Wku Student Affairs

WKU Administration Documents

WKU campus newspaper reporting campus, athletic and Bowling Green, Kentucky news.

• Rogers, Shelby & Trey Crumbie. Former Swimmer Files Hazing Allegation – Collin Craig
• Pettway, Shantel-Ann. Thompson Science Complex Renovations Underway with Demolition
• Crumbie, Trey. Free Community College Proposal Could Affect WKU
• Voorhees, Jessica. WKU Experiences Revenue Growth, Officials to Monitor Budget
• Voorhees, Jessica. Board of Regents Approve New Confucius Institute Building
• Voorhees, Jessica. Research Administrator Phased Out – Gordon Baylis
• Voorhees, Jessica. WKU Remains Engaged in Seven Lawsuits
• Lawson, Anna. Student Government Association Outlines Plans for This Spring Semester
• WKU Wants You To Speak Up: Administration Remains Unchallenged Only …

Low-Severity Fire Increases Tree Defense Against Bark Beetle Attacks, Sharon Metzger Hood, Anna Sala, Emily K. Heyerdahl, Marion Boutin

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Induced defense is a common plant strategy in response to herbivory. Although abiotic damage, such as physical wounding, pruning, and heating, can induce plant defense, the effect of such damage by large-scale abiotic disturbances on induced defenses has not been explored and could have important consequences for plant survival facing future biotic disturbances. Historically, low-severity wildfire was a widespread, frequent abiotic disturbance in many temperate coniferous forests. Native Dendroctonus and Ips bark beetles are also a common biotic disturbance agent in these forest types and can influence tree mortality patterns after wildfire. Therefore, species living in these disturbance-prone environments with …

Inhibiting Metastatic Breast Cancer Cell Migration Via The Synergy Of Targeted, Ph-Triggered Sirna Delivery And Chemokine Axis Blockade, Peng Guo, Jin-Oh You, Jiang Yang, Di Jia, Marsha A. Moses, Debra T. Auguste

Publications and Research

Because breast cancer patient survival inversely correlates with metastasis, we engineered vehicles to inhibit both the C-X-C chemokine receptor type 4 (CXCR4) and lipocalin-2 (Lcn2) mediated migratory pathways. pH-responsive liposomes were designed to protect and trigger the release of Lcn2 siRNA. Liposomes were modified with anti-CXCR4 antibodies to target metastatic breast cancer (MBC) cells and block migration along the CXCR4-CXCL12 axis. This synergistic approach—coupling the CXCR4 axis blockade with Lcn2 silencing—significantly reduced migration in triple-negative human breast cancer cells (88% for MDA-MB-436 and 92% for MDA-MB-231). The results suggested that drug delivery vehicles engineered to attack multiple migratory pathways may …

Coil-Helix Transition Of Polypeptide At Water-Lipid Interface, Ganga P. Sharma, Yana Reshetnyak, Oleg A. Andreev, Michael Karbach, Gerhard Müller

Physics Faculty Publications

We present the exact solution of a microscopic statistical mechanical model for the transformation of a long polypeptide between an unstructured coil conformation and an α-helix conformation. The polypeptide is assumed to be adsorbed to the interface between a polar and a non-polar environment such as realized by water and the lipid bilayer of a membrane. The interfacial coil-helix transformation is the first stage in the folding process of helical membrane proteins. Depending on the values of model parameters, the conformation changes as a crossover, a discontinuous transition, or a continuous transition with helicity in the role of order …

Seminar: Implementation Of Ecotourism As A Sustainable Land-Use System, Jan. 27, Ohio University College Of Arts & Sciences

All Forum Articles

No abstract provided.

The Utah Statesman, January 27, 2015, Utah State University

The Utah Statesman

Weekly student newspaper of Utah State University in Logan.

The Body Size Dependence Of Trophic Cascades, John Delong, Benjamin Gilbert, Jonathan B. Shurin, Van M. Savage, Brandon T. Barton, Christopher F. Clements, Anthony I. Dell, Hamish S. Greig, Christopher D.G. Harley, Pavel Kratina, Kevin S. Mccann, Tyler D. Tunney, David A. Vasseur, Mary I. O’Connor

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Trophic cascades are indirect positive effects of predators on resources via control of intermediate consumers. Larger-bodied predators appear to induce stronger trophic cascades (a greater rebound of resource density toward carrying capacity), but how this happens is unknown because we lack a clear depiction of how the strength of trophic cascades is determined. Using consumer-resource models, we first show that the strength of a trophic cascade has an upper limit set by the interaction strength between the basal trophic group and its consumer and that this limit is approached as the interaction strength between the consumer and its predator increases. …

The Prospector, January 27, 2015, Utep Student Publications

The Prospector

Headline: Free! 2 Years of College

Executive Committee - Meeting Minutes, 1/27/2015, Academic Senate

Academic Senate Minutes

No abstract provided.

Executive Committee - Agenda, 1/27/2015, Academic Senate

Academic Senate Agendas

No abstract provided.

Montana Kaimin, January 27, 2015, Students Of The University Of Montana, Missoula

Montana Kaimin, 1898-present

Student newspaper of the University of Montana, Missoula.

The Effects Of Actomyosin Disruptors On The Mechanical Integrity Of The Avian Crystalline Lens, Gah-Jone Won, Douglas S. Fudge, Vivian Choh

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Purpose: Actin and myosin within the crystalline lens maintain the structural integrity of lens fiber cells and form a hexagonal lattice cradling the posterior surface of the lens. The actomyosin network was pharmacologically disrupted to examine the effects on lenticular biomechanics and optical quality. Methods: One lens of 7-day-old White Leghorn chickens was treated with 10 μM of a disruptor and the other with 0.01% dimethyl sulfoxide (vehicle). Actin, myosin, and myosin light chain kinase (MLCK) disruptors were used. The stiffness and the optical quality of the control and treated lenses were measured. Western blotting and confocal imaging …

Modeling Curvature-Dependent Subcellular Localization Of The Small Sporulation Protein Spovm In Bacillus Subtilis, Vaibhav Wasnik, Ned S. Wingreen, Ranjan Mukhopadhyay

Physics

Recent in vivo experiments suggest that in the bacterium, Bacillus subtilis, the cue for the localization of the small sporulation protein, SpoVM, an essential factor in spore coat formation, is curvature of the bacterial plasma membrane. In vitro measurements of SpoVM adsorption to vesicles of varying sizes also find high sensitivity of adsorption to vesicle radius. This curvature-dependent adsorption is puzzling given the orders of magnitude difference in length scale between an individual protein and the radius of curvature of the cell or vesicle, suggesting protein clustering on the membrane. Here we develop a minimal model to study the relationship …

Reduction And Control Of Ph And Soluble Co2 For Optimal Nitrification For Domestic, Industrial And Municipal Wastewater, Peter George Stroot, Raymond Anthony Morris

USF Patents

The invention includes a method for the optimization of the soluble CO2 concentration in the aeration basin of an activated sludge system, which significantly improves the specific growth rate of the nitrifying bacteria. The result is a reduction in capital and energy costs for municipalities. The rate of nitrification is a product of the nitrifying bacteria biomass concentration and the specific growth rate of the bacteria. In the activated sludge system, the biomass concentration is maintained at high concentrations by reducing the wasting rate. The specific growth rate is a function of the ammonium concentration and the environmental conditions. Here, …

Materials And Methods For Reduction Of Protein Tau And Treatment Of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Chad Dickey, Matthew Lebar, Bill J. Baker, Jeffrey Jones

USF Patents

The subject invention provides a myricanol compound that is in predominant form of (+)-αR,11S-myricanol as compared to (−)-αS,11R-myricanol. In one embodiment, the (+)-αR,11S-myricanol is isolated from Myrica cerifera, and is in about 86% enantiomeric excess of (−)-αS,11R-myricanol. The subject invention also pertains to therapeutic compositions and methods for treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, in particular, neurodegenerative diseases associated with abnormal accumulation of protein tau. Specifically exemplified herein is the therapeutic use of myricanol and myricanone isolated from root barks of Myrica species. Also provided are methods for preparing extracts of the subject invention from Myrica species.