Digital Commons Network^™

Faculty Perceptions Of The Purpose And Value Of General Education: A Comparison Between The Liberal Arts And Health Professions, Shireen Rahman

All Theses And Dissertations

This study examined the perceptions of the purpose and value of the general education curriculum in those undergraduate faculty members who teach in the liberal arts and the health professions at the University of New England. Perceptions were evaluated within each college and then compared between each College. A mixed-methods approach was utilized with concurrent implementation of qualitative and quantitative strands. Data were gathered from the Faculty Survey on General Education which was completed by fifty-six (29.3%) of the undergraduate faculty members. In addition, twelve faculty members were randomly selected to participate in open-ended interviews. Descriptive statistics and independent t-tests …

Feasibility Of Using Raman-Based Techniques For Breast Cancer Detection, Sara Mollamohammada

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Breast cancer is one of the common types of cancer among women all over the world. Early diagnosis is an effective way that improve the treatment process and gives the patients a better chance of survival. Many of the patients infected by breast cancer choose breast conservation surgery (BCS). However, some of those will be subjected to mastectomy, and many will have tumor recurrence as there is no precise technique to show the tumor margins. Raman-based methods are powerful techniques with potential to rapidly differentiate normal from tumor tissues and provides a solution to detect tumor margin. This is because …

Pamam Dendrimers As Promising Nanocarriers For Rnai Therapeutics, Prashant Kesharwani, Sanjeev Banerjee, Umesh Gupta, Mohd Cairul Iqbal Mohd Amin, Subhash Padhye, Fazlul H. Sarkar, Arun K. Iyer

Pharmaceutical Sciences Faculty Publications

Therapeutics based on RNA interference mechanisms are highly promising for the management of several diseases including multi-drug resistant cancers. However, effective delivery of siRNAs and oligonucleotides still remains challenging. In this regard, hyper-branched, PAMAM dendrimers having unique three-dimensional architecture and nanoscale size, with cationic surface charge can potentially serve as siRNA condensing agents as well as robust nano-vectors for targeted delivery. In addition, their surface functionality permits conjugation of drugs and genes or development of hybrid systems for combination therapy. Thus far, in vitro cellular testing of dendrimer-mediated siRNA delivery has revealed great potential, with reports on their in vivo …

Role Of Recent And Remote Context Exposures On Incubation Of Fear Memories, Peter Zambetti

Psychology

Studying learning and memory through the methods of Pavlovian fear conditioning has been a topic of behavioral neuroscience research for decades. Anxiety disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder can be modeled in rodents through fear conditioning. This study took on a different approach to study the learning and recall of a fear memory by using a within subjects group. This group was tested at both a recent and remote interval. The recent timepoint was three days after conditioning and the remote timepoint was thirty-one days after conditioning. The timepoints are used to observe the effect the passage of time has …

Discrete Davydov's Soliton In Α-Helical Protein Molecule With Anharmonic Hydrogen Bond And Thermal Noise, Frank T. Ndjomatchoua, Clément Tchawoua, Joël D.T. Tchinang, Bruno P. Lerü, Henri E.Z. Tonnang

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

An improvement of the Davydov's model for energy transfer in α-helix protein is proposed. Using hyperbolic cosine potential type to model hydrogen bond potential, we have obtained from the adiabatic approximation, a discrete nonlinear Schrödinger equation with inverse hyperbolic sine nonlinearity. Using the two-dimensional discrete map approach, we have found a linearly stable intrinsic localized mode of the corresponding developed equation. Mobility of the intrinsic localized mode was achieved by moving the local impurity hypothesized as the anomalous band energy. The reactivity of the discrete breather under thermal noise was studied numerically with the Langevin's approach. It was shown that …

The Theory Of Philanthropy Of The Alberta Family Wellness Initiative, James Radner, Nathaniel Foote, Michael Quinn Patton

The Foundation Review

This article presents the theory of philanthropy of the Palix Foundation, which seeks to improve health and wellness outcomes for children and families in Alberta, Canada, by mobilizing and applying knowledge about brain and early childhood development and the link to lifelong mental health and addiction outcomes.

Through years of intuitive exploration and adaptation, the foundation evolved its role to include brokering access to the latest scientific knowledge, convening key players in multiple forums to explore applying that knowledge, and serving as a learning partner to public systems and communities in Alberta.

Following evaluation of a major phase of the …

Executive Functioning Outcomes Among Self-Harming Adolescents Receiving Dbt-A, Alphonso A. Smith

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Changes in WM, GM, and neural activation in networks involving the PFC underlie the development of EFs during adolescence; however, adolescents with DSH have impaired EFs in the areas of inhibition, emotion regulation, shifting, and interpersonal functioning. DBT-A has been shown to be effective in treating these youth and the skills of mindfulness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance, interpersonal effectiveness, and “walking the middle path” are suited to treat their impaired EFs. As such, this study examined EF changes in adolescents receiving DBT-A and discussed implications for treatment and brain-behavior relationships. Ninety-three adolescents from a 16-week DBT-A program for DSH were …

Construction Of Pooled Oocyte Expression Profiles Of Rhesus Monkey And Mouse For Concurrent Meta-Analyses, Kaj Chokeshaiusaha, Denis Puthier, Catherine Nguyen, Thanida Sananmuang

The Thai Journal of Veterinary Medicine

Concurrent gene expression profiling meta-analysis of in vitro and in vivo matured oocytes among mammals can provide crucial knowledge to assist reproductive technologies. Due to the lack of methodology to prepare oocyte datasets for such analysis, we illustrated the procedures to merge in vitro and in vivo matured oocyte expression profiling datasets of rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta) and mouse (Mus musculus). Datasets acquired from both species were pooled together based on types of their orthologous genes. To determine the feasibility of constructed pooled data, top orthologous genes differentially expressed between in vitro and in vivo oocytes were identified by Linear …

Unveiling The Crucial Intermediates In Androgen Production, Piotr J. Mak, Michael C. Gregory, Ilia G. Denisov, Stephen G. Sligar, James R. Kincaid

Chemistry Faculty Research and Publications

Significance: The human enzyme cytochrome P450 17A1 (CYP17A1) catalyzes the critical step in the biosynthesis of the male sex hormones, and, as such, it is a key target for the inhibition of testosterone production that is necessary for the progression of certain cancers. CYP17A1 catalyzes two distinct types of chemical transformations. The first is the hydroxylation of the steroid precursors pregnenolone and progesterone. The second is a different reaction involving carbon–carbon (C-C) bond cleavage, the mechanism of which has been actively debated in the literature. Using a combination of chemical and biophysical methods, we have been able to trap and …

Effects Of Nitrogen Fertilization On The Life History Of The Madeira Mealybug (Phenacoccus Madeirensis) And The Molecular Composition Of Its Host Plant, Stephanie Alliene Rhodes

All Theses

The aim of this study was to investigate how different nitrogen fertilization rates of host-plants influence the development, fecundity, and nutritional status of a pest insect,the Madeira mealybug (Phenococcus madeirensis Green, Hemiptera: Psuedococcidae).This study evaluated the effects of nitrogen fertilization (0, 75, 150 and 300 ppm N) onthe growth, % nitrogen, % carbon, lipid, and protein contents of basil plants (Ocimum basilicum L., Lamiaceae), and the subsequent impacts of host-plant nutritional status onthe life history and total lipid and protein contents of the Madeira mealybug. Heights androot lengths of plants fertilized with 75 ppm N were greater than those of …

"She Just Wanted To Get With An Athlete": The Effects Of Race And Status On The Public's Perception Of Guilt In Sexual Assault Cases, Katie Barnes

All Theses

This thesis explored the effects of race and athlete status on the public’s perceptions of guilt in sexual assault cases. It investigated how race and athlete status of a man accused of sexually assaulting a woman affected the perceived believability of the accuser and the perceived severity of the crime. It also explored the correlation between perceived guilt and rape myth acceptance. The results of this thesis did not directly support the hypotheses but hypothesis 4 was significant in suggesting that participants who gave any of the accused a lower guilt rating had higher levels of rape myth acceptance. The …

Capillary-Channeled Polymer Fibers As Stationary Phases For Protein Chromatography, Marissa Pierson

All Theses

Capillary-channeled polymer (C-CP) fibers have been studied in this laboratory as stationary phases for protein separations in high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). C-CP fibers are uniquely shaped so as to include eight continuous capillary-channels which interdigitate once packed into a column. The packed column resembles a monolithic structure of unobstructed flow through capillary channels which reduces backpressure and increases linear velocity, reducing separation time. Fibers are effectively nonporous with respect to macromolecules, resulting in fast mass transfer and high sample recovery. C-CP fibers made from polypropylene (PP) yield a fairly homogenous hydrophobic surface suitable for reversed phase (RP) chromatography. In a …

Characterization Of A Multi-Laminate Angle-Ply Af Patch For Annulus Fibrosus Repair, Ryan Borem

All Theses

Annually, over 5.7 million Americans are diagnosed with two IVD-associated pathologies: IVD herniation (IVDH- a mechanical disruption of the concentric fibrous layers of the annulus fibrosus (AF))) and degeneration (IVDD- a multifactorial process which initiates within the inner gelatinous core (NP), and results in a biochemical degradation of NP tissue), with over 2.7 million requiring surgical inteventions.1,2 Although both underlying pathologies are different, quite often they both lead to a decrease in IVD height, impaired mechanical function, and increased pain and disability. These pain symptoms affect approximately 80% of the adult population during their lifetime with estimated expenditures exceeding $85.9 …

Patient-Driven Vs. Evidence-Centric Decision Models In The Treatment Of Hemophilia, Christopher C. Lamb

Student Scholarship

Physicians treating hemophilia face difficult decisions related to complex bleeding disorders. To understand how physicians in the United States (US) and the United Kingdom (UK) make critical, life-saving decisions, a qualitative study was performed involving a series of interviews with treatment experts from each country. A total of twenty-four (24) physicians from the US and the UK were asked about their experiences treating hemophilia and how they made certain decisions. American physicians tend to be patient-centric; they are more influenced by a patient's specific preferences and unique, individual conditions. British physicians are more evidence-centric where they approach the patient based …

The Effects Of Alpha Stimulation On Induced Anxiety, Nolan Thomas Hill

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Anxiety is defined as an emotional and physical reaction that prepares us to confront a feared stimulus. Among the many measureable changes induced by anxiety are changes in facial electromyography (EMG), heart rate (HR), and sweat gland activity (EDG). At a pathological level anxiety interferes with cognitive processes. Currently, when anxiety crosses into the pathological level, it is treated with a variety of therapies that share in their use of periods of exposure to anxiety-inducing stimuli. Several devices have been developed to alter brain activity by transcranial electrical stimulation (TCES). One such device, Alpha-Stim^®, has been shown to …

Image Processing And Visualization Of Terahertz Pulsed Imaging Of Breast Cancer Tumors, Yuhao Wu

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Terahertz imaging technology has grown substantially in recent years. With new advances made in the generation, manipulation, and detection of terahertz radiation, terahertz imaging has found its application as inspection tools in a wide range of areas including biomedicine, materials science, and aerospace industries. In the field of medical imaging, terahertz (THz) has emerged as a new imaging modality due to some fundamental physical properties of the THz wave. THz imaging has been used to examine various biological structures, and THz tomography has been developed to probe the 3D structures of those samples.

THz pulsed imaging (TPI) is one of …

Movements, Habitat Use, And Demography Of Western Pond Turtles In An Intermittent Central California Stream, Joseph Paul Belli

Master's Theses

By Joseph P. Belli

Western Pond Turtles, Emys (Actinemys) marmorata, were captured (n=173) in 2011 (wet year) and 2012-2013 (successively drier drought years) along upper Coyote Creek, an intermittent stream in central California. Males outnumbered females 2.8:1, juveniles less than 120 mm long made up 26% of captures, growth rates varied among individuals, and little growth occurred in turtles older than 10 years. I radio-tracked turtles from May 2011 through August 2013 to ascertain movements and seasonal habitat use. Males had much larger home ranges than females (means of 2281 m for males and 501 m for females in 2012), …

Natural And Anthropogenic Disturbance In Mcmurdo Sound, Antarctica: Iceberg Scours, Human-Derived Pollutants, And Their Effects On Benthic Communities, Clint Alan Collins

Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of icebergs on infaunal communities in McMurdo Sound, using cores taken from naturally occurring scours, experimental plots simulating iceberg disturbance, and undisturbed reference areas spanning a 24 year time period. Iceberg scours and experimental plots altered infaunal abundances, reduced diversity, and changed species compositions. Abundances were lower at inside scour locations, dominated by a suite of mobile crustaceans. Common sessile space-dominating species were higher at scour edges, suggesting that recolonization of scours occur inward from the edges. When compared to other samples from the McMurdo Sound exposed to varying degrees …

Characterization Of Gut Associated Circulating Invariant Natural Killer T Cells (Inkt) In Chronic Inflammation Of The Intestine, Venus Allahyarzadeh

Master's Theses

The incidence of chronic intestinal diseases such as Crohn’s disease (CD), ulcerative colitis (UC), and celiac disease is steadily rising in pediatric patients in the United States. Although there is an influx of helper T cells to the gastrointestinal (GI) tract in these diseases, the immunopathologic mechanisms of specific T cell subsets are not clearly understood and diagnosis between these diseases is difficult. We hypothesized that the frequency of specific subsets of circulating invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells and their surface trafficking receptor (TR) phenotype indicate location and degree of inflammation in patients and further help to distinguish between …

Face Recognition: An Engineering Approach, Farshad Ghahramani

Master's Theses

In computer vision, face recognition is the process of labeling a face as recognized or unrecognized. The process is based on a pipeline that goes through collection, detection, pre-processing, and recognition stages. The focus of this study is on the last stage of the pipeline with the assumption that images have already been collected and pre-processed. Conventional solutions to face recognition use the entire facial image as the input to their algorithms. We present a different approach where the input to the recognition algorithm is the individual segment of the face such as the left eye, the right eye, the …

Screening Bioactive Molecules In Tetrahymena Thermophila Using Phagocytosis Determined By Flow Cytometry, Santosh Gummidipundi

Master's Theses

The evaluation of molecules that have potentially bioactive significance is an expanding field, but current screening assays are expensive and time consuming. Mammalian cell-based assays require aseptic techniques, complex media and long generation times. This thesis reports on an assay that incorporates Tetrahymena phagocytic ingestion and flow cytometry to evaluate several potentially bioactive molecules. Several factors that influenced optimal and reproducible results were analyzed. Seven potentially bioactive molecules (serotonin, norepinephrine, dopamine, morphine, colchicine, mexiletine and procainamide) were evaluated to determine their effect on phagocytosis by Tetrahymena. Assay results indicated that the phagocytic rate was unaffected by serotonin, norepinephrine, dopamine, and …

Consumer Complaints And Protection: Stable Analysis And Design Patterns, Vishnu Sai Reddy Gangireddy

Master's Theses

The concept of consumer complaints and protection has numerous applications across various domains. Using traditional methods of modeling design patterns is a tedious and costly task. The Software Stability Mode (SSM) is a more efficient and effective modeling method. In this thesis, the differences between the traditional method and the SSM is addressed. Then, several patterns are developed using the SSM to deal with consumer complaints. Each area, Advice, Appraisal, Commitment, Complaint, Compliance, Deed, Guideline, Gratification, Judgment, Model, Need, Ownership, Promotion, Rate, Review, Selling, Support, View, and Violation, is explored and the core knowledge of the concept of consumer complaints …

Mitochondrial Dysfunction And Lipid Metabolism Play A Major Role In The Lethality Caused By Developmental Alcohol Exposure, Payam Khodabakhshi

Master's Theses

Exposure to ethanol during development causes a variety of physical, developmental, and cognitive abnormalities. In humans, these symptoms are referred to as fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) or fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). Previously, we established a Drosophila melanogaster model of FASD and showed that developmental ethanol exposure causes oxidative stress, and that this is a primary cause of the developmental lethality and delay associated with ethanol exposure. In this study, we investigate the role of fatty acid metabolism and lipid accumulation in connection to FASD. Here, we show that developmental ethanol exposure leads to dysregulation of fatty acid metabolism and …

Burrowing Owl (Athene Cunicularia) Diet And Abundance At A Stopover And Wintering Ground On Southeast Farallon Island, California, Sara Lee Chandler

Master's Theses

On the Farallon Islands the burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia) is a native migrant and predator of the non-native house mouse (Mus musculus) and the native ashy storm-petrel (Oceanodroma homochroa). Burrowing owl predation on the ashy storm-petrel is unnaturally exacerbated by the abundance of house mouse prey in the fall, which may encourage more owls to overwinter. When the cyclic mouse population crashes in winter, the owls prey upon storm-petrels, a species of conservation concern. In 2009, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed eradication of the house mouse from the Farallon Islands in order to reduce owl predation on and …

Quantifying Variability In Oculomotor And Manual Choice Response Times, Angelica Godinez

Master's Theses

Response times (RTs) of various motor systems have traditionally been used to characterize aspects of human performance (e.g., fatigue, disease states). However, the properties and sensitivity of different motor systems to detect changes in neural states across multiple timescales remain an open question. In this thesis, we attempt to characterize the difference in sensitivity of the pursuit, saccadic, and manual systems to detect changes in stimulus strength. In Experiment 1, we used a modified Yes-No task to test the effects of contrast (5, 10, 20, 40, 80, 100%) on three pursuit, saccadic, and manual RT’s for three observers. In Experiment …

Sex Role Type As A Predictor Of Gender Stereotype Use In The Evaluation Of Others: Does Being Atypical Preclude Sex Typing Of Others?, Jennifer L. Miller

Master's Theses

The purpose of this investigation was to see if sex role adherence could be used to predict gender stereotype use when viewing children. This was tested using a conceptual replication of an influential gender label study by Condry and Condry in which participants viewed a video of a baby crying in response to a startling event. Contrary to the Condry findings, this study found that participant perception of why a baby was crying was not consistent with the gender label given (consistent, being angry for the boy label and fearful for the girl label). Participant ratings did not vary significantly …

Factors Affecting Western Snowy Plover Winter Foraging Habitat Selection In San Francisco Bay Ponds, Benjamin Gabriel Pearl

Master's Theses

Within the San Francisco Bay Area, Western Snowy Plovers (Alexandrinus

nivosus nivosus) nest and winter in former salt ponds. They face a number of threats

including human-altered habitats and high levels of predation by mesopredators and

raptors. The South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project (the Project) is a large wetland

restoration project that will change and potentially eliminate snowy plover habitat in the

region. As the Project returns salt ponds to tidal wetland, there will be less of the dry,

flat, and sparsely vegetated habitat that plovers need for breeding and wintering habitat.

A greater understanding of the specific microhabitat …

Synthesis, Structural Characterization And Chromatographic Evaluation Of Silica Hydride-Based Perfluorinated Stationary Phase, Harshada Suyog Natekar

Master's Theses

Silica hydride based stationary phases have demonstrated unique selectivity and specificity for small sized polar molecules. The weakly hydrophobic nature of silica hydride is thought to be the key reason for its remarkable retention capabilities. Traditional stationary phases bonded with fluorine moieties have also exhibited enhanced retention of small polar molecules. In this research, a perfluorinated silica hydride stationary phase was synthesized by hydrosilation and silanization procedures. Chromatographic characterization of the newly packed column was carried out by a large number of retention studies. The separation capabilities of the column were evaluated in both the aqueous normal-phase (ANP) and reversed-phase …

Complex Effects Of Nitrogen Pollution And Grazing On Nectar Resources Of The Adult Bay Checkerspot Butterfly (Euphydryas Editha Bayensis), Nidhi Jain

Master's Theses

Recent anthropogenic increases in atmospheric nitrogen due to urbanization and combustion have had many adverse effects on natural systems, including loss of biodiversity, especially in sensitive habitats. One such region is the serpentine ecosystem of Coyote Ridge in San Jose, CA, the last refuge for recurring populations of the federally threatened Bay Checkerspot Butterfly (BCB) (Euphydryas editha bayensis). Increases in non-native grass cover and decreases in native forb cover (including cover of the BCB’s native larval host plants) have been attributed to the fertilizing effects of increased atmospheric nitrogen deposition. To counteract this effect, grazing has been implemented as a …

Chloroflexi: The Tale Of A Bacterium Present In Human And Environmental Habitats, Jayashree Sanjeeviraman

Master's Theses

The phylum Chloroflexi is relatively unexplored, with the majority of its representatives being uncultivable. As a result, these microorganisms have not been characterized beyond their morphology and simple staining reactions, making the study of this phylum extremely challenging. Chloroflexi has been detected in the human oral cavity of patients suffering from peri-implantitis and in the vagina of patients suffering from bacterial vaginosis. Interestingly, Chloroflexi is also present in various environments such as freshwater lakes, soil, deep-sea sponges, hot springs and activated wastewater. Isolation of an environmental Chloroflexi with high 16S rRNA gene homology to a human-associated counterpart could be used …