Digital Commons Network^™

Microbial Source Tracking Of Nonpoint Source Pollution In New Jersey Rivers, Matthew John Newton

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The bodies of water of New Jersey serve many different purposes from recreational to agricultural and drinking to waste water treatment. Due to the vast diversity of usage and the many people that rely on these water bodies for everyday life it is essential that the health and quality of the water bodies is monitored and maintained regularly. Sources of pollution that affect the health of rivers, lakes and streams include biological, microbial, physical and chemical contaminants. All of these pollutions can impact the health of the water body, the organisms living in it and those who come into contact …

Effects Of A Particular Heptapeptide On The Ifn-Α-Sensitive Cml Cells, Fulan Yang, Fangzhi Chen, Xinxing Wan, Xi Zhou, Meijuan Zhou, Hanchun Chen, Junjiang Fu, Dianzheng Zhang

PCOM Scholarly Works

Abstract: Using the phage display biopanning technique, we have previously identified a heptapeptide KLWVIPQ which specifically bind to the surface of the IFN-α sensitive but not the IFN-α-resistant CML cells. The effects of this heptapeptide to the IFN-α-sensitive CML cells were investigated in the present study. IFN-α-sensitive KT-1/A3 and IFN-α-resistant KT-1/A3R CML cells were transfected by pEGFP KLWVIPQ expression vector and/or induced by IFN-α. WST-1 cell proliferation assay, flow cytometry and western blotting were performed to determine the effects of this heptapeptide and/or IFN-α on CML cells. The viability of the KT-1/A3 cells w as inhibited and apoptosis was induced …

Undergraduate And Graduate Course Descriptions, 2015 Fall, Wright State University

Course Descriptions

Wright State University undergraduate and graduate course descriptions from Fall 2015.

Prevalence Of A Chytrid Pathogen (Batrachochytrium Dendrobatidis) In Eastern Hellbender Salamanders In New York And Pennsylvania, Linxuan Wu

Biology Theses

Amphibian populations are currently declining globally. There are many possible causes for these declines, among which an emerging infectious disease, chytridiomycosis, has been implicated. Chytridiomycosis in the U.S.A. is mainly caused by the Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis. In this study, I used qPCR assays to detect the existence of this pathogen in the Eastern Hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis alleganiensis) populations in the Allegheny and Susquehanna River drainages of New York and Pennsylvania. Chytrid is most often tested by using skin swabs, but in this study, tail clips, dorsal skin, blood and eggs were tested as well. Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis was detected …

The Sea Lamprey Meiotic Map Improves Resolution Of Ancient Vertebrate Genome Duplications, Jeramiah James Smith, Melissa C. Keinath

Biology Faculty Publications

It is generally accepted that many genes present in vertebrate genomes owe their origin to two whole-genome duplications that occurred deep in the ancestry of the vertebrate lineage. However, details regarding the timing and outcome of these duplications are not well resolved. We present high-density meiotic and comparative genomic maps for the sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus), a representative of an ancient lineage that diverged from all other vertebrates ~550 million years ago. Linkage analyses yielded a total of 95 linkage groups, similar to the estimated number of germline chromosomes (1n ~ 99), spanning a total of 5570.25 cM. …

Pathology, Distribution, Morphological And Genetic Identity Of Deladenus Proximus (Tylenchida: Neotylenchidae) A Parasitic Nematode Of The Woodwasp, Sirex Nigricornis In The Eastern United States, Elliott Andrew Zieman, John Reeve, Warren E. Braswell, Agustin Jimenez-Ruiz

Publications

The woodwasp, Sirex nigricornis (Hymenoptera: Siricidae), is solitary and utilizes a symbiotic fungus to extract nourishment from pine trees to feed its larvae. The woodwasp has a brief adult life, but the larvae develop for 1–3 years in the tree xylem. Infections with the nematode Deladenus proximus have been documented in the native woodwasp, S. nigricornis in the eastern United States and Canada. These nematodes appear to sterilize female woodwasps; however, the extent of the pathology and other aspects of the biology of D. proximus remain unknown. In this study we examined the effects of D. proximus on S. nigricornis …

A New Species Of Noblella (Amphibia, Anura, Craugastoridae) From The Humid Montane Forests Of Cusco, Peru., Alessandro Catenazzi, Vanessa Uscapi, Rudolf Von May

Publications

A new species of Noblella is described from the humid montane forest of the Región Cusco in Peru. Specimens were collected at 2330-2370 m elevation in Madre Selva, near Santa Ana, in the province of La Convención. The new species is readily distinguished from all other species of Noblella by having a broad, irregularly shaped, white mark on black background on chest and belly. The new species further differs from known Peruvian species of Noblella by the combination of the following characters: tympanic membrane absent, small tubercles on the upper eyelid and on dorsum, tarsal tubercles or folds absent, tips …

Bioenergy And African Transformation, Lee R. Lynd, Mariam Sow, Annie Chimphango, Luis Cortez, Carlos H. Brito Cruz, Mosad Elmissiry, Mark Laser

Dartmouth Scholarship

Among the world’s continents, Africa has the highest incidence of food insecurity and poverty and the highest rates of population growth. Yet Africa also has the most arable land, the lowest crop yields, and by far the most plentiful land resources relative to energy demand. It is thus of interest to examine the potential of expanded modern bioenergy production in Africa. Here we consider bioenergy as an enabler for development, and provide an overview of modern bioenergy technologies with a comment on application in an Africa context. Experience with bioenergy in Africa offers evidence of social benefits and also some …

Genotype-By-Sequencing Of The Plant-Pathogenic Fungi Pyrenophora Teres And Sphaerulina Musiva Utilizing Ion Torrent Sequence Technology, Jared M. Leboldus, Kasia Kinzer, Jonathan Richards, Zhu Ya, Changhui Yan, Timothy L. Friesen, Robert Brueggeman

Faculty Publications

Genetic and genomics tools to characterize host-pathogen interactions are disproportionately directed to the host because of the focus on resistance. However, understanding the genetics of pathogen virulence is equally important and has been limited by the high cost of denovo genotyping of species with limited marker data. Non-resource-prohibitive methods that overcome the limitation of genotyping are now available through genotype-by-sequencing (GBS). The use of a two-enzyme restriction-associated DNA (RAD)-GBS method adapted for Ion Torrent sequencing technology provided robust and reproducible high-density genotyping of several fungal species. A total of 5783 and 2373 unique loci, 'sequence tags', containing 16441 and 9992 …

Point Of No Return From Water Loss In Coptotermes Formosanus (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae), Bal K. Gautam, Gregg Henderson

Faculty Publications

Describing desiccation stages based on the physical appearance of termites has not been evaluated previously. Formosan subterranean termites were studied to determine the rate of water loss, singly and in groups, in the laboratory. The stages of water loss are described based on changes in physical appearance and percent total body water loss evaluated at 2- to 8-h time intervals up to 32 h.Workers in groups lost water slower than individual worker trials. Weight loss was linear over time for worker groups and individuals, as was individual soldier only trials. Water loss in individual workers was significantly faster than in …

Infectious Disease And Red Wolf Conservation: Assessment Of Disease Occurrence And Associated Risks, Kristin E. Brzeski, Rebecca B. Harrison, William T. Waddell, Karen N. Wolf, David R. Rabon, Sabrina S. Taylor

Faculty Publications

Infectious diseases pose a significant threat to global biodiversity and may contribute to extinction. As such, establishing baseline disease prevalence in vulnerable species where disease could affect persistence is important to conservation. We assessed potential disease threats to endangered red wolves (Canis rufus) by evaluating regional (southeastern United States) disease occurrences in mammals and parasite prevalence in red wolves and sympatric coyotes (Canis latrans) in North Carolina. Common viral pathogens in the southeast region, such as canine distemper and canine parvovirus, and numerous widespread endoparasites could pose a threat to the red Wolf population. The most prevalent parasites in red …

2015-2016 Undergraduate And Graduate Catalog, The University Of Alabama In Huntsville

Course Catalogs

No abstract provided.

Infographics And Mathematics: A Mechanism For Effective Learning In The Classroom, Ivan Sudakov, Thomas Bellsky, Svetlana Usenyuk, Victoria V. Polyakova

Physics Faculty Publications

This work discusses the creation and use of infographies in an undergraduate mathematics course. Infographies are a visualization of information combining data, formulas, and images. This article discusses how to form an infographic and uses infographics on topics within mathematics and climate as examples. It concludes with survey data from undergraduate students on both the general use of infographics and on the specific infographics designed by the authors.

Restoration And Water Management In The Atchafalaya River Basin, Louisiana, Justin Peter Kozak

Dissertations

Environmental restoration in aquatic systems requires innovative approaches that combine scientific understanding, socioeconomic demands, and local stakeholder values into decisions. However, changing approaches to water management to address these requirements is difficult because of scientific and socioeconomic uncertainty and institutional barriers that can prevent implementation of alternative water management approaches. Current restoration efforts in the Atchafalaya River Basin (ARB) of Louisiana are faced with this challenge. Water management in the ARB has evolved from strong federal control to establish the ARB as a primary floodway of the Mississippi River and Tributaries Project to a state and federal collaboration to accommodate …

The Design Of Nanostructures From The Blending Of Flowing Agents Influencing Critical Properties Of A Pharmaceutical Formulation, Casey F. Kick

Masters Theses

In the pharmaceutical manufacturing process, it is well known that flowing agents such as MgSt and Cab-O-Sil widely affect critical flow properties that influence the finished product performance of oral dosage tablets. Though the effects of flowing agents are beneficial to some extent, the sensitivity of the pharmaceutical formulation to process shearing of flowing agents during blending can be catastrophic which often results in product and batch failures. Hence it is essential to study the concentration of flowing agents and chemical nature of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) with respect to applied process shear on formulations. Previous studies have shown that …

Metal-Free Tandem Beckmann–Electrophilic Aromatic Substitution Cascade Affording Diaryl Imines, Ketones, Amines, And Quinazolines, Samuel Sarsah, Marlon R. Lutz Jr., Kailyn Chichi Bobb, Daniel Becker

Chemistry: Faculty Publications and Other Works

A cascade reaction sequence involving a Beckmann rearrangement on benzophenone oxime followed by an electrophilic aromatic substitution (EAS) on the intermediate nitrilium ion affords N-phenyl diaryl imines that may then be hydrolyzed to ketones, or reduced to the corresponding amines. Reaction with benzonitrile afforded 2,4-diphenylquinazoline through a Beckmann–Ritter–EAS cascade.

Peer Victimization And Drd4 Genotype Influence Problem Behaviors In Young Children, Lisabeth Fisher Dilalla, Kyle Bersted, Sufna Gheyara John

Articles

Decades of research supports the presence of significant genetic influences on children’s internalizing (emotional), externalizing (acting out), and social difficulties, including victimization. Additionally, being victimized has been shown to relate to further behavioral problems. The current study assessed the nature of the gene-environment relationships between the DRD4 gene, peer victimization, and externalizing and internalizing difficulties in 6- to 10-year- old children. 174 children (56% girls; 88.6% Caucasian, 3.4% African American, 8% mixed race or Mayan) and their parents were administered victimization and problem behavior questionnaires, and DRD4 was genotyped for the children. An interaction between genes (DRD4) and environment (victimization) …

Life’S Lessons In The Lab: A Summer Of Learning From Undergraduate Research Experiences, Louis S. Nadelson, Don Warner, Eric Brown

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

Research experiences for undergraduates (REUs) seek to increase the participating students’ knowledge and perceptions of scientific research through engagement in laboratory research and related activities. Various REU outcomes have been investigated, including influence on participants’ content knowledge, career plans, and general perceptions of their domains of research. The complexity of REUs and dynamic nature of student development provide opportunity for exploring how REUs influence student growth. Our research focused on first and second-year college students who participated in a residential REU program that took place in a chemistry department in a metropolitan university in the western United States. We assessed …

Food Security In Alaska: Assisting The Alaska Food Policy Council To Meet Their Strategic Plan Goals Through The Use Of Gis Mapping Technology, Melissa N. Wilson

Student Projects for Graduate Degrees

The Alaska Food Policy Council (AFPC) was established to examine how the Alaska food system functions, and to provide ideas and recommendations for improving access to healthy, affordable, culturally appropriate foods for all the state’s citizens. At the start of this project, AFPC did not have a resource tool that allows for the mapping of gaps, projects, initiatives, and strengths of the Alaska food system. Thus, this project focused on developing such a tool to assist AFPC with meeting their strategic plan goals, i.e., promoting the affordability, safety, accessibility and infrastructure of the Alaska food system. Secondary analysis of data …

Neurologically-Informed Musicking (Nim) For Relaxation : Process And Effects, Ji Young Cho

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This study aimed to look at the effects of client directed therapeutic musical improvisation on relaxation. The protocol used immediate brain wave data to inform a music therapist’s improvisation for the purpose of affecting the client’s state of rest.

Based on prior and existing music therapy techniques, this music therapy method was further developed by the researcher and thesis sponsor, and for the sake of consolidation and brevity, was given the name, Neurologically-Informed Musicking (NIM). The researcher asked the following questions: (1) What form does the NIM process takes when relaxation is a clinical goal? How (if at all) does …

A Study Of Ret Dependent Transcriptional Changes Of Cell Signaling Proteins In Neuroblastoma Cells, Elizabeth Yvonne Flores

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The ret proto-oncogene codes for a receptor tyrosine kinase involved in the pathogenesis of numerous developmental defects, particularly those in neural crest-derived structures leading to the regulation of cell proliferation, migration, differentiation and survival during embryogenesis. Constitutive activation or inactivation of the RET receptor results in the cancer syndrome Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia or Hirschsprung's disease, respectively. The importance of RET in these disease states has been well established. However, while many proteins associated with the RET signaling pathway have been identified, the transcriptional changes induced by the wild type receptor, particularly with respect to these signaling proteins in neuroblastoma cells, …

The Effects Of Crude And Pure Green Tea Polyphenols On Bacteria Biofilm Formation And Endospore Germination, Hassan Tahir

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Over the past couple of decades humans have been combating the problem of multi-drug resistant microorganisms. Multi-drug resistant strains o f microorganisms have been causing not only problems for medical settings, but the world as well. Because of the continuous use of antibiotics within our time and age, there has been a huge increase in antibiotic resistant bacteria. In addition to the rise in multi-drug resistant bacteria over time, endospore cells have been causing increased levels of food-bourne illnesses. Thus, there is a need for novel antimicrobial agents from nature derived products as an alternative way to treat and control …

Scrap Tire And Water Treatment Residual As Novel "Green" Sorbents For Removal Of Common Metals From Polluted Storm Water Runoff, Ciapha Nade Morris

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Although urbanization brings numerous benefits in our history, it has caused many environmental issues such as polluted urban runoff. A variety of pollutants at high concentrations, such as heavy metals, are present in urban runoff. Given that the polluted runoff is finally discharged into receiving waters and leads to non-point pollution in urbanized areas, appropriate management and treatment of the polluted urban stormwater is highly needed. However, current available best management practices (BMPs) are, to different degrees, restricted by their respective limitations. Therefore, there is an urgent demand in development of innovative, effective, and low-cost treatment methods for heavy metals …

A Developmentally-Informed, Stage-Based Model Of Music Therapy In Cancer Care, Cheryl Lynn Olson

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The physical needs of cancer patients have been documented and accounted for in various methods and theories. Some of the emotional needs of patients have been addressed as well. However, the purpose of this paper is to address the need for a music therapy model that relates developmental life stages to the needs of cancer patients. A brief literature review of physical and emotional needs of cancer patients will be presented, as well as a life-stage model of cancer in terms of Diagnosis, Treatment, and Outcome. Based on the existing literature, this study will develop a music therapy model targeting …

Effects Of Allosteric Mutations On Dihydrofolate Reductase, Marian Okondo

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) is an essential enzyme necessary in the synthesis of DNA precursors. DHFR acquires resistance to numerous known anti-folates and this has led to the continuous need to discover novel and selective DHFR inhibitors. Allosteric mutations on Bacillus stearothermophilus (Bs.) DHFR were previously found to alter inhibitor binding and specificity. In this work, we investigate how these mutations affect the conformational motions of DHFR associated with inhibitor binding. Two distal allosteric mutations, isoleucine at position 86 to alanine (I86A) and tyrosine at position 127 to alanine (Y127A) were separately introduced to C73A/S131C, a previously modified wild type DHFR …

Biogeochemical Studies Of Metal Uptake And Transportation In Plants On An Urban Brownfield, Yu Qian

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Soil metal contamination has been a concern due to the potential ecological and human health risks. In order to assist with the management and sustainable restoration of vegetated metal contaminated land, this dissertation targets at understanding the biogeochemical processes that control the assimilation of metals by plants on urban costal brownfield soils. The dissertation includes: i) micro-scale measurement of metal spatial distribution and speciation using synchrotron techniques to investigate the mechanism of metal uptake and translocation in roots based on the association between metal localizations in plant roots, ii) study on the biogeochemical factors that control plant metal assimilation efficiency …

Changes In Tall Shrub Abundance On The North Slope Of Alaska, 2000-2010, Rocio Raquel Duchesne-Onoro

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The observed greening of Arctic vegetation and the expansion of shrubs in the last few decades has likely had profound implications for the tundra ecosystem, including feedbacks to climate. Uncertainty surrounding the magnitude, direction, and implications of this vegetation shift calls for monitoring of vegetation structural parameters, such as fractional cover of shrubs. Due to the extent of the North Slope of Alaska and its extreme environments, remote sensing may be the most suitable tool to produce wall-to-wall fractional shrub cover maps for the entire region, however, most regional maps have relied on vegetation indices or needed many years worth …

Oncolog, Volume 60, Number 08, August 2015, Stephanie Deming, Bryan Tutt, K. Nair

OncoLog MD Anderson's Report to Physicians (All issues) Archives

• New Gene Therapy for Bladder Cancer Shows Promise: A gene therapy that stimulates interferon production within the body may prove to be effective against high-risk, early-stage bladder cancer when standard treatment fails.
• Vaccine Helps T Cells Target Sarcomas, Melanomas and other Tumors: A vaccine that delivers an antigen to dendritic cells, in turn activating killer T cells that can target specific cancers, is the subject of two ongoing clinical trials,
• INBRIEF: Glypican-1 Shows Promise as a Biomarker for Pancreatic Cancer/Stereotactic Ablative Radiation Therapy for Stage I Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer May Offer Survival Benefit
• HOUSE CALL: Prostate Cancer Screening-Who should …

A Greener Dominican?: The Journey Of A University Perched On The Threshold Of Sustainability, Lauren Guittard

Senior Theses

We live in a culture in which we find ourselves disconnected with the natural world and yet suffering from the mounting implications of the impact that our actions as developing industry-based societies have had on the ecological systems of the planet. Institutions of Higher Education, such as colleges and universities, educate most of the people who develop and manage institutions in society. As centers for learning and the dissemination of knowledge, institutions of higher learning have an obligation to promote a culture of sustainability within their communities.This paper that explores concepts of sustainability in relation to higher education with particular …

Child Health Professionals And Their Role In Detecting Speech And Language Impairments: Perceptions And Current Practices, Carissa A H Johnson

Master's Theses

Speech-language impairments are one of the most common conditions of childhood and affect roughly 5-8% of preschoolers and 11-20% of kindergarteners. If left untreated, speech-language impairments persist in 40-60% of children under five years of age and are strong predictors of school failure. Despite strong evidence that supports early intervention, as many as 90% of eligible children are not receiving appropriate services. This qualitative research study investigated child health professionals’ current knowledge, perceptions, and practices for screening and referring children with possible speech and language impairments. Data were gathered primarily through participant interviews and scenario questions. The data were then …