Digital Commons Network^™

Compensatory Mechanisms And T Cell Migration In Mouse Models Of Dopaminergic Loss, Kristi M. Anderson

Theses & Dissertations

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the most common neurodegenerative movement disorder and second most common neurodegenerative disorder. PD is characterized by the selective loss of dopaminergic neurons and dopamine neurotransmitter within the substantia nigra and termini in the striatum. Progressive loss of dopaminergic neurons occurs over many years in PD, and by the time movement disorder symptoms manifest, up to 50-70% of dopaminergic neurons have been lost. Several aspects of PD pathology have been described in detail, but a better understanding of PD progression is needed to develop more efficient treatments.

Motor symptoms associated with PD do not manifest until significant …

The Effect Of Body Mass Index On Graft Function And Kidney Transplant Outcomes, Morgan Galle

Theses & Dissertations

Background: When determining eligibility for kidney transplantation, body mass index (BMI) is often a debatable criterion for transplant due to the clinical indication, an elevated BMI has adverse effects on kidney transplant outcomes. There is a current gap in research on the effect BMI has on kidney transplant outcomes.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the role BMI plays in post-kidney transplant clinical outcomes including delayed graft function, new onset diabetes after transplant, wound complications, hospital length of stay, albumin, and readmissions to the hospital from initial hospitalization and at six months following kidney transplantation. The primary …

Antiviral Peptide Nanocomplexes As Potential Therapeutics For The Treatment Of Infectious Diseases, Jinjin Zhang

Theses & Dissertations

Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) is recognized as a major burden in global public health, which can be further exacerbated by several cofactors such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Currently, there is no vaccine for HCV. The emergence of potent and highly specific direct-acting antivirals (DAA) has marked a new era in HCV therapy, however, the remaining issues like affordability, genotype dependency, and potential resistance still necessitate the development of additional therapeutic approaches to be used instead or in combination with DAA.

Recently, the antiviral peptide C5A (in our studies designated as p1) and its cationic derivative p41 have been identified …

Biodegradable Hybrid Nanogels For Combination Chemotherapy, Swapnil Desale

Theses & Dissertations

Combination chemotherapy is commonly used to treat cancer, because such a therapy regimens usually involve sequential administration of multiple drugs and allow targeting different cell signaling pathway. The co-delivery of drug combination at a controlled ratio via the same vehicle is offering the advantages such as spatial-temporal synchronization of drug exposure, synergistic therapeutic effects and suppression of drug resistance. Undoubtedly, there are several molecular and pharmacological factors that determine the effectiveness of drug combinations. A rationally designed drug combination is required since certain drug ratios and the definitive exposure to the targets of interest can only be synergistic while others …

Interaction Between Angiotensin Ii And Bdnf In Modulating Sympathetic Nerve Activity, Bryan K. Becker

Theses & Dissertations

Over activation of the sympathetic nervous system is prevalent in many forms of cardiovascular disease such as chronic heart failure (CHF) and hypertension. Although increased neuronal renin-angiotensin system activity in presympathetic neurons has been well implicated in mediating this sympatho-excitation, many of the neuronal effects of angiotensin II (Ang II) signaling remain poorly understood. One particular mechanism of Ang II-mediated increases in presympathetic neuronal activity is through reductions in voltage-gated K⁺ currents. Another pathway that has profound effects on neuronal K⁺ currents and that has been previously implicated in Ang II-signaling is brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) activity through …

Examining Employee Knowledge Of The Jennie Edmundson Hospital Active Shooter Policy, Mallory W. Darais

Theses & Dissertations

Nationally, there has been a large increase in the number of active shooter events within healthcare facilities such as hospitals. Due to this increase, government organizations have recently released documents to guide healthcare facilities on implementing active shooter policies and updating emergency operation plans. Currently, recommendations from government entities such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Homeland Security suggest the “Run, Hide, Fight” approach during an active shooter incident. Jennie Edmundson Hospital, located in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and affiliated with the Methodist Health System, currently has an active shooter policy in place. Data was collected from …

The Effects Of Severe Weather Warnings On Limited English Proficient (Lep) Hispanics/Latinos In Rural Nebraska, Joan E. Nelson

Theses & Dissertations

The language barrier may severely restrict how severe weather warnings are received and responded to by Hispanics/Latinos in rural Nebraska, a state well known for frequent, volatile weather patterns. Nearly 50% of Spanish speaking Nebraskans rated their English abilities as “less than very well” (US Census Bureau, 2013). The estimated number of Hispanics/Latinos with limited English proficiency (LEP) in Nebraska equates to approximately 57,000 people. This thesis attempted to assess English ability and how severe weather warnings were received and responded to by LEP Hispanics/Latinos in rural Nebraska. This was accomplished by analysis of data from completed optional Spanish or …

A Role For Ehd Family Endocytic Regulators In Endothelial Biology, Alexandra E. J. Moffitt

Theses & Dissertations

Endocytic trafficking is an essential process in eukaryotic cells, specifically for the transport of nutrients, membrane components, and receptors. Cargo destined for endocytic traffic is internalized at the cell surface via clathrin-dependent and clathrin-independent pathways, and brought to the early or sorting endosomes. From there, cargo is further trafficked to lysosomes for degradation, trafficked to other compartments in the cell, or recycled back to the cell surface (either directly or via the endocytic recycling compartment).

Mammalian C-terminal Eps15 homology domain-containing proteins, or EHD proteins (EHD1 to 4), are a family of highly conserved ATPases that function as key regulators of …

Computation Of A Virtual Tide Corrector To Support Vertical Adjustment Of Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Multibeam Sonar Data, Lawrence H. Haselmaier

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

One challenge for Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) multibeam surveying is the limited ability to assess internal vertical agreement rapidly and reliably. Applying an external ellipsoid reference to AUV multibeam data would allow for field comparisons. A method is established to merge ellipsoid height (EH) data collected by a surface vessel in close proximity to the AUV. The method is demonstrated over multiple collection missions in two separate areas. Virtual tide corrector values are derived using EH data collected by a boat and a measured ellipsoid to chart datum separation distance. Those values are compared to measurements by a traditional tide …

An Actor's Method To Building The Character Of Hamlet In The Tragedy Of Hamlet, Prince Of Denmark, Samuel C. Malone Iii

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This thesis will set out to examine the process needed in order to deliver the character of Hamlet as a fully dimensional, complex human being who transcends time periods and class distinctions to connect with any audience of any background. This text will include biographical information about the author, William Shakespeare, as well as historical information about the circumstances and atmosphere surrounding the birth of this play. It will also include information about other performances, which will serve as references for comparison in terms of character development. Included in the scored actor’s script are the Sanford Meisner Techniques of moment-to-moment …

Correlations Between Quantitative Fat–Water Magnetic Resonance Imaging And Computed Tomography In Human Subcutaneous White Adipose Tissue, Aliya Gifford, Ronald C. Walker, Theodore F. Towse, E Brian Welch

Peer Reviewed Articles

Beyond estimation of depot volumes, quantitative analysis of adipose tissue properties could improve understanding of how adipose tissue correlates with metabolic risk factors. We investigated whether the fat signal fraction (FSF) derived from quantitative fat–water magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans at 3.0 T correlates to CT Hounsfield units (HU) of the same tissue. These measures were acquired in the subcutaneous white adipose tissue (WAT) at the umbilical level of 21 healthy adult subjects. A moderate correlation exists between MRI- and CT-derived WAT values for all subjects, R²=0.54, p<0.0001, with a slope of −2.6, (95% CI [−3.3,−1.8]), indicating that a decrease of 1 HU equals a mean increase of 0.38% FSF. We demonstrate that FSF estimates obtained using quantitative fat–water MRI techniques correlate with CT HU values in subcutaneous WAT, and therefore, MRI-based FSF could be used as an alternative to CT HU for assessing metabolic risk factors.

John Milton: Not War, Not Peace, Not Exactly Grotian, William T. Abbott

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Foreword

This paper will be of value in answering continuing questions regarding John Milton's position on war and peace. The questions continue and are valid because Milton's works, as considered in the paper, offer support for both pro-war and pro-peace interpretations. The paper also addresses a middle-ground interpretation-that Milton's position can best be understood in light of the legal theories of Hugo Grotius, the seventeenth-century Dutch scholar who is generally accepted as the father of modern international law.

The works considered include, among others, the Nativity Ode, the sonnets, Paradise Lost, Paradise Regained, Samson Agonistes (including post 9/11 controversy involving …

Dissent, John P. Belli Iii

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Quantitative Study Of The Variables That Influence Work-Family Conflict Of Female Counselors, Emeline Eckart

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between female counselors’ work-family conflict and their demographic (i.e., ethnicity, age, educational level, and annual household income), occupational (i.e., ethnicity, age, educational level, and annual household income), and family (i.e., marital/partner status; number of children at home under the age of 18; age of youngest child; care of elderly, ill, or disabled family members; source of support; and support) characteristics. Super’s (1990) Life-Space Life-Span theory provided a framework to understand female counselors’ engagement in multiple roles in work and family and the conflict that can result in two directions: work …

Truth Or Consequences—Academic Physicians’ Perspective In The Management Of Commercially-Influenced Conflicts Of Interest, Melinda Lawrie Epperson

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Since the 1990s, academic physicians have been subjected to increased requirements for disclosure in their roles as educators and researchers and for conflict of interest (COI) resolution in their financial relationships with pharmaceutical, medical device, and biotech companies, collectively referred to as industry. The requirements are the result of the convergence of federal regulations, accreditation guidelines, professional and industry codes of ethics and conduct, and institutional policies. The disclosure and COI resolution requirements are managed and resolved by a review of forms and compliance with relevant guidance documents and policies. In the context of this environmental oversight, the purpose of …

Cognitive Castles: Place And The Castle Of Otranto, Kevin I. Flotte

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This article analyzes The Castle of Otranto from a biocultural perspective. Firstly, the theoretical landscape of Gothic horror is explored. This is followed by some suggestions on how evolutionary approaches might add to the conversation about Gothic horror. The last section applies evolutionary and cognitive approaches to The Castle of Otranto in a reading of the novel. Attention is paid to the varied ways in which Gothic horror subverts and undermines evolved strategies for the creation of meaning and understanding. Gothic tropes such as the Gothic tunnel or labyrinth undercut the dynamic and ongoing creation of place that is essential …

Venereal Disease And American Policy In A Foreign War Zone: 39th Infantry Regiment In Sidi-Bel-Abbes, Algeria. May Of 1943., Thomas J. Gibbs

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Second Lieutenant Charles Scheffel, B Company Platoon Leader, 39^th Infantry Regiment, 9^th Infantry Division modified existing methods of venereal disease control in Algeria, North Africa during Operation Torch after being ordered to reduce the venereal disease rate by his regimental commander, Colonel William Ritter. Tasked with defeating the Germans first, Scheffel learned other enemies lurked as well, and he instituted an illegal policy to solve the problem as fast and as effectively as possible. Official United States policy on the eve of World War Two prohibited the establishment and operation of a brothel. Scheffel operated this brothel as …

Fear Of Inclement Weather, Clare L. Harmon

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

“In My Fiction I Never Say Anything Which Is Not Absolutely True”: Reassessing Constance Fenimore Woolson’S Literary Realism, Ashley N. Hemm

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Despite her immense popularity in the nineteenth century, Constance Fenimore Woolson's reputation dwindled substantially in the decades which followed. While her works have been rediscovered over the past thirty years, they are often categorized as regionalist writing or, in the case of her penultimate novel, Jupiter Lights, melodrama. What many fail to consider, however, is that Woolson very much considered herself a realist author, and may have been remembered as such were it not for the influence of William Dean Howells and his peers, whose very narrow parameters for literary realism excluded Woolson, among others. Unfortunately, those parameters are …

Two Essays In Finance And Economics: “Investment Opportunities In Commodity And Stock Markets For G7 Countries” And “Global And Local Factors Affecting Sovereign Yield Spreads”, Selma Izadi

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

In chapter 1, I investigate the return links and dynamic conditional correlations between the equity and commodity returns for G7 countries from 2000:01 to 2014:10. The commodity futures include BCOM Index which contains the futures and spot price of 22 commodities, Brent and Crude oil futures, gold and silver futures, Wheat, Corn and Soybean futures and CRB index. The finding indicates that during the full sample period GOLD, WHEAT and CORN have the smallest dynamic conditional correlations with all the Equity indexes. In addition, the correlations between the GOLD/Equity pairs are negative during the financial crisis. This fact indicates the …

Are Physically Active College Students More Successful Academically Than Their Inactive Peers?, Jared T. Meacham

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This research project intended to explore the possible relationship between physical activity and academic achievement in college students. Using an anonymous online survey, data was collected over two semesters. Ten thousand currently-enrolled college students ages eighteen and older from all states and recognized territories of the United States participated. The survey gathered data concerning a student’s age, gender, race, body weight, height, geographic region of college attendance, cumulative GPA, and physical activity level. The FIT Index of Kasari was used to classify each student’s physical activity level. A quintile split by FIT score was conducted to determine if physically active …

Landscape To Mindscape, Regina S. Scully

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

In each of my paintings I try to create an individual micro-universe made up of elements that resonate between the familiar and the unknown. I carve up space and hybridize disparate elements, in an effort to excavate objects and spaces from our collective unconscious. By employing different perspectives, I try to encourage an experiential view of the landscape, like the one that exists for the viewer in the physical world, where sightlines are constantly shifting. These landscapes become a rhythmic labyrinth to enter and travel through, wherein the viewer experiences his or her own personal associations.

In this thesis, I …

A (Julia) Rholes To Remember, Edwin B. Smith

University of Mississippi News

No abstract provided.

Quiet On The Set, William M. Hamilton

University of Mississippi News

No abstract provided.

Global Health Security Agenda Legal Landscape Assessment, Natasha M. Nussbaum

Master's Projects and Capstones

The Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA) was created on February 13, 2014, to improve country's ability to detect, prevent and respond to emerging health threats. Eleven action packages were created. The detection action package included antimicrobial resistance, zoonotic diseases, national biosafety/biosecurity and immunization. The prevention action package included establishing a national laboratory system, strengthening real-time biosurveillance, advancing timely and accurate disease reporting and establishing a trained global health security workforce.The response action package focused on establishing emergency operation centers, linking public health and law enforcement and enhancing medical countermeasures/personnel deployment.

The following paper summarizes the components performed for the GHSA …

N653 Fall Prevention Final Project, Sam Clark

Master's Projects and Capstones

N653 Fall Prevention Final Project

by Samuel K. Clark, RN

This project was done with patient safety in mind through the use of the most current EBP available.

It Came Across The Plains: The 1918 Influenza Pandemic In Rural Nebraska, Kristin Watkins

Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this historical case study was to understand and describe rural community experiences during the 1918 influenza pandemic in Nebraska.

Examining the rural experience in Nebraska during the 1918 influenza pandemic provided a new level of insight into the differences and similarities between the urban and rural experience. As related by a detailed study of Omaha during the 1918 pandemic, the community was devastated by disease. Despite public ordinances and health department warnings, streetcars ran at capacity, parades were held to raise money for war bonds, and the annual Aksarben Coronation took place. Cases of flu were too …

Acute Methamphetamine Exposure Affects Histone Modifying Enzymes And Cytokine Production In Macrophages, Ariel Burns

Theses & Dissertations

The effects of methamphetamine (Meth) in the periphery are not well studied and a comprehensive investigation on the effects and molecular mechanism will give insight into why Meth users are at an increased risk of infections. For this reason, we use macrophages as a model for the immune system dysregulation seen in Meth abusers and also because macrophages are a long-lived cell that HIV infects and persists in. We aimed to determine the effects of Meth on the cytokine production, histone modifying enzymes and the corresponding histone post-translational modifications, and the molecular mechanism in HIV-infected human macrophages treated with combination …

The Effects Of Thc On Attentional Bias To Emotional Stimuli, Sydney N. Haberberger

Honors Theses

The current study tested the hypothesis that the effects of THC on affect are mediated by the ability of THC to alter attentional bias to positive and negative stimuli. The study was completed by 16 participants, all of whom were consistent marijuana users. During sessions, participants used a machine called a Quantified Smoke Delivery System, which delivers a controlled amount of smoke to the user, to smoke either a cigarette that contained THC or a placebo cigarette. After smoking, participants would complete a task. During tasks, participants were placed in an eye tracking apparatus in order to record the movement …

Velocirapture, Katheryn Warzak

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

N/A