Digital Commons Network^™

Endocytic Trafficking Of The Amyloid Precursor Protein In Rat Cortical Neurons, Sahily Reyes

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Amyloid-beta (Aβ) aggregation and deposition into extracellular plaques is a hallmark of the most common forms of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease. The Aβ-containing plaques result from pathogenic cleavage of amyloid precursor protein (APP) by secretases resulting in intracellular production of Aβ peptides that are secreted and accumulate extracellularly. Despite considerable progress towards understanding APP processing and Aβ aggregation, the mechanisms underlying endosomal production of Aβ peptides and their secretion remain unclear. Using endosomes isolated from cultured primary neurons, we determined that the trafficking of APP from the endosomal membrane into internal vesicles of late endosome/multivesicular bodies (MVB) is dependent on …

Membrane Bound Il21 Promotes Natural Killer Cell Expansion Through Mir 124-3p Mediated Regulation, Anitha Somanchi

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Natural Killer (NK) cells are cells of the innate immune system that act as first line of defense against viral infections and participate in tumor immune surveillance. NK cells do not cause graft versus host disease (GvHD), or require prior antigen exposure to exert anti-tumor activity, hence are an attractive choice for immunotherapy applications. Owing to small numbers of NK cells in peripheral blood (1-32%, with a 6% median), ex vivo expansion of NK cells is critical for NK cell adoptive immunotherapy, various expansion platforms have been explored over the decades. We developed a robust platform for ex vivo expansion …

Emotional And Cognitive Engagement In Higher Education Classrooms, Kristine C. Manwaring

Theses and Dissertations

This is a multi-article format dissertation that explores emotional and cognitive engagement in higher education classrooms. Student engagement in higher education classrooms has been associated with desired outcomes such as academic achievement, retention, and graduation. Student engagement is a multi-faceted concept, consisting of behavioral, emotional, and cognitive components. A deeper understanding of how these components interact would allow instructors and course designers to facilitate more engaging learning experiences for students. The first article is an extended literature review that investigates the extant empirical research on the relationship between emotional and cognitive engagement, and between emotional engagement and academic outcomes in …

The Production Function Of The Regulatory State, J.B. Ruhl, Jonathan R. Nash, James Salzman

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

How much will our budget be cut be this year? This question has loomed ominously over regulatory agencies for over three decades. After the 2016 presidential election, it now stands front and center in federal policy, with the Trump administration pledging over $50 billion in cuts. Yet very little is known about the fundamental relationship between regulatory agencies budgets and the social welfare outcomes they are charged to produce. Indeed, the question is scarcely studied in scholarship from law, economics, or political science. This article lays the groundwork for a new field of theoretical and empirical research, using what we …

Transforming (Perceived) Rigidity In Environmental Law Through Adaptive Governance, J.B. A. Ruhl, Hannah Gosnell, Brian C. Chaffin, Craig A. Arnold, Et Al.

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

The Endangered Species Act (ESA) is often portrayed as a major source of instability and crisis in river basins of the U. S. West, where the needs of listed fish species frequently clash with agriculture dependent on federal irrigation projects subject to ESA Section 7 prohibitions on federal agency actions likely to jeopardize listed species or adversely modify critical habitat. Scholarship on Section 7 characterizes the process as unwaveringly rigid, the legal hammer forcing federal agencies to consider endangered species needs when proposing operations and management plans for federally funded irrigation. In this paper, we identify barriers to an integrated …

Access To Healthy Foods: A Descriptive Analysis Of Farmers’ Markets, Food Deserts & Usda Food Assistance Programs In Tennessee Census Tracts, Twanda D. Wadlington

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Food deserts are a growing problem in the United States, and occur in areas of low-income where people have limited access to healthy foods. In response, the presence of farmers’ markets has grown exponentially, and improved healthy food access. Additionally, the USDA has strived to connect families to healthy foods through food assistance programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), and the Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program (SFMNP). This study investigated the relationship between farmers’ markets, their acceptance of food assistance benefits, and their locations within Tennessee …

Native And Community College Transfer Students In Biological Sciences At A Four-Year Institution: A Comparative Study, Nathanial Weber

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate differences between native and community college transfer students and identify factors that predicted upper-level biology course grade-point average and final overall grade-point average at a four-year institution in biological sciences. The results of this study indicated four-year institution persistence was not significantly related to gender, high school grade-point average, or ACT composite score. Persistence was significantly related to transfer status; whether the student was a native or community college transfer student with native students persisting at a higher rate at the four-year institution than community college transfer students. Furthermore, ACT composite score, …

Online Learning In Biology: An Investigation Into Designing Online Learning Resources, William Ford

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As technology continues to advance, many instructors are incorporating online activities into their courses. While online learning has several benefits, there is still debate on how instructors can best develop and utilize these resources in their classroom. This study is split into two smaller projects that both aim to provide further insights on how to develop online activities that target undergraduate biology students. The first project revealed that elaborative feedback in a phylogenetic activity was more useful for students who had some exposure to phylogenetics prior to completing the activity. The results of the second project revealed that the appearance …

Design And Validation Of A Scale For Preschoolers: Measuring Nutrition Knowledge, Beliefs, And Behaviors, Michelle E. Johnson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The literature indicates a lack of validated scales to measure nutrition knowledge, attitudes and behaviors in preschool-aged children. Reliable and valid assessment tools are critical in the development of nutritional interventions for young children; careful design, including psychometric evaluation of reliability and validity, is the best approach to scale development. Best practice points to an efficient, yet comprehensive look at the constructs of knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors. This multi-phase study included 298 preschool children ages 2-6 years (151 girls, 147 boys; mean age 3.936). A 45-item scale was created, with 4 subscales to measure the nutrition knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors …

The Effects Of A Supermarket Tour On Improvement Of Nutrition Knowledge And Eating Behavior, Elizabeth Hall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if participation in a supermarket tour improves nutrition knowledge and eating behavior in adult participants. Participants were recruited in communities surrounding Food City stores, a local supermarket. Prior to completing a standardized tour, participants completed a survey to assess nutrition knowledge and eating behavior. This survey was given to participants again three months later. A program evaluation was given one time at the end of the tour. Data analysis revealed no significant findings, other than the behavior-based question: “How many meals or snacks on most days included vegetables”. Vegetable consumption appeared to …

Examining The Understanding Of Inquiry-Based Learning And Teaching Among Undergraduate Teachers And Students, Maren Hudson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

One of the main aims of inquiry is to engage students as active, not passive, participants in science. The purpose of this study is to describe science educators’ and students’ views about inquiry-based instruction in order to better understand and improve implementation of evidence-based teaching strategies. Inquiry-based techniques have been shown to improve student understanding of scientific concepts, yet, there continue to be challenges in implementing these techniques. This research project utilizes Q Methodology, a research method that captures both common and disparate measures of subjectivity, to identify commonalities and defining viewpoints about inquiry-based teaching and learning. Three significantly different …

Study Of 2,5-Diaminoimidazolone, A Mutagenic Product Of Oxidation Of Guanine In Dna, Hannah Catherine J. Pollard

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

2,5-diaminoimidazolone (Iz) is an important product of a 4-electron oxidation of guanine. The present research focuses on the mechanisms of formation of Iz via pathways initiated by guanine oxidation by one-electron oxidants (OEOs) generated by X-ray radiolysis in aqueous solutions. The kinetics of formation and yields of Iz in reactions of native highly polymerized DNA with different OEOs have been compared using an HPLC-based quantitative analysis of low-molecular products generated from the reaction of DNA-bound Iz with primary amines. Mechanisms of Iz formation in DNA have been investigated including oxygen and superoxide dependence as well as the hypothesis that 8-oxo-G, …

The Algz/R Two-Component System Is Responsible For Attenuation Of Virulence In Pseudomonas Aeruginosa, Danielle A. Williams

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an important opportunistic pathogen. Many P. aeruginosa virulence factors are regulated by the AlgZ/R two component system. AlgZ is the sensor histidine kinase which phosphorylates AlgR, the response regulator. AlgR activates transcription of different gene targets based upon its phosphorylation state. The genes that encode AlgZ and AlgR are transcribed in an operon. While regulation of algR expression has been well studied, regulation of algZ expression has not. Using a pilW mutant in concert with algZTF-lacZ transcriptional fusion, we conducted a transposon mutagenesis to identify algZ regulators. We identified an unknown autoregulatory loop. The type …

Predicting And Promoting Health-Related Quality Of Life For Parents Of Children With Autism: A Mixed-Methods Approach, Laura Delustro

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The present study used a mixed methodology approach to understand factors that predict and promote health related quality of life (HRQOL) for parents of youth with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). The first component of the study used quantitative analyses to determine the extent to which study variables predict HRQOL for parents of youth with ASD (N = 365). Findings show that HRQOL is positively impacted by increased total annual household income, increased age of the child with ASD, male gender, and tangible support. HRQOL was negatively impacted by increased age of the parent, increased parental perceptions of burden, and …

Geochemical Controls Of Iodine Sorption To Wetland Sediments, Allison C. Sams

All Theses

Understanding the transformations of iodine during sorption to soils present in redox transition zones is critical for understanding risks from iodine-129 release into the environment. In this work, sorption of iodine to a wetland soil from the Savannah River Site was monitored as a function of time and total iodine concentrations from initially iodide or iodate sources. Batch experiments were performed in order to investigate the effects of organic matter on total iodine sorption and to investigate the rates of iodate and iodide sorption and desorption in a wetland soil. Sorption of iodide was slower than sorption of iodate. Indirect …

Effects Of Rider Experience Level On Horse Kinematics And Behavior, Rebekah Strunk

All Theses

Large riding lesson programs are an essential part of the horse industry. To meet demand and remain profitable, lesson barns sometimes require horses to work multiple times a day with different rider levels. There is little guidance as to the behavioral and physical effects of such protocols, so lesson program managers have limited scientific evidence upon which to base horse management and welfare decisions. The current data regarding horse and rider interactions includes motion pattern variability, trunk and spine kinematics and force plate analyses. While these data are helpful to explain scenarios that can affect the horse with an accomplished …

Influential Factors In The College Decision-Making Process For Chinese Students Studying In The United States, Madeline Adele Rafi

All Theses

For more than 974,000 international students, the United States is the destination of choice to pursue higher education. Although Chinese students account for almost one in three international students in the U.S., there are many unknowns about the influential factors behind their college decision. This phenomenological study explores the self-described most important factors for Chinese students' decision to attend college in the United States and the sources they seek to make their decision. Through interviews with students originally from China who attained their undergraduate degree from a U.S. university, my goal was to understand how individuals arrive at his/her alma …

Effects Of Prescribed Forest Fire On Water Quality And Aquatic Biota In The Southeastern United States, Wenbo Zhang

All Theses

Prescribed burning has long been in the history of pine dominated forests for thousands of years before European settlement in the Southern Unites States, and continues to be an important management tool today. This style of management can have various environmental effects on vegetation, soil, wildlife, air, and water quality. Among these potential environmental effects, impact of fire on water quality have received very limited research attention. Increasing reports of negative changes in water quality has been reported following intense wildfire events in the recent years. However limited reports about prescribed fire impact on water quality and aquatic ecosystems have …

Interleukin-12/Hfasti: A Humanized Bifunctional Fusion Protein For Cancer Immunotherapy, Chelsea Anne Pennington-Krygier

All Theses

Cancer remains a major health issue worldwide, and the leading cause of death in nearly half the states in America. As our understanding of the immune system has improved, so too has our ability to create and tailor immunotherapy and gene therapy for cancer treatment. Therapy with cytokines to boost immune activity against cancer cells has had limited success, but is largely restrained by the toxicity of systemic administration of the high doses needed to elicit the desired effect. Also limiting the effect of such cytokine therapy is the issue of cancerous cells already implementing tactics to evade immune detection, …

Green Salamander Distribution, Abundance, And Physiology In The Southern Blue Ridge, Jillian C. Newman

All Theses

Green salamanders, Aneides aeneus, are a priority species throughout their range and have been negatively affected by habitat loss, climate change, disease, and over-collection. Many historical locations for this species in the Blue Ridge Escarpment have not been visited for ~25 years and thus were in need of a status update. I constructed both small-scale and large scale distribution models for green salamanders. For the small-scale distribution model, I conducted visual encounter surveys across three counties in South Carolina using a headlamp to search rock outcrops and binoculars to search trees. I detected green salamanders at 30 of the …

North American Bat Monitoring Program (Nabat) In South Carolina: Acoustic Detection And Landscape Occupancy Of Bats, Benjamin D. Neece

All Theses

Bats are under threat from habitat loss, energy development, and the disease white-nose syndrome. The North American Bat Monitoring Program (NABat) suggests standardized, large scale monitoring to benefit ecologists and managers. Our first objective was to determine the efficacy of NABat in South Carolina. Detection probabilities differ within and among species and among survey conditions. Thus, our second objective was to determine factors affecting detection probabilities. Finally, effective management strategies addressing large scale threats require landscape scale analyses. Thus, our third objective was to conduct state-wide assessments of environmental factors influencing landscape occupancy and generate predicted distributions. We conducted NABat …

Tactile Interactions, Lacy Ann Miller

All Theses

This installation of utilitarian ceramics developed from the value I place on function, ergonomics, tactility, and surface decoration which abstractly reference the biological structures facilitating our perception. I bring together these elements to playfully explore our relationships with objects - my pots are intended to be filled with food or drink, picked up, passed to a neighbor, and enjoyed in lively daily use. Audiences are familiar with tableware, its use and purpose in the home are common across history and culture. This intimate acquaintance places my work closer to its intended destination- people's lives and hands. Referring to this phenomenon …

Neonatal Growth Measurements, Umbilical Concentrations, And Differential Gene Expression In The Placenta Of Swine In Relation To Placental Efficiency, Shanice Katelin Krombeen

All Theses

Placental efficiency (PE) describes the relationship between placental and fetal weights and is defined as fetal weight divided by placental weight. Within pig litters, PE can vary drastically, resulting in similarly sized pigs associated with very different placenta, up to a 50% weight difference. However, the means enabling the smaller placenta to grow a similarly sized littermate is unknown. The main objectives of this study were to (1) determine the concentration of glucose and cortisol in venous umbilical blood of pigs at birth and evaluate if a relationship existed between concentration and PE, and (2) determine the expression level of …

Evaluation Of Shallow Hydraulic Fractures Characterized Using Geophysical Methods, Jessica L.S. Denison

All Theses

Hydraulic fractures are often used to stimulate fluid flow from wells in low permeability geologic units. This capability has been beneficial to the oil and gas industry as well as the remediation industry. The shape and extent of a hydraulic fracture and the distribution of granular proppant affects the performance of a hydraulic fracture during well stimulation. Several methods of tracking the location of hydraulic fractures have been developed (tiltmeter mapping, microseismic detection, and electric potential), but none have the ability to image the distribution of proppants. Electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) has been proposed as a new method to track …

A Hybrid Approach For Treatment Of Naphthenic Acid Fraction Compounds In Oil Sands Process-Affected Water, Daniel Peter Gaspari

All Theses

Extensive volumes of oil sands process-affected waters (OSPWs) are produced at surface mines in the Athabasca Oil Sands. OSPW contains constituents, including a complex mixture of refractory organics known as naphthenic acid fraction compounds (NAFCs), that require treatment prior to government-mandated reclamation of mining leases. Hybrid constructed wetland treatment systems (CWTSs) implementing film-based TiO2 photocatalysis were investigated as a passive, low-energy method for treatment of constituents of concern (COCs) in OSPW.

Bench-scale settled TiO2 batch reactors were assembled and degradation of NAFCs in a specific OSPW was measured as a function of cumulative solar ultraviolet radiation (UV insolation) and by …

Characterization Of Surface Modified Orthopedic Implants For Their Antimicrobial Properties, Shayesteh Beladi Behbahani

All Theses

Contamination of combat trauma wounds with environmental residues can lead to bacterial infection of orthopedic fractures, which causes delay and difficulties in patient treatment. The reported infection rate of the improvised explosive devices (IED) injuries is 91%, and biofilm formation on orthopedic implants can lead to chronic infection with a rate of 40% in fracture wounds. Designing orthopedic implants that can self-regulate local infection and biofilm formation is beneficial for these patients. Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and biodegradable chitosan with local antibiotic (vancomycin) elution were deposited on the stainless steel and titanium implant samples (coupons) to reduce biofilm formation and bacterial infection. …

Mining Location And User Information From Users’ Trajectories, Marcello Tomasini

Theses and Dissertations

The understanding of human mobility is integral to the advancement of many fields including public health, city planning, economic forecasting, and it attracts the interest of researchers from a broad number of fields. The work of such researchers would not have been possible without the availability of large localized datasets such as mobile phone Call Detail Records (CDRs) provided by telco operators and Location Based Social Networks (LBSNs) check-ins provided by popular applications such as Twitter, Facebook and Foursquare. However, such datasets are often incomplete, anonymized, and/or inaccurate. Hence there is a need to partially reconstruct or extract more information …

Development Of New Bioinformatic Approaches For Human Genetic Studies, Jose Andres Guevara Coto

All Dissertations

The development of bioinformatics methods for human genetic studies utilizes the vast amount of data to generate new valuable information. Machine learning and statistical coupling analysis can be used in the study of human diseases. These diseases include intellectual disabilities (ID), prevalent in 1-3% of the population and caused primarily by genetics. Although many cases of ID are caused by mutations in protein-coding genes, the possible involvement of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in ID due to their role in gene expression regulation, has been explored. In this study, we used machine learning to develop a new expression-based model trained using …

Characterization Of Volatile And Non-Volatile Compounds And Classification Of Different Cultivars Of Chinese Ziziphus Jujuba Mill. Fruits, Lina Wang

All Dissertations

Jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.) is a desirable fruit that is widely grown in China. Also, it has been used as an herbal medicine and a functional food simultaneously for a very long time. In this study, 15 cultivars of jujube that were collected from a same farm in Shanxi Province, China, were analyzed in terms of their non-volatile components, including reducing sugars, organic acids, fatty acids, amino acids, minerals and antioxidants, and volatile compounds, in an effort to investigate their nutritional values, and the similarity between the cultivars so as to classify the cultivars based on their chemical composition. …

Expanding The Genetic Toolbox To Improve Metabolic Engineering In The Industrial Oleaginous Yeast, Yarrowia Lipolytica, Murtaza Shabbir Hussain

All Dissertations

The oleaginous yeast, Yarrowia lipolytica, is becoming a popular host for industrial biotechnology because of its ability to grow on non-conventional feedstocks and naturally accumulate significant amounts of lipids. With new genome editing technologies, engineering novel pathways to produce lipid-derived oleochemicals has become easier. The goal, however, is to expand the genetic toolbox to improve the efficiency of metabolic engineering such that production capacities could expand from proof-of-concept shake flasks to an industrial scale. Building efficient metabolic circuits require controlling strength and timing of several enzymes in a metabolic pathway. One method to do this is through transcription – …