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Tsai Today (2017), Southern Methodist University, Dedman School Of Law, Tsai Center For Law, Science And Innovation

Tsai Today

No abstract provided.

Comparison Of Microscopy, Elisa, And Real-Time Pcr For Detectionof Giardia Intestinalis In Human Stool Specimens, Yunus Emre Beyhan, Zeynep Taş Cengi̇z

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

Background/aim: This study included patients who had digestive system complaints between August 2015 and October 2015. The research was designed to compare conventional microscopy with an antigen detection ELISA kit and the TaqMan-based real-time PCR (RT-PCR) technique for detection of Giardia intestinalis in human stool specimens. Materials and methods: Samples were concentrated by formalin-ether sedimentation technique and microscopic examinations were carried out on wet mount slides. A commercially available ELISA kit (Giardia CELISA, Cellabs, Brookvale, Australia) was used for immunoassay. DNA was extracted from fecal samples of about 200 mg using the QIAamp Fast DNA Stool Mini Kit (QIAGEN, Hilden, …

Hybrid Stochastic Systems: Numerical Methods, Limit Results, And Controls, Tuan A. Hoang

Wayne State University Dissertations

This dissertation is concerned with the so-called stochastic hybrid systems, which are

featured by the coexistence of continuous dynamics and discrete events and their interactions. Such systems have drawn much needed attentions in recent years. One of the main reasons is that such systems can be used to better reflect the reality for a wide range of applications in networked systems, communication systems, economic systems, cyber-physical systems, and biological and ecological systems, among others. Our main interest is centered around one class of such hybrid systems known as switching diffusions. In such a system, in addition to the driving force …

Mri Methods For Imaging The Feto-Placental Vasculature And Blood, Uday Krishnamurthy

Wayne State University Dissertations

Fetal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in recent times has become a well-established adjunct to ultrasound (US) in routine clinical prenatal care and diagnostics. The majority of fetal MRI is restricted to T2-weighted scans, where the diagnosis is based on the appearance of normal and abnormal tissue. Although there have been many advancements in MRI and a plethora of sequences, that probe different anatomical and different physiological process, the adaptation of these in fetal imaging has been rather slow. Many of these can extract quantitative parameters that can throw light on the underlying tissue’s normal/patho-physiology. But the use of such quantitative …

Rituals Reproducing Race: African American Women's Feminine Hygiene Practices, Shared Experiences, And Power, Angela K. Guy-Lee

Wayne State University Dissertations

This dissertation is an exploration of the role African American women’s feminine hygiene practices, namely vaginal douching, plays in the creation and reproduction of race. Compared to their white and Latina counterparts, African American women are the most likely to engage in this practice. Vaginal douching is associated with myriad reproductive and sexual health problems. These problems include but are not limited to recurrent yeast infections, bacterial vaginosis, disrupting healthy vaginal microbiomes, and spontaneous preterm birth; of which African American women experience disproportionately. Although racial differences in vaginal douching are well documented, little is known about the impetus for African …

Biochemical, Structural, And Drug Design Studies Of Norovirus And Zika Virus Proteases, Ben Kuiper

Wayne State University Dissertations

Noroviruses, which are the leading cause of acute gastroenteritis, cause an estimated 677 million infections and 213,000 deaths each year worldwide. Noroviruses are classified into seven genogroups (GI-GVII); GI, GII, and GIV have been shown to be infectious in humans. However, GII noroviruses cause the majority of outbreaks (89%). No pharmacologic treatment or vaccine currently exists to treat or prevent norovirus infections.

Recently, the development of a norovirus replicon system, a murine model of norovirus infection, and the development of a biochemical protease assay have allowed for the design and development of norovirus inhibitors. However, the replicon and biochemical assay …

The Prevalence And Needs Of Homeless Undergraduates At A Large, Urban University, Corissa Carlson

Wayne State University Dissertations

Empirical research has been limited with respect to homelessness among college undergraduates. Research on educational outcomes has been limited to K-12th grade, but what is known points to worse outcomes for people who are homeless. The National Coalition for the Homeless (2014) reported that 75% of homeless or runaway teenagers drop out of school. Furthermore, while federal funding though the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act has been able to help younger students, funding for homeless youth considering or attending college is minimal. Recently, some more attention has been given to this issue through the College Cost Reduction Access Act (CCRAA) which …

Biomaterials Approaches For Utilizing The Regenerative Potential Of The Peripheral Nerve Injury Microenvironment, Melissa Renee Wrobel

Wayne State University Dissertations

Clinically available treatments are insufficient to achieve full functional recovery in large (>3cm) peripheral nerve injuries (PNI). The objectives in this thesis were 1) to study often overlooked elements of intrinsic PNI repair including release of inhibitory CSPGs and post-injury responses of inflammatory macrophages and dedifferentiated Schwann cells; 2) to create biomaterial scaf-folds featuring topographical and adhesive cues to enhance neurite outgrowth; and 3) to test the ability of those cues to direct macrophages and Schwann cells towards a pro-regenerative phe-notype. It is hypothesized that recapitulating the positive and negative cues of the PNI microenvi-ronment can better improve regeneration. …

Functions Of Atr/Mec1 In Meiosis And The Cell Cycle, Layne Weatherford

Wayne State University Dissertations

Mec1 is a protein kinase in S. cerevisiae that is critical for the DNA damage checkpoint response, and is the yeast orthologue of the human ATR protein. Cancer cells rely on ATR to arrest the cell cycle and allow sufficient time to repair DNA damage before proceeding through the cell cycle, and ATR inhibitors have been developed as possible anti-cancer agents. DBF4 is the regulatory subunit of DBF4-dependent kinase (DDK) that regulates initiation of DNA replication and is overexpressed in a number of different cancer types. To better understand ATR and DBF4 function, we took advantage of yeast genetics to …

Utility Of Ultrasound/Photoacoustic Imaging For Accurate Catheter Tracking And Temperature Monitoring During Endovenous Laser Ablation, Ayushi Jharia, Keerthana Palani, Yan Yan

Research Opportunities for Engineering Undergraduates (ROEU) Program 2016-17

Laser ablation is a treatment method that uses light energy through a catheter inserted into a vein to induce localized heat to close the diseased blood vessels. Ultrasound (US) imaging has been used for catheter visualization and tracking. US has limitations for tracking the accurate location of the fiber tip inside small perforating veins such as angular dependency and comet tail artifacts. We propose a robust and accurate method for fiber tip tracking using combined US and Photoacoustic (PA) imaging to overcome the existing limitations.

The Influence Of The Physical Workspace On Creative Performance: Alternative Mediation Models, Reed James Bramble

Wayne State University Theses

The present study assessed how individuals respond to stimuli in their immediate work environment. Specifically, I conducted a laboratory experiment with a student sample to test the influence of natural stimuli in the workspace on individuals’ creative performance. Additionally, I tested a series of potential mediating variables that could have driven the effect: state positive affect, state openness to experience, and self-regulation of effort. While the results indicated that the hypotheses were broadly unsupported, supplemental analyses revealed that the intervention significantly predicted effort regulation in a high-performing subgroup. Study limitations and recommendations for future directions are discussed.

Patholigical And Prognostic Role Of Mdig In Pancreatic Cancer, Srinivas Ashok Kumar

Wayne State University Theses

Pancreatic cancer is a highly aggressive malignant disease having very limited therapeutic options that ultimately results in its poor prognosis. It is still elusive on the etiology and tumorigenic mechanisms of pancreatic cancer. In the present report, we provide evidence showing involvement of the mineral dust-induced gene (mdig) in the pathogenesis and prognosis of the pancreatic cancer. Using immunohistochemistry approach on human pancreatic cancer tissue microarray, we found differential expression of mdig in pancreatic adenocarcinoma and normal pancreas. Based on the staining intensities of mdig in these tissue samples, we found that 12% of the cancer tissues were strongly positive …

The Effect Of Acetylation Of Cytochrome C On Its Functions In Prostate Cancer, Viktoriia Bazylianska

Wayne State University Theses

Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death among men in America. The progression of cancer goes along with the Warburg effect, a metabolic switch from depending primarily on mitochondrial respiration to glycolysis. In addition, cancer cells manage to evade apoptosis. Cell signaling, via posttranslational modifications (PTMs), is one of the most important means of regulation, and most commonly dysregulated in cancer. In prostate cancer, androgen signaling plays a crucial role in driving cell proliferation.

Mammalian Cytochrome c (Cytc) is a multifunctional protein involved in cellular life and death decision. It is an essential component of the electron …

Metformin, Glucotoxicity And Islet Dysfunction, Sartaj S. Baidwan

Wayne State University Theses

METFROMIN, GLUCOTOXICITY AND ISLET DYSFUNCTION

by

SARTAJ BAIDWAN

MAY 2017

Advisor: Dr. Anjaneyulu Kowluru

Major: Pharmaceutical Sciences

Degree: Master of Science

Glucotoxicity is the leading cause for β-cell dysfunction [e.g., defective glucose-stimulated insulin secretion] in Type 2 Diabetes [T2DM]. Recent studies from our lab have shown sustained Rac1 activation leading to the activation of downstream signaling steps including stress kinase [p53, p38MAPK] activation and mitochondrial dysregulation [caspase-3 activation] in pancreatic islet beta-cells exposed to glucotoxic [HG] conditions [20 mM; 24 hrs]. Metformin [MF] is an oral anti-diabetic drug that is being widely prescribed to T2DM. MF works by suppressing hepatic …

Integrative Pathway Analysis Pipeline For Mirna And Mrna Data, Diana Mabel Diaz Herrera

Wayne State University Theses

The identification of pathways that are involved in a particular phenotype helps us understand the underlying biological processes. Traditional pathway analysis techniques aim to infer the impact on individual pathways using only mRNA levels. However, recent studies showed that gene expression alone is unable to capture the whole picture of biological phenomena. At the same time, MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are newly discovered gene regulators that have shown to play an important role in diagnosis, and prognosis for different types of diseases. Current pathway analysis techniques do not take miRNAs into consideration. In this project, we investigate the effect of integrating miRNA …

Investigation Into Roseburia Intesinalis For Optimal Growth And Survivability Conditions For Potential Probiotic Use, Lisa Rana Felczak

Wayne State University Theses

Obesity and diabetes is an epidemic of increasing concern. Certain novel bacteria have been found to be an aid in reversing some of the mechanisms associated. This study focused on investigating the optimal stability conditions for R.intestinalis that can associate with an increase in growth. First, environmental conditions were tested to find the optimal conditions associated with each. Once growth conditions were found, generation time was calculated and various prebiotics were used to investigate a potential for additional growth. Next, common antibiotics were tested to see if the R.intestinalis could still show growth when exposed. Large batches of R.intestinalis were …

An Evaluation Of Endocrine Disrupting Effects Of Emerging Contaminants Using Daphnia Pulex And Danio Rerio, Lakshmi Neha Reddy Alla

Wayne State University Theses

The limit of the availability of water is based on two factors, scarcity and quality. Conserving and protecting our water resources one of the most critical issues facing humanity as we struggle to deal with contaminated lakes and rivers and climate change. The main aim of this study is to examine toxicity of known water contaminants on aquatic model organisms and be able to develop methodology that will enable the characterization of endocrine disrupting potential of water samples with unknown contaminants. Both the category of water contaminants known as pharmaceuticals, personal care products that are known as PPCPs and other …

Integration Of Mutation And Gene Expression Data To Identify Disease Subtypes, Sahar Ansari

Wayne State University Theses

Understanding the biological insights hidden in the vast amount of data collected, while investigating a disease, is the main goal for collecting such data in the first place.

Changes in the gene expression or the function of proteins are important components in progression of a disease and is a key to understanding the disease mechanism.

However, more often than not, the causes of such changes are not easily identified. In many cases, genetic variants may cause some of the observed gene expression changes.

In this thesis, we focus on identifying the variants that significantly alter gene expression for an individual …

Fam129b, A Novel Adherent Junction Protein, Forms A Complex With Keap1, Fatme Ali Hachem

Wayne State University Theses

FAM129B/Minerva, a protein implicated in melanoma cell invasion, has been shown to suppress TNFα induced apoptosis in cancer cells (Song, Evans & Evans (2010), JBC 286, 10201-09), thus contributing to the survival of metastatic cells. KEAP1, a substrate recognition molecule for the CUL3 E3 ubiquitin ligase, plays a central role in the activation of the TNFα pathway. We wish to test the hypothesis that the up-regulation of FAM129B in cancer cells suppresses apoptosis by sequestering KEAP1, thus preventing its participation in the apoptotic pathway. The first step is to demonstrate that FAM129B and KEAP1 form a complex. We have cloned …

Development Of Student Data Visualization Tool, Adaption Of Clostridium Difficile Toxin A Into Protein Delivery Vehicle, And Elucidation Of Tcdc Mechanism Of Toxin Control, Adam Boyden

Wayne State University Theses

Advancing student success in higher education is of paramount importance, and is in need for a tool that visualizes student data in a longitudinal manner. Student Circos plots achieve this by plotting student data in circular plots, depicting the timeline and grades for students selected by demographic or performance information. Cellular delivery of exogenous proteins is a bountiful area of research. However, most current systems have limited in vivo applications and most lack cellular specificity. By adapting Toxin A from Clostridium difficile, the goal was to create a cell specific protein delivery vehicle that would be robust in vivo. However, …

On Detecting Faces And Classifying Facial Races With Partial Occlusions And Pose Variations, Tarik Alafif Alafif

Wayne State University Theses

In this dissertation, we present our contributions in face detection and facial race classification.

Face detection in unconstrained images is a traditional problem in computer vision community. Challenges still remain. In particular, the detection of partially occluded faces with pose variations has not been well addressed. In the first part of this dissertation, our contributions are three-fold. First, we introduce our four image datasets consisting of large-scale labeled face dataset, noisy large-scale labeled non-face dataset, CrowdFaces dataset, and CrowdNonFaces dataset intended to be used for face detection training. Second, we improve Viola-Jones (VJ) face detection results by first training a …

Human Cytomegalovirus Cytoplasmic Virion Assembly Complex: Structure In Vivo And Role Of Pul103 In Its Biogenesis, Ma Christina Raye Lim

Wayne State University Theses

Human Cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a linear, double stranded DNA virus that causes severe disease in the immunocompromised, and is one of the common cause of congenital disease. Antivirals that are currently available for treatment target the DNA replication of the virus cycle, and are highly toxic. Finding new drug targets, such as proteins responsible for virion assembly and egress, would help to alleviate the disease burden.

HCMV remodels the host cell to form a structure called the cytoplasmic virion assembly complex (cVAC), a site of virion maturation and egress. The first objective of this work is to study the structure …

Determination Of The Direct Protein-Protein Interactions In The Drosophila Sin3a Complex, Ian Moore

Wayne State University Theses

The proteins that comprise the Drosophila SIN3 220 and SIN3 187 complexes are currently known. Limited information with regard to interacting complex member proteins has been described. Much of these data are results of high-throughput investigations, and there have been no studies done to reconstitute all direct interactions within the complex. The unique C-terminal region of the SIN3 220 isoform was used to test for interactions with other complex proteins using the bacterial expression system. Additionally, the region of Caf1-55 necessary for interaction with SIN3 in vivo was identified using a truncation mutant. The results of this work identified novel …

The Potential Stimulation Of C. Minuta Growth By Various Prebiotics, And Its Sensitivity To Various Antibiotics, Maria Elena Hakim

Wayne State University Theses

Gut microbiota play a crucial role in maintaining intestinal health and integrity; a feature that is both heritable, as well as affected by the environment and lifestyle. Probiotics are supplements containing live microorganisms that act in a similar manner to gut microflora, and maintain a balance in the latter. C. minuta is a novel bacterium in the gut that was found to be associated with reduction in body weight and adiposity. The aim of this study was to determine the possible effects of different prebiotics on C. minuta growth, and the survival of C. minuta in response to different antibiotics. …

Effects Of Palm Oil Tocotrienols Rich Fraction On Cholesterol Efflux, Erandi Jayamini Jayawardana Arachchige

Wayne State University Theses

Tocotrienols are naturally occurring bioactive compounds which possess beneficial effects on multiple chronic diseases including atherosclerosis and cancer. It is believed to exert atheroprotective effects via promoting reverse cholesterol transport, a process that removes excess cholesterol from the body. Cholesterol efflux is an early step in reverse cholesterol transport and impaired cholesterol efflux is known to trigger foam cell formation, a hallmark of atherosclerosis. An increase in cholesterol efflux and decrease in cholesterol influx in macrophages has been suggested to reduce atherosclerosis risk by reducing foam cell formation. In addition, tocotrienols have shown anti-cancer effects on Non-small cell lung cancer …

Comparison Of The Scavenging Intensity, Remineralization And Residence Time Of 210po And 210pb At Key Interfaces (Biotic, Sediment-Water And Hydrothermal) Along The Geotraces East Pacific Zonal Transect, John Niedermiller

Wayne State University Theses

The contrasting geochemical behavior of two long-lived progeny of 222Rn, namely 210Po and 210Pb, provide valuable insights on the extent of recycling of biogenic particulate matter and their preferential removal from the water column. A total of 135 water samples were collected and analyzed from six vertical profiles for 210Po and 210Pb along the US GEOTRACES East Pacific Zonal Transect. This study shows decreasing atmospheric 210Pb flux from the measured 210Pb activity in aerosols indicating an overall decrease from east to west along the cruise transect. Differences in scavenging intensities, inventories, and residence times of 210Po and 210Pb at key …

Differential Activation Of Dead Box Rna Helicases Rhlb And Rhle By Hfq/Srnas And Their Target Mrnas, Amit Kumar

Wayne State University Theses

Number of small RNA (sRNA) gene regulators have mounted in E. coli over the years whereas the number of validated protein partners has not changed considerably. Hfq has remained the only well studied global regulatory partner of sRNAs in E. coli. However, direct or indirect involvement of other protein partners has always been speculated. Study from Blasi lab has shown that CsdA, one of the five DEAD-box RNA helicases of E. coli, is required for the DsrA mediated upregulation of rpoS under cold stress condition. Previous study from our lab has identified two other DEAD-box RNA helicases, RhlB and RhlE, …

Fam129b Phosphorylation And Its Effect On Membrane Localization In Confluent Hela Cells, Lakshmi Thompil Somasekharan

Wayne State University Theses

Phosphorylation and de-phosphorylation of many proteins is a key regulator of cellular life. It maintains cellular activity through an array of signaling pathways like cell division, proliferation and growth. However, Overexpression or mutations by the constitutive activation of phosphorylation machinery disrupt the balance in the cell, driving the inappropriate activation or deactivation of the cellular processes it controls. FAM129B is a protein whose activity is partly maintained by phosphorylation and dephosphorylation at the six serine residues at the C-terminal. FAM129B is expressed highly in many forms of cancer and its main function is to suppress apoptosis and enhances cancer cell …

Design, Synthesis And Analysis Of Potential Photo-Activatable Cathepsin K Inhibitors, Khalin Evania Nisbett

Wayne State University Theses

Abstract

DESIGN, SYNTHESIS AND ANALYSIS OF POTENTIAL PHOTO-ACTIVATABLE CATHEPSIN K INHIBITORS

by

KHALIN NISBETT

May 2017

Advisor: Dr. Jeremy Kodanko

Major: Chemistry

Degree: Master of Science

Tightly regulated cysteine CA proteases play a major role in maintaining the homeostasis within cells. Subsequently, when these proteases are dysregulated and mislocalized they disrupt healthy cell dynamics and contribute to many life-threatening pathologies such arteriosclerosis, osteoporosis and cancer. As such many pharmaceutical companies and research teams are highly interested in these proteases as targets. One emergent strategy is the spatiotemporal control of biological processes. In relation to this, a series of spatiotemporally controlled …

Elucidating Structure, Function, And Small Molecular Interactions Of Human Immunodeficiency Virus And Chikungunya Virus, Kristin Nicole Slater

Wayne State University Theses

Abstract HIV-1:

Human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1) is a widespread, incurable retrovirus known to cause

immunodeficiency and a shortened life span. Despite successful treatment methods, HIV-1

frequently mutates, resulting in antiviral resistance. Many therapies target the HIV-1 protease

(PR), which is responsible for cleaving the viral polyprotein essential for its life cycle. HIV-1 PR

often evades treatment by way of mutations and less commonly through residue insertions. We

have identified a clinical isolate with a five residue insertion between residues 28 and 29.

Through molecular dynamics simulations we analyzed the protease protein structure and

determined that the residue insertion created a …