Development Of A Novel Printed And Flexible Surface Enhanced Raman Specopy (Sers) Substrate For Detection Of Cocaine, Farah Mazin Aljanabi

Masters Theses

In this thesis, the author focuses on the design and fabrication of a novel surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) substrate that could potentially be employed for the detection of illicit drugs. Raman spectroscopy based optical detection has been extensively employed as a qualitative and quantitative analytical method.

The author has worked on two research projects, which are both focused on the development of printed SERS substrate for the detection of cocaine. The first project is based on gravure printing of silver nanoparticle (AgNP) based ink on flexible and stretchable thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) substrate. The fabricated substrate dimensions are 1.5 × …

Effects Of A Function-Based Peer Management Intervention With Middle-School Students With Adhd, Kate A. Helbig

Master's Theses

Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is characterized by impairment in functioning due to inattention, hyperactivity, or impulsivity, as well as difficulties in school with social rejection and academic underachievement (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a peer-mediated non-contingent reinforcement (NCR) intervention informed by functional assessment data to decrease disruptive behavior for students with a special education classification of OHI-ADHD. Participants included three student dyads in a middle school setting located in the Southeastern United States. An A/B/A/B withdrawal design was used to evaluate the effectiveness of this intervention. The primary dependent variables …

Eignefunctions For Partial Differential Equations On Two-Dimensional Domains With Piecewise Constant Coefficients, Abdullah Muheel Momit Aurko

Master's Theses

In this thesis, we develop a highly accurate and efficient algorithm for computing the solution of a partial differential equation defined on a two-dimensional domain with discontinuous coefficients. An example of such a problem is for modeling the diffusion of heat energy in two space dimensions, in the case where the spatial domain represents a medium consisting of two different but homogeneous materials, with periodic boundary conditions.

Since diffusivity changes based on the material, it will be represented using a piecewise constant function, and this results in the formation of a complicated mathematical model. Such a model is impossible to …

Testing Our Assumptions: The Role Of First Course Grade And Course Level In Mathematics And English, Janet Callahan, Marcia Belcheir

Materials Science and Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Methods that provide an early indicator of factors that affect student persistence are important to colleges and universities. This quantitative research focused on the role of level of entry mathematics and English and also on grades earned in those classes as they relate to persistence after one year. The research showed that by far, the variable most predictive of first-time, full-time students enrolling one year later was earning a grade of “A” in English. Compared to those who did not pass their first English course, students who earned an “A” were three times more likely to persist. The variables which …

Multiplex Media Attention And Disregard Network Among 129 Countries, Haewoon Kwak, Jisun An

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

We built a multiplex media attention and disregard network (MADN) among 129 countries over 212 days. By characterizing the MADN from multiple levels, we found that it is formed primarily by skewed, hierarchical, and asymmetric relationships. Also, we found strong evidence that our news world is becoming a "global village." However, at the same time, unique attention blocks of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, as well as Russia and its neighbors, still exist.

Encoding And Recall Of Spatio-Temporal Episodic Memory In Real Time, Poo-Hee Chang, Ah-Hwee Tan

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Episodic memory enables a cognitive system to improve its performance by reflecting upon past events. In this paper, we propose a computational model called STEM for encoding and recall of episodic events together with the associated contextual information in real time. Based on a class of self-organizing neural networks, STEM is designed to learn memory chunks or cognitive nodes, each encoding a set of co-occurring multi-modal activity patterns across multiple pattern channels. We present algorithms for recall of events based on partial and inexact input patterns. Our empirical results based on a public domain data set show that STEM displays …

Indexing Metric Uncertain Data For Range Queries And Range Joins, Lu Chen, Yunjun Gao, Aoxiao Zhong, Christian S. Jensen, Gang Chen, Baihua Zheng

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Range queries and range joins in metric spaces have applications in many areas, including GIS, computational biology, and data integration, where metric uncertain data exist in different forms, resulting from circumstances such as equipment limitations, high-throughput sequencing technologies, and privacy preservation. We represent metric uncertain data by using an object-level model and a bi-level model, respectively. Two novel indexes, the uncertain pivot B+-tree (UPB-tree) and the uncertain pivot B+-forest (UPB-forest), are proposed in order to support probabilistic range queries and range joins for a wide range of uncertain data types and similarity metrics. Both index structures use a small set …

Amphibian Use Of Wetlands Created By Military Activity In Kisatchie National Forest, Louisiana, Usa., Stephen M. Ecrement, Stephen C. Richter

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Constructed wetlands can provide breeding habitat for amphibians and might offset the loss of natural wetlands. Although protecting natural systems is a priority, investigating and protecting constructed wetlands should also be included in amphibian conservation efforts. We surveyed 48 small wetland pools created from military tank training (i.e., tank defilades) on Kisatchie National Forest, Louisiana, USA. We conducted surveys monthly from April to October 2012 and March to September 2013. Across both years amphibian community composition consisted of eight frog species, and the most commonly found taxa were Cajun Chorus Frogs (Pseudacris fouquettei), Southern Leopard Frogs (Lithobates sphenocephalus), and Bronze …

Optogenetic Interrogation Of Primary Visual Cortex And Its Impact On Neural Coding And Behavior, Ariana R. Andrei

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Understanding the mechanism by which the brain transforms simple sensory inputs into rich perceptual experiences is one of the great mysteries of systems neuroscience. Undoubtedly this involves the activity of large populations of interconnected neurons, but while the responses of individual neurons to a variety of sensory stimuli have been well-characterized, how populations of such neurons organize their activity to create our sensory perceptions is almost entirely unknown. To investigate this complex circuitry requires the ability to causally manipulate the activity of neural populations and monitor the resultant effects. Here we focus on primary visual cortex (V1), which has been …

Involvement Of The Receptor For Advanced Glycation End Products (Rage) In Progression Of Pancreatic Cancer, Nancy Azizian Ms

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Oncogenic KRAS is central to several cancer types including pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), but has been determined to be “undruggable”. Recent studies have indicated that oncogenic KRAS is not constitutively active but relies on a feed-forward stimulatory mechanism involving inflammation. In the current study we investigated the mechanisms by which, the receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) affects and maintains KRAS activity. We observed that RAGE levels were elevated and there was a shift in the levels of specific isoforms upon inflammation in pancreatic cells and PDAC. Furthermore, RAGE agonists were found to increase Ras activity and downstream signaling …

High-Throughput Mapping Of The Biological Effects Of Particle Therapy, Lawrence Bronk

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Radiation therapy is an essential tool in the cure of many cancer patients. Charged particle based radiation therapies are gaining momentum as the physical dose distributions of ions are superior to standard photons due their limited range. Additionally, charged particle radiation has been shown to have linear energy transfer (LET) specific relative biological effectiveness (RBE) when compared to photons. It is essential to employ accurate biophysical models for particle beams in order to maximize the therapeutic potential of particle therapy through the introduction of biologically optimized treatment planning. The development of such models requires the support of large amounts of …

Gsk3b Regulates Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition And Cancer Stem Cell Properties And Is A Novel Drug Target For Triple-Negative Breast Cancer, Geraldine Vidhya Raja

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Abstract

GSK3β regulates Epithelial-Mesenchymal-Transition and Cancer Stem Cell properties and is a novel drug target for Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.

Geraldine Vidhya Raja, MS.

Advisory Professor: Sendurai Mani, Ph.D.

Triple-Negative breast cancers (TNBCs) are highly aggressive and lack the expression of Estrogen Receptor (ER), Progesterone Receptor (PR) as well as Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (HER2). Consequently, patients diagnosed with TNBCs have poor overall- and disease-free survival rates compared to other subtypes of breast cancer due to lack of targeted therapies as well as de novo or acquired chemoresistance, disease recurrence, and lack of targeted therapy. Hence it is critical to …

The Role Of The Epithelial-To-Mesenchymal Transition (Emt) In Lung Cancer Progression, David H. Peng

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths due to conventional therapy resistance and metastatic disease, therefore understanding the mechanisms governing these biological functions is vital for improving patient survival. Approximately 30% of patients with the adenocarcinoma histologic subset of lung cancer possess an activating KRAS mutation, characterized by a lack of response to chemotherapies with a poor overall 5-year survival rate. Despite the mutational frequency, KRAS remains a challenge to pharmacologically inhibit and current drugs undergoing clinical trials that target specific downstream effector proteins of KRAS, such as MEK inhibitors, have failed to produce significant clinical benefits. Previous …

Volumetric, Magnetic Resonance-Visible, And Radiation-Sensitive Detectors For Magnetic Resonance Image-Guided Radiation Therapy, Hannah J. Lee

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

VOLUMETRIC, MAGNETIC RESONANCE-VISIBLE, AND RADIATION-SENSITIVE DETECTORS FOR MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGE-GUIDED RADIATION THERAPY

Hannah Jungeun Lee

Advisory Professor: Geoffrey S. Ibbott, Ph.D.

Due to the superior soft-tissue contrast of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) compared to conventional computed tomography (CT) and other on-board imaging techniques, several groups have integrated MRI and radiation treatment machine systems. The advent of MR image-guided radiation therapy (MR-IGRT) using systems, such as the 1.5 MRI – 7 MV linear accelerator (MR-Linac), now allow for improved soft-tissue on-board imaging for patient position and tumor target localization verification and the ability to assess functional biological tissue characteristics with MRI, …

Functional Consequences Of Rna Exosome Complex Alteration By Conformational Changes And Cofactor Binding, Jaeil Han

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

The RNA exosome is an essential 3’-5 ribonuclease that processes or degrades a variety of RNA species in eukaryotes. It is composed of nine structural cores and one catalytic subunit, Rrp44. Structural studies captured two different conformations of Rrp44, Rrp44^ch (channel) and Rrp44^da (direct-access). The Rrp44^ch appears to recruit RNA substrates from the central channel formed by the core subunits, while the substrate is directly recruited to Rrp44^da bypassing the central channel. Although in vivo function of the Rrp44^ch-exosome is extensively studied, the function or even the presence of the Rrp44^da-exosome in …

Quantitative Dwi As An Early Imaging Biomarker Of The Response To Chemoradiation In Esophageal Cancer, Benjamin C. Musall

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

For patients diagnosed with stages IIa-IIb esophageal cancer, the current standard of care treatment is tri-modality therapy (TMT), where neoadjuvant chemoradiation (nCRT) is followed by surgical resection. Histopathology of resected tumors reveals that pathological complete response (pCR) is achieved in 20-30% of patients through nCRT alone. Because of the high mortality and morbidity associated with esophagectomy, it may be advantageous for patients exhibiting pCR from nCRT alone to be placed under observation rather than completing their TMT. Therefore, a method for predicting response at an early time-point during nCRT is highly desirable. Conventional methods such as endoscopic ultrasound, re-biopsy, and …

Functional Asymmetry Of The Immune Cell Plasma Membrane, Eric Malmberg

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Mammalian cells maintain a distinct disparity in lipid composition between the two leaflets of the bilayer of the plasma membrane. This compositional asymmetry is most prominent for phosphatidylserine (PS), a negatively charged lipid that is found almost exclusively on the cytoplasmic (inner) leaflet of the plasma membrane. This energetically unfavorable asymmetry is maintained by the activity of ATP-dependent transporters called flippases and destroyed by energy-independent lipid channels called scramblases. Although this compositional asymmetry has been known for decades, there has been little investigation of its structural impact on the physical properties of the membrane, nor its functional impact in healthy …

Contrasting Effects Of An Mdm2 Functional Polymorphism On Tumor Phenotypes, Guadalupe J. Ortiz Iv

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Cancer predisposition by the cooperation of genetic variants, such as single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), may be of much greater significance to public health than previously appreciated. Functional polymorphisms are genetic variants that alter gene function. Meta-analyses associate many functional polymorphisms with cancer risk. The MDM2 SNP309G allele is a cancer-associated functional polymorphism positioned in the MDM2 P2 promoter that enhances transcription factor SP1 binding, resulting in elevated levels of MDM2 concomitant with decreased p53 tumor-suppressor activity. Mdm2^SNP309G/G mice are more prone to spontaneous tumor formation than Mdm2^SNP309T/T mice, providing direct evidence for the impact of this SNP on …

Lbpi: A Web Interface For The Identification Of Allosteric Ligand Binding Sites, Nabina Paudyal

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

The development of efficient tools for allosteric ligand binding site identification in potential drug targets is an important step for computational drug design. Ligand binding specificity analysis (LIBSA) is one of the protocols that utilize filtering algorithms to assess the propensity of a site on a target structure or structures to bind a ligand. However, LIBSA requires expert skills to be properly executed. Thus, a Web interface, LBPI (Ligand Binding Pocket Identification) has been developed using Django, a Python-based web framework. A Python Wrapper has also been developed to streamline pre-existing algorithms of LIBSA. The Wrapper helps in the …

Novel Bayesian Adaptive Clinical Trial Designs In Early Phases, Haitao Pan

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Early phase, or phase I and phase II, trials are the first step in testing new medicines that have been developed in the lab. The main goal of phase I clinical trials is to establish the recommended dose of new drugs for phase II trials. For the cytotoxic drugs, the goal is to find maximum tolerated dose (MTD). The guiding principle for dose escalation in phase I trials is to avoid exposing too many patients to subtherapeutic doses while preserving safety and maintaining rapid accrual. Therefore, dose escalation methods, especially Bayesian designs, are recommended to be used in phase I …

Improving Nk Cell Therapy For Osteosarcoma, Jennifer Foltz

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common primary bone tumor. Despite new treatment options, 5-year survival for metastatic OS has remained at only 30% for the last 30 years. Adoptive transfer of Natural Killer (NK) cells holds promise for a new, non-toxic therapy for OS. NK cells are part of the innate immune system and readily kill metastatic and chemotherapy-resistant OS in vitro and in murine models. However, there is little data regarding their efficacy in animal models with an intact immune system. In addition, the OS tumor microenvironment is highly suppressive, producing TGFβ which impedes NK cell killing of solid …

Image Registration To Map Endoscopic Video To Computed To Mography For Head And Neck Radiotherapy Patients, William S. Ingram

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

The purpose of this work was to explore the feasibility of registering endoscopic video to radiotherapy treatment plans for patients with head and neck cancer without physical tracking of the endoscope during the examination. Endoscopy-CT registration would provide a clinical tool that could be used to enhance the treatment planning process and would allow for new methods to study the incidence of radiation-related toxicity.

Endoscopic video frames were registered to CT by optimizing virtual endoscope placement to maximize the similarity between the frame and the virtual image. Virtual endoscopic images were rendered using a polygonal mesh created by segmenting the …

Preclinical Development Of Therapeutic Strategies Against Triple-Negative And Inflammatory Breast Cancer, Angie M. Torres-Adorno

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Triple-negative (TNBC) and inflammatory (IBC) breast cancer are the most aggressive forms of breast cancer, accounting for 20% and 10% of cancer-related deaths, respectively. Among IBC cases, 30% are additionally classified with TNBC molecular pathology, a diagnosis that significantly worsens patient’s prognosis. The current lack of TNBC and IBC molecular understanding prevents the development of effective therapeutic strategies. To identify effective treatments, we explored aberrant apoptosis pathways and cell membrane fluidity as novel therapeutic targets.

We first identified an effective therapeutic strategy against TNBC and IBC by pro-apoptotic protein NOXA-mediated inhibition of the anti-apoptotic protein MCL1 following inhibition of histone …

Investigating The Role Of Prmt1 And Arginine Methylation Of Hsp70 In Human Pancreatic Cancer, Liang Wang

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Protein arginine methyltransferase 1 (PRMT1) is the major arginine methyltransferase, which catalyzes the addition of one or two methyl groups to the arginine residues of its substrate proteins. The best-known substrate for PRMT1 is histone, while more and more non-histone proteins are now found to be methylated by PRMT1. Dysregulation of PRMT1 is reported in several human cancer types. However, its biological roles in human pancreatic cancer initiation and development are still unclear. In the first part of this study, I found that the expression level of PRMT1 was elevated in both human and mouse pancreatic cancer tissues in immunohistochemistry …

A Tail-Based Test For Differential Expression Analysis And Pathway Analysis In Rna-Sequencing Data, Jiong Chen

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

RNA sequencing data have been abundantly generated in biomedical research for biomarker discovery and pathway analysis. Such data at the exon-level are usually heavily tailed and correlated. Conventional statistical tests based on the mean or median difference for differential expression likely suffer from low power when the between-group difference occurs mostly in the upper or lower tail of the distribution of gene expression. We propose a tail-based test to make comparisons between groups in terms of a specific distribution area rather than a single location. The proposed test, which is derived from quantile regression, adjusts for covariates and accounts for …

Structural And Functional Effect Of Phosphorylation On Ampa Receptors, Caitlin E. Nurik

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Structural and Functional Effect of Phosphorylation on AMPA Receptors

Cailtin Edmunds show you, BA

Advisory Professor: Vasanthi Jayaraman, Ph. D.

The α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA) receptor is the primary contributor to neuronal fast excitatory transmission, and plays a key role in learning and memory. Previous studies have established that residues S818, S831, and T840 in the C-terminal segment of GluA1 homomeric AMPA receptor are phosphorylated by PKC, and phosphorylation at these sites leads to an increase in receptor conductance. We show that the domain inclusive of those sites alters its secondary structure due to phosphorylation (using glutamate substitution as a mimic) …

Improvements In Four-Dimensional And Dual Energy Computed To Mography, Rachael M. Martin

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Dual energy and 4D computed tomography (CT) seek to address some of the limitations in traditional CT imaging. Dual energy CT, among other purposes, allows for the quantification and improved visualization of contrast materials, and 4D CT is often used in radiation therapy applications as it allows for the visualization and quantification of object motion. While much research has been done with these technologies, areas remain for potential improvement, both in preclinical and clinical settings, which will be explored in this dissertation. Preclinical dual energy cone-beam CT (CBCT) can benefit from wider separation between the peak energy of the two …

Hsp27 And Chemotherapy-Induced Autophagy As Biomarkers In Osteosarcoma, John Andrew Livingston

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Survival for patients with osteosarcoma has not improved for > 30 years. Despite aggressive multi-agent chemotherapy combined with surgical resection, a significant fraction of patients with localized disease relapse after optimal treatment. We evaluated the occurrence of cytoplasmic LC3B (light chain 3B)-positive puncta (a marker of autophagy) and presence of HSP27 (heat shock protein 27) in cancer cells within pre-treatment biopsy, post-treatment surgical resection, and metastatic osteosarcoma specimens by immunohistochemistry in 260 patients. LCB3+ puncta expression was seen in 34% of pre-treatment. 50% of resection, and 67% of metastasis samples. Sixty-six percent of all specimens were scored positive for HSP27 (85% …

Mechanisms Underlying The Sensitivity And Resistance Of Gastric Cancer Cells To Met Inhibitors, Rebecca Schroeder

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

MET amplification has been clinically credentialed as a therapeutic target in gastric cancer, but the molecular mechanisms underlying sensitivity and resistance to MET inhibitors are still not well understood. Using whole-genome mRNA expression profiling, we identified autophagy as a top molecular pathway that was activated by the MET inhibitor crizotinib in drug-sensitive human gastric cancer cells, and functional studies confirmed that crizotinib increased autophagy levels in the drug sensitive cells in a concentration-dependent manner. We then used chemical and molecular approaches to inhibit autophagy in order to define its role in cell death. The clinically available inhibitor of autophagy, chloroquine, …

Modification Of Aplysia Feeding Network By L-Dopa And Dopamine-Dependent Learning, Curtis Neveu, Curtis L. Neveu

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Dopamine (DA) is a ubiquitous neuromodulator of neuronal networks in the animal kingdom and has a well-established role in modulating motor behavior and encoding reward information. Although the effects of DA and DA-dependent learning at the behavioral and molecular levels are well-understood, many questions still remain concerning the effects of DA at the network level. DA-dependent learning effects on a neuronal circuit were examined by measuring the biophysical properties before and after in vitro operant conditioning (OC) of the feeding circuit of Aplysia. OC reduced the excitability of B4 and the B4-to-B51 synaptic connection, with a trend towards an …