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Front Matter, Vol. 77 No. 2

Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

Week Of July 24, 2017, New York Medical College

InTouch

• The Catherine and Ladislav P. Hinterbuchner Endowed Chair in Rehabilitation Medicine Dedication Ceremony Is Set for August 10
• Touro Scholar Offers Online Archive Designed to Showcase Scholarship
• Touro College of Dental Medicine at New York Medical College Welcomes the Class of 2021

Teachers’ Perceptions Of Educational Games That Keep Score Of Cooperative Performances, Theodore Alden Wohlfarth

Dissertations

The scoring systems used in traditional sports and games are founded on the zero-sum premise that players are on opposite sides and one side can win only if the other side loses. These scoring systems may be effective at nurturing zero-sum mindsets and providing data for assessing performance in win-lose relationships. If so, games that use different scoring systems can be used to facilitate the development of collaborative mindsets, nurture win-win skills between diverse groups, and enable objective self-assessment of performances in non-zero-sum events when engaging with those on “other sides.” Although economic game theory has rich reservoirs of research …

Purification And Characterization Of 221, The Cationic Peptide That Inhibits Staphylococcus Aureus, Ma Mahrous, J Burnie, J Tagg, M Upton

School of Biomedical Sciences

Bacteriocin-like inhibitory substances (BLISs) that are produced by various species of Staphylococcus spp., could have potential as topical therapeutic agents for treating highly drug-resistant staphylococcal infections. The spectrum of activity of some such agents, recently identified in our laboratory, has been characterized. This was carried out at different temperatures using deferred antaonism assay. The biological activity of 221, which produced by S. epidermidis strain 221 and shows activity against Epidemic MRSA-15 and strains of MSSA, is described in detail. The initial characterization of this agent showed that its activity is stable on plates pre-exposed to high temperatures (70-80oC/30-40mins) and displaying …

Regulation And Modulation Of Human Dna Polymerase Δ Activity And Function, Marietta Y W T Lee, Xiaoxiao Wang, Sufang Zhang, Zhongtao Zhang, Ernest Y C Lee

NYMC Faculty Publications

This review focuses on the regulation and modulation of human DNA polymerase δ (Pol δ). The emphasis is on the mechanisms that regulate the activity and properties of Pol δ in DNA repair and replication. The areas covered are the degradation of the p12 subunit of Pol δ, which converts it from a heterotetramer (Pol δ4) to a heterotrimer (Pol δ3), in response to DNA damage and also during the cell cycle. The biochemical mechanisms that lead to degradation of p12 are reviewed, as well as the properties of Pol δ4 and Pol δ3 that provide insights into their functions …

End Matter, Vol. 77 No. 2

Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

Elucidating The Molecular Parameters And Mechanism Of Homology Searching During Meiosis In Neurospora Crassa, Nicholas Adam Rhoades

Theses and Dissertations

Integration of foreign DNA into a host genome is often detrimental to the host organism, as the DNA is often of viral or transposon origin. Many organisms have established DNA surveillance and genome integrity mechanisms to defend against these harmful DNA insertions. Neurospora crassa, a filamentous fungus belonging to the Ascomycota group, has several DNA defense mechanisms to combat foreign DNA integration to its genome. One such mechanism is Meiotic Silencing of Unpaired DNA (MSUD). During meiosis, this remarkable system can detect unpaired genes on homologous chromosomes during sexual reproduction and silence their expression throughout meiosis. In order for the …

Medical School Watercooler Newsletter - July 23, 2017, Lindsey Lyle

Watercooler Newsletter

This is the July 23, 2017 edition of the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine's Newsletter - Watercooler.

Contents Include:

SouthMed Prep Scholars Present Research

Med School Café- Expert Advice for the Community

Natalie Fox Appointed Director of Nursing for USA Physicians Group

Dr. Di Palma Marks 30 Years with USA College of Medicine

Ismar / Rmcmr 2017 Abstract Book - Joint Conference Of The International Society Of Magnetic Resonance, The Rocky Mountain Conference On Epr, And The Rocky Mountain Conference On Magnetic Resonance

Rocky Mountain Conference on Magnetic Resonance

Abstracts from the 59th annual meeting of the Rocky Mountain Conference on Magnetic Resonance, hosted jointly with the International Society of Magnetic Resonance and the Rocky Mountain Conference on EPR. Held in Quebec City, Canada, July 23-28, 2017.

Propers 11 (Pentecost 7) Series A 2017, Phillip L. Brandt

Sunday's Sermon

This PDF comments on proper 11 of Series A in the Three Year Lectionary and offers ideas for preaching

Parts: One Through Three, Julia Manson

Theses

Through the use of wearable objects, the topic of human skin is explored in its various states to give audiences a different outlook on beauty in society and the ways skin can map the human experience. Various materials and techniques were used to create jewelry and wearable sculptures to facilitate this discussion. Metal, silicone rubber, plastics, and fibers were used to explore this topic of our perceptions of ourselves and what our appearances project onto the world. Three different approaches were used to talk about skin and scarring. First, silicone rubber and copper and silver wire frames were utilized to …

Frequency Domain Diffuse Optical Tomography With A Single Source And Detector Via High- Speed Hypocycloid Scanning, Matthew B. Applegate, Darren Roblyer

Advances in Optics for Biotechnology, Medicine and Surgery XV [2017]

Diffuse Optical Imaging (DOI) relies on the fact that near infrared light (600-1000 nm) is strongly scattered in biological tissue, and weakly absorbed by tissue chromophores such as blood, fat, water, and melanin. In frequency domain DOI, intensity modulated light is introduced into the tissue and the observed absorption and phase changes enable absolute concentrations of these chromophores to be calculated. These concentrations provide valuable insight into tissue metabolic activity that have proven useful for a variety of clinical outcomes from exercise physiology to predicting tumor response to treatment.

Diffuse Optical Tomography (DOT) is an extension of DOI that allows …

Tumor Detection And Treatment By Means Of Thermography And Laser Irradiation, Euiheon Chung, Gyungseok Oh, Su Woong Yoo

Advances in Optics for Biotechnology, Medicine and Surgery XV [2017]

While passive thermal imaging of temperature difference between tumor and neighboring tissue provides limited contrast, active thermography with external thermal modulation may provide higher contrast presumably due to the distinct thermal response from the tumor tissue. We have investigated physiologically relevant parameters such as response rate with respect to thermal modulation and relaxation time. This new imaging modality in the infrared regime may prove useful as a label-free and non-invasive screening tool. On the other hand, we propose a novel use of controlled thermal injury from non-ablative fractional laser irradiation for early treatment of tumor growth with a fiber-based thulium …

Conference Program, Peter So, Kate Bechtel, Ivo Vellekoop, Michael Choma

Advances in Optics for Biotechnology, Medicine and Surgery XV [2017]

No abstract provided.

July 22, 2017 (Pages 3947-4072), Pennsylvania Legislative Reference Bureau

Volume 47 (2017)

No abstract provided.

Progressive Age-Dependence And Frequency Difference In The Effect Of Gap Junctions On Active Cochlear Amplification And Hearing, Liang Zong, Jin Chen, Yan Zhu, Hong-Bo Zhao

Otolaryngology--Head & Neck Surgery Faculty Publications

Mutations of Connexin 26 (Cx26, GJB2), which is a predominant gap junction isoform in the cochlea, can induce high incidence of nonsyndromic hearing loss. We previously found that targeted-deletion of Cx26 in supporting Deiters cells and outer pillar cells in the cochlea can influence outer hair cell (OHC) electromotility and reduce active cochlear amplification leading to hearing loss, even though there are no gap junction connexin expressions in the auditory sensory hair cells. Here, we further report that hearing loss and the reduction of active amplification in the Cx26 targeted-deletion mice are progressive and different at high and low …

Chelator-Free Radiolabeling Of Serrs Nanoparticles For Whole-Body Pet And Intraoperative Raman Imaging, Matthew A. Wall, Travis Shaffer, Stefan Harmsen, Darjus-Felix Tschaharganeh, Chun-Hao Huang, Scott W. Lowe, Charles Michael Drain, Moritz F. Kircher

Publications and Research

A single contrast agent that offers whole-body non-invasive imaging along with the superior sensitivity and spatial resolution of surface-enhanced resonance Raman scattering (SERRS) imaging would allow both pre-operative mapping and intraoperative imaging and thus be highly desirable. We hypothesized that labeling our recently reported ultrabright SERRS nanoparticles with a suitable radiotracer would enable pre-operative identification of regions of interest with whole body imaging that can be rapidly corroborated with a Raman imaging device or handheld Raman scanner in order to provide high precision guidance during surgical procedures. Here we present a straightforward new method that produces radiolabeled SERRS nanoparticles for …

Effects Of Climate Warming On Net Primary Productivity In China During 1961–2010, Fengxue Gu, Yuandong Zhang, Mei Huang, Bo Tao, Rui Guo, Changrong Yan

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

The response of ecosystems to different magnitudes of climate warming and corresponding precipitation changes during the last few decades may provide an important reference for predicting the magnitude and trajectory of net primary productivity (NPP) in the future. In this study, a process-based ecosystem model, Carbon Exchange between Vegetation, Soil and Atmosphere (CEVSA), was used to investigate the response of NPP to warming at both national and subregional scales during 1961–2010. The results suggest that a 1.3°C increase in temperature stimulated the positive changing trend in NPP at national scale during the past 50 years. Regardless of the magnitude of …

Inferring Foliar Water Uptake Using Stable Isotopes Of Water, Gregory R. Goldsmith, Marco M. Lehmann, Lucas A. Cernusak, Matthias Arend, Rolf T.W. Siegwolf

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

A growing number of studies have described the direct absorption of water into leaves, a phenomenon known as foliar water uptake. The resultant increase in the amount of water in the leaf can be important for plant function. Exposing leaves to isotopically enriched or depleted water sources has become a common method for establishing whether or not a plant is capable of carrying out foliar water uptake. However, a careful inspection of our understanding of the fluxes of water isotopes between leaves and the atmosphere under high humidity conditions shows that there can clearly be isotopic exchange between the two …

Metaphors Of Objectivity, Adam Westra

Episteme

This paper analyzes how Bacon and Popper both use metaphors in support of their respective theories of the objectivity of progressive science. The author tracks each thinker’s prevalent use and dependence on metaphors; including Bacon’s appeal to religion and the emerging science of optics, and Popper’s biological analogy and dismissal of Kuhn’s relativistic view of science and knowledge. The author argues that the objectivist theorists are plagued by the fact that metaphors are not objective. It seems we must accept only one of the two: their objectivity claims or their methodological approach of using metaphors. The author prefers the latter …

The Extended Room Or What Otto Didn't Know, Ryan Victor

Episteme

The author provides succinct explications of the relevant literature pertaining to the debate resulting from Turing’s thesis on artificial intelligence. It is argued that Searle’s Chinese room example is refuted by neither the so-called systems reply nor the Extended Mind thesis. Such attempts to defend strong AI err because they rely on altered definitions of concepts that we should not accept. The author, in addition to pointing out the importance of factoring in consciousness, provides several illustrative examples, parallels, and original arguments (including a modified concept of “strong coupling”) in his defense of Searle’s position. The paper concludes with a …

Bratman On Intending, Joseph Alberts

Episteme

This article is a response to Michael E. Bratman’s novel thought experiments in “Toxin, Temptation, and the Stability of Intention” and so concerns instrumental rational planning agency. The basic question is: When should an agent alter her intentions? Bratman criticizes two planning strategies, Sophistication and Resolution, which rely on too narrow planning logics: the linking principle and/or the standard view. As an alternative, Bratman introduces the No-Regret principle to meet the demands of rational planning in his more complicated examples. The author notes a problem, though: Bratman is operating under a misleading understanding of intention that violates the condition of …

The Ethical Ramifications Of Recent Advances In Ovarian Transplantation, Govind Persad

Episteme

The author examines the ethical questions and issues that come with the new advances in autologous transplantation and heterologous transplantation, specifically regarding ovaries. He argues in strong favor of each’s continued advancement and thinks that jewish concerns align more in-line with non-IVF advancements and the procedure of allografting. Throughout, his paper includes comparisons with embryo freezing, oocyte freezing, sperm banking, organ transplantation, and gamete donation. The author is frequently in dialogue with John A. Robertson’s views on many of the matters, and comments on Alison McCarty’s analysis of the double effect when considering how to classify ovarian donation. Finally, genetics …

Our Christian Nation: White Supremacy And The Making Of An American Theology, Sophia Driscoll Gamber

Religious Studies Summer Fellows

What does it mean to be a “Christian nation,” a nation which is blessed by God above other nations? This moniker of divinity and chosen-ness has been in some way attached to the American project since its conception, though many in the ensuing years have criticized American life and culture as distinctly un-Christian. Furthermore, what does it mean to be American? To trace citizenship back to the origins of the nation reveals a sense of American-ness which is bound to whiteness. Since our earliest foundations, white supremacy has been in a close symbiotic relationship with our structures of government and …

The Rise Of The Alt-Right Movement, Ryan T. Summers

Media and Communication Studies Summer Fellows

The alt-right was once seen an obscure subculture festering on sites like Reddit and 4chan. They were written off as a bunch of trolls and racists too scared to organize, and media outlets saw them as a fringe movement with little hope of growing. However, the 2016 Presidential election of Donald Trump is one of many important events the alt-right rallied behind. They are even leaving their computer screens and beginning to hold ‘free-speech’ rallies across the country. This project asks very important questions about how this has become possible. What are the nuances of this movement? How were they …

Cutaneous Microbial Community Variation Across Populations Of Eastern Hellbenders (Cryptobranchus Alleganiensis Alleganiensis), Obed Hernandez-Gomez, Jason T. Hoverman, Rod N. Williams

Natural Sciences and Mathematics | Faculty Scholarship

Multicellular hosts maintain complex associations with microbial communities. While microbial communities often serve important functional roles for their hosts, our understanding of the local and regional processes that structure these communities remains limited. Metacommunity analyses provide a promising tool for investigating mechanisms shaping microbiome heterogeneity, which is essential for predicting functional variation between hosts. Using a metacommunity framework, we examined heterogeneity in the skin microbiome of the eastern hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis alleganiensis). Hellbenders are broadly distributed throughout river systems in the eastern United States, but are present in specific environmental locations throughout their range. The large range of the species …

Bacterial Communities Associated With Healthy And Diseased Acropora Cervicornis (Staghorn Coral) Using High-Throughput Sequencing, Charles Walton

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

Coral diseases were first noted in the 1960s and 1970s and have had major impacts globally on coral reef community structures. In the Caribbean, a major outbreak of white band disease has been considered responsible for the drastic decline of Caribbean Acroporids since the 1970s. In addition to white band disease, another more recently described condition known as rapid tissue loss (RTL) has had major impacts on Acropora cervicornis populations, specifically offshore Broward County Southeast Florida. While these diseases have contributed to the population decline, determining their etiologies has been elusive.

Coral diseases have been characterized by shifts in their …

Tumor-Targeted Delivery Of Sirna Using Fatty Acyl-Cgkrk Peptide Conjugates, Meenakshi Sharma, Naglaa Salem El-Sayed, Hung Do, Keykavous Parang, Rakesh Tiwari, Hamidreza Montazeri Aliabadi

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Tumor-targeted carriers provide efficient delivery of chemotherapeutic agents to tumor tissue. CGKRK is one of the well-known tumor targeting peptides with significant specificity for angiogenic blood vessels and tumor cells. Here, we designed fatty acyl conjugated CGKRK peptides, based on the hypothesis that hydrophobically-modified CGKRK peptide could enhance cellular permeation and delivery of siRNA targeted to tumor cells for effective silencing of selected proteins. We synthesized six fatty acyl-peptide conjugates, using a diverse chain of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids to study the efficiency of this approach. At peptide:siRNA weight/weight ratio of 10:1 (N/P ≈ 13.6), almost all the peptides …

A Comparative Analysis Of Translesion Dna Synthesis Catalyzed By A High-Fidelity Dna Polymerase, Anvesh Dasari, Tejal Deodhar, Anthony J. Berdis

Chemistry Faculty Publications

Translesion DNA synthesis (TLS) is the ability of DNA polymerases to incorporate nucleotides opposite and beyond damaged DNA. TLS activity is an important risk factor for the initiation and progression of genetic diseases such as cancer. In this study, we evaluate the ability of a high-fidelity DNA polymerase to perform TLS with 8-oxo-guanine (8-oxo-G), a highly pro-mutagenic DNA lesion formed by reactive oxygen species. Results of kinetic studies monitoring the incorporation of modified nucleotide analogs demonstrate that the binding affinity of the incoming dNTP is controlled by the overall hydrophobicity of the nucleobase. However, the rate constant for the …

Seroepidemiology Of Sarcocystis Neurona And Neospora Hughesi Infections In Domestic Donkeys (Equus Asinus) In Durango, Mexico, Cosme Alvarado-Esquivel, Daniel K. Howe, Michelle R. Yeargan, Domingo Alvarado-Esquivel, José Alfredo Zamarripa-Barboza, Jitender P. Dubey

Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center Faculty Publications

There is currently no information regarding Sarcocystis neurona and Neospora hughesi infections in donkeys in Mexico. Here, we determined the presence of antibodies against S. neurona and N. hughesi in donkeys in the northern Mexican state of Durango. Serum samples of 239 domestic donkeys (Equus asinus) were assayed for S. neurona and N. hughesi antibodies using home-made enzyme-linked immunoassays; six (2.5%) of the 239 donkeys tested seropositive for S. neurona. The seroprevalence of S. neurona infection was comparable among donkeys regardless of their origin, health status, or sex. Multivariate analysis showed that seropositivity to S. neurona was …