Digital Commons Network^™

The Bioarchaeology Of The Tugalo Site (9st1): Diet, Disease, And Health Of The Past, Nompumelelo Beryl Hlophe

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The Tugalo site is a prehistoric and early historic Native American site located in northeast Georgia along the upper Savannah River basin, near the junction of Toccoa Creek and the Tugalo River. According to archaeological materials analyzed from the site it was occupied from ca. A.D. 1100 to 1600 (Anderson et al. 1995). Although archaeological investigations of the site revealed basic characteristics of its chronology and architecture, very little analysis and reporting of the skeletal remains from Tugalo has been completed. By analyzing data collected by Williamson (1998) concerning the age and sex of the burials, the presence or absence …

Taxonomic Revision Of The Haemaphysalis (Rhipistoma) Spinulosa Subgroup, Parasites Of Carnivores And Other Mammals In Sub-Saharan Africa, Jackson A. Tomlinson

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Nine new species of Haemaphysalis are here described based on a morphological analysis of 7,077 adult specimens stored in the U.S. National Tick Collection (Georgia Southern, Statesboro, USA) and collected from various carnivores (Carnivora: Canidae, Felidae, Herpestidae, Hyaenidae, Mustelidae, Nandiniidae, Viverridae) and hedgehogs (Erinaceomorpha: Erinaceidae); few specimens were found on hares (Lagomorpha: Leporidae), various rodents (Rodentia: Bathyergidae, Cricetidae, Muridae, Nesomyidae, Pedetidae, Sciuridae, Spalacidae) and other mammals (Artiodactyla, Chiroptera, Hyracoidea, Perissodactyla, Primates, and Soricomorpha) in 29 sub-Saharan African countries. In addition to descriptions of new species, 4 species, namely H. spinulosa Neumann, 1906, H. muhsamae Santos Dias, 1954, H …

Public Health Workforce Perceived Impact Of Emerging Issues In Public Health, Kristie C. Waterfield

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Background: In an era where public health has been viewed as a global, multi-disciplinary field, the public health workforce has remained united to unfailingly holding fast to the mission of protecting, promoting, and improving the health of the public. However, the practice of public health is consistently evolving, and the workforce is continually facing a mirage of challenges. In order to overcome these challenges, practitioners need to be up-to-date on the necessary knowledge and skills to effectively deliver the core public health services.

Purpose: The purpose of this research was to explore the perceived impact of emerging trends in public …

Impact Of Seasonal And Host-Related Factors On The Intestinal Microbiome And Cestode Community Of Sorex Cinereus And Sorex Monticola, Katelyn D. Cranmer

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The intestinal microbiome of mammals plays a significant role in host health and response to environmental stimuli and can include both beneficial native bacteria as well as parasitic worms. In this study, I examined the intestinal cestode and bacterial communities of two closely related species of shrew, Sorex monticola and Sorex cinereus, over a six month period in 2016. Specimens were collected approximately every three weeks from May to October from the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in Cowles, New Mexico. A total of 79 shrews were prepared with the gastrointestinal tracts removed and flash-frozen in liquid nitrogen. An additional …

Understanding The Relation Between Zika Virus Infection During Pregnancy And Adverse Fetal, Infant And Child Outcomes: A Protocol For A Systematic Review And Individual Participant Data Meta-Analysis Of Longitudinal Studies Of Pregnant Women And Their Infants And Children, Annelies Wilder-Smith, Yinghui Wei, Thalia Velho Barreto De Araújo, Maria Vankerkhove, Marília Dalva Turchi, Marília Dalva Turchi, Mauro Teixeira, Adriana Tami, João Souza, Patricia Sousa, Antoni Soriano-Arandes, Carmen Soria-Segarra, Clemente N Sanchez, Kerstin Daniela Rosenberger, Ludovic Reveiz, Arnaldo Prata-Barbosa, Léo Pomar, Rosado Le Pelá, Freddy Perez, Saulo D. Passos, Mauricio Nogueira, Trevor P. Noel, Da Silva A Moura, Maria Elisabeth Moreira, Ivonne Morales, Montoya Mc Miranda, Demócrito De Barros Miranda-Filho, Lauren Maxwell, Calum N.L. Macpherson, Nicola Low, Zhiyi Lan, Angelle Desiree Labeaud, Marion Koopmans, Caron Kim, Esaú João, Thomas Jaenisch, Cristina Barroso Hofer, Paul Gustafson, Patrick Gérardin, Jucelia S. Ganz, Ana Carolina Fialho Dias, Vanessa Elias, Geraldo Duarte, Thomas Paul Alfons Debray, María Luisa Cafferata, Pierre Buekens, Nathalie Broutet, Elizabeth B. Brickley, Patrícia Brasil, Fátima Brant, Sarah Bethencourt, Andrea Benedetti, Vivian Lida Avelino-Silva, Ricardo Arraes De Alencar Ximenes, Da Cunha A Alves, Jackeline Alger

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

IntroductionZika virus (ZIKV) infection during pregnancy is a known cause of microcephaly and other congenital and developmental anomalies. In the absence of a ZIKV vaccine or prophylactics, principal investigators (PIs) and international leaders in ZIKV research have formed the ZIKV Individual Participant Data (IPD) Consortium to identify, collect and synthesise IPD from longitudinal studies of pregnant women that measure ZIKV infection during pregnancy and fetal, infant or child outcomes.Methods and analysisWe will identify eligible studies through the ZIKV IPD Consortium membership and a systematic review and invite study PIs to participate in the IPD meta-analysis (IPD-MA). We will use the …

Childhood Misfortune And Handgrip Strength Among Black, White, And Hispanic Americans, Natalie R. Smith, Kenneth F. Ferraro, Blakelee R. Kemp, Patricia M. Morton, Sarah A. Mustillo, Jacqueline L. Angel

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Objective: Although early-life insults may affect health, few studies use objective physical measures of adult health. This study investigated whether experiencing misfortune during childhood is associated with handgrip strength (HGS) in later life.

Method: Data on childhood misfortune and adult characteristics from the Health and Retirement Study were used to predict baseline and longitudinal change in HGS among White, Black, and Hispanic American men and women.

Results: Regression analyses revealed that multiple indicators of childhood misfortune were related to HGS at baseline, but the relationships were distinct for men and women. Over the study, having one childhood impairment predicted steeper …

Avoiding The Major Causes Of Death: Does Childhood Misfortune Reduce The Likelihood Of Being Disease Free In Later Life?, Monica M. Williams, Blakelee R. Kemp, Kenneth F. Ferraro, Sarah A. Mustillo

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Objectives: Although previous research reveals the detrimental effects of early misfortune on the development of chronic diseases in later life, few studies have investigated its effects on remaining disease free. This study draws on cumulative inequality theory to investigate whether experiencing childhood misfortune reduces the likelihood of remaining disease free over time.

Method: This study utilizes five waves of data from the Health and Retirement Study to test whether five domains of childhood misfortune predict being disease free at baseline (2004) and developing disease over time (2004–2012).

Results: Respondents reporting risky parental behaviors during childhood were less likely to be …

Emergency Preparedness With The One Health Approach, Holly Richmond, Joana Tome, Jessica Schwind

Eagles Talking About the Public’s Health

No abstract provided.

Advanced Practice Nursing In Nigerian Healthcare: Prospects And Challenges, Raymond O. Chimezie, Sally N. Ibe

Journal of Sustainable Social Impact

This study explored the prospects and challenges of introducing advanced practice nursing (APN) in the Nigerian health system. It sought to address the following: career pathways for registered nurses and midwives, advanced duties performed by them and the circumstances, their views and willingness for autonomous practice, and doctors’ degree of acceptance. Research population composed of registered nurses, midwives and medical doctors in primary healthcare. The conceptual framework for this study was based on the scope of practice, standards and competencies of the APN established by the International Council of Nurses (2008). A 12-item checklist of typical duties of APN from …

Determination Of N-Acetylcysteine In The Presence Of Ciprofloxacin Or Levofloxacin In Microparticulate Dry Powder Inhalers, Yağmur Akdağ Çayli, Selma Şahi̇n, Emi̇rhan Nemutlu, Levent Öner

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

A fast and easy method was validated for simultaneous determination of ciprofloxacin hydrochloride monohydrate (CP), levofloxacin hemihydrate (LV), and N-acetylcysteine (NAC) in samples. The analysis was performed on a C$_{18}$ column (250 x 4.6 mm, 5 μm) (Inertsil ODS-3V) using an isocratic elution method with a mobile phase composed of 25 mM KH$_{2}$PO$_{4}$ (pH 3.0) and methanol (72:28, v/v) at a flow rate of 1 mL/min. UV detection was performed at 214 nm for NAC and 293 nm for CP and LV. The method was validated for linearity, accuracy, precision (repeatability and reproducibility), specificity, sensitivity, and stability. The calibration study …

Bisbenzoxazole Derivatives Had An Antiinflammatory Effect On In Vitro Stimulated Macrophages, Furkan Ayaz, Rusmeenee Kheeree, Qadar Ahmed Isse, Ronak Haj Ersan, Özteki̇n Algül

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

Benzoxazoles are DNA base bioisosteres and studies suggest that their derivatives have antiproliferative activities. Based on their antiproliferative activities they have been mostly studied as new generation anticancer drugs. In our study we exploited their antiproliferative effect, aiming to delineate bisbenzoxazole derivatives' (RHE 231 and RHE 238) potential antiinflammatory effect on mouse macrophages that are activated in vitro through danger signal LPS stimulation. RAW 267.4 mammalian macrophages were activated in the presence of our derivatives with or without danger mimic E. coli derived LPS. We present data that support the strong antiinflammatory activity of the bisbenzoxazole derivatives RHE 231 and …

Investigating The Antiviral Effects Of Vig-3 From Rainbow Trout, Shanee Herrington-Krause

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Rainbow trout is the most farmed fish in Ontario, and thus is economically important to the province. Despite this, there is a lack of understanding regarding fish innate immunity, specifically with regards to interferon-stimulated genes (ISGs) and their antiviral effector functions. ISGs are the workhorses of the innate antiviral response, operating together to limit each step of virus replication. The Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia Virus (VHSV) induced gene (Vig)-3 is a newly identified ISG within many fish species and is homologous to ISG-15 in mammals. It is a small ubiquitin-like protein inducible by type I interferon (IFN-I), and is suggested to …

Disproportionate Exposure To Antibiotics In Children At Risk For Invasive Pneumococcal Disease: Potential For Emerging Resistance And Opportunity For Antibiotic Stewardship, Tamar F. Barlam, Jake R. Morgan, Warren A. Kaplan, Kevin Outterson, Stephen I. Pelton

Faculty Scholarship

We compared antibiotic prescribing for children with and those without an underlying chronic condition associated with increased risk for invasive pneumococcal disease. Children with a chronic condition had significantly greater cumulative exposure to antibiotics and higher rates of prescriptions per person-year than those without a chronic condition; this population is at increased risk for the emergence of multidrug-resistant pathogens.

Modeling Of Hiv, Sir And Sis Epidemics On Time Scales And Oscillation Theory, Gülşah Yeni

Doctoral Dissertations

"We study higher dimensional systems of first order dynamic equations on time scales together with their applications. In particular, we focus on epidemic models such as HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus), SIS (Susceptible-Infected-Susceptible) and SIR (Susceptible-Infected-Recovered).

First, we generalize the early studied continuous three dimensional linear model of drug therapy for HIV-1 decline on time scales in order to derive new discrete models that predict the total concentration of plasma virus as a function of time. We compare these models to explore the impact of the theory of time scales. After fitting the models to the data collected at a clinical …

Disarming Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Virulence By The Inhibitory Action Of 1,10-Phenanthroline-5,6-Dione- Based Compounds: Elastase B (Lasb) As A Chemotherapeutic Target, Anna Clara M. Galdino, Livia Vigano, Aleaxandre A. De Castron, Elaine F.F; Da Cunha, Thais P. Mello, Larissa M. Mattos, Marcos D. Pereira, Mary Hunt, Megan O'Shaughnessy, Orla L. Howe, Michael Devereux, Malachy Mccann, Teodorico C. Ramalho, Marta H. Branquinha, André L.S. Santos

Articles

negative pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and this enzyme orchestrates several physiopathological events during bacteria-host interplays. LasB is considered to be a potential target for the development of an innovative chemotherapeutic approach, especially against multidrug-resistant strains. Recently, our group showed that 1,10-phenanthroline-5,6-dione (phendione), [Ag(phendione)2]ClO4 (Ag-phendione) and [Cu(phendione)3](ClO4)2.4H2O (Cu-phendione) had anti-P. aeruginosa action against both planktonic- and biofilm-growing cells. In the present work, we have evaluated the effects of these compounds on the (i) interaction with the lasB active site using in silico approaches, (ii) lasB proteolytic activity by using a specific fluorogenic peptide substrate, (iii) lasB gene expression by real time-polymerase chain …

The Vaccine Race In The 21st Century, Ana Santos Rutschman

Faculty Publications

In a world where infectious diseases spread at increasingly faster rates, the development of new human vaccines remains a priority in biopharmaceutical innovation. Legal scholars have addressed different aspects of vaccine regulation and administration, but less attention has been paid to the role of laws governing innovation during the stages of research and development (“R&D”) of vaccines.

This Article explores the race to develop new vaccines from its beginnings through the early twenty-first century, with a focus on the progressively pervasive role of intellectual property in governing vaccine innovation. It describes the insufficiencies of current innovation regimes in promoting socially …

Malaria Care-Seeking Behaviour Among Hiv-Infected Patients Receiving Antiretroviral Treatment In South-Eastern Nigeria: A Cross-Sectional Study., Uchechukwu M Chukwuocha, Gregory N Iwuoha, Geoffrey C Nwakwuo, Peter K Egbe, Chidinma D. Ezeihekaibe, Christopher P Ekiyor, Ikechukwu N S Dozie, Sahai Burrowes

This study assesses malaria prevention and treatment behaviour among people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in Owerri, South Eastern Nigeria. Although Nigeria bears one of the world's largest burdens of both malaria and HIV, there is almost no research studying how co-infected patients manage their care. We systematically sampled 398 PLWHA receiving care at Imo State Specialist Hospital and the Federal Medical Centre in Owerri to complete a structured, pre-tested questionnaire on malaria care-seeking behaviour. Descriptive statistics were reported and chi-square tests and multivariate logistic regressions were also used. The majority of HIV-infected patients (78.9%) reported having had an episode of …

Exposure To Health Warning Labels On Waterpipe Tobacco Packages: An Application Of The Modified Extended Parallel Process Model On Quitting Behavior From Three Waves Of The Path Study, Jayaprakash Kumar

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

The prevalence of waterpipe (WP) smoking has increased steadily in the United States despite growing evidence of its serious health consequences and addictive potential. Although, health warning labels (HWLs) on cigarette packages are effective in preventing initiation and cessation of smoking, the effect of HWLs on WP tobacco packages have seldom been studied. This study modified the extended parallel process model (EPPM) by adding motivation as a mediating construct and applied to examine if it predicts the effect of health warning label on waterpipe tobacco packages on quitting behavior. Data from the three waves of the Population Assessment of Tobacco …

Individual Bodies, Informed Consent, And Self-Determination: A Rhetorical Analysis Of The Vaccine Refusal Movement, Gretta Richardson

Scripps Senior Theses

This project sought to explore the narratives and rhetorical themes that permeate the anti-vaccination movement. Mass media has portrayed vaccine refusal groups as stupid, as conspiracy theorists, and as radically selfish. However, the data I analyzed from vaccine refusal nonprofits and advocacy groups supports that although these themes may appear to be radical, in reality, each is congruent with already present societal frameworks, particularly neoliberal social discourse and a preoccupation with the individualistic and self-determined health care rather than utilitarian or collective action.

Cellulitis: A Mnemonic To Increase Accuracy Of Cellulitis Diagnosis, Brett C. Neill, William V. Stoecker, Ramzi Hassouneh, Anand Rajpara, Daniel J. Aires

Student Publications

Cellulitis, a bacterial infection of the skin and subcutaneous tissue, is often misdiagnosed. Cellulitis accounts for a large number of all infectious disease-related hospitalizations in the U.S. Cellulitis can be challenging to diagnose since it lacks pathognomonic findings. We reviewed all articles on cellulitis within the last 20 years that included a statistical analysis, with odds ratios (OR), of specific clinical features of cellulitis. We then constructed a mnemonic encompassing the features with the highest odds ratios. Our mnemonic is CELLULITIS for cellulitis history, edema, local warmth, lymphangitis, unilateral, leukocytosis, injury, tender, instant onset, and systemic signs. The first characteristic …

Age Grading An. Gambiae And An. Arabiensis Using Near Infrared Spectra And Artificial Neural Networks, Masabho Peter Milali, Maggy T. Sikulu-Lord, Samson S. Kiware, Floyd E. Dowell, George F. Corliss, Richard J. Povinelli

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Background

Near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is currently complementing techniques to age-grade mosquitoes. NIRS classifies lab-reared and semi-field raised mosquitoes into < or ≥ 7 days old with an average accuracy of 80%, achieved by training a regression model using partial least squares (PLS) and interpreted as a binary classifier.

Methods and findings

We explore whether using an artificial neural network (ANN) analysis instead of PLS regression improves the current accuracy of NIRS models for age-grading malaria transmitting mosquitoes. We also explore if directly training a binary classifier instead of training a regression model and interpreting it as a binary classifier improves the accuracy. A total of 786 and 870 NIR spectra collected from laboratory reared An. gambiae and An. arabiensis, respectively, were used and pre-processed according …

Online Symptom Checker Diagnostic And Triage Accuracy For Hiv And Hepatitis C, A. C. Berry, B. D. Cash, B. Wang, M. S. Mulekar, A. B. Van Haneghan, Kyle Yuquimpo, A. Swaney, M. C. Marshall, W. K. Green

Student Publications

We sought to address the prior limitations of symptom checker accuracy by analysing the diagnostic and triage feasibility of online symptom checkers using a consecutive series of real-life emergency department (ED) patient encounters, and addressing a complex patient population - those with hepatitis C or HIV. We aimed to study the diagnostic and triage accuracy of these symptom checkers in relation to an emergency room physician-determined diagnosis. An ED retrospective analysis was performed on 8363 consecutive adult patients. Eligible patients included: 90 HIV, 67 hepatitis C, 11 both HIV and hepatitis C. Five online symptom checkers were utilised for diagnosis …

Genomic Delineation Of Zoonotic Origins Of Clostridium Difficile, Daniel R. Knight, Thomas V. Riley

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Clostridium difficile is toxin-producing antimicrobial resistant (AMR) enteropathogen historically associated with diarrhea and pseudomembranous colitis in hospitalized patients. In recent years, there have been dramatic increases in the incidence and severity of C. difficile infection (CDI), and associated morbidity and mortality, in both healthcare and community settings. C. difficile is an ancient and diverse species that displays a sympatric lifestyle, establishing itself in a range of ecological niches external to the healthcare system. These sources/reservoirs include food, water, soil, and over a dozen animal species, in particular, livestock such as pigs and cattle. In a manner analogous to human infection, …

Sero-Prevalence Of Hepatitis B And C Viral Co-Infections Among Hiv-1 Infected Art-Naïve Individuals In Kumasi, Ghana, Richard Boateng, Mohamed Mutocheluh, Albert Dompreh, Dorcas Obiri-Yeboah, Enoch Odame Anto, Michael Owusu, Patrick Williams Narkwa

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Background

The study assessed the hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) co-infection paradigm among the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infected patients attending a tertiary hospital in Ghana. Also, the immunological and virological characterisation of these viruses, prior to antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation was investigated.

Method

A total of 400 HIV infected (HIV type-1) treatment naïve subjects ≥18 years were enrolled and tested for HBsAg and anti-HCV. Hepatitis B virus serological profile was performed on samples that were HBV positive. CD4+ T-cell count and HIV-1 RNA viral loads were determined using BD FacsCalibur analyzer (USA) and COBAS AmpliPrep/COBAS …

Clostridium Difficile Ribotype 017–Characterization, Evolution And Epidemiology Of The Dominant Strain In Asia, Korakrit Imwattana, Daniel R. Knight, Brian Kullin, Deirdre A. Collins, Papanin Putsathit, Pattarachai Kiratisin, Thomas V. Riley

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Clostridium difficile ribotype (RT) 017 is an important toxigenic C. difficile RT which, due to a deletion in the repetitive region of the tcdA gene, only produces functional toxin B. Strains belonging to this RT were initially dismissed as nonpathogenic and circulated largely undetected for almost two decades until they rose to prominence following a series of outbreaks in the early 2000s. Despite lacking a functional toxin A, C. difficile RT 017 strains have been shown subsequently to be capable of causing disease as severe as that caused by strains producing both toxins A and B. While C. difficile RT …

Differential Immunity As A Factor Influencing Mussel Hybrid Zone Structure, Deryk Tolman, Hannah L. Wood, David O.F. Skibinski, Manuela Truebano

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

For Wilderness Or Wildness? Decolonising Rewilding, K Ward

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

No abstract provided.

Principal Components Analysis Of Raman Spectral Data For Screening Of Hepatitis C Infection, A. Dita, H. Nawaz, T. Mahmood, M. Tahir, N. Rashid, Muhammad Mudassar, A.A.H. Alsaadi, Hugh Byrne

Articles

In the current study, Raman spectroscopy is employed for the identification of the biochemical changes taking place during the development of Hepatitis C. The Raman spectral data acquired from the human blood plasma samples of infected and healthy individuals is analysed by Principal Components Analysis and the Raman spectral markers of the Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) infection are identified. Spectral changes include those associated with nucleic acidsat720 cm−1, 1077 cm−1 1678 (CO stretching mode of dGTP of RNA), 1778 cm−1 (RNA), with proteins at 1641 cm−1(amide-I), 1721 cm−1(CC stretching of proteins) and lipids at 1738 cm−1(CO of ester group in …

A Rare Presentation Of Cardiac Aspergilloma In An Immunocompetent Host: Case Report And Literature Review, Abdullah M. Pervaiz, Salman A. Bangash, Raheel Akhtar, Zain Wahab, Hyder Bangash

School of Medicine Publications

Cardiac aspergilloma is exceptionally rare with only a handful of cases reported and majority of them being in immunocompromised patients. Here, we present a case of cardiac aspergilloma involving the right and left ventricle in an immunocompetent patient that initially presented with acute limb ischemia. He was later found to have a cardiac mass with histopathological diagnosis confirming Aspergillus species. Despite aggressive medical and surgical interventions, the patient had an unfavorable outcome due to low suspicion of invasive fungal endocarditis given his immunocompetent status. Cardiac aspergilloma should remain in the differential diagnosis of immunocompetent patients as early clinical suspicion will …

Diversity-Oriented Synthesis Of Novel Benzimidazoles As Antimalarial Agents Via Post Ugi Mcr, Anshu Dandia, Pankaj Potlia, Irfan Khan, Vivek Kumar Kashyap, Ved Prakash Verma, Mankiva Karnatak, Anupam Dhasmana, Shashi Pandey, Tarun Shrimali, Vijay Parewa, Shahnawaz Khan, Jaybir Singh

School of Medicine Publications

An efficient strategy for the syntheses of highly diverse benzimidazoles in exceptional yields via post Ugi reactions has been described. In our methodology we have utilized isocyanide based Ugi-reaction followed by acid catalyzed condensation cyclization reaction under microwave irradiations. All benzimidazole derivatives showed moderate to good antimalarial activity when compared with chloroquine as reference compound. Among these compounds, three of them (8b), (8c), (8d) were found to be most potent towards antimalarial activity. The synthesized hybrids were examined for their purity with the help of thin layer chromatography. Different analytical techniques were employed for further characterization like Mass studies, NMRs …