Digital Commons Network^™

Appropriations And Stem Cell Research Arlen Specter’S Senate Legacy, Sean Q. Kelly

Arlen Specter Center Research Fellowship

Pennsylvania Republican Senator Arlen Specter sat at the center of battles over stem cell research. Focusing on Specter’s efforts allows sustained exploration of policy entrepreneurship in the Senate. Building on Fenno’s seminal work on Arlen Specter, which focused mostly on Specter’s first term in office. Specter’s early work on criminal justice policy helped to prepare him for the weighty work involved in the stem cell debate. However, it was his ascendance on the Senate Appropriations Committee, and his position on the Labor, Health, and Human Services subcommittee in particular, that allowed him to become a leader on the stem cell …

Accent, University Marketing And Communicatons, East Tennessee State University

Accent [newsletter]

No abstract provided.

Breaking Evangelical: An Attachment-Focused Framework For Healing Spiritual Trauma, Ashley M. Davis

Doctor of Ministry

About 25 percent of the US population is religiously unaffiliated, and about 70 percent of these individuals are former Christians (Pew Research, PRRI, Gallup, Barna). Included in this phenomenon is the spiritual traumatization of women within evangelical churches, which has been revealed partially through the #MeToo and #ChurchToo movements on social media.

At the core of spiritual abuse is the issue of broken attachments (human bonding and communion with God). God created people for community, and abuse is direct injury to this vital aspect of our humanity. This work explores theories and concepts of perichoresis, God attachment, and interpersonal attachment …

Oxygen Consumption And Sulfate Reduction In Vegetated Coastal Habitats: Effects Of Physical Disturbance, Kasper Elgetti Brodersen, Stacey M. Trevathan-Tackett, Daniel A. Nielsen, Rod M. Connolly, Catherine E. Lovelock, Trisha B. Atwood, Peter I. Macreadie

Ecology Center Publications

Vegetated coastal habitats (VCHs), such as mangrove forests, salt marshes and seagrass meadows, have the ability to capture and store carbon in the sediment for millennia, and thus have high potential for mitigating global carbon emissions. Carbon sequestration and storage is inherently linked to the geochemical conditions created by a variety of microbial metabolisms, where physical disturbance of sediments may expose previously anoxic sediment layers to oxygen (O2), which could turn them into carbon sources instead of carbon sinks. Here, we used O2, hydrogen sulphide (H2S) and pH microsensors to determine how biogeochemical conditions, and thus aerobic and anaerobic metabolic …

Geospatial Modeling Of Land Cover Change In The Chocó-Darien Global Ecoregion Of South America; One Of Most Biodiverse And Rainy Areas In The World, José Camilo Fagua, R. Douglas Ramsey

Ecology Center Publications

The tropical rain forests of northwest South America fall within the Chocó-Darien Global Ecoregion (CGE). The CGE is one of 25 global biodiversity hotspots prioritized for conservation due to its high biodiversity and endemism as well as threats due to deforestation. The analysis of land-use and land-cover (LULC) change within the CGE using remotely sensed imagery is challenging because this area is considered to be one of the rainiest places on the planet (hence high frequency of cloud cover). Furthermore, the availability of high-resolution remotely sensed data is low for developing countries before 2015. Using the Random Forest ensemble learning …

Technology: Inside The Black Box -- Managing Neuro Patients, Mary Kay Bader

Books, Presentations, Posters, Etc.

Objectives:

• Identify the pathophysiology and cellular processes related to brain injury responses
• Describe the indications, functions, data analysis, and suggested interventions with various monitors of the brain
• Apply this technology to the care of the critically injured neuro patient using evidenced based protocols

Hexapod Herald - Vol. 31, No. 1, February 2019

Hexapod Herald and Other Entomology Department Newsletters

Welcome -- Congratulations -- Note from John Ruberson -- Grants -- Faculty News -- Student News -- Publications -- Blast from the Past -- Brewer Appreciation Reception -- Intro Beekeeping Class-Year 1 -- Condolences -- Retirement Reception for Kalisch and Roselle

Genome Assembly And Gene Expression In The American Black Bear Provides New Insights Into The Renal Response To Hibernation., Anuj Srivastava, Vishal Kumar Sarsani, Ian Fiddes, Susan Sheehan, Rita L Seger, Mary Barter, Selena Neptune-Bear, Charlotte Lindqvist, Ron Korstanje

Faculty Research 2019

The prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is rising worldwide and 10-15% of the global population currently suffers from CKD and its complications. Given the increasing prevalence of CKD there is an urgent need to find novel treatment options. The American black bear (Ursus americanus) copes with months of lowered kidney function and metabolism during hibernation without the devastating effects on metabolism and other consequences observed in humans. In a biomimetic approach to better understand kidney adaptations and physiology in hibernating black bears, we established a high-quality genome assembly. Subsequent RNA-Seq analysis of kidneys comparing gene expression profiles in black …

Winter Field Report, December 2018 To February 2019, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

As has been the trend in recent winters, and despite the relative coolness of this winter, there were numerous examples of species north of expected midwinter ranges or present in higher numbers than usual in winter. The long list includes unexpected midwinter records of Tundra Swan, American Wigeon, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, White-winged Dove, Sandhill Crane, Clark’s Grebe, Doublecrested Cormorant, Red-shouldered Hawk, and Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. Startling was the state’s first winter record of Sedge Wren, perhaps the biggest rarity of the season. And Eastern Meadowlark was documented in midwinter for the first time, although its presence in the southeast has …

Emergence Of Collective Behaviors In Hub-Based Colonies Using Grammatical Evolution And Behavior Trees, Aadesh Neupane

Theses and Dissertations

Animals such as bees, ants, birds, fish, and others are able to efficiently perform complex coordinated tasks like foraging, nest-selection, flocking and escaping predators without centralized control or coordination. These complex collective behaviors are the result of emergence. Conventionally, mimicking these collective behaviors with robots requires researchers to study actual behaviors, derive mathematical models, and implement these models as algorithms. Since the conventional approach is very time consuming and cumbersome, this thesis uses an emergence-based method for the efficient evolution of collective behaviors. Our method, Grammatical Evolution algorithm for Evolution of Swarm bEhaviors (GEESE), is based on Grammatical Evolution (GE) …

A Tandem Mass Spectrometry Sequence Database Search Method For Identification Of O-Fucosylated Proteins By Mass Spectrometry., Kristian E Swearingen, Jimmy K Eng, David Shteynberg, Vladimir Vigdorovich, Timothy A Springer, Luis Mendoza, D Noah Sather, Eric W Deutsch, Stefan H I Kappe, Robert L Moritz

Articles, Abstracts, and Reports

Thrombospondin type 1 repeats (TSRs), small adhesive protein domains with a wide range of functions, are usually modified with O-linked fucose, which may be extended to O-fucose-β1,3-glucose. Collision-induced dissociation (CID) spectra of O-fucosylated peptides cannot be sequenced by standard tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) sequence database search engines because O-linked glycans are highly labile in the gas phase and are effectively absent from the CID peptide fragment spectra, resulting in a large mass error. Electron transfer dissociation (ETD) preserves O-linked glycans on peptide fragments, but only a subset of tryptic peptides with low m/ z can be reliably sequenced from ETD …

System Library Services 2018 Annual Report, System Library Services, Providence St. Joseph Health

Articles, Abstracts, and Reports

2018 report of activities and activities for System Library Services. Sections include Resources & Services, Innovation & Research, Special Projects & Ministry Engagement, and Library Staff Accomplishments. Also includes a visual poster annual report and impact report.

Bch 482.01: Advanced Biochemistry Ii, John Stephen Lodmell

University of Montana Course Syllabi, 2016-2020

No abstract provided.

Mississippi River And Campeche Bank (Gulf Of Mexico) Episodes Of Cross-Shelf Export Of Coastal Waters Observed With Satellites, Daniel Otis

Marine Science Faculty Publications

The cross-shelf advection of coastal waters into the deep Gulf of Mexico is important for the transport of nutrients or potential pollutants. Twenty years of ocean color satellite imagery document such cross-shelf transport events via three export pathways in the Gulf of Mexico: from the Campeche Bank toward the central Gulf, from the Campeche Bank toward the Florida Straits, and from the Mississippi Delta to the Florida Straits. A catalog of these events was created based on the visual examination of 7280 daily satellite images. Water transport from the Campeche Bank to the central Gulf occurred frequently and with no …

Improving Satellite Global Chlorophyll A Data Products Through Algorithm Refinement And Data Recovery, Chuanmin Hu, Lian Feng, Zhongping Lee, Bryan A. Franz, Sean W. Bailey, Jeremy Werdell, Christopher W. Proctor

Marine Science Faculty Publications

A recently developed algorithm to estimate surface ocean chlorophyll a concentrations (Chl in mg m⁻³), namely, the ocean color index (OCI) algorithm, has been adopted by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration to apply to all satellite ocean color sensors to produce global Chl maps. The algorithm is a hybrid between a band-difference color index algorithm for low-Chl waters and the traditional band-ratio algorithms (OCx) for higher-Chl waters. In this study, the OCI algorithm is revisited for its algorithm coefficients and for its algorithm transition between color index and OCx using a merged data set of high-performance …

A Critical Analysis On Offenders Rehabilitation Approach In South Africa: A Review Of The Literature, Patrick Bashizi Bashige Murhula, Shanta B. Singh

African Journal of Criminology and Justice Studies

The South African Department of Correctional Services (DCS) has a constitutional mandate to provide rehabilitation programs that address offenders’ criminal conducts. The treatment approach currently used to deliver this mandate is grounded on the Needs-Based Model where dynamic factors associated with recidivism are systematically targeted in treatment of offenders’ criminal behaviors. But the reality of the matter is that there are systemic problems that challenge the DCS both conveying its moral messaging and fulfilling its legal commitment on the rehabilitation of offenders. The DCS mission is far to be accomplished due to its failure to reduce recidivism. Along these lines, …

Exploring Determinants Of Behavioral Chronotype In A Diurnal-Rodent Model Of Human Physiology, Roberto Refinetti, Gabrielle Earle, G. J. Kenagy

Psychological Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

studies conducted with human participants have shown that differences in chronotype, defined as individual patterns of early or late beginning of daily activity, have implications for many biobehavioral processes, such as cognitive performance, mood, impulsivity, academic achievement of college students, and mental health. However, the determinants of individual variation in chronotype have not been investigated. Basic research on circadian rhythms has provided a basis for investigating the causes of chronotype variation, but experimental tests of pertinent hypotheses are difficult to conduct with human subjects. This limitation can be overcome by use of animal models. This study was conducted with a …

Bird Monitoring At Effigy Mounds National Monument, Iowa, Status Report 2009–2017, David G. Peitz, Lloyd W. Morrison, Kristen L. Mecke

United States National Park Service: Publications

Executive Summary

In 2009, the Heartland Inventory and Monitoring (I&M) Network) initiated breeding bird surveys on Effigy Mounds National Monument (NM), Iowa, to address two objectives: (1) to monitor changes in bird community composition and abundance, and (2) to improve our understanding of relationships between breeding birds and habitat and the effects of management actions on such relationships. This report evaluates trends in the park’s breeding bird populations in the context of trends observed within the North American Bird Conservation Initiative’s (NABCI) Prairie Hardwood Transition Bird Conservation Region, the bird conservation region in which the park is located. By doing …

Initial Characterization Of The Indole-3-Carboxamide Bic-154 As A Fast Onset And Reversible Orai Channel Blocker, Tetyana Zhelay, Kalina Szteyn, Elisa Liardo, Jae Eun Cheong, Steffi Koerner, Anil Ekkati, Lijun Sun, J. Ashot Kozak

Neuroscience, Cell Biology & Physiology Faculty Publications

Calcium ion elevations are required for human T-lymphocyte proliferation in response to antigen recognition by a T-cell receptor. Calcium influx through the plasma membrane is necessary for efficient T-cell proliferation and effector function. The calcium channels responsible for Ca2+ influx in lymphocytes have been identified and Orai interacting with ER Ca2+ sensor STIM were shown to be crucial for persistent calcium mobilization. Loss-of-function mutations in Orai1 or STIM1 result in severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) with muscle hypotonia. Suppression of calcium influx through Orai/STIM channels gives rise to various lymphoproliferative defects. Thus, deletion of Orai or STIM in mice results in …

Decreasing Door-To-Door Times For Infliximab Infusions In A Children's Hospital Observation Unit, Kelly C. Sandberg, Janet N. Lucien, Denise Stoll, Erica Yanney, Adam Mezoff

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Introduction:

Children with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) often require infliximab infusions to manage their disease. Infusions administered in the hospital setting require the patient and their families to devote many hours away from home. Changing to a rapid infusion protocol has been shown in the literature to be safe and has the potential to decrease time spent in the hospital receiving infusions.

Methods:

We describe stepwise changes made over a 4-month period to improve infliximab infusion efficiency and lessen the time spent in the hospital by IBD patients and their families. These changes included the implementation of a standardized order …

Synthesis, Biological Evaluation And Molecular Modeling Studies Of Novel Chromone/Aza-Chromone Fused Α-Aminophosphonates As Src Kinase Inhibitors, S. Bapat, N. Viswanadh, M. Mujahid, Amir Nasrolahi Shirazi, Rakesh Tiwari, Keykavous Parang, M. Karthikeyan, M. Muthukrishnan, Renu Vyas

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

A series of novel chromone/aza-chromone fused α-aminophosphonate derivatives were synthesized in good yields using silica chloride as the catalyst. All the synthesized compounds were tested for their c-Src kinase inhibitory activity. Aza-chromone compound showed Src kinase inhibition with an IC50 value of 15.8 µM. The compounds were subjected to molecular docking and dynamics simulations to study the atomic level interactions with an unphosphorylated proto-oncogenic tyrosine protein kinase Src (PDB code 1Y57) as well as phosphorylated tyrosine protein kinase Src (PDB code 2H8H). Docking and molecular dynamic results revealed phosphorylated Src tyrosine kinase protein better results than unphosphorylated tyrosine Src kinase …

Outcomes And Toxicity Following Yttrium-90 Radioembolization For Hepatic Metastases From Neuroendocrine Tumors-A Single-Institution Experience, Darryl A. Zuckerman, Richard F. Kennard, Amit Roy, Parag J. Parikh, Ashley A. Weiner

Open Access Publications

Background: The prognosis of patients with hepatic metastases from neuroendocrine tumors (NET) is generally good, and radioembolization with Yttrium-90 microspheres is a locoregional therapy that is used in efforts to improve hepatic disease control and survival. This study aims to describe the survival outcomes and toxicities associated with radioembolization for hepatic-predominant metastatic NET in a large single-institution cohort.

Methods: A total of 59 patients underwent radioembolization for metastatic NET with hepatic predominant disease at a single academic center. Patient outcomes were analyzed by Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and toxicities were detailed and described. Ten patients within the cohort underwent post-treatment dosimetric …

Effectiveness Of Windrow Composting Methodology In Killing A Thermo-Tolerant Species Of Salmonella During Mortality Composting, Spencer Gabriel Myers

Master's Theses

In a large agricultural operation, such as the one at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, disposal of deceased animals is an immense issue. The cost of transporting and rendering every dead animal is inhibitory to the general function of the agricultural operations and their thin budget. Therefore, we propose that composting mortalities could be an economical alternative. Composting is a recognized method for taking animal waste products along with carbon waste and turning it into a pathogen-free, nutrient-rich topsoil. Carcass composting is in fact performed in other countries and states to varying degrees of success. However, the California EPA limits …

Novel Use Of Conceptual Change Framework Improves Video On Challenging Science Topic, Matthew J. Helmers, Timothy D. Youngquist, Nancy Grudens-Schuck

Journal of Extension

Educational campaigns are more complicated when members of our audiences hold scientific misconceptions related to new technologies. Our prairie strips research and education team produced a brief, focused video aimed to dispel a misconception related to the effect of prairie strip plants' roots on agricultural drain tiles in the Midwest. Our "Field Tile Investigation" video was based on the conceptual change framework from science education and featured a discrepant event. The goal was to move farmers, landowners, and their advisors to an understanding of prairie strips that was more compatible with the scientific standard.

3d Genome Organization And Transcriptional Regulation In Mammalian Cells, Emaly Piecuch

Doctoral Dissertations

Remarkably, cell types sharing the same linear genome sequence express different genes and have distinct functions. 3D genomic arrangement has been demonstrated to play a critical role in this process. Fine scale organization of genes and regulatory elements within active and inactive domains underlie gene expression and disruption of this process has been shown to influence development and disease. Yet, the precise dynamics of cell type specific 3D genomic interactions mediating mammalian gene expression, such as those between enhancers and promoters, remain lacking on a genome wide level.

Neurons represent a specialized cell type known to respond to a myriad …

Activation Of The Bile Acid Pathway And No Observed Antimicrobial Peptide Sequences In The Skin Of A Poison Frog, Megan L. Civitello, Robert Denton, Michael A. Zasloff, John H. Malone

Biology Publications

The skin secretions of many frogs have genetically-encoded, endogenous antimicrobial peptides (AMPs). Other species, especially aposematic poison frogs, secrete exogenously derived alkaloids that serve as potent defense molecules. The origins of these defense systems are not clear, but a novel bileacid derived metabolite, tauromantellic acid, was recently discovered and shown to be endogenous in poison frogs (Mantella, Dendrobates, and Epipedobates). These observations raise questions about the evolutionary history of AMP genetic elements, the mechanism and function of tauromatellic acid production, and links between these systems. To understand the diversity and expression of AMPs among frogs, we assembled skin transcriptomes of …

Mitoquinone Ameliorates Pressure Overload-Induced Cardiac Fibrosis And Left Ventricular Dysfunction In Mice, Kah Yong Goh, Li He, Jiajia Song, Miki Jinno, Aaron J. Rogers, Palaniappan Sethu, Ganesh Halade, Rajasekaran N. Soorappan, Xiaoguang Liu, Sumanth D. Prabhu, Victor Darley-Usmar, Adam R. Wende, Lufang Zhou

Internal Medicine Faculty Publications

Increasing evidence indicates that mitochondrial-associated redox signaling contributes to the pathophysiology of heart failure (HF). The mitochondrial-targeted antioxidant, mitoquinone (MitoQ), is capable of modifying mitochondrial signaling and has shown beneficial effects on HF-dependent mitochondrial dysfunction. However, the potential therapeutic impact of MitoQ-based mitochondrial therapies for HF in response to pressure overload is reliant upon demonstration of improved cardiac contractile function and suppression of deleterious cardiac remodeling. Using a new (patho)physiologically relevant model of pressure overload-induced HF we tested the hypothesis that MitoQ is capable of ameliorating cardiac contractile dysfunction and suppressing fibrosis. To test this C57BL/6J mice were subjected to …

Assessing Eukaryotic Biodiversity In The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Through Environmental Dna Metabarcoding, Natalie Sawaya, Anni Djurhuus, Collin Closek, Megan Hepner, Emily Olesin, Lindsey Visser, Christopher Kelble, Katherine Hubbard, Mya Breitbart

Marine Science Faculty Publications

Environmental DNA (eDNA) is the DNA suspended in the environment (e.g., water column), which includes cells, gametes, and other material derived from but not limited to shedding of tissue, scales, mucus, and fecal matter. Amplifying and sequencing marker genes (i.e., metabarcoding) from eDNA can reveal the wide range of taxa present in an ecosystem through analysis of a single water sample. Metabarcoding of eDNA provides higher resolution data than visual surveys, aiding in assessments of ecosystem health. This study conducted eDNA metabarcoding of two molecular markers (cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) and 18S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes) to survey eukaryotic …

School And Work Experiences Of Adults With Adhd: A Qualitative Case Study, Julieta E. Robello

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

This study focused on learning about the life experiences of individuals with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). ADHD has three major traits: hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattention. This phenomenological study focused on adults ages 18 to 40. The questions posed were: (a) What barriers or successful strategies do individuals with ADHD encounter as they make their way through the educational system and into the workplace? (b) How do these individuals perceive their academic success or failure? (c) How is or was parental support a factor in their academic success or failure? (d) How is or was teacher support a factor in …

Rural General Education Preservice Teachers’ Perceptions Of Inclusion: A Study Of Candidates’ Self-Efficacy And Attitude Toward Teaching In Inclusive Classrooms, Neria Sebastien

CUP Ed.D. Dissertations

Preservice teachers understanding of inclusion; align with their perceptions about their capabilities to achieve high learner outcomes. This dissertation investigated how general education preservice teachers perceived inclusion and the role that their attitudes and beliefs played in their overall student teaching experiences in rural southeastern Washington. Guided by Bandura's social cognitive theory (1977) this case study examined their self-efficacy to teach in inclusive classrooms. Teaching is a domain of practice in which study participants can hold high efficacy beliefs and for decades, researchers have conducted studies to investigate the role of self-efficacy in education. The research population for the study …