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Flavonol Specific 3-O Glucosyltransferase (Cp3gt) Mutant S20g+T21s: Enzyme Structure And Function, Hayden Fobare

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Flavonols are a major subclass of flavonoids and are considered the most abundant subclass of flavonoids. Flavonols are classified as having a hydroxyl group on the 3^rd carbon of the C ring. The most prevalent modification to flavonols is glucosylation. The flavonol specific 3-O glucosyltransferase (Cp3GT) enzyme from grapefruit (Citrus paradisi) is the topic of this research and specifically adds glucose to flavonols at the 3-OH position. The level of activity varies depending on the flavonol structure. This makes Cp3GT an ideal model system for studying the structure/function relationship of Cp3GT using site-directed mutants. S20G+T21S is a …

Effect Of A Self-Care And Self-Awareness Education Program On Resilience To Burnout And Depression In Clinically Experienced Nursing Students, Andrew Taylor

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The purpose was to examine the effect of a self-care educational intervention on nursing student resilience and thus the potential for compassion fatigue, depersonalization, burnout, depression, and inadequate self-care. A one-group pretest-posttest research design was applied to a convenience sample of 104 nursing students near the end of their last semester in a baccalaureate nursing program. The measurements were demographics, a psychometric resilience scale, program evaluation, and reflection question. The intervention was a standardized, intensive 30 min training program on the high degree of stress and burnout nurses face and the core self-care methods that can promote resilience to these …

Delimiting Cryptic Morphological Variation Among Human Malaria Vector Species Using Convolutional Neural Networks, Janelle Couret, Danilo C. Moreira, Davin Bernier, Aria Mia Loberti, Ellen M. Dotson, Marco A. Alvarez

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Deep learning is a powerful approach for distinguishing classes of images, and there is a growing interest in applying these methods to delimit species, particularly in the identification of mosquito vectors. Visual identification of mosquito species is the foundation of mosquito-borne disease surveillance and management, but can be hindered by cryptic morphological variation in mosquito vector species complexes such as the malaria-transmitting Anopheles gambiaecomplex. We sought to apply Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) to images of mosquitoes as a proof-of-concept to determine the feasibility of automatic classification of mosquito sex, genus, species, and strains using whole-body, 2D images of mosquitoes. We …

Arginine Kinetics Are Altered In A Pilot Sample Of Adolescents And Young Adults With Barth Syndrome, W Todd Cade, Kathryn L Bohnert, Adam J Bittel, Shaji J Chacko, Bruce W Patterson, Christina A Pacak, Barry J Byrne, Hilary J Vernon, Dominic N Reeds

Open Access Publications

Barth syndrome (BTHS) is a rare, X-linked cardiomyopathy that is characterized by abnormalities in glucose and lipid metabolism, with less known regarding amino acid metabolism. This pilot study characterized whole-body arginine kinetics and found lower arginine rate of appearance into plasma (0.69 ± 0.09 vs. 0.88 ± 0.06 μmol/kgFFM/min,

The Quest For The Optimal Surgical Management Of Tricuspid Valve Endocarditis In The Current Era: A Narrative Review, Francesco Nappi, Cristiano Spadaccio, Christos Mihos, Kasra Shaikhrezai, Christophe Acar, Marc R. Moon

Open Access Publications

Tricuspid valve endocarditis (TVE) is a growing concern with increasing rates and mortality burden. The currently changing etiology, the antibiotic resistance and the raise in iatrogenic causes as with implantable cardiac devices [cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED)], represent a challenge for the management of these patients. The progressively widespread use of CIEDs is adding to the more commonly known intravenous (IV) drug abuse in the list of causes. Treatment strategies include medical therapy alone or surgery. From the surgical standpoint tricuspid valve repair, replacement or the staged procedure of valvectomy as bridge to replacement are available options. Treatment of endocarditis …

A Narrative Review Of The Interpretation Of Guidelines For The Treatment Of Infective Endocarditis, Umberto Benedetto, Sanjeet Singh Avtaar Singh, Cristiano Spadaccio, Marc R. Moon, Francesco Nappi

Open Access Publications

The recommendations of the current guidelines and the position papers of professional societies from the European Society of Cardiology/European Society of Cardiothoracic Surgeons (ESC), the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association/Society of Thoracic Surgeon (ACC/AHA/STS) and American Association of Thoracic Surgeon (AATS) regarding management of patients with valvular heart endocarditis were updated over the past decade. However, some of the recommendations appear to contradict one another. Given the changing paradigms on how the disease manifests, our aim was to review the respective guidelines and highlight these differences whilst drawing attention to the subsequent studies from which they were derived. In …

Incidence And Survival For Oropharynx And Non-Oropharynx Head And Neck Cancers Among Veterans Living With Hiv, Angela L Mazul, Christine Hartman, Jennifer Kramer, Donna L White, Kathryn Royse, Suchismita Raychaudhury, Vlad Sandulache, Sarah T Ahmed, Peter Richardson, Andrew G Sikora, Elizabeth Chiao

Open Access Publications

BACKGROUND: People living with HIV/AIDS (PLWH) have an excess risk for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) compared to the general U.S. population, but little is known about HIV-specific risk factors associated with the incidence and outcomes HNSCC. We aim to identify clinical and HIV-specific risk factors associated with oropharyngeal and non-oropharyngeal HNSCC incidence and outcomes separately.

METHODS: We constructed a retrospective cohort study of 45,052 PLWH aged 18 or above from the national Veteran Affairs (VA) Corporate Data from 1999 to 2015. We extracted demographic data and risk factor information, including history of alcohol abuse, smoking, CD4 count …

Investment, Deficits, And The Transition From Feudalism To Capitalism: An Exploratory Heterodox Analysis And Conjecture, Thomas E. Lambert

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Investment in capital, new technology, and agricultural techniques has not been considered endeavors worthwhile in a medieval economy because of a lack of strong property rights and no incentive on the part of lords and barons to lend money to or grant rights peasant farmers. Therefore, the medieval economy and standards of living at that time often have been characterized as non-dynamic and static due to insufficient investment in innovative techniques and technology. The capital investment undertaken typically would have been in livestock, homes, or public investment in canals, bridges, and roads, although investment in the latter would have been …

Analysis Of Electroanatomic Mapping System Accuracy Using X-Ray Reconstruction Of Electrode Locations In A Porcine Animal Model, Hana Boudlali

Master's Theses

Fluoroscopy is considered the gold standard for locating catheters during cardiac electrophysiology (EP) procedures. However, fluoroscopy emits ionizing radiation which can lead to adverse health effects when exposed to in high doses (World Health Organization, 2016). Electroanatomic mapping (EAM) systems display the three-dimensional location of EP catheters and measure the local electrical activity of the heart. They can minimize a physician’s reliance on fluoroscopy and can help reduce radiation exposure during a case (Casella, 2011).

EAM systems are diagnostic medical devices that inform the placement of ablation therapy and must accurately locate catheters to be deemed safe. Test methods to …

Phantom Ocean, Real Impact: Natural Surf Sound Experiments Alter Foraging Activity And Habitat Use Across Taxa, Ryan N. Wardle

Master's Theses

A growing body of research focuses on how background sounds shape and alter critical elements of animals’ lives, such as foraging behavior, habitat use, and ecological interactions (Bradbury & Vehrencamp, 2011; Barber et al., 2010; Kight & Swaddle, 2011; Shannon et al., 2016). Much of this research has centered on the effects of anthropogenic noise (Dominoni et al., 2020; Francis & Barber, 2013; Ortega, 2012; Swaddle et al., 2015), but recent studies have also revealed that natural sound sources can influence animal behavior (Davidson et al., 2017; Le et al., 2019). Natural sounds, such as crashing surf, can create conditions …

Improving Sustainable Fertilizer Practices For Pomegranate By Leaf Nutrient Concentration Evaluation And Fertilizer Trials, Minh Le

Master's Theses

Fruit tree leaf nutrient concentrations are commonly used to determine fertilizer rates, but information is limited regarding nutrient requirements, seasonal N uptake and removal rates, and soil N dynamics for pomegranate. Relationships between fertilizer rates, leaf nutrient concentrations, fruit yield and quality were examined in five mature, commercial California ‘Wonderful’ pomegranate orchards. Site 1 was observed for two growing seasons (2018-2019) and sites 2-5 were observed for one season (2018 or 2019). In 2018, 150, 300, or 450 g N/tree was applied at sites 1-3 in a single application at early fruit development or in two equal applications at early …

A Protocol For Achieving Adherent Cell Culture Within A Microfluidic Device, Tarra Danielle Sanders

Master's Theses

The goal of this study is to design a protocol for the adherent cell culture within a novel microfluidic device. Microscale cell culture protocols were developed for loading cells using poly-L-lysine to enhance adherent cell culture of murine derived NIH 3T3 fibroblasts. This work sought to develop a method for adherent microculture by examining various sterilization, surface treatment, and seeding techniques. Using a vacuum suction loading technique, air plasma treatment and a poly-L-lysine surface treatment adherent cell culture was observed within the device. The work presented here is part of a collaborative effort that aims to develop protocols for the …

Understanding The Effects Of Long-Duration Spaceflight On Fracture Risk In The Human Femur Using Finite Element Analysis, Keyanna Brielle Henderson

Master's Theses

Long-duration spaceflight has been shown to have significant, lasting effects on the bone strength of astronauts and to contribute to age-related complications later in life. The microgravity environment of space causes a decrease in daily mechanical loading, which signals a state of disuse to bone cells. This affects the bone remodeling process, which is responsible for maintaining bone mass, causing an increase in damage and a decrease in density. This leads to bone fragility and decreases overall strength, posing a risk for fracture. However, there is little information pertaining to the timeline of bone loss and subsequent fracture risk.

This …

Impact Of Soil Properties On Removal Of Emerging Contaminants From Wastewater Effluent During Soil Aquifer Treatment, Lauren N. Riley

Master's Theses

This study evaluates soil properties that impact the effectiveness of soil aquifer treatment (SAT) as a polishing step to the remove two classes of ECs from wastewater effluent: pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs), and engineering nanomaterials (ENMs). In recent years, it has been determined that elevated levels of emerging contaminants (ECs) are being released into the environment with wastewater effluent. ECs are proven to cause adverse environmental and health effects as a result of long-term exposure. It is important to evaluate sustainable solutions to improve the current methods of wastewater treatment to address these ECs.

Soil aquifer treatment (SAT) …

Eelgrass (Zostera Marina) Population Decline In Morro Bay, Ca: A Meta-Analysis Of Herbicide Application In San Luis Obispo County And Morro Bay Watershed, Tyler King Sinnott

Master's Theses

The endemic eelgrass (Zostera marina) community of Morro Bay Estuary, located on the central coast of California, has experienced an estimated decline of 95% in occupied area (reduction of 344 acres to 20 acres) from 2008 to 2017 for reasons that are not yet definitively clear. One possible driver of degradation that has yet to be investigated is the role of herbicides from agricultural fields in the watershed that feeds into the estuary. Thus, the primary research goal of this project was to better understand temporal and spatial trends of herbicide use within the context of San Luis …

Pennsylvania’S Covid-19 Response Vs. Homeland Security Frameworks And Research: Masking The Whole Community, Alexander Siedschlag

Publications

This essay offers an intermediate discussion of select policy, strategic, operational, and tactical issues that demonstrate where and how the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s novel coronavirus response on the one hand, and homeland security frameworks and research on the other, converge or—more often so—diverge, and how to narrow this gap. Although typically framed as a pandemic owned by the public health sector, the COVID-19 response falls directly within the homeland security mission space, whose core missions include “Ensuring Resilience to Disasters.” In some respects, Pennsylvania’s response exemplifies best practices suggested by research. In other dimensions, it is neither in line with …

Biological Siblings: Can You Trust Them With Your Mate?, Elisha Barron

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Recent studies suggest that genes may influence human mate preferences. What would this mean for same-sex siblings who share genes? Might they also share mate preferences and engage in mate poaching or would social norms and strong sibling bonds discourage such behaviors? We hypothesized that siblings would perceive their mate preferences to be more similar to their sibling’s than to an average person of their same gender. It was also hypothesized that the association between perceived sibling mate preferences and sibling mate poaching would be moderated by sibling closeness and sibling competition. Additionally, it was hypothesized that sibling mate competition …

Educators’ Perspectives Regarding The Inclusion Of Students With Mild To Moderate Disabilities Into The General Education Classroom, Rebecca Lynn Parres

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

This quantitative study examined the perspectives of educators related to the inclusion of students with mild to moderate disabilities in general education classrooms. General education teachers, special education providers (e.g. education specialists, speech pathologists, occupational and physical therapists, and school psychologists, etc.), and administrators were surveyed to obtain their perspectives regarding the inclusion of students with mild to moderate disabilities; into the general education classroom. The Inclusive School Program Survey (McLewesky, et al., 2012) was used with permission from James McLeskey who conducted similar research in 2001. The five-point Likert scale survey was utilized to obtain data from the …

Docs_On_Blocks – A Defense In Depth Strategy For E-Healthcare, Saad Mohammed

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

With the increase in the data breaches and cyber hacks, organizations have come to realize that cyber security alone would not help as the attacks are becoming more sophisticated and complex than ever. E-Healthcare industry has shown a promising improvement in terms of security over the past, but the threat remains. Thus, the E-Healthcare industries are aiming towards a Defense in Depth Strategy approach.

The project here describes how a Defense in Depth Strategy for E-Healthcare system can provide an environment for better security of the data and peer-to-peer interaction with stakeholders. The legacy systems have at some point failed …

The Importance Of Recess In The Lives Of Children, Kayla L. Villanueva

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Current research suggests that when children get the chance to play outdoors, they reap the benefits. However, in today’s society children aren’t outdoors very often. Children also don’t have very much time to play outdoors during recess time while in a school setting. The purpose of this project was to educate and inform elementary school principals about the importance and benefits that recess has on children, as well as help them become an advocate for recess. A video was created that focused on the benefits of outdoor play for children, the importance of recess for children, as well as ways …

An Analysis Of Policies And Practices For The Inclusion Of Students With Disabilities In Public Universities In Mexico, Lilia G. Lopez Arriaga

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to analyze the laws and regulations regarding the inclusion of students with disabilities in selected Mexican universities. Seven public autonomous universities on the northern border of Mexico were selected for participation. Official documents were reviewed and administrators were surveyed to determine the extent to which federal legislation requiring inclusion was implemented at their respective institutions. Faculty members of psychology were also surveyed regarding the guarantees and accommodations provided by their institutions and the effectiveness of those efforts. Principal findings were that the commitment to serve students with disabilities was high, however the existing plans …

Understanding Why Individuals Use Club Drugs At Raves And Electronic Dance Music Events: A Peer Cluster Theory Approach, Brandi N. Burns

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Raves and Electronic Dance Music (EDM) events are part of a growing culture of entertainment for young people around the world. The dangers of these events include fatalities related to drug use, overheating, dehydration and lack of harm reduction services. This study explores drug use at rave events through a survey examining EDM attendee experiences. Using a binary logistic regression model, this investigation examines the relative importance of five factors: (1) peer group drug use and (2) peer influence on behavior, drawn from peer cluster theory, (3) presence of security features that may dissuade drug use controls for rational choices, …

Pk-12 Sexual Minority Public School Employees’ Identity Management: Implications On Career Quality, Potential, And Advancement, Gordon Tod Larson

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

LGBTQ public PK-12 educators make decisions on their sexual identity disclosure management. This study sought the phenomenological aspects of how these management decisions and actions affect career path, promotion, and fulfillment to retirement. The purpose of this study was to raise awareness of LGBTQ PK-12 educators’ experiences with sexual identity management disclosure strategies and how these strategies impact their career. The sample was four educators from across the northern tier of the United States; the Northeast, the Northwest, and the Upper Midwest. Narrative inquiry produced thick, rich and descriptive stories of interactions with their students which gave meaning to their …

The Disarray Of Christmas, Brett C. Hoover

Theological Studies Faculty Works

No abstract provided.

Inspire : Vol 3, Issue 12, Department Of Medicine

INSPIRE – Department of Medicine Archives

Content

• Message From the Chair
• Medicine at National and International Forums
• In Depth- Section: featuring Dr Saad Shafqat
• Featured Faculty: Dr. Sara Khan “…always try to look at the bright side, do things with a smile, stay optimistic …”
• What are Academics Around the World Reading This Month?
• Publications

Implementation Of Nurse-Led Multidisciplinary Rounds In A Critical Care Unit, Sandra Champagne

Master's Projects and Capstones

The nature of this project is to improve communication, within the interdisciplinary team, the patients and families by establishing nurse-driven daily multidisciplinary rounds (MDR). The intensive care environment is quite frightening and disorienting for the patients and families due to the technology used, the constant care involved and the delirium that often ensues. The large number of professionals involved in care due to the complexity of the health issues the critically ill patients face also intensifies the amount of information the patients and families need to process.

Coordination of care can be complex and difficult. The social issues observed in …

Corn And Soybean Response To Wastewater-Recycled Phosphorus Fertilizers, Shane Ylagan

Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

The ability to recycle phosphorus (P) from wastewaters could provide a sustainable, continuous source of P that might also help protect surface water quality from P enrichment. The mineral struvite (MgNH4PO4·6H2O) is an understudied material that can be created from Pcontaining wastewater and has been shown to have agricultural fertilizer value. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of electrochemically precipitated struvite (ECST), chemically precipitated struvite (Crystal Green; CG), diammonium phosphate (DAP), monoammonium phosphate (MAP), rock phosphate (RP), and triple super phosphate (TSP) on corn (Zea mays) and soybean (Glycine max) response in a 79-day greenhouse pot …

A Systematic Review Of Home-Based Dietary Interventions During Radiation Therapy For Cancer., Taylor H Allenby, Megan L Crenshaw, Katlynn Mathis, Colin E Champ, Nicole L Simone, Kathryn H Schmitz, Leila T Tchelebi, Nicholas G Zaorsky

Department of Radiation Oncology Faculty Papers

Purpose: Our objectives are to assess (1) the acceptability and feasibility of dietary interventions for patients undergoing radiation therapy (RT), and (2) the impact of dietary interventions on patient reported outcomes, toxicities, and survival.

Methods: A PICOS/PRISMA/MOOSE selection protocol was used to include articles that evaluate adding dietary interventions to patients receiving RT. Acceptability was defined as (# accepting/# approached); feasibility was (# completing/# approached). Patient-reported outcomes were reported based on questionnaires used in each study and survival was measured from the date of diagnosis until death in each study. Level of evidence was assessed with Center for Evidence-Based Medicine …

Military Life Narratives And Identity Development Among Black Post-9/11 Veterans, Deon Marcell Hall

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the phenomenological experience of veteran identity development in post-9/11 veterans who identify within the Black diaspora. Given that current research suggests that behavioral health providers lack the sufficient training necessary to meet the unique clinical needs of post-9/11 veterans, this study aimed to examine military culture and experience in the context of intersecting cultural identities so as to more effectively frame the services offered by counseling psychologists working with Black military veterans and service members. More specifically, this study strengthens the existing empirical framework for addressing the behavioral health needs of post-9/11 …

Contemplative Pedagogy: A Grounded Theory Of The Integration Of Contemplative Practices And Perspectives Within Counselor Training, Clarissa B. Cigrand

Dissertations

While there is a growing evidence on the value of contemplative practice within counselor preparation (Christopher & Maris, 2010; Leppma & Young, 2016; McCollum & Gehart, 2010), research to date has focused on studying specific contemplative practices and their benefits to clients and CITs rather than guidelines of implementation. As a field, we are lacking information on how contemplative practice informs pedagogical strategies and approaches. Scant research exists on how contemplative practices and perspectives inform the roles of counselor educators, their way of being in the classroom, and how they situate contemplative practices and perspectives into student learning. This dissertation …