Digital Commons Network^™

Theoretical Perspectives Of The Baltimore Ecosystem Study: Conceptual Evolution In A Social–Ecological Research Project, Steward T. A. Pickett, Mary L. Cadenasso, Matthew E. Baker, Lawrence E. Band, Christopher G. Boone, Geoffrey L. Buckley, Peter M. Groffman, J. Morgan Grove, Elena G. Irwin, Sujay S. Kaushal, Shannon L. Ladeau, Andrew J. Miller, Charles H. Nilon, Michele Romolini, Emma J. Rosi, Christopher M. Swan, Katalin Szlavecz

Center for Urban Resilience Scholarship

The Earth’s population will become more than 80% urban during this century. This threshold is often regarded as sufficient justification for pursuing urban ecology. However, pursuit has primarily focused on building empirical richness, and urban ecology theory is rarely discussed. The Baltimore Ecosystem Study (BES) has been grounded in theory since its inception and its two decades of data collection have stimulated progress toward comprehensive urban theory. Emerging urban ecology theory integrates biology, physical sciences, social sciences, and urban design, probes interdisciplinary frontiers while being founded on textbook disciplinary theories, and accommodates surprising empirical results. Theoretical growth in urban ecology …

Humanity’S Best Friend: A Dog-Centric Approach To Addressing Global Challenges, Naomi Sykes, Piers Beirne, Alexandra Horowitz, Ione Jones, Linda Kalof, Elinor Karlsson, Tammie King, Howard Litwak, Robbie A. Mcdonald, Luke John Murphy, Neil Pemberton, Daniel Promislow, Andrew Rowan, Peter W. Stahl, Jamshid Tehrani, Clive D. L. Wynne, Eric G. Strauss, Greger Larson

Center for Urban Resilience Scholarship

No other animal has a closer mutualistic relationship with humans than the dog (Canis familiaris). Domesticated from the Eurasian grey wolf (Canis lupus), dogs have evolved alongside humans over millennia in a relationship that has transformed dogs and the environments in which humans and dogs have co-inhabited. The story of the dog is the story of recent humanity, in all its biological and cultural complexity. By exploring human-dog-environment interactions throughout time and space, it is possible not only to understand vital elements of global history, but also to critically assess our present-day relationship with the natural world, and to begin …

Venomics As A Drug Discovery Platform: Identifying Conopeptides With Pharmacological Activity, Meghan Kathleen Grandal

MUSC Theses and Dissertations

Cone snail venom is a mixture of disulfide-constrained peptides (conotoxins), hormone-like peptides, and proteins that have been ‘weaponized’ for predation and defense. Venom peptides, or conopeptides, have efficiently evolved to bind receptors and ion channels that modulate the neuromuscular, cardiovascular, and central nervous systems in prey species. With over 850 species of cone snails, each with unique venom concoctions, cone snail venom is a valuable source of novel pharmacological probes and potential drug leads. However, the complexity of the venom poses a challenge for drug discovery. Contributing to the complexity is 1) a wide range in molecular weight 2) peptide …

The Tokyo Tribunal’S Legal Origins And Contributions To International Jurisprudence As Illustrated By Its Treatment Of Sexual Violence, Diane Orentlicher

Contributions to Books

No abstract provided.

Functional Relevance Of Renal Histamine Receptors In The Kidney, Mikhail Fomin

MUSC Theses and Dissertations

The immunology of kidney disease is complex and involves factors from both the innate and the adaptive immune systems. Histamine is an important immunomodulator, as well as a regulator of allergic inflammation, gastric acid secretion, and neurotransmission. Although an increase in histamine level and expression of histamine-metabolizing enzymes have been shown in the kidney, renal pathological and physiological effects of histamine have not been clearly defined. The goal of this study was to provide insight into the physiological importance of the histamine-related pathways in the kidney, with emphasis on the collecting duct (CD), a distal part of the nephron important …

Rage Signaling As A Pharmacological Target In Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Liping Liu

MUSC Theses and Dissertations

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is characterized by the progressive degeneration of both upper and lower motor neurons. Astrocytes are key for maintaining central nervous system homeostasis and are important determinants of motor neuron fate in ALS. Accordingly, IPSC-derived astrocytes from ALS patients or astrocytes from diverse ALS mouse models, including mice overexpressing the ALS-linked mutant hSOD1G93A, induce motor neuron death in co-culture. Previously our lab reported that motor neurons isolated from receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) knockout mice are resistant to the ALS-astrocyte derived neurotoxicity. Therefore, our working hypothesis states that inhibition of RAGE signaling can suppress astrocyte-mediated …

Cell-Type Specific Extracellular Matrix Signaling In The Opioid-Addicted Synapse, Vivian C. Chioma

MUSC Theses and Dissertations

To date, heroin abuse is a leading cause of drug overdose-related deaths in the United States, highlighting a need for further research elucidating effects of maladaptive neuroadaptations following prolonged heroin use. Activation of the tetrapartite synapse in nucleus accumbens core (NAcore), which comprises of pre- and post-synapse, astrocytic processes, and surrounding extracellular matrix (ECM), has been linked to increased relapse vulnerability. Specifically, degradation of ECM by activated matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) is involved in extracellular synaptic remodeling both constitutively and transiently in extinguished and drug seeking conditions, respectively. Although increases in MMP-2,9 fluorescence can be localized to soma and dendritic processes …

Museums As Realms Of (Dis)Enchantment, Amy Buono

Art Faculty Articles and Research

"On the night of September 2, 2018, a blaze swept through Brazil's national museum, Museu Nacional, in Rio de Janeiro, destroying not only the colonial building, portions of which dated to the sixteenth century, but roughly 92 percent of the 20 million objects in its holdings. This was Brazil's greatest encyclopedic museum, incorporating (among many others) collections of natural history, anthropology, archaeology, and art, thus forming the most comprehensive museum collection in the nation. Along with its many unique and irreplaceable collections, the Museu Nacional was also home to the country's oldest Indigenous Brazilian and Afro-Brazilian materials (fig. 1)."

A Positively Selected Fbn1 Missense Variant Reduces Height In Peruvian Individuals, Samira Asgari, Yang Luo, Ali Akbari, Gillian M. Belbin, Xinyi Li, Daniel N. Harris, Martin Selig, Eric Bartell, Roger Calderon, Kamil Slowikowski, Carmen Contreras, Rosa Yataco, Jerome T. Galea, Judith Jimenez, Julia M. Coit, Chandel Farroñay, Rosalynn M. Nazarian, Timothy D. O’Connor, Harry C. Dietz, Joel N. Hirschhorn, Heinner Guio, Leonid Lecca, Eimear E. Kenny, Esther E. Freeman, Megan B. Murray, Soumya Raychaudhuri

Social Work Faculty Publications

On average, Peruvian individuals are among the shortest in the world1. Here we show that Native American ancestry is associated with reduced height in an ethnically diverse group of Peruvian individuals, and identify a population-specific, missense variant in the FBN1 gene (E1297G) that is significantly associated with lower height. Each copy of the minor allele (frequency of 4.7%) reduces height by 2.2 cm (4.4 cm in homozygous individuals). To our knowledge, this is the largest effect size known for a common height-associated variant. FBN1 encodes the extracellular matrix protein fibrillin 1, which is a major structural component of microfibrils. We …

A Review Of Small Molecule Inhibitors And Functional Probes Of Human Cathepsin L, Dibyendu Dana, Sanjai Kumar

Publications and Research

Human cathepsin L belongs to the cathepsin family of proteolytic enzymes with primarily an endopeptidase activity. Although its primary functions were originally thought to be only of a housekeeping enzyme that degraded intracellular and endocytosed proteins in lysosome, numerous recent studies suggest that it plays many critical and specific roles in diverse cellular settings. Not surprisingly, the dysregulated function of cathepsin L has manifested itself in several human diseases, making it an attractive target for drug development. Unfortunately, several redundant and isoform-specific functions have recently emerged, adding complexities to the drug discovery process. To address this, a series of chemical …

Network Structure Of Vertebrate Scavenger Assemblages At The Global Scale: Drivers And Ecosystem Functioning Implications, Esther Sebastián-González, Zebensui Morales-Reyes, Francisco Botella, Lara Naves-Alegre, Juan M. Pérez-García, Patricia Mateo-Tomás, Pedro P. Olea, Marcos Moleón, Jomar M. Barbosa, Fernando Hiraldo, Eneko Arrondo, José A. Donázar, Ainara Cortés-Avizanda, Nuria Selva, Sergio A. Lambertucci, Aishwarya Bhattacharjee, Alexis L. Brewer, Erin F. Abernethy, Kelsey L. Turner, James C. Beasley, Travis L. Devault, Hannah C. Gerke, Olin E. Rhodes Jr, Andrés Ordiz, Camilla Wikenros, Barbara Zimmermann, Petter Wabakken, Christopher C. Wilmers, Justine A. Smith, Corinne Kendall, Darcy Ogada, Ethan Frehner, Maximilian L. Allen, Heiko U. Wittmer, James R. A. Butler, Johan T. Du Toit, Antoni Margalida, Pilar Oliva-Vidal, David Wilson, Klemen Jerina, Miha Krofel, Rich Kostecke, Richard Inger, Esra Per, Yunus Ayhan, Hasan Ulusoy, Doğanay Vural, Akino Inagaki, Shinsuke Koike, Arockianathan Samson, Paula L. Perrig, Emma Spencer, Thomas M. Newsome, Marco Heurich, José D. Anadón, Evan R. Buechley, José A. Sánchez-Zapata

Publications and Research

The organization of ecological assemblages has important implications for ecosystem functioning, but little is known about how scavenger communities organize at the global scale. Here, we test four hypotheses on the factors affecting the network structure of terrestrial vertebrate scavenger assemblages and its implications on ecosystem functioning. We expect scavenger assemblages to be more nested (i.e. structured): 1) in species-rich and productive regions, as nestedness has been linked to high competition for carrion resources, and 2) regions with low human impact, because the most efficient carrion consumers that promote nestedness are large vertebrate scavengers, which are especially sensitive to human …

Higher Sensitivity Of Female Cells To Ethanol: Methylation Of Dna Lowers Cyp2e1, Generating More Ros, Carlos G. Penaloza, Mayra Cruz, Gabrielle Germain, Sidra Jabeen, Mohammad Javdan, R. A. Lockshin, Zahra Zakeri

Publications and Research

Background: Cells taken from mouse embryos before sex differentiation respond to insults according to their chromosomal sex, a difference traceable to differential methylation. We evaluated the mechanism for this difference in the controlled situation of their response to ethanol.

Methods: We evaluated the expression of mRNA for alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH), aldehyde dehyrogenases (ALDH), and a cytochrome P450 isoenzyme (Cyp2e1) in male and female mice, comparing the expressions to toxicity under several experimental conditions evaluating redox and other states.

Results: Females are more sensitive to ethanol. Disulfiram, which inhibits alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH), increases cell death in males, eliminating the sex …

Polygenic Risk Score Analysis Revealed Shared Genetic Background In Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder And Narcolepsy, Nagahide Takahashi, Tomoko Nishimura, Taeko Harada, Akemi Okumura, Damee Choi, Toshiki Iwabuchi, Hitoshi Kuwabara, Shu Takagi, Yoko Nomura, Jeffrey H. Newcorn, Nori Takei, Kenji J. Tsuchiya

Publications and Research

Attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) is a highly heritable neurodevelopmental disorder, and excessive daytime sleepiness is frequently observed in ADHD patients. Excessive daytime sleepiness is also a core symptom of narcolepsy and essential hypersomnia (EHS), which are also heritable conditions. Psychostimulants are effective for the symptomatic control of ADHD (primary recommended intervention) and the two sleep disorders (frequent off-label use). However, the common biological mechanism for these disorders has not been well understood. Using a previously collected genome-wide association study of narcolepsy and EHS, we calculated polygenic risk scores (PRS) for each individual. We investigated a possible genetic association between …

Sas Data Curation Primer, Qiong Xu

Publications and Research

This primer was created as part of the "Specialized Data Curation" Workshop #3 held at Washington University in St. Louis, MO on November 5-6, 2019. Exploring SAS application and how researchers generated, stored, and shared their SAS data sets, this work summarized the key features of SAS data and explained how to curate SAS data in institutional data repositories. This primer can be used as a manual for research data curators or librarians to document SAS data for the purpose of data preservation and sharing.

Microspheres With Atomic-Scale Tolerances Generate Hyperdegeneracy, Jacob Kher-Alden, Shai Maayani, Leopoldo L. Martin, Mark Douvidzon, Lev Deych, Tal Carmon

Publications and Research

Degeneracies play a crucial rule in precise scientific measurements as well as in sensing applications. Spherical resonators have a high degree of degeneracy thanks to their highest symmetry; yet, fabricating perfect spheres is challenging because even a stem to hold the sphere breaks the symmetry. Here we fabricate a levitating spherical resonator that is evanescently coupled to a standard optical fiber. We characterize the resonators to exhibit an optical quality factor exceeding a billion, 10 μm radius, and sphericity to within less than 1µ. Using our high quality and sphericity, we experimentally lift degeneracies of orders higher than 200, which …

Estimation And Clustering In Block Models, Majid Noroozi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Networks with community structure arise in many fields such as social science, biological science, and computer science. Stochastic block models are popular tools to describe such networks. For this reason, in this dissertation which is composed of two parts we explore some stochastic block models and the relationship between them. In the first part of the dissertation, we study the Popularity Adjusted Block Model (PABM) and introduce its sparse case, the Sparse Popularity Adjusted Block Model (SPABM). The SPABM is the only existing block model which allows to set some probabilities of connections to zero. For both the PABM and …

Family Mass Homicide: An Investigation, Alec Szalewski

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Operationalizing mass murder consistently has yet to be achieved. Mass homicide definitions often use time and space, but other key factors (e.g., victim count) vary widely across literature and agencies. Because of this, the current study argues for a mass family homicide definition of two or more victims, not including the offender, with no method of killing requirement. The purpose of using this victim count derives from the average family size and how many victims can be killed before an entire family annihilation. Next, using the suggested definition, three exploratory logistic regression models were run to further the understanding and …

Molecular And Phenotypic Diversification Of A Cryptic Group Of Terrestrial Frogs From The Southern Andes Of Ecuador, Veronica Urgiles Penafiel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

The Ecuadorean Andes sustains one of the most remarkable frog diversifications. In this region, nearly one in three known species of amphibians belong to the Pristimantis genus, which contains the majority of the direct-developing terrestrial frog species. Although efforts are ongoing to understand the diversity of Pristimantis, large regions of the ecosystems they occupy remain understudied, and speciation and diversity of this genus remains poorly understood. Within this context, an interesting taxon with many unresolved questions regarding patterns and process of diversification is the Pristimantis orestes species complex which is distributed across the Paramo landscape and montane forests in the …

Experimental Investigation Of The Laminar Burning Velocities Of High-Performance Co-Optima Biofuels, Gihun Kim

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Co-Optimization of Fuels and Engines (Co-Optima) initiative of the U.S Department of Energy (DOE) started research on biofuel and biodiesel to replace the gasoline (petrol) and diesel for over the road internal combustion engines. From an initial list of thousands of fuels, selected bio-fuels and biodiesels were investigated for further combustion studies following the implementation of screening, which consisted of biodegrading, toxicity, flash point, research octane number, motor octane numbers, cetane number, and economic effect, etc. Experimental measurements of laminar burning velocity (LBV) are key parameters to understand fuel performance and applicability in engines. Furthermore, knowledge of LBV is required …

Water Reclamation Using Functionalized Forward Osmosis Membrane, Fnu Joshua

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

This study investigated water reclamation from an impaired-quality water using forward osmosis (FO) membrane functionalized by nano zero valent iron (nZVI) loaded polyelectrolyte multilayer films. Stormwater runoff was selected as the impaired-quality water, which served as a feed solution (FS) and a NaCl salt solution at a concentration representing reverse osmosis (RO) concentrate was used a draw solution (DS). RO concentrate is another impaired-quality water that is discharged to the environmental with little or no treatment. A commercial cellulose triacetate (CTA) FO membrane was modified using poly allylamine hydrochloride (PAH) (a polycation) and poly acrylic acid (PAA) (a polyanion) following …

Working Memory In Children With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: An Investigation Of Short-Term And Central Executive Memory Components Using Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy, Samuel Eckrich

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is an early onset, highly heritable, chronic neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by underdeveloped/deficient executive functions, particularly those entailing working memory (WM). Substantial research exists documenting WM deficits in pediatric age range ADHD and their relation with adverse learning outcomes; however, relatively little is known concerning the extent to which deficient WM processes reflect underlying deficiencies in hemodynamic functioning (OxyHb). This is the first study to use a movement-tolerant neuroimaging tool—functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS)—to investigate hypothesized prefrontalOxyHb differences between children with ADHD and typically developing (TD) children while they complete memory tasks differing in cognitive processing demands (e.g., …

Development Of 3d Porous Chitosan-Based Platform For In Vitro Culture, Kailei Xu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Three-dimensional (3D) cell cultures have been widely used in biological research since two-dimensional (2D) cultures have many limitations including alteration of cell morphology, metabolic pathways and gene expression. Therefore, the application of 2D cell cultures in pharmaceutical companies for drug screening causes reproducibility issues in animal studies, which strongly influences the efficiency of drug development. The aim of my studies is to develop 3D cell culture models to better mimic the extracellular matrix (ECM) in tumor microenvironment, not only for deeper understanding of interaction between cells and ECM, but also for the application in drug screening. Three different compositions of …

Learning Strategies And Metacognition In Adults With Dyslexia, Bradley W. Bergey

Publications and Research

In this chapter, we review the literature on learning and study strategies of university students with reading disabilities. Increasing numbers of students with reading disabilities attend post-secondary education, and while there, many experience academic challenges related to their remaining reading problems. We propose that learning and study strategies are important compensatory mechanisms for these students, but conclude not much is currently known about the learning and study strategies that students with reading disabilities employ in post-secondary education. As a way forward, we identify measurement and sampling issues in existing studies as potentially responsible for the varied results and discuss the …

Graduate Catalog And Student Handbook 2020-2021, Nova Southeastern University

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice Graduate Course Catalogs

No abstract provided.

Implementing Peer Instruction In Medical Education And The Impact On Student Success, Alexander Chase

Scholarship in Medicine - All Papers

In 1991, a physicist at Harvard University, Dr. Eric Mazur, implemented a new style of classroom learning into his introductory physics courses named Peer Instruction.1 The objective of Peer Instruction (PI) was to engage students in interactive discussion throughout the time spent in the classroom. In the PI format, students were assigned reading that was then tested at the start of each class through a reading quiz. Dr. Mazur then spent the remainder of class quizzing his students with questions that were designed to highlight the important aspects of the material in question. All students were required to participate by …

Outcomes Of Prenatal Marijuana Use, Sierra Clark

Scholarship in Medicine - All Papers

Holistic therapy is becoming a national trend and a lot of people are turning to marijuana for its potential benefits. Even pregnant women are using marijuana to manage nausea and vomiting. 1 Currently, medical marijuana is legal in 33 states and the District of Columbia, with 10 states also legalizing its recreational use. 1 In the US, between 16.2% of pregnant women are using marijuana daily.2 In a study surveying 785 pregnant women, 79% reported perceiving little to no harm in prenatal marijuana use.3 Due to the increase in its use and the common perception of being harmless, it is …

Addiction And Expression, Luke Smith Morgan

Scholarly Works

No abstract provided.

Criminal Law, John A. Regan

Mercer Law Review

This Article reviews some of the most important opinions impacting the practice of criminal law delivered by the Supreme Court of the United States and the Georgia Supreme Court covering the period of June 1, 2018 up until May 31, 2019, as well as legislation adopted by the Georgia General Assembly during the 2019 Session.1 This Article is designed to be a mere overview to both prosecutors and defense attorneys of decisions and new statutes and serves as a broad guideline to how these decisions will affect their practices.

Commentary On: Cosmeceuticals: The Principles And Practice Of Skin Rejuvenation Of Nonprescription Topical Therapy, Clifford P. Clark, Ashley Goldston

Surgery Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Gymnosperm Species Richness Patterns Along The Elevational Gradient And Its Comparison With Other Plant Taxonomic Groups In The Himalayas, Suresh C. Subedi, Khem Raj Bhattarai, Timothy M. Perez, Jay P. Sah

Faculty Publications - Biological Sciences

Phylogenetic constraints on ecophysiological adaptations and specific resource requirements are likely to explain why some taxonomic and functional groups exhibit different richness patterns along climatic gradients. We used interpolated species elevational distribution data and climatic data to describe gymnosperm species richness variation along elevational and climatic gradients in the Himalayas. We compared the climatic and elevational distributions of gymnosperms to those previously found for bryophytes, ferns, and angiosperm tree lineages to understand the respective drivers of species richness. Our study location was divided into three regions: Eastern; Central; and Western Himalayas. In each region, the sum of gymnosperm species richness …