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Treatment-Specific Hippocampal Subfield Volume Changes With Antidepressant Medication Or Cognitive-Behavior Therapy In Treatment-Naive Depression., Hua-Hsin Tai, Jungho Cha, Faezeh Vedaei, Boadie W Dunlop, W Edward Craighead, Helen S Mayberg, Ki Sueng Choi

Department of Neuroscience Faculty Papers

Background: Hippocampal atrophy has been consistently reported in major depressive disorder with more recent focus on subfields. However, literature on hippocampal volume changes after antidepressant treatment has been limited. The first-line treatments for depression include antidepressant medication (ADM) or cognitive-behavior therapy (CBT). To understand the differential effects of CBT and ADM on the hippocampus, we investigated the volume alterations of hippocampal subfields with treatment, outcome, and chronicity in treatment-naïve depression patients. Methods: Treatment-naïve depressed patients from the PReDICT study were included in this analysis. A total of 172 patients who completed 12 weeks of randomized treatment with CBT (n …

Supercongruences For Rigid Hypergeometric Calabi–Yau Threefolds, Ling Long, Fang Ting Tu, Noriko Yui, Wadim Zudilin

Faculty Publications

We establish the supercongruences for the fourteen rigid hypergeometric Calabi–Yau threefolds over Q conjectured by Rodriguez-Villegas in 2003. Our first method is based on Dwork's theory of p-adic unit roots and it allows us to establish the supercongruences between the truncated hypergeometric series and the corresponding unit roots for ordinary primes. The other method makes use of the theory of hypergeometric motives, in particular, adapts the techniques from the recent work of Beukers, Cohen and Mellit on finite hypergeometric sums over Q. Essential ingredients in executing the both approaches are the modularity of the underlying Calabi–Yau threefolds and a p-adic …

Gifts Of The Heart, Eric F. Spina

President's Blog: From the Heart

"As I reflect on the story of Christ’s birth on this Christmas Eve, I’m filled with gratitude for the gifts that we share with one another," University of Dayton President Eric F. Spina writes in a message to the campus community.

High Expression Of Glycolytic Genes In Clinical Glioblastoma Patients Correlates With Lower Survival, Kimberly M. Stanke, Carrick Wilson, Srivatsan Kidambi

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Glioblastoma (GBM), the most aggressive brain tumor, is associated with a median survival at diagnosis of 16–20 months and limited treatment options. The key hallmark of GBM is altered tumor metabolism and marked increase in the rate of glycolysis. Aerobic glycolysis along with elevated glucose consumption and lactate production supports rapid cell proliferation and GBM growth. In this study, we examined the gene expression profile of metabolic targets in GBM samples from patients with lower grade glioma (LGG) and GBM. We found that gene expression of glycolytic enzymes is up-regulated in GBM samples and significantly associated with an elevated risk …

Intercomparison Of Salinity Products In The Beaufort Gyre And Arctic Ocean, Sarah B. Hall, Bulusu Subrahmanyam, James H. Morison

Faculty Publications

Salinity is the primary determinant of the Arctic Ocean’s density structure. Freshwater accumulation and distribution in the Arctic Ocean have varied significantly in recent decades and certainly in the Beaufort Gyre (BG). In this study, we analyze salinity variations in the BG region between 2012 and 2017. We use in situ salinity observations from the Seasonal Ice Zone Reconnaissance Surveys (SIZRS), CTD casts from the Beaufort Gyre Exploration Project (BGP), and the EN4 data to validate and compare with satellite observations from Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP), Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS), and Aquarius Optimally Interpolated Sea Surface Salinity …

St. Benedict Parish For The Deaf Church Bulletin, December 24-25, 2021

Saint Benedict Parish for the Deaf Church Bulletin

A newsletter published for Deaf Catholics in San Francisco, CA

Saint Benedict Parish for the Deaf Church Bulletin Finding Aid

Phenotypic Evaluation And Genetic Analysis Of Seedling Emergence In A Global Collection Of Wheat Genotypes (Triticum Aestivum L.) Under Limited Water Availability, Michael G. Francki, Grantley Stainer, Esther Walker, Gregory J. Rebetzke, Katia T. Stefanova, Robert J. French

Grain and Other Field Crops Research Articles

The challenge in establishing an early-sown wheat crop in southern Australia is the need for consistently high seedling emergence when sowing deep in subsoil moisture ( > 10 cm) or into dry top-soil (4 cm). However, the latter is strongly reliant on a minimum soil water availability to ensure successful seedling emergence. This study aimed to: (1) evaluate 233 Australian and selected international wheat genotypes for consistently high seedling emergence under limited soil water availability when sown in 4 cm of top-soil in field and glasshouse (GH) studies; (2) ascertain genetic loci associated with phenotypic variation using a genome-wide association study …

Personalized Nutrition As A Key Contributor To Improving Radiation Response In Breast Cancer, Anuradha A. Shastri, Joseph Lombardo, Samantha C Okere, Stephanie Higgins, Brittany C Smith, Tiziana Deangelis, Ajay Palagani, Kamryn Hines, Daniel A. Monti, Stella Volpe, Edith P. Mitchell, Nicole L Simone

Department of Radiation Oncology Faculty Papers

Understanding metabolic and immune regulation inherent to patient populations is key to improving the radiation response for our patients. To date, radiation therapy regimens are prescribed based on tumor type and stage. Patient populations who are noted to have a poor response to radiation such as those of African American descent, those who have obesity or metabolic syndrome, or senior adult oncology patients, should be considered for concurrent therapies with radiation that will improve response. Here, we explore these populations of breast cancer patients, who frequently display radiation resistance and increased mortality rates, and identify the molecular underpinnings that are, …

Portugal's Resolution Fund Injects $127 Million Into Novo Banco, Sergio Goncalves

Documents

No abstract provided.

Deficient Data, Ishrat Husain Dr.

Faculty Research - Newspaper and Magazine Articles

In this world of Big Data, satellite imaging, data analytics and predictive analysis, it is a pity that policymakers have to make decisions based on guesstimates or incomplete information as timely, reliable, and updated data on key economic variables is not readily available. The exceptions are the Population Census of the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (although held after 18 years, there was some controversy about Sindh data), the National Socioeconomic Registry of Ehsaas, the identity data of NADRA, the price data of the PBS, balance of payments and monetary aggregates of the SBP, public debt of the EAD and MOF, …

Spontaneous Visual Perspective-Taking: Level 2 Representations Of Another's Perspective Are Not Related To What They Actually See, Louis Aldrich

The Plymouth Student Scientist

The ability to understand what another person can see is a fundamental feature of human interaction, commonly referred to as ‘visual perspective-taking’ (VPT). Traditionally, this ability has been conceptualised along two ‘levels’, in line with developmental observations (Flavell, Everett, Croft & Flavell, 1981). ‘Level-1 VPT’ is a simple, automatic, and rapid process enabling understanding of what another individual can see. In contrast, ‘Level-2 VPT’ is a more complex process requiring conscious control, which enables understanding of how features of the environment look from another’s location. This has led to a widely accepted hypothesis that Level-1 VPT is necessary in the …

A Study To Assess The Viability Of Novel In-Situ Techniques For Determining Chloroform In Drinking Water In Developing Countries, Jack Baker

The Plymouth Student Scientist

The aim of this study was to research appropriate methods for the in-situ analysis of chloroform and other disinfection by-products (DBPs) in drinking water and then assess the viability of these techniques by comparing them against the established methods. A literature search was undertaken using Web of Science and the various features contained within it to research a series of techniques in three distinct categories. These were βeta-cyclodextrin (βCD) techniques, colourimetry techniques and gas-chromatography (GC) techniques. Of the βCD techniques studied, the 2014 paper by Ncube et al showcased a novel method using an azo dye modified βeta-cyclodextrin epichlorohydrin polymer …

Who Owns These Objects? - Impact Of Social And Personal Conditions On Self-Prioritisation, Sammy Parkin

The Plymouth Student Scientist

A relatively new development concerning literature pertaining to the concept of self-bias has highlighted that humans tend to self-prioritise when completing tasks based on perceptual judgements (the self-prioritisation effect). Since then, further exploration into the role that other tasks can have on this effect have been demonstrated, including the idea that object-ownership tasks show the same effects (Golubickis et al., 2018). As recent focus has been on the association between this effect and the task used, it means that there has been little exploration into the possible role that other variables have on predicting levels of self-prioritisation. Based on this, …

Parameters Controlling Large Landslide Propagation, Taylor Wood

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Landslides are an ever-present natural hazard and understanding factors such as propagation are vital for the management of such events. This natural hazard has increased in frequency in recent history which further highlights the importance of the research. This study aims to determine which parameters contribute to large rock avalanche propagation using an experimental approach within a laboratory environment. The experiment was designed to simulate a granular flow event using equipment formed of an inclined slope and a flat horizontal plane with a confined zone. A range of material flow combinations and two different slope inclinations were used throughout. The …

Using Remote Sensing Techniques To Investigate The Detection Of Sargassum Blooms In The Caribbean And Possible Causes For These Events, Louise Ely

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Sargassum was thought to originate from a single source, the Sargasso Sea in the central west Atlantic. This has been challenged over the past decade after excessive amounts of the macroalgae began washing up on Caribbean coastlines in June 2011, leading the scientific community to investigate causes of this phenomenon. These, now yearly, events are having detrimental environmental and socioeconomic impacts in areas of the Caribbean and central America, providing motivation for uncovering any regime shifts or severe changes in anthropogenic activity. Anthropogenic sources of nitrate from three rivers surrounding the CWA in addition to wind stress and chlorophyll-a levels …

Handedness: Does It Affect Interhemispheric Transfer?, Diyotima Datta

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Left- handed people have different patterns of cerebral dominance to the rest of the population, as explained by Annett’s (1996) right shift theory. Left handers are considered to have bilateral functionality unlike right handers who have left cerebral dominance, which is believed to lead to faster interhemispheric transmission time in left- handers. The current research examined the effect of handedness on interhemispheric transfer time. The study was conducted online using fifty-one left and fifty-one right handers classified by laterality quotients obtained from Oldfield’s (1971) 12 item Edinburgh Handedness Inventory. The crossed uncrossed difference was calculated using mean reaction times yielded …

Variations In Thermal Performance Of Cardiac Function Of Pure And Hybrid Mytilus Spp. As A Factor Influencing Hybrid Zone Dynamics, Isabelle Hann

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Interspecific hybridisation within the Mytilus complex has been well documented. Distribution patterns of Mytilus congeners in mosaic hybrid zones are hypothesised to reflect differences in their thermal tolerances. In this present study, the relative thermal performance of adult Mytilus galloprovincialis, Mytilus edulis and their hybrids, from a sympatric population within the Southwest England mosaic hybrid zone was assessed using cardiac function as a proxy for thermal performance. As indices of cardiac performance, the Arrhenius break temperature (ABT), the maximum heart rate, the slope post-ABT and the flat line temperature were used. Examination of the response of cardiac activity under emersion …

Spatial Variation In Epibiont Communities On The Shells Of Patella Vulgata Along An Estuarine Gradient, Edward Wilson

The Plymouth Student Scientist

In space limited intertidal habitats, non-specific substratum generalists can be observed to increase their survival and settlement opportunities by growing upon other living organisms. To date, few studies have assessed the influence of multiple environmental factors in determining patterns of epibiont diversity and community structure upon gastropod shells, across spatial scales. This study investigated the significance of surface salinity range, wave exposure and shell metrics in determining the composition and diversity of epibionts found upon shells of Patella vulgata (Common Limpet), throughout the Plymouth Sound and lower reaches of the Tamar Estuary, United Kingdom (UK). A total of 292 shells …

Predicting Emergency Repairs Using Classification Method, Jacqueline Tan, Qing Zhang, Sia Wang Ying, Yutong Qin

The Plymouth Student Scientist

This paper discusses how each explanatory variable affects the possibility of having an emergency repair to people’s home with the help of machine learning. Here, the outcome variable is binary. The aim of this is to determine whether increasing the frequency of routine repairs would decrease the frequency of emergency repairs, and the predicted probability of having an emergency repair based on the variable statuses for each property. Data exploratory is first carried out to understand and simplify the dataset obtained from a Housing Association. Statistical models such as logistic regression, decision tree, random forest, linear discriminant analysis and k-nearest …

Constrained Portfolio Optimisation, Mohammad Alam Tahir

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Portfolio optimisation is an important problem in finance; it allows investors to manage their investments effectively. This paper considers finding the efficient frontier associated with the mean-variance portfolio optimisation (unconstrained) problem. We then extend the mean-variance model to include cardinality constraints (resulting in an NPHard problem) that limits the number of assets in a portfolio. We discuss different types of algorithms that one can use for finding the optimal portfolios, implementing a meta-heuristic genetic algorithm technique to solve the unconstrained and cardinality constrained problems. Finally, we improve our solutions by altering the crossover and mutation probabilities in the genetic algorithm …

The Extent To Which Autistic Traits Are Predictive Of Impairments In Allocentric Spatial Navigation, Amber Presley

The Plymouth Student Scientist

This research is centred around how individuals with autistic traits navigate using both allocentric and egocentric spatial reference frames. Previous research suggests differences in the way that those with Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) navigate with much research indicating that those with ASD struggle particularly with allocentric navigation. In this study, 256 participants completed a place learning task followed by two self-report questionnaires, the Navigation Inventory and the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ). Results showed that AQ scores correlated with better performance in the allocentric condition of the place learning task, this was in the opposite direction than predicted. Further to this, …

The Dark Tetrad Of Personality And The Tendency To Engage In Revenge Porn, Niamh Thomason-Darch

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Revenge porn is an increasing and pervasive phenomenon. Despite this, the knowledge and understanding of this behaviour is limited, especially the psychological characteristics of perpetrators of revenge porn. The Dark Tetrad of personality: Machiavellianism, psychopathy, narcissism, and sadism, has been associated with a range of antisocial behaviours. Recent research indicates a relationship between the Dark Tetrad and revenge porn proclivity. The present study extended these findings by investigating the relationship between revenge porn proclivity and the Dark Tetrad using more trait-specific measures. A community sample of 306 participants, aged 18-77, were recruited online. Participants completed a series of personality measures …

Public Perceptions Of Indecent Image Offenders, Joshua Samuel Taylor-Smith

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Indecent images of children (IIOC) offences are on the rise year by year, in part due to the easy accessibility to this content with the augmentation of the internet. This has led to increased attention from the public and those involved with law enforcement. However, research into the public perceptions of these offences is very limited. While they do not directly dictate law enforcement, the views of the public have become dominant in penal policymaking and therefore, understanding their current perceptions and beliefs is paramount. One of the only items of research into this area was conducted by Lam et …

How Do Personality Traits Influence The Experience Of Positive Emotions?, Elenie Shotton

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Neuroticism is a personality trait known to be associated with negative emotions (Tellegan, 1985), but little is known about how it affects the experience of positive emotions, and more specifically, hope. Positive emotions can have long lasting effects on well-being, by broadening thought-action repertoires and undoing lingering negative emotions (Frederickson, 1998). Cognitive strategies strongly influence state positive emotions in individuals low in neuroticism, but have no effect on those with high neuroticism (Ng & Diener, 2009). We expected individuals high in neuroticism would experience a smaller increase in state hope following hope emotion induction. Participants completed an online survey involving …

The Effect Of Onshore Wind On Wave Overtopping Of A Vertical Sea Wall, Sarah Durbridge

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Strong winds can produce overtopping rates that are considerably higher than predicted by the EurOtop formulae, which do not make provision for wind. However, no detailed industry guidance exists about the quantification of those wind effects. Physical modelling tests (scale 1:21) investigated how the mean rate of overtopping changed with wave frequency under the influence of various wind speeds. The nature and quantity of overtopping was found to be strongly related to the frequency of the incident wave. The wind had a significant effect on the mean overtopping rate, with the most pronounced effect occurring when the overtopping was at …

An Isotropic Neo-Hookean Finite Element Model Of Healthy Elastic Arterial Walls Within Commercial Software, Reece Ambrose

The Plymouth Student Scientist

A non-linear isotropic finite element model of an elastic arterial wall is developed within the ANSYS commercial software package. While progressively increasing complexity of the model, it is validated with analytical theory. Geometric nonlinearity is investigated and an iterative convergence method for the calculation of a solution-dependent axial force, which increases with artery deformation, is presented. Neo-Hookean hyperelastic material models are fitted to existing uniaxial, biaxial, and shear experimental data from literature for both rubber and polyurethane elastomer to introduce material nonlinearity into the arterial wall model. A mesh independence study was performed to determine a suitable mesh and the …

Scale Model Behaviour And Float Geometry Influence On An Oscillating Water Column System, Daniel Cresswell

The Plymouth Student Scientist

A numerical model based on a 1:60 scale Lazy-S Mooring Line has been developed using the dynamic analysis software OrcaFlex, to determine the software’s capabilities when analysing discretized scale models, and to quantify the effect that varying float surface geometry has on mooring line system damping. Static analysis was performed, followed by dynamic analysis, based on experimental data from physical testing in the University of Plymouth 35m Sediment Flume tank, against two distinct float shapes with equivalent hydrostatic properties but aspect ratio variance perpendicular to fluid flow. The impact of scale modelling on static line forces, effective tension and driving …

How Are Defendants Of High-Profile Court Cases Framed In The Media? A Qualitative Analysis Of News Media Coverage Of Caroline Flack's Arrest, Lucy Matthews

The Plymouth Student Scientist

This present study aims to investigate whether news media coverage on Caroline Flack’s arrest, in December 2019, showed characteristics of ‘Trial by Media’ (TBM) through identification of one-sided, unbalanced or predominantly negative, sensationalised or speculative news coverage. Caroline Flack’s case has importance due to her ‘media trial’ potentially contributing to her mental health issues, and subsequent suicide two months after her arrest. This study also aims to assess how much this media coverage could have contributed to this. Forty news media articles were analysed from the 18-day period, starting from her arrest, using Media Framing Analysis (MFA; Giles & Shaw, …

Impact Of Geographical Variability On The Bleaching Stresses In The Atlantic, Indian And South Pacific Ocean, Niamh Bowdler

The Plymouth Student Scientist

This dissertation examines the relationship between the geographical location and the degree of coral bleaching. Corals within different ocean regions are subjected to fluctuations in temperature causing variations in thermal thresholds which affects how the reef fauna adapts to the changing environment. Quadrats were obtained from XL Catlin Global Reef Record and analysed to determine the state of the coral at three locations: East Bermuda (Atlantic Ocean), Egmont (Indian Ocean) and Agincourt (South Pacific Ocean). The mean monthly and weekly sea surface temperature (SST) data was extracted from Giovanni between 2002-2020 for all three reefs. ANOVA: single factor tests (analysis …

Variability In Epifaunal Assemblages Between Sargassum Muticum And Zostera Marina: A Functional Group Approach, Jenny Hickman

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Marine macrophytes are globally important to coastal ecosystems, providing refugia, nutrients and important ecological processes. The structure and composition of macrophytes have a bottom-up effect on the epifauna they support. Due to their wide-reaching effects, invasive algae are considered one of the greatest threats facing marine ecosystems. Sargassum muticum is a Japanese algae increasing its non-native range in coastal habitats globally. A highly dispersive algae, able to colonise soft substratum, it is considered a threat to seagrass beds across the North East Atlantic. In Salcombe Estuary, Devon, beds of Zostera marina have seen increasing levels of invasion by S. muticum. …