Digital Commons Network^™

Elucidating Biogeochemical Reactions Of Iron For Ammonium Removal And Nutrient Recovery From Wastewaters: Moving Toward Sustainable Wastewater Management, Rifat Anwar

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Development and applications of anaerobic treatment technologies has been discussed as an effective alternative to conventional aerobic processes for removal of nitrogen from wastewaters. With abundance of iron and its high reduction potential, employing ferric reduction-based reaction pathways in engineering processes could be an effective strategy to promote energy efficiency of wastewater treatment. In particular, ferric reduction coupled to ammonium oxidation (Feammox), a novel microbial metabolic function recently found to occur under anaerobic/anoxic condition through iron dosing, can be used for nitrogen pollutant removal. Iron dosing for wastewater treatment could also promote other microbial and chemical reactions that facilitate nutrient …

Gun Culture 3.0, Andrew Phillip Stover

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

There exist a criminology of firearms and an epidemiology of firearms use, but little in the way of a sociology of U.S. firearm ownership. Most social science study of firearms concerns illicit gun use and the harm that use produces. Compared to this body of work, little has been done to explore the culture of legal gun ownership. A few social scientists have attempted to change this by contributing their own interpretations of what a sociology of U.S. gun ownership might look like. Professor David Yamane, in doing just this, has posited a cultural model of contemporary gun ownership he …

Nano-, Encapsulated Manganese Oxide (Nemo) Particles For Mri Enhancement In Microfluidic Tumor Models, Kasey Alexis Freshwater

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Breast cancer is among the deadliest cancers in women, with approximately 2.3 million new cases and 685,000 deaths reported globally in 2020 alone. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is commonly used to diagnose, stage, and develop treatment plans for patients predisposed to breast cancer. However, current MRI-based screening of breast cancer has high false-positive rates up to 25%, leading to unnecessary invasive follow-up screening and testing. The gold-standard intravenous gadolinium (Gd)-based contrast agents (GBCAs) account for false-positive rates because they are always “ON”, providing a constant MRI signal that highlights both benign and malignant tumors. The work detailed in this thesis …

“I Lost Everything I Owned… Now I’M Growing That Back”: Narratives Of Redemption After Meth Immersed Lives, Danielle M. Stoneberg

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

There is a lack of knowledge on how the process of desisting (i.e., maintaining abstinence) works for those leaving immersed drug lifestyles, leaving a need for a better understanding of the role and impact of identity in drug desistance. Through secondary analysis of interview data from a sample of 33 former methamphetamine manufacturers, this study examines the applicability of Maruna’s (2001) redemption narrative framework and identifies other aspects featured in their narratives that signaled identity change. Results found all participants discussed at least one component of the framework in their interviews. Their narrative identities changed over time to recognize that …

Multisided Quality Inspection In Smart Manufacturing Systems, Milica Babic

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

As technology advances so does its adoption in industry and our everyday lives. We use technology to better our daily tasks whether at home or in the workplace. In the workplace there are many benefits of implementing new technologies to improve processes and products while at the same time being cautious about associated costs. Costs associated with incorporating new digital technologies include but are not limited to hardware and software, system integration, testing, and employee training. Now that we have entered the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, there are many opportunities for improvements in manufacturing that involve Smart Digital …

Understanding Surface Water--Groundwater Connectivity And Discharge In Arctic Deltas, Lindsey N. Aman

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Increased warming is driving unprecedented hydrologic changes within arctic deltas with implications for water storage, solute processing, and terrestrial and marine ecology. Thermokarst lakes within Arctic deltas store flood waters and filter solutes and sediments, thus moderating the impact of flood water discharge to arctic seas. However, this moderating influence is diminishing as lakes shrink on annual and seasonal time scales, especially close to active channels where lakes are shrinking most rapidly. This study investigates surface water-groundwater connectivity in arctic delta plains with coupled flow and heat transport models to provide a mechanistic understanding of how lake-channel proximity will impact …

Essays In Urban And Health Economics, Allyssa Ann Wadsworth

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Chapter 1 analyzes the impact new hospital construction has on neighboring residential real estate prices. In 2017, the Oishei Children’s Hospital was built in downtown Buffalo, New York, representing a new era for women and children’s medical facilities. Individuals working at the old facility now faced the decision of whether to move closer to the new hospital or have a longer commute. Using property sales data, I analyze how Oishei impacts residential property prices with a difference-in-differences hedonic price model while utilizing three unique time treatments and two distance treatments. The opening of Oishei generated a statistically significant percentage increase …

Utilizing The K18-Hace2 Mouse Model To Develop Protective Covid-19 Vaccines, Ting Y. Wong

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The ongoing Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is caused by the respiratory virus Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Similar to other respiratory viruses, SARS-CoV-2 is transmitted through inhalation of respiratory droplets and aerosols from infected individuals. Once inhaled, SARS-CoV-2 utilizes the receptor binding domain (RBD) on the spike protein to bind to human Angiotensin Converting Enzyme 2 (hACE2) receptor to gain entrance into host cells to begin viral replication. SARS-CoV-2 infection can result in mild to severe cases of COVID-19 ranging from asymptomatic infections, cold or flu like symptoms to respiratory failure. The onset of the pandemic in …

Adrenomedullin And Its Receptors Are Expressed In Mouse Pancreatic Β-Cells And Suppresses Insulin Synthesis And Secretion, Yuanlin Dong, Simone Hernandez Ruano, Akansha Mishra, Kathleen A Pennington, Chandrasekhar Yallampalli

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is associated with defective pancreatic β-cell adaptation in pregnancy, but the underlying mechanism remains obscure. Our previous studies demonstrated that GDM women display increased plasma adrenomedullin (ADM) levels, and non-obese GDM mice show decreased serum concentrations of insulin and the number of β-cells in pancreas islets. The aims of this study is to examine if ADM and its receptors are expressed in female mouse pancreas, and if so, whether insulin secretion is regulated by ADM in mouse β-cell line, NIT-1 cells and isolated mouse pancreatic islets. Present study shows that ADM and its receptor components CRLR, …

An Examination Of Hip Muscle Activation In Those With Hip-Related Groin Pain During Single-Legged And Double-Legged Squats, Millissia A. Murro

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Approximately 60% of young adults who present with chronic hip pain suffer from hip-related groin pain (HRGP). HRGP causes individuals to experience pain, dysfunction, and have a lower quality of life when compared to healthy individuals. The most severe symptoms in these individuals occur during activities that cause the hip to go through a large range of motion, such as a squat. Hip muscle activation during this task may be altered in these individuals, yet we know little about its role in the disease process and pain level in those with HRGP. Current treatment for these individuals includes surgical and …

Choosing Not To Participate: Cyber Truancy And Special Education, Elizabeth A. Popielarcheck

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This qualitative study investigated facilitators and barriers to participation in online instruction for students in grades 9-12 with a high incidence disability from the perspective of the student and adult in the home (AIH). Three AIH-student dyads participated in questionnaires and an online interview. The interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and then analyzed using the six phases described by Braun and Clarke (2006). Eight categories that aligned with barriers and facilitators to participation were identified: communication, instruction in the home, role of the AIH, attendance, grading, teacher provided student support, overall quality of online learning experience, and suggestions. Categories were …

Associations Between Self-Reported Awe And Heart Rate, Laura E. Bernstein

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Fredrickson’s (1998, 2013) broaden and build theory states that positive emotions can expand our social and cognitive awareness and provide health benefits. Some positive emotions, such as awe, may operate differently. We sought to understand how subjective reports of awe, induced through videos, correlate with HR. We know that HR tends to decrease with age (Umetani et al., 1998), individuals have less physiological reactivity as they age (Blanchard-Fields, 2007), and older adults report more positive emotions than negative emotions (Mroczek & Kolarz, 1998). Given these findings, we were interested in understanding whether there were age differences in self-reported awe and …

Discussing Changes In Historical Human–Environmental Dynamics Through Ecosystem Services Interactions And Future Scenarios In A Rural-Mining Region Of Central Appalachians, Vincenzo Cribari

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The aim of this dissertation was to investigate how recent processes of land-change induced by humans contributed to the shaping and alteration of the current landscape in a headwater system of Central Appalachians in West Virginia (US), to understand the interactions and tradeoffs among ecosystems services and address potential solutions for targeting more sustainable human-environment interactions in a region that is deeply grounded on extractive economies. The multitiered objective was addressed through different research phases in order to unfold and disentangle a series of complex problems that the study area presents. Three main phases were used; they corresponded to distinct …

Small And Micro Business Resources In The Post-Pandemic Period: A Perspective From Local Bridal Boutique Businesses In West Virginia, Ishtehar Sharif Swazan

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

In widely dispersed small communities, local and regional businesses dominate West Virginia, an eastern state of the United States in the Appalachian Mountains where small and micro businesses constitute 98.9% of all businesses and contributes 49.1% of the state’s total employment. These businesses create jobs, help build a strong financial position for the state, and promote community-building and social activities. These businesses are unique as they sustain themselves while competing with national and regional retail chains and carving out a customer for themselves. However, the damage caused by the spread of Covid-19 is having a devastating effect on the small …

Examining The Pulmonary Response To Repeated Vishniacozyma Victoriae Exposure And Its Association With Allergic Airway Disease, Rachael Erin Rush

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Allergic airway diseases such as asthma continue to increase in incidence in industrialized nations like the United States. These diseases are complex inflammatory processes involving numerous cells and mediators and are strongly influenced by fungal exposures. Recent developments in fungal detection methods have highlighted the contribution of Basidiomycota yeast species in indoor environments such as Vishniacozyma (syn. Cryptococcus) victoriae. However, despite the high levels of this yeast detected in indoor environments, very little is known about it or its role in respiratory morbidity. V. victoriae is phylogenetically similar to pathogenic Cryptococcus neoformans but lacks a capsule and is …

Freeze! The Impact Of A Guided Imagery Intervention On Looming Vulnerability And Subclinical Contamination-Ocd Symptoms, Amber Lynn Billingsley

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Looming vulnerability (LV) refers to the tendency to appraise and perceive potential threats as dynamic and increasing in risk. Research suggests that contamination-fearful individuals may have an increased tendency to interpret contamination as growing or spreading (i.e., “looming”), which may hinder habituation to contamination and play a role in the maintenance of contamination-OCD symptoms. Studies have shown that engaging in imagery in which one mentally freezes contamination in place decreases state levels of fear, though little is known about its longer-term effects (e.g., after one week). The present study aimed to experimentally manipulate LV using freeze imagery in a subclinical …

Embodied Energy Geographies: An Exploration Of Fracked Landscapes In The Ohio River Valley, Rachael L. Hood

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Methane gas production has boomed across the United States as a result of the development of fracking technology and its associated infrastructures, including pipelines. This production has provoked resistance over a litany of environmental and social concerns at both global and local scales. These concerns are compounded by a history of extractive economies and degradation in the Marcellus shale region of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley. To date, there has been limited research at the intersection of extractive industry and emotional geography, especially around pipelines. This research draws on feminist, emotional, and energy geographies and uses semi-structured interviews and …

Examining The Relationship Among Perceived Academic Climate, Belongingness, And Engineering Identity, Sumaia Ali Raisa

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

An attempt to cultivate an inclusive learning environment in engineering is trending as a response to women's underrepresentation and a lower retention rate than men undergraduates. This study was situated in such an undergraduate engineering program where interventions were embedded in the course curriculum focusing on cultivating an inclusive engineering identity. Following a sociocultural perspective, the present study aimed to examine the relation of engineering identity with perceived academic climate, sense of belonging, and gender among two engineering cohorts (before covid and during covid context). A total of 482 first-year engineering undergraduates' survey responses were analyzed in this study using …

Optimization And Analytics Of Decarbonized Forest And Biomass Supply Chains, Xufeng Zhang

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

First, a data-driven holistic analysis framework was developed to aid the industrial development of forest biomass for bioenergy to promote the regional bioeconomy. Leveraging the existing but fragmented multi-source data, four components of industrial bioenergy development were integrated into the framework including spatial statistical analysis of biomass feedstock and bioenergy production, machine learning-based suitability assessment, bioenergy plant sites identification and ranking, and socio-economic impacts assessment. A case study was conducted for forest biomass to pellet fuel in the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region. Our results indicate that the great potential of forest biomass with high variation at the county level is primarily …

Systematic Profiling Of Dnmt3a Variants Reveals Protein Instability Mediated By The Dcaf8 E3 Ubiquitin Ligase Adaptor, Yung-Hsin Huang, Chun-Wei Chen, Venkatasubramaniam Sundaramurthy, Mikołaj Słabicki, Dapeng Hao, Caroline J Watson, Ayala Tovy, Jaime M Reyes, Olga Dakhova, Brielle R Crovetti, Christina Galonska, Minjung Lee, Lorenzo Brunetti, Yubin Zhou, Katrina Tatton-Brown, Yun Huang, Xiaodong Cheng, Alexander Meissner, Peter J M Valk, Lionel Van Maldergem, Mathijs A Sanders, Jamie R Blundell, Wei Li, Benjamin L Ebert, Margaret A Goodell

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Clonal hematopoiesis is a prevalent age-related condition associated with a greatly increased risk of hematologic disease; mutations in DNA methyltransferase 3A (DNMT3A) are the most common driver of this state. DNMT3A variants occur across the gene with some particularly associated with malignancy, but the functional relevance and mechanisms of pathogenesis of the majority of mutations are unknown. Here, we systematically investigated the methyltransferase activity and protein stability of 253 disease-associated DNMT3A mutations, and found that 74% were loss-of-function mutations. Half of these variants exhibited reduced protein stability and, as a class, correlated with greater clonal expansion and acute …

Targeting Vulnerabilities In Cell State And Calcium Signaling For The Treatment Of Lung Cancer, Clark Jones

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Lung cancer remains the deadliest of all cancers due to the high mutational burden associated with the disease. Combating mutational drivers and drug resistance proves to be essential in the development of novel therapies to improve patient outcomes. A first-in-class cyclic peptide known as MTI-101 has been shown to induce necrotic cell death in a caspase independent manner. MTI-101 was derived from the linear peptide known as HYD1 that was found in a high throughput screen to block cell adhesion with the extracellular matrix. The compound was further optimized and cyclized to the currently used MTI-101 that was found to …

Methodology For Enhanced Filtration And Dewatering Of Fine-Grain Amd Precipitate Using Geocomposites For Rare Earth Elements Recovery, Iuri Lira Santos

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Research performed by the West Virginia Water Research Institute (WVWRI) in partnership with the Department of Energy (DOE) has identified that coal mining by-products contain significant amounts of Rare Earth Elements (REEs). REEs currently are in high demand, and extraction from coal mining reject presents a potential for commercialization if extraction is feasible. The coal mining reject include Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) in the aqueous phase and sludge from AMD treatment. A novel two split selective precipitation method was implemented to remove gangue metals, increasing the concentration of REEs in the sludge.

This process presents a two-fold benefit: 1) treatment …

Selectively Targeting Disease-Restricted Secretogranin Iii To Alleviate Choroidal Neovascularization, Liyang Ji, Prabuddha Waduge, Lili Hao, Avinash Kaur, Wencui Wan, Yan Wu, Hong Tian, Jinsong Zhang, Keith A Webster, Wei Li

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Choroidal neovascularization (CNV), a leading cause of blindness in the elderly, is routinely treated with vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitors that have limited efficacy and potentially adverse side effects. An unmet clinical need is to develop novel therapies against other angiogenic factors for alternative or combination treatment to improve efficacy and safety. We recently described secretogranin III (Scg3) as a disease-selective angiogenic factor, causally linked to diabetic retinopathy and acting independently of the VEGF pathway. An important question is whether such a disease-selective Scg3 pathway contributes to other states of pathological angiogenesis beyond diabetic retinopathy. By applying a novel …

Analysis Of Forensically Relevant Evidence Using Electrochemistry, Spectroscopy, And Mass Spectrometry Tools, Colby Edward Ott

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Forensic science relies on the use of multiple techniques in the assessment of evidence to increase the accuracy and reliability of the results. However, with the rapidly changing drug landscape due to the introduction of novel psychoactive substances, many traditional screening methods are no longer sensitive or selective enough for use. Additionally, many screening methods such as chemical color tests are prone to false positive and negative results and are subjective. Therefore, the goal of this dissertation was to develop a novel analytical scheme that can provide a more efficient, rapid, and sensitive method that will facilitate adoption in the …

Investigation Of Geomechanical Behavior Of Laminated Rock Mass Through Experimental And Numerical Approach, Qingwen Shi

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Roof failure in the Appalachian underground coal fields occurs often in laminated shale. Laminated shale roof in coal mines fails in unique ways, such as cutter failure or delamination failure. Extensive studies have investigated the influential factors that cause laminated roof failure, which include in-situ stress, entry layout, roof span, and roof support. However, cutter failure continues to occur frequently and erratically. This is due to the lack of in-depth understanding of the inherent properties of the laminations, such as bedding plane strength, matrix strength, and bedding plane spacing, which in turn influence the geomechanical behavior of the laminated rock. …

Reinforcement Learning For Process Control: Applications To Energy Systems, Elijah Ballard Hedrick

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Reinforcement learning (RL) is a machine learning method that has recently seen significant research activity owing to its successes in the areas of robotics and gameplaying (Silver et al., 2017). However, significant challenges exist in the extension of these control methods to process control problems, where state and input signals are nearly always continuous and more stringent performance guarantees are required. The goal of this work is to explore ways that modern RL algorithms can be adapted to handle process control problems; avenues for this work include using RL with existing controllers such as model predictive control (MPC) and adapting …

Investigating The Mitochondrial Protein Mitoneet In C. Elegans Models Of Aging And Alzheimer's Disease, Jacob Ryan Boos

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Oxidative stress is an imbalance between reactive oxygen species production and elimination, favoring the former. Reactive oxygen species serve as important signaling molecules for physiological homeostasis. However, when produced in excess, these once important signaling molecules become detrimental, disrupting cellular functions, and ultimately leading to cell death. In aging, reactive oxygen species production is increased, accompanied with reductions in oxidative stress resistance, increasing the risk for developing age-related diseases including cardiovascular disease, cancer, stroke, and neurodegenerative diseases. The outer mitochondrial membrane iron-sulfur cluster containing protein mitoNEET (CISD1; gene CISD1) has shown to be a mediator of mitochondrial function and …

Performance Of Peltier Cooled Technology During Preconcentration Of Volatile Organic Compounds Analyzed By Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (Gc-Ms) Using Niosh Manual Of Analytical Methods (Nmam) 3900, Elizabeth Ann Fernandez

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Using evacuated canisters for whole-air sampling allows for sampling without specific knowledge of the environment and potential analytes. Evacuated canisters are able to tolerate concentrations ranging from parts per trillion (PPT) to parts per million (PPM). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has used evacuated canisters for years to sample volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from ambient air using their method TO-15 (LeBouf, et al., 2019). The GC-MS system used for the development of NMAM 3900 used liquid nitrogen to cool sorbent traps in the preconcentrator. Liquid nitrogen allows for cooling of specified points below ambient temperature. An alternative to liquid …

Machine Learning Approach To Health Risk Determination, Levi Butcher Cole

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

In the United States, cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women. The factors that contribute to heart disease are well known but it is still an ever-evolving field of research. The possible benefits to being able to determine an individual’s Health Risk could provide the early insights needed to combat cardiovascular disease. However, two major problems within this area are the public availability of a dataset and the label imbalances for the dataset. In this thesis, we present a framework for exploring health risk using a combination of the NHANES dataset and open-source machine …

Repercussions: The Pressure To Be Thin, Shuhan Liu

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

My MFA thesis and supporting exhibition will highlight ceramics work I have created with the intention of dissecting the relationship between a soul and reality to convey the story of tension and anxiety and show it in a way that would let viewers identify with my discomfort and anxiety. The inspiration for my work came from the severe body anxiety that I faced that broke out during the three years of psychological stress caused by the pandemic. Using personal narratives as a starting point, I created object-based artwork that addresses the external pressures I feel to be skinny. As an …