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Optimizing The Human Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor (Hahr) Expression In Pichia Pastoris, Junyu Qian

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) is a transcription factor which heterodimerizes with the aryl hydrocarbon receptor nuclear translocator (Arnt) to regulate downstream gene transcription. For the purpose of studying the crystal structure of human aryl hydrocarbon receptor (hAHR), it is essential to obtain abundant amount of pure recombinant protein.Basing on the benefits of using P. pastoris system to produce recombinant protein, including appropriate folding, secretion of interest proteins to the external environment of the cell, and easier purification process of protein due to the its limited production of endogenous secretory proteins [1], our lab chose P. pastoris yeast as the …

Student Engagement, Experience, & Support Among Pre-Pharmacy Students, James J. Stack

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

This study was guided by Astin’s Student Involvement theory which explored student’s needs in a demanding program amongst 12 pre-pharmacy students at the University of the Pacific. This qualitative study looked to uncover the engagement, experiences, and support of pre-pharmacy students in order to learn what students want from their learning experiences; to aid in student success and retention. Qualitative interviews provided detailed stories to their pre-pharmacy experiences. Through a thorough analysis of the data seven themes emerged: (a) peer support (b) time management (c) exam structure (d) increased faculty support (e) housing placement (f) coping with stress (g) core …

Regulation Of Ppp1r15a (Gadd34) And Ppp1r15b (Crep) Mrna Expression And Localization In The Unfolded Protein Response, Krithika Giresh

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The failure to balance protein synthesis, folding, and degradation in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) leads to the accumulation of unfolded proteins, leading to ER stress. Cells respond to this stress by activating a response signaling pathway known as the Unfolded Protein Response (UPR). One of the branches of the UPR induces the phosphorylation of eIF2α (Eukaryotic Initiation Factor 2) to attenuate global protein synthesis, allowing for a chance to clear misfolded and unfolded proteins. This phosphorylation of eIF2α is opposed by a phosphatase, containing a catalytic subunit, Protein Phosphatase 1, and a scaffolding protein, either GADD34 or CReP. Inhibition of …

Developmental Plasticity Of Stress Tolerance And Life-History Strategy To Artificial Light At Night, Alyssa M. Bonfoey

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Artificial light at night (ALAN), or ecological light pollution, is increasingly prevalent worldwide. Exposure to ALAN tends to negatively impact animals—particularly, nocturnal animals—but life-history strategies may mitigate these costs. Animals in many regions are also increasingly exposed to climate-related stressors, such as heat and drought. Yet, interactions among ALAN, life-history strategy, and stress tolerance are unknown. Therefore, I determined if developmental ALAN exposure (1) affects development, (2) affects adult phenotype, including heat and desiccation tolerance, and (3) affects and/or interacts with life-history strategy. To address my aims, I used the variable field cricket (Gryllus lineaticeps) because its geographic range is …

How Do They Do It? Using Omics Approaches To Explore Metabolic Responses Associated With Hypoxia And Exercise Tolerance In The Deepest Diving Pinniped, Elizabeth R. Piotrowski

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Marine mammals such as northern elephant seals (NES) routinely experience hypoxemia and ischemia-reperfusion events to many tissues during deep dives with no apparent adverse effects. Adaptations to diving include increased antioxidants and elevated oxygen storage capacity associated with high hemoprotein content in blood and muscle. Despite experiencing decreased oxygen tensions during diving, NES likely rely on the mobilization of large lipids stores and catabolism of fatty acids to provide energy to exercising muscle while diving. To identify potential regulatory mechanisms that may underly hypoxia and exercise tolerance in diving mammals, this study used system-wide approaches to characterize changes in genes …

Beyond Cortisol: Indicators Of Stress And Negative Feedback In Plasma And Blubber Of Marine Mammals, Jessica Avalos

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Marine mammals play an important role in ecosystem stability. However, anthropogenic activity is compounding pressure on many already vulnerable populations. A potential consequence of anthropogenic disturbance is physiological stress, which can impact metabolism, immunity, and reproduction, especially if it occurs repeatedly. Previous studies on marine mammals have focused on acute stress, but the impacts of repeated stress are poorly understood. Due to its accessibility on land during haul-outs, the northern elephant seal (Mirounga angustirostris) is a good system in which to study the effects of stress in marine mammals. Stress stimulates the release of glucocorticoid hormones, primarily cortisol. Elevated cortisol …

Peripherally Restricted Delivery System Provides Insights On The Role Of Cns In Precipitating Opioid-Induced Constipation, Dengpan Liang

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

A serious opioid crisis is affecting public health and economics, eroding people’s quality of life. 80% of patients who receive opioids suffer from adverse effects such as Opioid-induced constipation (OIC). However, there is no efficient medicine for these adverse effects. Notably, mainstream theory supports that analgesia effects are mainly controlled by CNS while OIC is predominately controlled by peripheral. In addition, the sites of action of opioid was based on the assumption that mu-opioid receptor antagonists (PAMORAs), did not cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Unfortunately, the BBB crossing of PAMORAs mislead the understanding of the role of the central nervous …

Evaluating The Effects Of Client-Set Versus Coach-Set Goals In The Context Of A Health-Coaching Intervention For Physical Activity, J. Logan Gibson

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Health coaching is a relatively new integrated health role in which practitioners use a combination of behavioral interventions to evoke health-related behavior changes; however, there is a lack of valid evidence to support health-based claims. We investigated the effect of an approximation of a health coaching intervention on three college students' number of steps per day. We provided participants with weekly telehealth coaching sessions focused on goal-setting and feedback and used Fitbits to track the results. We used a multiple baseline across participants design to compare daily steps across four phases; self-monitoring, self-monitoring with experimenter-set goals and feedback, self-monitoring with …

The Interrelationship Between Treatment, Ethnicity, And Structured Exercise In Clinical Populations, Amanda M. F. Lopez

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Cancer is the second leading cause of death, with about approximately 1.9 million Americans being diagnosed each year. Yet, it has high survival rates with the help of advancing treatments like radiation therapy. Cancer patients and survivors are contingent on experiencing a decline in physical functioning, quality of life, and physiological parameters. Treatment is effective and can prolong life expectancy but can be deleterious to a patient’s health. Parallel with cancer's impact on Americans is cardiovascular disease. Cardiovascular disease is responsible for 1 in 4 deaths. The development of cardiovascular disease is not spread accordantly among all ethnicities. Hispanics are …

Continuous Improvement In Practice: One K–12 District’S Leadership Journey, Orquidea Largo

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

K–12 leaders’ compliance mandates, challenges of adopting a continuous improvement approach to student success, and competing priorities often leave leaders feeling vulnerable and unprepared for the task. This basic qualitative study applied the continuous improvement framework (CIF) to research how improvement science penetrated an educational system. This basic qualitative study explored and described leaders’ commitment to employing the principles of improvement science at one California K–12 school district. An in-depth analysis of the interviewees’ transcriptions, persona, and experiences unveiled the following themes for continuous improvement: (a) transformational governance, (b) capacity building, (c) accountability, (d) limitations of transactional governance, and (e) …

Microbial Community Analysis: Biofilm Inhibition & Algae Associated Community Structure, Michelle V. Fong

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Natural products chemistry is the pursuit of bioactive small molecules from living organisms. These can be classified as primary metabolites if they are essential to survival, and secondary metabolites if they are accessory, playing a role in communication, defense, recruitment, etc.. Natural products have made a significant contribution to society – of 1,881 FDA-approved drugs from 1981 to 2019, 4% were pure natural products, 19% were natural products derived, and 3% were synthetic drugs with a natural products pharmacophore targeting a wide range of diseases and infections (Newman & Cragg, 2020). Pharmacophores are structural components of drugs that are responsible …

Utilization Of Virtual Reality For General Education Purposes, Amit Lal

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The use of Virtual Reality (VR) in a variety of professional, military, governmental, and educational fields has continued to expand over the past several decades, and the recent Covid-19 pandemic has brought attention to this field. This study surveys 154 college students over 23 questions that include various demographics that can be used to look for discriminators, multiple-choice VR-related questions, as well as a few free-form questions about use of VR in learning environments. The students’ experience with, interest in, and thoughts on how to best use VR vary considerably. The Covid-19 pandemic is found to have limited impact thus …

An Examination Of The Social Emotional Skills Necessary To Promote College And Career Readiness For A Rural California High School, Anna Austin Whitesides

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Data from the National Center for Education Statistics suggest that as academic standards continue to rise, students' mental health continues to decline (Carr, 2022). Public schools today have a unique opportunity to support the ongoing learning of students, while also encouraging the development of social and emotional skills that will benefit students’ academic performance, as well as their general wellbeing. While schools today follow rigorous state standards and support academic learning, many students attending rural high schools are graduating without the skills necessary to be successful in college or career (Farrington et al., 2012).

This mixed-methods case study examines the …

Self-Care Practices And Burnout Experiences Of Music Therapists In A Metropolitan City, Sylvester Sroka

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examined a phenomenological inquiry into the lived experiences of music therapists in a metropolitan city in the United States. During the study, five music therapists were interviewed about their self-care practices and experiences with burnout. Data included a recorded Zoom transcription of the 30–45-minute open-ended interview. The data was analyzed through Moustakas’ (1994) cluster of themes approach. Four themes emerged from the data analyses of the interviews: living/working in a metropolitan city, self-care practices, advice for entry level music therapists, and knowledge of and experience with burnout symptoms. Respondents associated living and working in a metropolitan city with …

Thermodynamic Mechanisms Of Helix Stabilization In A Model Peptide And Protein, Ryan Murray

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Biologics are large, complex therapeutic agents generally produced from living organisms. One group of biologics is peptide/protein based. Biological agents offer unique advantages over traditional therapeutics including longer half-lives, higher specificity, greater efficacy, and reduced off-target effects. However, protein/peptide based drugs suffer from both delivery and stability issues. The higher order of protein structures (secondary, tertiary, etc.) derive ~80% of their conformational stability from paltry hydrophobic effects, with net stabilization of 5-15 kcal/mole observed for many proteins. Loss of conformational stability can lead to increased aggregation, precipitation, and degradation; and reduced activity and side effects. To increase stability and improve …

Aac Camp As A Pre- And Post- Service Training Model, Joanne Kim

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of participation in an AAC-based day camp as a pre-service training opportunity for students of speech-language pathology and a post-training opportunity for practicing speech-language pathologists (SLPs). Following the conclusion for the most recent iteration of the AAC Academy hosted by the Diagnostic Center of Central California, students and SLPs who volunteered within the past ten years were recruited via email to participate in semi-structured interviews. Upon thematic analysis of the interview transcripts, the following themes were conceptualized: (1) Many volunteers had some interest, if not experience, with AAC prior to …

Implementation And Sustainability Of Trauma-Informed Care Via Multi-Tiered System Of Support (Mtss), Aisha Larie Elloie Brice

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Trauma-informed care is a relatively new construct in K-12 education, and districts across the United States are seeking avenues to meet the needs of their students. The COVID-19 pandemic elevated the need for districts to develop appropriate supports to address student and adult trauma. Traumatic events can affect a child’s mental, physical, social-emotional, and/or spiritual well-being (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration, 2011). Furthermore, children with an elevated risk of trauma may not be able to access these supports outside of the school setting (Baweja et al., 2015). Therefore, educational systems need to develop trauma-informed care models for schools …

The Role Of Rad51 In Trichomonas Vaginalis, Dominique Hall

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Drug resistance to the current treatments on the market is on the rise, therefore there is strong interest in understanding what could be causing the resistance, how resistance could be spreading through the population, and finding some possible new drug targets. One protein of interest is Radiation Sensitive Protein 51 (Rad51). It is a protein that is involved in homologous recombination as well as other processes such as DNA damage repair. While Trichomonas vaginalis traditionally has been known to replicate via binary fission, a modified form of closed mitosis, there is some evidence that meiosis, or at least some form …

Spouses Of First Responders: A Narrative Inquiry Of Survival, Recovery And Healing, Jennifer D. Geiger

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The nature of the work of emergency responders (i.e., firefighters, law enforcement, paramedics, and dispatch) includes high stress and direct experiences of traumatic situations. The experience of posttraumatic stress is common. The spouse or significant other is often the first person to see a change in their responder and the person most likely to be sought out for support from the responder, yet there is little support for the spouses or significant others of emergency workers. The purpose of this qualitative study using in-depth interviews and narrative inquiry was to learn about participants’ experiences at the 6-day residential treatment (retreat) …

Analyzing Collaborative Practices Of Education And Mental Health Professionals In An Education Program Serving Students With Emotional And Behavioral Disorders: A Case Study Utilizing A Cultural Historical Activity Lens, Elizabeth A. Jara

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative single case study examined systemic collaborative practices related to service implementation for high school students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders (EBD) in a public school intensive therapeutic intervention program. Specifically, this study explored the interdependent and co-creative relational structures, actions, and activities of education and mental health professionals as supported by program leadership. This study used semi-structured interviews to investigate (1) how special education and mental health leadership support implementation of service, and (2) how ideologies of education and mental health professionals’ impact collaborative practices? Cultural Historical Activity Theory served as the theoretical and methodological lens for this …

Using Korematsu In Law School Orientation And Introduction To Law Courses, Lorraine Bannai

Using Korematsu to Teach Across the Law School Curriculum

No abstract provided.

Using Korematsu In A Civil Procedure Course, Lorraine Bannai, Margaret Chon, Eric K. Yamamoto

Using Korematsu to Teach Across the Law School Curriculum

No abstract provided.

Using Korematsu In A Constitutional Law Course, Lorraine Bannai, Eric K. Yamamoto

Using Korematsu to Teach Across the Law School Curriculum

No abstract provided.

Using Korematsu To Teach Professional Responsibility (Word With Government Documents At End), Lorraine Bannai

Using Korematsu to Teach Across the Law School Curriculum

No abstract provided.

Covid-19 Is Associated With Early Emergence Of Preeclampsia: Results From A Large Regional Collaborative, Yasmin G. Hasbini, Gregory Goyert, Adi L. Tarca, Madhurima Keerthy, Theodore Jones, Lisa Thiel, Pooja M. Green, Youssef Youssef, Courtney Townsel, Shyla Vengalil, Paige Paladino, Amy Wright, Mariam Ayyash, Gayathri Vadlamudi, Marta Szymanska, Sonia Sajja, Grace Sterenberg, Michael Baracy, Karlee Grace, Kaitlyn Houston, Jessica Norman, Dereje W. Gudicha, Robert J. Sokol, Ray Bahado-Singh, Sonia S. Hassan

Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women's Health Services Meeting Abstracts

Objective: To examine the relationship between COVID-19 and preeclampsia (PreE) in a large, diverse population.

Study Design: The COVID-19 in Pregnancy and The Newborn: State of Michigan Collaborative established a database of pregnant patients admitted to 14 institutions in Southern Michigan. Patients with COVID-19 (cases) were matched to 2 or 3 non-COVID patients (controls) on the same unit within 30 days of each case. Relative Risks (RR) were calculated using robust Poisson regression models with adjustment for covariates. Chi-squared test for trend was used to assess the increase in risk with the severity of disease.

Results: 369 cases and 1,090 …

Racial Disparities And Risk For Covid-19 Among Pregnant Patients: Results From The Michigan Statewide Collaborative, Inara Ismailova, Robert J. Sokol, Dereje W. Gudicha, Yasmin G. Hasbini, Adi L. Tarca, Pooja M. Green, Theodore Jones, Gregory Goyert, Lisa Thiel, Youssef Youssef, Courtney Townsel, Shyla Vengalil, Paige Paladino, Amy Wright, Mariam Ayyash, Gayathri Vadlamudi, Marta Szymanska, Sonia Sajja, Grace Sterenberg, Michael Baracy Jr., Karlee Grace, Kaitlyn Houston, Jessica Norman, Ray Bahado-Singh, Sonia S. Hassan

Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women's Health Services Meeting Abstracts

Objective: Previous studies have looked at COVID-19 outcomes in pregnancy and racial disparities among patients with COVID-19, but few have studied racial disparities among pregnant patients with COVID-19. Our goal in this study is to analyze the relationship between race and disparate COVID-19 risk in pregnancy.

Study Design: A retrospective cohort analysis was performed on data collected as part of the COVID-19 in Pregnancy and The Newborn: State of Michigan Collaborative, a database of pregnant patients admitted to 14 institutions in Southern Michigan. Cases were defined as patients with a positive SARS-CoV-2 test result. Controls, those with suspicion of COVID-19 …

The Transcription Factor Nfe2l2a Is Required For Development Of Hematopoietic Stem Cells In The Zebrafish Embryo, Sivam Bhatt, Teerth Patel, Madeleine Seputro, Anubhav Thapaliya, Erich Damm

UROP Posters

Hematopoietic Stem Cells (HSCs) are the self-renewing population of cells that generate all erythrocytes and leukocytes over the lifetime of a vertebrate organism. HSCs are also the therapeutic units of curative bone marrow transplants used in the treatment of blood malignancies and in gene therapy for genetic blood disorders. In all vertebrate embryos, HSCs originate from the floor of the embryonic dorsal aorta during the endothelial to hematopoietic transition. Nascent HSCs will bud into the blood vessel and be carried to maturation sites by the embryonic blood flow. Despite the curative potential of HSC transplants in blood disorders, this approach …

The Human Louse Microbiome Insights Into Insect-Bacterial Coevolution And Consequences For Vector Capacity, Kirthana Srinivasan

UROP Posters

No abstract provided.

The Relationship Between Social Media Use And Depression And Anxiety Symptoms During Covid-19, Tene'sha L. Crews, Christina Sheerin

UROP Posters

The rise of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has caused a global surge in exposure to disaster and crisis-related media. Increases in poor mental health outcomes such as anxiety and depression, are associated with increased exposure to such media content (Abbas et al., 2021; Riehm et al., 2020; Zhao & Zhou, 2020). In recent years, social media has become one of the most widely used sources for news; approximately 48% of adult Americans receive their news from social media (Pew Research Center, 2021). During the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been an increase in social media use due to social distancing and …

Comparison Of Free Versus Encapsulated Drugs On 3t3 Differentiation, Simon H. Friedrich, Gabriel Volpe

UROP Posters

The scope of this project was to design, synthesize and test targeted nanoparticles containing hydrophobic and hydrophilic drugs that promote browning in adipose tissue. For hydrophilic drugs the use of liposomes and their hydrophilic core is more useful than the PLGA nanoparticles which have hydrophobic cores. The inhibition of the FOXO1 pathway and modulation of autophagy in adipose tissue can promote browning of white adipose tissue, or an energy burning state where excess energy is burned as heat instead of stored in the cell. If successful, these drugs would offer an alternative treatment for obesity where changes to the patient's …