Digital Commons Network^™

Spectres Of Women In Wuthering Heights, Corinne H. Shearer

Dissertations and Theses

Central to Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights (1847) is its famous haunting scene. As this paper suggests, it is in the haunting scene that the novel’s themes are at their most potent and where Brontë is at her most daring, challenging the socially prescribed, gendered binaries of her time. The primary interest of this paper is in describing the particular power of Brontë’s feminine ghost, an archetypal figure of the female Gothic, using theoretical frameworks from poststructuralism and psychoanalysis. I propose a feminist interpretation of the novel which emphasizes the catalyzing effect of the haunting scene and its reversals– and which …

Chagas Disease Screening: Awareness, Practices And Perceived Barriers Among Health Care Providers In Connecticut, Erica J. Rayack

Public Health Theses

Background: An estimated 288,000 people in the United States are infected with Chagas disease. Despite published recommendations for health care providers, the neglected nature of this disease persists, in part due to gaps in knowledge and low levels of Chagas disease awareness among health care providers. A survey was emailed to health care providers to assess knowledge, screening practices and provider-perceived barriers to screening for Chagas disease.

Methods: The survey link was emailed to healthcare providers and department heads. Providers answered a series of questions categorized either as knowledge (K), practice (P), or perceived barriers (B), which were then scored …

Effective Strategies For Long-Term Data Preservation And Website Management For The Gelman Site: A Case Study Of 1,4-Dioxane Cleanup Project In Michigan, Xiao Shi

Public Health Theses

The Gelman project is a cleanup initiative for 1,4-dioxane contamination caused by Gelman Sciences Inc, which might take years or decades to be finished. Document management becomes a challenge for the Gelman project since a substantial number of documents generated over the years can be lost during organizational changes. Scio Residents for Safe Water (SRSW) is a website that tries to integrate sources from different stakeholders for the Gelman project. Keeping them organized and engaged becomes another question. The thesis project aims to provide website management strategies to enhance user engagement and recommends data preservation strategies for this long-term cleanup …

Detecting Disease-Related Changes In Intercellular Communications, Nating Wang

Public Health Theses

Diverse types of cells interact and communicate with each other to maintain tissue homeostasis and perform biological functions. Perturbations to these interactions can break the homeostasis of the tissue microenvironment, leading to disease. Understanding intercellular communication changes in disease is critical for therapeutic development. Cell-cell communication networks (CCCNs) inferred from single-cell RNA sequencing data are highly variable and only capture a snapshot of the dynamic intercellular communication system. We develop a graphical generative model to compare CCCNs between disease and control samples to identify disease associated perturbations to intercellular communications. The distribution of CCCNs is learned using variational graph autoencoder …

The Impact Of Climate Change On The Mental Health Of Native American Youth: A Qualitative Study Protocol, Xun Wang

Public Health Theses

Climate change can induce a significant mental health burden on youth, especially for those in Indigenous communities. Despite their vulnerability, little is known about the impact of climate change on the mental wellbeing of Native American children and adolescents. This qualitative study seeks to address this gap by exploring Native American youths’ perceptions and emotional and behavioral responses to climate change. The study is grounded in Indigenous methodologies, which prioritize Indigenous worldviews, values, and ways of interaction. We will utilize relational capital on campus to identify the collaborating tribe and ensure a respectful and reciprocal relationship is built before proceeding …

Recommendations For Climate Adaptation To Preserve Connecticut Drinking Water Quality And Quantity, Matthew Salvatore Di Vitto

Public Health Theses

Climate change impacts drinking water both directly and indirectly. Increases in temperature, drought frequency, and precipitation are among the climate impacts which currently and are projected to affect water quality and quantity in the continental United States. These impacts limit access to clean and abundant water sources by damaging habitat, spreading toxic substances via runoff and favoring the growth of harmful algal blooms. States can learn from one another to adopt best practices and policies to increase water resilience around the country. This paper explores how Connecticut can employ strategies from the States of New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Minnesota, …

Redox Changes In The Livers Of Mice Exposed To Environmentally Relevant Doses Of 1,4-Dioxane In Drinking Water, Caroline Erickson

Public Health Theses

1,4-dioxane (DX) is designated as a probable human carcinogen (Group 2B) based on demonstrated liver carcinogenicity in animal models. DX was a widely-used stabilizer for organic solvents throughout the late 20th century. Today, DX is found in many public water supply systems as well as personal care products. A lack of data on the mechanisms of action (MOAs) of its toxicity has contributed to the absence of adequate regulation. As a result, no federal Maximum Contaminant Law (MCL) exists leaving states responsible for designing exposure guidance amidst the regulatory melee. This thesis seeks to investigate redox changes associated with DX …

Optimization Of An Elisa-Based Leptospirosis Diagnostic, Kevin Yuhang Zhao

Public Health Theses

Leptospirosis is an infectious zoonotic disease responsible for about 1 million cases annually. Issues in early diagnosis is a major contributor towards poor health outcomes. Current tests for diagnosis, such as whole-cell ELISA-based diagnostics or the microscopic agglutination test (MAT), importantly lack sensitivity during acute-phase disease. Therefore, creating an ELISA-based diagnostic, which is generally cheaper and easier to perform than the MAT, using highly-conserved targets, that has high sensitivity towards acute-phase disease, would be desirable. This study first attempted to optimize protocols for diagnosis, and next applied the optimized protocol against epitopes derived from hamsters vaccinated with a multi-recombinant protein …

Circadian Timing In Cancer Treatment: A Mini Review On Cancer Chronotherapy, Jiawei Yin

Public Health Theses

Organisms exhibit rhythmic fluctuations in their behavior and metabolism every 24 hours, a phenomenon controlled by their circadian clock to anticipate changes in the environment. In the past forty years, substantial progress has been made in our knowledge of the molecular mechanisms underlying the circadian clock and cancer. In this context, researchers have explored the possibility of leveraging the circadian clock to improve cancer treatment. Several randomized controlled trials have investigated the effects of circadian chemotherapy and radiotherapy on drug toxicity and efficacy, with many studies reporting clinically significant outcomes, although some findings remain inconsistent. This mini review aims to …

Urban Air Pollution Exposure Of Children In Dwight Neighborhood In New Haven, Ct, Weixi Wu

Public Health Theses

Air pollution remains to be one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality, especially in the urban environment. Airborne contaminants exposure differs across different communities and in the US, low-income, racial minority communities bear the burdens of high exposure and adverse health outcomes. Therefore, we conducted a study among children living in the Dwight neighborhood in New Haven, CT, where the community is mainly low-income and consist of a large number of immigrants and racial minorities. The objectives of the study were 1) to characterize the distribution and magnitude of individual level of airborne contaminants exposure; 2) to determine …

Estimating Urinary Nitrate Excretion In Rural Iowans From Dietary And Drinking Water Sources, Timothy Skalaban

Public Health Theses

Nitrate levels are increasing in our environment, and epidemiological studies have found evidence of adverse health risks from this exposure. Therefore, it is important to characterize the magnitude of nitrate exposure from food and drinking water sources. This study assesses the magnitude of nitrate exposure for 47 farmers from the Agricultural Health Study (AHS) in 2018-2019. The participants in our study use private wells as their main drinking water source and live in agricultural area of Iowa (10 counties) where ground water is vulnerable to nitrate contamination. The extent of nitrate exposure is determined by several factors, including the types …

The Potential Link Between Pfas And Colorectal Cancer: A Narrative Review, Amina Mutalib

Public Health Theses

Background: Currently, there is information on the detrimental impacts of exposure to pollutants such as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) but there is still limited information on the impact PFAS has on colorectal cancer.Aim: To review and examine the evidence available in the existing published literature showing an association between exposure to PFAS and colorectal cancer. Methods: In this narrative review using searches of PubMed, SCOPUS and Google Scholar, publications between 2003 and 2023 were identified to ensure the inclusion of all recent development in this area of research. Inclusion criteria included a focus on the association between PFAS/PFOS and …

Vector Status Of Aedes Albopictus In Connecticut: Analyses Of Invasion Pattern, Geographic Distribution, And Disease Risk, Meredith Bagger

Public Health Theses

Introduction: Aedes albopictus is a highly successful invasive mosquito. Its presence and expansion into Connecticut have implications for human and animal health. The factors limiting Ae. albopictus spread and risk by the pathogens it carries have not been previously examined. Methods: This study leveraged data from the Connecticut Mosquito and Arbovirus Surveillance Program during 2006-2022 and a project designed to characterize mosquito-borne filarial parasite species in Connecticut from 2020-2021. We examined correlations between mosquito abundance and winter temperature as well as land use. We described the arboviruses detected in Ae. albopictus collections and calculated the risk of Ae. albopictus transmitting …

Exploring The Perceptions Of Genetics, Genetics Testing, And Science In People Of African Descent, Maame-Owusua Boateng

Public Health Theses

Background: Historical injustices towards Black populations in the United States have impacted how communities interact with medicine and public health such as medical experimentations, scientific racism, medical racism, and eugenics. Black communities are underrepresented in human genomics projects compared to those that identify as white or of European ancestry. Prior research has demonstrated that Black people are less likely to know about the availability of genetic testing for diseases and have less confidence in the benefits of genetic testing. These disparities make it imperative to understand the perspectives of people of African descent. Methods: The Black Genome Project is an …

Depression And Anxiety Among Plurisexual Teens In The U.S., Olivia Goodwin

Public Health Theses

Background: Little research focuses on the mental health consequences of stigma for plurisexual teens, with even less research comparing cisgender plurisexual youth to nonbinary plurisexual youth.Aims: To assess whether having both a marginalized sexual orientation and a marginalized gender identity is associated with greater risk or greater resilience in depression and anxiety outcomes among teens in the US. Methods: Data was analyzed from the 2022 LGBTQ Teen Survey. Inclusion in the study required being an English speaker living in the US, being 13-18 years old, and identifying as cisgender and plurisexual (n=1547) or gender nonbinary and plurisexual (n=1867). Statistical tests …

Are News Media Organizations Protecting Youth Mental Health? A Content Analysis Of The Top 4 News Organizations On Tiktok, Caroline Ann Pastrana Helsen

Public Health Theses

Background: In response to worsening mental health among adolescents, the U.S. Surgeon General issued an advisory on December 7, 2021 calling for action to address the youth mental health crisis. The advisory makes several recommendations, including actions media organizations can take to protect viewers’ mental health. The advisory specifically mentions news coverage that can negatively impact mental health, such as depictions of mental illness and traumatic events including natural disasters, pandemics, and mass violence. High rates of youth consume news on social media, with TikTok as one of the most popular apps for this demographic. Although research indicates that both …

A Systematic Review Of The Effect Of Maternal Circadian Disruption During Pregnancy On Adverse Fetal Outcomes, Siyu Jiang

Public Health Theses

Exposure to a suboptimal pregnant environment can raise the risk of offspring experiencing a variety of diseases in later life. Circadian rhythms play an important role in endocrine system, physiological and psychological functions. Potentially, interruption of the circadian rhythm in pregnant women might impair fetal growth and lead to adverse effects on the children. In the modern world, millions of women experience circadian disruption during pregnancy due to night shift work, excessive light at night, and jet travel across time zones. However, the impact of maternal chrono-disruption during pregnancy on the health of the second generation remains largely unknown. The …

Evaluating Environmental Risk Factors For Community-Associated C. Difficile Infection In New Haven County, Connecticut, 2016-2021, Hannah Liat Litwak

Public Health Theses

Background: Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) is classified as an urgent threat to public health and has been increasing in incidence and severity. CDI is commonly considered hospital- acquired; however, rates of community-associated CDI (CA-CDI) have been increasing and now make up more than 50% of cases reported. Risk factors for CA-CDI exposure are poorly understood and inadequately studied. This study uses regression to evaluate if community characteristics are associated with CA-CDI incidence at the census tract level in New Haven County. The goal is to determine if where someone lives in proximity to these potential risk factors may contribute to …

A Dna-Extraction-Free Method For The Molecular Detection Of Streptococcus Pneumoniae Carriage In Saliva, Tzu-Yi Lin

Public Health Theses

Pneumococcal carriage is a prerequisite for pneumococcal disease and surveillance of carriage is crucial for evaluating and informing vaccination strategies. In recent years, molecular methods have improved the sensitivity of pneumococcal carriage detection as compared to the gold standard culture-based method. However, nucleic acid extraction from samples collected is resource-intensive, limiting scalability for extensive surveillance, particularly in low-resource settings. We previously developed a saliva-based PCR test for SARS-CoV-2, having identified that nucleic acid extraction can be omitted and replaced with a simple enzymatic lysis or heat treatment step without compromising the accuracy and efficiency of testing. Here, we compared pneumococcus …

Elucidating Metformin As A Scavenger Of 4-Hne, An Endogenously Produced Aldehyde Associated With Alzheimer’S Disease Progression, In Hek293t Cells, Miren Lopez Lascurain

Public Health Theses

Metformin, a first-line therapy for Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM), has been shown to have numerous health benefits in neurodegenerative disease progressions, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Vasiliou et al. have recently proposed that metformin is able to scavenge endogenously produced aldehydes such as 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal (4-HNE), which are thought to contribute to the progression and development of AD. Preliminary in vitro and in silico studies demonstrate that metformin scavenges 4-HNE leading to adduct formation. Therefore, this study sought to determine if metformin adducts 4-HNE in a living system. We hypothesize that metformin can scavenge 4-HNE in HEK 293T cells and will …

Drivers Of Global Waterborne Disease Transmission Following Extreme Precipitation Events: A Systematic Review, Claire Latendresse

Public Health Theses

Precipitation events such as hurricanes, typhoons, and heavy rainfall can have devastating impacts on water and sanitation infrastructure around the world and have led to large-scale waterborne outbreaks. As climate change amplifies the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, it is also triggering an increase in waterborne disease transmission. This master’s thesis consists of a systematic review of academic literature pertaining to extreme precipitation events and the pathways by which they trigger waterborne outbreaks.

A systematic review of the literature in PubMed was conducted to identify waterborne disease outbreaks associated with extreme precipitation. The initial search yielded 3,248 results …

Knowledge, Attitudes, And Practices (Kap) About Lassa Fever Prevention And Control: A Survey Of Three Rural Communities In Central Liberia-Epidemiology Of Microbial Diseases, Joseph Gibson Jepru Lewis

Public Health Theses

Introduction: Since the discovery of Lassa fever in 1969 in Nigeria, the disease has become endemic in many West African countries. An estimated 500,000 cases of Lassa fever virus occur each year, leading to approximately 5,000 deaths annually. Liberia continues to record outbreaks almost every subsequent year in regions once considered non-endemic. With no effective vaccines, many studies have underscored the importance for residents in Lassa-endemic regions to have good knowledge and good prevention practices in place to prevent Lassa fever.

Methods: A cross-sectional data extracted from a longitudinal, observational, cohort study conducted using voluntary participant self-reported and study visits …

Demographics Of Hospitalized Covid-19 And Influenza Cases In Connecticut During The 2021-2022 Influenza Season: Is There Evidence Of Viral Interference?, Molly Mclaughlin

Public Health Theses

Since the COVID pandemic began in March 2020, the epidemiology of influenza has changeddramatically in the United States. During the 2021-2022 influenza season in Connecticut, only 262 hospitalized influenza cases were recorded in New Haven and Middlesex Counties from October 2021-June 2022, while there are usually well over 1,000 cases in a single season. While the decline in influenza cases could be due to preventive measures adopted early in the pandemic, viral interference could also be to blame. Viral interference is the process by which infection with one virus transiently protects against infection by another virus via a generalized immune …

The Fountain Of Youth?: Calorie Restriction And Its Relationship With Hand Grip Strength As A Marker Of Longevity And Aging, Arion Mete

Public Health Theses

Background and Purpose: Evidence supports a beneficial effect of calorie restriction on longevity within numerous animal models, while data for humans is limited to intermediate biomarkers of aging. The purpose of this study was to determine the association between calorie restriction in humans with respect to hand grip strength, a biomarker of aging and longevity, that has been understudied in relation to caloric restriction. Methods: We analyzed hand grip strength among 184 individuals enrolled in the Comprehensive Assessment of Long-term Effects of Reducing Intake of Energy (CALERIE), a 2-year randomized trial of 25% calorie restriction vs. control. Peak hand grip …

The Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Non-Typhoidal Salmonella Incidence And Exposures In Connecticut, 2015-2022, Adeline Morris

Public Health Theses

Background: During 2020, Salmonella incidence decreased by 22% in the United States.1 At the same time, many common activities were reduced or restricted, including travel and eating food prepared at restaurants or events, which are known risk factors for Salmonella infection. Methods: A descriptive analysis using Salmonella surveillance data collected in Connecticut between 2015 to 2022 was performed to characterize the changes in travel and outside food exposures. Frequencies of exposures were compared before the pandemic, during the pandemic, and after the vaccine was implemented and restrictions eased. Rate ratios of observed to expected cases were calculated to explore trends …

Informal Electrical And Electronics Waste Recycling And Its Health Impacts: Evidence From Developing Countries, Zhen Liu

Public Health Theses

E-waste informal recycling poses severe threats to the environment and public health. This review provides an update to the 2013 and 2021 reviews, which systematically assessed adverse human health impacts associated with e-waste exposure. For this review, e-waste population health studies published between Jan 29, 2020 and Feb 23, 2023 were included. Databases including PubMed, Web of Knowledge, PsycNET, CNKI, Wanfang Data were searched, and the languages were not limited to English. Of the 4097 identified records, 58 studies examined the association between e-waste exposure and health, and are original studies based on population health outcomes. Current studies consistently support …

Epidemiology Of Human Hookworm (Necator Americanus) Infection In Rural Ghana: Investigating Host-Parasite Factors That Mediate Infection, Savanna Randi

Public Health Theses

Abstract

Introduction: Hookworms are soil-transmitted helminths (STHs) that cause significant morbidity in high-risk populations, posing a global health concern in locations of rural poverty [1-5]. While there have been ventures by the World Health Organization to eliminate hookworms in Africa by 2030, there is variability in the effectiveness of current chemotherapy regimens. Studies have shown that benzimidazole anthelmintics have reduced effectiveness, and people living in endemic areas are quickly reinfected [6]. Critical gaps remain in understanding parasite-host interactions within communities, further challenging successful disease control. A study initiated in 2022 investigated the epidemiology of human hookworm infection in Beposo, Ghana. …

Missing The Forest For The Trees: The Causes Of The Obesity Epidemic, Acree Mcdowell Cook

Public Health Theses

Arguably the most pressing public health issue in the United States today is the obesity epidemic, which has affected children, adolescents, and adults alike. A lack of longitudinal research on distinct factors related to obesity in different groups has made addressing the epidemic difficult. Many lifestyle and environmental factors, including nutrition, sleep, stress, the gut microbiome, screen time, and marketing, are all related to obesity, but many of these factors are also related to each other. The current study investigates these systemic relationships, presents a hypothesis on the complementary causes of obesity, and contributes to contemporary longitudinal research by investigating …

Characterizing Populations Living Near Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations: Implications For Health Equity And Environmental Justice, Leah Salzano

Public Health Theses

Current literature has highlighted that concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOS) are associated with adverse health outcomes among populations living in close proximity to the farms and that, in certain states, vulnerable populations may be disproportionately exposed to CAFOs. However, none of the existing studies have assessed the sociodemographic makeup of areas highly exposed to CAFOs across a diverse geographic range. Using locations of CAFOs across six states with robust operations, we conducted logistic regression models assessing the likelihood of high exposure vs. low exposure at the census tract level for each 10% increase in sociodemographic variables (percent unemployed, percent minority, …

Examining The Impacts Of Stress And Negative Affect On Eating And Weight Outcomes: A Meta-Analysis, Taylor Spadory

Public Health Theses

Overweight and obesity have become incredibly pressing public health issues in the United States. Rising rates of prevalence pose grave risks to population health and underscore the need for a greater understanding of the underlying mechanisms that contribute to increased eating and weight gain. While stress and negative affect (NA) have been recognized as possible predictors, the literature is inconsistent and experimental studies have produced mixed results. Therefore, we conducted a comprehensive quantitative meta-analysis to assess the prospective effects of stress and NA on eating and weight outcomes, following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). We …