Digital Commons Network^™

Sargassum Accumulation At Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park, Giavanna Iglio, Jarod Johnson, Kayla Jones, Kaleb Myers, Juliana Ottens-Rivera, Aidan Pflieger, Manuel Ploner, Kevin Rafferty, Maura Wondra

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Sargassum is a typically floating phaeophyte (brown alga) with important ecosystem functions. It is a producer, generating biomass via photosynthesis, and providing habitat for small epipelagic organisms in the open ocean. In August 2022, large amounts of Sargassum were seen on the beach at the northern end of Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park (VDMEJSP), Dania Beach, Florida, up to 152cm thick. This disturbs the intertidal environment, which is typically composed of carbonate sands, and smothers infauna. Furthermore, this creates ephemeral habitats for species not typically associated here. The extent of Sargassum deposits was measured from 7 September through 25 …

Sleep Health Matters For All: Wellness Intervention For The Pediatric Down Syndrome Population, Mahima Dave

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Down syndrome (DS) is the most prevalent chromosomal disorder in which an extra copy of chromosome-21 disrupts the development of intellectual abilities. Unique physical manifestations places children with DS at high risk for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in which repeated blockages of the upper airway cause difficulty breathing during sleep. 80% of children with DS are afflicted with OSA, and this increases incidences of nocturnal sudden cardiac arrest by 2.57-fold compared to the general population. Manifestations of OSA, such as cognitive impairment and cardiovascular disease, are common in the DS population. However, this often obscures the diagnosis. During May 2021, …

An Optimal Strategy For Using Mixture-Based Combinatorial Library Data To Find T-Cell Epitopes, Sofia Celis

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Positional scanning libraries are well established in their use for peptide sequence identification and binding site optimization. Their use in identifying T cell stimulatory peptides has also previously been explored. Here we present a retrospective analysis on the results of mixture based positional scanning libraries of T-cell stimulatory peptides done before 2019 in order to identify an optimal strategy for using mixture based combinatorial library data to find T cell epitopes. The screening of positional scanning libraries against CD4+ and CD8+ T cell clones was analyzed using biometrical analysis approaches of various kinds in order to evaluate their relative effectiveness …

Comparison Of Behavior Of Mangrove Mosquitofish Across Their Range And Identification Of Their Hybridization With Eastern Mosquitofish Using Genital Morphology, Rose Leeger

Undergraduate Student Symposium

The Mangrove Mosquitofish is found in many brackish and freshwater ecosystems surrounding southeast Florida and Cuba. Historical range distribution in Florida has found these fish solely in the Florida Keys and parts of Miami. This research provides an update to the northernmost range that Mangrove Mosquitofish have been observed. As the name implies, Mangrove Mosquitofish reside in areas of critical habitat: Mangrove Forests. These forests are constantly battling habitat loss and reduction due to increased urbanization in native areas. Mangrove Mosquitofish are poecillid fish species with a modified anal fin called a “gonopodium” that allows for internal fertilization. This research …

The Importance Of Educating Adolescent Mothers In The Postpartum Period, Sydney Price, Madelyn Travis, Reagan Schwable

Scholars Week

Due to the lack of policy or procedure for individualized education for adolescent mothers, we concluded that a educational checklist in the charting system would be the most effective way to properly educate young mothers during this confusing stage in their life. Specific education helps to improve perceived quality of care, safety/wellbeing in the young mother and newborn, and reducing the risks of complications such as postpartum depression or issues with pregnancy later on. In summary, ensuring that teenage mothers are fully educated before discharge will provide for better mother and baby outcomes.

Poultry Health And Management For The Small Flock, Kendall Kunelius

Advisory Council

Whether for eggs, meat, or companionship, successfully ensuring your flocks' well-being starts with careful management and healthy birds. This is best done through proper management and preventative practices.

Gardner-Webb Students Shine At National Alpha Chi Convention, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Gardner-Webb University students brought home $12,700 in scholarships and prize money from the national Alpha Chi convention in Albuquerque, N.M., March 30-April 1. The convention is an annual celebration of academic scholarship bringing together Alpha Chi chapters from across the country to share research, network with other scholars, engage with keynote speakers, and earn recognition for academic and creative accomplishments.

Domain Specific Analysis Of Privacy Practices And Concerns In The Mobile Application Market, Fahimeh Ebrahimi Meymand

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Mobile applications (apps) constantly demand access to sensitive user information in exchange for more personalized services. These-mostly unjustified-data collection tactics have raised major privacy concerns among mobile app users. Existing research on mobile app privacy aims to identify these concerns, expose apps with malicious data collection practices, assess the quality of apps' privacy policies, and propose automated solutions for privacy leak detection and prevention. However, existing solutions are generic, frequently missing the contextual characteristics of different application domains. To address these limitations, in this dissertation, we study privacy in the app store at a domain level. Our objective is to …

Lindenwood Digest, April 5, 2023, Lindenwood University

Lindenwood Digest

The Lindenwood Digest has been a digital employee newsletter since 2009.

Tanzania Research: Mission Trip 2022, Sozina Katuli, Letrisha Stallard

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Beyond The Bmi: Expanding Quantitative Methods To Study Health For All Bodies, Kieran Chase, Daniel Oron

OHSU-PSU School of Public Health Annual Conference

The public health field is beginning to reckon with its role in perpetuating and reinforcing systemic anti-fatness. Emerging evidence for the devastating health impacts of stigma call into question decades of research and policy that labels the size of people’s bodies as diseased. However, even as we acknowledge the harmful effects of stigma, the field is materially and institutionally invested in a health paradigm that centers weight loss and size-related proxies for health, such as the BMI. Public health scholars interested in questions related to nutrition, chronic disease, and exercise must begin to expand their research focus to imagine non-stigmatizing …

History Of Hypertension And Urinary Incontinence Among Adults Aged 40 And Older: A Cross-Sectional Study From The National Health And Nutrition Examination Survey, Puthyda Keath, Karla Cordova Nicolas

OHSU-PSU School of Public Health Annual Conference

Introduction: Urinary incontinence (UI) impacts over 200 million individuals world-wide, though little is known about the causes of this condition. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to examine prevalence of UI and the association between a history of hypertension and UI in older adults. A secondary aim was to determine if sex modified the association between history of hypertension and UI.

Methods: This study utilized data from the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2011-2016 cycles. We included 9,717 U.S adults (≥40 years) with complete information on history of hypertension, UI and other independent variables. Participants with …

The Prevalence Of Osteoporosis And Low Femoral Neck Bone Density Among Never-Smoking U.S. Adults With Exposure To Secondhand Smoke: A Cross-Sectional Study Using The National Health And Nutrition Examination Survey (Nhanes), Felicia Zhou, Mikaela Haglund

OHSU-PSU School of Public Health Annual Conference

Objective

Epidemiologic studies have observed an association between exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) and low bone mineral density (BMD) among current and past smokers. However, there is a knowledge gap in elucidating this association among never-smoking adults. The objective of this study is to examine the association between SHS exposure, measured by serum cotinine levels, and BMD for never-smoking U.S. adults.

Methods

This cross-sectional analysis included 3,224 never-smoking U.S. adults aged 50 years and older from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey cycles 2007-2008, 2009-2010, and 2013-2014. Serum cotinine, a biomarker for tobacco exposure, was the exposure variable while …

Twitter Database Health Visualization, Tor Qureshi

2023 IDIR Data Visualization Challenges-Archive

By utilizing the Twitter IDs and their corresponding posts in the database, we were able to create a UI that generates a graph that demonstrates a word or phrases' usage over time based on the number of times mentioned within the time span of the database (2011-2023). In the future, this could be improved by combining it with the Twitter API to monitor live trends and associations.

The Effect Of A Gratitude Intervention On Acute Pain Toleration, Cynthia Ware

Honors College Theses

Gratitude interventions are emerging as a method to improve physical health outcomes; however, gratitude’s effect on pain perception and the autonomic response is understudied. Recent research suggests the perigenual anterior cingulate cortex is activated in gratitude interventions and is also involved in the perception of pain and the activation of the sympathetic nervous system. In this study, we investigated the effect of state gratitude induction on pain through the use of the cold pressor method. We found that although there were no significant differences in self-reported unpleasantness, participants in the gratitude condition reported a higher intensity of pain. Nevertheless, participants …

Reducing Delirium And Functional Decline In Hospitalized Older Adults: Implementation Of Cocare Help, An Evidence-Based Intervention, Kara M. Roman, Aaron Mestemaker

Masters Projects

Background: Delirium is a common disturbance in cognition among older adults in the hospital setting. It is associated with negative outcomes and high costs for patients, families, and hospital systems. Use of a reliable screening tool and evidence-based strategies such as CoCare: HELP demonstrates delirium prevention and functional decline in many geriatric hospitalized patients.

Objectives: This study examines the impact of implementing aspects of CoCare: HELP on two pilot units in an urban Midwestern hospital. Pre- and post-implementation measures of delirium rate, 30-day admission rate, length of stay, falls with injuries, safety attendant orders, restraint numbers, use of antipsychotics, and …

Creating A Culturally Adaptable Comprehensive Sexuality Education Teacher's Manual, Stephanie Carteciano

Student Works

Purpose: The purpose of this project was to create a culturally adaptable comprehensive sexual education teacher’s manual by (a) standardizing content using The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) 2018 International Technical Guidance on Sexuality Education (CSE), (b) providing evidence-based CSE pedagogy in the form of classroom activities, and (c) including adaptable teaching methods to fit diverse cultural contexts.

Development: The manual lessons were derived from UNESCO’s 2018 International Technical Guidance on Sexuality Education, and the pedagogy followed Anderson and Krathwohl’s revision of Bloom’s Taxonomy. Health information was obtained from various medical and university resources. We surveyed eight …

The Mullet Coffee Shop And Tap House Business Plan, Baylor K. Bumford

Honors College Theses

This is a full business plan for a coffee shop and beer establishment in the city of Austin, Texas. Austin is the fastest growing city in the United States and an epicenter for both the coffee and brewery industries. Utilizing industry analysis, macro-environment analysis, marketing and financial research and personal interviews with twenty-seven potential customers in the area, a business plan of sufficient rigor to attract financing from a bank or investor has been prepared.

Cd73-Dependent Adenosine Signaling Through Adora2b Drives Immunosuppression In Ductal Pancreatic Cancer, Erika Y Faraoni, Kanchan Singh, Vidhi Chandra, Olivereen Le Roux, Yulin Dai, Ismet Sahin, Baylee J O'Brien, Lincoln N Strickland, Le Li, Emily Vucic, Amanda N Warner, Melissa Pruski, Trent Clark, George Van Buren, Nirav C Thosani, John S Bynon, Curtis J Wray, Dafna Bar-Sagi, Kyle L Poulsen, Lana A Vornik, Michelle I Savage, Shizuko Sei, Altaf Mohammed, Zhongming Zhao, Powel H Brown, Tingting Mills, Holger K Eltzschig, Florencia Mcallister, Jennifer M Bailey-Lundberg

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The microenvironment that surrounds pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is profoundly desmoplastic and immunosuppressive. Understanding triggers of immunosuppression during the process of pancreatic tumorigenesis would aid in establishing targets for effective prevention and therapy. Here, we interrogated differential molecular mechanisms dependent on cell of origin and subtype that promote immunosuppression during PDAC initiation and in established tumors. Transcriptomic analysis of cell-of-origin-dependent epithelial gene signatures revealed that Nt5e/CD73, a cell-surface enzyme required for extracellular adenosine generation, is one of the top 10% of genes overexpressed in murine tumors arising from the ductal pancreatic epithelium as opposed to those rising from acinar cells. …

Transcriptomic Changes Predict Metabolic Alterations In Lc3 Associated Phagocytosis In Aged Mice, Anuradha Dhingra, John W. Tobias, Nancy J. Philp, Kathleen Boesze-Battaglia

Department of Pathology, Anatomy, and Cell Biology Faculty Papers

LC3b (Map1lc3b) plays an essential role in canonical autophagy and is one of several components of the autophagy machinery that mediates non-canonical autophagic functions. Phagosomes are often associated with lipidated LC3b to promote phagosome maturation in a process called LC3-associated phagocytosis (LAP). Specialized phagocytes, such as mammary epithelial cells, retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells, and sertoli cells, utilize LAP for optimal degradation of phagocytosed material, including debris. In the visual system, LAP is critical to maintain retinal function, lipid homeostasis, and neuroprotection. In a mouse model of retinal lipid steatosis-mice lacking LC3b (LC3b−/−), we observed increased lipid deposition, metabolic dysregulation, …

Human Serum Supplementation Promotes Streptococcus Mitis Growth And Induces Specific Transcriptomic Responses, Yahan Wei, Camille I. Sturges, Kelli L. Palmer

School of Podiatric Medicine Publications

Streptococcus mitis is a normal member of the human oral microbiota and a leading opportunistic pathogen causing infective endocarditis (IE). Despite the complex interactions between S. mitis and the human host, understanding of S. mitis physiology and its mechanisms of adaptation to host-associated environments is inadequate, especially compared with other IE bacterial pathogens. This study reports the growth-promoting effects of human serum on S. mitis and other pathogenic streptococci, including S. oralis, S. pneumoniae, and S. agalactiae. Using transcriptomic analyses, we identified that, with the addition of human serum, S. mitis downregulates uptake systems for metal ions and sugars, fatty …

Effect Of Furosemide Administration On Plasma Analytes And Urine Enzyme Excretion In Two Reptilian Species, Kathryn Metcalf

LSU Master's Theses

Renal disease is a common ailment of captive reptiles that is often closely linked to chronic, subclinical states of dehydration. Currently, the diagnosis of renal disease in reptiles is poorly characterized and often relies on invasive diagnostic techniques (e.g., renal biopsy) for definitive diagnosis. A potential outlet for the further characterization of renal dysfunction in reptiles is the induction of dehydration by furosemide therapy. Furosemide is a loop diuretic that is commonly used in mammalian patients for the treatment of congestive heart failure. The utility of furosemide in reptiles is poorly characterized, however, both experimental and clinical utility of this …

Identification Of Protein Biomarkers Of The Dietary Approaches To Stop Hypertension Diet In Randomized Feeding Studies And Validation In An Observational Study, Hyunju Kim, Alice H Lichtenstein, Peter Ganz, Shutong Du, Olive Tang, Bing Yu, Nilanjan Chatterjee, Lawrence J Appel, Josef Coresh, Casey M Rebholz

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background

The Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet is recommended for cardiovascular disease prevention. We aimed to identify protein biomarkers of the DASH diet using data from 2 randomized feeding studies and validate them in an observational study, the ARIC (Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities) study.

Methods and Results

Large‐scale proteomic profiling was conducted in serum specimens (SomaLogic) collected at the end of 8‐week and 4‐week DASH diet interventions in multicenter, randomized controlled feeding studies of the DASH trial (N=215) and the DASH‐Sodium trial (N=396), respectively. Multivariable linear regression models were used to compare the relative abundance of 7241 proteins …

Reducing Polypharmacy By Improving The Geriatric Evaluation By Utilizing The Virtual Video Connect, Adolphus Bailey Jr., Gina Kelly-Vasquez

DNP and Student Works

The issue of polypharmacy in the geriatric population requires continual monitoring to reduce adverse patient outcomes, such as falls, drug interactions, and mortality. Over the years, several resources have been used to help to mitigate potential polypharmacy by healthcare professionals. Unfortunately, many healthcare providers don't know how to use these lists, or patients' health conditions predicate prescribing potentially inappropriate medications. Employing telehealth technologies that are mainly designed to assess geriatric syndromes of older adults can improve veterans' access to care and coordination and enhance the quality of life. The presented PICOT question is: In geriatric veterans (P), what is the …

Methodological Precision Of In Situ And In Vitro Algal Density Measurements In The Model Cnidarian, Exaiptasia Diaphana, Lauren R. Bolzan, Alison M. Roark

Open Access Fund Publications

In cnidarian symbiosis research, studying algal uptake, maintenance, and expulsion typically requires quantification of algal density in host tissue. Multiple methods are used to measure algal density including in vitro cell counts of holobiont homogenate and in situ cell counts of tentacle clippings. The relative precision of both types of measurement has not previously been reported for the model cnidarian Exaiptasia diaphana in the fully symbiotic state. The objective of this study was to evaluate the precision of in vitro and in situ algal density measurement protocols using light, fluorescent, and confocal microscopy and an automated cell counter. In situ …

Reducing Delirium And Functional Decline In Hospitalized Older Adults: Implementation Of Cocare Help, Kara Marie Roman, Aaron Mestemaker

Masters Projects

Background: Delirium is a common disturbance in cognition among older adults in the hospital setting. It is associated with negative outcomes and high costs for patients, families, and hospital systems. Use of a reliable screening tool and evidence-based strategies such as CoCare: HELP demonstrates delirium prevention and functional decline in many geriatric hospitalized patients.

Objectives: This study examines the impact of implementing aspects of CoCare: HELP on two pilot units in an urban Midwestern hospital. Pre- and post-implementation measures of delirium rate, 30-day admission rate, length of stay, falls with injuries, safety attendant orders, restraint numbers, use of antipsychotics, and …

Persistence Of Dna From Biocontained Genetically Engineered Microbes, Wentao Dai

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

The utilization of genetically engineered microbes in environmental systems requires effective biocontainment mechanisms to ensure their safe operation. CRISPR-based kill switches are a promising solution, inducing cell death through site-specific DNA cleavage under specific environmental conditions. In this study, we aimed to assess the impact of CRISPR-based kill switches on the abundance and persistence of bacterial DNA. Our results revealed that while CRISPR-based kill switches were capable of achieving high reductions in viable Escherichia coli Nissle 1917 (EcN); the DNA largely remained intact. This was observed in two strains of EcN: one enabled with multi-locus genome cleavage, and the other …

International Engagement, April 4, 2023, University Of Northern Iowa. Office Of International Engagement.

Office of International Engagement newsletter

Contents:

--- 2024-25 Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program Competition is Open
--- Understanding American English Phrases
--- Welcome Maristas!
--- Steps of Success: Student Conference
--- Join OIE to Volunteer at the Northeast Iowa Foodbank
--- Pride Coffee Hour
--- Africa Night
--- Violent Incident Defense Strategies
--- International Impact: Omid Jooya - TESOL '22
--- Pride at UNI
--- International and Queer
--- Upcoming Pride Events
--- Optional Practical Training
--- Tax filing Deadline

Relationship Between Cognitive Performance, Physical Activity, And Socio-Demographic/Individual Characteristics Among Aging Americans, Imtiaz Masfique Dowllah, Juan Carlos Lopez-Alvarenga, Gladys Maestre, Ulku S. Karabulut, Michael Lehker, Murat Karabulut

School of Medicine Publications

Background: Physical activity (PA) has emerged as a promising approach to delay Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, but the optimal intensity of PA to improve cognitive health remains unknown.

Objective: To evaluate the association between duration and intensity of PA and cognitive domains (executive function, processing speed, and memory) in aging Americans.

Methods: Linear regressions in hierarchical blocks for variable adjustment and the size of effect (η2) were analyzed by using the data of 2,377 adults (age = 69.3±6.7 years) from the NHANES 2011–2014.

Results: Participants with 3–6 h/week of vigorous- and > 1 h/week of moderate-intensity PA scored significantly higher …

Catching Babies: Helping Students Understand Reproductive Justice Through Black Maternal Health, Jillian A. Tullis

Feminist Pedagogy

No abstract provided.