Digital Commons Network^™

Scalable And Continuous Fabrication Of Dendrimer Based Gene And Protein Delivery Systems, Joseph Johnston

Masters Theses

"Gene and protein therapeutics play critical roles in the drug market and represent the future of biopharmaceuticals. Polymeric nanoparticle-based gene/protein delivery systems are promising owing to their ability to protect the cargo from degradation, improving intracellular delivery and transfection efficiency as well as abundant sources and flexibility to be modified. Yet the successful industrialized production and clinical application of polymeric nanoparticle-based delivery systems have long been limited by unsatisfied delivery efficiency and the lack of reproducible and scalable methods for the preparation of uniform nanoparticles with good batch to batch consistency. To address the unsatisfied efficacy and difficulty in scale-up …

Developmental Patterning Of Peptide Transcription In The Central Circadian Clock In Both Sexes, Vania Carmona-Alcocer, Lindsey S. Brown, Aisha Anchan, Kayla E. Rohr, Jennifer A. Evans

Biomedical Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

Introduction: Neuropeptide signaling modulates the function of central clock neurons in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) during development and adulthood. Arginine vasopressin (AVP) and vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) are expressed early in SCN development, but the precise timing of transcriptional onset has been difficult to establish due to age-related changes in the rhythmic expression of each peptide.

Methods: To provide insight into spatial patterning of peptide transcription during SCN development, we used a transgenic approach to define the onset of Avp and Vip transcription. Avp-Cre or Vip-Cre males were crossed to Ai9^+/+ females, producing offspring in which the fluorescent protein …

On The Origin And Evolution Of The Dual Oscillator Model Underlying The Photoperiodic Clockwork In The Suprachiasmatic Nucleus, Jennifer A. Evans, William J. Schwartz

Biomedical Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

Decades have now passed since Colin Pittendrigh first proposed a model of a circadian clock composed of two coupled oscillators, individually responsive to the rising and setting sun, as a flexible solution to the challenge of behavioral and physiological adaptation to the changing seasons. The elegance and predictive power of this postulation has stimulated laboratories around the world in searches to identify and localize such hypothesized evening and morning oscillators, or sets of oscillators, in insects, rodents, and humans, with experimental designs and approaches keeping pace over the years with technological advances in biology and neuroscience. Here, we recount the …

Plastic Storage In River Sediments Across An Urbanization Gradient In The Ipswich Watershed In Massachusetts, Jackie L. Harris

Honors Theses and Capstones

The importance of plastic pollution research has become apparent as plastic pollution has increased exponentially since its introduction in the 1950s. Plastics mechanically break down into minuscule particles called microplastics, which are plastic particles with a size range of 0.1 micrometers (μm) to 5 millimeters (mm). Most of the research on microplastic pollution has centered around marine ecosystems rather than freshwater ecosystems. More freshwater microplastic research to date is emerging but is still nascent and sparse. Furthermore, the idea that rivers are merely conduits of microplastics to the ocean is even more limited and ignores microplastic loading and retention in …

Taxonomic Classification Of Viral And Bacterial Dna Following 2021 Avian Mass Mortality Event, Tessa Baillargeon

Honors Theses and Capstones

From May through July 2021, an unusual mortality event occurred along the eastern coast and Midwest of the United States. Thousands of birds, mostly from the order Passeriformes, were part of the die-off including blue jays (Cyanocitta cristata), common grackles (Quiscalus quiscula), European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris), American robins (Turdus migratorius). Clinical signs included crusted eyes, swollen conjunctiva, otitis, seizures, and ataxia.

The New Hampshire Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (NHVDL) received over 100 affected birds from various collaborators throughout the United States including Washington DC, NJ, CT, MD, and OH. Given the timing and geologic …

The Impact Of Nutrient Depletion On The Effect Of Hhq On Emiliania Huxleyi, Marley Gonsalves

Honors Theses and Capstones

Emiliania huxleyi is a ecologically important, bloom-forming coccolithophore. HHQ is a bacteria compound that causes cell stasis in E. huxleyi that can lead to bloom termination. This study analyzed the role that nutrient depletion plays in this relationship. Results show that nitrogen depletion protects cells from the effects of HHQ, affecting bloom dynamics.

Investigating The Relationship Between Sea Ice Extent And Erignathus Barbatus Breeding Phenology In The Alaskan Arctic, Rachel E. Lewis

Honors Theses and Capstones

No abstract provided.

Developing Honey Bee Diagnostics At The New Hampshire Veterinary Diagnostics Lab: Successes And Challenges, Mary Feranda

Honors Theses and Capstones

No abstract provided.

Individual Behavioral And Neurobiological Markers Associated With A Vulnerable To Ethanol Use Phenotype, Kelsey M. Alimandi

Honors Theses and Capstones

Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a chronic relapsing brain condition that is characterized by excessive alcohol consumption, continued use when faced with negative consequences, and a negative emotional state associated with withdrawals (anxiety, irritability, depression). The main challenge to treating AUD is preventing relapse. The purpose of this study was to use a prolonged-exposure model to allow rats to self-administer ethanol to determine the brain regions active during relapse events. The rats performed multiple behavioral tests such as economic demand, negative consequences, and an elevated plus maze. These tests determined how hard rats were willing to work for an ethanol …

Behavioral Markers And Endophenotypes Underlying Individual Differences In Ethanol Use, Haily R. Knapp

Honors Theses and Capstones

The main concern of this study is to evaluate the neurobiology of ethanol self-administration and cue-induced reinstatement in rats and its implications for Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) prevention and treatment. The purpose of this study is to use a pre-clinical model of ethanol use to understand the individual effects at the neurobiological level. The study utilized economic demand and negative consequence testing to evaluate the rats' motivation to consume ethanol and their ability to relapse after periods of abstinence. The results showed individual and sex differences in ethanol consumption, with rats who placed a higher value on ethanol being more …

Bioinspired Redox Active Pyrogallol For Aqueous Ion Separations, Matt Libby

Honors Theses and Capstones

No abstract provided.

Targeting Stat3 In Triple Negative Breast Cancer Using Gsk3Ꞵ And Integrin Inhibitors, Emily A. Pratt

Honors Theses and Capstones

Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the most aggressive subtype of breast cancer and is known for its chemoresistance and high rate of recurrence. TNBC lacks the hormone receptors that are found in other types of breast cancer, and therefore cannot be treated with hormonal therapies. Although the initial response to chemotherapy is favorable, many TNBC patients experience a recurrence of this cancer at a secondary location and this recurrence is often more lethal than the original tumor. The Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription (STAT) pathway is a major contributor to cancer growth and metastasis, and STAT3 is constitutively …

Drug Research In Inhibiting Bcl6 In Ovarian Cancer, Quinn E. Beek, Sarah Walker

Honors Theses and Capstones

Ovarian cancer has a survival rate of 50 percent just five years after being diagnosed (Nguyen et al. 2020). Finding new ways to treat ovarian cancer is important to increase the survival of patients who have been diagnosed. BCL6 is a transcription factor that is involved with metastasis and promoting chemotherapy resistant cancer cells. Finding a way to inhibit BCL6 could help prevent the things listed above and lead to a new treatment for patients with ovarian cancer. Researching genes that BCL6 regulates may offer new insights into treatments that can be researched to see if they are effective in …

Investigation Of The Function Of Protein Acyl Transferases Using Crispr-Cas9 To Create Null Mutants, Claire E. Christopher

Honors Theses and Capstones

24 Protein Acyl Transferases (PATs) have been identified in the model organism Arabidopsis thaliana. Despite knowing the enzymatic function of these genes (palmitoylation), the specific subcellular pathways, protein targets, and cellular activities of these proteins remain unknown. To investigate the pathways that PAT genes are involved in, deletion mutations were created in several genes and the phenotype of the organisms carrying homozygous mutations was observed. To introduce mutations, the CRISPR/Cas9 system was inserted into the plant’s genome using Agrobacterium tumefaciens to cause deletions in PAT genes of interest. To date, no CRISPR-induced pat mutants have a noticeable phenotype. These …

Summer Research Fellowship Project Descriptions 2023, Clark Science Center's Summer Research Fellows Program

SURF Abstracts (Women in Science)

A summary of research done by Smith College’s 2023 Summer Research Fellowship (SURF) Program participants. Ever since its 1967 start, SURF has been a cornerstone of Smith’s science education. Supervised by faculty mentor-advisors drawn from the Clark Science Center and connected to its eighteen science, mathematics, and engineering departments and programs and associated centers and units. At summer’s end, SURF participants were asked to summarize their research experiences for this publication.

Effects Of Aging On The Reproductive Success Of Female Saltmarsh Sparrows (Ammospiza Caudacutus) In Maine And New Hampshire, Isabella Rose Collamati

Honors Theses and Capstones

The saltmarsh sparrow (Ammospiza caudacutus) is a ground-nesting specialist in coastal salt marshes of the Northeast. Rising sea-levels increase the loss of offspring due to tidal flooding, reducing nest success and resulting in a sharp population decline. In other avian species, age has been shown to affect nest success through altering fertility, behavior, and the number of young produced, favoring older individuals. I investigated age effects on nest success of female saltmarsh sparrows using nest monitoring data collected at four sites of a long-term demographic monitoring project: Chapman's Landing (Stratham, NH), Eldridge Marsh (Wells, ME), Popham Beach (Phippsburg, …

Identification Of Novel Biosynthetic Gene Clusters Encoding For Polyketide/Nrps-Producing Chemotherapeutic Compounds From Marine-Derived Streptomyces Hygroscopicus From A Marine Sanctuary, Hannah Ruth Flaherty

Honors Theses and Capstones

Nearly one out of six deaths in 2020, around ten million people, were caused by cancer, making it a leading cause of death worldwide (WHO, 2022). This major public health issue, in addition to the rise of multidrug-resistant (MDR) pathogens, provides a high demand for the discovery of new pharmaceutical drugs to be used clinically to treat these conditions. The Streptomyces genus accounts to produce 39% of all microbial metabolites currently approved for human health, indicating its potential as an important species to study for antimicrobial and anticancer agents. The long linear genome of Streptomyces contains specialized sequences known as …

Examining The Interest Of Business School Students And The Gender Gap In Careers Of Data Science And Analytics, Logan M. Lopus

Honors Theses and Capstones

Professionals in the data science and analytics field are in high demand. Recently, business schools have introduced various academic programs to train students in those fields. However, what makes business school students interested in these career fields is not entirely known. Research questions such as who the major influencers are for business school students' career choices or whether there are any differences between genders in terms of their awareness, readiness, and interest in data science and analytics careers remain to be answered. Therefore, this study examines the segmentation of business school students in how they prepare for careers, drivers of …

Predictors Of Summer Chloride Concentrations In Urban Aquatic Ecosystems, Georgianna S. Fischer

Honors Theses and Capstones

Urban aquatic ecosystems are highly threatened by excess concentrations of chloride (Cl^-), which can negatively impact the biodiversity and functioning of aquatic ecosystems. High Cl^- concentrations in most northern cities come primarily from road salt use for de-icing, in the form of NaCl. Specific pathways of runoff and hydrology of waterbodies will regulate Cl^-concentrations in the months after the snowmelt season. This study attempted to understand the hydrologic controls on Cl^- concentrations and identify how the hydrology of urban ecosystems may impact exposure to chloride in streams. To accomplish this, stream sites around the …

N-Gram Text Classification On Standard Croatian, Bosnian And Serbian, Kegan Messmer

Honors Theses and Capstones

This study attempts to use three different kinds of n-gram text classification models to differentiate the standard forms of Croatian, Bosnian, and Serbian. These three languages, along with Montenegrin, were once considered one language, collectively termed “Serbo-Croatian”. These languages share a common South Slavic ancestry, and there is an argument to be made that their novel status as distinct languages is due to non-linguistic factors, such as culture and politics. This study uses 300,000 sentences from each language, sourced from Wikipedia pages written in the standard forms of each language. Three different classifiers were used: one unigram, one bigram, and …

Closing Pit Lakes As Aquatic Ecosystems: Risk, Reality, And Future Uses, Mark A. Lund, Melanie L. Blanchette

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Mine pit lakes are formed when open-cut pits flood with water, and these lakes occur by the thousands on every inhabited continent. The remediation and closure of pit lakes is a pressing issue for sustainable development and provision of freshwater ecosystem services. While pit lakes can be spectacular examples of recreation and renewal, pit lakes may be better known for their poor water qualities and risks to communities and the environment. Often the public wants to simply “fill the pits in” to restore a terrestrial landscape, but this is not always possible. Therefore, planning for remediation and future uses is …

The Long-Term Impact Of Covid-19 On Nursing: An E-Panel Discussion From The International Network For Child And Family Centred Care, Mandie Jane Foster, Julie Blamires, Sarah Neill, Imelda Coyne, Guðrún Kristjánsdóttir, Veronica D. Feeg, Ann Marie Paraszczuk, Mohammad Al-Motlaq

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Aim: To explore the International Network for Child and Family Centred Care (INCFCC) members' experiences and views on the long-term impact of COVID-19 on the nursing workforce. Background: On the 11 March 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic. While some countries adopted a herd immunity approach, others imposed stricter measures to reduce the transmission of the virus. Hospitals in some countries faced an avalanche of extremely sick admissions, whereas others experienced an early surge in cases or were able to control the spread. Design: Discursive paper. Methods: A web-based survey was e-mailed to 63 INCFCC members …

European Epidemiological Patterns Of Cannabis- And Substance-Related Congenital Neurological Anomalies: Geospatiotemporal And Causal Inferential Study, Albert Stuart Reece, Gary Kenneth Hulse

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Introduction: Of the many congenital anomalies (CAs) recently linked with community cannabis exposure, arguably the most concerning are neurological CAs (NCAs). We therefore conducted a detailed study of this in fourteen European nations.

Methods. Congenital anomaly data were from Eurocat. Drug exposure data were from European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction. Income from World bank.

Results: The Netherlands, Spain, France and Bulgaria reported increasing rates of many NCAs. The NCA rate (NCAR) was: severe microcephaly 2.14 x 1013 higher in nations with increasing daily cannabis use when compared to those without (p = 0.0204, minimum E-value (mEV) = …

Spore-Forming Clostridium (Clostridioides) Difficile In Wastewater Treatment Plants In Western Australia, Jessica M. Chisholm, Papanin Putsathit, Thomas V. Riley, Su-Chen Lim

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

There is growing evidence that shows Clostridium (Clostridioides) difficile is a pathogen of One Health importance with a complex dissemination pathway involving animals, humans, and the environment. Thus, environmental discharge and agricultural recycling of human and animal waste have been suspected as factors behind the dissemination of Clostridium difficile in the community. Here, the presence of C. difficile in 12 wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in Western Australia was investigated. Overall, C. difficile was found in 90.5 % (114/126) of raw sewage influent, 48.1 % (50/104) of treated effluent, 40 % (2/5) of reclaimed irrigation water, 100 % (38/38) of untreated …

Understanding And Enacting Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy Through Multicultural Children's Literature: A Case Study Of Preservice Teachers In Georgia, Heather M. Huling

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This study explored how preservice teachers understand culturally sustaining pedagogy (CSP) and used multicultural children’s literature (MCL) as a way of enacting CSP in their field placement experiences. This qualitative study utilized the theoretical framework of culturally sustaining pedagogy (Paris & Alim, 2017) and a single case study design (Stake, 1995; Yin, 2018) to explore five preservice teachers’ understanding and perceptions of CSP and its enactment in the classroom through MCL during their final student teaching semester in their hometowns. Data collected through lesson plans, literature lists, video recordings, and semi-structured interviews and then inductively coded through holistic coding and …

Training Specificity And Functional Performance In Collegiate Cheerleaders, Carly Routman

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

INTRODUCTION: Competitive collegiate cheerleading requires participants to be conditioned for explosive powerful movements. Studies have shown cheerleading is associated with a high incidence of catastrophic injury (Mueller, 2009; Boden, 2005; Xu et al., 2021). In response to high injury rates, studies have recommended strength and conditioning requirements to decrease the likelihood of injury due to the lack of cheer-specific training (Jacobson et al., 2004). Although it has been recommended for cheerleaders to receive formal strength training, many schools do not provide these resources to their cheerleading teams. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine if there are differences …

Effects Of Occupational Tasks And Personal Protective Equipment On Static And Functional Balance Among Career Firefighters, Petra Kis

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

BACKGROUND: Musculoskeletal injuries are commonly incurred on the fireground among firefighters. Most injuries are attributable to overexertion, fall, jump, slip, and trip mechanisms. These injuries may be caused by many factors, including the independent and collective effects of wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) and the fatigue induced by performing occupational tasks. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of PPE and fire suppression tasks on static and functional balance among firefighters. METHODS: 32 healthy male career structural firefighters (Age: 31.8±9.5 yr) volunteered for this study. Static and Functional Balance Tests (FBT) were performed in …

The Portrayal Of Disability In 19th And 20th Century American Novels, Taylor Whittington

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This thesis explores the treatment of disabled characters by their family and communities in 19^th and 20^th - century American literature. The three works being evaluated are, The Monster (1898) by Stephen Crane, The Sound and The Fury (1928) by William Faulkner, and Of Mice and Men (1937) by John Steinbeck. Although The Sound and The Fury and Of Mice and Men contain a white disabled character, The Monster details the disfiguration of an African American man. In The Monster, race exacerbates the community’s response to the disfigured Henry Johnson, compared to Lennie in Of Mice and Men, …

Views Of Asexuality And Transgender Individuals: The Role Of Religious Beliefs, Allison Davis

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Asexuality is a lifelong, continuous lack of sexual attraction or the inability to feel sexual attraction. Asexuality is a naturally occurring sexual orientation thought to be present in 0.4-1.1% of the American population. However, asexuality is still relatively unknown by the general population and understudied by scientific researchers. Even less known is how religious individuals view asexuality. According to the 2020 US census, around 70% of American adults identify as Christian. The current study examined how degree of religiousness related to feelings toward sexuality and asexual individuals. Main hypotheses included: religious fundamentalism would predict negative attitudes toward asexual and transgender …

Examining The Nexus Of Housing Instability And Neighborhood Within New York City (Nyc), Benjamin Boateng

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Housing instability within the New York City (NYC) area significantly affects the community's well-being. As a robust and growing city, many families in the low-income bracket face the challenge of spending a significant portion of their monthly income toward housing costs (rent, utilities, insurance). With families spending 50% (extreme housing burden) and more of their monthly income to stay in their housing units, various disparities have presented themselves within the housing context.

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, families within NYC have struggled to maintain their housing stock. Policy and community-based actions are needed to reduce the burden …