Digital Commons Network^™

Examinations Of The Close Relationship Processes And Health Framework Among Adult And Adolescent Sexual Minority Men, Trey Victor Dellucci

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Despite advancements in biomedical preventions for HIV, sexual minority males continue to be disproportionately affected by HIV. Previous research has estimated that up to two thirds of HIV incidence among sexual minority male adults occur between main partners. In the past decade, a growing number of studies and intervention trials have focused on main relationships as a context for HIV. Much of this work has focused on adult relationships and has been grounded in interdependence theory and highlighted the importance of relationship functioning in facilitating the decisions couples make around condom use. Fewer studies, however, have examined the association between …

Drug Repurposing Using Gene Expression Data Mining, Yue Qiu

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The conventional drug discovery process that employs the "one disease, one target, one drug'' paradigm is expensive, time-consuming, and has a high rate of failure for multi-genic complex diseases. An alternative approach to drug discovery is to repurpose an existing drug that has been used to treat some medical conditions. Drug repurposing is considered a promising method due to its accelerated the process of drug discovery and lower overall cost and risk.

Drug-perturbed gene expression profiles are powerful phenotype readouts of biological systems, and they have been widely used in drug repurposing studies. However, the existing drug-perturbed gene expression datasets …

Abuse Victimization And Impulsivity In Incarcerated Males: Examining The Roles Of Affective Instability And Trauma Symptoms, Jacqueline K. Douglas

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Incarcerated individuals with a history of physical and/or sexual abuse have been found to exhibit increased levels of impulsivity compared to those with no abuse history (Carli et al., 2014; Davis et al., 2017; Sergentanis et al., 2014). Given that impulsivity is a risk factor for criminal delinquency (Carroll et al., 2006; Kamaluddin et al., 2015; Zimmerman, 2010), it is important to gain a thorough understanding of psychological factors that may contribute to higher levels of impulsivity in incarcerated populations. The present study examined the mechanisms underlying the relationship of physical and/or sexual abuse history to impulsivity in a sample …

"How" As A Signal Of An Invariant Meaning, Andrew S. Mccormick

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation aims to explain why speakers and writers use how in the communicative contexts in which they do, and its central claim is that how is a signal of one invariant meaning. The form’s diverse communicative contributions can be explained by hypothesizing a single meaning that contributes to different message effects, or contextual interpretations, on different occasions of its use.

The present analysis rests on the crucial distinction in Columbia School (CS) linguistics, the theoretical framework guiding this project, between meaning and message. A meaning is a signal’s invariant semantic contribution, while messages are the context-unique interpretations that …

The Role Of Intersectional Stigma And Social Anxiety In Black, Latino, And Multiracial Young Sexual Minority Men, Jorge L. Cienfuegos Szalay

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Black, Latino, and Multiracial YSMM are at disproportionate risk of acquiring HIV despite engaging in similar or less HIV risk behaviors when compared to their White YSMM counterparts. While over two decades of research have highlighted minority stress theory as a potential explanation as to why this disparity exists, increased efforts are being made to infuse this body of work with an intersectional framework. Intersectionality posits that individuals with multiple, interlocking social identities that are continuously affected and impacted by various forms of marginalization and stigmatization are at an increased risk of negative psychological and physical health outcomes. Current data …

Singlet Oxygen-Mediated Conformational Flexibility, Antioxidant, And Isomerization Studies In Chemistry And Biochemistry, Oliver Turque

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Three chapters are included in this dissertation, each of which describes non-oxidative reactions, with peroxy intermediates formed between singlet oxygen (¹O₂) and substrate. (1) Novel discoveries related to the intermediate formed by ¹O₂ and dimethyl disulfane are explored. (2) A new mechanism is proposed, wherein the dihedral angle CS–SC (θ) determines the pro- or antioxidant activity of an organic disulfide. (3) A review of ¹O₂'s ability to facilitate the geometric isomerization of alkenes and polyenes is presented in Chapter 3.

Chapter 1 investigates the role of singlet oxygen potentially …

Variations In Family Child Care: Providers' Experiences Crafting Spaces In-Between School And Home, Eleanor Luken

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Family child care, which takes place in the caregiver’s own home, is one of the most common arrangements for American working parents, yet it remains low paid and undervalued in the ecosystem of early childhood care and education (Uttal and Tuominen, 1999). Little is known about how family child care providers organize space within their homes and the repercussions the location of care has on their daily practices with children, relationships with family members, and design of their homes. Even less is known about the strategies used by providers operating in dense, urban neighborhoods with high housing costs. This investigation …

Characterization Of Pathological Tau Mutants, Charles J. Mcdonald

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Tau is a protein expressed exclusively in glia and neurons in the central nervous system and implicated in several neurogenerative diseases called “tauopathies”. Among all the tauopathies, one third is characterized by the presence of genetic mutations leading to the synthesis of tau proteins with single amino acid substitutions at specific locations and affecting protein function. While most of the initial studies have emphasize the functional role of tau as modulator of the axonal cytoskeleton, it has recently been well accepted that tau is also an intrinsically disordered protein that tends to form membraneless organelles called coacervates, due to a …

Disordered Protein Aggregates Are Linked To Changes In The Histone Post-Translational Modification Landscape In Disease And Non-Disease Models, Samantha Cobos

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Proper protein folding is a delicate balance that is crucial for normal biological function. In mammals, protein misfolding and aggregation leads to loss of function of the original protein while in many cases being associated with neurodegenerative diseases, eventually leading to death of the organism. In yeast however, the aggregated prion state is associated with positive cellular outcomes, and cells can switch between the [PRION+] and [prion-] states. Understanding the factors that lead to changes in prion state conformation in yeast could lead to novel insight into the conditions controlling misfolding by neurodegenerative proteinopathies. We believe that by studying the …

Characterization And Modulation Of The Emergent Material Properties Of Biomolecular Condensates, Alfredo Vidal Ceballos

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The discovery of membraneless organelles has revolutionized the field of cell biology and our understanding of cell compartmentalization. These organelles lack a distinct phospholipid bilayer and interact with the cytoplasm mediated by a liquid-liquid interface. The emergent properties and characterization of these organelles are essential for decoding the mechanisms underlying their function and dysfunction. In this thesis, we focus on two reconstituted in-vitro model systems of protein condensates and advance current methodology in order to address these fundamental questions. The first model system examined is the neuronal granule protein Fragile X Mental Retardation Protein (FMRP), an RNA-binding protein, that aids …

Remote Sensing Characterization Of Ecosystem Structure And Functional Types To Inform On Biodiversity Conservation In The Lowland Chocó Rainforest, Derek Tesser

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation focuses on the utilization of remote sensing techniques to characterize ecosystem structure and functional types to inform on biodiversity conservation. This work is motivated by a guiding hypothesis that increased degradation of tropical forest biodiversity due to human activity results in in measurable changes in ecosystem processes that can be detected using remote sensing technologies. Throughout this dissertation, testing of aspects of this hypothesis involve comparing areas with varying degrees of human-induced degradation in a biodiverse tropical ecoregion, the lowland Chocó rainforest of Ecuador. Remote sensing data is used to evaluate changes in vegetation structure, thermal regimes, and …

Metabolic Control Of Proliferation And Differentiation In Oligodendrocytes, Sami Sauma

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Oligodendrocytes (OLs) are specialized cells whose membrane extension, called myelin, wraps the axons providing insulation, trophic and metabolic support, and is essential for proper functioning of the central nervous system. Inappropriate myelin formation, damage or dysfunction of oligodendrocytes has been identified in several neurological disorders and often precedes the loss of neuronal cells. OLs derive from proliferating oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs), which exit from the cell cycle and undergo a series of transcriptional and epigenetic events, including histone post-translational modifications, resulting in morphological and functional changes. Our lab previously identified elevated levels of histone acetylation in proliferating OPCs during the …

Examining The Prevalence And Psychopathological Correlates Of Paraphilic Interests In A Non-Clinical Sample, Dylan H. Abrams

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The paraphilias are among the most contentious diagnoses in contemporary psychological discourse. One of the major debates is over the extent to which paraphilic interests and behaviors should be considered “deviant.” To address this issue, extant research has examined the prevalence of paraphilic interests and their correlation with psychopathology. Though findings suggest that certain paraphilic interests are relatively common, existing data may misrepresent true prevalence rates due to racially and ethnically homogenous sampling. Additionally, though an association between paraphilias and psychopathology has been found in forensic and clinical samples, this relation may not generalize to all individuals with paraphilic interests. …

Mandibular Condylar Hyperplasia And Its Correlation With Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor, Luis Eduardo Almeida, Marco Cicciù, Andrea Doetzer, Matthew L. Beck, Gabriele Cervino, Giuseppe Minervini

School of Dentistry Faculty Research and Publications

Background

Condylar hyperplasia (CH) is a rare condition characterised by excessive unilateral growth of the mandibular condyle after cessation of growth on the contralateral side causing facial asymmetry, being more prevalent in the second and third decades.

Objective

The aim of this study was to determine the utility of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF-A) as a diagnostic and prognostic factor in condylar hyperplasia, and to determine its potential viability as a therapeutic target.

Methods

This is a case–control study, where 17 mandibular condyles specimens were collected from 17 patients treated for active mandibular condyle hyperplasia and three unaffected human mandibular …

Adipose-Derived Stem Cells Significantly Increases Collagen Level And Fiber Maturity In Patient-Specific Biological Engineered Blood Vessels, Bryan T. Wonski, Bijal Patel, Donna G. Tepper, Aamir Siddiqui, Loay S. Kabbani, Mai T. Lam

Surgery Articles

Tissue engineering has driven significant research in the strive to create a supply of tissues for patient treatment. Cell integration into engineered tissues maximizes functional capabilities, however, issues of rejection remain. Autologous cell sources able to solve this issue are difficult to identify for tissue engineering purposes. Here, we present the efficacy of patient-sourced cells derived from adipose (adipose-derived stem cells, ASCs) and skin tissue (dermal fibroblasts, PtFibs) to build a combined engineered tunica media and adventitia graft, respectively. Patient cells were integrated into our lab's vascular tissue engineering technique of forming vascular rings that are stacked into a tubular …

Esprit De Corps And Thinking On (And With) Your Feet: Standard, Enactive, And Poststructuralist Aspects Of Relational Autonomy And Collective Intentionality In Team Sports, John Protevi

Faculty Publications

To concretize my discussion of relational autonomy and collective intentionality, I present a case study in which we can see several themes in that scholarly literature exemplified in a real-life event. The event in question is the Megan Rapinoe-Abby Wambach goal in the quarterfinals of the Women's World Cup of 2011, one of the greatest in all World Cup history (A video clip of the goal can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0B4q6di-3fg.). In the case study, I concentrate on the ontological status of two key aspects of soccer, the linking of teammates by a pass, and the emergence of the team …

The Role Of Exercise In The Alleviation Of Neuropathic Pain Following Traumatic Spinal Cord Injuries: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Amirmohammad Toloui, Hamzah Adel Ramawad, Pantea Gharin, Alexander Vaccaro, Hamed Zarei, Mostafa Hosseini, Mahmoud Yousefifard, Vafa Rahimi-Movaghar

Rothman Institute Papers

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to assess the efficacy of exercise in neuropathic pain following traumatic spinal cord injuries.

METHODS: The search was conducted in MEDLINE, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science by the end of 2022. Two independent researchers included the articles based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. A standardized mean difference was calculated for each data and they were pooled to calculate an overall effect size. To assess the heterogeneity between studies, I2 and chi-square tests were utilized. In the case of heterogeneity, meta-regression was performed to identify the potential source.

RESULTS: …

Beyond The Symptom: The Biology Of Fatigue, David M. Raizen, Janet Mullington, Christelle Anaclet, Gerard Clarke, Hugo Critchley, Robert Dantzer, Ronald Davis, Kelly L. Drew, Josh Fessel, Patrick M. Fuller, Erin M. Gibson, Mary Harrington, W. Ian Lipkin, Elizabeth B. Klerman, Nancy Klimas, Anthony L. Komaroff, Walter Koroshetz, Lauren Krupp, Anna Kuppuswamy, Julie Lasselin, Laura D. Lewis, Pierre J. Magistretti, Heidi Y. Matos, Christine Miaskowski, Andrew H. Miller, Avindra Nath, Maiken Nedergaard, Mark R. Opp, Marylyn D. Ritchie, Dragana Rogulja, Asya Rolls, John D. Salamone

Psychology: Faculty Publications

A workshop titled “Beyond the Symptom: The Biology of Fatigue” was held virtually September 27–28, 2021. It was jointly organized by the Sleep Research Society and the Neurobiology of Fatigue Working Group of the NIH Blueprint Neuroscience Research Program. For access to the presentations and video recordings, see: https://neuroscienceblueprint.nih.gov/about/event/beyond-symptom-biology-fatigue. The goals of this workshop were to bring together clinicians and scientists who use a variety of research approaches to understand fatigue in multiple conditions and to identify key gaps in our understanding of the biology of fatigue. This workshop summary distills key issues discussed in this workshop and provides a …

Development Of Dibenzofuran Linkers And Phenazine-Based Redox-Responsive Foldamers, Ruth Son

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Our group has demonstrated the feasibility of utilizing phenazine-1,6-dicarboxamides as redox-responsive molecular switches: changes in the oxidation state of the phenazine core forces the secondary amide arms to rotate between the doubly folded form when oxidized and the unfolded form when reduced to its dihydrophenazine form. To construct phenazine-based oligomers, we have developed dibenzofuran linkers that can easily be decorated with different solubilizing groups and incorporated into the foldamer backbone. In our initial attempts, we used xanthene linkers. However, problems with limited solubility and preference for cyclization prompted us to consider an alternative cisoid linker with a wider bite angle. …

Treatment Of Knee Synovitis From Psoriatic Arthritis With Platelet Rich Plasma Injection, Nicolle Mazzei, Arielle Hall, Cody Clinton

Cooper Rowan Medical Journal

Psoriatic arthritis has been known to cause many inflammatory clinical features, including synovitis. In the past, synovitis has been primarily treated with NSAIDs, corticosteroid injections, and synovectomy when needed. This case report outlines a 49-year-old female with synovitis caused by psoriatic arthritis who did not respond to conventional treatment options and was apprehensive to surgery. She was offered a platelet rich plasma (PRP) injection as alternative therapy to a synovectomy. This case explores the use of PRP injections as a potential treatment modality for patients with synovitis caused by psoriatic arthritis. This patient was able to show improvement in her …

Investigation Of Common Milkweed As A Novel Food Crop For New England, Colter Allen Flynn

Master's Theses and Capstones

Neglected and underutilized crop species (NUCS) represent a reservoir of biodiversity that can be leveraged to help develop a more robust and sustainable food production system. This investigation sought to identify an edible crop species with potential as a novel food crop for the New England food system and conduct a subsequent evaluation of the chosen species based on agronomic traits of interest. A series of interviews were conducted between August and December 2020 with regional experts and specialists with experience in the subject matter. Based on interview data and a subsequent literature review, Asclepias syriaca (common milkweed) emerged as …

Calcipotriene And Betamethasone Dipropionate Pad-Cream Demonstrates Greater Treatment Efficacy In Patients With Moderate-To-Severe Psoriasis Compared To Topical Suspension/Gel: A Subgroup Analysis Of Two Phase 3 Studies, Linda F. Stein Gold, Andreas Pinter, April Armstrong, Matthias Augustin, Petr Arenberger, Neil Bhatia, Morten Praestegaard, Lars Iversen, Adam Reich

Dermatology Articles

INTRODUCTION: Psoriasis ranges from mild to severe with the majority of patients having mild disease. Mild to moderate disease is often treated with topical therapies while photo-, oral, and biologic therapies are generally reserved for moderate-to-severe disease. There is a strong scientific rationale for the combination of calcipotriene (CAL) and betamethasone dipropionate (BDP) with respect to mode of action, efficacy, and safety and CAL/BDP has shown an inhibitory effect on key pathogenic cytokines in psoriasis including tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin (IL)-17, and IL-23.

METHODS: The objective of this pooled post hoc analysis is to investigate the efficacy of CAL/BDP polyaphron …

Biol 468-H01: Disease Ecology & Evolution, Gareth Russell

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 644-001: Physiological Mechanism, John Yarotsky

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Biol 205-001, Foundations Of Biology: Ecology And Evolution, Caroline Devan

Biology Syllabi

No abstract provided.

Evaluation Of Prevention, Management, And Eradication Strategies Of Brucellosis In Cattle In Albania, Nesturi Mario

International Programs

The aim of this poster is to evaluate the control strategies of Brucellosis diseases in Albania and to highlight specific challenges that Albania faces with the management of this disease.Brucellosis is a neglected zoonotic disease caused by a type of bacteria called Brucella spp. that affects approximately 500,000 humans annually.[����] It affects various animals, including big and small ruminants, swine, and dogs. The bacteria can be transmitted through direct contact with infected animals, consuming contaminated raw animal products, inhaling airborne agents.[����] Even though it has rarely been reported (in humans) it can also be transmitted sexually or vertically (from mother …

Medical Care Vs. Medicalization: The Implications Of The Fourth Circuit's Decision In Williams V. Kincaid, Huma Khursheed

North Carolina Law Review

No abstract provided.

Two Decades Of Trips In China, Peter K. Yu

Faculty Scholarship

This chapter reviews China’s engagement with the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) in the past twenty years. It begins by highlighting TRIPS-related developments in the first decade of China’s WTO membership. The chapter then discusses the country’s ‘innovative turn’ in the mid-2000s and the ramifications of its changing policy positions. This chapter continues to examine the US-China trade war, in particular the second TRIPS complaint that the United States filed against China in March 2018. It concludes with observations about the impact of the TRIPS Agreement on China, China’s impact on that agreement and how the …

Gross Hematuria And Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms Associated With Military Burn Pits Exposures In Us Veterans Deployed To Iraq And Afghanistan, Mosammat M. Perveen, Henry E. Mayo-Malasky, Mary F. Lee-Wong, Julie M. Tomaska, Edward Forsyth, Amy Gravely, Mark A. Klein, Janeen H. Trembley, Tammy A. Butterick, Robert A. Promisloff, Pamela K. Ginex, Paul Barach, Anthony M. Szema

College of Population Health Faculty Papers

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study is to describe rates of hematuria and other lower urinary tract symptoms, including self-reported cancer rates, among veterans postburn pits emissions exposure during deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan.

METHODS: US post-9/11 veterans with burn pits emissions exposure confirmed via DD214 forms in the Burn Pits360.org Registry were sent a modified survey. Data were deidentified and anonymously coded.

RESULTS: Twenty-nine percent of the 155 respondents exposed to burn pits self-reported seeing blood in their urine. The average index score of our modified American Urological Association Symptom Index Survey was 12.25 (SD, 7.48). High rates of …

Reed Bamboos Drive Skull Shape Evolution In Bush Frogs Of The Western Ghats, Peninsular India, Kalpana Das, Mark-Oliver Rödel, Edward Stanley, Achyuthan N. Srikanthan, Kartik Shanker, Seenapuram Palaniswamy Vijayakumar

Student Publications [Scholarly]

Reed bamboo is a major ecological and economic resource for many animals, including humans. Nonetheless, the influence of this plant's evolutionary role on the morphology of animal species remains unexplored. Here, we investigated the significance of bamboo habitats as ecological opportunities in shaping the skull morphology of bush frogs (Raorchestes) from the Western Ghats, Peninsular India. We applied a three-dimensional (3D) geometric morphometric approach to capture the skull shape of 55 species of bush frogs. We visualized the skull shape variables in phylomorphospace with principal component analysis and performed phylogenetic generalized least-squares analysis to assess the impact of cranial size …