Digital Commons Network^™

The Role Of Sensing Modalities In Shaping Collective Motion And Group Behavior, Poorendra P. Ramlall

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Collective behavior refers to the coordinated movements that emerge from simple interactions between individuals within a group. Traditionally, researchers have modeled these interactions assuming individuals can sense their surroundings in all directions, like having eyes all around their heads. While this is a useful simplification, it does not capture the diverse ways animals actually sense the world. In this thesis, we take inspiration from the natural world, particularly from animals like bats and dolphins that use a combination of hearing and sight to navigate their environments. We explore how combining these sensory cues in a three-dimensional space affects the way …

Twenty-Three Years Of Pcr-Based Seafood Authentication Assay Development: What Have We Learned?, Maleeka Singh, Robert G. Young, Rosalee S. Hellberg, Robert H. Hanner, Maria G. Corradini, Jeffrey M. Garber

Food Science Faculty Articles and Research

Seafood is a prime target for fraudulent activities due to the complexity of its supply chain, high demand, and difficult discrimination among species once morphological characteristics are removed. Instances of seafood fraud are expected to increase due to growing demand. This manuscript reviews the application of DNA-based methods for commercial fish authentication and identification from 2000 to 2023. It explores (1) the most common types of commercial fish used in assay development, (2) the type of method used, (3) the gene region most often targeted, (4) provides a case study of currently published assays or primer-probe pairs used for DNA …

Risk Factors Associated With Pyogenic Spinal Infections Among Intravenous Drug Users And Nonusers, Vivek Biololikar, Brendan Gleason, Lee Kripke, Robert Merrill, Colin Whitaker, Jon Handal

Einstein Health Papers

PURPOSE: To identify the differences in patient factors, presentation, treatment course, and outcomes of intravenous drug users (IVDA) vs. nonusers (non-IVDA) presenting with pyogenic spinal infections.

METHODS: We identified all cases involving spinal infections at our institution between May 2017 and January 2023. Postsurgical infections were excluded, and patients were separated into IVDA and non-IVDA groups. The patient charts were reviewed and analyzed for statistical or clinically significant differences using RStudio (2019 version 3.6.2). Our institutional review board approved this study, IRB# 2020-277, iRISID-2023-1384.

RESULTS: Fifty patients (29 males and 21 females) with primary pyogenic spinal infections were included in …

Energy Safety Management: A Training Model To Improve Flight Safety, Juan R. Merkt, Matthijs H. J. Amelink, David G. Sizoo

Journal of Aviation Technology and Engineering

Failing to properly manage an airplane’s energy state can be unforgiving. Mismanagement of mechanical energy (altitude and/or airspeed) is a contributing factor to three common types of fatal accidents in aviation: loss of control in flight, approach and landing accidents, and controlled flight into terrain. Recognizing the importance of energy management, the Federal Aviation Administration has incorporated new elements into the Airman Certification Standards, emphasizing knowledge of energy management concepts and the consequences of mishandling an airplane’s energy state. Unfortunately, no adequate guidance has been available in terms of defining key energy management concepts or suggesting how these should be …

Advances In Stereoselective Glycosylation: Electron-Withdrawing Groups, Benzyne-Mediated Stereoinversion, And Visible-Light Photochemistry For 1,2-Cis O-Glycosylation, Erik Giovanni Alvarez Valenzuela

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The symbiotic relationship between humans and their microbiota is essential for health, with imbalances in the complex microbiota ecosystem linked to a variety of disorders ranging from neurodegenerative to gastrointestinal diseases. Bacteria within the human microbiota, comprising over 1000 known species, are densely and diversely coated with oligosaccharides crucial for functions like cell recognition, communication, signaling, adhesion, proliferation, and pathogenic inhibition. However, studying the structure-activity relationships of these sugars which are also secreted by bacteria is challenging due to difficulties in obtaining homogenous samples from natural sources.

Chemical synthesis offers a solution by enabling the production of well-defined oligosaccharides in …

Archaeoentomology: Arthropods And Humans, Current Works In Archaeoentomology, Paz Vigil

Department of Entomology: Distance Master of Science Projects

This paper presents a brief literature review, exploring human and insect interaction, and how such research aids the ongoing construction of the archaeological and entomological record. This field, a combined subset of both entomology and archaeology, is both complex and rich as well as young and still growing. This literature review is not meant to be an exhaustive or comprehensive exploration of this subject, but it will serve as part of a foundation for those interested in the topic or wanting to conduct further exploratory study in this field. The intent is to highlight the practical applications of Archaeoentomology, using …

Ballc And Ballcools: Efficient Formatting And Operating For Single-Cell Dna Methylation Data, Wei Tian, Wubin Ding, Jiawei Shen, Daofeng Li, Ting Wang, Joseph R Ecker

2020-Current year OA Pubs

MOTIVATION: With single-cell DNA methylation studies yielding vast datasets, existing data formats struggle with the unique challenges of storage and efficient operations, highlighting a need for improved solutions.

RESULTS: BAllC (Binary All Cytosines) emerges as a tailored format for methylation data, addressing these challenges. BAllCools, its complementary software toolkit, enhances parsing, indexing, and querying capabilities, promising superior operational speeds and reduced storage needs.

AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION: https://github.com/jksr/ballcools.

Drosophila Nhe2 Overexpression Induces Autophagic Cell Death, Jobelle Peralta, Blake Dupriest, Daniel Orozco, Juan Reyna Pacheco, Laura Martins, Rachel Ann Soriano, Alan Wong, Ramy Wong, Bree Grillo-Hill

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Autophagy is a conserved catabolic process where double membrane-bound structures form around macromolecules or organelles targeted for degradation. Autophagosomes fuse with lysosomes to facilitate degradation and macromolecule recycling for homeostasis or growth in a cell autonomous manner. In cancer cells, autophagy is often up-regulated and helps cancer cells survive nutrient deprivation and stressful growth conditions. Here, we propose that the increased intracellular pH (pHi) common to cancer cells is sufficient to induce autophagic cell death. We previously developed tools to increase pHi in the Drosophila eye via overexpression of DNhe2, resulting in aberrant patterning and reduced tissue size. We examined …

Molecular Docking, Synthesis And Evaluation For Antioxidant And Antibacterial Activity Of New Oxazepane And Benzoxazepine Derivatives, Athra G. Sager, Jawad Kadhim Abaies, Zeena R. Katoof

Baghdad Science Journal

In the field of molecular simulations, molecular docking is a method that can determine the optimal and preferred orientation of a certain molecule related to another when they are coupled to create a stable complex. The strength of the association, or binding affinity, between two molecules can be predicted using knowledge of their preferred orientation. In this study, a series of prepared compounds were evaluated for their binding modes, potential interactions, and target binding locations. Some derivatives 1,3-oxazepane, and 1,3-benzoxazepine were prepared from three Schiff bases compounds (1S-3S). The compounds (1S-3S) were reacted with succinic anhydride and phthalic anhydride to …

Synthesis And Biological Studies Of 4‐Methyl-7‐Ethylcoumarin Derivatives Containing Azo Group, Muntather Hossam Kazem, Luma S. Ahamed

Baghdad Science Journal

New 4-methyl-7-ethylcoumarin derivatives bearing the azo group were synthesized through series ‎of sequential reactions and tested for their biological activity. Starting from 4‎-methyl-7-ethylcoumarin ‎ prepared from a reaction of m-ethyl phenol and ethyl acetoacetate by pechmann ‎condensation reaction, nitration of 4 -methyl-7-ethyl coumarin using nitric acid was carried out in the ‎presence of sulfuric acid to produce one isomer from 4-methyl-7-ethyl-8-nitrocoumarin under the ‎cold condition at (2-5Cº). Then reducing nitro group used iron metal in an acidic medium to form ‎corresponding amino coumarin, which was converted to azo dyes by reacting its diazonium salt ‎with different phenol derivatives. Mass, FT-IR, …

The Dynamic Trpv2 Ion Channel Proximity Proteome Reveals Functional Links Of Calcium Flux With Cellular Adhesion Factors Ncam And L1cam In Neurite Outgrowth, Pamela N Gallo, Elaine Mihelc, Robyn Eisert, Gary A Bradshaw, Florian Dimek, Andreas Leffler, Marian Kalocsay, Vera Moiseenkova-Bell

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

TRPV2 voltage-insensitive, calcium-permeable ion channels play important roles in cancer progression, immune response, and neuronal development. Despite TRPV2's physiological impact, underlying endogenous proteins mediating TRPV2 responses and affected signaling pathways remain elusive. Using quantitative peroxidase-catalyzed (APEX2) proximity proteomics we uncover dynamic changes in the TRPV2-proximal proteome and identify calcium signaling and cell adhesion factors recruited to the molecular channel neighborhood in response to activation. Quantitative TRPV2 proximity proteomics further revealed activation-induced enrichment of protein clusters with biological functions in neural and cellular projection. We demonstrate a functional connection between TRPV2 and the neural immunoglobulin cell adhesion molecules NCAM and L1CAM. …

Navigating The Critical Translational Questions For Implementing Flash In The Clinic, Billy W Loo, Ioannis I Verginadis, Brita Singers Sørensen, Anthony E Mascia, John P Perentesis, Albert C Koong, Emil Schüler, Erinn B Rankin, Peter G Maxim, Charles L Limoli, Marie-Catherine Vozenin

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The "FLASH effect" is an increased therapeutic index, that is, reduced normal tissue toxicity for a given degree of anti-cancer efficacy, produced by ultra-rapid irradiation delivered on time scales orders of magnitude shorter than currently conventional in the clinic for the same doses. This phenomenon has been observed in numerous preclinical in vivo tumor and normal tissue models. While the underlying biological mechanism(s) remain to be elucidated, a path to clinical implementation of FLASH can be paved by addressing several critical translational questions. Technological questions pertinent to each beam type (eg, electron, proton, photon) also dictate the logical progression of …

Cornus Officinalis Extract Activates The Keap1/Nrf2 Pathway And Delays T1d Onset In The Nod Mouse, Justin D. Fletcher

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is an autoimmune disorder that results in the destruction of the insulin producing pancreatic β cells. The only therapeutic option following T1D clinical onset is exogenous insulin supplementation. At present, there is no cure for T1D and attempted interventional therapy has been focused on modulating the immune system. Few attempts have been pursued at preserving β cell function and survival. Here we provide a novel approach using extract from the fruit of the Cornus officinalis (CO) tree to preserve β cell function through the prevention of β cell stress. CO has been used in traditional Chinese …

Trust And Its Implications For Trauma, Casidhe C. Daniels

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Trust presents as a complex and frequently misunderstood building block. While people often demonstrate an inherent belief that trust is naturally engrained in others, adverse life events and traumatic experiences can alter a person’s level of trust. Trust has the ability to change and become redefined. This can occur in a negative manner when trauma is incurred. While the individual’s is often innocent because of the challenges they have experiences, successes, failures, and traumatic events develop an ability to trust others and to what degree they face the lingering implications and diagnoses result.

Differentiating Dynamic System Outcomes In Cam Photosynthesis Through Sonification, Duncan Turley

Civil and Environmental Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Sonification is a powerful tool that is harnessed by modern engineers to represent information through audio, and is beginning to be used to interpret more complex data sets. Sonification can be used to facilitate the listeners' ability to grasp microscopic or complex changes in the state of a system. This study uses the assigning of sound patterns to model outputs that indicate chaotic or non-chaotic systems in Crassulacean acid metabolism photosynthesis. Using sound allows the interpretation of chaotic data without the more time intensive processes typically used, such as of Fast Fourier Transformations. Based on past research, it is known …

Antiviral And Cytotoxic Activities And Chemical Profiles Of Two Species Of Abies Nordmanniana From Türkiye, Nazli Sarikahya, Gaye Sümer Okkali, Furkan Ozan Çöven, Sevda Zeinali̇, Gülce Gucur, Ayşe Di̇la Çağlar, Ece Uyar, Ahmet Ceyhan Gören, Ayşe Nalbantsoy

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

Abies is an important genus of the family Pinaceae, with about 50 species found in the highlands of Asia, Europe, North Africa, and North and Central America. The principal aim of the present work was to investigate the chemical content and biological potential of the resin and cone from Abies nordmanniana subsp. bornmulleriana and Abies nordmanniana subsp. equi-trojani, respectively. The flavonoid and phenolic contents of the resin and cones were evaluated using liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS). Additionally, the essential oil and fatty acid compositions were analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and gas chromatography-flame ionization detector (GC-FID).. Cytotoxicity …

Assessing The Impact Of Storage Conditions On Rna From Human Saliva And Its Application To The Identification Of Mrna Biomarkers For Asthma, Poorna Manasa Bhamidimarri, David Fuentes, Laila Salameh, Bassam Mahboub, Rifat Hamoudi

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Introduction: Human saliva was used to develop non-invasive liquid biopsy biomarkers to establish saliva as an alternate to blood and plasma in translational research. The present study focused on understanding the impact of sample storage conditions on the extraction of RNA from saliva and the RNA yield, to be applied in clinical diagnosis. In this study, genes related to asthma were used to test the method developed.

Methods: Salivary RNA was extracted from three subjects using the Qiazol® based method and quantified by both spectrophotometric (NanoDrop) and fluorometric (Qubit®) methods. RNA integrity was measured using a bioanalyzer. Quantitative PCR was …

When Helping Hurts: The Association Between Hamilton's Rule And Suicide Risk, Katherine L. O'Connell

Clinical Psychology Dissertations

Emergency telecommunicators are critical as first responders and often experience great reward and distressing consequences of their work. This study investigates the suicide risk among these first responders, drawing on the Eusocial Theory of Suicide, which suggests that individuals may engage in altruistic self-sacrifice after weighing benefits, costs, and relatedness using a mathematical model, Hamilton’s Rule. Proxy variables were used: perceived social support and perceived work cohesion for relatedness, compassion satisfaction for benefit, and compassion fatigue for cost. The study was a non-experimental, cross-sectional self-report survey of predominantly White cisgender heterosexual female emergency telecommunicators (N = 346) in Washington, …

When Helping Hurts: The Association Between Hamilton's Rule And Suicide Risk, Katherine L. O'Connell

Clinical Psychology Dissertations

Emergency telecommunicators are critical as first responders and often experience great reward and distressing consequences of their work. This study investigates the suicide risk among these first responders, drawing on the Eusocial Theory of Suicide, which suggests that individuals may engage in altruistic self-sacrifice after weighing benefits, costs, and relatedness using a mathematical model, Hamilton’s Rule. Proxy variables were used: perceived social support and perceived work cohesion for relatedness, compassion satisfaction for benefit, and compassion fatigue for cost. The study was a non-experimental, cross-sectional self-report survey of predominantly White cisgender heterosexual female emergency telecommunicators (N = 346) in Washington, …

Estrous Cycle And Uterine Weight Of Ovariectomized Menopause Female Rat Models After Treatment With Leucaena Leucocephala (Lam.) De Wit Leaf Extract, Ngurah Intan Wiratmini, Anak Agung Sagung Alit Sukmaningsih, Iriani Setyawati

Folia Medica Indonesiana

Highlights: 1. This study found that Leucaena leucocephala leaf ethanol extract has the ability to stimulate the growth of vaginal epithelial cells in ovariectomised rats. 2. Leucaena leucocephala leaf extract can be developed as a safe and cost-effective natural alternative for hormone replacement therapy in premenopausal women and livestock. Highlights: 1. This study found that Leucaena leucocephala leaf ethanol extract has the ability to stimulate the growth of vaginal epithelial cells in ovariectomised rats. 2. Leucaena leucocephala leaf extract can be developed as a safe and cost-effective natural alternative for hormone replacement therapy in premenopausal women and livestock. Abstract Hormone …

Studies In Natural Product-Inspired Complex Molecule Synthesis: Synthesis Of 26-Norpentacyclic Triterpenoids And Anhydroryanodol, Zachary D. Stempel

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

Natural products have long served as a stimulus for growth and innovation to advance the field of organic chemistry. This thesis describes efforts in complex molecule synthesis that demonstrate the broad value of programs in natural product total synthesis and natural product-inspired function-oriented synthesis. The first part of this thesis describes a function-oriented synthesis approach to pentacyclic triterpenoids through design of a simplified 26-norpentacyclic triterpenoid platform to promote future medicinal exploration in this area. These studies yielded a divergent asymmetric synthesis of 26-norgermanicol and 26-norlupeol as well as the discovery of a new class of androgen receptor antagonist that is …

Interesting Newspaper Comments About Banding Gulls, C. Brooke Worth

Eastern Bird Banding Association News

No abstract provided.

Phantasus, A Web Application For Visual And Interactive Gene Expression Analysis, Maksim Kleverov, Daria Zenkova, Vladislav Kamenev, Margarita Sablina, Maxim N Artyomov, Alexey A Sergushichev

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Transcriptomic profiling became a standard approach to quantify a cell state, which led to the accumulation of huge amount of public gene expression datasets. However, both reuse of these datasets or analysis of newly generated ones requires significant technical expertise. Here, we present Phantasus: a user-friendly web application for interactive gene expression analysis which provides a streamlined access to more than 96,000 public gene expression datasets, as well as allows analysis of user-uploaded datasets. Phantasus integrates an intuitive and highly interactive JavaScript-based heatmap interface with an ability to run sophisticated R-based analysis methods. Overall Phantasus allows users to go all …

The Status And Distribution Of The Prairie Warbler In Ontario, Anne B. Lambert, Roy B. H. Smith

Ontario Birds

No abstract provided.

(R2070) Poisson-Exponentiated Weibull Distribution: Properties, Applications And Extension, Alphonsa George, Dais George

Applications and Applied Mathematics: An International Journal (AAM)

In this article, we introduce a new member of the Poisson-X family namely, the Poisson-exponentiated Weibull distribution. The statistical as well as the distributional properties of the new distribution are studied, and the performance of the maximum likelihood method of estimation is verified by a simulation study. The flexibility of the distribution is illustrated by a real data set. We develop and study a reliability test plan for the acceptance or rejection of a lot of products submitted for inspection when their lifetimes follow the new distribution. A real data example is also given to illustrate the feasibility of the …

Intra- And Interannual Variation In The Foraging Behavior Of Common Murres (Uria Aalge) In The Central California Current, Sean Gee, Pete Warzybok, Michael E. Johns, Jaime Jahncke, Scott A. Shaffer

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Seabirds modify their behavior during the breeding season as they transition from incubation (self-feeding) to chick-rearing (self-feeding + chick provisioning) periods, which affects parental foraging patterns and distribution. However, it is less clear how much flexibility parents have to modulate their behavior when environmental conditions are unusually poor. Using GPS loggers and time depth recorders, we examined the foraging flexibility of common murres (Uria aalge) at Southeast Farallon Island as adjustments were made between breeding phases and across consecutive years (2019 and 2020) with contrasting oceanographic conditions (i.e. prominent marine heatwave in 2019). Foraging trips were longer during the incubation …

Synthesis, Characterization, Thermal Analysis Study And Antioxidant Activity For Some Metal Ions Cr (Iii), Fe (Iii), Mn (Ii) And Pd(Ii) Complexes With Azo Dye Derived From P-Methyl-2-Hydroxybenzaldehyde, Adhraa Ghazi Abdulrazzaq, Abbas Ali Salih Al-Hamdani

Baghdad Science Journal

A new Azo Dye ligand HL was 4-((3-formyl-2-hydroxyphenyl)diazenyl)-N-(5-methylisoxazol-3-yl)benzenesulfonamide,this synthesized ligand was used for complexation with different metal ions like Cr(III), Fe(III), Mn(II) and Pd(II) by using a molar ratio of ligand: metalas 1:1. Resulted compounds were characterized by NMR (1H and 13C), UV–vis spectroscopy, TGA, DSC, FT‐IR, MS, elemental analysis, magnetic moment and molar conductivity studies. The results showed that the geometrical structural were octahedral geometries for the Cr(III), Mn(II) and Fe(III) complexes, square planer for Pd(II) complex. The antioxidant activities of the prepared compounds were assessed by using 1.1‐diphenyl‐2‐picrylhydrazyl as the free radical, and the results showed that the …

Studies On The Corrosion Of Bronze Artifacts From Sarouq Al-Hadid And Al-Qusais Archeological Sites In Dubai, Uae, Zainab Ali Salmin

Theses

This thesis compares the status of bronze artefacts from two archaeological sites in Dubai (UAE): the Sarouq Al-Hadid site (Stone Age to Early Islamic Period) and the Al- Qusais site (Late Bronze Age to Early Iron Age). The main objective of this research is to understand the two sites' environment and their influence on the corrosion of archaeological bronze artifacts found at the sites. This study uses mCed methods to comprehensively understand the corrosion behavior of bronze objects, depending on their burial environment. The two different sites presented different soil types and rates of corrosivity on the buried bronze artifacts, …

Introducing A Novel Innovative Technique For The Recording And Interpretation Of Dynamic Coronary Angiography, Thach Nguyen, Duc Khiem Ngo, Tri Loc Vu, Hien Q. Nguyen, Dat H. Pham, Mihas Kodenchery, Gianluca Rigatelli, Aravinda Nanjundappa, Michael Gibson

School of Medicine Publications

In the study of coronary artery disease (CAD), the mechanism of plaque formation and development is still an important subject for investigation. A limitation of current coronary angiography (CAG) is that it can only show static images of the narrowing of arterial channels without identifying the mechanism of the disease or predicting its progression or regression. To address this limitation, the CAG technique has been modified. The new approach emphasizes identifying and analyzing blood flow patterns, employing methodologies akin to those used by hydraulic engineers for fluid or gas movement through domestic or industrial pipes and pumps. With the new …

Molecular-Level Studies Of Nanopatterned Biomolecules With Atomic Force Microscopy, Ashley R. Walker

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is an analytical technique in which a tipped probe is gently scanned across the surface in a raster pattern to generate digital images of a sample at the nanoscale. The AFM instrument has three general operational modes, which are contact, non-contact and tapping-mode, that can be used to examine materials at the atomic level. Single-molecular details of biological molecules and other soft organic materials can be captured with minimal denaturation in either ambient or liquid environments when using tapping-mode AFM. In tapping-mode, the probe is driven to oscillate vertically while the tip is scanned across the …