Digital Commons Network^™

The Relationship Between Autistic Traits And Depression Among Self-Reporting College-Aged Adults, Tyler Michael Davis

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Depression is a prevalent mental health concern among emerging adults, particularly within college populations where academic, social, and developmental stressors are heightened. Autistic traits are increasingly understood as dimensional characteristics that exist across both clinical and non-clinical populations, yet their relationship to depressive symptoms in college-aged adults remains insufficiently understood. The purpose of this quantitative, cross-sectional correlational study was to examine the relationship between self-reported autistic traits and depressive symptoms among non-clinical adults aged 18 to 25. The study was grounded in Beck’s cognitive theory of depression and the diathesis–stress model, which posit that cognitive vulnerabilities interact with environmental stressors …

Polydopamine-Cu(Ii) Ions Functional Coatings On Zinc Wire: Surface Characterization And Degradation Behavior, Md Tanvir Hossain, H. R. Bakhsheshi-Rad, Bashir Ahamed, Erico Freitas, Bruce Lee, Jeremy Goldman, Jaroslaw Drelich

Michigan Tech Publications

Bioactive surface modification of degradable zinc (Zn) vascular implants is essential for controlling biodegradation and supporting vascular healing. Here, we describe the fabrication of polydopamine coating (PDA-Cu) containing up to ∼0.8 wt % Cu ions on Zn substrates using an immersion-assisted mussel-inspired polymerization strategy. The coating is composed of densely packed PDA-Cu nanospheres with diameters of ∼130-170 nm, exhibiting an even distribution of Cu ions within the PDA matrix via Cu-catechol coordination. Thirty-day leaching tests confirmed a steady release of 0.01-0.04 ppm of Cu ions per 5 days from Zn/PDA-Cu samples in Hank's balanced salt solution (HBSS). In vitro nitric …

Risk, Trust, And Medical Decision-Making: Perinatal Care Among Patients And Providers In South Florida, Isabella Viera

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines how structural inequality shapes the experience of perinatal care among pregnant individuals and healthcare providers in South Florida, with particular attention to how risk is perceived and communicated, how trust between patients and providers is built or eroded, and how medical decision-making unfolds under conditions of structural vulnerability. Drawing on multi-sited ethnographic fieldwork conducted between October 2025 and April 2026, supplemented by a quantitative analysis of low-birth-weight rates across all 67 Florida counties, the project analyzes how risk is defined, communicated, and lived across community-based prenatal organizations, online educational platforms, and in-depth provider and patient interviews. The …

Avian Conservation And Translocations In The Mariana Archipelago, John V. Bender

Dissertations

Island birds are among the world’s most imperiled vertebrates, and conservation translocations are increasingly used to combat threats, but their success depends on understanding the mechanics of whether and how to conduct translocations effectively. In the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, native forest birds persist across a chain of islands where habitat degradation and loss, invasive species, and extreme weather create persistent conservation challenges. For my dissertation, I investigated how avian conservation programs and translocations can be planned, implemented, and improved under biological, logistical, and social uncertainty. For Chapter 1 I analyzed 15 years of avian translocations across seven …

Tgf-Β Drives The Conversion Of Conventional Nk Cells Into Uterine Tissue-Resident Nk Cells To Support Murine Pregnancy, Josselyn D Barahona, Liping Yang, D Michael Nelson, Wayne M Yokoyama

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Tissue microenvironments shape lymphocyte differentiation to align immune function with local physiological demands. Uterine natural killer (NK) cells are critical for reproductive success, yet the molecular cues in the uterus that instruct their specialized identities remain incompletely understood. Here, we identify a TGF-β-dependent differentiation pathway by which circulating conventional NK cells convert into uterine tissue-resident NK cells during murine pregnancy. Loss of TGF-β receptor II expression in

Oregon State Rank Assessment For Bensonia (Bensoniella Oregana), Nora Dunkirk, Sue Vrilakas, Gabriel Campbell

Institute for Natural Resources Publications

Oregon state conservation status assessment for Bensonia (Bensoniella oregana) using NatureServe methodology, 2026.

Unbiased Avidity-Based Isolation Of Antigen-Specific T Cells, Amanda Montoya, Meredith L Frank, Peixin Jiang, Hui Nie, Minying Zhang, Emily Bontekoe, Jared K Slone, Ludovica L Posta, Sofia Rosy Caterina Sorice, Tina Cascone, Maura Gillison, Don L Gibbons, Jianjun Zhang, Eleonora Dondossola, Lydia Kavraki, Pamela L Wenzel, John V Heymach, Alexandre Reuben

The Brown Foundation: Institute of Molecular Medicine

Background: Cancer immunotherapies have significantly improved treatment efficacy and patient survival by exploiting antigen-specific T cells to eliminate cancer cells. However, current approaches for identifying and isolating antigen-specific T cells typically require prior knowledge of target antigens, limiting discovery, and reducing the ability to consistently detect rare tumor-reactive T cells. We therefore sought to develop an unbiased platform for the identification and enrichment of antigen-specific T cells using naturally processed and presented tumor antigens.

Methods: We developed ATTACH (Assessment of T cells Tethered to Antigen Class I Histocompatibility), a microfluidic platform that applies controlled shear stress and leverages tumor cells …

Uav-Based Estimation Of Fuel Structure And Dynamics In A California Canyon Fire Experiment, Xiangyu Ren, David Benterou, Jannike Allen, Katherine M. Wilkin, Henri Brillon, Craig B. Clements, Bo Yang

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Wildfires in California increasingly threaten communities and ecosystems. However, comprehensive estimation of fire dynamics and fuel structure remains limited. Recent advances in Uncrewed Aerial Vehicle (UAV) technology and high-spatial-resolution mapping have provided increasingly important tools for estimating wildfire fuel-height loss across fuel types. This study used a one-year Uncrewed Aerial Vehicle (UAV) time series to quantify fuel-height loss and vegetation regrowth associated with a prescribed upslope canyon fire near Salinas, California, USA. Multispectral, infrared, and visible UAV imagery collected before, during, and after burning was used to generate orthomosaic, digital surface models (DSMs), fuel-type classifications, and surface-volume estimates. To enable …

Maternal Attachment Style As A Moderator Between Maternal Stress And Postpartum Depressive Symptoms, Kristie Lynn Hills

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This research aimed to discover if maternal attachment style moderates the association between maternal stress and postpartum depressive symptoms for mothers living in the United States. Previous research has indicated a trend of maternal bonding mediating the association between postpartum depression and maternal stress. In this study, attachment theory was utilized as the foundational theory for understanding whether the link between maternal stress and postpartum depressive symptoms vary as a function of maternal attachment style. This quantitative examination was completed using a multiple regression analytic approach. An online questionnaire measured the three study variables. The target population for this study …

Spatiotemporal Trends In Schistocephalus Solidus Infection Among Populations Of Alaskan Threespine Stickleback (Gasterosteus Aculeatus), A.M Wohlleben, Neva Meyer, N.C. Steinel

Biology

Understanding the dynamics of host-parasite interactions is essential for uncovering the ecological and evolutionary processes shaping natural populations. In this study, we investigated the spatial and temporal patterns of prevalence of the cestode Schistocephalus solidus in 4 Alaskan populations of threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) over 11 years (1996 to 2006). Additionally, we assessed host tolerance through key indicators such as the Parasite Index and the presence of fibrotic scar tissue, a specialized form of resistance in this system. We observed fibrosis formation in both infected and uninfected fish across all populations, with notable year-to-year variability in Cornelius Lake. Here, fibrosis …

Gene Dosage Differences And Non-Linear Impacts On Complex Traits., Craig Smail

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Large differences in gene dosage are usually associated with opposite phenotypic effects but show a bias toward one direction in aggregate genome wide. Milind et al. suggest that this is explained by differences in regulatory mechanisms by which genes influence phenotypes and by the increased selective pressures acting on a subset of genes.

Perceived Sensitivity Of Sensor-Based Digital Health Data: Qualitative Interview Study, Christine Deeney, Anika Sonig, Meghan E Hurley, Birkan Tunç, Eric A Storch, John D Herrington, Jennifer Blumenthal-Barby, Kristin Kostick-Quenet

Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy Staff Publications

Background: Digital health tools are increasingly used in mental health care to passively collect patient data and analyze health status outside of clinical settings. While technologies such as digital phenotyping, affective computing, and computational behavioral analysis offer new insights into symptom manifestation in daily life, they generate large volumes of potentially sensitive data that raise significant data privacy concerns, requiring high levels of patient awareness and consent. Empirical research is lacking on stakeholder understandings toward the sensitivity of these data and expectations for data stewardship, perspectives that are critical for developing robust informed consent and data protection policies for digital …

Defining Life: A Conversation, K. Kofman, C. Adami, F. Baluška, J. Bongard, D. Brash, P. Calvo, G. Dodig-Crnkovic, P. Das, C. Fields, T. Froese, P. L. Gentili, G. Y. Georgiev, Scott F. Gilbert, T. N. W. Jackson, S. Kauffman, N. Lane, P. Marshall, D. Mcshea, W. Miller, S. Newman, A. Nunn, T. P. Pavlic, M. Picard, W. Ratcliff, A. Reber, J. Shapiro, A. Sloman, R. Solé, C. Sonnenschein, S. Stepney, R. Watson, O. Witkowski, M. Levin

Biology Faculty Works

Life is one of the most fascinating features of the physical world. Despite centuries of scientific study, experts still disagree about the definition, and even the possibility or utility of a definition, of this field. In a recent paper, we used AI to analyze the conceptual space formed by definitions of life given by a select set of modern workers in the life sciences and related fields. However, some of the most interesting material emerged as real-time conversations among those polled. In order to ensure that these ideas are not lost to the peer-reviewed scientific record, we here provide a …

Online Decoding Of Rat Self-Paced Locomotion Speed From Eeg Using Recurrent Neural Networks, Alejandro De Miguel, Nelson Totah, Uri Maoz

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Objective. Accurate and reliable neural decoding of locomotion holds promise for advancing clinical applications such as rehabilitation and prosthetic control, as well as for understanding neural correlates of action. Recent studies have demonstrated successful decoding of locomotion kinematics across species in motorized treadmill settings. However, efforts to decode locomotion speed directly and continuously in more natural contexts—where pace is self-selected rather than externally imposed—are scarce, and those that exist generally achieve only modest accuracy and require intracranial implants. Here, we aim to decode self-paced locomotion speed non-invasively and continuously using cortex-wide electroencephalography (EEG) recordings from rats. Approach. We introduce an …

Integrating Nutrition And Stress Into Life History Stages Of Wild Free-Ranging Female Pronghorn, Cole A. Bleke, Eric M. Gese, Juan J. Villalba, Shane B. Roberts, Susannah S. French

Wildland Resources Student Research

Studies addressing seasonal changes in diet quality and hormones are important for understanding the interactions between ecology and physiology. We collected fecal samples from free-ranging adult female pronghorn (Antilocapra americana) to examine the relationships between indicators of nutrition and glucocorticoid activity. This occurred during three population-level, life-history-correlated sampling periods across five subpopulations. We evaluated nutrition via fecal nitrogen, fecal 2,6-diaminopimelic acid (DAPA), and assessed glucocorticoid activity using fecal glucocorticoid metabolites (FGM). We found positive relationships between fecal nitrogen and DAPA, whereas DAPA and fecal nitrogen with FGM varied in influence and strength, depending upon life history stage. Generally, …

Evaluating Cardiotoxicity And Factors Associated With In-Hospital Mortality Among Emergency Department Patients With Substance Use Disorder: An 11-Year Retrospective Study, Darpanarayan Hazra, Nadia Ahmed Said Alqusaimi, Alyaqeen Ahmed Abdullah Al Breiki, Raghad Saleh Mohammed Al Akhzami, Aya Hasan Hadi Aalhamad, Suad Abdullah Al Abri

Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal

Objective: Substance use disorder (SUD)-related emergencies are increasing globally, with cardiotoxicity contributing substantially to morbidity and mortality. This study evaluated cardiotoxicity patterns and factors associated with in-hospital mortality among adults with SUD presenting to the emergency department (ED).Methods: This retrospective observational study was conducted from January 2014 to December 2024 at Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, University Medical City, Muscat, Oman. Adults aged ≥18 years with SUD and positive urine drug screening (UDS) were included if they had elevated troponin (>14 ng/L), electrocardiographic abnormalities or echocardiographic structural dysfunction. Clinical, laboratory, imaging, management and outcome data were analysed. Results …

Synthesis, Characterization, And In Vitro And In Silico Antibacterial Evaluation Of 5-(3-Nitrophenyl)-1, 3, 4-Thiadiazol-2-Amine, Abdelghani Sehmi, Farouk Boudou, Ahcene Keziz, Amal Belakredar, Huda Alsaeedi, Mikhael Bechelany, Gemma K. Kinsella, Ahmed Barhoum

Research Outputs: 2025-Present

Introduction – This study reports the synthesis, structural characterization, and antibacterial evaluation of 5-(3-nitrophenyl)-1, 3, 4-thiadiazol-2-amine (NPTA), a commercially available thiadiazole derivative with potential antimicrobial activity. Methods – NPTA was synthesized through a green, one-pot condensation reaction between thiosemicarbazide and 3-nitrobenzoic acid in absolute ethanol, affording a pale-yellow crystalline solid with a melting point of 110 °C–112 °C. The compound was characterized using Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, confirming its structure. In vitro antibacterial assays, in silico ADMET and toxicity profiling, molecular docking, frontier molecular orbital (FMO) analysis, and 200 ns molecular dynamics simulations were performed. …

Um–Protoshare: Unet-Guided, Multi-Scale Shared Prototypes For Interpretable Brain Tumour Classification Using Multi-Sequence 3d Mri, Ali Golbaf, Vivek Singh, Swen Gaudl, Emmanuel Ifeachor

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Deep learning shows strong promise in brain tumour classification using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), although limited interpretability constrains clinical translation. Most interpretability methods are post-hoc and yield visual attribution maps that are only weakly connected to the decision process. Clinicians prefer decisions built from evidence they can recognise and verify on MRI, rather than post-hoc explanations. Case-based models embed reasoning by comparing image evidence with learned prototypes, yielding “this looks like that” rationales at decision time and mirroring clinical reasoning. Building on this paradigm, we introduce UM–ProtoShare, which compares the input multi-sequence 3D brain MRI with a bank of shared, …

How To Engage With, And Have Impact On, Marine Governance: A Practical Guide For Early-Career Researchers, Denis B. Karcher, Christopher Cvitanovic, Melanie C. Austen, Aislinn F. Dunne, Louisa Evans, Rebecca Gruby, Nicole Malinconico, Shannon Mclaughlin, E. J. Milner-Gulland, Nathalie A. Steins

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

Early-career researchers (ECRs) are at the forefront of producing the knowledge and solutions needed to address contemporary ocean challenges. Their work is often highly inter- and transdisciplinary, generating insights that are critical for informed decision-making, and effective and equitable marine governance. Yet, despite this potential for impact, many ECRs lack access to the tools, training, and institutional support necessary to engage meaningfully with governance processes. Such structural complexities are further compounded by practical constraints that ECRs experience such as short project timelines and limited networks, making engagement with governance particularly intimidating and/or difficult for ECRs. This commentary seeks to empower …

Identification Of Active Compounds And Antidiabetic Activity Of Red Shoot (Syzygium Myrtifolium) Leaves Extract With In Vitro And In Silico Methods, Muhamad Iqbal Prakoso, Siti Warnasih

Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a chronic metabolic disease that affects approximately 537 million people worldwide (1 in 10 individuals), and its prevalence is projected to reach 783 million by 2045. One of the plants that has the potential to be an antidiabetic is red shoots (Syzygium myrtifolium) since it contains various secondary metabolite compounds such as flavonoids, triterpenoids, steroids, saponins, phenolics, and anthocyanins. This study aimed to evaluate the antidiabetic properties of red shoot leaves extract and to identify and predict interactions between its active compounds and the α-glucosidase receptor. Ethanol, ethyl acetate, and n-hexane extracts of red …

Advances In Gene Editing Strategies For Viral Disease Resistance In Pigs: Knock-Out, Knock-In, And Overexpression Approaches, Zhao Namula, Takeshige Otoi, Aya Nakai, Megumi Nagahara, Maki Hirata, Fuminori Tanihara

The Thai Journal of Veterinary Medicine

Highly contagious viral pathogens—such as porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome, classical swine fever, and African swine fever—continue to pose serious threats to the swine industry and cause major global economic losses. Conventional disease control approaches, such as vaccination and biosecurity, are limited by viral heterogeneity and immune escape mechanisms. Gene editing technologies, most notably the CRISPR/Cas9 system, offer an innovative means of introducing innate viral disease resistance or resilience in pigs. The continuous improvement of these tools can provide a sustainable strategy to enhance animal welfare and global food security and reduce reliance on traditional control measures. This review provides …

Noda News Summer 2026

New Orleans Dental Association News

New Orleans Dental Association (NODA) News includes regular columns with regional news impacting the New Orleans membership including: columns from the President and Executive Director, feature articles relating to the field of dentistry, association events and upcoming activities, component news, continuing education opportunities, and classifieds.

Rurality And Redistricting: California's Proposition 50, Rural Identity, And Democratic Legitimacy, Lisa R. Pruitt

Maine Law Review

When California voters embraced mid-decade congressional redistricting in 2025, the greatest media attention landed on the state’s First Congressional District, CA-01. It is residents of that district who are likely to feel the consequences of the new maps most profoundly. In the form established by the California Citizens Redistricting Commission in 2021, CA-01 occupied more than 26,000 square miles in the state’s northeastern corner. The district included a number of inland counties stretching from Modoc, tucked into the corner formed by the Oregon and Nevada state lines, to Colusa, in the Great Central Valley. The cluster of ten counties—hereinafter “old …

Should I Stay Or Should I Go? The National Flood Insurance Program And Where We Go When The Next Storm Hits, Kevin Fitzpatrick

Ocean and Coastal Law Journal

This article argues that what makes the difference in success between these two regimes is how strictly the scientific advice underlying catch limits the advice is adhered to, and the influences allowed unto decisionmakers in the catch limit negotiation process. Whereas the United States uses the scientific advice about the MSY as a strict upper limit in determining annual catch limits, the EU does not. This allows stakeholders in the EU’s CFP governance, in particular fishing industry actors, to influence regulators to raise TACs above adequately precautionary levels in the name of “balancing” sustainable fishing with short-term economic interests. The …

"Tac-Ing" On Coherence: Achieving Sustainable Baltic Sea Fisheries Management By Hooking Precautionary Science And Greater Transparency In Eu Total Catch Negotiations, Patrick Seroogy

Ocean and Coastal Law Journal

This article argues that what makes the difference in success between these two regimes is how strictly the scientific advice underlying catch limits the advice is adhered to, and the influences allowed unto decisionmakers in the catch limit negotiation process. Whereas the United States uses the scientific advice about the MSY as a strict upper limit in determining annual catch limits, the EU does not. This allows stakeholders in the EU’s CFP governance, in particular fishing industry actors, to influence regulators to raise TACs above adequately precautionary levels in the name of “balancing” sustainable fishing with short-term economic interests. The …

Alaska's Hidden Gems: Advocating For The Protection Of Deep-Sea Corals, Both In The Courtroom And Beyond, Lauren Beizer

Ocean and Coastal Law Journal

Coral reefs are ecologically, financially, and aesthetically one of the world’s greatest resources. Off the coast of Alaska, many unique species of deep-sea cold-water corals exist and provide various public health benefits, contribute vital ecosystem functions to their surrounding environment, and serve as economic tourist attractions. Alaska’s corals reefs are exceedingly valuable to the earth due to their overall ecological value. However, these unique coral species significantly lack state and federal protections–which have recently been under consideration in several lawsuits at the federal level. American Oceans Campaign v. Daley and Oceana, Inc. v. National Marine Fisheries Service et al., are …

Editor's Page, Art Mcphee

Witness

No abstract provided.

Efficacy Of Sirolimus Versus Paclitaxel-Coated Balloons For Coronary Revascularization: An Updated Meta-Analysis With Grade Assessment, Matthew Aldo Wijayanto, Christopher Daniel Tristan, Erlangga Masykur Kynaya, Annisa Aghnia Rahma, Putri Saskia Harimurti, Arwin Saleh Mangkuanom, Amir Aziz Alkatiri, Doni Firman, Bambang Budi Siswanto

Journal of the Saudi Heart Association

Drug-coated balloons are an emerging strategy for coronary revascularization. Despite their increasing use, the comparative efficacy of sirolimus- versus paclitaxel-coated balloons (SCB vs PCB) remains uncertain. This updated meta-analysis evaluated clinical and angiographic outcomes of SCB and PCB in percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). A comprehensive search of PubMed, Scopus, and ScienceDirect was performed on August 28, 2025. Studies directly comparing SCB and PCB were included. The primary endpoint was target lesion failure (TLF), which was defined as cardiac death, target vessel myocardial infarction (TVMI), or target lesion revascularization (TLR). On follow-up angiography, secondary endpoints consisted of minimal lumen diameter (MLD), …

Mental Health And Psychosocial Well-Being Of Domestic Workers In Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania: Why It Matters And Why We Should Make It A Priority, Magolanga Shagembe

Tanzania Journal of Sociology

This phenomenological study explores the mental health and psychosocial well-being of domestic workers aged 15–18 years in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Drawing on Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory and Erikson’s psychosocial development theory, the study examines how domestic workers negotiate self-acceptance, personal growth, purpose in life, quality of relationships, environmental control, autonomy and resilience within unequal labor and care arrangements. Data were generated through in-depth interviews with 29 domestic workers and analyzed thematically. The findings reveal that mental health and psychosocial well-being among domestic workers are shaped through complex interactions between structural vulnerability, interpersonal relationships, migration experiences, economic necessity, and future …

Medicalisation And The Practice Of Labour Augmentation In Mwanza, Tanzania, Latifa Abdulla Mohamed, Richard Sambaiga, Karen Marie Moland, Siri Lange

Tanzania Journal of Sociology

Since the late 1900s, maternal health has increasingly been medicalised as a result of growing global concerns about poor maternal outcomes. An example of this medicalisation process is the use of oxytocin for labour augmentation. This practice of administering oxytocin to shorten the duration of labour is increasingly questioned. Feminist scholars have often questioned the routine use of oxytocin, depicting it as unnecessary and may constitute inappropriate use of the drug that undermines women’s autonomy and contributes to negative birth experiences. However, these feminist arguments overlook individual agency and the complex ways in which actors encounter and interact with oxytocin …