Digital Commons Network^™

Design And Evaluation Of Antibody-Conjugated Microneedle Patch For Early Mrsa Biomarker Detection, Kylee Marie Pop, Alexis Richie, Nicholas Jenkins, Andrew Holmes

Honors Theses

Post-operative orthopedic surgical site infections (SSIs), specifically those caused by methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), present a significant clinical challenge due to delayed detection, increased morbidity, and current rising healthcare costs. Early detection of infection remains limited due to the current methods of diagnosis, which consist of observation of the surgical site and laboratory infrastructure for conformation of infection. To combat these issues, my team and I have designed and evaluated a minimally invasive microneedle diagnostic patch that continuously monitors for the presence of MRSA-associated biomarker PBP2a in interstitial fluids around surgical site incisions. Upon antigen detection, a colorimetric response …

Assessing The Fate Of Antibiotic Resistance Genes In Wastewater Treatment Processes, Gunter A. Campbell

Civil Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

The increasing need for clean water has paved the way for the creation of systems for reusing water, such as wastewater treatment plants (“WWTPs”), to provide potable water. But in recent years, such systems have raised concerns about the distribution of antibiotic resistance genes (“ARGs”). Bacteria are adapting to antibiotics by the evolution of resistance mechanisms, such as high mutation rates and horizontal transfer. The presence of ARGs, particularly tetracycline ("tetA") resistance genes, in wastewater effluents is of concern, as they can survive treatment, spread to bodies of water, and pose a threat to human health. In this study, the …

Unveiling The Intercompartmental Signaling Axis: Mitochondrial To Er Stress Response (Mersr) And Its Impact On Proteostasis, Jeson J Li, Nan Xin, Chunxia Yang, Bo G Kim, Larissa A Tavizon, Ruth Hong, Jina Park, Travis I Moore, Rebecca George Tharyan, Adam Antebi, Hyun-Eui Kim

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Maintaining protein homeostasis is essential for cellular health. Our previous research uncovered a cross-compartmental Mitochondrial to Cytosolic Stress Response, activated by the perturbation of mitochondrial proteostasis, which ultimately results in the improvement of proteostasis in the cytosol. Here, we found that this signaling axis also influences the unfolded protein response of the endoplasmic reticulum (UPRER), suggesting the presence of a Mitochondria to ER Stress Response (MERSR). During MERSR, the IRE1 branch of UPRER is inhibited, introducing a previously unknown regulatory component of MCSR. Moreover, proteostasis is enhanced through the upregulation of the PERK-eIF2α signaling pathway, increasing phosphorylation of eIF2α and …

Identification, Removal, And Characterization Of Microplastics From Pvamu Wwtp Effluent Using Ceramic Membranes, Ogboru O. Chujor

All Theses

This study evaluated a 1.4 µm ceramic membrane's effectiveness in removing microplastics from wastewater, focusing on characterization via FTIR spectroscopy. Microplastics, including fibers, fragments, and microbeads (1-2500 µm), were visually identified and counted under an electron microscope, achieving a 94% TSS reduction and a 35.4% microplastic recovery rate. FTIR analysis identified key polymers like polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene, with distinctive peaks for polyester (1624 cm−1, 1737 cm−1) and cotton (1095 cm−1, 1119 cm−1, 1151 cm−1), indicating polymer degradation through spectral signs of carbonyl groups. Micro-FTIR imaging, enhanced by dyes like DANs under fluorescence and Rose Bengal, pinpointed polymer sources and …

Assessing The Implicit Prices Of Health And Wellness Product Attributes In Pet Food: A Hedonic Analysis Approach, Lonnie Hobbs Jr., Andrew Anderson

Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness Faculty Publications and Presentations

Here we examine product attributes present in dry dog food to show there exist potential price premiums and discounts associated with health and wellness attributes in dry dog food. The findings indicate price premiums are associated with attributes related to digestion and allergy care. Pricing discounts are found to be associated with immune support and dental attributes. The results of this study are anticipated to be a starting point for more sophisticated and dynamic analysis of pricing and willingness-to-pay studies in the pet food industry.

Parkinson’S Disease And Processing Speed Theory Does Processing Speed Mediate Higher-Order Cognitive Functioning?, Priscilla Cuellar-Rocha

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder resulting in both motor and cognitive deficits. Salthouse (1990) proposed the Information Processing Speed (IPS) Theory that a reduced cognitive processing speed is a significant factor that accounts for the negative relationship between age-related variance and cognition. Parkinson’s is an idiopathic disorder, meaning that the cause is unknown, with most patients being 60 years and older. If the IPS theory suggests that an increased age affects the slowing of IPS, which then impairs cognition, PD, a disorder involving older adults, should also follow this pattern. However, no studies have assessed the IPS theory …

A Secluded Cabin On The Outskirts Of Riverside: A 1937 Trial For Conspiracy To Have Gay Sex, Randall Stoner, Randi Stoner

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

In the early morning hours of Sunday, March 14, 1937, a group of deputy sheriffs and military police surrounded a secluded cabin on the outskirts of Riverside and forced their way inside, arresting everyone on the premises for conspiracy to violate California Penal Code sections 288a and 286: oral copulation and sodomy. Though same-sex relations were outlawed, these men had sought to create a place of privacy for themselves—only to have it surveilled and raided by members of law enforcement. The subsequent trial, People v. Jordan, was a landmark case for the city of Riverside. Many histories of LGBTQ …

The Proverbial Milk And Honey: Frontier, Racial Lines, And The Development Of California Foodways, Ahlys Gandara

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This thesis proposes that the development of foodways in the state of California occurred concurrently with the development and failures of Americanization and the American frontier. This is done with respect to the fact that California has a much longer history than that of the United States. While foodways are often discussed and examined within the ideas of nationalization, this becomes harder to do within the United States as there is no unifying idea of a national identity and any attempts to do so were hampered by the lack of consensus as to a singular identity. This is especially true …

Effects Of Project Rebound On Reducing Recidivism, Lisa A. Ravega, Ashley Van Mouwerik

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Background: Recidivism is the tendency of justice-involved individuals to relapse into criminal behavior and remains a critical challenge within the justice system. Objective: This proposed research aims to assess the effectiveness of campus-based programs to assist individuals with enrollment and success in higher education, specifically Project Rebound. Project Rebound is a campus-based re-entry program that assists justice-involved college students in obtaining their educational goals through such support as enrollment and counseling services. Methods: The proposed research suggests utilizing a quasi-experimental non-equivalent comparison group design to examine the impact of Project Rebound on reducing recidivism among justice-involved college students at California …

“Just Broken Rocks” The Lower Colorado River Through The Lens Of The Coastal Migration Theory, Ruth Musser-Lopez

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

My thesis is that archaeological evidence from the Havasu Landing Site (CA-SBR-1456) in San Bernardino County, California, supports the Coastal Migration Theory (CMT) proposed by Davis and Madsen (2020). The CMT suggests that humans followed the Pacific coastline to America during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), approximately 24,000 years ago (Erlandson 2024). I examined the site’s minimally modified cobbles, described as “just broken rocks,” confirming them to meet the definition of “creative minimization tools,” a criterion of the CMT. I found clustering of the minimization and other atypical stone tools with siliceous blade cores representing a 30,000-year-old East Asian technology …

The Masc Of Masculinity: Multimodal Analysis Of Contemporary Punk Music, James L. Stanfield Iii

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This thesis establishes a multi-genre framework of various theories from different academic fields that is then used to view the multimodal elements of punk and hardcore music performances. The analyses are tailored towards the dissection of traditional masculinity with the goal of constructing masculine avatars that are prosocial and moral. Reworking traditional masculinity is a portion of the larger fight for social reform that is taken up within the field of the humanities. Existing critical approaches to masculinity often establish the need for a rewriting of normative masculinity in society but often do not provide methods for such a rewriting. …

Examining The Transmission Of Paternal Trauma Across Generations And Its Effects On Offspring’S Developmental Outcomes, Brianna R. Montano, Margarita Balderas Barbosa

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Background: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are linked to a wide range of developmental, behavioral, and emotional difficulties across the lifespan. While significant research has examined the impact of maternal ACEs, limited attention has been given to the role of paternal trauma in shaping child development. Objective: This study proposes to use a quantitative descriptive design to examine the relationship between parental, particularly paternal, ACEs and developmental outcomes in children aged 0 to 5 years. Guided by social learning theory and the National Child Traumatic Stress Network’s (NCTSN) core concepts of trauma, the study explores how trauma-related behaviors and coping mechanisms …

Engineering An In Vitro Hipsc-Derived Cardiac Tissue Construct For Regenerative Medicine Applications, Larry Mendoza

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of mortality across the world with invasive surgeries and pharmaceutical intervention commonly associated with urgent care. Moreover, congenital, progressive, and hereditary heart diseases rely on many forms of medical prevention and intervention (pharmaceuticals, x-rays, bloodwork, etc.). Developing a three-dimensional (3D) cardiac tissue engineered in vitro model to study human cardiac physiology can revolutionize biomedical research. The purpose of this research is to optimize natural & synthetic biomaterials to fuse cardiac stem cells and synthesize a 3D-printed in vitro model for disease modeling, drug delivery, and regenerative medicine. Natural biopolymers needed for such innovations are …

Understanding The Impact Of Ransomware On Biotechnology, Tswvyim Vang

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Biotechnology encompasses the use of research on both biology and technology to create products that can advance in areas such as healthcare and agriculture. Because of the technology and products that arise from the use of biotechnology, the industry is especially targeted by cyber-attacks. A prominent type of cyber-attack that is utilized by cyber criminals on biotechnology is ransomware. The goal of this project is to determine the impact of ransomware on biotechnology. The research questions posed are: Q1) What are real examples of ransomware attacks that have occurred on biotechnology companies and what patterns can be identified by these …

Passive Electronic Cigarette Exposure Initiates Squamous Metaplasia In A Developing 3d Human Tracheobronchial Epithelial Tissue In-Vitro Model, Edgar Rolon

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The prevalence of vaping has rapidly increased. ECs are often perceived as less harmful than tobacco cigarettes. A recent meta-analysis showed electronic cigarette (EC) aerosols adversely affected the respiratory system, similar to cigarette smoke, with some effects specific to EC use. Failure to prevent these alterations could lead to life-long comorbidities, and predisposition to respiratory diseases, including COPD and squamous cell carcinoma. While these effects are the result of active vaping, EC aerosols can also settle on indoor surfaces, be absorbed passively through the skin or orally, enter the blood stream, and subsequently expose internal organs, including the airway basal …

Ethnic Studies Pedagogy: Professional Development And Its Relevance To Student Achievement, Gabriel A. Orosco Dr.

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

As Ethnic Studies becomes a graduation requirement across all public schools in California, the importance of Ethnic Studies professional development cannot be understated. This is a tumultuous time in our world today. Multiple world conflicts are happening today, and many governments are facing challenges to their very existence. Ethnic Studies programs and classes challenge dominant narratives and close the opportunity gaps for historically marginalized communities.

This study examines the impact of Ethnic Studies (ES) professional development on student achievement within California’s public high schools, where ES has been mandated as a graduation requirement through Assembly Bill 101. The research emphasizes …

Development Of A Jamaican-Inspired Cookbook And Nutrition Resources For Prevention And Management Of Diabetes, Stacy Ann J. Cameron-Roberts

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Background & Aims: Diabetes disproportionately affects minority populations, including Jamaicans affected by dietary habits, sedentary lifestyles, and socioeconomic factors. Culturally relevant interventions are essential for promoting sustainable health behaviors to prevent diabetes. This project developed a Jamaican-inspired cookbook with nutrition education to improve dietary habits among Jamaicans to avoid diabetes.

Methods: The project titled Authentic Flavors: Healthy Jamaican Dishes for People with Pre-Diabetes, a cookbook and resources featuring 34 modified Jamaican recipes with nutrient-dense, low-glycemic ingredients to prevent rapid spikes in blood glucose. Participants were recruited from Jamaican community; and they completed an online nutrition education with pre- and …

A Randomized Clinical Trial Exploring Two Doses Of Cannabidiol Daily For Eight Weeks On Health And Stress, Ryland Emery Townsend

Dissertations

This study’s purpose was to explore whether a 60 or 30 mg dose of cannabidiol (CBD) consumed in a beverage further supplemented with L-theanine, vitamin E, and vitamin C would alter various measures on subjective measures of stress, health and fitness related outcomes, and objective measures of stress. This double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial recruited healthy, college-aged subjects for randomization into one of four treatment groups where they consumed daily a single 12 ounce beverage for eight weeks containing 1) 60 mg CBD (CBD60) plus L-theanine; 2) 30 mg CBD (CBD30) plus L-theanine; 3) no CBD (CBD0), L-theanine alone, and 4) …

The Role Of A Web-Based Collaborative Cloud Application As A Tool For Spanish Acquisition: College Students’ Attitudes And Perceptions In Language Courses, Gloria Mercedes Monzon

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine college students’ attitudes and perceptions toward using a web-based collaborative cloud application (Padlet) for aquiring the Spanish language. Conducted during the Fall 2024 semester, the study involved 53 college students from the Colorado Rocky Mountain region who engaged with Padlet in their Spanish language courses. A quantitative method was employed to address the following three research questions related to students’ perceptions of Padlet’s effectiveness in developing four essential skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing; their attitudes toward Padlet’s features; and their overall evaluation of Padlet as a language-learning tool.

Q1 What are …

Understanding Factors That Drive Wildlife Mortality During Prescribed Fire Management Of Prairie Restorations, Hunter M. Griffey

Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Fire is a key ecological disturbance, which plays a vital role in maintaining biodiversity and early successional species. For today’s land managers, prescribed fire is key in the restoration and maintenance of prairie ecosystems, halting woody encroachment and creating habitat desperately needed by many species. However, fire may have unintended effects on wildlife populations through direct mortality. Among taxa living in fire-dependent ecosystems, reptiles are predisposed to direct mortality, and several studies have recorded significant mortality during prescribed burns. However, the few studies investigating reptile mortality in prescribed fire are limited by small sample sizes and generally have limited analysis …

Effectiveness Of Maternal Bovine Appeasing Substance Administered To Newly Received, High-Risk Stocker Calves, Elle Johnston

Animal Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

Stocker cattle purchased at auction can be susceptible to disease due to the stressors associated with the auction process. These cattle are labeled “high-risk” due to their compromised immune system during transportation, handling, and vaccination processes. The objective of this study was to determine the efficacy of a maternal bovine appeasing substance, FerAppease, on growth performance and behavior of stocker cattle. Male beef calves (n=80) were purchased at auction and transported to the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture Savoy Research Complex Beef Stocker Unit. Steers and bulls were of varying age, breed, and temperament. Upon arrival to the facility …

Silver Nanoparticles In Ammonia Sensing And Photovoltaics, Madhuka Liyanage

All Dissertations

Nanocomposite films (NCF) containing silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), separated by thin layers of silica/poly-4-vinylpyridine/polyvinylpyrrolidone, were fabricated via drop casting, spin coating, dip coating on glass substrate and drop casting on nylon filter membranes. The more uniform films were produced by drop casting on nylon filter membranes due to their solvent wicking properties. The films demonstrate electrical conductivity that varies in response to moist ammonia and water vapors. The changes in conductivity are attributed to hydrogen bonding between ammonia and water molecules with the silica/polymer layers, as well as the direct adsorption of ammonia onto the silver surface. Notably, NCFs with polyvinylpyrrolidone …

Development Of Rolipram Loaded Pgp Nanoparticles For Spinal Cord Injury Repair, Zhen Liao

All Dissertations

Spinal cord injury (SCI) leads to devastating neurological deficits due to primary mechanical damage and secondary injury mechanisms, including inflammation, oxidative stress, excitotoxicity, and inhibitory scarring, which collectively impede neural regeneration. One key aspect of SCI pathology is a significant reduction in cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) levels, primarily due to increased phosphodiesterase (PDE 4) activity. As a ubiquitous second messenger, cAMP regulates key signaling pathways, including protein kinase A (PKA) / cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) and exchange protein activated by cAMP 2 (EPAC2). Therefore, restoring/increasing cAMP level is one of the major therapeutic strategies to reduce neurotrauma and restore …

Rhetorics Of Vigilance: Refracting Discourses In Technologies Of Self-Managed Health & Wellness, Haley Swartz

All Dissertations

Rhetorics of Vigilance explores the limits of feminist health rhetorics by examining technologies that promote women’s self-managed health and wellness practices. By establishing a corpus of personal health technologies and associated texts including mobile health applications, pelvic floor training devices, and perimenopause information shared on social media, this dissertation analyzes how discourses refract––redirected and often distorted––to implicate women in persistent self-monitoring. Drawing from interdisciplinary scholarship on women’s health from feminist rhetorical studies, rhetorics of health and medicine, science and technology studies, and digital studies, I theorize rhetorics of vigilance as a framework through which women understand and interpret issues …

Development Of Translational Microscale Systems To Interrogate How Biophysical And Biochemical Cues Alter The Phenotype Of Hormone Positive Breast Cancer, Braulio Ortega Quesada

All Dissertations

Cancer is a complicated disease and one in every three diagnoses are women with breast cancer. Recent research shows that the progression of cancer depends strongly on interactions with other non-cancerous cells and non-cellular components. Metastasis, the spread of cancer to other parts of the body, is a key step in cancer progression and makes treatment harder, leading to poor response to treatments culminating in death in ~90% of patients. This dissertation focused on creating a series of microdevices as novel pre-clinical models of breast cancer. Two different devices were fabricated to (1) study how exposing cancer cells to the …

Understanding How To Cultivate Culturally Relevant Dispositions Among District Science Coordinators And Science Teachers, Meredith L. Schwendemann

All Dissertations

At the center of the discussions about equity in science education is the importance of defining and articulating what is meant by equity, diversity, and social justice. Despite recent efforts to improve equity in science education, inequities in science education persist. District science coordinators, science teachers, and science teacher educators are key players in the movement toward more equitable science learning and instruction. The purpose of this three manuscript dissertation was to explore the ways in which science teacher educators are working to promote culturally relevant dispositions within science teachers (Paper 1/Chapter 2), examine how district science coordinators are approaching …

Ex Vivo Multiplex Knockdown Of Angptl3 And Cypor In Hepatocytes As A Novel Cell Therapy For Familial Hypercholesterolemia, Callie D. Clark

All Dissertations

Inherited metabolic diseases (IMDs) affect approximately 1 in 800 individuals. The only curative treatment for IMDs is liver transplantation. However, transplantation carries significant risks, including organ rejection and a lifelong need for immunosuppression. Therefore, gene editing has emerged as a promising alternative to liver transplantation for treating IMDs.

Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is and IMD characterized by elevated LDL-C levels resulting in premature cardiovascular disease. CRISPR-Cas9-mediated gene editing to disrupt the gene encoding angiopoietin-like 3 (ANGPTL3) in the liver represents a novel therapeutic approach for FH. Nonviral delivery performed ex vivo is safer than systemic delivery because gene editing is in …

Perspectives On Clinical Oncogenomics: Secondary Germline Variants Associated With Tumor Genomic Profiling In Community Cancer Care And Advanced Practitioner Oncogenomic Proficiency, Sarah Moncado

All Dissertations

Precision medicine in oncology is defined by the sequencing of tumor genomic variants that can be used to identify targeted treatment for patients. Secondary pathogenic and likely pathogenic germline variants (P/LPGVs) can incidentally be detected on tumor genomic profiling (TGP). With the rise in precision medicine over the past 15 years, secondary P/LPGVs on TGP have been an increasingly important clinical issue. However, there are factors that can lead to misidentification and underreporting of P/LPGVs. Germane to this clinical practice issue is healthcare provider oncogenomic literacy and proficiency.

A scoping review was conducted to evaluate the variability of the prevalence …

A System And Method For Measuring Spatially Varying Surface Appearances With A Study Of Feathers, Jessica Baron-Lis

All Dissertations

Real-world materials, particularly biological structures such as feathers exhibit complex appearances that vary spatially across their surfaces. The field of computer graphics provides a means of understanding such surfaces through material modeling which uses both analytical models and data acquired from light-surface interactions. There are many efforts within the past decade in measuring materials for graphics, but common limitations in these works include not accounting for spatially varying properties and reliance on neural networks and synthetic datasets.

Feathers from modern birds present diverse appearances due to how light interacts with their unique hierarchical microstructures. Variations in those structures lead to …

An Examination Of The Role Of Recreational Therapy In Forensic And Correctional Settings, Sarah R. Fischer

All Dissertations

The estimated prevalence of adults, age 18 and older, with serious mental illness (SMI) in the United States is approximately 6% (NIMH, 2022a). Having a mental illness places individuals at higher risk for arrest and incarceration (NAMI, n.d.b) where they receive treatment, including recreational therapy (RT) in state hospitals, jails or prisons. The purpose of this multi-method study was to gain a better understanding of the role of RT in treating adults with SMI in forensic and correctional settings. A non-standardized 122-item cross-sectional survey (n=49) was used to identify what interventions recreational therapists are using, for what intended outcomes; and …