Digital Commons Network^™

Laser Versus Fluoride Varnish In Management Of Dentine Hypersensitivity In Non-Carious Lesions: A Randomized Clinical Trial, Hend Sayed Ahmed, Mohamed Fouad Haridy, Hoda Fouda, Amr Adham Shalaby, Youssef M. Haridy

Dentistry

No abstract provided.

Ventilation-Perfusion Scan: A Functional Imaging Approach To Regional Lung Disease In Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia, Gabriel Román-Ríos, Gabriel Rosario-Ortiz, Marcos J Ramos-Benitez, Ricardo A Mosquera, Wilfredo De Jesús-Rojas

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Introduction: As a rare genetic disorder defined by defective ciliary motility, Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia (PCD) leads to chronic respiratory complications. A founder variant in the RSPH4A [c.921+3_921+6delAAGT] gene, common in Puerto Rico, impairs ciliary function and contributes to progressive lung disease. Today, the clinical value of ventilation/perfusion (V/Q) scans in PCD has not been thoroughly investigated as well as pulmonary function tests (PFTs) and chest imaging. To explore the role and clinical utility of V/Q scans in PCD.

Methods: Retrospective evaluation of pulmonary function tests, chest imaging, and Tc-99m DTPA ventilation and Tc-99m MAA perfusion scans in ten patients with …

"Art, Esthetics, Ideal": An Ethics For Literary Translators In The Age Of Translating Machines, Gabriel González Núñez

Writing and Language Studies Faculty Publications

The advent of effective machine translation has raised several issues for translators, including the question of how a human translator ought to translate in this age of translating machines. In this context of new ethical questions, the present essay argues that an answer may be found in Pedro Figari’s (1912) philosophical essay on esthetics. Following Figari, the current essay argues that literary translation is art, that as such it can produce an esthetic emotion on readers and that the purpose of such art and esthetics is an ideal in the form of the continuous betterment of the human condition.

Creating A University-Based Accessible Makerspace For Use By Local Community Members Through Participatory Design Workshops, Erin Higgins, John J. Magee Iv, Foad Hamidi

Computer Science

While Do-It-Yourself Assistive Technology (DIY-AT) has been shown to provide needed AT for individuals who might not otherwise have access, the makerspaces utilized to create these technologies have proven to be inaccessible. A promising direction for creating accessible makerspaces is to utilize participatory methods to develop new spaces for use by a diverse community of individuals. We explored these possibilities through participatory design workshops focused on building a new accessible community makerspace situated within a university campus setting. Through these workshops, we found that there are unique physical, technical, and human supports needed to create an accessible space for the …

Flexible Cu Nanostructured Laser-Induced Graphene Electrodes For Highly Sensitive And Non-Invasive Lactate Detection In Saliva, Anju Joshi, Gymama Slaughter

Center for Bioelectronics Publications

A scalable and facile fabrication strategy is presented for developing a flexible, nanostructured, non-enzymatic electrochemical sensor for lactate detection based on copper-modified laser-induced graphene (CuNPs/LIG). A one-step electrodeposition process was employed to uniformly decorate the porous LIG framework with copper nanostructures, offering a cost-effective and reproducible approach for constructing enzyme-free sensing platforms. Scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy confirmed dense Cu nanostructure loading and efficient interfacial integration across the conductive LIG surface. The resulting CuNPs/LIG electrode exhibited excellent electrocatalytic performance, achieving a sensitivity of 8.56 μA µM⁻¹ cm⁻² with a low detection limit of 42.65 …

Mxene-Enabled Wearable Biosensors: A Design Framework For Autonomous Biosensing, Jegan Rajendran, Gymama Slaughter

Center for Bioelectronics Publications

MXenes, a rapidly expanding family of two-dimensional transition metal carbides and nitrides, have emerged as leading materials for wearable bioelectronics due to their metallic conductivity, termination-rich surfaces, mechanical compliance, and tunable interlayer structures. However, wearable biosensor performance does not arise from conductivity alone, but from coupled interactions among surface termination chemistry, heterointerface engineering, hierarchical architecture, and device integration under dynamic physiological conditions. This review establishes a predictive structure-interface-device framework linking MXene chemistry to system-level performance across electrochemical, mechanical, gas, optical, and energy-storage modalities. We analyze how termination-controlled adsorption governs charge transfer and selectivity, how heterojunction formation modulates carrier density and …

Recent Advances In Triboelectric Nanogenerators For Biomedical And Cardiovascular Monitoring, Amit Sarode, Jegan Rajendran, Gymama Slaughter

Center for Bioelectronics Publications

Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have emerged as versatile self-powered platforms for wearable and implantable biomedical sensing, offering an alternative to battery-dependent electronic devices. By converting biomechanical energy from physiological motion into electrical signals, TENGs enable simultaneous energy harvesting and active sensing within flexible, lightweight, and biocompatible architectures. This review summarizes recent advances from 2020 to 2025 in triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG)-based cardiovascular monitoring. The discussion focuses on material systems, device configurations, sensing mechanisms, and applications including pulse detection and cuffless blood pressure estimation. Representative studies are compared to highlight emerging trends in wearable and self-powered sensing technologies. However, differences in experimental conditions, …

Modern Potentiostat Architectures For Electrochemical Sensing: Design, Integration, And Future Directions, Reagan Aviha, Gymama Slaughter

Center for Bioelectronics Publications

Potentiostats are essential to electrochemical sensing, enabling precise control of electrode potentials and measurement of current responses. As demand grows for portable, wearable, and point-of-care systems, potentiostat design has evolved from benchtop instruments to compact, low-power, and wirelessly connected platforms. This review provides a comprehensive, system-level perspective on modern potentiostat architectures, covering operational principles, analog front-end design, signal generation and acquisition, communication protocols, and software integration. Unlike prior reviews that treat these aspects independently, this work integrates electrochemical theory with electronic design and data communication frameworks. Key components, including operational amplifiers, transimpedance amplifiers, DAC/ADC subsystems, and microcontroller-based control, are examined …

Competitive Dance And The Adolescent’S Body: Considering Pedagogical Approaches To Teaching Competitive Dancers, Catri E. G. Barba

Dance (MFA) Theses

Diving into the past and researching for the future, this thesis explores the development and perpetuation of hyper-sexualized adolescent bodies through the competitive dance scene. Drawing on dance theorists, educational theorists, and embodied research (i.e., the author’s body archive), this thesis explores how the competition gaze is performed for and by a capitalist patriarchy. Specifically, this thesis critically reflects on the author’s career as a young competitive dancer in the greater Los Angeles, California, area during the 1990s and 2000s, as well as a competition dance instructor and K-12 educator for two decades, and how those personal experiences have shaped …

Ibeji: Screendance As Living Archive, A Manuscript For Live Performance, Quentin W. Sledge

Dance (MFA) Theses

This work is a multimedia live performance that simultaneously moves through a live archival process which captures the essence of the work. It asks: how can dance archives evolve into participatory, user-centered repositories that account for the embodied and ephemeral nature of dance, and how might screendance expand archives into interactive, co-curated spaces that sustain liveness beyond preservation? Grounded in archival theory, Africana Aesthesis over Euro-Western Aesthetics, and auto-ethnographic practice, this project responds to the historic limitations of Euro-Western archival systems, particularly their inability to hold the spiritual, cultural, and embodied dimensions of dance.

The objective of this research is …

Maternal Becoming: Reimagining Transformation Through Reverse Metamorphosis, Terese M. Cardamon

Dance (MFA) Theses

This thesis research investigates how pregnancy and early motherhood reshape identity, agency, and one’s relationship with the body and interrogates the narrative that frames motherhood as inherently joyful. Focusing on matrescence, meaning the process of becoming a mother, the project explores this transformation through the myth of Demeter and Persephone, the author's lived experience, and scholarly frameworks that center feminist perspectives, and includes an embodied exploration that integrates literature, poetry, and movement. Central to this inquiry is the unsettling experience of a transforming body and the visceral, horrific sensation of becoming unfamiliar to oneself. The concept of reverse metamorphosis, a …

Rediscovering The Hidden Nan Yumiao (Mysterious Rain), Katherine E. Nettles

Dance (MFA) Theses

This thesis explores complex themes of becoming, belonging, and how they shape identity through the perspective of transracial adoption. The investigation draws from personal experiences, cultural texts, and nature vs. nurture research. Combining self-reflection with scholarly sources allows for a broader picture of adoption trauma rather than a fixed bias. The author's research considers the circumstances surrounding adoption, including birth parents giving their child up due to social, economic, legal, or political constraints. This thesis examines finding a place of belonging in public, in community, in family, and in society. This concept of belonging has different meanings based on people's …

Racial And Ethnic Disparities In Clinical Characteristics And Outcomes In Adults With Encephalitis: A Retrospective Study, Sienna Wu, Rodrigo Hasbun, Ralph Habis, Jordan Benderoth, Ivany Patel, Ashutosh Gupta, Megan Goyal, Arun Venkatesan, John C Probasco, Paris Bean, Ashley Heck, Laya Rao, Rajesh K Gupta

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background and objectives: This study aims to assess whether adult patients with encephalitis from different racial and ethnic backgrounds exhibit significant differences in clinical presentation, diagnostic findings, and outcomes.

Design and methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted by utilizing the electronic health records of encephalitis patients in the greater Houston and Baltimore areas. Patients were categorized by race/ethnicity into White or ethnic minority (including Black, Hispanic, and Asian patients). Data was analyzed for the presence of significant differences in clinical characteristics between the two groups.

Results: Among 599 patients, 312 (52.1%) were White and 287 (47.9%) were of an …

People's Upr Written Record, Sarah Dávila A., Lauren E. Bartlett

Faculty White Papers

No abstract provided.

Chanticleer | January 2026, Jacksonville State University

Chanticleer

No abstract provided.

Winning Project: An Analysis Of Childhood Trauma And The Effects On Brain Development, Victoria L. Hober

2026 Lynn Haggard Undergraduate Library Research Award

The brain is a very perceptive, absorbent part of the human body, and childhood is an important time for growth. In childhood, the brain is constantly watching and evaluating every situation to improve itself and its functioning. The time when the brain is most plastic is referred to as the sensitive period, and when this period has passed, the brain becomes much more difficult to change (Downar & Eagleman, 2023). How an adult responds and reacts to the child is instilling key components in the brain that will later affect the child’s emotional and physical wellbeing. Childhood trauma, including physical/emotional …

Vitamin D Status During Pregnancy Modulates The Effect Of Pre-Pregnancy Obesity On Gestational Diabetes Mellitus Risk: A Birth Cohort Study, Ali H. Ziyab, Abdullah Al-Taiar, Reem Al-Sabah, Majeda S. Hammoud, Saeed Akhtar

Epidemiology, Biostatistics, & Environmental Health Faculty Publications

Objective:

To determine whether gestational vitamin D status modulates the effect of pre-pregnancy obesity on gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) risk while stratifying by maternal age.

Design:

Birth cohort.

Setting:

A major maternity hospital in Kuwait.

Participants:

Pregnant women in their second/third trimester of gestation were enrolled. Pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI, kg/m²) was categorized as under/normal weight (< 25.0), overweight (25.0 to < 30.0), and obesity (≥30.0). Gestational 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations were categorized as deficiency (< 50 nmol/L) or insufficiency/sufficiency (≥50 nmol/L). GDM status was ascertained according to international guidelines. Adjusted odds ratios (aOR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated using logistic regression.

Results:

Data from 957 pregnant women were analyzed, with GDM affecting 166 (17.4%) pregnancies. Pre-pregnancy obesity and gestational vitamin D deficiency was ascertained in 275 (28.7%) and 533 (55.7%) pregnant women, respectively. The association between pre-pregnancy obesity and GDM risk differed according …

Investigation Of The Impact Models Have On Biot 100 Students Ability To Transfer Their Learning Of How Traits Are Inherited And Expressed, Raghad Awwad

Undergraduate Symposium

No abstract provided.

The Reverend Dr. Charles Edward Kimbrough (1927-2025), Linda T. Wynn

Profiles/Papers for the Nashville Conference on African American History and Culture

No abstract provided.

Accuracy Of The Nestlé Mini Nutritional Assessment® (Mna®) Screen In Identifying Prealbumin–Defined Malnutrition Amongst Spine Surgery Patients, Stylianos Mysirlidis, Luke Fischbach, Matthew Giammanco, Alex Zhang, Phillip Alexeev, Ryan Snowden

SPARK Symposium Presentations

Abstract:

Background:

Malnutrition is a significant risk factor for patients undergoing surgery, including those receiving spine surgery. These patients are at greater risk of adverse postoperative outcomes, impaired wound healing, and spinal fusion failure. Therefore, it is essential to identify at-risk, malnourished patients prior to intervention to mitigate any complications such as surgical site infections, unplanned readmissions, and reoperations. The primary focus of this study was to assess the accuracy of the Nestlé Mini Nutritional Assessment® (MNA®) on identifying true malnutrition amongst those patients undergoing spine surgery.

Methods:

We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 674 consecutive …

Observing Effects Of Social Isolation On Ethanol Preference In Carpenter Ants, Gregory Smith, Rivers Pope

SPARK Symposium Presentations

Alcohol consumption has been observed through humans and vertebrates for centuries to understand reward systems and behavior. Carpenter Ants, a social invertebrate model, have many similarities with humans including communication, stress-induced behavior, and structured societies. Past research has shown that Carpenter ants can have increased preference to ethanol and opioids in low concentrations. However, there has been little research on how isolation can influence ethanol preference. In this study, Carpenter Ants are separated into social and isolation groups over a five-day period and offered ethanol solutions alongside a natural sucrose diet to assess behavioral differences in preference for ethanol. It …

Ammas, Abbas And Art: Theological Reflections On Divine Nurture, Kristen Harris, Emma Morgan, Kara Roberts

SPARK Symposium Presentations

Students in this session will present their final projects from a semester-long independent study on art, motherhood, and theology; drawing on written, visual, and musical texts from 2000 years of tradition, they reflect on the ways Christian practice and language have invited contemplation on the role of mothering.

A Sweet Spot For Chemotherapy: The Influence Of Insulin And Glucagon On Oxaliplatin Sensitivity In Colorectal Cancer Cells, Daniella Cohen, Andrea Florian

SPARK Symposium Presentations

There is a well-established relationship between cellular metabolism, cancer progression, and treatment response. Metabolic hormones such as insulin and glucagon regulate pathways involved in cell growth, survival, and stress responses and have been linked to tumor development and chemotherapy sensitivity. Understanding how metabolic signaling influences cancer treatment may provide insight into factors that affect therapeutic outcomes. This study aims to investigate how insulin and glucagon affect the susceptibility of colorectal cancer cells (CRC) to the chemotherapeutic agent oxaliplatin. CRC cells were treated with insulin or glucagon and exposed to varying concentrations of oxaliplatin. Cell viability was measured to evaluate treatment …

Murder On The Menu, Andrea Florian, Leslie Deleon, Angela Simpkins, Anamika Chhetri

SPARK Symposium Presentations

You're invited to a birthday party in Maryland! There will be many guests and even...seafood cuisine at a fancy restaurant! All is well until one of our guests comes down with a peculiar sickness. Do you think you can figure out what happened?

Honeymoon Horror Story, Andrea Florian, Aunalise Terreri, Kiley St. John, Sienna White

SPARK Symposium Presentations

On what was supposed to be a romantic honeymoon getaway, a newly married couple’s paradise quickly turns dark. The wife, Julia Harper, is found dead under mysterious circumstances, and suspicion falls on her neuroscientist husband. As lies unravel, investigators discover that this honeymoon was never about love, but revenge. In the end, all that’s left is betrayal and secrets…Can you solve this murder mystery?

The Last Ball, Andrea Florian, Lili M. Wrenne, Mehrael Adly, Jia Howell

SPARK Symposium Presentations

Sixty-year old, billionaire, Walter Spencer has been found dead at his annual birthday celebration. Guests reported odd behavior before he passed with wild mood swings, speaking gibberish, and experiencing hallucinations. Close friends of Walter say his young 25-year-old wife was the last to see him. Are you able to solve his mystery?

A Sweet Deception, Andrea Florian, Ellis Stafford, Bridget Mcloud, Awi Siam

SPARK Symposium Presentations

Have you ever wanted to be a detective and solve a murder? Well, here is your chance! Bradley Thompson, an investment banker at JP Morgan, was murdered in his home, and we are relying on you to piece together the toxicological clues and find his killer! This murder-mystery activity will involve selecting different toxicological tests and evaluating evidence to determine who committed this heinous crime.

Urbanization And The Giant Pacific Octopus, Beau Taylor, Darlene Panvini, Graydon Williams

SPARK Symposium Presentations

Urbanization and the Giant Pacific Octopus 

Our project is incorporating scientific research and a creative component into one by writing a chapter for a children’s science book. In this chapter, we are sharing the research and results of ecologist Eliza C. Heery and her fascinating work on the giant Pacific Octopus. We are analyzing how these predators are affected by the process of urbanization. More specifically, we are looking to answer the question of whether urbanization affects how and where a marine predator lives. To do this, we are writing a narrative from the perspective of our chosen ecologist, Eliza …

Assessment Of Doxorubicin And Etoposide Effects On Cardiotoxicity Using Daphnia Magna As A Model Organism​, Jacob P. Bealle, Andrea Florian

SPARK Symposium Presentations

Chemotherapeutic agents such as doxorubicin and etoposide are widely used in cancer treatment but are known to produce cardiotoxic side effects that can limit their clinical use. Doxorubicin has been strongly associated with dose-dependent cardiac damage, and etoposide has also been reported to produce cardiotoxic effects although the cardiotoxic effects of etoposide are not as well studied. Daphnia magna is a useful model organism for cardiotoxicity studies because its transparent body allows direct observation of heart rate and provides a living system for detecting physiological responses to exposure. The purpose of this study was to investigate the cardiotoxic effects of …

Potential Environmental Triggers Of Goodpasture's Disease And The Role Of The Sulfimine Crosslink, Colton S. Miller, Andrea Florian, Elena Pokidysheva

SPARK Symposium Presentations

Goodpasture’s syndrome (GP) is an autoimmune disorder that primarily affects kidneys and lungs. The main issue for patients with Goodpasture's syndrome is the binding of autoantibodies to the glomerular basement membrane (GBM), which hinders the filtration of blood. A key characteristic of Goodpasture's syndrome is the presence of autoantibodies that target the NC1 domain of the α345 isoform of type IV collagen, a crucial component of the GBM that provides structural support and is critical for filtration function. Sulfilimine bonds crosslink the collagen IV NC1 hexamers, contributing to the stabilization of these structures. A recent clinical case of recurring Goodpasture's …