Digital Commons Network^™

Women's Empowerment Through The Use Of Technology, Wolayat Tabasum Niroo, Helen Crompton

Teaching & Learning Faculty Publications

Technology has shaped people’s lifestyles globally. Today, the majority of the world’s population seeks help through technology as a portal to learning with the wide variety of learning materials available. Women in both developed and developing countries can access learning through technology, yet the scholarly community do not have an up-to-date collective view of how technology is being used to provide learning materials to empower women around the world. Therefore, this systematic review included an aggregated and qualitative synthesis to investigate extant empirical work over five years, 2017-2021. Following a rigorous PRISMA selection process, 40 articles were included in the …

Introducing Conditional Probability Using The Monty Hall Problem, Ricela Feliciano-Semidei

Faculty Articles, Papers, and Other Scholarship

This study developed a teaching module that incorporated the Monty Hall problem to introduce conditional probability in a college introductory statistics course. This teaching module integrated a guess – experiment – discussion approach with game-based instruction. The researchers piloted this module and made modifications. The work of 20 non-mathematics major undergraduate students was examined for changes in their perceptions about conditional probability through a pre-and-post survey design. The Structure of the Observed Learning Outcome (SOLO) taxonomy was used for data analysis to show the quality of the student work. Findings suggest that most students’ perceptions were at higher levels after …

Biofouling Of Sensors In Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, Kayla Kurtz

Open Access Dissertations

The objective of this study was to investigate the biofouling capacity and potential solutions for sensor devices in Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island. The dissertation was comprised of three main studies. First, the biofouling potential of several surface-enhanced Raman scat-tering (SERS)-based sensors was tested using zoospores from the common biofouling al-gae Ulva spp. Fluorescence microscopy was used to compare the adhesion of tubular Ulva spp. zoospores on commercial and novel SERS-based sensors including uncoated and gold (Au) silicon nanopillar array SERS substrates from Silmeco, Au coated carbon black nano-particle (AuCB NP) substrates, uncoated and Au sputter-coated in-house SERS created with a …

Optimal Shape Estimation And Methodologies For Towed Undersea Vehicles, Matthew J. Dellavalle, Peter Jasinski, Owen Driskill, Nick Sellers

Mechanical Engineering Capstone Design Projects

Team 02 in part with Dr. Nassersharif, has been commissioned by the Naval Undersea Warfare Center to provide an optimal design and modeling for towed undersea vehicles. The proposed effort served to study, evaluate, and model the drag for the towing of cylindrical undersea vehicles. This project will model towing configurations for both single and multiple vehicle configurations. Recommendations were also made regarding the propulsion configuration of the leading vehicle. The proposed design solution aimed to achieve a drag coefficient of less than 0.3 to minimize the effect the towed vehicle may have on the range and endurance of its …

Antisocial Personality Disorder: A Theoretical Approach Utilizing Three Dimensions Of Power Analysis, Timothy J. Nguyen, Tara Zolnikov

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD) is often associated with high costs and burden to the rest of society; however, it remains a disorder with no evidence of effective traditional psychological interventions. This theoretical study aimed to analyze the phenomenon of power and how it may influence the conceptualization of ASPD. Data was collected through a comprehensive and systematic review of the current ASPD literature. Findings suggested ASPD as severely conceptually flawed, highly imbalanced in terms of power dynamics between professionals and people diagnosed with ASPD, absent of participants’ voices, absent of any effective traditional psychotherapy interventions, disproportionately focused on deficit-oriented strategies …

A Mixed-Methods Protocol To Develop And Validate A Stewardship Maturity Matrix For Human Genomic Data In The Cloud, Vasiliki Rahimzadeh, Ge Peng, Mildred Cho

Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy Staff Publications

This article describes a mixed-methods protocol to develop and test the implementation of a stewardship maturity matrix (SMM) for repositories which govern access to human genomic data in the cloud. It is anticipated that the cloud will host most human genomic and related health datasets generated as part of publicly funded research in the coming years. However, repository managers lack practical tools for identifying what stewardship outcomes matter most to key stakeholders as well as how to track progress on their stewardship goals over time. In this article we describe a protocol that combines Delphi survey methods with SMM modeling …

Investigation Of Urinary Metabolomics In A Phase I Hookworm Vaccine Trial In Gabon, Madeleine Eunice Betouke Ongwe, Yoanne D Mouwenda, Koen A Stam, Peter G Kremsner, Bertrand Lell, David Diemert, Jeff Bethony, Maria E Bottazzi, Peter J Hotez, Remko V Leeuwen, Martin P Grobusch, Ayola A Adegnika, Oleg A Mayboroda, Maria Yazdanbakhsh

Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy Staff Publications

Metabolomics provides a powerful tool to study physiological changes in response to various perturbations such as vaccination. We explored whether metabolomic changes could be seen after vaccination in a phase I trial where Gabonese adults living either in rural or semi-urban areas received the subunit hookworm vaccine candidates (Na-GST-1 and Na-APR-1 (M74) adjuvanted with Alhydrogel plus GLA-AF (n = 24) or the hepatitis B vaccine (n = 8) as control. Urine samples were collected and assayed using targeted 1H NMR spectroscopy. At baseline, a set of metabolites significantly distinguished rural from semi-urban individuals. The pre- and post-vaccination comparisons indicated significant …

Band Gap Information Extraction From Materials Science Literature – A Pilot Study, Satanu Ghosh, Kun Lu

Faculty Publications

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present a preliminary work on extracting band gap information of materials from academic papers. With increasing demand for renewable energy, band gap information will help material scientists design and implement novel photovoltaic (PV) cells.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors collected 1.44 million titles and abstracts of scholarly articles related to materials science, and then filtered the collection to 11,939 articles that potentially contain relevant information about materials and their band gap values. ChemDataExtractor was extended to extract information about PV materials and their band gap information. Evaluation was performed on randomly sampled information records …

Tooth Agenesis: Prevalence And Pattern Among Different Ethnicities, Gabrielle Coe

All ETDs from UAB

Tooth agenesis is one of the most common developmental anomalies in humans and is defined as the failure of tooth development or odontogenesis. Prevalence of non-syndromic tooth agenesis has a reported range of 1.6-36.5% and varies by gender, ethnicity, and location. While tooth agenesis is well studied, information within ethnic groups requires further investigation. In this study, dental records of 3033 patients of the UAB School of Dentistry were evaluated to identify and categorize missing teeth by ethnicity and gender. Data analysis was conducted with Chi-square or Fisher’s exact test, with a two-sided significance level of 0.05. An overall prevalence …

Ecology Of The Diamondback Terrapin (Malaclemys Terrapin Pileata) In Alabama: Applications Of New Technologies, Forrest William Collins

All ETDs from UAB

The Diamondback Terrapin, Malaclemys terrapin pileata, inhabits saltmarshes in the Northern Gulf of Mexico including along the coast of Alabama. Due to a variety of factors, this species has declined drastically in Alabama, and it is currently designated as a “species of highest conservation concern”. Understanding the ecology of this species is a prerequisite to the recovery of this population. The current thesis addresses the reproductive and foraging ecology of the Diamondback Terrapin in Alabama. This thesis combines the use of classic ecological methodologies with modern technologies. Between April 2019 to July 2022, wild nesting females were caught at a …

The Association Between Metabolically Healthy Obesity And Coronary Heart Disease Among Regards Study Participants, Kiara N. Aaron

All ETDs from UAB

A major obstacle to the advancement of our understanding of the metabolically healthy obesity (MHO) phenotype is the inconsistent definition of metabolic health and obesity among studies. A harmonized definition of MHO in adults has been proposed based on the diagnosis of obesity (BMI > 30 k/m2) and meeting the cardio-metabolic criteria for triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), no antihypertensive treatment, fasting blood glucose, and no drug treatment with glucose-lowering agents. In addition, waist circumference can be associated with increased disease risk when WC is >94 cm in men and >80 cm in …

Clinical Decision-Making: A Survey On The Influence Of Specialty And Experience In Treatment Planning Of Multidisciplinary Cases, Rawan Oueis

All ETDs from UAB

Objective: to evaluate the effect of specialization and experience on treatment planning multidisciplinary cases. Materials and Methods: A survey presenting 7 clinical scenarios and their potential treatment plans was designed and disseminated electronically to five groups of dentists (general dentists, endodontists, prosthodontists, orthodontists, periodontists). 509 responses were collected and analyzed for distribution and levels of agreement. Results: A moderate kappa was found (k=0.4-0.6) between endodontists and periodontists and within endodontists. There was no agreement on the type of restorations that are used between different specialties and within specialties of different years of experience. Conclusion: Specialists and general dentists use a …

Klf2 Regulation Of Glycocalyx Expression, Barrier Function, And Thromboinflammation In Human Lung Microvascular Endothelial Cells, Cambria O'Grady

All ETDs from UAB

KLF2 is an important transcription factor for maintaining vascular homeostasis. Its expression in endothelial cells is triggered by shear stress. The endothelial glycocalyx also plays a role in regulating vascular function, and prior work has shown that glycocalyx expression is affected by shear stress as well. However, the direct link between KLF2 and mechanisms that regulate glycocalyx synthesis has not been established. In the present study, we used human lung microvascular endothelial cells (HLMVECs) to observe changes in glycocalyx expression, barrier function, and thromboinflammation caused by KLF2 overexpression. Lentiviral transduction was the method used for KLF2 overexpression, resulting in a …

Study Of Microrna-23a Cluster In Bone Formation, Revati Suryawanshi

All ETDs from UAB

The differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells to pre-osteoblasts, lies upon various transcription factors and physiological signaling, but is also governed by the micro-RNA-23a cluster. The miR-23a cluster has miR-23a, miR-27a and miR-24-2 transcribed from a single promoter as a sole RNA primary transcript. Its effects have been observed in embryonic stem cells, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), and in cancer (1-2). It regulates the lineage commitment of MSCs. (3). With respect to bone formation, miR-23a cluster is involved MSCs commitment to and osteoblast maturation (4). Here, through in vivo and in vitro experiments, we report that knock down of microRNA-23a cluster …

Evaluation Of Ventilation Performance And Respirable Particles In Food Trucks, Dong Lee Yang

All ETDs from UAB

Background: The food truck industry in the U.S. has rapidly expanded, with an average growth of 7.9 % from 2017 to 2022. Food truck workers are potentially exposed to harmful airborne contaminants such as particulate matter (PM) and aldehydes produced during cooking process. Kitchen exhaust hoods are designed to capture the cooking emissions, but it is not well understood whether the commercial kitchen exhaust hoods in food trucks are properly, efficiently operated to reduce the workers' exposure to such harmful contaminants. The purpose of the study was to evaluate food truck workers' exposure to respirable particulates generated from cooking process …

Alterations In Synaptic Structure And Tau Phosphorylation In Alheimer's Disease, Courtney K. Walker

All ETDs from UAB

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia in individuals over the age of 65. Of the two hallmark pathologies of AD, tau neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) correlate more strongly with cognitive decline than do Aβ plaques. NFTs form in the entorhinal cortex (EC) and appear in anatomically connected regions over time as disease progresses. This tau spreading may occur via synaptic connections. Most excitatory synapses occur on dendritic spines, which house the postsynaptic machinery. Spines are actin-rich, plastic structures that change their size and shape in response to synaptic activity in a process that is dependent on actin …

The Adoption Of New Cancer Drugs In Non-Academic Cancer Centers, Warren M. Smedley

All ETDs from UAB

Advancements in medical knowledge are producing significant improvements in medical technology, developing breakthrough drug therapies, advancing the practice of medicine, and improving outcomes for cancer patients. However, there are delays in getting new and improved therapies incorporated into routine clinical use, depriving cancer patients of valuable and potentially lifesaving treatments. The purpose of this study was to examine the rate of adoption of new cancer drug discoveries into routine clinical practice in non-academic cancer centers. The process of adoption takes a period of time to embrace new therapies, due in part to a prescriber’s need to gain greater comfort with …

Renal Lactate Dehydrogenase A: Underlying Mechanisms And Inflammatory Roles In Acute Kidney Injury, Gunars Osis

All ETDs from UAB

Kidneys are physiologically vital organs responsible for blood homeostasis preservation through fluid balance maintenance, blood pressure regulation, hormone production, and toxic compound removal. Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a global condition affecting more than 13 million people yearly, and is characterized by a rapid decline in renal filtration capacity, consequent rise in serum creatinine and nitrogenous waste levels, and is associated with an elevated risk of morbidity in the form of progressive chronic kidney disease, kidney failure, and mortality. AKI-induced renal epithelial cell death forces surviving tubular cells to undergo de-differentiation, rapid proliferation to replace lost cells, and re-differentiation to …

Relationship Between Neighborhood Deprivation And Epigenetic Age Acceleration With Pain In Adults With Musculoskeletal Pain, Pamela Jackson

All ETDs from UAB

Residents of high-deprivation neighborhoods shoulder a greater burden of age-related health conditions, including experiencing worse chronic musculoskeletal pain outcomes, compared to residents of more affluent neighborhoods. Advancing age is a risk factor for chronic health conditions, which epigenetic modifications may explain. Epigenetic age acceleration occurs when an individual’s epigenetic age is older than their chronological age, and that discordance has been identified as a strong predictor of age-related conditions. Epigenetic age acceleration has also been correlated with neighborhood deprivation. However, the mechanisms for neighborhood disparities in chronic musculoskeletal pain remain unclear. The purpose of this dissertation study was to examine …

Hedgehog Signaling Rewires M2 Macrophage And Regulatory T Cell Metabolism Within The Tumor Microenvironment Of Breast Cancer, Dominique C. Hinshaw

All ETDs from UAB

Current treatments for breast cancer offer little relief to patients with metastatic disease. A contributory factor to tumor growth and metastasis is aberrant up-regulation of developmental signaling pathways such as the Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway. This pathway is aberrantly activated in breast cancer and contributes to tumor progression and metastasis. The success of these events is highly influenced by the surrounding immune microenvironment. Macrophages exist along a spectrum of M1 (tumor-eradicating) to M2 (tumor-promoting), while regulatory T cells (Tregs) are an immunosuppressive cell type. The predominant functions of M2 macrophages and Tregs include dampening the immune response and promoting wound …

Comprehensive Characterization Of Structural Variations Using Long-Read Sequencing Data, Yu Chen

All ETDs from UAB

Structural variants (SVs) contribute to genomic diversity and play pathogenic roles in a wide range of genetic disorders. Accurate characterization of SVs is critical for genomic research and studies of disease mechanisms. The rapid development of Third-Generation Sequencing (TGS) technologies has largely increased sequencing read length compared to Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS), bringing both great potentials and challenges in SV discovery through alignment-based and assembly-based approaches. In order to take full advantage of TGS data, I have developed a suite of bioinformatics tools focusing on comprehensive characterization of SVs. For the alignment-based SV discovery, I have developed DeBreak to identify SVs …

Development Of A Microwave-Based Extraction For Forensic Biological Samples, Fabiana Taglia, Ling Wang, Casandra H. Setser, Nicole Fernández-Tejero, Bruce R. Mccord, Steven B. Lee

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

In this study, a quick microwave-based treatment was developed as a front end for DNA analysis of forensic samples. The effect of microwave treatment is to cause cell disruption which can improve the release of DNA during direct PCR as well as with extraction methods. Exposure to microwave preprocessing improved the quality of rapid genotyping, particularly when used with low level samples. Optimal results were obtained when samples were microwaved at 300W for 40 s, resulting in improved allele detection. Overall, the addition of this simple preprocessing step improves sensitivity and allele recovery for low level DNA samples when combined …

Predicting Cervical Cancer Biopsy Results Using Demographic And Epidemiological Parameters: A Custom Stacked Ensemble Machine Learning Approach, Krishnaraj Chadaga, Srikanth Prabhu, Niranjana Sampathila, Rajagopala Chadaga, S. Swathi, Saptarshi Sengupta

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

The human papillomavirus (HPV) is responsible for most cervical cancer cases worldwide. This gynecological carcinoma causes many deaths, even though it can be treated by removing malignant tissues at a preliminary stage. In many developing countries, patients do not undertake medical examinations due to the lack of awareness, hospital resources and high testing costs. Hence, it is vital to design a computer aided diagnostic method which can screen cervical cancer patients. In this research, we predict the probability risk of contracting this deadly disease using a custom stacked ensemble machine learning approach. The technique combines the results of several machine …

First-Principles Modeling Of Mechanical Behavior And Thermoelectric Property Under Strain And Pressure, Chia-Min Lin

All ETDs from UAB

Progresses in computer hardware and numerical algorithms in the past decade have made it possible to use first-principles calculations to model material properties, with the prediction results typically in good agreement with experiments. In this dissertation, density functional theory (DFT) calculations enable the studies of shear and tensile deformations. The theoretical ideal shear stress for transition metal osmium is found along the (001)[1–10] shear direction with the maximal shear stress ∼24 GPa at critical strain ∼0.13. DFT results indicated that transition metal borides ReB2 becomes more ductile with enhanced tendency towards metallic bonding under compression. The ReB2 DFT results also …

A Value-Based Framework For Process Alignment In Complex Provisioning Systems, Michael Lipscomb

All ETDs from UAB

Provisioning systems are human-built, process-based systems whose activities are directed toward providing something of value to another entity. The things provided are not limited to any one type but may include, for example, objects, services, and information. Systems under consideration herein are limited to those that are human based, decentralized, and complex. “Human based” means that many of the agents and all the customers of the system are human. “Decentralized” means that agents act beyond central control. Such a system presents different challenges from one in which tasks are delegated from a central authority. In a decentralized system, agents are …

Pkd-1 Signaling Inthe Regulation Of Cancer Stem Cell-Like Features And Cancer Cell Interactions With Endothelial Cells In Breast Cancer And Pancreatic Neuroendocrine Tumor, Yichen Hailey Guo

All ETDs from UAB

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are a subpopulation cancer cells that play critical roles in tumor progression, recurrence, metastasis, and drug resistance. CSCs are characterized by self-renewal and plasticity. Protein kinase D-1 (PKD-1) signaling regulates CSC/stemness features in both breast cancers and pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors. In PNETs, PKD-1 signaling regulates not only stemness properties of cancer, but also epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). PNETs are typically well vascularized and heterogeneous. Everolimus (an mTOR inhibitor and the 2nd generation derivative of rapamycin) has been approved as a targeted chemotherapy for PNET patients. Unfortunately, nearly all patients will progress on treatment due to drug resistance …

The Role Of Protein Translation And Degradation In Aging And Alzheimer Disease Pathogenesis, Harper S. Kim

All ETDs from UAB

Protein translation (PT) is an essential cellular process playing crucial roles in growth and development. PT precipitously declines with age in multiple animal species, including humans. It has been implicitly assumed that elevated PT at young ages is beneficial to health while PT ends up dropping as a passive byproduct of aging. However, whether this holds true and how dynamic fluctuations in PT over time impact aging remain unknown. In Drosophila, we show that a transient PT spike in early-adulthood drives aging by triggering dysfunction in protein homeostasis (proteostasis) at old ages. We propose the early-adulthood spike in PT to …

Determining The Impact Of Immune Dysregulation On Cd4 T Cell Responses To Hiv-1 And Sars-Cov-2, Jacob K. Files

All ETDs from UAB

CD4+ T cells, often referred to as helper T cells, play a crucial role in the formation of antiviral immune responses following infection and vaccination. However, this can be disrupted by various forms of immune dysregulation. Many groups have described how HIV-1 adaptation and immune escape can lead to dysregulated HIV-specific immune responses. Our lab has previously shown that predicted HLA-II associated HIV-1 adaptation leads to dysregulated, poorly immunogenic CD4+ T cell responses in HIV-1 infection. Here, we focus on the impact of this HLA-II associated viral adaptation in the setting of HIV-1 vaccination. We show that HLA-II associated, vaccine-matched …

Gendering Trust In General Surgery Training: Examining The Role Of Trust Between Residents And Attendings, Alejandra Maria Colón López

All ETDs from UAB

In medical training and throughout medical careers, women face disadvantages –especially in surgery. To better understand origins of these gender inequalities, this study examines the role of gender in surgical training, focusing on trust between faculty serving as attendings and medical residents. An environment of trust enables residents to gain handson experience and acquire practical skills during surgeries performed jointly with attendings. In this sequential explanatory mixed-methods study, 105 surgical encounters were rated utilizing the OpTrust tool, an instrument designed to measure entrustment between surgery residents and attendings. Furthermore, seventeen attendings and ten surgery residents gave in-depth interviews. Attendings’ average …

The Dyslexia Disparity: An Examination Of Inequities In The Identification And Intervention Of Early Learners Of Color, Fredeisha Harper Darrington

All ETDs from UAB

Although Black students are overrepresented in the special education (SPED) population within the educational system in the United States, the number of Black students identified with dyslexia can be concluded to be significantly lower (Annamma et al., 2018; Farkas et al., 2020; Sullivan & Bal, 2013). With experts positing that dyslexia affects as many as one in five persons, attention to this matter is needed especially regarding the youngest Black students (Hyles & Hoyles, 2010; Moats & Dakin, 2017). The characteristics of dyslexia are manifested in neurological processes surrounding reading abilities, thought processes, and motor skills (Moats & Dakin, 2017). …