Digital Commons Network^™

Top-Down Control Of Ammonia Oxidizers By Grazing In The North Pacific, Silin Ni, Min Nina Xu, Moge Du, Edward A. Laws, Shuh Ji Kao

Faculty Publications

The impact of grazing pressure on ammonia oxidizers (AO) has never been quantified in the field. Here we develop a new method to quantify the grazing rates on AO in aquatic systems. We introduce ¹⁵NH4⁺ tracer into the traditional dilution experiments to measure AO's apparent growth rates by using the end-product of ¹⁵NH4⁺ oxidation, that is, ¹⁵NOx⁻. Field studies in the North Pacific revealed that ¹⁵NOx⁻ in the end-product was sensitive enough to detect AO's grazing rates. Experiments from the lower euphotic zone showed NH4⁺ replete growth rates of 0.40 …

Design Of Multi-Objective Optimization Algorithms For Vlsi Floor Planning, Srinivasan B

Theses and Dissertations

VLSI floorplanning is a key design step that determines the optimal placement of circuit modules to minimize chip area, wire length, and heat generation. Existing swarm intelligence–based metaheuristics improve area and wire length but often ignore thermal effects.

To address this, the Multi-Objective Firefly Optimization–based Floorplanning (MOFO-FP) technique is introduced, using a Heat-Aware Firefly Optimization (HAFO) algorithm that minimizes heat, space, and wire length under fixed outline constraints. Each firefly represents a floorplan, with brightness indicating solution quality; dimmer fireflies move toward brighter ones to find optimal placements.

A second method, the Hybridized Multicriteria Ant Colony and …

Why We Should Stop Talking About Violent Offenders: Storytelling And Decarceration, Mira Edmonds

Articles

The movement to decarcerate risks foundering because of its failure to grapple with so-called violent offenders, who make up nearly half of U.S. prisoners. The treatment of people serving sentences for offenses categorized as violent is a primary reason for the continued problem of mass incarceration, despite widespread awareness of the phenomenon and significant bipartisan interest in its reduction. People convicted of “violent offenses” are serving historically anomalous and excessively long sentences, are generally denied clemency and compassionate release, and are excluded from a wide array of legal reform and policy changes with decarceral aims. Keeping these people in prison …

Neonatal Pain Identification From Neonatal Facial Expressions, Ghadh Alzamzmi, Dmitry Goldgof, Rangachar Kasturi, Terri Ashmeade, Yu Sun, Rahul Paul, Md Sirajus Salekin

USF Patents

A Neonatal CNN (N-CNN) is provided for detecting neonatal pain emotion based upon facial recognition. A cascaded N-CNN is trained using a Neonatal Pain Assessment Database (NPAD) to automatically identify a neonatal patient experience pain in real-time. These results show that the automatic recognition of neonatal pain provided by the embodiments of the present invention is a viable and more efficient alternative to the current standard of pain assessment.

Experiences Of Community College Stem Students In Transferring And Adapting To A Four-Year Urban University, Mackenzie Jade Gray

Dissertations and Theses

Ensuring that the bachelor's degree pathway that begins at a community college is a robust option for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) students will be key for addressing the calls to increase and diversify the future STEM workforce. Yet, students on this pathway currently face many structural barriers that can lead to attrition. In this work, we aim to understand the experiences of community college students as they transfer, adapt, and persist to graduation at an urban four-year university.

First, we used the Model for Analyzing Human Adaptation to Transition to explore the experiences of community college STEM students …

Discovering Ina Jane Doe, Beth Potier

UNH Today Archive

No abstract provided.

Synovial Fluid Inflammatory Profiles Did Not Differ Between Isolated Anterior Cruciate Ligament And Multi-Ligament Knee Injuries, Cale A. Jacobs, Robert C. Schenck Jr., Leorrie A. Watson, Caitlin E.W. Conley, Darren L. Johnson, Austin V. Stone, Christian Lattermann, Dustin L. Richter

Western Journal of Orthopaedics

Background: Postoperative arthrofibrosis is more common following surgical treatment of multi-ligament knee injury (MLKI) than isolated anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. It has been proposed that the increased prevalence of postoperative arthrofibrosis after MLKIs may be due to increased inflammation secondary to greater trauma to the joint. The purpose of this study was to compare synovial concentrations of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines between patients with MLKI and ACL injuries.

Methods: Synovial fluid was aspirated from the operative knee at the time of surgery from 14 patients with MLKI and 10 patients with isolated ACL injury. Structures injured, the time between …

Full Issue, Arianna Medina

Western Journal of Orthopaedics

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of Divided Attention Tasks On Stress: Insights From Heart Rate Variability And Galvanic Skin Response, Kira Stefanie Uluave

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the impact of divided attention tasks on stress using physiologic measures. The divided attention conditions included speech tasks (conversation or procedural discourse) and non-speech computer-based tasks (visuospatial, mathematical, language, data entry, or text editing). Participants included 60 adults divided into two groups of 30 by age. The young adult group ranged in age from 18-30 years and the older adults ranged from 55-82 years. Participants were required to perform the speech task and the non-speech task in isolation as well as a speech task performed concurrently with each of the non-speech tasks. The order of the tasks …

Dissecting The Potential Mechanisms Of Histone Deacetylase 1 Dependent Macrophage Phagocytosis Of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis, Owusu A. Christian

Biotechnology Theses

Histone deacetylases (HDACs) mediate the removal of acetyl groups from the histones of chromatin and regulate the expression of the genes involved in cancer development and immune cell functions. Our previous study showed that HDAC2 enhances IL-1β production by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) infected macrophages by promoting inflammasome activation. HDAC1, on the other hand, regulates macrophage phagocytosis of Mtb. However, the mechanisms by which HDAC1 controls macrophage phagocytosis remain unclear.

Using human monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) and Mtb strains, we explore the mechanism of HDAC1 in macrophage phagocytosis of Mtb. Our results showed that blocking HDAC1, either chemically or genetically, …

The Janus Kinase 1 Is Critical For Pancreatic Cancer Initiation And Progression, Hridaya Shrestha, Patrick Rädler, Rayane Dennaoui, Madison Wicker, Nirakar Rajbhandari, Yunguang Sun, Amy Peck, Kerry Vistisen, Aleata Triplett, Rafic Beydoun, Esta Sterneck, Dieter Saur, Hallgeir Rui, Kay-Uwe Wagner

Department of Pharmacology, Physiology, and Cancer Biology Faculty Papers

Interleukin-6 (IL-6)-class inflammatory cytokines signal through the Janus tyrosine kinase (JAK)/signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) pathway and promote the development of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC); however, the functions of specific intracellular signaling mediators in this process are less well defined. Using a ligand-controlled and pancreas-specific knockout in adult mice, we demonstrate in this study that JAK1 deficiency prevents the formation of KRAS^G12D-induced pancreatic tumors, and we establish that JAK1 is essential for the constitutive activation of STAT3, whose activation is a prominent characteristic of PDAC. We identify CCAAT/enhancer binding protein δ (C/EBPδ) as a biologically relevant …

Front Matter, Arianna Medina

Western Journal of Orthopaedics

No abstract provided.

Loss Of Lpar6 And Cab39l Dysregulates The Basal-To-Luminal Urothelial Differentiation Program, Contributing To Bladder Carcinogenesis, Sangkyou Lee, Jolanta Bondaruk, Yishan Wang, Huiqin Chen, June Goo Lee, Tadeusz Majewski, Rachel D Mullen, David Cogdell, Jiansong Chen, Ziqiao Wang, Hui Yao, Pawel Kus, Joon Jeong, Ilkyun Lee, Woonyoung Choi, Neema Navai, Charles Guo, Colin Dinney, Keith Baggerly, Cathy Mendelsohn, David Mcconkey, Richard R Behringer, Marek Kimmel, Peng Wei, Bogdan Czerniak

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

We describe a strategy that combines histologic and molecular mapping that permits interrogation of the chronology of changes associated with cancer development on a whole-organ scale. Using this approach, we present the sequence of alterations around RB1 in the development of bladder cancer. We show that RB1 is not involved in initial expansion of the preneoplastic clone. Instead, we found a set of contiguous genes that we term "forerunner" genes whose silencing is associated with the development of plaque-like field effects initiating carcinogenesis. Specifically, we identified five candidate forerunner genes (ITM2B, LPAR6, MLNR, CAB39L, and ARL11) mapping near RB1. Two …

Thbs1 Regulates Skeletal Muscle Mass In A Tgfβ-Smad2/3-Atf4-Dependent Manner, Davy Vanhoutte, Tobias G Schips, Rachel A Minerath, Jiuzhou Huo, Naga Swathi Sree Kavuri, Vikram Prasad, Suh-Chin Lin, Michael J Bround, Michelle A Sargent, Christopher M Adams, Jeffery D Molkentin

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Loss of muscle mass is a feature of chronic illness and aging. Here, we report that skeletal muscle-specific thrombospondin-1 transgenic mice (Thbs1 Tg) have profound muscle atrophy with age-dependent decreases in exercise capacity and premature lethality. Mechanistically, Thbs1 activates transforming growth factor β (TGFβ)-Smad2/3 signaling, which also induces activating transcription factor 4 (ATF4) expression that together modulates the autophagy-lysosomal pathway (ALP) and ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS) to facilitate muscle atrophy. Indeed, myofiber-specific inhibition of TGFβ-receptor signaling represses the induction of ATF4, normalizes ALP and UPS, and partially restores muscle mass in Thbs1 Tg mice. Similarly, myofiber-specific deletion of Smad2 and Smad3 …

The Biology Of The Facultative Halophyte Atriplex Patula L., Richard Stalter, Robert I. Lonard

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences (Formerly Dept. of Biology)

Atriplex patula L. is a facultative halophyte that tolerates low to moderate levels of salinity and occurs on the margins of coastal salt marshes, roadsides, in agricultural fields, and in other areas where disturbance has occurred. The genus Atriplex L. is represented by about 250 species globally and has recently been included in the family Amaranthaceae subfamily Chenopodioidae. Atriplex patula was possibly introduced in North America from Europe, Asia or North Africa in the 18th century. Because the stems and leaves accumulate and store heavy metal pollutants, A. patula has been suggested for use in habitat remediation.

So, You Think You Can Lead? A Study On The Emotional Intelligence Of Female District Leaders Of K-12 Education, Meocha Williams

Online Theses and Dissertations

Have you ever encountered a leader who just had the “it” factor? They always knew the right thing to do, and it almost felt like they could read the minds of others and anticipate their needs? What if I told you that these are also things that can be learned and strengthened within oneself based on the emotional intelligence framework? Research has shown for years the strong link that exists between emotional intelligence and impactful leadership. Though the research is strong in outlining organizational impacts in all settings, including education, there is still limited research on how this learned trait …

Hairry Potter World: Are Gel And Oil The Sorcerers Magic To Altering External Cocaine And Be Concentrations In Hair, Esther Abady

Student Theses

Hair external contamination poses significant challenges to the interpretation of hair testing results. Previous studies have shown that cosmetic hair treatments can reduce the concentration of drugs already present in the hair shaft. However, the impact of these treatments on externally deposited drugs remains largely unexplored. This study aimed to investigate how gel and oil treatments affect external contamination by cocaine and benzoylecgonine. Fifteen authentic hair samples, with various colors and textures, were collected from volunteers and confirmed negative for cocaine and benzoylecgonine using a fully validated LC-MS/MS method. Each sample was divided into three groups: Group A underwent a …

Dna-Templated Nanofabrication Of Metal-Semiconductor Heterojunctions And Their Electrical Characterization, Chao Pang

Theses and Dissertations

Bottom-up nanofabrication, although still in its early stages with formidable challenges, is considered a potential alternative method to address the limitations of traditional top-down techniques by offering benefits including process simplification, cost reduction, and environmental friendliness. DNA-templated nanofabrication, one of the most powerful bottom-up methods, presents an innovative way to create advanced nanoelectronics. In this approach, nanomaterials with specific electronic, photonic, or other functions are precisely and programmably positioned on DNA nanostructures from a disordered collection of smaller parts. These self-assembled structures offer significant potential for improving many fields such as biosensing, drug delivery and electronic device manufacturing. This dissertation …

Influence Of Social Media On Mothers' Decision-Making Regarding Vaccinations, Wendy M. Patterson

Dissertations

This study involved determining why mothers hesitate to vaccinate their children and where they get their information about vaccinations. This descriptive qualitative study guided by the health belief model explored the influence social media has on mothers' perceived barriers to vaccinating their children. A descriptive qualitative approach was used, and one-on-one audio interviews were conducted via Zoom or in person with 19 participants. Participants were mothers 19 or older, had children between zero and 18, made medical decisions for their children who resided in their household, and sought information about vaccinations via healthcare providers, social media platforms, friends, or family. …

Genis, June, Sophia Maier Garcia

Bronx Jewish History Project

Summarizer: Sophia Maier

June Genis lived in the Bronx from the time she was three years old until she left for college in 1963. When he father, who had been a dentist, passed away, Genis and her mother moved to Creston Avenue and 192^nd Street near Fordham Road and the Grand Concourse to be closer to her family. At the time, the area was predominantly Jewish, with some Irish and Italians. They were surrounded by major shopping areas on Fordham and Kingsbridge Roads, and across the street from St. James park where Genis played as a child. Starting in …

Nature Of The Evidence Base And Approaches To Guide Nutrition Interventions For Individuals: A Position Paper From The Academy Of Nutrition Sciences, Mary Hickson, Constantina Papoutsakis, Angela M Madden, Mary Anne Smith, Kevin Whelan

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

This Position Paper from the Academy of Nutrition Sciences is the third in a series which describe the nature of the scientific evidence and frameworks that underpin nutrition recommendations for health. This paper focuses on evidence which guides the application of dietary recommendations for individuals. In some situations, modified nutrient intake becomes essential to prevent deficiency, optimise development and health, or manage symptoms and disease progression. Disease and its treatment can also affect taste, appetite and ability to access and prepare foods, with associated financial impacts. Therefore, the practice of nutrition and dietetics must integrate and apply the sciences of …

Aye! In House Meeting: Black Masculinity Within Musical Media, Daniel Killins

Research Papers

Music videos have a way of leaving memories in people, especially music lovers. Music videos are creative marketing tools for artists, bands, or groups to promote new music to their respective markets. However, how artists represent themselves, especially when it comes to marginalized populations, can be more critical than others when those who are marginalized are judged against hegemonic standards. When the intersections of Black, male, and gay collide in a music video study, how do Black males view Black male artists when their sexual orientations are not the same? This qualitative study explored how fifteen (15) participants defined Black …

Investigating The Relationship Between Hypoxia, Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1, And The Optical Redox Ratio In Response To Radiation Therapy, Jesse D. Ivers, Nagavenkatasai Puvvada, Charles M. Quick, Narasimhan Rajaram

Biomedical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Significance

Radiation resistance is a major contributor to cancer treatment failure and is likely driven by multiple pathways. Multivariate visualization that preserves the spatial co-localization of factors could aid in understanding mechanisms of resistance and identifying biomarkers of response.

Aim

We aim to investigate the spatial and temporal relationship between hypoxia, hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1α), and metabolism in response to radiation therapy in two cell lines of known radiation resistance and sensitivity.

Approach

Two-photon excited fluorescence and fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy were used to quantify the optical redox ratio (ORR) and NAD(P)H fluorescent lifetime and bound fraction in frozen tumor …

Bans Beyond Borders: Entrenching Out-Of-State Abortion Bans And California’S Attempt To Shield Its Medical Providers From Liability, Anja Alexander

Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review

Since the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization opinion stripped U.S. citizens of the constitutional right to obtain pre-viability abortions, individual states have been vested with the power to regulate the procedure within their borders. As a result, many states have banned early-term abortions, while some have drafted bans that at-tempt to extend beyond their borders, aiming to impede the ability of their citizens to travel to other states and obtain the procedure where it is legal. These confusing and intentionally vague abortion bans have had a chilling effect on health care throughout the United States as medical professionals fear …

Enhancing Experience Through The Integration Of Demonstrations And Simulations, Michael Mckenzie, Amy Mckenzie

Teaching Online Pedagogical Repository

This strategy utilizes demonstrations and simulations in an online environment to improve student engagement. It first explains the literature behind demonstrations/simulations and then provides the reader with a plan to implement and examples to reference.

Investigation Of Volatility, Composition, And Gas-Particle Phase Partitioning Of Atmospheric Organic Compounds Through Novel Instrumentation And Techniques, Karolina Cysneiros De Carvalho

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

Atmospheric aerosols are ubiquitous indoors and outdoors and their impact on human life on Earth is extensive. Aerosol particles scatter and absorb solar radiation, are key in the formation of clouds and precipitation, and can affect the abundance and distribution of greenhouse and atmospheric trace gases by physicochemical multiphase processes, thus they play an important role in regulating regional and global climate. On the other hand, poor indoor and outdoor air quality associated with high particulate matter (PM) levels is among the leading health risks worldwide, affecting life quality and expectancy by increasing the risk of cancer, cardiovascular and respiratory …

Astrocytic Slc4a4 Regulates Blood-Brain Barrier Integrity In Healthy And Stroke Brains Via A Ccl2-Ccr2 Pathway And No Dysregulation, Qi Ye, Juyeon Jo, Chih-Yen Wang, Heavin Oh, Jiangshan Zhan, Tiffany J Choy, Kyoung In Kim, Angelo D'Alessandro, Yana K Reshetnyak, Sung Yun Jung, Zheng Chen, Sean P Marrelli, Hyun Kyoung Lee

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Astrocytes play vital roles in blood-brain barrier (BBB) maintenance, yet how they support BBB integrity under normal or pathological conditions remains poorly defined. Recent evidence suggests that ion homeostasis is a cellular mechanism important for BBB integrity. In the current study, we investigated the function of an astrocyte-specific pH regulator, Slc4a4, in BBB maintenance and repair. We show that astrocytic Slc4a4 is required for normal astrocyte morphological complexity and BBB function. Multi-omics analyses identified increased astrocytic secretion of CCL2 coupled with dysregulated arginine-NO metabolism after Slc4a4 deletion. Using a model of ischemic stroke, we found that loss of Slc4a4 exacerbates …

Pulmonary Hypertension And Hyperglycemia-Not A Sweet Combination, Or Bruck, L M Pandit

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Hyperglycemia and pulmonary hypertension (PH) share common pathological pathways that lead to vascular dysfunction and resultant cardiovascular complications. These shared pathologic pathways involve endothelial dysfunction, inflammation, oxidative stress, and hormonal imbalances. Individuals with hyperglycemia or pulmonary hypertension also possess shared clinical factors that contribute to increased morbidity from both diseases. This review aims to explore the relationship between PH and hyperglycemia, highlighting the mechanisms underlying their association and discussing the clinical implications. Understanding these common pathologic and clinical factors will enable early detection for those at-risk for complications from both diseases, paving the way for improved research and targeted therapeutics.

Cosmetic Penile Enhancement Procedures: An Smsna Position Statement, Landon Trost, Daniel N Watter, Serge Carrier, Mohit Khera, Faysal A Yafi, Helen L Bernie, Matthew Ziegelmann, Tobias Köhler

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Penile cosmetic enhancement procedures have been performed for many years with varying success. However, they have historically been relegated to niche areas of sexual medicine, with limited data, and have not achieved mainstream adoption. More recently, the topic has been increasingly discussed within academic congresses due to availability of novel techniques, therapies, and procedures. Given their distinctive nature, the Sexual Medicine Society of North America (SMSNA) felt that it was pertinent to develop formal position statements to help guide both patients and sexual medicine providers on the current state of the scientific literature and to give recommendations for future …

Induced Cd8Α Identifies Human Nk Cells With Enhanced Proliferative Fitness And Modulates Nk Cell Activation, Celia C. Cubitt, Pamela Wong, Hannah K. Dorando, Jennifer A. Foltz, Jennifer Tran, Lynne Marsala, Nancy D. Marin, Mark Foster, Timothy Schappe, Hijab Fatima, Michelle Becker-Hapak, Alice Y. Zhou, Kimberly Hwang, Miriam T. Jacobs, David A. Russler-Germain, Emily M. Mace, Melissa M. Berrien-Elliott, Jacqueline E. Payton, Todd A. Fehniger

2020-Current year OA Pubs

The surface receptor CD8α is present on 20%-80% of human (but not mouse) NK cells, yet its function on NK cells remains poorly understood. CD8α expression on donor NK cells was associated with a lack of therapeutic responses in patients with leukemia in prior studies, thus, we hypothesized that CD8α may affect critical NK cell functions. Here, we discovered that CD8α- NK cells had improved control of leukemia in xenograft models compared with CD8α+ NK cells, likely due to an enhanced capacity for proliferation. Unexpectedly, we found that CD8α expression was induced on approximately 30% of previously CD8α- NK cells …