Digital Commons Network^™

The Somalia Affair And The Transformation Of Canadian Military Justice, Preston Lim

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Treatment Preference And Quality Of Life Impact: Ravulizumab Vs Eculizumab For Atypical Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome, Teri J Mauch, Michael R Chladek, Spero Cataland, Shruti Chaturvedi, Bradley P Dixon, Katherine Garlo, Christoph Gasteyger, Anuja Java, Jorge Leguizamo, Lucy Lloyd-Price, Tan P Pham, Tara Symonds, Ioannis Tomazos, Yan Wang

2020-Current year OA Pubs

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of Fibre Cell Remodelling On The Power And Optical Quality Of The Lens, J Rodriguez, Q Tan, H Šikić, L A. Taber, S Bassnett

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Vertebrate eye lenses are uniquely adapted to form a refractive index gradient (GRIN) for improved acuity, and to grow slowly in size despite constant cell proliferation. The mechanisms behind these adaptations remain poorly understood. We hypothesize that cell compaction contributes to both. To test this notion, we examined the relationship between lens size and shape, refractive characteristics and the cross-sectional areas of constituent fibre cells in mice of different ages. We developed a block-face imaging method to visualize cellular cross sections and found that the cross-sectional areas of fibre cells rose and then decreased over time, with the most significant …

Fluorescence-Guided Surgical System Using Holographic Display: From Phantom Studies To Canine Patients, Mebin B. George, Benjamin Lew, Zuodong Liang, Steven Blair, Zhongmin Zhu, Nan Cui, Jamie Ludwig, Mohamed Zayed, Laura Selmic, Viktor Gruev

2020-Current year OA Pubs

SIGNIFICANCE: Holographic display technology is a promising area of research that can lead to significant advancements in cancer surgery. We present the benefits of combining bioinspired multispectral imaging technology with holographic goggles for fluorescence-guided cancer surgery. Through a series of experiments with 43D-printed phantoms, small animal models of cancer, and surgeries on canine patients with head and neck cancer, we showcase the advantages of this holistic approach.

AIM: The aim of our study is to demonstrate the feasibility and potential benefits of utilizing holographic display for fluorescence-guided surgery through a series of experiments involving 3D-printed phantoms and canine patients with …

Computation Of High-Order Sensitivities Of Model Responses To Model Parameters—I: Underlying Motivation And Current Methods, Dan Gabriel Cacuci

Faculty Publications

The mathematical/computational model of a physical system comprises parameters and independent and dependent variables. Since the physical system is seldom known precisely and since the model’s parameters stem from experimental procedures that are also subject to uncertainties, the results predicted by a computational model are imperfect. Quantifying the reliability and accuracy of results produced by a model (called “model responses”) requires the availability of sensitivities (i.e., functional partial derivatives) of model responses with respect to model parameters. This work reviews the basic motivations for computing high-order sensitivities and illustrates their importance by means of an OECD/NEA reactor physics benchmark, which …

Computation Of High-Order Sensitivities Of Model Responses To Model Parameters—Ii: Introducing The Second-Order Adjoint Sensitivity Analysis Methodology For Computing Response Sensitivities To Functions/Features Of Parameters, Dan Gabriel Cacuci

Faculty Publications

This work introduces a new methodology, which generalizes the extant second-order adjoint sensitivity analysis methodology for computing sensitivities of model responses to primary model parameters. This new methodology enables the computation, with unparalleled efficiency, of second-order sensitivities of responses to functions of uncertain model parameters, including uncertain boundaries and internal interfaces, for linear and/or nonlinear models. Such functions of primary model parameters customarily describe characteristic “features” of the system under consideration, including correlations modeling material properties, flow regimes, etc. The number of such “feature” functions is considerably smaller than the total number of primary model parameters. By enabling the computations …

Isolation Of Tumour-Reactive Lymphocytes From Peripheral Blood Via Microfluidic Immunomagnetic Cell Sorting, Zongjie Wang, Sharif Ahmed, Mahmoud Labib, Hansen Wang, Licun Wu, Fatemeh Bavaghar-Zaeimi, Nastaran Shokri, Soraly Blanco, Saraf Karim, Kasia Czarnecka-Kujawa, Edward H. Sargent, A. J.Robert Mcgray, Marc De Perrot, Shana O. Kelley

Peninsula Medical School

The clinical use of tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes for the treatment of solid tumours is hindered by the need to obtain large and fresh tumour fractions, which is often not feasible in patients with unresectable tumours or recurrent metastases. Here we show that circulating tumour-reactive lymphocytes (cTRLs) can be isolated from peripheral blood at high yield and purity via microfluidic immunomagnetic cell sorting, allowing for comprehensive downstream analyses of these rare cells. We observed that CD103 is strongly expressed by the isolated cTRLs, and that in mice with subcutaneous tumours, tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes isolated from the tumours and rapidly expanded CD8+CD103+ cTRLs isolated …

Aquatic Peptide: The Potential Anti-Cancer And Anti-Microbial Activity Of Ge18 Derived From Pathogenic Fungus Aphanomyces Invadans, Manikandan Velayutham, P. Snega Priya, Purabi Sarkar, Raghul Murugan, Bader O. Almutairi, Selvaraj Arokiyaraj, Zulhisyam Abdul Kari, Guillermo Tellez-Isaias, Ajay Guru, Jesu Arockiaraj

Poultry Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Small molecules as well as peptide-based therapeutic approaches have attracted global interest due to their lower or no toxicity in nature, and their potential in addressing several health complications including immune diseases, cardiovascular diseases, metabolic disorders, osteoporosis and cancer. This study proposed a peptide, GE18 of subtilisin-like peptidase from the virulence factor of aquatic pathogenic fungus Aphanomyces invadans, which elicits anti-cancer and anti-microbial activities. To understand the potential GE18 peptide-induced biological effects, an in silico analysis, in vitro (L6 cells) and in vivo toxicity assays (using zebrafish embryo), in vitro anti-cancer assays and anti-microbial assays were performed. The outcomes of …

Kidney Health And Function With Left Ventricular Assist Devices

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Mechanical circulatory support (MCS) is a group of evolving therapies used for indications ranging from temporary support during a cardiac procedure to permanent treatment of advanced heart failure. MCS is primarily used to support left ventricle function, in which case the devices are termed left ventricular assist devices (LVADs). Kidney dysfunction is common in patients requiring these devices, yet the impact of MCS itself on kidney health in many settings remains uncertain.

RECENT FINDINGS: Kidney dysfunction can manifest in many different forms in patients requiring MCS. It can be because of preexisting systemic disorders, acute illness, procedural …

Myths And Methodologies: Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing For Surgical Risk Stratification In Patients With An Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm; Balancing Risk Over Benefit, Michael H Lewis, Ahmed Abd Aldayem, Chistopher P Twine, Wael Awad, Matti Jubouri, Idhrees Mohammed, Carlos A Mestres, Edward P Chen, Joseph S Coselli, Ian M Williams, Mohamad Bashir, International Academic Surgical Consortium (Thalamus)

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

The extent to which patients with an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) should exercise remains unclear, given theoretical concerns over the perceived risk of blood pressure-induced rupture, which is often catastrophic. This is especially pertinent during cardiopulmonary exercise testing, when patients are required to perform incremental exercise to symptom-limited exhaustion for the determination of cardiorespiratory fitness. This multimodal metric is being used increasingly as a complementary diagnostic tool to inform risk stratification and subsequent management of patients undergoing AAA surgery. In this review, we bring together a multidisciplinary group of physiologists, exercise scientists, anaesthetists, radiologists and surgeons to challenge the enduring …

The Transcription Factor Chrebp Links Mitochondrial Lipidomes To Mitochondrial Morphology And Progression Of Diabetic Kidney Disease, Naravat Poungavrin, Philip L Lorenzi, Iqbal Mahmud, Lin Tan, Pradip K Saha, Yashpal S Kanwar, Benny H Chang, Farhad R Danesh

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

A substantial body of evidence has established the contributions of both mitochondrial dynamics and lipid metabolism to the pathogenesis of diabetic kidney disease (DKD). However, the precise interplay between these two key metabolic regulators of DKD is not fully understood. Here, we uncover a link between mitochondrial dynamics and lipid metabolism by investigating the role of carbohydrate-response element-binding protein (ChREBP), a glucose-responsive transcription factor and a master regulator of lipogenesis, in kidney podocytes. We find that inducible podocyte-specific knockdown of ChREBP in diabetic db/db mice improves key biochemical and histological features of DKD in addition to significantly reducing mitochondrial fragmentation. …

A Novel Grk3-Hdac2 Regulatory Pathway Is A Key Direct Link Between Neuroendocrine Differentiation And Angiogenesis In Prostate Cancer Progression, Dayong Zheng, Mohit Hulsurkar, Michael Bakhoum, Ning Su, Han Yang, Tao Shen, Wenliang Li

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

The mechanisms underlying the progression of prostate cancer (PCa) to neuroendocrine prostate cancer (NEPC), an aggressive PCa variant, are largely unclear. Two prominent NEPC phenotypes are elevated NE marker expression and heightened angiogenesis. Identifying the still elusive direct molecular links connecting angiogenesis and neuroendocrine differentiation (NED) is crucial for our understanding and targeting of NEPC. Here we found that histone deacetylase 2 (HDAC2), whose role in NEPC has not been reported, is one of the most upregulated epigenetic regulators in NEPC. HDAC2 promotes both NED and angiogenesis. G protein-coupled receptor kinase 3 (GRK3), also upregulated in NEPC, is a critical …

Improving And Evaluating Performance Of The Proton Prediction System Through An Expanded Solar Proton Event Catalog, Samantha R. Howard

Theses and Dissertations

Solar energetic particles (SEPs) are especially high energy protons (≥ 5 or 10MeV kinetic energies) originating from the Sun that are known to have significant effects on space-based military operations. The Air Force’s current forecast model, the Proton Prediction System (PPS), forecasts less than half of SEP events that are observed, motivating the need for an update to the operational model. To develop the updated PPS model, PPS2.0, an expanded SEP catalog was produced, which includes 103 previously unidentified events and specification of the proton flux response above background levels or prior events. Event detection and source association were initially …

Pine-Tree Enables Efficient Enrichment Of Prime-Edited Hpscs, Mary S. Jia, Christopher E. Nelson

Biomedical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Commentary

PINE-TREE enables efficient enrichment of prime-edited hPSCs

Simulations Of Laser-Driven Strong-Field Qed With Ptarmigan: Resolving Wavelength-Scale Interference And Γ-Ray Polarization, T. G. Blackburn, B. King, S. Tang

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Accurate modeling is necessary to support precision experiments investigating strong-field QED phenomena. This modeling is particularly challenging in the transition between the perturbative and nonperturbative regimes, where the normalized laser amplitude a0 is comparable to unity and wavelength-scale interference is significant. Here, we describe how to simulate nonlinear Compton scattering, Breit–Wheeler pair creation, and trident pair creation in this regime, using the Monte Carlo particle-tracking code Ptarmigan. This code simulates collisions between high-intensity lasers and beams of electrons or γ rays, primarily in the framework of the locally monochromatic approximation. We benchmark our simulation results against full QED calculations for …

Analysis And Modeling Of Early Estradiol-Induced Greb1 Single Allele Gene Transcription At The Population Level, Ayse Koksoy, Michael A Mancini, Fabio Stossi, Robert Azencott

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Single molecule fluorescence in situ hybridization (smFISH) can be used to visualize transcriptional activation at the single allele level. We and others have applied this approach to better understand the mechanisms of activation by steroid nuclear receptors. However, there is limited understanding of the interconnection between the activation of target gene alleles inside the same nucleus and within large cell populations.

Using the GREB1 gene as an early estrogen receptor (ER) response target, we applied smFISH to track E2-activated GREB1 allelic transcription over early time points to evaluate potential dependencies between alleles within the same nucleus. We compared two types …

Experimental And Numerical Investigation On Thermal Properties Of Alkali-Activated Concrete At Elevated Temperatures, Min Yu, Hanjie Lin, Tan Wang, Feiyu Shi, Dawang Li, Yin Chi, L-Y Li

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

his paper presents the experimental and numerical investigation on the thermal properties of steel fibre-reinforced alkali-activated concrete (AAC) made by using multiple precursors at elevated temperatures. The temperature-dependent thermal properties such as mass change, thermal conductivity, density, specific heat, and thermal expansion are reported. The effects of temperature heating AAC, coarse aggregate, and steel fibre on the thermal performance of AAC are evaluated quantitatively. Experimental results show that high temperature greatly affects the thermal properties of AAC. Coarse aggregate and steel fibre also have a considerable influence on the thermal properties. Based on the test results, a multi-phase mesoscale model …

Challenges In Estimating The Effectiveness Of 2 Doses Of Covid-19 Vaccine Beyond 6 Months In England, Elsie M.F. Horne, William J. Hulme, Ruth H. Keogh, Tom M. Palmer, Elizabeth J. Williamson, Edward P.K. Parker, Venexia M. Walker, Rochelle Knight, Yinghui Wei, Kurt Taylor, Louis Fisher, Jessica Morley, Amir Mehrkar, Iain Dillingham, Sebastian Bacon, Ben Goldacre, Jonathan A.C. Sterne

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Understanding how the effectiveness of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine changes over time and in response to new severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants is crucial to scheduling subsequent doses. In a previous study, Horne et al. (1) quantified vaccine effectiveness (VE) over 6 consecutive 4-week periods from 2 weeks to 26 weeks after the second dose. Waning of hazard ratios (HRs) when comparing vaccinated persons with unvaccinated persons was approximately log-linear over time and was consistent across COVID-19– related outcomes and risk-based subgroups. To investigate waning beyond 26 weeks and in the era of the Omicron variant, …

Strong-Field Vacuum Polarisation With High Energy Lasers, A. J. Macleod, J. P. Edwards, T. Heinzl, B. King, S. V. Bulanov

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

When photons propagate in vacuum they may fluctuate into matter pairs thus allowing the vacuum to be polarised. This linear effect leads to charge screening and renormalisation. When exposed to an intense background field a nonlinear effect can arise when the vacuum is polarised by higher powers of the background. This nonlinearity breaks the superposition principle of classical electrodynamics, allowing for light-by-light scattering of probe and background photons mediated through virtual pairs dressed by the background. Vacuum polarisation is a strong-field effect when all orders of interaction between the virtual pair and the background must be taken into account. In …

Dual-Site Photoplethysmography Sensing For Noninvasive Continuous-Time Blood Pressure Monitoring Using Artificial Neural Network, Anas Mohmmad Rabab’Ah

Theses

Millions of people worldwide struggle from high blood pressure, often known as hypertension, and it is a major health concern that can lead to serious cardiovascular diseases, including heart attacks and many other consequences. Blood pressure monitoring that is reliable and accurate is crucial to the detection and management of hypertension. Although invasive techniques, such as arterial catheterization, are considered to be the most accurate means of evaluating blood pressure, they can be painful, time-consuming and carry a risk of complications.
/="/">This thesis presents the development of a real time non-invasive blood pressure monitoring system based on commercially available …

Translating The Hobbit (2023) By Mark T. Hooker, Arden R. Smith

Journal of Tolkien Research

Book review, by Arden R. Smith, of Translating The Hobbit (2023) by Mark T. Hooker

Scour Mitigation At Bridge Abutments Using Spur Dikes, Dina Hamdy Mustafa Mustafa Al Sirtasy, Hossam Abd El-Aziz Ahmed Abd El-Gawad, Mohamed T. Shamaa

Mansoura Engineering Journal

One of the main reasons for bridge failure is local scour at the bridge abutments. Laboratory experiments, under clear water scour condition, were carried out to investigate scour reduction around the vertical bridge abutment by adding one upstream spur dike. Sand with a median and standard deviation of diameter equal to 0.80 mm and 2.173 mm respectively, formed the bed material. Three different stages of spur dikes with varying sets as: 1) distances from the abutment (6 sets), 2) orientation angles (4 sets), and 3) lengths (3 sets), were considered. Effects of all spur dikes are studied with respect to …

Dicamba Off-Target Movement From Applications On Soybeans At Two Growth Stages, Greg R. Kruger, Guilherme S. Alves, Kasey Schroeder, Jeffrey A. Golus, Daniel B. Reynolds, Darrin M. Dodds, Ashli E. Brown, Bradley K. Fritz, Wesley C. Hoffmann

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

The objective of this study was to evaluate dicamba off-target movement during and after applications over soybean at two growth stages. Dicamba-tolerant soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] at V3 and R1 growth stages in Nebraska and Mississippi fields were treated with diglycolamine salt of dicamba (560 g ae ha⁻¹), potassium salt of glyphosate (1260 g ae ha⁻¹), and a drift-reducing adjuvant (0.5% v v⁻¹). Filter papers positioned outside the sprayed area were used to determine primary movement and air samplers positioned at the center of sprayed area were used to calculate dicamba flux …

Author-Specific Prefix-Tuning For Personalization Of Large Language Models, Elizabeth A Hutton

Defensive Publications Series

This article outlines a novel approach to the personalization of large language model (LLM) outputs to an individual writer in an artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted writing application without the need for fine-tuning or prompt-engineering. With this approach, an individual’s writing style may be encoded through a compact, learned model which maps writing samples to an "author-embedding" which may be prepended to the input of an LLM (in the manner of prefix-tuning) to steer the model to generate content in the writing style of that individual. The presented techniques involve several processing steps, including the selection of an optimal subset of an …

Covid-19 Disease Characterization And Outcomes Comparison In Pediatrics, Rachel Rowland, Abigail Schauble, Brendon Cornett

HCA Healthcare Journal of Medicine

Background

It has been reported that children experience less severe COVID-19 symptoms than adults; however, the literature that supports this idea is evolving. The purpose of this study was to retrospectively characterize hospitalized COVID-19-positive pediatric patients with a focus on the assessment of risk factors for poorer outcomes, mortality, and evaluation of interventions utilized and associated clinical outcomes.

Methods

We conducted a multi-center retrospective chart review of patients 18 years old or younger who were COVID-19 positive and admitted to any US HCA Healthcare Pediatric service line between January 1, 2020, and November 30, 2020. We identified 6081 children across …

The Mediating Effect Of Covid 19 - Pandemic On The Nexus Between Accounting Information Systems Reliability And E-Commerce: From The Perception Of Documentary Credit Employees, Ali M. Alrabei

Information Sciences Letters

In this paper, we discuss the mediating effect of COVID 19 - pandemic on the nexus between accounting information systems reliability and e-commerce: from the perception of documentary credit employees. To test this nexus, a 38-item questionnaire was developed and sent to respondents who are working in the documentary credit department at Jordanian commercial banks. Only 230 questionnaires were returned. The findings show a positive and significant nexus between Accounting Information System Reliability (Security, Availability, Processing Integrity, Privacy, and Confidentiality) and e-commerce. And also, the results of regression illustrated that COVID 19 has a mediating effect in the nexus between …

Effect Of Human Resource Management Practices On Mobilization Behavior Mediating Role Of Procedural Justice, Rashed Alshareef

Information Sciences Letters

The goal of this research was to determine the effect of HRM practices and the mediating role of Procedural justice on the mobilization behaviors of employees in the manufacturing sector. This study considered HRM practices those linked to human resources development of skills, evaluation and feedback on performance and information sharing. The study has descriptive-quantitative nature, using a structured questionnaire with 29 questions, carried through a random sample of 100 organizational employees. This study applied descriptive statistics and SEM techniques for the analysis of causal relationships. The results revealed that the hypothesis concerning the direct influence of competence development practices …

The Legal Aspects And The Enhanced Role Of Cybersecurity In Protecting The Electronic Voting Process In The Context Of Jordan Parliament Election Law No. (4) Of 2022, Mohmmad H. Aimajali, Mohamed F. Ghazwi, Faisal T. Alqudah, Medyen J. Almahasnah, Hakam H. Alajarmeh, Ala’ A. Masarweh

Information Sciences Letters

This study, entitled: The legal aspects and the enhanced role of cybersecurity in protecting the electronic voting process", dealt with the concept of the electronic voting process, in addition to the most important characteristics of that process, as well as highlighting the pros and cons related to the electronic voting system. Then, the researchers singled out a proposed approach for the electronic voting process in terms of the adopted mechanism and cyber protection in accordance with the provisions of the Jordanian Election Law No. (4) of 2022. At the end of the research, the researchers recommended activating the text of …

Finding The Optimal Shortest Path In Stochastic Networks Using The Markov Decision Process (Mdp), D. Al-Tayar, Z. Alisa

Information Sciences Letters

This work introduces new routing algorithms for stochastic networks. The problem addressed here considers multiple stochastic, time-dependent disruption levels on different links. This type of network makes routing decisions a challenging problem due to its stochastic nature. A novel Markov Decision Process (MDP) has been proposed and developed to handle the issue of multiple disruption levels (four levels were tested in this article). In addition, the developed approach has a hydride policy for the optimal path between two nodes depending on online and offline data and when to switch between them. A modelling framework that implements available online and offline …

Identification For Metabolism Profiles And Pharmacokinetic Studies Of Tradition Chinese Prescription Ji-Ming-San And Its Major Metabolites In Rats By Uhplc-Q-Tof-Ms/Ms And Uhplc-Ms/Ms, Cheng-Yang Hsieh, Ching-Chiung Wang, Lemmuel L. Tayo, Po-Wei Tsai, Chia-Jung Lee

Journal of Food and Drug Analysis

Ji-Ming-Shan (JMS) is a traditional prescription use for patients with rheumatism, tendons swelling, athlete's foot, diuresis and even gout. This study developed a rapid and sensitive method for the analysis of JMS chemical components in the Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) prescription and in the serum samples of rats which were administered with the herbal extract. Two mass spectrometric approaches were used namely Ultra-performance liquid chromatographyquadrupole time-of-flight-mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF-MS) method for the major metabolites of the JMS extract while Ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) was employed for the detection of the JMS metabolites in the sera of rats. It was …