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Elucidating The First Protective Mutation From Inherited Alzheimer’S Disease - Apolipoprotein E3 Christchurch (Apoe3ch) And Insights Into Apoe Ligand-Receptor Interactions, Yun Chen

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the major cause of dementia. An inherited form of AD (dominant inherited AD) starts much earlier in life, often in the fourth and fifth decade. A recent case report described an individual who was resistant to dominantly inherited AD caused by a PSEN1-E280A mutation and was a homozygous carrier of the APOE3 Christchurch (APOE3ch) variant. A clear separation between amyloid and tau pathology occurred in this unique AD case. However, whether APOE3ch contributed to the protective effect remains unclear. In this thesis, we generated a humanized APOE3ch knock-in mouse and crossed it to an amyloid-β (Aβ) …

Altered Disturbance Regimes And Novel Ecosystems: Understanding And Managing Ecosystem State Change In The Forest-Peatland Ecotone Of Western Patagonia, Kyla Sara Zaret

Dissertations and Theses

Altered fire regimes, combined with a warmer and drier climate, have been eroding the resilience of temperate rainforests and peatlands worldwide and leading to alternative post-fire vegetation communities. I used a social-ecological systems framework informed by theories of non-linear ecosystem dynamics on the one hand and political ecology and 'politics of scale' scholarship on the other to investigate, 1) the underlying causes of a shift in vegetation dominance from forests dominated by the conifer, Pilgerodendron uviferum, to peat-generating ecosystems dominated by the peat moss, Sphagnum magellanicum; and 2) what this means for the futures of local people's livelihoods …

The Impact Of Bariatric Surgery On Glutathione Synthesis In Individuals With Severe Obesity, Hong Chang Tan, Jean W Hsu, E Shyong Tai, Shaji Chacko, Jean-Paul Kovalik, Farook Jahoor

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Glycine is deficient in individuals with obesity but improves following bariatric surgery. Glycine deficiency could impair glutathione (GSH) synthesis and worsen oxidative stress. We examined the impact of obesity-associated glycine deficiency and bariatric surgery on GSH synthesis. Twenty-one participants with severe obesity and twenty-one healthy weight controls were recruited. [1,2-13C2] glycine was infused to measure the erythrocyte (RBC) GSH synthesis rate. Participants with obesity underwent bariatric surgery, and 19 were restudied six months post-surgery. Compared to healthy weight controls, individuals with obesity had significantly lower concentrations of RBC GSH (2.43 ± 0.23 vs. 2.63 ± 0.26 mmol/L, p < 0.01). However, there were no differences in GSH fractional synthesis rate [78.0 (51.4–123.7) vs. 76.9 (49.3–110.1) % pool/day, p = …

“Giving Up Their Dead”: _The Homecoming Of Beorhtnoth Beorhthelm’S Son_ And _A Sleep Of Prisoners_, Janet Brennan Croft

Journal of Tolkien Research

J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth Beorhthelm’s Son (published in 1953, though substantially written by 1945) is perhaps studied more frequently for its critical apparatus (the introduction on the Battle of Maldon titled “Beorhtnoth’s Death” and the postscript on ofermod) and as a source for Tolkien’s thoughts on war and heroism than as an actual play to be performed. Recently Tolkien’s own recording of the play, performing both voices and including sound effects, became more widely available, encouraging us to consider it AS a play again.

Christopher Fry’s A Sleep of Prisoners (1951) shares a number of characteristics with …

Development Of Advanced Ablative Carbon Phenolic Tps For Future Nasa Missions And Commercial Space, Matthew Gasch, Keith Peterson, Mairead Stackpoole, Ethiraj Venkatapathy, Greg Gonzales, Kyle Hendrickson

Small Satellite Conference

Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator (PICA) is a low-density carbon phenolic ablator that has been used as the planetary entry heatshield for several NASA missions since the late 90's. Its low density and efficient performance characteristics have proven effective for use from Discovery to Flagship class missions, from Sample Return missions such as Stardust, OSIRIS-REx to large Mars lander missions such as MSL and Mars 2020.

Continued development of a mass efficient, compliant version of PICA that use a carbon felt as the substrate will be presented. The felt based versions of PICA known as Conformal PICA (C-PICA) and Soft PICA …

Neuromorphic Star Tracking Using Monte Carlo Localization, Connor Gisburne, Alex Warren, Steven Allen, Michael Bantel, Justin James

Small Satellite Conference

Accurate attitude determination ensures precise payload sensor alignment and optimal solar panel positioning, enhancing data collection and power efficiency while ensuring stable orbit maintenance. The most accurate method of attitude determination is star tracking. Star trackers collect an image of a star field and utilize a catalog of known star positions to calculate the orientation of the system relative to the stars. The errors present in this method of attitude determination tend to be on the order of ten arcseconds or less. Using traditional collection techniques, attitude estimates can be provided at update rates of 1 to 10 Hz and …

Equatorial Low Earth Orbit (Eleo): An Orbital Incubator And Nursery, Siegfried Janson

Small Satellite Conference

Recent research has shown that Equatorial Low Earth Orbit (ELEO) below 500 km has an exceptionally low space radiation environment that is ideal for long-term space settlements. The pressure vessel itself provides enough radiation shielding to enable decades of on-orbit habitation for an individual without exceeding radiation safety limits. My calculations using SPENVIS show that a minimum radiation "Incubator" region exists between 24° inclination at 350 km altitude, which drops linearly with increasing altitude to 0° inclination at 550 km altitude. Silicon-based spacecraft electronics inside a 1-mm thick aluminum hull would have a trapped particle dose rate ~4 orders-of-magnitude lower …

Starling Formation-Flying Optical Experiment: Initial Operations And Flight Results, Justin Kruger, Simone D'Amico, Soon S. Hwang

Small Satellite Conference

This paper presents initial flight results for distributed optical angles-only navigation of a swarm of small spacecraft, conducted during the Starling Formation-Flying Optical Experiment (StarFOX). StarFOX is a core payload of the NASA Starling mission, which consists of four CubeSats launched in 2023. Angles-only methods apply inter-satellite bearing angles obtained by on-board cameras for navigation, increasing satellite autonomy and enabling new mission concepts. Nevertheless, prior flight demonstrations have only featured one observer and target and have relied upon a-priori target orbit knowledge for initialization, translational maneuvers to resolve target range, and external absolute orbit updates to maintain convergence. StarFOX overcomes …

Keeping The Peace: From Bosnia To The Sahel, Jack Fitzgerald

Capstone Collection

This research has looked to analysis both the evolution and nature of geopolitical conflicts over the past 30 years, and the parallel advancement of long-term humanitarian operations during that period. Long-term United Nations peacekeeping operations have evolved since the end of the Cold-War to be much more political and military in nature. The term humanitarian diplomat is a direct by-product of that evolution. In the first generation of UN peacekeepers, humanitarian actors on the ground were not called on to be political negotiators. However, in the post-Cold War era the role of peacekeeping has shifted to one of peacebuilding within …

Characterization And Far-Field Plume Analysis On The Het-X Hall Effect Thruster, Adrian Vicente, Dan Lev, Mitchell Walker, Nathan Rosenblad, Michael Holmes

Small Satellite Conference

The performance of the Earth Observant Inc. novel 600W Hall effect thruster prototype, designated HET-X, is characterized from 300 W to 1100 W at a facility operating pressure range of 7E-6 to 5E-7 Torr on xenon gas. The performance characterization includes time-resolved measurements of the discharge current oscillations during IVB mapping. A Faraday probe and retarding potential analyzer were used to measure the ion current density profile from −90° to +90° and the ion energy distribution function, respectively. The calculated beam divergence, current utilization, and voltage utilization efficiencies are 92.4%, 85.4%, and 93.6%. The thruster achieves a maximum performance of …

Automatic Data Processing On The Ground For The 6u Cubesat X-Ray Observatory Ninjasat, Naoyuki Ota, Tomoshi Takeda, Sota Watanabe, Arata Jujo, Amira Aoyama, Kaede Yamasaki, Satoko Iwata, Takuya Takahashi, Yuanhui Zhou, Keisuke Uchiyama, Yuto Yoshida, Syoki Hayashi, Toru Tamagawa, Takao Kitaguchi, Yo Kato, Tatehiro Mihara, Kentaro Taniguchi, Teruaki Enoto, Wataru Iwakiri, Masaki Numazawa, Hiroki Sato, Chin-Ping Hu, Hiromitsu Takahashi, Hirokazu Odaka, Tsubasa Tamba

Small Satellite Conference

NinjaSat is a 6U CubeSat X-ray observatory that observes time variations in X-ray flux through longterm monitoring of black holes or neutron stars and performs follow-up observations of unexpected objects discovered by other observatories. NinjaSat is equipped with gas X-ray detectors (GMCs) sensitive to 2–50 keV. The satellite is operated in cooperation with NanoAvionics (NA) responsible for satellite operation. As a science team, we need to process GMCs’ data and cross-check the power system and attitude of the satellite. We are developing data processing software, consisting of Quick Look software for satellite bus and GMC health checks, and calibration software …

Oscillating Heat Pipe Enabled Radiators, Corey Wilson, Patrick Margavio, Bob Ducommun

Small Satellite Conference

What is an Oscillating Heat Pipe (OHP)?

A passive high performance heat transfer device that can be manufactured in thin ( < 4 mm) and structural members (aluminum, copper). A radiator effective thermal conductivity can be > 10,000 W/mK.

Optimal Control Design Of Rotation Floating Space Robot During Grasping Operation: An Rl Approach, Roshan Sah, Kaushik Das

Small Satellite Conference

This poster introduces an innovative model-free learning-based controller designed to comprehensively control an orbiting space robot engaged in proximity and grasping operations. Proximity control techniques are crucial for space robots, specifically robotic manipulators on a floating satellite base, facilitating tasks like in-orbit servicing and debris grasping. Traditional controllers need help managing these robots' coupled motion due to the satellite base's floating nature. While conventional controllers have been utilized for coupled control in nonlinear systems, their complexity increases with the growing degrees of freedom in the robot. In contrast, Model-free Reinforcement Learning (RL) has successfully mastered intricate policies within robotic manipulation. …

Beyond The Visible: Jointly Attending To Spectral And Spatial Dimensions With Hsi-Diffusion For The Finch Spacecraft, Ian Vyse, Rishit Dagli, Dav Vrat Chadha, John P. Ma, Hector Chen, Isha Ruparelia, Prithvi Seran, Matthew Xie, Eesa Aamer, Aidan Armstrong, Naveen Black, Ben Borstein, Kevin Caldwell, Orrin Dahanaggamaarachchi, Joe Dai, Abeer Fatima, Stephanie Lu, Maxime Michet, Anoushka Paul, Carrie Ann Po, Shivesh Prakash, Noa Prosser, Riddhiman Roy, Mirai Shinjo, Iliya Shofman, Coby Silayan, Reid Sox-Harris, Shuhan Zheng, Khang Nguyen

Small Satellite Conference

Satellite remote sensing missions have gained popularity over the past fifteen years due to their ability to cover large swaths of land at regular intervals, making them ideal for monitoring environmental trends. The FINCH mission, a 3U+ CubeSat equipped with a hyperspectral camera, aims to monitor crop residue cover in agricultural fields. Although hyperspectral imaging captures both spectral and spatial information, it is prone to various types of noise, including random noise, stripe noise, and dead pixels. Effective denoising of these images is crucial for downstream scientific tasks. Traditional methods, including hand-crafted techniques encoding strong priors, learned 2D image denoising …

A Measure Of Interactive Complexity In Network Models, Will Deter

Northeast Journal of Complex Systems (NEJCS)

This work presents an innovative approach to understanding and measuring complexity in network models. We revisit several classic characterizations of complexity and propose a novel measure that represents complexity as an interactive process. This measure incorporates transfer entropy and Jensen-Shannon divergence to quantify both the information transfer within a system and the dynamism of its constituents’ state changes. To validate our measure, we apply it to several well-known simulation models implemented in Python, including: two models of residential segregation, Conway’s Game of Life, and the Susceptible-Infected-Susceptible (SIS) model. Our results reveal varied trajectories of complexity, demonstrating the efficacy and sensitivity …

Left Atrial Venoarterial Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Strategy In Postcardiotomy Cardiogenic Shock: A Case Series, Daniel Manzur-Sandoval Md, Gian Manuel Jiménez-Rodríguez Md, José Luis Elizalde-Silva Md, Meredith Fernanda Sánchez-Torres Md, Uriel Encarnación-Martínez Md, Cristhian Josué Gaytán-García Md, José Octavio Salazar-Delgado Md, Guadalupe Lisseth Hernández-González Md, Gustavo Rojas-Velasco Md

The VAD Journal

Postcardiotomy cardiogenic shock is a rare complication with high mortality. When patients do not respond to the placement of an intra-aortic balloon pump or pharmacological treatment, therapy with peripheral venoarterial extracorporeal membrane is a viable option that allows active resuscitation. The adjunct use of Impella® (Abiomed, Danvers, MA, USA) allows active unloading of the dysfunctional left ventricle. However, left atrial venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (LAVA-ECMO) is an appealing and effective strategy in cases of aortic dissection, aortic valve replacement, or bioprosthesis of the aorta. Insertion of an extraction cannula that can discharge both atria or only the left atrium allows …

Estimation And Control Of Dynamic Mass-Moment Parameters For Spacecraft Attitude Simulator, Oleksii Padun, Ye Lu

Small Satellite Conference

Spacecraft attitude testbed has been a popular platform for the development, testing, and validation of real-time attitude determination, estimation, and control, algorithms. The focus of this paper is the development of a dynamic mass moment estimation algorithm and an automatic mass balancing control system with numerical validations. Two estimation layers are implemented: one for attitude estimation and another for mass-moment parameter estimation. Attitude estimation follows the existing literature of quaternion estimators with a nonlinear Kalman filter. Dynamic mass-moment parameter estimation is formulated as batch estimation with a nonlinear filter. The initialization process of the EKF parameter estimator is enhanced by …

Improving Patient Care: Expansion Of Access To Free Clinics, Anahis H. Davidian, Gail M. Bloom

Patient Experience Journal

Free clinics provide free or reduced-fee healthcare services for uninsured, underserved, and marginalized populations. Free clinics may be the only source of primary care for socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals lacking health insurance. However, consistently understaffed and underfunded free clinics are struggling to meet growing needs. The demand for services results in long waitlists with long wait times. Most free clinics rely on volunteer providers and staff due to limited financial resources. This case study proposes recommendations that can address the challenges of funding limitations while improving free clinics' ability to offer more accessible and equitable care to serve a greater proportion …

Foundational Patient Experience: Analyzing 10 Years Of Patient Experience Research, Geoffrey A. Silvera Phd, Mha, Courtney Haun Phd, Mph, Varun Natarajan

Patient Experience Journal

In this study, we seek to provide a critical examination of the field of Patient Experience (PX) by using citation analysis to determine the foundational keystones of the PX knowledge base. This study will employ a systematic citation analysis to evaluate the articles published in the Patient Experience Journal (PXJ), focusing on citation frequency as evidence of impact on the field. To achieve this, we examine the entire corpus of article citations published in the PXJ from 2014–2023 (Volumes 1–10). By examining a corpus consisting of 515 independent articles (N=515) that include over 12,000 references (n=12,712) over the course of …

Patient Experiences With An Mhealth App For Complex Chronic Disease Care: Connections Despite Lack Of Traditional Clinical Interactions, Jenney Lee, Melissa Cheyney, Michael A. May, Marit L. Bovbjerg

Patient Experience Journal

Chronic diseases are costly to treat and burdensome for patients. Mobile health (mHealth) technologies might reduce costs of care and increase patient self-efficacy in chronic disease management, but the patient experience of mHealth is poorly understood. Our objective, therefore, was to evaluate patient experiences with using an mHealth app for complex chronic disease management, within a U.S. population of low-income patients. We used nurse/patient text messages from an mHealth complex chronic disease management tool, and exit interviews from patients, to assess qualitatively Medicaid patients' experiences with a remote monitoring mHealth app. Salient themes about the patient experience included: (1) Visibility …

Patient Experience And Virtual Reality: The Use Of An Mri Exam Simulator, Jaqueline Maria Da Silva Jms, Marcus Antonio Medeiros De Souza Mams, Mônica Augusta Reis Dos Santos Mars, Milena Loureiro De Melo Mlm, Lorena De Fátima Lucena Almeida Lfla, Alayde Ricardo Da Silva Ars, Êmilly Vitória Dos Santos Vieira Evsv, Alessandra Nascimento Pontes Anp, Jandson De Oliveira Soares Jos

Patient Experience Journal

Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging is a safe diagnostic method of high accuracy detection and characterization of various pathological conditions. However, due to the very closed aspect of the apparatus, the high sound amplitude emitted and the need to remain motionless for a significant time, some patients experience discomfort and high levels of anxiety, compromising time and image quality management that can impair the clinical outcome of the patient or even give up the performance of this procedure. Therefore, this study aimed to validate, with patients, the use of Virtual Reality (VR) as a humanized practice of exposure to magnetic resonance …

Examining The Impact Of Telehealth Visits On Patient And Family Experience In A Pediatric Emergency And Urgent Care Center, Abigail Gauthier Md, Callie Krentz Md, Shiran Chan Ms, Michelle Widecan Dnp, Aprn, Cpnp, Ac/Pc, Adam A. Vukovic Md, Med

Patient Experience Journal

Providers and healthcare organizations have created novel ways of evaluating patients using telehealth. Patient volumes in urgent cares (UCs) and emergency departments (EDs) continue to climb, contributing to longer wait times and suboptimal patient and family experiences (PFEs). Optimizing use of telehealth may not only impact PFE of those evaluated virtually, but also reduce crowding in EDs and UCs, indirectly impacting PFE in those spaces as well. The purpose of this study is to identify any association between telehealth encounters and PFE scores. This is a retrospective review of patients seen via telehealth in virtual urgent care, UC, or the …

Accompanying People Affected By Cancer In Their Return To Life After Treatment: A Report On An Experiment Conducted In Canada, Christine Arsenault, Saskia Hazout, John Calogerinis, Françoise Poirier, Louise Normandin, Cécile Vialaron, Monica Iliescu Nelea, Marie-Pascale Pomey

Patient Experience Journal

This study aims to assess family doctors' perceived needs for improved patient follow-up post-acute treatment in oncology departments, specifically focusing on the Patient Oriented Discharge Summary (PODS) for individuals living with cancer. A cross-sectional quantitative survey targeted family doctors, and a before/after exploratory study was conducted with patients to measure their needs pre- and post-PODS implementation. Twenty-one out of 42 family doctors participated in the survey (50%). Patient data was collected at three points in time: prior to PODS implementation (T1, n = 20/30; 77%), one month later (T2, n = 20/26; 77%), and six months later (T3, n = …

We Did Our Best!: The Experience Of Frontline Workers In Long-Term Care During Covid-19 Outbreaks, Jillian M. Gratton, Lenora Duhn, Rosemary Wilson, Pilar Camargo-Plazas

Patient Experience Journal

In Canada, the COVID-19 pandemic had devastating effects for those living in long-term care (LTC) homes, yet little is known about the experiences of the frontline workers who endured in those settings with COVID-19 outbreaks. Specialized knowledge will improve our understanding of the effects of the pandemic on frontline workers (FW), enabling the development of stronger practices. The purpose of this research was to gain a deeper understanding of the experiences of FW caring for residents in LTC homes during a COVID-19 outbreak, using narrative inquiry. The methods used for data collection include interviews, field notes, and photovoice. Participants were …

Investigating The Perceived Impact Of Surgeons' Burnout On Surgical Physician Associates' Wellness In United States Ambulatory Surgery Centers, Rhionna J. Smith, Lihua Dishman, John W. Fick, Kathleen M. Thomas

Patient Experience Journal

Surgeons are the de facto leaders of surgical teams with surgical physician associates (SPAs) as integral members who function in all areas of the peri-operative environment. Surgeons often supervise SPAs. Ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) provide patients with same-day diagnostic and preventive procedures as more convenient alternatives to hospital-based outpatient procedures. This qualitative, national, and cross-sectional study explored the perceived impact of surgeons' burnout on SPAs' wellness in U.S. ASCs during global health crises. Primary demographic and qualitative data were collected using a self-developed, three-section survey instrument: (1) information regarding informed consent; (2) 10 short demographic questions; and (3) two open-ended …

Is Timing Everything?: The Role Of Time On The Relationship Between Patient-Centered Communication And Provider Empathy, Shanequa S. Roscoe-Nelson, Geoffrey A. Silvera Phd, Mha

Patient Experience Journal

Several studies have indicated that providers that successfully implement patient-centered communication (PCC) practices related to health literacy and exemplify higher levels of empathy improve patient health outcomes. Time is frequently noted as a barrier when implementing PCC practices. The purpose of this study was to examine the role of time on the relationship between PCC and provider empathy. A cross-sectional study design was employed utilizing data from the 2019 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey-Household Component (MEPS-HC) and a supplemental survey, Self-Administered Questionnaire (SAQ), including a total of 6,459 patient respondents (N = 6,459). Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was utilized for the …

Primary Care Productivity And Patient Satisfaction Community Practice: What Is The Relationship?, Thomas G. Howell Jr.

Patient Experience Journal

Research has shown a consistent positive association between patient and provider experience and improved patient outcomes and safety. There is a belief that patient satisfaction and physician productivity are competing interests. The relationship for primary care physicians, in a Midwest Health system was evaluated as part of this project. Data from Press Ganey patient satisfaction surveys on likelihood of recommending the practice and the physician were compared between primary care physicians in the top quartile of average monthly patient visits and those that were in the three lower quartiles. A secondary analysis of patient satisfaction scores related to continuous years …

The Perceived Usefulness Of Patient Narrative Feedback In Primary Care Settings, Sasmira Matta, Yuna S.H. Lee, Rachel Grob, Mark Schlesinger, Ingrid Nembhard

Patient Experience Journal

Research suggests that insights from patient narratives – stories about care experiences in patients' own words – contain information that can be used to improve care. However, assessments of narratives reported by clinical personnel have been mixed. This is the first study, to our knowledge, to systematically measure how useful personnel in primary care perceive patient narratives to be. We surveyed 276 clinical and administrative personnel in nine primary care clinics in a large health system in the United States. We found that perceived usefulness of patient narratives is generally high, but varies by individual characteristics such as level of …

Listening To The Unsaid: Utilizing Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (Proms) To Manage The Dental Anxiety Of A Special Child, Asiya Attar, Kasturi Shukla

Patient Experience Journal

This article is the journey of a dentist who adopted the additional role of a healthcare manager and embarked on a transformative journey to enhance the realm of pedodontics. The story describes how the care process and related experiences were improved for a special child who came anxious and worried to a dental office for treatment and returned with better outcomes. Dental anxiety is a known barrier to smooth dental care which is further amplified in children and more so for the special children. In addition to providing the best treatment, we ensured a worry-free environment to release the anxiety …

Research Imitates Life: Researching Within Your Lived Experience, Bethany Donaghy, Delane Linkiewich

Patient Experience Journal

This personal narrative article seeks to bring awareness to and provide an overview of the various aspects that come with being a lived experience researcher including the host of benefits and challenges that come with conducting research within one's own area of lived experience. Throughout this narrative, we (Bethany Donaghy, an autistic person, and Delane Linkiewich a person living with chronic pain) share our perspectives on what it is like to be lived experience researchers. Our narratives discuss how the many identities we hold both improve the impact and relevance of our research while also posing challenges for us like …