Life Sciences Commons^™

Investigating Mechanisms And Day-Level Factors That Influence Children’S 24-Hour Movement Behaviors, Hannah Parker

Theses and Dissertations

Twenty-four hour movement behaviors (i.e., physical activity (PA), screen time (ST), and sleep) are associated with health outcomes, chronic disease (obesity, type 2 diabetes), and mortality. Most literature evaluating children’s 24-hour movement behaviors has focused on static person-level demographic information such as age or biological sex. Relatively less work has examined the variable factors that change day to day, such as environment or context. The Structured Days Hypothesis (SDH) suggests that when children are in structured environments, they have healthier movement behaviors compared to less structured environments where children have more discretionary time to engage in obesogenic behaviors. Besides school/childcare, …

Modeling The Interaction Between Pain And Movement: Insights From Brain Activation Patterns And Context-Dependent Emotion In Chronic Low Back Pain, Pradeep Kumar Sahu

Theses and Dissertations

In persons with chronic pain, fear or anxiety related to movement is a well-established model under the biopsychosocial framework that explains in part, the chronicity of symptoms commonly reported by individuals with chronic low back pain (cLBP). This dissertation aimed to further understand the link between the context-dependent emotion network in the brain and movement in two separate studies using brain functional MRI and autonomic nervous system indices. Aim 1sought to investigate the brain functional connectivity linking brain regions involved in context-dependent emotion and movement while cLBP participants moved their back inside the scanner by performing a modified trunk bridging …

Daily Movement Activities Are Associated With Within-Person Instability Of Cognitive Function In Older Adults: Evidence From An Ambulatory Assessment Study, Chih-Hsiang Yang, Donald Hedeker, Jongwon Lee, Halle Prine, Donna Coffman, Jingkai Wei, Jonathan George Hakun

Faculty Publications

Background and Objectives

Physical inactivity and excessive sedentary time (ST) are associated with poor cognitive health in older adults. However, current literature largely relies on cross-sectional designs or in-lab cognitive assessments, which do not adequately reflect cognitive function in naturalistic settings. Further, existing studies have largely overlooked the variability or the instability in daily cognitive function, which represents a critical marker of cognitive decline. This ambulatory assessment study examined the temporal associations of daily movement behaviors with the mean levels and the variability of cognition among older adults at risk of dementia. Research Design and Methods

96 older adults from …

Evaluating Potential Changes From Nitrogen To Phosphorus Nutrient Limitation Of Phytoplankton Growth In North Inlet Estuary, Catherine Schlenker, James L. Pinckney

Faculty Publications

In marine systems, molar ratios of the biolimiting inorganic nutrients, nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), are assumed to follow the “Redfield ratio” (N:P = 16:1), which is often used to infer nutrient limitation of phytoplankton biomass. Traditionally, estuaries are considered N-limited (N:P <  16) but with higher coastal N-loading, reports of P-limitation (N:P > 16) have increased. In recent decades, nutrient loading in North Inlet Estuary (NIE) has changed such that dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN):dissolved inorganic phosphorus (DIP) ratios increased from ca. 7 to 20 (2002–2021). This suggests that primary production in NIE may be transitioning from N-limitation to NP co-limitation or primary P-limitation. Due to high N:P ratios, we hypothesized that …

Photo-Crosslinked Persistent Micelle Templates With Near Universal Solvent Compatibility, Coby S. Collins, Mengxue Zhang, Cj Strurgill, Christian X. Ruff, Bryce Melton, Morgan Stefik

Faculty Publications

The controlled preparation of porous nanomaterials from block polymer templates is important for diverse applications from energy devices to optical coatings and sorbents. The architectural dimensions determine the overall performance for many of these applications, however the independent control of these dimensions has remained limited to a narrow range of solvent conditions for kinetically trapped (“persistent”) micelle templates. Polymers with a photo-reactive chemistry are shown to enable cross-linked micelle templates that universally remain persistent under diverse solvent conditions. Specifically, poly(poly(ethylene glycol methacrylate))-b-poly(butyl methacrylate-co-coumarin methacrylate) (OBC) was prepared by RAFT polymerization and the resulting micelles were crosslinked …

Associations Between 24-Hour Movement Compositions And Cardiometabolic Health In Children And Adolescents: A Five-Part Compositional Analysis Using Data From The International Children’S Accelerometery Database (Icad), Zoë A. Marshall, Adam Runacres, Pedro Curi Hallal, Russ Jago, Soyang Kwon, Kate Northstone, Russell R. Pate, Jardena Puder, John J. Reilly, Luis B. Sardinha, Niels Wedderkopp, Ester Van Slujis

Faculty Publications

Objectives The benefits of physical activity (PA) and the negative impacts of sedentary time (SED) on health in youth are well established. However, uncertainty remains surrounding how PA and SED jointly influence cardiometabolic risk (CMR) factors. The aim of this study was to determine the joint influence of SED, light-, moderate- and vigorous-intensity PA (LPA, MPA and VPA), and sleep on CMR factors using five-part compositional analyses.

Methods Data were pooled from 16 cohort studies comprising 22 474 children and adolescents from the International Children’s Accelerometery Database. PA was measured using hip-mounted accelerometers with sleep self-reported. CMRs included body mass …

Human Gut Commensal Alistipes Timonensis Modulates The Host Lipidome And Delivers Anti-Inflammatory Outer Membrane Vesicles To Suppress Colitis In An Il10-Deficient Mouse Model, Ethan Older, Mary K. Mitchell, Andrew Campbell, Xiaoying Lian, Michael Madden, Yuzhen Wang, Lauren E. Van De Wal, Thelma Zaw, Brandon N. Vanderveen, Rodney Tatum, E. Angela Murphy, Yan-Hua Chen, Daping Fang, Melissa Ellermann, Jie Li

Faculty Publications

Correlative studies have linked human gut microbes to specific health conditions. Alistipes is one such microbial genus negatively linked to inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). However, the protective role of Alistipes in IBD is understudied, and the underlying molecular mechanisms remain unknown. In this study, colonization of Il10-deficient mice with Alistipes timonensis DSM 27924 delays colitis development. Colonization does not significantly alter the gut microbiome composition, but instead shifts the host plasma lipidome, increasing phosphatidic acids while decreasing triglycerides. Outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) derived from Alistipes are detected in the plasma of colonized mice, carrying potentially immunomodulatory metabolites into the …

Behavioral And Neural Correlates Of Post-Stroke Fatigue: A Randomized Controlled Trial Protocol, Kuan-Chun Liao, Isabellle Christian, Jill C. Stewart, Elaine Trudelle-Jackson, Wanyi Wang, Ty Shang, Hui-Ting Goh

Faculty Publications

Introduction

Post-stroke fatigue (PSF) is highly prevalent and lacks of effective management. Recent evidence suggest the use of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to reduce PSF. However, the effect was not lasting and the working mechanisms was unclear. The purpose of this study is to determine the behavioral and neurophysiological effects of five daily sessions of tDCS on PSF.

Methods and analysis

This will be a double-blind randomized controlled trial targeting an enrollment of 32 participants with subacute-chronic stroke and significant fatigue (average Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) > 4). Participants will be equally randomized to either anodal tDCS or sham tDCS …

The Influence Of Geographic Ranges, Climatic Niches And Temperature Fluctuations On Population Variability, Cleber Ten Canten, Lauren Holian, Tad Dallas

Faculty Publications

The existence of patterns in population dynamics across species geographic ranges and climatic niches is a pervasive idea in ecology. Population variability (i.e. temporal variability in population density) should hypothetically increase near range edges or niche limits because of less suitable environments in these areas, but the occurrence of such patterns remains largely unexplored. Further, fluctuations in temperature could pose demographic constraints on populations and also influence their variability. We used Breeding Bird Survey data to show that the population variability of 97 resident North American birds consistently increases towards their niche limits and in areas with more variable temperatures, …

A New Transition Metal Borate, Co6(B24O39(Oh)6(H2O) 6·2.21h2O, Synthesized Via A Mild Hydrothermal Synthesis, Alevtina Maksimova, Patrick Belt, Nilah Whitfield, Mark D. Smith, Gopabandhu Panigrahi, Gregory Morrison, Hans Conrad Zur Loye

Faculty Publications

A new transition metal borate hydrate, Co₆B₂₄O₃₉(OH)₆(H₂O)₆·2.21H₂O, was synthesized via a mild hydrothermal method using boric acid as the melt. The compound crystallizes in the trigonal space group P 3‾ with lattice parameters a = b = 13.17840(10) Å, c = 12.3287(2) Å, and a unit cell volume of 1854.27(4) ų (Z = 2). This borate hydrate crystallizes in a new structure type comprised of layers containing [BO3] trigonal planar units and [BO4] tetrahedra that are linked by CoO6 and Co(OH)2(H2O)4 octahedra via corner-sharing. The …

Whole-Genome Assembly And Annotation Of The Firecracker Penstemon (Penstemon Eatonii), David E. Jarvis, Mikel R. Stevens, Payton Carter, Ying Fei Lin, Kate E. Jaggi, Gabriela Jijon, Teal Kalt, Jouber Calixto, Samantha Standring, Kaitlin Torres, Kayla B. Stephensen, Hayley Mangelson, Noah H. Williams, Carolyn A. Wessinger, Peter J. Maughan, Paul B. Frandsen

Faculty Publications

The penstemons are ornamental annual flowering plants native to the Intermountain West and Rocky Mountains and commonly used for urban landscaping. Elite commercial penstemons are generally susceptible to abiotic stresses, including drought, root rot, cold, and high salinity. Firecracker penstemon (Penstemon eatonii), however, is much more tolerant to these stresses than most elite cultivars. Importantly, firecracker penstemon has been reported to hybridize with many other penstemons and therefore provides the opportunity to develop more tolerant elite cultivars through strategic crossing. To facilitate the study and utilization of firecracker penstemon, we sequenced and annotated the genome of a P. …

Whole-Genome Assembly And Annotation Of The Firecracker Penstemon (Penstemon Eatonii), David E. Jarvis, Mikel R. Stevens, Payton Carter, Ying Fei Lin, Kate E. Jaggi, Gabriela Jijon, Teal Kalt, Jouber Calixto, Samantha Standring, Kaitlin Torres, Kayla B. Stephensen, Hayley Mangelson, Noah H. Williams, Carolyn A. Wessinger, Peter J. Maughan, Paul B. Frandsen

Faculty Publications

The penstemons are ornamental annual flowering plants native to the Intermountain West and Rocky Mountains and commonly used for urban landscaping. Elite commercial penstemons are generally susceptible to abiotic stresses, including drought, root rot, cold, and high salinity. Firecracker penstemon (Penstemon eatonii), however, is much more tolerant to these stresses than most elite cultivars. Importantly, firecracker penstemon has been reported to hybridize with many other penstemons and therefore provides the opportunity to develop more tolerant elite cultivars through strategic crossing. To facilitate the study and utilization of firecracker penstemon, we sequenced and annotated the genome of a P. …

Leveraging Agent-Based Modeling And A Randomized Intervention To Advance Childhood Physical Activity: A Study Protocol, Matt Kasman, Adam B. Sedlak, Lydia Reader, William J. Heerman, Russell R. Pate, Amelie G. Ramirez, Evan C. Sommer, Shari L. Barkin, Ross A. Hammond

Faculty Publications

This study (1R01HD107002-01A1) protocol describes the planned creation and use of an agent-based model (ABM) of early childhood physical activity (PA). Successful early childhood PA interventions can potentially play an important role in both increasing overall population health as well as closing health disparities across subpopulations. At present, effective strategies for doing so are currently unknown. In large part, this is because PA determinants operate across levels dynamically, interact with one another, and can differ substantially across children. A complex systems approach—specifically, ABM—can be used to provide important insights about effect pathways driving child PA. Design of the proposed ABM …

Examining Physiological Responses To Misophonic Triggers, Christian O'Reilly, Xuan Yang, Sewon Oh, Doug Wedell, Svetlana Shinkareva

Faculty Publications

We collected and analyzed an array of biosignals (face electromyogram, skin electrodermal activity, peripheral temperature, and electrocardiogram) in 60 participants with and without misophonia, a condition characterized by decreased tolerance to innocuous sounds. Our goal was to objectively characterize the physiological response to misophonia triggering sounds. We found that misophonic responses can be objectively identified in some cases through atypical physiological reactions to triggering stimuli, though not all participants exhibited this response. Our analyses suggest a large interindividual variability in response to misophonic triggers and highlights the need for methodological adjustments in future experiments to increase the detectability of misophonic …

A Reliable And Efficient Detection Pipeline For Rodent Ultrasonic Vocalizations, Sabah Shahnoor Anis, Devin Mark Kellis, Kris Ford Kaigler, Marlene A. Wilson, Christian O'Reilly

Faculty Publications

Analyzing ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) is crucial for understanding rodents' affective states and social behaviors, but the manual analysis is time-consuming and prone to errors. Automated USV detection systems have been developed to address these challenges. Yet, these systems often rely on machine learning and fail to generalize effectively to new datasets. To tackle these shortcomings, we introduce ContourUSV, an efficient automated system for detecting USVs from audio recordings. Our pipeline includes spectrogram generation, cleaning, pre-processing, contour detection, post-processing, and evaluation against manual annotations. To ensure robustness and reliability, we compared ContourUSV with three state-of-the-art systems using an existing open-access USV …

Deep Jansen-Rit Parameter Inference For Model-Driven Analysis Of Brain Activity, Deepa Tilwani, Christian O'Reilly

Faculty Publications

Accurately modeling effective connectivity (EC) is critical for understanding how the brain processes and integrates sensory information. Yet, it remains a formidable challenge due to complex neural dynamics and noisy measurements such as those obtained from the electroencephalogram (EEG). Model-driven EC infers local (within a brain region) and global (between brain regions) EC parameters by fitting a generative model of neural activity onto experimental data. This approach offers a promising route for various applications, including investigating neurodevel- opmental disorders. However, current approaches fail to scale to whole-brain analyses and are highly noise-sensitive. In this work, we employ three deep-learning architectures—a …

Focal Adhesion Genes And Proteins Are Differentially Expressed Across Cell Types In Down Syndrome, Brian Yoon

Senior Theses

Down syndrome (DS), caused by an extra copy of chromosome 21, leads to widespread gene expression changes through mechanisms such as transcriptional dysregulation and altered protein interactions. These disruptions contribute to a range of clinical features, including impaired wound healing, immune dysfunction, and neurodevelopmental abnormalities. This study focused on how DS affects fibroblast morphology and motility—processes critical for tissue repair and brain development. Using quantitative immunocytochemistry and image analysis, we found that DS fibroblasts displayed a broader, less polarized shape, with increased cell perimeter and reduced aspect ratio. However, levels of key adhesion proteins like vinculin, FAK, and β-actin were …

Neural Efficiency Hypothesis In Motor Actions; Spectral Power Of Balancing Ballet Dancers, Carter G. Disantis

Senior Theses

Reduced activity observed during functional imaging of motor experts led to the Neural Efficiency Hypothesis (NEH) in motor skills, which posits that expert performers use fewer neural resources during motor execution than novices, reflecting greater neural efficiency.

This pilot study compared EEG recordings from five novices and four expert ballet dancers during standing and one-leg balance. Whole-brain theta (4–8 Hz) and alpha (8–12 Hz) power were quantified, and topographic maps were generated. In addition to testing the primary hypotheses, the experimental design was evaluated as a practical and scalable approach for investigating the NEH in motor skills. Novices showed significantly …

Early Motor And Language Development In Infants At Elevated Likelihood For Autism, Natalie C. Deal

Senior Theses

During the early stages of infant development, various emerging skills set the foundation for more complex abilities. One such connection is the development of motor skills, which play a crucial role in influencing language outcomes later in the infants' first year. Although these developmental cascades are well understood in typically-developing populations, less is known about the cascade in infants at elevated likelihood for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Many infants who are later diagnosed with ASD have motor delays or language delays, suggesting that the cascade from motor to language may not be typical in this population. Additionally, little is known …

The Isolation And Characterization Of Acidovorax And Brevundimonas Bacteriophages With Preliminary Biocontrol Study On Arabidopsis Thaliana, Minh Quynh N. Vu

Senior Theses

As antibiotic-resistance becomes an increasing global concern, researchers are looking for alternatives to combat phytopathogenic rhizobacteria – one of which is through the application of phage biocontrol. To elucidate the complex tripartite relationships between phage, bacteria and plant interactions, nine novel phages were isolated from potential phytopathogenic strains of Acidovorax (RBW13) and Brevundimonas (RBW18). These phages were isolated from root samples obtained from the Rocky Branch Creek and the Broad River located in Columbia, SC. Using Pulsed-Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE), we identified seven “medium sized” phages (~40 kbp), one “large-sized” phage (~200 kbp), and one “small-sized” phage ( < 25 kbp). Three phages were determined to be lambda-like due to their “ladder-building” patterns on PFGE. Although spot-tests revealed that all phages seemed to have broad host ranges that spanned over multiple genera, plaque-formations must be observed in future experiments to determine if these phages can infect their hosts productively. Preliminary in planta experiments were performed on Arabidopsis thaliana …