Life Sciences Commons^™

Evaluating And Improving The Usability Of A Mhealth Platform To Assess Postoperative Dental Pain, Nicholas Skourtes, David Holmes, Joel White, Elsbeth Kalenderian, Muhammad F Walji

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

OBJECTIVES: The use of interactive mobile health (mHealth) applications to monitor patient-reported postoperative pain outcomes is an emerging area in dentistry that requires further exploration. This study aimed to evaluate and improve the usability of an existing mHealth application.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: The usability of the application was assessed iteratively using a 3-phase approach, including a rapid cognitive walkthrough (Phase I), lab-based usability testing (Phase II), and

RESULTS: The rapid cognitive walkthrough identified 23 potential issues that could negatively impact user experience, with the majority classified as system issues. The lab-based usability testing yielded 141 usability issues.; 43% encountered by …

Learning From Data In Dentistry: Summary Of The Third Annual Openwide Conference, Alfa Yansane, Bunmi Tokede, D Brad Rindal, Heiko Spallek, Joel White, Muhammad Walji

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The overarching goal of the third scientific oral health symposium was to introduce the concept of a learning health system to the dental community and to identify and discuss cutting-edge research and strategies using data for improving the quality of dental care and patient safety. Conference participants included clinically active dentists, dental researchers, quality improvement experts, informaticians, insurers, EHR vendors/developers, and members of dental professional organizations and dental service organizations. This report summarizes the main outputs of the third annual OpenWide conference held in Houston, Texas, on October 12, 2022, as an affiliated meeting of the American Dental Association (ADA) …

Fedfsa: Hybrid And Federated Framework For Functional Status Ascertainment Across Institutions, Yifang Dang, Yujia Zhou, Muskan Garg, Ronald C Petersen, Jennifer St Sauver, Sungrim Moon, Liwei Wang, Andrew Wen, Fang Li, Hua Xu, Cui Tao, Jungwei Fan, Hongfang Liu, Sunghwan Sohn

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Introduction: Patients' functional status assesses their independence in performing activities of daily living, including basic ADLs (bADL), and more complex instrumental activities (iADL). Existing studies have discovered that patients' functional status is a strong predictor of health outcomes, particularly in older adults. Depite their usefulness, much of the functional status information is stored in electronic health records (EHRs) in either semi-structured or free text formats. This indicates the pressing need to leverage computational approaches such as natural language processing (NLP) to accelerate the curation of functional status information. In this study, we introduced FedFSA, a hybrid and federated NLP framework …

Role Of Toll-Like Receptor 2 In Macrophage Recognition And Response To Borrelia Burgdorferi, Yukiye A. Koide

Master's Theses

Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne disease in the US and will experience an uptick as the insect host, the ixodid tick, gains habitat with climate change. The causative agent of Lyme disease, Borrelia burgdorferi, is recognized by Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2), which initiates the innate immune response. Here, I used ELISA and SEAP detection assays to determine that knocking out TLR2 in THP-1 macrophages reduces the amount of NFkB activation, as well as IL-10 and IL-1β secretion. Then, I used fluorescence microscopy and Incucyte assays to quantify the amount of phagocytosis performed by wild-type and knock-out THP-1 cells. …

Investigating The Role Of The Dna Interval V376 On Sk-3 Spore Killing In Neurospora Crassa, John C. Munn Iv

Senior Theses – Biological Sciences

In Neurospora fungi, the ascospores formed during reproduction will most often be black and viable. Occasionally, these ascospores will end up inviable and white or yellow. The discovery of a selfish genetic element called Spore killer (Sk) in 1979 gave researchers insight into a mechanism that causes some Neurospora crosses to produce a consistent ratio of 4 black, viable ascospores and 4 inviable, white ascospores. In these 4:4 splits, the Spore killer genetic element causes the death of exactly half of the ascospores. There are now three known spore killers in Neurospora: Sk-1, Sk-2, and Sk-3 …

Identifying The Location Of The Rfk-2 Spore Killer Gene On Chromosome Iii Of Neurospora Crassa, Princy A. Patel

Senior Theses – Biological Sciences

Meiotic drivers are selfish genetic elements that skew transmission in their favor. In the filamentous fungus N. crassa, one such meiotic driver is Spore killer-3 (Sk-3). In a cross between Sk-3 and a spore killer-sensitive mating partner (Sk-S), only half of the ascospores (sexual spores) survive. Nearly all of the survivors inherit the genes for spore killing. Previous studies have established that a gene called rfk-2 (required for spore killing) is essential for the spore killing activity of Sk-3. The rfk-2 gene has been mapped to Chromosome III, but its exact location …

Notes On The Ecological Distribution Of The Myxomycete Arcyria Globosa, Steven L. Stephenson, Rollins W. Rollins, Theda Win Coco, Randy G. Darrah

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Abstract

Prior to the virtual elimination of American chestnut (Castanea dentata) from the forests of eastern North America by the chestnut blight fungus, Arcyria globosa was commonly found on old chestnut burs that had fallen to the ground. The association of this myxomycete with chestnut burs was not absolute, but occurrences on other substrates appear to have been rare. During field collecting carried out in a forest in northern Thailand, it was noticed that old fallen cupules (burs) of Castanopsis indica often had scattered fruiting bodies of A. globosa present. Castanea and Castanopsis belong to the same family (Fagaceae) and …

Non-Native Rhizophora Mangle As Sinks For Coastal Contamination On Moloka’I, Hawai’I, Geoffrey Szafranski, Elise F. Granek, Michelle L. Hladik, Mia Hackett

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

Coastal mangrove forests provide a suite of environmental services, including sequestration of anthropogenic contamination. Yet, research lags on the environmental fate and potential human health risks of mangrove-sequestered contaminants in the context of mangrove removal for development and range shifts due to climate change. To address this, we conducted a study on Moloka'i, Hawai'i, comparing microplastic and pesticide contamination in coastal compartments both at areas modified by non-native red mangroves (Rhizophora mangle) and unmodified, open coastline. Sediment, porewater, and mangrove plant tissues were collected to quantify microplastic and pesticide concentrations across ecosystem type. Average microplastics were similar between …

Turbidimetric Bioassays: A Solution To Antimicrobial Activity Detection In Asymptomatic Bacteriuria Isolates Against Uropathogenic Escherichia Coli, Ciara Kenneally, Craig P. Murphy, Roy D. Sleator, Eamonn P. Culligan

Department of Biological Sciences Publications

Traditional bacteriocin screening methods often face limitations due to diffusion-related challenges in agar matrices, which can prevent the peptides from reaching their target organism. Turbidimetric techniques offer a solution to these issues, eliminating diffusion-related problems and providing an initial quantification of bacteriocin efficacy in producer organisms. This study involved screening the cell-free supernatant (CFS) from eight uncharacterized asymptomatic bacteriuria (ABU) isolates and Escherichia coli 83972 for antimicrobial activity against clinical uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC) strains using turbidimetric growth methods. ABU isolates exhibiting activity against five or more UPEC strains were further characterized (PUTS 37, PUTS 58, PUTS 59, S-07-4, and …

Increasing The Phytoremediation Efficiency Of Heavy Metal-Contaminated Soils In The Uae Using Endophytic Actinobacteria For Sustainable Agriculture, Archana Mathew Mathai

Theses

Pollution caused by heavy metals (HMs) is a major environmental concern worldwide. Human actions, agriculture practices and industrial activities can cause the release of HMs into the environment. Soil contamination with HMs may have negative effects on crops, thus disrupting the food chain and posing risks to human health. Lead (Pb) is a common pollutant found in the soil when at high concentrations. Conventional land remediation techniques depending on chemical and mechanical methods are quite expensive and would lead to long-term deterioration of the ecosystems, while phytoremediation can serve as an alternative, eco-friendly approach to restore the lands for agricultural …

Maneuverability Of Cuttlefish And Squid: An Integrated Kinematic And Hydrodynamic Analysis, Alissa Marie Ganley

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

Turning is important for life underwater, playing roles in predator avoidance, prey capture, locomotion, and communication. While turning abilities have been explored in many taxa, little is known about maneuverability of cephalopods, such as cuttlefishes and squids. The objectives of this dissertation include: (1) quantifying the turning abilities of cuttlefish hatchlings and determining whether there are species-specific differences; (2) examining the turning capabilities of adult cuttlefishes, with the goal of comparing adult performance with that of conspecific hatchlings; and (3) quantifying how adult neritic squids perform turns to provide a broader context of maneuvering strategies in cephalopods. To investigate turning, …

The Thermodynamics And Structure Of Tumor Suppressor P53 And Helical Mutants Binding To Inhibitors Mdm2 And Mdmx At The Primary And Secondary Sites, Pirada Serena Higbee

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

p53 is an intrinsically disordered protein that is a tumor suppressor. The transactivation domain is split into two parts (TAD1 and TAD2). These TADs bind to inhibitors MDM2, and a homolog, MDMX, but TAD1 binds with greater affinity. MDM2 is an E3 ubiquitin ligase that leads to the degradation of p53. MDMX is not an E3 ubiquitin ligase, but it does prevent p53 from binding to DNA, thus preventing its tumor suppressor role.

Previous research showed that increasing p53 helicity by mutating prolines to alanines increased p53's helicity but not the length of the helix. The increase in helicity increased …

Maize Production In Ghana: A Case Study Of Asante Akim North Municipality, Vincent Osei

Masters Theses

In spite of the numerous benefits of maize production in Ghana, its production is faced with a lot of challenges leading to production losses. Asante Akim North Municipality is one of the largest maize-producing areas in Ghana. However, studies on maize and its production in this municipality are under-researched, hence the need for this study. The main objective of the study is to analyze a 10-year (2013-2022) production trend of maize in Asante Akim North Municipality to identify factors affecting maize production in the municipality, so as to seek pragmatic measures to help improve maize yields in the municipality and …

Cattle Industry Funding Scheme Annual Report 2022/2023, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity published reports

In June 2010 the Cattle Industry Funding Scheme (IFS) was introduced to address biosecurity threats relevant to the Western Australian (WA) cattle industry. The Scheme was established under the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007 to enable cattle producers to identify the pest and disease priorities at a whole-of-industry level and to raise funds for activities to address these priorities.

There are currently three Industry Funding Schemes in operation. In addition to the Cattle IFS, there is a Sheep and Goat IFS and a Grains, Seeds and Hay IFS. The three IFSs operate in a similar manner.

The purpose of …

Deciphering The Functional Connections Between The Nuclear Paraspeckle And Rad51 Homologous Recombination Proteins Using A Yeast Protein Interaction System, Eric J. Nutz

Senior Theses

Homologous recombination (HR) is a repair pathway for DNA double-stranded breaks. Mutations in HR genes contribute to genomic instability and increase the prevalence of cancer. Exploiting HR deficiency in tumor cells has led to improved synthetic lethality outcomes. RAD51 paralogue protein complexes are known to be involved with HR. Proteomic analysis of RAD51 paralogues reveals a connection to the nuclear paraspeckle. A paraspeckle is a little-known, specialized organelle found in the interchromatin space of the nucleus in mammalian cells. Its three central protein components include SFPQ, NONO, and PSPC1. RAD51D is an HR protein shown previously to interact with SFPQ …

Investigating The Expression Of Growth-Regulating Factor 2 (Grf2) In Arabidopsis Thaliana, Sophia S. Henry

Senior Theses

Arabidopsis thaliana is a model organism that is used in laboratories across the world for the study of cellular and molecular processes in plants. GROWTH-REGULATING FACTOR 2 (GRF2) is a transcription factor that promotes leaf growth in Arabidopsis. It is a member of a family of transcription factors that is conserved across all land plants. Previous studies have characterized GRF2 expression in leaves, but GRF2 expression in floral organs has not been studied as extensively. GRF2 acts redundantly with other members of the GRF transcription factor family during floral development. grf1/2/3/5 quadruple mutants show malformed gynoecia, severe fusions between floral …

Targeting Cholinergic Signaling In Glioblastoma, Sumyuktha Vijay Anand

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

Primitive stem cell-like populations that are prone to malignant transformation reside in the brain throughout adulthood. My lab’s reports and many others have characterized subsets of glioma cells reminiscent of adult stem-like cells implicating them rational candidates for cell-targeted therapies. Emerging evidence suggests that the neurotransmitter microenvironment influences these stem-like cells during glioma progression providing an inroad to study neuromodulators in glioma. Some glioma stemlike cells share characteristics with adult tissue oligodendrocyte progenitor cells. Primitive cells of the oligodendroglial lineage express muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChRs), and their “stemness” is maintained by the acetylcholine (ACh) neurotransmitter. Here, I conduct transcriptomic, electrophysiological, …

Formation Of New Cohesive Linkages And Regulation Of Cohesion Rejuvenation During Meiotic Prophase In Drosophila Oocytes, Muhammad Abdul Haseeb

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

During meiosis, faithful segregation of chromosomes requires maintenance of sister chromatid cohesion from premeiotic S phase until its stepwise dissolution at anaphase I and anaphase II. Research in humans and model organisms indicates that premature loss of meiotic cohesion is a major determinant of age-induced aneuploidy in human oocytes, a phenomenon known as the maternal age effect. Because cohesin turnover after S phase has not been detected in mice oocytes, the prevailing model for mammalian oocytes is that cohesion cannot be replenished after its initial establishment in S phase. However, previous research from the Bickel lab suggested that a cohesion …

Pulsed Electric Fields Sensitize Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus To Antibacterial Therapies And Stimulate Host Immune Responses, Alexandra E. Chittams-Miles

Biomedical Sciences Theses & Dissertations

This research explores the impact of nanosecond pulsed electric fields (nsPEF) on two fronts: their immune stimulatory effects and their potential as a novel strategy to enhance the sensitivity of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) to clinically relevant antibiotics. While pulsed electric fields have been reported to have an immune stimulatory effect, the mechanisms responsible for these effects have yet to be determined.

Our investigation addresses the rising concern of MRSA derived skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs). Consistent with other publications, we found that nsPEF alone cause modest inactivation of planktonic MRSA. We then investigated the effects of nsPEF in …

Time Series Models For Predicting Application Gpu Utilization And Power Draw Based On Trace Data, Dorothy Xiaoshuang Parry

Electrical & Computer Engineering Theses & Dissertations

This work explores collecting performance metrics and leveraging various statistical and machine learning time series predictive models on a memory-intensive application, Inception v3. Trace data collected using nvidia-smi measured GPU utilization and power draw for two runs of Inception3. Experimental results from the statistical and machine learning-based time series predictive algorithms showed that the predictions from statistical-based models were unable to capture the complex changes in the trace data. The Probabilistic TNN model provided the best results for the power draw trace, according to the test evaluation metrics. For the GPU utilization trace, the RNN models produced the most accurate …

Grains, Seeds And Hay Industry Funding Scheme Annual Report 2022/2023, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity published reports

The Grains, Seeds and Hay Industry Funding Scheme (IFS) has been operating since 2010 to address biosecurity threats relevant to Western Australia’s (WA) grains, seeds and hay industry. The Scheme was established under the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007 to enable growers to identify the pest and disease priorities at a whole-of-industry level and raise funds for activities to address these priorities.

There are currently three Industry Funding Schemes in operation. In addition to the Grains, Seeds and Hay IFS, there is a Cattle IFS and a Sheep and Goat IFS. The three IFSs operate in a similar manner. …

The Correlates Of Neurobiology And Lived Experiences Of Music-Induced Bonding, Empathy, And Shared Flow, Ashley Marie Sherwood

Masters Theses

An alarming decline in mental health and increase in addiction and substance use disorders over the last few decades have generated increased interest in exploring how improved social health in the community could be a protective factor against mental health crises. Interventions which increase perceived emotional synchrony and shared flow may positively impact the social fabric of society. This paper examines the relationship between self-reported perceptions of emotional synchrony and shared flow and changes in measures of cortisol, dopamine, oxytocin, and vasopressin in blood samples following musical improvisation, with a review of relevant literature also presented. Vasopressin was found to …

Differential Gene Expressions Patterns In Diabetes In Relation To Cognitive Declines Associated With Diabetes, Dylan Downs

Honors Theses

The chronic metabolic disorder classified as diabetes, is growing at an alarming rate in many countries all across the globe. Diabetes is characterized by an above average blood glucose measurement, due to insulin production and insulin response abnormalities within the body. This increase in blood glucose has detrimental effects on all physiological systems, commonly associated with organs such as the heart, kidneys, eyes, and nerves. One of the less understood and commonly disregarded side effects of diabetes is related to the cognitive declines associated with the disease. Cognitive declines associated with diabetes include memory loss, speech impairments, and decreased motor …

Differences In Dynamic Knee Valgus Using Kinesiology Tape In Female Athletes, Riley J. Williams

Honors Theses

Excessive dynamic knee valgus (DKV) is commonly known as improper alignment in the frontal plane combined with excessive hip adduction, internal rotation, and tibia external rotation (Besier, Gold, Delp, Fredericson, & Beaupré, 2008; Maykut, Taylor-Haas, Paterno, DiCesare & Ford, 2015). More specifically, DKV is a medial collapse of the knee resulting in a hip adduction and internal rotation, tibial abduction and medial knee displacement, which increases the ACL strain (Llurda-Almuzara et al., 2020). Namata et al. (2018), using a three-dimensional kinematic analysis, reported female athletes are more commonly known to obtain a greater knee valgus angle when participating in landing …

Bioaerosol Size As A Potential Determinant Of Airborne E. Coli Viability Under Ultraviolet Germicidal Irradiation And Ozone Disinfection, Weixing Hao, Yue-Wern Huang, Yang Wang

Biological Sciences Faculty Research & Creative Works

Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) and ozone disinfection are crucial methods for mitigating the airborne transmission of pathogenic microorganisms in high-risk settings, particularly with the emergence of respiratory viral pathogens such as SARS-CoV-2 and avian influenza viruses. This study quantitatively investigates the influence of UVGI and ozone on the viability of E. coli in bioaerosols, with a particular focus on how E. coli viability depends on the size of the bioaerosols, a critical factor that determines deposition patterns within the human respiratory system and the evolution of bioaerosols in indoor environments. This study used a controlled small-scale laboratory chamber where E. …

Analytic-Holistic Cognitive Styles Affect Consumer Responses To Food And Beverage Samples During Sensory Evaluation, Thadeus L. Beekman, Han-Seok Seo

Food Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Recent studies have shown that the analytic-holistic theory is applicable in sensory science-related areas. Analytic and holistic cognitive style groups have been found to have significantly different perceptions and behaviors within food-related scenarios. These differences were further investigated and identified within the current study, focusing on specific areas of common sensory tests and analyses where analytic and holistic cognitive style groups may differ from one another. Before the main study, 419 volunteers were classified into three groups based on their scores to the Analysis-Holism Scale (AHS). The extreme groups (65 adults for each) were identified as the “analytic” and “holistic” …

Optimization Of In-Vitro Regeneration And Agrobacterium-Mediated Transformation Of Lactuca Sativa, Mohamed Omer Elsiddig

Theses

Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) is a leafy vegetable consumed worldwide, mainly as a green salad. It is an herbaceous, self-pollinated annual plant of the family Asteraceae. Lettuce is low in calories, fat, and sodium. It is a good source of fiber, iron, folate, and vitamin C. Improving existing lettuce varieties for water use efficiency, photosynthesis efficiency, salt tolerance, increased nutritional content, etc., is the need of the hour, considering that lettuce is a crop ideal for vertical farming in the UAE.

This study aimed to develop a highly efficient in vitro regeneration and Agrobacterium- mediated transformation protocol for a popular …

Agricultural Groundcover Update February 2024, Justin Laycock

Natural resources published reports

• About 92% of the grainbelt had adequate (more than 50%) vegetative groundcover to prevent wind erosion in February 2024.

• Nearly 8% of the grainbelt (1,193,400 ha) had less than 50% groundcover, which is inadequate to prevent wind erosion.

• The northern grainbelt had the highest risk of wind erosion and 16.5% of this farmland had inadequate groundcover.

• Less than 0.7% of the grainbelt had a high to very high risk of wind erosion because groundcover was less than 30%.

Procedures For Rangeland Condition Assessment In The Pilbara And Southern Rangelands 2022, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development

Natural resources published reports

To define the procedures used in 2022 by DPIRD to complete rangeland condition assessment (RCA) in the Pilbara and southern rangelands region which has predominantly shrub-based pastures. For the rest of the pastoral estate, DPIRD uses the Procedures for RCA in the Kimberley which has grass pastures.

RCA is the process DPIRD uses to make systematic, lease level assessment of rangeland. Rangeland condition considers both the condition of pastures (as defined in the Pasture condition and management guide for the Pilbara rangelands or Southern rangelands pasture condition and management guides) and soils (as determined by erosion, using the erosion assessment …

A Hypothesis-Based Hop Microbiology Laboratory Module Testing The Plausibility Of The Mythical Origin Of The India Pale Ale, Julio Molina Pineda, Amanda N. Scholes, Jeffrey A. Lewis

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

As one of the most famous fermented drinks in the world, beer is an especially relatable topic for microbiology courses. Here, we describe a short and easily adaptable module based on the antibacterial properties of hops used in brewing. By the 15th century, beer recipes included hops (the flower of the Humulus lupulus plant) as a bittering agent and antimicrobial. By the 19th century, the highly hopped Indian Pale Ale (IPA) became popular, and a modern myth has emerged that IPAs were invented to survive long ocean voyages such as from Britain to India. With that myth in mind, we …