Immunology and Infectious Disease Commons^™

Microglial Response To Glucocorticoids During Chronic Sleep Fragmentation, Christian Chelson

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Sleep is one of the body’s greatest and most basic needs. Chronic sleep loss (<6 hours a day) is linked to many cardiovascular issues, diabetes, and inflammatory conditions and has been shown to lower life expectancy. Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a complication that causes sleep fragmentation in >8% of adults from developed countries, and many with OSA may be unaware of their condition. Having long-term OSA is linked to neuroinflammation caused by activated microglia in the brain, but the mechanics of this inflammation are not well understood. It is known that glucocorticoids, steroid hormones produced and released from the adrenal glands, have a suppressive effect on microglia. The purpose of this study is to explore the role that glucocorticoids have upon microglia activation induced by chronic sleep fragmentation (SF). C57BL/6J mice were …

Rapid & Sensitive Detection Of Antibiotic Resistance Genes By Utilizing New Diagnostic Probe Tales With 2d-Nanosheet Graphene Oxide, Jihye Kang

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

As antibiotic resistance is one of the major health concerns in infectious diseases because of reducing the efficacy of antibiotics, rapid and sensitive detection of antibiotic resistance genes is critical for the effective treatment of infectious diseases. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is widely used to detect nucleic acids, but it requires additional steps involved in DNA denaturation and subsequent hybridization. A new class of DNA-binding domains called transcriptional activator-like effectors (TALEs) provide a novel scaffold for designing versatile DNA-binding proteins due to their modularity and predictability. Here, we developed a simple, rapid, and sensitive system for detecting antibiotic resistance genes …

Comparison Of Effects Of Sleep Fragmentation On Pro-Inflammatory Cytokine Il-1Β Of Male And Female Adult Mice, Manzar Rzayeva

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Sleep plays an essential role throughout the body by affecting the physiological function and regulation of many systems. One of these systems that receives effects as a result of the adequacy of sleep is the immune system. Previous studies have demonstrated effects of sleep fragmentation upon the immune system; however, sexual differences of these effects have not been studied in depth. To analyze these variances amongst the genders, male and female adult mice were subjected to acute sleep fragmentation (SF) for 24 hours in an automated SF cage that includes a bar sweeping across the cage every two minutes. Meanwhile, …

The Effect Of Age On Neurological Inflammation To Acute Sleep Fragmentation In Mice, Molly Taylor

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Obstructive sleep apnea is identified by recurring events of airway collapse during sleep, intermittent hypoxia, and perturbations in sleep continuity, known as sleep fragmentation. There is evidence to suggest that elderly patients are more at risk of developing obstructive sleep apnea. The purpose of this study was to assess whether age affects neurological inflammatory responses to acute sleep fragmentation. This assessment was made by subjecting young (4-5 months old) and old (10-11 months old) male C57BL/6j mice to automated sleep fragmentation, as well as having mice in both age categories as a control with no sleep fragmentation, for twenty-four hours. …

Effects Of Alpha- And Beta-Adrenergic Receptor Blockade Upon Inflammatory Responses To Acute And Chronic Sleep Fragmentation, Nicholas David Wheeler

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Generally, sleep is viewed as a recuperative process and its dysregulation has

cognitive, metabolic, immunological, and inflammatory implications that are largely deleterious to human health. Epidemiological and empirical studies have suggested that sleep fragmentation (SF) as result of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and other sleep abnormalities leads to pronounced systemic inflammatory responses, which are influenced by the sympathetic nervous system (SNS). However, the underlying molecular mechanisms contributing to SNS regulation of SF-induced inflammatory states are not fully understood. To assess the effects of the SNS system, C57BL/6j female mice were placed in automated SF chambers (12L:12D) and subjected to either …

Transcriptomic Response To Immune Challenge In Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia Guttata) Using Rna-Seq, Cassandra Scalf

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Despite the convergence of rapid technological advances in genomics and the maturing field of ecoimmunology, our understanding of the genes that regulate immunity in wild populations is still nascent. Previous work to assess immune function has relied upon relatively crude measures of immunocompetence. However, with next-generation RNA-sequencing, it is now possible to create a profile of gene expression in response to an immune challenge. In this study, captive zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata; adult males) were challenged with bacterial lipopolysaccharide (2 mg/Kg BW; dissolved in 0.9% saline) or vehicle (0.9% saline) to stimulate the immune system. Two hours after injection, birds …

Interactions Between Aerobic Exercise Volume, Academic Stress, And Immune Function, Teresa Wiczynski

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Many college students exercise individually or participate in collegiate and intramural sports in addition to fulfilling their stressful academic requirements. The combination of accumulated stress and vigorous exercise could result in an impaired immune system, prompting the onset of disease and absences in class and sports practice.

Twenty-six male and female participants aged 18 to 23 were recruited for this study. Over the course of an academic semester, participants completed weekly electronic surveys documenting stress levels, aerobic exercise, and symptoms related to upper respiratory tract infections. Participants were evaluated at four different time points (Baseline, Post-Midterm Exam, Baseline Reassessment, and …

Finding A Link Between Circadian Rhythms And The Immune System Of Captive Zebra Finches (Taeniopygia Guttata), Amber Bishop

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Circadian rhythms are commonplace in organisms and are normally controlled by a master clock. More recent evidence suggests that autonomous clocks operate in various systems in the body, including the immune system. This study looks for such a connection between the circadian rhythm and the immune system. In this study, captive zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) were exposed to different light and dark cycles and blood samples were taken every six hours. Birds were exposed to 12 hours of light and then 12 hours of darkness (LD), 24 hours of darkness (DD), or 48 hours of DD. After collecting …

Co-Occurrence Patterns Of Bat Flies On Neotropical Chiroptera, Mitchell Louis Schooler

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Parasite-host systems provide excellent opportunities to explore ecological dynamics such as competition, competitive exclusion, and co-occurrence. The distribution of streblid bat flies on their host bats were examined for patterns of species co-occurrence and to understand mechanisms driving these patterns. The purpose of this study was to determine patterns of co-occurrence among individuals of different Neotropical bat fly species. After establishing patterns of co-occurrence, tests on whether variation in fly morphology was linked to observed patterns of co-occurrence were performed. Co-occurrence patterns were determined using null model analyses, and a predominant pattern of aggregation was detected. To examine the relationship …

Adapting The Standard Sir Disease Model In Order To Track And Predict The Spreading Of The Ebola Virus Using Twitter Data, Armin Smailhodzic

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

A method has been developed to track infectious diseases by using data mining of active Twitter accounts and its efficacy was demonstrated during the West African Ebola outbreak of 2014. Using a meme based n-gram semantic usage model to search the Twitter database for indications of illness, flight and death from the spread of Ebola in Africa, principally from Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia. Memes of interest relate disease to location and severity and are coupled to the density of Tweets and re-Tweets. The meme spreads through the community of social users in a fashion similar to nonlinear wave propagation- …

Effects Of A Simulated Tennis Match On Lymphocyte Subset Measurements, Holly Kell

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Research has shown that maximal exercise has a significant effect on cells of the immune system. Specifically, lymphocyte count increases during exercise and decreases to a value lower than baseline following an acute exhaustive bout of exercise. The overall lymphocyte response is well characterized, however, the ability of exercise to affect lymphocyte subfractions is unknown to our knowledge. The purpose of this study was to assess and evaluate the affects of a simulated tennis match across two sessions on lymphocyte subsets.

Initial measurements such as age, height, weight, skinfold analysis, and heart rate were recorded for each player, as well …

Molecular Analysis Of Trypanosoma Cruzi Isolates Obtained From Raccoons (Procyon Lotor) In Warren And Barren Counties Of Kentucky, Lipeng Bi

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Trypanosoma cruzi, the etiologic agent of Chagas disease, infects a variety of wild mammals in the southern United States, but it has only recently been isolated from raccoons trapped in the state of Kentucky. The purpose of the present study was to use a molecular genotyping approach, followed by DNA sequencing to determine the genotypes (type I, or types IIa-IIe) of 15 of the Kentucky isolates. DNA samples were prepared from 15 T. cruzi- isolates using a Qiagen mini kit, and PCR amplification was performed using published primers for the 24S α rDNA sequence (D71 and D72), the …

Site Directed Mutagensis Of Bacteriophage Hk639 And Identification Of Its Integration Site, Madhuri Jonnalagadda

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Bacteriophages affect bacterial evolution, pathogenesis and global nutrient cycling. They are also the most numerous and diverse group of biological entities on the planet [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. Members of the Lambda phage family share a similar genetic organization and control early gene expression by suppressing transcription, a process known as antitermination. Transcription antitermination in Lambda is mediated by a phage-encoded protein whereas in lambdoid phage HK022, antitermination is mediated by a phage-encoded RNA molecules. Recent results suggest that another bacteriophage called HK639 also appears to use RNA-mediated antitermination. To characterize this newly identified phage we generated site …

Trypanosoma Cruzi In Wild Raccoons And Opossums From Kentucky, Brian Chad Groce

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Only 6 autochthonous cases of human Chagas disease have been documented in the U.S.A., however, as many as 5% of immigrants from Latin America may be infected with the etiologic agent, Trypanosoma cruzi. The parasite has been isolated from a variety of wild mammals, particularly in the southeastern region of the U.S.A. The goal of our study was to determine if the sylvatic cycle of T. cruzi infection occurs in Kentucky, and, if present, to assess the prevalence of infection in Warren and Barren counties. Raccoons and opossums were live-trapped between June and December, 2007. Animals were anesthetized with …

Use Of Origanum Vulgare Essential Oil To Combat Human Pathogenic Yeasts, Amber Adams

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

With the outbreak of autoimmune diseases, pathogenic yeasts have begun to pose a serious medical threat. This threat is compounded as more of these yeasts evolve resistance to existing antifungal drugs. In the ever-widening search for new, effective antifungal treatment, the realm of herbal medicine offers some interesting and potentially valuable alternatives. Origanum vulgare is one herb that has demonstrated broad spectrum antimicrobial activity against bacteria and fungi alike. This study undertook to examine the effects of the essential oil of Origanum vulgare on Candida albicans, Cryptococcus neoformans, Rhodotorula rubrum, and Cryptococcus albidus, with the hypothesis that Essential Oil of …

The Impact Of Elevated Environmental Temperature On Cytokine Synthesis And Nitric Oxide Production During Experimental Chagas' Disease, L. Curtis Cary

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

C3H mice that have been infected with a Brazil strain of Trypanosoma cruzi and maintained at an elevated environmental temperature of 36°C survive an otherwise lethal infection. These mice show increased longevity and a dramatic increase in parasitemia levels. In contrast, C3H mice maintained at room temperature typically experience high parasitemia levels and die within 40 days of infection. Previous studies in the laboratory suggest cell-mediated immune responses rather than antibody-mediated responses are responsible for the enhances protection. The goal of the present study was to analyze cytokine synthesis and nitric oxide production in spleen cells from mice infected with …

Cryptococcus Neoformans Serotype Groups Found In Clinical And Environmental Isolates, John Clauson

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Cryptococcus neoformans is an encapsulated yeast responsible for severe meningoencephalitis. The importance of epidemiological studies on cryptococcosis has increased since the beginning of the AIDS epidemic. C. neoformans exists in two varieties containing four serotypes, C. neoformans var. neoformans (serotypes A and D) and C. neoformans var. gattii (serotypes B and C). Locally C. neoformans var. neoformans has been associated with pigeon feces during those months having an average temperature of 64.2°F j(17.8°C) and above. Clinical and environmental isolates of C. neoformans obtained from regional hospitals and environmental samplings, respectively, have been grouped into their variety status utilizing canavanine-glycine-bromthymol blue …

The Effect Of Sodium Chloride On Beta-Hemolytic Streptococci, Bola Fashola

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The drug of choice for the treatment of Stieptococcal pharyngitis is penicillin G. However, a common home remedy prescribes the use of salt-water solutions for gargling.

Members of Beta -hemolytic streptococcal groups A, B, and C were isolated from the upper -respiratory tracts of patients diagnosed as having streptococcal pharyngitis. These cultures we:e obtained from HCA Greenview Hospital (Bowling Green, Kentucky) and used to study the effects of sodium chloride on the isolates.

The minimum inhibitory concentration of sodium chloride was determined for each of eight hospital isolates. Croup A streptococci were inhibited at a concentration of 7.2% sodium chloride …

The Biological Effect Of Evernimicin B On Bacillus Subtilis W2 3 And Three Antibiotic-Resistant Strains Of Staphylococcus Aureus, Steven Bogach

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

One strain of Bacillus subtilis and three antibiotic-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus were employed to determine the biological effects of everninomicin B (EvB), a naturally occurring antibiotic produced by Micromonospora carbonacea (NRRL 2972) and M. carbonacea var. aurantiaca. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of EvB for B. subtilis was 1.2 x 10^-3 µmole/ml of EvB in glucose minimal broth and 2.6 x 10^-3 µmole/ml of EvB in nutrient broth. MIC values of EvB for S. aureus were 3.25 x 10^-4 µmole/ml of EvB for strains resistant to penicillin or tetracycline and 6.5 x 10^-4 µmole/ml of …

The Wavelength Dependence Of Ultraviolet Enhanced Reactivation In A Mammalian Cell-Virus System, Leslie C. James

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The effect of ultraviolet (UV) radiation in the wavelength region 230 nm to 302 nm on the ability of an irradiated mammalian cell to reactivate UV-irradiated mammalian virus was tests. An action spectrum for radiation enhanced reactivation (RER) Is presented. The shape of the action spectrum points to a combined nucleic acid protein target for UV radiation effects on this cellular parameter. An analysis of the results of others involving the biochemical and photobiological events involved in the RER does not allow the identification of the macromolecule which is the major contributor to this effect. Studies involving an analogous phenomenon …