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A One Health Approach To Enhancing Sars-Cov-2 Surveillance, Lauren C. Cybulska

Dissertations and Theses

Background

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) in humans, can also infect domestic dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) and cats (Felis catus). Susceptibility and viral transmissibility in these species are concerns for public health due to the spillover risk to humans or other animals. This dissertation uses a One Health framework to explore key issues on this topic. We aim to identify gaps in understanding of SARS-CoV-2 in companion animals and investigate novel surveillance methods through human, animal, and environmental health perspectives.

Methods

Paper 1 provides an in-depth exploration of …

Atm-/-Ung-/- Mice Present Reduced Levels Of Switched Immunoglobulin Isotypes Igg1 And Igg3, Lyric M. Haughton

Dissertations and Theses

B cells excise and recombine the immunoglobulin heavy chain gene locus during class switch recombination (CSR). CSR is mediated by activation induced cytidine deaminase (AID) and results in a new immunoglobulin isotype that B cells will secrete and present. AID produces mutations that convert cytosines to uracils within the intronic switch regions that precede and follow the target immunoglobulin isotype coding sequence. To resolve the mutations, B cells conduct either base excision repair (BER) or mismatch repair (MMR). Inactivating genetic mutations in BER or MMR reduce CSR. For example, a knock-out of uracil DNA glycosylase (UNG) causes a 50% reduction …

Allergy And Anaphylaxis From The Prehospital Perspective, Anthony E. Conrardy

Dissertations and Theses

Anaphylaxis is considered a severe, potentially fatal, systemic allergic reaction that occurs suddenly after contact with an allergy causing substance. It is estimated that up to 5% of the population has experienced anaphylaxis, with 1% of hospitalizations and 0.1% of emergency department patients having fatal outcomes. We characterized the population of patients encountered by the EMS agency (786 patients) that had a provider impression of “allergic reaction” and then utilized logistic regression models to estimate associations with the administration of epinephrine in the prehospital setting. Additionally, we used incident location data for all patient encounters of the EMS agency …

Lps, A Tlr-4 Agonist And Viper A Tlr-4 Inhibitor Upregulate Phagocytosis Of Zymosan In Bv2 Cells, Sherouk Alzeory

Dissertations and Theses

Microglia cells are the first line of innate immunity defense in the central nervous system (CNS). They play a critical role in maintaining CNS homeostasis by having an active but yet balanced phagocytic activity. However, in various CNS related diseases, microglia cells have been shown to malfunction. In Alzheimer's Disease (AD), hyperactive microglia with impaired phagocytic activity is the main hallmark of this disease, along with the accumulation of amyloid-beta aggregates. Additionally, emerging new studies have suggested a fungal infection etiology to AD, specifically in relation to Candida albicans (C.albicans). Thus, understanding the mechanism of fungal clearance in the …

Bone Marrow Derived Progenitor Cells And Their Contributions To The Thymic Stroma, Mohammed Hoque

Dissertations and Theses

The thymus serves as the primary lymphoid organ responsible for the development and selection of a self-tolerant T cell repertoire. In paradox to its critical functions for the adaptive immune response, the thymus undergoes a profound age associated decline beginning in early adult life resulting in significant decline in T-cell function.Thymic epithelial cells (TECs) are the most critical component of the thymic microenvironment and undergo rapid turn-over, so understanding the cellular mechanisms responsible for the maintenance of TEC number and organization will be critical in counteracting age associated involution, particularly in cancer patients, due to enhanced degeneration in response to …

Effects Of Types 1 And 2 Herpes Simplex Viruses On Several Fish Tissue Culture Systems, Raymond Charles Harry

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this investigation was to observe changes induced by types 1 and 2 herpes simplex viruses (HSV 1 and HSV 2) when these viruses were cultivated in fish cells. The possibility of attempting to use human strains of herpesviruses in order to transform normal fish tissue culture preparations was considered. Three different fish cell cultures were tested: CHSE-214 cell lines were derived from embryonic chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), and STE-137 cell lines were obtained from embryonic steelhead trout (Salmo gairdneri). Cells isolated from immature ovaries of rainbow trout (Salmo gairdneri) were propagated …