Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Special Muscles, Annamaria C. Scaccia

Capstones

Special Muscles is a documentary that explores living with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a fatal degenerative disease that weakens the muscles at an aggressive rate. The film will give an uncensored look at how one family copes with inevitability of the disease and their journey chasing a promising experimental cure.

Special Muscles follows 7-year-old Pietro Scarso and his family as they face the challenges, complications and promise of treating Pietro’s progressive muscle disorder. The film travels from New York to Los Angeles to Philadelphia to document the Scarso family’s race against time as Pietro undergoes a 96-week clinical trial for Eteplirsen, …

Effects Of Melatonin On Heartbeat And Possible Identification Of A Melatonin Receptor In Drosophila Melanogaster, Tricia L. Vankirk

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Chapter 1 of this manuscript is a literature review that serves as an introduction to the entire dissertation. Chapter 2 examines the effects of the melatonin injection on heart rate and rhythmicity in Drosophila melanogaster Canton-S (wild-type) pupae and pupae bearing a variety of heart mutations. Chapter 3 investigates further the possible mechanisms of melatonin’s ability to increase heart rhythmicity without significantly affecting heart rate. A melatonin antagonist, luzindole; a high-affinity melatonin agonist, 2-iodomelatonin and RNAi techniques are used to identify a possible melatonin receptor in Drosophila melanogaster.

An appendix contains a previously published manuscript detailing experiments performed at the …

How The Manipulation Of The Ras Homolog Enriched In Striatum Alters The Behavioral And Molecular Progression Of Huntington’S Disease, Franklin A. Lee

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Huntington’s disease is an incurable, progressive neurological disorder characterized by loss of motor control, psychiatric dysfunction, and eventual dystonia leading to death. Despite the fact that this disorder is caused by a mutation in one single gene, there is no cure. The mutant Huntingtin (mHtt) protein is expressed ubiquitously throughout the brain but frank cell death is limited to the striatum. Recent work has suggested that Rhes, Ras homolog enriched in striatum, which is selectively expressed in the striatum, may play a role in Huntington’s disease neuropathology. In vitro studies have shown Rhes to be an E3 ligase for the …

A Pilot Study Of Propofol As An Anti-Emetic In Laparoscopic, Gynecologic Surgery Patients, Flem-Flam Aaron Flemister

Doctoral Projects

The goal of this project was to use sub-hypnotic doses of propofol to decrease post operative nausea and vomiting (PONV) rates in the immediate post-operative period in females, ages 18-65, undergoing laparoscopic gynecologic surgery.

PONV is one of the largest complications of anesthesia affecting 20-30% of all surgical patients. Risk factors associated with PONV are female gender, laparoscopy, general anesthesia, opioids, volatile agents, and post-operative pain; all of which are frequently encountered. The incidence of PONV can prolong recovery time, delay discharge, increase patient cost, decrease patient satisfaction, and can cause significant medical complications. Propofol has previously demonstrated anti-emetic properties; …

Using A Cost Benefit Analysis To Support The Development Of A Comprehensive Business Model For A Pre-Filled, Pre-Labeled, Pre-Diluted, Sterilely Packaged, Ready-To-Use, Syringe-Based Anesthesia Delivery System, Lance B. Kennedy

Doctoral Projects

The foundation of Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists’ (CRNAs) entire profession is built on the ability to provide anesthetic services using a variety of medications in the safest, most efficient, cost-effective way possible. The purpose of this capstone is to address, via a comprehensive cost benefit analysis, whether pre-filled syringe drug trays are a more cost-effective way to address problems as compared to vial-filled drug trays and to implement the necessary transitions in order to improve outcomes. There are a number of identifiable problems related to anesthesia medication delivery via vial-filled medication, including increased cost of healthcare, decreased patient safety to …

The Effectiveness Of A Preoperative Multimodal Antiemetic Regimen On Reducing Early Postoperative Nausea And Vomiting In Total Joint Arthroplasty Patients, Jerry Mosley

Doctoral Projects

Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) occurs frequently in all types of surgeries including after total joint orthopedic procedures. The resulting PONV can lead to many unwanted occurrences including immobilization, distress, and many serious adverse health complications. These unwanted occurrences may then lead to increased cost to the patient and healthcare facility. Administration of a preoperative multimodal regimen known to reduce PONV has the potential to reduce such unwanted anesthetic side effects influencing a reduction in overall healthcare cost. The purpose of this study is to determine the effectiveness of the preoperative kit which includes the administration of metoclopramide, famotidine, ondansetron, …

Targeting Oncogenic Mirnas With Small Molecules For Breast Cancer Therapy, Paloma Del C. Monroig

Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)

The crucial role of microRNAs (miRNAs) in cancer pathobiology has driven the introduction of new drug development approaches such as miRNA inhibition. In order to advance miRNA-therapeutics, there is a need to develop screening strategies that can target tumors in a specific way. Small molecule inhibitors represent an attractive approach to pursue this. However, the absence of molecular structures for most of the miRNAs makes it very difficult to predict which inhibitors can bind to them. Herein we designed a strategy to screen for small molecules by assesing whether they could directly bind/ interact with miR-10b/miR-21. As part of our …

Synthesis Of Medicinally Relevant Thiazolyl Aryl Ketones Under Mild Conditions, Danielle M. Gardner

Health, Human Performance and Recreation Undergraduate Honors Theses

Purpose: The growing amount of clinical resistance observed in current antifungal drugs and in anti-HIV pharmaceuticals is a concern in the medical community. The purpose of this study is to develop a mild synthetic process for biomedically relevant thiazolyl aryl ketones that can be used to develop antifungal and anti-HIV drugs. We hypothesized that the proposed synthetic technique would be more efficient, produce fewer unwanted byproducts, and be more tolerant of functional groups than existing methods.

Methods: Prior to each of the ketone reactions, the necessary salt was synthesized by mixing thiazole and 9-bromofluorene neat in a reaction tube heated …

Normal Glycolytic Enzyme Activity Is Critical For Hypoxia Inducible Factor-1a Activity And Provides Novel Targets For Inhibiting Tumor Growth, Geoffrey Grandjean Phd

Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)

Normal Glycolytic Enzyme Activity is Critical for Hypoxia Inducible Factor-1α Activity and Provides Novel Targets for Inhibiting Tumor Growth

By Geoffrey Grandjean

Advisory Professor: Garth Powis, D. Phil

Unique to proliferating cancer cells is the observation that their increased need for energy is provided by a high rate of glycolysis followed by lactic acid fermentation in a process known as the Warburg Effect, a process many times less efficient than oxidative phosphorylation employed by normal cells to satisfy a similar energy demand ^[1]. This high rate of glycolysis occurs regardless of the concentration of oxygen in the cell and …

Mimicking The Arterial Microenvironment With Peg-Pc To Investigate The Roles Of Physicochemical Stimuli In Smc Phenotype And Behavior, William G. Herrick

Doctoral Dissertations

The goal of this dissertation was to parse the roles of physical, mechanical and chemical cues in the phenotype plasticity of smooth muscle cells (SMCs) in atherosclerosis. We first developed and characterized a novel synthetic hydrogel with desirable traits for studying mechanotransduction in vitro. This hydrogel, PEG-PC, is a co-polymer of poly(ethylene glycol) and phosphorylcholine with an incredible range of Young’s moduli (~1 kPa - 9 MPa) that enables reproduction of nearly any tissue stiffness, exceptional optical and anti-fouling properties, and support for covalent attachment of extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins. To our knowledge, this combination of mechanical range, low …

The Effects Of Arginine Vasopressin On Maternal Behavior And Aggression In Peromyscus Californicus Mothers, Nathaniel Ng

Honors Projects

Research studies since the 1950s have shown that a chemical within the brain called arginine vasopressin (AVP) is associated with the modulation of many different social behaviors in mammals. Some of these behaviors are related to parenting, such as parental care initiation, aggression, social recognition, depression and anxiety. Understanding the physiology behind AVP regulation could allow for the creation of new therapies for treating human social disorders, such as using an AVP receptor antagonist to attenuate anxiety. This project examines how neural injections of AVP and an AVP receptor antagonist affect both maternal care and aggression in female Peromyscus californicus …

Investigating The Impact Of Marijuana Legalization On Income, Education, And Depression, Wayne Fu

Honors Theses

Over the past two decades, marijuana has been the most widely used illicit drug by adolescents in the US. The drug continues to soar in popularity as both a recreational and medicinal drug despite mounting scientific research that marijuana consumption may impair cognitive function including deficits in learning, memory, motivation, and attention. Marijuana use has also been linked to exacerbation of depression and anxiety symptoms. Though federal laws still classify marijuana as an illegal substance, recent state-level legislation has sparked national debate over its legal status. In fact, 23 states and the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana for medical …

Psychostimulant Use Among Undiagnosed College Students: Revealing Perceptions Anddebunking The Myth Of Cognitive Benefits, Rebecca Elizabeth Shait

Honors Theses

Previous research suggests there is a rising trend of non-medical psychostimulant use on college campuses. The current study examined the prevalence of non-medical psychostimulant use, assessed students’ motivations and perceptions of the cognitive and emotional benefits, and attempted to influence their views by giving them real scenarios where psychostimulants are not effective for individuals without ADHD. Results revealed that there is a prevalence of non-medical psychostimulant use at Union College. Non-medical psychostimulant users had a more positive perception that these medications enhance performance, cognition, memory, mood/energy, and motivation to start and complete work. There were no significant interactions or differences …

Evolutionary Convergence Of The Caffeine Biosynthetic Pathway In Chocolate Followed Duplication Of A Constrained Ancestral Enzyme, Andrew J. O'Donnell

Masters Theses

Caffeine biosynthesis is widely distributed in flowering plants and requires three consecutive methylation steps of xanthine alkaloids. Genes that have previously been reported to participate in the multi-step pathway in Coffea sp. (coffee) and Camellia sinensis (tea) encode members of the SABATH family of methyltransferases. Two genes highly expressed in fruits of Theobroma cacao (cacao) are orthologous to the caffeine genes in tea and appear to have diversified following gene duplication. Biochemical characterization of the enzymes (XMTs) encoded by these genes strongly suggest an unprecedented major pathway to theobromine, a precursor to caffeine. These findings imply that caffeine biosynthesis evolved …

Instituting Patient-Self Test Meters In Adults On Warfarin In A Cardiology Practice, Melvyn Grace Manzano Rabanal

Doctor of Nursing Practice Final Manuscripts

Background: Warfarin is the oral anticoagulant that is most commonly used to control and prevent thromboembolic disorders. It requires meticulous testing and dosing adjustments to attain therapeutic international normalized ratio (INR) levels. Patient self-testing (PST) is associated with a reduced risk of all-cause mortality and lower rates of thromboembolism and bleeding. PST meters offers convenience and promotes self-initiative of care.

Purpose: The purpose of the project is to evaluate the effectiveness of INR PST in adult patients diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, deep vein thrombosis, and mechanical heart valve on warfarin therapy in a Cardiology practice compared to traditional …

Custom Fluorophores For Investigating The Cellular Uptake Mechanisms And Side-Effects Of Pharmaceuticals, Yu-Hsuan Chu

Dissertations and Theses

There is a significant current need to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of the side-effects caused by widely-used pharmaceuticals. Examples include the acute nephrotoxicity and irreversible ototoxicity promoted by the cationic drugs gentamicin and cisplatin. Gentamicin is an aminoglycoside antibiotic used for the prevention and treatment of life-threatening gram-negative bacterial infections, such as tuberculosis and meningitis. Cisplatin is used to treat a broad spectrum of cancers including head and neck, ovarian, cervical, stomach, bladder, sarcoma, lymphoma, testicular cancer and others.

The objective of this study is to design and synthesize rhodamine derivatives that can be used for the construction of geometrically …

The Synthesis And Study Of The Biological And Colloidal Properties Of Bolaamphiphiles, Louis M. Damiano

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Over the past decade, antibiotic resistant bacteria have caused infections in patients throughout the world.^[1] The rise in antibiotic resistance is primarily due to the misuse and overuse of antibiotics. ^[1] To counter the increase in antibiotic resistance, infection control mechanisms have been aggressively researched in recent years. In particular, drug delivery has become a focal point to fight antibiotic resistant infections.^[2] Amphiphiles have a wide range of applications in the clinical setting, including the ability to inhibit bacterial transference because of their bactericidal activity. ^[3] Bolaamphiphiles are a subclass of amphiphiles that possess two or more hydrophilic …

The Nonmedical Use Of Prescription Stimulants Among Students With High Academic Standing, Megan L. Dwyer

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

College students report one of the highest rates of the nonmedical use of prescription stimulants (NPS). Research has shown that use is more common among students who have high levels of perceived stress, such as honors students. The purpose of this study was to determine whether honors students reported higher rates of NPS than their non-honors peers with high academic standing. It was hypothesized that honors students would report higher rates of use. The instrument used in this study was an email survey that was administered electronically through the online Qualtrics Survey system. The survey request was sent to 3,530 …

The Effect Of An Educational Intervention On Oral Anticoagulation Therapy Knowledge In Primary Care, Elizabeth D. Deck

Evidence-Based Practice Project Reports

It is estimated that three million people in the United States are on oral anticoagulation therapy (warfarin). Populations studied have been found in therapeutic range 64% of the time (Pernod, Labarere, & Bosson, 2008). The low percentage of therapeutic range is attributable to (a) adherence, (b) monitoring infrequency, (c) Vitamin K antagonists, and (d) the effects of aging and comorbidities. The purpose of this evidence-based practice (EBP) project was to examine whether an educational intervention would improve the knowledge of patients receiving warfarin therapy. Roy’s model for patient adaptation and the Stetler Model for EBP were used as frameworks for …

Distributed Drug Discovery: Synthesis Of Unnatural Amino Acids As Potential Antimalarial Drugs, Amanda Dugan

Honors College

Through the collaboration of many institutions across the globe, the Distributed Drug Discovery project founded at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis seeks to aid in the development of drugs for the developing world. In response to two antimalarial assay hits, our team at Abilene Christian University has synthesized many unnatural amino acid analogs using resin-based combinatorial chemistry. Proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy has been used to characterize the compounds and thin layer chromatography to determine purity. All compounds were purified on hypersep cyanosilica columns.

Src Homology 2 Domain-Containing 5’-Inositol Phosphatase-2 (Ship2) Is An Effector Of Lymphatic Dysfunction, Germaine D. Agollah

Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)

The lymphatic system is essential for the transport of excess fluid, protein, and foreign materials from interstitial tissues to lymph nodes; for immune surveillance, and to maintain fluid homeostasis. Dysregulated lymphatics can be attributed to pathological conditions including tumor metastasis, inflammation, chronic wounds, obesity, blood vascular disorders, and lymphedema. Of these, lymphedema is the most extreme of lymphatic disorders and is represented by a spectrum of symptoms ranging from mild, subtle presentation to severe, disfiguring, overt presentation. Lymphedema is more manageable in the early stages of disease but severely reduces quality of life with progression. Due to lack of molecular …

The Characterization Of Amyloid Fibrils And Novel Synthetic Heparin-Binding Peptides Binding To Cell Surfaces, Nicole Marie Hackenbrack

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Different Brands Of Coffee On The Transcriptional Activity Of Drosophila Cyp6a8 Gene Promoter, Marie Ashley Scott

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Characterization Of Ghrelin O-Acyltransferase Active Site, Leslie Patton

Honors Capstone Projects - All

Ghrelin, first discovered in 1999, is a 28-amino acid peptide hormone involved in the regulation of appetite, insulin secretion and sensitivity, and many neurological effects such as learning, memory, and depression.^1-6 Ghrelin has been identified to have a unique posttranslational octanoylation carried out by the enzyme ghrelin O-acyltransferase (GOAT). This distinctive modification is a point of interest in studying GOAT whereby blocking the acylation of the ghrelin could potentially halt the activity of the peptide hormone and provide a means of treating obesity, diabetes, and other diseases affected by ghrelin levels. The duration of my project involved working …

The Effects Of Adderall On Maternal And Fetal Health, Alyson Brady

Honors Theses

Information available for woman prescribed Adderall to treat ADHD and the effects that it may have on her fetus is limited. However, Adderall and methamphetamine have similar pharmacological and addictive qualities. This paper is concerned with whether there is an adequate approach to treatment that balances the needs of the mother and the fetus. With Adderall use becoming more prevalent, it is essential that society is aware of the physiology and pharmacology of this drug, as well as, the need for more research on this subject to be produced.

Effects Of Bpa And Alternatives On Human Health Concerning The Nflpa, Jeremy Martell

Biology Undergraduate

No abstract provided.

Investigation Of Dual Stage Acridones As A Potent Malaria Treatment, Stephanie Huezo

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

The need for potent antimalarials to prevent the emergence of drug resistant Plasmodium falciparum is urgent. Discovery of novel acridone chemotypes have shown promise for a new antimalarial drug treatment. Presently, two acridone chemotypes have intrinsic antimalarial potency against chloroquine sensitive and multidrug resistant parasites. Acridones lacking an N10 side chain are known as chemotype I acridones, whereas, chemotype II acridones are defined as having an alkyl side chain at the same position. The N10 substitution of chemotype II acridones is thought to target heme and inhibit hemozoin formation within the parasite’s digestive vacuole, and is known to provide synergistic …

High Potency Eugeroics-- Wake-Promoting Agents Beyond Modafinil, Joseph Yoham

Biomedical Engineering

Modafinil (Provigil) belongs to a new pharmaceutical class known as eugeroics— wake-promoting agents. Directly enhancing conductance across neuronal membranes, modafinil, amplifies presynaptic Na/Ca influx; resultant widespread depolarization of cortical interneurons could theoretically allow transient, voltage-dependent inhibition of monoamine reuptake- resembling action of conventional stimulants, minus the stereotypy, euphoria, and locomotor effects. This literature review presents a hypothesized mechanism of action, consolidates research of modafinil analogues and hybridizes a novel compound in search of a next generation molecule.

Cancer Stem Cells In The Screening Of Anticancer Drugs For Central Nervous System Tumors, Sarah Elizabeth Daron-Mathis

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

There is a growing need (in the medical field) to design personalized therapy for cancer patients. Decades of cancer research have found no silver bullet that can cure all or even most patients. This study evaluated four patients affected by central nervous system (CNS) tumors (Ependymoma and Glioblastoma), and found that tumors with the same histology had unique responses to treatment. Each sample presented different levels of heterogeneity in expressed biomarkers and responded to drugs at varying levels.

Oncologists conventionally treat cancer patients with drugs tested in large clinical trials. However, often patients do not experience positive outcomes following treatments …

Use Of Swine Small Intestine Submucosa As A Dermal Suture, Paige E. Black

PCOM Biomedical Studies Student Scholarship

The purpose of this preliminary study is to determine if swine small intestine submucosa (SIS) can be used to create a suture that will perform comparably to commercially available chromic gut sutures when placed into a wound in rat dermis. This study is part of an ongoing collaboration that has explored SIS as a biologic scaffold in various tissues and surgical procedures. In this study, eight Sprague-dawley rats were divided into two groups, each receiving a full thickness skin wound between the scapula, made by a 5mm biopsy punch. The wound was then closed with commercially available chromic gut suture, …