Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Roles Of Pgc-1Α/Ppars Pathway In Regulating Insulin Sensitivity In Mouse Skeletal Muscle Cells Under Prolonged Hypoxia, Yunyan Zhang

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Using the C₂C₁₂ mouse myoblast cell line, I investigated how prolonged hypoxia affected components of the insulin signalling and FAO/PGC-1α/PPARs pathways, as they might impact insulin sensitivity in skeletal muscle cells.

Hypoxia resulted in lower p-Akt (Thr 308) and higher total cellular GLUT4 protein levels after 7 days of differentiation. This coincided with higher triglyceride content and alterations of the FAO/PGC-1α/PPARs components, both of which could contribute to the changes observed in the components of the insulin signalling pathway. Specifically, cells differentiating in 1% O₂ had lower SIRT1, PPAR- α, FATP4 and MCAD mRNA; accompanied by …

Gender Does Not Influence The Relationship Between Posterior Cruciate Ligament Design And Patient-Reported Outcomes In Patients Receiving Primary Unilateral Total Knee Arthroplasty, Ryan Milan

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The effect of the interaction between gender and posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) prosthesis design on patient-reported outcomes is an understudied area of research. We evaluated 1613 patients, from the Ontario Joint Replacement Registry (2001-2006), who underwent primary total knee replacement. This study investigated the impact of the gender-PCL design interaction on Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) change scores and patient satisfaction, by performing linear regression analysis, using full-adjusted models that also included the gender-PCL prosthesis design interaction variable. PCL prosthesis design did not affect WOMAC change scores or satisfaction (p>0.05). Moreover, Gender did not influence either …

Methodological Challenges And Clinical Applications Of Hair Cortisol Analysis, Evan W. Russell

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis examines methodological and clinical aspects of hair cortisol analysis. The methodological study examines the role of sweat as a contributor to hair cortisol concentrations. Hair cortisol analysis is an effective measure of chronic stress. Cortisol is assumed to enter the hair via blood, sebum, and sweat, however the extent to which sweat contributes to hair cortisol content was unknown. This study concluded that human sweat contains cortisol that likely contributes to hair cortisol content. Subjects with prolonged sweating at the time of hair collection may have increased hair cortisol concentrations that cannot be decreased with conventional laboratory washing …

A Diet Enriched In Stearic Acid Protects Against The Progression Of Type 2 Diabetes In Leptin Receptor Deficient Mice (Db/Db), Valerie Lynn Reeves

Theses and Dissertations--Physiology

Dietary saturated fat intake contributes to diabetes and cardiovascular disease, as shown in numerous animal and human studies. However, the hypothesis that stearic acid, a saturated fat, has beneficial effects on these conditions has not been adequately tested. Leptin receptor deficient mice (db/db) and wild-type mice were fed either chow or a high fat diet enriched in either stearic acid or oleic acid for ten weeks. The progression of diabetes was evaluated with blood glucose, insulin, and metabolic parameter measurements. At the conclusion of the study, pancreatic islet organization was examined, and blood, liver and feces were assayed for fatty …

Inflammatory Interactions And Secretion In Cardiac Remodeling, Fanmuyi Yang

Theses and Dissertations--Physiology

Heart failure contributes to nearly 60,000 deaths per year in the USA and is often caused by hypertension and preceded by the development of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH). LVH is usually accompanied by intensive interstitial and perivascular fibrosis which may contribute to arrhythmogenic sudden cardiac death. Emerging evidence indicates that LV dysfunction in patients and animal models of cardiac hypertrophy is closely associated with perivascular inflammation.

To investigate the role of perivascular inflammation in coronary artery remodeling and cardiac fibrosis during hypertrophic ventricular remodeling, we used a well-established mouse model of pressure-overload-induced LVH: transverse aortic constriction (TAC). Early perivascular inflammation …

Reconstruction Of Nigrostriatal Pathway In An Animal Model Of Parkinson's Disease, Chen Zhang

Theses and Dissertations--Physiology

Parkinson's disease is characterized by progressive degeneration of substantia nigra (SN) and subsequently loss of the nigrostriatal circuit. Many strategies have attempted to reconstruct this circuit but failed to satisfy clinical trials. The inhibitory environment of the adult CNS and the long distance between the SN and the striatum make true reconstruction difficult. To reconstruct this circuit, we used a transplant-pathway targeting model. Several putative pathway targeting molecules were examined for their ability to direct the growth of axons from a dopaminergic transplant. For a proof-of-principle study, adenoviral and lentiviral encoded glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF), GDNF-receptor alpha1 (GFRa1 …