Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

The Impact Of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms On Cortisol Receptor Activity In Populations With Obesity, Cassidy Michalicka

Honors Theses

Cortisol is a crucial part of the endocrine system; it has the capacity to affect nearly every organ and tissue in the human body. When functioning correctly, cortisol is known to regulate the body’s stress response, control metabolism, suppress inflammation, regulate blood pressure, regulate blood sugar, regulate our body’s circadian rhythm, and much more. When the concentration of cortisol in the blood is elevated for an excessive period, the body responds with symptoms such as hyperglycemia, hypertension, weight gain, and moon face. Commonly this is known as Cushing’s Syndrome (CS), and interestingly, we have seen a phenotypic resemblance when contrasted …

Mutations In The Human Follicle Stimulating Hormone Receptor Caveolin Interaction Motif Cause Increased Basal Activation, Elizabeth Altman

Honors Theses

Over twelve percent of women aged fifteen to forty-five in America suffer from infertility and/or impaired fecundity and over seven million women have used infertility services, such as intrauterine insemination and in vitro fertilization. Some cases of infertility may be due to dysfunctional human follicle stimulating hormone (hFSH) signaling. hFSH plays a role in spermatogenesis in males, as well as follicle maturation and estrogen production in females. Problems with either hFSH or the hFSH receptor (hFSHR) decrease fertility in males and cause complete infertility in females. As part of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis, hFSH is released from the pituitary gland and …

The Ketogenic Diet: A Noteworthy Treatment For Pediatric Patients With Refractory Epilepsy, Hannah Christian

Honors Theses

Although epilepsy has been a well-documented neurological disorder for thousands of years, a third of individuals with epilepsy today still have seizures that are not well managed. After the addition of benzodiazepines to other anticonvulsants in the 1950s, doctors have largely focused on treating epilepsy with medications. But, an older treatment has been recently reintroduced into the medical community to help remediate seizure activity. Interestingly, a high fat and low carbohydrate diet regimen called the ketogenic diet has proven to be helpful to some people with refractory epilepsy, that is, epilepsy that does not respond well to medications. In a …

A Meta-Analysis: A Functional Neuroanatomical Comparison Of Self-Esteem-Related And Postpartum Depression-Related Processing, Meghana Damaraju

Honors Theses

Background: Postpartum depression (PPD) is a psychiatric mood disorder that effects 1 in 10 women in the United States. There are relatively few behavioral studies looking at the association between PPD and self-esteem. There are even fewer studies looking at neuroimaging comparisons between PPD and self-esteem.. The goal of this study was to look at the neuroanatomical overlap of activated brain regions involved in both self-esteem and PPD processing. We hypothesized that the right amygdala, PCC, and insula would be involved in both processes.

Methods: Maps were created using the MKDA program in MATLAB. These images were extent-based cluster-wise …

The Medicalization Of Childbirth Within The United States, Alexandria Gesing

Honors Theses

The World Bank rates the United States last amongst developed countries for maternal mortality, with 14 deaths per 100,000 live births compared to Canada and the Netherlands with 7 deaths per 100,000 live births, and the UK with 9 per 100,000 live births. This paper argues that these deaths are strongly linked to excessive use of Cesarean sections, resulting from increased access to technology, and explores the attendant medicalization of childbirth in the United States. Drawing on interviews with patients, midwives, and physicians, in addition to participant observation of hospitals and private practices within the Tristate area; I compare the …

Burnout And Other Complex Challenges Causing Doctors To Become Patients In France And The United States, Cherry Chahal

Honors Theses

Everyday, people feel a calling to become a doctor for various reasons. These reasons include experiencing a disease or illness either through a family member or on one’s own, having a desire since childhood from hearing stories and wanting to help others, and perhaps wanting to propagate a family tradition and career. Out of all of the many reasons in the world, a desire to help others rises above the rest among to-be doctors. Thus, medical students and doctors dedicate their lives to learning about the human body in depth, well beyond what any introductory courses in biology will teach. …