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Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences

Bacterial Load In Virtual Reality Headsets, Benjamin Creel Apr 2020

Bacterial Load In Virtual Reality Headsets, Benjamin Creel

Honors Theses

Virtual reality technology is a rapidly growing field of computer science. Virtual reality utilizes headsets which cover the user’s eyes, nose, and forehead. In this study, I analyzed the potential for these headsets to become contaminated with bacteria. The nosepieces and foreheads of two HTC Vive VR headsets of the Department of Computer Science of the University of Mississippi were sampled over the course of a seven-week Immersive Media (CSCI 447) course. Serial dilutions were performed, and samples were plated on various culture media. Following incubation, counts of bacteria were determined. DNA was extracted from bacterial growth on plates from …


Investigating The Role Of Rap1a In Medial Arterial Vascular Calcification, Amelia Grace Haydel Apr 2020

Investigating The Role Of Rap1a In Medial Arterial Vascular Calcification, Amelia Grace Haydel

Honors Theses

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States with one of the major contributors being vascular calcification, characterized by the deposition of calcium-phosphate hydroxyapatite. Once thought to be a passive process due to aging, medial vascular calcification is becoming better understood as a tightly regulated, cellmediated process. Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) within the medial arterial layer respond to inflammation, oxidative stress, and changes in pyrophosphate levels, which induce differentiation into osteoblast-like cells. Fibroblasts within the adventitial layer (AFBs) also alter their function in response to vascular calcification signaling, although this is largely understudied. The AGE/RAGE …


Weaving Charlotte's Web: An In-Depth Guide To Cannabidiol, Lauren Pitts Apr 2020

Weaving Charlotte's Web: An In-Depth Guide To Cannabidiol, Lauren Pitts

Honors Theses

Cannabidiol, also known as CBD, first gathered national spotlight after Charlotte Figi and her mother Paige were able to find two physicians willing to prescribe CBD to treat Charlotte’s seizures. Charlotte suffered from Dravet Syndrome, but was able to find relief from CBD, which decreased the number and severity of her seizures. This sparked national interest and was the catalyst that lead to research and changes surrounding CBD uses and legality. Cannabidiol is a single cannabinoid that is found within the Cannabis sativa plant family—the same family that includes marijuana. This cannabinoid differs from tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and does not provide …


The Experimental Effects Of Acute Exercise Intensity On Retrieval-Induced Forgetting, Joshua Franklin Apr 2020

The Experimental Effects Of Acute Exercise Intensity On Retrieval-Induced Forgetting, Joshua Franklin

Honors Theses

Accumulating research has shown that acute exercise can enhance memory function. Although counterintuitive, acute exercise may also facilitate aspects of forgetting. Specifically, retrieving a subset of items from memory can facilitate the retention of retrieved items (retrieval practice; RP) and inhibit the subsequent retrieval of non-retrieved items (retrieval-induced forgetting; RIF). Given that acute exercise has been shown to enhance cognition-related inhibition, acute exercise may facilitate RIF. A sample of 225 young adults completed either a control (N=75), moderate-intensity acute exercise (N=75), or vigorous-intensity acute exercise session (N=75). Both acute exercise sessions lasted 20 minutes. Participants then completed a standard retrieval-induced …


Variability In Antibacterial Activity In The Caribbean Sponge Amphimedon Compressa, Mackenzie Reilly Jan 2020

Variability In Antibacterial Activity In The Caribbean Sponge Amphimedon Compressa, Mackenzie Reilly

Honors Theses

Coral reefs are essential ecosystems that provide an abundance of natural resources. Sponges, common reef inhabitants, produce a diversity of secondary metabolites that are known to serve as chemical defenses. Secondary metabolites often have ecological functions, such as antipredator and antibacterial activities. I studied the common Caribbean sponge species, Amphimedon compressa, which is known to be chemically defended. Samples were collected from three sites in Belize, two sites in Grand Cayman, and three sites in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. To determine whether antibacterial activity varied across broad or local geographic scales, sponge extracts were tested against four bacterial strains …