Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Intercanine Distance Used As A Measure To Rule Out Biters In Bite Mark Forensics, Alana Joy Scudiere Ohana

Masters Theses

The science of identification by bite mark analysis has recently been called into serious question. (Reesu and Brown 2016) Human dentition is truly variable, but often not unique. When animal bites are considered, a proper ID of the perpetrator is nearly impossible. Primary distortion (when the bite is made) and secondary distortion (during decomposition or healing) both further disrupt landmarks that might be used for identification. (Sheasby and MacDonald 2001) Using only ink marks and intercanine distance on live subjects, this study attempts to determine maximum distortion possible for a variety of bite mark locations on skin. (Pretty and Sweet …

Epidemiology Of Toxoplasma Gondii And A Survey Of Other Parasites In The West Indian Manatee (Trichechus Manatus), Heidi Lynn Wyrosdick

Masters Theses

Toxoplasma gondii is a protozoan parasite of felids reported to cause morbidity and mortality in the two subspecies of the West Indian Manatee (Trichechus manatus): the Antillean manatee (Trichechus manatus manatus) in Puerto Rico and the Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris). Sera or plasma (n=343) were collected from live-capture T. m. latirostris through the US Geological Survey (USGS) manatee health assessment program and serosanguinous fluid (n=10) were collected from necropsies conducted by the Marine Mammal Pathobiology Laboratory (MMPL). Additionally, serum or serosanguinous fluid samples (n=5) were collected from rehabilitated or necropsied T. m. manatus …

Follicular Dynamics In Insulin Resistant Mares, Julio Cesar Prado

Masters Theses

Obesity and insulin resistance have been linked to prolonged interovulatory period, aberrations in the estrous cycle, and continuous reproductive activity during the non-breeding season. EMS has been determined to influence the intrafollicular environment of mare ovaries. In humans, insulin resistance has been linked to polycystic ovaries as part of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS). A study was conducted to determine 1) the impact of insulin resistance on follicle growth and size at ovulation, and 2) whether predicted ovulatory follicles respond to hCG administration in Insulin-resistant (IR) mares. Mares were selected for the study based on insulin sensitivity and separated into an …

Improving Aedes Mosquito Surveillance And La Crosse Virus Screening In Eastern Tennessee, Cassandra Urquhart

Masters Theses

La Crosse virus (LACV), transmitted by infected Aedes triseriatus, Ae. albopictus, and Ae. japonicus mosquitoes is the leading cause of pediatric arboviral encephalitis. Severe cases of LAC encephalitis occur in individuals 16-years-old or younger and may cause permanent neurological damage or fatality. No vaccines exist making mosquito control and disease prevention crucial to public health. Effective screening and surveillance practices are key components to these goals. While a number of standard mosquito surveillance methods exist, continuous testing and improved understanding of vector biology to determine the best ways to implement these methods is important. Additionally, the current standard …

Farm-To-Preschool In East Tennessee: Evaluation Of A Small-Scale Farmer’S Market At A Childcare Center On Household Fruit And Vegetable Availability And Preschoolers’ Consumption Of Fruits And Vegetables, Jade Morgan Parry

Masters Theses

Background: Most preschool-aged children do not consume an adequate amount of fruits and vegetables (F&V). Accessibility to F&V and parental influence are important factors in determining fruit and vegetable consumption in preschool-aged children. The incorporation of farmer’s markets at childcare centers as part of a farm-to-preschool program provides an opportunity to increase access to F&V and engage parents in supporting positive changes in their children’s dietary behaviors. Gaps in the farm-to-preschool literature include a lack of well-designed intervention trials that include a control group and rigorous evaluation tools.

Methods: This was a pilot study with a quasi-experimental, pre-test, post-test …

A Feasibility Study Of Just-In-Time Asthma Self-Management Intervention, Phillip Charles Scruggs

Masters Theses

Quality asthma care requires not only an initial diagnosis, but long term follow up care and education on long term control. Preventable symptoms continue to reduce the quality of life for chronic asthma sufferers and place an unnecessary burden on emergency services and the health care system at large. A mobile health (mHealth) solution is proposed to effectively improve outcomes for patients while ultimately reducing the overall burden of mismanagement on the healthcare system as a whole. The Just-in-Time Asthma Self- Management and Intervention (JASMIN) system provides a way for a patient or user to track, self-manage, and interact with …

The Effects Of A Visually Appealing And Interactive Snack Activity On Fruit And Vegetable Intake Of Preschool-Aged Children, Kristen Leigh Clay

Masters Theses

Background: Previous research has shown the potential of increasing vegetable intake by incorporating the senses into interventions. However, little to no research has specifically looked at the impact that the use of the senses can have on intake of vegetables among preschool-aged children.

Purpose: The aims of this study were to examine if mean intake of vegetable snacks and/or willingness to try the vegetable snacks would be significantly higher among preschool-age children who participated in a visually appealing and interactive snack activity compared to children who received control vegetable snacks.

Methods: Two preschools were selected to participate in the study. …

The Effect Of Television Watching And Portion Size On Intake During A Meal, Rachel Nicole Rosenthal

Masters Theses

Background: Several investigations have examined the influence of television and portion size on intake. Results have found that watching television while eating or being provided larger portions increases intake. However, no investigation has examined the combined effect of these variables on food intake, when these factors are combined they may enhance consumption.

Methods: To test the influence of television and portion size on intake during a meal in healthy weight adults, a 4X2X2 mixed factorial design was used, with a between-subject factor of order of conditions and within-subject factors of television (TV vs. NO TV) and portion size (SMALL vs. …

Examining The Relationship Between Vitamin A Intake And Weight Management, Jennifer Paige Eastep

Masters Theses

Introduction: Treatments of retinoic acid, a metabolite of vitamin A (VA) are shown to induce hyperlipidemia in humans and animals, which may influence adiposity. To understand the role of VA in weight management, two studies, one in animals examining effects of VA combined with high-fat diet (HFD) on body mass (BM) gain and the second in humans comparing dietary VA between participants who were overweight/obese and who had and had not lost 10% of body weight by consuming a hypocaloric, low-fat diet, were conducted.

Methods: Male Sprague Dawley rats were fed a HFD containing sufficient VA (HF-VAS) or a HFD …

Identification Of Feline Tritrichomonas Foetus Surface Epitopes: Putative Targets For Development Of A Novel Diagnostic Test For Feline Trichomonosis, Emily Nissa Gould

Masters Theses

BACKGROUND: Tritrichomonas foetus (T. foetus) is a flagellated protozoa that infects the distal ileum and proximal colon of domestic cats and also induces reproductive failure in cattle. Although feline trichomonosis is recognized to have a global prevalence of up to 30%, it still poses a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge to veterinarians; thus, there is a need for both improved diagnostics and therapeutics. Despite differing organ tropism between genotypes, evidence exists for conserved virulence factors between feline and bovine T. foetus. Two epitopes (1.15 and 1.17) of the bovine T. foetus glycosylated surface antigen 1.15-1.17 have been found …

Perceived Benefits Of Therapeutic Recreation Camps For Young Adults With Disabilities, Macie Dean Parsons

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study is to determine the perceived benefits that a Therapeutic Recreation camp offers young adults with disabilities. A total of 12 campers were interviewed with 6 being male and 6 being female. Emerging themes included: (a) Social, (b) New Experiences, (c) Character Building, and (d) Get Away. Findings identified the benefits that young adults receive from attending a Therapeutic Recreation camp program. Attending a Therapeutic Recreation camp program allows for individuals with disabilities to be around friends, to meet new friends, to feel a part of a family, to do things they have never done before, …

Improving Ventricular Catheter Design Through Computational Fluid Dynamics, Sofy Hefets Weisenberg

Masters Theses

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) shunts are fully implantable medical devices that are used to treat patients suffering from conditions characterized by elevated intracranial pressure, such as hydrocephalus. In cases of shunt failure or malfunction, patients are often required to endure one or more revision surgeries to replace all or part of the shunt. One of the primary causes of CSF shunt failure is obstruction of the ventricular catheter, a component of the shunt system implanted directly into the brain's ventricular system. This work aims to improve the design of ventricular catheters in order to reduce the incidence of catheter obstruction and …