Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Lung Disposition Model-Based Analyses Of Clinical Pharmacokinetic Profiles For Inhaled Drugs, Anuja Raut

Theses and Dissertations

There has been a desire to accurately interpret the inhaled pharmacokinetic (PK) profiles of drugs in humans to aid successful inhaled drug and product developments. However, challenges are layered, as 1) the drug dose delivered to the lung (DTL) from inhalers is a portion of the formulated dose but rarely determined; 2) lung delivery and regional deposition differ, depending on drug, formulation and inhaler; 3) drugs are not only absorbed from the lung but may also be from the gastrointestinal (GI) tract; and 4) in addition to absorption into the systemic circulation, multiple non-absorptive processes also eliminate drugs from the …

Short And Long Chain Free Fatty Acids Differentially Regulate Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 And Peptide Yy Transcript Levels In Enteroendocrine Cells (Stc-1), Colin M. Catherman

Theses and Dissertations

The regulation of glucagon-like peptide-1 and peptide YY hormone levels are regulated based on different influential factors, but primarily levels are dependent upon ingested food content. As meals today become more fat-enriched, there is greater requirement for evaluation of these hormones that regulate insulin and satiety levels within the body. We have shown that the gene expression transcript production of glucagon-like peptide-1 and peptide YY are modulated by different concentrations, and times of short-chain fatty acids and long-chain fatty acids. Although the peptide hormone levels have the influential physiological role on effector tissue, the regulation of these hormones begins at …

A Targeted Approach To Increasing The African American Blood Donor Pool, Arnethea L. Sutton

Theses and Dissertations

A continuous need for blood products, specifically for those who require frequent transfusions, such as individuals with sickle cell disease, warrants the need for targeted interventions to increase blood donations from underrepresented populations. One population in particular, African Americans, only account for 1% of blood donors in the United States. Literature indicates numerous reasons why this population is underrepresented amongst donors, including fear, lack of knowledge about the blood donation, and specific to this population, lack of trust in the medical community. This study involves the development, implementation, and assessment of a targeted educational approach, incorporating the Theory of Planned …

Socioecological Aspects Of Tobacco Use In College Populations, Michael D. Sawdey

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Although cigarette smoking is decreasing in the US and among college students, tobacco use remains a major public health problem. Specific socioecological gaps in the literature related to college tobacco use exist including: trends of tobacco use, combinations of polysubstance use, and availability of tobacco products around college campuses.

Objectives: The main goal of this research was the understand interrelationships that exist within a socioecological framework of college tobacco use. Specifically, this project aims to: 1) examine trends of tobacco and polytobacco use by gender and associations of polytobacco use and perceived peer tobacco use, 2) examine …

The Dual Faces Of Misery, Arden Moscati

Theses and Dissertations

Major Depression (MD) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) are psychiatric disorders that arise from dysfunction of the core human capacities for emotion. Sapience is inextricably bound up with the potential for feelings of regret, worry and concern. When these emotions lead to clinically significant impairment or distress, they may result in one or both of the disorders of MD and GAD. The occurrence of MD and GAD in the same person, known as comorbidity, is remarkably high; substantially higher than would be expected by chance.

MD and GAD have been studied since the mid-20^th century, resulting in a substantial …

Altering A Runner’S Foot Strike Using A Modified Elliptical Trainer, Daniel Shull

Theses and Dissertations

One possible solution to common running related injuries is to transition runners from a rearfoot strike during initial contact to a midfoot strike. Natural rearfoot strike runners were studied to see if a modified elliptical trainer could be used to alter their running pattern to that of a midfoot strike runner. Their results were compared to subjects who ran on a non-modified elliptical trainer. After training on the modified elliptical trainer, subjects demonstrated a decrease in foot angle at initial contact when attempting to run with a midfoot strike. Training did not affect all kinetic metrics or stride frequency. However, …

Sustainable Adapted Treatments For Eating Disorders: The Role Of Cultural Adaptation In Prevention, Sarah J. Javier

Theses and Dissertations

Despite demonstrating eating disorder rates equivalent to White women, African American and Asian American women are less likely to seek treatment and are more likely to terminate treatment prematurely. One of the most successful programs for eating disorder prevention has only focused on surface-level cultural adaptations. Prevention literature maintains that deep-structure cultural adaptation (e.g., integrating cultural values and beliefs) can enhance outcomes for ethnic minorities. This dissertation examined the feasibility of Sustainable Adapted Treatments for Eating Disorders (SATED), a pilot intervention that included a culturally- targeted pre-treatment to an eating disorder dissonance-based intervention. A sample of 72 women (ages 18-30) …

Tissue Factor Expression, Regulation, And Signaling In Human Airway Cells, Michael D. Davis

Theses and Dissertations

Rationale: Tissue Factor (TF) is a transmembrane glycoprotein that canonically functions as the initiator of the coagulation cascade. Increased levels of TF have been associated with inflammatory airway diseases. Since lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is known to elicit and inflammatory response in airway epithelium, we hypothesized that airway epithelial cells release TF when exposed to LPS. Since TF aids in local wound healing, we also hypothesized that inhibition of TF would decrease NHBE growth. The specific aim of this work was to evaluate the effects of LPS exposure on TF production and release from airway epithelia and determine the signaling pathways involved. …

Sleep Disturbances And Depression: The Role Of Genes And Trauma, Mackenzie J. Lind

Theses and Dissertations

Sleep disturbances and insomnia are prevalent, with around 33% of adults indicating that they experience at least one main symptom of insomnia, and bidirectional relationships exist with common psychopathology, particularly major depressive disorder (MDD). However, genetic and environmental (e.g., traumatic event exposure) contributions to the etiology of these phenotypes are not yet well understood. A genetically informative sample of approximately 12,000 Han Chinese women aged 30-60 (50% with recurrent MDD) was used to address several gaps within the sleep literature. Sleep disturbances were assessed in all individuals using a general item addressing sleeplessness (GS). A sleep within depression sum score …

Comparison Of Intraoral And Extraoral Scanners On The Accuracy Of Digital Model Articulation, Jason L. Porter

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Orthodontists increasingly rely on digital models in clinical practice. The ability of modern scanners to articulate digital models must be scientifically evaluated. Methods:Twenty five digital articulated models were produced from four digital scanners in five experimental groups. The resulting inter-arch measurements were compared to the gold standard. An acceptable range of 0.5mm more or less than the gold standard was used for evaluation. Results: iTero® and iTero® Element yielded all acceptable inter-arch measurements. The 3M™ True Definition and Ortho Insight 3D® with Regisil® bite registration produced four of six acceptable inter-arch measurements. The Ortho Insight 3D® with Coprwax ™ …

Chemical Probes For Protein Α-N-Terminal Methylation, Brianna D. Mackie

Theses and Dissertations

While protein α-N-terminal methylation has been known for nearly four decades since it was first uncovered on bacteria ribosomal proteins L33, the function of this modification is still not entirely understood. Recent discoveries have demonstrated α-N-terminal methylation is essential to stabilize the interactions between regulator of chromosome condensation 1 (RCC1) and chromatin during mitosis, to localize and enhance the interaction of centromere proteins (CENPs) with chromatin, and to facilitate the recruitment of DNA damage-binding protein 2 (DDB2) to DNA damage foci. Identification of N-terminal methyltransferase 1 (NTMT1) unveiled the eukaryotic methylation writer for protein α-N-termini. In addition, NTMT2 that shares …

A Study Of Media Portrayal Of Schizophrenics To Understand How Stigma Associated With Schizophrenia May Be Reversed, Rainielle M. Cua

Undergraduate Research Posters

The news media are one of the most influential sources of information regarding mental illness. Media coverage on schizophrenia, one of the most stigmatized mental illnesses, tends to be negative, focusing on high risks of violence, failure, and unpredictability. Such perceptions may cause a detrimental impact on the mentally ill and cause them to internalize a stigmatizing stereotype and hinder the public’s understanding of mental illness. I studied how media portrayal in newspaper coverage of schizophrenics has evolved to discover how nonfiction media representation has affected people’s perceptions and attitudes towards schizophrenics and to propose an implementable solution to reduce …

Identification Of “Kratom” (Mitragyna Speciosa) Alkaloids In Commercially Available Products, Julia Grzymkowski, Michelle R. Peace, Justin Poklis

Undergraduate Research Posters

“Kratom” is the common name for the botanical mitragyna speciosa. It is a tree native to Southeast Asia in which leaves contain the psychoactive alkaloids mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine. Kratom is often ingested as teas, chewed, or smoked. It acts as a stimulant in small doses and as an opioid in large doses. Overdoses can result in vomiting, seizures, and death. Recently the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) placed Kratom on Schedule 1, but, due to public outcry, it was almost immediately removed.

Eleven kratom based products were obtained from various tobacco shops, “headshops” and via the internet including: Choice brand …

Can A Layer Of Antimicrobial Agents Be Placed Around Breast Implants To Prevent Staph Infections From Occurring?, Valerie L. Tran

Undergraduate Research Posters

The most common infection that occurs after breast augmentation is a staph infection. Currently, there are only three ways to treat this type of infection, all of which treat the breast implant after the infection has developed. The first option is to treat the infection with an oral antibiotic. If this doesn’t completely rid the infection, then intravenous antibiotics are used. If this too doesn’t remove the infection, then surgery will be performed to remove the breast implant and a new implant will be inserted. Although, these options have a low mortality rate, the success rate of completely getting rid …

Aapt Diagnostic Criteria For Chronic Sickle Cell Disease Pain, Carlton Dampier, Tonya M. Palermo, Deepika S. Darbari, Kathryn Hassell, Wally Smith, William Zempsky

Neurology Publications

Pain in sickle cell disease (SCD) is associated with increased morbidity, mortality, and high health care costs. Although episodic acute pain is the hallmark of this disorder, there is an increasing awareness that chronic pain is part of the pain experience of many older adolescents and adults. A common set of criteria for classifying chronic pain associated with SCD would enhance SCD pain research efforts in epidemiology, pain mechanisms, and clinical trials of pain management interventions, and ultimately improve clinical assessment and management. As part of the collaborative effort between the Analgesic, Anesthetic, and Addiction Clinical Trial Translations Innovations Opportunities …

A Bi-Stable Switch In Virus Dynamics Can Explain The Differences In Disease Outcome Following Siv Infections In Rhesus Macaques, Stanca Ciupe, Christopher Miller, Jonathan Forde

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Patient-Specific Inference Of Average Glucose From Glycated Hemoglobin, Roy Malka, David M. Nathan, John M. Higgins

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Determinants Of The Efficacy Of Hiv Latency Reversing Agents And Implications For Drug And Treatment Design, Ruian Ke

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Using Mathematical Modeling To Unmask The Concealed Nature Of Long Qt-3 Syndrome, Steven Poelzing, Amara Greer-Short, Seth H. Weinberg

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

The Influence Of Temperature Variation On Dengue Fever: A Model-Based Investigation, Michael A. Robert, Paula D. Weber, Rebecca C. Christofferson, Christopher N. Mores, Helen J. Wearing

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Optimal Insecticide-Treated Bed-Net Coverage And Malaria Treatment In A Malaria-Hiv Co-Infection Model, Eric Numfor

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Numerical Study Of The Effect Of Blood Vessel Geometry On Plaque Formation, Lindsey R. Fox

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Using Predator Carrying Capacity For A Pathogenic Vector-Dynamic Differential Model, Rosahn P. Bhattarai

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Reverse Engineering A Kinetic Model Of A Dopaminergic Neuron To Apoptosis, Johnathan Morris

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Demonstration Of Follicle Waves Using Delay Differential Equations, Andrew A. Wright

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Heterogeneous Responses To Viral Infection: Insights From Mathematical Modeling Of Yellow Fever Vaccine, James R. Moore

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Dynamics Of Two Pathogens In A Single Tick Population, Alexis White

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

A Mathematical Model Of The Spread Of Dengue Fever Incorporating Mobility, Kelly A. Reagan

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Mathematical Models Of Hiv And Hpv Coinfection, Samantha Erwin, Meghna Verma, Vida Abedi, Raquel Hontecillas-Magarzo, Stefan Hoops, Josep Bassaganya-Riera, Stanca M. Ciupe

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Global Dynamics Of A Model Of Joint Hormone Treatment With Dendritic Cell Vaccine For Prostate Cancer, Erica M. Rutter, Yang Kuang

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.