Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Cyclophilin 40 As A Novel Disaggregase, Jeremy Dustin Baker

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The negative health and economic impacts of neurodegenerative diseases on Americans is astounding and accelerating with an aging population. The Alzheimer’s Association reports that 5.7 million Americans suffer from Alzheimer’s disease (AD), a number which is expected to increase to 14 million by 2050. In economic terms, AD and other neurodegenerative disorders will cost the US over $275 billion in 2018, rising to over $1 trillion annually by 2050. AD causes gross brain atrophy and is most damaging throughout the cortex and the hippocampus, regions required for higher cognitive function and memory. AD presents as tangles within neurons composed of …

Actinomycin D And Telmisartan Combination Therapy Targets Lung Cancer Stem Cells, Ryan Green

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The failure of lung cancer treatments has been attributed partly to the development of drug resistance, however the underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms are poorly understood. It has been suggested that a very small group of specific cells within the heterogeneous tumors, cancer initiating stem cells (CSC), develop resistance to treatment, survive and later initiate the growth of new tumors. Due to their pivotal role in maintenance and relapse of tumors following the acquisition of drug resistance, we reasoned that novel drugs targeting cancer cells and CSC might provide the most effective treatments, if not a cure. To this end, …

An Examination Of The Relationship Between Health Literacy And Dietary Practices Among College Students: A Test Of The Integrated Model Of Health Literacy, Alison B. Oberne

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Overweight and obesity continue to plague Americans and contribute to decreased quantity and quality of life. Americans of all ages experience overweight and obesity; however, increasing rates occur during young adulthood. Young adults develop dietary practice behaviors that persist into adulthood and can contribute to weight-related chronic diseases. Approximately half of all young adults are enrolled in college, and, approximately 38% of college students are either overweight or obese.

Dietary practices are health behaviors that can either increase or decrease risk for overweight and obesity. Much research has explored predictors of dietary practices among college students; however, there is a …

The Nutrition Transition Among The Andean Kichwas Of Ecuador, Vanessa Alicia Chee

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The nutrition transition is a global phenomenon in which diets have become increasingly westernized and processed while lifestyles have shifted from labor intensive to sedentary, largely on account of the advent of technology, globalization n and urbanization. Despite the prevalence of this phenomenon, very little is known regarding how the nutrition transition has affected the risk of comorbid chronic diseases among indigenous Kichwas communities in Ecuador. Aims of this study are : 1) Identify specific health outcomes (such as diabetes, hypertension, and high cholesterol) associated with the lifestyle risk factors of the nutrition transition among the Andean Kichwas indigenous population; …

Identification Of Novel Hits Against, Ala A. Azhari

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Leishmaniasis is a disease caused by obligate intracellular parasites of the genus Leishmania, including 20 species that are pathogenic to humans. Female sand fly is the known vector that can transmit the disease. Visceral leishmaniasis is the severe form of the disease that affects internal organs and can be fatal with inappropriate diagnosis or treatment. Leishmania donovani is the causative agent of visceral leishmaniasis. Approximately 350 million in 89 countries are at risk of infection. Around 2 million new cases are reported annually with 500,000 of these are visceral leishmaniasis. Current drug therapies are inadequate due to their toxicity, high …

Angiostrongylus Cantonensis: Epidemiologic Review, Location-Specific Habitat Modelling, And Surveillance In Hillsborough County, Florida, U.S.A., Brad Christian Perich

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Angiostrongylus cantonensis is a parasitic nematode endemic to tropical and subtropical regions and is the leading cause of human eosinophilic meningitis. The parasite is commonly known as rat lungworm because the primary host in its lifecycle is the rat. A clinical overview of rat lungworm infection is presented, followed by a literature review of rat lungworm epidemiology, risk factors, and surveillance projects. Data collected from previous snail surveys in Florida was considered alongside elevation, population per square kilometer, median household income by zip code territory, and normalized difference vegetation index specific to the geographic coordinates from which the snail samples …