Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Structure Of The Picornavirus Replication Platform: A Potential Drug Target For Inhibiting Virus Replication, Meghan Suzanne Warden

Chemistry & Biochemistry Theses & Dissertations

Picornaviruses are small, positive-stranded RNA viruses, divided into twelve different genera. Members of the Picornaviridae family cause a wide range of human and animal diseases including the common cold, poliomyelitis, foot and mouth disease, and dilated cardiomyopathy. The picornavirus genome is replicated via a highly conserved mechanism involving a presumed cloverleaf structure located at the 5’ noncoding region of the virus genome. The 5’ cloverleaf consists of three stem loops (B, C, and D) and one stem (A), which interact with a variety of virus and host cell proteins during replication. In this dissertation, human rhinovirus serotype 14 (HRV-14) SLB …

Healthcare Outcomes And Resource Utilization Associated With Neonatal Hypoglycemia: Analysis Of Data From The Hcup Kid’S Inpatient Database, Brook T. Alemu

Health Services Research Dissertations

Neonatal hypoglycemia is the most common metabolic abnormality in infants and is associated with neurological damage and death. The risk of developing hypoglycemia among infants born from diabetic mothers is even higher. Although much work has been performed addressing issues for treatment and care, research related to neonatal hypoglycemia has been focused on the clinical or individual level risk factors. Contextual risk factors such as hospital characteristics, neighborhood economic status, and regional variations were not considered in earlier studies. Additionally, although healthcare resources utilization of hypoglycemia has been adequately addressed in the adult population, this topic has not been studied …

A Test Of The Behavioral Model Of Health Services Use On Non-Emergent Emergency Department Use, Moira Crosby Mcmanus

Health Services Research Dissertations

Even though emergency departments (EDs) were created to treat trauma and emergent cases, there has been an increase in emergency department (ED) utilization for non-emergent reasons over the past half of a century. As non-emergent utilization grows as a result of the ED becoming a prevalent substitute for primary care, overcrowding of the ED and increased wait times will continue. Additionally, unnecessary cost to both the ED and the patient will be incurred. Previous research has examined and determined various reasons and risk factors driving non-emergent ED use, among them the influence of living location and the number of non-emergent …

Multilevel Analysis Of Physical Activity Among Us Adults Across Us Census Regions: The Role Of Environmental Contexts, Sariyamon Tiraphat

Health Services Research Dissertations

This study uses nationally representative data to explain the variation in physical activity among U.S. adults across four geographic regions of Northeast, Midwest, South, and West. The purpose of the study is to investigate whether environmental conditions inclusive of natural amenity, built environment, urbanization, crime, and social economic neighborhood are associated with physical activity and whether these associations are modified by geographic region. The study also investigates whether the influences of environmental contexts vary by subgroup and whether they are modified by geographic region. Determining regional factors that influence physical activity is essential to planning appropriate physical activity interventions.

The …

Intimate Partner Physical Violence Against Women In Saudi Arabian Primary Healthcare Clinics, Halah M. Eldoseri

Health Services Research Dissertations

Intimate partner violence against women (IPPVAW) is a serious public health concern. The Ecological Model provides a model to study several factors associated with IPPVAW. In Saudi Arabia, studies addressing IPPVAW are limited and do not cover the various aspects of the problem. The purpose of this study was to investigate the various factors associated with IPPVAW at the personal, interpersonal, community and societal levels. Methods: 200 ever-married women attending six PHC in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia were recruited via convenient sampling method. Women were interviewed on factors related to IPPVAW using an adapted version of WHO survey for violence against …

A Gis Analysis Of The Environmental Variables Related To Rift Valley Fever Outbreaks, Jacqueline Florette Jackson

Health Services Research Dissertations

Rift Valley fever is a mosquito-borne disease that causes widespread febrile illness and mortality in domestic animals as well as humans (Gaff, 2007). Rift Valley fever virus was first isolated in 1931 (Daubney, 1931), and since then, outbreaks have occurred in sub-Saharan Africa, southern Africa, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Madagascar, proving it to be a virus able to invade ecologically diverse regions (Gaff, 2007). The potential introduction of Rift Valley fever into the United States suggests the potential for human infection and major economic disruption. It is important to understand the role environmental variables have played in historical outbreaks …

Down-Regulation Of Natural Killer Cell Activation In Response To Influenza Virus In Older Adults, Yu Jing

Theses and Dissertations in Biomedical Sciences

Immune senescence contributes to influenza-associated high mortality and morbidity and reduced vaccine efficacy in elderly people. Type I T cell (Thl)-mediated immunity plays a significant role in Immune responses to influenza infection and vaccination. Natural killer (NK) cells secrete significant amount of IFN-7 , a hallmark Thl cytokine, in response to influenza infection. How aging influences human NK cell IFN-7 production in response to influenza virus has not been well documented. In this study we employed human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) and performed intracellular cytokine staining and flow cytometry primarily to investigate how aging influences NK cell activation with …

Application Of The Traditional Epidemiological Model To Predict Occupational Injury Rates In Manufacturing Industries, Gary A. Morris

Health Services Research Dissertations

This study was designed to test the usefulness of the Traditional Epidemiological Model of disease causation in modeling occupational injury rates and the presence of occupational illness in the manufacturing industry. More specifically, this research involved use of the agent, host, and environment constructs of the Traditional Epidemiological Model to examine the effects of five environmental-related workplace health and safety practices on occupational injury and illness. Data from the National Occupational Exposure Survey (NOES), conducted by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in 1981–1983, were used to ascertain the presence of specific workplace characteristics and to calculate …

Production Of A Monoclonal Antibody Against Benzo[Α]Pyrene Diol Epoxide Dna Adducts, Brian Peden Austin

Chemistry & Biochemistry Theses & Dissertations

Benzo[α]pyrene is a ubiquitous pollutant produced from the incomplete combustion of organic material such as fossil fuels. It is found in the workplace, urban air, drinking water, and the food supply. Recently, it has been proposed that benzo[α]pyrene may be the causative agent in the formation of lung adenocarcinomas among some Taiwanese women exposed to cooking oil fumes without adequate ventilation. In this study, calf thymus DNA was modified in vitro with benzo[α]pyrene-diol epoxide (BPDE) to a level consistent with that found in biological samples. This DNA of low modification was used as an immunogen in the production of a …

Psychosocial Determinants Of Age-Appropriate Immunizations Of Infants In Norfolk, Virginia, Hoda Youssef Atta

Health Services Research Dissertations

This study represents an investigation of psychosocial factors affecting age-appropriate immunizations of infants in Norfolk, Virginia. A household survey was conducted in Norfolk, Virginia, from 4/93-8/93, to assess immunization coverage of children 12-30 months of age. This survey included a total of 389 children in the target age range. A subset of 201 mothers were randomly selected and reinterviewed to assess their knowledge and attitudes and the relationships of these factors to age-appropriate immunizations at 12 months of age. Sixty-two percent of children were not age-appropriately immunized at 12 months of age. Almost all mothers (99%) considered vaccines to be …