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2008

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Articles 3391 - 3420 of 3703

Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences

The Effect Of Malaria And Intestinal Helminth Coinfection On Birth Outcomes In Ghana, Nelly J. Yatich Jan 2008

The Effect Of Malaria And Intestinal Helminth Coinfection On Birth Outcomes In Ghana, Nelly J. Yatich

All ETDs from UAB

Several studies have reported the relationship between malaria during pregnancy and adverse pregnancy outcomes including maternal anemia, low birthweight, as well as preterm delivery and small for gestational age infants. Some studies have also demonstrated the linkage between helminth infection and maternal anemia. Few studies have assessed the occurrence of coinfection of these infections in pregnancy and its effects on maternal anemia and birth outcomes. The objective of this dissertation was to assess the effect of malaria and intestinal helminth coinfection on birth outcomes in Ghana. A cross-sectional study of 785 women presenting for delivery in two hospitals in Kumasi, …


Mapks Regulate Nuclear Import Of Human Papillomavirus Type 11 Replicative Helicase E1, Jei-Hwa Yu Jan 2008

Mapks Regulate Nuclear Import Of Human Papillomavirus Type 11 Replicative Helicase E1, Jei-Hwa Yu

All ETDs from UAB

Papillomaviruses (PV) are prevalent pathogens that infect human or animal squamous epithelia. Its genome is a double strand circular DNA of approximately 7.9 kb. It contains origin of replication (ori) and encodes early viral proteins for viral DNA amplication, and late capsid proteins for packaging viron. The viral DNA replicates as extrachromosomal nuclear plasmid in the host cell. Infections by low risk virus, such as HPV-6 and -11, can result in benign papillomas, condylomata, and low grade squamous intraepithelial dysplasias (SIL), whereas infection by high risk virus, such as HPV-16 and -18, can progress to high grade SIL, carcinoma in …


A Dual-Action, Armed Replicating Adenovirus For The Treatment Of Bone Metastases Of Breast Cancer, James Joseph Cody Jan 2008

A Dual-Action, Armed Replicating Adenovirus For The Treatment Of Bone Metastases Of Breast Cancer, James Joseph Cody

All ETDs from UAB

Most patients with advanced breast cancer develop osteolytic bone metastases, which have numerous complications. Because current therapies are not curative, new treatments are needed. Conditionally replicating adenoviruses (CRAds) are anti-cancer agents designed to infect and lyse tumor cells. For increased efficacy, CRAds have been armed with therapeutic transgenes. Osteoprotegerin (OPG), an inhibitor of osteoclastic bone resorption, represents a promising candidate with which to arm a CRAd intended to treat osteolytic bone metastases. We hypothesize that a CRAd armed with OPG will inhibit breast cancer bone metastasis and reduce tumor burden in the bone by directly lysing tumor cells and by …


Thrombospondin Type-1 Repeats And Their Potential Role In Inhibiting Glioblastoma Angiogenesis, Joshua C. Anderson Jan 2008

Thrombospondin Type-1 Repeats And Their Potential Role In Inhibiting Glioblastoma Angiogenesis, Joshua C. Anderson

All ETDs from UAB

Thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1) is a 420 kilodalton homotrimeric protein; it is one of the first identified anti-angiogenic proteins found to be expressed in some normal tissues. Peptides derived from the type-1 repeat (TSR) domains of full length TSP-1 have been shown to have anti-angiogenic activity, and thus anti-tumor activity in some non-glioma tumor models. I hypothesized that peptides derived from the TSRs of TSP-1, such as ABT-510, could inhibit angiogenesis and thus malignant glioma tumor growth in vivo. I found that ABT-510 inhibited angiogenesis of the human brain microvascular endothelial cell (MvEC) in an in vitro tubulomorphogenesis assay. To determine the …


Human Papillomavirus: Segregation And Replication, Luan D. Dao Jan 2008

Human Papillomavirus: Segregation And Replication, Luan D. Dao

All ETDs from UAB

Human papillomavirus are small DNA tumor viruses. The viral genome is a small circular double stranded DNA that replicates autonomously as an extrachromosomal plasmid. Occasionally infections by the high risk HPV viruses can lead to DNA integration and progression to cancer. How the HPV DNA is maintained and becomes established in the dividing host cells is not well understood. Additionally, as a double-stranded DNA virus it is likely that double-stranded DNA breaks in the viral genome, either from replication or random damage, will trigger a DNA repair response from the host cell. Such responses have been alternatively reported to be …


Occupational Stressors, Job Satisfaction, And Back Pain In Firefighters, Mantana Damrongsak Jan 2008

Occupational Stressors, Job Satisfaction, And Back Pain In Firefighters, Mantana Damrongsak

All ETDs from UAB

Occupational back pain is a significant health and safety problem in many industrialized countries for persons who are required to perform work-related forceful movement and lifting. Firefighters, an occupational group at high risk for back injury, perform many job tasks under hazardous work conditions. One-third of firefighters retire due to job-related health and safety problems and 49.4% of this group retire as a result of back pain, the leading cause of early retirements in firefighters. Most studies have examined factors influencing back problems among other workers, especially nurses and hospital workers, but few studies have investigated factors that influence back …


Metabolism Of Neutrophil-Deprived Chlorinated Isoflavones, Tracy Lyn D'Alessandro Jan 2008

Metabolism Of Neutrophil-Deprived Chlorinated Isoflavones, Tracy Lyn D'Alessandro

All ETDs from UAB

Despite medical advances in both drug therapy and surgical techniques, Americans mostly die from heart disease. Many belong to the low- and middle-class families who do not have sufficient access to medical care due to its high costs. An alternative is the development of healthier lifestyles such as diet which may play a positive role in chronic disease management. Epidemiological and migratory studies suggest that soy plays a pivotal role in the decreased incidence of heart disease in East Asian countries, such as China, Japan, and Korea. The role of soy in cardiovascular disease progression has been the subject of …


Perception Of Motion-In-Depth: Induced Motion Effects On Monocular And Binocular Cues, John Eric Gampher Jan 2008

Perception Of Motion-In-Depth: Induced Motion Effects On Monocular And Binocular Cues, John Eric Gampher

All ETDs from UAB

Three cues are available to the visual system to determine motion: image displacement across the retina (retinal slip), eye movements, and configuration changes within a scene (Becklen and Wallach, 1985). Any one may lead to the false perception of motion. Induced motion is the illusory movement of one object (or objects) as a result of other movement in the visual field. A wide variety of displays have been used to study induced motion, leading to apparently different classes of induced motion. Current theories of induced motion can be categorized based on local motion, global motion, eye movement suppression, and cognitive …


The Effects Of Maternal Prenatal Insults On The Bmi Growth Trajectory Of Children Between The Ages Of 5-12 Years, Anthony Goudie Jan 2008

The Effects Of Maternal Prenatal Insults On The Bmi Growth Trajectory Of Children Between The Ages Of 5-12 Years, Anthony Goudie

All ETDs from UAB

The level of childhood obesity in the United States is at epidemic proportions. Most population studies looking at the factors contributing to childhood obesity focus on obesity as a dichotomous outcome. The purpose of this study is to test for the effects of maternal prenatal insult behaviors on the growth trajectory of a sample of children 5-12 years of age in the United States. This is the first known study to use a latent growth curve model and a cohort-concurrent analytical design to test the association between maternal prenatal insult behaviors and the annual longitudinal increase in body mass index …


Impact Of An Electronic Medical Record On Adherence To Current Diabetes Guidelines In A Family Medicine Center, Thomas Macandrew English Jan 2008

Impact Of An Electronic Medical Record On Adherence To Current Diabetes Guidelines In A Family Medicine Center, Thomas Macandrew English

All ETDs from UAB

OBJECTIVE: Extensive research shows that diabetic care often falls below recommended guidelines. Many believe that Electronic Medical Records (EMR) have the ability to improve quality of care. The primary goal of this study is to evaluate the changes in diabetic care and outcomes pre and post EMR implementation. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: The study took place at the UAB Huntsville Family Medicine Center. A retrospective chart review was conducted in order to determine the impact of an EMR on diabetes care. This is a natural experiment that uses a pre post model in order to determine impact. Generalized Estimating Equations …


Growth Hormone Signaling And Action In Osteoblasts, Douglas J. Digirolamo Jan 2008

Growth Hormone Signaling And Action In Osteoblasts, Douglas J. Digirolamo

All ETDs from UAB

Growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) exert profound growth promoting actions during pre- and post-natal skeletal development. GH and IGF- 1 appear to cause these anabolic actions by influencing a variety of effects on osteoblast proliferation, differentiation, and survival. However, because GH stimulates the production of IGF-1 from the liver and other GH-responsive peripheral tissues, including bone, the individual contributions of these two molecules to anabolic responses in bone remains poorly defined. In this dissertation research, I sought to distinguish the direct and indirect (IGF-1 dependent) GH actions on osteoblasts. In the first section of this thesis, I …


Effects Of Aerobic Exercise On The Asthmatic Lung, Matthew M. Hewitt Jan 2008

Effects Of Aerobic Exercise On The Asthmatic Lung, Matthew M. Hewitt

All ETDs from UAB

Asthma is identified by the clinical symptoms of wheezing, chest tightness, dyspnea and cough, and by the presence of airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) to inhaled stimuli. We have reported previously that repeated bouts of moderate intensity aerobic exercise attenuate airway inflammatory responses in a mouse model of atopic asthma. Because the effects of exercise on physiological responses are dependent upon several variables, including total exercise duration, the hypothesis of the current work was that differing amounts of moderate intensity aerobic exercise exert dissimilar effects on AHR and airway inflammation. The aims to test this hypothesis included: 1) determine the effect of …


Functionalizing Hydroxyapatite Biomaterials With Biomimetic Peptides Of Integrin Ligands, Kristin Marie Hennessy Jan 2008

Functionalizing Hydroxyapatite Biomaterials With Biomimetic Peptides Of Integrin Ligands, Kristin Marie Hennessy

All ETDs from UAB

Hydroxyapatite (HA) coatings of hard tissue implants have been shown to increase osseointegration, but the mechanisms by which HA improves implant integration are not well understood. Numerous studies have shown that modifying HA with adhesive peptides, including RGD, and the collagen I mimetics, DGEA and P15, stimulates the adhesion of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), a cell type that differentiates along the osteoblast lineage. However, HA is a highly adsorptive biomaterial, and therefore it is unlikely that cells at the implant site would ever encounter a peptidemodified HA surface in the absence of an adsorbed protein layer. In fact, our laboratory …


Molecular Regulation Of Pax5-Mediated Biological Functions, Ti He Jan 2008

Molecular Regulation Of Pax5-Mediated Biological Functions, Ti He

All ETDs from UAB

B lineage cells are major players in the adaptive immune system. Pax5 is essential for B lineage cell development and function. Pax5 controls B lineage cell developmental progression by regulating expression of many B lineage specific genes and the B lineage specific VH to DJH recombination; and the meantime, Pax5 also represses the transcription of lineage- and developmental stage- inappropriate genes to restrict the B lineage developmental pathway. It is not clear how Pax5-mediated function can be regulated to fulfill its role in different biological reactions. In this dissertation, we focused on the study of the molecular regulation of Pax5-mediated …


Using Rna Interference To Study The Function Of The Tethering Protein P115 In Er-Golgi Traffic, Robert Grabski Jan 2008

Using Rna Interference To Study The Function Of The Tethering Protein P115 In Er-Golgi Traffic, Robert Grabski

All ETDs from UAB

Metazoan cells are characterized with elaborate network of intracellular membranous compartments. These membranes allow the cell to spatially separate antagonistic processes and environments, and maintain sequential order of reactions necessary for maturation and secretion of biosynthetic cargo. The core transport machinery consists of coat proteins, tethering factors, SNAREs and small Ras-like GTPases. We have explored the function of the tethering factor p115 in organellogenesis and in secretory traffic. The p115-depleted system was utilized to explore structurefunction relationships within p115. Here, we analyzed the architecture of the Golgi after RNAi induced depletion of p115. We show that in p115 depleted cells …


The Role Of Melanopsin Containing Retinal Ganglion Cells In The Pupillary Responses Of Human And Non-Human Primates, David H. Mcdougal Jan 2008

The Role Of Melanopsin Containing Retinal Ganglion Cells In The Pupillary Responses Of Human And Non-Human Primates, David H. Mcdougal

All ETDs from UAB

Historically, the characteristics of the light-evoked neural signals driving the human pupillary light reflex (PLR) have been poorly understood. It was assumed that these light signals originated exclusively from rod and cone photoreceptors, although the measured spectral sensitivity and response dynamics of the PLR were difficult to reconcile with the known properties of rods and cones. Recently, a novel photoreceptive cell class has been discovered in the mammalian retina. These unique retinal ganglion cells not only receive rod and cone inputs, but also express the photopigment melanopsin, and exhibit intrinsic photoresponses independent of rod and cone inputs. These intrinsically photosensitive …


Mechanism Of The Cross Talk Between Growth Hormone Receptor And Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor, Xin Li Jan 2008

Mechanism Of The Cross Talk Between Growth Hormone Receptor And Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor, Xin Li

All ETDs from UAB

EGF receptor (EGFR) is a receptor tyrosine kinase, mediating cell growth from ectodermal and mesodermal origin. The overexpression and aberrant function of EGFR are involved in a wide range of human carcinomas. Growth hormone receptor (GHR) coexists with EGFR in various cell types and implicated in malignant tumor behavior. Previously in our lab, we found that via ERK activation GH can threonine phosphorylate EGFR and reduce EGF-induced EGFR downregulation. GH also synergizes with EGF in activating ERK. In this project, using reconstitution, we studied the mutation of the ERK phosphorylation consensus residue on EGFR, 669T. CHO-GHR cells, which lack EGFR …


Function Of Human Retinol Dehydrogenase 12 (Rdh12) In Retinoid Metabolism, Seung-Ah Lee Jan 2008

Function Of Human Retinol Dehydrogenase 12 (Rdh12) In Retinoid Metabolism, Seung-Ah Lee

All ETDs from UAB

Retinol dehydrogenase 12 (RDH12) is a member of the microsomal short-chain dehydrogenase/reductase superfamily of proteins that is highly expressed in photorecep-tor cells. Mutations in RDH12 are associated with severe early-onset autosomal recessive retinal dystrophy, leading to legal blindness. Disease-associated RDH12 variants exhibit lower protein levels when expressed in eukaryotic cells. However, the physiological role of RDH12 remains unclear. As established previously, RDH12 recognizes both retinoids and lipid peroxidation products (medium-chain aldehydes) as substrates and exhibits the highest catalytic efficiency for all-trans-retinaldehyde. As the main goal of this dissertation, we characterized the catalytic properties of RDH12 and its naturally occurring mutants …


Lipomatous Tissue: Variation In Treatment Procedures, Comorbidities, And Outcomes, Theresa L. Keel Jan 2008

Lipomatous Tissue: Variation In Treatment Procedures, Comorbidities, And Outcomes, Theresa L. Keel

All ETDs from UAB

Benign lipomas are the most common soft tissue tumors. They exhibit great variation in severity and are associated with significant comorbidity. Advanced understanding of genetic and morphological aspects of benign lesions has revealed unexpected similarities to malignant lesions, but little work has addressed variation among benign lesions. There is a need for better understanding of the effects of variation in lipomas on comorbidity, treatment, and outcomes. Improved knowledge of the effects will clarify the extent of the health and economic burden that severe forms of benign lipomas present to patients and society and may add to understanding of malignant lesions. …


The Role Of Strychnine-Sensitive Nachrs In Rabbit Retinal Off Ganglion Cells, Jordan Michael Renna Jan 2008

The Role Of Strychnine-Sensitive Nachrs In Rabbit Retinal Off Ganglion Cells, Jordan Michael Renna

All ETDs from UAB

that when heteroskedasticity is present, but ignored, there is significant evidence to suggest


Changes In Hippocampal Excitability During Withdrawal From Chronic Nicotine, Rachel E. Penton Jan 2008

Changes In Hippocampal Excitability During Withdrawal From Chronic Nicotine, Rachel E. Penton

All ETDs from UAB

seeking behavior following chronic drug use lasts for many months or even years. Short-term withdrawal experiments have suggested that the neuroadaptations thought to underlie learning and memory may also contribute to addictive behavior. However, there is little information about the physiological mechanisms that participate in craving and relapse following long-term withdrawal. Here I show in hippocampal slices from rats treated with nicotine for 1 week that there is a change in the excitability of CA1 pyramidal cells that persists for up to 9 months following the cessation of drug treatment. The expression of this enhanced excitability is dependent on different …


Roles Of Extracellular Atp And Zinc In Pancreatic Ss-Cell Physiology, Clintoria Richards-Williams Jan 2008

Roles Of Extracellular Atp And Zinc In Pancreatic Ss-Cell Physiology, Clintoria Richards-Williams

All ETDs from UAB

Insulin secretory defects within pancreatic beta-cells (β-cells) of islets of Langerhans play a role in the pathogenesis of diabetes mellitus. Furthermore, it is also well established that ATP and zinc are co-secreted with insulin in response to elevated extracellular glucose. Despite this knowledge, the physiological roles of extracellular secreted ATP and zinc within islets are ill-defined. We hypothesized that secreted ATP and zinc are autocrine purinergic signaling molecules that activate P2X purinergic receptor (P2XR) channels expressed by β-cells to enhance glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS). To test this postulate, ELISA, luciferin/luciferase-based bioluminescence and zinquin-based fluorescence assays were utilized to examine insulin, …


Wavelet-Based Regression And Classification For Longitudinal Diffusion Tensor Imaging Data, William R. Prucka Jan 2008

Wavelet-Based Regression And Classification For Longitudinal Diffusion Tensor Imaging Data, William R. Prucka

All ETDs from UAB

Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique capable of in vivo characterization of the spatial and angular dependence of free water diffusion in tissue. By studying intra- and extra-cellular water mobility, inference can be made about the surrounding medium. The non-uniform angular dependence of diffusion, known as anisotropy, is evident in fibrous tissues, which exhibit greater diffusion parallel versus perpendicular to the fiber orientation. DTI’s sensitivity to anisotropy makes it an effective tool for measuring the integrity of fibrous myelinated white matter tracts in the brain. For demyelinating diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS), DTI has …


Adenovirus As A Platform For Assembly And Targeted Delivery Of Gold Nanoparticles To Tumor Cells, Vaibhav Saini Jan 2008

Adenovirus As A Platform For Assembly And Targeted Delivery Of Gold Nanoparticles To Tumor Cells, Vaibhav Saini

All ETDs from UAB

Novel combinatorial strategies need to be explored to achieve tumor eradication. In this regard, viral vector based gene therapy and nanotechnology offer unique possibilities for cancer therapy. As an example, multifunctional adenoviral (Ad) vectors capable of targeting, imaging, and successful cancer gene therapy have been advanced into multiple clinical trials. Similarly, novel multifunctional gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have been utilized for drug delivery, targeting, imaging, and hyperthermia tumor therapy. Therefore, to accrue the benefits of both gene therapy and nanotechnology for cancer therapy, we proposed to combine Ad vectors and AuNPs in a single multifunctional nanodevice. Towards this goal, herein, we …


The Role Of Tgf-Ss And Wnt5a In Mammary Gland Development And Tumurorigenesis, Kevin Patrick Roarty Jan 2008

The Role Of Tgf-Ss And Wnt5a In Mammary Gland Development And Tumurorigenesis, Kevin Patrick Roarty

All ETDs from UAB

cancer is the second most common cancer worldwide behind lung cancer, affecting women of all ages, races, ethnicities, and socioeconomic strata. Concerted efforts have been made to understand this heterogeneous disease from the clinical stage down to the molecular level. Importantly, it has become clear that an understanding of the normal biology of the breast at all stages of development is needed to gain insight into how alterations in normal regulatory networks contribute to the initiation and development of breast cancer. TGF-ß plays a role in growth and patterning of the mammary gland and alterations in its signaling exhibit biphasic …


Correction Of Sickle Cell Disease By Homologous Recombination, Li-Chen Wu Jan 2008

Correction Of Sickle Cell Disease By Homologous Recombination, Li-Chen Wu

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The hematological disorder sickle cell disease (SCD) is a prevalent human genetic disease. It causes severe tissue damage that can result in strokes, splenic infarction, kidney failure, liver and lung disorders, painful crises, and other complications. Although palliative therapies and allogenic stem cell transplantation therapies have been developed for this disorder, there is still no optimal treatment and SCD patients continue to suffer significant morbidity. Recently, several powerful technologies have been developed that increase the possibility for developing therapeutic treatments for SCD. Previously, our lab group demonstrated that SCD can be corrected in our humanized mouse model by transduction of …


Physiological Charactterization Of The Light Response Of Rod Photoreceptors In The Light Damaged Rat, Yuquan Wen Jan 2008

Physiological Charactterization Of The Light Response Of Rod Photoreceptors In The Light Damaged Rat, Yuquan Wen

All ETDs from UAB

Constant light exposure has long been known to induce photoreceptor degeneration. However, it is not known whether photoreceptors alter their physiology to adapt to the environmental stress caused by constant light exposure. In this study, we have developed a slow light damage model in rats to study changes in single rod physiology and retinal morphology after light damage. Rod physiology was documented by single rod recording using a suction electrode at 3 days (R3), 5 days (R5), 15 days (R15), and 30 days (R30) after 10 days of light damage, or sham light damage for controls. In addition, we used …


The Use Of Molecular Imaging To Evaluate Te Efficacy Of Treatments For Metastatic Breast Cancer, April Adams Szafran Jan 2008

The Use Of Molecular Imaging To Evaluate Te Efficacy Of Treatments For Metastatic Breast Cancer, April Adams Szafran

All ETDs from UAB

The development of molecular imaging technologies has allowed biomedical researchers to study the process of cancer metastasis in animal models of disease. Bioluminescence imaging has been a crucial tool for non-invasive monitoring of tumor growth, dissemination, and response to therapies. In this report, we have applied bioluminescence imaging to evaluate the efficacy of Death Receptor 5 agonist therapy for the treatment of breast cancer metastasis, predominately to the skeleton, in an athymic nude mouse model. Initially, we determined that bioluminescence imaging was the most ideal technology for studying secondary bone lesions in vivo when compared to both x-ray Computed Tomography …


The Role Of Ddx3 In Regulating Apoptosis, P53 And Snail, Mianen Sun Jan 2008

The Role Of Ddx3 In Regulating Apoptosis, P53 And Snail, Mianen Sun

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Cancer is a common disease that causes high rates of lethality. Resistance to cancer therapy is one major obstacle for producing an effective cancer treatment. Clarifying mechanisms of cancer development, such as resistance to apoptosis and metastasis, can provide important information for developing effective cancer treatment strategies. In the present study, DDX3 was demonstrated to have effects on both responses to cancer treatment and cancer development. DDX3 together with glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3) was found to impede death receptor-induced apoptosis, which is important because death receptors are activated by some cancer treatments. Additionally, DDX3 was shown to regulate two proteins …


Characterization Of Suds3 As A Brms1 Family Member In Breast Cancer, Alexandra C. Silveira Jan 2008

Characterization Of Suds3 As A Brms1 Family Member In Breast Cancer, Alexandra C. Silveira

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BRMS1 and SUDS3 belong to a protein family characterized by the Sds3-like domain. These proteins are core members of SIN3-HDAC chromatin remodeling complexes and thus, regulate transcription. BRMS1 decreases the expression of various metastasis-promoting proteins. This regulation contributes to BRMS1-mediated metastasis suppression through the inhibition of motility and by sensitizing cells to anoikis, as well as through other unidentified mechanisms related to growth at a secondary site. Although BRMS1 and SUDS3 share high sequence similarity and are found in the same complexes, studies have yet to address whether these similarities result in overlapping functions. Additionally, it is unclear how BRMS1 …