Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Identification And Characterization Of A New Kaposi’S Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus Replication And Transcription Activator (Rta)- Responsive Element Involved In Rta-Mediated Transactivation, Hui-Ju Wen, Veenu Minhas, Charles Wood

Nebraska Center for Virology: Faculty Publications

Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) replication and transcription activator (RTA) is well established as a key transcriptional activator that regulates the KSHV life cycle from latency to lytic replication. It is expressed immediately after infection and activates a number of viral genes leading to virus replication. The RTA-responsive element (RRE) in the RTA target gene promoters is critical for RTA to mediate this transactivation. A number of non-conserved RREs have been identified in various RTA-responsive promoters, and AT-rich sequences have been proposed to serve as RTA targets, but no consensus RRE sequence has been identified so far. Two nonconserved RREs (RRE1 …

Use Of Average Mutual Information For Studying Changes In Hiv Populations, Khalid Sayood, Federico Hoffman, Charles Wood

Nebraska Center for Virology: Faculty Publications

Average mutual information (AMI) has been used in a number of applications in bioinformatics. In this paper we present its use to study genetic changes in populations; in particular populations of HIV viruses. Disease progression of HIV-1 infection in infants can be rapid resulting in death within the the first year, or slow, allowing the infant to survive beyond the first year. We study the development of rapid and slow progressing HIV population using AMI charts based on average mutual information among amino acids in the env gene from a population of 1142 clones derived from seven infants with slow …

Comparison Of Replication-Competent, First Generation, And Helper-Dependent Adenoviral Vaccines, Eric A. Weaver, Pramod N. Nehete, Stephanie S. Buchl, Julien S. Senac, Donna Palmer, Philip Ng, K. Jagannadha Sastry, Michael A. Barry

Nebraska Center for Virology: Faculty Publications

All studies using human serotype 5 Adenovirus (Ad) vectors must address two major obstacles: safety and the presence of pre-existing neutralizing antibodies. Helper-Dependent (HD) Ads have been proposed as alternative vectors for gene therapy and vaccine development because they have an improved safety profile. To evaluate the potential of HD-Ad vaccines, we compared replication-competent (RC), first-generation (FG) and HD vectors for their ability to induce immune responses in mice. We show that RC-Ad5 and HD-Ad5 vectors generate stronger immune responses than FG-Ad5 vectors. HD-Ad5 vectors gave lower side effects than RC or FG-Ad, producing lower levels of tissue damage and …

The Humanitarian Crisis In Gaza: A Look At The Health Infrastructure Before, During And Immediately After The December-January Attacks, Khalil Qato

Quill & Scope

In late December and early January, Israel's bombing of the Gaza Strip captured international headlines. While a political solution was often discussed, and a shaky ceasefire was ultimately agreed upon, the health care situation in Gaza before, during and after these bombings was hardly addressed. The ongoing Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip has had deleterious effects on health and health care delivery among the Palestinian population, particularly in Gaza where Israeli blockades have created a U.N.-declared humanitarian crisis. This article attempts to shed new light on the health care situation in the Gaza Strip and potential …

Experiences Of African Immigrant Women Living With Hiv In The U.K.: Implications For Health Professionals, Eunice Ndirangu, Catrin Evans

School of Nursing & Midwifery, East Africa

In the U.K. immigrant women from Africa constitute an increasingly large proportion of newly diagnosed cases of HIV. A significant minority of these are refugees and asylum seekers. Very little is known about their experiences of living with HIV/AIDS, their psychosocial needs or their views of health care provision. This paper reports the results of a qualitative study that explored these issues by interviewing eight African women living with HIV in the British city of Nottingham. Women’s ability to live positively with HIV was found to be strongly shaped by their migration history, their legal status, their experience of AIDS-related …

Expression Of Semaphorin 3f And Its Receptors In Epithelial Ovarian Cancer, Fallopian Tubes, And Secondary Müllerian Tissues, Christina D. Drenberg, Sandra Livingston, Ren Chen, Patricia A. Kruk, Santo V. Nicosia

Pathology and Cell Biology Faculty Publications

While semaphorins and their receptors appear to play a role in tumor carcinogenesis, little is known about the role of semaphorin 3F (S3F) in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) development. Therefore, we sought to determine the clinical relationship between S3F and its receptors, neuropilin-2 (NP-2) and neuropilin-1 (NP-1) with EOC progression. We analyzed the immunohistological expression of S3F, NP-2, and NP-1 in clinical specimens of normal ovaries (N), benign cystadenomas (Cy), well-differentiated adenocarcinomas (WD), poorly-differentiated adenocarcinomas (PD), inclusion cysts (IC), paraovarian cysts (PC), and fallopian tubes (FT). Tissue sections were evaluated for staining intensity and percentage of immunoreactive epithelia. We found …

Pattern Recognition Of Longitudinal Trial Data With Nonignorable Missingness: An Empirical Case Study, Julia Hua Fang, Kimberly A. Espy, Maria L. Rizzo, Christian Stopp, Sandra A. Wiebe, Walter W. Stroup

Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory: Faculty Publications

Methods for identifying meaningful growth patterns of longitudinal trial data with both nonignorable intermittent and drop-out missingness are rare. In this study, a combined approach with statistical and data mining techniques is utilized to address the nonignorable missing data issue in growth pattern recognition. First, a parallel mixture model is proposed to model the nonignorable missing information from a real-world patient-oriented study and concurrently to estimate the growth trajectories of participants. Then, based on individual growth parameter estimates and their auxiliary feature attributes, a fuzzy clustering method is incorporated to identify the growth patterns. This case study demonstrates that the …

Congregate Mealsite Participants’ Self-Reported And Functional Health, Participation In Activities And Attitudes Toward Aging In Wisconsin, Amy Ramsey

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

The number of older Americans is increasing. Participation in activities is essential for maintaining health and functional independence, preventing or delaying chronic diseases and improving quality of life. Generally, as older adults age, prevalence of regular activity declines. Many older adults are not engaging in activities and are not receiving the health benefits that these offer.

This cross-sectional study used a self-administered survey to examine whether there is an association between attitudes toward aging, self-reported and functional health, and participation in activities among older adults aged 55 and older who attend congregate mealsites in Wisconsin. It was hypothesized that older …

The Effect Of Stigma On The Daily Occupations Of Adults With Mental Illness, Kelley Lee

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Look At Customer Attitudes, Influences Of Subjective Norms, And Behavioral Intention Regarding Second Hand Smoke And Smoking In Public, Tanya Marie Dubay

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

This study is an assessment of customer’s attitudes, influences of subjective norms, and behavioral intention regarding exposure to secondhand smoke and smoke free policy at a small family owned and operated restaurant. Research questions address relationships between customer attitudes and smoke free policy as well as likelihood of customers supporting a smoke free policy in an establishment where there is currently no law that prohibits smoking. Methodology included a voluntary self administered survey questionnaire given to a convenience sample of patrons who were dining out. The results show; (a) a significant relationship between attitude about second hand smoke and choosing …

Cultural Determinants Affect Implementation Of Good Clinical Practice (Gcp) In Human Research Studies In Malawi, Africa, Joann Jeanne Schmidt

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Clinical research conduct and Good Clinical Practice (GCP) implementation are influenced by local culture. This study examines the experiences of 26 clinical research personnel in Malawi, Africa, in order to define relevant issues, identify solutions, and give voice to local investigators. Qualitative, semi-structured interviews were conducted, audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed. Six themes, related to cultural determinants, emerged: 1) communitybased decision-making, 2) illiteracy, 3) patient identifiers, 4) local myths and misconceptions, 5) poverty and disease, and 6) barriers to teamwork. Findings revealed that: 1) Malawians are best at identifying local solutions, 2) operations research is needed 3) greater networking and communication …

Demographic Profile Of Clinical Research Volunteers: Improving The Effectiveness Of Promotional Recruitment, Amanda M. Mcallister

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Background: Successfully recruiting participants for clinical trials is a challenge that crosses all medical disciplines. Slow enrollment to clinical trials delays the completion of clinical research studies.

Objectives: This study collected demographic data of current and past clinical trial volunteers. Furthermore, it examined similarities and differences between clinical trial volunteers, which provides deeper understandings of who volunteers are and which may allow for improved education and recruitment of subjects.

Methods: 87 adults who had participated in at least one clinical research study were surveyed.

Findings:

*Healthcare represented the most common career at 27.6%.

*93.1% received education beyond high school.

*0% …

Examining Conversational Constraints In Vietnamese Patient-Doctor Communication: A Case Study, Kimberly Tran

XULAneXUS

The purpose of this study was to determine the use of conversational constraints among older members of the New Orleans Vietnamese community within the primary healthcare context. A purposive sample of seven Vietnamese male and five Vietnamese female immigrants between the ages of 47 and 80 was interviewed. Conversational constraints were evident in the responses relating to communication with physicians. The respondents emphasized relational conversational constraints such as minimal imposition on the physician’s autonomy, prevention of hurting the physician’s feelings, and prevention of negative evaluation by the physician. Conversely, task-oriented conversational constraints such as concern for clarity and effectiveness were …

Genetic And Hormonal Factors Modulate Spreading Depression And Transient Hemiparesis In Mouse Models Of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine Type 1, Katharina Eikermann-Haerter, Ergin Dileköz, Chiho Kudo, Sean I Savitz, Christian Waeber, Michael J Baum, Michel D Ferrari, Arn M J M Van Den Maagdenberg, Michael A Moskowitz, Cenk Ayata

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Familial hemiplegic migraine type 1 (FHM1) is an autosomal dominant subtype of migraine with aura that is associated with hemiparesis. As with other types of migraine, it affects women more frequently than men. FHM1 is caused by mutations in the CACNA1A gene, which encodes the alpha1A subunit of Cav2.1 channels; the R192Q mutation in CACNA1A causes a mild form of FHM1, whereas the S218L mutation causes a severe, often lethal phenotype. Spreading depression (SD), a slowly propagating neuronal and glial cell depolarization that leads to depression of neuronal activity, is the most likely cause of migraine aura. Here, we have …

Impact Of The Short-Term Consumption Of A Moderately High Fat Diet On Nitric Oxide Production And Bioavailibility, Kan Huang

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Nitric oxide (NO) plays an essential role in the regulation of numerous biological processes. Its bioavailability is assured by a well regulated balance between NO generation and NO removal. Disruptions in this balance contribute to the pathogenesis of various diseases, including hypertension, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes mellitus and arthritis. Many factors contribute to the maintenance of NO bioavailability by controlling nitric oxide synthase (NOS) expression, NOS activity, the availability of substrates and cofactors involved in the generation of NO by NOS, levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and the formation and mobilization of NO reservoirs. Dietary factors have a significant impact …

Integration Of Services: Making Integrated Services A Reality, Frontiers In Reproductive Health

Reproductive Health

Programs seeking to provide a more comprehensive RH service may establish or strengthen referrals between related yet separately provided services that enable a client to receive the range of needed services. There are two main rationales for integrating services. First, many clients have needs for several services; and second, there is an expectation that providing integrated or linked services can be more efficient programmatically. Little empirical evidence exists to support these underlying rationales, or to guide policies and programs in organizing services effectively and efficiently. Lessons from FRONTIERS have demonstrated not only the demand for multiple services, but also the …

A Religious Oriented Approach To Addressing Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting Among The Somali Community Of Wajir, Kenya, Maryam Sheikh Abdi, Ian Askew

Reproductive Health

The Somali ethnic community, in Kenya as well in Somalia, Djibouti, and Ethiopia, has practiced genital cutting for centuries and the practice appears to have remained largely unchanged. The community practices the severest form of FGM/C, type III or infibulation. The Population Council’s FRONTIERS program, with support from USAID/Kenya, carried out two studies to better understand the practice of FGM/C among the Somalis in North Eastern Province so as to inform the design and implementation of interventions that would encourage abandonment of the practice. Both studies collected data through in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with community and religious leaders, …

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Dorothy M. Bartleson

Graduate Research Papers

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a neurobiological disorder. The disorder OCD is now the fourth most common psychiatric disorder among Americans. (Adams & Burke, 1999) Two percent of adults have some level of OCD and many others have experienced signs at some point. (Campost & Leckaman, 1999) The number of children that have this disorder is one out of two hundred. (Black) The causes of OCD can be physical or emotional or both. (Barlow, 2002) Treatments for OCD include Cognitive Behavior therapy, Visual Reality therapy, medications, social skills training, support groups and individual and family therapy. (Lutz, 2002) Neurological disorders …

Truth And Healing A Veteran's Depression, Mike W. Martin

Philosophy Faculty Articles and Research

Comments on an article by Christopher Bailey (see record 2009-24345-002). Dr. Christopher Bailey portrays an American veteran, Colin, who slips into a "serious but not severe" depression upon returning from the Iraq War, After ruling out post-traumatic stress disorder, the psychiatrist comes to believe that Colin's depression is tied to his feelings of being a wimp, of not having "done his part or proven his manhood," and of losing his chance to become a hero because he had been assigned non-combat duty—feelings that the psychiatrist glosses (misleadingly?) as a "painful lack of wounds." (I speak of the "the psychiatrist," rather …

A Comparative Analysis Of Structural Brain Mri In The Diagnosis Of Alzheimer’S Disease, Jason Appel, Elizabeth Potter, Qian Shen, Gustavo Pantol, Maria T. Greig, David Loewenstein, Ranjan Duara

Neurology Faculty Publications

Dementia is a debilitating and life-altering disease which leads to both memory impairment and decline of normal executive functioning. While causes of dementia are numerous and varied, the leading cause among patients 60 years and older is Alzheimer’s disease. The gold standard for Alzheimer’s diagnosis remains histological identification of amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles within the medial temporal lobe, more specifically the entorhinal cortex and hippocampus. Although no definitive cure for Alzheimer's disease currently exists, there are treatments targeted at preserving cognition and memory while delaying continued loss of function. Alzheimer's disease exists along a spectrum of cognitive decline and …

Cue-Based Training Effects On Visual Scanpaths During Weather-Related Decision Making, Michael W. Sawyer, Scott A. Shappell

International Symposium on Aviation Psychology - 2009

Flight into adverse weather remains a leading cause of fatal accidents in general aviation. The situation assessment hypothesis suggests that pilots continue into adverse weather because they fail to accurately recognize the weather conditions present. In this study 20 participants’ eye movements were tracked as they viewed various weather scenes before and after training. The results showed that after training participants made decisions using fewer visual fixations and less total gaze time. Further, the average time until first fixation on critical weather features was decreased after training. Participants were effectively taught what weather features are important, thus allowing participants to …

Effects Of Time Pressure On The Use Of An Automated Decision Support System For Strike Planning, Yves Boussemart, Birsen Donmez, M. L. Cummings, Jonathan Las Fargeas

International Symposium on Aviation Psychology - 2009

This paper describes the results of an experiment designed to examine the effects of time pressure on behavioral patterns. The main research hypothesis is that people under time pressure tend to increasingly rely on automation in order to cope with the added workload. The context is that of a missile strike planner having to create a set of matches between resources (missiles) and requirements (missions). We introduce time pressure by changing the temporal requirements towards the end of the mission. Overall performance, calls to automation and qualitative strategies are recorded and analyzed using ANOVA and other nonparametric tests. The main …

Utility And Recognition Of Lines And Linear Patterns On Electronic Displays Depicting Aeronautical Charting Information, Divya C. Chandra

International Symposium on Aviation Psychology - 2009

A study was conducted to explore the utility and recognition of lines and linear patterns on electronic displays depicting aeronautical charting information, such as electronic charts and moving map displays. The goal of this research is to support the development of more standardized and consistent lines and linear patterns for these displays. Data were collected from 273 professional and private pilots. First pilots sorted the names of 65 types of lines and linear patterns in terms of utility of the item. Next they tried to identify nine test linear patterns shown in isolation. Results of the sorting task indicated that …

Decision Factors Influencing Stimulant Use Among Fighter Aircrew During Combat Operations, Russell K. Gore M.D., Eric D. Hermes M.D.

International Symposium on Aviation Psychology - 2009

During long combat missions in fighter aircraft, passive in-flight fatigue countermeasures are often not feasible. As a result, stimulant medications (Go Pills) may be used in-flight. The present study attempts to describe the individual decision factors influencing stimulant use during combat operations. Methods: 35 deployed F-15E aircrews participated in this study. Prior to the deployment, interviews were conducted to identify factors influencing the inflight decision to use stimulants. Based on this qualitative information, a novel survey instrument was developed. Results: Surveys were completed after 111 sorties. Results were summarized graphically. Conclusions: Active and anticipated in-flight fatigue were the most common …

Human-Assisted Logistics Optimization (Halo): Support For Timely Logistics Decision-Making, David E. Weldon

International Symposium on Aviation Psychology - 2009

The need for rapid response capabilities and effective joint operations dictates a new approach in which deployment planning is integrated into the mission-planning processes. In the research reported here, we explored new technologies to enable rapid identification of feasible transportation options and enhance shared awareness of commander’s intent and inter-command collaboration. Our solution extends state-of-the-art Tabu Search algorithms, producing effective transportation solutions in significantly less time than current models. The human guidance and collaborative components of HALO enhance performance by accommodating dynamic operational requirements. HALO benchmark tests demonstrated superiority to other optimization algorithms on Multi-Vehicle, Pickup and Delivery Problems with …

The Mystery Of Distributed Learning, Gavan Lintern

International Symposium on Aviation Psychology - 2009

There are contrasting opinions about the value of distributed learning. Several textbooks on general training issues promote it as an effective training strategy while many researchers who have focused specifically on this topic argue that distributed practice is no more effective than non-distributed practice. It is noteworthy that most who promote distributed learning base their opinion on belief rather than on experimental research while most who argue that it is of no value base their opinions on empirical data restricted primarily to the learning of simple motor skills. Additionally, much of the distributed learning research has employed the experimentally convenient …

On Adaptive Autimation As A Solution To The Gloc Conundrum, Lloyd D. Tripp, Joel S. Warm, Gerald Matthews, Peter Y. Chiu, R. Bruce Bracken

International Symposium on Aviation Psychology - 2009

Gravity-induced loss of consciousness (GLOC) is a major problem facing fighter pilots. In the throes of GLOC, pilots can travel 12 miles without control of their aircraft. The GLOC problem has proven to be difficult to resolve. Solutions involving repeated exposures to GLOC, G-suit pressure manipulation, intense sensory stimulation, and exposure to –G following the GLOC event have been unsuccessful. It is evident that a different approach is needed. One possibility might be an adaptive automation system to warn pilots of the imminence of a GLOC event. A key issue in adaptive automation is the cue to be employed in …

Example Of Work Domain Analysis Applied To Total Energy Control System, Matthijs Amelink, M.M. (René) Van Paassen, Max Mulder

International Symposium on Aviation Psychology - 2009

Automation is often accused of adding to the complexity of a system and unnecessarily increasing operator’s workload, and the potential for human error. An approach is needed that guides designers to make the right design choices. Cognitive Systems Engineering (CSE) is a promising approach. However, this field is still young and tangible examples of automation design with an explicit CSE approach do not exist. This paper describes how the design of Total Energy Control System (TECS) that was founded in the late 1970’s can be regarded as an example avant la letter. TECS is an automated flight control system designed …

Are We Getting The Message Across? Human Factors And System Safety Education – What Impact Has It Had?, Sue Burdekin

International Symposium on Aviation Psychology - 2009

Education in human factors and systems safety has been incorporated into aviation degree programs at university level for many years. However, there has been little research to measure empirically the impact that this education has had on safety outcomes in the field when the students have completed their degrees. A study is presently being conducted involving graduates from the University of NSW at the Australian Defence Force Academy in Australia who had obtained the degree of Bachelor of Technology in Aviation. Following their graduation, these students had been posted to various flying squadrons within the Australian Defence Force in an …

Conceptualizing Spatial Relations In Flight Training, Edwin Hutchins, Will Newsome, Christina Middleton

International Symposium on Aviation Psychology - 2009

In the aviation human factors literature, situation awareness (SA) is usually described as arising from disembodied mental processes. Action has virtually no role in current theories of SA. This disembodied view is out of step with contemporary theories that take cognitive processes to be distributed, situated, and above all, embodied. This shift in theory suggests that SA ought to be an embodied phenomenon, and given the highly spatial nature of SA, it would be quite surprising to discover that the body did not play a key role in the construction, elaboration, and maintenance of SA. In this paper we examine …