Other Medical Sciences Commons^™

Medical Interns', Residents' And Attending Physicians' Attitudes Towards Integrative Medicine And Recommended Treatments For Patients With Psoriasis, Jennifer L. Pacyon

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Background: Psoriasis is a multifactorial disease that effect approximately 7.5 million Americans. There are a variety of traditional treatments for psoriasis (e.g. topical medications, biologics) that for many, are effective in combating the disease. However, traditional treatments often have aversive side effects and may not be appropriate for every patient (e.g. pregnant women). Additionally, the efficacy of these medications are variable leaving some looking for adjunctive treatment options. There is increasing evidence to support the use of adjunctive treatments for psoriatic patients (e.g. psychotherapy, mindfulness). However, research is variable in regards to medical professionals’ attitudes towards integrative medicine (IM) as …

The Effect Of Arsenic On Type 2 Diabetes And Inflammation, Kayla Penta

Theses and Dissertations

Arsenic, a ubiquitous environmental contaminant, has been shown to cause a number of health effects. At high concentrations the inorganic form is a well-known toxin, but at lower concentrations the effects range from various cancers, to cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. At higher concentrations of arsenic (500- 1000μg/L) there have been epidemiological studies conducted demonstrating an increased risk in the development of type 2 diabetes with this exposure. At lower levels of arsenic exposure (<500 μg/L) the epidemiological results are inconclusive. Arsenic is also an immunotoxicant, meaning that it will cause changes in the immune response. The changes in the immune response will vary depending on a number of variables, including amount of arsenic exposure, forms of exposure and route of exposure. We wanted to determine if arsenic could modulate the immune system, and if this change could lead to an increase in susceptibility to type 2 diabetes development. We chose to examine this in C57BL/6 and db/+ mice – two non-susceptible strains. After 8 weeks (4 weeks old to 12 weeks old) of low dose inorganic arsenic exposure (50 μg/kg or 500 μg/kg) we evaluated changes in body composition, glucose tolerance and immune response. We saw that there were differences based on sex, genotype and treatment group present after the 8-week treatment period in body composition, while there were minimal changes in glucose tolerance. Finally, the immune response showed great variability depending on sex, genotype and treatment group. This project has demonstrated that while we are trying to compare differences in in vivo and epidemiological studies to find a link between arsenic and type 2 diabetes, there may be deeper levels of complications based on individual variability to arsenic exposure.

The Role Of Epidermal Stem/Progenitor-Like Cells In Hpv-Mediated Pre-Neoplastic Transformation, Yvon L. Woappi

Theses and Dissertations

The role of epidermal basal stem cells in dysplasia is a matter of great interest in the human papillomavirus (HPV)-driven cancers. To assess the relationship between “stemness” and HPV-mediated transformation, we made use of 3-D suspension culture and fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS) to purify stem/progenitor-like cells from primary normal human keratinocyte (NHKc) cultures. We found that NHKc cells derived from multicellular keratinocyte spheroids were enriched for a basal subpopulation of epidermal stem-like cells, that could be maintained for prolonged time in culture and used to conduct transfection experiments with full-length HPV16 DNA. Thus, by using these stem cell enrichment …

Differences In Resting-State Functional Connectivity Of Chronic Migraine, With And Without Medication Overuse Headache, And The Effectiveness Of Sphenopalatine Ganglion Block As A Treatment For Repairing Dysfunctional Connectivity., Kaitlin Krebs

Theses and Dissertations

Chronic Migraine (CM) is a debilitating neurological condition that occurs when the migraine frequency progresses to a chronic state of more than 15 headache days per month. The overuse of analgesic medication (MOH) is one of the most prominent risk factor of this chronification and little is known about why it is a cause. The repetitive inhibition of the Sphenopalatine Ganglion is one promising treatment that is used to treat chronic migraine. The purpose of this study is to determine if a specific pattern of disruption is present for chronic migraine, both with and without medication overuse headache, and if …

Fine Particulate Air Pollution And Hospital Emergency Room Visits For Respiratory Disease In Urban Areas In Beijing, China, In 2013, Qin Xu, Xia Li, Shuo Wang, Chao Wang, Fangfang Huang, Qi Gao, Lijuan Wu, Lixin Tao, Jin Guo, Wei Wang, Xiuhua Guo

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Background

Heavy fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) air pollution occurs frequently in China. However, epidemiological research on the association between short-term exposure to PM_2.5 pollution and respiratory disease morbidity is still limited. This study aimed to explore the association between PM_2.5 pollution and hospital emergency room visits (ERV) for total and cause-specific respiratory diseases in urban areas in Beijing. Methods Daily counts of respiratory ERV from Jan 1 to Dec 31, 2013, were obtained from ten general hospitals located in urban areas in Beijing. Concurrently, data on PM_2.5 were collected from the Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau, …

The Effect Of Body Mass Index On Graft Function And Kidney Transplant Outcomes, Morgan Galle

Theses & Dissertations

Background: When determining eligibility for kidney transplantation, body mass index (BMI) is often a debatable criterion for transplant due to the clinical indication, an elevated BMI has adverse effects on kidney transplant outcomes. There is a current gap in research on the effect BMI has on kidney transplant outcomes.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the role BMI plays in post-kidney transplant clinical outcomes including delayed graft function, new onset diabetes after transplant, wound complications, hospital length of stay, albumin, and readmissions to the hospital from initial hospitalization and at six months following kidney transplantation. The primary …

Recommendations For The Development Of New Hospital Guidelines Due To The Effects Of Antibiotics On Clostridium Difficile Colitis, Megan Kohsel

Honors Theses

Clostridium difficile colitis is an infection that causes inflammation of the colon and diarrhea. This can even lead to death in some cases. The incidence of this infection and its overall effects have been on the rise throughout the last twenty years as antibiotics have been prescribed more frequently. Therefore, it is necessary that the rate of C. difficile infection is lowered by improved guidelines for hospitals, so that fewer people are infected and also that fewer antibiotics are prescribed to avoid the infection with C. difficle.

Dashing Away Hypertension: Evaluating The Efficacy Of The Dietary Approaches To Stop Hypertension Diet In Controlling High Blood Pressure, Preeya Shah Phd, Kyle D. Maxwell, Joseph I. Shapiro Md

Biochemistry and Microbiology

The dietary approaches to stop hypertension (DASH) diet has been developed and popularized as a non-pharmaceutical intervention for high blood pressure reduction since 1995. However, to date, a comprehensive description of the biochemical rationale behind the diet’s principal guidelines has yet to be compiled. With rising interest for healthy and reliable life-style modifications to combat cardiovascular disease, this review aims to compile the most recent and relevant studies on this topic and make an informed assessment as to the efficacy of and underlying mechanisms operant in the DASH diet. Specifically, the merits of lowering dietary intake of sodium and saturated …

A Disease-Based Approach To The Vertical And Horizontal Integration Of A Medical Curriculum, Charles A. Gullo Phd, Brian R. Dzwonek, Bobby L. Miller

Biochemistry and Microbiology

As medical disciplines have become increasingly interdisciplinary and evidenced-based medicine is widely practiced, there is a need for curricula that reflect these changes. The newly revised LCME standards 1.1 Strategic Planning and Continuous Quality Improvement and 8.3 Curricular Design, Review, Revision/Content Monitoring require ongoing curricular review to assure accreditation compliancy. We have completed a comprehensive review of our curriculum and have moved from a discipline-based curriculum to that of one that focuses on a systems/disease-based model. The approach allows for a more horizontally integrated curriculum in the preclinical years, while the use of 115 distinct disease and eight themes creates …

Pnaktide Inhibits Na/K-Atpase Reactive Oxygen Species Amplification And Attenuates Adipogenesis, Komal Sodhi, Kyle Maxwell, Yanling Yan, Jiang Liu, Muhammad Chaudhry, Morgan Getty, Zijian Xie, Nader G. Abraham, Joseph I. Shapiro Md

Biochemistry and Microbiology

Obesity has become a worldwide epidemic and is a major risk factor for metabolic syndrome. Oxidative stress is known to play a role in the generation and maintenance of an obesity phenotype in both isolated adipocytes and intact animals. Because we had identified that the Na/K-ATPase can amplify oxidant signaling, we speculated that a peptide designed to inhibit this pathway, pNaKtide, might ameliorate an obesity phenotype. To test this hypothesis, we first performed studies in isolated murine preadipocytes (3T3L1 cells) and found that pNaKtide attenuated oxidant stress and lipid accumulation in a dose-dependent manner. Complementary experiments in C57Bl6 mice fed …

Real-Time Detection Of Breast Cancer Cells Using Peptidefunctionalized Microcantilever Arrays, Hashem Etayash, Keren Jiang, Sarfuddin Azmi, Thomas Thundat, Kamaljit Kaur

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Ligand-directed targeting and capturing of cancer cells is a new approach for detecting circulating tumor cells (CTCs). Ligands such as antibodies have been successfully used for capturing cancer cells and an antibody based system (CellSearch®) is currently used clinically to enumerate CTCs. Here we report the use of a peptide moiety in conjunction with a microcantilever array system to selectively detect CTCs resulting from cancer, specifically breast cancer. A sensing microcantilever, functionalized with a breast cancer specific peptide 18-4 (WxEAAYQrFL), showed significant deflection on cancer cell (MCF7 and MDA-MB-231) binding compared to when exposed to noncancerous (MCF10A and HUVEC) cells. …

Regulation Of Phosphatidylinositol 4-Kinase Iii Alpha Complex Formation In B Cells And Its Role In Autoantibody Production, Michaela M. Sangillo Ms

All Student Scholarship

The plasma membrane protein Efr3b, the Tetratricopeptide domain repeat 7 (Ttc7), and the kinase phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase III alpha (PI4KIIIa) are found to form a complex a the plasma membrane. This complex is thought to play a role regulating the PI4P pools at the plasma membrane, which is imperative to membrane identity and vesicle transport.

Emergency Cardiac Care In Athletic Training Education, Erica M. Filep

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

In the field of athletic training, preventing sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) has become a vital component of undergraduate athletic training students’ education. Specifically, SCA is the “leading cause of death in young athletes due to a structural cardiac abnormality” (Casa et. al, 2012, p. 15). Numerous studies about sudden death in athletics have been conducted but there is a gap in educational literature. Teaching students how to respond to catastrophic injury or illness is still an area that needs to be expanded upon. Educational competencies and standards have rapidly evolved with each edition of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA) …

Family Planning, Pregnancy, And Birth In Guatemala: Maya Women And Modern Healthcare, Kelsay Payton

Honors Theses

Within Maya populations in rural Guatemala, childbearing is considered a sacred and spiritual experience, in addition to a physical one. This country is home to some of the highest rates of maternal and infant mortality in Latin America, along with the largest disparities in health care, primarily between the indigenous Maya and ladino women (Schooley 2009). The use of biomedical reproductive services remains surprisingly low among the Maya, while it is continually rising in the ladino populations. To increase the overall reproductive health care in these indigenous communities, attention must be given to the understanding of Maya’s beliefs, therefore enabling …

Illness And God's Will, John Sherret

Senior Honors Theses

Originally, God never put sickness on people. After the fall, the early history of man as recorded in the Bible further demonstrates Him refraining to use sickness. However, once the law was instituted God began to use sickness as a punishment. In the Old Testament, sickness was always defined as a curse and never a blessing. It was used by God to curse people for disobeying the law. In the New Testament, God was seen healing the multitudes instead of cursing them. Through the atonement of Jesus, believers have been redeemed from the curse of the law (Galatians 3:13). Healing …

Children With Sli Exhibit Delays Resolving Ambiguous Reference, Julie M. Estis, Brenda L. Beverly

University Faculty and Staff Publications

Fast mapping weaknesses in children with specific language impairment (SLI) may be explained by differences in disambiguation, mapping an unknown word to an unnamed object. The impact of language ability and linguistic stimulus on disambiguation was investigated. Sixteen children with SLI (8 preschool, 8 school-age) and sixteen typically developing age-matched children selected referents given familiar and unfamiliar object pairs in three ambiguous conditions: phonologically distinct word (PD), phonologically similar word (PS), no word (NW). Preschoolers with SLI did not disambiguate, unlike typically developing age-matched participants, who consistently selected unfamiliar objects given PD. School-age children with SLI disambiguated given PD. Delays …

The Role Of Occupational Therapy In Primary Care, Priti Patel

Occupational Therapy Doctorate Capstone Projects

The Capstone Project is focused on communicating, influencing and educating other health care professionals regarding the role of occupational therapy in the future model of primary care delivery initiated by the adoption of the Affordable Care Act and the Triple Aim Initiative. Currently, primary care, the largest health care platform in United States, is not inclusive of occupational therapy services. Occupational therapists have the scope, knowledge and understanding to be part of the redesigned team model of primary care. Educating those currently working in primary care about adding occupational therapy services can have a significant impact on the profession of …

The Effects Of Home-Based Pilates In Healthy College-Age Females, Betsy Donahoe-Fillmore, Mary Insana Fisher, C. Jayne Brahler

Physical Therapy Faculty Publications

Objectives: To quantify and determine the effects of Pilates on core endurance, hamstring flexibility, balance, body composition/mass and perceived stress level in healthy college age females.

Study Design: Randomized controlled trial design.

Background: Emerging research on the Pilates technique is inconclusive regarding benefits to core endurance, flexibility, balance, body mass, and perceived stress.

Methods and Measures: Female college students (n=57; 18-35 years old) were randomly assigned to a Pilates group, who exercised at home with a DVD, or a control group who did not engage in Pilates practice. Core endurance, hamstring flexibility, balance, body composition and stress measurements were taken …

Characterization Of Stard4 And Stard6 Proteins In Human Ovarian Tissue And Human Granulosa Cells And Cloning Of Human Stard4 Transcripts, Aisha Shaaban

Theses and Dissertations

Progesterone is essential hormone for pregnancy, which is produced by the human corpus luteum in early pregnancy until the placenta assumes this function. Transport of the cholesterol from the outer to the inner mitochondrial membrane is the rate limiting step for the de novo synthesis of pregnenolone (the precursor to progesterone), a process mediated by STARD1. STARD1 contains a C-terminal lipid binding domain which binds cholesterol and an N-terminal domain targeting STARD1 to the mitochondrial membrane. Unlike STARD1, STARD4 and STARD6 proteins lack a mitochondrial targeting sequence; however, they can bind cholesterol and increase steroidogenesis in model systems. In this …

Influence Of Planning Resources On Gait Control In Parkinson’S Disease, Frederico P. Faria

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Movement disturbances in individuals with Parkinson’s disease (PD) have been associated with difficulties to plan complex actions. Performance of simple and complex actions overloads resources for individuals with Parkinson’s disease (PD). However, it is unclear if central resources required to plan gait adjustments while walking exacerbate gait disturbances of patients with PD. More specifically, it is unclear how gait impairments, sensory processing, and the dopaminergic system influence the load on processing resources (e.g. cognitive load) during the planning of step modifications. In order to investigate the relative influence of these factors on cognitive load and its impact on gait control, …

The Relationship Between The Halosperm Assay And Semen Analysis Performed According To The 4th And 5th Editions Of The World Health Organization Guidelines, Ashleigh Mcevoy, Peter Roberts, Kailin Yap, Phillip L. Matson

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Background: As a standard reference to evaluate male factor infertility, the majority of fertility laboratories use the 4th or 5th Editions of the World Health Organization’s semen analysis guidelines. Following the release of the 5th Edition, debate over its legitimacy has resulted in some laboratories using the 4th and others the 5th Edition. DNA integrity tests have been shown to be a valuable adjunct to semen analysis and have subsequently been adopted by many fertility laboratories. This study explored the prevalence of samples with high DNA fragmentation levels according to semen analysis categories using both the 4th and the 5th …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Methacrylated Hyaluronan-Based Hydrogels For Tissue Engineering, Keegan Bradley Compton

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

Polymers have revolutionized the field of tissue engineering due to the countless possibilities of scaffolds that can be constructed from such a material. Through conjugation of other functional groups onto a polymer backbone, the mechanical properties of polymers can be controlled and has the ability to span a wide range of strengths, allowing for application in multiple tissue environments. One such polymer, hyaluronic acid (HA), is a natural polysaccharide found most abundantly in the extracellular matrix (ECM) of connective tissues with structural, lubricating, and wound healing functions in the human body; for this reason, HA has great potential for utilization …

Monkey-Based Research On Human Disease: The Implications Of Genetic Differences, Jarrod Bailey

Laboratory Experiments Collection

Assertions that the use of monkeys to investigate human diseases is valid scientifically are frequently based on a reported 90–93% genetic similarity between the species. Critical analyses of the relevance of monkey studies to human biology, however, indicate that this genetic similarity does not result in sufficient physiological similarity for monkeys to constitute good models for research, and that monkey data do not translate well to progress in clinical practice for humans. Salient examples include the failure of new drugs in clinical trials, the highly different infectivity and pathology of SIV/HIV, and poor extrapolation of research on Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s …

Transcriptome Profiling Of Spinal Muscular Atrophy Motor Neurons Derived From Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells., Miho Maeda, Ashlee W Harris, Brewster F Kingham, Casey J Lumpkin, Lynn M Opdenaker, Suzanne M Mccahan, Wenlan Wang, Matthew E R Butchbach

Department of Pediatrics Faculty Papers

Proximal spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is an early onset, autosomal recessive motor neuron disease caused by loss of or mutation in SMN1 (survival motor neuron 1). Despite understanding the genetic basis underlying this disease, it is still not known why motor neurons (MNs) are selectively affected by the loss of the ubiquitously expressed SMN protein. Using a mouse embryonic stem cell (mESC) model for severe SMA, the RNA transcript profiles (transcriptomes) between control and severe SMA (SMN2+/+;mSmn-/-) mESC-derived MNs were compared in this study using massively parallel RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq). The MN differentiation efficiencies between control and severe SMA mESCs …

An Investigation Of The Relationship Between Plantar Weight Distribution And The Condition Of Osteoarthritic Knees During Quiet Standing, Brian Joseph Sutterer

Graduate Theses - Biology & Biomedical Engineering

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a damaging disease that commonly affects the knee and can impact function of the lower limb. This study examined how plantar weight distribution is related to the changes in knee alignment and various types of joint damage in patients with OA. A force mat was used to measure plantar weight distribution on 37 patients with knee OA, and the internal condition of the knee was evaluated during surgery. Analysis showed a relationship between medial plantar weight distribution and an increase in knee alignment angle (0.20, p < 0.001). For the damage models, an indirect relationship was found between medial weight distribution and ACL damage (-0.14, p=0.029). No relationship was found for the other types of OA damage. It is reasonable to believe they do exist, however. This study found a connection between weight distribution and alignment, and previous research has shown one between alignment and OA.

Dispositional Optimism: Modeling Cardiovascular Disease Mortality With Traditional Risk Factors And A Psychosocial Personality Trait, Kiana Ramisi Luckett Robinson

Dissertations

Despite increased awareness of clinical risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD), heart disease remains a physical and economic burden to African Americans. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between dispositional optimism, a psychosocial personality trait, and CVD mortality, based on immediate cause of death. A cross-sectional design was used to examine the predictive value of dispositional optimism in CVD mortality concomitant with traditional CVD risk factors. The traditional CVD risk factors of interest consisted of body mass index, waist circumference, systolic and diastolic blood pressures, total cholesterol, and C-reactive protein. Also, aggregated mortality data for optimists …

E-Cigarettes: An Up To Date Review And Discussion Of The Controversy, Zachary Sanford, Lynne J. Goebel Md

Internal Medicine

Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) present a novel method for nicotine delivery that is reportedly advantageous when compared to traditional cigarette usage. Manufacturers and consumers claim reduced chemical exposure, decreased symptom profiles, and efficacy in smoking reduction and cessation greater than conventional nicotine replacement therapies (NRT). However these products present new challenges and concerns to legislators, clinicians, and public health advocates. Questions of authority in state and federal legislation, establishing product quality control, assessing long-term studies on e-cigarettes and quantifying usefulness in harm reduction represent only a portion of the many unanswered topics being discussed. The purpose of this article is to …

A New Reinforced Fibrin Collagen Glycosaminoglycan Material To Resist Tissue Contraction In Heart Valves, Claire Brougham, Gerard Cooney, Stefan Jockenhoevel, Thomas Flanagan, Fergal O'Brien

Conference Papers

A crosslinked, multicomponent scaffold of collagen, GAG and fibrin has been characterised for heart valve applications. Fibrin gels reinforced with a 0.75% collagen, 0.044% GAG scaffolds can resist VSMC induced contraction significantly more than fibrin-only gels, while allowing cell proliferation and maintaining excellent cell viability. This improvement in structural integrity may facilitate the use of fibrin based materials for heart valve tissue engineering.

An Analysis Of The Use Of Animal Models In Predicting Human Toxicology And Drug Safety, Jarrod Bailey, Michelle Thew, Michael Balls

Experimentation Collection

Animal use continues to be central to preclinical drug development, in spite of a lack of its demonstrable validity. The current nadir of new drug approvals and the drying-up of pipelines may be a direct consequence of this. To estimate the evidential weight given by animal data to the probability that a new drug may be toxic to humans, we have calculated Likelihood Ratios (LRs) for an extensive data set of 2,366 drugs, for which both animal and human data are available, including tissue-level effects and MedDRA Level 1–4 biomedical observations. This was done for three preclinical species (rat, mouse …

A Review Of The Institute Of Medicine’S Analysis Of Using Chimpanzees In Biomedical Research, Robert C. Jones, Ray Greek

Biomedicine and Animal Models in Research Collection

We argue that the recommendations made by the Institute of Medicine’s 2011 report, Chimpanzees in Biomedical and Behavioral Research: Assessing the Necessity, are methodologically and ethically confused. We argue that a proper understanding of evolution and complexity theory in terms of the science and ethics of using chimpanzees in biomedical research would have had led the committee to recommend not merely limiting but eliminating the use of chimpanzees in biomedical research. Specifically, we argue that a proper understanding of the difference between the gross level of examination of species and examinations on finer levels can shed light on important methodological …