Breaking The Cycle: From Victimization To Offending Through The Lens Of Human Services, Colette R. Penalosa

Master of Arts in Human Services

The victim-offender overlap challenges the common view that victims and offenders are separately labeled by recognizing that both groups have experienced significant childhood trauma, physical, emotional, and psychological abuse, neglect, and other adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). Current research implies these experiences can increase the risk of offending as they all influence cognitive and behavioral development while leaving criminal behavior undetermined. The purpose of this capstone is to analyze the relationship between childhood victimization and offending from a human service perspective; analyzing the pathways a victim takes on the road to offending. Research conducted will focus on exploring the victim-offender overlap, …

Determinants Of Corporal Punishment And Severe Physical Punishment In Egypt: A Mixed-Methods Analysis For Child Protection Policy, Marwa Moustafa Nassef

Theses and Dissertations

Corporal punishment (CP) and severe physical punishment (SPP) remain a major public health, child rights, and child protection policy concern. In Egypt, despite legislative reforms, survey-weighted analysis of the 2021 Egypt Family Health Survey (EFHS) 2021 (CAPMAS, 2022) reveals prevalence rates of 60.5% for CP and 27.4% for SPP among children aged 1–14 (author’s calculations using EFHS-2021, n=7623), yet evidence distinguishing the determinants of routine corporal punishment from escalation to severe physical punishment remains limited in low- and middle-income contexts. Guided by Bronfenbrenner’s ecological framework, this mixed-methods study identifies key drivers of CP and its escalation to SPP among Egyptian …

When Individual Implicit Bias Meets Ed System Turbulence: Expanding The Implicit Bias And Cultural Bias Conceptual Frame To Support Reflective Decision Making Through Both Individual Bias Reduction Strategies As Well As System-Level Design Approaches, James Espinosa, Alan Lucerna

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Background

Cultural and implicit bias have been widely studied as contributors to disparities in healthcare delivery. Prior literature has largely conceptualized bias as an individual-level cognitive phenomenon occurring within clinician–patient interactions. However, emergency departments (EDs) function as complex adaptive systems (CAS), characterized by time pressure, uncertainty, cognitive load, and environmental noise. These conditions may contribute to the expression of implicit bias in clinical care.

Objective

To reframe cultural and implicit bias in the ED as both an individual cognitive property as well as a system-dependent and modulated  phenomenon and to propose that the operational state of the ED influences the …

The Impact Of A Mindfulness Meditation Program On Phq-9 Scores In Eskd Clients At The Dialysis Center, Christi Collins Weaver

Student Scholarly Projects

Practice Problem: Patients undergoing hemodialysis for end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) experience high rates of untreated depressive symptoms, which negatively impact quality of life, treatment adherence, and therefore increased hospitalization and higher mortality rates.

PICOT: In adult patients receiving in-center hemodialysis (P), how does the implementation of a structured mindfulness meditation program (I), compared to usual care (C), affect depressive symptoms as measured by the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) (O) over an eight-week period (T)?

Evidence: Current literature demonstrates that depression is highly prevalent among individuals with ESKD and is associated with increased morbidity and decreased treatment adherence. Evidence supports mindfulness …

Drd2 Rs6276 Polymorphism And Trait Impulsivity In Individuals With Mixed Behavioral And Substance Addictions, Gabriela Zdunek, Remigiusz Recław, Aleksandra Suchanecka, Krzysztof Chmielowiec, Dariusz Larysz, Patryk Ilków, Kinga Łosińska, Jolanta Chmielowiec, Łukasz Jaworski, Anna Grzywacz

Baltic Journal of Health and Physical Activity

Background/Objectives: Impulsivity is a key transdiagnostic trait linked to dysregulated reward processing in both behavioral and substance-related addictions, as recognized in DSM-5. Dopaminergic genes, including DRD2, may modulate individual differences in impulsivity, particularly under conditions of increased addiction vulnerability. This study examined whether the DRD2 Exon 8 rs6276 polymorphism predicts impulsivity levels in men with mixed addictive behaviors compared with healthy controls. Methods: A total of 328 males (128 with mixed behavioral and substance addictions and 200 controls) were assessed. Diagnoses were confirmed using the MINI interview, and impulsivity was measured with the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11). Genotyping of …

Exploring The Impact Of Adverse Childhood Experiences On Preventive Healthcare Utilization In Rural Georgia, Ryan R. Traylor

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This study examines the relationship between Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and preventive healthcare use among adults in Georgia, specifically within rural populations facing structural barriers. Using 2023 Georgia Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) data, the research analyzes associations between ACE exposure, rural residence, and preventive care outcomes, including physical exams and flu vaccinations. Guided by an intersectionally adapted version of Andersen’s Behavioral Model of Health Services Use, the study evaluates how predisposing factors, enabling resources, and perceived barriers relate to healthcare engagement. Logistic regression analyses assess the correlation of ACE exposure, cost barriers, provider access, and sociodemographics with preventive …

Engaging Ukrainian Tf-Cbt Therapists In A Practice Skills Course To Support Their Wellbeing, Elisabeth Pollio, Esther Deblinger, Beth Cooper, Maike Garbade, Julie P Harrison, Elisa Pfeiffer

Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine Departmental Research

Background: Burnout and secondary traumatic stress (STS) are common among therapists working with trauma-exposed clients, which can negatively impact them professionally and personally. The shared trauma of war exposure may put therapists at greater risk. To help support their wellbeing, an eight-session course was offered to Ukrainian therapists following training in Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT). This course involves therapists personally utilizing the PRACTICE skills taught to clients in TF-CBT for professional and personal benefit.

Objective: The objective was to gather preliminary evidence on the potential impact of implementing the course with Ukrainian therapists providing TF-CBT during a period of …

Dual-Task Interaction Between Vestibular Function And Cognitive Processing Using The P300 Event-Related Potential, Laurel Elise Money-Nolan

Graduate Theses and Dissertations (2019 - present)

Previous research has established links between vestibular function and cognitive processing, aging and cognitive function, and aging and vestibular function. Theories of cognitive resource allocation discuss how cognitive resources, such as attention, are devoted towards and divided between tasks when multitasking. This dual-task study, utilizing a balance task and a listening/cognitive task, across the young- and middle-aged adult age range, aimed to evaluate potential relationships between vestibular function, cognition, and age, and to examine how cognitive resources might be allocated under dual-task conditions.

The dual-task protocol in this study utilized an oddball paradigm with tonal stimuli to measure the P300 …

A Religious Etiology Of Genito-Pelvic Pain And Pain With Penetration, Emily L. Carlson

Theses and Graduate Projects

Pelvic pain during penetration (PPDP) has been described using various diagnostic terms, including vaginismus, dyspareunia, and vulvodynia. The most recent and comprehensive classification is Genito-pelvic pain/penetration disorder (GPPPD) which is characterized by psychological distress associated with pain during or in anticipation of vaginal penetration (DSM-5-TR; American Psychiatric Association [APA], 2022). The etiology of PPDP is multifactorial, involving a complex interplay of biological, psychological, and relational factors. Religious and cultural influences may play a significant role in shaping individuals’ experiences of sexual pain. This study investigated the etiology of PPDP in relation to the religious influences among women raised in Judeo-Christian …

Evaluation Of The Feasibility And Effectiveness Of Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy For Children And Youth In Ukraine During The War, Elisa Pfeiffer, Maike Garbade, Renee Beer, Anette Birgersson, Natalie Cabrera, Judith A Cohen, Esther Deblinger, Rafaela Gjini, Veronica Kirsch, Zlatina Kostova, Michael Larsson, Anthony Mannarino, Gavin Moffitt, Marja Onsjö, Tale Ostensjo, Anna Vikgren, Hanna Weyler, Vitalii Klymchuk, Cedric Sachser

Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine Departmental Research

BACKGROUND: The large-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in early 2022 resulted in a humanitarian crisis with hundreds of thousands of children exposed to traumatic events. To date, trauma-focused evidence-based treatments (EBTs) for children and youth have not been systematically evaluated and implemented in Ukraine. This study aims at evaluating 1) the feasibility of a training program for Ukrainian therapists on Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (TF-CBT) and 2) the feasibility and effectiveness of the treatment for children, youth, and their families in and from Ukraine during the ongoing war.

METHODS: The project "TF-CBT Ukraine" was implemented between March 2022 and May …

Binge Eating Disorder: A Clinical Review, Michell Mcdiffett Mshs, Pa-C

Lynchburg Journal of Medical Science

Binge eating disorder (BED) is the most common eating disorder (ED) in the United States (U.S.) and is characterized by recurrent episodes of eating a larger than normal amount of food in a discrete period of time and includes a sense of loss of control over food intake. BED is often comorbid with serious somatic and psychiatric disorders and is associated with reduced quality of life and excess mortality. Some consider BED a public health concern due to frequent co-occurrence with obesity and worse outcomes in those populations. The diagnosis is often delayed due to shame and underreporting of symptoms …

Enhancing Schizophrenia Treatment Outcomes: Integrating Cbt With Medication Therapy To Reduce Hospital Readmission, Kamauri Fleming Msn, Rn, Grace Adeniji-Ilesanmi Fnp-Bc, Zillah Anagho Tah Fnp-C, Alex Cook Msn, Rn, Margaret Harvey Phd, Acnp-Bc, Chfn, Sharon Little Dnp, Aprn, Fnp-Bc, Jacqueline Sharp Dnp, Aprn, Pmhnp-Bc

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Purpose/Background Schizophrenia is a chronic mental illness that disrupts cognition, emotion, and social functioning, imposing significant personal and societal burdens. While antipsychotic medications are effective in alleviating psychotic symptoms, they are often associated with side effects, poor adherence, and relapse risk. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has shown promise as an adjunct to medication, addressing persistent symptoms and improving outcomes. This scoping review examines the integration of CBT with medication therapy to reduce hospital readmissions and improve quality of life for adult patients hospitalized with schizophrenia.

Methods A systematic search of databases, including PubMed, PsycINFO, Embase, and Cochrane Library, was conducted …

Optimizing Interventions For Major Depressive Disorder And Provider Burnout: Self-Speak Exercise Dosing (Sed), Laureen Maloney-Gepfert

Lynchburg Journal of Medical Science

ABSTRACT

Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is ranked highest among mental illnesses in the United States (US) and significantly contributes to the mental health care crisis. Patients experience resistance to pharmacologic interventions, side effects, co-morbidities, and mental health provider shortages. Subsequently, 33 % of Serious Mental Illnesses (SMIs) are being redirected to Primary Care Providers (PCPs). Concurrently, prescriber mental health is in crisis. Growing workloads for physicians and Advanced Practice Providers (APPs) have increased provider burnout syndrome (BOS). Major Depressive Disorder and BOS are positively affected by exercise, Cognitive Restructuring (CR), and Behavioral Activation (BA). Sports medicine and psychology research shows …

Obesity Prediction From Structural Mri Using Conformal Deep Learning With Uncertainty Quantification, W. Farzana, A. G. A. Temtam, B. Humud-Arboleda, L. Ma, M. Bean, F. Gerard Moeller, K. M. Iftekharuddin

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Obesity arises from a neurobehavioral disorder in which the brain’s regulation of hunger and food intake is impaired, leading to an imbalance between energy consumption and expenditure. One key phenotype associated with obesity is body mass index (BMI). BMI is influenced by multiple causal pathways driven by behavioral, metabolic, and genetic factors. Traditional obesity prediction studies often rely on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) voxel-based morphometry to correlate BMI with obesity-related clinical measurements and brain structure, predominantly gray matter volume (GMV). However, the altered brain regions are variable and widespread between studies, with some literature presenting contradictory results between BMI and …

Addressing Alcohol Use Disorder In The Outpatient Indigenous Health Clinic Setting, Kylie M. Timmerman

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Projects

Background: Alcohol use disorder disproportionately impacts American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) populations at higher rates of disease morbidity and mortality. In the primary care setting, few treatment resources are available to patients outside of medication-only options.

Local Problem: While the intervention site (rural Tribal Federally Qualified Health Center [FQHC]) was known to have a well-established medication-assisted treatment (MAT) program for opiate use disorder (OUD), the was a need for alcohol use disorder (AUD) resources.

Methods: A review of current evidence was conducted to explore best practices for addressing AUD in the AIAN outpatient clinic setting.

Intervention(s): A quality improvement …

Can Written Prompts Help Medical Residents To Accurately Monitor Their Own Communication Skills And Those Of Others?, F. O. De Meijer, N. Nyamu, A. H. De Bruin

Family Medicine, East Africa

In healthcare, effective communication in complex situations such as end of life conversations is critical for delivering high quality care. Whether residents learn from communication training with actors depends on whether they are able to select appropriate information or ‘predictive cues’ from that learning situation that accurately reflect their or their peers’ performance and whether they use those cues for ensuing judgement. This study aimed to explore whether prompts can help medical residents improving use of predictive cues and judgement of communication skills. First and third year Kenyan residents (N = 41) from 8 different specialties were randomly assigned to …

Verbal Learning And Memory Deficits Across Neurological And Neuropsychiatric Disorders: Insights From An Enigma Mega Analysis, Eamonn Kennedy, Spencer W Liebel, Hannah M Lindsey, Shashank Vadlamani, Pui-Wa Lei, Maheen M Adamson, Martin Alda, Silvia Alonso-Lana, Tim J Anderson, Celso Arango, Robert F Asarnow, Mihai Avram, Rosa Ayesa-Arriola, Talin Babikian, Nerisa Banaj, Laura J Bird, Stefan Borgwardt, Amy Brodtmann, Katharina Brosch, Karen Caeyenberghs, Vince D Calhoun, Nancy D Chiaravalloti, David X Cifu, Benedicto Crespo-Facorro, John C Dalrymple-Alford, Kristen Dams-O'Connor, Udo Dannlowski, David Darby, Nicholas Davenport, John Deluca, Covadonga M Diaz-Caneja, Seth G Disner, Ekaterina Dobryakova, Stefan Ehrlich, Carrie Esopenko, Fabio Ferrarelli, Lea E Frank, Carol E Franz, Paola Fuentes-Claramonte, Helen Genova, Christopher C Giza, Janik Goltermann, Dominik Grotegerd, Marius Gruber, Alfonso Gutierrez-Zotes, Minji Ha, Jan Haavik, Charles Hinkin, Kristen R Hoskinson, Daniela Hubl, Andrei Irimia, Andreas Jansen, Michael Kaess, Xiaojian Kang, Kimbra Kenney, Barbora Keřková, Mohamed Salah Khlif, Minah Kim, Jochen Kindler, Tilo Kircher, Karolina Knížková, Knut K Kolskår, Denise Krch, William S Kremen, Taylor Kuhn, Veena Kumari, Junsoo Kwon, Roberto Langella, Sarah Laskowitz, Jungha Lee, Jean Lengenfelder, Victoria Liou-Johnson, Sara M Lippa, Marianne Løvstad, Astri J Lundervold, Cassandra Marotta, Craig A Marquardt, Paulo Mattos, Ahmad Mayeli, Carrie R Mcdonald, Susanne Meinert, Tracy R Melzer, Jessica Merchán-Naranjo, Chantal Michel, Rajendra A Morey, Benson Mwangi, Daniel J Myall, Igor Nenadić, Mary R Newsome, Abraham Nunes, Terence O'Brien, Viola Oertel, John Ollinger, Alexander Olsen, Victor Ortiz García De La Foz, Mustafa Ozmen, Heath Pardoe, Marise Parent, Fabrizio Piras, Federica Piras, Edith Pomarol-Clotet, Jonathan Repple, Geneviève Richard, Jonathan Rodriguez, Mabel Rodriguez, Kelly Rootes-Murdy, Jared Rowland, Nicholas P Ryan, Raymond Salvador, Anne-Marthe Sanders, Andre Schmidt, Jair C Soares, Gianfranco Spalleta, Filip Španiel, Scott R Sponheim, Alena Stasenko, Frederike Stein, Benjamin Straube, April Thames, Florian Thomas-Odenthal, Sophia I Thomopoulos, Erin B Tone, Ivan Torres, Maya Troyanskaya, Jessica A Turner, Kristine M Ulrichsen, Guillermo Umpierrez, Daniela Vecchio, Elisabet Vilella, Lucy Vivash, William C Walker, Emilio Werden, Lars T Westlye, Krista Wild, Adrian Wroblewski, Mon-Ju Wu, Glenn R Wylie, Lakshmi N Yatham, Giovana B Zunta-Soares, Paul M Thompson, Mary Jo Pugh, David F Tate, Frank G Hillary, Elisabeth A Wilde, Emily L Dennis

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Deficits in memory performance have been linked to a wide range of neurological and neuropsychiatric conditions. While many studies have assessed the memory impacts of individual conditions, this study considers a broader perspective by evaluating how memory recall is differentially associated with nine common neuropsychiatric conditions using data drawn from 55 international studies, aggregating 15,883 unique participants aged 15–90. The effects of dementia, mild cognitive impairment, Parkinson’s disease, traumatic brain injury, stroke, depression, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder on immediate, short-, and long-delay verbal learning and memory (VLM) scores were estimated relative to matched healthy individuals. Random forest …

Neuroecological Links Of The Exposome And One Health, Agustin Ibanez, Lucia Melloni, Paweł Świeboda, William Hynes, Burcin Ikiz, Rym Ayadi, Massamba Thioye, Consuelo Walss-Bass, Bahar Güntekin, Jyoti Mishra, Mohamed Salama, Sarah Dunlop, Claudia Duran-Aniotz, Harris A Eyre

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

This NeuroView assesses the interplay among exposome, One Health, and brain capital in health and disease. Physical and social exposomes affect brain health, and green brain skills are required for environmental health strategies. Ibanez et al. address current gaps and strategies needed in research, policy, and technology, offering a road map for stakeholders.

A Literature Review Of Current Treatments For The Hypermobility Subtype Of Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, John Gericke, Mary Zsolway, Chelsea Reyes, Pooja Patel, Saad Ahmed, Julia Hwang, Venkateswar Venkataraman

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to compare pharmacologic intervention, neurocognitive therapy, physical therapy, and orthotics in treating the hypermobility subtype of Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (hEDS) and determine which has the most positive effect on symptoms.

Introduction: Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome is an inheritable connective tissue disorder which results from a genetic mutation that alters the body’s ability to produce collagen. The most common subtype of Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome is hEDS, which leads to hypermobility and hyperextensibility and can cause frequent joint dislocations.

Methods: A review of literature was performed to compare each treatment based on reported results. The types of studies reviewed …

Parent-Led Cognitive Behavioral Teletherapy For Anxiety In Autistic Youth: A Randomized Trial Comparing Two Levels Of Therapist Support, Andrew G Guzick, Sophie C Schneider, Minjee Kook, Julia Rose Iacono, Saira A Weinzimmer, Troy Quast, Sean M Olsen, Killian Rainey Hughes, Emily Jellinek-Russo, Amanda Perozo Garcia, Abigail Candelari, Leandra N Berry, Robin P Goin-Kochel, Wayne K Goodman, Eric A Storch

Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy Staff Publications

Parent-led cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is an efficient, promising form of therapy that may be well suited for autistic youth with anxiety disorders, though to date it has been minimally tested. In this study, 87 autistic youth (7 to 13 years old) with anxiety disorders and their parents were randomized to two forms of parent-led CBT in which parents led their child through a guided CBT workbook across 12 weeks: one with low therapist contact (four 30-minute telehealth calls), and one with standard therapist contact (ten 60-minute telehealth calls). Anxiety, functional impairment, and autism features significantly declined across therapy, without …

Single Case Experimental Design Examining Cognitive Behavioural Therapy For Post-Stroke Depression, Liam Alexander Mackenzie Myles, Emma Jones

Journal of Mind and Medical Sciences

Background. Post-stroke depression (PSD) is common in older-age adults and is typically treated with cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT). However, research has ascertained mixed findings regarding the efficacy of CBT for PSD in older-age adults, with limited evidence in people from global majority backgrounds. Materials and Methods. This case study used single case experimental design methodology to examine the effectiveness of CBT for PSD in a black, older-age man. The effects of health conditions, cohort beliefs, transitions in role investments, socio-cultural context and early experiences on the client’s thoughts, emotions, physical sensations and behaviours were formulated, before behavioural activation was used to …

Interaction Of High-Fat Diet And Brain Trauma Alters Adipose Tissue Macrophages And Brain Microglia Associated With Exacerbated Cognitive Dysfunction, Rebecca J Henry, James P Barrett, Maria Vaida, Niaz Z Khan, Oleg Makarevich, Rodney M Ritzel, Alan I Faden, Bogdan A Stoica

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Obesity increases the morbidity and mortality of traumatic brain injury (TBI). Detailed analyses of transcriptomic changes in the brain and adipose tissue were performed to elucidate the interactive effects between high-fat diet-induced obesity (DIO) and TBI. Adult male mice were fed a high-fat diet (HFD) for 12 weeks prior to experimental TBI and continuing after injury. High-throughput transcriptomic analysis using Nanostring panels of the total visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and cellular components in the brain, followed by unsupervised clustering, principal component analysis, and IPA pathway analysis were used to determine shifts in gene expression patterns and molecular pathway activity. Cellular …

Education Of The Effects Of Obesity Medications And A Stepwise Approach To Mitigate Prevalence And Encourage Lifestyle Medicine For Primary Care Physicians, Kiely M. Curran

Department of Nutrition Student Projects

My Capstone project is an Educational Manual that emphasizes a healthcare team approach to the treatment and management of obesity. The Educational Manual consists of a standardized protocol in management of obesity in patients and a document with summarized references for primary care providers; and a simplified document for patient education. There is a growing interest in the usage of obesity medications. The purpose of my Capstone project is to provide a simplified manual for the primary care provider to reference to make knowledgeable and patient-centered decisions in the prescription of obesity medications and decisions in weight-management. My methodology included …

Causal Influence Of Linguistic Learning On Perceptual And Conceptual Processing: A Brain-Constrained Deep Neural Network Study Of Proper Names And Category Terms, Phuc T U Nguyen, Malte R Henningsen-Schomers, Friedemann Pulvermüller

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Language influences cognitive and conceptual processing, but the mechanisms through which such causal effects are realized in the human brain remain unknown. Here, we use a brain-constrained deep neural network model of category formation and symbol learning and analyze the emergent model's internal mechanisms at the neural circuit level. In one set of simulations, the network was presented with similar patterns of neural activity indexing instances of objects and actions belonging to the same categories. Biologically realistic Hebbian learning led to the formation of instance-specific neurons distributed across multiple areas of the network, and, in addition, to cell assembly circuits …

The Biology Of Hope: Inflammatory And Neuroendocrine Profiles In Ovarian Cancer Patients, Susan K Lutgendorf, Rachel M Telles, Brendan Whitney, Premal H Thaker, George M Slavich, Michael J Goodheart, Frank J Penedo, Alyssa E Noble, Steven W Cole, Anil K Sood, Benjamin W Corn

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

INTRODUCTION: Although the concept of hope is highly relevant for cancer patients, little is known about its association with cancer-relevant biomarkers. Here we examined how hope was related to diurnal cortisol and interleukin-6 (IL-6), a pro-inflammatory cytokine previously associated with tumor biology and survival in ovarian cancer. Secondly, we examined whether hope and hopelessness are distinctly associated with these biomarkers.

METHOD: Participants were 292 high-grade ovarian cancer patients who completed surveys and provided saliva samples 4x/daily for 3 days pre-surgery to assess diurnal cortisol. Blood (pre-surgery) and ascites were assessed for IL-6. Hope and hopelessness were assessed using standardized survey …

Associations Between Genetically Predicted Plasma Protein Levels And Alzheimer’S Disease Risk: A Study Using Genetic Prediction Models, Jingjing Zhu, Shuai Liu, Keenan A Walker, Hua Zhong, Dalia H Ghoneim, Zichen Zhang, Praveen Surendran, Sarah Fahle, Adam Butterworth, Md Ashad Alam, Hong-Wen Deng, Chong Wu, Lang Wu

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Specific peripheral proteins have been implicated to play an important role in the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, the roles of additional novel protein biomarkers in AD etiology remains elusive. The availability of large-scale AD GWAS and plasma proteomic data provide the resources needed for the identification of causally relevant circulating proteins that may serve as risk factors for AD and potential therapeutic targets.

METHODS: We established and validated genetic prediction models for protein levels in plasma as instruments to investigate the associations between genetically predicted protein levels and AD risk. We studied 71,880 (proxy) cases and 383,378 …

The Impact Of Workplace Stressors On Anxiety Levels And Mental Health Among Pediatric Intensive Care Nurses, Kelsey Ericah Ang

Nursing | Student Research Posters

Background: Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) nurses work in a high-stress environment where they are exposed daily to traumatic situations. The demanding emotional and physical challenges contribute to significant psychological burdens, including increased stress and anxiety. Purpose: The current paper proposes a research design to examine the outcomes of stress, anxiety levels, and mental well-being on PICU nurses when workplace support and structured debriefing sessions take place following a traumatic event. Methods: Participants will be recruited from PICU hospitals in Northern California. Participation will be voluntary, and informed consent will be obtained prior to the study. The selection criteria will …

The Effects Of Controlled Breathing And Physical Postures On Anxiety And Stress In Mental Health Patients, Kristen Killingsworth

DNP Research Projects

Objective: Anxiety and stress are debilitating disorders that have been on the rise in recent years following the COVID-19 pandemic. Medication alone has not been shown to be successful in mitigating the disorders, necessitating research into other alternatives for anxiety and stress management. The purpose of this project was to assess if a single complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) relaxation session had an impact on stress and anxiety levels. Method: A comprehensive literature review was conducted to identify strategies for reducing stress and anxiety. Guided by the Holistic Care Model of Self-Regulation, the nurse-led CAM relaxation session was developed. The …

G-Quadruplex Dna And Rna In Cellular Senescence, Rocio Diaz Escarcega, Paul Marshall, Andrey S Tsvetkov

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Normal cells divide, are damaged, and are repaired across their lifetime. As cells age, they enter cellular senescence, characterized by a permanent state of cell-cycle arrest triggered by various stressors. The molecular mechanisms that regulate senescent phenotypes have been actively investigated over the last several decades; however, one area that has been neglected is how G-quadruplex (G4) DNA and RNA (G4-DNA and G4-RNA) mediate senescence. These non-canonical four-stranded DNA and RNA structures regulate most normative DNA and RNA-dependent processes, such as transcription, replication, and translation, as well as pathogenic mechanisms, including genomic instability and abnormal stress granule function. This review …

Word Reading, Reading Comprehension, And Eye Movements During Reading In Chinese Persons With Aphasia, Xiaobin Wang

Graduate Theses and Dissertations (2019 - present)

Individuals with aphasia (IWA) often exhibit challenges in single word reading as well as in reading comprehension. Recently, eye-tracking technology has become instrumental in delving deeper into reading behaviors. Specifically, it has illuminated the differences in word reading and comprehension abilities among aphasic English speakers. However, there is a noticeable scarcity of research focusing on these aspects among Chinese IWA. The current study aimed to contrast the abilities of Chinese IWA and neurotypical controls in reading single words, with an emphasis on types like regular, irregular, and pseudowords, and reading comprehension abilities. Further, this study investigated the patterns of eye …