Role Of Vitamin-D3 And Retinoic Acid In A Human Thp-1 Macrophage Model Of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Infection, 2011 University of Texas Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at Houston
Role Of Vitamin-D3 And Retinoic Acid In A Human Thp-1 Macrophage Model Of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Infection, Jaymie L. Estrella
Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)
Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) replicates within the human macrophages and we investigated the activating effects of retinoic acid (RA) and vitamin D3 (VD) on macrophages in relation to the viability of Mtb. A combination of these vitamins (RAVD) enhanced the receptors on THP-1 macrophage (Mannose receptor and DC-SIGN) that increased mycobacterial uptake but inhibited the
subsequent intracellular growth of Mtb by inducing reactive oxygen species (ROS) and autophagy. RAVD also enhanced antigen presenting and homing receptors in THPs that suggested an activated phenotype for THPs following RAVD treatment. RAVD mediated activation was also associated with a marked phenotypic change in Mtb …
Rickettsia Parkeri In Gulf Coast Ticks, Southeastern Virginia, Usa, 2011 Old Dominion University
Rickettsia Parkeri In Gulf Coast Ticks, Southeastern Virginia, Usa, Chelsea L. Wright, Robyn M. Nadolny, Ju Jiang, Allen L. Richards, Daniel E. Sonenshine, Holly D. Gaff, Wayne L. Hynes
Biological Sciences Faculty Publications
We report evidence that Amblyomma maculatum tick populations are well established in southeastern Virginia. We found that 43.1% of the adult Gulf Coast ticks collected in the summer of 2010 carried Rickettsia parkeri, suggesting that persons living in or visiting southeastern Virginia are at risk for infection with this pathogen.
Host And Distribution Lists Of Chiggers (Trombiculidae And Leeuwenhoekiidae), Of North American Wild Vertebrates North Of Mexico, 2011 Indiana State University
Host And Distribution Lists Of Chiggers (Trombiculidae And Leeuwenhoekiidae), Of North American Wild Vertebrates North Of Mexico, Brianne L. Walters, John O. Whitaker Jr., Nicholas S. Gikas, William J. Wrenn
Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty and Staff Publications
Information concerning chiggers found on wild vertebrates of North America north of Mexico is summarized. Included are lists a) of the chiggers organized taxonomically, b) hosts from which each species has been reported, and c) states and provinces with references for each separate record
Immune Modulation Of The Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Granulomatous Response, 2011 University of Texas Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at Houston
Immune Modulation Of The Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Granulomatous Response, Kerry J. Welsh
Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)
Tuberculosis (TB) remains a major public health burden. The immunocompetant host responds to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) infection by the formation of granulomas, which initially prevent uncontrolled bacterial proliferation and dissemination. However, increasing evidence suggests that granuloma formation promotes persistence of the organism by physically separating infected cells from effector lymphocytes and by inducing a state of non-replicating persistence in the bacilli, making them resistant to the action of antibiotics. Additionally, immune-mediated tissue destruction likely facilitates disease transmission. The granulomatous response is in part due to mycobacterial glycolipid antigens. Therefore, studies were first undertaken to determine the innate mechanisms of mycobacterial …
Analysis And Interpretation Of Factors Leading To Increased Aids Prevalence In Sub-Saharan Africa, 2011 University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Analysis And Interpretation Of Factors Leading To Increased Aids Prevalence In Sub-Saharan Africa, William Kalhorn
Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses
My thesis research project focuses on the major factors that are contributing to the worst disease epidemic on the planet today. I have aimed to determine what may be some of the most important factors contributing to highly variable difference in HIV/AIDS prevalence rates are among the regions of East, West, and South Africa. The HIV/AIDS epidemic has been growing and expanding to new areas of the world since the first case arose in 1959 in what is now called Kinshasa, Congo (Avert, 2011). The AIDS/HIV epidemic is believed to have originated on the African continent, and this is where …
Archaeoparasitology Of Chaco Canyon, 2011 University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Archaeoparasitology Of Chaco Canyon, Rachel Paseka
Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses
Ancient cultures of the Colorado Plateau have been a focus of archaeoparasitology since its inception, and a vast parasitological history is recorded in coprolites preserved in this arid region. The inhabitants of Chaco Canyon dominated Ancestral Puebloan culture between 1050 and 1120 AD and were responsible for the construction of great towns, road systems, and early agriculture. Analysis of the parasites preserved in fecal remains contributes to an increased knowledge of ancient Chacoan health and culture. Nineteen coprolites from four sites in Chaco Canyon were rehydrated and analyzed microscopically for parasite remains. Rhabditiform and filariform nematode larvae were found from …
Functional Cloning And Characterization Of Antibiotic Resistance Genes From The Chicken Gut Microflora, 2011 University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Functional Cloning And Characterization Of Antibiotic Resistance Genes From The Chicken Gut Microflora, Wei Zhou
Masters Theses
A recent study using human fecal samples in conjunction with a culture-independent approach revealed immense diversity of antibiotic resistance (AR) genes in the human gut microflora. We hypothesize that food animal gut microflora also contain diverse and novel AR genes which could contribute to the emergence and transmission of AR in pathogens important in animal and human health. To test this, we examined AR reservoir in chicken gut microflora using a metagenomic, functional cloning method. Total genomic DNA was extracted from individual cecal contents of two free range chickens and two conventionally raised chickens. The DNAs were physically sheered into …
Tumor Recognition And Self-Recognition Induce Distinct Transcriptional Profiles In Antigen-Specific Cd4 T Cells, 2011 University of Connecticut School of Medicine and Dentistry
Tumor Recognition And Self-Recognition Induce Distinct Transcriptional Profiles In Antigen-Specific Cd4 T Cells, Adam J. Adler
UCHC Articles - Research
Tumors express a wide variety of both mutated and nonmutated Ags. Whether these tumor Ags are broadly recognized as self or foreign by the immune system is currently unclear. Using an autochthonous prostate cancer model in which hemagglutinin (HA) is specifically expressed in the tumor (ProHA × TRAMP mice), as well as an analogous model wherein HA is expressed in normal tissues as a model self-Ag (C3HAhigh), we examined the transcriptional profile of CD4 T cells undergoing Ag-specific division. Consistent with our previous data, transfer of Ag-specific CD4 T cells into C3HAhigh resulted in a functionally inactivated …
Serum Iron Uptake And Virulence In Staphylococcus Aureus, 2011 The University of Western Ontario
Serum Iron Uptake And Virulence In Staphylococcus Aureus, Federico C. Beasley
Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository
The high affinity iron scavenging glycoprotein transferrin sequesters trace amounts of serum Fe3+ to concentrations below what is required to sustain microbial life. Iron may be liberated from this important innate immune factor after interaction with molecules that chelate or reduce Fe3+. Organisms with cognate transport systems for these iron coordinating molecules can survive in the bloodstream using transferrin iron.
Staphylococcus aureus is an opportunistic bacterial pathogen. S. aureus executes numerous strategies for overcoming the innate immune barrier of iron deprivation in the bloodstream. In addition to specialized mechanisms for hemoglobin iron extraction, S. aureus can proliferate …
The Release Of Calcium In Bacillus Anthracis Pathogenicity Methods, 2011 University of Nevada, Las Vegas
The Release Of Calcium In Bacillus Anthracis Pathogenicity Methods, Natiera Magnuson, Manomita Patra Bhowmik, Maria Elena Reynaga, Ernesto Abel-Santos
Festival of Communities: UG Symposium (Posters)
Anthrax infection starts with germination of Bacillus anthracis spores in macrophages. Some bacteria, including B. anthracis, can sporulate in response to environmental stress, such as starvation. During germination, large concentrations of calcium ions are released from the B. anthracis spore. Calcium ions are hydrophilic secondary messengers, and may therefore interfere with detection of the spore by confusing the cell signaling pathways. We investigated calcium release on infected macrophage viability by replacing the calcium stored in B. anthracis spores for other cations via demineralization/remineralization. It was discovered that calcium ions typically out-performed other cations in germination of B. anthracis.
Molecular Structures Of Prrsv That Contribute To Prrsv Protective Immunity, 2011 University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Molecular Structures Of Prrsv That Contribute To Prrsv Protective Immunity, Asit K. Pattnaik
School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications
One of the objectives of the proposal is to delineate the regions of the two glycoproteins (GP2 and GP4) of PRRSV that interact with CD163. Other objectives of the proposal are to generate antibodies to these small regions of the glycoproteins as well as to the full-length proteins for future studies to determine if any of these antibodies possess PRRSV neutralizing activity.
To carry out the studies in the proposed objectives, we generated a series of mutants of GP2 as well as GP4 proteins in which various regions were specifically removed by manipulating the plasmids encoding these proteins. We then …
Estrogenic Regulation Of The Immune System In A Murine Model For Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, 2011 Ursinus College
Estrogenic Regulation Of The Immune System In A Murine Model For Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, Matthew James Zuber
Biology Honors Papers
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus is a damaging autoimmune disease afflicting millions of people worldwide. Lupus is characterized by an overabundance of autoantibodies, proteins directing the immune system to destroy a person's own body, what it would normally be protecting. The molecular mechanisms, environmental influences, and genetic predispositions of Lupus are not yet fully understood. However, nine out of ten Lupus patients are women between the age of puberty and menopause, when estrogen levels are highest. The fact that women are significantly more prone to suffer from Lupus than men leads experts to believe that the sex hormone estrogen which is present …
Activation Of Multiple Apoptotic Pathways In Human Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Cells By The Prenylated Isoflavone, Osajin, 2011 National Central University
Activation Of Multiple Apoptotic Pathways In Human Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Cells By The Prenylated Isoflavone, Osajin, Tsung-Teng Huang, Fu-Guo Liu, Chia-Fong Wei, Chia-Chen Lu, Chang-Chieh Chen, Hung-Chi Lin, David M. Ojcius, Hsin-Chih Lai
All Dugoni School of Dentistry Faculty Articles
Osajin is a prenylated isoflavone showing antitumor activity in different tumor cell lines. The underlying mechanism of osajin-induced cancer cell death is not clearly understood. In the present study, the mechanisms of osajin-induced cell death of human nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) cells were explored. Osajin was found to significantly induce apoptosis of NPC cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Multiple molecular effects were observed during osajin treatment including a significant loss of mitochondrial transmembrane potential, release of cytochrome c into the cytosol, enhanced expression of Fas ligand (FasL), suppression of glucose-regulated protein 78 kDa (GRP78), and activation of caspases-9, -8, …
The Role Of Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor In The Intestinal Immune System And The Response To Probiotics, 2011 The University of Western Ontario
The Role Of Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor In The Intestinal Immune System And The Response To Probiotics, Andrew J. Martins
Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository
Loss of immunoregulation in the intestine results in inflammation, such as is observed in the chronic, relapsing, inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. However, our understanding of this process remains incomplete. The cytokine granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) is an important stimulator of granulopoiesis in steady-state and during inflammation, but has also been shown to have anti-inflammatory effects and is a potential therapeutic for IBD. In addition, certain strains of bacteria, termed probiotics, have been postulated to have anti-inflammatory effects in the intestine. The mechanisms by which these strains of bacteria elicit anti-inflammatory effects are not fully understood. …
Assessment Of Pathways For The Introduction And Spread Of Mycobacterium Bovis In The United States, 2011 USDA APHIS
Assessment Of Pathways For The Introduction And Spread Of Mycobacterium Bovis In The United States, Katie Portacci, Jason Lombard, Lauren Abrahamsen, Eric Bush, Charles Fossler, Robert Harris, Kamina Johnson, Ryan S. Miller, Dianna Mitchell, Randy Pritchard, Steven Sweeney, Todd Weaver
Other Publications in Zoonotics and Wildlife Disease
Bovine tuberculosis (TB) was responsible for more losses among U.S. farm animals in the early 20th century than all other infectious diseases combined. The Cooperative State-Federal Tuberculosis Eradication Program (established in 1917 and administered by APHIS, State animal health agencies, and U.S. livestock producers) has nearly eradicated bovine TB from the nation’s livestock population. However, despite the many accomplishments of the program, bovine TB remains a serious and costly disease of livestock in the United States. In 1992, VS conducted an assessment to identify pathways for the introduction and spread of bovine TB, in order to develop the most effective …
Low Levels Of Hydrogen Peroxide Stimulate Corneal Epithelial Cell Adhesion, Migration, And Wound Healing, 2011 Zhejiang University School of Medicine
Low Levels Of Hydrogen Peroxide Stimulate Corneal Epithelial Cell Adhesion, Migration, And Wound Healing, Qing Pan, Wen-Ya Qiu, Ya-Nan Huo, Yu-Feng Yao, Marjorie F. Lou
School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications
PURPOSE. Intracellular reactive oxygen species have been reported to associate with growth factor and integrin signalings in promoting cell adhesion in many cell types. This study is to explore if exogenous H2O2 at low levels can be beneficial to cell adhesion, migration, and wound healing.
METHODS. Primary rabbit corneal epithelial cells treated with 0–70 M H2O2 were tested for viability by MTT assay, adhesion by centrifugation assay, focal contacts of vinculin and F-actin by immunofluorescence, activated Src(pY416), EGF receptor (pY845), vinculin(pY1065), FAK(pY397), and FAK(pY576) by immunoblotting. Cell migration was examined with 0–50 M H2O2 using the scratch wound technique. Corneal …
Isolation By Distance Explains Genetic Structure Of Buggy Creek Virus, A Bird-Associated Arbovirus, 2011 University of Tulsa
Isolation By Distance Explains Genetic Structure Of Buggy Creek Virus, A Bird-Associated Arbovirus, Abinash Padhi, Amy T. Moore, Mary Bomberger Brown, Jerome E. Foster, Martin Pfeffer, Charles R. Brown
School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications
Many of the arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) show extensive genetic variability and are widely distributed over large geographic areas. Understanding how virus genetic structure varies in space may yield insight into how these pathogens are adapted to and dispersed by different hosts or vectors, the relative importance of mutation, drift, or selection in generating genetic variability, and where and when epidemics or epizootics are most likely to occur. However, because most arboviruses tend to be sampled opportunistically and often cannot be isolated in large numbers at a given locale, surprisingly little is known about their spatial genetic structure on the local …
Targeted Drug-Resistance Testing Strategy For Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis Detection, Lima, Peru, 2005–2008, 2011 Brigham and Women's Hospital
Targeted Drug-Resistance Testing Strategy For Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis Detection, Lima, Peru, 2005–2008, Gustavo E. Velásquez, Martin Yagui, J Peter Cegielski, Luis Asencios, Jaime Bayona, Cesar Bonilla, Hector O. Jave, Gloria Yale, Carmen Suárez, Sidney Atwood, Carmen C. Contreras, Sonya S. Shin
Dartmouth Scholarship
The Peruvian National Tuberculosis Control Program issued guidelines in 2006 specifying criteria for culture and drug-susceptibility testing (DST), including district-level rapid DST. All patients referred for culture and DST in 2 districts of Lima, Peru, during January 2005–November 2008 were monitored prospectively. Of 1,846 patients, 1,241 (67.2%) had complete DST results for isoniazid and rifampin; 419 (33.8%) patients had multidrug-resistant (MDR) TB at the time of referral. Among patients with new smear-positive TB, household contact and suspected category I failure were associated with MDR TB, compared with concurrent regional surveillance data. Among previously treated patients with smear-positive TB, adult household …
The Hiv-1 Tat Protein And Adverse Drug Reactions: A Model System Utilizing Jurkat T Cells And Sulphamethoxazole-Hydroxylamine, 2011 University of Western Ontario
The Hiv-1 Tat Protein And Adverse Drug Reactions: A Model System Utilizing Jurkat T Cells And Sulphamethoxazole-Hydroxylamine, Kaothara Adeyanju
Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository
In 2009 approximately 2.6 million people became infected with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). In addition to the estimated 33.3 million people currently living with the virus, this makes HIV/ AIDS an epidemic of unprecedented scale in modern times. Treatment of HIV infection requires antiretroviral agents as well as a number of other drugs such as antimicrobials. Hypersensitivity adverse drug reactions (ADRs) to a variety of drugs are common in HIV-infected individuals, but the antimicrobial Sulphamethoxazole remains a major culprit. Hypersensitivity ADRs cause significant morbidity, with the skin and liver most commonly affected and are among the top causes of …
Environmental Problems Of Industrialization And Sustainable Development In Nigeria - A Review, 2011 SelectedWorks
Environmental Problems Of Industrialization And Sustainable Development In Nigeria - A Review, Adejoh Iyaji
Confluence Journal Environmental Studies (CJES), Kogi State University, Nigeria
The main objective of this paper is to examine the impact of the quest for industrialization on the environment in Nigeria; others include, the identification of the objectives of sustainable development as well as making recommendations that will lead to the much needed sustainable environment both for the present generation and generations yet unborn. The researcher relied principally on secondary sources of data for this paper which is theoretical in approach. Findings revealed the emergence of a host of environmental problems such as air pollution, deforestation, desertification, solid and hazardous waste problems in the wake of the quest for industrialization. …