Cardiomyocyte Morphology Following Severe Spinal Cord Contusion In Rodents.,
2020
University of Louisville
Cardiomyocyte Morphology Following Severe Spinal Cord Contusion In Rodents., Addison D. Riney
College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses
Spinal cord injury (SCI) is typically a traumatic event that impacts a patient's physical, psychological, and social well-being by damaging motor and sensory neurons and altering autonomic function leading to cardiac remodeling (42). Spinal cord injuries are based on a scale of severity, with severe, high-level lesions strongly correlating to the degree of cardiovascular dysfunction. (30)(37)(41). The decline in cardiovascular function is prevalent after high thoracic SCI, with patients suffering from daily bouts of orthostatic hypotension (OH) and autonomic dysreflexia (AD), both of which prevent and delay rehabilitation efforts and lessen quality of life after …
Safe Sleep: Developmental Implications For Hospitalized Infants,
2020
University of Rhode Island
Safe Sleep: Developmental Implications For Hospitalized Infants, Katherine Kohlsaat
Senior Honors Projects
The rate at which an infant develops both physically and cognitively is significant during sleep, as this is the time when the entire body can dedicate its efforts to this cause. Parents of healthy infants follow the guidelines set by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) relating to safe sleep, and since their introduction in 1992, the rate of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) has decreased by 40% (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2016). However, if an infant has been hospitalized since birth due to necessary invasive procedures such as open-heart surgery, these protocols cannot be initially implemented. Common …
Levels Of Parp1-Immunoreactivity In The Human Brain In Major Depressive Disorder,
2020
East Tennessee State University
Levels Of Parp1-Immunoreactivity In The Human Brain In Major Depressive Disorder, Aamir Shaikh
Undergraduate Honors Theses
MDD is a severe and debilitating disorder that is associated with a growing global economic burden due to reduced workplace productivity along with increased healthcare resource utilization. Furthermore, depression markedly enhances the risk for suicide, mortality that is especially worrisome given that 30% of depressed individuals have an inadequate response to current antidepressants. This inadequacy of antidepressants necessitates the discovery of a better understanding of the pathobiology of MDD. Most current antidepressants work through monoamine neurotransmitters, and their relative efficacy in depression led to the now dated monoamine-deficiency hypothesis. The limited usefulness of antidepressants has led to a reinvigorated search …
Effects Of Non-Photic Zeitgebers On The Circadian Clock In The Common House Spider, Parasteatoda Tepidariorum (Araneae: Theridiidae),
2020
East Tennessee State University
Effects Of Non-Photic Zeitgebers On The Circadian Clock In The Common House Spider, Parasteatoda Tepidariorum (Araneae: Theridiidae), Mattea Garmany, Darrell Moore, Thomas C. Jones
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Circadian rhythms are endogenous cycles that control physiological and behavioral changes that can be affected by environmental factors which allow most eukaryotic organisms to synchronize their daily activities with the 24-hour day. Parasteatoda tepidariorum,the common house spider, demonstrates a short-period circadian clock averaging 21.6 hours when left in constant darkness, yet they are able to entrain to a 24-hour light cycle. We tested whether these spiders were able to use non-photic Zeitgebers to entrain to the 24-hour day. Periodic presentation of food and disturbance were not found to be effective cues for the spiders’ entrainment. A few individuals were clearly …
The Role Of Dopamine In Decision Making Processes In Drosophila Melanogaster,
2020
University of San Diego
The Role Of Dopamine In Decision Making Processes In Drosophila Melanogaster, Michelle C. Bowers
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Understanding the neural processes that mediate decision making is a relatively new field of investigation in the scientific community. With the ultimate goal of understanding how humans decide between one path and another, simpler models such as Drosophila Melanogaster, the common fruit fly, are often utilized as a way of determining the neural circuits involved in these decision-making processes. One of the most important decisions flies make is the decision of where to lay their eggs (oviposit). Choosing the proper substrate upon which to lay eggs is a crucial decision that can ultimately impact their fecundity. This paper investigates the …
Optical Clearing Reveals Tnbs-Induced Morphological Changes Of Vglut2-Positive Nerve Endings In The Colorectum,
2020
University of Connecticut
Optical Clearing Reveals Tnbs-Induced Morphological Changes Of Vglut2-Positive Nerve Endings In The Colorectum, Shivam Patel
Honors Scholar Theses
Sensitization of colorectal afferents and colorectal hypersensitivity have been observed in a mouse model of post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome via intracolonic treatment of 2,4,6-trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid (TNBS). In this study, we investigated the distribution and morphology of microscopic colorectal afferent endings before and after intracolonic treatment of TNBS. We genetically labeled predominantly extrinsic colorectal afferents using the vesicular glutamate transporter type 2 (VGLUT2) promoter. Then, we used an optical tissue clearing method of whole-mount colorectum to image labeled VGLUT2-nerve endings that are otherwise obscured in untreated samples. We used vector path tracing to quantify the density and degree of curliness of …
The Effects Of The Atypical Dopamine Uptake Inhibitor Ce-158 On Extracellular Dopamine In The Nucleus Accumbens,
2020
University of Connecticut
The Effects Of The Atypical Dopamine Uptake Inhibitor Ce-158 On Extracellular Dopamine In The Nucleus Accumbens, Julia Neri
Honors Scholar Theses
Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is characterized by symptoms such as cognitive dysfunctions, inflammatory changes, and motivational symptoms such as amotivation, fatigue, and anergia. While depressed people are commonly treated by traditional antidepressants such as serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), previous studies have reported that SSRI medications do not treat fatigue and anergia symptoms well, and in some cases, can even worsen those symptoms. Subjects treated with dopamine (DA) uptake inhibitors, on the other hand, have been less likely to report symptoms of anergia and fatigue compared to those treated with SSRIs. Common DA uptake inhibitors such as methylphenidate and amphetamines, however, …
Alcohol Consumption In A Preclinical Model Of Schizophrenia,
2020
East Tennessee State University
Alcohol Consumption In A Preclinical Model Of Schizophrenia, Liza Hernandez
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Schizophrenia is a debilitating psychiatric disorder that affects approximately 1% of the global population. Schizophrenia is highly comorbid with other psychiatric disorders such as Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) with a prevalence rate of 27% - 65%, which is significantly higher than AUD exhibited by the general population (6%). Research indicates that a higher rate of AUD in individuals suffering from schizophrenia may be related to the common neuronal pathways that underlie the expression of both disorders. The present study will determine whether the neonatal quinpirole (NQ) rodent model of schizophrenia will approximate the human condition and exhibit increased EtOH consumption. …
Ontogenetic And Adult Shape Variation In The Endocast Of Tapirus: Implications For T. Polkensis From The Gray Fossil Site,
2020
East Tennessee State University
Ontogenetic And Adult Shape Variation In The Endocast Of Tapirus: Implications For T. Polkensis From The Gray Fossil Site, Thomas M. Gaetano
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Endocranial morphology provides evidence of sensory ecology and sociality of extinct vertebrates. The Earliest Pliocene Gray Fossil Site (GFS) of NE Tennessee features a conspicuous dominance of skeletal elements belonging to the dwarf tapir, Tapirus polkensis. Numerous individuals in one fossil locality often suggests gregarious behavior, but sociality in T. polkensis contradicts behavior documented for extant Tapirus species. I test T. polkensis for variation in sensory and social ecology using computed tomography and 3D digital endocasts from an ontogenetic sequence. I compare the T. polkensis endocasts with extant Tapirus species using Encephalization Quotients (EQs) and 3D geometric morphometrics. Results …
Hypothalamic Circuits Mediating Consumption And Anxiety,
2020
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
Hypothalamic Circuits Mediating Consumption And Anxiety, Ryan Cassidy
Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)
From 1960-2016, U.S. obesity prevalence increased 13-40% and diabetes increased from 3-15%. There is an epidemic of metabesity, the aggregate metabolic disorders produced by chronic overeating. Drugs for metabesity were developed in the 1930s with limited effectiveness; agents today rely on the same principles and are similarly ineffective. Particularly surprising has been the failure of satiety enhancers; this indicates it may not be that physiologic hunger drives chronic overeating. Although hunger and satiety affect traditional reward circuitry (Cassidy & Tong 2017), evidence for the primacy of this effect is mixed. Being hungry reduces anxiety-like behavior in mice; whether the …
The Role Of Inter-Enlargement Propriospinal Neurons In Locomotion Following Spinal Cord Injury.,
2020
University of Louisville
The Role Of Inter-Enlargement Propriospinal Neurons In Locomotion Following Spinal Cord Injury., Courtney Therese Shepard
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The focus of this dissertation is to explore the functional role of two anatomically-defined pathways in the adult rat spinal cord before and after spinal cord injury (SCI). To do this, a TetOn dual virus system was used to selectively and reversibly silence neurons with cell bodies at spinal segment L2 and projections to spinal segment C6 (long ascending propriospinal neurons, LAPNs) and neurons that originate in the C6 spinal segment and terminate at L2 spinal segment (long descending propriospinal neurons, LDPNs). This dissertation is divided into five chapters. Chapter One provides background information regarding spinal cord injury, locomotion, …
Artifact Identification For Blood Pressure And Photoplethysmography Signals In An Unsupervised Environment,
2020
Universiti Malaya
Artifact Identification For Blood Pressure And Photoplethysmography Signals In An Unsupervised Environment, Pooi Khoon Lim
Student Works (2020-2029)
Physiological signals play a significant role in clinical diagnosis, it always acts as a major input of a decision support system. However, the physiological signal is easily corrupted by different factors especially motion artifacts. Several research works have been tried to recover the underlying physiological signal by suppressing the artifact. However, not much attention has been paid to situation where the artifact is too extreme and the artifact suppression is not possible. In this situation, physiological signal quality must be evaluated before any further assessment. In this study, an automated artifact detection algorithm was developed for Blood Pressure and PPG …
The Effects Of Music Arousal Level And Tempo On Card Game Players’ Risk-Taking And Eeg Mental State Among Introverts And Extroverts,
2020
Universiti Malaya
The Effects Of Music Arousal Level And Tempo On Card Game Players’ Risk-Taking And Eeg Mental State Among Introverts And Extroverts, Hao Yi Ho
Student Works (2020-2029)
This is an experimental quantitative study which examined the effects of music arousal level and tempo on card game players’ risk-taking and EEG mental state among introverts and extroverts. A total of 20 male participants (through selection of 10 introverts and 10 extroverts) aged between 18 – 29 voluntarily participated by playing the card game In-Between. All participants put on the NeuroSky® MindWaveTM Mobile EEG device and played the game while being exposed to various music conditions. The conditions were no-music (control) condition, and a set of both high-arousal (hereafter HA) and low-arousal (hereafter LA) music manipulated to three different …
Argumentative Synthesis Essay On Enhanced Interrogation Techniques,
2020
Cleveland State University
Argumentative Synthesis Essay On Enhanced Interrogation Techniques, Gwendolyn D. Wheatley
The Downtown Review: An Interdisciplinary Journal Written and Peer-Reviewed by Mandel Honors College Students at Cleveland State University
This essay discusses enhanced interrogation techniques. For reference, enhanced interrogation techniques are interrogation techniques that involve “physically coercive interventions” (Duke & Puyvelde, 2017). The U.S. government supported these techniques after the attacks on September 11, 2001. This essay argues that enhanced interrogation techniques should not be used in interrogations because they are unethical, ineffective, and negatively impact the mental health of the interrogators using these techniques. Additionally, the essay references articles on the varied viewpoints as well as explains information on these interrogation techniques. Also, the essay argues that enhanced interrogation techniques encourage people to be cruel and inhumane. Moreover, …
A Study Of The Antioxidant Versus Pro-Oxidant Nature Of The Amyloid Beta Peptide And An Analysis Of The Natural Products, Isorhamnetin And Narignenin, As Antioxidants,
2020
University of Mississippi
A Study Of The Antioxidant Versus Pro-Oxidant Nature Of The Amyloid Beta Peptide And An Analysis Of The Natural Products, Isorhamnetin And Narignenin, As Antioxidants, Kaylee Holmes
Honors Theses
Alzheimer’s disease is a neurodegenerative disorder with no cure. Due to the widespread effects of this disease, abundant research efforts have gone towards finding a cure. The amyloid beta (Ab) peptide has been shown to be a potential cause of the disease due to destructive effects on tissues that it can have both by itself and through reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation. This study was performed in order to assess the structural properties of Ab42monomers, fibrils and oligomers, to assess the antioxidant versus pro-oxidant behavior of the Ab peptide, and to assess the antioxidant nature of the natural …
Neuroligin-1 Is Altered In The Hippocampus Of Alzheimer's Disease Patients And Mouse Models, And Modulates The Toxicity Of Amyloid-Beta Oligomers,
2020
Université de Montréal, Canada
Neuroligin-1 Is Altered In The Hippocampus Of Alzheimer's Disease Patients And Mouse Models, And Modulates The Toxicity Of Amyloid-Beta Oligomers, Julien Dufort-Gervais, Chloé Provost, Laurence Charbonneau, Christopher M. Norris, Frédéric Calon, Valérie Mongrain, Jonathan Brouillette
Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences Faculty Publications
Synapse loss occurs early and correlates with cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Synaptotoxicity is driven, at least in part, by amyloid-beta oligomers (Aβo), but the exact synaptic components targeted by Aβo remain to be identified. We here tested the hypotheses that the post-synaptic protein Neuroligin-1 (NLGN1) is affected early in the process of neurodegeneration in the hippocampus, and specifically by Aβo, and that it can modulate Aβo toxicity. We found that hippocampal NLGN1 was decreased in patients with AD in comparison to patients with mild cognitive impairment and control subjects. Female 3xTg-AD mice also showed a decreased NLGN1 level …
Sedative And Neurotoxic Properties Of Brexanolone Compared To Midazolam In The Developing Rodent Brain,
2020
University of Missouri-St. Louis
Sedative And Neurotoxic Properties Of Brexanolone Compared To Midazolam In The Developing Rodent Brain, Jacob Huffman
Dissertations
The developing brain is susceptible to extensive neurotoxicity following exposure to sedative/anesthetic drugs (SADs). Every year hundreds of thousands of children around the world are exposed to SADs with no viable non-neurotoxic agents approved for clinical use. Allopregnanolone (AlloP) has well-established sedative effects in adults and neonates. AlloP and many SADs produce sedation/anesthesia through allosteric modulation of GABAA receptors, which is one of two principal mechanisms behind SAD-induced neurotoxicity. Evidence suggests AlloP has the unique capacity to regulate key apoptotic factors in adults and is widely involved with critical stages of neurodevelopment, indicating this neurosteroid might serve as a …
Influences Of Salvinorin A And Sex Differences On Depressive- And Anxiety-Like Behaviors In A Chronic Mild Stress Paradigm,
2020
University of Missouri-St. Louis
Influences Of Salvinorin A And Sex Differences On Depressive- And Anxiety-Like Behaviors In A Chronic Mild Stress Paradigm, Sarah Mitchell
Theses
Kappa opioid receptors are colocalized with dopamine receptors and are frequently associated with depression, anxiety, stress, and drug use and abuse. KOR antagonism has widely been considered anti-depressive and anxiolytic in animal models while agonism is pro-depressive and anxiogenic. However, recent findings suggest that SalvA, a natural kappa agonist derived from a plant in the mint family, can reduce depressive- and anxiety-like behavior in rats. The current study investigated the effects of chronic mild stress on behavior, attenuation by SalvA, and sex differences. 52 Long-Evans rats, 26 males and 26 females, were exposed to six weeks of CMS. Animals received …
161— The Effects Of Environment On The Development Of Cocaine-Seeking,
2020
SUNY Geneseo
161— The Effects Of Environment On The Development Of Cocaine-Seeking, Gavin Vaughan, Akane Ichiki, Shreyya Malik, Allison R. Bechard
GREAT Day Posters
Cocaine addiction is a major individual and societal issue. This study aimed to investigate the environmental and social factors that influence the development of cocaine addiction. Mice were reared in either standard housing or enriched housing. Cocaine preference was measured using the Conditioned Place Preference paradigm, in which subjects are conditioned to associate an injection of cocaine (20mg/kg. I.P.) with a particular side of a 3 chambered arena. Subjects reared in enriched environments displayed increased preference for cocaine in cue primed tests. All subjects displayed cocaine preference in cocaine primed tests. This may be attributed to the enhanced memory that …
130— Reducing Stereotypic Behavior With A Ketogenic Diet,
2020
SUNY Geneseo
130— Reducing Stereotypic Behavior With A Ketogenic Diet, Anna Beltramini, Andrew Guido, Alicia Bauers, Joe Spano
GREAT Day Posters
Now a popular fad diet, the ketogenic diet (KD) is a high-fat, low-carb diet that for decades has been used for treatment of intractable epilepsy. Recent therapeutic applications of KD in animal models include treatment of dementia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and autism. These disorders are associated with stereotypic behaviors (repetitive, invariant behaviors with no apparent function) that are life-impairing and stigmatizing. However, little is known about their underlying mechanisms and no effective pharmacological treatments are available. Here, we present a novel application of KD to reduce stereotypic behavior in an inbred strain of mice (FVBN/J) that displays a prominent repetitive circling …
