Environmental Health Commons^™

Evaluation Of The Dnazyme Gr5 For The Determination Of Lead Speciation In Natural Waters, Gaganprit Gill

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This thesis explores the development and application of a DNAzyme-based biosensor designed to detect labile metal species in environmental samples. Real time and on-site monitoring of labile metal fractions would make a valuable contribution to environmental management, as these fractions are the most bioavailable and pose significant toxicity risks to aquatic organisms. Conventional methods for detecting labile metals, while effective, are often burdened by high costs, complexity, and lengthy processing times, making them less ideal for rapid and widespread environmental assessments.

The first manuscript of this thesis (chapter 2) establishes the fundamental capabilities of the Pb²⁺-specific DNAzyme GR5 …

Heterogeneous Being: The Inhumanities And The Creative-Scientific Aesthetic, Steven L. Ogden

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Heterogeneous Being attempts to set the often-disunited aspects of the sciences and humanities in congruence and to extol and advance a hybrid creative-scientific aesthetic that moves beyond any restricted dimensions of its previously segregated fields of study. It likewise expresses the need to perpetuate that hybrid form of inquiry and representation to successfully address or convey the precarious realities of Earth’s ecological and environmental conditions. Heterogeneous Being asks readers to observe the inexhaustible proofs of our pluralized configurations with the nonhuman world, to recognize the agentic potentialities nonhuman subjects may hold both in and outside of those inhuman enmeshments, and …

The Effects Of Salinity On The Cutaneous Microbiome And Pathogen Infection On The Pacific Tree Frog (Pseudacris Regilla) In Monterey Bay, California, Usa, Hannah Eunhae Kim

EWU Masters Thesis Collection

Global climate change and infectious diseases are considered a leading cause of amphibian population declines worldwide. Changes in precipitation and salinity have altered watershed systems and microbial communities, reducing habitat availability and physiological performances for amphibian survival. The salt refuge hypothesis, however, is a proposed explanation that higher saline environments may reduce susceptibility to pathogens such as Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd). The Moro Cojo Slough State Marine Reserve (MCSSMR) (California, USA) is known as an abundant breeding ground for endangered/threatened amphibian species. To test and expand the salt refuge hypothesis, I evaluated Bd prevalence and intensity and the cutaneous microbiome of …

An Initiative To Improve Sevoflurane Gas Flows Among Anesthesia Providers In An Academic Medical Center, Amy Dinicola

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Abstract

An Initiative to Improve Sevoflurane Gas Flows Among Anesthesia Providers in an

Academic Medical Center

Amy DiNicola

Background: While global warming has been introduced as the most significant public health threat of the 21st century, 10% of carbon emissions in the United States come from healthcare (Shoham et al., 2022). Sevoflurane is a volatile anesthetic gas that requires a carrier gas mixture of oxygen with air or nitrous oxide to reach a patient during anesthesia. The extra gas flow often exceeds physiologic needs, and the excess gets wasted into the atmosphere. Reducing the additional flow of carrier gas can …

Wildlife Distribution Mapping And Analysis In Gorongosa National Park, Mozambique, Using Site And Satellite Imagery Data, Pinho Joaquim Munhequeira Mr

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

One of Mozambique's most important conservation sites, Gorongosa National Park has seen critical ecological changes over the past several decades resulting from climate variability, habitat loss, and political instability. This research integrates Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and remote sensing to examine the relationship between vegetation dynamics and wildlife population, and distribution. The main goals of this study are to evaluate the spatial distribution of particular wildlife species: buffalo (Syncerus caffer), elephant (Loxodonta africana), hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius), and zebra (Equus quagga), and determine the impact of vegetation density and land cover on their …

Potential Health Risks From Trace Elements In Four Commercially Important Fish Species From The Gulf Of Alaska And Bering Sea Excel Data Sheet, Miranda Brohman, Dimtirios Giarikos, Amy Hirons

SECLER Data

Alaskan waters support a diverse array of fish species that are critical to apex predators and substantial commercial fisheries. Archived white lateral muscle tissue for capelin, herring, walleye pollock, and Pacific cod, from 1993 to 1996 were analyzed for 15 trace elements using induced coupled plasma mass spectrometry. This analysis serves as a proxy for assessing trace element concentrations in the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea. The highest concentrations of eight of the 15 elements (cadmium, chromium, cobalt, iron, manganese, selenium, vanadium, and zinc) were found in fish from the central Gulf of Alaska, while capelin showed the …

Visualizing Parcel-Level Lead Risk Using An Exterior Housing-Based Index., Neal J. Wilson, Ryan Allenbrand, Elizabeth Friedman, Kevin Kennedy, Amy Roberts, Stephen Simon

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Pediatric lead poisoning remains a persistent public health problem. Children in the US spend the preponderance of their time at home; thus, housing is an important social determinant of health. Improving health outcomes derived from housing-based sources involves differentiating the risks posed by the existing housing stock. In this paper, we developed a parcel-level lead risk index (LRI) based on external housing conditions and the year of home construction. The purpose of this study was to introduce a housing-based lead risk index (LRI), developed using retrospective data, to estimate parcel-by-parcel variation in housing-based lead risk. We described how the LRI …

Using Bivalves As An Indicator For Fecal Bacteria, Kamala Chuss

Honors Scholar Theses

This project focuses on the integration of fecal bacteria from warm-blooded animals into bivalve tissue, and the utilization of bivalves as an indicator for fecal bacteria in waterways. Bivalves may give a more representative long-term average of fecal bacteria in water as compared to direct water testing. The primary objective is to create a standard operating procedure to use bacterial testing of bivalves as a proxy for bacteria concentration in the water. This method can be used in places where bivalves do not already exist by adding them to a body of water, or by collecting bivalves that already exist …

Composting For Cleaner Air, Simi Benisty, Katie Bui, Narmin Solman, David Woo

Master's Projects and Capstones

The aim of this project was to address food waste at Mary's Kitchen by implementing a composting initiative to divert organic waste from landfills. The project took place in a nonprofit organization that serves food to the homeless, where the target population includes staff, volunteers, and clients of the kitchen. Key interventions involved creating educational materials on composting, recycling, and waste management, including flyers in both English and Spanish, as well as a QR code for easy access. Additionally, smaller, color-coded buckets were introduced to replace the 33-gallon bins, making waste sorting more manageable. Measures included staff and volunteer compliance …

Investigating The Acute Physiological Effects Of Effluent Crystal Violet On The Freshwater Bioindicator Daphnia Pulex, Hoang K. Ho

2024 Fall Honors Capstone Projects - Archive

This study examines the effects of acute exposure to crystal violet (CV) on the freshwater zooplankton Daphnia pulex in response to growing concerns over synthetic dyes from industrial runoff in aquatic ecosystems. The primary objective is to assess CV's impact on D. pulex's heart rate, mobility, morphology, and lethality via a series of acute exposure tests. 48-h acute toxicity (0-2000 μg/L), 48-h immobilization (0-180 μg/L), and 9-h heart rate (0-2,000 μg/L) tests were conducted using third-generation daphnids, followed by stereomicroscopic examination and statistical analysis. Results showed increasing mortality and decreasing mobility and heart rate with increasing CV concentration; the …

Evaluation Of Biochar As A Remediation Tool For Aminopyralid Contaminated Compost, Steven James Parris

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Aminopyralid is a synthetic auxin herbicide which is applied to grass pastures to control broadleaf weed populations. Aminopyralid can contaminate compost through inputs derived from treated pastures such as manure and grass clippings. This possibility poses the threat of inadvertent herbicide exposure to sensitive vegetable plants through using compost contaminated with aminopyralid. Biochar can absorb pollutants and has a synergistic effect with compost when applied to the compost mixture. This study examined the relationship between biochar and aminopyralid through compost consisting of dairy manure and sawdust 1:1 mixture, aminopyralid (10μg/kg), and biochar at four treatment levels of total mass of …

Leveraging High-Frequency Water Quality Data And Machine Learning For Monitoring Harmful Algal Blooms, Ibrahim Busari

All Dissertations

Freshwater management is one of the most critical resources on the earth due to the plethora of water use and its limited availability. Increased algae proliferation is one of the significant problems of freshwater bodies that is triggered by nutrient enrichment and enabling conditions such as light and warm temperatures. This algal proliferation is toxic to the ecosystem through their biomass and potential toxin production that can cause hypoxic conditions and is often referred to as Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs). Current monitoring approaches include laboratory analysis of water samples to observe algal cells, monitoring of water quality parameters using water …

Anti-Aging Properties Of Cosmetics, Anna Lipinski

The Cardinal Edge

It is well established that external factors, specifically UV exposure, are among the highest contributors to the biological aging of the skin. Prolonged exposure may disrupt skin cell homeostasis through shifts in proteostasis, accumulation of reactive oxidative species, premature cellular senescence, and inflammatory pathways. Cosmetic companies have responded to this by producing products marketed as "youthful" and "anti-aging" by including specific compounds into formulas to combat skin aging. This review discusses the specific mechanisms of anti-aging formulas, including polyphenols as senotherapeutic agents and L-ascorbic acid as an anti-inflammatory compound, in resisting the biological aging of the skin.

Evaluating Indoor Air Quality In Residential Environments: A Study Of Pm2.5 And Co2 Dynamics Using Low-Cost Sensors, Kabir Bahadur Shah, Dylan Kim, Sai Deepak Pinakana, Mkhitar A. Hobosyan, Armando Montes, Amit U. Raysoni

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Indoor air quality (IAQ) poses a significant public health concern, and exposures to high levels of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and carbon dioxide (CO2) could have detrimental health impacts. This study focused on assessing the indoor air pollutants in a residential house located in the town of Mission, Hidalgo County, South Texas, USA. The PM2.5 and CO2 were monitored indoors: the kitchen and the bedroom. This investigation also aimed to elucidate the effects of household activities such as cooking and human occupancy on these pollutants. Low-cost sensors (LCSs) from TSI AirAssure™ were used in this study. They were deployed within …

Harvesting Health: The Role Of City Policy In Urban Agriculture And The Downstream Effects On Youth, Lesley Leake

Theses and Dissertations

Contextualizing environmental health within the socio-ecological framework, acknowledges the diverse factors at play in the environment-human dynamic. The research design, methods, and study populations of each chapter vary to match the socio-ecological level(s) of focus and reinforce the translational and interdisciplinary nature of this research. Chapter 2 examines the policy-supports for urban agriculture using a mixed-methods case-study of the City of Charleston, SC to understand how municipal policy (societal) impacts urban agriculture implementation (community) and what impact this has on residents (relationship and individual). Chapter 3 centers on the potential impact of urban farms (community) and their programming (community and …

Social Worker Perspectives Of Social Determinants Of Health Related To Hospital Readmission For Chronic Illness, Crysta Michelle Tigue

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Unplanned or early hospital readmission have become factors used to measure standard of care in acute care settings. Because unplanned or early hospital readmission are costly, the Medicaid Hospital Readmission Reduction Program applies fines to hospitals that have early or unplanned readmissions. Though research has been conducted to identify causes and develop interventions, recent studies have not incorporated social determinants of health (SDOH). The objective of this qualitative study was to examine the impact of SDOH on unplanned and early readmission through the lived experience and perspective of the social worker. This qualitative study used phenomenological methodology and face to …

Water Quality And Macroinvertebrates Assessment Of Eniong Creek, Akwa Ibom State, Niger Delta, Nigeria, Udeme Effiong Jonah, Imeh Kokoete Esenowo, Udeme Isong Enin

Journal of Bioresource Management

The water quality and macroinvertebrates from the downstream section of Eniong Creek were studied for six months, between August 2022 and January 2023 in three sampling stations/ points; to evaluate the ecological integrity and its suitability for habitation of aquatic organisms. Water samples were collected using sterilized plastic bottles and 250 mL reagent bottles for biochemical oxygen demand, and analyzed in accordance with the standard examination methods. Water temperature, dissolved oxygen (DO), transparency (TP), total dissolved solids (TDS), electrical conductivity (EC), and pH were measured in situ while water samples were collected for determination of phosphate (PO₄^-), …

Evaluation Of The Water Quality And Distribution Of Heavy Metals In The Gomti River Flowing Through The Urban Region Of Lucknow, India, Neha Gondial, Sandhya Bharti

Makara Journal of Science

The physicochemical properties and heavy metals contents of the Gomti River water (GRW) samples collected from five selected sites covering a stretch of ~31 km in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India were ascertained. The sites were Ghaila Pul, Mehndi Ghat, Shaheed Smarak, Kukrail Junction, and Bande Dam, represented as S1, S2, S3, S4, and S5, respectively, following from upstream to downstream. S1 was considered as a reference site. The values of pH, temperature, total dissolved solids (TDS), electrical conductivity (EC), turbidity, dissolved oxygen (DO), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), total hardness (TH), total chloride (TC), total alkalinity (TA), total acidity (TAC), total …

Climate Smart Agriculture, J. David Aiken

Cornhusker Economics

There are several programs encouraging producers to reduce their carbon intensity, including United States Department of Agriculture climate-smart agriculture programs, the 2024 Nebraska Climate Action Plan, and the 2024 Nitrogen Reduction Incentive Act. The hope is that producers with lower carbon intensity (CI) scores will receive a premium for their products. Producers would be well advised to learn more about these programs, as reducing carbon intensity in agriculture seems to be an emerging agricultural policy trend that will be with us for some time to come.

Influences Of Quality Of Maternal Care And Environmental Enrichment On Associative Memory Function In Rats With Early Life Lead Exposure, Jay S. Schneider, Courtney Williams, Shamaila Zafar, Jaehyun Joo, Blanca E. Himes

Department of Pathology, Anatomy, and Cell Biology Faculty Papers

INTRODUCTION: Children in low socioeconomic status (SES) communities are at higher risk of exposure to lead (Pb) and potentially more severe adverse outcomes from Pb exposures. While the factors encompassing SES are complex, low SES households often have less enriching home environments and parent-child interactions. This study investigated the extent to which environmental/behavioral factors (quality of maternal care and richness of the postnatal environment) may modify adverse effects from Pb exposure.

METHODS: Long-Evans female rats were randomly assigned to Control (no Pb), Early Postnatal (EPN: birth through weaning), or Perinatal (PERI: 14 days pre-mating through weaning) Pb exposure groups. From …