Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Distribution Of Sphaeriid Clams In Lake Erie Twenty-Five Years After Invasion Of Dreissena, Michael Keller

Undergraduate Research Posters 2015

Clams in the family Sphaeriidae are widespread native mollusk species that are often overlooked. The distribution of these organisms in Lake Erie has not been examined in the 25 years since the initial invasion of the zebra mussel, Dreissena polymorpha. Carr and Hiltunen identified 10 species of Sphaeriidae in Western Lake Erie in 1961, of which Pisidium casertanum, P. compressum, P. nitidum, Sphaerium corneum, and S. striatinum and Musculium transversum, contributed 89.7% of all fingernail and pea clams sampled and were considered common. Four other species were reported as rare. Our research examines whether the distribution of Sphaeriid clams in …

Investigating Rhoptry Gene Conservation Between Plasmodium Yoelii And Plasmodium Falciparum Using The Polymerase Chain Reaction For Dna Amplification, Brooke Burkhalter

Undergraduate Research Posters 2015

In order to obtain a tangible basis for vaccine targets, it is crucial to understand the role of proteins at the site of invasion. In previous study, 27 novel rhoptry proteins were identified by MudPIT analysis and immunoelectron microscopy. In this investigation, the conservation of rhoptry genes between Plasmodium yoelii and Plasmodium falciparum was assessed. From the previously identified rhoptry genes, 14 were investigated with the orthologues/paralogues of the Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium yoelii, Plasmodium chabaudi, and Plasmodium berghei. Also, primers designed for the 14 Plasmodium yoelli rhoptry genes were used to test DNA amplification with the PCR. Amplification of Plasmodium …

Femtosecond Laser Beam Propagation Through Corneal Tissue: Evaluation Of Therapeutic Laser-Stimulated Second And Third-Harmonic Generation, William R. Calhoun Iii

Theses and Dissertations

One of the most recent advancements in laser technology is the development of ultrashort pulsed femtosecond lasers (FSLs). FSLs are improving many fields due to their unique extreme precision, low energy and ablation characteristics. In the area of laser medicine, ophthalmic surgeries have seen very promising developments. Some of the most commonly performed surgical operations in the world, including laser-assisted in-situ keratomileusis (LASIK), lens replacement (cataract surgery), and keratoplasty (cornea transplant), now employ FSLs for their unique abilities that lead to improved clinical outcome and patient satisfaction.

The application of FSLs in medical therapeutics is a recent development, and although …

Phase Imaging Using Focusing Polycapillary Optics, Sajid Bashir

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The interaction of X rays in diagnostic energy range with soft tissues can be described by Compton scattering and by the complex refractive index, which together characterize the attenuation properties of the tissue and the phase imparted to X rays passing through it. Many soft tissues exhibit extremely similar attenuation, so that their discrimination using conventional radiography, which generates contrast in an image through differential attenuation, is challenging. However, these tissues will impart phase differences significantly greater than attenuation differences to the X rays passing through them, so that phase-contrast imaging techniques can enable their discrimination.

Grid-Based Fourier Transform Phase Contrast Imaging, Sajjad Tahir

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Low contrast in x-ray attenuation imaging between different materials of low electron density is a limitation of traditional x-ray radiography. Phase contrast imaging offers the potential to improve the contrast between such materials, but due to the requirements on the spatial coherence of the x-ray beam, practical implementation of such systems with tabletop (i.e. non-synchrotron) sources has been limited. One recently developed phase imaging technique employs multiple fine-pitched gratings. However, the strict manufacturing tolerances and precise alignment requirements have limited the widespread adoption of grating-based techniques. In this work, we have investigated a technique recently demonstrated by Bennett et al.1 …

A Comparative Examination Of The Safety Programs At Ucla, Umn, And Uvm In Response To Recent Chemistry Laboratory Incidents, Victoria Carhart

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Laboratory safety has recently become more of an imperative in research laboratories than it has ever been in the past. Recent accidents at several universities have escalated the awareness of safety concerns in laboratory workspaces among the general public and created a greater need for a stronger culture of safety in chemistry research overall. Historically, results and publications have been the top priority of most researchers, not laboratory safety.

This thesis discusses a number of laboratory accidents. The first happened in December of 2008 at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and resulted in the death of a graduate …

Total Synthesis Of Clavatadine A Analogs To Produce A Viable Reversible Inhibitor For Factor Xia, Christopher E. Malmberg

All Master's Theses

Cardiovascular disease has quickly become a major health concern in the United States, with numerous citizens dying from cardiovascular disease each year. Older medications, while effective against cardiovascular disease, are problematic to prescribe. A recently isolated natural product, clavatadine A, selectively inhibits human blood coagulation factor XIa. As a result, the synthesis and biological testing of clavatadine A and synthetic clavatadine A analogues that selectively inhibit factor XIa would represent a new direction in cardiovascular disease research. A potent and selective factor XIa inhibitor has the potential to be a safer replacement for current anticoagulants, such as Warfarin, Pradaxa^{® …}

The Hare And The Hortoise [Sic]: The Potential Versus The Reality Of Etp Implementation, Kyaw Kyaw Htat, Patricia A. H Williams, Vincent Mccauley

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

In a health system increasingly driven by cost constraints, there is a focus on improved electronic transfer of information to support healthcare delivery. One area of healthcare that has moved more quickly than others to achieve this is prescribing in the primary care environment. Whilst the move to electronic transfer of prescriptions has reduced transcription errors, the regulatory environment persists with handwritten signatures. This constraint, whilst addressed slowly with technology solutions, needs support from legislative change. The ultimate step is to have a secure mobile model, which would support the move to a fully-electronic, paperless transaction model.

Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities In Medical Devices: A Complex Environment And Multifaceted Problem, Patricia A.H. Williams, Andrew J. Woodward

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

The increased connectivity to existing computer networks has exposed medical devices to cybersecurity vulnerabilities from which they were previously shielded. For the prevention of cybersecurity incidents, it is important to recognize the complexity of the operational environment as well as to catalog the technical vulnerabilities. Cybersecurity protection is not just a technical issue; it is a richer and more intricate problem to solve. A review of the factors that contribute to such a potentially insecure environment, together with the identification of the vulnerabilities, is important for understanding why these vulnerabilities persist and what the solution space should look like. This …

Mcnair Research Journal - Summer 2015, Kelly Abuali, Starr Bailey, Krystal Courtney D. Belmonte, Brittaney Benson-Townsend, Jennifer Bolick, Mihaela A. Ciulei, Ashley Crisp, Daniel N. Erosa, Richard V. Foster, Gisele Braga Goertz, Michael A. Langhardt, Kara Osborne, Julienne Jochel Paraiso, Shawn M. Rosen, Bella V. Smith, Jeevake Attapattu, Ernesto H. Bedoy, Michael G. Curtis, Wanda Inthavong, Marielle Leo, Primrose Martin, Tamieka Meadows, Rosa Perez, Jessica Recarey, Shea Silver, Linda Tompkins

McNair Journal

Journal articles based on research conducted by undergraduate students in the McNair Scholars Program

Table of Contents

Biography of Dr. Ronald E. McNair

Statements:

Dr. Neal J. Smatresk, UNLV President

Dr. Juanita P. Fain, Vice President of Student Affairs

Dr. William W. Sullivan, Associate Vice President for Retention and Outreach

Mr. Keith Rogers, Deputy Executive Director of the Center for Academic Enrichment and Outreach

McNair Scholars Institute Staff

Nonlinear Hierarchical Models For Longitudinal Experimental Infection Studies, Michael David Singleton

Theses and Dissertations--Epidemiology and Biostatistics

Experimental infection (EI) studies, involving the intentional inoculation of animal or human subjects with an infectious agent under controlled conditions, have a long history in infectious disease research. Longitudinal infection response data often arise in EI studies designed to demonstrate vaccine efficacy, explore disease etiology, pathogenesis and transmission, or understand the host immune response to infection. Viral loads, antibody titers, symptom scores and body temperature are a few of the outcome variables commonly studied. Longitudinal EI data are inherently nonlinear, often with single-peaked response trajectories with a common pre- and post-infection baseline. Such data are frequently analyzed with statistical methods …

Refraction In Mozambique: Evaluations Of Practice And Development Of Competency Frameworks For Eye Care Personnel, Kajal Shah

Doctoral

Purpose The development of competency- based education for optometrists and mid-level eye-care personnel has been identified as an important component in the elimination of avoidable blindness and vision impairment. The Mozambique Eye care Project (MEP) is a multi-institutional collaboration, which seeks to facilitate greater access to training in eye health professions, which will ultimately contribute to providing affordable and accessible eye care within the public health system in Mozambique. An important tenet of the MEP is to develop and enhance the refraction training of all existing (ophthalmic technicians) and new eye care personnel (four-year training of optometrists and eighteen-month training …

Choice Of Human–Computer Interaction Mode In Stroke Rehabilitation, Hossein Mousavi Hondori, Maryam Khademi, Lucy Dodakian, Alison Mackenzie, Cristina V. Lopes, Steven C. Cramer

Physical Therapy Faculty Articles and Research

Background and Objective. Advances in technology are providing new forms of human–computer interaction. The current study examined one form of human–computer interaction, augmented reality (AR), whereby subjects train in the real-world workspace with virtual objects projected by the computer. Motor performances were compared with those obtained while subjects used a traditional human–computer interaction, that is, a personal computer (PC) with a mouse. Methods. Patients used goal-directed arm movements to play AR and PC versions of the Fruit Ninja video game. The 2 versions required the same arm movements to control the game but had different cognitive demands. With …

An Investigation Of Alkaline Earth And Rare Earth Elements In Human Bone Following Long-Term Parenteral Nutrition, Aubrey L. Galusha

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This investigation focused on a unique collection of archived human bones obtained post-mortem from 7 patients, who had received long-term parenteral nutrition (PN) for up to 21 years. Parenterals are administered intravenously as a nutritional supplement, and may be contaminated with metals, which are completely absorbed into the blood compartment. Some metal contaminants may be deposited in the body’s reservoir for inorganic elements – bone.

Ua94/6/15 Student / Alumni Personal Papers Wku Dorris Hutchinson, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Correspondence and publications created by and about the Dorris Hutchison during her time at Sloan-Kettering Institute.

Challenges Posed By Tick-Borne Rickettsiae: Eco- Epidemiology And Public Health Implications, Marina E. Eremeeva, Gregory A. Dasch

Environmental Health Sciences Faculty Publications

Rickettsiae are obligately intracellular bacteria that are transmitted to vertebrates by a variety of arthropod vectors, primarily by fleas and ticks. Once transmitted or experimentally inoculated into susceptible mammals, some rickettsiae may cause febrile illness of different morbidity and mortality, and which can manifest with different types of exhanthems in humans. However, most rickettsiae circulate in diverse sylvatic or peridomestic reservoirs without having obvious impacts on their vertebrate hosts or affecting humans. We have analyzed the key features of tick-borne maintenance of rickettsiae, which may provide a deeper basis for understanding those complex invertebrate interactions and strategies that have permitted …

Predicting Aqueous Solubility Of Pharmaceutical Agents By Solid Dispersion Prepared By Solvent Evaporation Method, Karthik Reddy Patlolla

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Solubility of active pharmaceutical agents is a crucial process that determines drug absorption and ultimately its bioavailability. Many of the new therapeutically beneficial compounds discovered are lipophilic requiring various solubility enhancement strategies to improve their solubility. Among these strategies, solubility enhancement using solid dispersions is a leading method. To obtain a desirable increase in the solubility of a poorly-soluble compound, a good understanding of the molecular descriptors influencing the enhancement of solubility is essential. Therefore, the major research objective was to determine the descriptors which significantly influence the solubility enhancement by solid dispersions. After enhancing the solubility of selected poorly-soluble …

A Pilot Study Of Arsenic In Young Children From Two Rural West Texas Communities: Blood Levels, Household Water Levels, And Behavioral Outcomes, Michelle Del Rio

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Background & Significance: Heavy metals have been identified as a child health hazard because children are highly vulnerable to the effects of exposure, which can be physical, cognitive, and behavioral. Levels of arsenic (As) greater than the EPA Maximum Contaminant Level (10μg/L) were identified in some household water samples in two rural west Texas communities located within 20 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border by a Health Impact Assessment conducted in 2013 (Hargrove, Juarez-Carillo, & Korc 2015). Whether home water samples predicted child blood As levels needed to be examined. Since lead (Pb) is another common heavy metal contaminant in the …

How Long Does That 10-Year Smoke Alarm Really Last? A Survival Analysis Of Smoke Alarms Installed Through The Saife Program In Rural Georgia, Haresh Rochani, Valamar Malika Reagon, Steve Davidson

Biostatistics Faculty Publications

Background: When functioning properly, a smoke alarm alerts individuals in the residence that smoke is near the alarm. Smoke alarms serve as a primary prevention mechanism to abate morbidity and mortality related to residential fires.

Methods: Using survival analysis, we examined the length of operability of 10-year lithium battery powered smoke alarms installed through the Georgia Public Health/CDC SAIFE program in Moultrie, Georgia. Attempts were made to reach all homes in the city limits. The premise of the study is that geographic clusters (in the case of Moultrie city quadrants) are associated with decreases in the length of time that …

Inequalities And Approximations Of Weighted Distributions By Lindley Reliability Measures, And The Lindley-Cox Model With Applications, Broderick O. Oluyede, Macaulay Okwuokenye, Karl E. Peace

Biostatistics Faculty Publications

In this note, stochastic comparisons and results for weighted and Lindley models are presented. Approximation of weighted distributions via Lindley distribution in the class of increasing failure rate (IFR) and decreasing failure rate (DFR) weighted distributions with monotone weight functions are obtained including approximations via the length-biased Lindley distribution. Some useful bounds and moment-type inequality for weighted life distributions and applications are presented. Incorporation of covariates into Lindley model is considered and an application to illustrate the usefulness and applicability of the proposed Lindley-Cox model is given.

Electronic Health Record Simulator, Samuel M. Brown

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The Electronic Health Record Simulator is exactly that; it is meant to simulate an EHR (like those found in hospitals and clinics) for use in an academic setting. Its purpose is to familiarize students with the operation of real-world EHRs in order to better prepare them for the workforce. It allows instructors to create fictional patients (with full lab values), and allows students to fill in information as in a real EHR.

Sharp Rna Recognition Motif Optimizations, Extensions, And Mutations For Use In 2d And 3d Nmr Experiments, Shaun M. Christie

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

SMRT/HDAC Associated Repressor Protein interacts with the long noncoding RNA, produced by SRA, by binding at the RRMs. Three projects were done to prepare the truncated proteins for use in 2D and 3D NMR experiments. The first focuses on RRM 3 and its optimization during the purification process. The second focuses on RRM 2-4, which was found to be missing two alpha helices that may be important for protein stability. These helices can also interact with RRM 3 as well due to the tight association of RRMs 3 and 4. The two step PCR extension of RRM 2-4 was assumed …

The Relationship Among Math Anxiety, Mathematical Performance, And Math Education In Undergraduate Nursing Students, Joshua D. Beall, Troy Roebuck, Paul Penkalsky

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Although nurses spend up to 40% of their day calculating and administering medication doses, undergraduate nursing students often perform poorly on nursing math exams. The purpose of this study was (a) to examine the relationship among mathematical education, performance, and anxiety and (b) to compare the mathematical education, performance, and anxiety in sophomore and senior baccalaureate nursing students at a public university in the Midwest. This cross-sectional, descriptive study was guided by Bandura's self-efficacy theory. Math performance was measured with an 11-item math instrument, math education was measured with number of math courses, and math anxiety was measured with Fennema–Sherman …

Can We Increase The Intensity Of Pro-Active Balance Exercises?, Joshua Lilly, Elizabeth Antonik

Undergraduate Research Posters 2015

Balance training has been shown to be effective in preventing or lessening the severity of falls among older adults. This training can be proactive or reactive; however, the relative effectiveness of each and the necessary dosages are not known. The purpose of this research was to adapt an existing protocol for slip testing (reactive training) and video-game balance training (proactive) to better accommodate the abilities of older adults. We tested iteratively the initial protocols, set-ups, and equipment with a group of adults age 55 years and older and devised new protocols and equipment for each. After observing the subjects’ participation …

Invasive Species Facilitation In Bioswales And Rain Gardens In Greater Cleveland, Brittany Dalton

Undergraduate Research Posters 2015

Stormwater management features such as bioretention systems and rain gardens provide valuable ecosystem services. They are ecologically engineered to counteract surrounding urban land use practices. However, new stormwater management features may also create an environment for invasive plant species. Invasive plants can affect ecosystem services, and have devastating economic impacts. This study was conducted to determine connections between surrounding land use and maintenance practices in stormwater management features throughout Greater Cleveland and the presence of invasive plant species. Initial site visits were conducted for 164 bioretention systems and rain gardens in Greater Cleveland. They were analyzed for physical characteristics, surrounding …

Case Transition Format And Lexical Decision Performance: Does Spacing Reduce The Benefit Of Orthographic Regularity?, Kristyn Oravec, Maryam Assar, Hannah Princic

Undergraduate Research Posters 2015

Some models of visual word identification propose that identification is analytic— mediated exclusively by letter identification. However, some studies have shown that there are phenomena that suggest a route to word identification involves holistic stimulus properties. In previous research, using a lexical decision task, in which participants are asked to determine whether letter strings are words or nonwords, we have found that response times to orthographically regular words (i.e., lowercase, uppercase, and initial uppercase formats) are faster than those to orthographically irregular words (i.e., words that include a case transition other than initial uppercase to lowercase). In this experiment, we …

Regulation Of Sister Chromatid Cohesion By Eco-1 And Wapl-1 During Meiosis And Mitosis, Kyle T. Schroeder

Undergraduate Research Posters 2015

Cohesin is a widely conserved, tetrameric protein complex that tethers replicated sister chromatids during meiosis and mitosis. Two cohesin subunits, SMC-1 and SMC-3, and a third subunit, the α-kleisin, form a ring proposed to encircle sister chromatids. Different kleisins associate with cohesin during mitosis and meiosis. SCC-1 is the mitotic kleisin. Meiotic cohesin can associate with either REC-8 or COH-3/4. REC-8 and COH-3/4 cohesins differ greatly in their functional properties, indicating that the kleisin determines meiotic cohesin function. Early in meiosis, REC-8 and COH-3/4 cohesins are triggered to become cohesive at different times and by different mechanisms. Later in meiosis, …

Preliminary Investigation Of The Role Of Open Bigrams In Word Perception: Is There A Benefit To Having Flankers That Consist Of Letters In The Word?, Maryam Assar, Kristyn Oravec, Hannah Princic, Amy Palinski

Undergraduate Research Posters 2015

Most investigators of word identification agree that information is processed through a hierarchical system in which units at progressively higher levels respond to features, letters, letter combinations (e.g., pairs, or bigrams), and possibly words. Grainger et al. (2014) found support for the role of adjacent-letter bigrams in an experiment in which participants saw target strings flanked by bigrams, such as BI BIRD RD and CE BIVS NT, and judged whether the targets were words. They found, for words, that flanking bigrams facilitated performance when the flanking bigrams contained letters from the target, and that the order of bigrams relative to …

Tmco1 Mediates Cancer Cell Migration Through Regulating Microtubule Assembling, Pau Romaguera Llacer, Qiaoxia Zheng, Qiaoyun Zheng

Undergraduate Research Posters 2015

Transmembrane and coiled-coil domains 1 (TMCO1) is highly conserved in amino acid sequence among species and ubiquitously expressed in all human tissues. Homozygous frameshift mutation in TMCO1 causes distinctive craniofacial dysmorphism, skeletal anomalies, and mental retardation. However, its physiological functions, particularly in cancer biology, are largely unknown. In this study, we have found that knock down of TMCO1 in HeLa cells, a human cervical cancer cell line, and U2OS cells, an osteosarcoma cell line, remarkably inhibited their migratory capability; TMCO1 was highly expressed in the cells of the invasive front of high grade lung cancer and metastatic cancer cells in …

Stormwater Management And Residents Perceptions, Mark Gatesman

Undergraduate Research Posters 2015

Stormwater runoff is a major problem in many residential municipalities. Rain water washes pollutants and chemicals off of streets, driveways and lawns. Stormwater management practices help filter out harmful particles before they enter into our water ways. The goal of this project was to assess green infrastructure stormwater practices throughout Cuyahoga County. We assessed 165 sites in over 10 cities in Cuyahoga County. We examined bioswales, bioretention basins, and rain gardens. Sites were visited in late May through early June and revisited in mid-July to early August. We compared spring condition of plants and gardens and recorded resident’s perceptions whether …