Theses and Dissertations - School of Medicine
Recent Submissions
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Utilization of complementary and integrative healthcare by people with spinal cord injury
Complementary and integrative healthcare (CIH) describes approaches outside of conventional medical practices. There is an increasing trend of CIH use in the US, but little evidence for efficacy and safety. People with ... -
Regulation of cancer cell migration and invasion by RAB40B
Cell migration is a complex and highly regulated process that involves coordinated changes in signaling, membrane trafficking and cytoskeleton dynamics, and it is well-established that extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation ... -
Basal cytokeratins regulate tumorigenic and aggressive properties in breast cancer cells
Cytokeratins (CKs) are intermediate filaments (IF) that provide essential structural support for epithelial cells. Humans express 54 unique CKs in a cell- and tissue-type dependent manner. Some functional roles of these ... -
Beyond killing: precursor ribosomal RNA as a biomarker for effective mycobacterial treatment
Mycobacteria range from environmental bacteria to opportunistic and obligate pathogens. Mycobacterium tuberculosis kills ~1.5 million people each year and incidence of drug-resistant tuberculosis increases yearly. Similarly, ... -
Pharmacologic PTEN upregulation: a novel approach to maintain smooth muscle cell homeostasis following vascular injury
The primary aim of this thesis work was to identify compounds that upregulate phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) expression in smooth muscle cells (SMCs), with the expectation that PTEN upregulation would inhibit ... -
Impact of iron and copper homeostasis on clofazimine activity and consequences for killing of mycobacteria, The
The anti-leprosy drug clofazimine (CFZ) was recently shown to improve outcomes in treatment of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (TB); however, the mechanism of action of CFZ and resistance mechanisms remain unclear. We ... -
Role of Snx3 in mammalian neural tube closure, The
The earliest step in the development of the mammalian brain and spinal cord requires complex and coordinated morphogenetic movements, dynamic tissue remodeling, interactions between cells and tissues, cellular signaling, ... -
Assessment and evaluation of a crosswalk between the functional independence measure and the continuity assessment record and evaluation
Background: Assessment of functional outcome is a major initiative for facilities engaging in post-acute care. Unfortunately across time, the various types of post-acute care facilities had developed measures to assess ... -
Role of NLRP inflammasomes in melanoma, The
Melanoma remains the deadliest form of skin cancer despite advances in intervention strategy and the development of targeted and immunomodulatory therapies. Therapeutic responses are short-lived as patients continue to ... -
Exploring the structure-function relationships of pathogenically relavent flaviviral RNAs
Flaviviruses such as Yellow Fever, Dengue, West Nile, and Zika are arthropod borne, enveloped, positive-sense single-stranded RNA viruses that infect millions of people around the world. In particular, Dengue is estimated ... -
Shaping the postsynaptic landscape: understanding the role of neuronal activity in local secretory and endocytic protein trafficking dynamics
Neuronal development, morphology, excitability and synapse function rely on the ability to maintain and dynamically regulate the repertoire of channel, receptor and adhesion integral membrane proteins presented on the cell ... -
Neuronal and microglial interactions with oligodendrocytes regulate myelin sheath formation and elimination
During development, oligodendrocytes contact and ensheathe numerous axons with myelin, a proteolipid-rich membrane that increases conduction velocity and provides trophic support. After myelin sheath formation, some wraps ... -
Molecular mechanisms underlying mRNA localization to myelin sheaths
Myelin is a specialized membrane produced by oligodendrocytes that insulates and supports axons. Oligodendrocytes extend numerous cellular processes, as projections of the plasma membrane, and simultaneously wrap multiple ... -
Determinants of Plasmodium falciparum liver stage infection: receptors, innate immunity and host genetics
Malaria is a major global health burden, with roughly half the world’s population at risk of contracting the disease. Malaria is caused by the intracellular protozoan parasite of the genus Plasmodium; it has two stages of ... -
Development of crosswalks to aggregate international spinal cord injury functional data
In spinal cord injury, there are multiple databases containing information on functional recovery, but data cannot be pooled or compared due to differences in how function is measured. A crosswalk (where scores from two ... -
Mediator of DNA damage checkpoint 1 (MDC1) is a novel estrogen receptor co-regulator in invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) of the breast
Invasive Lobular Carcinoma (ILC) is the 2nd most common histotype of breast cancer yet is critically understudied. ~95% of ILC are estrogen receptor (ER) positive, and previous studies demonstrate the importance of estrogen ... -
Cancer-cell intrinsic mechanisms of mediating response to therapeutics in NSCLC
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States, with a 5-year survival rate of approximately 20%. Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) comprises 85% of lung cancer diagnoses. Clinically available ... -
Induction of antigen-specific tolerance in autoimmune diabetes using a hybrid insulin peptide
T cells play a critical role in promoting the development of autoimmunity in Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) patients and the non-obese diabetic (NOD) mouse model. The CD4+ T cell clone BDC-2.5, originally isolated from a NOD mouse, ... -
Role of microRNA-126 in lung microvascular endothelial cells
Endothelial specific microRNA-126 (miR-126) is required for angiogenesis during development and repair of injured arterial vasculature in adult. Endothelial cells are a diverse group of cells with distinct molecular and ... -
HIV TAT mediation of redox sensitive transcription factors in pulmonary vascular cells
Chronic HIV infection in the era of anti-retroviral therapy is associated with dramatically increased risk of developing severe cardio-pulmonary disease. Common to these diseases are increased oxidative burden and chronic ...
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