Early growth response genes (Egr1-4) are induced as immediate early genes by a variety of extracellular stimuli that influence cellular growth and differentiation. Egr transcriptional regulators modulate gene expression by binding to Egr response elements (ERE) in target genes. In this study, the low affinity p75 neurotrophin receptor (p75NTR) was...
Child psychology research has helped to identify how symptoms and deficits, or psychiatric needs impact the human experience, immediately and across development. Recent investigations indicate that strengths, both those possessed by the individual, and those present in her environment, exert short- and long-term protective influence that buffers the impact of...
Barbed end regulation is critical to the formation of the actin-based protrusive structures, lamellipodia and filopodia. In this body of work we have chosen to focus on two main activities, filament termination by the heterodimeric Capping protein (CP) and continued filament elongation by the Ena/VASP family of proteins. We demonstrate...
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is the ninth leading cause of death in the United States. According to the National Kidney Foundation, more than 20 million people already have CKD, and another 20 million are at risk for developing CKD. The primary causes of kidney disease are diabetes followed closely by...
"Anosognosia" or lack of insight into one's own illness is not uncommon in central nervous system disease. Neurodegenerative diseases of the brain that cause dementia are often associated with anosognosia. A lot is known about anosognosia in Alzheimer's disease but relatively little is known about lack of insight into illness...
Structural dynamics in three polymer blend systems, differing largely with respect to morphology, have been investigated. The first system, composed of two immiscible homopolymers, exhibits a microstructure of micron-sized droplets dispersed in a matrix phase. We have examined small-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS) as a new approach for conducting in situ...
Alkenylsilanes of varying chain lengths are investigated as simultaneous chain transfer agents + comonomers in organotitanium-mediated olefin polymerization processes. Ethylene + alkenylsilane polymerizations were carried out with activated Me2Si(Me4C5)(NtBu)TiMe2 and (-CH2CH2-3,3'){(5-indenyl )[1-Me2Si(tBuN)]}2Ti2Me4 precatalysts. Alkenylsilane incorporation levels follow the trend C8H15SiH3 < C6H11SiH3 ≈ C4H7SiH3 < C3H5SiH3. Long-chain branching levels versus...
Why would someone's judgments and choices disregard the consequences he or she cares about most? Considerable research appears to show that in many contexts, people show precisely this paradoxical tendency. Researchers interpret these results as showing that people sometimes make choices on the basis of moral factors -- factors that...
In this dissertation, I analyse the effectiveness of various political institutions in aggregating private information. In the first two chapters, I consider diversity of information among the voters about given electoral alternatives and examine the conditions under which plurality rule voting aggregates such information. In the third chapter, I consider...
Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most commonly diagnosed cancer (1:6), and the second most common cause of cancer-related deaths in American men (>27,000/year). Metastasis is largely responsible for these deaths. During metastasis, tumor cells travel from the prostate to a distant organ where they establish a secondary tumor. Cell motility...