University of Illinois at Chicago
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Modeling Pathophysiology of Human Fallopian Tube Using Microfluidic Organ-on-Chip Technology
No full textOvarian cancer is a deadly disease, and most high-grade serous ovarian carcinomas originate from the fallopian tube epithelium. Understanding the early events of ovarian cancer tumorigenesis in the fallopian tube is crucial for the development of future detection and intervention strategies. This thesis leverages primary human fallopian tube tissue and organ-on-chip technology to understand the impact of tumor-derived extracellular vesicles on fallopian tube and model the polycystic ovarian syndrome. Our study highlighted the role of extracellular vesicles in the cell signaling reprogramming in fallopian tube tissue and provided insights into how high-grade serous ovarian cancer lesions in the fallopian tube, such as STIC, spread to adjacent healthy tissue. We have also evaluated the impact of polycystic ovarian secretions and PFAS compounds on human fallopian tube biology
Understanding Relations, Learning, and Transformation in Mongolian Herders’ Climate Change Adaptation
No full textThis study aims to elucidate implications for policies and intervention practices that aim to support communities in adapting to climate change. By centering on Mongolian nomadic herders’ perspectives and experiences in adaptation to climate change, this study investigates pastoralists’ adaptation and learning, relational factors that shape the processes, and the impact of learning on transformations toward sustainability.
My conceptualization and analysis of relations and learning build on the complementary perspectives of social practice theory and infrastructure and infrastructuring. Social practice theory provides a lens for understanding relational factors that shape herders’ adaptation practices, while infrastructure and infrastructuring help me gain insights into how herders adapt within current infrastructural constraints while also challenging the infrastructure to support their adaptation. I draw on the extended notion of infrastructure, which argues that infrastructure encompasses more than just technical domains. This extended view understands infrastructure as a relational property and that something becomes infrastructure in relation to social practices (Star & Ruhleder, 1996). According to this view, infrastructure is not static but can be changed in social practices. Infrastructuring, a verb derived from the noun, refers to the process of how local community members shape and reshape the existing infrastructure in alignment with local contexts and their specific needs.
To gain insights into herders’ adaptation practices, relational factors, and learning, this study employs ethnographic methods. I conducted field observations and semi-structured interviews in the countryside of central Mongolia in Arkhangai and Övörkhangai provinces. Twenty-five herder households and 52 adult herders participated in the interviews. All the interviews were recorded and later transcribed and translated. Through the constant comparison approach (Strauss & Corbin, 1990), I conducted two-phase qualitative coding, each of which involved inductive and deductive coding.
Results show that herders often talk about more frequent and unpredictable weather events and their impact on pastureland health, livestock survival, herders’ livelihoods, and the preservation of traditional pastoralism. Herders adapt to these changes by caring for livestock, prioritizing quality over quantity, maintaining rotational grazing, adding value to livestock products, and engaging young people in herding. Intrapersonal, interpersonal, material, and institutional relations shape and are shaped by these adaptation practices. Intrapersonal relations manifest in herders bringing their sensemaking and lived experiences of climate change, as well as identity, values, and emotions, in deciding specific adaptation strategies. Interpersonal relations are evidenced by mutual support and collaboration within and across households in adapting to climate change. Material relations are shown when herders utilize natural resources and maintain respectful land and water use in their adaptation practices. Institutional relations refer to institutionalized structural contexts that influence the scope of herders’ adaptation to climate change. While herders’ adaptation practices are shaped by and shape the relations, conceptual, practical, relational, and normative learning occur. The impact of learning on transformations toward sustainability is expressed as infrastructuring. Herders’ infrastructuring occurs when they take up beneficial aspects of the infrastructure but resist problematic elements. It also happens when herders propose solutions to improve the infrastructure or fill the infrastructural gaps.
These findings provide implications for designing policies and projects that aim to support communities in adapting to climate change. External intervention should be contextualized in local people’s lived realities, ways of knowing, and values; build on social structure and community norms instead of disrupting them; support new learning opportunities while respecting traditional knowledge and ways of knowing; and provide targeted support for different groups of people. Lastly, adaptation does not mean wholesale change. Therefore, external intervention should not erase traditions without seriously considering local people’s voices or concerns
Cytoskeletal Gene Expression in Dental Pulp Stem Cells Under Inflammation-Induced Hypoxia
No full textIntroduction: Dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) play a crucial role in repair and regeneration of dentin-pulp complex through differentiation into odontoblasts. Upregulation of key cytoskeletal genes have been shown to impact differentiation of DPSCs into an odontogenic lineage. Additionally, chronic inflammatory milieu creates hypoxic condition resulting in increased proliferation and down-regulation of odontogenic differentiation thereby reducing the reparative potential of dentin-pulp complex. The objective of this study is to investigate DPSC cytoskeleton gene expression in hypoxic condition.
Hypothesis: There is no differences in cytoskeletal gene expression when DPSCs in normoxic and hypoxic condition
Specific Aims: The aim of this research are to investigate key gene candidates responsible for cytoskeletal changes in human DPSCs when subjected to hypoxic conditions.
Methods: DPSC isolated from human dental pulp were cultured in hypoxic chamber hypoxia (3%) for 21 days at 37°C in differentiation media and controls were cultured under normal conditions. Cultured DPSCs were extracted, the mRNA was sequenced using NextSeq Illunima and was analyzed using the ERGO transcription tool. Gene and pathway identification was facilitated through KEGG pathway analysis.
Results: Our analysis revealed 1 over-expressed and 4 under-expressed genes that differed in normoxic from hypoxic conditions. The genes and pathways were identified in KEGG pathways overlaying expression values.
Conclusion: This preliminary study offers valuable insights into the impact of hypoxic conditions on gene expression, particularly concerning cytoskeletal elements. Identification of specific pathways and conditions responsible for cell fate decisions may prove useful for diagnostic markers and advance applications in pulp tissue engineering under hypoxic conditions
The Impact of Singlism on Mental Well-being for Unmarried Muslim American Women
No full textThis dissertation investigates singlism or the stigma, stereotyping, and marginalization of singlehood among unmarried Muslim Americans, with an emphasis on Muslim American women. Using an explanatory sequential mixed methods approach, three studies were conducted. The first quantitatively assessed how singlism varies by age and gender, revealing that women and older adults report the highest levels of singlism broadly. The second study examined the relationship between singlism and wellbeing and the role that religiosity played in that relationship. Findings suggest that there was a significant association between singlism and wellbeing, such that higher levels of singlism were associated with lower levels of wellbeing, and certain forms of religiosity were found to serve as moderators in certain instances. The third, qualitative study explored the lived experiences of singlehood and singlism among unmarried Muslim American women, comparing those actively seeking marriage to those not actively seeking. This study describes religious and sociocultural contextual dimensions of singlehood and singlism, as well as how these women navigated marriage-seeking pressure.
Findings across these three studies highlight how the intersections of religion, gender, age, and culture shape singlehood and singlism and mental wellbeing. Theoretically grounded in Goffman’s stigma theory, intersectionality theory, Link and Phelan’s stigma model, and the stress coping model, this work demonstrates that singlism is socially constructed, culturally reinforced, and internalized by single Muslim Americans. This work offers a foundational framework for understanding and addressing the psychosocial and cultural challenges of singlism among Muslim Americans, urging a broader recognition of their experiences in both academic and social or communal settings
Engineering Hv1 Channel Mutations and Targeted Drug for Treatment of Hv1 Mutation Associated with Cancer
No full textThe voltage-gated proton channel Hv1 is crucial for maintaining cellular pH homeostasis by regulating proton movement across membranes, playing a vital role in acid extrusion and intracellular pH regulation. Dysregulation of Hv1 is associated with various diseases, including cancer, where it helps maintain an acidic tumor microenvironment that promotes tumor progression, metastasis, and apoptosis resistance. Additionally, genetic mutations in Hv1 have been linked to several diseases, with growing evidence suggesting a strong association between Hv1 mutations and cancer. However, the mechanisms by which mutations influence Hv1 function remain poorly understood, and whether these mutations can be therapeutically targeted is still unclear. This project aims to investigate the functional impact of Hv1 disease mutations and develop targeted therapeutic strategies. The research is structured into three specific aims including engineering Hv1 mutations, functional characterization of mutations on Hv1 channel, and the development of targeted drugs for Hv1 mutation. The first aim involves studying the impact of disease mutations on Hv1 proton conductance, using a novel method to overcome challenges in comparing mutated and wild-type channels, such as differential expression and protein targeting issues. The second aim employs the patch-clamp technique to investigate the effects of mutations on Hv1 channel gating and its implications for disease progression. Finally, in the third aim, we focus on the development of targeted therapeutics, utilizing 2GBI, a known Hv1 proton channel blocker. Given that most Hv1 disease mutations are located in the core of the channel, often near or at the 2GBI binding site, we engineered new 2GBI derivatives to enhance their affinity for specific mutations, such as F150C. Our results show that certain modifications increase the affinity of blockers for mutated Hv1 channels compared to the wild-type. In summary, this work offers valuable insights into the mechanisms of Hv1 mutation-related diseases and proposes novel therapeutic strategies aimed at targeting mutant Hv1 channels
Evidence-Informed Teaching Practices Across Faculty Terminal Degree Categories.
No full textMany faculty spend a considerable proportion of their time and effort in teaching, yet intentional
preparation for this important responsibility is rare. Currently, there exists no standard guidance for which
content areas or competencies are necessary for quality educator development as they perform the
various faculty roles. In this descriptive study, we surveyed 334 occupational therapy/ occupational
therapy assistant (OT/OTA) faculty from across the United States using a 53-item instrument that
explored to what degree do OT/OTA faculty use and document evidence-informed teaching practices and
if the use of evidence-informed teaching practices differs across faculty terminal degree category (entrylevel occupational therapy doctorate [OTD], post-professional OTD, and PhD). Results did not indicate
significant differences among terminal degree preparation type related to teaching competencies in OT
and OTA education but indicated that faculty across all degree types reported very low implementation
rates of certain surveyed teaching competencies, including formal instructional design approaches,
context-appropriate teaching perspectives, and models of program evaluation to assess curricula,
instruction, and outcomes. Participants also reported using instructional practices not supported by
evidence, such as using course materials inherited from colleagues as the basis of course design or
practices they learned by experiencing them as a student. Methods of documentation demonstrated
significant degree-type differences in teaching philosophy statements, awards, book chapters, grants, and
publications. The results of this study emphasize the need to more thoroughly prepare occupational
therapy educators to use evidence-informed instructional practices and to assess teaching effectiveness
according to a set of standard competencies rather than presumptions based upon type of terminal
degree.</p
People Who Have: Hoarding disorder, ecopsychology, and poetry by prescription
No full textAbstract: Although poetry is well suited to the task of improving insight and empathy and is commonly used for this purpose educational settings, it is underutilized clinically—perhaps most notably in the context of hoarding disorder, where patients may self-report finding personal motivation in aesthetics, creative problem-solving, and/or environmentalism. This poem is an introduction to the work of ecopsychology for patients who have hoarding disorder, providing an ecofriendly, low-cost, and accessible tool for use in language-based therapeutic intervention with practitioners who wish to offer personalized, arts-enriched care.</p
Languages of the World: An open, multimodal educational resource designed for inclusivity, accessibility, and curiosity
No full textLanguages of the World: An open, multimodal educational resource designed for inclusivity, accessibility, and curiosity guides the user on a tour of many of the world's languages through lenses often omitted from introductory undergraduate linguistics courses, such as historical relationships, writing systems, typology, and naming. This resource attends to signed and other non-spoken language modalities throughout the text and decenters English and other European languages to the extent feasible.Featuring conversational text, video, audio, and images, this multimodal educational resource prepares users toEngage in informed discussion about a variety of languages and language featuresAccurately articulate personal language positionality and shared features of all human languages, compare linguistic structures across a variety of human languages, and describe naming practices across languages and timeReflect on modalities (eg., speech, sign, text) and writing systems, pragmatic knowledge of language use, and implications of linguistic diversity on current social and educational issuesRespectfully inquire about language usePresent their understanding of one language in a novel wayTeaching with Languages of the World: An open, multimodal educational resource designed for inclusivity is facilitated with a sample course syllabus, suggested formative and summative assessments, and an authentic final project.</p
Television Advertising and Store Availability of Toddler Milks
No full textThis brief provides data on TV marketing of infant formulas, infant foods, and toddler milks and examines availability of toddler milks in stores located within a large metropolitan area.</p
FPGA Based Accelerator Design for Stochastic Online Scheduling
No full textEfficient job scheduling is a critical challenge in modern computing environments, particularly in cloud computing, high-performance computing (HPC), and real-time systems. Traditional software-based schedulers struggle to efficiently balance workload distribution due to high scheduling overhead, lack of adaptability to dynamic workloads, and suboptimal resource utilization. This research presents a novel FPGA-based accelerator for stochastic online scheduling (SOS), leveraging hardware parallelism to optimize real-time job allocation and reduce scheduling latency. By introducing a hardware-accelerated approach to real-time scheduling, this research establishes a new paradigm for adaptive scheduling mechanisms in computing systems. The FPGA-based SOS accelerator provides a scalable, energy-efficient, and high-performance alternative to software-based scheduling, making it particularly well suited for cloud data centers, AI workloads, and latency-sensitive applications. Future extensions include AI-driven scheduling optimization, multi-FPGA distributed scheduling architectures, and integration with carbon-aware computing frameworks to further enhance efficiency and sustainability
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