Carolyn Wilson Digital Collections (Lipscomb Univ.)
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Exploring Mental Health and Spirituality
No full textThis proposed literature review aims to explore the current literature regarding the relationship between the presence or absence of a supportive Christian religious community and its impact on the mental health of individuals with mental health disorders. Many mental health professionals now view mental illness from a biopsychosocial model, but the field still lacks a common ground on the role of spirituality for individuals experiencing mental health issues. The current research has hypothesized that the presence of a supportive religious community may have a significant effect on the mental health outcomes of individuals with mental health issues. The findings are expected to provide valuable insights that can help religious communities better understand their potential role in supporting the mental well-being of their young adult population
Understanding Urban Homelessness: A Comparative Analysis of NYC, LA, and Seattle
No full textHomelessness remains a persistent crisis in America’s largest and most diverse cities, despite differences in housing strategies, policy, and economic conditions. This research examines why major U.S. cities continue to experience high levels of homelessness by analyzing New York City, Los Angeles, and Seattle—three cities that consistently rank among the highest in homeless populations. According to USA Facts (2024), these cities account for roughly 33.5% of the nation’s homeless population, underscoring the urgency of this issue.
This study investigates factors contributing to the differences in homelessness rates among these cities, including housing affordability, policy effectiveness, and social services and resources. The economic and health burdens of homelessness make this research highly relevant. The National Alliance to End Homelessness (2025) found that chronic health conditions are up to six times more prevalent among the homeless, with associated costs reaching around 1.3 billion to homelessness initiatives in 2024, while New York and Seattle increased their budgets to 7 million, respectively.
This research explores the long-term consequences of homelessness, such as intergenerational poverty, and evaluates policy solutions that could reduce homelessness nationwide. By identifying effective and ineffective strategies, this study aims to inform policymakers and contribute to broader efforts to address urban homelessness
Impact of ZAR1L Expression on Drug Response in Breast Cancer Cells
No full textBreast cancer (BC) is the most common cancer in women worldwide and the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths among females. BC arises from the uncontrolled proliferation of breast epithelial cells. A crucial gene associated with BC is the Breast Cancer Susceptibility Gene 2 (BRCA2), a tumor suppressor that aids in DNA repair. Proper BRCA2 function helps prevent BC. Our lab studied the cell cycle-dependent expression of BRCA2 revealing that its promoter exhibits bi-directional activity. During cell division, forward activity transcribes BRCA2, while in the resting phase, reverse activity transcribes ZAR2 (Zygote Arrest 1 Like). ZAR2, an RNA-binding protein with C4 zinc fingers, localizes to P-bodies, stress granules (SG), and paraspeckles, regulating RNA turnover. We found that BC cells with high ZAR2 levels exhibit greater stress tolerance and higher IC50 values for chemotherapy agents, including cisplatin, doxorubicin, and carboplatin. Thus, we hypothesize that ZAR2 overexpression in BC cells enhances chemotherapy resistance. To test this, we cloned ZAR2 into the pCMV-3XFLAG vector and transfected it into MDA-MB-231 and BT549 BC cell lines. We confirmed overexpression via Western blotting and immunofluorescence. Following ZAR2 manipulation, cells were then treated with doxorubicin and carboplatin, and viability was assessed using the PrestoBlue assay. Our results showed that ZAR2 overexpression reduced BC cell growth but increased survival under chemotherapy. Additionally, ZAR2 co-localizes with the stress granule marker G3BP1, suggesting a role in stress tolerance. These findings indicate that ZAR2, through stress granules, may contribute to chemotherapy resistance in BC
Neurofeedback: An Emerging Contender in the Treatment of Mental and Behavioral Disorders
No full textNeurofeedback, an emerging treatment for mental and behavioral disorders, has shown promising results as a holistic alternative to traditional therapy and medication. This treatment was discovered in the 1950s by using an electroencephalography (EEG) device to train people to achieve an alpha state using the reward of a bell sound. Currently, the basis of neurofeedback is using an EEG device that is connected to a video, such as television, to receive positive or negative feedback, corresponding to beneficial or non-beneficial brain activity. After 3-4 weeks of the video dimming in response to non- beneficial brain activity, your brain starts to make new connections and rewire to have less disordered thinking. Neurofeedback aims to strengthen the connection between the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex and amygdala and to decrease the amount of arousal-based beta brain waves, both of which are connected to anxiety. With depression, neurofeedback aims to decrease the imbalance in the brain’s frontal lobes. Lastly, neurofeedback aims to correct the ratio of theta-to-beta brain waves that ADHD is characteristic of. After thirty neurofeedback sessions, 57% of people with anxiety, 45% with depression, and 60% with ADHD reported symptom improvement. Therefore, because of the non- invasive properties of neurofeedback when compared to pharmacological interventions, this treatment is an emerging contender in the reversal of the mental and behavioral disorders that are so common in our society today
The Creation and Continuation of the Elvish Language
No full textJ.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, published in the 1950s, stands apart for its use of Constructed Languages. Tolkien graduated from Oxford University and pursued a career as a professor of philology and linguistics. Tolkien loved using his linguistic expertise to create realistic cultures and communities within his fantasy worlds. One of Lord of the Rings most famous Constructed Languages is Elvish. Tolkien’s inspiration for the sound of Elvish with Welsh and Finnish as both languages are highly phonetic. Welsh inspired the stress syllables, while Finnish influenced Elvish’s sound and writing. Since Tolkien’s death in 1973, the Tolkien estate has limited access to most documents and notes on Elvish. The Tolkien estate’s stance has sparked a fan-led obsession with learning and deciphering the Elvish language. Despite minimal public access to Tolkien’s notes, interest in and study of Elvish persist. There are no first-generation speakers of the Elvish language. Elvish’s longevity relies on readers of Tolkien’s novels, who have remained fascinated with the language for over 70 years
Emodepside Exposure to Larval Stage One and Four C. elegans is Associated with Dose Dependent Motility Deficits and Increased Mortality Rates
No full textAbstract
It is estimated that nearly 1.5 billion people worldwide are infected with at least one species of intestinal parasite: whipworm, hookworm, or roundworm (Weaver et al). Emodepside is a drug in veterinary use that is used to deworm intestinal parasitic nematodes. Emodepside binds to presynaptic lactrophillin receptors in nematodes paralyzing the pharynx and other somatic musculature (Harder et al). In a recent study, patients that used Emodepside to treat hookworm had a 95% cure rate after taking 30mg (Mrimi et al). C. elegans, a free living nematode, is cost-effective and has been shown to be a powerful model organism for anthelmintic study, as they are in the same phylum as the parasitic worms (Weaver et al). We have examined the effects that different concentrations of Emodepside have on larval stage one and four C. elegans and observed motility and death rates of the worms over a seven day period by scoring them with a health score scale ranging from 0-3. Results showed C. elegans treated with emodepside on average had a significant decrease in motility compared to the control group
Embers of Hesitation
No full textAlexandro Salas-Rosales’ collection Embers of Hesitation explores the rise and fall of a person who wants to change the world. The speaker begins with little to no motivation, and evolves a passion for both justice and love. Throughout the collection, the speaker grows more ambitious about the possibilities of a new love and a more optimistic tomorrow, even while they can be disgusted by the indifference of their peers. The speaker’s unchecked ambition grows and solidifies the connection between self isolation and mental illness. In Embers of Hesitation, Salas-Rosales follows the speaker’s trajectory from disengaged observer to zealot
Effects of Vacuum-Assisted Venous Drainage in Cardiopulmonary Bypass: A Scoping Review
Get PDFIntroduction: The use of Vacuum-assisted Venous Drainage (VAVD) in cardiopulmonary bypass is a standard in many perfusion practices. This scoping review targets the need for all positive and negative effects to be accounted for when using VAVD. A well thought out scoping review is the basis for additional research like a systematic review to be assembled. The goal of this scoping review is to encompass this topic to the best of its ability and supply relevant data in this field.
Methods: This scoping review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). The databases were searched from January 1, 2000, to January 1, 2025. Seventeen articles and one grey literature article were derived and labeled as observational studies directly related to the use of VAVD on cardiopulmonary bypass.
Results: All relevant literature presented in this scoping review either highlights a positive or negative effect of VAVD and its use in cardiopulmonary bypass. Two articles found a difference in the overall flow to the patient. Three articles found no evidence in hemodilution being a factor with VAVD. Although, two articles found evidence of hemodilution when certain levels of negative pressure were reached while using VAVD. Three articles found no evidence suggesting that VAVD creates more micro air embolism. Two articles found evidence suggesting less need for blood products while using VAVD.
Conclusion: This scoping review highlights the need for additional studies that encompass the possibility of all positive and negative effects that come with the use of VAVD on cardiopulmonary bypass
Shifting Social Identities in the Iron IIA: A Household Perspective from Tel Gezer
Get PDFRecent archaeological excavations have gathered a significant amount of data from which to view the regionality that still existed in the Jezreel Valley, the Yarkon Basin and at several Shephelah sites in the Iron Age IIA as a continuation of what has been termed “Canaanite enclaves” from the previous period. It had previously been assumed that Canaanite social traditions had diminished by the 10th century B.C. or had fallen by the wayside due to new economic and political systems from emerging states in the southern Levant. Tel Gezer, a once powerful Canaanite stronghold, was a city on the edge of the ever-expanding central power during the early Iron Age IIA. With the resurrection of the refortified Tel Gezer on the border of emerging states in the southern Levant it would become a target of outside aggression resulting in several upheavals in its occupational history from the 10th to 8th centuries B.C.
One of goals of the recent Tel Gezer Excavation Project was to further expose the Iron Age occupation horizon, and a surprising result came in the late 10th century Stratum 7 with the appearance of several non-elite domestic structures above the destroyed monumental public building of Stratum 8. Unit D at Tel Gezer is the best preserved from the domestic structures. With its abrupt appearance immediately following the monumental Stratum 8, the dwelling was indicative of a change in political and economic stability. However, with the structure’s multiroom floorplan around a small, square courtyard with higher levels of access than a typical FourRoom House, it should be considered an example of the courtyard house or Canaanite household. Similar structures with variations upon this household type have been identified and analyzed at a number of sites where there appeared to be a mixed multitude of cultural expression.
The research presented addresses what appears to be a continuing Canaanite social identity and presence maintained at Tel Gezer as late as the end of the 10th century B.C. based on the Stratum 7 material culture and stratigraphy. The preliminary results of the Stratum 7 ceramic assemblage study has been included. The assemblage points to longevity of local ceramic forms present within Stratum 7 alongside coastal and northern valleys traditions dated to the late 10th century B.C. The preliminary results of a ceramic typology of the Stratum 7 assemblage and its regional connections, a short survey of sites with regional connections to Tel Gezer, and an activity area analysis of the Stratum 7 domestic structure, Unit D, will be presented as evidence of a social identity which differed from the preceding occupation and the one which followed it. Furthermore, it is necessary to clarify how the Stratum 7 material is integrated at Tel Gezer between two public building phases and the possible political and historical reconstructions that may aid in interpretation. This household study will attempt to document the interactions between public and domestic space and the household identity within a border community during the late 10th century B.C
The Impact of Perfusion Techniques on Inflammatory Response During Cardiopulmonary Bypass; A Scoping Review
Get PDFBackground: Cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) is an essential part of cardiac surgery, but it leads to SIRS (systemic inflammatory response syndrome) which in turn increases postoperative complications. There are many proposed approaches to reduce inflammation, but there is no clear best practice on the approach to use. This scoping review aims to explore the literature and classify the studies that investigate the effects of various CPB perfusion techniques on inflammatory responses to determine the possible best practices and the gaps that exist in the literature.
Methods: The present scoping review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis with Scoping Review Extension (PRISMA-ScR) framework. The databases searched include PubMed, MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), and Web of Science for articles published from 2016 to 2025. Out of 1,010 articles that were initially retrieved, only 22 articles were selected after applying inclusion and exclusion criteria. The selected process was part of a scoping review, focusing on mapping the literature. Surgical study designs comprised of retrospective (41%) and prospective (27%) cohort studies, case-control studies (9%), and clinical trials (23%). The most common interventions concerned the use of antifibrinolytics (32%), blood products (23%), pointof-care testing (18%), and changes to bypass circuits and priming solutions (14%).
Results: Miniaturized CPB circuits decreased the level of inflammation and the length of ICU admission. Heparin coated circuits reduced the level of TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-8 and offered better recovery. Although there were some renal and pulmonary improvements in pulsatile perfusion, there was not enough evidence to support them. Corticosteroids and nitric oxide showed moderate effectiveness in this aspect.
Conclusion: Despite these studies presenting promising results, the variations in the study methodology, sample size, and measurement indicators prevent the drawing of concrete conclusions. There is a need for additional high-quality randomized controlled trials for better CPB strategies and fewer inflammation-related complications