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Queerly Writing, Queerly Researching: Using Art-Based Research to Re-Examine my Past and the Imagined Future of Queer Educators
Get PDFThrough my own coming out process, I turned to LGBTQ+ books as mentors and guides on how to live authentically. These texts shaped my time as a middle and high school English teacher, as well as my time as a doctoral student. This article uses excerpts from Caught Between Closets (Panozzo, 2020), a social fiction written as my doctoral dissertation, to explore and highlight the way queer K-12 educators navigate personal and professional closets. These excerpts were written using a reiterative process (writing to research; researching to write) to re-examine personal experiences, empirical research, multimodal texts, and grey literature. This process was used to develop the fictional main character, Reid Gardner, and his journey to self-acceptance as a gay educator in a faith-based school. Writing through an arts-based approach helped me to understand my past experiences, make sense of my present vocation, and imagine an inclusive future for queer educators, like me
Senolytics and PARP Inhibitors Prolong Radiation-Induced Growth Arrest in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer and The Heat Shock Protein Hsp27 Controls Mitochondrial Function by Modulating Ceramide Generation
No full textTriple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the most aggressive form of breast cancer, and accounts for 15% of all breast cancer diagnoses. During cancer treatment, certain populations of cancer cells can become resistant to therapy and persist after treatment ends, resulting in tumor recurrence. Cancer cells can evade death by entering a state of replicative arrest called senescence. Senescent cells promote tumor aggressiveness and further senescence by excreting signals to surrounding cells. Senescent cells are ultimately harmful to the organism and must be eliminated to improve patient outcomes. Senolytics are used to selectively eliminate senescent cells and are in early clinical trials in ageing-related diseases including cancer. A new senolytic strategy called the “two-hit” approach involves purposefully inducing senescence and then treating with a senolytic to eliminate cells that persist after chemotherapy or radiation. One way to induce senescence is by eliminating the cell’s ability to repair DNA damage by using a poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitor (PARPi), which have been shown to enhance the response to radiation in cells that are both repair-deficient and repair-proficient. We used a combination strategy of radiation and the PARPi talazoparib to induce senescence in TNBC cells and followed with the senolytic ABT-263 to kill the senescent cells. We discovered that the combination of radiation and talazoparib is a potent inducer of growth arrest and senescence. However, ABT-263 did not improve upon the combination of radiation with talazoparib. In the clinical treatment of cancer, treatments are given repeatedly over multiple weeks, and not all at once, so we replicated that setting by repeating our treatments in a double-dose strategy. The double-dose of radiation with talazoparib produced a pronounced growth arrest compared to cells only treated once, and was accompanied by increased senescence measured by X-gal. The inclusion of ABT-263 with radiation and talazoparib revealed it is effective in the double-dose system. Even though we observe prolonged growth arrest in our double-dose system, the cells still recover if allowed to persist after the termination of treatment. Our findings suggest that an effective treatment for TNBC is the combination of talazoparib and radiation
VCU Choirs, video disc two
Get PDFvideo disc two of twoVCU Choirs presetBelonging: A Choral Celebrationof Communitywith guest choirs from Alexandria City High SchoolWednesday, April 9, 2025 at 7:00 p.m.Sonia Vlahcevic Concert HallW. E. Singleton Center for the Performing Arts922 Park Avenue | Richmond, Virgini
Senior Recital, Ameer Yaqoob, trombone and trumpet
Get PDFSenior RecitalAmeer Yaqoob, trombone and trumpetwith Kevin Granados-Alvarado, tenor saxophone; Sam Colaccino, trumpet;Danny Dupes, trombone; Nick Waddell, bass; April Freeman, drum set; and Minjee Jang, pianoFriday, April 4, 2025 at 8:00 p.m.Sonia Vlahcevic Concert HallW.E. Singleton Center for the Performing Arts922 Park Avenue | Richmond, VirginiaThe presentation of this senior recital will fulfill in part the requirements for the Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz Studies. Ameer Yaqoob studies with Shannon Gunn and Dr. Taylor Barnett
Senior Recital, Nat Scida, flute
Get PDFSenior RecitalNat Scida, fluteDaniel Stipe, pianoSaturday, April 12, 2025 at 3:00 p.m.Sonia Vlahcevic Concert HallW.E. Singleton Center for the Performing Arts922 Park Avenue | Richmond, VirginiaThe presentation of this senior recital will fulfill in part the requirements for the Bachelor of Music degree in Performance. Nat Scida studies flute with Dr. Tabatha Easley
Development of Novel Nalfurafine Analogues as Kappa Opioid Receptor Agonists for Pain Management and Multiple Sclerosis
No full textThe kappa opioid receptor (KOR) has emerged as a promising therapeutic target for the development of novel analgesics and pharmacotherapies for multiple sclerosis (MS). Preclinical studies have demonstrated that KOR activation elicits robust antinociceptive effects and promotes oligodendrocyte-mediated remyelination. Nalfurafine (NFU), a potent KOR agonist approved in Japan for the treatment of pruritus, has shown favorable efficacy in preclinical models of both pain and MS. However, its analgesic benefits are often accompanied by sedation, limiting its therapeutic use.
This dissertation investigates the structure-activity relationship of NFU to develop novel KOR agonists that maintain therapeutic efficacy while minimizing adverse effects. A library of twenty-four novel analogues was rationally designed, synthesized, and evaluated. Radioligand binding assays determined binding affinities and selectivity while [35S]GTPγS assays characterized functional activities at the KOR, MOR, and DOR. β-arrestin recruitment assays were employed at the KOR to assess signaling bias.
Pharmacological evaluations in mice included the tail-flick thermal nociception assay and the acetic acid-induced writhing assay to assess efficacy in inflammatory pain. Selected analogues were tested in preclinical models of MS. RT-PCR and immunocytochemistry were used to evaluate remyelination-associated biomarkers in vitro, and the most promising compound was assessed using the experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis model in mice.
To elucidate receptor ligand interactions, molecular docking and MD simulations were performed for three compounds at the KOR and MOR, revealing key conformational changes.
Collectively, this work provides mechanistic insights and identifies novel KOR agonists with therapeutic potential for treating pain and MS
Neural Network-Enhanced High-Speed Atomic Force Microscopy: Eliminating Pre-Processing for Robust DNA Molecule Detection in Nanoscience
No full textThe high-speed atomic force microscope (HSAFM) has been shown to be a suitable alternative to next generation sequencing and clinical assays for the detection of genetic mutations leading to disease. This method relies on the accurate measurement of DNA molecules, which are only 2.5 nm in diameter; therefore, image quality is imperative. Current image processing algorithms, although effective, require expert supervision and lack accuracy. Due to large datasets, these algorithms are also computationally expensive. Machine learning has been shown to be an excellent identification tool that can handle large datasets while being fast and efficient once trained.
This thesis proposes the use of deep learning convolutional neural networks as alternative methods to traditional image processing algorithms and object detection for use with images produced with the HSAFM. There are three distinctive neural networks included in the architecture, each with a specific task: eliminate noise frames, process the image, detect the object. This architecture can continue to be investigated, leading to more accuracy, efficiency, and robustness
0-D MODELLING AND COMPUTATIONAL FLUID DYNAMICS SIMULATIONS TO OPTIMIZE HIGH-PRANDTL NUMBER FLUID HEAT TRANSFER IMPACTS
No full textEnergy independence and security is important for developing energy production methods that are not impacted by external conditions and with minimal downsides. To this end, new energy technologies are being developed, such as high-Prandtl number fluids, to improve the thermal efficiencies of developing technologies. Modern developing energy systems of interest include solar, nuclear, and fusion power and each have proposed integra- tion with technologies where thermal hydraulic investigations are fundamentally needed. Thermal energy storage is heavily impacted by thermal hydraulics which form the core of effective and efficient storage of heated fluids through thermal stratification and thermo- cline development. Additionally, similar thermal hydraulic scenarios are encountered in medical isotope production targets used in cyclotron facilities. With these technologies there are gaps in performance of systems that use high-Prandtl number fluids such as water, mineral oils, and molten salts. For this work, there are three aims focused on heat transfer enhancements in molten salt heat exchangers, molten salt thermal energy storage and optimizing target design for medical isotope production. To address the first aim, heat exchangers were the primary focus of improvement which was addressed through heat transfer enhancements which aim to increase heat transfer while minimizing pressure drop performance impact. Specifically, the thermal performance study of heat transfer enhancements using internally grooved helical ribs, known as rifled tubes was done using Computational Fluid Dynamics for relevant prototypical conditions. The second aim is focused on studying the performance of sensible thermal energy storage using molten salts for thermal stratification and thermocline development. Specifically, the effects of the injection nozzle angle and location was studied. For the third aim, the production of the medical isotope, 211-At, through irradiating Bismuth metal at increased energy levels using thermal hydraulically optimized targets is focused. In this aim, we used conjugate heat transfer methodologies such as 0-dimensional models as well as single- and multi-objective optimization schemes to elucidate the design space. The sum contribution of these three aims will focus on thermal-hydraulic computational fluid dynamics simulations to improve understanding of high-Prandtl number fluids and their behaviors
Improving Dental Hygiene Students\u27 Knowledge, Attitudes, and Confidence Toward Prenatal Oral Health Through Experiential Learning
Get PDFPurpose Maintaining optimal oral health is essential for maternal health as well as the health of their child. The purpose of this pilot study was to examine dental hygiene (DH) students\u27 knowledge of prenatal oral health before and after receiving an asynchronous prenatal oral health care training (POHCT), and their attitudes and self-perceived confidence before and after receiving an experiential learning opportunity with a pregnant and/or post-partum client at a Women\u27s Infants and Children nutrition program (WIC) clinic.
Methods A one-group pre/post-test design was used. This IRB-approved study (#2027439-4) utilized a convenience sample of DH student participants (n=37) in their final year of a baccalaureate program at a public institution located in the southeastern United States. The POHCT program and pre/post surveys were completed in a learning management system. During the WIC rotation, participants assessed the presence of a dental home and oral health needs of the client. The validated Prenatal Oral Health Surveys 2015 and 2016:v0/v2, respectively, were used to measure knowledge, attitudes, confidence, and willingness related to practices for pregnant patients; additionally, demographic and program experience questions were included. Some statements were adapted to align with the POHCT and WIC rotation utilized in this study. All the statistical analyses were performed in the R statistical software and p≤0.05 was set for significance.
Results A total of 34 participants (91.9%) completed the POHCT program and pre/post. In general, participants gained knowledge and confidence from the POHCT and WIC rotation. Overall, confidence in discussing proper infant feeding practices increased post-training (p\u3c 0.001) and there was a marginal increase in knowledge about fluoride safety during pregnancy (p=0.06) but was not statistically significant. Participants reported that the POHCT and WIC rotation were valuable to their clinical education and would recommend continuing the experience for future DH students.
Conclusion The POHCT and WIC rotation was successful in improving DH students\u27 knowledge of pregnancy-related oral health topics and provided them with the opportunity and experience to practice learned skills