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Examining how self-compassion moderates the relationship between perfectionism and mental health
Full text linkAt present, post-secondary students are much more likely to experience anxiety or depression in comparison to other populations, but they may be especially at risk if they are also high in perfectionism. Past research demonstrates that higher perfectionism is associated with increased depression, anxiety, and stress. However, some research suggests that self-compassion may moderate these relationships. Therefore, the purpose of the present study was to examine the impact of self-compassion on the relationship between perfectionism and mental health. One hundred and seventy-five undergraduates (71.6% women) completed an online survey which included measures of self-compassion, perfectionism, and mental health. Results provided mixed support for the hypotheses. First, consistent with past research, analyses illustrated that self-compassion was associated with less depression, anxiety, and stress. Second, increased perfectionism was associated with increased depression, anxiety, and stress. Contrary to expectations, the relationship between perfectionism and mental health was the same regardless of self-compassion levels. Given the limitations of the current study, future research should continue to examine these relationships using different measures. Importantly, results corroborate past research which shows the potential for self-compassion in alleviating mental health concerns in students
Investigating methods to knock out a novel G-protein coupled receptor, GPR52, for the non-nutritive sweetener sucralose
Full text linkThe effects of non-nutritive sweeteners are a disputed topic and have been linked to the disruption of signal transduction pathways, metabolic function, and physiological processes.
Previous studies found that the sucralose molecule has a binding affinity for the G-coupled protein receptor, GPR52. Genetic modification using RNAi can be accomplished in relevant
mammalian cells through lentiviral-shRNA delivery methods. The aim of this study was to develop and validate research tools to knockout the novel G-protein coupled receptor, GPR52.
Plasmid DNA was purified and validated from transformed E. coli cultures. HEK293 T17 cells were transfected with lentivirus derived plasmid DNA and optimized accordingly, in an attempt
to obtain replication incompetent virus expressing GFP. GFP expressing lentivirus was then used to infect healthy HEK293T17 cells followed by the quantification of the viral titre measuring
percent transfection and transduction efficiency by counting cells. Upon facing challenges during plasmid preparation, the modifications implemented made for drastic change in both culture
growth and plasmid purification and validation. Upon lentiviral transfection optimization, transfection efficiency in the pGIPZ-mGPR52-shRNA treated cells increased in not only % transfection efficiency but was found to be above 30% in the final transfection optimization trial. Similarly, we can see positive results upon optimization in both transfection efficiency and transduction progress. The validation of this genetic modification approach will allow for the development of new receptor-specific research tools and may provide insights on the function of GPR52 upon sucralose activation
Examination of oil structural motifs and temperature in promoting reversible self-assembly of gold nanoparticle Langmuir films
Full text linkThe interaction between alkanethiol-capped gold nanoparticles with other components and phases has important consequences on their use in materials and devices, as well as their fate in the environment or at biological interfaces. Previously we determined that long oil chain lengths and lower temperatures optimized the mixing of n-alkanes with alkanethiol-capped gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) which improved nanoparticle self-assembly into superlattices at aqueous interfaces. In this study, a variety of liquid phase hydrocarbon oils with structural and functional variations were surveyed for their mixing efficacy and propensity to enable reversible selfassembly of nanoparticle domains. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images and pressure vs. area isotherms across this series reveal isotherm features that distinguish between the mixing and inclusion of the oil at the interface and that which enables reversible self-assembly. Structural and functional characteristics of the oil for promoting reversible self-assembly are identified which surpass the importance of chain length previously described. Temperatures below the ligand order-disorder transition were found to improve the reversibility of AuNP domains and are understood by application of a reparametrized x-DLVO model.This document is the Accepted Manuscript version of a Published Work that appeared in final form in Langmuir, copyright © 2022 American Chemical Society after peer review and technical editing by the publisher. To access the final edited and published work see https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.1c0253
The effect of taurine depletion on the cardiovascular system in Salvelinus fontinalis (brook trout)
Full text linkTaurine is a naturally existing β-amino acid found in high concentration in vertebrate cardiomyocytes and contributes to a diversity of cardioregulatory functions. Taurine fluctuations in mammals are quite uncommon because of the absence of osmotic challenges. Contrastingly, fish experience these osmotic imbalances and taurine’s ability to regulate cell volume may play an essential role in these species. Efficient cardiac cycling is essential to the growth and survival of a species in stress and non-stress environments. A decline in intracellular taurine levels has been associated with a decline in the cardiac muscle’s ability to maintain normal function under hypoxia-induced stress. Although poorly understood in teleosts, taurine has been identified as an essential amino acid in mediating Ca2+handling, reducing oxidative stress and acting as an osmoregulator. The main goal of this study is to determine the effects of taurine depletion on the cardiovascular system in brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis).
We addressed this gap in knowledge by creating two experimental groups, one fed with a 5% β-alanine supplemented feed to inhibit intracellular taurine concentrations and a control fed group. These groups were further analyzed under control and hypoxic conditions. Utilizing an invitro perfused heart preparation, we saw that cardiac function was significantly impaired. Taurine deficient (TD) hearts had significantly lower power outputs whereas there were no significant differences in cardiac output, stroke volume or muscle contractility in TD hearts under oxygenation indicating that heart function was unaffected under optimal conditions. Although in TD hearts we observed significant decreases in cardiac output, stoke volume and power output under hypoxia and even reoxygenation. Taurine deficiency had no direct effects on muscle contractility but was significantly affected by hypoxia and reoxygenation. Previous studies have shown that cardiac taurine deficiency reduced sarcoplasmic reticular Ca2+-ATPase activity affecting contractility in mammals and this effect translates in our brook trout model.
Oxidative stress was significantly decreased in TD hearts compared to the control hearts under both oxygenation and hypoxic reoxygenation. Previous studies that show mitochondrial uncoupling in TD hearts in brook trout may provide the basis to understand this proposed antioxidant effect of taurine deficiency. Intracellular taurine is clearly important to support cardiac performance and stress tolerance in fish. The OCLTT hypothesis suggests that cardiac performance determines upper stress tolerance limits in fish. With the current threat of climate change, taurine supplementation may protect heart function and promote survival
Meritocracy beliefs and psychological wellbeing of university students
Full text linkMeritocracy beliefs describe the amount of emphasis we place on work ethic and our perspectives surrounding economic mobility. The current study adds to the limited literature focusing on the connection between ideology, economic variables, and psychological wellbeing. The current study hypothesized that meritocracy beliefs would be significantly correlated to wellbeing, and that financial stress would moderate this relationship. This study used a sample of 207 undergraduate student, taking part in an online questionnaire. Results showed that while meritocracy beliefs are significantly correlated with aspects of wellbeing, financial stress had a stronger correlation across the board. Furthermore, financial stress served as a significant predictor, independent of its influence on meritocracy beliefs. These results show that further work must be done to operationalize meritocracy beliefs, as well as expanding research to a more heterogenous sample. Additionally, this work contributes to evidence arguing the impact of financial stress within university environments, and advocates for the expansion of support and resources for students
The scope and efficacy of the International Criminal Court: A critical analysis of the ICC approach to judicial and cultural competencies
Full text link(Chapter 1)
The International Criminal Court (ICC) was ratified by a coalition of global powers in 1989, and its jurisdiction was later ratified in 2002 by the Rome Statute.3 The lofty vision of the ICC has focussed on a brand of justice that holds those who have committed the worst atrocities known to man accountable for their actions in an imprisonment setting in The Hague, Netherlands.4 This conceptualization of a globalized justice system stems from a collectively held ideology that there is a framework in place
for this type of justice; one that is to some extent supposed to be restorative. The ICC champions that it is for the benefit of all nations against the horrors that have been committed in the last century. This thesis aims to look at the intended efficacy of the ICC; how and why nations use the ICC to their advantage; the argument of how the ICC can be used as an extension of the security systems built and funded by the Global North in an act of neo-colonial paternalism; and how the ICC is being used as a modern political tool in the cases that it chooses to prosecute.
The ICC will be explored through a critical analysis lens that prioritizes restorative justice mechanisms that are practiced and welcomed, and seen continuously to fruition by those who have directly experienced the violence that the ICC contents to resolve. In so far, the ICC has brought forward seventeen cases to trail, with a now dwindling membership of 123 countries as signatories to the functioning international legal recourse clause that is the Rome Statute.5 As argued by Hillebrecht in Who Pursues the Perpetrators? State Cooperation with the ICC, the scope, mechanisms, and efficacy of this international court is used as that of an “international legal lasso.”6 This means that instead of directly serving the needs, wants, and systems of justice as wanted by the survivors of the most horrific acts known to humankind, the ICC is operating under the disposition, needs, and wants, of western conceptualizations of justice and neo-colonial paternalist practices.7
The following three chapters will appear in this order: Theoretical Approaches to International Justice; Mechanisms and Critical Analysis of the ICC; Case Studies - Uganda and Sudan. Theoretical Approaches to International Justice provides a foundational understanding of a series of political, judicial, and socio-economic epistemologies grounded in decolonial texts and contexts. This will allow the reader to have an solid understanding of the critiques that will be used throughout the thesis to demonstrate where the ICC, as an institution that aims to restore justice and peace, fails to do either. Mechanisms and Critical Analysis of the ICC will be an exploration, as stated directly in the title takes the critiques of the international judicial system as it stands currently, and applies this to the function and judicial mechanisms of the ICC as they directly interact with the global stage. Through this chapter, there will be an exploration into the conceptualization of the Court and the Rome Statute along with an analysis of the relationship, or rather, lack thereof, between the International Criminal Court and the United States of America. Finally, the analysis will demonstrate the critiques of the ICC through an analysis of two cases called to the court, Uganda and Sudan, by analysing them through the methodologies and concepts discussed in the
previous two chapters along with a summarizing paragraph in order to solidify a grounded understanding of the critiques and analysis presented on the scope and efficacy of the International Criminal Court
The investigation of methylation status in relation to the presence of Borrelia burgdorferi in Ixodes scapularis (black-legged tick)
Full text linkTicks, arthropod carriers of Borrelia burgdorferi, and other bacterial, viral, and protozoan pathogens are largely responsible for the spread of Lyme disease. The increasing prevalence of Lyme disease globally has led to further research into the mechanisms and causes of the disease and the spread of infection. Underlying mechanisms of behavioral and physical modifications of ticks, specifically Ixodes scapularis that result in increased survival due to the tick infection status are not fully understood. The bacterium Anaplasma phagocytophilum is recognized to alter the physiology of ticks through epigenetics mechanisms; similarly, we postulated that changes in DNA methylation may also result from the interaction of Ixodes scapularis and Borrelia burgdorferi. This study seeks to determine if the methylation status in tandem repeat regions Ixodes scapularis repeats (ISRs) differs between Borrelia burgdorferi infected and uninfected Ixodes scapularis ticks. DNA was extracted from female Ixodes scapularis ticks, both infected and not, as verified by nested PCR and used for Methylated-DNA immunoprecipitation followed by quantitative PCR.Primers were designed to target ISR regions 1-3. The results suggest that there are no differences in methylated DNA between infection statuses, however, the amount of methylated DNA does differ between ISR primer regions. This study provides a basis for future epigenetic studies on the epigenetic interactions between pathogens and possible phenotypic changes in their arthropod vectors
Effects of acute and chronic hypoxia on mitochondrial ros production and respiration in brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis)
No full textMolecular oxygen is vital for all aerobic life. Environmental hypoxia is increasing due to natural and anthropogenic factors causing aquatic environments to vary substantially in the amount of dissolved oxygen. This decrease in oxygen is only projected to become more severe and persist for longer periods of time leading to major oxygen-limiting challenges for aerobic aquatic organisms. Low-environmental oxygen has direct effect on mitochondrial function and is known to trigger reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. There are few studies which examine the effects of prolonged hypoxia exposure in fish, but they suggest hypoxia duration may influence mitochondrial physiology. To understand the long-term exposure effects of hypoxia on mitochondrial physiology, brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis), a hypoxia sensitive species, were exposed to acute (24 hour) and chronic (7 days) hypoxia. Following exposure, we
isolated mitochondria to examine oxygen consumption and ROS production rates in nonphosphorylating and phosphorylating respiration states. We found no changes in mitochondrial respiration in either phosphorylating or non-phosphorylating states across any exposure groups. However, we found an increase in the rate of ROS production following acute hypoxia but not after exposure to chronic hypoxia. The results suggest that this severity/duration of hypoxia in combination with starvation brook trout appear to be able to acclimate to longer periods of hypoxia where they can limit mitochondrial ROS production and maintain respiration
Using fossil chironomids to investigate dissolved oxygen in New Brunswick lakes experiencing algal blooms
Full text linkLake eutrophication often results from an increase in anthropogenic activities and poses a serious threat to the function and structure of lake ecosystems. In particular, algal blooms are increasing in frequency in low-nutrient lakes that would otherwise not be expected to experience signs of eutrophication. As algal-derived organic matter sinks in the water column, bacteria consumption uses a large amount of dissolved oxygen (DO). When DO levels become low in a lake’s hypolimnion, hypoxia can occur, threatening lake health. In this study, 20 low-nutrient New Brunswick lakes were examined for environmental changes using the paleolimnological approach of comparing the relative abundances of invertebrate taxa (chironomids) from “top and bottom” sediment intervals. Lakes were grouped into bloom and reference categories for comparison of measures of water quality and invertebrate bioindicators. Most water quality measures did not differ between categories. Assemblages indicated that there were ecological changes between top and bottom samples of several individual lakes as opposed to consistent differences in assemblage composition between bloom and reference categories. Findings indicate the importance of both direct and indirect monitoring of low-nutrient New Brunswick lakes
Reevaluating the holographic light-front Meson wave function using longitudinal dynamics obtained from the 't Hooft equation
Full text linkThe goal of this work is to investigate the effects of using a solution derived from the ’t Hooft equation as the longitudinal mode for the light-front meson wave function in holographic Quantum Chromodynamics (hQCD). We calculate observables such as the mass spectra, decay constants, and charge radii for several mesons. We attempt to incorporate dynamical spin effects into our results, as this has led to better agreement with observation for the decay constant and charge radius in previous works. We also compare the parton distribution functions obtained through this approach to results obtained by Brodsky and de Téramond, who use a different approach. Some differences between the methods employed to calculate Transition Form Factors (TFFs) using these new dynamics and Light Cone Sum Rules (LCSR) are noted, but the results obtained in this investigation are preliminary. Finally, we find that this approach produces a mass spectrum that agrees well with observation for numerous pseudoscalar mesons, but predicts nonphysical answers for certain observables upon inclusion of spin structure.