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Role of Dopamine in the Modulation of Macrophage-Mediated Inflammation: Implications for the Neuropathogenesis of NeuroHIV and Drug Abuse
No full textDrug abuse is an important comorbidity in HIV infection and has been linked to changes in the development of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND). All drugs of abuse increase extracellular dopamine in the CNS, and data showing correlations between dopaminergic dysfunction and HIV infection of the CNS suggest that inflammation induced by elevated dopamine could enhance the development of HIV-associated neuropathology. However, the precise mechanism(s) by which elevated dopamine could exacerbate the progress of HAND remain unclear. As the primary targets for and responders to HIV in the CNS are myeloid lineage cells, the effects of dopamine on these cells may be a key connection between dopaminergic changes and HIV-associated neuroinflammation. Our data show that dopamine treatment of human macrophages promotes an inflammatory phenotype in these cells by inducing production of the inflammatory mediators IL-1β, IL-6, IL-18, CCL2, CXCL8, CXCL9, and CXCL10. Further, dopamine-mediated modulation of specific cytokines is correlated with macrophage expression of dopamine-receptor transcripts, particularly DRD5, which is expressed at significantly higher levels than other dopamine-receptor subtypes. Mechanistically, these effects are induced, at least in part by dopamine mediated activation of inflammatory pathways, as our data show dopamine activation of the NF-kB pathway is necessary for the increased production of IL-6 and CXCL10. Activation of NF-kB also increases expression of NF-kB modulated genes including NLRP3 and IL-1β that prime the NLRP3 inflammasome complex. Thus, elevated CNS dopamine in the context of HIV and/or drug abuse may potentiate neuroinflammation via the NF-kB pathway. Overall, these data will provide more understanding of the role of dopamine in the development of NeuroHIV, and may suggest new molecules or pathways that can be useful as therapeutic targets during HIV infection.Ph.D., Neuroscience -- Drexel University, 201
Identifying Delays in Care of Clinically Decompensating Patients in the Post-Anesthesia Care Unit: A Gap Analysis to Improve Patient Flow
No full textThe post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) has an average Phase I length of stay goal of 60 minutes. The PACU has not met this goal. The purpose of this study is to identify a gap in care that could affect Phase I time. One gap identified was the time added for patients requiring a STAT order for a decompensating condition. These orders included a STAT chest x-ray, arterial blood gas, hemoglobin & hematocrit draw, or electrocardiogram. Direct observation revealed that up to ten minutes per patient was added by the current workflow. The study was a retrospective review of 74 patient charts of overall Phase I time and whether the patient had a STAT order placed during their PACU stay. The results concluded that the average Phase I time for patients without a STAT order was 74.4 minutes compared to 103.5 minutes for patients with a STAT order placed. This was an increase of 39%. A cost-savings analysis revealed that patients with STAT orders placed had an additional stay cost of 2,800 per month per RN, based on two patients per week required a STAT order. The recommendation from this study is for the organization to create a standing conditional order set for the PACU in the electronic medical record. There is a potential cost-savings of more than $3,000 per month. This could increase patient safety, expedite care, and improve patient throughput in the PACU.M.S.N., Clinical Nurse Leader -- Drexel University, 201
The Impact of Programmatic Advertising on Local Broadcast Television
No full textWith digital predicted to take over 50% of U.S. media ad spending in 2019, it is a crucial time for television to adapt its legacy business models and compete against interactive, data-driven and targetable digital media. One solution that may assist in shifting ad revenue share back to television could be programmatic, the automated buying and selling of advertising inventory. The purpose of the study was to measure the implementation of programmatic television within the local television industry. The study method included semi-structured interviews with five executives from a local television station group, whose collective fields included sales, research and sales operations. Interview data was measured through a coding system that analyzed reoccurring themes and sub-themes. Results defined programmatic television from a local television station group's perspective and showed how broadcast television stations are experimenting with the new sales transaction model. The study also identified specific obstacles from the sell-side of the television advertising ecosystem, including commoditization of inventory, audience measurement deficiencies, technology fees, and lack of integration between vendor systems. Nevertheless, it was revealed that there is optimism in overcoming these challenges and a positive outlook on programmatic television serving a role in the local television advertising industry by automating manual processes and uncovering new revenue streams from non-traditional television advertisers.M.S., Television Management -- Drexel University, 201
Sonic Hedgehog Signaling is Negatively Regulated in Reactive Astrocytes Following Forebrain Stab Injury
No full textFollowing injury, the brain undergoes a multicellular response where both neural and non-neural cell types engage in a collective effort to protect surviving cells, clear cellular debris, and return to tissues homeostasis. Astrocytes, critical neural cells responsible for a variety of functions in the brain, become reactive in response to central nervous system (CNS) injury. Reactive astrocytes undergo a wide spectrum of changes and are characterized by an upregulation of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), cellular hypertrophy, proliferation, and participation in glial scar formation, segregating healthy from damaged tissues. Understanding the molecular mechanisms and signaling pathways that coordinate the diverse functional properties of reactive astrocytes is key to developing therapeutic strategies to treat neural injuries. In the healthy, adult CNS, Sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling is active in mature, differentiated astrocytes. After injury, Shh signaling has been shown to promote various cellular activities, including proliferation of adult neural stem and progenitor cells. Both SHH and its target gene, GLI1 have previously been shown to undergo injury-induced upregulation and promote neural repair, suggesting that Shh signaling may play a role in neural repair processes. Here, we investigated whether Shh signaling mediates the astrocyte responses to a forebrain stab injury. Surprisingly, we found that following an acute, focal injury reactive astrocytes exhibit a pronounced loss of Shh activity in a spatiotemporally-defined manner. Shh signaling is lost in reactive astrocytes at the lesion site, but persists in mild to moderately reactive astrocytes in distal tissues. Nevertheless, local pharmacological activation of the Shh signaling pathway in astrocytes mitigates inflammation, consistent with a neuroprotective role for Shh signaling after injury. Interestingly, we find that Shh signaling is restored to baseline levels two weeks after injury, a time during which acute inflammation has largely subsided, and lesions have matured. Taken together, these data suggest that endogenous Shh signaling in astrocytes is dynamically regulated in a context dependent manner. In addition, exogenous activation of the Shh pathway promotes neuroprotection mediated by reactive astrocytes.Ph.D., Biological Sciences -- Drexel University, 201
The Development of Taiwanese Dance Groups after Attending International Folklore Dance Festivals
No full textThis research illustrates the benefits of attending international folklore dance festivals for six Taiwanese dance groups. Following interviews with the six dance groups, the findings revealed that attending international festivals increased the groups' visibility, motivated groups to hire more international and multilingual staff, and contributed to meaningful changes in their programs. The study further revealed additional, unexpected, findings, including that attendance at international dance festivals also contributed to changes in the dancers' artistic training and the establishment of a new festival. To better understand the groups experiences attending the festivals, the author conducted face to face in-depth interviews with members of each dance group to elicit information including the background of each dance group, their motivation for attending the festivals, and the impact these groups have realized.M.S., Arts Administration -- Drexel University, 201
A Case Study: Exploring Parents' and Teachers' Perceptions of Adaptive Behavior Instruction to Determine Their Contribution to Quality of Life for Students with Complex Disabilities in a Delaware Specialized School
No full textThe purpose of this intrinsic case study was to explore the perceptions of adaptive behavior instruction among educators and family members of students with complex disabilities in a specialized school setting in central Delaware. Participants shared their views on what skills should be taught to this student population or included in a specialized school curriculum. Participant opinions were obtained through semi-structured interviews and a focus group. Students enrolled in specialized school settings in Delaware range in age from 2 to 21 years. Their instruction is based on federal and state practices and regulations. The current educational policies do not call for teaching adaptive behavior, which is important to help individuals with complex disabilities achieve or maintain independence after they leave school. For this population, adaptive behavior skills often make the difference between employment and government assistance. As the community of individuals with disabilities increases, it is appropriate to consider the focus of current policies and procedures as well as the outcomes achieved by public education. The study revealed that although stakeholders viewed academic instruction as necessary within the public-school setting, they also considered instruction in adaptive behavior skills vital to favorable student outcomes. Adaptive behavior education was seen as necessary to help students continued their traditional education while also addressing crucial issues so as to enable positive post-school outcomes. The findings suggest that professional development for educational staff should be increased and that adaptive skills should be included in state policy guidelines.Ed.D., Educational Leadership and Management -- Drexel University, 201
Delaware Parent and Teacher Perceptions of Developmentally Appropriate Technology for Preschoolers
No full textThis study investigated Delaware parent and teacher perceptions of developmentally appropriate technology usage for preschoolers. The study used a non-experimental cross-sectional descriptive design using a researcher-designed, web-based survey instrument. A sample of 300 teachers and 300 parents was invited to participate in the study, which returned 29 completed teacher questionnaires and 18 completed parent questionnaires. The results showed both similarities and differences between the perceptions of parents and teachers. Both groups had concerns about children using technology. Both groups allowed children to utilize technology while they were engaged in work-related tasks, but when children were using technology, about a quarter of parents and a quarter of teachers discussed what was on the screen with children. In general, teachers restricted television and movie watching much more than parents did. Teachers were also less likely to allow children to use technology in their presence than parents were. In conclusion, the results of the study suggest a need for professional development for early childhood teachers to learn about what types of developmentally appropriate practices align with expectations in the state's quality rating improvement system. The results of the study also suggest there is room for improvement in the parent and teacher communication regarding the usage of technology for young children, including what the expectations are for school and home introduction to technology. Additionally, the state could support these gaps by developing state standards related to technology exposure to guide teachers in their instruction of technology in the classroom.Ed.D., Educational Leadership and Management -- Drexel University, 201
Expanding Chemical Pre-Intercalation Synthesis Approach to New Tunable Layered Oxide Electrodes for Energy Storage Applications
No full textEnergy storage has become a more prevalent subject in recent years, as society in general makes a move toward a more fully connected network of life. As such, many veins of research have been investigated to fill this demand for materials and methods. One such vein is the work contained herein. Batteries make much of this advancement - they store energy that electronic devices of all kinds require to function. But the materials that exist and are well known are limited by factors such as elemental abundance and toxicity among others. Investigation into other solutions is imperitive, therefore, in order to meet the growing demand for electrochemical devices, and especially batteries The goal of this research project, therefore, is to first understand of how the variation of a chemical synthesis process called chemical preintercalation, that was developed here at Drexel, in order to understand the structure, properties, and performance of bilayered vanadium oxide. Delta -MgxV2O5 • nH2O (x = 0.01 - 0.37) and delta -TMxV2O5 • nH2O (TM = Mn, Co) were investigated using the chemical preintercalation synthesis approach to improve the electrochemical behavior of bilayered vanadium oxide in both sodium-ion and lithium-ion cells.M.S., Materials Science and Engineering -- Drexel University, 201
Selling and Buying Aspects of Used Products That Are Brand Anthropomorphized
No full textThis dissertation establishes the impact of brand anthropomorphism on used product transactions from both buyers’ and sellers’ perspectives. That is, we show that brand anthropomorphism leads sellers to set higher selling prices for used products and buyers to set lower buying prices. We theorize that these outcomes occur because sellers develop stronger emotional connections toward their brands that persist even after they have decided to end (sell) their relationships with the brand, whereas buyers apply a relationship-dissolution stigma (a pervasive stereotype toward people who dissolved their relationships) toward anthropomorphized used products. We further demonstrate important boundary conditions for these core effects. That is, we show that a seller’s favorable attitude toward the past enhances the positive impact of brand anthropomorphism on selling prices of used products, whereas a buyer’s creative mindset attenuates the negative impact of brand anthropomorphism on buying prices of used products. Finally, we provide critical managerial implications of the impact of anthropomorphizing a brand in the refurbished marketplace.Ph.D., Marketing -- Drexel University, 201
Exploring the Perspectives and Needs of Teachers of Elementary Emotional Support Programs: A Phenomenological Study
No full textThe successes of educational programs are measured by student outcomes. Public educational institutions have generally not produced positive outcomes for students with emotional and behavioral disabilities (EBD) as evidenced by dropout rates, school-to-prison pipeline results, student achievement scores, and percentage of students able to successfully transition to the general education environment or adult independence. Key factors that impact students' growth are teacher preparation, responsive programming, and multiple sources of support. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand the perspectives and needs of elementary public school emotional support teachers with a focus on improving programming and, ultimately, the outcomes for students with EBD in large urban public schools. Semi-structured generative interviews, records and archival data reviews, and digital reflective journaling were the data sources for this study. Results revealed that teachers from this study were in need of technical training support to help them navigate special education processes and paperwork, professional developments relative to behavior science, opportunities to collaborate with teachers of similar programs, smaller classroom and caseload sizes, and support from professionals trained and with experience working with students with EBD. Teachers believed their students would most benefit from increased opportunities to be included in the general education environment, smaller class sizes, and a therapeutic component embedded in their educational program.Ed.D., Educational Leadership and Management -- Drexel University, 201