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Synergy of Bosutinib and Chk-1 Inhibitor (PF) in Chemotherapy
Akhil Kolluri
Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) is a cancer described by uncontrolled proliferation of bone marrow cells that develop into the cells of the blood (Chen, 2014). In this study, the synergy of two drugs, bosutinib and a PF were tested for their efficacy in chemotherapy. Bosutinib is a kinase inhibitor that blocks phosphorylation of key proteins in the cell cycle of CML cells that allow them to proliferate (Boschelli et al., 2010). PF is an inhibitor of the Chk-1 protein that regulates many of the cell cycle checkpoints (Zhang et al., 2009). Two cell lines from CML were used in this experiment, BAF3/T315I and Adult/T315I. Both of these cell lines had the T315I mutation that provides resistance to the common CML chemotherapy drug imatinib (Gleevec). The cultured cells were treated with both bosutinib at 0.3 – 0.4 μM and PF at 1 – 1.2 μM individually as well as simultaneously. Results showed that the combined treatment of bosutinib and PF caused a large increase in cell apoptosis. These results show the possibility of a novel and effective chemotherapy combination for CML.
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Mindfulness Buffers Exclusion-Related Social Distress
Ami A. Kumar
Social rejection is one of the more “painful” experiences humans can endure, affecting long term physical and emotional health (Eisenberger, 2012). Perceiving social rejection can create psychological and social distress (Leary, 2004). A number of studies have sought to understand for whom and under what conditions social rejection would be more, or less impactful. Building on this research, the present study targeted mindfulness—a psychological state that entails receptive attention to one’s present experience (Brown & Ryan, 2003)—as a potential buffer to rejection-induced social distress. Consistent with this, mindfulness is associated with reduced psychological, neuroendocrine and electrophysiological indices of social distress in evocative social situations (see Brown, Ryan, Creswell, & Niemiec, 2008 for review). Study one was a correlational study examining the effects of trait mindfulness on social distress induced by Cyberball (V4.0 Williams, Chung & Choi, 2000). Cyberball is a software-based ball-tossing game, wherein ostensible players are programmed to exclude the participant. Measures of social distress were taken immediately after the exclusion, and two measures of trait mindfulness were associated with decreased social distress following exclusion (Ps < .01). In study two we manipulated mindfulness by randomly assigning participants to listen to a brief mindfulness audio induction (MI) or a control induction (CI). As in study 1, participants were excluded via Cyberball and then filled out self-report measures of social distress. MI participants experienced less social distress, relative to controls, t = 4.632, p < .001. This study speaks to the potential for mindfulness to buffer distress during social rejection.
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Relationship between high school antisocial behavior and the GABRA2 gene as moderated by peer deviance
Sydney Levan
Spit for Science: the VCU Student Survey (S4S) is a university-wide project that aims to understand how genetic and environmental factors come together to influence substance use and emotional health. We investigated the association between GABRA2 and high school antisocial behavior as well as the potential moderating influence of peer deviance. 1,474 undergraduate students from the 2011 S4S cohort were genotyped at 8 SNPs in the GABRA2 gene and individual sum scores for both high school antisocial behavior and high school peers’ deviance were calculated. This study could strengthen known association findings between GABRA2 and related variables in the literature.
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Rap and Fashion
Talia Levinas
The presence of rap culture in fashion demonstrates a trend in marketing, bringing cultural niches into the mainstream. This work examines the transition of rap fashion into popular culture, using hip-hop as a muse for the high-end. Specifically, I look at how rappers are beginning to create their own fashion lines and how high-fashion and urban street style incorporate hip-hop characteristics. Rappers use fashion as a way to show off wealth and success, flaunting designer names and labels in music videos, lyrics, and styling. In turn, high-fashion and street style brands use rap figures as guest designers and samplings of hip-hop statements in looks, blurring the elite fashion industry and urbanized rap culture. In my work I looked at articles on hip-hop fashion and primary sources of rappers in the fashion industry to discover the blend of rap in fashion found in popular culture. I discovered that many rap artists highly value fashion and use their success to create rap-inspired clothing brands, both luxury and streetwear. Further in my research I found that rappers use fashion as a tool to boast their wealth and success. Using ostentatious jewelry and designer labels, rappers publicize their knowledge of elite fashion labels as a representation of their status. Rappers advertise their familiarity with designer fashions in their lyrics and music videos as well as in clothing that broadcasts labels. Fashion has begun to incorporate what is typically viewed as black culture bringing it to the forefront of trends and questioning its appropriation. This transition marks the integral marketing strategies and importance of streetwear’s influence on the high-end styles. The blur in influences shifts fashion’s stereotypically elitist industry to value street style and produce collections that are more relevant to popular culture and minority groups.
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PETA's Objectification of Women
Abir Malik
Over the last few decades, advertisements have objectified and sexualized women as a tactic to attract men into supporting causes and buying products. This research project focuses on the advertisements published by the animal rights group, PETA, People for the Ethical Treatments of Animals, and its deliberate use of degrading images of women to support its cause. PETA advertisements juxtapose barely clad women with animals or animal references, making the viewer see women as animalistic, out of control, and in need of taming or saving. Research shows that the results of such negative advertising tactics are correlated with increased aggression in male viewers, as well as increased acceptance of rape attitudes among men. Sexualized and objectified images take away from the purpose of the animal rights movement, making the audience reluctant to support the cause. Furthermore, these advertisements seriously jeopardize and undermine the women's fight for equality in our culture.
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The Tuskegee Syphilis Study and Other Barriers to African American Participation in AIDS Clinical Trials
Madeleine Mashon
Despite African Americans composing 13% of the US population, they account for 51% of all reported AIDS cases between 1985 and 2002. Yet, due to a variety of sociocultural, structural and economic factors, many African Americans are uneducated about or distrustful of HIV/AIDS research methods and research-related procedures and terms in general. Researchers are struggling to find African Americans for screening and enrollment in AIDS Clinical Trials, which is critical to the development of new antiretroviral medications. “Without adequate representation of racial and ethnic minorities it is difficult to assess the ramifications, if any, of race and gender on HIV treatment regimens” (Cargill and Stone 906). Understanding these barriers to enrollment and developing strategies to combat them are essential to forming more successful minority recruitment methods in HIV/AIDS research. To establish this link, I examined numerous focus group studies, surveys and questionnaires that evaluated the willingness of African American populations to participate in health research and the obstacles impeding their enrollment, as well outlined methods to increase their participation. The studies revealed distrust rooted in the Tuskegee Syphilis Study and other historical events, poor or inadequate knowledge of healthcare procedures and terminology, and other various structural issues as major barriers to minority enrollment. However, although the Tuskegee Syphilis Study has discouraged some African Americans from participating in health, specifically HIV/AIDS-related, research, a combination of other sociocultural factors has played a greater role in their decisions to participate. It is crucial for healthcare professionals to educate minority populations about the benefits and drawbacks of health research, form trusting patient-provider relationships, and provide culturally sensitive recruitment strategies such as peer-driven intervention. Increasing African American participation in AIDS Clinical Trials is the only way to treat these issues, and it is imperative that health professionals take the necessary steps to do so.
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Associations between Cultural Beliefs and Asthma Self-Efficacy in Pediatric Asthma
Crystal McNair
Cultural beliefs about medication effectiveness have been shown to differ by racial and ethnic backgrounds and can contribute to pediatric asthma disparities. Given that child asthma is managed within the family system, the caregiver beliefs about asthma medications may impact a child’s efficacy to manage their asthma. The purpose of this study was to examine associations between caregiver beliefs about asthma medications and child asthma self-efficacy.
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The Electronic Election -- Web 2.0 Technology and Political Campaigns
Kirby Miller
The influence of Web 2.0 technologies has infiltrated the political realm, not only being used by members of each political party, but also in each level of civic engagement. The primary problem this paper assesses is the extent to which American presidential candidates have used Web 2.0 technologies as a political tool and how these technologies will affect the future of political activity. While Web 2.0 technologies have been widely used by candidates in the two recent presidential races, and while they will see an increased use as the millennial generation emerges in the political arena, the effective use of Web 2.0 technologies will be through supplemental use with traditional political tools and specified use among each form of Web 2.0 technology. The study looked at one article that analyzed data from the 2000 National Annenberg Election Survey, four articles that had a qualitative analysis of the Web 2.0 technologies used by presidential candidates in the 2008 election, an article was included that summarized the findings in a controlled lab experiment that studied young adults’ political use of Web 2.0 technologies, another article was an empirical study of candidate use of Twitter and its effect on candidate salience, and the last article used content analysis and survey research to find a correlation between online political groups and offline political participation. The primary belief is that Web 2.0 technology will be supplemental to traditional political tools. The extent to which they will be used and how they are used is contested among scholars. While some believe that universal, undifferentiated use of Web 2.0 technologies can be an effective political tool, each form of technology must be used differently to maximize political efficiency because each form of Web 2.0 technology melds effectively with a different traditional political tool. Candidate websites and Facebook have been found to enrich fundraising efforts, social media has been found to enhance grassroots campaigning and all Web 2.0 technologies have been found to improve communication and media. These findings show that future political candidates will need to adopt Web 2.0 technologies as a way to enrich their traditional political activities. Campaigns will need to use each Web 2.0 technology differently in the way that will most effectively aid their campaign. Many of these tools will be adopted and controlled by social media directors.
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Counter Measures to Mitigate Cyberstalking Risks: A Value Focused Multiple Criteria Approach
Safoorah Mughal
A value focused multiple-criteria decision making approach is adopted to examine policies, procedures and technologies that can potentially reduce the risks of Cyberstalking. This research also has applicability for the broader field of cybercrime, any illegal action which uses electronic communication or devices or information systems containing the Internet, including identity theft, child abuse, sex crimes against minors, and online financial crimes (Legoze, 2012 p. 4). This research offers an overview of cybercrime and the principal objective is to examine Cyberstalking. Cyberstalking involves a pattern of threatening or aggressive behaviors that utilizes the Internet, email or other electronic correspondence (NCSL, 2013). Cyberstalking has disproportionately affected college students in the United States, yet also has been known to cause for ordinary citizens. This research provides general information about cybercrime and but mainly focuses on the deliberation of Cyberstalking in particular and provides useful guidelines for online users to avoid falling into victim-hood.
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Exposure of Preadolescent Children to Nonnative Accents and its Effect on Linguistic Trajectory
Gretchen Mull
Children and adults are often put presented with accents that are outside their realm of familiarity. The purpose of this study was to examine how exposure of preadolescent children to nonnative accents during their linguistic development increases their linguistic flexibility in adulthood. By examining the processes of speech intake, the stages of linguistic development, and the role of experience versus perception, the research clarifies what elements most significantly alter a listener’s ability to interpret unfamiliar speech and during what periods a person is most developmentally available for a a streamline understanding of nonnative speech. This study challenges the argument that direct exposure is the only way to understand nonnative accents and the argument that all adults have the ability to decipher unfamiliar speech. Through exposure which leads to familiarity and the development of mechanisms to isolate essential and nonessential linguistic information, listeners increase their storage of context and speaker-specific characteristics and ability to navigate nonnative speech.
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Using Metabolic Engineering to Make Cheaper Biofuels
Pooja Nanjannavar
This paper attempts to find if metabolic engineering can be applied to more than one aspect of the biofuel production process and significantly reduce costs enough to make biofuels a viable replacement for petroleum. To explore this possibility, this paper analyzed three meta-analysis reviews on decreasing lignin in plant biomass, one meta-analysis on the prospects of changing the structure of lignin in plant biomass, two meta-analyses suggesting consolidated bioprocessing, and two experimental papers on increasing substrate range and efficiency. Based on these analyses, metabolic engineering can make biofuel production most cost effective by changing the biosynthetic pathways of the actual biomass to make it less lignin dense, to have more biomass, or to change the structure lignin to make it more easily broken down. It can also be achieved by altering the metabolic pathways of yeasts that convert cellulose in biomass to ethanol and other fuel sources. These findings show that it is possible to make lignocellulosic biofuel production less costly, but reveal that the extent of this cost reduction is largely unquantified and must be further researched to identify the viability of implementing these findings.
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Using Classical Music to Increase Productivity in Elementary School Students with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Andrea Nguyen
Currently, physicians use prescription medications to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children known to have low levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine. ADHD children commonly have low adherence to medications used to treat their condition because there is no known dosage to produce the optimal attention span for motivation and focus. The safest method of dopamine production is through natural techniques, which could reduce medication intake and thus side effects. Listening to classical music dominant in consonant sounds has been shown to increase dopamine levels in children with ADHD through the dopamine “reward” pathway in the brain. Because all children exhibit some increase in dopamine while listening to consonance-dominated classical music, educators can introduce this music into the classroom to improve overall academic performance and help treat ADHD children simultaneously. Instructors could rotate music playlists weekly to avoid memorization and monotony. Music could be played in quiet environments when focus is key—not during playtimes or group work. Music treatment is a cost-effective method that—with extant classroom technology—can increase overall focus and work production, proving a worthwhile investment. Physicians should turn to incorporating music in ADHD treatments rather than solely prescribing medications in order to expand the possibilities of discovering more efficient treatment plans. Though consonance dominated classical music is known to increase dopamine, further research should be conducted in order to better define appropriate ADHD treatment plans in the classroom.
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Relationships Taught By Disney Princesses
Alena Nolder
The Disney princess film franchise has become a very popular topic within the last decade where parents and researchers argue that the females and their lives in the films are portrayed in an idealized manor that teach children incorrect standards about life. The research focuses on how the princess industry, which was created and expanded by Disney princess films, is an exponentially growing business that more and more children are being raised on during their prime developmental years. The Disney princess films consist of similar storylines: the princess and evil stepmother having a conflict, the prince sweeping the princess away, and everything ending with a happily ever after. Through this repetition, children pick up concepts, such as waiting for their prince charming or needing to be a perfect, loving princess for a boy, that may work as a reality in the films, but create false ideals in the real world. The research analyzes scholarly articles and personal observations done while working at a preschool to deliberate the affects that Disney princess films have on young girl’s relationships. Specifically on how the films teach girls wrong ideals about relationships with boys and women, and how these films affect the way girls treat each other.
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The Death and Burial Practices of the Berawan
Dorothy O'Boyle
This research paper is about the small tribe of Berawan people, a subgroup of Kenyah, of Borneo, Indonesia. The Berawans live in an egalitarian and agricultural society in the rainforest very similar to the tribes they are derived from. These people have a distinct way of treating their dead that generations of people around the world have been intrigued by. Their treatment of the dead consists of "secondary treatment" or secondary burial of the body where the body is first placed in a clay jar on the corner of their slash-and-burn gardens to decompose into the earth; the second part of the burial occurs when the bones are dry and put into a decorative box/coffin for permanent burial with the ancestors. This poster will go over the death and burial practices and rituals of the Berawan people and briefly compare them to those of neighboring tribes.
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Cultural Factors Associated with Utilization of Antenatal Care Services in Rural India
Anjali Om
Despite vast economic growth in developing countries in the past few years, infant mortality continues to plague underdeveloped regions, particularly rural regions of India. Many of these deaths are caused by a lack of education and motivation in regard to utilization of antenatal and neonatal care services to prevent and treat consequences of unhygienic umbilical cord care.
For years, high incidences of neonatal tetanus have plagued rural areas of India as a result of cultural practices that encourage topical applications of cow dung to cut umbilical stumps either directly or by using ghee heated with cow dung to warm umbilical dressings. In order to increase public awareness of the practical ineffectiveness of tetanus toxoid vaccinations in treating the consequences of unhygienic umbilical cord care, cultural aspects that contribute to mothers’ utilization of antenatal care services in rural India should be identified in order to understand sociological factors that affect neonatal mortality rates in rural India so that intervention efforts may be targeted appropriately to effectively eradicate neonatal tetanus. A variety of sociology and public health articles and journals that outline factors deeply engrained in Indian culture that inhibit mothers from accessing health care services hypothesize why legislations that promote availability of vaccines have proved rather ineffective in reducing mortality rates were reviewed. These sources generally attribute lack of utilization of health care services to predisposing variables (such as age, ethnicity, caste, education level, and occupation), enabling variations (distance to health facility, means of transport), and a lack of perceived need of care.
An analysis of the reasons behind hesitation and reluctance to use antenatal and neonatal care services can help target intervention efforts to appropriately reach at-risk demographic groups. While immunization is understood as effective in treating the immediate effects of unhygienic umbilical cord care, education of young, uneducated and unemployed, lower caste, Hindu women before they get pregnant can encourage use of available health care resources. It is only by understanding embedded cultural factors that policies can be constructed to effectively reduce maternal and neonatal mortality rates in rural India.
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Impacts of Urbanization on Dogwood Population Fitness
Kaitlyn Parkman
The phenomenon of urbanization occurs all over the world. In an attempt to find jobs and financial stability, people move to cities for more opportunities. Threats associated with urbanization can lead to habitat fragmentation and the loss of biodiversity; species can die and cease to exist in a habitat where they once flourished (Newman et al. 2013). It is very important to study the populations of species in the city, because they are a vital part of the ecosystem. We are studying the fitness of dogwood trees located in an urban neighborhood of Richmond, Virginia known as “the Fan.” The fitness of the trees is based on the reproductive output, or seed production. After locating, mapping, and sampling the individuals in the fan, we will use statistical analysis to see if there is a correlation between the reproductive output and the location of the tree within the urban environment. This study will allow us to measure a component of fitness that may be influenced by urban location, and to differentiate possible good and bad conditions for dogwoods within the city. Ultimately, we will gain a better understanding of how to manage our dogwood species, and how to maintain connectivity across the landscape so the dogwood population can flourish.
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Examining Treatment Fidelity in Motivational Interviewing
Akanksha Patel, Alexandra Sova, and Taylor Ihsane-Thomas
Objective: Childhood obesity is a significant health concern, especially in lower income African Americans within the United States. Previous research suggests that programs developed to promote healthy eating and exercise habits have been effective in reducing childhood obesity. One strategy that has been impactful in facilitating those changes is Motivational Interviewing (MI), a brief, patient-centered counseling style used to explore and resolve ambivalence about behavior change. Recent studies have shown that MI has its advantages, such as increasing patients’ sense of control when making healthy choices and promoting overall wellness; however, less research examines treatment fidelity and its impact on program adherence which may limit the interpretation of the results. Treatment fidelity is defined as the methodological strategies used to monitor and enhance the reliability and validity of behavioral intervention. NOURISH+ is a parent-focused intervention for overweight children ages 5-11 years (Nourishing Our Understanding of Role-Modeling to Increase Support and Health: PI: Mazzeo). We are currently implementing an adjunctive, MI-based treatment to investigate if MI can improve treatment adherence and effectiveness of NOURISH+ (NOURISH+MI; PI: Bean). We describe treatment fidelity methods and preliminary feasibility data in the NOURISH+MI trial. Methods: Prior to study onset, raters were trained extensively on use of the MITI 3.1 (Motivational Interviewing Treatment Integrity Code), a validated coding system designed to measure adherence to MI. Satisfactory interrater reliabilities (determined using intraclass correlations; [ICC]) were established prior to study onset. Raters also used the MITI 3.1 to examine MI competency of study interventionists, to indicate readiness to begin treatment. Participants who consent to NOURISH+MI complete two MI sessions prior to the onset of the group-based treatment. Session 1 (T1) occurs over the telephone and Session 2 (T2) is in-person. All sessions are audio recorded and independently coded by two raters. ICCs are continually assessed throughout the study duration to identify rater drift and indicate areas in need of retraining. MITI ratings also determine interventionists’ competence and adherence to MI. Raters and interventionists attend bi-weekly to address. Results: To date, 80 MI sessions (T1=46, T2=34) have been conducted and coded using the MITI for MI adherence. Interventionists met or exceeded competency with a M of 100% MI adherence, 1.8 reflection to question ratio, and 4.8 Global spirit. Rater ICC’s ranged from 0.6 to 1.0 across MI global scores and behavior counts. Discussion: Interventionists met or exceeded competency thresholds, demonstrating excellent treatment fidelity. While overall ICCs were adequate, the limited response ranges for the global scores contributed to lower ICCs in those domains. Overall reliabilities were adequate suggesting high fidelity to the MITI 3.1 and reliable ratings among independent raters. Data suggest that the NOURISH+MI trial is being implemented with high treatment integrity. Thus, if study results suggest that MI is deemed effective, this intense protocol for establishing and maintaining treatment fidelity enhances confidence in treatment effects and furthers scientific research examining MI and pediatric obesity treatments.
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Expressions of Grief and Change in the Poetry Projects of Bereaved VCU Students
Michael Pease, Sarah Gilbert, Brittany Amber Holloway, and Lubna Zia-Uddin
A large proportion of college students, (40%) have experienced the death of someone close to them (Holland, Currier, & Neimeyer, 2006), but little is known about how college students experience and cope with loss. Expressive writing has been posited as a method for dealing with traumatic experiences (Pennebaker, 1997), but its use with the bereaved has been called into question (Stroebe, Schut, & Stroebe, 2006). A stress management course at VCU allows students to complete loss-focused writing exercises, including acrostic “alphabet poems” for course credit. The current study aims to test the hypothesis that stages of grief (based on Rando’s (1993) popular “six R’s” theory) are expressed by college students in these writing exercises. A further hypothesis was that student would show progress through the stages from the beginning of their exercises to the end. Eighty undergraduate students completed a writing assignment. Students were allowed to focus their writing efforts on any type of loss experience, not just a loss due to the death of a loved one. Of these, 56 students (mean age: 21.9 years; 80% female; 33.9% African American, 32.1% Caucasian, 12.5% Asian and Latino, respectively) completed an end-of-semester feedback survey regarding the usefulness of these exercises (a 70% return rate), and 48 produced code-able alphabet poem writing projects. Two teams of two undergraduate students are independently coding the alphabet poems using a coding scheme based on Rando’s “six R’s” theory of grief. Rando’s theory suggests that the bereaved complete six processes while grieving: Recognizing the loss, reacting to it, recollecting/reexperiencing it, and finally relinquishing it, readjusting to the outside world, and reinvesting in new relationships. As we read through each poem, we analyze each line or set of lines and decide whether or not it represents one of the stages. We then compare our codes with our teammate for agreement, and have a graduate student supervisor act as tie-breaker. So far, we have found many examples emotions and of Rando’s six stages in each of the poems we have coded. Recognizing the loss, reacting to it (with negative and positive emotions) and recollecting the loss are the most common stages expressed in the poems coded so far. Most of the poems show some kind of a change in stage expression by the end of the poem. The last two stages showed up in several of the poems analyzed. We have also noted that poems tend to progress from showing the first few stages in the first half, and the last three stages in the second half of each poem. These findings suggest that qualitative analysis of expressive and creative writing processes can be a useful window into the college student grieving process. Future studies should examine how poems that progress through all or most of the stages differ from those that do not on outcomes such as grief severity.
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Making a Point!
Sarah Perdue
There are a great number of chipped stone artifacts in the archaeological record and the Virtual Curation Laboratory (VCL) at Virginia Commonwealth University is one place that stores and categorizes them through digital means. As an Intern with the VCL, I help add to the existing data collection of chipped stone artifacts along with the virtual curation of these artifacts. The VCL uses the NextEngine Desktop 3D scanner for digitally archiving each of the chipped stone artifacts. Besides providing a digital archive, the VCL also prints out plastic replicas of the artifacts by using a Makerbot Replicator. This digital way of archiving allows for further analysis and conservation that one might not have been able to achieve because of a lack of funds. Another benefit is that the archaeological record can be made more accessible to the public as many artifacts cannot be handled personally.
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GABRA2 and frequency of alcohol consumption in a college population
Marcus-David Peters
Spit for Science: the VCU Student Survey aims to understand how genes and the environment come together to influence substance use and emotional health. Many studies have investigated the potential relationship between genetic variants in the GABRA2 gene and an individual’s subjective level of response to alcohol. Evidence suggests that individuals with specific GABRA2 variants have a lower subjective level of response to alcohol thus causing them to drink more, which in turn increases their risk for becoming alcohol dependent. The goal of the current study was to investigate the association between specific GABRA2 variants and alcohol use frequency in a sample of college students. VCU freshman in the 2011 fall semester were given the opportunity to complete the Spit for Science survey and provide a DNA sample. Linear regression was used to test the relationship between alcohol use frequency and GABRA2 variation. We also investigated the possible moderating effect of peer deviance on this relationship. The proposed questions addressed in this study are highly important because they may provide us with information on how to potentially help young adults from developing alcohol dependence.
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Advertisements Effects on Childhood Obesity
Sarah Peters
Junk food advertisers spend billions of dollars every year on advertising aimed at children. These foods are known to be major contributors to the obesity epidemic, a growing problem around the world. Food advertising should be regulated to exclude advertisements that appeal to those under twelve as these children do not have fully developed cognitive defenses. This paper investigates the effects of cartoon characters, packaging, and branding in television advertisements on childhood obesity by analyzing various pieces of literature related to obesity, cognitive defenses, home environments, and advertisements. Advertising and branding overcome children’s cognitive defenses and thus negatively influence childhood obesity and the adiposity levels of children. There are many factors that determine the cognitive defense level of the children including the food environment created by the family, family situation, and modeled behavior. Children respond to advertisements differently than adults and are more susceptible to food branding and advertisements due to their low level of cognitive defense. Children’s cognitive defenses are not fully developed, even at the ages of seven or eight, and thus they cannot evaluate advertisements like adults can. Children create food brand bonds at incredibly early ages and are drawn in for life, creating a cycle of bonding that is hard to break. Various factors influence children’s defenses and response to advertisements including the effects of food environments created by parents on food behaviors. Overweight children may also have lower cognitive defenses than children at a healthy weight level and are thus more vulnerable to the advertising and branding targeted at them. Parents may not be aware of the effects their behaviors have on their children’s eating habits and often do not discuss critical thinking with their children. Advertisements aimed at children take advantage of these low levels of cognitive defense and the factors that lead to these low levels of cognitive defenses and should thus be regulated.
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Comparative Analysis of Ancient Ritual Sacrifice
Alexandra Price
I am studying ritual human and animal sacrifice using Winkleman’s 1998 Standard Cross Cultural Sample method because I want to analyze similarities between cultures with sacrifice in order to help my reader understand why ritual sacrifice developed in civilization’s that had little to no contact with each other.
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How Diagnostic Terms may Catalyze or Extend the Duration of Anorexia Nervosa
Leslie Pyo
Anorexia nervosa (AN) predominantly affects adolescent females and has the highest rate of mortality among psychiatric disorders. It is categorized as an Axis 1 Clinical Disorder in the DSM-IV and a Mental/Behavioural Disorder in the ICD-9. No research, however, has been conducted on how the diagnostic terms and linguistic categorization of AN may psychologically and neurobiologically contribute to the etiology or duration of AN. Peer-reviewed scientific articles, case studies, and books were used to investigate this relationship. Medical terminology loses its original context when used in non-medical society, gaining the power a label that may catalyze the development of AN in individuals who are diagnosed early, or extend the duration of AN in established patients. Three related factors make patients with AN uniquely susceptible to the impact of language: body image disturbance, information processing bias, and hyper reactive amygdala function. Due to body image disturbance (BID), which is one of AN’s four diagnostic criteria, patients with AN are fundamentally unable to create a stable self-image. This results in a body image that fluctuates with external stimuli, particularly language. Testing using the modified Stroop test and the dot-probe methods has found that patients with AN demonstrate a hypersensitivity to AN-related words, indicating an information processing bias that increases their susceptibility to language-induced body image fluctuations. Patients with AN also demonstrate hyper reactive amygdala function. This area of the brain coordinates and initiates responses to perceived threats. In individuals with AN, the hyper reactive amygdala catalyzes AN tendencies in response to the perceived threat of negative evaluation by others, a fear that is perpetuated by labels like “disordered” and “diseased”. These AN tendencies are catalyzed because patients view thinness as a positive factor that will induce positive feedback; ironically, their thinness is what brings the label of "disordered" in the first place, resulting in a self-perpetuating cycle. Though diagnostic labels are necessary, more research on the linguistic etiological component of AN is necessary so that future treatment methods for AN may address and work to prevent the patients' negative response to the language of diagnoses.
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Receptor of Advanced Glycation Endproducts (RAGE) is Positively Correlated with Tumor Necrosis Factor-α in Adolescents with Obesity
Tasnim Rahman, Daniel H. Conrad, and Anshu Gupta
Introduction: Obesity in childhood is associated with an increased prevalence of diabetes and other traditional cardiometabolic risk factors, suggesting an epidemic of premature cardiovascular disease among today’s youth. Glycotoxins, known as advanced glycationend products (AGE’s), activating via the membrane-bound receptors (mRAGE), have been implicated in the pathophysiology of inflammation, (increased tumor necrosis factor-α [TNF-α ]), insulin resistance and vascular dysfunction in adults, but the role of RAGE in the early stages of metabolic disorders is unknown. In this study, we assessed relationship of cardiometabolicrisk factors, mRNA expression of TNF-α and RAGE in peripheral monocytes in adolescents with obesity.
Methods: Thirty three adolescents,11-16 years of age, with body mass index (BMI) Z-score≥2 were admitted following a 12-hour overnight fast for anthropometrics, lipid profile , fasting peripheral blood sample collection, and a 2-hour 75 gm, oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMNC) positive for CD14 were isolated from blood. Cells were further analyzed by quantitative PCR for mRNA expression of RAGE and TNF-α. Pearson's coefficients were calculated to assess the associations between RAGE mRNA and cardiometabolicrisk factors as well as TNF-α mRNA levels.
Results: The participants had a mean age of 12.7±1.41 years and BMI-Z score 2.32±0.35 SD with 81 % participants being female; 62 % were Black, 28% Caucasian, 10% were Hispanic. We observed a positive correlation between mRNA levels of RAGE and TNF-α in CD14+ monocytes in blood (r=0.62, p<0.01). However, we did not observe a correlation of BMI, cholesterol or triglyceride with RAGE mRNA levels.
Conclusion: The positive relationship between the monocyte mRNA levels of RAGE and TNF-α suggest involvement of AGE-RAGE axis in obesity-associated inflammation and needs to be further investigated with larger sample size as well as studies in healthy adolescents.
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A Performance Effectiveness Model for the Assessment of Anxiety's Effect on Muscle Activation in Trumpet Players
Hannah Rumsey, Sahil Aggarwal, Erin Hobson, and Jeeyun Park
The purpose of this research study is to analyze the relationship between anxiety and muscle activation in undergraduate trumpet players. sEMG will be used to measure three muscle groups: the upper trapezius, sternoclidomatoid, and masseter. This data will be analyzed along with State Trait Anxiety Inventory anxiety reports of each subject, and with VAS data of perceived anxiety after performing the repeated playing trials. Through covariate data obtained from the anxiety reports and an anxiety-induction experimental protocol, we hope to discover what effect anxiety will have on general muscle activation and fatigue in trumpet players. We hypothesize that subjects with higher anxiety levels will display greater levels of muscle activation and fatigue over the course of playing the trumpet as compared to subjects with lower anxiety levels. Preliminary data analysis has shown that there is no significant difference in VAS scales between the anxiety-induced group and the control group; the rest of the data analysis is still in progress.
Poster presentations from the annual Undergraduate Poster Symposium, organized by the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) and part of VCU Research Week.
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