Adipositas und Typ-2-Diabetes sind häufige Erkrankungen des Stoffwechsels. Zur Basistherapie der Adipositas und des Typ-2-Diabetes gehören eine gesunde Ernährungs- weise und die Erhöhung der körperlichen Aktivität unter anderem mit dem Ziel der Gewichtsreduktion. Vermehrte Bewegung führt neben der Verbesserung der körperlichen Leistungsfähigkeit zur Fettmassenreduktion, Verbesserungen der Hyperglykämie, Lipo- proteinstoffwechsels und des Adipokinprofils. Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) werden im Fettgewebe produziert und spielen eine wichtige Rolle in der Adipogenese und Transdifferenzierung von Adipozyten. Während ein Zusammenhang zwischen der BMP-7-Serumkonzentration und Adipositas vor kurzem belegt wurde, ist bisher nicht bekannt, ob weitere BMPs wie BMP-2 und -4 mit Adipositas und Typ-2-Diabetes assoziiert sind. Ziel dieser Arbeit war es deshalb zu untersuchen, ob die BMP-2 und -4 Serumkonzentrationen im Zusammenhang mit Körpergewicht, Fett- verteilung und Parametern des Glukosestoffwechsels bei Patienten mit Adipositas und Typ-2-Diabetes (n=213) stehen. Im Rahmen von drei Interventionsstudien wurde der Einfluss einer hypokalorischen Ernährungsweise über sechs Monate (n=19), eines 45,3 ± 7,4 kg Gewichtsverlustes ein Jahr nach bariatrischer Chirurgie (n=32) sowie eines zwölf- wöchigen Trainingsprogramms (n=60) auf die BMP-2- und -4-Serumkonzentrationen untersucht. Zusätzlich wurde die BMP-2-und -4-mRNA-Expression in humanen omentalen und subkutanen Fettgewebsproben von 161 Patienten charakterisiert. Die BMP-2- und -4-Serumkonzentrationen und die BMP-2- und -4-mRNA-Expression im viszeralen Fettgewebe korrelieren signifikant mit dem BMI und dem Körperfettgehalt. Zirkulierende BMP-4-Spiegel sind geschlechtsabhängig und bei Patienten mit T2D signifikant niedriger als bei gesunden Kontrollpatienten. Sowohl eine moderate Gewichts- reduktion durch kalorienreduzierte Ernährung als auch ein Gewichtsverlust von 45,3 ± 7,4 kg nach bariatrischer Chirurgie führen zu einer signifikanten Reduktion der zirkulierenden BMP-2- und -4-Spiegel. Das zwölfwöchige Trainingsprogramm führte lediglich zu einer signifikanten Reduktion der BMP-2-Serumkonzentration und zu signifikanten Ver- besserung der Leistungsfähigkeit, von Parametern des Glukosestoffwechsels und der Serumkonzentrationen von Adiponektin und Interleukin-6. Zusammengefasst zeigen die Daten, dass erhöhte Serumkonzentrationen von BMP-2 und 4 mit Adipositas assoziiert sind und durch Gewichtsreduktion und Erhöhung der körperlichen Aktivität verringert werden können. Die BMP-2- und -4-mRNA-Expression im viszeralen Fettgewebe kann zu erhöhten Serumkonzentrationen dieser Adipokine bei viszeraler Fettverteilung beitragen.

Master of Landscape Architecture / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Eric A. Bernard / The sub-rural Kansas community of Winona stands at a critical crossroad. The dilemma of rural population decline, fueled largely by technological advances in communication, transportation, and agriculture is devastating rural economies and the centers of community social life – namely the local school(s) and main street(s). The physical infrastructure, spatial character and unique identity of rural places is slowly diminished in the process. While great potential exists for the landscape architecture and planning professions to address the patterns of rural decline, the limited market for such services and the lack of regulations requiring those services precludes their effective implementation within rural communities. Within Winona, a long-standing stormwater problem provides an opportunity to address both the stormwater problem and the larger dilemma in a holistic landscape architecture approach. How can contemporary landscape architecture engage rural communities in planning and design solutions aimed at mitigating stormwater issues while addressing community identity loss resulting from population and economic decline? The Place, Space, Community (PSC) Framework developed can determine distinctive qualities and characteristics and illuminate community identity which serves as the creative genesis for stormwater mitigation, and more importantly, the development of social capital critical to economic and population stability and growth. Successful development of social capital and enhanced community identity is dependent on design solutions anchored in the sense of place inherent in the residents of Winona. Landscape architects are uniquely qualified to provide solutions to the stormwater problem which respond to place in ways influencing the identity and social capital of Winona’s residents in dramatically positive ways. This initial focus on a holistic, place-based approach to increased social capital provides a strong foundation for future economic, social and environmental stability and growth into the future. Winona can indeed enjoy a bright and prosperous future with a Place, Space, Community approach.

In 2011, the Deep River Portage-Burns Waterway Watershed was identified as a priority in the Northwest Indiana watershed management framework by the Northwester Indiana Regional Planning Committee. 319 grant cost-share programs were initiated in effort of maintaining and restoring the health of Deep River Portage-Burns Waterway Watershed. A watershed management plans have been developed for this watershed which proposed the implementation of vegetated filter strips (VFS) as an option. In this thesis work, the effectiveness of VFS as a best management practice (BMP) for the Deep River system was evaluated using a hydrological model scheme. <div><br></div><div>In this research, a Nonpoint Source Pollution and Erosion Comparison Tool (NSPECT) model and a Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model were constructed with required watershed characteristic data and climate data. The initial hydrologic and nutrient parameters of the SWAT model were further calibrated using SWAT Calibration and Uncertainty Programs (SWAT_CUP) with historical flow and nutrient data in a two-stage calibration process. The calibrated parameters were validated to accurately simulate the field condition and preserved in SWAT model for effectiveness analysis of BMP implementations. </div><div><br></div><div>To evaluate the effectiveness of VFS as a BMP, four different scenarios of VFS implementations along the Turkey Creek was simulated with the calibrated SWAT model. With the implementation of VFS in the tributary subbasin of Turkey Creek, the annual total phosphorus (TP) of the VFS implemented subbasin was reduced by 1.60% to 78.95% and the annual TP of downstream subbasins were reduced by 0.09% to 55.42%. Daily percentage of TP reductions ranged from 0% to 90.3% on the VFS implemented subbasin. Annual TP reductions of the four scenarios ranged from 28.11 kg to 465.01 kg.<br></div>

No description available.

Master of Landscape Architecture / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Lee R. Skabelund / Stormwater management is typically approached from different perspectives by practicing professionals. As such, stormwater planning/design is not always completed as a multi-disciplinary coalition of experts using holistic and synergistic methods. For a number of years, engineers and design professionals, particularly landscape architects, have been employing various strategies and techniques to address on-site stormwater management in terms of water quality and quantity. There is increasing awareness that in order to create solutions that are effective over both the short and long-term a landscape architect’s approach needs to account for the health, safety and welfare perspectives carried by engineers, the unique aspects of particular project sites, their surroundings and bio-regional context, as well as the perceptions of clients, other key stakeholders, and the broader public. This research investigates the various criteria integral to developing an analytic framework for ecologically-appropriate stormwater planning/design (Sustainable Stormwater Evaluation and Site Assessment or SSWESA). SSWESA is proposed as a type of decision-tree for site analysis of sustainable systems pertaining to stormwater. Using the SSWESA process is expected to help researchers and professionals make better planning and design decisions as they select and implement appropriate best management practices (BMPs) for a given site and context. My intent in developing SSWESA is to help designers assess existing and potential stormwater functions at the site scale in order to promote sustainable planning and design based upon the important principle: “First, do no harm”. It is also my intent to promote further research related to sustainability by providing references and sources from experts in the various fields related to ecologically-based stormwater management. A review of the literature related to ecological factors relevant to low impact stormwater management assisted in the development and refinement of the criteria for stormwater assessment and evaluation. In this report, the SSWESA framework is tested on a public school property in Manhattan, Kansas to demonstrate how the framework is applied and to understand the questions and issues that arise from its use.

Understanding the extent to which human activities impact surface water resources has become increasingly important as both human population growth and related landscape changes impact water quality and quantity across varying geographical scales. Skypark, Santa’s Village is a 233.76-acre tourism-based outdoor recreation area located in Skyforest, California residing within the San Bernardino National Forest. The park is situated at Hooks Creek, the headwaters of the Mojave River Watershed, and is characterized by a diverse landscape that includes forest cover and human development, including impervious surfaces, a restored meadow, and recreational trails. In 2016, Hencks Meadow was considered degraded by human activity and restored by the Natural Resources Conservation Services (NRCS) using best management practices (BMPs) to manage stormwater runoff and mitigate pollutants entering recreational downstream surface water. Three BMP detention basins were constructed to store and improve water quality from stormwater runoff. The purpose of this study is to observe the extent to which the engineered BMP detention basins design were effective in mitigating stormwater pollution from entering Hooks Creek. Over a six to eight month period (January to August), ponds were tested in situ bi-weekly for temperature (ºC), dissolved oxygen (mg/L), pH, turbidity (NTU), conductivity (µS/cm), nitrate (mg/L), and ammonium (mg/L), with additional laboratory tests for total suspended solids (mg/L), total dissolved solids (mg/L), chemical oxygen demand (mg/L), total coliform (MPN/100mL), Escherichia coli (MPN/100mL), and trace metals (µg/L). The results of this study support that the BMP design is improving surface stormwater runoff from impervious surfaces before it enters Hooks Creek. Findings could also promote the design and implementation of stormwater BMP detention basins at other site locations where water degradation is evident. Furthermore, this research can be used to promote the necessary improvement of water quality and quantity on a widespread geographical scale.

Dans la moelle épinière, les oligodendrocytes, cellules myélinisantes du système nerveux central, dérivent de la région la plus ventrale du neuroépithélium, sous l'effet du morphogène Sonic Hedgehog (SHH) sécrété par la floor plate. Cependant, le neuroépithélium dorsal peut générer ces cellules dans certaines conditions. Pour expliquer l'absence d'oligodendrogenèse dorsale en situation normale, nous avons supposé l'existence de signaux inhibiteurs localement. L'ablation in ovo de la partie la plus dorsale de la moelle épinière entraîne, en effet, la spécification d'oligodendrocytes plus dorsaux. Les bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), exprimées dorsalement, inhibent la détermination des oligodendrocytes et l'expression du facteur de transcription Olig2, requis pour ce processus, malgré la présence de SHH in vitro et in vivo. Les BMPs font donc partie des signaux dorsaux inhibant la spécification des oligodendrocytes et fixent la limite dorsale du domaine oligodendrogénique.

Chez la brebis, les BMPs inhibent la synthèse et la libération de FSH. La détection des ARNm de certaines BMPs dans l’hypophyse et de leurs récepteurs sur les cellules gonadotropes suggère une action paracrine/autocrine des BMPs sur la production de FSH. L’objectif de cette thèse a visé à déterminer l’importance des BMPs hypophysaires, en particulier BMP-4, dans la régulation de la sécrétion de FSH chez la brebis. Nous montrons que l’expression des ARNm du système BMP-4,analysée par RT-PCR en temps réel, ne varie pas au cours du cycle oestrien ou in vitro quelque soit le temps d’incubation (6h-48h) et le traitement (GnRH, oestradiol, activine) des cellules hypophysaires.Afin de déterminer si les cellules hypophysaires ovines sécrètent des BMPs, des milieux conditionnés(MC) hypophysaires ont été soumis à un test d’activité biologique reposant sur des cellules embryonnaires transfectées avec un élément de réponse BMPs couplé au gène rapporteur luciférase.Aucun effet des MC n’a été observé sur l’activité luciférase comparé au milieu non conditionnésuggérant l’absence ou la très faible activité BMP des MC, et cela quelque soit le temps d’incubation(6h-48h) et le traitement (GnRH, oestradiol, activine) des cellules hypophysaires. Toutefois, nous détectons une activité inhibitrice de BMPs qui est augmentée par la GnRH et l’oestradiol suggérant l’implication d’inhibiteurs de BMPs dans la régulation de la production de FSH. En conclusion,l’ensemble de nos résultats n’est pas en faveur d’un rôle de BMP-4 hypophysaire dans la synthèse de FSH chez l’adulte. Un rôle des BMPs au niveau hypophysaire via la voie endocrine peut s’envisager puisque nous avons mis en évidence une bioactivité de type BMP dans le sérum ovin. Les inhibiteurs BMPs produits par l’hypophyse, qui restent à identifier, pourraient moduler la biodisponibilité des BMPs atteignant l’hypophyse par la voie sanguine. / BMPs inhibit FSH synthesis and release in ewe. The detection of BMP mRNAs in the pituitary as well as the colocalisation of the two types of BMP receptors on gonadotrope cells suggest that these BMPs can exert paracrine/autocrine actions on FSH production. The aim of this thesis work was to determine the importance of pituitary BMPs in the regulation of FSH production in the ewe. We showed that the level of mRNAs for BMP-4 system, analyzed by real-time RT-PCR, did not vary across the oestrous cycle or in vitro whatever the incubation period (6h-48h) and the treatment (GnRH, oestradiol, activin) of pituitary cells. By using a bioactivity test based on embryonic mesenchymal cells transfected with an expression construct containing a BMP-responsive element fused to firefly luciferase reporter gene,we detected no BMP activity within conditioned media from pituitary cells whatever the incubation period (6h-48h) and the treatment (GnRH, oestradiol, activin) of the pituitary cells. However, we detected a BMP inhibitory activity which is increased by GnRH and oestradiol suggesting the implication of BMP inhibitor(s) in FSH regulation. In conclusion, the results are not in favor of a role for pituitary BMP-4 in the regulation of FSH synthesis in adult ewe. An endocrine action of BMPs at pituitary level can be evoked since BMP bioactivity was detected within ovine serum. BMP inhibitors that remain to be identified can modulate the bioavailability of BMPs reaching the pituitary by the blood way.

<p>Land use change is a major cause of degradation to freshwater ecosystems. Excess nutrients and toxins, physical infrastructure, and habitat removal can lead to deleterious impacts on water quality, flooding, and biological integrity. The overarching inquiry of this dissertation was to assess how social and ecological dimensions of stormwater interact to influence stormwater and its management. A three-part study was conducted to investigate the ecological and social dynamics of aquatic ecosystems. In part one, I investigated the impacts of urbanization on stream metabolism— a fundamental ecological process. The proliferation of inexpensive water quality sensors has allowed researchers to investigate stream functional processes at a high temporal resolution. I used high-resolution dissolved oxygen data to estimate gross primary production (GPP) and ecosystem respiration (ER) across 12 urban creeks in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA. I used descriptive statistics and regression models to investigate the influence of light, temperature, and hydrological disturbances on GPP and ER. The results demonstrate that urbanization shifts metabolic regimes towards highly productive summers with substantial declines in GPP following summer storm events. My research shows that ER is associated with water temperature and is resistant to hydrological disturbances. These findings have management implications because as summer heat and storms intensify with climate change, my work suggests that stream organisms will become more vulnerable to scour and hypoxia.</p><p> </p><p>In part two, I conducted a systematic literature review to identify salient social norms impacting water quality best management practice (BMP) adoption across urban and rural lands. Furthermore, I synthesized situational factors that mobilize and reproduce social norms associated with BMP adoption. The results demonstrate that social norms create expectations for conventional farming practices and manicured residential lawns, as well as a social responsibility for neighborly cohesion and environmental stewardship. Social norms supporting water quality BMPs were fostered during times of management uncertainty and in response to social sanctions and benefits. I found that social norms supporting water quality BMPs were more readily mobilized when supported by key community leaders, knowledge brokers, and institutional actors.</p><p> </p><p>In part three, I examined if and how an individual’s race, gender, and education level shape one’s concern about and willingness to participate in stormwater management. Stormwater risks can be immediate burdens and at times life-threatening for marginalized people because environmental injustices based on race, gender, and class can dictate exposure to and recovery from environmental risks like flooding and water pollution. Although marginalized groups bear the brunt of environmental risks, they are not likely to be perceived by others as highly concerned about the environment. I investigated differences, if any, in peoples’ willingness to participate in stormwater management based on their race, gender, and educational level by analyzing community opinion surveys in Charlotte, North Carolina. Results suggest that socially marginalized individuals are more concerned about creek flooding than others and subsequently more likely to participate in conservation behaviors. This analysis calls attention to how adverse environmental conditions may shape the perspectives of those experiencing them and facilitate a greater willingness to engage in conservation practices. Collectively, this dissertation highlights the interconnectedness of human and ecological drivers of function and resilience in aquatic freshwater ecosystems with implications for future directions of freshwater management that prioritize social equity and sustain social infrastructures.</p>

No description available.