Thesis (Ph. D.)--Biology, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2005. / Merrill, Alfred, Committee Member ; Mills, Gordon, Committee Member ; McCarty, Nael, Committee Member ; Kubanek, Julia, Committee Member ; Radhakrishna, Harish, Committee Chair. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph.D)--Biology, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2010. / Committee Chair: Barbara D. Boyan; Committee Member: Al Merrill; Committee Member: Harish Radhakrishna; Committee Member: Kirill Lobachev; Committee Member: Nael McCarty. Part of the SMARTech Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Collection.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Washington State University, December 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 87-116).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Biology, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2008. / Merrill Jr., Alfred, Committee Chair ; Radhakrishna, Harish, Committee Co-Chair ; McCarty, Nael, Committee Member ; Sewer, Marion, Committee Member ; Kowalczyk, Andrew, Committee Member.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Virginia Commonwealth University, 2009. / Prepared for: Dept. of Biochemistry. Bibliography: leaves 149-174. Also available online via the Internet.

Diss. (sammanfattning) Linköping : Univ., 2002. / Härtill 4 uppsatser.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2007. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Vita. "August 2007" Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Virginia, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available in electronic form as viewed 2/16/2009.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Virginia, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 187-202). Also available online through Digital Dissertations.

Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) influences many physiological processes, such as brain and vascular development. It is associated with several diseases including ovarian cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, colorectal cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma, multiple myeloma atherosclerotic diseases, cardiovascular diseases, pulmonary inflammatory diseases and renal diseases. LPA plasma and serum levels have been reported to be important values in diagnosing ovarian cancer and other diseases. However, the extraction and quantification of LPA in plasma are very challenging because of the low physiological concentration and similar structures of LPA to other phospholipids. Many previous studies have not described the separation of LPA from other phospholipids, which may make analyses more challenging than necessary. We developed an SPE extraction method for plasma LPA that can extract LPA at high purity. We also developed an HPLC post-column fluorescence detection method that allows the efficient quantification of LPA. These methods were used in a clinical study for ovarian cancer diagnosis to help validate LPA as a biomarker of ovarian cancer. Moreover, molecular imprinted polymers (MIPs) were designed and synthesized as material for the improved extraction of LPA. Compared to the commercially available materials, the MIP developed shows enhanced selectivity for LPA. The extraction was overall relatively more efficient and less labor-intensive.