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The studies presented in this thesis were designed to elucidate whether the abundance of ovulation-inducing factor/nerve growth factor (OIF/NGF) in alpaca semen can be used as a biomarker to predict male fertility. The neurotrophin, OIF/NGF has been identified in camelid, cattle and human semen. It is only in camelids, however, that an ovulation-inducing role for OIF/NGF has been described. The information gathered from several studies clearly demonstrate that this protein is the stimulus responsible for initiating the ovulatory cascade in camelids. In addition, intramuscular administration of OIF/NGF resulted in a dose-dependent response in terms of ovulation rate, corpus luteum (CL) lifespan, luteinizing hormone (LH) and progesterone secretion. I hypothesized that the quantity of OIF/NGF differs among male alpacas and this abundance arbitrates ovulation and pregnancy rates as well as CL formation and function. To substantiate this hypothesis, the following questions were answered: 1) can OIF/NGF in alpaca semen be quantified using a radioimmunoassay; 2) does the concentration and total abundance of OIF/NGF in alpaca semen vary within and among male ejaculates; 3) what is the glandular source of OIF/NGF that contributes to the male ejaculate; 4) is OIF/NGF concentration or abundance related to parameters associated with male fertility; 5) can OIF/NGF concentration or total abundance in the ejaculate discriminate fertile and subfertile males using both retrospective and prospective approaches; and 6) can power Doppler ultrasonography be used to assess the luteotrophic effect of OIF/NGF in tissue vasculature of the developing CL? I discovered that the source and the amount of OIF/NGF varies among species. In llamas, OIF/NGF is produced by both the corpus and disseminate portions of the prostate gland. In rats, OIF/NGF was detected in testis interstitial cells and in the lumen of the coagulating gland (anterior prostate). Ovulation-inducing factor/NGF secretion by the ampullae and vesicular glands contributed to its presence in bull (cattle and bison) ejaculates. In elk and white tail deer, OIF/NGF was detected in the ampullae and prostate glands, respectively. To gain an understanding of the abundance of OIF/NGF in ejaculates and changes in its concentration within and among males, OIF/NGF levels in semen were quantified using the radioimmunoassay. The assay developed exhibited parallel displacement curves among recombinant NGF, OIF/NGF purified from llama seminal plasma, llama and bull (cattle) seminal plasma. Ovulation-inducing factor/NGF comprised a greater percentage of the total protein found in camelid ejaculates than in cattle. Ovulation-inducing factor/NGF concentration correlated positively with sperm concentration and negatively with pH and semen volume, while total abundance of OIF/NGF was related to total prostate area and OIF/NGF concentration. Although a correlation was found between sperm concentration, neither OIF/NGF concentration nor total abundance was associated with higher ovulation, pregnancy or live birth rates. A clear association of the quantity of OIF/NGF in the male ejaculate at breeding and CL form and function was not evident. The measurement of CL vasculature by power Doppler ultrasonography, however, was able to determine nonpregnancy in alpacas earlier than the assessment of changes in CL diameter. In summary, my results did not support the hypothesis that the measurement of OIF/NGF concentration or total abundance in alpaca semen can be used to predict fertility in male alpacas.

This autoethnographic account details the author's ongoing struggle with combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and how leisure was integral to his journey toward recovery. By showing the mental and emotional struggles of life with the disorder, this paper offers an alternative viewpoint from the traditional scientific studies of PTSD which bury soldier's voices under layers of analysis. The purpose of this paper is to deepen and expand an understanding of both combat-related PTSD and the power of leisure in an individual's recovery from combat trauma

Thesis (M.A.)--Miami University, Dept. of French and Italian, 2009. / Title from first page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 34-40).

Thesis (M.A.)--Indiana University, 2010. / Title from screen (viewed on April 1, 2010). Department of Sociology, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI). Advisor(s): Carol Brooks Gardner, Carrie E. Foote, Lynn M. Pike. Includes vitae. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 69-74).

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / The primary objective of this pilot study was to understand the military experiences of OEF/OIF women veterans. Seven women veterans described accounts of sexual harassment and sexual assault, also known in the Veteran Health Administration (VHA) context as Military Sexual Trauma (MST). The prevalence and dialogue of MST both explicitly and implicitly throughout all the interviews justified examining MST on its own. As an alternative to tracking new cases of MST, this thesis provides an examination of the rhetoric of betrayal and suggests that objective knowledge of MST does not exist apart from such social conditions and one’s interpretations of them. Betrayal emerged as the way in which women veterans understood and made meaning of their MST experiences during the claims-making process. Women veterans incorporated strategies to manage the sexual harassment and sexual assault they experienced while in the military environment, since reporting MST was actively discouraged. Findings from this study suggest that the way we approach and understand MST as a social problem needs to be reconsidered and further examined.

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Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited / After defeating the Iraqi military, Coalition Forces spread out across Iraq to stabilize and transition control of the country back to Iraqis. This historical analysis of Mosul, Ramadi, and Samarra studies military operations intended to stabilize these three cities from April 2003 to September 2005. Prior to and after the reestablishment of Iraqi sovereignty, Coalition Forces worked with Iraqi citizens at the local level to reestablish control of the population. In order to achieve this, the counterinsurgent force must understand that when consensus for non-violent political opposition does not exist within the governed populace, coercive measures must be taken to enforce local security. This analysis evaluates the effects of military operations over time and through frequent unit transitions with varying numbers of U.S. and Iraqi security forces. The conclusions gleaned from this analysis are summarized as unit approaches that either achieved control or failed to achieve control at the local level. This study suggests that a distributed lightto- medium equipped ground force operating within urban centers and in continuous close proximity to the population is best able to establish local control and partner with local police and military forces. This force should be enabled with language and cultural skills. Necessary combat multipliers include human intelligence collectors and social network analysts. / Major, United States Army