Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2003. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 292-333).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oklahoma, 1990. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 239-256).

Title from PDF of title page (University of Missouri--Columbia, viewed on Feb 15, 2010). The entire thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file; a non-technical public abstract appears in the public.pdf file. Dissertation advisor: Dr. Ping Yu. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

The family Adenoviridae consists of five genera, including the genus Aviadenovirus, which infects avian species. The genus Aviadenovirus currently comprises five fowl (Fowl adenovirus A-E), one falcon (Falcon adenovirus A), and one goose (Goose adenovirus) adenovirus species. Fowl adenoviruses (FAdVs) have a worldwide distribution. Some are associated with diseases such as inclusion body hepatitis (IBH), while FAdV species C serotype 4 (FAdV-4) has been associated with hydropericardium-hepatitis syndrome (HHS). In this study, the complete nucleotide sequence of fowl adenovirus serotype 8 (FAdV-8) was determined. The full genome was 44,055 nucleotides (nt) in length, with an organization similar to that of the FAdV-1 and FAdV-9 genomes. No regions homologous to early regions E1, E3, and E4 of mastadenoviruses were recognized Pathogenicity of FAdV-8 and FAdV-4 were studied in specific-pathogen-free chickens following oral and intramuscular inoculations. Pathogenicity was determined on the basis of clinical signs and gross and histological lesions. Additionally, virus shedding and viral genome copy numbers in liver, cecal tonsil, and bursa of Fabricius were determined. The role of interleukins (IL) in the pathogenicity of and immune response to FAdVs is unknown. Therefore, in a chicken experiment, interferon-γ, IL-10, IL-18, and IL-8 gene expression was evaluated following FAdV-8 and FAdV-4 infection. Cytokine gene expression was examined in the liver, spleen, and cecal tonsils. This study explored the ability of fowl adenoviruses to subvert the host cell’s secretion of cytokines in response to infection as an important viral mechanism for immune evasion during infection. Variations in virulence of FAdVs are likely to be determined by the fiber alone as shown by Pallister et al. (1996). Therefore, we compared and analyzed the nt and amino acid (aa) sequences of the fiber gene of pathogenic and non-pathogenic FAdVs representing species groups D (FAdV-11) and E (FAdV-8). According to our data, virulence might not be associated only with sequence of the fiber gene. This work is a continuation of our efforts towards better understanding of the molecular biology of FAdVs and the pathogenesis of the disease, with an emphasis on the role of interleukins, an unknown area.

In biomolecules, the relationship among the sequence, molecular structure, and biological function are of very importance in the development of nanotechnology such as drug discovery. Previous studies involving multiple sequence alignment of biomolecules have demonstrated that interdependent or associated sites are indicative of the structural and functional characteristics of biomolecules, as an extension to methods such as consensus sequences analysis. In this thesis, a new method to detect associated sites in aligned sequence ensembles is proposed. It involves the use of multiple sub-tables (or levels) of two-dimensional contingency table analysis. The idea is to incorporate analysis by following an approach known as granular computing, which represents information at different levels of granularity or resolution. When associations of multiple sites in the sequence alignment converge, they reflect points of interrelatedness among the sites in the biomolecules. The study involves two different phases of analysis. The first phase includes labeling of the molecular sites in the p53 protein multiple sequence alignment according to the detected patterns. The sites are consequently labeled into three different types based on their site characteristics - conserved sites, associated sites, and hypervariate sites. To identify and label the associated sites, the proposed method is employed. In the second phase, the significance of the extracted site patterns is evaluated with respect to some of the structural and functional characteristics of the p53 protein. The results indicate that the extracted site patterns in combination with conserved sites are significantly associated with some of the known functionalities of p53 such as post translational modifications and the mutation frequency of the sites, hence establishing the link between these identified sites and the defined functionality. Furthermore, when these sites are aligned with p63 and p73, the homologs of p53, based on the common domains, the sites significantly discriminate between the human sequences of the p53 family. Therefore, the study confirms the importance of these detected sites that could indicate their differences in cancer suppressing property.

This thesis reports on a qualitative study of student interactions in one grade seven mathematics classroom as the students worked through a series of tasks exploring multiple uses of variables. Student tasks were planned out by me, as the teacher and the researcher, and they were executed in my classroom, where I had worked to create a constructivist classroom environment. This study posed two research questions: (1) In what ways do student interactions during group activities promote the development of individual and collective understanding of the concept of variable? and (2) In what ways do student interactions during whole-class discussions promote the development of individual and collective understanding of the concept of variable? I used research methods in which I was a participant. Data was collected in the form of audio taped discussions for the participants (working in three groups of four). Audio files of class discussions were accumulated and stored for later review. Written student work and reflections were collected for all class members at the time of the study. From these data sources, the relevant data set emerged. Analysis came in the form of thick description of eight episodes of importance in which the multiple data sources came together to highlight how student interactions in the form of negotiations may have promoted a shift in understanding of variable. The data showed the complex nature of student interactions along with the potential benefits to student learning. The data showing these benefits were outlined as three patterns of negotiations. These were: negotiations with other students, negotiations with self, and negotiations with the teacher. / Thesis (Master, Education) -- Queen's University, 2008-04-07 19:10:42.808

Jag har gjort en serie mönster som handlar om genetiskt modifierade grödor och djur. Eftersom mytbildningarna kring gentekniken löper amok, har jag haft svårighet att fastställa fakta. Jag har därför valt att hänge mig åt fantasin. Den bildvärld jag försökt skapa handlar om att vistas i gränslandet mellan fakta och fiktion utan att kunna få några klara svar.Jag har velat hitta en spänning mellan en vacker och dekorativ yta och ett makabert innehåll. Mönstret är vackert att se på till en början för att vid en närmare titt avslöja mindre behagliga detaljer.Till mina mönster har jag hämtat inspiration från medeltida symbolik och bildkonsten kring sekelskiftet år 1500, då nya kontinenter och kulturer upptäcktes. Jorden hade varit platt, plötsligt var den rund. Mänskligheten hade varit centrum av universum, plötsligtbefann vi oss i periferin.Nu som då står mänskligheten inför stora förändringar. Vi har inga fler kontinenter att upptäcka, men jag tror att genteknikens framsteg kommer innebära minst lika omvälvande förändringar.

This thesis is an anthropological study of consumption and self-construction on the Greek tourist island of Mykonos. The ethnographic material is collected from informants/agents of an, initially, heterogeneous cultural background and with a highly individualistic discourse, who, paradoxically, form a group. The identity of this new Mykonian group of exogenous 'locals' is self-created and draws on several 'local' myths. Therefore, the ethnography concentrates on the discursive making of these myths. The characteristic all these myths share is that they revolve around a common theme: symbolic 'otherness'. This discursive otherness, is initially reflected in the emerging myth of the cosmopolitan place in which it is performed, the place-myth of Mykonos. But symmetrically in our case, the myth of the place, counter-reflects the myth of its subjects. A series of invented 'heroes' gradually prospers in the mythical space of 'otherness': first the reckless, unorthodox locals; then the eccentric 'first visitors' followed by the alternative groups of the seventies, the subcultural groups of the eighties and the tribestyles of the nineties. The myth of this spatial 'otherness', apart from the peculiar groupings which it simultaneously attracts and creates, is also a propagator of self- myths. The thesis explores the construction of selves and communities through their consumption patterns, manipulation of aesthetics, invented rituals and a distinctive set of social practices, but primarily through their discursive otherness. The myth of the idiosyncratic space is echoed in the myth of their unclassified and fetishised selves. Nevertheless, the 'anarchic' property of the space is its only consistent pattern and, in turn, a source of communal identity. The discourse of locality that stems out of these 'mythologies' celebrates a highly subjective pattern of aesthetic 'otherness'. The bonding of all these myths lies precisely in their taste for 'difference'. The fetishisation of the self reflects upon the fetishisation of space; as much as, the fetishisation of space reflects upon the fetishisation of the self.

Opioid prescribing within the workers’ compensation system in general has been a cause for concern. The objective of the study was to estimate the prevalence of opioid users among injured workers, referred at a Tertiary Care Pain Clinic, in 2008-2009. A cross-sectional retrospective study of 110 consecutive workers; male/female ratio was 2.3:1; mean age 45.5 years; mean pain ratings were 7.1±1.8. 21% of the workers were diagnosed with a biomedical problem (Group I), 51% with medical/psychological factors (Group II) and 25.5% had identifiable psychological factors but no physical pathology (Group III). Opioids were prescribed in 81.8%; of those 32.2% were on >200mg of daily morphine or equivalent (MED). A higher proportion of opioid users were in Group II and Group III than Group I. The vast majority of referred injured workers in this study were on opioid therapy with 1 in 3 exceeding the “watchful” dose of 200 mg MED

Opioid prescribing within the workers’ compensation system in general has been a cause for concern. The objective of the study was to estimate the prevalence of opioid users among injured workers, referred at a Tertiary Care Pain Clinic, in 2008-2009. A cross-sectional retrospective study of 110 consecutive workers; male/female ratio was 2.3:1; mean age 45.5 years; mean pain ratings were 7.1±1.8. 21% of the workers were diagnosed with a biomedical problem (Group I), 51% with medical/psychological factors (Group II) and 25.5% had identifiable psychological factors but no physical pathology (Group III). Opioids were prescribed in 81.8%; of those 32.2% were on >200mg of daily morphine or equivalent (MED). A higher proportion of opioid users were in Group II and Group III than Group I. The vast majority of referred injured workers in this study were on opioid therapy with 1 in 3 exceeding the “watchful” dose of 200 mg MED