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- Creator:
- Nielsen, Ryan
- Description:
- The area of study for this project is a microRNA called miR-375 which is overexpressed in people with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and has been linked to decreased insulin secretion and beta cell proliferation. Investigation into the transcription factor inducible cAMP early repressor (ICER) as an intermediate regulator of miR-375 was proposed because both were found to be regulated by cAMP pathway. To investigate ICER’s binding affinity to the miR-375 promoter, a luciferase reporter assay was conducted. HEK-293T cells that were transfected with a luciferase reporter plasmid containing a cAMP recognition element (CRE) and a plasmid driving the overexpression of ICER had a 75% decrease when compared to our control (p < 0.05). Additionally, ICER’s expression was measured in human embryonic kidney cells (HEK-293T) when co-transfected with a plasmid containing ICER and a small interfering RNA (siRNA) using quantitative real time PCR (qPCR) and Western blot. A luciferase reporter assay showed a 13.1-fold increase from the miR-375 luciferase reporter plasmid containing the AP-1 promoter (p < 0.05). INS-1 cells that were transfected with a luciferase reporter plasmid the miR-375 promoter and a plasmid driving the overexpression of ICER had no significant fold change when compared to the control (p > 0.05). The goal of this project was to test the potential binding and regulation of the miR-375 promoter by ICER. The findings that I made indicate that there is potential binding and further investigation into this area could lead to a better understanding of the cAMP dependent regulation mechanism of miR-375.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Chico
- Department:
- Biological Sciences
- Creator:
- Faris, Ellsworth, IV
- Description:
- It has been hypothesized that some accidents in the backcountry are due to individuals being hypoglycemic (low blood glucose concentration). Glucose is the brain’s main energy source. Without proper blood glucose concentrations, the brain’s functionality decreases. When this happens the ability to make decisions may be impaired. In outdoor education, instructors, students, and staff are actively involved in decision making which includes choices affecting the safety of themselves as well as others. The purpose of the study was to examine if blood glucose concentration affects the ability to make decisions in the context of outdoor education.
The study was a blind randomized cross-over design in which half the subjects consumed a carbohydrate replacement beverage while the other half consumed artificially flavored water as a placebo. Six subjects participated in the study and hiked 10.2 miles with 25% of their body weight to simulate the activity of backpacking. During predetermined time intervals, the subjects would have their blood glucose concentration measured and performed a basic decision making test.
The results of this study showed that drinking a carbohydrate replacement drink had a significant effect on blood glucose concentrations; however, it did not show that blood glucose concentration had an effect on decision making. Current literature supports that blood glucose concentration does have an effect on decision-making. Understanding the physiological impacts of blood glucose concentration in relation to decision making can further improve risk management practices of outdoor education programs.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Chico
- Department:
- Interdisciplinary Studies
- Creator:
- Flett, James "Saylor"
- Description:
- Vocational preparation programs in institutions of higher education aim to develop skill sets that transfer to participants post graduate experiences. The literature suggest that outdoor education programs aim to increase technical, interpersonal, and meta skills in its participants; however, few studies have included long-term, follow up assessments of college graduates from outdoor recreation experiential education programs to see if the learning outcomes are transferrable and long lasting. This research provides an analysis of the effectiveness of experiential education in higher education through looking at alumni from the Outdoor Recreation Leadership program at Feather River College.
A mixed methods research approach, utilizing surveys and follow up interviews (N=73), is used to assess the impact of experiential education on program participants. The results of this study indicate that student alumni believe their experience at Feather River College positively prepared them for postsecondary education, employability and job decidedness, and transferrable skill development in their professional and personal postgraduate lives. It is evident from the data and emergent student narratives that the experiential education model used by the Outdoor Recreation Leadership program at Feather River College effectively serves ORL alumni in their post-graduation experiences. The knowledge gained from this study reveals that educators in institutions of higher education should carefully develop and intentionally integrate more experiential education practices into their programs and curriculum.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Chico
- Department:
- Recreation, Hospitality, and Parks Management
- Creator:
- Gradone, Dayne Anthony
- Description:
- Making sense of health practices requires attention to the lives and experiences of the individuals and collectivities involved in them, along with a basic understanding of the historical, sociocultural, political economic, and ecological contexts that structure and inform those practices and individuals. This applies to Iten, Kenya, a small town located in the western highlands of Kenya. Iten's plethora of both conventional health facilities and traditional herbalists, known as chepkerichinik, make it an intriguing place to study the interactions of traditional and western medicine. Based on four months of ethnographic fieldwork in Iten Kenya, this study explores the role chepkerichinik play as community healthcare providers, entrepreneurs, culture bearers, and the physical embodiments of Kalenjin tradition. Semi-structured interviews with sixteen Kalenjin herbalists reveal that chepkerichinik provide at least forty-two medical services to community members, and routinely base their treatments on herbal remedies that have been maintained in their families for multiple generations.
The study concludes that chepkerichinik remain important purveyors of community healthcare, and provide services that not only address the major disease burdens of the community, but also "fill the gaps" where biomedical services are perceived to be the most deficient. Through describing the role of Kalenjin herbalists, the cultural contexts of their remedies, and the reality of interpenetrating medical pluralism, this work demonstrates the need for close, granular analyses of medical systems in an effort to understand the durability and mutability of tradition in the face of profound cultural changes.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Chico
- Department:
- Anthropology
- Creator:
- Morgan, Jason P. T.
- Description:
- Summer camps in the US gross more than $18 billion in revenue while providing over 14,000 individual programs. Summer camp counselors, like other outdoor workers, are at risk of occupational solar exposure. Occupational solar exposure increases an individual’s lifetime accumulation of solar radiation, leading to skin damage and higher rates of skin cancer. This study fills a gap in the research about the sun protection behaviors of summer camp counselors and their attitude towards provision of sun protection for themselves and the campers in their care. Counselors’ usage of sun protection measures were found to be inadequate. Most counselors were either unprotected or under-protected from occupational solar exposure. Female counselors were significantly more likely to use sun protection measures and reported a higher desire to protect themselves and their campers from solar exposure. Counselors who used sun protection measures for themselves were significantly more likely to feel responsibility for protecting their campers from solar exposure. These findings suggest that summer camps are not adequately protecting their staff from occupational solar exposure. This leads to the conclusion that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is failing to hold summer camps accountable to protect this group of employees from a known workplace hazard. The findings have implications for hiring, training, and risk management practices at summer camps.
- Resource Type:
- Masters Thesis
- Campus Tesim:
- Chico
- Department:
- Recreation, Hospitality, and Parks Management