VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
The effect of VEGF-induced angiogenesis on the viability of microencapsulated cells in vivo

The microencapsulation of cells in a semi-permeable polymer membrane has been investigated for decades as a platform for the cell-based delivery of therapeutic biomolecules. Previous work investigating the delivery of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) from cells microencapsulated in HEMA-MMA copolymer demonstrated the ability VEGF-secreting capsules to increase local vascularization in a subcutaneous murine angiogenesis model. To determine whether this increased vascularization would enhance the survival of microencapsulated cells in vivo, a quantitative viability assay was developed using the detection of a secreted form of human placental alkaline phosphatase (SEAP) as a surrogate marker for encapsulated cell viability. The analysis of SEAP secretion from capsules implanted with and without VEGF-induced angiogenesis revealed that the increased local vascularization had no measurable effect on cell viability. In a follow-up study, micro-computed tomography was investigated as a means of evaluating the architecture and functional nature of vessels formed in response to VEGF delivery.
Physical, chemical, and microbial diversity of cryptoendolithic habitats in the Canadian high Arctic

Sandstone outcrops around Eureka, Ellesmere Island, Nunavut (80°N) are host to a variety of cryptoendolithic microorganisms including cyanobacteria, algae, fungi and heterotrophic bacteria. Continuous measurements over two years (2002-2004) of climate and environmental parameters show that cryptoendolithic habitats experience warmer temperatures and wetter conditions than the exposed rock surface. Subsurface temperature fluctuations are moderated by the thermal capacity of the rock substrate and vary as a function of depth, aspect, and albedo. Rain, snow or snowmelt substantially increases subsurface moisture levels, which persist for significant time periods after initial precipitation events have passed. Variation in the dominance of one microbial community over another occurs between sites, however these differences exist in habitats with similar temperature conditions. Communities grow as biofilms attached to mineral surfaces as well as within the open void spaces between grains and in many cases produce extracellular polysaccharides in response to the extreme environmental conditions. This EPS provides a substrate for accumulation of allochthonous clay particles that enter the system by winds and rain. Analysis of metal ions by sequential extraction and their relationship to microbial diversity using multivariate statistics show that cyanobacteria-dominated communities exist under higher pH conditions with elevated concentrations of calcium and magnesium, whereas communities dominated by fungi and algae are characterized by lower pH conditions and higher concentrations of iron, aluminum, and silica in overlying surfaces. These differences are explained by variations in cryptoendolithic microbial community structure, which control microenvironmental pH conditions, influence substrate dissolution and weathering rates, and perpetuate their dominance within a given cryptoendolithic habitat. Greater diversity of microorganisms at this Arctic location compared to similar habitats in the Antarctic Dry Valleys is explained by warmer temperatures during summer months that lead to longer periods for both active ( sim;3700 hr·yr-1) and ideal ( sim;2500 hr·yr-1) calculated metabolic activities as well as abundant moisture in the form of liquid water. The lack of evidence for biomineralization within this habitat contrasts with similar environments in the Antarctic Dry Valleys, a consequence of these warmer temperatures and wetter conditions that increase erosion rates and subsequent habitat destruction.
The Romantic Poet in modern garb: Four interpretations of Karel Hynek Macha and Mikhail Iurevich Lermontov during the interwar period

This dissertation is dedicated to four interpretations of the Romantic Poet and specifically of the Czech, Karel Hynek Macha, and the Russian, Mikhail Lermontov, on the occasion of their respective jubilee years. Macha's was in 1936, while Lermontov's occurred five years later, in 1941. The versions of each poet under consideration are writer Konstantin Paustovsky's never-staged biographical play, Lieutenant Lermontov (Poruchik Lermontov 1941), film director Sergei Gerasimov's seemingly innocuous film adaptation of Lermontov's play, Masquerade (1835; 1941), the Prague Linguistic Circle's seminal collection of Macha studies, The Torso and the Mystery of Macha's OEuvre (Torso a tajemstvi Machova dila 1938), and theater director Emil Frantisek Burian's stage adaptation of Macha's most popular work, May (Maj 1836; 1935; 1936). I will examine how Paustovsky, Gerasimov, the Prague Linguistic Circle, and Burian revived and recast certain features of Lermontov and Macha to make the poets relevant to the interwar period in general and their own particular aesthetic values in particular. My methodological framework will be provided by Prague School Structuralism and its concepts of aesthetic norm, actualization, and concretization. Concretizing a work means synthesising information from a variety of sources---reviews, personal papers, anthologies, literature textbooks---to determine how both the work itself and its reception are affected by the social, political, and aesthetic milieu of any given era. Actualization, which focuses on individual readings, will help us understand what Paustovsky, Gerasimov, the Prague Linguistic Circle, and Burian are doing in their interpretations of the Romantic Poet, while the aesthetic norm will help us ascertain what they are challenging. With the aid of these tools, I will argue that the Soviet artists used Lermontov to reintroduce some aesthetic aspects of the historical Avant-Garde into monolithic "Realist" Soviet culture, while the Czechoslovaks used Macha to domesticate the Avant-Garde in both meanings of the word: to transform it into something native to Czech culture and to make it more palatable to a mass audience.
Identification of DEK and E2F3 as candidate 6p22 oncogenes in retinoblastoma

The study of retinoblastoma, the malignant tumor of the retina, has set the fundamentals of cancer genetics and the genetics of familial cancer syndromes through discovery of the first tumor suppressor gene RB1. Retinoblastoma is an excellent disease model of the multistep nature of cancer. The initiation events, leading to the loss of function of both alleles of the RBI gene, hence named mutations 1 and 2 (Ml and M2) are well characterized, as well as the number of recurrent chromosomal aberrations that are positively selected for during tumor progression. Recurrent regions of chromosomal gain and loss are hypothesized to carry oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes, respectively, which are targeted by mutational events M3-Mn. One of the most frequently gained chromosomal regions is the short arm of chromosome 6, 6p, with the minimal region of gain mapping to the chromosomal band 6p22. In this thesis, through comparative expression analysis of retinoblastoma and healthy retina, the number of candidate 6p22 oncogenes is narrowed to two genes, DEK and E2F3. The functional analysis of the oncogenic potential of DEK and E2F3 in retinoblastoma cell lines through RNA interference shows that both genes display oncogenic properties, since the knockdown of any of the two adversely affects the growth of retinoblastoma when 6p22 genomic gain is present. In addition, it is shown that, besides increase in the genomic copy number of 6p22, some retinoblastoma cell lines exhibit translocations between chromosomal arms 6p and 6q, with a recurrent translocation breakpoint at 6p22, in the vicinity of DEK and E2F3 loci, emphasizing the involvement of chromosomal band 6p22 in the etiology of retinoblastoma. Based on the work presented. DEK and E2F3 are the promising new targets for treatment and prevention of retinoblastoma.
Growing up Canadian: language, culture, and identity among second-generation Chinese youths in Canada

This dissertation empirically describes the emerging patterns of incorporation in terms of language, culture, and identity among second-generation Chinese youths growing up in Canada. The theoretical focus of my study is to (1) identify the limitations of conventional assimilation theory and (2) explore the applicability of “segmented assimilation theory” in studying the second-generation incorporation in Canada. In addition, in order to understand the mechanism by which non zero-sum bicultural form of adaptation becomes prevalent among the contemporary second-generation youths, I pay special attention to the role of ethnic socialization by parents and friends as well as network variety of friends. The findings suggest that the patterns and extent of incorporation vary among second-generation Chinese youths in Canada; conventional assimilation theory cannot fully explain this variation. In terms of language, the rate and the patterns of the shift toward English monolingualism depend on the interactive effect of parental socioeconomic resources and community context, as suggested in segmented assimilation theory. Those children from lower income families in cities with a higher Chinese immigrant concentration tend to show a selective mode of acculturation. Children from higher income families will become English monolinguals at a higher rate regardless of community context. In terms of culture, the current study also finds that acculturation does not necessarily take place at the expense of ethnic culture as suggested in conventional assimilation theory. As long as second-generation youths are surrounded by parents and friends who can influence their ethnic retention, their incorporation can take place in an additive and bicultural form. The results strongly suggest that cultural incorporation is a network mediated process and we need to look at social relations in which the second-generation youths are embedded in order to understand the persistence of biculturalism. In terms of identity, the results show that there is a manifestation of binational hyphenated-Canadian identity among the second-generation Chinese.

Keywords: Chinese, Canada
Exploring chemically modified polymers: Synthesis of aryl substituted 2-amino-[1,3,4]-oxadiazole conjugated polyacrylic acid

Novel synthetic method for the preparation of aryl substituted 2-amino-1.3,4-oxadiazole functionalized polyacrylic acid has been developed. The synthetic procedure does not require harsh conditions or elevated temperatures and avoids use of the toxic mercury salts as dehydrothiolating agent. The key reaction leading to the formation of desired 1,3,4-oxadiazole conjugated polymers involves in situ formation of the thiosemicarbazide from hydrazide precursor, followed by dehydrothiolation initiated by Mukaivama;s reagent and formation of the desired oxadiazole ring system at room temperature. The aryl substituted 2-amino-1,3,4-oxadiazole functionalized polyacrylic acids 76 were obtained in excellent yields with oxadiazole substitution levels of 46-51%, suggesting that now the polymers mainly contain two functional groups: carboxylic acid and aryl substituted 2-amino-1,3,4-oxadiazole.
Evaluating the health status of young adults with cerebral palsy and spina bifida

Increased life expectancy among children with cerebral palsy (CP) and spina bifida (SB) has created a generation of adults living with chronic physical disabilities typically seen only in childhood. The purpose of this thesis was to describe the perceived health status and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of these adult populations. The Health Utilities Index (HUI3), the Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ and the Assessment of Quality of Life (AQoL) were the three measures used to evaluate the health of 24 subjects diagnosed with CP or SB. The mean age of this cohort was 27.9 years (SD = 2.07). Mean HUI3, HAQ and AQoL health scores were 0.18 (SD = 0.35), 0.36 (SD = 0.35), and 0.2 (SD = 0.27) respectively across diagnostic groups. However, global self-reported health scores were rated as good, very good or excellent in 65% of the subjects. In conclusion, these findings represent the complexity of evaluating self-reported health using generic health and HRQoL measures in these populations.
Effect of gestational multivitamin supplementation on components of the metabolic syndrome in the mouse offspring

Vitamin intake and the prevalence of metabolic syndrome in the population have increased concurrently. Therefore, the effect of gestational multivitamin supplementation on the metabolic phenotype of the offspring was investigated. In Experiment 1, pregnant CD-1 mice were fed the AIN-93G diet containing the recommended vitamin (1V) content or a 10x higher vitamin (10V) content. In Experiment 2, mice were fed a 1V, 2.5V, or 5V diet. Pups were given the 1V (Experiment 1) or an obesogenic (Experiment 2) diet and followed for 16-17 weeks. Body weight, body composition, and food intake were measured. Glucose and insulin tolerance tests were performed in adulthood. Insulin resistance was quantified in Experiment 2. Higher doses of supplementation (5V and 10V) resulted in improved glucose disposal and insulin sensitivity. 5V pups exhibited greater relative bone mass. High levels of gestational multivitamin supplementation may reduce the risk of developing the metabolic syndrome in mouse offspring.
Large scale distributed storage and search for a Video on Demand streaming system

In the trend towards all IP networks, providing video services has proven to be challenging. The approaches taken by corporations mainly involve costly solutions, that are hard to manage and scale. If next generation service providers are to deliver high quality on-demand video streaming to a large audience, new higher layer methodologies need to be developed. The success of Peer-to-Peer (P2P) has opened an interesting research area on very diverse distributed applications that exploit their self-organizing, self-managing and self-healing nature. The objective of this thesis is to offer an effective P2P solution that targets Next Generation Video-on-Demand Service Providers' need for distributed storage. To address the challenges of low startup delay, provision of VCR commands, scalability and management of the system we propose a MultiLayered Hybrid P2P topology for the distribution of and search for content.
An inquiry into concept mapping as a form of pre-task planning in adult Japanese ESL learners' essay writing

This study investigated concept mapping as a form of pre-task planning in ESL (English as a Second Language) learners' writing performance. I observed during regular class periods the writing practices of 3 adult Japanese learners enrolled in a writing program at a private ESL school in Toronto. I then analyzed 4 of the learners' compositions written with and without concept mapping, using measures of accuracy, complexity, fluency and following Hamp-Lyons' (1991) holistic measures. I examined through a questionnaire, retrospective interview and logs the students' applications of the strategy in their writing processes. Pre-task planning was associated positively with the overall measures of the learners' written production during in-class compositions, except for accuracy. However, each learner made unique applications of the concept mapping strategy in their writing processes, suggesting that concept mapping may help ESL learners improve their composing but in unique ways according to individual experience, motivation, and task conditions.

Keywords: English language, Study and teaching
English language, Rhetoric
English language, Writing
Contemporary Nigerian literature and the idea of a canon

Contemporary Nigerian literature derives from a multi-ethnic, multi-lingual environment. Owing to its use of the English language, a large part of Nigerian written literature is in dialogue with the whole body of other literatures worldwide. What distinguishes Nigerian literature from, say, American or Australian literature is a distinct interplay of values, which although they might be found to be present in all human culture, do not combine in the same temporal, historical, geographic or ontological space in the same circumstances and dimensions as those which generate the literature that we designate as Nigerian. Within itself, Nigerian literature has yet to determine what constitutes its core values, although these values are embedded in its narratives. If these values are identified and reiterated, it is possible that a canon of Nigerian literature will be determined. This dissertation argues that the category of nation is still valid in literary discourse, especially because both academic institutional practices and socio-political realities support this theoretical position. It argues that cultural globalization is an imperial ruse, another ploy to rob weaker nations of what is left of their identity. Its beneficiaries are the empires themselves. It therefore takes the validity of a Nigerian literature for granted, only identifying and questioning its constituent elements. Although the dissertation acknowledges the larger canon debates, it restricts itself to theorizing a model of evaluation for a Nigerian canon. This study is both theoretical and evaluative. It re-examines such concepts as values, nation, tradition and canon in terms of the overall intention of the work. Both as bases for theorizing its problem and for elucidation, it uses a variety of literary texts. Although this work suggests the constitutive elements of a Nigerian canon, it does not prescribe a list of works or an exclusionary canonical model. What it does is to suggest a set of principles that will guide scholars interested in canon formation.
Quantitative T2 magnetic resonance imaging of white matter hyperintensities in Alzheimer's Disease

Quantitative T2 was used to evaluate white matter hyperintensities (WMH) in 3 subjects with probable Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and 4 normal controls. Two different types of WMH were found. In the first type (WMH1), the T2 spectra showed an increase of the position in the long T2 component when compared to normal appearing white matter. In second type (WMH2), the area of the short T2 component decreased, the position of the long T2 component increased, and a split of the long T2 component was observed. All of the WMH in Alzheimer patients were WMH2, indicative of demyelination and axonal loss. Three of the four normal controls exhibited WMH1, suggesting inflammation. The results of this study show that similar appearing WMH may exhibit different pathology. It remains to be seen whether the type of WMH could be predictive of AD or cognitive decline.
The influence of habitat type of losses of tree seeds to fungal pathogens

Fungal pathogens are thought to be an important source of seed mortality, but their impacts in natural systems are not well understood. In this study, I investigated the effects of fungal pathogens on seed survival in various habitats. An investigation of pathogen impacts on the seeds of eight tree species revealed that most species were affected by fungal pathogens. Fungal impacts differed between habitats for two of the species and these species were also more vulnerable to attack than their more shade-tolerant congeners. An investigation into the role of rotten logs as refuges from fungal pathogens for Eastern Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) demonstrated that when fungi were an important source of mortality, logs did provide an escape from fungal attack. Overall, the results of this study provide evidence that fungal pathogens contribute to the structure of plant communities via effects on seeds.
The design, manufacturing, and testing of eXperimental Push-Out Deployers (XPODs) for a variety of nanosatellites

The XPOD is a truly innovative nanosatellite deployment system. Despite the XPOD's short life, its success is absolutely crucial to the success of its nanosatellite's mission. The XPOD was originally designed to support the CanX-2 mission, but is scalable, allowing it to be adapted to both larger and smaller nanosatellites without completely changing the design. The first launch that the XPOD will be used on is set to launch on June 30, 2007. This thesis describes the entire design process of the XPOD Triple, including requirements, structural design, dynamic analysis, stress analysis, manufacturing, and environmental testing. Following this, the designs of the other seven types of XPOD are described, with particular emphasis on the most challenging of all---the XPOD Duo. The XPOD Duo is designed to support the upcoming CanX-4/-5 mission. This thesis is intended to act as a turnover document for future nanosatellite deployer designers.
Cortical thickness of the frontopolar area in typically developing children and adolescents

Development of the frontopolar cortex (FPC) was charted, using measures of cortical thickness. There existed a significant inverse association between age and cortical thickness, such that cortical thickness decreased as age increased between 8 and 20 years. There was no effect of laterality or gender on cortical thickness. Investigation of structure-function relationships revealed a significant inverse association between cortical thickness of the left hemisphere FPC and Behavior Rating Index of Executive Function (BRIEF) score for Shift, as well as a non-significant inverse trend between left hemisphere FPC thickness and BRIEF Behavioral Regulation Index (BRI). It is concluded that there exists a developmental decline in cortical thickness of the frontopolar region during late childhood and adolescence, and that the left hemisphere FPC may have a specialized role in certain aspects of executive function.
Evaluation of hand impairment and activity limitation in children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis

Hand impairment and activity limitation has been under studied in Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA). Specifically, the relationship between hand impairment and activity limitation has not been addressed. The purpose of this thesis was to: describe hand impairment and activity limitation; examine the relationship between hand impairment and activity limitation and explore which impairment(s) are associated with activity limitation in JIA. Evaluation included physical assessment, self-report and observed performance measures. Despite current disease management, minimal to moderate hand impairment was observed. However, activity limitation was minimal. Hand impairment and activity limitation were moderately correlated. Hand pain, pinch strength, Joint motion and alignment were associated with activity limitation. Hand impairment only partially explained activity limitation. Evaluation of the factors influencing the relationship between hand impairment and activity limitation is warranted. The COCHIN, an adult hand function measure appears promising for use in JIA but further evaluation of its psychometric properties is required.
Relief of measles-mumps-rubella vaccination pain using topical 4% amethocaine

The efficacy and safety of 4% amethocaine for reducing the pain of measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccination was investigated in a double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled study. One hundred and twenty infants receiving their routine 12-month MMR vaccination were recruited and randomized to receive 1g of amethocaine or placebo 30 minutes prior to vaccination. The Modified Behavioural Pain Scale (MBPS) was the primary pain outcome measure. A blood sample was collected from infants 1 month post-vaccination to assess antibody titers. The amethocaine group (n = 61) had significantly lower pain scores than the placebo group (n = 59); 1.51 vs. 2.29 (p = 0.029). The rate of vaccination success (antibody titers considered protective against disease) was similar between treatment groups; 87% and 88% respectively (p = 0.823). Amethocaine 4% gel significantly reduced the pain associated with MMR vaccination in one year old infants when compared to placebo; development of protective antibody levels was not affected.