VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Characterization of members of the Arabidopsis Plant U-Box/ARM repeat gene family

In recent years, the process of ubiquitination has been shown to be not only an important process for regulated proteolysis, but likely the major pathway through which the cell selectively targets proteins for degradation. In plants, there appears to have been an expansion of many of the components required for this process, including the key substrate targeting enzymes, E3 ubiquitin ligases. They have been shown to be responsible for many key plant processes during plant growth and development, including responses to the environment. The U-box family of E3 ligases is one of the more recently identified players in this ubiquitination process, and as such, there is little knowledge on the precise regulatory roles of these proteins in the model plant Arabidopsis. The initial aim of this research was to characterize the 41 member Plant U-Box (PUB)-ARM repeat gene family, which is the largest family of predicted U-box containing E3 ligases in Arabidopsis. Initial analyses of several Arabidopsis T-DNA insertion lines for many of the PUB-ARM genes showed no discernable changes in plant growth and development; however, T-DNA insertion lines for one member, PUB44 did show altered growth phenotypes. Homozygous pub44/pub44 plants grew very poorly and many seedlings died at early stages. This phenotype was correlated with increased cell death in the leaves and roots. Interestingly, T-DNA insertion lines for the closely related PUB43 gene did not show any altered growth phenotypes. Seeds from heterozygous PUB44/pub44 plants had altered germination phenotypes in the presence of abscisic acid (ABA), mannitol, glucose and NaCl. In addition, germination analysis of homozygous pub43/pub43 mutant seeds also showed similar effects on the germination of seeds in the presence of ABA. Transient expression of the PUB44 protein in tobacco BY-2 cells showed a subcellular localization pattern of PUB44 to the perinuclear ER, which is the site of many cellular proteasomes. In the presence of ABA, PUB44 relocalized to the plasma membrane. Thus, PUB44 appears to have a role in cell death and ABA responses, and the closely related PUB43 may also have a role in ABA reponses.
Time-dependent electro-structural-hydrodynamic model of a single chamber peristaltic micropump

An innovative micropump capable of delivering small flow rates for applications in drug delivery and DNA transport is presented. The device consists of one pump chamber with multiple electrodes for peristaltic motion, and two passive valves to further direct the flow. A two-dimensional fluid-structural analytical model is developed. A fully coupled Finite Element Model is also presented. A passive valve geometry is optimized for low Reynolds number flow with periodic driving pressure. Various micropump configurations are analyzed. The results show a reduction of resonance frequency due to fluid damping. For a 300 mum long micropump with 12 mum microchannel depth and 4 mum thick silicon membrane, the structural resonance is sim;340 kHz and the reduced fluid-structural resonance is sim;24 kHz. With an improved Heaviside square wave excitation signal at 300 V, a maximum average flow rate of 3.98 muL/min and a pressure of 120 kPa is seen for the two-electrode model.
Analysis of make-to-stock queues with general production times

In this thesis, we obtain the exact steady-state distribution of the number of customers in a GI/G/1 make-to-stock queue, therefore we observe the impact of production time variability on optimal inventory control policies. We also shed light on how system performance deteriorates more because of production stoppages and variability in repair times. We also analyze a production/inventory producing different products. We compare the performances of different scheduling policies in regard of the inventory control parameters and average system costs which are obtained by using the exact steady-state distribution of the number of customers for each static policy (first-come-first-served, preemptive and non-preemptive priority disciplines). We provide the inequalities indicating when it is optimal to switch from make-to-stock to make-to-order policy. We extend the application area of a well-known dynamic scheduling heuristic, Myopic(T), for systems with non-exponential service times. We additionally analyze inventory pooling problem in the M/G/1 make-to-stock queue.
Prediction of the causticizing equilibrium in the kraft chemical recovery process

In recent years, due to the change in used wood species used, as well as implementation of more strict environmental regulations, the concentration of potassium and chloride in the kraft pulp mill liquor has increased. Furthermore, the sulfate concentration has also increased due to lower boiler reduction efficiency. This project examines the effect of potassium, chloride and sulfate on the efficiency of causticizing reaction (Ca(OH)2+Na2CO 3 iff; 2NaOH+CaCO3) using a computer program, OLI Stream Analyzer 2.0. OLI predictions are in agreement with experimental data for aqueous solutions of sodium carbonate, with and without sodium sulfide, showing that the causticizing efficiency (CE) decreases significantly as the total titratable alkali (TTA) of the solution increases. Results of OLI simulations also suggest that potassium increases the causticizing efficiency to some extent, while chloride and sulfate decrease it only slightly. However, within their typical concentration range in the mill liquor, potassium, chloride, and sulfate have an insignificant effect on causticizing efficiency.
Chemi-thermal modification of wood

The aim of this research is to study the durability of wood by chemi-thermal modification. A chemical pre-treatment was introduced to catalyze the effect of thermal modification of wood by impregnating them with selective chemicals before their thermal treatment in oil. The effects of heating oils and pre-treatment chemicals were investigated. Changes in the oil absorption capacity wood at elevated temperature appear to play an important role in conveying stability of wood in terms of moisture uptake, fungal and decay resistance as well as dimensional swelling. Borax pre-treatment appeared to have a positive effect on the decay properties of wood but increased its hygroscopicity. As industry is looking for alternative wood treatment processes to enhance durability of wood, the effect of time-temperature-moisture absorption relationship on dimensional stability and decay properties are discussed.
CFTR modulation of innate immune responses in non-polarized and polarized epithelia

In cystic fibrosis (CF), defective CF transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) expression accounts for dehydration of the airway surface liquid layer, causing impaired airway mucociliary clearance and recurrent infection. The disproportional inflammatory reaction of the airway suggests that CFTR may negatively regulate the innate immune response. We therefore generated non-clonal non-polarized and polarized epithelia expressing wt or DeltaF508 CFTR. The expression of wt and DeltaF508 CFTR was characterized by biochemical/functional assays. The cellular models were used to evaluate the physiological state of inflammation by monitoring IL-8 secretions and NF-kappaB activation in wt and DeltaF508 CFTR expressing epithelia. The molecular mechanism of NF-kappaB activation was compared. CFTR did not modulate innate immune responses in non-polarized epithelia. However, CFTR had a significant and profound inhibitory effect on IL-8 secretion in polarized bronchial epithelia cultured exclusively at air-liquid conditions. We also showed that CFTR was necessary for tight junction stability, and that inhibition of IL-8 secretion was tight junction-dependent.
Measuring the 'reduction' in a harm reduction program for homeless men experiencing harms related to alcohol abuse and problem behaviours

For Annex clients as a group, the Annex Harm Reduction Program resulted in significant reductions in time spent in prison and under community supervision. Significant results varied between subgroups with improvements in time in shelter, hospital care service use, reduced days of corrections and detox facility use. Prohibitionist and medical treatment approaches toward homeless individuals with difficult behaviours related to alcohol use, severe mental illness and other behaviour disorders are associated with reduced time in shelter and increases in heavy intoxication and problem behaviours on the street. This may lead to harmful interactions or injuries reflected in increased acute hospital service use, detox unit stays, and incarcerations. The Annex is a novel shelter-based harm reduction program that supports this subgroup in a variety of ways including the dispensing of alcohol. The purpose of this study is to determine the program impact on harm experienced by clients as reflected in the use of these services. Significant mean impacts included: Annex-Total: 85% drop in prison days and 96% drop in community supervision; Annex-PD (n=39): 82% drop in prison days and 92% drop in community supervision; Annex-PD-DP (n=10): 138% increase in shelter days, 84% drop in ER visits, 93% drop in detox days and 100% drop in prison days; Annex-PB (n=10): 97% drop inpatient days, 76% drop in detox days. Problem drinkers experienced significant rises in shelter use. Subgroup outcomes not listed were not significant. Five years of hospital, detox and corrections administrative data were collected to determine rates of societal service utilization for Annex program clients (n=59) and two comparison groups: regular shelter clients (n=61), and low income housed men (n=58). Program impact was assessed by examining crude mean rates and graphs of mean rates before and after program entry and using multivariate Generalized Estimating Equations to determine summary effect measures. Impacts were examined for all Annex subjects (Annex-Total) as well as subgroups including problem drinkers in the drinking program (Annex-PD-DP) and not in the drinking program (Annex-PD) and those with problem behaviours (Annex-PB) but who were not problem drinkers.
The effects of motion sickness on the development of hypothermia

Recent research has suggested that core temperature decreases faster when cold stress is preceded by provocative motion. This study investigated the rate of development of hypothermia during motion sickness. Fourteen subjects were simultaneously exposed to cold stress (5°C, 30%RH, 7.2 km/hr wind) and vestibular Coriolis cross-coupled stimulation. Rectal and skin temperature, heat flow, oxygen uptake, and skin blood flow were monitored throughout the trials. Core temperature decreased significantly more during Coriolis stimulation in the cold (p < 0.01) when compared to the controls. There were no significant differences in skin temperature, oxygen uptake or skin blood flow. During simultaneous Coriolis stimulation and cold stress, dry heat loss was significantly higher between 0–10 min (p < 0.05). Our results suggest motion sickness increases body core cooling during cold exposure, and that an increase of dry and possibly evaporative heat loss could explain the difference in core cooling between motion sick and non-motion sick individuals.
The functional neuroanatomy of autobiographical memory

The final fMRI study uses a prospective AM paradigm to separately examine how rehearsal and remoteness modulate the AM network. Findings reveal widespread rehearsal related suppression in task-specific regions, suggesting that reactivation of AM does affect its neural substrates. AM was also compared to semantic memory, revealing an episodic/semantic distinction in the MTL structures and broader network of regions. The findings do not clearly adjudicate between multiple trace theory and the standard consolidation model. Autobiographical memory (AM) entails a complex set of operations, including episodic and semantic memory, self-reflection, emotion, visual imagery, attention and executive functions. The heterogeneity of AM contributes both to its uniqueness as a memory phenomenon and to the significant challenges in capturing its behavioral and neuroanatomical substrates. The first study uses meta-analysis to identify the core AM network in the current corpus of AM imaging studies and to examine how key variables modulate it. The results indicate a core network of medial and left-lateralized brain regions. Findings show that the effect of memory age on medial temporal lobe structures is partially modulated by qualitative factors (importance, detail and vividness). Rest as a reference condition masks process-specific components of the AM network. The findings support an episodic/semantic neural distinction in AM. Finally, emotional events produce a shift in lateralization of the AM network with activation observed in emotion-centered regions and deactivation observed in regions associated with cognitive processes. The second study, a meta-analysis, surveys two neuroimaging literatures: one concerning studies of AM and another, mood-induction studies using AM scripts to induce emotional states. Whereas in AM studies, scanning occurs during memory retrieval, in mood-induction studies, scanning occurs after event retrieval and during emotional re-experiencing, a difference that allows for examination of different stages in autobiographical remembering (mnemonic retrieval and on-line re-experiencing). The findings reveal greater left hemisphere involvement in standard AM studies (representing memory retrieval), and greater right-hemisphere involvement in mood-induction studies (representing emotional re-experiencing). Further differences in regional activation between the two paradigms are also observed. The findings support models of sequential staged processing in AM and reciprocal inhibitory relationships between cognitive and emotional processes.
Valuation of mortgage-backed securities in a distributed environment

Valuation of Mortgage-Backed Securities, regarded as integration in high-dimensional space, can be readily performed using the Monte Carlo method. The Quasi-Monte Carlo method, by utilizing low-discrepancy sequences, has been able to achieve better convergence rates at computational finance problems despite analysis suggesting that the improved convergence comes into effect only at sample sizes growing exponentially with dimension. This may be attributed to the fact that the integrands are of low effective dimension and quasi-random sequences' good equidistribution properties in low dimensions allow for the faster convergence rates to be attained at feasible sample sizes. The Brownian bridge discretization is traditionally used to reduce the effective dimension although an alternate choice of discretization can produce superior results. This paper examines the standard Brownian bridge representation and offers a reparametrization to further reduce dimension. The performance is compared both in terms of improvement in convergence and reduced effective dimensionality as computed using ANOVA decomposition. Also, porting of the valuation algorithm to a distributed environment using Microsoft .NET is presented.
Essays on derivative pricing models

The study in this thesis consists of three related papers on derivative pricing models. In the first paper (Chapter 2), we propose a methodology for assessing model risk and apply it to the implied volatility function (IVF) model. Our research is different from other tests of the IVF model in that we reflect the traders' practice of using the model for the relative pricing of exotic and plain vanilla options at one point in time. We find little evidence of model risk when the IVF model is used to price and hedge compound options. However, there is significant model risk when it is used to price and hedge some barrier options. The implied Black-Scholes volatility is used in practice to quote European option prices. In the second paper (Chapter 3), we model the implied Black-Scholes volatility directly, and derive the restrictions on its dynamics in order for it to be arbitrage-free, and consistent with European option prices with different strikes and maturities. We apply the results to some of the ad hoc rules, such as the “volatility-by-strike” rule and “sticky volatility” rule that are commonly used in practice. The third paper (Chapter 4) concerns the optimal investment problem for an investor with a HARA type utility function. We assume the investor already has an option in her portfolio, and she will setup her investment/hedging strategy using bonds and the underlying stock to maximize her utility. When there is transaction costs, the investor's optimal investment/hedging strategy can be described by three regions: the buying region, the selling region, and the no transaction region. When her portfolio falls in the buying (selling) region, she will buy (sell) enough shares of the stock to make her portfolio lie in the no transaction region (NT). When her portfolio falls in the NT region, it is optimal for the investor to make no transaction. We introduce the concept of a viscosity solution to describe the indirect utility function. We propose a numerical scheme to compute the indirect utility function. This in turn enables the asking price for an option to be computed. Chapter 1 provides a background to the research and discusses relevant literature.
Environmental and social cost modeling of highway projects

This research thesis presents a unified environmental and social cost model of highway projects. The model identifies potential cost items that can be considered in cost-benefit analysis of highway project. For this research, the cost items are considered from the viewpoint of environmental and social impact, impacted entities, impact sources, and best practices to mitigate the effect. The information is then used to develop an XML (Extensible Markup Language) schema, which can be used to report impacts estimates and to develop data exchange standards. The values of various cost items previously estimated by different researchers and research organizations are also gathered in this study. In addition, three case studies were performed to review the extent of environmental assessment studies. Furthermore, an interactive website is developed, which represents the model, the XML schema, and platform for feedbacks that can be helpful in modifying the model, the schema, and environmental and social cost estimates.
Synthesis of novel inositol derivatives as amyloid inhibitors

Scyllo-inositol was found to be effective in preventing Abeta aggregation in Alzheimer's disease in both in vitro and using mouse models of Alzheimer's disease in vivo studies. Some scyllo-inositol mimics that preserve the scyllo-inositol stereochemistry and contain deoxy, fluoro, chloro, methoxy, and azido functionalities have been synthesized. These compounds were designed to have better in vivo stability than scyllo-inositol. In addition, the hydroxyl surrogates can provide information about potential hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interactions, and steric interactions between the compounds and Abeta peptides. The effects of these compounds on Abeta peptide aggregation cascade have been investigated using electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering. All of the synthesized inositol derivatives alter the morphology of the amyloid aggregates produced. The chemistry to develop a library of thiol scyllo-inositol derivatives has also been explored.
Serial controlled N-of-1 trials of topical vitamin E as prophylaxis for chemotherapy-induced oral mucositis in pediatric patients: a pilot study

Objectives. To determine whether in children undergoing doxorubicin-containing chemotherapy, if topical vitamin E, when compared to placebo, decreases an objective measurement of oral mucositis. Methods. We conducted a series of N-of-1, double-blinded, randomized controlled trials in which children ≥6 years of age who were receiving repeated cycles of identical chemotherapy with at least 60 mg/m 2 of doxorubicin per cycle were randomly assigned to receive either topical vitamin E (800 mg) or placebo, 2 mL swish and spit once daily for 14 days, starting 24 to 36 hours after the completion of doxorubicin. The primary outcome was an objective mucositis score. Secondary outcomes included pain visual analogue scale (VAS) scores and modified Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) mucositis grade scores. Based upon feasibility, we decided a priori to enroll 16 children. This report describes the result of an interim analysis of the first 10 subjects. We planned to stop the study if there was a >95% probability of treatment efficacy at any interim analysis. Results. Between April 2001 and October 2003, 18 children were eligible to participate in this pilot study. Five families refused to participate and three children remain on study; therefore, 10 children were enrolled and are included in this analysis. There was an 82% probability that vitamin E was associated with lower objective mucositis scores and a 79% probability that vitamin E was associated with lower pain VAS scores. However, the benefit was small, with an average decrease in objective mucositis scores of only 0.2 on a scale of 0 to 5 and an average decrease in pain VAS scores of only 0.3 on a scale of 0 to 10. However, there was a 97% chance that vitamin E was associated with less morphine use. Conclusions. While topical vitamin E likely decreased doxorubicin-related mucositis, the benefit was very small according to objective and subjective measures. However, a decrease in analgesia suggests that the reduction in mucositis may be clinically meaningful. Because the results did not meet stopping criteria, we plan to accrue additional subjects.
Photosensitized reactions on urban film surfaces

Urban films are formed on impervious surfaces in urban environments and are composed of a complex mixture of organic and inorganic compounds. In this thesis, the interaction of film components with light and atmospheric oxidants was investigated. Two separate but related projeci:s were undertaken. The photoenhancement of the heterogeneous reaction of ozone with solid pyrene films (SF pyrene) and pyrene contained in model urban films (UF pyrene) was examined using a laser-induced fluorescence technique. The ozonation of SF pyrene displayed a moderate light enhancement, the magnitude of which is insufficient to explain previous observations of light-enhanced ozone uptake by solid pyrene surfaces. These results indicate that surface reactivity cannot always be correctly predicted using gas-phase observations. A suite of environmentally relevant photosensitizers were tested for their ability to enhance nitrate photolysis on model urban film surfaces. No enhancement was observed in the presence of any of the additives.
Multiculturalism: A discourse analysis of the Citizenship and Immigration Canada and Canadian Heritage websites

Using discourse analysis, this study explores how Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) and Canadian Heritage explain the idea of multiculturalism on their official websites. Both websites avoid setting a clear definition of multiculturalism. Instead, they assign the task of defining multiculturalism to readers. The CIC website relies heavily on legal frameworks, such as the Canadian Multiculturalism Act, in explaining the concept. The Canadian Heritage website juxtaposes history, policies, programs, and events that are relevant to multiculturalism. Such inconsistent explanations of multiculturalism are problematic, potentially sending mixed signals. The websites also suggest that the present condition of multiculturalism is significantly better than its past iteration, describing current Canadian society as a place where many different cultural and ethnic groups live and work together in harmony and tolerance. But neither website describes contemporary controversies and difficult issues, nor the relationship between the government and those issues.

Keywords: Multiculturalism, Canada
Multiculturalism, Information services
Multiculturalism, Canada
Multiculturalism, Information resources
Multiculturalism, Canada