Vitamin C is an essential component of the human diet. Uptake of vitamin C in the cell is regulated by the function of sodium-dependent vitamin C transporters (SVCTs). SVCT1 (encoded by the SLC23A1 gene) is expressed in the colon, liver and kidney, where it plays a vital role in determining...
Magneto- and chemostratigraphic correlation underpins much of our understanding of Earth history, yet typical correlation techniques are neither quantitative nor objective. Within this dissertation, I detail my efforts to develop and apply dynamic programming-based algorithms that accomplish optimal and reproducible stratigraphic alignment. I apply these algorithms to three geologic intervals:...
The expansion of native, woody plants is a global phenomenon with characteristics and effects that are often indistinguishable from exotic invasions. These expansions have largely been driven by altered fire regimes and favorable climatic conditions. In the Great Basin of western North America, expansion of conifers such as western juniper...
In this dissertation, we use Fourier-analytic and spectral theory methods to analyze the behavior of solutions of the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations in 2D and 3D (with an eye towards better understanding turbulence). In particular, we investigate the possible existence of so-called ghost solutions to the Navier-Stokes Equations. Such solutions, if...
There is strong interest in the energy community to develop technologies that can diffuse low-cost, renewably generated electricity into difficult and slow to decarbonize sectors. One of the emerging areas of interest is renewable natural gas (RNG). RNG has low or no associated net greenhouse gas emissions and can be...
Decline in cardiac pump function is a hallmark of aging where mitochondrial decay is an important underlying cause. Although certainly multifactorial in nature, both dysfunction of the machinery involved in the chemiosmotic process of energy transduction and lower capacity to maintain fatty acid-driven respiration are identified as intrinsic factors of...
Oxidative stress is the major driving force behind the aging process and many age-related diseases. However, direct experimental evidence of whether antioxidants, such as ascorbate (AA) and lipoic acid (LA) can slow the progression of aging process and/or reduce risks of developing degenerative disease is largely absent. This suggests a...
Hallmarks of aging include the accumulation of aberrant proteins and a lower resistance to stresses. Because the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) functions to fold proteins and possesses unique stress sensing pathways, the central hypothesis of this dissertation is that the ER is a target of cellular aging and significantly underlies these...
Ceramides are a group of lipids in the sphingolipid family that are potent cell signaling molecules. Elevations in ceramide levels above the norm generally lead to apoptosis. Evidence from in vitro studies suggests that accumulation of ceramides within mitochondria leads to dysfunction of the mitochondria. This includes inhibition of the...
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Tory M. Hagen
Ceramides are a group of lipids in the sphingolipid family that are potent
During the years between 1930 and 1950 a number of attempts
were made to introduce techniques and ideas from cytology,
ecology, and genetics into the field of taxonomy. Advocates of
this "experimental taxonomy" believed that cytological, ecological,
and genetic techniques would provide a rigorous, objective
methodology to replace the traditional...