The significance of this study is to determine the role of Matrix Metalloproteinase, also known as MMP9 in preterm births. Most pregnancies undergo 40 weeks of gestation, babies born between 37 and 42 completed weeks of gestation are called full term. Babies born before 37 weeks of gestation are called premature. Proteins of the Matrix Metalloproteinase (MMP) family are involved in the breakdown of extracellular matrix in normal physiological process such as embryonic development, reproduction, and tissue remodeling.

Background and aims. The present study aimed at examining the extent to which attachment style (purportedly acquired early in life and thought to be stable throughout the stages of development) remains constant across the adult lifespan. Anxious Attachment (AA) style was assessed by the degree of emotional distress experienced in the context of close romantic relationships. Psychological traits with potential effects on individual differences in AA including general emotional distress/anxiety (Neuroticism) and empathic style were examined.

Our goal was to determine the differences in epidermal proliferation between keratinocytes obtained from young and old human skin. When the skin is wounded, it has to go through a rehabilitation process. The length of this process can vary in time depending on the health of the cells and their environment. With increased age, wound healing becomes slower. Earlier in vitro work has shown that young skin cells migrate faster in low oxygen tension (4%) than high oxygen tension (21%), whereas older skin cells migrate faster in higher oxygen tension than in low oxygen tension (Fig 2).

Individuals with developmental disabilities often engage in challenging self-injurious behavior (SIB). An evaluation of SIB exhibited by a young woman with autism was investigated. First, a functional analysis (FA) was conducted to identify the conditions under which SIB was most likely to occur. Its purpose was to define the problematic behavior and eliminate the behavior by manipulating antecedents and consequences by replacing them with more appropriate behaviors.

Staphylococcus aureus is a nosocomial pathogen that causes several diseases, including endocarditis, pneumonia, toxic-shock syndrome and food poisoning. It has been documented previously by our research group the presence of methicillin susceptible Staphyloccous aureus (MSSA) in U.S. swine and in swine farmers. We hypothesized that the MSSA found in swine and swine farmers would not present the pvl (Panton-Valentine leukocidin) gene, which is more common in methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

It has been proposed that face recognition in primates depends on a specialized mechanism, different from the system used to recognize other objects, physically located in the fusiform gyrus of the right medial temporal lobe (the fusiform face area). One interesting aspect of human face recognition is the other-race effect; the finding that people are more accurate in recognizing faces of their own race than faces of other races.

The objective of this study was to determine the effect of diet induced obesity (DIO) on microvascular and neural function. Rats were fed a standard or high fat diet for 32 weeks. Vasodilation in epineurial arterioles was measured by videomicroscopy, endoneurial blood flow by hydrogen clearance, nerve conduction velocity following electrical stimulation of motor or sensory nerves and thermal nociception using the Hargreaves method. Rats fed a high fat diet developed sensory neuropathy as indicated by slowing of sensory nerve conduction velocity and thermal hypoalgesia.

Despite difficulty in isolation and expansion, dendritic cells (DCs) have been used as immunotherapeutic agents in human cancer trials. Our search for viable alternatives to DCs focuses on B cells due to ease of isolation, activation, and their function as antigen presenting cells (APCs). While DCs are more effective at presenting antigen to naïve T cells, we hypothesized that multiple Bvac (B cell vaccine) injections would enhance their effectiveness.

The Ileal peyer´s patches (IPP) have been known to be excellent B cell developers. In recent studies it was shown that piglets that were surgically intervened and had only 10% of the IPP were showing a decreased development of mesenteric lymph node (MLN) and (JPP) jejuna peyer´s patches. This experiment identified the crucial role that the IPP plays as an excellent source of B cell development. However, it is not known whether the IPP is the principal developer of B cells for the MLN and JPP or not.

Objective: To conduct a descriptive analysis on the first cohort of families enrolled in the Comprehensive Community Mental Health Services Program in ten northeast Iowa counties. This Project is an analysis of preliminary data from a community mental health services initiative serving children and their families in northeast Iowa. Two general theories, social causation theory and social selection theory, attempt to describe the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and health (La Veist 171).

HIV, human immunodeficiency virus can possibly lead to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It impacts the health of people's daily life. HIV/AIDS remains a great challenge to all the ethnic groups and nations. For example, African Americans are hit the hardest, according to Center of Disease Control (CDC), making up 49% of HIV/AIDS victims.

The way in which a person carries themselves, acts, or performs speaks volumes to those around them. Using Richard Schechner's definition of performance as all of the activity of a person at one point that may influence another, it can be said that performance is what people use to characterize and judge others, whether negatively or positively. This performance will be seen as good or bad according to the stigma, as Erving Goffman defined it, that is associated with the performance.

Laboratory experiments are the basis of any branch of science.  Inability of performing an experiment could stand as a barrier for the advancement of a branch of science.  The two that contribute to this inability are cost and sensitivity.  It is the purpose of this research to enable scientists to perform experiments on the computer.  More specifically, it aims to simulate the flow of matter in various mediums.  It could be used to study many areas.  Some are the flow of red blood cells, oil extraction, and river flow.  Also, static particles such as granular microstructures could be exa

Each organization faces issues of retention and attraction of its members. This study explores issues of youth engagement in youth community organizations through a qualitative study. Literature identifies certain techniques used by adult leaders as more effective than others. In general these techniques need to be able to address the youth's need for autonomy, relatedness, and guidance. We took a closer look at the techniques by interviewing youth organization leaders about their experience in the area of community organizations.

Scientific awareness of how zeolites, a very distinctive type of microporous aluminosilicates, undergo dissolution in aqueous solutions with various ph's is limited. Zeolites are three-dimensional, crystalline compounds which are built from AlO4 and SiO4 tetrahedra. A defining feature of zeolites is that their frameworks are made up of 4-connected networks of atoms. Understanding the dissolution of zeolites is fundamental to a number of processes occurring in medicine and throughout industry.

Clear Creek, a 270km² watershed located west of Coralville, IA, is heavily influenced by anthropogenic nutrient sources, exhibits erratic flows, and is very susceptible to extreme erosion of its banks during heavy rains. These rains contaminate the creek with excessive amounts of nutrients, sediment, and urban-related toxins, contributing to poor quality of downstream waterways. Water and its contaminants flow from the Iowa River to the Mississippi River and then discharge into the Gulf of Mexico.

Framing effects are one type of bias in which "decision makers respond differently to different but objectively equivalent descriptions of the same problem" (Levin et al. 1998). Framing effects have been demonstrated in many domains, like in choices about monetary outcome and in questions pertaining to the loss of human lives. Valence framing is one type of framing effects in which people can be biased to make different judgments when a situation is framed positively versus negatively.

Background: The amount of parental investment or attachment to their offspring is an important determinant of offspring success.  Using animal models, a number of groups have demonstrated that these attachment behaviors are strongly influenced by both genetic and epigenetic factors.  In particular, variation in the serotonergic pathway has been strongly implicated.  Unfortunately, studies of these influences in humans using traditional family study designs are strongly biased by residual gene environment correlations.  

Why when we have two eyes and each of which we support perception by itself, we do not see two of everything? If we present two different images to each eye then a competition arises, a neuronal competition. When the eyes are presented with two distinct and conflicting images, an alternation between these on a timescale of seconds is reported. The phenomenon is termed binocular rivalry and has been investigated in psychophysical and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) experiments, and more recently within a modeling approach (1, 2, 4-7).

Place encompasses ideas of identity, environment, and community. These are topics that are important to gaining a better understanding of society. In researching sustainability in the Iowa River watershed focus was given to theories of place and ideas about sustainability of community and place; taking into account the many factors that affect place construction and identity including context within a larger geographical area, integration of new immigrants, and outside influences.

The purpose of this research was to profile the homeschooled population of the state of Iowa during the academic years of 2003-04 and 2004-05. Iowa law requires that parents complete Form A at the beginning of a school year. The form documents that families are conducting homeschooling, designated in Iowa as Competent Private Instruction (CPI). Researchers collected information in Form A from all Area Education Agencies in the state of Iowa. A database containing information on all of the parent's responses was created.

Difficulties with social situations, social cues, and/or social interactions are some of the most notable symptoms associated with autism spectrum disorders ( ASD), yet few have investigated how this may impact self-concept among students diagnosed with any of the three ASDs: autism, Asperger Syndrome, or Pervasive Developmental Disorder, NOS (PDD-NOS). The present study examines academic, physical, intellectual, behavioral, social, and emotional self-concept among high ability children and adolescents diagnosed with autism or Asperger Syndrome/PDD-NOS.

Living in a society where African Americans are forced to consciously chance their performance to be successful in mainstream America causes anxiety which thus can lead up to suicide. In order to achieve and maintain mainstream success, middle-class African Americans are forced to have two different identities. Using the framework of W.E.B. Du Bois' double consciousness (1868) and Erving Goffman's face theory (1967), the purpose of the current study was to examine the effects of anxiety primarily in the late Leanita McClain.

As the number of multiracial individuals (those with parents of different races) in the United States rises, the implications for public opinion about this demographic shift become important in light of the racial stratification of our society. Studying student attitudes towards multiracial individuals permits us to predict future group behavior as well as to comprehend the social racial structure in which young people are immersed.

Mechanical Icon is an educational experiment in historical interpretation and dissemination. Its aim is to place iconic photographs in historical context by means of short videos. We often do not see photographs as "standing for" something, but instead we see them as "depicting" something. But some photographs can and do "stand for" something, and though they have some symbolic value they are not really symbols because they are not really arbitrary. We couldn't substitute out any key components of the photograph and still expect it to "mean" the same thing.

According to Shiezek and Henry (1989), confidence affects whether a possible course of actions actually followed. Inappropriate confidence is a threat to successful decision making and implementation, resulting in different types of problems, including mental health related problems. An example is the Gamblers Fallacy effect, where some decision makers believe that a string of bad luck will be followed by good luck.

The objective of this research is to observe how flies move through vials separated by a sieve and variations due to environmental factors in a fly's ability to go through the sieve. Such information may suggest a category of genes that play a role in their motor skills. The mutant flies in this experiment are qvr1, qvr2, qvr ∆p-6, and qvr∆p-7. CS wild-type flies were the control. Flies were collected and placed in an empty plastic vial with a sieve located above them.

It is estimated that 7.5 million children in the United States do not receive the mental health services they need (Flisher et al., 1997; Kataoka et al, 2002). This is alarming given the negative outcomes for children with untreated mental health disorders. The purpose of this study was to determine the mental health needs of a group of youth in alternative high schools across Iowa. Additionally, this study served to assess whether the youth in alternative high schools differed in mental needs compared to those in traditional high schools and examined gender differences.

At least two neural pathways, a dorsal pathway for localization of sound sources and a ventral pathway for recognition of auditory objects may process auditory information. These processing pathways converge in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and this area is involved in working memory for visual stimuli and may have the same involvement of auditory information. Some studies have shown that there are neurons in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) that respond to sounds. However, many of these studies have only used a few numbers of example stimuli such as monkey vocalization and pure tones.

Metacognition is said to be the ability to perceive one's own mental states (Metcalfe & Kober, 2005). It can also be more objectively defined as the ability to judge one's chances of success or failure at a task before actually performing it (Jozefowiez, Staddon, & Ceretti, 2009). For centuries, metacognition has been claimed to be uniquely human; but, it may be that animals exhibit this ability as well. Metacognition has recently been reported in several different animals including monkeys, orangutans, dolphins, and rats.

Mena, a phosphoprotein that regulates actin dynamics in lamellipodia of migratory cells, and PTEN, a phosphatase involved in signal transduction, are two proteins that have been implicated in human cancer cell motility and chemotaxis. A variant of Mena (Mena⁺⁺⁺) is expressed in an invasive subpopulation of mammary cancer cells that exhibit robust chemotaxis to epidermal growth factor (EGF). These observations have led to the hypothesis that EGF recruits carcinoma cells expressing the highly invasive Mena isoform into blood vessels, leading to metastasis.

Higher-order Theory of Mind or Memory for Complex ContentComplex social interaction may require an ability to infer and understand the thoughts of other social agents (‘Theory of Mind', ToM). Since humans are an incredibly social species, a highly developed ability to infer recursive thoughts about thoughts might be expected.

It is estimated that 7.5 million children in the United States do not receive the mental health services they need (Flisher et al., 1997; Kataoka et al, 2002). This is alarming given the negative outcomes for children with untreated mental health disorders. The purpose of this study was to determine the mental health needs of a group of youth in alternative high schools across Iowa. Additionally, this study served to assess whether the youth in alternative high schools differed in mental needs compared to those in traditional high schools and examined gender differences.

Globalization has led to the interconnection of nations, peoples and cultures. It is generally assumed that the United States is the primary driver of globalization which exports its culture to all parts of the world. However, the United States is not immune from globalization. Music in the United States is affected by music from other parts of the world. This is especially true of Latin music that comes mostly from Puerto Rico as well as from Mexico, Colombia, and Cuba.

Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes series helped the emerging British middle-class make sense of the steep rise in crime and Britain's close interaction with colonized countries in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries. Doyle introduced a machine-like man who quickly identified criminals, providing a false sense of security against crime and foreigners. This project argues that Doyle applied pseudo-scientific theories that claimed people were biologically predisposed to inferiority and criminality.

The purpose of our study is to document the perceptions of self-identified Latino/a faculty, staff, and administrators related to their contributions as mentors for Latino/a undergraduate students. We explored the characteristics of effective mentors who are University of Iowa faculty, staff, and administrators. Second, we interviewed self-identified Latino/a undergraduate students to better understand the characteristics of Latino/a mentors who are faculty, staff, and administrators on campus.

Strokes are more common among the elderly; however they can occur at any age across lifespan. Clinical lore and some studies have suggested that younger age of onset results in a better cognitive outcome; however few studies have evaluated the relationship between age of stroke onset and long term cognitive recovery. We tested the hypothesis that younger age of stroke onset will result in a better cognitive outcome than strokes occurring later in life. We analyzed the neuropsychological test performances given to patients (n=557) following a single stroke at least 3 months post onset.

Due to the high costs for operation and maintenance in the wind power industry, many utility companies and wind farm owners are focusing on cost reduction for operation and maintenance.

Influenza A virus (IAV) and Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) are two of the most common viruses that cause respiratory infections affecting young children and the elderly. Studies are now showing the presence of dual infections. Although the importance of CD8 T cell immunity to pulmonary virus clearance is well documented, little is known of the immune response to both the primary and secondary viruses. With that rationale in mind, our goal was to determine if the response of virus specific CD8 T cells is altered due to pulmonary virus co-infections.

Today, more women than men are obtaining doctorate degrees, which will result in an increase in pay, higher education, and increased social status. This phenomenon will bring about a change in mate selection since previous research has shown that inconsistency in spouse's income is a significant predictor of marital satisfaction (Nock & Wilcox, 2006). In addition, with the steady decline in our current economy, a mate with great earning potential may be more desirable. This study examines what factors influence college educated men and women's choice of mate.

Visuomotor adaptation is the ability to adjust movement in response to changes in visuospatial perception. When visual feedback of hand movement is rotated relative to true hand movement, healthy adults gradually adapt arm reaching by rotating hand movement an equal amount in the opposite direction. The extent to which this type of learning can be retained is not known. Here, we investigated retention of a newly learned leg reaching visuomotor adaptation in a cohort of five healthy young adults.

Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia among older adults. According to statistics by the Alzheimer's Association, there are 5.3 million people in the United States are living with this degenerative condition. Because Alzheimer's is not a normal process of aging, diagnosed individuals require assistance from some type of caregiver as the disease progresses. Establishing and maintaining daily routines can prove difficult and can create frustration, aggression, and other negativity in diagnosed individuals, which adversely impacts the caregiver.