Matching Items (7)
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- All Subjects: Biochemical markers
- All Subjects: Behavioral Sciences
- Creators: Ainsworth, Barbara
Description
While obesity rates have plateaued within the last decade,
two-thirds of the United States
population is currently classified as overweight (defined a
s a body mass index [BMI] of
25-29.9 kg/m²) or obese (a BMI greater than 30 kg/m²). Bariatric
surgical interventions
are not only more effective than behavioral treatments
in the short term but are the only
form of obesity intervention with evidence of consisten
t long-term effectiveness.
However, even among bariatric surgery patients, weight
loss often stabilizes and it is
estimated that more than 20% of bariatric surgery patient
s will regain a significant
amount of weight that was initially lost long-term. Li
ttle research to date has been
conducted on physical activity in post bariatric surgery pati
ents. More specifically, there
have been no studies to date examining the effects of Me
ditative Movement (MM)
programs on body composition in bariatric patients. A s
tudy using an 8-week Tai Chi
Easy program was conducted in female gastric bypass patient
s to explore feasibility of
MM in the bariatric population as well as pre- and post-in
tervention changes in weight,
mindfulness, eating behaviors, body awareness, physical a
ctivity patterns, dietary quality
and mood. Data analysis revealed that there were no s
ignificant changes in weight or
physical activity patterns; however, significant changes w
ere observed in anxiety, overall
body awareness and cognitive restraint in eating. Addit
ionally, a significant decrease in
processed meat consumption and a weak trend towards increa
sed consumption of fruits
may suggest an overall improvement in dietary quality.
two-thirds of the United States
population is currently classified as overweight (defined a
s a body mass index [BMI] of
25-29.9 kg/m²) or obese (a BMI greater than 30 kg/m²). Bariatric
surgical interventions
are not only more effective than behavioral treatments
in the short term but are the only
form of obesity intervention with evidence of consisten
t long-term effectiveness.
However, even among bariatric surgery patients, weight
loss often stabilizes and it is
estimated that more than 20% of bariatric surgery patient
s will regain a significant
amount of weight that was initially lost long-term. Li
ttle research to date has been
conducted on physical activity in post bariatric surgery pati
ents. More specifically, there
have been no studies to date examining the effects of Me
ditative Movement (MM)
programs on body composition in bariatric patients. A s
tudy using an 8-week Tai Chi
Easy program was conducted in female gastric bypass patient
s to explore feasibility of
MM in the bariatric population as well as pre- and post-in
tervention changes in weight,
mindfulness, eating behaviors, body awareness, physical a
ctivity patterns, dietary quality
and mood. Data analysis revealed that there were no s
ignificant changes in weight or
physical activity patterns; however, significant changes w
ere observed in anxiety, overall
body awareness and cognitive restraint in eating. Addit
ionally, a significant decrease in
processed meat consumption and a weak trend towards increa
sed consumption of fruits
may suggest an overall improvement in dietary quality.
ContributorsSmith, Lisa L. (Author) / Larkey, Linda K (Thesis advisor) / Ainsworth, Barbara (Committee member) / Chisum, Jack (Committee member) / Ohri-Vachaspati, Punam (Committee member) / McClain, Darya (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
Features of the built environment (BE) are related to a wide range of health factors, including leisure-time physical activity (PA) and active forms of transportation. For working adults, worksite neighborhood is likely an important BE to better understand the impact of various factors on PA patterns. Compared to home neighborhood walkability research, worksite walkability has received relatively less attention. The objective of this project was to identify if worksite walkability was significantly associated with PA behavior.
Aims: to evaluate 1) the PA variation explained by work walkability, 2) the moderating effects of person-level characteristics to the relationship between PA and work walkability, and 3) the differences in the rate of change in PA over time by worksite walkability.
Methods: self-report and accelerometer measured PA at baseline (aim 1, 2); longitudinal accelerometer PA during the initial 56 days of a behavioral intervention (aim 3). Adults were generally healthy and reported part- or full-time employment with a geocodeable address outside the home. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) measured walkability followed established techniques (i.e., residential, intersection, and transit densities, and land-use-mix).
Results: On average, worksite walkability did not show direct relationships with PA (aim 1); yet certain person-level characteristics moderated the relationships: sex, race, and not having young children in the household (aim 2). During 56 days of intervention, the PA rate of change over time showed no evidence of a moderating effect by worksite walkability.
Discussion: Worksite walkability was generally not shown to relate to the overall PA. However, specific subgroups (women, those without young children) appeared more responsive to their worksite neighborhood walkability. Prior literature shows certain demographics respond differently with various BE exposures, and this study adds a potentially novel moderator of interest regarding young children at home. Understanding who benefits from access to walkable BE may inform targeted interventions and policy to improve PA levels and foster health equity.
Aims: to evaluate 1) the PA variation explained by work walkability, 2) the moderating effects of person-level characteristics to the relationship between PA and work walkability, and 3) the differences in the rate of change in PA over time by worksite walkability.
Methods: self-report and accelerometer measured PA at baseline (aim 1, 2); longitudinal accelerometer PA during the initial 56 days of a behavioral intervention (aim 3). Adults were generally healthy and reported part- or full-time employment with a geocodeable address outside the home. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) measured walkability followed established techniques (i.e., residential, intersection, and transit densities, and land-use-mix).
Results: On average, worksite walkability did not show direct relationships with PA (aim 1); yet certain person-level characteristics moderated the relationships: sex, race, and not having young children in the household (aim 2). During 56 days of intervention, the PA rate of change over time showed no evidence of a moderating effect by worksite walkability.
Discussion: Worksite walkability was generally not shown to relate to the overall PA. However, specific subgroups (women, those without young children) appeared more responsive to their worksite neighborhood walkability. Prior literature shows certain demographics respond differently with various BE exposures, and this study adds a potentially novel moderator of interest regarding young children at home. Understanding who benefits from access to walkable BE may inform targeted interventions and policy to improve PA levels and foster health equity.
ContributorsHurley, Jane Cathleen (Author) / Adams, Marc A (Thesis advisor) / Todd, Mike (Committee member) / Hooker, Steven P (Committee member) / Ohri-Vachaspati, Punam (Committee member) / Ainsworth, Barbara (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
Description
Valley Fever (VF), is a potentially lethal fungal pneumonia caused by Coccidioides spp., which is estimated to cause ~15-30% of all community-acquired pneumonias in the highly endemic Greater Phoenix and Tucson areas of Arizona. However, an accurate antigen-based diagnostic is still lacking. In order to identify protein and glycan antigen biomarkers of infection, I used a combination of genomics, proteomics and glycomics analyses to provide evidence of genus-specific proteins and glycosylations. The next goal was to determine if Coccidioides-specific glycans were present in biological samples from VF patients. Urine collected from 77 humans and 63 dogs were enriched for glycans and evaluated by mass spectrometry for Coccidioides-specific glycans and evaluated against a panel of normal donor urines, urines from patients infected with other fungi, and fungal cultures from closely related pneumonia-causing fungi. A combination of 6 glycan biomarkers was 100% sensitive and 100% specific in the diagnosis of human VF subjects, while only 3 glycan biomarkers were needed for 100% sensitivity and 100 specificity in the diagnosis of dog VF subject. Additionally, a blinded trial of 23 human urine samples was correctly able to classify urine samples with 93.3% sensitivity and 100% specificity. The results of this research provides evidence that Coccidioides genus-specific glycosylations have potential as antigens in diagnostic assays.
ContributorsMitchell, Natalie M (Author) / Lake, Douglas F (Thesis advisor) / Bean, Heather D (Committee member) / Grys, Thomas E (Committee member) / Magee, Dewey M (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
Description
Physical activity, sedentary behaviors, and sleep are often associated with cardiometabolic biomarkers commonly found in metabolic syndrome. These relationships are well studied, and yet there are still questions on how each activity may affect cardiometabolic biomarkers. The objective of this study was to examine data from the BeWell24 studies to evaluate the relationship between objectively measured physical activity and sedentary behaviors and cardiometabolic biomarkers in middle age adults, while also determining if sleep quality and duration mediates this relationship. A group of inactive participants (N = 29, age = 52.1 ± 8.1 years, 38% female) with increased risk for cardiometabolic disease were recruited to participate in BeWell24, a trial testing the impact of a lifestyle-based, multicomponent smartphone application targeting sleep, sedentary, and more active behaviors. During baseline, interim (4 weeks), and posttest visits (8 weeks), biomarker measurements were collected for weight (kg), waist circumference (cm), glucose (mg/dl), insulin (uU/ml), lipids (mg/dl), diastolic and systolic blood pressures (mm Hg), and C reactive protein (mg/L). Participants wore validated wrist and thigh sensors for one week intervals at each time point to measure sedentary behavior, physical activity, and sleep outcomes. Long bouts of sitting time (>30 min) significantly affected triglycerides (beta = .15 (±.07), p<.03); however, no significant mediation effects for sleep quality or duration were present. No other direct effects were observed between physical activity measurements and cardiometabolic biomarkers. The findings of this study suggest that reductions in long bouts of sitting time may support reductions in triglycerides, yet these effects were not mediated by sleep-related improvements.
ContributorsLanich, Boyd (Author) / Buman, Matthew (Thesis advisor) / Ainsworth, Barbara (Committee member) / Huberty, Jennifer (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2017
Description
PURPOSE: This study aimed to identify whether increased Pokémon GO use resulted in increased daily steps, compared to days when an individual did not play. In addition, this study examined Pokémon GO as a use case for for the study of gamification, particularly whether traditionally identified game mechanics in gamification literature were successfully identified as elements players enjoy when playing Pokémon GO. METHODS: A mixed methods approach, with 17 participants taking part in a daily physical activity tracking study and 14 participants participating in semi-structured interviews. In the use study, participant steps were tracked for one week using the Apple Health Kit application, and participants were also asked to provide daily answers to a variety of questions assessing game preferences and daily use of Pokémon GO - using the application called PACO. The semi-structured interviews examined self-reported physical activity, and asked questions pertaining to use of Pokémon GO, such as motivation to play. RESULTS: Results assessed by t-test indicate a small but non-significant trend towards increased steps taken on days when a participant played vs. did not play (t(72)=- .56, p=.57, mplay=5,0153220, mnonplay=4,5152,959). This was confirmed with a mixed model test showing that when controlling for time and participant’s baseline level of steps, there was no significant effect on steps/day. Results from the daily surveys and also the semi-structured interviews, indicated that nostalgia (i.e., catching ones’ favorite childhood Pokémon), was a strong motivator for many to play the game, which was counter to theoretical expectations. In line with previous theory, results suggested that operant conditioning principles appeared to be at work in terms of fostering game play use. DISCUSSION: Results of this study, which was a primarily hypothesis generating endeavor, indicated possible trends toward increased steps on days when a person plays Pokémon G), but - with such a small sample, and short-term length of study - no firm conclusions can be drawn. Further, results indicate the particular value of nostalgia as a driver towards game play for Pokémon GO.
ContributorsBiel, Alexander M (Author) / Hekler, Eric (Thesis advisor) / Ainsworth, Barbara (Committee member) / Buman, Matthew (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016
Description
In the U.S., breast cancer (BC) incidences among African American (AA) and CA (CA) women are similar, yet AA women have a significantly higher mortality rate. In addition, AA women often present with tumors at a younger age, with a higher tumor grade/stage and are more likely to be diagnosed with the highly aggressive triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) subtype. Even within the TNBC subtype, AA women have a worse clinical outcome compared to CA. Although multiple socio-economic and lifestyle factors may contribute to these observed health disparities, it is essential that the underlying biological differences between CA and AA TNBC are identified. In this study, gene expression profiling was performed on archived FFPE samples, obtained from CA and AA women diagnosed with early stage TNBC. Initial analysis revealed a pattern of differential expression in the AA cohort compared to CA. Further molecular characterization results showed that the AA cohort segregated into 3-TNBC molecular subtypes; Basal-like (BL2), Immunomodulatory (IM) and Mesenchymal (M). Gene expression analyses resulted in 190 differentially expressed genes between the AA and CA cohorts. Pathway enrichment analysis demonstrated that differentially expressed genes were over-represented in cytoskeletal remodeling, cell adhesion, tight junctions, and immune response in the AA TNBC -cohort. Furthermore, genes in the Wnt/β-catenin pathway were over-expressed. These results were validated using RT-qPCR on an independent cohort of FFPE samples from AA and CA women with early stage TNBC, and identified Caveolin-1 (CAV1) as being significantly expressed in the AA-TNBC cohort. Furthermore, CAV1 was shown to be highly expressed in a cell line panel of TNBC, in particular, those of the mesenchymal and basal-like molecular subtype. Finally, silencing of CAV1 expression by siRNA resulted in a significant decrease in proliferation in each of the TNBC cell lines. These observations suggest that CAV1 expression may contribute to the more aggressive phenotype observed in AA women diagnosed with TNBC.
ContributorsGetz, Julie (Author) / Baumbach-Reardon, Lisa L (Thesis advisor) / Lake, Douglas F (Thesis advisor) / Bussey, Kimberly (Committee member) / Kusumi, Kenro (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
Cancer autoantibody biomarker discovery and validation using nucleic acid programmable protein array
Description
Currently in the US, many patients with cancer do not benefit from the population-based screening, due to challenges associated with the existing cancer screening scheme. Blood-based diagnostic assays have the potential to detect diseases in a non-invasive way. Proteins released from small early tumors may only be present intermittently and get diluted to tiny concentrations in the blood, making them difficult to use as biomarkers. However, they can induce autoantibody (AAb) responses, which can amplify the signal and persist in the blood even if the antigen is gone. Circulating autoantibodies is a promising class of molecules that have potential to serve as early detection biomarkers for cancers. This Ph.D thesis aims to screen for autoantibody biomarkers for the early detection of two deadly cancer, basal-like breast cancer and lung adenocarcinoma. First, a method was developed to display proteins in both native and denatured conformation on protein array. This method adopted a novel protein tag technology, called HaloTag, to covalently immobilize proteins on glass slide surface. The covalent attachment allowed these proteins to endure harsh treatment without getting dissociated from slide surface, which enabled the profiling of antibody responses against both conformational and linear epitopes. Next, a plasma screening protocol was optimized to significantly increase signal to noise ratio of protein array based AAb detection. Following this, the AAb responses in basal-like breast cancer were explored using nucleic acid programmable protein arrays (NAPPA) containing 10,000 full-length human proteins in 45 cases and 45 controls. After verification in a large sample set (145 basal-like breast cancer cases / 145 controls / 70 non-basal breast cancer) by ELISA, a 13-AAb classifier was developed to differentiate patients from controls with a sensitivity of 33% at 98% specificity. Similar approach was also applied to the lung cancer study to identify AAbs that distinguished lung cancer patients from computed-tomography positive benign pulmonary nodules (137 lung cancer cases, 127 smoker controls, 170 benign controls). In this study, two panels of AAbs were discovered that showed promising sensitivity and specificity. Six out of eight AAb targets were also found to have elevated mRNA level in lung adenocarcinoma patients using TCGA data. These projects as a whole provide novel insights on the association between AAbs and cancer, as well as general B cell antigenicity against self-proteins.
ContributorsWang, Jie (Author) / LaBaer, Joshua (Thesis advisor) / Anderson, Karen S (Committee member) / Lake, Douglas F (Committee member) / Chang, Yung (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015