Daring to Dream

Many people are unaware of the DREAM Act and its benefits; however, many scholars agree that the DREAM Act at the federal level is potentially beneficial to those undocumented students and to the United States. These scholars have researched the various benefits of the DREAM Act, such as an increase in human capital, increase in education revenue, and increase in taxable income. The DREAM Act can potentially give students the opportunity to obtain a higher education and ultimately a job and a better life. Most likely, ignorance of the DREAM Act has obscured the benefits it provides. People are more likely to dismiss something they do not understand, especially if it involves immigration. In defense of the students Juan Gomez explains that it was not our decision to come here, and I find this an injustice of our society, and for that I will never forget where I came from (Gomez, 12). I have researched the potential benefits the DREAM Act has on the United States and on the students

Detectable clonal mosaicism and its relationship to aging and cancer

In an analysis of 31,717 cancer cases and 26,136 cancer-free controls from 13 genome-wide association studies, we observed large chromosomal abnormalities in a subset of clones in DNA obtained from blood or buccal samples. We observed mosaic abnormalities, either aneuploidy or copy-neutral loss of heterozygosity, of >2 Mb in size in autosomes of 517 individuals (0.89%), with abnormal cell proportions of between 7% and 95%. In cancer-free individuals, frequency increased with age, from 0.23% under 50 years to 1.91% between 75 and 79 years (P = 4.8 × 10(-8)). Mosaic abnormalities were more frequent in individuals with solid tumors (0.97% versus 0.74% in cancer-free individuals; odds ratio (OR) = 1.25; P = 0.016), with stronger association with cases who had DNA collected before diagnosis or treatment (OR = 1.45; P = 0.0005). Detectable mosaicism was also more common in individuals for whom DNA was collected at least 1 year before diagnosis with leukemia compared to cancer-free individuals (OR = 35.4; P = 3.8 × 10(-11)). These findings underscore the time-dependent nature of somatic events in the etiology of cancer and potentially other late-onset diseases

A Solidarity Economy on the Border: Examining Historical and Contemporary Case Studies in El Paso, Texas as De Facto Contributors to a U.S.-based Movement

This dissertation examines a contemporary U.S.-based solidarity economy movement, which emphasizes economic practice and ideology that prioritize people and planet over profit. In a neoliberal era that is characterized by economic injustice and continued cutting of social services and programming, a solidarity economy framework offers an alternative. Situated within a growing scholarship, this study examines historical and contemporary examples of solidarity economy-related efforts and praxis in the border city of El Paso, Texas. The historical case of the Houchen settlement house and the contemporary case of the women-led grassroots community organization, La Mujer Obrera (LMO), illustrate significant ways in which people have collectively organized to address various social and economic problems in South El Paso communities. By connecting the histories of these cases, as well as the guiding principles and visions of each organization, to a broader solidarity economy movement, I identify these examples as de facto contributors to this movement. While neither the founders and staff of Houchen or the women of LMO would identify as solidarity economy organizations, these examples help us to both understand like-minded forms of collective organizing and broaden the definitions and scope of a U.S.-based solidarity economy. In turn, each case study also illustrates the various challenges that are faced by groups of people working for the common good and for the creation of a community-based alternative economic and food system. This project is about hope. It offers glimpses and possibilities for a solidarity economy on the U.S.-Mexico border and tells the stories of the people that make these efforts possible. In an era where the U.S.-Mexico border is considered a barren and dangerous zone, these examples present a counter-narrative and are testaments to the region’s rich history and ceaseless collective efforts based on care, solidarity, and justice

Assessing Individual Material Degradation toward Organic Solar Cells Using Accelerated Nanolayer Lifetime Protocols: Implications for Solar Cell Longevity

Organic solar cells (OSCs) can be highly affected by environmental stresses like heat, moisture, and sunlight during their service life if they are not encapsulated or if the encapsulation leaks. A deep understanding of how each individual organic layer changes/reacts to various environmental factors is a crucial aspect in designing an effective OSC architecture to ensure the longevity and stability of the materials toward the device’s performance. While there are numerous examples of encapsulated OSCs operating outdoors for extended periods of time, there is an insufficiency of information available about the individual stability of the materials involved. The focus of this study is to provide a quantitative assessment of the individual unencapsulated OSC layers when they are exposed to combinations of heat, humidity, and light. Ideally, a similar process can be applied to different organic nanolayers in the future, and the results can be used as a reference. Throughout the accelerated aging process, the most impactful environmental stressor was the presence of strong light. Via UV–vis and fluorescence data acquisition, the chloro-boron subphthalocyanine (Cl-BsubPc) layer was observed to be altered by some combination of hydrolysis and nanostructural change, from the strong incident light, which was not observed if aged in the dark. We also observed significant nanolayer film crystallization for other materials when exposed to humid heat and an increase in film hydrophilicity during the aging process. The nanolayer film crystallization could have also contributed to the loss of π-conjugation/color, which may not have undergone complete photobleaching. Though there were property changes throughout the accelerated aging process, we feel that the relatively long time scale of most changes highlights a characteristic material stability that would translate strongly to standard operating conditions in encapsulated devices. Adopting these methodologies can also be useful to guide further material development broadly in particularly susceptible materials in the future

Phase IA/II, multicentre, open-label study of the CD40 antagonistic monoclonal antibody lucatumumab in adult patients with advanced non-Hodgkin or Hodgkin lymphoma

Despite advancements in the treatment of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) and Hodgkin lymphoma (HL), patients continue to relapse and thus a need for new targeted therapies remains. The CD40 receptor is highly expressed on neoplastic B cells and activation leads to enhanced proliferation and survival. Lucatumumab (HCD122) is a fully human antagonistic CD40 monoclonal antibody. A phase IA/II study was designed to determine the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) and activity of lucatumumab in patients with relapsed/refractory lymphoma. Determination of the MTD was the primary objective of the phase IA dose escalation portion and clinical response was the primary objective of the phase II dose expansion portion. Patients received escalating doses of lucatumumab administered intravenously once weekly for 4 weeks of an 8-week cycle. MTD was determined at 4mg/kg of lucatumumab. A total of 111 patients with NHL (n=74) and HL (n=37) were enrolled. Responses were observed across various lymphoma subtypes. The overall response rate by computed tomography among patients with follicular lymphoma (FL) and marginal zone lymphoma of mucosa-associated lymphatic tissue (MZL/MALT) was 33.3% and 42.9%, respectively. Lucatumumab demonstrates modest activity in relapsed/refractory patients with advanced lymphoma, suggesting that targeting of CD40 warrants further investigation

Correction to “Assessing Individual Material Degradation toward Organic Solar Cells Using Accelerated Nanolayer Lifetime Protocols: Implications for Solar Cell Longevity”

Correction to “Assessing Individual Material Degradation toward Organic Solar Cells Using Accelerated Nanolayer Lifetime Protocols: Implications for Solar Cell Longevity

Studies in Theoretical Biology: A Collectionof Undergraduate Research

120 pages, 7 articles*Studies in Theoretical Biology: A Collectionof Undergraduate Research* (Castillo-Chavez, Carlos) 120 pages*A Model Describing the Response of the Immune System to Mycobacterium tuberculosis* (Herrera, Christian; Lima, Sharon; Munoz, Roberto; Ramos, Gloria; Rodriguez, Ariel; Salzberg, Claudia) 19 pages*Mathematical Models to Study the Outbreaks of Ebola* (Astacio, Jaime; Briere, DelMar; Guillen, Milton; Martinez, Josue; Rodriguez, Francisco; Valenzuela-Campos, Noe) 18 pages*Stochastic Simulations of a Spatial SIR Model* (Camacho, Judit; Carreon, Fernando; Castillo-Guajardo, Derik; Jimenez-Perez, Hugo; Montoya-Gallardo, Leticia; Saenz, Ricardo A.) 14 pages*HIV-1 Replication Rate* (Arias, Michelle J.; Inguez, Delmy; Camacho, Erika T.; Castillo, Rafael B.; Melon, Eliel; Parra, Luz E.) 20 pages*The Effects of Vaccination in a Core Group* (Bobadilla, Marina; Lozano, Sharon Ann; Maia, Jessica Mendes; Villarreal, Julio Casar; Wilson, Novaline Dawn; Winston, Roberta) 19 pages*A Mathematical Model of the Dynamics of Rickettsia rickettsii in Tick-Host Interaction* (Alderete, Mary E.; Castillo-Garsow, Carlos W.; Salivia, Guarionex Jordan; Lara-Moreno, Carlos F.; Ramirez, Gina F.; Yichoy, Monica F.) 18 page