MARKETING BRANDS, JUGGLING JARGON, AND COUNTERING SPACE: SIX FITNESS ENTHUSIASTS’ ENGAGEMENT WITH EXERCISERS WITHIN INSTAGRAM’S FITNESS COMMUNITY

As of December 11, 2022, 791k users had utilized the hashtag #FitnessInfluencer on their Instagram content. A fitness influencer is a user on Instagram who has a large follower count and posts fitness-related content to their platforms. In all aspects, the fitness influencer is an enthusiast who contributes to the digital fitness community. This research examines the role that the fitness enthusiast plays within this community on Instagram. Carmen Kynard’s definition of literacy as something that we do rather than have inspired much of my thinking throughout this project. Also, Diana Bossio’s research on journalists greatly informed my methodology for this research, in which I chose six enthusiasts of various identities on Instagram. By looking specifically at the literacy practices, rhetorics, and spaces that six enthusiasts utilize through their biographies, workout plans, and hashtags, I attempt to respond to the following question: What literacy practices and rhetoric are enthusiasts using to engage with the fitness community? Driving questions for the content analyses include: how do fitness enthusiasts present themselves in their biographies?; how do the literacy practices, rhetoric, and multimedia content used by fitness enthusiasts fulfill their role in the mentor/mentee literacy relation with exercisers?; and how can the use of hashtags in a fitness enthusiast’s caption create a counter-space that engages their literacy relation with exercisers? Chapter 1 focuses on the biographies of these six fitness enthusiasts, and reveals their positionalities within the fitness community and their close connection with brands – both personal and public. Chapter 2 looks closely to the workout plans they offer and complicates the mentor/mentee literacy relation between enthusiasts and exercisers. Chapter 3 examines hashtags and raises awareness for underexplored hashtags in the community that create counter-spaces for marginalized folks in mainstream fitness. This research intends to explore and respond to the many literacy practices, rhetoric, and spaces that exist within the fitness community; with this, it discovers what may be necessary for a clearer vision of ways to imagine a more holistic, inclusive, and empowering fitness community

MS 181 Guide to the Leta Denham, RN Papers (1918-1920)

The Leta Denham, RN papers contains a short handwritten family history, scrapbook segments, photographs, a school yearbook from 1918, newspaper clippings, a nursing cap, and other items related to Leta Elizabeth Denham\u27s nursing education at Baptist Sanitarium and Hospital Training School for Nurses from 1918 to 1919. See more at MS 181

The Effects of Relocating the Ku-binding Stem-loop of Telomerase RNA on Telomere Healing Events

Thesis advisor: Anne E. StellwagenThesis advisor: Clare O'ConnorIn most eukaryotes, the enzyme telomerase adds telomeric DNA repeats to the 3' ends of chromosomes in order to stabilize them and protect them from degradation. In the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, telomerase is a ribonucleoprotein complex consisting of multiple protein subunits and an approximately 1.3 kb RNA component termed TLC1. Among the various proteins involved in telomerase, Ku is a heterodimer that binds both to double-stranded DNA and to a 48 nucleotide stem loop on the TLC1 RNA. Beyond its function of extending telomeres at the ends of chromosomes, telomerase can also be instrumental in repairing double-stranded DNA breaks (DSBs) by adding telomeric repeats at the site of the break. This stabilizes the damaged chromosome, but also silences genes proximal to the break. Ku is an important factor in the recruitment of telomerase to these double stranded breaks, so this investigation explored whether TLC1 structural variants with relocated Ku-binding sites are still capable of healing chromosomes via the addition of telomeres. It was determined that the TLC1 RNA is flexible and can retain its function with relocated and additional Ku-binding stem loops.Thesis (BS) — Boston College, 2008.Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences.Discipline: Biology.Discipline: College Honors Program

Plasma lipocalin-2/NGAL is stable over 12 weeks and is not modulated by exercise or dieting

Amongst other immune cells, neutrophils play a key role in systemic inflammation leading to cardiovascular disease and can release inflammatory factors, including lipocalin-2 (LCN2). LCN2 drives cardiac hypertrophy and plays a role in maladaptive remodelling of the heart and has been associated with renal injury. While lifestyle factors such as diet and exercise are known to attenuate low-grade inflammation, their ability to modulate plasma LCN2 levels is unknown. Forty-eight endurance athletes and 52 controls (18–55 years) underwent measurement for various cardiovascular health indicators, along with plasma LCN2 concentration. No significant difference in LCN2 concentration was seen between the two groups. LCN2 was a very weak predictor or absent from models describing blood pressures or predicting athlete status. In another cohort, 57 non-diabetic overweight or obese men and post-menopausal women who fulfilled Adult Treatment Panel III metabolic syndrome criteria were randomly allocated into either a control, modified Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet, or DASH and exercise group. Pre- and post-intervention demographic, cardiovascular health indicators, and plasma LCN2 expression were measured in each individual. While BMI fell in intervention groups, LCN2 levels remained unchanged within and between all groups, as illustrated by strong correlations between LCN2 concentrations pre- and 12 weeks post-intervention (r = 0.743, P < 0.0001). This suggests that circulating LCN2 expression are stable over a period of at least 12 weeks and is not modifiable by diet and exercise

Swallowing, nutrition and patient-rated functional outcomes at 6 months following two non-surgical treatments for T1-T3 oropharyngeal cancer

Altered fractionation radiotherapy with concomitant boost (AFRT-CB) may be considered an alternative treatment for patients not appropriate for chemoradiation (CRT). As functional outcomes following AFRT-CB have been minimally reported, this exploratory paper describes the outcomes of patients managed with AFRT-CB or CRT at 6 months post-treatment

Long-term functional outcomes and the patient perspective following altered fractionation with concomitant boost for oropharyngeal cancer

With no long-term data available in published research to date, this study presents details of the swallowing outcomes as well as barriers to and facilitators of oral intake and weight maintenance at 2 years after altered fractionation radiotherapy with concomitant boost (AFRT-CB). Twelve patients with T1-T3 oropharyngeal cancer who received AFRT-CB were assessed at baseline, 6 months, and 2 years post-treatment for levels of dysphagia and salivary toxicity, food and fluid tolerance, functional swallowing outcomes, patient-reported function, and weight. At 2 years, participants were also interviewed to explore barriers and facilitators of oral intake. Outcomes were significantly worse at 2 years when compared to baseline for late toxicity, functional swallowing, and patient-rated physical aspects of swallowing. Most patients (83%) tolerated a full diet pretreatment, but the rate fell to 42% (remainder tolerated soft diets) at 2 years. Multiple barriers to oral intake that impacted on activity and participation levels were identified. Participants lost 11 kg from baseline to 2 years, which was not regained between 6 months and 2 years. Global, social, and emotional domains of patient-reported function returned to pretreatment levels. At 2 years post AFRT-CB, worsening salivary and dysphagia toxicity, declining functional swallowing, and multiple reported ongoing barriers to oral intake had a negative impact on participants' activity and participation levels relating to eating. These ongoing deficits contributed to significant deterioration in physical swallowing functioning determined by the MDADI. In contrast, patients perceived their broader functioning had improved at 2 years, suggesting long-term adjustment to ongoing swallowing deficits

Health Disparities Between Appalachian and Non-Appalachian Counties in Virginia USA

The examination of health disparities among people within Appalachian counties compared to people living in other counties is needed to find ways to strategically target improvements in community health in the United States of America (USA). Methods: A telephone survey of a random sample of adults living in households within communities of all counties of the state of Virginia (VA) in the USA was conducted. Findings: Health status was poorer among those in communities within Appalachian counties in VA and health insurance did not make a difference. Health perception was significantly worse in residents within communities in Appalachian counties compared to non-Appalachian community residents (30.5 vs. 17.4% rated their health status as poor/fair), and was worse even among those with no chronic diseases. Within communities in Appalachian counties, black residents report significantly better health perception than do white residents. Conclusion: Residents living in communities in Appalachian counties in VA are not receiving adequate health care, even among those with health insurance. More research with a larger ethnic minority sample is needed to investigate the racial/ethnic disparities in self-reported health and health care utilization within communities

Physiological changes to the swallowing mechanism following (Chemo)radiotherapy for head and neck cancer: a systematic review

Emerging research suggests that preventative swallowing rehabilitation, undertaken before or during (chemo)radiotherapy ([C]RT), can significantly improve early swallowing outcomes for head and neck cancer (HNC) patients. However, these treatment protocols are highly variable. Determining specific physiological swallowing parameters that are most likely to be impacted post-(C)RT would assist in refining clear targets for preventative rehabilitation. Therefore, this systematic review (1) examined the frequency and prevalence of physiological swallowing deficits observed post-(C)RT for HNC, and (2) determined the patterns of prevalence of these key physiological deficits over time post-treatment. Online databases were searched for relevant papers published between January 1998 and March 2013. A total of 153 papers were identified and appraised for methodological quality and suitability based on exclusionary criteria. Ultimately, 19 publications met the study’s inclusion criteria. Collation of reported prevalence of physiological swallowing deficits revealed reduced laryngeal excursion, base-of-tongue (BOT) dysfunction, reduced pharyngeal contraction, and impaired epiglottic movement as most frequently reported. BOT dysfunction and impaired epiglottic movement showed a collective prevalence of over 75 % in the majority of patient cohorts, whilst reduced laryngeal elevation and pharyngeal contraction had a prevalence of over 50 %. Subanalysis suggested a trend that the prevalence of these key deficits is dynamic although persistent over time. These findings can be used by clinicians to inform preventative intervention and support the use of specific, evidence-based therapy tasks explicitly selected to target the highly prevalent deficits post-(C)RT for HNC

A prospective investigation of swallowing, nutrition, and patient-rated functional impact following altered fractionation radiotherapy with concomitant boost for oropharyngeal cancer

Altered fractionation radiotherapy for head and neck cancer has been associated with improved locoregional control, overall survival, and heightened toxicity compared with conventional treatment. Swallowing, nutrition, and patient-perceived function for altered fractionation radiotherapy with concomitant boost (AFRT-CB) for T1–T3 oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) have not been previously reported. Fourteen consecutive patients treated with AFRT-CB for oropharyngeal SCC were recruited from November 2006 to August 2009 in a tertiary hospital in Brisbane, Australia. Swallowing, nutrition, and patient-perceived functional impact assessments were conducted pretreatment, at 4–6 weeks post-treatment, and at 6 months post-treatment. Deterioration from pretreatment to 4–6 weeks post-treatment in swallowing, nutrition, and functional impact was evident, likely due to the heightened toxicity associated with AFRT-CB. There was significant improvement at 6 months post-treatment in functional swallowing, nutritional status, patient-perceived swallowing, and overall function, consistent with recovery from acute toxicity. However, weight and patient perception of physical function and side effects remained significantly worse than pretreatment scores. The ongoing deficits related to weight and patient-perceived outcomes at 6 months revealed that this treatment has a long-term impact on function possibly related to the chronic effects of AFRT-CB