Master of Science

thesisKey to understanding local site conditions is the shallow shear-wave velocity structure. In the southwest corner of Utah near the rapidly growing urban areas of St. George and Cedar City, there currently exist no available data for characterizing site class units. This region has the potential for experiencing magnitude 6.5 or larger events. The University of Utah Seismograph Stations recently installed an urban strong-motion network in the region and there is also a need to characterize the shallow velocity structures at the sensor locations. In order to determine the shallow shear-wave velocity structure in and near St. George and Cedar City, we collected microtremor data using an array of four (three-component) broadband seismometers at six sites. We processed these data by (1) calculating the coherency between sensors, (2) calculating the horizontal to vertical spectral ratio (HVSR), and (3) calculating phase velocity dispersion curves. We determine the shallow S-wave velocity structure by a forward modeling approach using the Multimode spatial autocorrelation method (MMSPAC) and comparing predicted Rayleigh wave fundamental mode ellipticity curves to HVSR data. S-wave velocity models obtained at all sites seem reasonable given what is known of the geology with the exception of one site near Cedar City. The average S-wave velocity in the upper 30 meters (Vs30) is between 360 and 760 m/s for all six sites. This is the velocity range corresponding to NEHRP site class unit C

Identification of Key Pyroptosis- Related Genes and Distinct Pyroptosis-Related Clusters in Periodontitis

Aim: This study aims to identify pyroptosis-related genes (PRGs), their functional immune characteristics, and distinct pyroptosis-related clusters in periodontitis. Methods: Differentially expressed (DE)-PRGs were determined by merging the expression profiles of GSE10334, GSE16134, and PRGs obtained from previous literatures and Molecular Signatures Database (MSigDB). Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression was applied to screen the prognostic PRGs and develop a prognostic model. Consensus clustering was applied to determine the pyroptosisrelated clusters. Functional analysis and single-sample gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA) were performed to explore the biological characteristics and immune activities of the clusters. The hub pyroptosis-related modules were defined using weighted correlation network analysis (WGCNA). Results: Of the 26 periodontitis-related DE-PRGs, the highest positive relevance was for High-Mobility Group Box 1 (HMGB1) and SR-Related CTD Associated Factor 11 (SCAF11). A 14-PRG-based signature was developed through the LASSO model. In addition, three pyroptosis-related clusters were obtained based on the 14 prognostic PRGs. Caspase 3 (CASP3), Granzyme B (GZMB), Interleukin 1 Alpha (IL1A), IL1Beta (B), IL6, Phospholipase C Gamma 1 (PLCG1) and PYD And CARD Domain Containing (PYCARD) were dysregulated in the three clusters. Distinct biological functions and immune activities, including human leukocyte antigen (HLA) gene expression, immune cell infiltration, and immune pathway activities, were identified in the three pyroptosisrelated clusters of periodontitis. Furthermore, the pink module associated with endoplasmic stress-related functions was found to be correlated with cluster 2 and was suggested as the hub pyroptosis-related module. Conclusion: The study identified 14 key pyroptosis-related genes, three distinct pyroptosis-related clusters, and one pyroptosis-related gene module describing several molecular aspects of pyroptosis in the pathogenesis and immune micro-environment regulation of periodontitis and also highlighted functional heterogeneity in pyroptosisrelated mechanisms

A systematic review on the relations between pasta consumption and cardio-metabolic risk factors

Aims: The traditional Italian dish pasta is major food source of starch with low glycemic index (GI), and also an important low-GI component of the Mediterranean diet. This systematic review aimed at assessing comprehensively and in-depth the potential benefit of pasta on cardio-metabolic disease risk factors. Data Synthesis: Following a standard protocol, we conducted a systematic literature search of PubMed, CINAHL, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, for prospective cohort studies and randomized controlled dietary intervention trials that examined pasta, and pasta-related fiber and grain intake in relation to cardio-metabolic risk factors of interest. Studies evaluating postprandial glucose response to pasta compared to bread or potato were quantitatively summarized using meta-analysis of standardized mean difference. Evidence from studies with pasta as part of low-GI dietary intervention and studies investigating different types of pasta were qualitatively summarized. Conclusions: Pasta meals have significant lower postprandial glucose response compared to bread or potato meals, but evidence was lacking in terms of how the intake of pasta can influence cardio-metabolic disease risk. More long-term randomized controlled trials are needed where investigators directly contrast the cardio-metabolic effects of pasta and bread or potato. Long-term prospective cohort studies with required data available should also be analyzed regarding the effect of pasta intake on disease endpoints

Voxel-based density registration of trabecular bone: a longitudinal HR-pQCT study of postmenopausal women

Bone mineral density (BMD) is one of the important parameters used to characterise bone quality. Clinically, the only recommended method - dual X-ray absorptiometry - can only evaluate a two-dimensional areal BMD. Currently, three-dimensional localised BMD information is absent. HR-pQCT enables the assessments of 3D microstructure down to trabecular bone. Therefore, in this study, a voxel-based density registration (VDR) method is proposed to analyse the longitudinal changes of trabecular-bone density distribution. The VDR techniques were evaluated based on a six-month longitudinal study of five postmenopausal women. The time effect on localised changes of trabecular-bone mineral density was visualized and variations between different anatomical regions were quantified for the first time. Different distributions between anatomical regions were found in bone mineral density of trabecular bone (vBMDtrab), with a change of vBMDtrab at medial region (-0.56%) significantly higher than anterior (-1.58%) (p = 0.032). This study indicates that localised density changes might be used as a prior indicator for the effect of aging or other interventions.</p

CT and MRI Imaging Features and Grades of Liver Iron Deposition

CT and MRI imaging features and grades of liver iron deposition（LID）were discussed and evaluated in clinical application.The imaging and laboratory data of 20 patients with LID were analyzed retrospectively. CT value of liver were measured and MR signal intensity ratio of muscle/liver calculated.A new imaging grade of LID were made with CT and MR, and the grade correlation was analyzed between CT, MR and SF. All of 20 patients with LID, 19 cases were CT examination, their CT value ranging of liver were from 55HU to 116HU, of which more than 72HU were in 7 cases and 72HU or less in 12. 14 cases were MR examination with the low signal of liver, and the inverse phase signal of T1WI was higher than that of the positive phase. There were no significant difference among the grade of CT, T1WI, T2WI and SF (P>0.05), and there were the positive correlation of grade between CT, T1WI, T2WI and SF (rs=0.803,0.847,0.677 respectively), and of values between CT, T1WI SIR, T2WI SIR and SF(rs=0.454, 0.538, 0.811 respectively). CT can show the LID with high-density, but the mild LID can be with normal density, which is the false negative. MRI can show LID with low-signal, of which T2WI is the lower than T1WI, it is beneficial to diagnose the early LID. Grades of CT and MR have good consistent with that of SF, and can reflect the severity of LID, particularly that of MR-T1WI grading

Limit Cycles Bifurcated from Some Z

We study the number and distribution of limit cycles of some planar Z4-equivariant quintic near-Hamiltonian systems. By the theories of Hopf and heteroclinic bifurcation, it is proved that the perturbed system can have 24 limit cycles with some new distributions. The configurations of limit cycles obtained in this paper are new