2020 Abstracts

Sommers, Taryn; Veon, Raymond (Utah State University)
Faculty Advisor: Veon, Raymond (Caine College of the Arts, Art and Design Department)

A literature search of research and academic journals suggests that there are few critical examinations of LDS visual culture in visual culture research. The purpose of this exploratory study is to examine the types of gender roles portrayed in contemporary LDS visual culture, the visual codes used to represent these gender roles, and the degree to which the representations of gender used in LDS visual culture align with findings in related visual culture studies. The result of this study will be a description of the current visual strategies used by the LDS church to represent gender roles, a thematic analysis of these visual strategies, and suggestions for future research into the ways that the LDS church visually defines gender in relation to existing trends and themes in visual culture research. The scope will include: “Mormon Ads,” images used in the LDS magazine, “Ensign,” and conference memes used during the years 2016-2019. This will contribute to the field of visual culture and gender studies by examining the visual codes used by the LDS church to portray the role and status of males and females as represented in current LDS visual culture, determining the strategies used in these representations, and discussing the potential research implications of these findings in light of themes in visual culture gender studies. Some research questions are: What visual codes are used in the representation of males, females, and mixed-sex groups in current LDS visual culture? What types of roles and status do these visual codes convey pertaining to the representation of males, females, and mixed-sex groups in current LDS visual culture? What extent do the results of investigating the above research questions align with other research findings in gender and visual culture studies? The methods used in this research will be 1) an inventory of discrete visual codes (e.g. color use, affect/expression, clothing/dress, setting, etc.) used in the LDS visual culture samples, and 2) a separate thematic analysis of the sample will also be conducted. The results of both methods will be compared, analyzed, and discussed in light of current trends in visual culture gender research. While the results of this research are expected to demonstrate that LDS visual culture will emphasize and reinforce traditional gender roles of females as mothers and homemakers and males as leaders and providers, it is hoped that this study will reveal strategies related to gender role representation unique to LDS culture.

Marissa Devey (Utah State University)
Faculty Advisors: Vigneault, Marissa (Caine College of the Arts, Art and Design Department); Winward, Robert (Caine College of the Arts, Art and Design Department)

To those of us who are privileged enough to pad ourselves from the immediate consequences of global climate change, its reality remains an abstract and intangible problem. In the tropical cloud forests of Costa Rica, however, the effects of global warming are readily evident. My research aims to provide a narrative of climate change in the uniquely diverse and delicate cloud forest ecosystem, where I work in partnership with Ph.D. ecology student Jessica Murray. While Jessica uses sensors and datasets to quantify an intricate network of plants, animals, and microorganisms, my intent is to help non-scientists to visualize the implications of Jessica’s findings. My purpose is not to simplify or re-tell Jessica’s research, but to help the viewer connect with unfamiliar, abstract ideas in a visceral, internal way. I leverage paint, poetry, infographics, and abstraction to construct a metaphor for climate ecology: the human body. Working within this metaphor allows me to channel the viewer’s own physical, bodily experiences into an intimate portrait of ecological systems and their vulnerability to climate change. My goal is for viewers to become more conscious of their own ecology-- more aware of their dependence on the environment and more compassionate towards its components.

Jensen, Afton; Claunch, Kelsie; Verdeja, Marco; Dungan, Matthew; Anderson, Shellie; Clayton, Colter K.; Goates, Michael, Thacker, Evan (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: Thacker, Evan (Life Sciences, Public Health)

The purpose of this paper is to provide a systematic review of lay perspectives on the meaning of successful aging from older adults across multiple cultures and countries. Furthermore, this article allows for a discussion of the complexity of older adults' perspectives on successful aging and how successful aging may be defined differently across cultures and countries. We conducted a systematic literature review to identify, summarize, and evaluate peer-reviewed studies of qualitative data on lay perspectives of older adults. This review included studies on elderly populations published from 2010 to 2017 that addressed older adults' lay perspectives on successful aging. Such studies involved primary research performed in the United States, Germany, Singapore, Lebanon, Mexico, Canada, and New Zealand. The key concepts that emerged from older adult responses across all studies included physical health, cognitive health, social engagement, attitude/coping, independence/security, and spirituality. The overall emerging themes from our data suggest that older adults were not as concerned with physical health as biomedical previous research of successful aging often suggest. Rather, older adults focused on maintaining positive attitudes in order to cope with life changes, valuing social engagement and contribution as more essential to successful aging. Respondents from Western Europe valued keeping positive attitudes about death and focusing on gratitude instead of worries. Additionally, respondents from the United States and Mexico placed importance on pursuing activities and interests and having strong involvement with family and friends respectively. Noting differences, respondents from the Middle East, Asia, and Oceania Region, as opposed to respondents from North America, moreso prioritized the absence of chronic disease and comfort in one's own environment over keeping active. By providing a more comprehensive organizational framework of older adults' qualitative responses to successful aging, we better understand what successful aging means across cultures.

Preece, J Caleb; Seibold, Tanner; Hutchison, Cortland (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: Feland, J. Brent (Life Sciences, Exercise Science)

BACKGROUND: The recent development of shear-wave elastography (SWE) allows for the quantification of muscle elasticity/stiffness without complex biopsy or dynamometry. To date SWE information is available in younger subjects (typically <30 yrs). Variables such as temperature, joint position, ultrasound probe position and pressure can affect the SWE measurement.
PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the reliability of SWE measurements of both the medial and lateral heads of the gastrocnemius muscle using 3 different trained ultrasound users.
METHODS: Data was collected from 118 volunteers (participants in the Huntsman World Senior Games) in St. George, Utah, 2019. Subjects (62 males: mean age = 68.9 ± 7.8 yrs, Ht = 177.4 ± 8.1 cm, Wt= 85.4±20 kg; 54 females: mean age = 66.9 ± 8.5 yrs, Ht = 164.4 ± 7.2 cm, Wt= 69.8±18 kg) signed an approved consent form and then lay prone on a treatment table for 3 repeated ultrasonic measurement of SWE of both heads of the gastrocnemius using all three trained research assistants.
ANALYSIS: The three SWE measurements were analyzed using SPSS ver25 for medial and lateral gastrocnemius separately using the reliability analysis function and calculating a two-way mixed model of Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC).
RESULTS & CONCLUSION: Overall, the measurements of SWE were very reliable with both the lateral gastrocnemius (ICC = .985) and the medial gastrocnemius (ICC = .991). Based on our experience in learning SWE measurements there is a significant learning curve to probe positioning and pressure as well as waiting for a stable elastography signal on the ultrasound screen. The high ICC values for these repeated measurements demonstrate that SWE measurement of the gastrocnemius can be reliable and repeatable. These results may not apply to other muscles since size and depth of muscle can also affect SWE signaling.

Parsons, Travis; Lippert, Peter; Bartley, John (University of Utah)
Faculty Advisor: Lippert, Peter (University of Utah - College of Mines and Earth Science, Geology & Geophysics); Bartley, John (University of Utah - College of Mines and Earth Science, Geology & Geophysics)

Field observations and geochronological measurements of plutons in Yosemite Valley suggest that plutons grow incrementally as a series of stacked sheets of smaller intrusions (i.e., dikes and sills) (Coleman et al., 2004; Glazner et al., 2004; Bartley et al., 2006). This interpretation is in contrast to the traditional view of pluton emplacement through crystallization of a single, massive magma chamber. Most of the observations supporting incremental pluton emplacement use the relationship between zircon U-Pb dating of pluton sections and estimated granitic magma cooling rates to argue that a single magmatic event would crystallize significantly faster than the geochronologic data permit. Incremental pluton emplacement also predicts specific relationships between the age of intruded sheets of magma and the original orientation of these sheets, such that older sheets are expected to be tilted or deformed more than younger sheets. Here we test this prediction of differential tilting by measuring the paleomagnetic inclination preserved in well-dated and structurally characterized sheets of the Tuolumne Intrusive Suite. Magnetic inclination provides a tilt-meter with respect to the Earth's magnetic field direction at the time of pluton emplacement; the reference inclination assuming an untitled pluton is known from independent data sets. We also present rock magnetic data (temperature-dependent magnetic susceptibility, magnetic remanence characteristics) and results from petrographic investigations to characterize the mineralogy and stability of the magnetization. Our results suggest that the low-titanium magnetite remanence carriers are primary and are not biased by secondary magnetizations. The distribution of magnetic inclinations in our sample set — in which older sheets on the periphery of the pluton are shallower than those in younger, more interior sheets, and with respect to the reference inclination — is consistent with predictions from the incremental pluton emplacement hypothesis.

Seibold, B. Tanner; Hutchison, Cortland; Preece, J. Caleb; Feland, J. Brent (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: Feland, J. Brent (Life Sciences, Exercise Science)

BACKGROUND: To date, a few studies have demonstrated shear wave elastography (SWE) values for the gastrocnemius muscles in younger subjects (<30 yrs). However, little info is available on aging muscle. SWE of aging muscle is needed to better understand the intrinsic tensile changes that take place in muscle over time.
PURPOSE: This study aimed to determine how cross-sectional area (CSA) and SWE correlate with each other) in both the medial and lateral gastrocnemius muscles of active older athletes participating in the HuntsmanWorld Senior Games.
METHODS: Data was collected from 116 volunteers (participants in the Huntsman World Senior Games) in St. George, Utah, 2019. Subjects (62 males: mean age = 68.9 ± 7.8 yrs, Ht = 177.4 ± 8.1 cm, Wt = 85.4 ± 20 kg; 54 females: mean age = 66.9 ± 8.5 yrs, Ht = 164.4 ± 7.2 cm, Wt = 69.8 ± 18 kg) signed an approved consent form and then lay prone on a treatment table for ultrasonic measurement of both CSA and SWE of both heads of the gastrocnemius.
ANALYSIS: All data were analyzed using SPSS ver25 with a multivariate analysis utilizing both age, height, and weight as covariates with Pearson correlations calculated on the relationship between CSA and SWE of both heads.
RESULTS & CONCLUSION: We hypothesized that increases in cross-sectional area would positively correlate with increased SWE values since the muscle would be larger and prior studies have found muscle hypertrophy increases muscle pennation angle. Neither Medial gastroc (r=-.100, p=.280) or Lateral gastroc (r=.047, p=.613) CSA was significantly correlated with their respective SWE ratings. Age significantly affected CSA only after the age of 59, but similarities in CSA and SWE between all participants may be the result of the high level of activity of these subjects.

Dearden, Heravi, Shen, Arslanian, Shrestha, Mismash, Tinsley, Pay (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: Dearden, David (Brigham Young University, Chemistry)

Using the Spartan and Ion Molecular Spectrometry Suite (IMoS), we use the 3D modeling to predict stability and molecule favorability. Previously in our experimentation we have seen and proper capping of a host molecule with cucurbit[5]uril. This was different than cucurbit[6]uril as the cap in some cases didn't bond to all the upward oxygens because on the molecular symmetry, thus host enclosure was less favorable in cucurbit[6]uril than cucurbit[5]uril. We also observed in our lab the energy differences using the Extensible Computation Chemistry Environment (ECCE) of cucurbit[5]uril host transfer based on cap and host interactions. These studies show that cucurbit[5]uril with methane as a host is more favorable than outside the cavity. It also shows that methane inside cucurbit[5]uril is more favored than in decamethylcucurbit[5]uril. The studies using computational study will be testable using mass spectrometry, and we predict that the same behavior trend will show using other caps and hosts with cucurbit[5]uril and decamethylcucurbit[5]uril.

Cromar, Zachary J.; Findlay, Matthew; Turner, Elizabeth; Mills, Ammon (Utah Valley University)
Faculty Advisor: Gazdik-Stofer, Michaela (College of Science - Utah Valley University, Biology); Sylvester, Steven (College of Humanities and Social Sciences - Utah Valley University, Political Science)

The World Health Organization has included vaccine hesitancy in the top ten threats to global health in 2019. Studies done in the United States have shown that the Moral Foundations Theory (MFT) can be used to identify why individuals are more vaccine-hesitant (VH) than others. Counterintuitively, the dichotomous moral foundations (MF) of care vs. harm, traditionally used in pro-vaccine messaging interventions, or fairness vs. cheating, were not found to be the foundations on which VH parents based their decision not to follow the CDC recommended vaccination schedule. It was discovered that the purity vs. degradation and liberty vs. oppression foundations are more important to VH individuals than all other foundations. Highly VH individuals are twice as likely to emphasize purity and liberty. Concerningly, in 2018, Utah ranked in the bottom ten states for child vaccination rates in 11 of the 19 vaccines reported by the Utah Department of Health. We plan on testing a broader messaging intervention than the current, traditional vaccine messages. Our messaging interventions will emphasize the MFs of liberty vs. oppression and purity vs. degradation to see if they will be more effective than our more traditional messaging intervention emphasizing care vs. harm, or an unrelated control message not related to vaccines. We hypothesize that messages emphasizing the purity and liberty foundations will resonate better with the VH and decrease their vaccine-hesitancy relative to the other groups. If our data supports that the MFs of liberty vs. oppression and purity vs. degradation significantly decrease vaccine-hesitancy than current general vaccine education messaging interventions should be broadened to include these MFs. However, if results do not demonstrate that the liberty vs. oppression MFs are more effective at decreasing vaccine hesitancy, then more research should be performed on the subject.

Tilisa Howell; David Aguilar-Alvarez (Weber State University)
Faculty Advisor: Aguilar-Alvarez, David (Moyes College of Education, Athletic Training & nutrition)

Abstract:

Background:

Recent studies show that water intake plays a major role in the development of chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and kidney disease. The aim of this study was to determine if the percentage of total fluid intake from water influences Metabolic Syndrome (MetS) and identify significant associations between water, dairy, soft drinks and juice consumption with MetS parameters in college students.

Methods:

We measured MetS parameters and collected diet records from 364 college students, ages 18-65 years. Participants were grouped by gender (Male: 112; Female: 252) and by percentage of total fluid consumption from water. Groups were defined as high (>70%) percentage of total fluid intake from water (HPW) and Low percentage (<30%) of total fluid intake from water (LPW). T-test was used to determine mean differences in MetS parameters between HPW and LPW, and Pearson correlations to determine associations between MetS and specific fluids.

Results:

HPW participants showed lower diastolic blood pressure when compared with their LPW counterparts (µ=78. 51±8. 28 vs µ=81. 2± 9. 28, p=0. 05). Men dairy fluid consumption was associated with increased fasting blood glucose (r=0. 242, p=0. 01. In women, Juice consumption was associated with increased LDL-Cholesterol (r= 0. 205, p=0. 02).

Conclusion:

Consuming non-water fluids showed negative effects on blood pressure. Contrary to previous studies, dairy fluid consumption in men was associated with increased blood glucose. It is possible that high-glycemic foods tied to dairy consumption modulate this association. Our results in women are consistent with previous studies were juice consumption increases triglyceride production and VLDL-Cholesterol.

Ashton, S. Jeramy (Utah Valley University)
Faculty Advisor: Mizell, Karen (Utah Valley University; Philosophy, Ethics)

A desire to maintain attention, a crave for focus, a potential escape from reality, these are some of the potential reasons that a person would recreationally take a stimulant.
A stimulant substance that raises levels of physiological or nervous activity in the body. Stimulants such as Adderall have been studied for years as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the stimulant in 1996. The drug has seen an enormous amount of popularity among prescribers, patients and the general public. Studies on the drug continue to examine levels of effectiveness, possibility of dependency, recreational use and the typical benefit to harm ratios.
Empirical data shows that individuals among the college cohort make up the highest number of recreational stimulant users. Using data from across the county and comparing such findings to Bioethical principles (more specifically, the four parts of principalism), I will first examine the benefits and harms of the recreational use of stimulants (such as dependency, classism, social and academic advancements) and then, with that gathered reasoning, argue against the recreational use of stimulants among the college cohort.

Sevy, Jonathon; Radebaugh, Jani; McDougall, Dylan; Kerber, Laura; Rabinovitch, Jason (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: Radebaugh, Jani (Brigham Young University, Geology)

Yardangs are wind-carved linear ridges that are found selectively on Earth and extensively on Mars. The history of the morphologic development of yardangs is not well known. In the Puna high plateau of Argentina there are ignimbrite deposits, many of which have been eroded into yardang fields, commonly called fleets. Yarding fleets are evenly spaced forms, facing into the wind, that resemble a fleet of boats sailing. A prominent fleet, known as Campo de las Piedras Pomez (CCP) was studied to more fully understand their formation and morphology, including field research in December 2018 and 2019. Some physical characteristics looked at in the field included: dedos direction and lengths; heights and lengths of yardangs; structural features; wind and gravel ripple direction. In addition, relationships between yardang organization and structural control have been analyzed. The dedos on the fronts of yardangs averaged 4.0cm in length, while the reverse dedos were 3.3cm. From this it was determined that: Two wind directions, with one dominant, are present; Structural features can shape morphology of yardangs.

Parada, Michelle (Weber State University)
Faculty Advisor: Schramm, Katharina (Weber State University, Botany)

This research focuses on anti-tumor and the biotoxicity of A. millefollium (yarrow).
Yarrow is an interesting plant with a long history of medicinal uses, but very little has been done to research and prove the different beneficial properties claimed. There are two simple bench-top assays performed in this study, the potato disc assay which inoculates potato slices with Agrobacterium tumefaciens as well as different concentrations of yarrow extracts and assesses the resulting tumor formation and the brine shrimp toxicity assay to assess the LD-50 of the extracts. My results will indicate whether or not the native yarrow extracts inhibit or do not inhibit tumor formation and its toxicity level. The results of this research could lead to further studies of the phytochemicals in the plant to be used for cancer treatments.

Asay, Spencer; Graham, Andrew; Burke, Lexady; Barnes, Brad; Oblad, Richard; Kenealey, Jason (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: Kenealey, Jason (Life Sciences; Nutrition, Dietetics, and Food Science)

Prostate cancer is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer in men, and metastatic prostate cancer is currently incurable. Prostate cancer frequently becomes resistant to standard of care treatments. Moreover, the administration of conventional chemotherapeutic drugs, such as docetaxel (DOC), poses the risk of debilitating toxic side effects. Combination therapy, in which several compounds targeting multiple cellular pathways are administered jointly, is one tool that can be used to combat therapeutic resistance and drug toxicity. Vitamin E (VE) compounds and analogs have been proposed as potential non-toxic chemotherapeutics. We modeled combination therapy using mixture design response surface methodology (MDRSM), a statistical technique designed to optimize mixture compositions, to determine whether combinations of three chemotherapeutic agents (γ-tocotrienol (γ-T3), γ-tocopherol ether acetate (ɑ-TEA), and DOC) would prove more effective than DOC alone in the treatment of PC-3 human prostate cancer cells. A response surface was generated for cell viability, and the optimal treatment combination for reducing cell viability was calculated. We found that a combination of 30 µM ɑ-TEA, 20 µM γ-T3, and 25 nm DOC was most effective in the treatment of PC-3 cells. We also found that combining γ-T3 and ɑ-TEA with DOC decreased the dose of DOC required to significantly reduce cell viability in PC-3 cells. Finally, we found that combining γ-T3 and ɑ-TEA with DOC enhanced treatment efficacy in DOC-resistant PC-3 cells.

Ouzts, Ethan (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: Matheson, Rebekka (BYU Family, Home, and Social Sciences; Psychology)

Ketamine was recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as a therapeutic approach to treat individuals with treatment-resistant depression. This approval opens the door for other hallucinogens to be approved for psychiatric use. This review compares the antidepressant efficacy and safety of ketamine to serotonergic hallucinogens, such as lysergic diethylamide acid (LSD). Ketamine acts as the standard of comparison in this review. Serotonergic hallucinogens demonstrate similar short to mid-term responses in patients with depression and compares well to ketamine's safety. Researchers should conduct additional randomized, controlled experiments to better establish serotonergic hallucinogens' antidepressant potential. Despite this limitation, serotonergic hallucinogens warrant serious consideration for potential antidepressant treatment.

Sundstrom, Rebecca; Jensen, Joseph B. (Utah Valley University)
Faculty Advisor: Jensen, Joseph (Utah Valley University, Physics)

We will measure Surface Brightness Fluctuations (SBF) in three galaxies (ESO137-G006, NGC 3309, and NGC 5128) using images from two cameras: the GeMS Multi-Conjugate Adaptive Optics (MCAO) system and the FLAMINGOS-2 (F-2) near-infrared imaging spectrograph, at the 8-meter Gemini South Telescope in Chile. To make an accurate measurement we need to first determine a photometric calibration for the MCAO system by comparing flux, or captured light, from both detectors. This is necessary because MCAO collects crisp, sharp images but omits some of the total incoming flux from the stars in the galaxies. F-2 takes broader images but includes more measurable flux. By finding the ratio of the flux collected by MCAO to the flux collected by F-2 we can take this "missing" light into account without compromising the crisp, sharp resolution MCAO provides.

Morgan Howard, Corinna Trujillo Tanner, Boyd Tanner, Brandon Thatcher, Janelle Macintosh (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: Trujillo Tanner, Corinna (Nursing, Nursing)

Purpose/Aims: The purpose of this Review of Literature is to present the most current and accurate information about e-cigarette use, or vaping, with recommendations for nursing practice.

Rationale/Conceptual Basis/Background: According to the CDC, to date over 1300 individuals have developed severe lung injury, associated with vaping, including 216 fatalities. Most of these cases involved young people in their teens or twenties. There are concerns that marketing for vaping specifically targets young people and leads potential users to consider the practice relatively safe. On the contrary, vaping is associated with several serious health risks, including lipoid pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome and popcorn lung. Little is known about the effects of the 60+ compounds identified in vaping aerosol, which is inhaled directly into the lungs. Nurses are often the first point of contact for patients in primary care and urgent/emergent settings. Nurses provide valuable patient education, health assessment, and referral. It is important for nurses to have access to the latest information about this developing problem.

Methods: We conducted a review of literature. We reviewed and summarized information from the Food and Drug administration, Centers for Disease Control, American Medical Association, American Academy of Pediatrics, and other reputable sources. All information reviewed had been published within the last six months. Research questions which guided this review sought to identify important considerations for nursing assessment, and nursing interventions.

Findings/Clinical Implications:

Nursing Assessment: An important part of nursing assessment should include documentation of a patient's history of vaping. When a patient presents with respiratory symptoms and has a history of vaping, a detailed vaping history covering the previous 90 days should be obtained. When acute lung injury, caused by vaping is identified, it must be reported to local and state health departments, per the new CDC guidelines.

Nursing interventions should include patient education as follows: 98.7% of "vape juice" assayed by the FDA contained the addictive substance nicotine (even if labeled "nicotine free") Nicotine is highly addictive and damages developing brain tissue in fetuses, infants, children and teens Inhaled "second hand" vape aerosol is dangerous for pregnant women, infants, children and those with lung disease The inhaled solution is not "water vapor" but rather an aerosol created by an electric heating element within the vaping device The inhaled solution contains up to 60 + chemicals including heavy metals

There is no established standard for vaping safety

Flavorings in vape juice, although considered safe for ingestion, have not been approved for inhalation and are not known to be safe

Additional information and recommendations will be forthcoming as our understanding of the risks associated with vaping is rapidly evolving.

Barlow, Andrew; Beales, Joseph; Ekpo, Idongesit; Krueger, Emily; Lloyd, Trevor; Ross, Mimi; Sheets, Jared; Tessem, Jeffery; (Brigham Young University)
Faculty Advisor: Tessem, Jeffery (Brigham Young University; Nutrition, Dietetics, and Food Science)

One in eleven people worldwide suffer from diabetes, and 12% of the global health expenditure is attributed to its treatment. Despite spending over $300 billion on the treatment of diabetes, none offer curative therapies. Diabetes is characterized by the loss of pancreatic β-cell function, but research has shown changes in diet are beneficial in treating Type 2 Diabetes. Phytochemicals are commonly utilized in these diets, and recent studies show diets high in derived flavanols exert beneficial bioactivity for β-cells. However, given that these phytochemicals are rarely found in circulation, the direct mechanism of action is still under investigation. Gut bacteria metabolize flavanols into smaller, absorbable metabolites, which can be found in circulation. We hypothesize that these gut bacteria derived flavanol metabolites are absorbed and have direct effects on β-cell function. We test this hypothesis by feeding rats control diets or diets rich in the flavanol monomers catechin hydrate and epicatechin or grape seed extract. Here we present data regarding the in vitro effects of these absorbed gut bacteria derived flavanols on β-cell function. This study sheds further light on flavanols and their potential to promote insulin secretion and, ultimately, glucose homeostasis.

Wankier, Zakary; Sinclair, Sarina PhD; Drew, Alex PhD; Taylor, Carolyn MS; Kubiak, Eric MD; Agarwal, Jayant MD (University of Utah)
Faculty Advisor: Sinclair, Sarina (School of Medicine, Orthopaedics)

Introduction:

Osseointegration (�OI�) technology is the direct skeletal attachment of a prosthetic limb to bone using an intramedullary stem. For OI to be effective and secure, bone in-growth and remodeling around the implant must be achieved. Physicians need an effective way to measure bone remodeling in order to make informed decisions on treatments. This work describes methodology that was developed that utilizes computed tomography (CT) imaging as a tool for analyzing bone remodeling around an OI implant.

Method:

Subjects implanted with a new Percutaneous Osseointegrated Prosthesis (POP) had CTs taken of their residual femur at 6 and 52-weeks post-op. The CT images were used to segment and create three-dimensional models of the femur.

Following segmentation, models were aligned to a common world coordinate system. STLs of the aligned medullary cavity and femur volume were entered into custom Matlab code to calculate cortical and medullary morphology measurements. Morphology data from 6 and 52-week scans were compared in order to determine if bone remodeling around the POP implant could be detected.

Results:

Comparing data from post-operative visits suggests that important indicators of bone remodeling around the device could be detected. One year after implantation of the POP device the medullary parameters had minimal % differences (-1.5 and 2.2) compared to 6-weeks, validating that consistent alignment was achieved between scans from different time points. Cortical area, perimeter, and thickness around the POP implant showed positive percent changes at 12-months of 19.44%, 4.04% and 14.36% respectively. Increases in cortex morphology values indicate bone remodeling around the implant, with largest increases observed at the distal end for each parameter.

Discussion:

This pilot study utilized CT imaging as a tool for quickly and accurately analyzing bone remodeling around a new osseointegrated device. Additional work will further validate and optimize these methods for clinical use.

This study described an investigational device, limited by federal law to investigational use. No long-term data exists about its performance.