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Virginia Tech's open access policy enables researchers to deposit the accepted version of scholarly articles with no embargo.
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Virginia Tech was first in the world to require ETDs in 1997, and continues to add scans of older theses and dissertations.
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More than 50 freely available and openly licensed textbooks are among our most downloaded items.
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Recent Submissions
Peripartal supplementation of a blend of postbiotics and essential oil compounds influences ruminal fermentation while improving feed intake and milk production in transition dairy cows [Supplemental material]
Begalli, Gustavo; Maldonado, Laura; de Oliveira, Victor Augusto; Souza Lima, Ana Flavia; Minuti, Andrea; Trevisi, Erminio; Halfen, Jessica; Fernandes, Tatiane; Yoon, Ilkyu; Osorio, Johan (2025-11)
Meningeal vascular Aβ deposition associates with cerebral hypoperfusion and compensatory collateral remodeling
Kaloss, Alexandra M.; Browning, Jack L.; Li, Jiangtao; Pan, Yuhang; Watsen, Sachi; Sontheimer, Harald; Theus, Michelle H.; Olsen, Michelle L. (2025-11-13)
Background: Global reductions in cerebral blood flow (CBF) are among the earliest and most consistent abnormalities observed in Alzheimer’s disease (AD), preceding both cortical plaque formation and cognitive decline. While the pial arterial network—a critical supplier of intracortical perfusion—has been overlooked in this context, it may play a pivotal role in early vascular pathology. Here, we report extensive cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) within the pial artery and arteriole network in the J20 (PDGF-APPSw, Ind) mouse model of AD.
Methods: Using premortem delivery of Methoxy-XO4 to label Aβ, and arterial vascular labeling, we assessed Aβ burden on the pial artery/arteriole network and cerebral blood flow in aged male and female WT and J20 AD mice.
Results: We show that 12-month-old J20 mice exhibit significant Aβ deposition across major leptomeningeal arteries (ACA, MCA) and pial collaterals, with ~ 40% vessel coverage in males and ~ 20% in females—substantially exceeding Aβ levels in cortical or hippocampal vessels. This vascular Aβ burden was accompanied by compensatory enlargement and increased tortuosity of pial collateral vessels. Yet, despite this apparent remodeling, CBF was reduced by ~ 15% in J20 mice, and this decline was significantly associated with leptomeningeal CAA burden.
Conclusions: This is the first study to comprehensively characterize meningeal arterial Aβ accumulation in a preclinical model of vascular AD, mirroring recent observations in early-stage human disease. Our findings implicate meningeal CAA as a potential driver of early CBF disruption and suggest that pial collateral remodeling may reflect a compensatory response to vascular insufficiency. Moreover, we identify robust sex differences in CAA burden, paralleling sex-specific patterns of parenchymal Aβ pathology in humans. These results highlight the leptomeningeal vasculature as a novel and understudied locus for early AD pathology and a potential therapeutic target to preserve cerebrovascular integrity.
Field study demonstrates inordinate respirable dust generation during continuous mining in rock versus coal strata
Animah, Festus; Sarver, Emily A. (2025-11-10)
In modern room and pillar coal mines, the coal is produced by continuous miner (CM) machines. The CM is used to mine the coal seam by continuously cutting at a vertical face. Depending on the seam thickness, quality, and geotechnical properties, some roof, floor, or interburden rock is often cut along with coal. While CMs can be highly efficient in terms of production rates, they can also generate high concentrations of dust. Dust poses both safety (i.e., explosibility) and respiratory health hazards. Previous research has generally indicated that CM cutting in rock yields much more respirable dust than cutting in coal. Although in-mine studies that directly evaluate this trend have not been reported, understanding relative dust generation from different geologic strata could have important implications. In many mines, for instance, the rock is the primary source of respirable silica and silicates, which can be especially hazardous. To mitigate dust generated by the CM, mines use a variety of controls including ventilation, on-board scrubber systems, and water sprays. However, the relative effects of controls on dust generated from different strata have also not been widely investigated. In this field study, respirable dust sampling was conducted in the intake and return airways of an active CM during periods when the cutting was targeted either primarily at the coal seam (bottom cut) or primarily at the roof rock (top cut) in a standard entry. Results indicated that CM cutting in rock strata generated somewhat finer particles and respirable dust concentrations that were 2.1–26 times higher than cutting in coal strata, although the coal height being cut was about 2.2-2.9 times greater than the rock height. Additionally, the analysis of dust mineralogy generally showed a mix of both carbonaceous (coal) and mineral particles regardless of the target strata. Furthermore, the study was designed to evaluate the effects of two typical combinations of CM scrubber and ventilation conditions, and increased pressure and volume through the CM water sprays. In general, operation of the scrubber tended to yield lower and somewhat finer respirable dust concentrations, irrespective of the strata the CM was targeting. Increased water spray pressure and volume sometimes appeared to reduce the respirable dust concentration when the CM was targeting the roof rock, but no effect could be discerned when the CM was targeting the coal seam.
Dante, VA: Conceptual Redevelopment Plan for the Former Dry Cleaners Building Executive Summary
Gleason, Harry (2025-03-31)
Narrows, VA: Giles County Wellness Center Trail Conceptual Design
Gleason, Harry (2025-07-31)