Scholarship @ UWindsor

Scholarship @ UWindsor is the institutional repository of the University of Windsor (UWindsor), showcasing and preserving the UWindsor community’s scholarly outputs, as well as items from the Leddy Library’s Archives & Special Collections. Its mission is to disseminate and preserve knowledge created or housed at the University of Windsor.

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Communities in Scholarship @ UWindsor

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Conferences and Conference Proceedings 3167
Papers, presentations and abstracts of conferences held at the University of Windsor, in person and virtually.
Digitized Local Collections 1552
Digitized local items from the collections of the Leddy Library, University of Windsor, and community partners.
Faculties, Departments and Research Units 3200
Open Access Faculty publications, reports and working papers from academic departments at the University of Windsor.
Theses, Dissertations, and Major Papers 9579
Formal graduate original research from the University of Windsor's Masters and Doctoral programs.

Recent Submissions

Access status: Open Access ,
Cyber Threat Susceptibility Assessment for Heavy-Duty Vehicles Based on ISO/SAE 21434
(Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc., 2025-03-11) Rahimi, Narges; Schuelke-Leech, Beth-Anne; Mirhassani, Mitra
TARA, which stands for Threat Analysis and Risk Assessment, serves as the foundational stage of cybersecurity implementation, particularly in the context of vehicular systems. While various considerations and risk assessment frameworks have been discussed in recent years, there is a notable lack of TARA models specifically designed for heavy-duty (HD) vehicles. The security considerations and vulnerabilities in HD vehicles differ significantly from those in light-duty (LD) vehicles, leading to different security impacts and varying attack feasibility. This makes existing models inadequate for accurately assessing risks in the context of HD vehicles. This study introduces a novel risk assessment model tailored for HD vehicles, addressing gaps in existing TARA frameworks such as EVITA, HEAVENS, and ISO/SAE 21434. The key contribution of this work lies in the customization of impact and feasibility metrics within the ISO/SAE framework to better account for the unique security challenges posed by HD vehicles. Unlike prior models, this approach adapts the impact criteria to reflect the diverse range of security concerns specific to HD vehicles, which have been inadequately addressed in existing frameworks. Additionally, through a comprehensive analysis of threat vectors and vehicle interfaces, the model refines feasibility criteria, ensuring a more accurate and context-aware assessment of security risks. By adopting these enhancements, the proposed model offers more precise risk assessments that align with HD vehicle considerations, helping to prioritize threats and make optimal decisions regarding risk treatment.
Access status: Open Access ,
Inequitable access to PrEP among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men in Canada: A network analysis of social indicators
(Elsevier, 2025-06) Adam, Barry D.; Monteza-Quiroz, Diego; Hart, Trevor A.; Skakoon-Sparling, Shayna; Moore, David M.; Zhang, Terri; Gormezano, Aki; Grace, Daniel
This paper examines demographic, structural, and syndemic variables to map facilitators and barriers to accessing pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (GBM) in the three largest cities in Canada, Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal. Focusing on factors in the later stages of the PrEP cascade, this study first performed a logistic regression analysis and reports adjusted odds ratios, then entered statistically significant social indicators into a network analysis to profile the interrelated and sometimes mutually reinforcing social conditions that shape inequitable access to PrEP among Canadian GBM. Barriers to accessing a gay-friendly health care provider (HCP) and financial barriers remain primary nodes associated with inequitable PrEP access. These two nodes are, in turn, linked to other social indicators: experiencing stigma from an HCP, being less likely to be out to an HCP (most common among bisexual and queer men), and not being able to find an HCP accepting of their sexuality (most common among Indigenous, Black, and some other GBM of colour). The cost of PrEP was also a barrier, especially for less educated and un- or under-employed GBM, as well as newcomers to Canada, who more often lacked insurance for medications. These findings point toward the importance of having a primary HCP and finding an HCP who is culturally competent regarding the sexualities of gay and bisexual men, queer and trans people. These barriers may also explain other social inequities experienced by Black, Indigenous, and other GBM of colour, and by people who do not have health insurance that covers all or most of the cost of PrEP. This pattern of inequitable access to PrEP points toward the urgency of providing universal access without financial barriers (currently available in some Canadian provinces but not others) and supporting access points with a reputation for welcoming GBM in their full diversity.
Access status: Open Access ,
Breeding Partners Have Dissimilar Foraging Strategies in a Long‐Lived Arctic Seabird
(John Wiley and Sons Ltd, 2025) Gousy-Leblanc, Marianne; Patterson, Allison; Gilchrist, H. Grant; Friesen, Vicki L.; Elliott, Kyle H.
For long-lived species with biparental care, coordination and compatibility in the foraging behavior of breeding mates may be crucial to successfully raise offspring. While high foraging success is clearly important to reproductive success, it might be equally important that the mate has a complementary foraging strategy. We test whether breeding partners have similar or dissimilar foraging strategies in a species where both partners share breeding responsibilities and exhibit high mate fidelity (thick-billed murre; Uria lomvia). To examine whether thick-billed murres showed complementary in foraging strategies, we attached GPS accelerometers to both partners within 40 thick-billed murre chick-rearing pairs. Individuals within a breeding pair were dissimilar in their foraging trip distance and in their number of dives during foraging trips compared to randomized pairs. Breeding partners were also more similar in wing length than randomized pairs. This result could be related to individual quality as individuals select similar sized partners or select sites that lead to similar sized partners. We conclude that foraging strategy diversity could be maintained in this population either because individuals prefer partners with foraging strategies complementary to their own, or because partners diverge in foraging strategies over multiple breeding season together.
Access status: Open Access ,
In silico genomic insights into bacteriophages infecting ESBL-producing Escherichia coli from human, animal, and environmental sources
(BioMed Central Ltd, 2025-04-08) Aworh, Mabel Kamweli; Lawal, Opeyemi U.; Egyir, Beverly; Hendriksen, Rene S.
Background: The emergence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in Escherichia coli, particularly extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing E. coli (ESBL-EC), is a global public health concern. Bacteriophages (phages) play a significant role in bacterial evolution and the spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). This study investigates prophages integrated within ESBL-EC genomes to assess their diversity, gene content, and potential contributions to ESBL-EC persistence across human, animal, and environmental reservoirs. Between May and December 2020, a cross-sectional study was conducted in Abuja and Lagos, collecting 448 stool, cecal, and environmental samples from abattoir workers, slaughtered cattle, and the abattoir environment. ESBL-EC genomes from these samples, obtained in an earlier study, were analyzed for phage regions using PHASTER. Intact prophages were analyzed in silico using computational tools to detect ARGs, ESBL genes, virulence factors, and heavy metal resistance. Their genomic relationships were examined with statistical significance of p < 0.05. Results: Out of 448 samples, ESBL-EC prevalence was 21.7% (97/448). Among 97 ESBL-EC isolates, 646 prophage regions were detected, with 30% (194/646) classified as intact phages. Among the 158 phages with genus assignments, Punavirus was the most prevalent (60.1%). Escherichia was the most frequent predicted host (308/646), particularly in cattle (n = 143) and human (n = 124) sources. Among ESBL-EC genomes, 83.5% (81/97) with intact phages carried phage-associated ARGs, 76.3% (74/97) carried phage-associated ESBL genes, 18.6% (18/97) harbored phage-associated virulence factors, 15.5% (15/97) contained phage-associated plasmids, and 10.3% (10/97) had heavy metal resistance. The most prevalent phage-associated ARGs detected were qnrS1 (73/81) and blaCTX-M-15 (72/81). Two isolates recovered from abattoir workers carried two phage-like plasmids, each harboring either tet(A) or blaCTX-M-55 gene. The predominant phage lifestyles were temperate (n = 182), mainly in the Peduoviridae family, and lytic (n = 12) in the Punavirus genus. Conclusion: This is the first study in Nigeria to characterize phages in ESBL-EC isolates at the One Health interface. The presence of intact phages in humans, animals, and the environment underscores the complex interactions shaping phage ecology. The discovery of ARGs, virulence genes, and heavy metal resistance within prophages suggests a potential role in AMR dissemination. Future research should focus on elucidating mechanisms of ARG transfer mediated by phages in One Health settings.
Access status: Open Access ,
Cerebrospinal Fluid p-Tau181/Amyloid Beta 42 Ratio Identifies Lymphatic-Venous Anastomosis Patients Who Respond to and Benefit from the Surgery for Relief of Cognitive Impairment with a Diagnostic Accuracy of 0.744
(American Chemical Society, 2025-07-16) Xu, Guangqi; Zhang, Qinghua; Li, Yinan; Du, Anqi; Xu, Xiaona; Bai, Ruyu; Bi, Chao; Li, Yanxia; Zhang, Tailun; Zhang, Zhongfa; Chu, Ivan K.; Siu, K. W. Michael; Yu, Zhaoyan
Responders (R) and Non-Responders (NR) to lymphatic-venous anastomosis (LVA) surgery for relief of cognitive impairment show significant difference in their p-tau181/Aβ42 ratios via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) of their cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). LVA involves the conjugation of a lymph vessel to a small vein in the neck to facilitate lymph flow. The R and NR groups were classified using five standard cognitive assessment tools: Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale – Cognitive subscale (ADAS-Cog), Activities of Daily Living (ADL) and Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR), and augmented by clinical assessments. ELISA results for 43 patients were available. Welch’s t test and Mann–Whitney U-test revealed significant difference between R and NR’s p-tau181 value and p-tau181/Aβ42 ratio. Using a p-tau181/Aβ42 cutpoint of 0.0923 allows patient selection for LVA with a specificity of 0.800, sensitivity of 0.667, positive predictive value (PPV) of 0.706, and negative predictive value (NPV) of 0.769. The diagnostic accuracy is 0.744. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve gives an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.793, which compares well with those of biomarker tests currently in use: prostate specific antigen (PSA), Straticyte and Oncotype DX. The p-tau181/Aβ42 ratio could serve to predict LVA’s effectiveness in alleviating AD patients’ symptoms and to rule-in patients for LVA, once validation from a larger patient cohort is available.