Balıkesir Üniversitesi Kurumsal Akademik Arşivi
DSpace@Balıkesir, Balıkesir Üniversitesi tarafından doğrudan ve dolaylı olarak yayınlanan; kitap, makale, tez, bildiri, rapor, araştırma verisi gibi tüm akademik kaynakları uluslararası standartlarda dijital ortamda depolar, Üniversitenin akademik performansını izlemeye aracılık eder, kaynakları uzun süreli saklar ve yayınların etkisini artırmak için telif haklarına uygun olarak Açık Erişime sunar.
Güncel Gönderiler
The effects of folic acid supplementation on novel biomarkers of the endothelial function in rats with experimental periodontitis
(Galenos Publishing House, 2016) Olgun, Ebru; Kul, Oğuz; Ercan, Nuray; Atmaca, Hasan Tarık; Anteplioğlu, Tuğçe
Objective: The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of folic acid (FA) supplementation on endothelial damage caused by periodontitis. Materials and Methods: 48 rats were divided randomly into five groups: healthy control, sham control, lipopolysaccharide-induced periodontitis (LPS), lipopolysaccharide-induced periodontitis with low-dose FA (4 mg/kg) (LPS+4), and high-dose FA (12 mg/kg) (LPS+12) administered groups. Rats were euthanized after 15 days of the first lipopolysaccharide injection. Circulating progenitor cells taken from each rat's blood samples were counted using flow cytometry. ADMA, CD34+, and CD133+ expression in periodontal and cardiac tissues were labeled by using immunoperoxidase method. Results: There were no differences among the groups regarding ADMA expression in periodontal tissues. However, the LPS group exhibited the highest expression levels of CD34+ and CD133+, which were significantly elevated compared to those in the healthy group. Statistically significant differences in all biomarkers were observed among the groups in the cardiac tissue. Flow cytometry analysis results did not differ in ADMA expression level, but CD34+ and CD133+ expression levels were statistically significant between groups. Conclusion: The results of our study suggest that periodontitis induces an increase in the expression of endothelial biomarkers, while folic acid supplementation exerts a beneficial effect on periodontitisassociated endothelial dysfunction.
Social media addiction and cyberbullying sensibility in team sports athletes: the mediating role of digital literacy and the moderating role of difficulties in emotion regulation
(Frontiers Media Sa, 2026) Ekinci, Hasan Buğra; Birkök, Mehmet Cüneyt; Kaçay, Zülbiye; Işık, Özkan; Talaghir, Laurentiu Gabriel; Coja, Daniel Madalin; Berdila, Anamaria; Olaru, Bogdan Sorin
Purpose This study examined the relationship between social media addiction and cyberbullying sensibility among team sports athletes. In addition, the mediating role of digital literacy and the moderating role of difficulties in emotion regulation were investigated within this relationship.Methodology The study included 265 licensed team sports athletes from Erzincan, T & uuml;rkiye. Data were collected using measures of social media addiction, cyberbullying sensibility, digital literacy, and difficulties in emotion regulation. The construct validity of the scales was assessed through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Mediation, moderation, and moderated mediation analyses were conducted using PROCESS Macro Models 4 and 14 with bootstrap-based regression procedures.Result The findings showed that social media addiction was significantly associated with digital literacy, and digital literacy showed a significant positive relationship with cyberbullying sensibility. The indirect relationship between social media addiction and cyberbullying sensibility through digital literacy was statistically significant. In addition, this indirect association was more pronounced among athletes with lower difficulties in emotion regulation, whereas it was not significant among those with higher difficulties in emotion regulation. These findings support a moderated mediation model based on conditional associations.Conclusion The findings suggest that digital literacy plays a mediating role in the relationship between social media addiction and cyberbullying sensibility among team sports athletes. Furthermore, difficulties in emotion regulation appear to influence the strength of this indirect relationship. The study highlights the importance of considering both digital competencies and emotional processes in understanding athletes' experiences in digital environments.
Eco-pedagogical content's impact on EFL learners' environmental attitudes and behaviors: A structural equation modeling study
(Elsevier, 2026) Eroğlu, Ayşenur Yıldırım; İnal, Sevim; Dev, Mine Aydemir
Increasing scholarly attention has been directed to integrating environmental issues into educational contexts across academic disciplines. Within this context, foreign language classrooms offer valuable opportunities to incorporate environmental content into language learning. This study examines the impact of integrating environmental issues into English as a Foreign Language (EFL) instruction on students' environmental attitudes and behaviors. The study involved 562 EFL learners. A quantitative research design was adopted, and three hypotheses were tested using Structural Equation Modeling. The proposed model assumes that the presence of environmental issues in language instruction positively influences environmental attitudes and environmental behavior, and that environmental attitudes also positively affect environmental behavior. The findings reveal that the inclusion of environmental topics into EFL instruction significantly strengthens students' environmental attitudes and behaviors, both directly and indirectly. In addition, gender-based analyses indicate that female students scored significantly higher across all three scales. Similarly, students who had previously taken a course related to environmental issues exhibited significantly higher levels of environmentally responsible behavior compared to those who had not. Overall, these findings emphasize the potential of foreign language classrooms to function as interdisciplinary spaces that foster environmental awareness, positive attitudes, and environmentally responsible behaviors.
The neurocognitive interaction between food and emotions: A thematic research
(Emerald Publishing, 2026) Baydeniz, Leyla; Baydeniz, Erdem; Demirci, Barış
Purpose – This study synthesizes contemporary neurogastronomy research on the neurocognitive mechanisms
underlying food–emotion interactions. By drawing on neuroscience, psychology and culinary studies, the
review constructs a thematic map of current scientific understanding and identifies gaps with implications for
research and practice in hospitality and gastrotourism contexts.
Design/methodology/approach – A systematic thematic literature review was conducted following Braun and
Clarke (2006) six-phase framework. Studies published between January 2024 and October 2025 were retrieved
from Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, ScienceDirect and Google Scholar using the search terms
“neurogastronomy,” “food emotion,” “multisensory integration” and “flavor perception” in combination with
“emotion,” “affect,” “limbic system” and “amygdala.” Of 47 records identified, 20 peer-reviewed articles met
the inclusion criteria following title, abstract and full-text screening. Quality assessment was conducted using
criteria adapted from the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool and Critical Appraisal Skills Program.
Findings – Six themes were identified: theoreticalfoundations of neurogastronomy as an interdisciplinary field;
neural architectures involving limbic-prefrontal networks in food evaluation; multisensory integration
producing emergent flavor percepts that exceed individual sensory inputs; bidirectional food–emotion
relationships operating through gut-brain, expectancy and memory pathways; cultural modulation of neural
food responses through developmental plasticity; and methodological innovations including neuroimaging,
neuromarketing tools and multimodal assessment. Approximately, 75% of reviewed studies drew on Western
populations, limiting cross-cultural generalizability. Flavor perception functions as a brain-constructed
phenomenon shaped by predictive coding, with emotional responses reflecting coordinated amygdala,
orbitofrontal cortex and hippocampal activity.
Originality/value – This study provides the first thematic synthesis of the 2024–2025 neurogastronomy
literature, integrating fragmented findings across neuroscience, psychology and culinary domains into a
coherent multilevel framework. It identifies actionable directions for culinary education, hospitality experience
design, gastrotourism practice, public health and ethical neuromarketing and establishes a research agenda
prioritizing cross-cultural validation, longitudinal investigation and naturalistic study designs
The dual role of TGF-β and hypoxia on MMP14-mediated invasion in PC3 cells
(Humana Press Inc, 2026) Okuyan, Derya; Aktaş, Hanife; Poyrazlı, Fatma; Türkoğlu, Sümeyye Aydoğan
The MMP14 gene, which encodes the only membrane-bound collagenase, is highly expressed in malignant tumors and plays a decisive role in invasiveness. This study investigated the transcriptional regulation of MMP14 by the TGF-beta cytokine and hypoxia in PC3 prostate carcinoma cells. Bioinformatic analysis confirmed the presence of key regulatory elements in the MMP14 promoter, specifically the HRE (for HIF-1 alpha) and SMAD binding sites. Three 5 ' deletion fragments of the MMP14 promoter (P1: -1251/+75; P2: -649/+75; P3: -176/+75) were cloned for functional analysis. PC3 cells were treated with TGF-beta, the hypoxia-mimetic CoCl2, and the combination. Gene and protein expression were analyzed using Real-Time PCR and Immunofluorescence Cytochemistry (IFC), respectively, while promoter activities were assessed via a Luciferase reporter assay. COL1A expression was also evaluated to explore its association with MMP14-mediated extracellular matrix remodeling. Hypoxia emerged as the dominant inductive factor. MMP14 mRNA and protein levels were significantly elevated under hypoxic and combined TGF-beta/CoCl2 conditions. Promoter analysis revealed that the full-length P1 construct was consistently upregulated by all treatments. However, the shorter P2 and P3 fragments exhibited a decrease in activity with TGF-beta alone, suggesting a complex, region-specific regulation predominantly influenced by hypoxic signaling. Critically, COL1A1 mRNA expression was observed in hypoxic groups with elevated MMP14 levels, indicating a possible inverse relationship between MMP14 induction and COL1A-associated extracellular matrix remodeling. Hypoxia is the primary driver of MMP14 induction and protein accumulation in PC3 cells, with TGF-beta acting as a complex co-regulator whose activating effect is potentiated under low-oxygen stress. These findings highlight the contribution of the HIF/MMP14 axis to invasion-associated molecular regulation in prostate cancer.
