Digital Commons Network^™

Modeling The Acquisition Of Social Rank In Crayfish: Winner And Loser Effects And Self-Structuring Properties, Karlo Hock, Robert Huber

Robert Huber

No abstract provided.

Climatic Unpredictability And Parasitism Of Caterpillars: Implications Of Global Warming, John O. Stireman Iii, Lee A. Dyer, D. H. Janzen, M. S. Singer, J. T. Lill, R. J. Marquis, R. E. Ricklefs, G. L. Gentry, W. Hallwachs, P. D. Coley, J. A. Barone, H. F. Greeney, H. Connahs, P. Barbosa, H. C. Morais, I. R. Diniz

Robert Marquis

The Three Dimensional Detection Of Microvasculatory Bed In The Brain Of White Rat Rattus Norvegicus By A Ca2+ -Atpase Method., Amaiak Chilingaryan, Amayak Chilingaryan, Gary Martin

Gary Martin

A procedure is described which allows for the selective and non-injectional staining of the three-dimensional microvasculatory bed (MVB) in thick sections (60–140 μm) of formalin-fixed brain tissue of white rats Rattus norvegicus. This histochemical method detects ATPase activity and takes place between pH 10.5 and 11.2. Calcium ion is used to capture inorganic phosphate, calcium phosphate is converted to lead phosphate, and subsequently converted to black or dark brown lead sulfide. All vessels are revealed due to a precipitate on the endothelium and smooth muscle cells of arterioles. In some vessels, red blood cells also stain. The background is transparent …

Expression Profiling Of Arabidopsis Stigma Tissue Identifies Stigma-Specific Genes, Rob Swanson, T Clark, D Preuss

Rob Swanson

Plants discriminate among pollen grains that land on the stigma surface, providing compatible pollen with the nutrients and signals required to proceed in pollination, and in many species, recognizing and inhibiting foreign pollen adhesion, hydration, germination and invasion. Much of the stigma machinery involved in these processes remains unknown. It is likely that the expression of a stigma-specific gene program confers specialized structural and functional properties. Here we used microarray technology and cDNA subtraction to build a profile of candidate stigma genes that facilitate early pollination events. Of over 24,000 Arabidopsis genes probed, we identified 11,403 genes expressed in stigma …

Spiroplasma Penaei Sp. Nov., Associated With Mortalities In Penaeus Vannamei, Pacific White Shrimp, Linda M. Nunan, Donald V. Lightner, Marietta A. Oduori, Gail E. Gasparich

Gail Gasparich

Spiroplasma Leucomae Sp. Nov., Isolated In Poland From White Satin Moth (Leucoma Salicis L.) Larvae, Marietta A. Oduori, Jerzy J. Lipa, Gail E. Gasparich

Gail Gasparich

Callose (Β-1,3 Glucan) Is Essential For Arabidopsis Pollen Wall Patterning, But Not Tube Growth, Rob Swanson

Rob Swanson

Background: Callose (β-1,3 glucan) separates developing pollen grains, preventing their underlying walls (exine) from fusing. The pollen tubes that transport sperm to female gametes also contain callose, both in their walls as well as in the plugs that segment growing tubes. Mutations in CalS5, one of several Arabidopsis β-1,3 glucan synthases, were previously shown to disrupt callose formation around developing microspores, causing aberrations in exine patterning, degeneration of developing microspores, and pollen sterility. Results: Here, we describe three additional cals5 alleles that similarly alter exine patterns, but instead produce fertile pollen. Moreover, one of these alleles (cals5-3) resulted in the …

Problem Solving: A Foundation For Modeling, Janet Hodder, George Middendorf, D. Ebert-May

George Middendorf

No abstract provided.

Regulatory Functions Of Phospholipase D And Phosphatidic Acid In Plant Growth, Development, And Stress Responses, Xuemin Wang

Xuemin (Sam) Wang

No abstract provided.

Graduate Colloquium, Borbala Mazzag

Borbala Mazzag

No abstract provided.

Expression Of G-Protein Inwardly Rectifying Potassium Channels (Girks) In Lung Cancer Cell Lines, Howard Plummer 3rd, Madhu Dhar, Maria Cekanova Ms, Rndr, Phd, Hildegard Schuller

Maria Cekanova MS, RNDr, PhD

BACKGROUND: Previous data from our laboratory has indicated that there is a functional link between the beta-adrenergic receptor signaling pathway and the G-protein inwardly rectifying potassium channel (GIRK1) in human breast cancer cell lines. We wanted to determine if GIRK channels were expressed in lung cancers and if a similar link exists in lung cancer. METHODS: GIRK1-4 expression and levels were determined by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and real-time PCR. GIRK protein levels were determined by western blots and cell proliferation was determined by a 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine (BrdU) assay. RESULTS: GIRK1 mRNA was expressed in three of six small …

Androdioecy Inferred In The Clam Shrimp Eulimnadia Agassizii (Spinicaudata : Limnadiidae), Stephen Weeks, Ryan Posagi, Michele Cesari, Franca Scanabissi

Stephen C. Weeks

Androdioecy (mixtures of males and hermaphrodites) is a rare mating system in both the plant and animal kingdoms. Androdioecy has been described in three branchiopod species, and is best known from the clam shrimp Eulimnadia texana Packard. Herein we describe sex ratio, genetic and histological evidence from the clam shrimp Eulimnadia agassizii Packard that suggest androdioecy is also found in this species. The E. agassizii population sampled had all-females, and when these females were isolated and allowed to produce eggs, those eggs yielded 100% female offspring in 15 out of 15 cases. Additionally, the originally isolated females proved to be …

Barriers And Flow As Limiting Factors In The Spread Of An Invasive Crayfish (Procambarus Clarkii) In Southern California Streams, Jacob Kerby, Seth Riley, Lee Kats, Paul Wilson

Lee Kats

Invasive crayfish are a major threat to stream ecosystems, yet research has seldom identified successful ways of preventing their spread. Thirty-two stream sections were surveyed during 2000 and 2001 in the Santa Monica Mountains of southern California to determine the distribution of the invasive crayfish Procambarus clarkii. Streams with large barriers (waterfalls, culverts) often did not have crayfish present upstream of barriers. A mark-recapture study indicated that P. clarkii moved both up and downstream between pools, but that barriers significantly reduced movement between pools. Seasonal high flow velocities likely increase passive movement downstream and reduce movement upstream. Results indicate that …

The Reef Fish Assemblage Of The Outer Los Angeles Federal Breakwater, 2002–2003, John Froeschke, Larry Allen, Daniel Pondella

Daniel Pondella

The conspicuous and cryptic fish assemblage of the Los Angeles Federal Breakwater was assessed from 2002 to 2003. Thirty-five species were observed or collected during the study period. The assemblage of cryptic fishes was composed primarily of a mix of Oregonian and San Diegan, species including snubnose sculpin (Orthonopias triacis), coralline sculpin (Artedius corallinus) and blackeye goby (Rhinogobiops nicholsii). The species composition of conspicuous fishes was approximately equal between taxa from these two provinces. Blacksmith (Chromis punctipinnis), black perch (Embiotoca jacksoni) and kelp bass (Paralabrax clathratus) dominated the assemblage of conspicuous fishes. Species composition reflects the localized cool temperature regime …

Digenic Control Of Colouration In The Two-Spot Gourami Trichogaster Trichopterus Trichopterus, Jack Frankel

Jack Frankel

Gli Function Is Essential For Motor Neuron Induction In Zebrafish, Rolf O. Karlstrom, Gary Vanderlaan, Oksana V. Tyurina, Anand Chandrasekhar

Rolf O Karlstrom

The Gli family of zinc-finger transcription factors mediates Hedgehog (Hh) signaling in all vertebrates. However, their roles in ventral neural tube patterning, in particular motor neuron induction, appear to have diverged across species. For instance, cranial motor neurons are essentially lost in zebrafish detour (gli1−) mutants, whereas motor neuron development is unaffected in mouse single gli and some double gli knockouts. Interestingly, the expression of some Hh-regulated genes (ptc1, net1a, gli1) is mostly unaffected in the detour mutant hindbrain, suggesting that other Gli transcriptional activators may be involved. To better define the roles of the zebrafish gli genes in motor …

Hedgehog Regulated Slit Expression Determines Commissure And Glial Cell Position In The Zebrafish Forebrain, Michael J. F. Barresi, Lara D. Hutson, Chi-Bin Chien, Rolf O. Karlstrom

Rolf O Karlstrom

Three major axon pathways cross the midline of the vertebrate forebrain early in embryonic development: the postoptic commissure (POC), the anterior commissure (AC) and the optic nerve. We show that a small population of Gfap+ astroglia spans the midline of the zebrafish forebrain in the position of, and prior to, commissural and retinal axon crossing. These glial `bridges' form in regions devoid of the guidance molecules slit2 and slit3, although a subset of these glial cells express slit1a. We show that Hh signaling is required for commissure formation, glial bridge formation, and the restricted expression of the guidance molecules slit1a, …

Cobra, An Arabidopsis Extracellular Glycosyl-Phosphatidyl Inositol-Anchored Protein, Specifically Controls Highly Anisotropic Expansion Through Its Involvement In Cellulose Microfibril Orientation, François Roudier, Anita G. Fernandez, Miki Fujita, Regina Himmelspach, Georg H.H. Borner, Gary Schindelman, Shuang Song, Tobias Baskin, Paul Dupree, Geoffrey O. Wasteneys, Philip N. Benfey

Tobias Baskin

The orientation of cell expansion is a process at the heart of plant morphogenesis. Cellulose microfibrils are the primary anisotropic material in the cell wall and thus are likely to be the main determinant of the orientation of cell expansion. COBRA (COB) has been identified previously as a potential regulator of cellulose biogenesis. In this study, characterization of a null allele, cob-4, establishes the key role of COB in controlling anisotropic expansion in most developing organs. Quantitative polarized-light and field-emission scanning electron microscopy reveal that loss of anisotropic expansion in cob mutants is accompanied by disorganization of the orientation of …

Evolution Of Cyrtandra (Gesneriaceae) In The Pacific Ocean: The Origin Of A Supertramp Clade, Quentin C. B. Cronk, Michael Kiehn, Warren L. Wagner, James F. Smith

James F. Smith

Cyrtandra comprises at least 600 species distributed throughout Malesia, where it is known for many local endemics and in Polynesia and Micronesia, where it is present on most island groups, and is among the most successfully dispersing genera of the Pacific. To ascertain the origin of the oceanic Pacific island species of Cyrtandra, we sequenced the internal transcribed spacers of nuclear ribosomal DNA of samples from throughout its geographical range. Because all oceanic Pacific island species form a well-supported clade, these species apparently result from a single initial colonization into the Pacific, possibly by a species from the eastern rim …

Zebrafish Bandoneon Mutants Display Behavioral Defects Due To A Mutation In The Glycine Receptor Β Subunit, Gerald B. Downes, Hiromi Hirata, Louis Saint-Amant, Wilson W. Cui, Weibin Zhou, Michael Granato, John Y. Kuwada

Gerald B. Downes

Bilateral alternation of muscle contractions requires reciprocal inhibition between the two sides of the hindbrain and spinal cord, and disruption of this inhibition should lead to simultaneous activation of bilateral muscles. At 1 day after fertilization, wild-type zebrafish respond to mechanosensory stimulation with multiple fast alternating trunk contractions, whereas bandoneon (beo) mutants contract trunk muscles on both sides simultaneously. Similar simultaneous contractions are observed in wild-type embryos treated with strychnine, a blocker of the inhibitory glycine receptor (GlyR). This result suggests that glycinergic synaptic transmission is defective in beo mutants. Muscle voltage recordings confirmed that muscles on both sides of …

Quasistatic And Continuous Dynamic Characterization Of The Mechanical Properties Of Silk From The Cobweb Of The Black Widow Spider Latrodectus Hesperus, Todd A. Blackledge, John E. Swindeman, Cheryl Y. Hayashi

Todd A. Blackledge

Spider silks are among the strongest and toughest known materials, but investigation of these remarkable properties has been confined largely to orb-weaving spiders. We investigated the mechanical performance of silk from the cobweb-weaving spider Latrodectus hesperus. Both silk from the scaffolding region of the web and sticky gumfooted capture lines had material properties similar to the major ampullate silk that orb weavers use as the framework for their orb webs. Major ampullate fibers obtained from anaesthetized Latrodectus spiders were similar, but exhibited increased stiffness and reduced extensibility. Novel continuous dynamic analysis of the silks revealed that the loss tangent (tan …

Regulation Of Prokineticin 2 Expression By Light And The Circadian Clock, Michelle Y. Cheng, Eric L. Bittman, Samer Hattar, Qun Yong Zhou

Eric L. Bittman

Background: The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) contains the master circadian clock that regulates daily rhythms of many physiological and behavioural processes in mammals. Previously we have shown that prokineticin 2 (PK2) is a clock-controlled gene that may function as a critical SCN output molecule responsible for circadian locomotor rhythms. As light is the principal zeitgeber that entrains the circadian oscillator, and PK2 expression is responsive to nocturnal light pulses, we further investigated the effects of light on the molecular rhythm of PK2 in the SCN. In particular, we examined how PK2 responds to shifts of light/dark cycles and changes in photoperiod. …

A Porpoise For Power, Frank E. Fish

Frank E. Fish

No abstract provided.

No Relationship Between Sequence Variation In Protein Coding Regions Of The Tas1r3 Gene And Saccharin Preference In Rats., Clinton Chapman, Ke Lu, Amanda Mcdaniel, Michael Tordoff, Li Xia, Gary Beauchamp, Nancy Dess, Dennis Vanderweele, Liquan Huang, Hong Wang, Danielle Reed

Clinton D Chapman

Nearly all mammalian species like sweet-tasting foods and drinks, but there are differences in the degree of 'sweet tooth' both between species and among individuals of the same species. Some individual differences can be explained by genetic variability. Polymorphisms in a sweet taste receptor (Tas1r3) account for a large fraction of the differences in consumption of sweet solutions among inbred mouse strains. We wondered whether mice and rats share the same Tas1r3 alleles, and whether this gene might explain the large difference in saccharin preference among rats. We conducted three experiments to test this. We examined DNA sequence differences in …

What Communities Should Do Pre-Event To Support Public Health Post-Event Assessments, Surveillance And Monitoring, Thomas Lyons Carr Iii

Thomas Lyons (Thom) Carr III Appl.Sc., CEM

[Abstract written March 2008, TLC] Under worst-case planning assumptions used by some major metropolitan areas, a Neighbor-to-Neighbor self-help program model is the primary link between citizens and the professional response personnel of the responsible government agencies.

In the Neighbor-to-Neighbor self-help program model or a Community Emergency Management Plan (CEMP) calls on the citizens in neighborhoods to identify and establish cluster emergency preparedness committees, Cluster Emergency Coordination Centers (CECC) and Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT). Missing from these plans or what is not articulated is how constant Public Health Post-Event Surveillance, Monitoring and Assessments will be done. Given the worst-case planning …

Biogeography Of The Nearshore Rocky-Reef Fishes At The Southern And Baja California Islands, Daniel Pondella, Brooke Gintert, Jana Cobb, Larry Allen

Daniel Pondella

No abstract provided.

Rodents As Receptor Species At A Tritium, Angel Kelsey-Wall, John C. Seaman, Charles H. Jegoe, Cham E. Dallas, Karen F. Gaines

Karen F. Gaines

New methods are being employed on the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site to deal with the disposal of tritium, including the irrigation of a hardwood/pine forest with tritiated water from an intercepted contaminant plume to reduce concentrations of tritium outcropping into Fourmile Branch, a tributary of the Savannah River. The use of this system has proven to be an effective means of tritium disposal. To evaluate the impact of this activity on terrestrial biota, rodent species were captured on the tritium disposal site and a control site during two trapping seasons in order to assess tritium exposure resulting from …

Seed And Seedling Ecology Of Acer Saccharum And Acer Platanoides: A Contrast Between Native And Exotic Congeners, Scott J. Meiners

Scott J. Meiners

The exotic tree, Acer platanoides, is increasing in forests of northeastern North America, largely within the range of its native congener, Acer saccharum. A combination of field and controlled experiments was used on seeds and seedlings of these congeners to determine species characteristics that may be contributing to these floristic changes. Acer platanoides experienced lower rates of seed predation than A. saccharum in field experiments. Differences in the dispersal and allocation characteristics of the two species were small and not likely to explain the relative success of A. platanoides. Greenhouse- grown seedlings of A. platanoides were much larger than those …

The Relationship Between Community Diversity And Exotic Plants: Cause Or Consequence Of Invasion?, Scott J. Meiners, Mary L. Cadenasso

Scott J. Meiners

Invasion ecology has suffered from the artificial separation of invasibility and impact processes in understanding the ationship between diversity and plant invasion. By studying these independently functioning stages of invasion in concert, we can gain great insight into the biological causes and consequences of invasions, and develop crucial information for the generation of adequate management strategies. Our conceptual framework provides a structure to synthesize the current body of research, suggests research needed to fill the gaps in understanding and to organize results from future research. The framework is a powerful tool to guide ecological understanding of the relationship between invasion …

Vegetation And Flora Of American Beech Woods Nature Preserve, Clark County, Illinois, Bob Edgin, Gordon C. Tucker, John E. Ebinger

Gordon C. Tucker

No abstract provided.