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Variation In The M-Opioid Receptor (Oprm1) And Offspring Sex Are Associated With Maternal Behavior In Rhesus Macaques (Macaca Mulatta), Zachary Baron Dec 2022

Variation In The M-Opioid Receptor (Oprm1) And Offspring Sex Are Associated With Maternal Behavior In Rhesus Macaques (Macaca Mulatta), Zachary Baron

Theses and Dissertations

A m-opioid receptor (OPRM1) single-nucleotide-polymorphism, found in both humans and rhesus macaques mediates the mother-infant attachment bond. Because mothers treat their sons and daughters differently, it is somewhat surprising that the role of infant sex has not been assessed in the context of a maternal-OPRM1-genotype-by-infant-sex interaction. The present study investigates the effect of maternal-OPRM1-genotype and infant sex on mother-infant behaviors. Over the first six months of offspring life, mother-infant behavioral data assessing attachment quality was collected twice weekly from a large number of rhesus monkey mother-infant pairs (N=161 dyads; n=64 female infants, n=97 male infants). Mothers were genotyped for OPRM1 …


The Influence Of Predation Environment On The Sensory Ecology Of Brachyrhaphis Rhabdophora, Alexandra Grace Duffy Dec 2022

The Influence Of Predation Environment On The Sensory Ecology Of Brachyrhaphis Rhabdophora, Alexandra Grace Duffy

Theses and Dissertations

Across the animal kingdom, predation is a ubiquitous and omnipresent selective agent for a variety of traits. I aimed to address gaps in our knowledge pertaining to how predation shapes animal behavior. Many species of fish naturally occur in drainages that differ in the density of predators and exhibit obvious population divergence, making them ideal study organisms to investigate predator-driven behavioral evolution. In Chapter 1, I conducted a systematic review of the literature. The purpose of this review was to determine if predation acted as a stronger or weaker selective agent on particular behavioral traits (e.g., foraging, mating, antipredator etc.) …


Understanding The Ahupua'a: Using Remote Sensing To Measure Upland Erosion And Evaluate Coral Reef Structure, Logan Kalaiwaipono Ellis Dec 2022

Understanding The Ahupua'a: Using Remote Sensing To Measure Upland Erosion And Evaluate Coral Reef Structure, Logan Kalaiwaipono Ellis

Theses and Dissertations

Under ever intensifying pressures from land use, climate change, and erosion, tropical islands are among the most vulnerable systems in the world. Terrestrial systems are weakened by intensifying land use patterns, the weakening of which is highlighted when high intensity rainfall events erode sediment and leads to sediment deposition on the marine system. The deposition of sediment on the marine system is a major stressor that can lead to weakened coral reefs and a decrease in marine resources commonly gathered for food. These interactions have led to the emergence of biocultural resource management strategies, one of which is the ahupua'a …


Of Bugs And Wildfires: Tracing The Impacts Of Changing Wildfire Regimes On Aquatic Bacteria And Macroinvertebrates Using Edna, Isabella M. Errigo Dec 2022

Of Bugs And Wildfires: Tracing The Impacts Of Changing Wildfire Regimes On Aquatic Bacteria And Macroinvertebrates Using Edna, Isabella M. Errigo

Theses and Dissertations

Human disruption of climate, habitat, and ignition has altered the behavior of wildland fire at local to continental scales. In many regions, novel fire regimes are emerging that threaten to exceed the capacity for local management to protect human wellbeing and ecosystem function. Simultaneous changes in climate, species composition, and fire management have resulted in extreme fire behavior in many regions. For the Western United States, the emerging novel fire regime consists of more frequent, severe, and intense wildfires, with annual area burned by wildfire having doubled and high-severity wildfire area having increased 8-fold since the 1980s. The impacts of …


Effect Of Climate History On The Genetic Structure Of An Antarctic Soil Nematode, Abigail C. Jackson Dec 2022

Effect Of Climate History On The Genetic Structure Of An Antarctic Soil Nematode, Abigail C. Jackson

Theses and Dissertations

Historical climate disturbances such as glacial cycling and fluctuating stream, lake, and sea levels strongly influence the distribution and evolutionary trajectories of Antarctic terrestrial species. Antarctic invertebrates, with limited long-range mobility, including the ubiquitous sentinel nematode species Scottnema lindsayae, are especially sensitive to climate disturbances. We tested hypotheses associated with the historical geographic and population genetic structure of this species as it occurs across the McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDVs) of Antarctica. In order to reconstruct the influence of climate disturbance and ecological conditions on this species, partial mitochondrial COI gene sequences were sequenced and analyzed from individual S. lindsayae collected …


Core Microbiome To Fingerprint Dust Emission Sources Across The Western United States Of America, Detiare Lisa Leifi Dec 2022

Core Microbiome To Fingerprint Dust Emission Sources Across The Western United States Of America, Detiare Lisa Leifi

Theses and Dissertations

Over the past century, dust emissions have increased in frequency and intensity due to anthropogenic influences and extended droughts. Dust transports microbes, nutrients, heavy metals and other materials that may then change the biogeochemistry of the receiving environments. The purpose of this study was to find whether unique bacterial communities may provide distinct fingerprints of dust sources in the Western USA. We collaborated with the National Wind Erosion Research Network (NWERN) to identify bacterial core communities (core) of dust from ten NWERN sites, and compared communities to location, soil, and regional characteristics. In order of importance, precipitation levels (F = …


The Effect Of Gut Microbiota On Overwintering Success In Mule Deer, Emma Wilcox Dec 2022

The Effect Of Gut Microbiota On Overwintering Success In Mule Deer, Emma Wilcox

Theses and Dissertations

Mule deer are an important rangeland grazer, large prey species, and game animal for the state of Utah, so herd size is monitored and managed actively. A significant cause of population decline is poor overwintering survival, including from the lack of available forage during winter months. Mule deer energy storage is correlated with greater overwintering success, so physical estimates of energy storage including body condition score (BCS), rump fat (RF), and loin thickness (LT), can be used to track and predict a herd's health. Current methods of collecting deer information are costly, time consuming, and cause physical stress to deer, …


Biofilm Characterization And The Potential Role Of Edna In Horizontal Gene Transfer In Hospital And Meat Isolates Of Staphylococcus Aureus And Their Biofilms, Ashley Lynne Ball Dec 2022

Biofilm Characterization And The Potential Role Of Edna In Horizontal Gene Transfer In Hospital And Meat Isolates Of Staphylococcus Aureus And Their Biofilms, Ashley Lynne Ball

Theses and Dissertations

Staphylococcus aureus is a pathogen responsible for a wide variety of life-threatening diseases such as bacteremia, endocarditis, and pneumoniae. S. aureus has been a major concern in recent years due to the rampant spread of antibiotic resistance. The ability of S. aureus to form biofilms aids in the spread of antibiotic resistance as biofilms are a known hotspot for horizontal gene transfer. Biofilms also protect cells from host immune responses and antibiotics, making these infections very difficult to treat. The matrix of S. aureus biofilms can be made of polysaccharides, protein, and DNA. In these studies, we sought to elucidate …


The Role Of Chitinase A In Mastitis-Associated Escherichia Coli Pathogenesis, Weston D. Hutchison Dec 2022

The Role Of Chitinase A In Mastitis-Associated Escherichia Coli Pathogenesis, Weston D. Hutchison

Theses and Dissertations

Bovine mastitis is a common disease among dairy cattle characterized by the inflammation of the udders and loss of milk production. Mastitis-associated Escherichia coli (MAEC) are frequent causes of the disease, but the features that distinguish them from other E. coli strains remain enigmatic. MAEC infections can range from sub-clinical to severe, acute cases that can be fatal. Historically, the severity of mastitis has been attributed to host factors but more recently, a few bacterial genes have been shown to contribute to virulence in mastitis infections. In a large-scale genomic analysis of >100 MAEC isolates the gene for Chitinase A …


Quantifying Shape Variation In An Antisymmetrical Trait In Xenophallus Umbratilis, Mary-Elise Johnson Nielsen Dec 2022

Quantifying Shape Variation In An Antisymmetrical Trait In Xenophallus Umbratilis, Mary-Elise Johnson Nielsen

Theses and Dissertations

Antisymmetry is a striking, yet puzzling form of biological asymmetry. The livebearing fish Xenophallus umbratilis exhibits antisymmetry in the male intromittent organ and provides a system that is well-suited for studying the nature of variation in antisymmetrical traits. Using geometric morphometrics, I test the hypothesis that because the gonopodium is critical to fitness there will not be significant differences in gonopodium shape between the two gonopodial morphs in this species. My results are consistent with this prediction, though I found that gonopodium shape did differ with gonopodium size.


Does Predation Environment Affect Repeated Responses To Predation Cuesâ In The Fishâ Brachyrhaphis Rhabdophora?, Madeleine S. Nate Dec 2022

Does Predation Environment Affect Repeated Responses To Predation Cuesâ In The Fishâ Brachyrhaphis Rhabdophora?, Madeleine S. Nate

Theses and Dissertations

Individual organisms face trade-offs when dealing with predation—more time spent avoiding predators often results in less time allocated to energy acquisition and reproductive-related activities. Individuals that optimize this trade-off and respond appropriately to current risk levels in their environment should be at an advantage. What is less clear is whether this tradeoff changes when individuals are repeatedly exposed to a predation threat. There may be advantages to responding consistently to every signal of threat, but it might also be advantageous to modulate individual behavior. Moreover, it is unclear how evolutionary history of a population might affect such individual responses. Our …


Novel Patterns For Nucleosome Positioning: From In Vitro To In Vivo, David Andrew Bates Dec 2022

Novel Patterns For Nucleosome Positioning: From In Vitro To In Vivo, David Andrew Bates

Theses and Dissertations

The fundamental unit of chromatin is the nucleosome, which consists of a core of eight proteins wrapped by DNA. This core is composed of four pairs of histone proteins: H2A, H2B, H3, and H4. The DNA wraps around the protein core ~1.7 times, facilitating compaction of DNA length in the cell. Further, the location of nucleosomes makes genomic elements encoded in the DNA, such as promoters or enhancers, accessible or inaccessible to RNA polymerase and transcription factors. Thus, where nucleosomes are located (or positioned), can play a major role in transcription or other cellular processes. Additionally, histone proteins are frequently …


Effects Of Microbial Transglutaminase On Gluten-Free Sourdough Bread Structure And Loaf Characteristics, Anna J. Redd Dec 2022

Effects Of Microbial Transglutaminase On Gluten-Free Sourdough Bread Structure And Loaf Characteristics, Anna J. Redd

Theses and Dissertations

In an effort to mimic the continuous protein matrix found in gluten-containing breads, the effects of the enzyme microbial transglutaminase were tested in gluten-free (GF) sourdough breads containing five different GF flours: chickpea, brown rice, white rice, oat, and quinoa. The utilization of transglutaminase in GF sourdough bread applications was shown to improve some of the final bread characteristics of GF breads. White and brown rice GF sourdough loaves at 24 hours showed a 28% and 13% decrease in crumb firmness with the addition of 2 U/g dough, respectively. Quinoa-GF sourdough breads at 24 hours showed a 6% increase in …


Motivation Toward Sport, Physical Activity And Exercise Between College Students In Hungary And The United States During Covid-19, Whitney Gene Davies Dec 2022

Motivation Toward Sport, Physical Activity And Exercise Between College Students In Hungary And The United States During Covid-19, Whitney Gene Davies

Theses and Dissertations

During the COVID-19 pandemic many researchers noted changes in exercise, physical activity, and sports behaviors. The current study attempts to identify aspects of motivation for physical activity, exercise, and sport for students in two countries, the USA and Hungary. The current study used the Sports Motivation Scale II to measure students’ motivation based on the Self-Determination Theory. Results indicated that students in the USA were more motivated for exercise, physical activity, and sport during the COVID-19 pandemic than were their Hungarian counterparts. Students in the United States scored higher (MUS = 17.88) in overall motivation than their Hungarian counterparts (MHungary …


The Use Of Inertial Measurement Unit For The Characterization Of Multiple Functional Movement Patterns In Individuals With Chronic Ankle Instability, Seunguk Han Dec 2022

The Use Of Inertial Measurement Unit For The Characterization Of Multiple Functional Movement Patterns In Individuals With Chronic Ankle Instability, Seunguk Han

Theses and Dissertations

Patients with a history of lateral ankle sprain (LAS) may experience different levels of mechanical and/or sensorimotor deficits following their injuries. Although various factors, such as structural damage, sensorimotor adaptation, perceived instability, swelling and/or pain, can develop and perpetuate the condition of chronic ankle instability (CAI), most previous CAI research on biomechanics has considered all patients with CAI as a homogeneous group. Recent research has clustered patients with CAI into six distinct movement patterns during a maximal jump-landing/cutting task. This approach could motivate clinicians to develop appropriate rehabilitation programs for each patient with CAI depending on their movement patterns. However, …


Are Changes In Muscle Blood Flow Associated With The Age-Related Decrease In Critical Power?, Abigail Dorff Dec 2022

Are Changes In Muscle Blood Flow Associated With The Age-Related Decrease In Critical Power?, Abigail Dorff

Theses and Dissertations

Aging results in lower exercise tolerance, manifested as decreased Critical Power (PCRIT). Aging is also associated with reduced physical activity, decreased muscle mass, and altered muscle blood flow, all of which may contribute to the age-related decrease in PCRIT. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine if the age-related decrease in PCRIT occurs independently of changes in physical activity and muscle mass and if it is related to impaired muscle blood flow. Methods: 10 Old (63.1 ± 2.5 years, 5 female and 5 male) and 10 Young (24.4 ± 4.0 years, 5 female and 5 male) physically active …


Sitting Time And Insulin Resistance In 6,931 United States Adults: The Role Of Abdominal Adiposity, Kayla Marie Parker Dec 2022

Sitting Time And Insulin Resistance In 6,931 United States Adults: The Role Of Abdominal Adiposity, Kayla Marie Parker

Theses and Dissertations

This cross-sectional investigation of 6,931 U.S. adults examined the relationship between sitting time and insulin resistance. A primary objective was to evaluate how this relationship was mediated by the following variables: age, sex, race, year of assessment, cigarette smoking, physical activity, body mass index (BMI), and waist circumference. Self-reported sitting time, measured in minutes per day, was the exposure variable. Insulin resistance, indexed by the homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), was the outcome variable. Data were used from the 2011-2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Results showed a strong, positive association between sitting time and insulin …


The Development Of A Genomic Toolbox For Studying The Evolutionary Genetics Of Reptilian Lungs Using The Chicken Model, Logan Thomas Edvalson Nov 2022

The Development Of A Genomic Toolbox For Studying The Evolutionary Genetics Of Reptilian Lungs Using The Chicken Model, Logan Thomas Edvalson

Theses and Dissertations

There is a vast diversity in tetrapod lung branching morphology. Phylogenetically, much of the pulmonary diversity among vertebrates appears to arise from the way epithelial tubes branch or form saccular (cyst) structures. Fgf10 activity has been shown to play a critical role in regulating branch versus cyst morphology. We hypothesize that the species-specific differences in lung morphology may be primarily due to species-specific differences in Fgf10 expression. To test this hypothesis, we have performed bioinformatic analyses on the Fgf10 locus and have identified a conserved 11 kb noncoding region that potentially contains the Fgf10 lung enhancer. We are taking a …


Analysis Of The Cytopathogenic Effect Of Different Hiv-1 Vpr Isoforms On Primary Human Cd4+ T Cells And A Model Cell Line, Jonatan Josue Fierro Nieves Sep 2022

Analysis Of The Cytopathogenic Effect Of Different Hiv-1 Vpr Isoforms On Primary Human Cd4+ T Cells And A Model Cell Line, Jonatan Josue Fierro Nieves

Theses and Dissertations

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is the causal agent of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a disease characterized by the depletion of CD4+ T cells which impairs immune response. Analysis of HIV-1 infected patients has identified two distinctive phenotypes that differ in length of time towards the development of AIDS, Rapid Progressor (RP) and Long-Term Non-Progressor (LTNP) patients. The cause of the differences between these two groups is a process that is still under investigation. Hints about a possible cause have been attributed to the discovery of mutations in the viral protein R (Vpr) that have been associated with these phenotypes: mutations …


From The Headlines: A Textual Analysis Of Social Polarization And Discord In Times Of Pandemic Across A Century In The United States, Alexa Demarco Aug 2022

From The Headlines: A Textual Analysis Of Social Polarization And Discord In Times Of Pandemic Across A Century In The United States, Alexa Demarco

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Within the past century, three major pandemics have affected the United States – the Spanish Flu, AIDS, and COVID-19. Each of these pandemics has tested the capabilities of the public health sector and the social resilience of the population. Scientists have studied the viruses and implemented public health measures to limit viral transmission, but the social responses to these preventative measures proved to be difficult to predict and control. The dissonance and polarization between the public health initiatives and the response of the general public in the most recent pandemic was apparent. Was this a pattern in other pandemics? Was …


An Exploration Of Factors That Impact Uptake Of Human Papillomavirus Vaccines, David Samuel Redd Aug 2022

An Exploration Of Factors That Impact Uptake Of Human Papillomavirus Vaccines, David Samuel Redd

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction The discovery and continued development of vaccines is arguably one of the most important innovations in human history. Vaccination greatly reduces the worldwide incidence and transmission of diseases, preventing permanent injury and premature death. Mass vaccination campaigns have led to the eradication or partial eradication of severe infectious such as smallpox and polio, have reduced childhood mortality, and has led to an overall increase in average health in the human population globally. Despite the documented benefits of vaccination, vaccine hesitancy is increasing, and the uptake of some vaccines is low. Vaccines have been so successful at preventing disease that …


Big Data Meta-Analyses Of Transcriptional Responses Of Human Samples To Orthohantavirus Infection And Shotgun Metagenomics From Crohn's Disease Patients., John L. Krapohl Aug 2022

Big Data Meta-Analyses Of Transcriptional Responses Of Human Samples To Orthohantavirus Infection And Shotgun Metagenomics From Crohn's Disease Patients., John L. Krapohl

Theses and Dissertations

Hantavirus is a dangerous zoonotic viral pathogen that is found across Asia, Europe, and the Americas. This virus causes a range of symptoms from flu-like malaise to heart failure and death. It is normally transmitted to humans via the aerosolized feces or urine of infected rodents. Currently, there are no known treatments for the disease, and it continues to threaten human health in endemic areas. In order to identify possible future therapeutic targets, we ran a meta-analysis of existing transcriptomic data collected from infected human tissue. Several genes and cellular pathways were identified, in addition to several potential therapeutics that …


Regulation Of T Cell Activation By The Cd5 Co-Receptor And Altered Peptides, Characterization Of Thymidine Kinase-Specific Antibodies, And Integrating Genomics Education In Society, Kiara Vaden Whitley Aug 2022

Regulation Of T Cell Activation By The Cd5 Co-Receptor And Altered Peptides, Characterization Of Thymidine Kinase-Specific Antibodies, And Integrating Genomics Education In Society, Kiara Vaden Whitley

Theses and Dissertations

Helper T cells (Th) are a vital component of the immune system responsible for directing other immune cells to eliminate pathogens and cancer. Specifically, Th cells facilitate B cell and cytotoxic T cell (Tc) activation and recruitment and enhance their function against cancer and infectious diseases. Th cells are a valuable resource for improving Tc responses in cancer treatment and have become a focus of immunotherapeutic research. While it is increasingly clear that helper T cells serve an important role, the details about which entities produce an effective Th cell response remain unclear. CD5 is a T cell co-receptor that …


Effects Of Localized Irrigation And Fertilizer On Woody Plant Establishment In Degraded Semi-Arid Environments, Holley M. Lund Aug 2022

Effects Of Localized Irrigation And Fertilizer On Woody Plant Establishment In Degraded Semi-Arid Environments, Holley M. Lund

Theses and Dissertations

Semi-arid native plant communities worldwide are often disturbed either intentionally or incidentally by human activity. In order to restore ecological function after human activities cease, native plant communities need to be restored. Woody plants are important to ecological function for many reasons including reducing erosion and providing food and shelter for wildlife. Unfortunately, woody plant establishment in these areas has proven to be challenging. Direct seeding efforts can be hindered by poor germination and low seedling emergence. To overcome this, seedling transplants are often used in harsh sites. However, transplanted woody seedlings often experience high mortality during the first year, …


Development Of A Rhizobium Seed Coating To Establish Lupine Species On Reclaimed Minelands, Bridget May Calder Aug 2022

Development Of A Rhizobium Seed Coating To Establish Lupine Species On Reclaimed Minelands, Bridget May Calder

Theses and Dissertations

Symbiotic interactions among various organisms are often necessary for one or both individual's survival. These symbiotic relationships must be considered in restoration projects to allow for the successful establishment of the species. Rhizobia are nitrogen-fixing bacteria found in symbiotic relations with legumes. By utilizing this relationship, restoration practitioners can establish native legume species more successfully while repopulating soil microorganisms into degraded soils. Despite the potential benefits a rhizobium inoculant can have on restoration efforts, minimal research has been done to understand the impacts this treatment has on specific species and the systems they are employed within. Our research goal was …


Qualitative Proteomic And Genomic Analysis Of Klebsiella Pneumoniae Bacteriophage Kaomega, Emilee Carr Aug 2022

Qualitative Proteomic And Genomic Analysis Of Klebsiella Pneumoniae Bacteriophage Kaomega, Emilee Carr

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Klebsiella pneumoniae is a Gram-negative Enterobacteriaceae that is a common nosocomial pathogen causing pneumonia, infections in the bloodstream, wound infections, and meningitis. It has developed natural resistance to multiple antibiotics, most notably carbapenems which are often seen as the last line of defense against multi-drug resistant pathogens. Bacteriophages are being investigated as a promising alternative treatment to antibiotics in fighting these resistant pathogens. KaOmega, a Klebsiella pneumoniae bacteriophage, was isolated, sequenced, and annotated to characterize and understand its potential for use in a phage therapy. Characterization included Phyre2 analysis to predict putative protein functions based on structural homology, burst size …


Sequencing The Guts Out Of Covid-19; The Evolution Behind The Covid-19 Pandemic, Madelyn Purnell Aug 2022

Sequencing The Guts Out Of Covid-19; The Evolution Behind The Covid-19 Pandemic, Madelyn Purnell

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The global COVID-19 pandemic has led to an urgent need for scalable methods for clinical diagnostics and tracking of virus variants. In this paper, we attempted a novel method of sequencing using Large Reverse Transcriptase-based cloning (LRTC). Although our methodology ended up not working due to high amount and fast degradation of RNA, we were able to sequence multiple variants of COVID-19 Positive samples from the BYU Student Health Center and 4 sewage samples to check for variant outbreaks in corresponding times. We were able to find several corresponding variants and track the progression of mutation in our local population.


Estimating Age In Mule Deer: Accuracy And Influence On Reproduction, Morgan S. Hinton Aug 2022

Estimating Age In Mule Deer: Accuracy And Influence On Reproduction, Morgan S. Hinton

Theses and Dissertations

Accurate estimates of parameters and demographic rates of wildlife populations are crucial to management and conservation. One parameter of interest is age because it influences multiple demographic rates and behaviors including reproduction, dispersal, migration, and disease transmission. There are a number of methods used to estimate ages of wildlife. One of the most common methods used for mammals is evaluation of patterns in dental eruption and tooth wear. In the first chapter, we evaluate the accuracy associated with estimates of age from dental eruption and patterns of tooth wear for mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus). In the second chapter, we use …


Use Of Seed Coating Technologies To Improve Cercocarpus Ledifolius (Curl-Leaf Mountain Mahogany) Seed Germination And Emergence To Reclaim Mine Lands, Emily M. Nielson Aug 2022

Use Of Seed Coating Technologies To Improve Cercocarpus Ledifolius (Curl-Leaf Mountain Mahogany) Seed Germination And Emergence To Reclaim Mine Lands, Emily M. Nielson

Theses and Dissertations

Globally, mining is vital to human interests, but its practice can cause landscape alteration which may look unnatural or engineered. The reintroduction of native plants to these areas is needed to restore the visual appeal and ecological function back into these altered mine lands. Cercocarpus ledifolius (curl-leaf mountain mahogany) is one desirable native species in the Intermountain West that is prized for its potential to grow on step and rocky hillsides and for the habitat it provides for wildlife. Unfortunately, C. ledifolius does not establish well from seed, which has been attributed to seed dormancy. The first objective of this …


Introgression Or Incipient Speciation? Using Geometric Morphometrics And Gene Expression To Characterize Mouth Development In Larval June Sucker And Utah Sucker, Peter C. Searle Aug 2022

Introgression Or Incipient Speciation? Using Geometric Morphometrics And Gene Expression To Characterize Mouth Development In Larval June Sucker And Utah Sucker, Peter C. Searle

Theses and Dissertations

Understanding how biodiversity evolves is a major goal in evolutionary developmental biology because changes in developmental processes are tightly linked with evolutionary diversification. Heterochrony--alteration to the rate or timing of development--can significantly alter the appearance of descendant species. Heterochronic shifts in gene expression and associated morphological change may explain the morphological divergence between the threatened June sucker (Chasmistes liorus) and the sympatric Utah sucker (Catostomus ardens) in Utah Lake, UT, USA. June sucker are endemic to Utah Lake and have subterminal mouths adapted for pelagic feeding, while Utah sucker (Catostomus ardens) have ventral mouths adapted for benthic feeding. As larvae, …