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Exploring Student Motivation In Quantitative Biology, Alexander Richard Kulacki

Master's Theses and Capstones

The field of biology is becoming increasingly reliant on quantitative tools, methods, and techniques, driving a need for incoming biologists to have robust quantitative skills. However, efforts to incorporate more quantitative skills at the undergraduate level are hampered by low student engagement with math in biology. Students’ motivation towards quantitative biology can provide insight into how best to increase their engagement and thus performance with these topics. This thesis examines students’ motivation towards math in biology through two key constructs: 1) students’ self-efficacy, through the theoretical lens of Social Cognitive Theory; and 2) students’ task-values, through the theoretical lens of …

Development Of Protein Display Systems And Genetic Tools For Spore-Forming Bacteria, Erin Drufva

Doctoral Dissertations

One major area of synthetic biology is to engineer microbial cells and subcellular systems for diverse applications including biosynthesis, biocatalysis, therapeutics, drug delivery, and bioremediation. For most applications, robust cellular systems are preferred for longer activity half-life and resistance to harsh environments. Two projects related to robust cellular systems involving Gram-positive bacteria are presented in this work. One is to develop thermostable genetic reporters for Geobacilli species and the other is to display an enzyme on the Bacillus subtilis spore surface to enhance its robustness and present an alternative to purified enzymes for industrial applications.

Bacillus subtilis and Geobacillus thermoglucosidans …

Wild Bee Declines And Changes In Plant-Pollinator Networks Over 125 Years Revealed Through Museum Collections, Minna Mathiasson

Master's Theses and Capstones

Though recent literature highlights widespread bee declines, detailed information on local communities, plant-pollinator network interactions and individual species remains distressingly scarce. In order to accurately direct conservation initiatives and to evaluate the status of wild bees and their host plants, long-term data on these populations is critical. Examining pollinator communities across regional scales highlights small-scale changes that go undetected in larger investigations. In light of unknown effects of introduced species and cumulative range expansions of exotic taxa, monitoring wild communities closely and extensively over time is becoming increasingly important. The focus of this thesis is to investigate a regional wild …

Factors Influencing The Distibution Of Egg-Bearing American Lobsters (Homarus Americanus), Joshua Carloni

Master's Theses and Capstones

The overall goal of this research was to explore the factors that influence the distribution of egg-bearing (berried, ovigerous, eggers) lobsters along the coast of New Hampshire (NH), specifically near the Isles of Shoals (IOS). Initially, I determined the distribution of egg-bearing lobsters based on catch rates (#/trap haul) from New Hampshire Fish and Game Department’s (NHF&G) Lobster Sea Sampling Program. Based on these data there appeared to be a higher abundance of these lobsters on the eastern side of the IOS, which is closer to areas that are deeper and characterized by higher current flow. To confirm this finding …

Effects Of The Biomedical Bleeding Process On The Behavior And Physiology Of The American Horseshoe Crab, Limulus Polyphemus, Meghan Owings

Master's Theses and Capstones

Horseshoe crabs are harvested by the biomedical industry in order to create Limulus Amebocyte Lysate (LAL) to test medical devices, vaccines and pharmaceutical drugs for pathogenic gram-negative bacteria. Previous studies of the impacts of the biomedical bleeding process on horseshoe crabs have primarily focused on mortality rates and sublethal impacts, using animals held in the laboratory. Therefore, the first goal of this project was to determine the effects of the bleeding process on horseshoe crab behavior once they are released back into their natural environment. In addition, previous studies have typically only investigated the impacts of the full bleeding procedure, …

Development Of Novel Bio- And Heterogeneous Catalysts For The Production Of Bio- And Green Diesel, Ye Deng

Doctoral Dissertations

Diminishing petroleum reserves and increasing environmental awareness has led to an urgent need to develop alternative fuels, such as biodiesel. Enzymatic trans/-esterification of waste cooking oils with a lipase catalyst is a promising environmentally-friendly process to produce biodiesel, compared to the current industrial chemical process. Despite several advantages, there are a few technical and economical obstacles that limit this process, such as insufficient availability of large quantities of inexpensive lipase suitable for catalysis, and bad performance at low temperatures due to biodiesel’s low cetane number. These limitations are addressed in this dissertation using genetic engineering of plants to produce the …

Genomic Evaluation Of Male Reproductive Adaptations And Responses To Dehydration In Peromyscus Eremicus (Cactus Mouse), Lauren Kordonowy

Doctoral Dissertations

Research elucidating the genetic architecture of physiological mechanisms enabling survival and reproduction in extreme environments is becoming prominent in evolutionary biology. The desert, in particular, poses numerous challenges for its endemic species, and mammals (and often, rodents) have been the focus for survival adaptations pertaining to water-limitation. However, desert rodent adaptation research has focused predominantly on survival, while potential physiological reproductive adaptations to dehydration have received less attention, aside from research evaluating water as reproductive cue. The fact that we do not know the physiological mechanisms enabling reproduction during dehydration is surprising, as desert rodents must possess adaptations to successfully …

An Automated Image Processing And Classification Scheme For Identifying Cancerous Soft-Shell Clam Hemocytes In Unstained Bright-Field Photomicrographs, William Duane Nitsch

Master's Theses and Capstones

Disseminated neoplasia is a type of cancer that is prevalent in marine bivalves. A group of biologists at the University of New Hampshire are frequently tasked with estimating the proliferation of this cancer in soft-shell clam hemocytes using unstained samples and a bright-field microscope without the use of any real means of quantization. Instead, their measurement is a purely visual analysis of confluency where varying individual experience amongst researchers, no usage of stains, cell clustering and the general nature of the microscopy environment make it exceedingly difficult to perform this task with consistent accuracy. This thesis details the application of …

Channeled Whelk (Busycotypus Canaliculatus) Ecology In Relation To The Fishery In Vineyard And Nantucket Sounds, Massachusetts, Shelley Ann Edmundson

Doctoral Dissertations

Channeled whelks (Busycotypus canaliculatus) are predatory marine gastropods that support lucrative commercial fisheries along the east coast of the United States, with areas around Massachusetts supplying the largest landings. In the absence of a more thorough and comprehensive understanding of channeled whelk biology, it is unclear how to sustainably manage their fisheries. Within this dissertation, various aspects of whelk ecology were investigated to determine how to protect this species, while effectively managing the local fishery.

Early life history experiments revealed channeled whelk egg strings may incubate for 8 to 9 months in MA water temperatures. Incubation period decreased with increasing …

Effects Of Salinity On Juvenile Cyclopterus Lumpus (Lumpfish) And Their Temproal And Spatial Distribution In The Great Bay Estuary, New Hampshire, Jenna Leigh Rackovan

Master's Theses and Capstones

Lumpfish (Cyclopterus lumpus) is a semi-pelagic species that is broadly distributed in the temperate portions of the North Atlantic. The lumpfish is also a commercially important species in Iceland and the Netherlands, where it is fished for roe that is used for caviar. Moreover, several recent studies have shown that lumpfish juveniles are useful ‘cleaner fish’ in the Atlantic salmon aquaculture industry. Despite the importance of the species, little is known about its physiology and ecology. The overall goal of this research was to investigate if, and how, salinity affects the physiology and ecology of juvenile lumpfish.

To determine the …

Dominance And Experience: Aggression And The Evolutionary Origins Of Social Behavior, Jacob Withee

Master's Theses and Capstones

Sociality as a life history strategy has many overt benefits, but its origin from solitary living is not fully understood. The cooperation necessary for formation of even basic social groups can present natural selection paradoxes that many models are unable to reconcile. Conversely, aggression is a key component to the formation of dominance hierarchies, a very basic form of social group. These hierarchies can give way to reproductive hierarchies, which are in turn the basis for some of the most complex forms of social organization. The focus of this thesis is to use aggression in an incipiently social bee species …

A Comparison Of Macrofaunal And Algal Communities In Oyster Aquaculture Gear, An Eelgrass Bed, Oyster Reef, And A Mudflat In Great Bay, New Hampshire, Megan Elizabeth Glenn

Master's Theses and Capstones

Oysters (Crassostrea virginica) and eelgrass (Zostera marina) are important ecosystem engineers in Great Bay, NH, however despite restoration efforts they have been in decline. In addition to loss of the resource, this degradation results in loss of associated ecosystem services such as habitat provision. It is possible that the recent increase in oyster farming in Great Bay could help mitigate habitat loss. My research objective was to quantify the biotic communities present in three natural habitats (eelgrass beds, oyster reefs and mudflats) in Great Bay NH and compare those to communities living on the type of gear (“racks and bags”) …

Reproduction And Recruitment Of American Lobster (Homarus Americanus) In The Great Bay Estuary, New Hampshire, Elizabeth M. Morrissey

Master's Theses and Capstones

The overall goal of this research project was to determine if lobsters reproduce and settle in the Great Bay estuary (GBE), NH. First, I mapped the distribution and abundance of ovigerous lobsters carrying late-stage eggs in the estuary, during May and June of 2015. Ovigerous lobsters were concentrated in Little Bay and adjacent sections of the Piscataqua River, with CPUE in these areas of 0.12 ± 0.02 lobsters/trap haul. Very few were found in the regions furthest from the coast. Next, egg samples were collected from these lobsters, as well as from ovigerous lobsters captured along the NH coast and …

Effects Of Substrate Material On Marine Fouling Community Composition And Ascidian Larval Settlement, Anna Lindsey Chase

Master's Theses and Capstones

Driven by the rising global population and shoreline development, man-made marine structures are becoming ubiquitous in coastal areas. These alterations may have enormous ecological consequences, as anthropogenic structures provide novel habitat for marine organisms and often host communities that differ from those on natural substrates. These community differences are frequently driven by non-native species, which can be more prevalent on man-made marine structures than on adjacent natural surfaces. Although multiple factors, including light intensity, surface orientation, predation exposure, and habitat type, are known to contribute to these patterns, relatively few studies have directly examined the influence of substrate material on …

The Effects Of Temperature On Cyp19a1a, Foxl2, Dmrt1 And Amh Expression During Sex Differentiation In Summer Flounder (Paralichthys Dentatus), Catherine Curro Caruso

Master's Theses and Capstones

Female summer flounder grow considerably faster and larger than males, and a tremendous increase in performance can therefore be realized through production of monosex female populations. Rearing temperature has been shown to affect sex differentiation in other teleost species by influencing expression of genes encoding transcription factors, hormones or enzymes involved in endocrine function such as cyp19a1a, foxl2, dmrt1 and amh. These genes have been linked to female (cyp19a1a, foxl2) or male (dmrt1, amh) development, and exhibit sexually dimorphic expression in some species. In the present study, summer flounder (37 days post hatch; DPH) were raised at 13°C, 16°C or …

Mechanisms Of Satiation In The Nudibranch Melibe Leonina, Colin Lee

Master's Theses and Capstones

In recent years, scientists have begun to study satiation as a means of understanding changes in motivational state. Satiated animals not only show a reduction in feeding behaviors, but also in locomotion, and even show changes in their responses to various stimuli. Therefore, satiation is a qualitative change in the behavioral state of an animal. Although the behavioral characteristics of satiation are well understood, as are the changes in hormone release following a meal, the neural correlates of satiation are less understood. In particular, few studies have attempted to determine how satiating signals reconfigure feeding neural networks. To begin to …

The Foliose Bangiales (Rhodophyta) In The Northern Part Of The North Atlantic And The Relationship With The North Pacific Foliose Bangiales - Diversity, Distribution, Phylogeny And Phylogeography, Agnes Mols-Mortensen

Doctoral Dissertations

Foliose Bangiales species have a long history of study in the North Atlantic, but regions, especially in the northern parts, need more attention. Based on both new collections and herbarium material from Iceland, the Faroe Islands, West Greenland, UK, Norway, Sweden, Denmark and the Northwest Atlantic coast (from Newfoundland to Florida) the aim was to document diversity and distribution of foliose Bangiales species in the North Atlantic and to make floristic comparisons between the geographical areas. Species Identification was based on DNA sequences using the mitochondrial cox1, chloroplast rbcL and 3' rbcL + 5' rbcL-S markers. The North Atlantic species …

Measurments Of Haptoglobin, Serum Amyloid A, Fibrinogen, And Leukocytes To Evaluate Stress In Organically Managed, Pasture-Fed And Conventional Managed, Totally Mixed Ration-Fed Jersey Cattle., Dorothy Ann Perkins

Master's Theses and Capstones

In cattle sub-acute inflammatory disorders are difficult to assess because visual symptoms of diseases are not easily detectable with large numbers of dairy cattle in loose housing. In addition, inflammation is not always followed by leukocytosis in cattle, which makes the use of common blood tests like total white blood cell counts less reliable as a diagnostic tool. More sensitive and objective methods are needed to evaluate health status. Research has been focused on the use of acute phase proteins (APPs) to diagnose acute and chronic illness in cattle, because acute phase proteins respond very quickly when an inflammation event …

The Distribution Of Fitness Effects Of Spontaneous Mutations In Vibrio Fischeri, Chelsea K. Jones

Honors Theses and Capstones

Mutations are the ultimate source of the biological diversity on which natural selection acts, but the vast majority of these mutations are harmful. As such, mutations lead to disease states like cancer, extinction of small populations, and can drive pathogen evolution. Unfortunately, because mutations are rare and past studies have been subject to detection biases, very little is known about the distribution of fitness effects from naturally occurring mutations. In this study, we used mutation accumulation and full genome sequencing to capture naturally occurring mutations before they were exposed to the sieve of natural selection in Vibrio fischeri. We …

Evaluating Phenotypic Differences Between High Tunnel Tomato Cultivars And The Functional Role Of Diversity In A Broccoli - Living Mulch Agroecostytem, Nicholas Warren

Master's Theses and Capstones

Recently, there has been a growing effort to increase the availability of locally grown food in New England, and the ecological and socioeconomic impacts of these changes require careful consideration. This work consists of two experiments evaluating typical food production systems in New England. The high tunnel tomato cultivar trial evaluates indeterminate beefsteak tomatoes for important phenotypic differences. Understanding these differences will aid in the selection of different cultivars of tomatoes for local growers. Increasing the intraspecific diversity of high tunnel tomatoes may help balance the tradeoffs observed between cultivars. The broccoli-living mulch experiment is an evaluation of the competitive …

Balancing Ecological And Economic Values In Northern Hardwood Stands: What Are The Trade-Offs?, Daniel Woock Kilham

Master's Theses and Capstones

New England has 32 million acres of forested land, 27.5 million acres are private and 13.5 million of those private forests are family owned. Two of the main landowner objectives of privately owned forests in New England are generating income and promoting biodiversity and nature. Objectives were to develop a rapid ecological assessment method to aid management of private forests and to determine any trade-offs between economic and ecological values. We measured economic and ecological values in our study site in New Hampshire, and simulated four harvest treatments to determine the effects of different silvicultural approaches. Ecological values were measured …

Ecology And Management Of Moose In Northern New England, Haley A. Andreozzi

Master's Theses and Capstones

This study examined three facets of moose ecology in northern New England: impact of moose browsing on forest regeneration, physical characteristics of harvested bull moose, and winter habitat use. Forest regeneration was not considered a major problem in northern Vermont based on stocking levels of commercial tree species. Increasing dominance of softwood species coupled with suppressed growth of hardwoods suggests possible local shifts in composition. Bull moose in Maine had stable body weight and antler spread, and selective harvest of trophy bulls was not apparent over 30 years. Winter locations from aerial surveys indicated that moose preferentially used deciduous/mixed forest …

Intermittent Swim Stress Effects On Anxiety Behavior, Timothy A. Warner

Doctoral Dissertations

Millions of Americans are suffering from depression each year, leading to a significant number of individuals who seek treatment for their ailment. However, fewer than 50 percent of depressed individuals fully recover using current methods. The comorbidity between depression and anxiety could be a contributing factor in the lower rates of recovery. The demonstrated correlation between anxiety and depression has led to the term "anxious depression," which is associated with difficulty in coping, a poorer rate of recovery, and more severe symptoms of depression. The purpose of this dissertation was to expand on an existing animal model of depression (intermittent …

Mechanisms Of Nutrient Limitation And Nutrient Acquisition In Managed And Unmanaged Forest Ecosystems, Matthew A. Vadeboncoeur

Doctoral Dissertations

Understanding the interactions between global change, human and natural disturbances, and other factors on biogeochemical processes in forests is necessary to ensure the sustainability of forest management. Here I report the results of several investigations into nutrient acquisition processes in the forests of New Hampshire. I begin with a meta-analysis of fertilization studies showing that phosphorus (P) and calcium (Ca) as well as nitrogen (N) may limit primary production in deciduous forests of the region. Because these limiting nutrients are all removed from the ecosystem when trees are harvested, I compared nutrient budgets under a range of harvesting scenarios with …

Identification And Stoichiometric Analysis Of The Monosomal Translational Complex, Xin Wang

Doctoral Dissertations

The identification of the components involved in translational complexes has relied primarily on in vitro studies. Determining which proteins associate together in these complexes, under what conditions they do so, and how the composition of the complexes change under different conditions have became the key issues of in vivo studies. After a one-step affinity purification, using a novel technique of analytical ultracentrifugation with a fluorescence detection system (AU-FDS) I have identified a 77S monosomal translational complex in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Major components of the 77S complex include the 80S ribosome, mRNA, and components of the closed-loop structure, eIF4E, eIF4G1/eIF4G2 …

Interactions Of Shiga-Like Toxin-2 (Stx-2) From Escherichia Coli O157:H7 And The Bcl-2 Family Of Proteins During Host Cell Programmed Cell Death, Lia K. Jeffrey

Doctoral Dissertations

Stx-2 is a major contributor to the pathogenesis of Escherichia coli 0157:H7. Prior reports suggest that Stx-2 increases necrosis and apoptosis of a variety of host cells including those of endothelial origin as well as immune cells such as neutrophils (156). However, the role Stx-2 plays in delayed apoptosis of neutrophils is not fully understood given that previous studies have shown conflicting results (118, 51). The process of apoptosis is mediated by the Bcl-2 protein family (2, 46, 226). The purpose of this research was to define the molecular mechanisms of Stx-2 and Bcl-2 protein family interactions. These studies examined …

Characterization Of The Expression Profile Of Polyamine Biosynthetic Genes (Spermidine Synthase) And Polyamine Metabolic Regulation In Arabidopsis, Lin Shao

Doctoral Dissertations

Polyamines are ubiquitously distributed cationic compounds, which play important roles in numerous cellular functions in plants. This study was aimed at elaborating the regulation of polyamine biosynthetic gene expression and polyamine metabolism. The organ/tissue specific expression patterns of two genes encoding the polyamine biosynthetic enzyme spermidine synthase ( AtSPDS1 and AtSPDS2) were studied in Arabidopsis at different developmental stages using promoter::reporter approach. The two homologues showed similar ubiquitous expression with subtle differences being observed in certain tissues (e.g. root, siliques, and embryos). Neither transgenic manipulation by over-expression of AtSPDSI alone nor its concomitant expression with genes encoding other biosynthetic enzymes …

Engineering Lipases And Solvents For Trans/-Esterification Of Used Vegetable Oils, Michael Dore Gagnon

Doctoral Dissertations

Diminishing petroleum reserves and increasing environmental awareness has led to an urgent need to develop alternative fuels, such as biodiesel. However, the conventional method to produce biodiesel uses environmentally harmful chemical catalysts. A relatively new development in the production of biodiesel is through enzymatic trans/- esterification with a lipase catalyst. Despite several advantages, there are a few technical and economical obstacles that limit this process: (1) immiscibility of the hydrophilic methanol and hydrophobic triglyceride which results in the formation of an interface leading to mass transfer resistance, (2) insufficient availability of large quantities of inexpensive lipase suitable for catalysis, and …

Characterization Of The Prokaryotic Community Associated With The Giant Barrel Sponge, Xestospongia Muta Across The Caribbean, Cara L. Fiore

Doctoral Dissertations

Sponges have long been known to be ecologically important members of the benthic fauna on coral reefs. Recently, it has been shown that sponges, and their symbiotic microbes, are also important contributors to the nitrogen biogeochemistry of coral reefs. Here, I investigate the ecology and physiology of the microbial community associated the ecologically dominant sponge, Xestospongia muta. A natural experiment was conducted with X. muta form three different locations (Florida Keys, USA; Lee Stocking Island, Bahamas, and Little Cayman, Cayman Islands) to compare nitrogen cycling and prokaryotic community composition. The dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) fluxes of sponges were studied using …

The Effects Of Biotic And Abiotic Factors On Byssogenesis, Growth And Movement Patterns Of The Blue Mussel, Mytilus Edulis, Yvette Louise Garner

Doctoral Dissertations

Blue mussels create extensive aggregations on intertidal and low subtidal shores in the Gulf of Maine, in which they modify habitat, trap sediments and create microclimates for many organisms. Mussels are an important aquaculture species worldwide, and play a major part of the economy of New England. Blue mussels produce collagenous byssal threads to anchor themselves to the substrate on wave swept shores. Byssogenesis, growth and movement abilities of mussels are influenced by a host of biotic and abiotic factors. In this dissertation I quantified byssogenesis and growth of the blue mussel, Mytilus edulis, affected by wave exposure, temperature, and …