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Intraspecific Diversity In Sinningia Speciosa (Gesneriaceae: Sinningieae), And Possible Origins Of The Cultivated Florist's Gloxinia, David Zaitlin

Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The florist's gloxinia is a familiar houseplant in the Gesneriaceae, the botanical family that includes the African violet (Saintpaulia) and other ornamental species. The gloxinia's wild progenitor is Sinningia speciosa (Lodd.) Hiern, a Brazilian endemic. Although it has been cultivated for almost 200 years, little is known about the genetic diversity in S. speciosa, how the wild populations relate to one another or even where the cultivated forms originated. Using available wild collections, preliminary phenetic and phylogenetic investigations were conducted to elucidate the interspecific relationships within S. speciosa and to infer the origins of the cultivars.

METHODOLOGY: …

Comparative Mitogenomic Analysis Of Damsel Bugs Representing Three Tribes In The Family Nabidae (Insecta: Hemiptera), Hu Li, Haiyu Liu, Fan Song, Aimin Shi, Xuguo Zhou, Wanzhi Cai

Entomology Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Nabidae, a family of predatory heteropterans, includes two subfamilies and five tribes. We previously reported the complete mitogenome of Alloeorhynchus bakeri, a representative of the tribe Prostemmatini in the subfamily Prostemmatinae. To gain a better understanding of architecture and evolution of mitogenome in Nabidae, mitogenomes of five species representing two tribes (Gorpini and Nabini) in the subfamily Nabinae were sequenced, and a comparative mitogenomic analysis of three nabid tribes in two subfamilies was carried out.

METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Nabid mitogenomes share a similar nucleotide composition and base bias, except for the control region, where differences are observed at the …

2012 Kentucky Healthcare Market Report, Alison Davis

Community and Economic Development Initiative of Kentucky Reports

No abstract provided.

Phylogeny And Biogeography Of The Carnivorous Plant Family Sarraceniaceae, Aaron M. Ellison, Elena D. Butler, Emily Jean Hicks, Robert F. C. Naczi, Patrick J. Calie, Charles D. Bell, Charles C. Davis

Regulatory Services Faculty Publications

The carnivorous plant family Sarraceniaceae comprises three genera of wetland-inhabiting pitcher plants: Darlingtonia in the northwestern United States, Sarracenia in eastern North America, and Heliamphora in northern South America. Hypotheses concerning the biogeographic history leading to this unusual disjunct distribution are controversial, in part because genus- and species-level phylogenies have not been clearly resolved. Here, we present a robust, species-rich phylogeny of Sarraceniaceae based on seven mitochondrial, nuclear, and plastid loci, which we use to illuminate this family's phylogenetic and biogeographic history. The family and genera are monophyletic: Darlingtonia is sister to a clade consisting of Heliamphora+Sarracenia. Within Sarracenia, two …

Applied Microeconomics: Consumption, Production And Markets, David L. Debertin

Agricultural Economics Textbook Gallery

This is a microeconomic theory book designed for upper-division undergraduate students in economics and agricultural economics. This is a free pdf download of the entire book. As the author, I own the copyright. Amazon markets bound print copies of the book at amazon.com at a nominal price for classroom use. The book can also be ordered through college bookstores using the following ISBN numbers:

• ISBN‐13: 978‐1475244342
• ISBN-10: 1475244347

Basic introductory college courses in microeconomics and differential calculus are the assumed prerequisites. The last, tenth, chapter of the book reviews some mathematical principles basic to the other chapters. All of the …

Sustainable Agriculture Undergraduate Degree Programs: A Land-Grant University Mission, Krista L. Jacobsen, Kim L. Niewolny, Michelle S. Schroeder-Moreno, Mark Van Horn, Alison H. Harmon, Yolanda H. Chen Fanslow, Mark A. Williams, Damian Parr

Horticulture Faculty Publications

There has been considerable growth in the number undergraduate degree programs in sustainable agriculture (SA) in universities and colleges across the country in the past 25 years. As a subset of this national trend, land-grant universities (LGUs) are emerging as catalysts in innovative SA program development, in part due to the LGU tripartite mission of education, extension, and research. This mission compels LGUs to develop undergraduate degree offerings to engage student, faculty, and community stakeholders who are increasingly interested in SA. In this article, which is an outcome of a gathering of faculty, staff and students from SA programs at …

Sustainable Agriculture Education And Civic Engagement: The Significance Of Community-University Partnerships In The New Agricultural Paradigm, Kim L. Niewolny, Julie M. Grossman, Carmen J. Byker, Jennifer L. Helms, Susan F. Clark, Julie A. Cotton, Krista L. Jacobsen

Horticulture Faculty Publications

Universities and colleges across the United States are making innovative strides in higher education programming to catalyze a more sustainable era of agriculture. This is clearly exemplified through the formation of community-university partnerships as critical illustrations of civic engagement (CE) for sustainable agriculture (SA) education. This paper explores the praxis of CE for SA education by focusing on the ways in which five land-grant universities (LGUs) with undergraduate programs in SA have developed and put into practice community-university partnerships. Drawing upon these programs and supportive literature, this article specifically attempts to describe the role and significance of CE for SA …

Development And Functional Analysis Of Novel Genetic Promoters Using Dna Shuffling, Hybridization And A Combination Thereof, Rajiv Ranjan, Sunita Patro, Bhubaneswar Pradhan, Alok Kumar, Indu B. Maiti, Nrisingha Dey

Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Development of novel synthetic promoters with enhanced regulatory activity is of great value for a diverse range of plant biotechnology applications.

METHODOLOGY: Using the Figwort mosaic virus full-length transcript promoter (F) and the sub-genomic transcript promoter (FS) sequences, we generated two single shuffled promoter libraries (LssF and LssFS), two multiple shuffled promoter libraries (LmsFS-F and LmsF-FS), two hybrid promoters (FuasFScp and FSuasFcp) and two hybrid-shuffled promoter libraries (LhsFuasFScp and LhsFSuasFcp). Transient expression activities of approximately 50 shuffled promoter clones from each of these libraries were assayed in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum cv. Xanthi) protoplasts. It was observed that most …

Rna Interference Of Nadph-Cytochrome P450 Reductase Results In Reduced Insecticide Resistance In The Bed Bug, Cimex Lectularius, Fang Zhu, Sarah Sams, Tim Moural, Kenneth F. Haynes, Michael F. Potter, Subba R. Palli

Entomology Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase (CPR) plays a central role in cytochrome P450 action. The genes coding for P450s are not yet fully identified in the bed bug, Cimex lectularius. Hence, we decided to clone cDNA and knockdown the expression of the gene coding for CPR which is suggested to be required for the function of all P450s to determine whether or not P450s are involved in resistance of bed bugs to insecticides.

METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: The full length Cimex lectularius CPR (ClCPR) cDNA was isolated from a deltamethrin resistant bed bug population (CIN-1) using a combined PCR strategy. Bioinformatics and in …

Agricultural Production Economics, David L. Debertin

Agricultural Economics Textbook Gallery

Agricultural Production Economics (Second Edition, Amazon Createspace 2012) is a revised edition of the textbook Agricultural Production Economics published by Macmillan in 1986 (ISBN 0-02-328060-3). This is a free pdf download of the entire book. As the author, I own the copyright. Amazon markets bound print copies of the book at amazon.com at a nominal price for classroom use. The book can also be ordered through college bookstores using the following ISBN numbers:

• ISBN-13 978-1469960647
• ISBN-10 1469960648

The format and coverage remains similar to the first edition, many small revisions and updates have been made. All graphs have been redrawn …

Agricultural Production Economics: The Art Of Production Theory, David L. Debertin

Agricultural Economics Textbook Gallery

Agricultural Production Economics: The Art of Production Theory is a companion book of color illustrations to Agricultural Production Economics (Second Edition, Amazon Createspace 2012) and is a free download. A bound print copy is also available on amazon.com at a nominal cost under the following ISBN numbers:

• ISBN- 13: 978-1470129262
• ISBN- 10: 1470129264

This is a book of full-color illustrations intended for use as a companion to Agricultural Production Economics, Second Edition. Each of the 98 pages of illustrations is a large, full-color version of the corresponding numbered figure in the book Agricultural Production Economics. The illustrations are …

A Spatial Cluster Analysis Of Tractor Overturns In Kentucky From 1960 To 2002, Daniel M. Saman, Henry P. Cole, Agricola Odoi, Melvin L. Myers, Daniel I. Carey, Susan C. Westneat

Epidemiology and Environmental Health Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Agricultural tractor overturns without rollover protective structures are the leading cause of farm fatalities in the United States. To our knowledge, no studies have incorporated the spatial scan statistic in identifying high-risk areas for tractor overturns. The aim of this study was to determine whether tractor overturns cluster in certain parts of Kentucky and identify factors associated with tractor overturns.

METHODS: A spatial statistical analysis using Kulldorff's spatial scan statistic was performed to identify county clusters at greatest risk for tractor overturns. A regression analysis was then performed to identify factors associated with tractor overturns.

RESULTS: The spatial analysis …

Financial Development And Economic Growth In Kentucky Counties, John D. Conley

Theses and Dissertations--Agricultural Economics

There is a broad literature on the finance-growth nexus in the macroeconomics literature. Is there evidence for the finance-growth nexus at the sub-national region? If so, can macroeconomic finance and growth methods be extended to sub-national regions? Joseph Schumpeter argued that banks promote economic growth by choosing which projects to fund, by mobilizing underutilized capital, by managing risk and by monitoring managers.

This dissertation proposes a modified Martin and Ottaviano (2001) model that allows for borrowing to form new firms or to expand existing firms. The model shows that if borrowing across regional lines is costly, above and beyond the …

Characteristics Of Kentucky Agricultural Operations Participating In Nrcs Conservation Programs, Carmen T. Agouridis

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

The Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) designs and promotes a wide variety of conservation practices and programs that enhance the environment by reducing soil erosion, improving water quality, and enhancing and creating wildlife habitat. The impact of these practices and programs is largely dependent on the voluntary participation of landowners. Thus, central to the success of the NRCS conservation programs is an understanding of the characteristics of landowners and operations participating in these programs.

Using operator and operation characteristics from the 1997, 2002, and 2007 Censuses of Agriculture and controlling for county fixed effects, this study 1) identifies significant characteristics …

The Effects Of Slow Release Urea On Nitrogen Metabolism In Cattle, Vaughn B. Holder

Theses and Dissertations--Animal and Food Sciences

The objective of this research was to investigate the effects of slow release urea on N metabolism in cattle. The ruminal behavior of Optigen®II and the effect of basal diet on the in situ degradability of urea and Optigen®II were evaluated. The effect of slow release urea and its interaction with degradable intake protein (DIP) level in the diet on N retention and excretion was evaluated utilizing 8 Holstein steers in a 4 x 4 Latin square experiment. In addition, the effect of slow release urea and DIP level on ruminal and systemic urea kinetics was evaluated using stable isotope …

The Impacts Of Foot-And-Mouth Disease On International Pork Trade – An Extension Of Gravity Model, Shang-Ho Yang

Theses and Dissertations--Agricultural Economics

Food safety scares affect consumption behavior, and food safety and animal health issues are increasingly impacting international agricultural trade. Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious viral-type disease, and has raised not only the concerns of animal health issue but also food safety issue. Over 58 countries in the world have experienced FMD outbreaks, and pork exports and imports among these countries are largely impacted. This dissertation focuses on how global pork trade is affected by FMD.

This dissertation consists of three parts: first, this study specifically focuses on the market of U.S. pork exports. Results show that disease-affected pork …

Water Quality Trading Markets For The Kentucky River Basin: A Point Source Profile, Ronald Childress Jr.

Theses and Dissertations--Agricultural Economics

This study assessed the feasibility and suitability of a Water Quality Trading (WQT) program within the Kentucky River Basin (KRB). The study’s focal point was based on five success factors of a WQT program: environmental suitability, geospatial orientation, participant availability, regulatory incentive, and economic incentive. The study utilized these five success factors, geographical characteristics, and Discharge Monitoring Reports (DMR) to assess the feasibility of a WQT program.

The assessment divided the KRB into five eight digit Hydrologic Unit Codes (HUC), North, Middle, and South Fork, Middle Basin, and Lower Basin, to determine regional impacts caused by the nutrient PSs. Individual …

Cultivating The Compass: Examining The Role Of Emotional Appraisal And Professional Agency Among Stakeholders In Kentucky Agricultural Education, Savannah Faye Robin

Theses and Dissertations--Community & Leadership Development

Agricultural Education has been informed by four major areas including agricultural education (teaching and learning), educational policy, agricultural policy (industry collaboration) and research. Historically agriculture teachers have been removed from the policy process affecting their profession in these four areas (Thompson, 1963). A review of historical literature suggests that only twice have teachers been involved in the policy process. The purpose of this study was to examine the involvement levels of stakeholders in agricultural education across the state of Kentucky. Specifically, examining the emotional appraisal of specific issues in agricultural education and if the emotions of stakeholders influence their involvement …

Male Farmers Coping With Loss Of Spouse: Impacts On Farming Operation And Family Life, Daniel O. Wilson

Theses and Dissertations--Community & Leadership Development

Losing a spouse is as devastating an experience anyone will ever deal with in his or her life. Research, however, shows that men have a harder and longer time coping with the loss of a spouse than women. When the widower’s profession is farming, there are no resources to specifically help that individual with their loss. The purpose of this research was to gain insight into the lives of widowed farmers with particular focus on transitions in their farming operation and their family life. Through their stories, we learn what is happening before the loss of the female spouse on …

Inner Bluegrass Agriculture: An Agroecological Perspective, 1850-1880, Andrew Parker Patrick

Theses and Dissertations--History

This study examines agriculture in the Inner Bluegrass Region of Central Kentucky from 1850 to 1880. It utilizes an agroecological perspective, which interprets agriculture through the lens of ecology, to highlight the complex natural and cultural factors that combined to form one of the nation's most prosperous agricultural systems during the nineteenth century. Chapter One explores the agroecosytem Bluegrass farmers created and maintained, emphasizing dynamics in crop and livestock diversity and agricultural technology. Chapter Two examines the African-American labor force that played a key role in shaping the system, first as slaves and later as free men and women. Chapter …

Economic Modeling & Optimization Of A Region Specific Multi-Feedstock Biorefinery Supply Chain, William H. Faulkner

Theses and Dissertations--Manufacturing Systems Engineering

The objective of this thesis is to include strategic and tactical level decisions into the biorefinery supply chain design for a specific region while comparing multiple conversion technologies and biomass feedstocks. The allocation of biomass feedstocks, products, and the respective supply chain configuration locations are determined while ensuring the regions monthly biomass availability and product market demand constraints are met. This research considers all actions required to bring the bio-based products to market from harvesting, storing, and processing the biomass to market distribution. Two different conversion technologies are chosen for comparison: one advanced conversion technology and one conventional technology. Potential …

Evaluation Of Heat Shock Protein 70a (Hsp70a) In Chlamydomonas Reinhardtii, Sarah Nicole Short

Theses and Dissertations--Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering

Algae are being considered as a possible tool for carbon dioxide mitigation because they uptake carbon dioxide during photosynthesis. Using flue gas from a coal-fired power plant as a carbon source would allow the algae to remove CO₂ from the flue gas before it is emitted into the atmosphere. Because algae do not grow well at the high temperature, low pH conditions presented by flue gas, the traditional approach has been to alter the flue gas to suit the needs of the algae; however, this work aimed to genetically modify the algae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii to grow better at less …

The Kentucky Agricultural Economic Outlook For 2013, Kevin Heidemann, Miranda Hileman

Kentucky Agricultural Economic Outlook

No abstract provided.

An Examination Of Corporate Agribusiness Financial Performance: How Agribusinesses Perform Over Time And Under Various Conditions, Sierra J. Enlow

Theses and Dissertations--Agricultural Economics

While several studies examine the managerial structure of privately owned agribusinesses, few studies take a comprehensive look at publically traded agribusiness firms. Our study examines the historical position of agribusiness compared to the market, and then studies the impact of the global economic and financial crisis. The objective of this study is to pinpoint effects of corporate financial management strategies, commonly researched in financial literature on agribusiness firms’ performance. Through utilizing a quantile regression we find that agribusiness position in times of financial crisis is directly related to firm performance. As we examine internal factors, several interesting impacts of managerial …

Development Of A Noncontact Sensor For Monitoring Milk Coagulation And Cutting Time Prediction In Cheese Making, Molly D. Craft-Jenkins

Theses and Dissertations--Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering

Cheese products are manufactured more consistently and with better quality if the curd cutting time can be consistently selected. An optical sensor that accurately predicts cutting time has been developed for large cheese vats, but the initial cost of these sensors makes them uneconomical for small artisan cheese manufacturers. The small artisan cheese vats require an inexpensive sensor technology that can be implemented simply. The initial cost of purchasing a sensor and installing these sensors plus the need for a computational program for implementing the algorithm make this technology excessively expensive for these smaller cheese manufacturers. The objective of this …

Soil Microbial Community Response To Climate Change: Results From A Temperate Kentucky Pasture, Lindsey C. Slaughter

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Climate change is likely to alter plant species composition and interactions between plants and soil microbes that together dictate the quantity and quality of forage produced in pastures, the base of animal production in central Kentucky. This study assessed the seasonal dynamics of soil microbes and their response to increased temperature (+3^oC) and growing season precipitation (+30% of the mean annual). Total soil microbial biomass, community composition, enzyme activities, potential carbon mineralization, and catabolic responses to selected substrates were measured seasonally in the different climate treatments. In this system, seasonal variability was a dominant driving factor for all …

Method Development For Detecting And Characterizing Manufactured Silver Nanoparticles In Soil Pore Water Using Asymmetrical Flow Field-Flow Fractionation, Annie R. Whitley

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Recent advances in nanotechnology have led to the production of materials with nanoscale dimensions (nm) and properties distinctly different from their bulk (>100 nm) counterparts. With increased use, it is inevitable that nanomaterials will accumulate in the environment and there is concern that the novel properties of nanomaterials could result in detrimental environmental and human health effects. In particular, there has been concern recently regarding the use of silver (Ag) based nanomaterials as antimicrobial agents in consumer and medical products. Current regulations dealing with the discharge of metals into the environment are based on total concentrations with no consideration …

Enantioselective Demethylation: The Key To The Nornicotine Enantiomeric Composition In Tobacco Leaf, Bin Cai

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Nicotine and nornicotine are the two main alkaloids that accumulate in Nicotiana tabacum L. (tobacco), and nornicotine is the N-demethylation metabolite of nicotine. Nicotine is synthesized in the root, and probably primarily in the root tip. Both nicotine and nornicotine exist as two isomers that differ from each other by the orientation of H atom at the C-2' position on the pyrrolidine ring. (S)-nicotine is the dominant form in tobacco leaf and the enantiomer fraction of nicotine (EF_nic), the fraction of (R)-enantiomer over the total nicotine, is approximately 0.002. Despite considerable efforts to elucidate nicotine and nornicotine …

Using An Active Optical Sensor To Improve Nitrogen Management In Corn Production, Donato Titolo

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Corn nitrogen (N) applications are still done on a field basis in Kentucky, according to previous crop, soil tillage management and soil drainage. Soil tests, as well as plant analysis for N, are not very useful in making N fertilizer rate recommendations for corn. Recommended rates assume that only 1/3 to 2/3 of applied N is recovered, variability largely due to the strong affect of weather on the release of soil N and fertilizer N fate. Many attempts have been made to apply N in a more precise and efficient way. Two experiments were conducted at Spindeltop, the University of …