Life Sciences Commons^™

Seasonality And Movement Of Adventive Populations Of The Arundo Wasp (Hymenoptera: Eurytomidae), A Biological Control Agent Of Giant Reed In The Lower Rio Grande Basin In South Texas, Alexis Racelis, Carol Goolsby, Patrick J. Moran

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

The arundo wasp, Tetramesa romana Walker, has been permitted as a biological control agent for the invasive perennial grass, the giant reed, Arundo donax L. Evidence of adventive populations of the arundo wasp in the Lower Rio Grande Basin was confirmed with a spatio-temporal survey spanning more than 350 river miles. A total of 2,414 adult females of T. romana was collected during a 14month period of study in 2008–2009. This study documents the initial locations and regional expansion of two adventive populations of T. romana, centered around the cities of Eagle Pass and Laredo, TX. Peaks in T. …

Characterization Of Arsenic-Tolerant Bacterial Cultures From The Lower Laguna Madre Of South Texas, Gemma A. Berlanga, Michael W. Persans, Thomas Eubanks, Kristine L. Lowe

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Two forms of arsenic are found in the environment: As(V) and As(III), the latter being more toxic, water-soluble, and mobile. Microorganisms may increase the mobility of arsenic by reducing As(V) to As(III); however, detoxification and immobilization can occur via the oxidation of As(III) to As(V). The US EPA has set a minimum contaminant level of 10 parts per billion (ppb) for arsenic in drinking water. The research objective was to confirm the presence of arsenic-tolerant bacteria in the Lower Laguna Madre of south Texas. Sediment samples were collected and inoculated into growth media which contained either 2 mM As(III) or …

Endogenous N-3 Fatty Acids Protect Ovariectomy Induced Bone Loss By Attenuating Osteoclastogenesis, Md Mizanur Rahman, Arunabh Bhattacharya, Jameela Banu, Jing X. Kang, Gabriel Fernandes

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Beneficial effects of n-3 fatty acids (FA) on bone mineral density (BMD) have been reported in mice, rats and human beings, but the precise mechanisms involved have not been described. This study used the Fat-1 mouse, a transgenic model that synthesizes n-3 FA from n-6 FA to directly determine if outcome of bone health were correlated with n-3 FA. Ovariectomized (Ovx) and sham operated wild-type (WT) and Fat-1 mice were fed an AIN-93M diet containing 10% corn oil for 24 weeks. BMD was analysed by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry. Fat-1 Ovx mice exhibited significantly lower level of osteotropic factors like …

Large-Scale Patterns In Trematode Richness And Infection Levels In Marine Crustacean Hosts, David W. Thieltges, Brian L. Fredensborg, Anja Studer, Robert Poulin

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Little is known about the patterns of variation in parasitism in marine hosts. Trematodes, the dominant parasites in intertidal systems, are transmitted from their first intermediate hosts (snails) to a range of second intermediate hosts, including crustaceans. Using published studies of trematode infections in crustacean hosts, we investigated general patterns of variation in trematode species richness and infection levels (i.e. percentage of hosts infected and mean number of individual parasites per host). Since the production and release of infective stages in snails is strongly temperature dependent, we also investigated a potential decrease in trematode infection levels with increasing latitude (as …

Cdna Cloning, Expression And Fibrin(Ogen)Olytic Activity Of Two Low-Molecular Weight Snake Venom Metalloproteinases, Ying Jia, Sara E. Lucena, Esteban Cantu, Elda E. Sánchez, John C. Perez

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Two cDNA clones, AplVMP1 and AplVMP2, were isolated from a snake (Agkistrodon piscivorus leucostoma) venom gland cDNA library. The full-length cDNA sequence of AplVMP1 with a calculated molecular mass of 46.61 kDa is 1,233 bp in length. AplVMP1 encodes PI class metalloproteinase with an open reading frame of 411 amino acid residues that includes signal peptide, pro-domain and metalloproteinase domains. The full-length cDNA of the AplVMP2 (1,371bp) has a calculated molecular mass of 51.16 kDa and encodes PII class metalloproteinase. The open reading frame of AplVMP2 with a 457 amino acid residues is composed of signal peptide, pro-domain, …

Fecal-Sac Ingestion By Spotted Towhees, Jenny E. Mckay, Michael T. Murphy, Sarah Bartos Smith, Jennifer K. Richardson

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Altricial nestlings encase excrement in fecal sacs that parents remove by either ingesting them or transporting them away from the nest. Ingestion may allow energetically or nutritionally deprived parents to recapture energy or nutrients that might be lost because of nestlings' inefficient digestion (the "parental-nutrition hypothesis"), but ingestion may also permit parents to avoid flights from the nest that interfere with parental care (e.g., brooding young; the "economic-disposal hypothesis"). We used a hypothetico-deductive approach to test the two hypotheses' ability to account for fecal-sac ingestion by the Spotted Towhee (Pipilo maculatus). We confirmed the parental-nutrition hypothesis' predictions that …

Assessing Threat Of Introduction Of The Parthenogenetic Marbled Crayfish Marmorkrebs Into North American Waters, Stephanie A. Jimenez, Zen Faulkes

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background/Question/Methods

Marmorkrebs are parthogenetic crayfish in the genus Procambarus. Their provenance is unknown, but they were discovered in hobbyists' aquaria in Germany in the mid 1990s, and have since been introduced into the North American pet trade. Marmorkrebs are a potential invasive pest species. For example, they have already been introduced into Madagascar, where they may threaten endemic crayfish species. We are trying to estimate the risk, and possible consequences, of any accidental introduction of Marmorkrebs into North American waters. First, we conducted an online survey of hobbyists who keep Marmorkrebs as pets to estimate how widely, and how …

American Kestrel Reproduction: Evidence For The Selection Hypothesis And The Role Of Dispersal, Karen Steenhof, Julie A. Heath

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Many hypotheses attempt to explain why younger, less experienced birds have relatively low reproductive output. We evaluated reproductive patterns of marked American Kestrels Falco sparverius nesting in boxes in southwestern Idaho from 1992 to 2006 to test predictions of these hypotheses. Results were consistent with the selection (differential mortality) hypothesis and did not support the constraint, restraint or recruitment hypotheses. Most known-age Kestrels nested in their first year of life, and there was no apparent short-term or long-term reproductive advantage to delayed breeding. The number of years that Kestrels nested in study area boxes ranged from 1 to 6 years, …

Activity And Interactions Of Liposomal Antibiotics In Presence Of Polyanions And Sputum Of Patients With Cystic Fibrosis, Misagh Alipour, Zacharias E. Suntres, Majed Halwani, Ali Azghani, Abdelwahab Omri

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background: To compare the effectiveness of liposomal tobramycin or polymyxin B against Pseudomonas aeruginosa in the Cystic Fibrosis (CF) sputum and its inhibition by common polyanionic components such as DNA, F-actin, lipopolysaccharides (LPS), and lipoteichoic acid (LTA). Methodology: Liposomal formulations were prepared from a mixture of 1,2-Dimyristoyl-sn-Glycero-3-Phosphocholine (DMPC) or 1,2-Dipalmitoyl-sn-Glycero-3-Phosphocholine (DPPC) and Cholesterol (Chol), respectively. Stability of the formulations in different biological milieus and antibacterial activities compared to conventional forms in the presence of the aforementioned inhibitory factors or CF sputum were evaluated. Results: The formulations were stable in all conditions tested with no significant differences compared to the controls. …

Environmental Regulation Of Dormancy Loss In Lomatium Dissectum (Apiaceae) Seeds, Melissa Scholten, Jacklyn Donahue, Nancy L. Shaw, Marcelo Serpe

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background and aims Lomatium dissectum (Apiaceae) is a perennial, herbaceous plant of wide distribution in Western North America. At the time of dispersal, L. dissectum seeds are dormant and have underdeveloped embryos. The aims of this work were to determine the requirements for dormancy break and germination, to characterize the type of seed dormancy, and to determine the effect of dehydration after embryo growth on seed viability and secondary dormancy.

Methods The temperature requirements for embryo growth and germination were investigated under growth chamber and field conditions. The effect of GA3 on embryo growth was also analyzed to determine the …

Lead Bullet Fragments In Venison From Rifle-Killed Deer: Potential For Human Dietary Exposure, W. Grainger Hunt, Richard T. Watson, J. Lindsay Oaks, Chris N. Parish, Kurt K. Burnham, Russell L. Tucker, James R. Belthoff, Garret Hart

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Human consumers of wildlife killed with lead ammunition may be exposed to health risks associated with lead ingestion. This hypothesis is based on published studies showing elevated blood lead concentrations in subsistence hunter populations, retention of ammunition residues in the tissues of hunter-killed animals, and systemic, cognitive, and behavioral disorders associated with human lead body burdens once considered safe. Our objective was to determine the incidence and bioavailability of lead bullet fragments in hunter-killed venison, a widely-eaten food among hunters and their families. We radiographed 30 eviscerated carcasses of White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) shot by hunters with standard …

Range Expansions And New Breeding Records Of Birds In Tamaulipas, Mexico, Timothy Brush

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Breeding birds of riparian forests and other habitats in the Ciudad Victoria area were studied, mainly in June 2003 and 2006. Olivaceous woodcreeper (Sittasomus griseicapillus), mangrove swallow (Tachycineta albilinea), and scrub euphonia (Euphonia affinis; nesting) extended their range north to the Ciudad Victoria area. Western kingbird (Tyrannus verticalis) nested for the first time in Tamaulipas and occurred south to the Ciudad Victoria area, and European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) nested in south-central Tamaulipas for the first time. Great curassow (Crax rubra) and crested guan (Penelope purpurascens) were rediscovered in the Ciudad Victoria area for the first time since 1909. Distributions of …

Correlation Between Animal And Mathematical Models For Prostate Cancer Progression, Zdzislaw Jackiewiczy, Cheryl L. Jorcyk, Mikhail K. Kolev, Barbara Zubik-Kowal

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

This work demonstrates that prostate tumour progression in vivo can be analysed by using solutions of a mathematical model supplemented by initial conditions chosen according to growth rates of cell lines in vitro. The mathematical model is investigated and solved numerically. Its numerical solutions are compared with experimental data from animal models. The numerical results confirm the experimental results with the growth rates in vivo.

Observations Of Flotsam Entrapment In The Northern Diamond-Backed Watersnake (Nerodia R. Rhombifer), Jason Ortega, Frederic Zaidan

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

—Small areas of protected land may act as islands of suitable habitat surrounded by human development. Although these areas receive protection, we have observed one way that the surrounding human population can still endanger the welfare of its inhabitants. During our observations of the Northern Diamond-backed Watersnake (Nerodia r. rhombifer) in a semi-protected nature park surrounded by human development, we encountered 13 individuals entangled with flotsam. Of the 220 juvenile through adult snakes that we captured, 12 were encircled by various types of objects (e.g., finger cots; latex sheaths that cover a single digit, dental elastics, and plastic bottle neck …

Establishment Of A Research Colony Of Marmorkrebs, A Parthenogenetic Crayfish Species, Stephanie A. Jimenez, Zen Faulkes

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Marmorkrebs, or marbled crayfish, are recently discovered parthenogenetic crayfish. Its origins are unknown, but it has been introduced into natural ecosystems and could become a highly invasive pest species. Marmorkrebs have potential as a model organism for research in many biological fields because they are genetically uniform. A key element of most successful model organisms is maintaining self-sustaining breeding colonies. We report on our efforts find the best conditions for establishing and maintaining a Marmorkrebs breeding colony for research. The colony was founded by four adults of unknown age (P generation). These foundresses were housed communally in standard aquaria and …

An Exon-Based Comparative Variant Analysis Pipeline To Study The Scale And Role Of Frameshift And Nonsense Mutation In The Human-Chimpanzee Divergence, Gongxin Yu

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Chimpanzees and humans are closely related but differ in many deadly human diseases and other characteristics in physiology, anatomy, and pathology. In spite of decades of extensive research, crucial questions about the molecular mechanisms behind the differences are yet to be understood. Here I report ExonVar, a novel computational pipeline for Exon-based human-chimpanzee comparative Variant analysis. The objective is to comparatively analyze mutations specifically those that caused the frameshift and nonsense mutations and to assess their scale and potential impacts on human-chimpanzee divergence. Genomewide analysis of human and chimpanzee exons with ExonVar identified a number of species-specific, …

Pathogenic Bacillus Anthracis In The Progressive Gene Losses And Gains In Adaptive Evolution, Gongxin Yu

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background: Sequence mutations represent a driving force of adaptive evolution in bacterial pathogens. It is especially evident in reductive genome evolution where bacteria underwent lifestyles shifting from a free-living to a strictly intracellular or host-depending life. It resulted in loss of function mutations and/or the acquisition of virulence gene clusters. Bacillus anthracis shares a common soil bacterial ancestor with its closely related bacillus species but is the only obligate, causative agent of inhalation anthrax within the genus Bacillus. The anthrax-causing Bacillus anthracis experienced the similar lifestyle changes. We thus hypothesized that the bacterial pathogen would follow a compatible evolution path. …

Caspase Cleavage Of The Amyloid Precursor Protein Is Prevented After Overexpression Of Bcl-2 In A Triple Transgenic Mouse Model Of Alzheimer’S Disease, Debra K. Kumasaka, Veronica Galvan, Elizabeth Head, Troy T. Rohn

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

A recent study demonstrated the lack of beta-amyloid (Aβ) plaque formation and accumulation of the amyloid precursor protein (APP) in a triple transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease (3xTg-AD) following overexpression of the anti-apoptotic protein, Bcl-2 (Rohn et al., J. Neurosci. 28: 3051-9, 2008). The supposition from that study was the accumulation of APP resulted from a decrease in caspase-mediated processing of APP. To determine a direct role for the caspase-cleavage of APP in 3xTg-AD mice, we designed a site-directed caspasecleavage antibody to APP and demonstrated it is a specific marker for caspase-cleaved APP. Application of this antibody revealed neuronal …

Caspase-Cleaved Tar Dna-Binding Protein-43 In Pick’S Disease, Troy T. Rohn, Polina Kokoulina

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

The hyperphosphorylation and proteolytic modification of the TAR DNA binding protein-43 (TDP-43) is a key finding in a number of neurodegenerative diseases including frontotemporal dementia with ubiquitin-positive inclusions (FTLD-U), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and most recently Alzheimer’s disease (AD). To examine whether proteolytic modifications of TDP-43 is a relevant finding in Pick’s disease, we utilized a novel site-directed caspase-cleavage antibody based upon a known caspase-3 cleavage consensus site within TDP-43 at position 219. Application of this antibody, termed TDP caspase-cleavage product (TDPccp) to postmortem Pick’s disease brain sections revealed the presence of caspase-cleaved TDP-43 in Pick and Hirano bodies predominantly …

Tournefortia Hirsutissima (Boraginaceae) New To The Flora Of Texas, Alfred Richardson, Ken King

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Toumefortia hirsutissima (Boraginaceae) is reported for extreme south Texas, a new record for the state of Texas.

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Toumefortia hirsutlssima (Boraginaceae) se cita de! extremo sur de Tejas, es el primer registro para el estado de Tejas.

Great Curassow And Crested Guan Near Ciudad Victoria, Tamaulipas, Mexico, Timothy Brush

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Great Curassow (Crax rubra) and Crested Guan (Penelope purpurascens) were rediscovered in the Ciudad Victoria area of southwestern Tamaulipas, Mexico for the first time since 1909. Birds were found in low elevation canyons containing permanent running water, with riparian forest dominated by Montezuma bald-cypress (Taxodium mucronatum) and steep scrub-covered slopes. These records represent the northernmost known points of the ranges of both species. Additional field work will be needed to determine whether these small populations are isolated from the nearest known populations in the El Cielo/Gómez Farías area of southern Tamaulipas.

Spectral Reflectance And Digital Image Relations Among Five Aquatic Weeds, James H. Everitt, Kenneth R. Summy, Chenghai Yang

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

This study reports on the use of an artificial quartz halogen lighting source to facilitate the acquisition of spectral light reflectance measurements and digital imaging of invasive aquatic weeds. Spectral leaf or leaf/stem reflectance measurements were made on five aquatic weeds: Eurasian watermilfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum L.), hydrilla [Hydrilla verticillata (L. F.) Royle], parrotfeather [Myriophyllum aquaticum (Vall.), waterhyacinth [Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms], and waterlettuce (Pistia stratiotes L.). Reflectance measurements were studied at five wavelengths of the electromagnetic spectrum: 450 nm (visible blue), 550 nm (visible green), 650 nm (visible red), 680 nm (visible red edge), and 850 nm (near-infrared). Reflectance values …

Comparison Of Leaf-Clipping And Leaf-Piercing Techniques As Applied To The Seagrass Syringodium Filiforme, Joseph L. Kowalski, Hudson R. Deyoe, Christian P. Krull, Terry C. Allison

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Leaf elongation rates of the seagrass Syringodium filiforme (Kütz., 1860) were assessed at two sites in a subtropical lagoon of Texas on eleven occasions from January 1996 to April 1997 using two methods, clipping and leaf piercing (marking) to estimate leaf growth. Pierced shoots grew at a significantly faster rate than clipped shoots irrespective of site. Clipping underestimated leaf elongation by 30%–38%, although differences at individual sites were as high as 69%–72%. Underestimation of leaf growth rate derived by clipping could be corrected using a site-specific linear regression relationship between leaf growth rates determined by clipping and piercing methods. The …