Life Sciences Commons^™

Update On Michigan Biomaterials Initiative, October 31, 2014, Terry L. Sharik

Terry L. Sharik

Powerpoint Presented the 2014 Biomaterial Conference from Forest Resources & Environmental Sciences, Michigan Tech

Determining Relationships Among Meadowbrome Cultivated Varieties, Andrew D. Tucker, Lisa Michaels, B. Shaun Bushman, Kevin B. Jensen

Biology Posters

No abstract provided.

Decreasing Bacterial Biofilm Formation On Medical Implants Through Surface Modification, Eric Schmidt, Sydney Bone, Tyson Holverson

Biology Posters

No abstract provided.

Synthetic Spider Silk Production In Alfalfa, Cameron L. Brock, Michaela R. Hugie, Randolph V. Lewis

Biology Posters

No abstract provided.

Producing Spider Silk Fibers, Cameron G. Copeland, Chad Christensen, Brianne Bell

Biology Posters

No abstract provided.

Spider Silk For Future Scaffolds, Heidi Bringhurst, R. Decker, S. Frisby, C Tucker

Biology Posters

Spider silk, an ancient biomaterial, has many qualities worth replicating. With the use of genetic modification, relatively large amounts of the spider silk protein have been produced through goat milk. With access to this protein we have worked to create spider silk films and hydrogels. Through chemical and mechanical means, we are discovering treatments that maximize cell growth and cell attachment on spider silk films and hydrogels.

Transfection Of Cystic Fibrosis Sequence Into Host Cells, Richard Cromwell

Biology Posters

To better study the effects of Cystic Fibrosis on the human body, it is important to be able to effectively and efficiently recreate the disease in an appropriate mammalian model. New technology in transfection reagent, jetPRIME, hopes to allow us to efficiently transfer these Cystic Fibrosis sequences into sheep embryos to allow the traits to be expressed on a more reliable basis on the cloned sheep.

My research with this reagent was to test the reliability of jetPRIME to transfer our desired DNA sequences into cells at a more efficient rate then previously demonstrated by other reagents. Because of the …

Diurnal Arousal In Learning And Memory, Jacob Blotter, Mona Buhusi

Biology Posters

The brain’s ability to learn and remember is a topic of extensive debate and research. Mammals share many similarities, including the way in which information from the outside world is processed and stored. Mammalian circadian rhythms have long been thought to be essentially involved with these processes. This experiment is designed to explore the brain’s ability to process and store information at different times of the day. Changes in or the absence of circadian neurotransmitters lead to serious impairments correlated with sleep and wakefulness [1]. Orexin, one neurochemical that will be examined in this experiment, helps mediate arousal and has …

Does Gardening Always Have To Teach Me Patience And Long Suffering?, Larry A. Segers

Archived Gardening Publications

No abstract provided.

An Entrepreneurial Approach To Librarianship, Flora G. Shrode, Jennifer R. Duncan, Wendy Holliday

Flora Shrode

Librarians from Utah State University explain recent efforts to encourage subject librarians to take a more holistic view of their roles. We are shifting from a traditional emphasis primarily on collection development and refocusing on natural connections between collections, instruction, liaison, and reference service. The poster provides background about Utah State University’s situation and explains our approach to analyzing local needs and culture to inform development of a new organizational structure. We describe our vision of subject librarianship, the process by which we assessed librarians’ ideas and goals for performing as subject librarians, and the actions we are taking to …

An Entrepreneurial Approach To Librarianship, Flora Shrode, Jennifer Duncan, Wendy Holliday

Library Faculty & Staff Publications

Librarians from Utah State University explain recent efforts to encourage subject librarians to take a more holistic view of their roles. We are shifting from a traditional emphasis primarily on collection development and refocusing on natural connections between collections, instruction, liaison, and reference service. The poster provides background about Utah State University’s situation and explains our approach to analyzing local needs and culture to inform development of a new organizational structure. We describe our vision of subject librarianship, the process by which we assessed librarians’ ideas and goals for performing as subject librarians, and the actions we are taking to …

Landscape Limnology: Nutrient Fluxes & Biotic Stability In Complex Mountain Watersheds, Wayne A. Wurtsbaugh, Michelle Kang, Dave M. Epstein

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Synthesis Of Kurasoin B Analogs, J. R. Nielson, Michael A. Christiansen, M. B. Andrus

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Presentations

Kurasoin B (1), isolated in 1996 by Uchida et al, selectively inhibits Farnesyltransferase (FTase), an enzyme responsible for activating human RAS proteins (ref. 1). When RAS proteins are mutated and then activated, they contribute 20 to 30 percent of all human tumors, including those of the pancreas, colon, small intestine, lung, prostate, liver, skin, and thyroid, as well as multiple myeloma and a number of leukemias (ref. 2). Kurasoin B, therefore, has great potential as a cancer drug lead.

Phase-Transfer Catalyzed Synthesis Of The Soy Isoflavanoid S-Equol, A. W. Butler, A. L. Calvert, Michael A. Christiansen, M. B. Andrus

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Presentations

S-Equol is an isoflavanoid metabolized from the isoflavone daidzein by intestinal bacteria. Only 30-50 percent of all individuals possess bacteria that produce S-Equol. Recent data supports the compound’s pharmaceutical potential for treating prostate cancer and post-menopausal estrogen deficiency (ref. 1). Because the compound is only minutely available from natural sources, an affordable asymmetric total synthesis would be necessary to generate sufficient quantities for expanded research. Only one asymmetric total synthesis of S-Equol has been reported to date, using a chiral auxiliary to give product in a 10 percent yield over 6 steps (ref. 2). It is our goal to develop …

Synthesis Of 12-Hete Using Asymmetric Phase-Transfer Catalysis, Michael A. Christiansen, M. B. Andrus

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Presentations

A new method of asymmetric phase-transfer-catalyzed alkylation is described. The synthetic utility of this method is demonstrated with the total syntheses of kurasoin A, kurasoin B, and S-naproxenTM, with current work toward S-equol. This methodology is currently being applied to an improved asymmetric total synthesis of the natural compound 12-S-HETE.

Phase-Transfer Catalyzed Asymmetric Synthesis Of S-Naproxen, M. A. Binkley, Michael A. Christiansen, K. H. Harper, M. B. Andrus

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Presentations

This presentation explores a modified approach to Kurasoin B.

Extreme Eutrophication And Cyanotoxin Levels In Farmington Bay, A Polluted Embayment Of The Great Salt Lake, Utah, Wayne A. Wurtsbaugh, Amy M. Marcarelli, Gregory Boyer

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

The Great Salt Lake of Utah is surrounded on its eastern and southern shores by 1.4 million people, with projections of 5 million by 2050. Agricultural, industrial and particularly secondary-treated domestic wastes from this population flow primarily into Farmington Bay, a 280 km2 shallow "estuary" with a mean depth near 0.5 m. Fish are rare but bird use is extensive and massive mortalities of waterfowl and shorebirds have occurred in the bay. Phosphorus loading rates of >2 g m-2yr-1 cause hypereutrophic conditions: Secchi depths are usually 0.6 mg/L, mean Chl. a is 179 ug/L and the combined trophic state index …

Educational Values Of Trees And Forests, Terry L. Sharik

Terry L. Sharik

Powerpoint Presented at : Seventh Biennial Conference on University Education in Natural Resources, Corvallis, OR. March 14, 2008

Eutrophication In Farmington Bay And Its Potential Impacts On Wildlife, Wayne A. Wurtsbaugh

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Growth Parameters For Syringomycin Production In Pseudomonas Syringae Strain M1, Nathaly M. Carranza

Biology Posters

The cyclic lipodepsinonapeptide syringomycin E (SRE) produced by Pseudomonas syringae is being developed as a natural product agrofungicide. The purpose of this research is to identify the most effective P. syringae growth parameters for SRE production. P. syringae strain M1 was grown in 2L capacity fermenters and in capped test tubes both with agitation. A variety of compounds, including amino acids that are components of SRE, were added to the growth medium to study their effects on SRE production. L-histidine was found to be the best amino acid for promoting SRE production. Strain M1 extracts had strong antifungal activities. SRE …

Genetic Modification Of Host Acceptance By A Seed Beetle: Quasi-Natural Vs. Artificial Selection, Meagan Bridges, Jake Jones, Amberleigh Muller, Frank J. Messina

Biology Posters

Many plant-feeding insects use a fairly well-defined set of hosts, but are occasionally observed on an atypical host. The seed beetle Callosobruchus maculatus infests several grain legumes, especially Vigna spp. It has rarely been reported to attack lentil, a distant relative of its typical hosts (Credland, 1987). In three previous mass-selection experiments, we showed that larval survival in lentil increased rapidly after a bottleneck, from 70% in only 5-7 generations. Host shifts by insects may also require modification of egg-laying behavior. Initial assays confirmed that most C. maculatus females fail to recognize lentil as a potential host. We used both …

Pattern Of Genetic Recovery In Daphnia Populations Following Experimental Removal Of Fish, Jaewook Chung, Leigh C. Latta, Iv, Michael E. Pfrender

Biology Posters

The establishment and maintenance of high levels of genetic diversity is an important consideration for populations that have experienced recent demographic collapse. Populations that have undergone demographic contraction or have been recently established generally lack standing adaptive variation. The level of adaptive genetic variation is a key determinant of population persistence, especially in changing environments, since dramatic changes in environmental conditions or community composition may impose severe or novel selective pressures. We obtained data for nuclear markers and conducted a common-garden experiment to assess the current levels of molecular genetic variation. Our results suggest that in the approximately eight years …

Landscape Patterns Of Streams & Lakes In Montane Watersheds Determine Water Temperatures & Nutrient Transport: Watershed Analyses And N Tracer Experiments, Wayne A. Wurtsbaugh, J. Garrett, G. Burkart, W. Fleenor, K. Nydick, R. Hall, Michelle A. Baker

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

In glaciated mountains, lakes are interspersed through watersheds and connected by streams. Although lakes or streams are frequently studied as individual water bodies, studying them as integrated functional units provides considerable insight on temperature patterns, nutrient transport and other functions. In the Sawtooth Mountains (Idaho), inter-lake distance averages 2.8 km. In summer, lakes are solar collectors, and warm outflow streams as much as 10 C, thus increasing metabolic rates. These streams seldom cool to equilibrium temperatures before encountering another lake, where the waters tend to overflow and mix into the epilimnion. With overflow, N-15 tracer experiments demonstrated that water and …

Nitrogen Transport Through Linked Stream-Lake Systems Measured With N Tracer, Wayne A. Wurtsbaugh, Koren Nydick, Michelle A. Baker, Bob Hall

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Topo-Morphometric Analysis Of Lake-Stream Interactions In Alpine Watersheds, Wayne A. Wurtsbaugh, Michelle A. Baker

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.