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Articles 1 - 30 of 714
Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Growing Natty (Natural): A Campaign To Move Beyond Steroids And Self Harm, Charles Harris
Growing Natty (Natural): A Campaign To Move Beyond Steroids And Self Harm, Charles Harris
Global Strategic Communications Student Work
Steroid use is nothing new, especially among athletes in competitive sports. The drug is used to give the user an accelerated amount of strength and muscle mass, in a shorter time and often beyond the capabilities of their body's performance in its natural state. Doping is a name for it when reported about in these instances, attributed to the fall and public disgrace of some of the most celebrated sportsmen, yet has continued to be the open secret in the sporting community. The disgrace, the health risk, and the classification of anabolic steroids hasn't slowed down the trafficking or sales …
Seasonal Differences In Diet Specialization, Frugivory, And Seed Dispersal In A Subtropical Population Of Gopher Tortoise, Adrian Figueroa
Seasonal Differences In Diet Specialization, Frugivory, And Seed Dispersal In A Subtropical Population Of Gopher Tortoise, Adrian Figueroa
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This dissertation is the culmination of a 1.5-year research project into the unique ecology of gopher tortoises (Gopherus polyphemus) at the southeasternmost extent of the species’ range. This study population occupies the globally imperiled pine rockland ecosystem of Miami-Dade County, Florida, USA, of which >98% no longer exists outside Everglades National Park. My research unveiled a seasonal shift in the diet of the gopher tortoise population where individuals became more specialized in the wet season (June to November) than in the dry season (December to May). This temporal difference in diet specialization coincided with a shift toward frugivory. …
Evolution And Biological Activity Of Cycadophyta, Gustavo M. De Angeli
Evolution And Biological Activity Of Cycadophyta, Gustavo M. De Angeli
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Worldwide, environment gradients effects on leaf physical and chemical defenses traits, were studied in very phylogenetically heterogeneous plants; leading to results that may be confounding. To address this, in this study, we focused on a single Order, Cycadales. We collected data for 8 key leaf traits from 80 Cycads species around the world (~27% of all cycad species known). The leaf traits included, foliar area, leaf mass area, thickness, leaf density, toughness, water, hinokiflavone and amentoflavone content, all of which are closely related to trade ‘offs between plant defenses and leaf construction. We quantified the relative contributions of environment variables …
Characterization Of Endophytic Microbiomes Of Medicinal Plants For Their Antimicrobial Activities, Ganesh Khadka
Characterization Of Endophytic Microbiomes Of Medicinal Plants For Their Antimicrobial Activities, Ganesh Khadka
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Emerging new infectious diseases and developing antimicrobial resistance are serious global health threats. New approaches are needed for the discovery and development of new antimicrobial compounds with novel modes of action to overcome the problem of resistant microbial pathogens. There has been increasing interest in the discovery of endophytes, an important component of plant microbiome that live within plant tissues as potential key sources of novel antimicrobial compounds. Medicinal plants are generally considered excellent sources of bioactive compounds produced by endophytes. South Florida with its unique sub-tropical humid climate has botanical gardens, private orchards, and nurseries with vast collections of …
Ecological Modeling In The Oceanic Zone: A Gulf Of Mexico Case Study, Matthew Woodstock
Ecological Modeling In The Oceanic Zone: A Gulf Of Mexico Case Study, Matthew Woodstock
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Ecological modeling is a popular tool to assess the functionality of marine ecosystems and quantify an ecosystem’s response to anthropogenic stressors (e.g., fishing, oil spills, climate change). However, much of the global modeling effort has been focused on coastal regions that are generally more data-rich than the area seaward of the continental shelf (i.e., oceanic zone). A concerted effort has been placed on collecting holistic, ecosystem-scale data in the oceanic, northeast Gulf of Mexico since the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DWHOS), particularly in the deep-pelagic zone (water column deeper than 200m depth), which has notably experienced declines in several …
Examining The Relationship Of Interoception, Self-Regulation, Eating Domains, And Eating Outcomes In College Students, Shanté Curlina Jeune
Examining The Relationship Of Interoception, Self-Regulation, Eating Domains, And Eating Outcomes In College Students, Shanté Curlina Jeune
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
College student weight gain has steadily increased throughout the past decades. Issues resulting from overweight and obesity can lead to chronic disease and increased mortality risk. Inability to maintaining a healthy weight status may be attributable to unhealthy eating behaviors that often lead to poor diet quality and overeating. Recently, cognitive behaviors such as interoception and dietary self-regulation have been of great interest in order to better understand the processes of eating behaviors and their relationship with obesity.
The purpose of this study is to examine the associations of interoception, self-regulation, eating domains and body mass index (BMI) in college …
Body Fluid Identification Using Dna Extraction Waste Product, Rachel M. Tolces
Body Fluid Identification Using Dna Extraction Waste Product, Rachel M. Tolces
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
In many situations, the amount of DNA evidence recovered at a crime scene is at trace levels, limiting the amount of testing that can be done on the evidence. Because genetic profiling is generally considered the most imperative assay to be completed on a DNA sample, in situations where yield is low, DNA extracts may not be utilized for any other purpose. Fortunately, an alternate source of DNA may exist by utilizing the waste products resulting from DNA extraction.
The goal of this project was to a protocol for recovery of DNA from robotic extraction waste and utilizing this DNA …
Insights To Protein Pathogenicity From The Lens Of Protein Evolution, Janelle Nunez-Castilla
Insights To Protein Pathogenicity From The Lens Of Protein Evolution, Janelle Nunez-Castilla
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
As protein sequences evolve, differences in selective constraints may lead to outcomes ranging from sequence conservation to structural and functional divergence. Evolutionary protein family analysis can illuminate which protein regions are likely to diverge or remain conserved in sequence, structure, and function. Moreover, nonsynonymous mutations in pathogens may result in the emergence of protein regions that affect the behavior of pathogenic proteins within a host and host response. I aimed to gain insight on pathogenic proteins from cancer and viruses using an evolutionary perspective. First, I examined p53, a conformationally flexible, multifunctional protein mutated in ~50% of human cancers. Multifunctional …
Serpin-Derived Novel Peptide For The Treatment Against Hiv-Induced Inflammation In The Central Nervous System, Yemmy Soler
Serpin-Derived Novel Peptide For The Treatment Against Hiv-Induced Inflammation In The Central Nervous System, Yemmy Soler
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
In the brain, HIV predominantly infects microglia/macrophages and astrocytes to a lesser extent. These cells form virus reservoirs with low levels of infection that are very hard to eradicate. Even though the use of cART increases survival rate in HIV patients, the virus persists as a chronic condition. cART is not able to effectively cross the BBB, control HIV replication, or attenuate inflammation in brain reservoirs. Therefore, the virus still causes neuronal dysfunction, pain-related pathology, and ultimately HAND. In this study, we decided to test the hypothesis that a serpin-derived small peptide, SP16, can serve as an anti-viral, anti-inflammatory, pro-survival, …
Hydration Status, Association Of Body Composition And Bone Mass In Children And Adolescents, Priscilla Kay Clayton
Hydration Status, Association Of Body Composition And Bone Mass In Children And Adolescents, Priscilla Kay Clayton
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The objective of this study was 1) to evaluate which foods or beverages are significantly associated with an objective marker of hydration status (USG), to examine the association between hydration status or total fluid intake with body fat % and fat-free mass (FFM) (2) and bone mineral density (BMD) and bone mineral content (BMC) (3) in children (10-13y) and adolescents (18-20y). Intake was assessed from three 24-hour dietary recalls and analyzed using the Nutrition Data System for Research (NDSR). Hydration status was objectively measured using USG via 24-hour urine collection and body composition and all bone parameters were measured using …
Development Of Electrochemical Aptamer-Based Sensors For Sensitive And Specific Detection Of Small-Molecule Targets, Yingzhu Liu
Development Of Electrochemical Aptamer-Based Sensors For Sensitive And Specific Detection Of Small-Molecule Targets, Yingzhu Liu
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Electrochemical aptamer-based (E-AB) sensors have been applied for diverse applications such as forensic science, pharmaceutical diagnostics, food safety, environmental monitoring, and personal medical care due to their rapid, accurate, and specific detection of analytes in complex samples. However, limited sensitivity and a lack of portable devices for point-of-care applications have greatly hindered the maturation of E-AB sensors from proof-of-concept designs to commercial systems. This dissertation describes several novel strategies to improve the sensitivities of E-AB sensors and fabricate portable paper-based devices to remedy these problems. We first detail the development of a novel approach to utilize a defined mixture of …
Exonuclease Digestion Assay For Streamlining Aptamer Characterization, Engineering, And Sensor Development, Juan Canoura
Exonuclease Digestion Assay For Streamlining Aptamer Characterization, Engineering, And Sensor Development, Juan Canoura
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Aptamers are DNA or RNA oligonucleotide-based bioreceptors isolated in vitro through the Systematic Evolution of Ligands by Exponential Enrichment. Given the ease with which a selection can be customized, aptamers can be evolved to function in nearly any chemical environment, making them tailormade for their final application. However, the post-SELEX characterization of the 100-1000’s aptamer candidates remains a significant bottleneck as there are no suitable techniques for high-throughput characterization of each candidate’s affinity/specificity. Moreover, the final aptamer must be engineered to possess signal reporting functionality; this is often done via trail-and-error truncation to yield a structure-switching aptamer. This dissertation describes …
Developing And Validating Open Source Tools For Advanced Neuroimaging Research, Taylor Salo
Developing And Validating Open Source Tools For Advanced Neuroimaging Research, Taylor Salo
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Almost all scientific research relies on software. This is particularly true for research that uses neuroimaging technologies, such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). These technologies generate massive amounts of data per participant, which must be processed and analyzed using specialized software. A large portion of these tools are developed by teams of researchers, rather than trained software developers. In this kind of ecosystem, where the majority of software creators are scientists, rather than trained programmers, it becomes more important than ever to rely on community-based development, which may explain why most of this software is open source. It is …
In Silico Characterization Of Protein-Protein Interactions Mediated By Short Linear Motifs, Heidy Elkhaligy
In Silico Characterization Of Protein-Protein Interactions Mediated By Short Linear Motifs, Heidy Elkhaligy
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Short linear motifs (SLiMs), often found in intrinsically disordered regions (IDPs), can initiate protein-protein interactions in eukaryotes. Although pathogens tend to have less disorder than eukaryotes, their proteins alter host cellular function through molecular mimicry of SLiMs. The first objective was to study sequence-based structure properties of viral SLiMs in the ELM database and the conservation of selected viral motifs involved in the virus life cycle. The second objective was to compare the structural features for SliMs in pathogens and eukaryotes in the ELM database. Our analysis showed that many viral SliMs are not found in IDPs, particularly glycosylation motifs. …
Investigating Trophic Interactions, Habitat Use, And Pollution Loads Of Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops Truncatus) In The Florida Coastal Everglades, Valeria A. Paz
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Cetaceans can feed at upper trophic levels and occur from freshwater to open-ocean ecosystems. Due to their abundance, mobility, and high metabolic rates, they have the potential to affect the structure and function of ecosystems through both top-down and bottom-up pathways. To better understand what ecological roles they may play in a system, it is important to understand patterns and drivers of their abundance, habitat use, and trophic interactions. I investigated the trophic interactions, pollutant exposure, and factors influencing habitat use of common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) of the Florida Coastal Everglades. Based on bulk stable isotope analysis …
The Role Of Conformational Changes In Viral And Bacterial Protein Functions, Md Lokman Hossen
The Role Of Conformational Changes In Viral And Bacterial Protein Functions, Md Lokman Hossen
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Proteins do versatile work in cells. They require a cascade of structural changes to perform different tasks like binding to the other neighboring biomolecules, transporting small chemicals, activating a chemical reaction, etc. The structural conformations of proteins can be critical in changing their working ability. In this dissertation, I investigated the role of conformational changes of viral protein, e.g., spike and envelope protein of SARS-CoV-2, and bacterial protein, e.g., multidrug transporter and toxic extrusion protein- PfMATE from Pyrococcus furiosus. Also, I performed molecular docking-based drug screening targeting the E protein to suggest a set of drugs that can be repurposed …
Discovery Of First-In-Class Small Molecule Agonists Of The Rxfp2 Receptor As Therapeutic Candidates For Osteoporosis, Maria Esteban Lopez
Discovery Of First-In-Class Small Molecule Agonists Of The Rxfp2 Receptor As Therapeutic Candidates For Osteoporosis, Maria Esteban Lopez
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Osteoporosis is a chronic bone disease characterized by decreased bone mass and increased risk of developing fractures, predominantly observed in the elderly. The pathophysiological cause of the disease is a decrease in the activity of the bone-forming cells (osteoblasts) that alters bone remodeling in favor of bone resorption, leading to a decrease in bone mass. Recent studies identified the relaxin family peptide receptor 2 (RXFP2), the G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) for insulin-like 3 peptide (INSL3), as an attractive target expressed in osteoblast cells to increase bone formation. The goal of this dissertation is to discover and characterize small molecule agonists …
Host Modulation Of Cytoplasmic Incompatibility In Drosophila Simulans, A J M Zehadee Momtaz
Host Modulation Of Cytoplasmic Incompatibility In Drosophila Simulans, A J M Zehadee Momtaz
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Wolbachia are one of the most widespread bacterial endosymbionts, infecting mites, crustaceans and filarial nematodes as well as about half of all insect species. The prevalence of Wolbachia in nature results from its ability to manipulate the host reproduction to favor the success of infected females. The best-known reproductive modification induced by Wolbachia is sperm-egg cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI). In CI, the sperm of Wolbachia-infected males cause embryonic lethality in crosses with uninfected females, which is attributed by paternal chromatin segregation defect in early mitotic divisions. The embryos of Wolbachia-infected females can “rescue” CI lethality, bringing the egg hatch …
The Patterns Of Occurrence, Management, And Behavioral Ecology Of Fish Spawning Aggregations In Southeast Florida, Benjamin Binder
The Patterns Of Occurrence, Management, And Behavioral Ecology Of Fish Spawning Aggregations In Southeast Florida, Benjamin Binder
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The formation of fish spawning aggregations (FSAs) is an essential life history process for more than 150 species worldwide. Decades of research have provided a wealth of information to describe FSA dynamics, but there are many regions where their occurrence, behavior, and susceptibility to environmental variation remain uncharacterized. Even in regions that host an extensive research infrastructure such as South Florida, a standardized survey program to locate, validate, and monitor FSAs has not been established. This dissertation addresses those shortcomings in several ways. First, I present a comprehensive synthesis of available FSA literature from the region, which was combined with …
Understanding Exosomal Extracellular Vesicles And Morphine In The Neuropathology Of Human Immunodeficiency Virus And Differential Zika Virus Strain-Associated Pathology, Allen Caobi
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Exosomal Extracellular Vesicles (xEVs), integral to intercellular communication and regulation of immune responses, have functional effects based on their contents, which they transport to neighboring cells. However, in the context of infection, EV cargo can be modulated, by either infected or uninfected cells. We hypothesize that CNS-associated neuropathology, is partially, due to the cargo transported by the exosomes. We theorize that the cargo released from infected cell-derived xEVs may either facilitate or inhibit viral neuropathogenicity. Here we investigated xEVs in the case of two neurotropic viruses, Zika virus (ZIKV) and Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). The hallmark characteristic of ZIKV-infection is …
The Utilization Of Volatile Organic Compounds And Human Leukocyte Antigen Genes For Ethnic-Specific Differentiation Within Target Populations, Alice Breia Boone
The Utilization Of Volatile Organic Compounds And Human Leukocyte Antigen Genes For Ethnic-Specific Differentiation Within Target Populations, Alice Breia Boone
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Human scent has been previously defined as a complex mixture of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) detected in the headspace above a scent sample. Humans generate odor from several areas of the body including hair, mouth, hand, axillae, and foot. Due to the novelty of human scent research, human scent evidence has been undervalued in the court of law. However, this type of evidence has significant value when physical evidence is not available at crime scenes. To increase the individualization and differentiation power of human scent evidence, this study aimed to further investigate the identification of chemical signatures within axillae of …
An Investigation To Corroborate Volatile And Biological Profiles Of Human Odor For Forensic Subject Identification, Chantrell J.G. Frazier
An Investigation To Corroborate Volatile And Biological Profiles Of Human Odor For Forensic Subject Identification, Chantrell J.G. Frazier
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Hands are an integral part in transferring complex microbial communities to and from our surroundings. As a result, hands are significant in provenance investigations as specific microbiota can be deposited on everyday objects through touch interactions. Skin microbiome, including bacteria, fungi, and viruses, are unique to each person, and this ‘uniqueness’ can be exploited and applied to forensic identification. Skin microbiota and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are closely related due to specific bacteria breaking down non-volatile organic compounds to volatile organic compounds that are characteristically present in human scent. However, analyses of microbiota from touch interactions have proven to be …
Development Of A Microwave-Based Dna Extraction Method To Increase The Success Of Direct And Rapid Pcr Technique, Fabiana Taglia
Development Of A Microwave-Based Dna Extraction Method To Increase The Success Of Direct And Rapid Pcr Technique, Fabiana Taglia
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The goal of this project was to develop a fast, microwave-based extraction technique that could be employed for direct and rapid DNA analysis. The hypothesis was that the use of a microwave could increase the yield of DNA by opening the cell membrane, rendering the DNA available without the use of any other chemical treatment, and improving results from very low quantity samples.
At present rapid human DNA analysis is mainly restricted to genotyping saliva and sometimes blood samples. We hypothesized that microwave processing could expand the types of samples assessable to these procedures and increase sensitivity.
There were two …
A Multi-Taxa Metagenomic Evaluation Of The Everglades Soil Microbiome And The Impact Of Salinity On Community Structure And Biogeochemical Cycles With A Soil Forensic Application, Deidra Christina Jordan
A Multi-Taxa Metagenomic Evaluation Of The Everglades Soil Microbiome And The Impact Of Salinity On Community Structure And Biogeochemical Cycles With A Soil Forensic Application, Deidra Christina Jordan
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Coastal wetlands, such as the Everglades, are increasingly being exposed to stressors that have the potential to modify their existing ecological processes because of global climate change. Their soil microbiomes include a population of organisms that are important for biogeochemical cycling, but continual stresses can disturb the community's composition, causing functional changes. The Everglades features wetlands with varied salinity levels, implying that they contain microbial communities with a variety of salt tolerances and microbial functions. Therefore, it's critical to track the effects of stresses on these populations in both freshwater and brackish marshes. The study addressed this by first constructing …
A Machine Learning Framework For Identifying Molecular Biomarkers From Transcriptomic Cancer Data, Md Abdullah Al Mamun
A Machine Learning Framework For Identifying Molecular Biomarkers From Transcriptomic Cancer Data, Md Abdullah Al Mamun
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Cancer is a complex molecular process due to abnormal changes in the genome, such as mutation and copy number variation, and epigenetic aberrations such as dysregulations of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA). These abnormal changes are reflected in transcriptome by turning oncogenes on and tumor suppressor genes off, which are considered cancer biomarkers.
However, transcriptomic data is high dimensional, and finding the best subset of genes (features) related to causing cancer is computationally challenging and expensive. Thus, developing a feature selection framework to discover molecular biomarkers for cancer is critical.
Traditional approaches for biomarker discovery calculate the fold change for each …
Observation To Action: A Stakeholder Driven Analysis And Assessment Of A Data-Limited Fishery, Carissa L. Gervasi Bloom
Observation To Action: A Stakeholder Driven Analysis And Assessment Of A Data-Limited Fishery, Carissa L. Gervasi Bloom
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Translational ecology defines a collaborative effort among scientists and stakeholders with the goal of rapidly translating environmental problems into action. This approach can be applied in a fisheries management context when information needed to inform regulations is unavailable, yet conservation concerns exist. My dissertation research uses a translational ecology framework to assess the stock status and develop research priorities for the Crevalle Jack (Caranx hippos), an unregulated and data-poor fish species, by collaborating with recreational fishing guides in the Florida Keys, U.S.A. In chapter II, I used interview data that compiled veteran fishing guide knowledge to develop hypotheses …
Signal Detection Analyses Of The Relation Of Prospective And Retrospective Metacognitive Judgments, Ali Pournaghdali
Signal Detection Analyses Of The Relation Of Prospective And Retrospective Metacognitive Judgments, Ali Pournaghdali
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Tip-of-the-tongue states (TOT) and feeling-of-knowing judgments (FOK) are metacognitive experiences about the possibility of future retrieval of information when recall fails. Studies show that experiencing a TOT or a high FOK increases the possibility of correct retrieval of missing information, which demonstrates metacognitive sensitivity. However, evidence for metacognitive sensitivity of TOT and FOK mainly derives from measures that conflate metacognitive sensitivity with metacognitive bias. Moreover, no study has evaluated the influence of TOT and FOK judgments on the unbiased metacognitive sensitivity of other metacognitive experiences and judgments, in this case, confidence judgments.
In this study, I used general recognition theory …
Population Ecology Of A Caribbean Epiphyte Trichocentrum Undulatum (Orchidaceae): Defining Habitat And The Effects Of Herbivory And Hurricanes At Its Peripheral And Core Range, Haydee Borrero
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Population ecology studies are central to species conservation. My dissertation focused on the Florida state-listed endangered orchid, Trichocentrum undulatum at its northern-most range in the Everglades National Park (ENP), Florida and multiple populations throughout its core range in Cuba. Through surveying populations of T. undulatum across this range from 2013-2021, I made a new reporting on the occurrence of a specialized insect herbivore, Melanagromyza miamensis in Cuba (Chapter 1). This flower-crippling herbivore was previously known only in the ENP. With this discovery I assess the intensity and impacts of this herbivore, as well as others on T. undulatum across the …
Evaluating Changes In Visible To Short-Wave Infrared Spectral Reflectance Of Arctic Mosses In Response To Experimental Drying To Find The Best Predictors Of Moisture Content, Steven L. Unger
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Mosses are a dominant understory component in the Arctic and because of sparse canopy cover, contribute to spectral signals used in remote sensing estimates of various ecologically important characteristics such as productivity, phenology, and vegetation mapping. However, little is known about their contributions to community level spectra or how moisture content influences those spectral signals. Unlike vascular plants, mosses cannot actively regulate moisture content and are highly susceptible to desiccation. Previous research has shown that moss reflectance is sensitive to tissue moisture content. Here, a lab-controlled drying experiment was conducted to identify the best spectral predictors of moisture content of …
Aptamer-Based Voltammetric Biosensing For The Detection Of Codeine And Fentanyl In Sweat And Saliva, Rosa Lashantez Cromartie
Aptamer-Based Voltammetric Biosensing For The Detection Of Codeine And Fentanyl In Sweat And Saliva, Rosa Lashantez Cromartie
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Despite the many governmental and medicinal restrictions created to combat the opioid epidemic in the United States, opioid abuse and overdose rates continue to rise. The development of an aptamer-based voltammetric sensor and biosensor is described in this dissertation. The aim was to develop a low-cost, sensitive, and specific aptamer-based sensor for on-site, label-free determination of codeine and fentanyl in biological fluids. To do this, the surfaces of screen-printed carbon electrodes (SPCE) were modified with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), followed by the addition of single-stranded DNA aptamers. These were covalently bound to the electrode surface. Operations of the sensors were collected …