Life Sciences Commons^™

Survey Of Visual Opsin Evolution Across Caddisflies (Insecta: Trichoptera), Ashlynn Powell, Jacqueline Heckenhauer, Steffen Pauls, Paul Frandsen

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Caddisflies are a highly diverse order of aquatic insects. As eggs, larvae, and pupae, they occupy freshwater habitats, while as adults, they are generally aerial and terrestrial¹. Such varied environments call for a flexible and complex visual system. Visual systems are controlled by light-sensing molecules called opsins, which are categorized by the wavelength of light they are most sensitive to². In insects, these categories are:

• Long wavelength (LW)
• Short wavelength (SW)
• Ultraviolet wavelength (UV)

Adaptive duplication of opsin genes is the primary mechanism of evolution that allows for greater visual capacity³. While opsins have …

Overcoming Detrimental Potato Fungi In Potato Fields With The Secondary Metabolites Of Naturally Occurring Steptomyces, Hansan Jones, Jacob Anderson, Erik Kemp, Brad Geary, Matthew Madsen, Ryan Stewart

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

• Fungal disease Silver scurf can cause 13% water loss and give poor aesthetic appeal, both of which reduce farmers profits (1,2).
• Pythium leak can result in up to 50% total loss of potatoes in storage (3)
• Streptomyces is the right candidate to mitigate or eliminate these losses because of its ability to survive in soil (4) and its history as a proven biocontrol for other plant pathogens (5).

Rising Recess Temperatures: Quantifying The Cooling Effect Of School Parks, Nicholas Kendall, Xuhui Lee

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Many schools in the US are currently placed in urban heat islands. Children attending these schools are thought to be at greater risk to heat stress related health concerns. We used mobile heat sensors to see if there was a quantifiable difference between the playgrounds and parks within and between two schools with differing park sizes.

Potential Regulation Of Breast Cancer Invasion By Thymidine Kinase 1, Eliza E. Bitter, Rachel M. Morris, Toni O. Mortimer, Kai Barlow, Abigail Schekall, Michelle H. Townsend, Jonathan Skidmore, Brett E. Pickett, Kim L. O'Neill

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women and is largely treatable within the early stages of the disease. However, patient mortality drastically declines as the tumor begins to invade other tissues and metastasize, making aggressive phenotypes especially problematic to treat. Such treatment typically requires an aggressive and decisive multidisciplinary approach. The recent expansion of immunotherapy as a viable treatment option has greatly improved treatment outcomes, especially with aggressive breast cancer phenotypes. Thymidine kinase 1 (TK1) is a DNA salvage pathway enzyme that is highly expressed during S phase and involved in cell cycle repair. Past studies indicated that …

The Metabolic Effects Of Exercise And A Pre-Exercise Snack During A 30-Hour Fast, Katelynn Hales, Hil'ilei Chan, Landon S. Deru, Jake Moss, Bruce W. Bailey Ph.D.

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

As incidence rates of chronic illnesses continue to increase, many pharmacological and lifestyle interventions have been undertaken to pinpoint effective treatment and prevention tools to combat them. One such intervention of recent interest includes the use of fasting. Ketones, a product of fat breakdown, are thought to be a key player in some of the health benefits achieved through fasting. Despite potential benefits, adhering to a fasting regimen can be difficult. While it is generally well-tolerated, some experience negative side effects,² indicating potential issues with long-term adherence. Heilbronn et al. suggest that a small meal on fasting days may be …

Chimeric Claudins Reveal Role In Neural Tube Defects, Wesley Allen, Nathan Beckett, Emma Brenchley, Jacob Wengler, Lauren Hall, Cailey Winn, Meredith Mann, Sion Jung, Spencer Thacker, Rachel May, Dario Mizrachi, Micheal Stark

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Claudins (CLDN), a family of proteins found in the tight junction, play a major role in membrane permeability. While claudin disruption is known to contribute to the formation of neural tube defects (NTD), current research methods rely heavily on a non-specific toxin, CPE, when exploring the importance of CLDNs within neural tube formation. This makes it difficult to identify individual CLDN’s contribution to NTD formation, creating a need for a more specific method.

Staying Hydrated: A Comparative Analysis Of Humectants In Human Skin, Ayden Olsen, Rachel Prince, Craig Reeves, Cassie Peterson, Jason Adams

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Humectants are an important class of compounds that attract and retain water within a cell. When mixed with water to create wetting solutions, humectants can prevent desiccation of cadaveric specimens. Recognizing a relative scarcity of comparative studies analyzing the effects of various wetting solutions on post preservation cadaveric maintenance, we utilized wet-dry analysis in order to compare the effects of four common humectants on water retention in human skin tissue. We created a concentration gradient for each humectant to identify the optimal concentrations of each compound for water retention, after which we compared water retention in tissue at the optimal …

Species Invasion Vs. Abundance In The Northern And Southern Regions Of Lake Powell, Amanda Lebarge, Mark Belk

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Lake Powell is a dynamic system, evidenced by its yearly fluctuations in water level. In the last 20 years, this reservoir has experienced invasions from two different invasive species: the gizzard shard, and quagga mussel. Due to the unique nature of Lake Powell, our research seeks to understand if there were catastrophic effects of these invasions on fish biomass and abundance patterns, and do these impacts vary based on region? We hypothesize that both species will have a major impact in all regions on the native species in Lake Powell; however, the southern region will be more catastrophic.

The Mrna/Protein Relationship Is Fluid And Changes Across Tissue And Diseased States, Jose Humberto Giraldez Chavez, Sam Payne

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

• Cancer is a dysregulated cell
• Molecular typing via DNA/RNA/protein
• Is RNA a proxy for cell?

A Chromosome-Scale Assembly Of The Djulis (Chenopodium Formosanum) Genome, An Emerging Orphan Crop From Taiwan, Peter J. Maughan, Eric N. Jellen, John Sproul, Karol Krak, Tzu-Yun Huang, Tzu Che Lin, Beatriz Navarro Dominguez, Yung-Fen Huang, Kate Jaggi, David E. Jarvis

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Djulis (Chenopodium formosanum Koidz.) is a semi-domesticated Taiwanese native crop. It is a BCD-genome hexaploid (2n = 6x = 54) relative of the Andean-native allotetraploid (AABB) quinoa (C. quinoa). Djulis has been grown in a relatively small area by aboriginal Taiwanese, who use it primarily as a fermentation starter to produce ritual alcoholic beverages. Djulis’ seed protein, like that of quinoa, is complete in terms of its human dietary essential amino acid profile; the seed also offers a wide variety of nutritionally important vitamins and minerals. These nutritional attributes have attracted international attention as a novel, healthy grain option. We …

Improving The Germination Rate Of Gambel Oak (Quercus Gambelii) For Mineland Restoration, Ethan Ostraff, Christopher Miller, April Hulet, Bradley Geary, Kate Ruebelmann, Matthew Madsen

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Quercus gambelii Nutt. (Gambel oak) is an ecologically important species that provides food and shelter for many wildlife species. In areas impacted by disturbance, Q. gambelii is often the first woody perennial species to reestablish (USFS, 2016). The use of this species could be beneficial for the reclamation of mine sites in mountain shrubland areas of the western United States. However, due to the recalcitrant nature of these acorns (i.e. seeds that do not survive after drying or freezing), viability can quickly be lost after the acorns are harvested. Additionally, invasive weevils (Family Curculionidae) infest and kill oak acorns. These …

Does Bathing After Sexual Assault Or Time Elapsed Have A Greater Effect On The Development Of Codis Eligible Dna Profiles?, Emily Black, Sam Payne, Julie Valentine, Leslie Miles

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Which has a greater effect on the development of CODIS eligible DNA profiles from SAKs – bathing/showering status of the victim or time between the assault and examination?

New Treatment For Multiple Sclerosis Could Halt Disease Progression Without Weakening Immune System, Carter Helquist, Dario Mizrachi

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

• Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a debilitating neurological and autoimmune disease in which immune cells cause demyelination of axons in nervous tissue.
• Current treatments for the disease are principally aimed at weakening the immune system to therefore weaken the autoimmune attack on the brain. This leaves patients prone to other sicknesses.
• We seek a treatment that prevents the immune cells from entering the central nervous system (CNS) thereby protecting its cells.
• We can prevent immune cells from entering the CNS by strengthening the blood brain barrier through targeting claudin 5 proteins in the tight junctions.
• This new treatment could mean increased …

Ancestral State Reconstruction Of Oviposition Techniques In New World Stick Insects, Ellie Mcgregor, Jackson Linde, Michael F. Whiting

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Phasmids, commonly known as stick bugs, are unique and interesting creatures, both phenotypically and genotypically. Their cryptic abilities are what draws most people to them, but their oviposition techniques, or how they disperse eggs, has become a new source of interest. While most phasmids are known to flick or drop their eggs from the canopy, there are several other techniques including inserting the eggs into the soil or gluing them to a substrate. New world phasmids have not been thoroughly studied, especially in understanding which technique was ancestral. The purpose of this paper was to construct a phylogenetic tree to …

Whole-Body Vibration Alleviates Symptoms Of Morphine Withdrawal, Gavin C. Jones, Christina A. Small, Dallin Z. Otteson, Scott C. Steffensen

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Whole body vibration at 80 Hz has been shown to blunt neuropathological markers and behavioral symptoms of alcohol dependence Here, we evaluate its ability to ameliorate symptoms of morphine use and withdrawal.

Comparison Of Tardigrade Extraction Methods, Abigail Andros

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

It is a time-consuming process to pick tardigrades for an experiment. The standard method is to add water to the sample, then look through it and pick out tardigrades with a micropipette or small wire loop (Tsujimoto et al. 2015).

The Role Of Cd5 In Cd4+ T Cell Metabolism, Joshua Bennett, Kiara Whitley, Claudia Freitas Phd, Christopher Haynie, Carlos Moreno, Scott Weber

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

T cells serve a key role in the immunological response in the adaptive system. Different receptors present on the T cell have certain roles and are able to either inhibit or stimulate signaling which consequently regulates the function and metabolism of the cell. CD5 is an inhibitory co receptor expressed on the surface of T cells known to regulate thymocyte selection and TCR signaling . Our goal is to better understand the effects of CD5 regulation in metabolism. Using metabolic flux assays, we found that CD5KO naïve T cells have increased glycolysis and mitochondrial respiration in comparison to wild type …

Overcoming Detrimental Potato Fungi With The Secondary Metabolites Of Naturally Occurring Streptomyces In A Greenhouse, Hansan Jones, Jacob Anderson, Erik Kemp, Brad Geary, Matthew Madsen, Ryan Stewart

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

• Fungal disease Silver scurf can cause 13% water loss and give poor aesthetic appeal, both of which reduce farmers profits (1,2).
• Pythium leak can result in up to 50% total loss of potatoes in storage (3).
• Streptomyces is the right candidate to mitigate or eliminate these losses because of its ability to survive in soil (4) and its history as a proven biocontrol for other plant pathogens (5).

Morphological Changes Of The Asian Shore Crab Across Latitudes, Ainslee Mcmullin, Blaine D. Griffen

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

The Asian shore crab, Hemigrapsus sanguineus , is an invasive species that has rapidly spread across the Eastern United States coastline. First observed in North America in 1988, its range currently extends from Maine to North Carolina. H. sanguineus has adapted very well to this region and has displaced several native species as the dominant crab in rocky intertidal habitats. Although the Asian shore crab’s biology and interactions with native species has been well studied, larger scale impacts (economic, potential further spread, community ecology, etc.) are under researched. We collected specimen samples of H. sanguineus throughout its entire East coast …

A Ketogenic Diet Enhances Hippocampal Mitochondrial Efficiency, Cali E. Warren, Erin R. Saito, Benjamin T. Bikman

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Mitochondrial dysfunction and cognitive impairment are common symptoms in many neurologic disorders, as well as in nonpathological aging. Ketones have been suggested as therapeutic for their relevance in epilepsy and other neurodegenerative diseases and psychiatric disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, schizophrenia, and major depressive disorder.

Reviewing The Effects Of Human-Induced Limb Damage In Crabs, Jacob B. Spencer, Blaine D. Griffen

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Limb damage in crabs comes in various forms, each with unique consequences. Brachyuran crabs shed limbs as a defensive reflex, with natural breakage occurring along a plane, otherwise known as autotomy. In addition to autotomy, crabs commonly lose limbs due to fishing practices such as declawing. In many areas, taking the limbs and releasing the crab is a common practice. The logic is that the populations won’t decline if the crab is put back. Other practices such as nicking, or cutting the main claw tendon, are used to restrict claw movement. Various effects of these fishery practices have been documented …

Validity Of Ultrasound Imaging For Intrinsic Foot Muscle Cross-Sectional Area Measurements Demonstrated By Strong Agreement With Mri, Dallin C. Swanson, Joshua K. Sponbeck, Derek A. Swanson, Connor D. Stephens, Steven P. Allen, Ulrike H. Mitchell, James D. George, A. Wayne Johnson

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Intrinsic foot muscles maintain foot structural integrity and contribute to functional movement, posture and balance Thus, assessing intrinsic foot muscle size and strength are important One way to assess strength of a muscle is by measuring its cross sectional area ( Magnetic resonance imaging ( and ultrasound ( are two modalities allowing for visualization of these muscle bodies MRI has been shown to accurately image the individual muscles but is costly and time consuming US imaging may provide an alternative that is less costly and more readily available The purpose of this study was to investigate the validity and reproducibility …

Rangeland Legacies Of Utah, Ethan Ostraff, Amber Johnson, Samuel Knuth, Rebecca Black

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

In the heart of Utah lies a rich history of rangeland sciences and land use. Ephraim, Utah and the surrounding mountains and valleys have long been a valuable source of shelter and food for the peoples that have inhabited the region. Bands of Paiute and Ute Native Americans called this valley home until the 1850’s when Scandinavian pioneers began settling it. European settlers brought farming techniques that transformed the landscape.

Male And Female Victims Experience Different Types Of Sexual Assault, Carolyn Allen, Samuel Payne, Julie Valentine

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Intro:

• Sexual assault kits (SAKs) contain forensic evidence and are collected following an assault
• Most research on SAK processing has been done with combined male and female assaults
• 10% of victims are male
• There is lots of research on female victims, but very little research on male victims

Polymer Coated Urea Microplastics: Sweet Corn, Benjamin T. Geary, C. J. Seely, B. G. Hopkins

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

• Polymer Coated Urea (PCU) is beneficial for providing the food, fuel, and fiber needed for the nearly 8 billion people on earth.

• Microplastics, from a wide range of waste materials, pollute water bodies.

• One potential source of microplastics are from PCU fertilizers if the coatings are transported overland into water bodies.

• Various agricultural application methods vary in potential for surface runoff.

Objective • Determine the microplastic concentrations from runoff water for strip injection, surface unincorporated, and broadcast incorporated application in sweet corn.

Low-Cost Prosthetic Feet For Underserved Populations: A Comparison Of Gait Analysis And Mechanical Stiffness, Kaleigh Renninger, Brevin Banks, Dustin A. Bruening

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

• Lower limb loss is an ongoing cause of disability throughout the world.
• Despite advancements in prosthetic technologies, there are numerous underserved populations in need of effective low-cost prosthetic foot options.

In-Class Evolution Discussions Change Bible Interpretation, Jessica Abele

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Conflict between religion and evolution is a major barrier for religious biology students. Educators have been working to increase evolution acceptance by using a variety of methods (e.g., increasing evolution knowledge, addressing creationism in class, etc.) with little success. However, recent research shows using a reconciliatory approach to evolution and religion increases evolution acceptance while overall religiosity is unaffected (Lindsay et al., 2019).

Genes Critical For Flagellar Motility In Agrobacterium Fabrum, Audrey Memmott, Joel Griffitts

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

The flagellum contains 24 structural proteins that are vital for bacterial motility and virulence (Liu). Additionally, these structural proteins must be assembled in the correct order and orientation for a bacterium to be motile via its flagellum (Armitage). Our current knowledge regarding the flagellum is limited, however, because the majority of it comes from studies focused on Escherichia coli. To increase existing knowledge regarding the flagellum and the genes vital for its functionality, we attempted to define all the genes vital for flagellar motility in A. fabrum by analyzing motility when specific genes are disrupted.

Dietary And Energetic Trends Of The Invasive Asian Shore Crab, Tanner Reese, Blaine D. Griffen

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

The Asian shore crab, Hemigrapsus sanguineus , is an invasive crab species that lives on the East Coast of the United States. It has become an important part of its invaded ecosystems and their energetic interactions. We studied this species’ energetics to better understand how they vary across season and latitude.

• The ratio of gut width to carapace width (“standardized gut size”) is indicative of long term diet quality in crabs (a larger gut corresponds to a lower average diet quality) (Griffen & Mosblack 2011)
• We measured standardized gut size and gut energy content to examine how this species’ diet …

The Effects Of Exercise On Inflammatory Biomarkers Over A 36-H Fast, Austin F. Duersch, Bruce W. Bailey, Landon S. Deru, Jacob Coleman, Hunter Chamberlain, Spencer Cleverly

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2022

Diet-induced chronic inflammation has become a popular point of discussion over recent years in lifestyle medicine as studies have uncovered the effects that inflammation markers have on chronic diseases including heart disease, diabetes, and arthritis. Each time we eat, an immune response is stimulated resulting in increased levels of inflammatory biomarkers.1,2 Interventions to help lower inflammation could help promote longevity and decrease risk of chronic diseases. This study assessed the impact of an acute 36h fast with and without exercise at the beginning on inflammatory biomarkers IL-6, C-peptide, GIP, MCP-1, and TNF-alpha.