Life Sciences Commons^™

Β-Sheets Mediate The Conformational Change And Allosteric Signal Transmission Between The Aslov2 Termini, Sian Xiao, Mayar Terek Ibrahim, Gennady M. Verkhivker, Brian D. Zoltowski, Peng Tao

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Avena sativa phototropin 1 light-oxygen-voltage 2 domain (AsLOV2) is a model protein of Per-Arnt-Sim (PAS) superfamily, characterized by conformational changes in response to external environmental stimuli. This conformational change begins with the unfolding of the N-terminal A'α helix in the dark state followed by the unfolding of the C-terminal Jα helix. The light state is characterized by the unfolded termini and the subsequent modifications in hydrogen bond patterns. In this photoreceptor, β-sheets are identified as crucial components for mediating allosteric signal transmission between the two termini. Through combined experimental and computational investigations, the Hβ …

Mapping California Rice Using Optical And Sar Data Fusion With Phenological Features In Google Earth Engine, Li Wenzhao, Hesham El-Askary, Daniele C. Struppa

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

California, known for its diverse agriculture, is also a major producer of rice, especially in its northern regions in Sacramento River Valley. Traditional methods, predominantly reliant on optical-based satellite imagery, encounter limitations due to atmospheric interference and sensor resolution. The ability of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) to penetrate atmospheric distortions and exhibit high sensitivity to vegetation structure presents a distinct advantage over optical-based methods. Utilizing Optical and SAR data fusion, this study advances the enhanced pixel-based phenological feature composite (Eppf) method using SVM classification algorithm, which can track phenological changes and patterns, providing valuable insights for agricultural planning and management. …

Novel Allosteric Effectors Targeting Human Transcription Factor Tead, Mayar Terek Ibrahim, Gennady M. Verkhivker, Jyoti Misra, Peng Tao

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

The Hippo pathway is an evolutionary conserved signaling network involved in several cellular regulatory processes. Dephosphorylation and overexpression of Yes-associated proteins (YAPs) in the Hippo-off state are common in several types of solid tumors. YAP overexpression results in its nuclear translocation and interaction with transcriptional enhanced associate domain 1-4 (TEAD1-4) transcription factors. Covalent and non-covalent inhibitors have been developed to target several interaction sites between TEAD and YAP. The most targeted and effective site for these developed inhibitors is the palmitate-binding pocket in the TEAD1-4 proteins. Screening of a DNA-encoded library against the TEAD central pocket was performed experimentally to …

From Deep Mutational Mapping Of Allosteric Protein Landscapes To Deep Learning Of Allostery And Hidden Allosteric Sites: Zooming In On “Allosteric Intersection” Of Biochemical And Big Data Approaches, Gennady M. Verkhivker, Mohammed Alshahrani, Grace Gupta, Sian Xiao, Peng Tao

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

The recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning have driven the design of new expert systems and automated workflows that are able to model complex chemical and biological phenomena. In recent years, machine learning approaches have been developed and actively deployed to facilitate computational and experimental studies of protein dynamics and allosteric mechanisms. In this review, we discuss in detail new developments along two major directions of allosteric research through the lens of data-intensive biochemical approaches and AI-based computational methods. Despite considerable progress in applications of AI methods for protein structure and dynamics studies, the intersection between allosteric …

Dissecting Mutational Allosteric Effects In Alkaline Phosphatases Associated With Different Hypophosphatasia Phenotypes: An Integrative Computational Investigation, Fei Xiao, Ziyun Zhou, Xingyu Song, Mi Gan, Jie Long, Gennady M. Verkhivker, Guang Hu

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Hypophosphatasia (HPP) is a rare inherited disorder characterized by defective bone mineralization and is highly variable in its clinical phenotype. The disease occurs due to various loss-of-function mutations in ALPL, the gene encoding tissue-nonspecific alkaline phosphatase (TNSALP). In this work, a data-driven and biophysics-based approach is proposed for the large-scale analysis of ALPL mutations-from nonpathogenic to severe HPPs. By using a pipeline of synergistic approaches including sequence-structure analysis, network modeling, elastic network models and atomistic simulations, we characterized allosteric signatures and effects of the ALPL mutations on protein dynamics and function. Statistical analysis of molecular features computed for the …

Structural And Computational Studies Of The Sars-Cov-2 Spike Protein Binding Mechanisms With Nanobodies: From Structure And Dynamics To Avidity-Driven Nanobody Engineering, Gennady M. Verkhivker

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Nanobodies provide important advantages over traditional antibodies, including their smaller size and robust biochemical properties such as high thermal stability, high solubility, and the ability to be bioengineered into novel multivalent, multi-specific, and high-affinity molecules, making them a class of emerging powerful therapies against SARS-CoV-2. Recent research efforts on the design, protein engineering, and structure-functional characterization of nanobodies and their binding with SARS-CoV-2 S proteins reflected a growing realization that nanobody combinations can exploit distinct binding epitopes and leverage the intrinsic plasticity of the conformational landscape for the SARS-CoV-2 S protein to produce efficient neutralizing and mutation resistant characteristics. Structural …

Allosteric Determinants Of The Sars-Cov-2 Spike Protein Binding With Nanobodies: Examining Mechanisms Of Mutational Escape And Sensitivity Of The Omicron Variant, Gennady M. Verkhivker

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Structural and biochemical studies have recently revealed a range of rationally engineered nanobodies with efficient neutralizing capacity against the SARS-CoV-2 virus and resilience against mutational escape. In this study, we performed a comprehensive computational analysis of the SARS-CoV-2 spike trimer complexes with single nanobodies Nb6, VHH E, and complex with VHH E/VHH V nanobody combination. We combined coarse-grained and all-atom molecular simulations and collective dynamics analysis with binding free energy scanning, perturbation-response scanning, and network centrality analysis to examine mechanisms of nanobody-induced allosteric modulation and cooperativity in the SARS-CoV-2 spike trimer complexes with these nanobodies. By quantifying energetic and allosteric …

Conformational Flexibility And Local Frustration In The Functional States Of The Sars-Cov-2 Spike B.1.1.7 And B.1.351 Variants: Mutation-Induced Allosteric Modulation Mechanism Of Functional Dynamics And Protein Stability, Gennady M. Verkhivker

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Structural and functional studies of the SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins have recently determined distinct functional states of the B.1.1.7 and B.1.351 spike variants, providing a molecular framework for understanding the mechanisms that link the effect of mutations with the enhanced virus infectivity and transmissibility. A detailed dynamic and energetic analysis of these variants was undertaken in the present work to quantify the effects of different mutations on functional conformational changes and stability of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. We employed the efficient and accurate coarse-grained (CG) simulations of multiple functional states of the D614G mutant, B.1.1.7 and B.1.351 spike variants to characterize …

Dimeric Allostery Mechanism Of The Plant Circadian Clock Photoreceptor Zeitlupe, Francesco Trozzi, Feng Wang, Gennady M. Verkhivker, Brian D. Zoltowski, Peng Tao

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

In Arabidopsis thaliana, the Light-Oxygen-Voltage (LOV) domain containing protein ZEITLUPE (ZTL) integrates light quality, intensity, and duration into regulation of the circadian clock. Recent structural and biochemical studies of ZTL indicate that the protein diverges from other members of the LOV superfamily in its allosteric mechanism, and that the divergent allosteric mechanism hinges upon conservation of two signaling residues G46 and V48 that alter dynamic motions of a Gln residue implicated in signal transduction in all LOV proteins. Here, we delineate the allosteric mechanism of ZTL via an integrated computational approach that employs atomistic simulations of wild type and …

Multidecadal Analysis Of Beach Loss At The Major Offshore Sea Turtle Nesting Islands In The Northern Arabian Gulf, Rommel H. Maneja, Jeffrey D. Miller, Wenzhao Li, Rejoice Thomas, Hesham El-Askary, Sachi Perera, Ace Vincent B. Flandez, Abdullajid U. Basali, Joselito Francis A. Alcaria, Jinoy Gopalan, Surya Prakash Tiwari, Mubarak Al-Jedani, Perdana K. Prihartato, Ronald A. Loughlan, Ali Qasem, Mohamed A. Qurban, Wail Falath, Daniele Struppa

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Undocumented historical losses of sea turtle nesting beaches worldwide could overestimate the successes of conservation measures and misrepresent the actual status of the sea turtle population. In addition, the suitability of many sea turtle nesting sites continues to decline even without in-depth scientific studies of the extent of losses and impacts to the population. In this study, multidecadal changes in the outlines and area of Jana and Karan islands, major sea turtle nesting sites in the Arabian Gulf, were compared using available Kodak aerographic images, USGS EROS Declassified satellite imagery, and ESRI satellite images. A decrease of 5.1% and 1.7% …

Allosteric Regulation At The Crossroads Of New Technologies: Multiscale Modeling, Networks, And Machine Learning, Gennady M. Verkhivker, Steve Agajanian, Guang Hu, Peng Tao

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Allosteric regulation is a common mechanism employed by complex biomolecular systems for regulation of activity and adaptability in the cellular environment, serving as an effective molecular tool for cellular communication. As an intrinsic but elusive property, allostery is a ubiquitous phenomenon where binding or disturbing of a distal site in a protein can functionally control its activity and is considered as the “second secret of life.” The fundamental biological importance and complexity of these processes require a multi-faceted platform of synergistically integrated approaches for prediction and characterization of allosteric functional states, atomistic reconstruction of allosteric regulatory mechanisms and discovery of …

Long-Term Ndvi And Recent Vegetation Cover Profiles Of Major Offshore Island Nesting Sites Of Sea Turtles In Saudi Waters Of The Northern Arabian Gulf, Rommel H. Maneja, Jeffrey D. Miller, Wenzhao Li, Hesham El-Askary, Ace Vincent B. Flandez, Joshua J. Dagoy, Joselito Francis A. Alcaria, Abdullajid U. Basali, Khaled A. Al-Abdulkader, Ronald A. Loughland, Mohamed A. Qurban

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Vegetation is an important ecological component of offshore islands in the Arabian Gulf (AG), which maintains long-term resilience of these islands. This is achieved by influencing sediment retention and moisture acquisition via condensation during periods of high humidity and by providing a variety of microhabitats for island fauna. The resilience of offshore islands’ ecosystems in the Saudi waters is important because they host the largest number of nesting hawksbill and green turtles in the AG. This study defines the characteristics and the long-term trends in vegetation cover of the offshore islands used by sea turtles as nesting grounds in the …

Regional Forest Volume Estimation By Expanding Lidar Samples Using Multi-Sensor Satellite Data, Bo Xie, Chunxiang Cao, Min Xu, Barjeece Bashir, Ramesh P. Singh, Zhibin Huang, Xiaojuan Lin

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Accurate information regarding forest volume plays an important role in estimating afforestation, timber harvesting, and forest ecological services. Traditionally, operations on forest growing stock volume using field measurements are labor-intensive and time-consuming. Recently, remote sensing technology has emerged as a time-cost efficient method for forest inventory. In the present study, we have adopted three procedures, including samples expanding, feature selection, and results generation and evaluation. Extrapolating the samples from Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) scanning is the most important step in satisfying the requirement of sample size for nonparametric methods operation and result in accuracy improvement. Besides, mean decrease Gini …

Remote Sensing Monitoring Of Vegetation Dynamic Changes After Fire In The Greater Hinggan Mountain Area: The Algorithm And Application For Eliminating Phenological Impacts, Zhibin Huang, Chunxiang Cao, Wei Chen, Min Xu, Yongfeng Dang, Ramesh P. Singh, Barjeece Bashir, Bo Xie, Xiaojuan Lin

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Fires are frequent in boreal forests affecting forest areas. The detection of forest disturbances and the monitoring of forest restoration are critical for forest management. Vegetation phenology information in remote sensing images may interfere with the monitoring of vegetation restoration, but little research has been done on this issue. Remote sensing and the geographic information system (GIS) have emerged as important tools in providing valuable information about vegetation phenology. Based on the MODIS and Landsat time-series images acquired from 2000 to 2018, this study uses the spatio-temporal data fusion method to construct reflectance images of vegetation with a relatively consistent …

Estimating Live Fuel Moisture Using Smap L-Band Radiometer Soil Moisture For Southern California, Usa, Shenyue Jia, Seung Hee Kim, Son V. Nghiem, Menas Kafatos

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Live fuel moisture (LFM) is a field-measured indicator of vegetation water content and a crucial observation of vegetation flammability. This study presents a new multi-variant regression model to estimate LFM in the Mediterranean ecosystem of Southern California, USA, using the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) L-band radiometer soil moisture (SMAP SM) from April 2015 to December 2018 over 12 chamise (Adenostoma fasciculatum) LFM sites. The two-month lag between SMAP SM and LFM was utilized either as steps to synchronize the SMAP SM to the LFM series or as the leading time window to calculate the accumulative SMAP SM. …

Coral Reef Change Detection In Remote Pacific Islands Using Support Vector Machine Classifiers, Justin J. Gapper, Hesham El-Askary, Erik Linstead, Thomas Piechota

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Despite the abundance of research on coral reef change detection, few studies have been conducted to assess the spatial generalization principles of a live coral cover classifier trained using remote sensing data from multiple locations. The aim of this study is to develop a machine learning classifier for coral dominated benthic cover-type class (CDBCTC) based on ground truth observations and Landsat images, evaluate the performance of this classifier when tested against new data, then deploy the classifier to perform CDBCTC change analysis of multiple locations. The proposed framework includes image calibration, support vector machine (SVM) training and tuning, statistical assessment …

Integration Of Random Forest Classifiers And Deep Convolutional Neural Networks For Classification And Biomolecular Modeling Of Cancer Driver Mutations, Steve Agajanian, Odeyemi Oluyemi, Gennady M. Verkhivker

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Development of machine learning solutions for prediction of functional and clinical significance of cancer driver genes and mutations are paramount in modern biomedical research and have gained a significant momentum in a recent decade. In this work, we integrate different machine learning approaches, including tree based methods, random forest and gradient boosted tree (GBT) classifiers along with deep convolutional neural networks (CNN) for prediction of cancer driver mutations in the genomic datasets. The feasibility of CNN in using raw nucleotide sequences for classification of cancer driver mutations was initially explored by employing label encoding, one hot encoding, and embedding to …

Assessment Of Agricultural Drought Considering The Hydrological Cycle And Crop Phenology In The Korean Peninsula, Chul-Hee Lim, Seung Hee Kim, Jong Ahn Chun, Menas Kafatos, Woo-Kyun Lee

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Hydrological changes attributable to global warming increase the severity and frequency of droughts, which in turn affect agriculture. Hence, we proposed the Standardized Agricultural Drought Index (SADI), which is a new drought index specialized for agriculture and crops, and evaluated current and expected droughts in the Korean Peninsula. The SADI applies crop phenology to the hydrological cycle, which is a basic element that assesses drought. The SADI of rice and maize was calculated using representative hydrological variables (precipitation, evapotranspiration, and runoff) of the crop growing season. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of SADI, the three-month Standardized Precipitation Index, which …

Using Multi-Indices Approach To Quantify Mangrove Changes Over The Western Arabian Gulf Along Saudi Arabia Coast, Wenzhao Li, Hesham El-Askary, Mohamed A. Qurban, Jingjing Li, K. P. Manikandan, Thomas Piechota

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Mangroves habitat present an important resource for large coastal communities benefiting from activities such as fisheries, forest products and clean water as well as protection against coastal erosion and climate related extreme events. Yet they are increasingly threatened by natural pressure and anthropogenic activities. We observed an inaccurate distribution of mangroves over the Western Arabian Gulf (WAG) which is a vital habitat and resource for the local ecosystem, according to the United Stated Geological Survey (USGS) mangrove database through spectral analysis. Change detection analysis is conducted on mangrove forests along the Saudi Arabian coast of the WAG for the years …

Allosteric Mechanism Of The Circadian Protein Vivid Resolved Through Markov State Model And Machine Learning Analysis, Hongyu Zhou, Zheng Dong, Gennady M. Verkhivker, Brian D. Zoltowski, Peng Tao

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

The fungal circadian clock photoreceptor Vivid (VVD) contains a photosensitive allosteric light, oxygen, voltage (LOV) domain that undergoes a large N-terminal conformational change. The mechanism by which a blue-light driven covalent bond formation leads to a global conformational change remains unclear, which hinders the further development of VVD as an optogenetic tool. We answered this question through a novel computational platform integrating Markov state models, machine learning methods, and newly developed community analysis algorithms. Applying this new integrative approach, we provided a quantitative evaluation of the contribution from the covalent bond to the protein global conformational change, and proposed an …

Ecological Response Of Phytoplankton To The Oil Spills In The Oceans, Danling Tang, Jing Sun, Li Zhou, Sufen Wang, Ramesh P. Singh, Gang Pan

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Oil spills in oceans have substantial influence on marine ecosystems. This study investigates 21 oil spills in the world. Analyzing Chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiomerer (MODIS) data after Penglai oil spills on 4 June 2011, found a bloom with peak value of Chl-a (13.66 mg m⁻³) spread over an area of 800 km² during 18–25 June 2011, and a pronounced increase in the monthly Chl-a concentration (6.40 mg m⁻³) on June 2012 in the Bohai Sea. Out of the 21 oil spills, 14 blooms were observed, while 11 …

Evaluation Of Spatial Generalization Characteristics Of A Robust Classifier As Applied To Coral Reef Habitats In Remote Islands Of The Pacific Ocean, Justin J. Gapper, Hesham El-Askary, Erik J. Linstead, Thomas Piechota

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

This study was an evaluation of the spectral signature generalization properties of coral across four remote Pacific Ocean reefs. The sites under consideration have not been the subject of previous studies for coral classification using remote sensing data. Previous research regarding using remote sensing to identify reefs has been limited to in-situ assessment, with some researchers also performing temporal analysis of a selected area of interest. This study expanded the previous in-situ analyses by evaluating the ability of a basic predictor, Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA), trained on Depth Invariant Indices calculated from the spectral signature of coral in one location …

Estimating Live Fuel Moisture In Southern California Using Remote Sensing Vegetation Water Content Proxies, Shenyue Jia, Seung Hee Kim, Son V. Nghiem, Wonhee Cho, Menas Kafatos

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Wildfires are a major ecological disturbance in Southern California and often lead to great destruction along the Wildland-Urban Interface. Live fuel moisture has been used as an important indicator of wildfire risk in measurements of vegetation water content. However, the limited field measurements of live fuel moisture in both time and space have affected the accuracy of wildfire risk estimations. Traditional estimation of live fuel moisture using remote sensing data was based on vegetation indices, indirect proxies of vegetation water content and subject to influence from weather conditions. In this study, we investigated the feasibility of estimating live fuel moisture …

Curcumin Potentiates The Function Of Human Α7-Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors Expressed In Sh-Ep1 Cells, Eslam El Nebrisi, Lina T. Al Kury, Keun-Hang Susan Yang, Petrilla Jayaprakash, Frank Christopher Howarth, Nadine Kabbani, Murat Oz

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Effects of curcumin, a biologically active ingredient of turmeric, were tested on the Ca²⁺transients induced by the activation of α₇ subunit of the human nicotinic acetylcholine (α₇nACh) receptor expressed in SH-EP1 cells. Curcumin caused a significant potentiation of choline (1 mM)-induced Ca²⁺ transients with an EC₅₀ value of 133 nM. The potentiating effect of curcumin was not observed in Ca²⁺ transients induced by high K⁺ (60 mM) containing solutions or activation of α₄β₂ nACh receptors and the extent of curcumin potentiation was not altered in the presence of …

Atomistic Simulations And Network-Based Modeling Of The Hsp90-Cdc37 Chaperone Binding With Cdk4 Client Protein: A Mechanism Of Chaperoning Kinase Clients By Exploiting Weak Spots Of Intrinsically Dynamic Kinase Domains, John Czemeres, Kurt Buse, Gennady M. Verkhivker

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

A fundamental role of the Hsp90 and Cdc37 chaperones in mediating conformational development and activation of diverse protein kinase clients is essential in signal transduction. There has been increasing evidence that the Hsp90-Cdc37 system executes its chaperoning duties by recognizing conformational instability of kinase clients and modulating their folding landscapes. The recent cryo-electron microscopy structure of the Hsp90-Cdc37- Cdk4 kinase complex has provided a framework for dissecting regulatory principles underlying differentiation and recruitment of protein kinase clients to the chaperone machinery. In this work, we have combined atomistic simulations with protein stability and network-based rigidity decomposition analyses to characterize dynamic …

T-Time: A Data Repository Of T Cell And Calcium Release-Activated Calcium Channel Activation Imagery, Cody Arbuckle, Milton L. Greenberg, Adrienne Bergh, Rene German, Nick Sirago, Erik J. Linstead

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

BACKGROUND: A fundamental understanding of live-cell dynamics is necessary in order to advance scientific techniques and personalized medicine. For this understanding to be possible, image processing techniques, probes, tracking algorithms and many other methodologies must be improved. Currently there are no large open-source datasets containing live-cell imaging to act as a standard for the community. As a result, researchers cannot evaluate their methodologies on an independent benchmark or leverage such a dataset to formulate scientific questions.

FINDINGS: Here we present T-Time, the largest free and publicly available data set of T cell phase contrast imagery designed with the …

Responses Of Agroecosystems To Climate Change: Specifics Of Resilience In The Mid-Latitude Region, Menas Kafatos, Seung Hee Kim, Chul-Hee Lim, Jinwon Kim, Woo-Kyun Lee

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

This study examines the productivity and resilience of agroecosystems in the Korean Peninsula. Having learned valuable lessons from a Chapman University project funded by the United States Department of Agriculture which concentrated on the semi-arid region of southwestern United States, our joint Korea—Chapman University team has applied similar methodologies to the Korean Peninsula, which is itself an interesting study case in the mid-latitude region. In particular, the Korean Peninsula has unique agricultural environments due to differences in political and socioeconomic systems between South Korea and North Korea. Specifically, North Korea has been suffering from food shortages due to natural disasters, …

Synergistic Use Of Remote Sensing And Modeling To Assess An Anomalously High Chlorophyll-A Event During Summer 2015 In The South Central Red Sea, Wenzhao Li, Hesham El-Askary, K. P. Manikandan, Mohamed A. Qurban, Michael J. Garay, Olga V. Kalishnikova

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

An anomalously high chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) event (>2 mg/m3) during June 2015 in the South Central Red Sea (17.5° to 22°N, 37° to 42°E) was observed using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data from the Terra and Aqua satellite platforms. This differs from the low Chl-a values (<0.5 mg/m3) usually encountered over the same region during summertime. To assess this anomaly and possible causes, we used a wide range of oceanographical and meteorological datasets, including Chl-a concentrations, sea surface temperature (SST), sea surface height (SSH), mixed layer depth (MLD), ocean current velocity and aerosol optical depth (AOD) obtained from different sensors and models. Findings confirmed this anomalous behavior in the spatial domain using Hovmöller data analysis techniques, while a time series analysis addressed monthly and daily variability. Our analysis suggests that a combination of factors controlling nutrient supply contributed to the anomalous phytoplankton growth. These factors include horizontal transfer of upwelling water through eddy circulation and possible mineral fertilization from atmospheric dust deposition. Coral reefs might have provided extra nutrient supply, yet this is out of the scope of our analysis. We thought that dust deposition from a coastal dust jet event in late June, coinciding with the phytoplankton blooms in the area under investigation, might have also contributed as shown by our AOD findings. However, a lag cross correlation showed a two- month lag between strong dust outbreak and the high Chl-a anomaly. The high Chl-a concentration at the edge of the eddy emphasizes the importance of horizontal advection in fertilizing oligotrophic (nutrient poor) Red Sea waters.

Cellular And Molecular Targets Of Menthol Actions, Murat Oz, Eslam El Nebrisi, Keun-Hang Susan Yang, Frank Christopher Howarth, Lina T. Al Kury

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Menthol belongs to monoterpene class of a structurally diverse group of phytochemicals found in plant-derived essential oils. Menthol is widely used in pharmaceuticals, confectionary, oral hygiene products, pesticides, cosmetics, and as a flavoring agent. In addition, menthol is known to have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and analgesic effects. Recently, there has been renewed awareness in comprehending the biological and pharmacological effects of menthol. TRP channels have been demonstrated to mediate the cooling actions ofmenthol. There has been new evidence demonstrating thatmenthol can significantly influence the functional characteristics of a number of different kinds of ligand and voltage-gated ion channels, indicating that at …

Estimation Of The Virtual Water Content Of Main Crops On The Korean Peninsula Using Multiple Regional Climate Models And Evapotranspiration Methods, Chul-Hee Lim, Seung Hee Kim, Yuyoung Choi, Menas Kafatos, Woo-Kyun Lee

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Sustainable agriculture in the era of climate change needs to find solutions for the retention and proper utilization of water. This study proposes an ensemble approach for identifying the virtual water content (VWC) of main crops on the Korean Peninsula in past and future climates. Ensemble results with low uncertainty were obtained using three regional climate models, five potential evapotranspiration methods, and the Environmental Policy Integrated Climate (EPIC) crop model. The productivity results of major crops (rice and maize) under climate change are likely to increase more than in the past based on the ensemble results. The ensemble VWC is …