Life Sciences Commons^™

Switchgrass For Biomass Feedstock In The Usa, Matt Sanderson, Paul Adler, Akwasi Boateng, Michael Casler, Gautam Sarath

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Switchgrass has received much study for biomass feedstock production and conversion through research funded by the US-DOE and USDA during the past two decades. We have an improved understanding of the adaptation of existing cultivars and new cultivars with yield and adaptation improvements are now appearing. We also have a good understanding of the agronomics of switchgrass production, mainly from its use as a forage crop. There remain several constraints to switchgrass use in bioenergy cropping systems, including reliable establishment methods to obtain productive stands in the first year, targeted fertilization and nutrient management techniques to efficiently use nitrogen fertilizer, …

Untemplated Oligoadenylation Promotes Degradation Of Risc-Cleaved Transcripts, Fadia Ibrahim, Jennifer Rohr, Won-Joong Jeong, Jennifer Hesson, Heriberto D. Cerutti

Center for Plant Science Innovation: Faculty and Staff Publications

In the best-characterized mechanism of RNAmediated silencing, small interfering RNAs (siRNAs), incorporated into the RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC), guide the endonucleolytic cleavage of complementary RNAs (1). In Drosophila melanogaster, these RISC-generated products are eventually degraded by exoribonucleases: Xrn1, a 5′-to-3′ exonuclease, and exosome, a 3′-to-5′ multisubunit exonuclease (2). Interestingly, in Arabidopsis thaliana and in mammals, an oligouridine or oligoadenine [oligo(U/A)] tail is added to the 5′ RNA fragments resulting from microRNA-directed cleavage (3). However, the biological role of this tail remains unclear.

Secis Elements In The Coding Regions Of Selenoprotein Transcripts Are Functional In Higher Eukaryotes, Heiko Mix, Alexey V. Lobanov, Vadim Gladyshev

Vadim Gladyshev Publications

Expression of selenocysteine (Sec)-containing proteins requires the presence of a cis-acting mRNA structure, called selenocysteine insertion sequence (SECIS) element. In bacteria, this structure is located in the coding region immediately downstream of the Sec-encoding UGA codon, whereas in eukaryotes a completely different SECIS element has evolved in the 3’-untranslated region. Here, we report that SECIS elements in the coding regions of selenoprotein mRNAs support Sec insertion in higher eukaryotes. Comprehensive computational analysis of all available viral genomes revealed a SECIS element within the ORF of a naturally occurring selenoprotein homolog of glutathione peroxidase 4 in fowlpox virus. The fowlpox …

Genomeblast: A Web Tool For Small Genome Comparison, Guoqing Lu, Liying Jiang, Resa M. K. Helikar, Thaine W. Rowley, Luwen Zhang, Xianfeng Chen, Etsuko N. Moriyama

Nebraska Center for Virology: Faculty Publications

Background: Comparative genomics has become an essential approach for identifying homologous gene candidates and their functions, and for studying genome evolution. There are many tools available for genome comparisons. Unfortunately, most of them are not applicable for the identification of unique genes and the inference of phylogenetic relationships in a given set of genomes.

Results: GenomeBlast is a Web tool developed for comparative analysis of multiple small genomes. A new parameter called "coverage" was introduced and used along with sequence identity to evaluate global similarity between genes. With GenomeBlast, the following results can be obtained: (1) unique genes in each …

Intsormil’S Global Impact: A Revolution In West African Sorghum Production, Intsormil

INTSORMIL Impacts and Bulletins

Sorghum and pearl millet are the staple grains for millions of people around the world, especially those residing in the semiarid margins of agricultural sustainability. For this reason, INTSORMIL has been working in the semiarid regions of Africa and Central America where it has been helping sorghum and millet farmers achieve the status of surplus grain production and the economic, social and health benefits thus provided. What impact has INTSORMIL had on the lives of these sorghum and millet farmers?

To determine the global impact of the USAID funded INTSORMIL program, Battelle, an independent agency, was chosen to conduct an …

Bovine Immune Response To Shiga-Toxigenic Escherichia Coli O157:H7, Mark A. Hoffman, Christian Menge, Thomas A. Casey, William Laegreid, Brad T. Bosworth, Evelyn A. Dean-Nystrom

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Although cattle develop humoral immune responses to Shiga-toxigenic (Stx⁺) Escherichia coli O157:H7, infections often result in long-term shedding of these human pathogenic bacteria. The objective of this study was to compare humoral and cellular immune responses to Stx⁺ and Stx^- E. coli O157:H7. Three groups of calves were inoculated intrarumenally, twice in a 3-week interval, with different strains of E. coli: a Stx2- producing E. coli O157:H7 strain (Stx2⁺O157), a Shiga toxin-negative E. coli O157:H7 strain (Stx^-O157), or a nonpathogenic E. coli strain (control). Fecal shedding of Stx2⁺O157 was …

Lpe Center News, December 2006

Livestock and Poultry Environmental Learning Center Newsletters

In this issue:

• Integrated Nutrient Management and Limits of the P-Index

• Pathogen Resources Available on the Website

• Quick Start Your Search with Dynamic Bibliographies

• Environmental Management Systems for Agriculture

Does Seed-Caching Experience Affect Spatial Memory Performance By Pinyon Jays?, B. Lucas Stafford, Russell P. Balda, Alan Kamil

Papers in Behavior in Biological Sciences

Food-storing birds use spatial memory to find previously cached food items. Throughout winter, pinyon jays (Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus) rely heavily on cached pinyon pine (Pinus edulis) seeds. Because of a recent severe drought, pinyon pine trees had not produced a significant seed crop for several years. Therefore, 1- and 2-year-old birds never had the opportunity to cache and recover seeds and birds 4 or more years of age had not recovered seeds in 3 years. This study examined whether natural but extreme variability in experience might result in differences in abstract spatial memory ability during a non-cache …

Extended Visions, November/December 2006

Extended Visions Newsletter of ARDC

Contents:
ARDC Director's Comments
ARDC Feature Unit – ARDC Administration
About the People
ASSIST Business Center Focuses on Service
Technology Capabilities at the ARDC
Calendar of Events
Embracing Holiday Nutrition
How We Spent Our Summer at the ARDC
Mead Magnet School Update
FFA “Families”
Nebraska Soybean Day and Machinery Expo Friday, Dec. 8
Upcoming Workshops for Acreage Owners Nebraska Friendly Landscapes
Wanted: Master Gardeners

A New Genus Of Moss-Inhabiting Flea Beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) From The Dominican Republic, Alexander S. Konstantinov, Maria Lourdes Chamorro-Lacayo

USDA Systematic Entomology Laboratory

Kiskeya new genus and two new species (K. baorucae and K. neibae), from the Dominican Republic are described and illustrated. Kiskeya is compared to Monotalla Bechyne, Normaltica Konstantinov, and Clavicornaltica Scherer. Geographic ranges in which Greater Antillean endemics have closest relatives in the Old World are discussed.

Presentation Of The 2006 Asp Distinguished Service Award To Lillian Mayberry, Robin M. Overstreet

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty and Staff Publications

Presentation of the 2006 American Society of Parasitologists Distinguished Service Award to Lillian Mayberry, of the University of Texas at El Paso, at the 11th International Congress of Parasitology in Glasgow, Scotland.

Tadaridanema Delicatus (Schwartz, 1927) N. Gen., N. Comb. (Trichostrongylina: Molineidae) Parasite Of Molossidae Bats, Jorge Falcon-Ordaz, Carmen Guzman-Cornejo, Luis Garcia-Prieto, Scott Lyell Gardner

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty and Staff Publications

On the basis of the revision of the type material of Anoplostrongylus delicatus Schwartz, 1927, and new specimens collected from Tadarida brasiliensis mexicana (Saussure, 1860) in 4 arid localities from Mexico, we describe a new genus (Tadaridanema n. gen.), to which A. delicatus is transferred (as Tadaridanema delicatus (Schwartz, 1927) n. gen., n. comb.). This new genus differs from all other genera included in noplostrongylinae by having ray 2 larger than ray 3. In addition, T. delicatus can be differentiated from the type species of Anoplostrongylus (Anoplostrongylus paradoxus (Travassos, 1918)) because it possess vestibular branches equal in length, cephalic inflation …

Identifying Landscape Scale Patterns From Individual Scale Processes, Andrew J. Tyre, Brigitte Tenhumberg, C. Michael Bull

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Extrapolating across scales is a critical problem in ecology. Explicit mechanistic models of ecological systems provide a bridge from measurements of processes at small and short scales to larger scales; spatial patterns at large scales can be used to test the outcomes of these models. However, it is necessary to identify patterns that are not dependent on initial conditions, because small scale initial conditions will not normally be measured at large scales. We examined one possible pattern that could meet these conditions, the relationship between mean and variance in abundance of a parasitic tick in an individual based model of …

Identification Of A Putative Operon Involved In Fructooligosaccharide Utilization By Lactobacillus Paracasei, Yong Jun Goh, Andrew K. Benson, Vicki Schlegel, Jong-Hwa Lee, Robert W. Hutkins

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

The growth and activity of some Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium strains are stimulated by the presence of nondigestible fructooligosaccharides (FOS), which are selectively fermented by specific intestinal bacteria. Consumption of FOS, therefore, enriches for those bacteria that possess metabolic pathways necessary for FOS metabolism. In this study, a DNA microarray consisting of 7,680 random genomic library fragments of Lactobacillus paracasei 1195 was used to examine genes involved in the utilization of FOS in this organism. Differential expression profiles between cells grown on FOS and those grown on glucose provided a basis for identifying genes specifically induced by FOS. Several of the …

Prebiotic Galactooligosaccharides Reduce Adherence Of Enteropathogenic Escherichia Coli To Tissue Culture Cells, Kari Schoaf, George L. Mulvey, Glen D. Armstrong, Robert W. Hutkins

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Prebiotic oligosaccharides are thought to provide beneficial effects in the gastrointestinal tract of humans and animals by stimulating growth of selected members of the intestinal microflora. Another means by which prebiotic oligosaccharides may confer health benefits is via their antiadhesive activity. Specifically, these oligosaccharides may directly inhibit infections by enteric pathogens due to their ability to act as structural mimics of the pathogen binding sites that coat the surface of gastrointestinal epithelial cells. In this study, the ability of commercial prebiotics to inhibit attachment of microcolony-forming enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) was investigated. The adherence of EPEC strain E2348/69 on HEp-2 …

Index To Volume 74

Nebraska Bird Review

Index to Volume 74 (11 pages)

Abraham, K. 105

Accipiter sp 28-29, 65

Allmand, Matt 40

American Ornithologists' Union 38, 105, 132-133

Amiotte, Sue 4I, 112

Anhinga 71

Ankney, C. D. 105

Armknecht, Henry 25, 40

Aubushon,
Dottie 25
Kathy 25

Audubon. lohn lames 132-133, 136

Austin, J. E. 97

Avocet, American 48,84, 11 7, 142

....

Yellowlegs,
Greater 48, 85, 117
Lesser 48, 66, 85, 117, 129

Yellowthroat, Common 57,68,92, 125, 131, 142

Vi, Chunhui 25

Young, Betty 25

Zahurones, Penny 25

Ziewitz. J. W. 98

Lincoln Fall Field Days

Nebraska Bird Review

The 2006 NOU Fall Field Days were held in and around Lincoln on Sept. 15-17. Our evening meals and programs took place at the Howard Johnson's Motel on Cornhusker Highway,

Our Friday evening speaker was Dr. Paul Johnsgard, who spoke about the Birding Trails website being developed by a committee of the All Bird Consortium, On Saturday afternoon, NOU Librarian Mary Lou Pritchard gave a tour of the current exhibit of her late husband Bud Pritchard's artwork at the Nebraska State Museum in Morrill Hall. Saturday evening Dan Kim spoke on the Whooping Crane Trust activities along the Platte River …

The Nebraska Bird Review Whole Issue December 2006

Nebraska Bird Review

Table of Contents

Fall Field Report, Aug.–Nov. 2006 by W. Ross Silcock....................... 110

Fall Field Days at Lincoln, Sept. 15–17, 2006....................... 128

The Art and Artistic Legacy of Louis Agassiz Fuertes by Paul A. Johnsgard ....................... 132

The 2006 Nebraska Nest Report by Wayne J. Mollhoff ....................... 142

Index to Volume 74....................... 148

Subscription and Organization Information....................... 159

The Art And Artistic Legacy Of Louis Agassiz Fuertes, Paul A. Johnsgard

Nebraska Bird Review

Perhaps some Nebraska birders will not immediately recognize the name Louis Agassiz Fuertes, as he died almost 80 years ago. Yet he influenced the art of bird painting as much as did John James Audubon, and provided wonderful artwork for many major state bird reference books. He also personally tutored George Miksch Sutton, the Nebraska-born artist and biologist who provided the NOU with its Burrowing Owl logo, and who contributed greatly to American ornithology, especially that of the southern Great Plains.

It is interesting that, like John James Audubon, Roger Tory Peterson, and George Miksch Sutton, we would never think …

Ard News December 2006

Agricultural Research Division: News and Annual Reports

Contents:

Comments from the Dean
William G. Whitmore Student Travel Endowment
David H. and Annie E. Larrick Fund, 2007
Undergraduate Honors Research Program
ARD Foundation/Grant Processes
New or Revised Projects September and October 2006
Proposals Submitted for Federal Grants September and October 2006
Grants and Contracts Received for September and October 2006

Ard News December 2006

Agricultural Research Division: News and Annual Reports

CONTENTS:

Comments from the Dean
William G. Whitmore Student Travel Endowment
David H. and Annie E. Larrick Fund, 2007
UNDERGRADUATE HONORS RESEARCH PROGRAM
ARD Foundation/Grant Processes
New or Revised Projects September and October 2006
Proposals Submitted for Federal Grants September and October 2006
Grants and Contracts Received for September and October 2006

Masthead From Nebraska Bird Review December 2006

Nebraska Bird Review

The Nebraska Bird Review is published quarterly by the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union, Inc., as its official journal, and is sent to members not in arrears of dues. Annual subscription rates (on a calendar-year basis only): $15 in the United States, $18 in Canada and $30 in all other countries, payable in advance. Single copies are $4 each, postpaid, in the United States, $5 in Canada, and $8 elsewhere. Send orders for back issues to Mary Lou Pritchard, NOU Librarian, c/o University of Nebraska State Museum, W-436 Nebraska Hall, Lincoln, NE 685880514.

Memberships in the NOU (on a calendar-year basis only): …

The 2006 Nebraska Nest Report, Wayne Mollhoff

Nebraska Bird Review

The drought that began in 1999 continued over most of Nebraska this year, with 7 of the past 8 years receiving lower than normal rainfall. More normal rains fell in April and early May, especially in the central and east, before stopping for most of the summer. Most of the Panhandle and southwest were declared drought disaster areas by early summer, setting the stage in late July for the worst fire season in memory in the Pine Ridge area of the northern Panhandle (Fowler, 2007). Ultimately, 83 of 93 counties were declared part of the drought disaster area. Low water …

Fall Field Report, August-November 2006, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

First, I want to say how much I appreciate observers' responses to my requests for additional details on various sightings, not just rarities, but early and late dates. It's important to have these details for the archives to help future readers and researchers feel more comfortable with records from our era.

Patterns that were apparent included a generally quiet fall for waterfowl (they were all at Lake McConaughy), but excellent numbers of the rarer two scoters (but NO White-winged!) and a surprising 16 Red-necked Grebes. On the other hand, numbers of staging Western Grebes were down significantly, apparently due to …

Molecular Systematics And Population Structure In The North American Endemic Fish Genus Cycleptus (Teleostei: Catostomidae), Michael Lee Bessert

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The overarching theme of this research was to investigate hierarchical levels of relatedness in natural populations of the cycleptid fishes (blue suckers), a widespread genus in North America that is of conservation concern throughout. Phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial DNA sequences revealed that the two described Cycleptus species, C. elongatus and C. meridionalis are not reciprocally monophyletic, yet do not share any haplotypes. Although lineage sorting is incomplete, Bayesian coalescent analyses indicate that the two groups diverged early in the Pleistocene and have been reproductively isolated since. Whether they should be synonymized as C.elongatus and recognized as subspecies is open for …

Factors Influencing Off-Flavor In Beef, Jennie Marie James Hodgen

Department of Animal Science: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Projects were conducted to increase knowledge of liver-like off-flavor origins in muscles from the beef chuck and round. Effects of cooking rate and holding time on off-flavor of various steaks from ten carcasses were determined. Off-flavor from these muscles was lowest when the steaks were cooked slowly (on a 149°C grill versus a 249°C grill) and when held for one hour prior to evaluation. The M. infraspinatus had the least off-flavor, and the M. vastus intermedius had the most intense off-flavor. These data suggest a carcass with one off-flavored muscle is likely to have other off-flavored muscles in the chuck …

Agronomic And Quality Effects In Winter Wheat Of A Gene Conditioning Resistance To Wheat Streak Mosaic Virus, L. A. Divis, R. A. Graybosch, C. J. Peterson, P. Stephen Baenziger, G. L. Hein, B. B. Beecher, T. J. Martin

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Wheat streak mosaic virus (WSMV) is one of the most important diseases limiting winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production in the western Great Plains of North America. There is no known effective WSMV resistance within the primary gene pool of wheat. However, a resistance gene (Wsm1) has been transferred to wheat from a perennial relative, intermediate wheat-grass [Thinopyrum intermedium (Host) Barkworth & DR Dewey]. Nebraska-adapted winter wheat lines carrying Wsm1 were used to characterize the effects of this alien introgression on agronomic and quality traits. Sister-lines from six breeding populations were evaluated under virus-free conditions, …

United States Patent Application Publication: Counter Selection Strategy For Gram-Negative Bacteria, Stephen K. Farrand, Paul E. Staswick, Thomas E. Clemente

Center for Plant Science Innovation: Faculty and Staff Publications

A Gram-negative bacterium useful for genetically engineering plants is provided. The Gram-negative bacterium contains, as part of genome, an inducible regulatory sequence operatively linked to a nucleotide sequence encoding a levansucrase. Alternatively, the Gram-negative bacterium comprises a recombinant nucleic acid construct containing an inducible regulatory sequence operatively linked to a nucleotide sequence encoding a levansucrase. Also provided are recombinant nucleic acid constructs comprising an inducible regulatory sequence operatively coupled to a nucleotide sequence encoding a levansucrase and a method for transforming plants using the Gram-negative bacterium of the present invention.

Nuclec Acds Encoding Pseudomonas Hop Proteins And Use Thereof, Alan Collmer, James R. Alfano, Xiaoyan Tang, C. Robin Buell, Gregory B. Martin

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

The present invention relates to isolated nucleic acid mol ecules encoding a type III—secreted bacterial protein capable of modifying a cell death pathway in a plant cell. One aspect of the present invention involves an isolated nucleic acid molecule having a nucleotide sequence that encodes the HopPtol)2 protein of Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae DC 3000. Expression vectors, host cells, and transgenic plants which include the DNA molecules of the present invention are also disclosed. The nucleic acid mol ecules of the present invention can be used to impart disease resistance to a plant and to make a plant hypersusceptible to …

Trapping Phyllophaga Spp. (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae) In The United States And Canada Using Sex Attractants., Paul S. Robbins, Steven R. Alm, Charles D. Armstrong, Anne L. Averille, Thomas C. Baker, Robert J. Bauernfiend, Frederick P. Baxendale, S. Kris Braman, Rick L. Brandenburg, Daniel B. Cash, Gary J. Couch, Richard S. Cowles, Robert L. Crocker, Zandra D. Delamar, Timothy G. Dittl, Sheila M. Fitzpatrick, Kathy L. Flanders, Tom Forgatsch, Timothy J. Gibb, Bruce D. Gill, Daniel O. Gilrein, Clyde Gorsuch, Abner M. Hammond, Patricia D. Hastings, David W. Held, James L. Holliman, William G. Hudson, Michael G. Klein, Vera L. Krischik, David J. Lee, Charles E. Linn Jr., Nancy J. Luce, Kenna Mackenzie, Catherine M. Mannion, Sridhar Polavarapu, Daniel A. Potter, Daniel A. Potter, Wendell Roelofs, Brian M. Royals, Glenn A. Salsbury, Nathan M. Schiff, David J. Shetlar, Margaret Skinner, Beverly L. Sparks, Jessica A. Sutschek, Timothy P. Sutschek, Stanley R. Swier, Martha M. Sylvia, Neil J. Vickers, Patricia A. Vittum, Richard Weidman, Donald C. Weber, R. Chris Williamson, Michael G. Villani

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

The sex pheromone of the scarab beetle, Phyllophaga anxia, is a blend of the methyl esters of two amino acids, L-valine and L-isoleucine. A field trapping study was conducted, deploying different blends of the two compounds at 59 locations in the United States and Canada. More than 57,000 males of 61 Phyllophaga species (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Melolonthinae) were captured and identified. Three major findings included: (1) widespread use of the two compounds [of the 147 Phyllophaga (sensu stricto) species found in the United States and Canada, males of nearly 40% were captured]; (2) in most species intraspecific male …