Life Sciences Commons^™

Thermoregulatory Responses In Lamprophis Fuliginosis, Michael Ryan

Biology Posters

No abstract provided.

Purification Of Recombinant Spider Silk Protein From Escherichia Coli., Randolph V. Lewis, Justin Jones, Todd Brown

Biology Posters

Spider silk has many applications including human health (sutures, vaccine encapsulations, i.e.) and military usage (underwater Velcro-type fasteners). In order to test these applications, we need large quantities of spider silk protein to use in our experiments. One way to make spider silk is by using Escherichia coli (E. Coli) to produce the protein. E. Coli has many advantages: it can be produced in larger amounts, it is inexpensive to grow, and it can be easily transported. We usually start with a culture mass weighing 4 kg but we are scaling up to produce even greater amounts of product. The …

Conductive Ink Meets Spider Silk, Jay Merrill, Amir Ghazi, Thomas I. Harris, Ibrahim Hassounah, Randolph V. Lewis

Biology Posters

Spider silk proteins can be created synthetically and are highly valued for their strength, durability, and flexibility. By altering the genome of goats, silk worms, and the bacteria E. coli we are able to manufacture spider silk products in lab. The production and manipulation of these ‘recombinant spider silk proteins’ along with the process of aqueous solubilization can yield many useful spider silk materials such as films, fibers, gels, coatings, and more. Conductive ink is a recent and popular scientific discovery that let’s you create flexible working circuits. This product has many applications including RFID tags, circuit boards, and printers. …

Development Of Archaeal And Algalytic Bacteria Detection Systems, Andrew Walters, Anna Doloman, Charles Miller

Biology Posters

Natural gas (methane) is emerging as a viable power source for many industrial, commercial, and domestic applications. Bio-methane provides a promising replacement for mined natural gas. Methanogenic bacteria produce this bio-methane. These anaerobic bacteria pertain to the Domain Archaea, and are found in extreme environments where few other bacteria survive. They are employed by Up-Flow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) reactors in the digestion of wastes to a marketable product (methane). The genome of methanogenic bacteria can be amplified using polymerase chain reaction (PCR), a synthetic DNA replication system. This system employs specific sequences of DNA called primers. The primers employed …

From Spider To Silk: Constructions Of Synthetic Genes Of The Acinoform Spider Silk Protein (Acsp1), P. Tate Weller, Samuel T. Briggs, Paula F. Oliveira, Fernando A. Agarraberes, Randy V. Lewis

Biology Posters

Spider silks have remarkable physical properties due to a combination of strength and elasticity. In addition, spider silks are biocompatible and biodegradable. Our laboratory has shown that the strength products, such as fibers, produced with other silk proteins correlates with the size of the silk protein. The aciniform silk (AcSp1), has been shown to produce the thinnest and strongest fibers of all the natural spider silks. Aciniform silk is composed of a nonrepetitive amino-terminal region, 14 repeats of approximately 200 amino acids each, and a nonrepetitive carboxy-terminal region. We have been able to produce different versions of these genes encoding …

Observation Of Fertilized Bovine Oocytes, Tyce Addley, Kenneth Campbell

Biology Posters

Oocytes were extracted from bovine ovaries by perforation of the follicle wall. Oocytes extracted were chosen for culture based on the cumulus-oocyte complex (COC), graded by the density of cumulus cells on a scale of A-D, in vitro fertilization (IVF) was performed on COC’s rated A or B. Healthy COC were placed into a maturation media for incubation at 29 degree C with a 5 percent CO2 air mixture for twenty four hours. After the maturation period the chosen oocytes were fertilized by IVF using frozen/thawed semen from one bull.

Antiviral Drug Sensitivity Of Influenza Virus Isolates Collected From Migratory Birds, Justin D. Moscon, Bart Tarbet

Biology Posters

Aquatic birds are the natural reservoirs of a wide variety of influenza A viruses. Novel influenza strains occasionally emerge from wild bird populations and spread to other species. Historically, pandemic influenza strains crossing over to humans have led to serious outbreaks. The rapid evolution of influenza strains in birds presents a major public health concern. Globalization and intensified agriculture have increased human contact with avian influenzas in the past century. Antiviral drugs effective against influenza are an important part of preparing for outbreaks, as well as common seasonal flu’s. Two major classes of antiviral drugs widely used against influenza are …

Analysis Of Rocky Mountain Snail (Oreohelix Sp.) Dietary Preference, Michael R. Bernard, Joseph S. Wilson

Biology Posters

Rocky Mountain snails in the genus Oreohelix go mostly unnoticed beneath layers of leaf litter in the western Mountain ranges. These snails are most common in rocky foothill habitat that consists of high-density deciduous groves of maple and oak. It is in this habitat where a great number of unobserved feeding behaviors occur. While some research indicates that terrestrial snails may prefer to feed on living plants, it is thought that Oreohelix are detritivores, feeding primarily on decomposing plant matter. In this study we investigated Oreohelix diet by designing a food preference experiment. We provided two food sources (Boxelder maple …

Optimal Fish Feed Quantity For Leatherside Chub Fry, Tyrel Hanson, Eric Wagner

Biology Posters

Leatherside chub are a threatened species and little has been studied concerning how to optimally raise them in a controlled environment. Leatherside’s are susceptible to fungal growth. This makes it difficult to balance how much feed to give the fry for their optimal development. Giving them an excess of feed can cause fungal blooms, which can kill the fry. Our goal was to better understand how much feed fry will eat at different stages of development without creating an excess of feed leading to fungal growth.

Geographic Patterns And Possibility Of Predation, Jennica Blasi

Biology Posters

A poster documenting if lizard and feral cats inhabit the same areas in the St. George, UT region.

Resistive Behaviors Of Spider Silk Nanofibers In Humidity Controlled Environments, Jesse Steadman, Nader Shehata, Ishac Kandas, Ibrahim Hassounah, Randolph V. Lewis

Biology Posters

Spider silk is becoming more useful for its desired properties as more information about the nanostructure is discovered. Due to the fact that this protein is nearly impossible to mass produce directly from the spider, the protein coding gene has been duplicated from the spider genome and inserted into the E. coli, goat, alfalfa, and silkworm genomes. This has allowed us to extract the produced protein from the transgenic hosts at a larger scale than the spiders offer. Spider silk is one of the strongest and most elastic fibers found in nature and these two characteristics, along with others others, …

The Effects Of Wound Healing On Innate Immune Function In Grass Lizards (Takydromus Viridipunctatus), Julianne Wood, Alison Webb, Lorin A. Neuman-Lee, Susannah S. French

Biology Posters

To better understand how an animal’s physiological regulation of the immune system can shift in response to a physical stressor, we investigated changes in immune function and circulating plasma testosterone in response to a cutaneous wound in male grass lizards (Takydromus viridipunctatus).

Use Of A Mouse Model To Evaluate The Effect Of Statins On The Immune Response To An Influenza Virus Vaccine, Calvin Olsen, Bart Tarbet

Biology Posters

Statins are cholesterol lowering drugs that have shown a profound effect on human health by reducing cardiovascular disease. However, two recent publications in the Journal of Infectious Diseases showed that statin use had a negative impact on the influenza vaccine response in elderly individuals [1, 2]. We propose to evaluate the immune response following vaccination in mice undergoing statin treatment. An initial study will determine the therapeutic window for statin treatment of mice fed a lipid-enriched diet. From the literature this window is expected to be between 21-28 days. That therapeutic window will be used for evaluation of the immune …

Initiating A Bird Window Collision Survey On The Logan Main Campus Of Utah State University, Eliza Browning, Kimberly Sulivan

Biology Posters

Bird deaths resulting from window collisions are responsible for over 1 billion deaths annually and are ranked the number one threat to bird populations across the country.

Analyses Of Bordetella Isolates Collected From Turkeys With Respiratory Disease Using Maldi-Tof Mass Spectroscopy And Comparison To A Bordetella Avium Vaccine, Bart Tarbet, J. Barney, L. Mcmillan, A. Mason, E. Gonder, L. Temple, D. Frame

Biology Posters

Bordetella avium has been isolated from turkeys showing clinical signs of respiratory disease and increased mortality in Sanpete County Utah, despite receiving the B. avium vaccine. To determine if recent B. avium isolates are related, or unrelated to the vaccine strain, twenty-five isolates from different time periods and different locations in the U.S. were collected for comparison by MALDI-TOF mass spectroscopy. Spectra were evaluated by MALDI Biotyper software (Bruker Co.) to determine relationships among the clinical isolates. Cluster analysis of the spectra showed four major clusters using the principle component scores for the three spectral peaks in highest abundance. These …

How Vegetation Around Usu Main Campus Impacts Bird-Window Collisions, Brooklyn J. Atkinson, Kimberly A. Sulivan

Biology Posters

A poster detailing the issues and potential solutions for bird-window collisions on USU Main Campus.

Windows: The Number One Killer, Lynnessa Zika

Biology Posters

Windows are the number one killer of birds in America. Following a large number of bird window collisions in the fall of 2015, Utah State University created a committee to decrease the bird window collisions on campus. The BNR building was identified as a building with frequent collisions.

An Environmentally Friendly Conductive Ink Made Using Transgenic Spider Silk Protein And Silver Salts, Amir Ghazi Tabatabaei, Jay Merrill, Randolph V. Lewis, Ibrahim Hassounah

Biology Posters

The goal of this study was to demonstrate that it is possible to formulate an electrically conductive, stretchable and environmentally friendly ink or coating. This is made possible by harnessing the properties of biomimetic spider silk obtained from transgenic goats. In this experiment we formulated four inks using spider silk, silver trifluoroacetate and carbon nanotubes (CNT). We utilized Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), spider silk, natural rubber (Latex) and polystyrene-block-isobutylene-block-styrene(SIS) as substrates to demonstrate the flexible nature of the ink/coating. We then conducted surface characterization using FTIR and SEM to verify the presence of our coating and quantified the thickness of our …

Development Of Elisa Assay For D1327 Adenovirus, Christopher Peterson, Yohichi Kumaki, Dale L. Barnard

Biology Posters

Adenoviruses are a common cause of upper respiratory tract infections in children and the source of acute respiratory disease outbreaks among military recruits. Named after the human adenoid tissue it was first isolated in, the adenoviridae are non-enveloped, double-stranded DNA viruses with over 50 serotypes1. Yet to date vaccines have been developed for only two serotypes, and no adenovirus antiviral drugs have been approved by the FDA, highlighting the need for more research. In virus research, detection the presence of a particular virus is of especial interest when developing animal or cell models. As human pathogens often do not infect …

Social Environment Relationship To Ovary Development Of B.Impatiens, Andy Nguyen, Mariah Panoussi

Biology Posters

Ovary development measures showed that, among pairs of bees isolated from the nest, one female became reproductively dominant and the other bee was reproductively subordinate. There was statistical significance in the difference in average length of the terminal oocytes between the pairs within a petri dish.

Detecting Fitness Trade-Offs Using A Reversion Experiment, Kemyla Sacre, Frank Messina

Biology Posters

No abstract provided.

The Identification And Characterization Of Bacterial Endosymbionts In The Planthopper Family, Issidae (Sternorrhyncha:Fulgoroidea), Lina Ghabayen

Biology Posters

Many insects live on nutrient-poor diets; to compensate, they have evolved obligate associations with microorganisms that are transmitted directly between generations. The bacterial associates of some Hemiptera insects have been identified and understood, but several remain unknown. Our objective is to identify the diversity of bacterial endosymbionts in Issidae using modern microscopy and molecular methods, and compare their identities to known symbionts from related insects. To do so, we will extract DNA from insect samples, amplify bacterial symbiont 16S genes, sub-clone PCR products, sequence the products, and determine their phylogenetic relationships to other insect symbionts and free-living bacteria. Our study …

Arenavirus Glycoprotein-Host Cell Receptor Interactions, Brayden L. Stembridge, Jonna B. Westover, Brady T. Hickerson, Brian B. Gowen

Biology Posters

Pichinde virus (PICV) is an enveloped single-stranded RNA New World arenavirus. The new world arenaviruses are divided into three separate clades designated as A, B, and C. The clade B arenaviruses are known to cause severe viral hemorrhagic fever. The clade A PICV is prevalent in the rodent population of Colombia. PICV is currently designated as a biosafety level-2 (BSL 2) pathogen due to its low pathogenicity in humans. Efforts have been made to identify the cellular receptors utilized by the virus glycoproteins to enter the host cell. Clade B arenaviruses utilize various species-specific forms of Transferrin Receptor 1 to …

Dna Methylation And Stress-Induced Reversions From Asexual To Sexual Seed Formation In Boechera (Brassicacea), Landon Watts

Biology Posters

Apomixis is a form of asexual reproduction that occurs in many plants and animals. Eggs of apomictic plants and animals form by apomeiosis, which means they do not become genetically reduced. Furthermore, these eggs develop into embryos without fertilization. Apomictic plants and animals generally reproduce quickly by making genetic copies of themselves, a trait that would be economically beneficial for perpetuating hybrid vigor if introduced into major seed crops. Metabolic stress induces a reversion from apomixis to sex in many apomicts, and this was recently shown to occur in species of the plant genus Boechera. 1 Transcriptome studies strongly suggest …

Origin And Dynamics Of Adaption In Schizosaccharomyces Pombe: Standing Genetic Cariation Vs. De Novo Mutation, Alexandre Rego

Biology Posters

No abstract provided.

Wolbachia And Sex, Ian J. Aper, Katie Weglarz, Carol Von Dohlen

Biology Posters

Insects with complex life cycles provide an ideal system for investigating the relationship between sex-skewing bacterial symbionts and the secondary loss of sexual reproduction. This research utilized the insect family Adelgidae, a group notorious for having peculiar and complex life cycles. In this family, some species have lost their sexual generation entirely, trapping them in asexual reproduction. Additionally, these insects are known to harbor multiple symbionts, both obligate and facultative. The array of facultative symbionts that have been detected includes the infamous sex-skewing symbiont Wolbachia. This symbiont is known to induce male killing, cytoplasmic incompatibility, and parthenogenesis in insects. Additionally, …

Floral Developmental Stages And Stress-Induced Reversions From Asexual To Sexual Seed Formation In Boechera (Brassiccaceae), Devin Wright

Biology Posters

In the apomictic process, plants produce a genetic copy of themselves by forming genetically-unreduced eggs (2n instead of 1n) that produce embryos parthenogenically, i.e., without fusion of egg and sperm nuclei.

• In some plants such as the Boechera species studies have shown that stressing the apomictic plants caused a reversion from apomeiosis to meiosis1.

• The object of my study is to more fully understand the stage of floral development at which an apomictic plant must be exposed to a stress signal in order to revert from apomictic to sexual reproduction or vice versa.

• Apomixis could be used …

Effectiveness Of Seed Treatments In Reducing Tmv Infection, Tanner A. Robison

Biology Posters

Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV), named for the plant it was first discovered in, can infect hundreds of different species. It has no known invertebrate vectors, but TMV is spread mechanically through contact with other plants, clothes, tools, contaminated soil and seed borne. While TMV is known to be exceptionally stable, it has been reported that treatment of tools with powdered milk can significantly reduce the infection rate of the virus. While there is a seed treatment available for conventional agriculture, there is no seed treatment available for organic production. Organic growers, who grow heirloom tomatoes experience the highest rates of …

Alternate Method Of Phycocyanin Extraction, Will Higham, Matthew Agiro, Jon Y. Takemoto

Biology Posters

Phycocyanin is an abundant protein-pigment complex in many photosynthetic microbes and the feedstock for several emerging products in the food and pharmaceutical industries. The purpose of this project was to research the effectiveness of sonication technology to improve the efficiency and yields of phycocyanin production from the cyanobacterium Spirulina platensis. Sonication is the application of sound energy to agitate and break particles or cells. When used to augment the current methods of phycocyanin production, it has the potential benefit of reducing cell extraction volumes and increasing the yield of phycocyanin. Experiments were conducted to determine the effects of sonication time …

The Identification And Characterization Of Bacterial Endosymbionts In The Planthopper Family, Caliscelidae (Sternorrhyncha: Fulgoroidea, Ghazal Abu-Salim, Kathryn Weglarz

Biology Posters

Plant-sap sucking insects with deficient nutritional diets contain symbiotic microorganisms in a specific organ in the abdomen (bacteriome). Such symbionts were discovered to belong to various bacterial lineages. Ongoing genomic research concluded that these symbiotic organisms provide the essential nutrients that are absent in the insect’s diets such as amino acids and vitamins. While the identities and functions of several sap-sucking lineages have been studied, some lineages such as Fulgoroidea are not understood because recent results failed to confirm the presence of the symbiotic microbes even though older microscopy studies identified microbes in the bacteriomes. The objective of this research …