Life Sciences Commons^™

Competition And Habitat Quality Influence Age And Sex Distribution In Wintering Rusty Blackbirds, Claudia Mettke-Hofmann, Paul B. Hamel, Gerhard Hoffman, Theodore J. Zenzal Jr., Anne Pellegrini, Jennifer Malpass, Megan Garfinkel, Nathan Schiff, Russell Greenberg

Faculty Publications

Bird habitat quality is often inferred from species abundance measures during the breeding and non-breeding season and used for conservation management decisions. However, during the non-breeding season age and sex classes often occupy different habitats which suggest a need for more habitat-specific data. Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus) is a forested wetland specialist wintering in bottomland hardwood forests in the south-eastern U. S. and belongs to the most steeply declining songbirds in the U.S. Little information is available to support priority birds such as the Rusty Blackbird wintering in this threatened habitat. We assessed age and sex distribution and …

The Dynamic Effects Of Sea Level Rise On Low‐Gradient Coastal Landscapes: A Review, Davina L. Passeri, Scott C. Hagen, Stephen C. Medeiros, Matthew V. Bilskie, Karim Alizad

Faculty Publications

Coastal responses to sea level rise (SLR) include inundation of wetlands, increased shore-line erosion, and increased flooding during storm events. Hydrodynamic parameters such as tidal ranges, tidal prisms, tidal asymmetries, increased flooding depths and inundation extents during storm events respond non additively to SLR. Coastal morphology continually adapts toward equilibrium as sea levels rise, inducing changes in the landscape. Marshes may struggle to keep pace with SLR and rely on sediment accumulation and the availability of suitable uplands for migration. Whether hydrodynamic, morphologic, or ecologic, the impacts of SLR are interrelated. To plan for changes under future sea lev-els, coastal …

The Dynamic Effects Of Sea Level Rise On Low-Gradient Coastal Landscapes: A Review, Davina L. Passeri, Scott C. Hagen, Stephen C. Medeiros, Matthew V. Bilskie, Karim Alizad

Faculty Publications

Coastal responses to sea level rise (SLR) include inundation of wetlands, increased shoreline erosion, and increased flooding during storm events. Hydrodynamic parameters such as tidal ranges, tidal prisms, tidal asymmetries, increased flooding depths and inundation extents during storm events respond nonadditively to SLR. Coastal morphology continually adapts toward equilibrium as sea levels rise, inducing changes in the landscape. Marshes may struggle to keep pace with SLR and rely on sediment accumulation and the availability of suitable uplands for migration. Whether hydrodynamic, morphologic, or ecologic, the impacts of SLR are interrelated. To plan for changes under future sea levels, coastal managers …

Biocontrol And Plant Growth-Promoting Activity Of Rhizobacteria From Chinese Fields With Contaminatd Soils, Xuefie Wang, Dmitri V. Mavrodi, Linfeng Ke, Olga V. Mavrodi, Mingming Yang, Linda S. Thomashow, Na Zheng, David M. Weller, Jibin Zhang

Faculty Publications

The aim of this study was to inventory the types of plant growth‐promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) present in the rhizosphere of plants grown in soils contaminated with heavy metals, recalcitrant organics, petroleum sewage or salinity in China. We screened 1223 isolates for antifungal activity and about 24% inhibited Rhizoctonia solani or Sclerotinia sclerotiorum. Twenty‐four strains inhibitory to R. solani, Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici and/or S. sclerotiorum and representing the dominant morphotypes were assayed for PGPR activity. Seven strains contained phlD, prnD, pltC or phzF genes and produced the antibiotics 2,4‐diacetylphloroglucinol, pyrrolnitrin, pyoluteorin and phenazines respectively. Six strains contained acdS, which encodes …

Molecular And Phenotypic Characterization Of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus Isolates Causing Bacteremia At A Major Hospital In Southern Mississippi, Dhritiman Samanta, Justin Batte, Stephanie N. Brown, Angela G. Crosby, Luis A. Marcos, Mohamed O. Elasri

Faculty Publications

Staphylococcus aureus is the predominant cause of bacteremia worldwide. We assessed the molecular epidemiology and antibiotic resistance of methicillin-resistant S aureus isolates causing bacteremia in southern Mississippi. Diverse genetic backgrounds in terms of staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, and multilocus sequence typing types of methicillin-resistant S aureus were identified as causing bacteremia in Mississippi. A strong association of Panton-Valentine leukocidin genes with elevated vancomycin minimum inhibitory concentration is one of the important findings of our study.

Cognitive And Typing Outcomes Measured Simultaneously With Slow Treadmill Walking Or Sitting: Implications For Treadmill Desks, James D. Lecheminant, Michael D. Larson, Kyle Hill, Kaylie Carbine, Travis Masterson, Ed Christenson

Faculty Publications

Purpose

This study compared cognitive (attention, learning, and memory) and typing outcomes during slow treadmill walking or sitting. Seventy-five healthy individuals were randomly assigned to a treadmill walking group (n=37; 23 female) or sitting group (n=38; 17 female).

Methods

The treadmill walking group completed a series of tests while walking at 1.5 mph. The sitting group performed the same tests while sitting at a standard desk. Tests performed by both groups included: the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test and a modified version of the Paced Auditory Serial Attention Test. In addition, typing performance was evaluated.

Results

Participants in the treadmill …

Resin Production In Natural And Artificial Red-Cockaded Woodpecker Cavity Trees, David Kulhavy, Kimberly B. Rozelle, William G. Ross, Daniel Unger, Richard N. Conner

Faculty Publications

Resin flow was measured in red-cockaded woodpecker (Picoides borealis Vieillot) clusters in longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) in the southern region of the Angelina National Forest, Texas. Resin flow (ml) at 1.4 m height over 24 hrs was measured from one 2.5 cm punch through the phloem between 0700 and 1000 hrs from March 1999 to September 2000, for a total of 9 measurements per tree. Resin was sampled in naturally active cavity trees, artificial (insert) active, natural inactive, artificial inactive and control pines (84 sample trees). Resin flow pattern was significantly different during the year, but not significantly different …

Quantifying Land Cover Change Due To Petroleum Exploration And Production In The Haynesville Shale Region Using Remote Sensing, Daniel Unger, I-Kuai Hung, Kenneth W. Farrish, Darinda Dans

Faculty Publications

The Haynesville Shale lies under areas of Louisiana and Texas and is one of the largest gas plays in the U.S. Encompassing approximately 2.9 million ha, this area has been subject to intensive exploration for oil and gas, while over 90% of it has traditionally been used for forestry and agriculture. In order to detect the landscape change in the past few decades, Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) imagery for six years (1984, 1989, 1994, 2000, 2006, and 2011) was acquired. Unsupervised classifications were performed to classify each image into four cover types: agriculture, forest, well pad, and other. Change detection …

Marine Sequestration Of Carbon In Bacterial Metabolites, Oliver J. Lechtenfeld, Norbert Hertkorn, Yuan Shen, Matthias Witt, Ronald Benner

Faculty Publications

Linking microbial metabolomics and carbon sequestration in the ocean via refractory organic molecules has been hampered by the chemical complexity of dissolved organic matter (DOM). Here, using bioassay experiments and ultra-high resolution metabolic profiling, we demonstrate that marine bacteria rapidly utilize simple organic molecules and produce exometabolites of remarkable molecular and structural diversity. Bacterial DOM is similar in chemical composition and structural complexity to naturally occurring DOM in sea water. An appreciable fraction of bacterial DOM has molecular and structural properties that are consistent with those of refractory molecules in the ocean, indicating a dominant role for bacteria in shaping …

Draft Genome Sequence Of The Phenazine-Producing Pseudomonas Fluorescens Strain 2-79, Kai Nesemann, Susanna A. Braus-Stromeyer, Andrea Thuermer, Rolf Daniel, Dmitri V. Mavrodi, Linda S. Thomashow, David M. Weller, Gerard H. Braus

Faculty Publications

Pseudomonas fluorescens strain 2-79, a natural isolate of the rhizosphere of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), possesses antagonistic potential toward several fungal pathogens. We report the draft genome sequnce of strain 2-79, which comprises 5,674 protein-coding sequences.

Engineering Nanoparticles To Silence Bacterial Communication, Kristen P. Miller, Lei Wang, Yung-Pin Chen, Perry J. Pellechia, Brian C. Benicewicz, Alan W. Decho

Faculty Publications

The alarming spread of bacterial resistance to traditional antibiotics has warranted the study of alternative antimicrobial agents. Quorum sensing (QS) is a chemical cell-to-cell communication mechanism utilized by bacteria to coordinate group behaviors and establish infections. QS is integral to bacterial survival, and therefore provides a unique target for antimicrobial therapy. In this study, silicon dioxide nanoparticles (Si-NP) were engineered to target the signaling molecules [i.e., acylhomoserine lactones (HSLs)] used for QS in order to halt bacterial communication. Specifically, when Si-NP were surface functionalized with β-cyclodextrin (β-CD), then added to cultures of bacteria (Vibrio fischeri), whose luminous output depends upon …

Prevalence Of Learned Grapheme-Color Pairings In A Large Online Sample Of Synesthetes, Nathan Withhoft, Jonathan Winawer, David M. Eagleman

Faculty Publications

In this paper we estimate the minimum prevalence of grapheme-color synesthetes with letter-color matches learned from an external stimulus, by analyzing a large sample of English-speaking grapheme-color synesthetes. We find that at least 6% (400/6588 participants) of the total sample learned many of their matches from a widely available colored letter toy. Among those born in the decade after the toy began to be manufactured, the proportion of synesthetes with learned letter-color pairings approaches 15% for some 5-year periods. Among those born 5 years or more before it was manufactured, none have colors learned from the toy. Analysis of the …

First Record Of A Spotted Fever Group Rickettsia Sp. And Theileria Annulata In Hyalomma Dromedarii (Acari: Ixodidae) Ticks In The United Arab Emirates, Mohammad Ali Al-Deeb, Sabir Bin Muzaffar, Yousif Ali Abu-Zeid, Mohamed Rizk Enan, Shahid Karim

Faculty Publications

Rickettsiosis and theileriosis can cause mortalities in camel populations. This study was conducted to achieve 2 objectives: (1) to detect the presence of SFG Rickettsia sp. and Theileria sp. in Hyalomma dromedarii Koch, 1844 (Acari: Ixodidae) ticks and (2) to determine their prevalence in the tick population on the sampled camel farms in Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates (UAE). Camel ticks (H. dromedarii) were collected from a total of 625 one-humped camels (Camelus dromedarius) in 22 sampling locations in Al-Ain, UAE. Tick samples were analyzed by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). An SFG Rickettsia sp., which was 99% …

Regional Patterns In The Otolith Chemistry Of Juvenile Spotted Seatrout (Cynoscion Nebulosus) Differ Under Contrasting Hydrological Regimes, Chet F. Rakocinski, Bruce H. Comyns, Mark S. Peterson, Alan M. Shiller

Faculty Publications

The value of using otolith chemistry to characterize recruitment in terms of natal source regions depends on how consistently spatio-temporal variation can be resolved. The objective of this study was to compare regional classification patterns in the otolith chemistry of juvenile Spotted Seatrout (Cynoscion nebulosus) between two years experiencing disparate hydrological regimes, and separated by a five year interlude. Spatial patterns in the whole-otolith chemistry of juveniles of this estuarine-dependent species were compared between years using five otolith elements and two stable isotopes. Consistent size-related trends in uptake and deposition were evidenced by parallel ontogenetic relationships for six otolith variables. …

First Record Of The Invasive Asian Fish Tapeworm Bothriocephalus Acheilognathi In Honduras, Central America, Guillermo Salgado-Maldonado, Wilfredo A. Matamoros, Brian R. Kreiser, Juan Manuel Caspeta-Mandujano, Edgar F. Mendoza-Franco

Faculty Publications

This paper provides the first report of the invasive Asian fish tapeworm, Bothriocephalus acheilognathi Yamaguti, 1934, in Honduras. The cestode was found in Profundulus portillorum (Cyprinodontiformes: Profundulidae), which represents a new host record, and which is a member of a genus faced with a variety of conservation challenges, now potentially complicated by the presence of this pathogenic cestode. Nearly complete sequence data from the ITS-1 5.8S and ITS-2 regions corroborate the determination based on morphological characteristics. Several species of carp were introduced to Honduras for aquaculture purposes in the early 1980s and the presence of the Asian fish tapeworm in …

Upregulation Of Mir21 And Repression Of Grhl3 By Leptin Mediates Sinusoidal Endothelial Injury In Experimental Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis, Sahar Pourhoseini, Ratanesh K. Seth, Suvarthi Das, Diptadip Dattaroy, Maria B. Kadiiska, Guanhua Xie, Gregory A. Michelotti, Mitzi Nagarkatti, Anna Mae Diehl, Saurabh Chatterjee

Faculty Publications

Sinusoidal endothelial dysfunction (SED) has been found to be an early event in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) progression but the molecular mechanisms underlying its causation remains elusive. We hypothesized that adipokine leptin worsens sinusoidal injury by decreasing functionally active nitric oxide synthase 3 (NOS)3 via miR21. Using rodent models of NASH, and transgenic mice lacking leptin and leptin receptor, results showed that hyperleptinemia caused a 4-5 fold upregulation of hepatic miR21 as assessed by qRTPCR. The upregulation of miR21 led to a time-dependent repression of its target protein Grhl3 levels as shown by western blot analyses. NOS3-p/NOS3 ratio which is controlled …

Seasonal And Interannual Oxygen Variability On The Washington And Oregon Continental Shelves, S. Siedlecki, N. Banas, K. Davis, S. Giddings, B. Hickey, P. Maccready, Thomas Connolly, S. Geier

Faculty Publications

The coastal waters of the northern portion of the California Current System experience a seasonal decline in oxygen concentrations and hypoxia over the summer upwelling season that results in negative impacts on habitat for many organisms. Using a regional model extending from 43°N to 50°N, with an oxygen component developed in this study, drivers of seasonal and regional oxygen variability are identified. The model includes two pools of detritus, which was an essential addition in order to achieve good agreement with the observations. The model was validated using an extensive array of hydrographic and moored observations. The model captures the …

Sex Differences In Whole Body Gait Kinematics At Preferred Speeds, Dustin A. Bruening, R. Frimenko, C. Goodyear, A. Fullenkamp

Faculty Publications

Studies on human perception have identified pelvis and torso motion as key discriminators between male and female gaits. However, while most observers would advocate that men and women walk differently, consistent findings and explanations of sex differences in gait kinematics across modern empirical studies are rare. In the present study we evaluated sex differences in whole body gait kinematics from a large sample of subjects (55 men, 36 women) walking at self selected speeds. We analyzed the data through comparisons of discrete metrics and whole curve analyses. Results showed that in the frontal plane, women walked with greater pelvic obliquity …

Dairy Consumption And Insulin Resistance: The Role Of Body Fat, Physical Activity, And Energy Intake, Larry A. Tucker, Andrea Erickson, James D. Lecheminant, Bruce W. Bailey

Faculty Publications

The relationship between dairy consumption and insulin resistance was ascertained in 272 middle-aged, nondiabetic women using a cross-sectional design. Participants kept 7-day, weighed food records to report their diets, including dairy intake. Insulin resistance was assessed using the homeostatic model assessment (HOMA). The Bod Pod was used to measure body fat percentage, and accelerometry for 7 days was used to objectively index physical activity. Regression analysis was used to determine the extent to which mean HOMA levels differed across low, moderate, and high dairy intake categories. Results showed that women in the highest quartile of dairy consumption had significantly greater …

Satrat: Staphylococcus Aureus Transcript Regulatory Network Analysis Tool, Tamilselvi Gopal, Vijayaraj Nagarajan, Mohamed O. Elasri

Faculty Publications

Staphylococcus aureus is a commensal organism that primarily colonizes the nose of healthy individuals. S. aureus causes a spectrum of infections that range from skin and soft-tissue infections to fatal invasive diseases. S. aureus uses a large number of virulence factors that are regulated in a coordinated fashion. The complex regulatory mechanisms have been investigated in numerous high-throughput experiments. Access to this data is critical to studying this pathogen. Previously, we developed a compilation of microarray experimental data to enable researchers to search, browse, compare, and contrast transcript profiles. We have substantially updated this database and have built a novel …

Data For Sandler Et Al. 2015, Amanda Sandler, Libby Megna, James Hayward, Shandelle Henson, Cynthia Tkachuck, Richard Tkachuck

Faculty Publications

These data are archived for the paper "Every-other-day clutch-initiation synchrony in ring-billed gulls (Larus delawarensis)" by Sandler et al., submitted

If It Pays, It Stays - Rewarding Private Forest Landowners, Steven H. Bullard

Faculty Publications

Article discusses monetizing the "ecosystem services" provided by private landowner forests. It discusses the potential of "workable vehicles" for rewarding landowners of private forest landowners for the many benefits their forests provide.

Stereo Photo Series For Estimating Natural Fuels In The Netherlands Volume 3: Veen, Brian P. Oswald

Faculty Publications

The photo series is a collection of photos and associated field data representing a region of The Netherlands. Volume 3 includes peatland vegetation types located in Northumberland National Park in England. These sites were used to represent those found in The Netherlands since peatlands in the UK are larger and thereby better for the field research. For each vegetation type, sites were sampled with varying fuel loads. The description of the sites consists of a wide-angle site photo, supplemented with field data on the various fuel loads and vegetative layers. The photo series is an important ecological tool to assess …

Loblolly Pine Growth Patterns On Reclaimed Mineland: Allometry, Biomass, And Volume, Jeremy Priest, Jeremy Stovall, Dean Coble, Brian Oswald, Hans Williams

Faculty Publications

Surface lignite coal mines in east Texas are commonly reforested using loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) following mining and reclamation activities. Due to the nature of such an extreme disturbance, altered growth patterns, growth rates, and productivity could be expected. We destructively sampled above- and belowground tissue to develop prediction equations specific to these sites. These prediction equations differed statistically from those found in the literature regarding unmined land. At the stand level, biomass and volume productivity appeared similar with young stands on reclaimed mineland performing slightly poorer than similarly managed unmined sites. Allometric partitioning of above- and belowground biomass …

Effects Of Competing Vegetation On Growth Of Loblolly Pine Plantations In The West Gulf Coastal Plain, Dean W. Coble

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Decomposition Of Three Common Moist-Soil Managed Wetland Plant Species, Daniel P. Collins, Warren C. Conway, Corey D. Mason, Jeffrey W. Gunnels

Faculty Publications

Moist-soil wetland management is used to precisely control delivery, duration, and timing of water addition to, and removal from, managed wetlands with targeted responses including germination and growth of desirable moist-soil plant species. Similarly, water delivery and removal drives decomposition of moist-soil plants as well as nutrient cycling within these systems, which is a key driver of productivity in such managed wetlands. Through deployment of litter bags, we examined rate of mass loss and decay coefficients of three locally abundant moist-soil annual species that are potentially valuable wintering-waterfowl food sources (nodding smartweed Persicaria lapathifolia, red-rooted flatnut sedge Cyperus erythrorhizos …

Integrating Hands-On Undergraduate Research In An Applied Spatial Science Senior Level Capstone Course, David Kulhavy, Daniel Unger, I-Kuai Hung, David Douglass

Faculty Publications

A senior within a spatial science Ecological Planning capstone course designed an undergraduate research project to increase his spatial science expertise and to assess the hands-on instruction methodology employed within the Bachelor of Science in Spatial Science program at Stephen F Austin State University. The height of 30 building features estimated remotely with LiDAR data, within the Pictometry remotely sensed web-based interface, and in situ with a laser rangefinder were compared to actual building feature height measurements. A comparison of estimated height with actual height indicated that all three estimation techniques tested were unbiased estimators of height. An ANOVA, conducted …

Urban Tree Height Assessment Using Pictometry Hyperspatial 4-Inch Multispectral Imagery, Daniel Unger, David Kulhavy, Jeffrey M. Williams, David Creech, I-Kuai Hung

Faculty Publications

Tree height is a critical variable of forest inventory assessments, and estimating the height of trees has been a component of forest inventory assessments for decades. The actual tree height of 60 open-grown baldcypress (Taxodium distichum) trees measured with a telescopic height pole were compared to Pictometry hyperspatial 4-in. multispectral imagery estimated tree height on the campus of Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches, Texas. Linear correlation coefficients (r) between actual tree height and Pictometry-estimated tree height for all 60 trees and the shortest 30 and tallest 30 trees were [1]0.997 for all r values. Pictometry estimated tree …

Morphologic And Taxonomic Analysis Of The Weedy And Cultivated Amaranthus Hybridus Species Complex, Dinesh Adhikary, Donald B. Pratt

Faculty Publications

The hybridus species complex of the genus Amaranthus is a group of weedy and cultivated plants from the New World that are considered difficult to identify. Classification schemes have varied between a single species approach, Amaranthus hybridus s.l., and a five species approach that recognizes the widespread weedy A. hybridus s.s., the South American endemic A. quitensis, and the three cultivated taxa (A. hypochondriacus, A. cruentus, and A. caudatus) as distinct species. The goals of this study were to analyze patterns of floral variation within the species complex and to determine distinguishing morphological features of …

The Frequency Of Ticks Carrying Rickettsia Sp., Sarah C. Canterberry, Daniel J. Bennett, Robert J. Wiggers

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.