Life Sciences Commons^™

The Effect Of Dehydration On Metabolism And Energy Substrate Utilization, Zachary Robert Lewis

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to measure hormonal and metabolic markers in humans to see if simulating dehydration would emulate measures that are seen in prediabetic humans. 60 volunteers were divided into equal categories by sex and body mass index of normal or overweight. Participants completed two oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTT) after being intravenously infused with a isotonic or hypertonic saline solution for 120 minutes in a counter balanced order. All trials began with a euhydrated subject with a urine specific gravity (USG)

Gut Microbiota Regulates The Interplay Between Diet And Genetics To Influence Insulin Resistance, Jeralyn Jones Franson

Theses and Dissertations

Insulin resistance and obesity are major public health concerns. The impact of diet and genetics on insulin resistance and obesity is well accepted. Additionally, the gut microbiota has been shown to influence obesity and metabolic disorders. However, much remains to be understood about the role of gut microbiota in the development of insulin resistance and obesity. We utilized a mouse model lacking PAS kinase, a protein involved in cellular metabolism, in order to better understand the relationship between diet, genetics and the gut microbiota. Previous research has shown that mice lacking PAS kinase were protected from the effects of a …

Cold Acclimation Response Of Non-Native Italian Wall Lizard (Podarcis Siculus) Populations From New York And California, Daniel Haro

Master's Theses

Understanding how organisms respond to climatic variability and novel conditions is becoming an increasingly important task for ecologists. For ectotherms in the northern hemisphere, the response to cold is of special interest, considering that poleward range expansion events and increasing variability of temperatures during winter are already being observed as consequences of a warming planet. Though direction of change in physiological variables in response to cold is well studied in ectotherms, the extent to which traits can change and the rate at which they can change is not.

We compared the extent and rate of change in cold tolerance (CT …

Biotransformation Of Resveratrol And Its Implications In Biological Activities In The Colon, Fang Li

Doctoral Dissertations

Resveratrol (RES) is a natural polyphenol compound with a wide range of health-promoting activities, including protective effects against colon cancer and renal disease. However, the premise of these benefits has been dampened since RES shows a poor oral bioavailability due to its rapid and extensive biotransformation after oral consumption. The paradox (low bioavailability but high bioactivity) warrants further investigations to determine the contribution of RES metabolites to the health benefits associated with RES. We identified 11 metabolites of RES in mice with high-resolution HPLC-MS/MS, then quantified two major metabolites - dihydro-resveratrol (DHR) and lunularin (LUN). To further understand the chemopreventative …

Interaction Between Dietary Components And Gut Microbiota And Its Implication In Bioactivities And Metabolism In Colon, Min Gu

Doctoral Dissertations

The microbial cells that colonize the human body, including mucosal and skin environments, are at least as abundant as our somatic cells and certainly contain far more genes than our human genome. Gut microbiota dysbiosis is associated with the onset and progress of several diseases, like diabetes, obesity, inflammatory bowel disease. One of the environmental factor-diet intervention can modulate the compositions of gut microbiota, which in turn may contribute to altered health outcomes such as changes in the risks of chronic diseases. Orange peel has been a traditional herb in China, and some of its compounds has shown health benefits. …

The Effect Of Anoxia On Mitochondrial Function In A Hibernator (Ictidomys Tridecemlineatus), Leah Hayward

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Hibernation protects mammalian tissues against ischemia-reperfusion injury, but the underlying biochemical mechanisms are unknown. I hypothesized that the mechanisms allowing for mitochondrial metabolic flexibility during hibernation permit anoxia tolerance and contribute to tissue ischemia-reperfusion tolerance. I assessed mitochondrial performance before and after five minutes of anoxia in liver mitochondria isolated from thirteen-lined ground squirrels. I compared this anoxia effect among animals that were summer active (SA), or during hibernation (in torpor or interbout euthermia; IBE). Anoxia decreased state 3 respiration in all groups, but mitochondria isolated from torpid squirrels were least affected; these decreases paralleled decreased activity of electron transport …

Integration Of Bmp And Insulin/Igf-1 Signaling Regulates Multiple Homeostatic Functions In Caenorhabditis Elegans, James F. Clark

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The maintenance of homeostatic functions is key to the survival and well-being of an organism. Regulation of homeostasis relies on varied inputs, both intrinsic and extrinsic, to potentiate a web of interconnected signaling relays. Insulin/IGF-1 signaling (IIS) is a well-known regulator of glucose and lipid metabolism, as well as having far reaching effects in other homeostatic mechanisms. On the other hand, bone morphogenetic protein (BMP), a member of the transforming growth factor beta signaling superfamily, is known for its role in differentiation and development, with only recent studies highlighting potential roles in metabolic homeostasis. Here we elucidate new functions for …

Effects Of Polydatin On In Vitro Bovine Embryo Developmental Competence, Metabolism, And Cryopreservation, Corie Marie Owen

Master's Theses

Bovine in vitro produced embryos suffer from poor developmental competence and altered metabolism which hinders their cryotolerance. Overall, the goals of this thesis were to improve oocyte and embryo culture with the antioxidant polydatin and to optimize slow freezing procedures. This thesis was designed as three experiments, and in each experiment, oocytes were aspirated from abattoir ovaries, matured for 23h, fertilized with semen from 1 of 3 bulls, and cultured in synthetic oviductal (SOF) based medium (SCF1) in 38.5 °C in 5% O₂, 5% CO₂ and 90% N₂. Stage 7 blastocysts were stained with Nile …

Role Of Ataxia-Telangiectasia Mutated Kinase In Cardiac Autophagy And Glucose Metabolism Under Ischemic Conditions, Patsy Thrasher

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Ataxia-telangiectasia mutated kinase (ATM), a serine/threonine kinase primarily located in the nucleus, is typically activated in response to DNA damage. Individuals with mutations in ATM gene develop a disease called Ataxia telangiectasia (AT). These individuals are more susceptible to ischemic heart disease and metabolic disorder. Our lab has previously shown that ATM plays a critical role in β-adrenergic receptor (β-AR) - and myocardial infarction (MI)-stimulated myocyte apoptosis and cardiac remodeling. This study tested the hypothesis that ATM plays a critical role in cardiac autophagy and glucose metabolism following MI and ischemia, respectively. Early during MI (4 hours after its onset) …

Local Adaptation Signatures In Thermal Performance Of The Temperate Coral Astrangia Poculata, Hannah Elise Aichelman

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

The Northern Star Coral (Astrangia poculata) is an understudied temperate scleractinian coral that provides unique opportunities to understand the roles of phenotypic plasticity and local adaptation in coral physiological tolerance limits. Astrangia poculata inhabits hard bottom ecosystems from the northwestern Atlantic to the Gulf of Mexico and withstands an annual temperature range up to 20°C. Additionally, A. poculata is facultatively symbiotic and co-occurs in both symbiotic (“brown”) and aposymbiotic (“white”) states. Here, brown and white A. poculata were collected from Virginia (VA) and Rhode Island (RI), USA and exposed to heat (18-32°C) and cold (18-6°C) temperature assays during …

Ecophysiology Of Oxygen Supply In Cephalopods, Matthew A. Birk

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cephalopods are an important component of many marine ecosystems and support large fisheries. Their active lifestyles and complex behaviors are thought to be driven in large part by competition with fishes. Although cephalopods appear to compete successfully with fishes, a number of their important physiological traits are arguably inferior, such as an inefficient mode of locomotion via jet propulsion and a phylogenetically limited means of blood-borne gas transport. In active shallow-water cephalopods, these traits result in an interesting combination of very high oxygen demand and limited oxygen supply. The ability to maintain active lifestyles despite these metabolic constraints makes cephalopods …

Phosphorylation Impairs Dicer1 Function To Accelerate Aging And Tumorigenesis In Vivo, Neeraj Aryal

Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)

Altered DICER1 protein levels are associated with developmental disorders, infertility, macular degenerative blindness, aging, and cancer in humans. Recently, post-translational regulation of Dicer1 via phosphorylation has been described in C. elegans. Oscillation of Dicer1 phosphorylation to regulate its activity is essential for germ cell development and embryogenesis in worms. These observations led us to posit that Dicer1 protein levels and activity are under tight regulation for normal mammalian homeostasis. To test whether phosphorylation of Dicer1 regulates its activity in mammals, I generated phospho-mimetic knock-in mouse models by replacing Serines 1712 and 1836 with Aspartic acids individually or together (dual …

Pkm2 Influences The Metabolic Fate Of Butyrate In Colorectal Cancer Cells, Megan Louise Pence

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Metabolic Dysregulation: An Investigation Of The Role Of Foxo3 In Gluconeogensis In Pten-Null Glioblastomas, Victor Fanniel

Theses and Dissertations

Many processes are regulated by the Phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase (PI3K) pathway in the cell including cell survival, metabolism, and apoptosis. Increased activation of the PI3K pathway is a hallmark of many cancers which can be oftentimes attributed to the mutation of PTEN, which encodes an enzyme that performs the reverse reaction of PI3K. When PTEN is null-mutated, this creates a constitutively active PI3K pathway and constitutively active AKT. Since AKT phosphorylates conserved residues on FOXO transcription factors to mark them for nuclear export, this renders FOXO inactive. However, new research has provided evidence that FOXO is still present in …

Monitoring Expression Of Metabolic Genes During The Hypoxic Response Of S. Cerevisae, Nikkoli Lueder

Theses and Dissertations

All organisms appear to have the ability to sense and respond to changes in their environment. Hypoxia, or low oxygen, is experienced by many organisms at some point in their life cycle. Some organisms such as S. cerevisiae, a species of yeast, respond by dramatically altering gene expression. The result is that genes needed in the new environment are turned on and unneeded genes are turned off. S. cerevisiae has been used in our study because it shares many genes with other eukaryotes, including humans, so many of our findings are applicable to these organisms. Here, we tried to understand …

Characterizing The Role And Regulation Of Glycogen Metabolism In Dendritic Cell Immune Responses, Phyu Myat Thwe

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Dendritic cells (DCs) are the most potent professional antigen presenting cells (pAPCs) of the immune system and play a fundamental role in coordinating innate and adaptive immune responses. Through the expression of a wide array of pattern recognition receptors (PRRs), such as toll-like receptors (TLRs), DCs recognize a variety of microbial pathogens and infectious stimuli. Stimulation of DCs through TLR ligation results in a rapid series of activation-associated events, termed "maturation," which include the upregulation of surface co-stimulatory molecule expression, inflammatory cytokine secretion, and stimulation of naïve T cells via antigen presentation by MHC molecules.

Activation of DCs through TLRs …

Untangling The Effects Of Biosynthetic And Metabolic Rates On Oxidative Cellular Damage In An Insect Model, Nikki Jihui Gomez

Masters Theses

“Previously, a theoretical model for unravelling the entwined effects of metabolic and biosynthetic rates on oxidative cellular damage accumulation during an animal’s growth period was developed and tested in hornworms (Manduca sexta larvae). In theory, if an animal had unrestricted amounts of energy and a high repair efficiency, they could repair most of the oxidative cellular damage accumulated, regardless of how their metabolic rate varies. However, organisms have a finite amount of energy that is allocated to repair and, during the animal’s development period, a considerable amount of energy goes towards growth eliciting a tradeoff between biosynthesis and repair. …

Cyclic Adenosine Monophosphate Signaling In Mycobacterium Tuberculosis : New Insights Into A Universal Second Messenger, Richard Mcpherson Johnson

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Despite being the focus of intense research for many years Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), the causative agent of tuberculosis (TB), remains the deadliest bacterial pathogen plaguing mankind today. Humans are the sole host and reservoir for Mtb, and Mtb has coevolved closely with its human host for thousands of years. Mtb currently infects over two billion people worldwide and over 1.5 million people die from TB each year, arguably making Mtb the most successful bacterial pathogen on the planet.

Polar Gigantism And Sea Spiders: A Study Of Respiratory Scaling, Steven Joseph Lane

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

All animals must breathe to survive. The types of primary respiratory structures vary across the metazoa, and the overall size and components of these structures scale with body size. The scaling of respiratory structures has been well studied in vertebrate lungs and gills, but very few, if any studies, have looked at it in terms of cutaneous gas exchange, the process where oxygen moves across the outer integument via diffusion. My dissertation has sought to fill this gap in knowledge by studying animals that use cutaneous respiration, and my work has determined both how the components of their respiratory surfaces …

Glycolytic Atp Production Is Required For Innate Mast Cell Activation And Is Limited By Lactic Acid, Which Effectively Reduces Lps-Induced Cytokine Production In Mast Cells And In Vivo, Heather Caslin

Theses and Dissertations

The metabolic pathways required for adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production within the cell are well understood, however recent publications suggest that metabolic pathways are closely linked to immune cell activation and inflammatory diseases. There has been little examination of the metabolic pathways that modulate mast cell activation and the feedback regulator lactic acid. Here we examine metabolic pathways and regulation within mast cells in the context of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and interleukin (IL-33) activation, for which there has been little to no reported studies. First, we examine the effects of lactic acid, previously considered only a by-product of glycolysis and now understood …