Life Sciences Commons^™

Effect Of Salinity On Glycogen Content In The Brine Shrimp, Artemia Salinas, Of Great Salt Lake, Christon H. Merkley

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

The brine shrimp, Artemia salinas, is one of the few organisms to be found in the hostile environment of the Great Salt Lake. Salt concentrations in the lake are found to exceed those in the oceans. In such an environment, the utilization of energy, even after it has been procured, presents a problem. The life inhabiting the lake has developed extraordinary adaptations to this and similar problems.

Electron micrographs produced by Dr. Nabil Youssef of Utah State University have revealed that unusual quantities of glycogen can be found in the muscle of brine shrimp taken from the Great Salt Lake. …

Forestry Report, P. Sims, G. Steneker, K. Fronting, C. Kirby, P. Van Eck, H. Johnson, N. Walker, R. Bohning, L. Carlson, I. Bella, W. Johnstone, R. Waldron, L. Brace

Aspen Bibliography

No abstract provided.

Integration Of Forage Production And Range Improvement In The Irrigated Gezira Scheme In The Sudan, Abdel Gader Ahmed Osman

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The Gezira is an area of land, a part of the Democratic Republic of the Sudan, which lies between the Blue Nile and the White Nile. The area extends in a triangular shape from the junction of the two Niles at Khartoum on the north to the city of Sennar on the south (Figure 1). The area of this extremely flat plain is approximately two million hectares, one million of which are irrigable. It is considered the largest farm under one management in the world (Barbour, 1961).

Determining A Crop Production Function For Corn As Influenced By Irrigation And Salinity Levels, Timothy E. Sullivan

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Production functions were generated for dry matter and grain yields of corn, A continuous variable plot design replicated four times was established in the spring of 1974 in Vernal, Utah. Each replication included ten salt treatments and twenty irrigation levels. The salt treatments resulted in an average root zone salinity ranging from 2 . 7 to 14.9 mmhos/cm. Irrigation levels ranged from 4.2 to 45.0cm of water applied. Dry matter (Kg/ha) yield showed an 83 percent reduction over the range of salt applied and a 52 percent reduction over the range of water applied. Grain yield declined 96 and 64 …

The Effect Of Environment And Cultural Practices On The Cold Hardiness Of Peach Wood, Larry A. Sagers

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Studies were conducted to better understand the effect of temperature, photoperiod, cultural practices, and growth regulators on the hardening and dehardening of peach tree wood.

Greenhouses were constructed to control temperatures to which peach trees were exposed. It was noted that hardening and dehardening usually followed the temperature fluctuation fairly closely. However, trees exposed to temperatures above 60 F (15.6 C) became hardy to 0 F (-17.8 C).

A photoperiodic response in regard to an increase or decrease in hardiness was not definitely observed in peach wood. Extended photoperiod did not produce any significant effect on hardiness. Defoliation, bloom date, …

An Interregional Competition Study Of Utah Agriculture Using The Linear Programming Technique, Douglas Lee Andersen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purposes of this paper were to inventory the available agricultural production resources in Utah, to determine how those resources could be allocated most efficiently, and to provide information to aid the crop and livestock producing sectors in Utah in making informed production and marketing decisions.

Utah was divided into eight agricultural production and product consumption regions and the rest of the country was regionalized into product supply and market areas. Input and output coefficients, production costs, and market prices for the major Utah crop and livestock production enterprises and their products were developed. A linear program was then used …

Effect Of Zinc Nutriture And Contraceptive Steroid Injection On Body Composition Of Young Female Rats, Sang Ai Hahn

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Forty-nine female rats initially weighing about 95 grams were used in this experiment to determine the effect of contraceptive hormones on body composition in zinc deficient and zinc supplemented rats. Four treatment groups were: 2 ppm of dietary zinc with daily contraceptive steroid injections, or with placebo injection, and 140 ppm of dietary zinc with contraceptive steroid injection or with placebo. The daily injected steroids consisted of 0.1ug of Ethynyl Estradiol and 0.1mg of Medroxyprogesterone in 0.1ml of corn oil. Non-hormone treated groups received 0.1ml of plain corn oil. All injections were administered into the Gluteus Maximus muscle. Food intake, …

Nitrogen Fixation In Arid Western Soils, Robert Charles Rychert

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Nitrogen fixation by blue-green algae-lichen crusts from South Curlew Valley, Utah, in the Great Basin Desert, was studied using the acetylene reduction technique. A molar ratio of 3 moles C₂H₄ produced/mole of N₂ fixed was used to estimate nitrogen (N₂) fixation by acetylene reduction. Nostoc was found to be present in many of the lichen thalli examined microscopically. Crust nitrogen fixation decreased rapidly below -1/3 bar pressure (water potential) which indicated that nitrogen fixation occurs only when the crust is wet. This would suggest that most of the crust nitrogen fixation in the Great …

Influence Of Environment And Cultural Practices On Rest, Cold Hardiness, And Abscisic Acid Concentration Of Gleason Elberta Peach Buds, Ronald H. Walser

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The effects of temperature, defoliation, light, and certain fall cultural practices on rest and hardiness of Gleason Elberta peach buds were studied. The influence of these factors on abscisic acid concentration in peach buds and a possible role of ABA in rest and hardiness of peach buds were also investigated.

Peach leaf buds enter rest in early fall, reach a rest intensity peak in early winter, then break rest as a chilling requirement is met. Complete defoliation before rest has begun will cause some leaf and flower buds to grow, while defoliation after rest has begun will not cause visible …

Monoamine Oxidase As A Target Enzyme In Pineal And Testicular Tissue: Adrenal Cortical Steroids And Arginine Vasotocin, Randall James Merrill

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of the research was twofold: (a) To ascertain what effects the adrenal glucocorticoids and catecholamines have on pineal N-acetyltransferase and monoamine oxidase activity, and (b) to observe what effect arginine vasotocin (a pineal polypeptide) has on testicular monoamine oxidase activity.

Rat pineal N-acetyltransferase activity was numerically increased when rats were injected with cortisol. It was increased significantly when the animals were injected with cortisol plus norepinephrine. Adrenal demedullation significantly increased N-acetyltransferase activity in starved rats when compared with intact control animals. Moreover, bovine pineal monoamine oxidase activity was markedly inhibited in a dose-dependent manner when incubated in vitro …

Regulation Of Rabbit Testicular Capsular Motility: The Interaction Of Prostaglandins, Acetylcholine And Sympathomimetic Agents, James L. Hargrove

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The regulation of the contractility and intratesticular pressure of rabbit testes was studied. The effects of, and interactions among, prostaglandins (PGs) E₁ and F_2α testosterone, acetylcholine, epinephrine and norepinephrine were ascertained both in vitro and in vivo. All of these compounds, except for high concentrations of PGE₁ and testosterone, stimulated the testicular capsule to contract. PGE₁ at low concentrations potentiated the contractions produced by epinephrine and acetylcholine. Above 10^-7M, PGE₁ inhibited contractions caused by PGF_2α epinephrine or acetylcholine. Testosterone inhibited contractions caused by PGF_2α in vitro.

Preinjections of rabbits …

Factors Relating To Diapause In The Alfalfa Weevil Parasite Bathyplectes Curculionis (Thomson), David S. Parrish

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Biological and ecological factors regulating diapause in the ichneumonid parasite of the alfalfa weevil, Bathyplectes curculionis (Thomson), were studied. In most experiments, both parasites and weevil larvae were maintained in the environmental conditions under study from the emergence of the adult parasite until the evaluation of results.

The factors either preventing or inducing diapause in B. curculionis were found to be an interaction of environmental factors. A long scotophase with cool temperatures prevented diapause. The percentage of nondiapausing parasites increased as the scotophase was increased to 15 hours. Over 15 hours of scotophase, fewer nondiapausing parasites were produced. The optimum …

Seedling Rust Of Safflower -- Its Influence On The Performance Of Selected Varieties And Partial Hybrids, Jon James Jensen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Rust-infested and uninfested seedlots of 14 safflower (Carthamus tinctorius) entries (4 resistant lines, 4 moderately or fully susceptible lines, and six F₁ hybrids from crosses between rust-susceptible females and rust-resistant males), were planted in replicated field trials. The four infested entries resistant to seedling rust incited by Puccinia carthami Cda. exhibited average stand losses of 2.4, 8.4, 18.4, and 27.7%. Stand reduction in the resistant entries was not greater than the inherent compensating ability of the surviving plants; consequently, the yield of these entries was not significantly reduced. Plots from the rusted seedlots of the moderately and …

Carbon, Nitrogen And Algal Biomass In Cold Desert Soil Crusts, Mary Cleave Vogelsberg

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The algal biomass, total organic carbon, total nitrogen and percent soil moisture of soil crusts for a ten month period are presented for the Curlew Valley region of northern Utah. The estimates establish a significant relationship among these parameters.

A method involving chlorophyll extraction to determine the biomass of soil algae has been developed, and from this method the following conclusions are suggested: the revegetation of soil surfaces by algal crusts after lethal treatment, without physical disruption, appears to be rapid; there is no apparent relationship between the amount of algal biomass and the type of vascular vegetation present.

The Reproductive Cycle Of Male Uinta Ground Squirrels And Its Relationship To Pineal N-Acetyltransferase And Monoamine Oxidase In The Testes, Hypothalamus And Pituitary, Robert Alexander Palmer

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A study was made of the reproductive cycle of male Uinta ground squirrels (Spermophilus armatus) during the activity seasons of 1973 and 1974 and during the aestivation/hibernation (A/H) period of 1973-1974. Physiological data collected were compared to changes in monoamine oxidase (MAO) activity of the testes, pituitary and hypothalamus and to pineal N-acetyltransferase activity.

Male Uinta ground squirrels began emerging from their burrows on April 12, 1973, and April 8, 1974, with average body weights of 302 g and 301 g, respectively. Body weight did not increase greatly during breeding, but rose rapidly to over a 500 g …

A Fine-Structural Study Of Aberrant Meiotic Cytokinesis In An Autosomal Male Sterile Mutant (Ms(2)3r) Of Drosophila Melonogaster, Laura J. Laughran

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The ultrastructure of abnormal meiotic cytokinesis in an autosomal male sterile mutant of Drosophila melanogaster is described. In the mutant ms(2)3R mitotic cytokinesis proceeds normally, but abnormal meiotic divisions give rise to four spermatids developing in one cytoplasmic mass. The contractile ring which is responsible for cell constriction during cytokinesis appears to form and function normally during meiosis. Ring canals which form intercellular bridges between synchronously developing spermatids are also apparently normal. However, there is an apparent adhesion and subsequent disintegration of the furrow membranes after division is completed. In addition to double membrane fragments in areas of open …

Detection Of Neonatal Calf Diarrhea Virus (Ncdv) And Human Infant Reolike Diarrhea Virus, Martin Wyatt Peterson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to develop a diagnostic test and conduct a survey for the neonatal calf diarrhea virus (NCDV) and human infant reolike diarrhea virus. Two immunologic methods were developed in this investigation.

Immune electron microscopy (IEM) and the fluorescent viral precipitin test (FVPT) are the methods used to detect NCDV and the human virus. Both methods are based upon the principle that viral aggregates form when the virus is reacted with anti-NCDV antibody. Aggregates in the IEM method are negatively stained and observed with the use of an electron microscope. Fluorescein labeled antibody is used in …

Effect Of Processing On Aliphatic Aldehyde Content Of Turkey Meat, Carolyn G. Ponce

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Nitrite at the level found in turkey frankfurter formulations vii did not interfere in the hydrazone test as developed by Andrews (1975). The aldehyde levels of frankfurters made principally from MD turkey meat were, on the average, twice as high as the levels in the raw meat. Aldehyde levels generally increased as the frozen storage time of the raw meat increased. There were some variations from this trend due to variation in the fat content of the raw meat. Sixty days was recommended as a maximum frozen storage time. However, because of variation in the fat content from sample to …

Manufacture Of Cottage Cheese Utilizing A Ph-Controlled, Whey-Based Lactic Culture, Yen-Luon Chen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Eleven strains of lactic cultures were used to determine their effectiveness in different bulk culture media for the manufacture of Cottage cheese. The acid phosphate-treated whey-based medium (APWM) made from Cottage cheese whey was found to be as effective as sweet phosphate-treated whey-based medium (PWM) made from Swiss cheese whey in supporting the development of lactic cultures. The relative activity of cultures in APWM with pH control was higher than phage inhibitory medium and nonfat dry milk without pH control. APWM was used successfully in the manufacture of Cottage cheese. Greater reliability and shorter cutting time resulted, and the product …

Evaluation Of A Vapor Pressure Osmometer For Determination Of Added Water In Milk, Kietipong Pensiripun

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A Wescor Vapor Pressure Osmometer measured the osmolality of a solution by sensing the vapor pressure above the solution in a closed chamber. The instrument sensing element comprised a precision thermocouple which measured the dew point temperature depression, a function of the water vapor pressure in the chamber. It used approximately 5-7 microliter samples to saturate a 0.64 cm filter paper disc. The instrument fixed a milliosmolal digital reading and signaled test completion in 110 seconds. The instrument weighed approximately 3. 62 kilograms, was 26. 7 x 24. 1 x 10. 2 cms in size and had a range of …

Comparison Of Compatibility Of Streptococcus Starters In Reconstituted Nonfat Dry Milk And A Whey-Based Bacteriophage Inhibitory Medium, Clinton K. Searle

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Compatibility of mixed cultures of Streptococcus lactis and Streptococcus cremoris were studied by the phage tracer technique in 10% nonfat dry milk and a whey-based phage inhibitory medium. Methods of membrane dialysis and differential enumeration were tried and abandoned. Dominance occurred in nonfat dry milk and in the whey-based medium during a continuous fermentation period within a pH range 6.8 to 5.2. The dominance pattern of two-strain combinations in 10% nonfat dry milk was different from that in the whey-based media. Dominance varied from one strain to another in no consistent sequence in some combinations. Dominance patterns of combinations were …

The Effects Of Gamma Irradiation, Color Mutation And Various Subatmospheric Pressures On The Growth And Patulin Production By Penicillium Expansum And Penicillium Patulum, Karl B. Adams

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

To assess the effects of gamma radiation at low doses, spores of Penicillium expansum NRRL 971 and Penicillium patulum NRRL 989 were exposed to doses of 0, 50, 100, 150, and 200 krads. The amount of patulin for each culture was quantitatively determined and growth at each dose was evaluated. The results showed a 31% increase in the amount of patulin synthesis after a dose of 150 krads for Penicillium expansum. At 200 krads, both fungi showed low levels of patulin production and inhibited growth.

Eight color mutants of P. expansum and eight color mutants of P. patulum were produced …

Breeding Ecology Of The Ferruginous Hawk In Northern Utah And Southern Idaho, Richard P. Howard

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Forty-three and 54 Ferruginous hawk (Buteo regalis) pairs were found occupying territories in northern Utah and southeastern Idaho during 1972 and 1973, respectively. Of these 38 and 27 nesting pairs laid eggs. Nesting success was 77.1 percent in 1972 and 74.6 percent in 1973. for successful nests, an average of 2.9 and 2.6 young hatched and 2.7 and 2.3 young fledged during the respective years. This population is reproductively comparable to others in Utah and Colorado. Analysis of prey items collected from the nests indicated that black-tailed jack-rabbits (Lepus californicus) constitute 86 percent of the biomass …

Dispersion Of The Host Specific Phytophagous Insects Of Duncecap Larkspur (Delphinium Occidentale) In The Wasatch Mountains Of Utah, Robert L. Bayn Jr.

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Populations of Delphinium occidentale (Ranunculaceae)were monitored over two summers for the presence and dispersion of various life stages of several host specific phytophagous insects. Observations were made at several sites in the Wasatch National Forest east of Logan, Utah. Two species of larkspur aphid (Aphis rociadae and Kakimia wahinkae) were encountered. Although dispersal of alate individuals resulted in widespread infestation of the host plant population, aphids occurred initially on the same one or few plants at each site both springs. Little coexistence of the two species of aphid on the same plant was observed, perhaps because they partitioned …

Relationships Between Teat Shape, Teat Erosion, California Mastitis Test, And Milk Production In A Large Dairy Herd, John Sephen Malan

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Data were collected from a 1,000 cow commercial dairy unit during three different time periods to determine the interrelationships between teat shape, teat erosion, mastitis (as measured by the California Mastitis Test and somatic cell counts), and milk production.

Results showed no relationship between teat shape or teat end erosion and milk or fat production. The relationship between teat end erosion and mastitis appeared to be masked by the high level of teat erosion. There was an indication that cows with flat and cone shaped teat ends were prone to higher California Mastitis Test scores than cows with pointed, round, …

Respiratory Metabolism And Energy Requirements Of Embryo, Larval And Juvenile Mountain Whitefish, Prosopium Williamsoni, Pokkavil Karunakara Rajagopal

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The upper optimum temperature for embryonic development of mountain whitefish is 6 C, and for the post yolk sac stage is 9 to 12 C. The need to know effects on all stages in the life cycle in cases of thermal pollution is demonstrated. Abnormalities caused by thermal pollution in hatched larvae were agape jaws, coloboma or fissure of the eye, monophthalmia or the presence of only one eye, monomicrophthalmia or the presence of one small eye and one case of twinning. High mortalities of eggs occurred at 9 C and higher.

Study of the energy expenditure, by the dry …

Factors Influencing Germination And Seedling Survival Of Several Varieties Of Astragalus Lentiginosus Dougl., Paul Ziemkiewicz

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Astragalus lentiginosus, which consists of 36 varieties, is one of the principal locoweeds of western North America. The objectives of this study included identification of some of the major factors affecting germination of the seed and survival of the newly established seedlings for several of these varieties.

The seeds of the varieties studied exhibited two mechanisms for dormancy. One is a seed coat that is impermeable to water, and the other is a water-leachable inhibitor. The presence or absence of low-intensity incandescent light (in 14-hour day lengths) had no effect on germination. Of three temperature regimes studied, the regime …

Nutritional Quality And Herbage Production Of Intermediate Wheatgrass (Agropyron Intermedium [Host] Beauv.) When Infested With Black Grass Bugs (Labops Hesperius Uhler), Alan M. Gray

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Two intermediate wheatgrass seedings with different levels of grass bug infestation were evaluated for herbage production, seedhead production, percent dry matter, crude protein, and cell contents. Study sites were located at different elevations on mountain summer ranges in northern (Site I) and central (Site II) Utah. Study plots at Site I and Site II were infested with 113 and 210 bugs per sweep, respectively. Herbage production appeared to be reduced in early spring on the site with the higher infestation; however, no effect on season-long herbage production could be detected on either site. Seedhead production on infested plots was reduced …

Exploratory Sensitivity Analysis Of A Stream Ecosystem Model, Joseph H. Wlosinski

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The framework of a stream ecosystem simulation model is described. Using this framework and data from two different geographical areas, a cold desert stream and a generalized mountain stream, exploratory sensitivity analysis was performed on the model. This was accomplished by qualitatively comparing outputs of a series of simulations in which a different level of a driving variable was used in each simulation. Based on these results, recommendations are made for improving the structure of the model.

Gas Exchange And Water Relations Of Two Alpine And Two Arctic Tundra Plant Species, Douglas Allan Johnson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Although water stress is an important selective force in many environments, it is not commonly considered to be of particular importance in tundra areas. Even though large portions of tundra may have an abundance of water, other more exposed areas may become quite dry. This microsite variability with respect to moisture stress was reflected in soil water potential measurements obtained from an alpine tundra area on Niwot Ridge in Colorado. Even though soil water potentials were consistently above -5 bars in a relatively low lying Deschampsia meadow, soil water potentials from an exposed fellfield area were often as low as …