Life Sciences Commons^™

Associations Of Armillaria Root Disease In Jack Pine With Arceuthobium Americanum, Elizabeth G. Hebertson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Relationships between jack pine dwarf mistletoe (Arceuthobium americanum Nutt. ex Engelm.) and Armillaria root disease (Armillaria ostoyae (Romagn.) Herink) were examined to determine how these two disease agents contribute to jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) decline and mortality in the Belair Provincial Forest, Manitoba, Canada. The incidence and extent of Armillaria root disease was strongly related to tree vigor. Dwarf mistletoe infection did not affect either the incidence of Armillaria or the mean percentage of root system colonization within vigorous, declining, and dead classes of trees. However, field observations and other analyses indicate that dwarf mistletoe was …

Use Of Recombinant Human Granulocyte Colony Stimulating Factor As An Adjunct In Antifungal Chemotherapy In Various Animal Model Systems, Lindi Farrell

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The growing neutropenic patient population provides an ideal target for opportunistic fungal infections. Several effective antifungal drugs are toxic at high doses and contraindicated for long-term treatment. Recombinant human granulocyte colony stimulating factor (rhG-CSF) has been shown to increase neutrophilic numbers and functions, thus providing enhanced host defense. Improved efficacy by using rhG-CSF in conjunction with various antifungal agents was the primary focus of these studies. Use of rhG-CSF in a murine model of vaginal candidiasis did not reduce vaginal colony counts, or improve vaginal histophathology scores. Administration of rhG-CSF in a murine model of pulmonary aspergillosis improved survival, clinical …

Post-Fire Succession And Disturbance Interactions On An Intermountain Subalpine Spruce-Fir Forest, Christopher A. Dicus

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Four general post-fire successional pathways leading to a climax Engelmann spruce (Picea engelmannii Parry)/subalpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa [Hook] Nutt.) forest were identified operating on the T.W. Daniel Experimental Forest in northern Utah. These included initial colonization by seral quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.), seral lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta Dougl. ex Loud.), colonization by lodgepole pine followed by a low intensity surface fire, and immediate colonization by late successional Engelmann spruce and subalpine fir.

Post-fire establishment of the late successional species occurred earliest in the Engelmann spruce/subalpine fir pathway followed by the lodgepole pine and lodgepole pine ground fire pathways, and …

Membrane Protein As A Basis Of Nacl Tolerance In Alfalfa, Husni N. Sabah

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study sought to determine whether NaCl altered the plasma membrane proteins in alfalfa exhibiting differential NaCl concentrations, and whether CaSO₄ modified the responses. Two alfalfa cultivars, Centurion and Condor, were grown in 0.5 strength Hoagland solution in a greenhouse. The cultivars were exposed to 0, 88, and 132 mM of NaCl alone and mixed with CaSO₄ ⋅ H₂O at 7 and 14 Mm CaSO₄ for 3, 9, and 60 days.

In experiment 1, roots were dried to determine their Na, Ca, K, and Mg concentration. The results were similar to previous reports in which …

Evaluation Of Milk Production In Western Whiteface And Navajo-Churro Ewes, Marla Faye Brindley

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Western Whiteface and Navajo-Churro Ewes, two types of sheep present in the Intermountain West, were compared for their milk production ability. Amount of milk produced per individual and the group milk composition were analyzed for butterfat, lactose, somatic cell count, protein, calcium, and phosphorous.

Ewes were fed ad libitum alfalfa hay and had access to free-choice grain while in the milking parlor. Lambs were weaned at 35 d of age and removed to another holding area and placed on creep feed . Ewes were milked for 90 d following the weaning of the lambs.

Western Whiteface ewes had a much …

Ontogenetic Habitat Shift Of Juvenile Bear Lake Sculpin (Cottus Extensus), James R. Ruzycki

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Bear Lake sculpin (Cottus extensus) exhibited an ontogenetic habitat shift during their first year of life. Soon after hatching in the littoral zone, the fry swam to the surface where they dispersed throughout the lake. Most juveniles that initially settled in the profundal zone returned to the littoral zone during their first summer. Patterns in the daily growth increments of otoliths confirmed the history of habitat residence and the individual size at the habitat switch. We used this habitat shift to test a μ/g model incorporating a growth rate-mortality risk trade-off. A trade-off occurred in the littoral …

Alteration Of Key Cytokine Levels By Aflatoxin B1 And T-2 Toxin In Male Cd-1 Mice, Raviprakash R. Dugyala

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Aflatoxin B₁ and T-2 toxin are mycotoxins, which produce their immunotoxic effects by affecting nonspecific and acquired immunity in different species. The mechanisms of their immunotoxicity are still obscure. Cytokines are the key signaling molecules during the immune response. In this study, expression of macrophage-produced cytokines Interleukin-lα (IL-lα), tumor necrosis factor (TNF), and IL-6, and lymphocyte-produced cytokines IL-2, interferon y (IFNy), and IL-3 was measured at the mRNA and protein levels, after in vitro activation with mitogens in AFB₁-and T-2-toxin-exposed mice.

Significant changes in the organ weights, especially in the mice exposed to a high dose of …

Behavioral Characteristics Affect Habitat Selection Of Domestic Ruminants, Cody B. Scott

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

I evaluated some of the factors affecting livestock distribution by conducting experimental (Chapters II and III) and observational (Chapter IV) studies. In Chapter II, I described the effect of locations of familiar foods and social interactions on choice of feeding location by lambs. Lambs were exposed to a pasture as subgroups of strangers and companions with different dietary habits (i.e., three lambs that preferred milo with three lambs that preferred wheat). Milo was placed on one end and wheat on the other, about 100 m apart. Strangers typically fed in different locations, reflecting dietary preferences. Conversely, companions fed in both …

Effects Of Iron Fortification On Microbiological, Physical, Chemical, And Organoleptic Properties Of Yogurt, Sharareh Hekmat

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

It has been shown that iron binds strongly to the proteins in milk, and our aim was to determine whether or not this binding was affected by lowering pH in the manufacture of yogurt. Iron-protein complexing was studied using two different techniques. 1) Skim milk was fortified with 10 mg iron/100 ml and the pH of the milk was adjusted to 6.7, 6.2, 5.8, 5.3, 4.5, and 4.0. The milk was fractionated by ultracentrifugation at 52,000 x g for 60 minutes. The pellets and serum were then analyzed for iron, calcium, and phosphorus content by inductively coupled plasma spectroscopy. SDS-PAGE …

Functional Study Of The Structural Vp6 Protein Of Bluetongue Virus, Emiko Hayama

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study was undertaken to investigate the structure-function relationship of VP6 protein of bluetongue virus (BTV) using molecular cloning techniques. VP6 is present in small quantities in BTV and its enzymatic activity and role in the viral replication cycle have not been studied. Since the availability of large amounts of purified VP6 is essential for the analysis of VP6, a BTV-11 S3 gene was cloned into a prokaryotic protein expression system. VP6 protein was expressed in large amounts and purified to near homogeneity. A series of C-terminal and internal deletion mutants of S3 gene was constructed and the truncated VP6 …

Characterization Of An Axial Ligand Substitution In Sperm Whale Myoglobin, Michael J. Chen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Of central importance to the study of heme proteins are the effects imposed by axial ligand(s) on the heme structure and, therefore, on the overall activity of the protein. In this study, we confirm and extend the spectroscopic characterization of a mutated sperm whale myoglobin in which the proximal Histidine is replaced with a Tyrosine residue (MbH93Y). The MbH93Y, as well as wild-type sperm whale myoglobin and horse erythrocyte catalase (HEC), was purified and characterized by optical absorption and x-ray absorption (XAS) spectroscopies. Optical absorption spectra of HEC and the metmyoglobin, cyanometmyoglobin, reduced, oxy, and carbon-monoxy forms of both sperm …

Extended X-Ray Absorption Fine Structure And Redox Potential Studies Of Heme-Substituted Horseradish Peroxidase And Myoglobin, Bing He

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Heme-substituted horseradish peroxidases and myoglobins were reconstituted from the apoenzyme using mesoheme and diacetyldeuteroheme. X-ray absorption spectroscopy was used to determine the dimensions of the active sites of these heme-substituted proteins, and were compared with those of the proto-hemeproteins. The change in the active-site structure corresponded with the electron withdrawing and donating effects of the different side chains. The oxidation-reduction potentials of Fe⁴⁺/Fe³⁺ couples of the heme-substituted proteins were measured at pH 7 with K₂IrCl₆. The oxidation-reduction potential sequence for compound I/compound II was diacetyldeutero- > proto- > meso- in horseradish peroxidase. The oxidation-reduction potential …

Muscle Fiber Types, Dna:Rna:Protein Ratios, And Measures Of Tenderness In Various Muscles Of Normal And Callipyge Lambs, Owen D. Rice

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

An inherited muscle hypertrophy in sheep is caused by the callipyge gene (CLPG) located on ovine chromosome 18. It has been suggested that this gene is a single autosomal dominant gene. Animals expressing the callipyge gene show increased muscling in the pelvic and torso regions of the body and, thus, have been given the phenotype- descriptive name callipyge (from Greek calli-beautiful; pyge-buttocks). In this study 21 wether lambs, the offspring of callipyge rams (genotype CLPG /clpg) and normal Rambouillet ewes (genotype clpg/clpg), were used to determine the differences in muscle fiber type percentages, composition, and tenderness between normal …

Fire Occurrence, Behavior And The Effect Of Fire On Deer Mouse Density In Oakbrush At Camp Williams National Guard Base, Utah, Joel E. Godfrey

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Fire occurrence and behavior were determined by collecting and analyzing fuel, weather, and fire history data. Fuel plots were used to measure average fuel loading by vegetation type and integrated with weather to make worst-case fire behavior predictions. A fire history was developed using oakbrush (Quercus gambelli Nutt.) sprouts to determine age and the Global Positioning System (GPS) for mapping the burned areas. Average fuel loading was highest in the oakbrush fuel type with 16.8 t/ha, then juniper (Juniperus osteosperma Torrey) with 6.72 t/ha, and the lowest was in sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata Nutt.) with 4.93 t/ha. Fire behavior predictions were …

Effects Of Graded Levels Of Dietary Lasalocid On Performance Of Holstein Cows During Early Lactation, Dennis E. Christensen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Thirty-six multiparous Holstein cows were assigned to one of three dietary levels of lasalocid· 0, 180, or 360 mg/hd/d in a completely randomized design Cows were assigned to treatments 1 wk postcalving and remained on treatment until 11 wk postcalving Basal diets were composed of ground corn, alfalfa hay, alfalfa haylage, corn silage, and soybean meal, fortified with vitamins and minerals as needed. All ingredients were ground and fed as a total mixed ration Daily rations were fed in two equal portions at 0500 and I 700 h at a rate to allow a 5- 10% refusal. Daily measurements included …