Life Sciences Commons^™

Towards An Understanding Of Salient Neighborhood Boundaries: Adolescent Reports Of An Easy Walking Distance And Convenient Driving Distance, Natalie Colabianchi, Marsha Dowda, Karin A. Pfeiffer, Dwayne E. Porter, Maria João Ca Almeida, Russell R. Pate

Faculty Publications

Numerous studies have examined the association between the surrounding neighborhood environment and physical activity levels in adolescents. Many of these studies use a road network buffer or Euclidean distance buffer around an adolescent's home to represent the appropriate geographic area for study (i.e., neighborhood). However, little empirical research has examined the appropriate buffer size to use when defining this area and there is little consistency across published research as to the buffer size used. In this study, 909 12th grade adolescent girls of diverse racial and geographic backgrounds were asked to report their perceptions of an easy walking distance and …

Microarray-Based Method For Detection Of Unknown Genetic Modifications, Torstein Tengs

Dr. Torstein Tengs

Background

Due to the increased use of genetic modifications in crop improvement, there is a need to develop effective methods for the detection of both known and unknown transgene constructs in plants. We have developed a strategy for detection and characterization of unknown genetic modifications and we present a proof of concept for this method using Arabidopsis thaliana and Oryza sativa (rice). The approach relies on direct hybridization of total genomic DNA to high density microarrays designed to have probes tiled throughout a set of reference sequences.

Results

We show that by using arrays with 25 basepair probes covering both …

Oral Immunization Of Rhesus Macaques With Adenoviral Hiv Vaccines Using Enteric-Coated Capsules, George T. Mercier, Pramod N. Nehete, Marco F. Passeri, Bharti N. Nehete, Eric A. Weaver, Nancy Smyth Templeton, Kimberly Schluns, Stephanie S. Buchl, K. Buchl, Michael A. Barry

Nebraska Center for Virology: Faculty Publications

Targeted delivery of vaccine candidates to the gastrointestinal (GI) tract holds potential for mucosal immunization, particularly against mucosal pathogens like the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Among the different strategies for achieving targeted release in the GI tract, namely the small intestine, pH sensitive enteric coating polymers have been shown to protect solid oral dosage forms from the harsh digestive environment of the stomach and dissolve relatively rapidly in the small intestine by taking advantage of the luminal pH gradient. We developed an enteric polymethacrylate formulation for coating hydroxy-propyl-methyl-cellulose (HPMC) capsules containing lyophilized Adenoviral type 5 (Ad5) vectors expressing HIV-1 gag …

Vector And Parameters For Targeted Transgenic Rna Interference In Drosophila Melanogaster, Jian Quan Ni, Michele Markstein, Richard Binari, Barret Pfeiffer, Lu Ping Liu, Christians Villalta, Matthew Booker, Lizabeth Perkins, Norbert Perrimon

Michele Markstein

The conditional expression of hairpin constructs in Drosophila melanogaster has emerged in recent years as a method of choice in functional genomic studies. To date, upstream activating site–driven RNA interference constructs have been inserted into the genome randomly using P-element–mediated transformation, which can result in false negatives due to variable expression. To avoid this problem, we have developed a transgenic RNA interference vector based on the phiC31 site-specific integration method.

Mechanism Of Transcriptional Regulation Of C-Reactive Protein Gene Expression., Bhavya Voleti

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

C-reactive protein (CRP) is an acute phase protein produced by hepatocytes whose serum concentration increases in inflammatory conditions including cardiovascular complications. Statins that are used in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases to reduce cholesterol also lower serum CRP levels. In human hepatoma Hep3B cells, CRP is induced in response to cytokines IL-6 and IL-1β. The objective of the study was to determine the mechanism of regulation of CRP gene expression in Hep3B cells in response to cytokines and to determine the effect of statins on CRP expression. Key findings of our research were: 1. IL-1β-activated NF-κB p50/p65 acted synergistically with …

The Isolation And Characterization Of The Microbial Flora In The Alimentary Canal Of Gromphadorhina Portentosa Based On Rdna Sequences., Amy Renee Robertson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Multicellular organisms are not single individuals but carry a complex natural microflora with them. This complex's diversity and function can be considered a distinct ecosystem. Traditional methods of isolation and identification miss >90% of the actual diversity. This study uses the gut microflora of the Madagascar hissing roach, Gromphadorhina portentosa, as a model to examine this ecosystem. Isolated cultured bacteria were used to establish methods for identifying members of the microflora based on ribosomal RNA sequences. Universal primers for Eubacterial, Archaeal, and Eukaryotic 16s/18s rRNA were then used for PCR amplification of total DNA isolated from gut contents. Sequences …

Central Crops And Soils Research Station Highmore, South Dakota: Annual Progress Report, 2007, Agricultural Experiment Station, Plant Science Department

Agricultural Experiment Station and Research Farm Annual Reports

This is the 2007 progress report for the Central Crops and Soils Research Station at Highmore, South Dakota State College. This document represents the research conducted at the Station during the 2007 crop season including: temperature and precipitation data, evaluation of native and naturalized grasses for reduced-input turf in the Northern Plains, 2006 NTEP tall fescue ancillary trial for drought tolerance, sunflower evaluation for resistance to the red sunflower seed weevil, weed control, alfalfa production, and spring-seeded small grains- 2007 eastern South Dakota variety test results, herbicide programs and experiments.

1, Structural And Functional Studies Of Human Replication Protein A; 2 Dna Damage Responses And Dna Repair Defects In Laminopathy-Based Premature Aging., Yiyong Liu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The genome of mammalian cells is under constant attack from DNA-damaging agents. To maintain genomic integrity, cells activate an array of pathways primarily consisting of DNA repair and DNA damage checkpoints. Human replication protein A (RPA), a single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) binding protein, is essential for almost all DNA metabolic pathways. However, the role of RPA in nucleotide excision repair (NER), a DNA repair pathway for removing bulky DNA lesions, remains elusive. In this study, the binding of RPA to a battery of well-defined ssDNA substrates has been systematically examined using fluorescence spectroscopy. The results showed that RPA has a lower …

Direct Inhibition Of Cdk9 Blocks Hiv-1 Replication Without Preventing T Cell Activation In Primary Human Peripheral Blood Lymphocytes, Dominic Salerno, Muneer G Hasham, Renée Marshall Demarest, Judit Garriga, Alexander Y Tsygankov, Xavier Graña

Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine Faculty Scholarship

HIV-1 transcription is essential for the virus replication cycle. HIV-1 Tat is a viral transactivator that strongly stimulates the processivity of RNA polymerase II (RNAPII) via recruitment of the cyclin T1/CDK9 positive transcription elongation factor, which phosphorylates the C-terminal domain (CTD) of RNAPII. Consistently, HIV-1 replication in transformed cells is very sensitive to direct CDK9 inhibition. Thus, CDK9 could be a potential target for anti-HIV-1 therapy. A clearer understanding of the requirements for CDK9 activity in primary human T cells is needed to assess whether the CDK9-dependent step in HIV-1 transcription can be targeted clinically. We have investigated the effects …

Evidence Of Ecological Speciation In Phacelia., Pamela Michele Glass

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Phacelia purshii Buckley and P. fimbriata Micheaux are two species that are nearly morphologically indistinguishable. Seed germination experiments showed that the high elevation endemic, P. fimbriata requires lower temperatures to trigger germination. Following interspecific crosses, pollen tubes enter ovules and maternal tissue of the gynoecium matures but hybrid diploid and triploid organs fail to develop. DNA sequences from the ribosomal DNA internal transcribed region showed that P. fimbriata and P. purshii comprise a monophyletic clade but that P. fimbriata is more differentiated from related species. In contrast, P. purshii supported significantly higher levels of intraspecific polymorphism. Phacelia fimbriata and P. …

Ecological Services To And From Rangelands Of The United States, Ed Frederickson, Kris Havstad, Debra Peters, Rhonda Skaggs, Joel Brown, Brandon Bestelmeyer, Jeffrey Herrick, Jack Wright

Ed L. Frederickson

The over 300 million ha of public and private rangelands in the United States are characterized by low and variable precipitation, nutrient-poor soils, and high spatial and temporal variability in plant production. This land type has provided a variety of goods and services, with the provisioning of food and fiber dominating through much of the 20th century. More recently, food production from a rangeland-based livestock industry is often pressured for a variety of reasons, including poor economic returns, increased regulations, an aging rural population, and increasingly diverse interests of land owners. A shift to other provisioning, regulating, cultural, and supporting …

N-Glycan Modification In Aspergillus Species, Elke Kainz, Andreas Gallmetzer, Christian Hatzl, Juergen H. Nett, Huijuan Li, Thorsten Schinko, Robert Pachlinger, Harald Berger, Yazmid Reyes-Dominguez, Andreas Bernreiter, Tillmann Gerngross, Stefan Wildt, Joseph Strauss

Dartmouth Scholarship

The production by filamentous fungi of therapeutic glycoproteins intended for use in mammals is held back by the inherent difference in protein N-glycosylation and by the inability of the fungal cell to modify proteins with mammalian glycosylation structures. Here, we report protein N-glycan engineering in two Aspergillus species. We functionally expressed in the fungal hosts heterologous chimeric fusion proteins containing different localization peptides and catalytic domains. . This strategy allowed the isolation of a strain with a functional -1,2-mannosidase producing increased amounts of N-glycans of the Man 5 GlcNAc 2 type. This strain was further engineered by the introduction of …

Neochetina Species And Arthropod Communities In Water-Hyacinth Rafts In South Carolina, Benjamin Powell

All Theses

Arthropod communities inhabiting feral water-hyacinth rafts were surveyed monthly in South Carolina's Coastal Plain from March 2005 through February 2006. Special attention was given to the chevroned waterhyacinth weevil [Neochetina bruchi (Hustache)], the mottled waterhyacinth weevil [N. eichhorniae (Warner)] (both Coleoptera: Curculionidae), and the waterhyacinth moth [Niphograpta albiguttalis (Warren)] (Lepidoptera: Crambidae), which were imported into North America to control water-hyacinth. Communities of arthropods are compared among sites, flow regimes (lentic, lotic, and tidal), and months of the year. The arthropod communities in waterhyacinth rafts in South Carolina are more diverse than previously reported. Rafts in each of …

Fish Gelatin-Nanoclay Composite Film. Mechanical And Physical Properties, Effect Of Enzyme Cross-Linking, And As A Functional Film Layer, Hojae Bae

All Dissertations

The effect of clay content, homogenization RPM, and pH on the mechanical and barrier properties of fish gelatin/nanoclay composite films was investigated. The addition of clay increased the tensile strength (TS) from 30.31±2.37 MPa to 40.71±3.30 MPa. The nanoclay composite film had improved oxygen and water barrier properties when compared to neat fish gelatin film. Oxygen permeability decreased from 0.0004028±0.0000007 gm/m2dayatm to 0.0001144±0.0000162 gm/m2dayatm and the water vapor permeability decreased from 0.0312±0.0016 ngm/m2sPa to 0.0081±0.0001 ngm/m2sPa. The Small angle x-ray scattering (SAXS) and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observations confirmed that the ultrasonification treatment (30 min at 40% output) resulted in …

Study Of The Reproducibility Of Proteomics Methods And Variability Of Fruit Fly Proteomes., Thomas Franklin Culwell

Theses and Dissertations

The reliability of biomarker discovery by means of proteomics has been called into question. It was speculated that "background noise" variation resulting from differences in preparation and handling of samples and proteome dynamics may mask subtle, yet important, differences due to the biological condition. Little is understood about complex proteomes and their variability. A critical aspect of proteomic biomarker research that is largely unexplored is the comparative reproducibility of certain methods such as two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry. In particular, with liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry, it is not known whether variability in peptide quantitation is dependent on any of …

Thermodynamic Evidence That Ganglioside-Mediated Insertion Of Botulinum A Into The Cholinergic Nerve Ending May Precede Endocytosis And Acidification: A Langmuir Film Study, Bradley Adam Strongin

Theses and Dissertations

Botulinum Neurotoxin (BoNT) is one of the most potent toxins known to human kind. The Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) was employed to investigate the conditions under which BoNT type A heavy chain would bind and/or insert into mica supported dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) lipid bilayers. As an alternate technique, DPPC/GT1b or total ganglioside extract (80:20) monolayers of a Langmuir Blodgett (LB) Trough were adapted to be artificial membrane models for toxin insertion studies. We conclude that LB monolayer studies are a promising candidate for BoNT/A membrane insertion investigation. Botulinum neurotoxin serotype A insertions into the LB monolayers in the presence of BoNT/A …

Antagonisms And Protagonisms Of Alternative Energy Sources And Their Effects On Ranchers, Leanne Stevenson

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Over the past 20 years, the United States’ use of power has increased about 25 percent. Couple this with the fact that Americans are looking for more clean energy choices, and it is easy to see the incentive for energy generation and use from alternative energy sources. Agriculture can provide the potential for clean, alternative energy sources.

Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) require that affected electricity providers include a specified amount of renewable energy as part of their portfolio of generating fuels. There are many varieties of RPS; of the twenty-six states that adopted RPS, no two states have enacted exactly …

Pyridinium Bis-Retinoids A2-Dopamine And A2-Cadaverine: Implications In Age-Related Macular Degeneration And Cancer, Mckenzie Ruth Pew

Theses and Dissertations

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of blindness in the United States of America. The pyridinium bis-retinoid A2-ethanolamine (A2E) has been implicated to play a role in AMD. We have observed novel pyridinium bis-retinoids through melanolipofuscin and human RPE extractions that may also play a role in the pathology of AMD. We have begun the construction of an amino-retinoid library in order to identify these ocular compounds. The compounds from the amino-retinoid library are also used in a targeted and triggered drug delivery system for treating cancer. Folic acid is coupled with the amino-retinoids to specifically target cancer …

A Regional Modeling Study Of The Entraining Mediterranean Outflow, Xiaobiao Xu, E. P. Chassignet, J. F. Price, T. M. Özgökmen, H. Peters

Faculty Publications

[1] We have evaluated a regional-scale simulation of the Mediterranean outflow by comparison with field data obtained in the 1988 Gulf of Cadiz Expedition. Our ocean model is based upon the Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model (HYCOM) and includes the Richardson number-dependent entrainment parameterization of Xu et al. (2006). Given realistic topography and sufficient resolution, the model reproduces naturally the major, observed features of the Mediterranean outflow in the Gulf of Cadiz: the downstream evolution of temperature, salinity, and velocity profiles, the mean path and the spreading of the outflow plume, and most importantly, the localized, strong entrainment that has been …

Never Mind Grendel! Can Beowulf Conquer The 21st-Century Guilt Trip?, Stephen Asma

Stephen T Asma

The writer casts doubt on whether the emasculated Beowulf put forward by J. R. R. Tolkien and in the recent movie version of the story transcends and nullifies the heroic original. He suggests that both Beowulfs may be necessary.

Using Byproduct Feeds In Cow/Calf Programs, Ivan G. Rush

Range Beef Cow Symposium

The topic of byproduct feeds can be a very long list from well known oil seed meals to corn byproducts from the distilling industry to potato waste to orange peels. In addition, people feed chocolate candy, Keebler’s cookies and the list can go on and on. This paper will focus primarily on byproducts from the alcohol and oil industry. Even though byproducts from the oil industry, such as cottonseed meal and soybean meal, have been available for many years, the tremendous growth into the bio-fuels industry has increased the quantity of byproducts available for cattle feed. Historically, we have looked …

Why Did We Change To June Calving?, Paul D. Redd

Range Beef Cow Symposium

We finally admitted we were violating our own principles, for 50 years we have said:
We believe it makes good cow sense to:
1- Use yearling bulls
2- Sell the old bull
3- Buy only top end performance bulls
4- Buy the best bulls you can find.
5- Take advantage of hybrid vigor
6- Don’t buy fat bulls
7- Make Mother Nature your partner. Build a cow herd adapted to work efficiently in your country (your environment). Keep those good producing cows that wean a good calf every year. Cull the cows that don’t pull their weight.
8- Select four …

Small Wind Systems For The Ranch, Home And Business, Antony B. Frank

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Small wind electric turbines intended to serve a ranch, home or business – given the right combination of a good wind resource, favorable utility policies, incentives and relatively high electric costs – are an economically feasible option for many in our region.

Production Systems, Terry J. Klopfenstein, Will Griffin, Aaron Stalker, Dan Adams, Darrell Mark

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Expansion of the ethanol industry is having a major impact on all of agriculture including the cattle industry — the largest impact of any development we have seen in the past 40 years. Cattle feeding has enjoyed relatively inexpensive corn and therefore greater amounts of weight have been put on cattle in feedlots rather than outside of feedlots. Calf-feeding has developed to the point where up to one third of fed cattle might be considered calf-feds. Increased corn production in 2007 is keeping corn prices at moderate levels — higher than the last 40 years but less than the prices …

Monitoring Grazing Lands: How, Why, When, What?, Paul J. Meiman

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Monitoring is the orderly collection, analysis and interpretation of information and data used to make short- and long-term management decisions (Wyoming Range Service Team 2001). Therefore, monitoring is an evaluation process used by animal and natural resource managers to help determine how rangeland or pasture systems respond to management (Holechek et al. 2004). The identification of monitoring as a process is crucial and suggests a number of important considerations. Monitoring has multiple components. This process includes not just collection, but also analysis and interpretation of information and data. Simply collecting information and data (for example taking lots of pictures) does …

Heifer Development – Then And Now, Richard N. Funston, Jeremy Martin, Andy Roberts

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Studies in numerous species provide evidence that diet during development can partially control physiological changes necessary for puberty (Frisch, 1984). Energy balance or plane of nutrition influences reproductive performance in heifers and cows (Short and Adams, 1988; Butler and Smith, 1989; Swanson, 1989; Randel, 1990; Robinson, 1990). Numerous studies have reported inverse correlations between post-weaning growth rate and age at puberty (Wiltbank et al., 1966, 1969, 1985; Short and Bellows, 1971; Arije and Wiltbank, 1971; Ferrell, 1982), and pregnancy rates in heifers were shown to be dependent upon the number displaying estrus prior to or early in the breeding season …

Nutrition During Gestation And Fetal Programming, K. A. Vonnahme

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Historically, considerable efforts have been made to understand how nutrition impacts health and productivity during the postnatal period. While maternal nutrition during pregnancy plays an essential role in proper fetal and placental development, less is known about how maternal nutrition impacts the health and productivity of the offspring. Indeed, the prenatal growth trajectory is sensitive to the direct and indirect effects of maternal dietary intake from the earliest stages of embryonic life when the nutrient requirements for conceptus growth are negligible (Robinson et al., 1977). Not only is neonatal health compromised, but the subsequent health may be “programmed” as offspring …

Delivery Of Supplements Of Rangelands, Kenneth C. Olson, Adele Harty

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Supplementation of cows grazing rangelands is often beneficial to overcome nutrient deficiencies or imbalances. However, supplemental feeds and their delivery to the cow herd are expenses and thus supplementation decisions should be carefully made to ensure that costs are minimized and benefits in terms of cow performance exceed supplementation costs. When supplementing cows, there are questions that producers should ask themselves to determine the best management practices to provide the most cost effective supplement program for their operation. The first among these is the type of supplement to be provided in terms of whether it will provide the correct nutrient …

The Immune System And Recovery From Sickness In Cattle, Gordon W. Brumbaugh

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Ideally, all diseases could be prevented and beef animals on-feed would finish healthy and with the highest quality of meat. That isn’t realistic for most diseases. In spite the best efforts, some animals will become sick and require treatment. Calves with bovine respiratory disease (BRD) that required more than one treatment had decreased quality of meat and economic returns than did calves that did not develop BRD or responded after one treatment. (Hicks, 2006; McNeill, 1999; Wagner, et al., 2006) Calf-hood diseases in heifer calves had measurable effects on maternal performance for several years. (Waltner-Toews et al., 1986; van der …

Gene-Testing For Production And Carcass Traits: What Does It Mean To A Rancher?, Robert L. Weaber

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Marker assisted selection (MAS) is a process that enables the accurate selection of specific segments of DNA that are associated with a measurable difference or effect on a complex trait, like weaning weight or marbling score. MAS can be an effective way to increase or decrease the frequency of specific DNA sequences in a population. It is important to note that many genes control complex traits, like marbling or tenderness; they are polygenic in nature. Markers for specific variations in DNA sequences are available for only a few genes that contribute to marbling or tenderness. There are many other ‘unmarked’ …