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2016

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

University of Denver

Articles 1 - 12 of 12

Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Ex-Vivo Slaughterhouse Porcine Crystalloid-Perfused Beating Heart Via Langendorff Method, Rahiemin Talukder Jan 2016

Ex-Vivo Slaughterhouse Porcine Crystalloid-Perfused Beating Heart Via Langendorff Method, Rahiemin Talukder

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The objective of this study was to resuscitate isolated beating porcine hearts obtained from slaughterhouse swine for a minimum of 1 hour with a crystalloid buffer reperfusion instead of blood via an extracorporeal Langendorff apparatus. The isolated beating heart functions outside of the body under simulated physiologic conditions. Live functional anatomy was controlled under benchtop experimental settings. Porcine hearts (26 total) were topically cooled with saline. 300mL of 25°C cardioplegia with 20KU Streptokinase was preflushed via aortic root. WIT was less than 5 minutes. 1L 4°C cardioplegia was flushed antegrade with aortic cannula (Group 1) or coronary catheterization (Group 2). …

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Impact Of Light Pollution On Species Interactions, Kylee Grenis Jan 2016

Impact Of Light Pollution On Species Interactions, Kylee Grenis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Over half of the world's population lives in urban areas leading to night skies that are substantially degraded by artificial lights. Yet, we know little about how light pollution affects the surrounding natural communities. What we do know focuses on the impact of light pollution on individual species. Therefore, I investigated the impact of light pollution on species interactions. I determined whether light pollution is a mechanism of community change, evaluated whether there were changes in species interactions between predators and prey, and indirect and direct interactions between insect herbivores and their host plants by examining the entire life cycle …

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Metabolomics Of Mammalian And Cellular Models Of Aging, Nathan Gonzales Duval Jan 2016

Metabolomics Of Mammalian And Cellular Models Of Aging, Nathan Gonzales Duval

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Aging is often associated with impaired cognition and a progressive loss of organ function over time accompanied by an increased susceptibility for many disorders, including Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), heart disease, osteoporosis, type II diabetes, and many forms of cancer. With a rapidly aging population, the negative impacts of aging and age-related disorders is a major cause of increased human suffering both for affected individuals and for families and caregivers. Metabolic changes are also apparent in normal aging, but may increase in magnitude or nature with accompanying disease states or with accelerated aging. Thus, studying aging in a …

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The Ecology And Evolution Of Rare, Soil Specialist Astragalus Plants In The Arid Western U.S., Joseph M. Statwick Jan 2016

The Ecology And Evolution Of Rare, Soil Specialist Astragalus Plants In The Arid Western U.S., Joseph M. Statwick

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Organisms that specialize in uncommon habitats are, by their very nature, inherently uncommon. Specialization has its advantages, namely reduced competition and predation, but it also incurs costs. Specialists often have small population sizes, narrow ranges, and fragmented habitat, all of which engender negative consequences on an evolutionary timescale. Herein, I examine benefits and costs of specialization in selenium-hyperaccumulating plants in the genus Astragalus (Fabaceae). These plants are disproportionately likely to be rare and of conservation concern. Thus, I optimized germination pretreatments for Astragalus species such that seed loss can be minimized during ex situ cultivation, and found that physical scarification …

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The Role Of P38 Mapk In Protein Homeostasis And Aging, Sarah Mae Ryan Jan 2016

The Role Of P38 Mapk In Protein Homeostasis And Aging, Sarah Mae Ryan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Aging is characterized by a failure to maintain proper protein homeostasis, potentially leading to tissue dysfunction. Though a variety of genes have been found to regulate lifespan and age-related behaviors how these genetic factors contribute to protein homeostasis has not been fully explored. Here, we report that the evolutionarily conserved aging gene p38 MAPK (p38Kb) regulates age-dependent protein homeostasis. Over-expression of p38Kb results in reduced protein aggregation, while knockout of p38Kb leads to increased protein aggregation. Furthermore, we find that p38Kb regulates protein homeostasis, lifespan, and age-dependent locomotor functions through an interaction with the Chaperone Assisted Selective Autophagy complex; a …

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Neuroprotection Comparison Of Different Nutraceutical Compounds Against Mechanistically Distinct Cell Death Inducing Agents, Faten I. Taram Jan 2016

Neuroprotection Comparison Of Different Nutraceutical Compounds Against Mechanistically Distinct Cell Death Inducing Agents, Faten I. Taram

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), include the progressive loss of structure and function of neurons leading to neuronal death. All of these diseases are fatal, as there is no cure for them. The causes of these diseases are unknown; however, there are many proposed mechanisms that lead to neurodegenerative diseases. Oxidative stress is the leading cause of cell death in neurodegenerative diseases, in addition to other mechanisms including endoplasmic reticulum stress, proteasome inhibition, nitrosative stress, inflammation and excitotoxicity. More understanding of the death mechanisms at work in neurodegeneration is necessary to …

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The Neuroprotective And Therapeutic Effects Of Anthocyanins And Their Metabolites In Vitro And In A Mouse Model Of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Aimee Nicole Winter Jan 2016

The Neuroprotective And Therapeutic Effects Of Anthocyanins And Their Metabolites In Vitro And In A Mouse Model Of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Aimee Nicole Winter

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Anthocyanins, a unique class of flavonoid compounds, have recently come to the forefront of investigative research aimed at evaluating the potential applications of natural products to human health. Evidence demonstrating the beneficial effects of anthocyanin consumption has been reported for a myriad of conditions including cancer, cardiovascular disease, and lately, neurodegenerative disease. Neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) are characterized by the death of specific neuronal populations within the brain and spinal cord, leading to cognitive and/or motor impairment. While the etiology of many of these diseases is largely unknown, several factors have …

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Source Apportionment Of Atmospheric Particulate Matter In Developing Countries Using Trace Elements And Stable Metal Isotope Ratios, Nitika Dewan Jan 2016

Source Apportionment Of Atmospheric Particulate Matter In Developing Countries Using Trace Elements And Stable Metal Isotope Ratios, Nitika Dewan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The work presented herein details the source apportionment of atmospheric particulate matter in developing countries (Kyrgyzstan in Central Asia, metropolitan cities in Northern India, and Shenzhen in China) using trace elements and stable metal isotope ratios. The first study focused on the development of a novel method for the concomitant separation of rare-earth elements in environmental samples of any geological origin. The separation procedure is based on three extraction chromatographic materials, referred to as Sr.Spec, TRU.Spec, and Ln.Spec. This triple column arrangement enables the simultaneous isolation of pure Sr and Nd fractions in less than one day and with great …

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The Spatial Distribution Of Terrestrial Stable Carbon Isotopes In North America, And The Impacts Of Spatial And Temporal Resolution On Static Ecological Models, Sydney M. Firmin Jan 2016

The Spatial Distribution Of Terrestrial Stable Carbon Isotopes In North America, And The Impacts Of Spatial And Temporal Resolution On Static Ecological Models, Sydney M. Firmin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Due to the unique spatial and temporal characteristics of ecological phenomena, the extent and grain size of spatial data sets essentially filter the observations. This thesis examines the impacts of temporal and spatial resolution on the modeling of terrestrial stable carbon isotopic landscapes (isoscapes). I model the distribution of leaf stable carbon isotope composition (delta13C) for the continent of North America at multiple temporal and spatial resolutions. I generate each delta13C isoscape variation by first predicting the relative abundance of C3/C4 vegetation cover using monthly climate grids, crop distribution/type grids, and remote sensing data of plant …

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Panmixia Across The Range Of The Assortatively Mating Lesser Snow Goose, Brent B. Horowitz Jan 2016

Panmixia Across The Range Of The Assortatively Mating Lesser Snow Goose, Brent B. Horowitz

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Lesser Snow Goose has been shown to exhibit imprinted positive assortative mating on the basis of its color phases, blue and white, and it has been proposed that the geographic cline of the color phases reflects a historic allopatry of the phases. Using ddRAD-seq, thousands of SNPs were analyzed in both phases and in colonies across the range of the species to examine genetic evidence for separation of the color phases or along the two migratory pathways, which have also been hypothesized to be separate. These analyses did not reveal any genetic differentiation between the color phases nor by …

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C-Reactive Protein Interactions With Cellular Membranes And Supported Lipid Bilayers, Aml Abd Alhamed Alnaas Jan 2016

C-Reactive Protein Interactions With Cellular Membranes And Supported Lipid Bilayers, Aml Abd Alhamed Alnaas

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

C-reactive protein (CRP) is a serum protein that binds to damaged membranes and initiates the complement immune response. Different forms of CRP are thought to alter how the body responds to inflammation and the degradation of foreign material. Despite knowing that a modified form of CRP(mCRP) binds to downstream protein binding partners better than the native pentameric form, the role of CRP conformation on lipid binding is yet unknown. In this work, three main assays were performed to characterize how conformation affects CRP-membrane interactions. The first assay utilized supported lipid bilayers that mimic the plasma membrane of apoptotic cells. The …

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Akap150 Dynamics In Anterior Pituitary Cells, Kristen E. Dew Jan 2016

Akap150 Dynamics In Anterior Pituitary Cells, Kristen E. Dew

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Cellular communication occurs as a result of changes in signaling pathways. A well-studied signaling pathway is through G protein coupled receptors (GPCRs). In gonadotropes, GPCR stimulation by GnRH leads to the activation of protein kinase A (PKA). Activated PKA can phosphorylate ion channels, potentially causing an influx of calcium, depolarization and secretion of hormones. A scaffolding protein known as AKAP150 anchors PKA near L-type calcium channels. In addition, AKAP150 anchors phosphatases, which provides temporal control during signaling events. It was recently shown that AKAP150 is mobile in neuronal dendrites, providing regulation to where the signaling cascade occurs in the cell. …

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