Life Sciences Commons^™

Adaptive Variation And Introgression Of A Constans-Like Gene In North American Red Oaks, Jennifer F. Lind-Riehl, Oliver Gailing

Michigan Tech Publications

Oaks provide a model system to study maintenance of species identity by divergent selection since they maintain morphological differences and ecological adaptations despite interspecific hybridization. The genome of closely related interfertile oak species was shown to be largely homogeneous, with a few genomic areas exhibiting high interspecific differentiation possibly as result of strong divergent selection. Previously, a genic microsatellite was identified as under strong divergent selection, being nearly fixed on alternative alleles in the two interfertile North American red oak species: Quercus rubra L. and Quercus ellipsoidalis E.J. Hill. Further genotyping in two other red oak species—Quercus velutina Lam. and …

The Chemistry Of The Flint Water Crisis, Ernest M. Oleksy

The Downtown Review

Politics and science do not always go hand-in-hand. Nowhere was this more clear than in the Flint Water Crisis. Negligence towards growing levels of lead poisoning in drinking water led to incredibly deleterious effects on Flint's citizens. The chemistry of equilibrium and the shortcomings of local leaders led to Flint's water becoming a crisis.

Factors Influencing Swallow Bug (O. Vicarius) Populations Within Cliff Swallows Nests, Paul Mcphail

Ursidae: The Undergraduate Research Journal at the University of Northern Colorado

Hematophagous ectoparasites such as swallow bugs (Oeciacus vicarius) have been shown to have a profound negative impact on infested bird chicks, and one study shows that O. vicarius populations are positively correlated with large colonies. In this study, we investigated the abundance of O. vicarius and other arthropods within Cliff Swallow nests, and performed statistical analysis of the results to find any variables that correlated with O. vicarius population size. We expected the number of O. vicarius would be positively influenced by urban surroundings and large Cliff Swallow colony size, and that samples collected in the fall would be larger …

Protein Kinase M Zeta-Mediated Ltp Maintenance In The Non-Human Primate Hippocampus: A Role For Stress And Serotonergic Signaling In Affective Processing, Sasha L. Fulton

Theses and Dissertations

Early-Life Stress (ELS) is associated with vulnerability to mood disorder, but it’s not well understood how ELS contributes to deficits in cognitive function. Atypical PKMzeta is critical for LTP maintenance and memory. The current study aims to characterize the ELS phenotype with respect to this key marker of hippocampal LTP.

Myofilament Calcium Sensitivity: Consequences Of The Effective Concentration Of Troponin I, Jalal K. Siddiqui, Svetlana B. Tikunova, Shane D. Walton, Bin Liu, Meredith Meyer, Pieter P. De Tombe, Nathan Neilson, Peter M. Kekenes-Huskey, Hussam E. Salhi, Paul M.L. Janssen, Brandon J. Biesiadecki, Jonathan P. Davis

Chemistry Faculty Publications

Control of calcium binding to and dissociation from cardiac troponin C (TnC) is essential to healthy cardiac muscle contraction/relaxation. There are numerous aberrant post-translational modifications and mutations within a plethora of contractile, and even non-contractile, proteins that appear to imbalance this delicate relationship. The direction and extent of the resulting change in calcium sensitivity is thought to drive the heart toward one type of disease or another. There are a number of molecular mechanisms that may be responsible for the altered calcium binding properties of TnC, potentially the most significant being the ability of the regulatory domain of TnC to …

Sepsis And Hemocyte Loss In Honey Bees (Apis Mellifera) Infected With Serratia Marcescens Strain Sicaria, Nancy L. Burritt, Nicole J. Foss, Eric C. Neeno-Eckwall, James O. Church, Anna M. Hilger, Jacob A. Hildebrand, David M. Warshauer, Nicole T. Perna, James B. Burritt

Biology Faculty Work

Global loss of honey bee colonies is threatening the human food supply. Diverse pathogens reduce honey bee hardiness needed to sustain colonies, especially in winter. We isolated a free-living Gram negative bacillus from hemolymph of worker honey bees (Apis mellifera) found separated from winter clusters. In some hives, greater than 90% of the dying bees detached from the winter cluster were found to contain this bacterium in their hemolymph. Throughout the year, the same organism was rarely found in bees engaged in normal hive activities, but was detected in about half of Varroa destructor mites obtained from colonies that housed …

Vamorolone, A Dissociative Steroidal Compound, Reduces Pro-Inflammatory Cytokine Expression In Glioma Cells And Increases Activity And Survival In A Murine Model Of Cortical Tumor., Elizabeth Wells, Madhuri Kambhampati, Jesse M Damsker, Heather Gordish-Dressman, Sridevi Yadavilli, Oren J Becher, Jamila Gittens, Mojca Stampar, Roger J. Packer, Javad Nazarian

Genomics and Precision Medicine Faculty Publications

Corticosteroids, such as dexamethasone, are routinely used as palliative care in neuro-oncology for their anti-inflammatory benefits, however many patients experience dose limiting side effects caused by glucocorticoid response element (GRE)-mediated transcription. The purpose of this study was to use a murine model to investigate a new steroid alternative, vamorolone, which promises to reduce side effects through dissociating GRE-mediated transcription and NF-κB -mediated anti-inflammatory actions. To compare vamorolone to dexamethasone in reducing pro-inflammatory signals in vitro, murine glioma cells were treated with dexamethasone, vamorolone or vehicle control. Changes in mRNA expression were assessed using the nanostring inflammatory platform. Furthermore, drug …

Can Functional Traits Predict Plant Community Response To Global Change?, Sarah Kimball, Jennifer L. Funk, Marko J. Spasojevic, Katharine N. Suding, Scot Parker, Michael K. Goulden

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

One primary goal at the intersection of community ecology and global change biology is to identify functional traits that are useful for predicting plant community response to global change. We used observations of community composition from a long-term field experiment in two adjacent plant communities (grassland and coastal sage shrub) to investigate how nine key plant functional traits were related to altered water and nitrogen availability following fire. We asked whether the functional responses of species found in more than one community type were context dependent and whether community-weighted mean and functional diversity were significantly altered by water and nitrogen …

Can Functional Traits Predict Plant Community Response To Global Change?, Sarah Kimball, Jennifer L. Funk, Marko J. Spasojevic, Katharine N. Suding, Scot Parker, Michael K. Goulden

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

One primary goal at the intersection of community ecology and global change biology is to identify functional traits that are useful for predicting plant community response to global change. We used observations of community composition from a long-term field experiment in two adjacent plant communities (grassland and coastal sage shrub) to investigate how nine key plant functional traits were related to altered water and nitrogen availability following fire. We asked whether the functional responses of species found in more than one community type were context dependent and whether community-weighted mean and functional diversity were significantly altered by water and nitrogen …

Comparative Genomic Analysis Of Two Serotype 1/2b Listeria Monocytogenes Isolates From Analogous Environmental Niches Demonstrates The Influence Of Hypervariable Hotspots In Defining Pathogenesis, Aidan Casey, Kieran Jordan, Aidan Coffey, Edward M. Fox, Olivia Mcauliffe

Department of Biological Sciences Publications

The vast majority of clinical human listeriosis cases are caused by serotype 1/2a, 1/2b, 1/2c, and 4b isolates of Listeria monocytogenes. The ability of L. monocytogenes to establish a systemic listeriosis infection within a host organism relies on a combination of genes that are involved in cell recognition, internalization, evasion of host defenses, and in vitro survival and growth. Recently, whole genome sequencing and comparative genomic analysis have proven to be powerful tools for the identification of these virulence-associated genes in L. monocytogenes. In this study, two serotype 1/2b strains of L. monocytogenes with analogous isolation sources, but …

Integrated Strategy Improves The Prediction Accuracy Of Mirna In Large Dataset., Bin Xue, David Lipps, Sree Devineni

Molecular Biosciences Faculty Publications

MiRNAs are short non-coding RNAs of about 22 nucleotides, which play critical roles in gene expression regulation. The biogenesis of miRNAs is largely determined by the sequence and structural features of their parental RNA molecules. Based on these features, multiple computational tools have been developed to predict if RNA transcripts contain miRNAs or not. Although being very successful, these predictors started to face multiple challenges in recent years. Many predictors were optimized using datasets of hundreds of miRNA samples. The sizes of these datasets are much smaller than the number of known miRNAs. Consequently, the prediction accuracy of these predictors …

Vincentian Education: The Role Of Compassion, Jerrold Ross

Journal of Vincentian Social Action

The renowned Vincentian Center of St John's University brings with it additional prestige and recognition to the research faculties who produce important findings for all levels of Catholic education and for the perpetuation of a tradition long associated with the University. Beginning with Catholic education in preschool and continuing through higher education, Vincentian education, now in its second century, should provide Hope, answer our dreams and refresh its reaction to a vibrant social context, so that people can understand its meaning beyond philosophical statements.

The Heart Of Vincentian Higher Education, Dennis H. Holtschneider Cm.

Journal of Vincentian Social Action

It means a great deal to me to be here at St. John’s University, where I began my university service twenty-seven years ago. It has been my own great joy to spend my life in Vincentian education. Working in Vincentian Universities combines my love for the intellectual life with a desire to serve the poor that I myself received because I attended a Vincentian university in my youth. And it’s the great heart of a Vincentian university to see possibility in ALL the young. I doubt that Bishop Loughlin, whose idea that there should be a university for immigrants led …

Jovsa: Editorial, Marc E. Gillespie

Journal of Vincentian Social Action

Vincentian Universities are engaged in service at so many levels and in so many ways, yet it is easy to move through our day unaware of the herculean efforts that our students and colleagues are engaged in. The Vincentian Universities seem rooted in the idea of service. For us, service is not another trend that we adopted, but rather it has always been part of our constitution. The work presented in this issue provides two direct examples of how we can better serve.

Cover Page

Journal of Vincentian Social Action

No abstract provided.

New Open Conformation Of Smyd3 Implicates Conformational Selection And Allostery, Nicholas Spellmon, Xiaonan Sun, Wen Xue, Joshua Holcomb, Srinivas Chakravarthy, Weifeng Shang, Brian Fp Edwards, Nualpun Sirinupong, Chunying Li, Zhe Yang

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Faculty Publications

SMYD3 plays a key role in cancer cell viability, adhesion, migration and invasion. SMYD3 promotes formation of inducible regulatory T cells and is involved in reducing autoimmunity. However, the nearly “closed” substrate-binding site and poor in vitro H3K4 methyltransferase activity have obscured further understanding of this oncogenically related protein. Here we reveal that SMYD3 can adopt an “open” conformation using molecular dynamics simulation and small-angle X-ray scattering. This ligand-binding-capable open state is related to the crystal structure-like closed state by a striking clamshell-like inter-lobe dynamics. The two states are characterized by many distinct structural and dynamical differences and the conformational …

Guide To The Kevin And Carla Chambers Collection, Linfield College Archives

Linfield Archives Finding Aids

This collection is comprised of materials advertising wine events occurring in Oregon’s wine country, more specifically in Yamhill County. There are other promotional materials as well.

Guide To The Barney Watson Collection, Linfield College Archives

Linfield Archives Finding Aids

This collection contains materials regarding the wine industry and Oregon State University’s enology program. All materials focus around Barney Watson, an active member in the wine industry and former professor of enology at Oregon State.

Il-15 Activates The Jak3/Stat3 Signaling Pathway To Mediate Glucose Uptake In Skeletal Muscle Cells, James E. Krolopp, Shantaé M. Thornton, Marcia J. Abbott

Health Sciences and Kinesiology Faculty Articles

Myokines are specialized cytokines that are secreted from skeletal muscle (SKM) in response to metabolic stimuli, such as exercise. Interleukin-15 (IL-15) is a myokine with potential to reduce obesity and increase lean mass through induction of metabolic processes. It has been previously shown that IL-15 acts to increase glucose uptake in SKM cells. However, the downstream signals orchestrating the link between IL-15 signaling and glucose uptake have not been fully explored. Here we employed the mouse SKM C2C12 cell line to examine potential downstream targets of IL-15-induced alterations in glucose uptake. Following differentiation, C2C12 cells were treated overnight with 100 …

Comparative Genetic Screens In Human Cells Reveal New Regulatory Mechanisms In Wnt Signaling, Andres M. Lebensohn, Ramin Dubey, Leif Neitzel, Ofelia Tacchelly-Benites

Dartmouth Scholarship

The comprehensive understanding of cellular signaling pathways remains a challenge due to multiple layers of regulation that may become evident only when the pathway is probed at different levels or critical nodes are eliminated. To discover regulatory mechanisms in canonical WNT signaling, we conducted a systematic forward genetic analysis through reporter-based screens in haploid human cells. Comparison of screens for negative, attenuating and positive regulators of WNT signaling, mediators of R-spondin-dependent signaling and suppressors of constitutive signaling induced by loss of the tumor suppressor adenomatous polyposis coli or casein kinase 1α uncovered new regulatory features at most levels of the …

A Clinical Audit On The Compliance Of Ultrasound Users To The Standard Operating Procedure Of Ultrasonography In A Private Radiologic Academy, Yuliawati Y, Dioso P

ASEAN Journal on Science and Technology for Development

This clinical audit identified the compliance rate of ultrasound users to the standard operating procedures (SOP); and identified the factors that led to a compliance rate of ultrasound human users. The review was conducted for six days in a private radiologic academy in Indonesia. Only 23 subjects selected randomly were audited. Of the 23 participants, there were 11 males and 12 females. Of the 11 males, seven were compliant, and three were non-compliant. Of the 12 females, eight were compliant, and four were non-compliant. The factors that affect the compliance to the SOP were based on the skills of the …

Editorial Board, Kesmawan Andri Putra

ASEAN Journal on Science and Technology for Development

No abstract provided.

Pdz Protein Regulation Of Β-Arrestin Recruitment And Gpcr Trafficking, Sarah Gupta

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

β-arrestins are versatile adaptor proteins that play a vital role in regulation of G protein coupled receptor (GPCR) trafficking and signalling properties. PDZ proteins have previously been shown to modulate β-arrestin2 recruitment and receptor internalization for many GPCRs including Corticotropin-Releasing Factor Receptor 1 (CRFR1), a receptor whose antagonists have been shown to demonstrate both anxiolytic- and antidepressant-like effects. Further characterization of the interplay between β-arrestins and PDZ proteins may aid in determining a potential mechanism for PDZ protein regulation of GPCR trafficking. Our findings suggest that PDZ proteins PSD-95, MAGI1, and PDZK1 complex with β-arrestin2 by interacting via the PDZ …

Wound Healing Post-Mesh Repair ― An Observational Study, Lebbe M.N, Kularajasingham J, Dioso P

ASEAN Journal on Science and Technology for Development

This study identified the best surgical mesh repair techniques for inguinal hernia and prevalence of wound healing post-mesh repair. The cross-sectional study design used cluster sampling for data collection. Of the 120 respondents, 48.3% preferred anterior tension-free mesh repair and 49.2% Lichtenstein mesh repair, both identified as the common surgical techniques in eastern Sri Lanka. About 82.5% of the respondents (n = 99) healed while 17% (n = 21) had recurrence of hernia after one month. Nevertheless, 2.5% of the total respondents said that the hernia repaired after one month but less than two months; and 97.5% of the interviewees …

Synthesis And In Vitro Experiment Of Biomaterial Tricalcium Phosphate, Bui X.V

ASEAN Journal on Science and Technology for Development

Calcium phosphate ceramics consist of materials such as hydroxyapatite, tricalcium phosphate (TCP), calcium phosphate cement (CPC), biphasic calcium phosphate, etc. CPCs have been used for filling bone defects in dentistry and orthopedics. Among these materials, β-tricalcium phosphate is suggestedas an ideal candidate for bone graft in hard tissue engineering due to its high biocompatibility, bioactivity and bone bonding. The preparation, as well as the application of this powder material, has been the important topic of research in material science. In this paper, β-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP), a component that has chemical formulation similar to bone structure, was synthesized by the precipitate …

Knowledge And Caring Attitude Of Sri Lankan Nurses In Providing Care For Dying Patients ― A Cohort Study, Rajudeen M.M, Janoof M., Dioso P

ASEAN Journal on Science and Technology for Development

This research identified evidence of knowledge and caring attitude among Sri Lankan nurses caring for dying patients; and identified the factors affecting nursing care for the dying in the eastern province of Sri Lanka. A quantitative cohort study design was used having questionnaires as the means of collecting the data. The purposive way of sampling selected 120 staff nurses employed in a government hospital as respondents who falls under the inclusion and exclusion criteria.There was significant evidence of caring attitude towards the dying (p = 0.005534) and knowledge on the end-of-life nursing care (p = 0.0004703) for the dying patients. …

Front Cover, Kesmawan Andri Putra

ASEAN Journal on Science and Technology for Development

No abstract provided.

New Insights Into Signal Detection Of The Effects Of Exposures During Pregnancy, Fatma Etwel

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

There is inadequate information on the fetal safety of drugs during pregnancy for the majority of marketed drugs. It is challenging to examine the safety and efficacy of drugs during pregnancy due to the ethical issues of exposing unborn babies to these chemicals. It often takes many years before associations between a drug and its safety, efficacy, and toxicity in pregnancy can be established. This thesis will examine strategies in signal detection of the effects of drug exposures during pregnancy.

Meta-analyses have become useful in the area of clinical teratology. Observational studies provide the main source of information in these …

Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress-Induced Hepatocellular Death Pathways Mediate Liver Injury And Fibrosis Via Stimulator Of Interferon Genes., Arvin Iracheta-Vellve, Jan Petrasek, Benedek Gyongyosi, Abhishek Satishchandran, Patrick Lowe, Karen Kodys, Donna Catalano, Charles D. Calenda, Evelyn A. Kurt-Jones, Kate A. Fitzgerald, Gyongyi Szabo

Katherine A. Fitzgerald

Fibrosis, driven by inflammation, marks the transition from benign to progressive stages of chronic liver diseases. Although inflammation promotes fibrogenesis, it is not known whether other events, such as hepatocyte death, are required for the development of fibrosis. Interferon Regulatory Factor 3 (IRF3) regulates hepatocyte apoptosis and production of Type-I interferons (IFNs). In the liver, IRF3 is activated via Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) signaling or the ER adapter, Stimulator of Interferon Genes (STING). We hypothesized that IRF3-mediated hepatocyte death is an independent determinant of chemically-induced liver fibrogenesis. To test this, we performed acute or chronic carbontetrachloride (CCl4) administration to WT, …

Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress-Induced Hepatocellular Death Pathways Mediate Liver Injury And Fibrosis Via Stimulator Of Interferon Genes., Arvin Iracheta-Vellve, Jan Petrasek, Benedek Gyongyosi, Abhishek Satishchandran, Patrick Lowe, Karen Kodys, Donna Catalano, Charles D. Calenda, Evelyn A. Kurt-Jones, Kate A. Fitzgerald, Gyongyi Szabo

Gyongyi Szabo

Fibrosis, driven by inflammation, marks the transition from benign to progressive stages of chronic liver diseases. Although inflammation promotes fibrogenesis, it is not known whether other events, such as hepatocyte death, are required for the development of fibrosis. Interferon Regulatory Factor 3 (IRF3) regulates hepatocyte apoptosis and production of Type-I interferons (IFNs). In the liver, IRF3 is activated via Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) signaling or the ER adapter, Stimulator of Interferon Genes (STING). We hypothesized that IRF3-mediated hepatocyte death is an independent determinant of chemically-induced liver fibrogenesis. To test this, we performed acute or chronic carbontetrachloride (CCl4) administration to WT, …