Biology Commons^™

Biomass Estimation Of Marine Biofilms On Plastic Surfaces, Kian Banihashemi, Fernando Javier Gil

Biological Sciences

Plastics have become a major source of marine pollution, which threatens food safety and quality, human health, and marine ecosystems. Due to the drastic negative effects of plastics in a marine environment, alternative biodegradable plastics are being generated that are more eco-friendly and have less environmental impact. Though some of these plastics are known to biodegrade, the process of degradation for bioplastics has not been heavily studied in a marine environment. This pilot project sought to both quantify the process of biodegradation and compare across different methods for effectiveness of biomass estimation, which serves as an indicator of biodegradation. Plastics …

Glycolic Acid Utilization In Two Species Of Marine Bacteria, Erik S. Timsak

STAR Program Research Presentations

Interactions between bacteria and phytoplankton are crucial for the cycling of organic matter in marine environments. Around 50% of organic carbon taken up by marine bacteria is converted into inorganic carbon. The uptake of organic carbon by marine bacteria exuded from phytoplankton is a key factor in regulating the marine carbon cycle. One such molecule that is exuded by phytoplankton and then uptaken by marine bacteria is called glycolate - the anion of glycolic acid, a two caron molecule. Glycolate is exuded by phytoplankton during photorespiration and 10-50% of dissolved organic carbon in marine environments is comprised of glycolate. Additionally, …

Method Development For Structural Assessment Of Nanolipoprotein Particles With And Without Cross-Linked Lipids, Emma J. Mullen, Wei He, Sean Gilmore, Matthias Frank, Matthew Coleman, Megan Shelby

STAR Program Research Presentations

Membrane proteins make up approximately 30% of the cellular proteome and account for over 60% of pharmaceutical targets.1 Determining the structures of this class of proteins is critical to our understanding of disease states and will advance rational drug design. But membrane proteins have limited solubility, rarely form large crystals that diffract well, and often misfold outside of a bilayer, hindering crystallographic studies.1 Nanolipoprotein particles (NLPs) have arisen as a platform to readily solubilize membrane proteins while mimicking a native lipid environment. NLPs consist of a discoidal phospholipid bilayer encircled by an apolipoprotein belt. In an effort to optimize and …

Optimization Of A Genomic Editing System Using Crispr/Cas9-Induced Site-Specific Gene Integration, Jillian L. Mccool Ms., Nick Hum, Gabriela G. Loots

STAR Program Research Presentations

The CRISPR-Cas system is an adaptive immune system found in bacteria which helps protect against the invasion of other microorganisms. This system induces double stranded breaks at precise genomic loci (1) in which repairs are initiated and insertions of a target are completed in the process. This mechanism can be used in eukaryotic cells in combination with sgRNAs (1) as a tool for genome editing. By using this CRISPR-Cas system, in addition to the “safe harbor locus,” ROSAβ26, the incorporation of a target gene into a site that is not susceptible to gene silencing effects can be achieved through few …

Production And Harvest Of Microalgae In Wastewater Raceways With Resource Recycling, Alexander Colin Roberts

Master's Theses

Microalgae can be grown on municipal wastewater media to both treat the wastewater and produce feedstock for algae biofuel production. However the reliability of treatment must be demonstrated, as well as high areal algae productivity on recycled wastewater media and efficient sedimentation harvesting. This processes was studied at pilot scale in the present research.

A pilot facility was operated with nine CO₂-supplemented raceway ponds, each with a 33-m² surface area and a 0.3-m depth, continuously from March 6, 2013 through September 24, 2014. The ponds were operated as three sets of triplicates with two sets continuously fed …

Characterization Of Putative Wnt3a-Inducible Enhancers, Katelynn C. Lee, Nicholas Hum, Aimy Sebastian, Gabriela Loots

STAR Program Research Presentations

The Wnt signaling pathway has been previously shown to play a major role in regulating bone metabolism and it is emerging as a target for the therapeutic intervention of bone thinning disorders such as osteoporosis. Several Wnt proteins have been shown to be expressed in bone and mutations in Wnt pathway members such as Wnt co-receptor Lrp5 and Wnt inhibitor Sost have been shown to be associated with low or high bone mass disorders, however, very little is known about specific roles played by different Wnt ligands in bone development, repair and remodeling. To identify downstream targets of Wnt signaling …

Increasing Expression Of Hepatitis B Surface Antigen In Maize Through Breeding, Erin Suzanne Miller

Master's Theses

The hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a common virus, with two billion people infected worldwide. It causes approximately 600,000 deaths each year, despite the availability of an effective vaccine since 1982. Maize as a platform for oral vaccination can supply a heat stable vaccine, which does not require syringes or trained personnel to administer. The Hepatitis B Surface antigen was transformed into maize and this seed was used to evaluate expression levels through the breeding process. The transgene was transferred into two elite maize inbreds by backcrossing. Highest expressing ears were selected each generation until approximately 99% commercial parent was …

Using Progesterone As An Indicator Of Ovarian Response To Stimulation In Cattle, Kayla Mariah Kauffman

Animal Science

No abstract provided.

Preservation Of Biosignature Molecules In Potential Sample Return Container Of The Mars 2020 Mission, Kimberly E. Lykens, Fei Chen Ph.D

STAR Program Research Presentations

Preservation of Biosignature Molecules in Potential Sample Return Container of the Mars 2020 Mission

Kimberly Lykens¹ and Fei Chen²

¹Wittenberg University, Springfield, Ohio 45501 ²Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, 91109

One requirement for sustainable life on terrestrial planets includes the presence of organic polymers, compounds that are essential for major biological functions such as replication and catalysis. An identified goal of the Mars mission in the year 2020 is to implement a sample-return to identify and validate signs of life on Mars through the discovery of biosignature molecules in Martian core samples. Martian core samples recovered …

Improving The Efficiency Of Homologous Gene Replacement By Disrupting Non-Homologous End Joining Pathway Gene Kusa In The Oleaginous Fungus Mortierella Alpina, Kathleen T. Krueger, Ziyu Dai Dr, Ugur Uzuner, Scott E. Baker Dr

STAR Program Research Presentations

Mortierella alpina , a oleaginous filamentous fungus, is one of industrial fungal strains known for the production of arachidonic acid. It is also of particular interest for hydrocarbon biofuel production since it is able to produce up to 50% of its mass in rich, long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids [PUFA’s]. In addition to high fatty acid production, M. alpina like many other oleaginous fungi, already have mechanisms for accumulating significant concentrations of hydrophobic compounds making it a naturally equipped candidate to handle potential toxic concentrations of hydrocarbons. To date, three different transformation methods have been established for M. alpina that are …

Analyzing Environmental Microbes For Genomic Regions Promoting Ionic Liquid Tolerance In E. Coli, Ann Nguyen, Alison Richins, Thomas Rüegg, Steven Singer, Michael Thelen

STAR Program Research Presentations

Ionic liquids (ILs) are promising as solvents to increase the efficiency of biofuel production; however, ILs are toxic to microbes used in the fermentation of liquid fuels. To engineer IL resistant biofuel hosts, environmental bacteria were screened for tolerance, and these were used to create gene libraries to test in E. coli. Future characterization of these libraries using molecular techniques will be used to identify genes that contribute IL-tolerance to transformed microbes.

Forward Osmosis Bag: Ground Testing The Prospect Of Using Alternative Water Sources For Drinking Water, Michaela Marie Brant, Ariella Yendler, Mona Hammoudeh, Michael T. Flynn

STAR Program Research Presentations

On the STS-135 Space Shuttle mission, to be launched July 8, 2011, a forward osmosis bag (FOB) study will be conducted. At NASA Ames this summer, the ground truth testing is being conducted for results comparisons. The FOB technology is derived from a commercial product, the X-Pack water filter. Forward osmosis operates by utilizing an established concentration gradient across a semi-permeable membrane to move water molecules from one side of the membrane to the other. This concept is exploited to harvest drinking water from grey water sources such as urine, sea water, or vehicle water. In this experiment, potassium chloride …

Exposure To Ultraviolet Radiation Causes Proteomic Changes In Embryos Of The Purple Sea Urchin, Strongylocentrotus Purpuratus, Joseph Paul Campanale

Master's Theses

The amount of solar ultraviolet radiation (UVR, 290-400 nm) reaching Earth’s surface is increasing due to ozone depletion and global climate change. Embryos of the purple sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus purpuratus, provide an ideal system for examining how UVR affects developing marine organisms and cells in general. To model the protein-mediated cell cycle response to UV-irradiation, six batches of S. purpuratus embryos were exposed to UVR, monitored for delays in the first mitotic division and examined for global proteomic changes. Embryos from each batch were exposed to or protected from artificial UVR for 25 or 60 min. Embryos treated with …