Biology Commons^™

Understanding The Transition From Benthic Egg To Dispersive Larvae: Observations On The Intra-Capsular Growth And Development Of A Marine Snail (Kelletia Kelletii), Megan N. Wilson

Biological Sciences

It has long been understood that the larval life stage is responsible for the dispersion of many marine organisms across their biogeographic range. Such organisms have a bipartite life cycle, existing in the water column and subject to oceanographic processes as planktonic larvae before settling to suitable habitat along the benthos where they grow and mature. Previous studies have demonstrated that larval growth rate and behavior in the water column can alter larval position in relation to ocean currents and affects their dispersal pathway. However, there is a paucity of information regarding the growth rate of the earliest larval stage …

Heavy Metals In Seaweeds From A Polluted Estuary In Coastal Maine, Ian D. Medeiros, Arthur C. Mathieson, Nishanta Rajakaruna

Biological Sciences

Seaweeds (macroalgae) accumulate heavy metals from seawater and can therefore serve as biological monitors of marine pollution. In this paper, we present data on the tissue chemistry of seaweeds from the area of Callahan Mine, an intertidal copper and zinc mine in Brooksville, ME, USA, abandoned in the 1970s and now designated as a Superfund site. The mine is located on the Goose Pond estuary, which drains into the ocean via a tidal waterfall at Goose Falls. Seaweed tissue samples from this estuary had the same relative concentrations of metals as had been reported previously in water samples from this …

Peromyscus Boylii And Peromysus Californicus Differ In Physical Characteristic Measurements, Puja M. Kasondra

Biological Sciences

I provide a comparison of physical characteristics between Peromyscus boylii and Peromyscus californicus. All mice compared were captured in the dominant regions of the Los Padres National Forest during three different years – 2005, 2011, and 2014. The dominant regions of the Los Padres National Forest include Riparian, Woodlands, and Chaparral. All characteristics, ear (from notch), head and body, hind foot, tail, and weights, were compared between males of each species and then between females of each species. All data were analyzed in JMP 12. Out of all the characteristics, tail and weight had the greatest difference between the …

Linking Large Scale Ocean-Atmospheric Patterns With Recruitment In Kellet’S Whelk (Kelletia Kelletii), Katherine N. Rodriguez

Biological Sciences

Global warming influences the biogeography of many marine and terrestrial species. Understanding species range shifts is ecologically and socioeconomically important when guiding management decisions for ecosystems exposed to a rapidly changing climate. In this natural experiment, I follow Danielle Zacherl’s methods (Zacherl et al. 2003) to study the effects of large-scale ocean-atmospheric patterns on recruitment of a marine snail, Kellet’s whelk (Kelletia kelletii); these organisms recently expanded their range North past the geographic barrier of Point Conception to Monterey, CA, USA. I use shell length data collected at 32 subtidal rocky reef kelp forest sites in 2015 (before …

Chronic Arsenic Exposure In Nanomolar Concentrations Accelerates Senescent Phenotypes In Vitro, Heather M. Sabo

Biological Sciences

Arsenic is recognized as an environmental carcinogen, in which over 100 million individuals worldwide experience chronic exposure through contaminated drinking water. Arsenic exposure is linked to several health conditions, such as cancer, diabetes, skin lesions, immune dysfunction, and cardiovascular disease. Here we test the hypothesis that toxicants, such as arsenic, accelerate the program of senescence. Human (IMR-90) primary diploid fibroblasts were chronically exposed to arsenic at nanomolar concentrations and the impact on the expression of senescent-associated mRNAs was evaluated. IMR-90 cells were exposed either to untreated media or exposed to 130nM and 330nM AsCl3 supplemented media. RNA samples were extracted …

Bhlhe40-As1 A Long-Noncoding Rna Regulates Dec1 On Breast Cancer Progression, Denisse Duran-Reyes

Biological Sciences

Ductal Carcinoma in Situ (DCIS) is a precursor to breast cancer where abnormal cells have been found in the mammary duct but have not become invasive and spread into surrounding tissue. There has been an increase in early diagnosis of DCIS, but only around 40% of the cases ever progress to an invasive stage, and thus detection can lead to unnecessary surgeries. To identify which of these 40% progress, long noncoding RNAs were used. Through RNA sequencing of DCIS and invasive cells from real patient samples, BHLHE40 - AS1 was discovered, a long - noncoding R NA, to be highly …

Exploration Of The Interactions Between Amyloid-Beta Protein And Insulin In Various Ionic Conditions, Quade Goldenberg

Biological Sciences

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is characterized by tau tangles and amyloid - β (Aβ) peptide aggregates amyloids in the brain, specifically in the hippocampus. Aβ plaques are known to form primarily in the extracellular space aroun d neuronal cells, interfering with synaptic transmission. The aggregation of Aβ in the hippocampus is associated with a decline in hippocampally - mediated cognitive abilities, which is a symptom of AD. AD has a strong correlation to type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), which is defined by hyperinsulinemia and dysregulated glucose metabolism. It has been shown that insulin plays a role in both memory and learning …

Transcriptional Regulation Of Dksa P3 Promoter In Escherichia Coli, Chibuokem Ikwuazom

Biological Sciences

DksA, a global gene regulator, binds to RNA po lymerase to regulate transcription initiation in Escherichia coli . It negatively regulates transcription of some genes, such as those for ribosomal RNAs and fis , and positively regulates transcription of other genes, including genes involved in amino acid biosynthesis. Little is known about how DksA itself is regulated. Current work in our lab has shown three major promoters, a σ 70 dependent P 1 promoter and two σ 38 (RpoS) - dependent promoters (P 2 and P 3 ), regulate the transcription of dksA . More is current ly known about …

Mulitmodal Molecular Mechanisms Control Germline Stem Cell Differentiation In Drosophila, Mohamad Nasrallah

Biological Sciences

Stem cells have the intrinsic ability to divide to form a stem cell daughter, while also retaining the ability to self - renew. These qualities are critical , as improper stem cell maintenance is implicit in aging and provokes diseases such as cancer. We previously revealed that during Drosophila oogenesis, transcriptional silencing mediated by polar granule component (pgc) alters the germ line cell cycle to promote germ line stem cell (GSC) differentiation. O ur work with pgc suggested that cell cycle regulation might be an important general mecha nism to facilitate division GSCs into daughter stem cells (or cystoblast, CBs), …

Controllable And Sequential Activation Of Cancer Nanotherapy For Enhanced Synergistic Effec, Vincent E. Lamantia

Biological Sciences

The treatment of numerous disease states has become increasingly more complex and challenging, even as we come out with new pharmacological and technological advancements. It is well known that cancer is not one disease, but many diseases that progress and present new challenges with each patient. With this we present a novel design which uses biorthogonal chemistry and magnetic nanoparticles (MNP’s) to create a drug delivery system with the capability to deliver two drugs that are released at two different time points under the direction of a single trigger. This innovative combination of multiple advancements will allow for the treatment …

The Alpine Vascular Plants Of Baxter State Park, Maine, Usa, Abigail J. Urban, Glen H. Mittelhauser, Matthew Dickinson, N. Rajakaruna

Biological Sciences

We conducted 12 days of field surveys on five mountains over 1100 m in elevation (Katahdin, North Brother, South Brother, Mount Coe, and The Owl) in Baxter State Park (BSP), Maine during the summers of 2013–14. In addition, we examined historic manuscripts, unpublished data, and herbarium records for plant records from the five mountains. Katahdin, the largest and tallest of the five mountains, has a rich history of botanical exploration and we documented 1559 herbarium vouchers that were collected from the mountain, primarily before the mid-1900s. Combining all data sources, we documented 38 families, 87 genera, and 131 taxa of …

Role Of Woody Biochar And Fungal-Bacterial Co-Inoculation On Enzyme Activity And Metal Immobilization In Serpentine Soil, Tharanga Bandara, Indika Herath, Prasanna Kumarathilaka, Mihiri Seneviratne, Gamini Seneviratne, Nishanta Rajakaruna, Meththika Vithanage, Yong Sik Ok

Biological Sciences

Purpose

In this study, we investigated the effect of biochar (BC) and fungal bacterial co-inoculation (FB) on soil enzymatic activity and immobilization of heavy metals in serpentine soil in Sri Lanka.

Materials and methods

A pot experiment was conducted with tomatoes (Lycopersicon esculentum L.) at 1, 2.5, and 5 % (w/w) BC ratios. Polyphenol oxidase, catalase and dehydrogenase activities were determined by idometric, potassium permanganate oxidisable, and spectrophotometric methods, respectively. Heavy metal concentrations were assessed by 0.01 M CaCl₂ and sequential extraction methods.

Results and discussion

An increase in BC application reduced polyphenol oxidase, …

Drivers Of Redistribution Of Fishing And Non-Fishing Effort After The Implementation Of A Marine Protected Area Network, Reniel B. Cabral, Steven D. Gaines, Brett A. Johnson, Tom W. Bell, Crow White

Biological Sciences

Marine spatial planning (MSP) is increasingly utilized to sustainably manage ocean uses. Marine protected areas (MPAs), a form of spatial management in which parts of the ocean are regulated to fishing, are now a common tool in MSP for conserving marine biodiversity and managing fisheries. However, the use of MPAs in MSP often neglects, or simplifies, the redistribution of fishing and non-fishing activities inside and outside of MPAs following their implementation. This redistribution of effort can have important implications for effective MSP. Using long-term (14 yr) aerial surveys of boats at the California Channel Islands, we examined the spatial redistribution …