Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

River Bank Inducement Influence On A Shallow Groundwater Microbial Community And Its Effects On Aquifer Reactivity, Natalie June Gayner

Theses and Dissertations

Placing groundwater wells next to riverbanks to draw in surface water, known as riverbank inducement (RBI), is common and proposed as a promising and sustainable practice for municipal and public water production across the globe. However, these systems require further investigation to determine risks associated with river infiltration especially with rivers containing wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluent. Since microbes drive biogeochemical transformations in groundwater and largely affect water quality, it is important to understand how the microbial communities in drinking water wells are affected by river infiltration. This study investigated if, and to what extent, the microbial community in a …

Conservation Genomics Of Cascades Frogs (Rana Cascadae) At The Southern Edge Of Their Range, Bennett Hardy

Theses and Dissertations

Cascades frogs (Rana cascadae) in the southern Cascades Range of California have been declining over the last 30 years, primarily due to the fungal pathogen, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd). In the Lassen Region of the southern Cascades, at least six of the eleven remaining localities face extirpation within 50 years. These small and isolated populations are prone to negative genetic effects including reduced diversity and increased inbreeding which could potentially exacerbate declines. I used a large dataset of SNP loci generated from high-throughput sequencing to characterize patterns of genetic structure and diversity in twelve R. cascadae populations in California to prioritize …

A Discrete-Event Simulation Approach For Modeling Human Body Glucose Metabolism, Buket Aydas

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation describes CarbMetSim (Carbohydrate Metabolism Simulator), a discrete-event simulator that tracks the blood glucose level of a person in response to a timed sequence of diet and exercise activities. CarbMetSim implements broader aspects of carbohydrate metabolism in human beings with the objective of capturing the average impact of various diet/exercise activities on the blood glucose level. Key organs (stomach, intestine, portal vein, liver, kidney, muscles, adipose tissue, brain and heart) are implemented to the extent necessary to capture their impact on the production and consumption of glucose. Key metabolic pathways (glucose oxidation, glycolysis and gluconeogenesis) are accounted for by …

Studies In Molecular Recognition: Non-Proteogenic Amino Acids For Antibiotic Studies And Chemosensors For Recognition And Reporting Of Metal-Ions, Sarah Anne Oehm

Theses and Dissertations

The field of molecular recognition focuses on the selective and reversible binding of small guest molecules to larger host molecules. This dissertation describes synthesis of small molecules as binding guests for enzymatic substrates as well as molecules as host chemosensors to detect and identify metal ions. Two approaches to new antibiotic drugs have been explored, and an array of sensors for the quantitation of aqueous metals is being commercialized.

As strains of deadly bacteria emerge with evolved resistance to known antibiotics, new drugs are needed with novel mechanisms of action. Natural product antibiotics containing enduracididine, a non-canonical amino acid derived …

Invertebrate Paleoecology Of High Paleo-Latitude Carboniferous Strata Of The Tepuel-Genoa Basin, Argentina, Kate M. Gigstad

Theses and Dissertations

The Late Paleozoic Ice Age (LPIA), which began in the latest Devonian and ended in the Late Permian, was a time of active environmental changes. During this time, glaciers waxed and waned over the ancient continent of Gondwana that was situated over the southern pole. This time of transition from icehouse to greenhouse in the Permian is our closest analogue to our current environmental conditions and increased knowledge of our planetary past will greatly influence our future. Much of the previous research on marine invertebrate paleoecology during the LPIA occurs in far-field or low paleolatitude localities, but less is known …

Time-Resolved Structural Enzymology At X-Ray Free Electron Lasers, Tyler Norwood

Theses and Dissertations

Within the last decade, X-ray Free Electron Lasers (XFELs) have emerged across the world. These XFELs produce X-ray pulses with a duration on the order of femtoseconds, each of which contains 1012 photons. Before the XFEL, the brightest X-ray sources were 3rd generation synchrotrons. While these facilities are still very important for many experiments, XFELs allow for time-resolved experiments with femtosecond time resolution and mixing experiments that are not possible at the synchrotron. Enzymatic processes have promising prospects for medicine which use proteins as drug targets and enhance our understanding of these important biomolecules.

A number of procedures are involved …