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Trophic Transfer Of A Naturally Occurring Algal Toxin From A Freshwater Lake To Little Brown Bats, Devin Jones

Masters Theses

Microcystis aeruginosa is a species of cyanobacteria capable of producing a hepatotoxin called microcystin. As toxic M. aeruginosa overwinters in the sediments of lakes, it is ingested by some mayfly larvae, such as those of Hexagenia spp., and thus

microcystin bioaccumulates in these insects. When Hexagenia emerge from lakes to

reproduce, they provide an abundant, albeit temporary, food source for many terrestrial

organisms such as bats. Little brown bats, Myotis lucifugus, likely feed opportunistically

on aquatic insects. To test if microcystin moves from aquatic to terrestrial ecosystems via trophic transfer, we 1) tested bat feces for the presence of …

Green Tea Polyphenols Inhibit The Growth Of The Dental Cavity Causing Bacteria Streptococcus Mutans, Amy Lynn Melok

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

An often overlooked disease, dental caries, or cavities, is one of the most prevalent infectious diseases across the globe. Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans) is the main etiological bacteria present in the oral cavity that leads to dental caries. All of the S. mutans in the oral cavity try to pool together to form an intelligent biofilm that adheres to the surfaces of teeth. S. mutans thrive on the sugary foods we eat and release acid by products that aid in the wearing away of the teeth’s enamel. As this enamel begins to wear away, the decaying process begins and cavities …

N-Alkoxyphenylhydroxynaphthalenecarboxamides And Their Antimycobacterial Activity, Aidan Coffey, Et. Al.

Department of Biological Sciences Publications

A series of nineteen N-(alkoxyphenyl)-2-hydroxynaphthalene-1-carboxamides and a series of their nineteen positional isomers N-(alkoxyphenyl)-1-hydroxynaphthalene-2-carboxamides were prepared and characterized. Primary in vitro screening of all the synthesized compounds was performed against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Ra, M. kansasii and M. smegmatis. Screening of the cytotoxicity of the compounds was performed using human monocytic leukemia THP-1 cells. Some of the tested compounds showed antimycobacterial activity comparable with or higher than that of rifampicin. For example, 2-hydroxy-N-(4-propoxyphenyl)-naphthalene-1-carboxamide showed the highest activity (MIC = 12 µM) against M. tuberculosis with insignificant cytotoxicity. N-[3-(But-2-yloxy)phenyl]- and N-[4-(but-2-yloxy)phenyl]-2-hydroxy-naphthalene-1-carboxamide demonstrated high activity against all tested mycobacterial strains and insignificant cytotoxicity. …

Characterization Of The Role Of Host And Dietary Factors In The Establishment Of Bacteria In The Gastrointestinal Tract, Janina A. Krumbeck

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Probiotic bacteria and synbiotics are used as therapeutic and prophylactic agents. The majority of probiotic and synbiotic applications contain bacterial strains that are allochthonous to the human gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Accordingly, many bacterial strains do not survive digestion, or are not capable of persisting and competing the resident gut microbiota, and are therefore washed out of the GI tract shortly after the treatment is discontinued. This might reduce the health effects of these treatments. Therefore, research is needed to address the ecological challenges that probiotic strains encounter in the GI tract in order to develop probiotic regimens. Determining which ecological …

Tlr3 Signaling In Human Bdca-3 Dendritic Cells Results In The Formation Of Several Ilt3 And Ilt4 Populations, Nicholas J. Colletti

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Dendritic cells (DCs) represent a population of innate immune cells that are highly efficient at promoting immune responses. DCs are capable of presenting antigens to both CD4 and CD8 T cells. DC presentation and interaction with T cells can result in either immune stimulation or tolerance. This study intends to phenotype a rare subset of DCs found in the human blood and is distinguishable by the expression of various surface markers including: lineage markers (Lin), HLADR, CD1c, and CD141 or BDCA-3. Stimulating BDCA-3 DCs with Poly I:C, a toll-like receptor (TLR) 3 agonist, resulted in the up-regulation of various canonical …

Spread Of Tylodelphys Mashonense (Digenea: Diplostomidae) By Grey Heron Ardea Cinerea And Great White Egret A. Alba In Lake Victoria, Tanzania, Fred D. Chibwana, Gamba Nkwengulila

Tanzania Journal of Science

Despite the fact that Tylodelphys mashonense, parasites of the cranial cavity of the catfish Clarias gariepinus, are ubiquitous in freshwater systems, little is known on their spread. As such, we examined a total of 152 piscivorous birds, belonging to 6 species; 43 great cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo, 33 grey heron Ardea cinerea, 26 hamerkop Scopus umbretta, 22 great white egret Ardea alba, 15 marabou stork Leptoptilos crumeniferus and 13 pied kingfisher Ceryle rudis foraging in the Lake Victoria. Out of the six bird species only A. cinerea and A. alba were found infected by T. mashonense with prevalence of 42.4% and …

Machine Learning Meta-Analysis Of Large Metagenomic Datasets: Tools And Biological Insight, Edoardo Pasolli, Duy Tin Truong, Faizan Malik, Levi Waldron, Nicola Segata

Publications and Research

Shotgun metagenomic analysis of the human associated microbiome provides a rich set of microbial features for prediction and biomarker discovery in the context of human diseases and health conditions. However, the use of such high-resolution microbial features presents new challenges, and validated computational tools for learning tasks are lacking. Moreover, classification rules have scarcely been validated in independent studies, posing questions about the generality and generalization of disease-predictive models across cohorts. In this paper, we comprehensively assess approaches to metagenomics-based prediction tasks and for quantitative assessment of the strength of potential microbiome-phenotype associations. We develop a computational framework for prediction …

Sequestered Alkaloid Defenses In The Dendrobatid Poison Frog Oophaga Pumilio Provide Variable Protection From Microbial Pathogens, Kyle Hovey

Masters Theses

Amphibians produce the majority of their defensive chemicals, however alkaloid defenses in poison frogs are sequestered from dietary arthropods. Alkaloids function as a defense against predators, and certain types appear to inhibit microbial growth. However, alkaloid defenses vary considerably among populations of poison frogs, reflecting geographic differences in availability of dietary arthropods. Consequently, environmentally driven differences in poison frog alkaloid defenses may have significant implications regarding their protection against pathogens. While natural alkaloid mixtures in poison frogs have recently been shown to inhibit growth of non-pathogenic microbes, no studies have examined the effectiveness of alkaloids against microbes that infect frogs. …

Gray Bat Migration In Missouri, Cheyenne Leigh Gerdes

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Migration is an important and understudied aspect of the life histories of many species, particularly bats. Migration impacts conservation efforts, including efforts to manage the impacts of wildlife disease. The federally endangered gray bat (Myotis grisescens) is a migratory species with documented infections by Pseudogymnoascus destructans, the fungus that causes White-nose Syndrome (WNS). To better understand migration as it might relate to WNS, I quantified the timing and location of gray bat movements in Missouri using acoustic detectors and bat banding. I recorded calls at 4 maternity sites from January to May 2015, and used the R package PVAClone to …

Coevolving Histories Inside And Out: Phylogenetics, Comparative Parasitology, And Host Affinities Of Chipmunk Sucking Lice And Pinworms, Kayce C. Bell

Biology ETDs

Diversification of parasite species, in light of their host association, is an area ripe for testing hypotheses of evolution when one species requires another for survival. The 23 species of western North American chipmunks (genus Tamias) host two species of ectoparasitic sucking lice (Anoplura) and two species of endoparasitic pinworms (Nematoda). I used a phylogenetic approach to investigate the evolutionary histories of the parasites in light of the hosts and the landscape. In comparing the parasites, I found that the two pinworm species have similar diversification patterns, linked to hosts, but those processes occurred on different time scales. As another …

Recumbence Behavior In Zoo Elephants: Determination Of Patterns And Frequency Of Recumbent Rest And Associated Environmental And Social Factors, Matthew Robert Holdgate, Cheryl L. Meehan, Jennifer N. Hogan, Lance J. Miller, Jeff Rushen, Anne-Marie De Passillé, Josesph Soltis, Jeff Andrews, David J. Shepherdson

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Resting behaviors are an essential component of animal welfare but have received little attention in zoological research. African savanna elephant (Loxodonta africana) and Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) rest includes recumbent postures, but no large-scale investigation of African and Asian zoo elephant recumbence has been previously conducted. We used anklets equipped with accelerometers to measure recumbence in 72 adult female African (n = 44) and Asian (n = 28)elephants housed in 40 North American zoos. We collected 344 days of data and determined associations between recumbence and social, housing, management, and demographic factors. African elephants were recumbent less (2.1 hours/day, S.D. …

Structural Characterization Of Tick Cement Cones Collected From In Vivo And Artifical Membrane Blood-Fed Lone Star Ticks (Ambylomma Americanum), Rebekah Bullard, Paige Allen, Chien-Chung Chao, Jessica Douglas, Pradipta K. Das, Sarah E. Morgan, Wei-Mei Ching, Shahid Karim

Faculty Publications

The Lone Star tick, Amblyomma americanum, is endemic to the southeastern United States and capable of transmitting pathogenic diseases and causing non-pathogenic conditions. To remain firmly attached to the host, the tick secretes a proteinaceous matrix termed the cement cone which hardens around the tick’s mouthparts to assist in the attachment of the tick as well as to protect the mouthparts from the host immune system. Cement cones collected from ticks on a host are commonly contaminated with host skin and hair making analysis of the cone difficult. To reduce the contamination found in the cement cone, we have adapted …

Phycotoxin Loads In Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops Truncatus) From The Indian River Lagoon Estuary System And Coastal Altlantic Waters, Florida: 2002-2011, Jeremy Alan Browning

Theses and Dissertations

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) are dramatic increases of algae that produce phycotoxins, and these toxins lead to subsequent neurological dysfunction with symptomatic illness leading, in extreme cases, to mass mortalities of marine mammals. This presents a conservation challenge since the frequency and severity of HABs are increasing on a global scale. Two HAB species that impact marine mammals residing in and utilizing an eastern Florida estuary and surrounding coastal Atlantic waters are Karenia brevis (K. brevis) and Pyrodinium bahamense (Pyrodinium); these HAB species produce the neurotoxins brevetoxin (PbTx) and saxitoxin (STX), respectively. These toxins are present at times in high …

From Tolerance To Transmission: Linking Within-Individual To Community-Level Disease Processes, Sarah Catherine Burgan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Hosts have two main strategies for coping with infections: resistance and tolerance. Resistance is aimed at preventing or eliminating parasites, whereas the goal of tolerance is to maintain performance regardless of parasite burden. The balance between resistance and tolerance within a host may mediate host competence, or the propensity of a host to infect other hosts or vectors. Hosts with high tolerance and low resistance to an infection, for instance, may be highly competent and possess the greatest potential to act as superspreaders. These superspreading hosts will contribute disproportionately to transmission, thus posing the greatest risk to other hosts within …

Staphylococcus Aureus Coordinates Leukocidin Expression And Pathogenesis By Sensing Metabolic Fluxes Via Rpirc, Divya Balasubramanian, Elizabeth A Ohneck, Jessica Chapman, Andy Weiss, Min Kyung Kim, Tamara Reyes-Robles, Judy Zhong, Lindsey N. Shaw, Desmond S. Lun, Beatrix Ueberheide, Bo Shopsin, Victor J Torres

Molecular Biosciences Faculty Publications

Staphylococcus aureus is a formidable human pathogen that uses secreted cytolytic factors to injure immune cells and promote infection of its host. Of these proteins, the bicomponent family of pore-forming leukocidins play critical roles in S. aureus pathogenesis. The regulatory mechanisms governing the expression of these toxins are incompletely defined. In this work, we performed a screen to identify transcriptional regulators involved in leukocidin expression in S. aureus strain USA300. We discovered that a metabolic sensor-regulator, RpiRc, is a potent and selective repressor of two leukocidins, LukED and LukSF-PV. Whole-genome transcriptomics, S. aureus exoprotein proteomics, and metabolomic analyses revealed that …

Trypanosoma Brucei Tif2 And Trf Suppress Vsg Switching Using Overlapping And Independent Mechanisms, Sanaa E. Jehi, Vishal Nanavaty, Bibo Li Ph.D.

Biological, Geological, and Environmental Faculty Publications

Trypanosoma brucei causes debilitating human African trypanosomiasis and evades the host's immune response by regularly switching its major surface antigen, VSG, which is expressed exclusively from subtelomeric loci. We previously showed that two interacting telomere proteins, TbTRF and TbTIF2, are essential for cell proliferation and suppress VSG switching by inhibiting DNA recombination events involving the whole active VSG expression site. We now find that TbTIF2 stabilizes TbTRF protein levels by inhibiting their degradation by the 26S proteasome, indicating that decreased TbTRF protein levels in TbTIF2-depleted cells contribute to more frequent VSG switching and eventual cell growth arrest. Surprisingly, although TbTIF2 …

Effect Of Cntf Derived Peptide, P021 On Cognition And Pathology In 3xtg-Ad Mouse Model Of Alzheimer's Disease, Narjes Baazaoui

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Studies described in this thesis deal with the preventive effects of a neurogenic/neurotropic peptidergic compound, P021, on neurogenesis and synaptic deficits, neurodegeneration, cognitive impairment, and Ab and tau pathologies in a 3xTg-AD mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease (AD).

Background: AD is a chronic progressive neurodegenerative disease. Its multifactorial nature and the heterogeneity make its treatment especially challenging. Although it is a major burden in society, at present there is no drug that can stop or slow down the progression of the disease. Currently, the only available treatments are symptomatic and for mild to severe stages. The development of a drug …

Mechanism Of Action And Applications Of Interleukin 24 In Immunotherapy, Leah Persaud, Dayenny De Jesus, Oliver Brannigan, Maria Richiez-Paredes, Jeannette Huaman, Giselle Alvarado, Linda Riker, Gissete Mendez, Jordan Dejoie, Moira Sauane

Publications and Research

Interleukin 24 (IL-24) is an important pleiotropic immunoregulatory cytokine, whose gene is located in human chromosome 1q32-33. IL-24’s signaling pathways have diverse biological functions related to cell differentiation, proliferation, development, apoptosis, and inflammation, placing it at the center of an active area of research. IL-24 is well known for its apoptotic effect in cancer cells while having no such effect on normal cells. IL-24 can also be secreted by both immune and non-immune cells. Downstream effects of IL-24, after binding to the IL-20 receptor, can occur dependently or independently of the JAK/STAT signal transduction pathway, which is classically involved in …

Assessment Of Tick Antioxidant Responses To Exogenous Oxidative Stressors And Insight Into The Role Of Catalase In The Reproductive Fitness Of The Gulf Coast Tick, Amblyomma Maculatum, D. Kumar, K. Budachetri, V.C. Meyers, Shahid Karim

Faculty Publications

As obligate blood‐sucking ectoparasites, to avoid tissue damage, ticks must neutralize the reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated from uptake and digestion of a bloodmeal. Consequently, ticks utilize a battery of antioxidant molecules, including catalase (CAT), an enzyme that converts hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) into water and oxygen. Here, we investigated the tick antioxidant machinery by exogenous injection of sublethal doses of H₂O₂ or paraquat. The relative transcript levels of selected Amblyomma maculatum antioxidant targets in tissues were determined by quantitative reverse transcriptase PCR following treatment. The results showed 2–16‐fold increases in target antioxidant gene …

Building A Freshwater Bacterial Flora Database For Remote Sensing Applications, Daniel Zimmerman, Laura Moore, J. A. Concha, N. Raqueño, Maryann Herman, Fernando Ontiveros

Undergraduate External Publications

The identification and classification of microbial flora in bodies of fresh water has the potential of enhancing our understanding of this ecosystem and improving water management and bioremediation. This effort may be facilitated by the use of remote sensing technologies. For the last 3 years our undergraduate students have collected water samples in the Lake Ontario Rochester Embayment and Irondequoit Bay with the goal of constructing a database of bacterial species and water parameters (e.g. organic matter and chlorophyl content). Such a database is necessary to establish potential correlations between the presence of certain bacterial species and water parameters that …

Upper, Lower Solutions And Analytic Semigroups For A Model With Diffusion, Yannick T. Kouakep

Applications and Applied Mathematics: An International Journal (AAM)

In this discussion we consider an autonomous parabolic epidemic 2-dimensional system modelling the dynamics of transmission of immunizing diseases for a closed population into bounded regular domain. Our model takes into account diffusion of population with external influx as well as one class of infected individuals. We study the well-posedness two-component diffusion equations including external supplies with Neumann conditions using upper/lower solutions and analytic semigroups. In case of constant population or not, with non-oscillatory solution and constant diffusion, this problem admits travelling wave solutions whose minimum wave speed is surveyed here.

Microwave Assisted Extraction Of Phenolics From Trachyspermum Ammi (L.) Sprague, Sumera Javad, Maimoona Mubarik, Arusa Aftab, Amina Tariq

Journal of Bioresource Management

Trachyspermum ammi (L.) Sprague is an annual herbaceous plant belonging to the family Apiaceae and is mostly administered for stomach disorders. During the present research work, cold maceration and Microwave Assisted Extraction (MAE) of T. ammi Sprague was done by using methanol, dichloromethane and n-hexane separately as extracting solvents. For cold maceration, 2, 4, 6, 18 and 24 hours of time durations were used for each solvent. Maximum extract (50mg/g) was obtained at 18 hours of cold maceration with methanol, while maximum phenolics were also obtained from the same extract, which were calculated to be 170.89μg/g equivalent of Gallic acid. …

Management Of Sclerotium Rolfssi Through Methanolic Leaf Extract Of Alstonia Scholaris (L.) R. Br. And Azadirachta Indica L., Beenish Zia Butt, Nighat Sana, Saba Butt

Journal of Bioresource Management

Sclerotium rolfsii is a polyphagous soil borne fungus infecting more than 500 plant species across the world that is causing vast losses. Although the fungus is soil and seed borne, soil borne inoculum is most vital in infection-causing and syndrome development. Treating soil borne pathogens with fungicides is not reasonable due to very high costs. Environmental hazards are also involved. Therefore, integrated management of pathogens using biological controlling agents is the paramount alternative. Extracts of higher plants have demonstrated a wide range of activity against plant pathogenic organisms. The present research work was carried out to manage the pathogen and …

Identification And Use Of Indicator Data To Develop Models For Marine-Sourced Risks In Massachusetts Bay, Marin M. Kress

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

The coastal watersheds around Massachusetts Bay are home to millions of people, many of whom recreate in coastal waters and consume locally harvested shellfish. Epidemiological data on food-borne illness and illnesses associated with recreational water exposure are known to be incomplete. Of major food categories, seafood has the highest recorded rate of associated foodborne illness. In total, the health impacts from these marine-sourced risks are estimated to cost millions of dollars each year in medical expenses or lost productivity. When recorded epidemiological data is incomplete it may be possible to estimate abundance or prevalence of specific pathogens or toxins in …

Hiv Vaccines: Progress, Limitations And A Crispr/Cas9 Vaccine, Omar A. Garcia Martinez

Biology: Student Scholarship & Creative Works

ABSTRACT: The HIV-1 pandemic continues to thrive due to ineffective HIV-1 vaccines. Historically, the world’s most infectious diseases, such as polio and smallpox, have been eradicated or have come close to eradication due to the advent of effective vaccines. Highly active antiretroviral therapy is able to delay the onset of AIDS but can neither rid the body of HIV-1 proviral DNA nor prevent further transmission. A prophylactic vaccine that prevents the various mechanisms HIV-1 has to evade and attack our immune system is needed to end the HIV-1 pandemic. Recent advances in engineered nuclease systems, like the CRISPR/Cas9 system, have …

Phylogenetic Analysis Of Human Cytomegalovirus Pus27 And Pus28: Ascertaining An Independent Or Linked Evolutionary History, Jessica A. Scarborough

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a widespread pathogen that is particularly skilled at evading immune detection and defense mechanisms, largely due to extensive co-evolution with its host’s immune system. One aspect of this co-evolution involves the acquisition of four virally encoded GPCR chemokine receptor homologs, products of the US27, US28, UL33 and UL78 genes. G protein-coupled receptors (GPCR) are the largest family of cell surface proteins, found in organisms from yeast to humans. In this research, phylogenetic analysis was used to investigate the origins of the US27 and US28 genes, which are adjacent in the viral genome. The results indicate that …

Rickettsia Parkeri Colonization In Ambylomma Maculatum: The Role Of Superoxide Dismutases, Gary Crispell, Khemraj Budachetri, Shahid Karim

Faculty Publications

Background

The Gulf Coast tick (Amblyomma maculatum) is an arthropod vector of Rickettsia parkeri, the causative agent of American boutonneuse fever and an infectious agent of public health significance. In this study, we evaluated the biological significance of the superoxide dismutases (SODs) of A. maculatum in hematophagy and R. parkeri colonization within the tick host.

Methods

An RNA interference approach was used to measure the functional roles of tick SODs (Cu/Zn-SOD and Mn-SOD) in R. parkeri colonization of the tick vector. Total microbial load, R. parkeri infection rate, and compensatory mechanisms by tick genes were …

A Novel Ultrashort Pulsed Laser Method For Pathogen Inactivation, Shaw-Wei David Tsen

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Emerging viral pathogens represent a constant and prominent threat to human health worldwide. There is a dire need to develop new pathogen inactivation techniques that can be used to safeguard the blood supply and to generate inactivated vaccines against these emerging viruses. Unfortunately, current techniques are inadequate because they introduce toxic/carcinogenic chemicals or alter the structure of the products, leading to loss of safety and efficacy. We have developed a novel, chemical-free ultrashort pulsed laser treatment system capable of inactivating a broad spectrum of both enveloped and non-enveloped viruses. We found that ultrashort pulsed laser treatment targets the vibrational modes …

Role Of Atg16l1 In Uropathogenic E. Coli Pathogenesis, Jane Symington

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are among the most common infectious diseases and are primarily caused by uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC). Given the greater incidence of antibiotic resistance among UPEC isolates, it is vital to determine factors and pathways important for an effective host response to UPEC in order to improve therapeutic options for combating UTIs. Autophagy is a cellular degradation pathway that plays important roles in pathogen control and modulation of innate immunity. One essential autophagy protein, ATG16L1, has been further implicated in controlling inflammation due to a common variant of ATG16L1 being associated with increased risk of Crohns disease, …

Omcp Mediated Cowpox Virulence And Its Dependence On The Immune Receptors Nkg2d And Fcrl5., Michel Muzi Sun

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Viruses with large DNA genomes, such as cowpox virus, encode many open-reading frames involved in the modulation of the host immune system, facilitating escape from immune detection or downregulation of specific aspects of the host immune response. Investigation of virally-encoded immunoevasins has been instrumental in understanding host-pathogen interactions. Here, we focus on the cowpox virus immunoevasin Orthopoxvirus MHC Class I-like Protein (OMCP) and demonstrate for the first time that OMCP facilitates cowpox virus virulence in vivo. We have previously documented that OMCP binds the activating receptor NKG2D on NK cells as well as the orphan receptor FCRL5 on innate B …